Psalm 31 is a personal lament, bearing some resemblance to the confessions of Jeremiah and to Jonah 2. The poem is an anthology psalm, drawing on verses from other psalms and Jeremiah. It calls on the Lord for help and affirms the trust of the poet in the Lord. The theme is that of a person who has suffered from a prolonged illness, persecuted by enemies, and shunned by friends. The poet seeks God in the face of the threat of a violent death. It expresses quiet trust in the unfailing care of God, even if the poet takes a difficult journey toward it. The poet wonders if his life has meaning or value.
We begin with Psalm 31:1-5. Notice all the verbs and metaphors the author uses to indicate that he is prayerfully seeking saving, delivering and protective power from the Lord. The Lord is a refuge, using metaphors of strength and protection. For verses 1-3, compare Psalm 71:1-3. 1 In you, O Lord, I seek refuge, fleeing for shelter in harsh weather or when escaping from enemies; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me (or help me escape). It can seem precarious to trust in the Lord, especially when the culture shames us. Shame suggests that who you are does not measure up to the standards of those who shame you. You have not just done something the other dislikes, but who you are is not sufficient to be included in their group. Such moments disclose our priorities. Have we made an idol out of the group so that acceptance by the group becomes our all-consuming concern? In ethics and in decision-making, it can be helpful to consider what those whom we admire might do, even asking ourselves how they would respond they knew of our decisions. Such a consideration is part of wisdom. However, to adjust our thoughts and behaviors because a group shames us for who we are is a different matter. 2 Incline your ear to me; rescue or snatch away or extricate me speedily from this situation. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress (fortified citadel) to save (yasha‘ to deliver, to preserve, to help or to give victory to, “Joshua” and “Jesus” being cognates of the verb) me. The Psalms frequently describe God as a rock. We also find the description in early and classical poetry, such as Genesis 49:24, Deuteronomy 32:15, 18, 30, and other places. We find the image of God as rock in the Old Testament far more than God as father, which is infrequent, as in Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 63:16; 64:8, and a few other places. 3 You are indeed my rock (metsudah, a word like Masada in Israel, more like a high ridge or cliff) and my fortress; for your name’s (being) sake, for the sake of the reputation, honor, majestic power, and character of the Lord, lead me and guide me. In Psalm 23, he asks the Lord to lead him in right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Take me out of (free me from) the net, used in battle to capture prisoners,that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge. 5 Into your hand I commit, using the language of borrowing and lending, my spirit (ר֫וּחִ֥י or life). The poet entrusts his entire person, his animating force that keeps him alive as one would give a valuable object as a pledge. In Luke 23:46 and Acts 7:59, both Jesus and Stephen surrender their spirits to the Lord at the moment of death. It would be a misreading of the psalm's original context to understand spirit as distinct from body or any other part of the individual. In Psalm 31, the word spirit is used metonymically, referring to the entire person (as the word crown refers to the monarch wearing it). Only much later in the biblical tradition did the word spirit take on the meaning of the more important, essential, or separable component of a person. Here it simply expresses the psalmist's utter trust in the Lord's protection. This act proves his trust and submission to the will of the Lord. His times are in the hand of the Lord. The invisible hand of the Lord had been stretched out toward him, and he now sees that hand and entrusts himself to it. The Lord, who is the giver of life, receives the life of the servant back again. To supplement his trust and submission to the Lord, he affirms that you have redeemed (פָּדִ֖יתָה ransomed, rescued) me, O Lord (Yahweh), faithful God (’el ’emet אֱמֶֽת). He is sure that his pledge will be redeemed, returned to him, and not forfeited. The Lord returns his life to him. The Lord is the God whom he can rely upon and believe in because the Lord is true to the divine self and continues to be whom the Lord has shown himself to be in revelation.[1]
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