Verse of the Day for November 2

Psalm 7 is written by a man who has been lied about. The heading names a Benjamite called Cush, and the whole psalm is David asking God to judge between them.

Verse 16 is almost grim. His mischief shall return upon his own head, David says, and the old word pate just means the top of the skull. Trouble thrown upward comes back down on the one who threw it.

What David does not do is throw anything himself. He leaves the falling to God, and his very next step is a song. I will praise the LORD according to his righteousness.

That phrase sets the measure. He is not praising according to how the week went, or according to whether his name has been cleared yet. He is praising according to who God is, and God's fairness is not on trial even when David's reputation is.

If someone has spoken against you at work or in the family, you may lie awake rehearsing replies. The next step here is smaller than a reply. Hand the judging over, then thank God for being righteous, even before you see it, even standing in the queue at the bank.

You do not have to settle every account before you are allowed to praise.

God's fairness is the measure of your thanks, not the outcome of the argument.