Day 56: The Inner Circle
Read: Psalm 25:8–15
The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.
— Psalm 25:14 (ESV)
Reflect
"The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him." The word for friendship is sod. It describes a circle of close friends sitting together, talking in confidence — the kind of conversation that goes quiet when a stranger walks in. It can also mean a council, the private counsel of people who are trusted.
So the verse is saying something remarkable. The LORD lets those who fear him into the inner circle.
Then comes the second half: "and he makes known to them his covenant." He causes them to know it. He explains himself.
We often think of a covenant as something like a contract — terms handed across a desk for you to sign. That is not the picture here. Here the covenant is something he lets you in on. It is what a friend shares with a friend.
Covenant, in this verse, is being let in.
Notice who is admitted: "those who fear him." In this verse, the fear of the LORD does not push you away. It is the very thing that brings you close. Those who take God seriously are the ones he confides in.
Across Scripture
"The Lord GOD does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7). Proverbs says "the upright are in his confidence" (Proverbs 3:32). Job, in his suffering, remembered the days "when the friendship of God was upon my tent" (Job 29:4). And Jesus told his disciples, "I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you" (John 15:15).
Sit With It
What has God been letting you in on lately — through his Word, through a hard season, through another believer — that you have treated as a burden rather than a confidence?
Pray
Let me into your counsel.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.