Tue, 30 August, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.
1 O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger,
nor discipline me in your wrath!
2 For your arrows have sunk into me,
and your hand has come down on me.3 There is no soundness in my flesh
because of your indignation;
there is no health in my bones
because of my sin.
4 For my iniquities have gone over my head;
like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.5 My wounds stink and fester
because of my foolishness,
6 I am utterly bowed down and prostrate;
all the day I go about mourning.
7 For my sides are filled with burning,
and there is no soundness in my flesh.
8 I am feeble and crushed;
I groan because of the tumult of my heart.
In today’s Psalm, we again don’t know the exact circumstances David was facing. He describes it in physical terms: no soundness in my flesh, no health in my bones (v3), my wounds stink and fester (v5), I am feeble and crushed (v8), etc.
David also describes his situation in terms of an enemy attempting to snare and harm him (v12).
But David is clear about one thing: regardless of whether the terrible experience was physical or emotional, the cause is his sin. David is clear that his problem is that God’s hand is against him because of sin in his life.
What do we learn from this?
David sees this particular difficulty in his life as the direct result of his own personal sin. Notice that he doesn’t question God as to why this is happening to him. Instead, David considers his own guilt before God, confesses his sin, and throws himself upon God’s mercy.
There is a lesson for us here. Not everything bad that happens to us is due directly to sin in our lives for which we need to repent. Nevertheless, whenever anything bad happens to us, it should be a time for us to consider our own lives. Is there anything in our lives for which we should repent? Is there anything we should confess to God? Our times of difficulty are good times for us to again throw ourselves upon God’s mercy.
Where is Christ in this passage?
It is interesting that David refers to the result of his sin as wounds that he bears. But ultimately, David did not bear the full wounding due upon his sin, and neither does anyone who is trusting upon God’s grace found in Jesus Christ.
4 Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
