To the chief Musician, Maschil, for the sons of Korah

1 As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God.

2 My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?

3 My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?

4 When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me: for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holyday.

5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.

6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember Thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.

7 Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of Thy waterspouts: all Thy waves and Thy billows are gone over me.

8 Yet the LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.

9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast Thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?

10 As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me: while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?

11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

The Point:

Whether in time of trouble or in time of prosperity, our greatest need is God and we must hope in Him.

How do we feel in the recitation of this psalm?

Discouragement. Have you ever felt like you were drowning in troubles? Maybe you are overcome with your own limitations, or you have just received six reports in a row bearing bad news. You are overcome with your own sinfulness and weakness, but in this psalm you begin to feel the strength of God’s hands wrapping around you while you are sinking in deep waters. All other desires pale in comparison to your desire for God. As your attention shifts from your own troubles to the glories of God, your heart begins to swell with praises for the God you love.

What does this psalm say?

Verses 1–4. David’s Longings. David confesses his soul’s deepest longings. Some people long for a million dollars, some people long for connection with another person, and some people long for vacations. But David desires God. Even as a deer in the desert runs to the streams for water, David thirsts for God. What then is his real desire? He wants to be in the presence of God. We are created to have fellowship with God. When a married man is apart from his wife for a period of time, he begins to sense that something is missing. Even so, there are times in our lives when we are apart from our God and our souls begin to cry out for a deeper sense of God’s presence.

The load is heavy on David’s soul. How much does David miss his God? He has been weeping for God both day and night, even as a wife might weep for her husband who turns up missing in battle. The root problem is found in verse 4. He has been away from God’s house for too long. We are not given an equal measure of God’s presence every minute of the day. There are times when God is closer to us than at others times. It is when we are in the temple of God, which is the church of God, that we are closest to Him. In Matthew 18:20, Jesus tells His disciples, the first elders of His church, “For where two or three [of you] are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.” We are closest to God when we are with the congregation of the saints and worshiping Him with a voice of both joy and praise. Man’s greatest joy, therefore, is to be in the presence of God, singing His glorious praises. That is why we were created.

Verses 5–8. David’s Comfort. Now David reasons with his soul. “My soul, why are you so depressed?” The solution to depression is obvious and he puts it simply, “Hope in God.” Put your hopes in God. Even though His presence may not be real for you right now, you need to believe that He will not let you down. The woman whose husband is lost in battle may give up hope that he will ever return. But we should never give up hope that God will return to us. God is good for keeping His promises. He does not dash our hopes. For He is a God that comes through when His people put their hopes and their trust in Him. Why is it worth it to put our hopes in God? For two reasons. First, He is our salvation. He saves us through Jesus Christ. And secondly, even if we are in prison the rest of our lives and never get another chance to go to church, we know that we will have the opportunity to praise Him for eternity in heaven. David ends this comforting message with a statement of conviction: “I will praise Him in the congregation again someday. It will happen.”

After encouraging his own soul, David turns to God in prayer. He tells Yahweh the state of his soul in plain and honest words. “Oh God, I am cast down. I am depressed,” he says. Even though he cannot go back to the house of God in Jerusalem, he can meditate on his God anywhere he goes whether it be the valley of Jordan, the hill Mizar, or the land of the Hermonites. A husband away from his wife can study her love letters to him, and think of her.

Moreover, David finds comfort in the lovingkindness of God. In verse 7, he describes what it is like to be caught in the throes of depression. Wave after wave tumbles him in the waters. He feels like his circumstances are out of control. But even in these conditions, David can say with confidence, “The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime.” God is both powerful and good. His goodness will break through all of his troubles.

Verses 9–11. David’s Response. David goes over his soul’s troubles with God one more time. “Why have You forgotten me? Why do I suffer under the oppression of the devil and his helpers?” Even his enemies are taunting him, “See if your God will help you now!” This passage is reminiscent of the taunts that Jesus received in his passion. But the answer to David’s horrible predicament is repeated one more time in the last verse. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.” This is the comfort for every Christian every time he is cast down.

How do we apply this psalm?

1. David longed to be at the tabernacle, where God met His people at the altar. Our very closest encounters with God will occur when two or three are gathered together, when we have fellowship with Christ at His table. But sometimes Christians look for excuses for not going to church. They might sniff a little and say, “I think I may have a bit of a sniffle today. Perhaps I can stay home. Doesn’t the ball game start at 11:00 a.m.? There is no way I can be in church today.” But the sad reason why people do not long to be in the presence of God in His worship, is because they have forgotten about their need for God Himself. Indeed, their hearts are far from God. Let us pray that God would help us see our need for His presence every day.

2. When you are discouraged, you need to hope in God. Get your eyes off of yourself and put your hope in God’s salvation. When you feel like you are under water, you can still sing God’s psalms and pray to Him. We should put our hope in God and not in our wealth or our worldly comforts and entertainment.

How does this psalm teach us to worship God?

The pattern of worship in this psalm begins with a confession of our discouragement. Moving on to direct our souls, we tell ourselves to fasten our eyes and pin our hopes on God. It continues with a prayer to God. Finally, the worship psalm finishes with more reasoning with ourselves, and a statement of conviction and hope that God will come through for us.

Questions:

1. What does David long for in this psalm?

2. Whom do you think this psalm could really help?

3. What picture does David use to describe his depression?

4. When are we closest to God?

5. What is the answer to David’s predicament?

Family Discussion Questions:

1. Do we desire God? Or do we find other things more desirable than God? Why would we find other things more desirable than God?

2. How much do we long to be in the presence of God with the congregation of the church? Psalm 43