Psalm 109
Psalm 109
My God, whom I praise,
do not remain silent,
for people who are wicked and deceitful
have opened their mouths against me;
they have spoken against me with lying tongues.
With words of hatred they surround me;
they attack me without cause.
In return for my friendship they accuse me,
but I am a man of prayer.
They repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my friendship.
Appoint someone evil to oppose my enemy;
let an accuser stand at his right hand.
When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
and may his prayers condemn him.
May his days be few;
may another take his place of leadership.
May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow.
May his children be wandering beggars;
may they be driven[a] from their ruined homes.
May a creditor seize all he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.
May no one extend kindness to him
or take pity on his fatherless children.
May his descendants be cut off,
their names blotted out from the next generation.
May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord;
may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.
May their sins always remain before the Lord,
that he may blot out their name from the earth.
For he never thought of doing a kindness,
but hounded to death the poor
and the needy and the brokenhearted.
He loved to pronounce a curse—
may it come back on him.
He found no pleasure in blessing—
may it be far from him.
He wore cursing as his garment;
it entered into his body like water,
into his bones like oil.
May it be like a cloak wrapped about him,
like a belt tied forever around him.
May this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil of me.
But you, Sovereign Lord,
help me for your name’s sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust.
My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt.
I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to your unfailing love.
Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, Lord, have done it.
While they curse, may you bless;
may those who attack me be put to shame,
but may your servant rejoice.
May my accusers be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord;
in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him.
For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save their lives from those who would condemn them.
Sometimes this world feels so hateful. Love seems so far off. Everywhere we turn, someone is condemning someone else and saying hurtful things.
Our beliefs and opinions are questioned, threatened and dismissed. Our feelings are often invalidated.
With so much pain surrounding us, parts of me certainly understand the call to justice outlined in this Psalm. But perhaps my greatest desire is not truly justice, but peace.
I long for the peace of Christ to consume us. I long for His unfailing love to be an ongoing presence. I long for His blessings.
In these uncertain times, it is natural to long for our Eternal Home. But let us not forget that His love and peace can be experienced right here and now. That it can be shared with a world that is in dire need of Him.
We just have to be still.
When we rejoice in His unfailing love, when we rejoice in His blessings, we find ourselves no longer weighed down by the anger and hurt in this world. We find ourselves consumed with a fire to share His love with a struggling world.
Of course we will still feel pain. We will still know hardships and be hurt by people in this world. But instead of becoming consumed in grief and anguish, let us use these hardships to demonstrate the profound love of Christ. Let us be motivated by the pain we see in this world to share kindness and compassion instead.
Let us take heart in His salvation and stand firm in His love. Let us rejoice in His blessings and show this world how to be kind; how to forgive.
Let us be respectful and intentional with one another - sharing Christ's unfailing love in this dark and broken world. Let us be still and rejoice.
And then, when others ask how we can be so at peace, when others ask why we still have joy despite the challenges of this world, we can tell them Who has granted us peace no matter the circumstances. We can share with them His unfailing love.
My God, whom I praise,
do not remain silent,
for people who are wicked and deceitful
have opened their mouths against me;
they have spoken against me with lying tongues.
With words of hatred they surround me;
they attack me without cause.
In return for my friendship they accuse me,
but I am a man of prayer.
They repay me evil for good,
and hatred for my friendship.
Appoint someone evil to oppose my enemy;
let an accuser stand at his right hand.
When he is tried, let him be found guilty,
and may his prayers condemn him.
May his days be few;
may another take his place of leadership.
May his children be fatherless
and his wife a widow.
May his children be wandering beggars;
may they be driven[a] from their ruined homes.
May a creditor seize all he has;
may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.
May no one extend kindness to him
or take pity on his fatherless children.
May his descendants be cut off,
their names blotted out from the next generation.
May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord;
may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.
May their sins always remain before the Lord,
that he may blot out their name from the earth.
For he never thought of doing a kindness,
but hounded to death the poor
and the needy and the brokenhearted.
He loved to pronounce a curse—
may it come back on him.
He found no pleasure in blessing—
may it be far from him.
He wore cursing as his garment;
it entered into his body like water,
into his bones like oil.
May it be like a cloak wrapped about him,
like a belt tied forever around him.
May this be the Lord’s payment to my accusers,
to those who speak evil of me.
But you, Sovereign Lord,
help me for your name’s sake;
out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is wounded within me.
I fade away like an evening shadow;
I am shaken off like a locust.
My knees give way from fasting;
my body is thin and gaunt.
I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
when they see me, they shake their heads.
Help me, Lord my God;
save me according to your unfailing love.
Let them know that it is your hand,
that you, Lord, have done it.
While they curse, may you bless;
may those who attack me be put to shame,
but may your servant rejoice.
May my accusers be clothed with disgrace
and wrapped in shame as in a cloak.
With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord;
in the great throng of worshipers I will praise him.
For he stands at the right hand of the needy,
to save their lives from those who would condemn them.
Sometimes this world feels so hateful. Love seems so far off. Everywhere we turn, someone is condemning someone else and saying hurtful things.
Our beliefs and opinions are questioned, threatened and dismissed. Our feelings are often invalidated.
With so much pain surrounding us, parts of me certainly understand the call to justice outlined in this Psalm. But perhaps my greatest desire is not truly justice, but peace.
I long for the peace of Christ to consume us. I long for His unfailing love to be an ongoing presence. I long for His blessings.
In these uncertain times, it is natural to long for our Eternal Home. But let us not forget that His love and peace can be experienced right here and now. That it can be shared with a world that is in dire need of Him.
We just have to be still.
When we rejoice in His unfailing love, when we rejoice in His blessings, we find ourselves no longer weighed down by the anger and hurt in this world. We find ourselves consumed with a fire to share His love with a struggling world.
Of course we will still feel pain. We will still know hardships and be hurt by people in this world. But instead of becoming consumed in grief and anguish, let us use these hardships to demonstrate the profound love of Christ. Let us be motivated by the pain we see in this world to share kindness and compassion instead.
Let us take heart in His salvation and stand firm in His love. Let us rejoice in His blessings and show this world how to be kind; how to forgive.
Let us be respectful and intentional with one another - sharing Christ's unfailing love in this dark and broken world. Let us be still and rejoice.
And then, when others ask how we can be so at peace, when others ask why we still have joy despite the challenges of this world, we can tell them Who has granted us peace no matter the circumstances. We can share with them His unfailing love.
Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you. 2 Thessalonians 3:16
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