“THE PSALMIST’S EXHORTATION TO PRAISE GOD” PSALM 66:1-20; PSALM 67:1-7

In this psalm of praise, there is an exhortation to praise the Lord. Praise is the natural response of a saint who has been tremendously blessed of the Lord. As we listen to David, let us be encouraged to praise His name, for Psalm 108:1-5 says “O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory. Awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. I will praise thee, O LORD, among the people: and I will sing praises unto thee among the nations. For thy mercy is great above the heavens: and thy truth reacheth unto the clouds. Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: and thy glory above all the earth.”

In Psalm 66:1-4, the psalmist exhorts people everywhere to praise the Lord because of His unusual works. They are urged to jubilance as they sing and speak of His mighty acts. He states, “Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of His name: make His praise glorious” (vv. 1-2). God’s works of deliverance in behalf of His people evidenced His awesome power; therefore, nations should recognize that God is indeed awesome. His power is seen in verse 3 which states, “Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.”

God’s awesome deeds in behalf of His people demonstrated that He is in control of those nations against God’s people (vv. 5-7). God’s deliverance of Israel is recalled in verse 6, “He turned the sea into dry land: they went through the flood on foot: there did we rejoice in Him.” Through those marvelous deeds of God in behalf of His people, Israel encourages other people to extol God’s name in verses 8-9, “O bless our God, ye people, and make the voice of His praise to be heard:

Which holdeth our soul in life, and suffereth not our feet to be moved.” Although the nation of Israel had been tested severely by God, the nation experienced God’s blessing as He led them as a nation (vv. 10-12).

As a result of God’s marvelous deliverance of Israel as a nation, the psalmist vowed to offer burnt offerings in God’s temple (vv. 13-15). The psalmist summoned others to hear what God had done for him, for verse 16 says, “Come and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what He hath done for my soul.”

Because the Lord had responded to the psalmist’s prayer in verse 17, he uttered jubilant praise to the Lord. In verses 18-19, the psalmist took care of the sin issue in his life by stating, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me;” therefore, the Lord answered his prayer. The psalmist closes the psalm by blessing God for answered prayer, for verse 20 says, “Blessed be God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me.”

As believers led by the Holy Spirit, our natural response of God’s awesome salvation will be manifested in our lives, for Ephesians 5:18-21 says, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”

In psalm 67, the psalmist recognizes that God’s favor and blessing on His people evoked them to praise God in receiving an abundant harvest. In this psalm of thanksgiving, the psalmist asked for God’s continual merciful blessing on the nation in relation to His saving ways as he prays, “God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us” (v. 1). Thus, the psalmist desired that the Lord’s saving ways, “thy saving health,” would be known among the nations (vv. 1-2).

Moreover, the psalmist summoned all people to praise God with jubilation because He rules justly (vv. 3-4). In verses 5-7, the people are called upon to praise God so that he would bless them by giving them an abundant harvest. The psalmist rehearses in verse 3 and