Psalm Devotional
The Privilege of Drawing Near
Imagine for a moment that you are serving as the high priest of Israel. It is the Day of Atonement—the one day a year when an Israelite may enter the Holy of Holies. You put on the white garment, make a sin offering for yourself, and fill your censer with coals. You stand at the veil. You recall Nadab and Abihu, knowing that it’s dangerous to enter the presence of God.
Psalm 5 reminds us that we may only draw near to God through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It also reminds us that in God’s presence we find our refuge.
In these opening verses, the psalmist is found in the posture of prayer. He beckons God through a series of phrases: “give ear,” “consider,” “listen,” and “hear” (NIV). He knows who God is (“king” and “God”), and, by means of the personal pronoun “my,” demonstrates that he is in a covenant relationship with Him. We should emulate this pattern as we approach our God in prayer.
Reading Psalm 5 is a bit like watching a tennis match. The psalm moves back and forth between two vantage points, the godly and the ungodly. The pattern is as follows: godly (vv. 1-3), ungodly (4-6), godly (7-8), ungodly (9-10), and godly (11-12).

