Scripture Focus: Psalm 18.47-49
47 He is the God who avenges me, 
who subdues nations under me, 
48    who saves me from my enemies. 
You exalted me above my foes; 
from a violent man you rescued me. 
49 Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; 
I will sing the praises of your name. 

Reflection: Victory Over Violence
By John Tillman

Psalm 18 is a victory song in which the weak, helped by God, have defeated the strong.

Violence is a complex topic in scripture, made more complex for those who have experienced it in their lives.

I experienced much small-scale violence growing up, either fighting back against my own bullies or intervening with violence to stop others from being bullied. Fights were common in school and not always immediately stopped. I think the idea was that if a fight had a clear victor, the disagreement would be “settled” and not pop up again. This unofficial policy may have worked occasionally but was certainly dangerous and unwise. 

In one memorable fight, I defeated my attacker using techniques learned in the elementary wrestling program. While we both awaited punishment outside the principal’s office, the other boy asked me where I learned “those moves.” He later joined the wrestling team. We never became friends, but we became teammates who practiced and competed together.

Violence is not a solution to disputes or conflicts. It normally escalates rather than de-escalates. It rarely turns combatants into teammates. The violence described in the psalm is not a small-scale schoolyard scuffle. It describes war and death.

Federico Villanueva comments on this victory psalm from the perspective of Filipinos, who have often experienced large-scale violence, including defeat and domination by foreign powers. “It is not easy to identify with the triumphant,” Villanueva says. However, “The vision of one who is powerful but at the same time willing to support the weak touches our hearts like no other.”

As someone who experienced and participated in violence, I’m shocked at the glorification of violent words and actions in our culture and among Christians. Those who would welcome a fight or a war rarely have deep experience with either. Those who threaten or enthusiastically support violence in the name of Jesus or “Christian” politics understand neither Jesus nor politics.

Victory psalms are not intended to glorify violence and war. They glorify the God who saves his people from both. Violence is sometimes thrust upon us in this world. In the next few years, we may all be touched by it. Let not violence deter us from being like Jesus. We must never shirk from standing between the wolf and the sheep, between the strong and the weak.

May God grant us victory over violence and from the temptation to glory in it.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. — Matthew 5.6

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Job 34 (Listen 3:26)
Psalm 18 (Listen 5:47)

Read more about Responding to Political Violence
For Christians to fail to condemn, or worse, to directly endorse this type of violence is a great moral and theological failing.

Read more about How Long?
Christ’s rule is not oppressive. Neither should ours be. His burden and yoke are easy and light. So should ours be.

Scripture Focus: Psalm 13
1 How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? 
How long will you hide your face from me? 
2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts 
and day after day have sorrow in my heart? 
How long will my enemy triumph over me? 
3 Look on me and answer, Lord my God. 
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, 
4 and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” 
and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 
5 But I trust in your unfailing love; 
my heart rejoices in your salvation. 
6 I will sing the Lord’s praise, 
for he has been good to me. 

Reflection: How Long?
By John Tillman

Navigation is more than directions. It accounts for distance, speed, hazards on the journey, and the need to stop for fuel, food, or rest. This was true for Paul’s gospel-spreading voyages. It is also true for shorter trips such as commuting to work or driving across town for a meeting.

The navigation software on my phone continuously calculates my estimated time of arrival. If a wreck occurs ahead of me, it adds time for the slowdown. When I cannot resist “beating” the ETA by driving faster than expected, it adjusts accordingly. But without a connection, the software cannot adjust. I’m off the map.

Many psalms celebrate faith’s journey when it goes smoothly and God seems so close. Psalms of lament come from moments when faith’s journey slides off the map. Our ETA becomes a question mark. The turn-by-turn directions fail. Milestones disappear. Hazards loom larger. We no longer feel connected to God. We do not know how long the journey is or if we will ever arrive. Ancient mapmakers wrote warnings on the edges and unmarked areas of maps. “Here there be monsters.”

“How long?” is repeated often in scripture. It recognizes that something needs to be corrected—that there are monsters to confront.

These monsters are real. How long will we suffer wrongs that are not righted? How long will the wicked prosper off the backs of the poor? How long will justice be delayed and denied? How long will victims be less important than leaders and institutions? How long will we have to blow a whistle before help arrives?

The psalmist’s thoughts and heart race out of control, filled with sorrow. We may wrestle with the same dark feelings and thoughts. “How long?”

Like the psalmist, we can question openly and honestly. We need not hide our feelings from God. Also, like the psalmist, we can reorient by remembering God and his goodness.

Reorient means turning our map back to the correct position to represent the world properly. “How long?” recognizes a delay, but from another perspective, “How long?” recognizes a destination. There is an end. Wrongs will be righted. Tears will be dried. Monsters will be crushed.

Don’t be ashamed to cry out, asking, “How long?” It is a statement of both struggle and victory. It is a prayer that will be answered. “How long, O Lord?”

Divine Hours Prayer: The Request for Presence
Look upon your covenant; the dark places of the earth are haunts of violence. — Psalm 74.19

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

​Today’s Readings
Job 31 (Listen 4:16)
Psalm 13-14 (Listen 1:45)

Read more about Convicted by Job’s Righteousness
We confess, Lord, we are not like Job. (Job 31.16-23)
We have seen those perishing due to lack of bread, lack of clothing, lack of freedom, lack of shelter, and said, “It is their own fault.”

Read The Bible With Us
Our Bible reading plan is designed to be more like a walk in a garden than a test of endurance. Walk with us at a sustainable, two-year pace.

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Scripture Focus: Psalm 9.7-14
7 The Lord reigns forever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
8 He rules the world in righteousness
and judges the peoples with equity.
9 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
10 Those who know your name trust in you,
for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.
11 Sing the praises of the Lord, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.
12 For he who avenges blood remembers;
he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.
13 Lord, see how my enemies persecute me!
Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,
14 that I may declare your praises
in the gates of Daughter Zion,
and there rejoice in your salvation. 

Psalm 10.1-7
1 Why, Lord, do you stand far off? 
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? 
2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, 
who are caught in the schemes he devises. 
3 He boasts about the cravings of his heart; 
he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. 
4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; 
in all his thoughts there is no room for God. 
5 His ways are always prosperous; 
your laws are rejected by him; 
he sneers at all his enemies. 
6 He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.” 
He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.” 
7 His mouth is full of lies and threats; 
trouble and evil are under his tongue. 

Reflection: The Righteous Judge — A Guided Prayer
By John Tillman

Psalm nine and ten may originally have been one psalm. Today we combine them in a prayer to God, the only righteous judge and the only one who dispenses justice without failing. May he hear the cries of all victims. May he bring every wrong-doing to light. May those who seek to cover their secrets have their plans exposed by his light and truth.

Our Righteous Judge
May our highest, most prized right, be to stand before you.

For you have upheld my right and my cause,
  sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.

May we learn from you, true judgment.
Make us a part of bringing your kingdom, your justice and righteousness on earth.
And this is your justice on earth—to be a refuge and stronghold for the weak and troubled.

He rules the world in righteousness
  and judges the peoples with equity.
The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
  a stronghold in times of trouble…
  he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted…
Arise, Lord, do not let mortals triumph;
  let the nations be judged in your presence.

The world hates us, because it first hated you, Lord.
Trouble comes to us in different ways and in different levels of severity, in every corner of this world, God.

Why, Lord, do you stand far off?
  Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak,
  who are caught in the schemes he devises.
He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.”
  He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”
His mouth is full of lies and threats;
  trouble and evil are under his tongue.

In times of trouble, Lord, we look to you.
Do not abandon us to the schemes of the wicked.

Break the arm of the wicked man;
  call the evildoer to account for his wickedness
  that would not otherwise be found out.

You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;
  you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
  so that mere earthly mortals
  will never again strike terror.

We commit ourselves to you, O Lord.
See our trouble. Hear our cry. Take our grief.
Give us courage to shake the world with your love.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. — 2 Corinthians 4.6

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

​Today’s Readings
Job 28 (Listen 2:44)
Psalm 9 (Listen 2:21)

This Weekend’s Readings
Job 29 (Listen 2:26) Psalm 10 (Listen 2:13)
Job 30 (Listen 3:14) Psalm 11-12 (Listen 1:59)

Read more about Pause To Read
In today’s new podcast episode, Urban Legends and Good Shepherds, we address a myth that fuels spiritual abuse.

Read more about Supporting Our Work
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Scripture Focus: Psalm 2
1 Why do the nations conspire
and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break their chains
and throw off their shackles.”
4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
5 He rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
6 “I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:
He said to me, “You are my son;
today I have become your father.
8 Ask me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.
9 You will break them with a rod of iron;
you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear
and celebrate his rule with trembling.
12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry
and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him. 

Reflection: Kiss the Son
By John Tillman

Psalm 2 has layered meanings about both earthly politics and spiritual realities.

One layer is a coronation song about a newly installed king. At times of transition, enemies inside or outside the kingdom tested or threatened new rulers. We see this in scripture in many places, including the transition from David to Solomon and from Solomon to Rehoboam. When read this way, the psalm seems to say, Don’t test me. God’s on my side. But it’s not that simple.

God is on the side of order and peace rather than insurrection or war but that does not mean he supports every human ruler. If that were true, the psalm wouldn’t shift to dire warnings for human kings. Parts of the psalm probably were originally intended as a warning against rebellion and disorder but other parts don’t fit for a human ruler and never did.

If you continue to read the rest of the psalm from this human viewpoint, it doesn’t line up with reality. God never promised David or any king they would rule the world. These parts of the psalm have transitioned from talking about a current human king on Jerusalem’s throne to a future ruler on a heavenly throne. It is less about a king now than the righteous king to come. 

As we read, we know Jesus has come. He is seated at God’s right hand and we are united with him through the Holy Spirit.

We are adopted sons and daughters of God. We are commanded to ask our Father that his will would be done on Earth as in Heaven. We pray for the salvation of the nations and weep over those broken by rebellion. As co-heirs with Christ, we are warned to serve with fear and trembling and to take refuge in him. These blessings and warnings are not just for kings of the past or politicians of the present. They are for us, the regents and ambassadors of the kingdom of God.

Heed these warnings and seek these blessings not with the hubris of kings or the violence of empires but with the humility of the servant king on the donkey and the love of the slain yet living Lamb of God.

Christ’s rule is not oppressive. Neither should ours be. His burden and yoke are easy and light. So should ours be. Come close, kiss the son, and become like him.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Call to Prayer
Let my mouth be full of your praise and your glory all the day long. — Psalm 71.8

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Today’s Readings
Job 23 (Listen 1:43)
Psalm 1-2 (Listen 2:05)

Read more about The King We Want
I’ve sent a king, God says
He rode in on a donkey
My servants prophesied him
You rebels crucified him

Read more about Pause To Read
Did you catch Friday’s podcast episode, Defining Moment? We pray it encourages anyone who feels labeled by a mistake. Share it with a friend who feels defined by a failure.