Psalm 42 43

SLIDE 1 Turn to Psalm 42. We’re going to pick back up our study of the Psalms. You may remember that the Book of Psalms is divided into five books. The first book is made up of Psalms 1-41. Psalm 42 begins the second book.

Tonight we’re going to look at two psalms, 42 and 43. It is believed that these were one psalm and for some reason were divided. The reason why many believe they were once just one psalm is because SLIDE 2 Psalm 43 doesn’t have a superscript while Psalm 42 and 44 do. SLIDE 3 An even more important reason though is the repetition of verse 5 in Psalm 42. It is repeated in verse 11 and again in verse 5 of Psalm 43.

Before we start look at these psalms in detail, I want to read them. Remember, these were meant to be sung either as solos or congregationally. We’re not going to sing them. However, as I read them I want you to join me in what we would call the chorus, those verses that are repeated. I’ll let you know when it’s your time to read. SLIDE 4 I’ll put all the verses on the screen, but the ones you are to read out loud with me will be in yellow.

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1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?

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3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

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4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.

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5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

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6 My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon – from Mount Mizar.

7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.

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8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me – a prayer to the God of my life.

9 I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”

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10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

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11 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

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1 Vindicate me, my God, and plead my cause against an unfaithful nation. Rescue me from those who are deceitful and wicked.

2 You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?

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3 Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.

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4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God.

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5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

The theme for these two psalms is found in that repeated chorus:

Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5)

The author seems to be depressed, so, talking to himself, he asks, “What’s wrong with me? Why am I so discouraged and sad? Don’t you know you’re hope is in God. Snap out of it and praise your Savior and God.” In the other verses he describes the problems he’s experiencing that have discouraged him.

SLIDE 17 Let’s get started, and we’ll start with the superscript, the notes after the psalm number and before verse 1.

For the director of music. A maskil of the Sons of Korah.

The first comment, “For the director of music” doesn’t tell us much.

A maskil is a psalm of wisdom. Think about psalms 1 and 2. They aren’t called that, but that’s what they are. SLIDE 18 Amos 5:13 uses this word to describe people. There it refers to those who are prudent, smart, or have insight. When it is used to describe a psalm it denotes a psalm that gives words of wisdom.

SLIDE 19 The psalm is attributed to the “Sons of Korah.” They are named as the authors of a dozen psalms: Psalm 44-49, 84, and 87-88. Korah was the grandson of Kohath who was the second son of Levi who was the third son Jacob. In the wilderness, God separated the Levites to serve as priests. The Kohathites were given task of carrying the tabernacle and its furniture whenever the Israelites moved from one place to another. The Sons of Korah were his descendants.

SLIDE 20 The psalm begins with a description of intense longing.

1 As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? (Psalm 42:1-2)

The psalmist, more than anything else, desired to meet with God. I wish that could be said of me more often than it is. I wish that if I had the choice of eating or meeting with God I would choose God, but that’s not always the case.

In John 4, Jesus and the disciples are approaching the Samaritan city of Sychar. The disciples leave Jesus at the well outside of the city while they go into the city to buy some food. Later, when the disciples returned, they encouraged Jesus to eat some food but Jesus replied that he had food to eat that they knew nothing about. The disciples assumed someone had given him some food. Maybe it was the Samaritan woman he had been talking to while they were gone. But Jesus explained that his food was to do God’s will. Doing what God had sent him to do was more important than anything else, even food.

Do we seek God with that same kind of desire? Do we want God more than we want anything else? The psalmist compared his longing for God to a deer panting for water.

Have you ever seen hot and thirsty dogs pant for water? And what do they do when you give them water? They lap it up as quickly as possible. It helps cool them down and quenches their thirst. I’ve seen athletes pant as well and for similar reasons. They were hot and thirsty. This is the word the psalmist uses describes his desire for God, an all consuming desire for something it does not have. In the examples of both the dog and the athlete, the consuming desire was for water. The psalmist desires God.

That’s because the psalmist is describing a spiritual dryness and an emotional drought. As a result, his desire wasn’t for something physical but for something spiritual. He thirsted for God. He wanted to know when he would be able to meet with God. I’m reminded of the first verse of Psalm 122, a psalm of David. David declares: SLIDE 21

I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the LORD.” (Psalm 122:1)

SLIDE 22 Jon Courson wrote in his commentary on this psalm:

Sometimes, late at night, I’ll think I’m craving something. So I’ll pour a bowl, or two, or three, of Mini-Wheats. When that doesn’t satisfy me, I’ll watch the news or read Time magazine. But then, when I finally come to my senses, I turn off the television, throw away the empty box of cereal and say, “Lord, what I really need is just to spend time with You.” And, without fail, as I do, I am truly, deeply satisfied and fulfilled.

People crave all sorts of things believing they will bring them satisfaction when what they really need is God. God really is all that we need.

The psalmist describes the cause for this longing.

3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” (Psalm 42:3)

The cause for his distress is people making fun of him. They taunted him with this question asking why God hadn’t helped him. We aren’t told why he needed God’s help but it seems to have been obvious even to his enemies that he did. “Why hasn’t God stepped in to deliver you? Where is he?” The question is insinuating that God doesn’t care or isn’t able to help.

The constant taunting brought him to tears as he remembers happier times:

4 These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng. (Psalm 42:4)

He remembers going to worship God being surrounded by others joyfully offering praise to God. But now, he surrounded by unbelievers who keep questioning his faith and trust in God. Even though we live in an area with lots of churches and a good portion of the population attends church regularly, I’m sure you’ve heard people make fun of those go to church. They ridicule Christians and the idea of God who loves us, hears our prayers, and answers them. I wonder though if those who complain the loudest aren’t searching the hardest for something that can fill their deepest desires. Augustine described this longing saying:

Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.

God is the only one who can really satisfy. Knowing this, but not necessarily feeling it, the psalmist reminds himself of this truth. He asks himself:

5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:5)

He knows what he really needs is God. He doesn’t need the approval of others; he needs the approval of God. He doesn’t need their help. He needs God. They can’t remove his depression, only God can do that. So, even though he doesn’t feel joyful he is still going to rejoice. He is going to praise God.

Too many people judge a church service by what that get out of it. It they enjoyed it or if it made them feel good then it was a good service. But they forget who the service is ultimately designed for. It is designed to give praise to God. The amazing thing is – and surely this is part of God’s grace to us – when we lift God up in praise and worship – he lifts us up. If we approach worship as something supposed to make us feel better it will rarely happen. But if we approach worship as giving to God, we will receive more than we can give.

The psalmist reminds himself that God is still on his throne and is deserving of his trust and his worship. He may not feel like worshiping but he will do so anyway because God deserves it. He is overriding his emotions with this truth that he knows.

As we read these psalms it seems like the author is on an emotional roller coaster with constant ups and downs. That would explain the repetition verse 5. Between those refrains he comes back to the problems he was facing. It’s like Peter walking on water. Trusting Jesus, Peter stepped out of the boat and actually walked with Jesus on the waves of the sea. But then, taking his eyes off Jesus, he was reminded of the wind and the waves they had been struggling against for hours. When he did, he began to sink. But sinking, he remembered his source of help and call out to Jesus who lifted him out of the water and he began to walk again.

Have you ever been on an emotional roller coaster ride like that? You know the truth but you keep being drawn to the lie which takes you back down. After reminding himself of God’s goodness and offering God praise, the psalmist quickly remembers why he was depressed.

6 My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon – from Mount Mizar. (Psalm 42:6)

Though he feels down emotionally, he will remember good times of worshiping God in Jerusalem. He has to remember because he is no longer there. Mount Hermon is located north of the Sea of Galilee. The name Mount Mizar simply means little hill. It was probably a lower peak in the same mountain range. The psalmist is far from home and evidentially homesick.

In verse 1, the psalmist is thirsting for streams of water. In verse 7 he is overwhelmed by torrents of water.

7 Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me. (Psalm 42:7)

I remember going to the beach with my mother. She got just over ankle deep and was knocked down by a wave. By the time she got straightened up so she could stand up another wave came and rolled her on her side again. It would seem like the first wave was calling to the next wave which called to the next. “OK, come and get her.”

That’s the picture the psalmist is painting. The deep water has swept over him with one wave calling to the next in a conspiracy to take him down. He did however recognize that God was still in control.

8 By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me – a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42:8)

The word the psalmist has been using for God is the generic word “God.” But in verse 8 he uses God’s personal name, the name God gave to Moses at the burning bush, Yahweh. It is a name that reminds him of God’s promise of loving kindness. He didn’t have to go to Jerusalem to worship, God was with him there directing him the day and comforting him at night. But on this rollercoaster he still wonders:

9 I say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?” 10 My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?” (Psalm 42:9-10)

Have you ever wondered where God was? Have you ever doubted his presence? If you have you aren’t the first. It amazes me how many well known Christian leaders have battled with depression. It is easy to assume the God has left us or isn’t listening. The psalmist felt that way. He says it led to physical pain. But he continued to trust God. And he reassures himself once again:

11 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 42:11)

The cure for his problem is trust in God. Therefore, he encourages himself to not give up. To hope is to wait on God’s perfect timing with confidence. We may wish God would do something soon, but God will always act in time.

Now we turn to Psalm 43. The psalmist asks God for help.

1 Vindicate me, my God, and plead my cause against an unfaithful nation. Rescue me from those who are deceitful and wicked. (Psalm 43:1)

He uses the language of a courtroom. He wants God to judge or vindicate him. It requires that God examine him to see if there is any truth to what his enemies are saying. Because he trusts in God he knows he has nothing to worry about. Next, he asks God to defend him and prove he is right and his enemies wrong.

2 You are God my stronghold. Why have you rejected me? Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy? (Psalm 43:2)

He confesses that God is the source of his help and then asks why God abandoned him. Did God really abandon him? Had God really rejected him? The answer is no, yet God seemed distant.

3 Send me your light and your faithful care, let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell. 4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God, my joy and my delight. I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God. (Psalm 43:3-4)

He wants to return to Jerusalem and God’s holy mountain. At that time the temple probably hadn’t been built yet so he would be worshiping at the tabernacle. But it was still the house of God. Once there, he would make sacrifices at the altar, the only place God allowed sacrifices to be made. And he would offer God praise with his music.

And then he ends once more repeating the refrain of encouragement.

5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. (Psalm 43:5)

He searched his heart and wondered how he could be so emotionally distraught when God is so great. He only needed to remember to put his trust in God. With that, he resolves to praise God who alone can save him.

When we are having problems, we must turn our hearts to God and keep our trust in him. Regardless of the circumstances, we must remember that God is always faithful and always with us. As Martyn Lloyd-Jones wrote:

Instead of muttering in this depressed, unhappy way, remind yourself of God, who God is, and what God is and what God has done, and what God has pledged himself to do. (D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)

William Cowper lived from 1731-1800. He was a great hymn writer and was mightily used by God. However, this gifted composer was not without frequent bouts of deep discouragement, even depression. The first attacks of despair struck him when he was a young man. He was admitted to St. Albans Insane Asylum, where he made several attempts to commit suicide. One of the doctors gave Cowper a Bible and he began to read it. In learning about the grace of God he put his trust in Christ.

A year after his conversion, Cowper left the asylum and met the famous John Newton, who became his minister and close friend. Newton and Cowper collaborated to publish a hymnal that included many cherished songs, including Newton’s “Amazing Grace” and Cowper’s “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood.” In spite of his conversion and expanding ministry, Cowper still struggled with attacks of depression. They often left him discouraged to the point of desiring death.

However, like the psalmist, the attacks of depression drove Cowper to pursue God more deeply. It was after one such bout the he wrote his famous hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way,” a song that expresses an unwavering trust in God. The hymn stands as a testimony to the renewed strength and comfort his troubled heart found in God. Here was a man who experienced great disappointment in life, but he learned to trust God.

God moves in a mysterious way

His wonders to perform;

He plants his footsteps in the sea,

And rides upon the storm.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take,

The clouds ye so much dread

Are big with mercy and shall break

In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,

But trust him for his grace;

Behind a frowning providence

He hides a smiling face.

Even the strongest believers can suffer extreme discouragement and despair. But it was Cowper’s trust in God that steadied his soul and brought him peace. It is this faith in God during a time of discouragement that is expressed by the psalmist in Psalms 42 and 43. Although his discouragement was great, the comfort he received in God was greater. This psalm shows all believers how to overcome their bouts of depression. It describes the upward look of a downcast soul that found peace by trusting God.

When surrounded by troubles and discouragement, there is a simple but sure remedy for spiritual depression. The cure for the troubled soul is always to hope in God exclusively, knowing that he will never fail.

Speaking to this point, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, in his best-selling book “Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure” (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1965), wrote:

The ultimate cause of all spiritual depression is unbelief. For if it were not for unbelief, even the devil could do nothing. It is because we listen to the devil instead of listening to God that we go down before him and fall before his attacks. That is why this psalmist keeps saying to himself: “Hope thou in God for I shall yet praise Him. ...” He reminds himself of God. Why? Because he was depressed and had forgotten God, so that his faith and his belief in God and in God’s power, and in his relationship to God, were not what they ought to be. ... Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? ... Now this man’s treatment was this: instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says: “Self, listen for a moment, I will speak to you.”

Psalm 42 is identified in the title as a maskil, meaning a psalm of instruction. In other words, here is wise counsel about trusting God through tough times. Although the author of this psalm is not identified, it was written by “the sons of Korah” and was intended “for the director of music.” The “sons of Korah” or Korahites were Levites who were descendents of Kohath, the father of Korah (1 Chr. 6:22-48; 9:17-32; 2 Chr. 20:19). They produced and performed music while the tabernacle was in the wilderness and after the construction of the temple in Jerusalem (cp. Num. 26:11).

This is the first psalm of Book II of the Book of Psalms, and an interesting change occurs in the usage of the divine name. A switch occurs from Jehovah being the dominant name used for God in Book I (272 occurrences), to Elohim being the dominant divine name in Book II (164 occurrences). What is more, Psalm 43 appears to be a continuation, or extension, of Psalm 42 as the repeated refrain in Psalm 42:5,11 and Psalm 43:5 may reveal.

When a believer finds himself in difficult times, the solution is always the same—hope in God. This is the wise counsel of the psalmist. When faced with demanding circumstances, we should put our confidence and trust in the Lord. This may sound too simplistic in man’s eyes, but it is, nevertheless, heaven’s solution. But unfortunately, when confronted with encroaching trials, we are tempted to panic and turn to man-made solutions. These can never release us from pain. Some people turn to their work or to a hobby to get them through. Others turn to a new purchase or a new pursuit to numb their sorrow. Still others turn to the bottle or to drugs to ease their pain, only to multiply their agony all the more.

Lasting peace and genuine contentment are found in only one place: Hope in God. We must discipline our minds and direct our wills to hope in God when tempted to dissolve into a pool of despair. Hope in God. Nothing else and no one else can pull us out of the depressing moments of life.

It is not our trust that keeps us, but the God in whom we trust who keeps us. (Oswald Chambers)

Times of tribulation either make us or break us. That is, it either drives us closer to God, or it drives us further away from God. But no one remains the same through the experience of deep pain. It all depends upon where a person’s faith rests. A time of adversity for the person whose trust is in the Lord becomes a season of increased dependency upon the Lord. So it was for the psalmist, whose ordeal drove him close to God.

Psalm 43 is an epilogue of Psalm 42. In Psalm 42, the psalmist found himself in difficult times, increasingly reliant upon those things that could not be shaken. The psalmist’s storm showed no sign of lifting, so in Psalm 43, he continued to seek God in prayer while still oppressed. The source of this trial was an ungodly nation (v. 1), perhaps the Arameans of Damascus, which posed as an enemy (v. 2), and threatened the security of Israel. In this situation, the psalmist was removed from Jerusalem (v. 3), thus this prayer that God would return him safely (v. 1).

He asked that God would lead him back to the holy mountain, Jerusalem (v. 3), so he could worship God again at the altar (v. 4). In the midst of his despair, while endangered by an ungodly nation, he challenged himself to put his hope and trust in God (v. 5). This psalm speaks to every believer, whatever his despair may be. The message is loud and clear: “Put your hope in God” (v. 5; cp. Ps. 42:5,11).