1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
You who lead Joseph like a flock;
You who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth!
2 Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,
Stir up Your strength,
And come and save us!
3 Restore us, O God;
Cause Your face to shine,
And we shall be saved!
4 O LORD God of hosts,
How long will You be angry
Against the prayer of Your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears,
And given them tears to drink in great measure.
6 You have made us a strife to our neighbors,
And our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 Restore us, O God of hosts;
Cause Your face to shine,
And we shall be saved!
8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
You have cast out the nations, and planted it.
9 You prepared room for it,
And caused it to take deep root,
And it filled the land.
10 The hills were covered with its shadow,
And the mighty cedars with its boughs.
11 She sent out her boughs to the Sea,
And her branches to the River.
12 Why have You broken down her hedges,
So that all who pass by the way pluck her fruit?
13 The boar out of the woods uproots it,
And the wild beast of the field devours it.
14 Return, we beseech You, O God of hosts;
Look down from heaven and see,
And visit this vine
15 And the vineyard which Your right hand has planted,
And the branch that You made strong for Yourself.
16 It is burned with fire, it is cut down;
They perish at the rebuke of Your countenance.
17 Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,
Upon the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.
18 Then we will not turn back from You;
Revive us, and we will call upon Your name.
19 Restore us, O LORD God of hosts;
Cause Your face to shine,
And we shall be saved!—Psalm 80
Psalm 80 is Asaph’s prayer to God on behalf of the northern kingdom after it was taken captive by Assyria in 722-21 BC. The sentiments expressed are poignant and very beautiful. This morning, as I read, my heart stopped at verse 8…
You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
You have cast out the nations, and planted it.
God brought Israel (the vine) out of Egypt and molded them into a great nation.
Jesus uses this same imagery to describe Himself and His followers in John, Chapter 15.
I am the vine, you are the branches.
As a believer, I am one of the precious branches of Jesus. He is my Shepherd…in Him I have everything I need. He commands His lovingkindness toward me in the daytime and in the night His song is always with me. I am saved because He inclined to me and heard my cry. My Jesus lifted me up out of the horrible pit I was in and set my feet upon a rock. He put His Spirit in my heart and a new song in my mouth. My prayer (and His) for me is that many would see it and put their trust in the Lord.
5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus' sake. 6 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.—2 Corinthians 4:5-6
❤️Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. 11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.❤️—Ephesians 1:3-12
Father…Thank you that with You is forgiveness! Thank you that I have been delivered from the power of darkness and conveyed into the kingdom of the Son of Your love. In You, I have redemption through Your blood, and the the forgiveness of sins. Oh, help me, by Your Spirit, to be faithful and live in grateful thanksgiving. Keep me on right paths. Enable me to walk worthy and to live to the praise of Your glory!
I am Your beloved little vine. Be the strength of my life! Teach me to abide in Your love. Teach me to wait on You so that my life is immersed and entwined in Yours. Help me, by Your grace, to bloom where You in Your great wisdom planted me. I am weak, but You are strong! You are my King and my God. It is Your arm that saves me. It is the light of Your countenance that brings me favor. Command victories for me Father! Unite my heart to fear Your name. In You, my God, I will boast all day long, and I will praise Your name forever.
