Psalm 59 also reminds us of a deeper reality, an alternative world, which is driven not by the lust for power but by the power of love. This world is the world of God’s reign, and Psalm 59 proclaims it as the authentic “real world.” So did Jesus as he invited people to enter the reign of God. To be sure, the proclamation and embodiment of the reign of God do not make wickedness suddenly go away. Psalm 59—along with the cross of Jesus Christ—reminds us of the persistence of evil in self and society, but it also reminds us that we can confront that evil as transformed people. In short, Psalm 59, like Psalms 2 and 56–58 and the whole psalter, is eschatological. It affirms the reign of God amid circumstances that seem to deny it; thus it calls us to decision, as Jesus did. Confronted by “the mighty” of the so-called real world, we profess to find true strength in God. Faced by the seemingly overwhelming forces of evil, we profess to be met by a God who comes to us in love. Tempted by a dog-eat-dog world to join those who live only for themselves and by their own resources, we profess to find a “fortress” in God, and we yield our lives to God in grateful praise. --J. CLINTON McCANN, JR., New Interpreters Bible Vol. IV
Posted on: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 04:20:15 +0000
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