Psa. 23:5 ¶ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
I love that last phrase, ‘my cup overflows’. What do you think David meant by that? Could it be that David was experiencing an overflowing filling of the Holy Spirit even as he penned these words? Absolutely! I think David had learned the art and the importance of living a life full of the Holy Spirit. David was actually a prototype of the New Testament Christian. He basically was used by the Lord to introduce charismatic worship to God’s people. He was filled with the Holy Spirit and the resulting joy in a more consistent fashion than any of the Old Testament prophets. David was all about the overflowing cup. Here is a short thought from Augustine on this phrase.
“My cup runneth over.” Or as it is in the Vulgate: And my inebriating chalice, how excellent it is! With this cup were the martyrs inebriated, when, going forth to their passion, they recognized not those that belonged to them; not their weeping wife, not their children, not their relations; while they gave thanks and said, “I will take the cup of salvation!”
Thou hast gladdened my mind with spiritual joy. “And Thy inebriating cup, how excellent is it!” And Thy cup yielding forgetfulness of former vain delights, how excellent is it.”
Augustine had drunk of David’s inebriating cup. In the world that we live in, we simply won’t survive unless we also drink from this intoxicating cup. Augustine recognized that this was the cup that enabled the martyrs to face unthinkable horrors. It is from drinking the cup of the Holy Spirit that we finally understand that the joy of the Lord is literally our strength to live in difficult times.
Here is a thought from John Trappe on this same phrase.
“My cup runneth over.” He had not only a fulness of abundance, but of redundance (superfluous repetition). Those that have this happiness must carry their cup upright, and see that it overflows into their poor brethren’s emptier vessels.”
Trappe saw two things in this short quote. We are to develop a lifestyle of repetitive drinking. We are also to stay full so we have ‘drink’ to poor out on the hurting of this world. Trappe agreed with David, ministry comes from the overflow of my brimming cup.
3 thoughts on “MY OVERFLOWING CUP”
Amen!
Good morning friends! I’ve just recently experienced such a feeling! Because God had me tell a soul the cold hard reality about constantly disobeying him! After telling this man some bad news my heart was heavy! Gods presence then fell upon me like a hard rain! After that tongues were coming forth from my soul like a running river!
I completely agree with John Trappe ..we hust keep our cup in that up right position so as not to lose any of the precious “substance” for those who are in need of GOD…. But ……can we in the place of one accord (our church home ie Victory) turn the cup over an let the passion flow knowing fully that we will be filled again ?! HA ha ha ha…..what a place to find ourselves ,in the Presence of the Filler !!!!