Psalm 60 – Restore Us Again!
By Bunni Pounds
*This blog is part of our weekly, virtual Bible Study through the book of Psalms. For information on how to participate, please visit this page.
No one can heal us and restore us other than God. Putting our trust in men or women to change or repair their broken states will not work. We have to completely depend on the Creator, the Redeemer, and the Restorer of our souls – Jesus.
David is now King as he sings this song and in 2 Samuel 8 has just vanquished Edom, Syria, and Moab. “So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people.” – 2 Samuel 8:15
He is coming from a place of great strength as he says at the end of the Psalm – “Through God we will do valiantly, For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” (verse 12)
“O God, You have cast us off;
You have broken us down;
You have been displeased;
Oh, restore us again!
You have made the earth tremble;
You have broken it;
Heal its breaches, for it is shaking.
You have shown Your people hard things;
You have made us drink the wine of confusion.” (verses 1-3)
There is always a breaking down before the restoration. Shaking happens. Things seem to get worse as sin is exposed, corruption is seen in broad day light and everything that was hidden is seen by all.
Here is the ministry of the prophet Jeremiah who was sent by God to break down Israel so they could be rebuilt.
Jeremiah 31:28 says - “And it shall come to pass, that as I have watched over them to pluck up, to break down, to throw down, to destroy, and to afflict, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord.”
The ultimate goal of the shaking that God allowed was the healing of the “breaches” and complete restoration. “Restore us again!” - David cried out.
Though God shows us hard things about our circumstances, about ourselves, and about the ones we love – this is ultimately to bring restoration.
Acts 3:20-21 “and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”
Restoration is coming. Keep your eyes on Jesus.
“You have given a banner to those who fear You,
That it may be displayed because of the truth. Selah
That Your beloved may be delivered,
Save with Your right hand, and hear me.” (verse 4-5)
There is only One person that can save and deliver and that is Jesus. We are His beloved that will be delivered because He wants us to be delivered. He will not leave us or forsake us. He is the “The-Lord-Is-My-Banner” (Exodus 17:15) – that is one of His names and part of his character. He goes out before the people and declares to all the enemies of our soul that He is leading and guiding us.
Isaiah 11:10 -
“And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious.”
As the banner that goes before us – He is attractive to people who don’t know Him. They can see how He leads us and guides us and that pulls them in. Through the story that God is weaving through our lives – His glory is seen even more. His banner is lifted high, and the people are brought into His love.
God takes ownership over all the enemies of Israel and brings them into King David’s control. People were astonished.
“Give us help from trouble,
For the help of man is useless.
Through God we will do valiantly,
For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” (verses 11-12)
The sooner that we realize that trying to find help just from man’s wisdom is a losing battle - the better we will be. We need God’s wisdom to find help in time of trouble.
James 1:5 – “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”
If we lack wisdom – we simply must ask God for it. Doesn’t sound like rocket science, does it? It is simple but yet hard to do because many times we just trust in our own wisdom or the “wisdom” of others.
When we are battling the enemies of our soul – like depression, loneliness, pain, pride, fear, anger, unforgiveness and more, God is the only one that can “tread down our enemies”
He is a God of restoration, and He wants to restore all things. That is His heart for us. Will you let Him restore you today? Will you believe for Him to restore all things in your life, your family, your community, and your nation?
Today, let’s pray together – God – restore us again!
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