Friday 16 October, 2020

1 Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? 2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises. 3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. 4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. 5 His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by him; he sneers at all his enemies. 6 He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.” He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.” 7 His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. 8 He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch in secret for his victims; 9 like a lion in cover he lies in wait. He lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net. 10 His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fall under his strength. 11 He says to himself, “God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees.” 12 Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God. Do not forget the helpless. 13 Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, “He won’t call me to account”? 14 But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted; you consider their grief and take it in hand. The victims commit themselves to you; you are the helper of the fatherless. 15 Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out. 16 The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land. 17 You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, 18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed, so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.

There is a secret here that the Psalmist has learned that I desperately need to learn as well. It’s the “now”, “then”, and “will soon be” secret. It’s a truth about God that can bring hope in the darkest times. 

I get so stuck in the “now”… the pain of my current situation or hardship. God wants to hear about it – he truly, truly cares (see 1 Peter 5:7). That’s what the Psalmist did in this passage.  But he quickly moves on to what he knows – for certain – what he’s witnessed in the past. God has come through for me before! (V14) The Psalmist remembers the “then”. 

Only armed with the “then” can we look confidently to the “will soon be”. (V17-18) Because God has been faithful, we can trust Him that He will be faithful.  

Please Heavenly Father, in every “now“ situation, help me remember the “then”, and, through Jesus, claim as mine the “will soon be”. 

Written by Boudy Van Noppen