Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. But I HAVE trusted in your steadfast love; my heart SHALL rejoice in your salvation. I WILL sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. Psalms 13:3-6 [ESV]
In the first 2 verses here, the psalmist is pleading with God to answer him. He tells God to give light to his eyes because the only other option is closed eyes with the sleep of death. If this latter is the option, his enemies will have won.
The last 2 verses really spoke to me tonight – I HAVE trusted in Your steadfast love: This is past and present tenses all in one. The psalmist is making a statement about current and pervasive truth about his choice to lean into the gracious love God has for him.
He then goes on to say, “my heart SHALL rejoice in Your salvation.” The thesaurus has these words for ‘shall’ – be obliged, intend, and must. The saving grace of the Lord is complete and permanent. Even when I am in my deepest place, I can rejoice and have joy for the security I have in Eternity with Him forever.
Finally, he says, “I WILL sing to the Lord.” Why? Because He has dealt bountifully with me. How beautiful is this? ‘Will’ is a commitment in the face of hardship. Regardless of the circumstances, the psalmist will sing praises.
I have so much to pay attention here. I am now on day 17 of this lower respiratory tract infection, and I am coughing incessantly…unproductively. Am I deterred from praising my Lord anyway. No. I have trusted in my Savior, I shall rejoice because of my salvation, and I will sing praises to my forever King.