Well, good morning. It's always my joy to bring the Word of God to God's people. Today, we're going to continue our series in the Book of Psalms. We have before us another lament song. Laments were composed for when all is not well, and thus express emotions, experience in times of great sorrow or affliction. In a lament, the psalmist opens his heart honestly to God, a heart filled with sadness, loneliness, grief, abandonment, or fear. Maybe that is where you are today. You're feeling that grief or loneliness, sadness. You need guidance in the truth. And the Lord has provided a great song for us to be guided. So let's listen and learn from His Word today. We're going to stand and read Psalm 5. So please stand. The Word of God says, Psalm 5, Give ear to my words, O Lord. Consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help, my God and King. For to you I pray. In the morning, O Lord, you will hear my voice. In the morning, I will order my prayer to you and eagerly watch. For you are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness. No evil dwells with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes. You hate all who do iniquity. You destroy those who speak falsehood. The Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit. But as for me, by your loving, abundant kindness, I will enter your house. At your holy temple, I will bow in reverence for you. O Lord, lead me in your righteousness because of my foes. Make your way straight before me. There is nothing reliable in what they say. Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave. They flatter with their tongue. Hold them guilty, O God. By their own devices, let them fall. in the multitude of their transgressions. Thrust them out, for they are rebellious against you. But let all who take refuge in you be glad. Let them ever sing for joy, and may you shelter them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For it is you who blesses the righteous man, O Lord. You surround them with favor, as with a shield. Amen. You may be seated. Let's pray for the Lord to bless his time in his word. Let's pray. Oh Lord, we come before you. We know that there are many here that are feeling that affliction or pain, sorrow, loneliness. And Lord, we pray that you use your word today to comfort us, restore the joy of your salvation. Lord, I pray you give me clarity of speech, help me to preach your text faithfully. Lord, we pray that we will have ears to listen and obey what you say today. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Life was going well for Spielmann, a pianist who was performing live on Polish radio, until Hitler's invading army entered Warsaw in 1939. And what happened? A grenade destroyed the transmitter, silencing the station. Afflictions can come from many places, pandemics, storms, accidents. But if we're honest, afflictions usually come from humans. Afflictions arise when the wicked want control over people. Hitler is just one example of that. I want to give you one more example. Exodus 1, we learn about a new king who arose over Egypt. He said to his people, Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are more and mightier than we. Come, let us deal wisely with them, or else they will multiply and in the event of a war will join themselves to the other side who hate us and fight against us and depart from the land. Right, so you see that king was trying to figure it out. How can I make sure I'm in control? And so what does he do? He appoints taskmaskers over them, and they afflict the Israelites with hard labor. They make their lives bitter. Many of them are even beaten. But the king wasn't done there, if you keep reading in Exodus. He orders the Hebrew baby boys to be killed. But we know that God wouldn't allow this injustice to continue. I want you to see that. Go to Exodus chapter 2, verse 23. We should set up the tone for our passage this morning. Exodus 2, verse 23. If you've got it, say amen. All right. Let's read there. Here we're going to see the avenger of the afflicted. Verse 23. Now it came about in the course of those many days that the king of Egypt died, and the sons of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out. And their cry for help because of their bondage rose up to God. So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And God saw the sons of Israel, and God took notice of them. We're going to return to the story later, but for now, remember their situation. They were a people afflicted. They were in bondage, right? Enslaved. They were going to need a miracle from God to be delivered from this affliction. In the Psalm we read, it speaks about one man's affliction. He was afflicted by many enemies. We know that David, he faced several battles, but he does so with the guidance of the Lord. And so we're going to consider in Psalm 5, And we're going to learn from David what we should do when we are afflicted. We're going to observe four actions that David takes when he's presented with affliction. The first one is he's going to retell the problem to God with words. Look at verse 1 and 2 again of Psalm 5. It says, give ear to my words, O Lord. Consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God. And so David begins with one of many imperatives in this song. He tells God to give ear to his words. Or in other words, he says, hear my prayer. That is his opening address. He is in desperate need. He desires that the Lord answers him. In order for the Lord to answer him, what does he need? His attention. That's not to say that God can't hear everyone's prayer at once. No. We know that God is powerful and all-knowing. That's not the issue. Whenever a prayer is brought to God, the question is, will he answer the person who is praying to him? Does that person have a real relationship with God? Does he have access to the throne of grace? And we know that David does. He loves the Lord. And so he begins his prayer by establishing that he is one of God's people. He has the honor to direct his prayer to his king and his God. We know David is counted as righteous or wise. He is someone who knows the Lord. We see in Psalm 17, verse 1, a similar address. David says, Here a just cause, O Lord, give heed to my cry, give ear to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips. There, in Psalm 17, David establishes that he's not like the wicked who do not know God. Surely God will hear the prayer of his people. And God wants us to pray to Him. He wants us to cry out to Him when we're in affliction. Who else can deliver us? And so that's what David does. He tells God his problem. The text reads in verse 1, Consider my groaning, or also translated, sighing. This is another imperative. David is in this desperate place. He needs God to come through. Not only does he need God to hear his words, but he also needs God to hear his heart. The word for groaning, it can also be translated murmuring. And so picture just non-verbal expressions we make when we are in despair. The amazing part is that God can even sympathize with us, right? We know that God cares for His people. We are told to cast our burdens upon the Lord for He cares for you. And so David knows he can direct his prayer to the God of compassion. In verse 2, he adds another imperative. He says, to heed the sound of his cry for help. And so it's beautiful to think that out of all the cries in the world, God can hear your specific cry. He knows your situation. And so when we're afflicted by our enemies, and we will be many times, we can retell God the problem with words. He will not look the other way. He cares for you. He's in control of that situation that you're in. And if you're being afflicted, the only one that can help is the God who hears your cry. So cry to Him. So that's the first action. We ought to retell God the problem with words. The second one we see in verse 3. The second action is to rise to God, plead with Him, and wait. So look at verse three again. In the morning, O Lord, you will hear my voice. In the morning, I will order my prayer to you and eagerly watch. As the affliction continues in the life of David, his prayer doesn't become weak. He is persistent. He wakes up and seeks the Lord. His soul is determined to speak with God. Notice the four different ways he describes his speech. First he says, my words. Then, my groaning. Then, my cry. And here he says, my voice. David is seeking God with his whole heart. This is not a half-hearted prayer. This is a prayer that David brings to God with his full energy. And this prayer is more than just a statement, it's a plea. David is begging God to hear his prayer. He says he will order his prayer to God. Another way of saying that is he's presenting his case before God. David is being afflicted by his enemies in an unjust manner. And surely the good judge will not overlook this injustice. This is similar to what Jesus was trying to teach his disciples in a parable in Luke 18. Listen to Jesus. He says, For a while he was unwilling, but afterward he said to himself, even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I'll give her legal protection. Otherwise, she'll be continually coming to me and I'm going to be worn out. And what does the Lord say? Hear what the unrighteous judge said. Now will not God bring about justice for his elect who cry to him day and night? And will he delay long after them? I tell you that He will bring justice to them quickly. And so the order of events is quite simple. God's people pray to God, then God hears their prayer, and then God brings justice. But what tends to be the hard part for us? That time between our prayer and when God brings justice. Notice the end of verse 3. David says that he eagerly watches. We see similar language in this throughout the Psalms. The idea is to wait on the Lord. To wait, oh my soul does wait, Psalm 130 verse 5 says. So we tend to think praying is just about you pray a prayer and then you say amen and that's it. But no, we must not forget we're also called to watch. Maybe you say a prayer and you expect God to deal with that affliction the next day. We know that's not usually how the Lord works. In the book of James, we learn about the early church being persecuted. And the rich man and the evil man have condemned the righteous man. But what does James tell them to do in this time of affliction? If you read James 5, 7, it says, Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. You too be patient. Strengthen your hearts for the coming of the Lord is near. As an example, brethren, of suffering and patience. Take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. And so patience is key when we are being afflicted. We are called to wait. We are called to watch. And understanding that affliction is expected of God's people. It's going to happen. But we also know that justice will be served when Christ comes back. And so we need to wait in the meantime. Now some would argue that God doesn't care for his people if he allows them to go through such afflictions. But we know that's a lie because the testing of our faith produces endurance and that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love him. And so the affliction from our enemies doesn't catch God by surprise. Remember, he is sovereign. In the book of Revelation, We learn about the Antichrist and how he is going to make war on the church during the Great Tribulation. Affliction is going to be the norm for believers until Judgment Day. And so what are we to do in the meantime? We wait. Now that doesn't mean we do nothing. Remember, prayer does work. God answers prayer. But we need to press on in the spiritual war and keep our eyes on Jesus. We remain alert and continue to follow God even when the enemies try to persuade us to join their side. It can be tempting to follow the world and relieve the affliction in a sinful manner. That's what many false converts have done. Rather than deal with persecution, they forsake the faith and say, this narrow road is too hard for me. Beloved, may we aim to be diligent as we rise to God daily with our plead and wait on Him. He will answer. We need to be patient. So what's the next action we see in Psalm 5? What does David do in a time of affliction? We see in verses 4 to 10, he remembers that God will punish the wicked. And so we're going to read these verses again, but I want you to notice two traits of each character. I'm going to focus on God first, and then David, and finally his enemies. See if you could spot these traits. Verse 4 reads, Alright, so there were two traits there. If you got them, great. Look at verse 7 to 8 now. Two traits of David, and I'll explain in a second. But as for me, by your abundant, loving kindness, I will enter your house. At your holy temple, I will bow in reverence for you. Oh Lord, lead me in your righteousness because of my foes. Make your way straight before me. And then I'm going to explain in a little bit two more traits of the wicked. It continues, there is nothing reliable in what they say. Their inward part is destruction itself. Their throat is an open grave. They flatter with their tongue. Hold them guilty, oh God. By their own devices, let them fall. In the multitude of their transgressions, thrust them out, for they are rebellious against you. And so David here, gives many reasons why God should deliver him from his current affliction. So he appeals first to God's nature. If you look in verse four through seven, God is holy. Verse four tells us that God takes no pleasure in wickedness. No evil dwells within God. We must never forget this basic truth that God is good. James 1.13 tells us that God cannot be tempted by evil and He Himself does not tempt anyone. And then if you jump to verse 17, we're informed that every good gift and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the Father of light. It's God who gives good things. And so in the context of this song, God is not the judge. He's not just the judge that David goes to in his affliction. He is the good judge that David goes to. He will not let one sin go unpunished. In contrast to God's displeasure of evil, he delights in what is holy and good. And so David's first reason is that this affliction he's going through, it's not just that the enemies are getting their way, but we know it's God is not pleased with this injustice. God is holy. And that's true. Evil treatment should be dealt with. He continues in verse 5. that the boastful shall not stand before the eyes of God. And so, since evil cannot dwell with God, David's enemies won't be able to dwell with God. They will be humbled to the ground as they are judged by God. God is not pleased with them as they afflict others. In verse 6 we learn that God actually hates all who do iniquity. And so David doesn't just appeal to God's holiness, the first trait, But he also appeals to his hatred of sin. This is where some of you may question this truth. You might say, I don't know, Kevin. Doesn't God love everyone? But the Bible doesn't say God loves the sinner and hates the sin. The Bible teaches us that God hates both the sin and those who sin against him. And now we can get into a whole discussion about common grace and special grace. But for the sake of time, let me briefly explain this word, hate. I think it's going to help us here. Many times we consider this word hate used by only evil people. If you hate someone, then you must be in sin. We forget that there's such thing as a righteous anger. Of course, all of us fall short of displaying this in a sinless manner, but not God. He is perfect. When He is angry, He remains just. When Jesus flipped some tables over because of the sin that was taking place in His Father's house, He was angry, yet he had no sin in his heart. That is the type of hatred God has towards those who are workers of iniquity, a holy hatred. Psalm 11, verse five tells us that the Lord tests the righteous and the wicked, and the one who loves violence, his soul hates. Psalm 45, seven states, you have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. So God wouldn't be good if he didn't deal with wickedness, if he didn't hate it. If God just let injustice to continue, he would not be a just God. And so David appeals to God's holiness and hatred of evil. Verse 6 gives us an example of how God deals with those who speak falsehood and murder others. Look at there in verse 6, it says, God destroys them And then, if you continue, there's a phrase there that says, He has disgust towards them. And so, He abhors the man who does bloodshed. We see this throughout the Psalms. But you, O God, will bring down to the pit of destruction men of bloodshed and deceit. They will not live out half of their days. And so, God destroys them. God not only kills them, but their soul will also perish. Psalm 9 5 says, And so remember, we're called to fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. If you thought God just looked at sinners in action and just smirked a little, I hope these verses have changed your mind. When you hear about sex trafficking and abuse of little kids, I'm sure you get upset. Don't you think God is angry with those wicked people? We do not serve a God who doesn't care for those in affliction. Psalm 9-12 says, Psalm 10-17-18 says, to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed so that the men who is of this earth will no longer cause terror. God will deal with evil doers. We can be assured of that. But evil doers are not just drug dealers and gang members. Jesus warned us in his Sermon on the Mount that there would be many that called him Lord that are actually wicked. Evildoers can be religious like the Pharisees. Jesus will say to them, I never knew you, depart from me you who practice lawlessness. And so let me just give you a quick reminder to examine yourself. Don't just assume you won't be punished. Are you walking like the wicked? Are you delighting in sin? God hates that. And you need to turn away from that sin and humble yourself before God and plead for forgiveness by the sacrifice of Christ on your behalf. David continues in verse 7 with sharing the contrast between him and the wicked. Now the first trait that he has, which the wicked do not have, is that he, David, worships God. In his affliction, David makes time for adoration. David knows his place. He is a sinner like everyone else, but he is a redeemed sinner. He has access to God, and he understands that it's only because of the abundant love and kindness that God has shown him that he can enter his house. He can pray to God because of the promise God made him, that covenant God made with him. And so worshiping God can be one of the last things on our minds in a trial. Yet David knew whatever may happen to him, God is worthy of praise. And so David's reason for God to deliver him from affliction is not just about the enemies getting their way, but that it is God's people that are being afflicted. people whom God loves, people who worship Him and are humble before Him with thanksgiving. And so David mentions he bows in reverence to God. That is true of every believer. They are amazed of the goodness and grace of God. The fact that we can enter a relationship with Him, now that's reason to praise Him for eternity. Even in this affliction, David continues to worship God. He continues to meet with God. He's not doubting God. He is simply stating that those who are afflicting him should be punished. while he should be delivered. Many times we often compare ourselves to unbelievers, but we do it in a simple manner. We act like we're better than them. David doesn't do that. He knows he is sinful and can only be counted righteous by faith in God. However, he also longs for justice. He wants God to protect him so he can bring God glory. So a good question to wrestle with is how do we think of ourselves in comparison to evil doers? Do we boast that we are better? Or do we understand that if it wasn't for God changing our hearts, we would have been just like the wicked? The next trait I want you to observe is in verse eight. David, unlike the wicked, prays for wisdom. Look what he says here in verse 8. He continues this series of commands, and this time it's that the Lord will lead him in his righteousness. Righteousness is about that which is just, the right thing to do. Again, his foes are all around him. They are ready to attack him. The affliction is great, but David responds like all believers should. We need the Lord to lead us. We need his guidance. So he prays that the Lord will make his way straight before him. He doesn't want to act on his emotions or preferences. He wants to do whatever God has for him to do in this affliction. And we know that's not easy. During an affliction, we're tempted to handle it in human wisdom, in ways that make sense to us. when we should really be depending on the Lord. We should be seeking His advice, His will in the matter. I'm sure during one of David's afflictions, it would have been easy for him to just kill King Saul when he had the chance. But that was not how God planned to deliver him from that trial. And David was aware of this. When he was about to kill King Saul and he doesn't, this is what he tells King Saul. I will not stretch out my hand against my Lord and the Lord's anointed. The Lord therefore be judge and decide between you and me and may he see and plead my cause and deliver me from your hand. So David isn't overcome by evil, he overcomes evil with good. And that is the difference between him and the wicked. He is wise in how he deals with affliction. And so ask yourself, when we have enemies that come our way, do we seek to bring evil upon them? Or do we go to God and ask, how are we to deal with this affliction? David, being a man of war, could have easily dealt with his affliction with violence, but he didn't. He waited on the Lord. He was patient to follow whatever path the Lord had for him. And so may our aim be, in any affliction, to do what is right. In verse 9, David continues with more characteristics of the wicked. Why should they be punished? I want you to notice the first trait here in verse 9. The wicked are slanderous. Verse 9, David says that there is nothing reliable or true in their mouth. Indeed, a bad tree produces bad fruit. Psalm 36 tells us that there is no fear of God before the wicked's eyes. The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit. And so the wicked are people who lie, they're deceivers, they gossip, they slander, they flatter, they destroy with the tongue. And before David told King Saul, you know, I could have killed you if I wanted to, he tells him, Why do you listen to the words of men saying, behold, David seeks to harm you? Right? So there were the enemies and they were, you know, telling Saul, David wants to harm you. He wants to take your kingship. We got to kill him before he does. David's like, I am not trying to kill you. And those people are slanderers. And so clearly, they were the ones telling lies. David never had intention to kill Saul or take his kingship. Ironically, who is it that starts all the mess? It's Saul. And it eventually leads to his own destruction. We see that in verse 9. that their inward path is destruction itself. It is as if the wicked will eventually destroy themselves. And we know their sin will lead to their destruction. Like David says, their throat is an open grave. Another way of saying that, you could translate that, their speech stinks. And so picture the wicked, like decaying cavities and smelly breath. If the infection in an upper back tooth is not treated, it could spread to the brain and cause death. The wicked are deadly, and they put themselves in that position of death. If you know a little bit about Romans, Paul actually quotes this verse here in verse 10, when he's describing sinful humanity. And King Saul, he's just one example of those whose wickedness leads to his own death. If you know the story, he doesn't die by the hand of David, right? David doesn't kill him. King Saul gets badly wounded in a battle against the Philistines. Rather than letting the Philistines torture him, what does he do? He takes his own sword and he falls on it. Another example of the wicked destroying themselves. Judas, after betraying Jesus, he returns the money and he goes and hung himself. This is the way of the wicked, destruction and punishment. But an interesting point that came about in my study is that Paul in 2 Thessalonians encourages the church who are being persecuted with the reminder of the destruction of the wicked. So I really want you to see this. Go to 2 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 4 if you got it. Say amen. All right. 2 Thessalonians 1 Look at verse 4 here. We're going to go to verse 9. If you don't remember anything else, I want you to just remember this. Be encouraged by this. Look what he says here. Verse 4, Therefore we ourselves speak proudly of you among the churches of God for your perseverance and faith in the midst of all your persecutions and afflictions which you endure. Right? This church was an example. Verse 5, This is a plain indication of God's righteous judgment so that you will be considered worthy of the kingdom of God for which indeed you are suffering. Now here it is. So where's the destruction? Verse 9. These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. And so he opens up this letter with a reminder that what? The afflicted will be relieved and those that are doing the affliction will be afflicted and then eventually eternal destruction. So yes, the wicked will reap what they sow. We must not be ashamed of this truth. God will punish the wicked. It should encourage us in our affliction. David continues with another imperative. You can go back to Psalm 5. In verse 10, he tells God to hold the wicked guilty. Again, another instance where David is crying to God to avenge him. He knows that God is the good judge and the one who can punish his enemies. And so, he shares another trait of the wicked. They are not only slanderous, but they are also extremely sinful. Yes, David is a sinner, too. He's aware of that. But he doesn't make that his practice and joy. He hates sinning against God. The wicked, on the other hand, they love their sin. They do not want to follow God. They rebel against him. And so in his affliction, David prays that God will deal with his enemies, that they will fall and be thrusted out. A rebellious people deserve to be judged greatly. Those who were afflicting David were men of war, and so it would be fitting for them to be punished by losing in war. That's exactly how King Saul dies, by his own devices. We know he wasn't planning to die in battle, and he wasn't able to accomplish what he wanted to, which was eventually kill David. Another example of someone in power who didn't get to accomplish all his wicked schemes was Hitler. Now I'm sure many people wanted Hitler to be held guilty after all he did during World War II. We know history says that he killed himself, But that doesn't mean he escaped God's wrath. He will give an account for every sin he committed. And so David appealed to God to deliver him from his affliction by stating that the wicked were slanderous and sinful. But may we not forget that we once were also slanderous and sinful like they were. We should have been held guilty for every sin before a holy God. And so may we be grateful that God saved us, otherwise we would have also fallen in our own devices. So far, we observed three actions that David takes in his affliction. He retells God the problem of words. He rises to God, pleads with Him, and waits. And he remembers that God will punish the wicked. The last action that David takes in his affliction is that he rejoices that God will protect the wise. So look at verse 11 and 12, our last verses here in Psalm 5. But let all who take refuge in you be glad. Let them ever sing for joy, and may you shelter them, and that those who love your name may exult in you. For it is you who blesses the righteous man, O Lord. You surround him with favor, with a shield. And so David goes from making commands to God, now shifts to his own soul and God's people. We who take refuge in God are to be glad. If you're trusting God in your affliction, I know it's crazy, but you are called to have joy. Now, I'm not talking about a super happy, jumping up and down, smiling joy. I'm talking about a joy that can't be taken away. The Thessalonians, again, they're an example for their church. Paul tells us in 1 Thessalonians 1-6 that they received the word in much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit. That is the type of joy James mentions in the beginning of his letter. He says, Why are we to consider it all joy? Because we know that the testing of our faith produces steadfastness. We're going to grow in our relationship with God through this affliction. Why do you think David was so close to God, right? We see over 70 psalms of him just pouring out his heart to God. It's because he went through so much afflictions. Now, I'm not saying that afflictions are a good thing, right? We know many of those afflictions in David's life were evil. They came from wicked men. But God used it for his good. Remember the story of Joseph and how his brothers sold him into slavery. They were jealous of him. Yet even after that affliction that his brothers put him through, what does Joseph say? As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. And so during the affliction, we're going to have many questions like Job. You might say, why me? Why am I going through these trials? I'd rather be dead. It's in these moments that we need to rely on the God who knows all things. We can rejoice knowing that God is on our side. David continues in verse 11 saying, let them ever sing for joy. People who know that God will protect them can sing even in affliction. They can praise God even when the enemy is about to kill them. Joseph Scriven, a hymn writer, had a life filled with grief and trials. He had poor health and because of that he wasn't able to pursue his army career. His fiancee died in a drowning accident on the eve of their wedding in 1844. In 1855, his new bride-to-be died after a short illness. And he had other afflictions, like the mistrust from neighbors who did not appreciate his work with the poor. And yet, through it all, he was able to write this hymn, What a Friend We Have in Jesus. Let me share it with you. What a friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer. Oh, what peace we often forfeit. Oh, what needless pain we bear. All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged. Take it to the Lord in prayer. Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer. Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer. In his arms, he'll take and shield you. You will find a solace there. Amen? Have you taken your affliction to the Lord in prayer? Don't try to be strong and handle the burden on your own. Go to God today if you've been afflicted with anything. He shelters those who go to Him. He will be with His children in all the trials. And yes, we're promised that we will rise from this affliction and praise the Lord. Last verse, in verse 12, David concludes with this hope that we have in any affliction. If I can add one more action to this sermon, it would be the action God takes. to those who endure much affliction." And what is that? God rewards His people with the water of life. We will no longer have sorrows, but rather we will be completely satisfied. We're promised to stand before Him, forgiven and worthy to dwell with Him forever. That should bring us great joy. And so, at the end of this passage, we read that God surrounds His people with favor as with a shield. David ends with some war language. And if we were in his context, we would appreciate this a little bit more. There is nothing like having a shield when the enemies attack. We need a shield when affliction comes our way. And God promises to protect us with His favor. He will give us the strength to endure much affliction. Now, we may be surrounded by many enemies, but what really matters is that God has promised to surround us with his grace. His grace is sufficient. We can rejoice no matter how difficult the affliction we're presented with because God will not forget us. We will endure by his grace. His bride will be protected. So beloved, How have you been handling your afflictions? Have you been like David, who retells the problem to God with words, rises to God, pleads with Him and waits, remembers that God will punish the wicked, and rejoices that God will protect the wise? We ought to have assurance in the avenger of the afflicted. God is aware of your afflictions, beloved. He has a plan. We need to go to Him for guidance and wisdom and trust Him in that plan. I started with the affliction of the Israelites in the book of Exodus because I wanted to end with the deliverance that God provided for them. And so, just one more verse here. Go to Deuteronomy 26. Deuteronomy 26 verses 6 to 9. Hear about the avenger of the afflicted. Verses 6 to 9. And the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us and imposed hard labor on us. Then we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and outstretched arm, with great terror and with signs and wonders. And he brought us out to a place and has given us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. And so yes, the Israelites were afflicted, but what does God do? He destroys their enemies, He hears their cry, and they are then free to worship Him. Moses and the sons of Israel, they sang this song to the Lord after this deliverance, right? They're filled with joy. Here's a part of it from Exodus 15. Who is like you among the gods, O Lord? Who is like you, majestic in holiness? Awesome in praises, working wonders. You stretched out your right hand, the earth swallowed them. In your loving kindness, you have led the people whom you have redeemed. And so the Israelites were afflicted. then they were avenged. This is going to be the pattern of believers until the return of Christ. Revelation 6, of those who cry out who have been slain because of the Word of God, this is what they cry out. How long, O Lord, holy and true, will you refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth? And what's the answer to them? Rest for a little while longer. God is not done yet. He's got a purpose and plan with all this affliction. And so maybe you're in much affliction today. But one day we're promised that we will dwell with God in that new heaven and new earth. He will personally wipe away every tear from our eyes. There will no longer be any death. There will no longer be any mourning. No crying, no pain, no affliction. May we be patient and have assurance in the avenger of the afflicted, the Alpha and the Omega, the Almighty, the Amen, the Lord Jesus. Right? And He could sympathize with us. He was also oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth, Isaiah tells us. He is coming quickly. and His reward is with Him. So may we look forward to His return and trust in His plan for all of those who are afflicted. Amen. Let's pray.