The Psalmist Asks That God Will Protect Him And Stand Firm In His Defence (Psalms 35:1-3).
In these first three verses we have a vivid picture drawn of God dressed in heavenly armour, and fully armed. He is to take up His larger shield for diverting the missiles of the enemy, and also his smaller shield necessary for hand fighting, together with His divine spear, and He is to stand ready to defend His servant, while at the same time giving him the assurance that He will certainly save him. We can compare this picture with the idea of the Captain of the Lord's host with the drawn sword in His hand (Joshua 5:13-14), and that of the Mighty Warrior in Isaiah 59:16-17, the Redeemer Who would come to Zion (Isaiah 59:20). In each case it is God Who will fight on His people's behalf against all His enemies, and bring salvation to His own. See also Isaiah 49:2 of the Servant of YHWH, Who is to be the Lord's Instrument, and Isaiah 63:1 ff. where as a Warrior His judgment will be carried out on His enemies, a picture finally completed in Revelation 19:11-16 in the description of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. For further descriptions of YHWH as a man of war Who fights on behalf of His own see Exodus 15:3; Deuteronomy 32:41-42.
We are reminded by these verses of a small group of missionaries who had gone among a hostile cannibal tribe, and had taken shelter in a hut, fully alive to the hostility of the tribe around them, and waiting in trepidation for the attack that they knew must surely come, for they were very much aware of the mutterings and threats that were going on, and even of one or two movements towards the hut during the night that came to nothing. All night they waited, praying with their hearts in their mouths, their only surprise being that nothing occurred. And then to their greater surprise the next day a deputation came in peace, and on arrival looked around and asked, ‘Where is the great white hunter who stood armed on guard outside your hut last night?' These men then went on to explain that they had gathered together during the night in order to kill the missionaries, only to be held at bay by a fearsome figure Who had stood on guard outside the hut all night, accompanied by a number of companions, so that they had not dared to approach. And because they were afraid of the great white hunter they wanted to make peace. Subsequently on returning to the UK the missionaries were approached by a group of godly Christians who asked them if they could remember anything special happening on such and such a date, and when they checked their diaries they discovered that it had been the very night of their experience. It appears that God had urged on that group of prayer warriors to a special time of prayer for these missionaries, and what was even more strange was that the number of those who gathered for prayer turned out to have been identical with the number of the companions of the great white Hunter described by the tribespeople. They had learned that, ‘The angel of YHWH encamps round about those who fear him, and delivers them' (Psalms 34:7), and that He still does it today.
Important men today are followed about by armed men who are ready to protect them at all times with their lives. It should remind us that when we go out as Christians who are walking faithfully with Him we can have the assurance that we are accompanied by the Lord of Hosts Himself, dressed for battle, and especially when times are hard.
‘Strive you, O YHWH, with those who strive with me,
Fight you against those who fight against me.'
Take hold of shield and buckler,
And stand up for my help.
Draw out also the spear,
And stop the way (or ‘And the battleaxe') against those who pursue me,
Say to my soul,
I am your salvation.'
The Psalmist first calls on YHWH to stand up on his behalf, and fight his cause. Only those whose lives are totally committed to His service have the right to pray such a prayer. They have the right because they are His servants. The word ‘strive' can also be translated ‘plead my cause' as in Psalms 35:23, and this is probably its meaning here as he pictures the coming battle for his vindication in military terms.
The ‘shield' was the large shield with which arrows and spears were deflected. The buckler was the small hand shield which gave protection in hand to hand battle. He wanted YHWH with both these two shields (completely armed) to stand up for him and provide him with help. And he also asked Him to draw out His divine spear so as to stop his pursuers in their tracks.
‘Stop the way.' The Hebrew is s'gor, ‘stop'. (‘The way' is read in. It is not there in the Hebrew). Some see it as an ancient word for a weapon like a battleaxe (‘a stopper') that halts men in their tracks. This translation would then provide two attacking weapons to compare with the two defensive shields. On the other hand translating it as ‘stopping the way' by treating it as a verb parallels ‘stand up for my help'.
But above all he wanted to hear YHWH saying to Him, ‘I am your Saviour, your Salvation'. He wanted the assurance of God's personal delivering power, and he wanted it in His own words. This is the word also that comes to us when we put our trust in Jesus. We hear His voice saying, ‘I am your salvation'.