Psalm 35:1-3 (NIV)
Contend, Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me. Take up shield and armor; arise and come to my aid. Brandish spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Say to me, “I am your salvation.”
Have you ever prayed for God to deal harshly with someone in your life? For God to “lower the boom” on them…judge them…even curse them? Today’s psalm is one of twenty that are known as “imprecatory” psalms, or psalms that ask God to judge and destroy the enemies of His people, most commonly represented in these particular psalms by King David himself. Yet, as New Testament Christians, Jesus commanded us in the Sermon on the Mount:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighborand hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mth. 5:43-49).
So, which is it? Are we supposed to pray AGAINST our enemies…of FOR them? That depends. In the Psalms and in most of his life, David was acting on behalf of God as his chosen leader and king. He was praying for God’s judgment to fall on the enemies of God’s people, made manifest in their opposition to God’s chosen king. Do you or I fit that description? While every follower of Christ is an ambassador of the gospel (2 Cor. 5:20) and a part of the priesthood of all believers (1 Pet. 2:5), those are general duties rather than a specific office and so we need to approach these kinds of prayers carefully.
When our kids were still involved with athletics, I used to joke with them (kinda) about the opposing team by quoting David’s words in 1 Samuel 17, “Who are these Philistines that they should defy the armies of the living God?” Perhaps I was trying to baptize my desire to see our kid’s team destroy the opposing team by assuming a mantle of righteousness…but obviously I was wrong. Praying imprecatory prayers against lost sinners who act like lost sinners in the way they mistreat you is never the correct stance for a Christ follower, although every time we utter The Lord’s Prayer (Mth. 6:9-13) and ask for His Kingdom to Come to earth…that includes a terrible and final judgment for every single person outside of Christ. Calling down God’s hand of judgment is indeed a frightening proposition, and one we should not employ casually.
On the other hand, there are other circumstances in which praying according to these imprecatory psalms is entirely called for. When dictators are abusing and slaughtering their people – call for both their repentance AND for God to stop them! When great injustices are being perpetrated on the weak by the powerful, pray for the repentance of the perpetrators AND for God to stop them in their tracks. When followers of Christ are being persecuted, pray for the salvation of their persecutors AND for God to crush their evil efforts. Intercession for our enemies is our responsibility while vengeance is always left in the hand of the Lord (Rom. 12:19).
I used to pass a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on the way to the radio studio I was using at the time, and every time I did I prayed for the people considering getting an abortion there, for the workers there to repent and call on the Lord, and for God to empty the building and burn it to the ground. I prayed FOR the lost and AGAINST the evil they were representing. We must react to personal injustice with a gospel heart bent towards reconciliation…but when it comes to evil movements and their leaders, pray for repentance as well as God’s swift and strong hand of justice to stop them in their tracks.
