A sick king prays I sought the Lord, and he answered me, And delivered me from all my fears. Psalm 34:4 Read Isaiah 38:10—20 I am reading part of a prayer of a king, Hezekiah. There is little regal about it. Kings die like the rest of us. He is fretful in the face…
He will bring forth justice You are righteous, O Lord, And your judgements are right. Psalm 119:137 Read Isaiah 42:1—8 I may give little day-to-day thought to justice — it seems for some to be equated with revenge, not the noblest virtue — until I am unjustly dealt with. Then I know it. Then…
I’d never keep my mouth shut I have told the glad news of deliverance In the great congregation. Psalm 40:9 Read Mark 7:31—37 I know that if I had been that man healed, not able to speak clearly because I had not been able to decipher sounds, and if I could now speak plainly,…
What language shall I borrow? Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down; Touch the mountains so that they smoke. Psalm 144:5 Read Isaiah 57:15—21 So here I am, seeking to formulate a prayer to this God who, his word to me says, inhabits eternity. I do not. I am found in this particular…
When the Lord’s ways are hidden Incline your ear, O Lord, and answer me, For I am poor and needy. Psalm 86:1 Read 2 Samuel 16:5—14 Because I have read the story I know that David did not shed Saul’s blood. He had the opportunity, at least twice. But he saw Saul as God’s…
The sign of Jonah He drew me up from the desolate pit, Out of the miry bog. Psalm 40:2 Read Jonah 2:1-10 At the end of all this Jonah was spewed out. I can imagine him stinking, spew steaming off him. He, Luther said, ‘snored in his sins’ on the boat before he was…
A living being And breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; And the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7 Read Ezekiel 17:22—24 Ah, it is good to be a living being. It is sweet to have life. It is like sap running through me. It is thrilling to grow. To feel growth…
God’s anointed I have found my servant David; With my holy oil I have anointed him. Psalm 89:20 Read 1 Samuel 24:8—12 Saul was on a campaign to assassinate David. God had promised David the kingship that Saul occupied. And David was no man of peace. He was a warlord. I would have thought…
At a banquet But the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, In those who hope in his steadfast love. Psalm 147:11 Read Luke 14:7—11 At first blush this looks like advice on party etiquette, thoroughly consistent with Jesus’ attitude to relations on social occasions, and I can take it at that. Admittedly,…
Be merciful to me, a sinner Against you, you alone, have I sinned, And done what is evil in your sight. Psalm 51:4 Read Luke 18:9—14 If I have ever thought I am not like others, not like those lost in their shame and abject failure; if I have somehow been able to put…