In Need of an “Until Moment”

Psalm 73 is one of those psalms that ought to be read often. It has such a contemporary ring to it that one would be hard pressed to think the words of the psalm weren’t written directly to our age and culture.

At the center of the psalm are these words: “But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end.” (Psalm 73:15,16, NRSV)

The words of Psalm 73 are ascribed to Asaph, who seems to be a man who had been faithful to God, but not rewarded; and a man who sees himself surrounded by faithless people who seem to have it all. The idea that wicked people would be prosperous causes him to question the idea that God is just.

After boldly declaring that the wicked always seem to be at ease and increasing in riches (73:12) he sound a bit like the author of Ecclesiastes in declaring “all in vain I have kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued, and am punished every morning.” (73:13,14, NRSV)

It seems to me that the phrase “until I went into the sanctuary of God” is crucial. At its minimum, that phrase must suggest something about the importance of the worship of God. The text doesn’t say if the psalmist received some special revelation from God, but it could have simply been a word he heard from a priest in the Temple finally got his attention. Whatever happened – it surely happened in the midst of worship.

After his “until moment,” the psalmist changes tunes completely. He ends the psalm with phrase like “my flesh and my heart may fail, but god is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (73:26) and “but for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, to tell of all your works.” (73:28)

One of the things that makes me value the relevance of this psalm so much is how often struggle in life becomes the excuse for not worshipping. Asaph seems headed in that direction – only to discover that it was only in the context of confronting the presence of God in worship – “until I went into the sanctuary of God” – that he gained a new and much better perspective about life.

Jump forward in time a few centuries and you will discover the author of Hebrews encouraging his readers by these words: “And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24,25, NRSV) Oddly enough, those words precede a paragraph later in the chapter when he reminds them that life is sometimes difficult – but even in the difficulties we face, there is no need to “abandon that confidence of yours; it brings a great reward.” (10:36)

These are hard times for lots of folks – maybe even most folks. Perhaps our own “until moment” would help us!