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Psalm 66

Praise for God’s Goodness to Israel

To the leader. A Song. A Psalm.

1

Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;

2

sing the glory of his name;

give to him glorious praise.

3

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

Because of your great power, your enemies cringe before you.

4

All the earth worships you;

they sing praises to you,

sing praises to your name.” Selah

 

5

Come and see what God has done:

he is awesome in his deeds among mortals.

6

He turned the sea into dry land;

they passed through the river on foot.

There we rejoiced in him,

7

who rules by his might forever,

whose eyes keep watch on the nations—

let the rebellious not exalt themselves. Selah

 

8

Bless our God, O peoples,

let the sound of his praise be heard,

9

who has kept us among the living,

and has not let our feet slip.

10

For you, O God, have tested us;

you have tried us as silver is tried.

11

You brought us into the net;

you laid burdens on our backs;

12

you let people ride over our heads;

we went through fire and through water;

yet you have brought us out to a spacious place.

 

13

I will come into your house with burnt offerings;

I will pay you my vows,

14

those that my lips uttered

and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

15

I will offer to you burnt offerings of fatlings,

with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah

 

16

Come and hear, all you who fear God,

and I will tell what he has done for me.

17

I cried aloud to him,

and he was extolled with my tongue.

18

If I had cherished iniquity in my heart,

the Lord would not have listened.

19

But truly God has listened;

he has given heed to the words of my prayer.

 

20

Blessed be God,

because he has not rejected my prayer

or removed his steadfast love from me.


4. All the earth shall worship thee. The Psalmist had good reason for insisting upon this one point again and again. Though all tongues were tuned to the praise of God, they never could adequately extol it; and yet such are the negligence and the perversity of men, that they will scarcely lift one feeble note in celebration of a theme which should command their united strength and might. We have another prediction here, of a time being to come when God would be worshipped, not only by the Jews, a small section of the human family, but by all the nations which would be eventually brought under his government. And we are not to consider that he refers to such a worship as would be constrained, and only not withheld, because resistance might be dangerous, but to the sincere homage of the heart — they shall sing unto thee! they shall sing unto thy name Praise is the best of all sacrifices, (as we are told, Psalm 50:14, 23) and the true evidence of godliness. 470470     “Est enim hoc praecipuum laudis sacrificium, ut habetur, Psalmo 50:14, 23, ac verum etiam testimonium pietatis. — Lat. “Car c’est le principal sacrifice, que le sacrifice de louange, etc., et aussi le vray tesmoignage de piete.” — Fr.


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