Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 65:4

"Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach [unto thee], That he may dwell in thy courts: We shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, Thy holy temple." — Psalms 65:4 (ASV)

Blessed is the man whom you choose—That is, happy is the man; or, “Oh, the happiness of the man whom you thus permit to approach you.” The construction here in the Hebrew is the same as in Psalms 1:1 (see the notes at that passage). The word “choosest” refers to the fact that true piety regards all such blessings as the result of the divine favor, the fruit of His electing grace and love (compare the notes at Ephesians 1:3-4; 1 Peter 1:2–3). We approach God with confidence, with the spirit of true worshippers, with the spirit of His children, only as He inclines us to Him and calls us to partake of His favor .

And cause to approach you—That is, that he may worship you. The idea is recognized here in the word “causest,” that it is only by a divine influence that people are led to worship God. The cause—the efficient reason—why any person worships his Maker at all is to be found in God Himself. This idea is fairly implied in the form of the word as it is used in the Hebrew.

That he may dwell in your courts—That is, either temporarily for the purpose of worship, or permanently, that he may serve you in the sanctuary (see the notes at Psalms 23:6 and Psalms 27:4). The word “courts” refers properly to the area around the tabernacle or the temple, and not to the tabernacle or temple itself. The worship of the people was offered in those courts, and not in the tabernacle or temple (see the notes at Matthew 21:12).

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house—Our souls will thus find what they need, what they long for (see the notes at Psalms 36:8). It is the nature of religion to satisfy the mind; that is, the soul finds in religion what meets its needs, for religion leaves no necessity of its nature unsupplied. It may be added that nothing else but religion will do this.

The word “house” here denotes a place where God dwells. It might be applied to the temple, as it often is in the Scriptures (Isaiah 56:7; Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:443; John 2:16; and others), or to the tabernacle, before the temple was built (Psalms 42:4; Matthew 12:4; Judges 18:31; Judges 20:18, 20:26, 20:31). The reference here is to the tabernacle or tent which David built on Mount Zion, where the worship of God was celebrated before the temple was constructed.

Even of your holy temple. The word “temple” is most commonly applied in the Scriptures to the structure Solomon built for the worship of God. It is on the ground that the word is usually so applied that DeWette and others have argued that this psalm could not have been written by David, but was composed after the temple was built.

However, the word rendered “temple”—היכל (hêykâl)—is a word of such a general character that it may be applied to any house erected for the worship of God. It is often applied to the tabernacle (see the notes at Psalms 5:7). This psalm, therefore, may have been composed while the tabernacle was standing and before the temple was built, and therefore may have been composed by David, as the title intimates.