Psalm 87
In Psalm
87 we find out that the sons of Korah have an incredible attachment to the city
of Jerusalem. Clearly the psalmist
approaches this psalm with a perspective that God has a special attachment to
Jerusalem. Why shouldn’t he? After all, it is Jerusalem that God has David
capture. Before David, was not
Melchizedek (a noted follower of God) from Salem (which became Jerusalem after
it was captured by the Hebrew people)?
Jerusalem has a long history of being led by people who follow God.
What is
really interesting about this psalm, however, is that although it is focused on
Jerusalem it is also very much focused on non-traditional Jews. The entire second half of the psalm
celebrates the people from outside traditional Jewish genealogy who convert and
become “one born there.”
The reason
that this thought is significant is two-fold.
First, it shows that conversion to Judaism is something that is
valued. It demonstrates that the ancient
Jewish tradition taught about conversions and teaching the faith to the rest of
the world. This psalm helps us understand
that there were people within Judaism that appreciated and took seriously God’s
call for the Jews to go to the world.
However,
there is a second reason that this psalm is significant. This psalm is attributed to laying the
foundation for the theology that Paul writes in Galatians 4 – especially in
Galatians 4:26. In that chapter Paul
spends a good amount of time talking about how the true descendants of Abraham
are not the genealogical relations to Abraham but rather the people who share
the same spiritual faith. The theology
of this psalm – a psalm that celebrates the faith of the Gentiles who convert –
allows Paul to write what he does in Galatians.
Psalm 88
As we turn
to Psalm 88, I am reminded of the study that we did in the book of Job several
months back. Here is a psalmist who
feels abandoned. Here is a psalmist who
feels as though he is left for dead.
Here is a psalmist that feels as though God has abandoned him.
Furthermore,
like Job this psalmist feels as though his companions shun him. The psalmist claims to call upon the Lord
every day, but there seems to be no response from the Lord. This psalmist really does seem to be in a
position to learn from the experiences of Job.
I can’t
say that I haven’t been there before. I
can’t say that I don’t know what it is like to wonder if God has quit watching
over me. I can’t say that I don’t wonder
occasionally if I really am still a part of God’s plan. It is normal for us to enter into periods of
doubt when things seem to be going poorly for a spell. It doesn’t mean that it is necessarily right,
but it is human nature.
As I
contemplated this psalm, I remembered back to the lessons that I learned back
in Job. Just because things go wrong
doesn’t mean God isn’t there. Just
because things go wrong doesn’t mean that the events aren’t a part of God’s
plan. Who are we to determine what God’s
plan actually is?
It is
natural for us to feel as though God has left us when the world is against us. But that doesn’t mean that we have any right
to question God. It does give us an
opportunity to call out to Him, though.
We should feel comfortable turning to God and explaining our perception
of the world around us; but we must remember to not cross the line by presuming
to be God, either.
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