Psalm 85:10 says, “Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.” This verse comes in the context of a prayer for God’s restoration and salvation for His people Israel. The psalmist is reflecting on God’s past faithfulness and deliverance, and asking God to show mercy and restore Israel again.
In the midst of this prayer, the psalmist describes a beautiful scene of reconciliation and restoration. He personifies some key virtues and says that they “meet” and “kiss each other.” This poetic image suggests harmony, intimacy, and affection between the qualities of steadfast love, faithfulness, righteousness and peace.
Specifically, “righteousness and peace kiss each other.” What does this mean?
Righteousness
In the Bible, “righteousness” refers to God’s moral perfection, to acting in accordance with His laws and character. More specifically, it can refer to justice, ethical conduct, fairness, acting rightly in relationship with God and others.
Psalm 85 links righteousness with God’s faithfulness and salvation. The psalmist calls for God to “restore us again” and praises His readiness to “deliver” and “grant salvation” (Psalm 85:4, 7). He recognizes that righteousness belongs to God (v. 11, 13). God is the righteous judge, lawgiver and king.
So in this Psalm, the righteousness likely refers primarily to God’s righteousness, moral perfection, justice and fairness. The psalmist calls on God to act righteously, keep His promises, and restore His people according to His righteous, faithful character.
Peace
“Peace” in the Bible has a broader meaning than just the absence of conflict. It includes completeness, health, safety, contentment, friendship with others. The Hebrew word shalom expresses this rich concept of peace as a complete sense of wellbeing.
In Psalm 85, the psalmist links peace to salvation. He prays for God’s salvation to come to His people Israel (v. 4, 7). This salvation includes forgiveness, deliverance, and the experience of God’s faithful love. The result is peace – being made whole, complete security and wellbeing in relationship with God.
So in this psalm, peace refers to the peace God grants His people – the wholeness, contentment, and security they can experience because of His salvation and restored relationship with them.
How do righteousness and peace kiss?
The intimate image of righteousness and peace kissing illustrates several key truths:
- Righteousness and peace go hand in hand. They are connected virtues that God displays in unity.
- God’s righteousness leads to and produces peace. His moral perfection means He acts faithfully, justly and consistently, which results in the wellbeing and security of His people.
- Peace comes through righteousness. True wholeness and contentment are found in right relationship with God, according to His standards.
- Righteousness and peace are grounds for joy and celebration. The language of “kissing” conveys an image of affection, friendship, excitement. Righteousness and peace are dear friends worth celebrating.
- In God’s kingdom, righteousness and peace are perfectly reconciled. They are made consistent through God’s sovereignty.
This verse powerfully summarizes a key theme of Scripture: Through God’s righteousness and justice, He grants peace and reconciliation to His people. His moral perfection and sovereign reign mean that perfect righteousness leads to true peace.
The big picture
This verse gives us a beautiful snapshot of God’s character and His gracious dealings with His people. More broadly, it points to the grand arc of Scripture’s message:
- Humanity was created to live in God’s righteous standards, but rebelled and fell short of God’s glory.
- All are unrighteous, corrupt and enemies of God. So humanity does not know the way of true peace.
- But God is loving and faithful. He acts righteously by taking the punishment for sin on Himself through Jesus’ sacrificial death.
- Jesus’ righteousness reconciles sinners to God. When people repent and believe in Christ, they are counted as righteous in God’s sight.
- This gracious gift of righteousness through Christ then yields peace – being made whole and secure in relationship with God, and adopted as His beloved children.
Psalm 85 gives us a beautiful foretaste of the perfect union of righteousness and peace achieved through Jesus’ saving work. His righteousness reconciles sinners to God, answering the psalmist’s prayer for God to “grant us your salvation” (v.7). This salvation joins righteousness and peace through the cross.
Applications
What should this verse lead us to do? Some key applications include:
- Worship – Praise God for His perfect righteousness and how He uses it to grant us peace and reconciliation with Him.
- Proclaim – Share the good news of salvation with others. The righteousness of Christ reconciles people to God and provides true peace.
- Pray – Ask God to act righteously and faithfully in granting peace to people and nations in need of redemption.
- Reflect – Examine if there are areas where you lack righteousness. Confess sin, receive God’s forgiveness, and allow His righteousness to produce deeper peace.
- Relate – Demonstrate righteousness and peace in how you act towards others – with justice, compassion, forgiveness, and integrity.
Psalm 85:10 gives us a beautiful gospel picture to savor. As God’s ambassadors, we can participate in sharing the righteous peace of His kingdom with the world around us.