BETWEEN A ROCK AND THE ROCK
Psalms 42: 8-11 NKJV
8 The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime,
And in the night His song shall be with me—
A prayer to the God of my life.
9 I will say to God my Rock,
"Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?"
10 As with a breaking of my bones,
My enemies reproach me,
While they say to me all day long,
"Where is your God?"
11 Why are you cast down, O my soul?
And why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God;
For I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God.
David is in the middle of a difficult time. His enemies are oppressing him and saying vile things about him. David's enemies are taunting him with the mocking cry of, "Where is your God? We can see his struggles in this psalm as he bounces back and forth between declaring his trust in God and lamenting the problems he is facing.
David declares that the Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime. Other translations render loving kindness as faithful love, unfailing love, and steadfast love. David has a trust in the love of God. He does not see God as harsh or indifferent. At night, when the darkness can set in both naturally and spiritually, David gets through the darkness by singing songs and praying to God. The God of his life who gives him life.
David's prayer is also a mixed bag. He declares God to be his rock and then asks why God has forgotten him. David wants to know why he is having to deal with sorrow because of the oppression of his enemy. The taunts of the enemy are painful. David likens their words and mocking to breaking his bones. We've heard of people busting our chops, but in any culture, harsh mocking words hurt. And on top of their sinister words is the sneering tone of where is your God? To people with no knowledge or regard for God, His invisibility is a sign to them that His existence is not real. Where is your God is not a question from people wanting to know when God was going to show up. It was a question of those who do not believe in Him.
David is most definitely facing hard times but David turns from the rock of hard times to The Rock of his salvation. Once again, David reminds himself of God's presence and faithfulness. So, in effect, David has a motivational talk with his soul, his mind, and emotions. Once again, David questions his doubtful thoughts, not the faithfulness of God. Hope in God is the same as saying keep up the expectations of God. God is worthy to be praised. God is David's help and David's God.
APPLICATION
This psalm is such a good picture of what we all face in life. Regardless of what you may have thought; everyone faces the hard rocks of difficulties. This is where we can learn from David. We can mirror his faith in the loving kindness and faithful love of God. We can turn to The Rock, who is greater than our challenges and problems. We can praise Him and put our hope, our expectations, in Him. We can declare God to be the One who helps and sustains us and that He is our God.
When caught between the rock of hardship and The Rock, who is our answer, let's make sure we turn to The Rock.
PRAYER
Lord, in the middle of good times, I will turn toward You with my thoughts and my praise. When things are going well, I keep looking to You so that when things get hard, You are the bigger rock in my life. My hope is in You. You are my help and my God.