Are you feeling hopeless, disappointed, frustrated, lonely, or confused?
Psalm 119:73-80 ~ Yod
Your hands have made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands. May those who fear you rejoice when they see me, for I have put my hope in your word. I know, O LORD, that your laws are righteous, and in faithfulness you have afflicted me. May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant. Let your compassion come to me that I may live, for your law is my delight. May the arrogant be put to shame for wronging me without cause; but I will meditate on your precepts. May those who fear you turn to me, those who understand your statutes. May my heart be blameless toward your decrees, that I may not be put to shame (NIV).
Psalm 119 is an acrostic of the Hebrew alphabet with every eight lines corresponding to a letter. The above verses all begin with the tenth letter, yod. The ancient pictograph for yod looked like an arm and hand. Yod comes from the word yad, meaning “hand, work, or create.” The yod is the first letter in Yahweh, the name for God; Yisrael, the nation of God; Yerushalayim, the city of God; and Yeshua, the Son of God.
Yod represents the hand of God and His work in creating, saving, upholding, and defending.
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb (Psalm 139:10).
Yet, O LORD, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand (Isaiah 64:8).
My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me (Psalm 63:8).
Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him (Psalm 98:1).
Isn’t it good to know that the One who had the power to create us, has the power to sustain us? He alone is able to do for us what nobody else can do; therefore, we can trust Him with every moment.
But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me (Psalm 31:14-15).
When times are difficult and we struggle to find our way, we can rest in the knowledge that we are in His hands. He will never abandon the work of His hands. The Psalmist knew the secret to trust. Look again at Psalm 119 above. Because His hands formed us, He is able to give us understanding and compassion when we put our hope in His Words.
But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me, the LORD has forgotten me.”
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49:14-16).
How has God engraved us on the palms of His hands? Through the nail-pierced hands of His Son. If you have received Jesus as your Savior and Lord of your life, then you are in His hands. He has already conquered everything that you face. His hand has worked salvation, healing, and deliverance for you.
Feeling hopeless, disappointed, frustrated, lonely, or confused? If you belong to Jesus, take heart with these words today.
My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my hand. I and the Father are one (John 10:28-29).
Yes, He is greater than all, indeed.
And we are in His hands.