Many of the Psalms offer us a glimpse into the minds of people drowning in despair, as well as how they actively battled it. Psalm 42 is aptly deemed a Maskil, which means a lesson or contemplation. As we break down this Psalm, our hope and prayer is that you will learn how to preach to your soul, breaking the bondage of despair and finding freedom in the hope and joy of the Lord today!

Verses 1-2

As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;
When shall I come and appear before God?

Psalm 42:1-2

Have you ever been parched to the point of desperation? Your throat begins to burn, your mind and body become weak due to lack of hydration? This is the picture the Psalmist paints for us in the opening of Psalm 42. It’s not until you realize nothing else in this world can satisfy that you will become desperate for fellowship with God. Do you crave time in His presence and Word?  Make time with Him a priority each day, and He will quench your thirst!

Verses 3-4

My tears have been my food day and night,
While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me.
For I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God,
With the voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival.

Psalm 42:3-4

The Psalmist feels abandoned and hopeless. Even those around him jeer and criticize him for God’s “absence” in his life. There’s no figurative light and the end of the tunnel, no hope for an end to his despair. Fighting despair requires you to acknowledge it. Sometimes, we try so hard to pretend we are okay – maybe this is in an effort to convince or trick yourself into “being okay” or maybe it’s to save face in a community that stigmatizes mental and emotional struggles. You cannot fight the enemy until you first acknowledge its existence. You must actively confront it. It is clear from verse 6 that the Psalmist mourns the loss of joy and celebration that marked times past. Despair often is intensified when compared to fuller, more joyful seasons of life.

Verses 5-6

Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him
For the help of His presence.
O my God, my soul is in despair within me;
Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

Psalm 42:5-6

This next section of verses indicate a shift in the Psalmist’s thought process – away from the despair and toward our mighty, sovereign God. Notice how he specifically focuses on the “help of His presence.” One of my favorite verses in the Bible is Psalm 84:11, “No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly,” which is in the same vein as Psalm 23:1, “I shall not want.” In these verses, the Psalmist highlights a principle that will help keep the believer grounded and content in every season. God’s PRESENCE and His GOODNESS are all we need. That should be a great comfort to your heart today – HE is all we need! Why is that so comforting? Because He has promised us His presence. He has promised He will never leave nor forsake us. When my despair is driven by loss or a lack of something I deem to be good and necessary, I remember that God is all I need. There’s nothing I’m lacking in this season that I need aside from His presence. He is my ultimate Hope, Joy, and Peace. And He will sustain me in every season.

Verses 7-8

Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me in the night,
A prayer to the God of my life.

Psalm 42:7-8

The opening of the Psalm portrays the psalmist’s anguish as a severe drought. Here, he paints a contrasting picture that also aptly depicts this overwhelming despair. If you’re walking through a season of despair, you may feel as though you are drowning. Wave after wave knocks you down, sometimes so quickly that you can barely catch a breath of air. I think it’s amazing that the Psalmist says these are God’s waves and breakers rolling over him. While God is never the author of evil, He does promise to always work out all things ‘for the good of those who love Him” (Romans 8:28). And often, the “good” that comes out of a trial is drawing nearer to Him, learning to lean and rely on Him for daily strength and provision.

Even in the midst of drowning, the Psalmist holds tightly to the Lord’s lovingkindness and presence, day and night. We must always CHOOSE to cling to the truth of His unwavering presence rather than allowing our hearts and minds to be ruled by capricious emotions or faulty human senses. God is always present and working, even when we do not “feel” or “see” it.

Verses 9-11

I will say to God my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”
As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile me,
While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become disturbed within me?
Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,
The help of my countenance and my God.

Psalm 42:9-11

After a brief reprieve, the Psalmist returns to his lament, voicing his anguish, questioning the “why” behind his trials, acknowledging the physical toll of despair. But once again, the lament is answered with a rebuke and a reminder – he preaches to his soul, reminding himself that he need not be downcast, for his hope is in the Lord!

A Maskil

What are the lessons we take away from this lament? 1. You must acknowledge and confront your despair if you are to win the battle. God invites us to lay our burdens at the foot of the cross. So pour your heart out to Him today! 2. Preach to yourself. Fix your gaze on Christ. Recall the times in life when He sustained, provided, and comforted you. Recite the immutable attributes of God, such as His sovereignty, goodness, and faithfulness. You must remind your soul that He is all you need. 3. Ask yourself how God might be drawing you closer to Him through whatever trial you are facing. Be intentional about time in His presence, whether that be time in the Word and prayer, listening to worship music. or even asking friends to pray for and encourage you daily. Lean on God’s everlasting arms, for they will never fail you. Thirst for His presence, especially in the midst of your despair, and He satisfy you with His living water.