Psalms · psalm 67 of 150
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Psalm 67 is a short prayer of seven verses asking God to be gracious to his people, to bless them and to make his face shine upon them, with a clear purpose: that his way may be known on earth and that all the peoples may praise him. Its refrain twice asks that the peoples praise God. It ends with the earth yielding its increase and all the ends of the earth fearing the Lord.
The title calls it a psalm and a song, addressed to the choirmaster with stringed instruments, and does not name an author. It belongs to Book II of the Psalter. Its opening words recall the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:24-26, but the expansion is striking: Israel asks for blessing so that the nations may know God. That is why it is known as a missionary psalm of the Old Testament.
The psalm opens with a request that recalls the blessing the priests pronounced over the people: that God be gracious to us, bless us and make his face to shine upon us. Right away the purpose appears: that his way be known on earth and his saving power among all nations.
Then comes the first refrain: let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. Verse 4 explains why the nations will be glad and sing for joy: God judges the peoples with equity and guides the nations of the earth. It is a joy grounded in the justice of a God who governs well.
The refrain is repeated in verse 5. Then the psalm returns to the theme of blessing: the earth has yielded its increase, and God, our God, will bless us. The last line takes up the purpose of the whole poem: God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The psalmist asks God to be gracious, to bless and to make his face shine upon them. The words recall the blessing God commanded for Israel, which means his favor and his nearness.
The blessing has a purpose: that God's way and his saving power be known on earth and among the nations. Israel does not ask for blessing only for itself but in order to bear witness to God.
The nations are glad and sing for joy because God judges them with equity and guides them. God's justice is not a threat to the peoples but a reason for gladness.
God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him. The psalm ends with a universal horizon: God's blessing points toward a world that acknowledges him.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: That he be gracious, bless them and make his face shine upon them. — Psalm 67:1
Answer: So that God's way and saving power would be known among all nations. — Psalm 67:2
Answer: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. — Psalm 67:3
Answer: Because God judges the peoples with equity and guides the nations. — Psalm 67:4
Answer: Its increase. — Psalm 67:6
Answer: All the ends of the earth. — Psalm 67:7
Psalm 67 challenges us to ask why we want God's blessing. Its answer is that we receive it so that others may know God. In a Sunday school class you can discuss how health, work, family and the gifts of the church can be doors for speaking of him with neighbors, coworkers and friends.
It is also a good psalm for praying about missions. It can be read aloud in worship, with prayer for missionaries, for countries where the faith is persecuted and for those who have not yet heard. A small group can choose one specific people and pray for them over a month using the words of the refrain.
Psalm 67 ends with the earth blessed and all the ends of the earth fearing God. Psalm 68 is a much longer song that celebrates God's victorious march with his people and his dominion over all the earth.
Verse 1 gathers the ideas of Numbers 6:24-26: to bless, to show favor and to make his face shine. The psalmist turns that familiar blessing into a prayer and adds a universal purpose: that God's way reach all the nations.
Because its attention is on the nations and not only on Israel: it asks that God's way and saving power be known on earth and that all peoples praise him. In that way it points toward the promise made to Abraham that in him all the families of the earth would be blessed, according to Genesis 12:3.