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Psalm 73 Bible study: Good to come close
Three verses of Psalm 73 begin with akh, Surely: God is good (73:1), I cleansed my heart in vain (73:13), you set them in slippery places (73:18). The one who nearly slipped (73:2) ends saying "it is good for me to come close to God" (73:28). And in Hebrew before you in "a brute beast before you" (73:22) is the next verse's with you.
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“My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
Try it · Did you catch it?
“Both the first and the last verse of Psalm 73 say something is good.”
Is that in Psalm 73, or not? Make your call.
What's really going on
Surely, three times
Three verses of Psalm 73 begin with the same small Hebrew word, akh, and the WEB gives it as Surely each time (tap Surely). "Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart" (73:1). "Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocence" (73:13). "Surely you set them in slippery places. You throw them down to destruction" (73:18). The first is how the psalm begins, just after its title, "A Psalm by Asaph" (73:1). The second is the psalmist's own complaint, and he goes on, "For all day long I have been plagued, and punished every morning" (73:14). The third comes straight after the turn: "until I entered God’s sanctuary, and considered their latter end" (73:17). Brown-Driver-Briggs gives the word as "surely"; Psalm 62's notes follow it through that psalm, which has it six times (Psalm 62:1).
Honest questions
Questions people ask about Psalm 73
- The title says "A Psalm by Asaph" (73:1). Who is Asaph?
- "If I had said, “I will speak thus”, behold, I would have betrayed the generation of your children" (73:15). Why didn't he say it?
- "You will guide me with your counsel, and afterward receive me to glory" (73:24). Is the psalmist speaking of what comes after death?
That was a taste
The rest of Psalm 73 is waiting in Favor
- Nearly slipped, and slippery places
- Plagued, and too painful
- "But as for me"
- Far from you, close to God
- Words other chapters follow
- Worth more than all he has
- 12 questions as you read
- 12 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 73 with everything before it in view. First week free, then $10 a month per person.
The Hebrew word behind it
אַךְakhsay AKH
Brown-Driver-Briggs: "surely", and "with a restrictive force, emphasizing what follows". Strong's: "a particle of affirmation, surely; hence (by limitation) only". Psalm 73 has it three times, each time as the first word of a verse (in 73:1, just after the title), and the WEB gives it as Surely each time: "Surely God is good to Israel" (73:1), "Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain" (73:13), and "Surely you set them in slippery places" (73:18). Psalm 62's notes follow the word through that psalm, where it comes six times (Psalm 62:1).
For your group
Psalm 73 Bible study questions
- 1"For I was envious of the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked" (73:3). Whose life do you find yourself comparing with yours? What does the comparing do to you?
- 2"When I tried to understand this, it was too painful for me" (73:16), "until I entered God’s sanctuary" (73:17). When something about God's ways is too painful to understand, where do you go?
- 3"Whom do I have in heaven? There is no one on earth whom I desire besides you" (73:25). What would it take for you to say that honestly this week?
Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Psalm 73 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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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