Struggling to Hold the Word - Kaph - Psalm 119:81-88

Kaph (Verses 81-88)

The letter kaph shows the palm or hollow of a hand and represents a hand, bowl, plate or anything designed to receive.
By association, it can mean asking, weakness or reaching out to receive.

81 My soul faints with longing for your salvation,
     but I have put my hope in your word.
82 My eyes fail, looking for your promise;
     I say, “When will you comfort me?”
83 Though I am like a wineskin in the smoke,
     I do not forget your decrees.
84 How long must your servant wait?
     When will you punish my persecutors?
85 The arrogant dig pits to trap me,
     contrary to your law.
86 All your commands are trustworthy;
     help me, for I am being persecuted without cause.
87 They almost wiped me from the earth,
     but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88 In your unfailing love preserve my life,
     that I may obey the statutes of your mouth.

The psalmist is still suffering at the hands of men who have rejected the authority of the Word of God (84). They are arrogant, and persecute the man whose hope is in the Word (85). They use laws and logic contrary to God’s law to prove the godly man and his godly ways are in error, and so conclude that the ways of God are unprofitable and inappropriate for mankind. In the face of this attack, the persecuted man puts his hope in God’s Word, but still finds himself weak, and asks for help from God (81). His soul (mind, emotions, intellect, will) faint and his eyes (physical effort) fail (81-82) as he waits for God’s promises to manifest (82, 84). Just as a wine skin in the smoke (83) holds onto its content in the midst of a blinding odor that stings the eyes, the psalmist sees himself as struggling to hold to his commitment to the Truth in his soul while persevering against the blinding, painful odor of worldly philosophy. He waits with his hands open and his soul reaching out to be filled by God.


Galyn Wiemers
Generation Word
http://www.generationword.com