Psalm 126
Are We Dreaming?
Everything was lost. All had been taken away. If Israel was once the pride of the nations, it now lay in ruins. The northern kingdom was gone, and the southern kingdom was conquered, and was led away. The Babylonians took them far away from the land, the land flowing with milk and honey. The beauty of their home was no more, and the land was a distant memory. It will be two generations born and raised in a foreign land, and only those who remember the land of their ancestors will have the capacity to keep the memory alive with hope, and promise of home.
Despite the limited and imperfect memory of the Israelites the Lord never forgets the Lord's promises to the people. After six decades of grief, loss, and captivity God brought them back to the land of their forefathers. The long, long night of hopelessness has now turned to hope. It is as the prophet, Isaiah says:
Comfort, comfort my people! says your God. Speak compassionately to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her compulsory service has ended, that her penalty has been paid, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins!
As one of the Songs of Ascent, Psalm 126 continues the step by step movement of God's people as they make their way up to Jerusalem. Along the journey they sing of their return from exile, even if that meant that other nations would be used to make this happen. The return from exile was a cause of great joy. The Israelites could hardly believe it. Were they dreaming, or was this the real thing?
Psalm 126 begins in a celebration of past deliverance for God's people. "Restored fortunes" celebrates the return of the land. The land has gone through great hardship over the past sixty years, but it is God's land for God's people. Yet, something further is at work here. Not only had the people been given their freedom, and their homeland again, there is now a reversal of fortunes regarding their sin. God's judgment has been lifted.
The reversal must have felt like a new exodus, where God's power has once again parted a sea of hostility and oppression. This is how the prophets read it (See Isaiah 40-55).The return meant that God was still their God. Yahweh had not abandoned them. Neither had the Lord held their sins against them. As far as the east is from the west, their sins have been removed from them. This is done in anticipation of the Messiah's coming. (See Romans 3:25-26).
Often times we need a reversal of fortunes. We need a new start. The Lord Jesus gives us a way into that new way. The shame of past sins; of repeated failures; of lingering addictions to food, or alcohol, etc., keeps us in the bondage of Babylon. The Messiah declares the time is over, and your restoration is here. Great joy has come. It spills over into laughter. Laughter is the uncontrollable joy of being set free in every way. Let joy reign in your body, soul, and spirit.
Yahweh has been faithful. He has always been faithful.
Now the people of God have encountered a new crisis. God's people will always face a new crisis. The human condition will always contain crises. This time, as before, God's people have faced a seemingly insurmountable hurdle. The joy of our earlier deliverance has given way to a new round of tears and weeping. As this song accompanied the people upward to Jerusalem, it gave the Israelites a way to express the grief of the moment, the uncertainty of the outcome. Whether it was a drought, or a bad harvest, the people could release the fullness of their pain on the God who knows our every need. The dryness of their spiritual journey, or the consequences of further disobedience could be healed once again, but first they must turn away from the danger.
The images of dry stream beds are very real where I live. Driving through the desert I can see dry places where it's clear that water had previously run. I have also seen those dry beds filled to overflowing with rainfall that simply engulfs the land. Israel was encouraged to offer their petitions to God in order that Yahweh might once again see their contrition, and heal their infirmities. In doing so the streams of living water would flow, like the streams of the Negev.
Too often the confession of sin with its necessary repentance is seen as a weakness in
God's people. "We are God's people", they say, "we don't have problems with sin any longer." Yet, the dryness of spiritual living has become evident in the Body of Christ, especially for those who live in the United States. Psalm 126 reminds us now that a constant, current, and up-to-date walk with Christ requires the regular turning from sin by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Lord CAN change our circumstances all over again. The tears shed in a season of drought can turn into shouts of joy. Our current circumstances are not the end of the story.
Yahweh sees us. When Yahweh sees us, when Yahweh hears our cries, the future is bright with promise. The images of planting and harvest are reminders of God's faithfulness to transform our lives and our situations. Present burdens can be left in the in the hands of a lovin and gracious God, who makes all things new. God's people can live in anticipation of the faithfulness of Jesus Christ to relieve our sin, to release us from a new bondage.
Psalm 126 tells us that the pain we feel in our present grief--over sin, or circumstances-will never be the final act of the play. Just as the grief is real, so is the hope of the Savior real. Jesus has come. The Son of God has entered our world, and carried our burdens. He now intercedes on our behalf! So, let's sing of God's faithfulness in the past. Let's sing of our desire for change in our present condition, and let's sing of our confidence in the Lord who made heaven and earth. "The Lord has done great things for us, and we are overjoyed!"
Scriptures come from Common English Bible (Is 40:1-2). (2011).