THE CRY FOR VINDICATION

APRIL 7, 2022

Psalm 109

21 But you, O Lord my Lord,
act on my behalf for your name’s sake;
because your steadfast love is good, deliver me.
22 For I am poor and needy,
and my heart is pierced within me. …
27 Let them know that this is your hand;
you, O Lord, have done it.
28 Let them curse, but you will bless.
Let my assailants be put to shame;
may your servant be glad.



We are just four days from the beginning of Holy Week. One thing we notice from the Gospels in that Jesus knew the psalms. As I was reading through the Psalms recently, I wondered if perhaps Psalm 109 was on his mind during the Passion week. Did Jesus relate to the psalmist? After all, Jesus may have been the perfect Son of God, but we are taught also that Jesus was human. Would he have felt what the Psalmist felt?



In terms of background, the psalmist is facing false accusation and cries out to God for vindication. If you read the complete Psalm 109, I would encourage you to do that, especially between verses 6-20, what is stated in that section raises several questions for us. I mean words of a prayer that seemingly ask for some awful and harsh realities to fall on the Psalmists accusers, does not sound like the “Christ-like attitude" we are supposed to have. You know “pray for your enemies and those who persecute you” kind of attitude. Granted, many of us may very well relate to this section, if we have been in similar circumstances of unfairness.



Let us pause and ponder for a moment. Forgiveness says that despite the wrong done to me, I’ll not hold it against the wrong doer. We say, in other words, I will cancel the debt and try not to collect. Forgiveness is not easy!! The Psalm today is saying, I will leave debt collecting to God. Since I am his, He is the God I serve, therefore all debts against me are owed to him.



Yet, forgiveness does not involve letting the wrong behavior continue. What is wrong must stop. I think we see this, for example in times of war, perpetrators of genocide or cruel war crimes must be accountable for their actions. It is hard to look at evil in our world and not feel the need to suggest to God how to deal with such things. I was asked a question in an email recently “Should I pray for Russian President Putin?” My answer was in such moments, we are challenged to pray both prayers: father forgive them, and God do whatever it takes to turn them from their wicked ways.



Perhaps to us the Psalmist words seem “over the top”, the specific ways he asks God to stop the injustice seems a bit much. Let’s be honest, in similar situations in your life haven’t you prayed, or at least thought, something comparable. What are we asking God to do when we pray for the end to evil, wickedness, and injustice?



“O Lord, act on my behalf for your name’s sake. … Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it” (v. 21, 27). “The Lord is the debt collector.” Like the Psalmist, even if we make suggestions, we leave it to God to save and judge in his perfect wisdom.





LET'S PRAY

Merciful Lord, who knows both our hearts and the hearts of all, even our enemies, we pray for your kingdom to come, your will be done. As we seek your will for ourselves, you will lead us to forgiveness, mercy, and love for others. Protect and deliver us from opposition. Help us be quick to forgive that we might be free from bitterness and hatred. For Jesus’s sake, amen.