Psalm 90
Here are some reflections on Psalm 90 for my upcoming Psalms album, Connexion - a jazz Psalter.
The Psalms are such a gift from the Lord! These sung prayers from the very heart of God teach us that we can bring all our emotions to him in worship. This prayer in particular is so honest in its depiction of our reality here on earth under the curse. Even the best of our efforts as we labor and toil here will come to an end. This psalm is attributed to Moses as he contrasts God’s eternality with the shortness and frailty of our lives. God is beyond time as we experience it. A thousand years in his sight are like yesterday when past.
Verses 7-12 of this prayer is the right response when we recognize our reality as fallen, sinful creatures in light of a holy God.
For we are consumed by your anger;we are terrified by your wrath. You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence. For all our days ebb away under your wrath; we end our years like a sigh. Our lives last seventy years or, if we are strong, eighty years. Even the best of them are struggle and sorrow; indeed, they pass quickly and we fly away. Who understands the power of your anger? Your wrath matches the fear that is due you. Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.
With God there is always mercy and grace available in the midst of his judgement. The Apostle Peter quotes this psalm when he writes,
But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. (2 Pet 3:8-10)
I chose to use the question, “how long?” as the repeated antiphon as Nikki Lerner sings through the prayer. God is compassionate on us. He has made a way for us through the perfect life, atoning death, and victorious resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ, to be satified with his faithful love (hesed) in part now, but in fullness for eternity!
Patrick Henry Reardon notes,
God's treasure here below is borne in vessels of clay, for of the mire he made us to be the very bearers of his glory. Because we are also creatures of the Fall, our own tilling of the soil - that is to say, our labor to support our lives in this world - is infected with the forces of death. At the Same time, by reason of our incorporation into Christ, our daily labor may also share in the firstfruits of redemption, our glorification as God's children. Our daily work, done for the sake of His glory, may become the medium by which that glory is rendered manifest.
Oh satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love! Spurgeon envisions Moses praying, “As the manna fell in the morning (Ex. 16:21), he beseeches the Lord to send His satisfying favor, so that through life’s little day they might be filled.”
You can pre-order the jazz Psalms project here.
