Cry Out to the Lord - Psalm 130

Out of the depths I call to you, Lord ! Lord, listen to my voice; let your ears be attentive to my cry for help. Lord , if you kept an account of iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that you may be revered. I wait for the Lord ; I wait and put my hope in his word. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning — more than watchmen for the morning. Israel, put your hope in the Lord. For there is faithful love with the Lord, and with him is redemption in abundance. And he will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Psalm 130:1-8

Adam Hid

Adam bit into that fruit and hid. I sometimes wonder what would have happened if he had, upon his sin, immediately turned to the Lord in sorrow and asked for forgiveness. 

But he ran. And when the Lord found him hiding, Adam blamed his wife and the Lord for his sin. Lord, you put the test there. 

But what if he had turned straight away to the Lord. 

That’s who I want to be. I sin. Hey, I can certainly think I’m all that, stinking up the air with my pride. I can blame the Lord. I can be resentful over the consequences of my sin.

But how about if I immediately go to Him. What if I said, “Lord, I have sinned against you. Heal me. Help me turn from this. Help me purify myself. I need your help.”

I think much of my sin comes out of my stress. When I get stressed, I can look in all the wrong places for answers. But God tells me over and over again to depend upon Him.

The Psalmist here is crying out. Crying. Not very manly, right? Wrong. It’s the most manly thing to do in the struggle with sin, or when the world attacks. 

Okay, I want to be clear. This isn’t crybaby crying; this is seeking the Lord for help crying. 

I love what he asks of the Lord. “Listen to my voice,” he says. This is passionate and active calling out. It’s not passive. There’s no hint here that the Lord might not listen. The psalmist knows the Lord will listen. He says, “Listen to my voice,” to clearly tell himself what the Lord is like; the Lord listens to His children. 

The psalmist admits his sin and reminds God what He is like. God doesn’t keep account of  these sins. Why does he tell God about God’s character? Because the man needs to say true things about God in his prayer. It helps keep Him centered on the fact that he is talking to the King of creation. 

He Reminds God

He reminds God that He is a forgiving God. And again, God knows this, but the relationship must be stated. All of this reminds him that he matters to God. 

But it’s not just the Psalm writer who matters. This Psalm was included in the song book for all of His children to sing, chant, learn, and believe. This Psalm instructs me about my relationship with God. 

I too can cry out to Him from the depths. I too must remind Him of his true, righteous, and forgiving character. 

And because God has all of these beautiful attributes, the psalmist can sing that he waits for God. 

And I too can wait. God moves in His time. His perfect time. It’s not that He is too tired or busy. He knows the exact right time. He knows the exact lesson that I need. And I learn most of those lessons through humble patience. 

Then, he tells all of Israel that they can hope in the Lord. Why?

All of Israel Hopes

Because He is faithful. There is waiting from me. There is faithfulness in Him. 

Plus, there is redemption, and not just a little; He redeems abundantly. Redemption means He bought my debt and sets me free. I am free. 

I am free to believe, hope, and live. Live for Him. Be his servant and friend. Friend. That’s right, I am His friend. He calls me that. What a powerful, abundant redemption!

The passage adds this: He will redeem Israel (me) from ALL iniquity. All. 

Lord, you have paid the price for ALL of my sin. My hope is in you. I have sinned and need your faithful forgiveness. Hear me Lord. Today. Blessed be the Name of the Lord.