Psalms                           by Dr. Ralph Wilson

Lesson 5

Psalms: Crying Out for Rescue

(Psalms 69, 40, 80)

Psalm 69 -- Deep Waters and Miry Depths

Going Down for the Third Time (69:1-4)

David's Appeal to God's Mercy (69:13-18)

Q1. (Psalm 69:12-18) How could David dare to ask anything from God after the shameful things he had done with Bathsheba and Uriah?

How does God's grace and mercy function in the face of our sins?

Back to David's Enemies (69:19-28)

A Final Plea (69:29)

An Outpouring of Praise (69:30-33)

A Prophecy for the Restoration of Israel's Homeland (69:33-36)

A Psalm for the Brokenhearted

Q2. (Psalm 69:30-32) Why does this lament (and nearly all laments in the Psalms) end with an upswing of hope and praise?

What does this teach us about our own laments and prayers?

Why is praise, the language of faith, so important in our prayers, especially prayers of desperate pleas for help?

Psalm 40 -- O My God, Do Not Delay

He Put a New Song in My Mouth (40:1-3)

Blessed Is the Person Who Trusts in This Caring God (40:4-5)

Q3. (Psalm 40:5b) When you realize that God's thoughts and plans are focused on you in particular, how does that make you respond?

In the Scroll of the Book It Is Written of Me (40:6-8)

David's Public Testimony (40:9-10)

Troubles without Number Surround Me (40:11-12)

A Returning Confidence that Expects God's Salvation (40:13-16)

O My God, Do Not Delay (40:17)

Q4. (Psalm 40:17) In this verse David combines both humility and faith in his prayer to God. Why are both humility and faith necessary?

What happens when one of these qualities is missing?

Psalm 80 -- Restore Us, O God

Revive Us Again (80:18-19)

Q5. (Psalm 80) If you were to formulate a personal prayer for revival for your own life or for your congregation, how would you word it?

What elements should be present in a prayer for personal or congregational revival?

What would this prayer have in common with 2 Chronicles 7:14?

How does this kind of prayer pave the way for revival and restoration to take place?

Make Your Face Shine upon Us (80:3, 17, 19)

Exercise. For one of the psalms in this lesson -- or another psalm with a similar theme -- do one of the suggested exercises to help you experience the Psalms in Appendix 1. These include such things as praying a psalm, meditating, reading to a shut-in, paraphrasing, writing your own psalm, singing, preparing a liturgy, and memorizing. Then report to the forum what the exercise meant to you personally or share what you've written with others.

Prayer

Lord, you know us. You know our sorrows and our personal laments. Teach us -- teach me -- to turn my laments into a prayer of faith that you can answer. Heal the broken elements of my life that I might be whole. Bring me and my congregation the grace of a God-sent restoration and revival. Restore us again, O God our Savior, to our first love -- Jesus. In His name, we pray. Amen.

Songs

• "Eternal Father, Strong to Save" (Navy Hymn), words by William Whiting (1860), music by John B. Dykes (1861).
• "He Brought Me Out of the Miry Clay," words Henry J. Zelley (1898), refrain and music by Henry L. Gilmour
• "He Took My Feet from the Miry Clay," traditional African American spiritual.
• "I Waited for the Lord" (Psalm 40:1-6), words and music by Bill Bastone (© 1982 Maranatha! Music)
• "Psalm 5" (Give ear to my words, O Lord), words and music by Bill Sprouse, Jr. (© 1975,Marnatha! Music). Psalm 5.
• "Revive Us Again," words by William P. Mackay (1863), music by John J. Husband (1815)
• "Save Me, O God, the Swelling Floods," words: Isaac Watts (1719), Music: Cheshire (1579)
• "Wait on the Lord," words and music by Bob Cull (© 1978, Maranatha! Music)
• "Unto Thee, O Lord," words and music by Charles Monroe (© 1971, 1973, Maranatha! Music)