Psalms 83:1-11

1 O God, do not keep silent; do not be still, do not be quiet!
2 Look! Your enemies are in revolt, and those who hate you are rebelling.
3 They are making secret plans against your people; they are plotting against those you protect.
4 "Come," they say, "let us destroy their nation, so that Israel will be forgotten forever."
5 They agree on their plan and form an alliance against you:
6 the people of Edom and the Ishmaelites; the people of Moab and the Hagrites;
7 the people of Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek, and of Philistia and Tyre.
8 Assyria has also joined them as a strong ally of the Ammonites and Moabites, the descendants of Lot.
9 Do to them what you did to the Midianites, 1 and to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.
10 You defeated them at Endor, and their bodies rotted on the ground.
11 Do to their leaders what you did to Oreb and Zeeb; 2 defeat all their rulers as you did Zebah and Zalmunna,

Psalms 83:1-11 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 83

\\<>\\. This is the last of the psalms that bear the name of Asaph, and some think it was written by him on occasion of David's smiting the Philistines, Moabites, Syrians, Edomites, and others, 2Sa 8:1-14, but these did not conjunctly, but separately, fight with David, and were overcome by him; whereas those this psalm makes mention of were in a confederacy together; and besides, the Tyrians in David's time were in friendship with him; but are here mentioned as joining with others against Israel, Ps 83:7, others are of opinion that this was prophetic delivered out with respect to future times, either to the conspiracy of the enemies of the Jews against them in the times of the Maccabees, ``Now when the nations round about heard that the altar was built and the sanctuary renewed as before, it displeased them very much. &c.'' (1 Maccabees 5:1) or rather to the confederacy of the Moabites, Ammonites, and others, in the times of Jehoshaphat, 2Ch 20:1, so Kimchi, Arama, and the generality of interpreters: perhaps reference is had to the enemies of God's people, from age to age, both in the Old and in the New Testament; R. Obadiah understands it of the war of Gog and Magog.

Cross References 2

  • 1. 83.9 aJudges 7.1-23; bJudges 4.6-22.
  • 2. 83.11 aJudges 7.25; bJudges 8.12.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.