Psalm 139 (138):21Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

God has declared His intention to stand against those who oppose Him, marking His loyalty to His friends, as seen in the verses 'I am greatly honoured by thy friends, O God' and ‘have I not hated them that hate thee’. This sentiment is expressed with a strong emphasis, for not only is there a declaration of ‘hatred,’ but also of having ‘crushed’ enemies.

Our Lord Jesus Christ communicates through the Prophets, at times speaking in His own name and at other times in ours, as He unites Himself with us, reflecting the truth that two shall become one flesh. This unification is evident in the Gospel where the Lord speaks of marriage, stating they are no longer two but one flesh. He assumed a human form due to our mortality, yet He remains divine, the Creator while we are His creations. Thus, anything spoken by our Lord in the flesh He has embodied pertains to both the Head who has ascended to heaven and to the members who continue their earthly journey. Let us listen to our Lord Jesus Christ as He speaks through the prophecies. The psalms were sung long before the incarnation of Mary, though not prior to His divinity; He has been the Creator since eternity, but in due time, He was born of His own creation. Let us have faith in the divine nature of God and, as much as we are able, comprehend Him as coequal with the Father. This divinity, equal to the Father, accepted our mortal nature, not from Himself but from us, that we too might share in His divine essence, not derived from our nature but from His.

"Lord, Thou hast examined me, and Thou knowest me" (Psalm 138:1). Let the Lord Jesus Christ acknowledge this, as He addresses the Father: "Lord." Despite His Father being His Lord, He chose to assume flesh at birth; He is indeed the Father of God, the Lord of Man. Do you know who He calls Father? The equal Son. The apostle notes, "Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be exploited" (Philippians 2:6-7). This form belongs to the Father, equal to Himself, the only begotten Son, born of His very essence. For our sake, so that we might be transformed and could share in His divine nature, having been renewed to eternal life, He embraced our mortal state. What does the Apostle say? "He emptied Himself, taking upon Him the form of a servant, made in the likeness of men and found in fashion as a man." He existed in the form of God, equal to the Father; He took on the form of a servant to become less than the Father.

"You have known my sitting down and my rising up" (Psalm 138:2). What does it mean to sit or rise? The one who sits humbles himself. The Lord sat during His Passion and rose at His Resurrection. You recognized it; that is, You willed it and approved it; by Your will it was accomplished. If you accept the words spoken by the Head in the role of the Body: a man sits when he humbles himself in repentance and rises when sins are forgiven, lifting him up to the hope of eternal life. Do not elevate yourselves unless you first humble yourselves. Many wish to stand before they have knelt, attempting to appear just before admitting their sins.

"You have understood my thoughts from afar; You have established my path and my limit" (Psalm 138:3); “and all my ways were before You” (Psalm 138:4). What does it mean to be afar? While I am still on my journey through life, before I reach my true homeland, You have known my thoughts. The prodigal son went to a distant land, and after labor, sorrow, and need, he thought of his father and wished to return, saying, "I will arise and go to my father." He resolved to arise, indicating his preparedness to act. Here we see: "You knew how I sat down and rose up." I sat in want and rose in hunger for Your Bread. You understood my thoughts from a distance. I journeyed far indeed, but where can He not be found whom I have abandoned? This is why the Lord proclaimed in the Gospel that the father encountered him while he was still far off. Indeed, He recognized his thoughts from afar. "My way," he laments; what other way was it than the wrong path that led him to leave his father? What is my way? The path I took. What is my limit? What I achieved. You have traced my journey and my boundaries. Even this far-off limit was within Your gaze. I traveled extensively yet You were present. All my paths were known to You beforehand; He did not say "saw," but "saw in advance." Before I ventured through them, before I embarked upon them, You observed them first; and You permitted me to journey in labor so that if I would not labor, I might return to Your ways. There is no deceit on my tongue. What does this mean? I confess, Lord, that I have strayed from You, distancing myself from You, choosing what was detrimental while ignoring what was beneficial, having departed from You.

"Behold, O Lord, You know all my deeds, both last and ancient" (Psalm 138:5). You knew my final actions when I kept swine; You recognized my earlier deeds when I requested my share. Those early actions led to the newest sorrows: the ancient sin at our fall, and the final chastisement when we entered into this weary and perilous mortality. And if this was our last chance; so it will also be in the end for those wicked souls to whom it will be proclaimed, “Go into eternal fire” (Matthew 25:41). You fashioned me and laid Your hand upon me. Where were You shaping me? In this mortality; for the labors which we are born to undertake. For no one is born who was not created by God in his mother’s womb; no being exists whose maker is not God. You have created me amidst this labor and placed upon me Your punishing hand, with Your avenging hand humbling the proud. In this manner, He has brought down the arrogant to bring honor to the humble.

Your artistry has marvellously shown itself in me; it has become formidable: I cannot reach it (Psalm 138:6). Pay attention now, as there lies something obscure yet pleasurable in its understanding. Moses, that holy servant of God to whom God spoke through the cloud, needed to communicate through some work of His hands. He longed to witness the reality of God's presence, saying to God, "If indeed I have found favor in Your sight, show me Yourself" (Exodus 33:13). When he eagerly desired to glimpse God's Glory and Face, God responded with: "You cannot see My face, for no one can gaze upon My face and live" (Exodus 33:20). "I will place you in the cleft of the rock; I will pass by you, and you will see My back." Within these words lies another mystery, an elusive image of truth. "When I pass by," God states, "you shall see My back," suggesting a distinction between a face and a back. We cannot harbor such notions about this Majesty! For if anyone envisions God in such a manner, what does it profit them that the temples are closed? They merely construct an idol in their heart. These statements hold profound mysteries; those who once were furious with the Lord they could see now seek guidance on salvation and are told: "Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins" (Acts 2:38). Behold, they saw His back, whom they could not behold face-to-face; for His hand once covered their eyes but was withdrawn after He passed. Upon the removal of His hand, they questioned the disciples: "What must we do now?" First they were filled with wrath, then love; first angry, then fearful; first hardhearted, then gentle; first blind, then enlightened.

Moreover, consider that a fugitive in a distant land cannot escape the gaze of the one from whom they flee. Where can one go when their bounds have been exceeded? Does he not declare, "Where shall I flee from Your Spirit?" (Psalm 138:7). Who among men can evade the Spirit that imbues the entire world? "Where shall I flee from Your presence?" He seeks a refuge from the wrath of God. What location can shield a fugitive from God’s sight? Those who offer refuge to fugitives wonder who pursues them; when they discover a slave of a master weaker than themselves, they hide him, assuring themselves he is safe. But upon learning of a powerful lord, they hesitate to shelter him or do so with fear; indeed, not even a powerful man can deceive God. Who is unseen by God? From whom does God not seek accountability? Where can that fugitive run from the gaze of God? They twist about restlessly as if searching for a sanctuary.

"If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I descend into hell, You are present" (Psalm 138:8). Finally, wretched fugitive, you have grasped that you cannot elude Him from whom you've sought escape. Behold, He is everywhere; where shall you go? He has found guidance, guidance inspired by Him who deigned to remember it. If, having sinned, I plunge into the abyss of wickedness, denying confession, claiming, "Who sees me?" (for in Hades, who confesses to You?), You are there, present as punishment. Where can I run from Your presence, so as to avoid Your anger? He devises a plan: "I will flee from Your presence, from Your Spirit, from Your vengeful Spirit, from Your wrathful gaze." How? "If I ascend with wings and dwell in the farthest parts of the sea" (Psalm 138:9). Thus, may I escape Your face. If he flees to the distant shores of the ocean, will not the One he seeks to escape still be there? For what is the end of the sea but the extremity of the world? Let us now run in hope, propelled by a double love, seeking rest only in the farthest reaches of the sea. For if we aspire to rest elsewhere, we will be plunged into the depths. Let us soar towards the ocean's edge, carrying the wings of double love; alongside this, let us hasten towards God in hope, and with assured hope, let us reflect at the opposite end of the sea.

Now, take heed of the One who can guide us there—the very One from whom, in anger, we wish to flee. What follows? "There Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will hold me" (Psalm 138:10). Reflect on this, beloved brethren; let it be our hope and comfort. Let us reclaim the wings lost due to lust through love. For lust has been the glue holding our wings down, causing our descent from the free air of God’s Spirit. As we fell, we lost our wings, becoming captive to the fowler; from this captivity, He redeemed us with His blood, the one to whom we fled and became ensnared. He grants us the wings of His commandments; we now lift them in freedom. We must possess wings, and surely He will guide us, for He is our Helper. We have free will; yet with this free will, what can we accomplish unless He who commands aids us?

Regarding the breadth of the journey, what did he think to himself? "Perhaps darkness will envelop me."

"Behold, now I have believed in Christ, now I am uplifted on the wings of double love." Concerning the length of the journey, I spoke to myself: the night shone brightly in my joy. The night became radiant because, in my despair, I worried about traversing such a vast sea, conquering such a long voyage, reaching the most distant shores, persevering until the end. I give thanks to Him who sought me when I was a fugitive, who struck my back with the scourge, who called me back from perdition, who transformed my night into light. For as long as we live in this life, night comes. How did night illuminate? Because Christ descended into the night. "For darkness shall not encompass you" (Psalm 138:12). Do not let your darkness overshadow you; God doesn’t deepen it but instead brings additional light; for another psalm declares: "You, O Lord, will light my candle: my God shall illuminate my darkness." Yet, who darkens their darkness so that God does not enlighten it? Those who are wicked and perverse; when they sin, they embody darkness; when they refuse to confess their transgressions, defending them instead, they deepen their darkness. So, you find yourself in darkness due to your sins; however, through confession, you shall receive the illumination of your soul; but by justifying your sins, you further darken your soul. How can you seek escape from compounded darkness if you couldn’t endure even singular darkness? Let us refrain from darkening our hearts by defending our iniquities, and the night shall turn into light in our joy.

It is not challenging for us, should we choose, to cultivate a love for truth and a loathing for wickedness. God has bestowed upon the rational spirit all the faculties necessary, including the ability to love and the ability to detest, so that through reason we might embrace righteousness and reject sin. There are times when expressing hatred is commendable.

Is it not true that those who oppose You, O Lord, truly oppose You? I cherished and welcomed Your companions; however, I utterly despised Your adversaries. The enemies of God are, first and foremost, the unclean spirits; and secondly, those who promote idolatry and heresy.

Question: Why does it say about heretics: do not those who oppose You, Lord, truly despise You? In another passage, it states: consider them as adversaries of God. Yet again, Scripture mentions: do not harbor hatred towards your brother (Leviticus 19:17)? Answer: Heretics, regarded as blasphemers and foes of God, are not referred to as humans in Scripture but rather as dogs, wolves, swine, and antichrists. As the Lord proclaims, do not cast what is sacred to the dogs (Matt. 7:6). And John notes, ‘there are many antichrists’ (1 John 2:18). Thus, they should not be loved or nurtured; we should refrain from praying, dining with them, receiving them into our homes, or greeting them, so that we do not partake in their wicked actions.

My heart is committed to Your love, O Lord; I desire to embrace both love and hate in unity with You. Consequently, I cherish and respect those who strive to bring You joy, and while I detest those who oppose You, my sorrow for them is genuine. Although I view them as unrighteous, my compassion for them as fellow human beings moves me to lament, even as I scorn their profound deceit.

Do not those who oppose You, O Lord, truly despise You, and do I not stand against Your adversaries? With a profound disdain, I am their target, as they become my foes. In speaking of the friends of God, I previously expressed deep respect for them; now, however, I declare my aversion for the enemies of God. I, O Lord, detest those who oppose You. Just as my esteem for God’s friends was remarkable, as they are indeed honorable, so too was my enmity towards the enemies of God profound, ignited by the fervent discontent I felt towards them, leading me to fast in my grief. An unnamed source in Nikita states that one who despises mental adversaries possesses a complete and absolute loathing, untouched by movement, action, or thought—indicative of the utmost detachment.

Let us despise those deserving of contempt and turn away from those whom God has rejected. With unwavering courage, let us address God regarding all heretics, saying, “Do not those who oppose you, O Lord, also detest you, and despise your enemies? For there exists a righteous enmity, as it is written.”

The holy individuals, inspired by the boldness of the divine message, courageously provoke the animosity of those they know do not cherish God. The Prophet, expressing this passion, saw it as an obligation to the Creator of all, proclaiming, ‘Do not those who hate Thee, O Lord, hate Thee; and of Thy enemies I stand? With utter hatred I was hated: they were my enemies.’ Essentially, he implores: Judge, O Lord, the depth of my devotion to Thee, for I am unafraid to incite the wrath of Thy adversaries.

Shall I not detest those who oppose you, O Lord? The prophet David expressed, ‘I abhor them with complete loathing: they are my adversaries. Who are these that stand against the Lord, the genuine foes of God's anointed, whose animosity I fully reject? They are all who practice wickedness, as he identifies them, all the unrighteous of the earth, concerning whom he declares, I will expel the one who secretly maligns his neighbor; I will not endure the arrogant before my sight, nor the conceited in his heart. The one who engages in deceit shall not reside in my dwelling; he who utters falsehoods shall not stand before me (Psalm 100:8, 5, 7).

These words clearly demonstrate that David cherished the glory of God to such an extent that he could not bear those who scorned Him. The essence of his message reveals his complete rejection of the works of darkness. Engaging in sin and remaining silent about it makes one a deceitful traitor to God's cause and provokes the wrath of God, who instructs us to uphold His justice. Thus, it is understandable that someone who is wholly devoted to God expresses disdain for those who oppose Him and is filled with anguish when witnessing the derision directed at his Lord by the wicked.