The Morning Devotional: Psalm 79
Season 11 | Edition 54
June 15, 2026
SUMMARY: Psalm 79 emerges as a raw and urgent plea from a people in profound suffering, reflecting both the justice of God’s discipline and the deep longing for His mercy. Rooted in the historical devastation of Jerusalem by Babylon, the psalmist cries out in lament, acknowledging the people’s sin and the resulting judgment, yet simultaneously pleading for God’s compassion and intervention. The prayer oscillates between confession, intercession for divine justice against the nations, and a heartfelt reminder of the covenantal identity of God’s people as His sheep, whose hope rests solely in His faithfulness. It reveals a theology of suffering that embraces both divine holiness and human vulnerability, calling believers to confess sin, trust in God’s timing, and anchor their identity in His promises. Ultimately, the psalm models a faithful response to hardship—whether from divine discipline or external persecution—by turning to God in prayer, remembering His character, and placing unwavering hope in His redemptive glory.
O God, the nations have come into your inheritance;
they have defiled your holy temple;
they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
2 They have given the bodies of your servants
to the birds of the heavens for food,
the flesh of your faithful to the beasts of the earth.
3 They have poured out their blood like water
all around Jerusalem,
and there was no one to bury them.
4 We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
mocked and derided by those around us.
5 How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?
Will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your anger on the nations
that do not know you,
and on the kingdoms
that do not call upon your name!
7 For they have devoured Jacob
and laid waste his habitation.
8 Do not remember against us our former iniquities;
let your compassion come speedily to meet us,
for we are brought very low.
9 Help us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of your name;
deliver us, and atone for our sins,
for your name's sake!
10 Why should the nations say,
“Where is their God?”
Let the avenging of the outpoured blood of your servants
be known among the nations before our eyes!
11 Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;
according to your great power, preserve those doomed to die!
12 Return sevenfold into the lap of our neighbors
the taunts with which they have taunted you, O Lord!
13 But we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
will give thanks to you forever;
from generation to generation we will recount your praise.
(Psalm 79:1-13, ESV)