“Save Your people, bless Your possession, shepherd them, and carry them forever.” (Psalm 28:9)
The gospel of Jesus Christ literally means “Good News”. The four Gospels in the New Testament – Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John – are all different, written accounts of the life of Jesus passed down to us through the centuries so we might know and understand who Jesus was and what He did for us.
However, when we really begin to understand God and His plan for mankind, we see that this good news began long before the time of Jesus and culminated in Jesus. Approximately 500 years prior to Jesus was His ancestor, King David, of Israel. King David wrote many of the psalms that we have in our Bible today.
One such psalm is a request of God by King David: “Save your people, bless Your possession, shepherd them, and carry them forever.” (Psalm 28:9) In one verse in the Psalms, we see the good news of what God did for His people and continued to do to the time of Jesus and beyond.
First, “Save Your people…” acknowledges the reality that David and all Jews experienced God as the One who could save them. Throughout Israel’s history there were occasions where they would seek after other gods and idols but God seemed to always raise up another who would call them back to Him. King David, for all his flaws and all His accomplishments, knew that God was the One who saved.
Second, “…bless Your possession…” indicates that King David knew God’s character of love and grace through blessing. He desired this blessing for all of Israel as God’s own possession. There was a very real sense in Israel that God brought them out of slavery (possessed by the leader of Egypt, Pharaoh) into a better place and established a nation as God’s own possession. God owned David and Israel and King David desired God’s rich blessing.
Third, “…shepherd them…” is David’s acknowledgement that even as Israel’s king, he knew they needed God to shepherd and guide them through the challenges of life. King David could not provide that for those he led. Only God, as the good shepherd, could do this for the nation of Israel.
Finally, “…and carry them forever.” King David, having been a shepherd in his past, knew that often times a shepherd would scoop a sheep in his arms and have to carry him because of malnourishment, fatigue and danger. David wanted this same type of protection for God’s people by God Himself.
How about you? Do you desire God to save, bless, shepherd, and carry you forever? Do you desire that He accomplish this for your family, those you work with and live around? When we are earnest in our request and seek the Lord with all our hearts, He hears us and desires to answer. Go to Him now and pray the prayer King David did over 2,500 years ago found in Psalm 28:9.
