Psalm 65-66 Praise To God For His Love And Care

My commentary said these two psalms plus the next two focus on praising God for His blessings and His gracious dealings with us, despite ourselves.  I thought that especially as I read verses 1-3:  “God, You will be praised … We will keep our promises to You (Yeah, right…)  You hear our prayers.  All people will come to You (eventually, to bow down, whether they want to or not).”

Then the real truth hits:  “Our guilt overwhelms us, but You forgive our sins.”   And the result of that forgiveness follows:  “Happy are the people You choose and invite to stay in Your court.  We are filled with good things in Your house ...  You answer us in amazing ways, God our Savior.”

God is then praised for the way He shepherds even nature to take care of us, and then Psalm 66 begins with, “Everything on earth, shout with joy to God!  Sing about His glory!  Make His praise glorious!”  I firmly believe that after Creation, everything on earth was able to do that – the very rocks would cry out in praise to God.  The mountains danced.  But man’s sin stifled all that, forcing nature to be silenced.  How glorious it will be to one day witness that praise again!

God is even praised for our hard times:  “He protects our lives and does not let us be defeated.  God, You have tested us; You have purified us like silver.  You let us be trapped and put a heavy load on us.  You let our enemies walk on our heads.  We went through fire and flood, but You brought us to a place of good things.”

So what are we therefore expected to do as a result?  Praise Him!

“Come and listen, and I will tell you about what He has done for me.  I cried out to Him with my mouth and praised Him with my tongue.  If I had known of any sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened to me (shows the great importance of confession of sins).  But God HAS listened;  He has heard my prayer.  Praise God who did not ignore my prayer or hold back His love for me.”

God, thank You for loving and caring for me and for my sons despite our rebellion.  Forgive us when we fail You, and draw us back to You in love.  Watch over us and bless us, even in spite of ourselves, because You are a good God who loves His children.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford