PSALM THIRTY EIGHT

GOD IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES. 
 
   When Galileo was sentenced by the Inquisition to be confined in the
dungeons for an indefinite period, he was advised to repeat the seven
penitential psalms as penance for every week for three years. That is
not the use nor purpose of the Word of God. The inquisitors were not
only suppressing the Truth, they were also prostituting it. The seven
penitential psalms are Psalms 6 -32 - 38 - 51 - 102 - 130 - and 143.
This psalm is a psalm of David and he is in great distress. In his song
he uses three names of God, and it is instructive to note how he uses
them. Our use of the Name of God often discloses our relationship with
Him. 
   1. In his personal suffering, David cries to JEHOVAH. There is no
clue in this psalm to any event which occasioned it. We do not know if
he was suffering from bodily pain or mental stress. There is no
thanksgiving in this psalm. There is no prophetic utterance in this
psalm. There is just suffering here. Disease, wounds, sores, were words
to denote every kind of suffering and pain. He appeals to Jehovah. God
is still on the throne. 
   When we pass through some dark experience of life, we are apt to
convince ourselves that we alone have suffered in such a way. Our
thanksgiving has deserted us and our hope of future fulfilment fades
fast. Hold on!  Nothing can happen to us which has not happened
before, and of this one thing we can be sure - Jehovah reigns! 
   2. Describing the attitude of his enemies and also that of his
friends, David cries "ADONAI!" This name of God he uses can be
translated - "Sovereign Lord!" David recognises his friends in three
categories :- Lovers, friends, kinsmen. There are those who have a
strong affection for you - they love you. There are those who are
something a little more than acquaintances - they have friendship
toward you. There are those who are bound to you by natural ties - they
belong to you whether they like it or not. David found that in his
extremity his lovers and friends stood away; his kinsmen stood afar
off. How strange it is that when some people say they are right behind
you, they are usually over 100 miles up the road behind you.  
   In such circumstances David found his enemies were lively and
strong. There comes a time when there is no help in man. Our utmost
loyalty must be to our Sovereign Lord - Adonai. He will never leave us
nor forsake us. 
   3. Both the terms Lord and Sovereign are contained in the third name
for God the psalmist uses in this psalm - "ELOHIM." "O LORD of my
salvation." "Thine arrows stick in me," he cries. The arrows of the
Lord are His chastisements. David knew the sharp distress which was
inflicted by the Lord. Here is a strange but true contradiction, it is
both an affliction and a comfort to see the hand of God in all our
troubles. At times the human mind is confused by this very
contradiction, "How can a loving God chastise me so?" Yet the truth is
clearly stated in the Scripture - "Whom the Lord loveth, He
chasteneth."  
   So, whether it is to Jehovah, Adonai, or Elohim, our confession of
sin is essential. We need to tell God all about it. This is not a
useless habit. It is the baring of my soul before God, not of course to
any man. There should be a time of heart searching at the Breaking of
Bread. Whether we do it or not - God sees and God knows. The benefit or
loss is to us. We need to take our burden to the Lord and leave it
there. He can bear the heaviest burden. 



Copyright (c) 1995, Hedley Palmer. All rights reserved.



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