Ziph literally means “refining place.” What a great place for David to go - a place where God will refine him. In the refining process, a smelter would heat ore to the point that it became liquid, with all of the impurities burned away. The smelter would know the process was complete when he could look in the pot of liquid ore and see his own face. So too, the Lord says, “I’m going to allow the heat to be turned up a bit, to burn out the impurities in you so that people might see something of Me in your life.”

C. H. Spurgeon said that affliction is the tuner of the harp and the sanctifier of the son. I like that. How did David have such intimacy with the Lord, such passion for the Lord, such understanding of the Lord that He could write the psalms he wrote? His passion, wisdom, and understanding came from places like Ziph and Keilah - where people were chasing him down, where he was betrayed by people he had helped, where he would feel forsaken and alone - where God could deal with him.

How long does the process of affliction or refining go on? Longer than you might think. It takes awhile for the impurities to be burnt off, for the reflection of His face to be seen from my life or yours.