Sharper Iron — The Psalter: The Justice and Love of God

Rev. Mark Squire, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in St. Ansgar, IA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Psalm 109.

David prays to the LORD as wicked men accuse and attack him without cause. He prays that the LORD will bring about salvation for him by bringing justice in the face of those who are filled with malice toward the LORD and His Church. As Judas was filled with Satan and so betrayed Jesus, so the devil still stands behind those who seek evil against God and His Church today. Our response is David’s: we give ourselves to prayer and trust that God will turn their curses into blessing. In this way, we refuse to take vengeance ourselves and trust that God’s justice, whenever He brings it, will result in our salvation. We have this confidence because we have seen the fullness of God’s love and justice in Christ crucified for us sinners.

Join Sharper Iron during the month of July to study several Psalms. In the Psalter, God speaks His Word to us and teaches us how to speak back to Him in prayer. Even in the great variety of the Psalms, each one points us to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen.

Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.

Psalm 109

Help Me, O Lord My God

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

109 Be not silent, O God of my praise!
²For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
    speaking against me with lying tongues.
³They encircle me with words of hate,
    and attack me without cause.
⁴In return for my love they accuse me,
    but I give myself to prayer.^[a]
⁵So they reward me evil for good,
    and hatred for my love.

⁶Appoint a wicked man against him;
    let an accuser stand at his right hand.
⁷When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
    let his prayer be counted as sin!
⁸May his days be few;
    may another take his office!
⁹May his children be fatherless
    and his wife a widow!
¹⁰May his children wander about and beg,
    seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!
¹¹May the creditor seize all that he has;
    may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
¹²Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
    nor any to pity his fatherless children!
¹³May his posterity be cut off;
    may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
¹⁴May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
    and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
¹⁵Let them be before the Lord continually,
    that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!

¹⁶For he did not remember to show kindness,
    but pursued the poor and needy
    and the brokenhearted, to put them to death.
¹⁷He loved to curse; let curses come^[b] upon him!
    He did not delight in blessing; may it be far^[c] from him!
¹⁸He clothed himself with cursing as his coat;
    may it soak^[d] into his body like water,
    like oil into his bones!
¹⁹May it be like a garment that he wraps around him,
    like a belt that he puts on every day!
²⁰May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord,
    of those who speak evil against my life!

²¹But you, O God my Lord,
    deal on my behalf for your name’s sake;
    because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!
²²For I am poor and needy,
    and my heart is stricken within me.
²³I am gone like a shadow at evening;
    I am shaken off like a locust.
²⁴My knees are weak through fasting;
    my body has become gaunt, with no fat.
²⁵I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
    when they see me, they wag their heads.

²⁶Help me, O Lord my God!
    Save me according to your steadfast love!
²⁷Let them know that this is your hand;
    you, O Lord, have done it!
²⁸Let them curse, but you will bless!
    They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!
²⁹May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
    may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!

³⁰With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
³¹For he stands at the right hand of the needy one,
to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.

Footnotes

Psalm 109:4 Hebrew but I am prayer
Psalm 109:17 Revocalization; Masoretic Text curses have come
Psalm 109:17 Revocalization; Masoretic Text it is far
Psalm 109:18 Revocalization; Masoretic Text it has soaked

Rev. Timothy Appel

Although a mathematics degree may not be incredibly helpful to (proudly born-and-raised Texan) Rev. Timothy Appel while hosting Sharper Iron, his love of CFW Walther and the season of Easter will come in handy. His Call is shepherding the flock at Faith Lutheran Church in Godfrey, Illinois, and he’s also husband to wife Kristin and dad to their growing basketball team of children. When he’s not carrying out pastoral duties, you may find him reading “The Lord of the Rings,” snacking on Reese’s peanut butter cups, playing dominoes with his boys, or studying up on Texas history (including Sam Houston, of course).