"Have mercy upon me, O LORD; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death: That I may show forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation."
Psalm 9:13-14
Did you notice in our verses for today how David is thinking from the past, and in the present, and then he looks toward the future?
Presently: “Have mercy upon me, O LORD; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me…”
He is asking God for help to take care of the wicked people that were troubling him. He demands nothing from God but asks Him to grant mercy from the problems he is facing. Right now, in the present, he needs God’s help.
Past: “Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death…”
David had been in trouble before. He knew what it was to be in situations where there was no way out. If the Lord didn’t intervene he wouldn’t make it out alive. He has seen “the gates of death” and come very close to dying himself, and he would have died if the LORD hadn’t lifted him up.
Future: “That I may show forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation.”
See the reason David wants God to rescue him? He wants to praise Him and show His glory in the gates of Jerusalem. He wants God’s mercy not just to be set free for his own selfish purposes, but in order to continue in what he has already been doing with his life, living for God’s glory!
So when you’re in trouble and you beg God for help, what is your motive for your request? Are you just wanting to make your life more comfortable, or easier, or less painful? Or do you beg God for His mercy in your troubles because you have a very genuine desire to honor His name? Will you use this situation as an opportunity to bless and praise God? Will you use this hardship as David used his? “I will rejoice in thy salvation!”