Psalms
Chapter 85
Lord, You Have Been Good To Your Land
You have favored your land, O Lord; you have brought back the exiles of Jacob.
You have forgiven the sin of your people; you have pardoned their offenses.
You have withdrawn your wrath and turned from your burning rage.
But restore us, God our savior; put away, altogether, your indignation.
Will your anger be ever with us, carried over to all generations?
Will you not give us life anew, that your people may rejoice in you?
Show us, O Lord, your unfailing love, and grant us your saving help.
Would, that I hear God’s proclamation, that he promise peace to his people, his saints—lest they come back to their folly.
Yet, his salvation is near to those who fear him, and his glory will dwell in our land.
Love and faithfulness have met; righteousness and peace have embraced.
Faithfulness will reach up from the earth while justice bends down from heaven.
The Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its fruit.
Justice will go before him, and peace will follow along his path.
Commentaries
85
This psalm, written when the Israelites had returned from captivity in Babylon, uses universal terms such as liberty, life, joy, salvation, love, justice, peace, and happiness. However, this return of the exiled Jews was only one step toward genuine liberation. Nothing is final, and each stage in fulfilling God’s plan leads us to the next. God’s people are continually called to move forward. Even the reign of the risen Christ and the salvation work of the Church are only reflections of the eternal kingdom. God loves our earth. When we feel troubled and discouraged by the ugliness around us, let us remember this psalm’s declaration: You have favored your land, O Lord; justice bends down from heaven; glory will dwell in our land (vv. 2, 10, 12). Salvation comes from God but is delivered by a man, Christ, who is freely welcomed by a woman in the name of humanity. With the Incarnation, believing in God without believing in humankind becomes impossible.