TOGETHER ON THE ROAD
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Opening Prayer
Father, thank you that out of your grace and mercy you forgive my wrongs; help me to graciously and mercifully forgive those who wrong me.
Read PSALM 129
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
A song of ascents.
1 “They have greatly oppressed me from my youth,”
let Israel say;
2 “they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,
but they have not gained the victory over me.
3 Plowmen have plowed my back
and made their furrows long.
4 But the Lord is righteous;
he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.”
5 May all who hate Zion
be turned back in shame.
6 May they be like grass on the roof,
which withers before it can grow;
7 a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,
nor one who gathers fill his arms.
8 May those who pass by not say to them,
“The blessing of the Lord be on you;
we bless you in the name of the Lord.”
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
In what ways does your Christian community remember and celebrate God’s provisions and protection?This psalm is one of the processional songs used by pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. The first four verses function more like a creed or a testimony than a prayer. The phrase ‘Let Israel say’ (v. 1) is in the mouth of a service leader, encouraging those on pilgrimage to join in: together they are Israel, and while their story has been one of opposition and struggle, no enemy has ever gained final victory. They remain a people sustained by God’s presence and justice. In spite of others’ determination to make them suffer (v. 3), God has cut them free (v. 4).
Ascending to the heights of Zion, the heart of their nation and its faith, the psalm becomes a prayer that all who wish to oppress Israel will be turned back in defeat (v. 5); that they will be like a failed harvest (vv. 6–8a). In the concluding lines, while God’s people flourish, he prays that Israel’s enemies will never experience God’s blessing. Remember today how God has blessed you, your family, and your church. Remember that you need not fear adversity; God will never disappoint you.
Apply
Together we are a chosen people (1 Peter 2:9, 10). In what ways do you see this being worked out in your Christian community?
Closing prayer
Jesus, thank you for the reconciliation that is mine in you. ‘Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury pardon’.
*Francis of Assisi 1181–1226
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