David, in his psalm begging the Lord to rescue him from evildoers, spoke pointedly of those who used words to foster violence.

They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent’s; the poison of vipers is on their lips…May slanderers not be established in the land; may disaster hunt down the violent.

David’s prayer remains up to date, because slanderers are indeed well established in our land. Misrepresentation makes for tantalizing reading. Defamations bubble across our social media platforms like an overflowing cesspool. Atrocious ideas seep like poison into our minds.

Without doubt, social media is the most powerful disseminator of ignorance in human history.

Yet we cannot escape. But we can pray with David that the slanderers of our day don’t settle in and get comfortable. We can pray for the constant upheaval of those with poisonous tongues. We can beg the Lord to intervene.

Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy, Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer…Do not grant the wicked their desires, Lord; do not let their plans succeed.

In a world where evil ideas often gain ascendency, I take hope in David’s cry for mercy. May the Lord grant the same to us.

Psalm 140 in reading the Bible in 2023

Photo by Guillaume de Germain