“Welcome to Torah Today Ministries, our continuing series Tehillim Talks. And in this episode, we are going to continue Psalm 42 with our Psalm 43 commentary, because originally these were one psalm. Psalm 43 is very short, so this recording probably won’t take that long.
But one of the things I find interesting is that last week I discussed how the Book of Psalms is divided up into five books. And these are marked in your Bibles more than likely. And what we find is in the first Book of Psalms, the first psalm, Psalm 1 and Psalm 2, were originally one psalm, but they were divided into two.
And here at the beginning of the second Book of Psalms, called the Exodus Book sometimes, we find Psalms 42 and 43were originally one psalm, but they were divided into two Psalms. Now this does not happen with the third and fourth and fifth books of Psalms, just with these first two books. Why did the arrangers of the Book of Psalms do this?
I don’t know, but my only guess is this, and maybe you have a better one, is that they did not want there to be 148 Psalms, the Book of Psalms. They wanted to be a nice round 150. And so to do that, they broke the first Psalm into two, and they broke this Psalm into two.
There’s probably a better reason than that. If there is, I don’t know what it is, but I’d love to hear what you think. So let’s get right into our Psalm.
And I put here at the beginning that this is a continuation of Psalm 42. And if you read Psalm 42 and 43 together, it becomes quite obvious that the same theme is carried, some of the same words are used. And this phrase, Why are you cast down, O my soul? is found three times—twice in 42, and it ends in 43 (Psalm 42:5, 11; Psalm 43:5).”
“So let’s begin with verse one. The first verse begins with Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people; from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me (Psalm 43:1).
Now that first word, vindicate, if I wanted to translate that hyper-literally, I would have put judge me, O God, judge me.Now, there are a few words in Hebrew that translate to judge, and this particular word is the word Shafat (שָׁפַט), and you can see it down here. If I can get my pencil working—there we go—Shafat, shin, pe, tet.
Sometimes it’s Shafat, sometimes Shapat, that middle letter can be a PH or P sound. And in this word, Shafat, Shapat,or Mishpat (מִשְׁפָּט) can be judge (a man who is a judge), or to judge (the verb), or it can be Mishpat, meaning judgmentor justice.
In Hebrew, the Book of Judges is called Shoftim (שֹׁפְטִים), which is the plural of this word, Shafat. And when you’re reading through the Book of Exodus, you find the Ten Commandments in Chapter 20. And then the next chapter, 21, begins a Torah section called Mishpatim (מִשְׁפָּטִים), which means judgments or principles of good judgment. It relates to interpersonal laws.
So I can translate it vindicate here because growing up in an evangelical church, judgment was always thought of negatively—you don’t want to be judged, judgment day is horrible. But in Scripture, judgment is neutral.
If you’re guilty, you dread it. But if you’re innocent, you look forward to your day in court when there will be a judgment in your favor.
So if you are living a righteous life and being attacked for doing what is right, judgment is something you should be looking forward to, because that’s when righteousness will be revealed for what it is, and wickedness for what it is.
Now, the first two times this word Shafat appears in Scripture will give you its tone. The first is Genesis 16:5:
And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you. … May Adonai Shafat between you and me.”
Here we see Shafat meaning “to discern between right and wrong.” The next is Genesis 18:25, when Abraham pleads for Sodom and Gomorrah:
Far be it from you to put the righteous to death with the wicked. … Shall not the Shofet of all the earth do Mishpat?
So again, Shafat means to discern—to separate right from wrong. It’s the kind of judgment we need when evaluating our own actions, our children’s, or others’.
We’re not to condemn—that’s a different word—but we must discern good from evil. So here the psalmist says, Judge me (Shafat), vindicate me—look at what I am doing and what my enemies are doing, O Lord; make a judgment (Psalm 43:1).”
“And then verse 2:
For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you rejected me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? (Psalm 43:2)
He’s expressing here honestly how he feels—he feels rejected by God. Has he been rejected? Of course not—but it feels that way.
The word for mourning can also mean in darkness. The Hebrew is Kadar (קָדַר), used both ways in Scripture. Probably the best sense is gloomy: Why do I go about gloomy?
Examples:
1 Kings 18:45 — the heavens grew Kadar with clouds and wind.
Joel 3:15 — the sun and moon are Kadar and the stars withdraw their shining.
Micah 3:6 — the day shall be Kadar over them.
So Kadar doesn’t mean black; it means gloomy and dark—in mood or in sky.”
“Well, let’s continue with verses 3 and 4:
Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your tabernacle. (Psalm 43:3)
In Scripture, truth is light and light is truth. When light comes, you see clearly — you see truth. People who love darkness hate the light because their works are evil (John 3:19–21).
But if we love light, we love truth. Yeshua is the light of the world (John 8:12) and the truth (John 14:6).
So we must be people who walk in the light—walk in truth.
Let them bring me to your holy hill and to your mishkan (מִשְׁכָּן). The mishkan is the tabernacle, God’s dwelling place where His shekinah (שְׁכִינָה)—His presence—shakan (dwelt) among His people.
Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise you with a lyre, O God, my God. (Psalm 43:4)”
“Now, if I could somehow change the thinking of every believer in the world and repair one thing, it would be their thinking about the altar and sacrifices.
Many ask, ‘Why will sacrifices continue if Messiah has come and dealt with sin?’ Because in their minds, sacrifices = sin. But that’s not what Scripture shows.
Most altars and offerings had nothing to do with sin. There were Thanksgiving offerings, peace offerings, whole-burnt offerings, devotional offerings—brought in joy and love, not guilt.
The psalmist says, Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy (Psalm 43:4). Why? Because he wants to celebrate.
In ancient Israel, sacrifice was fellowship—a shared meal with God. The altar was His table (Malachi 1:7). Jeremiah 33 makes it clear that when Messiah returns and His kingdom is established, sacrifices resume as a celebration of joy.”
“Now, when he says to God, it’s interesting—in Hebrew that’s El-El (אֵל אֵל). The word to is L (לְ), but when combined it sounds as ‘El-El’—‘to God.’
It’s amazing that the word for God—El—is also the direction to go toward. Because God is the goal of everything we’re moving toward.
He is the fulfillment of every desire we have. El-El may sound repetitive, but it isn’t—it’s beautifully intentional.
Psalm 84:2 says, My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of Adonai; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God (El El Chai אֵל אֵל חַי).
Chai (חַי) means life or living. So El-El Chai means to God, the Living One.”
“And this again is the third time we find this refrain in Psalms 42 and 43:
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 and my God. (Psalm 43:5)
It’s as if the psalmist, from his spirit, is speaking to his own soul—his mind, will, and emotions—saying, “What’s wrong with you? Stand up. Hope in God.”
Sometimes we must do this ourselves—stand in the place of our spirit and address our own soul: Snap out of it. Hope in God, for we will again praise Him, our salvation and our God (Psalm 43:5).
We get cast down when we’re stuck in the temporariness of things. But when we step into the spiritual realm—the eternal realm where God’s throne sits on a sea of glass (Revelation 4:6)—there’s no turmoil, only shalom שָׁלוֹם.
So when life shakes and the sand shifts, ask your soul, Why are you cast down? Remember—this is temporary. Hope in God who is eternal, unchangeable, our rock (Psalm 18:2).
Don’t wallow in depression; stand on the rock. Give yourself a talking to. Smile, and you’ll find joy returning. We owe it to our God to be joyful.
And until next time, I wish you Shalom שָׁלוֹם and God bless.”
Links
[A continuation of Psalm 42]
1-2 Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me! 2For You are the God in whom I take refuge; why have You rejected me? Why do I go about mourning / in darknessbecause of the oppression of the enemy?
שפט (shaphat) = “judge, vindicate”
קדר (kadar) = “overcast, gloomy”
3-4 Send out Your light and Your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your tabernacle. 4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise You with the lyre, O God, my God.
אל אל (el El)
5 Why are you sunken down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God.
REFERENCES:
Verse 1
Genesis 16:5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May Adonai judge (שפט, shaphat) between you and me!”
Genesis 18:25 “Far be it from You to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from You! Shall not the Judge(שפט, shaphat) of all the earth do justice(משפט, mishpat)?”
Verse 2
1Kings 18:45 And in a little while the heavens grew black (קדר, kadar) with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel.
Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon are darkened (קדר, kadar), and the stars withdraw their shining.
Micah 3:6 Therefore it shall be night to you, without vision, and darkness to you, without divination. The sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be black (קדר, kadar) over them;
Verse 4
Psalm 84:2 My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of Adonai. My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God(אל אל חי, el El Chai).