Sometimes a verse puts your troubles into a few short words. Psalm 34:19 begins, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous.” You’re on the short end. Someone is spreading lies about you, cheating you in some deal, using you, not following the Golden Rule…. These are the afflictions that trouble sincere and godly people.
For that the psalmist gives this promise, “But the Lord him out of them all.” Sometimes you’ve seen this promise kept in your own lifetime. You’ve seen people who have wronged you finally get what’s due them. But much damage was done and now, right now, you may be suffering because of some wrong being done to you. These troubles can drive us two ways. One is toward retaliation. Don’t go there, the psalmist says, but instead trust the promise. “The Lord delivers him out of them all.” God sees; God knows; God hears your prayer. “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears toward their cry.” So if people are doing you wrong, if you can’t get them to stop, and if, this is a big if, if you’re not retaliating but trusting God to set things right, this verse, Psalm 34:19, is for you. It’s affirmation as you walk the way of Christ.
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