Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them

Psalm 78:9-39

The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on the day of battle; they did not keep God’s covenant and refused to live by his law.

But they continued to sin against him, rebelling in the wilderness against the Most High. They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved. They spoke against God; they said, “Can God really spread a table in the wilderness?

Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens; he rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven. Human beings ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat. He let loose the east wind from the heavens and by his power made the south wind blow. He rained meat down on them like dust, birds like sand on the seashore.

their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant. Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath. He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.

For a long time, Ephraim was the most powerful of the 12 tribes. Joshua was an Ephraimite, and the tribe had great prestige under the judges. But with David's accession, Judah took the lead. The psalmist thinks over the reasons for Egphraim's rejection and finds them in Israel's history.

God gave Israel the law to remind them of him. But Ephraim disobeyed. They forgot what had happened in Egypt and the desert - the miracles.

Why?

The psalmist reminds people what God has done the great miracle in Egypt and Desert. But Ephraim disobeys the law of the Lord.

Even though God is merciful, God forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. The Lord remembers that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return. How weak we are!

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心不正，向著神不誠實：表面上願意相信神，實際上令神傷心。居心不正。

16-20 神的作為偉大，以色列人卻仍然得罪神，嫌東嫌西的，求的時候又不相信神能擺設宴席，以不信的態度來向神求！

21-31 人雖然試探神，神還是提供給人，神的怒氣馬上發作。讓人看見神的大能作為及人的貪婪！

32-39 人仍然不相信，神使人在虛空、驚惶，神因人回心轉意仍然憐憫人。他們的悔改仍然是短暫非真誠的悔改，馬上又忘記了！人的問題在只想到自己的問題與需要。認為神的供應是理所當然的！神明明知道人的悔改是短暫的，神還是顧念人，知道人的軟弱與短暫的生命！神的愛如為父的心！一直給人機會。求主使我們真誠的悔改歸向神！

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How?

Confess our weakness and we need the mercy of the Lord and the guiding of the Holy Spirit!