A Song of Suffering
Beloved People of God,
Have you ever heard a great song or watched an incredible movie then afterwards learned the inspiration for it, and it made it all the more powerful? Years ago, Elise and I were in a little art shop in a mall. Among all the large and impressive art for sale, there was a fairly small oil replica of Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers. So simple. Flowers in a vase. I walked out with that little framed painting for my office. Later I learned Van Gogh painted the original to display in a room to show his gratefulness for his friend, Paul Gauguin, who was moving in with him. The painting was more than just vibrant impasto colors of liberal oil paint. The paint was more than just a still life of top-heavy sunflowers. The painting was friendship, closeness, gratitude.
Psalm 102 is a powerful song we can sing in the valley. It is a song of suffering held deeply in the heart of the singer. Not wanting this to be missed, the compilers of Israel’s song book kept a short superscript before the lyrics. It is one of a kind. The superscript of 102 is the only one in Psalms which, according to Rolf Jacobson “describes a psalm as intended for a particular instance in a person's life.”
Psalm 102 is Van Gogh’s sunflower with the backstory of gratitude. This fifth penitential psalm is at first glance a moving song of sorrow and shadow. It is does not hide its suffering. But holding gently the superscript at the beginning brings a deeper resonance: “A prayer of an afflicted person who has grown weak and pours out a lament before the Lord.” There is a backstory. There is an affliction that has left the voice parched and in pain. This lament is sung from the little remaining, the last drops of oil in the widow’s jar, the rasping voice of the thirsty soul. Like the sunflowers, it is a song for someone…and that someone is divine. He is enthroned on high. He is God Almighty. He is the eternal Father, merciful and compassionate. He is the Sovereign King, who builds and rebuilds. He is the Lord who hears our prayers sung in the darkness and responds with the radiance of hope.
For His Name’s Sake,
Brett