We’re continuing this series which was started here.
Nowhere to Hide
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”
There are really two ways to understand this part of the psalm. It’s like a Rorschach test of sorts. Like when the psychologists hold up the inkblots to see what you perceive in them. It is supposed to tell them about what is going on in your subconscious mind. So, the question is, what is going on in your mind when I read this?
Is the author trying to flee and hide himself from this total exposure God has of him? When you read “Where can I go from your Spirit?” do you read “There’s nowhere to escape!”? Vs 8 says, “no matter how high I go or how deep I go, You are there!” Verse 9 is a poetic way of saying, “no matter how far East I go (“the wings of the dawn” where the sun rises), or how far West I go (“the far side of the sea”, which is a reference to the Mediterranean that bordered the land to the West), even there I will find Your hand holding me.” Verse 11 gives another extreme. “If I find the darkest place in the world, and crawl inside, I will be found there too.”
So how does this little ink-blot test strike you? Is the psalmist trying to hide from this God who knows him too well? Is he seeking some place where he can ‘be himself’ away from the prying eyes of God? OR, is your reaction this test text just the opposite? Is David saying “I am marvelled at God’s care and perfect presence in my life, and how well He knows me… no matter how high, low, near, far, light or dark my life gets, God is with me and knows my situation, regardless of the circumstances!”? Is this a dangerous, embarrassing exposure to be afraid of and seek escape from, or is this the assurance of a safe refuge from anything the world and this life may bring? The answer to this question will tell you a lot about how you see God, the Church, the Bible, and even yourself.
Question 2: What is your reaction to this perfect, intimate, absolute exposure that God has of you? Does it make you feel paranoid or protected?
That answer will depend on your relationship to God. Have you been given the assurance that you can be made pure, your path straight and given a new mission in life, or does God seeing you, and His unrelenting pursuit of you, from which you cannot hide, flee or take refuge from make you uncomfortable?
