Duplicity in Righteousness - Psalm 40
The writer of Psalm of 40 is living a dichotomous life. Most of us live our lives as if one season is a trial, another a blessing, when in reality all seasons are both trial and blessing. It is we who are alternately blind to one or the other.
 1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
      he turned to me and heard my cry.…yet later…
 11 Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
      may your love and your truth always protect me.
 …a request for mercy, love, and truth, from God who has already turned toward him, and heard His cry. In fact, look on to verse 2, to see what God has done already, yet the writer is pleading for mercy, love, and truth…
 2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
      out of the mud and mire;
      he set my feet on a rock
      and gave me a firm place to stand.…yet later…
 12 For troubles without number surround me;
      my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
      They are more than the hairs of my head,
      and my heart fails within me.
The writer lives in verse 12, even while acknowledging in verse 2 that God HAS lifted him out of the slimy pit, mud, and mire, and HAS given him a firm place to stand. In fact…
 3 He put a new song in my mouth,
      a hymn of praise to our God.
      Many will see and fear
      and put their trust in the LORD.…yet he says…
 13 Be pleased, O LORD, to save me;
      O LORD, come quickly to help me.
But then, I think the following verses reveal the situation that the writer is truly in…
 4 Blessed is the man
      who makes the LORD his trust,
      who does not look to the proud,
      to those who turn aside to false gods.…yet he says…
 14 May all who seek to take my life
      be put to shame and confusion;
      may all who desire my ruin
      be turned back in disgrace.
And now it is all brought together for me. When God brings us out of are dark places, and puts us in the light, often it serves to show us our situation more quickly. The sin around us is not gone, but is visible to us as God’s light is cast upon it. We may be out of the pit, but that pit is waiting for our enemies to cast us back in. We may no longer be in the hands of our enemies, but our enemies still seek us. We may be out of debt, but new expenses are on the horizon. We may have made up with our love one, but there is one misunderstanding that hasn’t materialized. And so in God’s light it is now clear that the perils around us are many. And the writer of the Psalm knows this. He thanks God for the recent rescue, then turns to God for deliverance from the sin that still pursues. In our walks with God, there will be times when He rescues us from a battle, though it be amidst a larger war… but we can be assured God has a plan for that as well, and on that assurance, even within our childlike fear, we can still live out a childlike faith.
 9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
      I do not seal my lips,
      as you know, O LORD. 10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
      I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
      I do not conceal your love and your truth
      from the great assembly. …
15 May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!”
      be appalled at their own shame.16 But may all who seek you
      rejoice and be glad in you;
      may those who love your salvation always say,
      “The LORD be exalted!” 17 Yet I am poor and needy;
      may the Lord think of me.
      You are my help and my deliverer;
      O my God, do not delay.