Psalm 79

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“O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance.” A psalmist in the line of Asaph recorded a lament to the Lord on the occasion of the destruction of the temple. Gentiles had come to Jerusalem, not to inquire after Israel's God, but to assert their dominance over the people that the Lord had chosen as His own. Their armies destroyed the Lord's sanctuary and left the city of Jerusalem in ruins.

God's beloved people were scattered on the ground as casualties of war. Their blood had been spilled throughout the city. There was no one left who could provide a respectful burial for all of the people whose lives were gone. The remaining people in the land received the ridicule of their adversaries. They were destroyed and humiliated.

In this situation of utmost despair, they knew where to turn. “How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?” Though first the Assyrians, and then later the Babylonians, were pursuing the Lord's people with vicious intent, the psalmist knew that the God of Jacob had His own purposes in the awful events that had transpired. God was angry with His people.

How could this anger be redirected? Did the Lord truly prefer the armies of Babylon to His own beloved flock? Had He forgotten His promises to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? May it never be! The people of God could sing this song with desperate confidence: "Pour out Your anger on the nations that do not know You!"

Why was God sending the Babylonians against His beloved people? The people of Judah had given themselves over to disobedience. But now they were coming to their God with repentance. Their sins were referred to here as “our former iniquities.” They looked for the Lord's compassion to come to them speedily. Only then could they be lifted up again from the dust.

God would surely save Jerusalem for the glory of His own holy Name. This was the psalmist's plea. The enemies from the Gentiles were not only speaking against the people of Judah, they were also blaspheming the Name of the Lord. Would God tolerate that? The God of Judah needed to vindicate His own Name.

Not only had young men died in battle, but many more had been taken as prisoners. Would their groans be ignored by God? Surely He would preserve the lives of those who now seemed to be doomed to die.

The Lord had not forgotten His sheep. He would discipline the nation for their persistent disobedience, but He would not ignore the cries of His children forever. At just the right time, the Almighty would send a Savior. Jesus would live and die, not only for the chosen people of Jerusalem, but for the elect from all the nations of the world. They would be brought into a new temple—the church. The faithful would take up this lament of Asaph in the day of their distress, and they would sing together about eternity. “We will give thanks to You forever; from generation to generation we will recount Your praise.”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

God Almighty, our situation is critical. We need your help soon, or we die. We do not see how we can be rescued, but we count on Your compassion and Your great wisdom. There is surely a way of deliverance that we cannot see. We are Your people. We love Your Name. Help us, O Lord.

Psalm 78

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“Give ear, O my people, to my teaching.” David appointed Asaph to the service of music. He and those who served after him composed songs, some of which are recorded in the Psalms. The story of the Lord would be told using a literary form and a human author. God would speak through men like Asaph using a “parable” or “dark sayings from of old.” He would bring forth a song for the nation to sing so that they would understand their history and their God.

Teaching through songs can be a very effective way to pass on a message to future generations. There would be things that the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the Lord's covenant people would need to know if they were to avoid the deadly consequences that had come upon their ancestors when they had turned away from the Lord so long ago.

Psalm 78 focuses especially on one important period in Israel's history. When the Lord redeemed His people out of Egypt with mighty signs and wonders, He demonstrated His special love for them and His powerful vengeance against His enemies. Yet Israel so quickly forgot the Lord. As their God led them through the wilderness, they did not remember His love. As they gave in to fear, they panicked regarding their daily needs. They rejected God's provision of manna in the desert and demanded better food. He disciplined His people and many died.

An observer of their national story might suppose that the loss of so many lives would not be so quickly forgotten. Would Israel continue to ignore the Word of the Lord? Would they miss the point of God's saving love? The story of the book of Judges provides a definitive answer. Though they would cry out to God over and over for help against their enemies, when He gave them deliverance they would quickly forget Him and His commandments.

As the history of Israel continued, the people once again rejected the Lord's laws concerning worship and life. Down to the days of David, Solomon, and beyond, the Lord's discipline came upon His beloved Israel.

Despite their willful disobedience, God continued to preserve a line from the tribe of Judah that would one day lead to a final Savior. He is our Good Shepherd. By His blood, Jesus has redeemed us. How will we respond to His covenant faithfulness? We will listen to His Word. We will sing this song of Israel's history and love the Lord and His testimonies. We will not forget that we have been saved by the blood of the Lamb. We will obey the Lord.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Almighty God, we are ready to hear Your voice in the reading and preaching of Your Word. Speak to us, Lord, that we might remember Your works, and that the next generation might grow in their faith. Centuries of wickedness have been overturned through the great redemptive work of Your Son on the cross. Look at the provision You have granted to us. You have gathered Your church. You have brought us the fulfillment of every good purpose in Your eternal decrees. You provide for us everything that we need day by day. What a kind and mighty Lord You are. In the day of Your gifts, we still sinned against You. You have surely disciplined us, for You love us. We repent of our lies and our iniquity. You have kept us according to Your loving purposes. You will continue to love us even now. What have we done, O Lord? How could we rail against You in our hearts, forgetting that Your purposes are always good? Have we forgotten what You have done in the case of Your Son? His death was for us. Surely You will give us all things. How magnificent is Your Name. We turn away from all sin and treachery. You have kept Your remnant through every trouble and misery. You have defeated the world, the flesh, and the devil. Because of Your commitment to Your Name, because of Your covenant with Your Son, You have granted us everything necessary that we might live with You in perfect blessedness forever. We thank You, O Lord.

Psalm 77

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“I cry aloud to God.” Asaph, or a psalmist who served later in Asaph's tradition, called out to the Lord day and night with the confidence that God heard him. He was in great trouble, but he would not give up.

The writer considered “the years long ago.” He struggled to find stability in his meditations. “Let me remember my song in the night.” He brought his honest questions to the Almighty. He even wondered if the Lord had “forgotten to be gracious.”

He made his appeal to God as he considered eternity past and the many centuries of the Lord's care for His people. He wrote of “the years of the right hand of the Most High.”

He considered God at a time when it was so easy to feel overwhelmed by the facts of his own troubles. He found a better perspective in turning all of his attention toward Yahweh. He considered the Lord's deeds, His wonders, His works—the Lord's holiness, His power, and all His merciful acts of redemption for His chosen people.

The Lord of Israel was also the God who controlled the waters all over the earth. He had made a way through the Red Sea for Moses and the people of Israel. When they were trapped and could find no pathway to life, their God had opened up a road for them in the midst of the waters. The Almighty God had saved them through the most desperate difficulties.

“You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” This is where Psalm 77 ends, but it is not where the Bible ends. The God of the exodus visited His people in the ministry of His Son. He amazed His disciples when He calmed the storm and walked on the water. In His great covenant love, He gave His life to redeem us from sin and death. He took the thunder and lightening of God's wrath so that we might know eternal peace.

There is an important practical lesson in Psalm 77 for God's people in every era. When we are overwhelmed with distress, we can think about Him. Think about who He is, and consider what He has accomplished for us. Even now, the one who gave Himself for our transgressions is leading us out of the waters of despair by His Holy Spirit. He will hear us and help us when we cry out to Him. We can turn our attention away from ourselves by singing about Him.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Merciful Lord, hear our prayer. We turn to You night and day. Why is there so much trouble in our hearts? Where is our faith? Have You given up on Your covenant faithfulness? Never, O Lord! We meditate upon the history of our redemption throughout many centuries. We also consider the strength of Your promises. You will hear us and help us. We believe in You. We have faith in Your Son Jesus, who leads us through a dangerous wilderness.

Psalm 76

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“In Judah God is known.” In yet another “psalm of Asaph,” all the worshipers of the Lord were called to consider God's special relationship to His chosen people. He who dwells in heavenly realms of unapproachable light had condescended to live among the people of Jerusalem in a temple made by human hands. There He defeated the “flashing arrows” of the enemies who stood against His kingdom. All of their “weapons of war” were broken.

The location for the temple chosen by God, the place of His earthly abode, was not only the center of worship for the Jews, it was also their source of victory in warfare. The battles that they faced belonged to the Lord. They had taken the Promised Land by His strength, and they would be able to keep their nation only by His power.

Where were “the stouthearted” of the nations defeated? Was it on some far off battlefield? No, victory came from Mount Zion, from the Lord of hosts. “At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned.”

Beyond the radiance of Mount Zion, Judah was called to look above to an even brighter glory. The power that brought deliverance to the Lord's people actually came from His dwelling on high. “From the heavens You uttered judgment; the earth feared and was still.” The Supreme Being Himself was the source of Judah's help in every trial. God alone was “to be feared.” The most powerful adversaries of the earth could never withstand His righteous anger.

But what if the Lord's holy indignation came against His people? How could we survive? Life and peace could only come to us through the gift of a perfect Substitute who would face the penalty of the Lord in our place. This is what Jesus has done for the Lord's chosen flock. This is how the Lord has saved “all the humble of the earth.”

God is able to turn even “the wrath of man” into praise for Himself. One day every knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. We must not wait for that day to bow before the Lord. Jesus has made a vow to the Father, and we are to be His holy payment. We should receive His grace today. We must never again set ourselves against His holy purposes.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord God, You bring peace through great strength. You have overturned powerful foes. Through Your judgment, the humble are saved. We give You our lives with great thanksgiving, for You have rescued us.

Psalm 75

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“We give thanks to you, O God.” A psalmist in the tradition of Asaph wrote Psalm 75 for the faithful to sing. All who would gather together in the covenant assembly of Israel were to remember that the Lord was near to them when they called upon His Name. They could sing and pray together about the “wondrous deeds” of the Almighty One.

Psalm 75 moves back and forth between the “we” of Israel who are the congregation of God, and a singular “I” who speaks and acts for God, not just in praise, but in the Lord's judgment against the wicked. This one faithful Ruler can be none other than God, who will come at a set time that He appoints. He “will judge with equity.” When the earth totters, He will “keep steady its pillars.”

Though wicked emperors may be able to intimidate many people groups with their powerful armies, this one King over all can say something as simple as, “Do not boast,” and rebellious enemies are put in their place. They can no longer go forth in battle, lifting up their “horn on high.” They can no longer oppress others, speaking “with haughty neck.”

When Israel faced powerful foes “from the east or from the west,” or when an enemy invaded “from the wilderness,” it would have been tempting to think that those hostile forces were the only powers around. Yet this singular “I,” God, the Lord, this King over kings was the One who “executes judgment.” The forces that attacked His people from any direction were under His sovereign command. One day He would prepare a cup of judgment for them to drink, and all the wicked of the earth would taste His wrath.

This “I” who would rule the nations would also lead Israel in the praise of God. He would “sing praises to the God of Jacob.” He would be the One who would stop wicked kings, but He would also find a way to lift up the righteous above their enemies.

These words that Israel sang for so many centuries have fresh meaning for the church today. We know that the “I” of Psalm 75 is Jesus, who is both “God” and “with God.” (John 1:1) Though all have sinned, even in His own Israel, and deserve His wrath, a great multitude, even from among the nations, have been declared righteous through faith in Him (Romans 3:21-26). This same Jesus who drank the cup of death for us (Matthew 26:39), and rose from the dead for our justification (Romans 4:25), will come again to judge the world and to rescue His beloved people (John 14:3 and Revelation 1:7).

Because of the great revelation of the one “I” of Psalm 75, Jews and Gentiles all over the earth can sing with greater understanding. They have become the “we” of this psalm of Asaph, as they worship God together through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Our Father, we thank You because of who You are and what You have done. We humble ourselves before You, Almighty God. You will judge the wicked. You will vindicate Your people forever.

Psalm 74

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“O God, why do You cast us off forever?” A psalmist in the line of Asaph (1 Chronicles 15:19) brought forth this great lament as he cried out to the Lord Most High. At just the right time, the exiles of Israel and Judah sang Psalm 74 knowing that they were “the sheep of Your pasture” and yet wondering why He was not coming to their aid. They asked Him to remember His commitment to His people, demonstrated of old in mighty acts of deliverance. They called upon Him to consider the temple, which lay in ruins. They cried out to the Lord in their distress.

Why was the temple destroyed? They had been overtaken by enemies. These foes “were like those who swing axes in a forest of trees.” They burned down the sanctuary of God's people in Jerusalem, and sought to remove from the land any place where people gathered together in the name of the Lord. They replaced the banners of God with their own emblems of conquest.

Where could the people go to meet with the Lord? What had become of God's Word? Were there no prophets left? Would this humiliation last forever? “How long, O God?” Why did the Lord not destroy these blasphemers with His mighty hand?

“Yet God my King is from of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth.” The accounts of Old Testament history and the words of the Hebrew prophets assure us that the troubles that led to the destruction of the temple were expressions of the Lord's discipline. It was the God of Israel who was using the Assyrians and Babylonians to accomplish His sovereign purposes. The God of creation and providence was still in charge of everything. His people now called to Him in faith, asking Him to take notice of the scoffing of enemies. Would the Lord tolerate their insolence forever?

The Lord loved Israel and Judah. They were His “dove.” They knew that their God would have mercy upon the poor and the oppressed. He had made covenant promises of old. He would not forget His people forever.

“Arise, O God, defend your cause; remember how the foolish scoff at You all the day!” Yet, the Lord was working out His secret purposes. Jesus was treated unjustly when He was dying on the cross, but there was no other way for our sins to be atoned for. Even in the lives of countless millions who serve God today, there are times when we just have to take the oppression that we face from those who hate our Lord.

We read today of churches throughout the world burned down by those who want Christians out of their neighborhoods. Even in Israel we hear of Jews killing other Jews simply for the offense of believing that Jesus is the Messiah. How are we to live in faith under these conditions?

We can cry out to the Lord about these horrible attacks against His living temple. We can ask Him to remember His covenant promises which are so secure for us in the resurrection of His Son. We can seek Him and find Him. And we can ask Him to come again in person to rescue His people in their day of distress.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

O Lord of Hosts, we are in great need. Is there any hope for us on this earth? Your church is in trouble. Enemies have come upon us and have overtaken us. From within our own number foes have arisen. They use Your Name and claim that they are with You, and yet they deny the truth of Your Word. They ignore Your great works of creation. They rail against Your Law, and would accuse You while claiming to be Your friends. Do not forget Your church, O Lord. Come quickly and deliver us.

Psalm 73

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“Truly God is good to Israel.” He is a Father to those who are pure in heart. “But as for me,” Asaph wrote, “my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped.” What was his crisis? He was envious of the arrogant when he saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Who are the wicked? Like all who live, the wicked were created by God. They were made in His image. How are they different from the righteous? They will not humble themselves before the Lord. They wear their rejection of God like a necklace. They are not the same as those who may be very weak in faith—those who are plagued by doubts and spiritual assaults. The doubter may be very meek, but the wicked man is violent, foolish, malicious, and oppressive.

The worshiper almost fell because he envied evil people. He saw them in their immoral boldness, openly claiming that God could not know what they were doing. Yet they seemed to prosper continually!

The righteous man began to think like a fool. He was facing the rebukes of mockers. He was suffering. He was greatly tempted. He was ready to say something that would have been bad for him and for others who were counting on him.

His transformation back to spiritual peace came in worship. When he went into the gathering place of God's people he remembered that the prosperity of the wicked would not last forever. In the suddenness of a moment the wicked man would be destroyed and would be “swept away by terrors.” He would not be able to face his inevitable end with true peace.

This insight came to the worshiper in the sanctuary. Then he admitted his fault before the Lord. His soul had been embittered. He had been walking in ignorance. He was sorry for his foolish envy, and he repented. He remembered that even if the wicked man had everything on earth, the righteous man, though he might be destitute, had God.

To have God is better than any other pleasure. God holds us. He counsels us. At just the right time, when our days on earth are done, He will receive us into glory. This is what the One Righteous Man, the Messiah, has won for us with His blood, and it is worth more than anything else that this fading world can offer.

When we realize this truly, when we remember what this true historical person, Jesus of Nazareth, has won for us, we will sing a better song than the bitterness of envy.

“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Stay near to God. Always make the Lord your sincere refuge. Tell of His works. Suffer now for a little while, if it be His will. He is with you now and forever.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Glorious Lord, forgive us for our foolish envy. We forget what You have done for us. We treat eternity as nothing. We look at someone in their momentary dishonest or crass gain, and think that such a man is better off then we are. Bring us back to You in worship together with all of Your people. Help us to contemplate our existence in a real world of blessing which You have secured for us through the blood of Your Son. It is good to be near You, O God.

Psalm 72

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“Give the king Your justice, O God!” Solomon, David's son and successor, knew that the king over God's people needed the help of the Almighty in order to reign. Any future king's official position required strong decision-making skills. He would have to sort through troubling questions regarding the lives of his subjects. A good king would need to make righteous choices. This would require divine gifting.

The “poor and needy” would be seeking the help of the king in their disputes with others who were oppressing them. His decrees would settle matters. But would the king's determinations be right? Would he bring prosperity to Israel through wise governance, or would he be easily deceived by clever people who sought to take advantage of those around them?

The king of Israel was not only the final authority in personal disagreements. He also governed the religious life in Israel. He could not perform those acts of devotion that were reserved for the priests, but that did not mean that he had no sovereignty over the nation's worship. Like a father over his family, the king was to lead the nation in turning to God in the hope that all of God's children would always “fear” the Lord.

Solomon wrote about a future king who would have authority “to the ends of the earth.” In the days of Solomon's reign, the queen of Sheba brought him gifts, but these were only a small portion of the devotion that would come to a far greater Ruler. “May all kings fall down before Him, all nations serve Him!”

This coming King would deliver the poor and needy from the most significant distress. He would reign over life and death as the Son of God. He would make peace between God and humanity so that the Lord's people could dwell with Him in peace.

This eternal King would have a name that would “endure forever.” People would be “blessed in Him,” and all the people groups of the earth would “call Him blessed.”

One day, the Lord, the God of Israel, would come in person to be this great King of kings. The One who “alone does wondrous things” would be God and Man together forever. He would establish His kingdom through His own death and resurrection. “May the whole earth be filled with His glory!”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Great God, bless the Name of Your Son. Bring about the fullness of His reign. May He provide for His people forever, and may His dominion be both complete and eternal. Lord, we long for the day of the return of our perfect Savior. He will bring the greatest prosperity and peace. Thank you for this great hope. He is our King, our Lord, and our God.