Psalm 7:1 O LORD my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me.
A Clean Conscience Remedies False Accusations
I don’t know who would be the toughest person you’ve ever met, but David would certainly be one of the toughest men who ever lived. David was the warrior who led the mightiest of men. When you read about the accomplishments and tenacity of David’s mighty men, it is amazing to think about a man who could command respect from such men. David was a man of action, and he was also a man of words. So when you read Psalm 7, you wonder, “Who could possibly have inflicted the damage upon David that he speaks of in this psalm?”
Psalm 7:1 says, “O LORD my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me.” I believe he is talking about one specific enemy who is mentioned in the preface of this psalm, Cush, the Benjamite.
Verse 2 says, “Lest he tear my soul like a lion rending it in pieces while there is none to deliver.” Again, David was a ferocious warrior. So, what could Cush possibly have done to tear David apart like a lion tearing apart his prey? David says, “Lest he tear my soul.” David is talking about something that goes way past the bone to the very heart and soul of things. This is not an attack of weapons but an attack of words.
We sometimes say, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” That is not true. Verse 14 says “Behold, he travaileth with iniquity, and hath conceived mischief and brought forth falsehood.” So this enemy was attacking with words, specifically, with accusations.
How did David respond to the false accusations of someone who apparently hated him? In verse 3, David says, “O LORD my God, if I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands…let the enemy persecute my soul.” In other words, he says, “God, if I have done wrong, then let him have at it, but I haven’t. You know my heart.”
Verse 8 says, “The LORD shall judge the people: judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness, and according to mine integrity that is in me.” David is saying, “God, I’m just. Judge me according to my integrity.” Is this arrogance on David’s part?
David is not saying that he is sinless, he is simply saying, “I am clean regarding the accusations that are leveled against me.” Everyone should be able to say that. We should be able to live with a clean conscience. A clean conscience is the remedy to false accusations.
Which is more powerful when you are accused, actions or words? It depends on what you mean. With our conscience, actions are stronger than words. Talk is cheap when it comes to the conscience. We need actions that produce a clean conscience. Yet with prayer, words are stronger than actions. I don’t need to be busy scrambling my way through life with frantic action when I can take my problems, my people, my enemies and their accusations, to God in prayer. That is exactly what David did.
If you are accused, do what you should. Then, trust God to do what you can’t, because a clean conscience is the remedy to false accusations.