Psalm Meditation 1131 ¶Seventh Sunday After Epiphany ¶February 20, 2022 ¶Psalm 75 1 We give thanks to you, O God; we give thanks; your name is near. People tell of your wondrous deeds. 2 At the set time that I appoint I will judge with equity. 3 When the earth totters, with all its inhabitants, it is I who keep its pillars steady. Selah 4 I say to the boastful, “Do not boast,” and to the wicked, “Do not lift up your horn; 5 do not lift up your horn on high, or speak with insolent neck.” 6 For not from the east or from the west and not from the wilderness comes lifting up; 7 but it is God who executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another. 8 For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup with foaming wine, well mixed; he will pour a draught from it, and all the wicked of the earth shall drain it down to the dregs. 9 But I will rejoice forever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob. 10 All the horns of the wicked I will cut off, but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted (NRSV) ¶We do judge each other, it is part of the fun of being human. We judge by looks, actions, wealth, family ties, neighborhood, skin color, and any other criteria we might use to set ourselves apart from each other. We might judge someone to be better, worse, or equal to us. However, none of these categories are at issue with the judgment that God executes. The judgment of God concerns our fitness for living in the presence of God. ¶While we might decide that one person is going to Hell and another is going to Heaven, it is not we who have the final say in that question. God is the one who determines and decides where each of us is bound. The psalmist gives us the clue that those who see themselves as having earned their place and boast of it, are likely mistaken. God is inclined to honor those who see themselves as a part of something beyond themselves, rather than those who see the rest of us as their servants and inferiors. ¶The psalmist, using God’s voice, urges us to righteousness rather than wicked boastfulness. I am pretty sure we will not stop judging each other in any number of ways, however it does seem good to keep ourselves from judging for ourselves who has God’s favor and who does not. Doing that keeps us out of God’s favor according to the psalmist, and that is not where any of us wants to be. “...I will rejoice forever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.” ¶February 14, 2022 ¶LCM