Psalm 58 Devotional

The Judge Who Cannot Be Bought

Psalm 58 confronts rulers who are supposed to judge fairly. In their hearts they plan injustice, and with their hands they spread violence (58:1-2). David describes them as wayward from birth, poisonous like a snake that refuses to listen to the charmer (58:3-5). Then he prays some of the harshest lines in the Psalms: that God would break their teeth, let them drain away like water, and melt away like a slug (58:6-8).

These words are hard to read. But David does not take up the sword against these rulers. He asks God to break their power, because God is the one judge who cannot be bought. The psalm ends with people recognizing that the righteous are rewarded and that God really does judge the world (58:11). The images are violent because the injustice is violent. Jesus taught that God will bring justice for his chosen ones who cry to him day and night (Luke 18:7-8). When the powerful twist justice, your anger can go to the Judge who never does.

To think about: What injustice stirs your anger most, and how might you bring that anger to God as Judge rather than carrying it yourself?