What A Thirst for God Will Teach You in Hard Times (Psalm 42-44)
What do you reach for when life feels dry? Psalm 42 shows us that true satisfaction only comes when we thirst for the presence of God.
Psalm 42-44
Today's Scripture Passage
A Few Thoughts to Consider
Do you find it easier or more challenging to connect with God when you are going through a hard season?
Psalm 42 marks the second of five major books in Psalms, and a couple of these psalms flow together. As Willem VanGemeren writes, “The literary unity of Psalms 42 and 43 is such that they should be treated as one psalm.”[1] The setting for this psalm is uncertain, but the passage certainly gives us some strong clues. Authors Nancy Declaissé-Walford, Rolf A. Jacobson, and Beth Laneel Tanner write:
Because Psalm 42 appears to be a cry of sorrow from a person who can no longer worship God at the temple—and indeed, according to v. 4, lead the worshippers to the temple—many suggest that it was composed while Israel was in exile in Babylon in the sixth century B.C.E. For indeed, at that time, the people were far away from the temple and felt removed from the presence of God.[2]
Thus, it’s likely out of this time of exile and longing for home that the psalmist writes the following words, which are among some of the most recognizable in all the Psalms. Gerald Wilson notes, “Psalm 42 clearly exhibits the sense of joy, praise, and spiritual connection with God that must have characterized the best of Israelite worship.”[3] Consider these words:
1 As a deer longs for flowing streams,
so I long for you, God.
2 I thirst for God, the living God.
When can I come and appear before God?
3 My tears have been my food day and night,
while all day long people say to me,
“Where is your God?”
4 I remember this as I pour out my heart:
how I walked with many,
leading the festive procession to the house of God,
with joyful and thankful shouts.
There is a reason this imagery has connected with people of all different backgrounds throughout the years. “Few images in the Psalter exceed the beauty of the opening lines of this psalm,”[4] Gerald Wilson writes. This passage is raw, authentic, and personal. Every person knows the feeling of thirst, the pain of tears, and the longing for God to make their wrongs right.
The psalmist teaches us that the more we get to know God, the more we should crave his apparent absence. When life is hard, the true thirsts of our hearts are revealed. Do we turn to God, or do we turn to substitutes such as substance abuse, sexual addiction, mindless entertainment, or endless busyness?
