Psalms 78:57

57 They turned back and were as faithless as their parents. They were as undependable as a crooked bow.

Psalms 78:57 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 78:57

But turned back
From God and his worship, apostatized from the true religion, and turned to idols:

and dealt unfaithfully, like their fathers;
in the wilderness; see ( Psalms 78:8 Psalms 78:36 Psalms 78:37 ) ,

they were turned aside like a deceitful bow;
that promises well to carry the arrow right, but drops it at the feet of the archer; or carries it another way, so that it misses the mark, The Targum is,

``as a bow casting arrows;''

to the ground, and not to the mark; see ( Hosea 7:16 ) , or being too much stretched is suddenly broken, and kills the archer; or returns to its own nature; so Arama.

Psalms 78:57 In-Context

55 He drove out the nations before them; he gave them their inheritance by lot. He settled the tribes of Israel into their homes.

56 But they kept testing and rebelling against God Most High. They did not obey his laws.

57 They turned back and were as faithless as their parents. They were as undependable as a crooked bow.

58 They angered God by building shrines to other gods; they made him jealous with their idols.

59 When God heard them, he was very angry, and he completely rejected Israel.