I bless the LORD who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I have set the LORD always before me;
because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let your holy one see corruption.
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
(Psalms 16:7-11 ESV)
For today’s reading in Untamed Prayers, Chad Bird finishes Psalm 16.
David was not writing about himself in this psalm. Both Peter and Paul quoted verse 10 of this psalm, which says, “You will not let Your holy one see corruption.” We know that David died and his body eventually decomposed. But Christ, though He died, rose again, and His body did not see corruption. He was not abandoned to Sheol.
In the second chapter of Acts, Peter says this:
“Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.”
(Acts 2:29-31 ESV)
Then later, in chapter 13, Paul, after quoting the same verse says this:
“For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, but he whom God raised up did not see corruption.”
(Acts 13:36-37 ESV)
So we can read Psalm 16 as “Christ’s pre-death, pre-tomb prayer, brimming with the hope of resurrection. Christ says, ‘I shall not be shaken . . . my flesh also dwells secure . . . you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption . . . in your presence there is fullness of joy’ (Ps. 16:8-11). This bold, hopeful prayer is ours also. Unlike Christ’s body, our bodies will see corruption, but not forever. When Jesus returns, he will unearth and glorify our bodies. Until then, by faith, we walk along ‘the path of life,’ awaiting the day we will enjoy ‘pleasures forevermore’ in the Son who sits at the Father’s ‘right hand.’ (16:11).”
Psalm 16:11 is one of my favorite verses in Psalms. And just this afternoon, as I quoted it to another blogger, I realized, as I wrote “In your presence there is fullness of joy,” that I am always in His presence.
As I concluded my Jesus Time tonight, with today’s reading from Portals of Prayer, the subject of light came up, yet again.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.
(Isaiah 9:2 ESV)
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid? . . .
One thing have I asked of the LORD,
that will I seek after: that I may dwell
in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to inquire in his temple. . . .
You have said, “Seek my face.”
My heart says to you,
“Your face, LORD, do I seek.”
(Psalms 27:1, 4, 8 ESV)
Light, light, light!!! I have walked in darkness, but Christ has chased my darkness away with His light! He is the Light of the world!! The light has shined and the darkness has not overcome it!
In His presence . . . fullness of joy . . . light . . . and beauty. I echo the prayer of the psalmist in Psalm 27. My heart’s greatest desire is to see Christ in His beauty. Therefore, I seek His face. Always.
But I know . . . I am always in His presence. Always, really.
Thank You, my Jesus! You have saved my life!
“Heavenly Father, I am Your child. Through Word and Sacrament I have been born anew. By Jesus’ blood and sacrifice I have been received and adopted into Your family. Dear God, I admit I have not lived every moment of this day as becomes a child of Yours. There were times when I strayed, and self-will, negligence, lovelessness, and impurity found a resting place in my heart. I confess to You not only these sins but every sin with which I have offended You. O Father, I am not worthy to be called Your child. But I pray that You would, out of fatherly divine goodness and mercy, for the sake of Jesus’ blood, forgive me my transgressions. Let my faith in this forgiveness be unwavering and sure. Let my gratitude to You be expressed in truth and in deed. Without Your peace I struggle under the burden of my sin and am lost, but with the joy of Your forgiveness I have all things. Comfort me in Your forgiving love, and preserve me steadfast in this faith now and forevermore. Amen.”
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 15, Friday Evening)
Gracious heavenly Father, “Abide with me, fast falls the eventide. The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide” (LSB 878:1). As a father loves, comforts, and protects his child, so do also with me. Let me fall asleep in peace, knowing that my sins are forgiven for Jesus’ sake and that You have a watchful eye on my loved ones and me. I lay my worries, fears, and concerns before You, knowing that You will help me work through them. For this and all other blessings, accept my thanks and praise. “O Lord, in You have I trusted; let me never be confounded” (LSB, p. 225). In Jesus’ name. Amen.
(Portals of Praise, Prayer for Friday Evening)
Grace and peace, light and beauty, my brothers and sisters! You are in His presence, where there is fullness of joy! Drink deep!
Because Jesus!! 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love 