The Lord is close to the brokenhearted;
he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. Psalms 34:18 (NLT)
Although we are citizens of heaven, we still become brokenhearted at times. Our spirits still get crushed at times. But God encourages us that he is close to the brokenhearted. He doesn’t say that we shouldn’t be brokenhearted, as if we are always triumphant, but rather he is with us. This reminds us of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:4: “blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
But God doesn’t just remain close to the brokenhearted; he also rescues us when we are crushed. (Note: there is no real difference between “brokenhearted” and “crushed spirit” in this verse. It is Hebrew poetic parallelism; the writer states the same idea twice with different words.) There are many ways in which he may rescue us. Under the New Covenant, he may not rescue us until the next age after Jesus returns. Or, he may rescue us right away, for example, when he delivered Peter from prison. He may rescue our hearts and not our circumstances by giving us an internal blessing that takes the bitterness out of our suffering.
Whatever he does, we know that he promises us the most important things: his caring presence and eternal happiness with him. Since he is close to the brokenhearted, he gives himself to them, which is infinitely more important than whatever caused the broken heart.
If you are brokenhearted, how much do you believe that God is close to you? If your faith is low, can you meditate on this verse and embrace more of it?
