In Psalm 89, Ethan recalls God's covenant to David to establish his throne forever (see 2 Samuel 7). He praises the Lord for all his works and his love (v. 1-18), and recounts all of God's promises on behalf of his people (v. 19-37). The problem is that reality seems far from what was promised (v. 38-45), and so Ethan laments: "How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself forever?...Lord, where is your steadfast love of old, which by your faithfulness you swore to David?" (V. 46, 49). His lament ends with a simple prayer that the Lord might remember them, and then Ethan ends his psalm with an expression of praise: "Blessed be the LORD forever!" (v. 52).
O Lord, I love to read Revelation and be reminded of the promises you have made to us. One day, your Holy City, the New Jerusalem, will descend from the clouds and rest on earth and you will live with your people forever (Rev. 21:1-3). Heaven (the dwelling place of God) and earth (the dwelling place of humanity) will no longer be separate places, torn apart by sin, but will be reunited as one place as you come down to live with us forever and bring heaven down with you. Heaven and earth will be united, and God and his people will be reconciled. Even as you once walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve, you will again walk the gardens of this world in intimate fellowship with your people. O Lord, we long for this day!
One day you will wipe away the tears from our eyes and we will never cry again (Rev. 21:4). One day you will so utterly transform our bodies that we will never again be subject to death or even to pain (Rev. 21:4). One day you will transform our hearts so that we will never stray from you again, but will always walk in the light of the Lamb (Rev. 21:22-24). O Lord, we long for this day!
O Lord, as we think of all you've promised, and as we think of all face, like Ethan we can cry out: "How long, O LORD?" (v. 46). How long must we continue to be subject to pain and sadness, dishonor and death, and even our own sinfulness? We long for these days to be behind us, and the days of your glorious kingdom's full reign to be reality. We are waiting for you to make good on your promises. And yet, like Ethan, we trust you. We know that in time you will make good on all of your promises. And so in our weeping we wait. And in our pain we praise you: "Blessed be the LORD forever!" (v. 52). Amen and Amen.
