Psalm 79

Faith amid Confusion

A psalm of Asaph.(A)

God, the nations have invaded your inheritance,
desecrated your holy temple,
and turned Jerusalem into ruins.(B)
They gave the corpses of your servants
to the birds of the sky for food,
the flesh of your faithful ones
to the beasts of the earth.(C)
They poured out their blood
like water all around Jerusalem,
and there was no one to bury them.(D)
We have become an object of reproach
to our neighbors,
a source of mockery and ridicule
to those around us.(E)

How long, Lord? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy keep burning like fire?(F)
Pour out your wrath on the nations
that don’t acknowledge you,
on the kingdoms that don’t call on your name,(G)
for they have devoured Jacob
and devastated his homeland.(H)
Do not hold past iniquities[a] against us;
let your compassion come to us quickly,
for we have become very weak.(I)

God of our salvation, help us,(J)
for the glory of your name.
Rescue us and atone for our sins,
for your name’s sake.(K)
10 Why should the nations ask,
“Where is their God?” (L)
Before our eyes,
let vengeance for the shed blood of your servants
be known among the nations.(M)
11 Let the groans of the prisoners reach you;
according to your great power,
preserve those condemned to die.(N)

12 Pay back sevenfold to our neighbors(O)
the reproach they have hurled at you, Lord.(P)
13 Then we, your people, the sheep of your pasture,(Q)
will thank you forever;
we will declare your praise
to generation after generation.(R)

Footnotes

  1. 79:8 Or hold the sins of past generations

When a wicked person comes, contempt also comes,
and along with dishonor, derision.

The words of a person’s mouth are deep waters,(A)
a flowing river, a fountain of wisdom.[a]

It is not good to show partiality to the guilty,(B)
denying an innocent person justice.(C)

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Footnotes

  1. 18:4 Or waters; a fountain of wisdom is a flowing river

Final Instructions

Make every effort to come to me soon,(A) 10 because Demas(B) has deserted me,(C) since he loved this present world, and has gone to Thessalonica.(D) Crescens has gone to Galatia,(E) Titus(F) to Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke(G) is with me. Bring Mark(H) with you, for he is useful to me in the ministry. 12 I have sent Tychicus(I) to Ephesus. 13 When you come, bring the cloak I left in Troas(J) with Carpus, as well as the scrolls, especially the parchments. 14 Alexander(K) the coppersmith did great harm to me. The Lord will repay him according to his works. 15 Watch out(L) for him yourself because he strongly opposed our words.

16 At my first defense, no one stood by me, but everyone deserted me.(M) May it not be counted against them. 17 But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that I might fully preach the word and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil work and will bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom.(N) To him be the glory forever and ever! Amen.

Benediction

19 Greet Prisca and Aquila,(O) and the household of Onesiphorus.(P) 20 Erastus(Q) has remained at Corinth; I left Trophimus(R) sick at Miletus.(S) 21 Make every effort to come before winter. Eubulus greets you, as do Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers and sisters.

22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.

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Judgment of Zion’s Enemies

A pronouncement:

The word of the Lord
is against the land of Hadrach,
and Damascus(A) is its resting place—
for the eyes of humanity
and all the tribes of Israel
are on the Lord[a]
and also against Hamath,(B) which borders it,
as well as Tyre(C) and Sidon,(D)
though they are very shrewd.
Tyre has built herself a fortress;
she has heaped up silver like dust
and gold like the dirt of the streets.
Listen! The Lord will impoverish her
and cast her wealth into the sea;
she herself will be consumed by fire.(E)
Ashkelon will see it and be afraid;
Gaza too, and will writhe in great pain,
as will Ekron, for her hope will fail.
There will cease to be a king in Gaza,
and Ashkelon will become uninhabited.
A mongrel people will live in Ashdod,
and I will destroy the pride of the Philistines.(F)
I will remove the blood from their mouths
and the abhorrent things(G)
from between their teeth.
Then they too will become a remnant for our God;
they will become like a clan in Judah
and Ekron like the Jebusites.(H)
I will encamp at my house as a guard,
against those who march back and forth,
and no oppressor will march against them again,
for now I have seen with my own eyes.

The Coming of Zion’s King

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
Shout in triumph, Daughter Jerusalem!
Look, your King is coming to you;
he is righteous and victorious,[b]
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.(I)
10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the horse from Jerusalem.
The bow of war will be removed,
and he will proclaim peace to the nations.
His dominion will extend from sea to sea,
from the Euphrates River
to the ends of the earth.(J)
11 As for you,
because of the blood of your covenant,(K)
I will release your prisoners
from the waterless cistern.(L)
12 Return to a stronghold,
you prisoners who have hope;
today I declare that I will restore double to you.(M)
13 For I will bend Judah as my bow;
I will fill that bow with Ephraim.
I will rouse your sons, Zion,
against your sons, Greece.[c](N)
I will make you like a warrior’s sword.
14 Then the Lord will appear over them,
and his arrow will fly like lightning.
The Lord God will sound the ram’s horn
and advance with the southern storms.(O)
15 The Lord of Armies will defend them.
They will consume and conquer with slingstones;
they will drink and be rowdy as if with wine.(P)
They will be as full as the sprinkling basin,(Q)
like those at the corners of the altar.(R)
16 The Lord their God will save them on that day
as the flock of his people;(S)
for they are like jewels in a crown,(T)
sparkling over his land.
17 How lovely and beautiful!
Grain will make the young men flourish,
and new wine, the young women.

Footnotes

  1. 9:1 Or eyes of the Lord are on mankind—
  2. 9:9 Or and has salvation
  3. 9:13 Lit Javan

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