Psalm 5 – A Morning Prayer

April 1, 2020 admin Comments 0 Comment

O Lord, hear me as I pray;
Pay attention to my groaning.
Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,
For I pray to no one but you.
Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.
Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly. Psalm 5:1-3

As a morning prayer, Psalm 5 is a companion to Psalm 4 which was a prayer for going to bed and handing everything over to God. Psalm 5 helps us begin our day with God.

When we open our eyes, the day is half over. While we have been sleeping, God has been doing his work. He didn’t need our help at all. So our morning prayer is our way of joining God in his work.

Part of God’s work is around us in the world, and part of God’s work is within us, forming us as his children. So in prayer we join God in his work — both within us and around us.

The first thing we do is call God by name. The poet says,

“O Lord, hear me; Listen to me, my King and my God.

Jesus taught us to call God ‘Father’ as a sign of how intimate we can be with the One who is also our King and our holy God.

So we open our heart to him – whether it is rejoicing or groaning, fearful or exuberant. We ask God to hear us, … and not just hear, but listen; … and not just listen, but to pay attention.

This is part of the singer’s morning routine and we learn from him morning by morning to put into words the challenges and opportunities we foresee in the hours ahead; we name our hopes and fears and bring our requests to God – and, our psalm says, we wait expectantly.

As the poets waits, his mind and heart shift to something really jarring. He thinks about the nasty people and moral misfits that riddle his world.

O God, . . . you hate all who do evil. You will destroy those who tell lies. The Lord detests murderers and deceivers. (v. 4-6)

He does this again in v.9-10 where he reflects on all the toxic language he knows he is going to hear all day long.

My enemies cannot speak a truthful word. They’re deceptive and destructive; their talk is foul and full of flattery. (v.9-10)

What place does this have in a nice morning prayer?

In fact, it seems that the poet is imagining the dangers that he knows will be stalking him that day. He knows there will be lots of opportunity to cut corners,to take advantage of people, to shade the truth. He knows how resentful he can be towards negative people in his office.He knows how easily he is seduced by the promises and fantasies the world has on offer. So he confesses his need and he arms himself for the battle. He prays,

Lead me in the right path, O Lord, or my enemies will conquer me.
Make your way plain for me to follow (v.8)

He wants to live obediently, and he knows that without God’s help, his spiritual weakness will win the day.

But he also knows that God’s love for him is not dependent on his obedience. He says in v. 7, It is because of your unfailing love, that I can enter your house and worship at your Temple with awe. (v.7)

God’s unfailing love. The Hebrew word is hesed, which is the faithful loyal covenant love of God. It is the pledge of God’s character. At the heart of our morning prayer is God’s gracious welcoming and all-encompassing love. It’s the anchor of our confidence in praying.

Our personal concerns are vital to honest prayer, and God pays personal attention to them, but another part of God’s work in us in prayer is to enlarge our horizons. And so, in the closing two verses the poet he expands his prayer to include others:

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them sing joyful praises forever.
Spread your protection over them,
that all who love your name may be filled with joy.
For you bless the godly, O Lord;
you surround them with your shield of love. (v.11-12)

So, in our morning prayer we call God by name and open our heart to him. We tell him our needs and we listen to what he brings to our mind. And we pray for others that God will surround them as he surrounds us with his shield of love.

Today, as we continue in this time of social isolation, reflect on these words and phrases from the end of Psalm 5 as you pray for yourself and others: