WEEK 91, DAY 1 KNOW THE WORD PSALM 109, 111, 112 Good morning. This is Pastor Soper. Today we read Psalms 109, 111, and 112, and if you are at all like me, one of those Psalms literally took your breath away. That, of course, was Psalm 109, and what took your breath away was the force of the emotions of anger, hurt, betrayal, a much more than a moderate desire for revenge! Reading that Psalm was like standing in front of an “emotion” dike one second after it has burst, releasing tons of pent-up feelings and emotions to explode and cascade over you. You are literally swept away by it. Did you notice the inscription at the head of the Psalm? It is directed to the chief musician! Can you imagine opening your hymnbook and singing a hymn like this?? Now, I know that you will remember that we have read other “imprecatory” Psalms where the writer (usually David) pleads with God to vindicate him and to deal with his foes with justice (and maybe a bit of vengeance as well). This is the last of those imprecatory Psalms, and, in my judgment, it is the most virulent and therefore the most disturbing. I actually cannot imagine singing this Psalm in a worship service, though apparently that is what was intended. Nor can I imagine it as a corporate prayer in a worship service, but in communities that regularly pray their way through the Psalms, it must be done! I’m pretty sure that I will never use it in a public worship service, but here it is, and ALL Scripture (including Psalm 109) “is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness.” So, what are we to do with it? Well, first of all, we need to once again remind ourselves that the very safest and the very best place to vent any emotions that we have is always in prayer. While the language of the Psalm is quite extreme, it is certainly true that there have been many times in my life when I have had very strong emotional reactions to experiences and events. The only safe place to voice those feelings and deal with them is at the throne of grace. God already knows both what I think and how I feel. I can tell Him, even if I can speak to no one else. And that (and in all of the imprecatory Psalms) is what is going on. Here, as in all of the similar examples of this kind of Psalm, David, when he is finished venting his emotions, moves toward prayer and a trust that God himself will intervene and “handle” his situation. The historical context of this Psalm is hard to identify. (That is the reason we did not read it in conjunction with our study of the life of David.) Nevertheless, it is possible to narrow down the possibilities. Many scholars think that the incident with Doeg, recorded in 1 Samuel 21 and 22, is the most likely “fit”. Doeg, you will remember, was the informer who told King Saul that Ahimelech the priest had helped David by giving him the consecrated bread and the sword of Goliath. Doeg was also the one, who upon the command of King Saul murdered Ahimelech and his priests for their actions. That may be the historical context for Psalm 109, but it is also possibly related to a number of other incidents in David’s life, most of which in some way or another are connected to King Saul. Just to emphasize what we have already noted, David would often pray about emotions that he would never act on. Remember, there was a time when David held Saul’s life in his hands, but he refused to kill his mortal enemy preferring to trust God to choose the right moment for him to become the King of Israel. So, we have an imprecatory Psalm, but there are some commentators who also believe that it is a Messianic Psalm as well. There are at least two reasons for that conclusion. The first is that the New Testament writers seem to have taken it in that way. Look at verse eight. David prays: “May his days be few. May another take his place of leadership”. Peter actually quotes this verse in Acts 1:20 as providing the reason for the disciples to choose a replacement for Judas Iscariot. The early Christians also believed that Jesus, in John 17:12, on the night of his betrayal, was referring to Psalm 109 when he said of his disciples: “None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so the Scripture would be fulfilled.” As a result of this train of thought, one early Christian title for this Psalm is “Iscariot”. When read as a Messianic Psalm, this perplexing Psalm becomes a response to the betrayal of Christ by Judas. The imprecatory passage, then, which begins at verse six, becomes much less a prayer than a prophetic judgment. Christ, not praying for God to avenge him, (that certainly does not fit the spirit of the one who prayed for forgiveness for the ones who crucified him), but Christ, in his role as Judge, prophetically announcing the fate of his betrayer. Read in that fashion Psalm 109 becomes a much better “fit.” The second reason that many would see this as a Messianic Psalm is because it immediately precedes Psalm 110 which IS one of the great Messianic Psalms. They see a pattern. Just as Psalm 22, 23 and 24 are all Messianic and clustered together, they find here another “set” of Messianic Psalms. If you are going to be digging deeper today, we will provide you with a chart of 17 different Messianic Psalms and the New Testament passages to which they are related and which link them to the life of the Lord Jesus Christ. This exercise will, I think, give you a good overview of the scope of the Messianic passages in the Psalms. The other two Psalms that we read today were Psalm 111 and 112. These Psalms are a pair of matched “bookends” that belong together. First of all, they are “hallelujah” psalms. They both begin with the Hebrew exclamation “Hallelujah” which, in most English translations, becomes “Praise the Lord”. (By the way, Psalm 113 is also a “Hallelujah” Psalm, but it does not share the next characteristic.) That “next characteristic” of both 111 and 112 is that they are also acrostic Psalms - alphabet Psalms. Each one has 22 lines in Hebrew and each line begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. You will remember I am sure, that Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible, is also an acrostic Psalm. In that Psalm, each eight-verse stanza began with the next letter. In 111 and 112, each line contains the next letter. That would make them rather easy to memorize and that, of course, is the whole point of the alphabet Psalms. By now, of course, you know all about my “hobby-horse”- the importance of memorizing Scripture. “Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against you”. That verse is from Psalm 119 - the long acrostic. I will not rail on you again this morning about memorizing the Word - you already know that I believe it is one of the most neglected disciplines, but I do want to point out that these memorized songs of worship functioned for the ancient Israelites exactly the same way that good theologically solid hymns and worship songs do for us today. I want you to memorize Scripture, but we can also profit greatly by filling our hearts and minds with the wonderful music of praise and worship. I wake up many days with music in my heart and in my brain, and it is the music of the hymns and worship songs that have become, through constant use, embedded in my mind. That is an awesome blessing and all the more so when the words of the music have been drawn directly from the Word of God. Psalm 111 is a song that extols the mighty works of God. It is about the faithfulness of the God of the covenant whose “justice stands forever” and who “keeps His covenant ever in mind”, who “establishes His covenant forever”, and whose “praise will last forever.” Its conclusion is eminently sound: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” It would appear that King Solomon, who used that very same expression, learned it from his father David and from the songs his father taught him! By the way, the very first line of the Psalm - the aleph line, says, “I will extol the Lord with all my heart.” It is just possible that Jesus was humming this song when He said that the greatest commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart.” Psalm 112, the bookend to 111, focuses its lyrics on the “just man” - the “man who fears the Lord”. This Psalm reads a bit like a chapter from the Book of Proverbs but it focuses on the temporal blessings that follow from living a life that pleases God. If we honor God, our descendants will be blessed, our material position will reflect the blessing of God on our lives, our treatment of others will be characterized by generosity and integrity, we will not have to live in the shadow of anxiety and fear, and the respect of those around us will be a part of our lives.