Psalm 36
An ‘oracle in the heart’ (verse 1) sounds painful. It is spiritually so, because of the poet’s sensitivity to the lost life of the “wicked.” I say “lost” not as a synonym for “wicked”, but rather noting the poet’s observation that the person whose state he laments has ceased to be wise and good, implying that something has indeed been lost.
The contrast given to such a life is not some exemplary human life, but the Lord himself, whose love and faithfulness he describes in the most expansive terms he can.
Given the beauty, power and hope with which the section on the Lord is drenched, and given that “the wicked” person who has caused the poet distress apparently has not always been so, I don’t think we can get away with just saying “Isn’t that too bad,” when we read the very last verse:
See how the evildoers lie fallen—
thrown down, not able to rise!
It can be taken as a warning, certainly, but should we not also take it as a challenge, an opportunity to witness just how powerful God's love is? I would take it as a challenge to any sort of, “I’m good with the Lord; isn’t it a shame about those other people” mindset. Yes, praise the Lord, the Lord will continue in his love to those who know him (verse 10), but should not the vastness of the Lord’s love and faithfulness – toward the “high and low among men” (verse 7) and even the beasts! (verse 6) - mean there is hope for anyone?
I believe the community of faith should take the concluding verse of this psalm not as a conclusion, but as a starting point, for which the previous eleven verses lay the groundwork.
Prayer (paraphrase of Romans 15:13):
God of hope, fill me with all joy and peace as I trust in you, so that I may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
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