NOTES for Psa 58
The reproaches addressed to unjust judges are severe. Of course, they apply not only to judges who hand down sentences as part of their office, but also to all of us who are quick to pass judgment. Although we often recall the famous words, “And who are the judges?”, they do not apply here. The character in “Woe from Wit” asks whether particular people have the right to judge; the psalmist, without making it personal, speaks about the problem of unjust judgment itself.
The psalmist is driven by hope that justice will be done. But here once again we encounter a difficult passage: the thirst for justice appears as a desire for vengeance, in dreams of bathing in the blood of enemies. This is difficult to reconcile with the Gospel commands of love and forgiveness; today many people are more likely to be repelled by such dreams.
That is true. But the path to the Good News has not yet been completed; only the foundation for receiving it is being laid. People of that era were far more accustomed to witnessing the bloody triumph of injustice. Therefore, hope in the triumph of justice, even when expressed so militantly, strengthened confidence in evil’s inevitable defeat.