# Psalm 74 đź“–: Remember Your Congregation
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[[-Psalm Overview]] | [[Psalm 73]] | [[Psalm 75]]
> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
## A well-written song by Asaph.
[[#Verse 01.]]Â Why, O God, have you permanently rejected us?
Why does your anger burn against the sheep of your pasture?
[[#Verse 02.]] Remember your people whom you acquired in ancient times,
whom you rescued so they could be your very own nation,
as well as Mount Zion, where you dwell.
[[#Verse 03.]] Hurry to the permanent ruins,
and to all the damage the enemy has done to the temple.
[[#Verse 04.]] Your enemies roar in the middle of your sanctuary;
they set up their battle flags.
[[#Verse 05.]]Â They invade like lumberjacks
swinging their axes in a thick forest.
[[#Verse 06.]] And now they are tearing down all its engravings
with axes and crowbars.
[[#Verse 07.]]Â They set your sanctuary on fire;
they desecrate your dwelling place by knocking it to the ground.
[[#Verse 08.]]Â They say to themselves,
“We will oppress all of them.”
They burn down all the places in the land where people worship God.
[[#Verse 09.]] We do not see any signs of God’s presence;
there are no longer any prophets,
and we have no one to tell us how long this will last.
[[#Verse 10.]]Â How long, O God, will the adversary hurl insults?
Will the enemy blaspheme your name forever?
[[#Verse 11.]]Â Why do you remain inactive?
Intervene and destroy him.
[[#Verse 12.]] But God has been my king from ancient times,
performing acts of deliverance on the earth.
[[#Verse 13.]] You destroyed the sea by your strength;
you shattered the heads of the sea monster in the water.
[[#Verse 14.]]Â You crushed the heads of Leviathan;
you fed him to the people who live along the coast.
[[#Verse 15.]]Â You broke open the spring and the stream;
you dried up perpetually flowing rivers.
[[#Verse 16.]]Â You established the cycle of day and night;
you put the moon and sun in place.
[[#Verse 17.]] You set up all the boundaries of the earth;
you created the cycle of summer and winter.
[[#Verse 18.]] Remember how the enemy hurls insults, O Lord,
and how a foolish nation blasphemes your name.
[[#Verse 19.]] Do not hand the life of your dove over to a wild animal.
Do not continue to disregard the lives of your oppressed people.
[[#Verse 20.]]Â Remember your covenant promises,
for the dark regions of the earth are full of places where violence rules.
[[#Verse 21.]]Â Do not let the afflicted be turned back in shame.
Let the oppressed and poor praise your name.
[[#Verse 22.]]Â Rise up, O God. Defend your honor.
Remember how fools insult you all day long.
[[#Verse 23.]] Do not disregard what your enemies say,
or the unceasing shouts of those who defy you.
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
###### Overall.
###### Verse 01.
###### Verse 02.
###### Verse 03.
###### Verse 04.
###### Verse 05.
###### Verse 06.
###### Verse 07.
###### Verse 08.
###### Verse 09.
###### Verse 10.
###### Verse 11.
###### Verse 12.
###### Verse 13.
###### Verse 14.
###### Verse 15.
###### Verse 16.
###### Verse 17.
###### Verse 18.
###### Verse 19.
###### Verse 20.
###### Verse 21.
###### Verse 22.
###### Verse 23.
## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. Psalm 74 is a *maskil* of Asaph and a community lament.
2. Most scholars connect it with the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians in 586 BC (2 Kings 25:9).
3. The enemies are pictured hacking the temple's carved wood with axes (74:5-6).
4. "We do not see any signs; there are no longer any prophets" (74:9) describes the silence of God's people after disaster.
5. The psalm asks "How long?" (74:10), a common question in laments.
6. God dividing the sea (74:13) recalls the Exodus crossing of the Red Sea.
7. Leviathan (74:14) was a sea monster in ancient Near Eastern poetry, here used as a picture of chaos God defeats.
8. God established day and night, summer and winter (74:16-17), echoing Genesis 1 and 8:22.
9. Israel is called God's "dove" (74:19), a picture of a vulnerable and beloved people.
10. The psalm names the destroyed places as "meeting places of God" (74:8), showing that the enemies tried to wipe out worship throughout the land.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the One through whom God remembers His covenant and redeems His people (74:2, 20). The church is the flock God purchased with His own blood (Acts 20:28), and Jesus is the true temple that cannot be destroyed (John 2:19-21).
## 🔎 Key Principles / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. The psalmist asks God to remember the people He purchased long ago (74:2). How does remembering what God has done help you in hard times?
2. The temple had been destroyed, and there were no prophets left (74:7-9). How do you respond when it feels like God is silent?
3. The psalmist recalls God's power over the sea and over creation (74:12-17). How does God's power over creation encourage you to trust Him?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 2: Remember the people You acquired long ago, whom You redeemed.
- đź“– verse 12: God has been my King from ancient times, bringing deliverance on the earth.
- đź“– verse 20: Remember Your covenant promises.
## đź”— Related Passages/Cross Reference
- đź”— [[2 Kings 25#Verse 08.|2 Kings 25:8-10]] - Babylon burns the temple.
- đź”— [[Lamentations 02#Verse 06.|Lamentations 2:6-7]] - The Lord rejects His sanctuary.
- đź”— [[Acts 20#Verse 28.|Acts 20:28]] - The church purchased with His blood.
- đź”— [[John 02#Verse 19.|John 2:19-21]] - Jesus speaks of the temple of His body.
- đź”— [[Isaiah 51#Verse 09.|Isaiah 51:9-10]] - God cut Rahab in pieces and dried up the sea.
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[Psalm 74 - SOAP|Cry Out to the Lord]]
## đź“‚ Internal Notes