Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.
The psalmist rehearses God's faithfulness to the fathers, then lodges a sharp complaint: He no longer goes forth with us as He once did. The structure is plain: mercies remembered, present affliction lamented, covenant loyalty maintained despite suffering, and a final prayer that God not forget the dishonor done to His worship.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 44:1-26
Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people. The lamentation is here repeated. They had sunk so low that none did them reverence, but universally and publicly they were treated as infamous and despicable.
They boasted once that God would protect them, so now their defeat cuts doubly deep. God seems to have cast them off entirely, yet mark the error: when the faithful are cast down, they mistake it for being cast away. God has not forsaken His people, though they are tempted to think it.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 44:9-16