THE DISQUIETING OF THE SOUL

Psa 43:5

Morning Meditations 6/21/17

This morning in reading in the Psalms I came to this verse and was impressed to write on the disquieting of the soul. This is something that happens fairly regularly to me. So maybe as I take a look in Scripture for myself, others will be helped.

“Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.”

First of all, the Psalmist asks himself this question. The words “cast down” (shachach) means, “to bow, to crouch, to be prostrated.” The word “soul” here is referring to the mind, emotions and will, i.e., the personality. He was depressed. He was not on the mountain top.

The word “disquieted” (hamah) means “to murmur, to growl, to roar, to be disquieted.” It is an imperfect tense which refers to a process, something that is on going.

There is no answer to the question in this verse. There are times when I find myself in this condition for no apparent reason.. It’s like uncle Buddy Robinson said. He said, “I went to bed one night and slept off my religion. When I woke up, it was gone.” He went on to explain that it took him a while to get it back. Well, uncle Buddy was not right theologically but his experience was that of the Psalmist in this verse. He just did not properly interpret his experience. I have had his experience. There are times when my soul is disquieted within me. I murmur, I growl like a bear, I roar. I am in inner turmoil. And when I am in that state, it doesn’t take much to be provoked into saying something or doing something that I will have to repent of. Those closest to us wonder what they did to push us over the edge. Well, to be honest, it didn’t take that much. The wife’s feelings are hurt. I am upset with myself. I know that the “roaring within, the disquieted soul” is no excuse for hurting others.

It is a real problem when this happens and there is no apparent reason. I just don’t know why I’m in this condition. This is where the Psalmist was. He asks “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” If it were sin, he could repent of it. And sin will cause a disquietness in the soul. But when it is sin, it usually doesn’t take long to find it and run to First John one and nine and be restored. It is never easy to deal with sin. It is a humbling thing. I must admit I’m wrong. That is never easy. Have you noticed how easy it is to make an excuse for yourself in the matter of sin. “I did it, but this is the reason.” And the reason makes sense to the natural man. But in this case there is no sin. I am cast down and have no idea why.

One of the things about the Psalms is that we see the inner life. This is a valuable aid to the believer. It is good to know when things like this happen to you it is explained in Scripture. Others, like the Psalmist in this case, have had my same experience. I am not having an experience that is not “common” to all (1Cor 10:13).

I have had the experience that this verse describes many times. I believed, because my peace was gone and my soul was disturbed, that something had to be wrong. I began to search my heart. I think Satan helps us at this point. He will suggest something that God has forgiven and suggests that that is still the problem. His solutions are never Scriptural. He will tell me that I need to publicly confess something that does not need to be publicly confessed. That is not God’s solution. So we do it and it does not have good results because it was not God’s way in that particular case. Undefined inner problems can open the door to Satan to cause real problems in our Christian lives.

What was the Psalmist solution to the disquieted soul? He said “hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.” The word “hope” (syachal) means “to wait, to hope, to expect.” It is hiphil imperative. The hiphil stem in the Hebrew is causative. The imperative is a command and shows urgency. Now to explain this. It means that it is urgent that we wait upon God in this matter. I must give myself an order (God’s kind of self control) not to start guessing. If there is something that is causing this disquieting of the soul like sin, God will show it to me. Sometimes there is no explanation. We are experiencing inner depression and the solution is to keep my mouth shut and trust God to bring me through. And He will.

The words “I shall yet praise him” are words of faith coming from the Psalmist’s inspired pen. He uttered these words while still in the condition of being “cast down.” When I am in that condition, I can utter words of faith like “I do not know why my soul is cast down but I know that God will bring me through.” So I wait. I do not start guessing and acting on a guess. I know from this psalm that there are times I get into this condition and there is never going to be an explanation to it. So, I trust the Lord and do not allow my present emotional condition to cause me to hurt others. If I do, I’ll have to repent and tell them I am sorry. This condition is no excuse for hurting others. And it will not remain. The Psalmist said of God, “Who is the health of my countenance.” God will restore the smile and the ability to express joy.

The Psalmist recognized his condition emotionally, felt free to ask the question, and came to the conclusion that in this case the answer was to wait on God and trust Him for restoration. Some time we pass through dark valleys where there will never be an explanation. I must be willing to live with God’s silences.

May God bless this to our heart.

In Christ

Earl White