This is The Way – Devo Day 33

Kaph – Psalm 119:81-88

81 My soul longs for your salvation; I hope in your word.
82 My eyes long for your promise; I ask, “When will you comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
84 How long must your servant endure? When will you judge those who persecute me?
85 The insolent have dug pitfalls for me; they do not live according to your law.
86 All your commandments are sure; they persecute me with falsehood; help me!
87 They have almost made an end of me on earth, but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.

Psalm 119:81–88 (ESV)

In this stanza we find the psalmist crying out for God’s help again. The affliction continues. His opponents are still oppressing him. And he has reach the end of his rope longing for the salvation promised in His Word. Have you ever been in a no-good-rotten-place where things aren’t going well, they’re certainly not going according to plan, and there are adversaries seeking to do you harm? That’s where the psalmist is, crying out to God, but trusting in His promises.

81 My soul longs for your salvation; I hope in your word.
82 My eyes long for your promise; I ask, “When will you comfort me?”
83 For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.

Psalm 119:81-83 (ESV)

V81 The psalmist crying out in desperation. His soul aches for God, so much that it faints in waiting for the mercy he needs. Yet he is not in despair, because he has hope in God’s Word.

V82 The psalmist has been diligently searching the Scriptures, so much that his eyes are fatigued. He is searching for comfort and answers to the issues he is facing. He’s not a whinner. He’s working hard to focus his faith and trust.

V83 But the Psalmist feels weak, dry, and exposed. As if he were a fragile wineskin hanging over a fire that had turned it dry and made it black with soot.

84 How long must your servant endure? When will you judge those who persecute me?
85 The insolent have dug pitfalls for me; they do not live according to your law.
86 All your commandments are sure; they persecute me with falsehood; help me!
87 They have almost made an end of me on earth, but I have not forsaken your precepts.

Psalm 119:84–87 (ESV)

V84 “How long?” the psalmist prays. How long till God acts and judges those that are persecuting him? Here we sense despair that has caused him to take his eyes off God’s Word and to lose his focus. His cries have turned to complaints.

V85 The psalmist is reminding God that his enemies do not live according to God’s Law and yet he does to his own harm. His enemies are hunting him like an animal and setting traps for him that are in opposition to God’s Word.

V86 Focus returns. The psalmist again sets his eyes and hopes on God’s promises and declares that the assaults of his enemies are nothing but lies. The psalmist found faithfulness and refuge in the commandments of God. In such times, he prayed the logical prayer we have all uttered, “Help me!“

V87 The psalmist says they almost wiped him out. But he will continue to trust in God and obey His precepts. There is gold in that word “almost.” It reminds us that though our foes (especially our spiritual adversaries) may press for our complete destruction, God will preserve us. He allows us to be attacked, yet at the same time sets a limit to the success of the attackers.” Almost” is a word of God’s gracious protection. Nothing would make the psalmist forsake God’s. He would cling to His Word in good times and in bad times.

88 In your steadfast love give me life, that I may keep the testimonies of your mouth.

Psalm 119:88 (ESV)

In closing the psalmist prays that God would revive his life, but not just for his comfort and peace but so that the psalmist might faithfully follow God’s Word. The psalmist understood that the Word of God actually came from the mouth of God. He wasn’t ignorant of the fact that God had used human authors, even though those human authors expressed their personality, to create the inspired text. God so inspired those human authors that what they wrote could accurately be called words from the very mouth of God.

This entire stanza is a prayer. So often prayer is the first casualty of suffering and hardship but it is our surest remedy. The psalmist helps us see that suffering can be a long process. It can arise from difficult and hostile people. And persecution can even be undeserved but hope can be found in God’s Word and His faithfulness. His word is our trusted guide for the present and our sure hope for the future no matter what we face.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. – This is The Way

Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV)

QUESTIONS TO PONDER

1. When have hardship and suffering caused you to turn to others or to yourself instead of leaning into God and His promises? If it is a current condition, what would be different if you trusted him now?
2. What can you do to help you keep your eyes and your focus on God, His will and His promises, no matter what you might face in the future?
3. Is there a difference between complaining to God and crying out to Him? Are you a whiner? How could you change your complaining into heartfelt God-honoring prayers?

IF YOU ARE JUST STARTING AND WANT TO GO BACK AND READ THE PREVIOUS POSTS IN THIS SERIES