Through God We Shall Do Valiantly

The second part of Psalm 60 is the answer. After Part 1 cried out of defeat — "O God, You have rejected us" — here comes the great response: "God has spoken in His holiness." God speaks, and His word is an oracle of victory: He divides Shechem and measures Sukkot; Gilead and Manasseh are His, Ephraim the helmet, Judah the scepter. Even the great enemies — Moab, Edom, Philistia — become vessels in His hand. Against all this stands the truth that seals the chapter: the help of man is vain — "through God we shall do valiantly."

This part too opens with the heading "upon Shushan Edut, a Michtam of David, to teach" — the last Michtam in the book. Just before the climax hides one of the most honest moments in the Psalms: "Have You not rejected us, O God?" — a painful, almost spoken question, out of which the great declaration of faith breaks through. The melody turns this finale into a warm, shared song of thanksgiving.

The central verses, chosen as the chorus and the title of the song, are:

"Give us help against the foe, for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly, and He will trample our foes."

"Vain" means empty and worthless; "do valiantly" means to overcome and triumph; "trample" means crush. These two verses are the faith of the whole chapter: not strength and not allies will save — only God. Whoever leans on Him does not merely survive; he prevails.

This song is part of the larger journey of the project: with God's help, to compose and sing the entire Book of Psalms in a diverse, emotional, Jewish, and uplifting musical language.