NOTES for Psa 43

This psalm is connected with the preceding one; their refrain even allows them to be joined together. But a new tone is also heard here. We could join the two psalms and then see how a new mood gradually grows. Or we can perceive this psalm separately from the preceding one.

If the preceding hymn reflected the sorrow of abandonment by God, overcome through faith and hope in the Lord, here one senses vigor and sees a determination to follow the Lord actively along the paths of His truth, even to the point of readiness to defend that truth in court before the wicked.

The very cry addressed to God—Why have You rejected me?—is no longer the cry of a bewildered person, but the question of one who follows the Lord steadfastly. The one who walks with a confident step is heading toward the Lord, certain that He will not only give an answer, but also will not reject the one who asks and will receive him on His mountain. Even the address to the troubled soul—Why are you cast down?—sounds more vigorous here: there is no reason to be discouraged; forward and upward! We have Someone toward whom to strive, and He does not abandon us.