Psalm 35[1]
1 Contend, O Lord,
with those who contend with me;
2 Take hold of buckler and shield and rise up for my help.
3 Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;
Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”
4 Let those be ashamed and dishonoured who seek my life;
Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me.
5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,
With the angel of the Lord driving them on.
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
With the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 For without cause they hid their net for me;
Without cause they dug a pit for my soul.
8 Let destruction come upon him unawares,
And let the net which he hid catch himself;
Into that very destruction let him fall.
9 And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord; it shall exult in His salvation.
10 All my bones will say, “Lord, who is like You,
Who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him,
And the afflicted and the needy from him who robs him?”
11 Malicious witnesses rise up; they ask me of things that I do not know.
12 They repay me evil for good, to the bereavement of my soul.
13 But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth;
I humbled my soul with fasting,
And my prayer kept returning to my bosom.
14 I went about as though it were my friend or brother;
I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother.
15 But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together;
The smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me,
They slandered me without ceasing.
16 Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed at me with their teeth.
17 Lord, how long will You look on? rescue my soul from their ravages,
My only life from the lions.
18 I will give You thanks in the great congregation;
I will praise You among a mighty throng.
19 Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me;
Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously.
20 For they do not speak peace,
But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land.
21 They opened their mouth wide against me;
They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!”
22 You have seen it, O Lord, do not keep silent;
O Lord, do not be far from me.
23 Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right
And to my cause, my God and my Lord.
24 Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness,
And do not let them rejoice over me.
25 Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!”
Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”
26 Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether
who rejoice at my distress;
Let those be clothed with shame and dishonour
who magnify themselves over me.
27 Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favour my vindication;
And let them say continually, “The Lord be magnified,
Who delights in the prosperity of His servant.”
28 And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness
And Your praise all day long.
During the lockdown phase in Italy, people found ways to give joy to one another even as those feelings of fear and chaos swirled around them. The artist Octavia Bromell has chosen to focus on the ‘wonderful things people are doing in the face of such monumental adversity’. This picture of hers depicts Italians singing to one another from their balconies. She shares her work as @tinkoutsidethebox on Instagram and has thousands of followers around the world. She told BBC News how she began creating work as a way of helping her severe anxiety and depression, with her colourful and thoughtful illustrations aiming to find the joy in everyday life. "I think more people are experiencing a form of distress that feels very familiar to me," she said. "My work has become an outlet that means I can express some positivity and, hopefully, I can share it with [other] people as well."[1]
I have chosen this picture to, in a sense, contrast with the battle-strewn imagery of the Psalm 35. Although the square brick wall which confronts us gives us a visual sense of being surrounded and, in a sense, imprisoned, there is yet something very peaceful about it. The woman in the bottom left hand corner, leaning on her right hand at her window, provides us with a sense of serenity.
This is certainly not the emotion of the psalmist today. We find he or she bearing witness to a chaotic rollercoaster ride through peaks and troughs of bitter complaint and a need for God's protection and amidst a vivid experience of ‘monumental adversity’. It is intensely personal. Friends who he or she cared for deeply (even to the extent of fasting and praying for them in their sicknesses) have now turned into enemies. Blindsided by this unremitting sense of betrayal, the psalmist courageously decides to turn the tables on them. She or he in effect says: ‘Look, I have listened to all your malicious and deceitful words and now I want to hear what God has to say. Contend for me, God. Come into this situation and be my shield and my deliverance. I can’t do anything here. But you can. You are sovereign. I trust in you. And I know that those who are my loving friends will sing with me songs of vindication.’
Such songs lift the spirit – even from a balcony in a Tuscan town - all day long! What would your song of deliverance be today? Where will you sing it?
[1] New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright
© 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
My book by John Eaton adds a very interesting comment on v.10 of this psalm which speaks of praying with “my very bones”. He suggests that this phrase refers to dancing. Through dancing around the altar the psalmist will praise the Lord for his faithfulness and give thanks for his deliverance. Apparently dance in those days was “a praying with the bones”. With the whole body the psalmist will worship God.
ReplyDeleteLike the artist in Italy, there is a dancer in Spain who is bringing hope to the people in his street through dance. Spain has been in strict lockdown since 16th March which put a temporary end to the dancing of Albert Garcia. But now, in an act of freedom, he steps out of his flat to put his bins out and performs a dance in the street to accompany this chore. His neighbours watch from their balconies and applaud and delight in his creative performance. There is hope of freedom for all one day.
So maybe I won’t be singing a song of deliverance today but dancing ….now there’s a thought!