Psalm 60:1-5

The composer of Psalm 60 speaks in behalf of her or his faith community (notice "we," "us," and "our" in verses 1, 3, 5, 10-12), who are in dire circumstances (verses 1-3, 10-12) because of Yahweh's "anger" with them (verse 1). The most likely historical setting for this psalm is the Babylonian exile after the fall of Jerusalem in 587 B. C. Thoughts and language in this psalm are very similar to prophetic passages belonging to the period of the Babylonian exile. Psalm 60:5-12 is almost identical to Psalm 108:6-13. In Psalm 60:1-5, the psalmist declares God's people's complaints because they are suffering greatly in exile, and pleads with Yahweh to intervene and deliver them:

"O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
you have been angry; now restore us!
You have caused the land to quake; you have torn it open;
repair the cracks in it, for it is tottering.
You have made your people suffer hard things;
you have given us wine to drink that made us reel.
You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
to rally to it out of bowshot.
Give victory with your right hand, and answer us,
so that those whom you love may be rescued."

1. Over a long period of time, God's people Judah made rebellion against God and sin against God a way of life. God tried various means to bring them to repentance, but failed (see, for example, Jeremiah 2:20-29; 13:23). So, in desperation, God resorted to the most heinous punishment of all: he "sent" the Babylonians against Judah to defeat them, and carry the survivors into exile (see, for example, Jeremiah 1:13-16; 4:5-8; 6:1-6, 22-26; 25:8-11; Habakkuk 1:5-11). God, through the Babylonians, "broke Judah's defenses" (2 Kings 25:4-21), burned down the temple, tore down the wall, and essentially levelled the land like an earthquake breaking forth (see similar language in Psalm 46:2-3; and the metaphor of an earthquake to describe Babylon's overthrow of Judah in Jeremiah 4:23-28).
2. The Babylonian exile is like Israel's hard captivity under Egypt before the exodus in the days of Moses. The "hard things" Yahweh was causing his people in Babylonian exile to suffer mentioned in verse 3 calls to mind the "hard service" the Israelites suffered under the Egyptians mentioned in Exodus 1:14; 6:9; Deuteronomy 26:6; Nehemiah 9:9.
3. Several biblical texts compare Yahweh's punishment of his sinful people (including the Babylonian exile) with drinking the cup of the wine of God's wrath (verse 3; see Isaiah 51:21-22; Jeremiah 13:12-14; 25:15-29; Revelation 1:16-17:6 [especially 16:19]; 18:1-8 [especially 18:3, 6]).
4. However, in the midst of the psalmist's complaints because he or she and his or her comrades are enduring great suffering in Babylonian exile, the poet declares great faith in Yahweh that he desires to deliver those who repent and return to him ("the remnant" of prophetic texts): "now restore us" (verse 1b; see Jeremiah 30:3, 18; 31:23; 32:44; 33:7, 11, 26); "you have set up a banner for those who fear you, to rally to it out of bowshot" (verse 4; see Isaiah 11:10, 12; 49:22; 62:10-12); "give victory with your right hand and answer us" (verse 5a; language which indicates a "new exodus" from Babylon like the exodus from Egypt in the days of Moses; see Exodus 15:6, 12; Deuteronomy 4:34; 5:15; and often); "so that those whom you love may be rescued" (verse 5b; language which further indicates a "new exodus" from Babylon like the exodus from Egypt; see Exodus 14:30; Psalm 106:8-10; and often).
5. "Setting up a banner" (verse 4a) refers to ancient military practices: the king or the leader of an army gave signals to the soldiers by raising a "flag" or a "banner" which indicated to them how they should proceed. Depending on the signal, raising a banner might mean advance on the enemy, or move to the right or the left, or retreat, etc. (See Isaiah 5:26; 13:2; 18:3; 30:17; etc.). In Psalm 60:4a, Yahweh the king raises a banner to call his faithful people ("those who fear him") to a place of safety under his protection.
Our God is slow to anger, but if all of his other attempts to bring us back to him fail, he will resort in desperation to severe treatment in the hope of saving some. This is one of many manifestations of his deep care and concern for the human race. May we learn from his nature to turn back to him quickly, and to be alert to his activity in his world and in our lives.

John Willis