Psalms 78
78
One of Asaph’s maskils.
1My people, listen to my teachings.
Listen to what I say.
2I will tell you a story.
I will tell you about things from the past that are hard to understand.
3We have heard the story, and we know it well.
Our fathers told it to us.
4And we will not forget it.
Our people will be telling this story to the last generation.
We will all praise the Lord
and tell about the amazing things he did.
5He made an agreement with Jacob.
He gave the law to Israel.
He gave the commands to our ancestors.
He told them to teach the law to their children.
6Then the next generation, even the children not yet born, would learn the law.
And they would be able to teach it to their own children.
7So they would all trust in God,
never forgetting what he had done
and always obeying his commands.
8They would not be like their ancestors,
who were stubborn and refused to obey.
Their hearts were not devoted to God,
and they were not faithful to him.
9The men from Ephraim had their weapons,
but they ran from the battle.
10They did not keep their agreement with God.
They refused to obey his teachings.
11They forgot the great things he had done
and the amazing things he had shown them.
12While their ancestors watched,
he showed his great power at Zoan in Egypt.
13He split the Red Sea and led the people across.
The water stood like a solid wall on both sides of them.
14Each day God led them with the tall cloud,
and each night he led them with the light from the column of fire.
15He split the rocks in the desert
and gave them an ocean of fresh water.
16He brought a stream of water out of the rock
and made it flow like a river!
17But they continued sinning against him.
They rebelled against God Most High in the desert.
18Then they decided to test God
by telling him to give them the food they wanted.
19They complained about him and said,
“Can God give us food in the desert?
20Yes, he struck the rock and a flood of water came out.
But can he give us bread and meat?”
21The Lord heard what they said
and became angry with Jacob’s people.
He was angry with Israel,
22because they did not trust in him.
They did not believe that God could save them.
23-24But then God opened the clouds above,
and manna rained down on them for food.
It was as if doors in the sky opened,
and grain poured down from a storehouse in the sky.
25These people ate the food of angels.
God sent plenty of food to satisfy them.
26He sent a strong wind from the east,
and by his power he made the south wind blow.
27He made quail fall like rain until they covered the ground.
There were so many birds that they were like sand on the seashore.
28The birds fell in the middle of the camp,
all around their tents.
29The people ate until they were full.
God had given them what they wanted.
30But before they were fully satisfied,
while the food was still in their mouths,
31God became angry and killed even the strongest of them.
He brought down Israel’s best young men.
32But the people continued to sin!
They did not trust in the amazing things God could do.
33So he ended their worthless lives;
he brought their years to a close with disaster.
34When he killed some of them, the others would turn back to him.
They would come running back to God.
35They would remember that God was their Rock.
They would remember that God Most High had saved them.
36But they tried to fool him with their words;
they told him lies.
37Their hearts were not really with him.
They were not faithful to the agreement he gave them.
38But God was merciful.
He forgave their sins and did not destroy them.
Many times he held back his anger.
He never let it get out of control.
39He remembered that they were only people,
like a wind that blows and then is gone.
40Oh, they caused him so much trouble in the desert!
They made him so sad.
41Again and again they tested his patience.
They really hurt the Holy One of Israel.
42They forgot about his power.
They forgot the many times he saved them from the enemy.
43They forgot the miracles in Egypt,
the miracles in the fields of Zoan.
44God turned the rivers into blood,
and the Egyptians could not drink the water.
45He sent swarms of flies that bit them.
He sent the frogs that ruined their lives.
46He gave their crops to grasshoppers
and their other plants to locusts.
47He destroyed their vines with hail
and their trees with sleet.
48He killed their animals with hail
and their cattle with lightning.
49He showed the Egyptians his anger.
He sent his destroying angels against them.
50He found a way to show his anger.
He did not spare their lives.
He let them die with a deadly disease.
51He killed all the firstborn sons in Egypt.
He killed every firstborn in Ham’s#78:51 Ham The Egyptians were Ham’s descendants. See Gen. 10:6-10. family.
52Then he led Israel like a shepherd.
He led his people like sheep into the desert.
53He guided them safely.
They had nothing to fear.
He drowned their enemies in the sea.
54He led his people to his holy land,
to the mountain he took with his own power.
55He forced the other nations out before them
and gave each family its share of the land.
He gave each tribe of Israel a place to live.
56But they tested God Most High and made him very sad.
They didn’t obey his commands.
57They turned against him and were unfaithful just like their ancestors.
They changed directions like a boomerang.
58They built high places and made God angry.
They built statues of false gods and made him jealous.
59God heard what they were doing and became very angry.
So he rejected Israel completely!
60He abandoned his place at Shiloh,#78:60 place at Shiloh See 1 Sam. 4:4-11; Jer. 7:17.
the Holy Tent where he lived among the people.
61He let foreigners capture the Box of the Agreement,
the symbol of his power and glory.
62He showed his anger against his people
and let them be killed in war.
63Their young men were burned to death,
and there were no wedding songs for their young women.
64Their priests were killed,
but the widows had no time to mourn for them.
65Finally, our Lord got up
like a man waking from his sleep,
like a soldier after drinking too much wine.
66He forced his enemies to turn back defeated.
He brought them shame that will last forever.
67Then he rejected Joseph’s family.
He did not accept Ephraim’s family.
68No, he chose the tribe of Judah,
and he chose Mount Zion, the place he loves.
69He built his holy Temple high on that mountain.
Like the earth, God built his Temple to last forever.
70He chose David to be his special servant.
He took him from the sheep pens.
71He took him away from the job of caring for sheep
and gave him the job of caring for the descendants of Jacob—Israel, his chosen people.
72And David led them with a pure heart
and guided them very wisely.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Psalm 78
78
Tell the Coming Generation
A Maskil#78:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term of #Ps. 50, title Asaph.
1 # [Isa. 51:4]; See Ps. 49:1; 50:7 Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2 # Cited Matt. 13:35; See Ps. 49:4 I will open my mouth #[Num. 21:27]in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
3things that we have heard and known,
that our #See Ps. 44:1fathers have told us.
4We will not #Job 15:18 hide them from their children,
but #[Ex. 12:26, 27; 13:8, 14; Deut. 11:19; Josh. 4:6, 7; Joel 1:3] tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and #ver. 11, 32the wonders that he has done.
5He established #Ps. 19:7; [Ps. 81:5] a testimony in #Ps. 147:19Jacob
and appointed a law in #Ps. 147:19Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
6that #ver. 4; Ps. 102:18the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
7so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget #Ps. 77:12 the works of God,
but #Ps. 105:45keep his commandments;
8and that they should not be #2 Kgs. 17:14; 2 Chr. 30:7; Ezek. 20:18 like their fathers,
#
Ex. 32:9; 33:3; Deut. 9:7, 24; 31:27; Jer. 5:23 a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation #ver. 37; Job 11:13whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.
9The Ephraimites, armed with#78:9 Hebrew armed and shooting the bow,
# ver. 57 turned back on the day of battle.
10They #[2 Kgs. 17:15]did not keep God’s covenant,
but refused to walk according to his law.
11They #See Ps. 106:13 forgot his works
and #ver. 4the wonders that he had shown them.
12In the sight of their fathers #ver. 43; See Ex. 7-12; Ps. 72:18 he performed wonders
in the land of Egypt, in #ver. 43; Num. 13:22; Isa. 19:11, 13; Ezek. 30:14the fields of Zoan.
13He #Ps. 136:13; Ex. 14:21 divided the sea and let them pass through it,
and made the waters #Ex. 15:8stand like a heap.
14 # See Ps. 105:39 In the daytime he led them with a cloud,
and all the night with a fiery light.
15He #ver. 20; Ps. 105:41; 114:8; Ex. 17:6; Isa. 48:21split rocks in the wilderness
and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.
16He made streams come out of #Num. 20:8, 10, 11the rock
and caused waters to flow down like rivers.
17Yet they sinned still more against him,
# ver. 40, 56; Deut. 9:22; Isa. 63:10 rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
18They #ver. 41, 56; Ps. 95:9; 106:14; Deut. 6:16; 1 Cor. 10:9tested God in their heart
by demanding the food they craved.
19They spoke against God, saying,
# [Ex. 16:3; Num. 11:4; 20:3; 21:5] “Can God #See Ps. 23:5spread a table in the wilderness?
20 # ver. 15, 16 He struck the rock so that water gushed out
and streams overflowed.
Can he also give bread
or provide meat for his people?”
21Therefore, when the Lord heard, he was full of wrath;
#
Num. 11:1
a fire was kindled against Jacob;
his anger rose against Israel,
22because they #ver. 8, 32, 37did not believe in God
and did not trust his saving power.
23Yet he commanded the skies above
and #Gen. 7:11; [Mal. 3:10]opened the doors of heaven,
24and he #Ex. 16:4 rained down on them manna to eat
and gave them #Ps. 105:40; [John 6:31]the grain of heaven.
25Man ate of the bread of #Ps. 103:20 the angels;
he sent them food #[ver. 29]in abundance.
26He #Num. 11:31caused the east wind to blow in the heavens,
and by his power he led out the south wind;
27he rained meat on them like #[Gen. 13:16] dust,
winged birds like #[Gen. 22:17]the sand of the seas;
28he #Ex. 16:13; Num. 11:31let them fall in the midst of their camp,
all around their dwellings.
29And they #Num. 11:19, 20 ate and were well filled,
for he gave them what they #Num. 11:4, 34craved.
30But before they had satisfied their craving,
#
Num. 11:33; [Job 20:23] while the food was still in their mouths,
31the anger of God rose against them,
and he killed #Isa. 10:16 the strongest of them
and laid low #ver. 63the young men of Israel.
32In spite of all this, they #See Num. 14; 16; 17 still sinned;
# ver. 22; Num. 14:11 despite his wonders, they did not believe.
33So he made #Num. 14:29, 35; 26:64, 65 their days #Ps. 39:5vanish like#78:33 Hebrew in a breath,#78:33 Or vapor
and their years in terror.
34When he killed them, they #Hos. 5:15sought him;
they repented and sought God earnestly.
35They remembered that God was their #Deut. 32:4, 15, 31 rock,
the Most High God their #Ex. 15:13; See Ps. 74:2redeemer.
36But they #Isa. 29:13; Ezek. 33:31 flattered him with their mouths;
they #Isa. 57:11lied to him with their tongues.
37Their #ver. 8 heart was not #Ps. 51:10steadfast toward him;
they were not faithful to his covenant.
38Yet he, being #Ex. 34:6 compassionate,
#
Num. 14:20
atoned for their iniquity
and did not destroy them;
he restrained his anger often
and did not stir up all his wrath.
39He #[Ps. 103:14; Job 10:9] remembered that they were but #Gen. 6:3 flesh,
#
Job 7:7
a wind that passes and comes not again.
40How often they #ver. 17, 56; Ps. 107:11 rebelled against him in the wilderness
and #[Eph. 4:30] grieved him in #Ps. 106:14the desert!
41They #See ver. 18 tested God again and again
and provoked #See Ps. 71:22the Holy One of Israel.
42They #Judg. 8:34did not remember his power#78:42 Hebrew hand
or the day when he redeemed them from the foe,
43 # For ver. 43-51, see Ps. 105:27-36 when he performed his #Ex. 7:3; [Ps. 106:22]; Acts 7:36 signs in Egypt
and his #Ex. 4:21; 11:9, 10 marvels in #See ver. 12the fields of Zoan.
44He #See Ex. 7:17-24turned their rivers to blood,
so that they could not drink of their streams.
45He sent among them swarms of #See Ex. 8:21-24 flies, which devoured them,
and #See Ex. 8:2-14frogs, which destroyed them.
46He gave their crops to #See Ex. 10:12-15the destroying locust
and the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47He destroyed their vines with #See Ex. 9:23-25hail
and their sycamores with frost.
48He gave over their #See Ex. 9:19-21cattle to the hail
and their flocks to thunderbolts.
49He let loose on them his burning anger,
wrath, indignation, and distress,
a company of #Ex. 12:13, 23; [2 Sam. 24:16]destroying angels.
50He made a path for his anger;
he did not spare them from death,
but gave their lives over to the plague.
51He struck down every #Ex. 12:29; [Ps. 105:36; 135:8; 136:10] firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their strength in the tents of #Ps. 105:23, 27; 106:22Ham.
52Then he led out his people #See Ps. 77:20like sheep
and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
53 # [Ex. 14:19, 20] He led them in safety, so that they #[Ex. 14:13] were not afraid,
but #Ex. 14:27, 28; 15:10the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
54And he brought them to his #Ex. 15:17 holy land,
#
Isa. 11:9; 57:13; [Ps. 68:16] to the mountain which his right hand had #Ps. 74:2won.
55He #See Ps. 44:2 drove out nations before them;
he #Josh. 23:4; [Ps. 135:12; 136:21, 22; Acts 13:19]apportioned them for a possession
and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
56Yet they #ver. 18; Judg. 2:11, 12 tested and #ver. 40rebelled against the Most High God
and did not keep his testimonies,
57but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers;
they twisted like #Hos. 7:16; [ver. 9]a deceitful bow.
58For they #Deut. 31:29 provoked him to anger with their #Lev. 26:30; Deut. 12:2; 1 Kgs. 11:7; 12:31; Ezek. 20:28 high places;
they #Num. 25:11; Deut. 32:16, 21; Judg. 2:12 moved him to jealousy with their #Deut. 7:5, 25; 12:3idols.
59When God heard, he was full of #ver. 62; Ps. 106:40; Deut. 3:26wrath,
and he utterly rejected Israel.
60He #1 Sam. 4:11; Jer. 7:12, 14; 26:6 forsook his dwelling at #Josh. 18:1Shiloh,
the tent where he dwelt among mankind,
61and delivered his #Ps. 132:8; [Ps. 63:2; 96:6] power to captivity,
his #[1 Sam. 4:21]glory to the hand of the foe.
62He #[1 Sam. 4:10] gave his people over to the sword
and #ver. 59vented his wrath on his heritage.
63 # [Ps. 79:5; 89:46] Fire devoured their young men,
and their young women had no #[Jer. 7:34]marriage song.
64Their #1 Sam. 4:11 priests fell by the sword,
and their #Job 27:15widows made no lamentation.
65Then the Lord #Ps. 73:20; See Ps. 35:23awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.
66And he #[Ps. 40:14]put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.
67He rejected the tent of #Ps. 80:1; 81:5Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he #Ps. 87:2loves.
69He #See 1 Kgs. 6built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
70He #1 Sam. 16:12, 13chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
71from #2 Sam. 7:8 following the nursing ewes he brought him
to #2 Sam. 5:2; [Ps. 28:9] shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his #1 Sam. 10:1inheritance.
72With #Ps. 101:2; 1 Kgs. 9:4 upright heart he shepherded them
and #[Ps. 77:20]guided them with his skillful hand.
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