Author: Scott Walter

Psalm 80 is a prayer on behalf of God’s people, likely around the time of the Babylonian exile. As modern day readers of this psalm, we can relate to the plight of the nation of Israel like we would the pain, suffering, and disorientation of God’s people or the Church today. It’s important to note that this prayer is offered up for the collective, for the sin and the suffering of God’s people as a whole, and for their restoration, return to God, and healing as a community of faith. 

Surely many of us can relate, as we look around at the disarray, division, and idolatry in the Church in our community, culture, and nation. We may feel complete and utter despair for the suffering and brokenness in our society that has resulted from our faithlessness and straying from God and His ways.

We can all relate to feeling overwhelmed with pain and sorrow at the way things are, so keenly aware that things aren’t as they should be, and feeling powerless to affect change. This psalmist shows us what to do with all of that:   

• He remembers that as sheep, we need to be tended to and gathered by the shepherd. 
• He acknowledges the sin of God’s people, that it is us who have chosen to turn away and how grave of a mistake it was to do so.
• He proclaims God’s track record of generous mercy, how He rescued His people from Egypt and tenderly nurtured the flourishing and fruitfulness of His people. 

Finally, he draws our attention to three things we can continually be in prayer for: 

• An outpouring of mercy. We understand that it is only by God’s grace that we are able to return to Him. 
• The hearts of God’s people, that they would be fertile soil for God’s grace.  
• The leadership of the Church in our community and in our nation. Strong, faithful and courageous leadership is required to lead the Church back into faithfulness to God.

While verses 17-19 are prayers for the literal king of Israel, they are also a foreshadowing pointing Israel and us toward Jesus Christ. Under the leadership of the Messiah, the Church will be restored and once again know the shining radiance of God’s face. Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of this prayer, and through Him alone are we reconciled to God.

Reading Psalm 79, you can envision the author, Asaph, staring at a scene of devastation. Jerusalem had been conquered by the Babylonians and everything was destroyed, including God’s holy temple. Asaph describes not only God’s people being mocked, but the horror of dead bodies strewn through the streets without even respect for a proper burial. In the midst of Asaph’s grief, he cries out to the Lord in complete transparency. He proceeds to beg God for forgiveness as the Israelites were far from Him and Babylon’s invasion was a direct consequence of their sin. Asaph pleads, “Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name, deliver us, and atone for our sins, for your name’s sake!” (v. 9). He knows God alone is their Rescuer. However, in the midst of sorrow, he is able to close with rejoicing. “But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation, we will recount your praise.” (v. 13) How? Asaph remembers who God is (their Shepherd) and who they belong to.

Can we not relate to Asaph? We may not be sitting in the midst of war ruins but we have most likely all been in the midst of what feels like ruin through destructive sin, loss, sickness, anxiety, grief, etc. Just like Asaph, we can pour out our hearts to a God who loves us and says we can cast all of our cares and anxieties on Him (1 Peter 5:7). We, too, can ask God for forgiveness. The best news is that Psalm 79:8-9 has been answered through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He has rescued us! Because of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice for us on the cross, He has atoned for our sins, setting us free. “In Him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us” (Ephesians 1:7). 

Psalm 79 transitions from hopeless to hopeful! Because God is our shepherd and we are His sheep, we too can praise Him in midst of the storm. When we spend time with God, we begin to remember who He is and who we belong to. Throughout Psalm 79, Asaph’s circumstances did not change but his demeanor did. This is because he was comforted in our God who never changes! (Revelation 1:8, Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6, Isaiah 40:8). 

Psalm 78 is the first historical psalm in this book, recounting past events of God’s people lacking belief in him and rebelling because they forgot who God is and what He had done for them. The primary events can be found in the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible), Joshua, Judges, and Samuel. He delivered them out of slavery, gave them food in the wilderness, brought plagues to their oppressors, and lead them to the promise land. Yet the people still chose to remain unfaithful and live their lives the way they wanted. It took God punishing and disciplining them to finally wake them up and begin to see what was going on. The heart of this story is that despite the constant rebellion and belief of fallen people, God’s unimaginable love and grace for His people remains constant and unwavering. Time and time again God met them where they were and provided for them. His goodness and mercy is never ending, though it is undeserving.

How often are we like the Israelites? So often we forget who God is and His power – not because He hasn’t shown it to us but because we so easily forget. Our unbelief isn’t because God is never present, rather it’s that we don’t focus on Him and as a result, we don’t know Him. We seek after glory and success for ourselves and try to be a believer, too. Jesus says in Matthew 16:25, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” As long as we live in this world, we won’t experience the freedom found in wholeheartedly laying down our lives for Christ. We need to surrender and give Him control because God is beginning to move in our nation. He is starting to refine us and build up an army of believers who are bold and radical. There is no being passive or middle ground: we are either with Him or against Him (Luke 11:23). God is here, and He is moving in us and our generation if only we choose to join Him.

As we read through Psalm 77, do you see anything familiar? Perhaps you connect with verse 1- “I cried out to God for help.” Maybe the author’s insomnia and grief-stricken silence in verse 4 hits home? Whatever the case may be, most Christians have felt like the psalmist here at one point or another in our faith journey. We don’t always understand what God is doing and this can be frustrating, but what do we do in these situations?

Psalm 77 is written in such a beautiful style. There are multiple ways to break down the structure of it, but the most common has been to separate verse 1-9 and verses 10-20. We see in Psalm 77:1-3 a person who cries out to God, knowing that only in Him lie the answers. In Psalm 77:4-9 we see someone who is so grieved in their spirit that they can’t even sleep! The author asks questions some Christians wouldn’t dare utter, but now we can see God’s response.

Verse 10 serves as a hinge for this whole psalm. There are many different translations and interpretations of this verse, but the main point is this: This is where the author, having offered up his grief and questions to God and seeing the error of these questions, turns to remembering God’s faithful acts of years past. Instead of focusing on the struggle at hand, the author instead chooses to focus on what God has done for His people before, believing in faith He will deliver them again!

What does this mean for 21st century Christians like us? It serves as a great example to follow! What do we do when everything in our lives seems to be going wrong? We “reflect on all [God has] done, and meditate on [His] actions.” God doesn’t love you less because you struggle. In fact, God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth precisely because we humans struggle! He knows we need Him, so instead of holding that over our heads, He proactively stepped into history, did what we could not, and gave us the grace to be with Him! He did this all to be in relationship with us, His people, His Church. Go to God with your struggles, ask Him your questions, lay the darkest thoughts down before Him and allow the light of His love to illuminate them. Who knows, He might just surprise you.

Psalm 76 is a psalm of praise and a victory hymn. It highlights the greatness and awe of God, and shows us what the proper response to His greatness is⏤praise! The author, Asaph, writes this psalm in response to a battle victory. It may have been written in response to the particular victory in 2 Kings 19:35, but the lack of specificity allows for these words to be used more generally for celebrating any victory that the Lord gives. 

Over and over again in Scripture, we see God fight on behalf of His people. Victory is always His. Psalm 20:6-7 says, “Now this I know: The Lord gives victory to his anointed. He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” As God’s people, we can trust that He will fight on our behalf.

The first two verses of this psalm are particularly powerful: “God is renowned in Judah; in Israel his name is great. His tent is in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.” God is renowned or known in Judah. This all powerful God who gives victory in battle also chooses to make Himself known to His people. Salem is the ancient name for Jerusalem, and it means city of peace. He makes His tent or home there, in Jerusalem, with His people, bringing peace to them as He dwells. He has both revealed Himself to His people and chosen to dwell with them. 

In the Old Testament, God chose to dwell with His people in Jerusalem. Then, He sent His Son to dwell on earth. John 1:14  tells us, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Today, He has sent His Spirit to dwell in each and every believer. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17). 

We have access to a holy God, not because of anything we’ve done, but because He made a way to live with us. Throughout history, God chooses to dwell with His people and bring them peace. He’s choosing to do that same thing with you today.  

Psalm 75 marks the halfway point through the Psalms. Similar to Psalm 57, 58, and 59, this psalm is set to the tune of “Do Not Destroy” for the fourth and final time. It is a prayer by Asaph to God consisting of thanksgiving, a word from God, a warning by the church, and anticipation of the Lord’s deliverance.

Asaph knew that judgment was coming. He knew God would destroy the people not following Him, but he prayed for deliverance of the believers. He rejoiced, even though he knew heartbreak was around the corner. This served as a warning for those who were not following God; there was a destructive fate ahead if they did not take the opportunity to turn to righteousness.

This chapter has many references to a horn. In the Old Testament times, the horn was a symbol of boastful power and strength. The foolish were using their horns to promote themselves and their power, exalting themselves even over God. It seems like an old issue… until we think of a phrase we use today. How often do you “toot your own horn?”

We do not want to be foolish. Charles Spurgeon, a preacher and Bible scholar, notes, “When possessed by the arrogant, the horn is said to be ‘cut down’ or humbled. While God rejects the horns of the haughty, he exalts the horns of the righteous.” The Lord sees how we act every day. Self-promoting tendencies and boasting of success will feel good for a moment, but we will be left with God humbling us. Rather, let us live for righteousness and let God lift us up in His timing.

God will judge with equity and He gives us plenty of opportunities to turn to Him. When we turn to Him, He is near and works in our lives. With a focus on His wondrous deeds and praising Him, it will be much easier to declare His praise than tooting our own horn in vain.

In this psalm, we can see that Asaph and Israel as a whole are going through a tough time (a major understatement). This chapter is full of vivid, powerful imagery; as we read through it, the truths really sink in, as we picture in our heads everything described on the page. Reading verses 3 through 9, we picture walking through the ruins of a city, looking in the distance to see the church building burned to the ground, smoke pouring out of the place in which we would frequently meet (or maybe where we now wish we had visited more). Enemies come in with battle axes, yelling and destroying everything that is familiar to us. It feels like God is gone, and there is no longer anyone who speaks for Him (v. 9). 

As we have seen in many of the Psalms so far, there is a clear shift, a move from despair to praise. Although the tone changes, the imagery continues. Instead of picturing a ruined city, we see God splitting the ocean and smashing the heads of sea monsters, letting desert animals eat them! He causes springs to gush forth and dries up rivers that never run dry! He creates everything, including the stars in the sky and the boundaries of the earth and the seasons we experience! People might come and ruin the temporary, worldly things that we have built, but God is in control, so powerful and mighty. People might come after us for our faith and take our sanctuary, but our Church was never a building, and our hope was never in the places where we worshiped. Our hope is found in the all-powerful, all-knowing, almighty God of the universe. 

Israel was going through a tough time, and we might be, too. We might feel like we are under attack, either by loud men with battle axes or by work, school, other people, etc. Whatever comes after us, God is far more powerful. When we feel overwhelmed, we can follow the example of this psalm, remembering how God has been faithful in the past (v. 12) and how He has promised that He will triumph in His good and perfect timing (v. 20). 

From the time we are on the playground to the time we are in retirement, we struggle with good things happening to bad people and bad things happening to good people. We wonder why mean people win and get all the glory while nice people seem to lose and get all the grief. When this happens it’s enough to make us ask the question, “Why work so hard to be good when those who behave badly succeed?” 

The writer of Psalm 73, Asaph, gives voice to this same struggle in verse 3: “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.” We hear you, Asaph! But what are we supposed to do with this frustration? Verses 16 and 17 tell us: “When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.”

What Asaph knew and we must remember is that we are playing the long game: running a marathon, not a sprint. As humans, it is easy to focus on the here and now, crying out to God to fix our present problems. We may be ignorant of others’ hearts and needs as we rush to judgment in our own fear and failures. We see only the unfairness of the situation when we view it through our own lens rather than trying to view our situation from God’s perspective. We can forget that God sees all dimensions of the past, present, and future in heaven and on earth (Ephesians 1:3-14). 

We can’t forget what we know:

• We know this world is not our home (John 15:19).
• We know that we are called to a higher purpose (Romans 8:28).
• We know we are in the midst of spiritual battles (Ephesians 6:12).
• We know that in this world, we will have trouble (John 16:33).
• But we also know to be encouraged because Jesus has overcome the world! Praise God! What the world offers cannot compare to what God offers us in Himself. 

May we declare verses 26-28: “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.”

As we read the Bible, we can’t forget that it is both historical and prophetic. At first read of Psalm 72, we may think it’s a prayer for an earthly king to reign with wisdom and righteousness; however, it is also a declaration of hope for an eternal king to reign “and all kings bow to him and all nations serve him.” It is both a personal prayer request to rule well and prophetic praise for one who rules forever. 

Most scholars believe this psalm is written about Solomon. Either written by David or Solomon, we aren’t certain. But no matter who wrote it, the message is clear: a good, righteous, and wise king will bring justice to the poor, save the children of the needy, and break the pieces of the oppressor.

Solomon was the wisest king who ever lived. His influence was great and his kingdom vast. He started off strong with great intentions; but, because Solomon was unfaithful to God, his reign was not as great a blessing as it could have been. His reign fulfilled some of the criteria mentioned in this psalm, but insufficient in fulfilling all.  

All Scripture points to Jesus. All of it. Verse 8 shifts our perspective from the earthly king to an eternal one, a greater King. One whose reign will not end. Whose Kingdom encompasses the whole earth. Whose righteousness and justice are perfect. When Solomon’s successor returns to earth and establishes His reign, the requests and criteria of this psalm will be fulfilled in Messiah AND King who is Jesus. The King who brings justice, rescue, and freedom.