Year 1, Week 40, Day 2 Bible Reading Observations

Year 1, Week 40, Day 2

I have a brief observation for today’s reading of Psalm 5, 38, 41-42.

Today’s reading consists of four Psalms. Three of the Psalms (5, 38, 41) are Psalms of David, while Psalm 42, is a Psalm by the sons of Korah, and is the first Psalm of Book Two in the collection of the Psalms. While there are not any particular historical markers in the superscriptions of these Psalms, the themes expressed in these Psalms correlate to the historical setting of 2 Samuel. Psalm 5 focuses on the LORD’s hatred of evil: “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you” (Psalm 5:4). Psalm 38 confesses sin before the LORD in the context of affliction at the hands of others: “O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath! For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me” (Psalm 38:1-2). Psalm 41 expresses praise to the LORD for the protection and preservation that He shows: “Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble the LORD delivers him; the LORD protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; you do not give him up to the will of his enemies” (Psalm 41:1-2). Psalm 42, which shares a close connection with Psalm 43, involves an announcement of self-interrogation and self-redirection to the LORD: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God” (Psalm 42:11; see Psalm 42:5; 43:5).

One of the things that struck me from today’s reading is the number of occurrences that the Psalms from today’s reading pick up on themes introduced in Psalms 1 and 2. Psalm 41, opens with: “Blessed is the one…” (Psalm 41:1a). Psalm 41, which is the end of Book One in the collection of the Psalms, opens with the same terms as the entire collection of the Psalms began: “Blessed is the man…” (Psalm 1:1a). Psalms 1 and 2 serve as introductory Psalms, and serve as an orientation to what the rest of the collection of Psalms will pertain to. Psalm 2, the completion of the orientation closes with the words: “Blessed are all who take refuge in him” (Psalm 2:13c). As Book One closes, David, who is attributed as the author of most of the Psalms in Book One, is an aged king on his sick bed, but his words are oriented by the notion of “blessed.” David attests to the reality that true happiness or blessedness comes from the LORD. So David confesses his trust in the LORD amid many difficulties and dangers: “But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you” (Psalm 5:11).

Even though David reflects the life of the one who is blessed in the LORD, not everyone seeks the kings well-being: “Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me” (Psalm 5:8). The righteous king will face opposition: “Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed” (Psalm 2:1-2). David experienced the orienting realities that Psalm 2 spoke of: “Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long” (Psalm 38:12). So David turns to the LORD in the face of his enemies: “But for you, O LORD, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. For I said, “Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!” (Psalm 38:15-16). Night and day, David has a sense of the LORD’s helpful presence: "By day the LORD commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life” (Psalm 42:8). But this awareness of the LORD’s sustaining and steadfast love that is felt day and night corresponds the David’s active meditation on the Word of the LORD: “his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2). A day and night awareness of the LORD is connected to a day and night meditation on the LORD.

The future of the wicked is part of the orientation revealed in the introductory Psalms: “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish” (Psalm 1:5-6); and “Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled” (2:10-12). David’s perspective concerning the wicked is shaped by the introductory Psalms: “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man” (Psalm 5:4-6). David understands the end of the wicked: “By this I know that you delight in me: my enemy will not shout in triumph over me. But you have upheld me because of my integrity, and set me in your presence forever” (Psalm 41:11-12). Thus, David can challenge his own heart out of despair with the surety of God’s promised future: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God” (Psalm 42:5).

What struck you in today’s reading? What questions were prompted from today’s reading?

Pastor Joe