Death is an inevitability that will be faced by all living beings, including humans. Interestingly, only humans have the ability to contemplate death and imagine it. Either in full readiness or even the looming horror because of the mystery of death that will surely come. It is in this nuance that death often becomes an attribute to the experience of urgency and the nadir situation that may be experienced by humans.

Our reading this time also describes a situation of squeeze and urgency, a struggle that pushes a person to a critical and squeezed situation. "The snare of death is wrapped around me, the fear of the dead is upon me, I am troubled and miserable" (v.3), is the psalmist's cry to underline a crisis that a human being may face. Death and the world of the dead are expressions of hopelessness, be it physical, emotional, or spiritual.

In the midst of such a seemingly hopeless crisis who can be of help? God alone can be the helper of all the challenges and struggles faced by humans. The psalmist believes that God hears his voice and inclines His ear to those who hope and cry out in earnest. God is on the side of those who are oppressed and afflicted. So the believer will eventually find rest, not because of his own strength but because of the Lord who has done good. He delivers believers from death. With profound expression, the psalmist describes the deliverance as God's act of sparing him from tears and keeping his feet from stumbling. Crises and dangers pass late because of God's intervention.

Friends of the Bible, perhaps we are in the midst of a life full of problems, challenges, and struggles that are so soul-crushing. Let's learn from the psalmist that one thing we can do is to cry out to God with full confidence that He will hear us. If the mysterious and inevitable death can be spared because of His steadfast love, then none of our struggles are too big for Him to overcome. Continue to hope in the Lord because He is the one who delivers us from tears.