PSALMS
42-43
INTRODUCTION: The title of
Psalm 42 indicates that it is a song of or for the sons of Korah. This does not
necessarily mean that they wrote the psalm. One of them might have been exiled
from the temple temporarily and written it or it could indicate that is was
written for them to perform. The sons of Korah were the lead worshippers and
lived on the temple grounds. Numbers chapter 16 details the rebellion led by
Korah and God’s judgement resulting in his death. The sons of Korah were actually
the descendants of his father Kohath. The grace of God is evident in the fact
that the sons of Korah later ministered as lead worshippers in the temple. They
were composers of songs and minstrels for the Lord.
Psalm 42 and 43 may have
originally been one psalm since 43 has no title and the psalms surrounding it
do and the same chorus is used in both psalms. Both are classified as laments.
The psalmist gets very real with God about his negative emotions, his spiritual
depression but gives himself a stern reprimand and a pep talk in the chorus.
PSALM
42
DESPERATE
DROUGHT,
FEARFUL
FLOODS,
HEARTFELT
HOPE
Psalm 42:1 As the hart panteth after the water
brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
Susan: In the
same way that the deer thirsts for water, the psalmist thirsts for God. He is
parched for God’s presence.
Susie: The
psalmist is in a spiritual dry spell, feeling that he is far from God. David
expressed this same thirst in Psalm 63:
Psalm
63:1-3 O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for
thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; To
see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. Because
thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
Susie: Sometimes
a person may feel that they are alone in going through the valleys in their
spiritual journey. However, there are other people who were very close to God
who experienced spiritual drought.
· Moses
asked the Lord to take his life rather than leave him charge of the complaining
Israelites (Numbers 11:14-16)
· King
David wrote several psalms dealing with his feeling of being far from God. One
example is Psalm 38.
· The
entire book of Job chronicles the struggles of a man who lost everything but
his life and that seemed to be hanging on by a thread.
· Elijah
had just won the victory over the prophets of Baal but was still feeling like
he was the only prophet who stood for the Lord (1 Kings 19:10-15).
Susan: If you are experiencing spiritual drought,
you are not alone. Some of God’s choice servants were right there with you!
Psalm
42:2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and
appear before God?
Susie: The
psalmist longs to be in the presence of God and still describes God as “living”
meaning active, available, and still powerful.
Susan: Whoever
the author is, he is longing for the right things. He is thirsting for the only
one who can quench his spiritual thirst. He is crying out to the living God who
is the living water.
John
4:10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who
it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him,
and he would have given thee living water.
Susie: When
we trust in the Lord, His Holy Spirit flows through us like a river:
John
7:37-38 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried,
saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth
on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water.
Psalm
42:3 My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto
me, Where is thy God?
Susan: The
psalmist feels utterly despondent.
Susie: This
man admits to God that he is literally weeping in despair.
Susan: He is
feeling wrung out and completely overwhelmed because of the taunts of his
enemies.
Susie: His
enemies, thinking they have him backed into a corner, shout out, “Where is this
God you brag about?”
Susan: They
had no idea they were treading on thin ice. When you mess with God’s kids, you
are really assaulting Him.
Susie: Even
though the psalmist is in dire straits and emotionally spent, he continues to
hope in God through his tears.
Psalm
42:4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone
with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy
and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday.
Susan: He
longs for days gone by when he was light of heart and singing praises.
Susie: He
pours out his soul to God with hope to rejoice again. If this was written by
one of the sons of Korah, he is longing to lead out in worship again, not from
obligation but from a heart filled with joy.
Susan: He is
fighting for his intimacy with God in the midst of the turmoil and duress of
fighting for his sense of well-being. He wants to back in rhythm, marching to
God’s heartbeat.
Psalm
42:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope
thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.
Susie: Psalms
42 and 43 have this repeated chorus.
Susan: The
psalmist reprimands himself. He asks himself why he is feeling desolate and
anxious.
Susie: He
does not try to hide or sugar-coat his feelings. He admits that he is troubled
deep within himself. But then he moves his gaze to God and gives himself a pep
talk. Oh, that we in the modern church could learn to be this honest with
ourselves and others rather than being like Eleanor Rigby who was “wearing a
face that she keeps in a jar by the door.” (Old Beatles song).
Susan: The
author does not put on a mask. He is truly transparent and absolutely
authentic. His true hope is in God and God alone. He tells himself he will lift
up, exalt, praise the God that he knows. He has an expectation that God will,
at some point in the future, quench his season of drought.
Susie: By
faith, he looks forward to the day when he will praise God for His deliverance
from these enemies and from his condition of spiritual drought.
Psalm
42:6-7 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee
from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar. Deep
calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy
billows are gone over me.
Susie: The
psalmist names the mountains from which the rivers that flowed through Israel
originated and colorfully describes their descent as a torrent. He may have
been living there in exile. Poetically, he is saying that God has sent him
trouble upon trouble in wave after wave. Perhaps Horatio Spafford had this
psalm in mind when he penned the song “It Is Well with My Soul” even while
mourning the loss of his children at sea. You may want to listen to the song
here:
Psalm
42:8 Yet the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the day time, and in the
night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.
Susan: Despite
his intense despair, the psalmist expresses confident faith that the Lord will
wash over him in lovingkindness—love, mercy, and grace.
Susie: The
psalmist remembers that the Lord is with him both day and night. He affirms the
hope that he will sing praises again, the Lord’s song filling his heart and
mouth.
Susan: The
psalmist is having an ongoing conversation, prayer, with God who is his very
life.
Susie: Jesus
taught the truth that real life is found in Him because He is life.
John
14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh
unto the Father, but by me.
Psalm
42:9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?
Susan: The
author of this psalm is very plain-spoken with God. He was having a difficult
time reconciling the waves of despondency he was experiencing with the
relationship he had with the almighty God. The reality of the two things going
on at the same time were a struggle in his humanity. He does not try to keep
anything under wraps because he knows that God knows his thoughts anyway.
Therefore, he might as well be forthcoming.
Susie: Yes.
And even though he feels forsaken by God at that moment, he still refers to the
Lord as his Rock. A rock was a solid place where a stronghold could be built, a
place to be able to launch a powerful defense.
Susan: A rock
would be a place where one could find safety and security.
Susie: Jesus
is the Rock of our salvation.
Psalm
95:1 O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock
of our salvation.
1
Corinthians 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of
that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
Susie: The
enemies in this psalm were most likely physical, human enemies although they
are unnamed. However, we all have an Enemy who whispers in our ear that God has
forsaken us or even that we should question the existence of a loving God.
Satan sometimes uses people to propagate his lies (think of Job’s “friends”)
and other times just uses our own thoughts. We need to take this honestly
before God as did the psalmist.
Psalm
42:10 As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me; while they say
daily unto me, Where is thy God?
Susie: Children
chant, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”
NOT true. The psalmist says the taunting words of his enemies defaming his God
were like jabbing a sword directly into his bones.
Susan: His
enemies maligned and berated him for the mere sport of it like bullies in the
schoolyard. They were breaking him down insult by insult toward both him and
his God, who is the Lord Almighty.
Susie: They
were trying to get inside his head and make him doubt the very source of his
strength, the Rock, the Lord.
Susan: They
tried to make him doubt the ability of his Strong Tower to keep him safe.
Psalm
61:3 For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
Proverbs
18:10 The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it,
and is safe.
Psalm
42:11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me?
hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my
countenance, and my God.
Susie: The
chorus is repeated at the end of Psalm 42. He reminds himself that although his
emotions are all over the place, his God can be counted on to bring him out victorious.
QUESTIONS
1.
What
was the occupation of the sons of Korah?
2.
We
named some people whose stories of spiritual depression are found in the Bible.
Can you think of others? List few with the Bible reference of their story.
Helps may be found at www.biblegateway.com or www.biblehub.com.
3.
Who is
the Living Water that quenches spiritual thirst?
4.
What
do the psalmist’s enemies say to taunt him?
5.
What
happy memory does the psalmist recall in verse 4?
6.
Psalm
42:5 & 11 are the chorus to this song. The psalmist confronts his emotions.
How does he tell himself to combat these feelings of abandonment?
7.
The
psalmist is in spiritual drought, yet he is flooded with sorrow and trials.
Describe a time when you were overwhelmed by cares. How were you rescued from
the distressing waves?
8.
The
psalmist calls God “my rock” in verse 9. Explain how Jesus is like a rock.
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