Psalm 67:1

Context

Psalm 67 is a short communal hymn whose superscription reads "To the chief Musician on Neginoth" (that is, with stringed instruments), "A Psalm or Song." Because the Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as verse 1, verse 1 of Psalm 67 in Korean Bibles corresponds to verse 2 in the Hebrew text. The speaker is a worshiping community that refers to itself as "us," and the psalm opens with a request for God's blessing: "God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah" (Psalm 67:1). The very next verse states the purpose of that blessing: "That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations" (Psalm 67:2). Near the end of the psalm comes the acknowledgment that the earth has yielded her increase. The word "Selah" at the end of the verse appears to be a musical or liturgical marker, but its precise meaning is unknown.

Interpretation

• An echo of the priestly blessing: Many commentators regard this verse as an almost verbatim echo of the blessing of Aaron in Numbers 6:22–27. All three expressions—"be merciful" (or "be gracious"), "bless," and "cause his face to shine"—appear in that blessing. In Numbers, however, the priest addresses the people in the second person ("thee"), whereas here the blessing has become a prayer in which the community petitions on its own behalf ("us").
• A missional reading: A number of evangelical preachers and scholars read verses 1 and 2 together. In this view, the blessing Israel receives is not meant to remain with Israel but becomes a channel through which the nations come to know God. This reading links the psalm to the promise given to Abraham that through him all the families of the earth would be blessed.
• A psalm of thanksgiving: Because verse 6 refers to the harvest, some interpreters regard the psalm as a song sung at a thanksgiving service after the harvest.

Questions of Application

The verse is not the subject of significant dispute among denominations. One translation issue that has been raised is that the Hebrew verbs are in a form expressing a wish or request. Accordingly, the Korean Revised Version tradition renders the verse in a way that reads like a statement, while some translations, such as the New Korean Standard Version, render it as a petition ("…please bestow"). Some have also observed that quoting verse 1 in isolation as a wish for personal prosperity omits the purpose, stated in verse 2, of making God known among the nations.

In the Korean Church

Because the verse resembles the blessing in Numbers that underlies the benediction, it is quoted in prayers of blessing. Since the psalm mentions the harvest, it serves as a sermon text for Thanksgiving and Barley Harvest Thanksgiving (Maekchu Gamsajeol), and it is also cited in sermons for Missions Sunday. In the Book of Common Prayer tradition of the Church of England, this psalm is reported to have been used as a canticle at Evening Prayer under the title Deus misereatur, taken from its opening words in Latin.

Related Passages

• Numbers 6:24–26
• Psalm 67:2
• Genesis 12:3
• Galatians 3:8
• Isaiah 49:6