Psalms 79:6
Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you, and on the kingdoms that do not call upon your name!
English Standard Version (ESV)
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This isn't just a general prayer for vengeance; it's a plea for divine justice specifically directed at those who actively reject and scorn God. The focus isn't on mere ignorance, but on a conscious refusal to "know" and "call upon" God's name, indicating a deeper offense that warrants His righteous anger.
The psalmist is crying out to God amidst a national catastrophe, likely the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by foreign invaders. He has just confessed Israel's sins and acknowledged God's righteous anger, but now he turns his plea towards the enemies who have inflicted this devastation. He asks God to redirect His wrath, which had been poured out on His own people, onto those nations who not only attacked them but also do not know or call upon God's name.
This verse calls for God's anger to be poured out on 'nations that do not know you.' But what does 'knowing' God truly mean in this context?
The psalmist isn't asking for God to lash out at every country on Earth. The target here is specific: nations and kingdoms that have actively rejected or ignored the one true God, even after perhaps hearing about Him.
Deliberate Ignorance
Think of it like this: it's one thing to not know a fact you've never encountered. It's another entirely to hear about a crucial truth and willfully turn away from it. These kingdoms, though they may have known of God, chose not to 'know' Him in the sense of acknowledging His sovereignty, calling on His name, or submitting to His will. Their 'ignorance' is a chosen blindness, a rejection of divine authority.
Why This Matters:
This distinction is vital. It highlights that God's judgment is not arbitrary. It's directed towards those who, given the opportunity, refuse to acknowledge Him. This isn't about nationality, but about a heart posture of rebellion and deliberate disregard.
The language here sounds intense! How can a believer pray for God's wrath to be poured out on others?
It's easy to hear this verse and think the psalmist is just spitting pure hatred. But looking deeper reveals a plea rooted in justice and God's honor, not petty revenge.
The Heart of the Plea:
This prayer arises from a place of deep suffering and the desecration of God's own people and inheritance. The nations have not only attacked Israel but have also shown contempt for the God of Israel. The psalmist isn't asking God to act out of a human emotion of anger, but to enact His righteous judgment upon those who actively oppose Him and harm His chosen people.
God's Role in Justice:
This perspective understands that God is the ultimate judge. While His people suffer, they can appeal to Him, trusting that He alone has the right and the perfect timing to administer justice. It's a prayer that recognizes God's sovereignty and His ultimate plan to set things right, even when human eyes see only devastation and injustice. The focus is on God's honor being restored, not on personal settling of scores.
Understand the original words
chemah · Hebrew Noun
Divine judgment or indignation against sin. In the Bible, God's anger is His righteous and necessary response to rebellion and wickedness, maintaining His holiness and justice.
qara' beshem · Hebrew Verb phrase
The act of invoking God's presence, authority, or character in prayer. It implies an acknowledgement of His lordship and a reliance upon His covenant promises.
This psalm is a cry from the heart of a devastated people during the Babylonian exile. Verse 6 is not merely a general wish for the downfall of 'godless' nations, but a specific plea for divine justice against those who so brutally destroyed Jerusalem and defiled God's Temple, a suffering so profound that it cried out for a response from the God they still believed in.
Late 8th - Early 6th Century BC
Assyrian and Babylonian Empires Rise
The powerful Assyrian empire, and later its successor, the Neo-Babylonian Empire, exerted significant military and political pressure on the Kingdom of Judah, leading to devastating invasions and exiles.
605 BC
First Deportation to Babylon
Nebuchadnezzar, prince of Babylon, defeats the Egyptians and begins deporting Judean nobility and skilled workers to Babylon, including the prophet Daniel.
597 BC
Second Deportation and Temple Plunder
Nebuchadnezzar deports King Jehoiachin and thousands more Judeans to Babylon, and plunders the Temple in Jerusalem. The prophet Ezekiel is among this group.
586 BC— this verse
Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
After a prolonged siege, Nebuchadnezzar's forces destroy Jerusalem and its magnificent Temple, deporting the remaining population (except the poorest) to Babylon. This is the catastrophic event that Psalm 79 laments.
This passage is a direct parallel, as the prophet Jeremiah echoes this very prayer, showing the enduring cry of God's people against those who reject Him.
Romans 1:18Paul's teaching here about God's wrath being revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people who suppress the truth directly relates to the psalmist's prayer against those who 'do not know you.'
2 Thessalonians 1:8This verse speaks of God inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel, echoing the psalmist's petition for divine justice against those who refuse to call on His name.
Isaiah 10:5This passage describes God using the Assyrian empire as a 'rod of his anger,' illustrating the concept of nations that do not know God being used as instruments of His judgment, even as the psalmist prays for judgment upon such nations.
pulpitPsalms 79:6: "Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name."
Verse 6. - Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee. It is not the heathen that had never heard of God who are intended, but those who, having heard of him, had refused to "know" him (comp. Exodus 5:2), as was the case with all the nations round about Canaan. And upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy Name. Now that we are punished,…
clarkePsalms 79:6: "Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name."
Pour out thy wrath - Bad as we are, we are yet less wicked than they. We, it is true, have been unfaithful; but they never knew thy name, and are totally abandoned to idolatry.
This isn't just a general prayer for vengeance; it's a plea for divine justice specifically directed at those who actively reject and scorn God. The focus isn't on mere ignorance, but on a conscious refusal to "know" and "call upon" God's name, indicating a deeper offense that warrants His righteous anger.
The psalmist is crying out to God amidst a national catastrophe, likely the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by foreign invaders. He has just confessed Israel's sins and acknowledged God's righteous anger, but now he turns his plea towards the enemies who have inflicted this devastation. He asks God to redirect His wrath, which had been poured out on His own people, onto those nations who not only attacked them but also do not know or call upon God's name.
The psalmist is crying out to God amidst a national catastrophe, likely the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by foreign invaders. He has just confessed Israel's sins and acknowledged God's righteous anger, but now he turns his plea towards the enemies who have inflicted this devastation. He asks God to redirect His wrath, which had been poured out on His own people, onto those nations who not only attacked them but also do not know or call upon God's name.
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c. 586 - 538 BC
The Babylonian Exile
The Judean people live in exile in Babylon, longing for their homeland and lamenting the loss of their city and Temple, composing psalms like this one.
539 BC
Persian Conquest of Babylon
Cyrus the Great conquers Babylon, opening the way for the Jewish exiles to eventually return to Judah.
538 BC onwards
Return from Exile and Temple Reconstruction
Cyrus issues a decree allowing the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild their Temple, marking the end of the Babylonian exile.
"Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you, and on the kingdoms that do not call upon your name!" — This isn't just a general prayer for vengeance; it's a plea for divine justice specifically directed at those who actively reject and scorn God. The focus isn't on mere ignorance, but on a conscious…
