“How long, O LORD? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealousy burn like fire?” Psalm 79:5.
As the psalmist looks out upon the rubble of his life—perhaps the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in 586 BC—he expresses the same concerns as the singers of Psalm 137 when taunted by their captors to “sing us one of the songs of Zion!”
These are the same questions as Psalm 77:7-9,
“Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? Has his steadfast love forever ceased? Are his promises at an end for all time? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?”
His grief is like the lament found in Psalm 74. Not dwelling in the destruction, however, he appeals to God for a forgiveness of the nation's sins and for God’s compassion and atonement to come upon them and vengeance for their enemies to come speedily.
Trust in God’s forgiveness, mercy, and grace are all we have to trust in. Surveying the mess of our lives, all we can do is throw ourselves at His feet and appeal to His goodness and love. We are under the protection and provision of a just God who knows whose are His.
The real question is not “How long?” but “Are we in Him?”