Psalm 80:6

Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours: and our enemies laugh among themselves.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(6) A strife—i.e., an object of contention. In no other sense could Israel be a strife to neighbouring nations. For the bearing of this on the date of the psalm see its Introduction.

Laugh among themselves.—Literally, for themselves. But LXX. and Vulg. read, “at us.”

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

80:1-7 He that dwelleth upon the mercy-seat, is the good Shepherd of his people. But we can neither expect the comfort of his love, nor the protection of his arm, unless we partake of his converting grace. If he is really angry at the prayers of his people, it is because, although they pray, their ends are not right, or there is some secret sin indulged in them, or he will try their patience and perseverance in prayer. When God is displeased with his people, we must expect to see them in tears, and their enemies in triumph. There is no salvation but from God's favour; there is no conversion to God but by his own grace.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Thou makest us a strife - An occasion of strife or wrangling; that is, of strife among themselves, to see who will get the most of our spoils; or of contention, to see which could do most to aggravate their sufferings, and to bring disgrace and contempt upon them. They were emulous with each other in the work of desolation and ruin.

Unto our neighbors - The surrounding nations. See Psalm 79:4.

And our enemies laugh among themselves - Over our calamities. They exult; they glory; they triumph in our ruin.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

6. strife—object or cause of (Isa 9:11). On last clause compare Ps 79:4; Eze 36:4.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

A strife, i.e. the object or matter of their strife or contention; either,

1. They strive one with another who shrill do us most mischief, or take our spoils to themselves; or,

2. They are perpetually quarrelling with us, and seeking occasions against us. Our neighbours, who used and ought to live peaceably and kindly with us. Laugh among themselves; insult over us, and take pleasure in our miseries.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours,.... Either obliges us to contend with them for our defence and safety; or having given us into their hands, they strive and contend one with another about dividing the spoil:

and our enemies laugh among themselves; at us, and because there is no help for us in God, as they imagine; or at God himself, as Kimchi, saying he cannot save as.

Geneva Study Bible

Thou makest us a {e} strife unto our neighbours: and our enemies laugh among themselves.

(e) Our neighbours have continual strife and war against us.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

6. a strife &c.] An object of contention (Jeremiah 15:10): the petty states round about (Psalm 79:4; Psalm 79:12), Edomites, Arabians, and the like, quarrel among themselves for our territory. Lagarde conjectures that we should read mânôd, shaking (of the head), for mâdôn, strife, as in Psalm 44:14, which would suit the parallelism better.

laugh among themselves] Rather, to their heart’s content, so, laugh scornfully. Cp. Psalm 79:4.

P.B.V. ‘laugh us to scorn’ follows LXX, Vulg., Jer.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 6. - Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours. A great invasion, Assyrian or Babylonian, was always a signal to the near neighbours of Israel - Syria, Moab, Ammon, Edom - to indulge in hostilities (see 2 Kings 24:2). And our enemies laugh among themselves (comp. Psalm 44:13; Psalm 79:4). Psalm 80:6

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

In the second strophe there issues forth bitter complaint concerning the form of wrath which the present assumes, and, thus confirmed, the petition rises anew. The transferring of the smoking (עשׁן) of God's nostrils equals the hard breathing of anger (Psalm 74:1, Deuteronomy 29:19), to God Himself is bold, but in keeping with the spirit of the Biblical view of the wrath of God (vid., on Psalm 18:9), so that there is no need to avoid the expression by calling in the aid of the Syriac word עשׁן, to be strong, powerful (why art Thou hard, why dost Thou harden Thyself...). The perfect after עד־מתי has the sense of a present with a retrospective glance, as in Exodus 10:3, cf. עד־אנה, to be understood after the analogy of חרה בּ (to kindle equals to be angry against any one), for the prayer of the people is not an object of wrath, but only not a means of turning it aside. While the prayer is being presented, God veils Himself in the smoke of wrath, through which it is not able to penetrate. The lxx translators have read בתפלת עבדיך, for they render ἐπὶ τὴν προσευχήν τῶν δούλων σου (for which the common reading is τοῦ δούλου σου). Bread of tears is, according to Psalm 42:4, bread consisting of tears; tears, running down in streams upon the lips of the praying and fasting one, are his meat and his drink. השׁקה with an accusative signifies to give something to drink, and followed by Beth, to give to drink by means of something, but it is not to be translated: potitandum das eis cum lacrymis trientem (De Dieu, von Ortenberg, and Hitzig). שׁלישׁ (Talmudic, a third part) is the accusative of more precise definition (Vatablus, Gesenius, Olshausen, and Hupfeld): by thirds (lxx ἐν μέτρῳ, Symmachus μέτρῳ); for a third of an ephah is certainly a very small measure for the dust of the earth (Isaiah 40:12), but a large one for tears. The neighbours are the neighbouring nations, to whom Israel is become מדון, an object, a butt of contention. In למו is expressed the pleasure which the mocking gives them.