Psalms

Psalms 20: Saving strength from the LORD

Begin in prayer

Before we hear this prayer for God's anointed king, let us consider where we seek strength. Ask the LORD to turn our confidence toward Jesus and teach us to call on His name.

God is my strong fortress. He makes my way perfect.

2 Samuel 22:33

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word, and help us to see Christ. Show us that the LORD's saving strength is greater than the power of armies. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

David's song gives God's people words to pray for their king in the day of trouble. They ask for help from the sanctuary and support from Zion, asking God to remember the king's offerings and accept his burned sacrifice. Their prayer looks toward rejoicing in his salvation and raising banners in God's name. Confidence grows into the confession that the LORD saves His anointed and answers from His holy heaven. While others trust chariots and horses, God's people trust His name and ask the LORD to save.

As you read Psalms 20, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

The LORD saves His anointed, and His people trust His name above the strength of armies.

This is a shared prayer for God's anointed king as he faces danger, without a named battle in the title. Zion is the place of God's sanctuary, so the people seek help from His presence. Their requests include the king's sacrifice, because victory cannot be separated from approaching God in worship. A burned sacrifice was an offering consumed on the altar, expressing dedication to the LORD. The king's salvation will give his people reason to rejoice and raise their banners in God's name. Chariots and horses picture the military power on which other people rely. Trusting the LORD's name means depending on the God who has made His character known. Those armies fall, while the people upheld by God rise and stand, and their confidence returns to prayer for salvation.

How does Psalm 20 show us that the LORD saves His anointed, and His people trust His name above the strength of armies?

The LORD's people seek His help for their king.

The song begins with prayers for an answer in trouble. Help comes from the God whose sanctuary is in Zion. The people hope to rejoice in the salvation He gives His anointed.

The LORD's saving strength is greater than armies.

Chariots and horses can look like the safest foundation for hope. The song puts confidence in the name of the LORD their God. Those other trusts collapse, while He enables His people to rise and stand.

Memorise

Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust the name of Yahweh our God.

Psalm 20:7

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, what visible strength am I trusting more than Jesus?

The song declares, “Yahweh saves his anointed.” The people seek His answer from heaven, because chariots and horses cannot supply the saving strength they need. Their king and their own safety are in God's hands.

Jesus is God's anointed King, and His saving work reached victory through suffering. He died on the cross in His people's place and bore the punishment of their sins. The Father raised Him from death. His sacrifice is finished, with nothing missing for their pardon and peace.

Turn from your sin and entrust yourself to Jesus. All who rely on Him receive forgiveness and a lasting place under His rule. Bring your fears to the Father in His name. Let the strength of armies remind you how much greater is the Lord who saves.

Parent's note

Tell your children that the LORD's saving strength is greater than the power of armies. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for the saving strength that no army can supply. Bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

“In that day you will ask me no questions. Most certainly I tell you, whatever you may ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.

John 16:23

Lord God, we see many kinds of power and are tempted to rest our hopes on them. Please bring us to trust Your anointed King, Jesus. Thank You for His completed sacrifice and resurrection. Teach us to ask for help in His name and to remember Your saving strength through this week. Amen.