Psalms 119:156 - The Womb of Mercy

Hidden Treasures of the 119th Psalm. We have a great verse to study today in the 119th Psalm. We get to study verse 156, which is the fourth verse in the Resh section, with that Resh being the idea of a head, like at the beginning of a river is the head of that river, as things begin, that's how they go. So like in the beginning starts that letter, that word is Reshit, which starts with a Resh.

And so many things are like that. Well, verse 156 would be the might. And also quite often it is the definition of the letter itself, the fourth verse is so really cool, really cool. I think you're going to enjoy this verse.

So 156 in English is great. Are thy tender mercies, O Lord, quicken me according to thy judgments. And so it's absolutely amazing to me and beautiful that three times the psalmist in the Resh section asked to be quickened.

This would be the second one. And the first one, you might remember, was back in the second verse, plead my cause and deliver me, quicken me according to thy word. And here we're asking, the psalmist is asking like he did back in the previous section to be quickened according to thy judgments, which seems like going through the fire in order to get quickened. And once again, he hedges that this time with great are thy tender mercies.

And it's really cool. In Hebrew, there are two words that are often translated mercy. When you think about the 23rd Psalm, and he knows goodness and mercy will follow me. Well, that mercy is hesed, which is a lot different concept. It's more of a loving kindness kind of mercy.

When you look at the mercy that we're talking about here, this word, which begins with the Resh, since we're in the Resh section, is Raham. And it is literally the mother's womb, okay? And it's really cool to think that since God is genderful, that he's got this womb. And so to think that we're getting asked to be quickened or born again here in this womb is really, really a cool concept that he's saying within this womb, judge me, right? And through this process, if we've talked about judgment is this refining, the refining fire, the heat's getting turned up, and literally the face of God judging what's good and what's bad so that it can be disposed of what's bad. And this idea of this kind of judgment is really quite heavy duty. And it pretty much, I think, is a process of quickening, which is fascinating because obviously you're not just born out of your mother's womb, you're knit in your mother's womb, right? And it was a nine-month process in order for you to be made.

I don't know if you thought about the process and that there obviously was some dross involved. And so I may have more questions about this verse than I have answers. But the thing that just grabbed me was this idea of here we have this womb that's great. And he uses that word again, which starts with a race. So he's saying the head or the beginning, which womb has everything to do with the beginning.

So it's like he's really showing that this is the head of his quickening here. And this is the idea of beginnings, like your beginning and my beginning. And it also quite often the race has to do with the choice. And so here we can see it is God's choice that you are alive.

He knit you in your mother's womb, as the psalmist says. So this is a spectacular idea. And then he's refining what he's quickening as we're in this womb process, which is really just remarkable. And again, this isn't the last time we will visit the idea of quickening within the race section. So the idea of beginnings when it comes to birth and life is so neat that they're all coming together in this idea of the race.

So again, what does this look like practically? I have been thinking about this, that one of the struggles that I've had, when you go through that refining process in your life, your story is your story, my story is mine. But for whatever reason, three times in my life that I know of, I seriously attempted suicide. And the one time I was really, really young and I have very faint memories of it, I've had God walk me through that one. The second time when I was on my 16th birthday, I remember well, because I'd been betrayed by a girlfriend and a friend of mine went out with my girlfriend.

It's sort of a double betrayal. And at the time, my parents were struggling with a divorce and I was in a dark place and I attempted suicide by taking a bunch of pills. And the third time was right before I got into Scientology, and somewhat comical, but it's just the dark place that I'd gotten myself into was I just was going to lay in my bed in the apartment that I lived in until I died.

And that was the decision that I had made. And then there was a knock on the door where somebody was selling the book Dianetics of Modern Science and Mental Health. And that's how I ended up not lying there till I died, because I read that book and got involved in the Church of Scientology. But I say all those three to say it was a process of like, oh my goodness, almost three times I took the life that he's talking about here before I was ever quick and spiritually. Before I ever had a chance to be born again, three times, in my own crazy ways, I attempted to end that. And again, I'll never know whether they were really cries for help or they were just craziness or certainly intact from the evil one that was getting me to go with some really stupid decisions. But the thing that occurs to me because I went through this with one member of my family.

And as I was speaking to I actually wrote them a letter. And I said, you know, the thing I did not perceive when I attempted these suicides that were it had I succeeded, I would have been murdering, not only myself, but I would have murdered my three children, right? And then their children and then you know, their children and oh my goodness, what what would have happened had I succeeded in ending that which God had clearly started. But due to the refining process, not only did I get a chance to live, but he's been teaching me so much along the way of what life is as a result of, you know, pouring out the dross. In other words, there was a lot of pain that through the fire, we get saved, not necessarily from the fire that we get saved. And through, you know, your life story, your process, that God would hold you up and save you because I had no concept I really didn't have all the lives that hung in the balance as a result of the life that I was thinking I could take, right. And so I say that just to say, you know, there's so much at stake here that God began something in you. You know, that's just the spiritual life. I mean, excuse me, that's just the physical life. I wonder how many people I've had some, you know, word in the process of them coming to know God, however that worked, whether that was actually, you know, I helped them pray the prayer or, you know, over the weekend, got a chance to baptize a guy, you know, whatever that was, that was my role in all those processes were all part of what God was doing in this life-giving process which, you know, I just really, again, I have more questions about this verse than I have answers, but the things that I do see are clearly God's womb is absolutely unbelievable and the word mercy has to do with how a mother has compassion on her child that certainly that was knit together in her womb. Well, I don't know if you'd considered that God certainly feels that way towards us because we were knit together with his purposes in mind. I mean, absolutely beautiful. And so thank you for listening and studying this with me.