When You’ve Made Your Bed in Hell
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in hell, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me secure (Psalm 139:7-8).
Isn’t it nice to know that we can never wander beyond the reach of our loving God?
King David had this beautiful realization one day, and it became a part of the lyrics of this Spirit-inspired song which we call Psalm 139.
He was praying and looking back over his life and marveled at the faithfulness of God.
“Lord, wherever I am, wherever I go, no matter what situation I find myself in (good, bad and ugly), you’re always right there ready and willing to help me!”
That’s a good reminder, of course, because that’s not always how we feel, and it’s not always what we deserve, but nevertheless, it is always true–even when “we make our beds in hell.” (The word can mean “the grave,” or “the depths.” It’s the Hebrew word sheol which means place of the departed, the abode of the dead.)
I think you get the point.
So, how would one make their bed in a place like that?
Well, as you know:
“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9).
We Believers have the Holy Spirit on board to help us “put to death the misdeeds of the sinful nature,” but sometimes our old ways just get the better of us.
And we find ourselves following after our own foolish promptings and before we know it, were “settling on the far side of the sea” — spiritually speaking– feeling a million miles away from the Author of Life.
Robert Robinson laid out the ugly truth in a hymn (Come Thou Fount) which he wrote over 200 years ago:
“Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love…”
Brutal honesty is good for the soul.
We’ve all done our fair share of wandering, haven’t we?
We act with wrong motives, we follow wrong desires, and we give way to temptation. And consequently find ourselves feeling far, far away.
Fear.
Guilt.
Regret.
Emptiness.
Joylessness.
The place of the departed.
And now what?
Well, usually the last thing we want is to face the Lord, even though we know he’s our only help.
Like our original parents when they blew it. They felt guilty and fearful and ashamed. So they covered up and hid from God.
(Like that’s even possible.)
The world might insensitively quip: Well, you made your bed, now lie in it!
But God sought out the guilty pair, not to condemn them, but to comfort and restore them.
We may lose track of Him, but He never loses track of us.
And what’s kind of funny is that wherever we are running to flee His presence, He’s already there!
No fair!
And according to these verses, He’s there waiting with a smile, a compassionate heart, and the desire to help us.
You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways (Psalm 139:1-2).
He fully knows you and completely loves you and He’s with you now wanting to “hold you steady.”
When Noah had too much wine…
When David committed adultery….
When Peter denied Jesus…
When Samson broke his vows…
I’m sure they all felt like they ruined their lives–and you know the devil was preaching a sermon on hell-fire and condemnation to their devastated souls.
But God had something else to say:
Even though they had “made their beds in the hell,” God was with them, NOT to condemn them, but to help them find their way back to Him.
And what about when someone else has made the bed for us, and we’re in deep distress because of the actions of another?
Well, the remedy is still the same, right?
No matter how we ended up in the depths of despair, God is there with outstretched arms ready to lift us up. It’s never a question if God is willing to help us; the question is, Are we willing to receive it?
And what about you?
Are you in the depths? Do you feel as though there’s a great chasm between you and the Savior?
Take your thoughts captive.
Take charge of those emotions and make them submit the enduring truth of God’s eternal Word!
He’s got His eye on you right this very moment.
Waiting to help you, wanting to love on you.
Plans to help you, not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future, as Jeremiah told us.
Don’t forget that.
