How Long?

Read Psalm 75, 93, 94, 97 thru 100
 
Psalm 94:1-5 O Lord, the God of vengeance, O God of vengeance, let your glorious justice shine forth! 2 Arise, O judge of the earth. Give the proud what they deserve. 3 How long, O Lord? How long will the wicked be allowed to gloat? 4 How long will they speak with arrogance? How long will these evil people boast? 5 They crush your people, Lord, hurting those you claim as your own.
 
THE opening sentence twice uses “vengeance” to describe God. We understand vengeance to define strong, even hateful retaliation. This, then, causes us to see God judging with uncontrolled anger. We would then read the next verses as David’s prayer for God to violently respond to the wicked and prideful.
   But it is more likely David was praying for peace to all who opposed God. Vengeance here means to uphold God’s law. And “shine forth” is calling God to reveal himself. David prayed God would reveal his truth to all, and they would humbly submit to God.
    Then four times David asked, “How long?” And why not? When we pray, we must do so with expectation God will answer our prayers, and we desire he does so very soon. Our petitions to God are always to solve a problem we can’t handle. We certainly desire, “How long?” to be answered with, “Right now.”
   David wanted that. Think of the years he was continually pursued and persecuted. He was tired of the noise and wickedness of those who rebelled against himself and God. “How long?” is certainly a question from the human heart that demands an answer from the Sovereign LORD.
   But God is not prone to answer directly. He does occasionally indicate a day or time when certain things will happen. But most often he used his prophets, his apostles, his Son and his Word to teach us to wait. Jesus said it this way when asked about the end of the age: Matthew 24:36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.”  
   How long? David did see an end to some of the threats against him. And God certainly raised him up to become Israel’s most powerful king. Yet, David not see the end of all rebellion and agitation against him. He did not see the Temple built. He did not see Jesus come. Still, it all happened in God’s time.
   How long will we wait for God to answer our prayers? Only the Father knows when and how the answers will come. Our task is to live with the humility that our life belongs to God. And we must believe God’s will is done on earth as it is in heaven. “How long?’ must be a faithful question of expectation joined with humble submission.