Psalms

Psalms 44: Help for the faithful in distress

Begin in prayer

Before we ask why suffering has come, let us remember the mighty works God has done for His people. Pray that He would lead us to Jesus and teach us to cry to Him without turning away.

Gideon said to him, “Oh, my lord, if Yahweh is with us, why then has all this happened to us? Where are all his wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying, ‘Didn’t Yahweh bring us up from Egypt?’ But now Yahweh has cast us off, and delivered us into the hand of Midian.”

Judges 6:13

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word, and help us to see Christ. Show us that God's people may suffer while remaining faithful, and His loving kindness remains the ground of their cry. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

The sons of Korah remember the works their fathers told them, when God's hand gave Israel the land and victory. Confessing God as King, the people refuse to place their trust in sword or bow and boast in Him. Yet they now describe defeat, plunder, scattering and public shame as coming from God's own hand. They insist that they have neither forgotten Him nor turned to another god, appealing to the One who knows the heart's secrets. Their suffering comes for His sake, even while they remain faithful to His covenant. Bowed down to the dust, they ask why He seems asleep and plead for help and redemption because of His loving kindness.

As you read Psalms 44, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God remains His faithful people's only help, and His loving kindness is the ground of their plea.

God drove out the nations and planted His people in the land, giving victory through His favour and powerful hand. That history grounds the people's present trust in Him as King, making the change into defeat especially painful. They name God as the One who made them retreat and scattered them, even picturing themselves sold without gain. Their neighbours' mockery makes the suffering a public disgrace as well as a military loss. The protest of covenant faithfulness denies turning to idols, and God is asked to search the secrets of their hearts. This suffering is for God's sake, the line Paul quotes in Romans 8 verse 36 while explaining believers' endurance within Christ's love. The cry for God to wake expresses the anguish of His apparent silence, as the people ask why He hides His face. Their last plea rests on His loving kindness, with no report of victory added to the prayer for redemption.

How does Psalm 44 show us that God remains His faithful people's only help, and His loving kindness is the ground of their plea?

God's favour gave His people their land and victories.

The fathers' story celebrates what God did with His own hand. The people therefore confess Him as King and refuse to trust their weapons. Past mercy gives them reason to ask for His help now.

God's faithful people can suffer for His sake.

Defeat and shame have come even while the people deny abandoning God's covenant. They appeal to the God who knows whether their hearts turned toward idols. Their suffering is for His sake, and their plea brings that pain before Him.

God's loving kindness is the ground of their plea.

The people ask why God seems asleep while they are oppressed. Their bodies are bowed down to the earth, and they cannot raise themselves. They ask Him to rise, help and redeem them because of His loving kindness.

Memorise

Rise up to help us. Redeem us for your loving kindness’ sake.

Psalm 44:26

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, what suffering am I keeping from Jesus instead of bringing Him my cry?

The people pray, “Redeem us for your loving kindness’ sake.” They have remembered God's mighty works and told Him the grief of their present defeat. Their last appeal rests on His love while the trouble remains unresolved.

Their faithfulness does not make them sinless, and we also need mercy for our guilt. Jesus bore His people's punishment and died in their place, though He had never sinned. The Father raised Him from the dead. His finished saving work is enough to secure their forgiveness and everlasting acceptance before God.

Turn from sin and trust Jesus. He pardons all who come to Him. Bring Him the suffering you cannot explain and ask for strength to remain faithful. His loving kindness receives His people's cries from the dust and gives those trusting Christ reason to hope.

Parent's note

Tell your children that God's people may suffer while remaining faithful, and His loving kindness remains the ground of their cry. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that His loving kindness gives His suffering people a ground for prayer. Bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

I have given them your word. The world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

John 17:14

Lord our King, thank You for the mighty works Your Word teaches us to remember. Please bring us to trust Jesus and rest in His completed work. Hear Your people who are suffering without understanding why. Keep them faithful, remember their affliction and oppression, and rise to help them for Your loving kindness' sake. Amen.