1Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have led a blameless life;
I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
2Test me, O LORD, and try me,
examine my heart and my mind;
3For Your love is ever before me,
and I walk continually in Your truth.
4I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites;
5I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked.
6I wash my hands in innocence,
and go about Your altar, O LORD,
7proclaiming aloud Your praise
and telling of all Your wonderful deeds.
8I love the house where You live, O LORD,
the place where Your glory dwells.
9Do not take away my soul along with sinners,
my life with bloodthirsty men,
10in whose hands are wicked schemes,
whose right hands are full of bribes.
11But I lead a blameless life;
redeem me and be merciful to me.
12My feet stand on level ground;
in the great assembly I will praise the LORD.
In Psalm 25, David pleaded to God appealing to His mercy, saying: "Remember, O Lord, Your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to Your love remember me, for You are good, O Lord" (Ps. 25:7). Here in Psalm 26, David prays from a position of integrity appealing to God's righteousness. At the end of Psalm 25, David had prayed for integrity (see Ps. 25:21). God had apparently answered that prayer because in this psalm, David is able to come to God on the basis of that integrity. Although David may sound self-righteous in this psalm, David well knows that his righteousness is a gift of God.
This psalm can be divided into three parts: the prayer and the basis for the prayer, that is, David's blamelessness in the situation (vss. 1-3); the evidence of David's blamelessness (vss. 4-8); closing petitions of the prayer (vss. 9-12).
1Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have led a blameless life;
I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.
2Test me, O LORD, and try me,
examine my heart and my mind;
3For Your love is ever before me,
and I walk continually in Your truth.
David begins: "Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the LORD without wavering" (vs. 1). In this prayer, David is asking for "vindication" in his situation, and he is asking for this vindication based on his own "blamelessness" in the situation. Such a prayer should not be rashly made. I personally feel much more comfortable coming to God based on His mercy rather than based on my righteousness. Yet certainly, prior to his great sin with Bathsheba, David had led an exemplary life, with unwavering trust in the Lord. This is demonstrated by his trust in God in fighting Goliath, as well as his trust in God when fleeing from Saul. Of course, because God is holy, such blamelessness is a great basis upon which to come to God. Prayer is so much easier with a clear conscience.
Of course, only Christ could have prayed this prayer in the full sense of its meaning. The rest of us can use it in a limited sense, to pray concerning certain situations in which we are being unjustly persecuted. In such situations, it is best to come to God, not men, for "vindication", as David does. It is only God's opinion that counts. "The testimony, or letters commendatory, of all the men in the world will do us no good, unless God give us His also."[Footnote #9]
David is confident in his clear conscience. In fact, he even asks God to test his statement of blamelessness: "Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind" (vs. 2). God's omniscience was a comfort to David (not so to the wicked). David desires to use God's omniscience to validate his prayer. And David asks for the toughest of examinations. He asks God to "test...try...examine...[his] heart and mind", to scrutinize in detail his heart and mind, his actions and thoughts, his works and motives. At all times, God's examination of us is thorough. God is not fooled by noble outward works when they are done to disguise a dark heart.
Note that the vindication of David's blamelessness was not only to come through God's "examination" of him, but also through God's "testing" and "trying" him. We are proved through testings and trials. "In prosperity every man will seem godly, but afflictions do draw out of the heart whatsoever is there, whether it be good or bad"[Footnote #10]
David is confident that he can withstand God's "testngs" and "trials" for two reasons: "For Your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in Your truth" (vs. 3). We can withstand anything if we remember the Lord's love for us, and all He has done for us. After all, He gave up His Son, who suffered and died for us: can we not endure our light afflictions, and remain blameless? Then also, we can withstand anything if we "walk continually" in God's truth. If delight in God's word is our constant companion, we will recall His word when facing our trials and testings. This will go far in aiding us to withstand them.
4I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites;
5I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked.
6I wash my hands in innocence,
and go about Your altar, O LORD,
7proclaiming aloud Your praise
and telling of all Your wonderful deeds.
8I love the house where You live, O LORD,
the place where Your glory dwells.
Here, David gives the evidences of his blamelessness. "I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites. I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked" (vs. 4,5). As we live and work in this world, we have no choice but to associate with the ungodly, but we do not have to "sit" with them. To "sit" with others means to spend time with them, enjoying their company, relaxing, signaling our approval of them by our presence. Through "sitting" with others, we subtly come under their influence. Those whom we "sit" with affect our behavior. Though it was necessary for David to deal with "deceitful men", he made sure not to "sit" with them. It was much easier to remain blameless by avoiding to "sit" with the ungodly.
Some fall into the trap of "sitting with deceitful men...[and] the wicked" in the name of the gospel. Yes, we are to reach out to those who do not know God, but we are not to "sit" with them. To do so, can be detrimental to our walk with God, and also dangerous for them. "Whilst we are merry and jovial with them, we make them believe their condition is not deplorable, their danger is not great; whereas if we shunned them, as we would a bowed wall, whilst they remain enemies to the Lord, this might do them good, for the startling of them, and rousing of them out of their unhappy security and strong delusions wherein they are held."[Footnote #11]
Not only does David avoid the wicked, he also hates their ways: "I abhor the assembly of evildoers" (vs. 5). It is not enough to just avoid the wicked. We must hate what they love: hate the futility of their ways, hate their love of sin, hate their derision of God. We should do as David: "I wash my hands in innocence, and go about Your altar, O Lord" (vs. 6). Innocence is a wonderful trait. We should all strive for innocence and ignorance of sin. How I envy the innocence of children. One of the tragedies of today's culture is that the innocence of children is shattered so young. Some who are being persecuted feel that they are at a disadvantage if they remain innocent. They feel they must fight fire with fire. On the contrary, our innocence endears us to God, and "if God is for us, who can be against us?" (Rom. 8:31).
Then, instead of searching out the "assembly of evildoers", David goes about the altar of God. His hatred of the "assembly of evildoers" is offset by his love for the house of God (see vs. 8). To know the love of the presence of God is something the ungodly have not experienced. What a blessing is the awareness of the presence of God! All is well when God is near.
David's love for the house of God is demonstrated by his "proclaiming aloud [God's] praise and telling of all [His] wonderful deed" (vs. 7). We are called to shout, to sing, to publish forth the goodness of God. We are so often guilty of downplaying the blessings God has lavished upon us. Our love for the house of God and for His glory should be evident to all. God doesn't need any more secret agents.
9Do not take away my soul along with sinners,
my life with bloodthirsty men,
10in whose hands are wicked schemes,
whose right hands are full of bribes.
11But I lead a blameless life;
redeem me and be merciful to me.
12My feet stand on level ground;
in the great assembly I will praise the LORD.
David continues in his petitions: "Do not take away my soul along with sinners, my life with bloodthirsty men, in whose hands are wicked schemes, whose right hands are full of bribes" (vss. 9-10). David implies here what should be obvious to all: since we have a righteous and holy God, the wicked will be punished. So, David here is praying that he would not, as one of the race of men, be gathered together with them in punishment. He is praying that, ultimately, there will be a separation of the righteous from the wicked. Christ spoke many times of this separation (see Matt. 13:30,49; 24:40; 25:32,46 Luke 16:26), so we can be assured that it will take place. "Our comfort is, that the Great Husbandman discerns the tares from the wheat, and will find a separate place for distinct characters."[Footnote #12]
David distinguishes himself from them on this earth: "But I lead a blameless life" (vs. 11). Then David continues: "Redeem me and be merciful to me" (vs. 11). We see here that the "blamelessness" that David was claiming was not an absolute blamelessness, but a blamelessness as compared to the wickedness of his enemies. If David was claiming an absolute blamelessness, he would not have needed to ask for redemption and mercy. We all need God's mercy. No matter how good we are compared to our neighbors, we fall far short of the righteous standard established by God. Christ stated this standard: "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48). And so, while David felt he could come before God based on his blamelessness in the situation, when all is said and done, he needed God's redemption and mercy in order that his soul not be taken away with his wicked enemies.
David did not know the full mechanism for this redemption. We know far more than he did concerning our redemption by God because we have knowledge of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, the act that provides for our redemption. This is the redemption and mercy about which David was praying. The Lord, in answering David's prayer, gave him the faith to believe that this redemption would come. David ends his prayer: "My feet stand on level ground; in the great assembly I will praise the LORD" (vs. 12). Through faith, David sees himself "in the great assembly" of the saints, shouting praises to the Lord. John the Apostle saw this "great assembly" and described it in the book of Revelation: "Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: `Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns'" (Rev. 19:6). What a glorious day that will be!
Lord, we wait in anticipation for that magnificent day when we too will stand in the "great assembly" of the saints. Give us, by Your Spirit, a yearning for this day. May our lives on the earth be lived in praise and in holiness, looking toward that day when You will gather us with all the saints, according to the redemption and mercy we have received through Your Son, Jesus Christ. It is in His name that we pray these things, Amen.
Footnote:
9. Joseph Caryl, from Spurgeon, A Treasury of David, pg. 419.
10. Robert Cawdray, from Spurgeon, op. cit., pg. 420.
11. Lewis Stuckley, from Spurgeon, op. cit., pg. 423.
12. Charles Spurgeon, op. cit., pg. 418.