Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
Verse 2before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh. Stir up your might, and come to save us!
Verse 3Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
Verse 4O Lord God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers?
Verse 5You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in full measure.
Verse 6You make us the scorn of our neighbors; our enemies laugh among themselves.
Verse 7Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
Verse 17But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand, the one whom you made strong for yourself.
Verse 18Then we will never turn back from you; give us life, and we will call on your name.
Verse 19Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
Devotion
Psalm 80 laments the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 586 BCE at the hands of the Babylonian Empire. The poet cries out for God to come and again do an awesome, mysterious and unexpected thing: restore the people to the land, the temple and the way things are supposed to be according to God’s steadfast love and mercy for the people. Three times in this Psalm we hear a variant of the refrain, “Restore us, O God; let your face shine that we may be saved.” The expectation of the unexpected now becomes a prayer for the same. Is it possible to expect, hope for, anticipate, wait for something from God without praying for it?
The expectation of salvation on the poet’s lips now becomes a prayer, a heartfelt and trusting request that God come and save the people, restoring them to the life God intends for them.
Prayer
God, make our expectation also be our prayer: come, restore us and
save us. Amen.