A Psalm of Supplication and Trust.
A Prayer of David.
86 Incline Your ear, O Lord, and answer me;
For I am afflicted and needy.
2 Preserve my [a]soul, for I am a godly man;
O You my God, save Your servant who trusts in You.
3 Be gracious to me, O Lord,
For to You I cry all day long.
4 Make glad the soul of Your servant,
For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
5 For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.
6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
And give heed to the voice of my supplications!
7 In the day of my trouble I shall call upon You,
For You will answer me.
8 There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord,
Nor are there any works like Yours.
9 All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And they shall glorify Your name.
10 For You are great and do [b]wondrous deeds;
You alone are God.
Throughout this psalm, we see a pattern. The psalmist asks God to listen, and to answer. He asks God to rescue him and be gracious. Yet sprinkled throughout, there are reminders that God does listen, and always answers. In vs. 5 we see that God is good, ready to forgive, and abundant in lovingkindness.
Then again, as the psalmist asks God to hear him in vs. 6, the psalmist himself reiterates that God is the best (and only) one to call upon in the day of trouble. Why? Verse 7 tells us clearly, “You will answer me.” No, we don’t always get the answer we want, but we will get one better, one that is best for who He created us to be, and the situation in which we find ourselves.
There is no one that can answer like God, and this is another recurring theme. Not only will He answer, with what is best for us, we see in vs. 8 that there is no one who does works like Him. God doesn’t just say “no” to leave us in the dirt, miserable and suffering. Rather, God is working something more incredible than what we could imagine. So much so, that all nations… shall come, worship, and glorify His name.
Don’t be dismayed when it seems God is saying “no” or “wait”. His “not yet” is perfectly timed, and His deeds are “wondrous”. He alone is God, and can see the end of every path. When we pray for Him to be a “light unto our path”, it is an easy thing for Him who can see not just the next step, but the end result, the goal eternal for which we strive. It may be like looking through a “darkened glass” for us, but our Father sees the good which He has in store for each of His children.