Psalm 83 - Free download Bible study

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God's promises of the past provide hope for our future. Attacks come; the enemies of Israel rise up against her just as our spiritual enemy does against us. God may seem silent. However, He spoke victory years ago and His word will not change. This five part series goes verse by verse through Psalm 83.

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May God bless your time in the study of His Word!

God Allows Defeat

Psalm 83:16-18

¹⁶Cover their faces with shame, Lord,
so that they will seek your name.

¹⁷May they ever be ashamed and dismayed;
may they perish in disgrace.

¹⁸Let them know that you, whose name is the Lord —
that you alone are the Most High over all the earth.

Review

Day One, Verses 1-4: An intimate group will come together to bring about the destruction of God’s people. The psalmist pleads for God to not be silent… Read more here.

Day Two, Verses 5-8: The psalmist identifies the group – they are the countries immediately surrounding Israel. They are the descendants of those who separated from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and covenanted against, rather than with, the God of Abraham… Read more here.

Day Three, Verses 9-12: More than just difficult names to read, these names and places teach us two great truths – the source of comfort and the source of victory… Read more here.

Day Four, Verses 13-15: When God acts, He does so in a big way. Not only does He scatter the enemy but He chases them down to finish the job…Read more here.

The Answer to Arrogance

God only has one answer to arrogance…

“The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled and the pride of men brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day” (Isaiah 2:11).

Earlier the enemies of Israel were loud and boisterous, clever and arrogant. Their hopes were high as they schemed of the destruction of God’s people. By the end of the chapter the enemies of God are put to shame by their disappointment. Disgrace arises from their shattered hopes.

Interestingly, dismayed in verse 17 is the same Hebrew word as terrified in verse 15. The psalmist pleaded for God to terrify the enemies of Israel. By verse 17, they have been terrified. In other words, mission accomplished.

Why Does God Do This?

God does this for a few reasons, not the least of which is the fulfillment of His promises. God will destroy the enemy in order to protect His people. We read about that in Day One of this series.

The other reason is even greater, however. Jehovah God will be glorified. God allows defeat sometimes to remind us that He is God and we are not. Yet, even in their shame and disgrace the enemies of God may still seek His name. As their pride turns to humility they may recognize that Jehovah God alone is “Most High over all the earth.” Then they will know that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – who created all and is exalted over all – is also the God of love and grace.

Click here for a free, downloadable study on all of Psalm 83.

God Moves against the Enemy

Psalm 83:13-18

¹³Make them like tumbleweed, my God,
like chaff before the wind.

¹⁴As fire consumes the forest or 
a flame sets the mountains ablaze,

¹⁵so pursue them with your tempest 
and terrify them with your storm.

Review

Day One, Verses 1-4: An intimate group will come together to bring about the destruction of God’s people. The psalmist pleads for God to not be silent… Read more here.

Day Two, Verses 5-8: The psalmist identifies the group – they are the countries immediately surrounding Israel. They are the descendants of those who separated from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and covenanted against, rather than with, the God of Abraham… Read more here.

Day Three, Verses 9-12: More than just difficult names to read, these names and places teach us two great truths – the source of comfort and the source of victory… Read more here.

What Do These Things Have in Common?

God didn’t stay quiet forever. He stepped in to defeat the Canaanites and the Midianites. He will step in to defeat this coming alliance against His people – this group covenanted against Him.

He will deal with them now just like He did the enemies’ armies then. Tumbleweeds, chaff, and forest fires all have something in common with each other. They all blow wherever the wind carries them; the wind that God “let loose…from the heavens” and controls “by his power” (Psalm 78:26). They also have something in common with the Midianite and Canaanite armies. Like the tumbleweeds, chaff, and forest fires, the armies scattered wherever the power of God carried them. I have no problem believing God will do the same thing with this alliance that will rise against Israel.

But That’s Not All

God empowered the Israelite army under Barak to chase down and defeat the Canaanites. He did so again through Gideon to the Midianites. He will utilize this method of operation once again. As the enemies of God scatter, He will pursue as a whirling, raging storm. He intentionally and quickly will terrify them as a consuming wind.

“When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever” (Proverbs 10:25).

Click here to read Day 5 - God Allows Defeat

Click here for a free, downloadable study on all of Psalm 83.

God Gets Ready to Act

Psalm 83:9-12

⁹Do to them as you did to Midian,
as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon,

¹⁰ who perished at Endor
and became like dung on the ground.

¹¹ Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,
all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,

¹² who said, “Let us take possession
of the pasturelands of God.”

Review

Day One, Verses 1-4: An intimate group will come together to bring about the destruction of God’s people. The psalmist pleads for God to not be silent… Read more here.

Day Two, Verses 5-8: The psalmist identifies the group – they are the countries immediately surrounding Israel. They are the descendants of those who separated from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and covenanted against, rather than with, the God of Abraham… Read more here.

What’s God going to do about it?

Once again, this is more than a list of hard to read names. These people and places with the funny names were part of two Israelite battles from the book of Judges. Not coincidentally, one battle took place with the Canaanites over the territory to the north, in the region of modern day north Israel and south Lebanon. The second battle was against the Midianites over the territory to the southeast, in the region of modern day Jordan and the Palestinian territories. These locations remind us of the locations of the enemies aligned together in stanza two.

Despite their opposite geographic locations, the two battles have some unique similarities. Both were the result of Israel’s disobedience to Jehovah God. The Canaanite battle in the north occurred first. After the Israelite’s repentance, they enjoyed forty years of peace and obedience before returning to a lifestyle contrary to God’s Word. At that time, events started to fall into place for the Midianite battle in the south.

Despite the many similarities, two things most caught my attention…

First, 

When the psalmist needed comfort for the present, he looked back to the victories of the past. Remember from the first stanza, God’s promises – His Word – won’t change. The words He spoke then are comfort to us now. 

“‘Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion?’ Selah

Then I thought, ‘To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High.’

I will remember the deeds of the LORD; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds. Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples” (Psalm 77:7-14).

Second,

The victory in both battles was from the Lord. Neither battle was won by the size of the army, the skill of the sword, or the battlefield logistics. God brought confusion upon Israelites’ enemies and they scattered. Barak and Gideon’s roles were obedience in extreme circumstances and perseverance until the end. As the enemy armies scattered, both Israelite leaders sent their armies to pursue and chase down each enemy until the victory was complete.

I pursued my enemies and overtook them; I did not turn back till they were destroyed. I crushed them so that they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet. You armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet. You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes. They cried for help, but there was no one to save them--to the LORD, but he did not answer…

You have delivered me from the attacks of the people; you have made me the head of nations; people I did not know are subject to me…

The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior! He is the God who avenges me, who subdues nations under me, who saves me from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me. Therefore I will praise you among the nations, O LORD; I will sing praises to your name. He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever (Psalm 18:37-41, 43, 46-50).

Click here to read Day 4 - God Moves Against His Enemies

Click here for a free, downloadable study on all of Psalm 83.

Covenanted Against God

Psalm 83:5-8

⁵For they have conspired with one mind;
they form an alliance against You—

⁶the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,

⁷Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek,
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre.

⁸Even Assyria has joined them;
they lend support to the sons of Lot.

Selah

Review

Day One, Verses 1-4: The enemies of God are an arrogant group who come together in intimacy and familiarity to bring about the destruction of God’s people. God may seem silent during this onslaught but that is only because He spoke in the past. His promises to Israel remain firm; the arrogance of man will not destroy the word of God… Read more here.

Covenant against God

Covenants are the foundation of God’s promises with humanity. God made several covenants throughout the Old Testament. This is a simplified list but it gives you an idea of the blessings of God’s covenants.

Consistent with their arrogance, this group chooses not to covenant with God. After all, the New Covenant is available for all. They choose to covenant against God. I’ll just warn you now – this is not a good choice in the end.

So, who is this group so arrogantly aligned together to cut covenant against God? Is this more than a random list of hard names that scares us if we have to read it out loud in a Bible study class? Absolutely it is. This list is far from random; they are a precise list of peoples that will align together against Israel sometime in the future. Perhaps the not-so-distant future.

Who Were They Then?

This alliance is primarily the descendants of three different men – Lot, Ishmael, and Esau. All three of these men have something in common – they all separated from Abraham or Abraham’s descendants.

While Abraham was still Abram, he and Lot went separate ways when their flocks and possessions grew too large to share the same land (Genesis 13). Lot settled to the east of Abram. In this list, his descendants occupied the areas of Moab and Ammon.

Abraham ß split à Lot

Ishmael was Abraham’s son through his wife’s servant, Hagar. After the birth of Abraham and Sarah’s son Isaac, Sarah had Abraham send Hagar and Ishmael away. Needless to say, family dysfunction is nothing new. His descendants include the Ishmaelites and the Hagrites.

Isaac ß split à Ishmael

Esau was the twin brother of Jacob; they were the sons of Isaac. Esau was the oldest but through greed and trickery his birthright went to Jacob instead. Again, lots of family dysfunction. They later reconciled somewhat but settled in different areas. Esau’s descendents included Edom, Gebal and Amalek.

Jacob ß split à Esau

The remaining three groups are Philistia, Tyre, and Assyria. They are of different ancestry but they do have one thing in common with the descendants of Ishmael, Esau, and Lot. They all separate from God’s chosen people – the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Covenanted against the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is not a good place to be. God said to Abraham,

“I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:2-3).

Who Are They Now?

Today, these groups are popular in world news headlines. They include Lebanon and Syria to the north of Israel along with the group Hezbollah. They include the Palestinian territories of Gaza and the West Bank along with Hamas. Finally, to the south and southeast, this list includes Jordan and Saudi Arabia. In short, this alliance forms a tight ring around the tiny nation of Israel.

But don’t forget, covenanted against God is not a good place to be… 

Click here to read Day Three - God Gets Ready to Act

Click here for a free, downloadable study on all of Psalm 83.

A Loud Enemy; A Silent God

Psalm 83:1-4

¹God, do not keep silent.
Do not be deaf, God; do not be idle.

²See how Your enemies make an uproar;
those who hate You have acted arrogantly.

³They devise clever schemes against Your people;
they conspire against Your treasured ones.

⁴They say, “Come, let us wipe them out as a nation
so that Israel’s name will no longer be remembered.”

The Arsenal of the Enemy

The enemies of God and His chosen ones have a definite arsenal – uproars, arrogance, and clever schemes. Uproars are turbulent, boisterous commotions. They are a process used to bring about a desired goal; in this case, the goal is the destruction of God’s people. Clever schemes include a level of intimacy among those gathered together but here they gather for a shrewd or malevolent reason. Finally, arrogance; I saved the best for last. Arrogance led to the fall of the archangel Lucifer; it also keeps us from recognizing our need for a Savior. In both roles, arrogance separates from God. That is exactly what we will see here in Psalm 83. But those who separate from God to exalt themselves don’t stay exalted for long…

The Silence of God

Silence, deafness, idleness – these aren’t qualities we want in our Defender. Enemies conspire against us; we think, “This is not a time for quiet peace and restfulness!” Like the watchmen of Isaiah 62:6-7, coming attacks are not a time to hold our peace and keep silent. It is not a time for undisturbed tranquility and inactivity. But God won’t stay this way for long…

The Promise of Israel

God is silent and the threats of the enemy are loud. This is a perfect setup for fear and doubt. Here the threat is against Israel, God’s chosen people. We’ll focus more on that in the days to come as we work through the rest of Psalm 83. But I also want us to remember that we as believers are part of God’s chosen people.

God can be silent because He spoke in the past. He spoke and His Word will not change.

“For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. They will be protected forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off; the righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever” (Psalm 37:28-29).

God promised to protect Israel just as He promised to protect us; it doesn’t matter what our enemies may say against us. Despite the arrogance with which they make evil schemes, in the end they will come to nothing. God may seem quiet but He already promised the outcome.

“For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land…

The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them; but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he knows their day is coming…

Wait for the LORD and keep his way. He will exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you will see it” (Psalm 37:9, 12-13, 34).

Click here to read Day Two - Covenanted Against God

Click here for a free, downloadable study on all of Psalm 83.