Opening with a cry of despair and a barrage of questions (vs 1,2), the psalmist aches with desperation for his situation to be changed. He is seeking answers within himself (v 2). The repetition of ‘How long?’ speaks of intense endurance through what feels like inescapable, never-ending pain. Is nothing ever going to change? Will I always feel like this? Can I keep going when I don’t even know if you’re here with me any more? The prayer and request, ‘light up my eyes’ (v 3, ESV), is a step of faith within the searching for answers. Come on, Lord! Remember me! 

And yet, even with the psalmist’s residual fears (he is still afraid of death and the shame of defeat, vs 3,4), the psalm closes with a sense of reassurance. Looking back and land-marking times of abundance reminds us that God’s love is steadfast. The psalmist has trusted God in the past, and known his salvation and provision (vs 5,6). Therefore, there is still a call to praise in times which feel impossible. Rather than fighting to rush out of a valley in your life, where is God at work during times of sadness, frustration and doubt? 

As you turn to God’s Word today, take a moment to pause and ask God to shine his light into your present situation.

I wonder how much comfort you draw from the raw honesty of the psalms. Four times in this short psalm David asks God a question that begins ‘How long… ?’ However, it is more of a complaint than a question. When my young daughter asks, ‘How long until dinner?’ it is usually more about her hunger than a timetabling consideration! In the opening third of this psalm (vs 1,2) David presents his anxiety from the depths with shocking honesty. We should not resist this ourselves. The Lord knows our distress even before we verbalise it.

Having protested, David’s petition in prayer shifts to the source of his hope (vs 3,4). While speaking to God, he simultaneously addresses his own thoughts, shining light into his dark situation and declaring victory into his previously defeatist mindset. It’s in the second third of the psalm that David, in prayer, begins to climb upwards from the depths.

We’re given no indication that David’s circumstances have changed, yet he’s moved from a place of desperation to one of rejoicing. In the concluding third of the psalm (vs 5,6) David expresses a song of faith as he places his trust in his God by recalling his goodness in the past. This is a consistent pattern throughout the psalms and one we’d do well to imitate. As you read this you may be asking, ‘How long?’ in differing contexts. Be assured that it is not wrong to sense abandonment from God at times. As Gerald Wilson reflects, ‘Often when one is most firmly in the centre of God’s purpose and will are attacks most severe and God seems most distant.’¹ May we be courageous in expressing ourselves with honesty to our Lord, whilst confident in his desire to shine light into dark places and peace into the chaos.

‘A hidden face is no sign of a forgetful heart.’² Lord, grant that I may know the comfort of your heart inclined towards me today.

¹ G Wilson, Psalms, Vol 1, The NIV Application Commentary, Zondervan, 2002, p281  ² Charles Spurgeon, https://archive.spurgeon.org/treasury/ps013.php