Psalms · psalm 85 of 150
Updated on
Psalm 85 is a prayer of the sons of Korah that recalls how God forgave and restored his people in the past and asks him to do it again. The psalmist listens for what God will speak: peace to his people, provided they do not turn back to folly. It ends with a vision of steadfast love and faithfulness that meet, of righteousness and peace that kiss, and of a land that yields its increase.
The title says it is a psalm of the sons of Korah, for the choirmaster. It is in Book III. The text does not say which restoration it recalls; many think of the return from the Babylonian exile, though others link it with an earlier restoration. Its structure is clear: remembrance of what God did, a request that he do it again, and a prophetic answer that leads to a vision of hope.
The psalm begins by remembering: Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people and covered all their sin. You withdrew all your wrath and turned from your hot anger.
Verses 4 to 7 make the request: restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us. Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations? Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Show us your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.
Verses 8 and 9 introduce an answer: let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints, but let them not turn back to folly. Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
Verses 10 to 13 describe the vision. Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky. The Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The psalmist remembers that God was favorable to his land, restored his people, forgave their iniquity and covered all their sin. What God did in the past is the basis for the present plea.
The people ask that God revive them again so that they may rejoice in him. The restoration they seek is not only material: it is recovering the joy of the relationship with God.
The psalmist decides to listen to what God will speak, who will speak peace to his people if they do not return to folly. Prayer includes being quiet and waiting for the Lord's answer.
Steadfast love and faithfulness meet, righteousness and peace kiss, faithfulness springs from the ground and righteousness looks down from heaven. It is a poetic picture of how God's attributes are reconciled in his work of salvation.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: He forgave it and covered all their sin. — Psalm 85:2
Answer: That God restore them and put away his indignation toward them. — Psalm 85:4
Answer: Listen to what God the Lord will speak. — Psalm 85:8
Answer: Peace, provided they do not turn back to folly. — Psalm 85:8
Answer: Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss. — Psalm 85:10
Answer: Its increase. — Psalm 85:12
Psalm 85 teaches a useful pattern of prayer: remember, ask, listen and wait. In a small group it can be used as a guide: recall how God restored in the past, ask him for a new restoration and keep silence to hear what he says. We often ask much and listen little.
The vision of verses 10 and 11 also invites us to expect a world where steadfast love and faithfulness, righteousness and peace go together. In daily life that means avoiding false opposites, such as being truthful without being merciful or seeking peace without justice. Someone living in community can ask which virtue they neglect most and ask God to balance it.
Psalm 85 ends with righteousness going before the Lord and preparing the way. Psalm 86 is a prayer of David, humble and trusting, asking God to incline his ear and teach him his way.
It is a poetic picture that God's faithful love and his faithfulness to the truth do not oppose each other but meet and embrace. In a similar way, righteousness and peace kiss. Christians see in the cross of Christ the place where God's justice, which condemns sin, and his mercy, which forgives, are joined.
The text does not specify. The phrase restored the fortunes of Jacob is usually linked with the return from exile in Babylon, but it can also mean in general a restoration of the people's fortunes. In either case the psalm can be prayed whenever a community needs to return to God.