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Psalms

About this book
Psalm 42

1 For the music director, a well-written song by the Korahites. As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God!⁠ 2 I thirst for God, for the living God. I say, “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” 3 I cannot eat; I weep day and night. All day long they say to me, “Where is your God?” 4 I will remember and weep. For I was once walking along with the great throng to the temple of God, shouting and giving thanks along with the crowd as we celebrated the holy festival. 5 Why are you depressed, O my soul? Why are you upset? Wait for God! For I will again give thanks to my God for his saving intervention. 6 I am depressed, so I will pray to you while in the region of the upper Jordan, from Hermon, from Mount Mizar. 7 One deep stream calls out to another at the sound of your waterfalls; all your billows and waves overwhelm me.⁠ 8 By day the Lord decrees his loyal love, and by night he gives me a song, a prayer to the God of my life. 9 I will pray to God, my high ridge: “Why do you ignore me? Why must I walk around mourning because my enemies oppress me?” 10 My enemies’ taunts cut me to the bone, as they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” 11 Why are you depressed, O my soul? Why are you upset? Wait for God! For I will again give thanks to my God for his saving intervention.

Texts in conversation

Compare Joel 1:20 and Psalm 42:1

Hebrew Bible

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Summary

Joel describes animals crying out in thirst when rivers dry up, showing how drought leaves even wildlife desperate for water. Psalm 42 uses similar language, comparing a person’s longing for God to a deer searching for a stream.

Passages

Joel 1:20

Hebrew Bible
17 The grains of seed have shriveled beneath their shovels. Storehouses have been decimated, and granaries have been torn down because the grain has dried up. 18 Listen to the cattle groan! The herds of livestock wander around in confusion because they have no pasture. Even the flocks of sheep are suffering. 19 To you, O Lord, I call out for help, for fire has burned up the pastures of the wilderness, flames have razed all the trees in the fields. 20 Even the wild animals long for you53, for the river beds have dried up; fire has destroyed the pastures of the wilderness.
600–501 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Joel

Psalm 42:1

Hebrew Bible
1 For the music director, a well-written song by the Korahites. As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God! 2 I thirst for God, for the living God. I say, “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” 3 I cannot eat; I weep day and night. All day long they say to me, “Where is your God?” 4 I will remember and weep. For I was once walking along with the great throng to the temple of God, shouting and giving thanks along with the crowd as we celebrated the holy festival.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

"... Psalm 42:1: The Masoretic text has the masculine form “hart”; many commentators assume the form should be the feminine to harmonize with the verb which occurs only here and in Joel 1:20. It is possible that the feminine ending might have been omitted by haplography. The singular noun could be taken as a collective for sense agreement. The Greek version has “longs for” or “earnestly desires,” a word used for longing for water ..."
Allen P. Ross, Commentary on the Psalms: 42-89 (Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic & Professional, 2011), 11.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Joel 1:20 and Psalm 42:1

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