Again, the poet argues with himself. He strongly reproaches himself: Yes, I am heartbroken, and the unrest runs through my whole body. I feel transfixed and sink into the depths, which is all true, but I put my hope in God. I wait for God in all my need. From him I expect salvation. My God can and will give it. He has promised this, and I cling to that. This is beautifully expressed in the prophet Isaiah: In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old
(Isaiah 63:9).
This redemption takes root forever in Jesus. His name alone is already a promise. After all, the meaning of it is: for he will save his people from their sins
(Matthew 1:21). In him God sees and saves us.
The poet of Psalm 42 and Psalm 43 says this to himself three times (Psalm 42:5, Psalm 42:11, Psalm 43:5). Therein lies the exhortation for every reader to do so regularly when you struggle to keep your head above water. In times of distress, God in Jesus wants to be close to us. In one word: Immanuel,
that means: God with us (Matthew 1:23).
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation