Psalm 43 Meditation | God Is the Help of the Depressed

Psalms 42 and 43 are closely related. They might be read as a single poem; they are combined in many Hebrew manuscripts, Psalm 43 is unique in the psalter’s second book for lacking a superscription, and the two psalms have identical refrains (42:5, 11; 43:5). If we view these chapters together, we can see encouraging movement toward the light of God’s face.
First, the writer wrestles with God by faith. Only in the opening line of Psalm 42 does he address God directly. It is as if he loses sight of God in the rest of the poem. In the first four verses of Psalm 43 the writer is no longer talking about God but with him. Only in the closing refrain, borrowed from Psalm 42, does he return to talking about God. “You are the God in whom I take refuge” is the language of healing (43:2).
Second, the writer asks God to act. Psalm 42 is largely a lament; the writer expresses sadness about his present state. And grief is spiritually valid. But it is possible to fall under the spell of depression and conclude that our case is hopeless. Faith brings this clarification: While my troubles are too much for me, God can do all things. Even the weakest believer can expectantly ask God for help that no one else can give. And this depressed man’s requests are insightful. He asks God, “Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause” (1). The writer had been suffocating under the weight of false accusations. He can do nothing to clear his name. But God can. So he asks in faith. The writer also seems paralyzed by darkness and lies. He can make no progress to go to God. So he asks God to lead him by his truth and light to his holy hill, to his dwelling. The troubles that hinder us can be like providential nudges to ask the almighty God to intervene.
Third, the writer anticipates future spiritual vibrancy. “I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise” my God (4). Talking this way is more than imagining happiness. Even downcast souls can commit to the kind of faithfulness by which we experience God who is the believer’s “exceeding joy” (4). Even on your darkest day, trust that God’s light and truth can-and will-lead every chosen child of God to his happy presence in his good timing.