Clergy/Leaders’ Mail-list No. 3-042 Sunday 02 Mar 2003

Reading: Psalm 149 – PRAISE AND VENGEANCE

What sufferings or outrages have aroused you to pray for retribution? ‘Father forgive them.’

This psalm’s two themes, celebration and retribution, are reflected in the way the saints are twice honoured (vs 5,9). First, as they rejoice and sing in praise of God their king (vs 1-5). Secondly because they are to be the instruments of God’s international retribution on the enemies of his people (vs 6-9).

But their weapons are not to be arrows and swords; rather they will arm themselves with the ‘double-edged sword’ of the Word of God. (Rev 1:16) It is the melding together of these two tasks in one seamless song that may shock our sensibilities today. The theologian Thomas Muntzer (1486-1525) used this psalm to rouse German peasants to revolt in the sixteenth century. One can also imagine how misled crusaders and conquistadors might rise from their prayers to another day of slaughter and savagery, convinced they were doing God’s will!

Clearly this psalm does not picture individuals taking the law into their own hands; the saints are in assembly (v 1); apparently led by their king (v 8). Retributive anger is a dangerous emotion, and if we live in a country that has a Judeo-Christian legal system, we control vindictiveness by insisting on recourse to the courts. If we are Jews in a concentration camp, or Christians suffering persecution, or prisoners of conscience, there might not be any such recourse.

In that case we may have to sing and pray, believing that one day the truth will be known and justice will be done. This is not just Old Testament religion, as a reference to 2 Thessalonians 1 and Revelation 19 will confirm. Singing praise songs is not an escape from addressing justice issues.

‘Thy kingdom come O God, Thy rule, O Christ, begin; Break with thy iron rod, the tyrannies of sin.'(Lewis Hensley, 1824-1905)

– Howard Peskett

Copyright Scripture Union, 2003

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