Psalm 57
Have you
ever watched the movie Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones? In that movie, the character Padmé is
attacked by a cat-like creature named a Nexu.
I couldn’t help but think about the Nexu as I read through David’s
description of humanity within Psalm 57.
If you haven’t seen a Nexu, go ahead and look it up online. You’ll find a picture on the Star Wars
Wookipedia – I love that name – among other places.
Take a
moment to look at the pictures, even if you aren’t a big fan of the Star Wars series. That animal is all mouth. Teeth like razors and spears and arrows. It’s just like David describes the “children
of man” in the psalm.
I’ve felt
what it was like to be cut by another person’s words – or even by a look. I’m sorry to say it, but I am sure that I
have done my own share of misguided cutting with my own words, too. The tongue is a sharp instrument – perhaps
our most deadly. Sure, our feet can kick
and our hands can strangle. But with our
tongue we shape and destroy other people.
Our tongues and our words affect people in ways that we can honestly
never fathom.
Notice how
David describes life right before he talks about the children of man? “My soul is in the midst of lions, I lay down
among fiery beasts.” Again, I can’t help
but think of the lion-like Nexu. It
largely fits the description.
Is that
really what it is like to live in this world?
I think we have to answer, “Yes – especially when dealing among people
who do not actively reflect God’s ways.”
There is a reason we have a saying that goes like this: “It’s a
dog-eat-dog world out there.” We live in
world that looks to devour us.
As an
aside, looking at the Nexu and hearing David’s description of humanity makes me
think about 1 Peter 5:8, in which we are told that Satan roams around the earth
like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
Can there be any doubt that if Satan seeks to devour us that we who are
in this world would not likewise learn from him and seek to devour each other,
too? Only by the grace of God do we
overcome the nature of this world!
David’s
depiction of humanity and what it is like to live in this world is
startling. But it is not
paralyzing. Although he is in the midst
of people that make him feel as though he is lying among lions, David turns to
the Lord. David exalts the name of the
Lord! Though his enemies have horrible
venom, David is ready to rely upon his God!
Though the
people work against him, David’s heart is steady. He is absolutely prepared to give praise to
his God. He is ready to welcome the dawn
and begin a new day giving glory to God.
He confesses that the righteous shall rejoice in God. The righteous will be lead to confess that
surely there is a God who judges on earth.
This is a
dog-eat-dog world. Most people think
about themselves before they think about God or the other. Most people look like the Nexu to their
enemies – mouths filled with spears and a tongue that can cut sharply. But it is not that way for the God-fearer. God brings justice. God brings righteousness. God defangs us and dulls our tongue. God turns our weapons into implements of His
love, grace, and mercy.
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