Journal Entry
I always come back to the psalms. They are problematic in many ways:
- They imagine a world of many gods. YHWH is one among many.
- YHWH is aligned with the interests of a particular state rather than the whole world. If Israel/Zion/Jerusalem prospers, that is good. If the enemies of Israel/Zion/Jerusalem have the upper hand, that is bad.
- The psalmist is often speaking as a combatant, asking for help in times of physical aggression. Defeating the enemy, bows, arrows, swords and shields come up regularly.
All this being said, I come back to them. Over and over again. Why?
- They are familiar. I know a few by heart from when I was a child.
- Their verses continue to resonate with me.
- Although I have never been particularly good at memorizing long texts, I can keep a verse or part of a verse in mind.
This morning I am focusing on Psalm 9:10.
Those who know your Name will put their trust in you,
for you never forsake those who seek you, O LORD.
As a Christian, one of the complicating factors here is God's name. I have to consciously think about Jesus unless I am in the New Testament. The respectful writing of God's name is often to simply say “The Name.” I find that a bit awkward because it continues to be unfamiliar to me.
I had a translation of the New Testament (I don't even know if I still have the printed book; I never had a soft copy.) that translated “lord” when it was used in the epistles as Christ. The ancient world was not always precise about lord, master, king, etc. There was just the person that you had to obey whether you were enslaved or free. It didn't matter. It came up for me when I was studying Julian of Norwich. She lived in that sort of world, too.
But I digress.
The strength of this verse today is the connection between trust and forsake. Because I know this one and put my trust in this one I will not be forsaken.
There are many reasons to doubt the Name today. The world continues to be a very dangerous place and life can be so very hard. Yet the promise is clear:
I will not forsake you. Trust me.
Putting my trust in you, Jesus, is hard, but I will.