Psalms 85 · ESV Study Bible

Revive Us Again

PSALM 85 [†] LORD, you were o favorable to your land;

you p restored the fortunes of Jacob.

2 You q forgave the iniquity of your people;

you q covered all their sin. Selah

3 You withdrew all your wrath;

you r turned from your hot anger.

4[^][†] s Restore us again, O God of our salvation,

and put away your indignation toward us!

5 t Will you be angry with us forever?

Will you prolong your anger to all generations?

6 Will you not u revive us again,

that your people may v rejoice in you?

7 Show us your steadfast love, O LORD,

and grant us your salvation.

8[†] w Let me hear what God the LORD will speak,

for he will x speak peace to his people, to his y saints;

but let them not z turn back to a folly.

9[†] Surely his b salvation is near to those who fear him,

that c glory may dwell in our land.

10[†] d Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;

e righteousness and peace kiss each other.

11 Faithfulness springs up from the ground,

and righteousness looks down from the sky.

12 Yes, f the LORD will give what is good,

and our land g will yield its increase.

13 h Righteousness will go before him

and make his footsteps a way.

i A Prayer of David.

PSALM—NOTE ON 85:9 glory may dwell in our land. The “glory” is God’s special presence with his people (see note on 63:1–2); cf. Ex. 24:16 for the same expression. From the verb “dwell” (Hb. shakan) is derived a noun, “dwelling, that which dwells” (Hb. shekinah), which is why the glory that dwells with God’s people in the sanctuary is called the “Shekinah.” This dwelling of the glory is a gift to God’s people, whose aim is to foster true piety. (Cf. John 1:14.)

PSALM—NOTE ON 85:1–3 Lord, Once You Showed Us Favor and Forgave Us. The verbs in this section are all past tense, looking back to what God has done for the people before: he was favorable to the land, i.e., he made it produce abundant crops to sustain his people; he restored the fortunes of Jacob after he had disciplined his people for their unfaithfulness; he forgave their iniquity, covered all their sin, withdrew all his wrath, and turned from his hot anger. As mentioned in the note on Psalm 85, “forgave iniquity” evokes Ex. 34:7; cf. also Ps. 32:1 for “covered sin.” The expression “turned from his hot anger” (cf. Ex. 32:12, part of the same context as Ex. 34:6; cf. also Josh. 7:26) implies that God forgave his people after they repented of serious unfaithfulness and apostasy. God has done this in the past for his people, because he is boundlessly kind.

PSALM—NOTE ON Psalm 85. This is a community lament, at a time when God has shown his displeasure over his people’s unfaithfulness, perhaps by withholding fruitfulness from the land (vv. 1, 12). The people singing this are seeking forgiveness for the whole people (“us”), asking God to show the steadfast love and faithfulness he proclaimed in Ex. 34:6; and because God is righteous (Ps. 85:10–11, 13)—that is, reliable about his promises—the psalm closes with confidence. Exodus 34:6–7 provides the background to this psalm, particularly in the terms “steadfast love and faithfulness” (Ps. 85:10; cf. vv. 7, 11) and “forgave iniquity” (v. 2). The Lord explained his “name” to Moses by emphasizing his benevolence, which is where the people’s hope lies. Many churches use the psalm at Christmastime, the supreme occasion when God was favorable to his land and spoke peace to his saints.