Word of Encouragement (12/30/2020)

“For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed. 8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. 9 For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh. 10 The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away. 11 Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you? 12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90:7-12).

Good morning!

Yesterday, we spoke of the contrast between God’s eternity and man’s ephemerality. In this passage, we realize that there is more to the contrast: what was in the background comes to the fore—the cause of the transience of man. Moses knew too much to see man returning to dust as natural. Death is the curse that came upon humanity only after Adam and Eve’s fall in sin. But to Moses, this was not just a general truth about life. He was forced to witness its reality all around him. The brevity of life he describes in this Psalm was an ongoing reality very much present in his life as he saw his fellow Israelites dying away in the wilderness. As David C. Mitchell points out,

“Such a corporate sense of the brevity and futility of life seems to reflect a generation waiting to die. The second section of the psalm (vv. 7-12) explains this situation as resulting from the anger and punishment of God (vv. 7-12). He gazes upon the people's iniquities; their days pass away beneath his wrath (vv. 8, 9). The power of his anger is incomprehensible (v. 11), and his judgment is inescapable. All this is appropriate to the exodus generation, who were condemned by God to die in the wilderness because of unbelief (Num. 14.21-35)” (The Message of the Psalter, p. 278).

But it’s not just that we die someday after a brief time on this earth. Consider those famous words in v. 10: “The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.” Is this just an overly pessimistic description of our lives? No. Death at the end of our life’s journey sours everything, making our entire journey full of toil and trouble, ending like a sigh (v. 9).

As this year comes to an end, we are reminded of the unstoppable passage of time. Yes, with the end of one year comes the beginning of another. But deep inside we know that there will come a time for each of us when there will be no more New Year. How foolish it is to live as if we would never die! It’s like running a race without knowing where the finish line is. So, Moses prays at the end of this section, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (v. 12).

But what good is “a heart of wisdom” if death is the ultimate end of our lives, if both the wise and the foolish end up in the grave? And why is it that we have the hardest time accepting what seems to be the most natural thing as death even though we are the most intelligent beings on this planet? Is it not because God created us in His image (Gen. 1:28) and put eternity into our hearts (Eccl. 3:11)? Having given us the longing for eternity, God grants it to all those who place their faith in Jesus Christ, who is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25).

As this year comes to a close, we are reminded of the unstoppable passage of time. But we cannot help but look to the coming New Year with hope and excitement. We are grateful that this hope is not in vain. For the coming New Year is a faint reflection of the eternal life we look forward by faith in Jesus Christ! May this hope fill you and give you joy and peace this day and in the days to come!