A Prayer For Relief From Oppressors
March 3, 2021
Commentary
In the opening of this psalm,the psalmist asks for God to remember His people and His commitment to them as a result of the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. The questions (v. 1) connect God’s failure to judge against His people. The temple referred to is likely the destruction of the first temple by the Babylonians in 586 BC. This psalm also tells us how to pray when calamity strikes. Just like we are so prone to do the psalmist asks why?
- Why have you abandoned your own people? (v.1) “Thine enemies roar” (v.4)
- Why have you abandoned your own possessions? (v. 2) “They break down the carved work” (vv. 5-6)
- Why have you abandoned your own place? (v.3) “They cast fire into Thy sanctuary” (v. 7)
Satan’s master plan is to destroy the temple of the living God (v. 8). Since the Christian’s body is the temple of the Holy Spirit he delights is defiling it and destroying it. The big problem was ignorance of the Scriptures (v. 9). The psalmist was perplexed by the seeming delay of God (vv. 10-11). He begs God to defend His honor (v. 10).
Application
When I start praising God, no matter what the present circumstances are, it means that I have already begun to rise above them. How I am doing in this area depends on my daily fellowship with Him.
Psalms 74:1–12 (NET)
1 Why, O God, have you permanently rejected us? Why does your anger burn against the sheep of your pasture?
2 Remember your people whom you acquired in ancient times, whom you rescued so they could be your very own nation, as well as Mount Zion, where you dwell.
3 Hurry to the permanent ruins, and to all the damage the enemy has done to the temple.
4 Your enemies roar in the middle of your sanctuary; they set up their battle flags.
5 They invade like lumberjacks swinging their axes in a thick forest.
6 And now they are tearing down all its engravings with axes and crowbars.
7 They set your sanctuary on fire; they desecrate your dwelling place by knocking it to the ground.
8 They say to themselves, “We will oppress all of them.” They burn down all the places in the land where people worship God.
9 We do not see any signs of God’s presence; there are no longer any prophets, and we have no one to tell us how long this will last.
10 How long, O God, will the adversary hurl insults? Will the enemy blaspheme your name forever?
11 Why do you remain inactive? Intervene and destroy him.
12 But God has been my king from ancient times, performing acts of deliverance on the earth.
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