| “Why, O Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor; let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.” — Psalm 10:1-2 (LSB) There are moments when God feels distant. Not absent in doctrine, but distant in experience. The psalmist does not hide that. He begins not with praise, but with a question: Lama? Why? Why do You stand afar off? Why hide in times of distress? This is not irreverence. This is reverent honesty. Scripture gives us language for the ache – permission to bring the unedited prayer into the presence of God. And he immediately grounds that felt distance in something he sees: the wicked, in pride, hotly pursuing the afflicted. The poor, the helpless, the fatherless – words that will return again and again in this psalm – are being hunted, caught in nets, crushed by schemes. The psalmist names both things at once: a vertical question – Lord, where are You? – and a horizontal grief – look what is happening to the poor. Faith does not deny either. It holds them together and brings them to God. The honest question is not the end of the journey; it is part of the journey. Later in this same psalm, the prayer will turn: “You have seen it… You have been the helper of the orphan. Arise, O Lord; do not forget the afflicted.” (v.14,12). But it starts here, in the raw, unfiltered cry. If you are there today, you are in good company. |
Why do You stand far off, O Lord,
When trouble gathers like a cloud?
Why is Your face hidden in this hour,
When prayers feel thin and faith feels loud?
I do not turn from You with this asking,
I turn to You because I can.
You let me bring the question whole,
You are not threatened by honest man.
Meanwhile the proud pursue the poor,
Their schemes laid out like hidden nets.
Yet even here, You still behold,
You do not turn, You don’t forget.
So I will leave my “why” with You,
Not as a doubt, but as a trust.
For You who hears the humble’s hope,
Will not abandon dust to dust.
