Psalm 40

0 To the leader. Of David. A Psalm.
1  I waited patiently for the LORD;
  he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2  He drew me up from the desolate pit,
  out of the miry bog,
 and set my feet upon a rock,
  making my steps secure.
3  He put a new song in my mouth,
  a song of praise to our God.
 Many will see and fear,
  and put their trust in the LORD.
4  Happy are those who make
  the LORD their trust,
 who do not turn to the proud,
  to those who go astray after false gods.
5  You have multiplied, O LORD my God,
  your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
  none can compare with you.
 Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
  they would be more than can be counted.
6  Sacrifice and offering you do not desire,
  but you have given me an open ear.
 Burnt offering and sin offering
  you have not required.
7  Then I said, “Here I am;
  in the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8  I delight to do your will, O my God;
  your law is within my heart.”
9  I have told the glad news of deliverance
  in the great congregation;
 see, I have not restrained my lips,
  as you know, O LORD.
10  I have not hidden your saving help within my heart,
  I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
 I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
  from the great congregation.
11  Do not, O LORD, withhold
  your mercy from me;
 let your steadfast love and your faithfulness
  keep me safe forever.
12  For evils have encompassed me
  without number;
 my iniquities have overtaken me,
  until I cannot see;
 they are more than the hairs of my head,
  and my heart fails me.
13  Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me;
  O LORD, make haste to help me.
14  Let all those be put to shame and confusion
  who seek to snatch away my life;
 let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
  who desire my hurt.
15  Let those be appalled because of their shame
  who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”
16  But may all who seek you
  rejoice and be glad in you;
 may those who love your salvation
  say continually, “Great is the LORD!”
17  As for me, I am poor and needy,
  but the Lord takes thought for me.
 You are my help and my deliverer;
  do not delay, O my God.

Daily Prayer (based on Psalm 40:17)

What an amazing truth, Lord, that You think about me. Given all the important people in this world, and the affairs of nations, and the wide scope of history, it boggles my mind to consider that You actually pay attention to me. You care about what I think, feel, and experience. You remember me as one of Your beloved children. You pay attention to my challenges, dreams, and desires. And this has nothing to do with how much I matter in worldly terms, how successful I am, or well-known, or powerful. You give thought even to the one who is poor and needy. This may not describe my economic state today, but it surely identifies the state of my soul at times. And yet You remember me!

Postscript

As a father has compassion for his      children,
  so the LORD has compassion for those      who fear him.
For he knows how we were made;
  he remembers that we are dust.
As for mortals, their days are like grass;
  they flourish like a flower of the field;
for the wind passes over it, and it is      gone,
  and its place knows it no more.
But the steadfast love of the LORD is      from everlasting to everlasting
  on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children’s      children,
to those who keep his covenant
  and remember to do.

                    Psalm 103:13-18

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Except for the Scripture text, all material of The Daily Psalm Copyright © 2006 by Mark D. Roberts

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The Scripture text used in The Daily Psalm is from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved