Psalm 7
This was the biggest play of the game, of the year, fourth and three with less than a minute to go. He read the pass perfectly. He met the ball at the exact same time as the receiver. The ball tumbled to the ground. He immediately began celebrating, waving her arms, “Incomplete!” But instead of cheering, his home crowd groaned and booed. The yellow flag had been thrown at his feet. When the officials called his number, he couldn’t believe it. “Pass interference? You have got to be kidding me (or something like that)!” He yelled. First down. In field goal range! It won’t matter if announcers all proclaim that the play looked clean. He will take small comfort from the talking heads discussing the play Monday morning. The bad call cost his team the game. That call ended their year. The other team advanced; he was heading home. The play is not reviewable; he would live with the consequences of their accusation for the rest of his life.
No one enjoys being punished. No one likes being treated viciously. Everyone hates being treated unfairly. We can tolerate when we get what we deserve. We can understand when someone we have wronged then returns the favor. Although unpleasant, we can even feel like this is good. It feels like justice. Many want to believe in karma for this reason. We want there to be balance in the universe.
But when we don’t deserve it, when we have done nothing to deserve mistreatment, when someone singles us out unjustly, we get frustrated, despondent. When we are labeled as a certain kind of person, a bad kind of person, we get defensive. “You don’t know me,” we want to scream. When you are the target of random cruelty, bullying, that hurts you more deeply than reason can explain. Self-doubt afflicts us. “What if she is right about me?” Guilt and shame can wreak havoc on even the innocent heart. Fear grows, once someone is labeled as an undesirable person, once you are determined to be worthy of persecution, then others can justify treating however they want. This is why societal labels and stereotypes are so dangerous. If someone is determined to be a thug, a bigot, evil and corrupt, or bad for society, then any action to stop or punish that person can be justified.
David wrote this Psalm after a specific event in his life. Unfortunately, the details of this event aren’t revealed except the heading this prayer. However, throughout his life, David was no stranger to unfair treatment. Saul and his allies often accused him without cause. They labeled him an enemy and pursued him from town to town, even out into the wilderness. Whenever David’s life was thrown into turmoil, Saul’s allies were always there to pile more trouble upon him, but David had always been faithful to Saul. David loved Saul’s son, Jonathan as a man loves his own soul. What had he ever done to deserve their cruelty?
If David could have thrown the red challenge flag, he would have. He was certain a review would show he hadn’t committed a foul. But life doesn’t come with instant replay. People are often less impartial and worse judges than the blindest referee.
Therefore, David placed his hope in the Lord. David looked to God for justice. David had confidence in his judgement. Stand up, O Lord, in your anger. Rise up against the fury of my foes. Awake for me. You have commanded justice…Acquit me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, according to the integrity that is in me…you search minds and hearts, O righteous God.
God is not blind like your average referee. God is not influenced by the situation, swayed by the moment. God does not check public opinion or get swept up with the crowd. God never has bias. He never prejudges. He sees all. He knows all. Everything he has spoken is good and true. He will never prosecute the innocent. He will never hold anyone accountable for sins they have not committed. He will never judge you on the basis of anyone else’s accusation. God’s righteous judgment is perfect.
Believers like David can trust even more than this. Our God forgives sins. Our God, in Christ, fulfills all righteousness. God justifies, he declares those who trust in him and his promises to be righteous. Not only will your God not punish you for things you did not do, he, in Christ has forgiven you for what you did. David and all believers like him trust God to be their shield and to act in justice on his behalf. All our righteousness comes from him.
When it seems like others, like life, are treating you unfairly, reflect on Psalm 7. When you feel like you can’t win, turn to your God. His justice will never fail. Those who perpetuate evil will not prosper. In Christ, your victory is already secure and no one can take it away. The replay won’t show your misdeeds. The replay will show Jesus’ love. I will thank the Lord because of his righteousness.
IHG