Psalms – Page 13 – LOVE | ACCEPT

Psalm 38 – Come Quickly to Help Me

For I am about to fall, and my pain is ever with me.

I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.

May are those who are my vigorous enemies; those who hate me without reason are numerous.

Those who repay my good with evil slander me when I pursue what is good. (vv 17-20)

Modern readers are tempted to dismiss this psalm as the product of ancient superstition and ignorance of the source of bodily infirmities. The psalmist attributes the overwhelming pain and agony of his suffering to a personal attack by God due to his sinfulness. We understand disease and the decay of body from a scientific perspective but we should be slow to allow this knowledge to color our understanding of God’s hand on our lives.

O Lord, do not rebuke me in you anger or discipline me in your wrath. (v1)

Our actions have consequences, good and bad. Should the Lord prevent us from suffering the consequence of our choices because of his deep love for us? We do this for our children, more often than not. God wants us to grow and mature in our holiness and sometimes that requires pain to enter our lives. The pain reminds us of the choices that we made and gives us an incentive to make better choices in the future. On the other hand, there are numerous pains that are significantly disconnected by time and distance from their original source and we can mistakenly attribute them to chance or label them unexplainable. Anger with God can mount: why God, why? Why would you allow this into my life now? These moments, when we most desire to understand, are the times when our knees should hit the floor as we seek understanding.

O Lord, do not forsake me; be not far from me, O my God.

Come quickly to help me, O Lord my savior. (vv 21 –22)

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Psalm 37 – Turn From Evil and Do Good

I have seen a wicked and ruthless man flourishing like a green tree in its native soil, but he soon passed away and was no more;

though I looked for him, he could not be found.

Consider the blameless, observe the upright; there is a future for the man of peace. (vv 35-37)

Psalm 37 presents a compilation of wisdom regarding the clear differences to be noted between the righteous and the wicked. It voices a warning against succumbing to the temptation of taking the easy way out that might involve gray areas in our behaviors. The first verses set the tone:

Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. (vv 1-2)

Every day we see those around who are not followers of Christ but who seem to be blessed. They have money, possessions, and good health while members of our own church are suffering. They may even boast of how they gamed the system or gained their fortunes in illicit ways while those who walk the narrow path scrape by, month by month. Two temptations present themselves; the invitation to follow them in their unrighteous behavior and worse, the temptation to abandon the narrow path because we do not see God correcting the unrighteousness in His world.

The psalmist addresses these issues, knowing the attraction of turning one’s face from the goals. We must remember to consider all things in terms of God’s time rather than the limited perspective of our few years here in this world. We tend toward demanding immediate action and justice whereas God is more expansive in his timekeeping. He views things eternally, knowing that His perfect justice will be visited upon every human being.

A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.

But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace. (vv 10-11)

This psalm is a great soul-strengthener when you have moments of temptation. Keep the eternal in mind and refuse to succumb to the fleeting moments of this life. Trust in Him and and His righteousness.

The days of the blameless are known to the Lord, and their inheritance will endure forever. (v 18)

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Psalm 36 – Your Faithfulness Reaches to the Skies

An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked;

There is no fear of God before his eyes.

For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin. (vv 1-2)

The psalmist appears to have appended the introductory verses of this psalm onto the glorious praise that follows as a sudden flash of inspiration into knowing the hearts of the wicked. He clearly understands the root of the problem with the God haters. It’s not that there is anger with God, it’s simply that they love themselves more.

The more you investigate the beliefs and practices of the atheists, the more one discovers that their God hatred is rooted in their self love. Their denial of any evidence presented to them empowers their lordship over the world. They of course deny this and overtly proclaim their happiness, satisfaction with life, the greatness of their existence. They flatter themselves into continuing their false belief, labeling themselves ‘free thinkers’ and better adjusted than the believer. Me think they doth protest too loudly.

The praise of the truth does not need to be forced.

Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.

Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep.

O Lord you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love. (vv 5-7)

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Psalm 35 Vindicate Me in Your Righteousness

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me.

Take up shield and buckler; arise and come to my aid.

Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me.

Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.” (vv 1 – 3)

New Testament Christians (those whose main reading is done in the NT) encounter a violent plea such as this from the psalmist much differently than those who spend equal time in both testaments. The psalmist—and the psalter—calls for violent retribution on a divine scale from Yahweh against those who would persecute him. Again, our modern ears trouble us. Is it right to call down fire and destruction on our enemies in the light of Christ’s instruction to love our enemies and to offer the other cheek to insults?

Perhaps we read the psalm too literally as an imprecatory piece. In the same way that we may use a journal or even our prayer life to ‘vent’ and release our personal frustration at whatever our current situation might be. The cry for justice softens a bit to seek vindication in the verses that follow.

May those who seek my life be disgraced and put to shame; may those who plot my ruin be turned back in dismay.

May they be like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the Lord driving them away; may their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord pursuing them. (vv 4-6)

So maybe Yahweh, you don’t destroy them with the Javelin but just chase them away and shame them for their false accusations. David claims innocence to the charges that his enemies are bringing against him. He has done nothing to deserve the troubles that have come his way and asks that Yahweh resolve this. He promises praise in return,

may ruin overtake them by surprise—may the net they hid entangle them, may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.

…then my soul will rejoice in the Lord and delight in his salvation.

My whole being will exclaim, “Who is like you, O Lord? You rescue the poor from those too strong for them, the poor and needy from those who rob them.” (vv 8-10)

The danger of schadenfreude leaps to mind. Shall I praise the Lord for the misfortune of others? They have fallen into their own trap after all. This is a psalm to consider carefully. It may not be one of our favorites because it raise such an uncomfortable quandary for us but those moments and hours of discomfort ultimately strengthen our bond with God. Take the psalm to Him in prayer and allow the Spirit to search your heart to discover both the right and wrong reasons that exist there.

Photo by Richard the Lyin’ Hearted

Psalm 34 Taste And See That The Lord Is Good

I sought the Lord and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. (vv 4-5)

As we often see, the psalms are intensely personal. Starting as the voice of one man, through the centuries these magnificent poems have created the foundation for countless prayers. You may read and use the psalter in such a manner. What is more important is the reason that we are attracted to the psalms and that is that we see our own experiences played out in the lives of others. We have faced danger and the Lord has delivered us. We have been surrounded by enemies and the Lord has delivered us. Our story, as we see David’s, is of value to those around us whether they know the Lord or not.

Our greatest purpose is to live lives that invite others to taste the glory of God. Our words and actions should be so winsome that others cannot resist asking their source. In the wisdom component of this psalm, David voices these imperatives.

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. (v 8)

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. (vv 12-13)

Let’s make it our mission this week (and beyond) to be purposeful in our joy and peace. Let is radiate from us and extend the invitation to come and taste…

Photo by Michele Cat

Psalm 33 ~ May Your Unfailing Love Rest Upon Us

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.

From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth —

he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. (vv 12-15)

A praise psalm for everyone.

The psalmist insists that praise should ring out for the Lord from all, from the nations to the individual hearts of those in the nations. God does not see us in the collective, his eyes roam the planet in search of you and me. Following psalm 32 which described the joy of the person who has confessed his or her sin and has been restored. To unroll the scroll and speak the words of this psalm to life is a reaction sourced deep in the heart of the forgiven.

No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.

A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.

But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. (vv 16 – 19)

The psalmist helps us to arrange our thinking properly. We praise God less for his actions such as delivering us from our enemies ( which can cause us moments of unease when He doesn’t ) and more for his God’s attributes. If we recognize the source of the deliverance as being rooted in His unfailing love, moments of question are quickly dismissed. Even if we face temporary setbacks, God’s unfailing love is unfolding all around us and we see that even our struggles can be a sign of His love.

Photo by David Ohmer

Psalm 32 ~ You Forgave

The confession in Psalm 32 does not strike the modern ear in the same way that it would have the ancient Hebrew’s

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my inquiry.

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord – and you forgave the guilt of my sin. (v 5)

Our evangelical heritage has trained us to be confessors, to turn our sin over to God for judgment only to receive grace. This is an act filled with danger as we can easily begin to take that grace for granted. Perhaps the next verse should make its way into our journals and our hearts;

Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise they will not reach him. (v 6)

The ominous caution—while you may be found—warns against taking the privilege of confession too lightly. We can slip into a mindset that the all-aware God already knows of our transgressions and has addressed them forthwith. In taking this attitude however, we miss an important component of the confession in the humbling that comes with kneeling before the Judge and confessing. The act of lowering one’s head in respect of God’s lordship is in itself an act of trust that our survival instinct rebels against. To take our eyes off of the One who could potentially take all from us including our lives requires a deep faith in the anticipated outcome.

Better in the future to not risk the heavy hand of God, as Yahweh Himself teaches,

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.

Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. (vv 8-9)

Trust in the grace of the Lord but do not test its boundaries.

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Psalm 31 – How Great is Your Goodness

We often peer into the Bible from a safe distance, having the benefit of seeing the whole story unfold before us. In the case of the life of David, we are familiar with his rise and eventual fall. The distance can separate us from his experience in such a way that we read of his trials but say ‘he but not me.’ The achingly robust faith that he expresses in the prayer of Psalm 31 is not so easily evaded though. We question our own faith and trust in the goodness of the Lord when our lives become a spiral of unending travail and alienation, especially at the hands of others. “Where are you?” we cry out. Forsaken may even creep into our vocabulary, a slow burning doubt that our Lord truly does have us in hand. In the remaining ember of light, we encounter the core of David’s psalm. Continue reading “Psalm 31 – How Great is Your Goodness”

Psalm 30 – Rejoicing Comes in the Morning

The middle verses of Psalm 30 remind us of why we return to these scriptures for strength and comfort time and time again.

Sing the Lord you saints of his; praise his holy name.

For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. (vv 4-5)

All of the saints of the Lord are called to raise our voices in praise even though their may be fleeting moments in which we believe that our travails overwhelm our ability to worship. David reminds us that life with the Lord will have these peaks and valleys but that the grace of God remains consistent. We need only turn our hearts toward him to rejoice again in His goodness.

The core thought in this psalm is the distinction between death and silence, and life and praise. Despite current circumstances, the question that it drives us to ask is, are we still drawing breath? If so, we can praise God beginning with this simple fact. Once the praise begins, the Spirit will remind us of all of the other things for which we can praise God as well.

To you, O Lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy.

What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit?

Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me, O Lord, be my help. (vv 8-10)

… for if I live I praise you…

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.

O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.(vv 11-12)

It is easy to see only darkness when we feel as though the valley has become too deep to ever climb out of but God has a purpose in it. Small graces will visit us, perhaps even those that we might be unaware of but they are cause for praise. We lift our voices despite the darkness for morning will come, just as God promises.

Psalm 29 ~ The Lord Thunders Over the Mighty Waters

Recite the first two verses of this psalm out loud, the first time in a whisper and the second time in full voice using the full power of your diaphragm.

Ascribe to the Lord, O mighty one, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.

Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of His holiness. (vv 1-2)

This psalm, in its structure and prose, demands to be fully voiced. The call to worship and praise found in these introductory verses practically rings the kind of praise that we feel in our hearts but rarely have the courage to voice. Compare it to the tepid “Good morning, how’s everybody doin’” that serves as the call to worship in so many churches and it leads you to wonder what would happen if someone got up and belted this out.

In fact, continue to read and you’ll find your blood rising and heart beating harder as the volume and power rise in your head.

The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders.

The Lord Thunders over the mighty waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is majestic.

The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon. (vv 3-4)

Why not also close the service with the closing affirmation:

The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord is enthroned as King forever.

The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace. (vv 10 – 11)

Amen