Reading: Psalm 78:1-7
Psalm 78:4 – “We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord.”
Asaph begins Psalm 78 by introducing the audience and the purpose of this Psalm. He is going to instruct the people of God. It should be noted that he is writing to a very small fragment of the former kingdom of Israel. As detailed in the rest of the Psalm, the nation divided into the northern and southern kingdoms. The north’s ten tribes continued in their sin one too many times. God sent the Assyrians, who laid waste to the north and took many people into exile. Only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin remained in the south. It was during this time period that Asaph writes, “We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord.”
In today’s verses, Asaph emphasizes telling the next generation the truth – the good and the bad. Lessons can be learned from both our successes and from our failures. To paint only a rosy picture does a great disservice to our children. It creates a false hope. From each failure, we learn lessons and we learn that God is faithful and good. It was true for Israel and it is true in our lives. God does not leave us in our sin. When we are repentant, God rescues, redeems, and restores. This builds true hope. And, yes, it is sometimes after learning a hard lesson. A necessary but hard lesson. In verse 8, that is Asaph’s hope. Here he writes, “Then they will not be like their ancestors – stubborn, rebellious, and unfaithful, refusing to give their hearts to God.” Ah.
Asaph’s writing was promoted by wrestling with questions like these: How did we get here? Why are we here? Who is responsible? Who and what do we want to be? How do we get to that preferred future? This questioning is the next step in truth-telling. May we teach our children this next step too. O Lord, may it be so.
Prayer: Lord God, how we need you. On our own, we quickly become less than you created and intend us to be. Selfishness leads to sin and division. There we lose hope. Lead and guide us to tell the whole story and to wrestle with the searching questions and with the truth that they tell. Guide us to work for a future with hope for all people. Amen.
