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Psalm 78:9
The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.
7that they might set their hope in God, and not forget God’s deeds, but keep his commandments,
8and might not be as their fathers— a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that didn’t make their hearts loyal, whose spirit was not steadfast with God.
9The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.
10They didn’t keep God’s covenant, and refused to walk in his law.
11They forgot his doings, his wondrous deeds that he had shown them.
Notice
Bows in hand, Ephraim turns back when battle comes, a sobering gap between having the tools to fight and remaining steadfast toward God.
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1 Samuel 31:1Now the Philistines fought against Israel; and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain on Mount Gilboa.Both describe Israelites retreating in battle; Samuel names the Philistines and Mount Gilboa, while the psalm leaves the battle unnamed.
Deuteronomy 1:41–44Then you answered and said to me, “We have sinned against the LORD. We will go up and fight, according to all that the LORD our God commanded us.” Every man of …Both describe armed Israelites; Deuteronomy names presumption, while the psalm’s surrounding verses name covenant unfaithfulness.
Psalm 78:57but turned back, and dealt treacherously like their fathers. They were twisted like a deceitful bow.Both pair turning back with bows: verse 9 describes carried weapons, while verse 57 compares the people to a deceitful bow.
Joshua 17:16–18The children of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us. All the Canaanites who dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both those …Military equipment appears in both: Ephraim carries bows, while Joseph’s descendants speak of Canaanite iron chariots.
1 Samuel 4:10The Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and each man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter; for thirty thousand footmen of Israel fell.Both describe retreat in battle; Samuel records Israel’s defeat and slaughter, while the psalm stresses that Ephraim was armed.
Judges 20:39Both describe Israelite men turning in battle, though Judges reports Benjamin’s belief that its opponents are being defeated.
Judges 9:28Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Isn’t he the son of Jerubbaal? Isn’t Zebul his officer? Serve the …Both concern Israelite groups facing conflict, though Gaal’s challenge to Abimelech does not describe Ephraim’s retreat.
Judges 12:4Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim. The men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they said, “You are fugitives of …Ephraim appears in battle in both passages; Judges names Gilead as the opponent, while the psalm names no enemy.
1 Chronicles 12:2They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in slinging stones and in shooting arrows from the bow. They were of Saul’s relatives …Both describe men armed with bows; Chronicles details the Benjaminites’ skill, while the psalm records Ephraim’s retreat.
Acts 15:38But Paul didn’t think that it was a good idea to take with them someone who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia, and didn’t go with them to do the work.Withdrawal links the passages: Ephraim turns back from battle, and Paul objects to taking someone who had withdrawn from the work.
Luke 22:33He said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death!”Readiness links the passages: Ephraim has battle equipment, while Peter declares his readiness to face prison and death.
Judges 9:38–40Then Zebul said to him, “Now where is your mouth, that you said, ‘Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him?’ Isn’t this the people that you have despised? …Both place men before the demands of battle: Ephraim turns back, while Zebul challenges Gaal to fight those he has despised.
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Encouragement
Ephraim’s retreat is a warning worth hearing. The surrounding verses direct hope toward God and tie steadfastness to remembering his deeds and keeping his commands.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).