Psalm 17

¹Hear a just cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer which is not from deceitful lips.
² Let my vindication come from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look on the things that are upright.

³ You have tested my heart;
You have visited me in the night;
You have tried me and have found nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
⁴ Concerning the works of men,
By the word of Your lips,
I have kept away from the paths of the destroyer.
⁵ Uphold my steps in Your paths,
That my footsteps may not slip.

⁶ I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech.
⁷ Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand,
O You who save those who trust in You
From those who rise up against them.
⁸ Keep me as the apple of Your eye;
Hide me under the shadow of Your wings,
⁹ From the wicked who oppress me,
From my deadly enemies who surround me.

¹⁰ They have closed up their fat hearts;
With their mouths they speak proudly.
¹¹ They have now surrounded us in our steps;
They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth,
¹² As a lion is eager to tear his prey,
And like a young lion lurking in secret places.

¹³ Arise, O Lord,
Confront him, cast him down;
Deliver my life from the wicked with Your sword,
¹⁴ With Your hand from men, O Lord,
From men of the world who have their portion in this life,
And whose belly You fill with Your hidden treasure.
They are satisfied with children,
And leave the rest of their possession for their babes.

¹⁵ As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.

You have tested my heart

I know I’ve said it before, but sometimes God puts us through trials. The stronger our faith, the less able troubles are to move us. The author of this psalm celebrates that God has found no faults in him, and that he has “kept away from the paths of the destroyer,” a phrase that I like the sound of, but can’t say anything significant about.

Uphold my steps in Your paths, that my footsteps may not slip

Again, God gives us the correct paths. Not only that, He makes sure that we don’t stumble on the path that He gives us.

Keep me as the apple of Your eye

Stevie Wonder wrote a song: “You are the sunshine of my life, that's why I'll always be around, you are the apple of my eye, forever you'll stay in my heart.” I’m not sure what that has to do with anything, but it’s stuck in my head now, so I have to spread it around like a disease. It’s still a good thing to think about, though. God will always be around, because we’re the apples of His eye, and He should be the sunshine of our lives that we always keep in our hearts. See how I did that there?

I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness

We need to simplify sometimes. All it takes to be satisfied is being with God.