Psalm 41 Written by David. May have been Written during Absalom’s rebellion against his father David.
1 Blessed is the one who have regard for the weak; the LORD will deliver him in the day of trouble.
2 The LORD will protect and preserve him; He will bless him in the land and refuse to surrender him
to the will of his foes.
3 The LORD will sustain him on his bed of illness and restore him from his bed of sickness.
4 I said, “O LORD, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against You.”
5 My enemies say with malice: “When will he die and be forgotten?”
6 My visitor speaks falsehood; he gathers slander in his heart; he goes out and spreads it abroad.
7 All who hate me whisper against me; they imagine the worst for me:
8 “A vile disease has been poured into him; he will never get up from where he lies!”
9 Even my close friend whom I trusted, the one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.
10 But You, O LORD, be gracious to me and raise me up, that I may repay them.
11 By this I know that You delight in me, for my enemy does not triumph over me.
12 In my integrity You uphold me and set me in Your presence forever.
13 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Amen and Amen.
SECTIONS:
I A blessed one and the enemy of the blessedness
II A plea and a praise
THEME: Plea for God’s loving, tender care when we face a crisis of sickness and betrayal; abuse and assurance
QUESTIONS:
In what way does the Lord bless those who care for the weak and poor?
What do David’s enemies say about him?
What does David ask of God?
Reading this psalm, what do you learn about the characteristics of God?
OTHER BIBLE TRANSLATION (Parellel verses)-verse 1
King James =Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
New American Standard- How blessed is he who considers the helpless; The LORD will deliver him in a day of trouble.
Christian Standard-Happy is one who is considerate of the poor; the LORD will save him in a day of adversity.
God’s Word-Blessed is the one who has concern for helpless people. The LORD will rescue him in times of trouble.
David knew that he had done good, but that did not erase his sins. He understood that his sins made him like a sick or injured person who needed healing in his soul. His body was sick, but more important was his soul-sickness. He needed healing in three ways, from his distress, from the effect of sin, and from his tendency to sin. Since he’s not depressed by the weight of his sin it’s likely he’s making a general confession.
David was moral and a good king, and it is most likely had many enemies beause they were jealous of him. Many people today come against Christians today even though they live moral lives, are good citizens, and don’t practice evil. Christians have always been persecuted. Just as people spoke against Jesus, there will be peple who speak against Christians. David’s enemies couldn’t wait for him to die. They did whatever they could to bring his death to pass.
In his sorrowful state of being punished for sins, David describes the character of the one who is blessed. David begins this psalm by instructing the worshipers to think about others in the time of trouble. “Blessed is he who has regard for the weak.”
What a fascinating statement to make in the midst of the suffering that David is enduring! How often we forget to look to the needs of others when we are in the midst of suffering. It’s rare for us to not dwell on our own difficulties. If we focus on our own problems and suffering, it only plunges us into deeper depression and self-pity. And often we participate in what I call “one-upping.” If you say you have been suffering, I have a story to show you that I have it worse. If something happened to you, then you need to hear about what happened to me. Rather than having regard for the weak, we ttell them that we have it worse than they do. But instead of making people look to us, we need to listen and help those who are in times of trouble.
David shares the rewards God gives to those who show concern for the weak. Notice how God helps those who have regard for the weak. They are: (1) delivered, (2) protected/preserved, (3) blessed, (4) not abandoned, (5) sustained, and (6) restored. These are words of great confidence and remind us that God is always with us when we are serving him. Even when times are extremely dire, David expresses continued hope despite the circumstances.
“The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness.” The scriptures record many instances of people whose faith in God was answered and these people could overcome dire circumstances. Hezekiah prayed about his fatal illness and was healed. Daniel and his three friends were delivered from the lion’s den and the fiery furnace. Esther and the Jewish people were delivered by God. We have a song “Our God Is Able To Deliver Thee.”
After the deliverance of Noah from the flood and Lot from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, God made us this promise: “So the Lord knows how to save those who serve him when troubles come” (2 Peter 2:9). We must have a confidence that God can deliver us through any circumstance, just as we see this kind of faith in the heroes of the scriptures.
David describes how bad his life is at this moment. He declares that his enemies speak about him in malice, hoping he dies. Others come to him and speak falsely, slandering his reputation. All of his enemies whisper against him, imagining the worst for him. They say that David will never recover from the disease he has. Even his close friends, those whom he trusted, have betrayed him.
What a terrible situation to be found in! Everyone seems to be against him. Worst yet, even those in whom he trust and befriended have turned against him. In the midst of all of this turmoil, David calls out to God for mercy.
‘He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me.’” This is something that Jesus reveals about Judas, who has lifted his heel against Jesus. When we read John 13:18 we have a much better understanding of what Jesus means when he says these words. Now we see why the disciples are shocked and want to know who is the one who has lifted his heel against Jesus. But this quotation draws from David’s life in psalm 41.
The whole quotation is “Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.” We probably have under-emphasized the significance of Judas betraying Jesus. We typically think of Judas as a rogue apostle that no one liked who was an outcast from the beginning. But the prophecy shows that Jesus and Judas were close, as we would expect all of the twelve to be extremely close friends with Jesus. David’s words also predict the way Jesus would show who was the betrayer by sharing bread in the final meal with the twelve.
As we reread this prophecy looking through the lens of messianic foretelling, we can see the circumstances of Jesus’ life just before his arrest and death. There is no doubt David is speaking of himself in this psalm as he describes that he has sinned. This cannot be applied to Jesus. But the circumstances are very similar. Jesus’ enemies desire his death and conspire to kill him. And the one who would bring about his death was a close friend, one of the chosen apostles. This is a stunning revelation to the apostles.
In the midst of David’s suffering, with his enemies who desire his death, David is able to realize that God is still with him and pleased with him. We have to keep our faith and confidence despite the circumstances we face in life. Too often life’s trials cause us to doubt God’s existence, the favor of God, or the love of God toward us. I recently had a conversation with someone who claimed they had lost their faith in God because of the difficult circumstances the person was facing. In fact, the person had no trouble saying that God was to blame. But how can we think this? Do we really think that God doesn’t care about us any more. Do we really think that God has decided to turn his back on us now, after already giving his Son for our sins to save our souls? The idea doesn’t make sense, yet how often men and women buy into these lies of Satan.
Rather than not believing and trusting in God, we need to continue praising God in our suffering, as David does. Job leaves us an excellent example of living a life of integrity. We must also live lives filled with integrity even during our darkest times. Satan is attempting to strip us away from God. We cannot allow Satan to win. God is watching to see how we deal with the tribulations of life. It is easy to serve God when things are favorable. The great challenge of life is to keep our faith in the midst of great despair. This was Job’s test. This was David’s test. This is our test.
https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/wiersbe-be-bible-study/psalm-41
David’s in distress because of sickness (vv. 8, 10) and sin (v. 4). He’s in danger as his enemies plot against him and wait for him to die. These factors seem to place this psalm in the time of Absalom’s rebellion. David’s illness prevented him from leading the nation as he wanted to (2 Sam 15:1-6), and Absalom took advantage of this to promote himself as king. If the “dear friend” (v.9) is David’s counselor Ahithophel, then the matter of the historical setting is settled (2 Sam. 16:15ff.). Jesus quoted verse 9 in the upper room when referring to Judas (John 13:18), so the psalm also has messianic overtones. When we find ourselves in difficulty, we may use this psalm to take an inventory of our spiritual condition by asking and answering four questions.
Integrity: How Do We Treat Others (vv. 1-4)? We must examine our hearts. David knew that he had no right to claim mercy from the Lord if he himself had not shown mercy to others. But David had shown mercy to King Saul, to Saul’s grandson Mephibosheth, and to the needy in the land. “Poor” refers to the helpless, who have difficulties and depended on the help of others. To “consider” these people meant you see to their needs and assist them. You don’t judge or blame, as Job’s friends blamed him and the disciples blamed the blind man (John 9:1-4). David listed the blessings God for helping the weak. If we haven’t been merciful to others, how can our hearts be right to ask Him for mercy?
Treachery: How Do Others Treat Us (vv. 5-9)? David was sick in bed, but he also had to deal with treachery among his own family and friends, including men like Ahithophel, his official counselor, who sided with Absalom. Ahithophel was Bathsheba’s grandfather (2 Sam. 11:3; 23:34) and hated David for what he did to her and to her husband Uriah. These false friends visited the king and lied to him (“We hope you’ll get well soon”), but they really wanted David to die and plotted against him. But if Absalom became king, that would end the Davidic dynasty, for Absalom had no son (2 Sam. 18:18). God promised David that his descendants would sit on the throne of Israel forever (2 Sam. 7:11-16), a promise ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Luke 1:31-33). David was gifted at reading people (2 Sam. 14:17-20) and knew the truth.\
Mercy: How Does God Treat Us (vv. 10-12)? God in His mercy doesn’t give us what we do deserve because of Jesus, who died for us on the cross. David prayed for mercy, because he knew he had sinned He affirmed his integrity and had lived in humility and submission. When confronted with his sins, he confessed them and sought God. He wanted mercy for himself but not for his enemies.Why? Because his enemies (especially Absalom) had committed treason against the Lord’s chosen and anointed king. This was not a personal vendetta on David’s part, but a concern for the future of the nation of Israel and the dynasty of David.
Glory: How Do We Treat God (v. 13)? This verse was probably added later by an editor to mark the end of book I of the Psalms. Each of the first four books ends with a similar doxology and book V ends with a praise psalm. But the verse reminds us that the main thing in our lives must be the eternal praise and glory of the Lord.
And when David speaks of the poor he is not solely focused on financial means like we typically think when we say that someone is “poor.” In Hebrew that word can refer to the ideas of scrawny, unimportant, helpless, powerless, insignificant, oppressed, and dejected. The helpless and needy could have any number of issues that they need help with. And that’s why we’re encouraged to consider how best to help them.
Now, this is the end of “Book 1” of the Psalms. You can probably see that in your Bible. Right before Psalm 42 you probably see a heading saying that you’ve now entered Book 2 of the Psalms. And we see each psalm that ends each book of the Psalms end with praise. Psalm 72:19 ends Book 2 of Psalms and says “And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.” Psalm 89:53 ends Book 3 – “Blessed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and Amen.” Psalm 106:48 ends Book 4 and says “Blessed be the LORD God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting: and let all the people say, Amen. Praise ye the LORD.” And last, Psalm 150:6 ends Book 5 with praise, “Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.”
So, the ending to the first 3 books of Psalms has this statement “Amen and amen!” The end of Book 4 has “amen and praise the Lord.” And then book 5 ends with “praise the Lord.” So, it seems that what the psalmists are looking for is a voice to echo back their Amen and praise to the Lord! They assert that what has been said is trustworthy and reliable and true!
SONG: Make me Holy Lord-Aaron Thompson, Wonderful Merciful Savior