Why blame nations if God used them to judge Israel?
Divine sovereignty over judgment does not cleanse human motives or excess. Prophets likewise judge Babylon for pride and cruelty while affirming its providential role.
PSALM 79 — HOW LONG WILL JERUSALEM LIE IN RUINS?
Why blame nations if God used them to judge Israel? Study Psalm 79 with context, apologetic analysis, and cross-references.
Psalm 793 questions
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Commentary provenance
Dr. Lucas D. Shallua Commentary · PSALM 79 — HOW LONG WILL JERUSALEM LIE IN RUINS?
The precise difficulties
- Why blame nations if God used them to judge Israel?
- Is sevenfold vengeance excessive?
- Can descendants ask not to bear ancestral iniquity?
Verse and question study
Is sevenfold vengeance excessive?
Seven symbolizes completeness. The prayer places proportional fullness with God; it does not tell survivors to multiply retaliatory violence.
Can descendants ask not to bear ancestral iniquity?
Scripture recognizes corporate consequences while maintaining individual moral responsibility. The prayer seeks mercy within a history they inherited and also confesses the community's ongoing need for atonement.
Historical and literary context
This Asaphite communal lament most naturally reflects Babylon's destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, though later desecrations could reuse it. As with Psalm 74, the title can refer to the Asaphite guild rather than the founding individual. The poem combines outrage at enemy atrocity with confession of Israel's iniquity, refusing a one-sided account. English Psalm 79 is Psalm 78 in Greek/Latin numbering.
Apologetic note
The psalm refuses two easy explanations of disaster. Israel cannot claim innocence, since it needs atonement; the conquerors cannot claim righteousness, since they commit atrocity and mock God. Multiple agents can bear distinct responsibilities within one providential event.
Chapter cross-references
- 2 Kings 25:8–21 Babylon destroys Jerusalem and the temple
- Deuteronomy 32:35–43 God judges enemies and atones for his land
- Psalm 74:3–11 Sanctuary destruction and enemy signs
- Psalm 78:59–64 Shiloh falls under covenant judgment
- Isaiah 10:5–16 Assyria is an instrument yet judged for arrogance
- Jeremiah 50:11–18 Babylon is judged for devouring Israel
- Lamentations 1:8–11 Jerusalem confesses sin amid desecration
- Daniel 9:4–19 Corporate confession appeals to God's name and mercy
- Matthew 23:35–39 Jerusalem's guilt and desolation are lamented
- Romans 12:19 Repayment belongs to God
- Revelation 6:9–11 Slain servants ask how long until justice
- Revelation 19:1–2 God judges the power shedding servants' blood
Source and editorial status
Dr. Shallua’s Commentary
This study preserves the hard questions, explanations, context, apologetic note, and references from Dr. Shallua's Commentary.