Unbreakable Joy: Imprecation and the Scriptures

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Imprecation and the Scriptures

Have you ever been outraged at the darkness and God-lessness of the evil present in our world? Ever experienced your blood-pressure soaring in zealous hatred of incredible wickedness? I must admit that although there are things that I encounter at work that I despise, I've never experienced such intense outrage at the ravaging wickedness in our world as I have since my shift last night.

Needless to say we encountered a particularly vile darkness during this shift. While sifting through the emotions of it all I found a unique difficulty turning to prayer about it. My mind rustling with imprecations I found myself spontaneously unleashing an imprecatory prayer in an e-mail to a friend about this situation.

I must admit I haven't delved much into the imprecatory Psalms, but found myself feeling what some of these Psalmists surely felt as they penned these pleas to God for His intervention and justice.

A few examples of such verses (HT:Theopedia.com):

Psalm 55:15
Let death take my enemies by surprise; let them go down alive to the grave.

Psalm 58:6
O God, break the teeth in their mouths.

Psalm 69:28
May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous.

Psalm 109:9
May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow.

In case you may be wondering how all of this fits into the New Testament scheme of things, take a look at these verses:

Matthew 23:13
But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

Matthew 26:23-24
And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 24 The Son of man goeth as it is written of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good for that man if he had not been born.

1 Corinthians 16:22
If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha.

Galatians 1:8-9
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

Galatians 5:12
I would they were even cut off which trouble you.

2 Timothy 4:14
Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works:

Revelation 6:10
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

That said, this is the imprecatory prayer that exploded onto my keyboard this morning:

Oh that You would rend the heavens and come down. That You would arm Yourself for this warfare and engage in battle against the God-lessness and unrighteousness of our day. Oh Lord hear, Oh Lord see, Oh Lord act on behalf of Your own righteousness and justice. May the wicked perish in the wine-press of Your matchless fury. Might they be torn to pieces in Your spectacular judgments. May You bring them to an end quickly that they may begin to taste of Your unending justice. Bend Your bow oh Warrior King. Unsheathe Your sword. May Your eternal justice be revealed to all, that Your Name may be feared. Act on behalf of the helpless, the fatherless, the victimized and defenseless. Pour out Your wrath on those who take part in such wickedness.

4 comments:

Mike said...: I must admit, I've done the same. Not very often, but I have prayed similarly. We obviously have to take great care and not pray demise on everybody...I think that would indicate more about what's in our hearts if we couldn't be patient with people. But there are times when it is appropriate to be just fed up with the wicked and turn them over to God's divine wrath.

By the way, what was the situation?

Good post, bro. Be on guard!; June 18, 2009 at 2:04 PM
Unbreakable Joy said...: It's likely not appropriate to even name such wickedness in this venue. Suffice it to say that I'm sure in your time with the MSP you have encountered this wickedness as well.

I've never encountered anything so dark and vile as this.

I would speak with you further about it in person.; June 18, 2009 at 6:32 PM
Steve Spray said...: Such Psalms and their New Testament equivalents are so very insightful into the God and His saints. I struggled with them for a long time. Great post. Thanks.; June 18, 2009 at 10:40 PM
Unbreakable Joy said...: Thanks Steve.; June 19, 2009 at 9:43 AM

Noteworthy Quotes

Christianity preaches the infinite worth of that which is seemingly so worthless and the infinite worthlessness of that which is seemingly so valued.
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

I saw more clearly than ever, that the first great and primary business to which I ought to attend every day was, to have my soul happy in the Lord.
- George Mueller

If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.
- C.S. Lewis

A pharisee is hard on others and easy on himself, a spiritual man is hard on himself and easy on others.
- A. W. Tozer

Our hearts are restless until we find our rest in Thee.
- Augustine

All men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. The cause of some going to war, and of others avoiding it, is the same desire in both, attended with different views. The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves.
- Blaise Pascal

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.
- Jim Elliot

Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.
- C. S. Lewis

He loves Thee too little, who loves anything together with Thee, which he loves not for Thy sake.
- Augustine

The men of this world are children. Offer a child an apple or a bank note, and he will doubtless choose the apple.
- John Newton

In the end the heart longs not for any of God's good gifts, but for God Himself. To see Him and know Him and be in His presence is the soul's final feast. Beyond this there is no quest. Words fail. We call it pleasure, joy, delight. But these are weak pointers to the unspeakable experience.
- John Piper

God cannot give us happiness and peace apart from Him, because it is not there. There is no such thing.
- C.S. Lewis

It is well that we accept the hard truth now: The man who would know God must give time to Him. He must count no time wasted which is spent in the cultivation of His acquaintance. He must give himself to meditation and prayer hours on end. So did the saints of old, the glorious company of the apostles, the Godly fellowship of the prophets and the believing members of the holy church in all generations. And so must we if we would follow in their train.
- A.W. Tozer

If God contains the fullness of all good things in Himself like an inexhaustible fountain, nothing beyond him is to be sought by those who strike after the highest good and all the elements of happiness.
- John Calvin

God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in Him.
- John Piper

God glorifies Himself toward the creature in two ways; by appearing to their understanding, and in communicating Himself to thief hearts and their rejoicing in and delighting in Him, and enjoying manifestations He makes of Himself. God is Glorified not only by His glories being seen, but by it’s being rejoiced in. When those that see it delight in it God is more glorified than if they only see it. His glory is then received by the whole soul, both by the understanding and by the heart. God made the world that he might communicate and the creature receive His glory, and that it might be received both by the mind and the heart. He that testifies His idea of God’s glory doesn’t glorify God so much as he that testifies also his approbation of it and his delight in it.
- Jonathan Edwards