Read Psalm 141
Questions from the Scripture text: Whose psalm was this (superscript)? To Whom is it addressed (Psalm 141:1a)? What is David doing? What does he ask God to do (verse 1b–c)? As/like what does he ask for his prayer to be received (Psalm 141:2a)? As/like what else (verse 2b)? What does he ask YHWH to do to his speech in Psalm 141:3? In what two ways? What does he ask Him to do to his thoughts in Psalm 141:4a? What will this prevent (verse 4b)? Under what pressure (verse 4c)? And what temptation (verse 4d)? What providence helps against wicked words, thoughts, and actions (Psalm 141:5a, c)? Whom does the Lord use to do it? How should the godly view it (verse 5b, d)? How should he respond to it (verse 5e)? Against what does he pray (verse 5f)? What will happen to wicked judges (Psalm 141:6a)? And whose words will they hear in that day (verse 6b)? But what is the current circumstance (Psalm 141:7)? So, what is David doing in such a circumstance (Psalm 141:8a–b)? What does He ask YHWH not to do (verse 8c)? And, positively, to do to him (Psalm 141:9, Psalm 141:10b)? And to the wicked (verse 10a)?
How should we pray when we are in danger of sinning? Psalm 141 looks forward to the opening portion of morning public worship on the coming Lord’s Day. In these ten verses of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit teaches us that we should pray against our sin as those who come to God smelling like the worthiness of Christ, confident that He will finish the work of making us to be like Christ.
Evening prayers. This psalm forms a pair with Psalm 5, bringing home to us the essential application of the morning (cf. Psalm 5:3) and evening (Psalm 141:2) sacrifices. The Lord has built into our daily habits oases of prayer. Never are they more necessary than in that Psalm, and this, when under the pressure of the aggression of the wicked. And David doesn’t just take from this instruction in what to do in the evenings, but encouragement in how his prayers are received by God. What a mercy, to know that the Lord is receiving our prayer as sweet incense (verse 2a)—all the more so, when we know that the Lord Jesus Himself is adding His incense to our prayers (cf. Revelation 8:3–4). This same Lord Jesus is answering our prayers for vindication with His powerful responses against the wicked in the earth (cf. Revelation 8:5).
Our greatest threat. Even though the wicked are attacking him (Psalm 141:7) and laying snares for him (Psalm 141:9-10a), David has identified a greater threat: his own words (Psalm 141:3), thoughts (Psalm 141:4a), and works (verse 4b). When we pray to be “delivered from the evil” (cf. Matthew 6:13, Luke 11:4), it is not specifically the evil “one” as our English translation has it, but especially that evil which remains in us. While Scripture teaches us that this is our responsibility (cf. Philippians 2:12), yet the biblical man knows that only by God’s grace is it a possibility (cf. Philippians 2:13). So David asks YHWH Himself to guard his mouth (Psalm 141:3), and to incline his heart properly (Psalm 141:4a–b). This grace is needful not only because of our inherent sinfulness, but because of the pressure to join the wicked (verse 4c), and the temptation to desire what they enjoy (verse 4d).
Blessed blows. The wicked are not the only ones in the earth. The Lord has those who are His, and it is a very different matter to be “struck” by them (Psalm 141:5). Not every wound is harmful. Some are kindness and excellent oil (verse 5). We should welcome the rebuke of the righteous, just as much as we shrink from the friendship of the wicked.
Confident about completion. All of this is prayed in the urgency of the evil and danger of sin, but not in the despair or anxiety of uncertainty. As David prays against both his and others (Psalm 141:5f) evil deeds, he does so knowing that even though the wicked have power and include judges (Psalm 141:6a), when they are overthrown, they will be hearing David’s sweetly righteous words (verse 6b). YHWH will not forsake our soul (Psalm 141:8). He will, indeed, deliver us from both the evil within us, and those who would see us fall into it (Psalm 141:9-10). He will complete what He has begun (cf. Philippians 1:6) and perfect that which concerns us (cf. Psalm 138:8).
What are your morning prayers like? What are your evening prayers like? What effect does it have on you to grasp Christ’s intercession “sweetening” your prayers unto God? How have you been treating your own sin as your greatest threat? What righteous have loved you with rebuke? How have you received it? What would it look/feel like in your heart to be praying for your sanctification with more confidence?
Sample prayer: Lord, thank you for giving us to cry out to You evening and morning, with Your Son, our Lord Jesus, Himself, offering incense with our prayers. Receive us, in Him, as sweet-smelling sacrifice. And work in us, by the means of Your grace, to guard our mouths, and incline our hearts, and form our works according to the character of Christ. By Your Spirit’s applying Christ to us, bring us safely to You in our worship here, until You have brought us safely, in Him, all the way home to You, we ask in His Name, AMEN!
Suggested Songs: ARP141B “When Just Men Strike Me in Reproof” or TPH141 “O LORD, to You I Call”
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