The Week of April 7, 2008

Psalm 32,33,34

Psalm 32

This psalm is the second of the seven traditional penitential psalms (6; 32; 38; 51; 102; 130; 143). For the most part, this is a teaching psalm, instructing the faithful in the practice and importance of making confession, and repenting of sin. The psalm divides into neat parts. The first two verses are a form of "beatitude" - introducing the theme of the prayer. The Apostle Paul quotes these two verses in Romans 4:7-8, so that the Church has typically linked the "blessedness" or "happiness" of this psalm to the Christian who receives forgiveness in Jesus Christ. The second section of the psalm (vs. 3-5) tell the story of a sinner, who turns to God and repents; receiving forgiveness. The rest of the psalm is the teaching section. There are three main points delineated here:

• The forgiven sinner is blessed or happy
• Confession is the door to forgiveness - the sinner must enter this discipline to keep an open relationship with God
• The confession of sin must be made with integrity

Psalm 33

This is a pure psalm of praise - praise of a God who can be trusted. The prayer suggests that God is to be praised for creation and for control of the universe, as well as for protection and creation of a righteous and "happy" nation - the nation of Israel. The psalmist speaks of God's Word as "upright" and capable of doing God's work in the world. As in Genesis chapter one, and the Gospel of John, chapter one, God's creative power comes from the Word. The metaphor for God in the psalm includes a Divine Judge seated on a judgment seat, watching the activities of human beings and human nations. Twice, at the end of the psalm, those who "hope in the Lord" are lifted up as the truly righteous and blessed.

Psalm 34

This thanksgiving psalm is an acrostic poem in the original Hebrew. Each poetic line begins with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order. It functions as a teaching psalm - instructing the congregation in crying to God for help as well as offering God thanksgiving for help. At some point in the history of this psalm a faithful scribe searched the life of David and found an event to match. The event described in the superscription can be found in I Samuel 21:10-15. The psalm divides into three sections, with vs. 1-10 being a kind of testimony to God's activity, and vs.11-14 an address to students concerning a proper way to live. The concluding verses sum up the psalmist teachings. Notice that the Lord is a rescuer here. God rescues from life's problems and difficulties in the here and now, while rescue from sin and death is never really promised!

From my reading: About Psalm 32 - Sin and Guilt

At a theological level, this psalm makes an assumption so obvious we may miss it; there is no doubt here about the reality of God, the reality of accountability, the clarity of expectation, and the need to come to terms with that clear, unavoidable relationship. God is not an elective or a hypothesis, but a definitional and determinative partner who establishes norms and with whom we must deal; guilt fully embraced and acknowledged permits movement, a new reception of life, and a new communion with God. Only then can the guilt be resolved: there are, the psalm asserts, no alternatives, no substitutes. The body will not be deceived, even as God will not be mocked. Freedom from guilt requires embracing it and having it dealt with by the mercy of God.

Walter Bruggemann The Message of the Psalms

My Thoughts:

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:18

I watch the little bird on the patio peer into my window. A beautiful bouquet of flowers sits on a table on my side of the glass. Suddenly, the bird tries to fly into the flowers, banging his head on the glass. He falls a bit to the ground, sits on the window, shakes his head, then tries again! This goes on for hours! Even after I move the flowers, hoping to stop the attraction, he continues to fly into my window! I gaze at the beautiful spring day - the field of flowers blooming behind my house, with a lazy creek and budding trees - green, and lush - warm and inviting - and I can't help wonder - why in the world does this little bird want inside my house? Can't he see that everything he could need or want has been provided? Eventually, he gives up - but I imagine his head hurt him for a while!

That beautiful bird has been on my mind. I can still see him, beating his little head against that windowpane, trying to get to my flowers. I wonder how often we live our lives in similar fashion. We desperately try to reach or control things beyond our purview. We go down the same path, again and again, surprised as we run into the identical pane of glass. We act on instinct, going after things, and searching for answers in the wrong way and in the wrong place. The psalmist reminds us that in our most desperate moments, when our own efforts no longer work and when our heads throb from flailing, God draws close. Our saving God watches and holds us with compassion - waiting for us to stop our head-banging, and notice the blessings available and all around us.

Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you; at times of distress,
the rushing waters shall not reach them.
You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with glad cries of deliverance.
Psalm 32:6-7

Blessings,
Pastor Stacy

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