LONGING FOR GOD
Opening Prayer
Indwelling Lord, make me expectant of what you will do in me and through me today.
Read PSALMS 42, 43
Psalm 42[a][b]
For the director of music. A maskil[c] of the Sons of Korah.
1 As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
under the protection of the Mighty One[d]
with shouts of joy and praise
among the festive throng.
5 Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
6 My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.
8 By day the Lord directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.
9 I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?”
10 My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”
11 Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
Footnotes
- Psalm 42:1 In many Hebrew manuscripts Psalms 42 and 43 constitute one psalm.
- Psalm 42:1 In Hebrew texts 42:1-11 is numbered 42:2-12.
- Psalm 42:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
- Psalm 42:4 See Septuagint and Syriac; the meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
1 Vindicate me, my God,
and plead my cause
against an unfaithful nation.
Rescue me from those who are
deceitful and wicked.
2 You are God my stronghold.
Why have you rejected me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?
3 Send me your light and your faithful care,
let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
4 Then I will go to the altar of God,
to God, my joy and my delight.
I will praise you with the lyre,
O God, my God.
5 Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
Footnotes
- Psalm 43:1 In many Hebrew manuscripts Psalms 42 and 43 constitute one psalm.
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Recognize your need of God. How will you meet meaningfully with him today?What a contrast with what we have been reading in Jeremiah. The people of Judah were set on ignoring God; here is someone who longs to meet with God (42:2). The writer’s situation is not completely clear. He can’t get to Jerusalem to join in the temple worship of Israel, but we are not told why. His unfulfilled longings leave him in a dark place (42:5,9,11; 43:2,5). The taunts of others make the pain worse (42:10). These notes are being written a year into the coronavirus pandemic and many are feeling the same longing to worship with others; worshipping together sustains our faith. But while the main focus here is on corporate worship, the psalm also speaks of personal longing for a deeper sense of God’s presence.
Whatever the circumstances, if we are finding that God seems distant, we can be encouraged by this psalm. Yes, it may be tough and dark, and we may feel alone. We may even feel that God has deserted us. But we can, like the psalmist, hang on in the knowledge that the time will come when we can praise again – a recurring refrain in the psalm (42:5,11; 43:5). In times of darkness that may not be easy. It may even seem impossible, which is why contact with other Christians is so important.
Apply
Take advantage of the opportunity for the corporate worship in your church, especially if you are in a tough, dark, and lonely place.
Closing prayer
Lord God, my refuge, my fortress, my rock. I rest in you, my hope and deliverer.
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