(Audio Version)
Introduction
When I was in
seminary, one of the favored sayings at the school was that we are living in
the "already/not-yet" of the Kingdom of God. We recognize the
"already" of the Kingdom because of the empty tomb. We acknowledge
the “already” of the Kingdom through the beautiful relationship with our
Savior, through the relationships with our families and friends and
particularly through the relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
However, we know the "not-yet" of the Kingdom all too well as we
encounter hatred, heinous evil, and destruction all around us on a daily basis.
Christians live in the realm where these two overlap—A Kingdom Of Already—Not Yet. Unfortunately, I don't know most of
you who read my lessons every week. I want you to know that my heart has been
heavy for you in my prayers this week. I know from personal experience that
life can be terribly difficult at times. For you, maybe another week has gone
by without a job offer; maybe you're wondering how you will keep a roof over
your family's head; maybe you are struggling with a health matter; perhaps you
have lost someone close to you; perhaps you live somewhere where there is
constant civil unrest and you fear for yourself and the safety of your family;
or maybe you're being persecuted for your faith. Whatever your struggle, know
that I have been praying for you this week and if there were any way possible,
I would put my arms around you and cry with you if that's what you needed. I
know life can be a struggle. I know being faithful in an unfaithful world can stretch
not only our faith but our very being to the brink of despair. We pray, we cry,
and we pray some more but in the end, when nothing seems to be working, all we
can find ourselves doing is crying out to God: Help me!!
The Psalms are
replete with examples of poems, songs and prayers that do just this. Many are
prayers that boil down to a simple cry for help. The Psalms show us that faith
is not some fairytale story where everything is rainbows and butterflies. Many
of the Psalms express exactly what we have said or want to say when we struggle
and our hearts are breaking and we're ready to quit. There is a consistent
theme in many of the Psalms—a cry for help and the desire and strength to be
faithful in spite of our struggles. What we’re asking for, what we’re pleading
for, what we’re crying for is relief as we try to faithfully navigate A Kingdom Of Already—Not Yet. In this
lesson, I'd like to look at just such a Psalm, or specifically in this case, a
section of Psalm 119. The purpose of this lesson is not just a matter of
teaching. I know from personal experience that when you are in the storm of
your struggles, it can feel as though no one knows or recognizes your pain. I
want you to know that even though I don't know you or your specific struggle, I
know you're there and I know you're crying out for help. This lesson is for you
and my prayer for you is that God would grant you the grace to persevere if
relief is not God’s will for you right now.
Subject Text
Psalm 119:81-88
81My soul faints with longing for your salvation,
but I have put my hope in your word.
82My eyes fail, looking for your promise;
I say, “When will you comfort me?”
83Though I am like a wineskin in the smoke,
I do not forget your decrees.
84How long must your servant wait?
When will you punish my persecutors?
85The arrogant dig pitfalls for me,
contrary to your law.
86All your commands are trustworthy;
help me, for men persecute me without cause.
87They almost wiped me from the earth,
but I have not forsaken your precepts.
88Preserve my life according to your love,
and I will obey the statutes of your mouth.
Background Information
The author and the
date of this psalm is not specifically known. It has been suggested that some
of the possible authors are David, Hezekiah, Jeremiah or Ezra—with the last of
these being, perhaps, the most plausible. “Many coincidences between the
language of the text and the history of Ezra’s time seem to point to the
last-named [Ezra]…He was clearly the one who resolved to make God’s Law the
governing principle of his life.”[1]
Some theologians ascribe authorship to a consortium of wisdom teachers, while
others believe that “Psalm 119 is a collection of the statements of the
individual Torah piety of postexilic times that originated from the study of
Scripture, of Deuteronomic theology, of cultic Torah instruction of an
individual, and of the stimulus of wisdom teaching.”[2]
Psalm 119 is “Read
at the Feast of Pentecost…The Feast celebrates the giving of the Torah [Law] to
Moses at Sinai during the wilderness wandering.”[3] It
is creatively written in an acrostic format corresponding to the twenty-two
letters of the Hebrew alphabet with eight verses in each section. There is,
however, considerable debate as to its precise form. Some claim it is poetry
while others insist it falls strictly under the category of wisdom literature.
More generally, however, “Psalm 119 will have to be described as a ‘necklace,’
or ‘anthology,’ as a complex collection of a special kind. Psalm 119 is close
to the category of the didactic poems…And in view of the predominant theme of
the whole poem, we would be able to speak of a Torah psalm.”[4]
Vv. 81-88 is the
section of verses associated with the Hebrew letter “kaph.” “Some writers…pointed out that for the ancients there was
often significance in the Hebrew letters. Such is the case here…Kaph is a curved letter, similar to a
half circle, and it was often thought of as a hand held out to receive some
gift or blessing. Here the author is in need, and he knows that the only one
who can answer his need is God. Hence, he holds out his hand toward him as a
suppliant.”[5]
The overall theme of the psalm as a Torah psalm holds true for this section of
verses as well.
Theological Explanation of Key Words
The psalmist
begins this section of verses making very clear through the use of the word derived
from the Hebrew root “klh” ( Root
pronounced: kalah; kaletah in v. 81; Hebrew
literal—“failing;” NIV—“faint”), that he is consumed by pain and suffering to
the verge of giving up and desperately waiting for God’s salvation—the
fulfillment of his promise. The verb form of klh occurs more than 200 times in the Old Testament and a precise
English equivalent meaning is difficult to determine. Generally speaking, the
word denotes the completion of something. However, it can be completion or
finality in a positive or negative sense. For example, Genesis records the
completion, klh, of the creation of
heaven and earth and it is deemed as “good.” “For the most part, however, a
negative meaning is associated with klh.”[6]
This negative use is the context for the word in vv. 81, 82 and 87.
Specifically, in vv. 81 & 82 “The [verb] also denotes the frailty of human
existence…[and] conveys the meaning of wasting and fading away.”[7]
The sense of its usage in these verses might best be conveyed “With the English
idiom ‘I am dying for.’”[8]
The sense of v. 87 seems more dire—the end of life or a worthwhile life may be
in view.
In v. 85, Hebrew
word, shichuth, translated as “pits”
(NIV—“pitfalls”), is an interesting word in light of the verses that follow.
Normally the word denotes something that is used to catch animals. “The pit is
dug and camouflaged, so that the weight of the animal will land in the pit,
where it may be impaled on stakes and left to die of hunger.”[9]
This would seem consistent with v. 87 where the psalmist speaks of nearly
meeting his end at the hands of his pursuers. Some commentators translate the
Hebrew word, bartz, in v. 87 as “in
the earth” (NIV—“from the earth”) which seems to flow with v. 85 that those who
are pursuing him “Wanted to kill him and see him buried.”[10]
However, there is another, and I believe, more plausible understanding of
the use of shichuth in the context of
Psalm 119 overall. Remembering that God’s law is the over-arching theme of
Psalm 119, “in Ps 119:85 the writer warns of those (arrogant ones) who dig
pits, to draw the righteous away from faithfulness of God’s law.”[11]
This understanding of the word seems far more accurate in the context of
these verses considering the juxtaposition of actions that are “contrary to
your law” in v. 85 as compared to the psalmist who does not “forsake your
precepts.” Additionally, bartz,
“Usually denotes earth, but here the context suggests it denotes the attackers’
imperiling of the suppliant’s place in the land or worthwhile life in the
land.”[12]
This is a critical point since Israelite land and identity are so closely tied
together. And continued possession of the land depended largely on their
faithfulness in keeping God’s precepts.
Text Analysis
We are immediately
plunged into the psalmist’s dire condition in v. 81 as he “has been consumed
with longing for Yhwh to deliver, in light of that word that has been the
object of waiting, but deliverance does not come, and that spirit has no energy
left.”[13]
It is important to note that even though the psalmist is in such
distress, he doesn’t trust in his own strength or in the strength of others but
instead continues to put his hope in the promises contained in God’s word.
We are immediately
drawn into the story in v. 82 because we can empathize with his cry of
desperation—‘When will you comfort me?’ “The question confronts that promising
statement, or rather confronts Yhwh over its not issuing in comfort, in action
bringing restoration.”[14]
Even though he hoped in God’s word, his distress was so acute that it
nevertheless caused him to ask God when he would find relief. At the bedside of
a child suffering from the ravages of cancer, a parent may surrender the child
to the care of the Father but that doesn’t restrain the inevitable cries of
‘Why has this happened?’ or like the psalmist, ‘When will you comfort me?’
Ancient people
used animal skins to make drinking flasks for water or for wine. Wine skins, “when
not in use, are hung up in the room which has no chimney for the escape of
smoke.”[15]
Anyone who has ever sat around a campfire can well attest to the ravages
of smoke. Similarly, a wine skin exposed to smoke becomes useless as the taste
of the smoke taints the contents of the wine skin. In v. 83, the psalmist may
feel contaminated by a godless world trying to draw him away from being
faithful to God’s law, but the purity of God’s law has not been lost to him.
A question is
presented in v. 84 in relation to the length of the psalmist’s life and how the
psalmist believes God should act that would bring him the comfort he
desperately longs for in v. 83—justice! The implication being that his days are
few and that God should act quickly before it is too late. “The persecuting
enemies of vv. 84, 86 appear all the blacker against the light of God’s
revealed character. Correspondingly, divine faithfulness shines out all the
more, and mention of it serves to urge God to act now in conformity with it.”[16]
The psalmist is
asking, in v. 85, to be saved from those who do not follow God’s law and are
trying to corrupt him and draw him away from being a faithful follower of God’s
law. This familiar Old Testament metaphor of digging a pit to capture a wild
animal is illustrative of the fact that those who do not follow God’s law willfully
choose to do so and actively seek to draw others away from being faithful
followers as well.
There are few
things in life more painful than being falsely accused of something and not
being immediately vindicated. The psalmist’s frustration in v. 86 with false
accusations and God’s inaction becomes evident. “The argument is that Yhwh’s
commands, all of them, are truthful in their promise that life will work out
for people who heed them.”[17]
However, in desperation, there’s no time for long speeches and supplications.
Instead, the psalmist prays what any of us would pray—“Help!”
There are two key
words in v. 87: “Almost” and “But.” Those persecuting the psalmists falsely
almost succeeded in their efforts at drawing him away from faithfully following
God’s law and therefore forfeit his inheritance bartz (“in the land”). But they failed and he reiterates that he
has faithfully observed all of God’s precepts.
According to v.
88, the psalmist is able to continue being faithful to God’s commands even when
the world seems to be crashing in on him through God’s kindness or in a word;
“Grace!” The words “Make me alive” are more than a reference to God’s
deliverance. They communicate that it is by God’s grace alone that the psalmist
has the strength to endure the persecution of a world that willfully disobeys
God’s laws and actively seeks to draw him away from obedience to the commands
given to us directly from the mouth of God.
Application
Sex, money and
power have as their commonality a vehicle through which humanity has the opportunity
to either be obedient or disobedient to God’s commands. The ever-increasing
divorce rates, soaring personal and national debt and the exploitation of those
who are most vulnerable in our society is an object lesson of how sex, money
and power can serve as instruments of disobedience. These verses are a common
refrain for followers who persevere in a life that is lived in the world but
not of the world; a world that epitomizes A
Kingdom of Already—Not Yet. There is great pain and yet great hope in this
tension. I have seen how healthy relationships (sexual and otherwise) that are
based on God’s truths are a model of strength and inspiration that serve to
perpetuate faithful obedience to God’s truths in future generations. Likewise I
have seen money used in service to God to feed starving people around the world
or provide adequate shelter for those living in cardboard shacks. Finally, I
have witnessed, in my generation, powerful social justice movements of people
like Martin Luther King who used his power, based on the truth of God’s word,
to inaugurate the Civil Rights Movement.
However, those
trying to draw the faithful away from God’s word also have at their disposal
sex, money and power as part of their arsenal to wage war against the faithful.
No doubt there are countless people who are victims of infidelity in their
relationships, who deal dishonestly with other people’s money and who overstep
their authority over others. It rarely makes the news unless there is some sort
of public outcry. However, when it involves a Christian, it becomes front page
news! Deceiving or leading a Christian astray is tantamount to a trophy kill
that is mounted on the wall for everyone to see. It’s no wonder that the
psalmist used the metaphor that his pursuers where digging pits to capture him
since that was the common way ancient people captured and killed animals they
hunted. However, the faithful in all ages have depended on the same thing to
give them the strength to endure in a world that actively pursues them in order
to draw them away from being faithful—God’s grace! The psalmist’s petition for
God to give him life so that he could be faithful to God is the same as Jesus’
prayer for his disciples and applies to all those who seek to be obedient to
God in a world that is hostile toward God and those who would be faithful to
him: “I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are
not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you
take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They
are not of the world, even as I am not of it.” (John 17:14-16)
As believers, we
are not of this world yet we have to live in this world and that means we have
to endure the struggles associated with this life. We have tasted the “already”
aspect of the Kingdom of God when we believed in Jesus Christ and his sacrifice
on the cross. However, we have also tasted the bitterness of the “not-yet”
aspect of the Kingdom of God when our sin, the sins of others or the brokenness
of creation generally smash our lives against the rocks. Yet it is precisely
when our lives are tangled in this “not-yet” aspect of the Kingdom of God that
God’s strength can best be manifested in our lives. It is precisely at this
darkest moment that God’s glory shines the brightest for all to see in our
lives. We may feel like our strength is failing as we cry out to God for help.
Yet we are somehow not crushed. Instead, even as we strain under the weight of
our struggles, God gives us the strength to say with the psalmist: “All your
commands are trustworthy…I have not forsaken your precepts…I will obey the
statutes of your mouth.” In this life, we must live in the tension of A Kingdom Of Already—Not Yet. We may
not understand the purpose of our struggles or why God seems to take his time
to rescue us but we know He has Already
saved us even though we have Not Yet
experienced the full extent of comfort and joy associated with that salvation.
[1]
Arthur G. Clarke, Analytical Studies in
the Psalms, (Grand Rapids, MI, Kregel Publications, 1979), p. 293.
[2]
Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms 60-150 A
Commentary, (Minneapolis, MN, Augsburg Fortress, 1989), p. 414.
[3]
Nancy L. deClaisse-Walford, Introduction
to the Psalms, (St. Louis, MO, Chalice Press, 2004), p. 119.
[4]
Kraus, Psalms 60-150 A Commentary, p.
411.
[5]
James Montgomery Boice, Psalms, Vol.
3, (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 1998), p. 1009.
[6]
Willem A. VanGemeren, ed., Dictionary of
Old Testament Theology & Exegesis, Vol. 2, (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan
Publishing House, 1997), pp. 641-642.
[7]
Ibid.
[8]
A. Cohen, The Psalms, (London,
England, Soncino Press, 1968), p. 405.
[9]
Willem A. VanGemeren, ed., Dictionary of
Old Testament Theology & Exegesis, Vol. 4, (Grand Rapids, MI, Zondervan
Publishing House, 1997), p.62.
[10]
James Montgomery Boice, Psalms, Vol.
3, (Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 1998), p. 1,009.
[11]
VanGemeren, Dictionary of Old Testament,
Vol. 4, p.62.
[12]
John Goldingay, Psalms, Vol. 3,
(Grand Rapids, MI, Baker Books, 2008), p. 414.
[13]
Ibid., p. 412.
[14]
Ibid.
[15]
A. Cohen, The Psalms, p. 405.
[16][16]
Leslie C. Allen, Word Biblical
Commentary-Psalms 101-50, Vol. 21, (Nashville, TN, Thomas Nelson
Publishers, 2002), p. 189.
[17]
Goldingay, Psalms, p. 413.
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