Wednesday Devo
Scripture:
Psalm 13
1 O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?
2 How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
3 Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!”
Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.
5 But I trust in your unfailing love.
I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
6 I will sing to the Lord
because he is good to me.
1 O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?
2 How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
3 Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!”
Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.
5 But I trust in your unfailing love.
I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
6 I will sing to the Lord
because he is good to me.
Commentary:
13:1–2 How Long? The psalm begins with the question, “How long?” (repeated four times). The question is not asking for information but expressing the feeling of being unable to endure any longer. The questions move from God’s apparent indifference (v. 1) to the singer’s circumstances of anguish.
13:1 For God to forget and to hide his face from someone is to deliberately abandon that person, to withhold his loving care; it is not a description of God’s own mental state. If psalms were theological treatises, they would affirm that God will not forget his people (cf. 9:12) and that the abandonment described here is only apparent. But a song, whose goal is to describe feelings, does not need the same level of precision and detachment as a treatise.
13:1 See note on 10:1.
13:2 The enemy is typically one who hates. Often in the Psalter, the hatred leads the enemy to want to do violence to the singer; in other places, as here, it leads the enemy to gloat over the singer’s misfortunes. Since the Psalms presuppose that their singers are faithful to the covenant, readers may safely assume that the enemy hates the singer’s faithfulness.
13:3–4 Prayer for Help. The singer calls upon God to intervene.
13:3 For God to consider and answer would be for him to relieve the singer’s circumstances. Some take the request, light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, to imply that the psalm originated during a severe illness; but while the words could apply to such a case, they are general enough to apply to a wider variety of situations.
13:3 See note on 3:1.
13:5–6 Reaffirming His Trust in the Lord. Confidence in the steadfast love of God (v. 5), as revealed in the covenant (Ex. 34:6), leads to a trusting expectation of salvation (Ps. 13:5) and God’s bountiful dealing.
13:5 salvation. See note on 3:2.
13:5 Salvation includes both the deliverance of Christ himself from death in his resurrection (Heb. 5:7) and the deliverance of believers through Christ (Col. 1:13).
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 953–954.
13:1 For God to forget and to hide his face from someone is to deliberately abandon that person, to withhold his loving care; it is not a description of God’s own mental state. If psalms were theological treatises, they would affirm that God will not forget his people (cf. 9:12) and that the abandonment described here is only apparent. But a song, whose goal is to describe feelings, does not need the same level of precision and detachment as a treatise.
13:1 See note on 10:1.
13:2 The enemy is typically one who hates. Often in the Psalter, the hatred leads the enemy to want to do violence to the singer; in other places, as here, it leads the enemy to gloat over the singer’s misfortunes. Since the Psalms presuppose that their singers are faithful to the covenant, readers may safely assume that the enemy hates the singer’s faithfulness.
13:3–4 Prayer for Help. The singer calls upon God to intervene.
13:3 For God to consider and answer would be for him to relieve the singer’s circumstances. Some take the request, light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, to imply that the psalm originated during a severe illness; but while the words could apply to such a case, they are general enough to apply to a wider variety of situations.
13:3 See note on 3:1.
13:5–6 Reaffirming His Trust in the Lord. Confidence in the steadfast love of God (v. 5), as revealed in the covenant (Ex. 34:6), leads to a trusting expectation of salvation (Ps. 13:5) and God’s bountiful dealing.
13:5 salvation. See note on 3:2.
13:5 Salvation includes both the deliverance of Christ himself from death in his resurrection (Heb. 5:7) and the deliverance of believers through Christ (Col. 1:13).
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 953–954.
Questions:
- One way we can support those who are suffering is to SEE them. Sometimes we just need people to lament with us, to say how bad the situation sucks, to understand. It seems like half of the Psalms are laments from David, where he cries out to God about how He's forgotten about him, or how He's turned His back on him. God is a big god, and He can handle your doubts, fears, frustrations and questions. In fact, it's a healthy thing for us to bring those to Him. Do you feel like you are honest with God in your prayers? Do you think you can hide from Him?
- But David never stops at the lament. He eventually returns to the truth of who God is and thanks Him for His faithfulness and goodness. This is a great pattern for us when we suffer. We must acknowledge our pain and grief, but we can't get stuck there. We have to worship God through the storm. What are the dangers of getting stuck in your grief? What are the benefits of being able to acknowledge God's goodness even when you are suffering?
Pray:
- That you would learn to pray honestly.
- that God would teach you to trust His goodness in the midst of your hurt.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
4. Can a person be good enough to go to heaven? No. Because Jesus rose from the dead, proving He is God, I believe a person is saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
(John 1:12, 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 4:1-25, 5:1-2, 6-11, 6:23, 10:1-4, 10:9; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:1-9; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; Titus 3:4-7)
(John 1:12, 14:6; Acts 4:12; Romans 4:1-25, 5:1-2, 6-11, 6:23, 10:1-4, 10:9; Galatians 3:26; Ephesians 2:1-9; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; Titus 3:4-7)
No Comments