Praying from the Depths of the Deep: Remembering the Image of God as Midwife in Psalm 71

Abstract

How does one sing songs of liberation to the liberator God in those instances where liberation seems a remote possibility? At a time when the community of faith is recovering from the trauma of exile, and continuing to endure the trauma of submission to foreign empires, the psalmist looks to God for redemption. That redemption begins with the remembrance of God's past acts of deliverance, but memories of past liberations are not enough in the face of past and present pain. The key image in the psalm that transforms it into a redemptive hope is the image of God as midwife in verse 6. Like a midwife, God acts to bring forth life even in the midst of pain—even when the mother may suffer death. This image of God as midwife calls the community to compassion and comfort in the midst of shared trauma.