“But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”
My Notes
What Does Psalms 73:28 Mean?
After nearly losing his faith over the prosperity of the wicked, Asaph arrives at his conclusion: "But it is good for me to draw near to God." Not good to be wealthy. Not good to have answers. Good to be near. Proximity to God is the resolution of every question the Psalm raised.
The word "good" (tov) echoes the opening verse — "truly God is good to Israel." The goodness Asaph was looking for in the wrong place (material prosperity) he finally finds in the right one: nearness to God. The goodness isn't about what God gives. It's about who God is and how close you can get.
"That I may declare all thy works" reveals the purpose of the nearness: testimony. Drawing near to God produces a life that declares what He's done. The journey from doubt to faith becomes the story that helps someone else make the same journey.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Is your faith crisis right now about needing answers or about needing nearness?
- 2.What does 'drawing near to God' look like practically in your daily life?
- 3.How does proximity to God resolve questions that intellectual answers can't?
- 4.What testimony is emerging from your own journey through doubt — and who needs to hear it?
Devotional
After everything — the envy, the doubt, the near-collapse — Asaph's conclusion is five words: it is good to draw near.
Not: it is good to understand. Not: it is good to have answers. Not: it is good to see the wicked punished. Drawing near. That's the resolution. Proximity. Closeness. Being with God.
This is the answer to Psalm 73's crisis, and it's simpler than expected. Asaph didn't get a theological lecture. He didn't receive a detailed explanation of why the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer. He went into the sanctuary (verse 17), he got near to God, and the nearness changed everything. Not because his questions were answered, but because in God's presence, the questions lost their power.
When you're close to God, the prosperity of the wicked stops mattering. Not because you've reasoned your way past it, but because you've found something better. The thing Asaph envied — excess, ease, overflow — looks different when you're standing next to the source of everything.
Draw near. That's the answer to your doubt, your envy, your nearly-slipping faith. Not more information. More proximity. Get close. Stay close. And then — from that nearness — declare everything He's done.
The testimony comes from the closeness. And the closeness is the good you were looking for all along.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
But it is good for me to draw near to God,.... In prayer, and other acts of religious worship; to attend the word and…
But it is good for me to draw near to God - That is, It is pleasant; it is profitable; it is the chief good. For myself,…
Behold Samson's riddle again unriddled, Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong sweetness; for we have…
But as for me, to draw near to God is good for me:
In the Lord Jehovah have I made my refuge;
That I may speak of all…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture