Psalm 62 is a psalm of trust or confidence. Friends have forsaken and persecuted him. It becomes a didactic psalm on human malice. Trust in God alone (note the six times this word is used) has brought stillness to the soul. Therefore, the writer exhorts the people to place their trust in God rather than extortion or wealth.
Trust is important, but it is also dangerous. It is important because it allows us to form relationships with others and to depend on others -- for love, for advice, for help with our plumbing, or what have you -- especially when we know that no outside force compels them to give us such things. However, trust also involves the risk that people we trust will not pull through for us; for, if there were some guarantee that they would pull through, then we would have no need to trust them. Thus, trust is also dangerous. What we risk while trusting is the loss of the things that we entrust to others, including our self-respect which the betrayal of our trust can shatter. Because trust is risky, the question of when something or someone outside us deserves our trust is of particular importance. I am referring to that which justifies our trust, as in a trustworthy person. When the object deserves our trust, it minimizes our risk in trust. We could also ponder whether trust becomes plausible in certain circumstances.[1]
Psalm 62 speaks of the power of God and of the lack of confidence in the psalmist's own ability to persevere. Psalm 62: 5-6 are the repetition from verses 1-2 suggesting the emphasis of the psalm. 5 For God alone my soul waits in silence. (I Kings 19:12, where Elijah finally hears "a sound of sheer silence," Isaiah 30:15: "[I]n quietness and in trust shall be your strength," and a part of Lamentations 3:21-26, verse 26 says: "It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.") The period of waiting "in silence" is an attentive one. It is not total silence: the author actively verbalizes encouraging words to people about God and words of praise to God. The "silence" is more a quiet inner confidence in God when fears arise. For my hope (tiqwah) is from him. Tiqwah relates etymologically to the verb qawah. In modern English "to hope for" often has the connotation of "to wish for." However, the Hebrew verb much more forcefully means to wait expectantly for or to wait with eager anticipation. In Isaiah 40:31 we read that "those who wait for [qawah] the LORD" who will renew their strength. See Psalm 130:5: "I wait for [qawah] the LORD, my soul waits [qawah], and in his word I hope [yahal]." The same noun is at the end of the encouraging Jeremiah 29:11, where God plans "to give you a future with hope." 6 He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. He concludes his reflection on salvation by saying 7 On God rests my deliverance and my honor; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God. In verses 8-10, we find an instruction of the community concerning trust. He encourages the community to 8 Trust (batah hard "t" and hard "h") in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah The author confidently anticipates that God will act in his behalf against the battering of his tormentors. Batah appears 48 times in the Psalms. The verb has the sense of the feeling people have for security and safety, as they place themselves confidently in the capable hands of God, relying assuredly on God to the extent that they do not concern themselves too much with their present circumstances. Biblical and Christian hope rests on faith. Therefore hope in the prayers of the Psalms is always in God. Only that hope is sustainable that does not derive from our own vitality or depend on what is perishable but directs itself toward God and grounds itself in God.[2] 9 Those of low estate are but a breath, those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath. 10 Put no confidence in extortion, and set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart on them. In verses 11-12, the writer suggests the basis of trust:11 Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, 12 and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord. For you repay to all according to their work, a notion we find in Matthew 16:27; Romans 2:6-8; II Corinthians 5:10; and Revelation 22:11-12.
We have so many choices. Most of us like to keep options open. As the number of options increases, the cost in terms of time and effort of making good choices increases. Our level of uncertainty about our final choice rises. The more choices we have, the more anxiety we feel about someday regretting the choice we have made. Studies have shown that increased choices lead to some depression. One can develop increased pessimism about the future, since one never truly chooses. The surprising result is that constraints on choice could lead to a sense of control over your life.[3] The point made here is that, when you have clear boundaries and constraints, you are more likely to be at peace with yourself. Therefore, you discover one of the keys to happiness when you place yourself within a trustworthy framework of belief and life. For me, that has meant living within the framework of the God of Israel and the Father of Jesus Christ. One will have fewer choices, of course. Yet, reducing your choices in a reasonable and justifiable way will lead to increased happiness. "We are drowning in floods of consumer goods and are drenched in showers of media images." So writes Miroslav Volf, as he continues:
"We live a smorgasbord culture in which everything is interesting and nothing really matters. We have lost a vision of the good life, and our hopes for the future are emptied of moral content. Instead of purposefully walking to determinate places, we are aimlessly floating with random currents. ... If we can neither state what the gospel is nor have a clear notion of what constitutes the good life, we will more or less simply float along, like jellyfish with the tide."[4]
[1] --"Trust," Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Website. First published Monday, February 20, 2006; substantive revision Monday, February 7, 2011. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/trust. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
[2] Pannenberg, Systematic Theology Volume 3, 174.
[3] Sheena Iyengar New America Media (December 26, 2010).
[4] Miroslav Volf, "Floating along," (Christian Century, April 5, 2000).
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