Asaph was a Levite (from the tribe of Levi) who was commissioned as a young man by David to be a singer, poet, and musician in the house of God. (1Chron15:17-19, 16:5-7, 25:6. 1Chron25:1.) 2Chron 5:12 and 2Chron29:30 adds that Asaph was a prophet in his musical compositions. He would have been an older man as he transitioned to the reign of Solomon. He was involved in the dedication of Solomon’s temple. In this time frame, Asaph would have seen a lot of corruption and intrigue that would have included: Saul’s obsessions and apostacy, David’s infidelity and murder, Absalom’s rebellion, Joab’s political exploits, as well as all the things that troubled David as he faced the exploits of his political enemies. He wrote 12 psalms. Psalm 73 is in my top 3 favorite psalms. This psalm is a reflection of Asaph’s spiritual struggle.

This deep and thought-provoking psalm may be best understood by the dominant pronouns within. When Asaph is troubled by the prosperity of the ungodly (vs1-12), the dominant pronoun is they. When he describes his own frustrated thinking leading to the resolution (vs3-17), the dominant pronoun is I. When he finds resolution of the problem (vs18-22), the dominant pronoun is You, in the sense of God. When He proclaims the assurance of his faith and fellowship with God (verses 23-28), the dominant pronouns are a mixture of You and I. Read the Psalm and try highlighting the progression.

The theme is the perennial problem of reconciling God’s moral government with the observed facts. How can an infinitely powerful God be good and yet allow the wicked to prosper and the righteous to go unrewarded? As you read this psalm ask yourself, “How do you respond to corruption?” Especially if that corruption is in the church! If the righteous go unrewarded and the wicked are enriched, surely there is something wrong with the moral government of the world? This is what caused Asaph’s feet to ‘almost’ stumble & slip.’ (V2). Looking at others can cause our feet to spiritually stumble. TBC