Psalm 79:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: They have given the bodies of your servants to the birds of the heavens for food, the flesh of your faithful to the beasts of the earth.

NIV: They have left the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your own people for the animals of the wild.

NASB: They have given the dead bodies of Your servants to the birds of the sky as food, The flesh of Your godly ones to the animals of the earth.

CSB: They gave the corpses of your servants to the birds of the sky for food, the flesh of your faithful ones to the beasts of the earth.

NLT: They have left the bodies of your servants as food for the birds of heaven. The flesh of your godly ones has become food for the wild animals.

KJV: The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of the earth.

NKJV: 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.

Psalm 79:1–4 opens a song of mourning. This apparently refers to the Babylonian invasion of 586 BC. The defeat resulted in the destruction of Solomon's temple and the ruin of Jerusalem. The psalmist expresses grief about the defiled temple and the many Israelites who have been killed. Israel has been completely humiliated by their enemies.

In 586 BC, the Babylonian Empire broke the defenses of Jerusalem. The city was burned and Solomon's temple was destroyed. Death and misery were everywhere. Many Israelites were taken captive. The psalmist struggles to grasp what has happened. He begs God for rescue and forgiveness. The song pleads for God to enact vengeance for Israel on the pagan nations that have humiliated His chosen people.

This psalm grieves over Jerusalem's ruin and the temple's destruction at the hands of Babylon in 586 BC. Similar emotions were also expressed in Psalm 74. Other psalms associated with Asaph (Psalm 73; 74; 77) tend to move from angst into assurance. This one, however, only barely includes a sense of confidence in God's eventual rescue.

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.

Accessed 11/21/2024 9:08:07 AM