I will bless the Beloved at all times; a song of praise will I sing.
My soul speaks to the Beloved continually let all who suffer hear and be glad.
O, open your hearts, friends, that your pain and loneliness be turned to Love;
And then, we shall rejoice in the Beloved together!
When I searched for Love, the Beloved answered within my heart, and all my fears flew away.
Look to the Beloved, and your emptiness will be filled, your face will radiate Love.
For when you weep, the Beloved hears and comes to companion you;
your burdens are eased by Love.
The Beloved sends angels when you call upon these messengers
for guidance and light, for their gracious inspiration,
One with Love, you are never alone!
Happy are all who dwell in the Beloved’s heart!
Abandon yourself into Love’s hands, O you holy ones,
For those who give themselves to the Beloved, lack no good thing.
Everyone separated from Love is empty and hungry within;
But those who open their hearts to the Beloved, are filled to overflowing!
O come and see, come and hear, how we honor the Beloved.
Many there are who desire Life, who yearn for fulfillment, who covet wisdom and Truth.
Keep your heart open and free, take time to dwell in the Silence,
Become a peaceful presence in the world.
For the Beloved sees the deeds of our hearts, and hears our innermost thoughts.
The face of the Beloved turns from the evil ways of men and women;
For Love is kind and merciful and remember not our sins.
Rather, the Beloved is patient, ever-waiting for us to cry out for forgiveness
to embrace Love’s way.
How often the Beloved weeps with compassion over those who are crushed in spirit.
Through we are beset with many fears that cause illness and troubles,
The Beloved is ever ready to comfort us in our sorrows,
to strengthen us on our soul’s journey to wholeness.
The Beloved renews the life of all who surrender to Love.
Nan C. Merrill Psalms for Praying
Reflection:
Psalm 34 invites us to listen to God. I love the phrase from Nan Merrill’s psalms for praying, “Keep your heart open and free, take time to dwell in the Silence, Become a peaceful presence in the world.” This sounds so gentle and calm; it’s all that I hope to discover in contemplative silence. But the more I practice, I notice that peaceful presence doesn’t necessarily happen when I’m practicing, it happens later. During the practice, thoughts and feelings happen, and I’m learning to let go of the thoughts as soon as I’m aware of them. I’m listening, trying not to judge my thoughts but simply noticing what they are. The practice is intended to enable me to consent to God’s presence and action from within. For now, I can describe that as God waking me up to what it really important.
In my 1,420 daily ordinary moments, I notice that the practice (only 20 minutes of my day) helps me to create space, practice the pause, or, as the psalmist says, to “Keep [my] tongue from evil and [my] lips from speaking evil” when I’m stressed out. I have to admit that even that very small change feels a little scary, or maybe exciting, or something in-between. I know I’m only at the beginning of this process and if I’m noticing this small change now, I wonder, what will come after practicing for a longer time?
The hope is that the practice will not simply keep me from saying something stupid, but will transform me into a more compassionate person. I trust that that God who dwells within my heart (who dwells in all our hearts) is Love. And if I open my inmost silent self to Love, I believe that there will be healing and hope within me. For me, the goal of this process is to live as someone who is thoughtful and intentional; regards self and others with compassion; and acts accordingly.
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:
“Psalm 34 is in many respects a companion of Psalm 25. Both are acrostic poems whose poetic lines begin with letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order. In both, the letter waw is omitted and a final line beyond the alphabetic sequence is added to make twenty-two lines. Psalm 25 employs the liturgical form of a prayer for help and Psalm 34 the form of thanksgiving for help, but in both the instructional function dominates. In Psalm 34 the element of witness to others in the songs of thanksgiving has developed into a teaching mode. The psalm is a general thanksgiving that gives instruction in the theology of both phases of psalmic prayer: the cry for help and thankful praise for help.” Mays p. 151
“The shaping of new life requires discipline and fidelity to principle. In this song of thanksgiving, the moment of rescue is remembered. But the speaker cannot refrain from instruction that counsels others in how to consolidate and sustain the new orientation, so this psalm has strong features of wisdom instruction. That the psalm has such deliberate intentionality is also evident in its acrostic construction, which suggests it is not an emotional outburst of gratitude but a quite disciplined stamen for new world building.” Brueggemann The Message of the Psalms p. 133
“The ethical life must be lived as the prayerful life.” Mays p. 153
Taste and See = “find out by experience” Mays p. 153
“The fear of the Lord is indeed the foundation of life, the key to joy in life and long and happy days. But it is not a guarantee that life will be always easy, devoid of the difficulties that may seem to mar so much of human existence. The fear of the Lord establishes joy and fulfillment in all of life’s experiences. It may mend the broken heart, but it does not prevent the heart from being broken; it may restore the spiritually crushed, but it does not crush the forces that may create oppression. The psalm, if fully grasped, dispels the naïveté of that faith which does not contain within it the strength to stand against the onslaught of evil.” WBC p. 282
“The superscription explicitly links this psalm to David’s rescue from Abimelech (1 Sam. 21:10-15). We may take that reference as one important case that helps dramatize the generalization the text affirms. What is clear is that the rescue is concrete and historical and resists everything spiritualizing. This prayer is for those who find themselves resourceless against the powers of this age, and then are remarkably released for new life.” Brueggemann The Message of the Psalms p. 133
“The newly oriented Israel must engage in society building, to develop forms of behavior which sustain the gift of new social possibility. Perhaps the teacher knows that if such things are not done intentionally, very soon the recently poor and afflicted will be back in the old context of hopelessness. So we have a nice juxtaposition of liberation (vv. 1-7) and world building (vv. 8-14). Brueggemann The Message of the Psalms p. 133
“It is precisely the righteous whom the Lord sees (v. 15), hears (v. 17), is near (v. 18), and delivers (v. 19-20). the use of “the righteous” requires a “class reading” of the text. The righteous may or may not be the good, but they are surely the socially marginal, who no longer expect the dominant society to succor them, and so they look to Yahweh as the alternative source of help. Thus the cry of the righteous is an act of delegitimating the primary structures that have reduced people to helplessness. In verse 21 the righteous are not hated because they are marginal or because they are good, but because they look to Yahweh. They have discovered something remarkable and subversive about Yahweh. Yahweh’s peculiar inclinations are with the brokenhearted and the ones with crushed spirit. That is, Yahweh’s solidarity is not with the ones who go from success to success, but the ones denied success.” Brueggemann The Message of the Psalms p. 134
“Therefore verses 11-14, the summons to a faithful life, are not a call for “law and order” or conventional morality. they are rather a call to the revolutionary “good” that is antithetical to the “evildoers” (v. 16) who now orders society. The climax of verse 21 is an argument that the resisters of the righteous will turn out guilty, even though they appear to be the ones who dispenses justice. There is a higher court, and in that appeal process, they will not do well.” Brueggemann The Message of the Psalms p. 134
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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