Psalms Project: Psalm 16

More Psalms. Should be a good time. Today we are going to see not really a wholistic interpretation of a Psalm. Our Psalm this week is Psalm 16. Unfortunately, the Psalm is very long and complicated. In short, it chronicles the entirety of someone's restoration to and with God. Let me show you:

Psalm 16

A miktam of David.

1 Keep me safe, my God,
    for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
    apart from you I have no good thing.”
3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
    “They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
    I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
    or take up their names on my lips.
5 Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;
    you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
    surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the Lord, who counsels me;
    even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the Lord.
    With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
    my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
    nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
    you will fill me with joy in your presence,
    with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

There is a lot of talk about being safe in God and with God. I decided not to talk about that too much. However, I really love the 6th verse, "the boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places." Pleasant boundary lines.

We normally talk about boundary lines as punishments. They are to be avoided. However, this talks about pleasant boundaries. I had a friend a few years ago who, in his backyard, had a creek that marked the edge of their yard. They had a creek instead of a fence and I loved it. I would go down to this boundary, this pleasant boundary, and wander for hours. So that is what I wrote about:

Virginia

-“The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places.”

Psalm 16:6

The creek behind my parents’ house

Runs from South to Northeast.

It bleeds brown and green into

The mossy rocks of wooded Virginia.

I sink my hairless feet to the bottom,

Let the mud slide between my toes,

Into my nails, slinking onto my soles.

The creek marks the edge of snowy fields.

My ancestors forget to tame Shenandoah.

Beyond that blue mountain

Lie rivers of whiskey and birds that sing banjos.

I unearth a family of faceless worms.

They shower my feet with kisses and

Ignite my spine.