May God Be Merciful to Us
Psalm 67 summary: what it means
Psalm 67 is a short prayer for blessing with a wide horizon. It opens by asking God to be merciful to us, bless us and cause his face to shine on us. Verse 2 gives the reason: so that his way may be known on earth and his salvation among all nations. The middle of the psalm is a refrain, let the peoples praise you, God, said twice around a verse about God judging the nations with equity.
The ending comes back to the land. The earth has yielded its increase, and God will bless us, but the blessing does not stop with us. The final line says all the ends of the earth shall fear him. The psalm begins with us and ends with everyone.
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Psalm 67: May God Be Merciful to Us
World English Bible, public domain. allpsalms.com/psalm-67
Psalm 67 commentary: explained verse by verse
May God be merciful to us, bless us,and cause his face to shine on us. Selah.
God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.
The psalm opens with a request for mercy and blessing, and for God's face to shine on us. The prayer is plural from the start, speaking for a community rather than one person.
Also read Psalm 119:135, Psalm 31:16, Deuteronomy 21:8, Psalm 6:1
That your way may be known on earth,and your salvation among all nations,
That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.
This verse explains why the blessing is asked for. It is so that God's way will be known on earth and his salvation among all nations, so the blessing points outward.
Also read Isaiah 52:10, Acts 9:31, Psalm 66:1-4, Acts 22:4
let the peoples praise you, God.Let all the peoples praise you.
Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
The first appearance of the refrain. It asks for the peoples to praise God, then widens it to all the peoples.
Also read Psalm 142:7, Psalm 67:5, Psalm 45:17, Isaiah 38:18-19
Oh let the nations be glad and sing for joy,for you will judge the peoples with equity,and govern the nations on earth. Selah.
O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.
The nations are asked to be glad and sing for joy. The reason is that God judges the peoples with equity and governs the nations, so fairness is part of why his rule is welcome.
Also read Revelation 11:15-17, Psalm 2:8, Romans 15:10-11, Psalm 138:4-5
Let the peoples praise you, God.Let all the peoples praise you.
Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.
The refrain returns word for word. Placed on both sides of verse 4, it puts God's fair rule at the centre of the psalm.
Also read Psalm 67:3, Matthew 6:9-10
The earth has yielded its increase.God, even our own God, will bless us.
Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
The earth has yielded its increase, which points to a harvest. The verse then looks ahead: God, even our own God, will bless us.
Also read Hosea 2:21-22, Exodus 3:15, Jeremiah 31:33, Isaiah 1:19
God will bless us.All the ends of the earth shall fear him.
God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him. The blessing on one people ends in reverence from the whole world, which is where verse 2 said it was going.
Also read Isaiah 43:6, Psalm 29:11, Malachi 1:11, Isaiah 45:22
A prayer from Psalm 67
God, be merciful to us and bless us. Cause your face to shine on us, so that your way may be known on earth and your salvation among all nations. Let the peoples praise you. Let all the peoples praise you. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, because you judge the peoples with equity and govern the nations. The earth has yielded its increase. You are our own God, and you will bless us. Let all the ends of the earth fear you. Amen.
Psalm 67 Bible study questions
- In verse 2, what reason does the psalm give for asking God to bless his people and shine on them?
- Which line is repeated in verses 3 and 5, and what effect does the repetition have on the psalm?
- This psalm asks for a blessing that reaches all nations; how does that shape the way you think about asking to be blessed?
- Verse 6 mentions the earth yielding its increase; what connection do you see between a harvest and praise?
- Psalm 117:1 also calls all nations and peoples to praise; how does it compare with the call in Psalm 67:3?
Questions about Psalm 67
Who wrote Psalm 67?
The author is not named in the text. The heading calls it a psalm and a song for the Chief Musician, with stringed instruments.
What is the meaning of Psalm 67?
It is a prayer for God to bless his people so that his way and salvation become known among all nations. It asks for every people to praise him and ends with all the ends of the earth fearing him.
What does Psalm 67:1 mean?
It asks God to be merciful, to bless and to cause his face to shine on us. Verse 2 then says the purpose of that blessing is that God's way would be known on earth.
How does the King James Version word Psalm 67:1?
The KJV reads "God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah."
What does Psalm 67:6 mean?
It says the earth has yielded its increase, a picture of harvest, and that God, our own God, will bless us. The next verse carries that blessing out to the ends of the earth.
Psalm 67 KJV: the King James Version
God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah.1
That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations.2
Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.3
O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Selah.4
Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise thee.5
Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.6
God shall bless us; and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.7
Psalm 67 in Hebrew
The Hebrew text from the Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain. Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible, which counts a psalm's heading as verse 1, so they can run one ahead of English Bibles.
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1 לַמְנַצֵּ֥ח בִּנְגִינֹ֗ת מִזְמ֥וֹר שִֽׁיר׃
2 אֱלֹהִ֗ים יְחָנֵּ֥נוּ וִֽיבָרְכֵ֑נוּ יָ֤אֵ֥ר פָּנָ֖יו אִתָּ֣נוּ סֶֽלָה׃
3 לָדַ֣עַת בָּאָ֣רֶץ דַּרְכֶּ֑ךָ בְּכָל־גּ֝וֹיִ֗ם יְשׁוּעָתֶֽךָ׃
4 יוֹד֖וּךָ עַמִּ֥ים ׀ אֱלֹהִ֑ים י֝וֹד֗וּךָ עַמִּ֥ים כֻּלָּֽם׃
5 יִֽשְׂמְח֥וּ וִֽירַנְּנ֗וּ לְאֻ֫מִּ֥ים כִּֽי־תִשְׁפֹּ֣ט עַמִּ֣ים מִישׁ֑וֹר וּלְאֻמִּ֓ים ׀ בָּאָ֖רֶץ תַּנְחֵ֣ם סֶֽלָה׃
6 יוֹד֖וּךָ עַמִּ֥ים ׀ אֱלֹהִ֑ים י֝וֹד֗וּךָ עַמִּ֥ים כֻּלָּֽם׃
7 אֶ֭רֶץ נָתְנָ֣ה יְבוּלָ֑הּ יְ֝בָרְכֵ֗נוּ אֱלֹהִ֥ים אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ׃
8 יְבָרְכֵ֥נוּ אֱלֹהִ֑ים וְיִֽירְא֥וּ אֹ֝ת֗וֹ כָּל־אַפְסֵי־אָֽרֶץ׃
Psalm 67 in the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible
The Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain. It follows the Greek and Latin numbering, so this psalm is Psalm 66 there.
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1 Unto the end, in, hymns, a psalm of a canticle for David.
2 May God have mercy on us, and bless us: may he cause the light of his countenance to shine upon us, and may he have mercy on us.
3 That we may know thy way upon earth: thy salvation in all nations.
4 Let people confess to thee, O God: let all people give praise to thee.
5 Let the nations be glad and rejoice: for thou judgest the people with justice, and directest the nations upon earth.
6 Let the people, O God, confess to thee: let all the people give praise to thee:
7 The earth hath yielded her fruit. May God, our God bless us,
8 May God bless us: and all the ends of the earth fear him.
Psalm 67 in Latin
The Clementine Vulgate, public domain, where this psalm is Psalm 66.
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1 In finem, in hymnis. Psalmus cantici David.
2 Deus misereatur nostri, et benedicat nobis; illuminet vultum suum super nos, et misereatur nostri:
3 ut cognoscamus in terra viam tuam, in omnibus gentibus salutare tuum.
4 Confiteantur tibi populi, Deus: confiteantur tibi populi omnes.
5 Lætentur et exsultent gentes, quoniam judicas populos in æquitate, et gentes in terra dirigis.
6 Confiteantur tibi populi, Deus: confiteantur tibi populi omnes.
7 Terra dedit fructum suum: benedicat nos Deus, Deus noster !
8 Benedicat nos Deus, et metuant eum omnes fines terræ.
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Psalm 67 at a glance
| Verses | 7 |
| Heading in the text | For the Chief Musician. With stringed instruments. A Psalm. A song. |
| Attributed to | Not named in the text. The heading calls it a psalm and a song for the Chief Musician, with stringed instruments. |
| Type | Prayer and Praise |
| Number in Greek and Latin Bibles | Psalm 66 |
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Psalm 67 in other translations
This page prints the World English Bible and the King James Version because both are public domain. The NIV, ESV, NKJV, NLT and NASB are under copyright, so they cannot be printed in full here. You can read Psalm 67 in those translations at Bible Gateway.
Where Psalm 67 belongs
How this page was made
The psalm text comes from public domain translations and is not edited. The summary, the verse notes and the answers are written for this page from the text of the psalm itself. Where a claim goes beyond the text, it is sourced below.
Sources
- Text: World English Bible and King James Version, both public domain, from ebible.org source
- Hebrew text: Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Douay-Rheims: Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Latin text: Clementine Vulgate, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Numbering: Greek and Latin psalm numbering, Wikipedia, Psalms source