Psalm 4:6
all the things
Offer up the sacrifice of justice, and trust in the Lord: many say, Who sheweth us good things? (Psalm 4:6 DR)
Many times we don’t know we possess a good thing until it’s gone, and probably more often than not we think we have a good thing that really isn’t. It is the constant struggle of this existence that we seek after the good but generally settle for less than the real thing.
St. Augustine sees in this passage a catechesis on repentance.
For what is more righteous, than that each one should be angry with his own sins, rather than those of others, and that in self-punishment he should sacrifice himself to God?
Another interpretation he proffers is that of works following repentance:
That on the old man being destroyed or weakened by repentance, the sacrifice of righteousness, according to the regeneration of the new man, may be offered to God; when the soul now cleansed offers and places itself on the altar of faith, to be encompassed by heavenly fire, that is, by the Holy Ghost. So that this may be the meaning, “offer the sacrifice of righteousness, and hope in the Lord;” that is, live uprightly, and hope for the gift of the Holy Ghost, that the truth, in which you have believed, may shine upon you.
The good is to be found in offering the goods we desire on that altar, to count them as offerings to God as we offer the totality of ourselves.
The Psalmist concludes by having interlocutors asking “who sheweth us good things?” This offering on the altar can appear to those outside as a waste, the loss of so much. St. Augustine again says:
This is the speech, and this is the daily inquiry of all the foolish and unrighteous; whether of those who long for the peace and quiet of a worldly life, and from the frowardness of mankind find it not; who even in their blindness dare to find fault with the order of events, when involved in their own deservings the deem the times worse than these which are past; or, of those who doubt and despair of that future life, which is promised us; who are often saying, Who knows if it’s true? or, who ever came from below, to tell us this?
The good things that are to be desired above all will seem foreign to the mind fixated on the world, just as the self-immolation of one’s will to God’s will seem madness and nothing but loss. But the heart that hopes and trusts in the Lord is willing to lose all these good things for the greatest thing, just as Jesus relates in the parable of the pearl of great price.
To lose lesser things for a greater thing is no loss but a great gain, and thus the Psalmist places his utmost confidence in God and giving all to him.
For this design I didn’t have a entirely clear concept in mind. It was prompted mostly by happening upon the main images on Unsplash which I found striking. I thought the cassette tape had a interesting retro vibe, and I found the pose of the main character fascinating, as it had this sense of ambivalence, not necessarily sorrowful but also not contented, as if there was some unrealized longing or anticipation.
The original image had the woman sitting on a wall I believe, and for some reason I thought it would be interesting to have her sit on the cassette.
I could pretend there’s some huge meaning behind this, but not really. Beyond the sense of longing or wondering, I mostly liked how the images fit together in the new composition. I added in some great distorted paper textures which form the bulk of the animation; I wanted it to be somewhat understated to pull the composition into the center more.
Enjoy.
Offer up the sacrifice of justice, and trust in the Lord: many say, Who sheweth us good things? (Psalm 4:6 DR)
View a higher quality version of this gif here: