TRV
Translation
King James Version
We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.
Complete Jewish Bible
we will not hide from their descendants; we will tell the generation to come the praises of ADONAI and his strength, the wonders that he has performed.
Berean Standard Bible
We will not hide them from their children, but will declare to the next generation the praises of the LORD and His might, and the wonders He has performed.
American Standard Version
We will not hide them from their children, Telling to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah, And his strength, and his wondrous works that he hath done.
World English Bible Messianic
We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, his strength, and his wondrous works that he has done.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Wee will not hide them from their children but to the generation to come we wil shewe the praises of the Lord his power also, and his wonderful woorkes that he hath done:
Young's Literal Translation
We do not hide from their sons, To a later generation recounting praises of Jehovah, And His strength, and His wonders that He hath done.
In the KJVVerse 15,118 of 31,102
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Commentary on Psalms 78 verses 1–8
1 ¶ Maschil of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:
3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.
5 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:
6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:
7 That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:
8 And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.
These verses, which contain the preface to this history, show that the psalm answers the title; it is indeed Maschil - a psalm to give instruction; if we receive not the instruction it gives, it is our own fault. Here,
I. The psalmist demands attention to what he wrote (Psa 78:1): Give ear, O my people! to my law. Some make these the psalmist's words. David, as a king, or Asaph, in his name, as his secretary of state, or scribe to the sweet singer of Israel, here calls upon the people, as his people committed to his charge, to give ear to his law. He calls his instructions his law or edict; such was their commanding force in themselves. Every good truth, received in the light and love of it, will have the power of a law upon the conscience; yet that was not all: David was a king, and he would interpose his royal power for the edification of his people. If God, by his grace, make great men good men, they will be capable of doing more good than others, because their word will be a law to all about them, who must therefore give ear and hearken; for to what purpose is divine revelation brought our ears if we will not incline our ears to it, both humble ourselves and engage ourselves to hear it and heed it? Or the psalmist, being a prophet, speaks as God's mouth, and so calls them his people, and demands subjection to what was said as to a law. Let him that has an ear thus hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches, Rev 2:7.
II. Several reasons are given why we should diligently attend to that which is here related. 1. The things here discoursed of are weighty, and deserve consideration, strange, and need it (Psa 78:2): I will open my mouth in a parable, in that which is sublime and uncommon, but very excellent and well worthy your attention; I will utter dark sayings, which challenge your most serious regards as much as the enigmas with which the eastern princes and learned men used to try one another. These are called dark sayings, not because they are hard to be understood, but because they are greatly to be admired and carefully to be looked into. This is said to be fulfilled in the parables which our Saviour put forth (Mat 13:35), which were (as this) representations of the state of the kingdom of God among men. 2. They are the monuments of antiquity - dark sayings of old which our fathers have told us, Psa 78:3. They are things of undoubted certainty; we have heard them and known them, and there is no room left to question the truth of them. The gospel of Luke is called a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us (Luk 1:1), so were the things here related. The honour we owe to our parents and ancestors obliges us to attend to that which our fathers have told us, and, as far as it appears to be true and good, to receive it with so much the more reverence and regard. 3. They are to be transmitted to posterity, and it lies as a charge upon us carefully to hand them down (Psa 78:4); because our fathers told them to us we will not hide them from their children. Our children are called theirs, for they were in care for their seed's seed, and looked upon them as theirs; and, in teaching our children the knowledge of God, we repay to our parents some of that debt we owe to them for teaching us. Nay, if we have no children of our own, we must declare the things of God to their children, the children of others. Our care must be for posterity in general, and not only for our own posterity; and for the generation to come hereafter, the children that shall be born, as well as for the generation that is next rising up and the children that are born. That which we are to transmit to our children is not only the knowledge of languages, arts and sciences, liberty and property, but especially the praises of the Lord, and his strength appearing in the wonderful works he has done. Our great care must be to lodge our religion, that great deposit, pure and entire in the hands of those that succeed us. There are two things the full and clear knowledge of which we must preserve the entail of to our heirs: - (1.) The law of God; for this was given with a particular charge to teach it diligently to their children (Psa 78:5): He established a testimony or covenant, and enacted a law, in Jacob and Israel, gave them precepts and promises, which he commanded them to make known to their children, Deu 6:7, Deu 6:20. The church of God, as the historian says of the Roman commonwealth, was not to be res unius aetatis - a thing of one age but was to be kept up from one generation to another; and therefore, as God provided for a succession of ministers in the tribe of Levi and the house of Aaron, so he appointed that parents should train up their children in the knowledge of his law: and, when they had grown up, they must arise and declare them to their children (Psa 78:6), that, as one generation of God's servants and worshippers passes away, another generation may come, and the church, as the earth, may abide for ever; and thus God's name among men may be as the days of heaven. (2.) The providences of God concerning them, both in mercy and in judgment. The former seem to be mentioned for the sake of this; since God gave order that his laws should be made known to posterity, it is requisite that with them his works also should be made known, the fulfilling of the promises made to the obedient and the threatenings denounced against the disobedient. Let these be told to our children and our children's children, [1.] That they may take encouragement to conform to the will of God (Psa 78:7): that, not forgetting the works of God wrought in former days, they might set their hope in God and keep his commandments, might make his command their rule and his covenant their stay. Those only may with confidence hope for God's salvation that make conscience of doing his commandments. The works of God, duly considered, will very much strengthen our resolution both to set our hope in him and to keep his commandments, for he is able to bear us out in both. [2.] That they may take warning not to conform to the example of their fathers (Psa 78:8): That they might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation. See here, First, What was the character of their fathers. Though they were the seed of Abraham, taken into covenant with God, and, for aught we know, the only professing people he had then in the world, yet they were stubborn and rebellious, and walked contrary to God, in direct opposition to his will. They did indeed profess relation to him, but they did not set their hearts aright; they were not cordial in their engagements to God, nor inward with him in their worship of him, and therefore their spirit was not stedfast with him, but upon every occasion they flew off from him. Note, Hypocrisy is the high road to apostasy. Those that do not set their hearts aright will not be stedfast with God, but play fat and loose. Secondly, What was a charge to the children: That they be not as their fathers. Note, Those that have descended from wicked and ungodly ancestors, if they will but consider the word and works of God, will see reason enough not to tread in their steps. It will be no excuse for a vain conversation that it was received by tradition from our fathers (Pe1 1:18); for what we know of them that was evil must be an admonition to us, that we dread that which was so pernicious to them as we would shun those courses which they took that were ruinous to their health or estates.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–8. Public domain.
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Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 78
"They have not been hidden from their sons in another generation" [Psalm 78:4]. This is our generation wherein there has been given to us regeneration. "Telling forth the praises of the Lord and His powers, and His wonderful works which He has done." The order of the words is, "and our fathers have told unto us, telling forth the praises of the Lord." The Lord is praised, in order that He may be loved. For what object can be loved more to our health? "And He has raised up a testimony in Jacob, and has set a law in Jacob" [Psalm 78:5]. This is the beginning whereof has been spoken above, "I will declare propositions from the beginning." So then the beginning is the Old Testament, the end is the New. For fear does prevail in the law. "But the end of the law is Christ for righteousness to every one believing;" [Romans 10:4] at whose bestowing "love is shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, which has been given to us:" [Romans 5:5] and love made perfect does cast out fear, [1 John 4:18] inasmuch as now without the Law the righteousness of God has been made manifest. But inasmuch as He has a testimony by the Law and the Prophets, [Romans 3:21] therefore, "He has raised up a testimony in Jacob." For even that Tabernacle which was set up with a work so remarkable and full of such wondrous meanings, is named the Tabernacle of Testimony, wherein was the veil over the Ark of the Law, like the veil over the face of the Minister of the Law; because in that dispensation there were "parables and propositions." For those things which were being preached and were coining to pass were hidden in veiled meanings, and were not seen in unveiled manifestations. But "when you shall have passed over unto Christ," says the Apostle, "the veil shall be taken away." [2 Corinthians 3:16] For "all the promises of God in Him are yea, Amen." [2 Corinthians 1:20] Whosoever therefore does cleave to Christ, has the whole of the good which even in the letters of the Law he perceives not: but whosoever is an alien from Christ, does neither perceive, nor has. "He has set a law in Israel." After his usual custom he is making a repetition. For "He has raised up a testimony," is the same as, "He has set a law," and "in Jacob," is the same as "in Israel." For as these are two names of one man, so law and testimony are two names of one thing. Is there any difference, says some one, between "has raised up" and "has set"? Yea indeed, the same difference as there is between "Jacob" and "Israel:" not because they were two persons, but these same two names were bestowed upon one man for different reasons; Jacob because of supplanting, for that he grasped the foot of his brother at his birth: [Genesis 25:26] but Israel because of the vision of God. [Genesis 32:28] So "raised up" is one thing, "set" is another. For, "He has raised up a testimony," as far as I can judge, has been said because by it something has been raised up; "For without the Law," says the Apostle, "sin was dead: but I lived sometime without the Law: but at the coming in of the commandment sin revived." [Romans 7:8-9] Behold that which has been raised up by the testimony, which is the Law, so that what was lying hidden might appear, as he says a little afterwards: "But sin, that it might appear sin, through a good thing has wrought in me death." [Romans 7:13] But "He has set a law," has been said, as though it were a yoke upon sinners, whence has been said, "For upon a just man law has not been imposed." [1 Timothy 1:9] It is a testimony then, so far forth as it does prove anything; but a law so far forth as it does command; though it is one and the same thing. Wherefore just as Christ is a stone, but to believers for the Head of the corner, while to unbelievers a stone of offense and a rock of scandal; so the testimony of the Law to them that use not the Law lawfully, [1 Timothy 1:8] is a testimony whereby sinners are to be convicted as deserving of punishment; but to them that use the same lawfully, is a testimony whereby sinners are shown unto whom they ought to flee in order to be delivered....
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Psalm 78:4 stands as a profound declaration within this didactic historical psalm, asserting the solemn and indispensable responsibility of the covenant community to diligently transmit the divine narrative to successive generations. It underscores the imperative to openly proclaim God's glorious attributes, His demonstrated power, and His awe-inspiring miraculous interventions, ensuring that the profound legacy of His faithfulness and mighty deeds is perpetually remembered and celebrated. This active transmission is crucial for preventing spiritual amnesia and fostering an enduring, vibrant faith in the generations yet to come.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 78:4 employs several potent literary devices to convey its message with impact. The most prominent is Didacticism, as the entire psalm is framed as an instructional poem designed to teach moral and theological lessons through historical narrative. The verse itself functions as a direct statement of this didactic purpose. There is also a clear use of Parallelism in the structure "We will not hide... shewing to the generation to come," where the negation of hiding is immediately followed by the affirmative act of showing, reinforcing the active nature of the command. The phrase "praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works" utilizes Tricolon (a series of three parallel words or phrases), creating a cumulative effect that emphasizes the multifaceted nature of God's revelation. This list also functions as a form of Synecdoche, where these three aspects represent the full scope of God's character and His redemptive history, encompassing His being, His power, and His actions. The overall tone is one of Solemn Declaration, conveying the gravity and imperative nature of the responsibility being articulated.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalm 78:4 powerfully articulates the theological necessity of intergenerational spiritual transmission, grounding it in God's historical self-revelation. It posits that divine truth and the legacy of God's mighty acts are not merely historical facts but are living testimonies intended to shape the faith and obedience of future generations. This mandate reflects God's desire for an enduring covenant relationship, one that is sustained through conscious remembrance and active teaching, countering the human tendency towards spiritual amnesia and rebellion. The verse establishes a direct link between remembering God's past faithfulness and fostering future faithfulness, making the act of "showing" a vital component of covenant continuity and the prevention of idolatry and disobedience.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalm 78:4 offers a timeless and profound mandate for believers today, calling us to embrace our sacred responsibility in the ongoing narrative of God's redemptive work. It challenges us to move beyond passive faith and become active participants in transmitting the "praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works" to those who follow. This applies not only to parents in discipling their children within the home but also to the broader Christian community, emphasizing the vital role of intergenerational ministry, robust Christian education, and intentional mentorship. We are called to be storytellers of God's faithfulness, sharing personal testimonies of His grace, recounting the grand narrative of salvation history, and demonstrating how His character and deeds are relevant and transformative in every age. By faithfully remembering and proclaiming what God "hath done," we equip future generations to know, trust, and worship Him, ensuring that the legacy of faith continues to flourish and that the cycle of spiritual amnesia is broken.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does it mean to "not hide" God's works from children?
Answer: To "not hide" God's works means to actively and intentionally reveal, teach, and discuss them. It implies a commitment to transparency and a rejection of spiritual negligence. Instead of allowing the knowledge of God's character and deeds to fade or remain unspoken, the current generation is mandated to openly and consistently narrate the divine story, ensuring that the historical acts of God, His covenant faithfulness, and His mighty power are clearly understood by the next generation. This involves more than just factual recounting; it includes explaining the theological significance and the lessons learned from Israel's history, as highlighted throughout Psalm 78. It's about fostering a living, active faith through shared spiritual heritage.
Why is generational transmission of faith so important in the Bible?
Answer: Generational transmission of faith is paramount in the Bible because it is the primary means by which God's covenant relationship with His people is sustained and perpetuated across time. Without it, each generation would have to rediscover God anew, risking spiritual amnesia, idolatry, and disobedience, as repeatedly demonstrated by Israel's failures in the Old Testament. Passages like Deuteronomy 6:6-7 and Psalm 145:4 underscore that the knowledge of God's character, His commands, and His redemptive acts is a sacred trust to be passed down. This ensures that the covenant community remains rooted in its history, understands its identity, and continues to worship and obey the one true God, thereby fulfilling His purposes for His people.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Psalm 78:4 speaks of the historical acts of the LORD in the Old Covenant, its ultimate fulfillment and most profound expression are found in Jesus Christ. He is the ultimate "praise of the LORD," the very embodiment of God's "strength," and the pinnacle of God's "wonderful works." The entire narrative of the Gospels is the definitive "showing to the generation to come" of God's ultimate self-revelation. In Christ, God's character, power, and redemptive purpose are fully unveiled: His praises are seen in Christ's perfect obedience and sacrificial love (Philippians 2:8); His strength is powerfully demonstrated in His miracles, His triumph over sin and death, and His resurrection (Colossians 2:15); and His wonderful works culminate in the cross and empty tomb, providing salvation for all who believe (Romans 5:8). The Church, as the new covenant community, is now commissioned to continue this "showing," proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ to every generation, ensuring that the ultimate "wonderful work" of God—His redemption through His Son—is never hidden but always declared, compelling hearts to worship the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).