Psalm 89 Devotional

A Promise Under Strain

“I will not violate My covenant or alter the utterance of My lips.”Psalm 89:34 (BSB)

Psalm 89 begins with a song about God's loving devotion and faithfulness (89:1-2). At its heart is a promise. God swore to David that his offspring would last forever and his throne would stand for all generations (89:3-4). Even if David's sons broke God's law and had to be disciplined, God would never withdraw his love or break his covenant (89:30-34). He swore it by his holiness (89:35).

Then the song breaks. The king has been rejected, his crown thrown in the dust, and his enemies are celebrating (89:38-45). Ethan asks how long God will hide, and where the loving devotion sworn to David has gone (89:46-49). The psalm holds the promise and the pain side by side without resolving them. The answer came later. The angel told Mary that God would give her son the throne of his father David, and that his kingdom would never end (Luke 1:32-33). God's promise was under strain, but it was never broken. When his word and your circumstances seem to clash, his word still holds.

To think about: Which promise of God feels most strained in your life right now, and how does Jesus' reign help you keep trusting it?