Us and Them
December 2
Read Psalm 79:10-13
Pray: Almighty God, break down any remnant of us and them thinking in my heart. Help me to see your children however they think, look, or feel. Amen.
Hear:
One of the first lessons I remember being taught was that we did not like the New York Yankees. I must admit, I myself taught my daughter that we did not like the New York Yankees… in the delivery room. It is a deeply ingrained thought that I have talked about before. It is that kind of tribalism that can make the world’s most boring sport (I said what I said) interesting.
Our passage today shows what happens when rivalry turns to violence. Yes, of course, it is hard to read the writer of the Psalmist asking for violence to be done against another people group. It is strange to read, “hit them where it hurts,” from the same book that brought you such great hits as “do not be overcome by evil,” and “do unto others….”
And yet I am asking you to read this passage for another viewpoint— the Psalmist is decrying the “nations,” to such an extent that they begin to try to manipulate God. Did you notice that in your first reading? Because I know that I did not at first. The Psalmist is explaining to God (oof) that it is in God’s interest (oof again) to destroy a people who don’t really like God in the first place (oof intensifies). How far do we need to be from God to think that we can “lawyer,” God into obedience to our own will?
Am I saying that this passage doesn’t belong in the Bible because is not inspired by God? Far from it—I think this passage is so vital because it offers us a mirror into how off we can sometimes be. We develop our theologies around systems and structures that put people on the margins and then we take God and force God to look like that theology.
When we do this, we are missing the point. God loves the people you hate. It is time for us to come clean and see the ways we have tried to manipulate God into feeling anything other than a deep love for God’s creation.
Respond:
Who do I think needs to get hit “where it hurts?”