Psalms 83:1-6

1 The song of the psalm of Asaph. God, who shall be like thee? God, be thou not still, neither be thou peaced. (God, be thou not silent. Yea, God, be thou not still, nor hold thy peace.)

2 For lo! thine enemies sounded; and they that hate thee raised the head. (For lo! thy enemies have raised a ruckus; and those who hate thee have raised up their heads in revolt, or in defiance.)

3 They made a wicked counsel on thy people; and they thought against thy saints. (They made wicked plans against thy people; yea, they thought together against thy saints.)

4 They said, Come ye, and lose we them from the folk; and the name of Israel be no more had in mind. (They said, Come ye, and let us destroy their nation; and then the name of Israel shall no more be remembered.)

5 For they thought with one accord; (For they thought with one accord; they proposed together a plan against thee/they conspired to work together against thee;)

6 the tabernacles of Idumeans, and men of Ishmael disposed a testament together against thee. Moab, and Hagarenes, (yea, the families of the Edomites, and the Ishmaelites; and the Moabites, and the Hagarenes;)

Psalms 83:1-6 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.