Your hands made me and fashioned me;
Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.
May those who fear You see me and be glad,
Because I wait for Your word.
 I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are righteous,
And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.
O may Your lovingkindness comfort me,
According to Your word to Your servant.
 May Your compassion come to me that I may live,
For Your law is my delight.
May the arrogant be ashamed, for they subvert me with a lie;
But I shall meditate on Your precepts.
 May those who fear You turn to me,
Even those who know Your testimonies.
 May my heart be blameless in Your statutes,
So that I will not be ashamed.

-Psalm 119:73-80

Yodh (Jod), the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet is what Jesus referred to as a “jot” in Matthew 5:18: “Till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.”  It is said that scribes sometimes overlook the letter because of its size and position. As we study through Psalm 119 a common sub-topic is affliction.  We may consider our own afflictions as small or insignificant when compared to others, but each provides occasions for growth and maturity if we don’t overlook them. Though we don’t know the nature of the psalmist’s affliction, in the section of Psalm 119:73-80, we see his approach to enduring it.  Consider the character of the psalmist as we examine opportunities that affliction provides. Affliction is opportunity to see:

The resiliency of the design of God

73 Your hands have made me and fashioned me;
Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.

Perhaps his affliction was of a physical or mental nature.  The psalmist was a man who regarded God’s omnipotence, and he sought understanding of his plight from the designer Himself.  Still, in less than ideal conditions, he was enabled to carry on, seeking to grow and learn.  Sometimes when facing affliction, the questions come.  While we may not ever fully understand the why, we can always go to His word to seek the how – How should I respond?

The goodness of hope in God

74 Those who fear You will be glad when they see me,
Because I have hoped in Your word.

It is strange that some of the most upbeat and encouraging people are people who have terminal illnesses. Though we may not choose our affliction, we can choose our response to it. The psalmist knew people would be watching.  While we shouldn’t do things to be seen of men, they will still see us.  Will people rejoice for the way I endure trials?  Hope can help propel us through the darkest of circumstances.  Will my words and actions in times of distress cause the world to ask about that hope (I Peter 3:15)?

The truth of the faithfulness of God

75 I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right,
And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.

God is always faithful.  In good times and in bad, in times of comfort or chastening, there is always opportunity for trust in the one who is faithful. There is opportunity for joy and thankfulness because God is always right and just in His dealings with mankind. With affliction, what better time to humbly, “cast all your care upon Him” and to trust in the one who has told us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5; I Pet. 5:5-6).   

The power of the comfort of God

76 Let, I pray, Your merciful kindness be for my comfort,
According to Your word to Your servant.

How often do we pray for God to take away struggles?  We don’t want to deal with them, we just want them gone.  The writer shows great maturity when he prayed for ease rather than elimination.  Spurgeon said, “Our prayers are according to the mind of God when they are according to the word of God.”  God never promised to take away all of our problems, but He did promise that He would comfort us while we endure them (II Corinthians 1:3-12).  We have a loving heavenly Father, and the comfort that we seek comes when we spend time with Him in prayer, in His word, and in the fellowship of His people.  

The blessings of the mercy of God

77 Let Your tender mercies come to me, that I may live;
For Your law is my delight.

It is so tempting to want to wallow in self-pity when affliction comes our way.  The psalmist’s desire is to live – literally “to flourish.”  He doesn’t just want to exist, he wants to abound!  Affliction often brings excuses of why we can’t, but oh how much glory we can bring to the Father when, even in the midst of struggles, we resolve to cling to His word, shine our lights, and serve. The old truism applies here, “grow where you’re planted!” God has enabled us through His mercy to flourish, even in affliction.  

The peace of the knowledge of God

78 Let the proud be ashamed,
For they treated me wrongfully with falsehood;
But I will meditate on Your precepts.

It is hard to imagine Job sitting for days on end in his grief, and then he had to listen to his friends falsely accuse him. In pride, it’s human nature to want to shift blame and lash out against those who have wronged us. The writer knew that a key weapon to avoiding retaliation is meditation.  When you’re tempted to respond in haste or stew in anger, call to mind verses like Romans 12:19-20.  Vengeance belongs to the Lord, and the surest way to bring shame to an enemy is to respond with kindness.  

The example of the servants of God

79 Let those who fear You turn to me,
Those who know Your testimonies.

This verse could be taken two ways.  Perhaps the psalmist desires for the children of God to look to him as an example for handling suffering (see I Cor. 11:1).  He certainly has proven himself to be worthy of following.  Alternatively, maybe his affliction has caused those who fear God to shy away or avoid him (see II Tim. 4:16-17).  His desire is for them to draw near as a source of comfort and example.  Have you ever thought that by the way we handle suffering; we could be the answer to someone’s prayer for comfort?

The power of waiting on God

80 Let my heart be blameless regarding Your statutes,
That I may not be ashamed.

I imagine the psalmist was tired of dealing with the naysayers, tired of struggling, and tired of petitioning God over and over again. Often, the greatest strides in maturity come as a result of waiting (Isaiah 40:31).  Whether our affliction is resolved or we must live with the sufficiency of God’s grace (II Corinthians 12:19), our response to distress ultimately aligns with God’s statutes or it doesn’t.  May our desire to be blameless in all that we do be our utmost priority.  

The Shunammite woman could say in her affliction, “it is well” (2 Kings 4:26).  Eli’s response to his coming affliction was, “It is the LORD. Let Him do what seems good to Him” (1 Samuel 3:18). Job was able to say in his suffering, the LORD gives, the LORD takes away, blessed be the name of the LORD” (Job 1:21). God, in His infinite love and mercy has given us tools, through His word to help us know how we should endure our afflictions.  What do you see in your affliction, and more importantly, how will you respond?

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by Kathryn Baker