Tuesday, June 24, 2025  

Today's Scripture
Psalm 22:19–28

But you, O Lord, do not be far away!
O my help, come quickly to my aid!
Deliver my soul from the sword,
my life from the power of the dog!
Save me from the mouth of the lion!

From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued me.
I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me,
but heard when I cried to him.

From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!

All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.
For dominion belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations. (NRSV)

Reflection

Clearly the writer of Psalm 22 is someone who pines for and has perhaps tasted the sweetness of relief and redemption. I say that because many of these verses given to us appear to be a rehearsing of the joy that comes from a turnaround in fate. Most of these verses express what the psalmist might say to the congregation and how the world might be affected if indeed God hears their plea and responds accordingly. The poor shall be satisfied, and the ends of the earth shall turn to God. Pardon me if that sounds like an audacious claim.

Now I don’t think the psalmist is vain or conceited with such words. Rather, I think it is an indication of the depths of pain this writer has experienced. Have you ever had a suffering you felt might very well devour you? Was it a loss of a loved one, a betrayal of friends, or perhaps a time when you or someone you care for was at grave risk of harm?

No matter the nature of the pain, it is significant to me that the psalmist praises God for abhorring their affliction. That might seem trivial, but one of the most important things we can do for others is to acknowledge their pain as pain. We may lack the power on our own to repair it. We may even disagree with the afflicted’s preferred response to that pain.

But that matters less than our willingness to call pain what it is. God does this for the psalmist. And I think the implication is that if God does this for me, then truly God sees the suffering of others, the poor and downtrodden, the suffering of the whole world even. Then perhaps the idea that this one redemptive act for one follower of God can billow into all the families of the earth worshiping the Holy One isn’t so farfetched after all.

Prayer

God of the distressed, thank you for loving us in acknowledging our pain. Help us lighten the burden of others by receiving them as you do us. Amen.  

Written by Joseph L. Morrow, Associate Pastor

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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