Why Does the Lord “Bless the Righteous” According to Psalm 5:12?
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We’ve all heard the term and even seen the hashtag: I’m blessed. We often think of blessedness in a worldly light; we think blessings have to do with earthly things like physical comfort, or wealth and personal happiness.
But what does it truly mean to be blessed — and to be righteous?
Throughout the Bible, we find mention of cases where God “blesses the righteous,” those who follow him and do his will, walking in his ways. In Psalm 5:12, we find one of the most definitive statements of this, coming at the very end of David’s fifth psalm:
“For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield” (Psalm 5:12).
But it’s important to understand that blessings, that God’s favor, isn’t the shallow, superficial understanding many of us have of prosperity — things like money in the bank and a great marriage or career. True blessings are eternal, often far deeper that anything we can imagine.
Why does the Lord “bless the righteous”? Let’s dive in and understand what it means to be righteous and what God’s blessings really are — a perfect peace guaranteed to all who walk in alignment with him.
What Does This Verse Mean?
Essentially, this verse is asking for the Lord to wrap his divine, perfect, protective and supernatural power around David like a mighty shield, a cloak so large nothing awful can get through. Here, blessing is not money or power but the Lord’s favor — true blessing. He’s affirming that those who walk with God and strive wholeheartedly to follow God’s will and ways are considered “righteous,” and God’s favor is upon them and protects them. It’s a statement of faith, affirming and acknowledging that this is what God does, and he plans to continue walking with God and, because of this, receive that favor.
The original Hebrew for the word “bless” is barak, meaning abundant favor and divine blessing, that comes from the Lord alone. The Hebrew for “righteous” is saddiq, meaning just and in accordance with the standard or ways of the Lord. And the original Hebrew translated as “shield” is sinna — a mighty shield, not the small shield referred to in Psalm 3:3. This shield is like a wall between a person and their enemy, fully blocking the force of their threat.
David is affirming here that those who walk with the Lord, then, are in God’s favor, and God provides his full protection on all sides.
It’s a verse of hope and faith, acknowledging God’s perfect and majestic glory.
What Is the Context of Psalm 5?
Most scholars believe Psalm 5 was written by David, who is beaten down by enemies who want him obliterated. Here, he’s coming before the Lord and begging him to hear his cry and consider his lament (v. 1-2). He praises God, acknowledging that God hates wickedness and evil, and he lifts up God’s holy goodness and great love (v. 4-7). He pleads with God to lead him on the right path, begging, “make your way straight before me” (v. 8). He laments his enemies, their lying lips and untrustworthiness, and asks God to declare them guilty and banish them (v. 10).
Then he wraps up his fervent request by affirming that God has a special love for those who come to him, who do the right thing and walk with him. These are those who “take refuge” in the Lord, and he asks that God “Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you” (v. 11).
He closes with the final statement of faith and hope, verse 12, which is essentially his marching orders; he knows God blesses and completely protects the righteous, which he strives to be, and he is clinging to this truth and walking in this.
Why Does the Lord Bless the Righteous?
God blesses the righteous because they follow him, obey him, and walk with him. They consciously choose what is right — God and God’s ways — and reject evil. Throughout Scripture, we’re told that those who follow God’s commands have the assurance of God’s blessing. In Deuteronomy 29:9, Moses speaks on behalf of God to the people, telling them that if they walk in God’s ways and keep his covenant, they will “prosper in everything you do.”
Prosperity isn’t necessarily wealth and success, but a general state of wellness and rightness.
In Joshua 1:6-9, God tells Joshua as he is about to enter the Promised Land, that he is to be strong and courageous. If he walks in the ways of righteousness, God will be with him and grant him favor. It’s the same thing expressed in Romans 8:28, that, “For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Righteousness isn’t just following orders, though righteous people do strive to follow God’s commands always. Righteousness is a perspective, choosing to let God be their leader and not self or selfish ways and wants.
We know we cannot possibly earn God’s protection. God is God, almighty and all-powerful. It is his grace and love and mercy that saved us, not anything we can possibly do (Ephesians 2:8). But we who strive to be righteous and walk with God can be assured that God takes care of those who belong to him.
Does God Not Bless the Unrighteous?
However, let’s not think that those who do evil, who are “unrighteous” and do not follow God, never receive the blessings of God. Matthew 5:45 reminds us that the Lord “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” God loves all his children — those who walk in his ways and those who do not. This isn’t to say he is pleased with those who defy him or ignore his wishes. Scripture tells us repeatedly this angers him and can bring about his wrath. But we also know that God, who is good and loving, shines his light even into the greatest darkness.
John 3:16-17 tells us that God loved the world and his people so much that he sent his son, Jesus, “That whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
That’s right: he sent Jesus to the lost and the least, to the sinners as well as to the saints. We all need him.
We also know that God doesn’t only send his wrath to the unrighteous. He’s the God who chases after the one lost sheep, rejoicing when he is found. He rejoices at the lost coin found, the prodigal son returned (Luke 15). Sometimes, he sends his blessings to draw us in and point us to him. Sometimes, he’s trying to get the attention of those not walking in alignment, saying look, here — see how good it can be? As Romans 2:4 notes, “God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance.”
How Are We Blessed?
Sometimes, those of us who struggle with hardship wonder if we are still considered “blessed” even though we endure despair and misfortune. But we need to understand that blessings are not meant to be shallow, temporary, earthly things. Blessings aren’t things like wealth and absence of problems. Rather, “being blessed” means being endowed with God’s favor. Spiritual blessings far outweigh any earthly blessings. Being in the favor of God means understanding that our Father God loves us, he wants us in his kingdom, and we have him in our hearts through the mighty power of the Holy Spirit.
We are assured a place in his heavenly home because of God’s perfect and wildly generous grace.
Jesus promised that those who come to him and take his yoke upon them will have true rest (Matthew 11:25-30).
The apostle Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:20-21, “Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”
This is true blessing — spiritual blessing. It is so far beyond physical, everyday blessing.
A blessed Christian life is a mindset of joy despite our circumstances. In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says that blessed are the poor in spirit, the meek, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, the persecuted (Matthew 5:2-11). When we are blessed, we have the full satisfaction that God provides. We don’t have to worry. We have hope and we have joy.
This is what David was acknowledging in Psalm 5, that despite the troubles crowding him in, he chooses to cling to the truth that walking in God and striving to be in perfect alignment with him is a blessing in itself. He can walk in assurance, knowing God wraps him close and takes away fear and pain and trouble.
And all of us who believe have that same assurance. Thanks be to God.
Photo credit: Unsplash/Mohamed Nohassi
