Covenant Reformed News – April 2012 • Volume XIII, Issue 24
This article provides an expository treatment of Psalm 143, analyzing it as both a persecution psalm and a penitential psalm that illustrates David's personal struggle with sin and his reliance on God's grace. The exposition emphasizes the connection between David's recognition of his own unworthiness before God's judgment and the broader Reformed doctrine that no one can be justified by works of the law, drawing parallels to Romans 3:20.
God’s Good Spirit (1) Psalm 143—penned by David, as the heading says—is a persecution psalm. Three times it refers to David’s enemy (3) or enemies (9, 12). We are not told who they were: Saul and his men or David’s rebellious son Absalom and his forces? The persecution was severe and it was getting David down: “For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead. Therefore is my spirit...