How can Psalm 88:15 deepen our understanding of enduring suffering with faith?

◄ Psalm 88:15: Faith through suffering? ►

Living with Ache: Psalm 88:15

“From my youth I was afflicted and near death; I have borne Your terrors and am in despair.”

The Psalmist’s Lifetime of Pain

• His suffering isn’t a brief season; it stretches “from my youth.”

• He feels perpetually “near death,” yet he keeps speaking to God—proof that faith endures even when joy doesn’t.

• He recognizes the Lord’s hand (“Your terrors”), confessing divine sovereignty rather than blaming blind fate.

What This Teaches About Enduring Suffering

1. God allows long-term trials without forfeiting His goodness.

• Job 1:21—“The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.”

2. Lifelong affliction can exist alongside lifelong faith.

• 2 Corinthians 4:16—“Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.”

3. Honest lament is biblical, not rebellious.

• Psalm 62:8—“Pour out your hearts before Him; God is our refuge.”

4. Continued prayer under pressure proves relationship, not distance.

• Romans 8:15—“You received the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry, ‘Abba, Father.’”

5. Suffering prepares saints for eternal glory.

• 2 Corinthians 4:17—“Our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal glory that is far beyond comparison.”

Seeing Christ Foreshadowed

• Like the psalmist, Jesus was “a man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3).

• Gethsemane echoes Psalm 88: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38).

• Christ’s identification with lifelong sufferers offers companionship and ultimate rescue (Hebrews 4:15-16).

Practical Ways to Walk Through Prolonged Pain

• Keep a running conversation with God—lament and praise can share the same page.

• Anchor identity in the Lord, not in the affliction.

• Let Scripture speak when feelings fall silent; memorize verses like Romans 8:18, James 1:2-4.

• Seek fellowship that permits lament without quick fixes (Galatians 6:2).

• Anticipate resurrection hope; present agony has an expiration date (Revelation 21:4).

Key Scriptures to Revisit