Dennis Edwards
A Reflection on Psalm 30
Psalm 30:1 “I will extol Thee, O Lord; for You have
lifted me up, and have not made my foes to rejoice over me.”
David is giving God thanks that his enemies, including his
father-in-law, the former King who sought to slay him, have not been victorious
over him.
Psalm 30:2-3 “O Lord my God, I cried unto You, and
You have healed me. O Lord, You have brought up my soul from the grave: You
have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.”
Again, David is thanking the Lord that he is alive. The Lord
answered him when he cried and healed him from his depression or from his sickness,
in so much, that he did not die. He is thankful.
Psalm 30:4 “Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of His,
and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.”
A common thread throughout the psalms is thanksgiving and
praise to God for His goodness unto the children of men. It is good for us to
give thanks and praise unto the Lord. The last verse in the last psalm gives the
main messages of the Psalms.
Psalm 150:6 “Let everything that has breath praise
the LORD. Praise ye the LORD:”
Or like we know it in the New Testament,
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks, for
this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
Psalm 30:5 “For His anger endures but a moment; in
His favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the
morning.”
The Old Testament tells us that God is slow to anger and
merciful. When God appeared before Moses the Lord proclaimed to him,
Exodus 34:6b-7a “(I) The Lord, The Lord God (am)
merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.”
The same idea is paraphrased in the psalms.
Psalm 134:8-9 “The Lord is gracious, and full of
compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all: and His
tender mercies are great over all His works.”
Some 44 times in the Psalms is repeated the phrase, “His
mercy endures for ever.”
Psalm 118: 1-4 & 29 “O give thanks unto the LORD;
for His is good: because His mercy endures for ever. Let Israel now say, that His
mercy endures for ever. Let the house of Aaron now say, that His mercy endures
for ever. Let them now that fear the LORD say, that His mercy endures for
ever…O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is good: for His mercy endures for
ever.”
Psalm 136:1 “O give thanks unto the LORD; for He is
good: for His mercy endures for ever.”
Psalm 136 has 26 lines and each line ends with “for His
mercy endures for ever.”
Contrary to the idea that the God of the Old Testament is a
monster, God proclaims that He is good and merciful and slow to anger. When He
does get angry at us for our rebellion or sin, it lasts but for a moment. We
may end up with a serious problem because of our sin, our health may be
damaged, or a relationship may be broken, but as we cry out to God with our
tears, His compassion fails not. We are once more brought back into harmony
with Him and our problem is resolved, whatever it may have been. Joy comes
flooding back into our lives.
Psalm 30:6 “In my prosperity I said, I shall never be
moved.”
God warned the children of Israel, and He warns us today to
beware of prosperity.
Deuteronomy 9:11,12,14,17,18,19 “Beware that you
forget not the Lord your God, in not keeping His commandments, and His
judgments, and His statutes,…Lest when you have eaten and are full,…Then your
heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God,… And you say in your
heart, My power and the might of mine (own) hand has gotten me this wealth. But
you shall remember the Lord your God: for it is He that gives you power to get
wealth…And it shall be, if you do at all forget the Lord your God, and walk
after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this
day that you shall surely perish.”
Psalm 62:10b “If riches increase, set not your heart
upon them.”
Apostle Paul, admonished us, also.
1 Timothy 6:6-10 “But godliness with contentment is
great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can
carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But
they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish
and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love
of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have
erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”
In our prosperity we have the tendency to forget God. David is
confessing that he, too, forgot God in His prosperity He sinned grievously in
the incident with Bathsheba. God’s anger was upon him for a moment. David
confessed and truly repented and found forgiveness in God’s mercy.
Psalm 30:7 “Lord, by Your favour You have made my
mountain to stand strong: You did hide Your face, and I was troubled.”
It is only God’s mercy that we are able to stand. If we were
rightly judged for our sins, no one would stand. When our relationship with God
becomes cloudy through neglect or sin, we sense his lack and anxiety comes in
and we are troubled.
Psalm 30:8 “I cried to thee, O Lord; and unto the
Lord I made supplication.”
When we are troubled, when that cloud over shadows us, we
cry unto the Lord once again. Apostle Paul gives the same solution to our
moments of anxiety. He tells us, if we
cry unto the Lord in prayer and in supplication with thanksgiving, God will
hear our prayer and send peace of heart and mind unto our souls.
Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in
every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding,
shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Psalm 30:9 “What profit is there in my blood, when I
go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? Shall it declare Your truth?”
David questions whether in death we will be able to praise
the Lord and speak of his truth.
Psalm 30:10 “Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me:
LORD, be my helper.”
Again, he calls upon the Lord for mercy. He calls upon God
to help him.
Psalm 30:11-12 You have turned my morning into
dancing: You have put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness. To the end
that my glory may sing praise to You, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will
give thanks unto You for ever.”
When God’s joy is taken from us, we become weak, downcast,
and discouraged. After we spend time pleading with God, pouring out our heart
and soul in prayer, seeking His face; God answers and renews or restores our
joy. It is the joy of the Lord that gives us strength. Once again, we are able
to sing and to praise and to give thanks. We enter into His presence with
praise, and with thanksgiving, and we cannot be silent for His mercy endures
for ever.
If you’re downcast, don’t stay there, fight for joy. The joy
of the Lord, His happiness, your praise to Him, your thankfulness to Him, will
give you the strength to carry on. Don’t mettle in discouragement, for the
devil is as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. He devours and smothers
our joy in sadness or melancholiness. Fight for joy, it’s your lifeline. It’s
God strength in you and a gift of the Holy Spirit. Fight for happiness. In
everything give thanks. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord, who is the
author and finisher of our faith. Praise the Lord, you children of men, for
God is worthy of our praise. He will bless us and help chase the clouds away,
as we praise and give thanks to Him forever.
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