Psalms 79:1-8

Context

Psalm 79¹

A psalm of Asaph.

79:1 O God, foreigners² have invaded your chosen land;³

they have polluted your holy temple

and turned Jerusalem⁴ into a heap of ruins.

79:2 They have given the corpses of your servants

to the birds of the sky;⁵

the flesh of your loyal followers

to the beasts of the earth.

79:3 They have made their blood flow like water

all around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury them.⁶

79:4 We have become an object of disdain to our neighbors;

those who live on our borders taunt and insult us.⁷

79:5 How long will this go on, O Lord?⁸

Will you stay angry forever?

How long will your rage⁹ burn like fire?

79:6 Pour out your anger on the nations that do not acknowledge you,¹⁰

on the kingdoms that do not pray to you!¹¹

79:7 For they have devoured Jacob

and destroyed his home.

79:8 Do not hold us accountable for the sins of earlier generations!¹²

Quickly send your compassion our way,¹³

for we are in serious trouble!¹⁴

[79:1] ¹sn Psalm 79. The author laments how the invading nations have destroyed the temple and city of Jerusalem. He asks God to forgive his people and to pour out his vengeance on those who have mistreated them.

[79:1] ²tn Or “nations.”

[79:1] ³tn Heb “have come into your inheritance.”

[79:1] ⁴map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[79:2] ⁵tn Heb “[as] food for the birds of the sky.”

[79:3] ⁶tn Heb “they have poured out their blood like water, all around Jerusalem, and there is no one burying.”

[79:4] ⁷tn Heb “an [object of] taunting and [of] mockery to those around us.” See Ps 44:13.

[79:5] ⁸tn Heb “How long, O Lord?”

[79:5] ⁹tn Or “jealous anger.”

[79:6] ¹⁰tn Heb “which do not know you.” Here the Hebrew term “know” means “acknowledge the authority of.”

[79:6] ¹¹sn The kingdoms that do not pray to you. The people of these kingdoms pray to other gods, not the Lord, because they do not recognize his authority over them.

[79:8] ¹²tn Heb “do not remember against us sins, former.” Some understand “former” as an attributive adjective modifying sins, “former [i.e., chronologically prior] sins” (see BDB 911 s.v. רִאשׁוֹן). The present translation assumes that ראשׁנים (“former”) here refers to those who lived formerly, that is, the people’s ancestors (see Lam 5:7). The word is used in this way in Lev 26:45; Deut 19:14 and Eccl 1:11.

[79:8] ¹³tn Heb “may your compassion quickly confront us.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive, indicating a tone of prayer.

[79:8] ¹⁴tn Heb “for we are very low.”