This morning as I was continuing to read A Long Obedience in the Same Direction: Discipleship in an Instant Society (yes, I am still reading it. I haven’t been reading too much in the last 3 weeks.), by Eugene Peterson, I’ve sat and pondered Psalm 131. Only three verses, but more packed into these three verses than I can even begin to imagine. It is as Charles Spurgeon said, this Psalm “is on of the shortest Psalms to read, but one of the longest to learn.” Here is the Psalm from the paraphrase, The Message, that Eugene translated, and the ESV.
ESV
1 O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, hope in the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.
The Message
God, I’m not trying to rule the roost,
I don’t want to be king of the mountain.
I haven’t meddled where I have no business
or fantasized grandiose plans.
2 I’ve kept my feet on the ground,
I’ve cultivated a quiet heart.
Like a baby content in its mother’s arms,
my soul is a baby content.
3 Wait, Israel, for God. Wait with hope.
Hope now; hope always!
What are your initial responses as you read this Psalm? I’m wondering what happens in the lives of others they (you) read it!