Reflections on Psalms 42 and 43 —

There is a mysterious connection between the infinite God and the soul of man. 

There is a hymn entitled “Sweet Hour of Prayer”. We used to sing it at my church when I was young. If the composer of that hymn were to write it today, he would call it, “Rushed 30 seconds of requests as I merge onto Highway 100”.

COVID taught us to avoid assembling together, and we grew more depressed. The Smartphone taught us to avoid sitting quietly, alone with our thoughts, and we forgot how to be still and reflect. We forgot how to be OK with no noise.

We were made to commune with others. We need to be known and to know. But we also need to be OK with the person we are when we’re by ourselves. And we need to hear the whispers of the Creator who made us.

When the author of Psalm 42 wrote his psalm, he found his soul in an inconsolable state. He was a child of God in the heart of a godless nation, a captive to heathen enemies. It is no wonder he repeats three times in the companion Psalms 42 and 43, “Why are you in despair, O my soul?” (Psalm 42:5,11; 43:5). We cannot control the way our soul feels. Sometimes it is as high as a cloud, and we feel light and free, unstoppable. Sometimes its silent, mysterious. It can be uneasy, unsettled, like a dull, nagging pain. More often these days, we see despairing souls. A soul in despair is like a boat anchor at the bottom of the sea, weighing us down as we try to get into port. It is heavy and immovable; we weary ourselves to move on.

Why does our souls despair? The despairing soul is weary from warfare, from the countless foes waging war against it. The enemies of the soul are sometimes obvious — the nasty coworker, the rude neighbor, the thoughtless spouse, the disrespectful child, the boss who doesn’t get you, etc. More often they are not so obvious. Many enemies lurk in the shadows. They speak through the noise of newscasters, commercials, philosophers, celebrities, opinions, and talk shows, their rhetoric thrown like darts at the souls of unsuspecting passers-by. They can even be the members of your own body, betraying your soul with furious and unreasonable complaints and demands. The war your soul is enduring is constant, brutal, and over time, unbearable.

The soul can become incredulous at such treatment. The psalmist used to lead choirs in singing praise to God, but now he suffers hard. His soul must be thinking, “This is my reward?!?” (Psalm 42:4). It is no surprise he asks for vindication at the injustice of these enemies (Psalm 43:1). And as long as the trial continues, the suffering of the soul worsens. The light of hope grows dim and the weary soul wonders, “Why have You forgotten me? Who do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?” (Psalm 42:9, 43:2). Indeed, it seems God allows the enemies of our soul to taunt and revile so much, it hurts (Psalm 42:3,10).

If your soul is anything like those of millions of Americans, it desperately needs help. You are not sure what it needs exactly; you just know the pain in your soul is intolerable. So what does the needy soul need?

The despairing soul needs silence to hear the voice of its Creator. Like a deer panting for water on a hot, dusty day, your soul “thirsts for the living God” (Psalm 42:1). It doesn’t need a job, or a vacation, a soothing drink or a smoke, and it certainly doesn’t need your noise-cancelling headphones pushing your jams into your ears. Those things don’t come near the soul, let alone fill it up.

Now comes one of the most intriguing verses in the Bible, one that pulls back the shroud of the spiritual relationship between the infinite, eternal God and His finite, yet most intricate and complex creation. What is that verse?

“Deep calls to deep” (Psalm 42:7). I love this verse. Something deep is calling to something else deep. What are these deep things? One is the infinite, immeasurable God Most High. The other is the tiny, almost unreachable soul of the believer.

Who is calling to whom? In one respect, the soul of man, from its deep, dark recesses is calling to its Creator on high. The deep soul calls for the deep God. It is as if the soul knows God is the only One who can satisfy it. The People of God who have learned from trials and have suffered the effects of spiritual warfare, know what their soul needs. They sense their soul’s yearning and they voice it out loud, crying “Abba Father!” (Romans 8:15) on a regular basis. They have learned what it means to “trust in the Lord” and put all of their resources into calling out to Him to help their weary soul.

Such people have discovered joy in the most surprising of circumstances, for in another sense, God calls to the soul. The Deep, Almighty God, Jehovah Jirah, pours out from His overflowing storehouses great joy on the tiny, weary soul of man. It is more than a trickle. It is a deluge of joy; exactly what was needed. The People of God who experience this would say He inexplicitly filled their soul like a waterfall, like breakers of waves rolling over their toes in the proverbial sand (Psalm 42:7). The trial may still be there, but they marvel at the joy they experience within and wonder, “where did this joy come from?” They echo the words of David: “You have put gladness in my heart, more than when grain and new wine abound” (Psalm 4:7). They have learned the secret of Paul, finding contentment in any circumstance (Philippians 4:11-12). They have seen the Lord’s dealings, that though He may take us through the darkest of nights, He will always bring us back into His lovingkindness in the morning (Psalm 42:8).

As the owner of a soul, our job is to create space for the fulness of God to reach the soul. The despairing saint may need help just getting into God’s presence, as the psalmist acknowledged when he cried, “O send out Your light and Your truth, let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and Your dwelling places” (Psalm 43:3).

Coming into the presence of God requires a quieting of the soul: “Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still” (Psalm 4:4). Be still. It is likely no one has said that to you since you were a toddler. In the still of the morning, find a quiet spot, clear off the agenda, put all the cares of the day aside, and open the Bible. Just you, and God. Read quietly. Ponder what you read, let it simmer in your mind like a hearty beef stew in the pot. Absorb the words God is speaking to your soul.

The “glory of God”, the thing that makes Him so wonderful, is that He is God Most High and yet He supports humble people who seek Him. “For though the Lord is exalted, yet He regards the lowly” (Psalm 138:6). When we reach God’s altar in the quietness of our soul, there is opportunity to experience God’s exceeding joy, from which true praise springs (Psalm 43:4). When we call in persistence and faith, He soon comes with the fulness of His presence, a deluge filling the soul with hope. “Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence” (Psalm 42:5,11).

This is the reality for those who trust in God. Deep is calling to deep. May we find time to listen, and be still.