Psalm 30 — From Mourning to Dancing
30 I will extol thee, O Lord; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
2 O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.
3 O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
4 Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
6 And in my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved.
7 Lord, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.
8 I cried to thee, O Lord; and unto the Lord I made supplication.
9 What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?
10 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me: Lord, be thou my helper.
11 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
Psalm 30 is a Psalm about healing. People get sick. The cause of their illness or disease is cloaked in mystery. Our sins, our enemies, and our God all seem to play a part in our being brought low. By divine healing grace, we are transformed from mourning to dancing.
Psalm 30 is an individual Psalm of praise and thanksgiving. David was sick. When YHWH healed him, the result was praise and thanksgiving. The structure is seen as praise — lament — praise. David praised and thanked YHWH for forgiving him, delivering him from his enemies, distress, and for healing him from a deadly malady (vv. 1–5). Second, he recited the foolish boast that seemed to be the catalyst for his downfall (vv. 6–10). Third, he returned to praise and thanksgiving (vv. 11–12).
The context closes out a series (Psalm 23–30) of references to the Temple. Here it is a bit obscure, being in the Psalm’s title. Bayit is the Hebrew word for house, which could allude to David’s palace or God’s tabernacle. In search of a setting, the Talmud offers the use of this Psalm at Hanukkah, while the Mishnah suggests the Festival of First Fruits. Both point to a late addition for the Psalm’s title. Our preferred setting would either be after David’s palace was defiled by Absalom and the kingdom was re-secured or after David brought the ark into Jerusalem.
Regardless of the setting, the message is clear. David became self-confident with what God had given him. He suffered illness or disease up to the point of death. His repentance came with a petition for God to hear him and help him. YHWH’s corrective judgment led to His restoration of David’s health. This produced joy for David and disappointment for David’s enemies.
David praised YHWH for delivering him from circumstances preferred by his opponents (v. 1). The divine name, YHWH, is used ten times in this Psalm and is cloaked in our English translations with the title “Lord.” The Psalmist exalts YHWH, who lifted me up. The former is done from below, and the latter is done from above. David’s deliverance has disappointed his enemies, who thought God had forsaken His anointed. Praise is our natural response when we are delivered from detractors and distress, by God’s grace.
David had made an emotional plea for YHWH’s divine assistance, and the result was divine healing (v. 2). His statement was proclamatory, “YHWH is my God!” From where does my help come? My help comes from YHWH. In this case, healing help, which illumines the circumstances. David was struck with illness or disease, but YHWH healed him. Providentially, God is behind every illness and each amelioration. Miriam was struck with leprosy for opposing her brother’s leadership, but his intercessory petition brought a timely renovation.
David revealed the severity of the illness by expressing the depths from which he was rescued (v. 3). Sheol, or the pit, was the Hebrew term for the Greek Hades. It was the place of death. The afterlife was a less-developed concept in the Old Testament. Thus, Jesus’ teaching on hell was vanguard in his time. Disease is often a dark and lonely demise into death. Death and life are vivid terms in our understanding of Jesus being the life, who offers abundant and eternal life. God is life, contrasted with His enemies who are purveyors of death. YHWH has kept me alive. God creates and sustains all life, and in His hand is life and death. In our daily devotion, we should acknowledge God’s preservation of our life in the moment.
David took the role of worship leader by calling the community to offer worship to YHWH (v. 4). Praise is contagious. If one tells his soul to “sing praise to YHWH” then the Spirit invites a chorus of praise. Our invitations for neighbors to come to church are actually calls to worship YHWH, and those who respond in full are His godly ones. Understanding salvation, whether temporal or eternal, generates thanksgiving to the One whose name declares His glorious function, “Jesus” or “YHWH saves.”
David ejaculated a litany of comparative emotions, expressing the highs and lows of our relationship with YHWH (v. 5). God’s anger was contrasted with God’s favor. The former is brief, but the latter is for a lifetime. The sensual emotion of being forsaken produces tears, again in momentary darkness. The Christian life is a series of new beginnings. The valley of the shadow of death is replaced by the irradiating Mount of Transfiguration. The morbid tomb is emptied of death on resurrection Sunday morning. The bright and morning star has shined in our hearts, producing shouts of joy. Every attribute of God conferred upon us is light and life.
David recited the prideful boast that served as a catalyst for his being abased (v. 6). God exalts and abases leaders. Self-sufficiency is tomfoolery. David got a little big for his britches. The Hebrew word translated, “prosperity” is akin to abundance, but it is devoid of God. The law provided blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. God’s favor rested on David, but his refrain lacked any ascription to YHWH, “I will never be moved.” On the contrary, when God is not consulted, a leader’s decline should be expected. Kingdom-less Moses was introduced to the desert. Coat-less Joseph became familiar with the pit and the jail. Health-less Hezekiah was on his death bed.
David reflected on YHWH’s exalting him and then reducing him (v. 7). My mountain is a figure of speech referring to David’s kingdom. We must remember that from Him through Him and to Him are all things. To acknowledge YHWH is most reasonable, but who has not lost their mind and forgotten God in their prosperity? Hence, the proverbial prayer, “Give me neither poverty nor riches,” because I will either forget God or misrepresent Him in my thievery.
Abandonment is a common theme in the Old Testament. The New Covenant comes with blessed assurance that Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us. Ichabod, the glory of the Lord, departed from Saul and YHWH’s protection was no longer upon the king.
To look into the face of God is anthropomorphic, but if it were possible, we would see His glory. We are encouraged with the promise that we will see Him as He is, face to face, in glory; but for now we believe without seeing. The face of God shines on those He looks upon. The antithesis is for Him to look away, as the Father did to the Son on the God-forsaken cross of Calvary. David’s dismay became Christ’s utterance, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” In judgment, the wicked will quote Psalm 22:1, but the thundering voice of the Lord will resound with, “Depart from me, I never knew you (Mt. 25:41).” The child of God has no such fears. Eternal security is the promise of God for His beloved ones. With bold confidence we approach the throne of grace and call God, “our Father.”
David’s corrective action was repentant petition toward YHWH (v. 8). Prayer is talking to God. Prayer acknowledges our dependence on God. Prayer is an act of worship by those in need of God. A supplication is a request made known to God. Omniscience should never degrade the blessings of prayer. Prayer is for the benefit of the penitent, not the all-knowing One.
David recounted his argument with commercial terms to make his case for living (v. 9). David experienced prosperity, and it cost him dearly. Here he argued for the profit of God. God made everything to bring Him glory. Agents of rebellion have one objective: to deny God glory. They assemble to give glory to another. They disperse to recruit for the rebel cause, and they destroy those who follow the reasoning, “Did God say?” Who questions God?
David made his attempt to reason with God, regarding what he knew of God’s intention for all things to bring Him glory. David would be useless to God if he were dead. The answers to his triad of questions are all negative. The blood will not live. The presence of a worshiper will be lost. The dust will not praise. We are witnesses to man’s feeble attempt to reason with God for his existence. Let us never forget that God does not need us nor our worship. Our arguments are not worth much, but we have all supplicated in this manner. What is a better from man is a simple, repentant petition.
David seemed to drop the argument, and his plea reiterated YHWH was his Helper (v. 10). The request to be heard is common with David. He teaches us with his example of reverence for YHWH, “Hear, O Lord.” The Holy Spirit is given the title, “helper” in John’s Gospel chapter 14. The permanent presence of the Holy Spirit means we have a very present help in times of trouble. What we need more than anything in the world is what David asks God for, “be gracious to me.” We are saved by God’s grace, not our works, lest we should say, “I will never be moved.” Better for us to say, “But by the grace of God there goes me.”
David recapitulated his joyous transformation (v. 11). Two images of transformation are given. The first is one of depression being replaced by active joy, mourning to dancing. The second is the customary sackcloth and ashes when one is brought low. Clothing changes often mean changes in disposition in the Bible. Sackcloth is a rough textured material used carrying heavy loads. To put on sackcloth acknowledges loss of favor. It is wearing black at a funeral.
David closed with a vow to praise YHWH with an eternal utterance of thanksgiving (v. 12). The natural state of the redeemed is joyful songs of praise. Silence is anti-Christ. Thanksgiving is our ever-present and eternal expression directed to the God of our salvation. Praise to the Lord!
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
June 19, 2021
