Psalm six is a lament poem used in the temple during the services of prayer for the sick.
The leading character is quite ill. He senses his rapidly approaching death, and he pours
out his soul to the Lord in three magnificent strophes. In a summary form, here is what he
says:
May your grace surpass your anger with me, a dying man,
May your kindness save me, a grieving man, 1-3
that I may worship you in the land of the living, 4-7
Thanks be to God, for He has heard my prayers to the shame of
my detractors, 8-10
Lets us briefly look at each statement.
May your grace surpass your anger with me, a dying man. Much has been written about
the grace of God. Most of that witting is worth reading for its value in assisting believers
develop further their relations with the Lord. For our discussion, I want for us to see grace
as the long, loving arm of the Most High reaching out to both the Godly and the unGodly.
To the Godly, God says: “Come closer to me, experience intimate fellowship with me, and
receive more revelation of the mysteries of my existence and expectations.” To the
unGodly, the King of the universe says: “I made you along with everyone else on earth
according to my design and consistent with my image and to live in fellowship with me. But
you have lived away from me. Abandon your life style. Come to me in complete repentance
followed by deeds of change. Experience the same treatment I give to those close to me.
To both, God offers an abundance of peace of mind, not an affliction.
However, the view of God expressed by our poet is one of wrath and rage against sinning
humanity. This was an outlook on life sustained by primitive pagan people. Those early
folks believed that supernatural forces or gods watched to punish them severely with
calamities for their unacceptable conduct. This supernatural action would constitute a
curse that would carry over to future generations. This belief system was assimilated by
Israel and brought into Monotheism. Later the prophets did much to do away with this view
of God. Jeremiah and Ezekiel, for example, had this to say: “Everyone shall die for his own
sin; each man who eats sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge” (Jer. 31:30). And
Ezekiel added: “As I live, says the Lord, this proverb [the old belief, see Jeremiah 31:29]
shall no more be used by you in Israel. Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as
well as the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sins shall die” (18:3-4).
Now, this poem finds the protagonist in a state of confusion. He is gravely ill and does not
know why. His questions are: “Why am I ill?” What purpose does my illness serve? But he
finds no answer to these questions. Instead, he suffers and wastes away while the Lord
remains silent to his quest. Meantime, his continued grieving contributes to his distress.
However, the position of the psalmist differs from that of the old pagans. Mixed with the
ancient belief system is the more recent, mature view of God as the benevolent Creator
and Sustainer of the universe in whom he can trust. And he throws himself to the mercy of
the Lord to rescue him from the bonds of death and deliver him to a complete restoration of
his health.
How is this passage to be understood? An examination of the passage shows two aspects
to be considered. One is biological, hereditary, congenital. Regardless of period of history
when people lived, parents acquiring diseases resulting from sinful lifestyles had high
probabilities of passing on their illnesses to the children. This situation aggravates with the
passing of time and societal development. In today’s permissive societies, countless
children are born every day with diseases transmitted to them by their parents. So, children
suffer for the sins of their parents.
The psychological aspect involves learned behavior. Children are born into a human group
called “the family.” In the family, they develop physically, intellectually, emotionally and
spiritually. Except physically, development occurs mostly through a process of teaching and
learning called “socialization.” Natural or surrogate parents are responsible for
accomplishing this task. Repeated instruction of beliefs, values and norms condition the
new citizens to follow on the footsteps of their parents. Later relations with peers at play
and school further develop the person to conform with the general cultural trends of the
moment.
The good news is that people are endowed by the Creator with the ability to think and
decide independently. Thus, the old pattern may be broken at will, and the children of
parents behaving socially unacceptably could decide to behave acceptably. To be sure
heredity and conditioning play a major role in human development. But while the effects of
heredity may not be changed, those of conditioning can.
May your kindness save me, a grieving man, that I may worship you in the land of the
living. The writer now appeals to God’s benevolent nature. To him, God is a kind and
loving cosmic Father, who can act according to His benevolent nature and return his life to
complete health. It is his desire to continue in full fellowship with God on earth. But in order
to maintain the human-to-divine relationship, the poet must remain alive. His death, on the
other hand, would only come to frustrate his desire.
To be sure, it is wonderful to possess God’s affection and respond to it in kind. If cultivated,
this binding with the Most High intensifies. As it does, the Godly seek to know further the
character of God. Gradually, God’s self-disclosure to believers induces change in their
character to be consistent with God’s. It is a process of character refinement lasting
throughout the lives of believers.
In this development, the worship of God becomes of prime importance. Worship takes two
forms: private and public. Private worship is attained through daily personal devotions.
Believers read selected scripture passages for inspiration, such as favorite psalms. They
spend periods of quiet time in meditation, allowing for thought formation. Believers allow
their souls to elevate to a state of being, where they can experience in themselves the
presence of the Creator. They articulate prayers of thanksgiving in gratitude for blessings
received over and above personal expectations.
By and large, believers are members of congregations that conduct regularly scheduled
public worship service. They participate in these corporate services, many leading in parts
of the program. Believers are mostly called upon to lead the group in prayer.
Both private and public worship help participants develop God-like character traits.
Thanks be to God, for He has heard my prayers to the shame of my detractors. The poet
ends his masterpiece with an affirmation of faith. The poet placed his hope on the
goodness of God and announced his complete certainty that God will restore his health.
His declaration has the additional intention of silencing friends who accused him of being
sick because of his sins.
Application
How many time you and I have been in trying situations, calling on the Lord, despairing
because of the lack of a quick favorable reponse from Him to our call for immediate help?
By saying “many,” we are just joining the rest of the believers of all times. Patience is not
an easy virtue to develop. It takes time through much practice. Of course, it varies
depending on the individual’s capacity to endure.
One thing is certain, the Lord will always be present in the life of every believer, loving and
caring for the person in trouble. Many times, God will be able to rescue while at other times
He will not be able to do it because of reasons not given to believers to understand. Be it
as it may, believers may always rest assured of the loving presence of the Lord in their
lives in good and bad times
Prayer:
Most gracious and benevolent father, assured of your concerned and caring presence in
our lives, we offer thanksgiving to you. Lord, strengthen our confidence in you that we may
live spiritually victorious lives in absolute trust in you. Amen.
Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger,
or discipline me in your wrath.
Be gracious to me, Lord,
for I am languishing;
Lord, heal me, for my bones are shaking with
terror.
My soul also is struck with terror,
while you, Lord--how long?
The Lord has heard my supplication;
the Lord accepts my prayer.
Psalm 6:1, 2, 9.
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