Day 81 with David: The Lord will make the enemy trip over their own threats.

“Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation; Preserve my life from fear of the enemy. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; Suddenly they shall be wounded. So He will make them stumble over their own tongue; All who see them shall flee away.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭64:1, 7-8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

I know a man who very nearly had a nervous breakdown because of his tyrannical boss. The way this boss operated was to constantly be issuing vague threats. One of his most favorite threats was to say, “Somethings going to happen today.” Needless to say, the work environment under this bully was like constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, constantly wondering, “What is he going to do to me?”

In sports they call it “trash talk” when the opponent is bragging about how they’re going to mercilessly beat their opponent. But we know that threats go beyond boastful banter between sport’s opponents. Yes, bullies gain control through threatenings.

When thinking of threats, I remember the story of Hezekiah, king of Judah, who received a very threatening letter from the king of a Assyria. He assured Hezekiah that nothing—not even the Lord—would keep him from taking Jerusalem. But, Hezekiah didn’t take it lying down; he took the threats straight to the Lord:

“And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up to the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord.”

‭‭II Kings‬ ‭19:14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Hezekiah also issued this word of encouragement to the people:

““Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid nor dismayed before the king of Assyria, nor before all the multitude that is with him; for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.”

‭‭II Chronicles‬ ‭32:7-8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Enemies use threats to intimidate people so that they cower, offering no resistance. One of the masters of the use of threats to intimidate, is the enemy of our souls, the devil. He will throw all kinds of threats at you to see what will stick. And once you start paying attention to his threats, he’s got you where he wants you.

In our portion from Psalms today we see David expounding on the threats of his enemies. But, he did what Hezekiah did and took it to the Lord. He then says with great confidence that the Lord will cause the enemy to trip over their own tongues; that is, their own threats will do them in.

Yes, David knew about facing threats. When he was still a lad he faced the threats of Goliath!

“So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!””

‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭17:43-44‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Now, we know how that battle ended.

Believe me, as long as you listen to the threats of the enemy, allowing the threats to intimidate, they will continue! Take the threats to the Lord and leave them with Him.

For today let us know and understand what David knew:

The Lord will make the enemy trip over their own threats.

#100dayswithdavid