Psalms 67

Psalms 67:1

Psalm 67: Israel’s Missionary CallWhen God called the nation of Israel, He intended that the nation should have a missionary character. It was to be a witness and a testimony to the surrounding nations of two important truths.

1. The truth of monotheismthat there is only one God (Exo_20:2-3; Deu_6:4; Isa_43:10-12).
2. The truth that a people living in obedience under the government of Jehovah would be happy and prosperous (Lev_26:3-12; Deu_33:26-29; 1Ch_17:20; Jer_33:9). It was not God’s will that Israel should be the terminal of His blessing, but a channel. There are numerous indications throughout the OT that God’s salvation was for the Gentiles as well as for the Jews, and that Israel as a kingdom of priests was to serve as mediator between God and the nations. Unfortunately Israel failed in this aspect of its mission. By lapsing into idolatry, it denied the very truths it was called on to proclaim. But God’s purposes are not so easily defeated. During the Tribulation, a remnant of believing Jews will carry the gospel of the kingdom to all the world (Mat_24:14). And in the ensuing kingdom, Israel will be the channel of blessing to the nations (Isa_61:6; Zec_8:23). 67:1, 2 This Psalm anticipates that time. In it we hear believing Jews praying that God will bless them so that they can be the means of evangelizing the Gentiles. When we read the words, “that Your way may be known on earth,” we should remember that Christ is the way (Joh_14:6). Only through Him can God’s saving power be experienced by nations or individuals. 67:3, 4 In an extraordinary burst of missionary enthusiasm, Israel then prays that great torrents of praise will ascend to God from the Gentiles, that the nations will enjoy a gala time of celebration as they enjoy Christ’s beneficent and equitable rule and His tender, shepherd care. 67:5 Just as Israel yearns to hear God praised by all the peoples of the world, as F. B. Meyer reminds us, so should “we want crowns for the brow of Christ.” 67:6, 7 The last two verses picture the Millennium as having already arrived. The crops have been harvested, and the barns and silos are bursting. This proof of God’s blessing to Israel will be a powerful testimony to the nations. The Hebrew scholar Franz Delitzsch summarized: “For it is the way of God, that all the good that He manifests toward Israel shall be for the well-being of mankind.”