Gospel Reflections #1172: In the midst of human cries and tears

Psalm 39:4–5 ‘O Lord, make me know my end and the number of my days, that I may know how fleeting my life is. Behold, you have made my days as a handbreadth; my lifetime is as nothing before you. Truly, every man, even in the prime of life, is but a breath.’

This passage is a prayer in which David deeply confesses before God how fleeting human life is and how short our time on earth is, whilst seeking understanding.

It depicts an extremely personal and heartfelt lament in which David, who had remained silent amidst suffering, illness and the oppression of his enemies, finally could bear it no longer and poured out his heart to God.

Until just before this, David had forced himself to remain silent, keeping his mouth shut so as not to sin in the presence of the ungodly, nor to complain against God.

However, this passage depicts the moment when, the longer he remained silent in the face of suffering and unjust circumstances, the more unbearable emotions and inner conflict burned fiercely within him, until he could no longer contain them and spoke out.

The one to whom David vented these feelings, which were on the verge of exploding, was not a human being but ‘God’.

The essence of this poet’s faith lies in the fact that he began to weave his words not as a complaint against humanity, but as a prayer to God.

Here, David asks God to reveal to him ‘how much longer he has to live’ and ‘where the end of his life lies’.

This is not merely a question about lifespan, but a heartfelt prayer asking to be made fully aware of ‘the finiteness and fragility of human life’.

In the following passage, human life is described as being ‘as brief as the span of a hand’ in God’s sight, and even those at the height of their powers are described as nothing more than ‘a breath of wind’.

In the midst of our busy daily lives, we tend to labour under the illusion that our lives will last forever.

However, the Bible teaches us that human life is extremely short and frail in the sight of God.

Being mindful of our own mortality leads to the ‘wisdom’ of knowing how to live out the time we have left on earth.

Only when we thoroughly realise just how fleeting our own strength, wealth and health are—how they are like a breath of wind—do we come to realise that our hope lies not in ourselves, but solely in the ‘eternal God’.

Following this, David is led to the confession: ‘Lord, what shall I wait for now? My hope is in you.’

When our hearts burn with passion and we feel as though we are about to be crushed by suffering, it is by no means a sign of unbelief to bring these feelings before God as they are and cry out, ‘Teach me, help me.’

God is the One who does not reject such weak human cries and tears, but listens to them.

It is only when we are able to lay everything bare before God that we truly feel His nearness.

And there, we are granted a peace beyond anything we can experience in this world.

That is eternity.

AUTHOR'S BIO: This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San, who resides in Hiroshima, Japan. Masae is a dedicated student of the Bible with a deep passion for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on Gospel perspectives to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through a Christ-centered approach. We are sharing her insights here so that you, too, can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel and the love of God through Jesus Christ.