Psalm Meditation 1319 ¶Proper 21 ¶September 28, 2025 ¶Psalm 35 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2035&version=NRSVUE ¶I am told that I am, at least, slightly cynical. I am sure there is more truth to that than I am willing to admit, especially when I read psalms like this one. My first interpretation is that this is someone who has done something to upset folks. When those folks begin to retaliate, the psalmist goes into victim mode. ‘Oh God do you see what all those mean people are doing to me? You need to step in and destroy them all.’ I am pretty sure that victim culture is a fairly modern concept, so there must be something else at work for the psalmist. ¶I am told that, despite all the cheerleading to the contrary, Israel was neither big nor powerful in relation to neighboring nation states, so the people and the state were plagued by attacks from more powerful people and nations. Whether the psalmist was David, or someone writing in his name, an attack on the ruler was an attack on the entire nation. And, an attack on the nation was an attack on the ruler. It was demoralizing to be attacked on a regular basis. It was death by a thousand cuts. ¶In the midst of those demoralizing attacks, a voice is raised to God to protect the nation from the folks who spent their time and energy attempting to antagonize and demoralize the people of Israel. If God were to step in to the fray with us, we would know that we can’t be destroyed even if we are driven from our land or killed outright. With God on our side we have the assurance that we have a place in the presence of God, even if we do not have a place on earth to call home. ¶September 22, 2025 ¶LCM