Christ in the Psalms - Psalm 41
Psalm 41: A prayer in need
Commentators sometimes have strong opinions about which psalms are a prophecy of Christ and which are not. Of some, it is very clear, but from others, it is much less obvious. Often we have something to hold on to when psalms in the New Testament are applied to Jesus, or to the situation in which He finds himself. And yet such psalms can sometimes lead to questions if they describe something in one verse that can not apply to Christ at all, while in another verse we suddenly find words that are applied to Jesus. It seems as if the psalm was dragged by the writers of the New Testament with the hair. Psalm 41 is a good example of such a psalm.
Psalm 41 - a prayer for healing
This psalm is by David's hand, and could possibly be a description of his own situation. Depending on whether the psalm was written during or after a period of adversity, he is either seen as a lament or as a song of thanks. The psalm describes someone who is sick or weak, whether that is physical or refers to a period of calamity. In doing so, we see both the reactions of his environment and the words that the sufferer himself speaks to God. The psalmist is firmly convinced that God will ultimately save the one who trusts in God by preserving him in life.
Then in this psalm, we see the same attitude of his environment as with the three friends of Job. They think: if someone is struck by mischief, he must be a sinner, because God blesses the righteous, that is, he cannot do anything bad. In this psalm, besides the friends, they are also the enemies, but their attitude is the same. The friend turns away from the sufferer. In verse 4 we see the realization that the sufferer is a sinner, and therefore needs healing: "I say: Lord, be merciful to me, heal me, I have sinned against you." But that is not yet a reason for others to act against him. His enemies are cheering. But even his friends leave him because no one wants to hear a weak. And in that connection we read about a friend: "even my best friend, on whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, turned against me" (v. 10). What the sufferer then wants is healing, to take revenge: "Show me, Lord, your mercy and let me rise up, and I will give them what they deserve" (v. 11).
The most obvious reason to see a connection with Christ in this psalm is the reference (in all gospels!) To verse 10, where in the Gospel of John we even read that Jesus himself refers to it as such: "I aim not all of you: I know who I have chosen, what is written in Scripture will be fulfilled: He who ate of my bread turned against me "(John 13:18). He speaks about Judas who will betray him, and sees that as a fulfillment of this psalm. There can therefore be no doubt that the psalm is referring to Christ. Certain other verses of the psalm can also be applied effortlessly to Christ: the hatred of his enemies, but also for example from verse 11: "By this I will know that you love me: if my enemy no longer rejoices, if you assist me, because I'm innocent,
That "illness" of the one described in the psalm is still recognizable from Isaiah, where we read: "He was despised, people shunned, he was a man who knew the suffering and was familiar with sickness, a man who his face hid from us, despised, reviled by us, and disdained, but it was he who bore our sicknesses, who took upon us our sufferings "(Isaiah 53: 3). Isaiah uses a Hebrew word for sickness that does not occur so often in Scripture, but in this psalm. The psalm also has many other similarities with these words in Isaiah. But for other words in the psalm this certainly does not apply. Words like verse 5 ("I say, LORD, be merciful to me, heal me, I have sinned against you") can not beat Jesus. Some try to explain this by explaining it as our sins that Jesus bore, but for that the words are too personal. Moreover, Jesus did not seek revenge on his enemies, not even after his resurrection. He sought their healing. How then can Jesus say that this psalm struck his situation?
The application
The answer must be that we should see here the differences rather than the similarities. Yes, Jesus bore our sicknesses, and in principle sickness and death come through the sin of man; but here we see someone who had to carry that despite his sinlessness. He was looking for the best for all people, even though those who he pointed out probably did not. He knows that one of the twelve will betray Him, the betrayal that the psalmist also felt. But He is not seeking revenge. He tries to make him think about what he does. In the same circumstances He reacts differently, because He is not focused on righteousness now, but on the execution of God's redemptive work and the repentance of people.
Thanks for reading.
You can read:
Christ in the Psalms. The introduction.
Christ in the Psalms - Psalm 2
Christ in the Psalms - Psalm 18
Christ in the Psalms - Psalm 22
Remain blessed.
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