The
PS 35 belongs to
Book I of the
Book of PS, composed of a collection of 150 texts arranged by five poetry books. The Book of Psalms, for its
wisdom and
basic principles of human
action, is considered the heart of the Old Testament. Book I encompasses Psalms 1 to 41. The
PS 35 is divided into 28 verses.
The Psalms are
poems-prayers addressed to God, the privileged way to address and speak to Him. These prayers represent
human experiences and
religious conscience. They portray the
commoner with his faults, insecurities, fears, and hopes. Even today, we can identify with the Psalmist and draw inspiration from these texts to
pray and
plead with God when we feel
lost and
anguished or to express our
gratitude for some blessing.
"There are enemies or friends, there is life or death, health or illness, pain or joy and, most of the time, there are no changes or gradations. Words are like stones and poetry like boulders carved by chisel"; "The Psalms are a bit like mountain paths, simple, especially when walking on snow, but they lead to the peaks; they are paths toward the peaks of meeting the Lord." - Carlo Maria Martini, Cardinal of Milan.
Psalm 35 - Appeal to Divine Justice
1 of David.
O Lord, come to accuse those who accuse me
and fight those who fight against me.
2 Strengthen yourself with a shield and breastplate
and rise to my aid.
3 Draw your sword and bar the way
against those who persecute me.
Tell my soul:
"I am your salvation."
4 Let
those who seek to take my life to be confounded and ashamed.
Return humiliated
those who plan my disgrace.
5 Be like chaff blown by the wind
and may the angel of the Lord scatter you?
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
with the angel of the Lord chasing them.
7 For without reason, they laid traps against me,
and without reason, they dug a ditch for me to fall.
8 An unforeseen disgrace comes upon him;
let the hidden net catch the one who set
it up and fall into the ditch he dug.
9 Then will my soul rejoice in the Lord
and rejoice in the salvation received from him.
10 My whole being will proclaim,
"Who is like You, O Lord?
You deliver the weak from him that is strongest;
the poor and helpless, the one who exploits it."
11 Aggressive witnesses rise against me,
asking me to account for things I didn't even know.
12 They pay me evil instead of good,
leaving my soul desolate.
13 When they were sick, I dressed in penance. I
humbled my soul with fasting,
and my prayer echoed in my chest.
14 As for a friend or a brother,
he was sad,
like someone mourning for his mother.
15 But they rejoiced at my fall
and gathered together in a conspiracy against me.
They assaulted me with treachery
and tore me restlessly.
16 They surrounded me and mocked me;
they gnashed their teeth against me.
17 How can You see it, Lord?
Remove my soul from their misfortunes;
from the claws of these lions, my life.
18 I will thank you in the solemn assembly; amid the immense crowd, I will praise you.
19 Let not my lying enemies laugh at me,
neither exchange glances of derision
who hate me without reason.
20 For they speak not of peace;
and even against peaceful people, they plot calumnies.
21 They brazenly open their mouths at me, saying,
"Ah! We can see it with our eyes!"
22 Thou hast also seen it, Lord. Don't be silent!
Lord, don't stay away from me.
23 Awake and arise in my defense!
O my God and Lord, defend my cause.
24 Judge me according to your righteousness, O LORD my God.
That they didn't laugh at me.
25 May they not say in their hearts:
"Ah! It was our wish!"
Nor can they say, "We devoured it!"
26 Let
those who rejoice in my evil be equally confounded and ashamed.
Cover yourselves with confusion and disgrace
those who show themselves arrogant towards me.
27 Let those who want my righteousness rejoice and rejoice.
And let them say without ceasing: "Great is the Lord,
for his servant's welfare is pleasing to him!"
28 Then shall my tongue declare your righteousness
and your praises all day long.
Meaning and interpretation
Psalm 35 is a
single prayer of supplication, in which the Psalmist regrets the persecution you are moved by he treated as his friends. This prayer offers the Psalmist the opportunity to
reflect on
reciprocity in the
practice of good and the
consequences of human behavior, as both good and evil require the corresponding sanction. The Psalmist insistently asks God to intervene in this conflict of behavior.
After the first metaphor that belongs to the environments of citation in court, and despite dealing with conflicts between people, the rest of the first three Verses is filled with war metaphors, including the reference to
salvation, which is the victory granted.
The
Psalms of Supplication are very present in the Book of Psalms. They speak of human frailty and the most basic feelings of your human conditionჴ€”Times of peace and plenty
contrast with war and individual or community destruction. The Psalmist pleads for
God's help and asks him to
end his situation of affliction, ending with the
certainty of having been heard.
In spiritual practice, the supplication and request to God reflect the meaning of
prayer, which is the privileged way to establish contact and
raise the voice to the Divine. In numerous Psalms, supplication seems to be the most immediate motivation and the greatest concern. When turning to God, the speaker / Psalmist finds tenderness, justice, compassion, reconciliation, purification, and peace.
The
narratives and
feelings involved in these prayers are varied and basic; they have affected Humanity over the millennia and are still current. They reflect
multiple interiors, individual and collective experiences, and relationships between people and people.
They address topics such as the deadly threat of disease, persecution, aging, violence, war, betrayal, loneliness, enemy aggression, and how these feelings alter our
consciousness of ourselves, our relationship with others,s, and God.
Situations that prompt supplication can be
bitter and
desperate, but the Psalms generally express a
state of trust and end in
thanksgiving. The Psalmist cries out to God for his help and forgiveness in a profound expression of limitless
trust in divine compassion and justice. Even the cry of the Psalmist is already a fighting speech, change will, of inner transformation, confidence, and hope for a
free future evil, the
suffering, and the
wicked.
The
Psalms of Supplication are classified as individual supplication and collective supplication. Those of
Individual Supplication comprise Psalm 3; 5-7; 13; 17; 22; 26; 27; 28; 31; 35; 39; 42-43; 51; 54-57; 59; 61; 63; 64; 69-71; 88; 102; 109; 120; 130; 140-143. and those of
Collective Supplication Ps 12; 44; 58; 60; 74; 80; 83; 85; 90; 94; 108; 123; 127.
The Book of Psalms
The Joy and Happiness of the Righteous in Communion with God
The Psalms are
prayer-poems addressed to God, the privileged way to address and speak with Him. Depicting the
commoner, with his failures, insecurities, fears, and hopes, we can still identify with the Psalmist and be inspired today in Psalms to make
prayers and
supplications to God in times of trouble or express our
gratitude for some blessing received.
Despite being written in Antiquity, the Psalms still
move,
sensitize,
awaken feelings,
inspire and
enchant. In them, we can identify
anguish and
joy, deeply human feelings, praises, supplications, teachings of reflection on spiritual wisdom, and prophetic words.
Written for
different situations, some Psalms are intimate, revealing the author's relationship with God; others provide guidelines and advice for life; others are compositions for specific liturgical events such as rituals and pilgrimages.
The
Book of Psalms comprises a collection of 150 poetic texts and is divided into five parts, called Psalm Books or Booklets. Each Book closes with short
hymns of praise to God. The division into five parts was considered to correspond to the five books of Moses, and it is assumed that each passage in the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Bible, called Torah by the Jews) was read in parallel with the corresponding Psalm. Its main forms are
lamentation,
supplication,
praise, and
gratitude.
The Power of Prayer in Dialogue with the Divine
The Psalms elevate our thoughts to the Divine, and
prayer is the
power of the word. Prayer is the language of faith. Any thought, word, or image addressed to God is called
prayer. Through it, we come into contact with our
God within; therefore, it is powerful in
transforming life. Prayer can produce
miracles, turn dreams into reality, and give us hope for
change,
harmony, and
peace with ourselves and the world.
Each Psalm has an
intention that helps us
meditate and
walk with our God. For many theologians, the Book of Psalms has a prophetic or messianic tone as its verses refer to the coming of Christ into the world of men to guide them through the uncertainty and doubts of Human existence.
The
prayer has the power to call the
Spiritual Universe full mode, honest, sincere, conscious, for spiritual self-protection, family protection, and those who are dear to us, to have peace of mind, spiritual and physical, for prosperity and success, to protect health and relationships, to ward off negative energies and, above all, to connect us to something bigger than ourselves, from this,
peace, well-being, hope and goodness in front of everyone and everything result.
Faith can change our lives. It gives us
tranquility and
spiritual strength to face challenges. It helps us to
meditate on our mission in life and to create a
balanced and healthy environment for ourselves and those we love. When you pray, fill your heart with
love and
determination. The Psalms will guide you toward
peace and
communion with higher energy.
