Psalm 88

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Psalm

Psalm 88

1. O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
2. Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;
3. For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
4. I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:
5. Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand.
6. THou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.
7. Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.
8. THou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me as abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9. Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
10. Wiltthou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.
11. Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12. Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13. But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
14. LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
15. I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy teerors I am distracted.
16. Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.
17. They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.
18. Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.

 

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Outline

Enduring Hope in God

Psalm 88

Hope Views the Circumstances

1. We cry to Elohim Yawveh of salvation, Psalm 88:1-2

2. We cry because of our soul and physical needs, Psalm 88:3

3. We cry because of how things look, Psalm 88:4-6

4. We cry because we know it is God who has put us here, Psalm 88:7

Hope Views Our Spirit

1. We have been locked away from family, Psalm 88:8

2. We are failing physically because of the stress, Psalm 88:9

3. We wish to spend our time in this life in gratefulness, Psalm 88:10-12

Hope Views through Faith

1. God always brings a new day with answers, Psalm 88:13-14

2. God always prepares us for death, Psalm 88:15-16

3. God always teaches us to trust in Him alone, Psalm 88:17-18

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Sermon

Enduring Hope in God
Psalm 88
by Pastor Clinton Macomber

The title of this Psalm is quite shocking. It is interpreted in several ways. Some consider it to be the terminally ill patient's song for pity. The Rabbi's take it to represent Israel and her sorrow that is not only internal at having lost her land and heritage, but external in the many deprivations they suffer at the hands of their captors.

The author is credited to being Heman. There are two of these men listed in Scripture. One was one of the chief musicians in David's time, the other is in Solomon's time. These men were very wise, and had incredible musical ability.

This Psalm is a tribute to the power and providence of God. It looks to God for help in the midst of fierce suffering. As Job learned that this world's comforters are a very pathetic lot, so we too must learn this and turn to God alone for help in the day of affliction. He has the ability to control the suffering and teach us great things through it all.

Hope Views the Circumstances

1. We cry to Elohim Yawveh of salvation, Psalm 88:1-2

   Psalm 88:1 1 O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee: 2 Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;

God has many names in Scripture. Each one portrays a unique quality of God. This particular form of “Lord God” does as well. There is a reason that this form is used here.

The first time we find this exact form is in Genesis 24, where God is turned to for guidance and help for a seemingly impossible task. First Abraham calls his servant and has him swear by the Lord God that he will go to the assigned location to find Isaac a wife. Then he quiets the servant's frustrations by saying the angel of the Lord God would guide him along the way. Then as the servant obeys, he calls to the Lord God for help and gives the Lord God credit for the miraculous success of the trip.

The Lord God is Creator and Controller of Heaven and Earth

Genesis 24:3 And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell:

The Lord God is Our Guide and Director

Genesis 24:7 The LORD God of heaven, which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence.

The Lord God is to be Worshiped for his Generosity

Genesis 24:48 And I bowed down my head, and worshipped the LORD, and blessed the LORD God of my master Abraham, which had led me in the right way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son.

Later, when Jacob was sent alone to head to the same location, God appeared to him in a vision where these terms are used. Jacob had to be filled with trepidation and some regret that first night, but God explained that Jacob was embarking on a journey that would see the promises fulfilled. He also showed the incredible spiritual power that works to bring about the will of God.

The Lord God is the God of Divine Promises

Genesis 28:13 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

The Lord God is a Memorial

Exodus 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

The Lord God is the One who visits us

Exodus 3:16 Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt:

The Lord God blesses those that obey His instructions and law

Deuteronomy 4:1 Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them , that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you.

Deuteronomy 6:3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it ; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey.

The Lord God is to be remembered each year for what He has done

Deuteronomy 26:7 And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the LORD heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:

The Lord God allows defeat because of permitted wickedness

Joshua 7:13 Up, sanctify the people, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to morrow: for thus saith the LORD God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, O Israel: thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you.

The Lord God hates spousal abuse

Malachi 2:16 For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.

Have you ever thought about choosing a specific name of God in your prayer? It is a wonderful way to get to know God and expand your vocabulary and understanding of who He is to us. Most Christians look like a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding vehicle, when asked if thy can name more than one term that describes God. This is a very serious condition! Even a child can go on for great lengths describing how great their dad is to them. As children of God we do not act like we know God at all!

1. We cry because of our soul and physical needs, Psalm 88:3

Psalm 88:3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.

A saint of God is taught the difference between the body and the soul and spirit. We have to get to know the difference as soon as possible so that we can conform to God's Holy Spirit which is in us. Our bodies are earthly and want everything that is harmful for them. Satan appealed to the desires of the body when he deviously presented the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil to Eve. Then he appealed to her humanistic soul. Every craving our body has is devious, sinful and suicidal. Every craving our spirit has depends on what we have trained ourselves to pursue. God's Word teaches us to turn to God for guidance and direction and the will to resist the earthly cravings for that which is holy. Our lives are short, but seeking to follow our “hearts” is the most dangerous thing a person could do!

Romans 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

Revelation 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

1. We cry because of how things look, Psalm 88:4-6

Psalm 88:4 I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength: Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand. Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.

We are funny people. Because we have chosen to separate ourselves from God as a race, we only see the physical evidence of what is happening around us! We completely ignore the spiritual needs, the battle, the reason for all things, and the problems we need to overcome. Instead we look around us and declare that things could not get worse! Part of being a child of God is learning to look past the physical into the things that are eternal. It is the learning to set our affections on things above, not on earthly things.

1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

Matthew 23:27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

2 Corinthians 10:7 Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.

Colossians 3:1 If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. 5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: 7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

1. We cry because we know it is God who has put us here, Psalm 88:7

Psalm 88:7 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.

This is a very comforting statement. It is one worth repeating, not in anger as if to curse God, but in love and awareness that our fight is not with the things we see but on a spiritual level. God controls the flood-gates of suffering, and He will limit it, should it become too much for us to bear. We are not here on this earth as decoration, but to serve a purpose of bringing glory to God and learning to follow Him where ever He leads.

Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places .

Hope Views Our Spirit

1. We have been locked away from family, Psalm 88:8

Psalm 88:8 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.

Jacob must have felt this when he was driven from his home to go to a foreign country to find a wife. By standing up to see that God's way was done, he had become a stench to his own family and their household of many servants.

Job must have felt this painfully, when he got word that not only had he lost everything he worked so hard to have and keep, but his several children as well. His own wife told him to “curse God and die.”

David felt this when he had to abandon his first wife because her dad, the King Saul, was seeking to slay him in his own bed. Later David had to bring his wife away from an improper marriage to himself by force. David also had to see his parents exiled to Moab where it is said they were executed as a gift to King Saul.

Moses felt this as he traveled back to Egypt to obey God by leading Israel out of bondage. God insisted that Moses obey the instruction to circumcise his son. His wife hated Moses for this and left him to return to her father. Then when Moses got to the Israelites and had his first meeting with Pharaoh, the Israelites rejected him and wanted to kill him, a characteristic of his relationship that was often repeated for 40 years.

There are times we are called to demonstrate that we are willing as Abraham to leave our families behind so that we can follow God unencumbered.

1. We are failing physically because of the stress, Psalm 88:9

Psalm 88:9 Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.

This is a sign of utmost sorrow. Eyes are painful from the extended crying. Our hands are stretched out in absolute humility seeking help from God.

1. We wish to spend our time in this life in gratefulness, Psalm 88:10-12

Psalm 88:10 Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah. Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction? Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

The Psalmist had a strong grasp on this truth. The value of staying alive is in the ability to praise and honor God. Once we die, our fate is sealed. We become new creatures in heaven, and our glory is simply a natural reaction. But here on earth, giving the glory to God is a privilege, when it seems that it is not a natural thing to do. Once we die, our capacity for spiritual growth and the learning to be Christ-like is over. Our place in heaven is set.

Hope Views through Faith

 

Psalm 88:13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee. LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?

Hope is vitally important to the child of God. When hope is lost, we fail. In order to remain steadfast, we must be able to see that things will change soon. We must have a vision of what is coming. God knows this and has let us know the future in amazing detail.

Lamentations 3:22-23 22 It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

1. God always prepares us for death, Psalm 88:15-16

Psalm 88:15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted. Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.

From the moment we are born, we fight to live. Every day becomes a struggle to survive the many things that could kill us. Yet, when we become a child of God, and His spirit dwells within us, we soon become ready to die.

So many people today are “tired of living, but afraid to die.” So many cling to life as if it has something to offer. God's people can resign this life when it is time in a very peaceful way, because they have learned to trust God because they have learned that He is real. When death comes, there is hope, but as long as we are alive, there is a job to do, and we are glad to do it.

1. God always teaches us to trust in Him alone, Psalm 88:17-18

Psalm 88:17 They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together. 18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.

Being alone does not require an isolation cell. People are very alone even when they are surrounded by hundreds of people. Being alone is not because you have no friends. Job had three friends that were willing to leave their busy lives to sit with him for a week before they said a word. It must have taken amazing tenacity to sit there when Job stank so badly and endured such pain. Yet, when they did open their mouths, Job felt even more alone than if they had never showed up. Loneliness is a feeling and condition. It is the feeling of being in total darkness, and cut off from people seeing you and you knowing people are there. It is during these times that we reveal the true nature of our spirit and soul.

Some go crazy, because they do not have God, or any hope. Others become stronger from the time, because they sing, pray and review the Bible verses they learned. This time of wonderful devotions is a blessed time of being locked in a closet alone with God.

This Psalm served as the basis for one of the great hymns we sing. It was written by Thomas Kelly who was a poet and preacher that was thrown out of the Anglican Church because he preached justification by faith from the pulpit. It was during these times that he learned to trust God and understand the fullness of God's love.

These inspiring two-line verses by Thomas Kelly, based on Psalm 88:1, were published in 1809. The melody of this hymn is of unknown German origin. Praise the Savior, ye who know Him! Who can tell how much we owe Him? Gladly let us render to Him all we are and have. Jesus is the name that charms us; He for conflict fits and arms us. Nothing moves and nothing harms us while we trust in Him. Trust in Him, ye saints, forever—He is faithful, changing never. Neither force nor guile can sever those He loves from Him. Keep us, Lord, O keep us cleaving to Thyself, and still believing, till the hour of our receiving promised joys with Thee. Then we shall be where we would be; then we shall be what we should be. Things that are not now, nor could be, soon shall be our own. 1

1 K. W. Osbeck, Amazing Grace : 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel Publications, 1990). 336.

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Topic Study

Longsuffering in Scripture
by Pastor Clinton Macomber

God's servant must learn to be patient with all people

2 Timothy 2:24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men , apt to teach, patient,

God's goodness and long-suffering leads us to repentance

Romans 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Long-suffering begins first with us as a pattern to others

1 Timothy 1:16 Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting.

God is Long-suffering

Exodus 34:6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,

The Fruit of the Spirit includes Long-suffering

Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

Long-suffering is important to Christian living

Ephesians 4:1-3 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

God strengthens us with all power to be long-suffering

Colossians 1:11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;

The Elect of God should wear long-suffering

Colossians 3:12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;

 

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Quote

Incline thine ear unto my cry, for my soul is full of troubles, Psalm 88:2–3

The psalmist has found the quickest argument before his God. There is nothing that so quickly makes the bell ring in heaven as the touch of a troubled hand. When a man is full of the interests of life, of prosperity, and self-content; when the voices of applause resound on every side; when his house is full of children, and his barn of sheaves, his prayer halts, and God seems far away. But let trouble come—let the waters, swollen by many confluent streams, begin to rise within his soul, so that lover and friend are far away, and he compassed with terror (Psalm 88:16, 18), then God bends his ear and heart.

O child of sorrow, do not count that you are cast away! It is true that your Lord cried from his Cross, “Why hast Thou forsaken Me?“ but even Him, though laden with the sins of the world, the Father held near his heart. And He has not left you, neither can He.

“The earth and every vassal star,
All space beyond the soar of angel wings,
Wait on his word; and yet He stays his ear
For every sigh a suppliant sinner brings.”

Try and think of trouble as storing your heart with seeds of joy; as acting upon you as the fire upon the primeval earth, scattering jewels through its crust; or as the glaciers that brought the rich soil into the valleys; or as the husbandman who buries the seeds of spring in the autumn fields. A veiled angel, nothing else!

“But if, impatient, thou let slip thy cross,
Thou wilt not find it in this world again,
Nor in another; here, and here alone,
Is given thee to suffer for God's sake.”

F.B. Meyer, Our Daily Homily (Redding, California: Pleasant Places Press, 2004).Vol. 3, pp. 88-89.

 

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Devotions

Monday, Psalm 88:1-3 and 1 Corinthians 6:1-3

There is a serious disease among Christians. They refuse to go to God for help, and instead look for help from lawyers, friends, doctors, scientists, government, business, money, books and information. Everything in this world brings ruin and more damage to the soul and spirit. Only God can help us. Instead of wasting our efforts among men, we need to go to God and implore Him for our help. What is it you will put away in your life so you can seek the face of God instead of some hollow idol?

Tuesday, Psalm 88:4-6 and 1 Corinthians 6:4-7

People today are into “rights” way too much. Being treated as we want to be treated is not a right in the world. In fact the very opposite is the case. We are to treat others as we would wish to be treated by being a servant to all. Because it is the depraved nature to rise up and make demands, we have to learn we are nothing but dead carcases. Our only hope is in turning to Christ and the ministry of the saints for help and resolution. What problem would stop the moment we accept the cost of a wrong and admit we have no “rights” apart from what God permits?

Wednesday, Psalm 88:7-9 and 1 Corinthians 6:8-10

God is the source that permit our affliction, not so we will fill our hearts with vengeance, bitterness, wrath, or devious ways. Instead it is to demonstrate to us the horrible nature of sin, and those that are willing to sin. By realizing what is wrong, and becoming abominable to the wrong, we are going to be attacked by those that do what is wrong. Yet our problem is not with the people, but with ourselves and learning to trust God through it all. Name something in your life you need to realize is coming ultimately from God. By submitting to the affliction, learning from it, we will come forth as gold.

Thursday, Psalm 88:10-12 and 1 Corinthians 6:11-14

The miracles of God are made known to us in this life. We have been changed, and have experienced the miracles of God. Every day we live, is a chance to move further away from the wiles of this world, realizing the limited value the things of this life have to offer. Then when the day comes that we meet the Savior, we will be ready, having made use of the time He gave us to learn to be like Him. Where are you lacking the character of God?

Friday, Psalm 88:13-15 and 1 Corinthians 6:15-17

Every morning our prayers should come before (prevent) God. Every day we live, we do not live to ourselves but to the one we are joined with in Heaven. The Lord cannot cast us off, or forsake us, because we become one with His spirit as we obey Him and serve Him. What is it that is distracting us from having full attention to the Savior and the things of His Word?

Saturday, Psalm 88:16-18 and 1 Corinthians 6:18-20

God bought us and surrounds us with those things that will conform us to His image. Everything that keeps us from being fully united with Him has to be removed from us. The separation process is drastic and dramatic. Anything less does not accomplish the purpose and fulfill the need that we have. What is it that we need to allow ourselves to be severed from so that we can be at one with God today?

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Puzzle

 

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