Who shall draw you from your sorrow? Who shall you call upon in your time of need? When you are not strong enough, who shall be your strength? Asaph knows. And at Psalm 82, he sings of Him. 1 God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods. 2 How long will you judge unjustly, And show partiality to the wicked? Selah 3 Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy. 4 Deliver the poor and needy; Free them from the hand of the wicked. 5 They do not know, nor do they understand; They walk about in darkness; All the foundations of the earth […]

Beloved, salvation is at hand, if you will listen. Asaph, of Psalm 81, considers God’s offer. 1 Sing aloud to God our strength; Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob. 2 Raise a song and strike the timbrel, The pleasant harp with the lute. 8 “Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you! O Israel, if you will listen to Me! 9 There shall be no foreign god among you; Nor shall you worship any foreign god. 10 I am the Lord your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt; Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. But sometimes, we’re not too ready […]

Three times in Psalm 80, Asaph cries out to the LORD God 3,7,19 Restore us, O God; Cause Your face to shine, And we shall be saved! Before the first occurrence, Asaph calls out to his God. The only One able to help. 1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth! 2 Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh, Stir up Your strength, And come and save us! Before the second occurrence, Asaph declares the LORD God’s anger against the sins of His people, and the fallout thereof. 4 O Lord God of hosts, How long will You be angry […]

Is God’s glory all wrapped up in our salvation, or is our salvation all wrapped up in God’s glory? Asaph helps us find the answer in Psalm 79. He begins with a declaration of the desperate state of the Church. 1 O God, the nations have come into Your inheritance; Your holy temple they have defiled; They have laid Jerusalem in heaps. 2 The dead bodies of Your servants They have given as food for the birds of the heavens, The flesh of Your saints to the beasts of the earth. 3 Their blood they have shed like water all around Jerusalem, And there was no one to […]

Why do we set a day aside, once a week to come before the LORD God, to sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, to pray, and to hear the word of God expounded around the work of Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit? Because we need a constant reminder that God is good. Psalm 78 reminds us. 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 […]

Dear Reader, as the LORD has been in your past, so shall He be in your future. Some days, does it seem otherwise? Listen to Asaph, at first, cry out. 7 Will the Lord cast off forever? And will He be favorable no more? 8 Has His mercy ceased forever? Has His promise failed forevermore? 9 Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has He in anger shut up His tender mercies? Having sung of his sorrow, Asaph now looks behind him, to see, in fact, that the LORD has been there. 10 And I said, “This is my anguish; But I will remember the years of the right hand […]

Are you overrun? Are you oppressed? Are you abused? Has the world taken control of your life? Are your sins many? Is the salvation cheap? Has the devil got a hold of you and refuses to let go. Psalm 76 is for you, dear reader. At Verses 1-3, we note the reality and location of the Judge who shall avenge you. 1 In Judah God is known; His name is great in Israel. 2 In Salem also is His tabernacle, And His dwelling place in Zion. 3 There He broke the arrows of the bow, The shield and sword of battle. At Verses 4-6, we note His power […]

Beloved, God is in charge. This is the song Asaph sings at Psalm 75. He begins rightly, by giving thanks. 1 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near. Then he captures the declarations of God. They are grace to the faithful and warning to boastful. 2 “When I choose the proper time, I will judge uprightly. 3 The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved; I set up its pillars firmly. Selah 4 “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’ And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn. 5 Do not […]

How often, the world mocks God. This, Asaph contemplates at Psalm 74. 1 O God, why have You cast us off forever? Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture? 2 Remember Your congregation, which You have purchased of old, The tribe of Your inheritance, which You have redeemed— This Mount Zion where You have dwelt. 3 Lift up Your feet to the perpetual desolations. The enemy has damaged everything in the sanctuary. 4 Your enemies roar in the midst of Your meeting place; They set up their banners for signs. 5 They seem like men who lift up Axes among the thick trees. 6 And now they break down […]

Dear Reader, What do you do when others, who are godless, excel beyond your capabilities? Asaph examines the question at Psalm 73. 1 Truly God is good to Israel, To such as are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled; My steps had nearly slipped. 3 For I was envious of the boastful, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked. On the one hand, 12 Behold, these are the ungodly, Who are always at ease; They increase in riches. But on the other hand, 19 Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment! They are utterly consumed with terrors. In this, Asaph has understood that […]