7/31 Psalm 88:18

18 You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.


In Jerusalem, below the house of Caiaphas, archeologists have discovered a cistern (a hole carved deep into limestone for storing water). When the crusaders found it, they etched and painted crosses in it. It is now believed that Jesus was held in this dry cistern. He would have been lowered in by rope and left alone in the darkness to await His fate.

His disciples had all deserted Him. Peter had denied he knew Him. The voice of the Father was silent. Jesus knew the horror that lay ahead. Alone, He would have found solace in this psalm, knowing that a thousand years earlier, someone had gone through an experience that caused him to put these words to writing and that the Father had them recorded for the Son. It was all in the Father's hands, no matter how hopeless the situation seemed.

There are psalms for us too. They speak of the pain of the heart and encourage us to trust God. If God saw the psalmists through to victory, and if they could voice trust in God in the midst of their trials, then He can speak to us through them in a similar manner. If Jesus used them for comfort in His darkest hour, then we should do the same.

Remember: In your times of trial, you will find the Psalms to be the voice of the LORD to your soul.