Thursday, February 27, 2025  

Today's Scripture
Psalm 138

I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness;
for you have exalted your name and your word above everything.

On the day I called, you answered me,
you increased my strength of soul.

All the kings of the earth shall praise you, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of your mouth.
They shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.

For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly;
but the haughty he perceives from far away.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies;
you stretch out your hand,
and your right hand delivers me.

The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands. (NRSV)

Reflection

In this psalm there is a braggart way of showing off this almighty God, our God, over the “gods.” Our God has unfailing love, faithfulness, exalting their solemn decree, surpassing fame. It is almost as if the speaker, David presumably, is actually being sought the way we would seek God.

Then the psalm changes and becomes about how those who are mighty, the kings of the earth, praise God because of her greatness. That leads to the next part of the psalm, which is that while the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly. The duality of being in trouble and needing preservation.

Duality forms as God stretches out her hand to defeat the anger of our foes while also saving us from our own anger, from our own hands. This proves that God’s love endures forever and implores God — and us — to not abandon the works of God’s and our own hands.

In this way the psalm shows us that anger and protection go hand in hand — that we are the work of her hands and thus experience anger, anger that God displays very clearly in the Old Testament, and also too that we are worthy of redemption and peace precisely because of that aspect of being made to be God’s work as well.

Prayer
Dear righteous protector and angry God, please stand with us in all of our emotions, in all of our ways of being, knowing that our very being is because of you. Thank you for providing us with the ability to create, protect, and destroy so that we may know the power of each of these actions. Amen.

Written by Jessica Wang, Member of Fourth Presbyterian Church

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

Devotion index by date | I’d like to receive daily devotions by email