Psalm 80 – Turn us again to YOURSELF
(by Dexter Ng)
Psalm 80 was probably written when the ten northern tribes were held in captivity by the Assyrians in 722 B.C.
O Shepherd of Israel, inclined Your ears to our petitions. You dwell as the Glorious Presence among Your people. Let God’s people see You stir up Your strength and use Your mighty power to rescue us from the captivity. Forgive us of our sins. We long for You to smile upon us again that we will be blessed with Your presence and favour, and only then we shall be delivered and restored to our former state of blessing.
Lord God Almighty, how much longer must You stay angry and decline our prayers? Our daily food and drink have been nothing but tears of sorrow. You let our neighbouring nations fight over our land and now we are the laughing stock among themselves. God, come back to us for we long for You to save us from humiliation.
We remember Your past mercy. Oh, how You as our Gardener have delivered us, a young and tender vine, out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, subdued the heathen from the land and planted us, and thereafter nurtured us into a powerful nation. The mountains were filled with our shadows; we were like the mighty cedar trees. Your vine stretched west to the Mediterranean Sea, east to the River Euphrates. You prepared the garden and cared for Your beloved vine. But now You no longer protect us. You have broken down our walls, leaving us weak preys of every foe. Trespassers pick Your grapes at will and wild animals feed on us. Come back, we appeal of You, and bless us.
God, please take care of us whom You have once tenderly planted and raised as Your people for Yourself. Have You now lost interest in us? Move into action, O God! The initiative is Yours, we are all helpless. We pray that You as the God Almighty may look again with kindness on Your people with Your mighty acts of deliverance and rule.
Let’s Read Psalm 80
For the director of music. To the tune of “The Lilies of the Covenant.” Of Asaph. A psalm.
1 Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
3 Restore us, O God;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
4 How long, Lord God Almighty,
will your anger smolder
against the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6 You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us.
7 Restore us, God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
8 You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
11 Its branches reached as far as the Sea,
its shoots as far as the River.
12 Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
13 Boars from the forest ravage it,
and insects from the fields feed on it.
14 Return to us, God Almighty!
Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine,
15 the root your right hand has planted,
the son you have raised up for yourself.
16 Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire;
at your rebuke your people perish.
17 Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
19 Restore us, Lord God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
Let’s Pray
O God, You are our Shepherd. We have allowed ourselves to slip into the depths of spiritual poverty and emptiness. Restore us and it begins, dear Lord, in me. Awaken within us a deep desire for a time of refreshing in Your presence. You have visited Your people in times past in great and awesome power. Do it again, dear Lord. Help us not to quench Your Spirit.
Lord, show us what we need to do for You to restore us back into Your favour. We wait on You and pray that in Your time and in Your way, You will restore us into more like Your Son, Jesus Christ, in my thinking, feelings, and actions. O Father, let the prospect of Your restoration and the coming glory fill and thrill our souls this day and everyday. In Jesus’ Name, we pray, Amen.
This devotional was kindly contributed by Dr. Chow Li Sze and her channel Heavenly Devotion. You may find the channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/HeavenlyDevotion/videos
About the Heavenly Devotion channel
The Heavenly Devotion channel is dedicated to encouraging you to listen to Bible Scriptures and pray with the Scriptures. They are inspired by the call of service as expressed and exemplified by Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 9:12-15.
“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrew 4:12 NKJV)
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