Psalm 83 A Song. A Psalm of Asaph.

¹Do not keep silent, O God!

Do not hold Your peace,

And do not be still, O God!

²For behold, Your enemies make a tumult;

And those who hate You have lifted up their head.

³They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,

And consulted together against Your sheltered ones.

⁴They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation,

That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”

⁵For they have consulted together with one consent;

They form a confederacy against You:

⁶The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;

Moab and the Hagrites;

⁷Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;

Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

⁸Assyria also has joined with them;

They have helped the children of Lot. Selah

⁹Deal with them as with Midian,

As with Sisera,

As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon,

¹⁰Who perished at En Dor,

Who became as refuse on the earth.

¹¹Make their nobles like Oreb and like Zeeb,

Yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

¹²Who said, “Let us take for ourselves

The pastures of God for a possession.”

¹³O my God, make them like the whirling dust,

Like the chaff before the wind!

¹⁴As the fire burns the woods,

And as the flame sets the mountains on fire,

¹⁵So pursue them with Your tempest,

And frighten them with Your storm.

¹⁶Fill their faces with shame,

That they may seek Your name, O Lord.

¹⁷Let them be confounded and dismayed forever;

Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,

¹⁸That they may know that You, whose name alone is the Lord,

Are the Most High over all the earth.

Commentary

Vs. 1-5 ¹Do not keep silent, O God!

Do not hold Your peace,

And do not be still, O God!

²For behold, Your enemies make a tumult;

And those who hate You have lifted up their head.

³They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,

And consulted together against Your sheltered ones.

⁴They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation,

That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”

⁵For they have consulted together with one consent;

They form a confederacy against You:

Once again Israel is faced with aggression from her neighbors, for God’s enemies are their (our) own. Thus, the Psalm opens with a cry for help, for God Himself not to keep silent, nor hold His peace, nor be still, but rather rise to their (our) defense. Verses two through eight then lay out Israel’s just cause. For it is God’s enemies who make the tumult, it is they who have initiated the attack and assault on Israel. For those who hate God have lifted their heads, and so it is they who have set themselves and their desires against Him (vs. 2), by scheming His people's overthrow. And yet this is the ongoing history of God’s people, of all who believe and obey Him, of finding themselves in the cross hairs of this world’s wrath. Verses three to five then lay out the nations scheming plans, beginning with their arrogant boast of how they have taken crafty counsel against God’s people and consulted together against His sheltered ones. Thus, while we seek to live our lives in peace and prosperity they are always watching, always seeking ways to harass or outrightly attack us without a just cause. Verse four then lays out their ambitious, and dare I say foolhardy plans in seeking to destroy Israel from under heaven so that it might cease being a nation forever, that Israel’s name be remembered no more. Now the odds of this ever occurring are zero. And yet this foolhardy stance of theirs in wanting to destroy God’s servants name from under heaven never ceases, from generation to generation, His enemies in every generation will try to do so. Now this is not the work of one nation, rather Israel’s neighbors, the peoples that God allows to remain around them have formed this confederacy against them, against God.

Vs. 6-8 ⁶The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;

Moab and the Hagrites;

⁷Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;

Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

⁸Assyria also has joined with them;

They have helped the children of Lot. Selah

The confederacy is now named. Edom, that is the decedents of Esau, Jacobs’s brother who sold his birthright to him and who has since been hostile towards him is named first. Next named are the Ishmaelites, that is Ishmael the son of Hagar whom God rejected, for He choose Isaac to be Abraham’s heir is named as one of them. (Now it is to note that God completely destroyed Esau’s descendants so they now have no living heirs, see Obadiah 6-16), while the Ishmaelites according to God’s word to Hagar He made into a great nation which many Arab nations can now trace ancestry too (see Gen. 17:20; 21:12; 25:12-18 etc.). Moab and Amon were the decedents of the incestuous sons of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. Their opposition to Israel goes back to when they opposed Israel as they came out of Egypt, while Moab hired Balaam the prophet against them to try to destroy them which by the hand of God royally failed (see Gen. 19:30-38; Num. 23-25, 24:15-25). And yet throughout their nations Biblical history they were mostly hostile towards Israel. The Hagrites are relatively obscure. While Gebal were likely Phoenicians (territorially equivalent to modern day Lebanon), and Amalek was the first to attack Israel when they came out of Egypt (Exodus 17:8-16; also see 1 Samuel 15:1-9) for they were also a descendant of Esau, coming from his grandson (Gen. 36:12). Philistia is the Biblical Philistines, todays Palestinians occupy much of their territory. Tyre was that ancient city whose king God later condemned and destroyed along with it, as being a forerunner of His finial judgment on Satan (Ezekiel 26-28; also see Isaiah 23:1-17). Assyria equates with modern day Iraq, and the children of Lot are all his descendants from the Moabites and the Ammonites. All these united themselves then in a confederacy against Israel, much like the modern Arab nations have done and often do when it serves their own purposes, for in Israel they believe they find their common enemy.

Vs. 9-12 ⁹Deal with them as with Midian,

As with Sisera,

As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon,

¹⁰Who perished at En Dor,

Who became as refuse on the earth.

¹¹Make their nobles like Oreb and like Zeeb,

Yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

¹²Who said, “Let us take for ourselves

The pastures of God for a possession.”

Because of their seeking to destroy Israel and remove their existence from on earth the call now goes out to God to deal with them as He dealt with the kings who opposed Israel when they came out of Egypt. First mentioned is Midian, a nation descended through Abrahams second wife Keturah whom Abraham sent away from Isaac the heir to land of the east (Gen. 25:6), and though they were "friendly" with Moses during his time with Jethro his later Midianite father-in-law (Exodus 2:11-3:1; 18:2-27) these people afterwards would be enemies of Israel; likely because of Moses wife’s influence on his two sons born to her, for she was not in favor of her sons being circumcised and becoming apart of God’s people (see Exodus 4:24-25). Midian then after Moses’ departure from Jethro his father-in-law openly became Israel’s enemy, beginning with joining Moab in seeking to destroy Israel (Num. 22:1-12 etc.), for which God would command Moses to destroy them (Num. 25:16-18; 31:1-10). Also in the Book of Judges they are clearly seen as Israel’s ongoing oppressor, enemy, and frequent troubler (Judges 6:1-6 etc.). Now Jabin was king of Canaan during the days of Deborah when she judged Israel, and Sisera was the commander of his army; both these God overthrew through His people leaving their corpses to rot like refuse on the earth (Judges 4:1-23). Oreb and Zeeb were the two princes of Midian who were captured and killed by Gideons army with such a mighty slaughter that their overthrow is later cited in a prophecy given through Isaiah (see Judges 7:24-25; Isaiah 10:26). Likewise, Zebah and Zalumnna, two more arrogant Midian princes who thought to overthrow Israel and take possession of their land would fall to their deaths at the hand of Gideon (Judges 8:4-21). All these victories then are rightly cited as God’s defense of His people. Therefore these are recalled by Asaph in asking our God to do the same to their current enemies who were seeking to destroy them from being a nation and take the land He had given them possession of.

Vs. 13-18 ¹³O my God, make them like the whirling dust,

Like the chaff before the wind!

¹⁴As the fire burns the woods,

And as the flame sets the mountains on fire,

¹⁵So pursue them with Your tempest,

And frighten them with Your storm.

¹⁶Fill their faces with shame,

That they may seek Your name, O Lord.

¹⁷Let them be confounded and dismayed forever;

Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,

¹⁸That they may know that You, whose name alone is the Lord,

Are the Most High over all the earth.

Colorful metaphors now fill this section of the psalms prayer for Israel’s enemies’ judgment. Verse thirteen then asks God to make them like the whirling dust; sucked up from earth and spun around in the air until they are scattered everywhere. While verses fourteen and fifteen ask God to devour them by the power of His flame, like an engulfing flame racing through a tinder dry forest so may He consume them. And so in putting them (and by default all their “gods” to shame) they might then seek His Name! Now this principal of sinners being brought low and later redeemed is a theme throughout the Scriptures (consider Psalm 107). However, verse seventeen and eighteen pivot back to judgment, and here unredeemable judgment, so that they may all know that You, whose name alone is Lord are the Most High over all the earth.

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.

Psalm 82 A Psalm of Asaph.

 ¹God stands in the congregation of the mighty;

He judges among the gods.

²How long will you judge unjustly,

And show partiality to the wicked? Selah

³Defend the poor and fatherless;

Do justice to the afflicted and needy.

⁴Deliver the poor and needy;

Free them from the hand of the wicked.

⁵They do not know, nor do they understand;

They walk about in darkness;

All the foundations of the earth are unstable.

⁶I said, “You are gods,

And all of you are children of the Most High.

⁷But you shall die like men,

And fall like one of the princes.”

⁸Arise, O God, judge the earth;

For You shall inherit all nations.

Commentary

Vs. 1-2 ¹God stands in the congregation of the mighty;

He judges among the gods.

²How long will you judge unjustly,

And show partiality to the wicked? Selah

God is the One who is now sitting as the Supreme Judge, but here not of ordinary men, rather of all the earth’s mighty ones, referred to here as “gods;” for they are representative of His Authority on earth; and so all those who govern, judge, rule, who exercise power and authority over others are now called to account. For in His examining them God finds some gross disparities and flagrant violations of what is justice. Therefore, He calls them to account saying, “How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?” For such things God Himself does not do, for can He endure their unjust judgments, their showing partiality to the wicked. And yet sadly on earth this is the norm as governments inevitably corrupt themselves in seeking political advantages and favors from their wealthy supporters, and of course their are those openly corrupt regimes and rulers who treat human life and dignity with utter disregard, even police and security forces (and not just theirs), but ours here in first world countries who justify their own injustices and evils in the name of upholding "justice" and "protecting" the public. For in this world and in their eyes they are the authority, therefore they do not like to take correction or rebuke from “outsiders.” For in their pride and arrogance they feel they need only be accountable to themselves and their own. Thus, they can often justify just whatever they feel is justifiable, for they often are their own moral compass and guide.  This then is the state of this world as official watches over official and higher officials watch over them (consider Ecc. 5:8).

Vs. 3-4 ³Defend the poor and fatherless;

Do justice to the afflicted and needy.

⁴Deliver the poor and needy;

Free them from the hand of the wicked.

God now calls them to account, calls them to forsake their perverse judgments and do justice here on earth, to no longer show partiality or favoritism to anyone, and certainly not to the rich and powerful, thus to no longer serve the corporations and the multi millionaire and billionaires desires and interests, (in order to try to enrichen themselves), but rather,

³Defend the poor and fatherless;

Do justice to the afflicted and needy.

⁴Deliver the poor and needy;

Free them from the hand of the wicked.

For in this world justice is never found by those who have no means to buy it for themselves. For being the least in this worlds eyes often means being mistreated; suffering then exploitation and abuse by those who are higher up in this world’s food chain. And yet God always puts these first, puts their well being as His priority, especially for us His people. Thus, we are to be their defenders, we are to be the ones who do justly towards them and seek justice for them, we are to be the ones who stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their time of need and free them from the hands of the wicked. Defend then the cause of the poor and needy, because the rich already has their defense.

Vs. 5-7 ⁵They do not know, nor do they understand;

They walk about in darkness;

All the foundations of the earth are unstable.

⁶I said, “You are gods,

And all of you are children of the Most High.

⁷But you shall die like men,

And fall like one of the princes.”

Truly then they do not know, nor do they understand God and His ways, therefore they walk in darkness, for the wicked does not understand such knowledge (Prov. 14:31; 28:5; 29:7; 31:8-9; Daniel 12:10 etc.). And yet God in calling them “gods” and now children of the Most High seems to be focusing in own His own people Israel, telling them that for their evil and corrupt ways they shall die like men and fall like princes overthrown in battle. The Believer Bible Commentary notes that the Lord Jesus Christ quoted verse six when He rebuked the Pharisees for accusing Him of blasphemy for declaring Himself equal with God (see John 10:32-36). Being then apart of God’s people is a privilege bound with responsibilities, not a right of entitlement.

Vs. 8 “Arise, O God, judge the earth;

For You shall inherit all nations.”

In concluding Asaph now calls upon God; the Most Just Judge; to judge all the earth, to make straight what mankind has made crooked. And that is what the Lord Jesus Christ shall do when He inherits all nations which God His Father has given Him. For on that Day, He will!

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.

Psalm 81 To the Chief Musician. On An Instrument of Gath. A Psalm of Asaph.

 ¹Sing aloud to God our strength;

Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.

²Raise a song and strike the timbrel,

The pleasant harp with the lute.

³Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon,

At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.

⁴For this is a statute for Israel,

A law of the God of Jacob.

⁵This He established in Joseph as a testimony,

When He went throughout the land of Egypt,

Where I heard a language I did not understand.

⁶“I removed his shoulder from the burden;

His hands were freed from the baskets.

⁷You called in trouble, and I delivered you;

I answered you in the secret place of thunder;

I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah

⁸“Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you!

O Israel, if you will listen to Me!

⁹There shall be no foreign god among you;

Nor shall you worship any foreign god.

¹⁰I am the Lord your God,

Who brought you out of the land of Egypt;

Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹“But My people would not heed My voice,

And Israel would have none of Me.

¹²So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart,

To walk in their own counsels.

¹³“Oh, that My people would listen to Me,

That Israel would walk in My ways!

¹⁴I would soon subdue their enemies,

And turn My hand against their adversaries.

¹⁵The haters of the Lord would pretend submission to Him,

But their fate would endure forever.

¹⁶He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat;

And with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you.”

Commentary

Vs. 1-5 ¹Sing aloud to God our strength;

Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob.

²Raise a song and strike the timbrel,

The pleasant harp with the lute.

³Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon,

At the full moon, on our solemn feast day.

⁴For this is a statute for Israel,

A law of the God of Jacob.

⁵This He established in Joseph as a testimony,

When He went throughout the land of Egypt,

Where I heard a language I did not understand.

The Psalm opens with a declaration to praise our God, to make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob (i.e., Israel). The invocation then invites the musicians, i.e., the Levites to take up their instruments, the timbral, the harp, and the lute and to join in the chorus, yes to even create new melodies by which God maybe glorified and His people edified. Verse three then moves to the blowing of trumpet, called a shophar (BBC) which was used by the priests to signify the time of the new moon, likely the seventh new moon which was celebrated with a feast, often referred to as the Feast of Trumpets, (see Lev. 23:23-25; Num. 29:1). Verse four and five then declare this is a statute given by God to Israel, given them as a law of God of Jacob. Given to them when God Himself established a testimony in them when He went through the land of Egypt, “where I heard a language I did not understand”, is God speaking and basically saying He would not listen too or acknowledge the Egyptians during His judgments there through Moses. For they made their false worship practices and their false “gods”, gods  who couldn’t deliver or save them (i.e. their Pharoah), as He did for Israel, their hope and trust.

Vs. 6-7 ⁶“I removed his shoulder from the burden;

His hands were freed from the baskets.

⁷You called in trouble, and I delivered you;

I answered you in the secret place of thunder;

I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah

God now declares that it was He who removed Israel’s shoulder from the burdens the Egyptians laid upon them. That it was He who freed their hands from the baskets which they carried their brick and mortar in for the Egyptians. For He alone brought them out of their enslaved state to make them His people. For when they cried out to Him in their trouble, He delivered them (Ex. 2:23-25). Therefore He answered them in the secret place of thunder, by first bringing His judgments on the Egyptians (see Exodus 9:22-35), and then manifesting His Person, His Power to them through thunder, beginning with His giving them the Law at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:1-20:21; also consider 1 Samuel 2:10; 12:17-25; Job 26:13-14; 36:26-33; 37:1-13; 40:9-14; Psalm 77:18-20; 104:5-9; Isaiah 29:5-8, vs. 6; Heb. Rev. 14:2-5 etc.). And having revealed Himself to them He then tested them at the waters of Meribah, where sadly Israel twice failed to believe Him (Exodus 17:1-7; Num. 20:2-13; 23:23-24; Deut. 32:48-51; also see Psalm 106:32).

 Vs. 8-12 ⁸“Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you!

O Israel, if you will listen to Me!

⁹There shall be no foreign god among you;

Nor shall you worship any foreign god.

¹⁰I am the Lord your God,

Who brought you out of the land of Egypt;

Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

¹¹“But My people would not heed My voice,

And Israel would have none of Me.

¹²So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart,

To walk in their own counsels.

God having reminded Israel how He saved them from their Egyptian enslavement now demands their faithfulness. Telling them that He will admonish them, (i.e. warned them) saying to them that there shall be no foreign god amongst them, nor shall they worship a foreign god. For He is the One who brought them out of Egypt, therefore there can be no divided loyalties with Him, as He says in Isaiah, “I will not give My Glory to another” (see Isaiah 42:8, 11). Having then admonished them, God now tells them to open their mouths and He will fill them, indicating His desires to bless them with His blessings that no one can fully imagine or number, and yet for all of that they themselves would not heed His voice. Therefore, they themselves withheld His blessings from themselves, as they would not believe nor obey Him. Therefore, God gave them over to their own stubborn hearts and let them walk in their own counsels, and so they reaped their own harvest of distance and sorrows from Him. 

Vs. 13-16 ¹³“Oh, that My people would listen to Me,

That Israel would walk in My ways!

¹⁴I would soon subdue their enemies,

And turn My hand against their adversaries.

¹⁵The haters of the Lord would pretend submission to Him,

But their fate would endure forever.

¹⁶He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat;

And with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you.”

God now decries His own people’s stubbornness. For if they would only listen to Him He would subdue their enemies. Yes, He Himself would soon fight and turn His hand against all our adversaries. Verse fifteen now introduces a thought that God is not deceived by feigned submission to Him. For people, especially those people amongst His people who secretly hate Him, but pretend submission to Him, can only succeed for a time or a season, for their fate shall endure forever, just like Judas Iscariot’s fate now does. God Himself then closes out the Psalm by saying that He would’ve fed His people with the finest of wheat and caused them to eat honey from the rock, which is both literal as well as a spiritual metaphor for His overflowing blessings coming to them, to all who believe and obey Him!

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.

Psalm 80 To the Chief Musician. Set to Testimony of Asaph. A Psalm.

¹Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,

You who lead Joseph like a flock;

You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!

²Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,

 Stir up Your strength,

And come and save us!

³Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!

⁴O Lord God of hosts,

How long will You be angry Against the prayer of Your people?

⁵You have fed them with the bread of tears,

And given them tears to drink in great measure.

⁶You have made us a strife to our neighbors,

And our enemies laugh among themselves.

⁷Restore us, O God of hosts;

Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!

⁸You have brought a vine out of Egypt;

You have cast out the nations, and planted it.

⁹You prepared room for it,

And caused it to take deep root,

And it filled the land.

¹⁰The hills were covered with its shadow,

And the mighty cedars with its boughs.

¹¹She sent out her boughs to the Sea,

And her branches to the River.

¹²Why have You broken down her hedges,

So that all who pass by the way pluck her fruit?

¹³The boar out of the woods uproots it,

And the wild beast of the field devours it.

¹⁴Return, we beseech You, O God of hosts;

Look down from heaven and see,

And visit this vine

¹⁵And the vineyard which Your right hand has planted,

And the branch that You made strong for Yourself.

¹⁶It is burned with fire, it is cut down;

They perish at the rebuke of Your countenance.

¹⁷Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,

Upon the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.

¹⁸Then we will not turn back from You;

Revive us, and we will call upon Your name.

¹⁹Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;

Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!

Commentary

Vs. 1 ¹Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,

You who lead Joseph like a flock;

You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!

This Psalm begins with a call for the Shepherd of Israel (a Name or Title of our God, Gen. 49:24) to hear their voices; the collective cries of Israel and shine forth! For it is He our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who is the Good Shepherd of Israel (Gen. 49:24; Psalm 23:1; John 10:1-18 etc.) who was even in ancient times leading Joseph, Israel’s son whom he bestowed his greatest blessing upon, like a flock. Thus Joseph is here representative of all the nation (see Gen. 49:22-24). 

Vs. 2 “Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,

Stir up Your strength,

And come and save us!”

Three leading tribes are now mentioned; Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh. Now Ephraim and Manasseh were Joseph’s sons whom Jacob took as his own (Gen. 48:2-6), while Benjamin was Joseph’s most beloved youngest brother. These three tribes then were assigned by God the high rank and privilege of being the first tribes to follow behind the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord (Num. 2:17-24; 10:21-24). Therefore, as representatives of Israel their call is for the Shepherd of Israel to stand before them as the nations leader and stir up His strength and come and save them.

Vs. 3 “Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!”

God’s restoring Power is now being called upon for Israel’s restoration and salvation. For when He causes His face to shine, to look upon them with favor and grace they shall be saved, then from their current troubles, but ultimately from the world and ruler of it when they receive God’s Son.

Vs. 4-6 ⁴O Lord God of hosts,

How long will You be angry Against the prayer of Your people?

⁵You have fed them with the bread of tears,

And given them tears to drink in great measure.

⁶You have made us a strife to our neighbors,

And our enemies laugh among themselves.

In making confession and supplications to our God the question is now asked, how long? How long will God be angry at the prayer of His people? For they have been brought low before their enemies, God's enemies. Now as to God being angry at the prayer of His people how could He not be, since they themselves had forsaken the true worship of God for pagan deities, therefore their own behavior soon degenerated into all kinds of wickedness and depravity that comes with turning from God and serving them. Therefore, He fed them with the bread of tears, He gave them sorrows upon sorrows, He even made them a strife to their neighbors, and yet when their enemies saw their affliction, they in their uplifted ease only laughed among themselves, which they should not have done. For judgment always begins at the house of God, and if it falls on us first what will be end of those who do not believe and obey Him, only a most dreadful and terrifying end that is for sure (2 Thess. 1:8; 1 Peter 4:17).

Vs. 7 “Restore us, O God of hosts;

Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!

Having laid out their plight before Him they once again ask God to restore them, to restore them to a right relationship with Himself, to restore them to their favored status, to cause His face to shine upon them, to make them His people once again, for when He does, they shall be saved! (Consider Hosea 1:8-10).

Vs. 8-11 ⁸You have brought a vine out of Egypt;

You have cast out the nations, and planted it.

⁹You prepared room for it,

And caused it to take deep root,

And it filled the land.

¹⁰The hills were covered with its shadow,

And the mighty cedars with its boughs.

¹¹She sent out her boughs to the Sea,

And her branches to the River.

Israel’s history is now recalled to God. To remind Him that it was He who brought them (the vine) out of Egypt. That it was He who cast out the nations before them and gave them their land, that it is was He who then planted them as His vine in the land, and it was He who made room for them to grow and  take deep root in the land and be fruitful (vs. 8-9). Therefore, they were the vine which God Himself planted and caused to cover the land, indeed all the hills, and even the mighty cedars were covered with their boughs, for the boughs of Israel went out as far as the Sea and her branches to River, the great River Euphrates (consider Exodus 15:7; Psalm 44:2 etc.). Thus, she (Israel) became the preeminent vine in the land, and yet for all of God’s doing in her life she only became a degenerate plant which brought shame to His Name and thus brought her to her current situation (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jer. 2:20-22). And so their appeal here in their repentance is that He once again work to reestablish them in the land that He has chosen for them and given to them to be His people in.

Vs. 12-13 ¹²Why have You broken down her hedges,

So that all who pass by the way pluck her fruit?

¹³The boar out of the woods uproots it,

And the wild beast of the field devours it.

They now ask God why He has broken down their hedges, that is taken away His hedge of protection for them, leaving them vulnerable to everyone who passes by to pluck their fruit; that is to plunder and pillage them. Thus the boar of the woods and the wild beast of the field are figurative of the peoples devouring Jacob, dirty, filthy, cruel, people who show no mercy.

Vs. 14-15 ¹⁴Return, we beseech You, O God of hosts;

Look down from heaven and see,

And visit this vine

¹⁵And the vineyard which Your right hand has planted,

And the branch that You made strong for Yourself.

Once again, their passionate plea is for God’s visitation to come upon them. That He as the Lord of Hosts, that is He is the Lord of the heavens, would look down and see them, see all that is being done to them, that He would thus visit them, the vineyard which He Himself has planted. While the branch that He has made strong for Himself though representing the nation of Israel here (Isaiah 60:21-22) clearly has Messianic applications (consider Isaiah 4:2-6; Jeremiah 23:5-6, 33:15; Zechariah 3:8; 6:12). For the two are absolutory united together in God's plans. For just as God established the nation of Israel for Himself, so it is through Israel that God chose to bring forth His Messiah, that is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ into the world, not only for their salvation, but for all in this world who believe in Him. 

Vs. 16 “It is burned with fire, it is cut down;

They perish at the rebuke of Your countenance.”

They now decry that the vine which God planted has now been burned with fire, that is Jerusalem and the temple. Nonetheless at the rebuke of God’s countenance all those who have done so shall likewise perish. Think then of all the nations that came against Israel down through their history everyone of them God has destroyed, or brought to and end, (or will bring to and end), while Israel lives on!

Vs. 17-19 ¹⁷Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,

Upon the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.

¹⁸Then we will not turn back from You;

Revive us, and we will call upon Your name.

¹⁹Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;

Cause Your face to shine,

And we shall be saved!

Their finial appeal for God’s hand to be upon the man of His right hand can be none other than the Son of Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Man whom He has made strong for Himself. For He is God’s Chosen King, the One who will save and lead them when they receive Him as their King. On that Day then they will never again turn back from God, for God will be with them, with us all who believe in Him forever! Therefore, in closing, the prayer asks for God to revive and restore them, to cause His face to shine upon them (i.e., look favorably upon them), then they shall be saved!

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.

Psalm 79 A Psalm of Asaph.

 ¹O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance;

Your holy temple they have defiled;

They have laid Jerusalem in heaps.

²The dead bodies of Your servants—

They have given as food for the birds of the heavens,

The flesh of Your saints to the beasts of the earth.

³Their blood they have shed like water all around Jerusalem,

And there was no one to bury them.

⁴We have become a reproach to our neighbors,

A scorn and derision to those who are around us.

⁵How long, Lord? Will You be angry forever?

Will Your jealousy burn like fire?

⁶Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know You,

And on the kingdoms that do not call on Your name.

⁷For they have devoured Jacob,

And laid waste his dwelling place.

⁸Oh, do not remember former iniquities against us!

Let Your tender mercies come speedily to meet us,

For we have been brought very low.

⁹Help us, O God of our salvation,

For the glory of Your name;

And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins,

For Your name’s sake!

¹⁰Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”

Let there be known among the nations in our sight

The avenging of the blood of Your servants which has been shed.

¹¹Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You;

According to the greatness of Your power

Preserve those who are appointed to die;

¹²And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom

Their reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord.

¹³So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture,

Will give You thanks forever;

We will show forth Your praise to all generations.

Preamble: Asaph distraught and in great despair in having witnesses Jerusalem’s fall and the temples destruction now must write down his prayer for God’s people. A prayer which asks God to remember them, even though they themselves had brought these terrible times upon themselves. For in the depths of one’s defeat and despair one can either turn to God or turn against him, and Asaph wisely turns to Him, because He is still their Shepherd, He is still the One who has led them and guided them through all their trials and adversities, and He will lead and guide them and willingly restore them when they return to Him. Which is something for us all to remember, because we too may very well have to face the consequences of our own sins as well.

Commentary

Vs. 1 “O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance;

Your holy temple they have defiled;

They have laid Jerusalem in heaps.”

The nations led by Babylon have now invaded God’s inheritance, they have in their self-willed strength devoured Jacob and laid to waste to the very city that God has chosen for Himself, even destroying His holy temple; because Israel over a course of many years shunned God's counsels for them, and would not heed His warnings to them through His prophets, therefore their land and their temple is now laid waste before them. Asaph (a righteous man chosen to bear His witness) has now then witnessed the wrath of God through the nations that God has sent against them.

Vs. 2-3 ²The dead bodies of Your servants—

They have given as food for the birds of the heavens,

The flesh of Your saints to the beasts of the earth.

³Their blood they have shed like water all around Jerusalem,

And there was no one to bury them.

Asaph now decries to God seeing the dead bodies of His servants, His people’s lifeless corpses scattered and broken in the streets; thus not buried with dignity and honor; but only being feasted upon by the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. So much of their blood had been shed in Jerusalem that Asaph can only described it as running like water all around him, running down the streets and alleyways. And being one of the few survivors remaining in the city, Asaph can only decry that there is not even anyone to bury the dead. No where else in Scripture is such a scene so eye witnessed except in the Book of Lamentations which was a contemporary recording of this most horrific event.

Vs. 4 “We have become a reproach to our neighbors,

A scorn and derision to those who are around us.”

The once revered and feared nation under King David has now only become a reproach to their neighbors, thus all the nations that they committed harlotry with who observe them now only hold them in complete contempt and open scorn. Remember this when you try to be like the “world” and embrace their ways, for they too will hold you in complete contempt and scorn when they see your fall as well.

Vs. 5-7 ⁵How long, Lord? Will You be angry forever?

Will Your jealousy burn like fire?

⁶Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know You,

And on the kingdoms that do not call on Your name.

⁷For they have devoured Jacob,

And laid waste his dwelling place.

With their complete destruction and open humiliations, a broken Asaph now asks God if He will be angry with them forever, will His jealousy burn like fire? Yes, they aroused His jealousy and wrath against themselves when they forsook their God and embraced the Gentile nations idolatry, but surely there is an end? Therefore, having dwelt with them according to their sins Asaph now asks that God turn His wrath on the nations that do not know Him; on those kingdoms which do not call upon His Name, for they have devoured Jacob, they have laid waste his dwelling place; and in doing so they themselves have now done great offenses against our God.

Vs. 8-10 ⁸Oh, do not remember former iniquities against us!

Let Your tender mercies come speedily to meet us,

For we have been brought very low.

⁹Help us, O God of our salvation,

For the glory of Your name;

And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins,

For Your name’s sake!

¹⁰Why should the nations say, “Where is their God?”

Let there be known among the nations in our sight

The avenging of the blood of Your servants which has been shed.

Having pleaded for justice and deliverance from their adversaries, Asaph as the nations intercessor now looks upward to the Lord to pardon them, even though their downfall was of their own making, it came through their own choices, for they broke the covenant that God had made with them. Therefore it is from the place of the broken sinner, of being a sorrowful and defeated nation that their appeal is now made to our God. For they cannot undo what they have done, nor can they make any atonement for their sins, only God can. Therefore, they ask that He not remember their former iniquities, all their sins against Him, which they in their ease and prosperity took their liberties to do and which they are now reaping the consequences of; that He not hold these things against them. For they now need His mercies, for they now see their need for Him, and so they now appeal to Him to let His tender mercies come to them, for they have been brought very low by some very cruel nations and people who do not care about their well being or welfare. For our God is merciful, He longs to extend His mercy to His people, to everyone and every nation that turns from their unrighteous ways and turns or returns to Him, this is His Testimony in the Holy Scripture (Micah 7:18-20). For our God is the God of salvation, He saves both individuals and nations that call upon Him in truth. And with Israel He has linked His Name with them, which is why they were so broken for bringing such shame and reproach to His Glorious Name. Therefore, they ask that He provide atonement for their sins, that He look upon them favorably once again for His Names sake. Now as to the first His Everlasting Atonement has now been made for Israel and us all through His Son the Lord Jesus Christ through His death on the Cross and His Resurrection from the dead (Rom. 10:9-10, 13). What is lacking today though in their and many people’s lives is their turning to Him and receiving it freely from Him by faith. For that is a decision that everyone must make for themselves, whether individuals or nations. Now as to His saving them for His Names sake, this is their history time and again down through history, for He has saved and preserved them for His Name’s sake, waiting for the Day when their collective repentance comes, but that’s future (see Zech. 12:10-14). Their here and now is their appealing to Him so that the nations which have devoured them may themselves be humbled for their brazen deeds and boasts against Him. For they in their unbelieving pride have scorned our God, saying "where is He", and they have much shed blood, the blood of His servants in His sight. Therefore, they ask that God make His avenging of their blood come upon them, that He make Himself through His judgment known to all those unbelieving peoples and nations which have devoured them.

Vs. 11-13 ¹¹Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You;

According to the greatness of Your power

Preserve those who are appointed to die;

¹²And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom

Their reproach with which they have reproached You, O Lord.

¹³So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture,

Will give You thanks forever;

We will show forth Your praise to all generations.

The appeal continues, but now for the living, for their prisoners who have been taken captive, who now are enduring the terrible pains of captivity, along with those who have been appointed to die, that God also preserve those whose lives are now only being preserved for their executions, which were to be like sport to their captors. Therefore, Asaph knowing these things now asks that God return to their neighbors seven times (that is His perfect Judgment) into their bosom, that He repay them their reproach with which they have reproached Him so that God's people all the sheep of His pasture can once again giving thanks to Him forever. So that they can show forth His praise to all generations to come, amen.

Scripture Quotations

New King James (1982): Thomas Nelson.