| Psalm 79 — Being Your Own Worst Enemy
This psalm conveys the cry for help in light of the horrible suffering that had fallen upon the Southern Kingdom of Judah. The context of this suffering will help us in its application to our own lives. The Northern Kingdom, known as Israel, had fallen to foreign invaders a generation earlier. God had warned them of their sure destruction if they continued to absorb the pagan idolatry and moral wickedness of the nations around them. The Southern Kingdom of Judah, which had Jerusalem and the Temple within its borders, naively believed they would never suffer a similar fate as the Northern Kingdom. This was in spite of the fact that they were practicing the same idolatry and wickedness. They ended up suffering the same horrible devastation that fell upon Israel (v. 1-3). The first lesson is that past blessings and closeness to God does not insulate us from any future chastening by God. Secondly, sometimes suffering is the only thing that will humble us enough before God to ask for the mercy, deliverance, and forgiveness we desperately need (v. 4-9). God will take whatever measures are necessary to bring us back to His will, even if it means allowing the ungodly to mock Him because of the actions of His people. Those God loves, He will discipline. Therefore, let us not tempt God with our evil. He is not afraid of any reproach His discipline brings upon us or even upon Himself when He brings the devastating consequences of our sin upon us. Psalm 80 — Vision that Transforms
It is painful for us as God's flock to realize that our Great Shepherd would bring us into a valley of death and destruction. But at this point in Israel's history, nothing else could be done. The nation had rebelled against their Shepherd for too long; severe pain was all that was left to break them of their endless rebellion. The writer pinpoints the necessary beginning point for any real change—coming to a point to cry out for God to turn a person again back to Him (v. 3, 7). To admit the intrinsic helplessness of our fallen nature and to turn back to God from the destructive force of our sin is the beginning point of wisdom. We need God's help to turn from our sin in its many different forms and turn back to Him. It is in turning to Him that we will find He is ready to shine His face upon us. It is in the light of His countenance that we will be transformed. This has always been the case when sinful humanity meets "face to face" with God. This is the truth behind Paul the apostle's own call to us to find true spiritual transformation "with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord…transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Cor. 3:18). Psalm 81 — You Will Serve Someone
This call to worship is just as vital today as it was thousands of years ago. So is the accompanying prophetic message from God. God reminds us of the needless trouble and lack we often experience by not simply obeying Him in faith. The lusts of our sinful hearts drive us away from the "counsels" of God that could lead us into the desired abundance we wanted all along. At times, we are like a stubborn animal that simply will not yield to the reins of God. He, therefore, gives us over to our own hearts' lusts (v. 12). We will have to learn the hard way of the corrupted fruit that comes from the path of rebellion against His ways. Our loss will be great. In this process, we discover that if we stay on God's path and His counsels, He will not only "subdue" the forces that seek our destruction but will lead us into the riches of His gracious provisions (v. 13-16). The fact is that we become our own worst enemies when we obey the lusts driven by our unyielding hearts to God. Throughout the ages, the result has always been the same: we become slaves of destruction. Therefore, let us learn the lessons of past generations who became slaves of sin and yield to the counsels of God. You can take up the harp and praise God for all the good He will surely bring on the path of His counsels (v. 1-3, 13). | |||
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| Psalm 79 1 O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance; 2 The dead bodies of Your servants 3 Their blood they have shed like water all around Jerusalem, 4 We have become a reproach to our neighbors, 5 How long, LORD? 6 Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know You, 7 For they have devoured Jacob, 8 Oh, do not remember former iniquities against us! 9 Help us, O God of our salvation, 10 Why should the nations say, 11 Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You; 12 And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom 13 So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture, Psalm 80 To the Chief Musician. Set to "The Lilies." A Testimony of Asaph. A Psalm. 1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, 2 Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, 3 Restore us, O God; 4 O LORD God of hosts, 5 You have fed them with the bread of tears, 6 You have made us a strife to our neighbors, 7 Restore us, O God of hosts; 8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt; 9 You prepared room for it, 10 The hills were covered with its shadow, 11 She sent out her boughs to the Sea, 12 Why have You broken down her hedges, 13 The boar out of the woods uproots it, 14 Return, we beseech You, O God of hosts; 15 And the vineyard which Your right hand has planted, 16 It is burned with fire, it is cut down; 17 Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand, 18 Then we will not turn back from You; 19 Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; Psalm 81 To the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of Asaph. 1 Sing aloud to God our strength; 2 Raise a song and strike the timbrel, 3 Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon, 4 For this is a statute for Israel, 5 This He established in Joseph as a testimony, 6 "I removed his shoulder from the burden; 7 You called in trouble, and I delivered you; 8 "Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! 9 There shall be no foreign god among you; 10 I am the LORD your God, 11 "But My people would not heed My voice, 12 So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, 13 "Oh, that My people would listen to Me, 14 I would soon subdue their enemies, 15 The haters of the LORD would pretend submission to Him, 16 He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat; | |||
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| Psalm 79 This psalm is a mourning song or lament sung by Israel to express bitter grief over the destruction of the Temple and slaughter of the nation. The event in focus probably was the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 587 BC. v. 1 Asaph – The chief Levite musician under King David. "Psalms of Asaph" later came to refer to a type of song or a particular collection of psalms. Your inheritance – His people and their land are "God's inheritance" (Ps. 78:62, Deut. 32:9). Your holy temple they have defiled – The invading army polluted and destroyed the Temple and its grounds. they have laid Jerusalem in heaps – They reduced the city to a pile of rubble. v. 2 bodies – The dead were left in the streets, to be eaten by carrion birds and animals. v. 3 there was no one to bury them – To be left unburied and unmourned was considered a horrible fate. v. 4 We have become a reproach to our neighbors – The surrounding nations ridiculed and taunted the defeated people of God. v. 5 Will Your jealousy burn like fire? – Appropriate jealousy (not to be mistaken for envy) is anger toward wrongly-directed and inappropriate affection, attention or devotion. God's "jealousy" for His people is free of any of the self-centeredness and self-interest that can make human jealousy so problematic. v. 6 Pour out Your wrath – The psalm calls for God to judge the foreign nations who do not "know" Him nor "call on His Name." They have attacked and laid waste to Israel. v. 8 Do not remember former iniquities against us! – The lament clearly acknowledges that the fault does not lie with God, but with His sinful people. Let Your tender mercies come speedily to meet us – Israel pleads with God to "send out" His specific acts of mercy as a king would send out messengers or troops. v. 9 Help us, O God of our salvation…deliver us and provide atonement for our sins – Because parallels are the key to Hebrew poetry, we can use the rest of this verse to understand what the plea "Help us!" means. First, it is clear that God is the source of help. Then, the salvation Israel asks of God is spelled out as a) deliverance (rescue) from their enemies and b) forgiveness of their sins—which comes through atonement. John the Baptist clearly pointed to Jesus for atonement when he said to his followers, "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29). for the glory of Your Name…for Your Name's sake – God's "Name" (ha shem, Heb.) is extremely important throughout the Scriptures. In Jewish thinking, one's name should be a true reflection of one's character. Israel pleads with God for deliverance so that His Name will not be slandered by pagan peoples. v. 10 Why should the nations say 'Where is their God?' – If a people went down in defeat it was considered a sign that either their gods were not as strong as the gods of their enemies or that their gods had ignored or rejected them. v. 11 the prisoner…those appointed to die – Defeated populations were usually deported and sold as slaves; the leadership of the nation was generally executed. v. 12 Return to our neighbors – The nations bordering on Israel who had supported the Babylonian attack and profited from the nation's defeat. reproach – Disgrace and slander. Israel gives yet another reason for God to deliver and redeem His people: the pagan nations have slandered His Name. v. 13 So we your people, the sheep of your pasture – The sorrowing Israelites remind God that they are His "people," His own flock. His deliverance of them will result in great thanksgiving to His Name and His praise will be communicated to coming generations. Psalm 80 Psalm 80, like the previous psalm, is a mourning song at a time of military defeat. Israel pictures herself as a vineyard. God, in His wrath over the sin of His people, broke down the protecting wall around it and passersby and wild animals have ravaged and plundered it. The image of Israel as a vineyard is a very important biblical metaphor. Jesus used it at the conclusion of His public ministry in His final evaluation of the state of the nation (Mark 12:1). v. 1 The Chief Musician – the head of the Levitical singers in the Temple "The Lillies" – Probably the title of the melody to which the song was to be sung. Asaph – Chief Levite musician under King David. "Psalms of Asaph" later came to refer to a type of song or a particular collection of psalms. Shepherd of Israel – Throughout history, in times of personal or national trouble, the People of God have turned to God as their "shepherd" for protection and help. Joseph – The favorite son of Jacob and deliverer of his family during the famine that led to the migration of Israel to Egypt (Gen. 37, 39-46); used poetically to mean the entire nation. You who dwell – sit enthroned between the cherubim – The cherubim were the gold figures on the ark ("chest") of the covenant in the most holy place of the Temple. For Israel, this was the very center of God's presence on earth. shine forth – The Bible often uses the image of God as "light." The Apostle John wrote, "God is light and in Him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5). Moses' last blessing for Israel pictured God and His holy angels coming in light to deliver His people (Deut. 33:2). v. 3 cause Your face to shine [upon us] – This is part of the "Aaronic blessing" on Israel (Num. 6:23-25). v. 6 neighbors…enemies – The surrounding peoples had become enemies to Israel. laugh among themselves – in mockery of Israel v. 7 Restore us – Repeats the prayer of v. 3, but addresses God as "God of hosts", i.e. the king of the heavenly army. v. 8 You have – The metaphor of Israel as a vine or vineyard is repeated in Isaiah 5:1-7, 27:2-5, Jeremiah 2:21, and Hosea 10:1. The Gospels report Jesus' use of the image in Mark 12:1, Luke 20:9, and Matthew 21:33. v. 11 the Sea…the River – The Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates River. The Euphrates marked the maximum northern border of Israel's influence under David and Solomon. v. 13 the boar – A wild pig. The pig was a notoriously unclean animal to the Jews. To eat its flesh or drink its blood was an abomination; it is compared in Isaiah 66:17 to eating a rat. It is used here as a metaphor for the pagan nations that destroyed Israel, in particular, Babylon. v. 17 the man of your right hand…the son of man – The Davidic king. Jesus often used the term "Son of man" to refer to Himself. v. 19 Restore us – The third repetition of this prayer in the psalm (v. 3, 7). This final time, God's covenant Name is used to close off the lament. Psalm 81 This song was probably sung at one of the three "pilgrim feasts" held in the Temple in Jerusalem, when all able-bodied Israeli men were to gather before the Lord The feasts were Passover, Pentecost, and Sukkoth, (the feast of tabernacles or "booths"). Most likely, this hymn was written for Sukkoth, the harvest festival, which celebrated the crops of grain and fruit. v. 1 The Chief Musician – the head of the Levitical singers in the Temple On an instrument of Gath – A musical instrument; perhaps originating from the Philistine city of Gath. Asaph – The chief Levite musician under King David. "Psalms of Asaph" later came to refer to a type of song or a particular collection of psalms. v. 2 Raise a song – start the music timbrel…lute – tamborine and lyre (a stringed instrument like a harp) v. 3 blow the trumpet – shofar or ram's horn at the time of the New Moon – The harvest feast began with a great assembly at the new moon with the blowing of the shofar (Num. 29:1). Israel had a lunar calendar, which is the reason that Passover is always on different days each year. solumn feast day – the "high holy day" or chaggim (Heb.) v. 4 statute…law – The social and religious regulations governing Israel's life and worship. On the high holy day, God's Word is spoken to the people at the assembly. v. 6 I removed his shoulder from the burdens – Israel is reminded of God's actions in saving His people from slavery. the basket – Used for carrying clay to make bricks in Egypt (Ex. 1:14). Under the pharaohs, Israeli slave gangs were used to construct public building projects. v. 7 the secret place of thunder – God spoke to Israel from Mt. Sinai out of a thunder cloud (Ex. 20). Meribah – a place in the wilderness where the people rebelled against God's leading (Ex. 17:7, Num. 20:13) v. 8 There shall be no foreign god among you… – The first of the 10 Commandments (Ex. 20:2-3), calling His people, most importantly, to be faithful to Him. v. 10 Open your mouth wide and I will fill it – God has promised to meet His people's need for food and sustenance; in times of want, we must not trust in ourselves or turn to away from God. v. 12 I gave them over to their own stubborn heart – God lets us proceed with our own devices and plans when our heart is not soft and pliable toward Him. v. 13 listen to Me – The alternative is to listen to Him and walk in His ways. v. 14 I would – If we followed Him instead of our own wisdom, He would fight for us. v. 16 satisfied you – And abundantly provide for our needs. | |||
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| Lord, make us a people who listen to You. Guide us to walk in Your ways. We know, God, that You are so faithful to forgive, even when we have sinned terribly against You. Thank You, Lord for seeking to bring us back to You. | |||
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79:5 
A Psalm of Asaph
Calvary Christian School
