Psalms 79:1-4

1. A lament over Jerusalem’s destruction 79:1-4

Enemies had invaded Israel, defiled the temple, destroyed Jerusalem, and left the bodies of Israel’s soldiers unburied. To lie unburied, like an animal for which no one cared, was the final humiliation. Consequently, God’s inheritance had become an object of derision for her neighbors.

"The issue here is not God’s justice in judging his people but the means used by the Lord [cf. Habakkuk 1-2]. The pagans must be held accountable for their desecration of the holy people and the holy temple so that they may be restored and God’s people no longer experience defilement and disgrace (cf. Isaiah 35:8; Isaiah 52:1)." [Note: VanGemeren, p. 519.]