Psalm 109:8

Psalm 109:8

May his days be few

! Kings 21:1-29 contains the story of Naboth’s vineyard. Naboth lived in a northern city of Israel called Jezreel, in the Megiddo Valley, not far from the palace of the king who was Ahab and whose wife’s name was Jezebel. Ahab coveted Naboth’s vineyard, its proximity to the palace made it a perfect place for a vegetable garden. So, Ahab offered to buy the plot or to exchange it for some even better land close by. Naboth absolutely refused, not least because it was part of his family’s original inheritance in the land of Israel and it was not to be bought or sold, such a venture would be in direct contravention of God’s law. (Leviticus 25:23) Ahab went into a sulk and his wife hatched a scheme to get the plot of land for him. 

Jezebel’s scheme involved arranging a holy day of fasting and inviting the elders of the city gather together with Naboth as a prominent guest. Two scoundrels were primed to attend the meeting and to make accusations against Naboth, they accused him of cursing God and the king. The poor man was hauled off to be stoned to death and Jezebel then gleefully told her husband that he could now go and take possession of the dead man’s vineyard. Enter Elijah the prophet, who was instructed by the Lord to confront Ahab, not only to condemn his actions but to pronounce a death sentence on Jezebel and disaster upon the king and his descendants.

Turn back the clock a few years and we find King David in a similar situation. Today’s verse tells us the Lord God is not to be messed with, He judges the wicked and brings retribution upon those who flagrantly oppose Him. It seems that in David’s case, his accuser was not only plotting his downfall but also his demise. Maybe he was also plotting a coup and David felt he had enough evidence to pray for the early death of his antagonist and for another to take his place. This is not so much a request for vengeance as for justice. There is a big difference!

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