# 4 2020 Dev. Psalm 80:7. Restoration! Read all of Ps. 80. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.
Ps. 80:7 “Restore us, God Almighty; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.”
This series, Ps. 79-83, are located in the center of Book III of the Psalter. The series is a lament framed by two communal prayers; Ps.79 and Ps.83. The themes of this series are restoration and forgiveness, anticipating God’s mercy and God’s promise of peace and wellbeing and God is the judge of the nations. These are written during a time of extreme attack on Israel, perhaps the Assyrian attack and captivity of the Northern ten tribes of the Northern Kingdom.
Ps. 80 is a prayer (song) petitioning God for restoration with increasing intensity.Vs.1-2 reminiscing on God as the Shepherd of His people, some of the Northern tribes are mentioned here. This stanza ends with “Restore us, O God.”
Vs. 4-6 begins with the request: “How long, Lord God Almighty, will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people?” The people are “fed with the bread of tears, drink tears by the bowlful and our enemies mock us.” This second stanza ends with “Restore us, God Almighty”.
Vs.8-18 moves to the metaphor of a vine that God transplanted from Egypt, calling to mind God’s awesome power and care for His people, a vine that “filled the land”, shaded the mountains and reached to the sea. God has removed His protection, “broken down the walls”, wild animals and insects “ravage it”, in todays vernacular, we are dying Lord! By the power of the Holy Spirit the Psalmist introduces a phrase outside of this historical context: “Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand, the son of man you have raised up for your self.” This may be a reference to king David but for us, in our time, it is a reverence to the grace and salvation of God, Jesus Christ. “Restore us, Lord God Almighty”.
As followers of Jesus we identify with the Psalmist, not with physical but spiritual attacks. Religion, including Christianity is under attack all over the world. In our own land, USA, it may not seem like that because we still have some freedom of religion, but that is starting to be limited. The church today has less impact on secular society: prayer, Christian values, Christian education and Christian families are under attack. As a minister of the Word, speaking out against the legal abuses of society, such as abortion and gender issues, we are suspect of hate speech and maybe subject to prosecution. True followers of Jesus may expect more difficulty since many main line churches have caved to societal pressure to validate non biblical positions on the miracle of birth, on the blending of gender and on family values. The problem is within the church.
So what is the answer? This is what God says to us: “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). Along with the Psalmist we pray: “Restore us, Lord God Almighty; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” Amen!
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