And thou, O Lord of hosts, prover of the just, who seest the reins and the heart: let me see, I beseech thee, thy vengeance on them: for to thee I have laid open my cause.
וַיהוָ֤ה צְבָאוֹת֙ בֹּחֵ֣ן צַדִּ֔יק רֹאֶ֥ה כְלָי֖וֹת וָלֵ֑ב אֶרְאֶ֤ה נִקְמָֽתְךָ֙ מֵהֶ֔ם כִּ֥י אֵלֶ֖יךָ גִּלִּ֥יתִי אֶת־רִיבִֽי׃
2 Church Fathers comment on this verse
O Lord, you who tempt the righteous. I mention this so that when you hear the divine command, "Pray not," and observe the prophet in prayer, you will not perceive humanity as superior to the Divine, but rather understand the distinction. Behold him who, with the slightest offense, becomes distressed and insulted, even though he knows he will ultimately find safety and peace, while God is continuously exalted yet subjected to severe and painful slights.
O Lord of Hosts, You who examine the just and perceive both the inner being and the heart. I beseech You to reveal Your retribution upon them, for I have entrusted my plea to You. Only the Lord can assess the righteous, as He alone perceives into the depths of the heart. Thus, Jesus, who guides the thoughts of humanity, is not God by mere preeminence, as some may presume, but by His very essence. The Psalms echo this sentiment: “Every living person will not be justified before thee” (Psalm 142:2). If even a virtuous individual cannot claim justification, how much more justified is the one who sacrificed for the sins of many? Although the righteous are aware that God stands as their defender, human frailty leads them to yearn to witness what they trust will come to pass.
They present their case before God, who assures in another passage, “I will have vengeance, I will repay, saith the Lord” (Deuteronomy 32:35). Blessed is the conscience that lays bare its deeds to the Lord, as the Apostle points out: all that is made known is light (Eph. 5:13).
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS