Those Who Sow in Tears
Psalm 126
Believe it or not, a psalm with only six verses serves as a prayer guide in times of rejoicing and weeping.
Psalm 126, a song of ascents, invites God’s people to ascend to Jerusalem to worship the Lord and seek His help. Joy and tears drive this call to worship. The song begins by recalling past times when the Lord restored Zion’s fortunes (1). Although the specific “restoration” remains unnamed, it makes me think of either the exiles returning to Jerusalem or the deliverance of Jerusalem from Sennacherib. By not naming the “restoration,” the song allows us to remember how God has worked in our own lives.
His delivering work feels like a dream (1). This great work (2 and 3) brings shouts of joy and laughter (2). The deliverance appears so magnificent that even other nations credit the Lord for doing something great (2). At this point, we understand why the worshipper invites us to come to Jerusalem. The Lord has done great things for us, and we feel glad! (3).
However, the psalm takes a turn in verse 4. The remembrance and rejoicing transitions into a prayer: restore our fortunes, O Lord (4). You can hear the praying one asking the Lord to do for them what the Lord has done for His people in the past. Restore our fortunes, too. Do for us what You did for them.
Enter the struggle of faith in prayer.
Recalling the Lord’s great work in the past, whether in our personal lives or through the testimony of others, whether people we know or saints from biblical history, strengthens our faith and causes us to rejoice in the Lord. Praise the Lord who rescued Daniel from the lion’s den! Praise the Lord who parted the waters of the Red Sea! Praise the Lord who defeated Goliath at the hands of David! The Lord has done great things.
However, during our personal trials or tribulations, the memory of God’s great work in the past impacts us differently. Joy morphs into longing. Confidence turns into doubt. Shouts of joy transform into tears. Our heart cry out, “Wake up God! You did great things in the past, what’s keeping You from doing great things today?”
This short psalm powerfully leads us from rejoicing to longing and into faith. The last two verses capture the confidence of faith for those who remember God’s great works in the past and long for His great work in their present. Listen to these words again:
Those who sow in tears
Shall reap with shouts of joy!
He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing,
Shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.
Psalm 126.5-6 ESV
Find me a better faith statement in all of Scripture!
To use the words of the apostle Paul in Romans 8, even those of us with the indwelling Holy Spirit will experience this world in bondage to decay. We groan, hope, suffer, and wait for the glory yet to be revealed. Or, to use the words of Psalm 126, we sow in tears. We bear the seeds for sowing with every tear that falls.
But in Christ, we bear the seed of tears with this great promise: we shall come home with shouts of joy. The Lord will restore the fortunes of His people. The Lord will do great things which will fill our mouths with laughter and shouts of joy. This is what the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians,
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9 ESV)
Do not grow weary of sowing the seeds of your tears, for in God’s chosen time, you will reap with shouts of joy.
So, what do we do with this psalm?
This psalm might lead you to the house of the Lord this Sunday as you remember His great work to restore your fortunes in the past. Can you think of a specific time when the Lord rescued, provided, healed, blessed, or delivered you in such a great way that it made you laugh with joy? Then bring an offering of thanksgiving this Sunday morning.
On the other hand, this psalm might lead you to the house of the Lord this Sunday crying out to the Lord for Him to restore your fortunes. You are sowing in tears, casting the seeds of sorrow, but you approach the Lord with confidence, trusting that you will reap with shouts of joy in His chosen time.
May this psalm find its way to your hearts and to your lips.