Psalm 18 (17):42Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Who can deliver those whom You choose not to rescue? They called to the Lord, yet He did not respond to them. They did not cry out to just anyone, but to the Lord; however, He found those who did not forsake their evil deeds unworthy of His attention.

He addresses earthly adversaries as though invoking the Lord's authority. The outsiders, in their pleas to their deities for assistance, found no counsel from them; likewise, Saul, Absalom, Semei, and the other Israelites who opposed them lacked the Lord as their ally.

The outsiders, when they appealed to their deities for assistance, found no support from them; likewise, Saul, Absalom, Semei, and the other Israelites who were in conflict did not have the Lord as their defender.

They raised their voices, yet no one came to their rescue; they called upon the Lord, but He did not respond. David, having acknowledged that the adversaries cried out, goes on to specify to whom they directed their pleas: they cried out to the Lord; however, the Lord turned a deaf ear to them, due to their transgressions and their unjust actions against me. It is clarified by Nikita as follows: Notice David's precision; in reference to the Greeks or idols, he stated there was no deliverer, for they are not true gods; but when he invoked the Lord, he did not say there was no deliverer (for the Lord is indeed that, and that is His name); rather, he stated that the Lord did not hear them.

Observe David's insight: regarding the Greeks or their idols, he proclaimed, "There was no savior, for they are not gods at all." However, when he referred to the Lord, he did not claim, "There was no savior" (for the Lord is the one who exists, and this is His name), but rather stated that He did not hear them.

He provides another explanation for his triumph over his adversaries, which is that God responded to his supplications, while his foes scorned his pleas, even though they too called upon the Lord. Thus, neither Saul, nor Absalom, nor Ahithophel, nor Semei, nor any of his other adversaries had God as their ally; the Philistines and other foreign nations, despite invoking their false deities, gained no advantage from them. Therefore, it is clear that God does not accept the prayers of unrepentant sinners and brazen hypocrites who mock His sacred name. In contrast, those who seek repentance with a humble heart and call on His name in sincere faith are heard, and their petitions are fulfilled.

The unrighteous Israelites, while they may offer prayers to God the Father, find their petitions ineffective due to their lack of faith in Christ the Lord, the true God. As stated, whoever fails to honor the Son does not honor the Father (John 5:23).