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诗篇 78
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
诗篇 78
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
上帝引导祂的子民
亚萨的训诲诗。
78 我的百姓啊！
你们要听我的教导，
侧耳倾听我的话。
2 我要开口讲比喻，
道出古时的奥秘，
3 是我们所闻所知、世代流传下来的事。
4 我们不要在子孙面前隐瞒事实，
要把耶和华当受称颂的作为、
祂的权能和所行的奇事告诉下一代。
5 因为祂为雅各制定法度，
为以色列设立律法，
又吩咐我们的祖先把这些律法传给儿女，
6 好让他们也照样教导自己的子孙后代，
世代相传。
7 这样，他们就会信靠上帝，
遵行祂的命令，
不忘记祂的作为；
8 也不会像自己的祖先那样顽梗叛逆，
对上帝不忠，心怀二意。
9 以法莲人备上了弓箭，
却临阵逃命。
10 他们不遵守上帝的约，
拒绝遵行祂的律法。
11 他们忘记了祂的作为，
忘记了祂为他们所行的奇事。
12 祂曾在埃及，在琐安当着他们祖先的面行神迹。
13 祂把海水分开，
带领他们安然渡过；
祂使海水堆起如墙壁。
14 祂白天以云柱带领他们，
晚上用火柱引导他们。
15 祂在旷野劈开磐石，
供应他们丰沛的水源。
16 祂使水从磐石中滚滚流出，
如滔滔江河。
17 然而，他们仍旧犯罪，
在旷野反叛至高的上帝。
18 他们顽梗地试探上帝，
索要他们想吃的食物。
19 他们抱怨上帝，说：
“难道上帝可以在旷野摆宴席吗？
20 祂击打磐石，
水就涌出，流淌成河，
但祂能赐给我们——祂的子民食物和肉吗？”
21 耶和华听后大怒，
祂的怒火烧向雅各，
祂的怒气撒向以色列。
22 因为他们不相信上帝，也不信靠祂的拯救。
23 祂向穹苍发出命令，
又打开天门，
24 降下吗哪给他们吃，赐下天粮。
25 他们吃了天使的食物，
上帝赐给他们丰富的食物。
26 祂使空中刮起东风，
用大能引来南风，
27 使飞鸟像雨点一般降在他们当中，多如尘埃，
使他们有多如海沙的肉吃。
28 祂使飞鸟降落在他们营中的帐篷周围，
29 让他们尽情地吃，
遂了他们的心愿。
30 但是，他们还没有吃完，
肉还在口中的时候，
31 上帝就向他们发怒，
杀掉了他们当中最强壮的，
消灭了以色列的青年。
32 即使如此，
他们依旧犯罪，
不相信上帝奇妙的作为。
33 所以上帝使他们虚度一生，
让他们的岁月充满恐惧。
34 直到上帝击杀他们的时候，
他们才回转，诚心寻求上帝。
35 他们才想起上帝是他们的磐石，
至高的上帝是他们的救赎主。
36 他们却虚情假意，满口谎言。
37 他们不忠于祂，
也不信守祂的约。
38 但上帝充满怜悯，
赦免了他们的罪，
没有毁灭他们。
祂多次收住怒气，
没有完全发出祂的烈怒。
39 祂顾念他们不过是血肉之躯，
像一阵风转眼消逝。
40 他们在旷野屡屡反叛祂，
使祂伤心。
41 他们再三试探上帝，
惹以色列的圣者发怒。
42 他们忘记了祂的大能，
忘记了祂救他们脱离压迫的日子，
43 也忘记了祂在埃及所行的神迹，
在琐安的田野所行的奇事。
44 祂曾使江河溪流变成血，
以致无人能喝。
45 祂曾使成群的苍蝇吞没他们，
使青蛙毁灭他们。
46 祂将他们的五谷赏给蚱蜢，
让蝗虫吃尽他们的收成。
47 祂用冰雹毁坏他们的葡萄树，
用严霜毁坏他们的无花果树，
48 又用冰雹毁灭他们的牛群，
用闪电毁灭他们的牲畜。
49 祂把怒火、烈怒、愤恨和祸患倾倒在他们身上，
遣下一群降灾的天使。
50 祂的怒气尽发，
使他们被瘟疫吞噬，难逃一死。
51 祂击杀了埃及人所有的长子，
就是含帐篷中头生的儿子。
52 祂领出自己的子民，
好像领出羊群，
引领他们经过旷野，
53 使他们一路平安，免受惊吓，
大海却淹没了他们的仇敌。
54 祂带领自己的子民来到圣地的边界，
来到祂亲手为他们预备的山区，
55 从他们面前赶出外族人，
把外族人的土地分给他们，
作为他们的产业，
使以色列各支派安顿下来。
56 可是，他们仍旧试探上帝，
反叛至高者，不遵行祂的法度。
57 他们跟祖先一样背信弃义，
像断弓一样毫不可靠。
58 他们建造丘坛，惹祂发怒；
他们竖起神像，令祂愤怒。
59 上帝知道了他们的恶行，
怒不可遏，
彻底弃绝了以色列人。
60 祂离弃了设在示罗的圣幕，
就是祂在人间的居所。
61 祂任凭自己的约柜被人掳去，
让自己的荣耀落在敌人手中。
62 祂使自己的子民被刀剑杀戮，
向自己的产业大发怒气。
63 青年被烈火吞噬，
少女无法婚嫁。
64 祭司丧身刀下，
寡妇无法哭丧。
65 那时，主像从睡眠中醒来，
又如酒后醒来的勇士。
66 祂击退仇敌，
叫他们永远蒙羞。
67 祂丢弃了约瑟的子孙，
没有拣选以法莲支派。
68 祂拣选了犹大支派，
祂所喜爱的锡安山。
69 祂为自己建造高耸的圣所，
使它像大地一样长存。
70 祂拣选了祂的仆人大卫，
把他从羊圈中召来，
71 让他离开牧羊的生活，
去牧养祂的子民雅各的后裔，
牧养祂的产业以色列。
72 于是，大卫以正直的心牧养他们，
用灵巧的手带领他们。
Psalm 78
New English Translation
Psalm 78
New English Translation
Psalm 78[a]
A well-written song[b] by Asaph.
78 Pay attention, my people, to my instruction.
Listen to the words I speak.[c]
2 I will sing a song that imparts wisdom;
I will make insightful observations about the past.[d]
3 What we have heard and learned[e]—
that which our ancestors[f] have told us—
4 we will not hide from their[g] descendants.
We will tell the next generation
about the Lord’s praiseworthy acts,[h]
about his strength and the amazing things he has done.
5 He established a rule[i] in Jacob;
he set up a law in Israel.
He commanded our ancestors
to make his deeds known to their descendants,[j]
6 so that the next generation, children yet to be born,
might know about them.
They will grow up and tell their descendants about them.[k]
7 Then they will place their confidence in God.
They will not forget the works of God,
and they will obey[l] his commands.
8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,
who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation that was not committed
and faithful to God.[m]
9 The Ephraimites[n] were armed with bows,[o]
but they retreated in the day of battle.[p]
10 They did not keep their covenant with God,[q]
and they refused to obey[r] his law.
11 They forgot what he had done,[s]
the amazing things he had shown them.
12 He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors,
in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.[t]
13 He divided the sea and led them across it;
he made the water stand in a heap.
14 He led them with a cloud by day,
and with the light of a fire all night long.
15 He broke open rocks in the wilderness,
and gave them enough water to fill the depths of the sea.[u]
16 He caused streams to flow from the rock,
and made the water flow like rivers.
17 Yet they continued to sin against him,
and rebelled against the Most High[v] in the desert.
18 They willfully challenged God[w]
by asking for food to satisfy their appetite.
19 They insulted God, saying,[x]
“Is God really able to give us food[y] in the wilderness?
20 Yes,[z] he struck a rock and water flowed out;
streams gushed forth.
But can he also give us food?
Will he provide meat for his people?”
21 When[aa] the Lord heard this, he was furious.
A fire broke out against Jacob,
and his anger flared up[ab] against Israel,
22 because they did not have faith in God,
and did not trust his ability to deliver them.[ac]
23 He gave a command to the clouds above,
and opened the doors in the sky.
24 He rained down manna for them to eat;
he gave them the grain of heaven.[ad]
25 Man ate the food of the mighty ones.[ae]
He sent them more than enough to eat.[af]
26 He brought the east wind through the sky,
and by his strength led forth the south wind.
27 He rained down meat on them like dust,
birds as numerous as the sand on the seashores.[ag]
28 He caused them to fall right in the middle of their camp,
all around their homes.
29 They ate until they were beyond full;[ah]
he gave them what they desired.
30 They were not yet filled up;[ai]
their food was still in their mouths,
31 when the anger of God flared up against them.
He killed some of the strongest of them;
he brought the young men of Israel to their knees.
32 Despite all this, they continued to sin,
and did not trust him to do amazing things.[aj]
33 So he caused them to die unsatisfied[ak]
and filled with terror.[al]
34 When he struck them down,[am] they sought his favor;[an]
they turned back and longed for God.
35 They remembered that God was their protector,[ao]
and that God Most High[ap] was their deliverer.[aq]
36 But they deceived him with their words,[ar]
and lied to him.[as]
37 They were not really committed to him,[at]
and they were unfaithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he is compassionate.
He forgives sin and does not destroy.
He often holds back his anger,
and does not stir up his fury.[au]
39 He remembered[av] that they were made of flesh,
and were like a wind that blows past and does not return.[aw]
40 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness,
and insulted him[ax] in the wastelands.
41 They again challenged God,[ay]
and offended[az] the Holy One of Israel.[ba]
42 They did not remember what he had done,[bb]
how he delivered them from the enemy,[bc]
43 when he performed his awesome deeds[bd] in Egypt,
and his acts of judgment[be] in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their rivers into blood,
and they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of biting insects against them,[bf]
as well as frogs that overran their land.[bg]
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,
the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
and their sycamore-fig trees with driving rain.
48 He rained hail down on their cattle,[bh]
and hurled lightning bolts down on their livestock.[bi]
49 His raging anger lashed out against them.[bj]
He sent fury, rage, and trouble
as messengers who bring disaster.[bk]
50 He sent his anger in full force.[bl]
He did not spare them from death;
he handed their lives over to destruction.[bm]
51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power[bn] in the tents of Ham.
52 Yet he brought out his people like sheep;
he led them through the wilderness like a flock.
53 He guided them safely along, and they were not afraid;
but the sea covered their enemies.
54 He brought them to the border of his holy land,
to this mountainous land[bo] that his right hand[bp] acquired.
55 He drove the nations out from before them;
he assigned them their tribal allotments[bq]
and allowed the tribes of Israel to settle down.[br]
56 Yet they challenged and defied[bs] God Most High,[bt]
and did not obey[bu] his commands.[bv]
57 They were unfaithful[bw] and acted as treacherously as[bx] their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow.[by]
58 They made him angry with their pagan shrines,[bz]
and made him jealous with their idols.
59 God heard and was angry;
he completely rejected Israel.
60 He abandoned[ca] the sanctuary at Shiloh,
the tent where he lived among men.
61 He allowed the symbol of his strong presence to be captured;[cb]
he gave the symbol of his splendor[cc] into the hand of the enemy.[cd]
62 He delivered his people over to the sword,
and was angry with his chosen nation.[ce]
63 Fire consumed their[cf] young men,
and their[cg] virgins remained unmarried.[ch]
64 Their[ci] priests fell by the sword,
but their[cj] widows did not weep.[ck]
65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep;[cl]
he was like a warrior in a drunken rage.[cm]
66 He drove his enemies back;
he made them a permanent target for insults.[cn]
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 He chose the tribe of Judah
and Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He made his sanctuary as enduring as the heavens above,[co]
as secure as the earth, which he established permanently.[cp]
70 He chose David, his servant,
and took him from the sheepfolds.
71 He took him away from following the mother sheep,[cq]
and made him the shepherd of Jacob, his people,
and of Israel, his chosen nation.[cr]
72 David[cs] cared for them with pure motives;[ct]
he led them with skill.[cu]
Footnotes
- Psalm 78:1 sn Psalm 78. The author of this lengthy didactic psalm rehearses Israel’s history. He praises God for his power, goodness and patience, but also reminds his audience that sin angers God and prompts his judgment. In the conclusion to the psalm the author elevates Jerusalem as God’s chosen city and David as his chosen king.
- Psalm 78:1 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. See the note on the phrase “well-written song” in the superscription of Ps 74.
- Psalm 78:1 tn Heb “Turn your ear to the words of my mouth.”
- Psalm 78:2 tn Heb “I will open with a wise saying my mouth, I will utter insightful sayings from long ago.” Elsewhere the Hebrew word pair חִידָה + מָשָׁל (mashal + khidah) refers to a taunt song (Hab 2:6), a parable (Ezek 17:2), proverbial sayings (Prov 1:6), and an insightful song that reflects on the mortality of humankind and the ultimate inability of riches to prevent death (Ps 49:4).
- Psalm 78:3 tn Or “known.”
- Psalm 78:3 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 5, 8, 12, 57).
- Psalm 78:4 tn The pronominal suffix refers back to the “fathers” (“our ancestors,” v. 3).
- Psalm 78:4 tn Heb “to a following generation telling the praises of the Lord.” “Praises” stand by metonymy for the mighty acts that prompt worship. Cf. Ps 9:14.
- Psalm 78:5 tn The Hebrew noun עֵדוּת (ʿedut) refers here to God’s command that the older generation teach their children about God’s mighty deeds in the nation’s history (see Exod 10:2; Deut 4:9; 6:20-25).
- Psalm 78:5 tn Heb “which he commanded our fathers to make them known to their sons.” The plural suffix “them” probably refers back to the Lord’s mighty deeds (see vv. 3-4).
- Psalm 78:6 tn Heb “in order that they might know, a following generation, sons [who] will be born, they will arise and will tell to their sons.”
- Psalm 78:7 tn Heb “keep.”
- Psalm 78:8 tn Heb “a generation that did not make firm its heart and whose spirit was not faithful with God.” The expression “make firm the heart” means “to be committed, devoted” (see 1 Sam 7:3).
- Psalm 78:9 tn Heb “the sons of Ephraim.” Ephraim probably stands here by synecdoche (part for whole) for the northern kingdom of Israel.
- Psalm 78:9 tn Heb “ones armed, shooters of bow.” It is possible that the term נוֹשְׁקֵי (nosheqey, “ones armed [with]”) is an interpretive gloss for the rare רוֹמֵי (rome, “shooters of”; on the latter see BDB 941 s.v. I רָמָה). The phrase נוֹשְׁקֵי קֶשֶׁת (nosheqe qeshet, “ones armed with a bow”) appears in 1 Chr 12:2; 2 Chr 17:17.
- Psalm 78:9 sn They retreated. This could refer to the northern tribes’ failure to conquer completely their allotted territory (see Judg 1), or it could refer generally to the typical consequence (military defeat) of their sin (see vv. 10-11).
- Psalm 78:10 tn Heb “the covenant of God.”
- Psalm 78:10 tn Heb “walk in.”
- Psalm 78:11 tn Heb “his deeds.”
- Psalm 78:12 sn The region of Zoan was located in the Egyptian delta, where the enslaved Israelites lived (see Num 13:22; Isa 19:11, 13; 30:4; Ezek 30:14).
- Psalm 78:15 tn Heb “and caused them to drink, like the depths, abundantly.”
- Psalm 78:17 sn The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן ʿelyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Pss 7:17; 9:2; 18:13; 21:7; 47:2.
- Psalm 78:18 tn Heb “and they tested God in their heart.” The “heart” is viewed here as the center of their volition.
- Psalm 78:19 tn Heb “they spoke against God, they said.”
- Psalm 78:19 tn Heb “to arrange a table [for food].”
- Psalm 78:20 tn Heb “look.”
- Psalm 78:21 tn Heb “therefore.”
- Psalm 78:21 tn Heb “and also anger went up.”
- Psalm 78:22 tn Heb “and they did not trust his deliverance.”
- Psalm 78:24 sn Manna was apparently shaped like a seed (Exod 16:31), perhaps explaining why it is here compared to grain.
- Psalm 78:25 sn Because of the reference to “heaven” in the preceding verse, it is likely that mighty ones refers here to the angels of heaven. The LXX translates “angels” here, as do a number of modern translations (NEB, NIV, NRSV).
- Psalm 78:25 tn Heb “provision he sent to them to satisfaction.”
- Psalm 78:27 tn Heb “and like the sand of the seas winged birds.”
- Psalm 78:29 tn Heb “and they ate and were extremely filled.” The verb שָׂבַע (savaʿ, “be satisfied, full”) is often used of eating and/or drinking one’s fill, to have had fully enough and want no more. See BDB 959 s.v. שָׂבַע. In some cases it means to have had more than enough of something (cf. Prov 25:17; Isa 1:11). Here the use of מְאֹד (meʾod, “very”) and the context of the account indicate they felt filled beyond capacity.
- Psalm 78:30 tn Heb “they were not separated from their desire.”
- Psalm 78:32 tn Heb “and did not believe in his amazing deeds.”
- Psalm 78:33 tn Heb “and he ended in vanity their days.”
- Psalm 78:33 tn Heb “and their years in terror.”
- Psalm 78:34 tn Or “killed them,” that is, killed large numbers of them.
- Psalm 78:34 tn Heb “they sought him.”
- Psalm 78:35 tn Heb “my high rocky summit.”
- Psalm 78:35 sn The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן ʿelyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Pss 7:17; 9:2; 18:13; 21:7; 47:2.
- Psalm 78:35 tn Heb “redeemer”
- Psalm 78:36 tn Heb “with their mouth.”
- Psalm 78:36 tn Heb “and with their tongue they lied to him.”
- Psalm 78:37 tn Heb “and their heart was not firm with him.”
- Psalm 78:38 tn One could translate v. 38 in the past tense (“he was compassionate…forgave sin and did not destroy…held back his anger, and did not stir up his fury”), but the imperfect verbal forms are probably best understood as generalizing. Verse 38 steps back briefly from the narrational summary of Israel’s history and lays the theological basis for v. 39, which focuses on God’s mercy toward sinful Israel.
- Psalm 78:39 tn The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive signals a return to the narrative.
- Psalm 78:39 tn Heb “and he remembered that they [were] flesh, a wind [that] goes and does not return.”
- Psalm 78:40 tn Or “caused him pain.”
- Psalm 78:41 tn Heb “and they returned and tested God.” The Hebrew verb שׁוּב (shuv, “to return”) is used here in an adverbial sense to indicate that an earlier action was repeated.
- Psalm 78:41 tn Or “wounded, hurt.” The verb occurs only here in the OT.
- Psalm 78:41 sn The basic sense of the word “holy” is “set apart from that which is commonplace, special, unique.” The Lord’s holiness is first and foremost his transcendent sovereignty as the ruler of the world. He is “set apart” from the world over which he rules. At the same time his holiness encompasses his moral authority, which derives from his royal position. As king he has the right to dictate to his subjects how they are to live; indeed his very own character sets the standard for proper behavior. This expression is a common title for the Lord in the book of Isaiah.
- Psalm 78:42 tn Heb “his hand,” symbolizing his saving activity and strength, as the next line makes clear.
- Psalm 78:42 tn Heb “[the] day [in] which he ransomed them from [the] enemy.”
- Psalm 78:43 tn Or “signs” (see Ps 65:8).
- Psalm 78:43 tn Or “portents, omens” (see Ps 71:7). The Egyptian plagues are referred to here (see vv. 44-51).
- Psalm 78:45 tn Heb “and he sent an insect swarm against them and it devoured them.”
- Psalm 78:45 tn Heb “and a swarm of frogs and it destroyed them.”
- Psalm 78:48 tn Heb “and he turned over to the hail their cattle.”
- Psalm 78:48 tn Heb “and their livestock to the flames.” “Flames” here refer to the lightning bolts that accompanied the storm.
- Psalm 78:49 tn Heb “he sent against them the rage of his anger.” The phrase “rage of his anger” employs an appositional genitive. Synonyms are joined in a construct relationship to emphasize the single idea. For a detailed discussion of the grammatical point with numerous examples, see Y. Avishur, “Pairs of Synonymous Words in the Construct State (and in Appositional Hendiadys) in Biblical Hebrew,” Semitics 2 (1971): 17-81.
- Psalm 78:49 tn Heb “fury and indignation and trouble, a sending of messengers of disaster.”
- Psalm 78:50 tn Heb “he leveled a path for his anger.” There were no obstacles to impede its progress; it moved swiftly and destructively.
- Psalm 78:50 tn Or perhaps “[the] plague.”
- Psalm 78:51 tn Heb “the beginning of strength.” If retained, the plural form אוֹנִים (ʾonim, “strength”) probably indicates degree (“great strength”), but many ancient witnesses read “their strength,” which presupposes an emendation to אֹנָם (ʾonam; singular form of the noun with third masculine plural pronominal suffix).
- Psalm 78:54 tn Heb “this mountain.” The whole land of Canaan seems to be referred to here. In Exod 15:17 the promised land is called the “mountain of your [i.e., God’s] inheritance.”
- Psalm 78:54 tn The “right hand” here symbolizes God’s military strength (see v. 55).
- Psalm 78:55 tn Heb “he caused to fall [to] them with a measuring line an inheritance.”
- Psalm 78:55 tn Heb “and caused the tribes of Israel to settle down in their tents.”
- Psalm 78:56 tn Or “tested and rebelled against.”
- Psalm 78:56 sn The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן ʿelyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Pss 7:17; 9:2; 18:13; 21:7; 47:2.
- Psalm 78:56 tn Or “keep.”
- Psalm 78:56 tn Heb “his testimonies” (see Ps 25:10).
- Psalm 78:57 tn Heb “they turned back.”
- Psalm 78:57 tn Or “acted treacherously like.”
- Psalm 78:57 tn Heb “they turned aside like a deceitful bow.”
- Psalm 78:58 tn Traditionally, “high places.”
- Psalm 78:60 tn Or “rejected.”
- Psalm 78:61 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.
- Psalm 78:61 tn Heb “and his splendor into the hand of an enemy.” The expression “his splendor” also refers metonymically to the ark of the covenant.
- Psalm 78:61 sn Verses 60-61 refer to the Philistines’ capture of the ark in the days of Eli (1 Sam 4:1-11).
- Psalm 78:62 tn Heb “his inheritance.”
- Psalm 78:63 tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).
- Psalm 78:63 tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).
- Psalm 78:63 tn Heb “were not praised,” that is, in wedding songs. The young men died in masses, leaving no husbands for the young women.
- Psalm 78:64 tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).
- Psalm 78:64 tn Heb “his.” The singular pronominal suffix is collective, referring back to God’s “people” (v. 62).
- Psalm 78:64 sn Because of the invading army and the ensuing panic, the priests’ widows had no time to carry out the normal mourning rites.
- Psalm 78:65 tn Heb “and the master awoke like one sleeping.” The Lord’s apparent inactivity during the time of judgment is compared to sleep.
- Psalm 78:65 tn Heb “like a warrior overcome with wine.” The Hebrew verb רוּן (run, “overcome”) occurs only here in the OT. The phrase “overcome with wine” could picture a drunken warrior controlled by his emotions and passions (as in the present translation), or it could refer to a warrior who awakes from a drunken stupor.
- Psalm 78:66 tn Heb “a permanent reproach he made them.”
- Psalm 78:69 tc Heb “and he built like the exalting [ones] his sanctuary.” The phrase כְּמוֹ־רָמִים (kemo ramim, “like the exalting [ones]”) is a poetic form of the comparative preposition followed by a participial form of the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”). The text should be emended to כִּמְרֹמִים (kimromim, “like the [heavenly] heights”). See Ps 148:1, where “heights” refers to the heavens above.
- Psalm 78:69 tn Heb “like the earth, [which] he established permanently.” The feminine singular suffix on the Hebrew verb יָסַד (yasad, “to establish”) refers to the grammatically feminine noun “earth.”
- Psalm 78:71 tn Heb “from after the ewes he brought him.”
- Psalm 78:71 tn Heb “to shepherd Jacob, his people, and Israel, his inheritance.”
- Psalm 78:72 tn Heb “He”; the referent (David, God’s chosen king, mentioned in v. 70) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Psalm 78:72 tn Heb “and he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart.”
- Psalm 78:72 tn Heb “and with the understanding of his hands he led them.”
Psalm 78
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 78
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 78[a]
God’s Goodness in the Face of Ingratitude
1 A maskil[b] of Asaph.
[c]Give ear, my people, to my teaching;
pay attention to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in parables[d]
and expound the mysteries of the past.
3 [e]These things we have heard and know,
for our ancestors have related them to us.
4 We will not conceal them from our children;
we will relate them to the next generation,
the glorious and powerful deeds of the Lord
and the wonders he has performed.
5 He instituted a decree in Jacob
and established a law in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
to make known to their descendants,
6 so that they would be known to future generations,
to children yet to be born.
In turn they were to tell their children,
7 so that they would place their trust in God,
and never forget his works
but keep his commandments.
8 Nor were they to imitate their ancestors,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart[f] was not steadfast
and whose spirit was unfaithful to God.
9 [g]The Ephraimites, who were skilled archers,
fled in terror on the day of battle.[h]
10 They failed to keep God’s covenant
and refused to live in accord with his law.
11 They forgot the works he had done,
the wonders he had performed for them.
12 He worked marvels in the sight of their ancestors
in the land of Egypt, in the Plain of Zoan.[i]
13 He divided the sea so that they could pass,
heaping up the waters as a mound.
14 He led them with a cloud by day,
and with the light of a fire by night.
15 He split open rocks in the wilderness
and gave them water to drink from limitless depths.
16 He brought forth streams from a rocky crag
and caused water to flow down in torrents.
17 [j]But they still sinned[k] against him,
rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.
18 They tested God’s patience
by demanding the food they craved.[l]
19 They railed against God, saying:
“Can God provide a banquet in the wilderness?
20 Certainly when he struck the rock,
water gushed forth and the streams overflowed.
But can he also give us bread
or provide meat for his people?”[m]
21 When the Lord heard this, he was filled with anger;
his fire blazed forth against Jacob,
and his wrath mounted against Israel,
22 because they had no faith in God
and put no trust in his saving might.
23 Yet he issued a command to the skies above
and opened the doors of the heavens.
24 He rained down manna for them to eat,
giving them the grain of heaven.
25 Mere mortals ate the bread of angels;[n]
he sent them an abundance of provisions.
26 He made the east wind blow in the heavens
and brought forth the south wind in force.
27 He rained down meat upon them like dust,
winged birds like the sands on the seashore.
28 He let them fall within the camp,
all around their tents.
29 They ate and were completely satisfied,
for he had given them what they desired.
30 But when they did not curb their cravings,
even while the food was in their mouths,
31 the anger of God blazed up against them;
he slew their strongest warriors
and laid low the chosen of Israel.
32 [o]Despite this, they continued to sin;
they put no faith in his wonders.
33 So he brought their days to an abrupt end
and cut off their years with sudden terror.[p]
34 When death afflicted them,
they sought him;
they searched eagerly for God.
35 They remembered that God was their Rock,[q]
that God Most High was their Redeemer.
36 However, while they flattered him with their mouths
and lied to him with their tongues,
37 their hearts[r] were not right with him,
nor were they faithful to his covenant.
38 Even so, he was compassionate toward them;
he forgave their guilt
and did not destroy them.
Time after time he held back his anger,
unwilling to stir up his rage.
39 For he remembered that they were flesh,
like a breath of wind that does not return.
40 [s]How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness
and pained him in the wasteland.
41 Again and again they tested God’s patience,
provoking the Holy One of Israel.[t]
42 They did not keep in mind his power
or the day when he delivered them from their oppressor,
43 when he manifested his wonders in Egypt
and his portents in the Plain of Zoan.
44 [u]He turned their rivers into blood;
they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of flies that devoured them
and frogs that devastated them.
46 He assigned their harvest to the caterpillars
and their produce to the locusts.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail
and their sycamore trees with frost.
48 He exposed their cattle to hailstones
and their flocks to bolts of lightning.
49 He sent upon them his blazing anger,
wrath, fury, and hostility,
a band of destroying angels.[v]
50 He gave his anger free rein;
he did not spare them from death
but delivered their lives to the plague.
51 He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their manhood in the tents of Ham.[w]
52 Then he led forth his people like sheep
and guided them through the wilderness like a flock.
53 He led them in safety, and they were not afraid,
while the sea engulfed their enemies.
54 He brought them to his holy land,
to the mountain his right hand had purchased.
55 He drove out the nations before them,
apportioning a heritage for each of them
and settling the tribes of Israel in their tents.[x]
56 [y]Even so, they put God to the test
and rebelled against the Most High,
refusing to observe his decrees.
57 They turned away and were disloyal like their ancestors;
they were as unreliable as a faulty bow.
58 They angered him with their high places[z]
and made him jealous with their idols.
59 When God saw this, he became enraged
and rejected Israel totally.[aa]
60 He forsook his dwelling in Shiloh,[ab]
the tent where he dwelt among mortals.
61 He surrendered his might into captivity
and his glory[ac] into the hands of the enemy.
62 He abandoned his people to the sword
and vented his wrath on his own heritage.
63 Fire devoured their young men,
and their maidens had no wedding song.
64 Their priests fell by the sword,
and their widows sang no lamentation.
65 [ad]Then the Lord awakened as from sleep,
like a warrior flushed from the effects of wine.
66 He struck his enemies and routed them,
inflicting perpetual shame on them.
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph
and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 Rather, he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion,[ae] which he loved.
69 He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
and like the earth[af] that he founded forever.
70 He chose David[ag] to be his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds.
71 From tending sheep he brought him
to be the shepherd of his people Jacob,
of Israel, his heritage.
72 He shepherded them with an unblemished heart
and guided them with a knowing hand.[ah]
Footnotes
- Psalm 78:1 This lengthy sermon is given us as a lesson in wisdom: if the People of God wish to understand their destiny, they must reflect on their origins and meditate on the Exodus, which is a history of divine grace and human infidelity. In effect, their ancestors never responded with anything but ingratitude to the miracles that God multiplied for them. He rolls back the sea and brings water from a rock; the people already clamor for another prodigy (vv. 12-20). Filled with the manna and the quail, the people still murmur (vv. 23-30)! Then the Lord becomes angry and metes out punishment, but he soon grants pardon to them out of pity for their human weakness (vv. 31-39). On their behalf, he had also brought about the plagues (vv. 43-51), and guided them through the wilderness and into the Promised Land (vv. 52-56). Still, offenses multiplied; so he also resorted anew to chastisement. But ultimately, he reserved for his people the privileged holy place, Zion, and the shepherd after his own heart, David (vv. 59-72).
Thus, the psalm emphasizes the infidelity of Ephraim (the ancestor of the Samaritans), the choice of Judah, and the call of David. Its lesson is that in spite of the successive about-faces of the people, God accomplished his design.
Is this not also our history? To acknowledge God’s love does not keep us from infidelities; at such times, the word of God challenges us but also brings pardon, and the Eucharist is given to sustain our steps. In Jesus, the new David and Good Shepherd, the People of God find a model and perfect guide to the new Promised Land, the heavenly Jerusalem, where the Father waits. - Psalm 78:1 Maskil: see note on Ps 32:1a. Asaph: see notes on Pss 73–89.
- Psalm 78:1 Remembrance of the great deeds of the Lord should serve to strengthen the people’s faith in his power and fidelity. Thus, they will not forget what the Lord has done for their ancestors, which was a blessing for their descendants, and what God has demanded from his covenant people.
- Psalm 78:2 Parables in Hebrew means comparisons, or any sayings with deeper meaning, which are to be understood via the hidden comparison; in this case, the parable is the whole psalm. This passage is used by Mt 13:35 as a foreshadowing of Christ’s teaching in parables (see also Ps 49:5; Ezek 17:2; 24:3).
- Psalm 78:3 Israel is the people of tradition (see Deut 4:9; 32:7; Job 8:8; 15:18; Isa 38:19; Joel 1:3); what its people hand down is, above all, the remembrance of the Exodus (see Ex 10:2; 13:14) and the covenant statutes (Deut 4:9-14; 6:20-25).
- Psalm 78:8 Heart: see note on Ps 4:8.
- Psalm 78:9 The psalmist stresses that the northern kingdom, in which Ephraim had the lead, has been unfaithful to the covenant (a theme of the prophets Amos and Hosea). It constitutes the last in a series of infidelities committed by Israel.
- Psalm 78:9 There is no record of flight from battle on the part of the Ephraimites; it may be a metaphor for Ephraim’s failure to keep the covenant.
- Psalm 78:12 Zoan: a city in the Nile delta, capital of Egypt at the time of the Exodus.
- Psalm 78:17 The psalmist indicates that the Israelites rebelled against the Lord in the wilderness despite all kinds of marvels that he worked on their behalf. This led to the Lord’s anger against them.
- Psalm 78:17 Still sinned: the psalmist has mentioned no sin, but because of the theme of water in verse 16, he is reminded of the people’s murmuring over the lack of water at Marah (see Ex 15:24).
- Psalm 78:18 See Ex 16:2f.
- Psalm 78:20 See Ex 16:2f; Num 11:4.
- Psalm 78:25 Bread of angels: literally, “bread of mighty ones,” which clearly refers to angels (see Ps 103:20; Wis 16:20; see also Jn 6:32, 50; 1 Cor 10:3). Psalm 105:40 speaks of “bread from heaven” (see Deut 8:3).
- Psalm 78:32 The people’s infidelity to the Lord continued unabated throughout the entire sojourn in the wilderness (see Isa 26:16; 29:13; Hos 5:15; 8:1). However, the Lord tempered his punishment, for he knew they shared the inherent weakness of human beings (see Pss 65:4; 85:4; 103:13f; Ex 32:14; Num 14:20; 21:7ff; Isa 48:9; Ezek 20:22).
- Psalm 78:33 Nonetheless, the Lord decreed that the faithless generation of the Exodus would never set foot on the Promised Land (see Num 14:22f, 28-35).
- Psalm 78:35 Rock: see note on Ps 18:3.
- Psalm 78:37 Hearts: see note on Ps 4:8.
- Psalm 78:40 The Israelites continued to rebel against God in the wilderness. They failed to recall how he had delivered them from Egypt by such wonders as the plagues and the passage through the Red Sea. Nonetheless, the Lord went on to lead them to the conquest and settlement of the Promised Land.
- Psalm 78:41 Holy One of Israel: see note on Ps 71:22.
- Psalm 78:44 The psalmist is not concerned about a complete, chronological, and exact narrative of the plagues. He gives them in a different order and enumeration, while also omitting the third, fifth, sixth, and ninth (see Ex 7–12).
- Psalm 78:49 Destroying angels: the psalmist here generalizes the theme of the “destroyer” of the firstborn (see Ex 12:23), personifying the Lord’s wrath, fury, and hostility as agents of his anger (see Ex 9:14; Deut 32:24; Job 20:23).
- Psalm 78:51 Tents of Ham: usually linked with Egypt (see Pss 105:23, 27; 106:21f; Gen 10:6).
- Psalm 78:55 The psalmist here summarizes the story of the Conquest told in Joshua.
- Psalm 78:56 This part, like its predecessors, begins with the remembrance of Israel’s sins and evokes the time of Samuel and Saul in the Book of Judges. Because of the people’s infidelity, God rejected Israel (see Jer 7:12ff).
- Psalm 78:58 High places: the Canaanites were accustomed to building altars to their gods on hills (high places), a custom followed by the Israelites who built altars to Yahweh on hills. However, this led to the adoption of pagan practices and idols by God’s people. Jealous: see Ex 20:5 (“I . . . am . . . a jealous God.”).
- Psalm 78:59 The psalmist is not speaking here of a permanent abandonment of Israel by God.
- Psalm 78:60 Shiloh: a shrine located in Ephraim (see Jdg 21:19) that was the center of Israelite worship from the time of Joshua (see Jos 18:1, 8; 21:1f; Jdg 18:31; 1 Sam 1:3; Jer 7:12; 26:6). It was destroyed by the Philistines when the Ark of the Covenant was captured (see 1 Sam 4:1-11).
- Psalm 78:61 His might . . . his glory: the divine attributes of which the Ark of the Covenant was the symbol (see Ps 132:17; 1 Sam 4:19ff; 2 Chr 6:41).
- Psalm 78:65 After the Israelites had been cleansed by the divine chastisement, the Lord had mercy on them and fought by their side once more in vanquishing their enemies. But afterward, God chose Judah instead of Ephraim as the leading tribe, Mount Zion instead of Shiloh as the royal seat (the place of his sanctuary), and David instead of Saul as his king and regent. David is the ideal shepherd (see Ezek 34:23; 37:24), the Lord’s anointed (see Ps 89:21), and the type of the Messiah to come (see Ps 110). What the Lord did for the people in the wilderness, David did in his name for the people of Judah.
- Psalm 78:68 He chose . . . Mount Zion: see Ps 132:11, 17.
- Psalm 78:69 High heavens . . . earth: the Lord built his sanctuary to last like the heavens and the earth (see note on Ps 24:2) and to reflect his glory as they do (see Pss 19:2; 29:9; 97:6).
- Psalm 78:70 He chose David: see Ps 132.
- Psalm 78:72 The Prophets regarded Israel, led by David, as the hope of God’s people (see Ezek 34:23; 37:24; Mic 5:2)—fulfilled in Jesus (see Mt 2:6; Jn 10:11; Rev 7:17).
Psalm 78
New International Version
Psalm 78
New International Version
Psalm 78
A maskil[a] of Asaph.
1 My people, hear my teaching;(A)
listen to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth with a parable;(B)
I will utter hidden things, things from of old—
3 things we have heard and known,
things our ancestors have told us.(C)
4 We will not hide them from their descendants;(D)
we will tell the next generation(E)
the praiseworthy deeds(F) of the Lord,
his power, and the wonders(G) he has done.
5 He decreed statutes(H) for Jacob(I)
and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our ancestors
to teach their children,
6 so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,(J)
and they in turn would tell their children.
7 Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget(K) his deeds
but would keep his commands.(L)
8 They would not be like their ancestors(M)—
a stubborn(N) and rebellious(O) generation,
whose hearts were not loyal to God,
whose spirits were not faithful to him.
9 The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows,(P)
turned back on the day of battle;(Q)
10 they did not keep God’s covenant(R)
and refused to live by his law.(S)
11 They forgot what he had done,(T)
the wonders he had shown them.
12 He did miracles(U) in the sight of their ancestors
in the land of Egypt,(V) in the region of Zoan.(W)
13 He divided the sea(X) and led them through;
he made the water stand up like a wall.(Y)
14 He guided them with the cloud by day
and with light from the fire all night.(Z)
15 He split the rocks(AA) in the wilderness
and gave them water as abundant as the seas;
16 he brought streams out of a rocky crag
and made water flow down like rivers.
17 But they continued to sin(AB) against him,
rebelling in the wilderness against the Most High.
18 They willfully put God to the test(AC)
by demanding the food they craved.(AD)
19 They spoke against God;(AE)
they said, “Can God really
spread a table in the wilderness?
20 True, he struck the rock,
and water gushed out,(AF)
streams flowed abundantly,
but can he also give us bread?
Can he supply meat(AG) for his people?”
21 When the Lord heard them, he was furious;
his fire broke out(AH) against Jacob,
and his wrath rose against Israel,
22 for they did not believe in God
or trust(AI) in his deliverance.
23 Yet he gave a command to the skies above
and opened the doors of the heavens;(AJ)
24 he rained down manna(AK) for the people to eat,
he gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Human beings ate the bread of angels;
he sent them all the food they could eat.
26 He let loose the east wind(AL) from the heavens
and by his power made the south wind blow.
27 He rained meat down on them like dust,
birds(AM) like sand on the seashore.
28 He made them come down inside their camp,
all around their tents.
29 They ate till they were gorged—(AN)
he had given them what they craved.
30 But before they turned from what they craved,
even while the food was still in their mouths,(AO)
31 God’s anger rose against them;
he put to death the sturdiest(AP) among them,
cutting down the young men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this, they kept on sinning;(AQ)
in spite of his wonders,(AR) they did not believe.(AS)
33 So he ended their days in futility(AT)
and their years in terror.
34 Whenever God slew them, they would seek(AU) him;
they eagerly turned to him again.
35 They remembered that God was their Rock,(AV)
that God Most High was their Redeemer.(AW)
36 But then they would flatter him with their mouths,(AX)
lying to him with their tongues;
37 their hearts were not loyal(AY) to him,
they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he was merciful;(AZ)
he forgave(BA) their iniquities(BB)
and did not destroy them.
Time after time he restrained his anger(BC)
and did not stir up his full wrath.
39 He remembered that they were but flesh,(BD)
a passing breeze(BE) that does not return.
40 How often they rebelled(BF) against him in the wilderness(BG)
and grieved him(BH) in the wasteland!
41 Again and again they put God to the test;(BI)
they vexed the Holy One of Israel.(BJ)
42 They did not remember(BK) his power—
the day he redeemed them from the oppressor,(BL)
43 the day he displayed his signs(BM) in Egypt,
his wonders(BN) in the region of Zoan.
44 He turned their river into blood;(BO)
they could not drink from their streams.
45 He sent swarms of flies(BP) that devoured them,
and frogs(BQ) that devastated them.
46 He gave their crops to the grasshopper,(BR)
their produce to the locust.(BS)
47 He destroyed their vines with hail(BT)
and their sycamore-figs with sleet.
48 He gave over their cattle to the hail,
their livestock(BU) to bolts of lightning.
49 He unleashed against them his hot anger,(BV)
his wrath, indignation and hostility—
a band of destroying angels.(BW)
50 He prepared a path for his anger;
he did not spare them from death
but gave them over to the plague.
51 He struck down all the firstborn of Egypt,(BX)
the firstfruits of manhood in the tents of Ham.(BY)
52 But he brought his people out like a flock;(BZ)
he led them like sheep through the wilderness.
53 He guided them safely, so they were unafraid;
but the sea engulfed(CA) their enemies.(CB)
54 And so he brought them to the border of his holy land,
to the hill country his right hand(CC) had taken.
55 He drove out nations(CD) before them
and allotted their lands to them as an inheritance;(CE)
he settled the tribes of Israel in their homes.
56 But they put God to the test
and rebelled against the Most High;
they did not keep his statutes.
57 Like their ancestors(CF) they were disloyal and faithless,
as unreliable as a faulty bow.(CG)
58 They angered him(CH) with their high places;(CI)
they aroused his jealousy with their idols.(CJ)
59 When God heard(CK) them, he was furious;(CL)
he rejected Israel(CM) completely.
60 He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh,(CN)
the tent he had set up among humans.(CO)
61 He sent the ark of his might(CP) into captivity,(CQ)
his splendor into the hands of the enemy.
62 He gave his people over to the sword;(CR)
he was furious with his inheritance.(CS)
63 Fire consumed(CT) their young men,
and their young women had no wedding songs;(CU)
64 their priests were put to the sword,(CV)
and their widows could not weep.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,(CW)
as a warrior wakes from the stupor of wine.
66 He beat back his enemies;
he put them to everlasting shame.(CX)
67 Then he rejected the tents of Joseph,
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim;(CY)
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,(CZ)
Mount Zion,(DA) which he loved.
69 He built his sanctuary(DB) like the heights,
like the earth that he established forever.
70 He chose David(DC) his servant
and took him from the sheep pens;
71 from tending the sheep(DD) he brought him
to be the shepherd(DE) of his people Jacob,
of Israel his inheritance.
72 And David shepherded them with integrity of heart;(DF)
with skillful hands he led them.
Footnotes
- Psalm 78:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
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