And as the violent “waves and breakers” of trouble continue to sweep over the man, God strengthens him and saturates his parched soul. Within the “roar of the waterfalls” God’s might rings clear. ![]() “Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls all your waves and breakers have swept over me” ( Psalm 42:7). In vivid terms, he describes the conflict raging within him and pours out his grieving heart to a God that he knows will never leave nor forsake him.įrom the depth of God’s mercy, God hears the man’s pleas and answers-not by might, power, or immediate deliverance, but by filling the well to overflowing. He remembers the joy of God’s presence, the security of His protection, and the faithfulness of His provision.įrom deep within that well-the place where faith meets truth-the man is honest with God about his anxiety. Where does he look? He returns to the well. But rather than becoming bitter and angry toward God for not coming to his rescue, he seeks God with all his heart. The sweet, life-giving communion he’s shared with God has filled a well of living hope deep inside the man.Īt some time during the man’s trial, his sense of God’s presence disappears. He’s learned God’s ways and has hidden God’s truths in his heart. He personally knows the richness of God’s grace and has seen God’s goodness in action. This man has intimately experienced God’s love in the past. Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls all your waves and breakers have swept over me” ( Psalm 42:5-7). My soul is downcast within me therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon-from Mount Mizar. “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Why? How is this man so sure that God hasn’t forsaken him? Is the man delusional, operating out of blind faith, or grasping at straws? No. Even though he laments the apparent absence of God’s presence, he never doubts God’s faithfulness. When can I go and meet with God?” ( Psalm 42:1-2).īut despite his depression and the despair closing in around him, the man knows where hope is found. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. The man cries out in desperation for God to reveal Himself-to quench his soul’s thirst. His world has been thrown into such intense turmoil that his enemies taunt him continuously and ask, “Where is your God?” ( Psalm 42:3). In Psalm 42 we’re given a poetic description of a man who is suffering unbearable circumstances. After the storm there will come a calm, and the prospect of this supported him when deep called unto deep." The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of these many waters. Whatever waves and billows of affliction go over us at any time we must call them God’s waves and his billows, that we may humble ourselves under his mighty hand, and may encourage ourselves to hope that though we be threatened we shall not be ruined for the waves and billows are under a divine check. Or it is an allusion to a ship at sea in a great storm, tossed by the roaring waves, which go over it ( Psalm 107:25). ![]() Matthew Henry Commentary explains it this way: "He was overpowered and overwhelmed with a deluge of grief, like that of the old world, when the windows of heaven were opened and the fountains of the great deep were broken up. When writing Psalm 42, the Psalmist coined the phrase “deep calls to deep” to describe the place where our deep need meets God’s all-sufficient presence. In moments when all our physical strength is exhausted, there’s a place within every believer where deep calls to deep. Have you ever felt circumstances nipping at your feet, threatening to tug you into an ocean of despair? You lose your job, receive an alarming health report, or suffer the loss of a loved one-and no matter how hard you try to kick your way to the surface of hope, the undertow of fear leaves you thrashing about, trying to keep your head above water. "Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls all your waves and breakers have swept over me." - Psalm 42:7
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