When Life is Unfair

At first glance, this Psalm may strike one as arrogant. Who among us would dare to protest that we are blameless, or that we have not faltered, but have always been mindful of God's unfailing love and lived in reliance on his faithfulness (verses 1-3)? Are we not more likely to protest with the Psalmist in Psalm 14:2-3, "The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one" (even if we can't actually think of anything bad we have done recently)?

Part of the difficulty lies in the translation. In the ESV translation, verse 1 reads "Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity"; Eugene Peterson in The Message paraphrases it "I’ve kept an honest shop. I’ve thrown in my lot with you, God, and I’m not budging." Well, that sounds a little better than the absolute sinlessness of "blameless."

It helps, too, to understand this Psalm as the words of someone who has been unfairly treated. Perhaps they also had unkind and unfair motives attributed to them. We have probably all known this kind of situation.

But most of all, this is the language of wisdom literature, the black and white of Psalm 1. The world is divided into good and bad. In that case, I'm on the side of those who "not walk in step with the wicked, or stand in the way that sinners take, or sit in the company of mockers."

If you've been treated unfairly, you may well want to join with the Psalmist in Psalm 26. And, as a Christian, to thank Jesus Christ for preparing for you the "crown of righteousness" that you will really wear one day (2 Timothy 4:8).

Respond in Prayer

Thank you, Lord Jesus, that you do stand beside those who belong to you, and that even when we are misunderstood and badly treated, we are not alone. Thank you for all that you suffered for me on the cross. Amen.

Annabel Robinson

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®).