594_Lord, the strength of my salvation (Psalm 140) Psalm 140 Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; preserve me from violent men, 2 who plan evil things in their heart and stir up wars continually. 3 They make their tongue sharp as a serpent’s, and under their lips is the venom of asps. Selah 4 Guard me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from violent men, who have planned to trip up my feet. 5 The arrogant have hidden a trap for me, and with cords they have spread a net; beside the way they have set snares for me. Selah 6 I say to the Lord, You are my God; give ear to the voice of my pleas for mercy, O Lord! 7 O Lord, my Lord, the strength of my salvation, you have covered my head in the day of battle. 8 Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked; do not further their evil plot, or they will be exalted! Selah 9 As for the head of those who surround me, let the mischief of their lips overwhelm them! 10 Let burning coals fall upon them! Let them be cast into fire, into miry pits, no more to rise! 11 Let not the slanderer be established in the land; let evil hunt down the violent man speedily! 12 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will execute justice for the needy. 13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks to your name; the upright shall dwell in your presence. There is a story often told of a small coastal town that was battered year after year by fierce storms. The houses closest to the shore were regularly damaged, and many people eventually moved inland. Yet one house remained standing, season after season, seemingly untouched by the fury of wind and waves. When asked how his house endured when others fell, the owner replied simply, “I didn’t build it to look strong. I built it to survive storms.” He had anchored the foundation deep into bedrock, invisible to the eye but immovable when the storm came. Strength, he explained, is proven not in calm weather but in crisis. Psalm 140 is written from the middle of a storm. It is not a calm reflection from a place of safety but an urgent prayer rising from danger. David is surrounded by hostility, malice, and violence. Yet this psalm is not primarily about the power of enemies; it is about the strength of God in salvation. David has learned, through years of trials, that survival does not come from clever strategies or personal might, but from a life anchored in the Lord. That is why he can cry out with confidence, “O Lord, my Lord, the strength of my salvation.” David begins with an urgent plea: “Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; preserve me from violent men.” There is no pretense here, no attempt to sound composed. This is the prayer of someone who knows he is in danger. The enemies he describes are not merely disagreeable people; they
