seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Psalm 44[a]For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A maskil.(b)
1 We have heard it with our ears, O God;
our ancestors have told us
what you did in their days,
in days long ago.
2 With your hand you drove out the nations
and planted our ancestors;
you crushed the peoples
and made our ancestors flourish.
3 It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them.
our ancestors have told us
what you did in their days,
in days long ago.
2 With your hand you drove out the nations
and planted our ancestors;
you crushed the peoples
and made our ancestors flourish.
3 It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them.
4 You are my King and my God,
who decrees[c] victories for Jacob.
5 Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
6 I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
7 but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.
8 In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever.[d]
who decrees[c] victories for Jacob.
5 Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
6 I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
7 but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.
8 In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever.[d]
9 But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.
10 You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.
11 You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale.
you no longer go out with our armies.
10 You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.
11 You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sold your people for a pittance,
gaining nothing from their sale.
13 You have made us a reproach to our neighbors,
the scorn and derision of those around us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
the peoples shake their heads at us.
15 I live in disgrace all day long,
and my face is covered with shame
16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.
the scorn and derision of those around us.
14 You have made us a byword among the nations;
the peoples shake their heads at us.
15 I live in disgrace all day long,
and my face is covered with shame
16 at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me,
because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge.
17 All this came upon us,
though we had not forgotten you;
we had not been false to your covenant.
18 Our hearts had not turned back;
our feet had not strayed from your path.
19 But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals;
you covered us over with deep darkness.
though we had not forgotten you;
we had not been false to your covenant.
18 Our hearts had not turned back;
our feet had not strayed from your path.
19 But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals;
you covered us over with deep darkness.
20 If we had forgotten the name of our God
or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
21 would not God have discovered it,
since he knows the secrets of the heart?
22 Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
21 would not God have discovered it,
since he knows the secrets of the heart?
22 Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
23 Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?
25 We are brought down to the dust;
our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Rise up and help us;
rescue us because of your unfailing love.
our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Rise up and help us;
rescue us because of your unfailing love.
a. Psalm 44:1 In Hebrew texts 44:1-26 is numbered 44:2-27.
b. Psalm 44:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
c. Psalm 44:4 Septuagint, Aquila and Syriac; Hebrew King, O God; / command
d. Psalm 44:8 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here
Maybe the reason I don't like poems.... There are so many sad ones....
This is from the easy English site.
We do not know who wrote Psalm 44. We do not know when they wrote it. When we read the psalm, two things are clear:
· someone had hurt the Jews
· the Jews had done nothing wrong.
We do not know when this happened. Perhaps it was when David was king, or up to 500 years after.
The psalm is in 3 parts. Verses 1-8 tell us what God did for the Jews when they came into their country. It was not the Jews that won the land for them, but God. His hand (verses 2 and 3) and his arm (verse 3) mean "what God did". (Some Christians say that God’s hand is "the *Holy Spirit" and his arm is Jesus.) The "light on your face" (verse 3) means "the good way that God looked at people so that he did good things for them". The enemies of the Jews were the people that lived in the land before they did.
But in verses 9 to 22 we read that something bad has happened.
The Jews had done nothing wrong, but their enemies had done bad things to them. This often happens to Christian people. Why does God let it happen? He does it to make his people strong. Sheep were animals that people killed for the meat. "Thrown us into other countries" means "put us in countries where we did not live before". The covenant in verse 17 is what God agreed to do if his people obeyed him. Here, in verses 17-22, the people are saying that they kept their part of the covenant, but God did not keep his. In other words, they obeyed God, but he did not care for them. We often feel like this. When it happens we must remember that:
· God lets it happen to make us strong
· we must go on believing in God.
It happened to Jesus, and we must be like him!
In verses 23 - 26 the person that wrote the psalm prays. He (or she) asks God to wake up and send help! Whatever happens, we must always ask God to send help!
I keep thinking of God as the Father figure and the author of these poems, the kid. The first day of school comes to mind.... My daughter was not real excited about leaving me at home. Her friends were on the bus... so I got through that part ok.... but when the bus pulled away.... I started to cry. When the day was done and she came home.... she was just fine. The next day, though, she didn't want to go back. In her words... "I did that already. I didn't like it but I did it...." Then I let her in on the cold hard fact.... she was going to have to do this almost every day for at least the next twelve years..... I'm sure she didn't get the twelve years concept.... 2 minutes was a far as she could wait at that age. She did get that she had to do it over again almost every day..... to which she threw her head back and cried "Why? What did I do wrong?"....Oh poor baby.... you didn't do anything wrong... that's just life....
