Psalm 78

 

PSALM 78

78 Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.

² I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:

³ Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.

⁴ We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.

⁵ For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:

⁶ That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:

⁷ That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:

⁸ And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.

.⁹ The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.

¹⁰ They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;

¹¹ And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them.

¹² Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

¹³ He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as an heap.

¹⁴ In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire.

¹⁵ He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.

¹⁶ He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.

¹⁷ And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the most High in the wilderness.

¹⁸ And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.

¹⁹ Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?

²⁰ Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?

²¹ Therefore the Lord heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;

²² Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:

²³ Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,

²⁴ And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven.

²⁵ Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full.

²⁶ He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.

²⁷ He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea:

²⁸ And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations.

²⁹ So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;

³⁰ They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths,

³¹ The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.

³² For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works.

³³ Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.

³⁴ When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and enquired early after God.

³⁵ And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.

³⁶ Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.

³⁷ For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.

³⁸ But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.

³⁹ For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.

⁴⁰ How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!

⁴¹ Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.

⁴² They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.

⁴³ How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan.

⁴⁴ And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink.

⁴⁵ He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.

⁴⁶ He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust.

⁴⁷ He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost.

⁴⁸ He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

⁴⁹ He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.

⁵⁰ He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;

⁵¹ And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:

⁵² But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.

⁵³ And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

⁵⁴ And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, even to this mountain, which his right hand had purchased.

⁵⁵ He cast out the heathen also before them, and divided them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

⁵⁶ Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies:

⁵⁷ But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.

⁵⁸ For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.

⁵⁹ When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:

⁶⁰ So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;

⁶¹ And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.

⁶² He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.

⁶³ The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.

⁶⁴ Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.

⁶⁵ Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.

⁶⁶ And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.

⁶⁷ Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:

⁶⁸ But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.

⁶⁹ And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever.

⁷⁰ He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:

⁷¹ From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.

⁷² So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.

 

PSALM 78

PRAYER, PRAISE AND PROMISES

A Daily Walk Through The Psalms

By Warren Wiersbe

Verses 1 to 8 – Servants of Tomorrow

We have a responsibility to the next generation. The psalmist wrote: “We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and his strength and his wonderful works that he has done” (verse 4).

Why should we share the Word of the Lord with the generation to come? “That they may set their hope in God and not forget the works of God but keep his commandments” (verse 7). That’s preparing them for the future, because hope looks to the future. Christians are born again unto a living hope by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. We know that our Lord is going to return and take us home to heaven. Too many people in the younger generation are setting their hope in money, in government or in their abilities. So we share the blessing of the Lord with the next generation to help them set their hope in him. 

Second, we want the next generation to remember the works of God. How easy it is to forget what he has done for us! Yet if we keep reminding the next generation, they will remember too. The past must not be forgotten. Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat its mistakes.

Finally, we must share the things of the Lord with the younger generation so they will keep his commandments. The psalmist wasn’t talking about a legalistic life. He was talking about a loving obedience to the Lord. Yes, we do have a responsibility to the new generation and we fulfil that responsibility by being a good example, by teaching, sharing and encouraging.

You are entrusted with your Christian heritage. When you share with the next generation the Word and works of God, you teach them valuable lessons about how he still works in the lives of his people. Strive to be an example that encourages the next generation to obey the Lord.

Verses 9 to 20 – Always Faithful

The children of Ephraim mentioned in Psalm 78 failed the Lord, and they failed their fellow Israelites when their help was badly needed. “The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. They did not keep the covenant of God; they refused to walk in his law, and forgot his works and his wonders that he had shown them.” (verses 9 to 11)

What a tragedy it is when people fail in their warfare. Jesus warned us about those who look back and do not fulfil the will of God (Luke 9 verse 62). If we are looking back, we cannot plow ahead. And if we look back, we cannot fight as we ought. Yes, there is a spiritual battle going on and we need every soldier. But something was wrong with these warriors. They were unfaithful. Even though they were armed, they turned back in the day of battle.

Something was wrong with their walk. “They did not keep the covenant of God; they refused to walk in his law” (verse 10). That’s where failure always starts. God wanted them to walk in his law that he might help them win the battle, but they would not obey him.

Finally, they forgot what God had done for them. “And forgot his works and his wonders that he had shown them.” (verse 11). Can you imagine forgetting a miracle? If a miracle took place in your life today, you would talk about it until the day the Lord called you home. You’d call a press conference! Think of the miracle God did for his people. But they forgot them. The Ephraimites were undependable on the battlefield because they forgot what he had done for them. They turned against the law of God and they turned from the works of the Lord. Consequently, they were unable to help in his work.

Unfaithfulness is common in people. But not so with God. Faithfulness is part of his character. This truth ought to encourage you if you know the Lord. Be faithful in your walk with him. Remember his works and be a faithful soldier in your battle for him.

Verses 21 – 33 – Futility and Fear

The history of Israel in the Old Testament is really the history of all Christians. Like Israel we have been redeemed through the blood of the Lamb. And like the people of Israel, we are heading for the Promised Land.

What is the one thing you need most on the journey from earth to heaven? Love? Yes, that’s important. Hope? That’s important too. But I think faith is needed most. The one thing you must do is trust God. That’s what the psalmist talks about in this passage. The people would not believe in God and continued to sin. We see the consequence in verse 33: “Therefore their days he consumed in futility and their years in fear.” When the Israelites got to the edge of the Promised Land, they refused to go in. They were at Kadesh-Barnea and would not trust God to lead them. So they had to wander around for some 40 years in vanity and emptiness, struggling with problem after problem.

Unfortunately, many of God’s people are betweeners – they are living between Egypt and Canaan. They have been delivered from bondage by the blood of the Lamb, but they have never entered into their inheritance. They are living between Good Friday and Easter Sunday. They believe that Jesus died on the cross, but they are not living in the power of his resurrection.

Don’t be a betweener today. Consider how God blessed the people of Israel. He sent them manna and fowl to feed them. He provided them with water. But also consider how God disciplined them because of their unbelief. In his patience, however, he finally brought them through. We are like the people of Israel. Our greatest need is to believe God. We don’t live by explanations; we live by praises. Today, while you hear his voice, don’t harden your heart.

Unbelief leads to futility and fear. Perhaps you are a “betweener” today – refusing to trust God’s leading. When Israel believed the promise of God he blessed them. Trust him, obey him and believe him and his blessing will come!

Verses 34 to 39 – Flattery Gets You Nowhere

Flattery is not communication; it is manipulation. We flatter people because we want something from them. It’s bad enough to flatter people, but it’s even worse to flatter God. “Nevertheless they flattered him with their mouth and they lied to him with their tongue; for their heart was not steadfast with him, nor were they faithful in his covenant” (verses 36 and 37)

How do we flatter God? First, when we praise him but don’t mean it. It is so easy to stand in church and sing songs of praise with our minds somewhere else and our hearts not in our singing. We are simply going through an empty ritual. We also flatter God when we make promises to him that we don’t intend to keep. We do this sometimes in our praying.

We flatter God a third way when we pray to him but don’t really seek his will. It’s easy for us to go through routine prayers and make promises “Dear Lord, today I’m going to witness” or “Dear Lord today I’m going to read my bible” or “Dear Lord, today I am not going to yield to that temptation.” But in our hearts we have no intention of following through. We lie to God. So often the Israelites lied to him. They brought sacrifices, hoping to buy God’s blessing. They went through the ritual and the routine of worship, hoping that he would somehow deliver them. They were flattering him – their hearts were not right with God.

What does it mean to have a heart right with God? It means we are honest and open with him. We are sincere, not lying. We tell him just how we feel and exactly what we’re going through. That’s what God wants. He wants us to walk in the light as he is in the light (1 John 1 verse 7) not trying to cover up or excuse our sins, but confessing them. To have our hearts right with the Lord, we must stop flattering God and always deal with him in truth.

God wants you to be open and honest with him. Never flatter him with dishonesty, insincerity or deception. One way to be honest in your relationship with God is to keep your heart clean. Confess your sins instead of trying to cover them. He knows your heart so be truthful in your praying.

Verses 40 to 53 – Flawed Memory

The older we get, the more we forget. This is especially true when it comes to our relationship with God.

The people of Israel often remembered what they should have forgotten and forgot what they should have remembered! “They did not remember his power: the day when he redeemed them from the enemy, when he worked his signs in Egypt and his wonders in the field of Zoan” (verses 42 and 43). How amazing. The Jews had seen God perform 10 miracles on their behalf in Egypt. Moses even pointed out that this was the hand of the Lord, yet they forgot all about it. After they were delivered from Egypt and living in the desert, the first time they were thirsty, they complained. The first time they were hungry they complained.

Their constant cry was, “Let’s go back.” What did they remember about Egypt? The bondage? The taskmasters? Being beaten and whipped? Carrying the heavy burdens? They didn’t remember those things. They remembered the leeks and the onions and the garlic and the cucumbers. They remembered the things that satisfied their stomachs. They did not remember the spiritual victories that God had given, his deliverance or his guidance. He had fed and led them, protected and provided for them; and they forgot about it. The same is often true of us. We forget what God has done for us and when we forget, we start to go backward.

Forgetfulness has consequences. “Yes, again and again they tempted God and limited the Holy One of Israel” (verse 41). Imagine – feeble, unbelieving man limiting Almighty God! But that’s what happens when we forget him. Don’t limit God in your life today. He has unlimited wisdom and unlimited power and your life has unlimited potential in his hands. Don’t turn back. Look ahead. Don’t test him. Trust him and remember his mercies.

The same God who worked miracle after miracle for Israel is the One who is working for you today. Don’t live with a flawed memory. Meditate on God’s faithfulness and goodness.

Verses 54 to 64 – Tempting God

There is only one direction for Christians to travel – forward. We must not think back or look back or turn back. We must move ahead, out of the old life and into the new.

That’s the picture of the Israelites. God delivered them from Egypt. He brought them into the Promised Land, yet when they got there, they failed him. “Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God and did not keep his testimonies, but turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers; they were turned aside like a deceitful bow. For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their carved images” (verses 56 to 58). They ignored all of God’s greatness. He defeated the other nations. He gave the Jews houses they did not build. They drank from wells they did not dig. They ate from trees they never cultivated. They ignored God’s goodness and then they deliberately tempted him.

How do you tempt God? When you deliberately disobey him and dare him to do something. You are not walking in ignorance – you know what you are doing. To tempt God means to sin with your eyes wide open. This provokes him.

The people of Israel even adopted the idolatrous worship of the people they had defeated! We do this today, too. How easy it is for us to accept the idols of this world, to trust in money and position, to trust in the words of men instead of the words of God. And the results? “He forsook the tabernacle” (verse 60). God moved out. He said “If you don’t want me, I’m leaving.” As a consequence, the people of Israel went into captivity.

What a tragedy to enter into the blessing God has for us and get so confident and selfish we forget the one who gave us the blessing.

Be careful never to place your trust in God’s blessings rather than in God. Enjoy the Blesser – the God who gives and guides you – rather than the blessing.

Verse 65 to 72 – From Servant to Ruler

We know that David committed adultery and that he made a man drunk and had him murdered. In addition, he once took a census of the Israelites out of disobedience to God – 70,000 people died as a result. But David is still a great man. God forgave him and used him in a wonderful way.

David was a man of humility. “He also chose David his servant and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the ewes that had young he brought him, to shepherd Jacob his people and Israel his inheritance” (verses 70 and 71). David began as a servant and God made him a ruler. That’s always God’s pattern. There are those who make themselves leaders, but God’s blessing is not upon them. David had God’s blessing because he was faithful in his job. That’s what Jesus said in one of his parables. “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord” (Matthew 25 verse 21). If you want to be a leader, learn how to be a follower. If you want to be a ruler, learn how to be a servant, faithfully doing what God has called you to do.

David was a man of integrity. “So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart” (verse 72). Integrity means having one heart, whereas a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1 verse 8). David’s sole purpose was to serve the Lord.

David was a man of ability. He “guided them by the skillfulness of his hands” (verse 72). Integrity ties your heart and your hands together. Your heart serve the Lord, and your hands are busy for him. We need people like that today. No amount of dedication can compensate for a lack of skill, but no amount of skill can compensate for a lack of dedication. We need both.

David exhibited the traits of a true ruler – humility, integrity and ability. They also are required of you for faithful service. Where has God placed you for service? Are you a faithful leader or follower? He rewards his faithful servants. Dedicate yourself to the Lord today and serve him faithfully.

Psalm 77

PSALM 77

To the Chief Musician, to Jeduthun, a Psalm of Asaph

77 I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice; and he gave ear unto me.

² In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted.

³ I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.

⁴ Thou holdest mine eyes waking: I am so troubled that I cannot speak.

⁵ I have considered the days of old, the years of ancient times.

⁶ I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search.

⁷ Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more?

⁸ Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore?

⁹ Hath God forgotten to be gracious? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah.

¹⁰ And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High.

¹¹ I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.

¹² I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk of thy doings.

¹³ Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?

¹⁴ Thou art the God that doest wonders: thou hast declared thy strength among the people.

¹⁵ Thou hast with thine arm redeemed thy people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph. Selah.

¹⁶ The waters saw thee, O God, the waters saw thee; they were afraid: the depths also were troubled.

¹⁷ The clouds poured out water: the skies sent out a sound: thine arrows also went abroad.

¹⁸ The voice of thy thunder was in the heaven: the lightnings lightened the world: the earth trembled and shook.

¹⁹ Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known.

²⁰ Thou leddest thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

PSALM 77

Prayer, Praise and Promises

A Daily Walk Through the Psalms

By Warren W Wiersbe

 

Verses 1 to 6 – Conversations in The Night

It doesn’t have to be dark outside for us to be in the middle of the night. Sometimes the darkness is in us. Discouragement moves in and we are like Asaph, who said “My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; my soul refused to be comforted” (verse 2). Some translations read “My sore was running in the night”. What do you do when your soul refuses to be comforted? 

Asaph tells us what we should do. First, talk to God, “I cried out to God with my voice – to God with my voice and He gave ear to me.” (verse 1). Someone has suggested that when you can’t sleep at night, instead of counting sheep, talk to the Shepherd. That’s what Asaph did. Sometimes approaching the Lord is painful, “I remembered God, and was troubled” (verse 3). What did he remember about God that troubled him? Perhaps he disobeyed a commandment or doubted a promise. Or perhaps he realised how holy God is and how sinful he is.

But talking to the Lord also bring reassurance “I have considered the days of old, the years of ancient times” (verse 5). In other words, God can be trusted. He has cared for you in the past and he will care for you in the future.

Second, talk to yourself, “I meditate within my heart and my spirit makes diligent search” (verse 6). Talk to yourself about the Lord. Examine your life and your Christian walk. Your discouragement will be replaced by a song. “I call to remembrance my song in the night” (verse 6).

When you feel discouraged get your eyes off your circumstances and onto the Lord. Also, examine your life, Have you disobeyed the Lord? Talk to him and let him encourage you. Then talk to yourself and encourage yourself with the things of God. He will give you a song in the night.

Verses 7 to 10 – Unanswered Questions

Asking questions is much easier than answering them. If you have children or grandchildren, you know how true that is. These verses contain a series of questions from a discouraged man. “Will the Lord cast off forever? And will he be favourable no more? Has his mercy ceased forever? Has his promise failed forevermore? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his tender mercies?” (verses 7 to 9). Then he concludes by saying “This is my anguish; but I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High.” (verse 10)

It’s normal to ask questions when we are going through difficulty and pain. David prayed “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” (Psalm 22 verse 1). Jesus also quoted these words on the cross (Matthew 27 verse 46). When we are going through difficulty, we expect God to move in, help us and deliver us. And when we are waiting for that deliverance we get impatient. That’s when the questions come.

Don’t be afraid to be open and honest with God. Tell him how you feel and what you’re thinking. He would rather you be honest about your feelings that hypocritical. But remember this: As Christians, we do not live on explanations; we live on promises. Suppose God started to answer these questions. Will the Lord cast off forever? No. Will he be favourable no more? Of course he’s going to be favourable. Is his mercy completely gone forever? No. If God answered all of these questions, would it make any difference? It might ease your mind a little bit, but it wouldn’t really change your situation. Live by faith, not by sight. Trust the promises of the Lord. He will not change.

God does not always provide explanations for your difficulties, but he does provide the promises of his word. The next time you find yourself in the midst of discouragement, bring your questions and concerns to him in prayer. Then rely on the promises of his word. God knows your needs and will meet them.

Verses 11 to 20 – Holy and Hidden

Asaph refused to be comforted. He asked a lot of questions of the Lord. At the close of his discouragement, he came to 2 wonderful conclusions. First “Your way, O God is in the sanctuary; who is so great a God as our God?” (verse 13) And second “Your way was in the seas, your path in the great waters and your footsteps were not known” (verse 19)

What an unusual way to express faith! First, Asaph tells us that God’s way is in the sanctuary. His way is a way of sanctification and holiness. God leads us in grace and from grace to glory. He makes no mistakes – His way is the best way and always has been. If we are living in the Holy of Holies, we will be able to discover God’s way. If we are in the Holy Word of God, we can have a holy walk with him.

Second, God’s way is in the sea. His way is hidden. We may not understand all of God’s leading, but this we can know: God is leading. Asaph said: You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron” (verse 20). His way is in the sea, and if he has to, he will open up the sea for you. If necessary, he will help you walk on the water. But the psalmist came to the right conclusion. God’s way is holy, so obey him. His way is hidden, so trust him.

Perhaps you are going through a difficulty today and asking the Lord a lot of questions – why, how, when, how long – the questions Asaph asked. Let God bring you closer to himself by following his guidance.

Psalm 84

 

Psalm 84

Do I come with an expectation when I come into God's house - that I will meet with God? What will it be like one day when we get to heaven? Are we looking forward to that day? Sometimes our desire to be in God's house (on Sundays) depends on who is bringing a message from God rather than the people we will meet. And sometimes we don't exactly look forward to those meetings (I don't as I know certain speakers will not exactly enthuse me or motivate me in my worship of God). How will I react when I get to heaven and meet the King of kings? This challenged me to reflect on the reason I attend church - worshipping God - rather than on the people present. Courtney Reissig asks us to think of 3 years full of blessings but it is not as good as one day in heaven. As I reflected on this I have enjoyed 3 years of health blessings since my cancer diagnosis - compare that with a thousand years - well there is just no comparison! 

To the Chief Musician upon Gittith, A Psalm for The Sons of Korah

How amiable are thy tabernacles O LORD of hosts!

My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God.

Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.

Blessed are they that dwell in thy house; they will be still praising thee, Selah.

Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.

Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.

They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.

O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer, give ear O God of Jacob, Selah.

Behold O God our shield and look upon the face of thine anointed.

For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD will give grace and glory; no good thing will be withhold from them that walk uprightly.

O Lord of hosts blessed is the man that trusteth in thee. 

 

TEACH ME TO FEEL BY COURTNEY REISSIG

Psalm 84 is about a longing for home, but a home that we never have to leave. It’s a psalm for the woman who knows God and the place where he dwells, and can’t wait to get there. There are some who think this psalm was sung as God’s people went on a pilgrimage to God’s temple in Jerusalem.

 

But there is something important that we might miss if we don’t see this psalm in its larger context in the entire book. Psalm 84 falls within Book Three of the psalms, and in this section crisis is the dominant theme. Many think the crisis which the people are facing in Book Three is the exile in Babylon – that these psalms were compiled specifically to encourage a people in exile. In addition, only one of the psalms in Book Three is attributed to David – it is as if the king is absent.  And so Psalm 84 is a bright spot in a dark part of the Psalter. Psalm 84 contains a deep longing for God, God’s house and the hope of restoration.

 

There is unassailable happiness to be found in longing for God’s house and knowing we will get there. Then the psalmist speaks of the One who dwells in that dwelling place. God’s place is hopeful because he is there. That is the main point and every other point about God’s place is subsidiary to the fact that God is present. His presence makes it lovely God is a God of beauty and the place he dwells in is the most beautiful of all. We tend to desire to be around beauty in this world and that is a foretaste of the ultimate beauty that awaits us in God’s house. Every beautiful thing we appreciate here should drive us towards worship of God, who is himself beautiful and the Creator of beauty.

 

So we long for God’s home not just because of what it can do for us (make us see beauty) but because God himself is there. In the Old Testament, God’s dwelling place was a big deal. In Genesis 1 and 2 God dwelled in the garden with his creation. In the wilderness God dwelled among his people in the tabernacle. In King Solomon’s day, God dwelled among his people in the temple, which is likely what the psalmist has in mind here.

 

Now reading this psalm as New Testament people, we know that God has dwelled among his people in a person, our Saviour Jesus Christ and that he dwells with us continually today by his Spirit. He has always been a God who delights to dwell among his people. And his people will delight to dwell, fully and finally, with him in his heavenly courts.

 

So the psalmist continues to list out the beauty of that dwelling place. God’s dwelling place is not just beautiful; it is also always a source of good for his entire creation. The God who cares for such small things, like the sparrow and the swallow is the God we should long to be with. The psalmist knows that God’s place is one of refuge and rest. It’s a good place with a good God. He takes care of his creation – so how much more will be watch over us.

 

This wonderful place and this glorious God, is where we are all headed if we are in Christ. And we get a taste of it each time we meet with Christ’s people. That’s because the temple now is – us!

 

We taste heaven in our church family when we serve one another joyfully and sacrificially, knowing that in God’s final dwelling place we will be working and serving in perfection and for his glory. We taste heaven in our church family when we enjoy fellowship around a meal, rejoice in our shared salvation in Christ and encourage one another in the study of scripture. These are the things we will be doing for all eternity. But the fullness is yet to come. We are forward-leaning people, hopeful people, because we know that however much this life gives us, or takes from us, our best days are always ahead of us. When we have a good day among Christ’s people in our church, it should make us long for more. It should spur us on to that final day, when it will be even better. And when things are hard now, it reminds us that the best is not here yet – we are waiting for that city to come.

 

The second section of the psalm speaks of a trip: a pilgrimage to God’s house. The psalmist is not yet in God’s house. That is why he longs for it and journeys towards it.

 

With the first mention of the “blessed” in verse 4, the psalmist spoke of the experience of being in God’s house. But what if you’re not there yet? Verse 5 is even more hopeful than verse 4 because it says you are blessed just by being on the journey to God’s house. Just by virtue of your longing and hope you find blessing.

 

The journey to the Jerusalem Temple wasn’t necessarily an easy one. In verse 6 and 7 the psalmist speaks of going through the Valley of Baca, which isn’t a known place but the general idea here is that what is happening in this valley is not natural. This was clearly, by nature a dry valley and presumably not an easy place for pilgrims to walk through. But despite its dryness, the psalmist says that the pilgrims “make it a place of springs.” How is this possible? If God is the source of your strength, then it can only multiply. If your strength is in God, then he can make even the driest desert valley a place of springs and pools for refreshment. Remember, the psalms are poetry, so the imagery in these verses might be speaking of literal rains filling up a dry desert valley, but it also might be speaking of a spiritual refreshment that comes when all external factors suggest you should be dried up.

 

So the strength of these pilgrims is in God, the God whose dwelling place is lovely and a source of good for his creation; and who multiplies their refreshment on their pilgrimage to Zion (verses 6 and 7). Their strength is in God, who hears their prayers (verse 8). They are not home yet, but they know they will be, and that changes their journey. They are hopeful.

 

Psalm 84 gives hope. It’s telling all who will listen, You are just a pilgrim here. Keep going. You will be home someday. And God will refresh you all along the way. The hopeful can keep going on the journey because they know the destination is sure and their strength is sufficient. We can keep going in hope.

 

The final section is anchored by the last verse. Why are you hopeful? Why do you trust? Because of verses 9 to 11.

 

You can do a lot with a thousand days. Imagine 3 years full of blessings – family, friends, job satisfaction and promotion, a great church full of love and growth, a fantastic house, great vacations – and imagine those 3 years have no problems: no health issues, no money worries, no relational difficulties, no bereavements Can you fathom that?

 

That is not as good as one day in heaven.

 

So when we catch a glimpse of that kind of life – a great day or a year that just brings wonderful blessings – we’re to think: “This is just a glimmer of a tiny fraction of what one day in heaven will be like.” That keeps us hopeful in the good times. And it stops us living as though this is the best there can be, which brings with it the danger that we forget to keep walking forwards.

 

And when we see others enjoying all those things, and we’re not and never will in this life, there’s no need for hopelessness. Better is one day in our future home than a thousand wonderful ones here. Where you are going shapes your experience of the pilgrimage to get there and in Psalm 84 the psalmist knows he is going somewhere amazing. So are we. Every other place pales in comparison with the place where God dwells.

 

Let Psalm 84 encourage you to look forward to God’s house, where he dwells in perfection, and where you will one day dwell with him. This temporary home might feel like a permanent one, but it is passing away. Think about God’s house, think about all that Christ did to prepare a place for you, there and long to be where he dwells. And if you find yourself brimming with hope today, praise God! May this shadow of a better reality spur you on. It’s merely a glimpse of the wonder to come.

 

Psalm 84 gives us strength on our pilgrimage to God’s place. It reorients our perspective as we make our way home. And it makes us hopeful. We have a lot to look forward to.

Psalm 44

 

Psalm 44

 

To the Chief Musician for the Sons of Korah. Maschil
 
We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.
How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them: how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out.
For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.
Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob.
Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.
For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.
But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.
In God we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever. Selah.
But thou hast cast off, and put us to shame; and goest not forth with our armies. Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy: and they which hate us spoil for themselves.
Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat; and hast scattered us among the heathen.
Thou sellest thy people for nought, and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.
Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.
Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.
My confusion is continually before me and the shame of my face hath covered me.
For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger.
All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.
Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way;
Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death.
If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god;
Shall not God search this out? For he knoweth the secrets of the heart.
Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.
Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? Arise, cast us not all for ever.
Wherefore hidest thou thy face, and forgettest our affliction and our oppression?
For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaveth unto the earth.
Arise for our help, and redeem us for thy mercies’ sake.
 
 
The Sons of Korah – Korah was not their dad (he was a distant ancestor) but they were named for him because he was famous – notorious.  He was the cousin of Moses and Aaron – Exodus 6 verses 18 – 24 which made his rebellion against their God-given authority all the worse.  In Numbers 16 he demanded an equal share in the leadership of God’s people and he was judged by God with decisive speed.  The Lord caused the ground to open and Korah and all his family went down to their graves alive.
 
In Numbers 26 verse 11 Moses wrote simply “The line of Korah, however, did not die out.”  Whether they were spared or brought back from the grave by the Lord we are not told, but they are the ones who lived when they should have died.  They were redeemed from death.  They are like us Christians, who should have died and yet live through the wonder and power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
 
Their history, their title as sons of Korah was a mark of shame and suffering and of the forgiveness and love of the Lord.  They knew the suffering of God’s judgment and they knew the wonder of his grace.
 
They also knew the heights, the glory days of Israel.  They were chosen by David, the great king of Israel, the slayer of the giant Goliath, and a man after God’s own heart.  They were appointed to be the singers – 1 Chronicles 25 verse 1 – 8.  Herman was a descendent of Korah, as we see from the title of Psalm 88 and gatekeepers – 1 Chronicles 26 verse 1 in the temple of God.  If you are a Christian, you share their privilege.  Chosen by God to follow his Son, to be filled with his Spirit and to herald his good news, you know, or have known the glory days
 
The sons of Korah knew God and they knew suffering; both ran through their family history like threads.  But suffering was not only a family trait, it was a present reality for them.  The suffering they will go on, to describe in Psalm 44 is terrible.  They are ashamed, scared, scattered and faced death.  There are no super-spiritual saints, they are people who know the grinding and crushing confusion and pain of ongoing suffering.  If life is hard for you, they get that, and sing, their song alongside you.
 
Christ is Lord and so when terrible suffering comes we cannot pretend it has nothing to do with him.  We must either run from him – shaking our fist in bitter agony and hating the Jesus who brought such evil and hurt into our lives, homes, families and hearts – or we must run to him in hope, trust, faith and love.  Psalm 44 shows us how we can do this, why we must do this and how Christ himself will hedge us in like a scrum of bodyguards as we flee to refuge in him.
 
In their confusion and agony of suffering the sons of Korah caught each other’s eye, clutched their instruments, struck a chord and sang.  They sang with tears, but they sang to God.  And the Holy Spirit gave them words to lead our heavy hearts back to Jesus along with theirs.  They raise this most sickening of questions – how can God allow our suffering? – and they answer it.
 
The title of Psalm 44 tells us that they answer it in a song.  “To the chief Musician for the Sons of Korah, Maschi.”  Jesus our great worship leader, our director of music leads us in singing it too.  It is a psalm that does not shy away from the reality, confusion, shame and terror of suffering.  And it is a psalm that takes us to Jesus.  Because of the love of Christ for us, we can learn to turn to him, to sing to him and to pray to him, whatever may come.  That is why the Holy Spirit wrote Psalm 44.
 
Psalm 44 starts with blessing.  It is a psalm that wants to set our pain squarely in the context of God’s faithfulness.
 
In verse 1 the temple singers look back to their childhood.  Their nation has a long history of God coming to their aid.  As they write this they take in the sweep of history from God freeing his people from slavery and oppression in Egypt to him giving them the Promised Land, driving out the wicked nations who lived there and leading his people in.
 
They are reminding themselves – and us – that the love of God for his people was never just a nice idea, or merely a deep affection of God’s heart, but was also worked out in practice.  God loved his people and so he freed them, protected them, led them and provided for them.  God’s love is the care of a husband and the compassion of a father, not the fickle feeling of a romantic teenager.  This is how God loves us. 
 
In verse 3 the sons of Korah emphasis that the history of their people is one of complete dependence.  They owed everything to God.  They were not partners with him, shouldering the burden and fighting the battles as equals.  No, they were children; rescued, carried, loved and cared for by their God.
 
The love that God had for them was shown in action – he did for them what they could not do for themselves.  But it was also shown in relationship.  He delighted in them and so showed them the light of his face.  This recalls the long hours Moses would sit face to face with the Lord until his face shone in reflection of the light in God’s face – Exodus 33 verses 7 – 11, 34 verses 29 – 35.
 
2 reasons why Psalm 44 starts with blessing: when its goal is to confront suffering.  The first is that the writers’ knowledge of the history of God’s love for his people makes the present misery of Israel all the more painful and confusing for them.  The second is that it draws them to bring their suffering to God and to search for his love in the pits of life as well as on the heights.
 
We have even more reason to recourse the love of God than these people – the love of Christ for us was displayed as he died our death on the cross.  The price of our freedom from death, sin, judgment, guilt and shame was the blood of Christ poured out as he hung cursed on the cross, cut off from his Father in our place and going through the hell we deserved to free us from God’s judgment and wrath.  This is the love that our God has for us. 
 
We know everything we have is the gift of God.  We brought no goodness or righteousness to him so that he would forgive us.  No we sinned and he suffered.  We did evil and he died.  Yet through Jesus we are forgiven, free, loved and adopted as children of God.  The history of God with his people is wonderful, glorious and true.  It is the history of a God who loves and loves, who pours himself out for our sake.  It is the story of Jesus who went through hell to find out and bring you back to himself.
 
The sons of Korah want us to plumb the depths with them so that we will find, with them, that there is no depth where God will not find us, no darkness where his light cannot shine.  There is no distance Jesus will not travel to take us in his arms, lift us onto his shoulders and bring us home into pleasant pastures beside still waters.
 
In verses 4 – 8 they sing to God their conclusions from their knowledge of the scriptures – they sing their trust and their hope.
 
They likely have in mind victories like the one the Lord won over Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea that decisively freed his people from slavery in Egypt.  In this verse they express the fact and nature of the rule of our God.
 
Our God is a king – Jesus is the Christ, the one anointed by the Spirit to be the eternal king over God’s people.  His rule is not only based on the fact that he created all things (although that would be enough reason) but also on his Father appointing him as the firstborn from the dead so that he might be supreme over all things – Colossians 1 verse 15 – 18.
 
Our God is a king, a warrior king and a servant king and the nature of his kingship is to rescue, save and serve his people.  He is not a king seeking to lord it over those he rules, as other kings might.  He is a king who sweeps into battle to save his people.  He sweeps into battle to save you.  His victories are not won to merely prove his might; they are won as an outworking of his love for those he rules.  When Christ rode into battle against sin and death on the cross, he wept for you and he was willing to die for he loves you.
 
The sons of Korah were happy to enter into battle against their enemies, following such a king. They were confident that he would lead them into victory – verse 5.  Like them we are right to have confidence in Christ that we can fight alongside him against even the most terrible enemies.
 
Having affirmed that we do indeed fight alongside our heavenly king with the weapons he supplies, they hammer home their point that this does not make victory or defeat reliant on us - verses 6 and 7.
 
We fight because the battle has already been won.  We can trample Satan underfoot because Jesus has already triumphed over him by the cross.  By the grace of God we fight with the promise that Jesus will bring all his soldiers home safe to his Father’s side, for we are “more than conquerors through Christ.”
 
It is this confidence in God that brings the sons of Korah to the end of the first part of their psalm with the confession that “In God we make our boast all day long and we will praise your name for ever.” Verse 8.  They do make their boast in God and they will continue to praise him.  This is an expression of their current faith in God and their expectation that they will continue to have this faith.  God is their boast and they are right to make him so.  Nothing has changed since they first sang this song
 
The sons of Korah have spent eight verses affirming their trust in God, expressing their complete dependence on God and declaring their praise of God.  God is the rock we run to in suffering and they have given us good reason to do so.
 
The sons of Korah have begun with faith, praise and deep dependence on their God both because this is truly how they feel and also because this is what makes the “But ..” at the start of verse 9 so horrific.  Psalm 44 captures the bizarre confusion of suffering that goes alongside the horror and pain of it so powerfully because it sets suffering in the context of faith.  We can see why murderous Egypt suffered the judgment of God but why would faithful Israel?  Why would God bring such suffering on them?  Why would God bring such suffering on you – “In God we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever. Selah.  But ...”
 
“But thou hast cast off and put us to shame ,,,” God is everything to the sons of Korah; their boast and the object of their praise; their kin and the source of their salvation  However their God, in whom they have placed all their trust and hope, has humbled and rejected them.  The nature of their suffering is hard enough as we will see – defeat, exile and scorn – but worse than all this is their rejection by God.
 
To put your trust in God, fall into suffering and be met with the silence of heaven crushes our soul and breaks your heart.  The suffering the sons of Korah face is serious.  They are seeing defeat in battle - verse 10.  This is hard enough to bear, but it is no minor skirmish or distant campaign.  This is a battle for the very survival of God’s people that they have lost – verses 11 and 12.
 
The people are not merely defeated; they are devoured.  They are dead or destroyed.  They are dead or destroyed, and all the survivors are exiled from their land.  We are not told which exile this refers to but that is not the point, the point is that this is a national catastrophe.  There would have been untold misery rolled into these lines from the song.  Soldiers lying dead on the battlefield was just the start, soon followed by the tears of wives and mothers.  We cannot imagine how these became screams as the victorious enemy began to take the young off to the slave caravans.  Families were surely left grieving, split apart, plundered and starving.
 
The language evokes the scale of this tragedy.  God has sold his people into slavery.  They are destroyed.  And then insult is added to injury: “You have made us a reproach to our neighbours, the scorn and derision of those around us.  You have made us a byword among the nations: the peoples shake their heads at us” – verses 13 and 14.  As well as being destroyed, they are laughed at.  The nations around are glad to see the shame of Israel.  This people claimed such love and protection from their God but “Where is he now?” they no doubt laugh.  Every vile sin and callous misery is inflicted on God’s chosen people and he does nothing.  So the sons of Korah bring the conclusive evidence to back up their chilling accusation: “you have rejected us.”
 
This is a national disaster and also a deeply shocking attack on the faith of the sons of Korah.  To face rejection by God would be terrible for any nation, but for Israel it seems like God is rejecting his own promises along with them; it seems that he is rejecting humanity and leaving us without hope.
 
Israel faces a national disaster that strikes at the core of God’s faithfulness and love.  This is also a personal agony for our psalm writers.  In verses 15 and 16 they move from referring to “we” or “us” to “I” or “me”. 
 
They are not writing this psalm at a distance.  They are not safe in some hidden fortress feeling the disgrace of their people second hand.  No this is personal pain “the shame of my face hath covered me.”  They hear the taunts and they wipe the spit from their faces.  They cry themselves sick and hurt more deeply than they knew they could.
 
And the terrible truth is that the Lord is behind this.  Their praise and trust, their love and faith in God is what makes the suffering so very hard.  In the depths of the night, when we lose hold of all else, we cry out, “Why do you allow this Lord?”  And then perhaps we whisper “Why do you do this Lord?”
 
In asking these questions we open up a terrible possibility that our faith is misplaced but we and the sons of Korah echo the cry of God himself.  At the bottom depths of the darkest pit of suffering the cosmos will ever know, the Son of God cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”  The suffering of the Sons of Korah is a picture, an echo of the suffering of the Son of God. 
 
Psalm 44 throws us on the cross of Christ.  It prises open the sufferings he faced there.  It begins to unlock our hearts to what he suffered in our place, what he endured for us.  As you suffer, you begin to feel something of what Christ felt; your heart begins to beat along with his.  This is where we begin to see why the Lord might give such suffering to his people, to you his child.  It is a door to seeing his love for us.  This is where the sons of Korah are taking us.  They will frame our suffering, along with theirs, with the rough wood of a Roman cross.  In that frame, the picture will begin to make sense.  But we must not rush ahead, because the cross of Christ raises questions as well as answering them.
 
If Christ is rejected for us, if he suffers in our place, if he is indeed our sacrifice and substitute - bringing us forgiveness, love, adoption, life, grace, joy and hope at the cost of his blood – then why do we suffer?  If he suffered in our place, then surely we need not suffer at all.  And more pointedly if he was rejected by God so that we (though we well deserve it) will never be rejected, then why does God reject the sons of Korah in their suffering? Why does he reject you and me?
 
God had brought suffering on them and they did not deserve it.  They have clearly been considering whether they could deserve it for their sins and we should too.  “Our heart is not turned back.” Verse 18  And we know this confusion.  We run to any distraction from the pain – food, drink, constant busyness, spending money or earning praise.  We run, or we sink, consumed by the darkness.  We run or we sink because we feel we cannot run to God, since he is behind the pain and he should be the one behind the joy.
 
The impulse to run is right but we so often run the wrong way.  We should run to the Rock, to our Refuge and Shield: Jesus.  He is the one who helps us in our time of need.  When we are confused by suffering because we know it is both undeserved and from God then we stand in good company.
 
When we suffer but have not sinned, we know that the one who sits on the throne of heaven alongside his Father knows exactly what we feel in all its agony and perplexity.  And that is where this psalm, and all our suffering will come to a climax.
 
“Yea” verse 22 is like a handbrake turn that dramatically changes the direction of the psalm.  This terrible suffering of the sons of Korah which feels like death and slaughter is for God’s sake.
 
The resolution does not come from seeing how the suffering is from God – that is, by debating to what extent he causes it, or whether he simply allows the suffering of a fallen world and sinful humanity to strike us.  The resolution does not come from seeing whether our sin has played a part in our suffering.  The resolution does not come from seeing how our suffering might be a means to discipline us and refine us to greater holiness.  These are all important questions, worth exploring.  But they cannot be the first questions.  We can only begin to ask and answer them once we have seen something more important than the origins or ends of our suffering.
 
The scope of this psalm is to set up the horrendous pain of suffering and then to give us one answer which cuts to the heart of our confusion and fear.  It is simply this: God has sent our suffering for his sake.  We do not suffer primarily because we may have sinned; we suffer because we are his.  Suffering is not a mark of God’s indifference towards us, or his hatred of us.  Suffering is a mark of his love for us.  It shows that we are his.
 
After they have so eloquently and agonisingly laid their suffering bare and so simply declared their innocence in the face of it, the sons of Korah tell us that the suffering is for God’s sake.  They are not suffering for the sake of their God.  Their suffering shows they are God’s people.  It shows the world that they are loved by the Lord of lords and King of kings.  
 
This seems utterly perverse, crooked and wrong to us.  Surely wealth, comfort, good health and peace are the marks of those loved by God?  If such a mighty God loves you, won’t he hedge you in and protect you from anything that could harm you?  That is the logic of our world and it makes such clear sense to us.  It is why suffering is so confusing.
 
Psalm 44 verse 22 is teaching us that when we are suffering at the hand of the Lord, our Father is treating us like Jesus, his Son.  Suffering is a mark of God’s love.  If you are a Christian and you suffer it is because God loves you.
 
There are different ways that the Father uses suffering to bring us to share in Christ’s glory.  He uses it to discipline us, to refine us and to show us how precious his love is – more precious than whatever we lose through the suffering. He may bring suffering to grow us in our dependence on his love or our compassion towards others.  He wounds us to draw us back to himself and he sometimes does this as we only just begin to wander.
 
We do not suffer aimlessly or at the hands of an indifferent deity.  We suffer for the Lord’s sake.
 
If suffering is a mark of God’s love for us, if it is where our Father meets us, sustains us, defines us and draws us to a deeper understand that we are his children, then should we embrace it?  Should we see our pain as a good thing?  Wonderfully, we should not.  We should revel in the good that the Lord brings out of our hurts and struggles.  We should stand in awe of a Father who brings us into the glory of his Son by the same path of suffering that Christ walked.  But we do not need to call the suffering itself good.
 
Suffering cannot overcome us, because we suffer for God’s sake.  Suffering cannot overcome us because God shows us his love in it.  Suffering cannot overcome us and so we pray for it to end.
 
Verses 23 – 26 finishes the psalm with a prayer.  This prayer still expresses the consistent faith of the sons of Korah as they ask the Lord to redeem them “for thy mercies sake”.  They are still asking for an end to the suffering.  Suffering is an expression of the love of God because the table of glorious feasting lies at the end of the way through the valley of the shadow of death.  The suffering is a mark of his love but it is a temporary one.
 
As we suffer, we need to look to see and grasp how our Father is loving us through the suffering itself.  This will undo the confusion and bitterness of suffering, even if it does not undo the pain.  But as we see that suffering means our Father is close to us and not that he is distant from us, then we do not lean further into suffering.  Rather we lean further into God.  Suffering is a blessing to us because it drives us into the arms of the God whose kind embrace is felt in the pain and whose love is stronger than death.  In his arms we pray for his Spirit to fill us, and we pray to know Christ and enjoy him.
 
And we pray for the suffering to end.  Our Father will use suffering but he will do so to bring us through it into Christ’s glory.  Suffering is a means not an end; it’s a path, not a destination, it is always temporary.  There was no greater agony – physically, emotionally, spiritually and in every other way – than the cross of Christ.
 
Psalm 44 ends without an answer to the final prayer of the sons of Korah.  The answer comes in the next psalm.  Psalm 45 is a wedding song, it is the beautiful ballad of the marriage of a king and his bride. 
 
The answer to the prayer that ends Psalm 44 is that Christ will rise up.  As suffering surrounds us like wolves in the darkness, we hear a crashing through the trees as our king rides to save us, his torch held high and his sword raised to destroy our foes and fears.
 
The final point of your suffering is that Christ will come to you as a husband who loves you with a burning desire.  And there are 3 ways that he will come to you:

1.    Christ comes to you decisively. 
2.    Christ comes to you repeatedly.
3.    Christ comes to you finally.
 
Our suffering is terrible, but it is also where our Father shows that we are his children.  He shows us, and he shows the world, that he loves us like he loves Jesus as he treats us as he treated Jesus.  He will draw us to himself to feel the warmth of that love even as we feel the cold grip of pain and bitter confusion.  He will draw us to himself and make us more like his Son.
 
Our suffering is terrible but our suffering will not end in a funeral.  It will end in a wedding.