Confusion and Conflict. Psalm 44:1-26

Transcription

1 1 Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell Confusion and Conflict Psalm 44:1-26

2 2 Text: Psalm 44:1-26, Confusion and Conflict Commentary by Clyde M. Miller 1. We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers 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 fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers 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 victories for Jacob. 5. Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. 6. I do not 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. Selah 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.

3 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. My disgrace is before me 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 happened to us, though we had not forgotten you or 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 and 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. 23. Awake, O 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? 25. We are brought down to the dust; our bodies cling to the ground. 26. Rise up and help us; redeem us because of your unfailing love. (NIV) Introduction: I. The psalmist is confused by the fact that the nation has been defeated in spite of her faithfulness to God.

4 4 A. Confusion was accompanied with conflict in regard to his understanding of God. 1. Had God forgotten them? B. He will let us know as the poem progresses that he still has faith in God, but he needs the assurance that the nation can trust God for the future. C. The psalm ends with a fervent prayer for resolution without any firm immediate answer. II. Psalm 44 is a communal lament. A. These are fewer in number than individual laments. 1. About fourteen psalms are generally so classified (12, 44, 60, 74, 79, 80, 83, 85, 90, 123, 125, 126, 129, and 137). B. These have to do with national concerns. III. For an explanation of the terms in the superscription, see the introduction to Psalms 42-43). IV. The occasional shift from plural to singular pronouns may indicate the author s special role in leadership, or the singular is more likely used in a collective sense. Commentary: Recitation of Historic Deliverances Psalm 44:1-3, We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago. With

5 5 your hand you drove out the nations and planted our fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers flourish. 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. (NIV) Note: Verses 1-3 place emphasis on God s, not man s actions. Psalm 44:1, We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago. (NIV) I. Traditional values, whether oral or recorded, are of tremendous value in understanding and authenticating the present and in granting hope for the future. A. The poem, therefore, begins with an introduction to what God has done for His people in days long ago. Psalm 44:2, With your hand you drove out the nations and planted our fathers; you crushed the peoples and made our fathers flourish. (NIV) I. Verse 2 elaborates the above by citing the outstanding example of past divine deliverance from the mighty Egyptian Empire (Ex. 13:14-16; Deut. 6:20-25; Josh. 4:6-7). A. Exodus 13:14-16, "In days to come, when your son asks you, 'What does this mean?' say to him, 'With a mighty hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. When Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed every firstborn in Egypt, both man and animal. This is why I sacrifice to the LORD the first male offspring of every womb and redeem each of my firstborn sons.' And it will be like a sign on your hand and a symbol

6 6 on your forehead that the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his mighty hand." (NIV) B. Deuteronomy 6:20-25, In the future, when your son asks you, "What is the meaning of the stipulations, decrees and laws the LORD our God has commanded you?" tell him: "We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Before our eyes the LORD sent miraculous signs and wonders great and terrible upon Egypt and Pharaoh and his whole household. But he brought us out from there to bring us in and give us the land that he promised on oath to our forefathers. The LORD commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear the LORD our God, so that we might always prosper and be kept alive, as is the case today. And if we are careful to obey all this law before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us, that will be our righteousness." (NIV) C. Joshua 4:6, 7, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever." (NIV) II. Psalm 78 provides a lengthy discussion of times when God granted victory to the faithful nation throughout her history, and of national defeat when the nation was apostate. A. Psalm 78:1-72, my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from of old- what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation

7 7 the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands. They would not be like their forefathers a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him. The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle; they did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by his law. They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them. He did miracles in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan. He divided the sea and led them through; he made the water stand firm like a wall. He guided them with the cloud by day and with light from the fire all night. He split the rocks in the desert and gave them water as abundant as the seas; he brought streams out of a rocky crag and made water flow down like rivers. But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the desert against the Most High. They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved. They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the desert? When he struck the rock, water gushed out, and streams flowed abundantly. But can he also give us food? Can he supply meat for his people?" When the LORD heard them, he was very angry; his fire broke out against Jacob, and his wrath rose against Israel, for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance. Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens; he rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven. Men ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat. He let loose the east wind from the heavens and led forth the south wind by his

8 8 power. He rained meat down on them like dust, flying birds like sand on the seashore. He made them come down inside their camp, all around their tents. They ate till they had more than enough, for he had given them what they craved. But before they turned from the food they craved, even while it was still in their mouths, God's anger rose against them; he put to death the sturdiest among them, cutting down the young men of Israel. In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe. So he ended their days in futility and their years in terror. Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again. They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer. But then they would flatter him with their mouths, lying to him with their tongues; their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant. Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath. He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return. How often they rebelled against him in the desert and grieved him in the wasteland! Again and again they put God to the test; they vexed the Holy One of Israel. They did not remember his power the day he redeemed them from the oppressor, the day he displayed his miraculous signs in Egypt, his wonders in the region of Zoan. He turned their rivers to blood; they could not drink from their streams. He sent swarms of flies that devoured them, and frogs that devastated them. He gave their crops to the grasshopper, their produce to the locust. He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore-figs with sleet. He gave over their cattle to the hail, their livestock to bolts of lightning. He unleashed against them his hot anger, his wrath, indignation and hostility a band of destroying angels. He prepared a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death but gave them over to the plague. He

9 9 struck down all the firstborn of Egypt, the firstfruits of manhood in the tents of Ham. But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert. He guided them safely, so they were unafraid; but the sea engulfed their enemies. Thus he brought them to the border of his holy land, to the hill country his right hand had taken. He drove out nations before them and allotted their lands to them as an inheritance; he settled the tribes of Israel in their homes. But they put God to the test and rebelled against the Most High; they did not keep his statutes. Like their fathers they were disloyal and faithless, as unreliable as a faulty bow. They angered him with their high places; they aroused his jealousy with their idols. When God heard them, he was very angry; he rejected Israel completely. He abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent he had set up among men. He sent the ark of his might into captivity, his splendor into the hands of the enemy. He gave his people over to the sword; he was very angry with his inheritance. Fire consumed their young men, and their maidens had no wedding songs; their priests were put to the sword, and their widows could not weep. Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, as a man wakes from the stupor of wine. He beat back his enemies; he put them to everlasting shame. Then he rejected the tents of Joseph, he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim; but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loved. He built his sanctuary like the heights, like the earth that he established forever. He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them. (NIV) III. These variances were set forth in the promises and threats of Deuteronomy 28.

10 Deuteronomy 28:1-68, If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven. The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you. The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you. The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them. However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you: You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country. Your basket and your kneading trough

11 11 will be cursed. The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out. The LORD will send on you curses, confusion and rebuke in everything you put your hand to, until you are destroyed and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in forsaking him. The LORD will plague you with diseases until he has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess. The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew, which will plague you until you perish. The sky over your head will be bronze, the ground beneath you iron. The LORD will turn the rain of your country into dust and powder; it will come down from the skies until you are destroyed. The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of horror to all the kingdoms on earth. Your carcasses will be food for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them away. The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, festering sores and the itch, from which you cannot be cured. The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness and confusion of mind. At midday you will grope about like a blind man in the dark. You will be unsuccessful in everything you do; day after day you will be oppressed and robbed, with no one to rescue you. You will be pledged to be married to a woman, but another will take her and ravish her. You will build a house, but you will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard, but you will not even begin to enjoy its fruit. Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will eat none of it. Your donkey will be forcibly taken from you and will not be returned. Your sheep will be given to your enemies, and no one will rescue them. Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, and you will wear out your eyes watching for them day after day, powerless to lift a hand. A people that you do not know will eat what your land and labor produce, and you will

12 12 have nothing but cruel oppression all your days. The sights you see will drive you mad. The LORD will afflict your knees and legs with painful boils that cannot be cured, spreading from the soles of your feet to the top of your head. The LORD will drive you and the king you set over you to a nation unknown to you or your fathers. There you will worship other gods, gods of wood and stone. You will become a thing of horror and an object of scorn and ridicule to all the nations where the LORD will drive you. You will sow much seed in the field but you will harvest little, because locusts will devour it. You will plant vineyards and cultivate them but you will not drink the wine or gather the grapes, because worms will eat them. You will have olive trees throughout your country but you will not use the oil, because the olives will drop off. You will have sons and daughters but you will not keep them, because they will go into captivity. Swarms of locusts will take over all your trees and the crops of your land. The alien who lives among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink lower and lower. He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, but you will be the tail. All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the LORD your God and observe the commands and decrees he gave you. They will be a sign and a wonder to you and your descendants forever. Because you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully and gladly in the time of prosperity, therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you. He will put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you. The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand, a fierce-looking nation without respect for the old or pity for the young. They will devour the young of your livestock and the crops of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you no grain, new wine or oil, nor any calves of your herds or lambs of your flocks until you are ruined. They will lay siege to all the cities throughout your

13 13 land until the high fortified walls in which you trust fall down. They will besiege all the cities throughout the land the LORD your God is giving you. Because of the suffering that your enemy will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the LORD your God has given you. Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children, and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of his children that he is eating. It will be all he has left because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all your cities. The most gentle and sensitive woman among you so sensitive and gentle that she would not venture to touch the ground with the sole of her foot will begrudge the husband she loves and her own son or daughter the afterbirth from her womb and the children she bears. For she intends to eat them secretly during the siege and in the distress that your enemy will inflict on you in your cities. If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name the LORD your God- the LORD will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering illnesses. He will bring upon you all the diseases of Egypt that you dreaded, and they will cling to you. The LORD will also bring on you every kind of sickness and disaster not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed. You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left but few in number, because you did not obey the LORD your God. Just as it pleased the LORD to make you prosper and increase in number, so it will please him to ruin and destroy you. You will be uprooted from the land you are entering to possess. Then the LORD will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place for the sole of your foot. There the LORD will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despair-

14 14 ing heart. You will live in constant suspense, filled with dread both night and day, never sure of your life. In the morning you will say, "If only it were evening!" and in the evening, "If only it were morning!"-because of the terror that will fill your hearts and the sights that your eyes will see. The LORD will send you back in ships to Egypt on a journey I said you should never make again. There you will offer yourselves for sale to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you. (NIV) Psalm 44:3, 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. (NIV) I. Care is exercised to give God s intervention credit for past victories. A. Arm and right hand are here metaphors of divine strength. B. Israel was often no match for her enemies; only God s might prevailed. C. Light is here a metaphor of divine guidance.

15 15 Present Trust in God Psalm 44:4-8, You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever. Selah (NIV) Note: Verses 4-8 record the natural reaction to the above contemplation of God s intervention at the dawn of Israel s historical beginnings. Psalm 44:4, You are my King and my God, who decrees victories for Jacob. (NIV) I. Shifts from singular to plural pronouns in this paragraph probably indicate that the singulars are used in a collective sense. A. The nation is still under consideration. B. My king acknowledges the author s willingness to submit to God s authority and to trust his benevolence. C. God is often designated as Israel s king (1 Sam. 12:12,19; Ps. 5:2; 47:6,7; 68:24; 74:12; 84:3; 95:3; 145:1) Samuel 12:12, 19, "But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, 'No, we want a king to rule over us'- even though the LORD your God was your king. The people all said to Samuel, "Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we

16 16 have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king." (NIV) 2. Psalm 5:2, Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. (NIV) 3. Psalm 47:6, 7, Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. (NIV) 4. Psalm 68:24, Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King into the sanctuary. (NIV) 5. Psalm 74:12, But you, O God, are my king from of old; you bring salvation upon the earth. (NIV) 6. Psalm 84:3, Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God. (NIV) 7. Psalm 95:3, For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods (NIV) 8. Psalm 145:1, I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. (NIV) D. Jacob here refers to the nation Israel. Psalm 44:5, Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. (NIV)

17 17 I. Verse 5 is a synonymous couplet. A. Push back and trample are synonyms of the similar kind. B. Enemies and foes are exact synonyms. 1. Here they are poetic metaphors of victory. C. You and your name are also synonymous, for the word name often stands by metonymy for the person who wears the name. Psalm 44:6-7, I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. (NIV) Note: Most English versions write these two verses as separate sentences. The NIV chooses to indicate the close connection of thought by writing them as one sentence. This commentary follows the NIV. The passage, therefore, is structured in external antithetic parallelism. I. Verse 7 is in sharp contrast to verse 6. A. Verse 6 is stated in the negative, and verse 7 in the positive. B. This declaration of the center of his trust in God provides the key to understanding the rest of the psalm. Psalm 44:8, In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever. Selah (NIV) I. Boast and praise are here synonyms, and all day long and forever are synonymous expressions.

18 18 A. The two latter expressions suggest a period of long duration. The Elements of Present Rejection Psalm 44:9-12, But now you have rejected and humbled us; you no longer go out with our armies. You made us retreat before the enemy, and our adversaries have plundered us. You gave us up to be devoured like sheep and have scattered us among the nations. You sold your people for a pittance, gaining nothing from their sale. (NIV) Psalm 44:9, But now you have rejected and humbled us; you no longer go out with our armies. (NIV) I. Verse 9 is a progressive couplet. A. But now contrasts the happy past with the present distress. 1. Humbled is better rendered brought us to shame/dishonor, as in most versions. 2. It is a negative connotation, paired in thought with rejected. B. The second line defines the nature of the rejection. Psalm 44:10, You made us retreat before the enemy, and our adversaries have plundered us. (NIV) I. Verse 10 elaborates the thought of verse 9. A. They were made to retreat and to suffer the plundering of their goods.

19 19 Psalm 44:11, You gave us up to be devoured like sheep and have scattered us among the nations. (NIV) I. Devoured like sheep paints a metaphorical picture of powerful marauding nations that have devoured Israel, the flock of God (Ps. 77:20; 78:52; 80:1; 95:7). A. Psalm 77:20, You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (NIV) B. Psalm 78:52, But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert. (NIV) C. Psalm 80:1, Hear us, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock; you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth (NIV) D. Psalm 95:7, for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if you hear his voice, (NIV) II. Scattered us among the nations could refer to the Babylonian captivity, but not necessarily so. III. Solomon, in his dedication of the temple, envisioned the possibility of Israel being taken captive, whether far away or near (cf. I Kings 8:46). A. 1 Kings 8:46, "When they sin against you for there is no one who does not sin and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to his own land, far away or near; (NIV) Psalm 44:12, You sold your people for a pittance, gaining nothing from their sale. (NIV)

20 20 I. Pittance means a small price, as in some versions. II. Gaining nothing uses irony to suggest that this was a bad bargain. The Disgrace of Defeat Psalm 44:13-16, You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, the scorn and derision of those around us. You have made us a byword among the nations; the peoples shake their heads at us. My disgrace is before me all day long, and my face is covered with shame at the taunts of those who reproach and revile me, because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge. (NIV) Psalm 44:13-14, You have made us a reproach to our neighbors, the scorn and derision of those around us. You have made us a byword among the nations; the peoples shake their heads at us. (NIV) I. Four key words reveal the extent of disgrace heaped upon Israel consequent to her defeat: reproach, scorn, derision and byword. A. Shaking of the head was one way to try to humiliate another. II. Those around us along with neighbors may suggest nations in Canaan, the Phoenicians, Philistines, Ammonites, Edomites, etc., but not necessarily so. A. Heathen peoples would especially scoff at a defeated people that claimed protection and victory from the only true God. Psalm 44:15-16, My disgrace is before me all day long, and my face is covered with shame at the taunts of those who reproach

21 21 and revile me, because of the enemy, who is bent on revenge. (NIV) I. Disgrace and shame results from the taunts of those nations that reproach and revile Israel. A. Bent on revenge adds a new element to the former expressions describing the enemies. B. Perhaps these are nations previously defeated and put to shame at the hands of Israel. C. The Philistines would certainly fit that category. 1. David s intrigues serve as an example (1 Sam. 21). a. 1 Samuel 21:7-15, Now one of Saul's servants was there that day, detained before the LORD; he was Doeg the Edomite, Saul's head shepherd. David asked Ahimelech, "Don't you have a spear or a sword here? I haven't brought my sword or any other weapon, because the king's business was urgent." The priest replied, "The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, is here; it is wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you want it, take it; there is no sword here but that one." David said, "There is none like it; give it to me." That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath. But the servants of Achish said to him, "Isn't this David, the king of the land? Isn't he the one they sing about in their dances: "'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands'?" David took these words to heart and was very

22 22 much afraid of Achish king of Gath. So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting saliva run down his beard. Achish said to his servants, "Look at the man! He is insane! Why bring him to me? Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow here to carry on like this in front of me? Must this man come into my house?" (NIV) Affirmation of National Loyalty Psalm 44:17-22, All this happened to us, though we had not forgotten you or been false to your covenant. Our hearts had not turned back; our feet had not strayed from your path. But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals and covered us over with deep darkness. If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god, would not God have discovered it, since he knows the secrets of the heart? Yet for your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. (NIV) Note: This paragraph affirms the nation s integrity and covenant loyalty. Psalm 44:17, 18, All this happened to us, though we had not forgotten you or been false to your covenant. Our hearts had not turned back; our feet had not strayed from your path. (NIV) I. Protestations of innocence are common in psalms of lament and petition, whether individual or communal laments. A. The claim is that they had not forgotten/forsaken God or his covenant.

23 23 Psalm 44:19, But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals and covered us over with deep darkness. (NIV) I. Verse 19 provides a sharp contrast to verses A. The nation had been faithful, but it appears that God has been unfaithful to His covenant promises. B. Crushed us has a double significance in Psalm It indicates complete defeat and abject disgrace. 2. Since God had promised to grant victory to the faithful, He is the one charged with failure. C. A haunt for jackals suggests that they have been scattered like the jackals that often were separated by nature from civilized society. D. Deep darkness could be rendered the shadow of death, and is by most versions so translated here and in Psalm 23:4. 1. Psalm 23:4, Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. (NIV) Psalm 44:20-21, If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread out our hands to a foreign god, would not God have discovered it, since he knows the secrets of the heart? (NIV) I. Verses are structured in the form of a contrary to fact conditional sentence, verse 20 providing the protasis and verse 21 the conclusion.

24 24 A. God s uniqueness as the only true God is acknowledged, and secret sins have been avoided. 1. These verses acknowledge the justice of God as per Deuteronomy 28. Psalm 44:22, Yet for your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. (NIV) I. For your sake here means to honor and glorify. A. They felt that their fidelity had not been honored. 1. The fear of death is upon their hearts and minds. 2. Like helpless sheep, they are being led to be slaughtered. B. Yet, the nation recognizes that God may be honored in a future deliverance. An Impassioned Prayer for Victory Psalm 44:23-26, Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever. Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression? We are brought down to the dust; our bodies cling to the ground. Rise up and help us; redeem us because of your unfailing love. (NIV) Psalm 44:23, Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever. (NIV) I. Awake, O Lord! could be misinterpreted.

25 25 A. God who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep (Ps. 121:4). 1. Rouse yourself explains the meaning here. 2. God is being inactive toward their plight, so the writer thinks. a. This seems to be a mark of rejection. Psalm 44:24, Why do you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression? (NIV) I. Verse 24 elaborates verse 22 in the form of a plaintiff question. A. Hide your face and forget are synonymous expressions, the former stated as a metaphor of the latter. B. Misery and oppression reiterate the inner reaction to the outer circumstance. Psalm 44:25, We are brought down to the dust; our bodies cling to the ground. (NIV) I. Dust and ground form a word pair. A. The expressions indicate their fear of death. Psalm 44:26, Rise up and help us; redeem us because of your unfailing love. (NIV) I. Verse 26 closes the psalm on a high spiritual note. A. God s unfailing love is the superlative motive by which the psalm closes.

26 26 B. The nation s integrity is not the final means of hope for deliverance. Application: 1. This fact has been acknowledged before in the psalm (3,5-8). a. Psalm 44:3, 5-8, 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. 5 Through you we push back our enemies; through your name we trample our foes. I do not trust in my bow, my sword does not bring me victory; but you give us victory over our enemies, you put our adversaries to shame. In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever. Selah (NIV) I. How limited is human vision in comparison to God s infinite wisdom! A. In times of distress, it is easy to allow our spiritual eyes to be blurred from reality. B. Waiting on God is a great virtue that we all need to cultivate.

27 27 Questions Psalm 44:1-26 (Questions based on NIV text.) 1. What confused the psalmist? 2. Does faithfulness to God guarantee health, wealth, happiness and victory? Explain your answer. 3. Psalm 44 is a of which there are about. These have to do with. There are fewer of these than there are of. 4. We have heard with our, O ; our have us what you did in their, in. 5. With your you out the and our ; you the and made our.

28 It was not by their that they the, nor did their bring them ; it was your, your, and the of your, for you them. 7., whether or, are of in and the and in for the. 8. How does Psalm 78 relate to Psalm 44:1-3? 9. How does Deuteronomy 28 relate to Psalm 78 and Psalm 44:1-3? _ 10. Who was Israel s king? What does the Bible say on this subject? 11. How, why can verse 5 be described as a synonymous couplet? Explain.

29 In what respects are verses 6 and 7 in sharp contrast? 13. You are my and my, who for. Through you we back our ; through your we our. I do not in my, my does not bring me ; but you give us over our, you put our to. In we make our, and we will your. 14. In verse 11 why is devoured like sheep and scattered us among the nations appropriate expressions?

30 But now you have and us; you no go out with our. You made us before the, and our have us. You gave us up to be like and have us the nations. You your for a, gaining from their. 16. Why did God permit these calamities to befall Israel? 17. How severe was the extent of disgrace heaped upon Israel consequent to her defeat? Give details. 18. Why had and had not this defeat come on Israel? 19. Does the Lord sleep? See Psalm 121:4. Explain.

31 Do not. Why do you your and our and. We are brought down to the ; our to the. 21. Why did God allow this to happen? 22. Has there ever been a time in your life when you could utter this prayer recorded in verses 23-25? Explain. 23. To what do dust and ground refer? How do you feel about death? 24. and us; us because of your.

32 What applications to our lives can be made of the teaching sin Psalm 44?