God Speaks
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be accompanied by the flute.
1 O Lord, hear me as I pray;
pay attention to my groaning.
2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,
for I pray to no one but you.
3 Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.
Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
4 O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness;
you cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.
5 Therefore, the proud may not stand in your presence,
for you hate all who do evil.
6 You will destroy those who tell lies.
The Lord detests murderers and deceivers.
7 Because of your unfailing love, I can enter your house;
I will worship at your Temple with deepest awe.
8 Lead me in the right path, O Lord,
or my enemies will conquer me.
Make your way plain for me to follow.
9 My enemies cannot speak a truthful word.
Their deepest desire is to destroy others.
Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
Their tongues are filled with flattery.
10 O God, declare them guilty.
Let them be caught in their own traps.
Drive them away because of their many sins,
for they have rebelled against you.
11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them sing joyful praises forever.
Spread your protection over them,
that all who love your name may be filled with joy.
12 For you bless the godly, O Lord;
you surround them with your shield of love.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: This psalm displays the struggle between the workers of good (the godly) and the workers of evil (the wicked, rebels against God). “When the psalmist prays for the destruction of the wicked, this is not his personal sentiment, so to speak. It is not a prayer of private vindictiveness but of foundational justice. It is a plea that God vindicate His own moral order.”* It applies to the present as well as to King David’s time. As a very wise man, from whom I have learned much, has often said, “The Left destroys everything it touches.” The Left is any person, group, or ideology that opposes God, His people, or His principles. May the LORD bless him and all he does to promote goodness and battle evil.
*From Christ in the Psalms, Patrick Henry Reardon, Ben Lomond, CA, Conciliar Press, 2000, p. 10. This book was my main reference and shaped much of my thinking regarding the Psalms.
Prayer: Dear LORD God, You created the whole universe and everything in it, including human beings. Therefore, You only declare what is good and righteous or bad and evil. You determine what is true and just. You have every right to judge people for their actions. You alone know each person’s inner motivations. Therefore, I can, and do now, cry out to You for justice and restoration of God’s people in my family, neighborhood, community, state/province, nation, and world to righteous living.
A prayer-a-phrase of Psalm 5. O LORD, hear me as I pray; pay attention to my groaning. Listen to my cry for help, My King and my God. May those who truly know You pray to no one but You. Listen to our voices in the morning, LORD. Each morning may we bring our requests to You and wait expectantly. O God, You take no pleasure in wickedness; You cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked [whoever they are or claim to be]. Therefore, the proud cannot stand in Your presence, for You hate all who do evil. You will destroy those who tell lies. You, LORD, detest murderers and deceivers [again whoever they are or claim to be]. May Your people know and exhibit Your unfailing love. May we enter Your house frequently and enthusiastically. May we worship at Your holy Temple with deepest awe. Lead us in the right path, O LORD, or our enemies will conquer us. Make Your way plain for us and help us to follow. Our enemies cannot speak a truthful word. Their deepest desire is to destroy others. They can be recognized by their continual use of filthy language which stinks like an open grave; at the same time, they try to “butter up” people with grandiose, empty promises and deceitful flattery. O God, declare them guilty. May right-living people hold them accountable. Let them be caught in their own traps. Like Haman, may they be hanged on the gallows they planned to use to hang others. Drive them away because of their many sins, for they have rebelled against You. But let all who take refuge in You rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread Your protection over us, that all who love Your name may be filled with joy. For You bless the godly, O LORD; You surround us with Your shield of love. All around the world, may those who love You praise Your holy name. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will pray the above prayer for myself, my family, my neighborhood, my community, my state/province, my nation, and the world.
- I will take time to tell the LORD God how much I love His name and all it represents.
- I will establish or continue a habit of starting my day with a time of connecting with the LORD.
- I will encourage a friend or family member to do the same, modeling it for them if necessary.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.