The LORD God Stands for Us

When the LORD "lifts up His hand," watch out!

June 20, 2020

"Arise, O LORD; O God, lift up thine hand: forget not the humble."

Psalm 10:12

“Arise, O LORD.”
With these words, the psalmist is asking Jehovah for His help with evil people who are standing against him.  He is asking the LORD to act on his behalf.

This is how Solomon spoke to the LORD in his prayer at the dedication of the Temple (2 Chronicles 6:41).

And this is how David addressed the LORD in his prayer as he fled from his son Absalom (Psalm 3:7, see also Psalm 7:6; 9:19; 17:13; for his other prayers).

“O, God.”
The psalmist then addresses his plea to God, “El.”  God is the “strong one,” the mighty Creator, the sovereign God.  Whatever the need is, He is plenty powerful to help!

“Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me?” (Jeremiah 32:27).

“Lift up thine hand.”
Contrary to the facts, the evil man/woman thinks that God cannot possibly know what he/she is doing.

They think God is blind and ignorant of their thoughts and actions.

“He hath said in his heart, God hath forgotten: he hideth his face; he will never see it” (Psalm 10:11).

They believe that “Even if he does know, He won’t do a thing about it!”

“Wherefore doth the wicked, contemn God?  He hath said in his heart, Thou wilt not require it” (Psalm 10:13).

They think the LORD will not hold them accountable for their evil.

The psalmist asks the LORD God to “lift up His hand.”  When God lifts His hand, watch out!

“‘Lift up thine hand,’ threaten them, that they may desist and repent.  If they repent not let them be punished”[1] (Clarke).

“O God, lift up thine hand – As one does when he is about to strike, or to exert his power.  The prayer is, that God would interfere to put down the wicked”[2] (Barnes).

And believers, we need to note that we do not need to threaten or get all worked up about what the enemy does to us.  We only need to ask our God to lift His hand for us.

“Forget not the humble.”
I imagine that the psalmist is saying this almost sheepishly.  How could the LORD God, ever forget the humble?  He will always remember His saints!  The content of this verse is our prayer.

“This verse is the incessant cry of the Church, and she will never refrain therefrom until her Lord shall come in his glory to avenge her of all her adversaries”[3] (Spurgeon).

The LORD God will stand for us.

“LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear: To judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the man of the earth may no more oppress” (Psalm 10:17-18).

Lord, we praise you that you will never forget your children!

 

Quote: “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world” (Galatians 6:14).

 

 

[1] Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[2] Albert Barnes, Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, the electronic version in eSword.