Episode 112: Grace, from the beginning

The poet who wrote Psalm 40 (the psalm is attributed to David) is surrounded by trouble. But the psalmist knows that their own sin is partly to blame. Does the psalmist therefore turn to a prayer of repentance? No: the psalmist still cries out for deliverance and even vengeance against the people causing the psalmist’s distress. How will God respond to such a prayer? Again, the psalm is left open-ended; we don’t know the outcome of the story. But even if the psalmist still has things to learn, we might imagine God as a loving parent who cares about their child’s safety and well-being, even when they’ve done wrong.