The Place Where Perfect Justice and Mercy Meet (Psalm 28)

Psalm 28 (NIV)

To you, LORD, I call;
you are my Rock,
do not turn a deaf ear to me.
For if you remain silent,
I will be like those who go down to the pit.
Hear my cry for mercy
as I call to you for help,
as I lift up my hands
toward your Most Holy Place.

Do not drag me away with the wicked,
with those who do evil,
who speak cordially with their neighbors
but harbor malice in their hearts.
Repay them for their deeds
and for their evil work;
repay them for what their hands have done
and bring back on them what they deserve.

Because they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD
and what his hands have done,
he will tear them down
and never build them up again.

Praise be to the LORD,
for he has heard my cry for mercy.
The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
and with my song I praise him.

The LORD is the strength of his people,
a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.
Save your people and bless your inheritance;
be their shepherd and carry them forever.

CONSIDER THIS

Today’s post is from A Meditative Journey Through the Psalms by Timothy and Julie Tennent. Most recently, he served as the president of Asbury Theological Seminary, among other posts he holds across the global church. She is a gifted musician and was one of the driving forces that helped bring to fruition the Seedbed hymnal, Our Great Redeemer’s Praise. We will share some of their writing on the Psalms on Sundays.

Even young children cry out, “It’s not fair,” when something is not right. There is a deep longing in all of us for the scales of justice to be balanced and for things to be set right. As parents, we try to maintain justice in our homes. As a society, we have an elaborate system of laws and courts and appeals processes and various protections in place to assure that wrongs will be set right and that truth and justice prevail. We also know how imperfectly all of our attempts to secure justice really are. Crimes go unpunished. Innocent people sit on death row. The evil perpetuators of human trafficking go unchecked. Dictators do as they please. The checks and balances of government get mired in gridlock and partisanship.

We live in a world that longs for justice but, despite our efforts, cannot fully realize it. The psalmist sees evildoers around him and cries out for God to “repay them for their deeds” and to “bring back upon them what they deserve” (v. 4). He wants to see God’s justice brought about, but he also cries out for mercy (vv. 2 and 6), acknowledging gratefully that mercy is also part of God’s character.

The psalmist knew what we know: namely, that in the end, final and complete justice must be rendered by God, for only the “Judge of the earth” (Ps. 94:2) will be able to set things right. However, what we know that the psalmist did not fully understand is that the cost of this judgment would be greater than anything the psalmist could have imagined. Because God is perfect in both his judgment and his mercy, the only way to perfectly balance both the cries of judgment and our need for mercy (for we are all guilty before God) is for God to take upon himself the judgment of sin. The cross becomes the place where God’s perfect justice meets God’s perfect mercy. (For more on this, see the meditation on Psalm 85.) The psalmist prays for God to set things right. He ends the psalm with praise that the Lord is a “fortress of salvation for his anointed one” (v. 8). Indeed, it was through God’s Anointed One bearing the sins of the world that the fortress of salvation was established, the only true fortress of justice and mercy.

For the Awakening,
Timothy and Julie Tennent

THE HYMN

Sing Psalm 28 with the Seedbed Psalter today. I suggest the tune KINGSFOLD (“O Sing a Song of Bethlehem”). You can hear the tune played online by Julie Tennent here. If you listen to the podcast audio version, I will sing the psalm in this same tune. For your convenience, the words from the Psalter are printed below. 

1   To You I call, O LORD my Rock; don’t turn Your ear from me;
For if You’re silent, then like those within the pit I’ll be.
2   O, hear my cry for mercy, as to You for help I call;
As I lift up my hands to the Most Holy Place of all.

3   Don’t drag me off with wicked ones who evil do impart,
Who speak peace with their neighbors but hide malice in their heart.
4   Repay them for their evil work, for deeds their hands have done;
Bring back on them what they deserve, the evil of each one.

5   Since they do not regard the LORD, nor works His hands have done,
He’ll tear them down, and never build back up a single one.
6   Praise to the LORD, for He has heard my cry for grace from Him.
7   The LORD’s my strength and shield; I’m helped as my heart trusts in Him.

My heart does leap for joy, and I give thanks to Him in song.
8   The LORD’s His people’s strength, and His anointed’s fortress strong.
9   O save Your people, save and bless Your own inheritance;
And be their shepherd, carry them—forever their defense.

P.S. Get the Resources

If you would like to have the meditations and the metrical psalter in a beautiful two-volume set—which I highly recommend—you can order those through the Seedbed store.