The Better Portion (Psalm 73:25-26)
- Nate Miller
- Sep 21
- 3 min read
Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. ²⁶My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. —Psalm 73:25-26
"You cut, I choose.” Dividing up food with my siblings was always a challenge. Each one of us wanted the better portion. Cookies are notoriously difficult to cut into thirds. Someone always gets the bigger piece, while someone else always gets the smaller one. In Psalm 73, the psalmist laments over a dilemma like this. Why do the wicked prosper? Why does it seem that those who have no love for God get the better portion in this life?
Although the psalmist initially envied the prosperity of the wicked, by the end of this psalm, he steps back and proclaims the infinite value of God. God is of greatest value regardless of where the psalmist looks. In verse 25, he asks the rhetorical question, “Whom have I in Heaven but you?” The implied answer to this question is “no one.” And what about earthly things like the temporary prosperity of the wicked? “There is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.”
You’ll never find anything better than God Himself. You can scour the heavens. You can search out every corner of the earth. No matter where you go, the Creator Himself is the greatest value.
Unlike everything else we desire, God’s value is unchanging and unfading. Verse 26 says your flesh may fail you—and it certainly will someday. Your body will die. If health or a long life was your ambition in life, what will be your portion then? Your heart—your desires—may fail you. The earthly things you have pursued in this life will ultimately pass away. What will be your portion when they rust, break, or fade away?
The only lasting desire, the only lasting portion, is God Himself. God is the strength of the psalmist’s heart—his inner man. This is his deepest desire. God is the psalmist’s portion—forever. Here he is borrowing from the words spoken to Aaron in Numbers 18:20. The priests had no inheritance in the land because God was their portion. They had no earthly portion, but a better heavenly portion in God.
As a believer, God is your portion as well. He is the greater joy. He is the greater portion.
In the gospel, the ultimate thing that we receive is God Himself. Jesus says in John 17:3, “and this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Jesus gave Himself for us to give Himself to us. Unrighteous as you are, you get God, because Jesus died for your sin. Trust in Jesus and you receive forgiveness and access to the Creator God. There is no better portion than this, purchased for you by Jesus.
May you desire Him above all else and seek Him as your greatest joy and portion.
For Reflection
Read through the whole of Psalm 73. What was it that caused frustration for the psalmist? What solved his dilemma?
Has there been a time when an earthly desire or possession has failed you? What happened? Why did it let you down?
What is your desire in life? What do you spend time thinking about? What do you prioritize on your calendar? Does your life reflect the attitude and schedule of someone whose portion is God?
Nate Miller is the Associate Preaching Pastor at Revive Church in Brooklyn Park, MN. Nate and his wife, Angela, live in Brooklyn Park and have three children.
