Psalm 42 – What to do when discouraged

The way to read this article is that the orange underlined texts are the verses of the Bible (NIV, unless otherwise stated). The black texts following the Bible verses (and enclosed by square brackets) are my commentaries. At the end of these Bible texts and commentaries, I have inserted a section on "Points to take note".
{For full listing of all articles in this Psalms exposition series, click here}


Psalm 42

1 As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?

3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while men say to me all day long,
"Where is your God?"
[Where are you, God, my soul longs for you just like the deer pants for water? My soul cried day and night while my enemy mocked at me saying, “Where is your God?”]

4 These things I remember
as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go with the multitude,
leading the procession to the house of God,
with shouts of joy and thanksgiving
among the festive throng.
[God, I remember I used to lead multitude in procession to your house with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive crowd.]

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and 6 my God.
My soul is downcast within me;
therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

[Oh my soul, do not be discouraged, put your hope in God, my Savior and my God. Praise Him still. God, in my discouragement, I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the height of Hermon – from Mount Mizar.]

7 Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
have swept over me.

8 By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.

[Afflictions have come so thick upon me that I felt overwhelmed. Yet in my prayer, I will declare the Lord will send your mercy in the daytime, and in the night His song will be with me.]

9 I say to God my Rock,
"Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?"

10 My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
"Where is your God?"
[God, have you forgotten me? I am oppressed by my enemy, I am in grief. I am in agony as my enemy continues with the attack. ]

11 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
[Oh my soul, do not be discouraged, put your hope in God, my Savior and my God, whom I will yet praise.]


[When we are discouraged what do we do? What should we do? This is what the psalmist in Psalm 42 did:

The psalmist went before God, told God how his soul longed for Him, how he cried day and night while his enemy mocked at him, saying “Where is your God”. The psalmist reminded God that he used to lead in worship, giving shouts of joy and thanksgiving to Him. Even as the psalmist reminded God how he used to be joyful, he told himself not to be discouraged, to put hope in God our Savior and our God. He told himself that he still had to praise God.

The psalmist told God that in his discouragement, he would remember God. He told God that afflictions had come so thick upon him that he felt overwhelmed. Yet in his prayer he declared that the Lord would send His mercy in the daytime for him, and His song, in the night. He pleaded with God, saying “God, have you forgotten me?” He told God his condition – being oppressed, in grief and in pain as his enemy continued with the attack.

The psalmist ended by reminding himself again not to be discouraged, to put hope in God our Savior and our God. He told himself that he still had to praise God despite it all.]


What we should have learnt:

1. Never forget you have a God you can turn to.
If you are a Christian, never forget you have a God, your Savior and your God that you can turn to. The Christian God is a reliable and dependable God. If you are not yet a Christian, approach a Christian to find out how you too can have this Savior God.

2. Know your God well.
I believe the psalmist knew his God well. He probably knew that his God was a great and mighty God, capable of delivering him from the thick afflictions that he faced. Why did I say that? You can see he did not express any doubts at all about his God’s capacity to deliver him. He was only pleading for God to act. We have to get to know our God well. We should never doubt God’s capacity to deliver us from whatever afflictions that we may face. Make efforts to know your God before afflictions strike you.

3. Cry out to God.
Do not listen to people who suggest that we should just take all the afflictions “lying down”, that God had welcome the afflictions since they happened; that God would not do anything until they are all over. Do not listen to people who suggest that God would have given (gifts, help, etc) if He wanted to, that we do not need to ask. God does wait for people to cry out to Him, and men, big and small, in the Bible, cried out to God when they were faced with afflictions of all sorts. He knows everything, so what, it does not mean He is not waiting for you to talk to him or ask for his help.

4. Tell God you want to repossess the condition before discouragement.
Tell God you remember you used to be joyful and full of thanksgiving towards Him, and you want to repossess that joyfulness and thankfulness towards Him, and that you want to still praise Him. Tell God that in your affliction, you remember Him.

5. Pour out to God your condition now
– how badly you are afflicted, how oppressed you feel, your pain, your weariness, etc. Men may have problem taking your pouring-out but not God.

6. Ask God for His grace and mercy for your situation.
The psalmist asked for God’s mercy to sustain him in the day, and God’s comfort for the nights. God may or may not take you out of your situation, but be sure that his grace and mercy are sufficient to see you through.

7. “Get your hope up”.
This is very important, the psalmist repeated it. We should repeatedly tell ourselves not to be discouraged, and that God is working in our situation. Yes, tell our souls, speak to our souls. One indicator that your soul has listened to you is that you are able to praise God despite your afflictions. Whatever happens thereafter, be confident that in all things, your God will work for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). This is a powerful verse in the Bible. To be sure I am always included, I constantly remind myself to love Him, and try to understand what He wants me to do (do not wait until you are afflicted to love Him or to find out what He wants you to do!).

If you are facing trials and temptations, you might want to read another article of mine, James 1:2-18 (Handling Trials and Temptations).


Anthony Chia – I must always keep my head up. The Lord my God is with me, he is mighty to save (Zephaniah 3:17a).

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