FEBRUARY 22, 2025 Psalm 80:8-9 You have brought a vine out of Egypt; You have cast out the nations, and planted it. You prepared room for it, and caused it to take deep root, and it filled the land. There are many instances in Scripture where Israel is compared to a vine. Isaiah devotes many passages to this allegory, […]
FEBRUARY 21, 2025 Psalm 80:3 Restore us, O God; cause Your face to shine, and we shall be saved! As the psalm continues, the theme of exile and prayers for deliverance is recurring. In fact, these same words in the verse above are invoked three different times in this psalm (Psalm 80:3, 7 & 19). […]
FEBRUARY 20, 2025 Psalm 80:1-2 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth! Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, stir up Your strength, and come and save us! When Jacob blessed Joseph from his deathbed, he referred to God as “The Shepherd, the Rock of Israel” (Genesis 49:24). As we […]
FEBRUARY 18, 2025 Psalm 79:5 How long, Lord? Will You be angry forever? Will Your jealousy burn like fire? Anyone who has been married for any length of time knows the value of peace in a relationship. As far as I’m concerned, having contention with one’s spouse — especially when it leads to angry words and flared […]
FEBRUARY 17, 2025 Psalm 79:1 O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance; Your holy temple they have defiled. They have laid Jerusalem in heaps. This psalm is, in reality, a dirge about the destruction of Jerusalem and the Sanctuary, God’s House. Being such, it is not something one would typically look to for inspiration or […]
FEBRUARY 16, 2025 Psalm 78:70-71 He also chose David His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the ewes that had young He brought him, to shepherd Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. In the previous devotion we addressed the fact that David was regarded as God’s servant as opposed to a hireling. […]
FEBRUARY 15, 2025 Psalm 78:70-71 He also chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds; from following the ewes that had young He brought him, to shepherd Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance. Just as God’s choice of Zion is eternal, so too is His selection of David and his descendants as those […]
FEBRUARY 14, 2025 Psalm 78:69 He built His sanctuary like the heights, like the earth which He has established forever. In the Hebrew scriptures, the very first letter is beit which pictographically is a house. Thus it is understood that, from the initial point in Creation, God’s desire was to have a house in which to […]
FEBRUARY 13, 2025 Psalm 78:60-61 He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent He had placed among men, and delivered His strength into captivity, and His glory into the enemy’s hand. In the days of Eli the High Priest, the people of Israel were steadily moving away from God and toward doing what was right […]
FEBRUARY 12, 2025 Psalm 78:38-39 Many a time He turned His anger away, and did not stir up all His wrath; for He remembered that they were but flesh, a breath that passes away and does not come again. Who can understand man’s frailties more than the One who created mankind? As it is written, “He remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:14). […]
FEBRUARY 11, 2025 Psalm 78:36-38 They flattered Him with their mouth, and they lied to Him with their tongue; for their heart was not steadfast with Him, nor were they faithful in His covenant. But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and did not destroy them. In moments of inspiration as well as desperation, it is our nature as humans […]
FEBRUARY 9, 2025 Psalm 78:32-33 In spite of this they still sinned, and did not believe in His wondrous works. Therefore their days He consumed in futility, and their years in fear. In the verses just prior to this, the psalmist recounted how God gave the people flesh to eat per their request. He orchestrated the winds […]
