1/17 Psalm 38

PSALM 38

AUTHOR: Job

The Story Behind the Psalm

Read carefully Job 42:1-6; then read the 38th Psalm. You will find an amazing similarity. Job had stood the test. God had allowed Satan to try him, and Job did not turn his back upon God. In one of the most marvelous displays of loyalty ever known, Job stood the test and kept his promise that even if God should slay him, he would still trust Him. However, when Job had stood the test and God had given him twice as much as he had before, Job became proud. How tragic it is that even in our highest hour, we are tempted to sin, and even in the holiest of duties, we stoop to human deeds! Job became proud of himself and God rebuked him severely. This drives Job to the ash heap to repent as is found in Job 42:1-6. Of course, God forgives him, and Job's temporary lapse does not tarnish our faith in him. It simply reminds us that he is human. I think that God places such a sin in the Bible to show us that all of us are human and potential backsliders. Abraham lied about Sarah. Paul took a Jewish vow. Noah was drunken. Moses lost his temper and smote the rock twice and numbered the people and was forbidden to enter into the promised land. Peter cursed and swore and denied that he belonged to the Saviour. David had his sin with Bathsheba and Uriah. God is reminding us that the best of men are men at best.

There is something very sweet in the story of Job. After Job had lost his sheep, his asses, his camels, his oxen and his children and, yea, all that he had, he stood the test and did not charge the Lord. After he had proved himself, God gave him back twice as many asses and twice as many sheep and twice as many camels and twice as many oxen, but He gave him the same number of children that he had before—ten. This used to bother me until one day it dawned on me. Job did have twice as many children as he had before. When an ox dies, it's dead. When an ass dies, it's dead. When a camel dies, it's dead. When a sheep dies, it's dead. When a child dies, it is not dead. Job did have twice as many children—he simply had ten on earth and ten in Heaven. Praise God!

The Way It Was Used by God's People

When a Hebrew sought repentance, he would often come to the 38th Psalm. It would lead him to repent of his sin. This is another of the penitential Psalms.