A very dear woman in our congregation gives our family a Page-a-Day calendar almost every year. Most of them contain pithy little sayings, humorous stories, quotes and the occasional Scripture verse. We’ve enjoyed them a great deal over the years (I like them so much I’ve presently got five of them on my desk in my study; most are from previous years, but since they’re not dated by years, I “recycle” them).
Here’s the line from a recent page:
“The time to keep your mouth shut is when you’re in deep water.”
Now, I understand (I think) what the author of this meant. When trouble seems to be at its height, you ought to be quiet and see your way through rather than talking foolishly, grumbling or complaining. You may see this in a different light and that’s all right with me.
This is not how the psalmist viewed things, however. Psalm 93 says,
1 The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty;
the LORD is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
2 Your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.
3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
4 Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves of the sea,
the LORD on high is mighty!
5 Your decrees are very trustworthy;
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, forevermore.
When the floods had risen against the psalmist, when the sea waves were roaring at their highest, crashing down upon him and ready to wash him away, he did not keep silent. He cried out to God, to the Lord who reigns. This is a common theme in the Psalms. For instance, in Psalm 18, he says this:
4 The cords of death encompassed me;
the torrents of destruction assailed me;
5 the cords of Sheol entangled me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I called upon the LORD;
to my God I cried for help.
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.
David, the identified writer of Psalm 69, was obviously in a great deal of trouble when he penned Psalm 69:
1 Save me, O God!
For the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire,
where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters,
and the flood sweeps over me.
3 I am weary with my crying out;
my throat is parched.
My eyes grow dim
with waiting for my God.
Note that he obviously WAS NOT keeping his mouth closed. So passionate was his crying out that he was hoarse from it all.
What is also a very common (and by “common” I mean frequent and recurring, not ordinary or run-of-the-mill) in the Psalms, given this flood waters theme for trials is God’s sovereignty over them.
3 The voice of the LORD is over the waters;
the God of glory thunders,
the LORD, over many waters.
4 The voice of the LORD is powerful;
the voice of the LORD is full of majesty.
In Psalm 65, the God of our salvation “…stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples….” The aforementioned Psalm 69 has David expressing the utmost confidence in His Savior, the One who will not let those flood waters overwhelm him. God, the Creator of the waters and the seas, is sovereign over His creation as well. In Psalm 89, He “…rule[s] the raging of the sea….” The Lord reigns. He is sovereign over all things, even––or perhaps better still––especially our troubles.
So, the next time the floods of trials are up to your neck, when the roaring of calamity is crushing your spirit, when the waves of despair come crashing upon your life, don’t keep your mouth shut. Cry out to the One who is able to deliver you.