Psalm 79 is the 79th

psalm The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

in the

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived f ...

, one of the

Psalms of Asaph The Psalms of Asaph are the twelve psalms numbered as 50 and 73–83 in the Masoretic Text, and as 49 and 72–82 in the Septuagint. They are located in the Book of Psalms in the Hebrew Bible (which is also called the Old Testament). Scholars have d ...

. In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...

and Latin

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 78. The New American Bible (Revised Edition) calls it "a prayer for

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Text

Hebrew Bible version

Following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 79, with English translation from the 1917 JPS Bible:

King James Version

:To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. # O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. # The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of the earth. # Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them. # We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us. # How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire? # Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name. # For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place. # O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low. # Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake. # Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy servants which is shed. # Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die; # And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, O Lord. # So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.

Context

The psalm has been described as a communal lament complaining that the nations have defiled the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusa ...

and murdered the holy people, leaving their corpses unburied (verses 1–4). The occasion is probably the

destruction of Jerusalem The siege of Jerusalem of 70 CE was the decisive event of the First Jewish–Roman War (66–73 CE), in which the Roman army led by future emperor Titus besieged Jerusalem, the center of Jewish rebel resistance in the Roman province of Jud ...

by the Babylonian army in 587 B.C., although Rudinger,

Wilhelm de Wette Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette (12 January 1780 – 16 June 1849) was a German theologian and biblical scholar. Life and education Wilhelm Martin Leberecht de Wette was born 12 January 1780 in Ulla (now part of the municipality of Nohra), Thuri ...

, and some other commentators, suppose that the reference in the psalm is to the later persecutions under

Antiochus Epiphanes Antiochus is a Greek male first name, which was a dynastic name for rulers of the Seleucid Empire and the Kingdom of Commagene. In Jewish historical memory, connected with the Maccabean Revolt and the holiday of Hanukkah, "Antiochus" refers spec ...

Uses

Judaism

*This psalm is recited on the

Seventeenth of Tammuz , observedby = Jews , date = 17th day of Tammuz , observances = Fasting, prayer , type = Jewish religious and national , significance = Date when the walls of Jerusalem were breached , relatedto = The fasts of the Tenth of Tevet and Tisha B'Av, ...

in some traditions. *Verse 8 is a part of the final paragraph of

Tachanun ''Tachanun'' or ''Taḥanun'' ( he, תחנון "Supplication"), also called ''nefilat apayim'' ( he, נפילת אפיים "falling on the face"), is part of Judaism's morning (''Shacharit'') and afternoon (''Mincha'') services, after the recitati ...

. *Verse 9 is the final verse of the regular Tachanun, and is also a part of the long

recited on Mondays and Thursdays. *Verse 10 is part of

Av Harachamim Av Harachamim or Abh Haraḥamim ( "Father fmercy" or "Merciful Father") is a Jewish memorial prayer which was written in the late eleventh or early twelfth century, after the destruction of the Ashkenazi communities around the Rhine River by Chri ...

. *Verse 13 is part of Baruch Hashem L'Olam during Maariv. Part of Verse 13 is part of the ''Modim'' blessing of the

Amidah The ''Amidah Amuhduh'' ( he, תפילת העמידה, ''Tefilat HaAmidah'', 'The Standing Prayer'), also called the ''Shemoneh Esreh'' ( 'eighteen'), is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. Observant Jews recite the ''Amidah'' at each o ...

.The Complete Artscroll Siddur, page 113

References

External links

* in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * King James Bible - Wikisource {{Psalms

079 79 may refer to: * 79 (number) * one of the years 79 BC, AD 79, 1979, 2079 * ''79 A.D.'', a 1962 historical epic film * Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79, a catastrophic volcanic eruption in Italy See also

* * List of highways numbered {{Num ...