Week 20 Psalm 146
One of the supplementary goals I have while I’m reading is to track what the bible says about the Lord. So yesterday when I noticed a few things listed consecutively in psalm 146 I wrote them down.
The Lord:
Brings justice to oppressed people
Feeds hungry people
Releases innocent prisoners
Restores sight to blind people
Helps people who are loaded down
Provides a haven for immigrants
Helps parentless kids
Helps women who’ve lost their husbands
Is dependable/reliable
Loves righteous people
There was one more that didn’t quite fit with the others…
The Lord frustrates evil people.
I was mostly interested in the first ten items and thought for a while about how the process worked out in life – for instance in Yemen. How the values crossed-over into actionables.
Anyway today I read psalm 147 and I was surprised to see what looked like a condensed version of yesterday’s list: the Lord supports the humble but he brings the wicked down into the dust. (I composed my own short version: the Lord helps people who are vulnerable and wretched and dejected and tormented. But he turns against people who are ruthless and evil and arrogant and exploitive.)
One of the things I’m doing while I’m reading is putting together a composite of the Lord. It’s harder than I thought it would be. So 146-147 are a helpful addition to the mix.
Note: paraphrase from Psalm 146:7-9. Quote from 147:6 (NIV)