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What do we make of this prayer? On the surface, it appears to be vindictive, hateful, and even potentially sinful! Look at the Good News Translation of the psalmist’s emotions.
Psa 109:7 May he be tried and found guilty; may even his prayer be considered a crime!Psa 109:8 May his life soon be ended; may someone else take his job!Psa 109:9 May his children become orphans, and his wife a widow!Psa 109:10 May his children be homeless beggars; may they be driven from the ruins they live in!Psa 109:11 May his creditors take away all his property, and may strangers get everything he worked for.Psa 109:12 May no one ever be kind to him or care for the orphans he leaves behind.Psa 109:13 May all his descendants die, and may his name be forgotten in the next generation.
Those of us under the New Covenant may recoil… and with good reason. We have been paid for under the blood of Jesus. The same Jesus who came for sinners just like this prayer describes. The same Jesus who called us to love our neighbor and even our enemies! Of course, we read these harsh words and wonder, is the Bible prescribing these words, or using them as Exhibit A of how NOT to pray?
Let’s first consider that most all of us have thought or even prayed these words over a person in our lives. There is nothing wrong with being honest before God. If we are being brutally honest with God in prayer, we have already chosen nonviolence just like the psalmist. Instead of responding to his enemies’ accusations, he prays for them. So, in my opinion, there is nothing wrong with honest prayer.
On the other side, since we are human, we are prone to being vengeful. In his book on the Psalms, theology professor David McCann writes this…
“If we are honest, we must conclude that Psalm 109 teaches us about ourselves. We are vengeful creatures. I recently read a book to my five-year-old daughter, and her response illustrates the point. The book uses bears as characters but intends to address children’s concerns. In this case, one bear cub had mistreated and excluded another bear cub, whose feelings were hurt. Eventually the perpetrator recognized her misdeeds and changed her ways. The book ends as the offending cub concludes that, “I’ve learned my lesson.” My daughter, however, was not content to let the book end that way. She wanted to continue the story to include an episode where the perpetrator of exclusion would suffer the exclusion she had inflicted upon another. We are vengeful creatures.”
David McCann
We absolutely must keep these two in balance. It is true that we should speak out against injustice, violence, and discrimination. God is a God of justice and truth. However, it is also true that there is a fine line between righteous anger and sinful action. This is why we must be absolutely dialed in with the Holy Spirit in situations like this. Many times, if we start with a prayer – even when we are angry – God will begin to change our heart and reveal His truth within the prayer. He will affirm, guide, or redirect and then it is up to us to follow through.