Set My Feet Upon the Rock

Has there ever been a time in your life or that of a loved one when you were in a really difficult situation? Maybe a time when you felt not just down, but down and out? You felt hopeless? Your circumstances were weighing you down to the point where you just couldn’t see beyond them? You couldn’t see a way out? Maybe you were bogged down with fears and worries, anxieties.

We’re going to look at a Psalm written by David that describes that kind of scenario. I find that the Psalms are a helpful and comforting place to go when you are feeling strong emotions and need to be reminded that God understands and that He hears you.

Psalm 40:1-2 reads:

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he turned to me and heard my cry.
² He lifted me out of the slimy (horrible) pit,
    out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
    and gave me a firm place to stand.

Barnes notes on the Bible defines a “pit” as “… a cistern; a prison; a dungeon; a grave…It may refer to any calamity – or to trouble…”

When we look at the word describing the pit, “Horrible” – “means ‘noise, uproar, tumult, as of waters; of a crowd of men; of war. Then it seems to be used in the sense of ‘desolation’ or ‘destruction,’ as applicable to the grave.”

If we were to put these ideas together, we could say perhaps that it’s “…a cavern, deep and dark, where the waters roar…” It is also rendered “a lake of misery.” “It is a deep and horrid cavern, where there is no hope of being rescued, or where it would seem that there would be certain destruction.”

Pretty dark imagery, right? Certain destruction doesn’t really invoke feelings of hope, does it?

The bottom of the “pit” is not solid. There is no rock on which to stand. It’s all mud and mire. You can picture it, can’t you? Dark. Thick. Heavy. If you were in that pit, would you feel the unrest of not having anything firm on which to stand?

We see an example of this with the prophet, Jeremiah in Jer. 38:6.

“So they took Jeremiah and put him into the cistern of Malkijah, the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guard. They lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the cistern; it had no water in it, only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud.”

In the psalm, David says, “I waited patiently…” which, though difficult, is exactly what God would have us do. However, that doesn’t mean that David was inactive while he waited. He didn’t just slump down, wallow in his misery and surrender. He cried out to the Lord and trusted that the Lord would rescue him.

What was the Lord’s response?

“…he turned to me and heard my cry.” God hears the cries of His people. He hears your cries.

David then describes being lifted out of the thick, miry, mud. Where is he lifted to? A rock.

“…he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.” When you think about a rock, it’s the opposite of mud. It’s solid, strong, stable, secure…just like the Lord.

Ps. 18:2
“The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”

Ps. 62:7
My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.

Barnes notes on the Bible elaborate on what took place when the Lord set David’s feet on a rock and gave him a firm place to stand.

“And established my goings – Or, fixed my steps. That is, he enabled me to walk as on solid ground; he conducted me along safely, where there was no danger of descending to the pit again or sinking in the mire.”

So even though it looked like there was no way out, like certain destruction – seemingly hopeless, no possibility of rescue, God stepped in. He lifted the Psalmist out (that’s praise-worthy in and of itself) and then God set his feet on solid ground.

I wonder if we could liken this a bit to a wilderness rescue scenario. Imagine a hiker becomes injured and is unable to get himself out of the mountains. The rescue helicopter comes and lifts him out. There is relief in that alone…but there is more to do. The helicopter gets him to a place where he can heal and move on with his life. Isn’t that what God does for us?

See my blog post, The Path We’re On.

Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary wraps up our Psalm this way:

“Doubts and fears about the eternal state, are a horrible pit and miry clay, and have been so to many a dear child of God… The psalmist waited patiently; he continued believing, hoping, and praying. This is applicable to Christ. His agony, in the garden and on the cross, was a horrible pit and miry clay. But those that wait patiently for God do not wait in vain.”

“Christ is the Rock on which a poor soul can alone stand fast. Where God has given steadfast hope, he expects there should be a steady, regular walk and conduct. God filled the psalmist with joy, as well as peace in believing.”

The next time you find yourself in a “pit”, let me encourage you to wait patiently, remember God knows where you are, He understands, and He hears you. Look to Him, pray to Him. Trust and believe that He has all the power to lift you out and set your feet on the Rock.

With this in mind, let us go be radiant this week.