Ps 88

Devotion 1 of 1: Ps 88

This psalm is by Heman, who is dying. He believes in God and salvation (v.1), but as he approaches death, his soul is full of troubles (v.3). We all must die one day. And we would like to go in peace, so let’s find out why Heman experienced so much suffering in dying.
V.7 tells us that Heman received God’s wrath and affliction. Furthermore, v.8 indicates he had lost his friends, and he was an abomination to them! Also, it hints that he might have been in a prison and couldn’t get out. On top of that, according to v.9, because of his afflictions, he was either shedding many tears or losing his eyesight.
At the end of this psalm in v.15-18, the dying Heman hints at a troubled and dangerous past as a youth and repeats that God’s terrors and wrath engulf him, make him distraught and have driven his friends away from him.
I think the reason Heman is full of troubles as he’s dying is because he had a rough youth, which affected his relationships with people. Although he believed in God, he didn’t grow spiritually and perhaps committed crimes which drove his family and friends from him and landed him in prison. This is just one possibility of the circumstances of his life; there are other possible explanations also.
One lesson that we can learn from this psalm is that, as Jesus taught, loving God and loving others, are the most important things in life. When we do that, our hearts will have peace when it’s time for us to die.

JOHN 10: Free sharing!
The Jews wanted to stone Jesus because He claimed to be God (v.33). But Jesus answered them that, according to Ps 82:6, God called men gods! What is Jesus saying?
When we examine Ps 82, we find that God calls men “gods” 2X! The 1st time is in 82:1-2, “God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods. How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked? Selah.” In these verses, God is calling the judges of Israel “gods” because God is a judge and the judges are acting like God in judging the people. Actually, He is honoring them by calling them gods, even though they are actually evil judges!
The 2nd time God calls men gods is in 82:6-7, ‘I said, “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High. But you shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.” ‘ Here, I believe God is calling all humans “gods” because He says they would die like men in v.7. He also said they were children of God. Why? Because they were made by God. And when God made man in Gen 1:26, He said, “Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…” God created man in His image, so in that sense, humans are “gods.”
In conclusion, I believe what Jesus meant by quoting Ps 82 in His debate with the Jews is this. God honored even bad judges by calling them gods because they had the position of judges, just like God. And also, God honored all humans by calling them gods, even though humans commit many sins. If this is so, then how much more would the Father call the One whom He sanctified and sent from heaven into the world, “God” or “The Son of God.” So it’s not a blasphemy, but the truth.