Sacred Songs - Psalm 20
5.17.26
Series: Sacred Songs
Speaker: Lead Pastor Dustin Aguilar
Scriptures: Psalm 20 | Psalm 37:4 | Psalm 9:9-10
The Rhetorical Shift
Dustin began by sharing a pet peeve he has when reading Psalm 20. This same thing happens in other songs and poems as well: the author uses a rhetorical shift. A rhetorical shift is a change in a writer’s or speaker’s tone, perspective, style, or focus within a single piece of communication.
Dustin gave examples from songs such as “10,000 Reasons” and “Be Still My Heart.” In “10,000 Reasons,” the lyric says, “Bless the Lord, O my soul / Sing like never before / I worship Your Holy Name.” It begins by speaking to the soul and then shifts to speaking to the Lord. In “Be Still My Heart,” the song begins by addressing the heart, then shifts to addressing God.
David uses this same device throughout Psalm 20. Verses 1–4 are written in the second person: “May Yahweh answer you.” Verse 5 shifts to first person plural: “May we shout for joy.” Verse 6 shifts to first person singular: “Now I know the Lord saves His anointed.” Verse 7 returns to first person plural: “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.” Verse 9 is first person plural speaking directly to God: “O LORD, save the king! May he answer us when we call.”
Psalm 20:6 — A Focus on the Meaning of the Text
Psalm 20:6 says:
“Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right hand.”
David was the anointed king when this was written, so this part of the song was about him. However, the Israelites who were later exiled in Babylon would understand that the anointed king was David while also looking forward to the promise of a new king from David’s line who would one day be on the throne.
As Christians living after Jesus' resurrection, we know that Jesus is the Anointed One. Christians are also the anointed ones, so this passage can also speak to us.
To Be Sung with a Choir
Dustin asked us to imagine that we are the choir singing to King David before he goes into battle:
“May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! May he send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion! May he remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah.”
In David’s time, this would have been sung at the tabernacle, where the burnt offerings were present. But during the 400 years in Babylon, the people recognized that they were living in a day of trouble. They were no longer in Zion and could not make the offerings. They were essentially praying these words forward toward the One who would come.
Jesus Is the Anointed One
Jesus means “Yahweh saves.” Jesus would become the sacrifice. When a burnt offering was made, the entire offering was given. Jesus is the entire offering—the whole sacrifice.
The Old Testament sacrifices pointed toward Jesus, the Anointed One who would ultimately bring salvation.
Be Bold and Ask for Prayer
We can apply Psalm 20 to ourselves as anointed ones in need of salvation. We should be willing to ask for prayer when we are in a day of trouble: “May God answer you in your day of trouble.”
We should also pray for our enemies and use each verse of Psalm 20 as a prompt to pray for ourselves and others.
Many people don't ask others to pray for them. Sometimes it is because they don't want to keep others from praying for someone else. Sometimes it is pride: “I shouldn't have to ask for help.” Sometimes it is fear: “What if God doesn't answer?” Or perhaps we don't understand how much God wants to hear from us.
We need to pray without ceasing.
When We Become Stalled Out in Our Christian Life
One thing that can cause us to stall in our Christian life is praying repeatedly for something and not receiving the answer we wanted. We can begin to think, “I can't move forward until this is answered.”
Instead, we need to continue walking out the Christian life. We should ask God for bold gifts to share with others and continue trusting Him, even when our prayers aren't answered as we expected.
Dustin shared about a friend who doesn't seem to receive the Gospel when Dustin shares it with him. However, his friend asked Dustin how he handled going through cancer. Through Dustin's suffering, his friend had seen and remembered something about his faith.
If you are suffering, you can still share the Gospel.
Dustin also mentioned a woman in our church who is suffering and cannot walk, yet she is working with the children. Jesus is someone who can see us through our suffering.
Psalm 37:4 — The Desires of Your Heart
Psalm 37:4 says:
“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
When we make God the delight of our heart, He becomes the true desire of our heart. He is the truest desire of our heart.
Dustin shared that he and Nathan prayed for Nathan's mom's healing. She was not healed, but they received a peace that is only from God.
Psalm 20:5 — Shout for Joy for Your Salvation
Psalm 20:5 was meant to be sung as David went into battle. The exiles in Babylon were living among their enemies, but they knew that joy would come.
As we pray, we should see ourselves as part of the Church. We can shout for joy because of our salvation.
Psalm 20:6 — “Now I Know the LORD Saves”
This is another major rhetorical shift. This verse was meant to be sung by a soloist, like the High Priest, as David responds.
Jesus is the One who saves. His name is echoed in this verse. Yehoshua in Aramaic means “Yahweh is salvation.” Yeshua in Hebrew means “salvation” or “the Lord saves.” Yeshua HaMashiach means Jesus the Messiah.
This is a prefiguring of Christ's name. The exiles in Babylon were looking forward to this as something that would happen one day. Jesus made it a reality.
Psalm 20:7–9 — Trust in the LORD Our God
Psalm 20:7 says:
“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.”
Psalm 20:8 continues:
“They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright.”
Psalm 9:9–10 reminds us that the LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed and a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know His name put their trust in Him because He does not forsake those who seek Him.
Psalm 20:9 says:
“O LORD, save the king! May he answer us when we call.”
In David's time, the choir was asking this on behalf of King David. During the exile in Babylon, they would sing this on behalf of the promised future King. Today, we know that the promised King has already come. He is King Jesus—Yeshua, Yeshua HaMashiach. He saves us.
Pray for Dustin, His Family, and the Leaders of the Church
Dustin asked the church to pray for him, his wife Tine, their children, and the other leaders in the church. He shared that his family has been experiencing spiritual attacks and that his children have been frightened by some of the things they have experienced during moments of deliverance ministry.
Dustin said that when we have setbacks, we cannot let them get us down. We must keep going. He had taken it for granted that everything would be alright, but he now understands that there is a spiritual battle and that he needs to ask for prayer, just as David and the chorus did in Psalm 20.
During another moment, Harvard overheard Dustin and Tina talking about the spiritual attacks and could not sleep. Dustin taught him to say:
“Jesus, I love You.
Jesus, I trust You.
Jesus, thank You for…”
Dustin also shared that there was a time when he was so frightened that he slept with his Bible on his stomach. Harvard did the same, and it helped him. Harvard asked, “Does the Bible scare the demons away?”
Dustin explained that the Bible itself is not what scares demons away. Even demons can quote and distort Scripture. Jesus is the One who saves, and the Bible tells us about Him. Harvard began reading the Bible, and it helped him fall asleep.