In the Day of My Trouble
The 77th Psalm begins with a sentiment that most everyone has felt at some point in their lives. “In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord; in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying; my soul refuses to be comforted. When I remember God, I moan; when I meditate, my spirit faints. You hold my eyelids open; I am so troubled that I cannot speak.” (v.2-4) The psalmist never describes what the day of his trouble is, but he does not need to. We have had those troubles, various and difficult, that leave us lying awake at night. When we try to think, it only makes us moan. When we try to put it to words, we fail. The psalmist continues his thought: “I consider the days of old, the years long ago. I said, ‘Let me remember my song in the night; let me meditate in my heart.’” (v.5-6) He wishes for a return to his old thoughts, how things used to be before the troubles kept him up at night.
The psalmist is so troubled, that he is staying up at night, unable to put the right words to his thoughts. Where is God in this trouble? The first line of the psalm begins as a petition to God: “I cry aloud to God, aloud to God, and he will hear me.” (v.1) But just a little later the psalmist wonders if God actually will hear him. “Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? Has his steadfast lover forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” (v.7-9)
These thoughts should not be overlooked too quickly. Sometimes Christians will get uncomfortable and antsy with them. “The answer,” they say, “is of course God’s love hasn’t ceased! Of course God hasn’t forgotten to be gracious! How can anyone even consider something so blasphemous?” Well, the psalmist Asaph, inspired by the Spirit of God (2 Timothy 3:16) not only considered it, but wrote it down. And if we’re honest, at some point many of us have felt this way, too. In the midst of trouble with no relief in sight, it can feel like God has abandoned his post and responsibilities. The love of God can seem so distant as to perhaps not even be there.
Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ felt similarly when he cried out on the cross, “My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34), quoting from the 22nd Psalm. This intense feeling of abandonment in the middle of trial is not only normal, but Jesus felt it as we do, too.
But the psalmist doesn’t end his thoughts there. He then says, “Then I said, ‘I will appeal to this, to the years of the right hand of the Most High.’ I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old. I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds.” (v.10-12) He begins to examine the history of God’s actions in this world. And he begins to recall all that God has already done. Perhaps in this moment he is considering the creation, God’s dealings with Abraham and the other patriarchs. But he then focuses on one event in particular: The Exodus.
“You are the God who works wonders; you have made known your might among the peoples. You with your arm redeemed your people, the children of Jacob and Joseph. When the waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid; indeed, the deep tremble. The clouds poured out water; the skies gave forth thunder; your arrows flashed on every side. The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lighted up the world; the earth trembled and shook. Your way was through the sea, your path through the great waters; yet your footprint was unseen. You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” (v.14-20)
As the children of Israel left the land of Egypt, they found themselves cornered. They had come to a place against the Red Sea with no escape by land. The Egyptian armies were closing in, and it seemed like there was nowhere to go. It seemed like the people would be slaughtered, and the dream of redemption for the Hebrews was at an end. But God told Moses, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today.” (Exodus 14:13) And then the unbelievable happened: God parted the Red Sea, the Israelites passed over on dry ground, and the Egyptians were unable to pursue, being caught in the deluge as the Red Sea returned to its normal state. When things seemed at their most dire, God came through.
The psalmist says of God’s actions, “yet your footprint was unseen.” God worked powerfully for the Israelites, but in the end, the Red Sea returned to its state. The skeptic could (and still does) try to explain away the working of God, but for the one who is able to see, God’s actions are evident even without “footprints.”
The psalm does not end with a conclusion we might expect. It doesn’t end by saying, “I considered the Exodus, and all my doubts went away instantly.” That would (at least in my estimation) be too simple. Psalm 77 is not trying to give a complete answer to doubt and trouble. It is not saying, “all you have to do is remember the Exodus when you have doubt.” What it is saying is that trouble and anxiety has a tendency to obscure our thoughts. The psalmist reminds himself of the powerful working of God in the past when all hope seemed lost. The implication seems to be that even when we think our situation is beyond fixing, God still has the same power to help us even today. Do not lose heart even in the day of your trouble.
