Give thanks to the Beloved with your whole heart;
tell the story of Love’s way;
Be glad and dance with joy;
Sing praises to the Name above all names,
as illusions are dispelled, as they fade away before Love’s face.
For You, O Beloved, are ever-present, ready to be known in open hearts.
You know each nation, and see how they destroy one another;
chaos and darkness rise up blind to Love’s way;
forgotten is creation’s glory, false power seeks to destroy The Divine Plan.
Yet Love will abide forever;
for You have established yourself in secret places seeking out receptive hearts, ready to enter and make your dwelling place within.
Love is a stronghold for the oppressed , a foundation in difficult times.
And those who know Love’s Name therein place their trust.
For You, O Beloved, are ever-present to those who know You.
Sing praises to the One, who is Love, who dwells in your heart!
Tell everyone of Love’s wonder-filled deeds!
For those who know compassion will remember those in need.
Be gracious to me, O Beloved!
Behold what I suffer out of fear,
O You, who awakened me from a living death,
I sing of your glory, from the depths of my being,
I rejoice and give thanks for your faithful love.
The nations are sinking into a pit of their own making;
into the web which they are weaving, will they be caught.
Love will make Itself known with a strength stronger than ten thousand armies!
The unloving will have to face themselves, all nations that are unjust.
For the oppressed will be released,
And the hope of all the poor will be realized.
Arise, O Love! Have your way with us;
let the nations bow before You and ask forgiveness!
Let your healing Light stream forth, O Love,
Let the nations commit themselves to your Plan!
Nan Merrill Psalms for Praying
Reflection:
As people with open hearts, who hear Love’s voice, we are called to remember God’s loving ways and to act accordingly. Psalm 9 and Psalm 10 (they are really one psalm) is a prayer; a remembrance of God’s Love, especially God’s love for the oppressed; and the nations that cruelly act against God’s ways. It is prayer that God will once again deliver us from oppression and self inflicted cruelty. We are one; those who are cruel, and those who are hurt, and those who are both hurt and cruel. The congregation identifies with the oppressed, but in today’s world, it seems that the people of God are more like the nations that this psalm speaks against. Our nationalism is killing us, hurting all of us, especially the poor, oppressed, and vulnerable. If instead of behaving as individual nations and warring people, my hope is that we could remember our oneness and our beloved-ness. That remembrance calls us to see that our ways are not God’s ways. This prayer is to ask God to act on behalf of the oppressed, and it is a prayer to remind us that we have that power too. We need to let go of cruelty and hate. Love is the way. Love is the divine plan. Love is what lasts forever. And when we connect with love, we all flourish.
Psalm reflections can be listened to on the Period Pastor Podcast series, Like One who Watches for the Morning. In the podcast I read both the NRSVUE and Nan C. Merrill’s Psalms for Praying in addition to the reflection you see here.
I began writing Psalm reflections during Lent of 2020 shortly after we decided to close the church building, work from home, and worship via zoom. It is a practice I have continued since. Many churches use the Revised Common Lectionary (RLC) that rotates scripture on a three-year cycle (A, B, and C). Starting in Advent 2019, Third Church decided to worship with the texts from Year D, which is still not circulated as are years A, B, and C. Year D was created with the goal of including scriptures that were left out or not used as frequently as others. While we were using Psalms in year D, most other lectionary followers were using Year A. In Advent of 2020 we rejoined those who use the lectionary in year B. Advent of 2021 year C. Advent of 2022 year A. Advent of 2023 year B.
I use the Vanderbilt Divinity Library’s resource for lectionary readings to make text selections.
Year B Psalms
Advent – Transfiguration: 1st Sunday in Advent Psalm 80, 2nd Sunday in Advent Psalm 85, 3rd Sunday in Advent Psalm 126, 4th Sunday in Advent Psalm 89, Christmas Eve or Christmas Day Psalm 96, Psalm 97, Psalm 98, 1st Sunday after Christmas, Psalm 148, New Year’s Day Psalm 8, Epiphany Psalm 72, 1st Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 29, 2nd Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 139, 3rd Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 62, 4th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 111, 5th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 147, Transfiguration Sunday (Sunday before Lent) Psalm 50
Lent: Ash Wednesday Psalm 51, 1st Sunday in Lent Psalm 25, 2nd Sunday in Lent Psalm 22, 3rd Sunday in Lent Psalm 19, 4th Sunday in Lent Psalm 107, 5th Sunday in Lent Psalm 51 or Psalm 119:9-16, 6th Sunday in Lent (Palm or Passion Sunday) Psalm 118 or 31
Holy Week: Monday Psalm 36, Tuesday Psalm 71, Wednesday Psalm 70, Maundy Thursday Psalm 116, Good Friday Psalm 22, Holy Saturday Psalm 31
Easter: Easter Psalm 118 or 114, 2nd Sunday of Easter Psalm 133, 3rd Sunday of Easter Psalm 4, 4th Sunday of Easter Psalm 23, 5th Sunday of Easter Psalm 22, 6th Sunday of Easter Psalm 98, Ascension Psalm 47 or Psalm 93, 7th Sunday of Easter Psalm 1, Day of Pentecost Psalm 104
Season After Pentecost (Ordinary Time): 1st Sunday after Pentecost (Trinity Sunday) Psalm 29, 2nd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 139 or Psalm 81, 3rd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 138 or Psalm 130, 4th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 20 or Psalm 92, 5th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 9 or Psalm 133 or Psalm 107, 6th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 130 or Psalm 30, 7th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 48 or Psalm 123, 8th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 24 or Psalm 85, 9th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 89 or Psalm 23, 10th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 14 or Psalm 145, 11th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 51 or Psalm 78, 12th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 130 or Psalm 34, 13th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 111 or Psalm 34, 14th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 84 or Psalm 34, 15th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 45 or Psalm 15, 16th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 125 or Psalm 146, 17th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 19 or Psalm 116, 18th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 1 or Psalm 54, 19th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 124 or Psalm 19, 20th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 26 or Psalm 8, 21st Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 22 or Psalm 90, 22nd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 104 or Psalm 91, 23rd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 34 or Psalm 126, 24th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 146 or 119, 25th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 127 or Psalm 146, 26th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 16, 27th Sunday after Pentecost (Christ the King) Psalm 132 or Psalm 93.
Sources and notes:
“Psalms 9 and 10 are together a song of the people of God who live in faith in the reign of God in the midst of the afflictions of history. Though the song is divided into two parts in Hebrew manuscripts and in most English versions, it appears as one psalm in the Septuagint and in translations dependent on it.” Mays p. 70
“The situation reflected in the composition is that of the postexilic congregation of the faithful whose life is beset and threatened by conditions and incidents caused by the succession of peoples who held power over them.” Mays p. 71
“One might think of Psalm 10 as an individual prayer for help against the wicked, a kind of counterpart to the thanks and prayer in Psalm 9 about the nations. But in 10:16 the personification of the problem of Psalm 9 is restated: The issue is still the contradiction between the everlasting reign of the LORD and the conduct of the nations.” Mays p. 72
“The whole, then, is a prayer. It begins with thanksgiving for the history and salvation in which the LORD has disclosed his reign by his judgement of the nations. It laments the present situation in which nations act with impunity and call the kingship of God into question. It asks for the intervention of the LORD to judge the nations and deliver the lowly. The portrayal of the congregation and the nations in terms of the prayer and thanksgiving of the individual interprets both in a highly theological way and create prayer that is designed for the new situation of the congregation. The composition undoubtedly reflects the practice in its time of using the individual genres of psalms for corporate purposes.” Mays p. 72
In a reflection based on verse 13, Beth A. Richardson wrote this, “Holy One, it seems that, lately, the ones who hate me are those who claim to be your people. How is it that we read the same Book and yet find in it such different meanings? May I not return hate for hate. Instead, may I offer love and a smidgen of that graciousness you offer to all your beloved creations.” Spong p. 9
“Something along the following lines seems to have happened to our psalm: At some early moment in the long history of its transmission, a single authoritative copy was damaged (by decay, moisture, fire, or whatever). Lines of verse may have been patched into the text from other sources in an attempt to fill in lacunae. Quite a few phrases or lines were simply transcribed in their mangled form or perhaps poorly reconstructed. When the chapter divisions of the Bible were introduced in the late Middle Ages, the editors, struggling with this imperfect text no longer realized that it was an acrostic and broke it into two separate psalms. The result of this whole process, alas, is that we are left with a rather imperfect notion of what some of the text means.” Alter p. 25
Alter Alter, Robert. 2007. The Book of Psalms: A Translation with Commentary New York: W. W. Norton & Company
WBC Allen, Leslie C. 1983. Word Biblical Commentary: Psalms 101-150. Vol. 21. Waco, TX: Word Books, Publisher.
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. 1974. Psalms: The Prayer Book of the Bible. 8th ed. Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Press.
Bourgeault, C. (2006). Chanting the psalms: A practical guide Audio Book. New Seeds.
Brueggemann, Walter. 2007. Praying the Psalms: Engaging Scripture and the Life of the Spirit. 2nd ed. Eugene, OR: Cascade.
Brueggemann Brueggemann, Walter. 2014. From Whom No Secrets Are Hid: Introducing the Psalms. Edited by Brent A. Strawn. 1st ed. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.
Brueggemann, Walter. Davis Hanskins, Editor. 2022. Our Hearts Wait: Worshiping Through Praise and Lament in the Psalms Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville KY.
Brueggemann, Walter. (2002). Spirituality of the psalms. Augsburg Pub. House.
Brueggemann, Walter. (1984). The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis: Augsburg.
Chilson, Richard, ed. You Shall Not Want: A Spiritual Journey Based on the Psalms. Ave Maria Press, 2009.
Chittister Chittister, Joan. (2011). Songs of the heart: reflections on the psalms. John Garratt Publishing.
Cudjoe-Wilkes, G., Wilkes, A. J., & Moss, O. (2022). Psalms for black lives: Reflections for the work of Liberation. Upper Room Books.
WBC Craigie, Peter C. 1983. Psalms 1-50–Word Biblical Commentary. Vol. 19. Waco, TX: Word Books.
Creach Creach, Jerome Frederick Davis. 1998. Psalms: Interpretation Bible Studies. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.
DAFLER, J. (2021). PSOBRIETY: A journey of recovery through the psalms. Louisville, KY: WESTMINSTER JOHN KNOX.
W de Claisse-Walford, Nancy L. WISDOM COMMENTARY: Psalms Bks. 4-5. Edited by Barbara E. Reid. Vol. 22. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2020.
Green, Barbara. 1997. Like a Tree Planted: An Exploration of Psalms and Parables Through Metaphor. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press.
W Hopkins, Denise Dombkowski. WISDOM COMMENTARY: Psalms Bks. 2-3. Edited by Barbara E. Reid. Vol. 21. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical, 2016.
NIB Keck, Leander E. 2015. The New Interpreters Bible Commentary. Vol. 3. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Lewis, C. S. (2017). Reflections on the Psalms. Harper One, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers.
Mays Mays, James Luther. 1994. Psalms. Louisville, KY: John Knox Press.
McCann McCann, J. C. (1993). A theological introduction to the book of Psalms: The Psalms as Torah. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
McCann, J. C., & Howell, J. C. 2001. Preaching the Psalms. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
Merrill, N. C. (2020). Psalms for praying an invitation to wholeness (10th Anniversary Edition ed.). London, England: Bloomsbury Publishing.
Miller Miller, Patrick D. 1986. Interpreting the Psalms. Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press.
Morgan, Michael. 2010. The Psalter for Christian Worship Revised Edition. Westminster John Knox Press.
Schlimm Schlimm, Matthew Richard. 2018. 70 Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know. Nashville, TN: Abington Press.
Spong Spong, M. (Ed.). (2020). The words of her mouth: Psalms for the struggle. Cleveland, OH: The Pilgrim Press.
WBC Tate, Marvin E. 1990. Word Biblical Commentary: Psalms 51-100. Edited by David Allan. Hubbard and Glenn W. Barker. Vol. 20. Waco, TX: Word.
Weems, Ann. 1995. Psalm of Lament. Westminster John Knox Pres
OTL Weiser, Artur. 1998. Old Testament Library: Psalms. Translated by Herbert Hartwell. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Manchester University Press.
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