Friday Devo
Scripture:
Psalm 42
For the choir director: A psalm[a] of the descendants of Korah.
1 As the deer longs for streams of water,
so I long for you, O God.
2 I thirst for God, the living God.
When can I go and stand before him?
3 Day and night I have only tears for food,
while my enemies continually taunt me, saying,
“Where is this God of yours?”
4 My heart is breaking
as I remember how it used to be:
I walked among the crowds of worshipers,
leading a great procession to the house of God,
singing for joy and giving thanks
amid the sound of a great celebration!
5 Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and 6 my God!
Now I am deeply discouraged,
but I will remember you—
even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan,
from the land of Mount Mizar.
7 I hear the tumult of the raging seas
as your waves and surging tides sweep over me.
8 But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,
and through each night I sing his songs,
praying to God who gives me life.
9 “O God my rock,” I cry,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I wander around in grief,
oppressed by my enemies?”
10 Their taunts break my bones.
They scoff, “Where is this God of yours?”
11 Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and my God!
For the choir director: A psalm[a] of the descendants of Korah.
1 As the deer longs for streams of water,
so I long for you, O God.
2 I thirst for God, the living God.
When can I go and stand before him?
3 Day and night I have only tears for food,
while my enemies continually taunt me, saying,
“Where is this God of yours?”
4 My heart is breaking
as I remember how it used to be:
I walked among the crowds of worshipers,
leading a great procession to the house of God,
singing for joy and giving thanks
amid the sound of a great celebration!
5 Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and 6 my God!
Now I am deeply discouraged,
but I will remember you—
even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan,
from the land of Mount Mizar.
7 I hear the tumult of the raging seas
as your waves and surging tides sweep over me.
8 But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,
and through each night I sing his songs,
praying to God who gives me life.
9 “O God my rock,” I cry,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I wander around in grief,
oppressed by my enemies?”
10 Their taunts break my bones.
They scoff, “Where is this God of yours?”
11 Why am I discouraged?
Why is my heart so sad?
I will put my hope in God!
I will praise him again—
my Savior and my God!
Commentary:
Psalm 42–43. While each of these psalms can be taken separately, Psalms 42–43 go well together as a song with three stanzas: they share a refrain (42:5, 11; 43:5); 43:2 is almost the same as 42:9; and they both express the longing to return to God’s presence in the sanctuary (42:2; 43:3–4). In these psalms the singer laments his circumstances (connected with enemies who despise God and oppress his faithful servants), which keep him from attending worship at the central sanctuary. Singing this in corporate worship would especially foster a sense of yearning and expectation in the faithful, so that they would learn to attend worship looking for God’s presence, to mourn any circumstances that prevent them from attendance, and to count their attendance at worship as a great gift from God (certainly not a burdensome duty!). Other psalms that express yearning for God include Psalms 63 and 84.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 989.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 989.
Questions:
Psalm 42 ends in a surprising way. The psalmist declares that God is his Rock, but in the very next breath he asks, "Why have you forgotten me?" We know God is faithful, but there are seasons when He seems silent. We believe He is near, yet we still wrestle with loneliness, grief, and unanswered prayers.
Only someone who truly trusts God can pray with this kind of honesty. The psalmist isn't walking away from God, he's bringing his deepest questions directly to Him. Even as his enemies mock his faith, he refuses to let go of the One he knows is his only hope.
Reread verse 11.
Nothing in his circumstances has changed. The questions remain and the pain lingers, but he speaks to his soul once more. Biblical hope is not pretending everything is fine. It is choosing to trust God's character when your circumstances haven't changed. Like Jeremiah in Lamentations 3, we remember that God's mercies are new every morning. We don't wait until life feels better before we hope, we hope because God is faithful, even while we are still walking through the darkness!
Only someone who truly trusts God can pray with this kind of honesty. The psalmist isn't walking away from God, he's bringing his deepest questions directly to Him. Even as his enemies mock his faith, he refuses to let go of the One he knows is his only hope.
Reread verse 11.
Nothing in his circumstances has changed. The questions remain and the pain lingers, but he speaks to his soul once more. Biblical hope is not pretending everything is fine. It is choosing to trust God's character when your circumstances haven't changed. Like Jeremiah in Lamentations 3, we remember that God's mercies are new every morning. We don't wait until life feels better before we hope, we hope because God is faithful, even while we are still walking through the darkness!
- Where do you feel the tension between what you know about God and what you currently feel? How does Psalm 42 encourage you to bring your honest questions to God instead of hiding them?
- Why do you think God inspired Psalm 42 to end without resolving the psalmist's circumstances?
- How can the psalmist confidently call God his Rock while honestly asking, "Why have you forgotten me?" What does this teach us about biblical faith? Why does Psalm 42 end with the psalmist still waiting instead of receiving immediate relief? What does this reveal about the nature of hope in the Christian life?
Prayer Topics:
- Confess the times you have allowed discouragement or doubt to become louder than God's promises.
- Thank God that He welcomes your honest prayers and remains faithful even when you cannot see what He is doing.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen your faith, help you hope in God while your circumstances remain difficult, and teach you to speak His truth to your heart each day.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
7. How can I trust that the Bible is still God’s Word today? I trust the Bible is still God’s Word today because Jesus rose from the dead, proving He was God and said His words would never pass away. Through the Holy Spirit, God inspired the writing of the Scripture, determined the canon of Scripture and protected the copying of Scripture so that we might know Him and worship Him to this day.
(Matthew 24:35; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Revelation 22:18-19)
(Matthew 24:35; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Revelation 22:18-19)
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