God's Law: Unmediated vs. Mediated
by Russell Rathbun
Psalm Reading: Psalm 19
For Sunday, October 2, 2011: Year A-Ordinary 27
The night whispers knowledge, the testimony of the Lord is perfect, and I hope the words of my mouth are acceptable.
Three Voices
There are three voices in this Psalm. The first is the undiminishable singing, whispering, shinning proclamaition of the natural world. The heavens tell of the glory of God. The sun comes from his dwelling in the sea, like a bridegroom full of expectation and joy.
The second is the voice of the law. It is perfect, trust worth and makes the foolish wise. It also warns God’s servant and convicts God’s servant of hidden sins, moving him to confession and to seek restoration that he might be perfect like the law.
The final voice is that of the servant hoping at the end that his confession will be acceptable to his Lord.
Different Reactions
The voice of the natural world and the voice of the law seem to inspire very different reactions. In bearing witness to the glory of God, the first voice seems to arouse praise and awe in the psalmist, while the voice of the law causes the psalmist to rest not on the vision of God but to turn to himself, find himself lacking and to seek perfection.
Immediate & Mediate
These different tones of voice could result from the fact these are two different psalms stacked together. Verses 1 – 6 are a nature Psalm and verses 7 – 14 make up the law Psalm. Why did the redactors put them together? Can we read the doctrine of Law and Gospel back into the impulse?
It does feel like there is some attempt at striking a balance. The voice of the natural world in praise of God is forceful and dynamic, but with out the clarifying of vss. 7-14 it could be read as a Psalm to the sun god who runs his course like a strong man and from whom nothing is hidden from his heat.
The Hardest Question
The voice of creation turns us to praise of God, while the voice of law turns us to ourselves. Does the unmediated law of God written in creation contain a power that God’s law mediated by people lacks?
