Psalm 60
Dear RTB’ers,
David makes his plea (Psalm 60:1-5), the Lord answers directly (Psalm 60:6-8), then David continues his plea (Psalm 60:9-11a), and eventually expresses his confidence in the Lord’s deliverance (Psalm 60:11b-12). I can understand David pleading for the Lord’s deliverance, then the Lord’s response, almost like He has already delivered Israel, but then I have confusion as to David’s second set of pleas, words like: Have you not rejected us O God? You do not go forth, O God, with our armies. (v. 10) In the end David’s ultimate confidence in the Lord’s deliverance shows forth in the last verses, plus all the nations mentioned were conquered by David during his reign. So maybe this Psalm was written “after the fact”, with David expressing what he had felt before his victories? Like many psalms for me, this one is confusing.
I need to quote my wife from 2022 when RTB was looking at the Psalms and Wisdom literature:
A moment of levity here… I am amused by the contrasting metaphors used in this psalm. Referring to the Israelite nation: they are God’s property, his helmet, his scepter. The ones for their enemies: God will use Moab as his “washbasin” — likely a vessel for washing dirty, dusty feet. Yuck! He will “toss his sandal” at Edom — the way you shoo away a dog(?) or challenge an enemy(?). My study notes mention taking off your sandal is a sign of claiming land in these cultures. He will “shout in triumph” at Philistia — they have already lost their battle against Israel, they just don’t know it yet!
Her last sentence tells the whole story: “…they have already lost their battle against Israel, they just don’t know it yet!”
Blessings.
See also: June 9 (2022) / Psalm 60.