Psalm Meditation 955
Proper 22
October 7, 2018

Psalm 59
1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; protect me from those who rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from those who work evil; from the bloodthirsty save me.
3 Even now they lie in wait for my life; the mighty stir up strife against me. For no transgression or sin of mine, O LORD,
4 for no fault of mine, they run and make ready. Rouse yourself, come to my help and see!
5 You, LORD God of hosts, are God of Israel. Awake to punish all the nations; spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah
6 Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city.
7 There they are, bellowing with their mouths, with sharp words on their lips—for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
8 But you laugh at them, O LORD; you hold all the nations in derision.
9 O my strength, I will watch for you; for you, O God, are my fortress.
10 My God in his steadfast love will meet me; my God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
11 Do not kill them, or my people may forget; make them totter by your power, and bring them down, O Lord, our shield.
12 For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride. For the cursing and lies that they utter,
13 consume them in wrath; consume them until they are no more. Then it will be known to the ends of the earth that God rules over Jacob. Selah
14 Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city.
15 They roam about for food, and growl if they do not get their fill.
16 But I will sing of your might; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been a fortress for me and a refuge in the day of my distress.
17 O my strength, I will sing praises to you, for you, O God, are my fortress, the God who shows me steadfast love.
(NRSV)

When things are not going our way we are tempted to believe that God is asleep, at the very least, not paying attention. We wonder how God could let us suffer when we have been so good and faithful in our relationship with God. The psalmist calls on God, “You, LORD God of hosts, are God of Israel. Awake to punish all the nations; spare none of those who treacherously plot evil.” Since we are in trouble God must be asleep.

We can’t imagine that, after promising to be with us all the time, God would let us suffer at the hands of evildoers of any kind. Since it does happen, what is going on in the mind and heart of God? It could be that God is using this as an opportunity to teach us self-sufficiency. It could be that it is not as big an issue for God as it is for us. It could be that we are in the wrong and God is prodding us to acknowledge, confess, and repent of our current course of action. It could be that the folks on the other side of the conflict are also wrong and we all need to suck it up, apologize, reconcile, and move on.

If God is not doing what we would expect God to do, that does not mean that God is not active in the situation at hand. In those times, it is good to sit back and look at where God is at work. By seeing the hand of God we can adjust our thoughts, words, and behavior to line up with God. We don’t want to be those who, “Each evening they come back, howling like dogs and prowling about the city.” We want to be the people who, “will sing of your might; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been a fortress for me and a refuge in the day of my distress.”

October 1, 2018
LCM