Psalms 78

In Psalms 77 the poet recalls God’s wonderful works of old for the encouragement of his faith in the hour of distress. In this Psalm he invites his hearers to draw a lesson of warning for themselves from the past history of the nation. Again and again Israel had forgotten the great works which Jehovah had done for them, and with base ingratitude and short-memoried faithlessness had rebelled against His government, or tempted Him by distrust of His goodness. The Psalmist holds up the picture to his contemporaries, in the hope that they may be taught to avoid repeating the sins of their forefathers. Though the Psalm refers to the behaviour of the whole nation, Ephraim (if the text of Psa 78:9 is sound) seems to be singled out at the outset as especially guilty; and the Psalm concludes with the choice of Zion as the seat of the sanctuary and David as the king of Israel, in a way which indicates that the writer had some reason for dwelling upon the position of Jerusalem and the Davidic kingdom as the special objects of Jehovah’s favour. But the rebuke of Ephraim is not the main purpose of the Psalm. Its intention is evidently positive, to draw warnings for the present and the future from the consideration of the past. It is impossible to fix the date of the Psalm with any certainty. That the history is brought down to the time of David and no further does not prove that it was written then. It presumes the existence of the Temple (Psalms 78:69), and apparently the separation of the kingdoms. It has been said that “the didactic use of past history is in itself decisive against a pre-Exile date,” and that “it would be foolish to separate it from Psalms 105-107.” But the didactic use of past history is to be found in the earliest prophets; and though Psalms 105, 106 belong to the same class of historical Psalms, it does not necessarily follow that they all belong to the same period. There are some remarkable differences, and Psalms 105-107 contain clear allusions to the Captivity, which this Psalm does not. Psalms 78:69 speaks of the Temple in language which makes it difficult to suppose that it had already been destroyed.

Moreover it is at least noteworthy, that the Psalmist refers to those plagues only which are described in the Jehovistic narrative in Exodus (J), and according to a very probable reading and explanation of Psa 78:48, to all of them. He does not refer to the plague of darkness described in the Elohistic narrative (E) only, nor to the plagues of lice and boils described only in the Priestly code (P).

Of course the poet was not bound to mention every plague, but it is a not unnatural inference that he was familiar with J only, while it was still in circulation as a separate work. If so, the Psalm must have been written at a relatively early date. On the other hand the use of the title “the Holy One of Israel” (Psalms 78:41) indicates that it is not earlier than the time of Isaiah, who originated this title to express the truth revealed to him in the vision of his Call. It may however belong to that period, and may have been written in view of the hostility of the Northern Kingdom to Judah (Isaiah 7, 8), or more probably in view of the fall of the Northern Kingdom, as a warning to Judah to beware lest, though Zion was the city of God’s choice, and the house of David chosen to rule His people, they too, like Shiloh and Ephraim, might be rejected. At such a time moreover the thought of the divine choice of Jerusalem might naturally be offered as a ground of hope and confidence. The Psalm falls for the most part into stanzas of eight and sixteen verses. Psalms 78:17-18; Psalms 40, 41; Psalms 56, 57, form a kind of initial refrain, in which the dominant idea of the Psalm,—Israel’s rebellion and temptation of God—is repeated and emphasised. The Psalmist does not follow the historical order of events, but relates first the care of Jehovah for Israel and Israel’s ingratitude towards Jehovah in the wilderness (Psalms 78:12-39), and then the miracles of the Exodus and the settlement in Canaan (Psalms 78:40 ff.). i. The purpose of the Psalm stated;—to draw warning and instruction for the present from the past history of Israel, by recapitulating its course and enforcing its lessons in accordance with the divine command, that the ingratitude and unfaithfulness of the past might not be repeated (Psalms 78:1-8). ii Israel’s history had been a strange record of forgetfulness and disloyalty to the God Who had brought them out of Egypt and provided for their wants in the wilderness with loving care (Psalms 78:9-16). iii. In spite of His care they rebelled against Him and tempted Him by doubting His power and goodness, so that even while He provided for their wants He was forced to punish them for their sin (Psalms 78:17-31). iv. The chastisements of the wilderness produced only temporary and superficial amendment, and it was due to God’s forbearance that they were not utterly destroyed (Psalms 78:32-39). v. It was no momentary aberration, but repeated and defiant rebellion, in utter forgetfulness of all that they owed to Jehovah for redeeming them from the bondage of Egypt. The Psalmist relates the wonders which accompanied their deliverance, in order to set Israel’s ingratitude in the strongest light. Jehovah destroyed their enemies, and brought them safely into the land which He had prepared for them (Psalms 78:40-55). vi. But there again they tempted God and rebelled against Him, till He forsook His dwelling-place in Shiloh, and abandoned them to their enemies (Psalms 78:56-64). vii. Yet once more He had mercy on them, and when He delivered them from their enemies, He chose Judah instead of Ephraim, Zion in place of Shiloh, and appointed David to be the shepherd of His people (Psalms 78:65-72). Comp. generally, besides Psalms 105, 106, Deuteronomy 32. On the title, Maschil of Asaph, see Introd. p. xix.

Psalms 78:1-8

1–8. The Psalmist’s solemn invitation to his countrymen to listen to his teaching. He proposes to set forth the lessons to be drawn from Israel’s past history, in obedience to God’s command to hand on the tradition of His mighty works for the encouragement and warning of each successive generation.

Psalms 78:2

2. On the words parable and dark sayings or enigmas see note on Psalms 49:4. The Psalmist has no mere narrative of facts to recount, but a history full of significance for those who can penetrate its hidden meaning. It is a ‘parable’ not for Israel only, but for every individual in the Christian Church. dark sayings of old] Lessons drawn from the history of ancient times, from the Exodus, when Israel was ‘born’ as a nation, onward. Cp. Psalms 77:5. This verse is freely quoted by St Matthew (Matthew 13:34-35), in a form which does not agree exactly either with the Heb. or with the LXX, with reference to our Lord’s teaching in parables. “All these things spake Jesus in parables unto the multitudes; and without a parable spake he nothing unto them: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.” The words of the Psalmist are not a direct prophecy of the Messiah’s method of teaching; but just as Christ as perfect Man summed up in Himself and fulfilled the manifold experiences of the people of God, so as the perfect Teacher He adopted the methods of the teachers of the old dispensation, and ‘fulfilled’ them by carrying them to their highest perfection. As the Psalmist used the facts of Israel’s history to convey the lesson which he desired to teach, so Christ used the phenomena of Nature and the experiences of Life. Cp. Introd. pp. lxxix ff.

Psalms 78:3-4

3, 4. It is best to place a full stop at the end of Psa 78:2, and connect Psalms 78:3-4 thus: The things which we have heard and known, And our fathers have told to us, We will not hide from their sons, Telling to another generation the praises of Jehovah, And his strength and his wondrous works that he hath done. With line 2 cp. Psalms 44:1; Judges 6:13. ‘From our sons’ might have been expected rather than ‘from their sons’: but the pronoun their is significant. It implies that the trust was committed to the speakers by their ancestors not for themselves only but for future generations. Excellently Keble: “The tale our fathers used to tell We to their children owe.” The praises of Jehovah are His praiseworthy acts. Cp. Psalms 22:3; Psalms 22:30-31. For wondrous works see note on Psalms 71:17. Cp. Psalms 145:4 ff.

Psalms 78:5

5. a testimony … a law] Not the Mosaic legislation generally, but the express precept which enjoined upon Israelite parents the duty of teaching their children the great facts of Israel’s history, that the remembrance of them might be handed down from generation to generation. See Exodus 10:2; Exodus 12:26-27; Exodus 13:8 ff., Exodus 13:14; Deuteronomy 4:9; Deuteronomy 6:20 ff. Cp. in the N.T. 2 Timothy 2:2. that they should make them known] Them refers to “the things which we have heard and known” &c., Psalms 78:3-4. Cp. Deuteronomy 4:9.

Psalms 78:6

6. The A.V. follows the Massoretic division of the verse; but it is better to connect the clauses thus: That another generation might know, That sons which should be born might arise and tell their sons.

Psalms 78:7

7. their hope] Or, their confidence, as Proverbs 3:26. and not forget] “Lest thou forget” is the constantly recurring warning in Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 4:9, &c.). the works of God] Or, as R.V. in Psalms 77:11, the deeds of God.

Psalms 78:8

8. as their fathers] Primarily, the generation of the wandering in the wilderness; but the warning was true for almost every age. stubborn and rebellious] Epithets applied in Deuteronomy 21:18 to the son, whom no admonition or chastisement would reform, and for whom accordingly nothing remained but the penalty of death. Cp. Jeremiah 5:23; Deuteronomy 9:7 ff; Deuteronomy 31:27; Deuteronomy 32:5; Deuteronomy 32:20. that set not their heart aright] Failed to direct and prepare it with stedfast purpose to serve God. Cp. Psalms 78:37. whose spirit was not stedfast] Better, as in Psalms 78:37, was not faithful. Fickleness, instability, untrustworthiness, were the characteristics of Israel’s conduct.

Psalms 78:9-16

9–16. Israel’s disobedience and ingratitude, in spite of all God’s mercies to them at the Exodus and in the wilderness.

Psalms 78:10

10. the covenant of God] See Exodus 19:5; Exodus 24:3; Exodus 24:7-8.

Psalms 78:11

11. And they forgat his doings, And his wondrous works that he had shewed them (R.V.).

Psalms 78:12

12. In the sight of their fathers he did wonders. Cp. Psalms 77:14. in the field of Zoan] Zoan, known to the Greeks as Tanis, was situated on the E. bank of the Tanitic branch of the Nile. It was famous as the capital of the Hyksos dynasty, and was refounded by Ramses II, the Pharaoh of the oppression. It is described by Mr Petrie, who excavated it in 1883–4, as “a city which was only inferior to the other capitals—Thebes and Memphis—in the splendour of its sculptures.” The phrase “field of Zoan” for the district in which it was situated has been found in an Egyptian inscription. After this brief allusion to the plagues, of which he intends to speak in detail afterwards (43ff.), the Psalmist passes on at once to the Exodus and the journey through the wilderness.

Psalms 78:13

13. He divided the sea] Lit. clave, as in Psalms 78:15; the word which is used in Exodus 14:16; Isaiah 63:12; Nehemiah 9:11. as an heap] Cp. Exodus 15:8; Psalms 33:7.

Psalms 78:14

14. And he led them with the cloud by day (cp. Exodus 13:21), as a shepherd leads his flock (Psalms 78:53; Psalms 77:20).

Psalms 78:15-16

15, 16. He clave rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink as out of the depths abundantly: And he brought forth streams out of a cliff. Two different words are used, with reference to the two occasions upon which the Israelites were miraculously supplied with water: first in Rephidim at the beginning of their journey when Moses was commanded to smite ‘the rock’ (Exodus 17:6), and secondly, in Kadesh, at the close of their wanderings, when Moses smote ‘the cliff,’ to which he was commanded to speak (Numbers 20:8 ff.). The depths are the reservoirs of water hidden in the earth (Psalms 33:7; Genesis 7:11; Deuteronomy 8:7).

Psalms 78:17-31

17–31. In spite of these miracles of mercy they sinned yet more, and tempted God in their unbelief, so that while He supplied their wants He was compelled to punish them for their sin. The order is logical not chronological. The first murmurings for food (Exodus 16) preceded the giving of the water: and the narratives of Exodus 16 and Numbers 11 are fused into one.

Psalms 78:18

18. by asking &c.] By asking food for their appetite: a different word from that rendered lust in Psalms 78:30. The allusion is not to the demand for flesh, but to the doubt whether God could provide food for the people at all (Exodus 16:2 ff.). In the verses which follow, the murmurings which preceded the first sending of manna and quails (Exodus 16) are fused with those which preceded the second sending of quails (Numbers 11).

Psalms 78:19

19. Can God furnish] R.V., Can God prepare?

Psalms 78:20

20. can he provide] R.V., Will he provide? The narrative is thrown into a graphic poetical form. Unbelief reaches its climax in the words for his people. If, as He says, we are His people, let Him provide, and provide liberally, for our wants. Bread … flesh, as in Exodus 16:8; Exodus 16:12.

Psalms 78:21

21. Therefore when Jehovah heard, he was wroth: And a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also went up against Israel. Cp. Psalms 78:59; Psalms 78:62. A fire alludes to the punishment of the murmuring Israelites by the burning at Taberah (Numbers 11:1 ff.), before the second giving of quails. Went up is a metaphor from smoke. Cp. Psalms 18:8; Psalms 74:1.

Psalms 78:22

22. For a moment they had believed (Exodus 14:31), but they soon fell away. Cp. Numbers 14:11, a verse which might serve as a motto for this Psalm. his salvation] Of which they had had such marvellous proof in the Exodus (Exodus 14:13; Exodus 15:2).

Psalms 78:23

23. Yet he commanded the skies above, And opened the doors of heaven;

Psalms 78:24

24. And he rained down manna upon them to eat, And gave them the corn of heaven.

Psalms 78:25

25. Everyone did eat the bread of the mighty, He sent them provision to the full. The A.V. rendering of the verbs in Psalms 78:23-24 as pluperfects is contrary to the rules of Hebrew grammar. The connexion of thought is that God was wroth at the unbelief of the Israelites, and yet He provided for their wants. The Psalmist does not follow the order of time in his recital, but combines the different murmurings, and then the different provisions of manna and quails. The doors of heaven, as of some vast storehouse: cp. ‘the windows (or ‘flood-gates’) of heaven,’ 2 Kings 7:2; 2 Kings 7:19; Malachi 3:10. The Psalmist closely follows the language of Exo 16:4, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you.” Cp. Psalms 105:40; John 6:31. Corn of heaven may allude to the granular form of the manna (Exodus 16:31). Angels’ food (LXX, Vulg., Syr.) is probably a right paraphrase of the words the bread of the mighty, though the term is nowhere applied to the angels. But cp. Psalms 103:20. Wis 16:20, “Thou feddest thine own people with angels’ food,” naturally follows the LXX. It is a question whether we should render ‘Everyone did eat’ &c. cp. Exodus 16:16; Exodus 16:18; Exodus 16:21; or man, as contrasted with angels: cp. the Targ. “The sons of men ate bread which came down from the dwelling of the angels”: but the former is probably right. For to the full cp. Exodus 16:3; Exodus 16:8; Exodus 16:12.

Psalms 78:26

26. He led forth the east wind In the heaven: And by his power he guided the south wind:

Psalms 78:27

27. And he rained flesh upon them as the dust, And winged fowl as the sand of the seas. The sending of quails is connected, as in Exodus 16, with the sending of the manna; but the language of the Psalm follows the description of the second sending of quails in Numbers 11. The verbs in Psalms 78:26 are the same as those in Psalms 78:52. Cp. Exodus 10:13; Numbers 11:31. East and South are separated for the sake of rhythm. A S.E. wind brought up the quails from ‘the sea,’ i.e. the Red Sea. “The period when they were brought to the camp of Israel was in spring, when on their northward migration from Africa. According to their well-known instinct, they would follow up the coast of the Red Sea until they came to its bifurcation by the Sinaitic Peninsula, and then would cross at the narrow part.” Tristram, Nat. Hist. of Bible, p. 231.

Psalms 78:28

28. their camp … their habitations] Cp. Exodus 16:13; Numbers 11:31.

Psalms 78:29

29. for he gave them &c.] For he brought them that for which they lusted. Cp. Psalms 106:14; Numbers 11:4; Numbers 11:34.

Psalms 78:30

30. They were not estranged from their lust, Their food was yet in their mouth,

Psalms 78:31

31. When the anger of God went up against them, And slew of the lustiest of them, And laid low the young men of Israel. Even before they had been surfeited with the quails—an allusion to Numbers 11:20—the judgement fell upon them (Numbers 11:33), and the plague broke out. God punishes men by answering their prayers, a truth which even heathen moralists recognised.

Psalms 78:32-39

32–39. These judgements failed to reform them, and further chastisements produced only temporary and superficial amendments. Yet in spite of all, God continued to shew them mercy.

Psalms 78:33

33. in vanity … in trouble] Or, as a breath, unsubstantial and transitory (Psalms 39:5; Psalms 39:11; Psalms 62:9): with sudden terror (Leviticus 26:16).

Psalms 78:34

34. When he slew them, then they would inquire after him: And return and seek God earnestly. The tenses denote the repeated alternations of punishment and repentance. Cp. Judges 2:11 ff.

Psalms 78:35

35. their rock] Cp. Deuteronomy 32:4 ff. the high God] God Most High, El Elyôn, a combination found elsewhere only in Genesis 14:18 ff. But cp. Psalms 73:11; and Psalms 7:17, Psalms 47:2, Jehovah Elyôn; Psalms 57:2, Elôhîm Elyôn.

Psalms 78:36

36. But they flattered him with their mouth, And lied unto him with their tongue (R.V.). As though God were a man who could be deceived by hypocrisy. Cp. Isaiah 29:13. According to the Massoratic reckoning, this is the middle of the 2527 verses of the Psalter, but it must be remembered that the titles of the Psalms are frequently reckoned as verses in the Hebrew text (Introd. p. xvi).

Psalms 78:37

37. right … stedfast] Or, stedfast … faithful. Cp. Psalms 78:8, where the same words are used. The heart is the organ of thought and will, which determines the moral and religious character, the seat of true repentance and amendment of life (Psalms 51:10; Psalms 57:7).

Psalms 78:38

38. This verse describes the general attributes of God, in virtue of which (Psalms 78:39) He spared Israel in spite of their guilt. Render: But he, being full of compassion, forgiveth iniquity and destroyeth not, And offtimes turneth his anger away, And stirreth not up all his wrath. Cp. Exodus 34:6-7; Exodus 32:10; Exodus 32:12; Numbers 14:18 ff.; Deuteronomy 4:31. “V. 38 is, according to Kiddushin 30a, the middle of the 5896 lines (στίχοι) of the Psalter. According to Maccoth 22b, Psalms 78:38 and Deuteronomy 28:58-59; Deuteronomy 29:8 were recited, when the forty stripes save one, which Paul five times suffered (2 Corinthians 11:24), were inflicted on the offender.” (Delitzsch).

Psalms 78:39

39. For &c.] And he remembered &c. Flesh denotes the frailty of human nature, including moral as well as physical weakness: a wind &c. symbolises the transitoriness of human life. Cp. Psalms 56:4; Psalms 103:14 ff.; Genesis 6:3; Job 7:7 ff.

Psalms 78:40-55

40–55. But as God multiplied His mercies, Israel multiplied its acts of rebellion: and in order to set the heinousness of their ingratitude in a still stronger light, the Psalmist goes back to recount the miracles which preceded and prepared for the Exodus.

Psalms 78:41

41. And they turned again and tempted God, And provoked the Holy One of Israel. limited (A.V.) would mean “entertained mean and circumscribed notions of His power and goodness and faithfulness” (Kay), or ‘hindered His action by their unbelief’ (Matthew 13:58). But more probably the word means provoked (LXX, Syr., Jer.). the Holy One of Israel] A title characteristic of the Book of Isaiah, and found in the Psalter only here and in Psalms 71:22, Psalms 89:18. It denotes that it was in His character of a Holy God that Jehovah had become the God of Israel. Though the title is not used in the Pentateuch, the thought is expressed there. In the chastisements of His people Jehovah proved Himself to be a Holy God, Who could not tolerate sin; and it was because Moses and Aaron failed to acknowledge that holiness, that they were punished by exclusion from Canaan (Numbers 20:12-13).

Psalms 78:42

42. his hand] His power exerted on their behalf. See Exodus 3:19, and often. nor the day &c.] Nor the day when he redeemed them from the adversary (R.V.).

Psalms 78:43

43. How he set his signs in Egypt (R.V.): words borrowed from Exodus 10:1-2, “my signs which I have set among them.” Cp. Psalms 105:27. Only six, or, if Psalms 78:48 or Psalms 78:50 refers to the murrain, possibly seven, plagues are mentioned, the plagues of lice, boils, and darkness being omitted. The order is different from that of Exodus, coinciding with it only in the first and last plagues. It is of course possible that the Psalmist, treating the narrative with poetic freedom, only mentions the principal plagues, and intentionally omits the others: but it is noteworthy that the three which he does not mention are just those the accounts of which are judged by critics upon grounds of style to have been derived from different documents: the plague of darkness from the ‘Elohistic document,’ and the plagues of lice and boils from the ‘Priestly Code.’ The accounts of the remaining seven are in the main derived from the ‘Jehovistic document.’ See Driver’s Introd. to the Lit. of the O.T., pp. 22ff. It certainly looks as if the Psalmist used the ‘Jehovistic document,’ while it was in circulation as a separate work.

Psalms 78:44

44. And turned their rivers into blood, And their streams, that they could not drink. See Exodus 7:17 ff. The word for ‘rivers’ (y’ôr) is one specially used of the Nile and its canals.

Psalms 78:45

45. The fourth and second plagues, Exodus 8:20 ff., Exodus 8:1 ff. The word rendered divers sorts of flies, or, swarms of flies (R.V.), is used only with reference to this plague (Exodus 8; Psalms 105:31), and probably means some venomous kind of fly, such as abound in Egypt.

Psalms 78:46

46. The eighth plague, Exodus 10:1 ff. their increase] The produce of the land (Psalms 67:6). The word rendered ‘caterpillar’ is not used in Exodus, but often occurs elsewhere, and probably denotes the locust in the larva or pupa state.

Psalms 78:47

47. He killed their vines &c. The seventh plague, Exodus 9:13 ff. Cp. Psalms 105:33. Grapes and figs are among the fruits frequently represented in paintings in Egyptian tombs. The sycomore was and is one of the common trees of Egypt, much valued for its durable wood, of which mummy cases were commonly made. with frost] This is the rendering of the LXX, Aq., Syr., Jer., but great hailstones (R.V. marg.) or lumps of ice is more probably the meaning.

Psalms 78:48

48. And he gave over their beasts to the hail, And their cattle to fiery lightnings. As the text stands, the reference is to the destruction of the Egyptian cattle as well as the crops by the lightning which accompanied the hailstorm (Exodus 9:28). But two Hebrew MSS., with which agrees the version of Symmachus, read Deber, ‘pestilence’ in place of Bârâd, ‘hail.’ Now Deber is the word used in Exodus 9:3 ff. of the murrain which attacked the cattle. Resheph, the word rendered fiery lightnings, is also used of burning fever in Deuteronomy 32:24; Habakkuk 3:5; in the latter passage in parallelism with Deber. It seems possible, therefore, that this verse originally referred to the fifth plague, the murrain on the cattle. The LXX, Syr., Jer., Targ. however support the Massoretic Text.

Psalms 78:49-51

49–51. The culmination of the plagues in the death of the firstborn.

Psalms 78:50

50. He made a way to his anger] Lit., he levelled a path for his anger, i.e. gave it free course. but gave their life over to the pestilence] This is the natural rendering of the words in this context. The rendering of R.V. marg., gave their beasts over to the murrain, is that of the Ancient Versions. But a reference to the murrain is out of place here, where the Psalmist is clearly describing the culmination of the plagues in the destruction of the firstborn. He emphasises the fact that after minor plagues had failed to touch Pharaoh’s conscience, God finally attacked the very lives of the Egyptians.

Psalms 78:51

51. the chief of their strength] The beginning, or, firstlings of strength, a term applied to firstborn sons in Genesis 49:3; Deuteronomy 21:17. So Psalms 105:36. in the tabernacles of Ham] R.V. tents. Ham was the ancestor of Mizraim, i.e. Egypt, Genesis 10:6. Cp. Psalms 105:23; Psalms 105:27; Psalms 106:22.

Psalms 78:52-55

52–55. God’s guidance of Israel through the wilderness into Canaan. Cp. Exodus 15:13-17. The circumstances of the Journey have been already recounted in Psalms 78:13 ff.

Psalms 78:53

53. feared not] In contrast to their enemies, who were seized with panic (Exodus 14:25), Israel had no cause for fear (Exodus 14:13). Not of course that they never gave way to fear (Exodus 14:10). overwhelmed] The same word as that rendered covered in Exodus 15:10.

Psalms 78:54

54. The border of his sanctuary may mean the land of Canaan, as that in which He purposed to place His temple, and this mountain may denote Mount Zion. But it is preferable to render to his holy border, the land separate from all other lauds, to be consecrated by His Presence, and known henceforth as the Holy Land: and in the next line, to the mountain land, which &c. This is the sense in Exodus 15:17, which evidently was in the poet’s mind. Cp. Deuteronomy 3:25; Isaiah 11:9.

Psalms 78:55

55. And he drove out the nations before them, And allotted them for the portion of their inheritance: i.e. distributed the land of the Canaanites among the Israelites by lot. Cp. Joshua 23:4; Psalms 105:11.

Psalms 78:56-58

56–58. The unfaithfulness of Israel in Canaan during the period of the Judges.

Psalms 78:57

57. unfaithfully] Or, as R.V., treacherously. Cp. Hosea 5:7; Hosea 6:7. like a deceitful bow] Which misses the mark and disappoints its owner. Cp. Hosea 7:16.

Psalms 78:58

58. They provoked Jehovah, the “jealous God” Who can tolerate no rival (Exodus 20:5), by their adoption of Canaanite idolatries. Cp. Deuteronomy 32:16; Deuteronomy 32:21.

Psalms 78:59-64

59–64. Once more therefore God punished them for their sins, abandoning them to their enemies and even suffering the Ark to be captured.

Psalms 78:60

60. placed] Lit. caused to dwell. The use of this word here and in Joshua 18:1 (A.V. set up) was probably suggested by its frequent use with reference to the dwelling of God among His people. Cp. Jeremiah 7:12. On the position and history of Shiloh see note on 1 Samuel 1:3.

Psalms 78:61

61. his strength … his glory] The Ark, the symbol and seat of His majesty (1 Samuel 4:21 f.; Psalms 132:8), was suffered to fall into the hands of the Philistines (1 Samuel 4:11 ff.). the enemy’s hand] The adversary’s hand. (R.V.)

Psalms 78:62

62. See 1 Samuel 4:2; 1 Samuel 4:10; 1 Samuel 4:17.

Psalms 78:63

63. Fire devoured their young men; And their maidens had no marriage song. (R.V.) The fire of war (Numbers 21:28) consumed the young men, so that the maidens remained unmarried.

Psalms 78:64

64. and their widows &c.] This line recurs word for word in Job 27:15. In the universal distress the customary rites of mourning were not performed, even for a husband (2 Samuel 11:26-27).

Psalms 78:65-66

65–66. At length Jehovah took pity on His people, and delivered them from their adversaries.

Psalms 78:66

66. And he smote &c.] Render with R.V., And he smote his adversaries backward, a general allusion to the victories over the Philistines and other enemies of Israel under Samuel, Saul, and David. The A.V. follows Jewish authorities in seeing a reference to 1 Samuel 5:6 ff.

Psalms 78:67-69

67–69. The choice of Zion.

Psalms 78:68

68. which he loved] Cp. Psalms 87:2; Psalms 47:4.

Psalms 78:69

69. like high palaces] Rather, like the heights of heaven, which along with the earth are emblems of grandeur and stability.

Psalms 78:70-72

70–72. The choice of David as king.

Psalms 78:71

71. From following the ewes with their young ones he brought him, To be shepherd of Jacob his people &c. This natural metaphor for the ruler’s care of his people was especially appropriate in the case of David, who was taken from being the shepherd of Jesse’s flock to be the shepherd of Jehovah’s flock. Cp. 2 Samuel 5:2.

Psalms 78:72

72. the integrity of his heart] Cp. 1 Kings 9:4; Psalms 7:8; Psalms 101:2; and the use of the cognate adjective in Psalms 15:2; Psalms 18:23. the skilfulness] The regal faculty of discernment which Solomon desired (1 Kings 3:9), and with which he was so richly endowed (1 Kings 4:29).