Psalm 13 – O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?
2 How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?

3 Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
4 Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him!”
Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.

5 But I trust in your unfailing love.
I will rejoice because you have rescued me.
6 I will sing to the Lord
because he is good to me. (NLT)

For the past several weeks we have been exploring the psalms.  We looked at a psalm exalting the joy of a godly life (Psalm 1); a psalm about trusting the Lord (Psalm 25); a psalm that taught us to stay focused in prayer (Psalm 5).  Today we explore a psalm that shares the thoughts of one who has been afflicted by the troubles of this world.

In Psalm 13, the psalmist asks a question that everyone has asked at some point in their lives – how long will you forget me, O Lord.  Unlike the children of God who lived in the days of the psalmist, we have the full Word of God, and God’s Word answers this age old question.  Speaking through the prophet Isaiah, God tells us in Isaiah 49:14-16: Jerusalem says, “The Lord has deserted us; the Lord has forgotten us.” “Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.” 

Like the psalmist, we may at times feel as if God is looking the other way.  We may at times feel as if God does not know or care about the troubles we endure.  However, consider the words of Jesus in John 14:16-17: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit.” God is always with us through the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Even though the psalmist questioned God, we should note that he was praying!  He did not stop communicating with God just because he questioned, and while he talked to God he began to remember.  In verse five he states that he trusts in God’s unfailing love.  In many translations, and in the Hebrew, it reads: “I have trusted in your mercy.” The psalmist acknowledges that he has trusted in the past, and in the past God always rescued him.  Then in verse six he proclaims that since God was good to him in the past, he will sing to the Lord in the present.  Nowhere does he state that he is over his current affliction, yet he chose to sing anyway!  He was able to sing because he remembered God’s faithfulness.

Let the remembrance of God’s past faithfulness be our strength in times of trouble.  When we don’t feel as if God cares, let us remember God’s grace and mercy from yesterday, and then let us sing to the Lord! 

Posted by Ramón Torres