Unless I Had Believed to See the Goodness of the Lord

Do you ever feel bombarded like I do by the bad news we hear every day? I don’t mean a rash of bicycle thefts or six inches of snow predicted for rush hour, even though they are both disturbing. I’m talking about mass shootings in schools, malls, or places of worship. About deadly assaults prevalent on the streets of some neighborhoods. About threats by bully nations that have the rest of the world holding its breath against war breaking out. About a virus that has provided negative news of numbers, deaths, and unknowns every single day since early 2020.

It can be easy to succumb to depression when we constantly see the horrific effects of sin in our world. This is not how God designed his creation to be, so it is unsettling to the spirit he put within us. But David revealed how he dealt with this.

In Psalm 27 he wrote of evil men advancing against him (v.2), enemies and foes attacking him (v.2), an army besieging him (v.3), war breaking out against him (v.3), and those closest to him forsaking him (v.10). Warren Wiersbe believes this was probably written before David was crowned king and while he was being hunted by King Saul and his men (The Bible Exposition Commentary, Wisdom and Poetry). David’s situation was indeed bleak, but yet he wrote, “I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living” (v.13). In the midst of David’s dire circumstances, he had no doubt he would see God’s goodness in this life.

Many commentaries agree that the original text of verse 13 was an incomplete statement: Unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. The abrupt and imperfect speech is not unusual in the Bible (Matthew Poole’s Commentary). The lack of a consequence increases the emphasis (Lange Commentary). An understood thought such as “What! what, alas! should have become of me!” may be implied to complete David’s statement (Clarke’s Commentary). David was saying that had he not been assured the goodness of the Lord that he had always experienced before was still active in his life, even now in the worst of circumstances, he would most certainly have despaired of life and perished.

Believe the Goodness of the Lord is in our World

Though we may be tempted to deal with the abundance of bad news by hiding away in a closet with butterfly wallpaper and the “Happy” song piped in 24 hours a day, the much better solution to keep from sinking into despair is to believe that the goodness of the Lord is in our world today. God is everywhere. “Do not I fill heaven and earth?” declares the Lord (Jeremiah 23:24). And he is good. The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made (Psalm 145:9). God doesn’t just do good things; he is good. No one is good—except God alone (Mark 10:18). Since goodness is one of God’s character traits and he is everywhere, goodness is all around us.

Look for the Goodness of the Lord

In addition to believing, we can actively look for the goodness of the Lord in our world. I appreciate my local news anchors who find “good news” stories to share. A woman gives her kidney to a stranger. For his birthday, a young child asks only for lots of presents to give to children in the hospital. Someone begins a campaign to send cards of appreciation to veterans. These are splendid examples of God’s goodness displayed through his creation.

I’m trying to be more aware of God’s goodness in my own small world. A stranger who was probably in a hurry during morning school traffic stopped to let us out of our neighborhood. A friend left homemade minestrone on our porch while we were in COVID-19 isolation. After shoveling our walk, my husband shoveled for several neighbors as well. These are examples of God’s goodness quietly running through our daily lives.

Don’t Expect God’s Goodness to Always Look “Good”

Don’t make the mistake, though, of only seeing the goodness of the Lord when actions match your personal definition of good. Good is not always fuzzy and warm. As the psalmist wrote, “It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees” (Psalm 119:71).

God sees how everything fits together. For example, a friend may die unexpectedly, but through his organ donations many others are helped. We can be sure that everything God does or allows is filtered through his good character. Ask God to show you evidence of his goodness in tragic situations.

God’s goodness is all around us. We need to believe that and look for it. Especially in our world today. Because unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living . . .

Scripture quotations are from NIV.

Commentary notes are from Bible Hub and The Bible Exposition Commentary. See Resources.

Feature photo by Chuanchai Pundej on Unsplash