all our longing; all our sighing

O Lord, all my longing is before you;

my sighing is not hidden from you.

Psalm 38:9

Psalm 38 is a song of lament. It isn’t a sappy, happy-clappy, feel good poem fit for an inspirational poster. It is a psalm confessing sin, acknowledging that current troubles are directly related to past disobedience, and a song of soul sorrow recognizing God is both our Judge when we sin as well as the Deliverer of our souls in salvation. It would not be the kind of song to be repeated in catchy phrases in the fog-machined, mood-lit gatherings of pop culture influenced mega-Christianity. It’s all really a bit too depressing for today’s consumer Christian.

Bible scholars label this song as “penitential”. It means David is acknowledging his suffering is his own damned fault. Literally. He has offered his offering to God as the Law requires (the title suggests “for the memorial offering”), but he still feels the weight of his offense and the pains of his suffering. He vows before God to simply do one thing in his brokenness: “for you, O LORD, do I wait” (Psalm 38:15).

Meanwhile, the following effects of sin weigh on David’s heart and he pours them to God in prayer:

• His conscience knows God has punished him for sin. God’s arrows wound him and God’s hand presses down hard on him (Psalm 38:2).
• His soul feels so sorrowful over these things that his body is physically sick (Psalm 38:3-5, 7, 10).
• He is emotionally crushed and mourning over the foolishness of his sin (Psalm 38:5-8).
• Friends stand aloof and enemies gleefully plot to see David’s demise as he is in this condition (Psalm 39:11-12. 19-20).
• David’s most common response is simply silence in his brokenness (Psalm 38:13-14).

Sometimes the enormity of our sin will hit us as overwhelmingly as it did David. It should. It is the right response in that season to pour out the pain, the regret, the confession, and the sorrow to God. It may be the best thing a truly penitent person can do… to mourn over sin and eventually find comfort in Jesus. For Jesus does not forsake us (Psalm 38:21 contrasted with Matthew 28:20). Jesus is the Lord of salvation (Psalm 38:22 contrasted with Hebrews 2:10) who has suffered for our sin more deeply than we ever will!