Psalms 50; 53; 60; 75     Listen

Asaph rolls into action (Psalm 50)

A Psalm of Asaph.
1 ¶ The Mighty One, God the LORD,
Has spoken and called the earth
From the rising of the sun to its going down.
2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God will shine forth.
3 Our God shall come, and shall not keep silent;
A fire shall devour before Him,
And it shall be very tempestuous all around Him.
4 He shall call to the heavens from above,
And to the earth, that He may judge His people:
5 “Gather My saints together to Me,
Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”
6 Let the heavens declare His righteousness,
For God Himself is Judge.
Selah
7 “Hear, O My people, and I will speak,
O Israel, and I will testify against you;
I am God, your God!
8 I will not rebuke you for your sacrifices
Or your burnt offerings,
Which are continually before Me.
9 I will not take a bull from your house,
Nor goats out of your folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is Mine,
And the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 I know all the birds of the mountains,
And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.
13 Will I eat the flesh of bulls,
Or drink the blood of goats?
14 Offer to God thanksgiving,
And pay your vows to the Most High.
15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”
16 But to the wicked God says:
“What right have you to declare My statutes,
Or take My covenant in your mouth,
17 Seeing you hate instruction
And cast My words behind you?
18 When you saw a thief, you consented with him,
And have been a partaker with adulterers.
19 You give your mouth to evil,
And your tongue frames deceit.
20 You sit and speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
21 These things you have done, and I kept silent;
You thought that I was altogether like you;
But I will rebuke you,
And set them in order before your eyes.
22 “Now consider this, you who forget God,
Lest I tear you in pieces,
And there be none to deliver:
23 Whoever offers praise glorifies Me;
And to him who orders his conduct aright
I will show the salvation of God.”

That's right; this one was written by Asaph, but it sounds a lot like David, don't you agree?

Following is Easton's entry regarding the identity of Asaph:

A Levite; one of the leaders of David’s choir (1 Chr. 6:39). Psalms 50 and 73-83 inclusive are attributed to him. He is mentioned along with David as skilled in music, and a “seer” (2 Chr. 29:30). The “sons of Asaph,” mentioned in 1 Chr. 25:1, 2 Chr. 20:14, and Ezra 2:41, were his descendants, or more probably a class of poets or singers who recognized him as their master.

Incidentally, "Zion" is a designation used in place of "Jerusalem," defined in II Samuel 5:7 (see notes), "Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion (that is, the City of David)."

This Psalm is about the judgment of God. A distinction is made here between those who keep the covenant of animal sacrifice as opposed to those who do not. If they were righteous, they would obey God in sacrificing.

Here's a simple outline of this Psalm:

• Verses 1-6 - the righteous judgment of God
• Verses 7-15 - a warning to the Godly
• Verses 16-21 - a warning to the wicked
• Verses 22-23 the righteous judgment of God.

It's interesting to note the balance and structure of the content from the outline of the Psalm above. Our contemporary lesson here is obedience: If you love God, do what God says.

One more thing: If you're looking for a God-helps-me-in-trouble verse to memorize, you just can't top Psalm 50:15, "Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me."

Here's a do over (Psalm 53)

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Mahalath.” A Contemplation of David.
1 ¶ The fool has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity;
There is none who does good.
2 God looks down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any who understand, who seek God.
3 Every one of them has turned aside;
They have together become corrupt;
There is none who does good,
No, not one.
4 Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And do not call upon God?
5 There they are in great fear
Where no fear was,
For God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you;
You have put them to shame,
Because God has despised them.
6 Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When God brings back the captivity of His people,
Let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad.

This Psalm, ascribed to David in the subtitle, is parallel to Psalm 14 (see notes). It's functionally identical and virtually word for word (see comparison table below) down through verse 4. As mentioned above, "Zion" at the end of this Psalm is a substitute name David used in place of "Jerusalem". It's used over 150 times in the Bible (38 in the Psalms). We also find portions of this one quoted in Romans 3:10-12 (see notes). It speaks of man's inherent depravity.

It is obvious that David drew heavily from one Psalm to compose the other. We have no way of knowing which was written first.

You win some; you lose some (Psalm 60)

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Lily of the Testimony.” A Michtam of David. For teaching. When he fought against Mesopotamia and Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
1 ¶ O God, You have cast us off;
You have broken us down;
You have been displeased;
Oh, restore us again!
2 You have made the earth tremble;
You have broken it;
Heal its breaches, for it is shaking.
3 You have shown Your people hard things;
You have made us drink the wine of confusion.
4 You have given a banner to those who fear You,
That it may be displayed because of the truth.
Selah
5 That Your beloved may be delivered,
Save with Your right hand, and hear me.
6 God has spoken in His holiness:
“I will rejoice;
I will divide Shechem
And measure out the Valley of Succoth.
7 Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim also is the helmet for My head;
Judah is My lawgiver.
8 Moab is My washpot;
Over Edom I will cast My shoe;
Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.”
9 Who will bring me to the strong city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Is it not You, O God, who cast us off?
And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies?
11 Give us help from trouble,
For the help of man is useless.
12 Through God we will do valiantly,
For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.

The introduction to this Psalm written by David sets it up nicely. But first, let's look at an unfamiliar word in the introduction from Easton's Bible Dictionary:

Michtam: writing; i.e., a poem or song found in the titles of Ps. 16; 56-60. Some translate the word “golden”, i.e., precious. It is rendered in the LXX. by a word meaning “tablet inscription” or a “stelograph.” The root of the word means to stamp or grave, and hence it is regarded as denoting a composition so precious as to be worthy to be engraven on a durable tablet for preservation; or, as others render, “a psalm precious as stamped gold,” from the word kethem, “fine or stamped gold.”

The remaining names and places referenced in this psalm allude to David’s successful battles found in II Samuel 8:1-14 (see notes); II Samuel 10:16 (see notes) and I Chronicles 18:1-13 (see notes). Apparently the successes were not always immediate; this Psalm is presented as a community lament in which the people pray for God’s success after an apparent defeat. Whatever it may have been used for after David wrote it, he is praying for victory over his enemies. And here we are told in verses 6-10 that God will not only aid Israel in the defeat of their enemies within their borders, but also Moab, Edom and Philistia.

Incidentally, verses 5-12 here comprise Psalm 108:6-13 (see notes). As a matter of fact, Psalm 108:1-5 (see notes) is comprised of Psalm 57:7-11 (see notes). For a comparison of these three Psalms, click here.

Judgment's a comin' (Psalm 75)

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Do Not Destroy.” A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
1 ¶ We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.
2 “When I choose the proper time,
I will judge uprightly.
3 The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved;
I set up its pillars firmly.
Selah
4 “I said to the boastful, “Do not deal boastfully,’
And to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up the horn.
5 Do not lift up your horn on high;
Do not speak with a stiff neck.’ ”
6 For exaltation comes neither from the east
Nor from the west nor from the south.
7 But God is the Judge:
He puts down one,
And exalts another.
8 For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup,
And the wine is red;
It is fully mixed, and He pours it out;
Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth
Drain and drink down.
9 But I will declare forever,
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 “All the horns of the wicked I will also cut off,
But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.”

This is another Psalm of Asaph (see the note on Asaph above under Psalm 50 above).

Here's a brief outline of this Psalm:

• God is the righteous judge (verses 1-3)
• A warning to the wicked (verses 4-8)
• Therefore, I will praise God (verses 9-10)

If you ever wonder who's in charge, read verses 6-7, "For exaltation comes neither from the east Nor from the west nor from the south. But God is the Judge: He puts down one, And exalts another." The message of this Psalm is simple: at God's appointed time, judgment will come upon the wicked. It all washes out in verse 10, "All the horns of the wicked I will also cut off, But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted."