“The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.”
The psalmist asserts that the LORD is close to those who have a broken heart and saves those who have a contrite spirit. The phrase "broken heart" suggests profound sorrow, the internal fragmentation accompanying grief and loss. The reference to a "contrite spirit" emphasizes the internal disposition of repentance and humility. The assertion that God is "close" suggests that divine presence and proximity are the responses to brokenness. The promise that God "saves" those with contrite spirit suggests that genuine repentance becomes occasion for divine rescue.
Church Fathers on Psalms 34:18
A psalm of David, when he changed his countenance before Abimelech, and he sent him away, and he departed. 1. Because there was there a sacrifice after the order of Aaron, and afterwards He of His Own Body and Blood appointed a sacrifice after the order of Melchizedek; He changed then His Countenance in the Priesthood, and sent away the kingdom of the Jews, and came to the Gentiles. What then is, “He affected”? He was full of affection. For what is so full of affection as…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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