Psalms · psalm 78 of 150
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Psalm 78 is a historical poem by Asaph that traces Israel's history from the exodus to the choosing of David, to teach later generations to trust God and not to repeat their fathers' rebellion. It recounts the miracles in Egypt and the wilderness, the people's unbelief, God's patience and discipline, and his decision to choose Judah, Zion and David as shepherd of his people.
The title calls it a Maskil of Asaph, a teaching poem. With seventy-two verses it is the second longest psalm in the Psalter, after Psalm 119. It is in Book III and is a history lesson set to song. Its purpose is stated at the start: to pass on to the children what the fathers received, so that they do not forget God's works. It is one of the key texts of the Bible on teaching the faith to the next generation.
The psalm calls the people to hear a teaching in a parable, things of old that the fathers have told. They will not hide them from their children: they will tell the praises of the Lord and his wonders, so that each generation sets its hope in God and is not stubborn and rebellious like its fathers. The Ephraimites, armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle because they did not keep the covenant.
Verses 12 to 39 review the exodus and the wilderness. God did marvels in Egypt, divided the sea, led his people with a cloud and with fire and split rocks to give them water. But they sinned still more, tested God and demanded food. He sent manna and quail, but his anger rose while they kept complaining. When he struck some of them they sought him, but they flattered him with their mouths. Still, being compassionate, he atoned for their iniquity and remembered that they were flesh, a wind that passes.
Verses 40 to 64 recall the plagues, the exodus and the entry into the land, and a new cycle of rebellion with high places and idols. God forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, gave his glory into captivity and let the sword reach his people and their priests.
Verses 65 to 72 show the turn: the Lord awoke as from sleep, chose not Ephraim but Judah and Mount Zion, and chose David, whom he took from the sheepfolds, to shepherd Jacob with integrity of heart and with skillful hands.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
They will not hide from their children the praises of the Lord, his might and the wonders he has done. Faith is passed from one generation to the next by telling what God has done.
The purpose of the teaching is that the children set their hope in God, not forget his works and keep his commandments. Remembering is not nostalgia but a path to obedience.
Still, God was compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them, remembering that they were flesh, a wind that passes. Israel's history is a story of human failure and divine mercy.
God chose David, took him from behind the sheep and made him shepherd of his people, who shepherded them with integrity and skill. The psalm ends with hope: God provides a shepherd for his people.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: Tell them to the coming generation, without hiding them. — Psalm 78:4
Answer: So that they set their hope in God, not forget his works and keep his commandments. — Psalm 78:7
Answer: He divided the sea and split the rocks to give his people water. — Psalm 78:13-16
Answer: They kept sinning, tested God and demanded food according to their craving. — Psalm 78:17-18
Answer: Because he was compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and remembered that they were flesh. — Psalm 78:38-39
Answer: David, whom he took from the sheepfolds. — Psalm 78:70-71
Psalm 78 is a guide for every church that wants to form its children in the faith. It is not enough to attend worship: we must tell, from parents to children, what God has done. In Sunday school, at home and in the family of faith we can set aside time to narrate stories from the Bible and from our own lives where God acted.
It also warns against forgetting. Israel received miracles and still forgot, tested and rebelled. That calls for humility: faith does not keep itself. But the psalm ends with grace: God keeps bringing his people back and gives them a shepherd. For Christians, that shepherd points to Jesus, the descendant of David, as the good shepherd.
Psalm 78 ends with David shepherding his people with integrity. Psalm 79 returns to lament: the nations have invaded God's inheritance and defiled his temple, and the people ask for forgiveness and help for the sake of his name.
The Hebrew word can mean parable, proverb or teaching poem. Asaph is going to tell Israel's history in a way that teaches lessons about God and about the people. In Matthew 13:35 the Gospel writer quotes these words to describe that Jesus taught in parables.
Ephraim was the leading tribe of the northern kingdom, and Shiloh, in its territory, was for a long time the place of the tabernacle. The psalm recalls that God forsook Shiloh when the ark was captured (1 Samuel 4) and that he chose Judah and Zion, as well as David, for his people.
It is a poetic way of referring to manna. The expression can be rendered bread of the mighty or angels' bread, and it speaks of extraordinary food that came from heaven. The psalm contrasts that gift with the people's unbelief.