Psalm 78: 1 – 72
Teach the children
A Contemplation of Asaph.
1 Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, 3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. 4 We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done. 5 For He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; 6 That the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born, that they may arise and declare them to their children, 7 That they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments; 8 And may not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not set its heart aright, and whose spirit was not faithful to God. 9 The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. 10 They did not keep the covenant of God; They refused to walk in His law, 11 And forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them. 12 Marvelous things He did in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. 13 He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; And He made the waters stand up like a heap. 14 In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, and all the night with a light of fire. 15 He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink in abundance like the depths. 16 He also brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers. 17 But they sinned even more against Him by rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness. 18 And they tested God in their heart by asking for the food of their fancy. 19 Yes, they spoke against God: They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, He struck the rock, so that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide meat for His people?” 21 Therefore the LORD heard this and was furious; So, a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel, 22 Because they did not believe in God, and did not trust in His salvation. 23 Yet He had commanded the clouds above, and opened the doors of heaven, 24 Had rained down manna on them to eat, and given them of the bread of heaven. 25 Men ate angels’ food; He sent them food to the full. 26 He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens; And by His power He brought in the south wind. 27 He also rained meat on them like the dust, feathered fowl like the sand of the seas; 28 And He let them fall in the midst of their camp, all around their dwellings. 29 So they ate and were well filled, for He gave them their own desire. 30 They were not deprived of their craving; But while their food was still in their mouths, 31 The wrath of God came against them, and slew the stoutest of them, and struck down the choice men of Israel. 32 In spite of this they still sinned and did not believe in His wondrous works. 33 Therefore their days He consumed in futility, and their years in fear. 34 When He slew them, then they sought Him; And they returned and sought earnestly for God. 35 Then they remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God their Redeemer. 36 Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, and they lied to Him with their tongue; 37 For their heart was not steadfast with Him, nor were they faithful in His covenant. 38 But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, and did not stir up all His wrath; 39 For He remembered that they were but flesh, a breath that passes away and does not come again. 40 How often they provoked Him in the wilderness, and grieved Him in the desert! 41 Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel. 42 They did not remember His power: The day when He redeemed them from the enemy, 43 When He worked His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan; 44 Turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink. 45 He sent swarms of flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them. 46 He also gave their crops to the caterpillar, and their labor to the locust. 47 He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with frost. 48 He also gave up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to fiery lightning. 49 He cast on them the fierceness of His anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, by sending angels of destruction among them. 50 He made a path for His anger; He did not spare their soul from death, but gave their life over to the plague, 51 And destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt, The first of their strength in the tents of Ham. 52 But He made His own people go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock; 53 And He led them on safely, so that they did not fear; But the sea overwhelmed their enemies. 54 And He brought them to His holy border, this mountain which His right hand had acquired. 55 He also drove out the nations before them, allotted them an inheritance by survey, and made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents. 56 Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God, and did not keep His testimonies, 57 But turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers; They were turned aside like a deceitful bow. 58 For they provoked Him to anger with their high places, and moved Him to jealousy with their carved images. 59 When God heard this, He was furious, and greatly abhorred Israel, 60 So that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent He had placed among men, 61 And delivered His strength into captivity, and His glory into the enemy’s hand. 62 He also gave His people over to the sword and was furious with His inheritance. 63 The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not given in marriage. 64 Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation. 65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, like a mighty man who shouts because of wine. 66 And He beat back His enemies; He put them to a perpetual reproach. 67 Moreover He rejected the tent of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, 68 But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved. 69 And He built His sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which He has established forever. 70 He also chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds; 71 From following the ewes that had young He brought him, to shepherd Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. 72 So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.
Children at their earliest ages should learn and realize the importance of education in their lives. Some kids, however, may resist your efforts and insist on doing things their way. As a parent, your best teaching tool is your attitude. Having a positive attitude about reading and a curiosity about learning new things instills similar beliefs in your children. Show them that education is the ticket to fulfilling their dreams and having a productive life.
Teach the value of education early in a child's life. Children are naturally curious and observant. If they see you reading books and newspapers, they may be wondering why this activity holds such interest. Tell them that they need to learn to read to be able to also share such enjoyment. Read to them often help them develop their language skills.
Impress on children the importance of school. This means getting them to school on time and modeling the importance of punctuality. Take an interest in all their homework and make sure the required assignments are completed before the due dates.
Take your children to educational yet fun parks. Instead of taking them to the malls, take them to a museum, science center or zoo. Explain to them that continuing their education will allow them to understand more about the world around them. This strategy will certainly make them more motivated to learn and study.
Introduce the computer to children. Computers never fail to amaze people, especially young children. Let them play grade-level software games that will provide fun and entertainment. Emphasize to children that learning about computer use, videos and education go hand in hand.
Teach the importance of education daily. You could incorporate mathematics into daily tasks and situations. Have them help you count the number of cookies on a cookie pan. Their love for learning could start if you rely on them to do specific tasks. Incorporate counting, reading and writing within those simple tasks. For example, you could take them to the market and have them pick out a certain number of items (like five apples or four oranges).
Enroll your children in schools. If you want them to love education, make sure to place them in an environment that fosters comfort, fun and learning at the same time. In addition, attend all the parent teacher conferences and become active in other school activities. Your child will notice and grow to respect the time you put into her education.
Our Lord passed on this wisdom to His elect people the Israelites to do likewise. In today’s key scripture verse we read, “4 We will not hide them from their children, telling the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.”
A Contemplation of Asaph.
A ‘Maschil’ is a Psalm giving instruction and understanding. In this Psalm the Psalmist reveals his intention to make clear to Israel and Israel’s children the wonders of what God had done for their fathers in the past in order that they might walk in obedience before Him by learning from the past. It covers in some detail the deliverance from Egypt, the journey through the wilderness with all its problems, the constant failure of His people because they had forgotten what God had done for them, a description of what had happened in Egypt that they had forgotten, their treacherous behavior in the land that He had given them, His consequent rejection of the house of Ephraim and His subsequent choice of David of the house of Judah to be their righteous king, and of Mount Zion as the Temple Mount.
Central to the question as to the dating of the Psalm is the description of Israel as ‘the children of Ephraim’ (Ephraim became the largest and most influential tribe in Northern Israel and in time was representing them). This phrase would in context appear to signify the main body of Israel. But the first indication we have that the phrase ‘the children of Ephraim’ could signify ‘all Israel’ (in contrast with Judah) is found in 2 Chronicles 25.7 attributed to the reign of Amaziah (796-767 BC). It may be significant that it was in that century that Hosea also referred to Israel as ‘Ephraim’. Furthermore, if we consider that the title ‘the Holy One of Israel’ (verse 41) was initially coined by Isaiah, it might also be pointing to 8th century BC.
1 Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old,
The Psalmist calls on his people to pay heed to his instruction and listen to the words of his mouth, because he intends to bring home to them an illustration from the past (a parable), bringing to light things that are hidden. ‘Dark sayings’ apparently indicates sayings which bring light on the mysteries of the past. There is nothing sinister about them. Thus, the second two lines are paraphrased by Matthew as, ‘I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world’ (Matthew 13.34-35). Matthew is saying that our Lord Jesus was following the Psalmist in His method of teaching, and filling to the full what the Psalmist had said. So, he clearly saw the Psalmist’s intention as being to open up the past to his listeners. And that will include God’s covenant which includes God’s Law and Testimony which unfold His hidden wisdom. They were ‘dark sayings’ because they were hidden from most of mankind.
3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
The ‘dark sayings’ are things which have been ‘heard and known’. They are not secret. They are revelations from the past, things which their fathers have told them. They are ‘dark’ because they reveal the ways of a mysterious God. The nations of the world are in the dark about them, but they are openly revealed to His people.
4 We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
The Psalmist stresses that they will not hide them from their children. They are ‘mysteries’ to be opened and passed on to their (the fathers’) children, telling from one generation to another the praises of YHWH and letting them know of His might, and the wonderful things that He has done for His people. The truth about God and His wonderful works must not be kept hidden but must be declared everywhere. And it is these wonderful things which the Psalm will be all about.
5 For He established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children;
Among these wondrous works was the giving of the Law and the Testimony which He established in Jacob and appointed in Israel. The Law was not seen as a burden, but as a revelation. It was a testimony to God’s gracious activity on behalf of His people. And the Law and the Testimony were given as commands to their fathers with a view to them being made known to their children, so that they might hear them and respond. (The Law only became a burden when it became a method of earning God’s favor, rather than a joyous response to His love).
6 That the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born, that they may arise and declare them to their children, 7 That they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments;
The Covenant, of which the Law and the Testimony were a part, was intended to be passed on from generation to generation, so that all might set their hope in God and not forget His works, but might observe His commandments. It was a sacred trust and responsibility. The Law and Testimony, of course, included both the history of God’s working on behalf of His people (His works) and His legal requirements which He expected from them as His redeemed people (His commandments). Both were connected with His redeeming love.
We must never forget that His commandments were an essential part of a covenant treaty that He had made with them as their Deliverer from Egypt (Exodus 20.1-17).
8 And may not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not set its heart aright, and whose spirit was not faithful to God.
The Psalmist was concerned that his hearers, and the children yet unborn, might not behave in the way in which their fathers had. For as the history will make clear, their fathers had been a stubborn and rebellious generation, who did not set their heart aright and whose spirit was not steadfast with God. It was because their hearts were wrong that they had constantly grumbled, doubted God, blamed Him for not giving them what they wanted, and been disobedient to His requirements, and that despite His amazing deliverance of them from Egypt.
9 The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.
The prime example of this was that all Israel, when faced with the problems lying ahead in the land, had, despite being armed (and having the assurance that God was with them), turned back at the very thought of battle (Numbers 13-14). Only Caleb had stood firm on behalf of Judah (Numbers 14.24). The Psalmist saw this as crucial in deciding their future.
10 They did not keep the covenant of God; They refused to walk in His law, 11 And forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them.
It was part of the covenant that His people would go forward when He told them to go forward, but they did not do so. They failed to ‘walk in His instruction’. They held back and said ‘no’. In the face of present realities, they forgot His past doings, and the wondrous works which He had shown them in the past. Their refusal, arising from doubt and fear, determined that for the future God would look to the house and tribe of Caleb (Numbers 14.24). And that was why in Judges 1 Judah led the onslaught into Canaan (Judges 1.2-11), while the other tribes held back from a full battle (Judges 1.21-36). This was the view of the Psalmist (he probably saw Joshua as above all this). And he saw it as vindicated when God chose David to be His righteous King, and Mount Zion as His earthly dwelling place (verse 68). This in accordance with God’s promise in Genesis 49.8-12.
12 Marvelous things He did in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.
The writer goes on to speak of the more positive benefits that God piled on His people mainly after they had left Egypt. The Psalmist intended this verse to sum up the great initial acts of deliverance, prior to what he then describes, deciding later that those acts deserved dealing with in depth. On this basis verse 12 has in mind the ten plagues, including especially the slaying of the firstborn.
What follows indicates a detailed knowledge of the Exodus as found in Exodus and Numbers.
13 He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; And He made the waters stand up like a heap.
The first incident described is the dividing of the Red Sea in order that Israel might escape through it. Previously Israel had watched as God dealt with the Egyptians, although there had been instances of preservation. But now God acted directly in their deliverance. ‘He made the waters of the Red Sea ‘to stand as a heap’. This is described in Exodus as, ‘the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left’ (Exodus 14.22). Thus, God made a way for them through the Red Sea, only for the Egyptian charioteers who followed them to be destroyed.
14 In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, and all the night with a light of fire.
A further manifestation of God’s saving presence with them was the sign of His presence in the cloud by day and the fire by night. In this way they were aware of His visible presence with them. The pillar of cloud accompanied them for a number of years (Numbers 9.22), and was a regular manifestation of God’s presence in the Tabernacle.
15 He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink in abundance like the depths. 16 He also brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers.
These words describe two incidents where God produced water for His people in abundant quantities from ‘rocks’. In Exodus 17.6 God stood on the rock in Horeb and Moses smote it and water came out. In Numbers 20.8-11 it was from the craggy rock when he should not have smitten it, but did. But in both cases God gave them drink abundantly and caused water to run down like rivers. The amount of water must have been considerable for it was enough for the people and their cattle.
17 But they sinned even more against Him by rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness. 18 And they tested God in their heart by asking for the food of their fancy.
In spite of these manifestations of God’s power and care they went on still to sin against Him, and ‘to rebel against the Most High in the desert’. Their rebellion lay in the fact that instead of being satisfied with God’s supply, they expected Him to fulfil their desires. They put God to the test in their hearts by asking for food ‘in accordance with their desire’. They were constantly at conflict with the God Who had been so good to them. This idea of rebelling against God and putting Him to the test occurs regularly. The rebellion produced murmuring, and through their murmuring and dissatisfaction they were testing God.
19 Yes, they spoke against God: They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, He struck the rock, so that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide meat for His people?”
Essentially this is referring to Numbers 11 where the people, sick of God’s provision of manna, murmured because they wanted flesh to eat. Then they ‘spoke against God’ and asked, ‘Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? He gave us water to drink by the smiting of a rock so that we had abundant water, can He also give us desirable food? Instead of being grateful to the God Who had delivered them from bondage in Egypt and had provided them with manna, they were dissatisfied in their hearts because His provision was not seen as good enough. They had become choosy. If He could give them water, why could He not give them flesh to eat? It was not a cry of need, but of greed and presumption.
21 Therefore the LORD heard this and was furious; So, a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel,
God heard their whining cry and was angry. He felt that they should have been grateful for what He had provided for them. As a consequence, He sent fire on them. ‘The fire of YHWH burned among them’ (Numbers 11.1-3). This may indicate that there was destructive lightning, or that the Pillar of fire had turned against them. They had brought on themselves God’s wrath. The smoke from the fire ‘went up’ as a demonstration of God’s anger. And the fire only eased when Moses interceded for them.
22 Because they did not believe in God, and did not trust in His salvation.
And at the root of His anger was their lack of faith. It was because they ‘did not believe in God’. In other words, they did not trust Him fully. They were not satisfied with the way in which He was delivering them. His salvation was not good enough. They wanted the luxuries, not just the necessities.
It is a reminder how quickly we can move from being grateful for His activity on our behalf, to becoming disgruntled and dissatisfied, and wanting that something extra.
23 Yet He had commanded the clouds above, and opened the doors of heaven, 24 Had rained down manna on them to eat, and given them of the bread of heaven. 25 Men ate angels’ food; He sent them food to the full.
This dissatisfaction and disgruntlement was in spite of what God had previously done for them. That was what made them without excuse. He had previously seen their need and had ‘opened the doors of Heaven’ and had rained down manna from Heaven on them (as He had said in Exodus 16.4, ‘Behold I will rain bread from Heaven for you’). But it had not been good enough for them. They had become sick of it.
That this was offensive by the Psalmist comes out in the words, ‘Mere man had eaten heavenly food’. He was bringing out that instead of being grateful for an amazing provision ‘from Heaven’ the people had been dissatisfied, even though God had sent them all the food that they needed. ‘The bread of the mighty’ indicates its source among the mighty in Heaven. Later it would be spoken of as ‘angel’s food’.
26 He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens; And by His power He brought in the south wind. 27 He also rained meat on them like the dust, feathered fowl like the sand of the seas; 28 And He let them fall in the midst of their camp, all around their dwellings. 29 So they ate and were well filled, for He gave them their own desire.
God heard their cry, but He was not pleased at their request. Nevertheless, by use of the south east wind He brought to the camp a large flock of quails, which landed in and around where they were encamped, so that they only had to leave their tents to catch them (Numbers 11.31). And there were so many that all the people had enough to eat and more. God had had answered their prayer and seemingly fulfilled their desire. But as often when we are obstinate and seek what is not good for us there was a price to pay.
30 They were not deprived of their craving; But while their food was still in their mouths, 31 The wrath of God came against them, and slew the stoutest of them, and struck down the choice men of Israel.
‘They ‘got what they wanted’. But it was at a cost. For God had a bitter lesson to teach them. He was angry at their greed and thanklessness, and thus among the birds were many which were infected and poisonous, so that ‘while the food was yet in their mouths’ (Numbers 11.33 says, ‘while the flesh was still in their teeth, before it was chewed’) many became ill and even died. God ‘slew the fattest of them (the greediest or healthiest) and smote down the young men of Israel’. If only they had been satisfied with God’s provision of manna, a perfectly safe food, it would not have happened. But they preferred quails, and they had therefore to accept the risk that eating the flesh of birds involved. It was God’s judgment on them.
32 In spite of this they still sinned and did not believe in His wondrous works.
And yet in spite of all that God had done for them, and this harsh warning to them, they still sinned and murmured. They ‘did not believe in His wondrous works’. In other words, despite His wondrous works, they continued to seek their own way rather than trusting in Him and obeying Him.
The Psalmist now describes their years in the wilderness consequent on their having failed to obey Him and enter Canaan.
33 Therefore their days He consumed in futility, and their years in fear.
He points out that they were days of emptiness for thirty eight years as they wandered aimlessly from one place to another, when they should have been taking possession of Canaan. And they were days of terror as they constantly faced obstacles and problems, the main one of which of which we know was the rebellion of Korah with its awful consequences described in Numbers 16.1-17.13. They were not Israel’s best time.
34 When He slew them, then they sought Him; And they returned and sought earnestly for God. 35 Then they remembered that God was their rock, and the Most High God their Redeemer.
During these years they went through periods of chastisement and each time they would return and seek God earnestly, and remember that God Was their Rock, their sure Foundation, and that the Most High God was their Redeemer and Deliverer.
36 Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, and they lied to Him with their tongue; 37 For their heart was not steadfast with Him, nor were they faithful in His covenant.
However their protestations of reliance on Him turned out to be flattery and lies, for while they honored Him with their mouths, their hearts were far from Him, and they were not faithful to His covenant.
38 But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and did not destroy them. Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, and did not stir up all His wrath;
And yet time and again God was merciful to them and forgave their iniquity. He did not destroy them as they deserved. He turned His anger away from them and did not stir up His deepest anger.
39 For He remembered that they were but flesh, a breath that passes away and does not come again.
For He remembered that they were only mere mortals, made of flesh and, like the wind, transient and temporary.
40 How often they provoked Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert!
In spite of God’s forbearance (verse 18) they did not repent, but instead continually rebelled against Him and vexed Him in the wilderness.
41 Yes, again and again they tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.
They turned their backs on previous repentance, turning again to rebellion and continually putting God to the test, provoking ‘the Holy One of Israel’. They were obstinate and intransigent, and continually disobeyed Him. This is the second time that their rebellion and testing of God has been emphasized.
I need to stop for one moment and confess how this Psalm really smacks me between the teeth. Many times, I get bothered by all the ‘tests’ God allows to come against me. I am sick of exams. The truth however makes me ashamed in that like the Israelites I have the audacity to test God. I am wrong, and I thank God as my Great Teacher for letting me know of my sin. Forgive me Lord.
The use of the title ‘the Holy One of Israel’ brings out the heinousness of their behavior. On the one hand a sinful, rebellious and ungrateful people, on the other the pure, and high and holy God of Israel Who demanded purity and full obedience. It was no ordinary god that they were provoking.
42 They did not remember His power: The day when He redeemed them from the enemy,
And they had done all this in the face of what He had done for them, in stretching out His hand in Egypt and performing miracles. And they had forgotten that amazing day when He had delivered them from their adversary. Those wonderful events will now be given in detail.
43 When He worked His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan;
Drawing attention to what he had already said in verse 12 the Psalmist again reminds the people how God had worked unforgettable signs and winders in Egypt, in the area of Tanis (Zoan), the city restored by Raamses II, where they had been in slavery. They had been part of the enslaved labor force used in the restoration of that city with nothing to look forward to but more slavery, when God intervened.
44 Turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, that they could not drink.
He had turned the rivers of the Egyptians (the Nile and its tributaries) into blood and had made the streams from that river undrinkable. (Exodus 7.17) The word for ‘rivers’ is particularly used for the Nile and its tributaries.
45 He sent swarms of flies among them, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them.
He had sent among them swarms of venomous flies of a kind known in Egypt. These would largely have multiplied because of the decaying fish and vegetation in the polluted Nile and its surrounds (Exodus 8.20-32), which would have caused multiple sickness and death.
The frogs (Exodus 7.25) would have been escaping from the putrid waters of the Nile and its tributaries, which were no longer suitable for them, seeking to find shelter in Egyptian houses. The Egyptians found frogs everywhere, destroying their peace and wellbeing.
46 He also gave their crops to the caterpillar, and their labor to the locust.
God had also caused Egypt to be saturated with locusts, who would eat all that the people had labored to produce, and who would produce young locusts who would add to the devastation (Exodus 10.1-20).
The word for caterpillar almost certainly refers to the young locust in its earliest form which would feast on their vegetation and crops. The full-grown locusts, which produced the young locusts, would descend in a huge cloud, covering the land and eating everything which was edible.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycamore trees with frost.
God had caused unusually large hailstones to destroy their produce (Exodus 9.13-35). ‘It ‘shattered every tree in the countryside’ (Exodus 9.25). It also slew men and beasts who had not taken shelter.
48 He also gave up their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to fiery lightning.
The cattle which had not taken shelter had also been killed by the huge hailstones, and hot thunderbolts had destroyed their flocks. The hail had been accompanied by flashing lightning (Exodus 9.24).
49 He cast on them the fierceness of His anger, wrath, indignation, and trouble, by sending angels of destruction among them.
This verse summarizes what has gone before. What had been poured on Egypt had been the fierceness of God’s anger because of their treatment of His people. He had poured on them wrath, and indignation and trouble. The messengers of evil may be a personifying of the plagues or may be intended to indicate heavenly beings who had been God’s agents in the plagues.
50 He made a path for His anger; He did not spare their soul from death, but gave their life over to the plague, 51 And destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt, The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.
His final wonder was the greatest and most terrible. Earlier plagues had resulted in deaths, but they had been circumstantial. Now God planned deaths. He ‘made a path for His anger’. That is, He prepared the way for it so that it would hit with full force. For He did not spare the lives of the Egyptians from death, but smote them with death-dealing pestilence, smiting all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, those who were the mainstay and strength of Egypt, the very source of their strength. He smote them ‘in the tents of Ham’, that is in their homes as descendants of Ham, the son of Noah (Genesis 10.6).
52 But He made His own people go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock;
In contrast with His treatment of the Egyptians who had enslaved His people, He led forth His own people as a shepherd leads his sheep. He guided them in the wilderness like a flock. As mentioned in the introduction to this section of the Psalms the picture of God as His people’s shepherd is a favorite one in the Psalms of Asaph. His aim now is to show how good God had been to them.
53 And He led them on safely, so that they did not fear; But the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
As their shepherd He led them safely through the Red Sea so that they were not afraid that the sea would overwhelm them, but it was different with their enemies, for the sea did overwhelm them.
54 And He brought them to His holy border, this mountain which His right hand had acquired.
He brought them to the border of the country which He had chosen as a sanctuary for them. ‘This mountain’ indicates the whole of the hill country of Israel (Exodus 15.17, where it is called God’s own mountain and a sanctuary). And He obtained it for them with His powerful right hand.
55 He also drove out the nations before them, allotted them an inheritance by survey, and made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.
He obtained it for them by driving out the nations before them, allotting the land to them as an inheritance with clear borders to each inheritance (by line), and enabling Israel to dwell in it in safety in their tents. This is a very brief description of a much more complicated scenario, but it gets over the point. Under Joshua they obtained a secure place in the land, and subsequently enjoyed long periods of peace.
These next verses have in mind the period under the Judges, when the people again put God to the test and rebelled against Him by erecting idolatrous high places and making graven images. Therefore, God was angry and forsook His Central Sanctuary at Shiloh, allowing the people to come under the heel of others, and to suffer continual bloodshed.
56 Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God, and did not keep His testimonies,
The ‘they’ are now the descendants of the Israel of the Exodus. Like their fathers had done they once again put God to the test and rebelled against ‘the Most High God’ (Elohim Elyon). They did not observe His testimonies.
57 But turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers; They were turned aside like a deceitful bow.
Like their fathers had done they turned back from following God and were as treacherous as their fathers had been. Like arrows from a bow that promises much but were off target, they went astray. The bow is deceitful because its archer deliberately shoots at the wrong target, just as these people had deliberately aimed themselves in the wrong direction.
58 For they provoked Him to anger with their high places and moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.
What they had done which was contrary to His testimonies, and was seen as so rebellious? They had provoked Him to anger by making sanctuaries for false gods, and by fashioning graven images to worship them. They had sought to the gods of the land, the Baals and the Asherim. High places were sanctuaries on mountain tops, and artificially made high places in towns and cities, usually in Canaan for the worship of Baal and Asherah. But God had forbidden the worship of false gods. They were thus insulting Him to His face.
59 When God heard this, He was furious, and greatly abhorred Israel,
When God heard of and saw their blatant idolatry He was angry and turned His back on His people. He wanted nothing more to do with them.
60 So that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent He had placed among men,
He deserted the Tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent which He had established among them, the place where He had established His Name, and which He had provided among His people as a center for their worship.
61 And delivered His strength into captivity, and His glory into the enemy’s hand.
This was especially significant in that He allowed the Ark of YHWH (His strength and glory) to be seized by the Philistines so that His presence was no longer seen as among them (1 Samuel 4.11). It was taken into captivity, something which must have devastated Israel who had probably thought that YHWH would never allow it.
62 He also gave His people over to the sword and was furious with His inheritance.
Because of His rejection of them Israel experienced great slaughter (1 Samuel 4.1, 10, 17). Large numbers died at the hands of the Philistines. And this was because ‘He was angry with His inheritance’, that is, with those whom He had chosen for Himself and subsequently blessed.
63 The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not given in marriage.
The fire described here is the fire of war like we read about in the book of Numbers 21.28, ‘a fire has gone out of Heshbon, and a flame from the city of Sihon’, speaking of when they went to war against Moab. The virgins would have no marriage song because there would be no young men available as husbands.
64 Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.
This has especially in mind the sons of Eli who perished in battle bearing the Ark (1 Samuel 4.17). Their widows made no lamentation for them because, as with Eli, they were too busy lamenting the loss of the Ark of YHWH (1 Samuel 4.18, 21-22).
In a brief summary the Psalmist calls attention to how God ‘awoke as One out of sleep’. This may have in mind the days of Samuel and Saul, who delivered Israel from the Philistines. But the Philistines finally returned in the days of Saul and it may be that he simply refers to David who was the one who finally thoroughly and perpetually defeated them and put them to perpetual reproach.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, like a mighty man who shouts because of wine.
This vivid metaphor depicts God as awaking like One out of sleep and stirring like a mighty warrior who awakes and shouts his war cries against the enemy.
66 And He beat back His enemies; He put them to a perpetual reproach.
After the travesty under Eli, He smote His adversaries and drove them backwards, and finally under His anointed servant David put them to perpetual reproach. Because of his activities (commencing under Saul) they ceased to be a major threat.
67 Moreover He rejected the tent of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, 68 But chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved.
He explains that God rejected the mighty Ephraim, head of the Northern tribes, together with the Sanctuary at Shiloh (‘the tent of Joseph’ in Ephraim), and chose Judah and established His Sanctuary in Mount Zion. It was because only the representative of Judah had encouraged entry into Canaan at the first opportunity (Numbers 14.24). And the consequence was that God chose Judah to spearhead the entry into the land under Caleb (Judges 1.2-20), while the Northern tribes were less diligent (Judges 1.21). It had, however, already been prophesied by Jacob in his dying blessing (Genesis 49.8-12).
69 And He built His sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which He has established forever.
The point here is the permanence and long lastingness of the Sanctuary established by David, which grew into the Temple built by Solomon. ‘The heights’ were permanently established on unmovable foundations, in the same way as the very earth itself. In the same way God’s Sanctuary established by David was here portrayed as permanent and unmovable. Such a thing could only have been said before the destruction of Jerusalem. It did, of course, survive for over four hundred years (forever’ strictly means ‘into the hidden future’ so the Psalmist was not mistaken). It would be replaced by an even more permanent Sanctuary in our Lord Jesus Christ and His church (John 2.22; 2 Corinthians 6.16).
70 He also chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds; 71 From following the ewes that had young He brought him, to shepherd Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance.
He chose David as His servant, raising him from being a shepherd over the sheepfold, tending the ewes which bore their lambs, to being the Shepherd under God of God’s people Jacob, God’s inheritance Israel. There were few who were called ‘His servant’ in this sense. They included Moses and Joshua, and of course the Great Suffering Servant Himself our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
72 So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.
So, despite all their testing’s and rebellions, through the mercy and compassion of God, God’s people ended up with a shepherd with a true heart, who guided them skillfully with his hands. And the call of the Psalmist was for them to remember the lessons of the past and be true to this shepherd who was their shepherd as God’s representative (78.1-7).
