Psalm 30 - Joy Comes
1)I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up and did not let my foes rejoice over me. 2) O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me. 3) O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit. 4) Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. 5) For his anger is but for a moment; his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes in the morning. 6) As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.” 7) By your favor, O Lord, you had established me as a strong mountain; you hid your face; I was dismayed. 8) To you, O Lord, I cried, and to the Lord I made supplication: 9) “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the Pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?10) Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me! O Lord, be my helper!”11) You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, 12) so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.
Background to The Book of Psalms: The book of Psalms is the prayer book and hymnal of the Bible. In it the authors share every raw human emotion possible. The words can take us from feelings of fierce vengeance, to euphoric praise, to stately thanksgiving, to abject despair, to quaking fear and lament, to calm delight, to steadfast hope and trust, sometimes in the space of a comma. We are reminded in the psalms that all of human life is lived in the presence of and in awareness of God. The psalmists assume and assure us that all of human life is attended to by God and that all of human life is the appropriate subject of prayer. God does not want from us, in the intimacy of prayer, just the parts of life that feel good, or look good, or feel faithful or look faithful. Every breath is a breath of the Spirit, and no circumstance is too petty to bring before God. No feeling, even about God, no doubt, no anger, no disappointment with God, is off limits when life is lived in God’s presence. What a comfort it is to know that we do not have to censor our prayers, as if we could if we wanted to. The book of Psalms is a compilation of several collections of psalms, many used liturgically in worship. Perhaps some were written for private devotion and, because they express themes that are universal, later became a part of the worship language of God’s people. Traditionally it was thought that all of the psalms were written by King David. Many probably were, but we now know that others had hands in these beautiful poem/prayer/songs. Whoever the writer/composer may have been, in these texts we are given permission to be real, before God and with each other. The psalms as poetry and song, have many layers of meaning which unfold within us in our daily experience.
Psalm 30: This heartwarming psalm is written as a song of praise and encouragement for people in times of difficulty. Set as a prayer of thanksgiving for healing on the other side of lament it encourages us to remember how faithful God is even if or while we experience suffering. It reminds us that God is never absent and that suffering always comes to an end in due time. The psalm reminds us of the centrality of praise and the security of the Rock upon which we stand.
Word Study
Vs. 1 – I will extol you, O Lord…- This opening sentence gives us the purpose of the psalm. The word extol means to praise enthusiastically with every part of one’s being.
Did not let my foes rejoice over me – This phrase reminds us that God will not allow our enemies to overcome us no matter how it feels. Literally in Hebrew, the phrase reads “God does not allow my opponents to come to joy.”
Vs. 2 – help – The use of the word ‘help’ here can indicate the kind of prayer we pray when we don’t even know exactly what we need. We know we are in trouble, but can’t see the road through, so we turn to God for help knowing that God’s choice of helping action will be perfect.
healed – There are a number of words in both Hebrew and Greek that refer to healing. This word is not restricted to physical healing or cure. It can refer to any kind of healing of mind, body, soul, relationship or even community or nation.
Vs. 3 – brought up – This word means to rise above.
Soul – nephesh - The totality of one’s being, what makes one a unique being.
Sheol – This word refers to the depths, the abyss, the netherworld of the dead. There was not at the time of this psalm a settled understanding of afterlife. Sheol was often used symbolically to refer to a state of separation from life and joy.
Pit – literally, a hole, cistern or grave. Think Joseph thrown into the cistern by his brothers in a jealous rage and then sold into slavery in Egypt.
Vs. 4 – Sing – This word means to play or make music, to celebrate or sing. This was the typical response to God’s goodness and rescue. It was the first action of the people after crossing the Red Sea.
Faithful ones – This word refers to holy ones who are known to be holy by their kindness, graciousness, benevolent goodness.
Give thanks – This evocative words means to throw or speak out ones thanks. You can imagine people walking down the road throwing thanksgiving to God at all they meet.
Holy – This word means to be set apart, different as a result of faithfulness to God.
Vs. 5 – For – This is used to introduce an idea one want to persuade hearers. In this case, persuade them to offer their own thanks.
Anger – This is the flaring of nostrils word we studied last time. Here, it refers to God’s initial reaction to injustice or the pain of God’s children. Anger is momentary. It is not a fixed reality. It is a flash of emotion that is dissipated by a stronger emotion, in this case, favor.
Favor – This word means delight, love, graciousness.
Weeping – This word is used poetically to refer to all pain.
A moment – The point here is that pain is always fleeting.
Joy – This beautiful word is for an exclamatory shout of glee.
Comes – There is no real verb here. It has to be supplied by the context. The phrase could be translated “A shout of joy belongs to the morning.”
Morning – This word can refer to the next day, the next moment. It indicates that something will happen soon.
Vs. 6 – This complex sentence recollects the cause of the weeping referred to earlier: prosperity with its delusional self-assurance. It is a kind of full of himself-ness that causes one to feel invincible. It can be used of individuals, groups, communities or nations. In all instances it is this kind of grasping narcissism that makes people sick and leads to damage.
Vs. 7 – mountain – Some suggest that the psalmist is referring to the Temple mount.
You hid your face – This phrase occurs many times in the Hebrew scriptures. It refers to blocked intimacy with God.
Dismayed – to be terrified, frightened and perplexed.
Vs. 8 – cried – Cried, called out.
Supplication – This word refers to a plea for mercy.
Vs. 9 – Pit – This is a different word from that used in verse 3. This word means a trap.
Dust – literally ‘fine clay’. It is sometimes used to describe the destroyed temple or a ruined nation.
Praise – This word refers to liturgical acts of praise and sacrifice.
Vs. 10 – Hear- shema – To listen with focused attention and then act on what one hears.
Gracious – This word means to be inclined toward, to have pity on.
Vs. 11 - turned – To turn over, to turn around, to overthrow, to turn back, to convert, to change.
My sackcloth – garments of penitence and grief.
Vs. 12 – soul – The word here literally means glory. The psalmist is saying something like “so that the wonders that you display in my life may loudly shout your praise.”
Questions for Personal Reflection
- Have you ever experienced healing or restoration, in some way? Looking back can you see the hand of God at work? Remember that with thanksgiving today.
- Have you ever felt desperate for change but not know how or what to pray for? Were you able to just cry “Help” and leave the details up to God?
- Have you ever felt like your connection with God was severed by your circumstances or sin? Can you identify the cause of that sense of aloneness?
- Have you ever felt the sudden joy of things turning around?
- If things are difficult for you right now, this psalm holds a beautiful promise that God is at work when you see it and when you don’t. God will not allow your challenges to win over you. God will gather your tears and turn them into joy soon! Reflect on this and sing praise.