08/18/2022 – Day 172 – Psalm 72 – 74 // Very different timeline between Psalm 72 and the other two.// No, God had not rejected his people forever as claimed in 74:1.
Psalm 72: I prefer quoting my commentator help, dedicated warriors that lived before me. But this is funny, because I am drawing from two commentators: Matthew Henry and Henry H. Halley (“Halley’s Bible Handbook”)
First, this is one of Solomon’s Psalms, the other being 127. Halley’s title for the Chapter is: “Glory and Grandeur of Messiah’s Reign”. But , yet oddly , he adds: “We may think that this Psalm was, in part, a description of this own peaceful and gloriious reign. But some of is statements, and it’s general tenor , can allude only to the Kingdom of ONE Greater than Solomon.” Amen, brother Henry, but I agree with Matthew Henry, maybe all of it in the first 17 verses, excluding the very first verse in Chapter is to Jesus THE King. Halley gives’s a good cross reference to Isaiah 42: 1-11.
Chapter 73. “Prosperity of the Wicked.”
This is Halley’s short summary: “Solution: Consider their Latter End. This is one of Asaph’s Psalm: 50, 70 – 83. Asaph was David’s Song Leader (I Chronicles 15: 16 – 50 ; 16:5) Hezekiah’s choirs sang Asaph’s Psalms (II Chronicles 29:30).” So, it is interesting that Asaph’s service extends into Solomon’s reign, the absolute pinnacle of prosperity for the Jewish nation, all twelve tribes united. But apparently, the very wicked are unjustifiably enjoying that wealth, much to Asaph’s disgust. So, this is about 950 b.c. or so, around 400 years prior to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple and the Babylonia Captivity, the horrific scene described in Chapter 74.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/matthew-henry-complete/psalms/74.html
As noted in the commentary to Chapter 74 above, it is probably more likely this chapter was penned during the destruction by another Asaph, as opposed to the conjecture that it was a prophecy that was fullfilled 400 years later after it was written down. (Noting of course, we don’t discount them, seeing we have many such prophecies in God’s Word where that was very clearly the case) As horrific it was that the temple was leveled, God was not rejecting his people forever as is claimed in the first verse of this chapter, in fact the people would return from captivity just 50 years later.
Destruction of Jerusalem – about 586 B.C. / Return from Captivity – about 536 B.C. / Temple Rebuilt – about 520 B.C. / Esther becomes Queen of Persia – about 478 B.C. / Nehemiah Rebuilds the Wall – about 444 B.C.
Soli Deo Gloria!