Psalm 10 suits the 20th anniversary of the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, when the world got to see what racism can accomplish. On the news we saw Black people “looting” whereas a few White people were just helping themselves. The media was still unaware of their implicit biases, with some exceptions. And many are still unaware. (This post linked here on racial bias in the media explains well how it looked.)

Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;

call him to account for his wickedness

until none is left to be found.

Psalm 10:15 (Berean Standard Bible)

The Hebrew of this verse speaks differently from how Christians have translated it. “Call” seems to belong to the first part according to its punctuation (־). Bible Hub has the word תִּֽדְרוֹשׁ (tiḏ-rō-wōš) translated as “seek out” and it is how Jewish translation has it. But rabbinical interpretation points to a method of understanding, not an act of confronting. Understand, and stop injustice until there is no more injustice.

The full line in Hebrew is (right-to-left):

שְׁ֭בֹר זְר֣וֹעַ רָשָׁ֑ע וָ֝רָ֗ע תִּֽדְרוֹשׁ־ רִשְׁע֥וֹ בַל־ תִּמְצָֽא׃

The punctuation (־) is clearly separation. And so it seems to say, “Break the arm of the unjust seeking to understand, the injustice, until none is found.”

We are not called to point out individuals’ sins, hence Jesus saying to take the log out of one’s own eye before trying to take out the speck in someone else’s eye. But we are called to stop injustice.

Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans 20 years ago this weekend, on August 29, 2005. In the days following, survivors in the neighborhoods below sea-level were on rooftops, waving for attention, some spending days waiting for help. These people were predominantly (perhaps more than 99%) Black. Over 100,000 people had no cars to flee the city and were stuck. Oppressive forces already at play coerced people to stay in the city. The Black community is still oppressed. How can we seek to remove the specks from our own eyes?