Today’s reading is Psalm 74.
The psalmist doesn’t get it. The temple has been destroyed. The people have been carted off to Babylon. None of his friends understand. He is hanging on to the relationship God established with Israel in the Exodus, but he is at a complete loss for why God is letting the situation be as it is.
I’ve already shared this week that I don’t get it. That is, I don’t understand why the psalmist doesn’t understand. God sent prophets to warn. He sent prophets to explain. He even sent a prophet to answer the question “How long?” Why doesn’t the psalmist know this? I don’t know. But he doesn’t.
Maybe the psalmist was like Daniel, Hananiah, Meshael, and Azariah. Maybe he was innocent and didn’t understand the captivity or didn’t understand why he was subject to it like all those who were guilty. Maybe this psalm is written later and enough time has gone in captivity that this descendant of Asaph doesn’t know how bad Israel was before the judgment. I don’t know. But for whatever reason this psalmist doesn’t understand.
I’m not in the middle of the circumstance. I’m on the outside of it. From this vantage point, I do understand what was happening to Israel and I think I’m learning something important. First, as we keep reading the psalms of Asaph, God will make it quite clear why He is angry (just wait for Psalm 78). However, when Psalm 74 is written, for whatever reason, the psalmist doesn’t know. His ignorance is hardly excusable in my opinion. Yet, God lets him voice this prayer. Not only that, God includes it in Scripture.
I could be wrong about this, but this leads me to a second lesson. Not that ignorance is excusable. However, I think I see mercy and grace in action in this psalm. To be frank, I expect anyone who wrote a psalm like this in the time of Babylonian captivity to be judged and his psalm to be lost in obscurity. I expect us not to know about anyone who had this kind of prayer in that particular situation. However, the psalmist’s ignorance, bordering on impertinence and insolence, is accepted by God. God receives his prayer. Yes, God will educate the psalmist, but He graciously allows the psalmist to pray even a lament and complaint in his ignorance.
Maybe this is a bit of Romans 8:26-27 in action. The psalmist didn’t know quite what to pray. He doesn’t understand the whole situation. He probably should know better. He probably should know the answers to his questions. But he doesn’t. So he prays what he knows. He prays about God’s covenant, God’s name, God’s enemies. And God mercifully accepts his prayer.
Can we praise God for being the kind of God who doesn’t smack us down for every misunderstanding we have? Can we thank God for patiently walking with us through our ignorance, educating us, accepting us, forgiving us, interceding for us?
As I said on Monday, I’m not quite sure what to do with this psalm. However, I think I’m getting a picture of how this psalm can help us today. What do you think?
Tomorrow’s reading is Psalm 74.
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PATHS:
Discuss Today’s Meditation with Your Family
How does Psalm 74 prompt or improve your trust in God?
Read the Bible 