Psalms 79:6

But that which he adds, "Pour forth Your anger upon the nations which have not known You, and upon the kingdoms which have not called upon Your name" [Psalm 79:6]; this too is a prophecy, not a wish. Not in the imprecation of malevolence are these words spoken, but foreseen by the Spirit they are predicted: just as in the case of Judas the traitor, the evil things which were to befall him have been so prophesied as if they were wished. For in like manner as the prophet does not command Christ, though in the imperative mood he gives utterance to what he says, "Gird Your sword about Your thigh, O Most Mighty: in Your beauty and in Your goodliness, both go on, and prosperously proceed, and reign:" so he does not wish, but does prophesy, who says, "Pour forth Your anger upon the nations which have not known You." Which in his usual way he repeats, saying, "And upon the kingdoms which have not called upon Your name." For nations have been repeated in kingdoms: and that they have not known Him, has been repeated in this, that they have not called upon His name. How then must be understood, what the Lord says in the Gospel [Luke 12:47-48] concerning stripes, "the many and the few"? If greater the anger of God is against the nations, which have not known the Lord? For in this which he says, "Pour forth Your anger," with this word he has clearly enough pointed out, how great anger he has willed that there should be understood. Whence afterwards he says, "Render to our neighbours seven times as much." Is it not that there is a great difference between servants, who, though they know not the will of their Lord, do yet call upon His name, and those that are aliens from the family of so great a Master, who are so ignorant of God, as that they do not even call upon God? […]

) and makes use of them in his prayer, Jer. x. Some think it was penned long before by the spirit of prophecy, prepared for the use of the church in that cloudy and dark day. Others think that it was penned then by the spirit of prayer, either by a prophet named Asaph or by some other prophet for the sons of Asaph.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

Pour out thy wrath upon the Heathen that have not known thee,....

Those that persist in ignorance of God, and neglect of prayer, are the ungodly, who live without God in the world. There are kingdoms that know not God and obey not the gospel, but neither their multitude nor their force united will secure them from his just judgments.

"Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee." If thou must smite look further afield; spare thy children and strike thy foes. There are lands where thou art in no measure acknowledged; be pleased to visit these first with thy judgments, and let thine erring Israel have a respite. "And upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name." Hear us the prayerful, and avenge thyself upon the prayerless. Sometimes providence appears to deal much more severely with the righteous than with the wicked, and this verse is a bold appeal founded upon such an appearance. It in effect says—Lord, if thou must empty out the vials of thy wrath, begin with those who have no measure of regard for thee, but are openly up in arms against thee; and be pleased to spare thy people, who are thine notwithstanding all their sins.