Lenten Devotional, Day 31: Stave of Six

Dear Saints,

Friday our Readings are Psalm 130, Ezekiel 36:8–15, Revelation 11:15–19.

Just a small offering today, here is another take on Psalm 130 looking at the many senses of "mark."

REFLECTION TWO ON PSALM 130

(stave of six)

Mark not Your servant's sin—turn face away!

If You would bend the bow, Your aim is true.

Before You who can stand—since all men sway?

And purity meets measure in but You?

If serpent stain is healed by nehustan,

Then more my birthmarked soul by Son of Man.

Note:

• A stave is the same as a stanza.  And a stave of six is a fun length to summarize some dilemma/thought.  It rhymes ababcc.  In this case the lines are iambic pentameter.  This form can have a problem-solution, tension-resolve feel.  That is the present case: The quatrain presents a problem/tension and the couplet solves/resolves.

• I was struggling for a couple hours to find a rhyme for the couplet (while listening to a lecture).  Finally, I thought of the nehustan (the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness meant to foreshadow the Cross).  It made for a great contrast.  The nehustan healed wo/man's outer stain/mark; the Cross healed wo/man's deeper stain/mark.  Hence "birthmark" is used in the sense of original sin.

• Beyond Psalm 130, it also alludes in order: 2 Peter 3:9; Romans 2:4; Psalm 51:9; Revelation 16:7; Psalm 19:9, 119:137; James 3:2; Psalm 107:27; James 1:13; Numbers 21:4–9; John 3:14–15; Psalm 51:5; Romans 5:12; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22.

• Lent 2026.

The Only Best in/is Christ,

tIM