Rejoicing in God Revived – Psalm 85

“To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.” Psalm 85 intro

“The sons of Korah” were a guild of Levite musicians who served and worshipped God. Psalm 85 was sent to the chief musician to be set to music. [1]

“Lord, You have been favorable to Your land. You have brought back the captivity of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of Your people. You have covered all their sin. Selah! You have taken away all Your wrath. You have turned from the fierceness of Your anger.” Psalm 85:1-3

God’s favor is manifested to us as He sets us free from our various vices.

For example, in the past, being number one in whatever I did was a motivating factor for me. But the Lord was gracious to me and revealed to me what I could not see. I was foolish. I was sinful. My self-serving gains were actually losses, for by them, I was not like Christ to others.

In 2 Corinthians 8:9, we read, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.”

In Mark 9:35, Jesus sat down with His twelve disciples and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.”

Sin distances us from God. The only back to Him is via repentance.

In Acts 3:19-20, Peter urged his listeners to repent and be converted, so that their sins would be blotted out, and that they would receive times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord. In Acts 3:26, he added, “God raised up His Servant Jesus to bless you by turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”

“Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause Your anger toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your mercy, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.” Psalm 85:4-7

The singers of this song believed in God’s restorative grace.

In Matthew 13:12-14, Jesus asked His listeners, “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”

The one sheep that went astray put himself and ninety-nine others at risk. The Good Shepherd was compelled by mercy and love to rescue the straying sheep from harm. He brought the prodigal back into the sheep fold, and He rejoiced to have him back again among His flock.

The singers of Psalm 85 wanted God’s wrath against Israel to end, and His saving work to begin.

They looked to the Lord for salvation. They had tried to come to God by their own efforts and failed. Apart from God’s mercy, they had no hope that their appetite for sin would end and their appetite for God would begin and grow.

In Hebrews 7:25, we read, “He [Jesus Christ] is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

The singers of Psalm 85 wanted a revival of rejoicing in God.

“I will hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints, but let them not turn back to folly.” Psalm 85:8

Revival begins when people become desperate to hear and heed what God speaks.

God refers to people who seek and serve Him as being saints. They no longer seek to please the world. They seek to please God and bring Him glory.

In Romans 12:1-2, Paul wrote, “I beseech you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

God’s peace comes to us as we are transformed and conformed to His image.

“Let them not turn again to folly.” All sin is folly. Sin is a departure from Him who loves us most.

“Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land.” Psalm 85:9

God demonstrates His respect for us who respect Him by saving us from all the works of the evil one. His deliverances yield from us praise, honor and glory to His Name.

In 2 Timothy 4:18, Paul wrote, “The Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!”

“Mercy and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him and shall make His footsteps our pathway.” Psalm 85:10-13

In James 3:18, we read, “The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

In Hebrews 12:11, the Lord empathizes with us and encourages us by saying, “No chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

In Ephesians 5:9, Paul wrote, “The fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.”

It is in Christ that mercy and truth come together. Righteousness and peace are from Him. In Christ, God shows mercy to sinners without compromising His holiness, truth, or justice. God remains righteous while justifying those who believe in Jesus.

“The Lord gives what is good.” In James 1:17, we read that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

In Matthew 6:33, Jesus said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things [daily provisions] shall be added to you.”

“Righteousness shall go before Him.” God’s faithful promises and His sanctifying work in His people prepare the way for His blessings. Righteousness both encourages our hope and guides our conduct. It goes before us as a guide, directing us into the path of God’s steps so that we may walk in fellowship with Him and meet Him gladly when He comes in mercy. [2]

Christ, the Son of Righteousness, leads us to God and places us in the path that leads to life.

Righteousness is a sure guide both in approaching God and in walking with Him.

In Psalm 85:6-7, the singers asked God, “Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your mercy, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.” Rejoicing in God is a fruit of a revived soul. “Heavenly Father, please show us this mercy and grant us this salvation. For we desire this from You in the Name of Your Son Jesus Christ. Amen.”


[1] Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary, see also Numbers 16
[2] Edited material from Matthew Henry’s Commentary