Psalm 78 - The Contemplative Bible Meditation Series
Psalm 78 is more than a historical account; it is a spiritual reflection on the relationship between a loving God and His often forgetful, rebellious people. Composed by Asaph, the psalm invites us into a dialogue between memory and hope, warning and promise. It calls us to recall God’s past works and learn from the missteps of those who have come before us, so that our own hearts may be steadfast. For modern readers, this psalm serves as a reminder that while we may falter, God’s faithfulness endures forever.
Transcript
Psalm 78 is more than a historical account.
It is a spiritual reflection on the relationship between a loving God and His often forgetful,
Rebellious people.
Composed by A$AP,
The Psalm invites us into a dialogue between memory and hope,
Warning and promise.
It calls us to recall God's past works and learn from the missteps of those who have come before us so that our own hearts may be steadfast.
For modern readers,
This Psalm serves as a reminder that while we may falter,
God's faithfulness endures forever.
Let us enter into a meditative space,
Opening our hearts to the lessons and comfort that this sacred song offers.
Give ear,
O my people,
To my law.
Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable.
I will utter dark sayings of old,
Which we have heard and known and our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children,
Telling them to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers that they should make them known to their children,
That the generation to come might know them,
The children who would be born,
That they may arise and declare them to their children,
That they may set their hope in God and not forget the works of God but keep His commandments and may not be like their fathers,
A stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation that did not set its hearts aright and whose spirit was not faithful to God.
The children of Ephraim,
Being armed and carrying bows,
Turned back in the day of battle.
They did not keep the covenant of God.
They refused to walk in His law and forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them.
Marvellous things He did in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt,
In the field of Zon.
He divided the sea and caused them to pass through and He made the waters stand up like a heap.
In the daytime also He led them with a cloud and all the night with a light of fire.
He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink in abundance like the depths.
He also brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers.
But they sinned even more against Him by rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.
And they tested God in their heart by asking for the food of their fancy.
Yes,
They spoke against God.
They said,
Behold,
He struck the rock so that the waters gushed out and the streams overflowed.
Can He give bread also?
Can He provide meat for His people?
Therefore the Lord heard this and was furious.
So a fire was kindled against Jacob and anger also came up against Israel because they did not believe in God and did not trust in His salvation.
Yet He had commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven,
Had rained down manna on them to eat and given them of the bread of heaven.
Men ate angels' food.
He sent them food to the full.
He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens and by His power He brought in the south wind.
He also rained meat on them like the dust,
Feathered fowl like the sand of the seas,
And He let them fall in the midst of their camp all around their dwellings.
So they ate and were well filled for He gave them their own desire.
They were not deprived of their craving but while their food was still in their mouths,
The wrath of God came against them and slew the stoutest of them and struck down the choice men of Israel.
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.
When He slew them,
Then they sought Him and they returned and sought earnestly for God.
Then they remembered that God was their Rock and the Most High God their Redeemer.
Nevertheless,
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.
Yet,
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.
How often they provoked Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert.
Yes,
Again and again they tempted God and limited the Holy One of Israel.
They did not remember His power the day when He redeemed them from the enemy.
When He worked His signs in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Zohan,
Turned their rivers into blood and their streams that they could not drink.
He sent swarms of flies among them which devoured them and frogs which devoured them.
He also gave their crops to the caterpillar and their labor to the locust.
He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore trees with frost.
He also gave up their cattle to the hail and their flocks to fiery lightning.
He cast on them the fear of His anger,
Wrath,
Indignation and trouble by sending angels of destruction among them.
He made a path for His anger.
He did not spare their soul from death but gave their life over to the plague and destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt,
The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.
But He made His own people go forth like sheep and guided them in the wilderness like a flock and He led them on safely so that they did not fear.
But a sea overwhelmed their enemies and He brought them to His holy border,
This mountain which His right hand had acquired.
He also drove out the nations before them,
Allotted them an inheritance by survey and made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.
Yet they tested and provoked the Most High God and did not keep His testimonies but turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers.
They were turned aside like a deceitful bow for they provoked Him to anger with their high places and moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.
When God heard this,
He was furious and greatly abhorred Israel so that 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 hands.
He also gave His people over to the sword and was furious with His inheritance.
The fire consumed their young men and their maidens were not given in marriage.
Their priests fell by the sword and their widows made no lamentation.
Then the Lord awoke as from sleep like a mighty man who shouts because of wine and He beat back His enemies.
He put them to a perpetual reproach.
Moreover,
He rejected the tent of Joseph and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim but chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion which He loved and He built His sanctuary like the heights,
Like the earth which He has established forever.
He also chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds.
From following the eaves that had young He brought him to shepherd Jacob His people and Israel His inheritance.
So He shepherded them according to the integrity of His heart and guided them by the skillfulness of His hands.
Verses 1-4 The Call to Remember Give ear,
O my people,
To my law.
Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable.
I will utter dark sayings of old which we have heard and known and our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
The psalm begins with an invitation to listen deeply.
We are called to incline our ears to pay close attention to the wisdom handed down through generations.
The emphasis is on remembrance not just for our own sake but to ensure that the legacy of God's goodness and strength is passed on.
This reminds us that our spiritual heritage is a treasure meant to be shared.
In our fast-paced modern lives how often do we pause to truly listen?
How often do we consider the weight and beauty of the past and how it can illuminate our path today?
Let us be intentional about telling the stories of God's faithfulness both ancient and personal.
Take a moment to reflect on the ways God has been present in your life and consider how you can share these moments with others particularly with the next generation.
What spiritual insights have you inherited from your ancestors and how can you preserve this wisdom?
For He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel which He commanded our fathers that they should make them known to their children that the generation to come might know them the children who would be born that they may arise and declare them to their children that they may not set their hope in God and not forget the works of God but keep His commandments and may not be like their fathers a stubborn and rebellious generation a generation that did not set its hearts aright and whose spirit was not faithful to God.
These verses underscore the importance of passing down a legacy of faith.
God's law and testimony are gifts meant to sustain and guide each new generation so that hearts might be set aright.
Yet we are warned against stubbornness a condition of the spirit that blinds us to divine love and wisdom.
Reflect on the state of your own heart.
Is it open and teachable?
Or has it grown resistant to God's gentle promptings?
How can you cultivate a spirit that is faithful and hopeful not swayed by rebellion or forgetfulness?
Consider ways in which you can build a legacy of faith in your own family or community.
Perhaps it's through prayer,
Storytelling or simply living out God's love with authenticity.
Pray for a heart that remains tender one that continually seeks to be faithful and aligned with divine truth.
Verses 9-16 The children of Ephraim,
Being armed and carrying bows turned back in the day of battle.
They did not keep the covenant of God.
They refused to walk in His law and forgot His works and His wonders that He had shown them.
Marvellous things He did in the sight of their fathers in the land of Egypt,
In the field of Zohan.
He divided the sea and caused them to pass through and He made the water stand up like a heap.
In the daytime also He led them with a cloud and all the night with a light of fire.
He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink in abundance like the depths.
He also brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to run down like rivers.
These verses tell a tragic story.
Despite being well equipped for battle the children of Ephraim turned back.
Their physical readiness was undermined by a spiritual forgetfulness.
They did not remember God's miracles,
The wonders He performed to redeem and sustain them.
The image of God splitting rocks to provide rivers of water is a powerful testament to His provision even in barren places.
How often do we too forget God's past deliverance when faced with new trials.
Where in your life have you experienced divine provision only to doubt when the next wilderness season arrives.
Spend time recalling the ways God has provided for you especially in times of need or despair.
Gratitude is a powerful antidote to spiritual amnesia.
As you meditate bring to mind the rivers from rocks that God has given you and let these memories strengthen your faith for today's challenges.
Verses 17-31 But they sinned even more against Him by rebelling against the Most High in the wilderness.
And they tested God in their heart by asking for the food of their fancy.
Yes,
They spoke against God.
They said,
Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?
Behold,
He struck rocks so that the waters gushed out and the streams overflowed.
Can He give bread also?
Can He provide meat for His people?
Therefore the Lord heard this and was furious.
So a fire was kindled against Jacob and anger also came up against Israel because they did not believe in God and did not trust in His salvation.
Yet He had commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven,
Had rained down manna on them to eat and given them of the bread of heaven.
Men ate angels' food.
He sent them food to the full.
He caused an east wind to blow in the heavens and by His power He brought in the south wind.
He also rained meat on them like the dust,
Feathered fowl like the sand of the seas and He let them fall in the midst of their camp all around their dwellings.
So they ate and were well filled for He gave them their own desire.
They were not deprived of their craving but while their food was still in their mouths.
The wrath of God came against them and slew the stoutest of them and struck down the choice men of Israel.
In the wilderness,
Israel doubted God's ability to satisfy their needs even after witnessing His miracles.
Their hearts tested God desiring provisions on their own terms.
It's easy to resonate with their fears and frustrations.
When our needs go unmet,
When we find ourselves longing for comfort our trust in divine provision wavers.
Yet,
The lesson here is to move from doubt to surrender from testing to trusting.
Where do you find yourself questioning God's ability to care for you?
What unmet needs are causing you spiritual distress?
Surrender your desires to God's timing and wisdom.
Trust that He can indeed prepare a table in the wilderness even when circumstances seem barren.
In your prayers,
Instead of asking,
Can God?
Declare,
God will anchoring yourself in the confidence of His unfailing love.
In spite of this,
They still sinned and did not believe in His wondrous works.
Therefore,
There are days He consumed in futility and there are years in fear.
When He slew them,
Then they sought Him and they returned and sought earnestly for God.
Then they remembered that God was their Rock and the Most High God their Redeemer.
Nevertheless,
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.
Yes,
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.
These verses illustrate God's incredible compassion.
Even when Israel's repentance was insincere,
When their hearts remained wavered,
God remembered their frailty and showed mercy.
His understanding of our humanity,
Our tendency to falter,
Is a source of comfort.
Contemplate the ways you have experienced God's forgiveness and patience.
How has God shown you compassion when you least deserved it?
Embrace God's mercy today.
Accept His forgiveness not only in theory but in the deepest places of your heart.
Let His compassion inspire you to show mercy to yourself and others.
Rest in the truth that you are seen and understood,
Loved even in your imperfection.
And how they provoked Him in the wilderness and grieved Him in the desert.
Yes,
Again and again they tempted God and limited the Holy One of Israel.
They did not remember His power the day when He redeemed them from the enemy.
When He worked His signs in Egypt and His wonders in the field of Zoan,
Turned their rivers into blood and their streams that they could not drink.
He sent swarms of flies among them which devoured them and frogs which destroyed them.
He also gave their crops to the caterpillar and their labor to the locust.
He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamore trees with frost.
He also gave up their cattle to the hail and their flocks to fiery lightning.
He cast on them the fierceness of His anger,
Wrath,
Indignation and trouble by sending angels of destruction among them.
He made a path for His anger.
He did not spare their soul from death but gave their life over to the plague and destroyed all the firstborn in Egypt,
The first of their strength in the tents of Ham.
But He made His own people go forth like sheep and guided them in the wilderness like a flock and He led them on safely so that they did not fear.
But the sea overwhelmed their enemies and He brought them to His holy border,
This mountain which His right hand had acquired.
He also drove out the nations before them,
Allotted them an inheritance by survey and made the tribes of Israel dwell in their tents.
Yet,
They tested and provoked the Most High God and did not keep His testimonies but turned back and acted unfaithfully like their fathers.
They were turned aside like a deceitful bow for they provoked Him to anger with their high places and moved Him to jealousy with their carved images.
When God heard this,
He was furious and greatly abhorred Israel so that He forsook the turbinacles of Shiloh,
The tent He had placed among men and delivered His strength into captivity and His glory into the enemy's hands.
He also gave His people over to the sword and was furious with His inheritance.
The fire consumed their young men and their maidens were not given in marriage.
Their priests fell by the sword and their widows made no lamentation.
Then the Lord awoke as from sleep like a mighty man who shouts because of wine and He beat back His enemies.
He put them to a perpetual reproach.
Moreover,
He rejected the tent of Joseph and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim but chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion,
Which He loved and He built His sanctuary like the heights,
Like the earth which He has established forever.
He also chose David a servant and took him from the sheepfolds.
From following the eaves that had young He brought him to shepherd Jacob His people and Israel His inheritance.
So He shepherded them according to the integrity of His heart and guided them by the skillfulness of His hands.
The final section of Psalm 78 recounts the repeated disobedience of Israel and the incredible perseverance of God's love.
Despite the people's provocations,
Despite the way they grieved His spirit,
God continued to act on their behalf.
He led them with miracles,
He struck down their enemies and He shepherded them with tenderness.
The Psalm concludes with God's choice of David,
A humble shepherd,
To lead His people.
This is a story of a God who never gives up.
Even in the face of betrayal,
His love remains.
It's a reminder that God's faithfulness is not dependent on ours.
He chooses to love us,
To lead us,
To bring us back to Himself.
Reflect on the areas of your life where you've experienced God's relentless pursuit.
When have you felt His gentle guidance even when you were lost?
Meditate on the image of God as your shepherd.
Picture Him guiding you,
Calling you back with love and patience.
Trust that He is leading you to places of rest and abundance.
Like David,
You are chosen,
Called and loved.
Live with the confidence that you are under the care of a skillful,
Compassionate shepherd.
A prayer,
Faithful and loving God.
We come before you with humble hearts,
Grateful for your patience and mercy.
Thank you for the lessons of the past and the hope of your continued presence.
Help us to remember your mighty works,
To trust in your provision and to walk with steadfast hearts.
When we stray,
Draw us back with your gentle love.
When we doubt,
Remind us of your faithfulness.
We surrender our fears and desires to you,
Believing that you will always prepare a table for us in the wilderness.
Guide us,
Shepherd,
And keep us in your tender care.
Amen.
