This chapter is the tenth of twelve Psalms of Asaph. "Asap" means a collector of the congregation. The congregation will be gathered so that they can hear the truths of God's Word. This chapter provides us with a way to successful living for ourselves and our families. A way to peace of mind, and joy in our lives. So within this joy and happiness we find eternity in Him.

In the prior chapter the enemy was in and controlling the Sanctuary, but here we will see that God has returned to the Sanctuary. Once God is in control, then man cries out, Why O Lord did you allow this to happen, and bring on all this trouble down on our heads. In all the complaining, they overlook the fact that God had never left them, not for one moment, but it was man that left God to seek after other ways. When you leave God, you come out of the safety and protection that God places over His children. This will be documented in this chapter. Mankind in human flesh has a very short memory, and he just overlooks his own faults.

Psalms 81:1 "Sing aloud unto God our strength: Make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob."

We will see in this Psalm how to worship in the Sanctuary. There is no other strength in man, for God is our only strength. When you turn to our Father and allow him to strengthen you, He become our refuge from all these worldly problems. When you know without a doubt that our Heavenly Father loves you, you can make a joyful noise unto our God.

Psalms 81:2 "Take a psalm, and bring hither the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery."

Psalms 81:3 "Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, In the time appointed, on our solemn feast day."

Though some argue which feast time this is, but it identifies the feast day at a specific time; the time of the new moon, that specific time that God appointed it to be respected and remembered. When ever God orders a day to be respected by statute, Israel is to respect that day in the manner that God orders it.

Psalms 81:4 "For this was a statute for Israel, And a law of the God of Jacob."

God commanded it and made it an ordinance in the law given to the tribes of Jacob through Moses.

Psalms 81:5 "This He ordained in Joseph for testimony, When He went out through the land of Egypt: Where I heard a language that I understood not."

This verse loses much in the translation. First of all remember that the Israelites did a lot of whining and crying when things didn't go right for them. He said here, that "I went out through that land of Egypt", note that the Red sea has parted and the children of Israel walked through in on dry ground. Note that the word "where" is in italics, for it is not in any manuscripts. There is no word for "This" in the Hebrew. So according to the Masorrah it should read: "He ordained in Joseph a testimony, when he went out through the land of Egypt." Now drop the word "where" and continue: "And I heard a voice that I knew not."

That voice that they heard was the voice of Almighty God and those Israelites were not familiar with it. This is why they cried; "Why have you forsaken me?" They did not know the voice of our Heavenly Father, which is to say, His Word. While in captivity down in Egypt for those four hundred years, the were to busy living the lives of slaves. However they had left the customs and teachings of their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Whenever you stray from the teachings of God, you bind yourselves to the traditions of men, and the false religions and gods of the heathens around you. Then when God's Word is taught correctly, it becomes something strange to them. That was Moses saying that when He first heard Father speak, He didn't know the voice.

Now do you understand why they blamed God for forsaking them? That is the what the heathen do when things don't go right, they blame their gods for everything they mess up. Our God never leaves us, nor forsakes us. When things don't go right, it is because we have chosen to reject God's Ways, and by choice refused His protection and loving kindness. God is always there, it is only by the traditions of men that cause you to believe that God has forsaken you. Back in Psalms 78 God told us that He will speak and teach in a parable, using the those things that happened in the past as your examples. This is what is happening here. Those "dark sayings" spoken of then, were hidden and deeper meanings to what is said on the surface.

Though you have turned away from Him, He will always be there when you turn back to Him in repentance.

Psalms 81:6 "I removed his shoulder from the burden: His hands were delivered from the pots."

The burdens that they were carrying on their shoulders were pots filled with clay, mud and straw for building those brick things down in Egypt, working as slave laborers. God took them out of the captivity of the Pharaoh.

Psalms 81:7 "Thou calledst in trouble, And I delivered thee; I answered thee in the secret place of thunder: I proved thee at the waters of Meribah. Selah."

God never reject those children of Israel at that time, when they called for God's help, they were there. God talked to the people by day through that cloud that led them, and by night through that pillar of fire. God was continually with His children and He protected them. God was just testing them there at the waters of "strife" [Meribah]. "Selah". The connecting point is "Why you should listen and learn."

"Selah" Stop and meditate on what has just been said. In Selah, there is always a connecting point and this Selah is connecting the merciful deliverance that God gave to Israel, to the reason that they should listen. Our people should learn to listen to God and hear His voice through His Word. As sheep of our good Shepherd, we should know the voice of the Shepherd that is leading us. We should know the voice of our Shepherd so that when something doesn't sound right, according to Christ's teaching, we ought to pay attention to who doing the talking, and know if it is directed to us. Is it of God or some mortal man, whimpering because things went bad when he turned His back on God.

Psalms 81:8 "Hear, O My People, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto Me;"

This is a promise to you and I even today. If you will listen to me and do my will, I will hearken unto you. If you will pay attention to My Word, and stop listening to the traditions of men and their false doctrines, our Heavenly Father will answer your prayers.

Psalms 81:9 "There shall no strange god be in thee; Neither shalt thou worship any strange god."

If you are listening to God's through His Word, you will not be deceived by any false God or false doctrine that comes along. We are living in a time when the entire world will be deceived by Satan and his fallen angels, and if you are in tune with God's Word, you will not be deceived. If you want to listen to false doctrine like the rapture theory, and other traditions of men, then you will be deceived. You find pleasure listening to a Judas goat that will lead you straight to Antichrist.

Listen to our Heavenly Father, and to His voice and His written Word.

Psalms 81:10 "I am the Lord thy God, Which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it."

Some people say that the 16th verse has been removed to its latter position and should be placed here, but that is not so according to the Masorrah. But those seeking the deeper thought know exactly what He meant to place the order is as it is.

"Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." This is concerning those strange gods and traditions, and we are to keep our mind and reasoning thoughts out of our teachings. When you open your mouth before the strange god, before Satan when he is here in these final days. You are not to premeditate any thing you will say when you are called up to testify.

Mark 13:9 "But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony against them."

Mark 13:10 "And the gospel must first be published among all nations."

Mark 1311 "But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, take no thought before-hand what ye shall speak, neither do ye premeditate: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost [Spirit]."

The words of the Holy Spirit will be the only words that you shall speak in that hour when Satan is on his throne in Jerusalem, and you are called to give reason why you will not bow to him, and take his name and number. As you speak, every ear that hears you speak, will hear and understand in the language of his or her language of their native tongue. This is the tongue that was spoken on Pentecost day, for there will be no confusion, and confusing noises. It will be with perfect understanding.

When God says, "I am the Lord thy God," the people will listen and know that what you say is the truth from God's Word.

Psalms 81:11 "But My People would not hearken to My voice; And Israel would none of Me."

When God spoke to Israel, those children of Israel did not even know that it was God speaking to them. They thought it was some strange god speaking. As time past, they continued to listen to strange gods, and kept going back to their traditions of strange gods. This is going on even today, as most churches don't even know the difference between the things of God and of heathen custom, nor to they care. Today they think that "Passover" is not a custom of theirs, but to some past distant time, and Easter, or the feast of Ishtar, is a time to remember. They substitute their Easter eggs, their bunnies and bowing to the sun in their sunrise services, and think that the True God is smiling down on their heathen practices, because they have mixed those wicked things with the death of His Son on the cross. Is it any wonder that people have the trouble that they have.

Instead of studying the Words of our Heavenly Father, as we are required to study, they would rather go to hear some story teller stroke their brain with nonsense for an hour. They story tell of all sorts of things unrelated to God's Word, but because they thought up their story they believe God told them this or that, and their story becomes spiritual. These story tellers, or so called preachers endorse each other, and together build their own castles, called ministries.

Friend, a teacher of God's Word should know the voice of our Heavenly Father, and the words of the imaginations of individuals should be left out completely. It doesn't matter what any man or woman say, but only what comes out of the Scripture and can be backed up in and through God's Word. God's Word is the only thing that matters, and it is through that Word that we have Way to eternal life.

Psalms 81:12 "So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lusts: And they walked in their own counsels."

God is telling you that if you will continue chasing after those false doctrines and the Words of those false teachers, then I will turn you over to them. Get it? God will allow you to make your own choice, and if you desire to chase those spiritual whoredoms of religious men and their ways, I will cause your hearts and minds to be set on those ways. This is not talking about perversion on a physical nature, but spiritually chasing false doctrines, the doctrines of demons and men's traditions, and not of God's Word and instruction. Man's counsel apart from God's Word will not give you peace of mind.

When "I" and man's wisdom becomes the center of your thoughts, you are in trouble, but when "Thou" and "Thy" truths come the center of your thought, you start to have peace of mind.

Psalms 81:13 "Oh that My People had hearkened unto Me, And Israel had walked in My ways!"

Oh if Israel had only follow my advise and listend to Me and followed My ways.

Psalms 81:14 "I should soon have subdued their enemies, And turned My hand against their adversaries."

If they only would have listen, God said He would have subdued their enemies heavy hand. God loves his children and He doesn't like to see people messing over them. God is always ready to help if His children ask for that help. Remember His promise? "I will never leave you nor forsake you." It's a promise you can count on.

Psalms 81:15 "The haters of the Lord should have submitted themselves unto Him: But their time should have endured for ever."

"The haters of the Lord," Of our Lord Jesus Christ and our Heavenly Father's Ways and Word: These are our enemies. Stop and look around you, and the people and nations and what they think of Jesus. Of any nation that refuses to allow the love of Jesus taught. That is our enemies. Had Israel of old; had that little Israel Kenite nation of today; or had you and I and our nation today submitted ourselves unto Him and obeyed God, then God would be our protector and we would have eternal life. True Salvation works through the Word of God, and not through some system worked up that goes against the Word of God.

"But their time should have endured for ever." If My people would have loved me, their enemies would not have don't what they have done, and they would have endured for ever. We know that in these final days, God's elect will reach some of those people back to Him.

Psalms 81:16 "He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: And with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee.

God is saying, I would have loved them all, my children and their enemies and provided for all their needs, if they only would have turned to Me. However we know that God's own people had turned aside and and didn't even know our Heavenly Father voice. Do you know the difference from when the Word of God is talking, and when some man is talking from his own imaginations? That is what these last chapters of this third section of the Psalms is all about. If you do, than you know that if a man every blames God for leaving him, that person is not in tune with God or His Word. God will never leave you nor forsake you, but it is you that have turned your back on Him.