Psalm 130 (NIV)
Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
to my cry for mercy.
If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
and in his word I put my hope.
I wait for the Lord
more than watchmen wait for the morning,
more than watchmen wait for the morning.
Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
for with the Lord is unfailing love
and with him is full redemption.
He himself will redeem Israel
from all their sins.
Devotion
Psalm 130, as Psalm 51, has been called one of the “penitentiary” psalms. It expresses the necessity for believers to rely on and hope for God’s mercy and help. It is a fairly short psalm and has a quite poetic construction. It has four parts, consisting of two verses each, and it can be split in two halves according to the parts’ content.
The first half starts with the psalmist’s cry to the Lord out of the depths (130:1) of his adverse
circumstances, and with his plea for mercy. He assumes that multiple such requests come before God, but he counts on the Lord not to keep a record of sins or who could stand (130:3).
We all know such situations of “depths”… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom 3:23). These are the times to ask God to create in me a clean heart. And put a new and right Spirit within me (Psalm 51:10), so that we will recognize and admit our sins in sincerity and with repentance, and then can hope for mercy and forgiveness according to God’s holiness and providence. And with the psalmist we will stand in awe, reverence, and in fear of God.
In comparison to the first half of the psalm, the second half has a more joyful tone. Its details make me think they are not only expressing the psalmist’s deep belief but they also carry a prophetic meaning. The psalmist now waits for the Lord (130:5). He is waiting even more than
Watchmen wait for the morning (130:6) during the long, dark nights. He says his soul waits and in his [the Lord’s] word I put my hope (130:5b). We know he waits for an assuring answer, and his hope is in the promises of God.
But isn’t it more? I see here a reference to Jesus Christ “The Word” of God which “became flesh” (John 1:14), and on whom the hope is resting for the whole world. . . The last two verses of the psalm follow (130:7-8). They clearly recommend, expect, and predict full redemption of Israel by God. But does it concern only Israel?
In my opinion Psalm 130 presents something all believers in Christ can hold on to with hope and anticipation: the dawning of a new day. With the psalmist and like him we all should wait more than Watchmen wait for the morning. As the light at dawn can rise out of the darkness of the night to expand into full brightness and glory, so the fulfillment and finalization of our – the world’s – redemption will arise through Christ’s Second Coming. We should always keep this in mind and look forward to it.
Prayer
God Almighty, Holy Trinity, help us to be mindful of the blessing you offer us in Christ Jesus. Strengthen us in our attempts to follow him, no matter what we will have to go through. And help us never to forget your presence with us. Thanks, praise, and glory be to You always. Amen.
Brigitte Rais