Psalms — Chapter 67

Loading ESV text...

1For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Psalm. A song. May God be gracious to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us, Selah

2that Your ways may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.

3Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You.

4Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for You judge the peoples justly and lead the nations of the earth. Selah

5Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You.

6The earth has yielded its harvest; God, our God, blesses us.

7God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.

1God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.

2That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.

3Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.

4O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.

5Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.

6Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.

7God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.

1God be merciful unto us, and bless us, [And] cause his face to shine upon us; Selah

2That thy way may be known upon earth, Thy salvation among all nations.

3Let the peoples praise thee, O God; Let all the peoples praise thee.

4Oh let the nations be glad and sing for joy; For thou wilt judge the peoples with equity, And govern the nations upon earth. Selah

5Let the peoples praise thee, O God; Let all the peoples praise thee.

6The earth hath yielded its increase: God, even our own God, will bless us.

7God will bless us; And all the ends of the earth shall fear him. Psalm 68 For the Chief Musician; A Psalm of David, a song.

1For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm, a song. May God show us his favor and bless us. May he smile on us. (Selah)

2Then those living on earth will know what you are like; all nations will know how you deliver your people.

3Let the nations thank you, O God. Let all the nations thank you.

4Let foreigners rejoice and celebrate. For you execute justice among the nations and govern the people living on earth. (Selah)

5Let the nations thank you, O God. Let all the nations thank you.

6The earth yields its crops. May God, our God, bless us.

7May God bless us. Then all the ends of the earth will give him the honor he deserves.

1May God be merciful to us, bless us, and cause his face to shine on us. Selah.

2That your way may be known on earth, and your salvation among all nations,

3let the peoples praise you, God. Let all the peoples praise you.

4Oh let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you will judge the peoples with equity, and govern the nations on earth. Selah.

5Let the peoples praise you, God. Let all the peoples praise you.

6The earth has yielded its increase. God, even our own God, will bless us.

7God will bless us. All the ends of the earth shall fear him.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

A brief missionary psalm, asking God to bless his people and make his face shine on them so that his ways would be known throughout the earth and among all nations (vv. 1-2). Twice the psalmist calls all peoples to praise God, envisioning the nations glad and singing because God judges with justice and guides them (vv. 3-5). The psalm closes by connecting the earth's harvest to God's blessing, praying that God would continue to bless his people so that the whole earth would revere him (vv. 6-7).

Authorship & Background

Author: Multiple authors — primarily David (73 psalms attributed), plus Asaph (12), Sons of Korah (11), Solomon (2), Moses (1), Heman (1), Ethan (1), and anonymous. The Psalter was compiled over approximately 1000 years and served as Israel's hymnal and prayer book. The book is divided into five 'books' (1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, 107-150), paralleling the five books of Moses.
Classification: Hymn of Praise / Missionary Psalm
Attributed Author: Anonymous
Key Themes: God's blessing for global mission, all nations praising God, God's righteous governance, harvest blessing, the Aaronic benediction extended to the world
Historical Context: This brief, beautiful psalm (7 verses) is often called the "Old Testament Lord's Prayer" or the "Missionary Psalm." It opens by echoing the Aaronic Benediction (Numbers 6:24-26) but with a purpose: "that thy way may be known upon earth" (v.2). Israel's blessing was never meant to be hoarded — it was intended to be a conduit of God's self-revelation to all nations. The psalm has a concentric structure with the refrain "Let the peoples praise thee" (vv.3,5) framing the center (v.4). It was likely used at harvest festivals (v.6 — "the earth has yielded her increase") to remind Israel that their agricultural blessing was connected to their calling to be a light to the nations.
God Be Merciful unto Us (vv.1-2): God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and cause his face to shine upon us. The wording borrows the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:24-26, and then does something with it the blessing does not: it attaches a purpose clause, that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. The blessing is asked for in order to be visible to somebody else.
The First Refrain (v.3): Let the people praise thee, O God, let all the people praise thee. The refrain appears twice, here and at verse 5, and it divides a seven-verse psalm into three parts. What it asks for is not Israel's praise but everyone's, which is the psalm's single subject.
Let the Nations Be Glad (v.4): O let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. One verse, and the reason given for the gladness is judgment, which is the psalter's consistent position: reliable government is good news to those who have not had any.
The Second Refrain (v.5): Let the people praise thee, O God, let all the people praise thee. The refrain unchanged, closing the middle section, and its repetition is what makes the psalm's structure symmetrical around verse 4.
Then Shall the Earth Yield Her Increase (vv.6-7): Then shall the earth yield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us. The harvest is mentioned only at the end and only briefly, which suggests the psalm was sung at a festival without being about one. And the closing verse repeats the purpose of verse 2, God shall bless us, that all the ends of the earth may fear him, so the psalm ends where it began: the blessing is for export.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
  • Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
  • Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.

Videos

Psalm 67 | May Your Face Shine On Us | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

Psalm 67 - A Missionary Psalm
David Guzik

Articles

  • GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of Psalms -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.

Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.

Reflection

  • Blessing With a Purpose (vv.1-2) — The psalmist asks for God's blessing not for its own sake but so that God's ways would be known throughout the earth. Do you see the good things God gives you as ends in themselves, or as a means of making Him known to others?
  • Nations Rejoicing in God's Justice (v.4) — The peoples of the earth are invited to sing for joy because God judges with equity, unlike the corrupt rulers they knew. Does the fact that God judges fairly bring you comfort, or does it make you uneasy about your own life?
  • The Harvest as Evidence of Faithfulness (v.6) — The psalmist points to the earth yielding its increase as proof of God's ongoing blessing on His people. What everyday provision in your life do you take for granted instead of receiving as a sign of God's faithfulness?
  • Faith's Outward Trajectory (v.7) — The psalm ends by widening its scope from Israel's blessing to "all the ends of the earth" fearing God. Is your faith turned outward toward those who don't yet know God, or has it stayed inward and comfortable?