Psalm 61 has been described as a Psalm of Desperation by many commentators.2 Desperation means, “Not having hope, filled with despair, a situation of urgency in which a person does not know what to do”.

I think this definition of desperation fits David’s situation because it is commonly believed that this Psalm is set during Absalom’s rebellion against his father, King David (2 Sam. 15 – 19). If that is true, then the progression of this Psalm makes sense as David begins with a prayer of desperation (vv. 1 – 4) and then moves on to a proclamation of promise (vv. 5 – 8); David literally rests his desperation on the promises of God who is the Rock of Ages.

We need to remember that God had promised David an eternal throne in 2 Samuel 7, and then, like the broken and sinful human he was, David went on to sin against the God who made that promise when he committed political rape against Bathsheba in 2 Samuel 11 – 12. Immediately following that episode, Absalom, David’s son, rebelled against David in 2 Samuel 15 – 19, and the details of that painful season in David’s life are absolutely devastating.

When you review Absalom’s rebellion in 2 Samuel 15 – 19 you come face to face with the devastating effects of sin upon the human race as a dearly beloved son turns against his father, who is far from being an innocent victim, but broken and sinful as he was, David still clung to God in desperation as he faced his own sin as well as the devastating effects of the sins that tore his family to pieces over the next few years.

Allow me to give you a brief overview of the setting of Absalom’s rebellion here just to set the context for our study of Psalm 61. In 2 Samuel 12, Nathan confronts David for his sin with Bathsheba and God tells David that his newborn son will die, the sword of family turmoil will never depart from his house, and that God will publicly cause someone to steal David’s wives and sleep with them in the public square since David tried to keep his sexual sin a secret. David is promised that salvation will not depart from him but the years ahead will be absolutely devastating.

In 2 Samuel 13, one of David’s sons, Amnon, rapes his own sister, Tamar, and David does nothing about it, which enrages his other son, Absalom, since his father fails to address the horrific sin, which leads to Absalom murdering his brother Amnon. A miscommunication also happens where David hears that Absalom has murdered all his brothers. Though not true, we can imagine the horrific emotions David would have felt. All of this results in Absalom hiding from his father for three years in another region.

2 Samuel 14, is a weird story of one of David’s lieutenants using a woman to deceive David into allowing Absalom back into Jerusalem and David does allow his son to come back but refuses to acknowledge his presence or to even restore the relationship which then causes Absalom to become bitter and to begin acting out against David.

Then in 2 Samuel 15 – 19 we see the full-blown story of Absalom’s betrayal of his father. In these chapters, Absalom devises a plan to dethrone his father, to chase him out of Jerusalem, and to rape his father’s wives in public. All of this culminates in Absalom’s eventual death and David is left to mourn these devastating events in broken desperation before the Lord.

This is the background and context of David’s words in Psalm 61. The moral of the story here is that David is crying out in desperation in the first part of this Psalm, but he ultimately rests his desperation on the promise that was made to him by a better King, whom we know as The Rock of Ages.

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. Of David. 1Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; 2from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, 3for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. 4Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah

5For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name. 6Prolong the life of the king; may his years endure to all generations! 7May he be enthroned forever before God; appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him! 8So will I ever sing praises to your name, as I perform my vows day after day.

#1: A PRAYER OF DESPERATION (VV. 1 – 4)

When was the last time you approached God in absolute desperation? You may be in that season right now. In my 47 years of life on this earth, I have witnessed innumerable situations of devastating desperation. Whether in my own life or in the lives of the people I love, I have seen firsthand the devastating effects of sin in our lives.

Broken marriages due to infidelity. The lingering pain and confusion of loneliness in the lives of single people. The bewildering and infuriating emotions that overwhelm us when finding out that another child has been harmed by a sick individual. The desperation of betrayal, deception and loss in relationships. The heartbreak that happens when losing a child, or watching a child destroy their life, or having to make life altering decisions for a child’s life. The shame and guilt that cripples us due to our sinful failures. The list could go on and on.

Sin and the effects of sin will always leave you in desperation. And that is exactly where David is in verses 1 – 4. Notice that he starts out with these words in verses 1 – 2, when he says, “Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; from the ends of the earth, I call to you when my heart is faint”. These are the words of a devastated man who is literally crying out to God in desperation. He feels like he is all alone at the ends of the earth. His heart is faint, which in the original language means desperate.

So, David is desperate, devastated, isolated, abandoned, and alone.3 And all he can do is cry out to God for help when he prays in verses 2 – 4, “Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy. Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah.”

That word “Selah” literally means to pause to let something sink in. We do well to pause to let David’s prayer of desperation sink in to the deepest parts of our souls. In these verses, David desperately refers to five different images “by which he can rejoice in God’s gracious safekeeping.”4 

  1. He begs God in verse 2 to “lift him up to that strong and secure place where he can look down on his foes” when he cries out, “lead me to the rock that is higher than I”.5 You know what it feels like to be unable to pick yourself up because you are so devastated right?
  2. He refers to God in verse 3 as his refuge or a place to hide from the brutal onslaughts of his enemy. It is almost as though David cannot dodge the fiery darts of his enemy any longer and he needs a place to hide. You know what this feels like, to need a safe place to hide, right?
  3. He refers to God as his Strong Tower in verse 3 which alludes to God being the only vantage point to fight against the enemy. This is the image of a tall tower on the corner of a castle whereby you can see and take shots at an enemy while he is still miles away. Is this not the kind of vantage point we have in the presence of the Living God, who illuminates the danger ahead as he provides insight on how to wage war against the enemy?
  4. He asks God in verse 4 to let him live in God’s tent or house forever which speaks of his desire to intimately commune with God, face to face, like a loving family member. This reminds me of the relational presence that is so deeply needed when we face devastating seasons of loss and hurt in this life. There is nothing that compares to the presence of the Living God who has defeated Satan, Sin, and Death.
  5. Finally, in verse 4 David asks for God to give him the “shelter of your wings” which speaks of the warmth and comfort that is needed when facing the cold, harsh, heart chilling realities of the effects of Satan, Sin, and Death in this life. Being in God’s presence is like hiding under a set of motherly wings where there is comfort and warmth amidst the storm.

Those five images: The high rock, the refuge, the strong tower, the tent, and the wings, all work together to show us David’s desperate plea for help, but it also demonstrates the movements of David’s heart as he moves from a desire for security to simply longing for intimacy in the presence of God.6

In other words, as David approaches God in prayer as a desperate man, he begins with a desperate cry for security and safety and then he eventually ends with a longing for intimacy, to be close to God who is a friend of sinners. First, he asks for God’s help, and then he ends by asking for God’s closeness.

The presence of God is where we find the solution for all our desperation. I think this is why David turns his attention to the promises of God in the last portion of our passage. In the presence of God we are reminded of the promises of God and the promises of God are where our desperation is turned into praise for the One who is the Rock of ages.

#2: A PROCLAMATION OF PROMISE (VV. 5 – 8)

It may not immediately seem like David is resting his desperation on the promises of God when you read the final verses of our text, but when you step back and read these words against the back drop of God’s promise to establish the throne of David for all eternity (2 Sam. 7), then you catch a glimpse of what lies beneath David’s closing words regarding the king in verses 5 – 8.

When David says in verse 5, that “you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name” he is reminding himself that “the heritage of those who fear” God’s name is eternity in Heaven. Satan, Sin, and Death have no eternal hold over those who have trusted in an eternal King who came later and now occupies David’s throne in heaven. His name is Jesus. He is the King of kings. His death, his resurrection, and his promised return in glory is the promise of eternal life – it is the heritage – for those who fear God.

That truth – that promise – is the foundation for verses 6 – 7 where David proclaims (in my own interpretation after textual comparisons) “You will prolong the life of the king; his years will endure to all generations! He will be enthroned forever before God; steadfast love and faithfulness (mercy) will watch over and guard him for all eternity.” While these final words can be taken as a personal prayer for David the king in light of God’s promise to him, David ultimately trusts and knows that the eternal King will be Jesus and that all our enemies will soon be crushed underneath his crucified, risen, and victorious feet (Rom. 16:20).

What does David do with that truth, that promise of an eternal king in his mind? Knowing that an eternal king of peace will crush his enemies underneath his feet, David proclaims in verse 8 (again in my own words), “I will praise your name forever as I worship you day after day.” Can you see how David’s desperation is turned into praise because of the proclamation of the truth of God’s promises?

CONCLUSION…

In conclusion, I do not know what kind of desperation you are carrying with you today. But I do know this… your desperation can be brought to the foot of a bloody cross, it can be laid down in the doorway of an empty tomb, and it can be rested in light of the promise of eternity if you have trusted in the everlasting King who is full of truth and grace, full of never-ending love and complete mercy.

The effects of sin upon all of us (both our own sin and the sin throughout this broken world) ought to leave us in absolute desperation for the promises of God to be fulfilled once and for all.

You see, you and I can hold tightly to the finished work of Jesus at that cross and at that empty tomb, knowing that Satan, Sin, and Death are no match for a crucified, risen, King and that he will return someday soon to crush those enemies once and for all under his crucified, risen, and victorious feet. Take your desperation to the promises of God my friends. Our King will not let you down. – Amen!

1 Unless otherwise specified, all Bible references are to the English Standard Version Bible, The New Classic Reference Edition (ESV) (Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, 2001).

2 Coram Deo Church, Learning the Language of Prayer | Psalm 61, July 16, 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHAAZXoJ5V0.

3 Richard, Philips, Psalms 42 – 72, Reformed Expository Commentary, (Phillipsburg, New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2019), 196 – 197.

4 Ibid., 197 – 201.

5 Ibid., 197 – 199.

6 Ibid., 201.