Days' 9 and 10 Summer Psalms 41-50

In Psalm 41, David is betrayed by his long time friend, Ahithophel. I learned, however, that Ahithophel had every right to betray David as David stole his granddaughter, one from whom David was reaping pleasures of a certain kind! Ahithophel could have just as easily have written this psalm as David, considering the circumstances,"Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, has lifted his heel against me." So often we harbor feelings of betrayal toward our friends, but maybe if we think hard enough, the betrayal may be two sided. We hurt one another on this earth. It seems to be an endless cycle.

Psalm 42 was written after David's flee from Jerusalem because of Absalom's rebellion. This psalm like several others shows David's despair. "Why hast thou forgotten me?" he cries out to the Lord and continues his anguish in Psalm 43:2 pleading, "For thou art the God in whom I take refuge; why hast thou cast off?" So many of us question God in the same way. This is nothing new for God to hear us complain that He has forgotten us. But what do we learn from David despite his grievances? There is "hope". In verse 11 of this Psalm, he shakes off his despair and concedes, "Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God." David is saying that however broken and forgotten we may feel, we must believe that there is always hope and always something we can find to praise. Psalm 43 continues in the same way with David in torment and again at the end of the psalm, in verse 5, he repeats, "Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God."

The desperate feeling of being deserted by God persists in Psalm 44. Possibly written by any number of people who were held captive in Babylon, we still hear echoes of David's similar despair in verses 23 and 24, "Why sleepest thou, O Lord? Awake! Do not cast us off forever! Why dost thou hide thy face? Why dost thou forget our afflictions?"

A transition from despair to rejoicing occurs from Psalm 44 to 45. Psalm 45 is a love song for the occasion of one of King Solomon's many weddings (and there were thousands). The psalm emphasizes the seriousness of marriage and its sanctity specifically for the woman to uphold in her new position as a servant to her husband, the king. Since Solomon was known to have a fondness for heathen women, this psalm reminds the bride of her new duties as a noble princess. I don't like this psalm, especially verses 10 and 11 as they advise the bride to "...forget your people and your father's house; and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your Lord, bow to him." How pitiful they must have been, these poor girls. I'm sure becoming a bride of King Solomon back in the day was considered a big deal. He probably paid the families well to have their daughters; and to a starving heathen family, what a relief it probably was to make such an exchange. When I read Bible stories such as this one, I become disgusted. Solomon may have been wise; but he was a pervert. Let's just get it out there!

"God is our refuge and strength." These words have been repeated throughout the psalms, but in Psalm 46, they come to life when we are reminded of the story of Moses crossing the Red Sea. One of my favorite all time Biblical phrases is stated in verse 10, "BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD." What an important message for someone like me who can't be still, who needs to be in control, whose mind never stops, never stops, ne-ver stops ruminating! "BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD" should be my mantra!

Woah! Psalm 47 takes a 180 degree turn. It's a full blown party time psalm. David is rejoicing at the end of his reign as king. He's done with his service and cries out in verse 1, "Clap your hands, all peoples. Shout to God with loud songs of 'joy'!" He has no regrets. Can't we all sing this jubilant psalm when we arrive at the end of something, a career, a project, a major life event. Even arriving at the end of child rearing! In fact, my husband and I just finished supporting our youngest child through college and now he is working and living on his own. Our daughter, also a college graduate, has just made the choice to end her marriage for the single life, to search for a job and find her own way. Looking over the span of over 25 years as a parent, can I say the same, no regrets, and like David "Clap my hands and shout to God with loud songs of 'joy'!" I'm naming Psalm 47, the "Get Over It and Party On Psalm". Thank you David!

Today's psalms have run their gamut, from despair to perversion, then from joy to incest!  I feel like I am on a roller coaster ride. In Psalm 48, the land of Judah is praising God after having just won a victory over two heathen nations, Maob and Ammon. The story behind this psalm is one for Hollywood. You see, the leaders of these two heathen nations were the son's of Lot (remember him who fled from the sinful city of Sodom and his wife turned to stone for looking back at the burning city) born out of his incest with his two daughters. Yuck! Picturing all of this in my head is very disturbing. Lot's sons then grew up and became nasty human beings as would be expected. They tried to fight Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, but Jehoshaphat sought the Lord's favor by proclaiming a fast throughout his whole nation. God tells Jehoshaphat to stay out of the fight, don't lift a finger, he will take care of everything. In the end Maob and Ammon start quarreling with one another and destroy themselves. How is that for an example of the unexpected way God can work in our lives. When God tells us to, "BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD," he means it! Something great may be happening for us if we can just stay out of his way, BE STILL!

Psalm 49, a great one to remember in this world we live of materialism and greed. It can become a restless competition with neighbors and a source of ego if we are not careful. The author of this psalm is disturbed by the disparity of wealth, but gives us important advice to remember about those who put their faith in the material world, "The fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others. Their graves are their homes forever." In verse 16, the author continues, "Be not afraid when one becomes rich, when the glory of his house increases. For when he dies he will carry nothing away; his glory will not go down after him." The green eyed monster of jealousy appears in many situations, so Psalm 49 is a good remedy against the beast in all of us.

To end today's readings, Psalm 50 is most appropriate. It is a song. In Bible times, songs were an important part of expression after each major and minor event of life. In Ephesians 5:18-19 we are told that when we are filled with the holy spirit to "address one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart." Certainly this is another important message in my reading's today, and again one for us all, for have we not forgotten the importance of singing to the Lord in all things? Other than at church and on solemn occasions, most of us aren't out there singing to the Lord. Ephesian's 5:18 doesn't say to sing to ourselves behind closed doors, but we are to "address one another in spiritual song." I find this psalm just another reason to love yoga, it's another opportunity I have to sing and chant openly!