Psalm 129
Though we will face opposition, God has broken the power of the enemy and will one day end all evil.
I. The Reality of Evil (129:1-3)
The history of God’s people (whether Israel or the Church) has always been marked by opposition, persecution, and affliction. The affliction here is described in three ways:
It was intense (“greatly… greatly”)
It was persistent (“from my youth”)
It was thorough (“they made long their furrows”)
The exact identity of the oppressors is unclear, but the “wicked” in this passage can be applied to all that stands against God, his agenda, and his people. Martin Luther described 3 categories of opposition:
The World (cf. Jn. 15:18-19)
The Flesh (cf. Rom. 8:5-8)
The Devil (cf. Eph. 6:12) “There is no busier plowman in all the world than the devil: whoever makes short furrows, he does not.” ~ Hugh Latimer
All of this speaks to the very real existence of evil. It is not an abstract thing; evil is all around us. There are 2 implications of this:
1. We should not be surprised by evil, opposition, and affliction. Are your expectations properly aligned?
2. We should feel some level of “friction” and conflict with the world. Have you felt this friction or have you settled into the way of the world?
II. The Limits of Evil (129:2b, 4)
The good news of the gospel is wrapped up in the word “yet” in verse 2: “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth, yet they have not prevailed against me.” The story of God’s people is that they have been knocked down, but never knocked out.
The reason why the enemies have not ultimately prevailed is because the Lord “has cut the cords of the wicked.” The imagery is of God breaking the cords that would have connected the animals to the plow that was afflicting his people (129:3).
This is how God has always worked toward his people; he continually “cuts the cords” of all bondage, persecution, and oppression, setting the stage for the greatest redemption in Jesus Christ. “The death & resurrection of Jesus is the great cord-severing ‘yet’ of redemptive history.” ~ Rhett Dodson
The reason why God severs the cords of oppression is because he is “righteous.” The Lord will act in justice & uprightness toward his covenant people, and he will not let evil prevail. This is where our perseverance & endurance comes from on the road of discipleship.
“God sticks to his relationship. He established a personal relationship with us and stays with it. The central reality for Christians is the personal, unalterable, preserving commitment God makes to us. Perseverance is not the result of our determination, it is the result of God’s faithfulness. We survive in the way of faith not because we have extraordinary stamina but because God is righteous and because God sticks with us.” ~ Eugene Peterson
There are moments in our lives where it may feel like evil and oppression are winning, and where we do not feel like God is “sticking with us.” Though we may not understand why God allows evil to continue, we can’t argue that he does not care. The gospel reminds us that the only truly righteous one suffered in the place of the unrighteous; Jesus was afflicted so that we might be delivered from everlasting affliction.
The finished work of Christ reorients our relationship to evil, suffering, and oppression.
2 Corinthians 4:7–10: But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
III. The End of Evil (129:5-8)
These 4 verses are an example of an “imprecatory Psalm,” which are prayers that call upon God to bring judgment or a curse upon enemies or oppressors. Imprecatory prayers have been sources of controversy, as they seem to be at odds with the ethics Jesus urges in the New Testament, specifically to “love your enemies & pray for those who persecute you” (Cf. Matt. 5:43-44).
4 Guiding Principles:
1. Imprecatory prayers are an appeal for God to bring about his righteous judgment and his own vindication, not our own selfish revenge.
2. Imprecatory prayers ask God to thwart the plans of evil and evildoers so they would fail.
The Psalmist prays that the enemies of God would have:
No Victory (129:5)
No Reaping/Spoils (129:6-7)
No Blessing (129:8)
3. Imprecatory prayers can still be prayed while loving your enemies & praying for those who persecute you
We can’t truly love our enemies unless we hate the very things that will destroy them. We can pray for their conversion and salvation while simultaneously asking that their plans be brought to nothing so they might see their need for repentance.
4. Imprecatory prayers must be prayed through the reality of the cross
“While Christians rightly conclude that, on this side of the cross, believers will respond to wrongs and persecution differently, we must not be too quick to recoil from these [imprecatory] psalms and miss what we should learn. One lesson is that God does indeed hate injustice. Most Western Christians haven’t experienced much in the way of violent mistreatment, and we should let these psalms help us feel the desperation and helplessness of those who have. We shouldn’t close our ears to the cries of the oppressed. Second, we should realize that virtually always the psalmist leaves the justice and vengeance to God, and does not personally take revenge, as the New Testament commands (Rom. 12:19). Finally, when we are wronged we should put the cross before our eyes, remembering that what our enemies deserve we deserve too, and that it fell on Jesus Christ so we can be pardoned.” ~ Tim Keller
