A Thanksgiving Psalm

A Thanksgiving Psalm

Psalm 65

Psalm 65 is a Psalm of thanksgiving. It was probably used during harvest time celebrations or feasts observed by the people of God. It is a refreshing Psalm. There is no mention of battles or enemies. There is no prayer for deliverance or destruction. There is no fear mentioned and there is no charge brought against man or God. It is a Psalm that celebrates the goodness of God. The Psalm breaks very naturally into three parts and that is how we will outline it.

A God of unspeakable goodness (1-4).

A God of unparalleled power (5-8).

A God of unmatched generosity (9-13).

1. A God of unspeakable goodness (1-4).

The Psalm opens with the phrase “Praise waiteth for Thee”. Literally it says, “To You praise is silence”. What does that mean? It could refer to the sense of awe that comes over a person when they consider the greatness of God. Truly the goodness of God is not something we can fully describe with our words. I’m reminded of Paul in the New Testament who said, “Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift” (2 Cor. 9:15).

It could also refer to the fact that for the Jewish people the place of worship was in Zion, the city of God. Perhaps David is recognizing the fact that the Jewish people traveled to Jerusalem throughout the year to observe sacrifices and worship. It was in Jerusalem that vows were performed. In that sense praise waited for the Lord until the worshippers made it to the holy city. What follows in verses 2-4 is a description of the goodness of God.

A. A God who can be approached (2).

What a beautiful verse verse two is! We ought to memorize this verse. “O Thou that hearest prayer, unto Thee shall all flesh come.” When God is understood He will be approached. If we refuse to approach God it is because we are ignorant of who He is. This Psalm describes God as One whom the entire earth should want to approach. Those who do not come to Christ do not come because the god of this world has blinded their minds. To know God is to love God.

Notice the contrast in verse two. We are but flesh. We are sinful humans. Left to ourselves we will perish. Just as all meat eventually expires and rots away, so too shall all of humanity. God is Spirit. He is not flesh and bones like we are. We who are decaying need to approach the One who will never decay.

We also need to recognize the missionary spirit in verse two. “All” flesh will come to God. This is not describing universalism. Everyone will not be saved. But people from every nation will be saved. All who are saved will be saved by One God. As the gospel is preached throughout the world people from every nation will come to Christ.

Finally, we see that God answers prayer. He isn’t merely hearing it. He is hearing with the intent to answer. False gods cannot answer prayer. The very fact that our God answers prayer proves that He is unlike idols made of wood, stone or imagination.

How can we approach this Holy God? We can approach Him through Jesus Christ. Christ is the Mediator between God and man (Hebrews 4:14-16). Without Christ not a single person could approach God, much less all the world. What a blessing it is to have a God who can be approached.

B. A God who makes atonement Himself (3).

In verse three mention is made of iniquity and transgression. When we approach God, we become aware of our own sinfulness. The Psalmist does not deny he is a sinner. He freely admits it. The good news is the Lord Himself has put the sin of the people away. The Hebrew word for atonement is used in verse 3. The word means “to cover”. The idea is the sins are removed from the sight of God. The amazing thing is that God Himself removed the sin!

God demands and atonement and God has provided atonement Himself through Christ. When it comes to our sin we are helpless.

We cannot hide our sin from God. He sees all things.

We cannot convince God our sin is not that bad, He possesses absolute knowledge.

We cannot pay the debt of our sin because it is too costly.

In our helpless state God sent Jesus Christ to make atonement for us. Romans 5:6 says that when we were without strength Christ died for the ungodly. There are those who think God’s demands are too high when it comes to sin. What they fail to realize is that God has met the demands Himself. In His own body Christ bore the penalty of our sins.

C. A God who draws sinners to himself (4).

David describes the blessed person in verse four.

The blessed person is chosen by God. David dives into the depths of salvation. He has already spoken of the atonement. Now he mentions election. The mature believer knows that they are only a believer because of the grace of God. God knew them before they were born. As Jesus told the disciples, “You have not chosen Me but I have chosen you! (John 15:16).

The blessed person is drawn by God. David says God causes this person to approach Himself. This is the John 6:44 of the Old testament. In John 6:44 Jesus says “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

Left to ourselves we would never come to God. We would wander down the broad path seeking delight in this world. Thank God He draws us to himself. With cords of love our Lord draws us out of this world, lifts us out of the pit and brings us to Himself.

Those who are chosen by God, drawn to the Lord, and whose sins are atoned for are satisfied in the Lord. David says “We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Thy house, even of Thy holy Temple.”

I want to throw something else in here. Notice those who God draws to himself He also draws to His house. If God saves us He will draw us to church. He will not draw us to Himself without drawing us to His people.

So we see a God of unspeakable goodness.

He can be approached.

He has made atonement for us.

He has drawn us to Himself.

2. A God of unparalleled power (5-8).

A. God’s saving power (5).

The awesome power of God is released when His people call upon Him for salvation. David says, “By terrible things in righteousness wilt Thou answer us”. He then identifies the Lord as the God of His salvation. The Jewish people had experienced the awesome power of God many times. A good example of this is the deliverance God gave them from Egypt. The Bible says the Lord heard the prayers of the people and sent plagues upon the Egyptians (Exodus 2:24). God unleashed His awesome power and Pharaohs back was broken.

God’s saving power is so great that it extends to all the ends of the earth, even to those on distant seas. We can draw two truths from this:

First, we are never so far away that God’s saving power cannot deliver us. That can apply to depravity or distance. No matter how sinful we have been the saving power of God can deliver us from our sins. As well, no matter where we may be in this world, God can deliver us. We are never hidden from God. We are never out of earshot of God. He sees us and hears us no matter where we may be.

Second, God is a missionary God. The reference to the ends of the earth and the sea could be applied to the people outside of Israel. The Gentile nations could trust the God of Israel to save them as well.

B. God’s sovereign power (6-8).

In verses 6-8 we see God’s sovereign power over creation.

The strong arm of God established the mountains. Mountains are impressive in regard to their size, their beauty and their security. Who among us can move the mountains? None of us can. God created the mountains. He put them in their place. Since He put them in their place, He could obviously move them from their place.

David moves from the mountains to the seas (7). The seas also represent great power. David mentions the noise of the seas and the waves. The sound of the sea is a reflection of its power. For one to still the sea then one would have to have great power. But the Lord is sovereign over the sea. He can still the waters. He can bring a hush upon the oceans.

Not only does God have power over the inanimate parts of creation, he also has power over people. David mentions the tumult of the people at the end of verse seven. Nations will rage. Wars and rumors of wars will continue until Christ returns. With all of the raging of the nations we may be tempted to forget that God has power over the peoples of the earth. When we look at verse eight, we are reminded that the peoples of the world are in subject to God’s mighty power. Those who dwell in the uttermost parts, Gentile nations that have no faith in the God of Israel, will be afraid.

Look at the very end of verse eight and you will see how far the sovereign power of God stretches. It stretches from the morning to the evening; in other words, it stretches from the East to the West. The sovereign power of God extends over the entire earth. The creation rejoices in God, humanity as a part of His creation, should rejoice in Him as well.

He is a God of unparalleled power. His saving power and His sovereign power are greater than we could imagine.

3. A God of unmatched generosity (9-13).

A. He waters the earth (9-10).

In this section we can see clearly that this is a harvest hymn. It would be read during harvest time to praise God and to remind the people that it was the Lord who blessed them with the abundance of crops. Crops would not be possible without rain.

David says that god sent the rain. We have come a long way in farming. Irrigation has revolutionized farming. We can water our crops much easier than ever before. But despite man’s ability to invent amazing and helpful things, man can still not make it rain. We are dependent on God for the rain. David recognizes that the people have corn because God has sent the rain.

David even says that the people are able to plow the ground because of the rain (10). In that day there were no tractors. Plowing was a tough job. God made ploughing the fields easier by softening the ground with the rain. Without rain the ground cannot be plowed and the crops cannot be watered sufficiently.

The Scripture says God makes the rain fall on the just and the unjust. We ought to thank God for every drop of rain we receive. Rain is a demonstration of the goodness of God. Rain is one of those things we take for granted. When it rains we should remember that God is good. He doesn’t have to send the rain. He could allow our lives to be very difficult simply by withholding it.

B. He gives us abundance (11-13).

Verses 11-13 speak of abundance. In verse eleven David says the Lord crowns the year with His goodness. Harvest time was for most people the most anticipated time of the year. It was the time of plenty. It was the time of celebration. God crowned the year with an abundance of food.

Look at the phrase “thy paths drop fatness” in verse eleven. That is a reference to a wagon. The wagon, as it is being pulled between the rows is being loaded down with produce. The imagery given here is that there is so much on the wagon, it is falling off the side and onto the ground. There is such an abundant crop that the produce is left in the tracks of the wagon wheels.

Not only are the cultivated areas producing fruit, but abundance can even be found in the wilderness (12). Fruit and vegetables are growing where man is not planting. Even the animals are enjoying a harvest. The hillsides are covered with berried and fruit trees. In verse thirteen the valleys are covered with corn.

Even the flocks of animals are producing in abundance (13). The pastures are clothed with flocks. We are a blessed people. We have more food than we can eat. Whether it be meat or vegetables, fruit or nuts, we have more food than we can eat. God gives us abundance.

C. He give us joy.

Joy is mentioned in verses twelve and thirteen. Nature is personified here. The blooming of flowers, the bursting forth of fruit is seen as rejoicing in the Lord. At Springtime the world looks happy. It seems to smile. That is the imagery given here.

Because God has given us everything we need, and more, we should rejoice in Him. We have no reason not to praise God when we see the abundance He has given us.

Our God is One of Unspeakable goodness, unparalleled power and unmatched generosity.