Parallels...Psalm 32 and the Israelites

by Susan Hood, Children's Ministry Team member

I am always amazed by the congruency of lessons, messages and experiences in my life. Perhaps my too small view of God is to blame. This week as I prepare for Lent I am assigned to blog about Psalm 32. I am also studying Isaiah 48 in Bible Study Fellowship. In my life, I am experiencing a season of “What should I do now Lord?” that has come at the end of a long season of concurrent personal trial and fulfilling service.

There are some interesting parallels between David’s affliction caused by unrepentant sin recorded in Psalm 32 and Israel’s captivity by the Babylonians due to their unrepentant sins that is prophesied by Isaiah. Both trials are a result of stubbornness (“Do not be like the horse or the mule”, Psalm 32:9 and “for I know how stubborn you were”, Isaiah 48:4) and refusal to acknowledge God as sovereign. Both David and the people of Judah had full access to God’s commands and expectations (“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go” Psalm 32:8 “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you” Isaiah 48:17) but neither understood how serious it was to put their own desires first until they experienced the consequences. David’s bones wasted away and his strength was sapped as he groaned in pain. The Israelites experienced the loss of home and family, fiery furnaces, pits of lions and heavy yokes of servanthood. Both then experienced the intense relief of God’s grace, forgiveness and intervention. David’s confession led to God blessing him and relieving his physical pain in a way that caused him to rejoice and sing! Isaiah prophesied that the Israelites would shout with joy and tell the world of their redemption when they were freed to return to Jerusalem.

I have spent the last year quietly rejoicing in the peace and healing that has come after two years of joblessness, court battles, and marital strife. At my husbands urging I have chosen to take a season off from service. I admit I have not been patient with this and have frequently asked God “so what’s next?” and “how about that?” My answer has been “be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). I have felt like a petulant child fighting against the idea of sitting still with God and even with doing my daily Bible study. My stubbornness has bled into other areas of responsibility and relationship until I began to feel as David, “sapped”. This week I finally looked up the verse and found that “be still” is preceded by the command to “come and see what the Lord has done” (Psalm 46:8). In addition the Hebrew word translated as “be still” means to “let drop” or “slack”. I have been too busy trying to figure out what work I (and the poor people who live with me) should do that I did not realize it was right in front of me in the lessons from Isaiah and Israel’s history. So this Lenten season I am choosing to drop my busy hands and go slack and “see what the Lord has done”.

This season of Lent is a gift of time to remember. Remember the ways that David and the Israelites experienced God’s grace. Remember that God’s intervention and forgiveness, which has been given to His people throughout history, culminates with the death of Jesus on the cross. Remember that His death has “covered our sins” so they no longer "count against" us. This season is a magnificent blessing, take time to reflect.