Highlights
- Rejection of God vs 1-9; the Psalmist cried out;
- Vs 10, 18-enemies mocking God
- Vs12-17 majesty of God-the Psalmist’s perspective
Psalms 74:1-23 GNB
[1]Why have you abandoned us like this, O God? Will you be angry with your own people for ever?
[2]Remember your people, whom you chose for yourself long ago, whom you brought out of slavery to be your own tribe. Remember Mount Zion, where once you lived.
[3]Walk over these total ruins; our enemies have destroyed everything in the Temple.
[4]Your enemies have shouted in triumph in your Temple; they have placed their flags there as signs of victory.
[5]They looked like woodmen cutting down trees with their axes.
[6]They smashed all the wooden panels with their axes and sledgehammers.
[7]They wrecked your Temple and set it on fire; they desecrated the place where you are worshipped.
[8]They wanted to crush us completely; they burnt down every holy place in the land.
[9]All our sacred symbols are gone; there are no prophets left, and no one knows how long this will last.
[10]How long, O God, will our enemies laugh at you? Will they insult your name for ever?
[11]Why have you refused to help us? Why do you keep your hands behind you?
[12]But you have been our king from the beginning, O God; you have saved us many times.
[13]With your mighty strength you divided the sea and smashed the heads of the sea monsters;
[14]you crushed the heads of the monster Leviathan and fed his body to desert animals.
[15]You made springs and fountains flow; you dried up large rivers.
[16]You created the day and the night; you set the sun and the moon in their places;
[17]you set the limits of the earth; you made summer and winter.
[18]But remember, O Lord, that your enemies laugh at you, that they are godless and despise you.
[19]Don’t abandon your helpless people to their cruel enemies; don’t forget your persecuted people!
[20]Remember the covenant you made with us. There is violence in every dark corner of the land.
[21]Don’t let the oppressed be put to shame; let those poor and needy people praise you.
[22]Rouse yourself, God, and defend your cause! Remember that godless people laugh at you all day long.
[23]Don’t forget the angry shouts of your enemies, the continuous noise made by your foes.