Asaph is reflecting on the importance of the current generation of believers informing their children about the history of God’s kingdom. The previous generation had informed the next of the great things the Lord had done for them. God had commanded his people to engage in this activity so that future generations would hope in him and be encouraged to obey his commandments (vv. 1-7). In this way, they would be kept from becoming a generation marked by stubbornness and rebellion, like a generation of Ephraimites who had refused to engage in defending the Lord’s cause despite being armed for the fight (vv. 8-9).
An obvious divine activity to think about was the Exodus. God had done great things when he delivered his people from Egypt: there were the wonders connected to the plagues, there was the dividing of the Red Sea, there was the guidance given by the pillar of cloud and by the pillar of light, and there was the provision of water. Nevertheless, they rebelled against him by demanding particular food, an attitude that angered the Lord. Yet God continued to meet their needs through the manna and quail. Although some were judged by him for their rebellion, the others still did not trust in him (vv. 10-32).
The history of Israel became a cycle of divine chastisement followed by shallow repentance. They were not sincere in their commitment. Nevertheless, the Lord showed them compassion and did not abandon them. He recognised the fragility and instability of those he had rescued, their inclination to forget what he had done for them at the Exodus, and he determined to take them to his land. In his providence, he enabled them to defeat the tribes living in Canaan (vv. 33-55).
Yet after receiving the land as their inheritance, they repeated the sins of their ancestors and engaged in idolatry at high places, for which they were punished by the Lord and rejected by him. He showed his displeasure by forsaking Shiloh (when the Philistines captured the ark of the covenant), the location where each of the tribes had received their allotted inheritance (Josh. 18:19), and he allowed the symbol of his presence to be taken away. Israel then suffered badly from their foes (vv. 56-64).
This state of affairs lasted until the time came for the Lord to deal with the enemies of Israel. They were defeated, and the Lord established his kingdom. But he did not give the kingship to the most powerful tribe Ephraim, perhaps because of their previous failures. Instead, he chose Judah as the royal tribe and placed his sanctuary there. This process of restoration did not occur under Saul, the first king of Israel, but through David whom God took from shepherding sheep and enabled him to be the wise and righteous shepherd king of his people (vv. 65-72).
From one point of view, Asaph has provided an outline for other Israelites to use as they instruct the next generation about what the Lord did for them in the past, from the Exodus to the enthronement of David. Of course, other notable actions were done by the Lord after David had passed away.
The application for us is obvious, which is that we should know something of the history of the church because it reminds us of great actions of God, times of judgement from God, and periods of restoration by God. When we are in dark spiritual times, we can mention his previous actions on behalf of his people, and ask him to provide such recoveries again so that his name would be praised.
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