They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, and consulted together against Your sheltered ones. They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” (Psalm 83:3-4) As the psalmist reveals, the...

They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, and consulted together against Your sheltered ones. They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” (Psalm 83:3-4) In April 1922, Adolf Hitler...

Do not keep silent, O God! Do not hold Your peace, and do not be still, O God! For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; and those who hate You have lifted up their head. (Psalm 83:1-2) Jewish tradition says that this psalm was composed in response to a concerted attack...

I said, “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High.” But you shall die like men. (Psalm 82:6-7) In the previous devotion, we discussed the fact that God's people are referred to as אלהים elohim -- gods -- and the reasons for it. In this devotion, we...

I said, “You are gods, and all of you are children of the Most High.” But you shall die like men. (Psalm 82:6-7) In the opening verse of this psalm it is stated, “God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods.” Now again in this verse, men are...

They do not know, nor do they understand; they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are unstable. (Psalm 82:5) On the second day of Creation, the Almighty established a firmament in the heavens that “divided the waters which were under the...

They do not know, nor do they understand; they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are unstable. (Psalm 82:5) As the psalm continues, Asaph laments the fact that, despite the great responsibility given to rulers and judges, too many of them were...

Defend the poor and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy; free them from the hand of the wicked. (Psalm 82:3-4) There is a clear and unambiguous message presented here: those with power and influence (e.g. judges, rulers)...

God stands in the congregation of the mighty; He judges among the gods. How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked? (Psalm 82:1-2) As we consider the opening verse of the psalm, it should be noted that the Hebrew phrase translated as “He...

My people would not heed My voice, and Israel would have none of Me. So I gave them over to their own stubborn heart, to walk in their own counsels. (Psalm 81:11-12) In the beginning, mankind dwelt in a literal Paradise where they could freely eat the different fruits...

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt; open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. (Psalm 81:10) As was mentioned in the previous devotion, the first words God spoke to those assembled at Sinai were “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out...

There shall be no strange god among you; nor shall you worship any foreign god. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. (Psalm 81:9-10) When Israel assembled at the foot of Mount Sinai before the Lord, the first thing He said to them was, “I...