Psalm 73:21-24 Now Available feat. Son Francisco

Psalm 73:21-24 is now available on all streaming platforms!

THE VERSE

[21] When my soul was embittered,
when I was pricked in heart,
[22] I was brutish and ignorant;
I was like a beast toward you.

[23] Nevertheless, I am continually with you;
you hold my right hand.
[24] You guide me with your counsel,
and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Comparison and envy do a number on our hearts, do they not? Think about what happens internally as you scroll through social media and see the lives of others on display. Or perhaps picture yourself having a conversation with a friend about an amazing opportunity they are getting that you’ve been desperate for or a possession they’ve recently purchased that you’ve longed for for years. It’s hard not to take these things personally. Questions can surface like “Why not me?” or “Is God really good?” If it’s true of our interactions with friends, how much more difficult is it to see good things happening to people who outwardly reject or mock God and His ways? It’s so easy to allow the apparent successes of others to tempt us to walk away from God and do things our own way!

Asaph, a musician and song leader in the temple chosen by David and who wrote a few psalms, wrestled with a similar temptation in Psalm 73. This particular temptation is simply an iteration of the age-old frustration: why do good things happen to bad people and why do bad things happen to good people? We’re told earlier in the psalm that as Asaph looked at the lives of the arrogant and wicked, he grew perplexed because of how easy their lives seemed. Everything seemed to be going their way even though God was nowhere in the picture in their lives or concerns. Far from going poorly, a Godless life seemed to be a good and blessed life. To the psalmist, what’s the point of living for God if there are no consequences for living for yourself and doing whatever you want? This self-pity and envy were taking Asaph down a dangerous road, and they do the exact same thing to us today. What do we do as we find ourselves in a similar place to Asaph today? How do we get out of the envy echo chamber?

We’re told earlier in Psalm 73:16-17 about how this temptation was overcome:

[16] But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task,
[17] until I went into the sanctuary of God;
then I discerned their end.

It was precisely in the place of worship that the light switch turned on for Asaph. Worship was the turning point for Asaph because it lifted his eyes from himself and what he didn’t have and placed them on God and all he had in Him! After having lived in a place of distorted vision, it was in God’s presence that he began to finally see clearly again.What did Asaph come to see?

First, he saw himself. We are told in verses 21-22 that ultimately God held up a mirror to Asaph’s self-focused heart, and what did he see? His own bitterness and resentment. He found a pained heart that was grieving over all the wrong things. This word that’s translated “heart” here is the word for “kidneys” in Hebrew, which were seen as the seat of human emotions or a person’s most innermost self. The deepest places of his being were pricked because he felt like God was holding out on him. Not only was he resentful, but he saw that he was living senselessly and ignorantly; his behavior was more like a wild beast than a beloved child. In His mercy, God was showing Asaph what was really going on behind the curtain of his own heart. That wasn’t the end of what God wanted to show Asaph though!

Second, he saw God. Asaph’s eyes were also opened to see God again. It’s as if sanity was restored. This wild beast’s eyes were miraculously opened in verse 23 and he finally came to his senses! He realized the very wealth he was envious of in earlier verses was nothing compared to the wealth of God’s presence and goodness. Though Asaph had felt far from God throughout this process, the truth is God was not far from Asaph; He was continually with him. Asaph’s lingering doubt was no match for God’s persistent goodness. God was not only with him, but God was also holding Asaph’s right hand. It’s a powerful image of care and support for someone nearly slipping! Verse 24 tells us God doesn’t just hold Asaph’s hand but also gives him divine counsel. God holds and God speaks. This sort of counsel was a privilege normally only reserved for important kings, but here it’s offered to Asaph. It doesn’t end with God’s counsel but keeps going. We’re told that afterward, Asaph would be received in glory. There are different understandings of what this actually means but most likely there is an “already but not yet” component to this: this promise will be fulfilled in some measure in this life but fully realized in the life to come!

Where envy blinds us, worship opens our eyes to see the treasure God is. Where covetousness breeds resentment, worship breeds gratitude. Where are you today? Are you wrestling with something similar to Asaph? May God give you eyes to see what that envy’s actually doing to you and give you wider eyes to see Himself and His glory and goodness that can never be taken from you! Gratitude will flow from your heart as your realize and linger on these truths:

He’s continually with you.
He holds your right hand.
He guides you with His counsel.
He will receive you to glory.

The Song + The Artist

Son Francisco, a singer/songwriter from San Diego, CA, wrote this song. He shared a bit about this passage and its significance to him:

I love the language of verses 21 and 22. It’s brutal. It doesn’t sugarcoat the writer’s feelings, his heart posture before the Lord. My soul was embittered, I was pricked in heart, I was brutish and ignorant like a beast. That is how it feels when I relate myself to him many times.

And yet, his mercies are new every morning. He guides me, he is with me, he holds me. The image I have in verses 23 and 24 is of our loving father, and it immediately brought me to how I see my kids. Brutish, ignorant, like beasts. And yet, as imperfect as I am, I love them, I guide them, I hold their hand. Thinking of God the Father, as I try to be a faithful father to my children brings a new dimension to my understanding of Him, and honestly, a deeper love for him and gratefulness for his love and guidance to me, his son.

Song Credits

Sung by Son Francisco.
Produced and recorded by Dan Folgado.
Mastered by Ed Brooks at Resonant Mastering.

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