“Hear me, Lord, my plea is just; listen to my cry. Hear my prayer—it does not rise from deceitful lips. Let my vindication come from you; may your eyes see what is right. Though you probe my heart, though you examine me at night and test me, you will find that I have planned no evil; my mouth has not transgressed.”
- Psalm 17:1-3 -

The psalmist is consistently walking God’s ‘paths’ (v 5). What is the result? He experiences much danger. He is surrounded by enemies who rail against him. They are compared to hungry lions stealthily stalking their prey, ready to attack (vs 10–12). This experience is echoed in Pilgrim’s Progress when John Bunyan’s pilgrim, Christian, climbs ‘Hill Difficulty’. This is part of Christian discipleship, for Jesus speaks about the narrow way.

If this is our experience, two points from the psalm will help us. First, the evil we’re facing may be strong, but our God is stronger. The psalmist earnestly cries to God and he does so with confidence.

Second, we can keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. The psalmist is taken up with God and wants to see more of his ‘great love’ (v 7). He delights in him and longs to see him face to face (v 15). Such an attitude and such a focus will sustain us for the toughest of journeys.

Prayer: Lord, I thank you for the reminder that when I battle the enemy, I am not fighting for victory but from victory. In you, I will prevail.

(From Encounter with God)