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Psalm 67[a]

For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm, a song.

67 May God show us his favor[b] and bless us.[c]
May he smile on us.[d] (Selah)
Then those living on earth will know what you are like;
all nations will know how you deliver your people.[e]
Let the nations thank you, O God.
Let all the nations thank you.[f]
Let foreigners[g] rejoice and celebrate.
For you execute justice among the nations,
and govern the people living on earth.[h] (Selah)
Let the nations thank you, O God.
Let all the nations thank you.[i]
The earth yields its crops.
May God, our God, bless us.
May God bless us.[j]
Then all the ends of the earth will give him the honor he deserves.[k]

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 67:1 sn Psalm 67. The psalmist prays for God’s blessing upon his people and urges the nations to praise him for he is the just ruler of the world.
  2. Psalm 67:1 tn Or “have mercy on us.”
  3. Psalm 67:1 tn The prefixed verbal forms are understood as jussives expressing the psalmist’s prayer. Note the jussive form יָאֵר (yaʾer) in the next line.
  4. Psalm 67:1 tn Heb “may he cause his face to shine with us.”
  5. Psalm 67:2 tn Heb “to know in the earth your way, among all nations your deliverance.” The infinitive with ל (lamed) expresses purpose/result. When God demonstrates his favor to his people, all nations will recognize his character as a God who delivers. The Hebrew term דֶּרֶךְ (derekh, “way”) refers here to God’s characteristic behavior, more specifically, to the way he typically saves his people.
  6. Psalm 67:3 tn Heb “let the nations, all of them, thank you.” The prefixed verbal forms in vv. 3-4a are understood as jussives in this call to praise.
  7. Psalm 67:4 tn Or “peoples.”
  8. Psalm 67:4 tn Heb “for you judge nations fairly, and [as for the] peoples in the earth, you lead them.” The imperfects are translated with the present tense because the statement is understood as a generalization about God’s providential control of the world. Another option is to understand the statement as anticipating God’s future rule (“for you will rule…and govern”).
  9. Psalm 67:5 tn Heb “let the nations, all of them, thank you.” The prefixed verbal forms in v. 5 are understood as jussives in this call to praise.
  10. Psalm 67:7 tn The prefixed verb forms in vv. 6b-7a are understood as jussives.
  11. Psalm 67:7 tn Heb “will fear him.” After the jussive of the preceding line, the prefixed verbal form with prefixed vav (ו) conjunctive is understood as indicating purpose/result. (Note how v. 3 anticipates the universal impact of God showing his people blessing.) Another option is to take the verb as a jussive and translate, “Let all the ends of the earth fear him.”