Psalm 16 (15)
The Lord is my inheritance. God is my share of inheritance: I chose him as my only Lord and I will rejoice in him for all eternity.
1 Keep me safe, O God,
for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord,
“You are my Lord, my only good.”
3 The gods of the earth are but nothing,
cursed be those who delight in them.
4 Those who run after foreign gods
only have their sorrows multiplied.
Let me not shed blood for them,
nor their names be heard on my lips.
5 O Lord, my inheritance and my cup,
my chosen portion – hold secure my lot.
6 The best part has been allotted to me.
Delightful indeed is my inheritance!
7 I bless the Lord who counsels me;
even at night my inmost self instructs me.
8 I keep the Lord always before me;
for with him at my right hand,
I will never be shaken.
9 My heart, therefore, exults, my soul rejoices;
my body too will rest assured.
10 For you will not abandon
my soul to the grave,
nor will you suffer your holy one
to see decay in the land of the dead.
11 You will show me the path of life,
in your presence the fullness of joy,
at your right hand happiness forever.
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Comments Psalms, Chapter 16
The Israelites lived among pa gan nations, but even among the people, many shared the pa gan superstitions while professing their faith in one God. When they took part in sacrifices offer ed to local gods, they mixed idol a try with the practice of true faith.
The author of this psalm is doubt less a Levite, a priest. In the past when God divided the Promised Land among the tribes, he said to the Levites: “I will be your part of inheritance.” Now he guides this Levite amidst the compromises of a people more un faithful than faithful.
The commitment of the psalmist is so unconditional that he does not think that even death can sever his relationship with God (vv. 10-11).
You will not abandon my soul to the grave. The psalmist is certain that God can deliver him from this dark, sad place, which, according to the belief of that time, was the dwelling place of the dead. He will place him at his right forever.
From the beginning, Chris tians took these words as applying especially to the risen Jesus (Acts 2:25 and 13:35).
Loyalty to God does not mean hostility towards those who follow another religion. This loyalty asks of us on the contrary to look more closely at our attachment to all the little gods that encumber our life. Let us not sacrifice our Christian identity on the altar of money.