Psalm 79
- The writer pleads for God's return to Jerusalem after it's been sacked (i.e., this is a post-exilic composition). He also asks God to work through his anger issues and penchant for destruction...just with other nations...
Psalm 80
- God is as a gardener—again—who took Israel as "a vine" from Egypt. What gives, God? Tend to your plant!
Psalm 81
- God is angry. Really angry. Israel has started to look at different gods, and clearly this doesn't fly with him. Watch out.
Psalm 82
- God has been promoted. He's now at the head of the divine council, and he's handing out bonuses to his believers.
Psalm 83
- Time to roll up your sleeves: the Israelites have some late night work to do. What, you ask? Annihilating their enemies, of course.
Psalm 84
- The author would rather be a doorman in God's temple than in the thick of somebody else's temple. That's like saying you'd rather be a doorman at the Plaza than the owner of a motel in Ruralsville, U.S.A.
Psalm 85
- Here, the author expresses confidence that the land will produce lots of grain, that the righteous will be rewarded, and that everything will be hunky-dory. Three cheers for stability!
Psalm 86
- Ah, if only life were so simple, and if only the writer's heart was undivided. It's hard to be faithful forever, but the writer knows he can do it.
Psalm 87
- God designates Zion as his preferred pad.
Psalm 88
- Depression's back. God has abandoned the writer, and this is one guy who needs some lovin'. Better call up God.