Be not silent, O You whom I praise!
Many are the fears that envelope me, causing me to act without integrity.
I become boastful that others may not see me tremble,
and I speak ill of even my friends.
I return, I become alienated from those who love me, and
from You to whom I pray.
Hear my plea, O Compassionate One, in your mercy, come to my aid.
You appoint an angel to watch over me, to protect me as I face my fears.
As I meet temptation, You strengthen me; my faith and courage increase.
May the day dawn, when I become like the eagle, and soar to lofty heights!
May I break the fetters of fear and welcome peace into my heart!
May I grown in wisdom and abandon myself to You with radical trust, and
though I may suffer, may I reach maturity of soul!
May I open myself to change, to being guided by the Spirit;
may I risk the unknown and live into the Mystery!
Awaken me to the holy, to the divinity of all creation;
O, that I might honor the sacredness of all life!
May all the resentment and bitterness
that live in me be transformed by your Love!
Help me to recognize the unmet needs that have turned to desire and lust;
create a clean heart within me!
Let all that has been stored in secret come forth into the radiance of your Light;
O, wash away my hidden faults!
For You are kind and merciful, ever searching for ready hearts,
and comforting those who cry out to You!
Implant your gifts within my spirit, that I might offer the out to those in need!
For, I long to do your Will, to co-create in joy,
to become a beneficent presence in the world!
Become like a garment wrapped around me,
clothe me in the raiment of your Love!
Then will I be strong to face my fears with a love that is firm and sure.
For You, O Heart of hearts, are the Thread that connects each one of us,
that defines the interconnectedness of all being!
Though I am weak and yet have miles to go,
your steadfast Love will lead me Home.
Fear yields itself to Love and cannot withstand the Light;
Just as one lit candle dispels the darkness,
each ray of love eases the pangs of fear.
O, Giver of the Journey, companion me along the way;
then will I recognize your Face in each one I meet.
Yes, guide me into wholeness, harmony, and balance,
that I may be a peaceful presence.
Let me give witness to your Way, that others may grown in trust and truth!
O, Great Awakener, open the eyes and ears of my heart;
let my dormant talents be make known.
For, with jubilation would I enter your Presence,
to love and serve in the great Plan!
With loud voice I will extol You, O Creator of the Cosmos;
I will praise You among the peoples!
For You are Comfort and Blessing to all who call;
You love us into new Life!
Nan C. Merrill Psalms for Praying
Reflection:
“And they offer me evil in return for good and hatred in return for my love” (v. 5, Robert Alter)
We live in a world with terrible injustices and inequity. The words in this ancient text remind us that the world has been this way for longer than we can imagine.
The vengeance and anger of this psalm certainly make it difficult to read and to preach. While I notice the anger and injustice first, this psalm also contains reminders about the covenant with God; we are God’s people. And God always sides with the poor, oppressed, and those experiencing injustice. In this psalm, the speaker is identifying as one of God’s people and one of the poor and oppressed; and asking God to handle the enemies.
Asking God for vengeance means that we relinquish it. We do not seek revenge ourselves but trust that God will, even if it’s not in the way or at the speed at which we want.
We can trust that God will intervene in a helpful way. As God’s people, we know God as merciful and just, slow to anger, and compassionate. God will know how to work out justice in a loving way and help us to let go of the anger and resentment we hold. The transformation we seek is not just for our perceived enemies, but for ourselves. When we pray, we are engaging in our union with God and being transformed more and more into God’s likeness. We may even become slower to anger and more compassionate.
Letting go and letting God means that once we give this issue to God, we don’t try to take it back out of God’s hands and force our own outcome. We also let go of our resentment, including letting go of whether or not that person deserves vengeance. It’s no longer our concern, and frankly, it’s never been our business to decide what other people deserve. Giving our issues with others over to God is difficult at first, because we’ve filled so much of our time and thoughts on who has wronged us and what we would like to see happen to them. Letting go does not mean we check out or move into apathy either. We might ask ourselves, now what?
In my life, I’ve answered the ‘now what?’ question in a variety of ways: community service, reading, sewing, coloring, visiting a museum, watching a movie, or coffee with a friend. I do something nice for myself or for someone else. This helps me to take my mind away from the old tape I’ve been playing and to make space for new experiences and a new mindset takes shape. And eventually I’m in the right headspace to engage in spiritual practices, reading psalms, journaling, or mindfulness meditations where I am more intentional about cultivating my relationship with God and others.
When we are open to our own transformation we become co-creators, working towards a better world for everyone.
Check out other psalm reflections in the links below or find more of my writing published in Presbyterian Outlook or listen to my experiments in podcasting on the Period Pastor Podcast. Follow me @periodpastor
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. Many churches use the Revised Common Lectionary (RLC) that rotates scripture on a three-year cycle (A, B, and C). Starting in Advent 2019, the 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. When we returned to in person worship, we took the psalm reflections out of the order of worship. I continued to write them for the blog. Advent of 2022 year A. I left church work in July of 2023 but continued the practice of writing psalm reflections. Advent of 2023 year B.
I use the Vanderbilt Divinity Library’s resource for lectionary readings to make text selections.
1st Sunday in Advent Psalm 25, 2nd Sunday in Advent instead of a Psalm the lectionary gives Luke 1:68-79, 3rd Sunday in Advent instead of a Psalm the lectionary gives Isaiah 12:2-6, 4th Sunday in Advent Luke 1:46b-55 or Psalm 80, Christmas Eve or Christmas Day Psalm 96, Psalm 97, Psalm 98, 1st Sunday after Christmas, Psalm 148, New Year’s Day Psalm 8, 2nd Sunday after Christmas Psalm 147, Epiphany Psalm 72, 1st Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 29, 2nd Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 36, 3rd Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 19, 4th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 71, 5th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 138, 6th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 1, 7th Sunday after Epiphany Psalm 37, Transfiguration Sunday (Sunday before Lent) Psalm 99
Lent: Ash Wednesday Psalm 51, 1st Sunday in Lent Psalm 91, 2nd Sunday in Lent Psalm 27, 3rd Sunday in Lent Psalm 63, 4th Sunday in Lent Psalm 32, 5th Sunday in Lent Psalm 126, 6th Sunday in Lent (Palm or Passion Sunday) Psalm 118 or 31
Easter: Easter Psalm 118 or Psalm 114, 2nd Sunday of Easter Psalm 118 or Psalm 150, 3rd Sunday of Easter Psalm 30, 4thSunday of Easter Psalm 23 or 114, 5th Sunday of Easter Psalm 148, 6th Sunday of Easter Psalm 67 or 109, Ascension Psalm 47 or Psalm 93, 7th Sunday of Easter Psalm 97, Day of Pentecost Psalm 104
Season After Pentecost (Ordinary Time): 1st Sunday after Pentecost (Trinity Sunday) Psalm 8, 2nd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 42 and Psalm 43 or Psalm 22, 3rd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 77 or Psalm 16, 4th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 30 or Psalm 66, 5th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 82 or Psalm 25, 6th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 52 or Psalm 15, 7thSunday after Pentecost Psalm 85 or Psalm 138, 8th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 107 or Psalm 49, 9th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 50 or Psalm 33, 10th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 80 or Psalm 82, 11th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 71or Psalm 103, 12th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 81 or Psalm 112, 13th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 139 or Psalm 1, 14thSunday after Pentecost Psalm 14 or Psalm 51, 15th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 79 or Psalm 113, 16th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 91 or Psalm 146, 17th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 137 or Psalm 37, 18th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 66 or Psalm 111, 19th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 119 or Psalm 121, 20th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 65 or Psalm 84, 21st Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 119 or Psalm 32, 22nd Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 145 or Psalm 98 or Psalm 17, 23rdSunday after Pentecost Psalm 98, 24th Sunday after Pentecost Psalm 46.
Other thoughts for psalm 109:
Verses 6-20: Interpreters seem conflicted about verse 6, some translations include “they say” which is not in the Hebrew sources (see my notes below for more on this). Is the psalmist quoting what “they say” to God or is the psalmist cursing enemies? Do we need the “they say” to understand it as a quote or is it clearly a quote even without that? Maybe the uncertainty invites us to wrestle with this psalm and how we apply it to our own lives. Have my enemies said these awful things of me or have I said it of them? Maybe we have all said things we regret. This section ends with verse 20 with “May that be the reward of my accuser”. Again, is the psalmist cursing directly or is the psalmist saying, ‘I’m rubber and you’re glue, whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you’. Either way, it’s ugly.
I am a white middle class American who serves in a context that is mostly people like me, which means friends, we are not the oppressed. I am more likely to participate in the oppression of others (either knowingly or unknowingly) than I am to face oppression and injustice myself. So, I need to read this not as the psalmist but as the enemy of the psalmist. It is this reading that makes me trust in a loving God who will be merciful to me even when I’m the one upholding injustice. When I read Nan Merrill’s version, I hear my own heart asking God to transform me with love and inspire me toward loving others. I hope this transformation leads all of us to more justice, mercy, and love.
Sources and notes:
“Psalm 109 contains the most vehement of the imprecations in the Psalter. This prayer for help in first person style opens with a plea for an answer from God (v. 1a) and a supporting account of the activity of accusers who attack the psalmist without cause (vv. 1b-5). A long curse occupies the center of the prayer (vv. 6-20). It is composed of an invocation of a narrative of disaster that begins with a hopeless trial, runs through total ruin, and reaches its climax with the eradication of the very family of the one who who fails to do hesed and drives the poor and needy toward death; so should curse become the destiny of the one who loves to cures instead of bless. After the long curse, there is a second petition (v. 21), supported by a description of the psalmist as “poor and needy” (vv. 22-25), and a third petition (vv. 26-29), followed by a concluding promise of praise (vv. 30-31).” Mays pp. 348-349
“The situation assumes by the prayer is that of an innocent person on trial for his life, literally or socially (vv. 6, 31). He is surrounded by “accusers” (vv. 20, 25, 29); the term means hostile witnesses rather than plaintiff or prosecutor. In the process of the trial they lie about him and voice wishes for his doom rather than his welfare (vv. 2-3, 17, 28). The prayer seeks a saving answer of blessing from the LORD that will establish innocence and turn the curse of hte accusers back on them (vv. 20, 28). Because the curse is spoken against an individual rather than a group (“he”, not “they”), some interpreters take verses 6-19 as the quotation of the curse that the accusers invoke against the psalmist (so NRSV). It is understood here as a formulaic curse against each of the accusers, a case of caught in the trap they have laid (e.g., 10:2). The other opinion does not, in any case, relies the theological problem of the curse; the psalmist prays that it fall upon the accusers, whoever says it in the psalm (v. 20).” Mays p. 349
“The use of a countercurse by those who pray in the psalm is a part of the larger problem of the enemies and the prayers against them.” Mays p. 349
“This psalm is based squarely on the theology of the LORD as one who shows hesed to his servant (v. 28) when he is “poor and needy” (vv. 16, 22, 31). The psalmist has done hesed to his accusers by acting in love of their good (vv. 4-5). But there is no hesed from them (v. 16) in return. He must depend on the hesed of the LORD to whose character it belongs to show hesed to the poor and needy (vv. 21-26). Threatened by the curses of men, the psalmist seeks the blessing of God. The one who prays believes also that the cursing and blessing are finally in the power of the LORD. Foes may curse, but God decided upon whom the word of disaster will fall. The LORD can bless in the place of human cursing. See the story of Salaam in Numbers 22-24.” Mays p. 349 Emphasis mine
“Perhaps this is where the psalm touches a profound theological theme of Scripture most clearly; in the face of the human proclivity to bring about a curse, the LORD wills blessing (see Gen. 12:1-3 and related texts).” Mays p. 349
“Psalm 109 is classified as an individual lament in which the psalmist invokes the wrath of God upon a group of foes. The language of the psalm places it within a special category of lament psalms called “imprecatory.” The word comes from the Latin word imprecari, meaning “pray to, invoke.” Many psalms of lament contain imprecatory language in the psalmists’ cries to God (see Pss 11:3; 17:13; 31:17; 35:4; 59:11-13; 70:2-3). Psalms 12, 58, 83, 94, 109, 137, and 149.” W p. 98
“Psalm 109’s imprecatory language is vivd and abundant. Because of that the psalm is virtually ignored by the Christian church. It is not included in lectionary readings, and its only reference in the New testament tis in Peter’s sermon in Acts 1, where he uses the imprecatory words of Psalm 109:8 in speaking about the fate of Judas Iscariot: “Let another take his position” (Acts 1:20)” W p. 98
So… psalm 109 is in year C in the PCUSA calendar/lectionary….
“In verses 6-20 words of imprecation are pitted one on another. A major issue in reading Psalm 109 is identifying the voices in this portion of the psalm. Although the NRSV translation adds “they say” to the beginning of verse 6, the MT simply begins, “Appoint a wicked man against him.” Are the imprecatory words in these verses those of the pray-er against a group of foes, or are they a direct quote by the prayer-er of the words of the foes? In other words, is the psalmist imprecating the judgement of God upon the foes or reciting to God the unjust words silent by her foes?” W p. 100
“The use of singular nouns and verbs in verses 6-20 suggest that the psalm singer is quoting the words of the oppressors, but using singular forms may be the psalm singer’s way of personalizing and emphasizing the words of indictment against those oppressing her. The imprecation ends in verse 20 with “May that be the reward of my accusers from the LORD,” again inviting the question: “Are we reading in verse 6-20 the words of the accusers against the psalm singer or the words of the psalm singer against the accusers?” Psalm 109 contains no clear answer to the question; it leaves the reader or hearer to struggle for herself with the ambiguity.” W pp. 100-101
“The psalm closes in verse 31 with words of confidence YHWH is on the side of the needy and will save them.” W p. 101
“In the act of protesting vehemently to God, the psalmist points out the acts of violence that too often accompany injustice and unexplainable suffering.” W. p. 102
“We live, and always have lived, in a world of unspeakable injustices. In the twentieth and twenty-first centuries along Jim Crow laws, the sho’ah, issues of women’s rights, racial injustice, forced migrations of peoples, human trafficking, political oppression, food deserts, economic inequalities, and many issues and events are stark reminders that psalms of vengeance are still relevant today. We must peak out against injustice, inequality, and acts of voice. The words of Psalm 109 teach us, through, that anger and action exist in a delicate dance. When and to what extent do we ourselves act, and what do we commit to the safekeeping of the God of all creation? “O God of my praise, do not be silent!””W. pp. 102-103
“…Psalm 109 is concerned for vindictiveness toward other human beings who have seriously violated the speaker. …. …and the problem of caring for a neighbor who is experienced as enemy.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 81
“In Psalm 109, it is difficult to love a neighbor who seems to be beyond love.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 82
“The combined appeal to majesty, fidelity, and compassion is a comprehensive a motivation as we could imagine. The second of these is central to a covenantal understand of Yahweh, but the other two surely also address Yahweh’s proper interests and inclinations. The speaker addresses every element of the relationship that has been learned out of the tradition. Israel’s entire understanding of God is mobilized. At the same time the appeals and imperatives concern the needy speaker.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 82
“In verses 2-4, the speaker makes a general complaint of having been wrongly treated, receiving evil for good, hatred for love. In the key verse (v.6), there is request for a special prosecutor who will look into every wrongdoing without fear or favor. It is like a special appeal to the judge, because the case is so sordid and shameful that normal investigative procedures will not work and conventional modes of punishment are inadequate. So the petition is for an evil advocate, one who deals regularly in evil, to investigate and to punish. The parallel term usually rendered “accuser” is the term “satan,” the one who tests things out. The speaker is sure that in any serious court, the evidence will be overwhelming. He wants it all brought out. But the evidence is so horrendous that it will take one skilled in such matters, because a normal investigator might fail to notice its gravity.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 83
“This psalm moves in two quite different ranges of speech and concern. One the one hand, this is, as elsewhere, faithful covenantal speech, disciplined by the norms and expectations of covenant. It is this inclination that gives the psalm its overall shape. But alongside this, and not very well integrated into it, is a second kind of speech, not disciplined, not focused on Yahweh, not shaped by covenant–simply a free, unrestrained speech of rage seeking vengeance. The key to Psalm 109 is the delicate way in which these two factors are related to each other, the way in which the second is subordinated and surrendered to the first.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 85
“Now in submitting one’s rage as this speaker does, two things become clear. The submission to yahweh is real and irreversible. It cannot be tentatively offered to Yahweh, and then withdrawn if Yahweh does not deal as we had hoped. Such a submission carries with it a relinquishment, a genuine turning loose of the issue. when Go dis able to say, “Vengeance is mine” (Deut. 32:25; Rom. 12:19), it implies, “not yours.” The submitting partner is no longer free to take vengeance–may not and need not. So the submission is an unburdening and freeing from pettiness and paralysis for praise and thanksgiving. The second fact is that submitting to Yahweh is submitting to Yahweh’s free action. Yahweh will avenge, but in God’s own way and in God’s own time–and perhaps not as we would wish and hope. Yahweh is not a robot. Yahweh does not implement our violent yearning, but passes it through his sovereign freedom, marked by majesty, faithfulness, and compassion. thus what could have been a barbarian lashing out against a neighbor becomes a faithful activity in which the venomous realities are placed securely in God’s hands. God is permitted to govern as he will. And the speaker is again free to start living unencumbered.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms p. 86
“Sometimes disorientation comes, as in Psalm 137, through no fault of either yahweh or Israel, but through the action of other human agents. But that dos not alter the main dynamic of these prayers. even when disorientation is caused by an enemy, the appeal is still to yahweh. The appeal is not to the enemy that the enemy should desist, of rhea tis a hopeless plea. The appeal is that Yahweh should intervene to right the situation and to punish the destabilizer. Sometimes Yahweh is blamed, and sometimes not. But when Yahweh is not blamed, his is nonetheless regarded as the only on who can intervene in a decisive and helpful way.” Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms pp. 88 -89
“1. God of my praise, do not be silent. This opening formula aligns this text with the psalms of supplication. What is unusual about this particular supplication is that the long central section of the psalm, verses 6-19, is, in the most persuasive reading, an extensive quotation of the venomous words of accusation and imprecation that the speaker’s accusers pronounce against him.” Alter p. 391
“4. though my prayer is for them. the literal sense of the received text is “and I am prayer.” The consensus of Hebrew tradition has understood this to mean something like “and I am all prayer.” The ancient Syriac version may have worked from a Hebrew text that read tefilati alhem, “my prayer is for them.” That reading would be more cogent as a parallel to “in return for my love” in the first verset.” Alter p. 391
“6. Appoint a wicked man over him. These words inaugurate the hostile speech of the accusers. A clue to the fact that the speaker is the object of the curse is that the reviled man is referred to throughout in the singular, whereas the plural is used for his accusers. Their speech includes both scathing curses against the man and his family and specific indications that they want to frame a case against him in a court of law. The term “accuser,” satan, which is used as a verb in verse 4 and recurs in the plural at the end of this speech in verse 20 and again in verse 29, has a juridical connotation, as it does in the frame story of Job, where it designates Job’s accuser or adversary in the celestial assembly.” Alter p. 392
“7. and his prayer be an offense. This is no doubt a malicious antithesis to the mention of benevolent prayer in verse 4.” Alter p. 392
“20. This be the plight of my accusers from the LORD. The most plausible construction of these words is that they mark the end of the quoted speech of the accusers. The speaker now prays that all their vicious curses directed at him be turned against them. The phrase ‘from the LORD” refers to “plight” (or, more literally, “action”). It is God who will carry out all these dire curses against the malicious men who pronounced them.” Alter p. 394
“28. Let them curse, and You, You will bless. This reversal from negative intention to positive outcome complements the wish the speaker expresses in verse 20 that the curse be turned against the cursers. That wish is picked up again in the second beret of this line.” Alter p. 394
“30. acclaim the LORD…/… in the midst of the many. The verb “acclaim” (or “give thanks,” ‘odeh) signals the conversion of hte supplication at the end into a psalm of thanksgiving, as happens frequently elsewhere. The speaker in his trust in God is persuaded that his prayer is already accomplished, for he understands it as a fixed attribute of God that “He stands at the needy’s right hand/to rescue him from his condemners.” The phrase “in the midst of the many” is one of several used by the psalmists to refer to the throng in the temple where the thanksgiving celebrant is to praise God’s works.” Alter p. 395
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, 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, 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, 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.
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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, James Luther. 1994. Psalms. Louisville, KY: John Knox Press.
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, 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, Matthew Richard. 2018. 70 Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know. Nashville, TN: Abington Press.
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.
Period Pastor Pad 
Thank you!!
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You’re welcome. I’m glad this reflection was meaningful.
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