Bible Book: Psalms
Chapter: 140
Verse: 1
Verse (to): 14
This is an important Scripture that needs to be read, meditated on and preached about– especially in this time of HIV and AIDS.
I can imagine that someone who is living with HIV – and is stigmatised because of this – will be able to identify with the experiences expressed in Psalm 140.
What struck me when I read this lamentation is that the person who is praying here repeatedly uses the name “Jahweh” when he calls upon the Lord (verses 1, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 12). This is God’s Covenant Name – the Name that bears witness to his faithful love. The Name that God revealed to Moses when the Israelites, as oppressed slaves, had called upon God for deliverance. Compare Exodus 3:7-15 (this is next Sunday’s text!).
The Psalm itself explains this Name in verse 12: “I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy.”
So this prayer of lament contains hope: in spite of what people say and do – the Lord is the God of the poor, the needy and other vulnerable people.
Author: N du Toit (Ds)
Language: English