If you followed the instructions above, and actually read Psalm 109, you are probably sitting here wondering: How should I feel right now? Should I raise my fist, in righteous indignation, rally around the cry of the psalmist, and revel in the judgement upon my enemies? Or, should I reject this psalm outright, leaving it where it is, in the Old Testament—a prayer for then, but not for today? After all, I don’t think this is what Jesus meant when he said “pray for those who persecute you.” (Matt. 5:44)
Perhaps, “How should you feel?” is the wrong question. Perhaps, the better question—the question this psalm is meant to raise—is this: How do you feel? In other words, perhaps this psalm is not intended to describe how you ought to feel, but is meant to diagnose how you actually feel? If you read this psalm, and suddenly had a specific person jump into your mind, and found your heart relishing the judgement upon your so-called ‘enemy,’ enjoying the anger, and satisfied with the hatred, I would guess, that, perhaps, this is what this psalm is meant to expose.
We should certainly desire God’s justice to reign over evil and wickedness. (Similarly, we should be ready and willing to stand against such evil if and when we are called to do so.) But… this is not exactly the same thing as delighting in the pain and punishment of those who perpetrate such evils. And, moreover, it is certainly not the same thing as rejoicing in our personal vindictiveness.
As C.S. Lewis once wrote,,
We must not either try to explain them away or to yield for one moment to the idea that, because it comes in the Bible, all this vindictive hatred must somehow be good and pious. We must face both facts squarely. The hatred is there – festering, gloating, undisguised – and also we should be wicked if we in any way condone or approve of it.” (Reflections on the Psalms)
Forgive my somewhat dated and cheesy reference, but I can’t help but think of Star Wars here. This is precisely the kind of hatred and anger that was so intoxicating for all those who ‘turned to the dark side.’ What began as a rush of ‘power,’ left unchecked, eventually became a poison as they allowed their desire for justice to be overshadowed by anger and hatred for their enemies. Perhaps, this psalm—and psalms like it—are a diagnostic: they show us those dark places in our heart and soul that still delight in vengeance, and have yet to seriously pursue the impossible demands of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ …{and} You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” - Matthew 5:38, 43, 44
Lord, help us love and pray like that. Amen.
- Chaz