Psalm 130
1 Out of the depths have I called to you, O Lord;
Lord, hear my voice; *
let your ears consider well the voice of my supplication.
2 If you, Lord, were to note what is done amiss, *
O Lord, who could stand?
3 For there is forgiveness with you; *
therefore you shall be feared.
4 I wait for the Lord; my soul waits for him; *
in his word is my hope.
5 My soul waits for the Lord,
more than watchmen for the morning, *
more than watchmen for the morning.
6 O Israel, wait for the Lord, *
for with the Lord there is mercy;
7 With him there is plenteous redemption, *
and he shall redeem Israel from all their sins.
Depths. Pit. Grave. Sheol. All words used in the psalms to name a place of feeling overwhelmed, depressed, great sickness. A place that often has the psalmist feeling like God has left them. If I ever find myself in the pit, in the depths, and begin to wonder if God is with me, I should know that I am in great company.
In times of trouble it is normal to wonder if God is with us. It feels like God has abandoned us or is perhaps punishing us for our sinfulness. That is why the psalmist goes on to talk about his own sinfulness and God’s mercy.
When the psalmist says in v4 that “with the You there is forgiveness therefore You are feared” I wonder if there is a bit of a play on words that loses something in the translation. A phrase used often in the scriptures is the phrase, “fear of the Lord” Pr 9:10. Which in essence, this ancient colloquialism is capturing the idea that we are creatures that are so weak and ignorant and more often choose darkness over light to our own destruction, and the Lord rescues us shows mercy to us and sets us back on the path over and over again and we should stand in awe of His patience and mercy and with soberness and joy, continue onward.
It is more of a fear of ourselves. A fear that comes from an ever increasing awareness of our sinfulness, our ignorance, our weakness and inability to choose the good. And with that awareness, an awareness of the destruction we cause, to ourselves and our neighbor. An awareness of how easily we are duped and find ourselves in the pit again.
God’s forgiveness creates a sense of awe in us. We fear our own incompetence and stand in awe of God’s forgiveness as we imagine the horror life would be if we served a God who kept a record of our sins and was not forgiving and merciful!
There are always options to getting out of the depths. Often the least attractive option is to wait on God to rescue us. In our ignorance we often choose a shortcut. But the psalmist is the voice of our experience, the voice of our conscience. Wait! Wait that voice says. Wait and keep watch for the Lord like watchmen in the night. It is worth it. Whatever you’ve done to end up in the pit, wait for the Lord to pull you out. God will rescue you, He will not leave your there. God will even redeem your foolishness.