MAY YOUR FACE SHINE ON US
Opening Prayer
Lord, do not forget your people.
Read PSALM 80
Psalm 80[a]
For the director of music. To the tune of “The Lilies of the Covenant.” Of Asaph. A psalm.
1 Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
3 Restore us, O God;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
4 How long, Lord God Almighty,
will your anger smolder
against the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6 You have made us an object of derision[b] to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us.
7 Restore us, God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
8 You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
9 You cleared the ground for it,
and it took root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
11 Its branches reached as far as the Sea,[c]
its shoots as far as the River.[d]
12 Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
13 Boars from the forest ravage it,
and insects from the fields feed on it.
14 Return to us, God Almighty!
Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine,
15 the root your right hand has planted,
the son[e] you have raised up for yourself.
16 Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire;
at your rebuke your people perish.
17 Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
18 Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
19 Restore us, Lord God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
Footnotes:
a Psalm 80:1 In Hebrew texts 80:1-19 is numbered 80:2-20.
b Psalm 80:6 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text contention
c Psalm 80:11 Probably the Mediterranean
d Psalm 80:11 That is, the Euphrates
e Psalm 80:15 Or branch
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the LORD … give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24–26 )
Think Further
Previous readings call us to prayer. In Psalm 80 the psalmist yearns for our great, faithful Shepherd to hear our prayers. It is set when the walls are broken down, razed to the ground (12, 16). Israel is the laughing stock of her enemies (6). The northern state of Israel has been plundered by Assyria and many are exiled (722 BC). The call to Benjamin suggests it is before Judah’s later exile (587 BC). Israel cries for God’s help.
The psalm’s prayer is threefold: “Restore (šûḇ) us, O God; let your face shine on us, that we may be saved!” (see verses 3, 7, 19). This call implores the God of heaven to hear Israel’s cries, as in Egypt (Exodus 2:23–25), when he then led Israel to the Promised Land. Then, he established them like a vine, covering the whole land (8–11). The psalmist pleads that God will hear, turn (šûḇ), see them weeping (5,14) and will arise (2) to defeat Assyria. He prays that God will again tend to his vine, Israel (14,15). Verse 17 speaks of God’s hand placed on “the man at your right hand, the son of man” – Israel’s Davidic king in Judah – that God’s anointed would bring deliverance to the north.
We can read this also through the lens of Jesus. He is the “man of God’s right hand, the Son of Man (Luke 5:24, 6:5, 9:22).” He is the vine, we are the branches (John 15:1–17). He is God’s salvation! We cry to God, yet he has already heard us and sent Jesus to save us! Again, his vine, his church, is in ruins. We join the psalmist, praying that God will shine his face on us and restore us by the Spirit. This restoration comes with God’s saving grace, equipping us to do the works of love and justice throughout the world.
Apply
Pray that God will shine His face upon us and that the Son of Man will prune us and restore us.
Closing prayer
Lord, remember that our enemies are numerous and well equipped to harm Your people. We as Your sheep depend on Your protection.
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