A Prayer Of The Afflicted
Psalms 102
March 28, 2021
It’s not hard to title this Psalm, since the Bible does it for us.
Actually the Bible gives a longer title:
“A Prayer of the Afflicted when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the LORD.”
That speaks a mouthful regarding the content of this Psalm.
It is no doubt one that has been easily related to
And sung countless times by those who suffer.
Suffering is a subject in which we find much material in Scripture.
• We see many who suffer
• We see promises of suffering
• We see responses to suffering
• We see reasons for suffering
The Scripture also gives us many purposes for why God allows suffering.
PUNISHMENT is certainly one.
• The book of Judges shows this repeatedly, that God’s people would slip into idolatry and God would bring upon them a foreign nation to punish them for their sin.
• Even the Exile of Israel to Babylon was a form of punishment for Israel’s sin against God and her idolatry.
• We understand that in life.
DISCIPLINE / SANCTIFICATION is clearly a purpose for suffering.
Hebrews 12:5-6 “and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”
• One of the ways that God cleanses or sanctifies His children is through the furnace of affliction.
• God uses suffering as a way of conforming us into His righteous image.
ENDURANCE is another.
James 1:2-4 “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
• Endurance is a necessary attribute for living the Christian life, and the simple fact is that you cannot learn endurance in a weekend course.
• It takes a while.
• It requires the child of God to be put in a difficult situation for an extended period of time simply to learn how to endure.
SYMPATHY is certainly a purpose for suffering.
• We are called to weep with those who weep or mourn with those who mourn.
• We are called to pray for prisoners like we are prisoners with them.
• We understand that nothing teaches us sympathy and compassion for the suffering of another like our own suffering.
There are many purposes and reasons
For which God allows or even causes His children to suffer.
The one we examine tonight is:
TO BENEFIT OTHERS
Namely that our suffering, and the way God helps us in the midst of it,
Can be used for the benefit of others.
Consider for a moment:
1 Peter 5:6-11 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you. Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. To Him be dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Peter there speaks of a people who are suffering at the hands of Satan.
• That prowling lion is attacking them.
• God is allowing it
• They are called to endure and resist
• They are promised that an end to it will come
But notice the simple encouragement that is given in verse 9
“But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.”
• Now, Peter is NOT SAYING, “Keep your chin up, you’re not the only one who is suffering.”
• He DOESN’T SAY, “the same experience of suffering are being experienced by your brethren who are in the world.”
Peter says that those experiences of suffering “are being accomplished”
The Greek word for “accomplished” is EPITELEO
You recognize TELEO since it is the word Christ used on the cross
When He said, “It is finished”
Christ said it was finished or completed or accomplished.
Peter uses the same, only he uses an intensified form of the word
When he says EPITELEO.
Peter says in your suffering, look around,
Brothers and sisters around the world completing their suffering. They are accomplishing God’s purposes. They are graduating.
Or we might consider Paul’s language when he said, “In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him whom loved us.” (Romans 8:37)
And so we see that
• All of the suffering of other believers…
• And the completion of that suffering…
• Is a great encouragement to those who currently suffer.
Consider what James said:
James 5:10-11 “As an example, brethren, of suffering and patience, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.”
James does the same thing as Peter.
In your suffering he tells you to look at the suffering of those who have gone before you.
• Look at how they endured…
• Look at the end result of their suffering…
• You will find encouragement from their story.
Or consider Paul:
2 Corinthians 1:6-7 “But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.”
• Paul said that our suffering is for your benefit.
• Paul even said, “for your comfort and salvation”
• It is remarkable that our suffering could be used to such great extents.
It appears that this is the mentality learned by our Psalmist in Psalms 102.
Just as he has gained encouragement
From the way God has delivered others in their suffering,
He knows God will use his story to encourage future generations.
It is perhaps the noblest purpose of suffering.
To suffer and to do so in order that you might encourage others
And to be used of God for the benefit of others and for His glory.
That is a Christ-like mindset in suffering.
NOW, a good mindset doesn’t change the pain of suffering,
And it doesn’t change a desire for relief.
And you will see all of that here in our Psalmist.
So let’s work through this Psalm tonight
As we see this sufferer who “is faint”
And who is pouring out “his complaint”.
I would say that while “complaint” has almost an entirely negative connotation in our language, I’m not sure this Psalmist is speaking negatively.
The word can also simply speak of “one who is consumed in thought.”
For instance:
Elijah used it in his mocking of Baal at Mt. Carmel.
1 Kings 18:27 “It came about at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Call out with a loud voice, for he is a god; either he is occupied or gone aside, or is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and needs to be awakened.”
There the same word is translated “occupied”
One who is too mentally distracted to listen to your complaint.
The Psalmist isn’t so much complaining about God as he is consumed with his suffering.
• He can’t talk about anything else…
• He can’t focus on anything else…
• His mind is overcome with this one issue…
And in that great turmoil, he lends us a great perspective.
Let’s work our way through this Psalm.
3 Points
#1 THE PAIN OF HIS SUFFERING
Psalms 102:1-11
Very simply, you need to gain some perspective
As to how badly our Psalmist is suffering.
There are 5 sub points here that will help us understand the degree of his suffering.
1) URGENCY (1-2)
“Hear my prayer, O LORD! And let my cry for help come to You. Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my distress; Incline Your ear to me; In the day when I call answer me quickly.”
Those verses speak to us of a man who is out of time.
Maybe when we FIRST ENTER suffering we may have the mentality that:
• “I can endure this…”
• “This is for my good so let it be…”
If this Psalmist at one point had that mentality, it is gone now.
• Now, he wants relief.
• Now, he wants it over.
Polite requests have turned into pointed statements.
• “Hear my prayer”
• “Do not hide Your face from me”
• “Incline Your ear to Me”
• “answer me quickly”
It feels a little like the urgency of the message Jesus received from Martha and Mary stating, “He whom You love is sick.” (John 11:3)
It’s time for You to come and come now.
There is urgency in the Psalm.
2) FASTING (3-4)
“For my days have been consumed in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth. My heart has been smitten like grass and has withered away, Indeed, I forget to eat my bread.”
There is turmoil in his innermost being.
He speaks of the point of his “bones” and the pain of his “heart”
That is poetic language to illustrate the depth of his sorrow.
• If someone says, “I hurt in my heart for them”
• Or, “I could feel it in my bones”
That is language that speaks of a deeper pain.
Certainly that is the pain of the Psalmist
And in response he says, “I forget to eat my bread.”
It is a naturally induced fast.
• Fasting is anytime the spiritual takes precedent over the physical.
• When you are so consumed with a spiritual issue that to stop and eat just doesn’t make sense.
• In fact, often times a person may not even be hungry in their fasting.
An intentional fast may be a time when you purposely put aside the physical for the sake of the spiritual. In that time, you might actually be hungry, but you intentionally push that aside for the sake of the spiritual cause.
But a natural one; it may not even be a choice.
This Psalmist is suffering so greatly and so deeply
That he has even lost his appetite.
3) SLEEPLESSNESS (5-7)
“Because of the loudness of my groaning My bones cling to my flesh. I resemble a pelican of the wilderness; I have become like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake, I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop.”
Certainly you see that sleep has fled from his eyes.
It’s not just bad sleep, but no sleep.
He can’t escape it.
But it is also a great loneliness.
He compares himself to 3 birds here.
• “a pelican in the wilderness”
• “an owl of the waste places”
• “a lonely bird on a housetop”
He is alone and he cannot escape his pain even through sleep.
(no friends, no family, no comfort, no sleep)
NO RELIEF
4) TEARS (8-9)
“My enemies have reproached me all day long; Those who deride me have used my name as a curse. For I have eaten ashes like bread And mingled my drink with weeping”
In his pain, instead of comfort, our Psalmist found scorn and reproach.
It is hard not to think of Job here
• Whose on wife told him to “curse God and die”;
• Whose own friends came only to accuse him of wickedness.
• No one helped and no one cared.
• He sat on the ash heap in repentance hoping to find relief from his predicament,
• But all he found was ridicule and shame.
And his tears have been many.
5) DESPAIR (10-11)
“Because of Your indignation and Your wrath, For You have lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a lengthened shadow, And I wither away like grass.”
• The Psalmist fancies himself under God’s “indignation”
• And under God’s “wrath”
• He feels as though God has “cast [him] away”
And he says, “My days are like a lengthened shadow”
You know that “late in the day even a short man casts a long shadow.”
The Psalmist is saying, “I’m at the end”
He is finished and about to depart.
“I wither away like grass”
And we simply read all that, and listen to his painful lament
To get a handle on THE DEGREE OF HIS SUFFERING.
IT IS BAD.
The Pain of His Suffering
#2 THE PURPOSE OF HIS SUFFERING
Psalms 102:12-22
This is where great perspective begins to emerge.
The Psalmist here begins to unload some tremendous wisdom regarding the purposes behind his suffering.
He just stated in verse 11 that “I wither away like grass.”
• That is a picture of how transient he is.
• His life is temporary.
• He said in verse 3 “my days are consumed in smoke”
He won’t be here long.
It reminds of James telling us that our days are simply “a vapor”
We are temporary at best.
However, in verse 12 the Psalmist focus shifts to God.
(12) “But You, O LORD, abide forever, and Your name to all generations.”
That is to say, “While I am temporary and transient like smoke or grass, You are eternal.”
He is recognizing something about God.
• In my suffering, I cannot see the purpose, because I am limited to such a small view.
• But You are eternal. You see the end-game.
• You see beyond this moment into the far-reaching purposes of how my suffering will be used.
That is great perspective.
Often times I remind people that it is not often that
We receive our “Ah-ha!” moment in this life.
That is to say, very few people are ever allowed to see
The full purposes behind their suffering.
(Joseph got to see it – “God sent me here to save you”)
But think about Job, he was never told.
And most of the time neither are we.
But I also remind people that if you trust the goodness of God
• Then you should know that someday we will be with the Lord.
• On that day, we will know fully as we are fully known.
• On that day we will understand why God allowed our suffering and we will
undoubtedly say, “That was brilliant!”
We will thank God for what He accomplished through our suffering.
The Psalmist is walking in that kind of faith here.
He knows God sees all and knows all.
He also knows that God is always compassionate
• And that He never causes us to suffer for no purpose
• Or for one second longer than is necessary.
He knows God immediately comes to the aid of His suffering children
When the purpose is complete.
(13-14) “You will arise and have compassion on Zion; For it is time to be gracious to her, For the appointed time has come. Surely Your servants find pleasure in her stones And feel pity for her dust.”
Compassion is coming
Grace is coming
And he even sees a day when God’s servants will “find pleasure in her stones and feel pity for her dust.”
That is to say that in the midst of the rubble they will be comforted.
The Psalmist knows it is coming.
And he knows that this suffering and ultimate deliverance will be for the glory of God.
(15) “So the nations will fear the name of the LORD and all the kings of the earth Your glory.”
This deliverance from suffering will be a way
In which God glorifies Himself in the midst of the world.
We think about times like the Exodus here.
• 400 years of slavery
• Children of Israel crying out
• And when God saw fit to deliver and comfort His people, He did so to His own
glory.
The Psalmist knows that too.
So there is some really good perspective here even though he is suffering so intensely.
1. He knows that his suffering is not wasted
2. He knows there is a purpose even if he can’t see it
3. He knows that it will come to an end because God is compassionate
4. He knows that when it ends God will be glorified in the world.
Those are really good perspectives from a man
Who is suffering so badly that he can’t eat or sleep.
I suppose a good question would be:
WHY DOES HE KNOW THAT?
(16-17) “For the LORD has built up Zion; He has appeared in His glory. He has regarded the prayer of the destitute And has not despised their prayer.”
Notice the verb tense.
Because that is what God “has” done in the past.
His suffering is not the first case of suffering.
There have been many who have come before him.
And even though he is in pain
He can see how it worked out for those who were before him.
• That God “built up” what He afflicted
• That God “appeared in His glory”
• That God “regarded the prayer of the destitute”
• That God “has not despised their prayer”
The Psalmist’s confidence
Rests upon God’s track record with past sufferers.
He is doing exactly what Peter said.
1 Peter 5:9 “But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.”
So he is taking Peter’s advice.
He is being encouraged by the way
Previous generations found grace in their suffering.
And here is where he takes his own suffering to a whole new level.
He realizes that God may be doing the same thing through him
For those who will come after him.
(18) “This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the LORD.”
• His own story
• His own pain
• His own deliverance (which he has yet to see)
• Will be for “the generation to come”
They will be inspired by the way God cares for him.
Have you ever considered your suffering in such a light?
• That perhaps God is allowing you to walk through a trial that will someday be used to strengthen and encourage, possibly even save your grandchildren?
Listen to the Psalmist:
(19-22) “For He looked down from His holy height; From heaven the LORD gazed upon the earth, To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To set free those who were doomed to death, That men may tell of the name of the LORD in Zion And His praise in Jerusalem, When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.”
The Psalmist is talking about God as the Savior.
• The God who looked down upon the earth
• The God who heard the groaning of the prisoner
• The God who desired to set free those doomed to death
• The God who sought to save so that men may glorify Him
And part of the process to bring that about is your current suffering.
What if God is using your current suffering for the salvation of someone 100’s of years from now?
• Has anyone in here ever been inspired by the sufferings of Paul?
• How about the suffering of Cory Ten Boom?
• How about the suffering of Lottie Moon?
• How about the suffering of Jim Elliot?
• How about the suffering of Horatio Spafford?
Was their suffering wasted?
No, God has used it for decades, even after they are gone.
That is pretty remarkable perspective from the Psalmist.
That the eternal God who sees the end, is using your suffering (which is terrible) in ways that you couldn’t even imagine.
The Psalmist sees even that purpose in his suffering.
One more point
The Pain of His Suffering; The Purpose of His Suffering
#3 THE PROMISE OF HIS SUFFERING
Psalms 102:23-28
Again the Psalmist tells us how hard this is.
(23-24) “He has weakened my strength in the way; He has shortened my days. I say, “O my God, do not take me away in the midst of my days, Your years are throughout all generations.”
His perspective is not because this is easy.
He is suffering.
BUT GOD IS ABOUT TO GIVE HIM A GREAT PROMISE.
NOW THERE IS SOMETHING AT THIS POINT THAT I MUST SHOW YOU.
I must show you THE IDENTITY OF THE PSALMIST.
You say, “His name isn’t given.”
True, it’s not given here,
But it is revealed to us in the New Testament.
TURN TO: HEBREWS 1:8-12
• Hebrews 1 is a conglomeration of Old Testament passages meant to show that Jesus is greater than the angels.
Now look at verse 8,
“But of the Son He says,”
So can we recognize that the following verses are verses that God the Father spoke about God the Son?
Of course we can. “But of the Son he says…”
Now, verses 8-9 are a quotation of Psalms 45-6-7,
But look down to verse 10.
Hebrews 1:10-12 “And, “YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH, AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS; THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN; AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT, AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP; LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED. BUT YOU ARE THE SAME, AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”
You notice “And”
Which means this is another passage that
God the Father spoke about God the Son.
You should recognize it because it is a direct quote of Psalms 102:25-27.
• That means that actually Psalms 102:25-27 is God’s answer to the Psalmist.
• Verses 25-27 are God the Father speaking to God the Son.
That makes Jesus the author of the Psalm
And verses 25-27 God’s answer to Him.
And so we have Jesus in this Psalm suffering so badly that
He is crying out with urgency:
Matthew 27:46 “About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?”
He is suffering to such a degree that
• His days are consumed in smoke,
• His bones are scorched
• His heart has been smitten like grass
• He has forgotten to eat His bread.
John 4:31-32 “Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.” But He said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.”
His is suffering sleeplessness and solidarity as He is alone in this world.
Luke 5:16 “But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray.”
Luke 6:12 “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.”
Or we talk about His tears and reproach.
Hebrews 5:7 “In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety.”
We could even mention His despair as He bore God’s indignation and God’s wrath.
(10) “Because of Your indignation and Your wrath, For You have lifted me up and cast me away.”
Do you not see the cross there?
And yet, in His suffering
He maintained the perspective of the purpose behind it.
He knew His suffering
Was for the salvation of those who come later.
Look again
(18-22) “This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the LORD. For He looked down from His holy height; From heaven the LORD gazed upon the earth, To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To set free those who were doomed to death, That men may tell of the name of the LORD in Zion And His praise in Jerusalem, When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.”
Jesus knew that.
Listen to Him preach:
Luke 4:17-21 “And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, “THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
He knew why He was suffering.
And He knew the promises of His suffering.
Because God answered Him in verses 25-27.
“Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. “Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. “But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.”
God told Him that He would endure.
God answered that He would be the same.
Look at that:
(27) “But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.”
The writer of Hebrews knew that, for he wrote:
Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”
And the ultimate promise to Christ:
(28) “The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You.”
Isaiah 53:10 “But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.”
Through His suffering He will save His children.
Psalms 102 is a glorious promise
Of the victorious suffering of Christ
And what God accomplished through His suffering.
For us it becomes a tremendous promise,
• Not only of the sufferings of Christ,
• But that God doesn’t waste our suffering either.
He uses every ounce of it for His glory
And even for the salvation and encouragement of future generations.
