Jesus throughout the Scriptures: Psalms 3 (6)
Pray Psalm 65.1, 2, 4.
Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion;
And to You the vow shall be performed.
O You who hear prayer,
To You all flesh will come…
Blessed is the man You choose,
And cause to approach You,
That he may dwell in Your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Of Your holy temple.
Sing Psalm 65.1, 2, 4.
(Moody: Marvelous Grace of Our Loving Lord)
Praise from Your people is due, O LORD; praise will arise, extolling Your Word.
All of our vows we will gladly pay; hear us, O LORD, when to You we pray!
Refrain v. 4
Blessed are all who chosen by You in Your courts shall dwell.
Keep us near You, and let Your goodness content us well.
Read Psalm 65.1-13; meditate on verses 9, 10.
Preparation
1. How does David describe the power of God?
2. How does he indicate the scope of God’s blessings?
Meditation
By any measure, this is one of the most “upbeat” of the Psalms. It celebrates the greatness and power of God (vv. 6-8) and of the many ways He blesses the earth and causes it to abound to all (vv. 9-13). Thus, God is worthy of all praise, which His people give in acknowledgment of His salvation (vv. 1-5).
While Psalm 65 begins looking forward to our eternal dwelling with God, where “We shall be satisfied with the goodness” that abounds to us there (vv. 1-4), it moves to and concludes with God visiting the earth to bring forth abundant blessings from His River of Life (recall Psalm 1). It’s not difficult to see Jesus in God’s “visit” to the earth, or in the “river of God” Who is the source of all life and blessing. Jesus surely had Psalm 65 in mind as He schooled the woman at the well concerning where to find perpetual and eternal refreshment (Jn. 4.10).
The visit of God and His River would cause the bounty of God to reach all nations—“all the ends of the earth” (v. 5)—with overflowing bounty. The incarnation of Jesus brings not only saving grace to the world but an acceleration of God’s common grace (Matt. 5.44-48), to point the world to the Source of all bounty.
The incarnation of Jesus inaugurated the re-Edening of the world, starting in each believer and every church, and issuing in the Kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Plant yourself in God’s Word, along the Immanuel banks of the River of Life, and you will overflow with the promise of Eden to everyone and everything in your Personal Mission Field.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
God created the heavens and the earth in perfection, and Eden as the microcosm of that beauty.
“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good” (Gen. 1.31).
Then sin entered, and all lost its luster and perfection. Earth became dirt and things needed a good dousing.
God no longer enjoyed looking at His creation.
“Then the LORD God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart” (Gen. 6.5, 6).
Enter water, and lots of it (Gen. 6-8): as the foretaste of Jesus’ cleansing work on our behalf, and for God’s pleasure.
As Habakkuk wrote: “You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on wickedness” (Hab. 1.13).
After the Flood, water resumed its life-giving quality, as we read about in Psalm 65:
“You visit the earth and water it,
You greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
You provide their grain, for so
You have prepared it.
You water its ridges abundantly,
You settle its furrows;
You make it soft with showers,
You bless its growth” (vv. 9, 10).
But all of God’s goodness has a purpose—beauty and joy, yes—but also to bring us to Himself:
“‘I also withheld rain from you, when there were still three months to the harvest.
I made it rain on one city, I withheld rain from another city.
One part was rained upon, and where it did not rain the part withered.
So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water,
but they were not satisfied; yet you have not returned to Me,’ says the LORD” (Amos 4.7, 8).
And then Jesus—the Living Water and the One Who controlled the water:
“If you knew the gift of God, and Who it is Who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water” (Jn. 4.10).
“Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm…And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, ‘Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!’” (Mk. 4.39, 41).
Through King Jesus the world is cleansed, and atonement provided (Ps. 65.3).
Now God can once again look upon His creation through the lens of Jesus.
And He sees us “justified by His blood” (Rom. 5.9).“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace…” (Eph. 1.7). Our sinful selves have been washed, and made acceptable, in the blood of the Lamb (Rev. 7.14).
“For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross” (Col. 1.19 20).
From perfection to Perfection—the “incarnation of Jesus inaugurated the re-Edening” of man and the world— “by awesome deeds in righteousness” (Ps. 65.5). Doused in the love of Jesus.
Reflection
1. How does Jesus refresh your soul? How would you explain your experience of a refreshed soul?
2. In what ways have you seen Jesus “re-Edening” your life?
3. We are earthen vessels of the Living Water. Whom will you refresh with Him today?
How much the fruitfulness of this lower part of the creation depends upon the influence of the upper, is easy to observe; every good and perfect gift is from above. He who enriches the earth, which is filled with man’s sins, by his abundant and varied bounty, can neither want power nor will to feed the souls of his people. Temporal mercies to us unworthy creatures, shadow forth more important blessings. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Psalm 65.6-13
Pray Psalm 65.3-13.
Rejoice and give thanks for the many blessings that God provides each day. Call on Him to refresh your soul with the River of Life and to bring forth from you abundant fruit for His glory.
Sing Psalm 65-3-13.
(Moody: Wonderful Grace of Our Loving Lord)
All to Your Presence shall surely come; as for our sins, You cancel the sum!
Awesome Your deeds and Your saving worth; You are the trust of the seas and earth!
Refrain v. 4
Blessed are all who chosen by You in Your courts shall dwell.
Keep us near You, and let Your goodness content us well.
You make the mountains majestic stand; You still the seas and waves by Your hand.
Girded with might You perform Your will, making the tumult of nations still.
Refrain
They who inhabit earth’s far confines stand in amazement, seeing Your signs.
You make the dawn and the sunset cry; shouting for joy, glory fills the sky!
Refrain
You cause Your blessings to overflow; training the ground, You make the grain grow.|
Greatly enriched by Your sovereign grace, waters of blessing fill every place!
Refrain
Glorious rain fills each ridge and row; showers of blessing rich You bestow.
You have the year with Your bounty crowned; wealth in abundance drips all around!
Refrain
Pastures abound in the wilderness; girded with joy, the hillsides You bless.
Meadows and valleys with joy shall sing as You their flocks and their harvests bring!
Refrain
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Psalm 65 reminds us of what a joy it is to know the Lord. Our book, Enjoying God, can help you know more of that joy more of the time. It’s available as a free PDF by clicking here.
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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
