Oh, do not remember former iniquities against us! Let Your tender mercies come speedily to meet us, for we have been brought very low.
--Psalm 79:8 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on April 28, 2013 of Psalm 79; Mark 5:1-20; Judges 5-6.
Asaph opens Psalm 79 by recalling the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylonian forces that occurred almost 600 years before the birth of Christ, according to Biblical scholars (please see 2 Kings 25:8-10). As in many times before and after this incident, God had punished the children of Israel for their arrogance, for turning their backs on Him and worshiping other gods. This time it was the Babylonians who took them captive that the psalmist sings about. Asaph pleads with God, asking, "How long will You be angry? Will Your jealousy burn us like fire?" (Please see verse 5.) He begs God to destroy those nations that don't know Him, that don't call upon His name (verse 6), but appeals to God's mercy for Israel's sake (verses 8 and 9) and for His honor and name among the nations (verse 10).
"Do not remember former iniquities against us!", Asaph cries. The reason the house of Jacob endured captivity so often was their repeated practice of idolatry and worshiping false gods. The Lord warned the people many times through Moses that He is a jealous God and would not look kindly upon them for bowing down to and serving other gods, even "visiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations" (please see Exodus 20:3-6). This is what Asaph begs God to forgive, the iniquities of their forefathers. Even if the current generation had not engaged in idolatry, God might still extend the punishment to them earned by the sins of their fathers' fathers' fathers. So Asaph prays that God please forgive them for the sins their forefathers committed, to please forget the sins of their fathers.
But then, as if answering Asaph's plea, God had mercy on mankind and sent His only Son into the world. Jesus shed every ounce of His precious blood for us that we might be washed clean of our sins, able to stand spotless before God. The prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah both foresaw that God would relent and have mercy, that through His goodness and grace our sins will not only be forgiven, but no longer even be remembered (please see Isaiah 43:25 and Jeremiah 31:34). But it all begins with Jesus and His great sacrifice, as the author of the book of Hebrews reminds us, just before quoting Jeremiah (please see Hebrews 10:1-18). Believe in Jesus, be thankful for the offering He made on our behalf, and accept His gift of eternal life with Him. Your sins will be forgiven and forgotten, once and for all. Amen.
God of grace and mercy, thank You for not holding the sins of our ancestors against us. Thank You for loving us so much that You sent Your Son to redeem us from sin, to wash our sin away with His shed blood, so that we can stand spotless before You. Thank You for forgiving us and for purposely forgetting our sins as You forgive them, as if we had never committed them. Thank You, Lord of all. In the wonderful name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
"Do not remember former iniquities against us!", Asaph cries. The reason the house of Jacob endured captivity so often was their repeated practice of idolatry and worshiping false gods. The Lord warned the people many times through Moses that He is a jealous God and would not look kindly upon them for bowing down to and serving other gods, even "visiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations" (please see Exodus 20:3-6). This is what Asaph begs God to forgive, the iniquities of their forefathers. Even if the current generation had not engaged in idolatry, God might still extend the punishment to them earned by the sins of their fathers' fathers' fathers. So Asaph prays that God please forgive them for the sins their forefathers committed, to please forget the sins of their fathers.
But then, as if answering Asaph's plea, God had mercy on mankind and sent His only Son into the world. Jesus shed every ounce of His precious blood for us that we might be washed clean of our sins, able to stand spotless before God. The prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah both foresaw that God would relent and have mercy, that through His goodness and grace our sins will not only be forgiven, but no longer even be remembered (please see Isaiah 43:25 and Jeremiah 31:34). But it all begins with Jesus and His great sacrifice, as the author of the book of Hebrews reminds us, just before quoting Jeremiah (please see Hebrews 10:1-18). Believe in Jesus, be thankful for the offering He made on our behalf, and accept His gift of eternal life with Him. Your sins will be forgiven and forgotten, once and for all. Amen.
God of grace and mercy, thank You for not holding the sins of our ancestors against us. Thank You for loving us so much that You sent Your Son to redeem us from sin, to wash our sin away with His shed blood, so that we can stand spotless before You. Thank You for forgiving us and for purposely forgetting our sins as You forgive them, as if we had never committed them. Thank You, Lord of all. In the wonderful name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
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