How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light do we see light.
Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
and your righteousness to the upright of heart!
Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,
nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
There the evildoers lie fallen;
they are thrust down, unable to rise.
Comment: In the first half of Psalm 36 yesterday it started with the rottenness of the evil person and then swung onto the faithfulness of the steadfast caring God. Today we see things in reverse but with a subtle difference. It starts out with the richness and fullness of the life of the person lived in the light of the steadfast and faithful loving God. It ends with David’s shout of victory as he stands over his enemy and you can almost see him thrusting a spear into his fallen foe in triumph – pretty gory stuff – but then that is what war is about. Fighting on the ‘good side’ certainly doesn’t shield us from the nastiness of evil. There is no need to look to war – just ask the people working in an emergency department at the hospital or a social worker! They see many results of evil acting out destructively.
Prayer: Help me, living with all the blessings You shower upon me, to be prepared to be involved in the fight against evil.
PS A Blessed Christmas to my Ethiopian friends and those with Orthodox Church roots.
As I read it! 