seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Psalm 76[a]For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
1 God is renowned in Judah;
in Israel his name is great.
2 His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shields and the swords, the weapons of war.(b)
in Israel his name is great.
2 His tent is in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows,
the shields and the swords, the weapons of war.(b)
4 You are radiant with light,
more majestic than mountains rich with game.
5 The valiant lie plundered,
they sleep their last sleep;
not one of the warriors
can lift his hands.
6 At your rebuke, God of Jacob,
both horse and chariot lie still.
more majestic than mountains rich with game.
5 The valiant lie plundered,
they sleep their last sleep;
not one of the warriors
can lift his hands.
6 At your rebuke, God of Jacob,
both horse and chariot lie still.
7 It is you alone who are to be feared.
Who can stand before you when you are angry?
8 From heaven you pronounced judgment,
and the land feared and was quiet—
9 when you, God, rose up to judge,
to save all the afflicted of the land.
10 Surely your wrath against mankind brings you praise,
and the survivors of your wrath are restrained.[c]
Who can stand before you when you are angry?
8 From heaven you pronounced judgment,
and the land feared and was quiet—
9 when you, God, rose up to judge,
to save all the afflicted of the land.
10 Surely your wrath against mankind brings you praise,
and the survivors of your wrath are restrained.[c]
11 Make vows to the Lord your God and fulfill them;
let all the neighboring lands
bring gifts to the One to be feared.
12 He breaks the spirit of rulers;
he is feared by the kings of the earth.
let all the neighboring lands
bring gifts to the One to be feared.
12 He breaks the spirit of rulers;
he is feared by the kings of the earth.
a. Psalm 76:1 In Hebrew texts 76:1-12 is numbered 76:2-13.
b. Psalm 76:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 9.
c. Psalm 76:10 Or Surely the wrath of mankind brings you praise, / and with the remainder of wrath you arm yourse
Oh definitely this is indeed high praise.... a victory hymn..... oh definitely. This is from the easy English site.
Sennacherib was the King of Assyria. Assyria was a very strong country to the north and east of Judah. About 700 years before Jesus came to the earth, Sennacherib attacked Judah. But God fought for Judah. Sennacherib did not win the war. Many of his soldiers died. The story is in Isaiah chapters 36 and 37; and also in 2 Kings 18 and 19.
Psalm 76 is about what happened in this war. It tells us that God did not let the enemy destroy Jerusalem. In the psalm, there are two other names for Jerusalem: Salem and Zion, verse 2. "Salem" means "*peace" (or no fighting); Zion is the name of the hill where the Israelites built their temple. The temple was the place where they met to praise God.
The name "A Song of Zion" was one that the Israelites used for this psalm. We have also called it "The Lion’s Den". Why? Because the words "house" and "home" in verse 2 in Hebrew are the words for a lion’s home. We translate them as "den". Also, in verse 4, the words "you robbed your enemy" are "you caught your prey". "Prey" is a word we use for what an animal catches to eat. The lion is a big animal. It catches and eats many smaller animals. It will even eat people! So, the psalm makes God like a lion. His den (or home) is Jerusalem. He goes out to the mountains to catch his prey. But the prey are the soldiers of Sennacherib.
I had a cute little title until I read the last couple of lines of the commentary. This is a victory song... definitely..... but I think "The Lion's Den" might bring some thought..... and that's what the Israelites named it.
