In Psalms, chapter seventy-nine, verses one through thirteen, the psalmist here intercedes with God to forgive the Israelites for their apostasy, as in verses eight through nine, and to punish the nations that have destroyed Jerusalem and God’s temple, as in verses six to seven. He acknowledges that the pagan nations were instruments of God’s anger in verse five, yet what they had done against Israel was executed out of hatred for God and His chosen people, as in verses one through seven, Isaiah ten, verses five through eleven, and Isaiah forty-seven, verses six to seven, respectively. The psalmist is motivated by concern for God’s glory and the promotion of His name among the unbelieving nations, as in verses nine through thirteen.
The theme under A Lament for Jerusalem expresses concern for the chosen people of God who have not been in a close relationship with the Lord. The established people raised in godly environments but lived ungodly experienced defeat. The children today whose upbringing in a godly family and indulge in the carnal is an ongoing problem for many parents who try to nurture their kids according to the Word of God. The first example of such an experience was in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Both of them lived in a godly environment except for the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the center of it.
The test for Adam and Eve was to obey instructions from God. However, the devil, through the serpent, deceived them into going the ungodly way, which eventually led them away from God and the Garden of Eden. Today, the enemy continues to lead God’s creation from the truth through deception. The heathen are people the devil uses to influence those godly individuals to live the sinful lifestyle.