What does it mean to taste and see that the Lord is good in Psalm 34:8?

Answer

Psalm 34 is an acrostic poem; in this instance, each line of verse commences with a distinct Hebrew letter, arranged in alphabetical order. The main purpose of the psalm is to impart moral lessons about God. Its theme emphasizes God’s continual care for His people. In verse 8, the psalm’s writer, David, encourages readers to “taste and see that the Lord is good.” What does it signify to taste and see that the Lord is good?

To taste involves testing or sampling; to see involves understanding or perceiving. The expression taste and see, therefore, signifies “try and experience.” David urges God’s people to explore the goodness of the Lord through personal trial and experience it firsthand. He does not want readers to simply accept his word that the Lord is good; he desires them to actively experience and ascertain for themselves the reality that God is good.

Humans associate taste with pleasure and satisfaction. Bible commentator Matthew Henry expands on this concept: “Let God’s goodness be savored as a sweet morsel.” When David states, “Taste and see that the Lord is good,” he is inviting us to symbolically take a bite—to test for ourselves through our own experience—and discover just how satisfyingly good God is. The apostle Peter uses similar language in 1 Peter 2:3 when he mentions, “You have tasted that the Lord is good.”

Tasting must precede seeing; in other words, our spiritual encounters lead us to spiritual enlightenment and comprehension. David wishes others to “taste and see.” He desires them to undergo what he has undergone so they can understand what he has come to realize, the soul-nourishing goodness of the Lord.

Psalm 34 proceeds to delineate instances of God’s remarkable goodness to those who seek refuge in Him: He attends to their every necessity (verses 8–10); He grants them a good, lengthy life (verses 11–15); He is present with them during difficulties and delivers them f

From their enemies (verses 17–22). Those who taste and see that the Lord is good will know His provision.

Believers in Jesus experience glimpses of God’s goodness and grace when we behold the beauty of His creation or acknowledge His blessings of provision, protection, and care. We experience His goodness when we reflect on His holiness and infinite righteousness. We rejoice in His goodness when we value the price of Christ’s sacrifice for our salvation.

To taste and see that the Lord is good, we must trust God and seek Him as our only source of protection and provision. The sole way to truly taste and see that the Lord is good is to put the matter to the test, to attempt and encounter His goodness for ourselves.