Psalm Meditation 542
Twenty fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time
November 7, 2010

Psalm 3
1 O LORD, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me;
2 many are saying to me, "There is no help for you in God." Selah
3 But you, O LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the one who lifts up my head.
4 I cry aloud to the LORD, and he answers me from his holy hill. Selah
5 I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.
6 I am not afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
7 Rise up, O LORD! Deliver me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.
8 Deliverance belongs to the LORD; may your blessing be on your people! Selah
(NRSV)

Every now and then I become aware of how well I have it in my life; how incredibly blessed I am in any number of ways. At times like these I become unnerved by psalms like this one. If things are going incredibly well for me it is possible that it is at the expense of someone else. If that is the case, it is entirely possible that I am one of those who is waiting to be struck on the cheek; to have my teeth broken by the delivering hand of God.

I am also aware that the psalmist had a concept of wealth as a very limited commodity. The only way one person could become wealthy was at the expense of one or more others. These days we are aware that while there are limits to resources there is quite likely enough to go around. When we think in terms of abundance rather than in limits we see that there is no need for any of us to hoard resources so that others can benefit from the abundance of God’s gifts including the world’s resources.

As a child of the 60s and 70s I often heard the phrase, “come the revolution …” as a way of saying that one day there would be a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources. This psalm serves as a reminder that we can wait for the revolution in which God will be the one who smacks the cheeks of those of us with an overabundance of resources or we can share our resources willingly now. We know that sports figures and business leaders don’t deserve the outrageous salaries they receive however there are folks willing to pay that kind of money. There are folks who know that we don’t deserve what we make either however we still cash our checks too. God delivers folk through revolution and through generosity; part of the choice of how God works belongs to us.

© November 1, 2010 (All Saint’s Day)