A cry of despair
Psalm 88
A Song. A Psalm of the Korahites. To the leader: according to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
1 O Lord, God of my salvation, when, at night, I cry out in your presence,
2 let my prayer come before you; incline your ear to my cry.
3 For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who go down to the Pit;
I am like those who have no help,…
6 You have put me in the depths of the Pit, in the regions dark and deep.
7 Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah
8 You have caused my companions to shun me;
you have made me a thing of horror to them.
I am shut in so that I cannot escape;
9 my eye grows dim through sorrow.
Every day I call on you, O Lord; I spread out my hands to you….
13 But I, O Lord, cry out to you;
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
14 O Lord, why do you cast me off?
Why do you hide your face from me?
15 Wretched and close to death from my youth up,
I suffer your terrors; I am desperate.
16 Your wrath has swept over me; your dread assaults destroy me.
17 They surround me like a flood all day long;
from all sides they close in on me.
18 You have caused friend and neighbour to shun me;
my companions are in darkness.
The psalm has been edited for length.
This is a depressing psalm – raw, questioning, demanding. The author says “I am desperate.” The author draws the following conclusions – God is all-powerful and God desires good for God’s people; then the only explanation as to why life is so desperate is because God has abandoned the writer, or worse God is punishing the writer.
I don’t have an answer for the author’s question: “Why has God hidden His face from me?” But I do want to draw three points.
First, the writer speaks their mind. The psalms, in general, and this one, in particular, teach us that it is okay to tell God exactly what we are thinking and feeling. The writer of this psalm is blunt; and the psalm is still in the Bible. Therefore, we have permission to tell exactly how we feel, even if that means we use blunt words to address God.
Second, even though the writer says harsh things to God, the writer still believes in God. If the writer no longer believed in God, then the writer would not have written the psalm. To take the time to speak to God means they still believe in God. Being disappointed in or angry with God, is not a denial of God’s existence. Belief is still present.
Third, in our lives we may be called to walk with people who are in deep pain; and are expressing anger towards God. We may feel like we need to answer on God’s behalf, to defend God. God does not need us to defend God. Maybe our call is to simply listen offering silent prayer as we listen.
PRAYER:
When we walk through the dark valleys of despair and depression, may we cry out to you, O Lord. Who else would we cry to? When we walk with others who are passing through depression and despair, teach us O Lord, to listen well and to pray fervently to you on their behalf. In Jesus’ name. Amen.