This morning I briefly talked about complaint to God as an appropriate alternative to complaining or grumbling about our neighbour (James 5:9), based on James’ exhortation to look at Job as an example of patience. Job does a lot of complaining amidst his patience, yet he does not sin his biographer says.
The Psalms are also full of complaints to God, crying out to Him with the expectation that He will act and change whatever situation the psalmist is addressing. There’s so many in fact that they’ve been given their own genre, called “Psalms of Lament.” These psalms have been used as prayer by the Church and by Jews for centuries.
The psalms of lament are Psalms 3, 4, 5, 7, 9-10, 13, 14, 17, 22, 25, 26, 27, 28, 31, 36, 39, 40:12-17, 41, 42-43, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 59, 61, 64, 70, 71, 77, 86, 89, 120, 139, 141, 142.
Psalm 10
Why, Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
who are caught in the schemes he devises.
He boasts about the cravings of his heart;
he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.
In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;
in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
His ways are always prosperous;
your laws are rejected by him;
he sneers at all his enemies.
He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.”
He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”
His mouth is full of lies and threats;
trouble and evil are under his tongue.
He lies in wait near the villages;
from ambush he murders the innocent.
His eyes watch in secret for his victims;
like a lion in cover he lies in wait.
He lies in wait to catch the helpless;
he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.
His victims are crushed, they collapse;
they fall under his strength.
He says to himself, “God will never notice;
he covers his face and never sees.”
Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.
Do not forget the helpless.
Why does the wicked man revile God?
Why does he say to himself,
“He won’t call me to account”?
But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;
you consider their grief and take it in hand.
The victims commit themselves to you;
you are the helper of the fatherless.
Break the arm of the wicked man;
call the evildoer to account for his wickedness
that would not otherwise be found out.
The Lord is King for ever and ever;
the nations will perish from his land.
You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;
you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
so that mere earthly mortals
will never again strike terror.
The Psalms of Lament help us to face our pain, face the struggles and ugliness of the world, and direct it in a way that is both honest yet hopeful that He who is returning soon will act on our behalf. Praying these psalms remind us of God’s sovereignty and ultimate goodness.
I’d encourage you to read them, and make them your own when you experience trials, injustices, and pressures in your life.