By Jennie Mayes
Psalm 70
Psalm 70 is an almost exact replica to Psalm 40: 13-17 and Psalm 35:4,21,26,& 27 and Biblical scholars say the repetition through the Psalms served as a reminder to David, who often experienced enemies and needed to hear this message again.
Hmmm….Biblical Characters are just like us? David, whom we usually see as one of the greats of the faith, needed reminders and today, we do too. How I wish I could learn quickly from my mistakes and not repeat the same ones over and over. How would my life be different if I could remember that God loves me unconditionally? Without needing to hear it year after year, but knowing it deep inside of me where my scared thoughts and deepest feelings reside? If I could remember God’s grace over me, not earned, but freely given?
In the first 3 verses of this Psalm, David sounds like some of the voices we hear on TV or Social Media discussing the latest political, spiritual, parenting, or lifestyle issue. Or maybe it’s the difficult co-worker, the inflexible relative, or the grouchy neighbor. Instead of wishing our enemies well and loving them as Jesus taught, we want revenge for something as basic as disagreeing with us.
Verses 1-3 in The Message:
God! Please hurry to my rescue!
God, come quickly to my side!
Those who are out to get me—
let them fall all over themselves.
Those who relish my downfall—
send them down a blind alley.
Give them a taste of their own medicine,
those gossips off clucking their tongues.
To these verses, I want to say, “Yes, God! THEY deserve bad things. THEY wronged me; THEY wronged you. I can’t wait to see THEIR downfall.” And it might feel good for a little while. Until it doesn’t. And it always comes to that in the end. Because sometimes (okay a lot of times), it’s me who is gossiping or wanting to see someone else fall off their pedestal. And it’s never the same when you take “THEM” out of it and replace it with “ME”.
At the end of this Psalm:
Verse 5: But I’ve lost it. I’m wasted.
God—quickly, quickly!
Quick to my side, quick to my rescue!
God, don’t lose a minute.
How often I’ve found myself in desperate situations, usually from dumb decisions I’ve made or lack of trust in God to protect me. But oh how wonderful that we have a God we can cry out to and who will hear us. And always right on time! As we approach Sunday, let us remember the God who shows us unending grace.