Psalm 44 – We Have Heard
In Psalm 44 – we have heard, what have they heard? Who said it? Is it a credible source? Read on to find out.
Psalm 44
Psalm 44 – we have heard, is another maskil by the sons of Korah. It begins with a pronouncement of all God had done for the people in the past. In a time without easy access to the written word, oral tradition was primary. Stories were passed down from one generation to another. In light of this, it is a wonder how often they got it right. Stories that get passed around on the internet nowadays can take on a life of their own and quickly bear no resemblance to the truth.
What they heard was the salvation story of the Hebrew people, how slaves who had escaped Egypt, spent forty years wandering in the desert, and won victory over other nations when they moved into the promised land.
“We have heard it with our ears, O God; our ancestors have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago.
With your hand you drove out the nations and planted our ancestors; you crushed the peoples and made our ancestors flourish.
It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them.” (1-3)
A beautiful recap of salvation history. They heard it with their ears, from their ancestors, the wonders of God.
Salvation History
In the next verses of Psalm 44, we hear more about how God acts on behalf of the nation. It was God who brought victory:
“You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob.
Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes.
I put no trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory;
but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame.” (4-7)
But then the story changes to a lament. God is no longer with them:
“But now you have rejected and humbled us; you no longer go out with our armies.
You made us retreat before the enemy, and our adversaries have plundered us.
You gave us up to be devoured like sheep and have scattered us among the nations.
You sold your people for a pittance, gaining nothing from their sale.” (9-12)
Understandably the people are questioning why this is happening. Unlike other times when their ancestors had sinned, they had remained faithful.
“All this came upon us, though we had not forgotten you; we had not been false to your covenant.
Our hearts had not turned back; our feet had not strayed from your path.” (17-18)
Wake Up, God!
In the face of this they tell God to wake up, do something.
“Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression?
We are brought down to the dust; our bodies cling to the ground.
Rise up and help us; rescue us because of your unfailing love.” (23-26)
Still the psalm ends on a positive note, reminding all of God’s unfailing love.
When God is Silent
As mentioned above, stories were passed down from one generation to the next. They heard from their ancestors all that God has done. It was recited by every small child, remembered at every Seder meal, how God saved the Hebrew nation. But Psalm 44 – we have heard, asks where is God now? Like Job, they had done nothing to earn God’s disfavor.
In Psalm 44, we encounter the age-old question of why good people suffer. Through no fault of their own, they have been scattered and are now in a place of jackals. As one commentary states, “A “place of jackals” is, like a habitation of dragons (Jeremiah 10:22), the most lonesome and terrible wilderness; the place chosen was, according to this, an inhospitable מדבר, far removed from the dwellings of men.”
There is desolation and destruction all around them. And when they cry out to God, God doesn’t answer. The people struggle to understand. They shout out to God to wake up, do something.
We need only look at the pictures of war-torn Gaza and Ukraine. Or closer to home, the ravages of Hurricane Helene, to see modern day desolation and destruction. As I write this, it is October 7, a year after the Hamas led attack on the Israeli people. A hundred hostages continue to be unaccounted for. What did those people do to deserve this? Or the thousands of Palestinians that have died in the onslaught after the attack. Civilians, women, children. What did they do to deserve this?
All reasons to cry out to God – Wake up! Do something! Don’t you care that so many of your children are dying?
The Consolations of God or the God of Consolations
When we are new to the spiritual journey, God gives us consolations to help us and guide us along the way. However, as we grow in our spiritual life, there often comes a time when the consolations are few and far between. We are challenged then to ask ourselves: Are we only interested in the consolations that God gives, or do we love God, regardless of whether we receive consolations? This is an important part of spiritual growth. If we only love God when God gives us what we want, then we are children who see God as Santa who doles out goodies to us if we are good.
But if we truly love God, we love God even when God seems silent, when we don’t understand what God is doing. We love God because God is God, not because of the goodies God gives us. We love God because all of our being cries out to God in longing and adoration. Because there is something within us that cannot be satisfied by this world and longs for another.
Psalm 44 – We Have Heard
In Psalm 44 – we have heard, we hear the salvation story of the Hebrew people. We also hear their laments in a time of trouble. Through it all, they are not afraid to make demands of God, to cry out to their God, reminding God of God’s unending, everlasting love.
The current situations in our world give me reasons to cry out with all of the people suffering in this world. With them I cry out: Wake up, God! Do something! Remember your love for your people.
My love is not conditioned on God giving me what I ask. That is a childish love. But we need not be afraid to lament. To cry out with our whole being to our God.
Such is the message of Psalm 44 – we have heard. We have heard of your love, O God, and we remember your kindness of old. And so, we have the confidence to cry to you again, our Lord and our God!
What has been your experience of lament? Do you have the ability to pour out all of your sorrows to God? If not, why not? What is holding you back? I would love to hear from you.
(For another take on this psalm, see Psalm 44: What Does It Mean to be Chosen? – Patricia M Robertson)
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