Catholic Commentary on Psalm 101

"I will sing of your love and justice; to you, LORD, I will sing praise." (Psalm 101:1)

A Royal Covenant

Psalm 101 is a royal psalm, a declaration by the king of the principles by which he will govern himself and his court. It is the oldest statement of leadership ethics in any religious literature. The king commits to a life of integrity in his own household: he will walk with a blameless heart, refuse to set anything worthless before his eyes, hate the deeds of those who fall away. He will silence slander, avoid the proud and arrogant, and surround himself with those who are faithful and walk in the way that is blameless. Every morning he will put to silence the wicked of the land.

The Catechism draws from the royal psalms a picture of the ideal ruler, whose authority is exercised in service of justice rather than self-interest (CCC 1897). But the Church Fathers also read this psalm as the description of every baptised person who is called to be a royal priesthood: each Christian is a king over their own interior household, responsible for what they allow in, what they refuse, and what principles govern the daily choices of their life. The morning resolution of verse 8 is the pattern of the Examen: each day begins with a renewed commitment to drive out what is inconsistent with the life of grace.

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, what principles govern your household? Not the household of walls and roof but the household of your interior life: what you allow your eyes to rest on, what you permit your imagination to entertain, what company you keep in your heart. Psalm 101 is a royal charter for the interior life. Adopt it.

Prayer

Lord God, I will sing of your love and justice and walk in my house with a blameless heart. Guard my eyes from worthless things, purge slander from my lips, and let your presence be the standard by which everything in my life is measured. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

101
I Will Set No Worthless Thing before My Eyes
A Psalm of David.
1 I will sing of Your loving devotion and justice;
to You, O LORD, I will sing praises.
 
2 I will ponder the way that is blameless—
when will You come to me?
I will walk in my house
with integrity of heart.
3 I will set no worthless thing
before my eyes.
I hate the work of those who fall away;
it shall not cling to me.
4 A perverse heart shall depart from me;
I will know nothing of evil.
 
5 Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret,
I will put to silence;
the one with haughty eyes and a proud heart,
I will not endure.
6 My eyes favor the faithful of the land,
that they may dwell with me;
he who walks in the way of integrity
shall minister to me.
 
7 No one who practices deceit
shall dwell in my house;
no one who tells lies
shall stand in my presence.
8 Every morning I will remove all the wicked of the land,
that I may cut off every evildoer from the city of the LORD.

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