PSALM 38 Reading Guide. September 22-28, 2013

Transcription

1 PSALM 38 Reading Guide September 22-28, 2013

2 PSALM 38 2 PSALM 38 1 O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath! 2 For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me. 3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. 4 For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. 5 My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, 6 I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning. 7 For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. 8 I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart. 9 O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. 10 My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes it also has gone from me. 11 My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. 12 Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. 13 But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. 14 I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes. 15 But for you, O LORD, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. 16 For I said, Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips! 17 For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me. 18 I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin. 19 But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty, and many are those who hate me wrongfully. 20 Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good.

3 21 Do not forsake me, O LORD! O my God, be not far from me! 22 Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation! PSALM 38 3

4 PSALM 38 4 DAY 1 Read through Psalm 38 once writing down what you find interesting, what you find helpful, and what you don t fully understand. According to the notes in the ESV Study Bible on Psalm 38, This is a lament that lays a person s troubles before God, when that person realizes that these troubles result from his own sin... Of course, not all troubles result from one s own sins; but this Psalm is geared toward those that do. Read through the notes on Psalm 38 in the ESV Study Bible*. Write at least one paragraph highlighting what you learned from the study notes. Reread Psalm 38, personalizing the Psalm as your own prayer. Write out that prayer. DAY 2 Read Psalm 38 again. We are often afflicted because of one of three reasons: our sin, the sins of others, or living in a world that is still under sin s curse. Read verses 3-14 again, noting the reasons David gives for his affliction in Psalm 38. Now read verses 1, 15, and What surprises you about David s request in those verses? What do those verses indicate about David s view of God? Though David admits his troubles are because of my sin (Ps. 38:3), he still engages with God with tremendous confidence. His confidence isn t in his own goodness, but instead who God is and what God has promised to do. This comes across clearly in verses where he calls God by the name God decided would be used exclusively by his people ( O LORD ), he claims God as his own based on God s promises ( my God ) and speaks to God in ways that describe his relationship with David as savior and Lord ( O Lord and my salvation ). Jesus encouraged his followers to pray in a similar way. In Matthew 6:9-13 he encouraged them to call God their Father, to forgive their sins, deliver them from evil, and to long for God s kingdom to come and will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus encouraged us to pray that way because he knew that he would die to make it possible for those who needed to be forgiven their sins to call a holy God Father and ask for God s forgiveness. Write out a prayer of confession, asking God to forgive you for your sins. Use verse 1 to start your prayer and verses to end your prayer.

5 PSALM 38 5 DAY 3 Read Psalm 38 again, focusing on verses In verses 2-14, David lists some of the consequences of his sin: Guilt (verse 2) Physical and Emotional Distress (verses 3-10) Loneliness and Abandonment (verse 11) Vulnerability (verses 12-14) Again, not all trouble and affliction comes as a result of our sin. But, some does. For example, gluttony can result in sickness. Or, anger or cynicism can result in loneliness. Think through times over the last year that you have experienced similar trouble as the result of your sin. Read through verses 2-14 again, asking God if any of the troubles mentioned there that you are currently experiencing are the result of your sin. If they are, follow David s pattern of prayer by confessing your sin, admitting that the troubles are the result of your sin, and asking God to deliver you from your troubles. End your prayer reading verse 15 with confidence, knowing that because of Jesus, God will answer your prayers for deliverance when he determines the time is best. If your present troubles aren t the result of your sin, confess your sin to God and thank him for not allowing you to experience the consequences of your sins. Thank him also for delivering you from the prior trouble you experienced as the result of your sin. Charles Wesley, in his hymn Jesus, the Sinner s Friend, offers a similar prayer. End your time using his hymn as your prayer. Jesus, the sinner s Friend, to Thee, Lost and undone, for aid I flee, Weary of earth, myself, and sin: Open Thine arms, and take me in. Pity and heal my sin sick soul; Tis Thou alone canst make me whole; Dark, till in me Thine image shine, And lost, I am, till Thou art mine. At last I own it cannot be That I should fit myself for Thee: Here, then, to Thee I all resign; Thine is the work, and only Thine. What shall I say Thy grace to move? Lord, I am sin, but Thou art love; I give up every plea beside Lord, I am lost, but Thou hast died.

6 PSALM 38 6 DAY 4 Read Psalm 38 again. In verses 9-10, David contemplates his guilt before God and his weakness and helplessness. In verse 11, he writes of his loneliness: My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. In verse 21 he prays, O my God, be not far from me! Sometimes it is appropriate to distance yourself from those who are involved in unrepentant, habitual sin. Sometimes, it is good to be like God and go near to those who confess their sins and seek God s forgiveness. Spend some time in prayer asking God if there is someone you have distanced yourself from because of their sin that you should now come alongside, even though they might not deserve it. Before you do go to them, ask your pastor or a wise friend to help you think through ways that you can do that appropriately. Ask God for the opportunity to go to that friend and the wisdom to do it in a way that honors him and helps them. DAY 5 Read through Psalm 38 twice. Write out at least two paragraphs reflecting on what you ve learned about God, yourself, and others from Psalm 38. Write out at least one thing you hope to apply to your life from Psalm 38. Spend at least 15 minutes sharing what you wrote with a trusted friend or family member. If they read Psalm 38 this week, ask them to do the same. End your time in prayer, thanking God for what he taught you this week. * Purchasing an ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Bibles, 2008.) will aid you in your understanding of the Psalms. The first day s reading each week assumes you will have access to the notes in the ESV Study Bible. The ESV Study Bible is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published. It will help you understand not just the Psalms, but also the rest of the Bible in a deeper way. You can either buy the Bible (amazon.com, search: ESV Study Bible) or purchase online access to the notes at

7 PSALM 38 7 Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved Elliot Grudem.