Bird's-eye view
Psalm 43 is a close companion to Psalm 42; in some ancient manuscripts, they are even presented as a single psalm. Both psalms share the same haunting refrain, "Why are you cast down, O my soul?" and both deal with the anguish of a believer who feels separated from God and the public worship of His people. This psalm is a lament, but it is a lament that is shot through with faith. The psalmist is in a tight spot, surrounded by godless, deceitful, and unjust men. He feels rejected and oppressed. And yet, he does not turn inward to his own despair, but outward and upward to God. He brings his case to the divine courtroom, asking God to act as his judge and defense attorney. The psalm moves from a plea for justice and deliverance to a prayer for divine guidance, and it climaxes with a firm resolution to hope in God, the ultimate source of salvation and joy.
This is a prayer for when you are up against it. It teaches us that the right response to injustice and the feeling of abandonment is not to murmur against God, but to argue our case with God, based on His own character. The psalmist appeals to God as the God of his strength, even while asking why he feels so weak and rejected. This is the paradox of faith in the midst of trial. He knows who God is, and he insists on holding God to His own promises, even when circumstances scream the opposite. It is a model for how to pray honestly and robustly when the bottom seems to have dropped out.
Outline
- 1. A Covenant Lawsuit (Ps 43:1-5)
- a. The Plea for Vindication (Ps 43:1)
- b. The Agony of Apparent Rejection (Ps 43:2)
- c. The Prayer for Guidance Home (Ps 43:3)
- d. The Promise of Renewed Worship (Ps 43:4)
- e. The Self-Rebuke of Faith (Ps 43:5)
Context In Psalms
Psalm 43 is the second psalm in Book II of the Psalter (Psalms 42-72). This section is notable for its frequent use of the name "Elohim" for God, as opposed to "Yahweh," which dominates in Book I. As mentioned, its connection to Psalm 42 is profound and undeniable. They form a pair, a diptych of faithful lament. The situation is one of exile, whether personal or national. The psalmist is far from Jerusalem, the place of corporate worship, and he is surrounded by enemies who taunt him about his faith. These psalms give voice to the deep sorrow of the faithful when they are cut off from the means of grace and surrounded by a hostile culture. They are not, however, psalms of despair. They are psalms of hope, a hope that argues, that pleads, that preaches to itself, and that ultimately fastens itself to the unchanging character of God.
Key Issues
- Praying for Judgment
- The Nature of Deceit and Injustice
- Arguing with God in Faith
- The Feeling of Divine Rejection
- The Relationship Between Lament and Hope
The Courtroom of Faith
One of the most striking things about how the saints in Scripture pray is their boldness. They do not come to God with mealy-mouthed platitudes. They come with arguments. They come with lawsuits. When the psalmist says, "Give justice to me, O God, and plead my case," he is stepping into a courtroom. He is calling on God to take up His role as the righteous Judge of all the earth. This is not arrogance. This is faith. The believer who knows he is in covenant with God has standing in God's court. He has the right to appeal for justice, not on the basis of his own perfect righteousness, but on the basis of God's covenant faithfulness. The psalmist is being slandered and oppressed by wicked men, and he knows he has no recourse in the courts of men, which are likely corrupt. So he appeals to the highest court, the court of heaven, and he asks the Judge to also be his advocate. This is what every believer does when he prays in Jesus' name. We are asking God the Father to hear us for the sake of our Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous.
Verse by Verse Commentary
1 Give justice to me, O God, and plead my case against an unholy nation; Oh protect me from the deceitful and unrighteous man!
The psalm opens with a bang. This is not a timid request; it is a demand for justice. The verb "give justice" is often translated "vindicate me." The psalmist is being wronged, and he wants God to set the record straight. He wants God to step in and show everyone who is in the right. And notice that he asks God not only to be the Judge but also to "plead my case." He wants God to be his defense attorney. He is up against an unholy nation, which could refer to a pagan people or, more likely, to the covenant people of Israel acting in an unholy, faithless way. The corporate problem is then personified in the singular: the "deceitful and unrighteous man." These two characteristics are twin vipers. The unrighteous man has no standard of justice outside of his own self-interest. And because he is unjust at his core, deceit is his native language. Lies are the cheapest way to get what you want. This creates a lopsided conflict. The righteous man is constrained by truth, while the unrighteous man is not. The psalmist is in an impossible situation, so he appeals to the only one who can untangle the mess and render a true verdict.
2 For You are the God of my strength; why have You rejected me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
This verse contains the central tension of the psalm and, in many ways, the central tension of the Christian life in a fallen world. The psalmist begins with a bedrock confession of faith: "You are the God of my strength." This is his premise. This is what he knows to be true about God's character and God's relationship to him. God is his stronghold, his fortress. But then he immediately pivots to the agonizing question that his circumstances are forcing upon him: "why have You rejected me?" He feels cast off, abandoned. His confession of faith clashes violently with his experience. This is not a question born of unbelief, but of a faith that is being tested to its limits. He is essentially saying, "Lord, I know you are my strength, so why do I feel so weak? I know you are my protector, so why am I being oppressed?" He follows it with another "why." "Why do I go mourning...?" He is walking around like a man in funeral garb, crushed by the constant pressure of the enemy. This is the prayer of a man who refuses to let go of what he knows to be true about God, even when he cannot see it or feel it. He brings his confusion and his pain and lays it before God, demanding an answer that squares his theology with his reality.
Application
Every Christian will, at some point, find himself in the world of Psalm 43. We will face injustice. We will be lied about and mistreated by deceitful and unrighteous men. And in those moments, it is very easy to feel as though God has packed up and left town. Our circumstances will preach a sermon of divine abandonment to us, and it will be very loud. This psalm teaches us how to preach back.
First, we must learn to bring our case to God. Don't complain about God to others; plead your case to God in prayer. He is the only one who can actually do anything about it. Appeal to Him as the righteous Judge. Ask Him to vindicate you, not because you are perfect, but because you belong to Him through Christ. Ask Him to be your advocate against the accuser and his human agents.
Second, we must learn to argue with God on the basis of His own character. We must start with our confession: "You are the God of my strength." Even when we feel weak, even when we feel rejected, we must plant our feet firmly on the truth of who God has revealed Himself to be in Scripture. Then, from that place of faith, we can be brutally honest about our pain and confusion. "Why does it feel like you've rejected me?" God is not threatened by our honest questions when they come from a heart that is clinging to Him. This is what it means to wrestle with God like Jacob did. It is a fight of faith, and it is a fight that, by God's grace, we are destined to win, not by overpowering God, but by clinging to Him until the dawn breaks.