Psalm 80 – Shepherd of Israel

 June 24, 2025

The image of God, the good shepherd, is highlighted in Psalm 23 and Psalm 80. What can we learn about God from this image? Particularly as found in Psalm 80 – Shepherd of Israel?

Psalm 80

Another psalm attributed to Asaph, Psalm 80 – Shepherd of Israel, begins with a call to God, the shepherd of Israel, to lead the people like a shepherd guides and cares for his flock.

“Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might; come and save us.” (1-2)

Three times, the psalmist, Asaph, calls upon God to restore God’s people.

“Restore us, O God; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved.” (3,7,19)

God has made them the object of derision. Echoing Psalm 79, the psalmist asks God how long he will be angry against his people.

“How long, Lord God Almighty, will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people?
You have fed them with the bread of tears; you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us.” (4-6)

Vine and Vineyard

Using the image of a vine and vineyard, Asaph describes how God transplanted a vine from Egypt and helped it grow.

“You transplanted a vine from Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches.
Its branches reached as far as the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.” (8-11)

But now the wall protecting the vineyard has been broken down, allowing wild boar to ravage it.

“Why have you broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
Boars from the forest ravage it, and insects from the fields feed on it.” (12-13)

He asks God to return to his people and watch over the vineyard.

“Return to us, God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine, the root your right hand has planted, the son you have raised up for yourself.” (14-15)

He concludes the psalm with the third request for God to restore them, let his face shine on them, and save them.

The Good Shepherd

As I’ve been reflecting on this Psalm, I’ve also been fighting off a bug I acquired while on the road for a month. While I thought I was almost done with this curse, it has returned with a vengeance and a sore throat. Perhaps the worst part of it is the general malaise. I just don’t feel like doing anything. Not my usual self.

The words of the psalm have echoed throughout my prayers: “Restore me, Lord!” The image of myself as the lamb, carried on Jesus, the good shepherd’s shoulders, then being lain in a green pasture by a stream for further healing, dominates my reflective time. If only God would let his face shine on me and restore me.

Three times Asaph calls upon God, the shepherd, to restore God’s people. He has reason to assert this claim on God. Psalm 23 reminds us that God, the shepherd, restores our soul. So Israel has justification for making this demand. But even more than that, the shepherd in Psalm 80 – shepherd of Israel, is a ruler beyond compare. He sits among the angels. This is more than an earthly shepherd, but the shepherd of the book of Revelation. “For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” (7:17)

Foreshadowing of Jesus

We see a foreshadowing in verse 17 of Psalm 80: “Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand, the son of man you have raised up for yourself.” The “man at your right hand” can be interpreted as the king of the house of David, or the Messiah, Jesus, who often referred to himself as the “son of man.”

Jesus is both lamb and shepherd, the lamb led to slaughter and the shepherd that leads and protects the flock. But even more, Revelations goes on to state in verse 17:14: “They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

Psalm 80 – Shepherd of Israel

The shepherd in Psalm 80 – shepherd of Israel, is both a personal savior, that seeks out the lost and cares for the sheep, and a royal lamb, a king who will restore the whole world someday. These are reasons for hope. Our God cares for us as individuals, like a good shepherd and loving father, and also cares for our world like the King, the Lord of lords, that God is.

Someday, this shepherd will triumph and wipe away every tear from our eyes.

When you reflect on God as shepherd, what image comes to mind?

(For another take on this psalm, see Psalm 80: Eating the Bread of Tears – Patricia M Robertson)

This post is part of a series of blog posts on the Psalms. Sign up to follow this blog and receive a free copy of Still Dancing, the second book in my Dancing through Life Series.      click here to sign up

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