"O GOD, show YOUR mercy to me, for my foes are in hot pursuit; they press their attack on me all the time.
My accusers pursue me all day long; many attack me. But when I am afraid, O Mighty One, I put my trust in YOU;
YOU have a record of my laments; my tears are stored in YOUR wineskin. Are they not written on YOUR scroll?
My enemies turn back when I call on YOU for help; now I know, that GOD is for me.
In GOD, whose word I praise; in GOD I trust, without fear. What can mortals do against me?
I am bound to YOU by vows, O GOD; I shall offer my thanksgiving."
- Psalm 56:2-3. 9-10. 10-11. 12-13
('YOU have a record of my laments.' The sentence is more graphic in Hebrew: 'My tears are stored in YOUR wineskin?' This is what professional mourners did. The tears were shed, as it were, by proxy, and left at the grave, as evidence of grief. But here the tears are not professional, GOD knows it, and they are really worth keeping. We can only know what GOD thinks of human suffering from HIS Son, GOD 's Word to us. When JESUS saw Martha weeping HE started to cry HIMSELF [John 11:33-34]. But in the end, GOD 'will wipe all the tears away' and there will be no more crying [Revelation 21:4].
It is good to pray with this psalm, on the face of so much suffering and so many tears that don't find a human answer.
This is a prayer of the millions of oppressed who live, and no doubt will die crushed. 'YOU, LORD, have gathered our tears!')
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