Catholic Commentary on Psalm 74

"But God is my King from long ago; he brings salvation on the earth." (Psalm 74:12)

The Destruction of the Sanctuary

Psalm 74 is a communal lament over the destruction of the Temple, probably composed after the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. The opening cry is one of the most poignant in the entire Psalter: O God, why have you rejected us forever? Why does your anger smoulder against the sheep of your pasture? The Temple has been destroyed, the sacred signs of God's presence obliterated, the sanctuary broken. The enemies have set up their standards as signs in the holy place. They have smashed the carved panelling with their axes. They have burned the sanctuary to the ground.

The lament is not just about the building. It is about the apparent absence of God from his own house: We are given no signs from God; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be. The silence of prophecy, the absence of divine communication, is as devastating as the destruction of stone and wood. The community is left without guidance, without assurance, in the ruins of what had been the place of encounter with God.

But God Is My King

In the middle of the lament, a pivot of faith: But God is my King from long ago; he brings salvation on the earth. The destruction of the Temple has not dethroned the King. The absence of signs has not ended his sovereignty. The community's memory of what God has done, dividing the sea, crushing the heads of Leviathan, making springs flow in the wilderness, these acts cannot be undone by the destruction of a building. The Catechism teaches that the Church does not depend on any earthly building for its existence: the true Temple is the Body of Christ, which no Babylonian army can destroy (CCC 586).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, when the structures you have trusted have been destroyed, when the signs have gone silent, when no prophet speaks and you do not know how long this will last, the pivot of Psalm 74 is available: but God is my King from long ago. The ruins do not change who sits on the throne. Build your hope on that, not on the building.

Prayer

O God, why have you rejected us? Look on this scene of destruction. But you are my King from long ago. You bring salvation on the earth. Remember the covenant. Arise and defend your cause. Do not let your enemies mock your name forever. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

74
Why Have You Rejected Us Forever?
(Psalms 79:1–13; Jeremiah 52:1–11)
A Maskil * 74:0 Maskil is probably a musical or liturgical term; used for Psalms 32, 42, 44–45, 52–55, 74, 78, 88–89, and 142. of Asaph.
 
1 Why have You rejected us forever, O God?
Why does Your anger smolder
against the sheep of Your pasture?
2 Remember Your congregation,
which You purchased long ago
and redeemed as the tribe of Your inheritance—
Mount Zion where You dwell.
3 Turn Your steps to the everlasting ruins,
to everything in the sanctuary the enemy has destroyed.
 
4 Your foes have roared within Your meeting place;
they have unfurled their banners as signs,
5 like men wielding axes in a thicket of trees
6 and smashing all the carvings with hatchets and picks.
7 They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground;
they have defiled the dwelling place of Your Name.
 
8 They said in their hearts,
“We will crush them completely.”
They burned down every place
where God met us in the land.
9 There are no signs for us to see.
There is no longer any prophet.
And none of us knows how long this will last.
10 How long, O God, will the enemy taunt You?
Will the foe revile Your name forever?
11 Why do You withdraw Your strong right hand?
Stretch it out to destroy them!† 74:11 Literally From the midst of Your bosom destroy them! or From the midst of Your bosom remove it!
 
12 Yet God is my King from ancient times,
working salvation on the earth.
13 You divided the sea by Your strength;
You smashed the heads of the dragons of the sea;
14 You crushed the heads of Leviathan;
You fed him to the creatures of the desert.
15 You broke open the fountain and the flood;
You dried up the ever-flowing rivers.
16 The day is Yours, and also the night;
You established the moon ‡ 74:16 Literally the light and the sun.
17 You set all the boundaries of the earth;
You made the summer and winter.
 
18 Remember how the enemy has mocked You, O LORD,
how a foolish people has spurned Your name.
19 Do not deliver the soul of Your dove to beasts;
do not forget the lives of Your afflicted forever.
20 Consider Your covenant,
for haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
21 Do not let the oppressed retreat in shame;
may the poor and needy praise Your name.
 
22 Rise up, O God; defend Your cause!
Remember how the fool mocks You all day long.
23 Do not disregard the clamor of Your adversaries,
the uproar of Your enemies that ascends continually.

*^ 74:0 Maskil is probably a musical or liturgical term; used for Psalms 32, 42, 44–45, 52–55, 74, 78, 88–89, and 142.

†74:11 74:11 Literally From the midst of Your bosom destroy them! or From the midst of Your bosom remove it!

‡74:16 74:16 Literally the light

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