Psalm 78 — A Psalm for Instruction
Introduction: Psalm 78 provided instruction for the children of Israel using an abbreviated history from the time Moses led them out of Egypt until the ark of God found rest in Zion when David was king. A contrast is made between the wonderful blessings from following God in truth; and the rebellion that will bring about the righteous wrath of the LORD. Asaph is named in an inscription at the beginning of this psalm, and he was a descendent of Levi through the line of Gershom, one of Levi’s three sons. King David made many appointments from the descendents of Levi for service before the LORD in Zion where he had the ark of God brought to a resting place before the temple was built.
NOTE: All Bible passages are from the King James 21st Century Bible.
A — King David Appointed Only Levites to Minister at the Tabernacle of the Lord
Numbers 4 “15 And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to move forward, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it; but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.”
1 Chronicles 6 “31 And these are they whom David set over the service of song in the house of the LORD after the ark came to rest. 32 And they ministered before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing, until Solomon had built the house of the LORD in Jerusalem; and then they served in their office according to their order. 39 And his brother Asaph, who stood at his right hand, even Asaph the son of Berachiah… the son of Jahath, the son of Gershom, the son of Levi.”
Comments: After Joshua brought the children of Israel into the Promised Land, he assembled the tribes of Israel and dedicated the tabernacle of God at Shiloh, but the ark of God did not remain there throughout the several centuries as judges ruled in the land. When David became king at Jerusalem, he had the ark of God set in a new tent in Zion, a sector of Jerusalem. Asaph was one of the descendents of Levi through the line of Gershom, and duties continued for those appointed by David after Solomon had the temple constructed in Jerusalem.
B — Hear This Instruction and Give It Careful Consideration
Psalm 78 “1 Give ear, O my people, to my law; incline your ears to the words of my mouth. 2 I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, 3 which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. 4 We will not hide them from their children, showing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD and His strength, and His wonderful works that He hath done. 5 For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded to our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; 6 that the generation to come might know them, even the children who should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children, 7 that they might set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments; 8 and so might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not steadfast with God.”
Comments: The psalmist stressed at the very beginning, the need for the reader to hear what he is saying as law, and to consider it carefully. Much guidance and blessings from the LORD had been passed down from previous generations and they needed to continue to be passed to each generation that followed. The LORD should be praised for his wonderful works, and that he had established a testimony in Jacob as he gave him the name Israel. The law was given to the children of Israel and it was to be followed by every successive generation; that the people might set their hope in God and not forget his works, but keep His commandments. By this, they would not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation that did not set their hearts to have a spirit steadfast with God.
C — The Children of Ephraim Forgot the Wonders the Lord Performed in the Wilderness
Psalm 78 “9 The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. 10 They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in His law; 11 they forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them. 12 Marvelous things did He in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan. 13 He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; and He made the waters to stand as a heap.”
Comments: Not long before Jacob died in Egypt, he gave a special blessing to Joseph’s younger son Ephraim, and said he would be greater than his older brother. About four hundred years after Jacob died, Moses led the people out of Egypt and they remained in the wilderness for forty years. Then the LORD appointed Joshua of the tribe of Ephraim to lead the people into the Promised Land. After the death of Joshua and the elders like him, changes began to take place among the tribes. So the behavior of the descendents of Ephraim was not unlike the general wayward actions of all of the tribes who belonged to Israel. They did not keep the covenant of the LORD or rely on his strength in the day of battle with the heathen people. They forgot the many wonders he had shown their ancestors in Egypt before he brought them out of captivity; and how he separated the Red sea so Israel passed through on dry ground, but Pharaoh’s pursuing army was destroyed as the waters closed over them.
D — They Tempted God in Their Heart by Asking That Their Lust Be Met
Psalm 78 “14 In the daytime also He led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire. 15 He cleaved the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths. 16 He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers. 17 And they sinned yet more against Him by provoking the Most High in the wilderness. 18 And they tempted God in their heart by asking for meat for their lust. 19 Yea, they spoke against God: they said, ‘Can God furnish a table in the wilderness? 20 Behold, He smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed. Can He give bread also? Can He provide flesh for His people?’”
Comments: The cloud which led them in the daytime and the pillar of fire that guided them by night were miraculous signs possible only from God. Having water gush forth from a rock in the wilderness in such an abundance as to supply for all the people and for their livestock was yet another miraculous provision from the LORD. They provoked the LORD by asking for meat to satisfy their lustful desire, sinfully requesting that the LORD respond to them as though he was to serve them!
E — The Wrath of the Lord Came Because They Did Not Trust in Him
Psalm 78 “21 Therefore the LORD heard this and was wroth; so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also rose up against Israel, 22 because they believed not in God and trusted not in His salvation, 23 though He had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven, 24 and had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven. 25 Man ate angels’ food; He sent them meat to the full… 29 So they ate and were well filled, for He gave them their own desire. 30 But they were not estranged from their lust; but while their meat was yet in their mouths, 31 the wrath of God came upon them and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.”
Comments: The LORD demonstrated that he is indeed able to supply anything at his will, but judgment was combined as he delivered in a manner they had not anticipated, what they had challenged him to give. They had not believed in his salvation even though the LORD had already provided manna from heaven: and this was uniquely described as food for angels, not like common food found on the earth. Many of them died with food still in their mouths, being slain by the LORD.
F — They Returned to the Lord but It Was Not from the Heart
Psalm 78 “32 For all this, they sinned still and believed not in His wondrous works. 33 Therefore their days did He consume in vanity, and their years in trouble. 34 When He slew them, then they sought Him; and they returned and inquired early after God. 35 And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God, their redeemer. 36 Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, and they lied unto Him with their tongues. 37 For their heart was not right with Him, neither were they steadfast in His covenant. 38 But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity and destroyed them not… 39 for He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passeth away and cometh not again.”
Comments: Each time they saw many among them die because of rebellion against the LORD, they turned to claim him as their rock and redeemer; but this was just flattery as they had not truly accepted the LORD in their hearts, and had not committed themselves to his covenant. But the LORD is full of compassion, and many times he forgave their iniquity and did not destroy them; for He knows the frailty of existing in the flesh, and how quickly a lifetime in the body will pass away.
G — They Tested God and Forgot His Wonders That Had Freed Them from Egypt
Psalm 78 “40 How oft did they provoke Him in the wilderness, and grieve Him in the desert! 41 Yea, they turned back and tested God, and limited the Holy One of Israel. 42 They remembered not His hand, nor the day when He delivered them from the enemy, 43 how He had wrought His signs in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Zoan… 51 and smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham. 52 But He made His own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock. 53 And He led them on safely, so that they feared not; but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.”
Comments: How often the children of Israel provoked the LORD during the forty years in the wilderness, almost as if they were totally unaware of the miracles he had done in Egypt in their behalf. Their rebellion in the wilderness limited the Holy One of Israel from providing blessings without the need for judgment. But the LORD made his “own people” go forth like sheep being guided by a protective shepherd.
H — Israel Tested God in the Land of His Sanctuary by Turning to High Places
Psalm 78 “54 And He brought them to the border of His sanctuary, even to this mountain, which His right hand had purchased. 55 He cast out the heathen also before them, and apportioned them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents. 56 Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God and kept not His testimonies, 57 but turned back and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers; they were turned aside like a deceitful bow. 58 For they provoked Him to anger with their high places, and moved Him to jealousy with their graven images… 60 so that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which He had placed among men, 61 and delivered His strength into captivity, and His glory into the enemy’s hand.”
Comments: The LORD brought the people to the border of what would become the holy city of Jerusalem, the future resting place for the ark of God. He gave them victory over the heathen and allowed them to set up territorial lines for their inheritance. However, again the people began to turn aside as the previous generation had done, and they even began to worship false gods. God was greatly displeased and he forsook the tabernacle that had traveled with Israel during the forty years in the wilderness. The LORD delivered the ark of the Covenant into captivity by the pagan Philistines.
I — The Lord Chose the Tribe of Judah and His Sanctuary in Mount Zion
Psalm 78 “65 Then the LORD awakened as one out of sleep, like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine. 66 And He smote His enemies in the hinder parts, and laid upon them a perpetual reproach. 67 Moreover He refused the tabernacle of Joseph and chose not the tribe of Ephraim, 68 but chose the tribe of Judah, the Mount Zion which He loved. 69 And He built His sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which He hath established for ever. 70 He also chose David His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds; 71 from following the ewes great with young He brought him to feed Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. 72 So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart, and guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.”
Comments: The LORD provided another landmark event in the history of Israel as he directed Samuel to anoint David as the second king in Israel. Ephraim no longer had any leadership distinction, and Saul of the tribe of Benjamin had been rejected; so Judah became the line that would lead to Christ, the everlasting King. David had weakness in the flesh as with all men, but he had a heart ever searching to serve the LORD. David represented the protective shepherd of the sheepfold, who became like a shepherd of the flock of God.
Reflections in Prayer
LORD, the miracles you performed in Egypt became more severe as Pharaoh refused to believe in the power behind them, but after the death of the first-born of the Egyptians, the children of Israel were finally permitted to leave. Soon after, Israel rebelled in the wilderness with complaints and demands, which aroused your wrath and brought judgment. This happened more than once and the children of Israel turned back to you, but not with a sincere heart. Because of your long-suffering and compassion, you did not always punish them as they deserved. LORD, your miracles in Egypt and those performed in the wilderness for forty years are very important to the history of Israel, but also to believers in all generations because over many centuries you have guided by your Holy Spirit the men who wrote so much Scripture before the coming of Christ Jesus. I thank you, my God and my King, that you have opened my heart to believe what has been passed down through your Word, and for the many times you have shown to me your patience and compassion. Strengthen me Lord for the remainder of my journey in this present life, that I may sincerely demonstrate my love and faith in you. Amen, and amen.
Published 11 January 2019