Saturday, December 21, 2019

Psalms 51-85

"Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom."  Psalm 51:5-6

Shaped in sin---in utero sin.

Pulpit Commentary insights: "It is doubtless true, as Professor Cheyne says, that "the Old Testament contains no theory of the origin of sin"—no formulated doctrine on the subject. But the fact of congenital depravity is stated, not only here, but also in Job_14:4; Psa_58:3; it is also implied in Isa_43:27 and Hos_6:7."

"And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest." Psalm 55:6
Resonates with me this morning.  Flying away.  Rest.

"...if riches increase, set not your heart upon them." Ps 62:10

"God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God." Ps 62:11

"The Detective detects the mystery in the dark of the cellar heart." Ps 64:6 The Message

Although I don't typically like The Message for the psalms, I find that translation effective in an unexpectedly contemporary way.

"Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly: thou settlest the furrows thereof: thou makest it soft with showers: thou blessest the springing thereof. Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness." Ps 65: 10-11

Lush agricultural imagery.

"Blessed be the Lord— day after day he carries us along." -Ps 68:19 The Message

"Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits." Ps 68:19, KJ

"...unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death." Ps 68:20 KJ

 "They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards." Ps 69

It would be discouraging for sure to be the song of drunkards.

Psalm 73---so good.

"The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun." Ps 74:16

"Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another." Ps 75:5-7

"Thy way is in the sea, and thy path in the great waters, and thy footsteps are not known." Ps 77:19

"For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly." Ps 84:11


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