Psalm 83 (82):2Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He states that none will match Your unwavering resolve and patience in the face of wrongdoing. Yet I fervently ask You not to remain silent amidst these unjust attacks from our adversaries.

O Lord, who can be compared to You? Because no other creator matches Your greatness, we seek no one else. "Do not be silent, nor remain still, O God." We remain quiet so that You may raise Your voice on our behalf. This is the plea of the righteous; the one who calls out, "Do not be quiet, O God," has assurance in his own innocence. It is a different understanding: no one will ever equal You. "Do not be silent, nor remain still, O God," proclaims the believer from whom streams of living water emerge. He recognizes the abundance of harvesters yet notices the scarcity of laborers: many professing believers exist, but teachers of the faith are few. While there are numerous heretics and opponents, very few warriors stand firm for Christ. Therefore, do not be silent or still, O God. Why is that so?

O God, who can compare to You? The united natures of angels and humanity fall short of Your omnipotence, as Your strength is unmatched. The Prophet chose to say ‘who’ rather than ‘no one.’ We implore You, O Lord, not to extend beyond Your customary forbearance. This aligns with the phrase ‘Be silent, O God,’ and Symmachus rendered it as ‘do not be at rest.’ The Prophet then provides the reasoning behind this request.

O God, who is there like You! These words are filled with awe rather than inquiry. David expressed his astonishment at the reality that God has no equal or similarity with anything. The phrase "who" signifies not rarity, but an utter inability to draw comparisons, and as Theodoret suggests, it is meant to convey that no one can be compared to You; indeed, You are fundamentally unmatched and incomprehensibly all-powerful. Theodoret states that all of creation, including angels and humans, cannot stand in comparison to Your might, for Your power is beyond comparison. Didyma explains that similarity is understood in two ways: there is similarity in essence, referred to as identity, and similarity in attributes, simply regarded as resemblance.

The prophet does not pose this inquiry with doubt, for such a question would lack purpose. Instead, he seeks to convey the greatness of God and His unparalleled nature, as no one can truly conceive of being like God, the Creator of all. It is important to observe a unique aspect in the phrasing; the prophet asks not, "Who is like Thee?" but rather, "Who shall be like Thee?" indicating a future context. Through this, he hints at the fact that the work of the Only Begotten in human form was compared in glory to that of certain prophets. Some perceived Him as Elijah, while others identified Him as one of the prophets, yet none could truly be compared to Him. He alone is both God and man, the sole Savior of humanity.

O God, who can compare to You? Do not remain silent or passive, O God. Many believe this psalm was written during the reign of the righteous king Jehoshaphat, who faced numerous adversaries in battle. The main aggressors were the Ammonites and Moabites, who formed an alliance not only with the Syrians but also with other distant nations, overwhelming almost all of Judea, as noted in the second book of Chronicles, chapter 20. Here, sacred scripture recounts how a prophet named Josiel, speaking on behalf of God, assured the king of victory—a promise that was later celebrated by the Levites in worship. It is evident that the entire nation stood with their devout king in this perilous time, and this prayer serves as a model for the entire Church.

The Psalm, crafted by the Holy Spirit through David, was entrusted to Asaph, the leader of the singers, so that he could declare the prophecy within it regarding the impending tribulation faced by the Jewish people, particularly the faithful followers of Christ throughout various eras, with a noted emphasis on the times of the Antichrist. In this context, the Prophet calls out earnestly, embodying the voice of the prayers of the Holy Church during periods of persecution. Evil acts as a demonic lure, beckoning individuals toward idolatry and all manner of sin. Through God's long-suffering, the adversaries grew so arrogant that they created a clamor, reflecting their insubordination.