Psalm Meditation 995
Proper 10
July 14, 2019

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)

There are people in the world who are victims. They did not choose to be victims; they do not announce it, they do not celebrate it, they do not want to be victims. Someone has decided that another person or group has a price to pay for a real or imagine fault or crime. One of the reasons a person becomes a victim is their relative powerlessness. There is someone more powerful who has decided to use their power advantage to demean, demoralize, and destroy their chosen victim. The psalmist cries out for those victims.

Despite the claims of the oppressor, “There is no help for you in God.” the psalmist acknowledges the presence of God as a shield and protector. The help the psalmist experiences may not be evident to those who stand over the victims, however the psalmist knows that God offers something richer and deeper than the oppressors themselves have. God offers presence, being with those who are victimized, that restores hope, dignity, and peace in the face of powerful foes.

For those whose victimhood is real, there is no other hope than in God. The situation is not going to go away, it is not going to get better on its own, the pendulum will not swing the other way making the current victim the victor. God’s presence does not deliver folks from destruction; God offers a presence that delivers victims from the demeaning and demoralizing parts of victimization. God is with us, leading us in the way that leads to hope, dignity, and peace for each of us, and for all of us.

July 8, 2019
LCM