Oh Lord, my heart is not lifted up. My eyes are not raised too high. I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me, but I’ve calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. Oh, Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.
– Psalm 131:1–3
This is one of my favorite Psalms, three verses. The posture of humility and the experience of rest and quiet is so beautiful.
Psalm 131:1–3 Challenges Us Towards Stillness and Surrender
From the very beginning, the psalmist David in this circumstance saying, “Oh Lord, my heart is not lifted up. My eyes are not raised too high. I do not occupy myself with things too great and marvelous for me”. In other words, there are things that the psalmist, that David does not understand, that he can’t see and know. There are things too great and marvelous for him. And we all know what it’s like to be in that circumstance, to have things going on in our lives, around our lives, around the world that we don’t understand, and oftentimes really hard things that we don’t understand why this is happening or what is happening around us.
That’s what I love about verse two is David says, “But I’ve calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother, like a weened child is my soul within me.” Just picture a baby in the arms of his or her mom. They talk about someone who doesn’t understand all that’s going on around him or her. That’s a child. A little baby has no clue the wonders and the workings of the world around them, and yet they’re totally calm and totally quiet as they’re nestled in the arms of their mom.
What a picture of how God has designed you and me to live, for us to calm and quiet our souls continually by realizing we are held in the arms of God himself. He loves us. He cares for us. He’s tender toward us, compassionate toward us, and we can trust him just like a baby being held by a loving mother.
Psalm 131:1–3 Encourages Us to Deepen Our Trust in God
We can trust God and not just trust in him. But verse three, “Hope in him from this time forth and forevermore.” Oh God, I pray this picture over every single person listening to this right now. I pray that they would feel, that they would see themselves in your arms, that you would calm and quiet their souls, God, especially for those who are struggling to understand what’s happening around them, why this is happening.
God, I pray that you would calm and quiet their souls with your comforting, compassionate love for them. And God, I pray that you would make each of us like weaned children with a mother who cares for us. God, help us to humble ourselves before you, to trust in you, even when we don’t understand, even when we can’t see or comprehend what’s happening or why it’s happening. God, help us to calm and quiet ourselves with humility before you, with trust in you.
Praying for the Tunisian People
Oh God, we praise you for your tender, compassionate, trustworthy love for us. And God, we pray today for 11.9 million Tunisian Arabs. God, we pray knowing so many of them have never even heard the good news of your tender, compassionate love. In Jesus, we pray, cause the gospel to spread among Tunisian Arabs. We pray, God please, that they might have calm and quiet souls in your arms through faith in Jesus. God, please bless all those who are working among Tunisian Arabs and as they face challenges. God, we pray that you would calm and quiet their souls. Oh God, we praise you for Psalm 1:31, and we pray all of this according to it, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
