Rescued from Powerful Enemies
[God] rescued me from my powerful enemy. 2 Samuel 22:18
READ 2 Samuel 22:17–20
In 2010, at the age of ninety-four, George Vujnovich was awarded the bronze star for organizing what the New York Times
called “one of the greatest rescue efforts of World War II.” Vujnovich,
son of Serbian immigrants to the US, had joined the US Army. When word
arrived that downed American airmen were being protected by rebels in
Yugoslavia, Vujnovich returned to his family’s homeland, parachuting
into the forest to locate the pilots. Dividing the soldiers into small
groups, he taught them how to blend in with the Serbs (wearing Serbian
clothes and eating Serbian food). Then, over months, he walked each
small group out one at a time to C-47 transport planes waiting at a
landing strip they’d cut out of the woods. Vujnovich rescued 512 elated,
joyful men.
David described the elation of being rescued by God from enemies
who’d hemmed him in with no escape. God “reached down from on high and
took hold of me,” David said, “he drew me out of deep waters” (2 Samuel
22:17). King Saul, enraged with jealousy, hounded David, ruthlessly
seeking blood. But God had other plans. “He rescued me from my powerful
enemy,” David recounted, “from my foes, who were too strong for me” (v.
18).
God rescued David from Saul. He rescued Israel from Egypt. And in
Jesus, God came to rescue all of us. Jesus rescues us from sin, evil,
and death. He’s greater than every powerful enemy.
By Winn Collier |
Where do you feel hemmed in, with no escape
from lies you believe or sin that binds you? How do you see Jesus coming
to rescue you?
All-powerful God, I need to be rescued. If
You don’t help me, I’m finished. I have no escape. So I’m turning to
You. Please help me. | | | | |
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
Second Samuel 23:8–39 describes King David’s
special forces of heroic soldiers who fought his battles and risked
their lives for him. In addition, he had more than a million able-bodied
men he could have drafted for battle (24:9). But as expressed by his
song in chapter 22, it was God who deserved the credit for David’s
rescues and reputation. Even as his nation’s most celebrated son, he was
far from perfect. Although his last words make no mention of his
mistakes (23:1–7), the biblical account does. In addition to his affair
with Bathsheba (chs. 11–12), he insisted, in another thoughtless moment,
on a census to assess his nation’s military strength (see 24:10). Even a
man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14) could forget that his
strength was always in his merciful God—never in the numbers.
Mart DeHaan
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