PSALMS - The Problem of Righteous Suffering in Psalms

THE PROBLEM OF RIGHTEOUS SUFFERING IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS
Introduction
The Book of Psalms is an anthology of poetical writings by various Old Testament personalities
and is mixed up with various, perhaps diverse concepts and themes. One such important aspect is
‘the problem of righteous suffering’. As lamentations have a peculiar place in the Psalms, ‘the
problem of righteous suffering’ also gains its esteem. This paper tries to elucidate ‘the problem of
righteous suffering’, its meaning and reasons, more in a theological way.
I. Definition of the terms ‘Righteous’ and ‘Suffering’

The term ‘righteous’ can be defined as ‘something or someone morally right and good’ 1 and
‘suffering’ is explained as ‘a feeling of physical or mental pain and happiness.’ 2 For ancient Israel,
‘righteousness’ was certainly “an inner quality, namely of normal psychological healthiness and the
power of self-assertion and of happiness, but the outcome of it was right behaviour and right
actions.”3 Righteous is also explained as poor and needy; meek, weak, broken in heart; one who
goes mourning, sigh, wake in the night season, and take no rest.4
II. ‘Righteous’ in the Psalter

One of the major themes in the Psalms is the distinction between the righteous and the wicked. The
two Hebrew terms qyiD:c and [:v<r are translated as ‘righteous’ and ‘wicked’ respectively. Other
words such as r:v<y (saint or godly), !Ay>b<a (poor or needy), and yIn<.[ (oppressed) are also
used to refer to a righteous, or godly or an upright person. Often hasid is also translated as ‘godly’
and ‘faithful’. It suggests ‘blameless and pure’ (Ps. 18:25b, 26). There is a clear implication that the
word ‘righteous’ points to the one exercises ‘loyalty’ and ‘steadfast love’. 5 These two broader
classifications of humans- righteous and wicked- are based on the relation in which they stands in
God’s view, or the qualities they manifest towards God and to one another. It also expresses the
moral and religious relations to one another in God’s sight.6
1
Sally Wehmeier, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, 2005 ed., s.v; “Righteous”, 1309.
2
Ibid, s.v; “Suffering”, 1534.
3
Sigmund Mownickel, The Psalms in Israel’s Worship, vol. 2, translated by D.R.AP-Thomas (Oxford: Basil
Blackwell, 1967), 14.
4
James Robertson, The Poetry and the Religion of the Psalms (Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons,
1994), 251.
5
Helmer Ringgeren, The Faith of the Psalmists (London: Student Christian Movement Press Limited, 1963), 39-40.
6
James Robertson, op.cit., 249-250.
1
The term ‘righteous’ does not employ the humans as an exclusive of imperfection or sin; but it says
that humans confess their sins and ask for mercy. They are on the side of the righteous Lord who
loved righteousness. They are God’s beloved and faithful ones. They are also described in Asaphic
Psalms as God’s turtle-dove (74:19), the generation of His children and the person of His right
hand (80:17).7 The wicked are the opposite of righteous and they are sinners, foolish, proud, and
they set their mouth against heaven. They are stiff-necked, scornful, boasters and rich.8
III. Suffering of Righteous in the Psalms

The sufferings of the psalmists are opposed to how they experienced God in the past and what they
had heard about God and God’s mighty deeds in the life of their ancestors. There are various
reasons for their sufferings. According to White, “A great deal is heard of hardship, personal and
social conflict, sickness, affliction, distress, poverty, and the fear of death. Much is said of ill
treatment at man’s hands, of oppression, slander, and injustice.” 9 The reasons for their sufferings
are as follows:
a. Suffering from enemies: One of the reasons for the misery of the righteous is the dispute from
their enemies. The enemies are described not only as the enemies of the righteous, but also as the
enemies of God. God’s enemies are the enemies of righteous, and indeed, being God’s enemies,
they actually show their enmity to God’s people. From this point of view a light is cast upon the
imprecatory Psalms. The persons whom the psalmists explain as bad, apparently for personal
wrongs, are described as the enemies of God and good.10 These enemies are treated as wicked in the
Psalms. They slander the righteous with their tongues which are as sharp swords. Even though the
righteous may lie down in peace under God’s protecting care, but on the morrow they have to stand
to their arms, or at least to be on the watch.
b. Physical, emotional and mental suffering: Apart from the attack of enemies, the righteous has
to suffer physically because of their poverty and sickness. Even though they are right and just, evil
is ruling over them. This makes them emotionally and mentally depressed. Thus they are in the
region of most delicate and spiritual experiences, and endeavouring to depict the most intense
feelings of the soul. 11
7
Ibid., 251.
8
Ibid., 252.
9
R.E.O. White, A Christian Handbook to the Psalms (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
1984), 7.
10
James Robertson, op. cit., 252-253.
11
Ibid., 254.
2
c. Silence of God: The greatest agony for the righteous is the silence of God or the perceived
distance and inaction from God. For example, “Lord, how long?” (6:3), “Why, O Lord, why do you
stand far off?” (10:1), “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from
helping me…?” (22:1).12
IV. Response of the Righteous against their Suffering

The response of the righteous can be seen as complaint to God for their suffering. It cannot be
traced as irreverence towards God. Complaint descends occasionally toward self pity and despair
(Ps.53); sometimes it rises to energetic protests (Ps.44); in other occasions it demands “Lord,
why…?”13 Through their prayers and petitions they express their reality, morbidity, harshness and
anguish to God. Their intension is to get a response from God more than that to get rid of from their
problem.
V. The Problem of Righteous Suffering in the Psalter

a. Rule of evil over good: It can be explicated as a perplexity of the realities of life. Here the
psalmist is completely confused about the seeming rule of the evil over good. Yahweh is the good
God and wants good in return. But the psalmist is confused that in the omnipotence of God, why
evil reigns over good. They also accuse Yahweh for the trouble.14 The league of evil men is against
the world of right, seeking their own gain and advancement, but all united in one common aversion
to God’s people.15
b. Perishing of the righteous: The attack of the enemies, long continued diseases and the rule of
evil result in the perishing of the righteous. The virtuous contemplate the near approach of death,
and sometimes lament that they are going down to Sheol, where they can no longer praise God.16
c. A reverse of ethical conceptions: The Jewish ethical consciousnesses of a righteous law, and a
common conviction of the existence of a righteous Ruler, are disturbed by the suffering of the
righteous.17 The wicked plotting against the just, the rich oppressing the poor, and the proud lording
it over those who have no support, all come against the ethical values.18
12
R.E.O. White, op. cit., 8.
13
Ibid.
14
Walter Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishers,
1984), 58.
15
James Robertson, op. cit., 254.
16
Ibid.
17
Ibid., 257.
18
Ibid., 256.
3
d. The real suffering and the rightness of God: As much as the sufferings were real so much was
the rightness of the God of Israel, Yahweh was real. The questions do not arise from the ignorance
of the psalmists; rather it is from their sure and time tested knowledge of Yahweh. The whole
concern deals with the consistency of God’s retribution, the reward of being righteous, God’s
headship over Israel and the significance of the covenant relationship with Israel.19
e. No sin, but suffering: The righteous are away from sins, but are at the mouth of torment. The
psalmist does not find any obvious sin as the reason for his sufferings. The psalmist asserts his self-
righteousness and looks confused and assumes that something is drastically wrong in the way God
has dealt with him. But he asks for his vindication, the clear justification of the morality of the
world, the longing to see right triumph over wrong (Ps. 26:2, 6; 43:1).20
VI. Theological Reflection

 The Old Testament ethical values are always encouraging people to do well and to live
morally and ethically. It presents a God, who vindicates and renders right kind of justice. God
destroys evil by the gleam of his light. But in the Psalms, even the righteous lives according
to ethical values, they have to suffer. We can see this suffering as a similar one as the
suffering of Job, which means that the suffering of the righteous is a testing by God to
measure their faith and steadfastness.
 The suffering of righteous can also be compared with the suffering of Jesus, the Messiah. He
finds himself in the sufferings of the alienated and orphans. Moreover, he redeemed the whole
humanity by undergoing himself to suffering, shame and afflictions.
 In the contemporary Indian society, the sufferings of the exploited communities like Dalits,
women, tribals and even Christians can be compared to the sufferings of the righteous. The
Book of Psalms enables the oppressed masses to understand God and develop their own
concept of God that emerges from their suffering experiences. God stands in solidarity with
the oppressed and the suffering and identifies Godself with the suffering humanity.
 As Christians, through our sufferings we can prove the depth of our faith, commitment,
dedication, loyalty and steadfastness to God, since sufferings are a testing tool of our
relationship to God.
Conclusion
19
Walter Brueggemann, op. cit.
20
George S. Gunn, God in the Psalms (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1956), 147.
4
The psalmist presents a view that God is present in all our struggles, enabling us to face the
sufferings with renewed faith, grace and strength, deepen our commitment towards God. Though it
has a lot of encouraging sounds during the time of sufferings, to be longing for God, but the
pleading of the righteous psalmist have led to many theological discussions regarding the justice
and rightness of God. Anyway, the Psalms give the view that righteous life is suffering and eternal
life is for those who remain in faithfulness in the midst of their sufferings.
Bibliography
Brueggemann, Walter. The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis:

Augsburg Publishers, 1984.
Gunn, George S. God in the Psalms. Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1956.
Mownickel, Sigmund. The Psalms in Israel’s Worship. Vol. 2. Translated by D.R.AP-Thomas.

Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1967.
Ringgeren, Helmer. The Faith of the Psalmists.London: Student Christian Movement Press
Limited, 1963.
Robertson, James. The Poetry and the Religion of the Psalms. Edinburgh and London: William
Blackwood and Sons, 1994.
Wehmeier, Sally. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English. 2005 ed. S.v;
“Righteous”, 1309.
White, R.E.O. A Christian Handbook to the Psalms. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans
Publishing Company, 1984.
Presented by:
Varghese Paul
(B.D. III Year)

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THE PROBLEM OF RIGHTEOUS SUFFERING IN THE BOOK OF PSALMS

I. Definition of the terms ‘Righteous’ and ‘Suffering’

II. ‘Righteous’ in the Psalter

III. Suffering of Righteous in the Psalms

IV. Response of the Righteous against their Suffering

V. The Problem of Righteous Suffering in the Psalter

VI. Theological Reflection

Brueggemann, Walter. The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary. Minneapolis:

Mownickel, Sigmund. The Psalms in Israel’s Worship. Vol. 2. Translated by D.R.AP-Thomas.

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