“An urgent cry for help”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Monday, April 22, 2024
Psalm 54 (Forward, p. 84) CEV p. 586
Frankly, knowing the ‘pickle’ that the future king David is in, I would have expected him to be much more vocal, much more vengeful, in how he describes his enemies. He has been sorely betrayed, not just once, but repeatedly. Firstly, a town he rescued from the hand of the Philistines, Keilah, decides to turn David over to Saul (see 1 Samuel 23:1-14). What an act of treachery that is! And then, the people of Ziph, who are actually from the same tribe as David, go to Saul in person—make it their sole purpose in going to him—to offer giving David over to his hand. And it gets even worse: Saul instructs these traitors to act as his spies, to act as his eyes and ears, and report to him David’s exact whereabouts. How very nasty and ungrateful, disloyal, could anyone be! I know that I, for one, would have been fuming, and would have wished down upon them God’s fiercest wrath.
So, what does David pray for? He prays for God’s protection and salvation, of course, but he also prays for vindication, for a juridical pronouncement that he is in the right. And, along with this, he prays that his enemies—here unnamed—will receive the just punishment for their deeds. He prays that God, in stark contrast to the betrayal and perfidy, the faithlessness, of these others, his own countrymen in fact, will continue as his faithful friend and defender. And isn’t that exactly what we would always wish for as well? Others may let us down and not be ‘there for us’, but we can always count on the Lord. Thanks be to God for His abiding faithfulness. Amen.
Forward notes: “You plot ruin; your tongue is like a sharpened razor” (Psalm 52:2).
[I made a mistake, misreading Psalm 54 for Psalm 52, but interestingly, Psalm 52 also tells the story of plotting and nastiness, and of a very real threat to David’s life.]
“Today’s psalm includes but is not limited to plotting, deceit, manipulation, hurt, anger, judgment, and vindication. No wonder some prefer not to read or chant or hear the psalms. Surely, this is not what we want from God: demolishing and snatching people from their dwellings [verse 5].
“But how do we deal with those we feel have harmed us in some way? The psalm presents honest expression, the raw emotion of a human being who admits to these negative feelings and tells them to God. God allows this full and virulent expression. In prayer.
“Then, we have this same speaker, somewhat self-righteously, standing like a green olive tree in God’s house, trusting in God’s mercy for ever and ever and giving thanks (Psalm 52:8-9). This powerful shift from virulent negativity to faith in God is a spiritual mystery.
“But isn’t that the story of the Easter Vigil? As in the psalm, we move in prayer, song, and vision, from darkness into light.”
Moving Forward: “What do you do with your negative emotions?”