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Psalm 66 Bible study: Come and see, come and hear
Psalm 66 calls twice: "Come, and see" (66:5) and "Come and hear" (66:16). The same two verbs come back at the end: the WEB's cherished in "If I cherished sin in my heart" (66:18) is the see of 66:5, and both listeneds in 66:18-19 are the hear of 66:16.
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“Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor his loving kindness from me.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“Psalm 66 calls people both to come and see what God has done and to come and hear it.”
Is that in Psalm 66, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
From all the earth to one voice
The title is "For the Chief Musician. A song. A Psalm" (66:1), and it names no one. Then the psalm speaks to the widest crowd it can: "Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!" (66:1). It even tells the earth what to say: "Tell God" (66:3), and then the words, "How awesome are your deeds!" (66:3), running on to "All the earth will worship you, and will sing to you; they will sing to your name" (66:4) (tap submit in 66:3). Then the voice that speaks grows narrower. In 66:6 it first says we: "There, we rejoiced in him" (66:6). In 66:8-12 it speaks as we throughout: "Praise our God, you peoples!" (66:8), and "For you, God, have tested us" (66:10). Then one person: "I will come into your temple with burnt offerings" (66:13). Its last verse is one voice and one prayer: "Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor his loving kindness from me" (66:20). The psalm doesn't say who the I is (see the honest questions).
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Psalm 66
- "He turned the sea into dry land. They went through the river on foot" (66:6). Which sea, and which river?
- The psalm speaks as "we", then as "I". Who is the "I" of 66:13-20?
- "If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord wouldn’t have listened" (66:18). Does that mean God doesn't hear anyone who has sinned?
- "You brought us into prison. You laid a burden on our backs" (66:11). Does the psalm say God caused their troubles?
That was a taste
The rest of Psalm 66 is waiting in Favor
- "Come, and see", then "Come and hear"
- They went through; we rejoiced
- Tested, refined, brought out
- Through fire and through water
- Vows made in distress
- Tested by fire, and 1 Peter 1:7
- 8 questions as you read
- 13 more Hebrew words
- A short check at the end
- Your notes, saved as you go
Favor reads the Bible in order, so you'll reach Psalm 66 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
שָׁמַעshamasay sha-MA
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "hear". Strong's: "to hear intelligently". The psalm has it four times: "Make the sound of his praise heard" (66:8); "Come and hear, all you who fear God" (66:16); "If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord wouldn’t have listened" (66:18); and "But most certainly, God has listened" (66:19). The if of 66:18 and the answer of 66:19 have the same verb. Psalm 34 has 66:16's two Hebrew verbs, come and hear, in one call: "Come, you children, listen to me" (Psalm 34:11).
For your group
Psalm 66 Bible study questions
- 1"Come and hear, all you who fear God. I will declare what he has done for my soul" (66:16). Who first told you what God had done for them? What difference did it make to hear it?
- 2"We went through fire and through water, but you brought us to the place of abundance" (66:12). Is there something you have come through with other people, not alone? How did it change how you look back on it?
- 3"I will pay my vows to you, which my lips promised, and my mouth spoke, when I was in distress" (66:13-14). Have you ever made God a promise in a hard time? What became of it once the hard time had passed?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Psalm 66 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.
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Questions
What is Favor?
Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.
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Your first week is free. After that it's $10 a month per person, the same for everyone, including groups and churches. There are no tiers and nothing extra to unlock.
Can I read Psalm 66 straight away?
Favor takes the Bible as one story, in order, so you'll reach Psalm 66 with everything that leads up to it in view. Start from Genesis, or meet Jesus first in the Gospels. You can read the text of any chapter in Favor's Look up whenever you like.
Do I need a group?
No. Many people read on their own. If you'd like to read with others, start a Bible study and share one link. Everyone's answers stay private until you meet.
I've never really read the Bible. Is this for me?
Yes. Favor starts where you are and explains as it goes. The questions along the way aren't marked right or wrong: you answer, then see what the text shows.
Which Bible does Favor use?
The World English Bible, a modern, readable translation in the public domain. God's name appears as "the LORD", as in most English Bibles.
Is Favor tied to a church?
No. Favor is non-denominational. Where Christians read a passage differently, it shows the main views side by side and doesn't pick one.
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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home