I know

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(Psalm 140)

Andy Nagahara

We are nearing the end of our Psalm series that we have been reading for several years. Today’s text is 140th. In Psalm 139 I talked about what we are “known” by God, but today I will talk about what the psalmist knows and what we know.

It has been a while since we last saw a psalm using the word “Selah” but “Selah” which appears in 40 of the 150 psalms, indicates a musical break. It reminds us that the psalms are traditionally sung as worship songs. In particular, the first half of the song is easy to tell that it is lyrics, even if we don’t understand the melody, because of the word order repeated at each (Selah) interval and the synonyms used.

A. The psalmist’s earnest appeal (0-8)

1. Protect us from the attacks of evildoers (1-3)

0 For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1 Rescue me, O LORD, from evil men; protect me from men of violence,
2 who devise evil plans in their hearts and stir up war every day.
3 They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent’s; the poison of vipers is on their lips.

Have you ever been exposed to the kind of attacks described here? “Bullying” in school classes is an obvious example. Bullying happens endlessly, day after day, for no reason, or for reasons beyond the victim’s control. Terrible things have happened that make us wonder how children can be so cruel.

This is also happening in different forms in adult workplaces and various communities. “Bullying” occurs even among teachers, who are supposed to protect children. Not only physical violence, but verbal violence also has the power to take a life if repeated.

The other week, I traveled to Hokkaido and visited the Upopoy National Ainu Museum and Park to learn about the Ainu people. It was a very impressive facility, with a museum at its center and a theater showing singing and dancing, musical instrument performances and classes for experiencing crafts, a recreated village, and more.

The Ainu people are the indigenous people of Hokkaido. Despite the harsh cold of winter, these people lived peaceful lives in harmony with the abundant nature. However, due to government policy during the Meiji period, many immigrants from Honshu were sent to Hokkaido, where they were deprived of their land, language, and culture, became impoverished, and suffered severe discrimination.

Discrimination still exists today. It’s the same tragedy as the Native Americans. Some people criticize ethnic discrimination in other countries based on the mistaken belief that Japan is a homogeneous ethnic country, but ethnic discrimination does exist in Japan as well. In addition to discrimination against people with roots in the Korean Peninsula, there is also discrimination based on social status, occupation, and sexuality.

There is no country without discrimination, for discrimination is a manifestation of the sinful nature that resides in all people.

Who will protect me from the brutality of bullying, discrimination and persecution? The psalmist is reminded that it is none other than God, so he cries out to God in this way. This may be a disappointing fact for those who do not acknowledge the existence of God. If there is no God, the world would exist only for the strong.

　But for those who believe in God who came into the world he created in the form of Jesus, there is hope that will not fade no matter what happens. The Gospels clearly record the people Jesus stood by and protected, and how he responded to those who attacked them.

The answer to the question of how we, the Church, who is Jesus’ body, should exist in this world is found in the words and actions of Jesus in the Gospels.

Whenever I see news about a child who has been bullied to death, I wonder what the outcome would have been if that child had been in the fellowship of church and believed in Jesus. Why do we want to introduce Jesus to the world? It’s not so that the church can grow. We want as many people as possible to be liberated and live in peace by knowing the love of Jesus.

2. Protect us from the traps of the tyrants (4, 5)

4 Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; protect me from men of violence who plan to trip my feet.
5 Proud men have hidden a snare for me; they have spread out the cords of their net and have set traps for me along my path.

In the first section, I talked about how attacks arise from hatred, prejudice, and contempt for the person, and that we are easily complicit in them unconsciously. In this section, we look at the motivations of those who attack.

The song talks about impeding someone’s steps, preventing them from doing what they want, and capturing them and taking away their freedom. Why do the wicked and the proud do such things? It’s for their own good.

In order to increase their own profits, the powerful have hindered the activities of the weak, cheated them out of their property, and captured them and forced them into slavery. The country banned the Ainu people from using the Ainu language, forced them to change their names to Japanese names, and banned their traditional fishing and hunting practices, which not only robbed them of their spiritual assets but also impoverished them economically, leading to a decrease in the population. They have inflicted similar suffering on people with roots on the Korean Peninsula.

And this is still happening all over the world, in slightly different forms. In Japan, “special fraud” cases in which vulnerable people such as the elderly are deceived and their property is stolen are rampant, with methods constantly changing. I’m not saying this country is particularly bad. Evil and arrogant people exist in every age and country and cause suffering to people.

And in this too, the Church has a role to play in society. As mentioned in the previous section, it is the church’s role as the body of Christ to reach out to oppressed souls, as well as to criticize and speak out against the injustices of society. The church has played a major role in the American civil rights movement and in improving the status of women in Japan. Jesus calls us to be “the light of the world and the salt of the earth.”

3. Listen to my voice and do not let the wicked be exalted (6-8)

6 O LORD, I say to you, “You are my God.” Hear, O LORD, my cry for mercy.
7 O Sovereign LORD, my strong deliverer, who shields my head in the day of battle–
8 do not grant the wicked their desires, O LORD; do not let their plans succeed, or they will become proud.

This third appeal is made up of two pleas: “Hear my voice” and “Do not let the evil ones have their way, nor let them be exalted.”It can be seen as a summary of the Psalmist’s appeals 1 and 2 that we have just read.
And, it is not an earnest wish in a specific situation like the previous two appeals, but a more fundamental wish. And these are things that often cause us to wonder about our relationship with God.
“Does God really hear my prayers?” and “Does God allow the wicked to prosper and for me to continue to suffer?” There is also a hint of dissatisfaction with God, wondering if my prayers are not being answered, and if God is not going to do anything about the people who have treated me so cruelly.

However, this was not the only way the psalmist felt throughout his life. He has had the experience of God helping him many times and fending off his attackers in various ways. That is why we can say, “O Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer, you have covered my head in the day of battle.” (8)
So why is it that our faith seems to be repeatedly lost? This is because God rules the world in ways we cannot imagine. It is often only afterward that I realize that God was with me at the time and helped me get through the crisis. We expect God to intervene “the way we want it to happen,” but God’s thoughts are not the same as ours.
God certainly listens to our cries and prayers. However, just because we know that God is listening does not mean that we do not need to lament and pray like the psalmist did. Rather, it is important to appeal to God with our honest feelings at that time. This is because it shortens the distance between us and God and helps us to “know God,” as I am going to talk about shortly.

Now let’s move on to the next part.

B. I Know (9-13)

1. We who want to curse (9-11)

9 Let the heads of those who surround me be covered with the trouble their lips have caused.
10 Let burning coals fall upon them; may they be thrown into the fire, into miry pits, never to rise.
11 Let slanderers not be established in the land; may disaster hunt down men of violence.

The psalmist lived in a world long before Jesus, so he does not know Jesus or his words. But we know. Jesus said, “Bless those who curse you and pray for those who mock you.” Paul, who became an apostle of Jesus, introduced these words of Jesus and taught, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.”

And yet we sympathize with the feelings of psalmist to curse in this way? This is a natural emotion and God will not condemn you for it. But the curse doesn’t help. God is not a killer who will kill someone at our request. Cursing can also damage our mental health.

From God’s point of view, we humans are all sinners, without exception. And we contain within us the same cruelty as those who tormented the psalmist. Even if we are following Jesus, if we are not careful, this will always show through. The words of this oppressed psalmist suggest that if we have too much power, we will become as cruel as many of our rulers.

It is essential that we remain firmly connected to the body of Christ, the church, and continue to offer heartfelt worship every day, not just for negative reasons to avoid this happening, but also so that, despite being such people, we can be used in Jesus’ work of “liberation” and actually walk as “the light of the world and the salt of the earth.”

2. Still I Know (12, 13)

12 I know that the LORD secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy.
13 Surely the righteous will praise your name and the upright will live before you.

There is a lot of knowledge in the world that can enrich your life if you learn it. However, no matter how much knowledge one acquires, it will not make one happy. On the contrary, knowledge can become a means in the hands of the strong to oppress the weak.

However, to borrow Jesus’ words, “There is only one thing you really need to know” (Luke 10:42). It is about who Jesus is to us. Who is Jesus to you?

With the psalmist, we know. That it was Jesus who came to this world and lived that way, giving hope to those who despaired. That we are made to live with God by connecting to Jesus, knowing the terrible cruelty that is in us. That the cruelty that torments us will not last forever, but rather that we are eternal beings with God. That by walking with Jesus, we can be a source of hope to people.

This knowledge is the truth we can read in the Bible, not some kind of sensory reassurance. Our emotions easily become agitated and filled with anxiety when we face the ups and downs of life. Worship is an important time prepared by God to prevent us from losing sight of the truth due to anxiety.

Let us offer heartfelt worship this morning and begin our week confident in our knowledge of Jesus.

(Prayer)(Prayer) God, thank you for standing before us as Jesus and teaching and guiding us.

You have revealed who you are and become our ultimate hope.

We trust that you will protect our bodies and minds and enable us to complete our journey to the kingdom of God.

Knowing that you are our hope, please fill us with your Holy Spirit and guide us to walk with strength each day so that we may hold up your light and become a hope for others.

I pray in the name of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Summary

For Discussion

What is your biggest appeal to God right now?
What do you know about Jesus?