In fact...

In fact, this appeal to intervene is the anguish the Psalmist feels as he contemplates the future event about which he is instructing. The word Asaph means a convener or collector, and is probably a title conferred on the one who convened the liturgical choir established by David (as), noted in 1 Chronicles 6:39. This may have been taken as a personal name, or having been born to the post may have been given a name appropriate to his activity.

As the prophet contemplates the tragedy of Karbela, he exclaims these words in anguish. It is possible that David (as) wrote this Psalm, although many researchers suggest that it was written by Asaph. It is also possible that David (as) was an ancestor of Imam Hussein (as) through a marriage contracted when he was a refugee among the Arab Kedarites, from whom the prophet Muhammad (as) is descended.

Whether or not the prophet sees Imam Hussein (as) as a son, his anguish is similar to that of those who are horrified in all generations by the suffering he went through. The Hebrew expression does not imply that God is the originator of the tragedy or that it is a punishment. Such expressions in Hebrew merely refer to God’s sovereignty as a basis for making an appeal for help.

📌2 Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed; this mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt. Verses 2 and 3 begin by giving a pre-Islamic context. The appeal is for God, at the event of Karbela, to remember the great things He did in ancient times to save His faithful people. The text, being didactic, uses the supplication language to insist on the need for divine deliverance.

The rod of inheritance suggests that Imam Hussein (as) is descended from David (as). Redemption does not imply saving from sin, but that the person involved is especially beloved by God. The reference to Mount Zion is probably specific, although the word itself could refer to any fortress.

However, it is more likely that we should see here the idea that the place of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein thereby gains the same sanctity, at least in some sense, as the house of God, which at the time of David was Quds or Jerusalem. 3 Lift up thy feet unto the perpetual desolations; even all that the enemy hath done wickedly in the sanctuary.

The expression “lift you your feet” is again an appeal to save, but as a didactic Psalm its main import is to describe the situation as hopeless without divine intervention.

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