“Love the LORD, all his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.”
Psalm 31:23-24
“I don’t want to do this anymore. Please, God, just let me die.” Bill was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. He had been incarcerated for 28 years and faced many more incarcerated years ahead. The thought filled him with despair.
Others in the Bible knew despair that brought them to the point of wanting to give up: Moses (Numbers 11:15), Elijah (1 Kings 19:4), Job (Job 3:11), Jonah (Jonah 4:8). David understood it, too. But often in the Psalms he offered hope for disheartened people like Bill or any of us.
Psalm 31 tells how David was consumed by anguish, filled with groaning, and stripped of his strength because of his afflictions. He knew he was the utter contempt of his neighbors and a dread to his closest friends.
Yet he was able to write, “Be strong, and take heart” (v. 24). David could take heart and call others to do so because he knew that “the LORD was his God” (v. 14).
Others in the Bible knew despair that brought them to the point of wanting to give up: Moses (Numbers 11:15), Elijah (1 Kings 19:4), Job (Job 3:11), Jonah (Jonah 4:8). David understood it, too. But often in the Psalms he offered hope for disheartened people like Bill or any of us.
Psalm 31 tells how David was consumed by anguish, filled with groaning, and stripped of his strength because of his afflictions. He knew he was the utter contempt of his neighbors and a dread to his closest friends.
Yet he was able to write, “Be strong, and take heart” (v. 24). David could take heart and call others to do so because he knew that “the LORD was his God” (v. 14).
Scripture Focus
Psalm 31:1-24
Insight
Are you feeling despair? Take refuge in the Lord. He will come to your rescue. He is faithful. He will do it.
Bible In A Year
- Exodus 27-28
- Psalm 39
- Luke 3
