The Mother Syndrome

May Your compassion come to me so that I may live, for Your Law is my delight.  Psalm 119:77  NASB

Compassion – “Go for it!”  Yes, that’s the sense of the “May come to me Your compassion.”  You’ll notice I rearranged the syntax to match the Hebrew which begins with yebō’ûnî (from the verb bôʾ.  Of course, you know that this verb means “to go,” not literally “to come.”  The fact that it is translated “come” indicates only the point of view of the author.  Is he receiving or sending?  Same action—different perspective.  We should also notice that the verb is imperfect.  This isn’t a onc-time request.  It’s an on-going appeal.  Send it—over and over—continuously.

Why?  Because without His continuous “compassion,” my life is finished.  We don’t think about this often.  We just go along assuming that life continues on its own.  But if it all depends on God, if I cease to exist should God withhold His compassion, then I’d better know what this “compassion” really is.  We discover that it is the very familiar word rāḥam, the first word God uses to describe Himself in His announcement to Moses (Exodus 34:6).  A quick definition might be “a feeling of love,” but this hardly does justice to the depth of the term:

The depth of this love is shown by the connection of this word with reḥem/raḥam. Compare, Isaiah (49:15) who uses it of a mother’s love toward her nursing baby. It can also refer to a father’s love (Ps 103:13). Apparently, this verb connotes the feeling of mercy which men have for each other by virtue of the fact that they are human beings (Jer 50:42) and which is most easily prompted by small babies (Isa 13:18) or other helpless people.

This root is frequently used of God. It incorporates two concepts: first, the strong tie God has with those whom he has called as his children (Ps 103:13). God looks upon his own as a father looks upon his children; he has pity on them (cf. Mic 7:19). The second concept is that of God’s unconditioned choice (ḥānēn, grace). God tells Moses that he is gracious and merciful to whomever he chooses (Ex 33:19).

There are several ideas attached to God’s deep, tender love: first, the unconditional election of God (Ex 33:19); next, his mercy and forgiveness toward his people in the face of deserved judgment and upon the condition of their repentance (Deut 13:17 [H 18]); also, God’s continuing mercy and grace in preserving his unrepentant people from judgment (II Kgs 13:23). Thus this attribute becomes the basis in part of an eschatological hope (cf. Isa 14:1; 49:13; 54:7; Jer 12:15; 33:26; Ezk 34:25; Mic 7:19; Zech 1:16).^[1]

You could hardly imagine a closer or deeper bond, and that’s what the psalmist yearns to feel.  He knows that without this bond, his life is pointless, a blip of transitory existence in an unfeeling cosmic machine.  And that is the reason he can employ šǎ·ʿ^ǎšǔ·ʿîm (delight).  It’s not enough to simply cognitively appreciate God’s creative act.  For life to be full, this act must become the compassionate, emotional connection between Creator and created.  I need a God who cares about me, not a God who just made me and left me to fend for myself.  The great tragedy of modern evolutionary theory is its inability to address purpose and without purpose we have no real reason to continue.  The only rational answer to blind fate is suicide.  The poet delights in the fact that God’s care is expressed in tangible instructions.  Those instructions are the difference between loving to life and giving it up.

Topical Index: ḥānēn, grace, rāḥam, compassion, purpose, šǎ·ʿ^ǎšǔ·ʿîm, delight, Psalm 119:77

^[1] Coppes, L. J. (1999). 2146 רָחַם. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament(electronic ed., p. 842). Moody Press.