You, LORD, showed favor to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. – Psalm 85:1

Today's Scripture Reading (August 4, 2022): Psalm 85

One of my favorite Bruce Springsteen songs has to be "Glory Days." Maybe it is just the shared experience because most of us have thought nostalgically back on our own "Glory Days." The first verse of the song is actually autobiographical for Springsteen. It recalls the days back in the early 1970s when he played baseball with a kid named Joe DePugh. And so, the first verse of Springsteen's hit is about a real-life meeting between Springsteen and DePugh many years later;

            I had a friend who was a big baseball player

            Back in high school

            He could throw that speedball by you

            Make you look like a fool boy

Saw him the other night at this roadside bar

I was walking in, he was walking out

We went back inside sat down had a few drinks

But all he kept talking about was

Glory days, well they'll pass you by

Glory days, in the wink of a young girls eye

Glory days, glory days.

We know the experience. We understand the time we spend trying to relive our own glory days. Or maybe Springsteen's words remind us of our version of Joe DePugh, who lives amidst our circle of friends. These friends only seem to be able to live their lives looking back into the past for their "Glory Days."

It is hard to put a date on Psalm 85. The Psalm is ascribed to the "Sons of Korah," but the "Sons of Korah" were active during the days of David after having been shaped by the ministry of Samuel. The "Sons of Korah" also ministered during the generations that followed David. And it seems they either survived the Babylonian captivity or reformed after the exile ended.

And so the first verse mentions, "you restored the fortunes of Jacob." A more literal translation is that God "brought Israel back from captivity." But part of the problem is that the word "captivity" automatically takes us to the years of the Babylonian exile. And so the temptation is to place this Psalm late in the history of Israel, assuming that it was written in the hard years that followed the exile in Babylon. But it also might not mean that. There were several times in Israel's history when the Israelites were essentially made captives in their own land. And so, the New International Version opts to use the phrase "restored the fortunes" instead of captivity.

But more important than the actual events indicated by the word captivity is that when Israel looked back, they were encouraged not to see their 'Glory Days" but rather God's mercy. Reliving our "Glory Days" robs from our future all of the possibilities of life, exchanging it for a memory that might not exist anywhere but in our minds. Remembering God's mercy sets us up to make the most of tomorrow, because the mercy of God that was present in our past is still a current factor in our today and in our tomorrow.    

Today's Scripture Reading: Psalms 87 & 88