Faithfulness

Faithfulness Part 3: Scripture Chastening 

Psalm 88

1 O LORD, God of my salvation,

I have cried out day and night before You.

2 Let my prayer come before You;

Incline Your ear to my cry.

3 For my soul is full of troubles,

And my life draws near to the grave.

4 I am counted with those who go down to the pit;

I am like a man who has no strength,

5 Adrift among the dead,

Like the slain who lie in the grave,

Whom You remember no more,

And who are cut off from Your hand.

6 You have laid me in the lowest pit,

In darkness, in the depths.

7 Your wrath lies heavy upon me,

And You have afflicted me with all Your waves.

Selah

8 You have put away my acquaintances far from me;

You have made me an abomination to them;

I am shut up, and I cannot get out;

9 My eye wastes away because of affliction.

LORD, I have called daily upon You;

I have stretched out my hands to You.

10 Will You work wonders for the dead?

Shall the dead arise and praise You?

Selah

11 Shall Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave?

Or Your faithfulness in the place of destruction?

12 Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?

And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

13 But to You I have cried out, O LORD,

And in the morning my prayer comes before You.

14 LORD, why do You cast off my soul?

Why do You hide Your face from me?

15 I have been afflicted and ready to die from my youth;

I suffer Your terrors;

I am distraught.

16 Your fierce wrath has gone over me;

Your terrors have cut me off.

17 They came around me all day long like water;

They engulfed me altogether.

18 Loved one and friend You have put far from me,

And my acquaintances into darkness.

Notice transition from Psalm 88 to Psalm 89 Chastening to Praise.. For His wrath is for a moment but His love and mercy endures forever.

Psalm 89

1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever;

With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.

2 For I have said, "Mercy shall be built up forever;

Your faithfulness You shall establish in the very heavens."

3 "I have made a covenant with My chosen,

I have sworn to My servant David:

4 ‘Your seed I will establish forever,

And build up your throne to all generations.’"

Selah

5 And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD;

Your faithfulness also in the assembly of the saints.

6 For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD?

Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the LORD?

7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,

And to be held in reverence by all those around Him.

8 O LORD God of hosts,

Who is mighty like You, O LORD?

Your faithfulness also surrounds You.

9 You rule the raging of the sea;

When its waves rise, You still them.

10 You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one who is slain;

You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.

11 The heavens are Yours, the earth also is Yours;

The world and all its fullness, You have founded them.

12 The north and the south, You have created them;

Tabor and Hermon rejoice in Your name.

13 You have a mighty arm;

Strong is Your hand, and high is Your right hand.

14 Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;

Mercy and truth go before Your face.

15 Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound!

They walk, O LORD, in the light of Your countenance.

16 In Your name they rejoice all day long,

And in Your righteousness they are exalted.

17 For You are the glory of their strength,

And in Your favor our horn is exalted.

18 For our shield belongs to the LORD,

And our king to the Holy One of Israel.

19 Then You spoke in a vision to Your holy one,

And said: "I have given help to one who is mighty;

I have exalted one chosen from the people.

20 I have found My servant David;

With My holy oil I have anointed him,

21 With whom My hand shall be established;

Also My arm shall strengthen him.

22 The enemy shall not outwit him,

Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.

23 I will beat down his foes before his face,

And plague those who hate him.

24 "But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him,

And in My name his horn shall be exalted.

25 Also I will set his hand over the sea,

And his right hand over the rivers.

26 He shall cry to Me, ‘You are my Father,

My God, and the rock of my salvation.’

27 Also I will make him My firstborn,

The highest of the kings of the earth.

28 My mercy I will keep for him forever,

And My covenant shall stand firm with him.

29 His seed also I will make to endure forever,

And his throne as the days of heaven.

30 "If his sons forsake My law

And do not walk in My judgments,

31 If they break My statutes

And do not keep My commandments,

32 Then I will punish their transgression with the rod,

And their iniquity with stripes.

33 Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him,

Nor allow My faithfulness to fail.

34 My covenant I will not break,

Nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips.

35 Once I have sworn by My holiness;

I will not lie to David:

36 His seed shall endure forever,

And his throne as the sun before Me;

37 It shall be established forever like the moon,

Even like the faithful witness in the sky."

Selah   

38 But You have cast off and abhorred,

You have been furious with Your anointed.

39 You have renounced the covenant of Your servant;

You have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.

40 You have broken down all his hedges;

You have brought his strongholds to ruin.

41 All who pass by the way plunder him;

He is a reproach to his neighbors.

42 You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries;

You have made all his enemies rejoice.

43 You have also turned back the edge of his sword,

And have not sustained him in the battle.

44 You have made his glory cease,

And cast his throne down to the ground.

45 The days of his youth You have shortened;

You have covered him with shame.

Selah

46 How long, LORD?

Will You hide Yourself forever?

Will Your wrath burn like fire?

47 Remember how short my time is;

For what futility have You created all the children of men?

48 What man can live and not see death?

Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave?

Selah

49 Lord, where are Your former lovingkindnesses,

Which You swore to David in Your truth?

50 Remember, Lord, the reproach of Your servants—

How I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples,

51 With which Your enemies have reproached, O LORD,

With which they have reproached the footsteps of Your anointed.

52 Blessed be the LORD forevermore!

Amen and Amen.

Psalm 92

1 It is good to give thanks to the LORD,

And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;

2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,

And Your faithfulness every night,

3 On an instrument of ten strings,

On the lute,

And on the harp,

With harmonious sound.

4 For You, LORD, have made me glad through Your work;

I will triumph in the works of Your hands.

5 O LORD, how great are Your works!

Your thoughts are very deep.

6 A senseless man does not know,

Nor does a fool understand this.

7 When the wicked spring up like grass,

And when all the workers of iniquity flourish,

It is that they may be destroyed forever.

8 But You, LORD, are on high forevermore.

9 For behold, Your enemies, O LORD,

For behold, Your enemies shall perish;

All the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.

10 But my horn You have exalted like a wild ox;

I have been anointed with fresh oil.

11 My eye also has seen my desire on my enemies;

My ears hear my desire on the wicked

Who rise up against me.

12 The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree,

He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

13 Those who are planted in the house of the LORD

Shall flourish in the courts of our God.

14 They shall still bear fruit in old age;

They shall be fresh and flourishing,

15 To declare that the LORD is upright;

He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

Psalm 119

75 I know, O LORD, that Your judgments are right,

And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.

76Let, I pray, Your merciful kindness be for my comfort,

According to Your word to Your servant.

77Let Your tender mercies come to me, that I may live;

For Your law is my delight.

78Let the proud be ashamed,

For they treated me wrongfully with falsehood;

But I will meditate on Your precepts.

79Let those who fear You turn to me,

Those who know Your testimonies.

80Let my heart be blameless regarding Your statutes,

That I may not be ashamed.

ë KAPH

81My soul faints for Your salvation,

But I hope in Your word.

82My eyes fail from searching Your word,

Saying, "When will You comfort me?"

83For I have become like a wineskin in smoke,

Yet I do not forget Your statutes.

84How many are the days of Your servant?

When will You execute judgment on those who persecute me?

85The proud have dug pits for me,

Which is not according to Your law.

86All Your commandments are faithful;

They persecute me wrongfully;

Help me!

87They almost made an end of me on earth,

But I did not forsake Your precepts.

88Revive me according to Your lovingkindness,

So that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth.

ì LAMED

89Forever, O LORD,

Your word is settled in heaven.

90Your faithfulness endures to all generations;

You established the earth, and it abides.

91They continue this day according to Your ordinances,

For all are Your servants.

92Unless Your law had been my delight,

I would then have perished in my affliction.

93I will never forget Your precepts,

For by them You have given me life.

94I am Yours, save me;........................................

 

Psalm 143

1 Hear my prayer, O LORD,

Give ear to my supplications!

In Your faithfulness answer me,

And in Your righteousness.

2 Do not enter into judgment with Your servant,

For in Your sight no one living is righteous.

3 For the enemy has persecuted my soul;

He has crushed my life to the ground;

He has made me dwell in darkness,

Like those who have long been dead.

4 Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;

My heart within me is distressed.

5 I remember the days of old;

I meditate on all Your works;

I muse on the work of Your hands.

6 I spread out my hands to You;

My soul longs for You like a thirsty land.

Selah

7 Answer me speedily, O LORD;

My spirit fails!

Do not hide Your face from me,

Lest I be like those who go down into the pit.

8 Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning,

For in You do I trust;

Cause me to know the way in which I should walk,

For I lift up my soul to You.

9 Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies;

In You I take shelter.

10 Teach me to do Your will,

For You are my God;

Your Spirit is good.

Lead me in the land of uprightness.

11 Revive me, O LORD, for Your name’s sake!

For Your righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.

12 In Your mercy cut off my enemies,

And destroy all those who afflict my soul;

For I am Your servant.

Isaiah 11

1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse,

And a Branch shall grow out of his roots.

2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him,

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The Spirit of counsel and might,

The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

3 His delight is in the fear of the LORD,

And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes,

Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;

4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor,

And decide with equity for the meek of the earth;

He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,

And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.

5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins,

And faithfulness the belt of His waist.

Isaiah 25

1 O LORD, You are my God.

I will exalt You,

I will praise Your name,

For You have done wonderful things;

Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

2 For You have made a city a ruin,

A fortified city a ruin,

A palace of foreigners to be a city no more;

It will never be rebuilt.

3 Therefore the strong people will glorify You;

The city of the terrible nations will fear You.

4 For You have been a strength to the poor,

A strength to the needy in his distress,

A refuge from the storm,

A shade from the heat;

For the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm against the wall.

5 You will reduce the noise of aliens,

As heat in a dry place;

As heat in the shadow of a cloud,

The song of the terrible ones will be diminished.

6 And in this mountain

The LORD of hosts will make for all people

A feast of choice pieces,

A feast of wines on the lees,

Of fat things full of marrow,

Of well-refined wines on the lees.

7 And He will destroy on this mountain

The surface of the covering cast over all people,

And the veil that is spread over all nations.

8 He will swallow up death forever,

And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces;

The rebuke of His people

He will take away from all the earth;

For the LORD has spoken.

9 And it will be said in that day:

"Behold, this is our God;

We have waited for Him, and He will save us.

This is the LORD;

We have waited for Him;

We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation."............

Lamentations 3:

22 Through the LORD’S mercies we are not consumed,

Because His compassions fail not.

23 They are new every morning;

Great is Your faithfulness.

24 "The LORD is my portion," says my soul,

"Therefore I hope in Him!"

25 The LORD is good to those who wait for Him,

To the soul who seeks Him.

26 It is good that one should hope and wait quietly

For the salvation of the LORD.

27 It is good for a man to bear

The yoke in his youth.

28 Let him sit alone and keep silent,

Because God has laid it on him;

29 Let him put his mouth in the dust—

There may yet be hope.

30 Let him give his cheek to the one who strikes him,

And be full of reproach.

31 For the Lord will not cast off forever.

32 Though He causes grief,

Yet He will show compassion

According to the multitude of His mercies.

33 For He does not afflict willingly,

Nor grieve the children of men..................

39 Why should a living man complain,

A man for the punishment of his sins?

40 Let us search out and examine our ways,

And turn back to the LORD;

41 Let us lift our hearts and hands

To God in heaven.

42 We have transgressed and rebelled;

You have not pardoned.....................

55 I called on Your name, O LORD,

From the lowest pit.

56 You have heard my voice:

"Do not hide Your ear

From my sighing, from my cry for help."

57 You drew near on the day I called on You,

And said, "Do not fear!"

58 O Lord, You have pleaded the case for my soul;

You have redeemed my life.

Hosea 2:

19 "I will betroth you to Me forever;

Yes, I will betroth you to Me

In righteousness and justice,

In lovingkindness and mercy;

20 I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness,

And you shall know the LORD.

21 "It shall come to pass in that day

That I will answer," says the LORD;

"I will answer the heavens,

And they shall answer the earth.

22 The earth shall answer

With grain,

With new wine,

And with oil;

They shall answer Jezreel.

23 Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth,

And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy;

Then I will say to those who were not My people,

‘You are My people!’

And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’"

Faithfulness index

Faithfulness Part 1: There is no shadow of turning with Thee. Great is Thy Faithfulness!

Faithfulness Part 2: Scripture His Faithfulness Previous page in series

Faithfulness Part 3: Scripture Chastening 

Faithfulness Part 4: Your Faithfulness to God Next page in series

Faithfulness Part 5: Overview Diary notes in a time of difficulty

Faithfulness Part 6: Out of control, But God is in control

Faithfulness Part 7:  Notes in a time of peril

Faithfulness Part 8:  Knowing God, God knowing you, and your love relationship with one another.

Faithfulness Part 9:  Praise of His Faithfulness