Psalm 34:19-22

Psalm 34:19-22
The righteous person may have many troubles,
but the LORD delivers him from them all;
20 he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
22 The LORD will rescue his servants;
no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

As David leaves the cave of Adullam, he and his band of men will find a new stronghold in the desert of En Gedi. There David and his men would find an oasis that would provide for them as they begin to fight back against Saul’s murderous attempts.

But before that David has one final test, once again in a cave. While he and his men are hiding deep in a cave, Saul comes in to relieve himself. Vulnerable, David’s men urge him to end Saul’s life on the spot. They claim that the Lord has delivered him into David’s hand. And so, David snuck up on Saul, and what may have been a last-minute change of heart, David cut the edge of Saul’s robe off rather than cutting him down.

When David returns his conscience is stricken with guilt and leads David to reveal himself to Saul. In this moment David shows clearly that his heart is repentant of his “strike” against the king. David seems to fail the initial test, but comes out ultimately with a win as he once again repents of his actions.

David is considered by many to be a righteous man. Not because of all the things that he has done right, but because his faith in God and reliance on Him alone. Time and again David must repent of his actions, and each time God restores him.

A righteous person is not one who does right. It is one who is credited as righteous because of their faith in Christ Jesus. A righteous person in Christ will always have troubles in this life. They will constantly need to find refuge in God, repent of their sins, and seek out God’s restoration. This is the life of the righteous person. This is your life, a life of faith and reliance on Christ. When tested, we will succeed at times, and other times we will fail. But in the end, it is our return to God with humble hearts that leads to Him restoring us and lifting us up once again.