Psalm 90:9-17
Prayer: Father, as we begin a new year, please teach us to number our days so that You might give us true wisdom. Make us men of Issachar who discern the times and know what we ought to do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Introduction
It has been said that history doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes – it echoes. The particulars change, but the themes, characters, and story arcs repeat in slightly different forms. Ecclesiastes says, “The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there anything whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us” (Eccl. 1:9-10).
The repeated refrain of Solomon is that all is vanity or “vapor” and “vexation of spirit” or “striving after wind.” A better translation would be “shepherding the wind.” Ecclesiastes teaches that there is a kind of cyclical nature to time and yet there is a beginning and an end: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven…He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end” (Eccl. 3:1, 11). While the ancient pagan view was that time was strictly cyclical; the modern pagan view is that time is strictly linear (always progress). The Christian view of history is more spiral: there is repetition and there is progress.
We live in days of crisis and turmoil. It remains to be seen what kind of stability will emerge, whether it will be favorable to Christianity or not. Regardless, we are called to be “men of Issachar,” who have “understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do” (1 Chron. 12:32). And Psalm 90 is a wonderful prayer for that kind of wisdom.
The Text: “For all our days are passed away in thy wrath: we spend our years as a tale that is told. The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow…” (Ps. 90:9-17)
Summary of the Text
This Psalm of Moses says that our lives are stories or tales that are told (Ps. 90:9). As David says elsewhere, all our days were written in God’s book before there was one (Ps. 139:16). In general, Moses says that our lifespans are 70-80 years long before our strength fades and we pass away (Ps. 90:10). It’s interesting that Moses lived to 120 years old, and when he died, the Bible says his strength was not diminished (Dt. 34:7). While this may be a generic rule of thumb for individuals, it may also be something of an estimate for cultural lifespans: since before the flood many men lived much longer lives and for many centuries average life expectancy was much shorter, and in the future, it may be reasonable to hope for more.
Moses says that the relative shortness of our lives is due to God’s anger against sin – God is not willing for our human sinfulness to get out of control (Ps. 90:11). This is why Adam and Eve were sent out of the Garden – so that they would not live forever in that condition of sin (Gen. 3:22). The psalmist prays that God would teach us to number our days so that we may apply our hearts to wisdom (Ps. 90:12). There is great wisdom in recognizing the shortness of life, the frailty of life, and this extends to studying history, life cycles, cultural patterns, and the providence of God in history.
Moses prays that God would turn and satisfy us early with His mercy that we might rejoice and be glad all our years (Ps. 90:13-15). Solomon says the same thing: “I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life” (Eccl. 3:12). So Moses asks that glory of the Lord would be known by us and our children, so that the beauty of the Lord would rest upon us and the work of our hands (Ps. 90:16-17).
The Fourth Turning
One modern theory of history posits that there is a natural 80-ish year cycle that occurs in human cultures – called the Fourth Turning. Actually, many ancients thought of history in a four-fold pattern, mapping roughly onto the seasons of life and the seasons of the year. But a modern version of the theory says this 80 year cycle often consists of four “turnings”: A High era is marked by growth, prosperity, social cohesion, stability, and strong institutions and shared values; an Awakening is marked by spiritual/social renewal and increased individualism and rebellion against the established norms; an Unraveling continues the individualistic trend, while institutions weaken; followed by a Crisis period (called the Fourth Turning), which is usually a period of intense turmoil, when old institutions are torn down and new ones are built. You can see this pattern since World War II: the Boomer generation (1946-64), the Social Revolution generation (1964-84), the Culture War generation (1984-2005), which lands us smack dab at the tail-end of a Fourth Turning of crisis, disintegration, and rebuilding.
One fairly clear biblical example of this pattern can be seen in the Exodus story: Moses and Aaron lead an Awakening in Egypt which leads to an Unraveling in the wilderness, leading to the Crisis of the conquest of the Promised Land, leading to an initial High period of peace and prosperity in the land.
Seems like we can sketch something similar in first century Judaism: the High period of Herod’s temple project was interrupted by the Awakening of John the Baptist, Jesus, and the Apostles, which led to the Unraveling of Jewish stability and trust, culminating in the Jewish revolt and the Fourth Turning culminated in the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D.
Applications
Regardless of the exact particulars, it seems clear that we are in a period of cultural crisis and turmoil. How do we number our days? What is the wisdom that we ought to learn from living in this moment? How do we prepare for what may be next?
Reject every form of neutrality and secularism. Arguably, a great deal of the peace and prosperity of the post-WWII generation was a Faustian bargain with secularism. Many Christians were conned into keeping their faith private, keeping the Bible relegated to Church and even then cowed into not becoming “political.” Ironically, it’s actually a kind of “secularism” that assumes there is no rhyme or reason to history. A Darwinian view of history sees all of the past as random accidents, and the strong survive. A Christian view of history sees God’s meticulous hand in every detail. This has application for our day-to-day lives: so many details repeat daily in slightly different forms. You wake up, you go to work/school, you talk to so-and-so, you come home, you eat dinner, etc. God is giving you opportunities every day to learn to trust Him, to be a faithful character in the story, repent and do it better. Are you studying the patterns and repetitions in your own life? With your kids? Your marriage?
Walk in faith. Do not give in to fear or despair. “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 Jn. 5:4-5). But notice this: overcoming the world begins with being “born of God.” Faith is not just some kind of humanistic optimism. Faith looks squarely at the reality of death looming over us all. There’s a hundred percent death rate. Every one of us will face it. The Bible says that the only way to overcome death is to know the One who has already overcome death. Look to Christ. Call upon the name of the Lord Jesus. Whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. That means that when you die, you will not really die. You will be with God, and your body will rise at the last day. And if that is true for you, then it begins to give you true resurrection hope for the world around you: Chesterton said: “Christendom has had a series of revolutions and in each one of them Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave.”
Wisdom studies history and realizes that the most important things are the things that always apply. No matter what turning you live in, if you keep the central things central, you will always be close to the center of God’s plan: So worship God on the Lord’s Day, work hard for six days rest for one, husbands love your wives like Christ loved the Church, wives respect and obey your husbands as the Church does Christ, provide a thoroughly Christian education for your children, children honor your parents in the Lord. Confess your sins and forgive one another. The joy of the Lord is your strength.
Prayer: Father, You hold all things in Your hand: time, seasons, international politics, markets, wars, and You care about the details of our lives, what we will eat and what we will wear. So grant us this wisdom that studies Your work and rests in Your care and keep us busy at our stations, so that Your beauty may be upon us and the work of our hands. Though Jesus Christ…
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