79:1 the heathen are come. Psalms 73–83 are attributed to Asaph, who was one of David’s chief musicians. The reigns of David and Solomon represented the zenith of Israel’s power. Several of Asaph’s psalms, especially Psalm 79, describe a situation in Jerusalem and all Israel long after the time of David. However, the “sons of Asaph” continued to serve as temple singers until at least the times of Josiah (II Chronicles 35:15). It is possible that they continued even to the time of the exile, in which case they could have written these psalms and included them in the collection of their revered ancestor. Or, alternatively, Asaph himself could have written them as prophecies of Jerusalem’s future, seeing in vision its future destruction and the impending exile of its people (Psalm 79:2-5).