Psalm 89:45

Psalm 89:45

An honest outpouring

Psalm 18 was written by David and celebrates his deliverance from his mortal enemies. In Psalm 18 David reflects on his cries of help to the Lord but is also able to plead that there were moral grounds for His deliverance, “The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands He has rewarded me.” v20. (Psalm 18:20-29 are worth reading in context.) 

Ethan has not been able to claim the moral high ground here in Psalm 89, in fact he felt duty bound to draw attention to the consequences of forsaking God’s laws and failing to keep His commands. V30-32. So why is he so upset at the disaster that had overcome God’s chosen people? Why did Ethan not accept that the people had violated God’s decrees and failed to follow His statutes? I think it is because Ethan still had hope. He would not have bothered to pen this song if he did not feel that there was the possibility of redemption. Despite all that had happened, he was still clinging to the longing that the Lord would hear from heaven and honour His ancient covenant promises. The Psalm is, in a way, a form of self-justification, a wake-up call, a desperate arm-jogging attempt to stir the Lord into action and to remind Him that He had promised to always be faithful to David’s house. Yes, the days of Israel’s youth had been cut short and shame covered the nation like a mantle but there were still grounds for hope. 

Ethan’s outpourings are effectively a long-running argument with God, a series of justifications that will hopefully produce a response. It’s a far cry from the Book of Common Prayer, it is a heart-rending torrent of mixed emotions and tangled contentions – but it is honest! Let’s be honest in our prayer lives!

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