Why Have You Rejected Us Forever? (Psalm 79:1–13; Jeremiah 52:1–11)
1 UST A Levite from the clan of Asaph wrote this song. God, it feels as if you have permanently abandoned us! You care for us Israelites the way a shepherd cares for his flock. So please do not continue to be angry with us. BSB BSB: A Maskil of Asaph. Why have You rejected us forever, O God? Why does Your anger smolder against the sheep of Your pasture?
2 UST Think about your people whom you chose long ago. You rescued us from slavery so that we would belong to you. Think about Mount Zion, where you have been present{ in your temple}. BSB BSB: Remember Your congregation, which You purchased long ago and redeemed as the tribe of Your inheritance—Mount Zion, where You dwell.
3 UST Come and walk through the ruins of your temple. It seems that no one will ever rebuild it. Look at all the damage that the enemy soldiers did to your temple. BSB BSB: Turn Your steps to the everlasting ruins, to everything in the sanctuary the enemy has destroyed.
4 UST Your enemies shouted in triumph right there in the place where you met with us Israelites. They set up their battle flags to show that they had conquered it. BSB BSB: Your foes have roared within Your meeting place; they have unfurled their banners as signs,
5 UST They acted like woodsmen who were swinging axes to cut down trees in a forest. BSB BSB: like men wielding axes in a thicket of trees
6 UST They smashed all the carved wooden panels with their axes and hammers. BSB BSB: and smashing all the carvings with hatchets and picks.
7 UST Then they burned down your temple completely. They treated the temple where you were present as if it were not a sacred place. BSB BSB: They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground; they have defiled the dwelling place of Your Name.
8 UST They said to themselves,“We will completely subdue the Israelites.” They burned down every place in the land where people gathered to worship God. BSB BSB: They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely.” They burned down every place where God met us in the land.
9 UST You no longer give us any signs, and there are no prophets anymore. None of us knows how long this will last. BSB BSB: There are no signs for us to see. There is no longer any prophet. And none of us knows how long this will last.
10 UST God, do not allow your opponents to continue to insult you! Do not allow your enemies to keep treating you with disrespect anymore! BSB BSB: How long, O God, will the enemy taunt You? Will the foe revile Your name forever?
11 UST You should not fail to use your great power. Use your power to destroy your enemies! BSB BSB: Why do You withdraw Your strong right hand? Stretch it out to destroy them!
12 UST God, I acknowledge that you have ruled from ancient times. You have been saving people throughout the earth. BSB BSB: Yet God is my King from ancient times, working salvation on the earth.
13 UST By your great power, you pushed back the sea so that the dry land would appear. You created order out of the watery chaos. BSB BSB: You divided the sea by Your strength; You smashed the heads of the dragons of the sea;
14 UST It was as if you smashed the heads of a chaos monster that lived in the sea and left his body in the desert for scavengers to eat. BSB BSB: You crushed the heads of Leviathan; You fed him to the creatures of the desert.
15 UST You are able to make springs and streams flow in dry areas, but you are also able to dry up rivers that usually flow all the time. BSB BSB: You broke open the fountain and the flood; You dried up the ever-flowing rivers.
16 UST You determine when it becomes day and when it becomes night. You make it light during the day when the sun shines. BSB BSB: The day is Yours, and also the night; You established the moon and the sun.
17 UST You are the one who set all the boundaries of the earth. You are the one who created the seasons of summer and winter. BSB BSB: You set all the boundaries of the earth; You made the summer and winter.
18 UST Yahweh, remember that your enemies have insulted you and that foolish people have mocked your reputation. BSB BSB: Remember how the enemy has mocked You, O LORD, how a foolish people has spurned Your name.
19 UST Do not allow cruel enemies to destroy the people whom you cherish. Save the lives of your vulnerable people before it is too late. BSB BSB: Do not deliver the soul of Your dove to beasts; do not forget the lives of Your afflicted forever.
20 UST People are committing violent acts in places where they think others will not see them. So we need you to help us. Please do that because of the covenant that you made with us. BSB BSB: Consider Your covenant, for haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
21 UST We are asking you to help us; please do not disappoint us. Then we poor and needy people will praise you for what you have done. BSB BSB: Do not let the oppressed retreat in shame; may the poor and needy praise Your name.
22 UST Take action to defend yourself, God! Do not allow foolish people to keep insulting you! BSB BSB: Rise up, O God; defend Your cause! Remember how the fool mocks You all day long.
23 UST Do not ignore what your enemies are saying. Your opponents keep shouting things against you. BSB BSB: Do not disregard the clamor of Your adversaries, the uproar of Your enemies that ascends continually.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.