Psalm 141 – 142 … Consider Him Who Brings Our Soul Out of Prison

Originally posted: 12/15/2020

“Bring my soul out of prison,
So that I may give thanks to Your name;
The righteous will surround me,
For You will deal bountifully with me,” (142:7).

Though David is not in a literal prison, the feelings of being defenseless and powerless to escape his persecutors, accompanied by his speculation on what may become of him have utterly bound his soul in fear.

“Give heed to my cry,
For I am brought very low;
Deliver me from my persecutors,
For they are too strong for me, (142:6).

And who can blame him; how terribly frightening it must have been to live under the constant threat of mutinous insurrections and revolts. David’s heart, caught between faith and fear, longs to join those who love the Lord in praise and thanksgiving for God’s gracious and miraculous deliverance. Yet once again, he finds himself in that all too familiar place of facing oppressive assaults from his enemies.

For my eyes are toward You, O God, the Lord;
In You I take refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
⁹ Keep me from the jaws of the trap which they have set for me,
And from the snares of those who do iniquity, (141:8-9).

We can certainly relate to what David was feeling; trying to navigate through a proverbial minefield, hesitant to move forward for fear of what awaits. What do we do in the unknown, when our next step could possibly usher in an explosion of problems threatening to trap us in a perennial state of hopelessness? It can be absolutely immobilizing.

David found himself there, in that Soul Prison, and he needed to be set free; yes, from the physical threats, but perhaps even more so from the feelings that threatened to snuff out his hope. David needed to be reminded that feelings lie, but faith sets free. And David, the man after God’s own heart, knew there was only One Who held the key, Only One Who Brings Our Soul Out of Prison.

Oh, the Soul… so very complex, comprised of our mind, will, and emotions; and sometimes all of that – our thoughts, our decisions, and our feelings – just get bogged down beneath our burdens, wedged within our worries, and imprisoned in our insecurities. But in Christ we have been set free; for He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison.

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ² For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death, (Romans 8:1-2).

Consider Him Who Brings Our Soul Out of Prison

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to boldly call out to Him in our time of need.
  • O Lord, I call upon You; hasten to me!
    Give ear to my voice when I call to You!
    ² May my prayer be counted as incense before You;
    The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering, (141:1-2).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to entrust our heart’s desires to His care.
  • Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth;
    Keep watch over the door of my lips.
    ⁴ Do not incline my heart to any evil thing,
    To practice deeds of wickedness
    With men who do iniquity;
    And do not let me eat of their delicacies, (141:3-4).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to receive His righteous correction as needed.
  • Let the righteous smite me in kindness and reprove me;
    It is oil upon the head;
    Do not let my head refuse it,
    For still my prayer is against their wicked deeds, (141:5).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to run to Him for safety.
  • For my eyes are toward You, O God, the Lord;
    In You I take refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
    ⁹ Keep me from the jaws of the trap which they have set for me,
    And from the snares of those who do iniquity.
    ¹⁰ Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
    While I pass by safely, (141:8-10).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to pour out our complaint before Him.
  • I cry aloud with my voice to the Lord;
    I make supplication with my voice to the Lord.
    ² I pour out my complaint before Him;
    I declare my trouble before Him, (142:1-2).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to walk by faith.
  • When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,
    You knew my path.
    In the way where I walk
    They have hidden a trap for me, (142:3).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to be gut-level honest with Him.
  • Look to the right and see;
    For there is no one who regards me;
    There is no escape for me;
    No one cares for my soul, (142:4).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to make Him our refuge.
  •  I cried out to You, O Lord;
    I said, “You are my refuge,
    My portion in the land of the living, (142:5).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to depend on His strength.
  • “Give heed to my cry,
    For I am brought very low;
    Deliver me from my persecutors,
    For they are too strong for me, (142:6).

• He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison, freeing us to give thanks for His bounteous grace.
  • “Bring my soul out of prison,
    So that I may give thanks to Your name;
    The righteous will surround me,
    For You will deal bountifully with me,” (142:7).

How do we respond to Him Who Brings Our Soul Out of Prison?

I came across a meme yesterday. I honestly can’t remember where, but it resonated; “When fear knocks on your door, send faith to answer it.” Great advice; but how? It is only the Soul Brought Out of Prison that is courageous enough to send faith to answer the unknown. But the truth is, He has Brought every one of us who have placed our faith in Him, Out of Prison and has set us free through the One God sent to save.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
Because the Lord has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners; (Isaiah 61:1).

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life,” (John 3:16).

Fear left unattended can absolutely enslave us. We must believe that He Brings Our Soul Out of Prison in every unknown, regardless of the situation. Our circumstances may not change, but we can live in the freedom Christ bought for us.

It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery, (Galatians 5:1).

We can and should call on Him to deliver us, but what should we do while we wait?

• Let us continue in His Word, that we will know His Truth and know Him Who Brings Us Out of Prison to make us free indeed.
  • So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; ³² and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free… ³⁶ So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed,” (John 8:32, 36).
  • Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me,” (John 14:6).

• And let us ask Him to grow us in the assurance of His love, for we love Him because He loved us first; and it is His love that casts out fear and Brings Our Soul Out of Prison.
  • There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. ¹⁹ We love, because He first loved us, (1 John 4:18-19).

God would never have us live bound by fear, behind the prison bars of trepidation and uncertainty. He has provided all we need in His Word, empowered by His Holy Spirit, to nurture and strengthen our faith that we would stand firm in His freedom.

Oh, that we would come to His Word daily, and remind ourselves every hour of His truth, that we would walk at liberty and free from fear as we seek the precepts of Him Who Brings Our Soul Out of Prison.

And I will walk at liberty,
For I seek Your precepts, (Psalm 119:45).

Let’s Grow Together!