Psalms 81

General context

The psalm opens with a call to sing aloud to God our strength and make a joyful noise to the God of Jacob, to take a psalm with timbrel, harp and psaltery, and to blow the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on the solemn feast day. This is called a statute for Israel and a law of the God of Jacob, ordained in Joseph for a testimony when he went out through the land of Egypt, where a language was heard that was not understood. The voice then speaks as the one who removed the shoulder from the burden and delivered the hands from the pots, who answered in the secret place of thunder and proved the people at the waters of Meribah. A Selah follows. God says, Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: there shall be no strange god, I am the Lord thy God which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, open thy mouth wide and I will fill it. But my people would not hearken and Israel would none of me, so God gave them up to their own hearts' lust and their own counsels. The psalm closes with a wish: had the people hearkened and walked in God's ways, he would soon have subdued their enemies, the haters of the Lord would have submitted, and he would have fed them with the finest of the wheat and honey out of the rock.

Cited passages: Psalms 81:1, Psalms 81:2, Psalms 81:3, Psalms 81:4, Psalms 81:5, Psalms 81:6, Psalms 81:7, Psalms 81:8, Psalms 81:9, Psalms 81:10, Psalms 81:11, Psalms 81:12, Psalms 81:13, Psalms 81:14, Psalms 81:16

Psalms 81 (KJV)

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Historical context

This source prints no superscription; the psalm begins with Sing aloud unto God our strength. The text places the singing in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day, and calls that a statute for Israel ordained in Joseph when he went out through the land of Egypt; it does not name the feast. The speaker changes partway through. The opening verses are a call addressed to the congregation; from verse 6 the I is the one who removed his shoulder from the burden, answered in the secret place of thunder, proved thee at the waters of Meribah and says I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt. Verse 5 ends with where I heard a language that I understood not, and the text does not make clear whose ear that is. The one Selah stands after verse 7, at the mention of Meribah, before Hear, O my people. The only place named besides Egypt is the waters of Meribah, and the psalm does not narrate what happened there. The people are called both my people and Israel, and the refusal is stated as Israel would none of me.

Cited passages: Psalms 81:3, Psalms 81:5, Psalms 81:6, Psalms 81:7, Psalms 81:10, Psalms 81:11, Psalms 81:8

Literary context

The psalm starts loud, with singing, a joyful noise, timbrel, harp, psaltery and trumpet, and ends in a quiet conditional about what should have been. The hinge is the word hearken: God says if thou wilt hearken unto me, then reports my people would not hearken, then wishes Oh that my people had hearkened. Deliverance is described in bodily terms, a shoulder freed from a burden and hands from pots, and the promise is bodily too: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it. The ending returns to feeding, with the finest of the wheat and honey out of the rock, so the mouth God offered to fill is left unfilled by the people's own refusal. God's giving them up to their own counsels is stated without further punishment; the loss the psalm names is what they would have had.

Cited passages: Psalms 81:2, Psalms 81:8, Psalms 81:11, Psalms 81:13, Psalms 81:6, Psalms 81:10, Psalms 81:16, Psalms 81:12

Key moments

1. Trumpet at the new moon (Psalms 81:3). The call to sound the trumpet on the solemn feast day is given as a statute.
2. Freed from the burden (Psalms 81:6). The voice becomes God's, recalling a shoulder removed from the burden.
3. Proved at Meribah (Psalms 81:7). God recalls answering in thunder and proving the people at the waters of Meribah.
4. Open thy mouth wide (Psalms 81:10). God names himself as the one who brought Israel out of Egypt and promises to fill the open mouth.
5. Israel would none of me (Psalms 81:11). God reports that his people would not hearken and were given up to their own counsels.
6. Honey out of the rock (Psalms 81:16). The psalm ends with what God would have fed his people had they listened.

For reflection

A song for a feast day ends with God saying what he would have done if his people had listened. Why might a psalm meant for singing aloud carry that unfinished wish as its last word?

People in this chapter

• Jacob
• Asaph
• Joseph (OT)