The first half of this eleventh stanza was pretty bleak and full of despair. But as it comes to an end, the psalmist seems to turn a corner. Take a look at the latter half of this passage in Psalm 119:85-88:

The psalmist seems to be very depressed. In the first half of the stanza, he wrote of his persecutors and enemies with a bleakness that isn’t matched elsewhere in Psalm 119. And this second half still carries some of those low notes. His enemies have dug pitfalls for him, in order to trap him. He is being persecuted without cause, to the point where he feels like he has nowhere left to run, perhaps even to the point of death.

Those are difficult statements to read, or to hear. But these are probably not foreign thoughts to our own thinking either. In our case, especially in western culture, persecution may not come from specific people, although that is becoming more and more likely, I believe. Our culture has become, and is continuing to become, increasingly intolerant of Christianity. You can see this in the blatant attacks from those who oppose Christianity against those who stand upon their convictions and the principles of our faith.

But, for now at least, our torment comes more often in the form of circumstances instead of people. And we can easily become as low and full of despair as the author does here, wondering how we can keep our heads above water. Perhaps it’s in our financial situation, or maybe our marriage is under attack. Whatever the circumstance may be, it often hits hard and fast, and we can easily be overwhelmed by it, seeing no immediate way out.

When those times come, we need to do the same thing the psalmist does here. In the midst of the darkest moments of his life, he turns his attention to the Word of God. He may be full of despair, but he is not defeated, and he knows where his source of strength lies. In this brief passage, he remembers just how trustworthy God’s Word is, in verse 86; how he holds fast to them in verse 87; and in verse 88, he realizes that God’s Word can even preserve his life!

When we come to the end of our rope, where else can we turn, where else should we turn, but to the Word of the one who keeps his promises? He will not leave us, no matter how dire the situation may be. That’s a promise!

Question: What passages of Scripture bring you hope and assurance during your darkest times? What is it about these passages that you find so comforting? You can leave a comment by clicking here.