“There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.”
My Notes
What Does Psalms 4:6 Mean?
David voices a universal question and offers a singular answer: there be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? — the question is widespread (many — rabbim). The asking is communal — not one person's despair but a collective cry: who will show us anything good? The question reflects a season of difficulty where goodness seems absent and the people are looking for relief from whatever quarter it might come. The question is not academic. It is desperate: is there any good left to be shown?
LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us — David's answer to the many. While the crowd looks for good from any source, David turns to God. The request is specific: the light (or) of thy countenance (panim — face). The light of God's face is the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:25-26: the LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. David is asking for the Aaronic blessing — God's face turned toward his people in favor, in grace, in shining approval.
Lift thou up — the face of God can be turned toward (favor) or away from (judgment). David asks for the lifting — the turning of God's face toward his people. When God's face shines on you, the darkness breaks. The good that the many are searching for is not found in circumstances. It is found in the face of God turned toward you.
The verse presents two responses to hardship: the crowd asks who? — looking for goodness from any human, any circumstance, any relief. David says LORD — looking for goodness from one source: the face of God. The many scatter in multiple directions. David goes to one.
Verse 7 reveals the result: thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. The gladness God gives exceeds the gladness that abundance produces. The light of God's face creates more joy than the best harvest. David's answer to 'who will show us good?' is: God's face. And the gladness that face produces surpasses every earthly abundance.
Reflection Questions
- 1.How does David's singular answer (LORD, lift thy countenance) differ from the crowd's scattered question (who will show us good)?
- 2.What does the 'light of God's countenance' mean — and how does it connect to the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:25-26?
- 3.Why does verse 7 say God's gladness exceeds the gladness of abundance — and what does that reveal about the true source of joy?
- 4.Where are you looking for good in the same direction as 'the many' — and what would turning toward God's face look like instead?
Devotional
Who will shew us any good? The question everybody asks. Is there any good left? Where is the relief? Who is going to fix this? The many — the crowd, the majority — are looking in every direction for something good. The search is desperate and directionless: who? Anyone? Anything?
LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. David's answer. While the many look everywhere, David looks to one place: God's face. The light of God's countenance — the shining of his face toward you, the turning of his favor in your direction, the ancient priestly blessing made personal. The good the crowd is searching for is found in one place: the face of God.
Lift thou up. The face of God can be turned toward you or away from you. When it is turned toward you — when the light of his countenance shines — the darkness breaks. The despair lifts. The good that was nowhere to be found is suddenly everywhere. The lifting of God's face is the answer to the question the many are asking.
Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased (v.7). The gladness God's face produces exceeds the gladness that abundance produces. The best harvest, the fullest barns, the most prosperous season — the joy those things bring is less than the joy of God's face shining on you. The many look for good in more corn and more wine. David finds more good in one moment of God's favor than the many find in their best year.
Where are you looking for good? In the direction the crowd is looking — more money, more security, more comfort, more of whatever the current scarcity is? Or in the direction David looked — toward the face of God, asking for his countenance to be lifted, trusting that the light of his favor produces more gladness than any abundance the world can offer?
The crowd asks who. David says LORD. The difference is everything.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
There be many that say, who will show us any good?.... These may be thought to be the men of the world; carnal worldly…
There be many that say - Some have supposed, as DeWette and others, that the allusion of the psalmist here is to his own…
We have here,
I. The foolish wish of worldly people: There be many that say, Who will show us any good? Who will make us…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture