The inimitable Mark Twain must have read this psalm before writing his antiwar short story “The War Prayer” late in life. The satirical tale was so “on the mark” that it wasn’t published until after Twain’s death. Basically, he says that when Christians pray for victory in war, these followers of a loving Christ are tacitly asking God to rain down death and devastation on a group of people.
This 35th Psalm is longer than most and — like so many others — mainly about war, a relevant topic that has bombarded us ever since Russia invaded Ukraine without provocation two years ago, and more so since the Arab terrorist junta Hamas attacked Israel two weeks ago. And this psalm has everyone — the soldier, sailor, beggar man, thief; the cowboy, rich man, Indian chief.
Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration — not to mention politically incorrect — but all is fair in love and war, right? And war is hell, right? Sherman said that, I think. And, generally speaking, didn’t Patton say, “The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his”? That sure ain’t Christian. But neither was King David — nor ol’ Mark Twain, for that matter.