Were They Answered?

Psalms 79:1 (KJV) [[A Psalm of Asaph.]] O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps.

(Proverbs 5 also read)

When was this Psalm written?  Notice that it has the temple being defiled and Jerusalem being destroyed.  The only time that I can think of before this Psalm has to be written would be when the Babylonians deported the southern Kingdom.  Whoever is writing seems to looking back instead of forward.  I guess it’s possible this could be a prophecy, but I don’t see it.

Did God answer this prayer?  We would automatically want to say yes, but that’s if we don’t stop to think about the historical context.  For a brief time the exiles were allowed to return and rebuild the temple, but the nation of Israel was not really reestablished until 1948.  We still have no temple.

As I have noted before the piece that is missing in this Psalm is confession and repentance.  They’re willing to admit that their ancestors were not obedient, but I don’t see them confessing their own sins.

So?  God listens.  God responds.  But keep in mind He has His standards also and one of them is that we must bend our knee before Him and not just pass the buck for failure to other people.