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“Summaries, Psalms 67-70”
Categories: Bulletin Articles
Psalm 67 calls all the nations to praise God. It begins with an appeal to God to bless Israel so that all other nations can recognize His power. This will give them reason to praise Him, an idea that is repeated as a “chorus” throughout the psalm. The psalmist continues to observe that the nations should rejoice in God because He judges them righteously and guides them. The psalm concludes by celebrating the recent good harvest and observing that God’s blessing of His people gives the nations reason to fear Him.
Psalm 68 is a war song written by David, probably as the Israelites are about to leave Jerusalem to fight against enemies from Bashan (northeast of the Sea of Galilee). It opens by describing the totality of God’s victory over His enemies. He will crush the wicked, and the righteous will praise Him for it. He blesses the humble and provides rain for His people, but the rebellious will suffer drought.
From there, the focus shifts to the Israelite women (probably actual women in this assembly) who will rejoice in the good news and spoils of battle. David then contrasts the rebellious mountain of Bashan with Mount Zion, where God dwells and leads His people victoriously (note that 68:18 is quoted in Ephesians 4:8). He anticipates that God will completely defeat the rebels from Bashan.
After this, we see a recounting of the parade that is passing out of the gates of Jerusalem as the psalm is being sung: singers and musicians, then contingents from Benjamin, Judah, Zebulun, and Naphtali. The closing portion of the psalm appeals to God to punish the warmongers who have started this conflict, then calls all nations to praise Him.
Psalm 69 is another Davidic psalm, but is about a time of trouble instead. In it, David compares his troubles to a flood. His problem is the numerous people who hate him though he has done nothing wrong. As a result, he appeals to God to punish them instead.
From there, David laments all of his troubles and says that their source is his devotion to God. His enemies laugh at his godliness, but David continues to pray to God for help. He pleads to God to rescue him and points out all the bad treatment he has received. He asks God to return his tormentors’ malice on their own head. He promises that if God will do this, he will praise Him and call all the earth to do likewise.
Many portions of this psalm prophetically anticipate the suffering of Jesus and are applied to Him in the New Testament, particularly vs. 4, 9, 21, and 25.
Psalm 70 is similar in content to its predecessor. Once again, David is in trouble and wants God to deliver him and punish those who hate him. In comparison, David asks for God to give those who seek Him reason to rejoice. The psalm concludes with a plea for God to help him quickly.
