Psalm 51

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and put a new and right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
and do not take your holy spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and sustain in me a willing spirit.

The psalmist asks for a clean, new, right, holy, and willing spirit.

Morally, physically, spiritually pure.

Prepared, secure, stable and ready for challenge.

Separate, unique, particular, sacred, and authentic.

Generous, noble, beautiful, and kind.

Psalm 51

Psalm 48

We ponder your steadfast love, O God,
in the midst of your temple.
Your name, O God, like your praise,
reaches to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with victory.

What is translated as victory is צֶ֫דֶק or tsedeq

The meaning is usually rendered as righteousness or justice.

The word appears in the Bible 119 times. This is the only translation as victory.

I'm not sure it is the best translation, but it is meaningful.

Righteousness, rightness, justice, honoring the individual are the sources of victory.

Psalm 48

Psalm 19

The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear,
enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring for ever;
the ordinances of the Lord are true
and righteous altogether.

The law is torah: instruction, direction.

Torah emerges from yarah, which is to shoot, throw, cast or pour.

That Which Exists has poured me into this time, space, and condition.

I am completed here, plaster replaced by bronze.

I am fulfilled, consistent with God's intention.

Psalm 19

Psalm 63

O God, you are my God, I seek you,
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

The victim of sunstroke dehydrates without noticing.

Death or at least unconsciousness can come suddenly.

I am thirsty. I notice I am thirsty.

I know where there is water to quench my thirst.

Will I choose to go?

Psalm 63

Psalm 30

You have turned my mourning into dancing;
you have taken off my sackcloth
and clothed me with joy...

There is good cause to mourn.

Illness, anger, oppression, and evil are real.

They deserve our attention and action.

But they are not the whole reality.

For most of us, most of the time, they are not even the immediate reality.

The sun rises, new opportunities emerge, challenges arise.

We are invited to share with God in the co-creation of the day.

We are invited to dance with God to the music of the universe.

Psalm 30

Psalm 95

O come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!

The Hebrew for joyful noise is יריעוor ruwa.

It is a word that depends on context.

Ruwa can also mean to shout in alarm.

It can even mean to shout in distress.

Be attentive to context, especially to cause for joy.

Psalm 37

Trust in the Lord, and do good;
so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will make your vindication shine like the light,
and the justice of your cause like the noonday.
Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
over those who carry out evil devices.

וְהִתְעַנַּג עַל-יְהוָה

Delight in That Which Exists.

Be happy, merry, ecstatic with the exquisite.

Take pleasure in the delectable, delicious diversity of life.

Allow God to draw forth what is delightful in you.

All of God's creation is full of light.

Psalm 37

Psalm 130

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
more than those who watch for the morning,
more than those who watch for the morning.
O Israel, hope in the Lord!
For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
and with him is great power to redeem.

I wait but I also watch, expect, and hope.

I bind together experience to understand the unfolding of That Which Exists.

That Which Exists, ultimate reality, intimate experience, all of nature, all that is sensible: each morning I arise and welcome another day in Your company.

In each day's struggle learning to discern Reality's revelation.

Opening myself to the revealing of God and the receiving of Love.

Psalm 130

Psalm 36

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light.

We need refuge and God provides.

We need sustenance and are given abundance.

We need water and are given the finest wine.

Yet we are so seldom satisfied.

Cultivate in us, O God, an attitude of thankfulness that we may take delight in all that we have received.

Psalm 36

Psalm 25

Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth, and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all day long.

The Hebrew translated as way is a road on which we walk toward a specific destination.

The Hebrew for path means the experience of traveling with others.

The psalmist asks to know both aspects of God's intention.

While I do not want to entirely lose the way;

I am in greater need of knowing the path.

Psalm 25

Psalm 150

Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!

To praise is to shine, to flash forth light, as when the sun strikes a mirror.

Everything that breathes is to praise the Lord, reflect the Lord.

We are to reflect reality, the way of God.

As God is creative, we are to be creative.

As God is just, we are to be just.

As God is righteous, we are to be righteous.

Praising God in all we say and do.


Psalm 150

Psalm 46

God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.

The Hebrew translated above as "present" is מָצָא or matsa'.

I have always read this as a temporal quality. It is not.

It is a verb meaning to find, detect, discover, learn...

In times of trouble God is a source of discernment and creation.

God's strength is ready to help us find a solution.

Psalm 46

Psalm 112

They rise in the darkness as a light for the upright;
they are gracious, merciful, and righteous.
It is well with those who deal generously and lend,
who conduct their affairs with justice.
For the righteous will never be moved;
they will be remembered for ever.
They are not afraid of evil tidings;
their hearts are firm, secure in the Lord.
Their hearts are steady, they will not be afraid;
in the end they will look in triumph on their foes.
They have distributed freely, they have given to the poor;
their righteousness endures for ever;
their horn is exalted in honour.

Who are the righteous?

Those who are generous.

Those who consistently honor others.

Those who give to the poor.

Those fulfilled in service to others.

Psalm 112

Psalm 72

Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to a king’s son.
May he judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice.
May the mountains yield prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness.
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the needy,
and crush the oppressor...
He has pity on the weak and the needy,
and saves the lives of the needy.
From oppression and violence he redeems their life;
and precious is their blood in his sight.

Scripture is full of concern for the poor, needy, weak, and oppressed.

These are of particular concern to God.

Each of us, king or not, are to share this concern.

We are to do what we can to create a just and righteous society.

We are to do what we can to deliver the needy and crush the oppressor.

Psalm 72

Psalm 85

Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet;
righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
and righteousness will look down from the sky.
The Lord will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.
Righteousness will go before him,
and will make a path for his steps.

This is promise, assurance, and action.

Each day, every moment this is happening.

That Which Exists is giving what is good, our land is yielding its increase.

The way is already made, it beckons to take us.

To begin, to walk, to choose is up to us.

Psalm 85

Psalm 97

The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.
Fire goes before him,
and consumes his adversaries on every side.
His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
before the Lord of all the earth.

To better understand God we consider God's creation.

We look to the power of nature, and typically turn to the most powerful forces in nature.

If we also understand Jesus to be God fully revealed in natural form, what then?

We might look in the mirror: there is the vulnerability and possibility of God.

In the life of Jesus we see God working through our pain with a very quiet power.

Psalm 97

Psalm 119

It is good for me that I was humbled,
so that I might learn your statutes.

What is rendered above as "humbled" is more commonly translated as afflicted.

The implication is to be bothered by some chronic condition, not in pain but preoccupied.

I have not achieved great things. In many ways I have lived on the edge of disaster. There is no reason to be self-satisfied.

Failure, weakness, and worry have brought me closer to God.

I would not mind taking leave of my sponsors, but I give thanks for their service.

Psalm 119

Psalm 19

Day to day pours forth speech,
and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words;
their voice is not heard;
yet their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.

Reality unfolds.

The universe yields its mystery.

If we listen, we learn.

If we notice, we see.

With knowledge we give thanks and praise.

Psalm 19

Psalm 90

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands—
O prosper the work of our hands!

I have a strong tendency to focus on "prosper the work of our hands."

But this is an outcome of being satisfied with God's steadfast love.

I am the beneficiary of this love, but I am not always - even often - satisfied.

I am greedy, not for the care of a lover, but for the attentions of a sugar daddy.

You are generous and loving dear God, help me to give thanks and be satisfied.

Psalm 90

Psalm 91

Because you have made the Lord your refuge,
the Most High your dwelling-place,
no evil shall befall you,
no scourge come near your tent.

Sorrow, pain,and loss is likely.

But not evil: You will not be betrayed.

But not scourge: Your core will continue intact.

Because you abide with That Which Exists.

Because your essential identity is bound to God.

Psalm 91

Psalm 86

Teach me your way, O Lord,
that I may walk in your truth;
give me an undivided heart to revere your name.

Shoot me in the direction of Ultimate Reality.

Cause me to continue toward Truth.

Fulfill me as a vector between this ephemera and your eternity.

Psalm 86

Psalm 81

But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel would not submit to me.
So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to follow their own counsels.
O that my people would listen to me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!

Linguists have found that even when we are trying to listen, we only hear about 70 percent of the meaning.

When we are distracted by almost anything the percentage drops quickly.

Most hours of most days I am not listening for God. Much may be offered, but I miss it.

In psalm 82, also assigned for today, it is written:

I say, ‘You are gods,
children of the Most High, all of you;
nevertheless, you shall die like mortals,
and fall like any prince.’

We do not, however, choose to listen to God or act as children of God or live the immortal life God intended.

Psalm 81

Psalm 84

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than live in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
he bestows favour and honour.
No good thing does the Lord withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
happy is everyone who trusts in you.

Blessed, happy, progressing, advancing, going straight ahead is everyone who has confidence in, commits to, trusts in That Which Exists: the reality of the unfolding universe.

Wickedness is the self-interested warping of reality.

We are each doorkeepers of reality, each of us are responsible for looking, listening, thinking, discerning, choosing and acting to advance what is real, what is most coherent with God's intent.

Psalm 84

Psalm 77

In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord;
in the night my hand is stretched out without wearying;
my soul refuses to be comforted.

Despite all the blessings I have been given, I continue to worry and fret.

My soul refuses to be comforted.

The Hebrew for this comfort is נָחַם or nacham.

This means to be comforted, consoled, to have compassion.

It also means to regret or repent. Perhaps comfort depends on repentance.

Psalm 77

Psalm 34

Come, O children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
Which of you desires life,
and covets many days to enjoy good?
Keep your tongue from evil,
and your lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil, and do good;
seek peace, and pursue it.

Do not say things that separate, divide, or break.

Do not do things that separate, divide, or break.

Bring together, heal, and make whole.

Psalm 34

Psalm 75

For not from the east or from the west
and not from the wilderness comes lifting up;
but it is God who executes judgement,
putting down one and lifting up another.
For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup
with foaming wine, well mixed;
he will pour a draught from it,
and all the wicked of the earth
shall drain it down to the dregs.
But I will rejoice for ever;
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.

Does the psalmist drink of the foaming wine?

Do the exalted drink of the foaming wine?

Do I?

The cup is offered to all.

The wicked drain it quickly and it is gone.

May I savor it slowly, in conversation and thanks.

Psalm 75

Psalm 73

Truly God is good to the upright,
to those who are pure in heart.
But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
my steps had nearly slipped.
For I was envious of the arrogant;
I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

I am not pure in heart.

I stumble and slip.

I envy the arrogant.

Gracious God forgive me and help me.

May I walk with a sure foot your path.

Psalm 73

Psalm 42

Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my help and my God.

In most of today's psalms the perceived source of trouble is God's neglect.

But God is God, reality is reality.

How we respond is our choice.

We are to watch for the good and offer thanks.

There are terribly tough days, but in each day also abides a miracle.

Psalm 42

Psalm 119

I am yours; save me,
for I have sought your precepts.
The wicked lie in wait to destroy me,
but I consider your decrees.
I have seen a limit to all perfection,
but your commandment is exceedingly broad.

I have sought your precepts: inquire, search, consult.

I consider your decrees: discern, understand, regard.

Your teaching unfolds, widens, grows large.

Psalm 119