The Meaning of Psalms 78:21 Explained

Psalms 78:21

KJV: Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;

YLT: Therefore hath Jehovah heard, And He sheweth Himself wroth, And fire hath been kindled against Jacob, And anger also hath gone up against Israel,

Darby: Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; and fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also went up against Israel:

ASV: Therefore Jehovah heard, and was wroth; And a fire was kindled against Jacob, And anger also went up against Israel;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Therefore the LORD  heard  [this], and was wroth:  so a fire  was kindled  against Jacob,  and anger  also came up  against Israel; 

What does Psalms 78:21 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 78:13-24 - "a Table In The Wilderness"
Throughout this wonderful recital there is a perpetual contrast between God's unswerving goodness and the incessant backsliding of His people; and as we read it, we learn that sin is not simply the violation of the divine law, but a source of pain and trouble to our Heavenly Father's heart. For us He cleaves the seas, leads us in the daytime, builds His watch-fires around us at night, and brings streams of blessing from the rocks. But we tempt Him by our incessant unbelief. We say, He certainly did thus and thus, but can He, will He, do this or that? "Can God furnish?" "Can God give bread?"
When shall we dare to believe in our Lord's assurances; first, that "with God all things are possible;" and second, that "all things are possible to him that believeth"? But we must live habitually in fellowship with God before we are able to exercise this faith. As we nourish our souls by feeding on the promises, and studying what He has done in the lives of others, out faith removes all the boundaries with which it had limited the Holy One, and cries, "Thou canst and thou wilt!" [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 78

1  An exhortation both to learn and to preach, the law of God
9  The story of God's wrath against the incredulous and disobedient
67  The Israelites being rejected, God chose Judah, Zion, and David

What do the individual words in Psalms 78:21 mean?

therefore heard [this] Yahweh and was furious so a fire was kindled against Jacob and also anger came up against Israel
לָכֵ֤ן ׀ שָׁמַ֥ע יְהוָ֗ה וַֽיִּתְעַבָּ֥ר וְ֭אֵשׁ נִשְּׂקָ֣ה בְיַעֲקֹ֑ב וְגַם־ אַ֝֗ף עָלָ֥ה בְיִשְׂרָאֵֽל

שָׁמַ֥ע  heard  [this] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שָׁמַע 
Sense: to hear, listen to, obey.
יְהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
וַֽיִּתְעַבָּ֥ר  and  was  furious 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Hitpael, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָבַר 
Sense: to pass over or by or through, alienate, bring, carry, do away, take, take away, transgress.
וְ֭אֵשׁ  so  a  fire 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, common singular
Root: אֵשׁ  
Sense: fire.
נִשְּׂקָ֣ה  was  kindled 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: נָשַׂק  
Sense: to kindle, burn.
בְיַעֲקֹ֑ב  against  Jacob 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יַעֲקֹב  
Sense: son of Isaac, grandson of Abraham, and father of the 2 patriarchs of the tribes of Israel.
וְגַם־  and  also 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Conjunction
Root: גַּם  
Sense: also, even, indeed, moreover, yea.
אַ֝֗ף  anger 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אַף 
Sense: nostril, nose, face.
עָלָ֥ה  came  up 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
בְיִשְׂרָאֵֽל  against  Israel 
Parse: Preposition-b, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.