#DailyDevotion When You’re Not Sure Whether You Are Under Wrath Or Discipline
Psalm 79 O God, the heathen have invaded Your inheritance, and defiled Your holy temple, and laid Jerusalem in ruins. 2They have given the dead bodies of Your servants as food to the birds of the sky, and the flesh of Your loved ones to the beasts of the earth. 3They have shed their blood like water around Jerusalem, and nobody buried them. 4Our neighbors insult us; those around us mock and scoff at us.
Most likely written after the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. It’s not a pretty scene. The heathen have invaded God’s inheritance, i.e. Israel, Judah, Jerusalem and the Temple. They have laid it waste. The inhabitants are food for the birds. The people whom the LORD loved were devoured by the wild beast. The survivors were being mocked by their heathen neighbors.
How could the LORD let this happen? Is it not what He promised them? The LORD made a covenant with them at Sinai. He renewed that covenant several times with His people after they had been disobedient to the Torah. He told them if they went after other gods then all their blessings would turn to curses. Judgment begins with the house of God.
Jesus has some harsh judgments for His Church in the first few chapters of Revelation. He has warnings and blessings. We would do well to heed those warnings, repent where necessary and trust His promises.
5How long, LORD? Will You be angry forever? Will Your zeal go on burning like fire?
There seems to be some acknowledgment of their sins here. What is happening to the survivors seems to last forever. They wonder if the LORD will be angry forever at them or will zeal for His holy law keep burning at them.
It does seem like forever when everything is going wrong around us. It is not always our fault that bad things keep happening to us. Nevertheless, we probably should take a look at our life and see if there are any areas we need to repent of. Sometimes, things are quite obvious. Other times, maybe it isn’t so obvious. Of course the worst times are when bad things are happening to us simply because the LORD is disciplining us like sons and He has laid a cross upon us. All we can do in those times is trust all the more in the mercy and kindness of our God.
6Pour out Your fury on the nations who don’t know You and on the kingdoms that haven’t called on Your name. 7They have devoured Jacob and made his home a deserted ruin.
While judgment begins with the house of God it does spread out to the nations eventually. Those whose evil the LORD used to punish His people will have their day in court as well. The psalmist calls upon the LORD to exact His punishment on them as well. They arrogantly touched the apple of His eye and brought them to ruin. For His own name sake, the psalmist calls upon the LORD to punish them.
We should not fear what the nations do to us, Christ’s holy Church. It is the apple of God’s eye. God is merely purifying us to enter His kingdom through their machinations. While the LORD Jesus judges His Church and purifies it, He will all the more bring judgment to the nations who persecuted His Bride in this life. Swift destruction will come upon them all.
Merciful God and Father, do not be angry with us forever because of our sins, but for the sake of Jesus Christ, Your Son, comfort us in all trials and tribulations, give us hope for the future and do not carry us away like the nations. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
As I am going thru those trials and tribulations because of Gods calling I lost all the strength to continue though I found this as an encouragement but fail to understand where to start
On our knees in prayer with God’s Word. Pick up the Psalms and pray them. Pray the LORD’s Prayer. Gather together with fellow saints and pray the Psalms and the LORD’s Prayer.