Psalm 44 Study Notes

44:12 Selling was a common way of describing God giving his people over to the power of their enemies (Dt 32:30; Jdg 2:14; 3:8; 4:2,9; 10:7). It occurs most often in the context of God’s response to Israel’s rebellion against him.

44:13-16 Almost every Hebrew word for ridicule is used in these verses. The word for joke (Hb mashal) expresses the idea of a byword or proverbial saying. The shame of Israel was so extensive and had lasted so long that the nations were using them as the butt of jokes and sayings.

44:17-18 This is a declaration of innocence similar to those of individual lament psalms (Pss 17; 26), but here it expresses the innocence of the nation. The psalmist protested that they had done nothing to deserve this treatment. Turned back is similar to the idea of “turning aside” in reference to the proper path of God. It expresses the idea of rejecting God’s commands (78:57; 119:51; Dt 5:32). The protest that people had not strayed from God’s path is reminiscent of Job’s protest (Jb 23:11) and also of the psalmist in Ps 17:5.

44:19 God had destroyed them and left them among the deserted ruins where only wild animals roam. Deepest darkness is the same Hebrew word as that translated “darkest” in 23:4.

44:20 Spreading out hands was a gesture used in the context of prayer and worship (88:9; 141:2; 143:6; Ex 9:29,33; Ezr 9:5; Is 1:15).

44:21 The secrets of the heart are attitudes and motives. A person’s integrity could be tested by God to determine if he was innocent of false motives (26:2; Jr 12:3).

44:22 Being put to death is “the price of loyalty in a world which is at war with God” (Derek Kidner). This verse is quoted in Rm 8:36.

44:23-26 Wake up calls God to act. Rise up is similar, but with military connotations (see note at 7:6-8). The dust is often used to represent humiliation in defeat at the hands of an enemy (7:5; 72:9; Is 49:23). It could also refer to humility before the Lord either in worship or in prayer (Dt 9:18; 2Ch 20:18).