This is one of the psalms where we know its actual context. David is fleeing from his son Absalom. The story is found in 2 Samuel 15. What can easily be missed is that David is experiencing the consequences of what he did to Bathsheba and her husband years earlier. David is reaping the bad he had sown.
The Bible is very clear that we will reap what we sow (Galatians 6:7-9), whether good or bad. What we often fail to realize is that we do not reap immediately. Ask any farmer. And what we reap is always more than what we sow. Ask David.
This psalm can be applied to any situation that is working against you (vs. 1). But for this study I am going to stick to its significance when we struggle and suffer for the wrong choices we have made. We experience loss, fear, overwhelming regret, and realize that sometimes there are consequences that never go away.
It is easy to mistake consequences for punishment. It is also easy to think that forgiveness from God would eliminate the consequences. But we are helped to correct this thinking by digging further into the story. In 2 Samuel 12:13-14 David experiences God’s forgiveness for what he did. Proverbs 28:13 says: “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” Yet there may still be consequences, not punishment. Jesus took the punishment for our sins (Isaiah 53:6-8). David confessed and repented of what he did and God forgave him (see 1 John 1:8-10).
The BIG question then is: Where is God in the consequences? Does God forsake His people when they sin big or a lot? Does He leave them alone to figure it out by themselves. Does He give the silent treatment? Has His love diminished or ceased?
For Reflection:
- Do you fear God has given up on you for how you have not been faithful to Him?
- Have you truly confessed specific sin, forsaken it, and asked for God’s forgiveness?
- Do you still doubt God has forgiven you? If so camp out in 1 John 1:5-2:2 until you are assured of God’s forgiveness and continued acceptance because of what Jesus has done.
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