Today’s reading is Psalm 78.
Our psalm takes what seems to me a sudden and surprising turn between vss. 66 and 67. In Psalm 78:60-66, our psalmist reminds us of the events in 1 Samuel 4-6. The tabernacle of the Lord and Ark of the Covenant were housed in Shiloh, a city in Ephraim. However, because of sin and rebellion, God decided to punish Israel. He led them into defeat and allowed the Ark to be captured by the Philistines. Psalm 78:61 says God “delivered his power to captivity, his glory to the hand of the foe” (ESV). In 1 Samuel 4:21-22, when the priest Eli’s pregnant daughter-in-law learned Eli was dead as was her husband Phinehas and the Ark had been captured by the Philistines, she went into labor. She died in childbirth. However, before dying, she named her son Ichabod (which means “no glory” or “inglorious”), saying, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured” (ESV).
Shiloh was forsaken (Psalm 78:60). The Ark never went back to Shiloh. The tabernacle and Shiloh itself may have been destroyed at that time. We read Shiloh was cursed and desolate in Jeremiah 7:12-14; 26:6-9. If it didn’t happen in this battle, it must have happened soon thereafter. God’s people were given over to the sword, being defeated in battle. Specifically, Hophni and Phinehas the priests were given over to the sword. As we saw above, Phinehas’s wife made no lamentation for her husband, only for the Ark and glory of the Lord. The fire devouring the young men may be figurative, or could refer to God striking down some of the men of Beth-shemesh for looking in or upon the Ark in 1 Samuel 6:19-21. The Lord awaking certainly happened when His Ark was put in Dagon’s house. If you don’t remember the story, go back and read it. It’s amazing.
With this story in the back ground and noticing Psalm 78:67 starts to tell about how God rejected someone and shifted His choice to someone else, who do you expect to hear about? I expect to hear God rejected Eli and chose Samuel. However, that is not at all what the psalmist writes. As I said above, he takes a sudden and surprising turn. Rather, He backs out to 10,000 feet and says God rejected the tent of Joseph and the tribe of Ephraim (remember Shiloh was in Ephraim) and instead chose the tribe of Judah and Mt. Zion. The latter, of course, refers to the temple in contrast with the tent of Joseph.
Then, when the psalmist wants to highlight a person, he doesn’t highlight Samuel. He highlights David.
He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance.
With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand (ESV).
All of this psalm was written to get to this point. Though Joseph had delivered Israel from the famine and Moses delivered her from Egypt, David son of Judah was chosen to be the ultimate shepherd. It seems, this psalm is written to explain why Israel the northern kingdom, often simply referred to as Ephraim because it was the largest tribe, was taken captive by Assyria while Judah and Jerusalem were delivered.
But the psalm doesn’t just explain the distinction between kingdoms and tribes. It drills in to a chosen individual. The end of Psalm 77 had Moses and Aaron as the shepherds. This shepherd theme continues showing God chose David to shepherd. David follows in the footsteps of Moses. More than that, God made a covenant with David. The psalmist calls it to mind referring to what we can find in 2 Samuel 7:8 and 1 Chronicles 17:7. God chose David from the pasture and brought him from following the sheep to leading His flock. But the part of the covenant that is truly important isn’t specified in the psalm.
I will raise up offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, but my steadfast love will not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.
2 Samuel 7:12-16 (ESV)
The point behind all of this is for all the struggle Israel has been through, for all the sinning and rebelling they have done, God keeps covenants. He has always done so. He continues to do so. We don’t know when this psalm was written. However, in the arc of the psalms surrounding it, we are in the middle of the story about the Babylonian captivity. What does all this history tell us? God keeps covenants. He made a covenant with David. He’ll keep it. He said He would discipline the sons of David. But He will make David’s throne last forever. Hang on to God. He has repeatedly judged Israel and Judah, but He always delivers. He always brings them back because He has promises to keep and plans to fulfill.
And that is important for us. But we’ll learn more about that tomorrow.
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PATHS:
Discuss Today’s Meditation with Your Family
How does Psalm 78 prompt or improve your hope in God?
Read the Bible 