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Prayer for Israel Based on Psalms 83 and 85

Psalms 83 and 85 offer distinct yet complementary prayers for Israel, reflecting different circumstances of national distress and hope for divine intervention. Psalm 83 is a communal lament, pleading for God's action against a powerful coalition of enemies seeking to destroy Israel [9]. Psalm 85, in contrast, is a post-exilic prayer for full redemption and restoration, acknowledging God's past mercies while longing for renewed favor [7].

Psalm 83: A Plea for Deliverance from Enemies

Psalm 83 opens with an urgent cry: "O God, do not remain silent; do not turn a deaf ear, O God; do not be idle!" (Psalm 83:1, BSB). The psalmist implores God to intervene on behalf of his "injured threatened people" [8]. This psalm is characterized by terse poetry, suggesting a period of significant difficulty [9]. The core of the lament describes a powerful alliance of nations surrounding Israel and Judah, who have "signed a treaty" to fight against God and his people [6]. These nations are explicitly named in the psalm (e.g., Edom, Ishmaelites, Moab, Hagrites, Gebal, Ammon, Amalek, Philistia, Tyre, Assyria) [6].

The enemies' stated goal is to "cut them off from being a nation, so that the name of Israel will be remembered no more" (Psalm 83:4, BSB). The psalmist perceives this as an attack not only on Israel but also on God himself, as the alliance is formed "against you" (Psalm 83:5, BSB) [6]. The prayer then shifts to a petition for God to deal with these enemies as he did with past adversaries like Midian, Sisera, and Jabin (Psalm 83:9-12). The psalmist asks God to make them like "whirling dust" and "chaff before the wind" (Psalm 83:13, BSB), praying that they be pursued with a tempest and terrified by a storm (Psalm 83:15). The ultimate purpose of this judgment is so that the enemies "may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the Most High over all the earth" (Psalm 83:18, BSB). This verse connects with other scriptures emphasizing God's unique sovereignty, such as Isaiah 42:8 and 57:15 [2, 5].

Matthew Henry, a Nonconformist commentator, notes that even in times of "danger, and fear, and great distress," the prayer is still called a "song or psalm," indicating that "singing psalms is not unseasonable" [8]. The Tyndale House Psalms commentary suggests that it is "unclear whether this psalm arose out of a specific historical instance of opposition by these nations, or if it is a poetic collage of nations representing Israel’s enemies" [9].

Psalm 85: A Prayer for Restoration After Exile

Psalm 85 reflects a different national mood, one of gratitude for past deliverance mixed with a longing for complete restoration. The Tyndale House Psalms commentary identifies it as a post-exilic community lament and prayer for "full redemption" [7]. The psalmist begins by acknowledging God's past goodness: "You showed favor to your land, O Lord; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people and covered all their sins" (Psalm 85:1-2, BSB). This opening sets a tone of grateful remembrance of God's rescue of Israel from exile [7].

Despite this gratitude, the psalmist expresses a desire for "greater evidence of God’s goodness" and leads the community in prayer for "full restoration" [7]. The petition asks, "Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation" (Psalm 85:6-7, BSB). This prayer for renewal is grounded in God's steadfast love for his people [11]. The concept of God's unfailing love and salvation is cross-referenced with Isaiah 26:3, which speaks of perfect peace for those whose minds are steadfast [3].

The psalm then shifts to a hopeful anticipation of God's response: "I will listen to what God the Lord will say; he promises peace to his people, his faithful servants—but let them not return to folly" (Psalm 85:8, BSB). This divine message of peace is a central theme [7]. The psalm concludes with a "lyrical outburst at the grandeur of God’s salvation" [7], describing a harmonious interaction between divine attributes: "Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest" (Psalm 85:10-12, BSB). This imagery of righteousness and peace is echoed in Isaiah 45:8 [4]. The final verse, "Righteousness will go before him and prepare the way for his steps" (Psalm 85:13, BSB), suggests that God's justice precedes his blessings, a concept also found in Isaiah 58:8 [1].

The Jamieson, Fausset & Brown commentary suggests that Psalm 85, like many of David's psalms, mingles petitions and praises, reflecting a "suffering child of God" who is both "poor and needy" and "godly" [10]. Both Psalms 83 and 85, though addressing different national crises, underscore the Israelite community's reliance on God's intervention, whether for protection from external threats or for internal spiritual and physical restoration. The Anglican Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion includes both Psalms 83 and 85 in its enumeration of the Psalms [12].

Sources

  1. OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Isa.58.8 → Ps.85.13 (confidence: 34 votes)”
  2. OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Isa.42.8 → Ps.83.18 (confidence: 15 votes)”
  3. OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Isa.26.3 → Ps.85.7-Ps.85.8 (confidence: 77 votes)”
  4. OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Ps.85.11 → Isa.45.8 (confidence: 10 votes)”
  5. OpenBible.info “Cross-reference: Isa.57.15 → Ps.83.18 (confidence: 16 votes)”
  6. Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 83:5: 83:5-8 signed a treaty: The allies agreed to fight against God and his people. The nations that are named in the alliance were situated around Israel and Judah.”
  7. Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 85:1: Ps 85 The psalmist leads the postexilic community in lament and prayer for full redemption. He ponders God’s past rescue of Israel from exile (85:1-3), longs for greater evidence of God’s goodness, and leads the community in prayer for full restoration (85:4-7). God responds with a message of peace (85:8-9), and the psalm concludes with a lyrical outburst at the grandeur of God’s salvation (85:10-13). 85:1-5 Though the psalmist gratefully acknowledges God’s goodness, he also asks God whether his wrath will last forever. 85:1 God restored the fortunes of Israel by ”
  8. Psalms (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Psalms 83:1: The Israel of God were now in danger, and fear, and great distress, and yet their prayer is called, A song or psalm; for singing psalms is not unseasonable, no, not when the harps are hung upon the willow-trees. I. The psalmist here begs of God to appear on the behalf of his injured threatened people (Psa 83:1): "Keep not thou silence, O God! but give judgment for us against those that do us an apparent wrong." Thus Jehoshaphat prayed upon occasion of that invasion (Ch2 20:11), Behold, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession. Sometimes God see”
  9. Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 83:1: Ps 83 This community lament asks God for rescue and victory. The terse poetry suggests difficult times. A powerful coalition desires to destroy Israel (83:1-4) and allies itself against God (83:5-8). Recalling the fate of others who came against Israel (83:9-12), the psalmist prays that the same will happen to these enemies (83:13-16) so that God will receive honor among them (83:17-18). It is unclear whether this psalm arose out of a specific historical instance of opposition by these nations, or if it is a poetic collage of nations representing Israel’s enemies.”
  10. Psalms (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Psalms 85 (introduction): This is a prayer in which the writer, with deep emotion, mingles petitions and praises, now urgent for help, and now elated with hope, in view of former mercies. The occurrence of many terms and phrases peculiar to David's Psalms clearly intimates its authorship. (Psa. 86:1-17) poor and needy--a suffering child of God, as in Psa 10:12, Psa 10:17; Psa 18:27. I am holy--or, "godly," as in Psa 4:3; Psa 85:8.”
  11. Psalms (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Psalms 85:6: 85:6-7 This prayer for renewal is based on God’s unfailing love for his people.”
  12. Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican) “Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion (Anglican, 1571), Psalms 1 - 5: Psalms 1 - 5 Psalms 6 - 8 Psalms 9 - 11 Psalms 12 - 14 Psalms 15 - 17 Psalm 18 Psalm 19 - 21 Psalms 22 - 23 Psalms 24 - 26 Psalms 27 - 29 Psalms 30 - 31 Psalms 32 - 34 Psalms 35 - 36 Psalm 37 Psalms 38 - 40 Psalms 41 - 43 Psalms 44 - 46 Psalms 47 - 49 Psalms 50 - 52 Psalms 53 - 55 Psalms 56 - 58 Psalms 59 - 61 Psalms 62 - 64 Psalms 65 - 67 Psalm 68 Psalms 69 - 70 Psalms 71 - 72 Psalms 73 - 74 Psalms 75 - 77 Psalm 78 Psalms 79 - 81 Psalms 82 - 85 Psalms 86 - 88 Psalm 89 Psalms 90 - 92 Psalms 93 - 94 Psalms 95 - 97 Psalms 98 - 101 ”
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