Slices
Prepare
Think of one spiritual blessing, one material blessing and one relational blessing (from a friend, family or church perhaps) that you have received this week. Spend some time praising God for these and for all that he has provided.
Bible passage
A psalm of Asaph.
1 O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple,
they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble.
2 They have left the dead bodies of your servants
as food for the birds of the sky,
the flesh of your own people for the animals of the wild.
3 They have poured out blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there is no one to bury the dead.
4 We are objects of contempt to our neighbours,
of scorn and derision to those around us.
5 How long, Lord? Will you be angry for ever?
How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your wrath on the nations
that do not acknowledge you,
on the kingdoms
that do not call on your name;
7 for they have devoured Jacob
and devastated his homeland.
8 Do not hold against us the sins of past generations;
may your mercy come quickly to meet us,
for we are in desperate need.
9 Help us, God our Saviour,
for the glory of your name;
deliver us and forgive our sins
for your name’s sake.
10 Why should the nations say,
‘Where is their God?’
Before our eyes, make known among the nations
that you avenge the outpoured blood of your servants.
11 May the groans of the prisoners come before you;
with your strong arm preserve those condemned to die.
12 Pay back into the laps of our neighbours seven times
the contempt they have hurled at you, Lord.
13 Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
will praise you for ever;
from generation to generation
we will proclaim your praise.
Explore
This psalm seems to have been written by eyewitnesses of the horrific scenes in Jerusalem when it was crushed by Nebuchadnezzar (589–587 bc). The callous violence of the first four verses speaks of horrific suffering, shame and loss. Almost worse than the physical suffering was the way in which God’s name had been dragged through the mud by his people’s collapse (vs 1–10).
The cry ‘How long, Lord?’ (v 5) resonates through the years, as Christian people try to marry the reality of persecution and suffering with their faith in a good and powerful, promise-keeping God. When pain and loss overwhelm us, there is only one place to go: to God for his mercy and deliverance (v 9).
The eyes of faith, though, see beyond the present to a different future. It makes all the difference – if we can – to endure suffering strengthened by hope. It is remarkable that a psalm that begins in such pain ends with the prospect of deliverance and praise (v 13).
Respond
‘May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit’ (Romans 15:13). Pray this verse over anyone you know who is facing hard times.
Deeper Bible study
‘They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”’1
I have a good idea of how Asaph was feeling when he wrote this psalm. Fellow Christians in my country of Nigeria do. We know what it is to have our land ravaged by the enemy, to have our places of worship desecrated and burnt down and to have our leaders murdered along with many of their flock (vs 1–3). In all this, we are not alone. Verse 5 is a plaintive cry we share with the suffering church in many countries of the world today.
Asaph saw his circumstances as a consequence of the sins of past generations (v 8). As Christians today, we do not have that luxury. We have to accept full responsibility for our own failings. Taking note of God’s promise to King Solomon at the dedication of the Temple, we must humble ourselves before the Lord and seek his face in earnest prayer so that he will hear from heaven, forgive our sins and heal our land.2 Sadly, however, we often fail to turn from our wicked ways!
We share in the desperation of this psalmist and his desire that God’s name be glorified (vs 8,9). We know God to be our Saviour in a more comprehensive way than he could have imagined (v 9). We live in the age of grace, and so we know better now than to call down God’s wrath on our enemies (vs 6,12). The desire of our hearts is, as Paul enjoined Timothy: ‘that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil’.3 This is what turns Saul of Tarsus into Paul the apostle; and it is our prayer for those who persecute God’s people everywhere.
Find out details of one country where the church is being persecuted and make a regular habit of praying for them.
1 Rev 6:10 2 2 Chr 7:14 3 2 Tim 2:25,26
Bible in a year
Bible in a year: Genesis 45,46; Matthew 16
Pray for Scripture Union
Recently, 50 copies of the Bible were confiscated at the border of a restricted country and SU personnel were called in for interrogation. Pray that SU will be used by God in the midst of hostility, threat and persecution.
