Psalm
Psalm 79
1 O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps.
2 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.
3 Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them.
4 We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us.
5 How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name.
7 For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place.
8 O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low.
9 Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name’s sake.
10 Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy servants which is shed.
11 Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die;
12 And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, O Lord.
13 So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.
Outline
The Fury of God
Psalm 79
By Pastor Clinton Macomber
The Fury of God against His Own
His place of worship is vandalized, Psalm 79:1
His servants are martyred prolifically, Psalm 79:2-3
His servants are scorned by neighbors, Psalm 79:4
His servants cannot see an end to it, Psalm 79:5
The Fury of God against the Oppressors
God's Fury is for the heathen, Psalm 79:6
God's Fury is for those who plunder His servants, Psalm 79:7
God's Fury is to humble those targeted, Psalm 79:8
God's Fury is to protect His honor, Psalm 79:9
The Fury of God is to Spare the Oppressed
God's Fury revenges innocent bloodshed, Psalm 79:10
God's Fury spares the doomed from death, Psalm 79:11
God's Fury is manifold against oppressors, Psalm 79:12
God's Fury brings eternal praise and glory, Psalm 79:13
Sermon
The Fury of God
Psalm 79
by Pastor Clinton Macomber
There is a great deal of misunderstanding about God and His fury. Some would want us to think that God is only a loving God and He would never get angry, much less become wrathful. Others seem hung up on God's wrath, and speak of it all the time. The Scriptures describe God very much with emotions. He gets sad, He laughs, He gets impatient, He is patient, He is kind, He is gentle, He is rough, He is full of fury. These all describe a normal emotions in a healthy and balanced individual. When we get stuck on any one emotion, our souls are damaged and those about us suffer as well.
Anger is not always bad. It is important to get angry at things that are not right, and to use the emotion to bring about the change that is necessary to make things right. What is wrong is when we stay angry or when we are so angry we loose control of ourselves, and do things that are wrong and shameful.
To learn more about God, we have this Psalm that tells us about the anger of God. His fury is for good. It brings about a change, both in our own lives and in the lives of those who are evil.
The Fury of God against His Own
Yes, just as a parent has frustrations with children, so God has frustrations with His children. There are times He gets angry and lets His children “have it.” So what happens when God is angry with His own?
His place of worship is vandalized
Psalm 79:1 O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps.
God lets His place of worship get vandalized. He lets it get ruined. Right now, some of the most vile people on earth have possession of the Jewish Temple site. Israel is so afraid of exerting their right to their own property, they have allowed the Moslems to continue having their way on it. The Moslems refuse to accept that the Jews ever existed in history and their Koran says that they are the children of Abraham, and it was Ishmael that was the seed of the promise. They claim they have been the only ones who have ever had rights to Jerusalem, and they insist it has to be the capitol of the Palestinian state. They have systematically done all they can for years to remove any traces that might be used to prove an Israel existence on the mount. They just finished using massive bulldozers and large earthmoving equipment to remove large amounts of dirt and pavement from one part of the site. Jewish archaeologists were horrified at what they found when they followed the dump trucks leaving the Temple mount. There are all kinds of ancient artifacts that have been shamelessly scooped up and pulverized. To add injury to insult, there are large rock cutting saws on the mount that are being used to slice up the stones to make pavement stones. Any hope of identifying where these great stones came from, or any of the artifacts has been lost.
This verse is very much a prophecy of what has happened since Christ ascended up into heaven. The Temple is being vandalized every day over the last 2000 years. God allows this to go on, because the Jews have not turned to Him in repentance. The same thing happens to us, when we will not repent and obey God. He takes our place of worship, and lets the wicked trample it.
His servants are martyred prolifically
Psalm 79:2 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. 3 Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them .
There is a complete disregard for the sacred gift of life among the heathen. Buddhists, Moslems, Hindus, Arabs, Orientals, all view life as a light thing. They live recklessly, and they kill without conscience. They are characterized by always carrying around a high powered riffle, and shooting a person for “honor.”
Christianity is the one difference to the world. God's people see life as a gift from God and they cherish life. Human life is created after the image of God. It is to be treated with dignity and honor, unless a person has been clearly proven to have violated God's Law of life and liberty. Only then may the government put to death a human life, in an orderly fashion.
As a Christian nation, we cannot reproduce what we have in this country in any other country. Those in Afganistan and Iraq must decide on their own that they will not tolerate heathen practices any longer, but instead will worship and follow the Lord Jesus. Only then, can there be freedom and safety in their countries. Only after national repentance can there be peace in the Middle East. Our meddling in their lives and giving them all kinds of gifts does not make them a better country. Instead it makes them a lawless country. Under the cruel dictatorships that existed in Iraq, Christians were protected. Under our influence, Christians are slaughtered daily, because Islamic law declares that every follower must kill Jews and Christians.
The coming world government will be characterized by the horrible tortures of those that become Christians. The day is coming when it will be against the world law to be a Christian. We live in one of the last havens of freedom, and safety, and this is being massively eroded every day, even by our so-called Christian president and his administration.
Right now there are Christians languishing in prison for daring to obey the law, secure permits to hold a Bible Study and warn homosexuals that their lifestyle is condemned by God. Are the riotous homosexuals in prison? Are the lawbreaking abusers in prison? No, the police arrested the Christians who were abiding by the laws, and had carefully made sure they were staying within those laws. I step back and say, How is is freedom to have to purchase it with money and fill out endless forms in order to do what is a God-given right? That fact alone proves we are no longer in a free state. Communistic Socialism has become the standard, instead of the dreaded option.
His servants are scorned by neighbors
Psalm 79:4 We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us.
God's Word again is the only source of instruction that teaches us to respect others. As a result, they often learn to personally understand the hurt that comes from being the target of character assassination.
Why does God allow this? It is so that we will learn that such speech and attitudes have no place in God's Kingdom. As we rule and reign with Christ, it will be our duty to stamp out all such abuse of others.
It also is important that we learn the power of words. What we say has a real impact on others. When we speak lies and remain ignorant of the truth, we harm others, and cause a great deal of suffering. As such, the Child of God learns to guard his tongue and carefully monitor his speech.
This treatment causes the child of God to withdraw from the world, and realize they are different, and need to march to God's drum and not the ever changing drum of the world.
His servants cannot see an end to it
Psalm 79:5 How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire?
During the testing of our faith, it would be cheating to know the time when the test would be over. The test is to determine the extent of our absolute trust in God. How mature is it? Is it a lasting trust that can withstand the dark days and nights?
There is a calm assurance that comes from knowing that the circumstances that pressure us are not blamed on the people causing them, but are ordained of God to serve a divine and eternal purpose.
Leila Ada was a young Jewish lady who found that Christ Jesus is the Messiah after being frustrated with the Jewish Mishnah and other commentaries. She finally got a copy of the New Testament and began to read it as well as the Old Testament for herself. Her purpose was so that she could convince Christians of their dangerous and false religion. She did this while her dad was taking her on a world tour, with a special part of it to be in Palestine. With all the leisure that travel a century ago afforded, she had a great deal of time to compare Scripture with Scripture, and that secretly. To her utter amazement, she found that there was irrefutable proof that Jesus was indeed the Christ. All her extensive Jewish learning had been wrong about Him.
As she became stronger in her conviction, she also became more aware of the consequences of confessing her faith to her father and those she knew. On the trip she became deadly ill once they got to Jerusalem, and once she was strong enough to travel again, the rest of the trip was canceled to get her home. At home she continued to recover, and sought for strength to face the upcoming trials. At last she presented her father with a long letter describing her faith in Jesus Christ. She spent the night in prayer and sleeplessness, and at breakfast came to the table, hoping he would agree, but knowing he would be horrified. He very angrily forbid her to have contact with him for the next week. She was to be shut in her room and not have contact with others, in hopes she would come to her senses by then.
At the end of the week, she was allowed to approach her father, but she had to confess, she had only grown in her devotion to the Lord Jesus. He said, that she would remain in isolation until her uncle could come fetch her and take her to be corrected. This took several months. Once he sent a carriage for her, she was whisked away and after a long day of travel, met him and was firmly interviewed, before letting her settle down after the long ride. After hours of intensive scrutiny, he gave up in despair, concluding she was a hard case, but forbidding that she make mention of her faith to anyone while she remained in his house. Being a home of high society, the days were filled with parties, and social obligations, until she could not bear the shame of the events any longer. At that point she was isolated from the family and treated harshly. Her extensive badgering by Rabbis took their toll. Her health completely broke, until she was banished to everlasting destruction, and all Jews forbidden to have contact with her.
She finally managed to get a carriage home, where her father was horrified to hear of how his tender daughter had been treated, and decided to reject the ban put upon his own daughter. He accepted her back to his home and carefully tried to nurse her back to health. Although she lived just long enough to see her dad get saved, she died at a very young age.
But what was it that enabled her to survive as long as she did? She knew her constitution could not take the abuse the Jews were dishing out. How did she maintain a Christ-like composure through all the badgering? It was the knowledge that those sinning against her were doing it ignorantly, and that it was God that determined her fate, not man. He would give her the strength to face whatever would come her way. Often in those days she had to endure the verbal abuse and at times slaps from her bed, having no strength to appear in the library. Yet her faith remained strong and her love for those about her and her relatives remained true. She never knew if she would survive another day, but simply knowing that God was in control, let her relax and remain faithful throughout the ordeal.
The Fury of God against the Oppressors
God's Fury is for the heathen
Psalm 79:6 Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name.
God's anger is designed to be used against the heathen, but it must be used to bring His own people to righteousness first. After the controlled use of his anger is used with His own people, then at last, his overwhelming fury is turned against the wicked in this world. It is to bring an end to governments that refuse to bow and pay homage to God.
In the meanwhile, thank God for His fury and its effectual working in our own lives to bring us into Christ-likeness. Anyone who has suffered at the hands and tongue of another knows the importance of being the kind of person that does not add to the suffering of others, but instead relieves it, and any suffering that is caused is done to purge away evil, not promote it.
God's Fury is for those who plunder His servants
Psalm 79:7 For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place.
There is a great evil in having your things taken, and your dwellings destroyed. The result is the feeling of absolute isolation and vulnerability. You can no longer feel safe, anywhere.
It is interesting that in all the talk about how women are abused in the Middle-east, there are areas where the women are actually very protected and given much more dignity and respect than we could ever imagine.
For example, women usually have their own dwellings that are separate from the men. We see this among the Bible women. Sarah had her own separate tent from Abraham. Leah and Rachel had separate tents. Even the harlot Rahab of Jericho had her own private dwelling on the wall of the city. When the officials came to her to demand she turn over the spies, they knew they could not come into her abode without her implicit permission. This gave her a chance to hide the Israeli spies on the roof under the flax. Entering any woman's abode without an invitation to do so was a high crime. Not even a husband could enter the tent of his wife without her invitation. And usually, he was expected to never enter. If he wanted to see her, he would invite her to his place.
In England, the police can search your house or your person at any time. In America, we sought to put limits on this by making it a part of our Federal Constitution, that no officer could search a home without a warrant and just cause to do so. Our government has been chipping away at this rule, and has seen it completely discarded in areas where the government declares they are at war. We see this ignored under the attempts to end illegal drug use, and we now have it ignored to go after anyone that government arbitrarily considers a terrorist.
God offers protection to people, and the things that they own are considered to be private property. Governments consider the citizens and properties to be for government use. Heathens consider anything they see that they want to be theirs for the taking. Only under God can property be protected.
God's Fury is to humble those targeted
Psalm 79:8 O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low.
God's fury puts humans in their place very quickly. There is nothing that can stand before God and advise Him. He is above all, and being the creator of all, all things are subservient to Him.
Humility is a noble quality, because it keeps us from doing things that are not right. Once our attitude is right, we are pliable in God's hands, and He can do many great things with us. He is also able to forgive us from our past sins and shower mercy upon us. Stiffness is a trait that God finds very deplorable and it brings His fury against us.
God's Fury is to protect His honor
Psalm 79:9 Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake.
God's anger is to protect His honor and glory. Do you remember what happened when Jesus visited the temple? He went and threw out the business men there and said His house was not a place of business. Many a person had suffered from the extortion that came from buying sacrifices and supplies at the temple. The priests had a system of kickbacks and favored vendors, and bringing a “non-acceptable” sacrifice would be rejected. In order to sacrifice, you had to buy the animal that the priest you got would take.
God's anger is designed to stop such abuses. Because He gets angry at such things, they are stopped in their tracks. Those who are abused are delivered to protect the name and reputation of God.
The Fury of God is to Spare the Oppressed
God's Fury revenges innocent bloodshed
Psalm 79:10 Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy servants which is shed.
God's anger makes a newsworthy event, by publicly and harshly dealing with the heathen who think they can get away with harming others. Under God's kingdom, no one will get away with harm, because God examines the hearts and knows all things Nothing can be hid from Him.
God's Fury spares the doomed from death
Psalm 79:11 Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die;
God's fury is to spare the falsely accused and martyr. It moves God to fury to see someone falsely accused of things that are not crimes, or that they did not commit. The wicked judges and leaders are severely dealt with, so that such activity never happens in His kingdom again.
God's Fury is manifold against oppressors
Psalm 79:12 And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, O Lord.
God's fury is such that it does not simply bring justice, but that justice is turned to restitution for the crimes committed against the innocent. Those that speak lies against the truth, need to repay more than just the lies they spoke, but repay enough to undo the manifold damage caused and to serve as a permanent reminder to never do such things again.
God's Fury brings eternal praise and glory
Psalm 79:13 So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.
God's fury is designed so that God's precious people will be able to praise Him eternally, and so that each succeeding generation will know of the power and love of God. His wrath is not small, nor is it in vain. It serves a purpose both among His own, and especially among those that hate God.
Topic Study
Quote
Quotable
How long, O Lord? (r.v.)
Psalm 79:5
To us, also, as to this long-suffering Jew, God's dealings seem sometimes interminable. We do not understand why the cloud hangs over us so long, why the pressure of trouble lasts year after year. We cry, “How long, O Lord?” in gusts of impatience; but take care not to hurry God unduly, lest thou force Him to forego doing his best work in thy life.
This parable helped me; may it help you to be silent, still, and long-suffering. A bar of iron, worth £I, when wrought into horseshoes, is worth £2; if made into needles, it is worth £70; if into pen-knife blades, it is worth £650; if into springs for watches, it is worth £50,000. What a drilling the poor bar must undergo to be worth this; but the more it is manipulated, the more it is hammered and passed through the fire, and beaten, and pounded, and polished, the greater its value.
So with the Jews. No other nation has passed through such awful trial and discipline as they have; but no other nation was capable of yielding such wealth of service to mankind, nor affording such untold service in the highest regions.
So with ourselves. Those that suffer most are capable of yielding most; and it is through pain that God is getting the most out of us for his glory and the blessing of others. It will be all right some day. We shall see it and be satisfied. Yes, great Father, we would like to be watch-springs. Take no heed of our cry if sometimes we forget ourselves and say, How long?
“Then haste Thee, Lord! Come down,
Take thy great power and reign!
But frame Thee first a perfect crown
Of spirits freed from stain.”
Meyer, F. B. Our Daily Homily . Pleasant Places Press, 2004; 2004. Vol. 3, Page 79.
Devotions
Monday, Psalm 79:1-3 and Ecclesiastes 9:1-3
Solomon points out that evil comes to the good and the bad alike. It is important that as Christians we remember that our sufferings are not unique only to us. There is suffering among all types of people. The blood of the wicked is shed just as much as the blood of the righteous. The problem is that this equity of disaster among all people should not exist. Good, righteous people should not have there blood shed and their beings and possessions taken captive. It is also true that the abuse of power should not exist over any person. It is for this reason, that this earth must have the Kingdom of God established on earth. Only under God's direct leadership will such abuse of power be stopped. It is our duty to pray for this end, and to offer to the throne of God the examples where abuse needs to be curbed by Him.
Tuesday, Psalm 79:4-5 and Ecclesiastes 9:4-6
The contrast between the two passages brings out an important point. Even though we may suffer persecution for the sake of doing what is right, it is still far better than being removed from this life and loosing the ability to earn rewards in Heaven. When it comes time for the Lord to take us home, then we will be willing and ready to go, but in the meanwhile we have a job to do, and it is to occupy the ways of righteousness till the Lord come.
Wednesday, Psalm 79:6-7 and Ecclesiastes 9:7-9
We have a responsibility to honor our obligations and to enjoy the life that God has placed before us. In the course of these obligations we learn to cry out to God for things to change so that others with similar responsibilities will be free from the problems that plaque us. These two passages harmonize completely. In the meanwhile, we are to enjoy the life He gives, keep clean, and anointed, and make good use of our time, and make sure we are honoring the commitments that God grants to us.
Thursday, Psalm 79:8-9 and Ecclesiastes 9:10-12
As we follow the Lord we learn that the values of this earth have little to do with the values of God. As such we grow in spiritual maturity and turn from such worldliness to serve a high and nobler calling in life. The race is not for the swift, nor the battle for the strong. God's help is our glory, without it, we would be nothing, and would never see any victory at all.
Friday, Psalm 79:10-11 and Ecclesiastes 9:13-15
Today at times we are the instruments of God, and yet our testimony is soon forgotten. We do not leave a lasting impression because we are feeble. What the earth needs is for all to see the glory of God and to feel His high power. God is unforgettable. When He does something, there is a lasting memory. We may come and go, but He alone remains the constant throughout history. Praying that the heathen may see God and feel the heat of His undoubted fury, is a very important element to controlling evil.
Saturday, Psalm 79:12-13 and Ecclesiastes 9:16-18
There needs to be an eternal change in things so that quite wisdom is heard and respected over the shouts of some fool. Sinners need to be eradicated because just one sinner does such extensive damage, it cannot be remedied. We as people cannot exact proper justice and restitution, so we must rely on God to handle all vengeance. When He takes over and He is magnified, we have things to praise Him for eternally.
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