O You who hear all hearts, hear my plea; persevere my life when fears beset me,
when the pangs of jealousy piece like a two-edged sword,
When doubts rise up and leave me trembling;
As powerful as arrows they strike the heart,
building armored wall s that keep Love at bay.
They cling like parasites upon their host, murmuring secretly in the darkness,
“Who can see us? Who can cast us out?
We have hidden ourselves well, we will hold strong.”
For our inward minds and hearts are deep!
Yet the Beloved will root the out with Love; they will be loosened suddenly.
Because of their insecurity, they will run and falter;
and all who see new life arise will wonder.
Then the peoples will be in awe; they will tell of all the Beloved has done,
and ponder the power of Love.
Let those who have Awakened rejoice in the Beloved,
let them celebrate with glad hearts!
Let all who know Love give witness to our birthright!
Nan C. Merrill Psalms for Praying
Reflection:
The psalmist knows that God hears her and will retaliate for her. The psalmist is not retaliating. The wicked have hurt her but instead of taking matters into her own hands, she prays. She tells God and trust that God will vindicate her.
Those who love God, who know God to be merciful and compassionate, will rejoice.
Would it be satisfying to see God hurt others on our behalf? Sometimes my answer is yes. But the better part of me knows that causing more pain is never the answer. I trust that God’s justice includes restoration, peace, and love.
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. Advent of 2024 year C. I finished year C early, so I posted Psalm 119 and began work on missed psalms from Year D and others not in the lectionary. Advent of 2025 year A.
I use the Vanderbilt Divinity Library’s resource for lectionary readings and the PCUSA planning calendar to make text selections.
Year D Psalms that I haven’t come across in the other lectionary years, yet:
18, 144, 44, 110, 73, 75, 76, 28, 12, 61, 11, 88, 108, 64, 60, 10, 120
These are the psalms I haven’t found in any lectionary, yet:
5, 53, 64, 81, 131, 134, 135
Sources and notes:
“Psalm 64 is a prayer for help in the first person singular style. It begins with a petition to be heard and helped; the psalmist seeks divine protection from the hostility of evil persons (vv. 1-2). Enemies attack him verbally and use words like arrows to wound him (vv. 3-6). The description of the enemy’s conduct points to the damage done to a person’s standing and security in Israel’s society by hostile talk. But the one who prays is “blameless” with respect to this vicious assault (v. 4).” Mays pp. 218-219
“Verses 7-10 function as an assertion of confidence made in a near instructional style. The psalmist describes what God will do and what the consequences of the divine intervention will be. God also has arrows to shoot. God will make the talk of the wicked the instrument of their downfall. The fate they sought for their victims will be theirs. This outcome will be recognized as the work of God. All will fear God and report what has happened in testimony. The righteous will rejoice and be taught anew to take refuge in God when in need.” Mays p. 219
“As a tightly constructed individual lament, Psalm 64 uses repletion, reversals, irony, and metaphor to convince God to carry out retributive justice against the wicked. That the threat is unbearable for the psalmist is conveyed by the petitions in vv. 1-2. Her very life is at stake,, and God must persevere it (v. 1b). The urgency of her situation is amplified by the description of the enemies that flows in vv. 3-6. Drawing on military metaphors of swords and arrows in “a language of wounds and weapons” frequently found in the Psalter, the psalmist makes her pain visible to God and the public, forcing it to be addressed while at the same time gaining sympathy from both. With “tongues like swords” and “bitter words like arrows” (v. 3), the speech of the evildoers functions as “a tool of violence, a weapon of attack” against the palmist (Pss 52:2-3; 55:21; 57:4; 58:3-5; 59:7; 11; 140:3). In this way the psalmist defines herself as vulnerable and the other as evil aggressor, which allows for some rhetorical control over the situation.” W p. 163
When the psalm shifts in v. 7 from direct address to God to third-person talk about God and what God will do, irony becomes apparent. God and the enemies act in the same way, so that their images mirror each other and accentuate the notion of retributive justice. The enemies may shoot their arrows (vv. 3-4), but God will retaliate in kind, shooting divine arrows (Ps 7:12-13) at the evildoers (v. 7a). Just as the enemies shoot suddenly (v. 4b), so will God: “they [the evil doers] will be wounded suddenly” (v. 7b). Yet God and the wicked do not share the same motives for their actions; the relational function of the archer metaphor is different for each vis-a-vis the psalmist. God is vindicator/helper, while the wicked are aggressors. God and the psalmist share these mutual enemies and create common cause against them; the envies are necessary to avoid a demonization of God. The end result is that the psalm’s initial focus on the enemies shifts to the “righteous” and “upright” in v. 10; “plots” and “snares” give was to rejoicing gan glory in antithetical inclusion.” W pp. 163-164
“Retribution anchors Psalm 64, as it does many laments. God is expected to do to the wicked what the wicked have been doing to the psalmist (see Pss 7:15-16; 9:15; 18:25-26; 35:7-8; 37:14-15).” W p. 164
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.
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, 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.
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