Psalm 65 is a praise psalm on David’s part. However, for us, it’s a prophetic psalm as it talks about the end time harvest. Harvests are mentioned quite a few times in the New Testament. Let’s see how Psalm 65 prophesies on the current reaping and future harvests…
Psalm 65
For the choir director: A song. A psalm of David.
1 What mighty praise, O God,
belongs to you in Zion.
We will fulfill our vows to you,
2 for you answer our prayers.
All of us must come to you.
3 Though we are overwhelmed by our sins,
you forgive them all.
4 What joy for those you choose to bring near,
those who live in your holy courts.
What festivities await us
inside your holy Temple.5 You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds,
O God our savior.
You are the hope of everyone on earth,
even those who sail on distant seas.
6 You formed the mountains by your power
and armed yourself with mighty strength.
7 You quieted the raging oceans
with their pounding waves
and silenced the shouting of the nations.
8 Those who live at the ends of the earth
stand in awe of your wonders.
From where the sun rises to where it sets,
you inspire shouts of joy.9 You take care of the earth and water it,
Psalm 65 NLT
making it rich and fertile.
The river of God has plenty of water;
it provides a bountiful harvest of grain,
for you have ordered it so.
10 You drench the plowed ground with rain,
melting the clods and leveling the ridges.
You soften the earth with showers
and bless its abundant crops.
11 You crown the year with a bountiful harvest;
even the hard pathways overflow with abundance.
12 The grasslands of the wilderness become a lush pasture,
and the hillsides blossom with joy.
13 The meadows are clothed with flocks of sheep,
and the valleys are carpeted with grain.
They all shout and sing for joy!
Future Harvest
Pastor Sand Adams explains that Psalms 65-68 are prophetic psalms and provides us with a condensed overview of the End Times…
A seven year period known as “The Great Tribulation (GT),” occurs just before the Second Coming of Jesus. Three things happen: God punishes the wicked… purifies Israel… and parties with the Church in heaven.
After the GT, Jesus returns to Earth and establishes His kingdom. He ends man’s dominion and restores the earth to its original beauty. The desert flowers like a rose. The lamb lies down with the lion. The curse of Genesis 3 is lifted. Jesus rules the nations, and ushers in an age of peace. This Kingdom lasts 1000 years (The Millennium), and is the subject of Psalm 65.
Pastor Sandy Adams
But what is the harvest? Is it grain or corn? No, it’s people. Here’s what Jesus has to say about harvests. First, read the parable of the wheat and the tares found in Matthew 13. That will give you an idea of how Jesus refers to the harvest of believers as well as non-believers.
Jesus sees the crowds of people like a sheep without a shepherd.
35 Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Matthew 9:35-38 NLT
Those workers are believers who are spreading the Good News just like Jesus commanded.
Luke wrote about it also…
The Lord now chose seventy-two other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs to all the towns and places he planned to visit. 2 These were his instructions to them: “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Luke 10: 1-2
Jesus referred to seeds and growing in a parable…
26 Jesus also said, “The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, while he’s asleep or awake, the seed sprouts and grows, but he does not understand how it happens. 28 The earth produces the crops on its own. First a leaf blade pushes through, then the heads of wheat are formed, and finally the grain ripens. 29 And as soon as the grain is ready, the farmer comes and harvests it with a sickle, for the harvest time has come.”
Mark 4:26-29 NLT
After Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan Woman at the Well he tells his disciples…
35 You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. 36 The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! 37 You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. 38 I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”
John 4:35-38 NLT
Paul refers to Jesus as the first of the harvest….
20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.
1 Corinthians 15:20 NLT
So, when is the final harvest?
Ultimately, there will be a final reaping. That one we find in the Book of Revelation…
The Harvest of the Earth
14 Then I saw a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was someone like the Son of Man. He had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.
15 Then another angel came from the Temple and shouted to the one sitting on the cloud, “Swing the sickle, for the time of harvest has come; the crop on earth is ripe.” 16 So the one sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the whole earth was harvested.
17 After that, another angel came from the Temple in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. 18 Then another angel, who had power to destroy with fire, came from the altar. He shouted to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sickle now to gather the clusters of grapes from the vines of the earth, for they are ripe for judgment.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and loaded the grapes into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 The grapes were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress in a stream about 180 miles long and as high as a horse’s bridle.
Revelation 14:14-20 NLT
Obviously, John writes about 2 different harvests here. The first one remains a mystery until Revelation 20. The second, grape harvest is Armageddon — the “winepress of God’s wrath”. That’s the one you want to avoid at all costs! You do that by turning to Jesus NOW!
The Millennium Reign of Jesus
The first reaping is the resurrection of the Tribulation Saints at the time of the Millennium Kingdom — the thousand years of peace on earth. These are the people who get Left Behind at the Rapture, figure out that they missed the Salvation boat, repent and accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Unfortunately, they have to survive life on earth during the Great Tribulation. If they are caught by the Antichrist (the Beast) and his cronies, they are beheaded — martyred.
John writes about the Tribulation Saints in Revelation 20…
4 Then I saw thrones, and the people sitting on them had been given the authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony about Jesus and for proclaiming the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his statue, nor accepted his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They all came to life again, and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
5 This is the first resurrection. (The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years had ended.) 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. For them the second death holds no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him a thousand years.
Revelation 20:4-6 NLT
How does Psalm 65 connect with Revelation?
I turn to the folks at Spoken Gospel for insight…
In David’s day, forgiveness of past sins was secured through a sacrifice. So Jesus became a sacrifice to forgive the sins of all people and become the world’s savior (Ephesians 1:7). Jesus is Lord of the global harvest of salvation, David understood Israel’s crops pointed to!
Like rain, Jesus is living water that irrigates every corner of the world (John 7:37). Like God causes flowers to bloom in the desert, Jesus makes the peoples of mountains, deserts, and meadows alive by his forgiveness and love. When Jesus returns, we know he will harvest the entire world (Revelation 14:16). On that day the whole world will be renewed. People from every corner of the earth will praise Jesus, the Lord of the harvest and the Savior of his people.
Spoken Gospel
It’s YOUR Choice!
Believe me, you do NOT want to be around when the Great Tribulation starts. You want to be part of the first harvest of the people saved from God’s wrath in the Rapture. The only way is to…