Psalm 77

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1

Complaining to God. "I will cry unto God with my voice, and may he give ear unto me!" No historical associations can be fixed for this psalm. It is the psalm of one deeply interested in the welfare of Israel, who takes as a burden on his own heart the depressed condition of the nation, and gloomily regards it as a sign of the withdrawal of God's favour. The trouble of the writer is not persona], but relative; and with its moods may be compared the prayers of Daniel (9) and of Nehemiah (1).... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-15

Refuge in God's unchangeableness. Occasion of the psalm uncertain. "The poet flees from the sorrowful present away into the memory of the years of olden times, and consoles himself especially with the deliverance out of Egypt. But it remains obscure what kind of affliction it is which drives him to find refuge from the God now hidden in the God who was formerly manifest." I. HE PERSEVERES IN PRAYER , THOUGH HE HAS NO SENSE OF THE PRESENCE OR MERCY OF GOD ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-20

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-20

From darkness to dawn. So may this psalm be described. We have the night of weeping followed by the morning, if not of joy, yet of peace. It is a portraiture to which the experience of myriads of souls has answered and will answer. Hence, for the help of all such, the psalm has been given. We know not who the writer was, nor when, nor the special reason why, the psalm was written. We only know that it is the utterance of a heart that had been sorely troubled, but to whom light and peace... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:2

In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord (comp. Genesis 35:3 ; Habakkuk 3:16 ). My sore ran in the night; rather, my band was stretched out in the night (Cook, Cheyne, Revised Version); comp. Psalms 28:2 . And ceased not . He continued in prayer all through the night. My soul refused to be comforted (comp. Genesis 37:35 ; Jeremiah 31:15 ). He was like Jacob when he lost Joseph, or like Rachel weeping for her children. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:2

The mission of mental depressions. "My hand in the night season was stretched out, and ceased not." The figure is of the hand stretched out in prayer till it was unnerved by weariness, and yet refused to rest. The cause of lying awake at night is usually mental anxiety and distress; burdens on the mind rather than pains in the body. We begin to think worryfully, and so banish sleep. The text, therefore, presents a season of mental depression; and the occasion of it is found in the anxious... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:3

I remembered God, and was troubled. The tenses used are present rather than past; they mark continuance; they describe the condition in which the writer remained for days or weeks. He thought of God, but the thought troubled him. It was God who had brought the calamity, whatever it was, upon his people. Seemingly, he had "cast them off"—he had "forgotten to be gracious" (see Psalms 77:7-9 ). I complained; rather, I muse or meditate (Hengstenberg, Kay, Cheyne). And my spirit was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:3

Sick bed promises. "I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed." "Conversion during trouble difficult and unsatisfactory." Most men forget God while they are free from trouble; some remember him in trouble, and the remembrance brings an increase of trouble. Salvation, conversion, on a sick bed (death bed) difficult and doubtful. I. IT IS DIFFICULT . 1 . The mind is sometimes oppressed with such fears as to prevent the exercise of faith... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:4

Thou holdest mine eyes waking; literally, thou boldest the watches of mine eyes; i.e. preventedst me from obtaining any sleep. I am so troubled that I cannot speak; literally, I was perplexed and did not speak. The perplexity was probably caused by an inability to understand God's ways. Why had he afflicted his people? Was the affliction always to continue? Was Israel cast off? read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:4

Occupations for sleepless nights. Comparing Psalms 77:3 , we find that, lying awake, the psalmist had "remembered God," or, more precisely, had "thought upon God." It is true that the thought had only brought him trouble, but the occupation was good, whatever it brought him. Comp. Psalms 4:4 , "Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still;" Psalms 63:6 , "When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches." As the cause of less of sleep is... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-15

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-20

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:1-20

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:3

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:3

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:4

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 77:4

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