Saturday 23 June 2012

Background

Psalm 74 calls on both God and the community of faith to do thepainful work of remembering in order to recover a relationship ofcare and praise.

Although praise is central to this psalm, it is in fact a lamentor song of complaint. This is unsurprising, since there are morelaments than any other type of psalm.

The psalm recalls a catastrophic event in Israel's history, thedestruction of the first temple in 586 BC by the Babylonians whotook the leaders of Israel into exile (2 Kings24-25). This was not simply the loss of a beautiful building,but represented a separation from God, since the temple wasunderstood to be the place of encounter with God. And yet, thepsalm claims God is still present, even if at a distance. In someways this is an important reminder that God is not bound byinstitutional religion. Indeed, elsewhere there is some ambivalencetowards the temple, built using forced labour during the reign ofSolomon (1 Kings 5:13-14).

Walter Brueggemann describes this psalm as one of disorientation,revealing a tension between what should be and what is. It asks howGod's lack of action can be explained in light of all that is knownof God.

The lament is interrupted by a hymn (verses 12-17) recalling God'sawesome power over the sea and the desert, the mythical forces ofchaos in the ancient Near East imagination; and at the same timealluding to God's delivery of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt,through the Sea of Reeds (Exodus14) and the desert wilderness, into the land of Canaan. Theremembrance of God's saving acts places further pressure on God toact and what follows is a chain of petitions demanding specificactions (verses 18-23).

Unusually for a lament, Psalm 74 does not end with praise. Thepressure on God is not lessened. If praise is the purpose of humanexistence, then it is up to God to ensure that, rather than mockeryreverberating around the temple ruins, the praise of the poor andrighteous is heard once more.

To Ponder

When faced with sorrow or injustice, how far doescomplaining or lamenting help?

In what buildings or places do you find it easierto encounter God? Why?