back to psalms for children

Psalm 66

A psalm of praise

1.  Make a joyful noise unto God, all you lands.

2.  Honour his name in song, make his praises full of glory.

3.  Say to God, Your works are full of terror! through your great power your enemies shall submit themselves to you.

4.  All the earth shall worship you, and sing to you, they shall sing to your name.  Selah.

5.  Come and see the works of God, the things he does to the children of men.

6.  He turned the sea into dry land: they went through the flood on foot, and there we rejoiced in him.

7.  He rules by his power for ever; his eyes look upon the nations: do not let those that rebel honour themselves. Selah.

8-9 O bless our God, you people, and let him hear your praises: who holds our souls while we live, and does not let us be moved..

10. For you, O God, have proved us, you have tried us, as silver is tried.

11. You brought us into traps, you let us be afflicted.

12. You caused men to rule over us, we went through fire and through water, but you brought us out...

13-14. I will go into your house with burnt offerings: I will fulfill the vows that my lips have spoken when I was in trouble

15 I will offer to you burnt sacrifices of lambs, with the incense of rams, and I will offer bulls with goats.

16. Come and hear, all you that fear God, and I will speak of what he has done for my soul.

17. I cried to him, and praised him with the words of my mouth.

18. If I regard unrighteousness in my heart, the LORD will not hear me.

19. But truly God has heard me; he has listened to my prayers.

20. Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.

____________________________________

First, when reading this psalm we need to remember that it was written in the days when offerings and sacrifices were offered to God as the people looked forward to their Messiah..  we no longer do these things because the promised Messiah has come, the Lord Jesus Christ, who was the perfect sacrifice and shed his precious blood on Calvary's cross to pay the penalty for our sins.. 

In verses 1- 4  we are told to make joyful noises to the Lord. to honour and praise him through song. To speak of his works so full of terror,  that because of these, his enemies will submit themselves to God.  There will come a day when all the earth will worship God, and sing to his name..  then we are told to pause and think about that (Selah).

Verses 5 - 9 we are told to come and see what the Lord does to the children of men, those that live on the earth..  how he turned the sea into dry land (the Red Sea when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt) how they crossed the sea on foot..  and there they rejoiced in God. We are told that by His power, God rules for ever, he looks down on the nations, and the psalmist asked that God not allow those that rebel against Him to honour themselves.  We are told to bless God, and let him hear our praises, because he holds our souls in His hand while we are alive, and will not allow us to be moved from our salvation.

Verse 10 - 12, we are reminded that God allows us to be afflicted in different ways, he puts men to rule over us, and through various trials our faith is tested, but God is in control and He brings us through these trials.

Verse 13-15, these are the verses that show that this psalm was written when men brought burnt offerings and sacrifices to God, and the psalmist promises to fulfill vows (promises) he has made to the Lord.

Verse 16-20 we are invited to come and listen as the psalmist tells us what the Lord has done for his soul, that part of man that is eternal. He cried to God, and praised him. and he knew that God would not hear him if he had unrighteousness in his heart.  But God did hear him, and God listened to his prayers.  And he blesses God, who did not turn away his prayer, and did not withhold mercy from him.

V. Gross/Jan'07