Psalm XXI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Psalm 137 can be defined as “the song of the universal call” because of the expression: “All the kings of the earth shall praise the Lord when they hear the words of his mouth” (v. 4). It is a hymn of thanksgiving, the first of a collection of eight Psalms that ancient Jewish tradition had attributed to David (138-145). In reality, a more accurate analysis of these songs suggests a later, perhaps post-exilic period. The poem unfolds in three moments.

1. It begins with a thanksgiving from the person praying (vv. 1-3), who is invoking his Lord in the setting of the sanctuary of Zion: “I bow down toward your holy temple” (v. 2). The psalmist is certain that the “name” (“I give thanks to your name”), that is, the person of God, and his faithful love, do not remain indifferent to the invocation of the righteous one. In the day of danger, the supplication addressed to the Lord does not hit a deaf and mute sky, but receives attention: “On the day I called, you answered me; you increased strength within me” (v. 3). The image is striking: God enters a person’s life with a vehement surge that makes the believer’s entire being fruitful and vigorous.
2. Faced with this hymn of gratitude, the psalmist in the second part of his song imagines a kind of global reaction: all the kings of the earth join him in universal praise in honor of the greatness and sovereign power of YHWH (vv. 4-6). Now this universalistic dimension is a characteristic of post-exilic prophecy, present in Second Isaiah (Is 40-55), the prophet of Israel’s return from the Babylonian exile (6th century BC). But the Lord is indeed “exalted”, yet “he regards the lowly” with tenderness, while “from afar he knows the proud”, that is, looking down from above with disdain (v. 6).
3. After this opening onto the universal horizon, the person praying implores constant help even for the new distresses that will confront his existence tomorrow. The Psalm closes with a final profession of trust in God: “The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me… He will not abandon the work of his hands” (v. 8), that is, his creature, the masterpiece of his loving goodness and saving action.