Friday 22 March

Psalm 18, Jeremiah 20:10-13, John 10:31-42

A royal song of praise

Psalm 18 is a magnificent hymn of praise to God. The psalmist describes God as his rock, fortress, deliverer, refuge, shield, stronghold and horn of salvation. He lists the personal difficulties he faced. He was entangled by the cords of death, overwhelmed by the torrents of destruction, coiled around by the cords of the grave, confronted by the snares of death. Out of this extremity he called to the Lord, and God saved him. This is the language of praise and prayer – rugged and real, grounded in the story of David’s great distress and of God’s gracious deliverance.