Psalms 78:56-64

78:56 Yet they challenged and defied ¹  the sovereign God, ² 

and did not obey ³  his commands. ⁴ 

78:57 They were unfaithful ⁵  and acted as treacherously as ⁶  their ancestors;

they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow. ⁷ 

78:58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines, ⁸ 

and made him jealous with their idols.

78:59 God heard and was angry;

he completely rejected Israel.

78:60 He abandoned ⁹  the sanctuary at Shiloh,

the tent where he lived among men.

78:61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured; ¹⁰ 

he gave the symbol of his splendor ¹¹  into the hand of the enemy. ¹² 

78:62 He delivered his people over to the sword,

and was angry with his chosen nation. ¹³ 

78:63 Fire consumed their ¹⁴  young men,

and their ¹⁵  virgins remained unmarried. ¹⁶ 

78:64 Their ¹⁷  priests fell by the sword,

but their ¹⁸  widows did not weep. ¹⁹ 

[78:56]  ¹ tn Or “tested and rebelled against.”

[78:56]  ² tn Heb “God, the Most High.”

[78:56]  ³ tn Or “keep.”

[78:56]  ⁴ tn Heb “his testimonies” (see Ps 25:10).

[78:57]  ⁵ tn Heb “they turned back.”

[78:57]  ⁶ tn Or “acted treacherously like.”

[78:57]  ⁷ tn Heb “they turned aside like a deceitful bow.”

[78:58]  ⁸ tn Traditionally, “high places.”

[78:60]  ⁹ tn Or “rejected.”

[78:61]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he gave to captivity his strength.” The expression “his strength” refers metonymically to the ark of the covenant, which was housed in the tabernacle at Shiloh.

[78:61]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and his splendor into the hand of an enemy.” The expression “his splendor” also refers metonymically to the ark of the covenant.

[78:61]  ¹² sn Verses 60-61 refer to the Philistines’ capture of the ark in the days of Eli (1 Sam 4:1-11).

[78:62]  ¹³ tn Heb “his inheritance.”

[78:63]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).

[78:63]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).

[78:63]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “were not praised,” that is, in wedding songs. The young men died in masses, leaving no husbands for the young women.

[78:64]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).

[78:64]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).

[78:64]  ¹⁹ sn Because of the invading army and the ensuing panic, the priests’ widows had no time to carry out the normal mourning rites.