Jesus Creed

Jesus Creed

Against the Wall: Plea

posted by xscot mcknight | 2:10am Thursday March 15, 2007

As with vv. 153, 154, the psalmist’s plea is very simple and clear. We find it in vv. 156 and 159:
156 “Great is your mercy, O LORD;
give me life according to your justice.
…
159 Consider how I love your precepts;
preserve my life according to your steadfast love.”
He wants to live; he wants to survive; and he is begging God for life.
Now his life is under threat evidently because he was faithful to the Torah and probably not a little courageous in pointing out that others were not faithful to the Torah. His compassion for his enemies is well known.
Perhaps our backs are against the wall because of health or because of age or because we’ve done something unwise; maybe we are asking God to bail us out. We may even think we deserve our backs to be against the wall.
Still, the one committed to God is encouraged by this psalm to face God, petition God, and appeal to God’s saving mercies on the basis of God’s covenant faithfulness. And to do so not only that basis but also because we have ourselves been faithful.
The psalmist wants to be delivered because God is just — which means God will render judgment in favor of the weak and oppressed and poor and faithful. And because of God’s steadfast love … for the same group. Those who love the precepts of the Lord, who delight in his will and long to do it.



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Related Topics: Psalm 119
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Ted Gossard

posted March 15, 2007 at 4:12 am


I love the mix between weak, poor, oppressed, faithful in the psalms. We’re all of the above, in Christ. So we need to appeal to him, and exercise ourselves before him, to be those who, no matter what, keep on the narrow way. Which really takes us out into the wideness of his mercy and love, if we’ll just persist in this.



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cas

posted March 15, 2007 at 12:09 pm


another encouraging word, Scot. thanks.



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