Psalm 80:1-7
1 Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
shine forth 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might;
come and save us.
3 Restore us, O God;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
4 How long, Lord God Almighty,
will your anger smolder
against the prayers of your people?
5 You have fed them with the bread of tears;
you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
6 You have made us an object of derision[b] to our neighbors,
and our enemies mock us.
7 Restore us, God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
8 You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
19 Restore us, Lord God Almighty;
make your face shine on us,
that we may be saved.
DEVOTIONAL
In verses 7 and 19, we see a repeated prayer—“Restore us, O Lord God Almighty; make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.” In Jewish history, we read so many times in which they are falling away and making bad decisions not only about their relationship with God, but with the people who live around them.
Relationship is a theme in the Bible that we often overlook. God wants a relationship with his creation! It hurts him deeply when these Jewish tribes do not follow his instructions about the way they are to live. And guess what? It hurts him deeply when we do the same thing.
In our world today, we find ourselves in many of the same situations. Relationships need help that only God can provide. If we do not adhere to the instructions God has given us for living, which we find in Jesus’ life, we find ourselves living in bad relationships. God does not desire this if we are to be his people today.
So, we too cry, “Restore us.” And God has sent us a way that his face does shine upon us—Jesus. In what ways are you praying this prayer this Advent season? It is in the Messiah’s relationship with us that we find his face shining on us throughout this season.
Author: Mickey Cox
Other Scriptures for today:
- 2 Samuel 7:23-29
- John 3:31-36
Give