A Song without a Title

It is widely thought—and I agree—that 42 and 43 are closely related…possibly joined at one point in time

Psalm 43 cannot be understood without a quick look at Ps 42, so we’re reading both

A bit of homage to “Unchained Melody” the thought of being “lonely for your touch...”

There’s enough river & loneliness imagery to make you wonder if the writers hadn’t used Ps 42 for some of the background

The bold type in the heading is the work of the translators, not a part of Scripture

It’s designed to help us zero in on the meat of the passage

Generally a helpful thing…but it might, as noted before…keep us from seeing something else that is there, sometimes just beneath the surface

We have no superscription for this Psalm, but the translators’ notation is helpful…on both Psalms

Thus, a Maskil of the sons of Korah; we might call it part 2

Exactly who the author is or when it was written are unknown

However, in these two Psalms, we get the picture of what’s going on in the life and the mind of the psalmist

Something we must recall for the overall context: this during the time of the temple in Jerusalem, the place God’s presence dwelled

The Setup

We get this from the 42nd Psalm

It appears that the writer, for whatever reason is away from his position in Jerusalem

The sons of Korah were the worship leaders and this one is now far removed from the temple and its activities

Psalm 42 places him somewhere in the headwaters of the River Jordan in the mountains that form the border of Syria and Lebanon

The highest point is Mt. Hermon ~9200 feet (Marcy is ~5300

Not trying to steal Sean’s Biblical Geography lessons, but the Jordan River flows from there, into the Sea of Galilee, then south to the Dead Sea

He sees himself as forgotten, tumbling among the rapids in those fast-moving waters of the higher elevation

Thought he has water to quench his thirst, he thirsts for a return to his position in the temple, where he had the fellowship—and arguably the position of worship-leadership—among his people

He’s lonely for the fellowship of God’s people in the temple

He seems to be in something of a state of depression or hopelessness, yet Ps. 42 ends with 11 b

English Standard Version (Psalm 42)

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

The Situation

Though we see some depressive notes in both these psalms, overall, they’re not downers, but uplifting

He cries out for vindication from and defense against an ungodly people

The people of that area would have been largely nomadic tribes, but the dominant military might likely would have been the Assyrians…Those fierce warriors who would either, before or after this writing, wipe out the Northern Kingdom, dispersing the 10 tribes of that kingdom; they would also, besiege Jerusalem

In short, the Assyrians were NOT nice people

He’s wresting with the question of why God is allowing him to suffer

“...why have you rejected me,” “…do I go about in mourning?”

We don’t know what took him to the northernmost reaches of the Jordan, far from his people, far from the fellowship of the temple

But, we do see the source of his hope, his...

The Solace

We see it in both 42 and 43, but 42 is the resolution to the matter

In v. 1 he asks for rescue and relief, in a way that is something of a demand, but if a demand, based upon his knowledge of the character of God, his nation’s history with God

We could see his self-critique:

Why have you rejected me?

Why do I go about mourning?

Why are you cast down, O my soul?

Why are you in turmoil?

...as something of a chiding of self—I SHOULD KNOW BETTER

He knows the power of the almighty and longs for the community of God’s people and the peace he feels when he is among those worshipping the one true God

We recall the words of David in Ps 122 1

Psalm 122:1 ESV

I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!”

One of the Psalms of ascent—songs sung when headed toward the city for worship at the temple

Our Solace

One scholar wrote:

Psalms through the Centuries: A Reception History Commentary on Psalms 1–72, Volume Two Psalms 42–43: Longing for the Temple

So this profoundly personal psalm also has the potential for anyone to use, by Jews and Christians alike. Indeed, it gives a voice to anyone with faith who seeks to express a profound yearning for God.

Interestingly, this writer makes no distinction; but appears to send Jews and Christians alike to seek community worship—as he should

But, let’s set the record straight

The Godly Jews of the writer’s day looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, and are still looking

We, on the other hand, recognize—should have now recognized—that He has already come, in the person of Jesus Christ

Jesus, the name meaning God saves

Christ, meaning the anointed one, Messiah

It is He who bore the penalty of our sins

He is the one in whom we must trust for that forgiveness

He is the one we must follow as Lord

He is the one we come together to worship

Though we note a change of context from those days to today; worship, and approaching God was entirely different

There was the sacrificial system, available ONLY at the temple, other worship would develop during the exile, after the destruction of the temple, during the exile—the synagogue system would arise to give the people some element of corporate worship

Today, we worship God “in spirit and in truth” as Jesus told the Samaritan woman; the temple is not required,

Now, our Solace is in Christ Himself

With the death of Christ the veil of the temple was torn, the ability to seek God directly was opened to all believers; we seek God through His son, Jesus Christ

…and we have the privilege of corporate worship

On the day of Pentecost, the Church was established; the pattern for us to follow was clearly established

So, what’s the big deal about Corporate Worship

It’s the pattern of the early Church

…long before there were church buildings…the early believers flocked to be together

In the temple, in homes… they were doing all they could to be together

You might say they were “hungry for the touch of others who believed like them

The Suzaly story—hungry for the touch of another human, needing counsel, needing solace…she came to a body of believers

We’re commanded in Heb 10 25

Hebrews 10:25 (ESV)

...not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

We need to be together

the sake of hearing the Word—certainly; fact is that not a lot of people are regularly in the Word—not that one hour a week is enough

We need the teaching—information exchange

We need the preaching—moving the information from the head to the heart

We need the encouragement of the saints

We need the listening ear---even the shoulder to cry on---of the saints

We need the godly counsel of the saints

We need the touch of others who believe as we do

There are lots of excuses to stay away; I need not enumerate; nor toss around any provocation for guilt trips

There are far better reasons to be here

There’s something about being in the presence of other believers that makes us drop our guard, hear God speak to us…and for that we hunger