- He Hears
Psalm 38:15
For in thee, O Lord, do I hope:
Thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.
This seems to be an unconditional promise for all people that wait and hope in God, the condition being that they have prayed (otherwise they wouldn’t wait in hope). The promise is that the Lord hears, that is, He will answer their prayers.
There are many promises in the Bible that God will hear prayers and many encouragements to pray. We pray because of God’s command and promise. Our prayers to God are part of our faith response to hearing the Gospel. After we hear the Gospel of God’s Love we are prompted to pray to such a wonderful God. He promises to answer and we are further encouraged to pray.
The emphasis in this verse’s promise is laid on the word “hope,” and in some translations, “wait.” The Hebrew can mean either word, and each translation gives a clue to the meaning of the other. We wait with assurance because the hope is a certainty (not a wish); we hope with certainty because we wait with confidence (don’t give up no matter how long).
God promises to answer; that settles it. Now we wait in hope.