Salmos 42

Salmos 42:5

Boice summarizes the causes of spiritual depression from Psalm 42-43… 1. Forced absence from the temple of God, where God was worshiped (Ps 42:1–2). So the psalmist is far from home and feels that he is therefore also far from God. It is not that he does not believe that God is everywhere, or that God is not with him. He is praying to God in these psalms, after all. But his being away from home has gotten him down, and his depressed state has caused him to feel that God is absent. There is another dimension to this sense of alienation. 2. The taunts of unbelievers (Ps 42:3, 10). In this distant land the psalmist was also surrounded by unbelievers who taunted him with the biting challenge, “Where is your God?” This must have hurt him a lot, because he repeats the line twice in just this one composition… “Where is your God when you need him? Where is your God now?” That is a cause for deep depression. Where is God indeed? Where is God when I am in a far country, separated from my usual work, taunted by enemies? Why doesn’t God seem to hear my cries? Why doesn’t he intervene to change my circumstances? 3. Memories of better days (Ps 42:4). The psalmist was also troubled by memories of better days. There is a proper use of memory in times when we are depressed, remembering God’s past acts as an encouragement to believe that he will act for us again. 4. The overwhelming trials of life (Ps 42:7). A bit further on in this psalm the writer speaks of the overwhelming trials of his life, referring to them as “waves and breakers” that have swept over him. 5. Failure of God to act quickly on our behalf (Ps 42:9). Verse 9 is a painful cry to God for having forgotten him. It reminds us of nothing so forcefully as Jesus’ cry from the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46), 6. Attacks from ungodly, deceitful, and wicked persons (Ps 43:1). The second of these two psalms brings in another cause of depression. It is attacks by unscrupulous and deceitful enemies. (Psalms 42-106 Expositional Commentary Dr. James Montgomery Boice) He Can Lead You Out Of It (Read: 1 Kings 19:1-12) "After the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.+ —(1 Kings 19:12) Almost everyone will at some time in their life be affected by depression, either their own or someone else’s. Some common signs and symptoms of depression include feelings of hopelessness, pessimism, worthlessness, and helplessness. Although we cannot say for certain that characters in the Bible experienced depression, we can say that some did exhibit a deep sense of despondency, discouragement, and sadness that is linked to personal powerlessness and loss of meaning and enthusiasm for life. Elijah is one biblical character who fits this description. After defeating the prophets of Baal, he received a death threat from Jezebel. His hope was shattered, and despondency set in. He wanted to die! God helped Elijah deal with his despondency in several ways. The Lord did not rebuke him for his feelings but sent an angel to provide for his physical needs. Then, the Lord revealed Himself and reminded Elijah that He was quietly working among His people. Next, He renewed Elijah’s mission by giving him new orders. Finally, God reminded Elijah that he wasn’t alone. In our times of discouragement, let us remember that God loves us and desires to lead us to a place of a renewed vision of Himself! by Marvin Williams Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side; Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain; Leave to thy God to order and provide; In every change He faithful will remain. —von Schlegel The weak, the helpless, and the discouraged are in the Shepherd’s special care. HOPE IN GOD All the following use the same Hebrew word Ps 42:5 translates "Hope" = La 3:21, 24 Job 13:15, Mic 7:7= "I will watch expectantly"! Ps 27:13,14 Ps 37:7 Ps 56:3,11 Ps 71:14 Job 13:15 Isa 50:10 La 3:24-26 Ro 4:18-20 Heb 10:36,37 Psalm 42 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries AN UPWARD LOOK BY A DOWNCAST SOUL (Title from J M Boice) Hope in God - The verb "hope" is actually a command in Hebrew. In the Greek translation (Septuagint -Lxx) of the Hebrew, the verb elpizo is in the aorist tense, imperative mood, which means something like "Hope now! Just do it! Do it now! It is urgent!" This is God's provision for our pathos, our sadness, our grieving, our sorrow, our discouragement, our despair, our downcast state, etc. God is for us, so who can be against us. His Word of Truth is a Word of Hope, not despair, a Word to build up, not tear down, our soul. And so His Spirit inspires the psalmist to issue an urgent call to His children to "Hope in Him!" Indeed, as Peter said "Lord, to whom can we go, for You have the words of eternal life?" To hope in God does not mean to "cross your fingers." It does not mean, God might work for his servant. It means, be confident that He will! be strong in God! Be courageous in God! Preach to your soul a sermon about the full assurance of hope (Heb 6:11-note)! Hope is the absolute assurance of a future good. The women of old who "hoped in God" obtained God's righteousness through their "hope" (1Pe 3:5-note). John Phillips on hope in God - Now if he had said, "Hope in an alliance with Egypt, or hope because the Babylonians have sent an envoy to you to discuss mutual cooperation against the foe"-if he had said that, he would have been doomed to disappointment. If we are going to hope in someone befriending a wayward child, in getting a loan from the bank to make that payment, in a change in top management so we'll get the recognition we feel we deserve, we may well be hoping in the wrong thing. But if our hope is in God we are safe, for God cannot let us down. He has said, "The promise is to you and to your children." He has said, "All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." Hope in God! Then we will be safe. Hope (03176) (yahal/yachal) conveys the idea of tarrying, of confident expectation, of trust. The central idea of this verb is to wait as Noah literally did in Ge 8:12 (cp 1Sa 10:8, 13:8, et al). Wait means to stay or rest in expectation, to remain stationary until the arrival of some person or event. As alluded to above, yahal is translated in the Septuagint -Lxx with the Greek verb elpizo which means to look forward with confidence to that which is good and beneficial. To express desire for some good with the expectation of obtaining it. Several Hebrew words convey the sense of hope. Most often where we find "hope" in the OT English versions, the Hebrew word is miqveh (04723), tiqvah (08615) (from the common root qavah = 06960) or yachal (03176). Each Hebrew word invites us to look ahead eagerly with confident (trusting) expectation. Each Hebrew word for hope also calls for patience, reminding us that the fulfillment of hope lies in the future. THOUGHT - So in the context of Ps 42:5, the implication is that sometimes we will "preach a sermon" of "Hope in God" to our souls and we may have to be patient, waiting for the Spirit to take this truth and renew our mind and uplift our soul (cp Micah 7:7-note). So while this verse is not a magic cure for every downcast moment, it is a supernatural source of wisdom for how to conduct ourselves when we find ourselves in the horrid "slough of despond!" May the Spirit of God give each of us the faith to believe Psalm 42:5, the grace to consider preaching it to our soul and ultimately the desire and the power to follow through with the proclamation with a willingness to wait upon the timing of the LORD, for Him to give us His strength in our downcast times (Isaiah 40:31). Yachal - 40 verses in the OT and rendered in NAS as delay(1), have hope(2), hope(13), hoped(1), wait(13), wait expectantly(2), waited(7), waste time(1). Genesis 8:12 Then he waited yet another seven days, and sent out the dove; but she did not return to him again. 1 Samuel 10:8 "And you shall go down before me to Gilgal; and behold, I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice peace offerings. You shall wait seven days until I come to you and show you what you should do." 1 Samuel 13:8 Now he waited seven days, according to the appointed time set by Samuel, but Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattering from him. 2 Samuel 18:14 Then Joab said, "I will not waste time here with you." So he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through the heart of Absalom while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. 2 Kings 6:33 While he was still talking with them, behold, the messenger came down to him and he said, "Behold, this evil is from the LORD; why should I wait for the LORD any longer?" Job 6:11 "What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should endure? Job 13:15 "Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him. Job 14:14 "If a man dies, will he live again? All the days of my struggle I will wait until my change comes. Job 29:21 "To me they listened and waited, And kept silent for my counsel. Job 29:23 "They waited for me as for the rain, And opened their mouth as for the spring rain. Job 30:26 "When I expected good, then evil came; When I waited for light, then darkness came. Job 32:11 "Behold, I waited for your words, I listened to your reasonings, While you pondered what to say. Job 32:16 "Shall I wait, because they do not speak, Because they stop and no longer answer? Psalm 31:24-note Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the LORD. Psalm 33:18-note Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope for His lovingkindness, Psalm 33:22-note Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us, According as we have hoped in You. Psalm 38:15-note For (term of explanation - see Ps 38:14 for what he is explaining) I hope in You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord my God. Psalm 42:5-note Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him [for] the help of His presence. Psalm 42:11-note Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God. Psalm 43:5-note Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God. Psalm 69:3-note I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched; My eyes fail while I wait for my God. Psalm 71:14-note But as for me, I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more. Psalm 119:43-note And do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I wait for Your ordinances. Psalm 119:49-note Remember the word to Your servant, In which You have made me hope. Psalm 119:74-note May those who fear You see me and be glad, Because I wait for Your word. Psalm 119:81-note My soul languishes for Your salvation; I wait for Your word. Psalm 119:114-note You are my hiding place and my shield; I wait for Your word. Psalm 119:147-note I rise before dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words. Psalm 130:5-note I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope. Psalm 130:7-note O Israel, hope in the LORD; For with the LORD there is lovingkindness, And with Him is abundant redemption. Psalm 131:3-note O Israel, hope in the LORD From this time forth and forever. Psalm 147:11-note The LORD favors those who fear Him, Those who wait for His lovingkindness. Isaiah 42:4 "He will not be disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law." Isaiah 51:5 "My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, And My arms will judge the peoples; The coastlands will wait for Me, And for My arm they will wait expectantly. Lamentations 3:21 This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Lamentations 3:24 "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him." Ezekiel 13:6 "They see falsehood and lying divination who are saying, 'The LORD declares,' when the LORD has not sent them; yet they hope for the fulfillment of their word. Ezekiel 19:5 'When she saw, as she waited, That her hope was lost, She took another of her cubs And made him a young lion. Micah 5:7 Then the remnant of Jacob Will be among many peoples Like dew from the LORD, Like showers on vegetation Which do not wait for man Or delay for the sons of men. Micah 7:7 But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me. James Montgomery Boice summarizes from Psalm 42 how the godly person can win out over depression… 1. He takes himself in hand. The most important thing to be said about the approach to depression taken by the author of this psalm is that he does not give in to depression or self-pity but rather takes himself in hand and wrestles through it. He reminds himself of what he really knows and finds that “no reasons for being cast down are so strong as those for elation and calm hope.” Lloyd-Jones makes a great deal of this point, stressing that talking to ourselves rather than allowing circumstances to talk to us is the very essence of wisdom in this matter. It is a case of the mind speaking to the emotions rather than the emotions dictating to the mind: “You have to take yourself in hand, you have to address yourself, preach to yourself, question yourself. You must say to your soul: ‘Why art thou cast down’—what business have you to be disquieted? You must turn on yourself, upbraid yourself, condemn yourself, exhort yourself, and say to yourself: ‘Hope thou in God’—instead of muttering in this depressed, unhappy way.” In a similar vein, J. J. Stewart Perowne (Psalm 42 Commentary) speaks of “the struggle between the spirit of faith and the spirit of dejection, between the higher nature and the lower, between the spirit and the flesh.” 2. He challenges himself to do what should be done. The second step in the battle against depression follows from the act of addressing oneself in this manner. Indeed, it is a part of it. It is to challenge oneself to do what the spiritual self knows should be done: “Put your hope in God.” There can be no lasting hope in anything else in this sinful, failing world. There never has been. There never will be. Besides, the believer has put his or her trust in God in past days. He can do so again. It is a mark of simple sanity to do what the psalmist urges should be done. 3. He reminds himself of a great certainty. To “hope in God” leads to the final step in the crusade against depression, the reminder, based on the character of the God we trust, that “I will yet praise him.” This is a great certainty. God has not changed. Therefore, his purposes for me have not changed. He has led me to uplifting victories in times past. He will do so again. Therefore, instead of looking at the past glumly as something I have lost, I will look to it as a foretaste of the many good things yet to come. We can find multiple examples of this in the lives of the Bible’s characters, people like Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and David… Is there a cure for depression? Yes. But it is not in us. It is in God. The cure is to seek God’s face, so ours will not be downcast, which is what the psalmist does. (Psalms 42-106 Expositional Commentary Dr. James Montgomery Boice) Thomas Watson… The God of hope will open a window of hope in the darkest times—and a door of hope in the most desperate cases. The God of hope will bear up the spirits of His saints in hope, against hope; and this hope will never disappoint them. It shall never be said, "there is no peace, there is no hope," until it can be said "there is no God in Israel." (Farewell Sermon) William Plumer - like faith, hope admits of degrees, varying from a faint expectation, Psalm 42:5, to a "full assurance." Heb. 6:11. Like faith, it always keeps Christ in view. Like faith, also, it will last until death, and then give place to enjoyment; "for what a man has, why does he yet hope for?" Let us therefore "hold fast the confidence, and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end." Heb. 3:6. "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." 1 Pet. 1:13. (Vital Godliness) William Gurnall on "Hope thou in God.” - I shall show what powerful influence hope hath on the Christian in affliction, and how. First, it stills and silenceth him under affliction. It keeps the king’s peace in the heart, which else would soon be in an uproar. A hopeless soul is clamorous: one while it chargeth God, another while it reviles his instruments. It cannot long rest, and no wonder, when hope is not there. Hope hath a rare art in stilling a froward spirit, when nothing else can; as the mother can make the crying child quiet by laying it to the breast, when the rod makes it cry worse. This way David took, and found it effectual; when his soul was unquiet by reason of his present affliction, he lays it to the breast of the promise: “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God.” And here his soul sweetly sleeps, as the child with the breast in his mouth; and that this was his usual way, we may think by the frequent instances we find; thrice we find him taking this course in two Psalms, 42 and 43… Secondly, this hope fills the afflicted soul with such inward joy and consolation, that it can laugh while tears are in the eye, sigh and sing all in a breath; it is called “the rejoicing of hope,” Heb. 3:6. And hope never affords more joy than in affliction. It is on a watery cloud that the sun paints those curious colours in the rainbow… There are two graces, which Christ useth above any other, to fill the soul with joy—faith and hope, because these two fetch all their wine of joy without door. Faith tells the soul what Christ hath done for it, and so comforts it; hope revives the soul with the news of what Christ will do: both draw at one tap—Christ and his promise. Henry March on “Hope thou in God.” - The word which is here rendered “hope” denotes that expectation which is founded on faith in God, and which leads the soul to wait upon him. The idea is beautifully expressed in Psalm 39:7. “And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.” Max Lucado - Slumps: the petri dish for bad decisions, the incubator for wrong turns, the assembly line of regretful moves. How we handle our tough times stays with us for a long time. How do you handle yours? When hope takes the last train and joy is nothing but the name of the girl down the street . . . when you are tired of trying, tired of forgiving, tired of hard weeks or hardheaded people . . . how do you manage your dark days? With a bottle of pills or scotch? With an hour at the bar, a day at the spa, or a week at the coast? Many opt for such treatments. So many, in fact, that we assume they reenergize the sad life. But do they? No one denies that they help for a while, but over the long haul? They numb the pain, but do they remove it? Or are we like the sheep on the Turkish cliff ? Who knows why the first one jumped over the edge. Even more bizarre are the fifteen hundred others who followed, each leaping off the same overhang. The first 450 animals died. The thousand that followed survived only because the pile of corpses cushioned their fall. We, like sheep, follow each other over the edge, falling headlong into bars and binges and beds. . . .Is there a solution? Indeed there is: . . . be quick to pray. Stop talking to yourself. Talk to Christ, who invites. “"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). God, who is never downcast, never tires of your down days. (Facing Your Giants) Elmer Towns - Hope is a healing medicine for depressed believers. Hope is soul aspirin for those who suffer from chronic discouragement.