Psalms 80
1 To the Chief Musician. For "the Lilies of Testimony." Asaph’s. A Melody. O Shepherd of Israel, give ear, Thou who leddest forth Joseph like a rock, Thou who art throned on the cherubim, appear!
[Yahweh], you [who lead us like] a shepherd leads his flock [of sheep], listen to us Israeli people. You sit on your throne [in the Very Holy Place in the temple], above the [carvings of] winged creatures.
2 Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh, stir up thy strength, And come! to our salvation.
Show yourself to [the people of the tribes of] Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh! Show us that you are powerful and come and rescue us!
3 O God, bring us back, And light up thy face, That we may be saved.
God, cause our nation to be strong like it was before; be kind to us [IDM] in order that we may be saved [from our enemies.]
4 O Yahweh, God of hosts! How long hast thou been wroth with the prayer of thy people?
Yahweh, you who are the commander of the armies of heaven, how long will you be angry with us, your people, when we pray to you?
5 Thou hast fed them with the food of tears, And hast caused them to drink the water of weeping in threefold abundance.
[It is as though] the only food and drink that you have given us is a cup full of our tears!
6 Thou dost make us an object of contention to our neighbours, And, our foes, find mockery for themselves.
You have allowed the people-groups that surround us to fight with [each other to decide which part of our land each of them will take]; our enemies laugh at us.
7 O God of hosts, bring us back, And light up thy face, That we may be saved.
God, commander of the armies of heaven, cause our nation to be strong like it was before! Be kind to us in order that we may be saved!
8 A vine out of Egypt, thou didst remove, Thou didst cast out nations, and plant it;
[Our ancestors were like] a grapevine [MET] that you brought out of Egypt; you expelled the other people-groups [from this land], and you put your people in their land.
9 Thou didst make a clear space before it, So it rooted well its roots, and filled up the land;
[Like people] clear ground to plant a grapevine [MET], [you cleared out the people who were living in this land for us to live in it]. [Like] the roots of a grapevine go deep down into the ground and spread [MET], [you enabled our ancestors to prosper and start living in towns all over this land].
10 Covered were the mountains with its shade, And, with its boughs, the mighty cedars.
[Like huge] grapevines cover the hills with their shade and their branches are taller than big cedar [trees] [MET, HYP],
11 It thrust forth its branches as far as the sea, —And, unto the River, its shoots.
[your people ruled all of Canaan], from the [Mediterranean] Sea [in the west] to the [Euphrates] River [in the east].
12 Wherefore hast thou broken down its fences, So that all who pass along the way, pluck its fruit?
So why have you abandoned us and [allowed our enemies to] tear down our walls [RHQ]? [You are like] someone who tears down the fences [around his vineyard], with the result that all [the people] who pass by [can] steal the grapes,
13 The boar out of the forest, browseth upon it, And, the wild beast of the field, pastureth thereon.
and wild pigs [can] trample [the vines], and wild animals [can also] eat [the grapes].
14 O God of hosts, return, we pray thee, —Look down out of the heavens, and see, And inspect this vine:
You who are the commander of the armies of heaven, (turn to/stop abandoning) us! Look down from heaven and see [what is happening to] us! Come and rescue [us who are like] [MET] your grapevine,
15 Yea the stock which thy right hand planted, Even upon the son thou didst secure for thyself.
who are [like] the young vine that you [SYN] planted and caused to grow!
16 To be burned with fire, it is cut down, —At the rebuke of thy countenance, they will perish.
Our enemies have torn down and burned everything in our land; look at them angrily and get rid of them!
17 Let thy hand be, Upon the Man of thy right hand, Upon the Son of Man thou didst secure for thyself;
But strengthen [us] people whom you have chosen [IDM], [us] Israeli people whom you [previously] caused to be very strong.
18 So will we not draw back from thee, Thou wilt bring us to life, And, on thy Name, will we call.
When you do that, we will never turn away from you again; (revive us/cause us to be again like we were previously), and [then] we will praise/worship you.
19 O Yahweh, God of hosts! bring us back, Light up thy face, That we may be saved.
Yahweh, commander of the armies of heaven, restore us; be kind to us in order that we may be rescued [from our enemies]!
