TRV
Translation
King James Version
Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.
Berean Standard Bible
Restore us, O God of Hosts, and cause Your face to shine upon us, that we may be saved.
American Standard Version
Turn us again, O God of hosts; And cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved.
World English Bible Messianic
Turn us again, God of Hosts. Cause your face to shine, and we will be saved.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Turne vs againe, O God of hostes: cause thy face to shine, and we shalbe saued.
Young's Literal Translation
God of Hosts, turn us back, And cause Thy face to shine, and we are saved.
In the KJVVerse 15,206 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Psalms 80 verses 1–7
1 ¶ To the chief Musician upon Shoshannimeduth, A Psalm of Asaph. Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.
2 Before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh stir up thy strength, and come and save us.
3 Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.
4 O LORD God of hosts, how long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people?
5 Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; and givest them tears to drink in great measure.
6 Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours: and our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.
The psalmist here, in the name of the church, applies to God by prayer, with reference to the present afflicted state of Israel.
I. He entreats God's favour for them (Psa 80:1, Psa 80:2); that is all in all to the sanctuary when it is desolate, and is to be sought in the first place. Observe, 1. How he eyes God in his address as the Shepherd of Israel, whom he had called the sheep of his pasture (Psa 79:13), under whose guidance and care Israel was, as the sheep are under the care and conduct of the shepherd. Christ is the great and good Shepherd, to whom we may in faith commit the custody of his sheep that were given to him. He leads Joseph like a flock, to the best pastures, and out of the way of danger; if Joseph follow him not as obsequiously as the sheep do the shepherd, it is his own fault. He dwells between the cherubim, where he is ready to receive petitions and to give directions. The mercy-seat was between the cherubim; and it is very comfortable in prayer to look up to God as sitting on a throne of grace, and that it is so to us is owning to the great propitiation, for the mercy-seat was the propitiatory. 2. What he expects and desires from God, that he would give ear to the cry of their miseries and of their prayers, that he would shine forth both in his own glory and in favour and kindness to his people, that he would show himself and smile on them, that he would sir up his strength, that he would excite it and exert it. It had seemed to slumber: "Lord, awaken it." His cause met with great opposition and the enemies threatened to overpower it: "Lord, put forth thy strength so much the more, and come for salvation to us; be to thy people a powerful help and a present help; Lord, do this before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh," that is, "In the sight of all the tribes of Israel; let them see it to their satisfaction." Perhaps these three tribes are named because they were the tribes which formed that squadron of the camp of Israel that in their march through the wilderness followed next after the tabernacle; so that before them the ark of God's strength rose to scatter their enemies.
II. He complains of God's displeasure against them. God was angry, and he dreads that more than any thing, Psa 80:4. 1. It was great anger. He apprehended that God was angry against the prayer of his people, not only that he was angry notwithstanding their prayers, by which they hoped to turn away his wrath from them, but that he was angry with their prayers, though they were his own people that prayed. That God should be angry at the sins of his people and at the prayers of his enemies is not strange; but that he should be angry at the prayers of his people is strange indeed. He not only delayed to answer them (that he often does in love), but he was displeased at them. If he be really angry at the prayers of his people, we may be sure it is because they ask amiss, Jam 4:3. They pray, but they do not wrestle in prayer; their ends are not right, or there is some secret sin harboured and indulged in them; they do not lift up pure hands, or they lift them up with wrath and doubting. But perhaps it is only in their own apprehension; he seems angry with their prayers when really he is not; for thus he will try their patience and perseverance in prayer, as Christ tried the woman of Canaan when he said, It is not meet to take the children's bread and cast it to dogs. 2. It was anger that had continued a great while: "How long wilt thou be angry? We have still continued praying and yet are still under thy frowns." Now the tokens of God's displeasure which they had been long under were both their sorrow and shame. (1.) Their sorrow (Psa 80:5): Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; they eat their meat from day to day in tears; this is the vinegar in which they dipped their morsel, Psa 42:3. They had tears given them to drink, not now and then a taste of that bitter cup, but in great measure. Note, There are many that spend their time in sorrow who yet shall spend their eternity in joy. (2.) It was their shame, Psa 80:6. God, by frowning upon them, made them a strife unto their neighbours; each strove which should expose them most, and such a cheap and easy prey were they made to them that all the strife was who should have the stripping and plundering of them. Their enemies laughed among themselves to see the frights they were in, the straits they were reduced to, and the disappointments they met with. When God is displeased with his people we must expect to see them in tears and their enemies in triumph.
III. He prays earnestly for converting grace in order to their acceptance with God, and their salvation: Turn us again, O God! Psa 80:3. Turn us again, O God of hosts! (Psa 80:7) and then cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved. It is the burden of the song, for we have it again, Psa 80:19. They are conscious to themselves that they have gone astray from God and their duty, and have turned aside into sinful ways, and that it was this that provoked God to hide his face from them and to give them up into the hand of their enemies; and therefore they desire to begin their work at the right end: "Lord, turn us to thee in a way of repentance and reformation, and then, no doubt, thou wilt return to us in a way of mercy and deliverance." Observe, 1. No salvation but from God's favour: "Cause thy face to shine, let us have thy love and the light of thy countenance, and then we shall be saved." 2. No obtaining favour with God unless we be converted to him. We must turn again to God from the world and the flesh, and then he will cause his face to shine upon us. 3. No conversion to God but by his own grace; we must frame our doings to turn to him (Hos 5:4) and then pray earnestly for his grace, Turn thou me, and I shall be turned, pleading that gracious promise (Pro 1:23), Burn you at my reproof; behold, I will pour out my Spirit unto you. The prayer here is for a national conversion; in this method we must pray for national mercies, that what is amiss may be amended, and then our grievances would be soon redressed. National holiness would secure national happiness.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–7. Public domain.
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Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 80
But ye see what follows: "O Lord God of virtues, convert us, and show Your face, and we shall be whole" [Psalm 80:7].
Augustine of HippoAD 430
TRACTATES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 53:11
Conversion itself is from the grace of him to whom it is said, "God of hosts, convert us." Perhaps this must also be understood as done out of the mercy of the heavenly medicine so that people who possessed a proud and wicked will and wanted to establish their own justice might be abandoned for the purpose of being blinded. Perhaps they were blinded for the purpose of stumbling on the stone of stumbling and that their face might be filled with shame. Also, so that humbled they might seek the name of the Lord and not their own justice, by which the proud are puffed up, but God's justice by which the ungodly are justified? For this benefited many of them for their good, who, pricked with remorse over their own wrongdoing, afterwards believed in Christ; and for these he had even prayed himself, saying, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." And about this ignorance of theirs the apostle, too, said, "I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge." For then he also added this and said, "For, not knowing God's justice and seeking to establish their own, they have not submitted themselves to the justice of God."
Caesarius of ArlesAD 542
SERMON 108:4
We have said this, brothers, so that you may know that in the Old Testament God’s justice orders a year’s punishment to make up for the sin of one day. In other words, the people were tormented in the desert for forty years because of the defection of forty days. What will happen to us if, after receiving the grace of Christ who redeemed us with his own blood, we still take pleasure in committing not only slight sins but perhaps even criminal offenses? Therefore, as I have frequently advised, if a person knows he has committed some serious sin, he should have recourse to the remedies of repentance while there is still time and it is within his power to do so. Indeed, conversion in the present life and penance that is fruitfully performed bring a swift cure to wounds of this kind, for repentance not only heals a past wound but also guards the soul against further injury through sin. Now I will add something more. For example, if I am a sinner will I suffer the same punishment if I have offended just once, as I will if I sin twice or a third time and even more frequently? Not at all. The amount of punishment is to be measured according to the manner, number and measure of sin, for God will give us “the bread of tears and tears to drink,” but “with ample measure.” Every person will then reap the things he sought in this life by sinning more or less.
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 80:7 serves as a fervent, repeated plea from the nation of Israel for divine restoration and salvation. It is a desperate cry to the "God of hosts" to reverse their national distress, to turn them back to Himself, and to manifest His benevolent presence and favor, with the confident expectation that His shining countenance will bring about their comprehensive deliverance and renewal.
CONTEXT
Literary Context: Psalm 80 is a communal lament, a heartfelt cry from the nation of Israel during a period of profound distress, likely a time of invasion, exile, or severe oppression. The psalmist, traditionally identified as Asaph, opens by invoking God as the "Shepherd of Israel" and "enthroned above the cherubim" Psalm 80:1, immediately establishing a tone of desperate dependence on divine care and power. The plea in Psalm 80:7 functions as a central refrain, echoing almost identically in Psalm 80:3 and Psalm 80:19, which frames the entire psalm with an urgent, persistent petition for God's intervention. This repetition emphasizes the people's unwavering longing for God's active presence and salvation, especially in light of the extended metaphor of Israel as a "vine" brought out of Egypt and now ravaged Psalm 80:8-13.
Historical & Cultural Context: The specific historical backdrop for Psalm 80 is debated, but many scholars place it in the context of the Northern Kingdom's distress, perhaps during the Assyrian invasions of the 8th century BCE, or even the later Babylonian exile. The references to Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh Psalm 80:2 strongly suggest a concern for the tribes of the Northern Kingdom, which suffered devastating defeats and deportations. Culturally, the concept of God's "face shining" was deeply ingrained, reflecting the ancient Near Eastern idea of a king's benevolent gaze bestowing favor and prosperity upon his subjects. It directly echoes the Aaronic Priestly Blessing in Numbers 6:24-26, where God's shining face is synonymous with His grace, peace, and protection. The title "God of hosts" (Hebrew: Elohim Tzeva'ot or Yahweh Sabaoth) was a potent military and cosmic title, signifying God's supreme authority over all heavenly and earthly armies, a crucial affirmation of power in a time of national vulnerability.
Key Themes: The overarching theme of Psalm 80 is divine restoration and salvation. The repeated plea "Turn us again" highlights the people's recognition of their need for spiritual renewal and a return to God's favor, implying a departure or judgment. This is intertwined with the theme of God's sovereign power and presence, as invoked by the title "God of hosts" and the request for His "face to shine." The psalm grapples with the tension between God's past faithfulness (bringing Israel out of Egypt, Psalm 80:8) and their current suffering, prompting a desperate call for Him to remember His covenant and act decisively. The "vine" metaphor further underscores themes of divine cultivation and judgment, as the once-flourishing vine is now broken down, prompting a cry for God to "visit this vine" Psalm 80:14 and restore its vitality. Ultimately, the psalm expresses a profound longing for holistic deliverance—physical, spiritual, and national—that only God's active intervention can provide.
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 80:7 masterfully employs several literary devices to amplify its urgent plea. The most prominent is Refrain, as this exact phrase appears three times throughout the psalm Psalm 80:3, Psalm 80:7, Psalm 80:19, creating a powerful, insistent rhythm that underscores the people's desperation and persistent longing for divine intervention. Anthropomorphism is evident in "cause thy face to shine," attributing a human characteristic (a face) to God, which serves as a vivid metaphor for His active presence, favor, and blessing. This phrase also functions as a Metaphor for divine illumination and grace, contrasting with the darkness of their distress. The structure of the verse itself exhibits a form of Parallelism, where the two petitions ("Turn us again," "cause thy face to shine") are linked to a single, desired outcome ("and we shall be saved"), demonstrating a clear cause-and-effect relationship in the psalmist's theological understanding.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalm 80:7 is a profound theological statement on God's sovereignty, His covenant faithfulness, and the absolute necessity of His divine presence for the well-being and salvation of His people. It highlights the Old Testament understanding that true deliverance is not merely from external enemies but fundamentally from a state of alienation from God. The plea for God to "turn us again" implies a recognition of human failing or divine judgment, emphasizing the need for repentance and God's active grace to restore the relationship. The request for God's "face to shine" directly links to the concept of divine blessing and favor, a theme deeply embedded in Israel's theological heritage, signifying peace, prosperity, and protection. This verse underscores that salvation, in its fullest sense, is a holistic restoration—spiritual, physical, and communal—that flows directly from God's benevolent presence and power.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalm 80:7 offers a timeless model for prayer in times of profound personal or communal distress. It teaches us to approach God with raw honesty about our need for restoration, acknowledging that our ultimate hope lies not in our own efforts or external circumstances, but in His sovereign power and benevolent presence. When we feel distant from God, or when our lives, communities, or nations are ravaged by hardship, this verse encourages us to humbly and persistently cry out, "Turn us again!" It reminds us that true salvation—wholeness, peace, and deliverance—is inextricably linked to God's active favor and His manifest presence. Our deepest longing should be for His "face to shine" upon us, for in His light alone do we find life, guidance, and security. This prayer cultivates a posture of dependence, humility, and unwavering faith in the "God of hosts" who is mighty to save.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is the significance of the phrase "God of hosts" in this verse?
Answer: The title "God of hosts" (Hebrew: Elohim Tzeva'ot or Yahweh Sabaoth) is highly significant. "Hosts" refers to armies, celestial bodies, or all created things. By addressing God as the "God of hosts," the psalmist acknowledges Him as the supreme Commander of all heavenly and earthly forces, the sovereign Lord over all creation. This title emphasizes God's omnipotence, His limitless power, and His ability to intervene decisively in human affairs. In the context of Israel's distress, it serves as a powerful declaration of faith that only such a mighty God can bring about the desired salvation and restoration, demonstrating that no enemy or circumstance is too great for Him. It is a reminder that the people are appealing to the ultimate authority and power in the universe, the One who is able to "turn us again" and cause His "face to shine" so that we "shall be saved."
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalm 80:7 finds its ultimate and most profound fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The cry to "Turn us again" is answered in Christ, who is the very embodiment of God's turning towards humanity in grace, calling us to repentance and reconciliation Acts 3:19. He is the ultimate "Shepherd" John 10:11 who gathers His scattered flock and restores them to the Father. Furthermore, Jesus is the very "face" of God made manifest, the "radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being" Hebrews 1:3. When Christ came, God's "face truly shined" upon humanity, bringing light into darkness John 1:9 and revealing the Father's benevolent presence and favor in an unprecedented way. Through His atoning work on the cross and His resurrection, Jesus became the means by which we "shall be saved," offering not just physical deliverance but eternal salvation, spiritual wholeness, and reconciliation with God Romans 5:10. In Christ, the longing for God's restoration and shining presence is fully realized, securing our salvation and enabling us to walk in the light of His countenance forever 2 Corinthians 4:6.