Psalm 44:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: You have sold your people for a trifle, demanding no high price for them.

NIV: You sold your people for a pittance, gaining nothing from their sale.

NASB: You sell Your people cheaply, And have not profited by their sale.

CSB: You sell your people for nothing; you make no profit from selling them.

NLT: You sold your precious people for a pittance, making nothing on the sale.

KJV: Thou sellest thy people for nought, and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.

NKJV: You sell Your people for next to nothing, And are not enriched by selling them.

The psalmist continues mourning Israel's recent humiliating defeat (Psalm 44:9–11). Here, he accuses God of handing over His people for almost no price, at all. The suggestion is that God placed little value on His people. Of course, this is an expression of the writer's anguish, and not a fair assessment of the Lord's perspective. Other passages record fallible people bringing frustrated accusations against God (Habakkuk 1:2–4; Psalm 73:2–3). Those same passages return to a faithful, trusting approach to the Lord.

Hardship is not a sign of God's hatred—it can sometimes be an outworking of His love. At times, God provides discipline, just as a loving father must discipline his children when they do wrong (Hebrews 12:3–11). Judges 2:13–14 records God's punitive discipline of His people when they committed idolatry. This passage says, "They abandoned the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. So the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel…And he sold them into the hand of their surrounding enemies, so that they could no longer withstand their enemies."

The psalmist's lament grows progressively worse as he describes what happened to Israel (Psalm 44:13–16). The people were disgraced, abandoned, defeated, plundered, slaughtered, scattered, and sold. Part of the writer's angst is his view that Israel has done nothing to deserve their current suffering (Psalm 44:17–22). The reference to people being "sold" might connect to Psalm 60 and Amos 1:6, referring to an attack on Israel when the armies were occupied with other battles.

Psalm 44:9–16 marks a drastic change in tone. The previous section contained praise for God's miraculous intervention on Israel's behalf. The psalmist made clear his intent to serve and praise the Lord. Here, however, the writer's words overflow with complaining and questioning. Suffering an especially humiliating defeat leads the people to ask, "why?" Has God abandoned them, or is there another explanation? This resembles other passages expressing natural human anguish when God doesn't act as we'd expect (Psalm 73:2–3; Habakkuk 1:2–4).

Israel passed down stories of God's miraculous power and the victories the Lord granted. However, this psalm comes after the nation has suffered some humiliating defeat. The psalmist struggles to understand why, as he sees no evidence of national sin in Israel to justify punishment. The writer expresses raw emotion, frustrated and anguished, yet prays for rescue out of faith in God's lovingkindness.

This psalm seems to follow a major defeat in battle. No explicit context is given, though the psalmist claims it was not God's punishment for national idolatry. Some commentators see connection to a conflict with Edom, who surprised Israel when the nation was engaged in other battles (Psalm 60; 85; Amos 1:6; 2 Samuel 8:13) as a possible explanation. This is another example of biblical writers expressing raw human emotions as they struggle to understand God's will. Psalms 69 and 73 include related themes. Habakkuk chapter 1 expresses similar ideas.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.