O
God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my
flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; To
see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. (Psalm 63:1-2)
There is, to me, a divine power and mystery in the first two
verses of this Psalm/Song of David! It expresses a beauty and a wonder that can
scarcely be explained in human terms – it is felt in the secret chambers of the
heart. This Psalm was the favorite of an old War Dog named General George S.
Patton. He knew many of the Psalms by heart, but favored this one especially. I
suppose this proves that the beauty of God’s Word may be borne in a rugged
vessel. The Author is One of particular antiquity being God Almighty Himself
whose utterance was given through the pen of David the King – so this hymn can
only be praised as PERFECT. The tune is St. Peter (or How Sweet the Name) which
is the same for the hymn, How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds, composed
by Alexander Robt. Reinagle of Oxford, England.
Psalms 63 (paraphrase)
1 Lord, thee my God, I’ll early
seek:
my soul doth thirst for thee;
My flesh longs in a dry parch’d land,
wherein no waters be:
2 That I thy power may behold,
and brightness of thy face,
As I have seen thee heretofore
within thy holy place.
3 Since better is thy love than
life,
my lips thee praise shall give.
4 I in thy name will lift my hands,
and bless thee while I live.
5 Ev’n as with marrow and with fat
my soul shall filled be;
Then shall my mouth with joyful lips
sing praises unto thee:
6 When I do thee upon my bed
remember with delight,
And when on thee I meditate
in watches of the night.
7 In shadow of thy wings I’ll joy;
for thou mine help hast been.
8 My soul thee follows hard; and
me
thy right hand doth sustain.
9 Who seek my soul to spill shall
sink
down to earth’s lowest room.
10 They by the sword shall be cut
off,
and foxes’ prey become.
11 Yet shall the king in God
rejoice,
and each one glory shall
That swear by him: but stopp’d shall be
the mouth of liars all. AMEN!
This hymn/Psalm was composed by David under the inspiration of the Holy ghost
while a fugitive from King Saul in the desert of Judaea. He suffered
deprivations of food and water and many other hardships of diverse kinds – not
the least of which was the rejection of a King whom David loved bore particular
allegiance as the anointed one of God.
1 Lord, thee my God, I’ll early
seek: my soul doth thirst for thee; My flesh longs in a dry parch’d land,
wherein no waters be.
In a desert place where no water is plentifully available, we retire to sleep
with thirst, and awaken with greater thirst; but David makes reference to a
more lofty and divine thirst – that for the fellowship of the LORD. In the
deserts of sin, there is no water to be had. The land of sin is a parched and
desolate ground; yet, David’s first waking thoughts are of his thirst for the
Lord, and the realization of his great need for God. What a great change we
should see in our own society were our leaders thirsting for God as did David.
2
That
I thy power may behold, and brightness of thy face, As I have seen thee
heretofore within thy holy place. If one has
not beheld the power of God in their lives, or the bright beauty of holiness in
worship of Him, how destitute of riches is that soul! Such a one is afflicted
with a blindness that may border on madness. But the child of God, which all
devout Christians are, has indeed been given the spiritual vision to see God in
His Holy Sanctuary which Sanctuary the Heart is.
Our good friend and teacher, Matthew Henry, expresses the
meaning of the beginning two verses this way: Early will I seek thee. The true Christian devotes to God
the morning hour. He opens the eyes of his understanding with those of his
body, and awakes each morning to righteousness. He arises with a thirst after
those comforts which the world cannot give, and has immediate recourse by
prayer to the Fountain of the water of life. The true believer is convinced,
that nothing in this sinful world can satisfy the wants and desires of his
immortal soul; he expects his happiness from God, as his portion. When faith
and hope are most in exercise, the world appears a weary desert, and the
believer longs for the joys of heaven, of which he has some foretastes in the
ordinances of God upon earth. —Matthew Henry Concise
3
Since
better is thy love than life, my lips thee praise shall give. 4 I in thy name will lift my
hands, and bless thee while I live. 5
Ev’n
as with marrow and with fat my soul shall filled be; Then shall my mouth with
joyful lips sing praises unto thee: 6
When
I do thee upon my bed remember with delight, And when on thee I meditate in
watches of the night.
Instead of cursings and by-words,
should our lips not be used to the better purpose of praise to God? Our hands
are, indeed, God’s Hands. Should we not lift them in His cause and in praise of
that Great Dignity who has preserved us? The best of all things belong to the
Christian though the world is blind to true riches. When He has filled our
hungry lips with the best of the table, and filled our cups with soothing wine
of the Spirit, should we not praises Him all the more rather than to grow fat
and self-satisfied? Here is an interesting thought: Do we remember the Lord
upon our beds? Those who do can never be driven to adultery or other sins of
the flesh. Though David is the writer of these words, God is the Author. David
did not always heed the words God spoke herein. Remember when David arose from
his bed and went for a little walk on the roof to spy out Bathsheba? Every
rousing moment of our sleep, we should be mindful of the One who gives sleep
and rest.
7 In shadow of thy wings I’ll
joy; for thou mine help hast been. 8 My soul thee follows hard; and
me thy right hand doth sustain. 9 Who seek my soul to spill shall
sink down to earth’s lowest room. 10 They by the sword shall be cut
off, and foxes’ prey become. 11 Yet shall the king in God
rejoice, and each one glory shall. That swear by him: but stopp’d shall be the mouth of
liars all. AMEN! God is our Fortress and High Tower – a Fortress to
protect from the slings and arrows of the Enemy; and a High Tower of watching
for dangers and assaults. Once we admit that we can do nothing except God gives
us the means, then are we more closely drawn to Him. We need not harbor
vengeful thoughts against our enemy – the justice of God is sure and full. I
have personally witnessed this in frightful ways often in my life. The true
King shall rejoice in God our Father, and we all will have cause to glory in
Him. But the evil eye and wicked tongue shall be destined to feed the fires of
an eternal Hell.
It is not fear of Hell that motivates the Christian, but
rather the joy of being accounted a Child of the King!
