Psalm 90:1-8, (9-11), 12

“Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

Psalm 90 is a corporate prayer psalm bemoaning the brevity and travail of life. Although verses 2–6 speak of life’s transience as a general condition of humankind, verses 13–17 intimate that a more particular dilemma has occasioned these reflections. The petitions, “Relent, O LORD! How long will it be?” (v. 13a) and “Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us” (v. 15), imply the people’s current condition is considered harsher than usual. The work of their hands, for all their toil (v. 10), appears to decay right before them (v. 17). The people themselves feel destined to a life that is futile (vv. 9–10). The psalm does not point to any particular event or time period, but it does fit well with the hardships of the postexilic period (cf. Ps. 85 and esp. the references to God’s anger). It may have served originally as a public prayer of penance, influenced by the wisdom tradition.

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