Psalms 81

Berean Standard Bible

Chapter summary

Psalm 81 opens with a call to sing for joy and play musical instruments like the tambourine, harp, lyre, and ram's horn to celebrate a festival ordained for Israel and established as a testimony for Joseph. The text recounts how God relieved burdens from shoulders, freed hands from baskets, rescued His people when they called out in distress, answered them from a thunder cloud, and tested them at the waters of Meribah. God then addresses His people, instructing them not to bow to foreign gods and recounting that He is the Lord who brought them up out of Egypt. Because Israel refused to listen or obey, God gave them up to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. The psalm concludes with God expressing that if Israel had listened and followed His ways, He would have quickly subdued their enemies and satisfied the people with the finest wheat and honey from the rock.

Summary automatically generated from the Bible text.

Words of Jesus in red

¹Sing for joy to God our strength; make a joyful noise to the God of Jacob. ²Lift up a song, strike the tambourine, play the sweet-sounding harp and lyre. ³Sound the ram’s horn at the New Moon, and at the full moon on the day of our Feast. ⁴For this is a statute for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob. ⁵He ordained it as a testimony for Joseph when he went out over the land of Egypt, where I heard an unfamiliar language: ⁶“I relieved his shoulder of the burden; his hands were freed from the basket. ⁷You called out in distress, and I rescued you; I answered you from the cloud of thunder; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah ⁸Hear, O My people, and I will warn you: O Israel, if only you would listen to Me! ⁹There must be no strange god among you, nor shall you bow to a foreign god. ¹⁰I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth, and I will fill it. ¹¹But My people would not listen to Me, and Israel would not obey Me. ¹²So I gave them up to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. ¹³If only My people would listen to Me, if Israel would follow My ways, ¹⁴how soon I would subdue their enemies and turn My hand against their foes! ¹⁵Those who hate the LORD would feign obedience, and their doom would last forever. ¹⁶But I would feed you the finest wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”