Psalms 78:51 Commentary: The Chief of Their Strength

Psalm 78 is a historical psalm attributed to Asaph, designed to teach the next generation about God’s mighty acts and Israel’s repeated rebellion. Verses 49, 51 compress several plagues into a poetic crescendo that peaks with the tenth. In the ancient Near East, the firstborn son carried enormous significance: he received a double inheritance, represented the family’s continuity, and in royal houses was the heir to the throne. Calling the firstborn ‘the chief of their strength’ (Hebrew rēšît ʾōnîm) draws on this cultural weight. The phrase appears first in Jacob’s blessing of Reuben (Genesis 49:3), where Reuben is called ‘the beginning of my strength.’

The designation ‘tents of Ham’ serves a double purpose. It links Egypt to the Table of Nations in Genesis 10, where Ham is the father of Mizraim (Egypt), Cush, Put, and Canaan. By this name the poet reminds his audience that Egypt belonged to a line already associated with Noah’s curse (Genesis 9:22, 25). The word ʾohălê (tents) evokes the dwelling places of a settled people, though the term is more often used for nomadic shelters; here it stresses that the plague penetrated every home, from Pharaoh’s palace to the prisoner’s cell (Exodus 12:29).

Psalm 78 was likely composed during the divided monarchy, after the northern kingdom’s fall, to explain why God had rejected Ephraim and chosen Judah and David. The plague on Egypt functions as a model of God’s power to save His people and judge their oppressors, a lesson the current generation needed to hear.

The supplied sources note no significant textual variants for Psalm 78:51. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscript traditions. The only minor variation is in English translations: some render ʾohălê as “tents” (WEB, ASV, YLT, Darby), others as “tabernacles” (KJV, Geneva) or “dwellings” (implied). None of these affect meaning.

Psalm 78:51 has been read in both Jewish and Christian liturgies as part of the Passover remembrance. Jews recall the tenth plague each Seder night, while Christians have seen in the striking of the firstborn a type of Christ, the firstborn of creation, who was struck for His people. The phrase “chief of their strength” has been cited in sermons on the fragility of human power and the sovereignty of God. Early church fathers such as Augustine connected this verse to the judgment on Pharaoh as a lesson in divine justice. In later periods, Protestant reformers like Calvin used it to illustrate the severity of God’s wrath and the necessity of faith in the Passover Lamb. The genealogy of Ham has sparked occasional debate, but the verse’s main theme has remained constant: God’s power to humble the proud and save the humble.

Three-point outline

1. God’s judgment targets what Egypt treasured most. The firstborn were the pride and future of every family. No house escaped loss. The plague shows that nothing we build or trust can withstand God’s hand.
2. The phrase ‘chief of their strength’ exposes human vulnerability. The Hebrew words rēšît and ōnîm stress that even the strongest beginning can be cut short. Our strength is borrowed.
3. ‘Tents of Ham’ is a theological identifier. Egypt is not just a political power; it is the nation descended from a cursed line. The naming reminds us that God’s justice operates across generations and that He remembers His covenant with Abraham (contrast verse 52).

Five-point outline

1. Exodus retold: the tenth plague as the decisive blow.
2. Firstborn as strength: cultural and biblical background.
3. The poetry of judgment: how Psalm 78 intensifies the narrative.
4. Ham’s lineage: why the poet calls Egypt by that name.
5. From judgment to deliverance: verse 52 immediately contrasts with “his own people like sheep.”

Illustration hooks

• A family business founded by a father, passed to the eldest son. When that son dies, the whole enterprise collapses. The plague struck Egypt at its economic and emotional centre.
• A national leader’s untimely death can destabilise a country. The death of every firstborn in Egypt meant every household lost its future leader at once.
• Think of a tree being felled by cutting the main root. The “chief of strength” is that root; everything else withers.

Questions your congregation is asking

• Why does God sometimes strike what people love most? Is that cruel or just?
• How do we reconcile the severity of this plague with God’s love?
• What does it mean for us that Egypt is called “the tents of Ham”, does God hold nations accountable for ancient sins?

This verse appears in a psalm that retells Israel’s history so that the next generation will not repeat the rebellion of their ancestors. The focus on the firstborn plague forces us to ask: what does God’s judgment reveal about His character, and what does deliverance teach about His grace?

Discussion questions

1. Read Exodus 12:29, 30. What details does the psalm add or omit? Why do you think the poet describes the firstborn as “the chief of their strength”?
2. The Hebrew word ōnîm means “vigour” or “generative power.” How does that deepen the idea of what Egypt lost?
3. Look at Genesis 9:22, 25 and 10:6. Why does the psalm call Egypt “the tents of Ham”? Does this emphasise judgment, heritage, or both?
4. Notice the immediate contrast in verse 52: God “led out his own people like sheep.” How does the poet use this contrast to teach about God’s purposes?
5. How does this verse challenge our modern ideas about national identity and divine justice?
6. If the firstborn plague points forward to Christ, the “firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15), what does that connection suggest about judgment and redemption?
7. In your own life, where do you place your “chief strength”, in people, plans, or in God? How does this verse invite you to trust differently?