Throughout September 2022, I managed to read and reflect – briefly – on a Psalm each day. For December 2022, I attempted to pick up the discipline. I got part-way through that month, and so after a long hiatus, am determined to get going. I’ll read the Psalm, pray, and then ponder a few questions:
- What is this Psalm about?
- What does this Psalm teach about God?
- How does this Psalm connect to God’s people today?
I’ll close the post with a simple prayer, trying to draw the themes together.
On the 31st of October 2023, here’s Psalm 67:
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—
2 so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.
3 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you rule the peoples with equity
and guide the nations of the earth.
5 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
6 The land yields its harvest;
God, our God, blesses us.
7 May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.
What is this Psalm about?
Psalm 67 is in a similar vein to Psalm 66 – but stripped down to solely focus on praising God. In a similar way, Psalm 67 links God’s presence and blessing to the rhythms of creation, like harvest, and ascribes rulership to God.
What does this Psalm teach about God?
Verse one opens with a request to God – a request for grace and blessing. This request is well placed – verse 4 talks of God being the one who rules ‘the peoples with equity and guide[s] the nations of the earth’. Similarly, the harvest is seen as God blessing (v. 6) and God’s blessing continue (v. 7). Perhaps the twin things this Psalm teaches us about God is that God should be praised, and that God blesses.
How does this Psalm connect to God’s people today?
Praise, and the enjoyment of God’s blessing, are always good things to reflect on. Whether we are at the end of our selves, or in a place of plenty, Psalm 67 reminds us that all good things come from God. When we feel small, or that God is distant, Psalm 67 reminds us that God rules, guides and saves. Psalm 67 is a Psalm for all of God’s people, in all the seasons of life.
A prayer drawn from Psalm
Lord, help me to praise you, to see your guidance and good rule. God, you bless us still, please continue to bless us, and help us to make known your ways to the ends of the earth. Amen.
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