“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over” (Psalm 23:5).
Of all the wonderful promises God gives us in this psalm, this is one of the most glorious. He says he is going to set a table for us, spread wonderful food upon it, and then serve us a feast. And he does all this in front of our enemies.
The word for table in this verse means “spread” — a vast array of food, a massive feast. And there is only one guest at this meal — you! God does this wondrous work for every individual who loves Jesus and calls himself by his name.
As God is preparing and serving your feast, he makes your enemies sit on the outer fringe of the scene and watch everything unfold. They see the Lord himself spreading your table with food, escorting you to your seat and waiting on you. Then they watch as you fill up your soul with heaven’s delightful fare. I tell you, no demon power, including the devil himself, could ever comprehend this kind of love, mercy and grace.
Jesus tells us that the Father does this for all his children: “Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them” (Luke 12:37).
As you dig into the glorious food God has provided for you, the Lord leans down and whispers in your ear, “You don’t have to worry about any of these enemies. They aren’t able to do anything against you.”
With this wonderful assurance in your heart, you are able to sing, “Now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around … I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord” (Psalm 27:6).