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Bible Bit

Lord, I have given up my pride
and turned away from my arrogance.
I am not concerned with great matters
or with subjects too difficult for me.
Instead, I am content and at peace.
As a child lies quietly in its mother’s arms,
so my heart is quiet within me.
Israel, trust in the Lord now and forever!

Psalm 131

Amid the pomp and celebration of the Book of Psalms, these words form a quiet oasis. Amid the pressure and intellectualism of university life, they are again a relief. Of course, to give up the challenge of ‘subjects too difficult’ isn’t the best plan in terms of degrees and academia, but it is nice to know, to remember, that there are other ways of learning and measuring progress. David felt the need to acknowledge this before God — I guess that’s why this psalm was written. Yet he was King of Israel: what room did he have for humility?

On election night, many of the victorious, newly elected spoke of being humbled by such an opportunity to serve: there they were in sudden positions of power, very much concerned with great matters, and they said it was humbling. Nelson Mandela, in his inaugural speech as South Africa’s president, seemed to reject the psalm’s approach altogether: “Your playing small doesn’t serve the world,” he said. “There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure about you … As we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” The most incredible version of this paradox comes from God — omnipotent Creator of the world, who enters it as the kind of child David describes, enters our hearts too and sits quietly there. Perhaps Psalm 131 is after all concerned with a great matter, with a subject very difficult to grasp: how can the calm and contentment of humility really be held on to, when we all have to push and shout, and are all so powerful? The beginning of the answer, however, is in the Psalm’s final line.

Heather Colgate

Last modified: 25th November 2005