Psalm 130: Trust in the Lord is not a matter of choice, but destiny.

Verse 5: 

I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.

The poet trusts in the Lord's promise with all his body, mind, and will. The Lord of the poet is gracious in all circumstances. The poet was in a situation where he had no choice but to distrust the Lord's promise and His identity. What is the reason and power that makes the poet trust only in the Lord? Is the cycle of 'trust and recovery' in the relationship with the Lord familiar to the poet? Or is the Lord the only one left for the poet?

The former must overcome the barrier of human fickleness. This is because people are not Pavlov's dogs. Betrayal due to self-love that disregards reason is innate in people. The latter is more persuasive. The latter refers to the parable of the widow and the judge in the New Testament. The widow had no other way but to go to the judge, even if he was unjust. The poet of Psalm 130 also has no other object than the Lord. Even if the situation the poet is in makes him unable to trust only in the Lord, he must hold on to the Lord's promise. This is because there is no other way, no other possibility for the poet. Therefore, trust in the Lord for the poet is not a matter of choice. It is inevitable and it is destiny. Israel chose between Yahweh and other gods. So Israel always had to be pointed out for idol worship through prophets, and because of that, their country was ruined. This is the consistent perspective of the biblical recorders (editors).

But finally, we hear the hope of destiny, not choice, in countless prophecies. Jeremiah proclaimed the renewal of the covenant (Jer 31:31-33):

"Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, declares the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."

This exactly overlaps with the situation where the poet of the Psalm can only trust in the Lord. Through Jeremiah, the Lord promised a covenant engraved on the heart of Israel. This is inevitable and it is destiny. Now Israel can no longer choose between Yahweh and the gods of other nations. This fact surpasses Israel's choices and will, it is destiny. That is why the Lord of the poet and the God of Israel is always gracious and merciful.