David was a shepherd of sheep before he was the shepherd-king of Israel. Caring for animals meant a nomadic life. No doubt he left home for stretches of time, moving from place to place, ensuring his sheep had food, water, and safety. His Psalms are full of imagery from the landscape and life of husbandry in the Promised Land. He experienced seasons, deserts, farmlands, wet, dry, mountains, and flatlands. He slept under the stars, observed cycles of the moon, and had firsthand looks at many things we city slickers only see on a screen. What food he had not brought with him, he foraged from the fruit of the land that flowed with milk and honey.
David was king over Israel forty years. We can be sure he felt the burden of ruling, judging, and protecting a people. You can imagine he lost sleep, feared for his life, worried about the nation, and mourned those who lost their lives under his military command. When the surrounding nations rustled up a coalition to come against Israel, he would have journeyed through lands familiar from his shepherding life to set a flank or scout an enemy camp. Importantly, he would have trusted in God who established and would maintain his kingdom better than himself.
David was a man after God’s own heart. The Lord had rejected King Saul. The people had chosen him for man-centered reasons and they attempted to choose one of David’s older brothers for similar characteristics. God looks at the heart! Yes, David had sins, transgressions, and flaws, but he was a work of grace in progress as any other follower of Jesus Christ. David was also one of the great poets of history. His Psalms strike to the heart of every human and spiritual emotion. His prayers expressed confidence in God’s Name, steadfast love, refuge, shadow, strength, past deeds, saving character, and strong city of Zion. He frequently wondered at his own position as an image-bearer, sinner, king, and frail human. He knew God alone could save, deliver, hide, and rescue. It was by God’s grace alone that he lived.
David was a grateful man, confident that God hears prayers, forgives sins, calls his children close to his presence, exerts his power over the wilds of creation and saber-rattling nations, and provides for a rich harvest (Psalm 65). He had experienced this firsthand! No doubt his varied life of shepherd, king, soldier, and spiritual son added to his rich poetry. The most blessed and beautiful lines of the 65th Psalm come in the final stanza of verses 9-13. David speaks of God visiting, watering, and enriching the earth so that grain is provided for us. Many of the thanksgiving and harvest songs we sing in worship this time of year find their roots in these inspired reflections of Kind David.
In the march up to Thanksgiving, take some time to consider Psalm 65. Jot down your many spiritual, physical, relational, national, and eternal blessings. God alone is the hope of all the ends of the earth (Psalm 65:5). Make sure to give him His due!