Psalm 5 - Contrasts (and unsayableness)
I wish I could post the whole of Psalm 5 from Fischer’s version but I saw something in how he wrote it that I had not seen in this Psalm before. It is a series of contrasts between the one trying to follow God’s way and the “heedless” as Fischer translates it (rather than “the wicked” or “evil”).
Basically it works out like this:
1-3 - A call to God to listen
4-6 - A statement about the heedless not following God’s way
7-8 - A statement about practice of faith
9-10 - Results of the heedless not following God
11-12 - The joy of being on the way of God
Now, when I first read Fischer’s version, I was drawn to three parts...
At daybreak hear my voice
When I order my words toward you
And wait (verse 3)But as for me-
Bathed in your encircling kindness I enter your house
Bow myself down before your presence
In awe and wonder (verses 7-8)Will exalt in you all who love your unsayableness (verse 11)
What I hear in these is a willingness to enter into mystery and wonder. I lift my voice and order my words toward God at daybreak...and wait. I bow myself down before your presence in awe and wonder. All who love your (and I love this word) unsayableness. Part of what I’m sharing on in worship on Sunday is from Exodus 3 where the unsayable name of God is first given to Moses.
This entry into mystery stands in contrast to the heedless who are described as being unaware of or actively choosing to go against the ways of God. For the heedless, the Psalmist doesn’t describe their path leading to anything other than emptyness. Yet the Psalmist (in Fischer’s words) shares that the heed-ing (?) will experience the divine “circling around them like a shield.”
So in recognition of these contrasts, a glimpse into a beautiful contrast that I saw on yet another chilly morning.
Grace, Peace, Love, and Joy,
Ed
PS - I am not sure she’s going to be posted on their social media feeds but Scout got her official WeRateDogs rating this morning!
