Ps 78, Heartfelt responses to life and God

Psalm 78:1–4 (ESV) — 1 Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2 I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
3 things that we have heard and known,
that our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and the wonders that he has done.


• Does anyone else have a different rendering for "parable" and "dark sayings?"
• This is synonymous parallelism which means one line says the same think as the other. Although line 2 of verse 3 does add the idea of "old" or "long ago." What is the meaning?
• Parable is masal in Hebrew and means saying or proverb mostly
• Dark sayings is hidah in Hebrew and means riddle or ambiguous saying
• What is the Asaph's points?
• Even the difficult things are passed on
• We might not understand it, but we don't completely ignore it
• APPLICATION: our life will have many difficult times that we might not understand


Psalm 78:5–8 (ESV) — 5 He established a testimony in Jacob
and appointed a law in Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
6 that the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
7 so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget the works of God,
but keep his commandments;
8 and that they should not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.


• What is the import of the passage?
• We need to remind the next generation
• We need to warn the next generation
• How do we apply this, because quite frankly, sometimes our children don't want to hear this message?
• Who is the negative example that is used? The Exodus generation
• What was the problem with the Exodus generation?
• They never learned to trust that God cared
• They only feared God's power


Psalm 78:9–16 (ESV) — 9 The Ephraimites, armed with the bow,
turned back on the day of battle.
10 They did not keep God’s covenant,
but refused to walk according to his law.
11 They forgot his works
and the wonders that he had shown them.
12 In the sight of their fathers he performed wonders
in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.
13 He divided the sea and let them pass through it,
and made the waters stand like a heap.
14 In the daytime he led them with a cloud,
and all the night with a fiery light.
15 He split rocks in the wilderness
and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.
16 He made streams come out of the rock
and caused waters to flow down like rivers.


• We have no idea when the situation with the Ephraimites happened. Who are the Ephraimites?
• They are a tribe of Israel, one of Joseph's son, and one of the larger tribes
• They are also are one of the larger tribes
• Jeroboam is the first king of the Northern Kingdom and comes from Ephraim, and may be the reason the NK is referred to as Ephraim
• What might have been Ephraim's sin, beside their turning back in the day of battle?
• They substituted other forms of worship
• They even said that the calves were images or reminders of the God who delivered them from Egypt -- but God calls it the "sin of Jeroboam son of Nebat"
• In other words, other religions who appear to have a "one God" worship are not an acceptable substitute for the worship of God
• There are not many ways to God
• The examples are 4 specific miracles
• The passing through the Red Sea
• The Pillar of Fire by nigh and cloud by day
• The splitting of rock for water (first time)
• The gushing of water from rock (second time)
• The latter two examples are examples where Israel was not willing to wait upon God


Psalm 78:21–31 (ESV) — 21 Therefore, when the Lord heard, he was full of wrath;
a fire was kindled against Jacob;
his anger rose against Israel,
22 because they did not believe in God
and did not trust his saving power.
23 Yet he commanded the skies above
and opened the doors of heaven,
24 and he rained down on them manna to eat
and gave them the grain of heaven.
25 Man ate of the bread of the angels;
he sent them food in abundance.
26 He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens,
and by his power he led out the south wind;
27 he rained meat on them like dust,
winged birds like the sand of the seas;
28 he let them fall in the midst of their camp,
all around their dwellings.
29 And they ate and were well filled,
for he gave them what they craved.
30 But before they had satisfied their craving,
while the food was still in their mouths,
31 the anger of God rose against them,
and he killed the strongest of them
and laid low the young men of Israel.


• What is the reason given for God's anger?
• His people did not believe in God
• His people did not trust his saving power
• It is hard to believe that people did not acknowledge the existence of God or God's incredible power. If so, where were they over the last year. So belief in God and trust in God is not acknowledgement of God's existence or power but something much more. What is it?
• I always come back to this passage to explain God's reaction:
Mark 4:35–41 (ESV) — 35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
• Jesus asks them where there faith was, yet they woke him and sought his assistance …?
• But they questioned his care?
• The other three gospels do not record this person's scream of help but other things
• I think this is the heart if trust
• Yes, God is powerful and can do whatever he wants. But will he do anything for my situation? And does he care for me to do anything for my situation? And finally, if I believe he really cares for me, can I then believe that his response (or seeming non-response) is the best thing?


Psalm 78:32–39 (ESV) — 32 In spite of all this, they still sinned;
despite his wonders, they did not believe.
33 So he made their days vanish like a breath,
and their years in terror.
34 When he killed them, they sought him;
they repented and sought God earnestly.
35 They remembered that God was their rock,
the Most High God their redeemer.
36 But they flattered him with their mouths;
they lied to him with their tongues.
37 Their heart was not steadfast toward him;
they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he, being compassionate,
atoned for their iniquity
and did not destroy them;
he restrained his anger often
and did not stir up all his wrath.
39 He remembered that they were but flesh,
a wind that passes and comes not again.


• What is one reason for why God does bring suffering (not the only reasoning)?
• To bring us back to him
• There are three responses when God is trying to bring us back to him. What are they?
• Ignore him, but then the pressure can increase
• Placate God by pretending to come back to him
• Truly, in a heartfelt repentance, come back to God


Psalm 78:67–72 (ESV) — 67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
70 He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
71 from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance.
72 With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand.


• Why does he choose Judah over Joseph's tribe of Ephraim?
• Joseph was a great man. He was a godly example after he learned his lesson
• David was a man after God own's heart
• God is looking for a heart response of trust and faith
• APPLICATION: What does it take to develop that same response in our own life?