Have Mercy Upon Us, O Lord
When was the last time you found yourself in distress? Perhaps you experienced a painful injury or endured an illness. Maybe your were overcome with fear and anxiety because something you value was threatened. Perhaps a loved one died and grief washed over you like a flood. Maybe your spouse betrayed you or a child confessed he or she was doing things they shouldn’t. Perhaps you didn’t know where the money was going to come from to pay the next month’s bills. Regardless, distress reveals something bad or sad is happening in our lives. So what do we do? Psalm 123 tells us. But before we turn our attention to this psalm we need to understand its broader context.
The Lord had commanded Israel to keep three festivals a year in the city of Jerusalem (see Deut. 16:16). It’s likely that the fifteen Songs of Ascents (Psalms 120-134) were sung by the Israelites on their way to Jerusalem to keep the annual feasts, both before and after the exile. Therefore, it’s appropriate that the collection begins with the pilgrims far away from the temple in Jerusalem. They face temptations both from without (the devil and the world) and from within (their own flesh). These psalms present a picture of every believer’s journey to the new Jerusalem. They teach us about our journey as elect exiles on this earth and more importantly, about the Elect Exile who left His home in glory to fulfill His Father’s plan. They are arranged in a significant order—seven psalms on either side of the climactic one, Psalm 127, which highlights two of God’s promises to David (a place and progeny). Since the Songs of Ascents aid us in our worship of God we should study them often. In this brief article we will consider what the fourth one (Psalm 123) has to teach us.
Upward-focused
In his distress the psalmist lifts his eyes to the true King, “To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens!” (Psalm 123:1). Notably, this sufferer isn’t alone in his pain. The entire community is suffering together, “as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master…so our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he has mercy on us” (v. 2). Their hope and trust is rooted in God’s covenant. God’s steadfast love for His people was reflected in His command to the priesthood to bless them with these words, “the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you” (Num. 6:25). No wonder, then, that their eyes are turned in hope to the One who has declared to be gracious to them.
The believer today lifts his or her eyes up to heaven knowing that Jesus is enthroned at the right hand of God the Father. He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He is the Master of all masters and the Servant of all servants. We don’t have to wonder if He’ll have mercy on us. He healed those who cried for mercy, like blind Bartimaeus, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47). And He’s willing to heal you and me when we come to Him in repentance and faith. This mercy is not dispensed once upon our conversion, but repeatedly throughout our Christian life. Whenever we find ourselves suffering we can “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16).
Downward-pressed
If you’ve ever trusted and hoped in the Lord only to be scoffed at by others, you know how disheartening it can be. The psalmist gives us words to form our lament in such circumstances, “Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us, for we have had more than enough of contempt” (Psalm 123:3). Sadly, their trust and hope were ridiculed. Contempt closed upon them, scorn slithered toward them, and the proud prowled around them, “Our soul has had more than enough of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud” (v. 4). Thankfully, their enemies don’t have the final word. Their cry for mercy is confident because it’s rooted in God’s kindness.
When we are pressed down our gaze is to be upon “Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). As our King, He has defeated His and our enemies. As our Master, He has served us. As our Savior He has endured contempt from others. As our High Priest He has been merciful to us. As our Redeemer, He has saved us from God’s wrath. Dear believer, in your distress the devil, the world, and your own flesh want your eyes on everyone and everything else but Christ. Don’t be deceived. There’s only one who is merciful. Lift up your eyes to the Lord!
