“Answer me when I call to you, my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; have mercy on me and hear my prayer. How long will you people turn my glory into shame? How long will you love delusions and seek false gods? Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. Tremble and do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Offer the sacrifices of the righteous and trust in the Lord. Many, Lord, are asking, ‘Who will bring us prosperity?’ Let the light of your face shine on us. Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
This Psalm is an example of using rhetorical devices such as hypophora – the author asks a question or poses a problem, then immediately responds with an open-ended response or a question. It gives the sense that the author is having a conversation with the audience, and is trying to engage them and make them think.
Jesus frequently uses parables and rhetorical devices in His teachings, asking questions and posing scenarios which cause the audience to think. Pick any parable or any teaching of Jesus, or any response to any question He is asked and He will unfailingly pose at least one thought-provoking response. There are too many examples to list, but you can feel free to read Matthew 5-7 for a start, specifically 5:43-48, 6:25-34 and 7:1-6.
Back to the Psalm, there are pairings of verses that jump out at me: 1&3; 2&5; 4&8; 6&7. The author seems to respond to their own scenarios/questions, almost like Jesus does.
The most impactful for me is is the v4,8 couplet: “Tremble and do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.” I struggle with truly searching my heart and experiencing peaces/safety. I have what feels like a great deal of inner conflict, and like Paul am trying to sort it out (Rom 7:15-25), with God’s guidance of course.
My prayer for today is that God continues to expose and resolve any internal conflict in my heart and mind, so that I may be at peace with myself and be in a place to walk along side others with inner struggles.
May you experience peace and inner rest in our Lord’s presence today.
~ Conqueror in Training