1Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.
2When I shall receive the congregation I will judge uprightly.
3The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved: I bear up the pillars of it. Selah.
4I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn:
5Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
6For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
7But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.
8For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture; and he poureth out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out, and drink them.
9But I will declare for ever; I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off; but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.
📖 Chapter study
Summary
Asaph declares that God is the judge who decides when to act, warning the arrogant not to exalt themselves, for exaltation comes not from the east, the west, or the desert, but from God alone, who brings down one and lifts up another.
Explanation
This psalm uses the image of a 'cup' of mixed wine that God offers the wicked to drink down to the dregs — a common metaphor in prophetic texts for describing divine judgment as inevitable for those who persist in wickedness (an image later taken up in Isaiah 51:17 and Revelation 14:10). The statement that exaltation comes from no human geographic direction, but from God alone, is an important reminder against the arrogance of those who attribute their own success solely to personal merit or effort. Today's application: recognizing that positions of honor and success ultimately depend on a sovereignty greater than human effort, which should produce humility, not arrogance.
Fun facts
- The image of the 'cup' of divine judgment mixed with wine (v. 8) is taken up in several later prophetic texts, including Isaiah 51:17 and Jeremiah 25:15, and, in the New Testament, Revelation 14:10, showing the continuity of this metaphor throughout the whole Bible.
- This psalm is attributed to Asaph and continues the reflection on divine justice found in Psalm 73, suggesting that the psalms of Asaph (50, 73-83) form a coherent thematic block within the Psalter, with a recurring focus on justice and judgment.