Why Do the Righteous Suffer

Psalms 44
I. Suffering? What place is suffering designed to fill in God’s universe?

A. There are two types of suffering: deserved and undeserved

1. Psalm 44 addresses this topic. God’s people go out to fight “holy war” for him, and they suffer an unexplained defeat.
2. An Overview of Psalm 44A. The Structure of the Psalm—It is literally embroidered
3. It is constructed like a ziggurat–a temple tower of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians
4. 4 lines, vv. 23-266 lines, vv. 17-228 lines, vv. 9-1610 lines, vv. 1-8

B. The Argument of the Psalm

1. Hymn of Confidence, vv. 1-8 (10 lines)
2. Cry of Lament, vv. 9-16
3. Protest of Innocence, vv. 17-22
4. Petition for Help, vv. 23-26

C. The Point of the Psalm

• Now do you see the answer?
• Now do you understand why the righteous suffer?
• So, what is God trying to teach us in this psalm?
• One thing he is trying to teach us is how to react and respond in our suffering, pressure, and troubles.

II. How Can We Trust God in Our Times of Undeserved Suffering? How can we know where we are and maintain control in our difficult situations?

The psalmist turned to some fundamental attributes of God to give him stability and composure in his time of defeat and suffering.

A. God’s sovereignty–his continuing act of preserving and guiding his creation to his intended purposes

1. Verses 9-19
   • V. 9–you 2x
   • V. 10–you
   • V. 11–you
   • V. 12–you
   • V. 13–you
   • V. 14–you
   • V. 19–you
2. The sons of Korah–the authors of Psalms 42-49 Compare Numbers 16
3. Job 38:4–Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding.

B. God’s Steadfast Love (hesed)

The ultimate appeal of the psalm, v. 26

• Loyal love, covenant kindness
• It is precisely because of this love that we go through our times of undeserved suffering.
• So, now do we know why the righteous suffer? The New Testament puts more of the picture into focus for us.
• This psalm especially applies to God’s servants
• Psalm 44:22 in Romans 8:36
• Romans 8:36

As it is written:
For your sake we face death all day long;
We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

What is the context of the quotation from Psalm 44 in Romans 8:36?? For your sake we face death all day long; We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.

• Rom. 8:37-39 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life …is able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.