(As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) (Romans 8:36, NLT)
In context:
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) (Romans 8:35-36, NLT, 36 underlined)
Since we read “as the Scriptures say”, let’s go back to the original reference. Romans 8:36 refers to Psalm 44:22:
But for your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep. (NLT)
If I wanted to figure out the meaning of a sentence in an email, what would I do? Probably read the rest of the email! In such a way, let’s look at all of Psalm 44 for clues to God’s message in Romans 8:36
O God, we have heard it with our own ears—
our ancestors have told us
of all you did in their day,
in days long ago:
You drove out the pagan nations by your power
and gave all the land to our ancestors.
You crushed their enemies
and set our ancestors free.
They did not conquer the land with their swords;
it was not their own strong arm that gave them victory.
It was your right hand and strong arm
and the blinding light from your face that helped them,
for you loved them.
You are my King and my God.
You command victories for Israel.
Only by your power can we push back our enemies;
only in your name can we trample our foes.
I do not trust in my bow;
I do not count on my sword to save me.
You are the one who gives us victory over our enemies;
you disgrace those who hate us.
O God, we give glory to you all day long
and constantly praise your name.
Interlude
But now you have tossed us aside in dishonor.
You no longer lead our armies to battle.
You make us retreat from our enemies
and allow those who hate us to plunder our land.
You have butchered us like sheep
and scattered us among the nations.
You sold your precious people for a pittance,
making nothing on the sale.
You let our neighbors mock us.
We are an object of scorn and derision to those around us.
You have made us the butt of their jokes;
they shake their heads at us in scorn.
We can’t escape the constant humiliation;
shame is written across our faces.
All we hear are the taunts of our mockers.
All we see are our vengeful enemies.
All this has happened though we have not forgotten you.
We have not violated your covenant.
Our hearts have not deserted you.
We have not strayed from your path.
Yet you have crushed us in the jackal’s desert home.
You have covered us with darkness and death.
If we had forgotten the name of our God
or spread our hands in prayer to foreign gods,
God would surely have known it,
for he knows the secrets of every heart.
But for your sake we are killed every day;
we are being slaughtered like sheep.
Wake up, O Lord! Why do you sleep?
Get up! Do not reject us forever.
Why do you look the other way?
Why do you ignore our suffering and oppression?
We collapse in the dust,
lying face down in the dirt.
Rise up! Help us!
Ransom us because of your unfailing love (NLT)
To me, this is not an easy Scripture to understand. It’s very tempting when we come to Scriptures that seem more difficult to us or more complex to either ignore them or read superficially over them. But this Psalm was so important to Paul that he quoted from it in his letter to the Romans.
Paul was in the hub of the great suffering and persecution taking place in the early church. Christians were being beaten by mobs, synagogue leaders, and Roman authorities. They faced imprisonment in jails that had no global humanitarian laws. Many of these early Christians were impoverished, sometimes disowned by their own families. Death was a daily possibility, either by a mob or the government itself.
When Paul writes,
But for your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.
What does he mean?
Like the people who wrote the original Psalm, early Christians were being faced with hardship that simply did not make sense to them. Just like the early psalmists, many times they must have wondered if God cared for them at all. He was allowing them to be brutalized, taunted, and killed. Why wasn’t He standing up for them?
Just like the psalmists, they were obeying God’s covenant, but, unlike the psalmists, they had His new covenant, through Jesus Christ. Just as the psalmist wondered why God would allow them to suffer when they were trying to follow His commandments, these new Christians were wondering why God would allow them to suffer when they were trying to follow Jesus.
It came down to a question: Was it worth suffering for the sake of God?
Some 1,000 years before God would come to suffer and die for the sake of His people, the psalmists answered with faith: yes. It was worth it.
They end with great hope (v. 26):
Ransom us because of your unfailing love.
In the next verse of Romans, Paul will give these early Christians great hope, too, because he’s going to talk about the Ransom.
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