Psalm 76 from the Parma Psalter
Psalm 76 is a psalm of hope for the peace makers, for it says that the coming of the Lord will bring an end to human violence and reduce our weapons to nothing: There brake he the arrows of the bow: the shield, the sword, and the battle. and again: The fierceness of man shall turn to thy praise: and the fierceness of them shalt thou refrain. As you will see these are themes I have also drawn out in my poetic response to this psalm.
These poems will all be gathered together and published on January 30th under the title David’s Crown. There is already an Amazon page for the book if you wish to pre-order it Here
As always you can hear me read the poem by clicking on the play button or the title.
We lift the cup of blessing, life and hope
To one whose name has leapt from Israel
To circle all the world, who opens up
His heart to every nation. Weapons fail;
The sword and shield will rust; the tank and gun
Must come to nothing. Every dark betrayal
Of peace will come to judgment. For the one
Upon the throne will vindicate the meek
And turn our fierceness into praise: The Son
Of God, become the Son of Man. The weak
Will find their strength in him. He will restrain
The men of violence, but all who seek
Their peace in him will find it. And the stain
Of our blood-guiltiness will wash away
As heaven’s mercy falls like gentle rain.
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Malcolm Guite 
Fr. Malcolm,
Is it possible to use more inclusive language.? I would be more inclined to share your work with others, especially Sisters, if it could be so.
Sr. Connie Bach
I try to use it where I can, where I am free to do so but I always keep to the source text when I am quoting or alluding to scripture which is obviously pretty frequent in this particular sequence
Malcolm, this poem is a balm for me as an American. Oh the horrors and violence of Epiphany here. Thank you for sharing this for “such a time as this.”
Have you any idea when David’s Crown will be released on Amazon U.S.?
Blessings on your pen, and Happy New Year!
Lynn
Thanks Lynn I’m told by my Publisher that the American distributor will have it simultaneously with the English one. You should be able to order it from Book Depository