Ps. 41. 11-13 (conclusion: by this you are pleased)

“By this / I know / that you are pleased / with me – for / my enemy does not shout / in triumph / over me. – As for me / you have supported me / in my integrity – and have made me / stand up in your presence / forever.” These lines function as the conclusion of the psalm; the following verse is important, of course, and has resonances with the psalm but it functions more as a concluding verse to Book 1 of the entire psalms. Recognizing this as the concluding verse is important as it relates to the opening, because when comparing the two we see how the psalmist has moved into the blessedness promised in the opening verse and has been “kept” by Yhwh from the desires of his enemies (and given life…) as promised in verse 2.  In this we also find the dynamism that is inherent in all of the psalms. Meaning, the “reality” enacted by this psalm comes about due to Yhwh’s being “pleased with me”. It as this point, though, that we should look more closely at these verses. “By this…”: there is an intriguing question as to what “this” refers to. Nothing has preceded it. One proposal is that (and one I agree with) is that the priest who spoke verses 1-3 has pronounced an oracle of healing over the psalmist. “This” then refers to the oracle verbalized by the psalmist, which makes a great deal of sense. In other words, the psalmist is saying, “By this prophetic utterance of healing, I know you are pleased with me…”. One reason this is important (and not merely interesting) is indicated by the phrase “As for me you have supported me in my integrity”. If this ‘oracle reading’ is accurate, then this line confirms what the priest originally pronounced to the psalmist as he approached—if you have shown consideration for the weak and poor, Yhwh will show consideration for you. What this clearly does not mean is that Yhwh is somehow ‘coerced’ into blessing him; rather, as the psalm makes clear, such “consideration” pleases Yhwh as it enacts his same concern/consideration. This is an act of love, not coercion. It is similar to how creation operates immediately after its being brought into existence: Yhwh saw that it was good (it was an object of delight to him). This oracle reading also makes sense of the enemy reference. The psalmist had just petitioned to be ‘raised up’—the priest pronounced over him that he would be healed (raised up)—and now he rejoices in such a pronouncement as his authority will now be healed and his enemies will be able to crush him. He has moved from ‘low’ (under the heel) to ‘high’. Finally, it is crucial to see how this psalm does not end in standing over the enemies but standing in Yhwh’s presence forever. In our reflection on verse 2 we noted how “life and blessing in the land” were goods-in-themselves. Whether an enemy existed or not, these were blessings that would always be good. Here, the psalm ends on a similar ‘good’ and shows that deliverance from enemies is always penultimate to the highest good—the presence of Yhwh. Such an understanding is reflected in Mary when she says that Yhwh has remembered his promises of old, to free us from the hands of enemies so that we can serve you (we can offer liturgy to you). It is precisely in this light that the concluding line of the psalm and Book 1 ends: “Blessed be Yhwh, God of Israel, from everlasting and to everlasting. Amen and Amen.” Fitting, too, how the Psalter opened with the same words: “Blessed is the man…” (Ps. 1.1).