”I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.
Psalm 34:4New International Version (NIV)
Psalm 34:4 Devotional (Daily Bible Verse)
He answered me and delivered me
Psalm 34:4, themed “He answered me and delivered me“, is David’s fourth verse of this Psalm of thanksgiving. David usually wrote and sang such hymns to thank God for delivering him from life-threatening situations. And accordingly, the superscription of this Psalm places it at the time when David “feigned madness before Abimelech, so that he was driven out, and went away” from the danger he was in.
Therefore, David wrote this Psalm after God had delivered him from the hands of Abimelech. Because he had to act like a madman and Abimelech drove him out of his presence. And 1 Samuel 21:10-15, which is the closest record that corroborates this Psalm, reveals that when David fled from king Saul, he went to seek refuge from king Achish. But Achish recognized that the man before him was David.
Achish, therefore, feared for his life because David was a mighty warrior with an impressive curriculum vitae (CV). And David had no option but to feign madness in order to hide his true identity and escape from Achish.
God answered David and delivered him
Consequently, God answered David by giving him the idea of acting like a madman. And Abimelech doubted that the man before him was David.
Therefore, Abimelech sent David away from his presence. And he went and hid in a cave. He was thus delivered from the hand of Abimelech.
Many enemies
Moreover, David had many enemies. And among David’s many enemies, Saul, the king of Israel, attempted to kill David on several occasions.
But David had managed to survive the attempts to kill him and was running for his life because of fear. And why wouldn’t David have been afraid?
Furthermore, Saul had the entire Israel army at his disposal while David only had about six hundred men. And David, therefore, had every reason to be afraid.
God delivered David from all his fears
Nevertheless, God delivered David from all his fears. And from the testimony of Psalm 34:4, God can deliver you from your fears too, in 3 steps.
- Seek Him (You have to be a seeker of God in the midst of your fears – Matthew 7:7. Therefore, you need to be intentional in your prayers, and you will find God – Jeremiah 29:13)
- He will answer you (God is trustworthy. Therefore, expect and wait for His answer.)
- He will deliver you (God is your deliverer. Therefore, expect and wait for His deliverance.)
Prayer/Blessing
Thank You, Lord, that I can come to You at any time about anything and my fears. And You will listen to me!
I, therefore, lay my fear before You and ask You to deliver me. And I am convinced that You will deliver me.
Consequently, I wait for Your answer and subsequent deliverance. And this is my humble prayer in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Daily Bible Reading
Titus 1-3 and Philemon 1 (see How to Read the Bible in One Year or How to Read the Bible (for Beginners))
