For the director of music. To [the tune of] "TheLilies of the Covenant." Of Asaph. A psalm.
The psalms of Asaph are generally later than the time of David, sometimes even dealing with worship during or after the Babylonian Exile. In this case, the psalmist may be in Judah, hearing of the fall of the northern kingdom.
Psalm 80:1-3, Enthroned between the cherubim.
Hear us, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock;
you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth
before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
Restore us, O God;
make your face shine upon us, that we maybe saved.
Looking at the altar, the psalmist prays to the invisible One said to be enthroned between the two cherubim. Looking north to Ephraim and Manasseh, to the descendants of Joseph, he prays for restoration. Kidner notes that the three tribes named here, Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh, are the "Rachel" tribes, the descendants of the sons, Joseph and Benjamin, of Rachel. Ephraim and Manasseh, had long ago become part of the northern kingdom while Benjamin was absorbed into Judah.
Psalm 80:4-7, Shine on us again
O LORD God Almighty,
how long will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people?
You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
You have made us a source of contention to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us.
Restore us, O God Almighty;
make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.
Shocked by the destruction of the northern kingdom, the psalmist asks (once again), "How long?", the plaintive cry of many of the psalms. Our singer weeps, aware that the tears of his people flow "by the bowlful."
Throughout this psalm, the singer begs for Restoration. Shortly after the fall of the northern kingdom, King Hezekiah contacted the people there and invited them to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover (see 2 Chronicles 30:1-12,) Sadly, his efforts were rebuffed. Kidner notes that both that invitation and this psalm express concern for the people of the northern kingdom; the old rivalries are gone, only concern remains.
Psalm 80:8-11, A vine out of Egypt
You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
It sent out its boughs to the Sea,
its shoots as far as the River.
Broken Israel is recalled as a beautiful vine that was rescued from Egypt, planted in Canaan and eventually reached from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates River. The beautiful plant had grown to cover much of the Fertile Crescent. But now...
Psalm 80:12-18, A ravaged vine
Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
Boars from the forest ravage it
and the creatures of the field feed on it.
Return to us, O God Almighty!
Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine,
the root your right hand has planted,
the son you have raised up for yourself.
Your vine is cut down,
it is burned with fire;
at your rebuke your people perish.
Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
Why has God, who planted the beautiful vine, allowed it to be destroyed? The agricultural metaphor asks why the gardner, so proud of His vine, would allow this horrible destruction. (Isaiah sings of God's vineyard in Isaiah 5:1-7; Ezekiel speaks of it in Ezekiel 15; Messiah Yeshua -- who identifies as "the Son of Man" -- will, eight centuries later, use the vine metaphor in John 15:1-8.)
Psalm 80:19, Shine on us again!
Restore us, O LORD God Almighty;
make your face shine upon us, t
hat we may be saved.
The song ends with final plea for restoration, once again begging God to shine on His vine, Israel.
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