King James Version
Psalms 85
13 verses with commentary
Restore Us Again, O God
To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. for the sons: or, of the sons favourable: or, well pleased
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
The psalm celebrates restoration: "LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob" (Hebrew <em>ratzita YHWH artzekha shavta sh-vut Ya-aqov</em>). "Favourable" (Hebrew <em>ratzah</em>) indicates acceptance, pleasure—God's face shining again. "Brought back captivity" describes return from exile. The possessive "thy land" reminds that Canaan is God's gift...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **Thou hast** **brought back.**—See Psalm 14:7; Psalm 68:18. The expression might only imply generally a return to a state of former prosperity, as in Job 42:10, but the context directs us to refer especially to the return from exile. (See *Introduction.*)
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 53 Psa 53:1-6. Upon Mahalath--(See on Psa 88:1, title). Why this repetition of the fourteenth Psalm is given we do not know.
1-4. with few verbal changes, correspond with Psa 14:1-4.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin.</strong> This verse celebrates God's past mercies as foundation for present petition. The perfect tense verbs indicate completed action—God HAS forgiven, HAS covered. The psalmist recounts history to ground current prayer in proven patterns of divine faithfulness. <em>Nasa</em> (נָשָׂא, "forgiven") literally me...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Forgiven.**—Rather, *taken away. *(See Psalm 32:1.)
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 53 Psa 53:1-6. Upon Mahalath--(See on Psa 88:1, title). Why this repetition of the fourteenth Psalm is given we do not know.
1-4. with few verbal changes, correspond with Psa 14:1-4.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger. thyself: or, thine anger from waxing hot
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Thou hast taken away all thy wrath: thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger.</strong> This verse continues recounting God's past mercies, focusing specifically on His withdrawn wrath. The verb <em>asaph</em> (אָסַף, "taken away") means "to gather up, remove, withdraw"—like harvesting crops or removing objects from a field. God gathered up His wrath, removing its manifes...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 53 Psa 53:1-6. Upon Mahalath--(See on Psa 88:1, title). Why this repetition of the fourteenth Psalm is given we do not know.
1-4. with few verbal changes, correspond with Psa 14:1-4.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.</strong> The psalm shifts from recounting past mercy (vv. 1-3) to urgent present petition (vv. 4-7). The imperative <em>shuv</em> (שׁוּב, "turn us") is causative—"cause us to turn, bring us back, restore us." This prayer recognizes human inability to turn ourselves and God's necessary initiative in restoration. With...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **Turn us.**—Here equivalent to *restore us once more. *If, the poet felt, the captivity had taught its lesson, why, on the restoration, did not complete freedom from misfortune ensue? It is this which supplies the motive of his song.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 53 Psa 53:1-6. Upon Mahalath--(See on Psa 88:1, title). Why this repetition of the fourteenth Psalm is given we do not know.
1-4. with few verbal changes, correspond with Psa 14:1-4.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Wilt thou be angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations?</strong> These rhetorical questions express anguished concern that God's anger might continue indefinitely. The Hebrew form expects negative answer: "Surely you won't be angry forever?" The psalmist appeals to God's covenant character—His anger, though righteous, is temporary; His mercy endures forever ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
5. Instead of assurances of God's presence with the pious, and a complaint of the wicked, Psa 14:5, 6 portrays the ruin of the latter, whose "bones" even "are scattered" (compare Psa 141:7), and who are put to shame as contemptuously rejected of God.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?</strong> This heartfelt petition appears in a psalm of national lament and restoration hope. The question form "wilt thou not" (<em>halo-attah</em>, הֲלֹא־אַתָּה) expects affirmative answer—"won't you surely...?" It's rhetorical appeal rather than doubting inquiry. The psalmist confidently expects God to act, yet the quest...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.</strong> This verse continues the prayer for restoration, specifically requesting two divine gifts: mercy and salvation. The imperative <em>hare'enu</em> (הַרְאֵנוּ, "show us") means "cause us to see, reveal, make visible." The people don't merely want to hear about God's mercy abstractly but to experience it concretely—to see tangible...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 85
Chapter Outline
Prayers for the continuance of former mercies.(1-7)
Trust in God's goodness.(8-13)
**Verses 1-7**
The sense of present afflictions should not do away the remembrance of former mercies. The favour of God is the fountain of happiness to nations, as well as to particular persons. When God forgives sin, he covers it; and when he covers the sin of his people...
Read full commentary →I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I will hear what God the LORD will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.</strong> This verse shifts from petition (vv. 4-7) to prophetic listening—the psalmist positions himself to hear God's response. The phrase "I will hear" (<em>eshme'ah</em>, אֶשְׁמְעָה) indicates intentional, attentive listening. In prayer's dialogue, ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Speak peace . . .**—This word “peace” comprehends all that the nation sighed for:
“Peace,
Dear nurse of arts, plenties, and joyful truth.”
To Christians the word has a higher meaning still, which directed the choice of this psalm for Christmas Day.
**Folly.**—See Psalm 14:1; Psalm 49:13. Here it most probably implies *idolatry.*
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 54 Psa 54:1-7. See on Psa 4:1, title; Psa 32:1, title; for the history, see 1Sa 23:19, 29; 26:1-25. After an earnest cry for help, the Psalmist promises praise in the assurance of a hearing.
**1. by thy name--**(Psa 5:11), specially, power.
**judge me--**as in Psa 7:8; 26:1.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him; that glory may dwell in our land.</strong> After prophetic assurance that God will speak peace (v. 8), this verse specifies the promise: salvation is near for those who fear God. The emphatic <em>akh</em> (אַךְ, "surely") introduces confident assertion. <em>Karov</em> (קָרוֹב, "nigh, near") suggests imminent arrival—salvation isn't distant f...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9-11) The exquisite personification of these verses is, it has been truly remarked, exactly in Isaiah’s manner. (See Isaiah 32:16 *seq., *Isaiah 45:8; Isaiah 59:14.) It is an allegory of completed national happiness, which, though presented in language peculiar to Hebrew thought, is none the less universal in its application. Nor does it stop at material blessings, but lends itself to the express...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
2. (Compare Psa 4:1; 5:1).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.</strong> This magnificent verse employs poetic personification to describe God's redemptive work—attributes that seem contradictory embrace in harmony. The Hebrew <em>chesed ve-emet nifgashu</em> (חֶסֶד־וֶאֱמֶת נִפְגָּשׁוּ) literally means "lovingkindness and faithfulness have met." <em>Nifgash</em> (נִפְגַּש...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **Met together.**—The word is used of those who should be friends, but whom circumstances have sundered (Proverbs 22:2).
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. strangers--**perhaps Ziphites.
**oppressors--**literally, "terrible ones" (Is 13:11; 25:3). Such were Saul and his army.
**not set ... them--**acted as atheists, without God's fear (compare Psa 16:8).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven.</strong> This verse continues the poetic description of God's salvation, depicting truth and righteousness connecting earth and heaven. The imagery "truth shall spring out of the earth" (<em>emet me-eretz titzmach</em>, אֱמֶת מֵאֶרֶץ תִּצְמָח) uses agricultural metaphor. <em>Tzamach</em> (צָמַח) means "to s...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Truth, **or “faithfulness,” is here depicted as springing out of the earth, because the renewal of fertility has re-established the conviction of the faithfulness of Jehovah towards His people, which had been shaken.
**Look down.**—Used of bending forwards as from a window or battlement (Song of Solomon 6:10, Note).
This “righteousness” (here in direct parallelism with *faithfulness*) had, ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
4. (Compare Psa 30:10).
**with them--**on their side, and for me (compare Psa 46:11).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.</strong> This concluding promise assures God's comprehensive blessing—both spiritual and material. The affirmative "yea" (<em>gam</em>, גַּם, "also, even, indeed") emphasizes certainty. The imperfect verb "shall give" (<em>yiten</em>, יִתֵּן) indicates future certainty: God WILL give. This isn't wishful thi...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**5. He shall ... evil--**or, "Evil shall return on" (Psa 7:16) my enemies or watchers, that is, to do me evil (Psa 6:7).
**in thy truth--**Thy verified promise.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →Righteousness shall go before him; and shall set us in the way of his steps.
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Righteousness shall go before him</strong> (צֶדֶק לְפָנָיו יְהַלֵּךְ, <em>tzedek lefanav yehalekh</em>)—<em>Tzedek</em> means righteousness, justice; <em>lefanav</em> means before his face; <em>halakh</em> means walk, go. <strong>And shall set us in the way of his steps</strong> (וְיָשֵׂם לְדֶרֶךְ פְּעָמָיו, <em>ve-yasem le-derekh pe'amav</em>)—<em>Yasem</em> means set, place; <em>derekh</...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **Righteousness shall . . .**—Better, *Righteousness shall walk in front of Him, and follow in His steps.*
Nothing is more instructive than the blending in Psalm 85:12-13 of material and moral blessings. They do go together, as experience, especially national testifies. In the same spirit is Wordsworth’s well-known *Ode to Duty:*
“Stern Law-giver! Yet thou dost wear
The Godhead’s most benigna...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6. I will freely, &c.--**or, present a freewill offering (Le 7:16; Nu 15:3).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 8-13**
Sooner or later, God will speak peace to his people. If he do not command outward peace, yet he will suggest inward peace; speaking to their hearts by his Spirit. Peace is spoken only to those who turn from sin. All sin is folly, especially backsliding; it is the greatest folly to return to sin. Surely God's salvation is nigh, whatever our difficulties and distresses are. Also,...
Read full commentary →