Psalm 77
Outline
1-6 | The psalmist pleads with God out of his sleepless remembering of times past
7-10 | Questioning whether God has changed
11-15 | Comfort is found in remembering the past works of God’s faithfulness
16-20 | All of creation speaks of God might shown in the exodus from Egypt
Reflections
How often do we forget the things that God has done in the past? It is interesting that God commanded the people to set up memorials to act as a reminder so that when their children ask what they mean, they would be able to tell them about what God had done.
Joshua 4:20-24 NASB Those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. 21 He said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ 22 then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 “For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; 24 that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”
This was consistent with the instruction that was given by Moses in Deuteronomy 6 regarding worshiping only God and instructing their children regarding the things God had done.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 NASB “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! 5 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. 7 “You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8 “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. 9 “You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
This is what the psalmist is doing for himself in his own time of sleepless reminiscing. We would do well to make for ourselves our own memorials of the things God has done in our own lives, so that when we have times of doubt we can remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness in our own lives, in both the good times and the not so good times.
These are then also available to us to teach the generation that follows us about God’s faithfulness as well.
Lord, You have been faithful in the past, are faithful in the present, and will be ever faithful in the future. Help me never forget Your faithfulness, especially in those times when I find it hard to sleep due to the constant reminiscing on the past. I pray that You will ever give me rest through Your Spirit, especially in those times. May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Psalms_077_RL-RememberingGodsFaithfulness.pdf
