... in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Amen. Through the prayers of our
holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen. Glory
to You, our God, Glory to You.
O Heavenly King,
the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, You are everywhere and fill all things,
Treasury of blessings, and Giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us
from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy
Immortal, have mercy on us (three times).
A Song [or]
Psalm of Asaph.
Keep not silence, O God. Hold not Your peace. Be not still, O God: for, lo, Your enemies
make a tumult. Those who hate You have
lifted up the head. They have taken
crafty counsel against Your people, and advised against Your hidden ones. They have said, “Come, and let us cut them
off from [being] a nation: so that
the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.” They have taken advice together with one
consent. They are confederate against You.
The tabernacles of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
of Moab and the Hagarenes; Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; the Philistines with the
inhabitants of Tyre. Assur also is
joined with them. They have helped the
children of Lot. Consider.
Do to them as the Midianites: as Sisera, as
Jabin, at the brook of Kison: [who]
perished at Endor. They became dung for
the earth. Make their nobles like Oreb,
and like Zeeb: yes, all their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunna: who said, “Let
us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession.”[2]
O my God, make them like a wheel, as the
stubble before the wind. As the fire burns
a wood, as the flame sets the mountains on fire: so persecute them with Your
tempest. Make them afraid with Your
storm. Fill their faces with shame: so that
they may seek Your name, Lord. Let them be confounded and troubled forever. Yes, let them be put to shame, and perish. That [they]
may know that You, Whose name alone [is]
Jehovah, [are] the most high over
all the earth.
________
If you have been
blessed or helped by any of these meditations in Psalms, please repost or share
all of them.
[1]
Psalm 81: the failure of the people to worship Yahweh alone. Psalm 82: the failure of the leaders (gods)
to execute justice. Psalm 83: the
failure of the surrounding nations to be supportive.
Asaph details a lengthy list of the charges brought against
the surrounding nations. Their evil
behavior is not seen merely as an attack against Israel-Judah, but as an attack
upon, a war against God. “They are confederate against You.”
Asaph then lists all the nations under indictment. They are evidently lead by the descendants of
Lot. “They have helped
the children of Lot.”
Asaph, in his opening argument, draws on Israel’s history of
wars against God’s enemies (Judges 4; 6-8).
The principal motivation for their crime is, “Let us
take to ourselves the houses of God in possession.”
Finally, Asaph specifies the punishment he is seeking. Again we are tempted to see this in terms of blasphemous
human vengeance. In case we fail to be convinced
that this is impossible, Asaph makes the point very clear. “That [they] may know that You, Whose name alone [is] Jehovah, [are] the most high over
all the earth.” This is the purpose
behind all affliction: that people would turn to God and be saved.
[2] This
is more than a land grab. The purpose of
this war is to overthrow Yahweh worship.
Could such a motivation lie behind all human war, and murder: the open
defiance of God (James 4:1-4)?
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