{"id":4263,"date":"2023-10-22T19:38:22","date_gmt":"2023-10-22T18:38:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/?p=4263"},"modified":"2023-10-22T19:38:22","modified_gmt":"2023-10-22T18:38:22","slug":"a-psalm-a-day-psalm-62","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/a-psalm-a-day-psalm-62\/","title":{"rendered":"A Psalm a Day: Psalm 62"},"content":{"rendered":"
Throughout September 2022, I managed to read and reflect \u2013 briefly \u2013 on a Psalm each day. For December 2022, attempted to pick up the discipline. I got part-way through that month, and so after a long hiatus, am determined to get going. I\u2019ll read the Psalm, pray, and then ponder a few questions:<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll close the post with a simple prayer, trying to draw the themes together.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
On the 22nd of October 2023, here’s Psalm 62:<\/p>\n
1\u00a0<\/sup>Truly my soul finds rest\u00a0in God;<\/span> 3\u00a0<\/sup>How long will you assault me?<\/span> 5\u00a0<\/sup>Yes, my soul, find rest in God;<\/span> 9\u00a0<\/sup>Surely the lowborn\u00a0are but a breath,<\/span> 11\u00a0<\/sup>One thing God has spoken,<\/span> What is this Psalm about?<\/strong><\/p>\n This is a powerful Psalm of personal trust in God. Not disconnected from difficult circumstances (which are hinted at firmly!) or detached from the challenges of the world, Psalm 61 is a challenging reminder of what it could look like to place one’s trust in God, regardless of what is going on. Truth brackets the Psalm – two occurrences of ‘truly’ in first verse, and an intriguing instance of God’s speech and God’s people hearing in verses 11 and 12.<\/p>\n What does this Psalm teach about God?<\/strong><\/p>\n Verses 1 and 2 use metaphorical language to describe God’s strength, the salvation that He offers, and his unshakeable nature – perhaps this is where true rest is found, in the truth about who God is. Verse 6 repeats these themes, whilst verse 5 adds the idea of God providing hope. Verse 8 adds a relational dynamic – God invites people to pour out our hearts to Him. Verse 11 contains two truths: that God speaks, and that power belongs to God. Verse 12 continues – God has\/is ‘unfailing love’, and a fair judge and arbiter.<\/p>\n How does this Psalm connect to God\u2019s people today?<\/strong><\/p>\n Psalm 62 offers a deeply encouraging challenge – regardless of circumstance, will we repeat truth about and to God, because ‘Power belongs to’ Him, and with Him, ‘Lord, is unfailing love’? It is a challenge that truth triumphs over circumstance – the highborn and lowborn (Which perhaps covers everyone!) of verse 9 and the enemies of verses 3 and 4 – are ultimately ‘weighed on a balance’ that is held and decided by God. There are strong themes of justice in this Psalm – a justice which can sometimes seem far away, but is rooted in God’s very being.<\/p>\n A prayer drawn from Psalm 62<\/strong><\/p>\n Truly my soul finds rest in God; <\/span>my salvation comes from him. Tr<\/span><\/span>uly he is my rock and my salvation; <\/span>he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. Lord, help me to know and live in this truth that is spoken. Let my heart hear it, every day of my life. Amen.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Throughout September 2022, I managed to read and reflect \u2013 briefly \u2013 on a Psalm each day. For December 2022, attempted to pick up the discipline. I got part-way through that month, and so after a long hiatus, am determined … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4264,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"kt_blocks_editor_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[141,554,223,288,606,49,453],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4263"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4263"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4263\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4265,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4263\/revisions\/4265"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4264"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomascreedy.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>my salvation comes from him.<\/span><\/span>
\n2\u00a0<\/sup>Truly he is my rock\u00a0and my salvation;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>he is my fortress,\u00a0I will never be shaken.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Would all of you throw me down\u2014<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>this leaning wall,\u00a0this tottering fence?<\/span><\/span>
\n4\u00a0<\/sup>Surely they intend to topple me<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>from my lofty place;<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>they take delight in lies.<\/span><\/span>
\nWith their mouths they bless,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>but in their hearts they curse.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>my hope comes from him.<\/span><\/span>
\n6\u00a0<\/sup>Truly he is my rock and my salvation;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.<\/span><\/span>
\n7\u00a0<\/sup>My salvation and my honor depend on God;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>he is my mighty rock, my refuge.<\/span><\/span>
\n8\u00a0<\/sup>Trust in him at all times, you people;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>pour out your hearts to him,<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>for God is our refuge.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>the highborn are but a lie.<\/span><\/span>
\nIf weighed on a balance,\u00a0they are nothing;<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>together they are only a breath.<\/span><\/span>
\n10\u00a0<\/sup>Do not trust in extortion<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>or put vain hope in stolen goods;<\/span><\/span>
\nthough your riches increase,<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>do not set your heart on them.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>two things I have heard:<\/span><\/span>
\n\u201cPower belongs to you, God,<\/span>
\n12\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>and with you, Lord, is unfailing love\u201d;<\/span><\/span>
\nand, \u201cYou reward everyone<\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>according to what they have done.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n