January 25 2024

Thursday, January 25

Strength for the Journey

Psalm 119:153-160

“RESH”

153 Consider my affliction and deliver me, For I do not forget Your law.

154 Plead my cause and redeem me; Revive me according to Your word.

155 Salvation is far from the wicked, For they do not seek Your statutes.

156 Great are Your tender mercies, O LORD; Revive me according to Your judgments.

157 Many are my persecutors and my enemies, Yet I do not turn from Your testimonies.

158 I see the treacherous, and am disgusted, Because they do not keep Your word.

159 Consider how I love Your precepts; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.

160 The entirety of Your word is truth, And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.

Psalm 119:153-160 is the twentieth stanza of this psalm, and every line or verse begins with the twentieth letter of the Hebrew alphabet “RESH”, in the Hebrew Bible. Have you noticed that the writer became more urgent as he drew near the end of the psalm? The Hebrew alphabet was about to end, but his trials would continue, and he needed the help of the Lord. The last three stanzas all speak of persecution and trials, yet the writer still trusted the Lord. The higher we climb on the mountain of life the tougher the journey becomes. The older we get both physically and spiritually, we notice that we need the LORD more than ever before to help us and give us strength for the journey of life.

The key phrase in this stanza is "revive me" (vv. 154, 156, 159), which means "give me life, lift me up and keep me going." The psalmist had prayed this prayer before (vv. 25, 37, 40, 88, 107, and 149), and the Lord had answered. Here, he not only prayed but also gave reasons why the Lord should answer.

First, we can pray “revive me”, for He is our Redeemer (vv. 153-155). "Consider my affliction" is a request for the Lord to "see to" his needs. Abraham used this word when he answered his son's question in Genesis 22:8, "The Lord will see to it," in other words, He will provide the sacrifice. Our wonderful Lord not only "sees" the need but can "see to" providing what is needed. He is our Jehovah Jireh! "The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry" (Psalm 34:15; 1 Peter 3:12).

The word "redeem" speaks of the kinsman redeemer who could rescue a family member in need, as Boaz rescued Ruth. (See Lev. 25:23-34.) In His incarnation, Jesus entered the human family and became our kinsman, and in the crucifixion, He paid the price to redeem us from sin, death, and hell. "Plead my cause" ties in with Jesus as our Kinsman Redeemer and also as our Surety (v. 122), Mediator, and Advocate, who represents us before the throne of God (1 John 2:1-2). In our affliction, it is comforting to know that the Son of God intercedes for us, hears our prayers, and meets our needs.

Next, we ask the LORD to “revive me”, because He is Merciful (vv. 156-158). If we prayed on the basis of our own merit, God could never answer, but we come to the Father in the name of the Son (John 14:14; 15:16) and with the help of the Spirit (Eph. 2:18; Rom. 8:26-27). God in His grace gives us what we do not deserve, and in His mercy He does not give us what we do deserve. His throne is a throne of grace where grace and mercy are abundantly available to us (Heb. 4:16). The psalmist was still disgusted with the way the unbelievers lived (v. 158; see vv. 53, 136), but their bad example did not change his own convictions.

Finally, we pray “revive me”, because His Word can be trusted (vv. 159-160). "The entirety of your word is truth" (v. 160) and this means all of it can be trusted. The totality of God's written revelation is not just true, it is truth. To love the Word is to obey it, and to obey it is to receive life from it. The Bible is not a magic book that conveys divine life to anyone who picks it up and reads it. God's living Word communicates His life and power to those who read it, meditate on it, and obey it because they love God and His Word. When Jesus raised the dead, it was through speaking the Word (Luke 7:11-17; 8:40-56; John 11:38-44; see John 5:24), and His Word gives us life today when we find ourselves in the dust (v. 25).

Today, do you need strength for the journey? I assure you that you will find it as you spend time in communion with the LORD and His Word.

God bless!