Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer! O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame? How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? Selah But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the Lord. There are many who say, “Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!” You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound. In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
This Psalm is a psalm of lament in which King David pleas for the Lord to reach out to him in the midst of his distress. But the distress comes not from his circumstances or fear. He is discouraged because he is surrounded by pessimistic and scornful people who see only dreadful things, defeat and disaster.
Such feelings are often contagious, hence David’s concern for such behavior. Such pessimism, negativity, and discontentment comes from an absence of faith in the Lord. Today it is characteristic of those who reject Almighty God in favor of a god of their own making.
Such attitudes do not reflect the confidence and faith of a believer who has placed his trust in the Lord and maintains that He is the only one who can help him even in the worst of times. Hence David prays with confidence, in the language of faith and trust that characterizes his intimate relationship with the Lord. He calls on his pessimistic associates to look with confidence to the Lord as he does. Because he trusts, he can rest easy even when surrounded by his enemies.
Many times we look upon circumstances and get discouraged. We are surrounded by violence and violent people as well as prophets of doom, critics, and skeptics. Most of these nay-sayers are worldly people but many are believers, or claim to be. Such pseudo-believers try to convince us that we need to look at the worst and that the Lord does not speak or act today as He has in the past. Consequently we will not see miracles, or experience deliverance at the eleventh hour. When we listen to such talk we often fail to place absolute trust in the sustaining power of the Lord. Thus we cannot rest easy in times of adversity. At such times we must, like David, call out to the Lord and confess our doubts and fears.