◆ 42:1​—How was the psalmist like a ‘hind longing for water’?

For some reason, this Levite was in exile. So greatly did he miss worship at Jehovah’s sanctuary that he felt like a hunted, thirsty hind, or female deer, that longs for water in barren, waterless country. He ‘thirsted,’ or yearned, for Jehovah and for the privilege of worshiping God at His sanctuary.​—Verse 2 of Ps 42.

Lesson for Us: The experience of the psalmist in exile should move us to show deep appreciation for the association we now enjoy with Jehovah’s people. If confinement due to persecution temporarily prevents us from being with them, we can meditate on past joys in sacred service and should pray for endurance while we “wait for God” to restore us to active association with his worshipers.​—Psalm 42:4, 5, 11; 43:3-5.