Psalm 102
Unchanging Goodness in a Fleeting World
Imagine that you are in a prayer meeting or at Home Group and the person next to you cries out, “Do not hide your face from me…”
In Psalm 102, we are not just sitting next to someone crying out this raw prayer but we are invited to take it as our own. This prayer is the for afflicted saints and faint disciples. It’s for you.
It is bold in that it blurs the line between pleading and demanding. But that is the nature of true faith. Faith calls on the eternal and unchanging God on the basis of the promises he has already made to us.
A Prayer Of One Afflicted, When He Is Faint And Pours Out His Complaint Before The LORD.
1 Hear my prayer, O LORD;
let my cry come to you!
2 Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
3 For my days pass away like smoke,
and my bones burn like a furnace.
4 My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;
I forget to eat my bread.
5 Because of my loud groaning
my bones cling to my flesh.
6 I am like a desert owl of the wilderness,
like an owl of the waste places;
7 I lie awake;
I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
8 All the day my enemies taunt me;
those who deride me use my name for a curse.
9 For I eat ashes like bread
and mingle tears with my drink,
10 because of your indignation and anger;
for you have taken me up and thrown me down.
11 My days are like an evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
12 But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever;
you are remembered throughout all generations.
13 You will arise and have pity on Zion;
it is the time to favour her;
the appointed time has come.
14 For your servants hold her stones dear
and have pity on her dust.
15 Nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16 For the LORD builds up Zion;
he appears in his glory;
17 he regards the prayer of the destitute
and does not despise their prayer.
18 Let this be recorded for a generation to come,
so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:
19 that he looked down from his holy height;
from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,
20 to hear the groans of the prisoners,
to set free those who were doomed to die,
21 that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD,
and in Jerusalem his praise,
22 when peoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.
23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;
he has shortened my days.
24 “O my God,” I say, “take me not away
in the midst of my days—
you whose years endure
throughout all generations!”
25 Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
26 They will perish, but you will remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27 but you are the same, and your years have no end.
28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure;
their offspring shall be established before you.
Deep Despair (3-11)
The Psalmist records here the pain he is in, the isolation he feels, the insults he receives, and how he is being punished by God.
In vv3-5, hear the pain and anguish the Psalmist is suffering. He is close to death, in agonising pain, his heart is giving up, he is full of anguished groaning and is emaciated from lack of food. He describes the pain in his bones like that of burning embers, a raw agony. He speaks of his heart being like grass, once emerald from the dew, now withered and brown and dry from the summer droughts.
In vv6-7, he compares himself to owls and sparrows. The owl in the wilderness captures his loneliness, far away from others. The sparrow is particularly apt. The nocturnal bird which craws and hoots and groans on its own when the rest of the world sleeps is just like his own tormented soul which cries out for comfort and consolation but finds no company.
Then in v8, we see that the Psalmist is a lightning pole for insults and slurs. His name is used as a curse. Like Captain Charles Boycott, who during the Irish Land War, had local businesses refusing to trade with him and the postman refusing to deliver his letters. It is a name that lives on in infamy and the Psalmist says his own name does so.
Why? Because he is known for his bitter mourning. In v9, the normally joyful picture of a feast is inverted as ashes of repentance are eaten and tears of contrition are drunk.
And why is he mourning in the posture of repentance? For he sees himself standing outside the favour of God.
The move from v11 to v12 is like going from Marmite to Nutella. It is the move from bitter to sweet. From the bitter experiences of life to the sweet knowledge of the character and nature of God.
God is eternal, infinite and unchangeable. He is undiminished by time or age. He is untarnished by sin, disease or death. He is ever the same, ever ruling and reigning on the throne in majesty, splendour, holiness, mercy and love. The Psalmist paints in this transition the sharp contrast between himself as the vanishing shadow and God as the immoveable and steadfast Rock.
Steadfast Solace (12-28)
This is deep comfort to the Christian’s soul. Why? Because God is eternally and unchangeably committed to his promises.
Because he is enthroned forever, he is committed to his promises and nothing will hinder him. Therefore, he will:
Arise and have compassion (13)
Rebuild Zion (16)
Appear in glory (16)
Respond to the prayers of the destitute (17)
Liberate those condemned to death (20)
This will culminate in the joyful praise of God (21-22). But that is not the climax of the Psalm.
Remarkably, in this final section (23-28), we are hearing Father and Son speaking to each other. The author of Hebrews (see Hebrews 1.10-12) says that vv25-27 are the words of God the Father to his beloved Son. Therefore, the prayer we hear in vv23-24 is from Jesus. In his flesh, he is calling out to his Father.
God says that the Lord Jesus, unlike the angels and anyone else in all of creation, will remain when others perish. Death will not neuter him. The grave will not hold him down. While he might die for our sins (23), yet he shall live (26). Where others will wither and fade, he will prosper everlastingly. For as we know about Jesus, he is same yesterday and today and forever. Therefore, when we bring our fainting and feeble hearts to Jesus, we come to someone who will never fail us.
Glory be to God the Father, before whose glory all the nations will fear and bend the knee.
Glory be to God the Son, enthroned forever and remembered through all generations.
Glory be to God the Spirit, in whom we shall dwell secure.
Ever three and ever One.
Home Group: Ecclesiastes 1.1-11
How is being confronted with the reality of death good for us?
How does verse 2 set the tone for the rest of the book? What difference does it make for us to view everything under the sun as a breath/mist/vapour? Does being a Christian exempt us from this?
How do the sun, winds and sea answer the teacher’s question in verse 3?
The teacher says “there is nothing new” under the sun. What does that mean for us(9-11)? How might that change the way we choose to live our lives?
Where might gain actually be found?
Hearing everything the teacher says here in the opening poem, what direction do you think he might be taking us in this book?