Psalm 65, Like Rain in the Desert

For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.

A praise song of David.

Psalm 65: 1-2, Silence is praise

 Praise awaits you, O God, in Zion;

 to you our vows will be fulfilled.

 O you who hear prayer, 

to you all men will come.

All men will come before YHWH and should praise Him and submit to Him. The Hebrew in the first line, translated here "Praise awaits you", is translated by Alter as "To you silence is praise." The NASB translates that line as "There will be silence before You."  The strange Hebrew word translated "awaits" by the NIV is a noun, says Alter, and the impression it leaves is that mere human words are insufficient in praising God and so silence itself is praise.

Psalm 65: 3-4, Joy of your courts

 When we were overwhelmed by sins, 

you forgave our transgressions.

 Blessed are those you choose 

and bring near to live in your courts! 

We are filled with the good things of your house, 

of your holy temple.

The broken people are forgiven and joyfully come into God's temple. Kidner suggests Romans 5: 1-2 and Hebrews 10: 19-23 as a New Testament echoes of this passage.

Psalm 65: 5-7, Sea calmed

 You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness, 

O God our Savior, 

the hope of all the ends of the earth 

and of the farthest seas,

 who formed the mountains by your power, 

having armed yourself with strength,

 who stilled the roaring of the seas, 

the roaring of their waves, 

and the turmoil of the nations.

 

The mountains are formed by God and the roaring, chaotic seas are stilled by the One Who created them.

Psalm 65: 8-10, Rain!

Those living far away fear your wonders; 

where morning dawns and evening fades 

you call forth songs of joy.

 You care for the land and water it; 

you enrich it abundantly. 

The streams of God are filled with water

 to provide the people with grain, 

for so you have ordained it.

 You drench its furrows 

and level its ridges; 

you soften it with showers 

and bless its crops.

In a desert land, rain is a clear sign of the goodness of God.

Psalm 65: 11-13, Clothed in bounty

You crown the year with your bounty, 

and your carts overflow with abundance.

 The grasslands of the desert overflow; 

the hills are clothed with gladness.

 The meadows are covered with flocks

 and the valleys are mantled with grain; 

they shout for joy and sing.

David lists the creative works of God in nature: fertile croplands, green grasslands and hills, an abundance of flocks and grain. These gifts are described as clothes covering the earth, dressing up the earth in beauty and joy. (Some have suggested that this song might have been a harvest hymn.)