◄ What Does Psalm 16:8 Mean? ►

I have set the LORD continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Psalm 16:8(NASB)

Verse of the Day

David was a man after God's own heart and many of the psalms he penned foretold of Jesus... the coming Messiah Who would rise from the dead, ascend into heaven, and sit at the right hand of the majesty on high, until God finally places all His enemies under His feet.

This hymn of David describes the Lord delighting in His saints and details God's children joyously celebrating their fellowship with the Father. It portrays God as the portion of our inheritance, and we discover in this Psalm, words of David that were directly quoted by the apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost, where we read, "I foresaw the Lord continually before me, because He is at my right hand - that I may not be moved."

Although written by David, this Messianic psalm makes clear reference to the resurrection of Christ and His glorious ascension into heaven, where at this very moment He is seated in heavenly places - on the very throne of God. Our Lord Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father and He is interceding on behalf of all who are called by His name.

David's proclamation of God's goodness, his delight in God's faithfulness, and his hatred of those that do evil in the sight of the Lord, is a prophetic peep into the heart of our heavenly Saviour Who alone could truly proclaim, "I have set the LORD continually before Me; because He is at My right hand -I will not be shaken." Through the eyes of Israel's great king David, we have a portrait of Christ, the perfect Man Who lived His life in utter dependence upon the Father in Whom He found His full sufficiency.

David penned the heart of Christ with these wonderful words, "Whom have I in heaven but You and there is none on earth that I desire beside You." This Messianic Psalm bears witness to the Person and character of Christ... for He only said and did those things that He heard from the Father... for He delighted to say, "Thy will not Mine be done."

Just as David's was a man whose heart was right towards the Lord and who stood in stark contrast to those that worshipped other god's... and upon whose heads God will pour out great judgement and wrath... even so, Christ's earthly life is the exemplification of a man Whose heart was perfect before God - a life that demonstrates that the pathway to life and joy only comes through Him.

Through the prophetic pen of Israel's king David, we see Christ, Who is the example of the perfect Man Whose heart is sanctified unto the Lord, and Who lifted up His voice in humble prayer and obedient praise to God for His guidance and counsel. May we seek to set the LORD continually before our own eyes, knowing that He is forever at our right hand and by His grace we will never be shaken.

My Prayer

Heavenly Father, I rejoice in the joy of my salvation and celebrate in the truth that Christ - my risen, ascended, glorified Lord, is seated on the right hand of the Father in heavenly places. Thank You that by faith in Him, I too might have life eternal and enjoy fellowship with the Father, despite the inevitable difficulties and dangers that I face in this fallen world. Thank You that He is continually before me. May I never be shaken, knowing that Christ is seated on the right hand of the majesty on high, and by death has conquered death and given life-eternal to all who believe in Him. In His name I pray, AMEN.