When Anger & Injustice Rise (Imprecatory Psalms)
Scripture Focus
Psalm 58
Scripture Focus (Selected Verses)
Psalm 58:1–2
"Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods? Do you judge the children of man uprightly? No, in your hearts you devise wrongs; your hands deal out violence on earth."
Psalm 58:6
"Break the teeth in their mouths, O God; tear out the fangs of the young lions, O LORD!"
Psalm 58:10–11
"The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance... Mankind will say, 'Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.'"
Key Quote
"I have been accustomed to call this book (the Psalms), I think not inappropriately, 'An Anatomy of All the Parts of the Soul'; for there is not an emotion of which anyone can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror."
— John Calvin
Types of Psalms
- Orientation: God is good, life makes sense, and I trust Him.
- Disorientation: Life is broken, and I don't understand what God is doing.
- Reorientation: God has met me in the darkness, and I trust Him more deeply.
Three Truths About the Imprecatory Psalms
1. They Keep Our Hearts Sensitive to Evil
Reflection
Where have I become desensitized to evil? Is there something that once grieved me but now barely catches my attention?
Practice
Spend time this week praying through a news story or injustice instead of simply reading it. Ask God to give you His heart toward those who suffer and those who cause suffering.
2. They Teach Us to Entrust Justice to God
Reflection
Is there someone whose judgment I have been trying to carry instead of entrusting them to God?
Practice
Identify one situation where anger has tempted you to take matters into your own hands. Surrender it to God in prayer, trusting Him to do what is right and just.
3. They Lead Us to the Cross, Where Justice and Mercy Meet
Reflection
When I think about those who have wronged me, do I desire only their punishment, or do I also pray that they would experience the same grace that rescued me?
Practice
Begin every prayer for justice with this prayer:
"Lord, show me my own need for Your grace before I focus on someone else's need for it."
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