The Verse Elijah Forgot

Psalm 138

A psalm of David.

1I give you thanks, O LORD, with all my heart;

I will sing your praises before the gods.

2I bow before your holy Temple as I worship.

I will give thanks to your name

for your unfailing love and faithfulness,

because your promises are backed

by all the honor of your name.

3When I pray, you answer me;

you encourage me by giving me the strength I need.

4Every king in all the earth will give you thanks, O LORD,

for all of them will hear your words.

5Yes, they will sing about the LORD’s ways,

for the glory of the LORD is very great.

6Though the LORD is great, he cares for the humble,

but he keeps his distance from the proud.

7Though I am surrounded by troubles,

you will preserve me against the anger of my enemies.

You will clench your fist against my angry enemies!

Your power will save me.

8The LORD will work out his plans for my life—

for your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever.

Don’t abandon me, for you made me.

Psalm 138 is a Reader’s Digest version of the life of Elijah. As we meet Elijah in 1 Kings 17, he is trusting the promises of God. God had warned that, if the people began worshiping idols, it wouldn’t rain in Israel. So that’s what Elijah told King Ahab: “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel lives . . . there will be no dew or rain.” How could Elijah say this? Because he believed the truth of Psalm 138:2: “Your promises are backed by all the honor of your name.”

In hiding, Elijah was fed by ravens, “giving [him] the strength [he] need[ed]” (verse 3). When Elijah went to live with the poor widow of Zarephath, God was near to her, providing her with food and raising her son to life. But God remained aloof from Ahab (verse 6). Later Elijah faced off with his enemies on Mount Carmel, and God’s power saved Elijah (verse 7).

Unfortunately, Elijah must have skipped verse 8. After his victory on Mount Carmel, he ran to the desert in a deep funk. Apparently, he forgot that God still had a plan to work out in his life; he forgot that God’s love endures forever.

Sometimes that’s the story of our life, too. Looking back, we can see how God has brought us through difficult times and kept his promises to us. But what now? Has God’s plan for us screeched to a sudden stop? No, the Lord still has plans for each of us, as verse 8 says. Listen, as Elijah eventually did, to God’s gentle whisper, assuring you that he will never abandon you.

The work which his goodness began

The arm of his strength will complete.

His promise is Yea and Amen,

And never was forfeited yet.

AUGUSTUS TOPLADY

Bible Networking

Will God abandon what he has made (verse 8)? Even humans love their own works. We have museums to honor the works of human hands. So how do you think God will treat the people he has created? See Isaiah 64:8.

Notable Quotable

“Grace will complete what grace begins. God does not abandon his work in an incomplete state.”

WILLIAM JONES