Psalm 80:1-19

Oh, give ear, Shepherd of Israel, You who lead Joseph like a flock; You who are enthroned above the cherubim, shine forth! Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, stir up Your power and come to save us! O God, restore us and cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved. O Lord God of hosts, how long will You be angry with the prayer of Your people? You have fed them with the bread of tears, and You have made them to drink tears in large measure. You make us an object of contention to our neighbors, and our enemies laugh among themselves. O God of hosts, restore us and cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved. You removed a vine from Egypt; You drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground before it, and it took deep root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shadow, and the cedars of God with its boughs. It was sending out its branches to the sea and its shoots to the River. Why have You broken down its hedges, so that all who pass that way pick its fruit? A boar from the forest eats it away and whatever moves in the field feeds on it. O God of hosts, turn again now, we beseech You; look down from heaven and see, and take care of this vine, even the shoot which Your right hand has planted, and on the son whom You have strengthened for Yourself. It is burned with fire, it is cut down; they perish at the rebuke of Your countenance. Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand, upon the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself. Then we shall not turn back from You; revive us, and we will call upon Your name. O Lord God of hosts, restore us; cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved.^[1]

“Restore us; Cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved,” is the continuing refrain in this psalm. The psalmist contends that God has been angry with the prayers of His people, fed them with the bread of tears, and made them an object of contention to our neighbors. As a result, Israel’s neighbors laugh among themselves. How the enemy of our souls must be laughing as the people of God suffer under the weight of the consequences of their sin. Only God can step in and bring restoration. Only God can change the downward spiral of His church’s fortunes. Such was the realization of the psalmist as he implored the Lord to restore them and cause His face to shine upon them.

Isn’t that exactly what our Heavenly Father did when He sent His Son down through forty-two generations. He was causing His face to shine upon His people and paved the way for His people to be saved. God answered the plea of His people. He did what the psalmist asked Him to do, now the spotlight is on the people themselves. Will we be saved? Will we be saved?!

Lord, thank You for hearing the earnest plea of Your people. Thank You for sending Your Son to be with us and save us from our sin. Open our eyes and unblock our ears so that we will cease being seduced and misled by the allure of our world that makes promises it cannot keep. Bring great conviction upon us so that we will step out of the dark into the marvelous light and be saved. Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Ps 80:1–19.