“For the choir director. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; when shall I come and appear before God? … I will say to God my rock, ‘Why have You forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?’” (Psa 42:0–2, 9).
The transition from Book I (Psalms 3–41) to Book II (Psalms 42–72) is marked not only by the final doxology in Psalm 41:13, but also by a shift in authorship in the superscriptions. Book II opens with a group of seven psalms by the sons of Korah (Psalm 43 lacks a superscription but is closely related to Psalm 42).
Consistent with the rest of the Psalter, this group of psalms not only demonstrates intentional structure but also highlights the importance of the coming Messiah. How? Psalms 42-44 are lament psalms focused on divine distance. God is far from us and we from him because he has forgotten us (Psa 42:9; 44:24), hidden his face from us (Psa 44:24), rejected us (Psa 43:2; 44:9, 23), and no longer goes out with our army (Psa 44:9). Psalms 46-49, on the other hand, are filled with praise and celebration (see Psalms 47–48), because now God is “very present” (Psa 46:1) and the LORD of hosts is with us (Psa 46:7, 11).
We do not look to the military might of superpowers to fix spiritual problems. Our hope is in the coming of Messiah Yeshua, who is fully man and fully God.
This shift from lament to praise, from distance to presence, does not happen randomly. It comes at the psalm most consistent with the Messianic message of the Psalter: Psalm 45. It is here, at the turning point, that we are shown the beautiful Davidic king of Israel who is fully divine (Psa 45:2, 6, 17), who defeats the enemy (Psa 45:5), and who delights in and weds his beautiful bride (Psa 45:9–15). For the sons of Korah, as well as for the author of the Psalter, the coming of Israel’s divine Messiah is therefore the answer to Israel’s distance from God, defeat in battle, and longing for restoration.
And so for us today: as we live in a nation far from the God of Israel, in a broken world shaking its fist and mocking God, we do not look to the military might of superpowers to fix spiritual problems. Our hope is in the coming of Messiah Yeshua, who is fully man and fully God (see Heb 1:8-12).
