Friday, March 6, 2015

Psalm 60: Defeat Is Not The End

It's so easy to get discouraged in our spiritual lives and believe that we are forsaken forever by God when things don't go our way.  I don't mean just the trivial matters like a personal rejection, gloomy weather, or a "bad hair day" that can trigger our self-pitying, but the deeper, more significant issues of life like cancers and divorces and terrorist attacks.  When we experience defeat, we can have one of two responses - we can either wallow in it or we can learn from it.

For David and the Israelites, they are determined to better their situation by appealing to God.  The situation of Psalm 60 appears to be on the occasion of a national military defeat.  The psalm begins: "O God, you have rejected us, broken down our defense, you have been angry; now restore us!"

There is a recognition that bad things have (deservedly) happened, but now the nation is ready to be restored.  The plea to God is therefore one of seeking mercy and reminding Him of His promises.  The Psalmist seems assured that God can be counted on in the future as He has the past.  They are not forsaken forever.  God will return to them when their hearts return to Him, and He will once again be their Deliverer.

P.S. You may be familiar with the Middle Eastern insult of throwing a shoe, like was done in recent years with President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  Apparently things don't change much in 3000 years.  Three nations are listed as being viewed negatively by God: "Moab is my washbasin; on Edom I hurl my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph" (vs. 8)!

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