Psalms 85 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
Most likely after the return from exile in Babylon, from about 538 BC onward, though the language fits any recovery from national disaster
Location
The land of Judah and a partly rebuilt Jerusalem, still poor and vulnerable
Audience
The community of Israelites living back in their own land but far from restored
Situation
A community prayer, credited to the sons of Korah, that begins by thanking God for having already brought the people back and forgiven them, then admits that daily life still feels like punishment. It ends with a prophetic answer promising peace and a land that yields its harvest again.
Key Background
Returning exiles found a ruined city, poor harvests, and hostile neighbors, so the gap between the promised restoration and the reality on the ground was the central spiritual problem of the period. The psalm answers it by pairing four qualities of God, steadfast love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace, and picturing them meeting and embracing like people greeting each other, a common poetic device in the ancient Near East. A temple singer or prophet appears to speak God's reply partway through, which reflects the practice of an oracle being delivered during a service of lament.