Strength in Difficult Seasons

¹⁷The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears; He delivers them from all their troubles. ¹⁸The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit. ¹⁹Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him from them all.

¹For the choirmaster. Of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A song. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble. ²Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas, ³though their waters roar and foam and the mountains quake in the surge. Selah ⁴There is a river whose streams delight the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. ⁵God is within her; she will not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns. ⁶Nations rage, kingdoms crumble; the earth melts when He lifts His voice. ⁷The LORD of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah ⁸Come, see the works of the LORD, who brings devastation upon the earth. ⁹He makes wars to cease throughout the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the shields in the fire. ¹⁰“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted over the earth.” ¹¹The LORD of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

²⁸Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching out. ²⁹He gives power to the faint and increases the strength of the weak. ³⁰Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall. ³¹But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.

¹⁹Remember my affliction and wandering, the wormwood and the gall. ²⁰Surely my soul remembers and is humbled within me. ²¹Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: ²²Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. ²³They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! ²⁴“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.” ²⁵The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him. ²⁶It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

³³I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take courage; I have overcome the world!”

⁷Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us. ⁸We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed. ¹⁰We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. ¹¹For we who are alive are always consigned to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our mortal body. ¹²So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. ¹³And in keeping with what is written, “I believed, therefore I have spoken,” we who have the same spirit of faith also believe and therefore speak, ¹⁴knowing that the One who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. ¹⁵All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is extending to more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow, to the glory of God. ¹⁶Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day. ¹⁷For our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that is far beyond comparison. ¹⁸So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

²⁰As for you, what you intended against me for evil, God intended for good, in order to accomplish a day like this—to preserve the lives of many people.

¹³But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. ¹⁴The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

⁶Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid or terrified of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” ⁷Then Moses called for Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their fathers to give them, and you shall give it to them as an inheritance. ⁸The LORD Himself goes before you; He will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid or discouraged.”

¹On the third day David and his men arrived in Ziklag, and the Amalekites had raided the Negev, attacked Ziklag, and burned it down. ²They had taken captive the women and all who were there, both young and old. They had not killed anyone, but had carried them off as they went on their way. ³When David and his men came to the city, they found it burned down and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. ⁴So David and the troops with him lifted up their voices and wept until they had no strength left to weep. ⁵David’s two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel, had been taken captive. ⁶And David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of every man grieved for his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.

¹²Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast army that comes against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” ¹³Meanwhile all the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, were standing before the LORD. ¹⁴Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite from Asaph’s descendants, as he stood in the midst of the assembly. ¹⁵And he said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle does not belong to you, but to God. ¹⁶Tomorrow you are to march down against them. You will see them coming up the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷You need not fight this battle. Take up your positions, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out and face them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you.’”

²⁰Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, ²¹saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.” ²²In all this, Job did not sin or charge God with wrongdoing.

²³I wish that my words were recorded and inscribed in a book, ²⁴by an iron stylus on lead, or chiseled in stone forever. ²⁵But I know that my Redeemer lives, and in the end He will stand upon the earth. ²⁶Even after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God. ²⁷I will see Him for myself; my eyes will behold Him, and not as a stranger. How my heart yearns within me!

¹Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—whom shall I dread? ²When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell. ³Though an army encamps around me, my heart will not fear; though a war breaks out against me, I will keep my trust. ⁴One thing I have asked of the LORD; this is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and seek Him in His temple. ⁵For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high upon a rock. ⁶Then my head will be held high above my enemies around me. At His tabernacle I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. ⁷Hear, O LORD, my voice when I call; be merciful and answer me. ⁸My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek. ⁹Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation. ¹⁰Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me. ¹¹Teach me Your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path, because of my oppressors. ¹²Do not hand me over to the will of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence. ¹³Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. ¹⁴Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the LORD!

⁵Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why the unease within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him for the salvation of His presence. ⁶O my God, my soul despairs within me. Therefore I remember You from the land of Jordan and the peaks of Hermon—even from Mount Mizar. ⁷Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls; all Your breakers and waves have rolled over me. ⁸The LORD decrees His loving devotion by day, and at night His song is with me as a prayer to the God of my life. ⁹I say to God my Rock, “Why have You forgotten me? Why must I walk in sorrow because of the enemy’s oppression?” ¹⁰Like the crushing of my bones, my enemies taunt me, while they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” ¹¹Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why the unease within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.

¹⁶But I call to God, and the LORD saves me. ¹⁷Morning, noon, and night, I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice. ¹⁸He redeems my soul in peace from the battle waged against me, even though many oppose me. ²²Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.

¹For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. Of David. Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. ²From the ends of the earth I call out to You whenever my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. ³For You have been my refuge, a tower of strength against the enemy. ⁴Let me dwell in Your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of Your wings. Selah

²³Yet I am always with You; You hold my right hand. ²⁴You guide me with Your counsel, and later receive me in glory. ²⁵Whom have I in heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You. ²⁶My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. ²⁷Those far from You will surely perish; You destroy all who are unfaithful to You. ²⁸But as for me, it is good to draw near to God. I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may proclaim all Your works.

¹A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? ²My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. ³He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber. ⁴Behold, the Protector of Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. ⁵The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is the shade on your right hand. ⁶The sun will not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. ⁷The LORD will guard you from all evil; He will preserve your soul. ⁸The LORD will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.

¹⁰Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. ¹³For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and tells you: Do not fear, I will help you.

¹But now, this is what the LORD says—He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine! ²When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you go through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched; the flames will not set you ablaze. ³For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place.

¹⁷Though the fig tree does not bud and no fruit is on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though the sheep are cut off from the fold and no cattle are in the stalls, ¹⁸yet I will exult in the LORD; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation! ¹⁹GOD the Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like those of a deer; He makes me walk upon the heights! For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments.

²⁸Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

¹⁸I consider that our present sufferings are not comparable to the glory that will be revealed in us. ²⁶In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. ²⁷And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. ²⁸And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. ²⁹For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified. ³¹What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³²He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things? ³³Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us. ³⁵Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? ³⁶As it is written: “For Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” ³⁷No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ³⁸For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

⁷or because of these surpassingly great revelations. So to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.