Psalm 102:12-22

Complaint of One in Great Trouble

But Thou, O Lord, shalt endure forever, whence the psalmist in the midst of his misery, addresses his confident prayer to Him, and Thy remembrance unto all generations, the eternal and unchangeable Ruler of the universe, whose promises stand secure forever.

V. 13. Thou shalt arise, as one throwing off apparent indifference and lethargy, and have mercy upon Zion, upon His Church; for the time to favor her, to show her grace and kindness, yea, the set time, that is, that point of time to which the promise of Jehovah looked forward, is come. When affliction reaches its climax, then the help of the Lord is always nearest.

V. 14. For Thy servants, the believers of all times, take pleasure in her stones, all of them being filled with fervent love for the Church, and favor the dust thereof, their loving desire clinging to the very ruins of the Church.

This verse shows that the psalm was composed during the Babylonian exile, when the sympathetic attachment of the captive Jews turned with eagerness to the ruins of Jerusalem, the sanctuary of Jehovah. At the same time the situation is typical of many periods of affliction and ruin in the spiritual congregation of Christ, when the believers lament the troubled situation in the Church.

V. 15. So the heathen shall fear the name of the Lord, men from all countries of the world learning to know Jehovah as He has revealed Himself, and worshiping Him in holy awe and reverence, and all the kings of the earth, even the rulers of Gentile nations, Thy glory. It is a picture of Messianic conditions which the prophet here draws.

V. 16. When the Lord shall build up Zion, establishing His Church, He shall appear in His glory, in the glory of the Gospel as proclaimed throughout the world.

V. 17. He will regard the prayer of the destitute, of the homeless exiles, and not despise their prayer, not reject their supplication for mercy.

V. 18. This shall be written for the generation to come,making known the Gospel of Jehovah’s salvation in future ages; and the people which shall be created shall praise the Lord, in the worship of true faith.

V. 19. For He hath looked down, in an act of wonderful condescension, from the height of His Sanctuary; from heaven did the Lord behold the earth, observing closely the difficulties of His people, v. 20. to hear the groaning of the prisoner, the exiles of Judah serving to typify the spiritually afflicted in the Church at all times; to loose those that are appointed to death, by reason of bonds and captivity; v. 21. to declare the name of the Lord in Zion, in proclaiming the Gospel of His mercy, and His praise in Jerusalem, in the midst of His holy congregation, v. 22. when the people are gathered together and the kingdoms to serve the Lord, in that wonderful organization now known as the Christian Church.