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rUE    CAMBRIDGE    BIBLE 
FOR    SCHOOLS    AND    COLLEGES 

General  Editor  for  the  Old  Testament  : 

A.   F.    KIRKPATRICK,   D,D. 


THE   BOOK   OF 

PSALMS 

(PSALMS   XLII— LXXXIX) 


iL0nUon:    C.  J.  CLAY   and  SONS, 

CAMHRIDGE   UNIVERSITY    PRESS   WAREHOUSE, 

AVE   MARIA   LANE. 

ffilaagoto:    50,    WELLINGTON  STREET. 


ILftpjig:    F.    A.    BROCKHAUS. 

i^tto  gork:    THE   MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 

38ombag  anU  SCalcutta:    MACMILLAN  AND  CO.,  Ltd. 


\A^/  Rights  reacyved^. 


THE   BOOK   OF 

PSALMS 

Edited  by 
A.    F.   KIRKPATRICK,    D.D. 

Master  of  Selwyn  College,  Cambridge; 
Lady  Margaret  Professor  of  Divinity. 


BOOKS   II  AND   III 
PSALMS    XLII— LXXXIX 


Cambridge  : 

At    the    University    Press 
1904 


IHl  INSTITUTE  CF  I^TDIAEVAL  STUDIES 
SO  ^U'AZLEV  PLACE 
T    ;.^,:iO  C,  CAriADA, 


FEB! 


IT    <^  rM^ 


-^a^G 


/^I'rsf  Edition,  1895, 
Reprinted  1898,  lyoo,   1901,   1904. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGES 

I.    Introduction. 

I.     The  Book  of  p'salms ix — xiii 

//.     The    Position,    Names,    Numbering,    and 

Divisions  of  the  Psalter    xiii — xviii 

///.     The  Titles  of  the  Psalms xviii — xxxv 

IV.     The  Authorship  and  Age  of  the  Psalms  xxxv — 1 

V.     The  Object,    Collection,   and    Growth   of 

the  Psalter  1— lix 

VI.     The  Form  of  Hebrew  Poetry Ix — Ixiv 

VII.     The  Hebrew  Text,  the  Ancient  Versions, 

and  the  English  Versions  Ix v — Ixxv 

VIII.     The  Messianic  Hope Ixxvi — Ixxxv 

IX.     On  some  points  in  the  Theology  of  the 

Psalms Ixxxv — xcvii 

X.     The  Psalter  in  the  Christian  Church     ...  xcviii — cviii 

XI.     Literature ..'. cviii — cxii 

n.    Text  AND  Notes 221... 543 

in.    Appendices 544 — 549 

^^^^^   551-556 


;,*  The  Text  adopted  in  this  Edition  is  that  of  Dr  Scrivener's 
Cambridge  Paragraph  Bible.  A  few  variations  from  the  ordi- 
nary Text,  chiefly  in  the  spelling  of  certain  words,  and  in  the 
use  of  italics,  will  be  noticed.  For  the  principles  adopted  by 
Dr  Scrivener  as  regards  the  printing  of  the  Text  see  his  In- 
troduction to  the  Paragraph  Bible^  published  by  the  Cambridge 
University  Press. 


The  choice  and  flower  of  all  things  profitable  in  other  books  the 
Psalms  do  both  more  briefly  contain,  and  more  movingly  also  express, 
by  reason  of  that  poetical  form  wherewith  they  are  written .  .  .  M-'hat 
is  thei-e  necessary  for  man  to  know  which  the  Psalms  are  not  able  to 
teach?  They  are  to  beginners  an  easy  and  fa?niliar  introdtution,  a 
mighty  augmentation  of  all  virtue  and  kiiowledge  in  stuh  as  are 
entered  before,  a  strong  confirmation  to  the  most  perfect  among  others. 
Hcroical  magnanimity,  exquisite  justice,  grave  moderation,  exact  wisdom, 
repentance  unfeigned,  unwearied  patience,  the  7nysteries  of  God,  the 
sufferings  of  Christ,  the  terrors  of  wrath,  the  comforts  of  grace,  the  works 
of  Providence  over  this  world,  and  the  promised  Joys  of  that  world 
which  is  to  come,  all  good  necessarily  to  be  either  known  or  done  or 
had,  this  one  celestial  fountain  yieldeth.  Let  there  be  any  grief  or 
disease  incident  into  the  soul  of  man,  any  wound  or  sickness  named, 
for  lohich  there  is  not  in  this  treasure-house  a  present  comfortable 
remedy  at  all  times  ready  to  be  found. 

K.    HOOKER. 


INTRODUCTION. 

CHAPTER   I. 

THE   BOOK   OF   PSAT.MS. 

Lyric  poetry  is  the  most  ancient  kind  of  poetry,  and  Hebrew 
poetry  is  mainly  lyric.  Neither  epic  nor  dramatic  poetry 
flourished  in  ancient  Israel.  Some  indeed  of  the  historical 
Psalms  may  be  said  to  have  an  epic  colouring,  but  they  belong 
to  the  class  of  didactic  narrative:  Job  and  the  Song  of  Songs 
may  be  called  in  a  sense  dramatic,  but  they  do  not  appear  to 
have  been  intended  for  performance  on  the  stage  ^.  The  only 
independent  branch  of  poetry  in  Israel  was  gnomic  or  pro- 
verbial poetry,  which  in  the  hands  of  the  '  Wise  Men '  attained 
to  a  rich  development,  and  must  have  exercised  an  important 
influence  on  the  education  of  the  people. 

The  Old  Testament  is  the  religious  history  of  Israel,  and  the 
poetry  preserved  in  the  Book  of  Psalms  is,  as  might  be  expected, 
religious  poetry.     Secular  poetry  no  doubt  existed^,  but,  with 

^  See  however  Driver,  Lit.  of  0.  T.^,  p.  444,  for  the  view  that  the  Song 
may  have  been  "designed  to  be  acted,  the  diflerent  parts  being  personated 
by  different  characters,"  or  represented  by  "the  varied  voice  and  gesture 
of  a  single  reciter." 

^  Such  as  the  drinking  songs  referred  to  in  Amos  vi.  5  (R.V.); 
Is.  V.  12:  harvest  and  vintage  songs  (Is.  xvi.  10,  11;  Jer.  xlviii.  33): 
parables  (Judg.  ix.  8  ff.).  Solomon's  'thousand  and  five  songs'  were 
probably  of  a  secular  character  (i  Kings  iv.  32).  Poems  hke  Exod.  xv 
and  Judg.  v  are  essentially  religious.  The  Book  of  the  Wars  of  Jehovah 
(Num.  xxi.  14),  and  the  Book  of  Jashar,  i.e.  the  Upright  (Josh.  x.  13; 
2  Sam.  i.  18),  appear  to  have  been  collections  of  poems  commemorating 
remarkable  episodes  of  national  history,  and  the  characters  and  exploits 
of  national  heroes.  In  these  no  sharp  line  could  be  drawn  between  what 
was  secular  and  what  was  religious. 


INTRODUCTION. 


books.  Th  r    '"  '"^"'"'^  P^^^^"^d  •"  '^^  historical 

books  It  has  not  come  down  to  us.  The  Psalter  then  is  a 
collecfon  of  religious  lyrics.  Lyric  poetry  is  defined  as  "  hat 
whKh  d.rectly  expresses  the  individual  eltions  of  the  po  t» • 

and  feelmgs  as  they  are  stirred  by  the  thought  of  God  and 
dn-ected  God-wards.  This  is  the  common  characteristic  of  the 
Psalms  m  all  the.r  manifold  variety.  Some  are  directly  addressed 
to  God,  as  petition  or  thanksgiving  or  praise:  some  are  the 
commumngs  of  the  soul  with  God,  expressing  its  faith,  its  hope! 
us  love,  ,ts  needs,  us  fears,  its  aspirations,  its  joys,  its  riumphs- 
some  celebrate  the  •mar,.lIous  works'  of  Goj  in 'nature  and  „ 
h  stoiy:  some  reflect  upon  the  perplexing  problems  of  life  and 
their  relation  to  the  divine  government  of  the  world:  but  God 
is  as  u  were  the  sun  around  which  all  revolves,  and  His  light 
and  heat  illuminate  and  animate  the  whole 

The  Psalms  stand  in  an  intimate  relation  to  the  whole  of  the 
Old  Testament.  They  are  the  inspired  response  of  the  human 
heart  to  God^s  revelation  of  Himself,  in  Law  and  His  o^  and 
Prophecy  and  Philosophy.  ^ 

conduct    they  welcome  M.  ordiuanc.s  of  worship  and  rejoice  in 

he  privilege  of  access  to  the  presence  of  God  in  the  Temple  Is 

the  crowning  joy  of  life.  <="ipic,  as 

.r^TTZ  '?''''"'  "'  '"''""^  °f  ^°d's  goodness  and  man's 
poetry.  The  recollection  of  the  past  is  a  warnine  for  the 
present,  the  support  of  faith  in  the  hour  of  trial,  theLound  of 
comfort  in  times  of  calamity.  ^ 

'  rint  ^"^'■".".^'■^  ^l°^«'y  connected  with  Prophecy.  The  term 
ch.nt  and  hymn  (,  Sam.  x.  lo  ff.;  xix.  20  ff..-  i  Chr.  xxv   ,_,)• 

poetry  often  rL  .oTopVetic'te^l^tf':.;-;!:/^.^- 


THE   BOOK   OF   PSALMS. 


phetic  authority^  while  prophecy  often  passes  into  lyric  poetry'-^. 
The  passion  for  truth  and  righteousness,  and  the  unquenchable 
belief  that  Jehovah's  moral  government  of  the  world  is  working, 
surely  if  slowly,  towards  a  glorious  consummation  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  His  universal  sovereignty,  animate  and  inspire 
Psalmists  not  less  than  Prophets. 

Several  Psalms  reflect  the  influence  of  the  '  Wisdom '  or 
religious  philosophy  of  Israel,  both  in  its  practical  and  In  its 
speculative  aspects.  The  moral  lessons  for  every-day  life 
collected  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  and  the  discussion  of  the 
problems  of  the  world  in  Job  and  Ecclesiastes,  find  their  echo 
in  the  poetry  of  the  Psalter^ 

The  importance  of  the  Psalter  for  a  just  appreciation  of  the 
history  of  Israel  is  obvious.  How  meagre  an  idea  of  the  higher 
religious  life  of  Israel  should  we  derive  from  the  Historical 
Books  apart  from  the  Prophets :  how  imperfect  still  would  be 
the  picture  drawn  from  the  Historical  Books  and  the  Prophets 
without  the  warmth  of  colouring  added  to  it  by  the  Psalms. 
These  alone  give  us  a  glimpse  into  the  inner  religion  of  the  best 
spirits  in  the  nation,  and  bear  witness  to  the  faith,  the  love,  the 
devotion  of  pious  souls,  even  under  the  limitations  of  the  Old 
Covenant. 

Hence  it  is  essential  to  study  the  Psalms  critically  and 
historically,  to  endeavour  to  ascertain  their  original  meaning, 
and  to  assign  them  to  their  proper  place  in  the  history  and 
development  of  revelation;  not  only  in  order  to  give  life  and 
reality  to  the  Psalms  themselves,  and  to  understand  them 
better;  but  for  the  sake  of  the  light  which  they  throw  upon  the 
religious  history  of  Israel,  and  the  course  of  God's  dealings  with 
His  people. 

The  inquiry  is  however  one  of  extreme  difficulty.  The  widest 
diversity  of  opinion  prevails  as  to  the  date  and  authorship  of 
the  Psalms,  and  we  must  often  be  content  to  acknowledge  that 
a  Psalm  cannot  be  assigned  to  a  definite  period,  still  less  to  a 
particular  author,  with  any  degree  of  certainty. 

^  See  Ps.  xii.  5  ;  xlvi.  10;  1.  4  ff. ;  Ixxv.  2  ff. ;  Ixxxi.  6  fF.;  ex.  i. 
^  See  e.g.  Is.  xii,  xxv,  xxvi;  Nah.  i.  2  fT. ;  Hab.  iii. 
'  Sec  especially  Tss.  xxxvii,  xlix,  Ixxiii. 


INTRODUCTION. 


But  after  all,  the  critical  and  historical  study  of  the  Psalms 
is  but  a  preliminary  to  the  higher  study  of  their  spiritual 
meaning  and  their  devotional  use.  The  Psalter  has  been 
through  all  the  centuries  and  will  ever  continue  to  be  the  one 
unique  and  inexhaustible  treasury  of  devotion  for  the  individual 
and  for  the  Church,  Through  its  guidance  the  soul  learns  to 
commune  with  God:  it  supplies  the  most  fitting  language  for 
common  worship. 

To  some  it  may  seem  almost  a  sacrilege  to  apply  the  methods 
of  criticism  to  such  a  book.  It  may  be  disappointing  to  find 
that  many  Psalms  once  supposed  to  be  David's  must  be  rele- 
gated to  a  far  later  age ;  perplexing  to  find  familiar  renderings 
condemned,  and  long  current  interpretations  abandoned. 

But  Holy  Scripture  conveys  divine  truth  through  the  medium 
of  human  language,  and  it  is  our  duty  to  investigate  to  the  full 
the  meaning  and  the  force  of  that  language.  Criticism  is  not 
the  enemy  but  the  handmaid  of  devotion.  As  we  learn  to 
understand  more  of  the  original  meaning  of  the  Psalms  for 
those  who  wrote  and  used  them,  we  shall  learn  more  of  their 
true  meaning  for  ourselves. 

But  that  meaning  is  not  limited  to  the  'original'  sense,  if  by 
this  is  meant  only  that  sense  which  the  writers  could  recognise 
in  their  own  words.  Every  true  poet's  words  contain  far  more 
than  he  himself  at  the  moment  intends.  And  the  words  of 
these  inspired  poets  were  so  shaped  and  moulded  by  the  Holy 
Spirit  that  they  might  grow  and  expand  with  the  growth  of 
revelation,  and  "gather  wealth  in  the  course  of  ages."  The 
Psalms  belong  indeed  to  the  Old  and  not  to  the  New  Testa- 
ment. They  are  the  product  of  the  Jewish  and  not  of  the 
Christian   Church^     But  "the  Psalter  in  its   spiritual  fulness 

1  "  It  is  true  that  not  a  little  of  the  colouring  of  the  Psalms  is  derived 
from  the  ritual  and  order  of  the  old  dispensation,  and  has  now  become 
antiquated ;  but  practical  religion  does  not  refuse  those  bonds  of  con- 
nexion with  the  past.  The  believing  soul  is  never  anxious  to  separate 
its  own  spiritual  life  from  the  spiritual  life  of  the  fathers.  Rather  does 
it  cling  with  special  affection  to  the  links  that  unite  it  to  the  church  of 
the  Old  Testament ;  and  the  forms  which,  in  their  literal  sense,  are  now 
antiquated,  become  to  us  an  additional  group  of  figures  in  the  rich  poetic 
imagery  of  the  Hebrew  hymnal."  Robertson  Smith,  The  Old  Testament 
in  tJie  Jewish  Churchy  p.  191. 


THE   BOOK   OF   PSALMS. 


belongs  to  no  special  time";  and  the  old  words  are  'fulfilled' 
in  Christ.  The  Christian  Church  may,  nay  must,  use  them  as 
they  are  illuminated  by  the  light  of  the  Gospel.  And  if  the 
saying,  "pectus  est  quod  facit  theologum\"  is  true  of  the  study 
of  the  Bible  generally,  it  is  most  true  of  the  study  of  that  book 
which  has  well  been  called  "the  Bible  within  the  Bible,"  the 
very  "heart  of  the  Bible." 


CHAPTER   II. 

THE   POSITION,   NAMES,   NUMBERING,   AND   DIVISIONS 
OF  THE   PSALTER. 

I.  The  position  of  the  Psalter  in  the  Old  Testament.  The 
Hebrew  title  of  the  Old  Testament  indicates  the  three  great 
divisions,  in  which,  from  very  early  times ^,  the  Canonical 
Books  were  arranged  by  the  Jewish  Church: — Law,  Prophets, 
Writings.  The  Book  of  Psalms  belongs  to  the  third  of  these 
divisions,  the  Writings  or  Hagiographa.  But  its  position  in 
the  group  has  not  always  been  the  same^  In  the  MSS.  of  the 
German  type,  which  our  printed  editions  follow,  the  Psalms 

^  *'  It  is  the  heart  which  makes  the  theologian." 

^  This  triple  division  is  recognised  in  the  Prologue  to  Ecclesiasticus, 
written  about  B.C.  132  by  the  author's  grandson,  who  translated  the 
book  from  Hebrew  into  Greek.  "  Whereas  many  great  things  have 
been  delivered  unto  us  by  means  of  {hib.)  the  law  and  the  prophets 

and  the  others  that  have  followed  after  them my  grandfather 

Jesus,  when  he  had  diligently  given  himself  to  the  reading  of  the  law 
and  the  propliets  and  the  other  books  of  our  fathers  {rdv  dWuv  Trarplwu 
Pt^Xlwv)  .  .  .  was  drawn  on  also  himself  to  write  something  pertaining 
to  instruction  and  wisdom."  And  again,  apologising  for  the  imperfec- 
tions of  his  version,  he  says:  "  For  words  spoken  in  Hebrew  have  not 
precisely  the  same  force,  when  they  are  translated  into  another  tongue : 
and  not  only  this  treatise,  but  even  the  law  and  the  prophecies  and  the 
rest  of  the  books  (rd  XoLird.  rQu  ^l^XIuv)  differ  in  no  small  degree  when 
they  are  spoken  in  their  own  language."  The  clear  distinction  which 
is  here  drawn  between  the  Canonical  books  and  Ecclesiasticus,  and  the 
reference  to  the  Greek  Version  of  the  O.T.  as  already  in  existence, 
should  be  carefully  noticed.     See  further  below,  p.  xlvi. 

"'*  See  Ginsburg,  Liirodiution  to  the  Hebrew  Bible,  ch.  i ;  Ryle,  Canoji 
of  the  0.7;,  ch.  xii. 


xiv  INTRODUCTION. 


stand  first,  followed  by  Proverbs  and  Job.  That  this  was  the 
ancient  order  is  at  least  a  probable  inference  from  Luke  xxiv.  44 
where  "  the  Psalms  "  stands  by  the  side  of  "  the  Law  "  and  "  the 
Prophets  "  as  the  title  of  the  Hagiographa  in  general^. 

The  order  of  the  books  of  the  O.T.  in  our  English  Bibles 
is  that  which  had  come  to  be  adopted  in  the  Vulgate  by  the 
sixteenth  century.  It  corresponds  more  nearly  to  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  LXX  found  in  the  Vatican  MS.  than  to  that  of  the 
Hebrew,  but  differs  from  it  in  placing  Job  before  the  Psalter 
instead  of  after  the  Song  of  Songs,  and  in  placing  the  Minor 
Prophets  after  instead  of  before  the  Major  Prophets,  and 
arranging  them  as  they  stand  in  the  Hebrew  text. 

2.  Names  of  the  Psalter.  The  Septuagint  translators  em- 
ployed the  word  i//-aX/Mo?2j  psalm,  to  render  the  Heb.  word 
mizmor,  which  was  the  technical  term  for  a  song  with  musical 
accompaniment  (see  p.  xix).  The  collection  was  styled  simply 
Psalms,  as  in  the  Vatican  MS.  (yjraXfioi,  cp.  Luke  xxiv.  44),  or 
T/ie  Book  of  Psalms  (Luke  xx.  42 ;  Acts  i.  20),  or  in  later  times 
The  Psalter,  yjraXrfjp  or  yjraXTrjptov^  The  Greek  words  have 
come  down  to  us  through  the  Latin  psalmus,  psalferium. 

In  the  Hebrew  Bible  the  title  of  the  collection  is  Book  of 
Praises,  or  simply,  Praises  i  Sepher  Tchillim  abbreviated  into 
Tillim  or  Tillin^.     This  title  was  known  to  Hippolytus^  and 

1  Comp.  too  Philo  (b.c.  20 — A.D.  50)  de  vita  contempt,  (ii.  475): 
v6/xovs  Kai  Xoyia  OeairiadivTa  5td  irpocpTjTQp  /cai  v/xvovs  Kal  to,  aXXa  oU 
iTnaTrj/xTj  Kal  eiiff^^eia  avvav^ovTai  Kal  TeXeiovvrai.  "  Laws  and  oracles 
delivered  by  prophets  and  hymns  and  the  other  writings  by  which 
knowledge  and  piety  are  increased  and  perfected." 

2  \f/a\iu.6s  denotes  (i)  the  music  of  a  stringed  instrument;  (2)  a  song 
sung  to  the  accompaniment  of  such  music. 

*  i/-aXT97ptoj'  ir.eant  originally  a  stringed  mstrz^ment,  a  psaltery 
(frequently  in  the  LXX),  and  was  afterwards  applied  to  a  collection  of 
psalms,  a  psalter.  In  this  sense  it  is  used  by  Hippolytus,  Athanasius, 
Epiphanius,  and  stands  as  the  title  of  the  Psalms  in  the  Alexandrine  MS. 

'^  The  word  is  derived  from  the  same  root  as  Hallelujah,  and  the 
verb  is  frequently  used  in  connexion  with  the  Temple  Service  (i  Chron. 
xvi.  4  &c.). 

^  p.  188,  ed.  Lagarde.  'E/Sparoi  ir^pih^pa-^av  ttjv  ^i^Xov  licppa  BeXetfi. 
The  genuineness  of  the  fragment  of  Hippolytus  which  treats  of  the 
inscriptions,  authorship,  divisions,  and  order  of  the  Psalms,  is  how- 
ever doubtful.  See  Dr  Salmon  in  the  Diet,  of  Christian  Biography, 
iii.  103. 


NAMES    OF   THE    PSALTER. 


Origen^  in  the  first  half  of  the  third  century  A.D.,  and  to  Jerome^. 
Though  the  word  praise  occurs  frequently  in  the  Psalter,  only 
one  Psalm  (cxlv)  bears  the  title  A  Praisey  and  the  name  Book 
of  Praises  probably  originated  in  the  use  of  the  collection  as 
the  hymn-book  of  the  Second  Temple^.  Many  indeed  of  the 
Psalms  cannot  be  so  designated,  but  no  more  fitting  name  could 
be  found  for  a  book,  of  which  praise  and  thanksgiving  are  pre- 
dominant characteristics,  and  which  ends  with  a  diapason  of 
Hallelujahs. 

Another  title,  apparently  that  of  an  early  collection  of  Davidic 
Psalms,  was  Tephilloth  or  Prayers  (Ixxii.  20)*.  Only  five 
Psalms,  xvii,  Ixxxvi,  xc,  cii,  cxlii,  are  so  entitled  ;  but  again, 
although  some  Psalms  (e.g.  i,  ii)  contain  no  direct  address  to 
God,  the  title  is  a  suitable  one.  Prayer  in  its  widest  sense 
includes  all  elevation  of  the  mind  to  God^  Hannah's  thanks- 
giving and  Habakkuk's  ode  are  both  described  as  prayer  (i  Sam. 
ii.  I  ;  Hab.  iii.  i). 

3.  Numbering  of  the  Psahns.  The  Massoretic  Text  and 
the  LXX  both  reckon  a  total  of  150  Psalms.  The  151st  Psalm, 
which  is  added  in  the  LXX,  is  expressly  said  to  be  "  outside 
the   number^"    But  this   reckoning   has   not   been  unifonnly 

1  In  Euseb.  Hist.  Eccl.  vi.  25  (ed.  Burton)  "ZipapdeWelfi. 

^  In  the  Preface  to  his  Piatteriuw  iiixta  Heb'>'aeos  (p.  2,  ed.  Lagarde): 
"  titulus  ipse  Hebraicus  sephar  tallim,  quod  interpretalur  volumen 
hyjuyiorum. " 

*  Cp.  Neh.  xii.  46. 

•*  The  LXX  rendering  ijxvoi  however  may  point  to  another  reading 
ni7nn,  praises. 

^  "Lege  totum  Psalterium... nihil  erit  nisi  ad  Deum  in  cunctis  operibus 
deprecatio."     S.  Jerome  contra  Felag.  i.  5. 

*  This  Psalm  appears  to  have  been  translated  from  a  Hebrew  original, 
but  the  contrast  between  it  and  the  canonical  Psalms  is  so  noteworthy 
that  it  seems  worth  while  to  append  a  version  of  it. 

*'  This  Psalm  was  written  by  David  with  his  own  hand  (and  it  is  out- 
side the  number)  when  he  fought  in  single  combat  with  GoHath. 
I.     I  was  little  among  my  brethren, 

and  the  youngest  in  my  father's  house ; 
I  fed  my  father's  sheep. 
1.     My  hands  made  a  harp, 

my  fingers  contrived  a  psaltery. 
3.     And  who  will  declare  unto  my  Lord? 
He  is  the  Lord,  it  is  He  that  heareth. 


INTRODUCTION. 


observed.  Some  ancient  Jewish  authorities  reckon  149,  others 
147  Psalms\  the  latter  number,  as  the  Jerusalem  Talmud  says, 
"according  to  the  years  of  our  father  Jacob."  These  totals  are 
obtained  by  uniting  one  or  all  of  the  pairs  i,  ii :  ix,  x :  cxiv, 
cxv  :  or  other  Psalms.  Although  the  Hebrew  and  the  LXX 
agree  in  the  total,  they  differ  in  the  details  of  the  numeration. 
The  LXX  unites  ix  and  x,  cxiv  and  cxv,  and  divides  cxvi  and 
cxlvii.  It  may  be  useful  to  subjoin  a  comparative  table,  for 
while  our  modem  English  versions  follow  the  Hebrew  reckon- 
ing, the  Vulgate  and  the  older  English  Versions  (e.g.  Wycliffe 
and  Coverdale)  and  modern  Roman  Catholic  versions  based 
upon  it,  follow  that  of  the  LXX. 

Hebrew  (Later  English  LXX  (Vulgate.     Older  English 

Versions).  Versions.     Rom.  Cath,  Versions). 

i — viii.  =  i — viii. 

ix,  X.  =  ix. 

xi — cxiii.  =  x — cxii. 

cxiv,  cxv.  =  cxiii. 

cxvi.  =  cxiv,  cxv. 

cxvii — cxlvi.  =  cxvi — cxiv. 

cxlvii.  =  cxlvi,  cxlvii. 

cxlvii  i — cl.  =  cxlviii — cl. 

Thus  for  the  greater  part  of  the  Psalter  the  numeration  of  the 
LXX  is  one  behind  that  of  the  Hebrew. 

The  English  reader  should  also  remember  that  the  title  of 
a  Psalm,  when  it  consists  of  more  than  one  or  two  words,  is 
reckoned  as  a  verse,  and  sometimes  (e.g.  in  Ps.  li)  as  two  verses, 
in  the  Hebrew  text.     Attention  to  this  is  necessary  in  using  the 

4.  He  sent  His  angel, 

and  took  me  from  my  father's  sheep, 

and  anointed  me  with  the  oil  of  his  anointing. 

5.  My  brethren  were  comely  and  tall, 
and  in  them  the  Lord  had  no  pleasure. 

6.  I  went  forth  to  meet  the  Philistine, 
and  he  cursed  me  by  his  idols. 

7.  But  I  drew  the  sword  from  his  side,  and  beheaded  him, 
and  took  away  the  reproach  from  the  children  of  Israel." 

*  So  in  a  MS.  described  in  Ginsburg's  Introduction  to  the  Hrhreui 
Bible,  p.  777.  lie  mentions  other  unusual  numerations  of  159  and 
170  Psalms,  pp.  536,  725. 


DIVISIONS   OF  THE   PSALTER.  xvii 

references  of  commentaries  which,  like  that  of  Delitzsch,  follow 
the  numbering  of  the  verses  in  the  original. 

4.  Divisions  of  the  Psalter.  The  Psalter  has  from  ancient 
times  been  divided  into  five  books  : 

Book    i  =  Pss.  i — xli : 
„       ii  =  Pss.  xHi — Ixxii  : 
„      iii  =  Pss.  Ixxiii— Ixxxix  : 
„       iv=Pss.  xc — cvi  : 
„        v=Pss.  evil — cl. 
These   divisions   are   indicated  by  doxologies  of  a  liturgical 
character,  differing  slightly  in  form,  at  the  close  of  the  first  four 
books  (xli.  13,  Ixxii.  18,  19,  Ixxxix.  52,  cvi.  48).     The  first  three 
of  these  doxologies  obviously  form  no  part  of  the  Psalms  to 
which  they  are  appended.     The  fourth  however  (see  note  on 
Ps.  cvi.  48)  appears  to  belong  to  the  Psalm,  and  not  to  be  merely 
an  editoi-'s  addition  to  mark  the  end  of  a  book.     It  came  how- 
ever to  be  regarded  (somewhat   inappropriately,   for  Pss.  cvi 
and  cvii  are  closely  connected)  as  marking  the  division  between 
Books  iv  and  v.     No  special  doxology  is  added  to  Ps.  cl.     It  is 
in  itself  an  appropriate  concluding  doxology  for  the   whole 
Psalter. 

This  five-fold  division  is  earlier  than  the  LXX,  which  con- 
tains the  doxologies.  It  is  often  referred  to  by  Jewish  and 
Christian  authorities,  and  compared  to  the  five  books  of  the 
Pentateuch. 

Thus  the  Midrash^  on  Ps.  i.  i  :  "Moses  gave  the  Israelites 
the  five  books  of  the  Law,  and  to  correspond  to  these  David 
gave  them  the  Book  of  Psalms  containing  five  books." 

Hippolytus [?]  (ed.  Lagarde,  p.  193):  "Let  it  not  escape 
your  notice... that  the  Hebrews  divided  the  Psalter  also  into 
five  books,  that  it  might  be  a  second  Pentateuch." 

Jerome,  in  the  Prologiis  Galeatus :  "Tertius  ordo  Hagiogra- 
pha  possidet.      Et   primus   liber   incipit  a   Job.      Secundus   a 

^  An  ancient  Jewish  commentary,  probably  however  in  its  present 
form  not  earlier  than  the  10th  century  a.D.  But  older  Jewish  authori- 
ties recognise  the  division.  See  Robertson  Smith,  Old  Test,  in  Jewish 
Chvrch,  p.  T95. 

PSALMS  b 


INTRODUCTION. 


David,  quern  quinque  incisionibus  {sections)  et  uno  Psalmorum 
volumine  comprehendunt."  No  doubt  he  chose  this  form  of 
expression  carefully,  for  in  his  preface  to  the  Psalter  he  some- 
what passionately  affirms  the  unity  of  the  Book^ 

The  division  is  referred  to  bf  most  of  the  Fathers,  some 
of  whom,  as  Ambrose,  explain  it  allegorically ;  others,  as 
Gregory  of  Nyssa,  find  in  the  several  books  so  many  steps 
rising  to  moral  perfection.  As  will  be  shewn  presently,  the 
division  of  the  books  in  part  corresponds  to  older  collections  out 
of  which  the  Psalter  was  formed,  in  part  is  purely  artificial,  and 
probably  had  its  origin  in  the  wish  to  compare  the  Psalter  with 
the  Pentateuch. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  TITLES  OF  THE   PSALMS. 

To  nearly  all  the  Psalms  in  the  first  three  Books,  and  to 
some  of  those  in  the  fourth  and  fifth  Books,  are  prefixed  titles, 
designating  either  (])  the  character  of  the  poem,  or  (2)  matters 
connected  with  its  musical  setting,  or  (3)  its  liturgical  use,  or 
(4)  the  author,  or  perhaps  more  strictly,  the  collection  from 
which  the  Psalm  was  taken,  or  (5)  the  historical  occasion  for 
which  it  was  written  or  which  it  illustrates.  Only  34  Psalms 
have  no  title,  namely  Pss.  i,  ii,  x,  xxxiii,  xliii,  Ixxi,  xci, 
xciii — xcvii,  xcix,  civ — cvii,  cxi — cxix;  cxxxv — cxxxvii,  cxlvi — cl. 

Such  titles  may  occur  separately  or  in  combination.  Many 
of  them  are  extremely  obscure,  and  their  meanings  can  only  be 
conjectured.  All  that  will  be  attempted  here  is  to  give  the  most 
probable  explanations.  An  elaborate  discussion  of  the  innumer- 
able interpretations  which  have  been  proposed  would  be  mere 
waste  of  time.     Some  special  titles  which  occur  but  once  will  be 

^  "  Scio  quosdam  putare  psalterium  in  quinque  libros  esse  divisum... 
nos  Hebraeorum  auctoritatem  secuti  et  maxime  apostolorum,  qui  semper 
in  novo  testamento  psalmorum  librum  noniinant,  unum  volumen  ad- 
serimus." 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


discussed  in  the  introductions  to  the  Psalms  to  which  they 
belong. 

I.     Titles  descriptive  of  the  character  of  the  poem. 

Psalm^.  Mizmor.,  rendered  Fsabn,  is  a  technical  term 
found  only  in  the  titles  of  the  Psalter^.  It  is  prefixed  to 
57  Psalms,  and  with  few  exceptions  is  preceded  or  followed 
by  the  name  of  the  author,  generally  that  of  David.  The 
verb  from  which  mizmor  is  derived  occurs  frequently  in  the 
Psalter  (e.g.  vii.  17,  xlvii.  6,  7,  cxlix.  3)  but  rarely  elsewhere 
(Judg.  V.  3 ;  [2  Sam.  xxii.  50 ;  i  Chr.  xvi.  9]  ;  Is.  xii.  5).  It 
appears  originally  to  have  meant  to  make  melody^  like  the  Lat. 
cajiere^  but  came  to  be  applied  specially  to  instrumental  music, 
as  distinguished  from  vocal  music.  Mizmor  then  means  a  piece 
of  music ^  a  song  with  instrumental  accompaniment. 

Song^.  Shlr^  rendered  song^  is  the  general  term  for  a  song 
or  canticle.  It  occurs  30  times  in  the  titles,  generally  pre- 
ceded or  followed  by  mizmor^  and  not  unfrequently  in  the  text 
of  the  Psalms  (e.g.  xxviii.  7,  xl.  3,  cxxxvii.  3,  4),  and  in  other 
books.  It  is  applied  to  secular  as  well  as  sacred  songs  (Gen. 
xxxi.  27  ;  Jud.  v.  12  ;  i  Kings  iv.  32  ;  Is.  xxx.  29  ;  Neh.  xii.  27, 
36,  46). 

Maschil*  is  found  as  the  title  of  thirteen^^  Psalms,  eleven  of 
which  are  in  Books  ii  and  iii.  The  meaning  is  obscure,  {a)  It 
has  been  explained  to  mean  a  didactic  psalm.  Comp.  the  use 
of  the  cognate  verb  in  xxxii.  8.  '  I  will  instruct  thee.'  But  of  the 
Psalms  which  bear  the  title  only  xxxii  and  Ixxviii  are  specifi- 
cally 'didactic'  {b)  Delitzsch  supposes  it  to  mean  a  meditation, 
{c)  Most  probable  however  is  Ewald's  explanation,  a  skilful 
psalm.  The  word  is  used  in  Ps.  xlvii.  7,  *  sing  ye  praises  with 
understafiding'  (Heb.  maschil\  R.V.  marg.,  in  a  skilful  psalm. 

1  ni»TP:  LXX^paXfiSs:  Wulg.  psalmus. 

^  It  occurs  in  the  original  Hebrew  of  Ecclesiasticus  xHx.  r,  in  the 
sense  of  music  or  song  generally:  "  as  mizmor  at  a  banquet  of  wine." 

*  TSJ* :  LXX  in  titles  usually  t^dr;,  in  text  (^5^  or  q.<T/j.a. 

*  ^^SK'D  :  LXX  avv^aeus  or  els  aipeaiv :  Vulg.  intellecius  or  ad  intel- 
leciwn :  Jer.  eruditio. 

^  xxxii,  xlii,  xliv,  xlv,  Hi,  liii,  liv,  Iv,  Ixxiv,  Ixxviii,  Ixxxviii,  Ixxxix, 
cxlii. 

l2 


INTRODUCTION. 


It  may  have  denoted  something  more  definite  than  the  ordinary 
7niz7ndr^  a  psalm  with  musical  setting  of  a  specially  delicate 
and  artistic  character,  '  a  amning  psalm.' 

Michtam  occurs  in  the  title  of  six  Psalms,  preceded  or  fol- 
lowed by  o/David^.  It  is  probably,  like  Maschil^  a  musical  term, 
the  meaning  of  which  cannot  now  oe  determined.  A  few  of  the 
many  explanations  which  have  been  given  may  be  mentioned, 
(i)  The  LXX  and  Theodotion  render  it  oTTyXoypa^m  or  ety  arrjXu- 
ypacpUiVy  an  inscription  ox  for  an  ijiscription.  Cp.  the  Targ.,  an 
excellent  inscription  or  ivriting.  Hence  Delitzsch  explains,  a 
poem  of  epigrammatic  character^  containing  pithy  or  expressive 
sayings.  (2)  In  defiance  of  all  grammar  and  analogy  Aquila 
Symmachus  and  Jerome  treat  the  word  as  a  compound,  and 
render  it  as  an  epithet  of  David,  the  humble  and  sincere  or 
blameless.  (3)  A  golden  Psahn  (A.V.  marg.),  with  reference  to 
the  preciousness  of  its  contents,  like  the  golden  sayings  ixpvcra 
eni])  of  Pythagoras.  (4)  An  unpublished  poem,  (5)  A  Psalm  of 
hidden,  mysterious  meaning. 

Shiggaioil^  occurs  in  the  title  of  Ps.  vii,  and  the  Prayer  of 
Habakkuk  is  said  to  be  set  to  Shigionoth.  The  word  is  derived 
from  a  verb  which  means  to  wander^  and  it  probably  denotes 
a  particular  style  of  poetry  or  music,  or  it  may  include  both,  and 
mean  'a  dithyrambic  poem  in  wild  ecstatic  wandering  rhythms, 
with  corresponding  music' 

A  Prayer  stands  as  the  title  of  five  Psalms  (xvii,  Ixxxvi,  xc, 
cii,  cxlii).  In  the  subscription  to  Ps.  Ixxii  the  preceding  collec- 
tion of  Davidic  Psalms  is  designated  as  The  pi^ayers  of  David^. 
Hab.  iii  is  called  A  prayer  of  Habakkuk.     Cp.  i  Sam.  ii.  1. 

A  Praise  is  the  title  of  one  Psalm  only  (cxlv),  though  Praises 
came  eventually  to  be  the  title  of  the  whole  book. 


^  xvi,  Ivi — Ix. 

2  P\P  plur.  nij^r^^ :  LXX  in  Ps.  vii  simply  ^aV6s,  in  Hab.  ixtTh 
^5i}s.  Jer.  ignoratio^  or  p7'o  ignoratione.  So  Aq.  dyp6ri/j.a,  Symm. 
Theod.  virep  dyuolas,  supposing  it  to  refer  to  the  contents  of  the 
Psalm,  '  , 

•^  The  LXX  vfjwoi.  may  however  point  to  another  reading  niTTlH, 
praists. 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


2.     Titles  connected  with  the  musical  setting  or  perjormance. 

To  the  chief  Musician ^i  R.V.  For  the  Chief  Musician: 
perhaps  rather  Of  the  Precentor:  is  prefixed  to  fifty-five 
Psalms,  of  which  only  two  (Ixvi,  Ixvii)  are  anonymous,  and  most 
bear  the  name  of  David.  Fifty-two  of  these  are  in  Books  I — III, 
and  three  in  Book  V.  It  is  found  also  in  the  subscription  to 
Habakkuk's  Prayer  (Hab.  iii.  19).  The  verb,  of  which  the  word 
is  a  participle,  is  used  in  Chronicles  and  Ezra  in  the  sense  of 
superintending  (i  Chr.  xxiii.  4;  2  Chr.  ii.  2,  18;  xxxiv.  12; 
Ezra  iii.  8,  9),  and  in  i  Chr.  xv.  21  in  the  specific  sense  of  lead- 
ing (R.V.)  the  music.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  word 
jn^naqqeach  means  the  precentor^  or  conductor  of  the  Temple 
choir,  who  trained  the  choir  and  led  the  music,  and  that  it  refers 
to  the  use  of  the  Psalm  in  the  Temple  Services.  The  preposi- 
tion prefixed  to  it  is  generally  rendered  yipr,  and  is  supposed  to 
mean  that  the  Psalm  was  to  be  handed  over  to  the  precentor 
for  musical  setting  and  performance.  This  explanation  however 
does  not  account  for  the  rarity  of  the  term  in  the  later  books, 
where  the  Psalms  are  predominantly  liturgical  in  character.  It 
seems  more  probable  that  the  preposition  should  be  rendered  of^ 
and  that  it  indicates  that  the  Psalm  belonged  to  an  older  collec- 
tion known  as  The  Pr-ecentor's  Collection,  in  the  same  way  as 
the  titles  'of  David,'  'of  Asaph,'  'of  the  sons  of  Korah'  probably 
indicate  the  collections  from  which  the  Psalms  bearing  them 
were  taken ^.  The  reason  commonly  given  for  its  absence  in 
Books  IV  and  V,  that  it  was  unnecessary,  because  the  destination 
of  these  Psalms  was  obvious,  is  hardly  satisfactory.     Many  of 

*  ri-^kipy  {lam^nacceacK).  The  Targum  renders  it  to  praise,  giving 
the  general  sense.  But  the  other  Ancient  Versions  were  completely  at 
a  loss.  The  LXX  renders  eis  to  t^Aos,  Vulg.  in  fineniy  '  unto  the  end  * 
or  '  for  ever,'  reading  the  word  as  a  substantive  ilV^^?,  in  the  sense  of 
nVP./  {Idne^ach).  The  other  Greek  Versions  and  Jerome  connected 
it  with  the  sense  of  victory^  which  is  one  of  the  meanings  of  the  root 
in  late  Heb.  and  Aramaic.  Thus  Aquila  t(^  vt/coTroty,  '  for  the  victor.' 
Symmachus,  eTri.vtKi.os,  *  a  song  of  victory ' :  Theodotion,  e/s  t6  i/t/cos, 
'for  the  victory':  Jerome,  victori.  So  too  the  LXX  in  Hab.  iii.  19,  rov 
piKrjffai.  These  renderings  gave  the  ingenuity  of  the  Fathers  great 
opportunities  for  allegorical  interpretations. 

'^  See  the  Oxford  Hebrew  Lexicon.^  p.  6S4. 


xxii  INTRODUCTION. 

the  Psalms  in  Books  I — III  which  have  it  prefixed  to  them, 
are  clearly  intended  for  public  use.  It  seems  to  have  been  a 
tenn  belonging  to  an  older  collection,  which  went  out  of  use  in 
later  times.  At  any  rate  the  translators  of  the  LXX  did  not 
understand  its  meaning. 

Selah.  This  term,  though  not  belonging  to  the  titles,  may 
conveniently  be  discussed  here. 

The  word  is  found  71  times  in  the  Psalter  in  39  Psalms, 
3  times  in  Habakkuk  iii,  and  nowhere  else  in  the  O.T.^  In 
16  Psalms  it  occurs  once;  in  15  twice;  in  7  (and  in  Hab.  iii) 
three  times:  in  i,  four  times.  Of  these  Psalms  9  are  in 
Book  I:  17  in  Book  II:  11  in  Book  III;  none  in  Book  IV: 
2  only  in  Book  V.  It  is  to  be  further  noted  that  all  these 
Psalms,  with  the  exception  of  the  anonymous  Ixvi  and  Ixvii, 
bear  the  name  of  David  or  of  the  Levitical  singers  (the  sons  of 
Korah,  Asaph,  Heman,  Ethan);  and  all  bear  indications  of 
being  intended  to  be  set  to  music.  The  majority  of  them  (28  of 
the  39:  cp.  Hab.  iii.  19)  have,  *For  the  Chief  Musician'  in  the 
title,  frequently  with  a  further  specification  of  the  instruments  or 
melody  (iv,  ix,  xlvi,  liv,  Iv,  Ivii,  lix,  Ix,  Ixi,  Ixii,  Ixvii,  Ixxv,  Ixxvi, 
Ixxvii,  Ixxxi,  Ixxxiv,  Ixxxviii ;  Hab.  iii.  19).  Of  the  remaining 
eleven,  eight  are  designated  mizmo?-^  *  psalm,'  two  maschily  and 
one  shiggaion. 

It  may  fairly  be  inferred  from  these  facts  that  Selah  is  a 
technical  term  of  great  antiquity,  having  reference  to  musical 
accompaniment.  Its  precise  meaning,  however,  is  quite  uncer- 
tain.    There  are  two  main  lines  of  ancient  tradition : 

{a)  By  the  LXX  always,  and  by  Symmachus  and  Theodotion 
generally,  it  is  rendered  8ta\/raX/xa  {diapsabna\  which  may 
denote  either  louder  playing,  forte  \  or,  more  probably,  an 
instriunejital  intcrlude'^^  while  the  singing  ceased.  The  Syriac 
(with  a  few  exceptions)  gives  an  abbreviation  of  the  Greek  word. 
The  Vulgate  omits  it  entirely. 

^  It  occurs  in  the  third  and  eighteenth  of  the  Shemoneh  Esreh  or 
Eighteen  Benedictions  oi  the  Jewish  Liturgy,  and  its  Greek  equivalent 
is  found  twice  in  the  Psalms  ot'  Solomon  (xvii.  31 ;  xviii.  10). 

2  Cp.  8i.avXiov,  an  interlude  on  the  flute.  The  explanation  a  change 
of  rhythm  or  melody,  or  a  transition  in  the  sense,  can  hardly  be  right, 
as  Selah  occurs  sometimes  at  the  end  of  a  Psalm. 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


{b)  The  most  ancient  Jewish  traditions  interpret  the  word  to 
mea.n /or  ever.  So  the  Targum,  with  some  variety  of  rendering, 
Aquila,  the  'Fifth'  and  'Sixth'  Greek  versions,  Symmachus, 
Theodotion,  and  the  Syriac  occasionally;  and  Jerome,  who 
renders  semper'^. 

Of  these  ancient  renderings,  that  of  the  LXX  probably  pre- 
serves a  true  tradition  as  to  the  usage  of  Selah:  but  the 
meaning  'always'  is  based  on  no  known  etymology,  and  is 
obviously  unsuitable  in  the  majority  of  passages. 

Of  the  multitude  of  modern  explanations  the  most  generally 
accepted  is  that  Selah  is  derived  from  a  root  meaning  to  raise^ 
and  signifies  'Up!' 

It  is  then  a  direction  to  the  musicians  to  strike  up,  either 
with  a  louder  accompaniment,  or  with  an  interlude  while  the 
singing  ceased.  This  explanation  is  supported  by  the  con- 
junction of  Selah  in  Ps.  ix.  i6  with  Higgaion^  a  term  used  of 
instrumental  music  in  Ps.  xcii.  3.  It  is  moreover  confirmed 
by  an  examination  of  the  passages  in  which  Selah  occurs.  In 
the  majority  of  cases  it  is  found  at  the  end  of  a  strophe,  or 
before  the  introduction  of  some  fresh  thought,  where  an  inter- 
lude would  be  most  natural  (Ps.  iii.  2,  4,  8;  xxiv.  6,  10;  xliv.  8; 
xlvi.  3,  7,  II ;  Ixvi.  4,  7,  15);  or  before  some  appeal  or  utterance 
which  would  be  distinguished  from  what  preceded  and  would  be 
emphasised  by  an  interlude  or  by  a  stronger  accompaniment 
(Ps.  vii.  5^1.  6;  Ix.  4;  Ixxv.  3;  Ixxxi.  7;  Ixxxiii.  8).  There 
are  no  doubt  many  instances  which  do  not  appear  to  come 
under  these  general  principles ;  but  the  Hebrew  idea  of  what 
was  fitting  by  way  of  accompaniment  may  have  differed  from 
ours;  and  in  some  cases  the  accuracy  of  the  Massoretic 
Text  is  doubtful.  The  Septuagint  does  not  always  agree  with 
it  in  the    insertion    or  omission    of   Sclah^  and    an    obscure 

*  For  an  interesting  account  of  the  various  opinions  held  in  his  day 
consult  his  letter  to  Marcella  (0pp.  i.  col.  155,  ed.  Vallarsi).  He  decides 
in  favour  of  the  rendering  semper^  'always,'  because  it  is  that  given  by 
Aquila,  'the  most  careful  interpreter  of  the  meanings  of  Hebrew  words,' 
and  says  that  it  is  designed  'to  connect  what  precedes  with  what  follows, 
or  to  shew  that  what  has  been  said  is  everlasting ' :  and  compares  the 
use  of  the  word  with  that  of  Amen  or  Shalom  (peace),  to  mark  the  end 
of  a  passage,  and  confirm  its  contents. 


INTRODUCTION. 


technical  term  would  be  specially  liable  to  be  omitted  or 
wrongly  inserted. 

The  explanation  given  in  the  Oxford  Hebrew  Lexicon^  p.  699, 
also  deserves  consideration.  Selah  is  there  explained  to  be  a 
liturgical  direction  to  the  congregation,  meaning  Lift  tip  your 
voices  in  the  benediction  'Blessed  be  Jehovah  for  ever  and 
ever';  or  Extol  Jehovah  for  ever  and  ever.  Accordingly  it 
indicates  the  place  of  the  benedictions  (cp.  Neh.  ix.  5),  and  the 
tradition  that  it  means  for  ever  is  accounted  for  by  the  closing- 
words  of  the  benediction. 

Higgaion  occurs  in  ix.  16  along  with  Selah  as  a  musical 
direction,  and  in  the  text  of  xcii.  3,  Svith  higgaion  upon  the 
harp.'  It  denotes  apparently  an  instrumental  interlude  of  some 
kind.  The  word  has  the  sense  of  meditation  in  xix.  14,  and 
according  to  the  usage  of  the  cognate  verb,  which  denotes  the 
growling  of  a  lion  (Is.  xxxi.  4),  the  moaning  of  a  dove  (Is. 
xxxviii.  14;  lix.  11),  or  of  a  mourner  (Is.  xvi.  7),  it  should  mean 
inu7'niu7'i)ig,  itieditative  inusiCy  rather  than  resounding  music. 

Two  terms  refer  to  micsical  instru7n'ents. 

On  Neginothi :  rather,  with  music  of  stringed  instruments: 
occurs  six  times  in  the  Psalter^:  and  in  Hab.  iii.  19  we  find  on 
my  stringed  instruments.  Upon  Neginah :  rather,  with  music 
of  a  stringed  instrument  (Ixi) :  may  be  a  variation  of  the  ex- 
pression, or  may  indicate  the  melody  to  which  the  Psalm  was  to 
be  sung^.  The  word  is  derived  from  a  verb  meaning  to  play  on 
st7'inged  instrumetits  (i  Sam.  xvi.  16 — 18,  23).  It  occurs  else- 
where in  the  sense  of  music  or  song  (Job  xxx.  9 ;  Ps.  Ixxvii.  6 ; 
Is.  xxxviii.  20;  Lam.  v.  14).  The  title  no  doubt  indicates  that 
the  Psalm  was  to  be  accompanied  by  stringed  instruments, 
perhaps  by  these  only. 

Upon  Nehiloth*:  R.V.  with  the  Nehiloth,  or  (marg.)  wind 

1  nii^i^Zl :  LXX  kv  ^l/aKfioTs  (iv) :  iu  v/xvot-s  generally :  in  Hab.  iv 
ry  ifdy  avTov :  Vulg.  in  carminibus :  Jer.  in  psalmis :  Symm.  5td  ^aX- 

'^  Pss.  iv,  vi,  liv,  Iv,  Ixvii,  Ixxvi. 

"  The  Heb.  is  rii"*33  7^,  which  may  mean  set  to  neginalh^  or,  the 
songof... :  some  word  of  definition  being  lost. 

■*  nv''niin  7i^.      The   Greek  and  Latin  versions  are  quite  astray, 


THE   TITLES    OF   THE    PSALMS.  xxv 

instruments:  in  Ps.  v  only.  Possibly  y^^^/^j  of  some  kind  are 
meant.  For  the  use  of  these  in  sacred  music  see  Is.  xxx.  29 
{a  pipe) :  i  Sam.  x.  5 ;  i  Kings  i.  40 ;  and  on  their  use  in  the 
services  of  the  Second  Temple  see  Edersheim,  The  Temple  and 
its  Services^  p.  55.     It  is  not  however  the  usual  word  iox  Jiute. 

Two  terms  probably  indicate  the  character  or  pitch  of  the 
music. 

Upon  Alamoth^ :  R.V.  set  to  A. :  is  found  in  the  title  of  Ps. 
xlvi,  and  may  possibly  once  have  stood  in  the  title  of  Ps.  ix, 
and  either  as  a  subscription  to  Ps.  xlviii,  or  in  the  title  of  Ps.  xlix. 
See  the  notes  there.  The  term  appears  to  mean  iti  the  manner 
of  7naidens^  ox^  for  maidens^  voices:  soprano. 

Upon  Sheminith^:  R.V.  set  to  the  S.,  i.e.  as  marg.,  the 
eighth  (Pss.  vi  and  xii) :  probably  denotes  that  the  setting  was 
to  be  an  octave  lower,  or,  on  the  lower  octave :  tenor  or  bass. 
Both  terms  occur  together  in  i  Chr.  xv.  19 — 21.  Heman, 
Asaph,  and  Jeduthun  were  appointed  "  with  cymbals  of  brass  to 
sound  aloud":  eight  other  Levites,  "with  psalteries  set  to 
Alamoth  " ;  and  six  "  with  harps  set  to  the  Sheminith,  to  lead." 

Upon  Gittith^:  R.V.  set  to  the  Gittith  :  occurs  in  the  titles 
of  Pss.  viii,  Ixxxi,  Ixxxiv.  In  form  Gittith  is  a  fem.  adj.  derived 
from  Gath^  and  may  mean  either  (i)  some  Gittite  instrument: 
so  the  Targ. ;  '  the  harp  which  David  brought  from  Gath ' :  or 

referring  the  word  to  the  contents  of  the  Psalm.  The  LXX  and 
Theodotion :  inrkp  t9\%  K\7)popo/ji.oi(Tris :  Vulg.  pro  ea  quae  hercditatem 
consequitur:   Aq.  d7r6  (?)   K\ripo5oaLQv :    Symm.  vrr^p  K\T]povxi<^v '.   Jer. 

super  hereditatibus  :  all  connect  the  word  with  the  root  ?nj,  to  inherit. 
^   niD?y  71^.     The  ancient  Versions  are  again  at  fault.     The  LXX 
renders :    vizhp  twv    Kpvcpiuu :    Vulg.   pro   ocadtis :    Symm.    virkp    tCjv 
alo}vl(av:    Aq.  eirl  veavtoTrjToov  :  and  so  Jer.  pro  itiveiitutibiis. 

2  n''3''P^'n  ?y.  The  LXX  literally  virkp  Tri%  d-ybbri^ :  Vulg.  pro  octava. 
Both  terms  are  allegorically  explained  by  the  Fathers,  of  the  mysteries 
of  the  faith,  the  octave  of  eternity,  &c.  &c. 

^  JT'Pllin  ?r.  The  LXX  and  Symm.  have  virkp  tQv  \t)vCov\  Vulg. 
and  Jer.  pro  torcularibus,  '  for  the  wine-presses,'  reading  Jlinil  for  JT'riJI. 
Hence  some  have  explained  the  title,  '  set  to  the  melody  of  a  vintage 
song.'  Aq.  and  Theod.  render  the  Massoretic  text  in  Ps.  viii :  virkp  tt^s 
yerdlTcdos,  but  according  to  the  Syro-hexaplar  version  Aq.  had  iirl  toO 
Xripou  or  iirl  rdv  \i]vC)P  in  Ixxxi  and  Ixxxiv. 


INTRODUCTION. 


(2)  a  Gittite  melody;  possibly,  as  has  been  conjectured,  the 
march  of  the  Gittite  guard  (2  Sam.  xv.  18). 

The  rendering  of  the  LXX,  Symm.,  and  Jer.  For  or  over  the 
winepresses  may  however  preserve  the  true  reading,  indicating 
that  these  Psalms  were  sung  at  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  or 
Ingathering  at  the  end  of  the  vintage.  Ps.  Ixxxi  appears  to  have 
been  specially  intended  for  that  festival;  and  Ps.  Ixxxiv  is 
virtually  a  '  Psalm  of  going  up,'  for  the  use  of  pilgrims  to  the 
three  great  feasts. 

To  Jeduthun^:  R.V.  after  the  manner  of  J.  (Ixii,  Ixxvii): 
probably  means  that  the  Psalm  was  set  to  some  melody  com- 
posed by  or  called  after  David's  chief  musician  (i  Chr.  xvi.  41). 
In  the  title  of  Ps.  xxxix  Jeduthun  appears  to  be  named  as  the 
chief  musician  intended. 

A  series  of  obscure  titles  probably  indicate  the  melody  to 
which  the  Psalm  was  to  be  sung  by  a  reference  to  the  opening 
words  of  some  well-known  song  2.     Such  are  the  titles  of 

Ps.  ix:  set  to  Muth-labben  (R.V.),  meaning  possibly  Die  for 
the  son^. 

Ps.  xxii :  set  to  Ayyeleth  hash-shachar,  i.e.  the  hind  of  the 
morning. 

Pss.  xlv,  Ixix:  set  to  Shoshannim  (R.V.),  i.e.  Lilies.  Ps.  Ix: 
set  to  Shushan  Eduth  (R.V.),  i.e.  The  lily  of  testimony.  Ps. 
Ixxx :  set  to  Shoshannim  Eduth  (R.V.),  i.e.  Lilies^  a  testimony. 
All  these  titles  probably  denote  the  melody  to  which  the  Psalm 
was  to  be  sung,  not  the  subject  of  the  Psalm  or  a  lily-shaped 
instrument*. 

2  "  Similarly  the  ancient  Syrian  hymn  writers  prefix  to  their  composi- 
tions such  musical  titles  as  '  To  the  tune  of  {'at  qdld  dh')  1  will  open  my 
mouth  with  knowledge.'  "  Robertson  Smith,  O.  T.  in  fewiih  Church, 
p.  209. 

2  The  LXX  has  virkp  tCjv  Kpvcplojv  roO  viov,  concerning  the  secrets 
[i.e.  sins,  cp.  xc.  8]  of  the  son,  reading  the  two  words  'al-muth  as  one, 
^alumoth.  Similarly  Aquila  read  the  words  as  one,  'almuth,  and 
rendered  them  veavibT-rjTos  rod  viou,  of  the  youth  of  the  son;  and  Theod. 
hirip  oKfxrjs  toO  viov,  concerning  the  maturity  of  the  son.  Cp.  above  on 
Aldnioth. 

■*  The  LXX  reading  the  word  with  different  vowels  renders  virkp  tuv 
dWoiu}dr]crofxii'0}v,  or  rots  dWoi(i}Or]ao/j.ei^oi.s,  for  those  who  shall  be  changed. 


THE  TITLES   OF  THE   PSALMS.  xxvii 

Ps.  Ivi :  set  to  Yonath  elem  rechokim,  i.e.  The  silent  dove 
of  them  that  are  afar  off\  or,  as  read  with  different  vowels,  The 
dove  of  the  distajit  terebinths^. 

Four  Psalms  (Ivii — lix,  Ixxv)  have  the  title,  [set  to]  Al-tash- 
cheth,  i.e.  Destroy  not^  possibly  the  vintage  song  to  which  there 
is  an  allusion  in  Is.  Ixv.  8.     See  Introd.  to  Ps.  Ivii. 

The  titles  of  Ps.  liii :  set  to  Mahalath :  and  Ixxxviii :  set 
to  Mahalath  Leannoth :  are  extremely  obscure,  but  probably 
belong  to  this  class  2. 

For  further  details  see  the  notes  in  each  case. 

3.  A  few  titles  refer  to  the  liticrgical  use  of  the  Psalm.  In 
the  time  of  the  Second  Temple,  each  day  of  the  week  had  its 
special  Psalm,  which  was  sung  at  the  offering  of  the  moniing 
sacrificed  Thus  Ps.  xcii  is  entitled  "A  Psalm,  a  Song  for 
the  Sabbath  day."  This  is  the  only  reference  to  the  daily 
Psalms  in  the  Heb.  text:  but  in  the  LXX,  Ps.  xxiv  is  assigned 
to  the  first  day  of  the  week  {ttis  ixias  aa^fiaTOiv) ;  Ps.  xlviii  to 
the  second  day  {devrepa  cra^^drov) ;  Ps.  xciv  to  the  fourth  day 
{TerpdSi  aa^^drcov) ;  Ps.  xciii  to  the  sixth  day  of  the  week  (els 
Trjv  rjiiipav  tov  ivpoaafi^dTov).  The  Old  Latin  Version  further 
refers  Ps.  Ixxxi  to  the  fifth  day  {quinta  sabbati).  These  titles 
agree  with  the  arrangement  given  in  the  Mishna  {Tamid^  vii.  3), 
according  to  which  the  Psalm  for  the  third  day  was  Ps.  Ixxxii. 

The  title  of  Pss.  xxxviii  and  Ixx  to  bring  to  remembrance, 
or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  to  make  memorial,  may  indicate  that  they 
were  sung  at  the  offering  of  incense  (see  Introd.  to  Ps.  xxxviii) : 
and  that  of  Ps.  c,  A  Psalm  of  thanksgiving  (R.V.),  marg.  for 
the  thank-offerings  may  mark  that  it  was  sung  when  thank- 
ofierings  (Ivi.  12)  were  offered. 

*  The  rendering  of  the  LXX  ^ir^p  tov  \aQv  rod  drb  twv  aylojv 
fie/xaKpv/jifxevov,  for  the  people  removed  far  from  the  sanctuary,  which 
at  first  sight  seems  hopelessly  divergent,  is  explained  by  Baethgen  as 
a  paraphrase.  By  the  dove  the  translator  understood  Israel,  and  for 
elem  he  read  elhn,  which  he  took  to  mean  gods.  But  thinking  it 
unseemly  to  describe  Israel  as  the  dove  of  the  distant  gods,  he  substituted 
a  free  paraphrase. 

^  The  LXX  simply  ti-ansliterates  i-wlp  MaeX^d.  Aq.  Symm,  Theod. 
Jer.  render  For  or  in  the  dance,  a  curiously  inappropriate  title  for  both 
these  Pss. 

^  Cp.  Ecclus.  1.  14  ff,  for  a  description  of  the  service. 


INTRODUCTION. 


The  title  of  Ps.  xxx,  A  Song  at  the  Dedication  of  the 
House,  may  refer  to  its  use  at  the  Festival  of  the  Dedication, 
instituted  by  Judas  Maccabaeus  in  B.C.  164,  when  the  Temple 
was  re-dedicated  after  its  profanation  by  Antiochus  (i  Mace. 
iv.  59 ;  John  x.  22). 

The  title  of  Ps.  xxix  in  the  LXX,  e^oS/ou  (tktjp^s  (Vulg.  m 
co7tsum7natione  tabe7'naculi\  refers  to  its  use  on  the  last  day  of 
the  Feast  of  Tabernacles. 

To  teach  is  part  of  the  title  prefixed  to  Ps.  Ix.  A  comparison 
of  Deut.  xxxi.  19  and  2  Sam.  i.  18  makes  it  probable  that  it  was 
to  be  learnt  by  heart  and  recited  on  public  occasions. 

On  these  titles  see  further  in  the  notes  on  the  particular 
Psalms. 

A  song  of  Degrees,  rather,  A  Song  of  Ascents  (R.V.), 
or,  for  the  Goings  up,  is  the  title  prefixed  to  15  Psalms 
(cxx — cxxxiv),  which  appear  to  have  formed  a  separate  collection, 
bearing  the  title  The  Songs  of  the  Goings  tip  (or,  of  the  Going 
up\  which  was  afterwards  transferred  to  each  separate  Psalm, 

Various  explanations  of  this  title  have  been  proposed. 

(i)  The  LXX  renders  oJS?)  r&ii/  ava^a6\i5iv  :  Vulg.  and  Jer., 
canticum graduwn,  'a  song  of  the  steps.'  It  has  been  supposed 
that  they  were  so  called  because  they  were  sung  upon  the  flight 
of  15  steps  which  led  from  the  Court  of  the  Women  to  the 
Court  of  the  Men  in  the  Second  Temple.  But  Delitzsch  has 
shewn  that  the  passage  of  the  Talmud  quoted  in  support  of 
this  explanation  really  says  nothing  at  all  about  the  singing 
of  these  Psalms  upon  the  steps,  or  the  derivation  of  the  name 
from  them,  but  merely  compares  the  number  of  the  Psalms 
with  that  of  the  steps. 

(2)  An  explanation  which  has  found  considerable  favour  in 
modern  times  regards  the  term  as  denoting  a  particular  kind  of 
'  ascending '  structure,  in  which  each  verse  takes  up  and  repeats 
a  word  or  clause  from  the  preceding  verse.  Ps.  cxxi  offers 
a  good  example  of  this  structure ;  but  apart  from  the  fact  that 
no  trace  can  be  found  of  this  technical  meaning  of  the  word 
'ascent^  elsewhere,  the  structure  is  neither  peculiar  to  these 
Psalms  nor  characteristic  of  all  of  them. 

(3)  As  'the  ascent'  or  'going  up'  was  the  regular  term  for 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


the  Return  from  Babylon  (Ezra  vii.  9),  some  have  supposed 
that  these  Psalms  were  sung  by  the  returning  exiles  on  their 
march.  So  the  Syriac  Version,  and  probably  Aq.  Symm.  and 
Theod.,  who  render  aafia  tcop  dua^daeoou  or  els  ras  dva^dcrds. 
But  the  contents  of  many  of  the  Psalms  do  not  favour  this 
explanation. 

(4)  '  To  go  up '  was  the  regular  term  for  making  pilgrimage 
to  Jerusalem  at  the  great  festivals  (i  Sam.  i.  3;  Ps.  cxxii.  4). 
'The  songs  of  the  goings  up'  may  have  been  the  name  for 
the  songs  which  were  sung  on  these  occasions.  We  know  that 
the  pilgrims  went  up  with  singing  (Is.  xxx.  29;  Ps.  xlii.  4),  and 
many  of  these  Psalms  are  well  suited  for  such  occasions^ ;  while 
others,  though  not  so  obviously  appropriate,  might  well  have 
been  employed  for  the  purpose.  This  is  on  the  whole  the  most 
probable  explanation,  although  the  substantive  'going  up'  is  not 
used  elsewhere  in  this  technical  sense ^. 

4.  Ti'^/es  relating  to  Authorship.  These  are  regularly  intro- 
duced by  a  preposition  denoting  of  or  belonging  to^  dy,  the  so- 
called  Warned d.uctoris.^  In  some  instances,  as  in  Hab.  iii.  i,  it  was 
no  doubt  intended  to  denote  authorship  ;  but  in  others,  as  will 
be  seen  presently  (p.  xxxiii),  it  was  probably  intended  to  denote 
origin,  rather  than,  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  word,  authorship. 
This  is  clearly  the  case  with  the  title  A  Psahn  of  the  sofis  of 
Korah,  which  must  mean  'a  Psalm  from  the  collection  known 
as  that  of  the  sons  of  K.' ;  probably  also  with  the  title  A  Psahn 
of  Asaph,  and,  at  least  in  many  instances,  with  the  title  A  Psalm 
of  David. 

{a)     One  Psalm  (xc)  bears  the  name  of  Moses. 

{b)  73  Psalms  bear  the  name  of  David  :  viz.  all  those  in 
Book  I,  except  i  and  ii,  which  are  prefatory  ;  x,  which  is  part 
of  ix ;  and  xxxiii,  which  appears  to  be  a  later  addition  :  18  in 
Book  II  (li — Ixv,  Ixviii — Ixx);  one  in  Book  III  (Ixxxvi) ;  two 
in  Book  IV  (ci,  ciii) ;  15  in  Book  V  (cviii — ex,  cxxii,  cxxiv, 
cxxxi,  cxxxiii,  cxxxviii — cxlv). 

^  E.g.  cxxi — cxxiii,  cxxv,  cxxvii,  cxxviii,  cxxxii — cxxxiv. 

-  Unless  Wellhausen  is  right  in  altering  HI^DD  highways  to  T\Y>^'0 
goings  up,  pilgrimages,  in  Ixxxiv.  5,  following  the  LXX  dva^aawi. 


INTRODUCTION. 


{c)    Two  (Ixxii,  cxxvii)  bear  the  name  of  Solomon. 

{d)  12  (1,  Ixxiii — Ixxxiii)  bear  the  name  of  Asaph,  one  of 
David's  principal  musicians  (i  Chr.  vi.  39,  xv.  17,  xvi.  5  ff. ; 
2  Chr.  V.  12). 

{e)  To  the  sons  of  Korah  are  attributed  10  or  1 1 :  xlii  [xliii], 
xliv — xlix,  Ixxxiv,  Ixxxv,  Ixxxvii,  Ixxxviii  [?],  for  according  to 
analogy  the  title  is  to  be  rendered  as  in  R.V.,  of  the  sons  of 
K. ;  not,  as  in  KN.,for  the  sons  of  K. 

(/)  The  sages  Heman  the  Ezrachite  and  Ethan  the  Ezra- 
chite  (i  Kings  iv.  31)  have  each  a  psalm  attributed  to  them 
(Ixxxviii,  Ixxxix). 

5.  Titles  describhig  the  occasion  of  the  Psalm  are  prefixed  to 
13  Psalms,  all  of  which  bear  the  name  of  David.  ^Pss.  vii,  lix. 
Ivi,  xxxiv,  lii,  Ivii,  cxlii,  liv,  are  referred  to  the  period  of  his 
persecution  by  Saul :  Ps.  xviii  to  the  climax  of  his  reign  ;  Ps.  Ix 
to  the  Syro-Ammonite  war  ;  Ps.  U  to  his  fall  ;  Pss.  iii  and  Ixiii 
to  his  flight  from  Absalom. 

The  Value  of  the  Titles.  We  have  now  to  inquire  whether 
these  titles  give  any  authentic  information,  or  must  be  regarded 
as  additions  by  editors  and  compilers,  largely,  if  not  wholly, 
conjectural  and  untrustworthy. 

(i)  With  regard  to  the  technical  musical  terms  of  the  titles 
there  is  little  evidence  to  shew  whether  they  belong  entirely  to 
the  time  of  the  Second  Temple,  or  in  part  at  least,  are  of  more 
ancient  origin.  The  title  of  Habakkuk's  prayer,  set  to  Shigi- 
onoth^  and  its  subscription,  For  the  Precentor^  on  my  stringed 
instrutnents^  would  be  evidence  for  the  use  of  such  technical 
terms  in  pre-exilic  times,  if  we  could  be  sure  that  they  came 
from  the  prophet  himself  and  were  not  later  additions.  Elsewhere 
however  we  meet  with  terms  of  this  kind  only  in  the  Chronicler's 
description  of  David's  musical  services  ^  where  we  read  of  the 
use  of  "  psalteries  set  to  Alamoth,"  and  "  harps  set  to  the  Shem- 
inith,  to  lead"  (i  Chr.  xv.  20,  21).  The  Heb.  verb  to  leady  is 
that  of  which  the  word  rendered  Chief  Musician  or  Prece7itor 

^  Neginoth  in  Is.  xxxviii.  20  denotes  songs  accompanied  by  stringed 
instruments,  not,  as  apparently  in  the  Psalm-titles,  the  music  of  stringed 
instruments,  or  the  instruments  themselves. 


THE   TITLES    OF   THE    PSALMS.  xxxi 

is  the  participle.  As  it  is  found  in  Chronicles  and  Ezra  only,  and 
not  (with  the  possible  exception  of  Hab.  iii.  19)  in  the  pre-exilic 
hterature,  it  is  presumed  to  be  a  post-exilic  word^;  and  it  is 
inferred  that  this,  and  probably  the  other  technical  terms,  belong 
to  the  period  of  the  Return  from  Bab^don.  Still  it  must  be 
remembered  that  the  remains  of  pre-exilic  literature  are  not  of 
a  kind  in  which  the  technical  terms  of  the  musical  ritual  of 
the  Temple  would  be  likely  to  occur. 

It  is  however  clear  that  these  titles  do  not  belong  to  the  latest 
stage  of  the  history  of  the  Psalter.  They  are  almost  entirely 
wanting  in  Books  IV  and  V,  though  a  large  proportion  of  these 
Psalms  were  obviously  intended  for  liturgical  use.  Moreover 
though  the  Septuagint  translators  found  them  in  their  text,  they 
were  unable  to  understand  even  their  general  purport.  It  is  possi- 
ble that  a  knowledge  of  the  technical  terms  of  Palestinian  music 
had  not  reached  Egypt,  but  it  is  more  probable  that  they  were 
obsolete  and  no  longer  intelligible  at  the  time  when  the  Greek 
Version  of  the  Psalter  was  made. 

(ii)  The  titles  referring  to  the  liturgical  use  of  Psalms  must 
in  some  cases  at  least,  if  that  of  Ps.  xxx  is  rightly  explained  to 
refer  to  its  use  at  the  Festival  of  the  Dedication,  have  been 
added  at  a  late  date.  Several  of  them,  though  agreeing  with 
Jewish  tradition,  are  not  found  in  the  Hebrew  text.  ♦ 

(iii)  It  is  now  generally  acknowledged  that  the  titles  relating 
to  the  authorship  and  occasion  of  the  Psalms  cannot  be  regarded 
as  prefixed  by  the  authors  themselves,  or  as  representing  trust- 
worthy traditions,  and  accordingly  giving  reliable  information. 
The  chief  reason  2  for  this  conclusion  is  that  many  of  them,  as 

'  It  should  however  be  noted  that  the  cognate  substantive  occurs  in 
I  Sam.  XV.  29,  where  Jehovah  is  styled  the  Ejuinence  or  Glory  of 
Israel. 

2  The  variations  in  MSS.  and  Versions  are  often  alleged  as  a  reason 
for  distrusting  the  titles.  The  extent  of  the  variations  may  easily  be 
exaggerated.  A  few  Heb.  MSS.  assign  Ixvi,  Ixvii,  to  David.  In  the 
LXX  David's  name  is  prefixed  to  xxxiii,  xliii,  Ixvii,  Ixxi  (with  the 
curious  addition  **  of  the  sons  of  Jonadab  and  those  who  were  first 
carried  captive  "),  xci,  xciii — xcix,  civ,  cxxxvii,  and  it  is  omitted  by  the 
best  MSS.  in  cxxii,  cxxiv,  cxxxi.  Solomon's  name  is  omitted  in  cxxvii 
in  the  best  mss.  Historical  notices  are  added  to  xxvii,  Ixxvi,  Ixxx,  xciii, 
xcvi,  xcvii,  cxliii,  cxliv,  and  liturgical  or  other  notices  (some  of  them 


INTRODUCTION. 


will  appear  in  detail  in  the  commentary,  cannot  be  reconciled 
with  the  contents  and  language  of  the  Psalms  to  which  they  are 
prefixed.  Many  Psalms  which  bear  the  name  of  David  assume 
situations  and  circumstances  wholly  unlike  any  in  which  he  can 
be  supposed  to  have  been  placed,  or  express  feelings  which  it  is 
difficult  to  attribute  to  a  man  of  his  position  and  character  : 
some  (e.g.  Ixix)  apparently  refer  to  the  captivity:  some  (e.g. 
Ixxxvi,  cxliv)  are  mere  compilations  :  the  language  of  others 
(e.g.  cxxxix)  is  unquestionably  late.  In  xx,  xxi,  ex,  a  king  is  the 
subject,  but  hardly  himself  the  author.  Opinions  must  differ 
widely  as  to  the  language  likely  to  be  used  upon  a  particular 
occasion,  but  after  every  allowance  has  been  made  for  the 
difference  of  modern  feeling  and  for  our  ignorance  of  the  details 
of  the  circumstances  of  many  epochs  in  David's  life,  it  is  in  many 
cases  impossible  to  connect  the  contents  of  the  Psalms  with  the 
occasions  named  in  the  titles. 

The  Psalms  of  Asaph  again  cannot  all  have  been  written  by 
David's  musician  Asaph,  if  indeed  any  of  them  were.  Some  of 
them  refer  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  Exile  (Ixxiv, 
Ixxix,  Ixxx) ;  some  belong  apparently  to  the  post-exilic  period. 

While  however  the  titles  cannot  be  accepted  as  giving  trust- 
worthy information  in  regard  to  the  authorship  of  the  Psalms, 
they  are  ncpt  to  be  regarded  as  entirely  worthless.  The  infre- 
quency  of  their  occurrence  in  the  later  Books  (IV,  V)  is  an  indi- 
cation that  they  were  not  the  arbitrary  conjectures  of  the  latest 
compilers  of  the  Psalter,  and  it  is  reasonable  to  infer  that  they 
rested  upon  some  authority,  documentary  or  traditional. 

What  then  is  their  value  ?  It  seems  probable  that,  in  many 
cases  at  least,  they  indicate  the  source  from  which  the  Psalms 

obscure)  to  xxiv,  xxix,  xxxviii,  xlviii,  xciii,  xciv.  Jeremiah's  name 
(as  well  as  David's)  is  prefixed  to  cxxxvii  in  some  Mss.  (not  Afcs),  and 
the  names  of  Haggai  and  Zechariah  or  Zechariah  only  to  cxxxviii,  cxxxix, 
cxlvi — cxlviii.  Although  these  additions  indicate  considerable  freedom 
of  treatment  in  the  LXX,  it  remains  that  the  great  majority  of  the  titles 
in  the  Hebrew  text  are  attested  by  the  LX  X  also. 

Again  it  is  argued  that  suspicion  is  thrown  upon  the  titles  by  the 
absence  of  any  names  later  than  the  time  of  David  and  Solomon.  It  is 
no  doubt  surprising  that  none  of  the  later  Psalmists  are  mentioned 
by  name,  but  this  fact  need  not  of  itself  invalidate  the  titles  which  are 
given. 


I 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


were  derived  rather  than  the  opinion  of  the  collector  as  to  their 
authorship. 

In  regard  to  the  Psalms  of  the  sons  of  Korah  this  is  clearly 
the  case.  The  title  A  Psabn  of  the  sons  of  Korah  cannot  mean 
that  the  Psalm  was  composed  by  a  plurality  of  authors.  It 
must  be  part  of  the  title  of  the  collection  from  which  these 
Psalms  were  derived.  Such  a  collection  may  have  been  called, 
"  The  Book  of  the  Songs  of  the  sons  of  Korah^^  and  have 
contained  Psalms  written  by  members  of  the  guild  or  family 
of  Korah  and  preserved  in  a  collection,  made  probably  for 
liturgical  purposes,  which  bore  their  name. 

Similarly  the  title  A  Psalm  of  Asaph  may  not  have  been 
meant  to  attribute  the  Psalm  to  Asaph  himself,  but  may  have 
been  intended  to  indicate  that  it  was  taken  from  a  collection 
preserved  and  used  by  the  guild  or  family  of  Asaph.  The 
collection  may  have  been  founded  by  David's  famous  musician, 
though  we  cannot  point  to  any  Psalm  in  it  as  even  probably 
written  by  him,  and  it  still  retained  the  name  of  its  founder, 
though  the  main  part  of  it  belonged  to  later  tim.es. 

In  the  same  way  again  the  title  A  Psahn  of  David  x^d^y  have 
been  taken  over  from  the  general  title  of  the  collection  from 
which  the  Psalm  was  derived.  There  appear  to  have  been  two 
'Davidic'  collections  :  that  which  forms  Book  I,  and  that  which 
was  incorporated  in  the  Elohistic  collection  in  Book  II.  The 
latter  collection  may  have  been  called  The  Book  of  the  Prayers 
of  David.  Possibly  it  had  some  connexion  with  a  historical 
work,  in  which  the  life  of  David  was  illustrated  by  poems,  as 
was  often  done  in  the  earlier  histories  :  e.g.  Judg.  v  ;  i  Sam.  ii  ; 
2  Sam.  xxii.  Now  these  collections  may  have  been  so  named 
from  their  founder  and  most  eminent  poet,  although  the  works 
of  other  poets  were  included  in  them.  Just  as  in  later  times  the 
whole  Psalter  came  to  be  spoken  of  as  the  Psalms  of  David, 
from  its  founder  and  most  famous  author i,  so  in  earlier  times  the 
smaller  collection,  of  which  only  the  origin  and  nucleus  was  due 
to  David,  came  to  bear  his  name,  and  when  that  collection  was 


^  We  commonly  speak  of  Newman's  Lyra  Apostolica,  though  five 
other  writers  contributed  to  it. 

PSALMS  c 


xxxiv  INTRODUCTION. 


incorporated  in  the  Psalter,  his  name  was  placed  at  the  head  of 
each  Psalm  taken  from  it^. 

The  case  is  somewhat  different  with  the  Psalms  assigned  to 
David  in  Books  IV  and  V.  It  is  much  more  probable  that 
some  of  these  titles  are  due  merely  to  editorial  conjecture  or 
inference  from  the  contents.  Yet  even  the  compilers  of  these 
Books  may  have  found  Psalms  which  are  there  attributed  to 
David  in  some  earlier  collection  bearing  his  name,  or  assigned 
to  him  by  current  tradition.  It  is  an  unwarrantable  assumption 
that  all  the  Davidic  Psalms  must  have  been  incorporated  in 
earlier  collections  and  inserted  in  the  earlier  books. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  imitations  of  Davidic  Psalms,  such 
for  example  as  Ps.  Ixxxvi,  may  have  been  called  by  his  name, 
without  the  slightest  intention  of  fraud,  In  i  Chr.  xvi  we  find  a 
Psalm  compiled  from  other  Psalms  suggested  as  an  appropriate 
thanksgiving  for  the  occasion,  though  it  does  not  appear  to  be 
expressly  attributed  to  David 2. 

Again,  it  is  possible  that  Psalms  were  written  by  different 
poets  to  illustrate  particular  episodes  in  the  life  of  David,  or  to 
express  the  thoughts  which  might  be  supposed  to  have  been  in 
his  mind  upon  certain  occasions.  These  "dramatic  lyrics" 
might  easily  have  had  his  name  affixed  to  them,  without  the 
slightest  intention  of  passing  them  off  as  his  for  the  sake  of 
giving  them  currency  and  authority.  To  this  class  of  Psalm 
may  belong  the  Psalm  of  Moses  (xc),  which  can  hardly  be 
supposed  to  have  been  actually  written  by  him. 

While  then  the  titles  of  the  Psalms  cannot  be  supposed  to 
give  certain  information  as  to  their  authors,  and  many  of  the 
Psalms  bearing  the  name  of  David  cannot  have  been  written  by 
him,  we  are  not  justified  in  rejecting  the  titles  as  mere  arbitrary 
conjectures.  They  supply  information  concerning  the  earlier 
stages  of  the  growth  of  the  Psalter ;  and  it  is  not  unreasonable 
to  inquire  whether  a  Psalm  taken  from  a  collection  which  bore 
David's  name  may  not  have  been  actually  composed  by  him. 

In  criticising  the  title  of  a  Psalm  and  endeavouring  to  fix  its 

^  So  the  general  title  of  the  collection  is  preiixed  to  each  of  the 
Pilgrimage  Psalms  (cxx — cxxxii). 
2  See  the  R.V.  of  i  Chr.  xvi.  7. 


THE   TITLES   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


date  by  the  light  of  its  contents  much  caution  is  necessary.  The 
possibihty  of  alterations  and  additions  to  the  original  poem  must 
be  taken  into  account.  It  is  probable  that  many  of  the  Psalms 
were  not  at  once  committed  to  writing,  but  like  other  oriental 
poetry,  were  transmitted  orally^.  The  comparison  of  Ps.  xviii 
with  2  Sam.  xxii  shews  that  the  text  has  in  some  cases  suffered 
from  accidental  errors  of  transcription,  while  in  others  it  appears 
to  bear  marks  of  intentional  revision.  The  comparison  of 
Ps.  liii  with  Ps.  xiv,  of  Ps.  Ixx  with  Ps.  xl.  13  ff.,  and  of  Ps.  cviii 
with  Pss.  Ivii  and  Ix,  shews  that  editors  did  not  scruple  to  alter 
earlier  Psalms,  to  divide  them,  and  to  combine  portions  of  them, 
for  their  own  special  purposes.  The  anthem  inserted  by  the 
chronicler  in  i  Chr.  xvi  is  a  notable  example  of  a  composite 
Psalm.  Additions  seem  to  have  been  made  with  a  view  of 
adapting  Psalms  for  liturgical  use.  Such  processes,  which  can 
be  definitely  traced  in  some  instances,  have  no  doubt  been  in 
operation  elsewhere''^. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE   AUTPIORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE   PSALMS. 

It  is  obvious  from  what  has  been  said  in  the  preceding 
chapter  that  great  uncertainty  must  necessarily  rest  upon  the 
authorship  of  the  Psalms.  When  once  it  is  admitted,  as  it 
must  be  admitted,  that  the  titles  cannot  be  absolutely  relied  on, 
we  are  launched  upon  a  sea  of  uncertainty.  Internal  evidence, 
whether  of  thought,  or  style,  or  language,  is  a  precarious  guide. 
Many  Psalms  are  of  a  quite  general  character:  the  circum- 
stances of  one  period  often  resemble  those  of  another :  many  of 

^  Arabic  poetry  was  preserved  by  the  rdwfs,  or  reciters.  "  The 
custom  of  committing  verse  to  writing  did  not  begin  till  near  the  end 
of  the  first  century  after  the  Flight.  The  whole  of  the  old  poetry 
was  preserved  by  oral  tradition  only."    Lyall's  Ancient  Arabian  Poetry^ 

p.  XXXV. 

"^  Thus  e.g.  Pss.  xix,  xxiv,  xxvii,  xl,  Ixxvii,  cxliv,  have  with  more  or 
less  plausibility  been  regarded  as  composite  Psalms. 

C2 


INTRODUCTION. 


the  Psalms  have  doubtless  undergone  adaptation  and  modifica- 
tion, and  the  date  of  a  Psalm  must  not  always  be  determined  by 
a  single  word  or  phrase^. 

Important  as  it  is  for  the  full  interpretation  of  many  Psalms 
to  know  the  circumstances  under  which  they  were  written,  and 
for  the  elucidation  of  the  religious  history  of  Israel  to  determine 
the  age  to  which  they  belong,  the  Psalms  as  a  whole  suffer  less 
from  this  uncertainty  than  might  be  expected.  Their  interest  is 
human  and  universal.  They  appeal  to  the  experience  of  all 
ages.  Still  the  endeavour  must  be  made  to  ascertain  to  what 
period  of  the  history  a  Psalm  belongs.  The  question  must  be 
considered  with  reference  to  each  particular  Psalm,  or  group  of 
Psalms,  for  in  those  cases  in  which  Psalms  are  connected  by 
external  indications  (e.g.  by  their  titles)  or  by  internal  re- 
semblances, they  must  obviously  be  considered  together.  The 
answer  must  often  be  noti  liquet',  and  even  when  a  Psalm 
appears  to  be  connected  with  the  circumstances  of  the  life  of  a 
particular  individual  or  period,  the  most  that  can  be  said  is  that 
the  Psalm  illustrates,  or  is  illustrated  by,  that  life  or  that  period. 
Thus  it  is  natural  to  attribute  to  Jeremiah^  several  Psalms 
which  reflect  feelings  expressed  in  his  prophecies,  or  contain 
language  resembling  them ;  and  to  assign  to  the  age  of  Ezra 
and  Nehemiah  a  number  of  Psalms  which  seem  to  have  light 
thrown  upon  them  by  the  circumstances  recorded  in  their  books. 
But  the  historical  and  biographical  records  of  the  O.T.,  if 
representative,  are  only  fragmentary  and  partial.  Jeremiah  was 
but  one  of  many  persecuted  saints  and  prophets.  History 
repeats  itself,  and  circumstances  not  unlike  those  described  in 
Ezra  and  Nehemiah  must  have  recurred  in  the  later  period  of 

^  The  question  is  often  asked  by  the  English  reader  why  language 
does  not  determine  the  date  of  the  books  of  the  O.T.  within  at  any 
rate  comparatively  definite  limits.  But  (i)  the  remains  of  Hebrew- 
literature  of  which  the  date  is  admitted  as  certain  are  too  scanty  to  give 
much  material  for  forming  a  judgement :  (2)  the  Massoretic  vocalisation, 
while  here  and  there  preserving  ancient  fonns,  has  obscured  distinctions 
under  the  uniform  pronunciation  of  a  later  age:  (3)  the  possibility 
of  the  imitation  of  ancient  models  in  a  later  age  must  be  taken  into 
account. 

2  See  the  introductions  to  Pss.  xxii,  xxxi,  xxxv,  xxxviii,  xl,  Iv,  Ixix, 
Ixxi,  Ixxwiii. 


AUTHORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE   PSALMS,     xxxvii 


which  we  know  practically  nothing.  Many  Psalms  of  course 
contain  no  indications  whatever  of  their  date.  But  a  Psalm 
gains  in  point  and  reality  if  we  can  give  it  a  historical  or 
personal  background,  though  it  is  unreasonable  to  assert  dog- 
matically that  it  must  necessarily  have  been  composed  by  that 
particular  author  or  under  those  special  circumstances. 

We  have  seen  (p.  xxxiii)  that  the  titles  'A  Psalm  of  David,'  'A 
Psalm  of  Asaph,'  'A  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah'  probably 
indicate  the  collections  from  which  the  Psalms  bearing  them 
were  derived.  But  they  easily  came  to  be  regarded  as  giving 
authoritative  information  about  the  authorship  of  the  Psalms  to 
which  they  are  prefixed.  The  view  was  frequently  held  in 
the  Jewish  Church  and  was  adopted  by  some  of  the  Christian 
Fathers,  that  anonymous  Psalms  were  to  be  attributed  to  the 
poet  last  namedi;  but  in  process  of  time  the  whole  Psalter 
came  to  be  attributed  to  David^. 

Modern  criticism  has  gone  to  the  opposite  extreme,  and  is 
disposed  to  refer  the  whole  Psalter,  or  at  least  the  greater  part 
of  it,  to  the  period  after  the  return  from  Babylon.  Thus 
Wellhausen  (in  Bleek's  Introduction^  p.  507,  ed.  1876):  "Since 
the  Psalter  belongs  to  the  Hagiographa,  and  is  the  hymn-book 
of  the  congregation  of  the  Second  Temple... the  question  is  not 
whether  it  contains  any  post-exilic  Psalms,  but  whether  it  con- 
tains any  pre-exilic  Psalms."  Similarly  Reuss  {History  of  the 
O.T.  §  282):  "Our  doubts  do  not  go  so  far  as  to  deny  the 
possibility  of  referring  a  single  one  of  the  poems  in  the  present 
collection  of  Synagogue  hymns  to  the  period  of  the  kingdom. 
But  we  have  no  decisive  proofs  for  such  antiquity."  In  this 
country  Professor  Cheyne  in  his  Bampton  Lectures  for  1889,  on 
The  Origin  and  Religious  Contents  of  the  Psalter  in  the  Light 

^  So  Jerome  (Ep.  cxl,  ad  Cypriamini)  attributes  Pss.  xci  to  c  to 
Moses,  "banc  habente  Scriptura  sacra  consuetudineni,  ut  omnes  Psalmi 
qui  cuius  sint  titulos  non  habent  his  deputentur  quorum  in  prioribus 
Psalmis  nomina  continentur." 

2  So  R.  Meir  in  the  Talmud  Pesachim  Wl  a;  and  this  view  seemed 
to  St  Augustine  "the  more  credible"  [de  Civ.  Dei  xvii.  14).  Theodoret 
accepted  it  as  the  general  opinion.  Even  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia, 
when  he  explained  seventeen  Psalms  to  refer  to  the  Maccabaean  age, 
did  not  question  that  they  were  written  by  David,  but  supposed  that'hc 
had  foretold  the  future  fortunes  of  his  people. 


INTRODUCTION. 


of  Old  Testa7iient  Criticism  and  the  History  of  Religions^  has 
maintained  that  the  whole  Psalter,  with  the  possible  exception 
of  parts  of  Ps.  xviii,  is  post-exilic,  belonging  mainly  to  the  later 
Persian  and  Greek  period,  and  containing  a  considerable  number 
of  Maccabaean  Psalms ;  and  that  it  was  finally  edited  by  Simon 
the  Maccabee,  c.  B.C.  140.  Duhm  (1900)  goes  even  further,  and 
not  only  denies  that  there  is  a  single  Psalm  which  could  induce 
an  unprejudiced  critic  to  regard  it  as  pre-exilic,  but  thinks  that 
it  is  open  to  question  whether  any  Psalms  are  as  old  as  the 
Persian  period,  and  assigns  the  majority  of  them  to  the  century 
beginning  with  the  Maccabaean  troubles  and  ending  with  the 
death  of  Alexander  Jannaeus,  B.C.  170 — 78.  The  completion 
and  final  publication  of  the  Psalter  took  place,  he  holds,  about 
B.C.  70. 

It  is  however  difficult  to  believe  that  these  views  represent  a 
just  estimate  of  the  evidence.  Religious  poetry  certainly  existed 
before  the  exile.  Ps.  cxxxvii^  furnishes  explicit  evidence  that 
the  Israelites  carried  it  with  them  to  Babylon,  and  that  their 
musical  skill  was  famous  there.  The  'songs  of  Zion'  which 
their  conquerors  bade  them  sing  were  '  Jehovah's  songs,'  sacred 
songs  destined  for  use  in  His  worship. 

The  ancient  praise-songs  of  Israel  in  the  Temple  are  referred 
to  by  the  prophet  of  the  Exile :  "  our  holy  and  our  beautiful 
house,  where  our  fathers  praised  Thee,  is  burned  with  fire" 
(Is.  Ixiv.  11). 

The  Book  of  Lamentations,  which,  though  probably  not 
written  by  Jeremiah,  "betrays  in  almost  every  part  so  lively  a 
recollection  of  the  closing  period  of  the  siege  and  taking  of 
Jerusalem,  that  at  least  the  greater  portion  of  it  can  have  been 
written  by  no  one  who  was  not  an  eye-witness  or  a  younger 
contemporary  of  these  events 2, '  is  so  thoroughly  artificial  in  style 

^  Professor  Cheyne  indeed  gets  rid  of  the  evidence  of  Ps.  cxxxvii  by 
treating  it  as  a  "dramatic  lyric"  written  400  years  after  the  Return  in 
the  time  of  Simon,  and  therefore  not  trustworthy  evidence  {Origin  of  the 
Psalter,  p.  ^^  f.);  but  if  any  Psalm  bears  upon  the  face  of  it  clear 
indications  of  the  time  at  which  it  was  composed,  it  is  this  Psalm. 
The  writer  and  those  for  whom  he  speaks  are  still  smarting  under  the 
recollection  of  the  sufferings  of  the  Exile. 

2  Kautzsch,  Literature  of  the  O.T.,  E.T.,  p.  92. 


AUTHORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE   PSALMS,     xxxix 

and  form  that  it  may  justly  be  inferred  from  it  that  the  art  of 
writing  sacred  poetry  had  long  been  cultivated. 

Jeremiah  (xxxiii.  ii)  predicts  the  restoration  of  the  Temple 
services  of  thanksgiving^,  and  quotes  as  in  familiar  use  a 
doxology  otherwise  known  only  from  post-exilic  Psalms  (cvi.  i, 
&c.),  yet  in  a  form  which,  by  its  slight  differences  from  that  in 
the  Psalter,  shews  that  it  belongs  to  the  prophetic  period. 
"Yet  again  shall  there  be  heard  in  this  place... the  voice  of  them 
that  say,  '  Give  thanks  to  Jehovah  of  hosts,  for  Jehovah  is  good, 
for  His  lovingkindness  endureth  for  ever,'  as  they  bring  (sacri- 
fices of)  thanksgiving  into  the  house  of  Jehovah."  It  is 
moreover  evident  from  passages  such  as  Jcr.  xx.  7  ff.  that  he 
was  familiar  with  the  style  and  language  of  Psalms  resembling 
those  which  have  come  down  to  us,  even  if  it  cannot  be  proved 
that  he  is  actually  quoting  any  of  them. 

A  century  earlier  Isaiah  refers  to  the  joyous  songs  of  the 
Passover  festival,  and  the  music  with  which  pilgrimage  to 
Jerusalem  for  the  festival  was  accompanied  (Is.  xxx.  29). 

Amos  (v.  23;  cp.  viii.  10)  alludes  to  the  songs  and  music  of 
the  religious  festivals  in  the  Northern  kingdom. 

The  Song  of  Deborah  (Judg.  v)  is  generally  acknowledged  to 
be  contemporary  with  the  events  which  it  describes,  and  though 
it  appears  to  have  undergone  some  expansion,  or  modification 
of  form,  at  a  later  age,  the  greater  part  of  the  Song  of  Moses  in 
Ex.  XV  is  probably  Mosaic^;  and  both  of  these  poems  are 
penetrated  by  a  religious  spirit. 

Religious  poetry  existed  before  the  Exile,  and  there  is  no  a 
priori  improbability  that  the  Psalter  should  contain  pre-exilic 
Psalms.  And  when  we  examine  the  Psalter,  we  find  a  number 
of  Psalms  which  may  most  naturally  be  referred  to  the  pre- 
exilic  period. 

^  The  reference  to  the  singers'  chambers  in  the  Temple  in  Ezek.  xl.  44 
cannot  be  quoted  as  implying  the  existence  of  a  Temple  choir  in  Ezekiel's 
time.  The  context  requires  the  adoption  of  the  reading  of  the  LXX, 
two  (DTIC^)  for  shigers  (D"'"lLi^).  On  the  other  hand  the  existence  of 
such  a  choir  is  implied  by  the  statement  in  Ezra  ii.  41  (  =  Neh.  vii.  44) 
that  among  those  who  returned  from  Babylon  in  B.C.  536  were  "the 
singers,  the  sons  of  Asaph." 

2  Driver,  Lit.  of  O.T.^,  p.  30. 


xl  INTRODUCTION. 


(a)  Psalms  which  contain  a  definite  reference  to  the  king, 
viz.  ii,  xviii,  xx,  xxi,  xxviii,  xxxiii,  xlv,  Ixi,  Ixiii,  Ixxii,  ci,  ex, 
presumably  belong  to  the  period  of  the  monarchy.  The  refer- 
ence of  such  Psalms  as  xx,  xxi,  Ixi,  Ixiii  to  Judas  or  Simon,  who 
studiously  avoided  the  title  of  king,  has  to  be  supported  by 
arbitrary  and  fanciful  exegesis,  and  by  setting  aside  the  ordinary 
meaning  of  familiar  words.  That  Pss.  xlv  and  Ixxii  can  refer  to 
a  non- Israelite  king  such  as  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  is  incredible. 
*  Jehovah's  anointed '  in  xxviii.  8  cannot,  in  view  of  the  context, 
be  understood  of  anyone  but  the  king.  The  reference  to  a  king 
in  xxxiii.  i6,  17  might  be  quite  general,  but  the  omission  of 
any  reference  to  a  king  in  cxlvii,  which  is  clearly  based  upon  it, 
is  significant.  The  one  belongs  to  the  age  of  the  monarchy,  the 
other  does  not. 

(d)  Pss.  xlvi — xlviii,  Ixxv,  Ixxvi  may  far  more  naturally  be 
referred  to  the  deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from  the  Assyrians 
under  Sennacherib  in  B.C.  701  than  "at  the  earliest,  to  one  of 
the  happier  parts  of  the  Persian  age."  They  are  full  of  points 
of  contact  in  thought  and  expression  with  the  Assyrian  pro- 
phecies of  Isaiah.  "The  Jewish  Church  in  Isaiah's  time  was," 
it  is  argued,  "far  too  germinal  to  have  sung  these  expressions  of 
daring  monotheism  and  impassioned  love  of  the  temple;  and 
the  word  ' Ely 071  (xlvi.  5  ;  cp.  xlvii.  3)  as  a  title  for  Jehovah  never 
occurs  in  Isaiah,  but  frequently  in  the  (probably)  later  Psalms^." 
It  may  well  be  the  case  that  these  Psalms  soar  far  above  the 
average  belief  of  the  Israelites  of  the  time,  but  that  is  no  argu- 
ment against  their  having  been  composed  by  Isaiah  or  a  poet 
fired  with  Isaiah's  insight  and  enthusiasm.  They  contain 
nothing  in  advance  of  Isaiah's  theology;  and  it  should  be  noted 
that  it  is  not  "impassioned  love  of  the  temple"  which  inspires 
the  writer  of  xlvi  and  xlviii,  but  admiring  love  for  the  city,  which 
had  been  so  signally  delivered ;  and  the  motive  of  these  Psalms 
is  in  full  accord  with  Isaiah's  teaching  concerning  the  inviola- 
bility of  Zion.  The  argument  from  the  use  of  'Ely on  in  Ps.  xlvi 
loses  its  force  when  it  is  observed  that  it  is  a  poetical  word, 
never  used  of  Jehovah  by  any  of  the  prophets  (see  Appendix, 
Note  ii). 

^  Cheyne,  Origin  of  the  Psaltery  p.  164. 


AUTHORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE    PSALMS,     xli 

An  argument  from  quotations  seldom  has  much  weight,  for  it 
is  often  impossible  to  decide  which  of  two  parallel  passages  is 
the  original,  but  it  seems  clear  that  Lam.  ii.  15  combines 
Ps.  xlviii.  2  and  Ps.  1.  2,  and  if  so,  the  quotation  supports  the 
pre-exilic  date  of  these  Psalms. 

(c)  Ps.  1  reflects  most  forcibly  the  teaching  of  the  great 
prophetic  period,  the  eighth  century,  and  must  be  referred  to 
this  rather  than  to  any  later  age. 

These  are  some  of  the  most  prominent  examples  of  Psalms 
which  are  most  naturally  and  simply  assigned  to  the  period  of 
the  monarchy;  but  there  are  others  which  may  with  great 
probability  be  referred  to  the  same  period,  and  of  those  which 
contain  no  clear  indications  of  date  some  at  least  may  be 
pre-exilic. 

But  the  question  still  remains  to  be  asked,  Can  we  go  further, 
and  carry  the  origin  of  the  Psalter  back  to  David?  It  is 
difficult  to  believe  that  the  tradition  of  the  Jewish  Church  was 
entirely  wrong  in  regarding  him  as  the  most  eminent  religious 
poet  of  the  nation,  and  in  assigning  the  foundation  of  the 
Psalter  to  him.  That  he  was  a  gifted  poet  is  proved  by  his 
noble  elegy  over  Saul  and  Jonathan  (2  Sam.  i.  19  ff.)  and  his 
lament  for  Abner  (2. Sam.  iii.  33  f.).  Though  these  poems  are 
not  directly  religious,  they  shew  that  the  warrior  king  was 
capable  of  the  tenderest  feelings.  Can  these  have  been  the 
only  products  of  his  poetical  genius?  How  came  it  that  David 
was  regarded  as  "the  sweet  Psalmist  of  Israel,"  and  that  so 
many  Psalms  were  ascribed  to  him  or  at  any  rate  that  the  earliest 
collections  of  Psalms  were  called  by  his  name,  unless  he  was 
really  a  Psalmist,  and  some  at  least  of  these  Psalms  were  actually 
written  by  him^? 

His  skill  as  poet  and  musician,  and  his  interest  in  the 
development  of  religious  music,  are  attested  by  the  earliest 
records^.  Later  times  pointed  to  him  as  the  founder  of 
the  services  of  the   sanctuary^.     The   leaders   of  the    Return 

^  Comp.  Riehm,  Einleitung  in  das  A.  T.,  ii.  190. 
^  See  I  Sam.  xvi.  17  ff.;  xviii.  10;  2  Sam.  i.  17  ft\;  iii.  33  ff. ;  vi.  5, 
15;  xxii.  i;  xxiii.  i  ff. ;  Amos  vi.  5. 
^  2  Chr.  xxix.  30. 


xlii  INTRODUCTION. 


from  the  Exile  believed  themselves  to  be  restoring  his  insti- 
tutions^. 

But  in  particular,  the  incorporation  of  Ps.  xviii  in  the  Book  of 
Samuel  as  a  specimen  of  David's  poetry  illustrating  his  character 
and  genius  is  evidence  in  favour  of  regarding  David  as  the 
founder  of  the  Psalter,  which  cannot  lightly  be  set  aside.  That 
Psalm  is  there  circumstantially  ascribed  to  David,  and  there  is 
no  sufficient  ground  for  placing  the  compilation  of  the  Book  of 
Samuel  at  so  late  a  date  that  its  evidence  on  this  point  can  be 
disregarded  as  a  mere  tradition  which  had  sprung  up  in  the 
course  of  centuries. 

But  if  Ps.  xviii  must  be  acknowledged  to  be  the  work  of 
David,  important  consequences  follow.  For  depth  of  devotion, 
simplicity  of  trust,  joyousness  of  gratitude,  and  confidence  of 
hope,  not  less  than  for  its  natural  force  and  poetic  beauty,  that 
Psalm  has  few  rivals.  It  has  all  the  freshness  of  creative 
genius.  It  can  hardly  have  been  the  solitary  production  of  its 
author.  If  such  a  Psalm  could  have  been  written  by  David,  so 
might  many  others  ;  and  it  is  reasonable  to  inquire  with  regard 
to  those  which  bear  his  name  whether  they  may  not  actually 
have  been  composed  by  him. 

Both  poetry  and  music  existed  before  David's  time,  and 
poetry  had  been  carried  to  a  high  development  in  such  compo- 
sitions as  Ex.  XV  and  Judg.  v.  But  with  David  a  new  era  of 
religious  poetry  commenced.  The  personal  element  entered 
into  it.  It  became  the  instrument  of  the  soul's  communion  with 
God.  David's  natural  poetic  powers  were  awakened  by  his 
training  in  the  schools  of  the  prophets  under  Samuel 2.  The 
manifold  vicissitudes  of  his  life  gave  him  an  unparalleled  depth 
and  variety  of  experience.  Chosen  by  God  to  be  the  founder 
of  the  kingdom  of  promise,  he  must  still  pass  through  trials  and 
persecutions  and  dangers  to  the  throne.  When  he  had  reached 
the  zenith  of  his  fame,  he  fell  through  pride  and  self-reliance, 
and  by  sharp  chastisement  must  learn  the  grievousness  of  sin. 
But  genius  and  circumstances  alone  could  not  have  produced 
the  Psalms.     In  his  "last  words"  he  himself  declared, 

^  Ezra  iii.  10;  Neh.  xii.  24,  36,  46. 

^  Comp.  Delitzsch,  I^Ae  Psalms,  Introd.  §  iii. 


AUTHORSHIP  AND   AGE   OF  THE   PSALMS,     xliii 


"The  spirit  of  Jehovah  spake  in  me, 
And  his  word  was  upon  my  tongue." 

Unique  natural  genius,  trained  and  called  into  action  by  the 
discipline  of  an  unique  life,  must  still  be  quickened  and  illumi- 
nated by  the  supernal  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  before  it 
could  strike  out  the  strains,  which  were  to  be  the  pattern  and 
model  of  religious  poetry  for  all  the  ages. 

It  has  often  been  asserted  that  the  David  of  the  Psalms  is  an 
entirely  different  character  from  the  David  of  history.  The 
devout  singer  and  the  rough  warrior  cannot,  it  is  said^,  be  the 
same  person.  But  a  great  nature  is  necessarily  many  sided  ; 
and  in  early  ages  it  is  possible  that  traits  of  character  which  to 
us  seem  irreconcilable  may  coexist  in  the  same  individual^.  And 
the  difference  is  often  exaggerated.  Not  a  few  of  the  Psalms 
illustrate  and  are  illustrated  by  the  history  of  David's  life  ;  and 
in  that  history,  fragmentaiy  and  incomplete  as  it  necessarily  is, 
are  to  be  found  abundant  traces  of  the  religious  side  of  his 
character ;  of  the  confidence  which  in  the  midst  of  danger 
and  difficulty  threw  itself  unperplexed  upon  God ;  of  the 
patience  which  could  await  God's  time  instead  of  rushing  to 
revenge  ;  of  the  simple  faith  which  ascribed  all  success  and 
advancement  to  God;  of  the  hope  which  looked  trustingly 
forward  into  the  unknown  future,  in  calm  assurance  that  God 
would  fulfil  His  promises  ;  last  but  not  least,  of  the  penitence 
which  humbled  itself  in  unfeigned  sorrow  for  sin. 

It  may  have  been  the  case,  as  Delitzsch  supposes^,  that  the 


*  e.g.  by  Reuss,  Hist,  of  O.T.  %  157;  Cheyne,  Origin  of  the  Psalter, 

p.  •211. 

^  The  character  of  Charles  the  Great  presents  an  interesting  parallel. 
Charles  was  "  a  conqiieror,  a  legislator,  a  founder  of  social  order, 
a  restorer  of  religion."  Yet  "  his  wars  were  ferocious,  and  his  policy 
after  conquest  unsparing."  Though  there  was  much  of  earnestness  and 
intelligence  in  his  religion,  "  it  was  not  complete  or  deep  enough  to 
exclude  that  waywardness  and  inconsistency  of  moral  principle,  and  ihat 
incapacity  to  control  passion,  which  belonged  to  the  time.... His  court 
was  full  of  the  gross  licentiousness  of  the  period,  and  he  was  not 
superior  to  it  himself."  Church,  Beginniug  of  the  Middle  Ages,  pp. 
135  ff.  Comp.  Bishop  Alexander's  Witness  of  the  Psalms  to  Christ, 
p.  89  ;  Davison's  Praises  of  Israel,  p.  45. 

■^  Introd.  §  iii. 


xliv  INTRODUCTION. 

reigns  of  Jehoshaphat  and  Hezekiah  were  marked  by  fresh  out- 
bursts of  Psalm  poetry.  Under  both  these  kings  great  national 
deliverances  called  for  fresh  expressions  of  praise  and  thanks- 
giving (2  Ch.  XX ;  2  Kings  xviii.  ff.):  Jehoshaphat  exerted  him- 
self for  the  religious  education  of  the  country  (2  Chr.  xvii.  7  ff.) : 
the  collection  of  Proverbs,  made  under  the  direction  of  Heze- 
kiah, attests  his  interest  in  literature  (Prov.  xxv.  i). 

A  few  Psalms  date  from  the  time  of  the  destruction  of  Jeru- 
salem and  the  earlier  years  of  the  exile.  Some  (cp.  p.  xxxvi)  may 
be  from  the  pen  of  Jeremiah,  who  has  been  credited  by  some 
critics  with  the  authorship  of  a  considerable  number^ 

With  the  Return  from  the  Exile  Psalmody  revived.  The  harp 
which  had  been  hung  up  on  the  willows  of  Babylon  was  strung 
once  more.  Fresh  hymns  were  written  for  the  services  of  the 
restored  Temple^.  Psalms  xciii,  xcv — c,  the  lyrical  echo  of  Is. 
:d — Ixvi,  form  a  noble  group  of  anthems  composed  in  all  proba- 
bility for  the  Dedication  of  the  Temple  in  B.C.  516.  Other 
Psalms  may  reflect  the  circumstances  of  the  age  of  Ezra  and 
Nehemiah,  and  the  renewed  study  of  the  Law  in  that  period 
bore  fruit  in  the  devout  meditations  of  Ps.  cxix. 

How  long  did  the  Psalter  still  continue  to  receive  further 
enrichment  ?  The  question  has  been  warmly  debated  in  ancient 
and  modern  times,  whether  any  of  the  Psalms  belong  to  the 
Maccabaean  period.  Prophecy  was  silent  (i  Mace.  iv.  46,  &c.); 
but  must  not  the  great  revival  of  national  spirit  naturally  have 
found  expression  in  poetry?  and  do  not  some  of  the  Psalms 
clearly  refer  to  the  circumstances  of  that  period? 

Some  critics,  as  has  been  mentioned  already  (p.  xxxvii),  would 

^  This  appears  to  be  due  partly  to  the  fact  that  so  much  of  his 
personal  and  inner  life  is  known  to  us  from  his  autobiography ;  partly 
to  his  familiarity  with  existing  literature  and  his  free  use  of  it,  which 
results  in  numerous  parallels  between  his  prophecies  and  the  Psalms. 

^  Yet  some  of  the  Temple  Psalms  in  the  later  books  of  the  Psalter 
may  have  been  revivals  or  adaptations  of  ancient  hymns.  An  incidental 
reference  in  Jer.  xxxiii.  11  shews  that  the  doxology,  "Give  thanks 
to  Jehovah  of  hosts,  for  Jehovah  is  good,  for  his  mercy  endureth 
for  ever,"  was  the  characteristic  formula  of  thanksgiving  before  the 
Captivity.  Yet  it  is  found  only  in  the  later  Books  (IV  and  V)  of  the 
Psalter  (Ps.  c.  4,  5;  cvi.  i  ;  &c.),  in  Psalms  which  are  certainly  post- 
exilic. 


AUTHORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE   PSALMS,     xlv 

refer  a  considerable  number  of  Psalms,  or  even  the  main  bulk 
of  the  Psalter,  to  that  period,  and  would  bring  down  the  com- 
pletion of  the  collection  to  the  reign  of  John  Hyrcanus  (B.C.  135 
— 106)  or  Alexander  Jannaeus  (B.C.  105 — 7S). 

The  real  question  is,  however,  a  much  narrower  one.  The 
Psalms  which  have  been  most  confidently  and  generally  referred 
to  the  age  of  the  Maccabees  are  xliv,  Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  and  Ix, 
Ixxxiii ;  with  a  few  others.  These  are  thought  to  present 
features  which  belong  to  that  age,  and  to  no  other ;  e.g.  in 
Ps.  xliv  the  description  of  the  nation  as  suffering,  though  it  has 
been  faithful  to  God ;  in  Ixxiv  the  destruction  of  the  synagogues, 
the  profanation  of  the  Temple,  and  the  cessation  of  prophecy : 
while  the  quotation  of  Ixxix.  2,  3  in  i  Mace.  vii.  16,  17  with 
reference  to  the  slaughter  of  the  Assideans  by  the  usurping 
high-priest  Alcimus,  is  supposed  to  imply  that  it  was  written 
on  the  occasion  of  the  massacre. 

The  question  is  one  of  exegesis,  and  a  detailed  examination  of 
the  characteristics  of  these  Psalms  must  be  deferred  to  the  com- 
mentary on  them.  It  will  then  be  seen  whether  they  cannot  be 
better  referred  to  the  Chaldean  or  Persian  period,  or  even  an 
earlier  time.  It  has  well  been  pointed  out  that  some  distinctive 
features  of  the  Maccabaean  period  are  conspicuously  absent 
from  these  Psalms.  "  They  do  not  contain  the  slightest  trace 
of  those  internal  divisions  of  the  people  which  were  the  most 
marked  features  of  the  Maccabaean  struggle.  The  dangers  then 
were  as  much  from  within  as  from  without;  and  party  jealousies 
brought  the  divine  cause  to  the  greatest  peril.  It  is  incredible 
that  a  series  of  Maccabaean  Psalms  should  contain  no  allusion 
to  a  system  of  enforced  idolatry,  or  to  a  temporising  priesthood, 
or  to  a  faithless  multitude^." 

The  preliminary  question  may  however  be  discussed  here, 
whether  the  history  of  the  Psalter  and  the  Canon  does  not 
exclude  the  possibility  of  such  late  additions. 

(i)  As  the  author  of  the  Book  of  Chronicles  (c.  300  B.C.),  in 
combining  portions  of  Pss.  cv,  xcvi,  cvi  for  the  festal  anthem  which 
he  introduces  on  the  occasion  of  the  translation  of  the  Ark  to 

1  Bp  Westcott  in  Smith's  £>ia.  of  the  Bible,  ii.  168. 


xlvi  INTRODUCTION. 


Zion  (i  Chr.  xvi.  8  ff.),  includes  as  a  part  of  cvi  the  doxology 
which  marks  the  end  of  the  fourth  Book,  it  has  been  argued 
that  the  Psalter  must  have  been  already  known  to  him  in  its 
five-fold  division.  This  is  extremely  doubtful.  This  doxology, 
as  will  be  shewn  in  the  notes  to  Ps.  cvi,  differs  in  character  from 
the  doxologies  at  the  close  of  the  first  three  Books ;  in  all  proba- 
bility it  was  an  original  part  of  the  Psalm,  not  an  addition  by 
the  collector  of  the  Psalter,  and  only  came  in  later  times  to  be 
regarded  as  marking  the  division  between  the  fourth  and  fifth 
Books.  And  even  if  it  were  to  be  admitted  that  a  five-fold  division 
of  the  Psalter  then  existed,  it  would  not  necessarily  follow  that 
the  Psalter  was  finally  complete,  and  closed  against  the  admission 
of  fresh  Psalms. 

(2)  More  important  is  the  fact  that  the  Psalms  which  upon 
internal  grounds  have  most  generally  and  confidently  been  as- 
signed to  the  Maccabaean  period  (xliv,  Ix,  Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  Ixxxiii)  are 
all  found  in  the  '  Elohistic '  collection.  This  collection  was 
certainly  earlier  than  the  collection  contained  in  Books  IV  and 
V,  for  Ps.  cviii  consists  of  portions  of  two  Elohistic  Psalms  (see 
p.  Iv).  Moreover  some  of  the  supposed  Maccabaean  Psalms 
have  musical  titles,  in  contrast  to  the  general  practice  of  the 
last  collection.  It  is  exceedingly  improbable  that  a  Maccabaean 
Psalmist  would  have  made  his  additions  Elohistic  to  correspond 
with  the  earlier  Psalms,  and  even  furnished  his  Psalms  with 
titles  which  no  longer  had  any  meaning  1.  And  is  it  con- 
ceivable that  the  LXX  translators  should  have  been  so  entirely 
at  fault  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  titles  of  Ix  and  Ixxx,  if  they 
were  quite  recent  compositions  ? 

(3)  The  Greek  translator  of  Ecclesiasticus,  writing  in  Egypt, 
about  B.C.  130,  states  in  his  Prologue  that  his  grandfather  Jesus 
the  son  of  Sirach  was  moved  to  write  the  book  after  diligent 
study  of  "the  law  and  the  prophets  and  the  other  books  of 
our  fathers  "  {tov  voixov  koi  tcov  7rpo(f)rjTCiV  koI  tSu  akXtov  narpicop 
jSi^Xioji/);  and  pleading  for  indulgence  towards  the  defects  of  his 
own  translation  he  points  out  that  even  in  the  case  of  "  the  law 

^  See  Robertson  Smith,  0/d  Test,  in  Jewish  Church'-,  pp.  207, 
437- 


AUTHORSHIP  AND   AGE   OF   THE   PSALMS,     xlvii 

and  the  prophecies  and  the  rest  of  the  books  "  there  is  no  small 
difference  between  the  original  and  a  translation. 

From  these  statements  it  may  reasonably  be  inferred  (i)  that 
Jesus  the  son  of  Sirach,  c.  iSo  B.C.,  was  acquainted  with  a  three- 
fold Canon  of  Scripture,  distinguished  from  other  writings  ;  and 
(2)  that  a  Greek  translation  of  a  three-fold  Canon  was  current 
in  Egypt  c.  130  B.C.  Now  "the  Greek  Psalter... is  essentially 
the  same  as  the  Hebrew  ;  there  is  nothing  to  suggest  that  the 
Greek  was  first  translated  from  a  less  complete  Psalter  and 
afterwards  extended  to  agree  with  the  received  Hebrew.  It  is 
therefore  reasonable  to  hold  that  the  Hebrew  Psalter  was  com- 
pleted and  recognised  as  an  authoritative  collection  long  enough 
before  130  B.C.  to  allow  of  its  passing  to  the  Hellenistic  Jews  of 
Alexandria  ^"  Accordingly  the  closing  of  the  Canon  of  the 
Psalter  must  be  placed,  at  the  very  latest,  in  the  time  of  Simon 
(c.  140  B.C.).  John  Hyrcanus  (B.C.  135 — 106),  Aristobulus  I,  who 
assumed  the  title  of  king  (B.C.  106),  and  Alexander  Jannaeus 
(B.C.  105 — yS),  are  not  celebrated  in  the  Psalter.  But  it  seems 
very  doubtful  whether  a  considerably  longer  interval  than  ten 
years  ought  not  to  be  allowed  between  the  closing  of  the  col- 
lection and  its  currency  in  a  Greek  Version  ;  and  the  evidence 
next  to  be  adduced  makes  it  extremely  probable  that  the  col- 
lection was  completed  at  least  half  a  century  earlier. 

(4)  Fresh  evidence  as  to  the  contents  of  the  Canon  of 
Scripture  known  to  Jesus  the  son  of  Sirach  has  recently  been 
brought  to  light  by  the  recovery  of  portions  of  the  Hebrew 
text  of  Ecclesiasticus  by  Dr  Schechter  and  other  scholars.  In 
this  text  ch.  li.  12  is  followed  by  a  Psalm  of  fifteen  verses,  which 
is  unquestionably  an  imitation  of  Ps.  cxxxv  (see  Introd.  to  that 
Ps.),  and  is  largely  composed  of  phrases  taken  from  Psalms  in 
Book  V,  e.g.  cxxi,  cxxxii,  cxlvii,  cxlviii.  In  particular,  cxlviii.  14 
is  quoted  verbatim.  If  this  Psalm  was  composed  by  Jesus  the 
son  of  Sirach  c.  180  B.C.,  it  shews  that  he  was  familiar  with 
Psalms,  some  of  which  have  a  strong  claim  to  be  regarded 
as  among  the  latest  in  the  Psalter.  This  is  the  most  striking 
example,   but   Dr  Schechter  holds   that   the  allusions   in   the 

*  Robertson  Smith,  O.  T.J.  C.  p.  201. 


xlviii  INTRODUCTION. 

portions  of  the  Hebrew  text  at  present  recovered  extend  over  "  all 
the  books  or  groups  of  the  Psalms  ^"  Though  it  is  impossible 
to  prove  that  the  Psalter  was  finally  completed  by  B.C.  i8o,  a 
strong  presumption  is  raised  against  the  admission  of  Psalms 
after  that  date,  and  it  is  highly  probable  that  among  "  the  other 
books  of  the  fathers  "  upon  the  study  of  which  Jesus  the  son  of 
Sirach  based  his  work  was  the  Psalter  substantially  as  we  now 
have  it.  In  particular  it  is  noteworthy  that  we  have  clear 
evidence  for  the  existence  of  the  last  group  of  Psalms  (cxliv — cl), 
in  which  Maccabaean  Psalms  might  most  naturally  be  looked 
for,  and  one  of  which  (cxlix)  has  upon  internal  grounds  the  best 
claim  of  any  Psalm  to  be  regarded  as  Maccabaean. 

(5)  The  Second  Book  of  Maccabees  speaks  of  the  care 
which  Judas  took  to  collect  the  sacred  writings  which  had 
been  dispersed  or  lost  in  the  war  (2  Mace.  ii.  14),  but  no  hint 
is  given  that  the  collection  included  new  works.  This  book 
however  cannot  be  regarded  as  a  trustworthy  historical  authority. 

(6)  If  the  Psalms  of  Solonion"^  could  be  referred  to  the 
Maccabaean  age,  they  would  afford  an  almost  conclusive  proof 
that  the  whole  of  the  Psalter  belongs  to  a  much  earlier  time. 
But  it  is  now  generally  agreed  that  this  collection  belongs  to  the 
period  after  the  conquest  of  Jerusalem  by  Pompey  in  B.C.  63, 
and  was  completed  soon  after  his  death  in  B.C.  48 ^  Even  if  the 
Psalms  of  Solomon  are  to  be  placed  at  this  later  date,  the  argu- 
ment does  not  altogether  lose  its  force'*.  For  they  were  written 
only  a  century  after  the  standard  of  independence  was  raised  by 

1  Schechter  and  Taylor,  The  Wisdom  of  Ben  Sira,  p.  26.  "  The 
impression  produced  by  the  perusal  of  Ben  Sira's  original  on  the  student 
who  is  at  all  familiar  with  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  is  that  of  reading  the 
work  of  a  post-canonical  author,  who  already  knew  his  Bible  and  was 
constantly  quoting  it." 

2  A  collection  of  18  Psalms,  written  in  Hebrew,  probably  in  Palestine, 
but  now  extant  only  in  a  Greek  version.  The  best  edition  is  that  of 
Prof,  (now  Bp)  Ryle  and  Dr  James,  with  translation  and  commentary 
(189 1 ).  The  text  is  to  be  found  in  Vol.  iii  of  Dr  Swete's  edition  of  the 
LXX  (also  published  separately,  with  the  Greek  fragments  of  Enoch). 

*  See  Schiirer's  Hist,  of  the  fewish  People  in  the  time  of  fesus  Christ, 
Div.  ii.  §  32  (Vol.  iii.  pp.  17  ff.,  E.T.). 

^  The  development  of  this  argument  by  Bp  Westcott  in  Smith's  Diet, 
of  the  Bible,  ii.  168,  on  the  hypothesis  of  the  Maccabaean  date  of  these 
Psalms,  should  still  be  consulted. 


AUTHORSHIP   AND   AGE   OF   THE    PSALMS,     xlix 

Mattathias,  and  almost  immediately  after  the  time  at  which 
the  Psalter  is  supposed  by  some  critics  to  have  received  its 
latest  additions.  But  the  contrast  is  immense.  They  are 
separated  from  the  Psalter  by  an  impassable  gulf.  "  The  spirit 
which  the  Psalms  breathe  is  entirely  that  of  Pharisaic  Judaism. 
They  are  pervaded  by  an  earnest  moral  tone  and  a  sincere 
piety.  But  the  righteousness  which  they  preach  and  the  dearth 
of  which  they  deplore  is,  all  through,-  the  righteousness  which 
consists  in  complying  with  all  the  Pharisaic  prescriptions^" 
Their  development  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection  and 
the  Messianic  expectation  separates  them  widely  from  the 
canonical  Psalms.  Where  for  example  can  we  find  parallels 
in  the  Psalter  to  language  like  the  following  with  reference  to 
the  Resurrection  ? 

"  The  destruction  of  the  sinner  shall  be  for  ever, 
and  he   shall   not  be    remembered,   when    He    visiteth    the 

righteous : 
this  is  the  portion  of  sinners  for  ever. 
But  they  that  fear  the  Lord  shall  arise  unto  life  eternal, 
and  their  life  shall  be  in  the  light  of  the  Lord,  and  shall  fail 
no  more"  (iii.  13 — 16). 

"For  the  Lord  will  spare  His  saints, 
and  their  transgressions  will  He  blot  out  by  correction  : 
for  the  life  of  the  righteous  is  for  ever, 
but  sinners  shall  be  carried  away  to  destruction, 
and  the  memorial  of  them  shall  no  more  be  found"  (xiii.  9,  10). 

Equally  remarkable  is  the  expression  of  the  Messianic  hope  : 

"  Behold,  O  Lord,  and  raise  up  unto  them  their  king,  the  son  of 
David, 
at  the  time  which  Thou  knowest,  O  God, 
that  he  may  reign  over  Israel  Thy  servant. 
And  gird  him  with  strength  to  break  in  pieces  unrighteous 
rulers"  (xvii.  23,  24), 


^  Schiirer,  p.  3i, 

PSALMS 


1  INTRODUCTION. 

"And  in  his  days  there  is  no  unrighteousness  in  the  midst  of 
them, 
for  all  are  holy,  and  their  king  is  the  anointed  lord^"  {v.  36). 
*  *  *  * 

"  And  he  himself  is  pure  from  sin,  to  rule  over  a  great  people  ; 
to  rebuke  rulers  and  to  destroy  sinners  by  the  strength  of  his 

word. 
And  he  shall  not  be  feeble  in  his  days,  relying  upon  his  God, 
for  God  made  him  mighty  in  the  holy  spirit, 
and  wise  in  the  counsel  of  understanding,  with  strength  and 

righteousness"  {vv.  41,  42). 
These  general  considerations  are  sufficient,  taken  all  together, 
to  make  it  antecedently  doubtful  whether  any  Psalms  date  from 
the  Maccabaean  period,  and  it  seems  to  be  fairly  open  to  ques- 
tion whether  the  internal  characteristics  of  the  supposed  Macca- 
baean Psalms  are  such  as  to  outweigh  these  general  conside- 
rations. The  discussion  of  these  special  characteristics  must 
necessarily  be  deferred  to  the  notes  on  each  Psalm.  Few 
modern  commentators  however  deny  the  possibility,  and  mosi 
maintain  the  certainty,  of  the  existence  of  Maccabaean  Psalms 
in  the  Psalter. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  OBJECT,   COLLECTION,   AND   GROWTH   OF  THE  PSALTER. 

What  was  the  object  with  which  the  Psalter  was  compiled? 
It  is  often  spoken  of  as  'the  hymn  book  of  the  second  Temple,' 
and  it  is  assumed  that  it  was  intended  for  use  in  public  worship. 
But  it  has  not  the  appearance  of  a  collection  of  hymns  made 
exclusively  for  liturgical  purposes,  and  there  is  no  evidence  that 
it  was  so  used  as  a  whole  in  the  Jewish  Church  down  to  the 
Christian  era^.     Many  of  the   Psalms  were  no  doubt  written 

^  Xpi-<yTbs  K6pLo$:  cp.  Lam.  iv.  20  (LXX),  Luke  ii.  ir. 

2  "  The  statements  of  the  Rabbis  point  to  the  use  of  certain  Psalms 
on  special  occasions  only ;  for  the  use  of  the  whole  Psalter  in  the  period 
to  which  they  refer  there  is  no  evidence."  Dalman  in  TAeo/.  Litztg. 
1893,  col.  517. 


OBJECT   OF   THE   PSALTER.  li 


expressly  for  use  in  public  worship,  either  in  celebration  of 
particular  events,  or  for  general  use ;  and  many  not  written  with 
this  special  object  are  well  adapted  for  it.  But  many  were 
clearly  not  originally  intended  for  this  purpose,  and  could  only  be 
so  used  by  a  process  of  accommodation.  Some  Psalms  are  the 
outpouring  of  the  heart  to  God  in  the  most  intimate  personal 
communion,  in  supplication,  confession,  thanksgiving,  praise, 
springing  out  of  the  needs  and  aspirations  of  the  soul  in  the 
crises  of  life,  and  adapted  primarily  for  private  devotion  rather 
than  for  public  worship.  Some  are  of  a  didactic  character, 
intended  for  instruction  and  edification,  and  to  be  read  or  learnt 
rather  than  sung.  The  object  of  the  compilers  of  the  Psalter 
would  seem  to  have  been  by  no  means  simply  liturgical,  but 
partly  to  unite  and  preserve  existing  collections  of  religious 
poetry,  partly  to  provide  a  book  of  rehgious  devotion,  public 
and  private. 

In  this  connexion  a  few  words  may  be  said  upon  a  question 
which  has  recently  been  much  discussed  : — Who  is  the  speaker 
in  the  Psalms  ?  At  first  sight  it  may  seem  to  the  reader  accus- 
tomed to  modern  western  modes  of  thought  that  it  can  be  no 
one  but  the  Psalmist  himself.  But  in  view  of  the  ancient 
oriental  modes  of  thought  and  expression  it  is  at  least  possible 
that  in  many  Psalms  which  seem  at  first  sight  to  be  entirely 
personal  and  individual,  the  speaker  is  not  an  individual,  but 
the  nation  or  the  godly  part  of  it,  the  collective  'servant  of 
Jehovah.'  Thus  in  Ps.  cxxix  Israel  speaks  as  an  individual  : 
"Much  have  they  vexed  me  from  my  youth  up,  let  Israel  now 
say."  Such  personification  of  the  nation  is  not  confined  to 
poetry  :  it  is  common  in  the  Pentateuch.  Israel  often  speaks 
or  is  addressed  as  an  individual,  e.g.  in  Deut.  vii.  17  ft. ;  Ex. 
xxiii.  20  ff. ;  Num.  vi.  24 — 26.  May  not  this  usage  be  common  in 
the  Psalms  ?  and  especially  if  the  Psalter  be  '  the  hymn  book  of 
the  congregation,'  is  it  not  the  congregation  that  speaks  ?  This 
method  of  interpretation  is  no  novelty.  It  is  found  in  the  LXX 
and  the  Targum,  in  which  Psalms  apparently  most  strongly 
individual  (e.g.  xxiii,  Ivi)  are  interpreted  of  the  nation  ;  it  has 
been  adopted  by  Christian  Fathers  and  Jewish  Rabbis  and 
modern  commentators  of  the  most  widely  different  schools. 

d2 


lii  INTRODUCTION. 


It  has  been  most  elaborately  developed  in  recent  times  by 
Smend\  who.  holds  that  in  few  if  any  of  the  Psalms  is  the  voice 
of  an  individual  to  be  heard.  The  hostility  of  enemies  so  often 
complained  of  is  really  the  hostility  of  neighbouring  nations :  the 
sicknesses  and  sufferings  described  are  those  of  the  body  politic 
(cp.  Is.  i.  5  ff.).  The  theory  doubtless  contains  elements  of 
truth  ;  but  it  has  been  pressed  to  absurd  extremes,  and  it  is  con- 
nected with  the  mistaken  view  that  the  Psalter  was  designed  as 
a  whole  to  be  the  hymn  book  of  the  congregation,  and  that  the 
Psalms  were  written  for  that  purpose.  Many  of  the  Psalmists 
were  representative  men.  They  spoke  on  behalf  of  the  nation,  or 
of  some  class  or  body  within  it.  Their  vivid  consciousness  of  the 
'solidarity'  of  the  nation,  of  the  reality  and  continuity  of  national 
life,  enabled  them  to  enter  into  its  hopes  and  fears,  its  joys  and 
sufferings,  its  triumphs  and  reverses,  with  a  depth  of  insight  and 
an  intensity  of  sympathy  which  made  them  truly  the  mouth- 
pieces of  the  community.  The  true  poet  enlarges  and  genera- 
lises his  own  feelings  and  experiences.  Thus  Tennyson  writes 
of  In  Memoriam:  "'I'  is  not  always  the  author  speaking  of 
himself,  but  the  voice  of  the  human  race  speaking  through 
him 2."  But  while  the  Psalmist  speaks  in  the  name  of  many,  he 
speaks  in  his  own  name  too.  He  is  not,  in  the  majority  of  cases 
at  any  rate,  deliberately  substituting  the  personality  of  the 
nation  for  his  own  personality.  Many  Psalms  are  so  intensely 
personal,  that  it  is  impossible  to  suppose  that  they  did  not  have 
their  origin  in  real  personal  experience ;  often  experience  so 
special  and  peculiar  that  it  is  only  by  a  process  of  accommodation 
that  it  can  be  used  by  the  congregation.  Outside  of  the  Psalter, 
e.g.  in  Jeremiah  and  NehemJah,  language  closely  resembling  that 
of  the  Psalter  is  used  by  individuals.  Moreover  the  speaker  is 
not  seldom  distinguished  from  the  congregation.  And  if  the 
reference  of  Psalms  to  the  nation  is  as  old  as  the  LXX,  the 

1  In  the  Zeitschrift  fur  alttestavientliche  Theologie,  r888,  pp.  49  ff. 
It  has  also  been  fully  examined  and  advocated  within  more  reasonable 
limits  by  Beer,  Individual-  ujtd  Gemeindepsalnien,  1894.  See  also 
Cheyne,  Origin  of  the  Psalter^  pp.  261  ff.,  276  ff.  Robertson  Smith, 
0.  T.J.  C.  p.  220.     Driver,  Lit.  of  O.T.^  p.  389. 

2  Tennyson's  Life^  i.  305. 


GROWTH    OF   THE   PSALTER.  liii 

reference  of  them  to  individuals  is  still  older,  for  it  is  implied  by 
the  titles,  which  connect  them  with  events  in  the  life  of  David. 
Still,  the  possibility  that  the  '  I '  in  the  Psalter  is  collective  and 
not  individual  must  be  borne  in  mind  in  the  interpretation  of 
the  Psalms,  though  to  what  extent  the  principle  is  to  be  applied 
will  remain  debatable.  In  many  Psalms  where  '  I '  and  '  we ' 
interchange  it  may  be  questioned  whether  *  I'  denotes  the  nation, 
or  the  Psalmist  speaking  on  its  behalf  as  its  leader  and  repre- 
sentative. See  e.g.  xliv.  4,  6,  15  ;  Ix.  9;  Ixv.  3;  Ixvi.  I3ff. ;  Ixxiv. 
12;  Ixxxix.  50;  xciv.  16  ff.;  ciii  ;  cxviii.  Some  Psalms  where 
the  singular  alone  is  used  may  be  national ;  but  to  the  present 
writer  it  seems  exceedingly  questionable  whether  such  Psalms  as 
li,  Ivi,  Ixxi,  Ixxxviii,  cii,  cxvi,  cxxxix,  can  be  other  than  personal 
in  their  origin  and  primary  application,  though  they  may  in  use 
have  been  appropriated  by  the  whole  congregation. 

Internal  evidence  makes  it  certain  that  the  Psalter  grew  up 
gradually  from  the  union  of  earlier  collections  of  Psalms,  and 
these  collections  differed  widely  in  character.  In  some  the 
personal  element  predominated  ;  in  others  there  were  more 
Psalms  referring  primarily  to  events  in  the  national  history;  in 
others  the  liturgical  intention  is  obvious. 

The  various  strata  of  which  the  Psalter  is  composed  can  to 
some  extent  be  distinguished.  Three  principal  divisions,  marked 
by  well-defined  characteristics,  may  be  observed.  They  appear 
to  have  arisen  in  successive  chronological  order\  but  such  a 
supposition  need  not  exclude  the  possibility  that  the  first  division 
received  late  additions,  or  that  the  last  division  may  contain 
early  Psalms.  It  is  an  unwarrantable  assumption  that  there 
can  be  no  pre-exilic  Psalms  in  the  third  division,  because  they 
must  all  have  been  included  in  one  of  the  earlier  collections. 

(i)  The  First  Division  is  coextensive  with  Book  I  (Pss.  i — 
xli).  All  the  Psalms  in  it  have  titles  and  are  described  as 
Psalms  "  of  David,"  with  the  exception  of  i,  ii,  x,  xxxiii.     The 

^  It  is  maintained  by  Peters  {Developjnetit  of  the  Psalter,  in  The  New 
World,  1893,  p.  295)  that  the  Psalms  in  the  appendix  to  Book  III 
{84 — 89)  and  in  Books  IV  and  V,  which  are  composed  largely  of  cita- 
tions from,  paraphrases  of,  or  enlargements  upon  other  scriptures,  quote 
only  Psalms  preceding  them  in  the  order  of  arrangement. 


liv  INTRODUCTION. 


exceptions  are  easily  accounted  for.  Pss.  i  and  ii  are  intro- 
ductory, and  probably  did  not  belong  to  the  original  collection. 
Ps.  X  was  either  originally  part  of  Ps.  ix,  or  was  written  as  a 
pendant  to  it.  Ps.  xxxiii  appears  to  be  of  later  date,  inserted  as 
an  illustration  of  the  last  verse  of  Ps.  xxxii.  This  collection  may 
have  been  made  by  one  editor  :  it  does  not  appear,  like  the 
Second  and  Third  Divisions,  to  have  had  collections  already 
existing  incorporated  in  it. 

(ii)  The  Second  Division  corresponds  to  Books  II  and  III 
(Ps.  xlii — Ixxxix).  All  the  Psalms  in  it,  except  xliii  (which  is 
really  part  of  xlii)  and  Ixxi,  bear  titles.  It  consists  of  (a) 
seven  Psalms  (or  eight,  if  xlii  and  xliii  are  reckoned  separately) 
"of  the  sons  of  Korah"  (xlii— xlix):  (d)  a  Psalm  "of  Asaph" 
(1):  (c)  ten  Psalms,  all  except  Ixvi,  Ixvii,  "of  David"  (Ii — Ixx) : 
{(f)  an  anonymous  Psalm  (Ixxi),  and  a  Psalm  "  of  Solomon  " 
(Ixxii)^:  (e)  eleven  Psalms  "of  Asaph"  (Ixxiii — Ixxxiii)  :  (/)  a 
supplement  containing  three  Psalms  "of  the  sons  of  Korah" 
(Ixxxiv,  Ixxxv,  Ixxxvii)  ;  one  "  of  David,"  which  is  manifestly 
a  cento  from  other  Psalms  (Ixxxvi)  ;  one  "  of  Heman  the 
Ezrahite  "  (Ixxxviii) ;  and  one  "  of  Ethan  the  Ezrahite  "  (Ixxxix). 
Thus  it  appears  to  have  been  formed  by  the  union  of  at  least 
three  previously  existing  collections  or  of  portions  of  them. 

(iii)  The  Third  Division  corresponds  to  Books  IV  and  V 
(Pss.  xc — cl).  In  this  division  many  Psalms  have  no  title  at 
all,  and  only  a  few  bear  the  name  of  an  author.  In  Book  IV, 
Ps.  xc  bears  the  name  of  Moses :  Pss.  ci  and  ciii  that  of 
David.     In  Book  V,  Pss.  cviii — ex,  cxxii,  cxxiv,  cxxxi,  cxxxiii, 

^  It  has  been  conjectured  by  Ewald  that  Pss.  Ii — Ixxii  originally 
stood  after  xli,  so  that  the  arrangement  was  (i)  Davidic  Psalms,  i — xli; 
Ii — Ixxii:  (2)  Levitical  Psalms:  {a)  Korahite,  xlii — xlix;  (d)  Asaphite, 
1,  Ixxiii — Ixxxiii ;  {c)  Korahite  supplement,  Ixxxiv — Ixxxix.  The  hypo- 
thesis is  ingenious.  It  brings  the  Davidic  Psalms  together,  and  makes 
the  note  to  Ixxii.  20  more  natural;  and  it  connects  the  isolated  Psalm 
of  Asaph  (1)  with  the  rest  of  tlie  group. 

But  it  is  clear  that  Books  II  and  III  formed  a  collection  independent 
of  Book  I :  and  the  editor  may  have  wished  to  separate  the  mass  of 
the  Asaphite  Psalms  from  the  Korahite  Psalms  by  placing  the  Davidic 
Psalms  between  them,  while  he  put  1  next  to  Ii  on  account  of  the 
similarity  of  its  teaching  on  sacrifice.  The  note  to  ixxii.  20  is  true  for 
his  collection ;  and  it  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  none  but  Davidic 
Psalms  have  preceded.     Cp.  Job  xxxi.  40. 


GROWTH    OF   THE   PSALTER.  Iv 

cxxxviii — cxlv,  bear  the  name  of  David :  cxxvii  that  of  Solomon. 
Of  the  rest  the  majority  have  no  title,  or  only  that  of  a  subordinate 
collection,  e.g.  *A  Song  of  Ascents,'  a  collection  which  probably 
existed  previously  in  a  separate  form  for  the  use  of  pilgrims. 
Other  groups  connected  by  their  titles  are  the  groups  of 
'Davidic'  Psalms,  cviii — ex,  cxxxviii — cxlv;  and  by  contents 
and  form  though  not  by  titles,  xciii — c,  the  Psalms  beginning 
with  Hodu  ('O  give  thanks')  cv — cvii,  and  the  Hallelujah 
Psalms,  cxi — cxviii,  cxlvi — cl. 

We  may  now  proceed  to  examine  the  characteristics  of  these 
divisions.  The  greater  part  of  the  Second  Division  is  remark- 
ably distinguished  from  the  First  and  Third  by  the  use  of  the 
Divine  Names.  Psalms  xlii — Ixxxiii  are  *  Elohistic ' ;  that  is  to 
say,  they  employ  the  appellative  Eldhl7n  =  '- God^  in  the  place 
and  almost  to  the  exclusion  of  the  proper  name  Jehovah^ 
represented  in  the  A.V.  by  Lord. 

In  Pss.  i — xli,  Elohim  occurs  absolutely^  only  15  times,  and 
in  some  of  these  cases  it  is  required  by  the  sense  2.  Jehovah 
on  the  other  hand  occurs  272  times,  or,  if  titles  and  doxology 
are  included,  278  times  2. 

In  Pss.  xlii — Ixxxiii,  the  proportion  is  reversed.  Elohivi 
occurs  200  times,  JeJiovah  only  43  times  (exclusive  of  the 
doxology,  Ixxii.  18);  while  in  Pss.  Ixxxiv — Ixxxix  Elohim  occurs 
only  7  iivcits^  Jehovah  31  times. 

In  Pss.  xc — cl,  Jehovah  occurs  339  times,  while  Elohim  (of 
the  true  God)  is  to  be  found  only  in  Ps.  cviii,  which  is  taken 
direct  from  two  Psalms  in  the  Elohistic  group,  and  in  cxliv.  9, 
in  a  Psalm  which  is  evidently  compiled  from  various  sources. 

It  may  also  be  noted  that  Addiiai=^ Lord''  occurs  much  more 


1  By  '  absolutely '  is  meant,  without  either  a  pronoun  attached  to  it 
('  my  God  '  and  the  like)  or  a  qualifying  word  grammatically  connected 
with  it  ('God  of  my  righteousness,'  'God  of  my  salvation,'  and  the  like). 
The  English  reader  must  remember  that  three  Hebrew  words,  EL  Eloah, 
and  Elohim^  are  represented  by  God  in  the  A.V.  El  occurs  absolutely 
II  times  in  division  i,  29  times  in  division  ii,  14  times  in  division  iii. 
Eloah  is  rare  in  the  Psalter. 

2  E.g.  ix.  17;  X.  4,  13;  xiv.  I,  2,  5;  xxxvi.  i,  7.  In  iii.  2  the  reading 
is  doubtful.     See  note  there. 

3  So  Nestle,  TheoL  Litztg.  1896,  col.  132. 


Ivi  INTRODUCTION. 

frequently  in  the  Second  Division  (31  times),  than  in  the  First 
(10  times),  or  Third  (8  times). 

This  use  of  Elohlm  cannot  be  explained  on  internal  grounds. 
It  stands  precisely  as  Jehovah  does  elsewhere,  and  not  unfre- 
quently  the  substitution  leads  to  awkwardness  of  expression. 
Thus,  for  example,  Ps.  1.  7  is  taken  from  Ex.  xx.  2 ;  "  I  am  God 
thy  God"  is  clearly  the  equivalent  of  "  I  am  Jehovah  thy  God"; 
Ixviii.  I,  2,  7,  8  are  based  upon  Num.  x.  35;  Judg.  v.  4,  5,  31 ; 
Ixxi.  19  is  from  Ex.  xv.  11 ;  and  in  each  case  Elohim  takes  the 
place  of  Jehovah.  More  striking  still  is  the  fact  that  in  two 
Psalms  which  are  repeated  from  Book  I  (liii=xiv;  lxx  =  xl.  i3ff.), 
the  alteration  is  made,  though  in  Ps.  Ixx  Jehovah  still  occurs 
twice. 

To  what  then  is  this  peculiarity  due  ?  Is  it  characteristic  of 
a  particular  style  of  writing?  or  is  it  the  work  of  an  editor  or 
compiler  ? 

It  seems  certain  (i)  from  the  alteration  in  Psalms  adopted 
from  Book  I,  (2)  from  the  variety  of  the  sources  from  which  the 
Psalms  in  this  group  are  derived,  that  the  change  is,  in  part  at 
least,  due  to  the  hand  of  an  editor.  It  may  no  doubt  have  been 
the  usage  of  certain  writers.  It  has  been  suggested  that  it  was 
a  custom  in  the  family  of  Asaph,  connected  possibly  with  the 
musical  or  liturgical  use  of  the  Psalms.  But  even  if  the  pecu- 
liarity was  due  in  some  instances  to  the  author,  there  can  be 
little  doubt  that,  in  the  group  as  a  whole,  it  is  due  to  the 
collector  or  editor. 

It  seems  clear  also  that  the  substitution  q{  Elohim  iox  Jehovah 
was  not  due  to  the  superstitious  avoidance  of  the  use  of  the 
Sacred  Name  in  later  times^  The  Elohistic  collection  is  by  no 
means  the  latest  part  of  the  Psalter.  Books  IV  and  V  are 
composed  of  Psalms  the  majority  of  which  are  unquestionably 
of  later  date  than  those  in  the  Elohistic  group.  But  in  these 
books  the  n?ccs\^  Jehovah  is  used  throughout,  with  the  exceptions 
noted  above.  The  compiler  of  Book  V  knew  the  Elohistic 
Psalms  in  their  present  form :  and  so  apparently  did  the  com- 

^  The  use  of  Elohim  as  a  proper  name,  without  the  article,  must  be 
distinguished  from  the  use  oi  Elohim  with  the  article  (D^"^i?N^)  in  some 
of  the  later  books  of  the  O.T.,  eg.  Chronicles  and  Ecclesiastes. 


GROWTH    OF   THE    PSALTER.  Ivii 


piler  of  Ps.  Ixxxvi,  in  the  appendix  to  the  Elohistic  collection,  as 
may  be  inferred  from  a  comparison  oiv.  14  with  Hv.  4  f. 

The  suggestion  has  been  made  that  the  compiler's  object  was 
to  shew  that  the  God  of  Israel  was  not  merely  a  national  God, 
and  to  counteract  the  Jewish  spirit  of  exclusiveness^.  Another 
suggestion  is  that  the  collection  was  thus  adapted  for  the 
use  of  the  exiles  and  Israelites  in  the  dispersion,  with  a  view  to 
avoid  the  repetition  of  the  Sacred  Name  in  a  heathen  land 2. 
But  no  positive  result  can  be  arrived  at.  The  relation  of 
the  'Elohistic'  Psalms  to  the  'Elohistic'  documents  in  the 
Pentateuch^  is  also  an  obscure  question,  which  needs  further 
investigation. 

The  argument  for  the  original  independence  of  the  three 
divisions  which  is  derived  from  the  use  of  the  names  of  God  is 
corroborated : 

{a)  By  the  repetition  in  the  Second  Division  of  Psalms  found 
in  the  First,  and  in  the  Third  of  Psalms  found  in  the  Second. 
Thus  liii  =  xiv:  lxx  =  xl.  13  ff. :  cviii  =  lvii.  7 — 11,  Ix.  5 — 12. 

{b)  By  the  note  appended  to  Ps.  Ixxii,  "The  prayers  of  David 
the  son  of  Jesse  are  endedV  This  note,  whether  taken  over 
from  an  earlier  collection  by  the  editor  of  Books  II  and  III, 
or  inserted  by  him,  appears  to  shew  that  he  knew  of  no  more 
Davidic  Psalms,  or  at  any  rate  that  his  collection  contained  no 
more.  Clearly  therefore  his  collection  must  have  been  indepen- 
dent of  Books  IV  and  V,  which  contain  several  more  Psalms 
ascribed  to  David. 

{c)  By  the  difference  already  noticed  in  regard  to  titles.  In 
this  respect  the  Third  Division  is  markedly  distinguished  from 
the  First  and  Second.  In  these  the  Psalms  with  but  few  easily 
explained  exceptions  have  titles,  giving  the  name  of  the  author 
or  the  collection  from  which  the  Psalm  was  taken,  in  many 
cases  the  occasion,  and  some  musical  or  liturgical  description  or 
direction.      But    in   the   Third    Division   the   majority   of    the 


^  Cp.  Ottley,  Aspects  of  the  O.T.,  p.  iqf. 

2  Only  in  the  Temple,  according  to  Jacob  {ZATIV,  1896,  p.  158),  was 
the  Sacred  Name  JHVH  pronounced. 

^  Oil  these  see  Driver,  Lit.  of  0.  T.^,  pp.  116  ff. 
^  Cp.  Job  xxxi.  40. 


Iviii  INTRODUCTION. 


Psalms  are  anonymous;  musical  and  liturgical  directions  are 
rare ;  and  titles  of  the  obscure  character  of  many  of  those  in 
Divisions  I  and  II  are  entirely  absent.  Moreover  the  musical 
term  Selah^  which  occurs  17  times  in  Division  I,  and  50  times 
in  Division  II,  is  found  but  four  times  in  Division  III,  and 
then  in  two  Psalms  ascribed  to  David  (cxl,  cxliii). 

{d)  By  the  character  of  the  contents  of  the  three  divisions. 
Speaking  broadly  and  generally,  the  Psalms  of  the  First  Division 
are  personal^  those  of  the  Second,  national^  those  of  the  Third, 
liturgical.  There  are  numerous  exceptions,  but  it  is  in  the 
First  Division  that  personal  prayers  and  thanksgivings  are 
chiefly  to  be  found:  in  the  Second,  prayers  in  special  times 
of  national  calamity  (xliv,  Ix,  Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  Ixxx,  Ixxxiii,  Ixxxix), 
and  thanksgivings  in  times  of  national  deliverance  (xlvi,  xlvii, 
xlviii,  Ixxv,  Ixxvi,  Ixv — Ixviii) :  in  the  Third,  Psalms  of  praise 
and  thanksgiving  for  general  use  in  the  Temple  services  (xcii, 
xcv — c,  cv — cvii,  cxi — cxviii,  cxx — cxxxvi,  cxlvi — cl). 

The  various  steps  i?i  the  formation  of  the  Psalter  may  have 
been  somewhat  as  follows : 

(i)  An  original  collection,  which  bore  the  name  Psalms  (or, 
Prayers)  of  David^  from  its  first  and  greatest  poet,  though 
poems  by  other  writers  were  not  excluded  from  it.  It  has 
already  been  suggested  (p.  xxxii)  that  the  general  title  of  the 
collection  was  subsequently  transferred  to  each  separate  Psalm 
in  the  First  Group  which  was  taken  from  it. 

(2)  The  formation  of  another  '  Davidic '  collection,  and  the 
two  Levitical  hymnaries  belonging  to  the  families  of  Korah  and 
Asaph. 

(3)  The  'Elohistic'  collection  was  formed  by  the  union  of 
selections  of  Levitical  Psalms  from  the  Korahite  and  Asaphite 
hymnaries  with  another  selection  of  'Davidic'  Psalms,  and 
'Elohistically'  edited. 

(4)  To  this  collection  was  subsequently  added  an  appendix 
of  Korahite  and  other  Psalms  (Ixxxiv — Ixxxix),  which  were  not 
altered  by  the  Elohistic  editor. 

(5)  Other  collections  grew  up,  perhaps  to  some  extent  simul- 
taneously with  the  preceding  stages,  and  these  were  united  in 
the  Third  Division,  with  a  gleaning  of  earlier  Psalms,  some  of 


GROWTH   OF   THE  PSALTER.  lix 

which  were  believed  to  have  been  written  by  David,  or  were 
taken  from  a  collection  bearing  his  name. 

(6)  Finally,  the  various  collections  were  united  in  the  com- 
plete Psalter. 

The  date  of  these  collections  cannot  be  determined  with  cer- 
tainty. Reasons  have  been  given  (p.  xlvii  f.)  for  thinking  that  the 
Psalter  was  practically  complete  by  about  200  B.C. ;  and  Psalms 
in  the  Third  Division  were  known  to  the  chronicler  a  century 
earlier.  The  Second  Division  contains  some  Psalms  of  the 
period  of  the  Monarchy ;  but  others  cannot  be  earlier  than  the 
Exile  and  Return  (e.g.  Ixxxv).  Even  the  First  Division  was  pro- 
bably not  completed  in  its  present  form  till  after  the  Exile,  though 
the  grounds  upon  which  Psalms  in  Book  I  are  referred  to  the 
post-exilic  period  are  less  positive  and  convincing. 

The  opinion  is  gaining  ground  that  "the  Psalter,  in  all  its 
parts,  is  a  compilation  of  the  post-exilic  age  V  but  this  does  not 
exclude  the  possibility  that  pre-exilic  collections  of  Psalms  ex- 
isted, side  by  side  with  prophetic  and  historical  books.  Their 
extent  however  cannot  now  be  determined^. 

The  arrangement  of  the  Psahns  in  the  several  books  appears 
to  have  been  determined  partly  by  their  arrangement  in  the 
smaller  collections  from  which  they  were  taken,  where  their 
order  may  have  been  jfixed  by  considerations  of  date  and  author- 
ship ;  partly  by  similarity  of  character  and  contents  ;  partly  by 
liturgical  usage.  Thus  for  example,  we  find  groups  of  Maschil 
Psalms  (xliii — xlv,  Hi — Iv,  Ixxxviii,  Ixxxix),  and  Michtam  Psalms 
(Ivi — Ix).  Resemblance  in  character  may  account  for  the  juxta- 
position of  1  and  li :  xxxiii  takes  up  xxxii.  11:  xxxiv  and  xxxv 
both  speak  of  'the  angel  of  Jehovah,'  who  is  mentioned  no- 
where else  in  the  Psalter.  The  title  of  xxxvi  links  it  to  xxxv.  27 
('  servant  of  the  Lord  ') :  that  of  Ivi  may  connect  it  with  Iv.  6. 
Pss.  cxi — cxviii  and  cxlv — cl  are  liturgical  groups. 

^  Driver,  Lit.  of  O.  T.^y  p.  386 ;  cp.  Davison,  Praises  of  Israel, 
p.  29. 

^  The  statement  in  1  Mace.  ii.  13  that  "Nehemiah  founding  a  library 
gathered  together... the  writings  of  David"  [to.  tov  Aavtd),  may  preserve 
a  true  tradition  that  he  had  some  part  in  the  compilation  of  the  Psalter, 
but  what  it  was  is  quite  uncertain. 


Ix  INTRODUCTION. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

THE   FORM   OF   HEBREW   POETRY. 

Ancient  Hebrew  poetry  possesses  neither  metre  nor  rhymed* 
Its  essential  characteristic  is  rhythm,  which  makes  itself  ap- 
parent both  in  the  rhythmical  cadence  of  each  separate  clause, 
and  in  the  rhythmical  balance  of  clauses  when  they  are  com- 
bined in  a  verse. 

The  Hebrew  language  is  characterised  by  a  vigorous  terse- 
ness and  power  of  condensation  which  cannot  be  preserved 
in  English.  Hence  the  clauses  of  Hebrew  poetry  are  as  a 
rule  short.  They  consist  sometimes  of  two  words  only,  most 
frequently  of  three  words,  but  not  seldom  of  more  than  three 
words. 

The  rhythm  of  the  clause  often  reflects  the  thought  which  it 
expresses.  Thus,  for  example,  the  lively  animated  rhythm  of 
the  opening  stanza  {vv.  i — 3)  of  Ps.  ii  vividly  suggests  the 
tumultuous  gathering  of  the  nations  ;  while  the  stately  measure 
of  V.  4  presents  the  contrast  of  the  calm  and  unmoved  majesty 
of  Jehovah  enthroned  in  heaven.  Or  again,  the  evening  hymn 
Ps.  iv  sinks  to  rest  in  its  concluding  verse  with  a  rhythm  as 
reposeful  as  the  assurance  which  it  expresses.  A  peculiar 
rhythm  known  as  the  elegiac  or  Qlndh  rhythm,  in  which  each 
line  is  divided  by  a  caesura  into  two  unequal  parts,  was  employed 
in  dirges,  and  sometimes  in  other  poems.  It  is  found  in  Lam. 
i — iv,  and  occasionally  in  the  Psalter,  e.g.  in  Ps.  xix.  7  ff. 

^  When  Philo,  Josephus,  Eusebius,  Jerome,  and  other  early  writers, 
compared  Hebrew  poetry  with  Greek  and  Latin  metres,  and  spoke  of 
hexameters  and  pentameters,  sapphics,  or  trimeter  and  tetrameter 
iambics,  they  were  using  familiar  language  loosely.  Various  attempts 
have  been  made  to  discover  a  metrical  system  in  the  Psalms,  on  the 
basis  of  quantity,  or  of  number  of  syllables  or  accents.  Most  of  them 
involve  the  abandonment  of  the  Massoretic  vocalisation,  and  invoke  the 
aid  of  '  a  whole  arsenal  of  licences. '  Happily  they  do  not  concern  the 
English  reader. 

Rhyme  is  found  occasionally  (e.g.  viii.  3  ^Heb.  4];  cvi.  4 — 7),  but  it 
ajipears  to  be  accidental  rather  than  intentional,  and  is  never  systematic- 
ally employed.  Both  rhyme  and  metre  have  been  used  in  medieval  and 
modern  Jewish  poetry  from  the  7th  cent.  a.d.  onwards. 


THE   FORM    OF    HEBREW   POETRY.  Ixi 

The  rhythm  of  clauses  however,  together  with  many  other 
features  of  Hebrew  poetry,  such  as  assonance  and  alliteration, 
distinctive  use  of  words  and  constructions,  and  so  forth,  chiefly 
concerns  the  student  of  the  original.  But  the  rhythmical 
balance  of  clauses  combined  in  a  verse  admits  of  being  repro- 
duced in  translation,  and  can  to  a  large  extent  be  appreciated 
by  the  English  reader.  Owing  to  this  peculiar  nature  of  its 
form,  Hebrew  poetry  loses  less  in  translation  than  poetry  which 
depends  for  much  of  its  charm  upon  rhymes  or  metres  which 
cannot  be  reproduced  in  another  language. 

This  balanced  symmetry  of  form  and  sense  is  known  as 
parallelism  of  clauses  {parallclismus  meinbroniiii)  or  simply, 
parallelism'^.  It  satisfies  the  love  of  regular  and  harmonious 
movement  which  is  natural  to  the  human  mind,  and  was 
specially  adapted  to  the  primitive  method  of  antiphonal  chant- 
ing (Ex.  XV.  I,  20,  21  ;  I  Sam.  xviii.  7).  Such  poetry  is  not 
sharply  distinguished  from  elevated  prose.  Many  passages  in 
the  prophets  are  written  in  poetical  style,  and  exhibit  ihe 
features  of  paralleHsm  as  plainly  as  any  of  the  Psalms 2. 

The  law  of  parallelism  in  Hebrew  poetry  has  an  exegetical 
value.  It  can  often  be  appealed  to  in  order  to  determine  the 
construction  or  connexion  of  words,  to  elucidate  the  sense,  or 
to  decide  a  doubtful  reading.  The  arrangement  of  the  text  in 
lines,  adopted  by  Dr  Scrivener  in  the  standard  edition  of  the 
A.V.  from  which  the  text  in  this  edition  is  taken,  and  in  the 
Revised  Version,  makes  this  characteristic  of  Hebrew  poetry 
more  plainly  perceptible  to  the  English  reader. 

The  various  forms  of  parallelism  are  generally  classified 
under  three  principal  heads  : 

(i)  Sy7ionymous  parallelism^  when  the  same  fundamental 
thought  is  repeated  in  different  words  in  the  second  line  of  a 
couplet.     Thus  in  Ps.  cxiv.  i  : 

"When  Israel  went  forth  out  of  Egypt, 

^  This  fundamental  principle  of  Hebrew  poetry  had  been  noticed  by 
earlier  writers,  but  attention  was  first  called  to  its  importance,  and  its 
nature  was  fully  examined,  by  Robert  Lowth  (17 10 — 1787),  Professor  of 
Poetry  at  Oxford,  and  afterwards  Bishop  of  London,  in  his  De  sacra 
Pocsi  Hebraeorum  Praelectioncs  Academicae  Oxonii  habilae  (1753). 

"  E.g.  Is.  Ix.  I — 3;  Ixv.  13,  14;  IIos.  xi.  8,  9;  Nah.  i.  2. 


Ixii  INTRODUCTION. 


The  house  of  Jacob  from  a  people  of  strange  language  "  : 
and  the  same  construction  is  maintained  throughout  the  Psalm. 
Every  page  of  the  Psalter  supplies  abundant  examples. 

(2)  Antithetic  or  contrasted  parallelisin^  when  the  thought 
expressed  in  the  first  line  of  a  couplet  is  corroborated  or  eluci- 
dated by  the  affirmation  of  its  opposite  in  the  second  line. 
This  form  of  parallelism  is  specially  suited  to  Gnomic  Poetry, 
and  is  particularly  characteristic  of  the  oldest  collection  of 
proverbs  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs  (chaps,  x — xxii.  16).  Thus 
for  example : 

"  Every  wise  woman  buildeth  her  house  : 

But  folly  plucketh  it  down  with  her  own  hands"  (Prov.  xiv.  i). 
But  it  is  by  no  means  rare  in  the  Psalms,  e.g.  i.  6, 

"  For  Jehovah  knoweth  the  way  of  the  righteous : 
But  the  way  of  the  wicked  shall  perish." 

(3)  Synthetic  or  constructive  parallelism.  Under  this  head 
are  classed  the  numerous  instances  in  which  the  two  lines  of 
the  couplet  stand  in  the  relation  of  cause  and  consequence,  pro- 
tasis and  apodosis,  proposition  and  qualification  or  supplement, 
or  almost  any  logical  or  constructional  relation ;  or  in  which,  as 
is  very  frequently  the  case,  the  parallelism  is  one  of  form  only 
without  any  logical  relation  between  the  clauses.     Thus  e.g. : 

"Yet  /  have  set  up  my  king. 
Upon  Zion  my  holy  mountain  "  (Ps.  ii.  6). 
The  simplest  and  most  common  form  of  parallelism  is  the 
couplet  or  distich:  but  this  may  be  expanded  into  a  tristich 
(triplet)  or  a  tetrastich  (quatrain)  or  even  longer  combinations, 
in  a  variety  of  ways.  Thus  the  three  lines  of  a  verse  may  be 
synonymous : 

"The  floods  have  lifted  up,  O  Jehovah, 
The  floods  have  lifted  up  their  voice; 
The  floods  lift  up  their  din "  (Ps.  xciii.  3). 
Or  the  first  two  lines  may  be  synonymous,  and   the  third 
supplementary,  as  in  Ps.  ii.  2: 

"  The  kings  of  the  earth  take  their  stand. 
And  rulers  hold  conclave  together. 
Against  Jehovah  and  against  His  anointed." 
The  third  line  may  be  antithetic,  as  in  Ps.  liv.  3 : 


THE   FORM    OF    HEBREW   POETRY.  Ixiii 

"For  strangers  are  risen  up  against  me, 
And  violent  men  have  sought  my  life: 

They  have  not  set  God  before  their  eyes." 
Or  the  first  line  may  be  introductory,  and  the  last  two  synony- 
mous, as  in  Ps.  iii.  7 : 

"Arise,  Jehovah  ;  save  me,  my  God: 

For  Thou  hast  smitten  all  mine  enemies  on  the  cheek ; 
Thou  hast  shattered  the  teeth  of  the  wicked." 
In  a  few  instances  the  first  line  is  parallel  to  the  third,  and  the 
second  is  parenthetical,  e.g.  Ps.  iv.  i. 

Similarly  in  tetrastichs  (usually  including  two  verses)  we  find 
{a)  four  synonymous  lines,  as  in  xci.  5,  6.  Or  (b)  the  first  line  is 
parallel  to  the  second,  and  the  third  to  the  fourth,  but  the 
second  couplet  is  required  to  complete  the  sense;  e.g.  in 
Ps.  xviii.  15.  Or  {c)  the  first  line  may  be  parallel  to  the  third, 
the  second  to  the  fourth,  as  in  xxvii.  3 : 

"Though  an  host  should  encamp  against  me, 
My  heart  shall  not  fear: 
Though  war  should  rise  against  me, 
Even  then  will  I  be  confident," 
Or  {d)  the  first  three  lines  may  be  parallel,  and  the  fourth 
supplementary,   as   in.  Ps.   i.  3.     Or   (<?)  the  first  line  may  be 
independent,  and  the  last  three  parallel,  as  in  Prov.  xxiv.  12. 

Or  two  synonymous  lines  may  be  contrasted  with  two  synony- 
mous lines,  as  in  xxxvii.  35,  36 : 

"  I  have  seen  the  wicked  in  his  terribleness. 
And  spreading  himself  like  a  green  tree  in  its  native  soil : 
And  I  passed  by,  and  lo !  he  was  not, 
Yea,  I  sought  him,  but  he  could  not  be  found." 
Even  longer  combinations  than  tetrastichs  sometimes  occur, 
e.g.  in  Ps.  xxxix.  12;  Num.  xxiv.  17:  and  on  the  other  hand 
single  lines  are  found,  for  the  most  part  as  introductions  or 
conclusions,  e.g.  in  Pss.  xviii.  i ;  cix.  i ;  cxxx.  i ;  xcii.  8 ;  Ex. 
XV.   18.     While  maintaining   its   fundamental   characteristic   of 
rhythm,  Hebrew  poetry  admits  of  the  greatest  freedom   and 
variety  of  form. 

Strophical  arrangemenL  Series  of  verses  are,  as  might  be 
expected,  combined,  and  many  Psalms  consist  of  distinct  groups 


Ixiv  INTRODUCTION. 


of  verses.  Such  groups  may  conveniently  be  called  stanzas  or 
stropJies^  but  the  terms  must  not  be  supposed  to  imply  that  the 
same  metrical  or  rhythmical  structure  recurs  in  each,  as  in 
Greek  or  Latin  poetry.  The  strophes  in  a  Psalm  do  not  even 
necessarily  consist  of  the  same  number  of  lines  or  verses. 

Such  divisions  are  sometimes  clearly  marked  by  a  refrain,  as 
in  Pss.  xlii — xliii,  xlvi,  Ivii :  or  by  alphabetical  arrangement, 
as  in  cxix :  or  by  Selah^  denoting  probably  a  musical  interlude, 
as  in  Pss.  iii  and  iv.  But  more  frequently  there  is  no  external 
mark  of  tl^e  division,  though  it  is  clearly  indicated  by  the  struc- 
ture and  contents  of  the  Psalm,  as  in  Ps.  ii. 

Alphabetic  or  Acrostic  Psaljns. 

Eight  or  nine  Psalms^  present  various  forms  of  alphabetic 
structure  (Pss.  ix,  x,  xxv,  xxxiv,  xxxvii,  cxi,  cxii,  cxix,  cxlv). 
In  cxi  and  cxii  each  letter  begins  a  line,  and  the  lines  are 
arranged  in  eight  distichs  and  two  tristichs. 

In  Pss.  xxv,  xxxiv,  cxlv,  Prov.  xxxi.  Lam.  iv,  each  letter 
begins  a  distich,  in  Lam.  i,  ii,  a  tristich.  In  Ps.  xxxvii  each 
letter  begins  a  pair  of  verses,  commonly  containing  four,  some- 
times five,  lines.  In  Lam.  iii  each  verse  in  a  stanza  of  three 
verses,  and  in  Ps.  cxix  each  verse  in  a  stanza  of  eight  verses, 
begins  with  the  same  letter,  and  the  letters  are  taken  in  regular 
succession. 

Such  an  arrangement,  artificial  though  it  seems,  does  not 
necessarily  fetter  a  poet  more  than  an  elaborate  metre  or  rhyme. 
It  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  'a  compensation  for  the  vanished 
spirit '  of  poetry.'  It  was  probably  intended  as  an  aid  to 
memory,  and  is  chiefly  employed  in  Psalms  of  a  proverbial 
character  to  connect  detached  thoughts,  or  when,  as  in  Ps.  cxix 
and  in  Lamentations,  the  poet  needs  some  artificial  bond  to 
link  together  a  number  of  variations  upon  one  theme. 

The  elaborate  development  of  the  system  in  Lamentations 
proves  that  alphabetic  structure  is  not  in  itself  a  proof  of  a  very 
late  date  2. 

^  Also  Lam.  i — iv  :  Prov.  xxxi.  ro — 31.  Traces  of  alphabetic  structure 
have  been  pointed  out  in  Nah.  i.  2 — 10:  and  the  original  of  Ecclesias- 
ticus  Ii.  13 — 30  was  alphabetic.  See  Schechter  and  Taylor,  IVisdom 
of  Ben  Sira,  pp.  Ixxvi  ff. 

'^  The  early  Roman  poet  Ennius  wrote  acrostics  (Cicero,  de  Divina- 


THE    HEBREW   TEXT.  Ixv 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   HEBREW  TEXT,   THE   ANCIENT  VERSIONS, 
AND  THE   ENGLISH   VERSIONS. 

i.  The  Hebrew  Text  ^.  A  few  words  on  the  character  of  the 
Hebrew  Text  are  necessary  in  order  to  justify  the  occasional 
departures  from  it,  which  will  be  met  with  in  this  commentary. 

The  extant  Hebrew  MSS.  of  the  O.T.  are  all  comparatively 
recent.  The  oldest  of  which  the  age  is  known  with  certainty  is 
the  St  Petersburg  MS.  which  is  dated  A.D.  916^  ;  the  majority  are 
of  the  1 2th  to  the  16th  centuries.  They  all  present  substantially 
the  same  text^,  commonly  called  the  Massoretic  Text*.  Thus 
while  we  possess  MSS.  of  the  N.T.  written  less  than  three 
centuries  after  the  date  of  the  earliest  of  the  books,  our  oldest 
MS.  of  the  O.T.  is  more  than  ten  centuries  posterior  to  the  date 
of  the  latest  of  the  books  which  it  contains ;  and  while  our  MSS. 
of  the  N.T.  present  a  great  variety  of  readings,  those  of  the 
O.T.  are  practically  unanimous  in  supporting  the  same  text. 

This  unanimity  was  long  supposed  to  be  due  to  the  jealous 
care  with  which  the  Jewish  scribes  had  preserved  the  sacred 

Hone,  ii.  54,  §  iii) ;  and  they  are  said  to  have  been  invented  in  Greece 
by  the  comedian  Epicharmus  (B.C.  540 — 450).  We  may  compare  the 
alliteratio7i,  which  is  a  common  feature  of  early  poetry.  Alliterative 
and  acrostic  poetry  was  written  in  Assyria  and  Babylonia.  See  Proc. 
Soc.  Bibl.  Arch.  1895,  p.  131. 

^  For  an  outline  of  the  history  of  the  Hebrew  text  see  the  writer's 
Divine  Library  of  the  Old  Testament,  Lect.  iii. 

"^  Dr  Ginsburg  [Introd.  to  the  Heb.  Bible,  p.  469)  places  an  undated 
MS.  in  the  British  Museum  somewhat  earlier,  c,  820 — 850  A.D. 

^  The  variations  between  them  are  (roughly  speaking)  not  greater 
than  the  variations  between  the  different  editions  of  the  A.V.  which 
have  appeared  since  161 1,  and  they  concern  for  the  most  part  unim- 
portant points  of  orthography. 

•*  Massora  means  (i)  tradition  in  general:  (2)  specially,  tradition 
concerning  the  text  of  the  O.T.,  and  in  particular  the  elaborate  system 
of  rules  and  memoria  technica  by  which  the  later  scribes  sought  to 
guard  the  text  from  corruption.  Those  who  devoted  themselves  to  this 
study  were  called  'masters  of  Massora,'  or  *  Massoretes ' ;  and  the  term 
'  Massoretic  '  is  applied  to  the  text  which  their  labours  were  designed  to 
preserve. 

PSALMS  f 


Ixvi  INTRODUCTION. 


text  from  the  earliest  times.  But  careful  examination  makes 
it  clear  that  this  is  not  ihe  case.  Since  the  rise  of  the  schools 
of  the  '  Massoretes,'  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  centuries  A.D., 
the  text  has,  no  doubt,  been  preserved  with  scrupulous  exact- 
ness. But  the  recension  which  they  adopted,  whether  originally 
derived  from  a  single  MS.,  as  some  suppose,  or  from  a  com- 
parison of  MSS.  held  in  estimation  at  the  time,  unquestionably 
contains  not  a  few  errors,  which  had  crept  in  during  the  long 
course  of  its  previous  history^  The  proof  of  this  lies  in  the 
following  facts  : — 

(i)  There  are  many  passages  in  which  the  Massoretic  Text 
cannot  be  translated  without  doing  violence  to  the  laws  of 
grammar,  or  is  irreconcilable  with  the  context  or  with  other 
passages. 

(2)  Parallel  passages  (e.g.  Ps.  xviii  and  2  Sam.  xxii)  differ 
in  such  a  way  as  to  make  it  evident  that  the  variations  are 
due  partly  to  accidental  mistakes  in  transcription,  partly  to 
intentional  revision. 

(3)  The  Ancient  Versions  represent  various  readings, 
which  in  many  cases  bear  a  strong  stamp  of  probability,  and 
often  lessen  or  remove  the  difficulties  of  the  Massoretic  Text. 

The  Massoretic  Text  as  a  whole  is  undoubtedly  superior  to 
any  of  the  Ancient  Versions  :  but  we  are  amply  justified  in  calling 
in  the  aid  of  those  Versions,  and  in  particular  the  Septuagint, 
wherever  that  text  appears  to  be  defective  :  and  even  where 
it  is  not  in  itself  suspicious,  but  some  of  the  Ancient  Versions 
offer  a  different  reading,  that  reading  may  deserve  to  be  taken 
into  account.     In  some  few  cases,  where  there  is  reason   to 


'  The  history  of  the  Hebrew  text  may  be  divided  into  four  periods, 
(i)  The  first  of  these  periods  was  marked  by  the  exclusive  use  of  the 
archaic  character :  (2)  the  second,  from  the  time  of  Ezra  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem,  saw  the  archaic  character  completely  superseded  by  the 
square  character,  as  the  Hebrew  language  was  superseded  by  Aramaic : 
(3)  in  the  third  period,  from  the  P\all  of  Jerusalem  to  the  end  of  the 
fifth  century,  the  consonantal  text  was  fixed :  (4)  in  the  fourth  period, 
the  exegetical  tradition  of  the  proper  method  of  readmg  the  text  was 
stereotyped  by  the  addition  of  the  vowels,  and  an  elaborate  system  of 
rules  was  invented  to  secure  the  accurate  transmission  of  the  text  even  in 
the  minutest  particulars. 


THE    HEBREW   TEXT.  Ixvii 

suspect  corruption  anterior  to  all  extant  documentary  authorities, 
it  may  even  be  allowable  to  resort  to  conjectural  emendation, 
and  such  emendations  will  occasionally  be  mentioned. 

The  accidental  corruptions  to  which  all  ancient  texts  were 
exposed  in  the  process  of  transmission  must  of  course  be  care- 
fully distinguished  from  the  intentional  alterations  to  which  the 
Psalms  would  be  especially  liable.  The  original  text  of  a  Psalm, 
like  that  of  the  hymns  in  modern  hymn  books,  was  doubtless 
often  altered  to  adapt  it  for  liturgical  use.  Archaisms  would  be 
modernised :  some  Psalms  would  be  abbreviated  ;  others  would 
be  amplified  ;  in  some  cases  (e.g.  i  Chr.  xvi,  Ps.  cviii)  portions 
of  Psalms  were  combined.  A  comparison  of  Ps.  xviii  with 
2  Sam.  xxii  appears  to  shew  that,  exactly  as  might  be  expected, 
peculiar  forms  were  replaced  by  those  in  ordinary  use,  unusual 
constructions  were  simplified,  archaisms  and  obscure  expres- 
sions were  explained.  The  processes  which  in  this  instance  can 
be  traced  doubtless  went  on  elsewhere,  though  to  what  extent 
it  is  impossible  to  say. 

Two  further  points  must  be  mentioned  here  in  order  to  explain 
some  of  the  notes  : 

(i)  Hebrew,  like  other  Semitic  languages,  was  originally 
written  without  any  vowels,  except  such  long  vowels  as  were 
represented  by  consonants.  In  the  earlier  stages  of  the  language 
even  these  were  sparingly  used.  The  present  elaborate  system 
of  vowel  marks  or  '  points,'  commonly  called  the  '  Massoretic 
punctuation '  or  *  vocahsation,'  was  not  reduced  to  writing  until 
the  seventh  or  eighth  century  a.d.  It  stereotyped  the  pro- 
nunciation and  reading  of  the  O.T.  then  current,  and  in  many 
respects  represents  a  far  older  tradition.  But  in  a  vowelless,  or 
as  it  is  called  'unpointed,'  text,  many  words  may  be  read 
in  different  ways,  and  the  Massoretic  punctuation  does  not. 
appear  in  all  cases  to  give  the  true  way  of  reading  the  con- 
sonants. 

(2)  In  some  passages  the  traditional  method  of  reading 
(Q're)  did  not  agree  with  the  consonants  of  the  written  text 
(K'thlbh).  In  such  cases  the  Massoretes  did  not  alter  the  text, 
but  appended  a  marginal  note,  giving  the  consonants  with 
which  the  vowels  shewn  in  the  text  were  to  be  read.     It  should 

e  2 


Ixviii  INTRODUCTION. 


be  clearly  understood  that  the  Qre  or  marginal  reading  is  the 
accepted  reading  of  the  Jewish  textual  tradition.  But  internal 
evidence,  and  the  evidence  of  the  Ancient  Versions,  lead  us  to 
prefer  sometimes  the  Qre  and  sometimes  the  K^thibh.  See  for 
example  Ps.  xxiv.  4,  where  A.V.  and  R.V.  rightly  follow  the 
ICthlbh^  and  desert  the  Jewish  tradition  :  or  Ps.  c.  3,  where 
A.V.  unfortunately  followed  the  K^thibh,  and  R.V.  has  happily 
taken  the  Qre. 

ii.  The  Ancient  Versions  of  the  O.T.  These  possess  a  fresh 
interest  for  the  English  reader,  since  the  R.V.  has  given  oc- 
casional references  to  them  in  its  margin. 

(i)  The  Septuagint'^.  The  oldest  and  most  valuable  of  them 
is  the  Greek  Version,  commonly  called  the  Septuagint  (Sept. 
or  LXX),  or  Version  of  the  Seventy  Elders.  It  derives  its  name 
from  the  tradition  that  the  translation  of  the  Pentateuch  was  made 
by  seventy  or  seventy-two  elders,  despatched  from  Jerusalem  to 
Alexandria  at  the  request  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  (B.C.  283 — 
247).  But  the  '  Letter  of  Aristeas,'  on  which  this  story  rests,  is 
undoubtedly  a  forgery,  and  all  that  can  be  asserted  about  the 
origin  of  the  Septuagint  is  that  it  was  made  (i)  in  Egypt,  and 
probably  at  Alexandria,  (2)  at  different  times  and  by  different 
hands  during  the  third  and  second  centuries  B.C.,  (3)  before  the 
vowel-points  had  been  added  to  the  Hebrew  text,  or  that  text 
had  finally  taken  its  present  form. 

The  Pentateuch  was  probably  translated  first  under  the  earlier 
Ptolemies  :  and  the  grandson  of  Jesus  the  son  of  Sirach,  about 
130  B.C.,  knew  and  used  the  version  of  the  Hagiographa  as 
well  as  of  the  Law  and  the  Prophets 2.  This,  it  may  be  assumed, 
included  the  Psalter. 

The  character  of  the  LXX  varies  greatly  in  different  parts  of 
the  O.T.  The  work  of  pioneers  in  the  task  of  translation,  with 
no  aids  of  grammar  and  lexicon  to  help  them,  naturally  presents 
many  imperfections.  Yet  not  seldom  it  gives  a  valuable  clue  to 
the  meaning  of  obscure  words,  or  suggests  certain  corrections  of 

^  For  a  full  account  of  the  LXX,  the  Ancient  Versions  based  upon  it, 
and  the  later  Greek  Versions,  see  Swete's  admirable  Introduction  to  the 
Old  Testament  in  Greek  (1900). 

2  See  above,  p.  xivi  f. 


THE   ANCIENT   VERSIONS.  Ixix 

the  Massoretic  Text.  The  version  of  the  Psalter  is  on  the  whole 
fairly  good,  though  it  is  often  altogether  at  fault  in  difficult 
passages,  and  hopelessly  astray  as  to  the  purport  of  the  titles. 
It  has  a  special  interest  for  English  readers,  because,  as  will  be 
seen  presently,  it  has,  through  the  Vulgate,  indirectly  had  con- 
siderable influence  on  the  version  most  familiar  to  many  of 
them. 

Unfortunately  the  Septuagint  has  not  come  down  to  us  in  its 
original  form.  The  text  has  suffered  from  numerous  corruptions 
and  alterations,  partly  through  the  carelessness  of  transcribers, 
partly  through  the  introduction  of  fresh  renderings  intended  to 
harmonise  it  with  the  Massoretic  Text,  or  taken  from  other 
Greek  Versions. 

The  most  important  MSS.  of  the  LXX  for  the  Psalter  to 
which  reference  will  occasionally  be  made,  are  the  follow- 
ing^: 

The  Vatican  MS.  (denoted  by  the  letter  B);  a  splendid  copy 
of  the  Greek  Bible,  written  in  the  fourth  century  A.D.,  and  now 
preserved  in  the  Vatican  Library  at  Rome.  Ten  leaves  of 
the  Psalter,  containing  Pss.  cv.  27 — cxxxvii.  6,  are  unfortunately 
lost. 

The  text  of  this  MS.  is  given  in  Dr  Swete's  edition  of  the 
LXX,  the  lacuna  in  the  Psalter  being  supplied  from  the  Sinaitic 
MS.  (X). 

The  equally  splendid  Sinaitic  MS.  (denoted  by  the  letter  J<$ 
Aleph\  also  written  in  the  fourth  century,  found  by  Tischendorf 
in  the  convent  of  St  Catharine  on  Mt  Sinai,  and  now  at  St 
Petersburg. 

The  Alexandrine  MS.  (denoted  by  the  letter  A),  written  in  the 
middle  of  the  fifth  century,  brought  from  Alexandria,  and  now 
the  great  treasure  of  the  British  Museum.  Nine  leaves  are 
wanting  in  the  Psalter  (Ps.  xlix.  19 — Ixxix.  10). 

The  Septuagint,  with  all  its  defects,  is  of  the  greatest  interest 
and  importance  to  all  students  of  the  O.T. 

(i)     It  preserves  evidence  for  the  text  far  more  ancient  than 

^  For  fuller  information  see  Swete's  Introduction,  and  his  edition  of 
the  LXX,  published  by  the  Camb.  Uaiv.  Press.  The  Psalter  is  to  be 
had  separately  in  a  convenient  form. 


Ixx  INTRODUCTION. 

that  of  the  oldest  Hebrew  MS.,  and  often  represents  a  text 
differing  from  the  Massoretic  recension. 

(2)  It  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  helps  for  ascertaining  the 
meaning  of  the  language  of  the  O.T.,  and  is  a  valuable  supple- 
ment to  Jewish  tradition. 

(3)  It  was  the  means  by  which  the  Greek  language  was 
wedded  to  Hebrew  thought,  and  the  way  was  prepared  for  the 
use  of  that  language  in  the  New  Testament. 

(4)  The  great  majority  of  the  quotations  made  from  the  O.T. 
by  the  writers  of  the  N.T.  are  taken  from  the  LXX. 

(5)  It  is  the  version  in  which  the  O.T.  was  studied  by  the 
Fathers  of  the  Eastern  Church,  and  indirectly,  in  the  old  Latin 
Versions  made  from  it,  by  those  of  the  Western  Church,  until 
Jerome's  new  translation  from  the  Hebrew  came  into  use.  In 
the  Psalter  its  influence  was  permanent,  for  as  will  be  seen  below 
(p.  Ixxii),  the  new  version  never  superseded  the  old. 

(ii)  The  Targiun.  After  the  return  from  the  Babylonian 
exile,  Aramaic,  sometimes  inaccurately  called  Chaldee,  began  to 
take  the  place  of  Hebrew  in  Palestine.  As  Hebrew  died  out, 
the  needs  of  the  people  were  met  by  oral  translations  or  para- 
phrases in  Aramaic.  Hence  arose  the  Aramaic  Versions  com- 
monly called  the  Targums  ^  The  Targum  of  the  Psalter  is  on  the 
whole  a  fairly  good  version,  though  it  often  assumes  the  character 
of  a  paraphrastic  interpretation.  In  its  present  form  it  appears 
to  contain  elements  as  late  as  the  ninth  century,  but  in  the  main 
it  belongs  to  a  much  earlier  date.  As  a  rule  it  represents  the 
Massoretic  recension,  and  is  not  of  much  value  for  textual 
criticism.  It  is  interesting  as  preserving  interpretations  current 
in  the  ancient  Jewish  Church,  and  in  particular,  for  the  reference 
of  several  passages  in  the  Psalter  to  the  Messiah^. 

(iii)  The  Syriac  Version,  known  as  the  Peshlttd  {simple  or 
literal  version),  probably  originated  at  Edessa,  about  the  second 
century  A.D.  It  was  made  from  the  Hebrew,  with  the  help  of 
Jewish  converts  or  actual  Jews.  But  the  present  text  in  some 
parts  of  the  O.T.  agrees  with  the  LXX  in  such  a  way  as  to 

^  Targum  means  intcrpretatio7i  or  iramcatioti.  Cp.  dragoman,  lit. 
interpreter. 

^  Soe  e.g.  Ps.  xxi.  1,  7;  xlv.  2,  7,  Ixi.  6,  8j  Ixxii.  i ;  Ixxx.  15. 


THE   ANCIENT   VERSIONS.  Ixxi 

make  it  evident  either  that  the  original  translators  consulted 
that  version,  or  that  subsequent  revisers  introduced  renderings 
from  it.    This  is  largely  the  case  in  the  Psalms  ^ 

(iv)  The  later  Greek  Versions  require  only  a  brief  mention. 
That  of  Aquila  of  Pontus,  a  Jewish  proselyte  from  heathenism, 
was  made  in  the  beginning  of  the  second  century  A.D.,  when 
the  breach  between  Church  and  Synagogue  was  complete,  and 
the  Jews  desired  an  accurate  version  for  purposes  of  controversy 
with  Christians.  It  is  characterised  by  a  slavish  but  ingenious 
literalism. 

That  of  Theodotion,  made  towards  the  end  of  the  second 
century,  or  possibly  earlier^,  was  little  more  than  a  revision  of 
the  LXX. 

That  of  Symmachus,  made  probably  a  little  later  than  that 
of  Theodotion,  was  also  based  on  the  LXX.  It  aimed  at  com- 
bining accuracy  and  perspicuity,  and  was  by  far  the  best  of  the 
three. 

These  versions  were  collected  in  the  gigantic  work  of  Origen 
(a.d.  185 — 254)  called  the  Hexapla,  which  contained  in  six 
parallel  columns,  (i)  the  Hebrew  Text,  (2)  the  Hebrew  trans- 
literated into  Greek  letters,  (3)  Aquila,  (4)  Symmachus,  (5)  the 
LXX,  (6)  Theodotion.  In  the  Psalter  the  Hexapla  became  the 
Octapla  by  the  addition  of  two  columns  containing  two  more 
Greek  versions  known  as  the  'Fifth'  i^Quinta)  and  'Sixth' 
{Sexto). 

Unfortunately  only  fragments  of  these  versions  are  extant^. 
Generally,  though  not  always,  they  agree  with  the  Massoretic 
Text. 

(v)     The  Latin  Versions.     The  earliest  Latin  Version  of  the 

^  See  Wright's  Short  History  of  Syriac  Literature^  p.  3. 

2  See  Schiirer's  Hist,  of  the  Jewish  People  6^f.,  Div.  ii.  §  33  (Vol.  iii. 
p.  173,  E.  T.). 

^  Collected  with  exhaustive  completeness  in  F.  Field's  Origcnis 
Hexaploriun  quae  stipersunt.  1875.  But  since  then  fresh  discoveries 
have  been  made.  On  some  palimpsest  leaves  brought  from  the  Genizah 
at  Cairo  by  Dr  Schechter  some  continuous  fragments  of  Aquila's  version 
(including  portions  of  Pss.  xxii,  xc,  xci)  have  been  discovered :  and  a 
fragment  of  a  copy  of  the  Hexapla  of  the  Psalms  has  come  to  light  in 
the  Amhrosian  Liljrary  at  Milan.     See  Svvete,  Introd.  pp.  34,  62. 


Ixxii  INTRODUCTION. 


O.T.,  the  Vetus  Latina  or  Old  Latin,  was  made  in  North 
Africa  from  the  LXX^  This  version,  of  which  various  recen- 
sions appear  to  have  been  current,  was  twice  revised  by  St 
Jerome  (Hieronymus).  The  first  revision,  made  about  a.d. 
383,  ib  known  as  the  Ro7nan  Psalter^  probably  because  it  was 
made  at  Rome  and  for  the  use  of  the  Roman  Church  at  the 
request  of  Pope  Damasus  ;  the  second,  made  about  A.D.  387, 
is  called  the  Gallican  Psalter^  because  the  Gallican  Churches 
were  the  first  to  adopt  it. 

Shortly  afterwards,  r,bout  a.d.  389,  Jerome  commenced  his 
memorable  work  of  translating  the  O.T.  directly  from  the 
Hebrew,  which  occupied  him  for  fourteen  years.  After  bitter 
opposition  and  many  vicissitudes,  it  won  its  way  by  its  intrinsic 
excellence  to  be  the  Bible  of  the  Latin  Church,  and  came  to  be 
known  as  The  Vulgate. 

But  long  familiarity  with  the  Old  Latin  Version  of  the  Psalter 
made  it  impossible  to  displace  it,  and  the  Gallican  Psalter  is 
incorporated  in  the  Vulgate  in  place  of  Jerome's  new  translation. 
That  new  translation,  "iuxta  Hebraicam  veritatem,"  never  came 
into  general  use.  It  is  of  great  value  fcr  the  interpretation  of 
the  text,  and  shews  that  the  Hebrew  text  known  to  Jerome  was 
in  the  main  the  same  as  the  present  Massoretic  Text. 

Accordingly,  the  student  must  remrm.ber  that  in  the  Psalter 
the  Vulgate  is  an  echo  of  the  LXX,  and  not  an  independent 
witness  to  text  or  interpretation  :  while  Jerome's  translation 
(referred  to  Scsjer.)  occupies  the  place  which  the  Vulgate  does 
in  the  other  books  of  the  O.T.^ 

iii.  The  English  Versions^.  It  would  be  impossible  to  give 
here  even  a  sketch  of  the  history  of  the  English  Bible.  But  as 
the  Version  with  which  many  readers  are  most  familiar  is 
not  that  in  the  Bible,  but  that  in  the  Prayer-Book,  it  seems 
worth  while  to  give  a  brief  account  of  its  origin  and  charac- 
teristics. 

As  the  Old  Latin  Version  held  its  ground  against  Jerome's 

'  See  Swete,  Introd.  p.  98. 

-  The  best  edition  of  Jerome's  Psalter  with  critical  apparatus  is  that 
by  P.  de  Lagarde,  Psalteriuni  iuxta  Hebraeos  Hierony7ni,  1874. 
3  See  Bishop  Westcott,  History  of  the  English  Bible^  ed.  2,  iS/^. 


THE   ENGLISH   VERSIONS.  Ixxiii 


more  accurate  translation,  because  constant  liturgical  use  had 
established  it  too  firmly  for  it  to  be  displaced,  so  the  older 
English  Version  of  the  Psalter  taken  from  the  Great  Bible 
has  kept  its  place  in  the  Prayer-Book,  and  has  never  been 
superseded  for  devotional  use. 

The  *  Great  Bible,'  sometimes  known  as  Cromwell's,  because 
the  first  edition  (April  1539)  appeared  under  the  auspices  of 
Thomas  Cromwell,  Henry  VII I's  famous  minister,  sometimes 
as  Cranmer's,  because  he  wrote  the  preface  to  the  second  edition 
(April  1540),  was  a  revision  of  Matthew's  Bible  (1537),  executed 
by  Coverdale  with  the  help  of  Sebastian  Miinster's  Latin  version, 
published  in  1534 — 5^. 

Matthew's  Bible  was  a  composite  work.  The  Pentateuch  and 
N.T.  were  taken  from  Tyndale's  published  translation ;  the 
books  from  Ezra  to  Malachi  and  the  Apocrypha  from  Cover- 
dale's  version  ;  the  remaining  books  from  Joshua  to  2  Chron. 
from  a  translation  which  there  is  little  reason  to  doubt  was 
made  by  Tyndale. 

The  Psalter  in  Matthew's  Bible  was  therefore  Coverdale's 
work:  and  Coverdale's  Version  (1535)  lays  no  claim  to  inde- 
pendence. He  tells  us  in  the  Epistle  unto  the  Kinges  hygJinesse 
prefixed  to  the  work;  that  he  had  "with  a  cleare  conscience 
purely  and  faythfully  translated  this  out  of  fyve  sundry  inter- 
preters," and  the  original  title-page  described  the  book  as 
"faithfully  and  truly  translated  out  of  Douche  and  Latyn  into 
Englishe^." 

It  is  not  certain  who  the  "fyve  sundry  interpreters"  were; 
but  the  'Douche'  included  the  Swiss-German  version  known 
as  the  Zurich  Bible^  (1524 — 29),  and  Luther's  version;  and 
among  the  '  Latyn '  translations,  beside  the  Vulgate,  was  the 
version  of  Sanctes  Pagninus  (1527).     It   is   worth   while   thus 

^  Munster  was  largely  indebted  to  the  commentaries  of  medieval 
Jewish  scholars,  especially  R.  David  Kimchi  (1160 — 1235),  and  their 
influence  is  constantly  to  be  traced  in  the  English  Versions. 

^  For  a  full  account  of  Coverdale's  work  see  Bp  Westcott's  History 
of  the  English  Bible,  chap.  iii. 

^  So  called,  because  it  was  the  w^ork  of  a  band  of  scholars  at  Zurich, 
including  Zwingli,  Pellican,  and  Leo  Juda.  Coverdale's  indebtedness 
to  this  version  in  ihe  Psalier  is  very  large. 


Ixxiv  INTRODUCTION. 


to  trace  the  pedigree  of  the  Prayer-Book  Version,  for  in  spite 
of  successive  revisions,  it  retains  many  marks  of  its  origin. 
Many  of  its  peculiar  renderings,  and  in  particular  the  additions 
which  it  contains,  are  derived  from  the  LXX  through  the 
Vulgate. 

In  the  Great  Bible  these  additions  were  clearly  distinguished 
by  being  printed  in  smaller  type,  and  enclosed  in  brackets. 
Thus  e.g.  in  Ps.  xiv,  no  not  one  {v.  2),  eue7i  where  no  fear  was 
{v.  9),  and  the  whole  of  vv.  5 — 7,  are  in  smaller  type :  and  in 
xxix.  I,  bring  yong  rani7nes  unto  the  Lorde.  These  distinc- 
tions were  retained  in  the  Standard  Prayer-Book  of  1662  (the 
so-called  Annexed  Book),  but  have  been  dropped  in  modern 
editions. 

The  Prayer-Book  Psalter  appears  to  be  a  reproduction,  not 
critically  exact,  of  the  last  revision  of  the  Great  Bible  (Nov. 
1540)^.  The  text  differs  in  a  considerable  number  of  passages- 
from  that  of  1539^. 

The  A.V.  of  161 1,  though  more  accurate,  is  less  melodious, 
and  when,  at  the  revision  of  the  Prayer-Book  in  1662,  the 
version  of  161 1  was  substituted  in  the  Epistles  and  Gospels, 
the  old  Psalter  was  left  untouched.  "The  choirs  and  congrega- 
tions had  grown  familiar  with  it,  and  it  was  felt  to  be  smoother 
and  more  easy  to  sing."  Coverdale  was  a  consummate  master 
of  melodious  prose;  and  the  "exquisite  rhythm,  graceful  free- 
dom of  rendering,  and  endeavour  to  represent  the  spirit  as  well 
as  the  letter  of  the  original"  have  justly  given  to  his  work  "the 
pre-eminent  distinction  of  being  the  version  through  which  the 
Psalms  as  an  instrument  of  devotional  exercise,  as  an  aid  to 
meditation  and  the  religious  habit  of  mind,  and  as  a  formative 
influence  in  the  spiritual  education  of  man,  now  live  in  their 
fullest  and  widest  use'." 

'  Bp  Westcott,  The  Paragraph  Psalter,  p.  xi. 

"  See  examples  in  Driver,  The  Parallel  Psalter,  p.  xv.  Some  interest- 
ing archaisms  disappeared  in  the  revision  :  e.g.  have  iox  praise  (Ps.  cvii. 
32);  sparsed  for  dispersed  (cxii.  9).     See  Driver,  p.  xvii, 

3  This  is  easily  accessible  in  Prot.  Earle's  reprint,  with  introduction 
nnd  notes,  The  Psalter  of  1539,  ^  Landmark  in  English  Lileraturt 
(1892). 

*  Earle,  p.  vj. 


THE   ENGLISH   VERSIONS.  Ixxv 

The  Revised  Version  of  1885  has  made  a  great  advance  upon 
the  A.  V,  in  respect  of  accuracy  of  rendering.  The  changes  made 
by  the  Revisers  will,  as  a  rule,  be  quoted  in  this  commentary,  but 
the  translation  must  be  read  and  studied  as  a  whole  in  order 
properly  to  appreciate  their  force  and  value.  Even  with  the 
help  which  the  R.V.  now  supplies  to  the  English  reader,  it 
does  not  seem  superfluous  to  endeavour  by  more  exact  renderings 
to  bring  the  student  closer  to  the  sense  of  the  original. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  A.V.  frequently  creates  artificial 
distinctions  by  different  renderings  of  the  same  word,  and 
ignores  real  distinctions  by  giving  the  same  rendering  for 
different  words  :  and  this,  though  to  a  far  less  extent,  is  still 
the  case  in  the  R.V.^  Rigid  uniformity  of  rendering  may  be 
misleading,  but  it  is  well  that  attention  should  be  called  to 
distinctions  where  they  exist.  Again,  the  precise  force  of  a 
tense,  or  the  exact  emphasis  of  the  original,  cannot  always  be 
given  without  some  circumlocution  which  would  be  clumsy 
in  a  version  intended  for  general  use  :  but  it  is  worth  while 
to  attempt  to  express  finer  shades  of  meaning  in  a  commen- 
tary. 

The  best  translation  cannot  always  adequately  represent  the 
original :  and  it  is  well  that  the  English  reader  should  be 
reminded  that  the  sense  cannot  always  be  determined  with 
precision,  and  may  often  best  be  realised  by  approaching  it 
from  different  sides. 


'  See,  for  example,  iii.  2,  7,  8,  where  the  connexion  is  obscured  by 
the  rendering  of  the  same  word  help  in  v.  2,  and  salvation  in  v.  8. 
Two  entirely  different  words  are  rendered  blessed  in  xli.  1,13.  The  first 
expresses  congratulation  {Happy:  cp.  be  made  happy  in  v.  2):  the 
second  expresses  the  tribute  of  human  reverence  to  ihe  divine  majesty. 
The  word  rendered  trust  or  put  trust  in  in  vii.  i,  xi.  i  is  quite  distinct 
from  the  word  similarly  rendered  in  xiii.  5.  It  means  to  take  refuge  i)i, 
and  the  sense  gains  remarkably  by  the  correct  rendering.  The  exact 
rendering  of  a  tense  may  be  sufficient  to  draw  a  forcible  picture,  as  in 
vii.  15.  For  some  excellent  remarks  upon  principles  of  translation  see 
Driver,  The  Parallel  Psalter.,  pp.  xxv  fT. 


Ixxvi  INTRODUCTION. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE   MESSIANIC   HOPE. 

Poetry  was  the  handmaid  of  Prophecy  in  preparing  the  way 
for  the  coming  of  Christ.  Prophetic  ideas  are  taken  up,  de- 
veloped, pressed  to  their  full  consequences,  with  the  boldness 
and  enthusiasm  of  inspired  imagination.  The  constant  use  of 
the  Psalms  for  devotion  and  worship  familiarised  the  people 
with  them.  Expectation  was  aroused  and  kept  alive.  Hope 
became  part  of  the  national  life.  Even  Psalms,  which  were 
not  felt  beforehand  to  speak  of  Him  Who  was  to  come,  con- 
tributed to  mould  the  temper  of  mind  which  was  prepared  to 
receive  Him  when  He  came  in  form  and  fashion  far  other  than 
that  which  popular  hopes  had  anticipated ;  and  they  were  re- 
cognised in  the  event  as  pointing  forward  to  Him.     Cp.  Lk.  i,  ii. 

This  work  of  preparation  went  forward  along  several  distinct 
lines,  some  of  which  are  seen  to  converge  or  meet  even  in  the 
O.T.,  while  others  were  only  harmonised  by  the  fulfilment. 
Thus  (i)  some  Psalms  pointed  forward  to  the  Messiah  as 
Son  of  God  and  King  and  Priest :  others  (2)  prepared  the 
way  for  the  suffering  Redeemer ;  others  (3)  only  find  their  full 
meaning  in  the  perfect  Son  of  Man:  others  (4)  foretell  the 
Advent  of  Jehovah  Himself  to  judge  and  redeem. 

All  these  different  lines  of  thought  combined  to  prepare  the 
way  for  Christ ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  preparation 
was  in  great  measure  silent  and  unconscious.  It  is  difficult  for 
us  who  read  the  O.T.  in  the  light  of  its  fulfilment  to  realise  how 
dim  and  vague  and  incomplete  the  Messianic  Hope  must  have 
been  until  the  Coming  of  Christ  revealed  the  divine  purpose, 
and  enabled  men  to  recognise  how  through  long  ages  God  had 
been  preparing  for  its  consummation. 

(i)  The  Royal  Messiah  (Psalms  ii,  xviii,  xx,  xxi,  xlv,  Ixi, 
Ixxii,  Ixxxix,  ex,  cxxxii). 

The  Kingdom  of  Israel  was  at  once  the  expression  of  God's 
purpose  to  establish  an  universal  kingdom  upon  earth,  and  the 
means  for  the  accomplishment  of  that  purpose.  The  people  of 
Israel  was  Jehovah's  son,  His  firstborn  (Ex.  iv.  22,  23 ;  Deut.  xxxii. 


THE   MESSIANIC   HOPE.  Ixxvii 

6;  Hos.  xi.  i),  and  His  servant  (Is.  xli.  8) ;  and  the  Davidic  king 
as  the  representative  of  the  nation  was  Jehovah's  son,  His  first- 
born (2  Sam.  vii.  14;  Ps.  ii.  7;  Ixxxix.  26,  27),  and  His  servant 
(2  Sam.  vii.  5  ff.).  He  was  no  absolute  despot,  reigning  in  His 
own  right,  but  the  'Anointed  of  Jehovah'  who  was  the  true  King 
of  Israel,  appointed  by  Him  as  His  viceroy  and  representative 
(Ps.  ii.  6).  He  was  said  to  "sit  upon  the  throne  of  the  kingdom 
of  the  Lord  over  Israel"  (i  Chr.  xxviii.  5),  or  even  "on  the 
throne  of  the  Lord"  (i  Chr.  xxix.  23  ;  2  Chr.  ix.  8). 

Thus  he  was  at  once  the  representative  of  the  people  before 
Jehovah,  and  the  representative  of  Jehovah  before  the  people, 
and  before  the  nations.  To  Him  as  Jehovah's  viceroy  was 
promised  the  sovereignty  over  the  nations.  Nathan's  message 
to  David  (2  Sam.  vii)  was  the  Davidic  king's  patent  of 
adoption  and  title  deed  of  inheritance.  It  was  the  procla- 
mation of  "the  everlasting  covenant"  which  God  made  with 
the  house  of  David  (2  Sam.  xxiii.  5).  Upon  the  divine  choice 
of  David  and  his  house,  and  in  particular  upon  this  great 
prophecy,  are  based  a  series  of  what  may  be  called  Royal 
Psalms.  Critical  events  in  the  life  of  David  or  later  kings, 
or  in  the  history  of  the  kingdom,  gave  occasion  to  David  him- 
self, or  other  poet-seers,  to  declare  the  full  significance  and 
extent  of  that  promise.  Successive  kings  might  fail  to  realise 
their  rightful  prerogatives,  but  the  divine  promise  remained 
unrevoked,  waiting  for  one  who  could  claim  its  fulfilment  in  all 
its  grandeur. 

Different  aspects  of  the  promise  are  presented  in  different 
Psalms.  They  can  only  be  briefly  summarised  here :  for  fuller 
explanation  reference  must  be  made  to  the  introductions  and 
notes  to  each  Psalm. 

In  Ps.  ii  the  prominent  thought  is  the  divine  sonship  of  the 
anointed  king  and  its  significance.  The  nations  are  mustering 
with  intent  to  renounce  their  allegiance  to  the  king  recently 
enthroned  in  Zion.  But  their  purpose  is  vain,  for  the  king  is 
none  other  than  Jehovah's  Son  and  representative.  In  rebelling 
against  him  they  are  rebelling  against  Jehovah,  and  if  they 
persist,  will  do  it  to  their  own  destruction. 

In  David's  great  thanksgiving  (Ps.  xviii)  he  celebrates  Jehovah 


Ixxviii  INTRODUCTION. 

as  the  giver  of  victory,  and  recognises  that  his  position  as  "the 
head  of  the  nations"  {v.  43)  has  been  given  him  in  order  that 
he  may  proclaim  Jehovah's  glory  among  them  {v.  49). 

The  relation  of  the  king  to  Jehovah  as  His  anointed  repre- 
sentative is  the  ground  of  intercession  and  confidence  in  Ps. 
XX.  6;  and  the  thanksgiving  for  victory  which  follows  in  Ps.  xxi 
naturally  dwells  upon  the  high  dignity  which  belongs  to  him  in 
virtue  of  that  relation,  and  anticipates  his  future  triumphs.  The 
same  thought  is  repeated  in  Ps.  Ixi.  6  f. 

Ps.  xlv  is  a  marriage  song  for  Solomon  or  some  later  king  of 
the  house  of  David.  In  lofty  language  the  poet  sets  before  him 
the  ideal  of  his  office  (cp.  2  Sam.  xxiii.  3  ff.),  and  claims  for  him 
the  fulness  of  the  promise  of  eternal  dominion.  "  The  union  with 
a  foreign  princess  suggests  the  hope  of  the  peaceful  union  of 
all  nations  in  harmonious  fellowship  with  Israel. 

Ps.  Ixxii  is  an  intercession  for  Solomon  or  some  other  king 
on  his  accession.  In  glowing  colours  it  depicts  the  ideal  of  his 
office,  and  prays  that  he  may  fulfil  it  as  the  righteous  sovereign 
who  redresses  wrong,  and  may  rule  over  a  world-wide  empire, 
receiving  the  willing  homage  of  the  nations  to  his  virtue,  and 
proving  himself  the  heir  of  the  patriarchal  promise. 

In  some  crisis  of  national  disaster  the  author  of  Ps.  Ixxxix 
recites  the  promise  to  David,  and  contrasting  its  brilliant  hopes 
with  the  disappointment  which  it  was  his  trial  to  witness,  pleads 
for  the  renewal  of  God's  favour. 

Ps.  ex  is  a  kind  of  solemn  oracle.  It  describes  David  as 
king,  priest,  and  conqueror.  Jehovah  adopts  him  as  His  as- 
sessor, placing  him  in  the  seat  of  honour  at  His  side.  Though 
not  of  Aaron's  line  he  is  invested  with  a  priestly  dignity.  The 
new  king  of  Zion  must  inherit  all  the  privileges  of  the  ancient 
king  of  Salem,  and  enter  upon  the  religious  as  well  as  the  civil 
memories  of  his  capital. 

Once  more,  in  Ps.  cxxxii,  possibly  in  days  when  the  kingdom 
had  ceased  to  exist,  and  the  representative  of  the  house  of  David 
was  only  a  governor  appointed  by  a  foreign  conqueror,  the 
ancient  promise  is  pleaded  in  confidence  that  it  must  still  find 
fulfilment. 

These   Psalms   refer   primarily  to  the  circumstances  of  the 


THE   MESSIANIC    HOPE.  Ixxix 

time.  The  revolt  of  the  nations,  the  royal  marriage,  the  ac- 
cession of  a  prince  of  unique  promise,  the  installation  of  the 
king,  gave  the  inspired  poets  opportunity  for  dwelling  on  the 
promises  and  hopes  connected  with  the  Davidic  kingdom. 
But  successive  princes  of  David's  line  failed  to  fulfil  their  high 
destiny,  to  subdue  the  nations,  to  rule  the  world  in  righteous- 
ness, to  establish  a  permanent  dynasty.  The  kingdom  ceased 
to  exist ;  yet  it  was  felt  that  the  divine  promise  could  not  fail ; 
and  hope  was  directed  to  the  future.  Men  were  led  to  see  that 
the  divine  promise  had  not  been  frustrated  but  postponed,  and 
to  look  for  the  coming  of  One  who  should  'fulfil'  the  utmost 
that  had  been  spoken  of  Israel's  king^ 

(2)  The  suffci'ing  Messiah  (Pss.  xxii,  Ixix,  cix,  xxxv,  xli,  Iv). 
Men's  minds  had  to  be  prepared  not  only  for  a  triumphant 
King,  but  for  a  suffering  Saviour.  The  great  prophecy  of  Is. 
hi,  hii  finds  preludes  and  echoes  in  the  Psalter  in  what  may  be 
called  the  Passion  Psabns.  The  sufferings  of  David  and  other 
saints  of  the  old  dispensation  were  typical  :  they  helped  to 
familiarise  men  with  the  thought  of  the  righteous  suffering  for 
God's  sake,  of  suffering  as  the  path  to  victory,  of  glory  to  be 
won  for  God  and  deliverance  for  man  through  suffering.  They 
were  the  anticipation,  as  the  sufferings  of  the  members  of  the 
Christian  Church  are  the  supplement  (Col.  i.  24),  of  the  afflictions 
of  Christ. 

But  not  only  were  these  sufferings  in  themselves  typical,  but 
the  records  of  them  were  so  moulded  by  the  Spirit  of  God  as  to 
prefigure  the  sufferings  of  Christ  even  in  circumstantial  details. 
These  details  are  not  the  most  important  part  of  the  type  or 
prophecy;  but  they  serve  to  arrest  attention,  and  direct  it  to  the 
essential  idea. 

These  Psalms  do  not  appear  to  have  been  applied  to  the 
Messiah  in  the  Jewish  Church  as  the  Royal  Psalms  were.  It 
was  Christ  Himself  who  first  shewed  His  disciples  that  He 
must  gather  up  into  Himself  and  fulfil  the  manifold  experiences 
of  the  people  of  God,  in  suffering  as  well  as  in  triumph,  and 
taught  them  to  recognise  that  those  sufferings  had  been  foreor- 

^  For  references  to  the  Messianic  interpretations  of  the  Targums  see 
note  on  p.  Ixx. 


Ixxx  INTRODUCTION. 

dained  in  the  divine  purpose,  and  how  they  had  been  fore- 
shadowed throughout  the  Old  Testament. 

Ps.  xxii  stands  by  itself  among  these  Psalms.  In  its  descrip- 
tion of  the  Psalmist's  sufferings,  and  in  its  joyous  anticipation 
of  the  coming  extension  of  Jehovah's  kingdom,  it  foreshadows 
the  Passion  of  Christ  and  its  glorious  fruits :  and  our  Lord's  use 
of  the  opening  words  (and  probably  of  the  whole  Psalm)  upon 
the  Cross,  stamps  it  as  applicable  to  and  fulfilled  in  Him. 

Ps.  Ixix  records  the  sufferings  of  one  who  was  persecuted  for 
God's  sake  {vv.  7  ff.).  In  his  consuming  zeal  for  God's  house,  in 
his  suffering  as  the  victim  of  causeless  hatred  (cp.  xxxv,  19; 
cix.  3  ff.),  in  his  endurance  of  reproach  for  his  faithfulness  to 
God,  he  was  the  prototype  of  Christ.  The  contemptuous 
mockery  {vv.  12,  20)  and  maltreatment  {yv.  21,  26)  to  which  he 
was  exposed,  prefigured  the  actual  sufferings  of  Christ.  The 
curse  which  falls  upon  his  persecutors  {y.  25  ;  cp.  cix.  8)  be- 
comes the  doom  of  the  arch-traitor  (Acts  i.  20) ;  and  the  judge- 
ment invoked  upon  his  enemies  {vv.  22 — 24)  finds  its  fulfilment 
in  the  rejection  of  apostate  Israel  (Rom.  xi.  9,  10). 

The  treachery  of  the  faithless  friend  described  in  xli.  9  (cp. 
Iv.  12  ff.)  anticipates  the  treachery  of  the  false  disciple. 

(3)  The  Son  of  Man  (Pss.  viii,  xvi,  xl).  Psalms  which 
describe  the  true  destiny  of  man,  the  issue  of  perfect  fellowship 
with  God,  the  ideal  of  complete  obedience,  unmistakably  point 
forward  to  Him  who  as  the  representative  of  man  triumphed 
where  man  had  failed. 

Ps.  viii  looks  away  from  the  Fall  and  its  fatal  consequences 
to  man's  nature,  position,  and  destiny  in  the  purpose  of  God. 
Christ's  perfect  humanity  answered  to  that  ideal,  and  is  seen  to 
be  the  pledge  of  the  fulfilment  of  the  divine  purpose  for  the 
whole  race  of  mankind  (Heb.  ii.  6  ff.). 

In  Ps.  xvi  faith  and  hope  triumph  over  the  fear  of  death  in 
the  consciousness  of  fellowship  with  God.  Yet  the  Psalmist  did 
not  escape  death;  his  words  looked  forward,  and  first  found 
their  adequate  realisation  in  the  Resurrection  of  Christ  (Acts  ii 
25  ff.;  xiii.  35). 

In  Ps.  xl  the  Psalmist  professes  his  desire  to  prove  his  grati- 
tude to  God  by  offering  the  sacrifice  of  obedience.     But  that 


THE   MESSIANIC   HOPE.  Ixxxi 

obedience  wns  at  best  imperfect.  His  words  must  wait  to  receive 
their  full  accomplishment  in  the  perfect  obedience  of  Christ 
(Heb.  X.  5  ff.). 

Christ  as  the  perfect  Teacher  adopted  and  'fulfilled'  the 
methods  of  the  teachers  of  the  old  dispensation  (Ps.  Ixxviii.  i). 

(4)  The  coming  of  God.  Another  series  of  Psalms  describes 
or  anticipates  the  Advent  of  Jehovah  Himself  to  judge  and  to 
redeem.  Such  are  xviii.  7  ff.,  1,  Ixviii,  xcvi — xcviii.  They 
correspond  to  the  prophetic  idea  of  'the  day  of  Jehovah,'  which 
culminates  in  Mai.  iii.  i  ff.  They  do  not  indeed  predict  the 
Incarnation,  but  they  served  to  prepare  men's  minds  for  the 
direct  personal  intervention  of  God  which  was  to  be  realised  in 
the  Incarnation.  We  find  passages  originally  spoken  of  Jehovah 
applied  in  the  N.T.  to  Christ  ^  The  words  of  Ps.  Ixviii.  18, 
which  describe  the  triumphant  ascent  of  Jehovah  to  His  throne 
after  the  subjugation  of  the  world,  are  adapted  and  applied  to 
the  triumphant  return  of  Christ  to  heaven  and  His  distribution 
of  the  gifts  of  grace  (Eph.  iv.  8). 

The  words  of  cii.  25,  26,  contrasting  the  immutability  of  the 
Creator  with  the  mutability  of  created  things,  originally  ad- 
dressed to  Jehovah  by  the  exile  who  appealed  to  Him  to  inter- 
vene on  behalf  of  Zion,  are  applied  to  the  Son  through  whom 
the  worlds  were  made  (Hebr.  i.  10). 

Thus  the  inspired  poetry  of  the  Psalter,  viewing  the  Davidic 
kingdom  in  the  hght  of  the  prophetic  promises  attached  to  it, 
played  its  part  in  preparing  men's  minds  for  a  King  who 
should  be  God's  Son  and  representative,  as  it  came  to  be  inter- 
preted in  the  course  of  history  through  failure  and  disappoint- 
ment. The  record  of  the  Psalmists'  own  sufferings  helped  to 
give  some  insight  into  the  part  which  suffering  must  perform  in 
the  redemption  of  the  world.  Their  ideals  of  man's  destiny 
and  duty  imphed  the  hope  of  the  coming  of  One  who  should 
perfectly  fulfil  them.  The  expectation  of  Jehovah's  advent  to 
judge  and  redeem  anticipated  a  direct  divine  interposition  for 
the  establishment  of  the  divine  kingdom  in  the  world. 

It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  relation  of  these  various 
elements  of  the  preparation  could  be  recognised,  or  that  they 
^  See  Bp  Westcott's  Hebrews^  p.  89. 

P-^ALMS  / 


INTRODUCTION. 


could  be  harmonised  into  one  consistent  picture  beforehand. 
It  was  reserved  for  the  event  to  shew  that  the  various  lines  of 
hope  and  teaching  were  not  parallel  but  convergent,  meeting  in 
the  Person  and  Work  of  Him  Who  is  at  once  God  and  Man, 
Son  and  Servant,  Priest  and  King,  Sufferer  and  Victor. 

It  has  been  assumed  thus  far  that  these  Psalms  refer  primarily 
to  the  circumstances  under  which  they  were  written.  Many 
commentators  however  regard  some  of  the  '  Royal  Psalms,' 
in  particular  Pss.  ii,  xlv,  Ixxii,  ex,  as  direct  prophecies  of  the 
Messianic  King  :  some,  because  they  are  unable  to  discover 
the  precise  historical  occasion  in  existing  records :  others, 
because  the  language  seems  to  reach  beyond  what  could  be 
predicated  of  any  earthly  king,  and  the  N.  T.  application  of 
these  Psalms  to  Christ  appears  to  them  to  require  that  they 
should  be  referred  to  Him  alone. 

The  particular  historical  reference  of  each  of  these  Psalms 
will  be  discussed  in  the  introduction  to  it :  here  it  must  suffice 
to  observe  that  such  Psalms  as  ii  and  xlv  produce  the  decided 
impression  that  they  were  written  in  view  of  contemporary 
events.  Lofty  as  is  the  language  used,  it  is  no  more  than  is 
warranted  by  the  grandeur  of  the  divine  promises  to  the  house 
of  David;  and  if  the  words  are  applied  to  Christ  with  a  fulness 
and  directness  which  seems  to  exclude  any  lower  meaning,  it 
must  be  remembered  that  it  was  through  the  institution  of  the 
kingdom  that  men  were  taught  to  look  for  Him,  and  their 
fulfilment  in  Him  presumes  rather  than  excludes  the  view  that 
they  had  a  true,  if  partial,  meaning  for  the  time  at  which  they 
were  written. 

Similarly  in  the  case  of  the  '  Passion  Psalms '  it  has  been 
thought  that,  at  least  in  Ps.  xxii,  the  Psalmist  is  speaking  in 
the  person  of  Christ.  Yet  even  this  Psalm  plainly  spnngs  out 
of  personal  suffering ;  though  it  is  equally  plain  that  the 
character  of  that  suffering  was  providentially  moulded  to  be  a 
type,  and  the  record  of  it  inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit  to  be  a 
prophecy,  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ.  That  Ps.  Ixix  cannot  as 
a  whole  be  placed  in  the  mouth  of  Christ  is  evident,  if  for  no 
other  reason,  from  the  confession  of  sin  in  v.  5. 

Have  then  these  Psalms,  has  prophecy  in  general,  a  'double 


THE   MESSIANIC    HOPE.  Ixxxiii 

sense?'  a  primary  historical  sense  in  relation  to  the  circum- 
stances under  which  they  were  written,  and  a  secondary 
typical  or  prophetical  sense,  in  which  they  came  to  be  under- 
stood by  the  Jewish  and  afterwards  by  the  Christian  Church  ? 
We  may  no  doubt  legitimately  talk  of  a  'double  sense,'  if  what 
we  mean  is  that  Psalmist  and  Prophet  did  not  realise  the  full 
meaning  of  their  words,  and  that  that  meaning  only  came  to  be 
understood  as  it  was  unfolded  by  the  course  of  history.  But  is 
it  not  a  truer  view  to  regard  both  senses  as  essentially  one? 
The  institutions  of  Israel  and  the  discipline  of  the  saints  of  old 
were  designed  to  express  the  divine  purpose  as  the  age  and  the 
people  were  able  to  receive  it.  The  divine  purpose  is  eternally 
one  and  the  same,  though  it  must  be  gradually  revealed  to 
man,  and  man's  apprehension  of  it  changes.  And  it  is  involved 
in  any  worthy  conception  of  inspiration  that  inspired  words 
should  express  divine  ideas  with  a  fulness  which  cannot  at  once 
be  intelligible,  but  only  comes  to  be  understood  as  it  is  in- 
terpreted by  the  course  of  history  or  illuminated  by  the  light  of 
fuller  revelation. 

Inspired  words  are  "  springing  and  germinant "  in  their  very 
nature :  they  grow  with  the  growing  mind  of  man.  They  are 
'fulfilled,'  not  in  the  sense  that  their  meaning  is  exhausted  and 
their  function  accomplished,  but  in  the  sense  that  they  are 
enlarged,  expanded,  ennobled.  What  is  temporary  and  acci- 
dental falls  away,  and  the  eternal  truth  shines  forth  in  its  in- 
exhaustible freshness  and  grandeur. 

For  us  the  Psalms  which  were  designed  to  prepare  the  way 
for  the  coming  of  Christ  bear  witness  to  the  unity  of  the  divine 
plan  which  is  being  wrought  out  through  successive  ages  of  the 
world. 

(5)  The  nations.  Under  the  head  of  Messianic  Hope  in  the 
Psalter  must  be  included  the  view  which  is  presented  of  the 
relation  of  the  nations  to  Jehovah  and  to  Israel.  Few  features 
are  more  striking  than  the  constant  anticipation  of  the  inclusion 
of  all  nations  in  Jehovah's  kingdom. 

On  the  one  hand  indeed  the  nations  appear  as  the  deadly 
enemies  of  Jehovah's  people,  leagued  together  for  its  destruction 
(ii,  Ixxxiii),  but   doomed   themselves   to   be  destroyed    if  they 

/2 


Ixxxiv  INTRODUCTION. 

persist  in  their  unhallowed  purpose  (ii.  9;  ix.  17  ff. ;  xxxiii.  10; 
xlvi.  6  ff. ;  Hk.  5,  8). 

But  concurrently  with  this  view  of  the  relation  of  the  nations 
to  Jehovah  and  Israel,  another  and  more  hopeful  view  is  con- 
stantly presented.  The  nations  as  well  as  Israel  belong  to 
Jehovah,  and  are  the  objects  of  His  care;  they  will  eventually 
render  Him  homage;  and  Israel  is  to  be  the  instrument  for 
accomplishing  this  purpose  and  establishing  the  universal  divine 
kingdom. 

{a)  The  earth  and  all  its  inhabitants  belong  to  Jehovah  as 
their  Creator  (xxiv.  i  ;  cp.  viii.  i);  they  are  under  His  observa- 
tion (Ixvi.  7),  and  subservient  to  His  purposes  (xxxiii.  14);  He 
disciplines  and  teaches  them  (xciv.  10) ;  they  are  addressed  as 
being  capable  of  moral  instruction  (xlix.  i). 

He  is  the  supreme  and  universal  King  and  Judge  (xxii.  28; 
xlvi.  10;  xlvii.  2,  8,  9;  xcvi.  13  ;  xcviii.  9;  xcix.  2;  cxiii.  4);  the 
nations  are  constantly  exhorted  to  render  Him  homage  (ii.  8  ff.), 
to  fear  Him  (xxxiii.  8),  to  praise  Him  (Ixvi.  i  f. ;  cxvii.  i ;  cxlv, 
21),  and  even  to  worship  Him  in  His  temple  (xcvi.  7  ff.;  c.  i,  2). 

{b)  The  time  will  come  when  all  nations  will  acknowledge 
His  sovereignty  (xxii.  27 ;  Ixvi.  4 ;  Ixviii.  29  ff. ;  Ixxxvi.  9 ;  cii. 
22).  The  kings  of  the  earth  will  render  homage  to  their 
sovereign  (cii.  15  ;  cxxxviii.  4).  To  Him  as  the  hearer  of  prayer 
shall  "all  flesh"  come  (Ixv.  2);  He  is  the  confidence  of  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  (Ixv.  5) ;  and  the  Psalter  ends  with  the  chorus 
of  universal  praise  from  every  living  thing  (cl.  6). 

{c)  Israel  is  Jehovah's  instrument  for  accomplishing  the 
world-wide  extension  of  His  kingdom. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  kingdom  it  may  have  seemed  that 
Israel's  destiny  was  to  subjugate  the  nations  and  include  them 
in  the  kingdom  of  Jehovah  by  conquest  (ii;  xviii.  43;  xlvii);  yet 
the  thought  is  never  far  distant  that  the  object  of  Israel's 
victories  is  to  make  Jehovah  known  (xviii.  49 ;  Ivii.  9),  and  to 
lead  to  the  harmonious  union  of  the  nations  with  His  people 
(xlvii.  9).  Ps.  xlv  suggests  the  hope  of  peaceful  alliance,  Ps. 
Ixxii  of  conquest  by  moral  supremacy  {vv.  8  ff.).  If  to  the  last 
the  thought  of  actual  conquests  survived  (cxlix.  6  ff.),  a  more 
spiritual  conception  of  Israel's  relation  to  the  nations  grew  up 


THE   MESSIANIC   HOPE.  Ixxxv 

side  by  side  with  it.  The  Psalmist's  gratitude  for  personal 
dehverance  widens  out  into  the  prospect  of  the  universal 
worship  of  Jehovah  (xxii).  Ps.  Ixvii  expresses  Israel's  con- 
sciousness of  its  calling  to  be  a  blessing  to  the  world,  and  the 
final  purpose  of  its  prosperity  is  the  conversion  of  the  nations. 
Zion  becomes  the  spiritual  metropolis  in  which  nations  once 
hostile  are  enrolled  as  citizens  (Ixxxvii) ;  and  Israel's  deliverance 
from  captivity  is  seen  to  lead  to  the  universal  worship  of  her 
Deliverer,  and  the  gathering  of  the  nations  to  Zion  to  serve  Him 
(cii.  15,  21  ff. ;  cp.  xcvi — xcviii). 

Thus,  even  under  the  limitations  of  the  old  Covenant,  were 
formed  the  hopes  which  are  in  part  fulfilled,  and  in  part  still 
await  fulfilment,  in  the  Christian  Church. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

ON   SOME   POINTS    IN   THE  THEOLOGY   OF  THE   PSALMS. 

A  thorough  examination  of  the  Theology  of  the  Psalms  would 
exceed  the  limits  of  the  present  work.  It  would  include  an 
investigation  whether  any  progress  and  development  of  doctrine 
can  be  traced  in  the  Psalms  of  different  periods.  All  that  can 
be  attempted  here  is  a  few  brief  notes  on  some  points  which  re- 
quire the  student's  attention  or  present  special  difficulties. 

(i)  The  relation  of  the  Psalms  to  the  Ordinances  of  Worship. 
The  Psalms  represent  the  inward  and  spiritual  side  of  the 
religion  of  Israel.  They  are  the  manifold  expression  of  the 
intense  devotion  of  pious  souls  to  God,  of  the  feelings  of  trust 
and  hope  and  love  which  reach  a  climax  in  such  Psalms  as  xxiii, 
xlii — xliii,  Ixiii,  Ixxxiv.  They  are  the  many-toned  voice  of  prayer 
in  the  widest  sense,  as  the  soul's  address  to  God  in  confession, 
petition,  intercession,  meditation,  thanksgiving,  praise,  both  in 
public  and  private.  They  offer  the  most  complete  proof,  if  proof 
were  needed,  how  utterly  false  is  the  notion  that  the  religion  of 
Israel  was  a  formal  system  of  external  rites  and  ceremonies.  In 
such  a  book  frequent  reference  to  the  external  ordinances  of 
worship  is  scarcely  to  be  expected;   but  they  are  presumed. 


Ixxxvi  INTRODUCTION. 


and  the  experience  of  God's  favour  is  constantly  connected 
with  the  Sanctuary  and  its  acts  of  worship  ^ 

There  are  frequent  references  to  the  Temple  as  the  central 
place  of  worship,  where  men  appear  before  God,  and  where  He 
specially  reveals  His  power  glory  and  goodness,  and  interprets 
the  ways  of  His  Providence  (xlii.  2  ;  xlviii.  9  ;  Ixiii.  2  ;  Ixv.  4 ; 
Lxviii.  29;  Ixxiii.  17  ;  xcvi.  6  ff. ;  &c.). 

The  impressive  splendour  of  the  priestly  array  is  alluded  to 
(xxix.  2,  note;  xcvi.  9;  ex.  3). 

The  delight  of  the  festal  pilgrimages  to  Zion  is  vividly  de- 
scribed (xlii,  xliii,  Ixxxiv,  cxxii,  cp.  Iv.  14).  Consuming  zeal  for 
God's  house  in  a  corrupt  age  characterised  the  saint  and  ex- 
posed him  to  persecution  (Ixix.  9). 

The  joyous  character  of  the  O.  T.  worship  is  so  striking 
a  feature  of  the  Psalter  as  scarcely  to  need  special  notice.  The 
Psalter  as  the  hymn-book  of  the  Second  Temple  was  entitled 
*The  Book  of  Praises.'  We  hear  the  jubilant  songs  of  the 
troops  of  pilgrims  (xlii.  4;  cp.  Is.  xxx.  29):  we  see  the  pro- 
cessions to  the  Temple  with  minstrels  and  singers  (lxviii.  24, 
25) :  we  hear  its  courts  resound  with  shouts  of  praise  (xcv.  i  ff. ; 
c.  I,  4),  and  music  of  harp  and  psaltery,  timbrel  and  trumpet, 
cymbals  and  pipe  (cL). 

Sacrifice  is  referred  to  as  the  sanction  of  the  covenant 
between  God  and  His  people  (1.  5;  cp.  Ex.  xxiv.  5ff.)5  ^s  the 
regular  accompaniment  of  approach  to  God  (xx.  3;  1.  8ff.; 
Ixvi.  13,  15;  xcvi.  8);  as  the  natural  expression  of  gratitude 
(xxvii.  6;  xliii.  4;  ii.  19;  liv.  6;  cvii.  22;  cxvi.  17;  cxviii.  27),  es- 
pecially in  connexion  with  vows  (Ivi.  12;  Ixvi.  13  ff.),  which  are 
frequently  mentioned  (xxii.  25  ;  Ixi.  5,  8  ;  Ixv.  i  ;  Ixxvi.  1 1 ;  cxvi. 
14,  18).  The  Levitical  ceremonies  of  purification  are  alluded  to 
as  symbols  of  the  inward  cleansing  which  must  be  effected  by 
God  Himself  (li.  7). 

But  the  great  prophetic  doctrine^  of  the  intrinsic  worthless- 
ness  of  sacrifice  apart  from  the  disposition  of  the  worshipper  is 
emphatically  laid  down.     It  is  not  sacrifice  but  obedience  that 

^  Cp.  Oehler,  0.  T.  Theology^  §  201. 

2  From  I  Sam.  xv.  22  onwards.  See  Amos  v.  21  ft.;  IIos.  vi.  6s 
Is.  i.  II  flf. ;  Mic.  Ad.  6  flf. ;  Jer.  vi.  20;  vii.  21  ff. ;  xiv.  12. 


MORAL   QUESTIONS.  Ixxxvii 

God  desires  (xl.  6ff.);  it  is  not  thank-offering,  but  a  thankful 
heart  which  finds  acceptance  with  Him  (1.  14,  23;  cp.  Ixix.  30) 
31);  it  is  not  sacrifice,  but  contrition  which  is  the  condition  of 
forgiveness  (li.  16  ff.).  Penitence  and  prayer  are  true  sacrifices 
(li.  17  ;  cxli-  2) :  and  the  moral  conditions  which  can  alone  make 
sacrifice  acceptable  and  are  requisite  for  approach  to  God  are 
constantly  insisted  upon  (iv.  5  ;  xv.  iff.;  xxiv.  3  ff. ;  xxvi.  6  ;  Ixvi. 
18). 

It  is  God  Himself  who  'purges  away'  iniquity  (Ixv.  3  ;  Ixxviii. 
38 ;  Ixxix.  9 ;  Ixxxv.  2). 

(ii)  The  self-righteousness  of  the  Psahnists.  Readers  of  the 
Psalms  are  sometimes  startled  by  assertions  of  integrity  and 
innocence  which  appear  to  indicate  a  spirit  of  self-righteous- 
ness and  self-satisfaction  approximating  to  that  of  the  Pharisee 
(Luke  xviii.  9).  Thus  David  appeals  to  be  judged  according  to 
his  righteousness  and  his  integrity  (vii.  8 ;  cp.  xxvi.  i  ff.),  and 
regards  his  deliverance  from  his  enemies  as  the  reward  of  his 
righteousness  and  innocence  (xviii.  20 ff.);  sincerity  and  inno- 
cence are  urged  as  grounds  of  answer  to  prayer  (xvii.  i  ff.),  and 
God's  most  searching  scrutiny  is  invited  (xxvi.  2  ff.). 

Some  of  these  utterances  are  no  more  than  asseverations  that 
the  speaker  is  innocent  of  particular  crimes  laid  to  his  charge  by 
his  enemies  (vii.  3ff.);  others  are  general  professions  of  purity  of 
purpose  and  single-hearted  devotion  to  God  (xvii.  i  ff.).  They  are 
not  to  be  compared  with  the  self-complacency  of  the  Pharisee, 
who  prides  himself  on  his  superiority  to  the  rest  of  the  world,  but 
with  St  Paul's  assertions  of  conscious  rectitude  (Acts  xx.  26  ff. ; 
xxiii.  i).  They  breathe  the  spirit  of  simple  faith  and  childlike 
trust,  which  throws  itself  unreservedly  on  God.  Those  who  make 
them  do  not  profess  to  be  absolutely  sinless,  but  they  do  claim  to 
belong  to  the  class  of  the  righteous  who  may  expect  God's  favour, 
and  they  do  disclaim  all  fellowship  with  the  wicked,  from  whom 
they  expect  to  be  distinguished  in  the  course  of  His  Providence. 

And  if  God's  present  favour  is  expected  as  the  reward  of  right 
conduct,  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  Israelite  looked  for 
the  visible  manifestation  of  the  divine  government  of  the  world 
in  the  reward  of  the  godly  and  the  punishment  of  the  evildoer 
in  this  present  life  (i  Kings  viii.  32,  39).     He  felt  that  he  had  a 


Ixxxviii  INTRODUCTION. 


right  to  be  treated  according  to  the  rectitude  of  which  he  was 
conscious. 

Further,  it  was  commonly  supposed  that  there  was  a  pro- 
portion between  sin  and  suffering;  that  exceptional  suffering  was 
an  evidence  of  exceptional  guilt.  This  idea  throws  light  upon  the 
assertions  of  national  innocence  in  xliv.  17  ff.,  and  of  personal 
innocence  in  lix.  3.  They  are  clearly  relative,  as  much  as  to 
say,  'We  know  of  no  national  apostasy  which  can  account  for 
this  defeat  as  a  well-merited  judgement :'  'I  am  not  conscious  of 
any  personal  transgression  for  which  this  persecution  is  a  fitting 
chastisement.'  So  Job  repeatedly  acknowledges  the  sinfulness 
of  man,  but  denies  that  he  has  been  guilty  of  any  special  sin  to 
account  for  his  extraordinary  afflictions. 

Some  however  of  these  utterances  undoubtedly  belong  to  the 
O.  T.  and  not  to  the  N.T.  They  are  the  partial  expression  of  an 
eternal  truth  (Matt.  xvi.  27),  in  a  form  which  belongs  to  the  age 
in  which  they  were  spoken.  The  N.  T.  has  brought  a  new  reve- 
lation of  the  nature  of  sin,  and  a  more  thorough  self-knowledge: 
it  teaches  the  inadmissibility  of  any  plea  of  merit  on  man's  part 
(Luke  xvii.  10).  But  the  docile  spirit  which  fearlessly  submits 
itself  to  the  divine  scrutiny  and  desires  to  be  instructed  (cxxxix. 
23,  24)  has  nothing  in  common  with  the  Pharisaism  which  is  by 
its  very  nature  incapable  of  improvement. 

And  side  by  side  with  these  assertions  of  integrity  we  find  in 
the  Psalms  the  fullest  recognition  of  personal  sinfulness  (li. 
5;  Ixix.  5),  of  man's  inability  to  justify  himself  before  God 
(cxxx.  3  ff.,  cxhii.  2),  of  his  need  of  pardon  cleansing  and 
renewal  (xxxii,  h,  Ixv.  3),  of  his  dependence  on  God  for  preser- 
vation from  sin  (xix.  12  ff.),  of  the  barrier  which  sin  erects  be- 
tween him  and  God  (Ixvi.  18,  1.  16 ff.);  as  well  as  the  strongest 
expressions  of  absolute  self-surrender  artil  dependence  on  God 
and  entire  trust  in  His  mercy  (xxv.  4ff.,  Ixxiii.  25  ff.). 

(iii)  The  so-called  Imprecatory  Psahns  have  long  been  felt 
to  constitute  one  of  the  'moral  difficulties'  of  the  O.T.  We  are 
startled  to  find  the  most  lofty  and  spiritual  meditations  inter- 
rupted by  passionate  prayers  for  vengeance  upon  enemies,  or 
ending  in  triumphant  exultation  at  their  destruction.  How,  we 
ask,  can  such  utterances  be  part  of  a  divine  revelation?     How 


THE   IMPRECATORY   PSALMS.  Ixxxix 

can  the  men  who  penned  them  have  been  in  any  sense  inspired 
by  the  Holy  Spirit? 

These  imprecations  cannot  be  explained  away,  as  some 
have  thought,  by  rendering  the  verbs  as  futures,  and  regarding 
them  as  authoritative  declarations  of  the  certain  fate  of  the 
wicked.  Of  these  there  are  many,  but  in  not  a  few  cases  the 
form  of  the  verb  is  that  which  specifically  expresses  a  wish  or 
prayer,  and  it  cannot  be  rendered  as  a  simple  future. 

Nor  again  can  the  difficulty  be  removed  by  regarding  the 
imprecations  of  Pss.  Ixix  and  cix  as  the  curses  not  of  the 
Psalmist  himself  but  of  his  enemies.  Even  if  this  view  were 
exegetically  tenable  for  these  two  Psalms,  which  is  doubtful, 
expressions  of  the  same  kind  are  scattered  throughout  the 
Psalter.  Moreover  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  contains  prayers  for 
vengeance  on  his  enemies,  at  least  as  terrible  as  those  of  Pss. 
ixix  and  cix  (Jer.  xi.  i8  ff". ;  xv.  15  ff. ;  xvii.  18 ;  xviii.  19  ff. ;  xx.  1 1  ff".). 

In  what  light  then  are  these  utterances  to  be  regarded?  They 
must  be  viewed  as  belonging  to  the  dispensation  of  the  Old 
Testament ;  they  must  be  estimated  from  the  standpoint  of  the 
Law,  which  was  based  upon  the  rule  of  retaliation,  and  not  of 
the  Gospel,  which  is  animated  by  the  principle  of  love;  they 
belong  to  the  spirit,  of  Elijah,  not  of  Christ;  they  use  the 
language  of  the  age  which  was  taught  to  love  its  neighbour 
and  hate  its  enemy  (Matt.  v.  43)^. 

Our  Lord  explicitly  declared  that  the  old  dispensation,  though 
not  contrary  to  the  new,  was  inferior  to  it  ;  that  modes  of 
thought  and  actions  were  permitted  or  even  enjoined  which 
would  not  be  allowable  for  His  followers;  that  He  had  come  to 
'fulfil'  the  Law  and  the  Prophets  by  raising  all  to  a  higher 
moral  and  spiritual  level,  expanding  and  completing  what  was 
rudimentary  and  imperfect  (Matt.  v.  43;  xix.  8;  Luke  ix.  55). 

It  is  essential  then  to  endeavour  to  understand  the  ruling 

^  It  is  well  to  remember,  on  the  other  hand,  that  the  Law  inculcates 
service  to  an  enemy  (Ex.  xxiii.  4,  5),  and  forbids  hatred,  vengeance, 
and  bearing  of  grudges  (Lev.  xix.  17,  18):  and  the  Book  of  Proverbs 
bids  men  leave  vengeance  to  God  (xx.  22),  and  control  their  exultation 
at  an  enemy's  misfortune  (xxiv.  17;  cp.  Job  xxxi.  29);  and  teaches 
that  kindness  is  the  best  revenge  (xxv.  21,  22).  We  have  here  the  germ 
of  Christian  ethics. 


INTRODUCTION. 


ideas  and  the  circumstances  of  the  age  in  which  these  Psalms 
were  composed,  in  order  to  realise  how,  from  the  point  of  view 
of  that  age,  such  prayers  for  vengeance  and  expressions  of 
triumph  as  they  contain  could  be  regarded  as  justifiable. 

In  the  first  place  it  is  important  to  observe  that  they  are  not 
dictated  merely  by  private  vindictiveness  and  personal  thirst  for 
revenge.  While  it  would  perhaps  be  too  much  to  say  that  they 
contain  no  tinge  of  human  passion  (for  the  Psalmists  were  men 
of  infirmity,  and  inspiration  does  not  obliterate  personal  charac- 
ter), they  rise  to  a  far  higher  level.  They  spring  ultimately 
from  zeal  for  God's  cause,  and  they  express  a  willingness  to 
leave  vengeance  in  the  hands  of  Him  to  whom  it  belongs. 
Retribution  is  desired  and  welcomed  as  part  of  the  divine  order 
(Iviii.  II  ;  civ.  35). 

This  was  a  great  advance  upon  the  ruder  stage  of  society,  in 
which  each  man  claimed  to  be  his  own  avenger.  David's  first 
impulse  when  he  was  insulted  by  Nabal  was  to  wreak  a  terrible 
vengeance  upon  him  and  all  that  belonged  to  him.  It  was  the 
natural  instinct  of  the  time.  But  his  final  resolve  to  leave  ven- 
geance to  God  indicated  the  better  feeling  that  was  being  learnt 
(i  Sam.  XXV.  21  fif.,  39). 

Though  their  form  belongs  to  the  circumstances  and  limita- 
tions of  the  age,  these  invocations  of  vengeance  are  the  feeling 
after  a  truth  of  the  divine  government  of  the  world.  For  it  is 
the  teaching  of  the  N.T.  not  less  than  of  the  O.T.  that  the 
kingdom  of  God  must  come  in  judgement  as  well  as  in  grace. 
Love  no  less  than  justice  demands  that  there  should  be  an 
ultimate  distinction  between  the  good  and  the  evil,  that  those 
who  will  not  submit  to  the  laws  of  the  kingdom  should  be 
banished  from  it  (Matt.  xiii.  49,  50;  xvi.  27 ;  John  v.  29). 

But  while  the  Gospel  proclaims  the  law  of  universal  love,  and 
bids  men  pray  without  ceasing  for  the  establishment  of  the 
kingdom  of  God  by  the  repentance  and  reformation  even  of  the 
most  hardened  offenders,  and  leave  the  issue  to  the  future 
judgement  of  God,  the  Law  with  its  stem  principle  of  retribution 
and  its  limitation  of  view  to  the  present  life,  allowed  men  to 
pray  for  the  establishment  of  the  kingdom  of  God  through  the 
destruction  of  the  wicked. 


THE    IMPRECATORY   PSALMS. 


The  Prophets  and  Psalmists  of  the  O.T.  had  a  keen  sense 
of  the  great  conflict  constantly  going  on  between  good  and  evil, 
between  God  and  His  enemies^.  That  conflict  was  being  waged 
in  the  world  at  large  between  Israel  as  the  people  of  God  and 
the  nations  which  threatened  to  destroy  Israel.  The  enemies 
of  Israel  were  the  enemies  of  Israel's  God;  Israel's  defeat  was 
a  reproach  to  His  Name;  the  cause  at  stake  was  not  merely  the 
existence  of  the  nation,  but  the  cause  of  divine  truth  and 
righteousness.  This  aspect  of  the  conflict  is  most  completely 
expressed  in  Ps.  Ixxxiii,  and  prayers  for  vengeance  such  as 
those  of  Ixxix.  lo,  12  and  cxxxvii.  8  express  the  national  desire 
for  the  vindication  of  a  just  cause,  and  the  punishment  of  cruel 
insults. 

Within  the  nation  of  Israel  this  same  conflict  was  being  waged 
on  a  smaller  scale  between  the  godly  and  the  ungodly.  When 
the  righteous  were  oppressed  and  the  wicked  triumphant,  it 
seemed  as  though  God's  rule  were  being  set  at  nought,  as  though 
God's  cause  were  losing.  It  was  not  only  allowable  but  a  duty 
to  pray  for  its  triumph,  and  that  involved  the  destruction  of  the 
wicked  who  persisted  in  their  wickedness.  There  must  be  no 
half-heartedness  or  compromise.  In  hatred  as  well  as  in  love 
the  man  who  fears  God  must  be  wholly  on  His  side  (cxxxix. 
19 — 22).  The  perfect  ruler  resolves  not  only  to  choose  the 
faithful  in  the  land  for  his  servants,  but  "morning  by  morn- 
ing "  to  "  destroy  all  the  wicked  of  the  land ;  to  cut  off  all 
the  workers  of  iniquity  from  the  city  of  the  Lord"  (ci.  6 — 8) ; 
and  it  seemed  only  right  and  natural  to  pray  that  the  Divine 
Ruler  would  do  the  same. 

Further  light  is  thrown  on  the  Imprecatory  Psalms  by  the 
consideration  that  there  was  as  yet  no  revelation  of  a  final  judge- 
ment in  which  evil  will  receive  its  entire  condemnation,  or  of 
a  future  state  of  rewards  and  punishments  (see  p.  xciii  flf.).  Men 
expected  and  desired  to  see  a  present  and  visible  distinction 
between  the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  according  to  the  law  of 
the  divine  government  (cxxv.  4, 5  ;  cxlv.  20).  It  was  part  of  God's 
lovingkindness  not  less  than  of  His  omnipotence  to  "reward 

^  See  Rainy 's  Develop^nent  of  Christian  Doctrine,  p.  346,  wheie 
there  is  a  helpful  treatment  of  the  whole  question. 


INTRODUCTION. 


every  man  according  to  his  work"  (Ixii.  12).  The  sufferings  of 
the  godly  and  the  prosperity  of  the  ungodly  formed  one  of  the 
severest  trials  of  faith  and  patience  to  those  whose  view  was 
hmited  to  the  present  life  (Ps.  xxxvii,  Ixxiii).  Although  God's 
sentence  upon  evil  is  constantly  being  executed  in  this  world,  it 
is  often  deferred  and  not  immediately  visible;  and  those  who 
longed  for  the  vindication  of  righteousness  desired  to  have  it 
executed  promptly  before  their  eyes.  Hence  the  righteous  could 
rejoice  when  he  saw  the  wicked  destroyed,  for  it  was  a  manifest 
proof  of  the  righteous  government  of  Jehovah  (lii.  5  ff. ;  liv.  7  ; 
Iviii.  10,  II ;  xcii.  11). 

Again,  it  must  be  remembered  that  we  have  been  taught 
to  distinguish  between  the  evil  man  and  evil :  to  love  the 
sinner  while  we  hate  his  sin.  But  Hebrew  modes  of  thought 
were  concrete.  The  man  was  identified  with  his  wickedness; 
the  one  was  a  part  of  the  other ;  they  were  inseparable.  Clearly 
it  was  desirable  that  wickedness  should  be  extirpated.  How 
could  this  be  done  except  by  the  destruction  of  the  wicked 
man  ?  What  right  had  he  to  exist,  if  he  persisted  obstinately  in 
his  wickedness  and  refused  to  reform  (1.  16  ff.)? 

The  imprecations  which  appear  most  terrible  to  us  are  those 
which  include  a  man's  kith  and  kin  in  his  doom  (Ixix.  25  ;  cix. 
9  ff.).  In  order  to  estimate  them  rightly  it  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  a  man's  family  was  regarded  as  part  of  him.  He 
lived  on  in  his  posterity :  the  sin  of  the  parent  was  entailed  upon 
the  children :  if  the  offence  had  been  monstrous  and  abnormal, 
so  ought  the  punishment  to  be.  The  defective  conception  of 
the  rights  of  the  individual,  so  justly  insisted  upon  by  Professor 
Mozley  as  one  of  the  chief  'ruling  ideas  in  early  ages,'  helps  us 
to  understand  how  not  only  the  guilty  man,  but  all  his  family, 
could  be  devoted  to  destruction ^ 

Let  it  be  noted  too  that  what  seems  the  most  awful  of  all 
anathemas  (Ixix.  28)  would  not  have  been  understood  in  the 
extreme  sense  which  we  attach  to  it :  and  some  of  the  ex- 
pressions which  shock  us  most  by  their  ferocity  are  metaphors 
derived  from  times  of  wild  and  savage  warfare  (Iviii.  10;  Ixviii. 
21  ff.)-  The  noblest  thoughts  may  coexist  side  by  side  with 
^  See  Mozley's  Lectures  on  the  Old  Testament,  pp.  87  ff.,  198  flf. 


THE   IMPRECATORY   PSALMS.  xciii 

much  that  to  a  later  age  seems  wholly  barbarous  and  revolt- 
ing. 

These  utterances  then  belong  to  the  spirit  of  the  O.T.  and 
not  of  the  N.T.,  and  by  it  they  must  be  judged.  They  belong 
to  the  age  in  which  the  martyr's  dying  prayer  was  not,  "  Lord, 
lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge"  (Acts  vii.  60),  but,  "Jehovah 
look  upon  it,  and  require  it"  (2  Chron.  xxiv.  22).  It  is  im- 
possible that  such  language  should  be  repeated  in  its  old  and 
literal  sense  by  any  follower  of  Him  Who  has  bidden  us  to 
love  our  enemies  and  pray  for  them  that  persecute  us. 

Yet  these  utterances  still  have  their  lesson.  On  the  one  hand 
they  may  make  us  thankful  that  we  live  in  the  light  of  the  Gospel 
and  under  the  law  of  Love:  on  the  other  hand  they  testify  to 
the  punishment  which  the  impenitent  sinner  deserves  and  must 
finally  receive  (Rom.  vi.  23).  They  set  an  example  of  moral 
earnestness,  of  righteous  indignation,  of  burning  zeal  for  the 
cause  of  God.  Men  have  need  to  beware  lest  in  pity  for  the 
sinner  they  condone  the  sin,  or  relax  the  struggle  against  evil. 
The  underlying  truth  is  still  true,  that  "the  cause  of  sin  shall 
go  down,  in  the  persons  of  those  who  maintain  it,  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  throw  back  on  them  all  the  evil  they  have  sought 
to  do.... This  was  waited  for  with  inexpressible  longing.  It  was 
fit  it  should  be.... This  is  not  the  only  truth  bearing  on  the 
point;  but  it  is  truth,  and  it  was  then  the  present  truth i".  It 
is  in  virtue  of  the  truth  which  they  contain  that  these  Psalms 
can  be  regarded  as  'inspired,'  and  their  position  in  the  records 
of  divine  revelation  justified.  Their  fundamental  motive  and 
idea  is  the  religious  passion  for  justice ;  and  it  was  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  that  their  writers  were  taught  to  discern  and  grasp 
this  essential  truth;  but  the  form  in  which  they  clothed  their 
desire  for  its  realisation  belonged  to  the  Hmitations  and  modes 
of  thought  of  their  particular  age. 

(iv)  The  Future  Life.  Death  is  never  regarded  in  the  O.  T. 
as  annihilation  or  the  end  of  personal  existence.  But  it  is  for 
the  most  part  contemplated  as  the  end  of  all  that  deserves  to  be 
called  life.  Existence  continues,  but  all  the  joy  and  vigour  of 
vitahty  are  gone  for  ever  (Is.  xiv.  10;  Ps.  cxliii.  3  =  Lam.  iii.  6). 
1  Rainy,  p.  348. 


INTRODUCTION. 


Communion  with  God  is  at  an  end :  the  dead  can  no  longer 
"see"  Him:  they  cannot  serve  or  praise  Him  in  the  silence  of 
Sheol :  His  lovingkindness,  faithfulness,  and  righteousness  can 
no  longer  be  experienced  there.  See  Ps.  vi.  5  ;  xxx.  9 ;  Ixxxviii. 
4,  5,  10 — 12;  cxv.  17;  Is.  xxxviii.  11,  18:  and  numerous  pas- 
sages in  Job,  e.g.  vii.  9;  x.  21  ff.;  xiv. 

Death  is  the  common  lot  of  all,  which  none  can  escape 
(xlix.  7  ff. ;  Ixxxix.  48),  but  the  righteous  and  the  wicked  are  dis- 
tinguished by  the  manner  of  their  death  (Ixxiii.  19).  When  death 
comes  to  a  man  in  a  good  old  age,  and  he  leaves  his  children 
behind  him  to  keep  his  name  in  remembrance,  it  may  be  borne 
with  equanimity ;  but  premature  death  is  usually  regarded  as 
the  sign  of  God's  displeasure  and  the  penal  doom  of  the  wicked 
(xxvi.  9),  and  childlessness  is  little  better  than  annihilation. 

To  the  oppressed  and  persecuted  indeed  Sheol  is  a  welcome 
rest  (Job  iii.  17  ff.),  and  death  may  even  be  a  gracious  removal 
from  coming  evil  (Is.  Ivii.  1,2);  but  as  a  rule  death  is  dreaded 
as  the  passage  into  the  monotonous  and  hopeless  gloom  of  the 
under- world. 

The  continuance  of  existence  after  death  has  no  moral  or 
religious  element  in  it.  It  is  practically  non-existence.  The 
dead  man  'is  not'  (xxxix.  13).  It  offers  neither  encouragement 
nor  warning.  It  brings  no  solution  of  the  enigmas  of  the  present 
life.  There  is  no  hope  of  happiness  or  fear  of  punishment  in  the 
world  beyond. 

This  world  was  regarded  as  the  scene  of  recompence  and 
retribution.  If  reward  and  punishment  did  not  come  to  the 
individual,  they  might  be  expected  to  come  to  his  posterity. 
For  the  man  lived  on  in  his  children:  this  was  his  real  con- 
tinuance in  life,  not  the  shadowy  existence  of  Sheol :  hence  the 
bitterness  of  childlessness. 

Nowhere  in  the  Psalter  do  we  find  the  hope  of  a  Resurrection 
from  the  dead.  The  prophets  speak  of  a  national,  and  finally  of 
a  personal  resurrection  (Hos.  vi.  i  ff. ;  Is.  xxvi.  19;  Ezek.  xxxvii. 
I  ff. ;  Dan.  xii.  2),  and  predict  the  final  destruction  of  death  (Is. 
XXV.  8).  But  just  where  we  should  have  expected  to  find  such 
a  hope  as  the  ground  of  consolation,  it  is  conspicuously  absent^. 

*  Ivi.  13;  Ixviii.  20;  xc,  3;  cxli.  7,  which  are  sometimes  referred  to. 


THE   FUTURE   LIFE. 


Indeed  it  is  set  on  one  side  as  incredible  (Ixxxviii.  lo).  It  is 
evident  that  there  was  as  yet  no  revelation  ot  a  resurrection 
upon  which  men  could  rest ;  it  was  no  article  of  the  common 
religious  belief  to  which  the  faithful  naturally  turned  for  comfort^ 

But  do  we  not  find  that  strong  souls,  at  least  in  rare  moments  of 
exultant  faith  and  hope,  broke  through  the  veil,  and  anticipated, 
not  indeed  the  resurrection  of  the  body,  but  translation  through 
death  into  a  true  life  of  unending  fellowship  with  God,  like 
Enoch  or  Elijah? 

Do  not  Pss.  xvi,  xvii,  xHx,  Ixxiii,  plainly  speak  of  the  hope 
of  the  righteous  in  his  death? 

The  answer  to  this  question  is  one  of  the  most  difficult 
problems  of  the  theology  of  the  Psalter.  It  can  only  be  satis- 
factorily treated  in  the  detailed  exposition  of  the  passages  as 
they  stand  in  their  context.  Some  of  the  expressions  which 
appear  at  first  sight  to  imply  a  sure  hope  of  deliverance  from 
Sheol  and  of  reception  into  the  more  immediate  presence  of 
God  (e.g.  xlix.  15,  Ixxiii.  24)  are  used  elsewhere  of  temporal 
deliverance  from  death  or  protection  from  danger,  and  may 
mean  no  more  than  this  (ix.  13,  xviii.  16,  xxx.  3,  Ixxxvi.  13,  ciii. 
4,  cxxxviii.  7).  Reading  these  passages  in  the  light  of  fuller 
revelation  we  may  easily  assign  to  them  a  deeper  and  more 
precise  meaning  than  their  original  authors  and  hearers  under- 
stood. They  adapt  themselves  so  readily  to  Christian  hope  that 
we  are  easily  led  to  believe  that  it  was  there  from  the  first. 

Unquestionably  these  Psalms  (xvi,  xvii,  xlix,  Ixxiii)  do 
contain  the  germ  and  principle  of  the  doctrine  of  eternal  life. 
It  was  present  to  the  mind  of  the  Spirit  Who  inspired  their 
authors.  The  intimate  fellowship  with  God  of  which  they 
speak  as  man's  highest  good  and  truest  happiness  could  not, 
in  view  of  the  nature  and  destiny  of  man  and  his  relation  to 
God,  continue  to  be  regarded  as  limited  to  this  life  and  liable  to 
sudden  and  final  interruption.     (See  Matt.  xxii.  31  ff.).     It  re- 

cannot  be  interpreted  of  a  resurrection.  The  text  of  xlviii.  14  is  very 
uncertain;  Ixxxvi.  13  is  a  thanksgiving  for  deliverance  from  death; 
cxviii.  1 7  expresses  the  hope  of  such  a  deliverance. 

^  Contrast  the  precise  statements  in  the  Psalms  of  Solomon  quoted 
on  p.  xlix,  where  however  it  is  only  a  resurrection  of  the  righteous 
which  is  anticipated. 


xcvi  INTRODUCTION. 

quired  but  a  step  forward  to  realise  the  truth  of  its  permanence, 
but  whether  the  Psahnists  took  this  step  is  doubtful. 

But  even  if  they  did,  there  was  still  no  clear  and  expHcit 
revelation  on  which  the  doctrine  of  a  future  life  or  of  a  resur- 
rection could  be  based.  It  was  but  a  'postulate  of  faith,'  a 
splendid  hope,  a  personal  and  individual  conclusion. 

What  was  the  meaning  and  purpose  of  this  reserve  in  the 
teaching  of  the  O.  T.?  Mankind  had  to  be  trained  through 
long  ages  by  this  stern  discipline  to  knov/  the  bitterness  of 
death  as  the  punishment  of  sin,  and  to  trust  God  utterly  in 
spite  of  all  appearances.  They  had  to  be  profoundly  impressed 
with  a  sense  of  need  and  of  the  incompleteness  of  life  here,  in 
order  that  they  might  long  for  deliverance  from  this  bondage 
and  welcome  it  v;hen  it  came  (Heb.  ii.  15).  Nor  could  the 
revelation  of  the  Resurrection  and  eternal  Hfe  be  made  in 
fulness  and  certainty  (so  far  as  we  can  see)  otherwise  than 
through  the  victory  of  the  second  Adam  who  through  death 
overcame  death  and  opened  unto  us  the  gate  of  everlasting 
life  (i  Cor.  xv.  21  ff.). 

Yet,  as  Delitzsch  observes,  there  is  nothing  which  comes  to 
light  in  the  New  Testament  which  does  not  already  exist  in 
germ  in  the  Psahiis.  The  ideas  of  death  and  life  are  regarded 
by  the  Psalmists  in  their  fundamental  relation  to  the  wrath  and 
the  love  of  God,  in  such  a  way  that  it  is  easy  for  Christian  faith 
to  appropriate  and  deepen,  in  the  light  of  fuller  revelation,  all 
that  is  said  of  them  in  the  Psalms.  There  is  no  contradiction 
of  the  Psalmist's  thought,  when  the  Christian  as  he  prays 
substitutes  hell  for  Sheol  in  such  a  passage  as  vi.  5,  for  the 
Psalmist  dreaded  Sheol  only  as  the  realm  of  wrath  and 
separation  from  the  love  of  God,  which  is  the  true  life  of  man. 
Nor  is  there  anything  contrary  to  the  mind  of  the  authors  in 
the  application  of  xvii.  15  to  the  future  vision  of  the  face  of 
God  in  all  its  glory,  or  of  xhx.  14  to  the  Resurrection  morning; 
for  the  hopes  there  expressed  in  moments  of  spiritual  elevation 
can  only  find  their  full  satisfaction  in  the  world  to  come.  The 
faint  glimmerings  of  twihght  in  the  eschatological  darkness  of 
the  Old  Testament  are  the  first  rays  of  the  coming  sunrise. 
And  the  Christian   cannot   refrain  from  passing  beyond   the 


THE   FUTURE    LIFE. 


limits  of  the  Psalmists,  and  understanding  the  Psalms  according 
to  the  mind  of  the  Spirit,  whose  purpose  in  the  gradual  revela- 
tion of  salvation  was  ever  directed  towards  the  final  consum- 
mation. Thus  understood,  the  Psalms  belong  to  the  Israel  of 
the  New  Testament  not  less  than  of  the  Old  Testament. 

The  Church,  in  using  the  Psalms  for  its  prayers,  recognises 
the  unity  of  the  two  Testaments :  and  scholarship,  in  expound- 
ing the  Psalms,  gives  full  weight  to  the  difference  between 
them.  Both  are  right ;  the  former  in  regarding  the  Psalms  in 
the  light  of  the  one  unchanging  salvation,  the  latter  in  dis- 
tinguishing the  different  periods  and  steps  in  which  that  salva- 
tion was  historically  revealed^. 

The  sacred  poetry  of  heathen  religions,  in  spite  of  all  that 
it  contains  of  noble  aspiration  and  pathetic  "feeling  after 
God,"  has  ceased  to  be  a  living  power.  But  "the  Psalms  of 
those  far  distant  days,  the  early  utterances  of  their  faith  and 
love,  still  form  the  staple  of  the  worship  and  devotion  of  the 
Christian  Church"...  "The  Vedic  hymns  are  dead  remains, 
known  in  their  real  spirit  and  meaning  to  a  few  students.  The 
Psalms  are  as  living  as  when  they  were  written.... They  were 
composed  in  an  age  at  least  as  immature  as  that  of  the  singers 
of  the  Veda ;  but  they  are  now  what  they  have  been  for  thirty 
centuries,  the  very  life  of  spiritual  religion — they  suit  the  needs, 
they  express,  as  nothing  else  can  express,  the  deepest  religious 
ideas  of  '  the  foremost  in  the  files  of  time.'^" 

1  Delitzsch,  The  Psalms,  p.  63. 

"'  Deau  Church,  The  Sacred  Poetry  of  Early  Religions,  pp.  j  2,  38, 


T'SALMS. 


xcviii  INTRODUCTION. 

CHAPTER  X. 

THE  PSALTER   IN   THE   CHRISTIAN   CHURCH. 

If  a  history  of  the  use  of  the  Psalter  could  be  written,  it 
would  be  a  history  of  the  spiritual  life  of  the  Church.  From 
the  earliest  times  the  Psalter  has  been  the  Church's  manual 
of  Prayer  and  Praise  in  its  public  worship,  the  treasury  of 
devotion  for  its  individual  members  in  their  private  communing 
with  God.  "  No  single  Book  of  Scripture,  not  even  of  the  New 
Testament,  has,  perhaps,  ever  taken  such  hold  on  the  heart  of 
Christendom.  None,  if  we  may  dare  judge,  unless  it  be  the 
Gospels,  has  had  so  large  an  influence  in  moulding  the 
affections,  sustaining  the  hopes,  purifying  the  faith  of  believers. 
With  its  words,  rather  than  with  their  own,  they  have  come 
before  God.  In  these  they  have  uttered  their  desires,  their 
fears,  their  confessions,  their  aspirations,  their  sorrows,  their 
joys,  their  thanksgivings.  By  these  their  devotion  has  been 
kindled  and  their  hearts  comforted.  The  Psalter  has  been, 
in  the  truest  sense,  the  Prayer  Book  both  of  Jews  and  Chris- 
tians ^" 

"What  is  the  history  of  the  Church,"  writes  Dean  Stanley, 
"but  a  long  commentary  on  the  sacred  records  of  its  first 
beginnings?... The  actual  effect,  the  manifold  applications,  in 
history,  of  the  words  of  Scripture,  give  them  a  new  instruction, 
and  afford  a  new  proof  of  their  endless  vigour  and  vitality.... 
The  Psalter  alone,  by  its  manifold  applications  and  uses  in 
after  times,  is  a  vast  palimpsest,  written  over  and  over  again, 
illuminated,  illustrated,  by  every  conceivable  incident  and 
emotion  of  men  and  nations  ;  battles,  wanderings,  dangers, 
escapes,  deathbeds,  obsequies,  of  many  ages  and  countries,  rise, 
or  may  rise,  to  our  view  as  we  read  it  I" 

It  would  be  impossible  in  a  few  pages  to  trace  the  history  of 
the  use  of  the  Psalter  even  in  the  barest  outline.     All  that  can 

^  Bishop  Perowne,  The  Psalms,  p.  22. 

^  Stanley,  7'he  Eastei~n  Ckuixh,  pp.  Ixxiv,  Ixxv. 


THE   USE   OF  THE   PSALMS. 


be  attempted  here  is  to  give  some  few  indications  of  the  vast 
influence  which  the  Psalter  has  exercised,  and  of  its  paramount 
importance  in  the  history  of  Christian  worship  and  devotion. 

There  is  no  evidence  that  the  entire  Psalter  was  used  in  the 
public  worship  of  the  Jewish  Church,  though  many  Psalms 
were  sung  or  chanted  in  the  services  of  the  Temple  and  the 
Synagogue  ^  But  the  number  of  the  quotations  from  the 
Psalter  in  the  New  Testament,  and  the  multitude  of  indirect 
allusions  to  its  thoughts  and  language,  prove  how  familiarly  it 
was  known  in  the  apostolic  age. 

It  was  upon  the  Psalms  that  our  Lord's  spiritual  life  was 
nourished.  The  sting  of  the  Tempter's  quotation  of  Ps.  xci  lay 
in  the  fact  that  its  words  were  a  precious  reality  to  Him.  He 
sang  the  'Hallel' (Pss.  cxiii — cxviii)  with  His  disciples  at  the 
Last  Supper  (Matt.  xxvi.  30).  A  Psalm  was  the  subject  of  His 
meditation  as  He  hung  upon  the  Cross,  and  with  the  words  of 
a  Psalm  He  gave  up  His  life.  In  the  Psalms  He  and  His  disciples 
found  the  foreshadowing  of  His  own  experience  (John  xiii.  18; 
ii.  17),  and  He  taught  His  disciples  to  understand  hov/  they 
prepared  the  way  for  His  coming  (Luke  xxiv.  44).  The  first 
Christian  hymns — the  Magnificat,  Benedictus,  and  Nunc  Di- 
mittis — are  composed  after  the  model  of  Psalms  and  contain 
numerous  echoes  of  them.  Doubtless  the  hymns  which  Paul  and 
Silas  sang  in  the  prison  at  Philippi  (Acts  xvi.  25)  were  Psalms. 
St  James  commends  the  singing  of  Psalms  as  the  most  fitting 
expression  of  joyfulness  (v.  13) ;  St  Paul  enjoins  it  as  the 
natural  outlet  for  spiritual  enthusiasm  and  a  means  of  mutual 
edification  (Eph.  v.  19;  Col.  iii.  16).  It  was  a  common  practice 
at  the  meetings  of  the  Corinthian  Church  (i  Cor.  xiv.  26). 

As  we  pass  on  into  later  ages  we  find  that  the  singing  of 
Psalms  was  not  only  a  constant  element  of  common  worship, 
but  a  favourite  occupation  of  Christians  in  their  homes  and  at 
their  work.  It  was  a  tradition  in  the  Church  of  Antioch  that 
the  antiphonal  singing  of  Psalms  was  introduced  by  Ignatius, 
the  first  bishop  (c.  a.d.  100),  who  saw  a  vision  of  angels  praising 
the  Trinity  in  antiphonal  hymns,  and  delivered  the  method  of 

^  For  the  daily  Psalms  see  above  p.  xxvii. 


INTRODUCTION. 


singing  which  he  had  seen  in  his  vision  to  the  Church  at 
Antioch,  whence  it  spread  to  all  the  Churches  i.  The  hymns 
from  Holy  Scripture  which  TertulHan  in  the  second  century 
tells  us  were  sung  at  the  agapae  or  love-feasts  were  doubtless 
Psalms^.  St  Jerome,  writing  from  Bethlehem  to  Marcella^, 
and  describing  the  charms  of  the  Holy  Land,  tells  her  that  the 
singing  of  Psalms  was  universal.  "Wherever  you  turn  the 
labourer  at  the  plough  sings  Alleluia :  the  toiling  reaper  beguiles 
his  work  with  Psalms :  the  vine-dresser  as  he  prunes  the  vine 
with  his  curved  pruning-hook  sings  something  of  David's. 
These  are  the  songs  of  this  province :  these,  to  use  the  common 
phrase,  are  its  love  ditties :  these  the  shepherd  whistles ;  these 
are  the  labourer's  implements." 

St  Chrysostom*  (347 — 407)  thus  describes  the  universality  of 
the  use  of  the  Psalms  in  his  day.  "If  we  keep  vigil  in  the 
Church,  David  comes  first,  last,  and  midst.  If  early  in  the 
morning  we  seek  for  the  melody  of  hymns,  first,  last,  and  midst 
is  David  again.  If  we  are  occupied  with  the  funeral  solemni- 
ties of  the  departed,  if  virgins  sit  at  home  and  spin,  David  is 
first,  last,  and  midst ^.  O  marvellous  wonder  !  Many  who  have 
made  but  little  progress  in  literature,  many  who  have  scarcely 
mastered  its  first  principles,  have  the  Psalter  by  heart.  Nor  is 
it  in  cities  and  churches  alone  that  at  all  times,  through  every 
age,  David  is  illustrious;  in  the  midst  of  the  forum,  in  the 
wilderness,  and  uninhabitable  land,  he  excites  the  praises  of 
God.  In  monasteries,  amongst  those  holy  choirs  of  angelic 
armies,  David  is  first,  midst,  and  last.  In  the  convents  of 
virgins,  where  are  the  bands  of  them  that  imitate  Mary ;  in 
the  deserts,  where  are  men  crucified  to  this  world,  and  having 
their  conversation  with  God,  first,  midst,  and  last  is  he.  All  other 
men  are  at  night  overpowered  by  natural  sleep:  David  alone  is 


'  Socrates,  Hist.  EccL,  vi.  8. 
2  Tert.  Apol.  c.  39. 
^  Ep.  xlvi. 

•*  Quoted  in  Neale  and  Littledale,  Conim.  on  the  Fsaltns,  p. 
5  St  Chrysostom  is  referring  to  that  stanza  of  Theognis, 
dXX'  alel  TrpuTSv  re  Kal  vcXTaTov,  ^v  re  fj.iaoiaii' 
ddaw  ffi)  S^  fiev  kXOOl,  kuI  eadXa  8i5ov. 


THE   USE   OF   THE   PSALMS. 


active;  and  congregating  the  servants  of  God  into  seraphic 
bands,  turns  earth  into  heaven,  and  converts  men  into  angels." 

When  men  and  women,  forsaking  their  ordinary  callings, 
dedicated  their  lives  to  devotion  and  prayer  in  monasteries  and 
communities,  the  singing  of  Psalms  formed  a  large  part  of  their 
religious  exercises.  In  course  of  time  the  recitation  of  the 
Psalter  became  a  clerical  obligation  as  well.  Various  schemes 
or  uses  were  drawn  up.  Fixed  Psalms  were  generally  assigned 
to  certain  of  the  canonical  hours,  while  at  the  other  services  the 
remainder  of  the  Psalms  were  recited  *in  course.'  Thus  accord- 
ing to  the  Roman  or  Gregorian  scheme  fixed  Psalms  were 
assigned  for  daily  use  at  Lauds,  Prime,  Tierce,  Sext,  Nones, 
and  Compline ;  while  at  Mattins  Pss.  i — cix,  and  at  Vespers 
Pss.  ex — cl  were  taken  once  a  week  'in  course,'  exclusive  of  the 
Psalms  assigned  to  the  other  services.  The  Benedictine  or 
Monastic  scheme  was  similar,  also  providing  for  the  recitation 
once  a  week  of  those  Psalms  which  were  not  recited  daily.  The 
Ambrosian  scheme,  deriving  its  origin  from  St  Ambrose,  and 
still  in  use  in  the  province  of  Milan,  only  provides  for  the  recita- 
tion of  the  Psalter  once  a  fortnight.  In  the  Eastern  Church 
the  Psalter  is  divided  into  twenty  cathis7nata^  each  of  which  is 
subdivided  into  three  staseis.  The  whole  Psalter  is  recited  once 
a  week  ordinarily,  and  twice  a  week  in  Lent,  but  the  details  of 
the  arrangement  vary  according  to  the  time  of  year^ 

In  this  way  a  portion  of  the  Psalms  nearly  equal  in  amount 
to  twice  the  whole  Psalter  was  recited  every  week.  But  many 
instances  are  quoted  of  holy  men  who  recited  it  much  more 
frequently.  It  is  said  that  St  Patrick,  the  Apostle  of  Ireland,  in 
the  fifth  century,  repeated  it  daily;  St  Maurus,  the  disciple  of 
St  Benedict,  and  Alcuin,  the  famous  instructor  of  Charles  the 
Great,  did  the  same.  St  Kentigern,  bishop  of  Glasgow,  in  the 
sixth  century,  went  through  it  every  night.  Bede  relates  how 
Ecgbert,  a  young  student  of  noble  birth  at  an  Irish  monastery, 

*  For  full  details  consult  The  Dictionary  of  Christian  Antiqtiities^ 
art.  Psalmody,  or  the  Introduction  to  Neale  and  Littledale's  Commen- 
tary on  the  Psalms^  ch.  i.  The  Prayer  Book  Interleaved  has  some  clear 
tables,  and  also  an  account  by  the  late  Dr  Schiller-Szinessy  of  the 
recital  of  the  Psalms  according  to  the  modem  Jewish  use  (p.  255). 


INTRODUCTION. 


when  attacked  by  the  plague,  vowed  that  if  he  recovered  he 
would  recite  the  whole  Psalter  daily  in  addition  to  the  ordinary 
canonical  hours,  as  a  memorial  of  praise  to  God^ 

A  knowledge  of  the  Psalter  by  heart  was  required  of  candi- 
dates for  ordination.  St  Gennadius,  Patriarch  of  Constantinople 
(a.d.  458 — 471),  refused  to  ordain  as  priest  anyone  who  had  not 
been  diligent  in  reciting  the  Psalter.  St  Gregory  the  Great 
inquired  if  Rusticus,  who  had  been  elected  Bishop  of  Ancona, 
knew  the  Psalter  by  heart,  and  refused  to  allow  John  the 
Presbyter  to  be  consecrated  as  metropolitan  of  Ravenna  on 
account  of  his  ignorance  of  the  Psalter.  The  second  Canon  of 
the  second  Council  of  Nicaea  (a.d.  587)  laid  it  down  that  no  one 
was  to  be  consecrated  bishop  unless  he  knew  the  Psalter 
thoroughly,  and  the  eighth  Council  of  Toledo  (A.D.  653)  ordered 
that  "no  one  henceforth  shall  be  promoted  to  any  ecclesiastical 
dignity  who  does  not  perfectly  know  the  whole  Psalter"  (Can.  8). 

Various  methods  of  singing  the  Psalms  were  in  use  in 
ancient  times 2.  (i)  Sometimes  the  Psalm  was  sung  throughout 
by  the  choir  or  congregation.  This  was  called  cantus  directa- 
neus,  and  was  the  simplest  form  of  singing  with  little  more  than 
monotone.  (2)  Sometimes  the  Psalm  was  sung  by  a  single 
voice,  usually  in  a  very  elaborate  fashion.  This  was  called 
caiitus  Iractus.  (3)  Sometimes  the  Psalm  was  sung  in  cantus 
responsorius^  the  precentor  and  the  choir  or  the  congregation 
taking  their  parts  alternately.  (4)  Sometimes  the  Psalm  was 
sung  in  cantics  a7itiphonali5,  the  two  sides  of  the  choir  taking  it 
up  alternately.  The  following  passage  of  St  Chrysostom  {Horn,  v) 
is  of  interest  as  shewing  the  congregational  character  of  the 
singing  in  his  day,  and  emphasising  its  significance.  "  When 
the  Psalm  began,  it  mingled  all  the  different  voices  together,  and 
one  harmonious  song  was  raised.  Young  and  old,  rich  and  poor, 
women  and  men,  slaves  and  freemen,  all  raised  the  same  melody. 
...But  it  not  only  united  us  who  were  present;  it  joined  the 
dead  with  the  living.  For  the  blessed  Prophet  was  singing 
with  us.... The  Prophet  speaks  and  we  all  answer,  we  all  re- 

1  Bede,  Hist.  Eccl.,  iii.  27. 

^  See  Neale  and  Littledale's  Commentary,  p.  58 ;  Proctor  and  Frere, 
New  History  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer^  p.  345. 


THE   USE   OF   THE    PSALMS.  ciii 

spond.  You  can  see  no  distinction  of  slave  or  free,  rich  or 
poor,  ruler  or  subject.  The  inequalities  of  life  are  banished ; 
all  are  united  in  one  choir,  all  have  equal  right  of  speech,  and 
earth  imitates  Heaven.     So  great  is  the  nobility  of  the  Church." 

The  voices  of  holy  men  in  every  age  unite  in  bearing  a  con- 
cordant testimony  to  the  power  and  preciousness  of  the  Psalms. 
A  few  examples  only  can  be  given  here. 

St  Athanasius,  in  his  Epistle  to  Marcellinus  on  the  Interpre- 
tation of  the  Psalms^  the  whole  of  which  well  desei-ves  study, 
writes  thus : 

"They  seem  to  me  to  be  a  kind  of  mirror  for  everyone  who 
sings  them,  in  which  he  may  observe  the  motions  of  the  soul, 
and  as  he  observes  them  give  utterance  to  them  in  words.  He 
who  hears  them  read,  takes  them  as  if  they  were  spoken 
specially  for  him.  Stricken  in  his  conscience  Ke  repents,  or 
hearing  of  hope  in  God,  and  of  the  grace  which  is  given  to 
those  who  believe,  he  rejoices  as  if  this  grace  were  promised  to 
him  in  particular,  and  begins  to  thank  God.. ..He  who  genuinely 
studies  all  that  is  written  in  this  book  of  Divine  inspiration  may 
gather,  as  out  of  a  paradise,  that  which  is  serviceable  for  his 
own  need.  Methinks  that  in  the  words  of  this  book  you  may 
find  an  accurate  survey  and  delineation  of  the  whole  life  of  man, 
the  dispositions  of  the  soul,  and  the  movements  of  the  mind. 
If  a  man  has  need  of  penitence  and  confession,  if  affliction  or 
temptation  has  overtaken  him,  if  he  has  been  persecuted  or  has 
been  delivered  from  the  plots  of  his  enemies,  if  he  is  in  sorrow 
or  trouble,  or  if  he  wishes  to  praise  and  give  thanks  and  bless 
the  Lord,  he  finds  instruction  in  the  Psalms.... If  thou  meditate 
on  these  things  and  study  the  Psalms,  thou  shalt  be  able,  under 
the  guidance  of  the  Spirit,  to  grasp  their  meaning  ;  and  thou 
shalt  emulate  the  life  of  the  divinely  inspired  men  who  uttered 
these  words." 

From  Alexandria  let  us  pass  to  Cappadocia,  and  listen  to  the 
eloquent  words  of  St  Basil,  in  the  introduction  to  his  Homily 
on  the  First  Psalm  : 

"All  Scripture  given  by  inspiration  of  God  is  profitable,  for 
it  was  written  by  the  Spirit  to  the  end  that  as  it  were  in  a  general 
hospital  for  souls,  we  human   beings   might  each   select   the 


INTRODUCTION. 


medicine  for  his  own  disease.... The  prophets  provide  one  kind 
of  instruction,  the  historians  another,  the  law  yet  another,  and 
the  exhortations  of  the  Proverbs  yet  another.  But  the  Book  of 
Psalms  contains  that  which  is  profitable  in  all  of  them.  It 
prophesies  of  the  future  ;  it  recalls  history ;  it  legislates  for 
life  ;  it  suggests  rules  of  action  ;  in  a  word,  it  is  a  common 
storehouse  of  good  doctrines,  providing  exactly  what  is  ex- 
pedient for  everyone.. ..A  Psalm  is  the  calm  of  souls,  the  arbiter 
of  peace  :  it  stills  the  stormy  waves  of  thought.  It  softens  the 
angry  spirit,  and  sobers  the  intemperate.  A  Psalm  cements 
friendship  :  it  unites  those  who  are  at  variance  ;  it  reconciles 
those  who  are  at  enmity.  For  who  can  regard  as  an  enemy 
the  man  with  whom  he  has  joined  in  lifting  up  one  voice  to 
God?  Psalmody  therefore  provides  the  greatest  of  all  good 
things,  even  love,  for  it  has  invented  concerted  singing  as  a 
bond  of  unity,  and  fits  the  people  together  in  the  concord  of 
one  choir.  A  Psalm  puts  demons  to  flight:  it  summons  the 
angels  to  our  aid;  it  is  a  weapon  in  the  midst  of  alarms  by 
night,  a  rest  from  the  toils  of  day ;  it  is  a  safeguard  for  babes,  a 
decoration  for  adults,  a  comfort  for  the  aged,  a  most  befitting 
ornament  for  women.  It  makes  deserts  populous  and  market- 
places sane.  It  is  an  initiation  to  novices,  growth  to  those 
who  are  advancing,  confirmation  to  those  who  are  being  per- 
fected. It  is  the  voice  of  the  Church ;  it  gladdens  festivals,  it 
creates  godly  sorrow.  For  a  Psalm  calls  forth  tears  even  from 
a  stony  heart.  A  Psalm  is  the  employment  of  angels,  heavenly 
converse,  spiritual  incense.... What  mayest  thou  not  learn  thence? 
The  heroism  of  courage  ;  the  integrity  of  justice;  the  gravity 
of  temperance ;  the  perfection  of  prudence ;  the  manner  of  re- 
pentance ;  the  measure  of  patience ;  in  a  word  every  good  thing 
thou  canst  mention.  Therein  is  a  complete  theology ;  the  pre- 
diction of  the  advent  of  Christ  in  the  flesh,  the  threatening  of 
judgement,  the  hope  of  resurrection,  the  fear  of  chastisement, 
promises  of  glory,  revelations  of  mysteries :  all,  as  in  some  great 
public  storehouse,  are  treasured  up  in  the  Book  of  Psalms^." 

^  This  passage  seems  to  have  been  in  Hooker's  mind  when  he  wrote 
the  well-known  words  quoted  on  p.  viii. 


I 


THE   USE   OF  THE   PSALMS.  cv 

In  a  well-known  passage  of  his  Confessions  (ix.  4),  St  Augus- 
tine describes  the  comfort  which  he  derived  from  the  Psalms  in 
the  interval  before  his  baptism. 

"In  what  accents  I  addressed  Thee,  my  God,  when  I  read 
the  Psalms  of  David,  those  faithful  songs,  the  language  of 
devotion  which  banishes  the  spirit  of  pride,  while  I  was  still  a 
novice  in  true  love  of  Thee,  and  as  a  catechumen  rested  in  that 
country  house  along  with  Alypius,  who  was  also  a  catechumen, 
with  my  mother  at  our  side,  in  the  dress  of  a  woman  but  with 
the  faith  of  a  man,  with  the  calmness  of  age,  the  affection  of  a 
mother,  the  piety  of  a  Christian.  How  I  addressed  Thee  in 
those  Psalms!  how  my  love  for  Thee  was  kindled  by  them! 
how  I  burned  to  recite  them,  were  it  possible,  throughout  the 
world,  as  an  antidote  to  the  pride  of  humanity.  Yet  they  are 
sung  throughout  the  world,  and  there  is  none  that  hideth  him- 
self from  Thy  heat^  How  grieved  and  indignant  was  I  with 
the  Manichaeans^!  and  yet  again  I  pitied  them  for  their 
ignorance  of  those  sacraments,  those  medicines,  and  their  mad 
rejection  of  the  antidote  which  might  have  cured  them  of  their 
madness.  Would  that  they  could  have  been  somewhere  near 
me  without  my  knowledge  and  watched  my  face  and  heard  my 
voice  when  I  read  the  Fourth  Psalm  in  that  time  of  leisure, 
and  have  known  the  effect  of  that  Psalm  upon  me.  Would 
that  they  could  have  heard  what  I  uttered  between  the  words 
of  the  Psalm,  without  my  knowing  that  they  heard.. .how  I  spoke 
with  myself  and  to  myself  before  Thee  out  of  the  inmost  feelings 
of  my  soul.  I  trembled  for  fear,  and  then  I  became  fervent 
with  hope  and  rejoicing  in  Thy  mercy,  O  Father.  And  all  these 
feelings  issued  forth  by  my  eyes  and  voice..." 

The  interpretation  of  the  Psalm  and  the  application  of  it  to 
his  own  circumstances  which  follow  are  fanciful  and  far-fetched, 
but  they  shew  how  his  heart  glowed  with  fervour  as  he  read, 
and  how  he  found  the  Psalms  "sweetened  with  heavenly  honey, 
and  luminous  with  the  light  of  God." 

Luther  and  Calvin  represent  the  revival  of  the  study  of  the 
Bible  in  the  age  of  the  Reformation. 

^  An  allusion  to  Ps.  xix.  6. 

"^  Who  deprived  themselves  of  the  Psalms  by  rejecting  the  O.  T. 


INTRODUCTION. 


Luther  speaks  thus  of  the  Psalter,  which  he  found  inex- 
pressibly precious  in  the  trials  and  conflicts  of  his  stormy  life  : 

"You  may  rightly  call  the  Psalter  a  Bible  in  miniature,  in 
which  all  things  which  are  set  forth  more  at  length  in  the  rest 
of  the  Scriptures  are  collected  into  a  beautiful  manual  of  won- 
derful and  attractive  brevity.  From  the  Psalms  you  may  learn 
not  the  works  of  the  saints  only,  but  the  words,  the  utterances, 
the  groans,  the  colloquies,  which  they  used  in  the  presence  of 
God,  in  temptation  and  in  consolation ;  so  that  though  they  are 
dead,  in  the  Psalms  they  live  and  speak.  The  Psalms  exhibit 
the  mind  of  the  saints  ;  they  express  the  hidden  treasure  of 
their  hearts,  the  working  of  their  thoughts,  and  their  most 
secret  feelings  ^" 

"This  book,"  says  Calvin,  in  the  Epistle  to  his  Readers  pre- 
fixed to  his  commentary,  "  I  am  wont  to  call  an  anatomy  of  all 
the  parts  of  the  soul ;  for  no  one  will  find  in  himself  a  single 
feeling  of  which  the  image  is  not  reflected  in  this  mirror.  Here 
the  Holy  vSpirit  has  represented  to  the  life  all  the  griefs,  sorrows, 
fears,  doubts,  hopes,  cares,  anxieties,  in  short,  all  the  stormy 
emotions,  by  which  human  minds  are  wont  to  be  agitated.  The 
rest  of  Scripture  contains  the  commands  which  God  gave  His 
servants  to  be  delivered  to  us.  Here  the  prophets  themselves, 
in  their  converse  with  God,  because  they  lay  bare  all  their  inmost 
feelings,  invite  or  compel  every  one  of  us  to  examine  himself,  that 
none  of  all  the  infirmities  to  which  we  are  subject  may  remain 
hidden.  It  is  a  rare  and  singular  advantage  when  every  secret 
recess  is  laid  open,  and  the  heart  purged  from  the  foul  plague  of 
hypocrisy  and  brought  out  to  light." 

One  quotation  from  a  modern  writer  must  suffice.  With 
profound  insight  and  unrivalled  delicacy  of  touch  the  late  Dean 
Church  thus  describes  the  Psalms  and  their  worker 

"In  the  Psalms  v/e  see  the  soul  in  the  secret  of  its  workings, 
in  the  variety  and  play  of  its  many-sided  and  subtly  compounded 
nature — loving,  hoping,  fearing,  despairing,  exulting,  repenting, 
aspiring — the  soul,  conscious  of  the  greatness  and  sweetness  of 

1   Works,  ed;  1553,  Vol.  iii.  p.  356. 

^   The  Discipline  of  the  Christian  Character^  pp.  53  ff. 


THE   USE   OF   THE    PSALMS.  cvii 


its  relations  to  Almighty  God,  and  penetrated  by  them  to  the 
very  quick  ;  longing,  thirsting,  gasping,  after  the  glimpses  that 
visit  it,  of  His  goodness  and  beauty— awestruck  before  the  un- 
searchableness  of  His  judgement,  silent  before  the  certainty  of 
His  righteousness— opening,  like  a  flower  to  the  sun,  in  the 
presence  of  His  light,  of  the   immensity  of  His   lovingkind- 

ness" It  has  been  the  work  of  the  Book  of  Psalms  to  teach 

devotion,  worship,  self-knowledge.  "They  bring  before  us  in 
all  its  fulness  and  richness  the  devotional  element  of  the  religious 
character.  They  are  the  first  great  teachers  and  patterns  of 
prayer,  and  they  shew  this  side  of  the  religious  character... in 
varied  and  finished  detail,  in  all  its  compass  and  living  and 
spontaneous  force.... The  tongue  is  loosed  to  give  utterance  out 
of  the  abundance  of  the  heart,  to  every  mood,  every  contrasted 
feeling  of  the  changeful  human  mind.  From  all  the  hidden 
depths,  from  all  the  strange  and  secret  consciousnesses  of  the 
awakened  and  enlightened  soul,  spring  up  unexpected  and  vivid 
words,  in  which  generation  after  generation  has  found  the  coun- 
terpart of  its  own  convictions  and  hopes  and  joys,  its  own  fears 
and  distresses  and  perplexities  and  doubts,  its  own  confidence 
and  its  own  sorrow,  its  own  brightest  and  darkest  hours.  This 
immense  variety  of  mood  and  subject  and  occasion,  with  which 
the  reverence  and  hope  of  worship  are  always  combined,  is  a 
further  point  in  the  work  of  the  Book  of  Psalms.  It  is  a  vast 
step  in  the  revealing  of  man  to  man.  We  know  how  much  we 
owe  of  the  knowledge  of  ourselves  to  the  great  dramatists,  to 
the  great  lyrical  poets,  to  the  great  novelists.  Such,  in  the 
unfolding  to  man  of  all  that  is  really  and  most  deeply  in- 
volved in  the  religious  character,  is  the  place  of  the  Book  of 
Psalms." 

Luther,  as  we  have  seen,  calls  the  Psalms  "a  Bible  in  minia- 
ture "  ;  and  the  words  which  Coleridge  uses  of  the  whole  Bible 
may  most  truly  be  applied  to  the  Psalms.  In  them  we  find 
copious  sources  of  truth,  and  power,  and  purifying  impulses  ; 
words  for  our  inmost  thoughts,  songs  for  our  joy,  utterances  for 
our  hidden  griefs,  pleadings  for  our  shame  and  our  feebleness. 
And  whatever  finds  us  bears  witness  for  itself  that  it  has  pro- 
ceeded from  a  Holy  Spirit,  even  from  the  same  Spirit,  which 


cviii  INTRODUCTION. 


in  all  ages  entering  into  holy  souls  maketh  them  friends  of  God 
andprophetsK 


CHAPTER  XI. 

LITERATURE. 

The  literature  on  the  Psalter  is  enormous,  and  only  a  few 
of  the  most  important  and  useful  works  can  be  mentioned  here. 
An  interesting  sketch  of  the  history  of  the  exposition  of  the 
Psalms  will  be  found  in  §  ix  of  the  Introduction  to  Delitzsch's 
Commentary. 

St  Athanasius'  Letter  to  Marcellinus  on  the  Interpretation  of 
the  Psahns  is  worthy  of  its  author.  It  treats  of  the  character 
and  value  of  the  Psalms,  classifies  them,  and  indicates  how 
they  may  be  used  in  the  various  experiences  of  life.  The  most 
famous  Greek  commentary  on  the  Psalms  is  the  Homilies  of 
St  Chrysostom.  It  was  complete,  but  only  the  Homilies  upon 
58  Psalms  are  now  extant.  The  corresponding  work  in  the 
Western  Church  is  the  Efiarratiojies  in  Psalnios  of  St  Au- 
gustine, expositions  of  the  Psalms  for  the  most  part  actually 
delivered,  the  32  discourses  on  Ps.  cxix  forming  an  exception. 
It  became  the  great  authority  from  which  subsequent  writers 
drew  freely. 

Medieval  expositors  followed  in  the  track  of  the  ancient 
Fathers.  The  literal  meaning  was  neglected,  mystical  and 
allegorical  exegesis  was  predominant.  Dependence  on  the 
imperfect  Greek  and  Latin  Versions  often  led  them  far  astray, 
and  the  absence  of  any  restraint  to  the  luxuriance  of  their 
imagination  lays  them  open  to  the  charge  of  "  making  anything 
out  of  anything."  But  the  patristic  and  medieval  commentaries 
are  rich  in  beautiful  thought,  profound  spiritual  instruction,  and 
practical  application. 

To  the  Jewish  commentators  of  the  Middle  Ages  we  owe 
a  great  debt.  They  preserved  the  tradition  of  the  meaning 
of  the  Hebrew  language,  which   had  been   entirely  neglected 

^  Coleridge's  Letters  on  the  Inspiration  of  the  Scriptures^  Letter  i. 


LITERATURE.  cix 


in  the  Christian  Church,  and  to  them  the  scholars  of  the  i6th 
century  turned  when  the  study  of  the  original  text  was  revived. 
Chief  among  them  were  Raschi  (R.  Solomon  Isaaki)  of  Troyes 
(d.  A.D.  1 105),  Aben  Ezra  of  Toledo  (d.  A.D.  1167),  and  David 
Kimchi  of  Narbonne  (d.  about  A.D.  1235)^ 

The  most  important  works  of  the  Reformation  period  were 
those  of  Luther,  who  lectured  and  wrote  much  on  the  Psalms, 
and  Calvin,  whose  Commentary  (1567)  marked  a  new  departure 
in  the  combination  of  sound  exegesis  with  practical  application. 
Poole's  Synopsis  Criticormn^  an  abridgment  of  the  Critici 
Sacri  published  in  1660  in  London  under  the  direction  of 
Bishop  Pearson  and  others,  is  a  convenient  summary  of  the 
opinions  of  scholars  of  the  i6th  and  17th  centuries.  Martin 
Geier's  voluminous  work  (1668)  is  one  of  the  best  productions  of 
the  17th  centui-y. 

Rosenmiiller's  Scholia  (1798— 1804,  2nd  ed.  of  the  Psalms 
1 82 1 — 23)  may  be  said  to  mark  the  transition  to  the  modern 
period.  It  is  mainly  a  compilation  from  older  works,  and  is  still 
valuable,  especially  for  its  copious  citation  of  Jewish  authorities 
and  for  its  comments  on  the  renderings  of  the  LXX  and  other 
Versions.  Among  modem  German  Commentaries  those  of 
H.  Ewald,  H.  Hupfeld,  F.  Delitzsch,  and  F.  Baethgen,  are 
the  most  generally  useful.  Ewald's  Commentary  in  The  Poets 
of  the  O.T.  (1836,  3rd  ed.  1866,  translated  in  the  Theol.  Transl. 
Fund  Library,  1880)  is  distinguished  by  "intense  poetic  and 
religious  sympathy,  and  by  a  keen  and  discriminating  historical 
imagination."  Hupfeld's  work  (1855—62,  2nd  ed.  with  additions 
by  Riehm,  1867 — 71,  3rd  ed.,  revised  by  Nowack,  1888)  is 
serviceable  for  its  careful  investigation  of  the  meaning  of  the 
language.  Delitzsch  (1867,  5th  ed.  1894,  translation  from  the 
4th  ed.  by  Eaton,  1887),  if  sometimes  fanciful,  is  always  reverent, 
and  constantly  penetrates  to  the  deeper  meaning.  Baethgen, 
in  the  Handkofmnentar  zu7n  A.T.  (1892,  2nd  ed.  1897),  repre- 
sents a  newer  school  of  critics,  without  the  extravagances  which 
unfortunately  disfigure  the  work  of  some  of  them. 

^  The  commentary  of  Raschi  is  accessible  to  those  who  do  not  know 
Rabbinic  Hebrew  in  ihe  Latin  translation  of  J.  F.  Breilhaupt  (1710); 
that  of  Kimchi  in  the  Latm  translation  of  A.  Janvier  (1566). 


INTRODUCTION. 


Other  German  commentaries  are  those  of  F.  Hitzig,  1835, 
completely  revised  edition,  1863-5;  A.  Tholuck,  Uebersetzung 
und  Auslegung  der  Psalmen  fiir  Geistliche  und  Laien  der 
christlichen  Kirche,  1843,  2nd  ed.  1873;  J-  Olshausen  in  the 
Kurzgef.  exeg.  Handbuch^  1853;  ^-  Gratz,  Kritischer  Com- 
mentar  zu  den  Psalmen.,  1882,  (gives  much  interesting  informa- 
tion from  Jewish  sources,  but  emends  the  text  too  freely) :  F.  W. 
Schultz  in  the  Kurzgef.  Konunentar^  1888,  replaced  by  that  of 
H.  Kessler,  1899;  B.  Duhm  in  the  Kurzer  Hand-Co7mnentar, 
1899  (trenchant  and  often  suggestive,  but  shewing  little  appre- 
ci.ition  of  either  the  poetical  or  the  religious  worth  of  the  Psalms). 

Among  French  commentaries  may  be  mentioned  that  of 
E.  Reuss,  1879,  ^^  Psautier^  ou  le  Livre  de  Caiitiques  de  la 
Synagogue  (strongly  advocating  the  national  interpretation  of 
the  Psalms). 

At  the  head  of  English  commentaries  stands  that  of  Bishop 
Perowne,  The  Book  of  Psalms^  a  new  Trattslatioji,  with  Intro- 
ductions and  Notes,  explanatory  and  critical {i?)6/\^  8th  ed.  1892), 
which  marks  an  epoch  in  the  exegesis  of  the  O.T.  in  England. 
W.  Kay,  The  Psalms  with  Notes,  1871,  2nd  ed.  1874,  contains 
much  that  is  instructive.  T.  K.  Cheyne,  llie  Book  of  Psalms, 
A  new  Translation  with  Commentary,  1888,  is  fresh  and  sug- 
gestive. A.  Maclaren's  Exposition,  in  the  Expositor's  Bible, 
1893-94,  is  vigorous  and  practical. 

Among  many  other  commentaries  the  following  may  be 
mentioned  :  J.  M.  Neale  and  R.  F.  Littledale,  A  Commentary 
on  the  Psalms  from  Primitive  and  Medieval  Waiters,  4th  ed. 
1884  (useful  for  the  dissertation  on  The  Psalms  as  employed  in 
the  Offices  of  the  Church,  and  as  giving  an  insight  into  the 
methods  of  patristic  and  medieval  interpretation  which  have 
exercised  such  a  wide  influence)^:  The  Psalms  Chronologically 
arranged,  by  Four  Friends,  1867,  2nd  ed.  1891  (based  upon 
Ewald):  F.  C.  Cook,  G.  H.  S.  Johnson  and  C.  J.  Elliott,  in  The 

1  The  Dissertation  on  The  Mystical  and  Literal  Interpretation  of  the 
Psalms  at  p.  429  of  Vol.  i  should  not  be  overlooked  by  those  who  wish 
to  understand,  if  they  cannot  follow,  a  method  of  interpretation  which 
has  had  such  a  wide  currency  and  still  has  a  strong  attraction  for  many 
minds. 


LITERATURE. 


Speaker^s  Commentary,  1873:  A.  C.  Jennings  and  W.  H.  Lowe, 
The  Psalms  with  Introduction  and  Critical  Notes ^  1875-7: 
C  H.  Spurgeon,  The  Treasury  of  David,  1870-85  (containing, 
besides  his  own  exposition,  a  copious  collection  of  extracts 
from  various  writers,  especially  the  Puritans):  A.  S.  Aglen,  in 
Bp  EUicott's  O.T  Coinm.  for  English  Readers,  1884  (contains 
many  interesting  illustrations  from  English  literature) :  Bishop 
Barry,  in  The  Teacher's  Prayer  Book .  E.  G.  King,  The  Psalms 
in  Three  Collections,  trafislated  with  notes,  1898,  1902:  C.  G. 
Montefiore,  The  Book  of  Psalms,  1901  (from  The  Bible  for 
Ho7ne  Reading). 

Among  books  and  articles  bearing  on  the  study  of  the  Psalms 
the  following  may  be  mentioned.  J.  G.  von  Herder,  vom  Geist  der 
Ebr.  Poesie,  1782-3:  Isaac  Taylor,  The  Spirit  of  the  Hebrew 
Poetry:  Archbishop  Alexander,  Bampton  Lectures  for  1876, 
The  Witness  of  the  Psalms  to  Chjist  and  Ch?-istianity,  2nd 
ed.  1878  :  T.  K.  Cheyne,  Bampton  Lectures  for  1889,  The 
Origin  and  Religious  Contents  of  the  Psalter  in  the  Light  of 
Old  Testament  Criticism  and  the  History  of  Religions,  1891  : 
J.  Sharpe,  The  Studenfs  Handbook  to  the  Psalms,  2nd  ed.,  1894  : 
W.  T.  Davison,  The  Praises  of  Israel,  1893,  2nd  ed.,  1897  (a 
brightly  written  introduction  to  the  study  of  the  Psalms):  J. 
Robertson,  Poetry  and  Religion  of  the  Psalms,  1898 :  W.  Robert- 
son Smith,  The  O.  T.  in  the  Jeivish  Church,  Lect.  vii.  R.  W. 
Church,  The  Sacred  Poet?y  of  Early  Religions  (published 
separately,  and  also  in  The  Gifts  of  Civilisation),  also  Sermon 
iii  in  The  Discipline  of  the  Christian  Character :  A.  Neubauer, 
On  the  Titles  of  the  Psalms  according  to  early  few  ish  Authorities, 
in  Studia  Biblica,  Vol.  ii,  1890  :  C.  Ehrt,  Abfassungszeit  und 
Abschluss  des  Psalters  zur  Priifung  der  Fr age  nach  Makkabder- 
psahnen  historisch-kritisch  untersucht,  1869:  M.  Kopfstein,  Z>/(? 
Asaph-Psahnen  untersucht y  1881 :  R.  Smend,  Ueber  das  Ich  der 
Psalme7i,  Z.A.T.W.  1888,  pp.  49 — 147,  on  the  question  Who  is 
the  speaker  in  the  Psalms  ?  discussed  very  fully  and  more 
moderately  by  G.  Beer,  Individual-  und  Gemeinde-Psalmen, 
1 894 :  B.  Stade,  Die  Messianische  Hoffnung  im  Psalter,  Zeitschr. 
f.  Theol.  u.  Kirche,  1892,  pp.  369  ff. :  J.  Wellhausen,  in  Haupt's 
Sacred  Books  of  the  O.T.,  text    1895,  English  translation  (by 


cxii  INTRODUCTION. 


H.  H.  Furness)  with  explanatory  notes  and  an  Appendix  on  the 
Music  of  the  Ancient  Hebrews,  1898 :  cp.  Skizzen  u.  Vorarbeiten, 
vi.  163. 

Much  interesting  illustrative  matter  on  the  use  of  the  Psalms 
is  to  be  found  in  J.  Ker's  The  Psalms  in  History  and  Biography^ 
1888,  A.  S.  Dyer's  Psalm- Mosaics^  1894,  and  most  fully  and 
attractively  in  R.  E.  Prothero's  The  Psalms  in  Human  Life, 
1904:  comp.  §  i  of  the  Introduction  to  Tholuck's  commentary, 
and  ch.  ii  of  the  Introd.  to  Bp  Perowne's  commentary. 

The  Paragraph  Psalter^  by  Bp  Westcott,  1879,  contains  a 
suggestive  marginal  analysis.  S.  R.  Driver,  The  Parallel 

Psalter,  being  the  Prayer  Book  Version  of  the  Psalms,  and  a 
New  Version,  with  a7i  Introduction  and  Glossaries,  (on  the 
origin  and  history  of  the  Prayer  Book  Psalter,  and  explaining 
characteristic  words  and  archaisms).  A  convenient 

Parallel  Psalter  containing  P.B.V.,  A.V.,  and  R.V.  in  parallel 
columns,  is  published  by  the  Camb.  Univ.  Press.  The 

Wycliffite  Version  of  Nicholas  de  Hereford  and  John  Purvey  is 
accessible  in  a  reprint  from  Forshall  and  Madden's  edition, 
published  by  the  Clarendon  Press,  1881 :  and  the  original  of  the 
Prayer  Book  Version  is  reproduced  in  J.  Earle's  The  Psalter 
of  the  Great  Bible  of  1539,  a  Landmark  in  English  Literature, 
with  Introductio?i  and  Notes,  1894.  On  the  Metrical  Ver- 

sions of  the  Psalter  consult  Julian's  Dictionary  of  Hymnology, 
and  H.  A.  Glass,  The  Story  of  the  Psalters,  1888. 


Quis  audeat  praesumere  unum  Psahnum  rotunde  ab  ullo 
intellectutn?  Vita  nostra  initium  et profectus  est  non  consum- 
jnatio. — Luther. 


THE    PSALMS, 

BOOK    II. 
PSALMS   XLII— LXXII. 


PSALMS  IT.  IIT. 


14 


THE  SECOND  BOOK  OF  PSALMS. 


The  Second  and  Third  Books  (Pss.  xlii— Ixxxix)  form  the 
second  principal  division  of  the  Psalter.  The  greater  part  of  it 
(Pss.  xlii — Ixxxiii)  is  known  as  the  'Elohistic' collection,  because 
the  appellative  Elohim^  'God,'  is  employed  throughout  it  in 
the  place  and  almost  to  the  exclusion  of  the  proper  name 
Jehovah,  A.V.  *Lord'  or  'God.'  This  peculiarity  is  due,  in 
all  probability,  to  the  hand  of  the  editor  who  made  the  collection 
by  combining  a  selection  of  Psalms  taken  from  three  sources  : 
(i)  a  collection  of  Psalms  preserved  and  used  by  the  Levitical 
family  or  guild  of  the  Korahites  :  (2)  a  collection  bearing  the 
name  of  David  :  (3)  a  collection  bearing  the  name  of  Asaph, 
and  probably  preserved  in  the  family  or  guild  of  Asaph.  To 
the  Elohistic  collection  is  attached  an  appendix  containing 
Psalms  taken  from  the  Korahite  hymnary  and  other  sources, 
which  have  not  been  altered  by  the  Elohistic  editor.  This 
collection,  perhaps  at  first  without,  and  afterwards  with,  the 
appendix,  was  probably  at  one  time  in  circulation  as  a  separate 
book.     See  Introd.  pp.  liii  ff. 

The  first  seven  Psalms  in  Book  ii  (if  we  reckon  xlii  and  xliii 
as  one)  are  described  in  their  titles  as  of  the  sons  of  Korah.  This 
rendering  of  the  R.V.  is  certainly  to  be  preferred  to  that  of  the 
A.V.  for  the  sons  of  K.,  which  is  explained  to  mean  that  these 
Psalms  were  delivered  to  the  Korahites  to  be  set  to  music 
and  performed  ;  and  the  title  indicates  in  all  probability  (see 
p.  xxix)  that  the  Psalms  bearing  it  were  taken  from  a  collection 


224  THE    PSALMS    OF 


bearing  some  such  name  as  "  The  Book  of  the  Songs  of  the 
Sons  of  Korah." 

Korah  was  the  grandson  of  Kohath  and  great-grandson  of 
Levi.  When  he  perished  for  the  part  which  he  took  in  the 
famous  rebeUion  against  Moses,  his  family  escaped  (Num.  xvi ; 
xxvi.  ii),  and  his  descendants  held  important  offices. 

Korahites  acted  as  sentinels  of  the  camp  of  the  Levites  ; 
they  were  warders  of  the  sacred  Tent  erected  by  David ^ ;  and 
to  them  was  assigned  the  office  of  porters  or  door-keepers  of  the 
Temple,  which  they  resumed  after  the  Return  from  Babylon 
(i  Chron.  ix.  17  ff. ;  xxvi.  i  ff. ;  Neh.  xi.  19)2. 

Korahites  were  also  connected  with  the  service  of  sacred 
song  in  the  Temple.  Heman,  one  of  David's  three  principal 
musicians,  was  a  Korahite  (i  Chron.  vi.  31 — 33),  and  his  sons 
were  the  leaders  of  fourteen  out  of  the  twenty-four  courses  of 
Temple  musicians  (i  Chron.  xxv.  4  ff.). 

There  is  an  allusion  to  them  as  singers  in  the  history  of  the 
reign  of  Jehoshaphat  (2  Chron.  xx.  19),  but  in  the  post-exilic 
period  they  are  only  mentioned  as  door-keepers  and  not  as 
musicians.  Jehuel  and  Shimei,  two  of  Heman's  descendants, 
are  named  in  2  Chron.  xxix.  14  as  taking  part  in  Hezekiah's 
reformation. 

The  common  characteristics  of  the  Korahite  Psalms  have 
been  somewhat  exaggerated.  The  collection  includes,  as  we 
should  expect  a  Levitical  collection  to  do,  Psalms  which  breathe 
a  spirit  of  strong  devotion  to  the  Temple,  and  heartfelt  delight 
in  its  services  (xlii — xliii  ;  Ixxxiv),  and  Psalms  which  celebrato 
with  enthusiastic  pride  the  praise  of  Jerusalem  as  "the  city  of 
God,"  which  He  has  chosen  for  His  own  abode,  and  in  which 
He  reigns  as  King  (xlvi,  xlvii,  xlviii,  Ixxxvii).  But  these  thoughts 
are  not  confined  to  these  Psalms^  ;  and  other  features  iiave  been 
pointed    out   as   peculiar,  which  do  not  amount   to  distinctive 

^  It  is  uncertain  whether  the  Korahites  who  joined  David  at  Ziklag 
(i  Chron.  xii.  6)  belonged  to  the  Levitical  family,  or  to  that  of  the 
Judahite  Korah  settled  at  Hebron  (i  Chron.  ii.  43). 

2  It  is  doubtful  whether  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  ro  is  really,  as  has  been 
supposed,  an  allusion  to  this  important  ofitice.    See  note  on  the  passage. 

^  See  e.g.  for  the  first,  Pss.  Ixiii,  Ixv;  for  the  second,  Ps.  xxiv. 


THE    SONS   OF    KORAH.  225 


characteristics  common  to  these  Psalms  as  a  group,  or  which, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  Divine  names,  are  due  to  the  editor,  not  to 
the  original  authors  ^ 

In  fact  the  variety  of  thought  and  type  in  the  Psalms 
included  in  this  collection  is  more  remarkable  than  their 
similarity.  There  are  (i)  personal  Psalms,  expressive  of  the 
most  intense  personal  devotion  (xlii — xliii,  Ixxxiv),  and,  if 
Ixxxviii  is  included  among  the  Korahite  Psalms,  a  most  pathetic 
prayer  in  a  situation  of  the  deepest  distress :  (2)  national  Psalms, 
of  which  one  (xliv)  is  a  prayer  in  time  of  grave  calamity,  others 
(xlvi — xlviii)  are  thanksgivings  for  a  marvellous  deliverance, 
another  (Ixxxv)  is  a  combination  of  thanksgiving  and  prayer. 
(3)  Ps.  xlv  is  a  congratulatory  ode  on  the  marriage  of  a  king : 
Ps.  xlix  is  a  didactic  poem,  closely  related  (as  is  also  Ixxxviii) 
to  the  'Wisdom  Hterature':  Ps.  Ixxxvii  breathes  the  largest 
spirit  of  prophetic  universalism.  The  Korahite  Psalms  form  in 
fact  a  strikingly  representative  selection,  though,  as  might  be 
expected,  the  pubHc  and  national  elements  predominate. 

As  regards  the  date  of  these  Psalms,  the  group  included  in 
the  Elohistic  collection  should  be  distinguished  from  the  Psalms 
in  the  appendix  to  it.  Of  the  former  (xlii — xlix)  some  certainly 
belong  to  the  time  of  the  Monarchy  (xlv,  xlvi,  xlviii) ;  none  are 
certainly  later  than  the  Fall  of  the  Kingdom :  of  the  latter,  some 
may  date  from  the  time  of  the  Monarchy,  but  one  at  least 
(Ixxxv)  is  later  than  the  Return. 

1  Thus  though  Jehovah  Tsebdoth  occurs  six  times  in  Korahite  Pss. 
(xlvi.  7,  1 1 ;  xlviii.  8;  Ixxxiv.  i,  3,  i-z)  and  only  once  besides  in  the 
Psalter  (xxiv.  10),  it  is  only  found  in  three  out  of  eleven  Psahns,  and  of 
these  two  (xlvi,  xlviii)  are  the  work  of  the  same  poet.  But  in  view  of 
the  alteration  which  the  Divine  niimes  have  undergone,  it  can  hardly  be 
distinguished  from  Jehovah  Elohhn  Tsebdoth^  which  occurs  not  only  in 
the  Korahite  Ps.,  Ixxxiv.  8,  but  in  a  Davidic  Ps.,  lix.  5,  and  an  Asaphic 
Ps.,  Ixxx.  4,  19,  which  also  has  Elohim  Tsebdoth  {t/v.  7,  14),  which  can 
be  nothing  but  the  editorial  equivalent  for  Jehovah  Tsebdoth,  The 
peculiar  Adonai  Jehovah  Tsebdoth  in  Ixix.  6  is  probably  due  to  the 
editor  :  the  form  in  Ixxxix.  8  is  not  unfrequent  in  the  prophets. 


PSALMS  U.  15 


226  PSALMS   XLIl  AND   XLIII. 


PSALMS   XLII   AND   XLIIL 

These  two  Psalms  form  a  connected  poem,  consisting  of  three  equal 
stanzas,  each  ending  with  the  same  refrain.  The  same  circumstances 
appear  to  lie  in  the  background,  and  the  tone,  spirit,  and  language  are 
the  same  throughout.  The  prayer  of  Ps.  xliii  is  needed  to  supplement 
the  complaint  of  Ps.  xlii. 

It  is  possible  that  some  interval  of  time  separated  the  composition  of 
Ps.  xliii  from  that  of  Ps.  xlii,  or  even  that  they  were  the  work  of  different 
poets,  and  that  from  the  first  they  were  separate  poems;  but  it  is  far 
more  probable  that  they  are  the  work  of  the  same  poet,  and  that  they 
originally  formed  one  poem,  which  has  been  divided  for  liturgical  or 
devotional  purposes.  This  division  is  ancient,  for  it  appears  in  the 
majority  of  Hebrew  MSS.,  and  in  all  Ancient  Versions.  In  some  MSS. 
the  two  Psalms  appear  to  iDe  united,  but  this  may  be  due  to  the  absence 
of  any  title  to  mark  the  beginning  of  Ps.  xliii.  The  absence  of  a  title, 
however,  indicates  that  the  division  was  made  after  the  formation  of  the 
Elohistic  collection,  in  which  all  the  Psalms,  with  the  exception  of  this 
and  Ixxi,  are  furnished  with  titles.     See  Introd.,  p.  liv. 

The  author  of  these  Psalms  was  one  who  had  been  wont  to  conduct 
processions  of  pilgrims  to  the  Temple  for  the  great  festivals  with  joyous 
songs  of  praise.  But  now  he  is  forcibly  debarred  from  going  up  to  the 
worship  of  the  sanctuary.  He  describes  the  locality  where  he  is 
detained  as  "the  land  of  Jordan  and  the  range  of  Hermon,"  the  district 
in  which  the  Jordan  takes  its  rise  from  the  roots  of  Hermon.  "Mount 
Mizar  "  was  doubtless  some  hill  in  the  neighbourhood,  though  it  cannot 
now  be  identified.  He  is  surrounded  by  inhuman  heathen  enemies 
(xliii.  i),  who  continually  taunt  him  with  being  deserted  by  his  God 
(xlii.  3,  lo;  xliii.  2).  His  faith  is  sorely  tried;  but  he  is  confident  that 
he  will  soon  be  allowed  once  more  to  go  up  to  Jemsalem,  and  join  in 
the  services  of  the  sanctuary. 

Who  was  he  and  when  did  he  live?  The  inclusion  of  the  Psalm  in 
the  Korahite  collection  makes  it  probable  that  he  was  a  Korahite 
Levite;  and  this  probability  is  confirmed  by  his  enthusiastic  love  for  the 
Temple  services,  by  the  part  he  was  accustomed  to  take  in  the  festal 
pilgrimages,  and  by  his  skill  as  a  musician  (xlii.  8;  xliii.  4).  The 
Temple  was  standing  and  its  services  were  being  regularly  carried  on. 
So  far  however  as  this  Psalm  is  concerned  there  is  nothing  to  shew 
whether  it  was  written  before  or  after  the  Exile.  But  its  close  con- 
nexion with  Ps.  Ixxxiv  is  in  favour  of  assigning  it  to  the  earlier  period. 
That  Psalm  presents  such  striking  resemblances  in  tone  and  spirit,  in 
language,  and  in  structure,  that  it  may  well  have  been  written  by  the 
same  author  under  happier  circumstances ;  and  if  v.  9  is  understood  (as 
it  is  most  natural  to  understand  it)  as  a  prayer  for  the  king,  it  must 
belong  to  the  period  of  the  monarchy.  Ps.  Ixiii,  and  in  a  less  degree 
Ps.  Ixi,  which  belong  to  the  same  period,  also  present  affinities.  The 
coincidences  with  Joel  (see  notes  on  xlii.  i,  3,  and  cp.  Ixxxiv.  6),  and 


PSALMS   XLII  AND  XLIII.  227 

the  use  of  the  Psalm  in  the  prayer  of  Jonah  (see  on  xlii.  7),  are  note- 
worthy, but  in  the  uncertainty  as  to  the  date  of  these  books,  throw  no 
additional  light  on  the  question.  The  circumstances  under  which  the 
Psalmist  found  himself  debarred  from  going  up  to  Jerusalem  and  exposed 
to  the  taunts  of  heathen  conquerors  might  have  happened  at  many 
different  periods,  in  one  of  the  Syrian  or  Assyrian  invasions,  or  after 
the  northern  kingdom  had  ceased  to  exist. 

More  definite  conjectures  as  to  the  date  lack  probability.  Delitzsch 
attributes  the  Psalm  to  a  Korahite  Levite  who  accompanied  David  in 
his  flight  to  Mahanaim,  in  Absalom's  rebellion  (2  Sam.  xv.  24).  But 
the  Psalm  contains  no  allusions  to  the  circumstances  of  the  rebellion ; 
David  was  among  sympathising  friends,  not  among  mocking  heathen 
enemies;  and  Mahanaim  was  too  distant  from  Hermon  to  suit  the 
description  of  the  locality  in  v.  6.  Ewald  thinks  that  the  Psalm  was 
written  by  Jehoiachin,  as  he  halted  for  a  night  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Hermon  on  his  way  to  exile  in  Babylon.  But  there  is  not  the  slightest 
hint  that  the  Psalmist  was  a  king:  he  does  not  appear  to  be  an  actual 
prisoner,  or  a  mere  temporary  sojourner  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Hermon:  he  expects  soon  to  be  able  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem  again, 
wherea?  Jehoiachin  had  nothing  before  him  but  the  prospect  of  a  life- 
long captivity.  Hitzig,  followed  so  far  as  the  date  is  concerned  by 
Cheyne,  attributes  the  Psalm  to  the  high-priest  Onias  iii,  whom  he 
supposes  to  have  been  carried  away  prisoner  by  the  Egyptian  general 
Scopas,  when  after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  he  marched  northwards 
to  be  defeated  by  Antiochus  the  Great,  near  the  source  of  the  Jordan 
(Jos.  Antiq.  xii.  3.  3),  in  B.C.  199 — 198.  But  the  inclusion  of  the  Psalm 
in  the  Elohistic  collection,  to  say  nothing  of  the  arguments  already 
given  for  assigning  the  Psalm  to  the  period  of  the  monarchy,  renders  so 
late  a  date  extremely  improbable.     See  Intr.  to  Ps.  xliv. 

Happily  the  poetic  beauty  and  the  devotional  earnestness  of  the  Psalm 
are  independent  of  all  doubts  as  to  its  date  and  authorship.  It  is  a  monu- 
ment of  the  spirituality  and  the  joyousness  of  the  religion  of  Israel.  If 
the  writer  yearns  for  renewed  access  to  the  earthly  sanctuary,  it  is  that  in 
the  appointed  place  and  by  the  appointed  means  he  may  realise  that 
communion  with  God  which  is  the  soul's  highest  happiness.  The  Latin 
hymn  Ut  iucundas  cervus  undas  (Trench,  Sacred  Latin  Poetry^  No.  Iii) 
is  a  beautiful  development  of  the  theme  of  this  Psalm. 

The  structure  of  the  poem  is  symmetrical  and  artistic.  It  consists  of 
three  equal  stanzas,  each  closed  by  the  same  refrain.  Many  of  the 
lines  fall  into  the  peculiar  '  lamentation-rhythm.' 

i.  The  yearning  of  the  Psalmist's  soul  for  God  strikes  the  keynote  of 
the  Psalm  (i,  7):  and  in  his  present  sorrow  he  finds  sad  comfort  in  the 
recollection  of  former  happiness  (3,  4). 

ii.  He  describes  his  pitiable  plight  (6,  7) ;  and  recalling  past  mercies, 
expostulates  with  God  for  having  abandoned  him  to  the  taunts  of  his 
foes  (8 — to). 

iii.  He  prays  for  deliverance  from  these  enemies  (xliii.  i,  2),  and 
restoration  to  the  privileges  of  the  sanctuary  (3,  4). 

In  the  refrain  which  closes  each  stanza  faith  rebukes  despondency 
and  hope  triumphs  over  despair  (5,  11,  xliii.  5). 

»5— 2 


228  PSALM   XLII.  1—3. 


Psalm  XLII. 

To  the  chief  Musician,  Maschil,  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

42    AS  the  hart  panteth  after  the  water  brooks, 
l\     So  panteth  my  soul  after  thee,  O  God. 

2  My  soul  thirsteth  for  God,  for  the  living  God : 
When  shall  I  come  and  appear  before  God  ? 

3  My  tears  have  been  my  meat  day  and  night, 

While  t/iey  continually  say  unto  me.  Where  is  thy  God  ? 

On  the  title,  which  should  be  rendered,  with  R.V.,  For  the  Chief 
Musician;  Maschil  of  the  sons  of  Korah,  see  Introd.  pp.  xix,  xxi, 
xxxiii,  and  p.  223. 

1,  2.     The  yearning  of  the  Psalmist's  soul  for  communion  with  God. 

1.  As  a  hind  which  panteth  for  water-brooks, 
So  panteth  my  soul  for  Thee,  0  God. 

Render  hind,  not  hart^  for  the  verb  is  feminine,  and  the  timorous 
hind  is  the  apter  emblem  for  the  soul.  The  parallel  in  Joel  i.  20  (tlie 
only  other  instance  of  the  verb)  makes  it  clear  that  the  figure  is  suggested 
by  the  sufferings  of  wild  animals  in  a  prolonged  drought  (cp.  Jer.  xiv. 
5  f.),  not  by  the  hind  "heated  in  the  chase,"  and  deterred  by  the  fear  of 
its  pursuers  from  descending  into  the  valley  to  slake  its  thirst. 

2.  thirsteth']  Cp.  Ixiii.  i;  Am.  viii.  11 — 13.  God,  who  is  the  living 
God,  in  contrast  to  dead  impotent  idols,  is  "the  fountain  of  living 
waters"  (Jer.  ii.  13;  xvii.  13).  With  Him  is  "the  fountain  of  life," 
and  He  gives  men  drink  from  the  stream  of  His  delights  (xxxvi.  8,  9). 
The  phrase  for  'living  God'  [El  c hay)  is  found  elsewhere  only  in  Josh, 
iii.  10;  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  2;  Hos.  i.  10.  In  Deut.  v.  26;  i  Sam.  xvii.  26,36; 
2  Kings  xix.  4,  16  (=Is.  xxxvii.  4,  17);  Jer.  x.  10,  xxiii.  36;  the  Heb. 
word  (or  God  is  Elohim. 

appear  before  God'\  The  regular  formula  for  the  stated  visits  to  the 
Temple  at  the  three  great  Festivals  (Ex.  xxiii.  17;  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  7). 
Grammatical  considerations  however  make  it  probable  that  here  and  in 
some  other  passages  (e.g.  Ex.  xxiii.  15;  xxxiv.  20;  Deut.  xxxi.  11;  Is.  i. 
12)  we  should  read,  by  a  simple  change  of  the  vowel-points,  seethe  face 
of  God.  The  usual  phrase  for  admission  to  the  presence  of  a  superior 
(Gen.  xliii.  3)  was  applied  to  visiting  the  sanctuary;  but  since  man  can- 
not literally  see  God  (Ex.  xxxiii.  20),  it  was  supplemented  by  the 
synonymous  phrase  appear  before  God,  which  came  to  l)e  generally 
adopted  as  more  seemly  in  the  traditional  method  of  reading  the  conson- 
antal text.     But  cp.  xi.  7  note;  xvii.  15;  Ixiii.  2. 

3.  4.     Present  sorrow  contrasted  with  past  happiness. 

3.  my  meafl  Lit.  my  bread.  Cp.  Ixxx.  5 ;  cii.  4,  9.  Tears  take  the 
place  of  his  daily  food.  So  Ovid,  Metam.  x.  75,  "  Cura  dolorque  animi 
lacrimaeque  alimenta  fuere." 

continually']    Lit.  all  the  day,  and  so  in  v.  10. 

Where  I'i,  thy  God]     Cp.  Ixxix.  10 ;  cxv.  2;  Joel  ii.  17;  Mic.  vii.  10. 


PSALM  XLII.  4,  5.  229 

When  I  remember  these  things^  I  pour  out  my  soul  in  me :    4 
For  T  had  ^^ne  with  the  multitude,  I  went  \vith  them  to 

the  house  of  God, 
With  the  voice  of  joy  and  praise,  with  a  multitude  that  kept 

holyday. 
Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ?   and  why  art  thou  5 

disquieted  in  me? 

The  bitterest  ingredient  in  his  cup  of  sorrow  is  the  taunt  of  the  heathen 
that  his  plight  demonstrates  the  impotence  or  indifference  of  the  God 
Whom  he  serves. 

4.    This  let  me  remember  as  I  pour  out  my  soul  upon  me, 
How  I  was  wont  to  pass  on  with  the  throng,  leading  them  to 

the  house  of  God, 
With  the  voice  of  singing  and  thanksgiving,  a  multitude  keep- 
ing festival. 

He  must  needs  give  free  course  to  his  feelings,  to  the  emotional  part 
of  his  nature,  as  he  thinks  of  the  past.  The  renderings  in  me  (A.V.)  or 
within  me  (R.V.)  miss  the  idiomatic  force  of  the  preposition  which 
means  upon  me.  The  soul  (as  elsewhere  the  heart  or  the  spirit)  is 
distinguished  from  a  man's  whole  'self,'  and  regarded  as  acting  upon  it 
from  without.  See  Delitzsch,  Biblical  Psychology,  pp.  179  ff.  Cp. 
w.  5,  6,  ir,  xliii.  5;  cxxxi.  2;  cxlii.  3;  Lam.  iii.  20;  Job  xxx.  16; 
Jer.  viii.  18. 

How  I  was  wont  to  pass  on.  The  tense  denotes  that  it  was  his 
cusiojH  thus  to  conduct  pilgrims  to  Jerusalem  for  the  festivals.  The 
joyousness  of  these  processions  was  proverbial  (Is.  xxx.  29;  cp.  xxx  v. 
10;  li.  11). 

But  what  is  the  connexion  of  thought?  Is  it  that  he  indulges  in  the 
recollection  of  the  past,  as  a  luxury  of  grief,  because  "a  sorrow's  crown 
of  sorrow  is  remembering  happier  things"?  Or  is  it  not  rather  that  the 
retrospect  is  the  best  antidote  to  the  sneers  of  the  heathen  ?  The  God, 
in  Whose  service  he  once  found  such  delight,  cannot  really  have  de- 
serted him.  The  verse  will  then  form  the  natural  transition  to  v.  5. 
Cp.  V.  6,  and  Ixxvii.  11. 

Leading  them.  The  word  is  found  elsewhere  only  in  Is.  xxxviii.  15. 
It  seems  to  denote  the  slow  and  stately  march  of  a  solemn  procession, 
and  may  be  rendered  as  in  R.V.  marg.  went  in  procession  with  them,  or, 
with  a  slight  change  of  vowels,  taken  transitively. 

6.  In  this  refrain  the  truer  'self  chides  the  weaker  'soul,'  the 
emotional  nature,  for  its  despondency  and  complaint. 

cast  down"]     Bowed  down  as  a  mourner.     Cp.  xxxv.  14;  xxxviii.  6. 

The  resemblance  of  our  Lord's  words  in  Gethsemane  (Matt.  xxvi.  38; 
Mk.  xiv.  34)  to  the  Sept.  rendering  of  this  verse.  Why  art  thou  exceeding 
sorrowful,  O  my  soul?  (tj/a  ri  TreplXvTros  et,  ii  \f/vxfi ;)  suggests  that  this  ' 
Psalm  may  have  been  in  His  mind  at  the  time;  the  more  so  as  He 
appears  to  use  the  words  of  v.  6,  which  the  Sept.  renders.  My  soul  is 
troubled  {t}  \f/vxv  fiov  ^rapctx^*?),  in  a  similar  connexion  upon  anotlier 


230  PSALM  XLII.  6. 


Hope  thou  in  God :  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him 
For  the  help  of  his  countenance. 

6  O  my  God,  my  soul  is  cast  down  within  me :  therefore  will 
I  remember  thee 
From  the  land  of  Jordan,  and  of  the  Hermonites,  from  the 
hill  Mizar. 

occasion  (John  xii.  ■27).  In  view  of  this  it  is  interesting  to  remember 
that  the  hart  is  a  common  emblem  for  our  Lord  in  Christian  art. 

disquieted  in  me]  Lit.  moanest,  ox  frettest  upon  me^  the  same  idiom  as 
in  V.  4.     Cp.  Ixxvii.  3;  Jer.  iv.  19. 

hope  thou  in  God]  Or,  wait  thou  for  God.  Cp.  xxxviii.  15;  xxxix. 
7;  Mic.  vii.  7. 

praise  him]     Or,  give  Mm  thanks,  as  in  past  time  (z/.  4). 

for  the  help  of  his  countenance]  This  is  the  reading  of  the  Massoretic 
Text.  But  the  construction  is  peculiar,  and  the  LXX  and  Syr.  suggest 
that  we  ought  to  read  here  as  in  v.  11,  and  xliii.  5,  (Wlio  Is)  the  help 
Of  my  countenance  and  my  God.  But  0  my  God  should  be  retained  at 
the  beginning  of  v.  6,  where  it  is  needed^.  The  help  (lit.  salvations^ 
the  plur.  denoting  manifold  and  great  deliverances,  as  in  xxviii.  8)  of 
my  countenance  is  a  periphrasis  for  my  help,  facilitated  by  phrases  like 
to  look  upon  or  turn  away  the  face  of  a  person  (Ixxxiv.  9;  cxxxii.  10). 

6 — 11.     From  self  he  turns  to  God  and  pleads  his  cause. 

6.  Within  ?ne,  or  rather,  as  in  v.  4,  upon  me,  stands  emphatically 
at  the  begiiming  of  the  sentence.  His  own  feelings  overwhelm  him, 
and  therefore  he  must  turn  to  God,  whose  goodness  he  can  call  to 
mind,  remote  though  he  is  from  the  place  where  God's  presence  is 
specially  manifested.  He  describes  the  place  from  which  he  speaks  as 
the  land  of  Jordan  and  the  Hermons,  probably  the  neighbourhood  of 
Dan  ( Tell-el-Kadi)  or  Caesarea  Philippi  [Banias)^  where  the  Jordan 
rises  from  the  roots  of  Hermon.  The  plural  Hermons  either  denotes 
the  Hermon  range  in  general  or  refers  to  the  three  peaks  in  which 
Mount  Hermon  culminates.  The  hill  Mizar  or  mount  Mizar  vras  pro- 
bably some  hill  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  which  he  was"; 
perhaps  some  point  whence  he  could  command  a  view  of  the  hills 
beyond  the  Jordan,  over  which  he  would  fain  be  travelling  to  Jeru- 
salem. Its  name — the  little  mountain — may  perhaps  be  meant  to  con- 
trast its  insignificance  with  the  fame  and  splendour  of  God's  holy 
mountain  where  he  desires  to  be  (xliii.  3;  xlviii.  i,  2). 

'  The  error  arose  very  simply  from  the  transference  of  the  \  from  the  beginning  of 

■•n^XI  to  the  end  of  ^JQ,  so  that  in^J<")  >:3Q  became  '•H^J^  VJQ.     Then  tn^{<  was 

assumed  to  be  merely  an  accidental  repetition  of  ^H/X  at  the  beginning  of  v.  6,  and 
dropped  out. 

8  Prof.  G.  A.  Smith  notes  that  there  are  in  the  same  neighbourhood  "two  or  three 
names  with  the  same  or  kindred  radicals,"  and  suggests  that  they  may  be  "a 
reminiscence  of  the  name  of  a  hill  in  this  district."  Hist.  Geogr.  of  the  Holy  Land, 
P-  477. 


I 


PSALM   XLII.  7,  8.  231 


Deep  calleth  unto  deep  at  the  noise  of  thy  waterspouts  :         7 

All  thy  waves  and  thy  billows  are  gone  over  me. 

Yet  the  Lord  will  command  his  lovingkindness  in  the  day-  8 

time, 
And  in  the  night  his  song  shall  be  with  me, 
And  fny  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my  Hfe. 

7.  ai  the  noise  of  thy  watei'spouts\  Better,  In  the  roar  of  thy  cata- 
racts. God  is  sending  upon  him  one  trouble  after  another.  He  is 
overwhelmed  with  a  flood  of  misfortunes.  The  metaphorical  language 
is  derived  from  the  surrounding  scenery.  The  roar  of  the  cataracts 
calling  to  one  another  from  opposite  sides  of  the  valley  is  like  the  voice 
of  one  abyss  of  waters  (xxxiii.  7  note)  summoning  another  to  break 
forth  and  join  in  overwhelming  him.  The  torrents  and  eddies  of  the 
Jordan  suggest  the  breakers  and  waves  of  calamity  which  have  gone 
over  his  head.  Tristram  in  describing  Banias  speaks  of  "the  impetuous 
stream  which  has  hewn  out  its  channel  in  the  black  basalt,"  and  of  the 
•'wild  medley  of  cascades  and  dashing  torrents"  everywhere  {Land  of 
Israel^  p.  573).  According  to  Robinson  {Researches,  \\\.  405)  "in  the 
rainy  season,  and  at  the  time  of  the  melting  of  the  snow  on  Hermon, 
an  immense  volume  of  water  must  rush  down  the  chasm"  below  the 
ridge  on  which  the  castle  stands.  It  miglit  be  supposed  that  the  figure 
of  breakers  and  zvaves  must  have  been  suggested  by  the  sea,  but  no  one 
who  has  seen  mountain  streams  in  spate  will  doubt  that  the  words 
might  refer  to  the  Jordan  in  flood.  The  winter  rainfall  in  Palestine  is 
enormous.     See  Tristram's  Nat.  Hist,  of  the  Bible,  p.  31. 

V.  7/^  is  borrowed  in  Jonah's  prayer  (Jon.  ii.  3). 

8.  According  to  the  rendering  of  the  A.V.,  retained  by  the  R.V,, 
this  verse  expresses  the  Psalmist's  confidence  that  he  will  soon  again  ex- 
perience the  favour  of  God,  and  give  Him  thanks  for  His  goodness. 
But  it  is  equally  possible  to  render 

In  the  day-time  Jehovah  used  to  ^ve  his  lovingkindness 

charge  concerniug  me, 
And  in  the  nig-ht  his  song  was  with  me, 
Even  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my  life. 
This  rendering  gives  the  best  connexion  of  thought.     The  verse  is  a 
retrospect  like  v.  4,  and  is  a  further  explanation  of  the  'remembering 
God'  of  which  he  speaks  in  v.  6.     He  contrasts  the  present,  in  which 
tears  are  his  constant  food  {v.  3)  and  God's  indignation  seems  to  be  let 
loose   upon    him,  with  the  past,  in  which  God's  lovingkindness  con- 
stantly watched  over  him,  and  glad  songs  of  praise  to  Him  were  his 
constant  companions.     In  the  daytifne  and  in  the  night,  though  divided 
between  the  two  lines  for  rhythmical   reasons,  are  to  be  connected 
together  {^^ continually),  and  taken  as  referring  equally  to  both  clauses. 
Cp.  xcii.  2.     God's  lovingkindness,  like  His  light  and  truth  in  xliii.  3, 
is  almost  personified  as  the  Psalmist's  guardian  angel. 

Prayer  denotes  any  form  of  communion  with  God — here  predomi- 
nantly thanksgiving.     Cp.  I  Sam.  ii.  i;  Hab.  iii.  i. 

With  the  beautiful  phrase  the  God  of  my  life  cp.  Ixvi.  9;  and  Ecclesi- 


232  PSALM   XLII.  9— II. 

9  I  will  say  unto  God  my  rock,  Why  hast  thou  forgotten  me? 
Why   go  I  mourning   because   of  the   oppression    of   the 

enemy  ? 

10  As  with  a  sword  in  my  bones,  mine  enemies  reproach  me; 
While  they  say  daily  unto  me,  Where  is  thy  God  ? 

"  Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ?   and  why  art  thou 
disquieted  within  me  ? 
Hope  thou  in  God :  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him, 
PVTio  is  the  health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God. 

asticus  xxiii.    i,   4,   "O   Lord,   Father  and  Master"  {di<nroTa)  of  my 
life"  :..."  Father  and  God  of  my  life." 

TAe  Lord]  Contrary  to  the  general  rule  in  Book  ii  {Introd.  p.  Iv) 
the  name  Jehovah  has  been  retained  here;  unless  it  is  the  insertion 
or  alteration  of  a  later  editor. 

9 — 11.  Having  thus  recalled  God's  mercy  in  the  past  he  expostulates 
with  Him  for  having  abandoned  him,  and  exposed  him  to  the  sneers  of 
his  enemies. 

9.  /  will  sayi\  Or,  Let  me  say,  the  tense  (voluntative,  as  in  v.  4) 
emphatically  expressing  his  resolution. 

my  rock']  The  word,  lit.  my  cliff  or  crag  (sela),  is  used  of  God  as  a 
refuge  only  in  xviii.  2  {=2  Sam.  xxii.  2);  xxxi.  3  (  =  lxxi.  3).  On  the 
more  common  word  (or  roc/c  [tsilr)  see  note  on  xviii.  2  (A.V.  f?ty  strength). 

The  original  edition  of  the  A.V.  (161 1)  has  tmto  God,  My  rock,  why) 
treating  my  rock  as  a  vocative,  with  LXX  and  Jerome.  Editions  of 
161 2  and  1630  have  God,  iny  rock,  why  :  and  the  usual  punctuation  God 
my  rock,  Why  appears  to  have  been  introduced  in  editions  of  1629, 
1638.     See  Scrivener,  Authorised  Ed.  of  the  English  Bible,  p.  165. 

Why  &c.]  Not  a  demand  for  explanation,  but  the  expostulation  of 
perplexity.     Cp.  xiii.  i;  xxii.  i;  Ixxvii.  9;  Ixxxviii.  14. 

mourning]     Cp.  xxxv.  14,  xxxviii.  6;  Job  xxx.  28. 

because  of  the  oppression  of  the  enemy]  Or,  as  R.V.  marg.  (cp.  P.B.V.), 
while  the  enemy  oppresseth.  The  substantive  occurs  in  the  Psalter  only 
here  and  in  xliii.  2;  xliv.  24;  the  verb  only  in  Ivi.  i ;  cvi.  42.  Both  are 
used  elsewhere,  especially  of  the  oppression  of  Israel  by  foreign  invaders 
(Jud.  ii.  18;  I  Sam.  x.  18;  2  Kings  xiii.  4;  Am.  vi.  14;  &c.). 

10.  My  bones  axe  smitten  asunder  with  mine  adversaries'  re- 

proaclies. 
While  they  continually  say  unto  me,  Where  Is  thy  God? 

Lit.  with  crushing  in  my  bones  do  mine  adversaries  reproach  me. 
They  stab  him  to  the  heart  with  their  taunts.  'The  bones,'  in  the 
language  of  Hebrew  poetry,  denote  the  whole  physical  organism  of  the 
living  man,  as  being  the  framework  of  it.  They  are  the  seat  of  pain; 
and  mental  torture  affects  the  body.  Cp.  vi.  2  (note);  Lam.  iii.  4;  Is. 
xxxviii.  13. 


i 


PSALM   XLIII.  1—4.  233 

Psalm   XLIII. 

Judge  me,  O  God,  and  plead  my  cause  against  an  ungodly  43 

nation  : 
O  deliver  me  from  the  deceitful  and  unjust  man. 
For  thou  art  the  God  of  my  strength :  why  dost  thou  cast  2 

me  off? 
Why   go  I  mourning  because   of  the   oppression   of   the 

enemy  ? 
O  send  out  thy  light  and  thy  truth  :  let  them  lead  me ;  3 

Let  them  bring  me  unto  thy  holy  hill,  and  to  thy  tabernacles. 
Then  will  I  go  unto  the  altar  of  God,  4 

xliii.  1 — 5.  A  passionate  prayer  for  deliverance  from  his  enemies 
and  restoration  to  the  privileges  of  the  sanctuary. 

1,  2.     Prayer  for  deliverance,  grounded  upon  God's  relation  to  him. 

1.  yudge  me  &c.]  An  appeal  to  God  the  Judge  to  do  liim  justice 
and  vindicate  his  innocence  by  delivering  him  from  the  power  of  his 
insolent  foes.     For  the  language  cp.  vii.  8;  xxvi.  i ;  xxxv.  i,  24. 

against  an  ungodly  nation\  Lit.  from,  i.e.  by  delivering  me  from,  a 
nation  without  lovingkindness ;  heathen  destitute  of  all  feeling  of 
humanity.  For  the  meaning  of  chdsid  see  notes  on  iv.  3 ;  xii.  i ;  and 
Appendix,  Notei. 

the  deceitful  and  unjust  man]  The  leader  of  the  heathen,  who  had 
distinguished  himself  by  treachery  and  malignity,  may  be  meant.  But 
it  is  better  to  understand  the  words  collectively  as  a  further  description 
of  the  'inhuman  nation'  in  general,  men  of  deceit  and  malignity. 

2.  the  God  of  my  strength]  Or,  my  strong-hold  God :  my  natural 
refuge  and  protector.  Cp.  xviii.  i\  xlii.  9.  But  facts  seem  to  con- 
tradict faith,  and  the  expostulation  of  xlii.  9  is  repeated  in  a  stronger 
form:  Why  hast  thou  cast  me  off  (xliv.  9,  23)?  and  in  the  next  line  a 
more  emphatic  form  of  the  verb  go  is  used,  meaning  go  about  by  myself. 

3.  4.     Prayer  for  restoration. 

3.  O  send  out  tJiy  light  and  thy  truth]  Cp.  Ivii.  3.  God's  light  and 
truth,  like  His  lovingkindness  in  xlii.  8,  are  almost  personified.  As  of 
old  He  gave  His  lovingkindness  charge  concerning  His  servant,  so  now 
may  He  manifest  the  light  of  His  countenance,  and  evermore  shew 
him  favour  (xxxvi.  9 ;  xliv.  3) ;  and  thus  prove  Himself  true  to  His 
own  character  and  His  promises. 

let  them  lead  me  &c.]  Is  the  Psalmist  thinking  of  the  wonders  of  the 
Exodus?     Cp.  Ex.  xiii.  21;  xv.  13. 

tabernacles]  Ox,  dwelling-place.  Cp.  xxvi.8;  xlvi.  4;  Ixxxiv.  i.  The 
plural  may  be  '  amplificative,'  expressive  of  the  dignity  of  the  Temple  as 
the  dwelling-place  of  God;  or  it  may  be  used  with  reference  to  the 
various  courts  and  buildings  of  which  it  was  composed. 

4.  Then  will  I  go]    Or,  That  I  may  come  (xlii.  1). 


234  PSALM    XLIII.  5. 


Unto  God  111)  exceeding  joy  : 

Yea,  upon  the  harp  will  I  praise  thee,  O  God  my  God. 
5  Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul?    and  why  art  thou 
disquieted  within  me  ? 
Hope  in  God ;  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him, 
W/io  is  the  health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God. 

unto  God  my  exceedin^^  joyX  Even  unto  the  Gcd  of  my  gladsome 
rejoicing.  God  Himself  is  the  goal  of  pilgrimage :  the  altar  is  but  the 
means  of  approaching  Him  and  realising  His  presence. 

Yea,  tipon  the  harp  will  I  praise  thee]  And  g^ve  thanks  unto  thee 
upon  the  harp,  as  of  old  (xlii.  4). 

O  God  my  God]  A  phrase  found  only  in  the  Elohistic  Psalms,  and 
clearly  the  equivalent  of  Jehovah  my  God,  due,  not  to  the  original 
Psalmist,  but  to  the  Elohistic  editor.     See  Introd.  p.  Ivi. 

5.  The  refrain  is  once  more  repeated,  and  now,  we  may  believe, 
with  a  still  more  unwavering  faith  and  certain  hope  that  his  prayer  will 
be  answered. 


PSALM   XLIV. 

This  Psalm  is  the  appeal  of  the  nation  to  God  in  a  time  of  unmerited 
disaster  and  humiliation. 

i.  It  begins  by  recalling  the  mighty  deeds  of  God  for  His  people  in 
the  days  of  old.  It  was  God  Himself  who  drove  out  the  nations  fiom 
Canaan,  and  planted  Israel  in  their  place.  By  His  might  and  not  by 
their  ovni  valour  was  the  victory  won  (i — 3). 

ii.  From  the  past  they  have  been  wont  to  draw  assurance  for  the 
present.  To  Him. they  still  trust  for  victory  and  not  to  themselves^  for 
He  is  their  King  and  they  are  His  loyal  subjects  (4 — 8). 

iii.  But  facts  contradict  faith.  God  has  surrendered  them  to  their 
enemies,  and  abandoned  them  to  the  scorn  and  derision  of  neighbouring 
nations  (9 — 16). 

iv.  And  this  suffering  is  undeserved.  No  faithlessness  on  their 
part  accounts  for  it  as  a  punishment.  Nay,  it  is  for  His  sake  that  they 
are  being  persecuted  (17 — ii). 

v.     The  Psalm  closes  with  an  urgent  appeal  for  speedy  help  (23 — 26). 

This  Psalm  is  one  of  those  which  have  most  generally  and  most  con- 
fidently been  assigned  to  the  Maccabaean  period.  It  is  argued  that  the 
general  tone  of  the  Psalm  and  the  reference  to  the  dispersion  of  the 
nation  (z/.  11)  prove  it  to  be  post-exilic ;  that  we  know  of  no  earlier  time 
in  the  post-exilic  period  when  the  nation  possessed  an  army  {v.  9) ;  that 
then,  as  never  before,  it  could  plead  its  fidelity  to  Jehovah.  The 
persecution  of  Antiochus  was  preeminently  a  religious  persecution, 
in  which  the  Jews  were  slaughtered  and  sold  into  slavery  by  thousands 
for  their  faith's  sake.  They  were  fighting  not  only  for  their  lives  but  for 
their  laws. 


PSALM   XLIV.  235 


Those  however  who  assign  the  I'sahn  to  the  Maccabaean  period  are 
not  agreed  as  to  the  particular  occasion  to  which  it  refers.  The  most 
plausible  suggestion  is  that  which  connects  it  with  the  reverse  sustained 
by  Judas  at  Beth-Zachariah,  which  was  followed  by  the  surrender  of 
Beth-zur,  and  the  reduction  of  the  defenders  of  the  Temple  to  the 
greatest  extremities  (i  Mace.  vi.  28  ff.).  It  cannot  refer  to  the  early  days 
of  the  persecution  of  Antiochus,  for  then  the  Jews  had  no  army :  nor  to  the 
defeat  of  Joseph  and  Azariah  at  Jamnia  ( i  Mace.  v.  56  ff.),  for  that  defeat 
was  the  result  of  self-willed  disobedience,  and  arrogant  self-assertion  {v. 
61 ) :  nor  to  disasters  after  the  death  of  Judas  ( i  Mace,  ix),  for  the  alliance 
which  he  had  just  contracted  with  Rome  (i  Mace,  viii)  was  incompatible 
with  that  exclusive  reliance  upon  Jehovah  which  the  Psalmist  so  em- 
phatically professes. 

No  doubt  many  of  the  features  of  the  Psalm  seem  to  reflect  the 
circumstances  of  the  Maccabaean  period.  But  the  closeness  of  the 
correspondence  has  been  exaggerated.  Could  the  Psalmist  protest  that 
the  nation  was  faithful  to  its  God,  when  the  high-priest  Jason  had  but 
recently  introduced  Greek  customs  into  Jenisalem,  and  been  followed  by 
a  multitude  of  willing  apostates  (i  Mace.  i.  iiff.)  ?  Moreover,  although 
an  argument  from  silence  is  precarious,  it  would  certainly  be  strange 
that  a  Psalm  of  the  Maccabaean  period  should  contain  no  reference  to 
the  desecration  of  the  Temple,  or  to  the  attempt  to  destroy  the  national 
religion  and  enforce  heathen  customs. 

The  most  convincing  argument  however  against  a  Maccabaean  date 
for  this  Psalm  is  to  be  derived  from  the  history  of  the  formation  of  the 
Psalter.  The  *  Elohistic  *  collection  in  which  it  is  found  was  certainly 
anterior  to  the  collections  contained  in  Books  iv  and  v  {hitrod.  pp.lviff. ), 
and  must  on  any  hypothesis  have  been  formed  earlier  than  the  Maccabaean 
age,  while  the  subordinate  collections  which  are  incorporated  in  it  carry 
us  back  to  an  earlier  date  still.  Now  while  it  \s  possible  that  a  Macca- 
baean Psalmist  might  have  "thrown  himself  into  the  spirit  of  the  original 
collector  and  made  his  additions  Elohistic  to  correspond  to  the  earlier 
Psalms,"  and  might  even  have  furnished  the  Psalm  with  a  title  which  no 
longer  had  any  meaning,  it  is,  to  say  the  least,  extremely  improbable  ^ 
The  internal  indications  of  a  Maccabaean  date  must  be  overwhelming  in 
order  to  justify  such  a  bold  hypothesis. 

It  is  however  easier  to  arrive  a*-  the  negative  conclusion  that  the  Mac- 
cabaean date  is  untenable  than  to  suggest  a  satisfactory  alternative. 
Delitzsch  connects  this  Psalm  with  Ps.  Ix,  and  accepting  the  title  of  that 
Psalm  as  trustworthy,  supposes  that  the  occasion  of  both  Psalms  was  an 
Edomite  raid  upon  Judah  while  David  was  occupied  with  his  campaign 
against  the  Ammonites  and  Syrians.  There  is  certainly  a  remarkable 
affinity  between  this  Psalm  and  Ps.  Ix  ;  and  in  David's  reign  the  people 
could  boast  of  their  faithfulness  to  Jehovah  in  marked  contrast  to  the 

*  See  Robertson  Smith,  Old  Test,  in  Jewish  Church,  ed.  2,  pp.  207,  437. 
Sntiday,  Bampton  Lectures,  pp.  256,  270,  draws  out  in  detail  the  number  of  steps 
implied  between  the  original  composition  of  the  Hebrew  Psalm  and  the  Greek 
Version  of  the  Psalter,  and  shews  that  if,  as  many  believe,  the  Greek  Version  of  the 
Psalter  is  not  later  than  B.C.  100,  it  is  almos*^  incredible  that  they  can  have  been 
compressed  into  a  space  of  seventy  years. 


236  PSALM  XLIV.  i. 


repeated  apostasies  of  the  age  of  the  Judges.  Lagarde  points  to  the 
close  resemblance  between  v,  i6  and  Is.  xxxvii.  6,  23,  24,  and  assigns 
the  Psalm  to  the  time  of  Sennacherib's  invasion.  Robertson  Smith 
{O.  T.J.  C,  ed.  2,  p.  207)  refers  it,  along  with  Pss.  Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  Ixxx, 
to  the  rebellion  of  the  Jews  under  Artaxerxes  Ochus  {circa  350  B.C.), 
which  was  put  down  with  great  severity. 

It  is  impossible  to  decide  with  certainty;  but  the  Psalm  produces  a 
strong  impression  that  it  belongs  to  the  time  when  Israel  had  still  an 
independent  existence  as  a  nation,  and  was  accustomed  to  make  war 
upon  its  enemies.  If  so,  it  must  be  assigned  to  the  period  of  the 
Monarchy,  for  at  no  time  after  the  exile,  so  far  as  we  know,  down  to  the 
Maccabaean  period,  was  Israel  in  a  position  to  make  war.  The  exile 
is  not  necessarily  presumed  by  z/.  11.  All  that  the  verse  need  mean  is 
that  prisoners  had  been  taken  and  sold  for  slaves,  as  was  the  case  in  the 
eighth  century  (Amos  i.  6,  9),  and  doubtless  in  earlier  times. 

The  Psalm  stands  alone  in  its  confident  assertions  of  national 
fidelity  to  Jehovah,  which  may  be  contrasted  with  the  confessions 
of  national  guilt  in  Is.  Ixiii,  Ixiv,  and  Lam.  iii.  But  it  must  be  noticed 
carefully  that  it  is  not  an  absolute  but  a  relative  assertion  of  innocence. 
It  resembles  that  of  Job.  He  made  no  claim  of  absolute  sinlessness, 
but  protested  that  he  was  conscious  of  no  exceptional  sin  which 
would  account  for  his  exceptional  afflictions  on  the  current  theory  of 
retribution ;  and  the  Psalmist  is  conscious  of  no  national  apostasy  which 
would  account  for  Jehovah's  desertion  of  His  people  as  a  justly  merited 
punishment. 

The  parallels  with  Ps.  Ix  should  be  carefully  studied.  The  situation 
is  similar  :  in  both  Psalms  the  thought  of  God,  not  man,  as  the  deliverer 
is  prominent :  and  there  are  several  parallels  of  language.  Comp.  xliv. 
o,  23  with  Ix.  I,  10  ;  xliv.  5  with  Ix.  12  ;  xliv.  3  with  Ix.  5.  Several 
links  of  connexion  with  Pss.  xlii,  xliii  will  also  be  found  in  the  notes. 


To  the  chief  Musician  for  the  sons  of  Korah,  Maschil. 

44  We  have  heard  with  our  ears,  O  God, 
Our  fathers  have  told  us, 

On  the  title,  which  should  be  rendered  with  R.V.,  For  the  Chief 
Musician ;  (a  Psalm)  of  the  sons  of  Korah.  Maschil,  see  Introd.  pp. 
\ix,  xxi,  xxxiii;  and  p.  223. 

1 — 3.  A  retrospect.  Not  their  own  valour  but  God's  help  and 
favour  gave  Israel  possession  of  the  land  of  Canaan. 

1.  our  fathers  have  told  us\  In  obedience  to  the  often  repeated  in- 
junction to  hand  on  the  memory  of  God's  marvellous  works  on  behalf  of 
His  people.  See  Ex.  x.  2  ;  xii.  26  f. ;  xiii.  8,  14 ;  Deut.  vi.  20  ;  Josh.  iv. 
6,  21.  Cp.  Judg.  vi.  13;  Ps.  Ixxviii.  3.  Observe  the  importance 
attached  to  oral  tradition  as  a  means  of  perpetuating  the  memory  of  the 
past.  Much  of  the  early  history  of  Israel  was  doubtless  preserved  by 
oral  tradition  for  a  lono;  period  before  it  was  committed  to  writing. 


ii 


PSALM   XLIV.  2—4.  237 

What  work  thou  didst  in  their  days,  in  the  times  of  old. 
How  thou  didst  drive  out  the  heathen  with  thy  hand,  and  2 

plantedst  them ; 
How  thou  didst  afflict  the  people,  and  cast  them  out. 
For  they  got  not  the  land  in  possession  by  their  own  sword,  3 
Neither  did  their  own  arm  save  them : 
But  thy  right  hand,   and  thine  arm,   and  the  light  of  thy 

countenance. 
Because  thou  hadst  a  favour  unto  them. 

Thou  art  my  King,  O  God  :  4 

Command  deliverances  for  Jacob. 

in  the  times  of  old]  Better,  even  the  days  of  old.  Cp.  Is.  xxxvii.  26 
(A.  v.,  of  ancient  times). 

2.  With  thine  own  hand  didst  thou  dispossess  nations,  and  plant 

them  in, 
Didst  afflict  peoples,  and  cause  them  to  spread  abroad. 
Thou  with  thy  hand  are  the  first  words  of  the  verse  in  the  Heb., 
emphasising  by  their  position  the  prominent  thought  of  this  stanza,  that 
Israel  owed  its  possession  of  Canaan  not  to  its  own  courage  but  to 
Jehovah's  help.  The  metaphor  of  planting  is  frequently  applied  to  the 
establishment  of  Israel  in  Canaan  (cp,  Ex.  xv.  17;  2  Sam.  vii.  10),  and 
it  is  continued  in  the  next  line,  where  the  rendering  cause  them  to 
spread  abroad  is  commended  by  the  usage  of  the  word  and  by  the 
parallelism.  Israel  is  compared  to  a  tree  which  struck  root  and  spread 
its  branches  far  and  wide.  Cp.  Ixxx.  8  ff,  11.  Note  the  artistic  paral- 
lelism, the  first  clause  in  each  line  referring  to  the  nations,  the  second  to 
Israel. 

3.  The  thought  of  the  preceding  verse  is  still  further  emphasised. 
For  not  by  their  own  sword  gat  they  possession  of  the  land, 
Neither  did  their  own  arm  give  them  victory  : 

But  thy  right  hand,  &c 
Cp.  Ix.  5 ;  Josh.  iv.  24. 

the  light  of  thy  countenance]  Cp.  iv.  6;  xxxi.  16;  Ixxx.  3,  7,  19;  and 
the  Aaronic  benediction  in  Num.  vi.  24  fif. 

hadst  a  favour  unto  them]  God's  free  choice,  not  Israel's  merit,  was 
the  ground  of  His  iiitervention  on  their  behalf.  Cp.  Deut.  iv.  37 ;  viii. 
17,  18;  ix.  4,  6. 

4 — 8.  The  recollection  of  the  past  gives  confidence  for  the  present 
and  the  future.  God's  strength  must  still  avail  for  the  deliverance  of 
His  people,  and  in  Him  alone  do  they  trust. 

4.  my  King]  Cp.  xlvii.  6;  Ixxiv.  12;  i  Sam.  xii.  12.  The  Psalmist 
speaks  in  the  name  of  the  nation.    Cp.  v.  6. 

command]  Cp.  xlii.  8.  It  is  the  duty  of  a  king  to  defend  his  people 
(i  Sam.  X.  19);  and  the  authority  of  the  divine  King  is  supreme.  He 
has  but  to  speak  the  word  and  it  must  needs  be  obeyed. 

dtliverances]     R.V.  deliverance,   marg.,  victories  (cp.  v.   3).     The 


238  PSALM   XLIV.  5—9. 


5  Through  thee  will  we  push  down  our  enemies ; 

Through  thy  name  will  we  tread  them  under  that  rise  up 
against  us. 

6  For  I  will  not  trust  in  my  bow, 
Neither  shall  my  sword  save  me. 

7  But  thou  hast  saved  us  from  our  enemies, 
And  hast  put  them  to  shame  that  hated  us. 

8  In  God  we  boast  all  the  day  long, 
And  praise  thy  name  for  ever.     Selah. 

9  But  thou  hast  cast  off,  and  put  us  to  shame ; 
And  goest  not  forth  with  our  armies. 

Heb.  word  is  plural,  denoting  deliverance  full  and  complete.     Cp.  xviii. 
50 ;  xlii.  5  (note). 

5.  push  down'\  Perhaps  a  reminiscence  of  Deut.  xxxiii.  17;  but 
metaphors  from  homed  animals  are  common.     Cp.  i  Kings  xxii.  11. 

our  enemies]  R.V.  our  adversaries,  and  similarly  in  tw.  7,  10,  the 
Heb.  word  being  different  from  that  in  v.  16. 

through  thy  name]  Relying  upon  all  that  Thou  hast  revealed  Thy- 
self to  be  as  the  God  of  Israel : — an  emphatic  alternative  for  through 
Thee.  The  Name  of  God  is  the  compendious  expression  for  His 
revealed  character  and  attributes.  See.Oehler's  O.T.  Theology^  §  56. 
Cp.  V.  11;  XX.  i;  Acts  iii.  16. 

6.  Cp.  XX.  7;  xxxiii.  16;  Ix.  11  f;  i  Sam.  xvii.  47;  Hos.  i.  7;  and 
the  noble  speech  of  Judas  Maccabaeus  (i  Mace.  iii.  I7ff.);  "The 
victory  of  battle  standeth  not  in  the  multitude  of  an  host,  but  strength 
Cometh  from  heaven." 

7.  But]     Or,  For.     Past  experience  justifies  the  confidence  of  v.  6. 
them. ..that  hated  us]     R.V.,  them  ..that  hate  us.     Cp.  v.  ro. 

8.  Of  God  have  we  made  our  boast  all  day  long. 
And  unto  thy  name  will  we  give  thanks  for  ever. 

God  has  been  the  object  of  their  praises  in  the  past,  and  to  Him  they 
are  resolved  to  give  thanks  (xlii.  5)  continually. 

A  musical  interlude  marks  the  conclusion  of  the  first  main  division  of 
the  Psalm. 

9 — 16.  But  the  present  circumstances  of  the  nation  contradict  these 
expressions  of  faith  based  upon  past  experience.  Israel  is  abandoned  to 
be  the  scorn  and  prey  of  its  foes.     Comp.  the  transition  in  Ixxxix.  38. 

9.  But  no%v]  The  conjunction  is  peculiar,  and  implies  surprise.  And 
then,  after  all  these  proofs  of  Thy  good  will,  and  in  spite  of  our  loyalty 
to  Thee,  hast  thou  cast  us  off  and  dishonoured  us,  and  goest  not 
forth  with  our  hosts ;  leading  them  to  victoiy  as  in  the  days  of  old,  as 
the  God  of  the  armies  of  Israel.  Almost  the  same  words  recur  in  Ix.  10. 
In  ancient  times  the  Ark  was  carried  to  battle  as  the  symbol  of  Jehovah's 
presence.  See  Num.  x.  35;  Josh.  vi.  6;  i  Sam.  iv.  3  ;  2  Sam.  xi.  11. 
Cp.  also  Judg.  vi.  14;  1  Sam.  v.  24. 


I 


II 


PSALM   XLIV.  ia-15.  239 


Thou  raakest  us  to  turn  back  from  the  eoemy ; 

And  they  which  hate  us  spoil  for  themselves. 

Thou  hast  given  us  like  sheep  appointed  for  meat ; 

And  hast  scattered  us  among  the  heathen. 

Thou  sellest  thy  people  for  nought, 

And  dost  not  increase  thy  wealth  by  their  price. 

Thou  makest  us  a  reproach  to  our  neighbours, 

A  scorn  and  a  derision  to  them  that  are  round  about  us. 

Thou  makest  us  a  byword  among  the  heathen, 

A  shaking  of  the  head  among  the  people. 

My  confusion  is  continually  before  me, 

And  the  shame  of  my  face  hath  covered  me, 


10.  the  ene7}iy\    R.V.,  the  adversary. 

spoil  for  themselves']    Or,  plunder  at  their  will. 

11.  Some  of  God's  people  are  butchered  like  sheep  (cp.  v.  22); 
others  are  sold  as  slaves.  It  is  evidently  not  a  deportation  of  the 
nation  that  is  meant,  but  the  sale  of  prisoners  of  war  for  slaves.  Cp. 
Joel  iii.  2,  6 ;  Am.  i.  6,  9.  To  the  Israelite  with  his  love  of  freedom 
and  attachment  to  his  own  land  such  a  fate  seemed  little  better  than 
death. 

12.  Thou  sellest  thy  people]  Handing  them  over  to  their  enemies 
(Deut.  xxxii.  30;  Judg.  ii.  14;  Is.  1.  1);  and  th.a.t  for  nought ^  as  though 
they  were  worthless  in  Thy  estimation  (Jer.  xv.  13):  and  hast  made  no 
gain  by  their  price\  a  bold  'anthropopathy,'  or  ascription  to  God  of 
human  motives  and  feelings,  as  though  the  surrender  of  His  people 
might  have  seemed  more  justifiable  if  He  had  received  some  equivalent 
for  them.     Comp.  the  plea  in  xxx.  9. 

13.  Repeated  almost  verbatim  in  Ixxix.  4;  cp.  Ixxx.  6.  The 
neighbouring  nations,  Philistines,  Edomites,  Ammonites,  Moabites, 
were  always  jealous  of  Israel,  and  ready  to  rejoice  with  a  malicious 
delight  at  Israel's  humiliation. 

14.  the  heat  hen...  the  people]  Render  with  R.V.,  the  nations...  the 
peoples.  They  point  to  our  fate  as  a  proverbial  instance  of  a  people 
abandoned  by  its  God,  and  make  us  the  subject  of  taunting  songs :  they 
shake  their  heads  at  us  in  derision.  Cp.  Deut.  xxviii.  37 ;  i  Kings  ix. 
7;  Jer.  xxiv.  9;  Joel  ii.  17  (R.V.  marg.);  Ps.  xxii.  7;  and  generally 
Lam.  ii.  15  if. 

16.  My  confusion  &c.]  Render  with  R.V.,  All  the  day  long  is  my 
dishonour  before  me,  as  in  vv.  8,  22,  9.  My  disgrace  is  perpetually 
staring  me  in  the  face.     Cp.  xxxviii.  17. 

the  shame  of  my  face  &c.]  Shame  is  said  to  cover  or  clothe  a  man 
(Job  viii.  22;  Ps.  XXXV.  26;  Ixix.  7;  cxxxii.  18);  and  the  shame  of  my 
face  is  an  emphatic  sjmonym  for  my  shame,  inasmuch  as  the  sense  of 
shame  betrays  itself  in  the  countenance.  Cp.  Ezra  ix.  6  ii\  Jer.  vii.  19; 
Dan.  ix.  7,  8. 


240  PSALM   XLIV.  16—19. 

16  For  the  voice  of  him  that  reproacheth  and  blasphemeth ; 
By  reason  of  the  enemy  and  avenger. 

17  All  this  is  come  upon  us ;  yet  have  we  not  forgotten  thee, 
Neither  have  we  dealt  falsely  in  thy  covenant. 

18  Our  heart  is  not  turned  back, 

Neither  have  our  steps  declined  from  thy  way ; 

19  Though  thou  hast  sore  broken  us  in  the  place  of  dragons, 

16.  For  the  voice  of  him  that  reproacheth  and  blasphemeth']  The 
word  reproach  is  frequently  used  of  a  heathen  enemy's  scornful  defiance 
or  mocking  derision  of  Israel  and  Israelites,  and  by  consequence  of 
Israel's  God,  as  though  He  were  unable  or  unwilling  to  defend  His 
people  (xlii.  10;  Ixxiv.  10,  18,  22;  Ixxix.  4,  12;  i  Sam.  xvii.  10 ff.);  but 
the  two  words  are  found  in  combination  elsewhere  only  of  Sennacherib's 
blasphemous  defiance  (Is.  xxxvii.  6,  23  =  2  Kings  xix.  6,  22). 

by  reason  of]  Render  for  the  looks  of,  or,  for  the  presence  of, 
as  a  better  parallelism  io  for  the  voice  of.  Isaiah  alludes  to  the  terror 
inspired  by  the  grim  looks  of  the  Assyrian  invaders  (xxxiii.  19) ;  and  for 
voice  cp.  Is.  xxxvii.  23  ;  Nah.  ii.  13. 

the  enemy  attd  the  avenger]  Cp.  viii.  2.  The  Heb.  word  for  avenger 
suggests  the  idea  of  one  who  is  taking  a  selfish  vengeance,  usurping,  in 
his  own  interests,  a  function  which  belongs  to  God  alone  (Ueut.  xxxii. 
35)- 

17—22.  The  calamity  is  unmerited.  No  unfaithfulness  to  God's 
covenant  has  called  for  punishment.  Nay  it  is  for  His  sake  that  His 
people  are  suffering. 

17.  All  this  kc]    Cp.  Judg.  vi.  13. 

yet  have  we  not  &c.]  Although  we  have  not  forgotten  Thee,  as 
our  fathers  did  so  often.  Cp.  Ixxviii.  7,  11;  cvi.  13,  21;  Judg.  iii.  7; 
Hos.  ii.  13;  iv.  6;  viii.  14;  xiii.  6;  Jer.  ii.  32. 

neither  &c.]  Neither  have  we  been  false  to  thy  covenant.  Cp. 
Ixxxix.  33 ;  * '  Neither  will  I  be  false  to  my  faithfulness."  God's  covenant 
with  Abraham  to  be  a  God  to  him  and  to  his  seed  after  him  (Gen.  xvii. 
7)  was  confirmed  to  the  nation  at  Sinai  (Ex.  xix.  5;  xxiv.  7,  8).  Its 
sacrament  was  circumcision  (Gen.  xvii.  2ff):  its  outward  symbol  was 
the  Ark  of  the  Covenant  (Num.  x.  33) :  and  its  fundamental  charter 
was  the  Ten  Words  inscribed  on  the  Tables  of  the  Covenant  (Deut. 
ix.  9). 

19.  Though  &c.]  Comp.  the  vigorous  paraphrase  of  P.  B.V. ;  No^ 
not  when  thou  hast  smitten  us  &c.     But  it  is  better  to  render 

That  thou  shouldest  have  crushed  us  into  a  haunt  of  Jackals. 

The  Psalmist's  argument  is  that  there  has  been  no  national  apostasy 
for  which  their  present  disasters  would  be  a  just  punishment.  A  haunt 
of  jackals  is  a  proverbial  expression  for  a  scene  of  ruin  and  desolation,  a 
waste,  howling  wilderness,  tenanted  only  by  wild  beasts  (Is.  xiii.  22; 
xxxiv.  13  ;  Jer.  ix.  11 ;  x.  22).  Some  commentators  (on  the  hypothesis  of 
the  Maccabaean  date)  see  a  reference  to  the  butchery  of  the  Jews  who 


PSALM   XLIV.  20-23.  241 

And  covered  us  with  the  shadow  of  death. 

If  we  have  forgotten  the  name  of  our  God,  = 

Or  stretched  out  our  hands  to  a  strange  god ; 

Shall  not  God  search  this  out  ? 

For  he  knoweth  the  secrets  of  the  heart. 

Yea,  for  thy  sake  are  we  killed  all  the  day  long; 

We  are  counted  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter. 

Awake,  why  sleepest  thou,  O  Lord  ?  ; 

had  fled  into  the  wilderness  to  escape  from  the  persecution  of  Antiochus 
(i  Mace.  ii.  27 — 38).  But  more  probably  the  phrase  is  a  condensed  ex- 
pression, meaning  'crushed  us  and  reduced  our  country  to  a  desert.' 
There  is  some  doubt  however  about  the  reading.  The  Sept.  has, 
'  humbled  us  in  a  place  of  affliction.^ 

the  shadow  of  death']  The  word  tsalmdvcth  is  rendered  thus  in  the 
Ancient  Versions,  and  the  present  vocalisation  assumes  that  this  is 
the  meaning.  But  compounds  are  rare  in  Hebrew  except  in  proper 
names,  and  there  are  good  grounds  for  supposing  that  the  word  is 
derived  from  a  different  root  and  should  be  read  tsah/iilth,  and  rendered 
deep  gloom.  It  is  however  not  improbable  that  the  pronunciation  of 
the  word  was  altered  at  an  early  date  in  accordance  with  a  popular 
etymology. 

20.  stretched  out]  R.V.,  spread  forth:  the  gesture  of  prayer  being 
not,  as  with  ns,  folded  hands,  but  the  hands  extended  with  open  palms: 
the  Lat.  'manibus  passis.'  Cp.  cxliii.  6;  i  Kings  viii.  22,  38,  54;  Isa. 
i.  15. 

21.  It  would  be  vain  to  attempt  to  conceal  any  faithlessness  from 
the  Searcher  of  hearts.  Cp.  Job's  protestations  of  innocence,  ch.  xxxi. 
4  ff. ;  and  Ps.  cxxxix.  i,  23;  Jer,  xvii.  10. 

22.  Yea,  for  thy  sake]  Or,  Nay,  but  for  tliy  sake.  Not  only  have 
we  not  been  unfaithful  to  Thee,  but  we  are  actually  suffering  as  martyrs 
for  Thy  sake.  Such  a  protest  was  no  doubt  particularly  true  in  the 
persecution  of  Antiochus,  but  not  in  that  period  only.  Cp.  the  com- 
plaints of  Ixix.  7;  Jer.  XV,  15. 

This  verse  is  quoted  by  St  Paul  in  Rom.  viii.  36,  to  encourage  his 
converts  in  view  of  the  possibility  that  they  might  have  to  face  even 
death  for  Christ's  sake.  If  the  saints  of  old  time  had  to  suffer  per- 
secution even  to  the  death,  they  need  not  be  surprised  if  a  like  fate 
should  befall  them.  And  the  quotation  is  doubtless  intended  (as  so 
often)  to  carry  with  it  the  thought  of  its  context,  and  to  remind  them  of 
the  steadfastness  of  the  Old  Testament  saints  under  the  sharpest  trial  of 
their  faith. 

23 — 26.     An  urgent  appeal  for  immediate  help. 

23.  Awake ,.  .arise]  Bestir  thy  self...  awake.  Cp.  vii.  6,  and  many 
similar  invocations.  But  nowhere  else  do  we  find  so  bold  an  expostula- 
tion as  why  sleepest  thou  ?  The  nearest  parallel  is  in  Ixxviii.  65.  The 
Psalmists  do  not   shrink  from  using  human  language  in  reference  to 

PSALMS  16 


242  PSALM   XLIV.  24—26. 

Arise,  cast  us  not  off  for  ever. 

24  Wherefore  hidest  thou  thy  face, 

And  forgettest  our  affliction  and  our  oppression  ? 

25  For  our  soul  is  bowed  down  to  the  dust : 
Our  belly  cleaveth  unto  the  earth. 

26  Arise  for  our  help, 

And  redeem  us  for  thy  mercy's  sake. 

God,  though  they  well  knew  that  the  Watchman  of  Israel  was  one  who 
neither  slumbered  nor  slept  (cxxi.  3,  4). 

It  is  recorded  in  the  Talmud  that  in  the  time  of  the  high-priest  John 
Hyrcanus  (B.C.  135 — 107)  certain  Levites,  called  'Awakeners,'  daily 
ascended  the  pulpit  in  the  Temple  and  cried,  "Awake,  why  sleepest 
thou,  O  Lord"?  He  put  a  stop  to  the  practice,  saying,  "Does  Deity 
sleep?  Has  not  the  Scripture  said,  'Behold  he  that  keepeth  Israel 
neither  slumbereth  nor  sleepeth?'" 

cast\x.%  not  off  for  ever]     Cp.  Ixxiv.  i;  Ixxvii.  7;  Lam.  iii.  31. 

24.  hidest  thou  thy  face]  In  anger  or  indifference,  instead  of  shew- 
ing the  light  of  Thy  countenance  in  gracious  help  to  Thy  people  {v.  3 ; 
Ixxx.  3). 

our  affliction  and  our  oppression]  Cp.  Deut.  xxvi.  7;  Ex.  iii.  7,  9; 
2  Kings  xiii.  4;  xiv.  26.  The  latter  word  occurs  elsewhere  in  the 
Psalter  only  in  xlii.  9,  xliii.  2. 

25.  We  lie  utterly  prostrate,  crushed  and  helpless.     Cp.  cxix.  25. 

26.  Arise]     R.V.,  Rise  up.     Cp.  iii.  7;  Num.  x.  35. 

for  thy  mercy'' s  sake]  R.V.,  for  tliy  lovingMndness'  sake.  Jehovah 
has  revealed  Himself  to  be  "a  God... plenteous  in  lovingkitidness  and 
truth,  who  keeps  lovingkindness  for  thousands"  (Ex.  xxxiv.  7,  8),  and 
the  Psalmist  intreats  Him  to  be  true  to  this  central  attribute  of  His 
character.  Cp.  vi.  4;  Mic.  vii.  18,  20.  On  the  reading  mercies',  found 
in  many  editions,  see  Scrivener,  Auth.  Ed.  of  the  English  Bible,  p.  196. 


PSALM   XLV. 

A  nuptial  ode,  celebrating  the  marriage  of  a  king  with  a  king's 
daughter.  After  a  brief  prelude  (i)  the  Psalmist  addresses  the  king, 
praising  the  personal  beauty  which  marks  him  out  as  a  ruler  of  men, 
and  bidding  him  use  his  strength  in  the  cause  of  tnith  and  right. 
Noble  qualities  of  heart  and  mind  fit  him  for  his  lofty  calling,  on  which 
the  seal  of  divine  approval  has  been  newly  set  by  the  blessing  of  this 
supreme  happiness,  the  cro^vning  glory  of  his  state  and  splendour  (2 — 
9).  Then  turning  to  the  bride  he  bids  her  cheerfully  accept  her  new 
position,  and  indicates  its  dignity  by  pointing  to  the  gifts  which  allied 
nations  bring  in  her  honour.  In  magnificent  bridal  array  she  is  con- 
ducted to  the  royal  palace  with  jubilant  rejoicings ;  and  the  Psalm  con- 
cludes with  the  anticipation  of  a  numerous  posterity  and  undying  and 
worldwide  renown  for  so  famous  a  monarch  (10 — 17). 


i 


PSALM   XLV.  243 


There  is  no  clearly  marked  strophical  arrangement.  The  poet  passes 
from  thought  to  thought  as  his  enthusiasm  kindles  with  the  grandeur  of 
his  theme. 

That  the  Psalm  refers  to  some  actual  occasion  cannot  be  doubted. 
Some  commentators  indeed  deny  that  it  has  an  historical  basis,  and 
regard  it  as  wholly  prophetic  or  ideal.  The  language,  they  say,  far 
transcends  any  language  that  could  be  used  of  the  best  of  earthly  kings; 
and  from  the  earliest  times,  alike  in  the  Jewish  and  in  the  Christian 
Church,  it  has  been  understood  to  refer  directly  to  the  Messiah. 

A  careful  study  of  the  Psalm  shews  that  this  view  is  untenable. 
(i)  There  is  no  indication  that  the  Psalmist  intends  to  describe  a  future 
personage.  {2)  The  language  of  the  Ps.  does  not  really  go  beyond 
what  might  have  been  said  by  a  poet  of  an  actual  king,  viewed  in 
the  light  of  the  promises  made  to  the  house  of  David.  (3)  The  Ps. 
contains  realistic  details  of  the  circumstances  of  an  Oriental  court, 
which  would  hardly  have  been  introduced,  if  it  had  been  originally 
written  as  a  sacred  poem  with  a  mystic  meaning. 

The  view  that  the  Ps.  is  exclusively  Messianic  rests  in  great  measure 
upon  an  imperfect  apprehension  of  the  typical  character  of  the  Davidic 
kingship.  The  Davidic  king  was  the  representative  of  Jehovah,  Who 
was  the  true  King  of  Israel,  and  the  poet-seer  can  boldly  greet  the 
reigning  monarch  in  the  light  of  the  great  prophecies  to  which  he  was 
the  heir.  Bidding  him  rise  to  the  height  of  his  calling  by  the  exercise 
of  a  just  rule  which  should  be  a  true  reflection  of  the  divine  govern- 
ment, he  can  claim  for  him  the  fulfilment  of  the  promise  of  an  eternal 
dominion.  It  is  of  the  essence  of  poetry  to  idealise,  and  sacred  poetry 
is  no  exception  to  the  rule.  It  could  disregard  the  limitations  and 
imperfections  of  experience,  and  portray  the  king  in  the  light  of  the 
true  and  perfect  conception  of  his  office,  not  simply  as  what  he  was, 
but  as  what  he  should  be.  See  Introd.  pp.lxxviff.;  introd.  and  notes  to 
Ps.  ii;  and  comp.  Riehm's  Messianic  Prophecy  (Engl.  Tr.,  ed.  2),  pp. 
102  ff. 

Who  then  was  the  king,  and  what  was  the  occasion  referred  to  ?  If 
the  lofty  language  of  the  Ps.  is  clearly  based  upon  the  Messianic  pro- 
mises and  only  explicable  in  connexion  with  them,  some  king  of  the 
house  of  David  must  be  its  theme.  This  consideration  excludes  kings 
of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  such  as  Ahab,  who  has  been  suggested  be- 
cause he  possessed  an  ivory  palace  (cp.  v.  8  with  i  Kings  xxii.  39)  and 
married  a  foreign  princess  (i  Kings  xvi.  31) ;  or  Jeroboam  II,  the  luxury 
and  splendour  of  whose  reign  might  seem  to  correspond  to  the  descrip- 
tion in  the  poem.  Still  more  decisively  does  it  exclude  foreign  kings, 
such  as  some  unknown  Persian  monarch,  or  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  or 
the  Syrian  king  Alexander  (i  Mace  x.  57,  58). 

If  then  the  Ps.  must  refer  to  some  king  of  Judah,  the  choice  appears 
to  lie  between  Jehoram  and  Solomon,  (i)  Delitzsch  finds  a  suitable 
occasion  in  the  marriage  of  Jehoram  with  Athaliah.  Jehoram  was  the 
son  of  the  pious  Jehoshaphat,  whose  reign  revived  the  glories  of  the 
Solomonic  age.  Though  not  actually  king  when  he  married  Athaliah, 
he  had  been  raised  to  the  position  of  co-regent  with  his  father  {2  Kings 
viii.   16).     The  exhortation  to  the  bride  to  forget  her  home,  and  the 

16  —  2 


244  PSALM   XLV. 

mention  of  Tyre,  are  supposed  to  be  allusions  to  the  Sidonian  origin  of 
Athaliah's  mother,  Jezebel. 

It  is  however  difficult  to  believe  that  an  inspired  poet  could  have 
regarded  an  alliance  with  the  idolatrous  house  of  Ahab  with  satisfaction, 
or  that  in  view  of  the  subsequent  history  such  an  ode  would  have  been 
preserved  in  a  collection  of  temple-hymns.  Moreover  this  bride  appears 
to  be  a  foreign  princess,  not  an  Israelite.  It  remains  to  adopt  the  old 
view  that  the  Psalm  celebrates  the  marriage  of  Solomon  with  the 
daughter  of  the  king  of  Egypt  (i  Kings  iii.  i).  Such  an  alliance  must 
have  been  an  event  of  the  highest  importance.  Solomon's  court  was  a 
scene  of  splendour  and  luxury  like  that  which  is  described  in  the  Ps. 
The  kingdom  was  at  the  zenith  of  its  glory.  The  promises  to  David 
were  recent :  the  hopes  which  they  held  out  had  not  yet  been  dimmed 
by  failure  and  disappointment.  Then  as  at  no  other  later  time  it  was 
easy  for  a  poet  to  idealise  the  kingship  and  the  kingdom,  and  to  use  the 
language  of  lofty  hope  and  confident  anticipation.  Solomon's  close 
alliance  with  Hiram  gives  a  natural  explanation  of  the  mention  of  Tyre 
{v.  12)  as  the  representative  of  allied  nations.  A  recent  theory  regards 
the  Ps.  as  a  'dramatic  lyric,'  written  after  the  Return  from  the  exile 
at  a  time  when  the  traditional  glories  of  Solomon's  reign  attracted 
the  attention  and  exercised  the  imagination  of  poets.  The  theory  is  im- 
probable, but  it  recognises  the  fact  that  the  Ps.  may  most  appropriately 
be  referred  to  Solomon.  The  only  objections  which  deserve  consideration 
are  that  the  king  is  described  as  a  martial  hero,  whereas  Solomon  was 
a  man  of  peace  :  and  that  Solomon  had  no  line  of  royal  ancestors  such 
as  is  supposed  to  be  implied  in  v.  16.  (i)  To  the  first  of  these  objections 
it  may  be  answered  that  although  this  king  is  described  as  a  conquering 
hero,  more  stress  is  laid  upon  the  justice  of  his  rule  than  upon  his  war- 
like exploits.  Moreover  Solomon  was  not  deficient  in  military  spirit, 
and  though  his  reign  was  on  the  whole  peaceful,  it  was  by  no  means 
entirely  so.  He  made  great  military  preparations  (1  Kings  i v.  26;  ix. 
15  fif. ;  xi.  27;  2  Chr.  viii.  5  ff.)»  ^^^  it  is  recorded  that  he  conquered 
Hamath-zobah  (2  Chr.  viii.  3).  It  was  scarcely  possible  for  a  poet  to 
dissociate  the  idea  of  a  king  from  the  idea  of  a  victorious  warrior. 
(2)  As  regards  the  second  objection,  v.  16  does  not  necessarily  imply  a 
long  line  of  royal  ancestors.  It  may  be  understood  as  implying  the 
reverse,  and  expressing  the  hope  that  a  noble  posterity  might  arise  to 
compensate  for  the  absence  of  the  long  ancestry  upon  which  so  many 
oriental  monarchs  prided  themselves. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  original  occasion  of  the  Ps.,  its  Messi- 
anic significance  has  been  almost  universally  recognised.  "The  mar- 
riage-song of  the  Jewish  monarch  laid  open  thoughts  which  could  only 
be  realised  in  the  relation  of  the  Divine  King  to  His  Church."  The 
Targum  paraphrases  v.  2;  "Thy  beauty,  O  King  Messiah,  exceeds  that 
of  the  children  of  men ;  a  spirit  of  prophecy  is  bestowed  upon  thy  lips : " 
and  V.  10,  "Hear,  O  congregation  of  Israel,  the  law  of  his  mouth,  and 
consider  his  wondrous  works."  The  writer  of  the  Epistle  to  the  He- 
brews quotes  w.  6,  7  as  a  description  of  the  moral  and  eternal  sove- 
reignty of  Christ  (Hebr.  i.  8,  9).  If  the  king  was  typical  of  Christ,  the 
marriage   of  the  king  might  symbolise  the  bridal  of  Christ  and  the 


PSALM   XLV.    I.  245 


Church ;  and  this  interpretation  was  facilitated  by  the  common  use  of 
the  figure  of  marriage  in  the  O.T.  to  describe  the  relation  of  Jehovah  to 
His  people.  The  natural  relationship  is  consecrated  as  the  sacrament 
of  the  mystical  relationship;  and  the  mystical  relationship  is  rendered 
more  comprehensible  to  the  human  mind  by  the  sanction  of  the  analogy. 
Comp.  Eph.  V.  23  ft".;  Apoc.  xix.  7  ff. ;  xxi.  2;  xxii.  17. 

It  may  seem  strange  that  an  ode  thus  secular  in  its  origin  should  find 
a  place  in  the  Canon.  But  the  inclusion  of  such  poems  as  this  and  the 
Song  of  Songs,  with  which  this  Psalm  has  much  in  common,  helps  to 
place  the  ordinary  relations  of  human  life  in  a  tnier  light  as  part  of  the 
divine  order  of  the  world.  And  further  they  are  ennobled  and  conse- 
crated by  being  thus  made  the  vehicle  for  lofty  thoughts  and  the  type  of 
spiritual  mysteries  (Eph.  v.  -23  ff.). 

The  Psalm  is  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Christmas  Day. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Shnshaimim,  for  the  sons  of  Korah,  Maschil, 
A  Song  of  loves. 

My  heart  is  inditing  a  good  matter :  45 

I  speak  of  the  things  which  I  have  made  touching  the  king : 
My  tongue  is  the  pen  of  a  ready  writer. 

The  title  may  be  rendered  as  in  R.V.,  For  the  chief  Musician  ;  set 
to  Shoshannim ;  (a  Psalm)  of  the  sons  of  Korah.  Maschil,  a  Song  of 
loves.  Shoshannim,  that  is,  lilies^  denotes  not  the  theme  of  the  Ps.,  in 
reference  to  the  beauty  and  purity  of  the  bride,  nor  a  lily-shaped  in- 
strument by  which  it  was  to  be  accompanied,  but  the  melody  to  which 
it  was  to  be  sung — some  well-known  song  beginning  with  the  word 
SJioshannim.  See  Iiitrod.  p.  xxvi  f.,  and  cp.  the  titles  of  Ixix,  Ix,  Ixxx. 
The  word  for  loves,  or  love,  is  from  the  same  root  as  that  which  forms 
part  of  Solomon's  original  name  yedidiah=^  Beloved  of  Jah  (2  Sam. 
xii.  25).  It  is  always  used  of  high  and  noble  affection,  especially  of 
Jehovah's  love  for  His  people  (Ix.  5;  Deut.  xxxiii.  12;  Is.  v.  i). 

1.     Introduction  and  dedication. 
My  heart  &c.]    Better,  My  heart  buhbleth  over  with  goodly  words. 
The  nobility  of  his  subject  inspires  him  with  an  impulse  which  will  not 
be  restrained. 

/  speak  of  the  things  &c.]  Better,  I  speak  the  things  which  I  have 
made  (i.e.  composed,  cp.  Old  Eng.  maker =^otX)  touching  a  king. 
The  absence  of  the  article  (a  king)  lays  stress  upon  the  dignity  rather 
than  upon  the  personality  of  the  subject  of  the  Ps. ;  one  who  is  a  king 
and  of  no  lower  rank.  The  punctuation  of  the  Massoretic  Text  points 
to  a  slightly  different  rendering :  /  am  about  to  speak;  my  work  is  for 
(or,  touching)  a  king. 

the  pen  of  a  ready  writer]  Prompt  to  express  and  record  the  thoughts 
with  which  the  mind  is  overflowing.  The  words  rendered  ready  -writer 
are  applied  to  Ezra  (vii.  6)  the  '  ready  scribe,'  but  clearly  they  do  not 
here  bear  this  technical  sense  of  '  a  learned  student  of  the  law,'  but  the 
literal  sense  of  *  a  skilful  and  rapid  penman.' 


246  PSALM   XLV.  2—4. 

2  Thou  art  fairer  than  the  children  of  men : 
Grace  is  poured  into  thy  Hps : 
Therefore  God  hath  blessed  thee  for  ever. 

3  Gird  thy  sword  upon  thy  thigh,  O  most  mighty, 
With  thy  glory  and  thy  majesty. 

4  And  in  thy  majesty  ride  prosperously 


2 — 9.  The  royal  bridegroom:  his  personal  beauty,  the  justice  of  his 
government,  the  success  of  his  arms,  the  glory  of  his  kingdom,  the  mag- 
nificence of  his  court.  He  is  one  upon  whom  the  Divine  blessing  has 
rested  in  fullest  measure. 

2.  Thou  art  fairer  &c.]  Personal  beauty  was  always  regarded  as  a 
qualification  for  a  ruler,  partly  on  account  of  its  intrinsic  attractiveness, 
partly  as  the  index  of  a  noble  nature.  Cp.  i  Sam.  ix.  i\  x.  23;  xvi.  12  ; 
and  fhe  descriptions  of  the  classical  heroes  in  Homer  and  Vergil;  e.g. 
Aeneas  {Aeyi.  i.  589),  "  os  humerosque  deo  similis." 

grace  is  poured  into  thy  lips']  Or,  upon  thy  lips.  The  gracious  smile 
upon  his  lips  gives  promise  of  the  gracious  words  which  proceed  from 
them.  Cp.  Prov.  xxii.  11,  "He  that  hath  gracious  lips,  the  king  shall 
be  his  friend";  Eccl.  x.  12;  Lk.  iv.  22. 

therefore]  This  is  usually  explained  to  mean,  *  Hence  it  may  be  seen 
that  God  hath  blessed  thee;  it  is  the  logical  inference  from  this  endow- 
ment of  beauty.'  But  must  not  therefore  be  understood  as  in  z/.  7  ? 
Physical  qualifications  correspond  to  moral  qualifications.  They  are  in 
themselves  a  Divine  gift ;  but  they  are  further  regarded  as  a  ground  of 
the  special  blessings  which  have  been  showered  upon  the  king.  The 
P.  B.  V.  because  is  ungrammatical. 

for  ever]  The  perpetuity  of  the  covenant  with  David  and  his  seed  is 
constantly  emphasised.  Cp.  2  Sam.  vii.  13,  16,  25,  29;  Ps.  xviii.  50; 
Ixxxix.  2  flf. 

3.  Instead  of  praising  the  king's  strength  and  courage  in  the  abstract, 
the  Psalmist  bids  him  use  them  in  the  cause  of  truth  and  right. 

0  most  mighty]    0  migMy  hero. 

with  thy  glory  and  thy  majesty]  It  is  better  to  repeat  the  verb :  (gird 
on)  thy  lionoiu:  and  ttiy  majesty.  Honour  and  majesty  are  Divine 
attributes,  reflected  in  the  person  of  the  victorious  King  who  is  Jehovah's 
representative.     Cp.  xcvi.  6;  civ.  i ;  cxlv.  5;  with  xxi.  5. 

4.  And  in  thy  majesty]  The  single  word  of  the  original  is  an  exact 
repetition  of  the  last  word  of  v.  3.  Such  repetitions  are  a  common 
poetical  figure ;  but  the  construction  is  harsh,  the  prep,  in  not  being 
expressed;  the  word  is  omitted  by  the  Syr.  (probably)  and  Jer.  (ed. 
Lagarde) ;  and  may  be  due  to  an  early  error  of  transcription.  The  con- 
sonants are  recognised  by  the  LXX,  but  differently  vocalised  and 
rendered,  and  bend  [thy  bow].  This  rendering  however  involves  a  doubt- 
ful ellipse,  and  the  mention  of  the  bow  is  hardly  in  place  here. 

ride  prosperously]  Ride  on  victoriously,  on  warhorse  or  in  chariot, 
forcing  a  way  irresistibly  through  the  ranks  of  the  enemy. 


I 


PSALM   XLV.  5,  6.  247 


Because  oLtiyJil  and  meekness  and  righteousness  ; 

Andth,y  right  hand  shall  t£ach  the,g  ,temble /^/>?^;^i-. 

Thme^ arrows  are  sharp 

In  the  heart  of  the  king's  enemies ; 

Whereby  the  peoj^  fajl  under  thee. 

Thy  throne,\0God^)?V  for  ever  and  ever:  ' 

because  of  truth']  Better,  In  the  cause  of  truth :  in  defence  and  fur- 
therance of  virtues  which  are  trampled  under  foot  in  evil  times  and 
under  bad  rulers.  (Is.  lix.  14,  15).  Truth  and  righteousness  are  the 
constant  attributes  of  the  true  king:  meekness  is  the  characteristic  of 
the  true  people  of  God ;  and  it  is  the  king's  work  to  see  that  the  meek 
have  justice  done  them.  Cp.  Is.  xi.  i — 5;  xxix.  19;  Zeph.  ii.  3;  Ps. 
xxxvii.  11;  Ixxvi.  9;  &c. 

shall  teach  thee]  Or,  and  let  thy  right  hand  teach  thee  terrible  things^ 
an  epithet  applied  to  the  marvellous  works  of  God  for  His  people, 
inspiring  them  with  a  holy  awe,  and  their  foes  with  a  panic  terror  (Deut. 
x.  21;  1  Sam.  vii.  23;  Is.  Ixiv.  3;  Ps.  Ixv.  5;  cvi.  22;  cxlv.  6).  By  a 
bold  figure  the  king's  right  hand,  i.e.  his  stren,gttLand  cpurage,  is  said 
to  teach  or  shew  him  terrible  things,  as  his  success  in  battle  reveals  the 
divine  energy  with  which  he  has  been  endowed. 

5.  As  the  text  stands  it  must  be  rendered; 

Thine  arrows  are  sharp; 

Peoples  fall  under  thee: 

(They  are)  in  the  heart  of  the  king's  enemies. 
The  poet  depicts  the  battle  with  rapid  vigorous  strokes  of  his  pen. 
The  king's  arrows  are  sharpened  (Is.  v.  28),  ready  for  fatal  effect;  his 
enemies  fall  at  their  discharge ;  he  rides  on  over  their  prostrate  corpses ; 
each  shaft  has  found  its  mark  in  the  heart  of  a  foe.  But  the  construction 
is  abrupt,  and  possibly  there  is  some  error  in  the  text. 

6.  Thy  throne,  0  God,  is  for  ever  and  ever]  (i)  This  appears  to  be 
the  sense  given  by  all  the  Ancient  Versions,  for  though  it  has  been  argued 
that  6  Bto%  in  the  LXX  is  not  the  vocative  {Thy  throne  0  God)  but  the 
predicate  ( 7hy  throne  is  God),  the  words  do  not  appear  to  have  been  so 
understood  by  any  of  the  ancient  commentators,  and  the  construction  is 
certainly  not  an  obvious  one.  But  this  rendering  involves  serious  diffi- 
culties, whether  it  is  taken  as  an  address  to  the  king  or  to  God.  {a)  Can 
the  king  who  is  the  subject  of  the  Ps.  be  addressed  as  Elohim,  'God'? 
The  older  expositors,  who  regarded  the  Psalm  as  directly  Messianic,  of 
course  felt  no  difficulty,  and  saw  in  the  words  a  recognition  of  the  Deity 
of  Christ.  But  the  tone  and  contents  of  the  Psalm  make  it  clear  that  it  is 
addressed  to  some  actual  king.  Could  such  a  king  be  so  addressed  ?  It 
isarguedthatjudges  were  called ^^(afj- (Ex.  xxi.6;  xxii.  8,  9,  28(?);  i  Sam. 
ii.  25);  that  the  theocratic  king  as  the  representative  of  God  was  said 
to  sit  "on  the  throne  of  Jehovah"  (i  Chr.  xxviii.  5;  xxix.  23);  that  a 
prophet  can  predict  that  the  house  of  David  should  be  as  God  {Zech.  xii. 
8);  that  Elohim  is  applied  to  men  in  the  sense  of  divine  or  supernatural 
(Ex.  vii.  I ;  I  Sam.  xxviii.  13) ;  that  Isaiah  speaks  of  the  Messianic  king 


248  PSALM   XLV.  6. 


as  El  gibbdr,  *  mighty  God ';  and  that  the  words  of  the  next  verse  (where 
doubtless  Jehovah  thy  God  originally  stood)  preclude  the  possibility  of 
misunderstanding.  But  it  is  doubtful  whether  judges  are  actually  called 
gods  (see  R.V.  of  the  passage  quoted) :  certainly  they  are  only  so  called 
as  the  mouthpieces  of  God,  Who  is  regarded  as  the  fountain  of  judgement : 
and  after  all  that  has  been  urged  in  favour  of  this  interpretation  it  seems 
hardly  possible  to  suppose  that  the  king  is  directly  addressed  as  Elohhn. 
{b)  The  Targum  regards  the  words  as  addressed  to  Jehovah,  'The 
throne  of  Thy  majesty,  O  Jehovah,  abideth  for  ever  and  ever.'  Jehovah's 
throne  may  mean  His  heavenly  throne  (cxlv.  13;  Lam.  v.  19),  or  the 
throne  which  He  has  established  on  earth  as  its  counterpart  and  repre- 
sentative. But  this  interpretation  seems  to  be  excluded  by  the  context. 
The  king  is  addressed  in  the  preceding  and  following  verses,  and  it 
seems  hardly  possible  to  suppose  that  in  this  verse  alone  Jehovah  is 
abruptly  addressed. 

(2)  In  view  of  these  difficulties  it  is  necessary  to  consider  whether  the 
words  are  correctly  translated.  Various  other  renderings  have  been 
proposed,  taking  Elohim  as  the  subject  or  predicate  of  the  clause  instead 
of  as  a  vocative,  {a)  God  is  thy  throne:  i.e.  thy  kingdom  is  founded 
upon  God.  In  support  of  this  are  quoted  such  phrases  as  * 'Jehovah  is 
my  refuge  and  my  fortress"  (xci.  2),  or,  "The  eternal  God  is  thy 
dwelling-place"  (Deut.  xxxiii.  27).  But  the  expression,  to  say  the 
least,  would  be  a  strange  one.  {b)  Thy  throne  is  God,  i.e.  divine. 
But  though  Hebrew  uses  substantives  as  predicates  in  a  way  which 
our  idi-om  does  not  allow,  this  particular  instance  seems  scarcely  ad- 
missible, {c)  Thy  th}'one  [is  the  throne  of]  God  (R.V.  marg.).  It  is 
a  disputed  point  whether  this  rendering  is  grammatically  legitimate; 
but  good  authorities  decide  in  the  affirmative.  It  gives  an  excellent 
sense,  and  if  the  text  is  to  be  retained  is  the  most  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  it.  The  theocratic  king  occupied  the  earthly  throne  of 
Jehovah  as  His  representative  (i  Chr,  xxviii.  5;  xxix.  23),  ruling  by 
His  power  (r  Kings  iii.  28),  and  in  His  Name;  and  the  justice  of  this 
king's  government  {6b,  7)  stamps  him  as  a  worthy  representative  of 
Jehovah. 

(3)  Various  emendations  have  been  suggested,  for  the  most  part  in- 
troducing a  verb  to  give  the  sense,  God  hath  established  thy  throne.  The 
most  ingenious  is  that  of  Bruston,  who  supposes  that  the  Elohistic  editor 

.  misread  YHVH,  Jehovah,  for  YHYH,  shall  be,  and  according  to  his 
usual  custpm  substituted  Elohim.  Thy  throne  shall  be  for  ever  and  ever 
would  be  an  echo  of  the  promise  in  2  Sam.  vii.  \(>b. 

Whatever  may  be  the  precise  rendering,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that 
the  words  contain  a  reference  to  the  promise  of  eternal  dominion  to  the 
house  of  David,  which  was  fulfilled  in  Christ.  See  2  Sam.  vii.  13,  16; 
Ps.  Ixxxix;  cp.  xxi.  4;  Ixxii.  5. 

w.  6,  7  are  quoted  in  Heb.  i.  8,  9.  "  It  is  commonly  supposed  that 
the  force  of  the  quotation  lies  in  the  Divine  title  (6  Beds)  which,  as  it  is 
held,  is  applied  to  the  Son.  It  seems  however  from  the  whole  form  of 
the  argument  to  lie  rather  in  the  description  which  is  given  of  the  Son's 
office  and  endowment.  The  angels  are  subject  to  constant  change,  He 
has  a  dominion  for  ever  and  ever;  they  work  through  material  powers, 


I 


PSALM   XLV.  7,  8.  249 

The  sceptre  of  thy  kingdom  is  a  right  sceptre. 
Thou    lovest    righteousness,    and    hatest    wicked-  7 

ness: 
Therefore  God,  thy  God,  hath  anointed  thee 
With  the  oil  of  gladness  above  thy  fellows. 
All  thy  garments  s7Hell  of  myrrh,  and  aloes,  and  cassia,  8 

He — the  Incarnate  Son — fulfils  a  moral  sovereignty  and  is  crowned  with 
unique  joy.  Nor  could  the  reader  forget  the  later  teaching  of  the  Psalm 
on  the  Royal  Bride  and  the  Royal  Race.  In  .whatever  way  then  6  debs 
be  taken,  the  quotation  establishes  the  conclusion  which  the  writer 
wishes  to  draw  as  to  the  essential  difference  of  the  Son  and  the  angels." 
Bp.  Westcott  in  loc. 

the  sceptre  &c.]  R.V.  rightly,  A  sceptre  of  equity  is  the  sceptre  of 
thy  kingdom.  The  sceptre  is  the  symbol  of  royal  authority;  and  the 
authority  of  the  true  king,  like  that  of  Jehovah,  is  exercised  in  righteous- 
ness and  equity.  Cp.  Ixvii.  4;  Ixxxix.  14  with  Is.  ix.  7;  xi.  4  ff;  Ps. 
Ixxii.  iff,  12  ff,  and  numerous  passages  in  which  righteousness  is  named 
as  a  fundamental  attribute  of  God  and  an  indispensably  characteristic  of 
His  true  representative  on  earth. 

7.  Thou  lovest  &c.]  Or,  as  R.V.,  Thou  hast  loved  righteousness, 
and  hated  wickedness.  "I  have  loved  justice  and  hated  iniquity,  and 
therefore  I  die  in  exile  "  were  the  last  memorable  words  of  Gregory  VII. 
^].\\vci2i.n,  Hist,  of  Lat.  Christia7iity,'\\.  138. 

therefore^  The  willing  conformity  of  the  king  to  the  will  of  God  is 
rewarded  with  special  tokens  of  His  favour. 

God^  thy  God]  The  rendering,  0  God,  thy  God  is  unquestionably 
wrong.  God,  thy  God  in  the  Elohistic  Psalms  is  the  equivalent  of 
Jehovah  thy  6'<?a' elsewhere.     Cp.  xliii.  4;  1.  7. 

hath  anointed  thee  &c.]  The  reference  is  not  to  anointing  as  the 
symbol  of  consecration  to  the  office  of  king,  but  to  the  use  of  oil  on 
occasions  of  festivity  (xxiii.  5;  civ.  15).  Thus  *the  oil  of  gladness'  is 
contrasted  with  mourning  (Is.  !xi.  3:  cp.  2  Sam.  xii.  20;  xiv.  2).  The 
rejoicings  of  the  marriage  festival  are  meant.     Cp.  Cant.  iii.  11. 

thy  fellows]  Other  kings,  to  none  of  whom  has  equal  happiness  been 
granted.     Cp.  Ixxxix.  27  ^. 

8.  The  bridegroom  appears,  arrayed  for  the  marriage,  his  garments 
saturated  with  costly  perfumes,  brought  from  distant  lands.  Myrrh  was 
a  product  of  Arabia  :  aloes  here  denotes  the  perfumed  wood  of  an  Indian 
tree:  cassia  (a  different  word  from  that  so  translated  in  Ex.  xxx.  24; 
Ezek.  xxvii.  19,  and  found  here  only)  was  either  a  species  of  cinnamon, 
or  the  koost  of  India,  Indian  orris  or  costus.  Myrrh  and  aloes  are 
mentioned  together  in  Cant.  iv.  14  among  chief  spices. 

Prof.  Earle  notes  that  "these  English  spice-names  are  all  identical 
with  the  words  in  the  Hebrew;  for  with  these  oriental  spices  their 
oriental  names  travelled  westward,  and  they  became  through  Greek  and 
Latin  the  common  property  of  the  European  languages."  Psalter,  of 
1539.  p.  285. 


250  PSALM   XLV.  9,  10. 

Out  of  the  ivory  palaces,  whereby  they  have  made  thee  glad. 
9  Kings'  daughters  were  among  thy  honourable  women  : 

Upon  thy  right  hand  did  stand  the  queen  in  gold  of  Ophir. 
10  Hearken,  O  daughter,  and  consider,  and  incline  thine  ear; 

Forget  also  thine  own  people,  and  thy  father's  house; 

out  of  the  ivory  palaces^  where^^  they  have  made  thee  glad'\  An 
impossible  rendering.  Translate  with  R.V.,  out  of  ivory  palaces 
stringed  instruments  have  made  tliee  glad.  Music  greets  the  bride- 
groom as  he  enters  the  palace.  Palaces  ornamented  with  ivory,  probably 
inlaid  in  panels,  are  mentioned  in  i  Kings  xxii.  39;  Am.  iii.  15.  Cp. 
I  Kings  X.  18,  22;  Cant.  v.  14;  vii.  4;  Am.  vi.  4;  Ezek.  xxvii.  6, 
15.     Homer  {Od.  iv.  72)  speaks  of 

Echoing  halls 
Of  gold,  electron,  silver,  ivory, 
in  the  palace  of  Menelaus.    Vergil  {Aen.  x.  135  ff.)  and  Horace  {Odes  11. 
18.  2)  mention  the  use  of  ivoiy  for  inlaying. 

9.  Kings'  daughters  are  among  thy  honourable  -women: 

At  thy  right  hand  doth  stand  the  queen  in  gold  of  Ophir 
(R,V.). 
An  Oriental  monarch  prided  himself  on  the  number  and  nobility  of 
the  wives  in  his  harem,  and  some  at  least  of  the  Jewish  monarchs  were 
no  exception  to  the  rule  (i  Kings  xi.  3;  Cant.  vi.  8).  It  may  seem 
strange  that  such  a  degradation  of  the  true  ideal  of  marriage  should  find 
place  in  a  Psalm  which  opens  up  such  lofty  thoughts  and  hopes.  But  the 
Psalm  reflects  the  actual  facts  and  customs  of  the  age :  it  is  not  intended 
to  depict  a  perfect  state  of  things.  One  of  the  wives  takes  precedence 
of  the  rest  and  occupies  the  place  of  honour  (i  Kings  ii.  19)  at  the  king's 
right  hand.  It  is  implied  that  this  place  is  reserved  for  the  new  bride 
whom  the  poet  now  turns  to  address.  The  verse  is  a  general  descrip- 
tion of  the  king's  state,  for  the  bride  has  not  yet  been  brought  in  (z/.  14); 
or  is  the  poet  anticipating?  Gold  of  Ophir  was  the  choicest  gold 
(i  Kings  ix.  28;  x.  11;  Job  xxii.  24;  xxviii.  16),  but  where  Ophir  was 
is  not  known.     Most  probably  it  was  in  S.  Arabia  or  India. 

10 — 12.  The  poet  addresses  the  bride,  counselling  her  to  forget  her 
old  home  and  surrender  herself  with  complete  devotion  to  her  husband, 
and  describing  the  honours  which  await  her. 

10.  Hearken,  O  daughter^  The  Psalmist  adopts  the  tone  of  an 
authoritative  teacher  and  uses  langjiage  resembling  that  of  the  Wise 
Man  to  his  disciples  in  the  opening  chapter  of  Proverbs  (i.  8,  and 
frequently).  The  exhortation  seems  strange  until  it  is  remembered  that 
the  marriage  was  probably  a  matter  of  state  policy,  and  that  the  bride 
would  not  even  have  seen  her  future  husband. 

forget  &c.]  Cast  no  lingering  looks  of  regret  behind,  but  adapt  thy- 
self to  the  new  home  and  new  conditions.  Perhaps,  as  the  Targ. 
suggests,  there  may  be  a  special  reference  to  religious  beliefs  and 
customs.      It   has   been   thought   that    Pharaoh's    daughter   embraced 


.    PSALM    XLV.   II— 14.  251 

So  shall  the  king  greatly  desire  thy  beauty  :  *» 

For  he  is  thy  Lord ;  and  worship  thou  him. 
And  the  daughter  of  Tyre  shall  be  there  with  a  gift ;  12 

Even  the  rich  among  the  people  shall  intreat  thy  favour. 
The  king's  daughter  is  all  glorious  within :  13 

Her  clothing  7>  of  wrought  gold. 

She  shall  be  brought  unto  the  king  in  raiment  of  needle-  m 
work : 

Judaism,  as  Egyptian  deities  are  not  mentioned  among  those  for  which 
Solomon  made  high  places.     See  Lumby  on  i  Kings  iii.  i. 

11.  So  shall  the  king  greatly  desire  thy  beauty^     Omit  greatly, 
worship  thou  hitn]     Better,  do  lilin  homage :  not  necessarily  in  the 

literal  sense  of  prostrating  herself  before  him  (i  Sam.  xxv.  41  j  i  Kings 
i.  16,  31),  but  by  shewing  him  befitting  respect  and  submission.  This 
exhortation,  and  the  title  lord  iox  husband  (cp.  Gen.  xviii.  \i)  reflect  the 
subordinate  position  of  women  in  ancient  times  and  Oriental  countries. 
Yet  see  also  1  Pet.  iii.  5,  6.  The  rendering  of  P.B.V.,  fof  he  is  thy 
Lord  God,  follows  the  Vulg.  But  God  is  not  in  the  LXX,  and  was  no 
doubt  a  gloss  in  accordance  with  the  Messianic  interpretation. 

12.  The  words  shall  be  there  are  not  in  the  Heb.,  and  it  has  been 
proposed  to  render,  And^  0  daughter  of  Tyre,  with  a  gift  shall  the  rich 
of  the  people  intreat  thy  favour,  making  the  bride  a  Tyrian  princess. 
But  apart  from  other  objections,  the  daughter  of  Tyre  should  mean, 
according  to  the  analogy  of  the  similar  phrases,  daughter  of  Zion, 
daughter  of  Babylon,  not  an  individual  Tyrian  woman,  but  the  city  and 
people  of  Tyre  personified  as  a  woman :  and  the  A.V.  no  doubt  gives 
the  sense  correctly,  though  some  verb  has  probably  been  lost.  The 
express  mention  of  the  wealthy  merchant  city  of  Tyre  as  the  representa- 
tive of  the  neighbouring  nations  which  would  send  their  greetings  to  the 
new  queen  is  most  naturally  accounted  for  if  the  Psalm  refers  to  Solomon, 
who  was  in  close  alliance  with  Tyre. 

even  the  rich  &c.]  Render,  Yea,  the  richest  of  people:  i.e.  as  the 
LXX  paraphrases,  the  people  of  the  earth;  or  ^cxhdc^s,  of  the  land :  wealthy 
nobles  of  the  country  as  well  as  foreigners. 

13 — 15.     Description  of  the  bride  adorned  for  her  husband. 

13.  The  king's  daughter  within  (the  palace)  is  all  glorious  : 
Her  clothing  is  inwrought  with  gold.     (R.V.) 

The  bride  is  described  in  all  the  splendour  of  her  bridal  attire. 
Within  the  palace,  or  in  the  inner  part  of  the  palace,  may  refer  to 
her  old  home,  the  Psalmist  by  poetical  licence  ignoring  intervals  of  time 
and  place;  but,  more  probably,  to  the  house  in  Jerusalem  to  which  she 
had  been  brought,  and  from  which  she  is  now  to  be  conducted  in  state  to 
the  king's  palace  {w.  14,  15). 

14.  In  raiment  of  embroidery  shall  she  he  conducted  to  the  Mng, 
in  solemn  and  stately  procession,  accompanied  by  a  train  of  attendants 
such  as  befits  a  king's  daughter.     Cp.  Esth.  ii.   9.     For  mention  of 


252  PSALM   XLV.  15—17. 

Tiie  virgins  her  companions  that  follow  her  shall  be  brought 
unto  thee. 
«5  With  gladness  and  rejoicing  shall  they  be  brought : 
They  shall  enter  into  the  king's  palace. 

16  Instead  of  thy  fathers  shall  be  thy  children, 
Whom  thou  mayest  make  princes  in  all  the  earth. 

17  I  will  make  thy  name  to  be  remembered  in  all  generations : 
Therefore  shall  the  people  praise  thee  for  ever  and  ever. 

embroidery  cp.  Ex.  xxviii.  59;  Judg.  v.  30;  &c.  Other  but  less 
probable  renderings  are,  on  tapestry  or  carpets  of  divers  colours^  or,  into 
tapestry -curtained  chambers. 

16.  shall  they  be  brought']  Shall  they  be  conducted,  as  in  v.  14. 
The  procession  which  conducted  the  bride  to  her  new  home  was  an 
important  part  of  the  marriage  ceremony,  and  was  always  accompanied 
with  songs  and  music  and  dancing  and  every  mark  of  rejoicing.  See 
I  Mace.  ix.  37  ff.  **The  children  of  Jambrin  made  a  great  marriage,  and 
were  bringing  the  bride  from  Nadabath  with  a  great  escort,  inasmuch  as 
she  was  the  daughter  of  one  of  the  great  nobles  of  Canaan....  And  there 
was  much  ado,  and  a  great  train  of  baggage ;  and  the  bridegroom  came 
forth  with  his  friends  and  his  brethren  to  meet  them,  with  drums  and 
instruments  of  music  and  many  weapons." 

16,  17.     Concluding  wishes  and  anticipations  addressed  to  the  king. 

16.  Instead  of  thy  fathers  &c.]  The  wish  does  not,  as  is  sometimes 
said,  imply  a  long  line  of  royal  ancestors,  and  therefore  exclude  the 
reference  of  the  Psalm  to  Solomon,  but  rather  the  reverse.  If  he  cannot 
boast  of  a  long  ancestry,  may  he  at  least  be  famous  for  a  numerous  and 
distinguished  posterity. 

whom  thou  mayest  &c.]  Better,  whom  thou  Shalt  make  princes  in  all 
the  earth  (R.V.).  We  might  render  in  all  the  land,  and  compare  Solo- 
mon's governors  (i  Kings  iv.  7  ff.),  and  the  'princes  of  the  provinces'  in 
the  Northern  Kingdom  (i  Kings  xx.  14,  15),  and  Rehoboam's  settlement 
of  his  sons  in  different  fortified  cities  (2  Chron.  xi.  23).  But  the  refer- 
ence to  subject  and  allied  peoples  {w.  5,  17)  makes  it  probable  that  iji 
all  the  earth  is  right.     Cp.  ii.  8 ;  Ixxii.  8  ff. 

17.  The  poet's  song  will  perpetuate  the  memory  of  the  king ;  and 
that  not  in  Israel  only,  but  among  other  peoples  (Ixxii.  17). 

therefore  shall  the  people  praise  thee]  Therefore  shall  the  peoples 
praise  thee,  or  (R.V.)  give  thee  thanks :  a  word  commonly  applied  to 
God  (xlii.  5,  II ;  xliii.  4,  5;  and  often),  rarely  to  men  (Gen.  xlix.  8;  Ps. 
xlix.  18).  Solomon's  name  is  remembered  while  the  names  of  monarchs 
far  more  powerful  from  a  worldly  point  of  view  have  been  forgotten, 
because  God  had  made  him  Ilis  representative  and  the  head  of  His 
visible  kingdom  upon  earth,  the  type  of  His  perfect  representative  who 
should  come  to  establish  His  universal  kingdom  among  men. 


J 


PSALM   XLVI.  253 


PSALM   XLVL 

Psalms  xlvi,  xlvii,  xlviii,  are  closely  connected.  They  form  a  trilogy 
of  praise,  in  which  some  signal  deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from  foreign 
enemies  is  celebrated.  In  Ps.  xlvi  the  leading  idea  is  the  Presence  of 
Jehovah  in  the  midst  of  His  city  and  people  as  the  ground  of  their  con- 
fidence :  in  Ps.  xlvii  it  is  the  universal  Sovereignty  of  Jehovah  as  the 
King  of  all  the  earth,  of  which  the  recent  defeat  of  Zion's  enemies  is  an 
illustration:  in  Ps.  xlviii  it  is  the  Safety  of  Zion,  the  result  and  the 
proof  of  God's  presence  in  her  midst. 

These  Psalms  cannot  be  merely  general  expressions  of  confidence  in 
Jehovah  as  the  protector  of  Zion.  They  plainly  owe  their  origin  to 
some  definite  historical  event.  The  Psalmist  writes  as  the  represent- 
ative of  those  who  have  recently  passed  through  some  terrible  crisis  of 
anxiety,  who  have  seen  with  their  own  eyes  a  signal  manifestation  of 
God's  power  on  behalf  of  His  people,  comparable  to  His  mighty  works 
of  old  time,  and  who  have  recognised  in  the  course  of  events  the  proof 
not  only  of  Jehovah's  love  for  His  own  people  but  of  His  universal 
sovereignty. 

The  miraculous  deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from  the  army  of  Sen- 
nacherib in  the  reign  of  Hezekiah  (B.C.  701)  may  be  assigned  as  the 
occasion  of  these  Psalms,  with  a  probability  which  approaches  cer- 
tainty. 

Hezekiah  had  asserted  his  independence  of  Assyria,  and  Sennacherib 
had  come  to  chastise  his  rebellious  vassal.  The  exact  course  of  events 
is  obscure,  but  it  appears  that  Sennacherib  after  ravaging  Judah  com- 
pelled Hezekiah  to  make  a  humble  submission  and  pay  a  heavy 
indemnity,  without  however  requiring  the  surrender  of  Jerusalem 
(2  Kings  xviii.  13 — 16).  But  reflection  quickly  convinced  him  that  it 
would  be  imprudent  to  leave  behind  him  such  a  strong  fortress  as 
Jerusalem  in  the  hands  of  a  vassal  of  such  doubtful  loyalty  as  Hezekiah, 
while  he  marched  on  into  Egypt,  and  therefore  while  he  was  besieging 
Lachish  with  the  main  body  of  his  army,  he  sent  a  force  under  the 
command  of  his  chief  officers,  the  Tartan  and  the  Rabsaris  and  the 
Rabshakeh,  to  demand  the  surrender  of  Jerusalem.  It  was  an  anxious 
moment.  A  refusal  seemed  certain  to  ensure  condign  chastisement 
when  Sennacherib  returned  victorious  from  his  Egyptian  campaign. 
Jerusalem  would  share  the  fate  which  had  befallen  Samaria  twenty-one 
years  before.  But  relying  upon  Jehovah's  promise  to  defend  His  city, 
communicated  through  the  prophet  Isaiah,  Hezekiah  refused  the  demand, 
and  Sennacherib's  envoys  returned  to  their  master,  who  was  now  be- 
sieging Libnah.  Gladly  no  doubt  he  would  have  inflicted  a  summary 
vengeance  on  his  defiant  vassal.  But  Tirhakah's  army  was  already  on 
the  march,  and  all  that  Sennacherib  could  do  was  to  threaten.  His 
letter  to  Hezekiah  was  a  contemptuous  denial  of  Jehovah's  power  to 
defend  Jerusalem.  Hezekiah  took  it  to  the  Temple,  and  "spread  it 
before  Jehovah,"  appealing  to  Him  to  confute  these  blasphemies,  and 
vindicate  His  claim  to  be  the  living  God.  Then  it  was  that  Isaiah 
uttered  that  sublime  prophecy  in  which  he  declared  that  Sennacherib's 


254  PSALM   XLVI. 


pride  was  doomed  to  be  humbled,  and  that  Jerusalem  would  be  pre- 
served inviolate. 

And  so  it  came  to  pass.  A  sudden  and  mysterious  visitation  de- 
stroyed Sennacherib's  army.  Unable  to  face  Tirhakah,  he  returned  to 
Assyria,  leaving  Jerusalem  unharmed. 

A  deliverance  so  marvellous,  so  strikingly  verifying  Isaiah's  pro- 
phecy, and  so  visibly  demonstrating  the  will  and  power  of  Jehovah 
to  defend  His  people,  could  not  fail  to  make  a  deep  impression,  and 
must  have  evoked  the  most  heartfelt  expressions  of  thanksgiving  and 
praise  (cp.  Is.  xxx.  29).  And  when  we  mark  the  numerous  coincidences 
of  thought  and  language  between  these  Psalms  and  the  prophecies  of 
Iso.iah,  we  can  scarcely  doubt  that  some  of  the  noblest  of  these  thanks- 
givings have  been  preserved  to  us  in  these  Psalms. 

Details  will  be  found  in  the  notes:  here  it  may  be  sufficient  to  call 
attention  to  some  of  the  broader  features  of  resemblance.  The  leading 
thought  of  Ps.  xlvi,  expressed  in  the  refrain  [vv.  7,  11),  is  the  echo  of 
Isaiah's  great  watchword  Immanuel  (Is.  vii.  14;  viii.  8,  10;  cp.  Mic. 
iii.  11).  The  truth  of  the  universal  sovereignty  of  Jehovah,  the  assur- 
ance that  God  'our  King'  is  the  King  of  all  the  earth,  which  is  the 
prominent  idea  of  Ps.  xlvii  (cp.  xlviii.  2),  is  implicitly  contained,  if  not 
so  explicitly  expressed,  in  the  teaching  of  Isaiah  (vi.  5;  xxxvii.  22  ff.). 
The  inviolability  of  Zion,  the  dwelling-place  of  Jehovah,  which  is  the 
theme  of  Ps.  xlviii,  is  a  fundamental  principle  of  Isaiah's  message  in 
the  reign  of  Hezekiah  (xxix.  3  ff. ;  xxxi.  5;  &c.). 

Proof  is  of  course  impossible,  but  these  Psalms  will  gain  vastly  in 
vividness  and  reality  if  they  are  studied  in  close  connexion  with  the  pro- 
phecies of  Isaiah,  as  the  expression  of  the  gratitude  and  the  hopes  which 
animated  the  noblest  spirits  in  Jerusalem  at  that  critical  moment  of  the 
nation's  history.  If  not  written  by  Isaiah  himself,  as  some  commen- 
tators have  thought,  they  must  at  least  have  been  written  by  one  of 
Isaiah's  disciples  who  was  deeply  penetrated  with  the  spirit  and 
language  of  his  master's  prophecies. 

Pss.  Ixxv,  Ixxvi  in  the  Asaphite  collection  probably  refer  to  the  same 
event,  and  should  be  compared. 

A  brief  mention  of  two  rival  theories  is  all  that  is  necessary. 
(i)  Delitzsch  adopts  the  view  that  the  occasion  of  these  Psalms  was  the 
discomfiture  of  the  confederate  forces  of  the  Moabites  Ammonites  and 
Edomites,  who  invaded  Judah  in  the  reign  of  Jehoshaphat  (2  Chr.  xx), 
Jahaziel,  an  Asaphite  Levite,  foretold  their  defeat.  The  army  marched 
out  with  Korahite  singers  at  its  head.  The  arms  of  the  invaders  were 
turned  against  one  another,  and  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Tekoa  their 
forces  were  annihilated.  The  victory  was  celebrated  first  in  the  valley 
of  Beracah,  and  then  by  a  triumphal  thanksgiving  procession  to  the 
Temple.  A  deep  impression  was  produced  upon  surrounding  nations 
by  the  report  of  the  victory.  This  view  however  is  improbable,  for 
(a)  upon  that  occasion  Jerusalem  was  not  directly  threatened,  and 
(d)  it  fails  to  account  for  the  connexion  of  the  Psalms  with  Isaiah's  pro- 
phecies.    That  the  prophet  is  copying  the  Psalmist  is  unlikely. 

(2)  Others  have  found  an  appropriate  occasion  in  the  attack  of  the 
confederate  forces  of  Pekah  and  Rezin  upon  Judah  in  the  reign  of  Ahaz, 


PSALM   XLVI.  I,  2.  255 

mainly  on  the  ground  of  resemblances  to  Isaiah's  prophecies  of  that 
period.  But  inasmuch  as  Ahaz  had  refused  to  trust  Jehovah  and  faith- 
lessly appealed  to  Assyria  for  help,  the  retreat  of  the  invaders  can  have 
been  no  occasion  for  thanksgivings  like  these  Psalms,  which  ascribe 
Judah's  deliverance  wholly  to  the  goodness  of  Jehovah. 

Ps.  xlvi  consists  of  three  equal  stanzas,  each  followed  by  a  Selah. 
The  second  and  third  end  with  a  refrain  {vv.  7,  11),  which  may  per- 
haps have  originally  stood  at  the  close  of  the  first  also.  Comp.  Pss. 
xlii,  xliii.  In  the  first  stanza  the  primary  truth  that  God  is  the  refuge 
of  His  people  is  presented  as  the  truest  ground  for  fearless  confidence 
(i — 3) :  the  second  refers  to  the  specific  illustration  of  this  truth  ex- 
hibited in  the  recent  deliverance  of  Zion  (4 — 7) :  the  third  treats  this 
manifestation  of  Jehovah's  power  as  the  earnest  and  pledge  of  His  final 
supremacy  over  all  the  nations  (8 — 11). 

Luther's  famous  hymn,  Ein  fcste  Burg  ist  tniser  Gott,  "the  battle- 
song  of  the  Reformation,"  is  based  upon  this  Psalm.  See  Wink- 
worth's  Christian  Singers  of  Gertnany^  p.  no. 

To  the  chief  Musician  for  the  sons  of  Korah,  A  Song  upon  Alamoth. 

God  is  our  refuge  and  strength,  46 

A  very  present  help  in  trouble. 

Therefore  will  not  we  fear,  though  the  earth  be  removed,       3 
And  though  the  mountains  be  carried  into  the  midst  of  the 
sea; 

The  title  should  be  rendered  as  in  R.V.,  For  the  Chief  Musician;  (a 
Psalm)  of  the  sons  of  Korah ;  set  to  Alamoth.  A  song.  Alamoth 
means  damsels  (Ixviii.  25),  and  the  phrase  set  to  Alamoth^  which  is 
applied  in  i  Chr.  xv.  10  to  instruments,  probably  denotes  that  the  music 
of  the  Ps.  was  intended  for  women's  voices  (cp.  Ixviii.  ir,  note). 
The  Ancient  Versions  were  entirely  at  fault  as  to  the  meaning.  The 
LXX  renders  htrkp  rwv  Kpv^iwv,  'concerning  secret  things,'  Vulg.  pro 
occultis'.  Symm.  virep  tCjv  alojviwv,  'concerning  eternal  things':  Aq.  iirl 
veavLOTTjTbiv,  and  similarly  Jer.,  pro  iuventiitibuSy  *for  youth.' 

1 — 3.  Secure  under  His  protection  God's  people  have  nothing  to 
fear,  even  though  the  solid  earth  were  convulsed,  and  rent  asunder. 

1.  The  prayer  of  Is.  xxxiii.  2,  "Be  thou  their  arm  every  morning, 
our  salvation  also  in  the  time  of  trouble,"  has  been  answered.  In  the 
extremity  of  their  distress,  God  has  proved  Himself  the  refuge  and 
strength  of  His  people.  He  has  verified  the  prophecies  of  Isaiah,  who 
bade  them  trust  in  Him  alone,  and  denounced  the  popular  policy  of  an 
alliance  with  Egypt  as  "a  refuge  of  lies."    Cp.  Is.  xxviii.  15,  17  ;  xxx.  2. 

a  very  prese7tt  help  in  trotible\  Lit.,  a  help  in  distresses  hath  he  let 
himself  be  found  exceedingly.  The  words  are  not  merely  a  general  state- 
ment, but  an  appeal  to  recent  experience.  For  'let  himself  be  found ' 
cp.  1  Chr.  XV.  -2,  4,  15;  Jer.  xxix.  14. 

2.  Therefore  will  we  not  fear,  though  earth  should  change, 
And  the  mountains  be  moved  into  the  lieart  of  the  seas. 


256  PSALM   XLVI.  3,  4. 

3  Though  the  waters  thereof  roar  and  be  troubled, 
Though   the   mountains   shake   with   the  swelling  thereof. 
Selah. 

i  There  is  a  river,  the  streams  whereof  shall  make  glad  the 

/      city  of  God, 

I  The  holy  place  of  the  tabernacles  of  the  most  High. 

Cp.  Horace's  description  of  the  dauntlessness  of  the  just  man  {Odes  ill. 

3-7)» 

Si  fractus  illabatur  orbis, 

Impavidum  ferient  ruinae. 
The  words  are  to  be  understood  literally  (Is.  liv.  10),  and  not  metapho- 
rically, as  "a  vivid  sketch  of  utter  confusion,  dashed  in  with  three  or 
four  bold  strokes,  an  impossible  case  supposed  in  order  to  bring  out  the 
unshaken  calm  of  those  who  have  God  for  ark  in  such  a  deluge" 
(Maclaren).  At  the  same  time  they  suggest  the  thought  of  the  upheaval 
.and  commotion  of  the  nations,  and  {v.  3)  the  flood  of  invasion  beating 
against  mount  Zion  and  threatening  to  overwhelm  it.  Cp.  v.  6;  Is. 
xvii.  12,  13. 

3.  As  the  text  stands  this  verse  must  be  treated,  as  in  the  A.V.  and 
R.V.,  as  a  continuation  oiv.  2.  But  the  symmetrical  structure  of  the 
Ps.,  resembling  that  of  Pss.  xlii — xliii,  makes  it  probable  that  the  refrain 
{w.  7,  11)  has  been  lost.     If  it  is  restored,  we  may  render: 

Let  the  waters  thereof  rage  and  foam! 

Let  the  mountains  quake  at  the  proud  swelling  thereof! 

Jehovah  of  hosts  is  with  us. 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  high  fortress. 

Be  all  around  us  never  so  threatening,  we  are  secure  in  the  presence 
and  protection  of  Jehovah.  For  the  '  proud  swelling '  of  the  sea  cp. 
Ixxxix.  9. 

4 — 7.     The  Presence  of  God  the  joy  and  security  of  His  people. 

4.  In  contrast  to  the  tumultuous  sea  threatening  to  engulf  the  solid 
mountain,  is  the  river,  M«?  streatns  whereof  make  glad  the  city  of  God. 
The  gently  flowing  river,  fertilising  all  the  land  over  which  it  is  distri- 
buted in  channels  and  rivulets,  is  an  emblem  of  Jehovah's  Presence, 
blessing  and  gladdening  His  city.  Abundant  irrigation  is  indispensable 
in  Palestine.  Cp.  i.  3;  Is.  xxx.  25.  The  figure  reminds  us  of  Is.  viii. 
6,  where  "the  waters  of  Shiloah  that  go  softly"  are  the  emblem  of  the 
Divine  government,  and  "the  waters  of  the  River  great  and  many"  are 
the  emblem  of  the  power  of  Assyria  ;  and  again  of  Is.  xxxiii.  21,  where 
Jehovah  is  compared  to  a  mighty  river  encircling  and  protecting  His  city. 

the  city  of  God]  Cp.  xlviii.  i,  8;  Ixxxvii.  g;  ci.  8;  Is.  Ix.  14;  Heb. 
xii.  22 ;  Rev.  iii.  12. 

the  holy  place  &c.]  Better,  the  holy  dwelling  place  of  the  Most 
High.  Cp.  xliii.  3,  note.  The  title  Most  High  is  significant.  By  His 
deliverance  of  His  own  city  He  has  proved  Himself  the  supreme  Ruler 


PSALM   XLVI.  5—7.  257 


God  is  in  the  midst  of  her ;  she  shall  not  be  moved  : 

God  shall  help  her,  and  that  right  early. 

The  heathen  raged,  the  kingdoms  were  moved  : 

He  uttered  his  voice,  the  earth  melted. 

The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us ; 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge.     Selah. 


of  the  world,  refuting  the  self-deifying  pretensions  of  Sennacherib  (Is. 
xxxvi.  20;  xxxvii.  4,  lofF.,  23,  35;  cp.  xiv.  13,  14).  Cp.  Ps.  vii.  17,  and 
for  the  usage  of  this  title  see  Appendix,  Note  ii. 

6.  God  is  in  the  midst  of  her]  Cp.  Is.  xii,  6  ;  and  Mic.  iii.  11,  where 
we  learn  how  this  watchword  was  abused  by  those  who  saw  in  the 
Presence  of  God  a  pledge  of  protection  but  no  call  to  holiness. 

she  shall  Jict  be  moved]  More  stable  than  the  solid  mountains  {v.  2) : 
more  secure  than  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth  {v.  6). 

and  that  right  early]  Better,  when  the  morn  appeareth,  when  the 
dawn  of  deliverance  succeeds  the  night  of  distress  (v.  3 ;  xxx.  5) :  but 
not  without  a  special  reference  to  the  morning  when  they  rose  to  find 
Sennacherib's  army  destroyed  (Is.  xxxvii.  36),  and  a  reminiscence  of  the 
Exodus,  where  the  same  phrase  is  used  (Ex.  xiv.  27). 

6.  The  heathen  raged]  Or,  the  nations  roared ; — a  word  commonly 
used  of  the  tumultuous  noise  of  a  multitude  or  an  army  (Ixxxiii.  2;  Is. 
xvii.  12).  The  same  words  {roared... ^uere  moved),  which  were  used  in 
vv.  2,  3  of  convulsions  of  the  earth,  are  applied  to  commotions  among 
the  nations;  but  the  change  of  tense  shews  that  while  vv.  2,  3  are  hypo- 
thetical, V.  6  refers  to  an  actual  experience. 

he  uttered  his  voice]  God  has  but  to  speak  with  His  voice  of  thunder, 
and  earth  melts  in  terror:  its  inhabitants  with  all  their  proud  Titanic 
boastings  are  dissolved.  Cp.  Is.  xxix.  6;  xxx.  30  f;  Ex.  xv.  15;  Am. 
ix.  5  ;  Ps.  Ixxv.  3;  Ixxvi.  8.  The  rhythm  of  short  abrupt  clauses  with- 
out a  conjunction  recalls  that  of  Ex.  xv.  9,  10. 

7.  The  refrain  corresponds  to  Isaiah's  watchword /wA'zawz/^/,  'God 
is  with  us'  (Is.  vii.  14;  viii.  8,  10).  The  name  Jehovah  is  retained  (or 
has  been  restored)  here  even  in  the  Elohistic  collection  in  the  familiar 
title  Jehovah  of  hosts.  This  great  title  Jehovah  Tsebdoth  or  '  Lord 
of  hosts'  was  characteristic  of  the  regal  and  prophetic  period.  Originally 
it  may  have  designated  Jehovah  as  "the  God  of  the  armies  of  Israel" 
(i  Sam.  xvii.  45),  Who  went  forth  with  His  people's  hosts  to  battle 
(xliv.  9;  Ix.  10).  But  as  the  phrase  "host  of  heaven"  was  used  for  the 
celestial  bodies  (Gen.  ii.  i),  and  celestial  beings  (i  Kings  xxii.  19),  the 
meaning  of  the  title  was  extended  to  designate  Jehovah  as  the  ruler  of 
the  heavenly  powers,  the  supreme  Sovereign  of  the  universe.  Hence 
one  of  the  renderings  of  it  in  the  LXX  is  Ku/)toj  TravroKpaTojp,  Lord 
Almighty,  or  rather.  Lord  All-Sovereign.  See  add.  note  on  i  Sam., 
p.  235.  The  title  is  a  favourite  one  with  Isaiah,  and  its  use  here  is 
significant.  He  whose  command  all  the  hosts  of  heaven  obey  is  Israel's 
ally.     Cp.  2  Kings  vi.  i6ff. 

the  God  of  Jacob]    A  title  suggesting  the  thought  of  Jehovah's  provi- 

PSALMS  1 7 


258  PSALM   XLVI.  8— II. 

8  Come,  behold  the  works  of  the  Lord, 
What  desolations  he  hath  made  in  the  earth. 

9  He  maketh  wars  to  cease  unto  the  end  of  the  earth ; 
He  breaketh  the  bow,  and  cutteth  the  spear  in  sunder; 
He  burneth  the  chariot  in  the  fire. 

10  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God : 

I  will  be  exalted  among  the  heathen,  I  will  be  exalted  in 
the  earth. 

11  The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us ; 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge.     Selah. 


dential  care  for  the  great  ancestor  of  the  nation,  a  thought,  upon  which 
Hosea  dwells  (xii.  •:  ff.). 

our  refuge]  Ox,  our  high  fortress:  the  same  word  as  that  in  ix.  9; 
xviii.  2;  xlviii.  3;  Is.  xxxiii.  16.  Cp.  the  use  of  the  cognate  verb  in  xx. 
I,  "The  Name  of  the  God  of  Jacob  set  thee  up  on  high." 

8 — 11.  An  exhortation  to  reflect  upon  this  marvellous  deliverance 
and  learn  its  lesson. 

8.  Come,  behold]  The  invitation  is  addressed  to  all  (Is.  xxxiii.  13), 
but  especially  to  the  nations,  who  are  bidden  [v.  10)  to  take  warning 
from  the  sight.  They  are  not  merely  to  "see  the  works  of  Jehovah" 
(Ixvi.  5),  but  to  behold  them;  to  gaze  upon  them  with  discerning 
insight. 

the  Lord]  Some  MSS.  read  God;  but  LXX,  Targ.,  Jer.,  support 
the  text.  The  name  Jehovah  may  have  been  retained  as  significant  in 
relation  to  foreign  enemies. 

what  desolations  &c.]  Rather,  who  hath  set  desolations,  or,  astonish- 
ments. It  is  possible,  as  Lagarde  thought,  that  the  LXX  represents 
another  reading,  wonders  (Jer.  xxxii.  20). 

9.  The  destruction  of  the  Assyrians  is  an  earnest  of  that  final  aboli- 
tion of  war  which  Jehovah  will  one  day  bring  about,  destroying  the 
weapons  of  war,  or  burning  them  in  a  vast  pyre  upon  the  battlefield, 
as  Isaiah  predicted  (ix.  5,  R.V.).  Cp.  Is.  ii.  4  (  =  Mic.  iv.  3);  Zech. 
ix.  10. 

the  chariot]  R.V.  the  chariots.  The  word  however  is  nowhere 
used  of  war  chariots,  and  must  rather  mean  baggage-wagons  (cp.  i  Sam. 
xvii.  20;  xxvi.  7).  Perhaps,  as  Baethgen  proposes,  the  word  should  be 
vocalised  ^agiloth  instead  of  'agdloth,  and  rendered  as  in  LXX  and 
Targ.,  shields. 

10.  Jehovah  speaks,  admonishing  the  nations  to  desist  from  their 
vain  endeavour  to  destroy  His  people,  and  bidding  them  recognise  Him 
as  the  true  God,  who  will  manifest  His  absolute  supremacy.  Cp.  Is. 
xxxiii.  10;  Ex.  xiv.  4,  17,  18;  Ps.  ii.   10. 

11.  The  refrain  with  its  triumphant  chorus  of  faith  and  gratitude 
forn\s  an  appropriate  conclusion. 


11 


PSALM   XLVII.  I.  259 


PSALM   XLVII. 

This  Psalm  is  an  expansion  of  the  thought  of  Ps.  xlvi.  lo.  Zion's 
King  is  the  true  'great  King'  (xlviii.  2),  the  King  of  all  the  earth.  All 
nations  are  summoned  to  pay  homage  to  the  God  who  has  proclaimed 
and  proved  His  supremacy  by  His  recent  triumph  over  the  heathen. 
The  occasion  of  the  Psalm  was  probably  the  same  as  that  ol  Pss.  xlvi 
and  xlviii,  though  the  allusions  to  the  circumstances  are  less  definite, 
and  the  resemblances  to  the  prophecies  of  Isaiah  are  less  marked  than 
in  those  Psalms.  But  it  celebrates  a  recent  victory,  a'fter  which  God, 
who  had  'come  dowTi'  to  fight  for  His  people  (Is.  xxxi.  4),  had  'ascended 
up'  in  triumph  to  heaven  [v.  5).  The  discomfiture  of  Sennacherib 
was  precisely  such  a  triumph ;  a  lesson,  as  Isaiah  repeatedly  implies, 
to  the  nations  not  less  than  to  judah,  of  Jehovah's  supreme  sovereignty. 

The  similarity  of  the  Psalm  to  Pss.  xciii,  xcvi — xcix,  has  led  many 
commentators  to  connect  it  vidth  the  Return  from  Exile.  There  seems 
however  to  be  scarcely  sufficient  reason  for  separating  it  from  the 
Psalms  between  which  it  stands,  and  with  both  of  which  it  has  links  of 
connexion. 

It  is  rightly  regarded  as  a  Messianic  Psalm,  inasmuch  as  it  looks  for- 
ward to  the  submission  of  all  the  nations  of  the  world  to  Jehovah  as 
their  King;  and  it  has  naturally,  on  account  of  v.  5,  been  used  from 
ancient  times  as  a  special  Psalm  for  Ascension  Day.  Not  that  t/.  5  is  a 
prophecy  of  the  Ascension  ;  the  context  makes  it  plain  that  it  cannot  be 
so  regarded.  But  the  words  originally  spoken  of  Jehovah's  return  to 
His  throne  in  heaven  (as  we  speak)  after  His  triumph  over  the  deadly 
enemies  of  His  people,  may  be  legitimately  applied  to  the  return  of 
Christ  to  heaven  after  His  triumph  over  sin  and  death,  to  take  His  seat 
upon  His  throne  of  glory  at  the  right  hand  of  God. 

It  is  the  New  Year's  Day  Psalm  of  the  Synagogue,  recited  seven 
times  previous  to  the  blowing  of  the  Trumpets,  which  marked  that 
festival  (Num.  xxix.  i). 

The  Psalm  consists  of  three  stanzas : 

i.  An  universal  summons  to  praise  Jehovah,  the  King  of  all  the 
earth,  who  has  chosen  Israel  to  be  His  people  (i — 4). 

ii.  A  repeated  summons  to  sing  His  praises,  in  view  of  the  recent 
manifestation  of  His  sovereignty  (5 — 7). 

iii.  The  ultimate  realisation  of  that  sovereignty  in  the  homage  of  the 
princes  of  the  nations  (8,  9). 

To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

O  clap  your  hands,  all  ye  people ;  47 

1 — 4.  A  summons  to  all  nations  to  acknowledge  Jehovah  as  their 
King.  He  has  proved  His  sovereignty  by  subjecting  the  nations  to  His 
own  people  and  assigning  to  it  the  choicest  land  for  its  inheritance. 

1.  all  ye  people]  Render  all  ye  peoples,  here  and  in  vv.  3,  ga.  It 
is  the  nations  of  the  world  who  are  addressed.  They  are  summoned  to 
salute  Jehovah,  as  a  new  king  was  saluted  on  his  accession,  with  clapping 

17—2 


26o  PSALM   XLVII.  2—4. 

Shout  unto  God  with  the  voice  of  triumph. 
*  For  the  Lord  most  High  is  terrible ; 
He  is  a  great  King  over  all  the  earth. 

3  He  shall  subdue  the  people  under  us, 
And  the  nations  under  our  feet. 

4  He  shall  choose  our  inheritance  for  us, 

The  excellency  of  Jacob  whom  he  loved.     Selah. 

of  hands  (2  Kings  xi.  12)  and  shouting  (i  Sam.  x.  24).  Cp.  Num.  xxiii. 
21,  where  "the  shout  of  a  king"  means  the  shout  with  which  Israel 
celebrates  the  Presence  of  Jehovah  in  its  midst  as  a  victorious  king. 

triumph]  The  cognate  verb  is  used  in  xx.  5  of  the  joyous  shouting 
which  welcomes  the  victorious  king. 

2.  We  may  also  render  as  in  R.V.  marg., 

For  the  LORD  is  most  high  (and)  terrible, 
or  better  still, 

For  Jehovah,  the  Most  High,  the  terrible, 

Is  a  great  King  over  all  the  earth, 
for  the  universal  sovereignty  of  Jehovah  is  the  prominent  thought  of  the 
Psalm.  He  is  not  merely  King  of  Israel  {v.  6)  but  King  of  all  the  earth 
{v.  7).  It  is  to  Him  that  the  title  'great  King,'  so  arrogantly  assumed 
by  the  king  of  Assyria  (Is.  xxxvi.  4),  really  belongs.  This  verse  links 
together  xlvi.  4  and  xlviii.  2.  For  the  epithet  'terrible'  cp.  Ixxvi.  7,  12; 
Ex.  XV.  11 ;  Deut.  vii.  21;  x.  17. 

3,  4.  It  is  difficult  to  decide  what  is  the  exact  force  of  the  tenses  in 
these  verses.  The  most  probable  rendering  (see  Driver's  Tenses,  §§  83  f., 
173)  appears  to  be  either  (i),  He  subdued  the  peoples  under  us.,  .He  chose 
our  inheritance  for  us  ;  referring  to  the  settlement  of  Israel  in  Canaan 
as  a  proof  of  the  universal  sovereignty  of  Jehovah  (Deut.  xxxii.  8;  Ex. 
xix.  5):  or  (2),  He  hath  subdued... hath  chosen;  referring  to  the  recent 
triumph  by  which  He  had  once  more  driven  out  the  enemies  of  His 
people  from  the  land,  and  proved  that  He  had  chosen  it  for  their 
inheritance.  The  first  explanation  is  preferable,  for  the  second  requires 
a  somewhat  forced  sense  to  be  given  to  hath  chosen.,  which  can  hardly  be 
justified  even  by  Is.  xiv.  i,  Zech.  i.  17.  Less  satisfactory  are  the 
renderings  subdueth.,.chooseth  (R.V.  marg,),  expressing  a  general  truth, 
though  not  perhaps  without  reference  to  its  illustration  by  recent  events : 
and  shall  sub  due...  shall  choose,  or  7nay  he  subdue... may  he  choose. 

3  a  appears  to  be  a  reminiscence  of  xviii.  47. 

our  inheritance]  The  common  word  for  Canaan  as  the  possession 
destined  for  Jehovah's  firstborn  son  Israel  (Ex.  xv.  17;  Deut.  iv.  21,  38; 
Jer.  iii.  19;  &c.). 

the  excellejicy]  Better,  the  pride  of  J.,  the  land  on  which  Israel 
prided  itself.  So  the  Temple  is  called  "the  pride  of  your  power," 
Ezek.  xxiv.  21. 

whom  he  loved]  Jehovah's  love,  not  Israel's  merit,  was  the  ground 
of  the  choice.  Cp.  Deut.  iv.  37  ;  Mai.  i.  2.  R.V.  marg.  loveth  is  a  less 
suitable  rendering. 


PSALM   XLVII.  5—9.  261 

God  is  gone  up  with  a  shout, 

The  Lord  with  the  sound  of  a  trumpet. 

Sing  praises  to  God,  sing  praises :  1 

^\x\g  praises  unto  our  King,  svag  praises. 

For  God  is  the  King  of  all  the  earth  :  ; 

Sing  ye  praises  with  und^xstgnding. 

God  reigneth  over  the  heathen  :  1 

God  sitteth  upon  the  throne  of  his  holiness. 

The  princes  of  the  people  are  gathered  together,  1 

5 — 7.     A  renewed  summons  to  celebrate  Jehovah's  sovereignty. 

5.  God  is  gone  up]  He  must  therefore  have  previously  'come  down.* 
God  is  said  to  '  come  down '  when  He  manifests  His  presence  by  active 
interposition  in  the  affairs  of  the  world.  (Gen.  xi.  5,  7;  Is.  xxxi.  4; 
Ixiv.  1,3).  He  is  said  to  '  go  up,'  when,  His  work  over,  He  as  it  were 
returns  to  heaven  (Ixviii.  18).  The  triumphal  procession,  carrying  up 
(at  least  in  ancient  times)  the  Ark  which  was  the  symbol  of  God's  pre- 
sence to  the  Temple  which  was  the  symbol  of  heaven,  and  celebrating 
the  victory  which  He  had  won  for  them  with  shouts  and  blowing  of 
trumpets,  was  the  outward  and  visible  emblem  of  this  '  ascension,'  and 
suggests  the  form  of  the  expression  here.     Cp.  2  Sam.  vi.  15. 

6.  Sing  praises]  The  verb  from  which  mizmor,  'a  psalm,'  is 
derived.     See  Introd.  p.  xix. 

7.  with  understanding']  So  the  LXX,  Vulg.,  and  Jer.  But  better 
as  R.V.  marg.,  in  a  skilful  psalm,  Heb.  Maschil.    See  Introd.  p.  xix. 

8.  9.     The  final  realisation  of  Jehovah's  sovereignty  over  the  world. 

8.  God  hatli  proclaimed  himself  king  over  the  nations, 
God  hath  taken  his  seat  upon  his  holy  throne. 

The  verbs  express  not  merely  a  fact  but  an  act.  God  was  King,  but 
He  has  given  fresh  proof  of  it.  He  has  caused  Himself  to  be  acknowledged 
King,  and  taken  His  seat  upon  His  throne  to  judge  and  rule  (ciii.  19). 
Cp.  Rev.  xi.  15. 

9.  In  the  spirit  of  prophecy  the  Psalmist  beholds  the  realisation  of 
the  hope  expressed  in  z^.  i.  The  nations  acknowledge  Jehovah's 
sovereignty.  Cp.  cii.  22.  As  the  representatives  of  the  nations  which 
they  rule,  the  princes  of  the  peoples  are  gathered  together  to  Jerusalem  to 
pay  homage  to  Jehovah.  The  Massoretic  text  ot  the  next  line  must  be 
rendered  with  R.V.,  'To  be  the  people  of  the  God  0/  Abraham' :  a  bold 
phrase,  reacliing  the  very  climax  of  Messianic  hope,  and  hardly  paralleled 
elsewhere.  For  though  the  nations  are  frequently  spoken  of  as  attaching 
themselves  to  Israel  in  the  worship  of  Jehovah  (Is.  ii.  2  ff ;  xi.  10 ;  Ivi. 
6  ff. ;  Ix.  3  ff. ;  Zech.  viii.  20  ff. ;  &c.  &c.),  they  are  not  called  "the  people 
of  God."  This  title  is  reserved  for  Israel,  and  only  in  the  N.T.  are  the 
promises  made  to  Israel  extended  to  the  Gentiles  (Rom.  ix.  25).  Yet 
see  Is.  xix.  25,  where  Egypt  receives  the  title  'my  people.'  The  ren- 
dering of  R.V.  marg.   'Unto  the  people,'  is  scarcely  legitimate.     It  is 


262  PSALM   XLVIII.  I. 

Even  the  people  of  the  God  of  Abraham  : 
For  the  shields  of  the  earth  belong  unto  God : 
He  is  greatly  exalted. 

however  to  be  noted  that  the  consonants  of  the  word  *am  '  people  '  are 
identical  with  those  of  'tm,  'with,'  and  the  LXX  read  them  as  the  pre- 
position {w!//i  the  God  of  A.).  It  is  a  natural  conjecture  that  we  should 
restore  the  preposition  and  render; 

The  princes  of  the  peoples  are  gathered  together. 
Along  %oith  the  people  of  the  God  of  Abraham. 

the  God  of  Abrahani]  The  title  recalls  the  promises  of  blessing  to  the 
nations  made  through  Abraham  (Gen.  xii.  2  f.  «&c.). 

the  shields  of  the  earth']  Princes  are  so  called,  as  the  protectors  of 
their  people.  Jehovah  is  their  overlord,  and  they  come  to  acknowledge 
their  dependence.  The  title  shield  is  often  applied  to  God,  and  some- 
times to  the  kings  and  princes  of  Israel  (Hos.  iv.  18;  Ps.  Ixxxix.  i8). 

he  is  greatly  exalted']  Cp.  xcvii.  9  ;  and,  though  the  Heb.  word  is 
different,  xlvi.  10. 


PSALM  XLVIII. 

In  the  crisis  of  her  uttermost  peril  Jehovah  has  proved  Himself  the 
protector  of  Zion  (i — 8):  and  the  citizens  of  the  rescued  city  are  bidden 
to  deepen  their  sense  of  His  mercy  by  reflecting  on  the  marvellousness 
of  the  deliverance  vouchsafed  to  them  (9 — 14).  The  Ps.  is  the  com- 
panion and  counterpart  to  Ps.  xlvi.  There  the  Presence  of  God  in  the 
midst  of  Zion  as  the  guarantee  of  her  safety,  here  the  safety  of  Zion 
which  is  the  result  of  that  Presence,  is  the  leading  idea.  Reasons  have 
already  been  given  for  believing  that  the  Psalm  celebrates  the  escape  of 
Jerusalem  from  Sennacherib's  threatened  vengeance.  It  is  the  work  of 
an  eyewitness  of  the  deliverance :  it  appeals  to  those  who  knew  from 
what  imminent  peril  they  had  been  saved.  The  parallels  with  Isaiah's 
prophecies  of  the  time,  especially  with  ch.  xxxiii,  written  partly  before 
(i — 1-2),  partly  after  (13 — 24)  the  destruction  of  Sennacherib's  host, 
should  be  carefully  studied. 

This  Ps.  is  appointed  as  a  proper  Ps.  for  Whitsunday.  Zion  is  the 
type  of  the  Christian  Church,  and  the  Ps.  which  celebrates  the  glory  of 
Zion  and  her  safety  under  the  care  of  her  Divine  protector  is  an  appro- 
priate Psalm  for  the  festival  which  is  the  birthday  of  the  Church. 

A  Song  and  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

48  Great  is  the  Lord,  and  greatly  to  be  praised 

Title.  A  Song;  a  Psalm  of  the  Sons  of  Korah  (R.V.).  A  Song  is 
the  general  term  :  a  Psalm  further  defines  it  as  intended  for  instrumental 
accompaniment.  See  Introd.  p.  xix  f.  The  LXX  adds,  "tor  the  second 
day  of  the  week,"  and  we  know  from  the  Mishnah  that  the  Psalm  was 


PSALM   XLVIII.  2.  263 

In  the  city  of  our  God,  in  the  mountain  of  his  holiness. 
Beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  mount « 

Zion, 
On  the  sides  of  the  north,  the  city  of  the  great  King. 

recited  on  that  day  by  the  Levites  in  the  Temple  Services.     See  Introd. 
p.  xxvii. 

1,  2.  The  theme  of  the  Psalm  :  the  greatness  of  Jehovah  and  the 
glory  of  His  city. 

1.  greatly  to  be  praised\  The  R.V.  returns  to  Coverdale's  rendering 
(P.B.V.),  highly  to  be  praised.  The  same  emphatic  adverb  occurs  in 
each  of  the  two  preceding  Pss.  God  has  proved  Himself  to  be  an  ex- 
ceedingly present  help  in  trouble  (xlvi.  i);  by  His  triumph  over  the 
nations  He  is  exceedingly  exalted  (xlvii.  9) ;  and  therefore  He  is  exceed- 
ingly worthy  to  be  praised.  Jehovah  is  the  one  object  of  Israel's  praise 
(Deut.  X.  21) :  Israel's  praises  are  as  it  were  the  throne  upon  which  He 
sits  (Ps.  xxii.  3) :  the  keynote  of  worship  is  Hallelujah^  *  praise  ye  Jah'; 
and  the  Hebrew  title  of  the  Psalter  is  Tehillimy  i.e.  Praises,  v.  \  a 
recurs  in  xcvi.  4  a,  cxlv.  3  a. 

in  the  city  of  our  God'\     Cp.  v.  8 ;  xlvi.  4,  note. 

in  the  mountain  of  his  holiness']  R.V.,  in  his  holy  mountain ;  i.e. 
Zion,  which  here  and  throughout  the  Psalm  {w.  2,  11,  12)  denotes  the 
whole  city,  not  merely  one  of  the  hills  on  which  it  was  built.  Cp.  ii.  6, 
note.     For  another  possible  translation  see  note  on  v.  2. 

2.  Beautiful  for  situation]  Rather,  as  R.V.,  beautiful  in  elevation. 
Cp.  1.  2.  "Its  elevation,"  writes  Dean  Stanley,  "is  remarkable; 
occasioned  not  from  its  being  on  the  summit  of  one  of  the  numerous 
hills  of  Judaea,  like  most  of  the  towns  and  villages,  but  because  it 
is  on  the  edge  of  one  of  the  highest  tablelands  of  the  country,... To  the 
traveller  approaching  Jerusalem  from  the  west  or  east,  it  must  always 
have  presented  the  appearance... of  a  mountain  city;  breathing,  as 
compared  with  the  plains  of  Jordan,  a  mountain  air;  enthroned,  as 
compared  with  Jericho  and  Damascus,  Gaza  or  Tyre,  on  a  mountain 
fastness"  [Sinai  and  Palestine:  pp.  170,  171).  May  not  the  poet  also 
have  in  mind  that  '  ideal '  elevation  of  which  the  prophets  speak  ?  e.g. 
Is.  ii.  2;  Mic.  iv.  I. 

the  joy  of  the  whole  earth]  Lam.  ii.  15  combines  this  phrase  with  that 
of  Ps.  1.  2.  "Is  this  the  city  that  men  called.  The  perfection  of 
beauty.  The  joy  of  the  whole  earth?"     Cp.  Is.  Ix.  15. 

on  the  sides  of  the  north]  Thus  rendered,  the  words  appear  to  be  a 
topographical  description  of  the  situation  of  Mount  Zion  to  the  north  of 
the  city ;  or,  if  we  render,  on  the  sides  of  the  north  is  the  citadel  of  the  great 
King,  a  description  of  the  position  of  the  Temple.  But  '  Mount  Zion  ' 
in  this  Psalm  is  not  a  part  of  the  city  but  the  whole  city  [tw.  i  i,  12);  a 
merely  topographical  description  would  be  frigid  in  the  extreme;  the 
rendering  involves  a  doubtful  construction;  and  it  gives  a  very  inadequate 
meaning  to  the  phrase  the  sides  of  the  north.  This  phrase  occurs  else- 
where in  Is.  xiv.  13  ;  Ezek.  xxxviii.  6,  15;  xxxix.  2;  and  in  all  these 


264  PSALM   XLVIII.  3,  4. 

3  God  is  known  in  her  palaces  for  a  refuge. 

4  For  lo,  the  kings  were  assembled,  they  passed  by  together. 

passages  it  means  the  recesses  or  remotest  quarters  of  the  north.  In  Is. 
xiv.  13  "  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  north"  (R.V.)  are  mentioned  as  the 
locality  of  the  sacred  mountain,  which  according  to  Asiatic  mythology 
was  the  abode  of  the  gods.  This  mountain,  corresponding  to  the 
Olympus  of  the  Greeks,  was  the  Meru  of  the  Indians,  the  Alborg  of  the 
Persians,  the  Ardlu  of  the  Assyrians  and  Babylonians.  It  would  seem 
that  the  Psalmist  boldly  calls  Mount  Zion  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  north 
with  reference  to  this  mythological  idea.  According  to  this  interpreta- 
tion w.  I,  1  may  be  rendered  as  follows  : 

Great  is  Jehovah,  and  exceeding  -worthy  to  be  praised, 
In  the  city  of  our  God  is  his  holy  mountain. 
Beautiful  in  elevation,  a  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  Is  mount  Zion, 
The  uttermost  parts  of  the  north,  the  citadel  of  the  great  King. 
The  sacred  mountain  of  our  God  is  not  in  the  remote  recesses  of  the 
north,  but  in  the  very  midst  of  the  city  of  His  choice.  Zion  is  in 
reality  all  that  the  Assyrians  claim  for  their  fabled  mount  of  the  gods. 
Their  king  too  may  style  himself  'great,'  but  Zion  is  the  citadel  of  One 
Who  is  in  truth  the  great  King,  for  He  is  the  King  of  all  the  earth 
(xlvii.  2,  7).  "The  great  king"  was  a  title  claimed  by  the  king  of 
Assyria  (Is.  xxxvi.  4);  and  the  word  for  'great'  is  not  that  used  in 
V.  I  {gddol)  but  rab,  which  corresponds  to  the  Assyrian  title  sarru 
rabbu  (Schrader,  Ctineif.  Inscr.  p.  320).  'City'  {citadel)  is  not  the 
same  word  as  in  v.  i  ('fr),  but  kirydh,  a  word  which  does  not  occur 
again  in  the  Psalter,  but  is  found  several  times  in  Isaiah  (xxii.  2 ;  xxix. 
I ;  xxxiii.  ■20).  To  many  commentators  it  seems  inconceivable  that 
the  Psalmist  should  allude  to  Assyrian  mythology.  But  a  writer  of 
Isaiah's  time  might  easily  have  become  acquainted  with  the  religious 
ideas  of  the  Assyrians,  and  the  author  of  the  Book  of  Job  does  not 
hesitate  to  introduce  popular  mythological  ideas.  See  Pi-of  Davidson's 
note  on  Job  xxvi.  12  :  and  cp.  Is.  xxvii,  i. 

3 — 8.  Jehovah's  revelation  of  Himself  as  Zion's  protector  in  the 
recent  discomfiture  of  her  enemies. 

3.  More  exactly : 

God  hath  made  himself  known  in  her  palaces  for  a  high  fortress. 

This  verse  is  commonly  connected  with  ota  i,  2.  But  vv.  i,  2 
describe  the  relation  of  Zion  to  Jehovah  generally,  while  v.  3  first 
alludes  to  the  recent  deliverance,  which  is  further  described  in  vv.  4  ff. 

in  her  palaces']  The  stately  palaces  of  Zion  which  the  Assyrians 
threatened  to  plunder  and  destroy.  Cp.  v.  13;  Mic.  v.  5.  High  fort- 
ress (A.V.  refuge)  is  the  same  word  as  that  in  xlvi.  7,  ri. 

4.  For,  lo,  the  kings  assembled  themselves  (R.V.):  Sennacherib's 
vassal  kings  (Is.  x.  8)  met  at  their  rendezvous  (cp.  Ps.  ii.  2):  they  passed 
over  together ;  uniting  their  forces  they  crossed  the  frontier  and  entered 
the  land  of  Judah.  Cp.  Is.  viii.  7,  8;  xxviii.  15.  The  \-ex\dQx\r\g  passed 
ajvay  (R.V.  marg.)  is  possible  but  unsuitable,  for  (i)  assembled  them- 


PSALM   XLVIII.  5—9.  265 

They  saw  //,  and  so  they  marvelled ; 

They  were  troubled,  and  hasted  away. 

Fear  took  hold  upon  them  there, 

And  pain,  as  of  a  woman  in  travail. 

Thou  breakest  the  ships  of  Tarshisji  with  an  east  wind. 

As  we  have  heard,  so  have  we  seen 

In  the  city  of  the  Lord  of  hosts,  in  the  city  of  our  God  : 

God  will  establish  it  for  ever.     Selah. 

We  have  thought  of  thy  lovingkindness,  O  God, 

selves  needs  some  further  explanation,  and  (2)  it  interrupts  the  order  of 
the  description :  it  is  not  until  they  have  seen  Jerusalem  {v.  5)  that  they 
disperse  in  confusion.  P.B.  V.  kings  of  the  earth  is  from  the  Vulg. 

Cp.  Ixxvi.   12. 

6.     They  saw;   forthwith  they  were  amazed: 

They  were  dismayed,  they  made  haste  to  flee. 
Caesar's  boast,  Veni,  vidi,  vici,  was  reversed.     They  came  to  Zion, 
they  saw  it,  they  were  smitten  with  panic  terror.     Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  3. 

6.  Trembling  took  hold  of  them  there : 
Pangs,  as  of  a  woman  in  travaiL 

.  Cp.  Ex.  XV.  14,  15;  and  for  the  phrase  though  in  a  different  con- 
nexion, Is.  xxxiii.  14,  "Trembling  hath  taken  hold  of  the  godless." 

7.  With  an  east  wind 

Thou  shatterest  ships  of  Tarshish. 

As  he  gazes  upon  the  wreck  of  the  Assyrian  enterprise,  the  poet 
apostrophises  God  with  mingled  awe  and  thankfulness.  The  language 
is  plainly  metaphorical.-  God's  might  is  irresistible.  He  shatters  the 
stately  ships  of  Tarshish  with  a  sudden  storm :  with  equal  ease  He 
annihilates  the  vast  Assyrian  army.  Cp.  Is.  xiv.  24 — 27,  noting  the 
phrase,  "  I  will  break  the  Assyrian  in  my  land."  For  the  metaphor  comp. 
Ezek.  xxvii.  26,  where  the  fall  of  Tyre  is  described  as  a  wreck;  and 
Is.  xxxiii.  23,  where  Jeiusalem  in  her  extremity  (or,  according  to  some 
commentators,  the  Assyrian  power)  is  represented  as  a*  disabled  ship. 

The  east  wind,  notorious  for  its  destructiveness,  is  often  employed  as 
a  symbol  of  judgement  (Job  xxvii.  21 ;  Is.  xxvii.  8;  Jer.  xviii.  17);  and 
ships  of  Tarshish, — the  largest  vessels,  such  as  were  employed  for  the 
voyage  to  Tartessus  in  the  S.W.  of  Spain  (cp.  'East  Indiamen') — were 
emblems  of  all  that  was  strong  and  stately  (Is.  ii.  16).  The  alternative 
rendering  of  R.V.  marg.,  'As  with  the  east  -wind  that  breakdh  the 
ships  of  Tarshish,^  is  grammatically  possible,  but  less  suitable. 

8.  Experience  has  confirmed  what  tradition  (cp.  xliv.  i)  related  of 
God's  marvellous  works  on  behalf  of  His  people,  and  justifies  the  con- 
fidence that  He  will  never  cease  to  guard  the  city  of  His  choice.  Cp. 
Ixxxvii.  5;  Is.  Ixii.  7.  But  all  such  anticipations  are  conditional: 
Israel's  unfaithfulness  made  a  literal  fulfilment  impossible. 

9 — 14.     The  lessons  of  deliverance. 

9.  We  have  thought  on  thy  lovingkindness,  0  God,  realised  it  to 


266  PSALM   XLVIII.  lo— 13. 

In  the  midst  of  thy  temple. 

10  According  to  thy  name,  O  God,  so  is  thy  praise  unto  the 

ends  of  the  earth: 
Thy  right  hand  is  full  ^righteousness. 

11  Let  mount  Zion  rejoice, 

Let  the  daughters  of  Judah  be  glad, 
Because  of  thy  judgments. 

12  Walk  about  Zion,  and  go  round  about  her :  tell  the  towers 

thereof. 

13  Mark  ye  well  her  bulwarks,  consider  her  palaces ; 


ourselves  as  manifested  in  this  new  deliverance,  while  we  offered  our 
thanksgivings  in  the  Temple  courts;  for  there,  in  the  immediate  pre- 
sence of  God,  men  learn  the  true  significance  of  events  (Ixxiii.  17).  It 
suits  the  context  less  well  to  render  IVe  thought  on  &c.,  and  to  under- 
stand the  words  to  refer  to  prayers  offered  before  the  great  deliverance, 
in  which  past  mercies  were  recalled  as  a  ground  of  confidence. 

10.  According  to  thy  name]  As  is  thy  name  (R.V.).  God's  reve- 
lation of  His  power  and  lovingkindness  receives  worldwide  celebration. 
Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  13.  To  other  nations  beside  Judah  the  destruction  of 
the  great  tyrant's  army  was  a  cause  for  rejoicing.  Cp.  xlvi.  8  ff.;  Nab. 
iii.  19. 

thy  right  hand  is  full  of  righteousness]  Ready  to  be  exercised  on  be- 
half of  Thy  people  in  judgements  on  their  enemies  {v.  11).  Cp.  Is. 
xxxiii.  5. 

11.  The  R.V.  assimilates  the  rendering  to  that  of  xcvii.  8,  where 
the  same  words  recur : 

Let  mount  Zion  be  glad, 

Let  the  daughters  of  Judah  rejoice. 

The  daughters  of  Judah  are  not  the  maidens  of  Judah,  though  the 
fxct  that  women  were  wont  to  celebrate  victories  with  dance  and  song 
may  have  suggested  the  use  of  the  expression,  but  the  cities  of  Judah, 
which  had  been  captured  by  Sennacherib  (Is.  xxxvi.  i),  and  therefore 
had  special  cause  for  rejoicing  at  his  overthrow.  Country  towns  are  re- 
garded as  'daughters'  of  the  metropolis.  Cp.  Num.  xxi.  25;  Josh.  xvii. 
II,  16  ;  the  word  for  towns  in  both  cases  literally  means  daughters. 

12  ff.  The  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  had  been  confined  within  its 
walls  during  the  siege :  now  they  can  freely  walk  round,  and  thankfully 
contemplate  the  safety  of  the  walls  and  towers  and  palaces  so  lately 
menaced  with  destruction.     Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  20. 

tell]  I.e.  count,  as  in  xxii.  17;  Gen.  xv.  5.  The  retention  of  the 
archaism  in  R.V.  is  justifiable  for  the  sake  of  the  connexion  with  v.  13, 
where  the  same  word  is  used  for  tell=narrate.  But  lately  the  towers 
had  been  counted  with  a  very  different  object  by  the  Assyrian  officers 
reconnoitring  the  city  in  preparation  for  the  siege  (Is.  xxxiii.  18). 

13.     bulwarks]     The  outer  wall  or  rampart. 

consider]     Or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  traverse.     The  word  occurs  here  only, 


1 


PSALM   XLVIII.  14.     XLIX.  267 

That  ye  may  tell  //  to  the  generation  following. 
For  this  God  is  our  God  for  ever  and  ever ; 
He  will  be  our  guide  even  unto  death. 

and  is  of  doubtful  meaning.  But  the  rendering  consider  suits  the  con- 
text better.  In  either  case  the  object  is  to  convince  themselves  of  the 
safety  of  the  city.  P.  B.  V.  sei  up  is  derived  from  some  Jewish  autho- 
rities. 

thai  ye  viay  tell  it]     Cp.  xxii.  30,  31 ;  xliv.  i. 

I*.  For  this  God  &c.]  For  sucli  is  God  [Jehovah]  our  God  for  ever 
and  ever.  Jehovah  is  a  God  who  has  proved  Himself  the  defender  of 
His  city  and  people,  and  will  continue  to  be  the  same  for  ever. 

he  zuill  be  our  guide  even  mito  death']  Beautiful  as  is  the  thought,  He 
(emphatic — He  and  no  other)  will  be  our  guide  unto  death  (or,  ifi  deaths 
or,  over  death),  it  cannot  be  legitimately  extracted  fx-om  the  present 
text,  nor  would  such  an  expression  of  personal  faith  form  a  natural  con- 
clusion to  this  wholly  national  Psalm,  Possibly  the  words  'a/  viuth 
(rendered  unto  death)  should  be  read  as  one,  with  different  vowels, 
'oldmolh,  'for  ever.'  So  the  LXX  and  Symmachus.  Possibly  the 
words  are  the  remains  of  a  musical  direction  like  that  of  Ps.  ix,  'al 
in  nth  labben,  meaning  'set  to  the  tune  of  mfith,'  or  that  of  Ps.  xlvi, 
'set  io'Aldmoth,^  which  has  been  placed  at  the  end  of  the  Ps.  (as  in 
Hab.  iii.  19)  instead  of  at  the  beginning,  as  is  the  rule  in  the  Psalter,  or 
which  has  been  accidentally  transferred  from  the  beginning  of  Ps.  xlix.  In 
this  case  the  clause  he  will  guide  us  seems  incomplete,  (though  he  will 
save  us  in  Is.  xxxiii.  -22  offers  an  exact  parallel),  and  we  must  either  with 
Delitzsch  suppose  that  the  concluding  words  are  lost ;  or,  with  Bickell, 
Cheyne,  and  others,  transpose  words  from  the  first  line  to  the  second, 
and  read  For  (or.  That)  such  is  God  [Jehovah]  our  God:  He  will  guide 
us  for  ever  a7id  ever.     Cp.  Is.  xxv.  9. 


PSALM  XLIX. 

The  preceding  group  of  Psalms  contains  an  appeal  to  "all  peoples" 
to  recognise  in  Jehovah  the  Ruler  of  the  world  in  virtue  of  His  mighty 
deeds  for  Israel:  this  Psalm  addresses  "all  peoples"  with  a  theme  of 
common  interest  to  all  humanity. 

The  author  is  a  moralist.  He  offers  teaching  concerning  one  of  those 
enigmas  of  life  which  perplex  men  and  try  their  faith.  Is  not  wealth 
after  all  the  master-force  in  the  world?  Must  not  the  poor  tremble 
before  its  power  and  pay  court  to  its  splendour?  Is  not  the  lot  of  those 
who  possess  the  means  of  luxurious  enjoyment,  however  selfish,  most 
enviable  ? 

The  Psalmist's  solution  of  the  problem  is  to  point  out  the  limits  to 
the  power  of  wealth  and  to  its  owner's  tenure  of  it.  All  the  wealth  in 
the  world  cannot  purchase  exemption  from  death;  and  it  must  all  be 
abandoned  when  its  owner  comes  to  die.  Quite  briefly  the  Psalmist 
expresses  his  own  faith  that  righteousness  will  be  finally  triumphant 


268  PSALM   XLIX. 


{v.  14),  and  that  God  will  do  for  him  what  all  his  wealth  cannot  do  for 
the  rich  man  {v.  15). 

Does  he  here  break  through  the  veil  of  darkness  which  rested  over  the 
world  beyond  for  Israel  of  old,  and  declare  his  belief,  if  not  in  a  resur- 
rection, at  least  in  a  translation  from  the  gloom  of  Sheol  to  a  blessed 
state  of  communion  with  God?  This  question  is  a  difficult  one,  but 
reasons  will  be  given  in  the  notes  for  thinking  that  the  Psalmist's  view 
did  not  reach  beyond  the  present  life,  though  it  contains  the  germ  of 
the  principle  by  which  men  were  raised,  through  sore  struggles  of  faith, 
to  grasp  the  hope  of  eternal  life.     See  also  Introd.  pp.  xciii  ff. 

The  theme  of  the  Ps.  is  akin  to  that  of  Pss.  xxxvii  and  Ixxiii.  But 
while  those  Psalms  treat  of  the  temptations  to  murmuring  and  disbelief 
which  spring  from  the  sight  of  high-handed  wickedness  prospering  un- 
checked, we  have  here  only  incidental  hints  {w.  5,  14)  that  the  rich 
men  who  are  spoken  of  are  oppressors  of  the  poor,  or  have  amassed 
their  wealth  by  injustice.  They  are  not  expressly  condemned  as  tyran- 
nous and  oppressive,  though  no  doubt  they  tended  to  become  so.  But 
they  make  a  god  of  their  wealth  and  pride  themselves  on  their  magnifi- 
cence. Wrapped  in  a  haughty  self-satisfaction,  they  care  for  nothing 
but  their  own  selfish  pleasure.  What  appals  the  Psalmist  is  not  so 
much  their  ^vickedness  as  their  worldliness.  They  ignore  God  and  yet 
they  prosper.  The  Psalm  reminds  us  of  the  parables  of  the  Rich  Fool 
(Luke  xii.  16  ff.)  and  the  Rich  Man  and  Lazarus  (Luke  xvi.  19  ff. ).  Its 
moral  teaching  is  for  all  men  and  all  time.  Worldliness  and  envy  are 
temptations  which  do  not  lose  their  power.  Rich  and  poor  alike  con- 
stantly need  to  be  reminded  that  "a  man's  life  consisteth  not  in  the 
abundance  of  the  things  that  he  possesseth." 

This  Ps.  is  closely  connected  with  the  'Wisdom' or  religious  philo- 
sophy of  Israel,  which,  working  side  by  side  with  Prophecy,  was  an 
important  power  in  the  education  of  the  nation.  It  contains  numerous 
parallels  of  thought  and  language  to  the  Books  of  Job  and  Proverbs. 

There  is  little  to  determine  the  date  of  the  Psalm,  But  it  may  per- 
haps belong  to  the  eighth  century  B.C.,  when  the  existence  of  great 
wealth  and  great  poverty  side  by  side  in  the  reigns  of  Uzziah  and 
Jotham  could  not  fail  to  suggest  the  problem  here  discussed.  There 
seems  to  be  an  allusion  xnv.  11  to  the  vast  estates  which  are  condemned 
by  Isaiah  and  Micah.  .  If  so,  it  will  be  somewhat  earlier  than  Psalms 
xlvi — xlviii.  The  structure  of  the  Ps.  is  clearly  marked.  It  consists  of 
an  introduction  and  two  equal  divisions,  each  of  which  is  closed  by  a 
refrain. 

i.  A  solemn  invitation  to  listen,  addressed  to  men  of  every  nation, 
every  rank,  and  every  class,  for  the  theme  is  one  of  universal  interest 

(1-4). 

ii.  Why  should  the  power  of  wealth  be  feared,  though  men  make  a 
god  of  their  riches?  Wealth  cannot  save  from  death:  and  its  owner 
must  inevitably  surrender  it  when  he  dies  (5 — ra). 

iii.  Sheol  is  the  destination  of  the  richest  and  most  powerful.  But 
the  upright  will  be  finally  triumphant ;  and  the  Psalmist  in  fellowship 
with  God  has  a  hope  which  no  wealth  can  purchase.  There  is  nothing  to 
fear  in  worldly  magnificence,  for  it  is  doomed  to  a  speedy  end  (13 — 20). 


I 


PSALM   XLIX.  1—4.  269 


To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

Hear  this,  all  ye  people ;  49 

Give  ear,  all  ye  inhabitants  of  the  world : 

Both  low  and  high,  a 

Rich  and  poor,  together. 

My  mouth  shall  speak  of  wisdom  ;  3 

And  the  meditation  of  my  heart  shall  be  <^  understanding. 

I  will  incline  mine  ear  to  a  parable :  -♦ 

I  will  open  my  dark  sayrng~irpon  tTie  harp. 


A  solemn  introduction,  addressed  to  men  of  every  nation  and 
every  class,  emphasising  the  importance  of  the  Psalmist's  theme. 

1.  all  ye  people]  Rather,  all  ye  peoples,  as  in  xlvii.  i.  All  peoples, 
all  the  inhabitants  of  the  world,  are  summoned  to  listen,  for  the  theme  is 
one  of  universal  interest ;  it  concerns  all  humanity.  It  is  characteristic 
of  the  'Wisdom'  or  religious  philosophy  of  Israel  to  view  the  problems 
of  life  in  their  wider  aspect.  It  treats  of  man  as  man,  not  of  Israel  as 
the  chosen  people.  The  first  line  recalls  the  opening  words  of  Micah's 
prophecy  (Mic.  i.  2),  and  the  words  of  his  older  namesake  (i  Kings 
xxii.  28).     For  the  form  of  the  verse  cp.  Elihu's  words  (Job  xxxiv.  2). 

the  world]  A  peculiar  word,  found  in  this  sense  only  in  Ps.  xvii.  14. 
It  denotes  the  lapse  of  time,  the  fleeting  age,  the  world  as  uncertain  and 
transitory. 

2.  Both  low  and  high]  So  the  A.V.  rightly  paraphrases  the  Heb. 
sons  of  mankind  [addm)  and  sons  of  men  {^Ish) :  those  whose  personality 
is  lost  in  the  common  multitude,  and  those  who  are  individually  dis- 
tinguished ;  plebeians  and  patricians.  Adam  corresponds  to  avdpojiros, 
ho>iio\  ^Ish  to  cw-qp,  vir.  Cp.  iv.  2;  Ixii.  9.  The  P.13.V.  {high  and  loiu) 
wrongly  inverts  the  meanings. 

rich  and  poor  together]  The  rich  that  they  may  recognise  the  vanity 
of  riches,  and  take  warning:  the  poor  that  they  may  learn  to  be  con- 
tented with  their  lot,  and  not  to  envy  the  rich. 

3.  My  mouth  shall  speak  wisdom, 

And  the  meditation  of  my  heart  shall  be  (full  of)  under- 
standing. 
The   words  for  wisdom  and  understanding  are  both  plural  in    the 
Heb.,  denoting  manifold  wisdom  and  profound  insight. 

4.  The  poet  receives  by  revelation  what  he  desires  to  teach.  He 
will  bend  his  ear  to  listen  to  the  voice  of  God  before  he  ventures 
himself  to  speak  to  men.  Mdshdl,  rendeted paradle,  means  ( i)  primarily 
a  comparison,  (2)  a  proverb,  as  frequently  involving  a  comparison,  (3)  a 
parable, ^.s  the  extension  of  a  proverb,  (4)  a  poem,  either  contemptuous  (Is. 
xiv.  4)  or  didactic,  as  here.  Chiddh,  denotes  (i)  an  enigma  or  riddle  (Judg. 
xiv.  12  f.;  I  Kings  x.  i),  (2)  -Ci  parable  or  siffiile  (Ezek.  xvii.  2),  (3)  any 
profound  or  obscure  utterance,  a  problem,  dark  saying.  Both  words 
occur  together  in  Ixxviii.  2;  Prov.  i.  6;  Ezek.  xvii.  2.  The  prosperity 
of  the  godless  was  one  of  the  great   'enigmas  of  life'  to  the  pious 


270  PSALM   XLIX.  5—7. 

5  Wherefore  should  I  fear  in  the  days  of  evil, 

When  the  iniquity  of  my  heels  shall  compass  me  about  ? 

6  They  that  trust  in  their  wealth, 

And  boast  themselves  in  the  multitude  of  their  riches ; 

7  None  of  them  can  by  any  means  redeem  his  brother, 

Israelite,  demanding  a  solution  which  could  only  be  partially  given 
before  the  fuller  revelation  of  Christ  "  brought  life  and  immortality  to 
light."  What  he  has  learned  on  this  perplexing  question  he  will  open 
upon  the  harp,  set  it  forth  in  a  poem  accompanied  by  music. 

5 — 12.     The  limits  to  the  power  and  the  possession  of  wealth. 

6.  in  the  days  of  evil]  Or,  of  the  evil  man :  when  evil  or  evil  men 
seem  to  have  the  upper  hand,  uncontrolled  by  any  divine  law  of 
righteousness.     Cp.  xciv.  13. 

when  the  iniquity  of  my  heels  &c.]  Apparently  this  means,  when  his 
own  false  steps  and  errors  of  conduct  surround  him  and  threaten  to 
prove  his  ruin.  But  apart  from  the  strangeness  of  the  expression,  this 
meaning  does  not  suit  the  context.     It  is  better  to  render  with  R.V., 

When  iniquity  at  my  heels  compassetli  me  about, 
when   the   injustice   of    wealthy   neighbours    dogs    his    footsteps   and 
threatens  to  trip  him  up.     But  better  still  is  the  rendering  of  R.V. 
marg.,  which  gives  a  clear  sense,  and  a  good  connexion  with  v.  6, 

When  the  iniquity  of  them  that  would  supplant  me  compasseth 
me  about, 

Even  of  them  that  trust riches? 

He  is  in  danger  from  wealthy  and  unscrupulous  neighbours,  who  are 
eager  to  trip  him  up  and  get  him  into  their  power.     Cp.  Jer.  ix.  4. 

7.  The  first  answer  to  the  question,  'Wherefore  should  I  fear'? 
These  men  make  a  god  of  their  wealth.  They  trust  in  it  and  glory 
in  it,  as  the  godly  man  trusts  in  Jehovah  and  glories  in  Him  (xxxii.  10; 
xxxiv.  2).  But  how  powerless  it  is  !  It  cannot  deliver  anyone  from 
death.  If  the  rich  man's  friends  have  so  little  to  hope,  his  victims 
have  little  to  fear. 

The  language  of  this  verse  and  the  next  is  borrowed  from  the  ancient 
law  in  Ex.  xxi.  30,  where  the  words  ransom  and  rcdemptiot  of  Ufe  (or 
soul)  occur  together,  the  latter  phrase  being  found  nowhere  else.  If  a 
man's  neglect  to  keep  a  dangerous  ox  under  proper  control  had  been 
the  cause  of  another  man's  death,  his  life  was  forfeit.  But  he  might 
redeem  his  life  by  paying  a  ransom  to  the  relatives  of  the  deceased 
jierson.  Probably  he  would  always  be  allowed  to  do  so,  and  the 
penalty  of  death  would  never  be  exacted.  Another  law  prohibited  the 
pardon  of  a  murderer  upon  the  mere  payment  of  a  fine  (Num.  xxxv.  31), 
lest  rich  men  should  regard  the  taking  of  life  as  a  matter  of  indifierence. 
I  Thus  the  idea  of  the  payment  of  money  as  the  equivalent  of  a  life  was 
familiar.  There  were  cases  in  which  wealth  could  deliver  from  death, 
when  man  was  dealing  with  man.  But  when  God  claims  the  life, 
riches  are  of  no  avail. 

his  brother']     Lit.  a  brotJur  \   his   most   intimate   relative  or   friend. 


PSALM   XLIX.  8— lo.  271 

Nor  give  to  God  a  ransom  for  him  : 
/  (For  the  redemption  of  their  soul  is  precious, 
I  And  it  ceaseth  for  ever  :)      ^ 

That  he  should  still  live  for  ever, 

And  not  see  corruption. 

For  he  seeth  that  wise  meft  die, 

Likewise  the  fool  and  the  brutish  person  perish, 

And  leave  their  wealth  to  others. 

Possibly  there  may  be  an  allusion  to  the  use  of  the  word  in  dirges.  See 
Jer.  xxii.  i8.  But  the  position  of  the  word  at  the  beginning  of  the 
sentence  is  peculiar,  and  an  adversative  particle  seems  to  be  needed. 
It  has  therefore  been  plausibly  conjectured  that  we  should  read  dk, 
'surely'  or  'but'  (as  in  v.  15),  in  place  of  J^r//,  'brother,'  and,  with  a  slight 
alteration  of  the  vowels,  render  thus : 

But  no  one  caft  by  any  means  redeem  himself ^ 
Nor  give  to  God  the  ransom  He  requires. 
The  reading  of  the  Massoretic  Text  however  is  attested  by  the  LXX 
and  other  Ancient  Versions. 

8.  Render : 

For  too  costly  is  the  redemption  of  their  life, 

And  lie  must  let  it  alone  for  ever. 
The  sum  to  be  paid  by  the  man  whose  life  was  forfeit  was  to  be 
assessed,  probably  in  proportion  to  his  culpability  and  his  means :  but 
there  is  no  ransom  which  can  be  paid  to  God ;  it  is  hopeless  to  think  of 
attempting  it.  Cp.  Malt.  v.  26.  Their  refers  to  brother^  regarded 
generically;  or,  if  the  reading  But  is  adopted,  to  the  rich  men. 

9.  The  preceding  verse  is  a  parenthesis,  and  this  verse  is  to  be  con- 
nected with  V.  7  and  rendered, 

That  he  should  live  on  perpetually, 

(And)  should  not  see  the  pit. 
'To  see  the  pit'  =  to  experience  death.     The  word  shachath,  rendered 
corruption  in  the  A.V.,    must  mean  'pit'   in  some  passages  where  it 
occurs  (e.g.  vii.  15;  xxx.  9),  and  may  have  this  meaning  always.     Cp. 
note  on  xvi.  10. 

10.  For  he  seeth  that  wise  men  die'\  Experience  shews  the  rich  man 
that  all  alike  come  to  the  grave.  Even  wisdom  cannot  deliver  its 
possessor.  This  rendering  is  on  the  whole  preferable  to  that  of  R.V. 
marg.,  Yea^  he  (the  brother  or  the  rich  man)  shall  see  it  (the  pit) :  wise 
men  die  &c.  'Wise'  and  'fool'  are  words  characteristic  of  the  Wisdom 
literature.  The  former  occurs  but  once  again  in  the  Psalter,  and 
46  times  in  Proverbs:  the  latter  but  twice  in  the  Psalter,  and  49  times  in 
Proverbs. 

likewise  &c.]  Fool  and  brutish  perish  together.  Perhaps  the  use 
of  different  verbs  is  intended  to  distinguish  between  the  end  of  the  wise 
man  and  the  end  of  tlie  fool  and  the  brutish,  the  self-confident  braggart 
and  the  mere  stupid  animal. 

and  leave  &c.]    Or,  abandon.     The  point  of  course  is  not  that  they 


272  PSALM   XLIX.  II— 13. 

II  Their  inward  thought  is,  that  their  houses  shall  continue  for 
ever, 

And  their  dwelHng  places  to  all  generations  ; 

They  call  their  lands  after  their  own  names. 
»2  Nevertheless  man  being  in  honour  abideth  not : 

He  is  like  the  beasts  tJiat  perish. 
13  This  their  way  is  their  folly  : 

Yet  their  posterity  approve  their  sayings.     Selah. 

can  pass  on  their  property  to  their  heirs,  but  that  they  must  themselves 
surrender  it.  Weakh  can  neither  prolong  life,  nor  be  retained  by  its 
owner  at  death.     Cp.  Luke  xii.  20. 

11.  Their  inward  thought  is  &c.]  If  they  do  reflect  that  they  must 
die,  they  comfort  themselves  with  the  delusion  that  their  houses  will  last 
for  ever,  and  their  names  be  perpetuated  in  the  names  of  their  estates, 
which  like  builders  of  cities  or  conquerors  (2  Sam.  xii.  28)  they  have 
named  after  themselves.  But  the  rendering  their  itnvard  thought  is 
questionable;  and  the  LXX,  Vulg.,  Syr.,  and  Targ.,  all  point  to  a 
different  reading,  involving  simply  a  transposition  of  letters  (qbrm  for 
qrbm),  which  gives  the  sense: 

Graves  are  their  houses  for  ever  ; 
The  dwelling'-places  for  all  generations 
Of  those  who  called  lands  after  their  own  names. 
This  reading  suits  the  context  best.    They  must  surrender  their  wealth, 
and  a  narrow  grave  will  be  the  only  possession  left  to  the  man  who 
called  a  vast  estate  by  his  own  name.     The  first  line  recalls  the  name 
'eternal  house'  applied  to  the  grave  in  Eccles.  xii.  5,  and  in  inscrip- 
tions: cp.  'eternal  place,' Tobit  iii.  6:  and  Isaiah  calls  Shebrta's  pre- 
tentious sepulchre  a  'dwelling-place'  (Is.  xxii.  16).     Is  there  an  ironical 
allusion  in  the  last  line  to  the  vast  estates  of  Isaiah's  day  (Is.  v.  8)? 

12.  If  we  retain  the  reading  of  the  Massoretic  Text  in  v.  ii,  we 
may  render  with  R.V.,  But  man  abideth  not  in  honour. 

If  the  reading  graves  is  adopted,  v.  1 2  sums  up  the  picture : 
So  man  in  splendour  hath  no  continuance. 

How^ever  imposing  may  be  man's  magnificence,  it  must  come  to  an 
end.  The  LXX  and  Syr.  read  here,  as  in  v.  20,  Man  being  in  honour 
understandeth  not.  But  refrains  are  not  always  identical  in  form,  and 
the  difference  in  the  Heb.  text  is  significant. 

that  perish^     Or,  are  ctit  offy  a  different  word  from  that  in  v.  10. 

13 — 15.  The  fate  of  the  godless  rich  man  is  further  described,  and 
contrasted  with  the  Psalmist's  confidence. 

13.  A  difficult  verse.     The  best  rendering  appears  to  be : 
This  is  the  way  of  them  that  are  self-confident. 

And  of  their  followers  who  [lit.  those  who  after  theni]  approve 
their  sayings. 
The  verse  sums  up  the  preceding  verses,  like  Job  xviii.  21;  xx.  29. 
So  it  fares  with  these  self-confident  fools  and  their  deluded  followers 


PSALM   XLIX.  14,  15.  273 

Like  sheep  they  are  laid  in  the  grave ; 

Death  shall  feed  on  them ; 

And  the  upright  shall  have  dominion  over  them   ijL..^^^ 

morning ;  ^ 

And  ttieir  beauty  shall  consume  in  the  grave  from  their 

dwelling. 


I  \  But  God  will  redeem  my  soul  from  the  power  of  the  grave  :   15 
'  '  For  he  shall  receive  me.     Selah. 

(Ixxiii.  10;  Job  xxi.  33).  Then,  after  an  interlude,  the  fate  of  the 
wicked  is  more  fully  described  vav.  14,  in  contrast  with  the  hope  of  the 
godly,  z/.  15. 

The  word  kes^el  denotes  the  stupid  self-confidence  which  is  character- 
istic of  the  'fool'  {k^sil,  V.  10).  Cp.  Job  xxxi.  24.  Aquila  and  Jerome 
render  run  instead  0/  approve.  The  difference  is  simply  one  of  vocali- 
sation, and  in  their  day  the  text  had  no  written  vowels.  With  this 
reading  we  might  render:  And  of  those  who  run  after  them  at  their  beck. 

14.  Like  sheep  are  they  put  into  Sheol; 
Death  shepherdeth  them ; 

And  the  upright  have  dominion  over  them  in  the  morning, 
And  their  form  shall  Sheol  consume,  that  it  have  no  more 
habitation. 

What  becomes  of  the  wicked  ?  They  are  driven  dow  n  to  Sheol  like 
a  flock  of  sheep,  mere  animals  that  they  are  [v.  12);  there  Death  is 
their  shepherd :  the  king  of  terrors  rules  them  at  his  will.  They  perish 
in  the  night,  and  in  the  morning  the  righteous  awake,  triumphant  over 
their  fallen  oppressors.  The  night  of  trouble  is  over;  the  morning  of 
deliverance  has  dawned  (xxx.  5).  But  what  is  meant  by  'the  morning'? 
Not,  as  yet,  the  resurrection  morning;  but  the  morning  of  the  day 
which  Jehovah  is  making,  in  which  "all  the  proud,  and  all  that  work 
wickedness,  shall  be  as  stubble. ..and  ye  shall  tread  down  the  wicked, 
for  they  shall  be  as  ashes  under  the  soles  of  your  feet  in  the  day  that  I 
do  make,  saith  the  Lord  of  hosts"  (Mai.  iv.  1,3):  a  day  in  the  history 
of  the  world  corresponding  to  the  day  when  the  restored  Israel  "shall 
.  rule  over  their  oppressors"  (Is.  xiv.  2).  Comp.  Ps.  civ.  35,  and  Ps. 
xxxvii. 

The  precise  meaning  of  the  last  line  is  doubtful  and  the  text  possibly 
corrupt.  Their  form,  or  perhaps,  their  beauty,  is  delivered  up  to  Sheol 
to  consume:  a  poetical  way  of  expressing  that  their  bodies  moulder  in 
the  grave :  all  that  made  such  a  brave  show  upon  earth  has  no  more 
existence,  no  longer  needs  any  abode.  Possibly  we  should  make  a 
slight  change  in  the  text,  and  render,  Their  form  shall  be  consumed, 
Sheol  shall  be  their  habitation.     Cp.  A.  V.  marg. 

15.  While  the  wicked  become  the  prey  of  Sheol,  the  Psalmist  is 
delivered  from  its  power.  But  in  what  sense?  In  this  life,  or  after 
death  ?  A  careful  study  of  the  context  and  of  similar  phrases  elsewhere 
seems  to  shew  that  the  Psalmist  looks  w'th  confidence  for  deliverance 
from  the  premature  and  penal  death  of  the  wicked,  but  does  not  antici- 

PSALMS  1 8 


274  PSALM   XLIX.  i6. 


16  Be  not  thou  afraid  when  one  is  made  rich, 
When  the  glory  of  his  house  is  increased ; 


pate  escape  from  death  or  express  his  belief  in  a  resurrection.  The 
verse  corresponds  to  vv.  7,  8.  While  wealth  is  powerless  to  avert 
death,  God  can  and  will  deliver  His  servant.  Similar  phrases  are  con- 
stantly used  of  deliverance  from  imminent  peril  of  death.  Cp.  xxx.  3 ; 
xxxiii.  i8f.;  Ixxxvi.  13;  ciii.  4;  cxxxviii.  7;  and  particularly  Ixxxix.  48; 
Job  xxxiii.  22  ff.;  Hosea  xiii.  14;  see  also  xvi.  10,  and  note  there.  For 
he  shall  receive  me  is  to  be  explained  by  the  use  of  the  same  word  in 
xviii.  16  (A.V.  he  took  me) :  He  will  take  hold  of  me  and  deliver  me.  It 
is  possible  that  the  verse  should  be  divided  thus :  But  God  will  redeem 
my  life  \soul\ :  out  of  the  grasp  of  Sheol  will  he  surely  take  me. 

Delitzsch  indeed  thinks  that  he  shall  receive  me  contains  an  allusion 
to  the  history  of  Enoch  (Gen.  v.  24),  where  the  same  word  is  used,  "He 
was  not;  for  God  took  hi?/i."  He  holds  that  in  a  moment  of  lofty 
aspiration  the  Psalmist  expresses  a  hold  hope  that  he  may  escape  death, 
and  be  taken  directly  into  the  presence  of  God.  But  this  interpretation 
is  improbable :  it  does  not  appear  that  he,  any  more  than  the  author  of 
Ps.  Ixxxix,  anticipates  that  any  mortal  man  can  finally  escape  death. 

Many  commentators  find  in  the  passage  "the  strong  hope  of  eternal 
life  with  God,  if  not  the  hope  of  a  resurrection."  But  the  context  and 
the  parallel  passages  lead  to  a  different  conclusion.  Certainly  the  doc- 
trine of  a  future  life  was  not  to  the  Psalmist  a  revealed  certainty  to  which 
he  could  appeal  for  a  solution  of  the  enigmas  of  life  which  were  per- 
plexing him.  Probably,  as  has  been  said  before  on  Ps.  xvi,  the  truth  is 
that  the  antithesis  in  the  Psalmist's  mind  is  not  between  life  here  and 
life  hereafter  (as  we  speak),  but  between  life  with  and  life  without  God; 
and  for  the  moment,  in  the  consciousness  of  the  blessedness  of  fellowship 
with  God,  death  fades  from  his  view.  The  rich  man's  wealth,  which  he 
is  tempted  to  envy,  cannot  buy  from  God  one  moment's  prolongation  of 
life ;  nay,  the  wicked  are  doomed  to  a  premature  and  miserable  death : 
while  the  Psalmist  rejoices  in  the  assured  protection  and  fellowship  of 
God. 

But  whatever  may  have  been  the  extent  or  the  limitation  of  the 
Psalmist's  view,  his  words  contain  the  germ  and  principle  of  the  doctrine 
of  the  Resurrection ;  and  for  ourselves,  as  we  use  them,  they  will  bear 
the  fuller  meaning  with  which  they  have  been  illuminated  by  Christ's 
Resurrection. 

16 — 20.  The  rich  man  cannot  carry  his  wealth  with  him  when  he 
dies.  The  thought  already  expressed  in  v.  10  is  resumed  and  further 
developed. 

16.  Be  not  thou  afraid'\  The  Psalmist  addresses  himself,  repeating 
the  question  of  v.  5  in  the  form  of  an  exhortation  (the  Heb.  word  is  the 
same),  or  any  individual  who  is  listening  to  him. 

glory'\  The  magnificence  and  splendour  which  accompany  wealth. 
Cp.  Prov.  iii.  16;  viii.  18. 


PSALM  XLIX.  17—20.  275 

For  when  he  dieth  he  shall  carry  nothing  away ;  »7 

His  glory  shall  not  descend  after  him. 

Though  whiles  he  lived  he  blessed  his  soul :  '8 

And  7nen  will  praise  thee,  when  thou  doest  well  to  thyself. 

He  shall  go  to  the  generation  of  his  fathers ;  19 

They  shall  never  see  light. 

Man  that  is  in  honour,  and  understandeth  not,  ao 

Is  like  the  beasts  thai  perish. 


17.  Cp.  Job  i.  21;  Eccl.  V.  15;  i  Tim.  vi.  7;  and  parallels  from 
classical  authors:  e.g.  Propertius  iv.  5.  13: 

Haud  ullas  portabis  opes  Acherontis  ad  undas: 
Nudus  at  infema,  stulte,  vehere,  rate. 

18.  blessed  his  sou/]  Congratulated  himself  on  his  good  fortune, 
flattering  himself  that  he  was  beyond  the  reach  of  misfortune.  Cp. 
Deut.  xxix.  19;  Luke  xii.  19. 

men  will  praise  thee]  Men  praise  thee  (R.V.).  The  words  are  a 
parenthesis,  addressed  to  the  rich  man.  The  unthinking  multitude  (cp. 
V.  lib)  worship  success  and  wealth.  They  see  nothing  wrong  in  the 
selfish  misuse  of  riches. 

19.  He  shall  g6\  There  should  be  a  comma  at  the  end  of  v.  18,  as 
in  R.V.,  for  v,  19  forms  the  apodosis  to  it.  The  Heb.  verb  may  be 
either  the  3rd  person  fem.,  the  subject  being  the  soul,  or  the  2nd  person 
masc;  so  either,  'Though  he  blessed  his  soul. ..it  shall  go'  &c.  :  or, 
'Though  men  praise  thee... thou  shalt  go.'  The  first  alternative  is  pre- 
ferable. The  second  involves  an  intolerably  harsh  change  of  person 
(*  Thou  shalt  go. ..his  fathers  ').  For  the  phrase  cp.  Gen.  xv.  15,  "Thou 
shalt  go  to  thy  fathers  in  peace."  The  more  usual  expression  for  dying 
is,  "he  was  gathered  to  his  people,"  or,  "his  fathers."  Families  are 
contemplated  as  reunited  in  Sheol,  where  existence  is  a  shadowy  re- 
flection of  life  on  earth. 

they  shall  never  see  light]  *  They '  refers  to  the  rich  men.  The  Heb. 
mind  passes  from  the  class  to  the  individual  and  from  the  individual  to 
the  class  with  a  facility  to  which  we  are  not  accustomed.  But  it  is  per- 
haps better  to  take  the  phrase  as  a  relative  clause  referring  to  'his 
fathers' ;  Who  shall  never  more  see  the  light.  He  goes  to  join  the 
ranks  of  those  whose  lot  is  fixed  irrevocably,  who  will  never  return  to 
life.     For  the  phrase  cp.  Iviii.  8;  Job  iii.  \(i\  Eccl.  vi.  5. 

20.  The  refrain  oiv.  12,  repeated  with  a  significant  variation,  quali- 
fying the  previous  statement.  It  is  not  the  rich  and  honourable  man,  as 
such,  who  is  no  better  than  the  cattle  that  perish;  but  the  rich  man  who 
is  destitute  of  discernment,  and  knows  no  distinction  between  false  and 
true  riches,  reckoning  earthly  and  transitory  wealth  more  precious  than 
spiritual  and  eternal  fellowship  with  God. 


T«— 2 


276  PSALM    L. 


PSALM   L. 

This  Psalm,  like  the  preceding  one,  is  a  didactic  Psalm.  But  while 
the  lesson  of  Psalm  xlix  is  an  echo  of  the  teaching  of  the  '  Wise  Men,' 
that  of  Ps.  1  is  an  echo  of  the  teaching  of  the  Prophets :  and  while,  in 
accordance  with  the  characteristic  method  of  *  Wisdom,'  "all  peoples" 
are  addressed  in  Ps.  xlix,  in  accordance  with  the  characteristic  method 
of  Prophecy  the  people  of  Jehovah  is  addressed  in  Ps.  1. 

The  Psalm  is  a  solemn  vision  of  judgement.  It  is  finely  dramatic 
in  form.  As  in  Isaiah  i  and  Micah  vi,  Jehovah  puts  Israel  upon  its  trial 
in  the  presence  of  all  Nature.  He  is  at  once  Plaintiff  and  Judge.  The 
two  speeches  in  which  He  exposes  the  shortcomings  of  His  people  are 
introduced  by  a  prologue,  and  summed  up  in  a  brief  epilogue. 

i.  In  a  solemn  introduction  the  Advent  of  God  to  judge  His  people 
is  described.  As  He  came  of  old  from  Sinai  in  the  midst  of  storm 
and  lightning  to  promulgate  the  Law,  so  now  He  is  represented  as 
appearing  from  Zion  surrounded  by  these  symbols  of  His  majesty  to 
enforce  it.  Heaven  and  earth  are  summoned  to  be  witnesses  of  the 
trial  (i— 6). 

ii.  God  speaks ;  and  first  He  addresses  the  mass  of  the  people,  who 
imagine  that  their  duty  to  Him  is  fulfilled  by  the  formal  offering  of 
material  sacrifices.  He  shews  them  that  He  has  no  need  of  material 
sacrifices.  What  He  desires  is  the  sacrifice  of  the  heart,  expressed  in 
sincere  thankfulness  and  loyal  trust  (7 — 15). 

iii.  Then  in  a  sterner  tone  He  addresses  the  hypocrites  who  glibly 
repeat  His  laws  with  their  lips,  but  shamelessly  break  them  in  act  by 
gross  offences  against  their  neighbours  {16 — 21). 

iv.  The  Psalm  concludes  with  an  epilogue  of  warning  and  promise 
(22,  23). 

Thus  the  Ps.  deals  with  man's  duty  towards  God  and  his  duty  towards 
his  neighbour;  with  the  nature  of  acceptable  service,  and  the  obligations 
of  social  morality.  Its  two  main  divisions  answer  to  the  two  great 
divisions  of  the  Decalogue.  The  whole  corresponds  to  the  teaching 
which  was  constantly  being  repeated  by  the  prophets,  and  is  briefly 
summed  up  in  the  sentence,  *'  I  desire  lovingkindness,  and  not  sacrifice, 
and  the  knowledge  of  God  more  than  burnt  offerings."  The  principle 
comes  down  from  the  first  of  the  prophets  (i  Sam.  xv.  22),  and  finds  its 
most  forcible  exposition  in  Isaiah  i.  1 1  ff.,  to  which  the  Psalm  is  intimately 
related,  and  Mic.  vi.  6  ff.  The  same  thought  is  expressed  in  the  Wisdom- 
literature  in  Prov.  xxi.  3,  and  Ecclesiasticus  xxxv.  r — 7  ;  and  elsewhere 
in  the  Psalter,  e.g.  in  Ps.  xl.  6ff. ;  li.  16 ff.;  Ixix.  30 f.;  xv;  xxiv.  i  ff. 
But  none  of  these  passages  is  to  be  understopd  as  an  absolute  condem- 
nation of  sacrifice.  Sacrifice  was  the  recognised  bond  of  the  relation 
between  God  and  men,  though  it  was  not,  as  men  were  prone  to  think, 
the  sum  and  substance  of  that  relation.  The  primitive  institution  of 
sacrifice  was  continued  and  developed  in  the  Mosaic  legislation.  The 
covenant  of  Sinai  was  sanctioned  by  sacrifice,  though  it  was  not  based 
upon  it;  the  Decalogue  contained  no  injunction  to  offer  sacrifice.  It 
is  not  the  sacrificial  system  in  itself,  but  the  sacrificial  system  emptied  of 
*'  its  moral  significance  as  the  recognition  of  the  holiness  of  God  and  the 


PSALM    L.  I.  277 

sinfulness  of  the  sinner,"  and  made  a  substitute  for  the  higher  duties  of 
devotion  and  morality,  or  combined  with  a  glaring  defiance  of  those 
duties,  which  is  denounced  by  prophet  and  psalmist  as  a  thing  which 
God  hates.     See  Oehler's  O.  T.  Theology,  §  201. 

To  what  date  is  the  Psalm  to  be  assigned  ?  Clearly  it  belongs  to  a 
time  when  sacrificial  worship  was  scrupulously  maintained,  but  a  low 
standard  of  morality  was  united  with  punctilious  ceremonial  observance. 
We  know  from  the  prophets  Hosea,  Isaiah,  and  Micah,  that  this  was 
conspicuously  the  case  in  the  eighth  century  B.C.,  and  to  this  period  the 
Psalm  may  most  safely  be  assigned.  Delitzsch  indeed  regarded  it  as  an 
original  Psalm  of  David's  musician  Asaph,  but  the  tendency  to  form- 
alism does  not  seem  to  have  been  specially  characteristic  of  that  time. 
Some  critics  place  it  after  the  Exile,  alleging  that  v.  5  implies  the 
dispersion  of  the  nation.  But  this  inference  cannot  legitimately  be 
drawn  from  the  verse :  and  on  the  other  hand,  would  any  poet  after  the 
Return  have  ventured  to  call  Zion  'the  perfection  of  beauty,'  in  view  of 
the  past  glories  of  the  city  and  Temple  which  were  never  restored? 
Moreover  Lam.  ii.  15,  "Is  this  the  city  that  men  called  The  perfection 
of  beauty,  The  joy  of  the  whole  earth"?  combines  v.  1  and  xlviii.  2: 
and  Ps.  xcvii,  which  is  acknowledged  to  belong  to  the  time  of  the 
Return,  is  based  upon  reminiscences  of  this  Psalm  together  with  Pss. 
xlvii,  xlviii. 

This  Psalm  may  then  best  be  referred  to  the  same  period  as  the  pre- 
ceding Psalms.  A  somewhat  later  date,  in  the  reign  of  Josiah,  has 
been  suggested,  but  the  close  relation  between  the  Psalm  and  Isaiah  i 
is  in  favour  of  the  earlier  date. 


A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

The  mighty  God,  even  the  Lord,  hath  spoken,  and  called  50 
the  earth 

On  the  title  A  Psalm  of  Asaph,  and  the  general  characteristics  of 
the  Asaph  Psalms  see  Intr.  to  Book  in,  pp.  427  fF. 

1 — 6.  A  solemn  introduction,  describing  the  Advent  of  Jehovah  to 
judge  His  people.  Of  old  He  appeared  at  Sinai  in  the  midst  of 
lightnings  and  storm  to  give  the  Law :  now  He  comes  forth  from  Zion 
with  the  same  tokens  of  power  and  majesty  to  enforce  it. 

1.  The  mighty  God,  even  the  LORD]  El  Elohim  Jehovah.  The 
three  names,  representing  three  aspects  of  the  Divine  character,  are 
combined  to  emphasise  the  majesty  of  Him  with  "Whom  Israel  has  to 
do.  El  represents  Him  as  the  Mighty  One;  Elohim  perhaps  (the 
original  meaning  is  doubtful)  as  the  Awful  One  in  Whom  are  united 
all  manifold  excellences  of  Deity;  Jehovah  as  the  Self- revealing  One. 
Elohim  is  His  name  as  the  God  of  nature  and  creation :  Jehovah  as  the 
God  of  the  covenant  and  of  grace.  The  same  threefold  combination  is 
found,  twice  repeated,  in  Josh.  xxii.  22,  in  the  solemn  asseveration  by 
the   trans-Jordanic  tribes  of  their  innocence  of  any  wrong  motive  in 


278  PSALM    L.  2,  3. 


From  the  rising  of  the  sun  unto  the  going  down  thereof. 

2  Out  of  Zion,  the  perfection  of  beauty, 
God  hath  shined. 

3  Our  God  shall  come,  and  shall  not  keep  silence : 
A  fire  shall  devour  before  him, 

And  it  shall  be  very  tempestuous  round  about  him. 

erecting  the  altar  of  Witness.  It  occurs  nowhere  else  in  exactly  the 
same  form,  but  similar  combinations  are  found.  See  Gen.  xxxiii.  20; 
xlvi.  3,  "El,  the  God  of  thy  father";  Deut.  iv.  31,  "Jehovah  thy  God 
{Elohitn)  is  a  merciful  God"  {El)\  v.  9,  "I  Jehovah  thy  God  {Elokim) 
am  a  jealous  God"  {El)'y  and  similarly  vi.  15;  vii.  9,  "Jehovah  thy  God, 
he  is  God  (Elohim)-,  the  faithful  God"  {El). 

It  is  noteworthy  that  two  other  names  of  God  occur  in  this  Ps.  He 
is  called  'the  Most  High'  {Elyon),  as  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the 
Universe  {v.  14),  cp.  vii.  17;  xviii.  13;  and  see  Appendix,  Note  ii.  In 
V.  22,  Eloah,  the  singular  of  Elohim,  is  used.  This  form  is  found 
frequently  in  Job;  in  Deut.  xxxii.  15,  17;  Is.  xliv.  8;  Hab.  i.  11,  iii.  3; 
and  in  a  few  other  passages ;  but  elsewhere  in  the  Psalter  only  in  xviii. 
31;  cxiv.  7;  cxxxix.  19. 

The  rendering  The  God  of  gods ,  the  Lord  (Jehovah),  is  not  probable, 
though  its  adoption  by  the  LXX  has  given  it  a  wide  currency. 

hath  spoken]  In  tlae  summons  which  the  next  line  describes.  He 
breaks  the  silence  which  has  been  misunderstood  to  mean  indifference 
(v.  21)  by  proclaiming  a  great  assize. 

and  called  the  earth]  The  earth  in  all  its  length  and  breadth,  with 
all  its  inhabitants,  is  summoned  to  be  the  witness  of  the  trial. 

2.  Out  of  ZioHy  the  perfection  of  beauty]  This  rendering  is  certainly 
preferable  to  that  of  P.  B.  V. ,  '  Out  of  Zion  hath  God  appeared  in  perfect 
beauty."  Cp.  xlviii.  2;  and  Lam.  ii.  15,  which  unites  phrases  taken 
from  both  Psalms.  In  i  Mace.  ii.  12  the  Temple  is  called  "our  beauty 
and  our  glory."  Zion  is  now  the  abode  of  Jehovah,  where  He  sits 
enthroned  upon  the  cherubim  (Ixxx.  i).  From  thence,  as  of  old  from 
Sinai,  He  hath  shined  forth  (R.V.):  a  word  specially  used  of  that 
dazzling  blaze  of  light  which  is  the  symbol  of  God's  Presence.  Cp. 
Deut.  xxxiii.  2 ;  Ps.  Ixxx.  i ;  xciv.  i. 

3.  In  the  preceding  verses  the  Theophany  is  described  as  already 
visibly  beginning.  Instead  of  simply  continuing  that  description,  the 
poet-seer  "imagines  himself  as  an  eager  and  interested  spectator,"  and 
prays  God  to  come  near  and  declare  His  will: 

Let  our  God  come,  and  not  keep  silence! 
Fire  devoureth  before  him, 
And  round  ahout  him  it  is  very  tempestuous. 
See  Driver,  Hebrew  Tenses,  §  58;  and  for  similar  constructions  cp. 
xli.  2  (note);  Is.  ii.  9. 

Lightnings  and  storm  are  the  outward  symbols  which  express  the 
awfulness  of  God's  coming  to  judgement.  He  is  *  a  consuming  fire ' 
(Deut.  iv.  24;  ix.  3;  Hebr.  xii.  29)  devouring  His  enemies;  an  irresist- 


I 


PSALM    L.  4,  5.  279 


He  shall  call  to  the  heavens  from  above, 
-   And  to  the  earth,  that  he  may  judge  his  people. 
Gather  my  saints  together  unto  me ; 
Those  that  have  made  a  covenant  with  me  by  sacrifice.^' 

ible  whirlwind  (Iviii.  9),  sweeping  them  away  like  chaff  (i.  4;  Is.  xxix. 
5).     Cp.  Ex.  xix.  i6,  18;  Is.  xxix.  6;  Ps.  xviii.  7  ff.;  xcvii.  2  ff. 

4.  He  shall  call  to  the  heavens  from  above']  Better,  in  continuation 
of  the  preceding  verse,  Let  Mm  call  to  the  heavens  above.  The 
object  of  the  summons  is  'that  he  may  judge  his  people.'  Heaven  and 
earth,  the  whole  world  of  nature,  are  summoned  to  be  witnesses  of  the 
judgement,  for  they  are  far  older  than  man,  and  have  watched  the  whole 
course  of  Israel's  history.  Cp.  Deut.  iv.  26,  32;  xxxi.  28;  xxxii.  i; 
Isa.  i.  2;  Mic.  i.  2;  vi.  i,  2.  The  poetical  idea  finds  a  strange  equi- 
valent in  the  conception  of  modern  science  that  every  action  is  recorded 
by  a  corresponding  physical  change,  so  that  Nature  is  in  truth  a  witness 
to  the  actions  of  man  ^. 

5.  Gather  ^ic.']  To  whom  is  the  command  addressed?  Perhaps  to 
the  angels  who  are  God's  ministers  of  judgement  (Matt.  xxiv.  31),  and 
by  whom  He  appears  attended  (Deut.  xxxiii.  2) ;  less  probably  to 
heaven  and  earth,  which  according  to  the  analogy  of  the  parallel  passages, 
are  summoned  as  witnesses.  But  perhaps  no  definite  reference  at  all  is 
intended,  and  no  particular  messengers  are  in  the  Psalmist's  mind  (cp. 
Is.  xiii.  2). 

my  saints']  The  word  chdstd  denotes  those  who  are  the  objects  of 
Jehovah's  chesed  or  lovingkindness.  'Saint,'  like  'servant,'  as  applied 
to  Israel,  expresses  the  relation  in  which  Jehovah  has  placed  the  nation 
towards  Himself,  without  necessarily  implying  that  its  character  corre- 
sponds to  its  calling  (Ixxix.  2;  Is.  xlii.  19).  The  indictment  against 
many  of  the  Israelites  is  that  their  conduct  towards  their  fellow-men  is 
entirely  destitute  of  that  'lovingkindness'  which  ought  to  reflect  the 
lovingkindness  of  Jehovah  towards  them.  On  the  word  chdstd  see 
Appendix,  Note  i. 

those  that  have  made  &c.]  Or,  those  that  make  &c.  The  reference 
is  not  merely  to  the  original  ratification  of  the  covenant  with  the  nation 
at  Sinai  (Ex.  xxiv.  5  ff.),  but  to  the  recognition  and  maintenance  of  it  by 
each  fresh  generation  with  repeated  sacrifices.  The  previous  line  refers 
(in  the  word  'saints')  to  the  divine  grace  which  is  the  originating  cause 
of  the  covenant  with  Israel,  this  line  to  the  human  act  which  acknow- 
ledges that  grace  and  the  obligations  which  it  entails.  It  has  been 
thought  strange  that  the  Ps.  which  depreciates  sacrifice  should  re- 
cognise it  as  the  sanction  of  the  covenant,  and  it  has  been  suggested 
that  these  words  are  merely  'ironical.'  It  is  however  impossible  to 
regard  them  as  merely  ironical.  Though  the  Decalogue  contained  no 
command  to  offer  sacrifice,  the  primitive  institution  of  sacrifice  was 
sanctioned  and  regulated  by  the  Book  of  the  Covenant  (Ex.  xx.  24  ff). 

*  See  Babbage,  Ninth  BriJgewater  Treatise,  ch.  ix.,  "On  the  Permanent 
Impression  of  our  Words  and  Actions  on  the  Globe  we  inhabit." 


28o  PSALM   L.  6—9. 


6  And  the  heavens  shall  declare  his  righteousness : 
For  God  is  judge  himself.     Selah. 

7  Hear,  O  my  people,  and  I  will  speak ; 

0  Israel,  and  I  will  testify  against  thee : 

1  am  God,  even  thy  God. 

8  I  will  not  reprove  thee  for  thy  sacrifices 

Or  thy  burnt  offerings,  to  have  been  continually  before  me. 

9  I  will  take  no  bullock  out  of  thy  house, 

Sacrifice  had  its  divinely  appointed  place  in  the  economy  of  the  old 
Covenant,  though  not  that  which  formal  and  hypocritical  worshippers 
imagined.  It  could  not  be  a  substitute  for  devotion  and  morality;  but 
its  abuse  did  not  abrogate  its  use.     See  Oehler's  O.  T.  Theology,  §  201. 

6.  Better  (unless  we  alter  the  vocalisation  and  render,  and  let  the 
heavens  declare), 

And  the  heavens  declare  his  righteousness, 

For  God  is  about  to  Judge. 
While  the  defendants  are  being  gathered,  the  Psalmist  hears  the 
heavens,  which  have  been  summoned  to  witness  the  trial,  solemnly  pro- 
claiming the  justice  of  the  Judge,  as  a  guarantee  of  the  impartiality  of 
His  judgement.  This  explanation  is  supported  by  the  use  of  the  perfect 
tense  in  xcvii.  6,  a  passage  which  is  obviously  based  upon  this  Psalm, 

7 — 15.  The  trial  begins.  God  is  the  accuser  as  well  as  the  judge. 
Israel's  sacrifices  are  unexceptionable,  but  it  is  not  slain  beasts  which  the 
Lord  of  all  the  earth  desires,  but  the  devotion  of  the  heart,  exhibited 
in  thanksgiving  and  trust.  The  people  as  a  whole  are  addressed.  The 
duty  which  is  enforced  is  their  duty  towards  God,  corresponding  to  the 
first  Table  of  the  Decalogue. 

7.  /  will  testify  against  ihee\  Or,  I  will  protest  unto  thee,  of 
solemn  warning  and  exhortation.    Cp.  Ixxxi.  8,  another  Asaphite  Psalm. 

/am  God,  even  thy  God]  The  words  which  stand  at  the  head  of  the 
Decalogue,  with  6'c'^  substituted  for  Jehovah  by  the  Elohistic  editor  of 
the  Psalm.  Cp.  Ixxxi.  10,  where  Jehovah  is  retained.  They  express 
the  relation  of  Jehovah  to  Israel,  upon  which  was  founded  His  right  to 
give  them  a  law,  and  now  to  call  them  to  account  for  their  neglect  of  it. 

8.  Render  with  R.  v., 

I  will  not  reprove  thee  for  thy  sacrifices ; 

And  thy  burnt  offerings  are  continually  before  me. 

This  rendering  is  grammatically  preferable  to  that  of  R.V.  marg. 
A^or  for  thy  burnt  offerings,  which  are  &c.,  which  gives  substantially 
the  same  sense.  God's  indictment  does  not  relate  to  sacrifice :  the 
stated  offerings  are  duly  presented.  Continually  seems  to  allude  to  the 
'continual  burnt  offering,'  which  was  offered  daily,  morning  and  evening. 
See  Num.  xxviii.  3  ff. 

9  flf.  The  owner  of  the  vast  herds  of  animals  which  roam  the  forests 
and  range  over  a  thousand  mountains  is  not  like  some  earthly  king  who 


PSALM   L.  10—15.  281 


Nor  he  goats  out  of  thy  folds. 

For  every  beast  of  the  forest  is  mine,  10 

And  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills. 

I  know  all  the  fowls  of  the  mountains  :  « 

And  the  wild  beasts  of  the  field  are  mine. 

If  I  were  hungry,  I  would  not  tell  thee  :  12 

For  the  world  is  mine,  and  the  fulness  thereof. 

Will  I  eat  the  flesh  of  bulls,  13 

Or  drink  the  blood  of  goats  ? 

Offer  unto  God  thanksgiving ;  m 

And  pay  thy  vows  unto  the  most  High : 

And  call  upon  me  in  the  day  of  trouble :  15 


comes  and  takes  the  choicest  of  his  subjects'  possessions  at  his  will 
(i  Sam.  viii.  16  f.)-  The  phrase  rendered  itpon  a  thousand  hills  may 
mean  upon  the  vioicntains  where  thousands  arc.  The  construction  in 
either  case  is  peculiar,  and  it  has  been  conjectured  that  we  should  read 
upon  the  mountains  of  God,  as  in  xxxvi.  6;  but  the  alteration  is 
hardly  necessary. 

11.  The  wild  beasts  ofthejield]  A  peculiar  phrase,  found  only  in 
another  Asaphite  Psalm  (Ixxx.  13),  meaning  probably  all  that  moveth 
in  the  field,  including  the  'creeping  thing'  (Gen.  i.  24  f). 

are  mine]  Lit.,  are  with  me,  i.e.  are  in  my  sight  (P.B.  V.),  or,  in  my 
mind  (R.V.  marg.). 

12  f.  If  God  had  need  of  sustenance,  He  would  not  be  dependent 
upon  man  for  it :  but  a  spiritual  Being  needs  no  material  support. 

12.  the  world  is  mine  &c.]  Cp.  xxiv.  i ;  Ixxxix.  1 1 ;  Ex.  xix.  5 ; 
Deut.  X.  14;  Job  xli.  11;  i  Cor.  x.  26. 

13.  Such  a  gross  and  material  notion  of  sacrifice  was  common  in 
heathen  countries,  and  the  survival  of  the  phrase  'bread'  or  'food  of 
Jehovah '  seems  to  indicate  that  it  once  existed  even  in  Israel.  See 
Lev,  iii.  11;  xxi.  6,  8,  17,  21;  &c.  See  Robertson  Smith,  Religion  of 
the  Semites,  p.  207. 

14.  15.  What  sacrifice  then  does  God  desire?  Not  the  material 
sacrifices  of  the  altar,  but  the  oflfering  of  the  heart. 

14.  Offer  &c.]  Lit.,  sacrifice  unto  God  thanksgiving-,  hence  R.V., 
offer  unto  God  the  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving.  The  context  makes  it 
clear  that  spiritual  sacrifices  of  thanksgiving  are  meant,  not  the  material 
'sacrifices  of  thanksgiving'  (Lev.  vii.  12)  as  contrasted  with  burnt 
offerings.    Cp.  Ixix.  30  f;  li.  17;  Hos.  xiv.  2. 

and  pay  &c.]  i.e.,  by  such  spiritual  sacrifice  thou  shalt  discharge  thy 
vows  (Lev.  vii.  16).     Cp.  Ixi.  8. 

16.  call  upon  me  SccI  Prayer  is  the  proof  of  tnist.  Cp.  Ps.  xx.  i; 
yet  note  that  that  Psalm  contains  a  reference  to  the  acceptablencss  of 
material  sacrifice  {v.  3). 


282  PSALM    L.  i6— 18. 

I  will  deliver  thee,  and  thou  shalt  glorify  me. 

16  But  unto  the  wicked  God  saith, 

What  hast  thou  to  do  to  declare  my  statutes, 

Or  that  thou  shouldst  take  my  covenant  in  thy  mouth  ? 

17  Seeing  thou  hatest  instruction, 
And  castest  my  words  behind  thee. 

18  When  thou  sawest  a  thief,  then  thou  consentedst  with  him, 
And  hast  been  partaker  with  adulterers. 

The  LXX.  here  inserts  a  Selah,  which  would  appropriately  mark  the 
close  of  this  division  of  the  Ps.     Cp.  v.  6. 

16 — 21.  In  the  preceding  verses  God  has  reproved  the  formalist : — 
the  man  who  regarded  the  offering  of  sacrifice  as  the  essence  of  religion. 
He  now  turns  to  address  the  wicked  man : — the  hypocrite,  who  repeated 
His  commandments  and  professed  allegiance  to  Him,  while  he  delibe- 
rately set  those  commandments  at  defiance  by  his  conduct.  To  him 
God  adopts  a  sterner  tone.  The  offences  with  which  he  is  charged  are 
breaches  of  the  commandments  of  the  second  Table  of  the  Decalogue, 
neglect  of  the  simplest  moral  duties  toward  his  neighbour.  The  general 
reproof  in  z^.  16,  17  is  followed  by  specific  charges  of  breaking  the 
eighth,  seventh,  and  ninth  commandments,  and  the  address  concludes 
with  a  stern  warning,  v.  ix.  Comp.  generally  Hos.  iv.  i,  2;  Rom.  ii. 
17—24. 

16.  What  meanest  thou  by  rehearsing  my  statutes,  and  by  having 
taken  (R.V.  rightly,  and  that  thou  hast  taken)  my  covenant  in  thy 
mouth?  The  people  had  pledged  themselves  to  observe  the  conditions 
of  the  covenant  as  laid  down  in  the  'book  of  the  covenant,'  of  which 
the  Decalogue  ('the  tables  of  the  covenant')  was  the  first  and  most 
important  part  (Ex.  xxiv.  7),  and  these  men  professed  to  recognise  their 
duty  as  Israelites.     Cp.  Is.  xxix.  13;  Matt.  xv.  8. 

17.  instruction]  Or,  correction  ;  the  whole  discipline  of  moral 
education ;  a  word  occurring  here  only  in  the  Psalter,  but  common  in 
Proverbs,  where  it  is  the  mark  of  the  fool  and  the  scorner  to  despise 
instruction.     Cp.  Deut.  viii.  5;  xi.  2. 

and  castest  &c.]  Lit.,  and  hast  cast,  flung  them  away  out  of 
sight  and  got  rid  of  them.  Contrast  David's  behaviour,  xviii.  22.  My 
words  includes  all  God's  commandments,  but  points  especially  to  the 
'ten  words'  of  the  Decalogue  (Deut.  iv.  13;  cp.  Ex.  xx.  i). 

18.  then  thou  consentedst  with  hint]  The  original  is  stronger  :  thou 
didst  delight  thyself  with  him,  didst  gladly  associate  with  him.  Cf. 
Job  xxxiv.  9.  R.V.  omits  then.  The  LXX  vocalises  the  consonants 
differently  and  renders,  thou  didst  run  along  with  him  (cp.  Prov.  i.  \())\ 
but  the  Massoretic  reading  is  preferable. 

and  hast  been  partaker  &c.  ]  Lit. ,  and  thy  portion  was  with  adulterers  : 
thou  didst  make  common  cause  with  them,  condoning  and  sharing  their 
sin. 


I 


PSALM    L.  19—22.  283 


Thou  givest  thy  mouth  to  evil, 

And  thy  tongue  frameth  deceit. 

Thou  sittest  and  s-peakQst  against  thy  brother; 

Thou  slanderest  thine  own  mother's  son. 

These  things  hast  thou  done,  and  I  kept  silence  ; 

Thou  thoughtest  that  I  was  altogether  such  a  one  as  thyself: 

But  I  will  reprove  thee,  and  set  them  in  order  before  thine 

eyes. 
Now  consider  this,  ye  that  forget  God, 
Lest  I  \.^2lX  you  in  pieces,  and  there  be  none  to  deliver. 

19.  Thou  hast  let  loose  thy  mouth  for  evil, 
And  thy  tongue  contriveth  deceit. 

Giving  way  to  unbridled  speech,  evil  in  substance  and  mischievous  in 
aim :  contriving  a  whole  structure  of  deliberate  falsehoods. 

20.  Thou  sittest  emphasises  the  deliberateness  of  the  slander.  Cp. 
"the  session  of  scorners,"  i.  i.  Thy  brother  might  mean  any  Israelite; 
but  the  alternative  thme  oivn  imther's  son  (cp.'  Ixix.  8,  note)  in  the 
parallel  line  indicates  that  it  is  to  be  understood  literally.  The  Psalmist 
describes  a  state  of  moral  degeneracy  in  which  even  the  closest  ties  of 
kinship  are  ignored.     Cp.  Mic.  vii.  6;  Jer.  ix.  4. 

thou  slanderest]  Lit.  dost  allege  a  fault  against.  This  rendering  suits 
the  parallelism,  but  the  phrase  (which  occurs  here  only)  is  of  uncertain 
meaning,  and  may  mean  givest  a  thrust  against  (R.V.  marg.),  or,  settest 
a  stumbling  block  for. 

21.  When  thou  didst  these  things,  and  I  kept  silence,  refraining  from 
immediate  condemnation  of  thy  conduct  by  condign  punishment,  thou 
didst  mistake  longsuffering  for  indifference,  and  think  that  I  cared  as 
little  as  thyself  for  the  laws  of  morality. 

that  I  was]  This  rendering  hardly  represents  the  original,  which 
means  that  I  should  be  or  prove  myself.  It  is  the  same  word  Ehyeh,  / 
am,  or  I  will  be.,  which  is  found  in  Ex.  iii.  14,  in  God's  proclamation  of 
Himself  as  the  Self-revealing  One,  '/  will  be  that  I  will  be.*  The 
wicked  man  degrades  his  conception  of  God  into  a  reflection  of  himself, 
and  fancies  that  Jehovah  as  He  reveals  Himself  will  prove  to  be  only 
like  a  man. 

set  them  in  order]  All  the  offences  of  which  thou  art  guilty.  The 
word  is  a  forensic  term,  used  of  drawing  up  the  various  counts  of  an  in- 
dictment.    Cp.  Job  xxiii.  4;  xxxiii.  5. 

22.  23.  Practical  conclusion,  addressed  to  both  classes :  to  the  formal 
worshippers  who  '  forget  God  '  by  ignoring  the  spiritual  character  of  the 
worship  which  He  desires,  as  well  as  to  the  hypocrites  whose  conduct 
proves  that  they  "refuse  to  have  Him  in  their  knowledge." 

22.    ye  that  forget  God]     Eloah:  see  note  owv.  \.  ■  For  the  phrase 
cp.  ix.  17;  Job  viii.  13;  and  for  the  thought,  x.  4. 
lest  1  tear  &c.]     Like  a  lion.     Cp.  Hos.  v.  1 4. 


284  PSALM    L.  23. 


83  Whoso  offereth  praise  glorifieth  me : 

And  to  him  that  ordereth  his  conversation  aright 
Will  I  shew  the  salvation  of  God. 


23.  Whoso  offereth  pj-aise]  He  that  offereth  the  sacrifice  of  thanks- 
giving,  as  in  v.  14.  This  line  sums  up  the  teaching  oivv.  7 — 15  on  the 
nature  of  true  worship :  and  it  is  natural  to  expect  the  second  line  to 
sum  up  the  teaching  of  vv.  16 — 21  on  the  obligations  of  moral  duty. 
This  it  does  if  the  rendering  of  A.V.  can  be  retained,  *io  him  that 
ordereth  his  conversation  aright,'  i.e.  takes  heed  to  his  way  of  life,  or 
orders  it  in  accordance  with  My  commandments.  But  aright  is  not  in 
the  Heb.,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  this  sense  can  fairly  be  extracted  from 
the  text.  Hence  the  rendering  of  R.V.  marg.  has  been  proposed,  and 
prepareth  a  way  that  I  may  shew  him  &c. ,  which  is  grammatically  unex- 
ceptionable, but  does  not  fit  the  context.  Probably  some  slight  cor- 
rection of  the  text  is  needed,  such  as.  He  that  keepeth  my  way  (xviii.  21 ; 
xxxvii.  34),  or,  my  words  {v.  17;  cxix.  17,  loi),  to  him  will  I  shew  the 
salvation  of  God.     Cp.  xci.  16. 


PSALM  LI. 

This  Psalm  is  the  first  of  eighteen  Psalms  bearing  the  name  of  David, 
which  appear  to  have  been  taken  from  some  earlier  collection  by  the 
compiler  of  the  Elohistic  Psalter.  Eight  of  them  have  titles  connecting 
them  with  historical  incidents  in  the  life  of  David.  Most  recent  com- 
mentators find  the  contents  of  these  Psalms  unsuitable  to  the  occasions 
indicated,  and  regard  the  titles  as  arbitrarily  prefixed  by  the  compiler. 
In  some  instances  this  appears  to  be  the  case ;  but  it  may  be  doubted 
whether  we  are  always  capable  of  judging  what  might  or  might  not  have 
been  considered  appropriate  to  a  particular  occasion.  Some  of  these 
Psalms  may  be  original  Davidic  Psalms,  altered  perhaps  in  the  process 
of  transmission,  or  adapted  for  liturgical  use  by  modifications  and 
additions.  Others  may  have  been  selected  as  bearing,  more  or  less,  upon 
the  events  with  which  they  are  connected.  Others  again  may  have  been 
composed  with  the  intention  of  illustrating  episodes  in  the  life  of  David. 
The  latter  view  is  sometimes  objected  to  as  implying  a  fraud  which  is 
incompatible  with  inspiration.  But  the  objection  rests  upon  a  narrow 
view  of  inspiration.  Why  may  not  God  have  used  and  directed  the 
faculty  of  poetic  imagination,  in  order  to  enable  us  better  to  understand 
some  particular  incident,  and  more  fully  to  realise  the  lessons  contained 
in  it? 

In  studying  these  Psalms  it  must  be  remembered  that  they  have  a 
history.  The  possibility  that  they  no  longer  lie  before  us  in  their 
original  form  must  be  taken  into  account.  Other  changes  beside  the 
substitution  of  Elohim  for  Jehovah  may  have  been  made  by  the  editor, 
or  may  have  crept  in  by  accident  in  the  process  of  transmission.     This  is 


PSALM    LI.  285 


not  mere  theory.  We  see  what  has  actually  happened  in  the  case  of 
Ps.  liii. 

Ps.  li  is  assigned  by  its  title  to  that  crisis  in  David's  life  when  Nathan 
awoke  his  slumbering  conscience  to  recognise  his  guilt  in  the  matter  of 
Bath-sheba  {2  Sara.  xii).  It  is  then  a  commentary  upon  David's  con- 
fession, "  I  have  sinned  against  Jehovah,"  and  Nathan's  assurance, 
"Jehovah  also  hath  put  away  thy  sin;  thou  shalt  not  die."  It  has 
generally  been  thought  to  contain  David's  first  heart-felt  prayer  for 
pardon,  while  Ps.  xxxii,  written  after  some  interval,  when  he  had  had 
time  to  ponder  upon  the  past,  records  his  experience  for  the  warning 
and  instruction  of  others,  in  accordance  with  the  resolution  of  li.  13. 

Its  general  appropriateness  cannot  be  denied.  Where,  save  in  a 
character  like  that  of  David,  uniting  the  strongest  contrasts,  capable  of 
the  highest  virtue  and  the  lowest  fall,  could  we  find  such  a  combination 
of  the  deepest  guilt  with  the  most  profound  penitence?  David  had 
been  endowed  with  the  spirit  of  Jehovah  (i  Sam.  xvi.  13;  2  Sam.  xxiii. 
2) ;  he  had  received  the  promise  that  his  house  should  be  established  for 
ever  before  Jehovah  {2  Sam.  vii.  15,  16).  Might  he  not  well  fear  lest 
the  fate  of  Saul  should  be  his  fate;  lest,  like  Saul,  he  should  be  deprived 
of  the  spirit  of  God  and  deposed  from  his  high  position  of  privilege  ? 
But  it  was  just  this  capacity  for  repentance  and  trust  in  the  abundance 
of  God's  mercy  which  distinguished  him  from  Saul,  and  made  it  possible 
for  him  with  all  his  faults  to  be  called  "the  man  after  God's  own 
heart."     Comp.  the  well-known  passage  in  Carlyle's  Heroes^  p.  43. 

The  Davidic  authorship  of  the  Psalm  has  however  been  denied  by 
many  critics,  chiefly  upon  the  following  grounds. 

( I )  The  last  two  verses  imply  that  Jerusalem  was  in  ruins  and  that  sacri- 
ficial worship  was  suspended.  If  these  verses  were  part  of  the  original 
Psalm,  they  would  certainly  point  to  a  date  in  the  Exile  or  in  some  period 
of  distress  such  as  that  which  preceded  the  mission  of  Nehemiah.  It  has 
indeed  been  maintained  that  they  can  be  understood  as  a  prayer  of 
David  that  the  still  unfinished  fortifications  of  Jerusalem  (cp.  i  Kings 
iii.  i)  may  be  carried  to  a  successful  completion;  or,  in  figurative 
language,  that  his  kingdom  may  not  suffer  for  his  sin.  But  the  expla- 
nation is  unsatisfactory.  A  comparison  of  similar  expressions  in  Ixix. 
35 ;  cii.  16 ;  cxivii.  2,  makes  it  almost  certain  that  the  words  are  a  prayer 
for  the  restoration  of  Jerusalem  and  the  reestablishment  of  sacrificial 
worship  there.  These  verses  however  do  not  appear  to  be  an  original 
part  of  the  Psalm.  It  is  indeed  argued  that  "the  omission  of  these 
verses  makes  the  Psalm  end  abruptly":  but  the  abruptness,  if  it 
exists,  is  far  less  startling  than  the  termination  of  a  Psalm  of  such 
surpassing  spirituality  with  the  hope  of  the  restoration  of  material 
sacrifices,  z/.  17  forms  a  conclusion  which,  if  abrupt,  is  in  harmony 
with  the  spirit  of  the  Psalm:  v.  19  does  not.  In  fact  the  contrast,  if 
not  actual  contradiction,  between  v.  19  and  w.  16,  17  makes  it 
difficult  to  suppose  that  they  can  have  been  written  by  the  same  poet  at 
the  same  time.  Moreover  while  w.  i — 17  are,  at  least  in  expression, 
strictly  individual,  z/.  19  introduces  the  people  generally  ("they  shall 
offer").  These  verses  then  must  be  excluded  in  the  consideration  of 
the  date  of  the  Psalm,  as  in  all  probability  a  later  addition. 


286  PSALM    LI. 


(2)  But  further  it  is  urged  that  the  words  of  v.  4,  "against  thee, 
thee  only,  have  I  sinned,"  are  inapplicable  to  David's  situation,  for 
"however  great  David's  sin  against  God,  he  had  done  Uriah  the  most 
burning  wrong  that  could  be  imagined ;  and  an  injury  to  a  neighbour  is 
in  the  O.T.  a  *sin'  against  him,  Gen.  xx.  9;  Jud.  xi.  27;  Jer.  xxxvii. 
18  "  (Driver,  Introd.  to  Lit.  of  0.  T.  p.  367).  But  surely  it  is  a  mistake 
to  demand  logical  accuracy  in  words  of  intense  emotion.  What  is  meant 
is  that  "the  other  aspects  of  his  deed — its  heinous  criminality  as  a  wrong 
done  to  a  fellow-man — disappeared  for  the  time,  while  he  contemplated 
it  as  a  sin  against  his  infinitely  gracious  Benefactor."  (Kay.)  Moreover 
if  the  words  are  inapplicable  to  David,  to  whom  can  they  apply?  The 
Psalmist  confesses  himself  blood-guilty  {v.  14),  and  whether  the  expres- 
sion refers  to  actual  murder  or  only  to  'mortal  sins,'  it  must  refer  in 
the  main  to  offences  against  man  not  God.     See  Ezek.  xviii.  10 — 13. 

(3)  Of  more  weight  against  the  Davidic  authorship  is  the  consideration 
that  the  closest  parallels  of  thought  and  language  are  to  be  found  in  the 
later  chapters  of  Isaiah,  in  particular  in  the  national  confession  of  guilt 
in  Is.  Ixiii.  7 — Ixiv,  and  that  the  language  appears  to  belong  to  a  later 
and  more  developed  stage  of  the  religious  consciousness.  Cp.  v.  i  with 
Is.  Ixiii.  7;  !v.  3  with  Is.  lix.  12;  t/.  9  with  Is.  xliii.  25;  xliv.  22;  v.  i\  b 
with  Is.  Ixiii.  10,  11;  v.  17  with  Is.  Ivii.  15;  Ixi.  i;  Ixvi.  2.  The 
precariousness  of  this  argument  is  obvious,  and  the  weight  attached 
to  it  will  depend  largely  upon  the  view  taken  of  the  whole  course  of  the 
gi-owth  of  religious  ideas  in  Israel,  but  it  cannot  be  disregarded. 

It  must  then  be  taken  into  account  as  at  least  a  possibility  that  the 
Psalm  was  written  by  some  deeply  devout  prophet  of  the  Exile,  perhaps 
even  the  author  of  the  later  chapters  of  Isaiah,  and  placed  in  the  mouth 
of  David,  to  illustrate  an  episode  in  his  life  which  presented  the  most 
signal  instance  in  history  of  the  fall,  repentance,  and  pardon,  of  a  good 
and  great  man :  written  by  inspiration  of  God  to  supply  to  all  ages  the 
most  profound  type  of  confession,  and  the  most  comforting  assurance, 
based  upon  the  experience  of  David,  that  God's  mercy  to  the  penitent 
knows  no  limit. 

By  many  critics  the  Psalm  is  regarded  as  the  utterance  not  of  an 
individual  but  of  the  nation.  This  view  is  as  old  as  Theodore  of 
Mopsuestia  (a.D.  428)  who  refers  it  to  Israel  in  Babylon,  confessing  its 
sins  and  praying  for  forgiveness  and  restoration  from  exile,  and  it  has 
recently  been  maintained  by  Robertson  Smith  [0.  T.  in  Jnuish  Churchy 
2nd  ed.,  p.  440)  and  Driver  {Introd.  p.  367),  who  place  it  in  the  Exile, 
and  by  Cheyne  {Origin  of  the  Psalter^  p.  162 ;  Aids  to  the  Devout  Study  of 
Criticism,  pp.  164  ff.),  who  places  it  later,  between  the  Restoration  and 
Nehemiah.  "The  situation  of  the  Psalm,"  writes  Robertson  Smith, 
"does  not  necessarily  presuppose  such  a  case  as  David's.  It  is  equally 
applicable  to  the  prophet,  labouring  under  a  deep  sense  that  he  has  dis- 
charged his  calling  inadequately  and  may  have  the  guilt  of  lost  lives 
upon  his  head  (Ezek.  xxxiii),  or  to  collective  Israel  in  the  Captivity, 
when,  according  to  the  prophets,  it  was  the  guilt  of  blood  equally  with 
the  guilt  of  idolatry  that  removed  God's  favour  from  His  land  (Jer.  vii. 
6;  Hos.  iv.  2,  vi.  8;  Is.  iv.  4).  Nay,  from  the  Old  Testament  point  of 
view,  in  which  the  experience  of  wrath  and  forgiveness  stands  generally 


PSALM    LI.  287 


in  such  immediate  relation  to  Jehovah's  actual  dealings  with  the  nation, 
the  whole  thought  of  the  Psalm  is  most  simply  understood  as  a  prayer 
for  the  restoration  and  sanctification  of  Israel  in  the  mouth  of  a  prophet 
of  the  Exile...  perhaps  of  the  very  prophet  who  wrote  the  last  chapters  of 
the  Book  of  Isaiah." 

Such  a  view  will  not  appear  impossible  to  anyone  who  compares  the 
personification  of  Israel  as  the  Servant  of  Jehovah  in  Is.  xl.  ff ;  and  the 
addition  of  w.  18,  19  points  to  the  use  of  the  Psalm  by  Israel  in 
exile  as  the  fitting  expression  of  its  feelings.  But  it  is  difficult  to  resist 
the  impression  that  the  Psalm  is  personal  rather  than  national  in  its 
original  and  primary  intention. 

Its  authorship  and  date  and  original  intention  are  however  questions 
of  minor  importance,  compared  with  its  profound  appropriateness  as  the 
voice  of  the  penitent  soul  in  all  ages.  One  generation  after  another 
has  found  by  experience  that  its  words  "fit  into  every  fold  of  the  human 
heart,"  and  supply  them  with  language  which  the  revelation  of  the 
Gospel  has  not  superseded,  but  only  deepened  in  meaning.  If  any 
proof  of  its  in.spiration  is  needed,  it  is  to  be  found  here  (Rom.  viii.  26). 
In  true  repentance,  says  Luther,  a  knowledge  of  sin  and  a  knowledge 
of  grace  must  combine :  it  is  this  double  knowledge  which  inspires  this 
Psalm,  and  is  revealed  in  a  clearer  light  in  Jesus  Christ. 

A  strange  testimony  to  its  power  is  given  in  the  story  that  Voltaire 
began  to  parody  it,  but  when  he  reached  v.  10  was  so  overcome  with 
alarm  that  he  desisted  from  his  profane  attempt. 

It  is  the  fourth  of  the  seven  Psalms  known  from  ancient  times  in  the 
Christian  Church  as  the  'Penitential  Psalms'  (vi,  xxx'i,  xxxviii,  li,  cii, 
cxxx,  cxliii).  According  to  some  Jewish  rituals  it  is  recited  on  the  Day 
of  Atonement;  and  it  is  appointed  for  use  in  the  Commination  Service 
on  Ash  Wednesday. 

There  is  no  clearly  marked  strophical  arrangement  in  the  Psalm,  but 
iyv.  18,  19  being  regarded  as  an  addition  outside  the  scheme  of  the  Ps.) 
it  falls  into  four  stanzas,  each,  with  the  exception  of  the  fourth,  consist- 
ing of  two  pairs  of  verses. 

i.  The  Psalmist  prays  for  pardon  and  cleansing,  confessing  the  great- 
ness of  his  sins  (i — 4). 

ii.  In  utter  self-abasement  he  contrasts  the  corruption  of  his  nature 
with  the  sincerity  which  God  des?res,  and  expresses  his  confident  assur- 
ance that  God  can  and  will  cleanse  and  gladden  him  (5 — 8). 

iii.  Repeating  his  petition  for  pardon,  he  supplicates  for  inward 
renewal  and  for  the  continuance  of  God's  favour  and  support  (9 — 12). 

iv.  He  resolves  to  employ  his  regained  freedom  in  grateful  service, 
and  to  express  his  thanksgiving  by  that  sacrifice  of  the  heart  which  God 
most  desires  (13 — 17). 

v.  A  prayer  of  the  congregation  in  exile  that  Jerusalem  may  be 
rebuilt  and  the  sacrificial  worship  reestablished,  as  a  visible  proof  of 
the  restoration  of  God's  favour  (18,  19). 


288  PSALM  LI.  I,  2. 


To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  of  David,  when  Nathan  the  prophet  came  unto 
him,  after  he  had  gone  in  to  Bath-sheba. 

51  Have  mercy  upon  me,  O  God,  according  to  thy  loving- 
kindness  : 
According  unto  the  multitude  of  thy  tender  mercies  blot 
out  my  transgressions. 
2  Wash  me  throughly  from  mine  iniquity, 
And  cleanse  me  from  my  sin. 

1 — 4.  Prayer  for  forgiveness  and  cleansing :  its  ground,  God's  grace; 
its  condition,  man's  repentance. 

1.  Have  mercy  upon  me]  Or,  Be  gracious  unto  me,  as  the  word  is 
rendered  in  2  Sam.  xii.  22.  It  suggests  the  free  bestowal  of  favour 
rather  than  the  exercise  of  forgiving  clemency,  and  is  connected  with 
the  word  rendered  gracious  in  Ex.  xxxiv.  6.  Cp.  Ps.  iv.  i ;  Ivi.  1 ; 
Ivii.  I. 

thy  lovingkindness]  The  origin  and  the  bond  of  the  covenant  between 
Jehovah  and  Israel. 

according  unto  the  multitude  of  thy  tejider  mercies]  Or,  according  to 
the  abundance  of  thy  compassions.  Cp.  xxv.  6;  Is.  Ixiii.  7;  Lam.  iii. 
32  ;  I  Pet.  i.  3. 

The  prayer  for  pardon  is  thus  based  upon  God's  revelation  of  His 
character  as  "a  God  full  of  compassion  and  gracious,  abundant  in 
lovingkindness  and  truth;  keeping  lovingkindness  for  thousands,  forgiv- 
ing iniquity  and  transgression  and  sin,  and  that  will  by  no  means  clear 
the  guilty"  (Ex.  xxxiv.  6,  7); — a  passage  which  seems  to  have  supplied 
the  Psalmist's  language.     Cp.  Ixxxvi.  15;  Joel  ii.  13. 

Sin  is  described,  as  in  Ex.  xxxiv.  7  (cp.  Ps.  xxxii.  i,  2),  in  three 
different  aspects,  as  transgression,  iniquity,  sin:  the  Heb.  words  thus 
rendered  meaning  respectively,  (i)  defection  from  God  or  rebellion 
against  Him :  (2)  the  perversion  of  right,  depravity  of  conduct :  (3)  error, 
wandering  from  the  right  way,  missing  the  mark  in  life. 

The  removal  of  guilt  is  also  triply  described,  (i)  Blot  out  (cp.  v.  9): 
sin  is  regarded  as  a  debt  recorded  in  God's  book  which  needs  to  be 
erased  and  cancelled  (cp.  the  use  of  the  word  in  Ex.  xxxii.  32  j  Num.  v.  23 ; 
and  see  note  on  Ps.  xxxii.  2) :  or  the  word  may  be  used  more  generally 
(^ivipe  out)  of  cleansing  away  defilement  so  that  no  trace  of  it  remains 
(2  Kings  xxi.  13).  Cp.  the  promise  in  Is.  xliii.  25  ;  xliv.  22;  and  also 
Neh.  iv.  5  ;  Jer.  xviii.  23.  (2)  Wash  me:  the  word  means  properly  to 
wash  clothes,  as  a  fuller  does  (LXX  correctly,  irXxivov,  cp.  Rev.  vii.  14; 
xxii.  14),  and  is  frequently  used  of  ceremonial  purifications  (Ex.  xix.  10, 
14,  &c.) :  here  it  denotes  that  inward  cleansing  of  which  external  wash- 
ings were  the  type.  Cp.  Jer.  ii.  22;  iv.  14.  He  prays,  'wash  me 
thoroughly,^  or,  abundantly,  for  "the  depth  of  his  guilt  demands  an 
unwonted  and  special  grace."  But  if  transgressions  abound  (Lam.  i.  5), 
so  does  mercy.  (3)  Cleanse  me  (cp.  be  clean,  v.  7) ;  like  wash,  a  common 
term  in  the  Levitical  ritual,  especially  in  the  laws  concerning  leprosy, 
meaning  sometimes  to  cleanse,  sometimes  to  pronounce  clean.     This  use 


PSALM   LI.  3,  4.  289 


For  I  acknowledge  my  transgressions  ; 

And  my  sin  is  ever  before  me. 

Against  thee,  thee  only,  have  I  sinned, 

And  done  ihis  evil  in  thy  sight ; 

That  thou  mightest  be  justified  when  thou  speak- 

est, 
And  be  clear  when  thou  judgest. 

of  it  suggests  the  comparison  of  sin  with  leprosy.     Cp.  Lev.  xiii.  6,  34, 
&c.;  1  Kings  v.  10,  12,  13,  14. 

3.  For  I  acknowledge^  Lit.,  /  know.  The  pronoun  is  emphatic.  His 
sins  have  all  along  been  known  to  God.  They  are  before  His  eyes  (xc.  8). 
But  now  he  has  come  to  know  them  himself;  they  are  unceasingly  pre- 
sent to  his  conscience.  Such  consciousness  of  sin  is  the  first  step  towards 
the  repentance  and  confession  which  are  the  indispensable  conditions  of 
forgiveness.  David  refused  to  acknowledge  his  sin  to  himself  and  to 
God — yet  not,  apparently,  without  sharp  pangs  of  remorse,  see  xxxii.  3,  4 
— until  Nathan's  message  awoke  his  conscience.  Cp.  the  confession  of 
the  nation  in  Is.  lix.  1 2. 

4.  David's  confession  to  Nathan  was  couched  in  the  simple  words 
(two  only  in  the  Heb.),  "I  have  sinned  against  Jehovah."  The  addi- 
tional words  "thee  only"  have  been  taken  as  a  proof  that  the  Psalm 
cannot  have  been  written  by  David.  But  they  need  not,  as  we  have 
seen  already,  be  pressed  with  such  extreme  logical  precision  as  to 
exclude  sin  against  man.  All  sin,  even  that  by  which  man  is  mo.^t 
grievously  injured,  is,  in  its  ultimate  nature,  sin  against  God,  as  a  breacli 
of  His  holy  law  j  just  as  man's  duty  to  his  fellow-man  is  based  upon  his 
duty  to  God  and  is  regarded  as  part  of  it.  Moreover  the  king,  as 
Jehovah's  representative,  was  in  an  especial  and  peculiar  way  respon- 
sible to  Him. 

and  done  this  evir\  Better  as  R.V.,  and  done  that  which  Is  evil  in 
thy  sight.  Cp.  2  Sam.  xi.  27,  "the  thing  that  David  had  done  was 
evil  in  the  sight  of  Jehovah":  and  xii.  9,  "Wherefore  hast  thou  despised 
the  word  of  Jehovah,  to  do  that  which  is  evil  in  his  sight?" 

that  thou  mightest  &;c.  ]  Better,  that  thou  mayest  be  justified  when 
thou  givest  sentence:  i.e.,  that  Thy  righteousness  and  holiness  may  be 
declared  and  vindicated  when  Thou  dost  pronounce  sentence  on  my  sin. 
When  thou  speakest  is  shewn  by  the  parallelism  to  mean,  'when  Thou 
dost  pronounce  sentence.'  Be  Justified  corresponds  to  the  cardinal 
divine  attribute  of  righteousness :  be  clear  to  that  of  holiness.  Cp.  Is.  v. 
i6,  "God  the  Holy  One  proves  Himself  holy  in  righteousness." 

But  this  is  a  hard  saying.  Can  it  be  meant  that  the  vindication 
of  God's  holiness  is  the  object  of  man's  sin?  (i)  Grammar  forbids  us 
to  relieve  the  difficulty  by  rendering  w  that  thou  art  justified  (con- 
sequence) instead  of  in  order  that  thou  mayest  be  justified  (purpose). 
(2)  We  might  regard  that  as  depending  upon  z/z/.  3,  4  a  taken  together, 
and  introducing  the  object  of  the  Psalmist's  confession.  *I  confess  my 
sin,  that  thou  mayest  be  justified  in  pronouncing  sentence  upon  me.' 

PSALMS  1 9 


20O  rSALM   LI.  5. 


5  Behold,  I  was  shapcn  in  iniquity; 

The  sinner's  confession  and  self-condemnation  is  a  justification  of  God's 
sentence  upon  sin,  just  as,  conversely,  the  sinner's  self-justification  is  a 
challenge  and  impugnment  of  God's  justice  (Josh.  vii.  19;  Job  xl.  8; 
I  John  i.  10).  (3)  Probably  however  we  are  meant  to  understand  that 
man's  sin  brings  out  into  a  clearer  light  the  justice  and  holiness  of  God, 
Who  pronounces  sentence  upon  it.  The  Psalmist  flings  himself  at  the 
footstool  of  the  Divine  Justice.  The  consequence  of  his  sin,  and  there- 
fore in  a  sense  its  purpose  (for  nothing  is  independent  of  the  sovereign 
"Will  of  God),  is  to  enhance  before  men  the  justice  and  holiness  of  God, 
the  absolutely  Righteous  and  Pure.  "The  Biblical  writers... drew  no 
sharp  accurate  line  between  events  as  the  consequence  of  the  Divine 
order,  and  events  as  following  from  the  Divine  purpose.  To  them  all 
was  ordained  and  designed  of  God.  Even  sin  itself  in  all  its  manifesta- 
tions, though  the  whole  guilt  of  it  rested  with  man,  did  not  flow  uncon- 
trolled, but  only  in  channels  hewn  for  it  by  God,  and  to  subserve  His 
purposes.,.. We  must  not  expect  that  the  Hebrew  mind... altogether 
averse  from  philosophical  speculation,  should  have  exactly  defined  for 
itself  the  distinction  between  an  action  viewed  as  the  consequence^  and 
the  same  action  viewed  as  the  end^  of  another  action.  The  mind  which 
holds  the  simple  fundamental  truth  that  all  is  of  God,  may  also  hold, 
almost  as  a  matter  of  course,  that  all  is  designed  of  God "  (Bishop 
Perowne).  In  this  connexion  passages  such  as  2  Sam.  xxiv.  i;  Is.  vi. 
10,  Ixiii.  17;  Jud.  ix.  23;  i  Sam.  xvi.  14,  xviii.  10,  xix.  9;  i  Kings  xxii. 
21,  require  careful  consideration. 

Such  a  view  is  obviously  liable  to  misconstruction,  as  though,  if  sin 
is  in  any  sense  treated  as  part  of  the  divine  purpose,  and  redounding  to 
God's  glory,  it  must  cease  to  be  sinful,  and  there  must  be  an  end  of 
human  responsibility.  But  the  O.T.  firmly  maintains  the  truth  of  man's 
responsibility :  and  St  Paul,  in  applying  the  words  of  this  verse  to  the 
course  of  Israel's  history  (Rom.  iii.  4)  rebuts  as  the  suggestion  of  an 
unhealthy  conscience  the  notion  that  God  is  responsible  for  sin  which 
He  overrules  to  His  glory. 

The  quotation  in  Rom.  iii.  4  is  from  the  LXX,  in  which  the  Ileb. 
word  for  be  clear  is  taken  in  its  Aramaic  sense,  be  victorious^  prevail^ 
and  the  last  word  (;when  thou  judgest)  is  ambiguously  rendered.  The 
Greek  word  may  be  passive,  when  thou  art  judged  (as  P.B.V.,  derived 
from  LXX  through  the  Vulg.,  and  A.V.  in  Rom.),  i.e.  when  Thy  justice 
is  challenged :  but  more  probably  it  is  middle,  '  when  Thou  comest  into 
judgement.'     So  R.V.  in  Rom.     Cp.  Jer.  ii.  9  (LXX);  Matt.  v.  40. 

5 — 8.  He  has  inherited  a  sinful  nature;  and  yet,  so  he  is  confident, 
God  can  and  will  make  it  conform  to  His  desire.  The  emphatic  'Be- 
hold!' marks  the  beginning  of  a  new  stanza. 

6.  Behold,  I  was  shapen]  Better,  Behold,  I  was  bom.  Acts  of  sin 
have  their  root  in  the  inherited  sinfulness  of  mankind.  It  does  not 
appear,  as  some  have  thought,  that  the  Psalmist  pleads  the  sinfulness  of 
his  nature  as  an  excuse  for  his  actual  sins.  Rather,  in  utter  self-abase- 
ment, he  feels  compelled  to  confess  and  bewail  not  only  his  actual  sins, 


PSALM   LI.  6,  7.  291 


And  in  sin  did  my  mother  conceive  me. 

Behold,  thou  desirest  truth  in  the  inward  parts ;  6 

And  in  the  hidden  part  thou   shalt   make   me    to   know 

wisdom. 
Purge  me  with  hyssop,  and  I  shall  be  clean  :  7 

Wash  me,  and  I  shall  be  whiter  than  snow. 

but  the  deep  infection  of  his  whole  nature  (Job  xiv.  4;  Rom.  vii.  18). 
Moreover  this  verse  forms  the  introduction  to  v.  6,  which,  as  the  repe- 
tition of  'behold'  indicates  (cp.  Is.  Iv.  4  f;  liv.  15  f),  stands  in  close  con- 
nexion and  correlation  with  it.  He  contrasts  his  natural  perversity  and 
liability  to  error  with  the  inward  truth  and  wisdom  which  God  desires, 
and  which,  he  is  confident,  God  can  communicate  to  the  pardoned  and 
regenerate  soul. 

6.  /r«M  in  the  inward  parts]  In  the  most  secret  springs  of  thought 
and  will,  unseen  by  man  but  known  to  God,  He  desires' /r«M,  perfect 
sincerity,  whole-hearted  devotion,  incapable  of  deluding  self,  as  David 
had  done,  or  deceiving  man,  as  he  had  endeavoured  to  do  by  his  attempts 
to  cover  his  sin  and  its  consequences,  or  dissembling  with  God,  as  in  his 
infatuation  he  had  imagined  to  be  possible.  Correlative  to  the  truth 
which  God  desires  is  wisdom,  which  is  His  gift,  the  spiritual  discernment 
which  is  synonymous  with  the  fear  of  Jehovah,  and  is  the  practical  prin- 
ciple of  right  conduct.  Cp.  I'rov.  i.  7,  ix.  10;  Job  xxviii.  28;  James 
iii.  17. 

7,  8.  The  verbs  in  these  verses  may  be  regarded  as  optatives  {ftiayest 
thou  purge  me),  but  it  is  preferable  to  render  them  as  futures :  Thou 
Shalt  purge  me... thou  shalt  wash  me... thou  shalt  make  me  hear. 
They  thus  give  utterance  to  the  Psalmist's  faith  that  God  can  and  will 
cleanse  and  restore  him.  In  w.  pff  direct  prayer  is  resumed  by  the 
imperative,  ^s  \x\w.  i,  2. 

The  figurative  language  is  borrowed  from  the  ceremonial  of  the  law. 
A  bunch  of  hyssop,  some  common  herb  which  grew  upon  walls  (Tris- 
tram, Nat.  Hist^of  the  Bible,  p.  455),  was  used  as  a  sprinkler,  especially 
in  the  rites  for  cleansing  the  leper  and  purifying  the  unclean.  (Ex.  xii. 
^1\  Lev.  xiv.  4  fF;  Num.  xix.  6  fT,  i8ff;  Hebr.  ix.  19.)  Washing  of  the 
person  and  clothes  regularly  formed  part  of  the  rites  of  purification. 
The  Psalmist  is  of  course  thinking  of  the  inward  and  spiritual  cleansing 
of  which  those  outward  rites  were  the  symbol.  He  appeals  to  God  Him- 
self to  perform  the  office  of  the  priest  and  cleanse  him  from  his  defile- 
ment. 

whiter  than  snow]  Cp.  Is.  i.  18,  where  this  natural  emblem  of  j)urity 
is  contrasted  with  the  scarlet  of  sin,  suggested  by  the  stains  of  blood 
upon  the  hands  (z;.  15).  Terms  usually  applied  to  garments  (z/.  2  note) 
are  transferred  to  the  person.     Cp.  Rev.  iii.  4,  5,  iv.  4  ;  &c. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  follow  the  Syr.  in  reading  thou  shalt  satisfy  me 
with  joy  (xc.  14)  for  thou  shalt  make  vie  hear  joy,  though  the  change 
would  be  a  simple  one.     The  language  is  still  borrowed  from  the  law. 

19—2 


292  PSALM   LI.  8-n. 


8  Make  me  to  hear  joy  and  gladness ; 

That  the  bones  which  thou  hast  broken  may  rejoice. 

9  Hide  thy  face  from  my  sins, 
And  blot  out  all  mine  iniquities. 

lo  Create  in  me  a  clean  heart,  O  God ; 

And  renew  a  right  spirit  within  me. 
"  Cast  me  not  away  from  thy  presence; 

And  take  not  thy  holy  Spirit  from  me. 

As  the  purification  of  the  unclean  was  the  prelude  to  his  readmission  to 
the  gladness  of  the  worship  of  the  sanctuary  (xlii.  4),  so  the  cleansing  of 
the  Psalmist's  heart  will  be  the  prelude  to  his  restoration  to  that  '  joy  of 
God's  salvation'  (z/.  12),  which  he  desires. 

the  bones  which  thou  hast  broken]  For  the  sense  of  God's  displeasure 
had  as  it  were  crushed  and  shattered  his  whole  frame.  See  note  on  xlii. 
10,  and  cp.  xxxii.  3. 

9 — 12.  Repeated  prayer  for  pardon,  cleansing,  and  renewal.  The 
change  from  the  future  to  the  imperative  (see  above)  indicates  that  a 
fresh  division  of  the  Ps.  begins  here. 

9.  Hide  thy  face  from  my  sins]  Cease  to  gaze  upon  them  in  dis- 
pleasure. Cp.  xxxii.  I  ;  xc.  8.  This  use  of  the  expression  is  unusual. 
Generally  God  is  said  to  hide  His  face  when  He  withdraws  His  favour 
(xiii.  i;   xliv.  24,  &c.). 

b/ot  out]     See  note  on  z;.  i. 

10.  Create  in  me]  Rather,  Create  me,  i.e.  for  me.  The  word  is 
used  of  the  creative  operation  of  God,  bringing  into  being  what  did  not 
exist  before :  and  so  in  the  parallel  line  renew  should  be  rather  make 
new  (Vulg.  iinwva  better  than  Jer.  rtnova).  It  is  not  the  restoration  of 
what  was  there  before  that  he  desires,  but  a  radical  change  of  heart  and 
spirit.  A  right  spirit  should  rather  be  a  stedfast  or  constant  spirit 
(Ivii.  7;  Ixxviii.  37;  cxii.  7),  fixed  and  resolute  in  its  allegiance  to  God, 
unmoved  by  the  assaults  of  temptation.  Such  a  clean  heart  and  stedfast 
spirit,  the  condition  of  fellowship  with  God  (Matt.  v.  8),  the  spring  of  a 
holy  life,  can  only  come  from  the  creative,  life-giving  power  of  God. 
Cp.  the  prophetic  promises  in  Jer.  xxiv.  7;  xxxi.  33;  xxxii.  39;  Ezek. 
xi.  19 ;  xviii.  31;  xxxvi.  26;  and  see  2  Cor.  v.  17;  Gal.  vi.  15;  Eph.  ii. 
10;  iv.  24. 

11.  The  upright  "behold  God's  face"  (xi.  7):  He  admits  them  to 
His  presence  for  ever  (xli.  12).  The  spirit  of  Jehovah  came  upon  David, 
as  it  departed  from  Saul  (i  Sam.  xvi.  13,  14).  Did  David  fear  that  he 
might  share  the  fate  of  Saul,  banished  from  God's  presence  and  deprived 
of  His  favour,  deserted  by  that  Spirit  which  is  the  source  of  all  right 
desire  and  action  ? 

It  is  pointed  out  by  the  advocates  of  the  national  interpretation  of  the 
Psalm  that  the  phrase  of  the  first  line  is  always  used  of  the  rejection  of 
the  nation  and  its  banishment  from  the  holy  land  (2  Kings  xiii.  23;  xviL 
20;  xxiv.  20;  Jer.  vii.  15):  and  that  the  phrase  'God's  holy  spirit '  is 


PSALM    LI.  12—14.  293 


Restore  unto  me  the  joy  of  thy  salvation ;  12 

And  uphold  me  with  thy  free  spirit. 

Then  will  I  teach  transgressors  thy  ways ;  13 

And  sinners  shall  be  converted  unto  thee. 

Deliver  me  from  bloodguiltiness,  O  God,  thou  God  of  my  \\ 

salvation : 
And  my  tongue  shall  sing  aloud  of  thy  righteousness. 

found  elsewhere  in  the  O.T.  only  in  Is.  Ixiii.  10,  1 1,  where  it  is  mentioned 
(along  with  '  the  angel  of  His  presence '  v.  9)  as  the  mediator  of  His 
presence  in  the  midst  of  the  nation  of  Israel.  But  both  phrases  are 
equally  applicable  to  the  individual. 

Although  the  doctrine  of  the  personality  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is  not 
taught  in  the  O.T.,  passages  like  these,  which  imply  that  in  the  spirit 
Jehovah  personally  acts,  prepare  the  way  for  the  N.T.  revelation  con- 
cerning Him,  and  can  be  used  in  the  fullest  Christian  sense.  See 
Oehler's  O.T.  TheoL,  §  65. 

12.  Restore  &c.]  For  sin  has  destroyed  that  assurance  of  God's  help 
which  is  ever  a  ground  of  rejoicing  (ix.  14;  xiii.  5;  xx.  5;  xxxv.  9). 
He  prays  for  that  deliverance  which  he  is  confident  (z^.  8)  that  God  can 
and  will  grant  him. 

with  thy  free  spirif]  Rather,  with  a  free,  or,  willing  spirit.  Cp. 
Exod.  xxxv.  5,  22;  and  the  cognate  word  in  liv.  6,  '  o.  freewz'//  offering.* 
He  desires  to  be  upheld  from  falling  by  such  a  divine  inspiration  as  will 
move  him  spontaneously  to  think  and  do  such  things  as  are  right.  His 
first  impulse  will  be  to  shew  forth  his  thankfulness  in  acts  {v.  13). 

13 — 17.     Resolutions  of  thanksgiving. 

13.  Having  experienced  the  joy  of  penitence  and  restoration,  he  will 
endeavour  to  instruct  transgressors  in  the  ways  of  Jehovah  in  which  they 
have  refused  to  walk  (Is.  xlii.  24),  those  commandments  which  they  have 
refused  to  keep,  so  that  they  may  return  to  Him  from  Whom  they  have 
gone  astray.  Ps.  xxxii  has  been  thought  to  be  the  fulfilment  of  this 
resolution.  This  resolve  is  however,  it  is  said,  "little  appropriate  to 
David,  whose  natural  and  right  feeling  in  connexion  with  his  great 
sin  must  rather  have  been  that  of  silent  humiliation  than  of  an  instant 
desire  to  preach  his  forgiveness  to  other  sinners."  But  surely  an  en- 
deavour to  undo  the  evil  effects  of  a  sin  whereby  he  "  had  given  great 
occasion  to  the  enemies  of  the  Lord  to  blaspheme"  would  be  one  of  the 
most  fitting  fruits  of  repentance. 

14.  Deliver  me  from  bloodgiiilthiess]  From  the  power  and  the 
punishment  of  my  sin.  Cp.  xxxix.  8;  xl.  12.  No  doubt  'bloodguilti- 
ness' may  include  all  'mortal  sin,'  for  which  death  was  the  punishment 
(see  Ezek.  xviii.  13;  Ps.  ix.  12,  note);  and  the  word  is  applicable 
enough  to  the  nation  which  is  repeatedly  charged  with  the  crime  of 
murder  (Is.  i.  15;  iv.  4;  Jer.  xix.  4;  Ezek.  vii.  23;  2  Kings  xxiv.  3,  4; 
&c.) ;  but  it  is  distinctly  appropriate  to  David's  crimes  of  adultery  and 
murder.     Cp.  2  Sam.  xii.  5,  13. 

thy  righteousness^     God's  righteousness,  i.e.  His    faithfulness  to  His 


294  PSALM   LI.  15—18. 


15  O  Lord,  open  thou  my  lips ; 

And  my  mouth  shall  shew  forth  thy  praise. 

16  For  thou  desirest  not  sacrifice;  else  would  I  give  it: 
Thou  delightest  not  in  burnt  offering. 

17  The  sacrifices  of  God  are  a  broken  spirit : 

A  broken  and  a  contrite  heart,  O  God,  thou  wilt  not  despise. 

18  Do  good  in  thy  good  pleasure  unto  Zion : 
Build  thou  the  walls  of  Jerusalem. 

character  and  covenant,  is  exhibited  in  the  pardon  of  the  penitent  not 
less  than  in  the  judgement  of  the  impenitent.  "If  we  confess  our  sins, 
he  is  faithful  and  righteous  to  forgive  us  our  sins,  and  to  cleanse  us 
from  all  unrighteousness"  (i  John  i.  9).     Contrast  Rom.  ii.  4  if. 

15.  open  thoit]  Lit.  as  P.B.V.,  thou  shall  open,  i.e.  when  thou  openest. 
Not  the  occasion  for  praise  only,  but  the  power  to  praise  aright  is  the 
gift  of  God.  Cp.  xl.  3.  In  this  verse  and  the  preceding  one  there  may 
be  an  allusion  to  the  public  worship  of  God.  Cp.  xxvi.  6,  7.  He 
may  be  tacitly  comparing  himself  to  the  leper  who  has  been  pronounced 
clean,  and  restored  to  that  fellowship  with  the  congregation  from  which 
he  had  been  excluded. 

16.  For  thou  desirest  not  sacrifice\  R.V.,  For  thou  deligMest  not 
in  sacrifice.  The  verb  is  the  same  as  in  t/v.  6,  19,  and  xl.  6.  For  gives 
the  reason  for  the  nature  of  the  thank-offering  which  he  proposes  to 
offer: — not  material  sacrifice  which  God  does  not  desire,  but  the 
sacrifice  of  a  contrite  heart.  Cp.  xl.  6,  the  sacrifice  of  obedience; 
1.  14,  23;  the  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving. 

thou  delightest  not]  R.V.,  thou  hast  no  pleasure :  a  word  used  of 
accepting  a  sacrifice  (cxix.  108;  cp.  xix.  14).  For  the  sense  in  which 
God  is  said  to  have  no  pleasure  in  sacrifice,  see  Introd.  to  Ps.  1.  An 
absolute  repudiation  of  all  sacrificial  worship  cannot  be  intended. 

17.  The  sacrifices  of  God]     Such  as  He  desires  and  approves. 

A  broken  spirit  and  a  contrite  heart  are  those  in  which  sorrow  and 
affliction  {v.  8)  have  done  their  work,  and  the  obstinacy  of  pride  has 
been  replaced  by  the  humility  of  penitence.     Cp.  xxxiv.  18;  Is.  Ivii.  15. 

The  P.B.V.  a  troubled  spirit  follows  the  Vulg.  spiritus  contribulatus, 
but  introduces  a  distinction  which  does  not  exist  in  the  Heb. 

thou  wilt  not  despise]  Though  David  had  despised  the  word  of  the 
Lord  (2  Sam.  xii.  9),  he  is  confident  that  God  will  not  despise  him. 
Cp.  cii.  17  ;  John  vi.  37. 

18.  19.  Prayer  of  Israel  m  exile  for  the  restoration  of  Jerusalem  and 
the  renewal  of  the  Temple  worship. 

Reasons  have  already  been  given  for  thinking  that  these  verses  are 
not  part  of  the  original  Psalm,  but  an  addition  by  the  exiles  who 
adapted  it  to  their  o\N'n  needs. 

18.     Cp.  cii.  i3ff. 


PSALM    LI.  19.     LU.  29s 

Then  shalt  thou  be  pleased  with  the  sacrifices  of  righteous-  19 

ness,  with  burnt  offering  and  whole  burnt  offering: 
Then  shall  they  offer  bullocks  upon  thine  altar. 

19.  Then  shalt  thou  be  pleased  wilhl  R.  V.,  Then  shalt  thou  dellg^ht 
In,  as  in  v.  16. 

the  sacrifices  of  righteousness^  Those  offered  in  a  right  spirit.  Cp. 
iv.  5;  Deut.  xxxiii.  19. 

•with  burnt  offering  and  whole  burnt  offering]  R.V.,  in  burnt  offering 
&C.  The  term  V/a/4,  'burnt-offering,'  denotes  the  sacrifice  as  'ascending' 
in  smoke  and  flame:  kdlil,  'whole  burnt  offering,'  denotes  the  sacrifice 
as  entirely  consumed.  It  was  the  rule  that  the  burnt  offering  should 
be  wholly  consumed,  to  symbolise  the  entire  self-dedication  of  the 
worshipper;  and  the  second  designation  is  added  in  order  to  emphasise 
this  idea  of  the  sacrifice.     Cp.  Deut.  xxxiii.  10;  i  Sam.  vii.  9. 

This  anticipation  of  the  restoration  of  material  sacrifices  in  Jerusalem 
seems  a  poor  ending  to  a  Psalm  of  such  profound  spirituality.  But  a 
material  Temple  and  visible  sacrifices  still  had  their  work  to  do  in 
forming  a  centre  for  the  Jewish  Church  and  serving  as  a  visible  sign  of 
God's  covenant  with  His  people.  Not  until  Christ  had  come  and  offered 
one  sacrifice  for  sins  for  ever,  could  they  be  finally  dispensed  with,  and 
the  full  truth  of  such  words  as  those  of  this  Psalm  be  understood. 


PSALM  LII. 

The  title  prefixed  to  this  Psalm  ascribes  it  to  David,  and  connects  it 
with  the  occasion  when  Doeg  informed  Saul  that  David  had  been 
received  by  Ahimelech  at  Nob,  and  assisted  with  the  means  for  his 
flight  (i  Sam.  xxi,  xxii).  The  character  denounced  in  the  Psalm  is  in 
some  respects  such  as  we  may  suppose  Doeg  to  have  been.  He  was  a 
man  of  wealth  and  importance  as  the  chief  of  Saul's  herdmen  (or, 
according  to  the  LXX,  the  keeper  of  his  mules).  His  tongue  was  "a 
deceitful  tongue,"  because  although  the  facts  he  reported  were  true,  he 
helped  to  confirm  Saul  in  a  false  and  cruel  suspicion.  It  "devised 
destruction"  and  "loved  all  devouring  words,"  for  his  story  was  told 
with  malicious  intent  and  fatal  result.  Just  sufficient  appropriateness 
may  be  traced  to  account  for  the  title  having  been  prefixed  by  the  com- 
piler of  this  division  of  the  Psalter,  or  for  the  Psalm  having  been  con- 
nected with  the  story  of  Doeg  in  some  historical  work  from  which  the 
compiler  took  it. 

But  the  entire  absence  of  any  reference  to  the  cold-blooded  and 
sacrilegious  murder  of  the  piiests  at  Nob,  in  which  Doeg  acted  as  Saul's 
agent,  when  all  his  other  officers  shrank  from  executing  his  brutal  order, 
makes  it  difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  suppose  that  the  Psalm  was 
really  written  by  David  on  that  occasion,  unless  we  could  assume  that 
it  was  composed  after  Doeg's  information  was  given  but  before  the 
massacre  was  perpetrated,  which  is  wholly  improbable. 


296  PSALM    LII.  I. 


To  judge  from  its  contents,  the  Psalm  is  a  denunciation  of  some 
wealthy  and  powerful  noble,  who  had  been  guilty  of  ruining  innocent 
persons  by  malicious  slanders  or  false  evidence.  As  reference  is  made 
to  his  wealth  {v.  7),  and  his  wrongdoing  is  contrasted  with  the  loving- 
kindness  of  God,  it  seems  probable  that  he  was  one  of  those  magnates 
so  frequently  denounced  by  the  prophets,  who,  in  defiance  of  their  duty 
of  lovingkindness  to  their  neighbours,  enriched  themselves  by  impov- 
erishing the  poor,  and  did  not  scruple  to  ruin  their  victims  by  the  use  of 
false  evidence  and  the  subservience  of  venal  judges.  See  for  example, 
Mic.  ii.  I  ff;  iii.  i  ff ;  vi,  12  ;  vii.  3.  The  Psalmist  speaks  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  sufferers,  who  will  rejoice  at  their  oppressor's  fall  as  a 
proof  of  God's  righteous  judgement. 

As  to  the  particular  occasion  and  date  of  the  Psalm  little  can  be  said. 
The  evils  to  which  it  refers  were  rife  in  the  eighth  century,  but  they 
had  existed  before  and  continued  to  exist  after.  A  couple  of  parallels 
in  Jeremiah  {w.  i,  8)  are  insufficient  to  establish  its  dependence  upon 
that  book.  Its  author  may  have  been  a  prophet.  His  tone  of  authority 
and  vigorous  denunciation  of  evil  in  high  places  recall  Isaiah's  denun- 
ciation of  Shebna  (Is,  xxii.  15  flF),  and,  in  a  less  degree,  Jeremiah's 
denunciation  of  Pashhur  (xx.  3  ff),  and  Hananiah  (xxviii.  5  ff).  Evidently 
it  is  directed  against  some  conspicuous  individual,  and  is  not  merely  a 
general  denunciation. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  two  divisions. 

i.  The  unscrupulous  evil-doer  is  called  to  account;  his  character  is 
described;  and  his  fate  foretold  (i — 5). 

ii.  With  awe  the  righteous  contemplate  his  fall,  and  rejoice  over  the 
judgement  of  this  self-confident  braggart :  while  the  Psalmist  contrasts 
his  own  security  under  the  protection  of  God,  and  makes  vows  of  public 
thanksgiving  (6 — 9). 


To  the  chief  Musician,  Maschil,  A  Psalm  of  David,  when  Doeg  the  Edomite  came 
and  told  Saul,  and  said  unto  him,  David  is  come  to  the  house  of  Ahimelech. 

52  Why  boastest  thou  thyself  in  mischief,  O  mighty  man  ? 

On  the  title,  For  the  chief  Musician,  Maschil  of  David,  see  Introd. 
pp.   xix   f.     It  is  the  first  of  four 'Maschil' Psalms. 

1 — 5.     Denunciation  of  the  evil-doer  and  prediction  of  his  fate. 

1.  This  verse  states  the  theme  of  the  Psalm ;  the  contrast  between 
man's  wrongdoing  and  God's  lovingkindness.  The  two  halves  of  the 
verse  correspond  to  the  two  divisions  of  the  Psalm.  The  statement  of 
the  second  line  is  abruptly  introduced,  but  it  is  virtually  the  answer  to 
the  question  of  the  first.  What  avails  it  thee  to  boast  of  successful  evil- 
doing  (x.  3)?  it  is  vain:  the  lovingkindness  of  God  (endureth)  all  the 
day;  that  covenant  love  in  which  the  Psalmist  trusts  (z/.  8),  and  of 
which  all  His  •  saints '  (z/.  9)  are  the  object. 

0  mighty  man]     Perhaps  simply,  as  P.B.V.,  tJiou  tyrant^  for  power 


PSALM  LII.  2—5.  297 


The  goodness  of  God  endureth  continually. 

Thy  tongue  deviseth  mischiefs ;  « 

Like  a  sharp  rasor,  working  deceitfully. 

Thou  lovest  evil  more  than  good  ;  • 

And  lying  rather  than  to  speak  righteousness.     Selah. 

Thou  lovest  all  devouring  words,  ^ 

O  thou  deceitful  tongue. 

God  shall  likewise  destroy  thee  for  ever,  • 

soon  degenerates  into  tyranny :  but  rather  perhaps  with  sarcastic  irony, 
thou  hero!     Cp.  Is.  v.  i%  ;  Jer.  ix.  3. 

God\  Elf  'the  strong  one'  (cp.  1.  i),  is  significantly  used  here.  The 
braggart  tyrant  thinks  himself  strong,  but  there  is  a  stronger  than  he, 
who  will  call  him  to  account. 

2.  Thy  tongue  deviseth']  Cp.  xxxv.  20.  Sins  of  the  tongue — falsehood, 
slander,  false  witness,  and  the  like — are  frequently  denounced  in  the 
Psalms  and  by  the  Prophets.  See  v.  9  ;  x.  7;  xii.  iff;  Mic.  vi.  12; 
Jer.  ix.  3  ;  &c. 

mischiefs]  R.V.,  very  wickedness  (as  in  v.  9);  or  destruction,  perhaps 
not  without  a  reminiscence  of  the  original  meaning  of  the  word,  a 
yawning  gulf,  for  his  tongue  is  ready  to  swallow  up  {v.  4)  the  righteous. 
The  plur.  denotes  mischief  or  destructiveness  of  every  kind. 

like  a  sharp  rasor]  Lit.,  like  a  whetted  rasor,  which  cuts  you  before 
you  are  aware,  as  you  handle  it  incautiously.  The  tongue  and  its  words 
are  elsewhere  compared  to  swords  and  spears  and  arrows  (Iv.  21,  Ivii.  4, 
lix.  7,  Ixiv.  3  ;  cp.  Prov.  xxvi.  18).  Comp.  Shakespeare,  Cymbeline^ 
iiL  4, 

**'Tis  slander. 
Whose  edge  is  sharper  than  the  sword." 

working  deceitfully]  The  partic.  cannot,  unless  we  assume  a  laxity  of 
construction,  be  in  agreement  with  thy  tongue;  nor  can  it  well  be  referred 
to  the  sharp  rasor.  It  is  best  to  take  it  as  a  vocative,  0  thou  worker  of 
deceit.     Cp.  ci.  7. 

3.  evil  more  than  good]  Evil  rather  than  good,  evil  and  not  good. 
The  meaning  is  not  merely  that  he  has  a  preference  for  evil,  but  that 
he  chooses  evil  instead  of  good,  like  the  nobles  censured  in  Mic.  iii.  i, 
"who  hate  the  good  and  love  the  evil." 

righteousness]  Not  merely  truth,  but  truth  regarded  as  promoting 
and  securing  justice.  The  aim  and  result  of  his  falsehoods  was  in- 
justice. 

4.  devouring  words]  Lit.,  words  of  swallotving  up.  Cp.  the  use  of 
the  verb  in  xxxv.  25,  "We  have  swallowed  him  up":  and  liii.  4. 

0  thou  deceitful  tongue]  This  rendering  is  certainly  preferable  to  that 
of  the  margin,  *  and  the  deceitful  tongue.'  The  bold  identification  of  the 
offender  with  the  offending  member  is  far  more  vigorous,  and  perfectly 
legitimate.     Cp.  cxx.  2,  3;  xii.  3;  i  Kings  xix.  18. 

6.  likewise]  We  might  have  expected  therefore,  as  P.  B.  V.  following 
Vulg.  loosely  renders:  but  likewise  is  significant.     There  is  a  corre- 


298  PSALM    LII.  6. 


He  shall  take  thee  away,  and  pluck  thee  out  of  thy  dwelling 

place, 
And  root  thee  out  of  the  land  of  the  living.     Selah. 
6  The  righteous  also  shall  see,  and  fear, 
And  shall  laugh  at  him  : 

spondence  and  equivalence  between  the  sin  and  its  punishment.  Cp. 
Mic.  ii.  I — 10,  where  the  idea  is  worked  out  that  the  heartless  oppressors 
who  have  driven  the  poor  from  their  homes  will  be  driven  from  the  land 
into  exile. 

The  doom  of  the  wicked  man  is  forcibly  described  by  various  figures. 
He  fancies  himself  securely  intrenched  in  the  fortress  of  his  wealth,  but 
God  will  break  him  down  (Jud.  viii.  9)  and  that  for  ever,  so  that  there 
will  be  no  restoration  of  the  ruins.  He  is  at  ease  in  his  home,  but  God 
will  take  him  as  a  man  takes  a  coal  from  the  hearth  with  tongs  or  shovel, 
and  plucking  him  out  of  his  dwelling,  drive  him  forth  as  a  homeless 
wanderer  (Deut.  xxviii.  63;  Prov.  ii.  22;  Job  xviii.  14,  R.V.).  He  is 
"spreading  himself  like  a  green  tree  in  its  native  soil"  (xxxvii.  35), 
but  God  will  uproot  him  out  of  the  land  of  the  living.  Cp.  for  the 
phrase  Jer.  xi.  19;  and  note  the  contrast  between  the  fate  of  the  wicked 
and  the  future  of  the  Psalmist  (z^.  8). 

The  verbs  in  this  verse  might  be  rendered  as  in  the  LXX,  as  a  prayer, 
"  May  God  destroy  thee  "  &c.;  but  the  rendering  in  the  future  is  prefer- 
able. Sentence  is  pronounced  in  a  tone  of  prophetic  authority.  Cp.  Is. 
xxii.  17  ff. 

Selah  marks  the  conclusion  of  the  first  part  of  the  Psalm. 

6 — 9.  The  sight  of  his  fall  inspires  the  righteous  with  awe,  and  gives 
occasion  for  rejoicing  at  this  proof  of  God's  just  government  of  the 
world,  for  trustful  hope,  and  grateful  thanksgiving. 

6,  7.     And  the  righteous  shall  see,  and  fear, 
And  shall  laugh  at  him,  (saying), 
Lo,  &c. 

The  first  impression  produced  by  the  sight  is  that  oifear;  not  alarm, 
but  awe;  a  deeper  reverence  for  God  and  His  government  of  the  world : 
the  next  impression  that  of  scorn  and  derision  (ii.  4)  for  the  braggart 
who  trusted  in  his  wealth.  Such  rejoicing  is  no  mere  vindictive  triumph 
at  the  wicked  man's  ruin.  Malicious  satisfaction  at  the  calamity  of  the 
wicked  is  condemned  in  the  O.T.;  see  Job  xxxi.  29;  Prov.  xxiv.  17. 
But  inasmuch  as  the  judgement  of  the  wicked  is  an  illustration  and  proof 
of  the  government  of  God,  it  must  be  welcomed  with  joy  by  the 
righteous.  Cp.  Rev.  xviii.  20;  xix.  i  ff.  It  must  be  remembered 
moreover  that  the  apparently  unchecked  prosperity  of  the  wicked  was  a 
sore  trial  of  faith  to  those  whose  view  of  God's  working  was  limited 
to  this  world.  They  naturally  and  rightly  desired  a  vindication  of  His 
righteousness,  and  rejoiced  when  they  saw  it.  See  further  Introd.  pp. 
Ixxxviiiff,  and  cp.  Iviii.  10  f;  Ixiv.  7  ff;  v.  ir,  note. 


PSALM  LI  I.  7—9.  299 


Lo,  this  is  the  man  that  made  not  God  his  strength ; 
But  trusted  in  the  abundance  of  his  riches, 
And  strengthened  himself  in  his  wickedness. 
But  I  am  like  a  green  olive  tree  in  the  house  of  God  : 
I  trust  in  the  mercy  of  God  for  ever  and  ever. 
I  will  praise  thee  for  ever,  because  thou  hast  done  it : 
And  I  will  wait  on  thy  name;   for  it  is  good  before  thy 
saints.       ' 

7.  The  words  of  the  righteous.  There  is  a  touch  of  sarcasm  in  the 
use  of  the  word  geber  (akin  to  gibbor,  v.  i)  for  man  (as  perhaps  in  Is. 
xxii.  17,  see  R.V.  marg.),  denoting  a  man  in  his  full  vigour. 

that  made  not  God  hit  strengthX  Or,  stronghold.  The  tense  implies 
that  it  was  the  constant  habit  of  his  mind. 

but  trusted  &c.]     Cp.  xlix.  6. 

in  his  wickedness"]  The  singular  of  the  word  rendered  mischiefs  (R.V. 
very  wickedness)  in  v.  2.  It  may  here  mean  greed,  or  covetousness.  But  the 
rendering  of  the  Targ.  and  the  Syr.  in  his  wealth  (whence  A.V.  marg. 
substance),  seems  to  represent  a  slightly  different  reading,  which  agrees 
well  with  the  parallel,  in  the  abundance  of  his  riches. 

8.  But  lam  like  a  green  olive  tree]  R.V.,  But  as  for  me,  I  am  like 
a  green  olive  tree,  rightly  emphasising  the  contrast  between  the  fate  of 
the  wicked  man  and  the  hopes  of  the  speaker.  But  who  is  the  speaker? 
Is  it,  as  is  commonly  supposed,  the  Psalmist?  or  is  the  speech  of  the 
righteous  in  v.  7  continued,  but  with  a  transition  to  the  singular,  in  order 
more  forcibly  to  express  the  personal  faith  of  each  individual  ?  It  makes 
little  difference  to  the  sense :  the  Psalmist,  if  he  is  the  speaker,  speaks 
as  the  representative  of  the  righteous. 

like  a  green  olive  tree  in  the  house  of  God]  It  is  possible  (cp.  xcii.  13) 
that  trees  grew  in  the  temple  courts,  as  they  grow  at  the  present  day  in 
the  Haram  area,  and  that  he  compares  his  prosperity  and  security  to  that 
of  the  carefully  tended  trees  planted  in  sacred  ground.  But  more  pro- 
bably two  figures  are  combined.  He  is  like  an  evergreen  olive  tree,  while 
the  wicked  man  is  rooted  up:  he  is  God's  guest,  enjoying  His  favour 
and  protection.  For  the  metaphor  of  the  tree  cp.  Jer.  xi.  16;  Hos.  xiv. 
8  (of  the  nation);  Ps.  i.  3 ;  xcii.  12  ff:  and  for  that  of  the  guest  see  xxiii. 
6;  xxvii.  4;  xv.  i.  Note  too  that  God's  house  may  mean  the  land  of 
Israel  (Hos.  ix.  15),  in  which  the  righteous  dwells  securely  while  the 
wicked  man  is  driven  out  of  it  {v.  5). 

mercy]     Rather,  lovingkiiidness,  as  in  z;.  i. 

9.  I  will  praise  thee]  R.V.,  I  will  give  thee  thanks,  "the  sacrifice 
of  thanksgiving,"  1.  23. 

because  thou  hast  done  it]  For  this  emphatic  absolute  use  of  the  verb 
cp.  xxii.  31;  xxxvii.  5. 

/  will  wait  &c.]  R.V.,  I  will  wait  on  thy  name,  for  it  is  good,  in 
the  presence  of  thy  saints.  Cp.  Is.  xxvi.  8.  But  '  in  the  presence 
of  thy  saints'  implies  some  public  act  of  praise  (cp.  xxii.  -25;  liv.  6); 
and  it  is  probable  that  for  wait  some  word  meaning  proclaim  should 


300  PSALM  LI  1 1. 


be  read,  thus :  I  will  proclaim  that  thy  name  is  good,  in  the  presence 
of  thy  saints.  God's  chasidim,  'saints'  or  'beloved  ones,'  are  those 
who  are  the  object  of  His  chesed  or  lovingkindness.  Cp.  1.  5;  and 
Appendix,  Note  i. 


PSALM  LIIL 

This  Psalm  is  another  recension  of  Ps.  xiv.  Elohim  (God),  is  substi- 
tuted for  Jehovah  (A.V.  Lord)  in  accordance  with  the  usage  of  this 
book;  and  in  w.  i — 4,  6  there  are  a  few  variations  which  hardly  affect 
the  sense;  but  v.  5  differs  widely  from  the  corresponding  w.  5,  6  of  Ps. 
xiv.  It  is  a  disputed  question  whether  this  difference  is  due  to  corrup- 
tion of  the  text  or  to  intentional  change.  On  the  one  hand  the  curious 
similarity  of  the  Hebrew  letters  is  in  favour  of  the  view  that  the  text 
here  is  a  conjectural  restoration  of  characters  which  had  become  partially 
obliterated :  but  on  the  other  hand  it  is  possible  that  some  later  editor 
intentionally  altered  the  original  text  in  order  to  adapt  the  Psalm  to 
his  purpose  by  introducing  a  fresh  historical  reference,  probably,  as  we 
shall  see,  to  the  destruction  of  Sennacherib's  army. 

At  first  sight  v.  6  seems  to  bring  the  date  of  the  Psalm  down  to  the 
Exile.  It  might  be  a  liturgical  addition  made  in  the  time  of  the  Exile, 
but  even  if  this  is  not  the  case  (and  the  occurrence  of  the  verse  in  both 
recensions  points  to  its  being  an  original  part  of  the  Psalm)  its  language, 
as  will  be  shewn  in  the  notes,  is  not  decisive. 

The  Psalmist  traces  the  deep  and  universal  corruption  of  mankind  to 
its  source  in  their  failure  to  seek  after  God  (i — 3).  He  illustrates  this 
corruption  by  the  cruel  treatment  to  which  *the  people  of  Jehovah' 
have  been  subjected;  and  points  to  some  signal  interposition  by  which 
Jehovah  has  proved  His  care  for  them  and  refuted  the  denial  of  His 
Providence  (4,  5).  The  Psalm  concludes  with  a  prayer  that  He  will 
gladden  Israel  with  a  full  deliverance  {v.  6). 

It  is  commonly  supposed  that  the  Psalmist  is  describing  the  depravity 
of  his  own  age  and  his  own  country.  But  at  least  in  w.  i — 3  it  is  of 
mankind  at  large  [the  sons  of  fnen,  v.  1)  that  he  is  speaking.  His  words 
recall  the  great  examples  of  corruption  in  the  primeval  world,  in  the 
days  before  the  Flood,  at  Babel,  in  Sodom  ;  and  in  this  recension  at  any 
rate,  it  is  clear  that  'my  people'  in  v.  4  must  mean  the  nation  of  Israel, 
and  not  the  poor  but  godly  folk  within  the  nation,  while  the  '  workers 
of  iniquity'  must  mean  foreign  invaders,  not  tyrannical  Israt;lite  mag- 
nates, for  V.  5  can  refer  to  nothing  less  than  some  great  national  deliver- 
ance from  a  foreign  enemy.  In  the  notes  on  Ps.  xiv  the  view  is  taken 
that  vv.  4,  5  were  originally  meant  to  refer  to  the  oppression  of  Israel 
in  Egypt  and  the  deliverance  at  the  Red  Sea,  as  a  great  typical  instance 
of  defiant  antagonism  to  Jehovah  and  of  His  intervention  on  behalf  of 
His  people;  and  they  seem  to  have  been  remodelled  here  to  introduce  a 
reference  to  the  invasion  of  Judah  by  the  Assyrians  and  the  miraculous 
destruction  of  Sennacherib's  host. 


PSALM   LIII.  I,  2.  301 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Mahalath,  Maschil,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

The  fool  hath  said  in  his  heart,  T/iere  is  no  God.  63 

Corrupt  are  they,  and  have  done  abominable  iniquity : 
There  is  none  that  doeth  good. 

God  looked  down  from  heaven  upon  the  children  of  men,      a 
To  see  if  there  were  any  that  did  understand,  that  did 
seek  God. 

The  title  runs:  For  the  chief  Musician:  set  to  Mahalath.  Maschil 
of  David.  Mahalath  (cp.  the  title  of  Ps.  Ixxxviii)  may  mean  sickness^ 
and  is  best  explained  as  the  initial  word  of  some  well-known  song,  to 
the  melody  of  which  the  Psalm  was  set;  rather  than  as  denoting  a 
mournful  style  of  music  or  some  kind  of  instrument.  The  LXX  could 
only  transliterate  the  word  as  unintelligible. 

1 — 3.     The  universal  depravity  of  mankind,  and  its  cause. 

1.  The  fool]  A  class  of  men,  not  a  particular  individual.  The  word 
ndbdl  here  used  for  fool  denotes  moral  perversity,  not  mere  ignorance  or 
weakness  of  reason.  '  Folly '  is  the  opposite  of  *  wisdom  '  in  its  highest 
sense.  It  may  be  predicated  of  forgetfulness  of  God  or  impious  opposi- 
tion to  His  will  (Deut.  xxxii.  6,  21 ;  Job  ii.  10;  xlii.  8;  Ps.  Ixxiv.  18, 
22):  of  gross  offences  against  morality  (2  Sam.  xiii.  12,  13):  of  sacrilege 
(Josh.  vii.  15):  of  ungenerous  churlishness  (i  Sam.  xxv.  25).  For  a 
description  of  the  'fool'  in  his  'folly'  see  Is.  xxxii.  5,  6  (A.V.  vile 
person,  villany). 

hath  said  in  his  heart]  Or,  said.  This  was  the  deliberate  conclusion 
of  men,  upon  which  they  acted.     Cp.  x.  6,  11,  13. 

There  is  no  God]  Cp.  x.  4.  This  is  not  to  be  understood  of  a 
speculative  denial  of  the  existence  of  God ;  but  of  a  practical  denial  of 
His  moral  government.  It  is  righriy  paraphrased  by  the  Targum  on 
xiv.  r,  'There  is  no  government  of  God  in  the  earth.'  Cp.  Ixxiii.  11 ; 
Jer.  V.  12  ;  Zeph.  i.  12;  Rom.  i.  28  ff. 

Corrupt  are  they  &c.]  Render,  They  did  corrupt  and  abominable 
iniquity;  there  was  none  doing  good.  The  subject  of  the  sentence  is 
mankind  in  general.  Abandoning  a  practical  belief  in  God,  they 
depraved  their  nature,  and  gave  themselves  up  to  practices  which  God 
abhors  (v.  6).  'Corrupt'  describes  the  self-degradation  of  their  better 
nature;  'abominable'  the  character  of  their  conduct  in  the  sight  of 
God.  Such  was  the  condition  of  the  world  before  the  Flood.  See 
Gen.  vi.  11,  12;  and  with  the  last  line  of  the  verse  cp.  Gen.  vi.  5. 
Rom.  i.  18 — 32  is  a  commentary  on  this  verse.  Men  "refused  to  have 
God  in  their  knowledge  "..."their  senseless  heart  was  darkened"... 
"professing  themselves  to  be  wise,  they  became  fools."  For  iniquity 
Ps.  xiv  reads  doings. 

2.  For  a  while  God  as  it  were  overlooked  the  growing  corruption. 
At  length  He  'looked  down'  (xxxiii.  13,  14).  So  in  the  yet  simpler 
language  of  the  Pentateuch  He  is  said  to  have  'come  down  to  see'  the 
wickedness  of  Babel  and  Sodom  (Gen.  xi.  5;  xviii.   21;  and  note  the 


302  PSALM   LIII.  3,  4- 

3  Every  one  of  them  is  gone  back,  they  are  altogether 

become  filthy; 
There  is  none  that  doeth  good,  no,  not  one. 

4  Have  the  workers  of  iniquity  no  knowledge  ? 
Who  eat  up  my  people  as  they  eat  bread : 
They  have  not  called  upon  God. 

use  of  'look  down*  in  the  latter  narrative  though  in  a  different  con- 
nexion, xviii.  16).  Were  not  these  typical  examples  of  human  corrup- 
tion in  the  Psalmist's  mind?  God  (in  xiv.  2  Jehovah)  looked  down... 
to  see  if  there  were  any  that  did  understand  (or  deal  wisely ,  R.V.  marg.. 
for  the  verb  often  includes  the  idea  of  right  action),  that  did  seek  after 
God.  Cp.  ix.  10.  The  use  of  God,  not  Jehovah,  in  Ps.  xiv  as  well  as 
here,  is  significant.  It  is  of  mankind  in  general,  not  of  Israel,  that  the 
Psalmist  is  speaking.  God  made  Himself  known  through  the  voice  of 
conscience  and  in  the  works  of  creation,  but  men  would  not  follow  the 
light  of  conscience  or  read  the  book  of  nature.  See  Acts  xiv.  17  ;  xvii. 
27;  and  especially  Rom.  i.  19  ff. 

3.  The  result  of  His  investigation.  Every  one  of  them  had  gone 
back  (xliv.  18)  from  following  God  (in  xiv.  3  turned  aside  from  the  path 
of  right) :  together  had  they  become  tainted,  a  word  which  in  Arabic 
means  to  go  bad  or  ttcrn  sour,  but  in  Heb.  is  used  only  in  a  moral 
sense,  here  and  in  Job  xv.  16.  On  the  interpolation  in  the  P.B.  V.  of 
Ps.  xiv  after  v.  3  see  note  there. 

4,  5.  The  corruption  of  mankind  exemplified  in  their  treatment  of 
God's  people;  and  His  Providence  demonstrated  in  the  deliverance  of 
them. 

4.  God  is  the  speaker.  The  first  clause  may  be  taken  as  in  A.V., 
'Have  the  workers  of  iniquity  no  knowledge?'  Are  they  so  ignorant 
that  they  cannot  distinguish  between  right  and  wrong?  Cp.  v.  2,  and 
Ixxxii.  5.  But  a  much  better  connexion  with  v.  5  is  gained  by  render- 
ing, Have  not  the  workers  of  iniquity  been  made  to  know?  i.e.  taught  by 
sharp  experience  to  recognise  their  error.  Then  v.  5  follows  as  an 
answer  to  the  question,  pointing  to  the  plain  white  with  the  bones  of 
Jerusalem's  besiegers.  For  this  pregnant  sense  oi  know  cp.  Hos.  ix.  7; 
Jud.  viii.  16  {taught,  lit.  viade  to  know). 

who  eat  up  &c.]  The  A.V.  follows  the  Ancient  Versions  in  under- 
standing this  to  mean,  '  they  devour  my  people  as  naturally  as  they  take 
their  daily  food.'  And  this  they  do  without  regard  to  God  (in  Ps.  xiv, 
Jehovah).  Cp.  for  the  phrase,  Num.  xiv.  9,  "the  people  of  the  land  are 
bread  for  us";  Num.  xxiv.  8;  and  for  the  fact,  Is.  i.  7;  Jer.  x.  25; 
xxx.  16;  Hab.  iii.  14;  Ps.  Ixxix.  7.  The  reference  to  national 

dojiverance  in  the  following  verse  excludes  (at  any  rate  in  this  recension 
of  the  Ps.)  the  explanation  of  *  my  people  '  as  the  godly  few  in  Israel 
(Mic.  ii.  9;  iii.  3,  5,  and  often  in  the  prophets),  and  of  *  the  workers  of 
iniquity '  as  the  nobles  who  impoverished  them  by  unjust  extortions 
(Mic.  iii.  I  ff ;  Is.  iii.  14  f;  Prov.  xxx.  14). 


I 


PSALM    LI  1 1.  5,  6.  303 


There  were  they  in  great  fear,  where  no  fear  was :  5 

For  God  hath  scattered  the  bones  of  him  that  encampeth 

against  thee : 
Thou  hast  put  the7n  to  shame,  because  God  hath  despised 

them. 

O  that  the  salvation  of  Israel  were  cofjie  out  of  Zion  !  6 

When  God  bringeth  back  the  captivity  of  his  people, 
Jacob  shall  rejoice,  and  Israel  shall  be  glad. 


6.  There  points  to  some  signal  instance  in  which  panic  terror  and 
overwhelming  calamity  overtook  the  '  workers  of  iniquity '  who  came  to 
devour  the  people  of  God.  They  were  seized  with  a  supernaturally 
inspired  terror,  where  there  was  no  natural  cause  for  panic.  Cp.  i  Sam. 
xiv.  15;  2  Kings  vii.  6;  xix.  7,  35. 

for  God  hath  scattered  &c.]  The  bones  of  Israel's  enemies  lie  bleach- 
ing on  the  plain,  where  their  bodies  were  left  unburied  (Ezek.  vi.  5). 
This  cannot  be  an  anticipation  of  some  further  defeat.  It  must  rather 
be  an  allusion  to  some  historic  event;  and  it  at  once  suggests  the 
annihilation  of  Sennacherib's  great  army.  Probably  the  text  was 
intentionally  altered  in  this  recension  in  order  to  introduce  a  reference 
to  the  most  famous  example  in  later  times  of  the  discomfiture  of  worldly 
arrogance  venturing  to  measure  its  strength  with  Jehovah. 

against  thee']     The  people  of  God  are  addressed. 

thou  hast  put  them  to  shame]     Cp.  2  Kings  xix.  20  fT. 

halh  despised  them]  R.V.  rejected  them,  as  the  word  is  often  rendered 
elsewhere.  But  despised  better  expresses  the  contempt  for  the  enemies 
of  His  people  which  is  meant.  Cp.  Jud.  ix.  38;  Is.  xxxiii.  8.  In  their 
folly  they  said  in  their  heart,  *  There  is  no  God  '  (cp.  2  Kings  xviii.  35) ; 
and  this  catastrophe  which  they  are  powerless  to  avert  is  His  answer  to 
their  blasphemy.     Cp.  ii.  4,  5.  .  P'or  the  widely  different  reading 

of  xiv.  5,  6  see  notes  there. 

6.  Concluding  prayer  for  the  full  restoration  of  Israel.  Some  com- 
mentators have  regarded  this  as  a  liturgical  addition,  but  its  presence  in 
both  recensions  is  in  favour  of  i^s  originality.  It  forms  an  appropriate 
conclusion  to  the  Ps. ,  and  the  recollection  of  past  deliverance  in  v.  5 
naturally  passes  into  a  prayer  for  further  restoration. 

the  salvation  of  Israel]  Lit.  salvations,  victory  and  deliverance  full 
and  complete.  (Ps.  xiv.  7  has  the  singular.)  Zion  is  Jehovah's  dwelling- 
place,  the  centre  from  which  He  exercises  His  earthly  sovereignty. 

when  God  bringeth  back  &c.]  Or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  returneth  to  the 
captivity  &c.  For  God  Ps.  xiv.  7  has  Jehovah.  At  first  sight  these 
words  seem  to  fix  the  date  of  the  Psalm  in  the  period  of  the  Exile  (cxxvi. 
1).  Nor  does  the  phrase  out  of  Zion  exclude  such  a  view.  The  exiles 
turned  to  Zion  even  in  her  desolation  (Dan.  vi.  10;  i  Kings  viii.  44), 
and  from  thence  Jehovah  might  be  expected  to  restore  His  people. 
But  (i)  it  is  very  probable  that  the  phrase  rendered  bring  back  the  cap- 


304  PSALM    LIV.    i. 


tivity  means  rather  turn  the  fortunes^.  This  meaning  suits  all  the 
passages  in  which  the  phrase  occurs,  while  turn  the  captivity  does  not, 
except  in  the  figurative  sense  of  restoring  prosperity.  See  e.g.  Job  xlii. 
lo;  Ezek.  xvi.  53 ;  Zeph.  ii.  7.  And  (2)  even  if  turn  the  captivity  is 
the  original  meaning,  the  phrase  is  used  by  Amos  (ix.  14)  and  Hosea  (vi. 
1 1)  long  before  the  Babylonian  Captivity.  In  the  time  of  Hezekiah  the 
words  might  refer  to  the  recent  fall  of  the  Northern  Kingdom. 

then  shall  jfacob  rejoice"]  Properly  a  wish  or  prayer  (cp.  xiii.  5,  6) : 
let  Jacob  rejoice^  and  Israel  be  glad. 

PSALM  LIV. 

This  Psalm  consists  of  two  divisions,  separated  by  Selah. 

i.     A  prayer  for  help  in  imminent  peril  from  godless  enemies  (i — 3). 

ii.  A  profession  of  unshaken  confidence  that  God  will  defend  and 
avenge  the  Psalmist,  with  a  vow  of  thanksgiving  for  the  deliverance 
which  he  is  well  assured  is  in  store  for  him  (4 — 7). 

The  title  refers  the  Psalm  to  the  time  of  David's  persecution  by  Saul. 
When  David  became  aware  that  the  men  of  Keilah,  with  selfish  ingrati- 
tude, intended  to  surrender  him  to  Saul,  he  fled  with  his  men  to  the 
wilderness  of  Ziph,  a  district  to  the  S.  E.  of  Hebron.  But  the  Ziphites 
"  came  up  to  Saul  to  Gibeah,  saying,  Doth  not  David  hide  himself  with 
us  in  the  strong  holds  in  the  wood,  in  the  hill  of  Hachilah,  which  is  on 
the  south  of  the  desert?"  (i  Sam.  xxiii.  19).  Saul  came  down  to  seek 
David,  who  was  in  imminent  peril  of  being  surrounded  and  captured, 
when  Saul  was  compelled  to  withdraw  in  order  to  repel  a  Philistine  raid. 
On  a  subsequent  occasion  (unless  the  narrative  in  i  Sam.  xxvi.  i  ff  is 
only  another  account  of  the  same  incident)  the  Ziphites  repeated  their 
treachery,  and  again  betrayed  David's  hiding-place. 

It  is  argued  that  this  reference  is  excluded  by  the  description  of  the 
Psalmist's  enemies  in  z/.  3  as '  strangers  '  and  '  violent  men,'  terms  elsewhere 
applied  to  foreign  oppressors.  This  no  doubt  is  the  general  meaning  of 
the  words ;  but  it  is  difficult  to  say  positively  (see  note)  that  they  could  not 
have  been  applied  to  Israelites.  Otherwise  the  Psalm  suits  the  occasion. 
If  not  written  by  David,  it  may  have  been  placed  in  his  mouth  by  some 
later  Psalmist.  But  its  language  is  so  general,  that  no  positive  con- 
clusion can  be  formed  from  its  contents  as  to  the  particular  circumstances 
under  which  it  was  composed. 

The  Psalm  is  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Good  Friday. 

To  the  chief  Musician  on  Neginoth,  Maschil,  A  Psalm  of  David,  when  the  Ziphims 
came  and  said  to  Saul,  Doih  not  David  hide  himself  with  us  ? 

54  Save  me,  O  God,  by  thy  name. 

The  title  may  be  rendered  with  R.V.,  For  the  chief  Musician ;  on 
stringed  instruments.  Maschil  of  David :  when  the  Ziphites  came 
and  said  to  Saul,  Doth  not  David  hide  himself  with  us  7 

1.     by  thy  name]     God's  name  is  the  manifestation  of  His  character, 

1  Lit.  iurft  a  turning,  the  word  sh'buth  being  derived  from  shub  '  to  turn '  or 
'  return,'  not  from  shnbdh,  '  to  take  captive.'  The  regular  word  for  the  Babylonian 
captivity  \% golak,  '  exile.' 


PSALM    LIV.  2-4.  305 


And  judge  me  by  thy  strength. 

Hear  my  prayer,  O  God  ; 

Give  ear  to  the  words  of  my  mouth. 

For  strangers  are  risen  up  against  me, 

And  oppressors  seek  after  my  soul : 

They  have  not  set  God  before  them..    Selah. 

Behold,  God  is  mine  helper : 

the  sum  of  His  revealed  attributes.  The  Psalmist  can  appeal  to  it,  for 
He  has  declared  that  it  is  His  will  to  save  those  who  put  their  trust  in 
Him.     Cp.  V.  II. 

Judge  me]  Do  me  justice.  Confident  in  the  goodness  of  his  cause,  he 
is  sure  that  if  right  is  done  him,  he  will  be  delivered.  Cp.  i  Sam.  xxiv. 
15;  Ps.  vii.  8;  ix.  4;  xxvi.  i;  xxxv.  24;  xliii.  i. 

6y  thy  strength]  R.V.,  in  thy  might.  God  has  not  only  the  will, 
but  the  power  to  deliver  His  servant.  He  is  "  a  mighty  one  who  will 
save"  (Zeph.  iii.  17). 

3.  This  verse  is  repeated  almost  verbatim  in  Ps.  Ixxxvi.  14  (a  mosaic 
constructed  of  fragments  of  other  Psalms),  with  the  change,  accidental 
or  intentional,  of  strangers  into  proud.  The  consonants  of  the  Heb. 
words  ZARIM,  strangers,  and  zedIm,  pro2id^  are  almost  identical,  and 
some  Heb.  MSS.  and  the  Targ.  read  zedim  here ;  but  the  rest  of  the 
versions  support  the  Massoretic  Text. 

and  oppressors  &c.]  Render,  and  violent  men  hava  sought  my  life, 
as  in  I  Sam.  xxiii.  15,  "David  saw  that  Saul  was  come  out  to  seek  his 
life."  It  has  been  argued  that  the  terms  'strangers'  and  'violent  men' 
are  inapplicable  to  Israelites,  and  prove  that  the  title  is  erroneous.  No 
doubt  they  are  often  used  of  foreign  invaders  or  oppressors  (Is.  xxv.  2  ff ; 
xxix.  5;  Ezek.  xxxi.  12;  cp.  Is.  i.  7;  Ezek.  vii.  21);  but  'violent 
men'  or  'terrible  ones'  is  not  exclusively  so  used  (fob  vi.  23;  Jer.  xv. 
2i),  and  might  well  be  applied  to  Saul  and  his  followers;  while  the 
Ziphites  might  be  designated  'strangers,'  in  view  of  their  unneighbourly 
behaviour.  It  is  however  possible  that  'strangers  '  refers  to  the  men  of 
Keilah,  whom  there  is  some  ground  for  regarding  as  Canaanites.  The 
peculiar  term  'lords'  or  'owners'  applied  to  the  men  of  Keilah  (i  Sam. 
xxiii.  II,  12)  seems  to  have  been  specially  (though  not  exclusively)  used 
of  Canaanites.  See  Josh.  xxiv.  11 ;  Judg.  ix.  2  ff ;  and  J.  S.  Black's  note 
on  the  latter  passage  in  the  Smaller  Cambridge  Bible  for  Schools. 

they  have  not  set  God  before  them]  They  have  no  regard  for  Go'd's 
will,  and  no  fear  of  His  judgements.  Cp.  x.  4,  5 ;  xxxvi.  i ;  and  con- 
trast xvi.  8;  xviii.  22.  Under  other  circumstances  loyalty  to  Saul  might 
have  required  the  Ziphites  to  surrender  David :  as  it  was,  they  were 
simply  fighting  against  God  in  making  themselves  the  tools  of  Saul's 
blind  rage,  for  it  must  have  been  well  known  that  God  intended  David 
to  be  Saul's  successor. 

4 — 7.  A  confident  expectation  of  deliverance  and  vow  of  thanks- 
giving. 

4.  God  is  mine  helper]    Taught  by  his  past  experience  he  can  say  not 
psAi.MS  20 


3o6  PSALM   LIV.  5—7. 

The  Lord  is  with  them  that  uphold  my  soul. 

He  shall  reward  evil  unto  mine  enemies  : 

Cut  them  off  in  thy  truth. 

I  will  freely  sacrifice  unto  thee : 

I  will  praise  thy  name,  O  Lord  ;  for  //  is  good. 

For  he  hath  delivered  me  out  of  all  trouble  : 

And  mine  eye  hath  seen  his  desire  upon  mine  enemies. 

merely  that  God  will  help  him,  but  that  God  is  on  his  side,  so  that  the 
issue  cannot  be  doubtful. 

the  Lord  is  with  them  that  uphold  my  soul]  R.V.,  is  of  them  that 
uphold  my  soul :  perhaps  better,  is  the  Upholder  of  my  soul.  The 
expression  is  an  idiomatic  one,  and  "the  sense  is  not  that  God  is  the 
support  of  the  Psalmist  among  many  others,  but  that  He  is  so  in  a 
supreme  degree,  that  He  sums  up  in  Himself  the  qualities  of  a  class, 
viz.  the  class  of  helpers  (so  cxviii.  7).  Comp.  Judg.  xi.  35,  *  Alas,  my 
daughter,  thou  hast  bowed  me  down;  even  thou  art  my  greatest 
troubler.' "  (Cheyne).     For  uphold  cp.  iii.  5  (sustaineth) ;  li.  12. 

6.     He  shall  requite  the  evil  unto  them  that  lie  in  wait  for  me : 
Destroy  thou  them  in  thy  truth. 

God  will  cause  the  evil  which  they  are  plotting  to  recoil  upon  their 
own  heads:  or,  according  to  the  iCthibh  or  written  text  [Introd.  p.  li), 
The  evil  shall  return  &c. :  cp.  vii.  16.  Enemies  (A.V.)  is  a  peculiar 
word  found  only  in  v.  8;  xxvii.  11;  Ivi.  2;  lix.  10,  meaning  those  who 
lie  in  wait  for  him,  like  fowlers  (Jer.  v.  26  R.V.),  or  a  leopard  for  its 
prey  (Hos.  xiii.  7).     Jerome  renders  it  insidiatores. 

in  thy  truth]  For  Thou  canst  not  be  false  to  Thy  promise  to  deliver 
me. 

6.  /  will  freely  sacrifice  unto  thee]  Or,  With  a  free  will  I  wiU 
sacrifice  unto  thee.  So  the  LXX  and  Jer.  R.V.,  with  a  freewill 
offering.  But  cp.  Num.  xv.  3,  *'a  burnt  offering  or  sacrifice,  to  accom- 
plish a  vow,  or  of  freewill,  or  in  your  set  feasts." 

I  will  praise  thy  name,  0  LORD]  R.V.,  I  wiU  give  thanks  unto  thy 
name.  Cp.  Iii.  9.  Lord,  i.e.  Jehovah,  appears  here,  contrary  to  the 
general  usage  of  the  book.  It  may  have  been  retained,  or  restored,  in 
a  familiar  formula.    For  it^  viz.  Thy  name,  is  good.    Cp.  Iii.  9,  and  v.  i. 

7.  For  he  hath  delivered  me]  Such  a  transition  fi"om  the  second 
person  of  v,  6  to  the  third  person  is  quite  possible :  cp.  the  converse 
transition  in  z/.  5:  but  the  subject  of  the  verb  maybe  'the  Name  of 
Jehovah.'     Cp.  Lev.  xxiv.  it;  Is.  xxx.  27. 

The  perfect  tense  {'hath  delivered '...'hath  seen')  looks  back  from  the 
hour  of  thanksgiving  upon  an  answered  prayer.  Cp.  Iii.  9,  "because 
thou  hast  done  it." 

hath  seen  his  desire]  Cp.  xxxvii.  34;  Iii.  6;  lix.  10;  xcii.  11;  cxii. 
8 ;  cxviii.  7.  Such  rejoicing  over  the  fall  of  enemies  is  not  of  the  spirit 
of  the  Gospel.  But  the  '  salvation '  for  which  the  Psalmist  prays  is  a 
temporal  deliverance,  which  can  only  be  effected  at  the  expense  of  the 
implacable  enemies  who  are  seeking  his  life ;  and  it  will  be  a  vindication  of 


PSALM    LV.  307 


God's  faithfulness  and  a  proof  of  His  righteous  government  at  which  he 
cannot  but  rejoice.  The  defeat  of  evil  and  the  triumph  of  good  pre- 
sented themselves  to  the  saints  of  the  O.T.  in  this  concrete  form,  which 
sometimes  has  a  ring  of  personal  vindictiveness  about  it,  yet,  fairly  con- 
sidered, is  in  its  real  motive  and  character  elevated  far  above  a  mere 
thirst  for  revenge.     See  Introd.  pp.  Ixxxviii  ff. 


PSALM   LV. 

Despair,  sorrow,  indignation,  faith,  find  expression  by  turns  in  this 
pathetic  record  of  persecution  embittered  by  the  treachery  of  an  intimate 
friend,  which  is  a  companion  to  Ps.  xli,  and  should  be  carefully  compared 
with  it.  The  title  ascribes  it  to  David,  and  its  occasion  has  generally 
been  supposed  to  be  the  rebellion  of  Absalom  and  the  treachery  of 
Ahithophel,  whose  name  the  Targum  introduces  in  v.  16  (A.V.  15). 
Much  of  the  Psalm  is  sufficiently  appropriate  to  David's  circumstances  to 
account  for  its  having  been  regarded  as  an  expression  of  his  feelings 
at  that  bitter  crisis:  but  a  closer  examination  makes  it  difficult,  if  not 
impossible,  to  suppose  that  it  was  actually  written  by  him. 

There  is  no  hint  that  the  writer  is  a  king  whose  authority  is  threat- 
ened by  a  formidable  insurrection.  Would  David  have  called  Ahitho- 
phel "a  man  mine  equal",  even  though  the  king's  confidential  adviser 
was  styled  his  'friend'  (-2  Sam.  xv.  37 ;  xvi.  17)?  The  Psalmist  appears 
to  be  still  in  the  city  and  unable  to  escape  from  it,  living  in  the  very 
midst  of  his  enemies,  whose  hostility  is  open  and  unconcealed :  but  it 
was  not  until  after  he  had  fled  from  the  city  that  David  was  informed 
of  Ahithophel's  treachery  (2  Sam.  xv.  31);  it  was  at  Hebron,  not  in 
Jerusalem,  that  Absalom's  conspiracy  made  head  and  broke  out ;  David's 
adherents  in  Jerusalem  were  sufficiently  strong  to  prevent  any  rising 
until  Absalom's  arrival,  and  whatever  preparations  for  rebellion  may 
have  been  made  there  were  carefully  concealed ;  when  David  resolved  to 
flee,  he  had  no  difficulty  in  effecting  his  escape.  Moreover  although 
David's  administration  of  justice  seems  to  have  been  lax  or  inadequate 
(2  Sam.  XV.  2  ff ),  it  is  difficult  to  believe  that  Jerusalem  can  have  been 
such  a  hotbed  of  discord  and  disorder  and  iniquity  as  the  Psalm 
describes;  and  still  more  difficult  to  imagine  that  David  should  use  the 
language  of  this  Psalm  in  regard  to  a  state  of  things  for  which  he  was 
largely  responsible. 

With  this  negative  conclusion  we  must  remain  content.  It  is  impos- 
sible to  determine  with  certainty  by  whom  or  even  at  what  period  the 
Psalm  was  written.  It  has  been  suggested  that  Jeremiah  was  the 
author,  and  that  the  treacherous  friend  oi  v.  13  was  Pashhur,  by  whom 
Jeremiah  was  scourged  for  predicting  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  (J  er.  xx). 
The  circumstances  which  seem  to  form  the  historical  background  of 
the  Psalm  resemble  those  described  in  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  (cp.  e.g. 
Jer.  V,  vi) ;  similarities  of  language  appear  to  connect  the  Psalm  with 
Jeremiah's  prophecies  (cp.  Jer.  ix.  2  ft,  and  references  in  the  notes); 
Pashhur,  as  a  priest,  was  Jeremiah's  'equal.'     There  is  however  not  the 

20 — 2 


3o8  PSALM    LV. 


slightest  indication  in  the  Book  oT  Jeremiah  that  Pashhur  had  ever 
been  the  prophet's  intimate  friend ;  the  similarities  of  thought  and  lan- 
guage fall  far  short  of  proving  identity  of  authorship ;  and  all  that  can 
really  be  said  is  that  the  circumstances  of  the  Psalmist  receive  valuable 
illustration  from  the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah.  The  Psalmist  may  have 
been  a  contemporary  of  Jeremiah ;  but  he  may  have  lived  in  the  reign 
of  Ahaz  or  Manasseh,  or  in  some  other  period  when  a  weak  govern- 
ment allowed  Jerusalem  to  become  the  prey  of  faction,  and  in  the 
ambitions  of  party  moral  obligations  were  contemptuously  disregarded 
and  old  ties  of  friendship  ruthlessly  ignored,  while  the  dominant  party 
for  the  time  being  heaped  insult  and  injury  upon  their  defeated  rivals, 
and  even  their  lives  were  not  secure.  Readers  of  Thucydides  will  recall 
his  reflections  upon  the  Corcyraean  massacre  {Hist.  iii.  82  ff ),  and  the 
history  of  the  French  Revolution  will  supply  modern  illustrations. 

In  a  MS.  of  Jerome's  Latin  Version  the  Psalm  bears  the  title,  Vox 
Christi  adversus  magnatos  Judaeorum  et  Judavi  traditorem,  '  The  voice 
of  Christ  against  the  chiefs  of  the  Jews  and  the  traitor  Judas.'  It  is  not 
indeed,  any  more  than  Ps.  xli,  a  prediction  of  the  treachery  of  Judas; 
but  every  such  experience  of  the  faithlessness  of  trusted  friends  was  a 
foreshadowing  of  the  experience  of  the  Son  of  Man.  He  fathomed  the 
depths  of  human  baseness  and  cruelty  and  ingratitude.  The  experience 
of  the  righteous  in  former  generations  was  'fulfilled'  in  His. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  three  nearly  equal  divisions.  In  the  first  of  these, 
despair,  in  the  second,  indignation,  in  the  third,  trust,  is  the  dominant 
note.  Shorter  stanzas  of  six  lines  may  be  traced  in  the  greater  part  of 
the  Psalm,  but  either  this  scheme  was  not  completely  carried  out,  or  it 
has  been  broken  by  corruption  of  the  text. 

i.  The  Psalmist  begins  with  an  urgent  prayer  that  God  will  hear 
him  in  his  distress  (i — 3^) ;  he  describes  its  nature,  and  its  effect  upon 
him  (3^ — 5);  and  in  language  of  pathetic  beauty,  expresses  his  longing 
to  escape  to  some  quiet  refuge  (6 — 8). 

ii.  Suddenly  his  tone  changes.  In  vehement  indignation  he  invokes 
confusion  upon  the  counsels  of  his  enemies,  and  describes  the  tyranny  of 
iniquity  which  is  supreme  in  the  city  {9 — 11).  What  makes  their  hos- 
tility most  intolerable  is  that  the  leader  of  the  faction  was  once  his 
intimate  friend  (12 — 14).     May  they  meet  the  fate  they  deserve  (15) ! 

iii.  In  a  calmer  tone  he  expresses  his  confidence  that  God  will 
deliver  him  {16 — 18),  and  judge  his  arrogant  and  godless  foes  {19) ;  and 
as  he  mentions  them,  his  mind  naturally  reverts  to  the  base  hypocrisy 
of  the  arch-traitor  (20,  21).  In  conclusion  he  reassures  himself  by 
contemplating  the  contrast  between  Jehovah's  care  of  the  righteous  and 
His  judgement  of  the  wicked  (22,  23). 

To  the  chief  Musician  on  Neginoth,  Maschil,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

55  Give  ear  to  my  prayer,  O  God ; 

1 — 3  a.  The  Psalmist's  passionate  appeal  to  God  for  a  hearing  in 
his  distress. 


1.     Give  ear  &c.]     Cp.  liv.  1. 


PSALM    LV.  2—6.  309 


And  hide  not  thyself  from  my  supplication. 

Attend  unto  me,  and  hear  me :  2 

I  mourn  in  my  complaint,  and  make  a  nojse.; 

Because  of  the  voice  of  the  enemy,  because  of  the  oppress-  3 

ion  of  the  wicked  : 
For  they  cast  iniquity  upon  me,  and  in  wrath  they  hate  me. 
My  heart  is  sore  pained  within  me :  4 

And  the  terrors  of  death  are  fallen  upon  me. 
Fearfulness  and  trembling  are  come  upon  me,  5 

And  horror  hath  overwhelmed  me. 

And  I  said,  O  that  I  had  wings  like  a  dove,  6 

For  then  would  I  fly  away,  and  be  at  rest. 

hide  not  thyself\  As  the  unmerciful  man  turns  away  from  misfortune 
and  suffering  which  he  does  not  want  to  relieve  (Deut  xxii.  i,  3,  4;  Is. 
Iviii.  7);  or  as  though  my  prayer  were  the  prayer  of  a  hypocrite  (Is.  i. 
is)*     Cp.  X.  I ;  Lam.  iii.  56. 

2.  hear  me\    Answer  me. 

/  7nourn  &c.]  Render,  I  am  restless  in  my  complaint,  and  am 
distracted  (R.V.  moan).  A  word  used  in  Gen.  xxvii.  40  of  a  roving 
life,  in  Jer.  ii.  31  of  impatience  of  restraint  (R.V.  break  loose),  is  here 
applied  to  the  restlessness  of  a  distracted  mind. 

3.  the  voice  of  the  enemy]     Insulting,  calumniating,  threatening. 
oppression]     A    peculiar   word,  found  here  only,   meaning  that  his 

enemies  hem  him  in  or  crush  him  doAvn.     Cp.  the  cognate  verb  in  Am. 
ii.  13. 

3  b — 6.  He  describes  the  nature  of  the  persecution  from  which  he  is 
suffering,  and  its  effect  upon  his  spirits. 

3  b.  they  cast  iniquity  upon  me]  Not,  they  charge  me  with  crimes 
of  which  I  am  innocent :  but,  they  hurl  or  roll  mischief  down  upon  me, 
a  metaphor  from  the  practice  of  rolling  stones  down  upon  an  enemy. 
Cp.  cxl.  10  (of  hot  coals),  and  similar  phrases  in  xxi.  11 ;  2  Sam.  xv.  14. 

and  in  wrath  &c.]  And  in  anger  are  they  hostile  unto  me :  (R.V. 
persecute  me). 

4.  terrors  of  death]  Such  terrors  as  the  presence  of  Death,  "the 
king  of  terrors,"  inspires. 

6.  horror  hath  ovenuhelmed  me]  The  same  phrase  as  in  Ezek.  vii. 
1 8,  "horror  shall  cover  them."  The  word  occurs  besides  only  in  Job 
xxi.  6 ;  Is.  xxi.  4. 

6 — 8.     He  would  fain  escape  to  some  solitary  refuge.     Cp.  Jer.  ix.  7. 

6.  Weary  of  his  life  in  the  cruel  city,  he  wishes  he  could  be  like  the 
dove  which  he  watches  winging  its  flight  swiftly  to  its  nest  in  the  clefts 
of  some  inaccessible  precipice,  far  from  the  haunts  of  men  (Cant.  ii.  14). 
The  dove  may  be  meant  too  as  an  emblem  of  his  own  timidity  and 
innocence. 


3IO  PSALM   LV.  7— II. 


7  Lo,  then  would  I  wander  far  off, 
And  remain  in  the  wilderness.     Selah. 

8  I  would  hasten  my  escape 

From  the  windy  storm  and  tempest 

9  Destroy,  O  Lord,  and  divide  their  tongues : 
For  I  have  seen  violence  and  strife  in  the  city. 

lo  Day  and  night  they  go  about  it  upon  the  walls  thereof: 
Mischief  also  and  sorrow  are  in  the  midst  of  it. 

IX  Wickedness  is  in  the  midst  thereof: 
Deceit  and  guile  depart  not  from  her  streets. 

7.  and  rcjjiain  &c.]  R.V.,  I  would  lodge  in  the  wilderness.  Selah 
seems  to  be  misplaced  here,  and  also  in  v.  19. 

8.  Or  as  R.V., 

I  would  haste  me  to  a  shelter 
From  the  stormy  wind  and  tempest, 
the  storms  of  faction  and  party  spirit  raging  in  the  city. 

9 — 15.  The  plaintive  pleading  of  the  opening  verses  suddenly  gives 
way  to  a  fierce  outburst  of  indignation. 

9 — 11.  He  prays  for  the  confusion  of  his  enemies'  counsels,  and 
describes  the  miserable  condition  of  the  city. 

9.  Destroy]  Lit.,  swal/ozu  up  these  malicious  plotters,  as  the  earth 
swallowed  up  Korah  and  his  crew  (Num.  xvi.  32).  From  several  pas- 
sages however  it  has  been  inferred  that  this  verb  also  means  to  confo2tnd\ 
and  if  so,  their  tongue  may  be  the  object  of  both  verbs,  and  there  may 
be  a  reminiscence  of  two  passages  in  Genesis  : — "The  Lord  did  there 
confound ^\\t  language  of  all  the  earth  "  (xi.  9) :  and  "In  his  days  was  the 
earth  divided^'  (x.  25).  May  confusion  and  division  such  as  overtook 
the  builders  of  Babel  overtake  them,  and  break  up  their  confederacy! 

10.  they  go  about  it  upon  the  walls  thereof]  A  metaphor  from  watch- 
men going  their  rounds  on  the  city  walls.  But  who  are  meant  by  they? 
Perhaps  the  party  hostile  to  the  Psalmist,  who  are  ever  patrolling  die 
city,  on  the  alert  for  mischief  Cp.  Is.  xxix.  20.  But  perhaps  rather 
Violence  and  Strife  personified.  These  he  implies  with  a  bitter  irony  are 
the  watchmen  who  are  now  in  charge  of  order  and  safety  in  the  city. 
This  explanation  agrees  well  with  the  following  lines : 

Iniquity  also  and  Mischief  are  in  the  midst  of  it, 

Destruction  is  in  the  midst  thereof: 

Oppression  and  Deceit  depart  not  from  her  streets. 

11.  Wickedness]  The  same  word  as  in  lii.  2 ;  very  wickedness  or 
destructio7i.  deceit]    R.V,  oppression,  or,  m^rg.,  fraud. 

her  streets]  Lit.,  broad  place:  the  open  space  inside  the  gates,  where 
justice  was  administered  and  business  transacted.  Everywhere  through- 
out the  city,  in  the  most  public  places  of  concourse,  every  form  of 


PSALM    LV.  12—14.  311 

For  /'/  was  not  an  enemy  that  reproached  me  ;  then  I  could  12 

have  borne  it : 
Neither  was  it  he  that  hated  me  that  did  magnify  himself 

against  me ;  then  I  would  have  hid  myself  from  him  : 
But  //  was  thou,  a  man  mine  equal,  13 

My  guide,  and  mine  acquaintance. 

We  took  sweet  counsel  together,  14 

And  walked  unto  the  house  of  God  in  company. 

evil  and  injustice  is  rampant,  without  check  or  intermission.  The 
whole  city  lies  at  their  mercy.  Cp.  the  catalogue  of  vices  in  x.  7 : 
"His  mouth  is  full  of  cursing  and  deceit  and  oppression;  under  his 
tongue  is  mischief  zxiA.  iniquity. ^^ 

12 — 14.  Foremost  among  the  Psalmist's  enemies  is  one  who  had 
formerly  been  one  of  his  most  intimate  and  trusted  friends.  He 
interrupts  the  denunciation,  which  he  resumes  at  v.  15,  to  relate  what 
is  the  bitterest  ingredient  in  his  cup  of  suffering.  The  burning 
indignation  of  the  preceding  and  following  verses  gives  way  for  a 
moment  to  a  pathetic  tone  of  sorrowful  reproach.  There  is  no  need 
to  suppose,  with  some  critics,  that  these  verses  are  misplaced,  and  ought 
to  follow  or  precede  vv.  6 — 8.  The  sudden  transition  is  most  true  to 
nature :  vv.  9 — 1 1  describe  the  general  situation ;  then  for  the  moment 
the  thought  of  the  personal  injury  which  constitutes  its  most  poignant 
bitterness  eclipses  every  other  thought;  and  in  z/.  15  indignation  against 
the  whole  mass  of  his  enemies  breaks  out  again. 

12.  Render : 

For  it  is  not  an  enemy  that  reproachetli  me,  then  I  could  bear  it : 

Neither  is  it  one  that  hated  me  that  hath  magnified  himself 
against  me,  then  I  would  hide  myself  £rom  him : 

But  it  is  thou,  a  man  mine  equal, 

Mine  associate  and  my  familiar  friend. 

J^'or  connects  this  stanza  somewhat  loosely  with  what  precedes,  giving 
an  additional  reason  for  the  prayer  of  v.  9  in  the  false-hearted  treachery 
of  one  who  is  conspicuous  among  them, — apparently  the  leader  of  the 
faction.  If  an  open  and  acknowledged  enemy  had  flung  scorn  at  him 
(xlii.  10;  xliv.  16;  Ivii.  3)  in  the  hour  of  defeat  and  humiliation,  he 
could  bear  it  as  one  of  the  common  ills  of  life  (cp.  2  Sam.  xvi.  lo  ff) :  if 
an  old  hatred  had  animated  the  man  who  took  the  lead  in  procuring  his 
disgrace  and  degradation,  then  he  might  retire  into  obscurity  without 
repining.  But  THOU  !  EtTU,  Brute/  For  magnifed  Aimselfcip.  xxxv. 
26,  or  xli.  9  (see  note). 

13.  Mine  equal  in  rank  and  position ;  my  associate  or  companion  (as 
in  Prov.  xvi.  28,  chief  friends ;  Mic.  vii.  5,  where  R.V.  xx\zx^.  familiar 

friend  is  right);  my  close  acquaintance  or  familiar  friend  (xxxi.  11). 
Cp.  Jer.  ix.  4  f. 

14.  We  were  wont  to  take  sweet  counsel  together, 
To  walk  in  the  house  of  God  with  the  throng. 


312  PSALM   LV.    15—17. 

xs  Let  death  seize  upon  them, 

A?td  let  them  go  down  quick  i?ito  hell : 

For  wickedness  is  in  their  dwellings,  and  among  them. 

16  As  for  me,  I  will  call  upon  God; 
And  the  Lord  shall  save  me. 

17  Evening,  and  morning,  and  at  noon,  will  I  pray,  and  cry 

aloud : 

Ours  was  an  habitual  intimacy  of  the  closest  and  most  sacred  kind,  in 
confidential  intercourse  in  private,  in  companionship  in  the  worship  of 
God  in  public.  The  throng  is  the  festal  procession  or  assembly  of 
worshippers;  the  "multitude  keeping holyday  "  of  xlii.  4  (where  however 
the  word  for  throng  is  different).  The  P.B.V.  as  friends  follows  the 
LXX  h  ofiovolq.,  'in  concord,'  Vulg.  arm  consensu. 

15.  The  mournful  recollections  of  past  friendships  so  cruelly  out- 
raged give  way  to  a  fierce  invocation  of  vengeance,  and  the  individual 
disappears  behind  the  whole  body  of  the  Psalmist's  enemies.  It  will  be 
noted  that  he  avoids  any  personal  execration  of  his  old  friend. 

Let  death  &c.]  The  consonants  of  the  written  text  must  be  rendered, 
Desolations  be  upon  them !  but  the  word  for  desolations  is  one  which  only 
occurs  in  the  name  of  a  place  [Betk-jeshimoth)  and  is  not  a  natural  word 
to  apply  to  persons ;  and  the  marginal  reading,  with  which  all  the  Ancient 
Versions  agree,  should  certainly  be  followed  in  its  division  of  the  con- 
sonants into  two  words.  Render,  Let  death  come  upon  them  unawares. 
In  this  and  in  the  next  line.  Let  them  go  down  alive  into  Sheol, 
there  may  be  an  allusion  to  the  fate  of  Korah  and  his  company  of  rebels 
(Num.  xvi.  30,  33).  Let  them  be  overtaken  in  the  midst  of  their 
villany  by  a  sudden  and  premature  death,  which  will  be  a  visible  judge- 
ment on  their  crimes.  Cp.  xxxv.  8;  and  cxxiv.  3;  Prov.  i.  12.  Quick 
in  A.V.  regularly  retains  its  old  meaning  alive.  Sheol  (A.V.  helf)  is 
not  the  place  of  torment,  but  the  abode  of  the  departed,  the  O.T.  equi- 
valent of  Hades,  by  which  it  is  rendered  in  the  LXX.    See  note  on  vi.  5. 

for  wickedness  &c.  ]  For  wickedness  (lit.  evils)  is  in  their  dwelling, 
in  the  midst  of  them  (lit.  in  their  inward  part).  Evil  of  every  kind 
finds  a  home,  not  only  in  their  dwellings,  but  in  their  hearts. 

16—23.  In  this  division  of  the  Psalm  the  storm  of  indignation  dies 
away,  and  the  Psalmist's  trustful  confidence  revives. 

16 — 18.     The  Psalmist's  assurance  that  his  prayer  will  be  answered. 

16.  the  Lord]  Here  and  in  z/.  22  the  name  Jehovah  is  significant. 
It  is  the  covenant- God  of  revelation  to  Whom  he  can  appeal,  and  under 
Whose  protection  he  can  rest. 

17.  Evening,  and  morning,  and  at  noon]  Evening  stands  first 
because  the  day  began  at  sunset.  A  reference  to  stated  hours  of  prayer 
(cp.  Dan.  vi.  10;  Acts  x.  9,  30)  is  hardly  to  be  found  in  so  natural 
an  expression  for  "continuing  stedfastly  in  prayer." 

"dnll  1  pray,  and  cry  aloud}  R.  V.,  will  I  complain  and  moan.  Cp. 
V.  2. 


PSALM    LV.    i8,  19.  313 


And  he  shall  hear  my  voice. 

He  hath  deUvered  my  soul  in  peace  from  the  battle  that  18 

was  against  me : 
For  there  were  many,.with  me. 

God  shall  hear,  and  afflict  them,  19 

Even  he  that  abideth  of  old.     Selah. 
Because  they  have  no  changes, 

and  he  shall  hear\  By  an  idiom  which  cannot  be  translated,  the 
Psalmist  speaks  of  this  hearing  as  a  present  fact.  So  in  v.  18  he  uses 
the  'perfect  of  certainty,'  He  hath  redeemed,  for  the  context  makes  it 
clear  that  deliverance  has  not  actually  reached  him.  In  peace  denotes 
the  result :  delivered  me  and  placed  me  in  safety. 

from  the  battle  that  was  against  me]  Better,  with  the  Ancient  Ver- 
sions, that  they  should  not  come  nigh  me. 

for  there  were  many  with  i7ie\  According  to  this  rendering  the  words 
may  refer  to  the  hosts  of  angels  sent  for  his  succour  (2  Kings  vi.  16  ; 
Ps.  xxxiv.  7);  but  the  R.V.  is  doubtless  right  in  rendering,  for  they 
were  many  (that  strove)  with  me. 

19.     The  judgement  of  his  enemies. 

God  shall  hear,  and  afflict  them]  Or,  humble  them.  This,  which  is 
the  rendering  of  the  Ancient  Versions,  is  probably  right.  But  it 
requires  a  change  of  the  vocalisation.  The  text  as  it  stands  must  be 
rendered  with  R.V.,  God  shall  hear,  and  ansT.uer  them,  meaning 
apparently,  that  God  will  hear  their  raging  and  answer  them  with 
judgement.  But  this  is  an  unnatural  form  of  expression.  The  object 
to  the  verbs  'hear'  and  'answer'  could  hardly  be  other  than  the  Psalmist 
or  his  prayer. 

even  he  that  abideth  of  old]  Render,  He  that  sltteth  enthroned 
eternally,  as  Judge  of  the  world.  (Cp.  "Thou  most  worthy  Judge 
Eternal.")  Cp.  Deut.  xxxiii.  27;  Pss.  ix.  7,  8;  xxix.  10;  Ixxiv.  12; 
Hab.  i.  12. 

Because  they  have  no  changes]  This  is  best  taken  as  a  relative  clause, 
dependent  on  the  preceding  sentence.  Render  with  R.V.  (placing  a 
comma  only  after  of  old), 

(The  men)  who  have  no  changes. 
And  who  fear  not  God. 

'Changes'  will  mean  vicissitudes  of  fortune.  God  will  humble  these 
.men,  who,  because  their  prosperity  is  unbroken,  fear  Him  not.  Cp.  x. 
4 — 6;  Ixxiii.  4!!.  The  truth  is  a  general  one,  but  the  Psalmist  is  think- 
ing particularly  of  his  own  enemies.  The  P.B.V.,^r  they  will 
not  turn,  nor  fear  God,  takes  changes  in  the  sense  of  change  of  mind^ 
repentance,  an  interpretation  adopted  by  some  critics,  but  not  justified 
by  usage.  The  text  is  not  free  from  difficulty,  but  the  explanation 
given  above  is  sufficiently  probable  to  make  it  unnecessary  to  assume  a 
further  corruption  or  displacement  of  the  text. 

Selah  in  the  middle  of  a  sentence  is  quite  inexplicable,  and  must  be 
misplaced,  as  it  seems  to  be  in  v.  7. 


314  PSALM   LV.  20—22. 

Therefore  they  fear  not  God. 

20  He  hath  put  forth  his  hands  against  such  as  be  at  peace 

with  him  : 
He  hath  broken  his  covenant. 

21  The  words  of  his  mouth  were  smoother  than  butter,  but  war 

was  in  his  heart : 
His  words  were  softer  than  oil,  yet  were  they  drawn  swords. 

22  Cast  thy  burden  upon  the  Lord,  and  he  shall  sustain  thee : 

20,  21.  Once  more  the  Psalmist  reverts  to  the  treachery  of  his  former 
friend.  It  is  quite  natural  that  he  should  do  so  again,  abrupt  as  is  the 
transition  from  the  great  mass  of  his  enemies  to  the  one  individual  who 
to  his  mind  stands  in  the  forefront  of  them  as  the  typical  traitor. 
It  is  unnecessary  to  transpose  these  verses  to  follow  w.  12 — 14,  or  to 
assume  that  they  are  a  misplaced  fragment  of  another  Psalm. 

20.  He  hath  put  forth  his  hands']  The  arch-traitor  is  certainly 
meant,  not  (though  the  Heb.  idiom  would  allow  of  this  explanation) 
each  of  the  evildoers  mentioned  in  v.  19.  For  the  phrase  cp.  i  Sam. 
xxvi.  9,  R.V. 

against  szich  as  be  at  peace  with  hivi\  R.V.,  against  such  as  were  at 
peace  with  Mm.  Cp.  vii.  4 ;  xli.  9  {familiar  friend,  lit.  man  of  my 
peace)',  Jer,  xx.  10;  xxxviii.  22.  The  plural  may  merely  generalise, 
but  seems  rather  to  indicate  that  the  Psalmist  is  the  representative  of  a 
party. 

he  hath  broken  his  covenant']  R.V.,  he  hath  profaned  Ills  covenant : 
desecrated  the  sacred  obligations  of  friendship  (i  Sam.  xviii.  3). 

21.  The  words  of  his  mouth  were  smoother  than  butter]  This  render- 
ing, though  supported  by  some  of  the  Ancient  Versions  and  commended 
by  the  parallelism  {smoothei-  than  butter — softer  than  oil),  cannot  be  got 
out  of  the  text  as  it  stands.     This  means  literally, 

Smooth  were  the  buttery  words  of  his  mouth. 
But  an  easy  emendation  gives  the  sense.  His  mouth  [LXX,  face]  was 
smoother  than  butter.     Smoothness  is  the  Heb.  term  for  false  and  hypo- 
critical flattery,  as  we  speak  of  a  'smooth-faced'  or  'smooth-tongued' 
rogue.     Cp.  V.  9;  xii.  2,  3. 

but  war  was  in  his  heart]     R.V.,  but  his  heart  was  war. 

softer  than  oil]  Cp.  "smoother  than  oil"  (Prov.  v.  3),  of  flattering 
and  delusive  speeches. 

drawn  swords]  Ready  to  stab  their  victim  to  the  heart.  Cp.  lii.  2, 
note. 

22,  23.  Conclusion.  The  Psalmist's  exhortation  to  himself  and 
everyone  in  like  case,  assuring  himself  and  them  that  God  %vill  uphold 
the  righteous  and  judge  the  wicked.  It  has  been  suggested  that  in  the 
liturgical  use  of  the  Psalm  these  verses  may  have  been  sung  by  a 
different  voice,  as  an  answer  of  encouragement  to  the  Psalmist. 

22.  Cast  thy  burden]  The  word  rendered  burden  is  of  uncertain 
meaning.     The   LXX,   from  which    St   Peter  borrows  (i   Pet.   v.  7), 


PSALM  LV.  23.     LVI.  315 

He  shall  never  suffer  the  righteous  to  be  moved. 

But  thou,  O  God,  shalt  bring  them  down  into  the  pit  of  23 

destruction : 
Bloody  and  deceitful  men  shall  not  live  out  half  their  days ; 
But  I  will  trust  in  thee. 

renders  thy  care.  But  fDr  this  explanation  there  is  no  philological 
ground,  and  the  word  seems  rather  to  mean  that  which  he  hath  given 
thee,  the  burden  of  care  or  suffering  which  He  hath  laid  upon  thee  to 
bear.  He  shall  sustain  thee,  not  necessarily  removing  the  burden,  but 
giving  strength  to  bear  it,  upholding  thee  lest  thou  shouldest  fall  under 
its  weight.     Cp.  xxii.  8,  xxxvii.  5,  and  notes. 

The  later  Greek  Versions  and  Jerome  presume  a  reading  which  differs 
very  slightly  so  far  as  the  appearance  of  the  consonants  is  concerned : 
Cast  [thy  burden,  or,  thy  cause"]  upon  yehovah,  who  loveth  thee.  The 
form  of  the  sentence  would  then  resemble  xxii.  8.  But  the  reading  is 
scarcely  probable. 

He  shall  never  suffer  the  righteous  to  be  movecf]  We  must  either 
understand  moved  oi^nzX  and  fatal  disaster,  or  else  render.  He  will  not 
suffer  the  righteous  to  be  moved  for  ever:  though  they  may  be  in  distress 
for  awhile,  there  will  be  an  end  to  their  suffering.  For  the  phrase  cp. 
X.  6;  xiii.  4 ;  xxx.  6. 

23.  shalt  bring  thou  down\  Namely,  the  foes,  who  are  still  in  the 
Psalmist's  mind :  their  end  is  the  pit  of  the  grave  :  a  premature  death 
awaits  bloodthirsty  and  deceitful  men,  whom  God  abhors  (v.  6).  Cp. 
xxxvii.  35  f ;  cix.  8,  and  many  passages  which  speak  of  the  penal  death 
of  the  wdcked. 

But  I  &c,]  But  as  for  me,  I  -will  trust  in  thee.  The  same  God 
who  destroys  the  wicked  is  the  object  of  the  Psalmist's  trust :  and  in 
truth  the  extermination  of  the  wicked  is  but  the  converse  of  the  reward 
and  exaltation  of  the  righteous:  the  one  is  the  necessary  preliminary  to 
the  other  :  and  the  earth,  be  it  remembered,  is  the  stage  upon  which  the 
Psalmist  expects  to  see  the  denouement  of  the  drama  of  life,  the  vindi- 
cation of  God's  moral  government  of  the  world.    See  Introd.  p.  xci  ff. 

PSALM  LVL 

Trust  in  God  in  the  presence  of  danger  is  the  keynote  of  this  and  the 
following  Psalm,  which  are  intimately  connected  together.  The  danger 
is  imminent ;  fear  is  inevitable ;  but  faith  is  victorious  over  fear.  The 
spirit  of  the  Psalm  is  concentrated  in  the  twice-repeated  refrain  {yv.  3, 
4;  io>  11). 

This  Psalm  and  Ps.  xxxiv  are  connected  by  their  titles  with  the  same 
period  in  David's  life.  His  first  visit  to  Gath  (i  Sam.  xxi.  10  ff),  when 
he  went  there  as  a  solitary  fugitive,  must  be  the  occasion  referred  to. 
Poinding  that  his  life  was  no  longer  safe  in  Judah,  he  resorted  to  the 
desperate  expedient  of  taking  refuge  with  the  enemies  of  his  country, 
hoping  no  doubt  that  the  Philistines  would  not  recognise  in  him  the 
stripling  who  slew  their  champion.     But  their  suspicions  were  aroused : 


3i6  PSALM  LVl.   i. 


David,  in  fear  for  his  life,  feigned  madness,  so  that  he  might  be  supposed 
to  be  harmless.  It  is  not  expressly  stated  in  i  Samuel  that  the  Philistines 
forcibly  detained  him,  but  the  words  **  feigned  himself  mad  in  their 
hands,^'  together  with  the  mention  of  his  escape  in  ch.  xxii.  i,  seem  to 
imply  that  he  was  practically  a  prisoner. 

The  obscure  words  of  the  title,  set  to  Yonath  elem  recholdm,  are  para- 
phrased  in  the  LXX,  *'  For  the  people  removed  far  from  the  sanctuary" ; 
and  in  the  Targum,  "Concerning  the  congregation  of  Israel,  which  is 
compared  to  a  silent  dove  at  the  time  when  they  were  far  from  their 
cities,  and  turned  again  and  praised  the  Lord  of  the  World."  These 
interpretations  are  interesting  as  shewing  that  the  Psalm  was  at  an  early 
date  regarded  as  a  national  Psalm,  and  placed  in  the  mouth  of  the 
suffering  people.  Hence  the  Psalmist  has  been  regarded  by  some 
critics  as  "the  mouthpiece  of  oppressed  and  suffering  Israel."  But  it  is 
a  mistake  to  say  that  this  is  "the  oldest  interpretation  of  the  Psalm." 
P'or  the  title,  whether  it  rests  upon  an  authentic  tradition  or  is  only  the 
conjecture  of  the  editor  of  this  book,  proves  that  at  a  still  earlier  time 
the  Psalm  was  regarded  as  the  expression  of  personal  experience.  And 
this  is  the  natural  account  of  its  origin;  its  use  as  the  prayer  of  the 
nation  in  exile  was  a  secondary  application  of  it.  While  it  is  impossible 
to  affirm  with  certainty  that  it  was  really  composed  by  David  in  Gath,  it 
breathes  the  spirit  of  trust  in  God  in  the  face  of  danger  by  which  David 
was  animated,  and  may  be  taken  as  an  illustration  of  his  feelings  in  that 
hour  of  his  extremity. 

The  Psalm  consists^oftwo  stanzas,  each  ending  with  a  refrain,  w.  i — 4, 
5 — ir;  and  a  concluding  thanksgiving  w.  12,  13.  In  each  of  the  prin- 
cipal stanzas  prayers  for  help  against  enemies  whose  hostility  is  described 
are  combined  with  the  strongest  expressions  of  trust  in  God. 

In  the  title.  For  the  chief  Musician ;  set  to  Yonath  elem  rechoMm. 
(A  Psalm)  of  David ;  Michtam  :  when  the  Philistines  took  him  in  Gath : 
the  words  Yonath  elem  rechdktni  mean  The  silent  dove  of  them  that  are 
afar  off ;  or  if  elim  be  read  for  elem  (a  change  of  vowel-points  only),  The 
dove  of  the  distant  terebinths.  These  words,  like  '  The  hind  of  the 
morning '  in  the  title  of  Ps.  xxii,  are  doubtless  the  title  of  some  song  to 
the  melody  of  which  the  Psalm  was  to  be  sung,  so  called  either  from  its 
opening  words  or  from  its  subject.  The  explanation  which  regards 
these  words  as  a  figurative  description  of  the  subject  of  the  Psalm  {con- 
cerning the  silent  dove  &c.),  the  innocent  sufferer  David  patiently 
enduring  persecution  in  a  foreign  land,  is  now  generally  abandoned. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Jonath-elem-rechokim,  Michtam  of  David,  when  the 
Philistines  took  him  m  Gath. 

56  Be  merciful  unto  me,  O  God :  for  man  would  swallow  me  up ; 

On  Michtam,  which  appears  in  the  titles  of  the  four  following  Psalms 
also,  and  of  Ps.  xvi,  see  Introd.  p.  xx. 

1 — 4.  However  fiercely  his  enemies  may  assault  him,  he  will  trust  in 
God,  Who  will  surely  be  true  to  His  promise. 

1.     Be  mercifnll     Be  gracious  :  see  note  on  li.  i,  and  cp,  Ivii.  i. 


PSALM   LVI.   2—4.  317 

He  fighting  daily  oppresseth  me. 

Mine  enemies  would  daily  swallow  me  up  : 

For  they  be  many  that  fight  against  me,  O  thou  most  High. 

What  time  I  am  afraid, 

I  will  trust  in  thee. 

In  God  I  will  praise  his  word, 

In  God  I  have  put  my  trust ;  I  will  not  fear 

What  flesh  can  do  unto  me. 


for  man  would  swallow  me  up\  Like  a  wild  beast  rushing  upon  its 
prey.  But  all  the  Ancient  Versions  render  trample  upon  or  crush,  which 
may  be  right.  Cp.  Ivii.  3.  The  word  for  man  denotes  mortal  man  as 
contrasted  with  God.  Cp.  ix.  19;  x.  18.  Will  the  Almighty  allow 
weak  men  to  triumph  against  His  Will  ? 

he  fighting  daily  &c.]  R.  V.,  all  the  day  long  lie  fighting  oppresseth 
me.  See  note  on  xlii.  9.  'All  the  day  long'  is  a  phrase  characteristic 
of  this  Psalm,  vv.  2,  5. 

2.  They  that  lie  in  wait  for  me  would  swallow  me  up  [or,  crush 

me]  all  the  day  long  : 
For  many  are  they  that  fight  against  me  haughtily. 
For  thejf  that  lie  in  7vaitfor  me  see  note  on  liv.  5.  The  word  rendered 
0  thou  most  High  in  A.V.  is  not  Elyon,  the  word  usually  so  rendered 
(e.g.  Ivii.  2),  but  mdrom.  This  word  is  applied  to  God,  as  in  Mic.  vi.  6, 
"the  high  God,"  Ps.  xcii.  8,  "Thou,  O  Lord,  art  on  high  for  ever- 
more : "  but  it  can  hardly  stand  by  itself  as  a  vocative,  and  probably 
means  '  with  a  high  hind,'  '  haughtily.'  Cp,  Ixxiii.  8.  *  Be  thou  ex- 
alted' in  Ivii.  5,  II  is  derived  from  the  same  root.  The  Psalmist  prays 
that  God  will  prove  His  own  supreme  exaltation  against  these  self- 
exalted  braggarts.     P.B.V.  are  in  hand=dXQ.  busying  themselves. 

3.  What  time  &c.]  Lit.,  In  the  day  that  I  am  afraid.  David's 
sojourn  in  Gath  is  the  only  occasion  on  which  he  is  recorded  to  have 
been  afraid  of  man  (i  Sam.  xxi.  12;  but  cp.  Ps.  xviii.  4). 

/  will  trust  in  thee'\  R.  V.,  I  will  put  my  trust  in  thee,  as  in  A.V. 
V.  4.  /  is  emphatic ;  they  trust  in  their  own  might,  but  /  will  trust 
in  Thee.  The  preposition,  which  is  different  from  that  in  v.  4,  gives  a 
delicate  shade  of  meaning,  *I  will  trustfully  betake  myself  to  Thee.' 
**  Each  day  of  peril  should  be  to  him  a  discipline  of  faith."     Kay. 

4.  In  God  I  will  praise  his  word'\  In  God's  strength,  by  the  help  of 
His  grace,  I  shall  be  enabled  to  praise  His  words  of  promise  (cxxx.  5). 
Cp.  xliv.  8.  This  rendering  is  preferable  to  the  possible  alternative,  In 
God  do  I  make  my  boast,  even  in  his  tvord. 

in  God  &c.]  R.V.,  In  God  have  I  put  my  trust,  I  will  not  be 
afraid  ;  what  can  flesh  do  unto  me  ?  Flesh,  synonymous  with  man  in 
V.  \i,  denotes  man  on  the  material  side  of  his  nature,  as  a  frail  and 
perishable  being,  contrasted  with  God  the  Eternal  and  Almighty.  Cp. 
Ixxviii.  39;  Gen.  vi.  3;  Job  x,  4;  Is.  r\.  5,  6;  Jer.  xvii.  5. 


3i8  PSALM    LVI.  5—8. 

5  Every  day  they  wrest  my  words : 

All  their  thoughts  are  against  me  for  evil. 

6  They  gather  themselves  together,  they  hide  themselves, 
They  mark  my  steps. 

When  they  wait  for  my  soul. 

7  Shall  they  escape  by  iniquity  ? 

In  thine,  anger  cast  down  the  people,  O  God. 

8  Thou  tellest  my  wanderings : 

Put  thou  my  tears  into  thy  bottle : 

5 — 11.  The  second  division  of  the  Psalm  is  similar  to  the  first :  a 
description  of  present  distress,  and  prayer  for  help,  followed  by  an  ex- 
pression of  perfect  confidence  in  God's  protection. 

5.  From  the  heights  of  faith  he  returns  to  the  urgent  reality  of 
present  distress.     Cp.  xlii.  6. 

Every  day]     R.V.,  all  the  day  long. 

ihey  wrest  my  words']  Distorting  and  perverting  them.  Calumniators 
endeavoured  to  poison  Saul's  mind  against  David,  i  Sam,  xxiv.  9,  cp. 
Ps.  vii.  3  ff.  But  the  meaning  is  somewhat  doubtful.  It  may  be,  they 
pervert  my  affairs^  i.e.  injure  my  interests. 

all  their  thoughts  &c.]     Cp.  xli.  7. 

6.  they  hide  themselves]  I.e.,  lie  in  wait  for  me;  or  according  to  the 
Kthibh,  set  an  ambush.     Cp.  lix.  3  ;  x.  8,  9. 

they  7fiark  my  steps]  Like  hunters  tracking  their  game.  "  Go,  I  pray 
you,"  said  Saul  to  the  men  of  Keilah,  "and  know  and  see  his  place 
where  his  haunt  (lit,  7^^^)  is"  (i  Sam.  xxiii.  22,  23). 

when  they  zoait  &c.]  R.V. ,  even  as  (marg.  inasmuch  as)  they  have 
waited  for  my  soul ;  have  been  watching  their  opportunity  to  take  my 
life.     Cp.  cxix.  95. 

7.  Shall  they  escape  by  iniquity?]  Or,  In  spite  of  iniquity  shall  they 
escape?  When  their  conduct  is  so  inhuman,  shall  they  escape  the  judge- 
ment ?  Less  probable  is  the  rendering  of  R.V.  marg.  (for  the  thought 
of  which  cp.  Is.  xxviii.  15),  They  think  to  escape  by  iniquity.  But  the 
phrase  is  obscure,  and  the  emendation  palles  for  pallet  adopted  by 
many  critics  deserves  consideration :  fVeigh  iinto  them  (i.e.  pay  them,  cp. 
Iviii.  2)  according  to  their  iniquity. 

in  thine  anger  &c.]  In  anger  bring  down  peoples,  0  God  :  humble 
them  by  judgement.  Cp.  Iv,  23;  Is.  Ixiii.  6.  This  prayer,  it  is  said,  is 
unsuitable  for  an  individual :  it  must  be  the  voice  of  the  congregation 
demanding  the  humiliation  of  its  proud  oppressors.  But  here,  as  in 
vii.  6ff.,  the  appeal  for  a  particular  judgement  is  absorbed  in  the 
desire  for  a  general  judgement  of  the  world. 

8.  Thou  tellest  my  wanderings]  Thou  countest  the  days  and  adven- 
tures of  my  fugitive  life,  while  I  am  driven  from  my  home  as  a  wanderer 
and  vagabond  (xxxvi.  11,  note);  not  one  of  them  escapes  Thy  notice 
(Job  xxxi.  4;  Matt.  x.  30).      Tell,  as  in  xxii.  17,  xlviii.  12,  means  count. 

put  thou  my  tears]     Or,  my  tears  are  put. 

into  thy  bottle]     By  a  bold  figui«  God  is  said  to  collect  and  treasure 


PSALM  LVI.  9—13.  319 

Are  they  not  in  thy  book  ? 

When  I  cry  unto  thee^  then  shall  mine  enemies  turn  back : 

This  I  know ;  for  God  is  for  me. 

In  God  will  I  praise  his  word  : 

In  the  Lord  will  I  praise  his  word. 

In  God  have  I  put  my  trust :  I  will  not  be  afraid 

What  man  can  do  unto  me. 

Thy  vows  are  upon  me,  O  God  : 
I  will  render  praises  unto  thee. 

For  thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  death :  wilt  not  thou 
deliver  my  feet  from  falling, 

his  tears,  as  though  they  were  precious  wine.  Kay  quotes  St.  Bernard's 
sajring,  **Lacrimae  poenitentium  vinum  angelorum."  The  'bottle'  is 
the  skin  bottle  of  Oriental  countries,  holding  a  considerable  quantity 
(Josh.  ix.  4,  13;  I  Sam.  xvi.  20;  Ps.  cxix.  83).  There  is  no  reference 
to  the  use  of  so-called  'lachrymatories.' 

are  they  not  in  thy  book  /"]  Or,  record.  For  God's  *  book  of  remem- 
brance' see  Mai.  iii.  16.  Cp.  Ex.  xxxii.  32;  Ps.  Ixix.  28;  cxxxix.  16. 
The  abrupt  question  is  characteristic  of  this  Psalm.     Cp.  w.  4,  13. 

9.  Tlien  shall  mine  enemies  turn  back  in  the  day  when  I  call: 
This  I  know,  that  [or,  for]  God  is  on  my  side. 

For  the  emphatic  then  cp.  ii.  5.  The  certainty  that  God  is  on  his 
side  is  the  ground  of  his  assurance  that  his  enemies  will  be  put  to  flight. 
Cp.  ix.  3;  cxviii.  6. 

10.  his  word]  The  omission  of  the  pronoun,  which  is  found  in  v.  4, 
is  difficult.  If  the  text  is  sound,  word  must  be  used  absolutely  for  the 
divine  word  of  promise.     Cp.  Prov.  xiii.  13;  xvi.  20. 

In  the  Lord  will  I  praise  his  word\  The  line  is  repeated  for 
emphasis  with  the  substitution  of  the  covenant  name  Jehovah  for  God. 
The  two  names  sometimes  occur  together  in  the  Elohistic  Psalms  (e.g. 
Iv.  16;  Iviii.  6);  and  a  refrain  is  not  always  repeated  in  precisely  the 
same  form.  But  the  repetition  may  simply  be  a  'conflate  reading,'  the 
second  line  being  either  the  survival  or  the  restoration  of  the  original 
text,  while  the  first  line  is  due  to  the  'Elohistic'  editor. 

11.  In  God  have  I  put  my  trust,  I  will  not  be  afraid; 
What  can  man  do  unto  me?  (R.V.). 

'Man'  =  'flesh'  of  v.  4.     Cp.  cxviii.  6,  borrowed  from  this  passage. 

12.  13.     Concluding  vows  of  thanksgiving. 

12.  Thy  vows  &c.]  Vows  made  to  Thee.  The  Psalmist  acknow- 
ledges his  obligations.     Cp.  Ixvi.  13  ;  Acts  xxi.  23. 

praises']     R.V.,  thank  oflferings,  in  addition  to  the  votive  offerings. 

13.  Borrowed  with  slight  variations  in  cxvi.  8. 

For  thou  hast  delivered  &c.]  He  takes  his  stand  in  the  future  and 
looks  back  upon  deliverance  granted.     Cp.  liv.  7. 

wilt  not  thou  deliver  my  feet  from  falling]    Yea,    my  feet  from 


320  PSALM    LVll. 


That  /  may  walk  before  God  in  the  light  of  the  living  ? 

stumbling:  lit.,  'hast  thou  «£>/ delivered  my  feet  from  thrustingV  i.e. 
not  only  saved  me  from  death,  but  upheld  me  when  the  foe  ^* thrust 
sore  at  me  that  I  might  fall"  (cxviii.  13;  cp.  xxxvi.  12). 

that  I  may  walk  before  God'\  Not  simply  live  in  His  Presence  and 
under  His  protection,  but  serve  Him  acceptably.  So  the  LXX,  rov 
€i>ap€(TT7Ja-ai  ivihinov  toO  deoO ;  cp.  Heb.  xi.  5,  6.  Cp.  Gen.  xvii.  i;  xxiv. 
40;  Ps.  Ixi.  7:  and  Gen.  v.  22,  24;  vi.  9. 

in  the  light  of  the  living]  Or,  of  life.  "The  land  of  the  living" 
(xxvii.  13;  cxvi.  9)  is  the  land  of  light  contrasted  with  the  darkness  of 
the  grave  (Job  xxxiii.  28,  30) ;  it  is  illuminated  by  the  Presence  of  God 
(xxxvi.  9),  from  Whom  comes  all  that  is  worthy  to  be  called  happiness. 
What  to  the  Psalmist  was  a  present  and  temporal  truth,  receives  for  the 
Christian  a  spiritual  and  eternal  meaning.  Cp.  John  viii.  12,  "I  am 
the  light  of  the  world :  he  that  followeth  me  shall  not  walk  in  the  dark- 
ness, but  shall  have  the  light  of  life." 


PSALM    LVII. 

This  Psalm  resembles  the  preceding  Psalm  in  thought,  language,  and 
structure.  It  breathes  the  same  lofty  spirit  of  confidence  in  the  presence 
of  danger;  it  begins  with  the  same  cry,  'be  gracious  unto  me,'  and  uses 
the  same  word  {v.  3)  to  express  the  enemy's  ferocity;  it  has  two 
principal  divisions,  each  closed  with  a  refrain  {w.  5,  11).  But  it  has 
also  marked  characteristics  of  its  own  in  thought,  language,  and  rhythm. 
Its  tone  is  more  triumphant ;  and  it  is  distinguished  by  the  use  of  the 
ligure,  common  in  lyrical  poetry,  of  'epizeuxis,'  or  emphatic  repetition 
of  words  {vv.  I,  3,  7,  8). 

The  title  attributes  the  Psalm  to  David  when  he  was  "in  the  cave" 
during  his  flight  from  Saul.  It  is  doubtful  whether  the  cave  of  Adullam 
(i  Sam.  xxii),  or  the  cave  in  the  wilderness  of  En-gedi,  on  the  western 
shore  of  the  Dead  Sea  (i  Sam.  xxiv),  is  meant.  The  reference  to 
enemies  caught  in  their  own  trap  {v.  6)  may  perhaps  point  to  the  latter 
occasion.  There  is  nothing  in  the  Psalm  (not  even  v.  9,  see  note), 
inconsistent  with  its  Davidic  authorship,  but  on  the  other  hand  nothing 
decisively  in  favour  of  it.  It  may  have  been  written  to  illustrate  this 
episode  in  David's  fugitive  life.  This  Psalm,  like  the  preceding  one, 
has  been  explained  as  a  prayer  of  the  suffering  nation :  but  its  language 
is  certainly  more  appropriate  to  an  individual  than  to  the  nation. 

The  Psalm  consists  of  two  divisions,  each  ending  with  the  same 
refrain,  an  appeal  to  God  to  manifest  His  supreme  and  universal 
sovereignty. 

i.  Prayer  for  protection  and  confident  anticipation  of  help  in  the 
midst  of  imminent  danger  (i — 5). 

ii.  Resolution  to  give  thanks  to  God  for  His  goodness  in  the  certain 
prospect  that  the  malice  of  enemies  will  recoil  upon  themselves  (6 — 1 1). 


PSALM  LVII.  I,  2.  321 


The  Psalm  is  appointed  as  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Easter  Day,  partly  as 
an  appropriate  thanksgiving  for  Christ's  triumph  over  the  powers  of 
Death  and  Hell;  partly  because  the  refrain  is  the  expression  of  the 
Messianic  hope  which  finds  its  guarantee  in  the  triumph  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion (1  Cor.  XV.  24 — 28). 

Vv.  7 — II  form  the  first  part  of  the  composite  Ps.  cviii :  and  v.  10  is 
found  again  almost  verbatim  in  xxxvi.  5.     Cp.  also  v.  1  with  xxxvi.  7. 

The  melody  to  wliich  this  Psalm,  as  well  as  the  two  following  Psalms 
and  also  Ps.  Ixxv,  was  to  be  sung  is  described  as  Al-tashcheth^  i.e. 
'  Destroy  not.'  Of  the  song  which  gave  this  title  it  is  possible  that  **a 
trace  is  still  preserved  in  Is.  Ixv.  8.  '  When  the  new  wine  is  found  in 
the  cluster,'  says  the  prophet,  'men  say,  'Destroy  it  not,  for  a  blessing 
is  in  it.'  These  words  in  the  Hebrew  have  a  distinct  lyric  rhythm. 
They  are  the  first  line  of  one  of  the  vintage  songs  so  often  ajluded  to  in 
Scripture.  And  so  we  learn  that  the  early  religious  melody  of  Israel 
had  a  popular  origin,  and  was  closely  connected  with  the  old  joyous  life 
of  the  nation."  Robertson  Smith,  Old  Test,  in  the  Jewish  Churchy 
p.  209. 

To  the  chief  Musician,  Al-taschith,  Michtam  of  David,  when  he  fled  from  Saul 
in  the  cave. 

Be  merciful  unto  me,  O  God,  be  merciful  unto  me  :  57 

For  my  soul  trusteth  in  thee : 

Yea,  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  make  my  refuge, 

Until  these  calamities  be  overpast. 

I  will  cry  unto  God  most  High ;  a 

Unto  God  that  performeth  all  things  for  me. 

1 — 6.  Beset  by  fierce  and  cruel  enemies,  the  Psalmist  throws 
himself  upon  God's  protection,  with  the  confident  assurance  of  speedy 
help. 

1.  Be  ?iierciful  unto  me]    Be  gracious  unto  me,  as  in  Ivi.  i. 
for  my  soul  &c.]     Render : 

For  in  thee  hath  my  soul  taken  refuge, 
And  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  take  refuge, 
Until  destruction's  storm  he  overpast. 
The  distinction  of  tenses  is  significant.     He  has  placed  himself  under 
Jehovah's  protection,  and  in  his  present  distress  claims  his  rights  as 
Jehovah's  client.     The  shadow  of  thy  wings  is  a  beautiful  metaphor  from 
the  care  of  the  mother-bird  for  her  young.     When  danger  threatens, 
they  run  to  her  for  shelter.     Cp.  xvii.  8 ;  xxxvi.  7 ;  Ixi.  4 ;  Ixiii.  7 ;  xci.  4; 
Ruth  ii.  12;  Matt,  xxiii.  37. 

Calamities  is  ^he  same  word  as  that  rendered  mischiefs  in  lii.  2, 
wickedness  in  Iv.  1 1  (see  notes),  and  the  verb  suggests  the  metaphor  of  a 
storm.     Cp.  Is.  xxvi.  20. 

2.  I  will  cry  &c.]  I  will  caU  unto  God  Most  High.  Cp.  Iv.  16; 
Ivi.  9.  The  combination  Elohim  Elyon  occurs  only  here  and  in  Ixxviii. 
56;   it   is   the    Elohistic  equivalent   of  Jehovah   Elyon    (vii.   17;    cp. 

PSALMS  2 1 


322  PSALM  LVII.  3,  4. 

He  shall  send  from  heaven,  and  save  me 
From  the  reproach  of  him  that  would  swallow  me  up.    Selah. 
God  shall  send  forth  his  mercy  and  his  truth. 
My  soul  is  among  lions  : 

A7id  I  lie  eveti  among  them  that  are  set  on  fire,  even  the  sons 
of  men, 

xlvii.  2;  Ixxxiii.  18;  xcvii.  9).  ^/ ^/y(?«  occurs  in  Ixxviii.  35  (cp.  Ixxiii. 
11);  Gen.  xiv.  18  ff.  The  Psalmist  appeals  to  God  first  as  the  'Most 
High'  (see  Appendix,  Note  ii),  a  name  which  implies  God's  power  to 
help  him,  as  the  supreme  Ruler  of  the  world;  and  then  as  God  (El) 
that  perfortiicth  all  things  for  me,  a  title  which  implies  His  willingness 
to  help  His  servant  now  as  heretofore.  Here  as  in  cxxxviii.  8,  the 
object  of  the  verb  is  left  to  be  supplied  (cp.  lii.  9).  He  will  perform 
all  that  needs  to  be  performed.     Cp.  Phil.  iv.  19. 

3.  He  shall  send  from  heaveri]  There  is  no  need  to  supply  an  object 
to  the  verb  here.  The  object  is  introduced  when  the  verb  is  repeated 
according  to  the  characteristic  peculiarity  of  this  Psalm.  For  the 
meaning  cp.  xx.  2,  and  perhaps  xviii.  16,  though  see  note  there. 

from  the  reproach  &c.]  Better,  (For)  he  that  would  swallow  me  up 
(or,  crush  me,  Ivi.  i,  note)  hath  reproached.  The  object  of  the  verb 
may  be  God,  Whom  the  enemy  blasphemes  in  denying  His  willingness 
to  help  His  sei"vant  (Is.  xxxvii.  23,  24) ;  or  the  Psalmist,  whom  he  taunts 
with  being  deserted  by  his  God  (xlii.  10;  Iv.  12).  The  rendering  of 
A.V.  marg.,  he  reproacheth  him  that  would  swallow  me  up,  is  contrary 
to  usage,  for  the  word  is  never  used  of  God  rebuking  men. 

Selah  here  is  probably  misplaced,  cp.  Iv.  19.  In  the  LXX  it  follows 
V.  2. 

God  shall  send  forth  &c.]  God's  lovingkindness  and  truth  (cp.  xlii.  8, 
xliii.  3)  are  almost  personified  as  "ministering  spirits,  sent  forth  to  do 
service  for  the  sake  of  them  that  shall  inherit  salvation."  It  is  in  virtue 
of  the  lovingkindness  which  is  the  foundation  of  His  covenant,  and  of 
the  faithfulness  which  is  an  inalienable  attribute  of  His  nature,  that  God 
will  send  help  to  His  servant. 

4.  A  difficult  verse,  the  text  of  which  is  perhaps  corrupt.  Adhering 
to  the  punctuation  (in  the  modern  sense)  of  the  Massoretic  accents,  we 
may  render  with  R.V., 

My  soul  is  amou^  lions ; 
I  lie  among  them  that  are  sot  on  fire, 
Even  the  sons  of  men,  &c. 
i.e.  virtually,  as  the  marg.,  /  must  lie,  an  expression  of  despondent 
resignation.      But   the   note   of  despair   is  out  of  harmony  with  the 
generally  courageous  and  confident  tone  of  the  Psalm  ;  and  it  is  more  in 
accordance  with  the  usual  force  of  the  Heb.  tense  (the  'cohortative'  or 
*voluntative')  to  take  I  will  lie  down  as  expressive  of  strong  resolution  : 
My  soul  Is  among  lions; 
I  will  lie  down  to  rest  among  fiery  foes, 
Even  the  sons  of  men,  S:c. 


,  PSALM   LVII.  5,  6.  323 

Whose  teeth  are  spears  and  arrows, 

And  their  tongue  a  sharp  sword. 

Be  thou  exalted,  O  God,  above  the  heavens;  ! 

Let  thy  glory  be  above  all  the  earth. 

They  have  prepared  a  net  for  my  steps ;  < 

My  soul  is  bowed  down  : 

Though  my  life  is  in  momentary  danger  from  savage  enemies,  I 
will  lie  down  to  rest  (cp.  iv.  8)  among  these  fieiy  foes,  secure  under 
God's  protection.  The  Psalm  is  an  evening  hymn,  for  the  Psalmist 
contemplates  'waking  the  dawn'  with  his  praises  {v.  8).  He  lies  down 
in  danger,  he  awakes  in  safety:  the  night  of  trouble  ends  in  the  dawn 
of  deliverance. 

Delitzsch,  rightly  understanding  the  words  as  an  expression  of  con- 
fidence, thinks  that  actual  wild  beasts  are  meant,  among  which  he  feels 
more  secure  than  among  his  deadly  foes;  but  this  is  scarcely  probable. 

Neglecting  the  accents  we  may  render  somewhat  differently,  With  my 
life  in  my  hands  (so  the  idiomatic  apposition  '/«/  soul,  P  may  be 
paraphrased)  I  must  lie  down  (or,  I  wiU  lie  down)  among-  lions :  fiery 
are  the  sons  of  men  &c. ;  but  the  sense  will  be  substantially  the 
same.  For  lions  as  a  metaphor  for  fierce  and  dangerous  enemies  cp. 
vii.  2 :  X.  9;  xvii.  12. 

whose  teelA]  The  language  is  suggested  by  the  comparison  of  his 
enemies  to  lions. 

l/ieir  tongtie  &c.]  The  reference  may  be  not  so  much  to  slander, 
as  to  the  blasphemy  of  which  he  speaks  in  v.  3,  which  pierces  him  to 
the  heart.  Cp.  xlii.  10.  See  also  lii.  1  note;  Iviii.  6;  Ixiv.  3;  Prov. 
XXX.  14. 

6.  The  thought  of  man's  murderous  hostility  naturally  leads  up  to 
the  prayer  that  God  will  manifest  Himself  in  majesty.  From  the 
confusions  of  earth  the  Psalmist  looks  up  to  God.    Cp.  xi.  4  ff. ;  xxxvi. 

Be  thou  exalted\  Or,  Exalt  thyself.  Cp.  xxi.  13  ;  xlvi.  10.  God  is 
exalted  \\\  majesty  (Is.  vi.  i) :  ^^'hat  is  needed  is  that  He  should  manifest 
His  supreme  authority  (Is.  ii.  1 1  fT.)  over  these  insolent  rebels. 

Though  rhythmically  divided,  the  two  clauses  are  logically  one : 
'exalt  Thyself  in  Thy  glory  above  heaven  and  earth.* 

6 — 11.  Convinced  that  God  will  manifest  His  authority,  the  Psalmist 
sees  the  machinations  of  his  enemies  turning  to  their  own  defeat,  and 
utters  resolutions  of  joyous  thanksgiving. 

6.  The  transposition  of  w.  5  and  6,  proposed  by  Cheyne  and  others, 
simply  ruins  the  sense,  v.  6  is  the  fitting  sequel  of  v.  5.  Just  as  in  Ivi. 
5  ff,  he  returns  after  the  refrain  to  contemplate  his  present  situation. 
But  now  Faith  sees  tlie  prayer  of  v.  5  answered,  and  with  the  mani- 
festation of  God's  supreme  authority  all  opposition  is  subdued,  nay,  his 
foes'  own  schemes  prove  their  ruin. 

my  soul  is  bowed  down]     Perhaps  we  should  read  with  the  LXX,  they 


324  PSALM   LVII.  7—9-  • 

They  have  digged  a  pit  before  me, 

Into  the  midst  whereof  they  are  fallen  themselves.     Selah. 

7  My  heart  is  fixed,  O  God,  my  heart  is  fixed : 
I  will  sing  and  give  praise. 

8  Awake  up,  my  glory ;  awake,  psaltery  and  harp  : 
I  myself  ^SSS.  awake  early. 

9  I  will  praise  thee,  O  Lord,  among  the  people  : 
I  will  sing  unto  thee  among  the  nations. 

have  bowed  down  my  soul;  i.e.  (the  perf.  as  in  Ivi.  i)  they  have  made 
sure  of  capturing  me.  But  it  is  tempting  to  go  further  and  read  (with 
Ewald),  their  soul  is  bowed  do2vn,  thereby  securing  a  double  parallelism 
in  the  verse.  Lines  i  and  3  then  describe  their  plots:  lines  2  and  4 
describe  how  they  are  caught  in  their  own  trap.  The  metaphors  are 
taken  from  the  nets  and  pitfalls  used  by  hunters.  Cp.  vii.  15;  ix.  I5f.; 
XXXV.  7;  Ezek.  xix.  4;  Eccl.  x.  8. 

into  the  midst  whereof  they  are  fallen  themselves]  Better,  they  are 
fallen  Into  the  midst  of  it. 

7.  My  heart  is  fixed'\  Stedfastly  resolved.  Cp.  li.  10 ;  cxii.  7 ; 
Col.  i.  23  {khpaxo%  is  the  word  used  by  Symmac»hus  here).  The  P.B.V. 
has  changed  Coverdale's  ready  '\xv\.q  fixed  \itxt,  but  retained  it  in  cviii.  i, 
probably  owing  to  the  influence  of  the  familiar  Latin  title,  Faratum  cor 
jneum,  at  the  beginning  of  that  Psalm. 

/  will  sing  and  give  praise\  I  will  sing  and  make  melody.  The 
latter  is  the  verb  from  which  mizmor,  'psalm,'  is  derived.  See  Introd. 
p.  xvii. 

8.  Awake  up]  A  common  summons  to  action.  Cp.  Judg.  v.  12; 
ts.  li.  9,  17 ;  Hi.  I. 

my  glory"]  So  the  soul  is  designated,  either  as  the  noblest  part  of 
man,  or  as  the  image  of  the  divine  glory.     Cp.  vii.  5;  xvi.  9;  xxx.  12. 

psaltery  and  harf]  Stringed  instruments,  often  coupled  together 
(xxxiii.  2;   I  Sam.  x.  5;  2  Sam.  vi.  5;  i  Kings  x.  12;  Is.  v.  12). 

/myself  will  awake  early]  Better,  as  R.V.  marg.,  I  will  awake  the 
dawn.  A  bold  and  beautiful  poetical  figure.  The  dawn  is  often 
personified  (Job  xli.  18;  Ps.  cxxxix.  9).  Usually  it  is  the  dawn  thai 
awakes  men :  he  will  awake  the  dawn  by  his  praises  before  daylight. 
Cp.  Milton,  r Allegro,  1.  53, 

"Oft  listening  how  the  hounds  and  horn 
Cheerly  rouse  the  slumbering  morn." 

and  Ovid,  Metarn.  xi.  597, 

"Non  vigil  ales  ibi  cristati  cantibus  oris 
Evocat  auroram." 

9.  I  will  give  thanks  imto  thee,  0  Lord,  among  the  peoples  : 
I  will  make  melody  unto  thee  among  the  nations. 

This  verse  at  any  rate,  it  is  said,  could  never  have  been  written  by 
David,  and  is  only  really  intelligible,  if  the  Psalmist  speaks  in  the  name 
of  the  nation.     But  the  words  are  not  unsuitable  for  one   who   vjras 


PSALM    LVII.   lo,  II.  325 

For  thy  mercy  is  great  unto  the  heavens, 
And  thy  truth  unto  the  clouds. 
Be  thou  exalted,  O  God,  above  the  heavens : 
Let  thy  glory  be  above  all  the  earth. 

chosen  to  be  king  over  a  nation  which  had  a  special  calling  in  relation 
to  the  nations  of  the  world.  If  the  nations  were  to  be  brought  under 
the  sway  of  Israel  that  they  might  be  taught  to  know  Jehovah,  it  was 
fitting  that  they  should  hear  of  Jehovah's  faithfulness  exhibited  in  the 
deliverance  of  His  servant.     Cp.  xviii.  49  (with  the  context) ;  ix.  11. 

10.  For  thy  lovlngkindness  is  great  unto  tlie  heavens, 
And  thy  truth  unto  the  skies. 

For  gives  the  reason  for  v.  9.  Mercy  and  truth  which  reach  from 
earth  to  heaven  demand  world-wide  praise.  Note  that  it  is  the  attri- 
butes which  minister  to  the  deliverance  of  God's  servant  {v.  3)  which 
are  expressly  named.  Sent  forth  for  his  help  they  have  proved 
victorious.  Almost  the  same  words  are  found  in  xxxvi.  5.  Cp.  Eph. 
iii.  18. 

11.  How  can  the  Psalmist  conclude  more  fitly  than  vnth  a  repetition 
of  this  prayer,  which  now  looks  beyond  his  own  immediate  needs  to 
that  perfect  and  universal  sovereignty  of  God,  which  is  the  final  goal  of 
hope  (i  Cor.  xv.  28;  Rev.  xix.  6)? 


PSALM   LVIII. 

This  Psalm  begins  with  an  indignant  remonstrance  with  those  in 
authority,  who  not  only  fail  to  administer  justice  equitably,  but  are 
themselves  among  the  worst  of  offenders  (i,  2).  A  description  of  the 
incurably  wicked,  among  whom,  it  is  implied,  such  men  must  be  classed, 
follows  (3 — 5),  and  leads  up  to  a  prayer  (or  perhaps  an  expression  of 
confident  assurance)  that  God  will  render  them  powerless  to  hurt,  or 
utterly  destroy  them  (6 — 9).  The  Psalm  concludes  with  a  description 
of  the  double  result  of  the  judgement :  the  righteous  who  are  freed  from 
their  oppressors  rejoice;  and  men  in  general  acknowledge  God's  moral 
government  of  the  world  (10,  11). 

The  Psalm  is  remarkable  for  the  vigour  of  its  language  and  the  bold- 
ness of  its  figures.  It  has  a  ring  of  prophetic  authority,  in  its  denuncia- 
tion of  wicked  men  in  high  place,  and  its  prediction  of  the  certainty  of 
their  downfall. 

Adhering  to  the  title,  which  assigns  it  to  David,  Delitzsch  supposes 
that  it  refers  to  Absalom's  rebellion.  In  vv.  i,  2  we  might  find  an 
allusion  to  Absalom's  pretended  zeal  for  justice  (2  Sam.  xv.  2  ff.).  while 
in  reality  he  was  meditating  the  most  monstrous  crimes :  the  language 
of  vv.  3  ff.  is  not  too  severe  for  the  graceless  treachery  of  the  son  who 
shrank  from  no  extremes,  and  coldly  contemplated  parricide  (2  Sam. 
xvi,  xvii.  I — 4):  w.  6 — 9  might  well  refer  to  the  sudden  and  complete 
collapse  of  the  rebellion,  and  vv.  10,  11  to  the  rejoicing  of  David's 
sympathisers  at  the  victory  (2  Sam.  xviii.  i9ff.;  note  the  phrase,  "the 


326  PSALM   LVIIT.  i. 


Lord  hath  judged  and  delivered  him  out  of  the  hand  of  his  enemies"; 
xix.  2). 

But  it  is  inconceivable  that  at  any  point  of  time,  before  or  after  the 
outbreak  of  the  insurrection,  David  could  have  used  the  language  of  the 
Psalm  with  reference  to  Absalom.  Beforehand  indeed  (though  we  may 
draw  a  wrong  inference  from  the  brevity  of  the  narrative  in  2  Sam.)  he 
seems  to  have  been  blind  to  what  was  going  on  :  and  when  he  knew  the 
worst,  his  feelings  of  anxiety  for  the  personal  safety  of  Absalom  and 
finally  of  grief  at  his  death  (2  Sam,  xviii.  5,  33 ;  xix.  4),  are  as  unlike 
the  severe  indignation  of  this  Psalm  as  anything  could  well  be.  If  it 
refers  to  Absalom's  rebellion,  it  can  never  have  been  written  by 
David. 

More  probably  however  it  belongs  to  some  later  period  in  the  history  of 
Israel.  There  is  no  sufficient  ground  for  supposing  that  the  unjust 
judges  are  foreigners,  whether  Babylonians,  Persians,  or  Syrians,  and 
that  the  Psalm  is  post-exilic.  The  evils  complained  of  are  precisely 
those  against  which  the  prophets  of  the  regal  period  are  constantly 
inveighing. 

Compare  generally  Pss.  xii,  xiv,  and  especially  Ixxxii;  and  with  the 
concluding  verses  cp.  the  conclusions  of  Ixiv  and  cxl. 


To  the  chief  Musician,  Al-taschith,  Michtam  of  David. 

58  Do  ye  indeed  speak  righteousness,  O  congregation  ? 
Do  ye  judge  uprightly,  O  ye  sons  of  men  ? 

For  the  title  see  Ps.  Ivii. 

1,  2.  An  indignant  remonstrance  with  those  in  authority,  who, 
instead  of  condemning  crime,  are  themselves  the  most  guilty  criminals.  . 

1.  0  congregation]  This  rendering  of  the  obscure  word  elem, 
adopted  by  the  scholars  of  the  early  part  of  the  i6th  century  from  the 
learned  Rabbi  David  Kimchi  (c.  1160 — 1235),  cannot  be  defended,  and 
does  not  suit  the  context.  The  word  elem  occurs  elsewhere  only  in  the 
title  of  Ps.  Ivi,  and  from  its  derivation  appears  to  mean  silence. 

i.     Taking  this  meaning,  we  may  render, 

(i)  as  R.V.,  Do  ye  indeed  in  silence  speak  righteousness?  The 
Psalmist  expostulates  with  the  judges  who  neglect  their  office.  "  They 
are  dumb  when  they  ought  to  speak,  as  afterwards  they  are  said  to  be 
deaf  when  they  ought  to  ^^^r."  (Bp  Pero\vne).  -' To  speak  righteous- 
ness' means  *to  pronounce  just  sentences.'  Justice  and  uprightness  are 
characteristics  of  God's  judgement  (ix.  8),  which  ought  to  be  reflected 
by  all  earthly  judges. 

(2)  as  R.V.  marg.  with  substantially  the  same  sense:  Is  the  right- 
eousness ye  should  speak  dumb  ? 

(3)  as  Kay:  Will  ye  indeed  utter  long-silent  justice?  a  reference," 
he  supposes,  to  Absalom's  profession  of  a  desire  to  remedy  the  want  of 
proper  provision  for  the  administration  of  justice,  while  he  was  himself 


PSALM   LVIII.  2.  327 


Yea,  in  heart  you  work  wickedness ; 

You  weigh  the  violence  of  your  hands  in  the  earth. 

plotting  the  unnatural  crime  of  rebellion  against  his  father.     See  2  Sam. 
XV.  2 — 6. 

With  this  reading  it  is  best  to  retain  the  rendering,  0 ye  sons  of  mcn^ 
in  the  next  line,  though  it  is  also  possible  to  render,  Do  ye  judge 
uprightly  the  sons  of  men  ?  The  judges  are  addressed  as  sons  of  men  to 
remind  them  that  they  are  but  human,  and  themselves  subject  to  a 
higher  tribunal. 

ii.  Most  critics,  however,  think  that  here  (as  perhaps  in  the  title  of 
Ps.  Ivi  also)  the  word  elem  should  be  read  with  different  vowels,  elwt^ 
'gods,'  or,  'mighty  ones.'     We  must  then  render, 

Do  ye  indeed,  0  ye  gods,  speak  righteousness? 
Do  ye  judge  uprightly  the  sons  of  men? 

The  judges  are  addressed  as  elim,  'gods,'  as  in  Ps.  Ixxxii.  i,  6  they 
are  called  elohtm,  'gods,*  because  in  their  judicial  capacity  they  acted  as 
the  representatives  of  God,  the  supreme  Judge.  They  are  thus  addressed 
here,  half-sarcastically  and  half- reproachfully,  in  contrast  to  the  'sons  of 
men,'  over  whom  they  exercise  jurisdiction;  as  well  as  to  emphasise 
the  comparison  between  their  failure  to  administer  justice,  and  the 
righteous  judgement  of  God  [v.  11). 

Ellm  however  is  not  so  used  elsewhere,  and  may  simply  mean 
'mighty  ones.'  Cp.  Ex.  xv.  15;  1  Kings  xxiv.  15;  Job  xli.  25  (Heb. 
17);  Ezek,  xvii.  13;  xxxii.  21. 

Cheyne  and  some  other  commentators  find  here  a  reference  to  the 
angels,  "to  whom  the  actual  administration  of  the  world's  government 
has  been  entrusted."  But  there  is  nothing  in  the  context  to  justify  the 
importation  of  an  idea  which  belongs  to  the  later  development  of  Jewish 
theology.  It  is  true  that  it  is  found  in  the  LXX  of  Deut.  xxxii.  8,  "  He 
set  the  bounds  of  the  nations  according  to  the  number  of  the  angels  of 
God";  but  this  paraphrase  has  no  claim  to  be  regarded  as  representing 
the  original  text. 

iii.  None  of  the  Ancient  Versions  however  give  any  support  to  this 
emendation.  The  LXX  and  Jerome  render  elem  as  an  adverb  {'then* 
or  'certainly');  the  Syr.  omits  it ;  Aquila  and  the  Targ.  attest  the  read- 
ing of  the  text.  Plausible  as  tliC  emendation  is,  it  must  not  be  made  a 
basis  of  argument,  and  the  obscurity  of  the  passage  must  be  admitted. 

2.  Yed\  Or,  Nay,  for  the  particle  implies  a  negative  answer,  and 
an  additional  accusation.  Far  from  judging  equitably,  you  are  your- 
selves the  greatest  offenders. 

i7i  hearty  Inwardly  they  are  ever  contriving  some  scheme  of  in- 
justice, like  the  nobles  against  whom  Micah  inveighs  (ii.  i),  as  "working 
evil  upon  their  beds." 

ye  weigh']  R.V.,  ye  "weigh  out.  There  is  a  bitter  irony  in  the  use  of  a 
word  strictly  applicable  to  justice  only.  For  the  metaphor  of  the  '  scales 
of  justice'  cp.  Job  xxxi.  6. 

in  the  earth]  Or,  in  the  land ;  publicly  and  openly,  carrying  into 
execution  the  schemes  they  contrive  in  *heir  hearts.     Cp.  Mic.  ii.  i. 


328  PSALM    LVIII.  3—6. 

3  The  wicked  are  estranged  from  the  womb  : 

They  go  astray  as  soon  as  they  be  born,  speaking  lies. 

4  Their  poison  ts  like  the  poison  of  a  serpent : 

T/iey  are  like  the  deaf  adder  that  stoppeth  her  ear ; 

5  Which  will  not  hearken  to  the  voice  of  charmers, 
Charming  never  so  ^visely. 

6  Break  their  teeth,  O  God,  in  their  mouth : 

Break  out  the  great  teeth  of  the  young  lions,  O  Lord. 

3 — 5.  A  description  of  the  class  to  which  these  wicked  judges 
belong;  the  deliberately  wicked,  who  are  deaf  to  remonstrance  and 
incapable  of  reformation. 

3.  are  estranged]  From  God  and  His  laws.  Cp.  Eph.  iv.  18, 
"alienated  from  the  life  of  God":  Col.  i.  21,  "alienated  and  enemies  in 
your  mind  in  your  evil  works,"  where  St  Paul  uses  the  word  {airrik- 
\oTpi(j)ix4voC)  employed  by  the  LXX  here. 

"The  imagination  of  man's  heart  is  evil  from  his  youth  "  (Gen.  viii. 
21);  but  these  men  have  shewn  a  more  than  ordinary  aptitude  for 
;vickedness.     It  has  become  to  them  a  second  nature. 

4,  5.  They  are  not  only  insidious  and  venomous  as  serpents,  but 
obstinately  oppose  all  attempts  to  control  them ;  like  the  deaf  adder  or 
asp,  most  venomous  of  all  serpents,  which  resists  all  the  arts  of  the 
charmer.  The  Arabs  distinguish  the  'deaf  serpent  from  that  which 
answers  the  call  of  the  charmer  by  hissing.  Snake  charming  is  alluded 
to  in  Eccl.  X.  11;  Jer.  viii.  17  ;  Ecclus.  xii.  13,  and  is  still  practised  in 
Africa  and  the  East.  As  the  asp  is  deaf  to  the  voice  of  the  enchanter,  so 
these  men  shut  their  ears  to  the  warnings  and  exhortations  of  the  prophets. 

Experience  confirms  the  teaching  of  the  Psalmist  that  among  the  end- 
less varieties  of  human  character,  there  are  some  which  exhibit  a  diabolical 
aptitude  for  evil  and  opposition  to  good.  In  the  light  of  God's  infinite 
love,  none  are  outside  the  pale  of  His  mercy;  yet  it  lies  in  the  power  of 
man  to  defeat  the  operations  of  His  grace  (Matt.  xii.  31). 

6 — 9.  Since  they  are  thus  obstinately  and  incurably  evil,  nothing 
remains  but  that  they  should  be  deprived  of  their  power  to  hurt  or 
altogether  destroyed. 

6.  The  figure  of  the  serpent,  typical  of  insidious  deadliness,  is 
changed  to  that  of  the  lion,  typical  of  open  ferocity. 

Break... break  out]  Render  them  powerless  for  harm.  Two  strong 
words,  properly  used  of  breaking  down  and  overthrowing  walls.  Cp. 
iii.  7;  Job  iv.  10  :  Prov.  xxx.  14. 

The  LXX  rendering  of  these  verbs  as  perfects  of  certainty  deserves 
consideration.  It  only  requires  a  different  vocalisation  of  the  con- 
sonants, and  gives  an  excellent  sense :  God  shall  surely  break  &c.  The 
tenses  in  w.  7,  8  must  then  be  rendered  as  futures:  They  shall  melt 
away  &c.  Such  an  authoritative  declaration  of  the  punishment  in  store 
for  the  wicked  seems  more  in  keeping  with  the  prophetic  tone  of  the 
Psalm  than  the  prayer  for  their  destruction. 


PSALM    LVIII.  7—9.  329 

Let  them  melt  away  as  waters  which  run  continually :  7 

When  he  bendeth  his  bow  io  shoot  his  arrows,  let  them  be 

as  cut  in  pieces. 
As  a  snail-  which  melteth,  let  every  one  of  them  pass  away  :      8 
Like  the  untimely  birth  of  a  woman,  that  they  may  not  see 

the  sun. 
Before  your  pots  can  feel  the  thorns,  9 

He  shall  take  them  away  as  with  a  whirlwind,  both  living, 

and  in  his  wrath. 

7.  as  waters  which  run  continually]  R.V.,  restoring  P.B.V.,  as 
water  that  nmneth  apace :  like  some  torrent  that  rages  wildly  for  a 
while  when  swollen  by  a  sudden  storm,  and  then  vanishes  entirely  (Job 
vi.  15  ff.). 

when  he  bendeth  his  bow  to  shoot  his  arrows']  A  cumbrous  rendering 
of  a  peculiar  phrase,  the  verb  strictly  applicable  to  the  bow  being  used 
of  the  arrows  (cp.  Ixiv.  3).  Better  as  R.V.,  when  he  aimeth  his 
arrows.  But  who  is  the  subject?  (i)  It  may  be  the  wicked  man,  (as  in 
Ixiv.  3);  When  he  aimeth  his  arrows,  let  them  be  as  though  they 
were  cut  off  (R.V.),  their  points  broken,  and  their  power  to  hurt 
destroyed.  (2)  It  may  be  God  (as  in  vii.  12  f.);  when  He  aimeth  His 
arrows,  let  them  (the  wicked)  be  as  it  were  mowed  down.  Cp.  xc.  6. 
Neither  alternative  is  free  from  serious  difficulties,  but  the  first  seems 
preferable. 

8.  Let  them  be  like  a  snail  which  melts  away  and  is  gone: 
Like  the  untimely  births  of  women,  that  have  not  seen  the 

sun. 

Two  more  figures  for  the  destruction  of  the  wicked : — let  them  melt 
away ;  nay,  vanish  as  though  they  had  never  existed. 

The  word  shablul  puzzled  the  ancient  translators.  The  LXX  render 
it  'wax'  (doubtless  to  suit  the  verb  'melt'),  Jerome  'worm';  but  later 
Hebrew  attests  the  meaning  snail.  But  what  is  the  point  of  compari- 
son ?  Is  it  that  the  snail  seems  to  melt  away  as  it  goes  along,  leaving  a 
slimy  track  behind  it,  or  perhaps  was  popularly  supposed  to  do  so?  or  is 
it  not  rather  an  allusion  to  the  way  in  which  snails  dry  up  and  perish  in 
drought?  There  are  to  be  found  in  all  parts  of  Palestine  "myriads  of 
snail  shells  in  fissures,  still  adhering  by  the  calcareous  exudation  round 
their  orifice  to  the  surface  of  the  rock,  but  the  animal  of  which  is  utterly 
shrivelled  and  wasted — 'melted  away,'  according  to  the  expression  of 
the  Psalmist."    Tristram,  Nat.  Hist,  of  Bible,  p.  296. 

For  the  second  figure  cp.  Job  iii.  16;  Eccl.  vi.  3 — 5.  That  they  may 
not  see  the  sun  (A.V.)  is  an  ungrammalical  rendering. 

9i  The  general  sense  of  the  verse  is  clear,  though  the  second  line  is 
extremely  obscure  and  possibly  corrupt.  The  first  line  certainly  means, 
Before  your  pots  can  feel  the  thorns  (possibly  a  proverbial  expression), 
and  the  verb  in  the  second  line  means,  He  shall  sweep  them  (or,  it)  away 
ivith  a  whirlwind.  It  is  another  figure  for  the  swift  destruction  of  the 
wicked  and  their  schemes,  taken  from  the  experience  of  travel  in  the 


330  PSALM    LVIII.  lo. 

lo  The  righteous  shall  rejoice  when  he  seeth  the  vengeance 
He  shall  wash  his  feet  in  the  blood  of  the  wicked. 


desert.  The  travellers  have  lighted  a  fire  of  dry  thorns  or  brambles 
under  their  cooking  pots.  It  blazes  up  rapidly,  but  even  so,  before  the 
pots  are  heated  and  the  meat  in  them  cooked,  a  sudden  whirlwind 
sweeps  away  the  fire  and  undoes  their  work.  The  fire  represents  the 
malicious  will  of  the  evildoers,  the  pots  with  the  meat  the  plans  which 
they  are  devising :  but  let  them  work  never  so  rapidly,  the  whirlwind  of 
divine  judgement  will  annihilate  their  schemes. 

The  crux  of  the  verse  is  in  ihe  words  rendered  in  A.V.  both  living  and 
in  his  wrath.  They  have  been  supposed  to  refer  to  the  thorns,  the 
gj-een  and  the  bui-ning  alike :  or  to  the  flesh  in  the  pot,  the  raw  flesh  and 
the  sodden  alike :  or  to  the  flesh  and  the  fire,  the  raw  flesh  and  hot  embers 
alike:  but  all  these  interpretations  break  down  on  the  fact  that  chdron, 
though  not  a  rare  word,  always  means  the  burning  wrath  of  God.  It 
seems  necessary  either  to  omit  the  word  k'mo,  'as,'  before  chdron,  or  to 
read  b'mo,  *in,'  instead  of  it  (1D3  for  1D3).  We  may  then  render.  Like 
raw  flesh  (  =  perhaps,  while  the  flesh  is  yet  raw),  shall  Wrath  sweep 
them  away  with  a  whirlwind ;  or,  shall  He  sweep  them  away  with  a 
whirlwind  in  wrath.  The  pronoun  for  them  is  in  the  singular,  and 
may  mean  each  one  of  the  wicked,  or  perhaps  rather  zV,  the  whole 
scheme.  For  a  figure  from  cooking  cp.  Hos.  vii.  4ff.:  for  the  thorn 
fires  Is.  xxxiii.  12;  Eccl.  vii.  6;  and  for  the  whirlwind  of  divine 
wrath  see  1.  3,  "it  shall  be  very  tempestuous  round  about  him";  Job 
xxvii.  21. 

10,  11.  The  issues  of  the  judgement:  the  righteous  rejoice  in  the 
discomfiture  of  their  oppressors  :  men  in  general  recognise  the  reality  of 
God's  moral  government  of  the  world. 

10.  The  righteous  shall  rejoice  &c.]  On  the  moral  aspects  of  the 
triumph  of  the  godly  at  the  just  punishment  of  the  wicked  see  note  on 
V.  II,  and  generally,  Tntrod.  pp.  Ixxxviii  flf.  Tt  is  important  to  observe 
that  the  rejoicing  of  the  righteous  is  at  the  vengeance  which  God  has  taken 
upon  the  wicked,  and  that  that  vengeance  is  only  taken  upon  those  who 
have  wilfully  and  obstinately  resisted  every  effort  for  their  reformation 
{vv.  4,  5).  God  has  proclaimed,  "Vengeance  is  mine"  (Deut.  xxxii. 
35;  cp.  Nah.  i.  2);  in  other  words  the  time  must  come  when  evil  can 
no  longer  be  tolerated  but  must  be  extirpated  (2  Thes.  i.  8) ;  and  the 
righteous  cannot  but  rejoice  at  the  triumph  of  good  over  evil  and  the 
proof  that  God  is  tnie  to  His  revealed  character  as  a  just  Judge  and 
sovereign  Ruler.  It  is  not  for  them  to  usurp  God's  function  and  avenge 
themselves,  but  they  must  rejoice  when  right  is  vindicated.  In  the  O.T. 
that  joy  took  a  concrete  form  which  is  repugnant  to  us,  who  have  learned 
to  distinguish  between  the  sinner  and  his  sin :  it  is  not  the  spirit  of  the 
Gospel :  but  we  may  well  beware  lest  the  right  feeling  of  moral  indig- 
nation, not  only  against  wrong  in  the  abstract  but  against  the  wrong- 
doer, should  be  weakened. 

he  shall  wash  his  feet  &c.]     The  metaphorical  and  hyperbolical  Ian- 


PSALM  LVIII.  II.  331 


So  that  a  man  shall  say,  Verily  there  is  a  reward  for  the  " 

righteous : 
Verily  he  is  a  God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth. 

guage  of  a  warlike  age.  Cp.  Ps.  Ixviii.  23  ;  and  for  a  similar  metaphor 
see  Job  xxix.  6. 

11.  So  that  a  man  shall  say^  Rather,  So  that  men  shall  say  :  the 
mass  of  men,  who  are  neither  'righteous'  nor  'wicked,'  but  as  it  were 
spectators  of  the  conflict  between  the  righteous  and  the  wicked. 

Verily\  This  particle  expresses  the  recognition  of  a  truth  which  has 
been  obscured  or  questioned:  'after  all,'  'surely.*     Cp.  Ixxiii.  i. 

areward^  lAt.  fruit.  Cf  Is.  iii.  lo.  Their  patient  continuance  in 
well-doing  bears  its  harvest  in  due  time  (Gal.  vi.  9). 

verily  he  is  a  God]  Better,  Verily  there  is  a  God  (R.V.).  Contrary 
however  to  the  general  usage  when  God  is  spoken  of,  the  predicate  is  in 
the  plural :  and  perhaps  Elohim  is  meant  to  be  taken  somewhat  more 
vaguely,  in  parallelism  and  contrast  to  the  judges  of  vv.  r,  1 — the  con- 
trast holds  whether  elim,  'gods,'  is  read  in  v.  i  or  not — as  Divine 
Powers.  But  the  reading  is  not  above  suspicion.  The  LXX  and  Syr. 
have  that  judgeth  them,  i.e.  does  the  righteous  justice  {xliii.  i),  the  final 
m  bein^  read  as  the  pronominal  suffix,  not  as  the  sign  of  the  plural'. 

For  like  confidence  in  the  final  manifestation  of  God's  judgement  see 
vii.  II  ff.;  ix.  7  ff.,  19;  xi.  4flr.;  and  cp.  Lk.  xviii.  7  ff. 


PSALM  LIX. 

This  Psalm  is  another  prayer  for  deliverance  from  virulent  enemies 
\vho  are  threatening  the  Psalmist's  life.  It  consists  of  two  principal 
divisions  (i — 9,  10 — 17)  each  ending  with  a  refrain.  These  are  again 
subdivided  ;  the  end  of  the  first  stanza  in  each  being  marked  by  a  Selah^ 
and  the  initial  verse  of  the  second  (6,  14)  being  the  same. 

i.  (i)  In  peril  of  his  life  from  truculent  enemies  the  Psalmist  cries 
for  help  (i,  2).  Emphasising  the  fact  that  their  attack  is  unprovoked, 
he  prays  Jehovah  to  interpose  and  punish  all  the  antagonists  of  His 
people  (3—5). 

(2)  He  describes  the  menacing  behaviour  and  the  scornful  godlessness 
of  his  enemies  (6,  7),  and  declares  his  confidence  that  Jehovah  will  treat 
them  with  sovereign  contempt  (8,  9). 

ii.  (r)  Starting  from  the  height  of  this  confidence  {v.  10)  he  prays 
that  they  may  be  humbled,  yet  not  utterly  destroyed,  but  left  for'a 
warning  example,  till  their  own  sin  proves  their  ruin  (11,  12),  and  their 
final  disappearance  demonstrates  the  sovereignty  of  Jacob's  God  (13). 

»  They  must  have  found  DtDDtJ'  written  defectively  and  read  shdph'tdm  not 
shdphti)n. 


332  PSALM   LIX. 


(2)  Returning  to  the  present,  he  contrasts  the  baffled  rage  of  his  pur- 
suers (14,  15)  with  his  own  hymns  of  thanksgiving  for  deliverance  (16, 

'7). 

Thus  the  Psalm  strikes  the  familiar  note  of  unshaken  trust  in  God 
under  circumstances  of  danger  and  difficulty.  Its  constant  recurrence  in 
the  Psalter  is  doubtless  intended  to  provide  a  large  variety  of  comfort 
and  encouragement  for  the  various  circumstances  of  trial  to  which  the 
godly  are  exposed. 

But  what  were  the  actual  circumstances  of  the  Psalmist  ?  According 
to  the  title  the  Psalm  refers  to  the  occasion  in  David's  life  '*  when  Saul 
sent,  and  they  watched  the  house  to  kill  him."  The  narrative  in  i  Sam. 
xix.  8  ff  relates  that  after  Saul's  unsuccessful  attempt  upon  his  life  David 
fled  and  escaped.  "And  it  came  to  pass  that  night"  (so  we  should 
read  with  the  LXX)  "that  Saul  sent  messengers  to  David's  house  to 
watch  it,  that  he  might  slay  him  in  the  morning."  Michal  however 
contrived  to  effect  his  escape  by  letting  him  down  through  a  window. 

There  is  much  in  the  Psalm  which  suits  David's  situation.  Not  on 
that  particular  night  only  but  for  some  time  previously  his  life  had  been 
in  danger.  Saul  had  spoken  "to  Jonathan  his  son  and  to  all  his  ser- 
vants, that  they  should  slay  David"  (i  Sam.  xix.  i);  and  doubtless 
there  were  men  {v.  3)  in  Saul's  retinue  ready  to  curry  favour  with  their 
master  by  secretly  despatching  him,  treacherous  ruffians  who  might  well 
be  compared  to  the  hungry  and  savage  dogs  which  infest  oriental  towns. 
David's  enemies  had  been  using  the  weapons  of  false  and  cruel  calumny 
with  the  view  of  effecting  his  ruin.  With  vv.  7,  12  cp.  i  Sam.  xxiv.  9; 
xxvi.  19.  Again  and  again  he  protested  his  innocence  and  the  ground- 
lessness of  the  persecution  he  was  suffering.  With  w.  3,  4  cp.  i  Sam. 
XX.  I ;  xxiv.  II ;  xxvi.  18  ff;  and  Ps.  vii. 

The  connexion  of  the  Psalm  vvdth  this  episode  in  David's  life  is  how- 
ever commonly  set  aside  on  the  ground  that  the  Psalmist's  foes  are 
described  as  foreigners  {vv.  5,  8),  and  'my  people'  {v.  ii)  seems  to 
imply  that  he  is  a  king  or  at  least  in  a  position  of  authority. 

Ewald  supposed  that  the  Psalm  was  written  by  Josiah  when  Jerusa- 
lem was  threatened  by  the  marauding  bands  of  the  Scythians ;  others 
have  attributed  it  to  Nehemiah,  when  he  was  hindered  in  his  work  of 
rebuilding  the  walls  by  the  Samaritans  and  their  confederates  (Neh.  iv. 
I  ff,  7  ff ;  vi.  I  ff ).  But  neither  of  these  conjectures  is  satisfactory. 
The  enemies  appear  to  be  personal ;  one  of  their  chief  weapons  is 
calumny  ;  it  is  the  Psalmist's  life  which  is  in  danger,  rather  than  the 
city,  or  the  cause  which  he  represents. 

It  is  indeed  not  quite  certain  (see  the  notes)  that  the  *  heathen '  of  vv. 
5,  8,  are  the  Psalmist's  own  immediate  enemies :  but  if  they  are,  the 
data  do  not  seem  to  be  entirely  consistent.  Is  it  possible  that  we  have 
here  a  Psalm  written  by  David,  or  possibly  by  some  later  poet,  witli 
reference  to  the  occasion  stated  in  the  title,  and  subsequently  adapted  for 
liturgical  use  by  the  introduction  of  prayers  for  the  judgement  of  the 
enemies  of  the  nation  ? 


PSALM    LIX.  1—5.  333 


To  the  chief  Musician,  Al-taschith,  Michtam  of  David;  when  Saul  sent,  and  they 
watcht  the  house  to  kill  him. 

Deliver  me  from  mine  enemies,  O  my  God :  59 

Defend  me  from  them  that  rise  up  against  me. 

Deliver  me  from  the  workers  of  iniquity,  a 

And  save  me  from  bloody  men. 

For  lo,  they  lie  in  wait  for  my  soul :  3 

The  mighty  are  gathered  against  me ; 

Not  for  my  transgression,  nor  for  my  sin,  O  Lord. 

They  run  and  prepare  themselves  without  my  fault :  4 

Awake  to  help  me,  and  behold. 

Thou  therefore,  O  Lord  God  ghosts,  the  God  of  Israel,       5 

Awake  to  visit  all  the  heathen  : 

Be  not  merciful  to  any  wicked  transgressors.     Selah. 

1 — 6.  The  Psalmist  prays  for  deliverance  from  the  enemies  who  are 
bent  on  taking  his  life,  pleading  his  innocence,  and  appealing  to  God  to 
punish  all  injustice. 

1.  Deliver  me]     So  vii.  i,  and  frequently. 

defend  me]  Better,  as  R.V.,  set  me  on  higli  (xx.  i  ;  xci.  14).  It  is 
the  verb  from  which  is  derived  the  epithet  '  high  tower '  so  often  applied 
to  God  {vv.  9,  16,  17;  xviii.  2;  xlvi.  7,  11). 

2.  from  bloody  men]  Better,  from  bloodthirsty  men  (v.  6  ;  Iv.  23  j 
cxxxix.  19;  Prov.  xxix.  10). 

3.  4.     For,  lo,  strong  ones  have  laid  wait  for  my  life, 

They  gather  themselves  together  against  me, ' 
For  no  transgression  or  sin  of  mine,  Jehovah. 
For  no  iniquity  (of  mine)  they  run  and  station  themselves : 
Arouse  thee  to  meet  me,  and  behold. 
Observe  the  tenses.     Secret  plots  (cp.  Prov.  i.  11;  Mic.  vii.  1)  have 
long  been  going  on :  now  they  are  preparing  a  more  open  attack  (liv.  3  ; 
Ivi.  6).     In  this  crisis  he  calls  upon  God  to  arouse  Himself  from  His 
apparent  slumber  of  indifference  (xliv.  23),  and  'meet  him '  as  with  an 
army  of  relief.     For  'behold'  (lit.  see)  cp.  x.  14;  xxv.  18;  xxxi.  7. 

The  transgression,  sin,  iniquity,  of  which  he  protests  his  innocence, 
might  refer  to  offences  against  God,  for  which  this  persecution  might 
have  been  sent  as  a  punishment  (i  Sam.  xxvi.  19) ;  but  more  probably  they 
refer  to  offences  against  his  persecutors.  Their  hostility  is  unprovoked. 
Exactly  the  same  words  are  used  by  David  in  protesting  his  innocence  of 
treasonable  designs  against  Saul,  i  Sam.  xx.  i;  xxiv.  11. 
5.  Yea,  do  Thou,  Jehovah,  the  God  of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel, 
Awake  to  visit  all  the  nations: 

Be  not  gracious  to  any  treacherous  workers  of  iniquity. 
Thou  is  emphatic,  and  the  address  virtually  means,  'since  Thou  art 
God  of  hosts,  and  God  of  Israel.'     The  first  title  implies  that  He  has 


334  PSALM    LIX. 


6  They  return  at  evening : 
They  make  a  noise  like  a  dog, 
And  go  round  about  the  city. 

7  Behold,  they  belch  out  with  their  mouth  ; 
Swords  are  in  their  lips  : 

For  who,  say  they,  doth  hear  ? 


the  power  (xlvi.  7,  note),  the  second  that  He  is  under  the  obligation,  to 
interpose  and  'visit,'  hold  inquisition  concerning,  the  nations,  to  punish 
them  for  their  offences.  But  who  are  meant  by  the  'nations'  or 
'heathen '?  Are  they  the  enemies  against  whom  the  Psalmist  is  praying, 
and  identical  with  the  'treacherous  workers  of  iniquity,' mentioned  in 
the  next  line  ?  If  so,  the  Psalmist's  enemies  are  foreigners,  for  usage 
does  not  justify  the  interpretation  of  goyim  as  'heathenishly  minded 
men';  and  if  the  Psalm  is  in  its  original  form,  it  cannot  have  been 
written  by  David  with  reference  to  Saul  and  his  myrmidons.  But  it  is 
possible  that,  as  in  Ps.  vii,  the  prayer  for  a  judgement  upon  personal 
enemies  is  expanded  into  a  prayer  for  a  judgement  upon  all  the  enemies 
of  Israel :  and  in  that  general  judgement  the  treacherous  Israelites  who 
are  iniquitously  plotting  against  the  Psalmist's  life  will  meet  their  due 
reward.  Similarly  in  v.  8,  'them'  will  refer  to  the  Psalmist's  personal 
enemies,  'the  heathen'  or  'nations'  to  the  enemies  of  Israel.  It  is  also 
possible,  as  has  been  suggested  above,  that  the  Psalm  has  been  altered 
for  liturgical  use. 

The  anomalous  form  of  the  combination  Jehovah  the  God  of  hosts  here 
and  in  Ixxx.  4,  19;  Ixxxiv.  8  [Jehovah  Elohim  Tsebdoth  not  Jehovah 
Elohe  Tsebdoth)  makes  it  probable  that  the  original  reading  was  simply 
Jehovah  of  hosts,  and  that  God  is  the  substitution  of  the  Elohistic  editor 
for  Jehovah,  which  however  has  survived  or  has  been  restored  along 
with  it. 

Be  not  gracious  is  the  opposite  to  the  Psalmist's  prayer  for  himself, 
Ivi.  I,  Ivii.  I. 

6 — 9.  Be  his  enemies  never  so  threatening  and  insolent,  he  can  trust 
in  God. 

6.  He  compares  his  enemies  to  a  troop  of  savage  and  hungry  dogs 
(xxii.  16)  such  as  still  infest  Oriental  t©wns,  in  the  day-time  sleeping  in 
the  sun  or  slinking  lazily  about,  but  as  night  comes  on  collecting 
together,  and  traversing  the  streets  in  search  of  food,  howling  dismally. 
P.B.V.  g7-m  means  'snarl.'  Cp.  Shakespeare,  2  Hen.  F/,  iii.  i.  18, 
quoted  in  Wright's  Btb/e  Word-Book, 

"Small  curs  are  not  regarded  when  they  grin; 
But  great  men  tremble  when  the  lion  roars." 

7.  The  figure  of  v.  6  is  dropped.  A  flood  of  cursing  and  falsehood 
{v.  12)  pours  from  their  mouth  (Prov.  xv.  2,  28);  they  menace  him  with 
death,  or  openly  boast  that  he  will  soon  be  got  rid  of;  cp.  Iii.  2,  note. 

'  Say  they '  is  rightly  inserted.     '  Who  doth  hear '  ?  is  not  the  Psalmist's 


PSALM   LIX.  8— lo.  335 


But  thou,  O  Lord,  shalt  laugh  at  them ; 
Thou  shalt  have  all  the  heathen  in  derision. 
Because  of  his  strength  will  I  wait  upon  thee : 
For  God  is  my  defence. 

The  God  of  my  mercy  shall  prevent  me : 

God  shall  let  me  see  my  desire  upon  mine  enemies. 

complaint  that  there  is  no  one  to  take  his  part,  but  the  scornful  sneer  ol 
his  enemies,  who  do  not  believe  that  God  cares  for  His  servant.  Cp.  x. 
4,  II,  13;  Ixiv.  5;  Ixxiii.  11;  xciv.  7. 

8.  The  verbs  are  the  same  as  in  ii.  4:  cp.  xxxvii.  13;  Is.  xxxvii.  •22. 
The  bold  phrase  "expresses  generally  the  truth  that  the  machinations  of 
God's  enemies  are  not  less  absurd  than  wicked."     Speaker's  Comm. 

For  the  meaning  of '  heathen'  or  'nations,'  see  note  on  v.  5. 

9.  0  my  strength,  unto  thee  will  I  "watch: 
For  God  is  my  hig-h  tower. 

His  enemies  are  'strong'  {v.  3) ;  but  God  is  his  strength;  they  watch 
his  house  (title),  but  he  will  'watch  unto  God,'  waiting  in  faith  for  His 
help;  he  has  prayed  that  God  will  'set  him  up  on  high,'  and  he  is  con- 
fident of  an  answer,  for  God  Himself  is  his  'high  tower'  of  refuge. 

The  A.V.  'because  of  his  strength^  follows  the  Massoretic  Text; 
but  some  MSS.,  the  LXX,  Vulg.,  Jer.,  and  Targ.,  read,  as  in  z/.  17,  my 
strength^  which  is  doubtless  right.  P.B.V.  retains  my  from  the 
Vulg.,  though  adopting  an  impossible  rendering,  'My  strength  will  I 
ascribe  unto  thee.'  It  is  unnecessary  to  follow  the  Syr.  in  reading 
as  in  z/.  17,  /  will  make  melody,  for  /  will  watch;  but  possibly  the 
words  the  God  of  my  lovingkindness  originally  stood  at  the  end  of  this 
verse  as  well  as  oiv.  17.     See  note  on  v.  10. 

10 — 13.  His  enemies  will  be  punished:  yet  let  them  not  be  utterly 
destroyed  forthwith,  but  kept  awhile  for  a  warning,  till  they  perish 
througli  their  own  iniquity,  an  evidence  of  the  sovereignty  of  God. 

10.  The  Kthlbh,  with  which  the  LXX  agrees,  has  My  God  shall 
meet  me  with  His  lovingkindness :  but  the  Qre  is,  The  God  of  my 
lovingkijidness  shall  meet  ?}ie.  This  variety  of  reading  possibly  points 
to  an  original  text,  in  which  v.  9  ended  with  the  words,  the  God  of  my 
lovingkindness,  and  z'.  10  began.  His  lovingkindness  (or,  My  God  with 
his  lovingkindness)  shall  meet  me.  Cp.  Ixxix.  8.  The  loss  of  the 
words  would  be  easily  accounted  for  by  the  similarity  between  the  end 
of  z/.  9  and  the  beginning  of  v.  10.     Cp.  note  on  xlii.  5,  6. 

shall  prevent  me'\  shall  come  to  meet  me ;  in  answer  to  the  prayer 
of  ».  4.     For  the  archaism /r^z/^w/  cp.  xxi.  3. 

shall  let  me  see  my  desire]  Cp.  liv.  7,  note.  The  same  phrase  occurs 
on  the  Moabite  Stone,  where  Mesha  says  that  he  erected  the  high  place 
to  Chemosh,  "because  he  let  me  see  my  desire  upon  all  that  hated 
me." 

upon  mine  enemies^  Upon  them  that  lie  in  wait  for  me.  See  note 
on  liv.  5. 


336  PSALM    LIX.  ii- 


11  Slay  them  not,  lest  my  people  forget : 
Scatter  them  by  thy  power ; 

And  bring  them  down,  O  Lord  our  shield. 

12  For  the  sin  of  their  mouth  ajid  the  words  of  their  lips 
Let  them  even  be  taken  in  their  pride : 

And  for  cursing  and  lying  which  they  speak. 

13  Consume   thetn   in   wrath,  consume  thein^   that   they   may 

not  be: 
And  let  them  know  that  God  ruleth  in  Jacob 
Unto  the  ends  of  the  earth.     Selah. 

11.  Slay  thefn  not]  Apparently  inconsistent  with  z'.  13;  but  burning 
indignation  does  not  study  logical  consistency.  What  he  desires  is  that 
they  may  not  be  destroyed  outright  by  some  signal  catastrophe,  but 
visibly  punished  as  a  living  example,  until  at  last  their  own  wickedness 
proves  their  destruction.  Cp.  Ex.  ix.  15,  16  (R.V.).  Pharaoh  might 
have  been  cut  off  at  once,  but  was  suffered  to  exist,  till  his  obstinate 
resistance  sealed  his  doom,  and  enhanced  God's  sovereignty.  The 
Fathers  applied  the  words  to  the  Jews  in  their  dispersion,  scattered 
but  not  consumed,  an  ever  visible  memorial  of  divine  judgement. 

scatter  them  by  thy  power]  Rather,  make  them  wander  to  and  fro 
by  thine  army,  as  vagabonds  and  outcasts  (cix.  10;  Gen.  iv.  12,  14; 
Num.  xxxii.  13).  The  word  rendered  by  thy  power  in  A.V.  is  never 
used  of  God's  might,  but  may  mean  (cp.  Joel  ii.  25 ;  iii.  11)  the  heavenly 
army  which  God  has  at  His  command.     Cp.  xxxv.  5,  6. 

bring  them  down]     Cp.  Iv.  23;  Ivi.  7. 

our  shield]  The  Psalmist  speaks  as  the  representative  of  the  nation, 
or  at  least  of  a  class.  For  the  metaphor  cp.  iii.  3 ;  Gen.  xv.  i ;  Deut. 
xxxiii.  29 ;  Ps.  xviii.  2  ;  &c. 

12.  The  A.V.  gives  the  sense,  though  the  precise  construction  is 
doubtful.  Perhaps,  The  word  of  their  lips  is  the  sin  of  their  mouthy  i.e. 
every  word  they  utter  is  sin:  or,  0  the  sin  of  their  mouth!  0  the  word 
of  their  lips!  let  them  &c. 

let  them  even  be  taken]  Caught  in  their  own  snare,  their  plots  recoil- 
ing on  themselves.     Cp.  ix.  15  ;  xxxv.  8  ;  Prov.  xi.  6. 

m  their  pride]  The  atheistic  self-sufficiency  which  says,  Who  doth 
hear?     Cp.  x.  4. 

13.  Co7tsiwie  them  in  wrath,  consume  them]  For  the  emphatic 
repetition  cp.  Ivii.  i,  7,  8;  and  for  the  wrath  of  divine  judgement  cp. 
Ivi.  7. 

that  they  may  not  be]     Better  as  R.V.,  that  they  be  no  more. 

and  let  them  know]  It  is  best  to  regard  the  subject  of  the  verb  as 
indefinite,  let  men  know;  and  to  connect  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth  with 
this  clause.  Let  it  be  known  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  the 
world.  Cp.  I  Sam.  xvii.  46:  'that  all  the  earth  may  know  that  there  is 
a  God  in  Israel.'  The  P.B.V.  'that  it  is  God  that  ruleth  in  Jacob,  and 
unto  the  ends  of  the  world,'  gives  an  equally  good  sense,  but  requires 
the  insertion  of  the  conjunction. 


PSALM   LIX.  14—17.  337 

And  at  evening  let  them  return ;  14 

And  let  them  make  a  noise  like  a  dog, 

And  go  round  about  the  city. 

Let  them  wander  up  and  down  for  meat,  «5 

And  grudge  if  they  be  not  satisfied. 

But  I  will  sing  of  thy  power ;  »6 

Yea,  I  will  sing  aloud  of  thy  mercy  in  the  morning : 

For  thou  hast  been  my  defence 

And  refuge  in  the  day  of  my  trouble. 

Unto  thee,  O  my  strength,  will  I  sing :  17 

For  God  is  my  defence,  and  the  God  of  my  mercy. 

14 — 17.  The  Psalmist  contrasts  the  baffled  rage  of  his  persecutors 
with  his  own  calm  trust  in  God. 

14.  A  repetition  oi  v.  6.  But  is  it  (i)  as  the  A.V.  appears  to  take  it, 
an  ironical  repetition  as  a  curse?  let  them  do  now  perforce  what  they 
did  before  in  malice  and  wantonness,  wandering  to  and  fro  (cp.  v.  11)  in 
unsatisfied  hunger.  Or  is  it  (2)  a  reiterated  description  of  the  writer's 
present  situation,  introduced  here  to  emphasise  the  contrast  of  his  own 
security  under  Jehovah's  protection?  The  second  alternative  is  prefer- 
able, as  giving  full  force  to  the  emphatic  they  [v.  15)  and  But  I  {v.  16). 
Render, 

And  though  they  return  at  evening,  howl  like  dogs,  and  go 

round  about  the  city. 
Though  they  wander  to  and  fro  for  meat, 
And  tarry  all  night  if  they  be  not  satisfied; 
Yet  as  for  me,  I  shall  sing  &c. 
The  prey  of  which  they  were  in  quest  was  the  Psalmist  himself.    Dis- 
appointed in  their  attempt  they  might  tarry  all  night,  yet  he  is  confident 
that  the  dawn  will  see  him  still  safe,  and  bring  fresh  occasion-  for  praise. 
The  A.V.  grudge,   i.e.    murmur,  follows  the  LXX  and  Jer.;   but  the 
contrast  '  in  the  morning '  (v.  15)  is  in  favour  of  R. V.  (cp.  A.V.  marg.) 
tarry  all  night. 
16,  17.     Render, 
Yet  as  for  me,  I  shall  sing  of  thy  strength ; 
Yea,  I  shall  sing  aloud  of  thy  lovingkindness  in  the  morning: 
For  thou  hast  been  a  high  tower  for  me, 
And  a  refuge  In  the  day  of  my  distress. 
Unto  thee,  0  my  strength,  will  I  make  melody, 
For  God  is  my  high  tower,  the  God  of  my  lovingkindness. 
Thou  hast  been,  for  in  the  language  of  faith  he  looks  back  upon  the 
deliverance  from  the  morning  of  peace  which  succeeds  the  night  of 
anxiety. 

The  refrain  is  slightly  varied  from  v.  9 :  the  patient  waiting  of  the 
night  is  changed  into  the  joyous  song  of  the  morning. 

PSALMS  22 


338  PSALM   LX. 


PSALM  LX. 

According  to  the  title  this  Psalm  refers  to  an  event  in  the  wars  of 
David,  "when  he  was  contending  with  Aram-naharaim  and  with  Aram- 
zobah,  and  Joab  returned,  and  smote  of  Edom  in  the  Valley  of  Salt 
twelve  thousand."  David's  conquest  of  Edom  is  recorded  in  2  Sam. 
viii.  13  f,  but  (see  note  on  the  passage  in  this  series)  the  text  oi  v.  13  is 
certainly  corrupt,  and  we  should  probably  read,  *'  And  David  gat  him  a 
name  when  he  returned  from  smiting  the  Syrians  and  smote  of  Edom  in 
the  Valley  of  Salt  eighteen  thousand."  It  has  been  most  plausibly  con- 
jectured (see  Ewald,  Hist.  iii.  156,  E.T.)  that  while  David  was  fully 
occupied  in  the  north  with  the  Syrian  war,  the  Edomites  seized  the 
opportunity  for  invading  the  south  of  Judah,  and  inflicted  serious  damage. 
Had  their  plans  been  entirely  successful,  David's  victories  in  the  north 
would  have  been  rendered  useless.  It  was  a  critical  moment;  but 
David  promptly  detached  a  force,  which  routed  the  Edomites  with  great 
slaughter  in  the  Valley  of  Salt.  This  was  the  valley  to  the  south  of  the 
Dead  Sea,  which  was  the  ancient  border  between  Judah  and  Edom,  and 
was  the  scene  of  another  victory  over  Edom  in  the  reign  of  Amaziah 
(2  Kings  xiv.  7).  The  victory  was  followed  up  by  the  complete  subju- 
gation of  the  country.  From  an  incidental  notice  in  i  Kings  xi.  15,  16 
we  learn  that  the  war  was  pursued  with  relentless  severity.  The  signal 
vengeance  which  was  taken  upon  Edom  is  more  readily  intelligible  if 
the  Edomites  had  attempted  to  use  the  opportunity  of  David's  absence 
for  striking  a  deadly  blow  at  Judah.  The  phrase  "  gat  him  a  name" 
(i.e.  won  renown)  in  2  Sam.  viii.  13  may  refer  to  the  admiration  excited 
by  the  skill  and  promptitude  with  which  David  met  the  sudden  danger 
to  his  kingdom. 

The  Psalm  may  be  supposed  to  have  been  written  at  the  moment 
when  David  received  the  news  of  the  defeat  inflicted  by  Edom,  and  was 
despatching  Joab  to  repel  the  invaders.  It  was  an  anxious  crisis  ;  for 
it  must  have  seemed  doubtful  whether  these  reverses  in  the  south  would 
not  compel  him  to  abandon  his  conquests  in  the  north,  and  might  not 
even  endanger  the  safety  of  the  kingdom. 

That  the  victory  over  Edom  is  attributed  to  David  ia  2  Sam.,  to 
Abishai  in  i  Chr.  xviii.  12,  and  to  Joab  in  the  title  of  the  Psalm,  need 
cause  no  difficulty.  David  was  concerned  in  it  as  king,  and  to  his 
military  genius  may  have  been  due  the  plan  of  the  campaign  and  the 
promptitude  of  action ;  Joab  was  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  army ; 
Abishai  may  have  led  the  division  which  was  sent  forward  in  advance. 
The  variation  between  twelve  thouscmd  here  and  eighteen  thousand  in 
2  Sam.  and  r  Chron.  is  probably  due  to  a  textual  error. 

Aram-naharaim,  or  Syria  of  the  two  Rivers,  was  probably  not  Meso- 
potamia, but  the  country  between  the  Euphrates  and  Chaboras,  or  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  these  rivers.  It  is  not  mentioned  in  2  Sam.  viii, 
but  in  2  Sam.  x.  i6,  it  is  said  that  Hadadezer  brought  into  the  field  the 
Syrians  that  were  beyond  the  River  (Euphrates),  and  in  i  Chr.  xix.  6 
Aram-naharaim  (A.V.  Mesopotamia)  is  mentioned  along  with  Zobah. 
The  exact  position  of  Zobah  is  uncertain :  it  seems  to  have  been  north- 


PSALM  LX.  I.  339 


east  of  Damascus  and  south  of  Hamath,  between  the  Orontes  and  the 
Euphrates. 

The  accuracy  of  the  title  has  been  questioned  upon  various  grounds. 
It  is  not  a  valid  argument  against  it  that  2  Sam.  does  not  mention  such 
a  disaster  as  that  to  which  the  Psalm  refers.  Reverses  would  not  be 
recorded  in  the  brief  summary  of  David's  victories  which  is  all  that  the 
history  gives;  and  an  invasion  which  for  the  moment  seemed  most 
alarming  would  fade  into  insignificance  when  the  danger  was  past.  The 
hypothesis  of  such  an  invasion  certainly  explains  and  connects  the  frag- 
mentary notices  in  Samuel  and  Kings.  Nor  does  the  Psalm  necessarily 
imply  a  prolonged  period  of  disaster.  An  attack  which  imperilled  the 
safety  of  the  kingdom  would  quite  account  for  the  language  of  w.  i  ff. 

Numerous  conjectures  as  to  the  occasion  of  the  Psalm  have  been  pro- 
posed by  commentators  who  reject  the  title.  Some  would  connect  it 
with  Amaziah's  war  with  Edom  (2  Klings  xiv.  7).  Not  a  few  would 
bring  it  down  to  the  Maccabaean  times,  chiefly  on  the  ground  of  its 
relation  to  Ps.  xliv  in  tone  and  language  (cp.  xliv.  9  with  v.  lo).  But 
none  of  the  occasions  in  that  period  with  which  it  has  been  connected  is 
really  suitable,  and  it  has  already  been  shewn  in  the  Introd.  to  Ps.  xliv 
that  the  history  of  the  formation  of  the  Psalter  makes  it  difficult  to  sup- 
pose that  Maccabaean  Psalms  are  included  in  the  Elohistic  collection.  It 
may  reasonably  be  maintained  that  the  situation  indicated  in  the  title 
explains  the  Psalm  more  satisfactorily  than  any  alternative  which  has 
been  suggested. 

The  Psalm  is  to  be  sung  to  the  melody  known  as  Shushan-eduthy  that 
is,  The  lily  of  testimony.  Cp.  the  title  of  Ps.  Ixxx,  set  to  Shashannim- 
Edutky  and  also  those  of  Pss.  xlv,  Ixix.  It  is  intended  fo7'  teaching, 
probably,  like  David's  elegy  on  Saul  and  Jonathan,  to  be  committed  to 
memory  for  recitation.     Cp.  Deut.  xxxi.  22. 

"W.  5 — 12  form  the  second  part  of  the  composite  Ps.  cviii. 

The  Psalm  may  be  divided  into  three  stanzas  as  follows : 

i.  David  expostulates  with  God  for  abandoning  His  people  to  disaster 
and  defeat  (i — 4). 

ii.  He  appeals  to  God's  promise  to  apportion  the  land  to  His  people, 
and  give  them  dominion  over  the  neighbouring  nations  (5 — 8). 

iii.  Though  God  has  for  the  time  deserted  His  people  it  is  He  alone 
Who  can  help;  and  to  Him  David  turns  in  confident  assurance  of 
victory  (9 — 12). 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Shushan-eduth,  Michtam  of  David,  to  teach;  when 
he  strove  with  Arain-naharaim  and  with  Aram-zobah,  when  Joab  returned,  and 
smote  of  Edom  in  the  valley  of  salt  twelve  thousand. 

O  God,  thou  hast  cast  us  off,  thou  hast  scattered  us,  60 

1 — 4-    Grave  disasters  have  befallen  Israel  through  God's  displeasure. 

1.  thou  hast  cast  us  off]  Cp.  v.  10  ;  xliv.  9,  23;  Ixxiv.  i ;  Ixxvii.  7  ; 
Ixxxix.  38. 

thou  hast  scattered  us]  Better  as  R.  V.,  thou  hast  broken  us  down,  a 
word  applied  to  defeat  (2  Sam.  v.  20),  or  any  great  calamity  (Jud.  xxi.  15  ; 


340  PSALM   LX.  2—4. 


Thou  hast  been  displeased  ;  O  turn  thyself  to  us  again. 
3  Thou  hast  made  the  earth  to  tremble ;  thou  hast  broken  it : 
Heal  the  breaches  thereof;  for  it  shaketh. 

3  Thou  hast  shewed  thy  people  hard  things : 

Thou  hast  made  us  to  drink  the  wine  ^astonishment. 

4  Thou  hast  given  a  banner  to  them  that  fear  thee, 
That  //  may  be  displayed  because  of  the  truth.     Selah. 

Job  xvi.  14).  It  is  a  metaphor  from  the  destruction  of  a  wall  or  a 
building  (2  Kings  xiv.  13;  Is.  v.  5). 

thou  hast  been  displeased^  R.V.  rightly,  thou  hast  been  angry,  as 
A.V.  elsewhere  (ii.  12;  Ixxix.  5;  i  Kings  viii.  46;  &c.).  Israel's  neigh- 
bours used  exactly  the  same  language.  Mesha  in  the  inscription  known 
as  the  Moabite  Stone  says  that  Omri  the  king  of  Israel  oppressed  Moab 
many  days,  "because  Chemosh  was  angry  with  his  land"  (/.  5). 

O  turn  thyself  to  us  again']     Better,  0  grant  us  restoration. 

2.  Thou  hast  made  &c.]  R.V.  Thou  hast  made  the  land  to  tremble  ; 
thou  hast  rent  it.  The  disaster  is  compared  to  an  earthquake,  which 
is  often  used  as  a  symbol  of  great  catastrophes  and  especially  of  divine 
judgement  (xviii.  7;  xlvi.  3,  6;  Is.  xxiv.  18  ff).  'The  breaches'  may 
be  the  rents  and  rifts  in  the  solid  ground,  or  by  a  very  natural  transition, 
the  state  is  further  compared  to  the  buildings  shattered  by  the  earthquake 
and  threatening  to  fall  (Ixii.  3;  Is.  xxx.  13  j  and  for  heal-^repair^  see 
Jer.  xix.  11). 

3.  hard]  i.e.  calamitous. 

the  wine  of  astonishment]  Better  as  R.V.,  the  wine  of  staggering. 
The  cup  of  God's  wrath  is  a  common  metaphor  for  His  judgements.  It 
is  like  some  drugged  potion,  which  robs  the  drinker  of  reason,  and 
makes  him  reel  helplessly  along,  the  mockery  of  all  beholders.  Com- 
monly it  is  administered  to  the  enemies  of  Israel  (Ixxv.  8;  Jer.  xxv.  15  ff ); 
but  also  to  Israel  itself  (Is.  li.  17,  21  f ). 

4.  That  it  m.ay  be  displayed  because  of  the  truth]  With  this  render- 
ing, which  has  been  retained  in  the  text  of  the  R.V.,  the  verse  becomes 
the  preface  to  the  following  prayer.  Israel  is  charged  with  the  mainten- 
ance of  God's  cause,  therefore  let  Him  help  them  against  the  heathen. 
But  it  is  decidedly  preferable  (cp.  R.V.  raarg.)  to  follow  the  LXX, 
Vulg.,  Symm.,  and  Jer.  in  rendering,  That  they  may  betake  themselves 
to  flight  from  before  the  bow  (cp.  Is.  xxxi.  8).  The  verse  then  forms 
the  conclusion  of  the  first  stanza  of  the  Psalm.  By  'them  that  fear 
thee'  Israel  is  meant;  and  the  word  implies  that  Israel  is  loyal  to 
Jehovah  (cp.  xliv.  17  ff).  He  has  'given  them  a  banner'  (cp.  Is.  v.  26; 
xiii.  2 ;  Jer.  iv.  6),  raised  a  standard  to  summon  them  to  fight  for  His 
cause  (for  the  cause  of  the  nation  was  the  cause  of  its  God),  in  order 
that  they  should  be  put  to  flight  before  the  enemy's  archers.  The  words 
are  reproachfully  sarcastic,  and  there  is  no  need  to  weaken  the  sarcasm 
by  inserting  only  before  that  they  may  betake  themselves  to  flight.  God 
has  deliberately  mustered  His  people  and  led  them  forth  to  defeat. 
They  recall  (though  their  spirit  is  wholly  different)  the  complaint  of  the 


PSALM    LX.  5,  6.  341 


That  thy  beloved  may  be  delivered ;  5 

Save  with  thy  right  hand,  and  hear  me. 

God  hath  spoken  in  his  holiness ;  6 

I  will  rejoice,  I  will  divide  Shechem, 

And  mete  out  the  valley  of  Succoth. 


Israelites  in  the  wilderness,  "Because  the  I>ord  hated  us,  he  hath 
brought  us  forth  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  to  deliver  us  into  the  hand  of 
the  Amorites,  to  destroy  us"  (Deut.  i.  27). 

The  view  that  w.  i — 4  form  the  first  stanza  of  the  Psalm  is  confirmed 
by  the  position  of  Selah,  by  the  commencement  of  the  extract  in  Ps. 
cviii  with  v.  5,  and  by  the  symmetry  of  structure  which  is  given  by  a 
division  at  this  point. 

6 — 8.  A  prayer  for  deliverance  and  victory,  based  upon  God's 
promise  to  give  Israel  the  possession  of  Canaan,  and  supremacy  over 
the  neighbouring  nations. 

6.  ihybeloved'\  Thy  beloved  ones  {^\\xx.)  2iX^\'&xz.t\^  Cp.  Deut.  xxxiii. 
II ;  Jer.  xi.  15.  God's  love  for  Israel  is  the  counterpart  to  Israel's  fear 
of  God. 

save\    i.e.  give  victory.     Cp.  v.  w. 

hear  me]  Answer  me.  The  Kthlbh  has  us^  which  R.V.  adopts;  but 
the  Qre  is  me.  This  has  the  support  of  the  Ancient  Versions  and  is 
preferable.     David  is  the  speaker.     Cp.  v.  9. 

6.  in  his  holiness]  Or,  by  Ms  holiness,  for  'spoken  '  is  the  equiva- 
lent of  'promised'  or  'sworn.'  Cp.  Ixxxix.  35;  Am.  iv.  1.  God's 
'holiness'  includes  His  whole  essential  nature  in  its  moral  aspect,  and 
that  nature  makes  it  impossible  for  Him  to  break  His  promise  (Num. 
xxiii.  19;  Tit.  i.  2).  It  is  equivalent  to  'Himself  (Am.  vi.  8;  Heb.  vi. 
13,  17  f).  'In  his  sanctuary'  (cp.  Ixiii.  2)  is  a  possible  but  less  probable 
rendering. 

I  will  rejoice]  Better  as  R.V.,  I  will  exult.  But  who  is  the  speaker? 
Is  it  David  or  God  ?  The  latter  alternative  is  certainly  preferable.  The 
language  is  bold,  but  not  bolder  than  that  of  Is.  Ixiii.  i  ff.  God  is 
represented  as  a  victorious  warrior,  conquering  the  land,  and  portioning 
it  out  to  His  people.  The  language  recalls  the  conquest  of  the  land 
under  Joshua  (Josh,  xviii.  10);  but  it  certainly  does  not  imply  that  the 
land  was  now  permanently  in  the  possession  of  foreigners,  and  needing 
to  be  reconquered.  He  makes  Ephraim  the  chief  defence  of  His  king- 
dom, and  Judah  the  seat  of  government,  and  treats  the  neighbouring 
nations  as  His  vassals.  It  is  possible  that  some  actual  oracle  is  quoted, 
but  more  probable  that  the  drift  of  the  great  promise  to  David  (2  Sam. 
vii.  9f )  is  freely  reproduced  in  a  poetical  form.     Cp.  ii.  7;  Ixxxix.  19. 

Shechem... the  valley  of  Succoth]  Shechem,  as  a  central  place  of 
importance,  represents  the  territory  west  of  the  Jordan;  Succoth,  'in 
the  vale'  (Josh.  xiii.  27),  somewhere  to  the  south  of  the  Jabbok,  between 
Peniel  and  the  Jordan,  represents  the  territory  east  of  the  Jordan. 
These  two  places  may  be  named,  because  of  their  connexion  with  the 


342  PSALM   LX.  7,  8. 


7  Gilead  is  mine,  and  Manasseh  is  mine ; 
Ephraim  also  is  the  strength  of  mine  head ; 
Judah  is  my  lawgiver; 

8  Moab  is  my  washpot ; 

Over  Edom  will  I  cast  out  my  shoe : 
Philistia,  tjimaghjhqu  because  of  me. 


history  of  Jacob,  who  halted  first  at  Succoth  and  then  at  Shechem, 
when  he  returned  to  Canaan  (Gen.  xxxiii.  17,  18).  God  will  fulfil  His 
promise  to  Jacob,  apportioning  to  His  people  the  land  in  which  their 
great  ancestor  settled. 

7.  Gilead  and  Manassek,  that  is  the  land  of  Bashan  in  which  half  the 
tribe  of  Manasseh  settled,  stand  for  the  territory  east  of  the  Jordan  and 
the  tribes  settled  there:  Ephraim  and  Judah  stand  for  the  tribes  west  of 
the  Jordan.  God  claims  all  as  His  own :  all  therefore  can  claim  God's 
protection. 

Ephraim  &c.]     Render  with  R.V., 

Ephraim  also  is  the  defence  of  mine  head ; 
Judah  is  my  sceptre. 
Ephraim,  as  the  most  powerful  tribe  and  the  chief  defence  of  the 
nation,  is  compared  to  the  warrior's  helmet :  Judah,  as  the  tribe  to  which 
belonged  the  Davidic  sovereignty,  is  compaied  to  the  royal  sceptre,  or, 
as  the  same  word  is  rendered  in  R.V.  of  Gen.  xlix.  10,  to  which  the 
present  passage  alludes,  'the  ruler's  staff.' 

8.  The  neighbouring  nations  are  reduced  to  servitude.  In  strong 
contrast  to  the  honour  assigned  to  Ephraim  and  Judah  is  the  disgrace  of 
Moab  and  Edom.  Moab,  notorious  for  its  pride  (Is.  xvi.  6),  is  compared 
to  the  vessel  which  is  brought  to  the  victorious  warrior  to  wash  his  feet 
when  he  returns  from  the  battle.  The  old  enemy  of  God  and  His 
people  is  degraded  to  do  menial  service :  in  other  words,  it  becomes  a 
subject  and  a  vassal. 

In  close  connexion  with  this  metaphor  the  next  line  may  be  rendered, 
Unto  Edom  will  I  cast  my  shoe :  Edom  is  like  the  slave  to  whom  the 
warrior  flings  his  sandals  to  carry  or  to  clean.  Haughty  and  defiant 
Edom  (Obad.  3  f.)  must  perform  the  duty  of  the  lowest  slave  (cp.  Matt, 
iii.  11).  The  R.V.  renders,  Upon  Edom  will  I  cast  my  shoe.  This 
would  mean,  '  I  will  take  possession  of  Edom,'  in  allusion  to  an  Oriental 
custom  of  taking  possession  of  land  by  casting  the  shoe  upon  it ;  but  the 
first  explanation  agrees  best  with  the  context. 

Philistia,  triumph  thou  because  ofme\  R.V.,  shout  thou  because  of 
me.  Mighty  Philistia  must  raise  the  shout  of  homage  to  its  conqueror. 
Cp.  ii.  11;  xviii.  44;  xlvii.  i.  This  rendering  is  preferable  to  that  of 
A.V.  marg.  (with  its  explanatory  note)  '  triumph  thou  over  me  (by  an 
irony)':  and  to  the  rendering,  Ury  aloud  in  terror.^  But  perhaps  we 
should  alter  the  vocalisation  and  read :  Over  Philistia  shall  be  my  shout 
of  triumph,  or  adopt  the  reading  of  cviii.  9,  Over  Philistia  will  I  shout  in 
triu77iph. 


I 


PSALM    LX.  9—12.  343 


Who  will  bring  me  into  the  strong  city  ? 

Who  will  lead  me  into  Edom  ? 

Wilt  not  thou,  O  God,  7vhich  hadst  cast  us  off? 

And  thou^  O  God,  ivhich  didst  not  go  out  with  our  armies  ? 

Give  us  help  from  trouble  : 

For  vain  is  the  help  of  man. 

Through  God  we  shall  do  valiantly : 

For  he  //  is  that  shall  tread  down  our  enemies. 

9 — 12.  None  but  God  can  give  help,  and  though  for  the  moment  He 
has  abandoned  His  people,  He  will  surely  once  more  lead  them  to 
victory. 

9.  the  strong  city]  Probably  Sela  or  Petra,  the  capital  of  Edom, 
famous  for  its  inaccessibility  (Obad.  3).  See  Stanley's  Sinai  and  Pat., 
p.  89,  for  a  description  of  the  wonderful  defile,  which  in  ancient  times 
was  the  only  usual  approach  to  Petra. 

IV/io  will  lead  me  into  Edom]  The  verb  is  in  the  perfect  tense, 
which  is  sometimes  used  in  questions  to  express  a  sense  of  difficulty  or 
hopelessness.  Who  could  lead  me,  or,  who  could  have  led  me,  right 
into  (the  preposition  is  emphatic)  Edom  ?  The  difficulties  are  almost 
insuperable.  But  possibly  the  text  is  faulty.  The  restoration  of  one 
letter  with  a  change  in  the  vocalisation  would  give  the  future  tense.  In 
any  case  the  rendering  of  R.V.,  Who  hath  led  me  unto  Edom?  as  a 
reference  to  some  previous  successful  invasion,  does  not  suit  the  context. 

10.  Wilt  not  thou,  0  God  &c.]  This  rendering,  which  is  that  of  the 
LXX,  Vulg.,  Symm.,  and  Jer.,  is  grammatically  legitimate,  though 
less  obvious  than  that  of  R.  V. ; 

Hast  not  thou,  0  God,  cast  us  off? 

And  thou  goest  not  forth,  0  God,  with  our  hosts. 
It  suits  the  context  better  as  the  answer  to  z/.  9  in  a  tone  of  con- 
fidence which  corresponds  to  that  of  v.  12.  Though  God  has  for  the 
moment  deserted  us,  and  has  not  led  our  armies  to  victory.  He  will 
surely  now  give  us  help,  for  we  trust  in  Him  alone.  The  rendering  of 
R.V.  introduces  a  note  of  despair,  which  harmonises  ill  with  the  con- 
fidence oi  V.  12.  With  it  the  connexion  of  thought  would  be.  Who 
can  lead  us  into  the  enemy's  stronghold?  None  but  God,  and  God 
has  deserted  us.  Yet  even  now  perhaps  He  will  hear  our  prayer  (z'.  11). 
With  the  second  line  cp.  xliv.  9. 

11.  Give  us  help  from  trouble]  Or,  as  R.V. ,  Give  us  help  against 
the  adversary.     Cp.  v.  12. 

for  vain  is  the  help  of  man]  Lit.  salvation.  It  is  a  delusion  (cp. 
xxxiii.  17)  to  look  to  human  strength  for  victory.  See  xliv.  6,  7;  i  Sam. 
xvii.  47 ;  Jer.  xvii.  5 ;  and  cp.  Judg.  vii.  4,  7 ;  i  Sam.  xiv.  6 ;  2  Chron. 
xiv.  n;  I  Mace.  iii.  16  ff. 

12.  Through  God]     Cp.  Ivi.  4. 

we  shall  do  valiantly]     Cp.  Num.  xxiv.  18;  Ps.  cxviii.  15,  16. 
shall  tread  do^vn  our  enemies]     Cp.  xliv.  5;  xviii.  42  (note).     R.V., 
adversaries,  cp.  v.  11. 


344  PSALM   LXI.  i. 


PSALM  LXI. 

The  author  of  this  Psalm  is  far  from  Jerusalem.  Though  his  prayers 
have  in  part  been  answered,  and  he  can  look  forward  to  his  return  with 
confidence,  he  is  still  in  dispiriting  circumstances.  He  is  either  a  king, 
or  one  closely  connected  with  a  king  and  deeply  interested  in  his  wel- 
fare. At  first  sight  vv.  6,  7  seem  to  favour  the  latter  hypothesis ;  but 
inasmuch  as  the  stress  in  these  verses  is  upon  the  king's  office,  not  upon 
his  personality,  a  king  might  appropriately  speak  of  himself  in  the  third 
person ;  and  this  view  best  explains  the  connexion  of  the  verses. 

The  Psalm  belongs  therefore  to  the  time  of  the  monarchy;  for  there 
is  no  real  ground  for  supposing  that  one  of  the  Maccabaean  princes,  of 
whom  Aristobulus  I  (B.C.  105)  was  the  first  to  assume  the  title  of  king, 
is  meant.  If  David  was  the  author,  it  may  best  be  referred  to  the  time 
when  he  was  at  Mahanaim,  after  the  collapse  of  Absalom's  rebellion, 
but  before  his  recall  to  Jerusalem. 

The  hope  of  return  to  "God's  dwelling-place,"  which  finds  such 
touching  expression  in  this  Psalm  {v.  4),  lay  deep  in  his  heart  as  he  left 
the  city  (a  Sam.  xv.  25) ;  v.  3  may  refer  to  the  hairbreadth  escapes  of 
his  earlier  life;  w.  6,  7  allude  to  the  great  promise  of  2  Sam.  vii;  the 
phrase  '  God's  tent '  {v.  4)  may  naturally  be  connected  with  the  tent  which 
David  pitched  for  the  Ark.  At  any  rate  David's  situation  gives  point 
to  the  Psalm  and  helps  to  explain  it. 

The  Psalm  is  best  divided  into  two  equal  stanzas. 

i.    Prayer  for  support  and  restoration  to  God's  dwelling-place  (i — 4). 

ii.  He  appeals  to  the  experience  of  answered  prayer  and  to  the  cer- 
tainty of  God's  promises  to  the  king,  and  looks  forward  with  confidence 
to  a  life  of  thanksgiving  for  God's  mercy  (5 — 8). 

The  Psalm  has  affinities  with  Pss.  xx,  xxi,  xxvii,  xlii,  xliii,  Ixiii,  and 
with  Proverbs. 

In  later  times  the  Psalm  was  naturally  adopted  as  a  prayer  of  the 
nation  in  its  dispersion,  and  the  king  was  interpreted  to  refer  to  the 
Messiali.     See  the  Targum  on  -w,  6,  8. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Neginah,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

61  Hear  my  cry,  O  God ; 
Attend  unto  my  prayer. 

Upon  Neginath  in  the  title  may  mean  On  a  stringed  instrument  (R.V.), 
or  To  the  accompaniment  of  stringed  music :  or  possibly,  Set  to  the  song 
of...,  some  word  of  definition  being  lost.     See  Introd.  p.  xxiv. 


David  prays  that  God  will  prove  Himself  a  refuge  as  in  time 
past,  and  that  he  may  again  live  in  His  presence  and  under  His  protec- 
tion in  Jerusalem. 

1.  my  cry... my  prayer"]  Synonyms  often  coupled  together  to  express 
the  urgency  of  supplication.  Cp.  xvii.  i;  i  Kings  viii.  28;  Jer.  vii.  16; 
xi.  14.. 


PSALM   LXI.  2—4.  345 


From  the  end  of  the  earth  will  I  cry  unto  thee,  when  my  2 

heart  is  overwhelmed : 
Lead  me  to  the  rock  that  is  higher  than  L 
For  thou  hast  been  a  shelter  for  me,  3 

And  a  strong  tower  from  the  enemy. 

I  will  abide  in  thy  tabernacle  for  ever :  4 

I  will  trust  in  the  covert  of  thy  wings.     Selah. 


2.  Front  the  end  of  the  earth]  Vevha.^9,,from  the  end  of  the  land.  But 
Jerusalem,  the  dwelling-place  of  God,  is  for  him  the  centre  of  the  earth. 
He  measures  his  distance  from  it  not  by  miles  but  by  the  intensity  of 
his  yearning  to  be  there,  in  the  place  where  the  visible  pledges  of  God's 
Presence  were  to  be  found. 

will  I  cry]     R.  V. ,  wiU  I  caU. 

is  overwhelmed]    Or,  fainteth  (cxlii.  3). 

Lead  me  to  the  rock  that  is  higher  than  /]  Lead  me  up  upon  a  rock 
that  is  too  high  for  me  to  reach  by  my  own  unaided  efforts.  'Rock' 
denotes  an  asylum  to  be  reached,  not  an  obstacle  to  be  surmounted 
(xxvii.  5).  God  Himself  is  such  a  Rock  of  refuge  (Ixii.  2,  6,  7). 
David's  wanderings  may  have  suggested  the  metaphor  (i  Sam.  xxiv.  i\ 
1  Chron.  xi.  15). 

3.  For  thou  hast  been  a  refuge  for  me, 

A  strong  tower  from  the  enemy  (R.V.). 
He  appeals  to  past  experience.  •'  In  Thee  have  I  taken  refuge"  is 
the  constant  cry  with  which  faith  approaches  God  (vii.  i ;  xi.  i ;  xvi.  i ; 
xxxi.  i;  Ivii.  i;  Ixxi.  i;  &c.).  In  xviii.  1  David  addresses  God  as  "my 
Rock  in  whom  I  take  refuge."  We  may  see  from  Jud.  ix.  51  what  'a 
strong  tower'  meant  literally:  for  the  metaphor  cp.  Prov.  xviii.  10. 

4.  Let  me  sojourn  in  thy  tent  for  ever: 

Let  me  take  refuge  in  the  hidingplace  of  thy  wings. 

The  words  are  a  prayer.  In  his  banishment  he  prays  that  he  may 
once  more  be  received  as  Jehovah's  guest,  to  enjoy  His  protection  and 
hospitality,  to  dwell  in  the  place  which  He  has  consecrated  by  His 
Presence  (xv.  i).  In  thy  tent  may  mean  no  more  than  'in  thy  abode': 
but  it  is  natural  to  connect  the  metaphor  with  the  'tent'  which  David 
pitched  for  the  Ark  on  Mount  Zion  {2  Sam.  vi.  17).  Cp.  xxvii.  5,  6. 
'Sojourn'  implies  the  relation  of  guest  to  host,  and  the  protection 
which  the  guest  in  Oriental  countries  claims  from  his  host.  "The  Arabs 
give  the  title  of  jar  alldh  to  one  who  resides  in  Mecca  beside  the 
Caaba."     Robertson  Smith,  Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  77. 

for  ever]  All  my  life.  Cp.  i  Sam.  i.  22 ;  Ps.  xxiii.  6.  And  the 
revelation  of  the  Gospel  has  made  it  plain  that  life  does  not  end  with 
death. 

For  the  hidingplace  (R.V.  covert)  of  thy  wings  cp.  Ivii.  i,  note;  xxvii. 
5,  "in  the  hidingplace  of  his  tent  shall  he  hide  me";  xxxi.  20,  "Thou 
shalt  hide  them  in  the  hidingplace  of  thy  presence."  So  the  Targ.  here 
in  the  shadoiv  of  Thy  Presence  (lit.  Sh'chinah). 


346  PSALM   LXI.  5,  6. 

5  For  thou,  O  God,  hast  heard  my  vows : 

Thou  hast  given  me  the  heritage  of  those  that  fear  thy  name. 

6  Thou  wilt  prolong  the  king's  life  : 
And  his  years  as  many  generations. 


5 — 8.  Such  prayers  David  can  offer  in  confidence,  for  his  prayers 
have  already  been  partially  answered.  He  can  look  forward  in  faith  to 
the  fulfilment  of  the  promises  God  has  made  to  His  king,  and  he  will 
spend  the  rest  of  his  life  in  grateful  thanksgiving. 

6.     hast  heard  my  vows]     Vows  accompanied  by  prayers. 

thou  hast  given  me  the  heritage  of  those  that  fear  thy  name]  Me  is 
not  in  the  original;  and  it  is  best  to  supply  the  remoter  object  of 
the  verb  from  the  complement  of  the  nearer  object,  and  render  with 
LXX,  (Vulg.),  Jer.,  P.B.V.,  tliou  hast  given  (their)  possession  to 
them  that  fear  thy  name.  'Possession'  is  the  term  regularly  used  of 
Israel's  'occupation'  of  the  land  of  Canaan  (Deut.  ii.  19;  iii.  18;  &c.; 
Ps.  xxxvii.  9,  II,  22,  29,  34).  The  collapse  of  Absalom's  rebellion  has 
restored  the  true  and  loyal  Israelites,  who  shewed  their  fear  of  God's  name 
by  adhering  to  the  king  of  His  choice,  to  the  possession  of  their  rightful 
inheritance,  from  which  they  were  in  danger  of  being  expelled. 

It  is  best  to  regard  the  perfects  not  as  'perfects  of  confidence'  that 
his  prayers  will  surely  be  heard,  but  as  referring  to  past  experience. 
The  insurrection  has  been  crushed :  but  the  king  awaits  restoration 
(z/.  4). 

6.  Thou  itnlt prolong  the  king's  life]  Lit. ,  Thou  wilt  add  days  to  the 
days  of  the  king,  Cp.  2  Kings  xx.  6.  From  speaking  of  the  people 
{v.  5),  David  passes  to  speak  of  himself.  His  life  had  been  in  danger : 
but  now  the  danger  was  over.  At  first  sight  the  words  may  seem  to  be 
those  of  another,  speaking  of  David,  rather  than  those  of  David  speaking  of 
himself.  But  he  thus  uses  the  third  person  because  he  is  speaking  of 
himself  in  his  capacity  of  king,  referring  to  the  promises  made  to  the 
king  as  such.  Cp.  Jer.  xxxviii.  5,  where  Zedekiah  says,  "The  king  is 
not  he  that  can  do  anything  against  you  "  =  I,  though  king,  cannot  &c. 

and  his  years]  R.V.,  his  years  shall  he  as  many  generations.  This 
verse  is  not  a  prayer,  and  the  text  ought  not  to  be  altered  to  turn  it  into 
a  prayer.  It  is  a  confident  appeal  to  God's  promise  and  purpose.  The 
long  life  which  was  one  of  Jehovah's  special  blessings  under  the  old 
covenant  (Ex.  xxiii.  26;  i  Kings  iii.  11;  Prov.  iii.  2,  and  often),  and 
which  was  a  natural  object  of  desire  when  the  hope  of  a  future  life  was 
all  but  a  blank,  was  promised  specially  to  the  king  (xxi.  4).  The 
language  is  partly  hyperbolical,  like  the  salutation  "  Let  the  king  live  for 
ever"  fi  Kings  i.  31 ;  Neh.  ii.  3);  partly  it  thinks  of  the  king  as  living 
on  in  his  descendants  (2  Sam.  vii.  13,  16,  29;  Ps.  Ixxxix.  29,  36);  but 
words  which  in  their  strict  sense  could  apply  to  no  human  individual, 
become  a  prophecy  of  One  greater  than  David ;  and  thus  the  Targum 
here  interprets  'king'  by  'King  Messiah.'  See  Ifitrod.  p.lxxviflf;  and 
Introd.  to  Ps.  xxi. 


PSALM   LXI.  7,  8.  347 


He  shall  abide  before  God  for  ever : 

O  prepare  mercy  and  truth,  which  may  preserve  him. 

So  will  I  ^\xig  praise  unto  thy  name  for  ever,  1 

That  I  may  daily  perform  my  vows. 

7.  He  shall  abide  before  God  for  ever"]  Rather,  He  shall  sit  enthroned 
before  God  for  ever,  an  allusion  to  the  promise  of  eternal  dominion  to 
the  house  of  David,  *  in  the  presence  of  God,'  enjojring  His  favour 
and  protection.  See  2  Sam.  vii.  16  (read  with  LXX  before  me)^  26, 
29 ;  Ps.  xxi.  6 ;  Ixxxix.  36  b  :  and  for  the  pregnant  sense  of  *  sit '  cp. 
ix.  7. 

O  prepare  &c.]  Appoint  lovingkindness  and  truth  that  they  may 
guard  him.  Cp.  xl.  1 1 ;  i  Sam.  xv.  20;  Ps.  xlii.  8  ;  Ixxxix.  14.  God's 
covenant  love  and  faithfulness  to  His  promise  are  like  guardian  angels 
to  the  king;  and  the  reflection  of  these  attributes  of  God  in  his  own 
character  and  administration  will  be  the  safeguard  of  his  throne  (Prov. 
XX.  28). 

The  word  prepare  ( *  appoint ')  is  ignored  by  some  of  the  Ancient  Ver- 
sions (Jer.  Aq.  Symm.),  and  variously  rendered  by  others.  It  is  in  itself 
suspicious  both  for  its  form  and  for  its  position,  and  perhaps  should 
simply  be  omitted.  Possibly  it  may  be  a  corruption  of  the  word  for 
'continually*  (xl.  11),  or  of  an  emphatic  they  ('Lovingkindness  and 
truth  shall  continually — or,  even  they  shall — guard  him').  Such  a  state- 
ment agrees  better  with  w.  6,  7  a  than  a  prayer  does. 

8.  The  preservation  of  a  life  demands  lifelong  thanksgiving.  Cp. 
1.  14.  If  David  is  the  speaker  in  w.  6,  7,  the  return  to  the  first 
person  in  this  resolution  is  entirely  natural :  otherwise  the  transition  is 
harsh. 

Very  pathetic  is  the  paraphrase  of  the  Targum.  "So  will  I  pay  my 
vows  in  the  day  of  the  redemption  of  Israel,  even  in  the  day  when  King 
Messiah  is  anointed  to  reign." 


PSALM  LXII. 

When  Saul  was  seeking  David's  life,  Jonathan  went  to  him  secretly, 
and  "strengthened  his  hand  m  God"  (1  Sam.  xxiii.  16);  and  when 
David's  followers  in  a  fit  of  blind  exasperation  threatened  to  stone  him, 
he  "strengthened  himself  in  Jehovah  his  God"(i  Sam.  xxx.  6).  In 
the  face  of  treacherous  plots  against  his  honour  and  perhaps  his  life, 
when  his  followers  are  in  danger  of  being  carried  away  by  the  power  of 
position  and  M'ealth,  this  Psalmist  "  strengthens  himself  in  God."  With 
triumphant  reiteration  he  dwells  upon  the  thought  of  all  that  God  is  to 
him — his  rock,  his  strong  rock,  his  high  tower,  his  refuge,  his  salvation, 
his  hope ;  and  with  this  trust  in  God  he  contrasts  the  folly  of  trusting  to 
man  and  material  resources,  and  the  futility  of  opposing  the  will  of  God. 

The  trustful  confidence  and  courage  of  the  Psalm  is  worthy  of  Divid. 
If  it  is  his,  it  may  best  be  referred  to  the  time  of  Absalom's  rebellion. 


348  PSALM    LXII.  i,  2. 


It  has  affinities  with  Ps.  iv,  which  seems  to  belong  to  that  time.  We 
might  indeed  have  expected  more  definite  allusions  to  the  rebellion ;  but 
at  any  rate  the  situation  of  the  Psalmist  is  not  wholly  dissimilar.  Un- 
scrupulous and  hypocritical  enemies  are  seeking  to  depose  him  from  a 
position  of  dignity  (3,  4) ;  he  has  a  party  of  followers  to  whom  he  can 
appeal  (8),  but  some  of  them,  in  common  with  many  others  who  are  still 
wavering,  are  in  danger  of  being  seduced  by  the  show  of  power  and  the 
fair  promises  of  his  enemies  (cp.  iv.  6). 

Like  Ps.  xxxix,  to  which  it  has  several  points  of  resemblance,  though 
the  situation  is  wholly  different,  this  Psalm  has  the  name  of  Jeduthun  in 
the  title,  but  with  a  different  preposition,  which  seems  to  mean  after  Uie 
manner  of  Jeduthun  (R.V.),  or  possibly,  set  to  some  melody  composed 
by  or  called  after  Jeduthun.  Cp.  the  title  of  Ps.  Ixxvii.  Jeduthun,  who 
appears  to  have  been  also  called  Ethan  (i  Chr.  xv.  17  ff ),  is  mentioned 
in  I  Chr.  xvi.  41  f ;  xxv.  i  ff;  2  Chr.  v.  12  ;  xxxv.  15,  along  with  Heman 
and  Asaph,  as  one  of  the  directors  of  the  Temple  music. 

The  structure  of  the  Psalm  is  regular.  It  consists  of  three  equal 
stanzas. 

i.  God  alone  is  the  Psalmist's  defence.  How  long  will  his  enemies 
plot  to  ruin  him  (i — 4)  ? 

ii.  With  slight  but  significant  variations  the  opening  verses  are 
repeated,  and  those  who  are  on  the  Psalmist's  side  are  exhorted  to  trust 
in  God  (5—8).^ 

iii.  It  is  vain  to  trust  in  man  and  brute  force  and  material  wealth. 
God  is  a  God  of  strength  and  love,  which  are  manifested  in  the  justice 
of  His  government  (9 — 12). 

To  the  chief  Musician,  to  Jeduthun,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

62  Truly  my  soul  waiteth  upon  God : 
From  him  comeih  my  salvation. 
2  He  only  is  my  rock  and  my  salvation ; 

1 — 4.  Patiently  the  Psalmist  awaits  God's  help,  and  remonstrates 
with  his  enemies  for  their  malice  and  hypocrisy. 

1.  Trnlyl  The  particle  ak  is  characteristic  of  this  Ps. ,  in  which  it 
occurs  six  times,  and  of  Ps.  xxxix,  in  which  it  occurs  four  times.  It 
stands  at  the  beginning  of  w.  i,  2,  4,  5,  6,  9.  It  may  be  affirmative, 
'truly,'  'surely,'  or  restrictive,  'only.'  Either  sense  will  suit,  and 
possibly  the  shade  of  meaning  may  not  always  be  the  same ;  but  *  only ' 
appears  to  be  preferable  throughout.  Literally  the  line  means:  Only 
unto  God  is  my  soul  silence ;  unto  God  alone  does  my  soui  look  in 
patient  calmness,  waiting  for  the  deliverance  which  will  surely  come, 
and  can  come  from  Him  alone.  For  such  '  silent '  waiting  cp.  v.  5  ; 
xxxvii.  7;  xxxix.  2;  Lam.  iii.  26. 

2.  The  same  titles  my  rock,  my  salvation,  my  high  tower,  are  com- 
bined in  xviii.  2.  The  title  Rock  is  frequently  used  to  symbolise  the 
strength,  faithfulness,  and  unchangeableness  of  Jehovah  :  here  (cp.  IxL 
2)  with  the  special  thought  of  an  asylum  in  danger. 


PSALM   LXIl.  3,  4.  349 


He  is  my  defence ;  I  shall  not  be  greatly  moved. 
How  long  will  ye  imagine  mischief  against  a  man  ? 
Ye  shall  be  slain  all  of  you : 

As  a  bowing  wall  shall  ye  be,  and  as  a  tottering  fence. 
They  only  consult  to  cast  him  down  from  his  excellency : 
They  delight  in  lies  : 

They   bless   with   their   mouth,   but   they   curse   inwardly. 
Selah. 

/  shall  not  be  greatly  moved'\  In  other  words,  *'  though  he  may  fall 
ne  shall  not  lie  prostrate"  (xxxvii.  ■24;  cp.  Prov.  xxiv.  16). 

3.  How  long]  For  the  indignant  remonstrance  cp.  iv.  2,  noting  also 
the  connexion  of  that  verse  with  vv.  4,  7,  9  of  this  Psalm.  God  is  on  his 
side;  they  cannot  harm  him;  how  long  will  they  persist  in  the  futile 
attempt  ? 

will  ye  imagine  mischief  against  a  man  7]  This  rendering,  adopted 
from  Jewish  authorities  by  the  scholars  upon  whom  Coverdale  largely 
relied,  and  passing  on  from  him  to  the  later  versions,  rests  upon  an  im- 
possible derivation.  Render  with  R.V.,  following  LXX  and  Vulg., 
will  ye  set  upon  a  man.  The  corresponding  Arabic  word  is  said  to  be 
still  used  in  Damascus  in  the  sense  of  '  to  intimidate,'  '  to  threaten  with 
violence.  * 

ye  shall  be  slain]  This  is  the  reading  of  R.  Aaron  ben  Asher,  a 
famous  Jewish  scholar  of  the  loth  century,  whose  authority  was 
generally  followed  in  the  West.  But  the  reading  of  his  rival,  R.  Moses 
ben  Naphtali,  which  makes  the  verb  active  (the  difference  is  one  of 
vowel  points  only)  suits  the  context  better.  Render  with  R.V.,  that 
ye  may  slay  Mm,  or  better  still,  returning  to  the  primary  meaning  of 
the  verb  in  connexion  with  the  metaphor  of  the  next  line, 
Battering  him,  all  of  you. 
Like  a  toppling  wall,  like  a  tottering  fence. 

The  blows  of  calamity  have  already  taken  effect,  and  they  are  eager 
to  complete  his  ruin.  Wycliffe  gives  a  graphic  rendering  of  the  Vulg.; 
'a  wal  bowid,  and  a  wal  of  stoon  with  out  morter  cast  down.'  "The 
metaphor  of  the  falling  wall  is  common  in  Eastern  proverbs.  'The 
wall  is  bowing,*  is  said  of  a  man  at  the  point  of  death.  '  By  the  oppres- 
sion of  the  headman  the  people  of  that  village  are  a  ruined  wall.*" 
(Aglen.) 

all  of  you]  In  contrast  to  *  a  man ';  for  though  the  Psalmist  was 
not  alone  {v.  8)  he  was  the  principal  object  of  attack.  Cp.  2  Sam. 
xvii.  I  flf. 

4.  Only  to  thrust  him  down  from  Ms  digmty  have  they  taken 

counsel,  delighting  In  a  lie : 
With  his  mouth  doth  each  of  them  hless,  but  inwardly  they 
curse. 
Their  plot  is  'a  lie,*  false  in  its  principle  and  in  its  aim  (iv.  2,  note); 
and  they  have  been  guilty  of  the  grossest  hypocrisy  and  duplicity  in 
promoting  it.     Cp.  xii.  2;  xxviii.  3;  Iv.  21. 


350  PSALM   LXII.  5—9. 


5  My  soul,  wait  thou  only  upon  God ; 
For  my  expectation  is  from  him. 

6  He  only  is  my  rock  and  my  salvation : 
He  is  my  defence ;  I  shall  not  be  moved. 

7  In  God  is  my  salvation  and  my  glory : 

The  rock  of  my  strength,  and  my  refuge,  is  in  God. 

8  Trust  in  him  at  all  times  ;  ye  people, 
Pour  out  your  heart  before  him : 
God  is  a  refuge  for  us.     Selah. 

9  Surely  men  of  low  degree  are  vanity,  and  men  of  high 

degree  are  a  lie  : 

6—8.  The  opening  verses  are  repeated,  with  slight  variations, 
leading  up  to  an  exhortation  to  the  Psalmist's  sympathisers  to  trust  in 
God. 

6.    Only  unto  God  be  thou  silent,  my  soul, 
For  from  him  cometh  my  hope. 

It  is  only  by  constant  self-exhortation  that  the  calmness  of  v.  i  can 
be  maintained,  especially  when  the  recollection  of  his  enemies'  double- 
faced  behaviour  stirs  his  indignation.  Cp.  xxxvii.  7.  'My  hope' = 'my 
salvation'  {v.  i),  the  deliverance  which  I  look  for. 

6.  my  defence]    My  high  tower,  as  in  z;.  2. 

I  shall  not  be  nioved\  Perhaps  the  omission  of  'greatly'  {p.  2)  marks 
a  growing  faith. 

7.  In  God]  R.V.,  With  God,  lit.  upon  God  (cp.  vii.  10,  note).  It 
rests  with  God  to  deliver  him  and  defend  his  honour; — his  personal 
reputation  and  (if  the  speaker  is  David)  his  royal  dignity.     See  iv.  2,  note. 

is  in  God]     Or,  consists  in  God,  is  God  (vv.  6,  8).     Cp.  Is.  xxvi.  4. 

8.  Render  in  accordance  with  the  Massoretic  punctuation,  Trust  ye 
In  him  at  all  times,  0  people.  He  exhorts  his  faint-hearted  followers, 
who  were  in  danger  of  being  carried  away  by  the  show  of  power  on 
Absalom's  side.  Cp.  2  Sam.  xvii.  1  fif  for  'people'  used  of  David's 
adherents.  It  is  unnecessary  to  follow  the  LXX  in  reading,  Trust  ye 
in  him,  0  whole  assembly  of  the  people. 

pour  out  your  heart]  Give  free  vent  to  your  anxieties :  make  them  all 
known  to  God.     Cp.  xlii.  4. 

9 — 12.  Trust  in  God,  I  say,  and  not  in  man  or  in  material  force. 
God's  strength  and  love  are  the  guarantee  for  the  punishment  of  the 
wicked  and  the  reward  of  the  righteous. 

9.  Surely]  Lit.,  as  before,  only.  Nought  but  vanity  are  men, 
(nought  but)  a  lie  are  great  men.  Only  a  mere  breath  which  vanishes, 
an  imposture  which  deludes  those  who  trust  them,  are  all  men,  what- 
ever may  be  their  rank.  For  the  phrases  bne  dddm,  bne  tsh,  '  low  *  and 
'high,'  see  xlix.  2.  In  iv.  2  Absalom's  followers  are  termed  bne  tsh: 
waverers  would  be  influenced  by  seeing  the  number  of  leading  men  on 
his  side.     The   same   phrase   nought  but  vanity  is  used  in  xxxix.   5, 


PSALM    LXII.  lo— 12.  351 

To  be  laid  in  the  balance,  they  are  altogether  lighter  than 

vanity. 
Trust  not  in  oppression, 
And  become  not  vain  in  robbery : 
If  riches  increase,  set  not  your  heart  upon  them. 
God  hath  spoken  once ; 
Twice  have  I  heard  this ; 
That  power  belongeth  unto  God. 
Also  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  belongeth  mercy : 
For  thou  renderest  to  every  man  according  to  his  work. 


II,  to  describe  the  transitoriness  and  unsubstantiality  of  man,  but  the 
point  is  wholly  different. 

to  be  laid  in  the  balance  &c.]  In  the  balances  they  "will  go  up,  they 
axe  altogether  of  vanity.  They  spring  from  and  consist  of  mere 
breath  (Is.  xli.  24) :  put  them  in  the  scale,  it  flies  up,  for  they  have  no 
weight  or  substance.  The  rendering  'lighter  than  vanity''  is  possible 
but  less  probable. 

10.  The  first  two  lines  (cp.  w.  g  a,  11  a,  b)  are  a  rhythmical  division 
of  what  is  logically  one  sentence :  '  put  not  vain  trust  in  oppression  and 
robbery.'  Do  not  rely,  for  you  will  only  be  deceived,  upon  wealth  and 
material  resources  amassed  by  violence  and  wrong,  instead  of  trusting 
in  God  [v.  8).  It  is  a  warning  against  the  old  temptation  to  follow 
might  rather  than  right.  'Oppression  and  robbery'  are  often  coupled. 
See  Lev.  vi.  2,  4;  Ezek.  xxii.  29;  and  cp.  Is.  xxx.  12. 

i/  riches  increase  &c.]  Lit.  if  riches  grow,  pay  no  regard.  The 
Psalmist  addresses  those  who  were  in  danger  of  being  tempted  to 
covet  the  power  which  wealth  brings,  no  matter  what  might  be  the 
means  used  for  obtaining  it.  There  are  indications  that  social  discon- 
tent was  a  factor  in  the  momentary  success  of  Absalom's  rebellion 
(iv.  6). 

11,  12.  Once,  yea  twice,  i.e.  repeatedly  (Job  xxxiii.  14;  xl.  5)  has 
God  spoken  and  the  Psalmist  heard  (Ixxxv.  8)  the  double  truth  which 
supplies  the  answer  to  such  temptations; 

That  strength  belongeth  unto  God, 

And  that  unto  thee,  0  Lord,  belongeth  lovlngkindness. 

He  has  the  power  and  He  has  the  will ;  therefore  those  who  fear  Him 
have  nothing  to  fear.  This  he  emphatically  declares  to  be  a  truth  of 
revelation,  which  he  has  learnt  himself  from  God.  "Scit,  potest,  vult; 
quid  est  quod  timeamus?" 

The  sense  will  be  the  same  if  we  render.  One  thing  hath  God  spoken^ 
two  things  there  are  that  I  have  heard,  and  compare  for  the  form  of 
the  sentence  the  numerical  proverbs,  e.g.  Pro  v.  vi.  i6ff ;  xxx.  15  i. 

for  thou  renderest  &c.]  The  punishment  of  the  wicked  and  the  reward 
of  the  faithful  attest  God's  power  and  love.  See  Rom.  ii  6  flf,  where 
St  Paul  quotes  the  words  and  expands  their  meaning. 


352  PSALM   LXIII. 


PSALM   LXIIL 

The  faith  which  inspires  the  two  preceding  Psalms  reaches  its  climax 
here.  At  a  distance  from  the  sanctuary  and  in  peril  of  his  life,  the 
Psalmist  throws  himself  upon  God.  What  he  longs  for  above  all  things 
is  the  sense  of  God's  presence,  as  he  realised  it  in  the  worship  of  the 
sanctuary  (i,  2).  In  lifelong  thanksgiving  for  God's  love  he  will  find 
his  highest  joy  and  satisfaction  (3 — 5),  spending  whole  nights  in  medita- 
tion upon  Him  as  he  recalls  the  greatness  of  His  past  mercies  (6,  7). 
While  he  draws  closer  and  closer  to  God,  his  enemies  will  be  banished 
into  the  nether  darkness  (8,  9).  While  their  corpses  lie  ignominiously 
exposed  on  the  field  of  battle  where  they  fell,  he  and  those  who  are 
loyal  to  God  and  to  him  rejoice  in  God,  and  all  factious  opposition  is 
silenced  (10,  11). 

The  Psalm  does  not  admit  of  clear  division  into  stanzas.  Thought 
follows  thought  out  of  the  fulness  of  a  loving  heart,  and  the  precise  con- 
nexion of  the  clauses  is  often  obscure. 

Such  a  Psalm  teaches,  more  effectually  than  any  formal  definition, 
what  is  meant  by  a  Personal  God — a  God  with  Whom  the  soul  can  hold 
converse  with  the  whole  force  and  fervour  of  a  loving  devotion.  Its 
lofty  spirituality  is  such  as  few  can  reach.  But  the  concluding  verses  of 
the  Psalm  seem  to  be  on  a  lower  level.  "We  pass  all  at  once  into  a 
different  atmosphere.  We  have  come  down,  as  it  were,  from  the  mount 
of  holy  aspirations,  into  the  common  everyday  world,  where  human 
enemies  are  struggling,  and  human  passions  are  strong.  Yet  this  very 
transition,  harsh  as  it  is,  gives  us  a  wonderful  sense  of  reality.  In  some 
respects,  it  brings  the  Psalm  nearer  to  our  own  level.  The  man  who 
has  been  pouring  out  the  fervent  affection  of  his  heart  towards  God  is  no 
mystic  or  recluse,  lost  in  ecstatic  contemplation,  but  one  who  is  fighting 
a  battle  with  foes  of  flesh  and  blood,  and  who  hopes  to  see  their  malice 
defeated,  their  power  crushed,  and  their  carcases  left  to  be  the  prey  of 
jackals  in  the  wilderness"  (Bp  Perowne).  It  must  be  remembered  too 
that  the  Psalmist  felt  strongly  that  his  enemies  were  God's  enemies,  and 
looked  for  their  discomfiture,  not  only  as  a  visible  proof  of  God's  favour 
to  himself,  but  as  a  manifest  token  that  God  had  not  withdrawn  from 
the  government  of  the  world,  and  was  surely,  if  slowly,  establishing  His 
Kingdom  among  men. 

The  author  of  this  Psalm  was  a  king,  for  unless  it  is  of  himself  as  king 
that  he  speaks  in  v.  11,  it  is  difficult  to  understand  the  relation  of  the 
king's  rejoicing  to  the  destruction  of  the  Psalmist's  enemies  [vv.  9,  10). 
He  was  apparently  at  a  distance  from  the  sanctuary,  and  was  in  danger 
from  malicious  enemies,  whose  destruction  he  looks  for  on  the  field  of 
battle.  The  title  ascribes  it  to  David,  "when  he  was  in  the  wilderness 
of  Judah."  Since  he  is  already  king,  it  is  not  to  his  earlier  wanderings 
(i  Sam.  xxiii.  14  ff),  but  to  his  flight  from  Absalom,  that  this  title  must 
be  intended  to  refer.  The  road  to  Jericho  by  which  David  left  Jeru- 
salem led  through  the  northern  part  of  the  desert  of  Judah,  and  he  halted 
at  "the  fords  of  the  wilderness"  before  crossing  the  Jordan  (2  Sam.  xv. 
23,  28).  The  graphic  narrative  in  2  Sam.  refers  more  than  once  to  the 
privations  which  the  king  had  to  suffer  in  his  hasty  flight  (a  Sam.  xvi.  2, 


PSALM    LXIII.  I.  353 


14;  xvii.  29;  cp.  xvii.  1).  The  king  and  his  followers  were  'weary'  in 
the  'weary  land,*  which  supplied  so  apt  a  figure  of  his  spiritual  priva- 
tions. The  germ  of  the  Psalm  is  to  be  found  in  the  faith  and  resignation 
of  David's  words  to  Zadok,  •'  Carry  back  the  ark  of  God  into  the  city  :  if 
I  shall  find  favour  in  the  eyes  of  Jehovah,  he  will  bring  me  again,  and 
shew  me  both  it,  and  his  habitation :  but  if  he  say  thus,  I  have  no  delight 
in  thee;  behold  here  am  I,  let  him  do  to  me  as  seemeth  good  unto 
him"  (2  Sam.  xv.  25  f).  To  part  with  the  visible  symbol  of  God's 
power  and  presence  argued  no  common  faith:  it  shewed  that  he  was 
no  slave  to  the  common  superstition,  which  regarded  God's  favour  as 
tied  to  the  Ark. 

Much  of  the  Psalm  can  certainly  be  explained  from  David's  situation, 
and  if  the  reference  of  the  Psalm  to  David  is  abandoned,  ft  is  idle  to 
speculate  as  to  the  author  and  his  circumstances.  But  whoever  he  was, 
the  spiritual  power  and  beauty  of  vv.  i — 8  remain  the  same.  It  is  no 
wonder  that  the  Psalm  was  adopted  by  the  early  Church  as  its  morning 
Psalm  (primarily  on  the  ground  of  the  LXX  rendering  oi  v.  i),  as  Ps. 
cxli  was  chosen  for  the  evening  Psalm.  "The  Fathers  of  the  Church," 
says  St  Chrysostom,  "appointed  it  to  be  said  every  morning,  as  a 
spiritual  song  and  a  medicine  to  blot  out  our  sins;  to  kindle  in  us  a  desire 
of  God;  to  raise  our  souls,  and  inflame  them  with  a,  mighty  fire  of 
devotion ;  to  make  us  overflow  with  goodness  and  love,  and  send  us  with 
such  preparation  to  approach  and  appear  before  God."  See  Bingham's 
Antiquities^  B.  xiii.  c.  10. 

Comp.  (beside  Pss.  Ixi,  Ixii)  Pss.  xlii— xliii,  the  companion  piece  in 
the  Korahite  collection. 

A  Psalm  of  David,  when  he  was  in  the  wilderness  of  Jiidah. 

O  God,  thou  art  my  God ;  early  will  I  seek  thee  :  63 

My  soul  thirsteth  for  thee, 
My  flesh  longeth  for  thee, 

1,  2.  Recalling  the  glorious  visions  of  God  which  he  has  enjoyed  in 
the  sanctuary,  the  Psalmist  thirsts  for  a  renewed  sense  of  His  Presence. 

1.  O  God,  thou  art  my  God]  Elohim,  thou  art  my  El.  Headdresses 
Jehovah,  for  Elohim  here  is  the  substitute  for  that  Name  (cp.  cxl.  6),  as 
the  Strong  One  to  whom  he  can  appeal  with  confidence  in  his  need. 
Cp.  xlii.  2,  8,  9 ;  xliii.  4. 

earlyivill  I  seek  thee]  So  the  LXX,  irpos  ae  opOpil^o}  (the  word  used 
in  Luke  xxi.  38);  and  hence  the  use  of  the  Psalm  as  a  morning 
Psalm.  Rather,  however,  earnestly  will  I  seek  thee;  though  some- 
times (e.g.  Is.  xxvi.  9)  the  word  seems  to  be  used  with  allusion  to  the 
supposed  derivation  from  shachar,  'dawn.' 

my  soul...7ny  Jlesh]  My  whole  self,  soul  and  body.  Cp.  Ixxxiv.  2, 
•soul,  heart,  flesh':  the  emotions,  the  reason  and  the  will,  the  physical 
organism  in  and  through  which  they  act. 

thirsteth  for  thee]     See  xlii.  2,  note;  Ixxxiv.  2. 

longeth  for  thee]  Pineth  for  thee,  a  strong  word,  occurring  here  only, 
meaning  probably,  'faints  with  desire.' 

PSAT.MS  23 


354  PSALM    LXIII.  2—4. 

In  a  dry  and  thirsty  land,  where  no  water  is ; 

2  To  see  thy  power  and  thy  glory, 

So  as  I  have  seen  thee  in  the  sanctuary. 

3  Because  thy  lovingkindness  is  better  than  life, 
My  lips  shall  praise  thee. 

4  Thus  will  I  bless  thee  while  I  live : 


in  a  dry  and  thirsty  land'\  In  a  dry  and  weary  land  (Ps.  cxliii.  6; 
Is.  xxxii,  2).  These  words  are  certainly  metaphorical,  not  literal :  it  is 
the  '  water  of  life '  for  which  he  thirsts ;  the  spiritual  refreshment  with 
which  God  revives  the  fainting  soul.  But  the  metaphor  was  naturally 
suggested  by  the  circumstances  in  which  David  was  situated. 

2.  The  A.V.  transposes  the  clauses  of  this  verse  in  a  way  which  can- 
not be  justified.     Render : 

In  such  wise  have  I  gazed  upon  thee  In  the  sanctuary. 

To  see  thy  strength  and  thy  glory. 
In  such  wise  ('so')  is  explained  to  refer  io  v.  i,  meaning  *as  my  God,' 
or  *so  fervently';  but  this  verse  seems  rather  to  give  the  ground  and 
reason  for  the  preceding  verse: — I  pine  for  communion  with  Thee, 
because  I  have  had  such  glorious  visions  of  Thy  presence  in  the  sanctuary. 
There  he  has  'gazed'  upon  God — the  word  is  used  of  an  intent  and 
discerning  contemplation,  specially  of  things  divine  (xxvii.  4;  xi.  7;  xvii. 
15),  and  of  prophetic  'vision'  (Is.  i.  i) — in  order  to  realise  His  Majesty 
as  it  is  revealed  to  man.  The  Ark  was  the  symbol  of  God's  Presence, 
of  His  strength  and  glory  (i  Sam.  iv.  21 ;  Ps.  xxiv.  7,  note;  Ixxviii.  61 ; 
cxxxii.  8) ;  and  all  the  ordinances  of  the  sanctuary  possessed  for  him  a 
sacramental  meaning.     It  was  thus  that  Isaiah  'saw  the  Lord.' 

3 — 5.     The  joy  of  grateful  praise. 

3.  Because  thy  lovingkindness  &c.]  R.V.  renders,  For  thy  loving- 
kindness  &c.,  a  further  reason  for  the  longing  of  v.  i.  But  it  is  best  to 
retain  the  rendering  of  the  A.V.  He  has  waited  to  see  God's  power 
and  glory,  yet  after  all  it  is  the  lovingkindness  of  which  he  has  personal 
experience  that  tunes  his  lips  to  praise.  When  Moses  desired  to  see 
God's  glory,  he  was  granted  a  revelation  of  His  goodness  (Ex.  xxxiii. 
i8  ff ).  It  is  better  than  life,  than  that  which  men  count  most  precious, 
for  without  it  life  would  be  a  desert.  His  life  was  threatened,  but  the 
danger  fades  out  of  sight  in  the  consciousness  of  God's  love.  Note  the 
connexion  of  God's  strength  and  lovingkindness  {w.  2,  3),  as  in 
Ixii.  ir,  12. 

shall  praise  thee"]  Shall  laud  thee,  a  different  word  from  that  in  v.  5. 
The  word  is  supposed  to  be  a  proof  of  the  late  date  of  the  Psalm,  as  it 
is  an  Aramaic  word,  and  is  found  elsewhere  only  in  the  later  parts  of 
the  O.T.  But  it  is  precarious  to  argue  from  a  single  word,  when  the 
remains  of  Heb.  literature  are  so  comparatively  scanty. 

4.  Thus"]  So,  as  in  z/.  1 :  cp.  Ixi.  8 :  so  fervently;  in  such  a  spirit  of 
loving  gratitude. 

while  I  live'\     Cp.  civ.  33;  cxlvi.  2. 


PSALM    LXIII.  5—9.  355 


I  will  lift  up  my  hands  in  thy  name. 

My  soul  shall  be  satisfied  as  with  marrow  and  fatness ; 

And  my  mouth  shall  praise  thee  with  joyful  lips  : 

When  I  remember  thee  upon  my  bed, 

And  meditate  on  thee  in  the  night  watches. 

Because  thou  hast  been  my  help, 

Therefore  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  rejoice. 

My  soul  followeth  hard  after  thee  : 

Thy  right  hand  upholdeth  me. 

But  those  that  seek  my  soul,  to  destroy  //, 

/  will  lift  up  my  hands}  The  attitude  of  prayer  (xxviii.  1 ;  cxli.  2  ; 
I  Tim.  ii.  8),  the  outward  symbol  of  an  uplifted  heart  (xxv.  i). 

in  thy  name]  Relying  upon  all  that  Thou  hast  revealed  Thyself  to 
be.     Cp.  xliv.  5;  John  xiv.  13,  &c. 

6.  God  feeds  the  hungry  soul  with  rich  and  bountiful  food  (Deut. 
xxxii.  14;  Ps.  xxii.  26;  xxiii.  5;  xxxvi.  8;  Is.  xxv.  6;  Iv.  2;  Jer.  xxxi. 
14).  Though  the  language  may  be  derived  from  the  sacrificial  feasts,  it 
is  indifferent  to  strict  ritual  precision,  for  the  fat  (A.V.  here  marrow) 
was  never  to  be  eaten,  but  was  to  be  burnt  on  the  altar  as  God's  portion 
(Lev.  iii.  i^,  17). 

6,  7.     Thankful  recollection  of  past  mercies. 

6.     The  A.V.  connects  this  verse  with  v.  5,  but  the  absence  of  ami  in 
the  second  clause  makes  it  preferable  to  connect  it  with  v.  7,  thus  : 
When  I  remember  thee  upon  my  bed, 
I  meditate  on  thee  In  the  night  watches : 
For  thou  hast  been  my  help, 

And  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  shout  for  joy. 
When  once  he  calls  God  to  mind  as  he  lies  down  to  rest,  he  is  so  en- 
grossed with  the  thought  of  His  love  that  he  meditates  on  it  all  night 
long — per  singulas  vigilias  (Jer.).  The  night  was  divided  into  three 
watches  by  the  Israelites  (Lam.  ii.  19;  Jud.  vii.  19;  i  Sam.  xi,  11);  the 
division  into  four  watches  referred  to  in  the  N.T.  was  of  Roman  origin. 

8,  9.  While  he  draws  ever  closer  to  God,  his  enemies  will  be 
destroyed. 

8.  followeth  hard  after  thee]  Lit.,  cleaves  after  thee  ;  cleaves  to  God 
(Deut.  X.  20  &c.)  and  follows  Him  (Hos.  vi.  3).  Hard  ='  cXost.'  Cp. 
Shakespeare,  Hamlet,  i.  a.  179,  "Indeed  my  lord,  it  followed  hard 
upon." 

thy  ris^ht  hand  &c.]  Cp.  xvii.  7;  xviii.  35;  xli.  12;  Is.  xli.  10. 
Man's  effort  is  met  by  God's  care  (Phil.  ii.  13). 

9.  But  those  &c.]  They,  his  enemies,  who  are  seeking  his  life,  are 
emphatically  contrasted  with  himself  (lix.  15;  Ivi.  6).  While  his  path 
is  upward  to  God,  theirs  is  downward  to  the  depths  of  Sheol.  It  is 
possible  to  render  (cp.  R.  V.  marg.)  But  they  shall  be  destroyed  that  seek 
my  life.  They  shall  go  &c. 

23—2 


356  PSALM    LXIII.  lo,  ii. 

Shall  go  into  the  lower  parts  of  the  earth. 

10  They  shall  fall  by  the  sword  : 
They  shall  be  a  portion  for  foxes. 

11  But  the  king  shall  rejoice  in  God ; 

Every  one  that  sweareth  by  him  shall  glory : 

But  the  mouth  of  them  that  speak  lies  shall  be  stopped. 

into  the  lower  parts  of  the  earth"]  Into  Sheol,  swallowed  up  like 
Korah  and  his  company  of  rebels.  Cp.  for  the  phrase,  Is.  xliv.  23; 
Ezek.  xxvi.  20;  Ps.  Ixxxvi.  13;  Eph.  iv.  9;  Deut.  xxxii.  22:  and  for 
the  thought,  Ps.  ix.  15,  17  ;  Iv.  15,  23. 

10,  11.  While  his  enemies  come  to  an  ignominious  end,  the  king 
emerges  from  the  struggle,  triumphant  over  all  opposition. 

10.  They  shall  fall  Si.c.']  Lit.,  They  shall  give  him  over  {\i\..  pour 
him  out)  to  the  power  of 'the  sword  (Jer.  xviii.  21;  Ezek.  xxxv.  5). 
The  active  verb  with  indefinite  subject  is  practically  equivalent  to  a 
passive,  *He  shall  be  given  over';  yet  the  idiom  suggests  the  idea  of 
mysterious  agents,  God's  ministers  of  justice,  whose  ofBce  it  is.  Cp. 
Luke  xii.  20,  R.V.  marg.  The  object  of  the  verb  is  in  the  singular, 
either  individualising  the  king's  enemies  ('each  one  of  them'),  or  treating 
them  as  one  body;  but  hardly  singling  out  the  leader,     Cp.  Ixiv.  8,  note. 

a  portion  for  foxes]  Rather,  jackals.  "It  is  the  jackal  rather  than 
the  fox  which  preys  on  dead  bodies,  and  which  assembles  in  troops  on 
the  battle-fields,  to  feast  on  the  slain."  Tristram,  Nat.  Hist.^  p.  no. 
Their  corpses  will  lie  unburied  where  they  fall,  to  be  devoured  igno- 
miniously  by  wild  beasts,  instead  of  receiving  honourable  sepulture.  Cp. 
Is.  xviii.  6 ;  Jer.  xix.  7. 

11.  But  the  king]  The  connexion  is  unintelligible  unless  the  king 
is   identified  with  the   Psalmist,  whose   enemies  are  destroyed.     Cp. 

Ixi.  6fr. 

that  sweareth  by  him]  Grammatically  *  him '  may  refer  to  the  king  or 
to  God,  but  usage  decides  that  God  is  meant.  Cp.  Deut.  vi.  13;  x.  20; 
Is.  Ixv.  16.  Those  who  invoke  His  Name  as  the  attestation  of  their 
oaths  are  His  loyal  worshippers;  they  share  the  triumph  of  the  king 
who  is  His  representative. 

but  the  mouth  &c.]  For  the  mouth  &c.  Those  who  '  speak  lies '  are 
those  who  rebel  against  God  and  His  king,  deluding  men  by  false  pro- 
mises to  join  an  undertaking  which  is  false  in  its  principle  and  aim.  See 
iv.  2,  note;  Ixii.  4.     They  are  all  completely  silenced. 

Cp.  the  similar  ending  of  Ps.  Ixiv.  St  Paul  may  have  had  the  phrase 
in  mind  in  Rom.  iii.  19.  The  context  shews  how  familiar  the  Psalms 
were  to  him. 

PSALM  LXIV. 

The  theme  of  this  Psalm  is  God's  judgement  upon  the  enemies  of  the 
righteous.  It  falls  into  two  main  divisions,  in  each  of  which  the  verses 
are  arranged  in  pairs. 


PSALM   LXIV.  1—3.  357 

i.  The  Psalmist  confidently  appeals  to  God  for  protection  against  the 
secret  plots  and  open  attacks  of  evil-doers  (1,2),  who  are  bent  on  ruining 
innocent  men  by  slander  and  intrigue  (3,  4),  and  flattering  themselves 
that  they  have  nothing  to  fear,  prosecute  their  designs  with  an  evil 
inventiveness  and  determination  (5,  6). 

ii.  But  surely  and  suddenly  the  arrow  of  God's  judgement  will  pierce 
them,  and  their  plots  will  recoil  upon  themselves,  to  the  scorn  of  all 
beholders  (7,  8).  In  their  fate  men  will  recognise  the  hand  of  God, 
and  the  righteous  will  rejoice  in  this  proof  of  His  providence  (9,  10). 

Thus  the  Psalmist's  present  and  personal  need  is  merged  in  the  larger 
question  of  the  punishment  of  the  persecutors  of  the  righteous;  and  the 
certainty  of  their  punishment  as  the  consequence  of  their  sin  is  proclaimed 
in  a  tone  of  prophetic  authority.  The  Ps.  has  its  distinctive  peculiarities, 
though  numerous  parallels  of  thought  and  language  are  to  be  found  in 
other  Psalms.  Cp.  especially  v,  vii,  x,  xi,  xii,  xiv,  xxxvi,  lii,  Iv,  Ivii, 
Iviii. 

To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

Hear  my  voice,  O  God,  in  my  prayer :  64 

Preserve  my  life  from  fear  of  the  enemy. 

Hide  me  from  the  secret  counsel  of  the  wicked ;  a 

From  the  insurrection  of  the  workers  of  iniquity : 

Who  whet  their  tongue  like  a  sword,  3 

And  bend  t/iezr  bows  to  shoot  their  arrows,  eve?i  bitter  words  : 

1 — 6.  Prayer  for  preservation  from  malicious  enemies,  who  are 
plotting  against  the  Psalmist  with  subtle  treachery  and  resolute  determi- 
nation. 

1.  in  my  prayer]  R.V.,  in  my  complaint.  Cp.  Iv.  2,  17;  i  Sam. 
i.  16. 

preserve  &c.]  From  the  enemy's  terror — the  alarm  which  he  excites 
— thou  wilt  ^ard  my  life  (xii.  7  ;  Ixi.  7).  The  common  rendering  of 
the  verbs  in  this  and  the  following  line  as  imperatives  ('  preserve ' 
'hide'),  though  legitimate,  seems  to  miss  the  shade  of  meaning  intended 
by  the  change  from  the  imperative  'hear.'  From  petition  the  Psalmist 
passes  at  once  to  the  language  of  confident  anticipation,  such  as  we 
find  in  xvi.  10  f. 

2.  Thou  wilt  hide  me  from  the  secret  council  of  evil  doers, 
From  the  tumultuous  throng  of  workers  of  iniquity. 

i.e.  from  secret  machinations  and  open  attack.  The  cognate  verbs  are 
used  together  in  ii.  1,2  [iutiniltuously  assemble,  R.V.  marg.;  take  counsel). 
Cp.  xxxi.  13.     The  same  words  occur  in  Iv.  14,  but  in  a  good  sense. 

3.  IVho  whet]  R.V.,  who  have  whet.  For  the  comparison  see  Iv. 
11 ;  Ivii.  4;  lix.  7. 

and  bend  &c.]  Render,  They  have  aimed  as  their  arrow  a  bitter 
scheme.  For  the  peculiar  phrase  see  Iviii.  7.  Ddbdr  seems  to  mean 
scheme  as  in  z/.  5,  rather  than  speech^  or  words.     So  the  LXX  irpdy/xa 


358  PSALM   LXIV.  4—6. 


4  That  they  may  shoot  in  secret  at  the  perfect : 
Suddenly  do  they  shoot  at  him,  and  fear  not. 

5  They  encourage  themselves  in  an  evil  matter  : 
They  commune  of  laying  snares  privily; 
They  say,  Who  shall  see  them  ? 

6  They  search  out  iniquities ; 

They  accomplish  a  diligent  search  : 

Both  the  inward  thought  of  every  one  of  them ^  and  the  heart, 
is  deep. 

viKp6v.  i5zV/^r= hurtful  or  venomous.  Is  the  idea  that  of  a  poisoned 
arrow?  The  Targ.  paraphrases,  "They  have  anointed  their  arrows 
with  deadly  and  bitter  venom." 

4.  TAa^  they  may  shoot']     Cp.  xi.  2. 

in  secret]    R.V.,  in  secret  places,  as  x.  8;  xvii.  12. 

the  perfect]  The  upright,  blameless  man,  an  epithet  often  applied  to 
Job  (i.  I,  &c.).  Cp.  xxxvii.  57;  Prov.  xxix.  10,  and  see  note  on  the 
cognate  word  in  Ps.  xv.  2. 

fear  not]     They  neither  fear  God  nor  regard  man.     Cp.  Iv.  19. 

5.  They  encourage  &c.]  Lit.,  They  make  strong  for  themselves  an 
evil  scheme^  sparing  no  pains  to  make  their  plot  successful. 

they  say]  Lit.  they  have  said ^  i.e.  to  themselves;  they  have  made  up 
their  minds  that  there  is  no  retributive  Providence  in  the  world.  This 
is  the  reason  of  their  unrestrained  wickedness. 

Who  shall  see  them  1]  An  indirect  form  of  speech  in  place  of  the 
direct  Who  zvill  see  us  ?  More  exactly  the  Heb.  means,  Who  will  see  to 
the??i  ?  They  have  persuaded  themselves  that  ther6  is  no  God  who  will 
take  any  account  of  their  proceedings.  Cp.  x.  11,  13;  xii.  4;  lix.  7; 
Is.  xxix.  15,  &c. 

6.  They  plan  deeds  of  iniciuity;   We  have  perfected  (say  they) 

a  consummate  plan ; 
And  each  man's  innermost  thought  and  heart  is  deep. 
The  form  of  the  verb  is  anomalous,  and  it  is  uncertain  whether  it  is 
meant  for  the  first  person,  or,  as  A.V.  takes  it,  the  third  person,  '  they 
accomplish.'  The  first  person  is  however  more  graphic  and  forcible. 
For  a  similar  abrupt  introduction  of  the  persons  spoken  of  as  speakers, 
see  lix.  7.  The  various  reading  they  have  hidden  is  improbable.  They 
conceal  their  thoughts  deep  in  their  own  hearts,  but  in  vain  !  God 
explores  the  lowest  depths  and  most  tortuous  labyrinths  of  the  human 
heart  (Jer.  xvii.  9,  10).  Cp.  with  this  and  the  preceding  verse  Is.  xxix. 
15,  '•  Woe  unto  them  that  seek  deep  to  hide  their  counsel  from  Jehovah, 
and  their  works  are  in  the  dark,  and  they  say,  Who  seeth  us  ?  and  who 
knoweth  us  ?  "  and  the  sarcastic  words  of  Mic.  vii.  3,  "  Both  hands  are  set 
to  that  which  is  evil  to  do  it  well." 

7 — 10.  They  may  scheme,  but  in  the  midst  of  their  schemes  the 
arrow  of  divine  judgement  pierces  them  :  by  this  exhibition  of  God's 
justice  all  men  are  warned,  and  the  righteous  are  encomaged. 


PSALM   LXIV.  7—9.  359 

But  God  shall  shoot  at  them  with  an  arrow ;  7 

Suddenly  shall  they  be  wounded. 

So  they  shall  make  their  own  tongue  to  fall  upon  them-  g 

selves : 
All  that  see  them  shall  flee  away. 

And  all  men  shall  fear,  9 

And  shall  declare  the  work  of  God ; 

7.  Therefore  God  shoots  at  them  with  an  arrow ; 
Suddenly  are  they  smitten. 

The  peculiar  idiom  of  the  Heb.  in  this  and  the  following  verses  conveys 
the  idea  that  this  judgement  is  the  immediate  consequence  of  their  con- 
duct, and  though  still  future,  is  as  certain  as  though  it  were  already 
historical  fact.  Lit.  So  God  hath  shot... they  have  been  zvounded...and 
they  have  been  made  to  stumble... and  all  men  have  feared,  and  they  have 
declared. .  .and  understood  ^c. :  Note  the  parallelism  of  this  verse  to  v.  4, 
They  aim  their  arrows  at  the  righteous,  unseen,  as  they  fancy,  by  man, 
and  unregarded  by  God ;  but  swift  retribution  overtakes  them  unawares. 
Cp.  vii.  12  ff.  R.V.  follows  the  Massoretic  accents  in  attaching  with  an 
arrow  to  the  second  line ;  but  the  balance  of  the  clauses  is  in  favour  of 
dividing  the  verses  as  A.V.  does,  and  the  parallel  with  v.  4  is  more 
striking  if '  suddenly  '  occupies  the  same  emphatic  position  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  second  line  as  there.  Note  how  their  punishment  is  de- 
scribed in  terms  of  their  crime  {vv.  4,  5). 

8.  So  they  shall  make  their  own  tongue  to  fall  upon  themselves^  An 
untenable  rendering  of  an  obscure  sentence.  It  is  best  to  render,  sub- 
stantially as  R.V.,  And  they  are  made  to  stumble,  their  own  tongue 
being  against  them.  Lit.  they  make  him  stumble:  the  plural  subject  to 
the  verb  suggesting,  as  in  Ixiii.  10,  the  idea  of  mysterious  agents  in 
God's  service,  and  the  singular  object  regarding  *  the  enemy '  (as  in  v. 
I  b)  collectively  as  a  body.  For  the  sense  cp.  cxl.  9 ;  vii.  1 5  f  (note  that 
w.  12  fare  parallel  to  v.  7  here);  Ivii.  6.  Their  tongue,  the  weapon 
with  which  they  sought  to  destroy  others,  is  turned  against  themselves. 
Ahithophel's  fate  may  serve  for  illustration.  Possible,  but 
less  satisfactory,  is  the  rendering  of  R.V.  marg.:  So  shall  they  against 
ivhom  their  tongue  was  make  them  to  stumble.  The  context  does  not 
hint  that  their  victims  become  their  executioners. 

shall  flee  away}  For  fear  of  sharing  their  fate  (Num.  xvi.  34).  But 
the  right  rendering  certainly  is,  All  that  see  their  desire  upon  them 
shall  wag  the  head,  in  scornful  triumph,  as  Jer.  xlviii.  27,  R.V.;  cp. 
Ps.  xxii.  7.  See  Hi.  6ff. ;  liv.  7 ;  lix.  10,  and  for  the  light  in  which  such 
expressions  of  satisfaction  are  to  be  regarded  see  note  on  Iviii.  ir. 

9.  all  men]  Upon  men  in  general  (cp.  Iviii.  11)  this  judgement 
produces  an  impression  of  wholesome  fear,  in  contrast  to  the  profane 
fearlessness  of  the  ungodly  {v.  4). 

And  they  declare  the  work  of  God, 
And  understand  his  operation: 
publicly  acknowledging  that  He  rules  in  the  world,  and  interpreting  for 


36o  PSALM   LXIV.  lo. 


For  they  shall  wisely  consider  of  his  doing. 
lo  The  righteous  shall  be  glad  in  the  Lord,  and  shall  trust 
in  him ; 
And  all  the  upright  in  heart  shall  glory. 

themselves  the  meaning  of  the  judgement.  For  'work,'  'operation,' 
cp.  xxviii.  5;  for  'understand,'  cvi.  7;  and  generally,  Hos.  xiv.  9. 

The  P.B.V.  all  men  that  see  it  presumes  a  slightly  different  and 
inferior  reading. 

10.  For  the  righteous  and  the  upright  in  heart — the  Psalmist  and 
those  whom  he  represents — the  judgement  is  an  occasion  of  joy,  supply- 
ing a  fresh  proof  that  Jehovah  governs  the  world  righteously  and  that 
in  Him  they  have  a  sure  refuge.  Cp.  v.  11;  lii.  6  ff ;  Iviii.  10  f;  Ixiii. 
II. 

and  shall  trust  in  hint]     Rather,  take  refuge  in  Mm  (Ivii.  i ;  Ixi.  4). 

the  upright  in  heart']     Cp.  xi.  2,  already  quoted  as  a  parallel  to  v.  4. 


PSALM  LXV. 

A  hymn  of  praise,  intended  probably  to  be  sung  at  the  presentation 
of  the  firstfruits  at  the  Passover  (Lev.  xxiii.  10  —  14)  i"^  ^  y^''^^  of 
exceptional  promise.  It  is  clear  from  the  allusions  to  the  gathering  of 
the  people  to  the  Temple  [vv.  2,  4)  that  it  was  composed  for  use  at  one 
of  the  great  festivals,  and  as  the  corn  was  still  in  the  fields  {v.  13)  the 
later  festivals  of  Pentecost  or  Harvest  and  Tabernacles  or  Ingathering 
are  excluded. 

Was  the  Psalm  written  for  any  special  occasion?  Not  only  does  the 
poet  see  before  him  the  promise  of  a  more  than  ordinarily  bountiful 
harvest,  but  the  recollection  of  a  great  national  deliverance  seems  to  be 
fresh  in  his  mind  [vv,  5  ff ).  Accordingly  Delitzsch  thinks  that  the  spring 
of  the  third  year  foretold  by  Isaiah  (xxxvii.  30),  when  the  retreat  of  the 
Assyrians  had  left  the  Israelites  once  more  free  to  till  their  fields  in 
peace,  offers  the  most  appropriate  historical  basis  for  the  Psalm.  This 
view  gains  support  from  the  coincidences  of  thought  and  language  with 
Ps.  xlvi,  which  belongs  to  that  time,  and  with  Isaiah,  as  well  as  from 
the  general  similarity  of  the  Ps.  to  Ps.  Ixvi,  which  there  are  good 
reasons  for  connecting  with  the  deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from  the 
Assyrians. 

The  Psalm  consists  of  three  nearly  equal  stanzas. 

i.  It  is  meet  that  a  grateful  people  should  gather  in  the  Temple  to 
offer  their  praises  to  the  Hearer  of  prayer  to  whom  all  mankind  may 
have  access.  Sin  indeed  unfits  them  to  approach  God,  but  He  Himself 
will  make  atonement  for  them.  In  the  blessings  of  His  house  they  will 
find  their  highest  happiness  (i — 4). 

ii.  Israel's  God  is  the  one  true  trust  of  all  mankind.  He  created 
and  sustains  the  world ;  and  He  controls  the  nations  in  it  as  He  controls 
its  natural  forces.     The  signs  of  HLj  power  inspire  universal  awe  and 

joy  (5-8). 


3 


PSALM    LXV.  I,  2.  361 

iii.  And  now  in  particular  Israel  has  to  acknowledge  God's  loving 
bounty  in  the  rich  abundance  with  which   He  has  blessed  the  year 

(9—13)- 

Some  MSS.  of  the  LXX  and  the  Vulg.  contain  the  curious  addition 
to  the  title;  *a  song  of  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel  and  the  people  of  the 
captivity  (lit.  sojourning)  when  they  were  about  to  set  forth,'  but  it  does 
not  appear  to  have  been  part  of  the  original  LXX. 

This  and  the  three  following  Psalms  bear  the  double  title  Sojig  and 
Psalm.  Cp.  xlviii,  Ixxv,  Ixxvi,  &c.  Song  is  the  older  term  for  a  hymn 
intended  to  be  sung  in  public  worship.     Cp.  Is.  xxx.  29 ;  Am.  viii.  3. 

To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  and  Song  of  David. 

Praise  waiteth  for  thee,  O  God,  in  Zion :  65 

And  unto  thee  shall  the  vow  be  performed. 
O  thou  that  hearest  prayer,  a 

Unto  thee  shall  all  flesh  come. 


It  is  the  duty  of  a  grateful  people  to  render  thanks  to  God  in 
the  Temple,  assembling  to  pay  its  vows  to  the  universal  Hearer  of 
prayer.  The  consciousness  of  manifold  sins  might  deter  them  from 
approaching  a  holy  God,  were  not  He  Himself  graciously  ready  to 
purge  their  guilt  away.  In  the  blessings,  of  which  the  welcome  to  His 
house  is  the  pledge,  is  to  be  found  man's  truest  happiness. 

1.  Praise  waiteth  for  thee']  The  phrase  beautifully  ruggests  the  idea 
of  a  grateful  people,  assembled  to  render  thanks  to  God,  and  only  waiting 
for  the  festival  to  begin.  But  thiskcan  hardly  be  the  meaning  of  the 
original.  The  renderings,  For  thee\raise  is  silent^  or,  silence  is  praise^ 
give  no  appropriate  meaning,  for  though  prayer  may  be  silent  (Ixii.  i), 
praise  calls  for  vocal  expression.  The  R.V.  marg.,  There  shall  be  silence 
before  thee  and  praise,  O  God,  involves  a  harsh  asyndeton.  It  remains 
to  follow  the  LXX  (irp^Trei,  Vulg.  te  decet  hymnus),  which  preserves  a 
slightly  different  tradition  as  to  the  vocalisation  of  the  Hebrew,  and  to 
render,  Praise  beseemeth  thee,  0  God,  in  Zion. 

the  votu]  Or,  collectively,  vows.  Cp.  Ixvi.  13;  and  for  vows  and 
praises  coupled  together  see  xxii.  25 ;  Ixi.  8.  At  the  end  of  the  verse 
P.B.V.  adds  in  ferjualem,  from  the  LXX  (most  MSS.  though  not  the 
Vatican)  and  Vulg.,  completing  the  parallelism,  as  in  cii.  21 ;  cxlvii.  12. 

2.  O  thou  that  hearest  prayer]  God  is  thus  addressed,  because  He 
has  given  His  people  cause  for  the  present  thanksgiving  by  hearing  their 
prayers.  But  the  words  are  more  than  a  reference  to  a  particular 
answer  to  prayer.  They  proclaim  that  it  is  His  inalienable  attribute, 
His  'nature  and  property,'  to  hear  and  answer  prayer. 

unto  thee  shall  all  flesh  come]  At  first  sight  the  context  seems  to 
limit  'all  flesh'  to  Israel,  contemplated  in  its  weakness  and  frailty  as 
needing  the  strength  of  God  (Joel  ii.  28).  But  it  seems  more  consonant 
to  the  spirit  of  this  and  the  two  following  Psalms  to  take  it  in  the  wider 
sense  of  all  mankind.  Already  the  Psalmist  beholds  the  Temple 
becoming  a  house  of  prayer  for  all  nations  (Mark  xi.   17).     It  is  no 


362  PSALM   LXV.  3,  4. 


3  Iniquities  prevail  against  me : 

As  for  our  transgressions,  thou  shalt  purge  them  away. 

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, 
Even  of  thy  holy  temple. 


larger  hope  than  was  entertained  by  Isaiah  and  Micah  (Is.  ii.  2  fF; 
Mic.  iv.  iff)  if  not  by  some  earlier  prophet  whom  they  both  quote. 
Cp.  Jer.  xvi.  19;  Is.  xlv.  24;  Ixvi,  23  ;  Ps.  xxii.  27;  Ixxxvi.  9;  xciv.  10. 

3.  Iniquities]  Lit.,  words,  or,  matters  of  iniquities:  many  various 
items  of  iniquity.  Cp.  for  the  same  idiom  cv.  27,  cxlv.  5.  Virtually 
the  clause  is  a  protasis  to  the  second  line : 

Though  manifold  iniquities  are  too  strong  for  me, 
As  for  our  transgressions,  Thou  wilt  purge  them  away. 
In  the  singular  'me'  we  may  hear  the  voice  of  the  Psalmist  himself, 
or  of  some  representative  of  the  nation,  the  king  or  high-priest,  who, 
like  Daniel  or  Nehemiah,  confesses  his  own  sin  as  well  as  the  sin  of  his 
people  (Dan.  ix.  20;  Neh.  i.  6:  cp.  Heb.  v.  3,  vii.  27):  but  more  pro- 
bably it  is  the  assembled  congregation  which  speaks  of  itself  first  as  an 
individual  ('against  me''),  then  as  an  aggregate  of  individuals  {^our 
transgressions').  For  a  similar  change  from  sing,  to  plur.  cp.  Num.  xxi. 
22,  and  many  other  passages.  Its  sins  are  an  enemy  which  it  cannot 
defeat  (Gen.  iv.  7;  cp.  Ps.  xxxviii.  4;  cxxx.  3;  cxliii.  2);  yet  God  who 
"forgives  iniquity  and  transgression  and  sin"  will  purge  away  their 
transgressions.  THOU  is  emphatic.  He,  and  He  alone,  can  do  it.  The 
word  ior purge  away  is  that  commonly  rendered  'make  atonement  for' 
(whether  its  primary  meaning  is  'to  blot  out'  or  'to  cover'  is  disputed), 
and  it  would  be  natural  to  see  in  it  an  allusion  to  the  Day  of  Atonement 
which  immediately  preceded  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  (Lev.  xxiii.  27, 
34),  and  to  suppose  that  the  Ps.  was  intended  for  use  at  that  Fes- 
tival, did  not  z'.  13  speak  of  the  corn  as  still  standing  in  the  fields. 

4.  Blessed  &c.]  Or,  Happy  is  he  whom  thou  choosest,  as  in  i.  i ; 
&c.  The  language  is  that  which  is  used  of  the  priests  who  were 
•chosen,'  and  'brought  near'  to  God  (Num.  xvi.  5;  cp.  Jer.  xxx.  21; 
Zech.  iii.  7).  Here  however  it  is  not  limited  to  the  sons  of  Aaron,  but 
applied  to  all  the  nation  as  'a  kingdom  of  priests'  (Ex.  xix.  6).  They 
are  God's  guests  in  His  house,  members  of  the  'household  of  God.' 
The  visit  to  the  Temple  was  for  the  devout  IsraeUte  a  sacrament  of  his 
membership  in  God's  household,  and  the  sacred  feasts  symbolised  the 
spiritual  blessings  prepared  by  God  for  His  people  in  fellowship  with 
Him.     Cp.  XV.  1;  xxiii.  5f;  xxvii.  4  f ;  xxxvi.  8;  Ixiii.  5. 

we  shall  be  satisfied]  Or,  0  let  us  be  satisfied.  Cp.  xvii.  1 5 ;  xxii. 
26 ;  Ixiii.  5. 

even  of  thy  holy  Temple]  Better,  as  R.V.,  the  holy  place  of  thy 
temple.     See  xlvi.  4;  and  cp.  Ixiii.  2. 


PSALM   LXV.  5—7.  363 

By  terrible  things  in  righteousness  wilt  thou  answer  us,  s 

O  God  of  our  salvation ; 
Who  art  the  confidence  of  all  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  of 

them  that  are  afar  off  upon  the  sea : 
Which  by  his  strength  setteth  fast  the  mountains ;  6 

Being  girded  with  power  : 

Which  stilleth  the  noise  of  the  seas,  7 

The  noise  of  their  waves,  and  the  tumult  of  the  people. 

6 — 8.  In  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  God  will  prove  His  righteousness 
by  awe-inspiring  acts  on  behalf  of  His  people  in  answer  to  their  prayers, 
for  He  has  created  and  sustains  the  universe,  and  controls  the  forces 
alike  of  nature  and  of  the  nations. 

5.  By  terrible  things  &c.]  The  R.V.  gives  a  better  order:  By 
terrible  things  thou  wilt  answer  us  in  righteousness.  As  God  Him- 
self is  *a  terrible  God'  (xlvii.  2;  Ixxvi.  yff),  so  His  acts  are  'terrible,' 
inspiring  His  enemies  with  dread,  and  His  people  with  reverent  awe. 
The  epithet  is  often  applied  to  the  mighty  works  of  the  Exodus  (Deut. 
X.  21;  %  Sam.  vii.  23;  Is.  Ixiv.  3;  Ps.  cvi.  22;  cxlv.  6);  here  to  all 
similar  deliverances,  granted  in  answer  to  prayer.  'Righteousness'  is 
the  principle  of  the  divine  government;  and  it  is  closely  related  to 
'salvation';  for  by  it  God's  honour  is  pledged  to  answer  prayer  and 
deliver  His  people.     Cp.  xlviii.  10;  Is.  xli.  10;  xlv.  8,  21;  li.  5;  &c. 

who  art  the  confidence  of  all  the  ends  of  the  earthy  R.V.  (cp.  P.B.V.), 
thou  that  art  the  confidence  &c.  This  may  mean  that  He  is  the  object 
of  their  unconscious  trust,  although  they  know  Him  not,  because  it  is 
He  who  provides  for  their  wants  and  rules  their  destinies  (Ixvii.  4; 
Amos  ix.  7;  Acts  xvii..  23fr) ;  but  the  further  thought  is  certainly  in- 
cluded that  His  mighty  deeds  on  behalf  of  His  people  in  destroying 
their  tyrannical  oppressors  will  lead  all  the  oppressed  and  needy 
throughout  the  world  to  turn  to  Him  with  a  conscious  trust.  Cp.  Is. 
xxxiii.  13. 

and  of  them  that  are  afar  off  upon  the  sea]  Better,  and  of  the  sea 
afar  off.  A  slight  change  of  text  would  give  the  phrase  of  Is.  Ixvi.  19, 
the  isles,  or  coastlaruis,  afar  off.  But  the  change  is  unnecessary;  land 
and  sea  naturally  stand  for  the  entire  world. 

6.  setteth  fast  the  mountains']  The  mountains  poetically  represent 
the  strongest  and  most  solid  parts  of  the  earth  (xviii.  7;  xlvi.  2f). 
These  He  has  created  and  sustains.  Comp.  the  appeals  of  Amos  to  the 
phenomena  of  nature  as  the  evidence  of  God's  power,  iv.  13;  v.  8; 
ix.  5,  6. 

being  girded  with  power]  Girding  himself  with  might.  Cp. 
xciii.  I. 

7.  Who  stilleth  the  roaring  of  the  seas, 

The  roaring  of  their  waves,  and  the  tumult  of  the  peoples. 
He  controls  alike  the  turbulent  elements  of  nature  (Jer.  v.  22),  and 
the  tumultuous  hosts  of  the  nations  wliich  they  symbolise.     Cp.  xlvi. 
a  f,  6;  Is.  xvii.  12 — 14. 


364  PSALM    LXV.  8—10. 

8  They  also  that  dwell  in  the  uttermost  parts  are  afraid  at 

thy  tokens : 
Thou  makest  the  outgoings  of  the  morning  and  evening  to 
rejoice. 

9  Thou  visitest  the  earth,  and  waterest  it : 
Thou  greatly  enrichest  it 

IVi'f/i  the  river  of  God,  wkic/i  is  full  0/  water : 
Thou  preparest  them  corn,  when  thou  hast  so   provided 
for  it. 

10  T/iou  waterest  the  ridges  thereof  abundantly :  f/iou  settlest 

the  furrows  thereof: 
Thou  makest  it  soft  with  showers :  thou  blessest  the  spring- 
ing thereof. 

8.  They  also  &c.]  Better,  So  that  they  who  dwell  in  the  ends  of 
the  earth  are  afraid  at  thy  signs.  These  mighty  works  impress  them 
with  awe,  as  'signs'  of  the  irresistible  power  of  God. 

tAe  outgoings  of  the  morning  and  evening\  The  term  outgoings  which 
strictly  speaking  is  appropriate  to  the  east  only  (xix.  5  f.)  is  applied,  by 
a  kind  of  zeugma,  to  the  west  also.  From  the  furthest  east  to  the 
furthest  west  He  makes  earth  with  all  its  inhabitants  to  shout  for  Joy 
(v.  11;  Ixvii.  4).  Awe  gives  place  to  triumph  as  they  watch  the  down- 
fall of  their  tyrants  and  welcome  the  establishment  of  God's  kingdom  of 
peace  (xlvi.  9  f ),  and  all  nature  sympathises  with  them. 

9 — 13.  The  special  object  of  the  Psalm — thanksgiving  for  the  plenty 
of  the  year.  First,  grateful  acknowledgment  that  the  rains  which  have 
fertilised  the  soil  were  God's  gift ;  then  a  charming  picture  of  a  joyous 
landscape  rich  with  promise. 

9.  Thou  hast  visited  the  land,  and  made  It  plentiful,  greatly 

enriching  it: 

The  stream  of  God  is  full  of  water ; 

Thou  preparest  their  corn,  for  so  thou  preparest  it. 
The  A.V.  visitest  turns  the  special  thanksgiving  into  a  general  state- 
ment. The  rendering  waterest  follows  the  Ancient  Versions,  which 
may  however  have  read  the  word  differently.  The  use  of  the  verb  in 
Joel  ii.  24,  iii.  13,  points  to  the  meaning  made  it  overflow,  made  it 
plentiful.  God's  'stream'  (i.  3)  is  the  rain,  with  which  He  irrigates 
the  land  as  out  of  a  brimming  aqueduct  (Deut.  xi.  11 ;  Job  xxxviii.  25), 
providing  corn  for  men  by  preparing  the  earth,  as  the  next  verse  goes 
on  to  describe: 

10.  Saturating  its  furrows,  levelling  its  ridges: 

Thou  softenest  it  with  showers,  thou  blessest  Its  springing 
growth. 
The  poet  looks  back  upon  the  *  early  rain'  of  autumn  and  winter 
(Nov. — Feb.),  which  had  prepared  the  ground  for  the  seed  and  fostered 


PSALM   LXV.  II— 13.  365 

Thou  crownest  the  year  with  thy  goodness  ;  " 

And  thy  paths  drop  fatness. 

They  drop  upon  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness  :  12 

And  the  httle  hills  rejoice  on  every  side. 

The  pastures  are  clothed  with  flocks ;  13 

The  valleys  also  are  covered  over  with  corn ; 

They  shout  for  joy,  they  also  sing. 

its  growth.     It  had  been  abundant,  and  now  (yv.  11  ff)  he  gazes  upon 
crops  of  unusual  promise  ripening  for  the  harvest. 

11.  Thou  crownest  &c.]  Thou  hast  crowned  the  year  of  thy  good- 
ness, added  fresh  beauty  and  perfection  to  a  year  already  marked  by 
special  bounty,  and  thy  paths  drop  fatness^  rich  blessings  fall  as  Thou 
traversest  the  land,  an  allusion  probably  to  an  unusually  copious  fall  of 
the  'latter  rain,'  which  was  more  uncertain  than  the  early  rain,  and  was 
most  anxiously  looked  for  as  a  special  blessing  (Job  xxix.  23;  Prov.  xvi. 
15;  Jer.  iii.  3;  Zech.  x.  i). 

P.B.V.  clouds  (Great  Bible,  not  Coverdale,  who  has  fotesteppes)  seems 
to  be  intended  as  an  explanation  oi paths.     Cp.  Nah.  i.  3. 

12.  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness']  Jer.  ix.  lo^  xxiii.  10;  Joel  i.  19, 
^o;  ii.  12.  'Wilderness'  denotes  the  open  uncultivated  country  used 
for  pasturage,  in  contrast  to  the  cultivated  land  or  'field.' 

and  the  little  hills  &c.]  R.V.,  And  the  MUs  are  girded  with  Joy. 
For  the  personification  of  nature  cp.  xcvi.  11  ff;  Is.  xliv.  -23;  &c. 

13.  The  meadows  are  clothed  with  sheep; 
And  the  vales  are  decked  with  wheat; 
They  shout  for  joy,  yea  sing. 

With  the  last  line  cp.  Is.  Iv.  11.  The  vales  (Heb.  'ifnek)  denote 
"the  long  broad  sweeps  sometimes  found  between  parallel  ranges  of 
hills"  {Sinai  and  Pal.,  p.  481)  which  were  the  natural  cornfields  of 
Palestine  (i  Sam.  vi.  13).  The  graphic  touch  of  the  Heb.,  which 
represents  the  pastures  and  vales  as  shouting  one  to  another^  can  hardly 
be  preserved  in  translation. 

PSALM   LXVI. 

Another  Psalm  of  thanksgiving,  probably  intended,  like  Ps.  Ixv,  for 
use  at  the  Passover,  but  evidently  owing  its  origin  to  special  circum- 
stances which  called  for  more  than  ordinary  rejoicings.  It  consists  of 
two  parts,  distinguished  by  the  use  of  the  first  person  plural  (i — 12)  and 
the  first  person  singular  (13 — 20)  respectively ;  and  it  contains  five  stanzas 
of  nearly  equal  length,  marked  ofif  (except  where  the  division  is  obvious 
at  the  end  of  the  first  part  and  of  the  whole)  by  Selah. 

i.     I.     All  the  inhabitants  of  the  world  are  summoned  to  praise  God 
and  acknowledge  His  sovereignty  (i — 4). 

1.  They  are  bidden  to  contemplate  His  mighty  works  on  behalf  of 
His  people  in  the  past,  and  to  recognise  that  His  sovereignty  is  still 
exercised  in  the  government  of  the  world  (5 — 7). 


366  PSALM    LXVI. 


3.  They  are  invited  to  praise  God  for  His  recent  deliverance  of  His 
people  from  a  calamity  which  had  threatened  to  prove  their  ruin 
(8-12). 

ii.     I.     The  people's  representative  enters  the  Temple  to  pay  the 
vows  which  he  had  made  in  the  hour  of  distress  (13 — 15). 
7.     He  invites  all  who  fear  God  to  listen  to  his  grateful  acknowledge 
ment  of  God's  answer  to  his  prayer,  and  concludes  with  an  ascription 
of  praise  to  God  for  His  goodness  (16 — 20). 

The  reader  is  at  once  struck  by  the  abrupt  change  from  the  first  person 
plural  in  ttv.  i — 12  to  the  first  person  singular  in  vv.  13 — 20.  How  is 
it  to  be  accounted  for,  and  who  is  the  speaker  in  w.  13  ff? 

(i)  Some  critics  have  supposed  that  portions  of  two  Psalms,  the  one 
national,  the  other  personal,  have  been  combined.  But  would  not  the 
incongruity,  if  it  exists,  have  been  felt  by  the  compiler?  and  the  similarity 
of  the  situation  {vv.  9  ff,  14  ff),  and  of  the  style  {vv.  5,  8,  16)  in  both 
parts  is  strongly  in  favour  of  the  unity  of  the  Psalm. 

{2)  In  spite  of  the  personal  turn  of  the  language  in  vv.  13  ff,  it 
might  be  the  congregation  assembled  for  worship  which  lifts  up  its 
voice  as  one  man  in  that  consciousness  of  national  solidarity  which  was 
so  vivid  a  reality  to  the  mind  of  ancient  Israel. 

(3)  But  this  view  does  not  account  for  the  transition  from  the  plural 
to  the  singular;  and  it  seems  best  to  hear  in  these  verses  the  voice  of 
the  responsible  and  representative  leader  of  the  nation  (not  necessarily 
himself  the  author  of  the  Psalm),  who  identifies  its  fortunes  and  interests 
with  his  own. 

Who  then  was  this  leader  and  what  was  the  occasion?  The  language 
of  vv.  9  ff  clearly  refers  to  some  wonderful  interposition  by  which  God 
had  delivered  the  nation  from  a  danger  which  threatened  its  very  exist- 
ence. Was  it  the  termination  of  the  Assyrian  tyranny  by  the  destruction 
of  Sennacherib's  army  ?  or  was  it  the  restoration  from  the  Babylonian 
captivity?  If  it  was  the  latter,  the  Psalm  must  be  placed  after  B.C.  516, 
for  the  Temple  is  standing,  and  sacrificial  worship  is  being  carried  on. 
But  there  is  no  distinct  reference  to  the  Exile;  the  language  points  to 
a  short  and  sharp  crisis  rather  than  to  a  prolonged  humiliation;  and 
the  whole  Psalm  admits  of  a  far  more  satisfactory  explanation  in 
connexion  with  the  earlier  occasion,  {a)  The  Assyrian  oppression  was 
certainly  sufficiently  severe,  and  the  danger  to  Judah  sufficiently  great, 
to  justify  the  language  of  ttv.  9ff.  It  must  have  seemed  as  though 
Jerusalem's  last  hour  was  come,  and  the  Southern  Kingdom  must 
inevitably  share  the  fate  of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  {b)  A  distinctive 
feature  of  the  Psalm  is  the  appeal  to  the  nations  to  recognise  Jehovah 
as  the  ruler  of  the  world.  In  just  such  a  spirit  Hezekiah  prays  for 
deliverance  from  Sennacherib  "that  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth  may 
know  that  thou  art  the  Lord,  even  thou  only"  (Is.  xxxvii.  20);  and 
in  God's  name  Isaiah  bids  those  who  are  afar  off  to  hear  what  He 
has  done  and  those  who  are  near  to  acknowledge  His  might  (xxxiii. 
13).  {c)  The  parallel  obviously  suggested  between  the  Exodus  and  the 
recent  deliverance  might  seem  to  point  to  the  Return  from  Babylon 
which  is  so  often  spoken  of  as  a  second  Exodus  :  but  the  parallel 
between   the   Egyptian    oppression    and    the    Assyrian    oppression    is 


PSALM   LXVI.  1—3.  367 

constantly  present  to  Isaiah's  mind  (x.  24,  &c.),  and  he  expressly 
compares  the  rejoicings  with  which  the  deliverance  will  be  celebrated  to 
the  rejoicings  of  the  Passover  (xxx.  29).  {d)  The  Psalm  contains  some 
striking  parallels  of  thought  and  language  with  Is.  i,  and  with  Pss.  xlvi, 
xlviii,  Ixxv,  Ixxvi,  which  belong  to  that  time. 

If  then  the  Psalm  is  a  song  for  the  Passover  festival,  celebrating  the 
deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from  the  tyranny  of  the  Assyrians  and  the 
menaces  of  Sennacherib,  the  speaker  in  vv.  13  ff  (though  not  necessarily 
the  composer  of  the  Psalm)  will  be  Hezekiah.  This  may  explain  the 
personal,  and  yet  more  than  personal,  character  of  the  language.  He 
speaks  as  the  representative  and  mouthpiece  of  the  nation  in  its  trial 
and  deliverance ;  and  in  w.  16  flf  not  without  allusion  to  his  own 
restoration  from  sickness,  which  was  to  him  a  type  and  pledge  of  the 
nation's  escape  from  death  (Is.  xxxviii.  5  ff ).  His  prayer  in  his  sickness 
(Is.  xxxviii.  3)  presents  a  striking  parallel  to  the  profession  of  integrity 
in  V.  18. 

This  Psalm  and  Ps.  Ixvii  are  the  only  anonymous  Psalms  which  have 
For  the  Chief  Musician  prefixed.  It  is  doubly  described  as  A  Song,  a 
Psalm,  or  perhaps  A  Song  for  Music.  The  LXX  adds  a.va.csra.aew'i,  of 
resurrection,  probably  with  reference  to  w.  9,  16. 

To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Song  or  Psalm. 

Make  a  joyful  noise  unto  God,  all  ye  lands  :  6 

Sing  forth  the  honour  of  his  name  :  a 

Make  his  praise  glorious. 

Say  unto  God,  How  terrible  art  thou  in  thy  works  !  3 

Through  the  greatness  of  thy  power  shall  thine  enemies 
submit  themselves  unto  thee. 

1 — 4.  All  the  earth  is  summoned  to  worship  God  and  acknowledge 
the  greatness  of  His  power. 

1.  Make  a  joyful  noise\  Or,  as  the  word  is  rendered  in  xlvii.  i, 
shout :  greet  Him  with  the  acclamations  which  befit  a  victorious  king. 

all  ye  lands']     Lit.  as  R.V.,  all  the  earth,  as  in  v.  4. 

2.  Sing  forth  the  honour  of  his  name]  Or,  H3rmn  forth  the  glory  of 
his  name:  celebrate  in  a  joyous  psalm  this  fresh  revelation  of  His 
character. 

make  his  praise  glorious]     Or,  perhaps,  ascribe  glory  to  praise  him. 

3.  Ho%v  terrible  art  thou  in  thy  ivorksl]  Better  as  R.V.,  How  ter- 
rible are  thy  works !     Cp.  Ixv.  5  ;  Rev.  xv.  3. 

through  the  greatness  of  thy  power]  Rather,  of  thy  strength ;  cp. 
xlvi.  I ;  Ixiii.  2;  Ixviii.  33,  34. 

submit  themselves  unto  thee]  Or,  come  cringing  unto  thee.  The 
word,  which  means  literally  to  lie  (hence  P.B.V.  be  found  liars  unto  thee) 
and  so  to  yield  feigned  obedience,  denotes  the  unwilling  homage  paid  by 
the  conquered  to  their  conqueror.  Cp.  xviii.  44;  Ixxxi.  15;  Deut 
xxxiii.  ag. 


368  PSALM   LXVI.  4—6. 

4  All  the  earth  shall  worship  thee, 

And  shall  sing  unto  thee;   they  shall  sing  to  thy  name. 
Selah. 

5  Come  and  see  the  works  of  God  : 

He  is  terrible  in  his  doing  toward  the  children  of  men. 

6  He  turned  the  sea  into  dry  land: 
They  went  through  the  flood  on  foot : 
There  did  we  rejoice  in  him. 


4.  All  the  earth  shall  worship  thee  and  hymn  thee, 
Yea,  hymn  thy  name. 

This  verse  is  part  of  the  address  to  God  put  into  the  mouth  of  the 
nations. 

5 — 7.  The  nations  are  invited  to  contemplate  God's  mighty  works 
for  His  people  in  the  past,  and  to  learn  that  the  sovei'eignty  to  which  they 
bear  witness  is  eternal  and  universal. 

5.  Come  and  see  the  works  of  God\  Cp.  xlvi.  8,  the  only  other  place 
where  the  word  for  works  is  found. 

he  is  terrible  in  his  domg  tozvard  the  children  of  men]  The  preposi- 
tion toward  implies  supremacy  over  mankind.  All  men  must  fear  Him 
(Ixiv.  9);  but  it  depends  on  themselves  whether  they  will  reverence 
Him  as  their  God,  or  must  dread  Him  as  an  enemy. 

6.  The  passage  of  the  Red  Sea  and  the  crossing  of  the  Jordan  are 
referred  to  as  the  most  notable  of  His  terrible  acts  (Ixv.  5).  Cp.  Ixxiv. 
13;  Ixxviii.  13  ;  &c.  Floods  as  in  Josh.  xxiv.  2,  3,  14,  15,  is  an  archaism 
for  river  (R.V.). 

there  did  we  rejoice  in  hitti]  At  the  Red  Sea  and  the  Jordan.  The 
Psalmist  can  thus  identify  himself  and  his  contemporaries  vdth  the 
Israelites  of  ancient  time,  for  he  regards  the  nation  as  possessing  an 
unbroken  continuity  of  life.  This  rendering  is  grammatically  justifiable, 
and  it  suits  the  context  better  than  the  alternative  of  R.V.  marg.,  there 
let  m  rejoice  in  him.,  whether  this  is  understood  to  mean,  "  There — on 
the  spot  wheie  those  old  historical  events  occurred, — there  let  us  take 
our  stand,  and  renew  our  praise  to  Him,  our  wondrous  Benefactor" 
(Kay);  or,  ^^  There,  pointing  as  it  were  to  the  field  in  which  God  had 
made  bare  His  arm,  and  where  the  past  history  had  been  repeated  in 
the  present,  there  let  us  rejoice  in  Him"  (Perowne).  For  the  Psalmist 
is  addressing  the  nations,  not  his  countrymen,  and  a  historical  reference 
to  the  rejoicing  which  took  place  after  the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea  is 
more  natural  than  an  invitation  to  join  in  celebrating  either  that  or  the 
recent  deliverance.  Moreover  mention  of  the  recent  deliverance  appears 
to  be  reserved  for  the  next  stanza,  to  which  v.  7  forms  the  appropriate 
transition.  Bp.  Perowne's  explanation  would  at  any  rate  require  the 
adoption  of  the  LXX  reading,  'who  tunieth  the  sea  into  dry  land,  they 
go  through  the  river  on  foot';  i.e.  He  is  ever  doing  as  He  did  at  the 
Ked  Sea  and  the  Jordan,  opening  ways  of  escape  for  His  people. 


PSALM    LXVI.  7— II.  369 


He  ruleth  by  his  power  for  ever ; 

His  eyes  behold  the  nations : 

Let  not  the  rebellious  exalt  themselves.     Selah. 

O  bless  our  God,  ye  people, 

And  make  the  voice  of  his  praise  to  be  heard  : 

Which  holdeth  our  soul  in  life, 

And  suffereth  not  our  feet  to  be  moved. 

For  thou,  O  God,  hast  proved  us  : 

Thou  hast  tried  us,  as  silver  is  tried. 

Thou  broughtest  us  into  the  net ; 

7.  by  his  power]    By  Ills  might  (R.V.),  as  Ixv.  6. 

for  ever]  What  is  true  for  the  past  is  true  for  the  present  and  the 
future.     God's  sovereignty  is  eternal.     Cp.  cxlv.  13;  Jer.  x.  10. 

his  eyes  behold  the  nations]  Better,  as  R.V.  renders  the  word  in  Prov. 
XV.  3,  keep  watch  upon.  He  is  the  world's  watchman,  sleeplessly  on 
the  watch  lest  any  foe  should  injure  Israel.  Cp.  xxxiii.  10,  13  ff;  Is. 
xxvii.  3;  and  Ilezekiah's  prayer  (Is.  xxxvii.  17),  "open  thine  eyes,  O 
Lord,  and  see." 

let  not  the  rebellions  exalt  themselves"]  A  warning  to  those  who  obsti- 
nately resist  God's  will  (Ixviii.  6,  18)  to  humble  themselves  (ii.  10  f ), 
rather  than  a  prayer  to  God  to  humble  them  (ix.  19).  Cp.  God's 
reproof  of  Sennacherib  by  Isaiah  (xxxvii.  23),  "Against  whom  hast  thou 
exalted  thy  voice  and  lifted  up  thine  eyes  on  high?" 

8 — 12.  A  renewed  call  to  the  nations  to  praise  God  for  His  deliver- 
ance of  Israel  from  dangers  which  menaced  the  very  existence  of  the 
nation. 

8.  ye  people]  Ye  peoples  (R.V. ).  The  nations,  not  Israel,  are  still 
addressed.  Conscious  of  Israel's  mission  to  the  world,  the  Psalmist 
can  call  upon  tliem  to  give  thanks  for  Israel's  preservation  to  fulfil  its 
work  for  them. 

9.  Who  hath  set  our  soul  in  life, 

And  not  suffered  our  foot  to  be  moved. 

The  nation  was  on  the  point  of  death  and  ruin,  but  God  presei-ved 
and  upheld  it.  The  tenses  indicate  that  the  words  are  not  the  state- 
ment of  a  general  truth  (as  A.V.  renders  them),  but  reter  particularly  to 
the  deliverance  from  the  trial  described  in  the  following  verses. 

10.  proved  us... tried  ns]  Words  used  of  testing  precious  metals,  and 
smelting  away  the  dross  (xvii.  3;  xxvi.  2;  Prov.  xvii.  3;  Jer,  ix.  7; 
Zech.  xiii.  9;  Mai.  iii.  2,  3).  God  had  declared  His  intention  of  smelt- 
ing out  the  dross  from  His  people  by  the  Assyrian  troubles  (Is.  i.  25). 

11.  Thou  broughtest  us  into  the  net]  God  had  deliberately  brought 
them  into  the  power  of  their  enemies,  to  punish  them  for  their  sins. 
Cp.  for  the  figure  Job  xix.  6.  Some  commentators  render  into  the 
dungeon,  a  figure  for  the  loss  of  freedom  (Is.  xlii.  22),  but  the  usage  of 
the  word  is  not  in  favour  of  this  rendering. 

PSALMS  24 


370  PSALM    LXVI.  12—15. 


Thou  laidst  affliction  upon  our  loins. 

12  Thou  hast  caused  men  to  ride  over  our  heads ; 
We  went  through  fire  and  through  water : 

But  thou  broughtest  us  out  into  a  wealthy  J>/ace. 

13  I  will  go  info  thy  house  with  burnt  offerings  : 
I  will  pay  thee  my  vows, 

14  Which  my  lips  have  uttered, 

And  my  mouth  hath  spoken,  when  I  was  in  trouble. 
x5  I  will  offer  unto  thee  burnt  sacrifices  of  fathngs, 
With  the  incense  of  rams ; 

^/lou  laidst  &c.]  Thou  layedst  a  crushing  load  upon  our  loins, 
bowing  us  down  under  its  weight. 

12.  Better:  Thou  didst  cause... we  went... but  thou  hast  brought 
us  out.  The  figure  in  the  first  line  is  clearly  that  of  the  vanquished 
flung  down  upon  the  ground,  and  trampled  remorselessly  under  the 
horsehoofs  or  crushed  by  the  chariot  wheels  of  their  conquerors.  Cp. 
Is.  li.  23.  Representations  of  a  conqueror  driving  his  chariot  over 
prostrate  foes  may  be  seen  on  Egyptian  and  Assyrian  monuments.  The 
sense  of  outrage  is  heightened  by  the  word  for  men,  which  means  mortal 
men.  Cp.  ix.  19;  x.  18;  Ivi.  i.  Fire  and  ivater  are  symbolical  of 
extreme  and  varied  dangers.     Cp.  Is.  xliii.  2. 

into  a  wealthy  place]  Lit.,  into  abundance,  the  opposite  of  the 
privations  we  endured.  But  the  Ancient  Versions  point  to  a  different 
and  more  suitable  reading,  a  place  of  liberty.     Cp.  xviii.  19;  cxix.  45. 

13 — 15.  The  people's  leader  and  representative  enters  the  Temple 
to  pay  the  vows  which  he  made  in  the  hour  of  national  distress, 

13.  I  will  go'\  R.V.  I  will  come,  the  usual  word  for  approaching 
God  in  the  sanctuary  (v.  7 ;  xlii.  2;  xliii.  4;  Ixv.  2  ;  &c.).  The  transition 
from  the  plural  in  vv.  i — 12  ('we,' 'us,'  'our')  to  the  singular  is  more 
naturally  explained  by  supposing  that  the  king  comes  forward  to  speak 
as  the  representative  of  the  people  than  by  supposing  that  the  congrega- 
tion speaks  as  an  individual.  He  comes  with  'burnt  offerings,'  express- 
ing the  devotion  of  the  worshipper  to  God,  and  'peace  offerings'  in 
fulfilment  of  his  vows  (Ixv.  1;  cp.  Lev.  xxii.  21). 

14.  Wherewith  my  lips  opened, 

And  which  my  mouth  spake,  when  I  was  in  distress. 
For  the  first  line  cp.  Judg.  xi.  35  f;  but  there  is  no  reason  to  suppose 
that  rash  vows  are  here  meant. 

15.  Burnt  offerings  of  fatlings  will  I  offer  unto  thee, 
Together  with  incense  of  rams. 

•Incense  of  rams'  denotes  the  sweet  savour  of  the  sacrifice  ascending 
as  it  was  consumed  by  fire.  Cp.  perhaps,  though  the  meaning  is  not 
certain,  Is.  i.  13.  The  cognate  verb  is  used  of  burning  the  victim  or 
the  fat  of  the  victim  on  the  altar.     Thus  Ex.  xxix.  18,  "and  thou  shalt 


PSALM    LXVI.  16—19.  371 


I  will  offer  bullocks  with  goats.     Selah. 

Come  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  16 

And  I  will  declare  what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul. 

I  cried  unto  him  with  my  mouth,  17 

And  he  was  extolled  with  my  tongue. 

If  I  regard  iniquity  in  my  heart,  18 

The  Lord  will  not  hear  me : 

But  verily  God  hath  heard  me  ;  19 

He  hath  attended  to  the  voice  of  my  prayer. 


hum  (lit.,  if  an  obsolete  verb  might  be  revived,  incense)  the  whole  ram 
upon  the  altar ;  it  is  a  burnt  offering  unto  the  Lord  :  it  is  a  sweet 
savour."  According  to  the  Levitical  ritual  the  ram  was  to  be  offered  as 
a  burnt  offering  or  peace  offering  only  by  the  whole  people  or  its 
princes,  by  the  high-priest  or  an  ordinary  priest,  or  by  a  Nazirite; 
never  by  an  ordinary  individual  (by  whom  however  it  was  to  be  used  as 
a  trespass  offering).  He-goats  are  only  mentioned  in  connexion  with  the 
offerings  of  the  princes  (Num.  vii.  17  ff).  Hence  it  may  be  inferred 
that  the  Psalm  refers  to  sacrifices  offered  by  the  nation  or  its  leaders, 
not  by  an  ordinary  private  individual.  Cp.  however  Is.  i.  1 1,  where 
almost  exactly  the  same  animals  are  mentioned  as  here;  and  Ps.  1.  9,  13. 
/  will  offer]  Lit.,  dress  for  sacrifice.  Cp.  i  Kings  xviii.  23  ff;  Ex. 
xxix.  36  ff;  &c. :  and  Gr.  ipdciv,  pe^etv,  in  LXX  iroidv:  "Ldii.  facere. 

16 — 20.  All  who  fear  God  are  bidden  to  hear  what  He  has  done  for 
the  speaker.  He  had  prayed  in  expectation  of  a  favourable  hearing, 
knowing  that  sincerity  is  the  necessary  condition  of  prayer ;  and  the 
answer  to  his  prayer  had  attested  his  sincerity.  In  conclusion  he  blesses 
God  for  this  continuance  of  His  lovingkindness. 

16.  all  ye  that  fear  God]  The  whole  drift  of  the  Ps.,  especially  vv. 
J,  5,  8,  is  in  favour  of  extending  the  phrase  to  include  all  who  fear  God 
wherever  they  are  to  be  found,  whether  Israelites,  or  non- Israelites  who 
have  been  won  to  worship  Him  by  the  sight  of  His  works,  rather  than 
of  limiting  it  to  Israel,  or  an  inner  circle  of  the  faithful  in  Israel. 

what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul\  Wliat  lie  did  for  me  when  my  very 
life  was  in  danger.  If  Hezekiah  is  the  speaker,  he  may  be  thinking  at 
once  of  his  own  life  (Is.  xxxviii.  17)  and  of  the  life  of  the  nation  whose 
representative  he  was.  He  had  prayed  for  both  (Is.  xxxvii.  i5ff; 
xxxviii.  2);  and  the  preservation  of  the  one  was  a  pledge  of  the  preser- 
vation of  the  other  (Is.  xxxviii.  6). 

17.  and  he  was  extolled  with  my  tongue]  Better  as  R.V.  marg.,  and 
high  praise  (cxlix.  6)  was  under  my  tongue.  Even  while  he  prayed, 
he  had  praises  ready,  so  sure  was  he  of  an  answer.  Cp.  x.  7,  though 
(see  note)  the  idea  there  may  be  different. 

18.  19.     If  I  had  regarded  iniquity  in  my  heart, 

The  Lord  would  not  hear: 
But  verily  God  hath  heard. 

24— e 


372  PSALM   LXVI.  lo. 


Blessed  be  God,  which  hath  not  turned  away  my  prayer, 
Nor  his  mercy  from  me. 

Hypocrisy  disqualifies  the  suppliant,  but  he  is  confident  that  he  is  no 
hypocrite,  and  the  answer  to  his  prayer  justifies  him.  There  is  no  self- 
righteousness  in  this,  but  the  simplicity  of  "a  conscience  void  of  offence 
toward  God  and  men."  Cp.  Hezekiah's  plea,  Is.  xxxviii.  3;  and  Ps.  xvii. 
iff;  xviii.  20  ff;  Job  xvi.  17;  Is.  i.  15;  lix.  2,  3;  i  John  iii.  21;  &c.; 
and  Is.  i.  13  (R.V.),  '*I  cannot  away  with  iniquity  and  the  solemn 
meeting";  i.e.  tolerate  the  union  of  religious  observances  and  iniquitous 
conduct. 

20.     Blessed  be  God]     Cp.  xxviii.  6;  xxxi.  21;  Ixviii.  19,  35. 

nor  his  mercy  from  me]  From  jne  must  belong  to  this  clause  only. 
It  is  forced  to  explain  '  who  has  not  removed  my  prayer  and  His  loving- 
kindness  from  me'  to  mean  'who  has  not  deprived  me  of  the  power  to 
pray  or  of  the  blessing  of  an  answer';  in  spite  of  the  beauty  of  St 
Augustine's  comment:  "Cum  videris  non  a  te  amotam  deprecationem 
tuam,  securus  esto,  quia  non  est  a  te  amota  misericordia  eius."  Possibly 
a  verb,  such  as  Coverdale  (P.  B.V.)  supplies  for  the  sake  of  the  rhythm, 
has  been  lost ;  so  that  the  clause  would  read,  nor  withdrawn  his  loving- 
kindness  from  me. 


PSALM   LXVII. 

Another  bright  and  joyous  song,  evidently  intended  for  use  in  the 
Temple  worship,  perhaps,  like  the  two  last,  at  the  Passover,  but  more 
probably,  as  the  harvest  seems  to  have  been  gathered  in  {v.  6),  at  the 
Feast  of  Pentecost  (Harvest),  or  Feast  of  Tabernacles  (Ingathering). 

It  consists  of  three  stanzas  of  four,  five,  and  six  lines  respectively. 
The  second  and  third  have  an  initial  refrain. 

i.  In  words  borrowed  from  the  ancient  priestly  benediction  the 
assembled  people  pray  for  God's  blessing,  that  all  the  world  may  learn 
the  character  of  His  providential  dealings  with  men  (i,  2). 

ii.  O  that  all  nations  might  join  in  worshipping  God,  and  rejoice  in 
the  establishment  of  His  kingdom  upon  earth  (3,  4) ! 

iii.  Yea  surely,  they  will  join  in  His  worship.  He  has  granted 
Israel  an  abundant  harvest;  He  does  bless  them  and  will  continue  to 
bless  them,  and  so  all  nations  will  be  won  to  acknowledge  Him  as  their 
God  (5,  7). 

The  Psalm  may  be  connected  in  origin  as  well  as  in  purpose  with  the 
two  preceding  Psalms.  Like  them  it  is  not  merely  a  thanksgiving  for  a 
plentiful  harvest,  but  is  evidently  inspired  by  the  recollection  of  some 
great  deHverance  calculated  to  make  a  deep  impression  upon  the  nations, 
which  might  be  regarded  as  the  pledge  if  not  the  commencement  of  ihe 
visible  divine  rule  of  righteousness  upon  the  earth.  Now  the  destruction 
of  Sennacherib's  army,  with  which  we  have  seen  reason  to  connect  the 
two  last  Psalms,  was  just  such  an  event :  and  we  know  that  the  prophets 
of  the  time  expected  the  establishment  of  the  Messianic  kingdom  to 


PSALM    LXVII.  I,  2.  373 

follow  immediately  upon  the  removal  of  the  Assyrian  tyranny.  See  e.g. 
Is.  X.  33 — xi.  9;  Mic.  v.  2  ff. 

As  in  Ps.  Ixvi  God's  providential  care  for  Israel  in  some  great  national 
crisis,  so  here  His  goodness  towards  His  people  exemplified  in  the  recent 
bountiful  harvest,  is  urged  as  an  argument  to  win  the  nations  to  His 
service.  Disaster  and  defeat,  drought  and  scarcity,  put  Israel  to  shame 
before  the  nations  (Joel  ii.  17,  19);  deliverance  from  danger  and  do- 
mestic prosperity  were  an  evidence  to  the  nations  of  the  true  character  of 
Israel's  God.  The  Psalm  is  inspired  by  the  consciousness  of  Israel's 
mission  to  the  world  as  the  'Messianic  nation,'  the  instrument  for  the 
establishmenrof  God's  universal  kingdom :  it  is  a  prayer  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  that  mission. 

The  O.T.  prayer  for  the  extension  of  God's  salvation  to  all  the  nations 
is  very  appropriately  appointed  for  use  as  an  alternative  Canticle  to  the 
Nunc  Dimittis, — the  thanksgiving  for  the  Saviour  through  Whom  that 
hope  is  to  be  realised.  It  is  moreover  commonly  used  at  Afternoon 
Service  in  the  ritual  of  the  Sephardic  Jews. 

To  the  chief  Musician  on  Neginoth,  A  Psalm  or  Song. 

God  be  merciful  unto  us,  and  bless  us ;  67 

And  cause  his  face  to  shine  upon  us  ;  Selah. 

That  tliy  way  may  be  known  upon  earth,  • 

The  title  may  be  rendered.  For  the  Chief  Musician;  on  stringed  in- 
struments.    A  Psalm,  a  Song.     See  Introd.  pp.  xxiv,  xix. 

1,  2.  The  final  object  of  the  blessing  for  which  Israel  prays  is  that 
the  whole  world  may  know  God. 

1.  The  Psalm  begins  with  words  taken  from  the  priestly  blessing  of 
Num.  vi.  24  ff : 

** Jehovah  bless  thee  and  keep  thee: 
Jehovah   cause  his  face  to  shine  upon  thee  and  be  gracious  unto 

thee: 
Jehovah  lift  up  his  countenance  upon  thee,  and  give  thee  peace : " 
as  the  following  Ps.  begins  with  the  invocation  used  when  the  Ark  started 
on  a  journey,  Num.  x.  35.    Other  echoes  of  the  priestly  blessing  may  be 
found  in  iv.  6;  xxix.  11;  xxxi.  16;  Ixxx.  3,  7,  19. 

God  be  merciful]  Rather,  as  in  Num.  vi.  25,  be  gracious  unto  us. 
God  is  substituted  for  the  original  Jehovah  according  to  the  usual  prac- 
tice of  the  editor  of  the  *  Elohislic  '  collection  of  Psalms. 

upon  us\  Lit.  "With  us.  For  the  simple  preposition  of  the  original 
{unto  or  upon)  the  Psalmist  substitutes  one  which  suggests  the  thought 
of  God's  gracious  favour  abiding  with  His  people.  Cp.  *'  The  blessing 
of  God  Almighty. ..be  amongst  you  and  remain  with  you  always." 

Selah  (if  it  is  in  its  right  place)  marks  a  musical  interlude  following 
upon  and  emphasising  this  echo  of  the  priestly  benediction.  But  it  may 
have  been  accidentally  transferred  from  the  close  oiv.  2. 

2.  Lit*  that  men  may  know  thy  way  in  the  earth.     The  blessings 


374  PSALM    LXVII.  3—6. 

Thy  saving  health  among  all  nations. 

3  Let  the  people  praise  thee,  O  God ; 
Let  all  the  people  praise  thee. 

4  O  let  the  nations  be  glad  and  sing  for  joy : 
For  thou  shalt  judge  the  people  righteously, 
And  govern  the  nations  upon  earth.     Selah. 

5  Let  the  people  praise  thee,  O  God ; 
Let  all  the  people  praise  thee. 

6  Then  shall  the  earth  yield  her  increase ; 
And  God,  even  our  own  God,  shall  bless  us. 

which  God  bestows  upon  Israel  will  shew  the  nations  what  a  God  He  is, 
and  make  them  desire  to  serve  Him.  Cp.  Jer.  xxxiii.  9;  Zech.  viii. 
20  ff;  Is.  xi.  9.  God's  way  is  His  gracious  method  of  dealing  with 
men,  explained  in  the  next  line  as  His  saving  healthy  i.e.  salvation,  as 
the  word  is  generally  translated.  Health  in  old  English  meant  healing 
power,  deliverance,  salvation.     Cp.  xlii.  11. 

3,  4.  May  all  nations  soon  acknowledge  the  God  of  Israel  as  their 
Godl 

3.  Let  the  peoples  give  thanks  unto  thee,  0  God ; 
Let  all  the  peoples  give  thanks  unto  thee. 

The  A.V.  people  is  misleading.  It  is  not  Israel  that  is  meant,  but  all 
the  peoples  of  the  earth.     Cp.  cxvii.  i  f. 

4.  The  reason  for  the  universal  rejoicing  of  the  nations  is  given  in 
the  words,  for  thou  shalt  judge  the  peoples  with  equity;  i.e.  rule 
them  with  just  and  equitable  government.  Cp.  the  attributes  of  the  true 
king  as  God's  representative.  Is.  xi.  3  f ;  Ps.  Ixxii.  12  ff.  Judge  does  not 
here  mtzxi pufiish,  hut  govern. 

govern]  Or,  lead,  a  word  often  applied  to  God's  leading  of  Israel 
through  the  wilderness  (Ixxviii.  14).  All  nations  are  under  His  pro- 
vidential guidance,  not  Israel  only.  His  specially  cliosen  flock.  Cp. 
Am.  ix.  7. 

6 — 7.  The  special  occasion  of  the  Psalm  in  the  present  bountiful 
harvest. 

5.  tAe  people]  As  before,  the  peoples.  This  refrain  is  generally 
treated  as  before  as  a  wish  or  prayer ;  but  it  is  worth  considering  whether 
the  tone  of  the  last  stanza  does  not  change  throughout  from  prayer  to 
confident  hope,  so  that  we  should  render,  T/ie  peoples  shall  give  thanks 
unto  thee,  O  God.  The  form  of  a  refrain  is  often  slightly  varied,  why 
not  its  tone'i  The  ambiguity  arises  from  the  fact  that  Heb.  (with  some 
exceptions)  does  not  possess  separate  forms  for  the  future  and  the 
optative. 

6.  Then  shall  the  earth  &c.]  Render,  The  land  hath  yielded  her 
increase,  according  to  the  promise  of  Lev.  xxvi.  4;  cp.  Ps.  Ixxxv.  12; 
Ixv.  9  fi".  God,  our  God,  is  the  Elohistic  editor's  substitution  for 
Jehovah  our  God. 


I 


PSALM    LXVII.  7-  375 


God  shall  bless  us ; 

And  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall  fear  him. 

shall  bless  us'\  Here  and  in  the  following  verse  the  verbs  might  be 
taken  as  a  prayer:  may  God  bless  us.  But  it  is  better  to  render  doth  or 
shall  bless  us.  Pointing  to  the  abundant  harvest  {v.  6  a),  the  thankful 
people  declare  that  God  is  blessing  them,  and  express  their  faith  that 
He  will  continue  to  bless  them,  with  the  result  that  the  remotest  nations 
of  the  world  will  become  '  fearers  of  God,'  worshippers  of  the  only  true 
God,  the  God  of  Israel  (Ixvi.  i6). 

PSALM   LXVni. 

The  theme  of  this  magnificent  Psalm  is  the  march  of  God  to  victory. 
It  traces  the  establishment  of  His  kingdom  in  Israel  in  the  past;  it  looks 
forward  to  the  defeat  of  all  opposition  in  the  future,  until  all  the  king- 
doms of  the  world  own  the  God  of  Israel  as  their  Lord  and  pay  Him 
homage. 

Every  conceivable  occasion  and  date  have  been  suggested  for  this 
Psalm,  from  the  age  of  Joshua  to  that  of  the  Maccabees.  Those  who 
accept  the  title,  and  maintain  the  Davidic  authorship,  or  at  any  rate  the 
Davidic  date,  are  by  no  means  agreed  as  to  the  particular  period  of 
David's  reign  to  which  it  should  be  referred.  Some  suppose  it  to  have 
been  written  for  the  translation  of  the  ark  to  Zion  (2  Sam.  vi):  others, 
for  the  triumphal  procession  of  thanksgiving  for  some  victory;  while 
others  again  regard  it  as  celebrating  David's  victories  in  general,  with 
retrospective  allusion  to  the  translation  of  the  Ark,  and  prospective 
anticipation  of  the  building  of  the  Temple.  Others  have  connected  it 
with  the  translation  of  the  Ark  to  Solomon's  Temple.  Others  find  an 
appropriate  occasion  for  it  in  the  victory  of  Jehoshaphat  and  Jehoram 
over  Moab,  or  in  the  repulse  of  the  Assyrians  in  the  reign  of  Hezekiah. 
Others  place  it  in  the  closing  years  of  the  Babylonian  Exile,  and  others 
after  the  Return  from  Babylon,  at  a  date  decidedly  later  than  the  time 
of  Nehemiah.  Others  think  that  it  was  written  during  the  wars  between 
Egypt  and  Syria  for  the  possession  of  Palestine  towards  the  close  of  the 
third  century  B.C.;  and  others  place  it  later  still,  connecting  it  with  the 
war  between  Ptolemy  Philometor  and  Alexander  Balas,  B.C.  146 
(i  Mace.  xi). 

The  obvious  inference  from  this  wide  variety  of  opinion  is  that  the 
data  are  really  insufficient  for  forming  a  definite  conclusion.  It  is  im- 
possible to  speak  positively ;  but  the  grounds  for  assigning  it  to  the  same 
period  as  Is.  xl — Ixvi,  i.e.  the  last  decade  of  the  Babylonian  exile,  seem 
so  far  to  preponderate,  and  the  circumstances  of  that  time  appear  so  far 
to  give  the  best  background  for  the  explanation  of  the  Psalm  as  a  whole, 
that  this  view  has  been  provisionally  adopted  as  the  basis  of  the  present 
commentary.     The  following  are  the  chief  grounds  for  it. 

(i)  Language  is  no  doubt  a  precarious  criterion;  but  there  are 
features  in  the  Psalm  which  point  to  a  late  rather  than  an  early  date. 
Thus  e.g.  the  word  iox  prosperity  [v.  6)  is  derived  from  a  root  found  only 


376  PSALM    LXVIII. 


in  late  books  (Esth.  Eccl.),  though  common  in  Aramaic :  the  nearest 
parallel  to  the  word  for  parched  land  (v.  6)  is  in  Ezekiel ;  the  word  for 
scatter  (t;.  30)  is  not  the  ordinary  Heb.  word,  but  half  Aramaic  in  form. 

(2)  The  litera7-y  affinities  of  the  Psalm  point  decidedly  in  the 
same  direction.  Not  only  is  it  dependent  on  the  Blessing  of  Moses 
(Deut.  xxxiii)^  and  the  Song  of  Deborah  (Judg.  v)^  but  it  con- 
tains parallels  with  Is.  xl — Ixvi  which  seem  to  indicate  either  that  the 
writer  was  acquainted  with  those  prophecies,  or  else  that  his  language 
had  been  formed  in  the  same  atmosphere  of  thought  and  hope.  Thus 
e.g.  the  summons  of  v.  4,  "Cast  up  a  highway  for  him  that  rideth 
through  the  deserts  "  at  once  reminds  us  of  Is.  xl.  3,  •'  Make  straight  in 
the  desert  a  highway  for  our  God";  and  the  very  same  word  "cast  up  a 
highway"  is  used  in  Is.  Ivii.  14;  Ixii.  10,  and  nowhere  else  in  this  sense. 
With  V.  6  compare  Is.  xlii.  7;  xlix.  9;  Ixi.  i;  and  with  z'.  31  cp.  Is. 
xlv.  14.  There  are  also  parallels  with  the  Prayer  of  Habakkuk',  but 
they  are  not  in  themselves  such  as  to  prove  that  the  Psalmist  was  in- 
debted to  it. 

On  the  other  hand  the  dependence  of  the  Psalm  on  Is.  xxiv — xxvii 
(probably  to  be  dated  after  the  Return  from  Babylon,  perhaps  about 
B.C.  500 — 480),  which  is  maintained  by  some  commentators,  certainly 
cannot  be  proved. 

(3)  Clear  and  definite  historical  references  are  wanting ;  but  many  of 
the  allusions  can  best  be  explained  from  the  circumstances  of  the  closing 
years  of  the  Exile. 

(i)  The  opening  verses  in  each  of  the  main  divisions  of  the  Psalm 
(i — 3;  19 — 23)  seem  to  contemplate  an  approaching  manifestation  of 
God's  power  on  behalf  of  His  people  which  will  bring  salvation  and  joy 
to  them,  shame  and  destruction  to  their  enemies,  and  appear  to  point 
(cp.  w.  5,  6,  20)  to  the  present  need  of  such  an  interposition.  The 
same  juxtaposition  of  Redemption  and  Judgement  is  prominent  in  Is. 
xl— Ixvi. 

(2)  The  characteristic  attributes  of  God  in  w.  4 — 6  no  doubt  include 
a  reference  to  the  Exodus  from  Egypt  and  the  settlement  in  Canaan; 
but  the  parallels  already  quoted  from  Is.  xl  ff  give  good  ground  for 
thinking  that  the  Exodus  from  Babylon  and  the  resettlement  of  Israel  in 
Canaan  were  also  ic  the  Psalmist's  mind. 

(3)  ^^'  7 — 18  are  a  historical  retrospect;  and  there  is  nothing  to 
shew  that  the  poet  was  contemporary  with  the  point  to  which  he 
carries  it.  If  he  wrote  in  view  of  the  approaching  return  of  God  to  His 
ancient  dwelling-place.  His  original  entry  into  it  was  a  natural  point  to 
which  to  bring  down  his  survey. 

(4)  It  has  been  maintained  that  w.  24 — 27  are  the  description  of 
an  actual  procession  which  the  Psalmist  himself  has  vntnessed,  and  that 
the  mention  of  Zebulun  and  Naphtali  along  with  Judah  and  Benjamin 
carries  the  Psalm  back  to  a  date  before  the  separation  of  the  kingdoms. 

^  Cp.  V.  17  with  Deut.  xxxiii.  2;  vv.  19,  20  with  Deut.  xxxiii.  29;  v.  26  with  Deut. 
xxxiii.  28  ;  vv.  4,  33,  34  with  Deut.  xxxiii.  26,  27, 

2  Cp.  V.  4  with  Judg.  V.  3  ;  t^.  7,  8  with  Judg.  v.  4,  5  ;  v.  12  with  Judg.  v.  30; 
V.  13  with  Judg.  V.  16 ;  v.  i8  with  Judg.  v.  12 ;  v.  27  with  Judg.  v.  14,  18. 

*  Cp.  V.  7  with  Hab.  iii.  12,  13;  v.  10  with  Hab.  lii.  14 ;  v.  21  with  Hab.  iii.  13, 14. 


I 


PSALM    LXVIII.  377 


But,  as  will  be  shewn  in  the  notes,  the  connexion  of  thought  points 
rather  to  an  occasion  beyond  the  deliverance  spoken  of  in  w.  19 — 23  as 
still  future  ;  in  other  words  to  an  ideal  procession  which  rises  before  the 
poet's  imagination  as  the  celebration  of  the  great  triumph  over  Israel's 
enemies  to  which  he  looks  forward ;  and  if  this  is  the  case,  the  mention 
of  Northern  as  well  as  Southern  tribes  as  taking  part  in  it  can  be  best 
explained  as  the  anticipation  of  the  fulfilment  of  the  numerous  prophecies 
which  predict  the  reunion  of  Israel  and  Judah. 

(5)  V.  29  does  not  necessarily  presuppose  the  existence  of  the 
Temple.  It  may  look  forward  to  its  restoration,  just  as,  on  the  hypo- 
thesis of  the  Davidic  date,  it  must  look  forward  to  its  erection.  The 
importance  of  the  Temple  to  the  age  of  the  Restoration  is  a  prominent 
thought  in  Haggai  and  Zechariah ;  and  its  significance  in  relation  to  the 
nations  appears  from  Is.  Ix,  &c. 

(6)  The  reference  to  Egypt  in  v.  30  is  too  obscure  to  be  made  the 
ground  of  argument.  There  probably,  as  in  z^.  31,  Egypt  is  mentioned 
as  the  typical  enemy  of  Israel.  At  any  rate  it  gives  no  support  to  the 
Davidic  date.  There  is  no  hint  that  Israel  was  in  any  way  threatened 
by  Egypt  during  the  reign  of  David. 

It  has  been  argued  that  the  triumphant  tone  of  the  Psalm  furnishes  a 
conclusive  refutation  of  the  hypothesis  that  it  was  composed  during  the 
Exile.  But  if  the  approaching  Return  was  the  occasion  of  some  of  the 
grandest  prophecies  in  the  O.T.,  it  cannot  be  impossible  that  it  should 
also  have  been  the  occasion  of  one  of  the  grandest  Psalms  in  the  Psalter. 
In  appearance  and  to  the  outward  eye  the  Return  from  Bal^ylon  was  a 
"day  of  small  things":  in  reality  and  to  the  eye  of  faith  it  was  one  of 
the  most  momentous  crises  in  the  history  of  the  Chosen  People,  nay,  of 
the  world,  comparable  only  to  the  Exodus.  For  if  the  Exodus  from 
Egypt  was  the  birthday  of  the  nation  of  Israel,  the  Exodus  from  Babylon 
was  the  birthday  of  the  Jewish  Church.  The  parallel  between  the  first 
and  the  second  Exodus  is  constantly  present  to  the  mind  of  the  prophets. 
This  poet-seer  looks  away  from  the  actual  circumstances  which  surround 
him  to  the  true  meaning  and  the  ultimate  issues  of  that  new  march  of 
God  through  the  deserts  which  he  is  about  to  witness,  and  he  sees 
the  analogy  and  the  guarantee  for  it  in  the  past  history  of  the  nation. 
There  are  parts  of  Is.  xl — Ixvi  (e.g.  ch.  Ix)  which  betray  no  trace  of 
weakness  or  misgiving.  Why  may  not  the  age  which  could  produce 
such  a  prophecy  have  produced  such  a  Psalm  ?  At  least  the  occasion 
was  worthy  of  a  Psalm  which  has  been  well  described  as  "  the  most 
buoyant,  the  most  powerful,  the  most  animated,  which  is  to  be  found  in 
the  Psalter." 

"Whatever  may  have  been  its  origin  and  date,  the  grandeur  of  the 
Psalm  remains  the  same,  and  its  inspired  and  inspiring  assurance  of  the 
certainty  of  the  final  triumph  of  God  and  the  universal  recognition  of 
His  sovereignty  is  unaltered.  It  has  always  been  the  favourite  Psalm  of 
those  who  felt  (whether  rightly  or  wrongly)  that  their  cause  was  the 
cause  of  God,  and  that  in  His  strength  they  were  sure  to  conquer.  To 
the  crusaders  setting  out  for  the  recovery  of  the  Holy  Land ;  to 
Savonarola  and  his  monks  as  they  marched  to  the  'trial  of  fire'  in  the 
Piazza  at   Florence;  to   the   Huguenots  who  called   it   "the  song  of 


378  PSALM    LXVIII. 


battles";  to  Cromwell  at  Dunbar  as  the  sun  rose  on  the  mists  of  the 
morning  and  he  charged  Leslie's  army;  it  has  supplied  words  for  the 
expression  of  their  heartfelt  convictions. 

The  choice  of  the  Psalm  for  use  in  the  service  of  the  Synagogue  at 
Pentecost  was  doubtless  determined  by  the  allusion  in  vz>.  j,  8^  to  the 
giving  of  the  Law  at  Sinai,  which  is  commemorated  at  that  Festival. 
Its  selection  as  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Whitsunday  was  probably  suggested 
partly  by  the  Jewish  usage,  partly  by  St  Paul's  application  of  v.  i8  to 
the  spiritual  gifts  bestowed  by  the  risen  and  ascended  Christ  upon  the 
Church.  But  the  appropriateness  does  not  depend  upon  a  single  verse. 
No  Psalm  could  be  fitter  for  the  "birthday  of  the  universal  Church" 
than  the  Psalm  which  celebrates  the  triumphs  of  God  in  the  history  of 
His  people,  and  looks  forward  to  the  extension  of  His  kingdom  through- 
out the  world. 

It  is  most  truly  a  Messianic  Psalm;  for  though  it  contains  no  direct 
prophecy  of  Christ's  coming,  it  is  full  of  the  thought  of  the  presence  and 
dwelling  of  God  among  His  people,  which  is  most  fully  realised  in  the 
Incarnation ;  and  it  is  animated  by  the  consciousness  that  all  God's 
mighty  works  for  Israel  were  but  the  means  to  a  higher  end,  the 
spiritual  conquest  of  the  world,  and  the  universal  establishment  of  His 
kingdom. 

The  following  is  an  outline  of  the  contents  of  the  Psalm,  which  con- 
sists of  a  prelude,  and  two  main  divisions,  which  may  be  subdivided  into 
stanzas  of  3,  4,  and  5  verses. 

i.     The  Prelude  (r— 6). 

1.  God  is  about  to  manifest  His  presence  and  power  to  the  discom- 
fiture of  His  foes  and  the  joy  of  liis  people  (i — 3). 

2.  The  Psalmist  calls  upon  his  countrymen  to  welcome  the  advent 
of  their  God  and  prepare  the  way  for  it ;  bidding  them  remember 
what  He  is — the  helper  of  the  helpless  and  oppressed,  the  liberator 
of  the  captive  (4 — 6). 

ii.  A  survey  of  Israel's  history  in  proof  of  God's  victorious  power  and 
gracious  love  (7 — 18). 

1.  The  Exodus  from  Egypt  and  the  Entry  into  the  Promised  Land. 
His  majesty  was  manifested  at  Sinai,  His  goodness  in  the  preparation 
of  Canaan  to  be  the  home  of  the  long-oppressed  Israelites  (7—10). 

2.  The  conquest.  He  gave  them  victory  over  the  mighty  kings  of 
Canaan  (11 — 14). 

3.  The  choice  of  Zion.  He  chose  Zion  for  His  earthly  abode,  and 
returned  to  heaven  as  a  triumphant  conqueror,  having  received  the 
submission  and  homage  of  men  (15 — 18). 

iii.  From  the  past  the  Psalmist  turns  to  the  present  and  the  future 
(19—35)- 

I,  God  is  an  ever-present  Saviour  of  His  people :  He  will  take 
vengeance  on  their  enemies  {19 — 23). 

1  The  Targutn  introduces  references  to  the  giving  of  the  Law  in  several  other 
passages:  e.g:  v.  11,  "The  Lord  gave  the  words  of  the  Law  to  the  people":  v.  15, 
"  Mount  Sinai  was  chosen  for  the  giving  of  the  Law":  v.  18,  see  note. 


PSALM    LXVIII.  1—3.  379 

2.  Once  more  the  victory  of  God  will  be  celebrated  by  a  reunited 
Israel  (24 — 27). 

3.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  God  will  display  His  power  and  subdue 
all  opposition,  and  sees  the  nations  hastening  to  pay  Him  homage 
(28-31). 

4.  All  nations  are  summoned  to  join  in  the  praise  of  Israel's  God, 
and  the  Psalm  closes  with  their  confession  of  His  gracious  sove- 
reignty (32— 35)- 

To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  or  Song  of  David 

Let  God  arise,  let  his  enemies  be  scattered :  68 

Let  them  also  that  hate  him  flee  before  him. 

As  smoke  is  driven  away,  so  drive  fAem  away :  a 

As  wax  melteth  before  the  fire. 

So  let  the  wicked  perish  at  the  presence  of  God. 

But  let  the  righteous  be  glad;  let  them  rejoice  before  God:  3 

1 — 3.  The  advent  of  God  brings  terror  and  destruction  to  His 
enemies,  blessing  and  joy  to  His  people. 

1.  God  shall  arise,  his  enemies  shall  be  scattered, 
And  they  that  hate  him  shall  flee  from  his  presence. 

Ps.  Ixvii  begins  with  an  echo  of  the  priestly  blessing  of  Num.  vi.  24  ff, 
and  the  opening  words  of  Ps.  Ixviii  are  based  upon  the  prayer  or  watch- 
word used  when  the  Ark,  the  symbol  of  the  Divine  Presence  in  the 
midst  of  Israel,  set  forward  on  its  journeys  in  the  wilderness  (Num.  x. 
35).     But  the  Psalmist  translates  the  prayer  of  Moses 

"  Arise,  Jehovah,  and  let  thine  enemies  be  scattered. 
And  let  them  that  hate  thee  flee  from  thy  presence," 
into  a  positive  expression  of  confident  assurance  that  God  is  about  to 
arise  and  manifest  His  power  on  behalf  of  His  peo]ile.  Most  versions 
ancient  and  modern  (except  the  Genevan,  which  has  the  future  through- 
out z/z/.  I — 3)  render  Le^  God  arise;  but  the  form  of  the  verb  is  against 
this  rendering,  and  if  the  words  had  been  meant  as  a  prayer,  it  would 
have  been  more  natural  to  retain  the  direct  invocation  of  the  original. 

before  hini\  Better,  from  his  presence  (lit./a<r^)  as  in  w,  2,  8;  and 
so  also  in  z>v.  3,  4. 

2.  The  verbs  should  be  rendered  as  in  v.  i  by  futures :  As  smoke 
...so  Shalt  thou  drive  them  away:  as  wax... so  shall  the  wicked 
perish  at  the  presence  of  God.  The  smoke  scattered  by  the  wind  is  an 
apt  emblem  for  total  disappearance  (xxxvii.  20;  Hos.  xiii.  3);  the  wax 
melted  by  the  fire  for  unresisting  impotence  (xcvii.  5;  Mic.  i.  4).  "At 
the  blast  of  the  breath  of  Jehovah  "  the  wicked  vanish,  leaving  no  trace 
behind;  the  consuming  fire  of  His  wrath  they  are  powerless  to  with- 
stand. 

3.  But  the  righteous  shall  be  glad,  shall  exult  at  the  presence 

of  God; 
Yea,  they  shall  rejoice  with  gladness. 


38o  PSALM    LXVIIl.  4- 


Yea,  let  them  exceedingly  rejoice. 
4  Sing  unto  God,  sing  praises  to  his  name : 
Extol  him  that  rideth  upon  the  heavens 
By  his  name  JAH,  and  rejoice  before  him. 

llie  righteous  are  the  people  of  God,  viewed  in  the  light  of  their 
calling:  the  wicked  are  the  heathen,  regarded  in  the  light  of  their 
general  antagonism  to  God  and  His  people.  Cp.  Hab.  i.  13.  In  the 
contrast  between  Israel  and  the  heathen  the  unrighteousness  of  many  in 
Israel  fades  out  of  sight.  The  A.V.  rendering  before  in  this  verse  and 
V.  4  fails  to  bring  out  the  significant  contrast  with  tjv.  i,  7.  The 
Presence  which  brings  dismay  and  destruction  to  the  wicked,  brings  joy 
and  blessing  to  the  righteous.  Cp.  Ixvii.  i;  Ex.  xxxiii.  14;  Is.  Ixiil  9; 
a  Thess.  i.  9,  10. 

4 — 6.  God's  people  are  summoned  to  welcome  Him  and  prepare  the 
way  for  His  coming:  He  is  the  champion  of  the  weak  and  defenceless, 
the  liberator  of  the  captive. 

4.  to  his  name]  Praising  Him  for  all  that  He  has  revealed  Himself 
to  be.     Cp.  xliv.  8;  Ex.  iii.  15. 

extoi  &:c.]     Render, 
Cast  up  a  Mgli  way  for  him  that  lideth  through  the  deserts ; 
His  name  is  JAH ;  and  exult  ye  at  his  presence. 

God's  advent  is  described  under  the  figure  of  the  progress  of  an 
Oriental  monarch,  for  whose  chariot  pioneers  prepare  the  road.  In 
almost  identical  words  the  prophet  calls  to  the  exiles  in  Babylon  (Is.  xl.  3), 
"Prepare  ye  in  the  wilderness  the  way  of  the  Lord, 
Make  straight  in  the  desert  a  high  way  for  our  God : " 
and  in  Is.  Ivii.  14,  Ixii.  10  the  same  word  cast  up  a  high  way  is  used  of 
preparing  for  the  return  of  Israel  from  Babylon.  God's  people  must 
prepare  a  way  for  Him  by  the  removal  of  the  obstacles  of  unbelief  and 
faintheartedness  and  ungodliness  which  hinder  Him  from  coming  to 
deliver  them. 

The  renderings  of  A.V.  Extol... upon  the  heavens  are  derived  from 
Jewish  sources.  The  Targ.  renders  "Extol  him  that  sitteth  upon  the 
throne  of  his  glory  in  Ardboth,^'  which  is  explained  by  comparison  of 
V.  33  to  mean  the  seventh  or  uppermost  heaven.  See  Talm.  Chagigah 
I -2  ^  (Streane's  transl.  p.  65).  The  curious  addition  as  it  were  upon 
an  horse  in  P.B.V.  (Great  Bible,  but  not  Coverdale)  appears  to  come 
from  MUnster's  Latin  Version  (1534 — 5)  veluti  equo  insidet. 

JAH  is  a  shortened  form  of  Jehovah  (Jahveh),  chosen  here  perhaps 
with  allusion  to  its  use  in  Ex.  xv.  t  (upon  which  are  based  Is.  xii.  2,  Ps. 
cxviii.  4),  to  recall  the  memories  of  the  Exodus.  It  is  peculiar  to  poetry, 
nnd  outside  the  book  of  Psalms,  where  it  occurs  most  frequently  in  the 
{d.m\\i2Lr  Hallelujah  =  'Praise  ye  Jah,'  it  is  found  only  in  Ex.  xv.  a,  xvii. 
16;  Is.  xii.  t,  xxvi.  4,  xxxviii.  11. 

A  curious  mistake  is  to  be  found  in  the  older  editions  of  the  Prayer 


PSALM    LXVIII.  5,  6.  381 

A  father  of  the  fatherless,  and  a  judge  of  the  widows, 

Is  God  in  his  holy  habitation. 

God  setteth  the  solitary  in  families : 

He  bringeth  out  those  which  are  bound  with  chains : 

But  the  rebellious  dwell  in  a  dry  land. 


Book,  until  about  1750: — "Praise  him  in  his  name:  yea,  and  rejoice 
before  him."  The  Great  Bible  of  1539  has,  "Prayse  ye  him  in  his 
name  la  and  reioyse  before  hym";  but  the  edition  of  Nov.  1540  and 
others  have:  "Prayse  hym  in  hys  name:  yea,  and  reioyce  before  hym." 
It  appears  to  be  simply  a  typographical  error. 

6.  The  orphan  and  the  widow  are  typical  examples  of  the  friendless 
and  unprotected  who  are  under  God's  special  guardianship  (Ps.  x.  14; 
cxlvi.  9 ;  Hos.  xiv.  3).  They  are  the  subjects  of  a  special  clause  in  the 
earliest  legislation  (Ex.  xxii.  22  ff.),  which  is  reechoed  by  the  latest  of 
the  prophets  (Mai.  iii.  5).     Cp.  Is.  i.  17,  23. 

his  holy  habitation)^  Not  the  temple  but  heaven,  whence  He  *  looks 
down'  to  bless  His  people  (Deut.  xxvi.  15),  and  rules  the  world,  espous- 
ing the  cause  of  the  humblest,  whom  men  are  most  prone  to  despise. 
For  the  phrase  cp.  Jer.  xxv.  30;  Zech.  ii.  13;  2  Chr.  xxx.  27.  In  Is. 
Ixiii.  15  a  different  Heb.  word  is  used. 

6.  God  maJieth  the  solitary  to  dwell  In  a  house; 

He  bringeth  out  prisoners  into  prosperity ; 
But  the  stubborn  dwell  In  a  parched  land. 

The  verse  describes  general  principles  of  God's  dealings  with  men, 
yet  with  special  allusion  to  the  establishment  of  Israel  in  Canaan,  to 
their  liberation  from  the  bondage  of  Egypt,  and  to  the  fate  of  the  rebels 
in  the  wilderness :  and  again,  if  the  Ps.  is  rightly  placed  in  the  Exile, 
to  the  second  Exodus  from  Babylon,  and  the  reestablishment  of  the 
Israelites  in  their  ancient  home,  while  the  faithless  and  rebellious  part  of 
the  people  will  be  left  in  the  dreary  and  inhospitable  heathen  land, 
unwatered  by  the  streams  of  divine  grace  (Ixiii.  i).  Rebellious  or 
stubborn  has  been  understood  by  some  to  refer  to  the  heathen,  but  the 
usage  of  the  word  (which  is  applied  to  the  ''stubborn  and  rebellious  son' 
in  Deut.  xxi.  18,  20)  suggests  rather  that  refractory  Israelites  are  meant, 
as  in  Ixxviii.  8.  Stubborn  rebellion  against  Jehovah's  will  was  charac- 
teristic of  the  whole  course  of  Israel's  history;  and  it  is  hinted  not 
obscurely  that  as  of  old  the  rebels  perished  in  the  wilderness  instead  of 
entering  Canaan,  so  now  the  murmurers  in  Babylon,  of  whom  it  is  plain 
from  Is.  xl — Ixvi  (e.g.  Ixv.  2)  that  there  were  many,  will  be  left  there 
to  their  fate.  The  solitary  or  desolate  (xxv.  16)  are  the  homeless 
and  friendless.  Cp.  Is.  Iviii.  7 ;  and  (though  the  word  is  different)  Lam. 
i.  I. 

7 — 18.  After  this  general  introduction  the  Psalmist  proceeds  to  review 
the  past  history  of  Israel  in  proof  of  God's  victorious  power  and  of  His 
gracious  love  towards  His  people. 


382  PSALM    LXVIII.  7—9. 

7  O  God,  when  thou  wentest  forth  before  thy  people, 
When  thou  didst  march  through  the  wilderness ;  Selah. 

8  The  earth  shook,  the  heavens  also  dropped 

At  the  presence  of  God  :  even  Sinai  itself  ivas  moved 
At  the  presence  of  God,  the  God  of  Israel. 

9  Thou,  O  God,  didst  send  a  plentiful  rain, 

7 — 10.     The  Exodus  from  Egypt  and  the  Entry  into  Canaan. 

7.  8.  These  verses  are  borrowed,  with  some  omissions  and  altera- 
tions, from  the  Song  of  Deborah  (Judg.  v.  4,  5) : 

"Jehovah,  when  thou  wentest  forth  out  of  Seir, 
When  thou  didst  march  out  of  the  field  of  Edom, 
The  earth  trembled,  the  heavens  also  dropped, 
Yea,  the  clouds  dropped  water; 
The  mountains  quaked  at  the  presence  of  God, 
Even  yon  Sinai  at  the  presence  of  Jehovah,  the  God  of  Israel." 
When  God  brought  Israel  out  of  Egypt,  He  "went  before  them... 
to  lead  them  in  the  way"  (Ex.  xiii.  21  f.;  cp.  Mic.  ii.  13),  and  in  the 
great  Theophany  of  Sinai  the  mystery  and  marvel  of  His  self-revelation 
were   concentrated.     Earthquake  and  storm  are  the  symbols  of  His 
Presence  and  Power.   See  Ex.  xix.  i6ff.,  and  cp.  Ps.xviii.  yff.;  Hab.iii.3ff. 
Three  times  in  this  Psalm  (7,  19,  32)  Selah  occurs  not  at  the  close  of 
a  stanza,  but  after  the  first  verse  of  a  stanza.     If  the  text  is  right,  it 
would  seem  that  a   musical  interlude   was  employed  to  enforce  the 
thought  with  which  the  stanza  begins. 

8.  shook^    R.V.  trembled. 

dropped^^  Torrents  of  rain  accompanied  the  thunders  and  lightnings. 
Cp.  Ixxvii.  1 7  f. 

at  the  presence  of  God'\     Cp.  vv.  i,  2,  3,  4. 

even  Sinai  itself  vidiS  moved]  R.  V.,  Even  yon  Sinai  (trembled).  The 
words  yon  Sinai  come  in  somewhat  abruptly  here,  while  in  Judges  they 
follow  quite  naturally  upon  the  clause  "the  mountains  quaked."  A 
verb  however  can  be  supplied  from  the  first  line,  and  there  is  no  need 
to  alter  the  text. 

the  God  of  Israel]  The  use  of  this  title  here  is  significant.  It  was 
from  Sinai  that  the  covenant-relation  between  Jehovah  and  His  people 
dated.     Cp.  Ex.  xxiv.  8,  10. 

9.  Thou,  O  God,  didst  send  &c.]  Or,  dost  send,  a  general  truth, 
illustrated  by  God's  dealings  with  Israel.  The  verse  is  explained  by 
many  to  refer  to  the  manna  and  the  quails  which  God  'rained  down' 
upon  the  Israelites  (Ex.  xvi.  4;  Ps.  Ixxviii.  24,  27);  or  generally,  to  all 
the  gifts  and  blessings  which  He  bestowed  upon  them  in  the  wilderness. 
But  'dwelt'  in  z;.  10  (though  the  word  is  sometimes  used  of  the  tempo- 
rary sojourn  in  the  wilderness,  e.g.  Num.  xxv.  i ;  Deut.  i.  46)  is  most 
naturally  understood  of  the  settlement  in  Canaan,  and  the  antecedent  to 
'therein'  must  be  'thine  inheritance,'  i.e.  the  promised  land,  which  is 
called  God's  inheritance  in  Ex.  xv.  1 7 ;  Jer.  ii.  7 ;  Ps.  Ixxix.  i ;  2  Mace, 
ii.  4,  "The  mount  which  Moses  ascended  and  viewed  the  inheritance  of 


PSALM    LXVIII.  lo— 12.  383 

Whereby  thou  didst  confirm  thine  inheritance  when  it  was 

weary. 
Thy  congregation  hath  dwelt  therein  : 
Thou,  O  God,  hast  prepared  of  thy  goodness  for  the  poor. 

The  Lord  gave  the  word : 

Great  was  the  company  of  those  that  published  it. 

Kings  of  armies  did  flee  apace : 


God."  V.  9  will  thus  refer  to  the  gracious  preparation  of  the  land  of 
Canaan  to  be  the  home  of  Israel.  In  contrast  to  the  land  of  Egypt 
from  which  they  had  come,  and  the  wilderness  through  which  they  had 
passed,  it  was  a  land  of  abundant  rain  (Deut.  xi.  10 — 12;  Ps.  Ixv.  9) : 
though  it  too  had  known  what  it  was  to  be  'weary'  with  drought  (Gen. 
xlvii.  13).  But  a  plentiful  rain,  lit.  rain  of  bounteousnesses,  is  not  per- 
haps to  be  limited  to  the  literal  meaning,  but  may  include  all  blessings 
which  God  pours  out  upon  His  people  of  His  gracious  liberality. 

whereby  Ihou  didst  confirm^  Omit  ivhereby^  which  is  not  in  the  Heb. 
Confirm  may  mean  stablish  as  in  Ex.  xv.  17;  Ps.  xlviii.  8;  ox  prepare, 
LXX  KaT7)pTi<x<a. 

weary]     Cp.,  though  the  word  is  different,  Ixiii.  i. 

10.  Thy  congregation  took  up  its  abode  therein: 

In  thy  goodness,  0  God,  thou  dost  provide  for  the  aflUcted. 
The  word  rendered  congregation,  or,  as  R.  V.  marg.,  troop,  ox  family  ^ 
is  a  peculiar  one.  The  corresponding  Arabic  word  means  "such  a  kin- 
dred group  as  was  guided  in  war  and  on  the  march  by  one  chief, 
migrating  together,  and  forming  generally  a  single  settlement."  Robert- 
son Smith,  Kinship  and  Marriage  in  Early  Arabia,  pp.  36  ff.  From 
the  meaning  life  or  living,  the  word  came  to  mean  a  clan,  a  group  of 
one  blood,  on  the  old  Semitic  principle  that  '*  the  life  of  the  flesh  lies  in 
the  blood"  (Lev.  xvii.  11).  Thou  dost  provide  for  the  afflicted  is  a 
general  truth,  which  found  special  illustration  in  regard  to  Israel, 
'afflicted '  by  the  bondage  of  Egypt  (Ex.  iii.  7,  ty). 

11 — 14.  With  a  few  graphic  strokes  the  poet  recalls  the  victories  by 
which  Canaan  was  won  and  retained.  He  refers  to  the  times  of  the 
Judges  as  well  as  to  the  original  conquest  under  Joshua. 

11.  The  Lord  giveth  the  word: 

The  women  that  publish  the  tidings  are  a  great  host. 
God's  word  is  sovereign  (xxxiii.  9;  Is.  xxx.  30).  He  has  only  to 
command,  and  the  victory  is  won.  Forthwith  are  heard  the  songs  of 
the  women  proclaiming  the  good  news.  Victories  were  commonly  cele- 
brated by  the  Israelite  women  with  song  and  dance.  Cp.  v.  25,  Ex. 
XV.  20 f.;  Judg.  v;  xi.  34;  i  Sam.  xviii.  6  f.  It  is  a  less  satisfactory 
explanation  to  regard  the  word  as  the  song  of  triumph  which  God  puts 
in  the  mouth  of  the  singers. 


384  PSALM    LXVIII.  13. 

And  she  that  tarried  at  home  divided  the  spoil. 
^  Though  ye  have  lien  among  the  pots, 
\  Yet  shall  ye  be  as  the  wings  of  a  dove  covered  with  silver, 

12.  Kings  of  hosts  do  flee,  do  flee, 

And  she  that  tarrieth  at  home  divideth  the  spoil. 

Vv.  12 — 14  contain  allusions  to  the  Song  of  Deborah  and  possibly  to 
similar  poems  which  have  not  been  preserved  to  us.  Many  commenta- 
tors regard  them  as  the  triumphal  song  of  the  women  celebrating  the 
victory ;  but  it  is  better  to  take  them  as  the  continuation  of  the  poet's 
description  of  the  victory.  The  verses  run  in  pairs,  and  v.  13  is  parallel 
to  V.  12.  The  first  line  paints  the  scene  in  the  battle-field — the  pell-mell 
rout  of  the  defeated  kings :  the  second  line  depicts  the  scene  at  home 
when  the  warriors  have  returned  with  their  spoils. 

The  unusual  expression  kings  of  hosts  seems  to  be  chosen  with  refer- 
ence to  the  title  Jehoz<ah  of  hosts.  Vast  as  their  armies  may  be,  they  are 
powerless  to  resist  One  who  has  infinitely  stronger  armies  at  His  com- 
mand. The  graphic  repetition  do  flee,  do  flee  recalls  the  form  of  Judg.  v. 
22;  and  the  next  line  recalls  the  words  of  Judg.  v.  30.  The  battle  has 
been  won;  the  warriors  return  home  with  their  spoils;  and  the  matron 
who  has  anxiously  awaited  the  issue  of  the  battle  divides  among  her 
family  the  rich  garments  and  ornaments  taken  from  the  enemy.  Cp. 
Judg.  viii.  26;  2  Sam.  i.  24 ;  2  Kings  vii.  8,  15. 

13.  An  extremely  difficult  verse.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the 
second  and  third  lines,  like  the  first,  are  derived  from  some  ancient 
poem  now  lost,  and  that  to  readers  who  could  recognise  the  allusion 
they  would  be  intelligible,  though  to  us  they  are  obscure.  The  A.V., 
which  appears  to  contrast  the  squalid  misery  of  Israel  in  Egypt  with 
the  brilliant  prosperity  of  their  new  home  in  Canaan,  must  be  abandoned, 
and  two  considerations  must  govern  the  interpretation  of  the  verse. 

(i)  The  first  line  clearly  alludes  to  Judg.  v.  16  (cp.  Gen.  xlix.  14, 
R.  v.),  where  Deborah  upbraids  Reuben  for  cowardice  and  irresolution, 
and  for  preferring  the  ignoble  ease  of  pastoral  life  to  the  glorious  dangers 
of  the  war  of  independence : 

"  Why  satest  thou  among  the  sheepfolds, 
To  hear  the  pipings  for  the  flocks?" 
Lie  is  here  substituted  for  sit  to  emphasise  the  idea  of  slothful  in- 
activity. 

(2)  The  second  and  third  lines  describe  under  the  image  of  a  dove 
basking  in  the  sunshine  an  idyllic  condition  of  peace  and  prosperity. 
The  idea  that  the  dove  represents  the  enemy  fleeing  in  all  his  gorgeous 
splendour,  depicted  thus  as  an  inducement  to  Israel  to  pursue  and  win 
rich  spoil,  may  safely  be  set  aside.  The  point  of  comparison  is  the 
beauty  of  the  dove's  plumage,  not  the  swiftness  of  its  flight. 
Three  explanations  deserve  to  be  taken  account  of. 
(i)  Will  ye  lie  among  the  sheepfolds, 

(As)  the  wings  of  a  dove  covered  with  silver, 
And  her  pinions  with  yellow  gold?      (R.V.). 


PSALM    LXVIII.  14.  385 


I  And  her  feathers  with  yellow  gold. 
When  the  Almighty  scattered  kings  in  it, 
It  was  zv/iife  as  snow  in  Salmon. 


The  whole  verse,  like  Judg.  v,  16,  will  then  be  a  reproof  of  the  re- 
creant Israelites  who  preferred  the  ignoble  ease  of  their  pastoral  life  to 
the  hardships  and  dangers  of  the  battlefield.  But  such  a  reproof  is 
hardly  in  place  here,  nor  does  this  explanation  give  its  full  natural 
meaning  to  the  simile. 

(a)     More  probable  is  the  rendering  of  R.V.  marg. ; 
Wlien  ye  lie  among  the  sheepfolds, 
(It  is  as)  the  wings  of  a  dove... gold, 
which  regards  the  verse  as  a  description  of  the  peace  and  prosperity 
which  await  Israel  after  the  victories  described  in  v.  12.     "Everything 
will  gleam  and  glitter  with  silver  and  gold.     Israel  is  God's  turtle-dove 
(Ixxiv.  19),  and  accordingly  the  new  prosperity  is  compared  to  the  play 
of  colour  on  the  wings  of  a  dove  basking  in  the  sunshine."    (Delitzsch). 
This  interpretation  however  fails  to  take  account  of  the  allusion  in  line  i 
to  Tudg.  V.  16. 

(3)     It  seems  preferable  to  render  thus: 

Though  ye  may  lie  among  the  sheepfolds, 
The  dove's  wings  are  covered  with  silver, 
And  her  pinions  with  yellow  gold. 

Though  some  Israelites  may  fail  in  their  duty  and  prefer  slothful  ease 
to  fighting  the  battles  of  Jehovah,  yet  Israel  once  more  enjoys  the 
blessings  of  peace  and  prosperity.  In  spite  of  man's  backwardness  God 
gives  blessing.  This  explanation  takes  account  of  the  allusion  to  Judges, 
and  gives  its  proper  meaning  to  the  simile.  It  agrees  better  with  the 
general  purport  of  the  Ps.,  which  dwells  upon  God's  victories  on  behalf 
of  His  people.  It  may  moreover  (if  the  Psalm  dates  from  the  closing 
years  of  the  Exile)  be  intended  to  convey  a  tacit  reproof  to  those  Israelites 
who  were  in  danger  of  preferring  selfish  ease  in  Babylon  to  the  patriotic 
effort  of  the  Return.  It  warns  them  that  God's  purpose  for  His  people 
would  be  accomplished,  even  if  ihey  held  back  from  taking  part  in  it. 

14.  Of  this  verse,  as  of  v.  13,  the  meaning  is  uncertain.  Possibly 
it  too  is  a  fragment,  significant  to  those  who  remembered  its  original 
context,  but  necessarily  obscure  to  us.  It  is  doubtful,  too,  if  the  text  is 
sound.  In  it,  R.V.  therein,  must  mean  *  in  the  land.* 

Salmon,  R.V.  Zalmon,  is  only  known  to  us  as  the  name  of  a  wooded  hill 
near  Shechem,  from  which  Abimelech  fetched  wood  to  burn  the  tower 
of  Shechem  (Judg.  ix.  48).  But  the  name,  which  means  'dark'  or 
•shady'  (cp.  Black  Mountain,  Black  Forest),  may  have  been  borne  by 
other  mountains.  If  Zalmon  near  Shechem  is  intended,  it  may  be  men- 
tioned either  as  a  central  point  in  the  land,  or  from  its  connexion  with 
some  historical  incident  of  which  no  record  has  been  preserved,  or  simply 
to  heighten  the  picturesqueness  of  the  simile  by  representing  the  snow- 
storm as  seen  against  the  background  of  the  dark  mountain.  Shaddai^ 
'  The  Almighty',   only  occurs  once  again  in  the  Psalter  (xci.  i). 

PSALMS  2  5 


386  PSALM    LXVIII.  15,  16. 

15  The  hill  of  God  is  as  the  hill  of  Bashan ; 
A  high  hill  as  the  hill  of  Bashan. 

16  Why  leap  ye,  ye  high  hills  ? 

(i)  Taking  the  second  line  as  a  simile,  we  may  render  with  R.V., 
When  the  Almighty  scattered  kings  therein, 
(It  was  as  when)  it  snoweth  In  Zalmon. 
Bui  what  is  meant  by  the  simile?  It  has  been  supposed  to  refer  to  the 
bones  of  the  enemy  bleaching  on  the  field  of  battle  (cp.  Verg.  Aen.  xii. 
36,  campique  ingentes  ossibus  albejtt:  "The  vast  plains  are  white  with 
bones  ") :  or  to  the  glistening  of  the  armour  &c.  dropped  by  the  fugitives 
in  their  flight :  but  it  is  far  more  suggestive  to  think,  not  of  fallen  snow 
lying  on  the  ground,  but  of  falling  snow.  The  snowfiakes  driven  before 
the  storm  are  an  apt  emblem  of  the  kings  driven  in  pell-mell  flight  by 
the  breath  of  the  Lord,  and  this  explanation  suits  the  context.  By  the 
thought  of  the  victory  won  for  Israel  by  God  in  spite  of  the  sloth  of 
many  an  Israelite  {v.  13)  the  poet  is  naturally  carried  back  to  the  battle- 
scene,  and  desires  to  emphasise  the  fact  that  the  Almighty  had  fought 
for  Israel,  sweeping  the  foe  before  Him  like  the  snowfiakes  swept  along 
by  the  hurricane. 

(2)  Taking  the  second  line  literally,  we  may  render  with  R.V. 
marg.,  It  snowed  in  Zalmon.  The  words  will  then  refer  to  a  snowstorm 
which  accompanied  and  completed  the  rout  of  the  kings.  They  can 
scarcely  refer  to  the  hardships  endured  by  those  who  took  up  arms  amid 
the  rigours  of  an  exceptionally  severe  winter,  in  contrast  to  the  luxurious 
ease  of  the  cowards  who  are  chidden  in  z;.  13;  still  less  can  they  be  the 
words  of  those  cowards  excusing  themselves  from  taking  part  in  the 
war  by  the  severity  of  the  weather. 

(3)  Some  combine  the  literal  and  figiirative  explanations,  inter- 
preting it  snowed  in  Zalmon  to  mean  that  "the  mountain  clothed  itself 
in  a  bright  garment  of  light  in  celebration  of  the  joyful  event.  Whoever 
has  been  in  Palestine  knows  how  refreshing  is  the  sight  of  the  distant 
mountain  peaks  covered  with  snow."  This  however  is  too  far-fetched 
an  explanation  to  be  probable. 

16 — 18.  After  the  conquest  of  the  land,  God  chose  for  His  abode  not 
the  stately  mountains  of  Bashan,  whose  natural  preeminence  might  seem 
to  mark  them  out  for  that  privilege,  but  the  insignificant  hill  of  Zion. 

15.  A  mountain  of  God  is  the  mountain  of  Bashan : 

An  high-peaked  mountain  is  the  moujitain  of  Bashan. 
Mount  Hermon  is  probably  meant,  rather  than  the  mountains  of 
Bashan  generally.  It  is  the  grandest  of  the  mountains  of  Palestine,  and 
was  the  northern  boundary  of  Bashan  (Deut.  iii.  8).  It  has  three  sum- 
mits of  nearly  equal  height.  Its  natural  preeminence  seemed  to  mark  it 
as  a  mountain  of  God ^  a  mountain  worthy  to  be  the  abode  of  God;  and 
the  early  conquest  of  Bashan  seemed  to  confirm  its  prior  claim. 

16.  Why  look  ye  enviously,  ye  high-peaked  mountains, 

At  the  mountain  which  God  hath  desired  for  his  ahode  7 
Yea,  Jehovah  will  dwell  in  it  for  ever. 


1 


PSALM   LXVIII.  17.  387 


This  is  the  hill  which  God  desireth  to  dwell  in ; 

Yea,  the  Lord  will  dwell  in  it  for  ever. 

The  chariots  of  God  are  twenty  thousand,  eve/i  thousands  17 

of  angels : 
The  Lord  is  among  them,  as  in  Sinai,  in  the  holy  place. 


The  grander  monntains  of  Bashan,  not  Hermon  only,  but  the  rugged 
basaltic  mountains  which  rise  in  precipitous  peaks,  suggesting  ideas  of 
majesty,  antiquity,  impregnability,  are  represented  as  looking  enviously 
upon  the  insignificant  mountain  of  Zion  which  God  has  chosen  for  His 
earthly  dwelling-place.  Sinai  had  been  his  temporary  abode  (Ex.  xxiv. 
16);  on  Zion  He  will  dwell  for  ever.  Cp.  i  Kings  viii.  12,  13.  The 
choice  of  Zion  is  a  parable  of  the  method  of  God's  dealings  with  men. 
Cp.  I  Cor.  i.  26 — 29. 

The  A.V.  2uhy  leap  ye  comes  from  the  Targ.,  and  assumes  that  the 
root  RTSD,  occurring  here  only,  is  synonymous  with  RQD,  used  in  a 
similar  apostrophe,  Ps.  cxiv.  4,  6.  But  it  is  certainly  to  be  explained 
from  the  meaning  of  the  same  root  in  Arabic. 

17.  Tlie  chariots  of  God  are  in  myriads,  yea  thousands  upon 
thousands. 

God  is  represented  as  entering  Zion  in  triumph  with  a  vast  retinue  of 
the  heavenly  hosts.  His  chariots  are  not  simply  *  twice  ten  thousand ' 
but  *  counted  by  tens  of  thousands '  (this  is  the  idiomatic  force  of  the 
dual  termination),  explained  further  as  'thousands  of  repetition,'  i.e. 
thousands  upon  thousands.  Cp.  Dan.  viL  10.  The  A.V.  angels  is 
traceable  ultimately  fo  the  paraphrase  of  the  Targ.,  suggested  by  such 
passages  as  Deut.  xxxiii.  2,  but  resting  on  no  philological  basis.  The 
LXX  xi^taSes  evd-qvoivroiv,  Vulg.  inillia  laeiantium,  *  thousands  of  joyous 
ones,'  presumes  a  slightly  different  reading,  but  was  probably  intended 
to  give  the  same  meaning. 

the  Lord  is  among  them,  as  in  Sinai,  in  the  holy  place]  Or,  in  the 
sanctuary  (R.V.) ;  or  in  holiness.  But  as  tlie  words  as  in  are  not  in  the 
text,  the  rendering  Sinai  is  in  the  sanctuary  (R.V.  marg.),  or,  It  is  Sinai 
in  holiness,  is  preferable.  With  either  rendering  the  sense  will  be  sub- 
stantially the  same.  The  glory  and  majesty  which  were  revealed  at 
Sinai  are  now  transferred  to  God's  new  abode.  He  comes  surrounded 
as  it  were  by  an  environment  of  holiness.  Cp.  Deut.  xxxiii.  2.  For 
the  use  of  the  name  of  a  place  to  convey  all  the  associations  of  the  place 
cp.  Mic.  vi.  5,  where  "remember  from  Shittim  unto  Gilgal"  means 
**remehiber  all  that  happened  there  and  in  the  interval." 

Many  commentators  adopt  a  slight  emendation  of  the  text,  and  read 
The  Lord  is  come  from  Sinai  into  the  sanctuary  (or,  in  holiness), 
a  reminiscence  of  Deut.  xxxiii.  2.  From  Sinai,  the  scene  of  His  first 
great  self-revelation  to  Israel,  He  comes  to  Zion,  which  He  has  chosen 
for  His  permanent  abode.  But  the  corruption  of  the  text  if  it  is  faulty 
must  be  anterior  to  all  existing  versions:  and  the  proposed  reading  has 
a  somewhat  prosaic  ring. 

25—2 


388  PSALM    LXVIII.  i8. 

isThou  hast  ascended  on  high,  thou  hast  led  capti- 

vity  captive: 
Thou  hast  received  gifts  for  men; 
Yea,  jor  the  rebellious  also,  that  the  Lord  God  might  dwell 

among  them. 

18.  Thou  hast  ascended  on  high]  Lit.  thou  hast  gone  up  to  tJu 
height.  Cp.  xlvii.  5.  'The  height'  elsewhere  means  heaven,  though 
we  find  such  a  phrase  as  'the  height  of  Zion'  (Jer.  xxxi.  12).  Probably 
the  poet  did  not  make  any  sharp  distinction  between  the  triumphant 
return  of  Jehovah  to  heaven  (as  we  speak),  and  the  triumphant  pro- 
cession to  His  earthly  abode  which  was  the  symbol  of  it. 

thou  hast  led  captivity  captive"]  For  the  phrase  cp.  Judg.  v.  12. 
'Captivity'  is  not,  as  the  English  reader  might  suppose,  a  personifica- 
tion of  the  hostile  powers  which  had  led  Israel  captive,  but  the  abstract 
for  the  concrete,  equivalent  to  a  body  of  captives.  To  obviate  misunder- 
standing, R. V.  gives  '  thy  captivity.^  The  captive  enemies  of  Israel  are 
meant,  not,  as  some  modern  commentators  suppose,  referring  to  Is. 
xxiv.  2 iff.,  rebellious  heavenly  powers,  nor,  as  Kay  thinks,  the 
Israelites  themselves,  though  2  Cor.  ii.  14  (R.V.)  would  give  a  good 
parallel  for  this  meaning. 

thoii  hast  received  gifts  for  men]  An  impossible  rendering,  influenced 
probably  by  the  quotation  in  Eph.  iv.  8.  R.V.  rightly,  among  men. 
The  'gifts'  offered  to  the  king  as  Jehovah's  representative  and  appro- 
priated to  the  service  of  the  Temple  (2  Sam.  viii.  2,  6,  11 ;  i  Kings  iv. 
21),  are  regarded  as  offered  to  Him  as  the  real  Conqueror. 

yea,  for  the  rebellious  also]  R.V.,  Yea,  (among^  the  rebellious  also, 
that  the  LORD  God  might  dwell  (with  them):  marg.,  there.  'The 
rebellious '  are  commonly  understood  to  be  the  heathen,  who  pay 
homage  to  Jehovah,  and  dwell  under  His  protection.  But  (see  note  on 
V.  6)  the  term  is  generally  applied  to  the  Israelites ;  and  the  line  may 
be  rendered,  Yea,  even  the  stubborn  (are  content)  to  dwell  with  Jah 
Elohim.  Even  the  successors  (in  spirit)  of  the  stubborn  and  rebellious 
generation  of  the  wilderness  are  subdued  when  they  see  Jehovah's 
triumphs,  and  are  content  to  become  His  obedient  subjects.  For  con- 
struction and  thought  cp.  v.  4;  Is.  xxxiii.  14.  Another  alterna- 
tive is  to  take  Jah  as  the  subject  of  the  infin..  Yea,  even  the  stubborn 
(are  content)  that  Jah  Elohim  should  dwell  (among  them).  Cp.  Ixxviii. 
60 ;  Ex.  XXV.  8 ;  &c.     So  apparently  the  LXX. 

St  Paul  quotes  this  verse  in  Eph.  iv.  8  in  the  form,  "Wherefore  he 
saith,  When  he  ascended  on  high,  he  led  captivity  captive,  and  gave 
gifts  unto  men,"  applying  it  to  the  spiritual  gifts  showered  upon  the 
Church  by  the  risen  and  ascended  Christ.  How  came  he  to  substitute 
"gave  gifts  unto  men "  for  "received  gifts  among  men"?  The  Targum 
paraphrases  the  verse  thus;  "Thou  didst  ascend  to  the  firmament,  O 
prophet  Moses !  thou  didst  lead  captivity  captive ;  thou  didst  teach  the 
words  of  the  law;  thou  didst  give  gifts  to  the  sons  of  men."  Similarly 
the  Syriac,  which  may  have  been  influenced  by  Jewish  exegesis,  has. 


PSALM    LXVIII.  19,  20.  389 

Blessed  be  the  Lord,  19 

Who  daily  loadeth  us  with  benefits^ 
Even  the  God  of  our  salvation.     Selah. 

He  that  is  our  God  is  the  God  of  salvation  ;  20 

And  unto  God  the  Lord  belong  the  issues  from  death. 

**Thou  didst  give  gifts  to  the  sons  of  men."  Now  though  the  Targum 
in  its  present  form  is  much  later  than  St  Paul's  time,  it  is  not  unreason- 
able to  suppose  that  the  oral  paraphrase  then  current  already  interpreted 
the  verse  in  this  way,  and  St  Paul  quotes  it  in  the  form  familiar  to  him, 
without  pausing  to  think  whether  it  was  an  exact  rendering  of  the 
original  or  not.  But  though  the  quotation  is  not  verbally  exact  it  is 
deeply  significant.  The  triumph  of  Jehovah  over  the  enemies  of  Israel 
prefigured  the  triumph  of  Christ  over  the  spiritual  enemies  of  the 
Church  :  or  rather  may  we  not  say  more  truly  that  they  are  both  parts 
of  the  same  divine  plan  of  redemption  working  first  in  the  natural  and 
then  in  the  spiritual  order?  Christ  ascended  up  to  heaven,  leading  the 
defeated  powers  of  evil  in  triumph  (Col.  ii.  15).  There  He  performs  a 
yet  more  royal  function  than  receiving  gifts  from  men,  (though  of  course 
it  would  be  also  true  to  say  that  He  receives  gifts) ;  He  bestows  them. 
Spiritual  victory  corresponds  to  temporal :  the  bestowal  of  gifts  of  grace 
to  the  reception  of  gifts  of  homage.  For  a  full  discussion  of  the  passage 
see  Driver  in  The  Expositor^  1889,  i.  pp.  20  ff. 

19 — 23.  The  second  part  of  the  Psalm  (19 — 35)  begins  here.  From 
reviewing  the  triumphs  of  God  in  the  past  the  Psalmist  turns  to  the 
present  and  the  future.  God  is  an  ever-present  Saviour  j  He  will  take 
vengeance  on  the  enemies  of  His  people. 

19.  Blessed  ht  the  Lord]  We  are  again  reminded  of  the  Song  of 
Deborah,  Judg.  v.  2,  9. 

who  dat/y  loadeth  us  with  benefits]  Better,  as  R.V.,  who  dally 
beareth  our  burden:  or,  as  Aq.,  Symm.,  Jer.  and  Targ.,  who  dally 
beareth  us.  In  Is.  xlvi.  3,  4,  the  same  word  is  used  in  the  phrase,  *'0 
house  of  Jacob.. .which  have  been  borne  by  me":  and  in  Ex.  xix.  4; 
Deut.  i.  31 ;  Ps.  xxviii.  9;  the  idea,  though  not  the  word,  is  the  same. 
The  R.V.  marg.  Blessed  be  the  Lord  day  by  day:  if  one  oppresseth  us, 
God  is  our  salvation,  involves  the  abandonment  of  the  traditional 
accentuation,  and  gives  a  less  satisfactory  sense. 

even  the  God  of  our  salvation]     In  order  to  avoid  the  appearance  of  a 
grammatical  blunder,  the  R.V.  gives,  Even  the  God  who  Is  our  salva- 
tion.    The  whole  verse  might  be  rendered  more  exactly  and  forcibly : 
Blessed  be  the  Lord;  day  by  day  he  beareth  our  burden: 
God  is  our  salvation. 

On  the  position  of  Selah  see  note  on  v.  7. 

20.  God  is  unto  us  a  God  of  deliverances ; 

And  unto  JEHOVAH  the  Lord  belong  the  Issues  from  death. 

The  plural  denotes  mighty  and  manifold  deliverances.     Cp.  xliv.  4. 

God  is  printed  in  capital  letters  in  the  A.V.  because  it  represents  the 

sacred  Name,  for  which  Elohtm^  *God,'  was  substituted  by  the  Jews  in 


390  PSALM    LXVIII.  21,  22. 

21  But  God  shall  wound  the  head  of  his  enemies, 

And  the  hairy  scalp  of  such  a  one  as  goeth  on  still  in  his 
trespasses. 

32  The  Lord  said,  I  will  bring  again  from  Bashan, 

I  will  bring  my  people  again  from  the  depths  of  the  sea : 

reading,  when  Adonai,  'Lord'  (the  regular  substitute)  is  joined  with  it. 
Even  in  regard  to  death  God  can  provide  ways  of  escape  (cp,  i  Cor.  x. 
13).  In  the  uttermost  extremity  of  peril,  when  death  seems  inevitable, 
He  can  devise  means  of  deliverance.  Nay,  though  Israel  as  a  nation 
seems  to  lie  dead  in  exile,  He  can  bring  it  forth  from  that  grave  and 
give  it  new  life  (i  Sam.  ii.  6;  Hos.  vi.  7.\  Ezek.  xxxvii.  i  ff.). 

21.  But  God  shall  wouiid  the  head  &c.]  Yea,  God  shall  smite 
through  the  head  &c.     Cp.  Judg.  v.  26;  Hab.  iii.  13,  14. 

and  the  hairy  scalp]  Omit  and.  The  warrior's  long  hair  is  men- 
tioned not  merely  as  "a  sign  of  exuberant  strength  and  impenitent 
pride,"  but  in  allusion  to  the  ancient  practice  of  allowing  the  hair  to 
grow  when  a  vow  had  been  undertaken.  **  With  warriors  in  primitive 
times  the  unshorn  head  was  a  usual  mark  of  their  consecration  to  the 
work  they  had  undertaken,  and  their  locks  remained  untouched  till  they 
had  achieved  their  enterprise  or  had  perished  in  the  attempt.  War  among 
most  primitive  peoples  is  a  sacred  function."  J.  S.  Black  in  the  Smaller 
Cambr.  Bible  for  Schools,  on  Judg.  v.  2,  which  should  be  rendered 

"For  that  flowing  locks  were  worn  in  Israel, 
For  that  the  people  volunteered  themselves,  bless  ye  the  Lord,** 
i.e.  give  thanks  for  the  zeal  with  which  the  people  devoted  themselves  to 
the  sacred  war  of  independence.     Cp.  Deut.  xxxii.  42,   where  "from 
the  beginning  of  revenges  on  the  enemy"  should  be  rendered  "from 
the  hairy  head  of  the  enemy." 

0/  stich  a  one  &c.]  According  to  strict  grammar,  the  hairy  scalp 
that  goeth  on  in  his  guiltiness,  the  scalp  standing  by  metonymy  for 
the  man.     The  verb  expresses  the  idea  of  open  and  defiant  persistence. 

22.  The  Lord  said]  The  Psalmist  either  quotes  some  ancient 
promise,  like  that  of  Num.  xxi.  34,  or  proclaims  a  fresh  message  from 
God  with  the  authority  and  in  the  language  of  a  prophet: — 7Vie  Lord 
saith.  But  what  is  the  object  of  the  verb  /  will  bring  again}  (i)  If 
with  A.V.  we  supply  my  people,  the  meaning  will  be  that  God  will 
bring  the  Israelites  back  to  their  own  land  from  all  the  places  in  which 
they  have  been  scattered,  in  order  that  they  may  witness  a  complete  and 
final  triumph  over  their  enemies  (cp.  Mic.  iv.  11 — 13).  This  is  the 
interpretation  of  the  Targ.,  and  Delitzsch  quotes  from  the  Talmud  a 
touching  story  which  shews  that  it  was  current  in  early  times.  When, 
after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  a  number  of  young  and  noble  captives 
were  being  conveyed  by  ship  to  Rome,  where  a  fate  worse  than  death 
awaited  them,  they  all  flung  themselves  from  the  ship  into  the  sea, 
trusting  to  the  promise  of  these  words.  (2)  But  the  context  makes  it 
more  natural  to  supply,  as  R.V.,  them,  i.e.  the  enemies  spoken  of  in 
w.   21,  23.     Though  they  hide  themselves  in  the  rock  fastnesses  of 


PSALM    LXVTII.  23—25.  391 

That  thy  foot  may  be  dipped  in  the  blood  of  thine  enemies,  23 
And  the  tongue  of  thy  dogs  in  the  same. 

They  have  seen  thy  goings,  O  God ;  =4 

Even  the  goings  of  my  God,  my  King,  in  the  sanctuary. 
The  singers  went  before,  the  players  on  instruments yi?//<?7£'^^  25 
after ; 

Bashan,  nay  in  the  very  depths  of  the  sea,  they  shall  not  escape,  but  be 
brought  back  to  suffer  a  righteous  vengeance.  Cp.  Am.  ix,  2,  3,  where 
Jehovah  warns  the  sinful  Israelites  that  no  hidingplace  will  avail  to 
shelter  them  from  judgement.  Bashan  may  be  mentioned  with  allusion 
to  Og,  the  depths  of  the  sea  with  allusion  to  Pharaoh  (Ex.  xv.  4  ff.). 

23.  That  thou  mayest  dip  thy  foot  In  blood. 

That  the  tongue  of  thy  dogs  may  have  its  portion  from 
(thine)  enemies. 
This  rendering  of  the  R.V.  probably  gives  the  right  sense,  though  tlie 
Heb.  presents  some  difficulties.  For  dip  should  probably  be  read 
wash,  as  in  Iviii.  10,  which  passage  (with  the  notes)  should  be  com- 
pared. The  thought  of  the  approaching  vengeance  upon  the  enemies  of 
Israel  is  a  prominent  one  in  Is.  xl— Ixvi.  See  e.g.  xli.  15  f.;  xlix.  26; 
Ixiii.  I  tf.  The  judgement  of  the  oppressor  is  in  fact  the  necessary 
condition  of  the  deliverance  of  the  oppressed,  indispensable  moreover 
as  the  vindication  of  God's  eternal  justice. 

24 — 27.  These  verses  describe  a  solemn  procession  of  thanksgiving 
to  the  Temple.  But  is  it  past,  present,  or  future?  Delitzsch  is  right 
when  he  says  that  it  is  "  not  the  rejoicing  over  a  victory  lately  won,  not 
the  rejoicing  over  the  deliverance  at  the  Red  Sea  in  the  days  of  old,  but 
the  rejoicing  of  Israel  when  it  shall  have  seen  the  judicial  and  redemptive 
act  of  its  God  and  King."  It  is  an  'ideal'  description.  The  poet's 
imagination  springs  forward  to  the  great  celebration  of  the  victory 
described  in  w.  21 — 23.     It  rises  before  liis  eyes  as  an  actual  fact. 

24.  They  have  seen]  The  subject  is  significantly  indefinite  :  it  in- 
cludes all  men,  who  have  been  the  spectators  of  the  conflict  between 
God  and  His  enemies.     Cp.  xcviii.  i — 3;  Is.  xl.  5. 

/Ay  goings']  The  festal  procession  which  celebrates  God's  victory 
on  behalf  of  His  people.  He  comes  in  triumph  once  more,  as  He  came 
of  old. 

my  icing]  The  title  is  significant.  He  has  again  placed  Himself  at 
the  head  of  His  people  and  victoriously  manifested  His  sovereignty. 
Cp.  xliv.  4;  Ixxiv.  12. 

in  the  sanctuary]  R.V.  into  the  sanctuary,  retaining  A.V.  in  the 
marg.  The  preposition  implies  His  rest  there  after  His  entry.  It  is 
possible  also  to  render  as  in  v.  17,  in  holiness  (R.V.  marg.  alt.).  His 
triumph  is  the  vindication  of  that  holiness  which  is  His  supreme  attribute 
and  distinguishes  all  His  action.     Cp.  Ex.  xv.  ri ;  Ps.  Ixxvii.  13. 

26.     the  players  on  instruments]     R.V.  as  P.B.V.,  the  minstrels. 


392  PSALM    LXVIII.  26. 


Among  them  7vere  the  damsels  playing  with  timbrels. 
26  Bless  ye  God  in  the  congregations, 
Even  the  Lord,  from  the  fountain  of  Israel. 

amon^  i\\cm  wcxe.  the  damsels]  An  ungiammatical  rendering.  R.V. 
rightly,  In  the  midst  of  the  damsels.  On  either  side  of  the  procession 
of  singers  and  minstrels  playing  upon  stringed  instruments  were  the 
damsels  beating  their  timbrels  (tambourines  or  hand-drums),  as  they 
danced  joyously  along.  The  scene  recalls  the  thanksgiving  by  the  Red 
Sea  (Ex.  xv.  20),  when  "  Miriam  took  a  timbrel  in  her  hand,  and  all  the 
women  went  out  after  her  with  timbrels  and  with  dances,"  for  "the deliver- 
ance which  is  being  celebrated  is  the  counterpart  of  the  deliverance 
from  Egypt."     (Delitzsch.) 

26.  This  verse  is  best  regarded  as  a  part  of  the  processional  hymn. 
Cp.  Judg.  V.  2,  9. 

from  the  fotintain  of  Israel]  Kay  and  Cheyne  compare  cxviii.  26, 
cxxxv.  21,  and  suppose  that  'the  fountain  of  Israel'  is  the  Temple.  But 
it  is  better  to  render  with  R.V.,  and  A.V,  marg.,  (ye  that  are)  of  the 
fountain  of  Israel ;  the  patriarch  being  regarded  as  the  fountain-head 
from  which  the  nation  is  derived.  Cp.  Is.  xlviii.  i,  *'0  house  of  Jacob, 
which  are  called  by  the  name  of  Israel,  and  are  come  forth  out  of  the 
waters  of  Judah";  li.  i,  2;  and  Deut.  xxxiii.  28.  The  address  reminds 
them  of  the  privileges  of  their  ancestry.  It  is  however  possible  that  the 
preposition /r<7W  is  an  accidental  repetition  of  the  initial  letter  of  the 
word  for  '  fountain,'  and  should  be  omitted.  '  The  fountain  of  Israel '  will 
then  be  the  Lord  Himself,  the  source  of  His  people's  life.  Cp.  Jer.  ii. 
13;  xvii.  13;  Ps.  xxxvi.  9.  The  P.B.V.  (Great  Bible,  not  Coverdale) 
Give  thanks^  O  Israel^  unto  God  the  Lord  in  the  congregations ^  from  the 
ground  of  the  heart  appears  to  be  due  to  a  misunderstanding  of  Munster's 
In  congregationibiis  benedicite  deo  atque  domino  ex  origine  (cordis)  Israel, 
Israel  being  wrongly  taken  as  a  vocative. 

27.  The  representatives  of  four  tribes  are  specified  as  taking  part  in 
the  procession.  Judah  and  Benjamin  naturally  represent  the  South. 
Jerusalem  was  on  the  boundary  between  them ;  and  the  Temple  was  in 
the  territory  assigned  to  Benjamin  (Deut.  xxxiii.  12;  Josh,  xviii.  16), 
which  may  account  for  the  place  of  honour  being  assigned  to  it.  But 
why  are  Zebulun  and  Naphtali  selected  to  represent  the  North?  Is  it 
as  a  recognition  of  their  heroic  patriotism  commemorated  in  the  Song  of 
Deborah  (Judg.  v.  18)  of  which  this  Psalm  contains  so  many  remi- 
niscences? or  is  it  (on  the  assumption  of  the  exilic  date  of  the  Psalm) 
an  allusion  to  the  prophecy  of  Isaiah  (ix.  i),  that  just  those  tribes  which 
had  suffered  most  severely  from  the  first  Assyrian  invasion  should  be 
restored  to  honour  ?  This,  if  the  exilic  date  of  the  Psalm  is  adopted,  is 
the  most  obvious  explanation.  The  prophets  from  Amos  (ix.  11  fF.)  and 
Hosea  (iii.  5)  onward,  foretold  the  restoration  of  Israel  as  well  as  Judah, 
and  their  reunion  into  one  state,  and  the  Psalmist  sees  this  hope  visibly 
fulfilled  in  the  festal  procession.  It  maybe  noted  that  in  Jer.  iii.  17,  18, 
the  restoration  of  the  reunited  people  is  placed  in  close  connexion  with 
the  conflux  of  the  nations  to  worship  at  Jerusalem  of  which  the  Psalmist 


PSALM    LXVIII.  27—29.  393 

There  is  little  Benjamin  with  their  ruler,  27 

The  princes  of  Judah  and  their  council, 

The  princes  of  Zebulun,  and  the  princes  of  Naphtali. 

Thy  God  hath  commanded  thy  strength  :  28 

Strengthen,  O  God,  that  which  thou  hast  wrought  for  us. 

Because  of  thy  temple  at  Jerusalem  29 

Shall  kings  bring  presents  unto  thee. 


goes  on  to  speak  in  w.  28  ff.  It  is  important  to  remember  that  the 
Israelites  who  returned  from  Babylon  regarded  themselves  as  repre- 
senting the  whole  nation,  and  not  the  kingdom  of  Judah  only.  Cp. 
Ezr.  viii.  35;  Ps.  cxxii.  4. 

little  Benjamin  with  their  ruler]  Omit  wiiA.  Benjamin  is  called 
little  as  the  youngest  of  the  sons  of  Jacob,  and  the  smallest  of  the  tribes 
in  population  and  territory  (i  Sam.  ix.  21).  Their  ruler  is  explained 
by  the  Targ.  as  an  allusion  to  Saul's  kingship;  "There  was  Benjamin, 
small  among  the  tribes,  who  first  went  down  into  the  [Red]  Sea,  and 
therefore  first  received  the  kingdom":  by  others  it  is  supposed  to  mean 
•  conducting  them.'     The  word  is  obscure  and  possibly  corrupt. 

and  their  council]     Or,  company. 

28 — 31.  The  purpose  and  sequel  of  the  restoration  of  Israel  is  the 
conversion  of  the  world;  and  the  Psalmist  now  prays  that  God  will 
display  His  strength  and  subdue  all  opposition,  and  sees  the  noblest  of 
the  nations  hastening  to  pay  Him  homage. 

28.  Thy  God  he]  Israel  is  addressed;  the  first  line  is  a  summary 
statement  of  past  experience,  introduced  as  the  ground  of  the  prayer 
which  follows.  In  past  times  God  has  given  Israel  strength ;  therefore 
Israel  can  now  pray  with  confidence  for  the  renewal  and  continuance  of 
His  support.  But  the  Ancient  Versions  (LXX,  Vulg.,  Symm.,  Jer.  (some 
MSS.),  Syr.,  Targ.)  read  (the  difference  in  the  verb  is  simply  in  the 
vowels),  O  God,  command  thy  strength :  i.e.  give  charge  to  Thy  power, 
put  it  forth.  Cp.  xlii.  8;  xliv.  4.  This  suits  the  parallelism  better,  and 
avoids  the  abrupt  and  isolated  address  to  Israel. 

Strengthen,  O  God  &c.]  This  rendering  is  grammatically  questionable, 
and  the  R.V.  marg.  is  to  be  preferred :  Be  strongs  O  God,  thou  that  hast 
wrought  for  us;  i.e.  shew  Thyself  strong  as  in  time  past.  Cp.  Is. 
xxvi.  12. 

29.  Because  of  thy  temple  at  Jerusalem]  To  the  age  of  the  Return 
the  restored  Temple  was  the  visible  symbol  and  proof  that  Jehovah  had 
come  back  to  His  ancient  dwelling-place  (cxxii.  9).  It  was  to  be  the 
occasion  and  the  centre  of  fresh  homage.  Cp.  Is.  Ix.  7ff.;  Ixvi.  20; 
Hagg.  ii.  7;  Zech.  ii.  11  ff.;  vi.  15;  viii.  21  ff. 

From  thy  temple  however  is  a  more  natural  rendering  than  because  of 
thy  temple;  and  it  is  possible  that  the  words  should  be  joined  with  the 
preceding  verse — either  thus,  thou  that  hast  wrought  for  us  out  of  thy 
temple;  or  better  still,  shew  thyself  strong,  thou  who  hast  wrought  for  us. 


394  PSALM    LXVIII.  30,  31. 

30  Rebuke  the  company  of  spearmen, 

The  multitude  of  the  bulls,  with  the  calves  of  the  people, 
Till  every  one  submit  himself  with  pieces  of  silver : 
Scatter  thou  the  people  that  delight  in  war. 

31  Princes  shall  come  out  of  Egypt; 

Ethiopia  shall  soon  stretch  out  her  hands  unto  God. 


out  of  thy  temple^\  cp.  ex.  1.     The  next  line  will  then  begin:   Up  to 
Jerusalem  shall  kings  &.c. 

bring  presents^  A  phrase  used  only  in  Ixxvi.  11;  Is.  xviii.  7,  of 
bringing  solemn  tribute  to  God. 

30.  the  company  of  spearmen]  Better  as  R.V.,  the  wild  beast  of 
the  reeds,  i.e.  the  crocodile,  or  rather,  the  hippopotamus,  which  is 
described  in  Job  xl.  21  as  lying  "in  the  covert  of  the  reed."  It  is  a 
sjrmbolical  designation  of  Egypt,  which  is  mentioned  either  as  the 
typical  enemy  of  Israel,  or  with  reference  to  circumstances  of  the  time. 

the  multitude  of  t lie  bulls y  with  the  calves  of  the  people^  R.V.  peoples. 
The  kings  or  leaders  of  heathen  nations,  followed  by  their  peoples  as 
the  calves  of  the  herd  follow  the  bulls.  Cp.  Jer.  xlvi,  20,  21,  R.V. 
'Bulls'  suggests  the  idea  of  proud  defiance;  'calves'  that  of  comfortable 
security. 

till  every  one  submit  himself  with  pieces  of  silver"]  Lit.  as  R.V.  marg.. 
Every  one  submitting  himself  &c.  Their  proud  spirits  are  subdued  by 
the  irresistible  divine  'rebuke'  (Ixxvi.  6;  Is.  xvii.  13);  they  prostrate 
themselves  in  the  dust  before  the  Lord  of  the  world,  and  offer  tribute  of 
their  wealth.  Cp.  Is.  be.  9.  This  gives  a  fair  sense,  but  the  construc- 
tion is  difficult.  The  difficulty  is  avoided  by  the  rendering  of  R.V., 
which  makes  the  participle  refer  to  God :  Trampling  under  foot  the 
pieces  of  silver,  i.e.  spurning  the  tribute  which  they  bring  Thee.  The 
true  meaning  is  however  quite  uncertain,  and  the  text  is  very  possibly 
corrupt.  The  Ancient  Versions  vary  greatly,  some  of  them  pointing  to 
varieties  of  reading.  Of  the  host  of  modern  emendations,  one  may  be 
mentioned  which  only  requires  alteration  of  the  vowel  points :  *  Tramp- 
ling under  foot  them  that  delight  in  silver' \  but  it  can  hardly  be 
pronounced  satisfactory. 

scatter  thou  &c.]  The  Massoretic  Text  reads:  He  hath  scattered 
the  peoples :  a  '  prophetic  perfect, '  realising  the  triumph  of  God  over 
all  opposition  as  already  complete.  But  it  suits  the  context  better  to 
read  the  imperative  with  LXX  and  Jer.,  scatter  thou.  The  difference 
is  one  of  vocalisation  only. 

31.  Princes]  Or,  magnates.  LXX  irp^a^eis,  ambassadors.  The 
word  occurs  here  only,  and  is  of  doubtful  meaning. 

shall  soon  stretch  out  &c.]  R.V.,  shall  haste  to  stretch  out  her 
hands  unto  God,  either  in  token  of  submission  (cp.  Lat.  dare  manus) ; 

•  The  pausal  form  of  the  word  ^iSd^HD  out  of  thy  teviple,  looks  like  the  trace 

•V  T       ••   •• 

of  a  tradition  that  the  verses  were  once  so  divided. 


PSALM    LXVIII.  32—35.  395 

Sing  unto  God,  ye  kingdoms  of  the  earth  ;  32 

O  sing  praises  unto  the  Lord;  Selah. 

To  him  that  rideth  upon  the  heavens  of  heavens,  which  were  33 

of  old ; 
Lo,  he  doth  send  out  his  voice,  and  that  a.  mighty  voice. 
Ascribe  ye  strength  unto  God  :  34 

His  excellency  is  over  Israel, 
And  his  strength  is  in  the  clouds. 
O  God,  thou  art  terrible  out  of  thy  holy  places  :  35 

or  in  supplication  (cp.  Is.  xlv.  14) ;  or  with  gifts  of  homage  (Ixxii.  lo; 
Is.  xviii.  7).  Egypt  and  Ethiopia  are  often  coupled  together,  and  they 
are  mentioned  here  as  examples  of  the  nations  which  come  to  pay 
homage,  the  one  as  the  typical  ancient  enemy  of  Israel  (cp.  Is.  xix. 
19  ff.)>  the  other  as  a  remote  nation  of  noble  appearance  and  formidable 
reputation  (Is.  xviii.  i,  7).  Cp.  Is.  xlv.  14.  Their  submission  signifies 
that  the  most  inveterate  foes  of  God  and  His  people,  and  the  most 
remote  and  the  noblest  of  the  peoples  of  the  world,  acknowledge  His 
supremacy.  Morians  in  P.B.V.  means  'Moors,'  'blackamoors,'  the 
Heb.  Cush  being  taken  as  a  general  term  for  'Africans.' 

32 — 35.     All  nations  are  summoned  to  unite  in  praising  Israel's  God. 

32.  The  kingdoms  of  the  earth  are  invited  to  reecho  Israel's  chorus 
of  praise,  v.  4.  Cp.  Rev.  xi.  i5fF.  The  musical  interlude  {Selah)  may 
suggest  the  outbreak  of  the  chorus  of  universal  praise. 

33.  To  him  'that  rideth  &c.]  The  same  God  who  "rides  through  the 
deserts"  {v.  4)  when  He  intervenes  in  human  affairs  is  supremely  exalted 
in  the  highest  heavens  (Deut.  x.  14;  i  Kings  viii.  27;  Neh.  ix.  6), 
which  like  the  mountains  (Deut.  xxxiii.  15)  are  of  primeval  antiquity. 

which  were  of  old'\  Better,  with  R.V.,  wMch  are  of  old.  Cp. 
Wordsworth's  "the  most  ancient  heavens." 

he  doth  send  out  his  voice]  R.V.,  he  uttereth  Ms  voice,  as  xlvi.  6. 
Cp.  xxix.  3ff.;  Is.  xxx.  30. 

34.  Ascribe  &c.]  Lit.  as  in  xxix.  i,  give.  Acknowledge  by  the 
tribute  of  your  praises  the  power  which  is  His  and  which  He  exercises 
in  the  world. 

His  excellency,  or  majesty ^  is  over  Israel  to  protect  and  bless,  and  his 
strength  is  in  the  skies,  supreme  not  on  earth  alone,  but  throughout  the 
universe.     This  and  the  last  verse  are  based  upon  Deut.  xxxiii.  26, 
"There  is  none  like  God  {El),  O  Jeshurun, 
Who  rideth  upon  the  heavens  as  thy  help, 
And  in  his  excellency  on  the  skies." 

35.  0  God,  thou  art  terrible  &c.]  This  rendering  Is  retained  in 
R.V.,  but  grammar  requires  us  to  render  (cp.  R.V.  marg.);  Terrible  is 
God  out  of  thy  sanctuary.  Israel  is  addressed :  and  the  verse  is  the 
answer  of  the  nations  to  the  summons  of  v.  34,  acknowledging  the 
awful  might  (Ex.  xv.  n  ;  Deut.  x.  17;  Ps.  xlvii.  2)  which  God  displays 


396  PSALM    LXVIII.  35. 

The  God  of  Israel  is  he 

That  giveth  strength  and  power  unto  his  people. 

Blessed  be  God. 

from  His  sanctuary  in  the  midst  of  Israel  (cp.  v.  29  note),  recognising 
Him  as  the  source  of  Israel's  preeminence,  and  in  conclusion  reechoing 
Israel's  watchword  of  praise,  Blessed  be  God.  Simpler  but  less  forcible 
is  the  reading  of  LXX  and  Jer.,  out  of  his  sanctuary ^  making  the  verse 
the  Psalmist's  own  conclusion. 

thy  holy  places']  Better,  thy  sanctuary,  as  the  word  is  generally 
rendered  (Ex.  xv.  17;  Ps.  Ixxviii.  69;  xcvi.  6,  &c.).  The  plural  is  an 
idiomatic  plural  of  'extension'  or  'amplification,'  denoting  the  various 
parts  of  the  Temple,  or  its  dignity. 

the  God  of  Israel  is  he  that  giveth]  Better  as  R.V.,  the  God  of  Israel, 
he  giveth  &c. 

power]  Or,  mightiness.  The  subst.  is  found  here  only,  but  the  adj. 
is  common,  cp.  Deut.  iv.  38;  Is.  Ix.  22. 

unto  hxs  people]  Cp.  xxix.  11;  Is.  xl.  29.  Lit.,  the  people,  which 
stands  out  among  the  nations  of  the  world  as  the  people  of  His  choice. 

Thus  the  Psalmist's  outlook  reaches  forward  to  the  final  triumph 
celebrated  in  the  Apocalyptic  song,  Rev.  xv.  3  f. 


PSALM   LXIX. 

This  plaintive  cry  for  help  falls  into  two  divisions,  each  of  which  may 
be  subdivided  into  three  stanzas. 

i.  The  Psalmist  entreats  God  to  rescue  him  from  the  deadly  foes 
who  beset  him  (i — 6).  He  urges  as  the  ground  of  his  prayer  that  it  is 
for  God's  sake  that  he  is  being  persecuted  (7 — 12);  and  then  with  more 
strenuous  insistence  repeats  his  cry  for  help  (13 — 18). 

ii.  Once  more  he  lays  before  God  all  the  inhumanity  of  his  perse- 
cutors (19 — 21);  and,  goaded  by  the  recollection  of  their  behaviour, 
imprecates  upon  them  the  judgement  they  deserve  (22 — 28).  Regain- 
ing his  calmness,  he  looks  forv^'ard  with  confidence  to  his  deliverance 
and  consequent  thanksgiving;  and  concludes  with  a  call  to  universal 
praise  for  the  redemption  and  restoration  of  Zion  which  God  will 
assuredly  accomplish  (29 — 36). 

The  name  of  David  stands  in  the  title,  but  though  the  Psalm  may 
have  been  taken  from  a  collection  bearing  his  name,  it  is  impossible  to 
suppose  that  it  was  written  by  him.  To  what  period  of  his  life  could 
w.  8ff.  refer,  or  how  can  w.  33  ff.  be  connected  with  his  reign?  These 
latter  verses,  which  cannot  be  detached  from  the  Psalm  as  a  later 
liturgical  addition,  point  decidedly  to  the  Exile,  or  to  the  closing  years 
of  the  kingdom,  when  Jehoiachin  and  the  flower  of  the  population  of 
Judah  had  already  been  carried  into  captivity  (B.C.  597),  and  the  final 
downfall  of  the  state  was  imminent.  The  latter  alternative  is  the  most 
probable;  and  the  circumstances,  ideas,  and  language  of  the  Psalmist 
so  remarkably  resemble  those  of  Jeremiah,  that  it  has  been  conjectured 


PSALM   LXIX.  397 


with  much  plausibility  that  he  was  the  author  of  the  Psalm.  It  is  not 
indeed  to  be  supposed  that  the  metaphorical  expressions  oi vv.  \,  2,  14, 
15  are  a  literal  description  of  his  sufferings  in  the  dungeon  of  Malchiah, 
(ch.  xxxviii.  6  if.),  or  that  the  Psalm  was  composed  as  he  lay  there,  though 
the  language  may  have  been  partly  suggested  by  his  treatment  upon 
that  occasion;  and  it  is  of  course  impossible  positively  to  affirm  that  it 
was  written  by  him ;  but  it  is  certainly  to  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  that  we 
must  turn  for  the  most  vivid  illustration  of  the  circumstances  and  the 
feelings  of  the  Psalmist.  If  Jeremiah  was  not  the  author,  it  must  have 
been  some  prophet  of  a  kindred  temper  of  mind  under  very  similar 
circumstances. 

(i)  The  general  situation  of  the  Psalmist  corresponds  remarkably  to 
that  of  Jeremiah  as  he  describes  it  himself  in  chaps,  xi.  18  ff.,  xii.  i  ff., 
XV.  10  ff.,  xvii.  12  ff.,  xviii.  18  ff.,  xx.  7ff.,  and  elsewhere.  His  words, 
"Knowthatfor  thy  sake  I  bear  reproach"  (xv.  15),  might  be  taken  as  the 
motto  of  the  Psalm.  Like  Jeremiah,  the  Psalmist  is  the  victim  of  con- 
tempt which  crushes  his  spirits  and  hostility  which  threatens  his  life. 
His  persecutors  are  not  heathen  foreigners,  but  godless  fellow-country- 
men ;  and  even  his  own  relations  have  deserted  him. 

(2)  The  Psalmist's  imprecations  of  judgement  on  his  enemies  find  a 
close  parallel  in  the  passages  already  referred  to :  and  the  prediction  of 
the  restoration  of  Judah  with  which  the  Psalm  closes  is  a  brief  summary 
of  Jeremiah's  prophecies  collected  in  chaps,  xxx — xxxiii.  The  Psalmist's 
intense  depression  of  spirit  and  sudden  changes  of  feeling  are  very 
characteristic  of  Jeremiah.     Cp.  e.g.,  Jer.  xx.  13. 

(3)  The  language  of  the  Psalm  is  full  of  coincidences  with  the 
language  of  Jeremiah,  which  will  be  pointed  out  in  the  notes. 

In  such  a  case  proof  is  impossible,  but  it  will  give  point  and  reality 
to  the  Psalm,  if  we  hear  in  it  the  voice  of  the  martyr-prophet  to  whom 
was  assigned  the  bitter  task  of  delivering  God's  message  to  a  hardened 
and  impenitent  people,  by  whom  it  was  received  with  indifference  or 
open  contempt :  who,  while  divinely  strengthened  to  deliver  that 
message  with  unflinching  courage,  and  inspired  to  look  forward  with 
unshaken  faith  to  the  rise  of  a  nobler  order  out  of  the  ruins  of  the  old, 
yet  in  moments  of  human  weakness  almost  lost  his  own  personal  trust  in 
God,  and  became  the  prey  of  impatience  and  despair^. 

No  Psalm,  with  the  exception  of  Ps.  xxii,  is  so  frequently  quoted  in 
the  N.T.  The  experience  of  the  Psalmist  {v.  4)  was  'fulfilled'  in  the 
causeless  hatred  of  the  Jews  for  the  Son  of  God  (John  xv.  25).  The 
consuming  zeal  of  Jesus  for  the  honour  of  His  Father's  desecrated  house 
brought  the  words  of  v.  9  to  the  minds  of  His  disciples  (John  ii.  17): 
and  the  rest  of  the  same  verse  is  applied  by  St  Paul  to  Christ,  Who 
pleased  not  Himself,  but  voluntarily  bore  the  reproaches  intended  for 
God  (Rom.  XV.  3).  The  words  of  v.  25  are  combined  with  those  of 
cix.  8  in  Acts  i.  20,  to  describe  the  doom  of  the  traitor ;  and  w. 
22,  23  are  applied  in  Rom.  xi.  9  ff.  to  the  rejection  of  apostate  Israel. 
The  physical  sufferings  of  the  Psalmist  {v.  21)  foreshadowed  those  of 

1  The  wciter  would  refer  to  his  Doctrine  o/the  Prophets,  Lect.  XI.,  for  a  sketch  of 
the  life  and  work  of  Jeremiah. 


398  PSALM    LXIX.  i. 

Christ  (St  John  xix.  28  f.);  and  though  he  does  not  expressly  quote  it, 
the  passage  seems  to  have  been  in  the  mind  of  St  Matthew  (xxvii.  34, 
48)  in  his  description  of  the  Passion.  Vv.  13,  20  point  forward  to  the 
mockery  (Matt,  xxvii.  2  7ff.);  and  as  we  read  v.  26  in  the  light  of  Is. 
liii  and  Zech.  xiii.  7,  its  typical  significance  is  obvious. 

Yet  the  Psalm  is  not  prediction  but  description,  and  much  of  it  is 
plainly  not  applicable  to  Christ.  The  confession  of  sin  in  v.  5,  and  the 
imprecations  of  vengeance  [vv.  22  ff.),  are  wholly  unsuited  to  the  meek 
and  sinless  Jesus.  It  is  prophetic  only  inasmuch  as  the  experience  of 
each  suffering  servant  of  God  who  endured  reproach  and  persecution 
for  God's  sake  under  the  old  covenant  was  in  some  measure  a  type  and 
foreshadowing  of  the  experience  of  the  true  and  perfect  Servant  of  the 
Lord.  Even  the  details  of  their  lives  were  shaped  so  as  to  correspond 
to  details  in  the  life  of  Christ :  and  these  details  serve  to  attract  atten- 
tion and  to  point  to  the  inner  correspondence  by  which  He  gathered  up 
and  'fulfilled'  the  experience  of  the  saints  and  servants  of  God  who  had 
gone  before.  Jeremiah  was  a  type  of  Christ :  but  he  and  others  like 
him  were  but  partial  and  imperfect  types :  there  was  much  in  their  lives 
and  characters  which  shewed  that  they  were  men  compassed  with 
infirmity :  but  in  the  antitype  the  imperfections  disappear,  and  the  true 
Son  of  Man,  the  perfect  Servant  of  the  Lord,  stands  revealed.  On  the 
'Passion  Psalms'  in  general  see  hitrod.  pp.  Ixxix  f. 

For  a  discussion  of  the  imprecations  of  tjv.  21  fF.,  which  startle  and 
shock  the  Christian  reader,  see  Introd.  pp.  Ixxxviii  fF.  Here  it  may  suffice 
to  remark  that  if  the  reader  would  be  fair  to  Jeremiah  (or  the  unknown 
author)  he  must  endeavour  to  realise  the  intense  provocation  to  which 
Jeremiah  was  subjected.  He  must  remember  that  they  are  to  be  judged 
by  the  standard  of  the  Law,  and  not  by  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel.  He 
must  bear  in  mind  that  they  are  not  merely  or  mainly  the  utterance  of 
personal  vindictiveness,  but  the  expression  of  a  burning  desire  for  the 
manifestation  of  the  righteous  judgement  of  God  upon  those  who 
resisted  His  will  and  persecuted  His  servants. 

This  Psalm  should  be  compared  with  Pss.  xxii  and  xl;  it  has  also 
points  of  connexion  with  Pss.  xxxi,  xxxviii,  xliv ;  and  in  its  imprecations 
it  stands  midway  between  Pss.  xxxv  and  cix. 

Its  typical  character  explains  its  selection  as  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Good 
Friday. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Shoshannim,  A  Psalm  of  David. 

69  Save  me,  O  God ;  for  the  waters  are  come  in  unto  my  soul. 

On  the  title  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Shoshannim,  i.e.  lilies^ 
see  note  on  the  title  of  Ps.  xlv. 

1 — 6.  The  Psalmist  appeals  to  God  for  help,  pleading  the  extremity 
of  his  plight. 

1.  the  waters  &c.]  He  is  like  a  drowning  man.  The  flood  of 
calamity  has  risen  till  it  threatens  his  life.  For  the  metaphor  cp.  xviii. 
16;  xxxii.  6;  Ixvi.  12;  cxxiv.  4;  Lam.  iii.  54;  and  for  unto  my  soul 
see  Jer.  iv.  10,  18  ;  Jon.  ii.  5. 


A 


PSALM   LXIX.  2—4.  .399 


I 


I  sink  in  deep  mire,  where  there  is  no  standing :  a 

I  am  come  into  deep  waters,  where  the  floods  overflow  me. 
I  am  weary  of  my  crying  :  my  throat  is  dried :  3 

Mine  eyes  fail  while  /  wait  for  my  God. 
They  that  hate  me  without  a  cause  are  moe  than  the  4 

hairs  of  mine  head : 
They  that  would  destroy  me,  being  mine  enemies  wrongfully, 

are  mighty : 
Then  I  restored  thai  which  I  took  not  away. 

2.  He  is  like  a  man  floundering  in  a  morass  or  quicksand  where 
there  is  no  footing  and  his  struggles  only  plunge  him  deeper,  or  fording 
a  river  and  in  imminent  danger  of  being  swept  away  by  the  current. 
Quagmires,  'treacherous  to  the  last  degree,'  are  common  in  Palestine. 
See  Thomson's  Land  and  the  Book ^  p.  360;  and  Dr  Tristram's  descrip- 
tion of  the  vast  and  impenetrable  swamp  of  Huleh,  where  a  false  step 
off  the  roots  of  the  papyrus  "will  take  the  intinider  over  head  in  suffo- 
cating peat  mud."     Land  of  Israel,  p.  579. 

the  floods  oveijlow  me\  Or,  the  currefit — 'Shibboleth,' Judg.  xii.  6 — 
sweeps  me  away. 

3.  He  is  worn  out  and  exhausted  in  mind  and  body  by  the  pro- 
longed strain  of  prayer  unanswered.  Cp.  xxii.  i,  2,  15;  vi.  7;  Jer.  xlv. 
3;  Ps.  cxix.  82,  1^3;  Lam.  ii.  11,  iv.  17.  For  I  am  weary  0/ Sec, 
render  with  R.V.  I  am  weary  with  my  crying. 

4.  The  number  and  the  virulence  of  his  foes,  and  the  groundlessness 
of  their  hostility.  For  the  language  comp.  xl.  12;  xxxv.  19;  xxxviii. 
19.     The  quotation  in  John  xv.  25  agrees  with  the  LXX. 

moe}  This  archaism  for  'more,'  which  has  disappeared  from  modern 
Bibles,  is  restored  by  Scrivener  in  accordance  with  the  original  edition 
of  1611. 

they  that  would  destroy  me}  R.V.,  they  that  would  cut  me  oflF. 
Ewald  and  others  follow  the  Syr.  in  reading  this  line,  'More  numerous 
than  my  bones  are  they  that  are  mine  enemies  falsely.'  The  parallelism 
of  the  first  two  lines  of  the  verse  is  improved  by  the  change,  which 
involves  only  a  slight  alteration  of  the  consonants ;  but  the  comparison 
is  not  a  natural  one,  and  the  reading  of  the  text  is  supported  by  the  use 
of  the  same  verb  in  Lam.  iii.  53,  in  a  closely  similar  context  (note  w. 

52,  54). 

wrongfully}  \a\..  falsely.  Their  hostility  is  based  upon  misconcep- 
tion and  misrepresentation. 

then  I  restored}  Or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  /  had  to  restore.  'Then  '  may 
refer  to  some  signal  instance  prominent  in  the  Psalmist's  recollection. 

that  which  I  took  not  away}  That  which  I  had  not  plundered.  Perhaps 
a  proverbial  expression  for  the  extreme  of  injured  innocence.  He  was 
accused  of  being  an  extortioner  and  oppressor  of  the  poor  who  must  be 
made  to  disgorge  his  ill-gotten  gains  (Ezek.  xxxiii.  15).  Cp.  Eliphaz' 
charges  against  Job  (xxii.  6  ff.),  and  Zophar's  picture  of  the  wicked  man 
compelled  to  make  restitution  (xx.  18  ff.). 


400  PSALM   LXIX.  5—9. 


5  O  God,  thou  knowest  my  foolishness ; 
And  my  sins  are  not  hid  from  thee. 

6  Let  not  them  that  wait  on  thee,  O  Lord  God  of  hosts,  be 

ashamed  for  my  sake : 
Let  not  thoselhat  seek  thee  be  confounded  for  my  sake,  O 
God  of  Israel. 

7  Because  for  thy  sake  I  have  borne  reproach ; 
Shame  hath  covered  my  face. 

8  I  am  become  a  stranger  unto  my  brethren, 
And  an  alien  unto  my  mother's  children. 

9  For  the  zeal  ofthine  house  hath  eaten  me  up; 

6,  6.  Chastisement  is  not  undeserved;  but  he  commits  himself  to 
the  mercy  of  the  Omniscient,  and  pleads  for  a  hearing  on  the  ground 
that  the  cause  of  all  God's  servants  is  bound  up  with  liis  cause.  If 
he  is  abandoned  they  must  be  discouraged  and  exposed  to  the  contempt 
of  the  world. 

T/iou  is  emphatic.  Similar  appeals  to  God's  omniscience  are  charac- 
teristic of  Jeremiah  (ch.  xii.  3;  xv.  15;  xvii.  16;  xviii.  23).  Sin  is  de- 
signated as  'foolishness'  in  Ps.  xxxviii.  5,  where,  as  here,  the  Psalmist 
acknowledges  that  his  sufferings  are  the  chastisement  of  his  sin.  This 
is  the  only  other  passage  in  which  the  word  occurs,  except  in  the  Book 
of  Proverbs,  where  it  is  common. 

sins]     lAt.  guiltines3€S\  cp.  Ixviii.  ^i. 

6.     Let  not  those  that  wait  on  thee  be  ashamed  tlirough  me, 
0  Lord,  Jehovah  of  hosts : 
Let  not  those  that  seek  thee  he  brought  to  dishonour  through 
me,  0  God  of  Israel. 
Cp.    XXV.    3  ;   xxxviii.    15,    16.  The   divine   titles   are   significant. 

They  appeal  to  God's  sovereignty  and  to  His  relation  to  His  people. 
Surely,  since  He  has  the  power  to  prevent  it,  He  cannot  leave  the  true 
Israel  to  be  the  scorn  of  its  foes,  as  will  happen  through  nu^  or,  in 
my  case^  if  I  am  left  to  perish  unregarded. 

7 — 12.  Such  discouragement  must  be  the  inevitable  consequence  if 
he  is  abandoned,  for  it  is  for  God's  sake  that  he  is  persecuted  and 
defamed.     Comp.  the  plea  of  the  nation  in  xliv.  14  ff. 

7.     So  Jeremiah  pleads,  "Know that  for  thy  sake  I  bear  reproach" 
(xv.  15).  shame  &c.]  cp.  xliv.  15. 

8.  Even  his  nearest  relations  treat  him  as  a  stranger  and  a  foreigner, 
Cp.  xxxviii.  11;  Job  xix.  i3ff. ;  Jer.  xii.  6. 

my  mother's  children]  The  sons  of  my  own  mother  expresses  a  closer 
degree  of  relationship  than  my  brethreti,  the  children  of  the  same  mother 
being  always  regarded  as  bound  to  one  another  by  a  closer  tie  than 
those  of  the  same  father  by  different  mothers.     Cp.  1.  20. 

9.  His  jealousy  for  the  honour  of  God's  house  was  like  a  consuming 
fire  within  him.     Cp.  cxix.   139;  xxxix.  3;  Jer.  xx.  9.     It  is  difficult  to 


* 


PSALM    LXIX.  IO-I2.  40, 


And  the  reproaches  of  them  that  reproached  thee 

are  fallen  upon  me. 
When  I  wept,  and  chastened  my  soul  with  fasting, 
That  was  to  my  reproach. 
I  made  sackcloth  also  my  garment ; 
And  I  became  a  proverb  to  them. 
They  that  sit  in  the  gate  speak  against  me; 

determine  whether  'thine  house'  means  the  Temple  only,  or  as  in  Num 
xii  7,  Hos.  vm  I,  bears  the  wider  meaning  of  the  land  or  the  people 
of  Israel,  (i)  In  the  former  case  the  reference  may  be  to  the  burning 
mdignation  which  was  stirred  by  the  sight  of  abominations  such  as  thosi 
which  Ezekiel  describes  as  polluting  the  Temple  (ch.  viii);  and  it  is 
noteworthy  that  he  particularly  mentions  "the  image  of  jealousy  which 
proyoketh  to  jealousy."  i.e.  some  image  or  symbol  which  was  a  direct 
challenge  of  the  "jealous  God"  who  could  brook  no  rival,  and  which 
must  have  stirred  the  grief  and  indignation  of  His  faithful  servants.  (2) 
In  the  latter  case  it  is  the  general  condition  of  the  nation,  the  contrast 
between  its  calling  to  be  a  holy  nation  and  the  universal  corruption 
prevalent,  which  stirs  his  deepest  emotion.  This  alternative  gains  some 
support  from  Jeremiah's  usage  (xi.  15;  xii.  7;  xxiii.  n). 

The  zeal  of  Christ  for  His  Father's  desecrated  house  recalled  these 
words  to  the  minds  of  His  disciples  (John  ii.  ,7:  the  reading  of  the 
true  text  follows  the  LXX  (b),  shall  eat  me  vp). 

the  reproaches  &c.]  Better  as  R.V.,  the  reproaches  of  them  that 
reproach  thee  are  faUen  upon  me.  On  the  one  hand  their  blasphemies 
against  God  wound  and  crush  the  spirit  of  His  servant;  and  on  the  other 
hand  they  shew  their  contempt  for  God  by  their  mockery  of  His  servant, 
buch  was  Jeremiah's  experience:  his  contemporaries  mocked  God's 
message,  and  mocked  him  for  delivering  it  (ch.  vi.  10;  xx.  8) :  such  too 
was  the  experience  of  Christ  Himself,  to  whom  St  Paul  applies  these 
words  in  Rom.  xv.  3.  ^^ 

10,  11.     When  I  wept,  (and  chastened)  my  soul  with  fasting, 
It  was  turned  to  reproaches  for  me : 
When  I  made  sackcloth  my  clothing, 
I  became  a  byword  unto  them. 
In  shame  and  penitence  for  the  dishonour  done  by  his  countrymen  to 
God,  he  fasted  and  mourned ;  but  they  only  mocked  and  derided  him 
lor  doing  what  they  ought  to  have  done  themselves  (Jer.  iv.  8;  vi    26) 
The  construction  of  the  iirst  line  is  anomalous.     Probably  the  word 
for  'wept    IS  a  corruption  of  some  word  for  'humbled'  (xxxv.  la)  or 
'chastened.'  For  <^j7//or«' cp.  xliv.  14. 

12.     They  that  sit  in  the  gate  talk  of  me, 

And  the  songs  of  them  that  drink  strong  drink  (make  sport 
of  me). 
In  the  gate  where  men  gather  to  hear  the  last  gossip  as  well  as  to 
transact  business  (ix.  14;  Jer.  xvii.  19 f.)  he  is  the  talk  of  the  city:  his 

PSALMS  26 


IS 


402  PSALM   LXIX.  13—16. 


And  /  was  the  song  of  the  drunkards. 
13  But  as  for  me,  my  prayer  is  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  /«_a^n 
acceptable  time : 
O  God,  in  the  multitude  of  thy  mercy  hear  me,  injthe  truth 
of  thy  salvation.  ^ 

M  Deliver  me  out  of  the  mire,  and  let  me  not  sink : 
Let  me  be  delivered  from  them  that  hate  me,  and  out  of 
the  deep  waters. 
'5  Let  not  the  waterflood  overflow  me, 
Neither  let  the  deep  swallow  me  up, 
And  let  not  the  pit  shut  her  mouth  upon  me. 
16  Hear  me,  O  Lord  ;  for  thy  lovingkindness  is  good  ; 
Turn  unto  me  according  to  the  multitude  of  thy  tender 
mercies. 


austerities  and  oddities  furnish  a  subject  for  the  latest  comic  song  of  the 
revellers'  parties.  Cp.  Lam.  iii.  14;  Job  xxx.  9;  Is.  v.  11,  i-z,  22;  Am. 
vi.  4  ff. 

13 — 18.  From  the  hardheartedness  of  men  he  turns  to  the  mercy  of 
God. 

13.  It  is  best  to  divide  the  clauses  somewhat  differently: 
But  as  for  me,  my  prayer  Is  unto  thee,  0  Jehovah, 

At  the  time  thou  pleasest,  0  God,  in  the  abundance  of  thy 
lovingkindness, 

Answer  me  in  the  truth  of  thy  salvation. 

In  an  acceptable  timCy  lit.  a  time  of  good  pleasure  (xl.  13;  li.  18)  is 
most  naturally  connected  vv'ith  answer  me,  as  in  Is.  xlix.  8,  "  In  an 
acceptable  time  have  I  answered  thee."  He  cannot  tell  that  it  is  yet 
God  s  will  to  deliver  him,  but  he  can  be  sure  that  the  time  will  come, 
for  God  has  revealed  Himself  to  be  a  God  "abundant  in  lovingkindness 
and  truth"  (Ex.  xxxiv.  6),  and  if  He  is  true  to  His  character,  He  must 
save  His  servant.     Cp.  li.  i. 

14,  15.  In  his  prayer  he  repeats  the  words  which  he  had  previously 
used  to  describe  his  plight  (vv.  2,  4).  It  is  difficult  to  see  why  the  R.  V. 
has  substituted  overwhelm  for  overflow  here  and  not  in  v.  2,  the  Heb. 
word  being  the  same  in  both  cases. 

let  not  the  pit  &c.]  Either  the  grave  (Iv.  23),  or  a  dungeon  (Lam. 
iii.  53,  55),  may  be  meant.  In  the  latter  case  Jeremiah's  experience 
(ch.  xxxviii.  6)  may  have  suggested  the  metaphor;  but  the  words  are 
not  to  be  understood  literally  of  release  from  Malchiah's  dungeon. 

16.    Hear  me]    Answer  me. 

for  thy  lovingkindness  is  good]    So  cix.  21. 

turn  unto  me  &c.]  According  to  the  abundance  of  thy  compassions 
turn  thee  unto  me.    Cp.  li.  i  note;  Lam.  iii.  3^.    'Turning'  or  'look- 


PSALM    LXIX.  17-21.  403 

And  hide  not  thy  face  from  thy  servant;  17 

For  I  am  in  trouble  :  hear  me  speedily. 

Draw  nigh  unto  my  soul,  and  redeem  it :  »8 

Dehver  me  because  of  mine  enemies. 

Thou  hast  known  my  reproach,  and  my  shame,  and  my  19 

dishonour: 
Mine  adversaries  are  all  before  thee. 
Reproach  hath  broken  my  heart ;  and  I  am  full  of  heavi-  20 

ness : 
And  I  looked ^r  some  to  take  pity,  but  there  was  none  ; 
And  for  comforters,  but  I  found  none. 

They  gave  me  also  gall  for  my  meat ;  ai 

And  in  my  thirst  they  gave  me  vinegar  to  drink. 

ing'  unto  him  (xxv.  16;  cxix.  132)  is  the  opposite  of  that  'hiding  of 
God's  face'  which  he  deprecates  in  the  next  verse. 

17.  The  Psalmist  pleads  his  calling:  surely  God  cannot  continue  to 
withhold  His  favour  and  help  from  one  who  is  bound  to  His  service 
and  devoted  to  His  cause.  The  plea  would  have  special  force  if  the 
Psalmist  was  a  prophet  like  Jeremiah  (Am.  iii.  7).  Cp.  xxvii.  9;  xxxi. 
16;  xliv.  24;  &c. 

for  I  am  in  trouble  &c.]  Because  I  am  in  a  strait,  answer  me 
speedily. 

18.  Draw  nigh]  Cp.  the  acknowledgement  of  answered  prayer  in 
Lam.  iii.  57,  58,  'Thou  drewest  nigh  in  the  day  when  I  called  upon 
thee. ..thou  redeemedst  my  life." 

deliver  me]     Or,  as  R.V.,  ransom  me.     Cp.  Jer.  xv.  21. 

because  of  mine  enemies]  Who  will  triumph  if  I  am  abandoned 
to  their  malice,  and  by  whose  triumph  the  honour  of  the  God  whom  I 
seive  will  suffer.     Cp.  xiii.  4. 

19 — 21.  Once  more  he  lays  before  God  the  severity  of  his  sufferings, 
and  the  inhumanity  of  his  enemies. 

19.  Thou  hast  known]  Rather,  THOU  knowest.  Thou,  as  in  v.  5, 
is  emphatic.  See  note  there  for  references  to  Jeremiah's  use  of  this 
phrase. 

all  before  thee]  They  are  all  in  Thy  sight.  He  pleads  with  God  as  he 
might  with  men,  who  are  more  easily  moved  to  pity  by  the  sight  of 
suffering  than  by  merely  hearing  of  it. 

20.  hath  broken  my  heart]     Cp.  Jer.  xxiii.  9. 

/  am  full  ef  heaviness^  Or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  sore  sick.  A  cognate  word 
is  frequently  used  in  Jer.,  e.g.  xv.  18,  A.V.  incurable. 

and  J  looked  &c.]  Or,  and  I  waited  for  some  to  sympathise^  but  there 
wcLs  no  one. 

21.  This  verse  is  connected  with  the  preceding  one.  Not  content 
with  merely  refusing   sympathy,  they  aggravated  and  embittered   his 

26 — 2 


404  PSALM    LXIX.  22. 


Let  their  table  become  a  snare  before  them: 
And  that  which  should  have  been  for  their  welfare, 
let  it  become  a.  trap. 

sufferings,  as  though  one  were  to  mock  a  hungry  man  by  offering  him 
bitter  and  poisonous  food,  or  a  thirsty  man  by  giving  him  sour  and  un- 
drinkable  wine.  The  language  is  plainly  metaphorical:  cp.  Jer.  viii. 
14;  ix.  15;  xxiii.  15.  The  Heb.  word  rosA,  rendered  ^a// (LXX  xoM» 
Vulg.  and  Jer.  /e/),  denotes  some  bitter  and  poisonous  plant,  which 
cannot  however  be  identified  with  certainty.  Tristram  {}/aL  Hist,  of 
Bible ^  p.  447)  thinks  that  the  Poppy  is  the  plant  intended.  *' Papaver 
arenarium  grows  everywhere  in  Palestine;  it  springs  up  very  quickly 
in  cornfields,  and  its  juice  is  most  bitter  and  poisonous." 

Vinegar  cannot  here  mean  the  thin  sour  wine  which  was  used  as  a 
refreshing  beverage  (Num.  vi.  3;  Ruth  ii.  14),  but  such  as  had  gone 
bad  and  become  nauseous  and  unfit  to  drink. 

Allusion  seems  to  be  made  to  this  passage  in  St  Matthew's  account  of 
the  Crucifixion  (xxvii.  34),  though  it  is  not  actually  quoted  ;  and  St 
John  expressly  says  that  the  cry  "I  thirst"  was  uttered  "that  the  scrip- 
ture might  be  accomplished^," 

22 — 28.  At  the  thought  of  the  intolerable  inhumanity  of  his  enemies 
he  can  no  longer  restrain  himself,  and  breaks  out  into  fierce  imprecation. 
Some  commentators,  feeling  the  difficulty  of  such  imprecations 
proceeding  from  the  Psalmist,  have  regarded  these  verses  as  the  utter- 
ance of  the  Psalmist's  enemies,  invoking  destruction  upon  him  and  his 
companions.  But  such  an  interpretation  is  unnatural:  the  pronouns 
•their'  and  'they'  in  vv.  22 ff.  cannot  have  a  different  reference  from 
*  they '  in  z/.  2 1 . 

22,     Let  their  table  before  them  become  a  snare; 

Yea,  -when  they  are  at  peace,  let  it  become  a  trap. 

The  language  is  suggested  by  the  metaphors  of  the  preceding  verse. 
They  had  aggravated  the  sufferings  of  a  joyless  life :  let  their  own  enjoy- 
ments turn  to  their  ruin.  The  idea  of  the  transformation  of  their  table 
into  a  snare  becomes  more  intelligible  if  it  is  remembered  that  the  table 
meant  was  probably  a  piece  of  leather  unrolled  and  spread  upon  the 
ground,  such  as  is  still  used  in  the  East.  The  curse  is  intensified  by  the 
prayer  that  this  fate  may  overtake  them  while  they  are  in  unsuspecting 
security.  Cp.  i  Thess.  v.  3.  The  rendering  of  the  A.V.,  which  is 
substantially  the  same  as  that  of  the  P.B.V.,  is  untenable.  It  was  intro- 
duced into  the  'Great  Bible'  from  Miinster's  Latin  Version  et  quae  in 
paceni  {esse  debuerant  sint)  in  offendiculum,  and  was  doubtless  derived 
by  him  from  the  Jewish  scholar  Kimchi. 

The  quotation  of  this  verse  in  Rom.  xi.  9  is  made  freely  from  the 
LXX,  supplemented  probably  by  a  reminiscence  of  xxxv.  8  (xxxiv). 
The  following  verse  is  quoted  exactly  as  it  stands  in  the  LXX. 

1  The  'Gospel  of  Peter'  (ch.  5)  represents  the  potion  of  "gall  with  vinegar"  as 
poison  administered  to  hasten  death. 


PSALM    LXIX.  23—27.  405 


Let  their  eyes  be  darkened,  that  they  see  not;  23 

And  make  their  loins  continually  to  shake. 

Pour  out  thine  indignation  upon  them,  24 

And  let  thy  wrathful  anger  take  hold  of  them. 

Let  their  habitation  be  desolate;  25 

And  let  none  dwell  in  their  tents. 

For  they  persecute  him  whom  thou  hast  smitten ;  26 

And  they  talk  to  the  grief  of  those  whom  thou  hast  wounded- 

Add  iniquity  unto  their  iniquity  :  27 

And  let  them  not  come  into  thy  righteousness. 

23.  Let  the  eyes  which  gloated  over  another's  misfortunes  be 
blinded :  let  the  limbs  which  are  the  seat  of  the  strength  they  have 
abused  be  palsied. 

24.  Cp.  Ixxix.  6;  Jer.  x.  25.  and  let  &c.]  R.V.,  and  let  the 
fierceness  of  thine  anger  overtake  them. 

25.  their  habitation']  Rather,  as  R.V.  marg.,  their  encampment; 
cp.  Gen.  XXV.  16;  Num.  xxxi.  10;  Ezek.  xxv.  4  (R.V.).  The  language 
is  a  survival  from  the  habits  of  nomad  life,  with  which  however  the 
Israelites  must  always  have  been  familiar.  Cp.  Jer.  iv.  20 ;  x.  10.  To 
the  Oriental  no  prospect  was  more  terrible  than  that  of  the  complete 
extermination  of  his  family.     Cp.  Job  xviii.  19;  Prov.  xiv.  11. 

The  quotation  in  Acts  i.  lo  is  a  free  adaptation  of  the  LXX. 

26.  For  they  persecute  Sic.]  They  had  no  commission  to  aggravate 
the  sufferings  of  one  who  was  already  smitten  with  the  rod  of  chastise- 
ment by  God  Himself  We  think  of  Job  and  his  friends  (xix.  21,  22),  and 
of  the  Suffering  Servant  of  Jehovah  (Is.  liii.  4).     Cp.  Is.  xlvii.  6. 

they  talk  to  the  grief]  R.V.,  they  tell  of  the  sorrow,  or  as  marg., 
the  pain.  The  LXX  and  Syr.  represent  a  reading  which  suits  the 
parallelism  better:  '■Hhey  add  to  the  sorrow." 

him  whom  thou  hast  smitten]  The  plural  of  the  next  line  suggests 
the  rendering  those  whom  &c.,  which  the  Heb.  admits:  but  the  A.V. 
follows  the  Ancient  Versions  in  giving  the  singular. 

those  whom  thou  hast  wounded]  Cp.  cix.  22,  "my  heart  is  wounded 
within  me."     Note  that  the  Psalmist  is  not  alone  in  his  suffering. 

27.  Some  commentators,  retaining  the  A.V.  rendering  of  v.  26, 
regard  w.  27,  28  as  the  words  of  the  Psalmist's  enemies,  directed 
against  him  and  his  fellow  sufferers.  This  interpretation  has  been  advo- 
cated, as  removing  from  the  mouth  of  the  Psalmist  at  any  rate  the  most 
terrible  anathemas.  But  perplexing  as  it  may  be,  it  is  far  more  natural 
to  see  in  these  verses  the  climax  of  his  imprecations. 

Add  iniquity  &c.]  Instead  of  taking  away  their  iniquities  by  forgive- 
ness, let  one  iniquity  accumulate  upon  another  till  they  are  crushed  by 
the  load.     Cp.  xxxviii.  4;  Jer.  xviii.  23. 

let  them  not  come  into  thy  righteousness]  Let  them  have  no  share  in 
the  manifestation  of  that  righteousness  or  faithfulness  to  His  covenant 
in  virtue  of  which  Jehovah  pardons  sin  and  delivers  from  danger.  Cp. 
V.  8;  Ixxi.  2,  15,  19,  24. 


4o6  PSALM    LXIX.  28—33. 

28  Let  them  be  blotted  out  of  the  book  of  the  living, 
And  not  be  written  with  the  righteous. 

29  But  I  am  poor  and  sorrowful : 

Let  thy  salvation,  O  God,  set  me  up  on  higli. 

30  I  will  praise  the  name  of  God  with  a  song ; 
And  will  magnify  him  with  thanksgiving. 

31  This  also  shall  please  the  Lord  better  than  an  ox 
Or  bullock  that  hath  horns  and  hoofs. 

32  The  humble  shall  see  thisy  and  be  glad : 
And  your  heart  shall  live  that  seek  God. 

33  For  the  Lord  heareth  the  poor, 

28.  the  book  of  the  living\  Or,  as  R.V.,  the  book  of  life.  The  figure 
is  borrowed  from  the  lists  or  registers  of  citizens  (Jer.  xxii.  30;  Ezek. 
xiii.  9).  God  has  a  book  in  which  the  names  of  those  who  are  to  be 
preserved  alive  are  inscribed.  The  righteous  have  their  names  recorded 
in  it  (cp.  Hab.  ii.  4).  May  the  names  of  these  malefactors  be  struck 
out,  or  never  inserted  there!  May  they  be  deprived  of  their  privileges 
as  Israelites !  May  they  perish  and  be  utterly  forgotten !  Cp.  Ex. 
xxxii.  32;  Is.  iv.  3;  Dan.  xii.  i.  But — and  this  mitigates  what  would 
otherwise  be  the  awful  character  of  the  imprecation — 'the  book  of  life' 
is  not  here  to  be  understood  in  the  full  N.T.  sense  as  'the  book  of 
eternal  life'  (Luke  x.  20;  Phil.  iv.  3;  Rev.  iii.  5;  xiii.  8;  xvii.  8;  xx.  12). 

29 — 36.  In  contrast  to  the  fate  which  his  enemies  deserve,  the 
Psalmist  looks  forward  to  his  own  deliverance,  and  predicts  the  restora- 
tion of  Jerusalem  and  the  reestablishment  there  of  the  true  people  of 
God.  Such  a  sudden  change  of  tone  is  quite  characteristic  of  Jeremiah, 
e.g.  XX.  13. 

29.  But  as  for  me,  who  am  afflicted  and  sore  pained, 
Thy  salvation,  0  God,  shall  set  me  up  on  high. 

The  verb  may  be  rendered  as  a  prayer  (A.V.),  or  as  an  expression  of 
confidence  (P.B.V.).  God's  deliverance  will  set  him  as  it  were  in  a  high 
fortress,  out  of  the  reach  of  his  enemies.     Cp.  lix.  i  note. 

31.    And  it  shall  please  Jehovah  better  than  an  ox, 
(Or)  a  bullock  that  hath  horns  and  hoofs. 

The  Massoretic  accentuation  makes  one  clause  of  the  verse,  reading 
it  better  than  an  ox-bullock :  but  the  division  of  the  clauses  adopted  by 
R.V.  is  preferable.  The  epithets  are  not  merely  ornamental :  the  horns 
shew  that  the  animal  is  of  full  age ;  the  hoofs  allude  to  the  definition  of 
'clean'  animals  in  Lev.  xi.  3  ff.  But  spiritual  sacrifices  of  praise  and 
thanksgiving  are  more  acceptable  than  the  most  perfect  animal  victim. 
Cp.  Pss.  1,  li. 

82.    When  the  meek  see  it,  they  shall  be  glad : 
Ye  that  seek  after  God,  let  your  heart  revive. 

Cp.  xxii.  26,  and  with  v.  33  cp.  xxii.  24. 

33.    thepoor\    R.V.  the  needy,  as  ix.  18,  Jer.  xx.  13,  and  frequently. 


PSALM    LXIX.  34-36.     LXX.  407 

And  despiseth  not  his  prisoners. 

Let  the  heaven  and  earth  praise  him,  34 

The  seas,  and  every  thing  that  moveth  therein. 

For  God  will  save  Zion,  35 

And  will  build  the  cities  of  Judah  : 

That  they  may  dwell  there,  and  have  it  in  possession. 

The  seed  also  of  his  servants  shall  inherit  it ;  36 

And  they  that  love  his  name  shall  dwell  therein. 

his  prisoners]  Though  He  has  cast  them  into  the  prison  of  captivity 
for  their  sins,  He  will  not  reject  their  pxayers.  Cp.  xxii.  24;  cii.  17, 
10 ;  cvii.  10  ff.  After  the  capture  of  the  city  in  B.C.  597,  all  the  best 
part  of  the  nation  was  carried  into  captivity. 

34.  All  creation  is  summoned  to  join  in  a  chorus  of  praise  to  God 
for  the  redemption  of  Zion,  for  it  is  an  event  of  universal  significance. 
Cp.  Is.  xliv.  23. 

35.  So  Jeremiah  couples  'Jerusalem  and  the  cities  of  Judah,*  xxxiii. 
10  ff.,  xxxiv.  7:  and  the  prediction  of  restoration  corresponds  to  the 
prophecies  collected  in  his  'Book  of  Consolation,'  chaps,  xxx — xxxiii. 
The  language  does  not  presume  that  Jerusalem  was  already  in  ruins, 
any  more  than  do  those  prophecies. 

that  they  may  dwell  there]     Better,  and  men  shall  abide  there. 

36.  Cp.  Is.  Ixv.  9,  23. 

they  that  love  his  name']  Cp.  v.  11;  cxix.  132.  The  citizens  of  Zion 
will  all  be  true  Israelites,  faithfully  observing  the  first  and  great  com- 
mandment of  the  law  (Deut.  vi.  4,  5,  13). 


PSALM   LXX. 

This  short  prayer  for  speedy  help  and  the  discomfiture  of  malicious 
enemies  is  a  repetition  of  Ps.  xl.  13 — 17  with  some  slight  variations. 
yehovah  has  been  changed  to  God  in  vv.  la,  \c,  and  Lord  to  God  in  5<^, 
according  to  the  usual  practice  of  the  editor  of  the  Elohistic  collection ; 
but  Jehovah  has  been  retained  in  z/.  ib  and  substituted  for  my  God  in 
V.  e,d  for  the  sake  of  variety,  where  God  occurs  in  the  same  verse.  In 
other  respects  Ps.  xl  appears  to  present  a  more  original  text.  On  the 
relation  of  these  verses  to  the  rest  of  Ps.  xl,  see  Introd.  to  that  Psalm. 
Probably,  as  the  title  suggests,  they  were  detached  from  Ps.  xl  for 
liturgical  purposes. 

The  title  to  brimr  to  remembrafice,  prefixed  also  to  Ps.  xxxviii,  has 
commonly  been  explained  to  refer  to  the  contents  of  the  Psalm,  either 
as  a  record  of  suffering,  or  as  a  prayer  intended  to  bring  the  suppliant 
to  God's  remembrance.  But  more  probably  it  should  be  rendered,  to 
make  metnorial  (R.V.  marg.),  or,  for  making  the  memorial  (LXX  d% 
dvdfxvr]ai.v  as  in  Lev.  xxiv.  7  ;  cp.  Num.  x.  10),  and  explained  as  a  note 
of  the  liturgical  use  of  the  Psalm  either  in  connexion  with  the  offering 
of  incense,  or  at  the  offering  of  the  Azkdrd.     (i)  The  phrase  to  make  a 


4o8  PSALM    LXX.  1—3. 


memorial  of  incense  occurs  in  Is.  Ixvi.  3 ;  and  for  the  connexion  of 
prayer  with  offering  of  incense  see  Num.  xvi.  46  ff.;  Luke  i.  9,  10. 
The  Targum  suggests  this  reference  in  its  double  rendering,  To  remember 
concerning  the  use  of  incense.  (2)  The  Azkdrd  or  Memorial  was  a 
technical  term  in  the  Levitical  ritual  (a)  for  the  portion  of  the  'meal- 
offering'  mixed  with  oil  and  burnt  with  incense  on  the  altar  (Lev.  ii.  2) ; 
{b)  for  the  incense  placed  on  the  shewbread  and  afterwards  burnt  (Lev. 
xxiv.  7).  Though  probably  the  term  originally  meant  only  'a  fragrant 
offering'  (see  Dillmann  on  Lev.  ii.  2),  it  was  interpreted  to  mean  *a 
memorial'  (LXX  fxvrjfwawou,  Vulg.  mevioHale)  as  bringing  the  offerer 
to  God's  remembrance.  There  may  be  an  allusion  to  the  use  of  Psalms 
in  connexion  with  the  Azkdrd  in  i  Chr.  xvi.  4,  where  to  celebrate  (R.V.) 
is  the  same  word  as  that  used  here. 

The  liturgical  use  of  the  Psalm  must  have  arisen  in  days  of  national 
distress  and  persecution,  and  implies  the  application  of  the  Psalm  to  the 
nation.  A  hint  of  this  national  application  is  given  in  the  Targum  of 
V.  la,  "O  God  make  haste  to  deliver  us." 


To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  of  David,  to  bring  to  remembrance. 

70  Make  haste^  O  God,  to  deliver  me ; 
Make  haste  to  help  me,  O  Lord. 

2  Let  them  be  ashamed  and  confounded  that  seek  after  my 

soul : 
Let  them  be  turned  backward,  and  put  to  confusion,  that 
desire  my  hurt. 

3  Let  them  be  turned  back  for  a  reward  of  their  shame 

1.  Make  haste]  The  words,  as  the  italics  indicate,  are  not  in  the 
Hebrew ;  and  as  the  text  stands,  we  must  either  supply  make  haste  from 
the  next  line,  or  render  according  to  the  Heb.  idiom  found  in  Is. 
xxxviii.  20,  God  is  ready  to  deliver  me.  But  probably  the  first  word  of 
the  verse  as  it  stands  in  xl.  13  should  be  restored,  Be  pleased.  This 
word  would  be  a  link  of  connexion  with  Ixix.  13,  in  a  time  when  thou 
pleasest.  make  haste  to  help  me\     Cp.  xxii.  19;  xxxviii.  22. 

2.  The  whole  verse  is  a  repetition,  with  variations,  of  xxxv.  4,  26 
(cp.  xxxviii.  12);  and  z'z/.  3 — 5  recall  t/v.  21,  25,  27,  10,  of  the  same 
Psalm. 

that  seek  after  my  soul]    Or,  that  seek  my  life.     The  text  of  Ps. 
xl.  13  is  fuller,  'Let  them  be...  con  founded  together... my  life  to  destroy  it. ^ 
let  them  be  turned  backward  &c.]     Render  with  R.V., 

Let  them  be  turned  backward  and  brought  to  dishonour 

That  delight  in  my  hurt. 
With  the  last  line  contrast  xxxv.  27. 

3.  Let  thc?n  be  turned  back]  Let  them  turn  back,  retreating  after 
their  ignominious  repulse  {v.  2).  Cp.  vi.  10.  The  reading  of  xl.  15  is 
let  them  be  desolate.  The  difference  probably  arose  out  of  a  confusion 
between  the  letters  M  and  B  (121^^— IDt^'"'),  but  may  be  due  to  intentional 


PSALM    LXX.  4,  5.     LXXI.  409 

That  say,  Aha,  aha. 

Let  all  those  that  seek  thee  rejoice  and  be  glad  in  thee :        4 

And  let  such  as  love  thy  salvation  say  continually.  Let  God 

be  magnified. 
But  I  am  poor  and  needy  :  make  haste  unto  me,  O  God  :      s 
Thou  art  my  help  and  my  deliverer ; 
O  Lord,  make  no  tarrying. 

alteration.  for  a  reward  of  their  shame"]     Better  as  R.V.,  by 

reason  of  their  shajne,  being  foiled  in  their  malicious  plans. 

Ahay  aha]  An  exclamation  of  malicious  pleasure  at  another's  mis- 
fortune. Cp.  XXXV.  21,  25.  The  text  of  xl.  15  reads  'that  say  zm/o 
me*;  and  so  the  LXX  here,  from  which  it  has  passed  through  the  Vulg. 
into  the  P.B.V.,  'that  cry  over  me.' 

4.  Cp.  XXXV.  27.  The  discomfiture  of  the  wicked  gives  occasion  for 
the  righteous  to  rejoice  in  God,  not  only  because  they  are  set  free  from 
persecution,  but  because  they  see  in  it  the  proof  of  God's  righteous 
sovereignty  and  the  unfolding  of  His  purposes  of  salvation. 

such  as  love  thy  salvation]  Cp.  "they  that  love  his  name"  (Ixix.  36) ; 
and  the  corresponding  N.T.  thought  in  2  Tim.  iv.  8. 

5.  But  1 8ic.]  But  as  for  me,  who  am  afllicted  and  needy.  Cp. 
Ixix.  29,  33;  ix.  18;  XXXV.  ro;  xxxvii.  14;  Ixxxvi.  i;  cix.  22. 

make  haste  unto  me,  O  God]  So  cxli.  i.  The  text  of  xl.  17,  "The 
Lord  will  take  thought  for  me,"  glancing  back  at  "  thy  thoughts  to  us- 
ward"  in  v.  5,  is  probably  the  original  reading.  The  variation  here 
may  have  been  introduced  for  the  sake  of  closer  parallelism  to  make  no 
tarrying.  my  help^  as  xxxiii.  20:  my  deliverer^  as  xviii.  2,  48,  a 

different  word  from  that  used  in  z/.  i. 

O  Lord]     In  xl.  17,  0  my  God.  make  no  tarrying]     Cp. 

Daniel's  prayer  (ix.  19,  A.V.  defer  not),  and  the  promise  in  Is.  xlvi.  13. 


PSALM   LXXI. 

Though  this  Psalm,  like  Ps.  Ixxxvi,  is  little  more  than  a  mosaic  of  frag- 
ments and  reminiscences  of  other  Psalms,  especially  xxii,  xxxi,  xxxv,  xl, 
it  possesses  a  singular  beauty  and  tenderness  of  its  own.  It  is  the  utter- 
ance of  a  faith  which  has  proved  the  goodness  of  God  in  a  life  of  many 
trials,  and  trusts  to  experience  it  to  the  end.  It  is  fitly  chosen  for  use  in 
the  Order  for  the  Visitation  of  the  Sick, 

Some  commentators  regard  it  as  a  'national'  Psalm,  taking  the  plural 
'us'  in  V.  20  (R.V.)  as  the  key  to  its  interpretation,  and  supposing  the 
speaker  to  be  not  an  individual,  but  suffering  Israel.  The  language  of 
V7>.  5,  6,  9,  17,  is  not  a  fatal  objection  to  this  theory;  for  many  passages 
speak  of  the  birth  and  youth  and  old  age  of  Israel  (cxxix.  i ;  Hos.  vii.  9, 
xi.  I ;  Jer,  ii.  2 ;  Is.  xlvi.  3,  4).  But  the  transition  from  the  singular  to  the 
plural  in  z/.  20  is  no  proof  that  the  Psalm  as  a  whole  is  the  utterance  of 


4IO  PSALM    LXXI.  i,  2. 


the  nation.  It  was  most  natural  that  the  Psalmist  should  pass  from  the 
thought  of  his  own  needs  to  the  thought  of  the  needs  of  the  nation,  in 
whose  calamity  he  was  involved.  Doubtless  the  language  of  the  Psalm 
is  such  as  could  be  adopted  by  others,  or  even  by  the  godly  nucleus  of 
Israel  as  a  whole ;  but  it  bears  in  the  main  the  stamp  of  a  personal  and 
individual  meditation. 

As  to  authorship  and  date,  all  that  can  be  said  is  that  apparently  the 
Psalmist  was  an  old  man  {vv.  9,  18),  and  that  Israel  was  in  exile  {v.  20). 
The  latter  part  of  the  LXX  title,  '[A  Psalm]  of  the  sons  of  Jonadab 
and  those  who  were  first  carried  captive,'  may  preserve  an  authentic 
tradition  of  its  use  in  the  exile.  It  has  been  attributed  to  Jeremiah  on 
the  grounds  (i)  that  the  free  use  of  earlier  Psalms  is  entirely  in  his  style; 
(2)  that  w.  5,  6  refer  to  his  call  (Jer.  i.  5)  and  v.  21  to  the  dignity  of  his 
office,  and  that  the  general  situation  of  the  Psalmist  corresponds  to  that 
of  the  persecuted  prophet;  (3)  that  his  authorship  would  account  for  the 
use  of  this  Psalm  by  the  Rechabites,  with  whom  he  had  been  brought 
into  such  close  connexion  (Jer.  xxxv).  If  it  was  composed  by  Jeremiah, 
it  must  have  been  in  the  latest  period  of  his  Ufe,  when  he  had  been 
carried  down  into  Egypt  after  the  Fall  of  Jerusalem ;  when  the  stress 
and  strain  of  his  life  was  over,  and  yet  he  was  by  no  means  free  from 
hostility  and  danger  (Jer.  xliv).  But  the  grounds  for  attributing  it  to 
him  are  quite  inconclusive. 

One  thought  grows  out  of  another,  and  there  is  no  marked  division 
into  stanzas:  but  in  the  first  half  of  the  Psalm  (1 — 13)  prayer,  in  the 
second  half  (14 — 24)  praise,  predominates. 

71  In  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  put  my  trust : 
Let  me  never  be  put  to  confusion, 
2  Deliver  me  in  thy  righteousness,  and  cause  me  to  escape  : 
Incline  thine  ear  unto  me,  and  save  me. 

1 — 3.  The  prayer  of  faith  in  the  midst  of  danger.  These  verses  are 
taken,  with  but  little  change,  from  xxxi.  i — 3. 

1.  In  thee.., do  I  put  my  trust]  Better,  In  thee... have  I  taken 
refuge.     See  note  on  Ivii.  i,and  cp.  vii.  i ;  xi.  i ;  xvi.  i ;  xxv.  20. 

let  me  never  be  put  to  confusion]  Let  me  never  he  ashamed.  He 
has  put  himself  under  Jehovah's  protection :  may  he  never  be  disap- 
pointed and  disgraced  by  finding  that  his  trust  is  vain.  Cp.  xxxi.  17; 
xxv.  2,  20;  xxii.  5;  Phil.  i.  20.  It  will  be  remembered  that  the  verse 
forms  the  close  of  the  Te  Deum. 

2.  Deliver  vie  &c.]  In  thy  righteousness  wilt  thou  deliver  me 
and  rescue  me:  an  expansion  of  the  simpler  rescue  me  in  xxxi.  i.  In 
thy  righteousness  stands  emphatically  at  the  beginning  of  the  sentence 
in  the  Heb.  The  righteousness  of  God  is  a  thought  upon  which  this 
Psalmist  loves  to  dwell  {vv.  2,  15,  16,  19,  24).  In  virtue  of  that  un- 
changing rectitude  which  is  an  inalienable  attribute  of  Deity,  He  cannot 
desert  His  servant.    He  must  be  true  to  His  promise.    Cp.  2  Tim.  ii.  13. 

incline]   Or,  bow  down,  as  in  xxxi.  1 :  i.e.  'bend  a  listening  ear.' 
save  me]     In  xxxi.  2,  deliver  me  speedily. 


PSALM    LXXI.  3—7.  411 


Be  thou  my  strong  habitation,  whereunto  /  may  continually  3 

resort : 
Thou  hast  given  commandment  to  save  me ; 
For  thou  ar/  my  rock  and  my  fortress. 

Deliver  me,  O  my  God,  out  of  the  hand  of  tlie  wicked,  4 

Out  of  the  hand  of  the  unrighteous  and  cruel  man. 

For  thou  arf  my  hope,  O  Lord  God  :  5 

T/iou  art  my  trust  from  my  youth. 

By  thee  have  I  been  holden  up  from  the  womb :  6 

Thou  art  he  that  took  me  out  of  my  mother's  bowels : 

My  praise  shall  be  continually  of  thee. 

I  am  as  a  wonder  unto  many ;  ^ 

3.  Be  thou  ?ny  strong  habitatiott]  Better  as  R.V.,  Be  thou  to  me  a 
rock  of  habitation.  God  is  called  our  habitation  in  xc.  i ;  and  the 
phrase  may  be  an  intentional  modification  of  the  words  a  rock  of  strong- 
hold in  xxxi.  2.  But  some  Heb.  MSS.,  the  LXX,  Symm.,  and  Targ., 
read  stronghold  hexo.  also,  and  the  word  ma  on  (ll^D)  so  closely  resem- 
bles niaoz  (TiyD)  that  the  variation  is  probably  due  to  accident. 

thou  hast  given  commandment'\  Cp.  xliv.  4;  Ixviii.  28.  To  the  three 
Heb.  words  rendered  whereunto  I  may  continually  resort:  thou  hast  given 
commandment  correspond  two  words  in  xxxi.  2,  meaning^^r  a  fortress- 
house.  The  curious  similarity  of  the  consonants  in  the  Heb.  suggests 
that  the  reading  of  the  Massoretic  Text  here  is  a  restoration  of  partially 
obliterated  or  faded  letters :  and  the  LXX  translators,  though  they  give 
a  different  rendering,  appear  to  have  found  the  same  reading  here  as  in 
xxxi.  iy  or  a  closely  similar  one.  The  other  Versions  agree  with  the 
Massoretic  Text. 

my  rock]  My  cliff :  a  different  word  from  that  in  the  first  line,  recall- 
ing the  *  cliff'  {sela)  where  David  had  been  so  unexpectedly  delivered 
from  Saul  (i  Sam.  xxiii.  25  ff.).    On  the  metaphors  see  note  on  xviii.  2. 

4 — 8.     The  gi-ound  of  the  Psalmist's  appeal  for  deliverance. 

4.  Deliver  me]     R.V.,  rescue  me,  as  in  z/.  2. 

the  tinrighteous  and  cruel  man]  Comp.  the  complaints  in  Habakkuk 
(i.  2 — 4)  and  Jeremiah  (vi.  7;  &c.)  of  the  prevailing  injustice  and 
violence.     The  singular  is  probably  collective. 

6,  6.     A  free  imitation  of  xxii.  9,  10. 

7ny  hope... my  trust]  Cp.  Jer.  xiv.  8;  xvii,  7,  13;  and  "Christ  Jesus 
our  hope"  (i  Tim.  i.  i). 

By  thee  &c.]  Better  (cp.  Is.  xlviii.  2),  On  thee  have  I  stayed  myself 
from  (my)  birth.     The  same  word  is  used  in  iii.  5  ;  li.  12. 

thou  art  he  that  took  me]  A  different  word  from  that  similarly  trans- 
lated in  xxii.  9,  and  of  doubtful  meaning.  The  rendering,  Thou  hast 
been  my  benefactor  from  my  mother^s  womb  (cp.  R.V.  marg.),  suits  the 
parallelism  well.     But  cp.  Jer.  i.  5. 

7.  /  am  &c.]  Or,  I  have  been  as  a  wonder.    Many  of  those  who  saw 


412  PSALM    LXXI.  8—13. 

But  thou  art  my  strong  refuge. 

8  Let  my  mouth  be  filled  with  thy  praise 
And  with  thy  honour  all  the  day. 

9  Cast  me  not  off  in  the  time  of  old  age ; 
Forsake  me  not  when  my  strength  faileth. 

10  For  mine  enemies  speak  against  me ; 

And  they  that  lay  wait  for  my  soul  take  counsel  together, 

11  Saying,  God  hath  forsaken  him  : 

Persecute  and  take  him ;  for  there  is  none  to  deliver  him. 

12  O  God,  be  not  far  from  me : 

O  my  God,  make  haste  for  my  help. 

13  Let  them  be  confounded  and  consumed  that  are  adversaries 

to  my  soul ; 

my  sufferings  regarded  me  as  a  typical  example  of  divine  chastisement, 
but  my  faith  has  remained  unshaken  throughout.  Cp.  Is.  liL  14;  and 
Deut.  xxviii.  46,  where  the  punishment  of  Israel  for  its  sins  is  spoken  of 
as  "a  sign  and  a  wonder."  In  a  somewhat  different  sense  Ezekiel  was 
a  'wonder'  to  his  contemporaries  (xii.  6,  11 ;  xxiv.  24,  27).  The  expla- 
nation '  I  have  been  a  sign  and  example  of  God's  protecting  care'  is  less 
natural.  'Monster'  in  P.B.V.  is  an  archaism  for  'portent,'  or,  'prodigy,* 
from  Lat.  monstrtnn. 

my  strong  refuge]     Cp.  v.  i,  and  Jer.  xvii.  17,  R.V. 

8.  My  mouth  shall  be  filled  with  thy  praise. 
And  with  thy  honour  all  the  day  (R.V.). 

Cp.  I  Chr.  xxix.  11,  "Thine,  O  Jehovah,  is  the  greatness,  and  the 
might,  and  the  honour,  and  the  victory,  and  the  majesty."  The  P.B.V. 
that  I  may  sing  of  thy  glory  and  honour  all  the  day  long  comes  from  the 
LXX  through  the  Vulg. 

9 — 13.     Repeated  deprecations  and  prayers. 

9.  Cast  me  not  off]  Or,  cast  me  not  away,  from  Thy  presence  (li.  11), 
though  for  the  time  the  nation  as  a  whole  is  so  cast  out  (Deut.  xxix.  28; 
Jer.  vii.  15). 

10.     against  me]     R.V.  concerning  me.     Cp.  iii.  ^  ;  xli.  5.     What 
they  say  follows  in  z;.  i  r. 
they  that  lay  wait  for  my  souF]  Or,  they  that  watch  for  my  life. 

11.  God  hath  forsaken  him]     Cp.  xxii.  i;  xxxviii.  21  6. 
persecute]    R.V.  pursue.     But  cp.  Ixix.  26;  Jer.  xv.  15;  xvii.  18; 

XX.    II. 

12,  13.  Reminiscences  of  xxxv.  12  b\  xl.  13^,  14  (Ixx.  ib,  2):  cp. 
xxii.  w  a\  xxxviii.  21,  22;  xxxv.  4,  26;  cix.  29. 

make  haste  for  7ny  help]     R.V.  make  haste  to  help  me. 

let  them  be  confounded]     R.V.  as  in  t/.  i,  let  them  be  ashamed. 

constcrned]  Some  editors  would  read  dishonoured  as  in  xl.  14,  with 
some  MSS.  and  the  Syr.  The  Hebrew  words  differ  in  one  letter  only. 
But  the  LXX  and  Jer.  support  the  M.T.,  for  which  cp.  xxxvii.  20. 


PSALM    LXXI.  14—18.  413 

Let  them  be  covered  with  reproach  and  dishonour  that  seek 

my  hurt. 
But  I  will  hope  continually,  1 

And  will  yet  praise  thee  more  and  more. 
My  mouth  shall  shew  forth  thy  righteousness  1 

And  thy  salvation  all  the  day ; 
For  I  know  not  the  numbers  thereof. 

I  will  go  in  the  strength  of  the  Lord  God  :  1 

I  will  make  mention  of  thy  righteousness,  even  of  thine  only. 
O  God,  thou  hast  taught  me  from  my  youth  :  i 

And  hitherto  have  I  declared  thy  wondrous  works. 
Now  also  when  I  am  old  and  gray  headed,  1 

14 — 16.     Vows  of  praise  and  thanksgiving. 

14.  But  as  for  me,  I  will  hope  continually, 
And  will  praise  thee  yet  more  and  more. 

He  contrasts  his  own  future  with  that  of  his  enemies. 

15.  My  mouth  shall  tell  of  thy  righteousness, 
And  of  thy  salvation  all  the  day; 

For  I  know  not  the  tale  thereof. 
Salvation  is  coupled  with  righteousness,  because  the  one  is  the  out- 
come and  visible  manifestation  of  the  other.  Cp.  v.  2;  Is.  xlv.  21. 
There  is  a  play  in  the  Heb.  on  the  words  ie//  and  /«/<?.  They  are 
derived  from  the  same  root,  which,  like  /<?//  in  old  English,  means  both 
to  coun^  and  to  recount.  God's  mercies  are  an  inexhaustible  theme.  Cp. 
xl.  5 ;  cxxxix.  17,  18. 

16.  /  will  go  &c.]  Better,  I  will  come  with  the  mighty  acts  of  the 
Lord  Jehovah,  bringing  them  as  my  theme  for  praise.  Cp.  cvi.  2.  The 
A.V.  would  at  any  rate  require  the  singular,  which  is  however  read  by 
the  LXX  and  some  other  Versions. 

17 — 20.  Past  mercies  are  the  ground  of  hope  alike  for  the  Psalmist 
and  for  the  nation. 

17.  thou  hast  taught  me  &c.]  He  has  been  a  life-long  disciple  in 
the  school  of  God.     Cp.  Is.  \iii.  16;  1.  4;  liv.  13. 

have  I  declared^    Have  I  been  declaring,  habitually  and  constantly. 

thy  wondrous  works]  A  special  term  for  the  singular  and  conspicuous 
works  of  God,  both  in  nature  (Job  v.  9),  and  in  His  dealings  with  His 
people  (Ex.  iii.  20),  particularly  in  the  great  crises  of  their  history 
(Ixxviii.  4,  II,  32),  which  declare  His  power  and  love,  and  arouse  the 
admiration  of  all  who  behold  them.  The  word  includes  'miracles' 
commonly  so  called,  as  one  limited  class  of  *the  wonderful  works  of 
God, '  but  is  of  much  wider  application.  To  recount  and  celebrate  His 
marvellous  works  is  the  duty  and  delight  of  God's  saints.  Cp.  ix.  i ; 
xxvi.  7 ;  xl.  5. 

18.  Now  also  when  I  am  old  ajid  grayheaded]     Better,  And  even 


414  PSALM    LXXI.   19,  20. 

O  God,  forsake  me  not ; 

Until  I  have  shewed  thy  strength  unto  this  generation, 

And  thy  power  to  every  one  that  is  to  come. 

19  Thy  righteousness  also,  O  God,  is  very  high, 
Who  hast  done  great  things : 

O  God,  who  is  like  unto  thee  ! 

20  Thou^  which  hast  shewed  me  great  and  sore  troubles, 
Shalt  quicken  me  again, 

And  shalt  bring  me  up  again  from  the  depths  of  the  earth. 

when  I  am  old  and  grayheaded:  lit.  and  even  unto  old  age  and  gray 
hairs.     Cp.  i  Sam.  xii.  2  ;  Is.  xlvi.  4. 

until  &c.]     Better  with  R.V., 

Until  I  have  declared  thy  strength  unto  (the  next)  generation, 
Thy  might  unto  every  one  that  is  to  come. 
Thy  strength,  lit.,  thine  arm,  implies  more  than  power;  it  suggests 
"thoughts  of  guidance,  support,  protection,  government,  chastisement, 
conflict,  victory."  (Kay).  Cp.  Ixxvii.  15;  Is.  liii.  i;  &c.  It  is  more 
natural  to  supply  the  next  (R.V.)  than  this  vf'wh.  generation.  Bm\.  gene- 
ration needs  some  qualification;  and  the  Syr.  (with  which  the  LXX 
nearly  agrees)  may  be  right  in  reading,  until  I  have  declared  thy  strength, 
and  thy  might  to  the  generation  to  come.  Cp.  xxii.  30,  31,  and  the  note 
there. 

19.  is  very  high}  Lit. ,  (reacheth)  unto  the  height,  of  heaven.  Cp. 
xxxvi.  5;  Ivii.  10;  Job  xi.  8. 

who  hast  done  &c.]  It  is  better  with  R.V.  to  connect  this  clause  with 
what  follows :  Thou  who  hast  done  great  things,  0  God,  who  is  like  unto 
thee?  Jehovah  is  incomparable  for  power  and  goodness.  The  funda- 
mental passage  is  Ex.  xv.  11;  cp.  Ps.  xxxv.  10;  Ixxxvi.  8;  Ixxxix.  6,  8; 
Mic.  vii.  18. 

20.      Thou  which  hast  shewed  ub  many  and  sore  troubles, 
Shalt  quicken  us  again. 
And  Shalt  bring  us  up  again  from  the  depths  of  the  earth. 

So  R.V.,  with  marg.  note,  'Another  reading  is,  me.*  The  Kthibli 
or  written  text  (p.  Ixvii)  has  us  ;  but  the  Qre,  or  accepted  reading  of  the 
Jewish  textual  tradition,  is  me.  The  latter  reading  is  supported  in  the 
first  line  by  all  the  Versions  except  Aquila:  in  the  second  and  third 
lines  the  LXX  and  Syr.  read  me,  Targ.  and  Jer.  us.  The  plural,  whether 
it  is  the  original  reading  or  not,  points  to  the  correct  interpretation. 
The  Psalmist's  hopes  are  not  merely  personal ;  he  speaks  on  behalf  of 
the  nation  whose  representative  he  is;  he  looks  for  its  restoration  from 
its  present  state  of  humiliation.  It  is  as  it  were  dead  and  sunk  in  the 
depths  of  Sheol,  but  God  can  and  will  recall  it  to  life.  Cp.  Hos.  vi.  i, 
2;  Ezek.  xxxvii,  laff. ;  Ps.  Ixxx.  18:  Ixxxv.  6.  Again  hardly  expresses 
the  full  meaning :  lit.  thou  wilt  turn,  or,  return  {and)  quicken  us.  Cp. 
vi.  4;  Ixxx.  14;  Ixxxv.  4;  Is.  Ixiii.  17. 

the  depths  of  the  earth]  The  'depths*  denote  (i)  the  vast  masses  of 
water  stored  away  in  the  eaith  (xxxiii.  7),  and  hence  (2)  the  subterranean 


PSALM    LXXI.  21—24.  415 

Thou  shalt  increase  my  greatness,  21 

And  comfort  me  on  every  side. 

I  will  also  praise  thee  with  the  psaltery,  22 

Even  thy  truth,  O  my  God :  unto  thee  will  I  sing 

With  the  harp,  O  thou  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

My  lips  shall  greatly  rejoice  when  I  sing  unto  thee ;  23 

And  my  soul,  which  thou  hast  redeemed. 

My  tongue  also  shall  talk  of  thy  righteousness  all  the  day  24 

long: 
For  they  are  confounded,  for  they  are  brought  unto  shame, 

that  seek  my  hurt. 

abysses  where  Sheol  was  supposed  to  be  situated.     Cp.   "the  lower 
parts  of  the  earth"  (Ixiii.  9),  and  Job  xxvi.  5,  6. 

21 — 24.     Repeated  prayers  and  vows  of  thanksgiving. 

21.  0  mayest  thou  Increase  my  greatness, 
And  turn  again  and  comfort  me. 

Except  in  the  Book  of  Esther  the  word  for  greatness  is  used  of  God's 
greatness  or  great  deeds  (cxlv.  3,  6) ;  and  the  LXX  reads  thy  righteous- 
nesSy  or,  according  to  some  MSS.  and  the  Vulg.,  thy  greatness.  This 
may  be  right;  but  if  the  text  is  correct,  the  Psalmist  thinks  of  himself 
as  sharing  in  the  honour  of  the  resuscitated  nation.  He  can  hardly 
refer  to  personal  dignity  only.  For  cotnfort  cp.  Is.  xii.  i ;  xl.  i.  The 
past  tenses  of  the  P.B.V.  in  this  and  the  preceding  verse  are  due  to 
the  influence  of  the  Vnlg. 

22.  /  will  also  &c.]  I  also  will  g^ve  thanks  unto  thee :  in  response 
to  this  new  proof  of  Thy  love.  psalteryl     See  on  Ivii.  8. 

thy  tr7ith'\  For  in  this  manifestation  of  mercy  to  Israel  God  has 
shewn  Himself /rw^  to  His  promises,     Cp.  Mic.  vii.  20. 

unto  thee  &c.]    Unto  thee  will  I  make  melody. 

0  thou  Holy  One  of  Israel^  A  title  which  is  found  frequently  in  the 
Book  of  Isaiah,  but  elsewhere  only  twice  again  in  the  Psalter  (Ixxviii. 
41 ;  Ixxxix.  18),  twice  in  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  (I.  29;  li.  5),  and  once 
in  a  modified  form  in  Ezekiel  (xxxix.  7).  Cp.  too  Hos.  xi.  9;  Hab.  i. 
n.  Its  use  here  in  connexion  with  the  redemption  of  Israel  is  signi- 
ficant. It  denotes  that  God  in  His  character  of  a  Holy  God  has 
entered  into  covenant  with  Israel,  and  His  holiness  is  pledged  to  redeem 
His  people.  For  a  fuller  explanation  of  this  title  the  present  writer 
may  be  allowed  to  refer  to  his  Doctrine  of  the  Prophets ^  pp.  177  ff. 

23.  My  lips  shall  sing  aloud  when  I  make  melody  unto  thee. 
P.B.V.  'my  lips  shall  hefain,'  i.e.  glad:  Vulg.  exultabunt. 

my  soul]  His  whole  self  and  personality,  deUvered  from  danger, 
will  join  in  the  glad  thanksgiving.     Cp.  xxxiv.  22  ;  Iv.  18. 

24.  Afy  tongue  &c.]  From  xxxv.  28.  The  word  for  talh  denotes 
musing,  meditative  speech. 

for  they  &c.]  For  tney  are  ashamed,  for  they  are  confounded,  that 


4i6  PSALM    LXXII. 


seek  my  hurt  (R.V.).  A  reminiscence  of  xxxv.  4,  26;  xl.  14  (Ixx.  2). 
His  faith  realises  the  discomfiture  of  his  enemies  as  though  it  had 
already  taken  place. 

PSALM   LXXII. 

The  preceding  Psalm  dwells  much  upon  the  righteousness  of  God : 
this  Psalm  depicts  the  blessings  which  will  flow  from  the  righteousness 
of  His  earthly  representative,  the  theocratic  king.  In  Psalm  after 
Psalm  in  this  book  we  have  heard  the  cry  of  the  oppressed :  here  is 
unfolded  to  our  view  the  splendid  vision  of  a  perfect  ruler  who  shall  be 
the  champion  of  the  oppressed,  whose  glory  will  be,  "redressing  human 
wrong." 

i.  The  Psalm  begins  with  a  prayer  that  God  will  endow  the  king 
with  the  knowledge  of  His  laws  and  with  the  spirit  of  His  righteousness. 
Thus  equipped  he  will  fulfil  the  ideal  of  his  office,  as  the  just  ruler  who 
protects  the  oppressed,  and  secures  for  his  people  the  blessings  of  peace 
and  plenty  (i — 7). 

ii.  Thus  far  the  Psalmist  has  dealt  with  the  relation  of  the  king  to 
his  own  people.  Now,  taking  a  wider  sweep,  he  prays  that  he  may 
have  a  world-wide  dominion,  and  that  the  wealthiest  and  most  distant 
nations  may  bring  him  tribute,  won  by  the  moral  supremacy  of  his 
beneficent  rule  to  offer  him  their  voluntary  homage  (8 — 14). 

iii.  The  Psalm  concludes  with  prayers  for  the  welfare  of  the  king 
himself,  for  the  prosperity  of  his  people,  and  for  the  undying  perpetua- 
tion of  his  memory  as  the  benefactor  of  the  nations,  in  whom  the 
promise  made  to  the  seed  of  Abraham  finds  its  fulfilment  {15 — 17). 

In  rendering  the  title  'A  Fsalm /or  Solomon,''  the  A.V.  follows  the 
LXX  {d%  'Za\u:/x(l}v)  in  regarding  Solomon  as  the  subject  of  the  Psalm.* 
Similarly  the  Syriac  Version  entitles  it,  *A  Psalm  of  David,  when  he 
had  made  Solomon  king,  and  a  prophecy  concerning  the  Advent  of  the 
Messiah  and  the  calling  of  the  Gentiles.'  But  this  explanation  is  unten- 
able. The  analogy  of  the  other  Psalm-titles  points  to  the  rendering  of 
A.V.  marg.  and  R.V.,  supported  by  all  the  other  Ancient  Versions,  'A 
Psalm  0/ Solomon.'  It  seems  then  to  have  been  regarded  as  having  been 
composed  by  Solomon  as  an  intercession  to  be  used  by  the  people  on 
his  behalf.  Nor  is  this  an  impossible  view  of  its  origin  and  purpose. 
If  the  "last  words"  of  David,  uttered  in  the  spirit  of  prophecy  shortly 
before  his  death,  describe  the  blessings  which  would  flow  from  the  rule 
of  a  righteous  king,  animated  by  the  spirit  of  justice  and  guided  by  the 
fear  of  God,  and  anticipate  the  rise  of  such  a  righteous  king  out  of  his 
house  in  virtue  of  the  eternal  covenant  which  God  has  made  with  him, 
why  should  not  the  first  words  of  Solomon  be  a  prayer  that  these  g^reat 
hopes  should  be  realised  in  himself  by  the  world-wide  extension  and 
eternal  duration  of  a  kingdom  founded  in  righteousness? 

Many  of  the  arguments  urged  against  the  Solomonic  date  are  of  little 
real  weight,  (i)  It  is  said  that  in  v.  2  the  whole  people  is  spoken  of 
as  'afflicted,'  and  that  zrv.  12 — 14  "read  like  the  hope  of  one  who  had 
seen  the  nation  sunk  in  distress."  But  the  reference  is  not  to  the  nation 
as  a  whole,  but  to  the  poor  and  weak  within  it  who  were  always  liable 


PSALM    LXXll.  417 


to  be  hardly  treated  by  the  rich  and  powerful.  (2)  V.  8  is  said  to  be  a 
quotation  from  Zech.  ix.  10;  and  v.  12  from  Job  xxix.  12.  It  is  how- 
ever by  no  means  clear  that  the  Psalmist  is  the  borrower.  (3)  The 
clear  and  flowing  style  is  thought  to  be  the  mark  of  a  later  age. 
Delitzsch  on  the  contrary  finds  in  the  somewhat  artificial  style  a  mark 
of  the  Solomonic  period,  and  the  argument  is  not  one  which  can  be 
pressed. 

On  the  whole  however  the  Psalm  seems  rather  to  reflect  the  memories 
of  Solomon's  imperial  greatness  than  to  anticipate  it.  For  what  later 
king  it  was  written  must  remain  uncertain.  It  may  have  been  for 
Hezekiah,  who  came  to  the  throne  at  a  time  when  grave  social  evils 
called  for  reform,  and  when  the  hope  of  the  advent  of  the  ideal  king  in 
the  near  future  animated  the  minds  of  the  prophets.  It  is  even  possible 
that  the  Psalm  does  not  refer  to  any  particular  king,  but  is  a  prayer  for 
the  establishment  of  the  Messianic  kingdom  under  a  prince  of  David's 
line  according  to  prophecy,  the  lyrical  counterpart  in  fact  of  Zech.  ix. 
9  ff.  At  the  same  time  it  does  appear  to  have  a  definite  historical  back- 
ground, and  to  be  a  prayer  for  a  king  who  is  actually  on  the  throne. 
The  prayer  in  the  Psalms  of  Solomon  for  the  advent  of  the  Messianic 
king  [Introd.  p.  xlix)  has  an  altogether  different  tone. 

The  hypothesis  of  liitzig  and  others,  approved  by  Cheyne,  that  it 
refers  to  some  non-Israelite  king,  such  as  Ptolemy  Philadelphus  (B.C. 
285),  may  safely  be  rejected.  It  is  not  conceivable  that  a  poet  of  real 
patriotism,  not  to  say  of  inspiration  in  the  higher  sense  of  the  word, 
should  have  so  grovelled  to  a  heathen  monarch  as  to  apply  to  him  the 
sacred  language  of  Messianic  hope,  and  to  connect  his  name  with  the 
solemn  promises  to  the  seed  of  Abraham  and  the  house  of  David. 

But  if  the  primary  reference  of  the  Psalm  is  to  some  actual  king  of 
Judah,  it  is  plain  that  it  reaches  far  beyond  him.  It  is  a  'Messianic' 
Psalm.  It  presents  a  picture  of  the  kingdom  of  God  upon  earth  in  its 
ideal  character  of  perfection  and  universality.  It  is  thus  in  its  nature 
not  only  a  prayer  and  a  hope  but  a  prophecy.  As  each  successive  king 
of  David's  line  failed  to  realise  the  ideal,  it  became  clearer  and  clearer 
that  its  words  pointed  forward  to  One  who  was  to  come,  to  the  true 
"Prince  of  Peace."  Hence  the  Targum  interprets  it  of  the  Messiah. 
It  paraphrases  v.  i  thus : 

"O  God,  give  the  precepts  of  Thy  judgement  to  King  Messiah, 
And  Thy  righteousness  to  the  son  of  king  David:" 
and  it  interprets  v.  17  of  the  pre-existence  of  His  name : 
"His  name  shall  be  remembered  for  ever; 
And  before  the  sun  existed  was  His  name  prepared; 
And  all  peoples  shall  be  blessed  in  His  merits." 

According  to  the  Talmud  and  Midrash,  Yinnon — the  word  in  z;.  17 
which  is  rendered  sAa//  be  contitiiied  or  shall  have  issue — is  one  ot  the 
eight  names  of  the  Messiah.  "His  Name,"  so  the  Rabbis  mystically  in- 
terpreted the  passage,  "is  Yinnon.  Why  is  He  called  Yinnon?  Because 
He  will  make  those  who  sleep  in  the  dust  to  flourish";  i.e.  He  will 
raise  the  dead. 

Following  the  example  of  Jewish  exegesis,  the  Christian  Church  has 
rightly  understood  the  Psalm  to  refer  to  Christ.     Yet  it  is  never  quoted 

PSAT.MS  27 


41 8  PSALM 


in  the  N.T.  Possibly  the  regal  aspect  of  the  Messiah  was  so  dominant 
in  the  first  age  (Acts  i.  6)  that  it  needed  to  be  kept  in  the  background, 
until  men  had  learnt  that  His  kingdom  was  "not  of  this  world,"  but  a 
spiritual  kingdom. 

It  was  fitly  chosen  by  the  Early  Church  as  the  special  Psalm  for  the 
Epiphany,  foretelling  as  it  does  the  homage  of  the  nations  to  the 
Messiah,  of  which  the  visit  of  the  Wise  Men  was  the  earnest. 

It  was  a  favourite  Psalm  of  St  Edmund,  the  martyr  king  of  East 
Anglia,  who  spent  a  year  in  retirement  that  he  might  learn  the  Psalter 
by  heart,  so  as  to  be  able  to  repeat  it  in  his  intervals  of  leisure.  Its 
kingly  ideal  seems  to  have  moulded  his  life. 


A  Psalm  for  Solomon. 

72  Give  the  king  thy  judgments,  O  God, 
And  thy  righteousness  unto  the  king's  son. 
2  He  shall  judge  thy  people  with  righteousness, 
And  thy  poor  with  judgment. 

1 — 7.  A  prayer  that  God  will  confer  upon  the  king  the  gifts  which 
he  needs  for  the  right  exercise  of  his  office.  Then  righteousness  will 
bear  the  fruit  of  peace ;  redress  and  repression  of  wrong  will  promote 
the  fear  of  God;  under  his  beneficent  rule  the  righteous  will  flourish. 

1.  God  is  the  source  of  all  judgement  (Deut.  i.  17);  the  king  is  His 
representative  for  administering  it.  May  God  therefore  grant  him  such 
a  knowledge  of  the  divine  laws  and  ordinances  by  which  he  is  to 
govern  Israel,  and  endow  him  with  such  a  divine  spirit  of  justice,  as 
may  make  him  a  worthy  ruler.  Just  judgement  is  the  constant  charac- 
teristic of  the  ideal  king  (Is.  xi.  3ff. ;  xvi.  5;  xxviii.  6;  xxxii.  i).  The 
words  of  this  verse  and  the  next  are  the  echo  of  God's  offer  to  Solomon, 
"Ask  what  I  shall  give  thee;"  and  of  Solomon's  answer,  "Give  thy 
servant  an  understanding  heart  to  Judge  thy  people  ;^^  and  a  prayer  for  the 
effectual  realisation  of  the  promise,  "Lo,  I  have  given  thee  a  wise  and 
an  understanding  heart."     (i  Kings  iii.  5  ff.). 

the  king. ..the  king's  son"]  Not,  to  the  king  and  his  heir,  for  the  Psalm 
speaks  of  but  one  ruler ;  but,  to  a  king  who  is  a  king's  son,  the  legiti- 
mate successor  to  the  throne. 

2.  He  shall  give  sentence  to  thy  people  ^T-itli  righteousness, 
And  to  thine  afflicted  ones  with  judgement. 

Many  conmientators  render  the  verbs  throughout  the  Ps.  as  optatives, 
Let  him  give  sentence,  and  so  forth.  In  vv.  8  ff.  this  rendering  is 
required  by  the  form  of  the  verb ;  but  here  the  form  is  a  simple  future. 
The  administration  of  the  king  endowed  with  di\dne  capacities  for 
ruling  is  described  {vv.  7,  4,  6),  together  with  the  resultant  blessings 
(3'  5>  7)'  The  rendering  give  sentience  is  adopted  to  indicate  that  the 
Heb.  word  is  different  from  that  in  v.  4. 

It  has  been  argued  that  'thine  afflicted  ones'  implies  that  the  nation 
was  at  the  time  in  a  state  of  depression  and  humiliation :  but  the  term 


PSALM    LXXII.  3—5.  419 


The  mountains  shall  bring  peace  to  the  people, 

And  the  Httle  hills,  by  righteousness. 

He  shall  judge  the  poor  of  the  people, 

He  shall  save  the  children  of  the  needy, 

And  shall  break  in  pieces  the  oppressor. 

They  shall  fear  thee  as  long  as  the  sun 

And  moon  endure,  throughout  all  generations. 

is  not  necessarily  coextensive  with  *  thy  people ' ;  it  denotes,  as  fre- 
quently in  the  prophets,  the  poorer  classes,  who  especially  needed  the 
protection  of  good  government.  See  Is.  iii.  14,  15;  x.  2  ;  Jer.  xxii.  16; 
Am.  viii.  4. 

3.  Logically  this  verse  forms  but  one  sentence,  and  the  exact  repro- 
duction of  the  Heb.  division  into  two  clauses  for  the  sake  of  rhythm 
has  an  awkward  effect.  The  sense  is.  By  righteousness  shall  the 
mountains  and  the  Mils  bear  peace  for  the  people.  The  mountains 
and  the  hills,  which  are  the  characteristic  features  of  Palestine,  repre- 
sent poetically  the  whole  land,  which,  under  a  just  government,  will  bear 
the  fruit  of  peace  and  general  welfare  for  its  inhabitants.  Similarly 
Isaiah  describes  peace  as  the  result  of  righteousness  (xxxii.  17);  and 
peace  was  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  Solomon's  reign  (i  Chron. 
xxii.  9),  as  well  as  of  its  antitype  the  Messianic  agej  (Is.  ii.  4 ;  ix.  6,  7  ; 
Zech.  ix.  10). 

4.  An  expansion  o(  v.  2.  The  oppressed  and  defenceless  are  the 
special  care  of  the  true  king,  "whose  glory  is,  redressing  human  wrong." 
He  does  justice  to  'the  afflicted  of  the  people';  he  is  the  preserver  of 
'the  children  of  the  needy,'  words  which  are  best  understood  literally, 
not  merely  of  those  born  poor,  or  as  a  periphrasis,  according  to  a  com- 
mon idiom,  for  'the  needy,'  but  of  children,  especially  orphans,  at  once 
innocent  and  helpless,  and  therefore  calling  for  special  protection  (see 
Is.  X.  2 ;  Mic.  ii.  9,  for  the  dangers  to  which  they  were  exposed) :  wliile 
he  crushes  the  merciless  oppressor,  treating  him  as  he  had  treated  his 
victims  (xciv.  5;  Prov.  xxii.  22,  23;  Is.  iii.  15;  James  ii.  13). 

5.  They  shall  fear  thee  wliile  the  sun  endureth, 

And  so  long  as  the  moon  doth  shine,  throughout  all  genera- 
tions. 

Who  is  addressed?  Not  the  king,  who  is  spoken  of  throughout  in 
the  third  person,  but  God.  The  just  administration  of  the  king  will 
promote  reverence  for  God,  Whose  representative  he  is  (cp.  i  Kings 
viii.  40;  Matt.  v.  16),  so  long  as  the  established  course  of  nature  lasts. 
For  tlie  order  of  nature  as  an  emblem  of  permanence  cp.  Jer.  xxxi.  35  ff. ; 
xxxiii.  20  ff. 

The  LXX  however  represents  a  different  reading:  //e  shall  endtire 
as  long  as  the  sun,  &c. :  a  reference  to  the  promise  of  eternal  dominion 
to  the  house  of  David,  as  in  z/.  17:  cp.  Ixxxix.  4,  29,  36,  37;  xxi.  4. 
The  word  presumed  by  the  LXX  ('^'IN"')  closely  resembles  that  in  the 
Massoretic  Text  ("I'lt^"!"'^),  so  far  as  the  consonants  are  concerned,  and  it 
may  have  been  the  original  reading :  still,  the  text  gives  a  good  sense. 

27 — 2 


420  PSALM   LXXII.  6—8. 


5  He  shall  come  down  like  rain  upon  the  mown  grass : 

As  showers  that  water  the  earth. 
7  In  his  days  shall  the  righteous  flourish ; 

And  abundance  of  peace  so  long  as  the  moon  endureth. 
3  He  shall  have  dominion  also  from  sea  to  sea, 

And  from  the  river  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth. 


6.  He  shall  come  down  &c.]  A  condensed  comparison,  for,  'he 
shall  be  like  rain  coming  down.'  The  simile  may  have  been  suggested 
by  the  'last  words  of  David,'  i  Sam.  xxiii.  4:  cp.  Prov.  xvi.  15;  Hos. 
vi.  3;  Micah  v.  7. 

the  mown  gi'ass\  The  meadow  which  has  been  mown,  and  which 
needs  rain  to  start  the  aftennath  (Am.  vii.  i).  The  P.B.V.  into  a  fleece 
of  wool  is  an  amplification  of  the  rendering  of  LXX,  Vulg.,  Symm., 
Jer.,  upon  a  fleece.  The  Heb.  word  means  a  shorn  fleece  or  a  mown 
meadow ;  probably  the  Ancient  Versions  meant  fleece  metaphorically  of 
the  meadow :  Coverdale's  paraphrase  a  fleece  of  wool  may  have  been 
prompted  by  the  recollection  of  the  dew  on  Gideon's  fleece. 

7.  flourish^  The  metaphor  follows  naturally  upon  that  of  the  pre- 
ceding verse.  Cp.  Prov.  xi.  28;  Ps.  xcii.  12,  13.  For  the  righteous 
LXX,  Jer.,  Syr.  read  righteousness y  which  suits  the  parallelism  belter. 

so  long  as  the  moon  endureth'\  Lit.  as  R.V.,  till  tlie  moon  be  no 
more;  for  all  time.     Cp.  Job  xiv.  12. 

8 — 14.  May  all  nations  submit  to  this  best  of  rulers,  recognising  the 
paramount  claim  of  moral  supremacy. 

8.  He  shall  have  dominion  also"]  Render,  And  may  he  have  domi- 
nion. The  form  of  the  verb  here  is  decisive  in  favour  of  rendering  as  a 
wish  or  prayer,  and  governs  the  meaning  of  the  verbs  in  w.  9 — 11, 
which  should  all  be  similarly  rendered. 

from  sea  to  sea  &c.  ]  The  words  are  a  poetical  generalisation  of  the 
promise  to  Israel  in  Ex.  xxiii.  31,  "I  will  set  thy  border  from  the  Red 
Sea  even  unto  the  sea  of  the  Philistines,  and  from  the  wilderness  unto 
the  River" ;  and  of  the  language  in  which  Solomon's  empire  is  described, 
I  Kings  iv.  2 1,  24  (where  note  the  use  of  the  same  word  to  have  dominion). 
If  any  definite  seas  are  intended,  they  would  be  the  Mediterranean  on 
the  West,  and  the  Red  Sea  or  the  Indian  Ocean  on  the  East ;  but  more 
probably  the  phrase  is  quite  general,  meaning,  *as  far  as  the  land  ex- 
tends' (Am.  viii.  12;  Mic.  vii.  12).  The  River  (rightly  spelt  in  R.V. 
with  a  capital,  as  denoting  the  River  par  excellence)  is  the  Euphrates : 
the  ends  of  the  earth  (the  same  words  as  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth 
in  ii.  8)  are  the  remotest  parts  of  the  known  world.  Extension,  not 
limit,  is  the  idea  conveyed.  The  world  belongs  to  God :  may  He  confer 
upon  His  representative  a  world-wide  dominion !  a  hope  to  be  realised 
only  in  the  universal  kingdom  of  Christ.  Almost  the  same  words  recur 
in  Zech.  ix.  10,  and  the  son  of  Sirach  combines  them  with  the  promise 
to  Abraham  in  Ecclus.  xliv.  2/. 


PSALM   LXXII.  9—12.  421 

They  that  dwell  in  the  wilderness  shall  bow  before  him ; 

And  his  enemies  shall  lick  the  dust. 

The  kings  of  Tarshish  and  ^the  isles  shall  bring  presents : 

The  kings  of  Sheba  and  Seba  shall  offer  gifts. 

Yea,  all  kings  shall  fall  down  before  him  :  1 

All  nations  shall  serve  him. 

For  he  shall  deliver  the  needy  when  he  crieth ; 

The  poor  also,  and  him  that  hath  no  helper. 

9.  Let  them  that  dwell  In  the  wilderness  bow  down  before  him, 
And  let  his  enemies  lick  the  dust. 

Even  the  wild  Bedouin  tribes  that  roam  at  large  through  the  desert, 
the  freest  of  the  free,  submit  to  his  rule.  LXX,  Aq.,  Symm.,  Jer., 
render,  Ethiopians,  the  Targ.,  Africans  \  but  the  term  is  quite  general. 
There  is  no  need  to  alter  the  text.     Cp.  Ixxiv.  14. 

lick  the  dust]  I.e.  prostrate  themselves  with  their  faces  on  the 
ground  in  abject  submission.     Cp.  Mic.  vii.  17;  Is.  xlix.  23. 

10.  Let  the  kings... bring  presents,  or,  as  R.V.  marg.,  render  tri- 
bute, the  word  implying  that  they  are  rendering  what  is  dug  to  him. 
Tarshish  was  the  wealthy  Phoenician  colony  of  Tartessus  in  southern 
Spain :  the  isles  or  rather  the  coastlands  are  those  of  the  Mediterranean 
generally.  Sheba  was  south-eastern  Arabia  (Arabia  Felix),  famous  for 
its  wealth  and  commerce;  hence  P.B.V.,  following  LXX  and  Vulg., 
gives  Arabia:  Seba,  mentioned  in  Gen.  x.  7  among  Cushite  peoples  and 
coupled  with  Egypt  and  Ethiopia  in  Is.  xliii.  3,  x!v.  14,  is  generally 
supposed  to  be  the  kingdom  of  Meroe  in  Ethiopia,  but  may  denote  a 
Cushite  state  on  the  Arabian  Gulf.  The  most  remote  and  the  most 
wealthy  nations  unite  in  honouring  the  righteous  king. 

11.  Yea,  let  all  kings  fall  down  before  him, 
Let  all  nations  serve  him. 

The  allusions  to  Solomon's  empire  in  this  and  the  preceding  verse  are 
obvious.  "All  kingdoms  brought  presents  and  served  Solomon."... 
"All  the  earth  sought  to  Solomon,  to  hear  his  wisdom,. ..and  they 
brought  every  man  his  present."  His  alliance  with  Phoenicia  brought 
him  into  connexion  vidth  the  West ;  he  had  extensive  commerce  both  by 
sea  and  land  with  the  East  and  South ;  his  fame  brought  the  queen  of 
Sheba  to  visit  him  in  person.  See  i  Kings  iv.  21,  34;  x.  i  ff.,  11,  15, 
■22,  ?5,  28,  29. 

12.  For  he  shall  deliver]  His  claim  to  this  universal  homage  rests 
not  on  the  strength  of  his  armies  but  on  the  justice  and  mercifulness  of 
his  rule.  Cp.  Is.  xvi.  4,  5.  The  true  victory  of  the  kingdom  of  God  is  a 
moral  victory,  v.  9,  it  is  true^  refers  to  the  forced  submission  of  his 
enemies ;  but  the  same  inconsistency  is  found  in  Zech.  ix.  9  fF.  :  it  was 
only  by  slow  degrees  that  the  triumph  of  the  kingdom  of  God  came  to 
be  completely  dissociated  from  the  idea  of  material  conquest,  and  was 
realised  to  be  entirely  a  moral  triumph. 

the  poor  also  &c.]  And  the  aflaicted,  when  he  hath  no  helper.  The 
verse  closely  resembles  Job  xxix.  12. 


422  PSALM   LXXTI.  13—16. 

13  He  shall  spare  the  poor  and  needy, 
And  shall  save  the  souls  of  the  needy. 

14  He  shall  redeem  their  soul  from  deceit  and  violence: 
And  precious  shall  their  blood  be  in  his  sight. 

15  And  he  shall  live,  and  to  him  shall  be  given  of  the  gold  of 

Sheba : 
Prayer  also  shall  be  made  for  him  continually ; 
And  daily  shall  he  be  praised. 

16  There  shall  be  a  handful  of  corn  in  the  earth  upon  the  top 

of  the  mountains ; 

13.  He  shall  have  pity  on  the  weak  and  needy, 

And  the  souls  of  the  needy  shall  he  save. 
The  zveak  may  include  the  sick  as  well  as  the  poor.    Cp.  xl.  i ;  Ixxxii. 
3,  4;  Is.  X.  2,  xi.  4;  Am.  iv.  i.    Souls  primarily  =  lives,  and  so  in  v.  14. 
14.     deceit'\    Oppression  (R.V.)  or  fraud  (R.V.  marg.).     The  word 
occurs  elsewhere  only  in  x.  7;  Iv.  ir. 

and  precious  &c.]  He  will  not  suffer  it  to  be  shed  with  impunity. 
Cp.  for  the  phrase  cxvi.  15;  i  Sam.  xxvi.  21 ;  2  Kings  i.  13, 14;  and  see 
Ps.  ix.  12.     P.B.V.  dear  means  'costly'  or  'precious.' 

15 — 17.  A  concluding  triplet  of  prayers,  for  the  welfare  of  the  king 
{v.  15),  for  the  prosperity  of  his  people  {v.  16),  for  the  perpetuation  of 
his  memory  {v.  17). 

15.  The  connexion  and  meaning  are  uncertain.  The  R.V.  con- 
nects the  verse  with  v.  14,  placing  a  colon  at  the  end  oi  v.  14  and 
rendering,  and  they  shall  live:  lit.,  as  marg.,  he,  namely,  each  one  of 
the  afflicted  ones.  The  literal  rendering  of  the  next  clause  is,  and  he 
(or,  one)  shall  give  him,  which  is  understood  to  mean  either  that  the 
poor  man  will  grow  rich  and  give  presents  to  the  king  in  gratitude  for 
his  deliverance,  or  that  the  king  will  not  only  protect  the  life  of  the  poor 
man,  but  give  him  a  rich  largess  in  addition.  Neither  of  these  explana- 
tions is  satisfactory.  It  is  better  to  separate  v.  15  from  v.  14,  and 
regard  w.  15 — 17  as  a  concluding  series  of  wishes  or  prayers  for  the 
king  and  his  kingdom. 

So  may  he  live,  and  may  men  give  him  of  the  gold  of  Sheba: 

And  may  they  pray  for  him  continually,  and  bless  him  all  day 
long. 

May  he  live  is  an  echo  of  the  regular  acclamation  'Vivat  Rex,*  'Vive 
le  Roi,'  which  we  render  God  save  the  king.  See  i  Sam.  x.  24;  2  Sam. 
xvi.  16;  I  Kings  i.  25,  34,  39.  May  the  people  not  only  greet  him 
with  the  customary  acclamation  and  offer  him  the  choicest  gifts,  but 
pray  for  his  welfare  and  bless  him  as  the  source  of  their  happiness  and 
prosperity.  Cp,  i  Kings  viii.  (>6.  The  P.B.V.  'prayer  shall  be  made 
ever  unto  him'  is  untenable  as  a  rendering  of  the  Heb.  It  was  doubt- 
less suggested  by  the  view  that  the  subject  of  the  Psalm  is  the  divine 
Messiah. 


PSALM    LXXII.   17,  i8.  423 


The  fruit  thereof  shall  shake  Uke  Lebanon  : 

And  they  of  the  city  shall  flourish  Hke  grass  of  the  earth. 

His  name  shall  endure  for  ever :  1 

His  name  shall  be  continued  as  long  as  the  sun : 

And  men  shall  be  blessed  in  him  : 

All  nations  shall  call  him  blessed. 

Blessed  be  the  Lord  God,  the  God  of  Israel,  1 

Who  only  doeth  wondrous  things. 

16.  May  there  be  abundance  of  com  in  tbe  land  upon  tbe  top 

of  the  mountains : 
May  the  fruit  thereof  rustle  like  Lebanon; 
And  may  men  flourish  out  of  the  city  like  grass  of  the 
earth. 
A  prayer  for  the  fertility  of  the  land,  and  the  prosperity  of  the  people. 
The  poet  would  see  the  cornfields  stretching  up  to  the  very  top  of  the 
hills,  and  hear  the  wind  rustling  through  the  ears  of  corn  as  through  the 
cedars  of  Lebanon,  a  name  in  itself  full  of  associations  of  beauty  and  fer- 
tility (Hos.  xiv.  5  ft",).     It  is  doubtful  whether  the  verb  means  to  wave, 
as  A.V.  shake,  or  to  rustle.     Grass  is  emblematic  of  freshness,  beauty, 
abundant  and  vigorous  growth.     Cp.  Job  v.  25;  Is.  xxvii.  6.     The  in- 
crease  of  the  population  was  a  marked  feature  of  Solomon's  reign 
(i  Kings  iv.  20),  and  is  a  common  characteristic  in  the  pictures  of  the 
Messianic  age  (Is.  xlix.  -20  ff.). 

17.  May  his  name  endure  for  ever; 

As  long  as  the  sun  doth  shine  may  his  name  have  issue: 
May  all  nations  bless  themselves  in  him,  (and)  call  him 
happy. 

The  Psalmist  prays  that  the  king's  name  may  not  perish  like  the 
name  of  the  wicked  (Job  xviii.  19),  but  may  always  have  issue,  be  per- 
petuated in  his  posterity  as  long  as  time  lasts  (cp.  v.  5).  The  Ancient 
Versions  however  (LXX,  Syr.,  Targ.,  Jer.)  point  to  the  reading 
YIKKON,  shall  be  established^  instead  of  YINNON,  shall  have  issue,  a  word 
which  is  found  nowhere  else.  Cp.  Ixxxix.  37  ;  i  Kings  ii.  12,  45.  The 
LXX  reads,  "All  the  families  of  the  earth  shall  be  blessed  in  him,  all 
nations  shall  call  him  happy."  But  each  of  these  last  three  verses  is  a 
tristich,  and  the  words  "all  families  of  the  earth"  are  introduced  from 
Gen.  xii.  3.  May  all  nations  bless  themselves  in  him,  invoking  for  them- 
selves the  blessings  which  he  enjoys  as  the  highest  and  best  which  they 
can  imagine  (cp.  Gen.  xlviii.  20); — an  allusion  to  the  promises  to 
Abraham  and  Isaac  (Gen.  xxii.  18;  xxvi.  4). 

18, 19.  This  doxology  is  no  part  of  the  Psalm,  but  marks  the  close  of 
Book  ii.  It  is  fuller  than  the  corresponding  doxology  at  the  end  of 
Book  i  (xli.  13),  and  those  at  the  end  of  Books  iii  (Ixxxix.  52)  and  iv 
(cvi.  48). 

18.  who  only  doeth  wofidrous  things]  Cp.  Ixxxvi.  ro;  cxxxvi.  4; 
Job  ix.  10;  and  note  on  Ixxi.  17. 


424  PSALM    LXXII.  19,  20. 

19  And  blessed  be  his  glorious  name  for  ever : 

And  let  the  whole  earth  be  filled  with  his  glory ;  Amen,  and 
Amen. 

20  The  prayers  of  David  the  son  of  Jesse  are  ended. 

19,  his  gloriotis  vame]  Lit.  the  name  of  his  glory,  as  in  Neh.  ix.  5. 
Cp.  the  similar  phrase  in  i  Chr.  xxix.  13 ;  Is.  Ixiii.  14.  The  Name  of 
His  glory  is  the  compendious  expression  for  the  Majesty  of  His  Being, 
as  it  is  revealed  to  men. 

and  let  the  whole  earth  Sic.']     From  Num.  xiv.  21. 

Anien^  and  Amen]  So  it  is:  the  response  of  the  congregation, 
affirming  the  ascription  of  praise  on  their  own  behalf  (cvi.  48  ;  Neh. 
viii.  6). 

20.  Compare  the  note  in  Job  xxxi.  40  which  separates  the  speeches 
of  Job  from  those  of  Elihu  and  Jehovah.  As  the  Fourth  and  Fifth 
Books  contain  Psalms  ascribed  to  David,  this  note  cannot  have  been 
placed  here  by  an  editor  who  had  the  whole  Psalter  before  him.  Most 
probably  it  was  added  by  the  compiler  of  the  Elohistic  collection,  to 
separate  the  'Psalms  of  David'  from  the  'Psalms  of  Asaph'  which  follow, 
and  to  indicate  that  there  were  no  more  'Davidic'  Psalms  in  his  collec- 
tion. The  only  Psalm  in  Book  iii  which  bears  the  name  of  David 
(lxxx^^)  is  outside  the  Elohistic  collection,  and  is  moreover  obviously  a 
late  compilation,  composed  of  fragments  of  other  Psalms.  For  the  term 
prayers  see  Introd.  p.  xx.  .  The  LXX  rendering  \)}x.voi  however  may 
point  to  another  reading  n^/Tin,  praises. 


I 


THE   PSALMS. 

BOOK    III. 

PSALMS   LXXUI— LXXXIX 


THE   THIRD   BOOK   OF   PSALMS. 

Twelve  Psalms  in  the  Psalter  are  entitled  Psalms  "of 
Asaph,"  of  which  one  (Ps.  1)  stands  by  itself  between  the 
Korahite  and  Davidic  groups  in  Book  ii,  and  the  remainder 
stand  together  in  a  group  at  the  beginning  of  Book  iii.  It  has 
been  conjectured  (see  Introd.  p.  liv,  note  i)  that  the  isolated 
position  of  Ps.  1  is  due  to  a  transposition  of  the  divisions 
of  Books  ii  and  iii,  and  that  the  original  arrangement  was 
(i)  Davidic  Psalms,  51 — 72;  (ii)  Levitical  Psalms,  (i)  of  the  sons 
of  Korah,  42 — 49 ;  (2)  of  Asaph,  50,  73—83.  But  it  is  at  least 
as  probable  that  Ps.  1  owes  its  position  to  its  connexion  with 
Ps.  xlix  on  the  one  hand  and  Ps.  Ii  on  the  other,  and  was 
intentionally  placed  by  the  compiler  between  the  Psalms  which 
he  took  from  the  Korahite  collection  and  those  which  he  took 
from  the  Davidic  collection. 

Asaph  was  one  of  David's  three  chief  musicians.  Along  with 
Heman  and  Ethan  (who  seems  to  have  been  also  called  Jeduthun, 
see  p.  348,  and  Intr.  to  Ps.  Ixxxviii)  he  was  selected  by  the  Levites 
to  lead  the  music  when  David  brought  up  the  Ark  to  Jerusalem 
(i  Chron.  xv.  16 — 19).  He  was  appointed  by  David  to  preside 
over  the  services  of  praise  and  thanksgiving  in  the  Tent  where 
the  Ark  was  placed  (i  Chron.  xvi.  4,  5,  7,  yj\  while  Heman 
and  Jeduthun  ministered  in  the  Tabernacle  at  Gibeon  (xvi.  41, 
42).  His  sons,  under  his  superintendence,  were  leaders  of  four 
of  the  twenty-four  courses  of  musicians  (xxv.  i  ff.),  and  they 
are  mentioned  as  taking  part  in  the  Dedication  of  the  Temple 
(2  Chron.  v.  12).  In  later  times  Asaph  was  ranked  with  David 
as  the  author  of  sacred  songs,  and  along  with  Heman  and 
Jeduthun,  he  bore  the  title  of  "  the  king's  seer  "  (2  Chr.  xxix.  30  ; 
I  Chr.  xxv.  5  ;  2  Chr.  xxxv.  15). 

The  "  sons  of  Asaph,"  that  is,  the  Levitical  family  or  guild 
of  his  descendants,  are  further  mentioned  in  the  reign  of  Jeho- 
shaphat  (2  Chron.  xx.  14),  in  connexion  with  Hezekiah's 
reformation  (xxix.  13),  and  as  taking  part  in  the  Passover 
celebrated  by  Josiah  (xxxv.  15).  Among  the  exiles  who  re- 
turned with  Zerubbabel  were  "  the  singers,  the  sons  of  Asaph," 
in  number  128  (Ezra  ii.  41),  or  (according  to  Neh.  vii.  44)  148, 


428  THE   PSALMS 


and  they  conducted  the  service  of  praise  and  thanksgiving 
when  the  foundation  of  the  Temple  was  laid  (Ezra  iii.  lo).  In 
the  time  of  Nehemiah  they  are  once  more  mentioned  as  holding 
the  same  office  (Neh.  xi.  22). 

It  is  clear  that  all  the  Psalms  which  bear  the  name  of  Asaph 
cannot  have  been  written  by  David's  musician,  if  indeed  any 
of  them  were,  for  some  unquestionably  belong  to  the  time  of 
the  Exile  or  even  a  later  period.  Probably  the  title  does  no 
more  than  indicate  that  they  were  taken  by  the  compiler  of  the 
Elohistic  Psalter  from  a  collection  of  Psalms  preserved  and  used 
in  the  family  or  guild  of  Asaph,  and  bearing  his  name.  Why  one 
Levitical  hymn-book  should  have  been  named  from  the  sons  of 
Ko7'ah^  and  the  other  from  Asaph  rather  than  the  sons  of  Asaph 
can  only  be  conjectured.  Possibly  tradition  connected  the  name 
of  Asaph  himself  more  closely  with  it  as  the  founder  of  the 
collection  or  the  author  of  some  of  the  Psalms  in  it,  but  it 
must  have  remained  open  to  additions  in  successive  periods. 

The  Psalms  of  Asaph  are  marked  by  distinctive  charac- 
teristics. How  is  this  to  be  accounted  for,  if  they  belong,  as 
seems  certainly  to  be  the  case,  to  widely  different  periods.? 
It  may  best  be  explained  by  the  supposition  that  a  certain 
type  or  style  of  composition,  derived  possibly  from  Asaph  him 
self,  was  traditional  in  the  family  of  Asaph,  rather  than  by 
the  supposition  that  they  were  selected  on  account  of  their 
particular  characteristics. 

Broadly  speaking,  these  Psalms  are  distinguished  by  their 
prophetic  character.  The  theme  of  Ps.  1,  which  is  a  typical 
Psalm  of  Asaph,  conspicuous  for  its  vigour  and  originality,  is 
the  message  reiterated  by  the  prophets  from  Samuel  onward, 
that  merely  formal  sacrifices  are  worthless  in  the  sight  of  God ; 
and  the  following  features  occur  with  sufficient  frequency  to  be 
regarded  as  characteristic  of  the  collection ^ 

^  Stahelin,  who  is  followed  by  Bishop  Perowne,  reckons  among  the 
characteristics  of  these  Psalms  the  interchange  of  the  Divine  names 
Jehovah  and  Elohim,  and  observes  that  Jehovah  generally  occurs 
towards  the  end  of  a  Psalm  where  it  passes  into  supplication.  But 
if  the  predominant  use  of  Elohim  in  the  Elohistic  collection  is  due  to 
the  hand  of  an  editor  {Introd.  p.  Ivi),  the  interchange  cannot  be  set 


A 


OF   ASAPH.  429 


(i)  Like  the  prophets,  they  represent  God  as  the  Judge, 
Ps.  1  describes  Him  as  coming  to  judge  His  people,  demanding 
spiritual  service,  and  rebuking  unbelief.  Pss.  Ixxv,  Ixxvi  cele- 
brate a  signal  judgement  upon  some  blasphemous  and  insolent 
enemy  of  His  people,  probably  Sennacherib.  Ps.  Ixxxii  re- 
presents Him  as  the  Judge  of  judges,  calling  them  to  account  for 
malversation  of  their  office.  And  though  God  is  not  expressly 
called  the  Judge  in  Pss.  Ixxiii,  Ixxviii,  Ixxxi,  the  judgements  of  God 
as  exhibited  in  life  and  history  for  encouragement  and  warning 
form  the  subject  of  these  Psalms.  Of  course  the  representation 
of  God  as  the  Judge  is  not  confined  to  these  Psalms,  but  it  is 
so  prominent  in  them  as  to  constitute  a  distinctive  feature. 

(2)  As  in  the  prophets,  God  Himself  is  frequently  introduced 
as  the  speaker,  and  that  not  merely  by  the  way,  but  in  solemn, 
judicial  utterances.  See  1,  Ixxv,  Ixxxi,  Ixxxii.  Comp.  Ps.  Ix.  6  ff. 
in  the  Davidic  group. 

(3)  The  didactic  use  of  history  is  also  a  prophetical  feature, 
for  it  was  the  function  of  prophecy  not  only  to  foretell  the  future, 
but  to  interpret  the  past.  It  is  in  the  Psalms  of  Asaph  that  we 
first  meet  with  frequent  references  to  the  ancient  history  of  Israel. 
The  allusion  to  the  legislation  at  Sinai  in  Ps.  1  is  merely  general ; 
but  in  Ixxiv.  I2  ff.,  Ixxvii.  10  ff.,  Ixxx.  8  ff.,  Ixxxi.  5  ff.,  Ixxxiii.  9  ff., 
the  past  history  of.  the  nation  is  appealed  to  for  encouragement 
or  warning,  and  Ps.  Ixxviii  is  entirely  devoted  to  the  'parable' 
of  Israel's  history  from  the  Exodus  to  the  Building  of  the 
Temple.  Such  references  are  not  found  in  Book  i,  and  are 
rare  in  Book  ii  (xliv.  i  ff.,  Ixvi.  5  ff".,  Ixviii) ;  in  the  later  books 
however  they  are  more  frequent  (xcv.  8  ff".,  ciii.  7;  cv;  cvi;  cxiv; 
cxxxii ;  cxxxv ;  cxxxvi). 

(4)  Another  feature,  springing  out  of  the  last,  is  the  fre- 

down  as  a  peculiarity  either  of  the  Psalms  of  Asaph  or  of  those  of  the 
sons  of  Korah. 

El,  'God',  and  Elyon,  'the  Most  High',  occur  with  somewhat 
greater  relative  frequency,  but  the  former  is  distributed  over  the  whole 
Psalter,  and  the  latter  over  the  first  four  Books  of  it.  In  Book  v  it 
occurs  only  in  cvii.  11.  Adondi,  'Lord'  (which  however  may 

often  be  due  only  to  an  editor  or  scribe,  the  word  read  in  place  of 
JHVH  being  actually  written  instead  of  it)  occurs  but  six  times,  while 
in  Ixviii  alone  it  occurs  seven  times,  and  in  Ixxxvi  seven  times. 


430  THE   PSALMS   OF  ASAPH. 

quency  with  which  the  relation  of  Jehovah  to  Israel  is  expressed 
by  the  figure  of  the  Shepherd  and  His  flock.  It  recalls  Jehovah's 
guidance  of  His  people  through  the  wilderness,  and  conveys  the 
assurance  that  He  will  yet  seek  the  lost  and  gather  the  scattered 
and  guide  them  back  into  their  own  land.  See  Ixxiv.  i ;  Ixxvii. 
20 ;  Ixxviii.  52,  cp.  70—72;  Ixxix.  13;  Ixxx.  i.  It  maybe  noted 
that  this  is  a  favourite  figure  with  the  prophets  Micah,  Jeremiah, 
and  Ezekiel. 

(5)  Connected  with  the  tendency  to  look  back  to  the 
early  history  of  Israel  may  be  the  use  of  the  combinations 
Jacob  and  Joseph  (Ixxvii.  15),  Joseph  and  Israel  (Ixxx.  i ;  Ixxxi. 
4,  5);  cp.  Ixxviii.  67,  68.  Cp.  Am.  v.  6,  15;  vi.  6;  Ob.  18;  Zech. 
X.  6;  Ezek.  xxxvii.  16,  19;  xlvii.  13.  It  seems  to  express  the 
idea  that  the  division  of  the  nation  is  intolerable,  and  that  the 
reunion  of  Israel  is  necessary  to  its  full  restoration.  In  this  too 
the  Asaphite  Psalms  agree  with  the  prophets,  who  from  the  time 
of  Amos  onward  predict  the  ultimate  reunion  of  the  nation. 

The  Asaphite  Psalms  are  almost  entirely  natio7ial  Psalms, 
of  intercession,  thanksgiving,  warning,  and  instruction.  The 
purely  personal  element  is  scarcely  found  among  them.  In 
the  Psalms  which  have  the  most  individual  character  (Ixxiii, 
Ixxvii)  the  Psalmist  speaks  as  the  representative  of  a  class,  and 
the  circumstances  which  cause  him  perplexity  are  social  or 
national,  not  personal. 

As  regards  the  date  of  the  Psalms  in  this  group,  some  belong 
to  the  period  of  the  monarchy  (Ixxv,  Ixxvi) ;  some  to  the  Exile 
(Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  Ixxx) ;  and  some  perhaps  to  the  post-exilic  period. 
But  the  predominant  impression  gained  from  reading  the  col- 
lection as  a  whole  is  that  of  a  cry  out  of  the  Exile,  pleading 
that  God  will  visit  and  restore  His  people.  Psalms  of  thanks- 
giving for  past  deliverances,  such  as  Ixxv,  Ixxvi,  Ixxxi,  follow 
Psalms  of  supplication,  as  reminders  of  the  marvellous  works 
wrought  by  God  for  His  people  in  times  past,  and  pledges  that 
He  can  and  will  once  more  deliver  them.  That  the  collection 
contains  Maccabaean  Psalms  appears  to  the  present  writer 
improbable,  in  spite  of  the  general  opinion  to  the  contrary.  See 
Tnt7'od.^  p.  xl\  i,   and  the  introduction  to  Ps.  Ixxiv. 


PSALM    LXXIII.  431 


PSALM  LXXIII. 

This  Psalm  is  a  touching  confession  of  faith  sorely  tried  but  finally 
victorious.  It  falls  into  two  equal  divisions:  in  the  first,  the  Psalmist 
relates  his  temptation ;  in  the  second,  the  conquest  of  his  doubts. 

i.  He  had  all  but  lost  belief  in  God's  goodness  towards  the  righteous 
(i,  2),  as  he  gazed  with  envy  on  the  prosperity  and  influence  of  the 
wicked,  who  seem  to  enjoy  immunity  from  sickness  and  trouble,  and  go 
on  unchecked  in  a  career  of  pride  and  violence  and  blasphemy,  seducing 
the  mass  of  men  to  follow  them  in  denying  God's  rule  in  the  world  (3 — 
11).  He  was  tempted  to  think  that  all  his  endeavours  after  holiness  had 
been  worse  than  wasted  labour,  for  they  had  only  brought  him  suffer- 
ing (12 — 14), 

ii.  He  felt  that  to  proclaim  such  a  view  of  life  would  have  been  an 
act  of  treachery  towards  his  fellow-Israelites,  but  the  more  he  pondered 
on  the  problem,  the  more  cruel  did  it  seem  (15,  16),  until  in  the  Temple 
the  truth  was  revealed  to  him,  that  all  the  pomp  of  the  wicked  is  but  a 
hollow  show,  doomed  to  sudden  and  irreparable  destruction  (17 — 20). 
To  envy  it  was  indeed  irrational  stupidity,  when  in  the  fellowship  and 
guidance  and  favour  of  God  he  possessed  the  highest  good  of  which 
man  is  capable  (21 — 26).  For  desertion  of  God  leads  to  death;  draw- 
ing near  to  Him  is  happiness  (27,  28). 

The  double  problem  of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked  and  the  suffering 
of  the  righteous  weighed  heavily  on  the  minds  of  many  in  ancient  Israel, 
who  only  knew  of  this  world  as  the  scene  of  God's  dealings  with  men, 
and  missed  the  clear  evidence  of  God's  sovereign  justice  which  theydesired 
to  see  in  the  reward  of  the  righteous  and  the  punishment  of  the  wicked. 
In  Ps.  xxxvii  we  have  a  simple  exhortation  to  patience  and  faith  in  view 
of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked,  for  the  triumph  of  the  wicked  will 
be  short-lived,  while  the  reward  of  the  righteous  will  be  sure  and 
abiding.  In  Ps.  xlix  the  impotence  and  the  transitoriness  of  wealth  are 
insisted  on,  and  contrasted  with  God's  care  for  the  righteous  and  the 
final  triumph  of  righteousness.  In  this  Psalm  the  problem  is  still 
approached  from  the  side  of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked,  though  there  is 
a  side-glance  at  the  sufferings  of  the  righteous  (v.  14).  It  represents  a 
deeper  and  probably  later  stage  of  thought :  the  difficulty  has  become 
more  acute,  and  the  solution  is  more  complete;  for  the  Psalmist  is  led 
to  recognise  not  only  the  instability  of  worldly  greatness,  but  the 
supreme  blessedness  of  fellowship  with  God  as  man's  highest  good.  In 
the  Book  of  Job  the  problem  is  approached  from  the  side  of  the  suffer- 
ing of  the  righteous,  but  it  is  fully  discussed  in  its  manifold  aspects. 
A  further  step  is  made  towards  the  conclusion  implicitly  contained  in 
the  faith  of  this  Psalm,  that  this  world  is  but  one  act  in  the  great  drama 
of  life. 

Whether  the  Psalmist  in  zw.  24  ff.  looks  beyond  this  life  or  not,  is  a 
question  of  interpretation  on  which  opinion  will  probably  always  be 
divided.  But  it  is  clear,  as  Delitzsch  observes,  that  he  does  not  rise 
from  pointing  to  the  retribution  which  awaits  the  wicked  in  this  world, 
to  anticipate  a  solution  of  the  contradictions  of  life  in  the  world  beyond, 


432  PSALM    LXXIII.  1—3. 


and  the  exceeding  glory  which  infinitely  outweighs  the  sufTerings  of  this 
present  time  still  lies  beyond  his  horizon.  But  the  dimmer  his  view  of 
a  future  life,  the  more  wonderful  is  the  triumphant  faith,  which  sur- 
renders all  and  cleaves  to  God,  and  the  pure  love,  which  counts  all  in 
the  universe  as  nothing  in  comparison  of  Him. 

It  is  impossible  to  speak  with  confidence  as  to  the  date  of  the  Psalm. 
It  does  not  belong  to  the  Exile,  for  the  Temple  was  standing  {v.  17). 
The  problem  was  debated  in  pre-exilic  times  (Jer.  xii.  i  ff. ;  Hab.  i. 
2  ff.) ;  as  well  as  after  the  Return  (Ps.  xciv.  3  ff. ;  xcii.  7  ff. ;  Mai.  iii.  1 3  ff. ; 
Ecclesiastes  viii.  11  ff.;  &c.).  The  relation  of  the  Psalm  to  Job  (cp. 
especially  ch.  xxi)  and  Proverbs  (xxiii.  17,  18;  &c.)  does  not  enable  us 
to  fix  its  date.  It  should  be  noted  that  here,  as  in  Pss.  xxxvii,  xlix,  the 
thoughts  and  language  of  the  *  Wisdom '  or  religious  philosophy  of  Israel, 
find  a  place  in  the  Psalter. 

A  Psalm  of  Asaph, 

Truly  God  is  good  to  Israel,  73 

jEven  to  such  as  are  of  a  clean  heart. 

But  as /or  me,  my  feet  were  almost  gone ;  x 

My  steps  had  well  nigh  slipt. 

For  I  was  envious  at  the  foolish,  3 

JV/ie/i  I  saw  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked. 

1 — 14.     Faith  tried  by  the  sight  of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked. 

1,  2.  The  Psalmist  begins  by  stating  the  conclusion  to  which  he  had 
been  led  through  the  trial  of  his  faith. 

1.  Truly\  It  is  possible  to  render  with  R.V.  marg.,  Only  good  is 
God.  Though  He  permits  His  people  to  suffer,  He  is  wholly  loving- 
kindness  toward  them.  Cp.  Lam.  iii.  25.  But  it  is  preferable  to 
render  with  R.V.  text,  Surely.  The  particle  ak  in  this  connexion  ex- 
presses the  idea  Nay  but  after  all. 

such  as  are  of  a  clean  heart'\  R.V.,  such  as  are  pure  in  heart. 
'Israel'  is  thus  defined  as  the  true  Israel  of  God.  To  them,  in  spite  of 
all  appearances  to  the  contrary,  He  manifests  His  goodness  (Ex.  xxxiii. 
19).  Purity  of  heart  and  life  is  the  condition  of  admission  to  His  pre- 
sence (xxiv.  4  ff.),  of  'seeing  God'  (Matt,  v.  8). 

2.  But  the  Psalmist  had  almost  lost  his  faitli  in  God's  goodness.  He 
had  as  it  were  all  but  swerved  from  the  right  path  (xliv.  18) ;  all  but  lost 
his  footing  in  the  slippery  places  of  life's  journey  (xvii.  5). 

3 — 9.  The  cause:  the  unbroken  prosperity  of  the  godless.  Cp.  Job's 
indignant  complaint,  xxi.  7  ff. 

3.  /  ivas  enviousl  Cp.  xxxvii.  i ;  and  the  repeated  warnings  of  the 
Book  of  Proverbs,  iii.  31,  xxiii.  17,  xxiv.  i,  19. 

the  foolish]  Rather  as  R.  V.,  the  arrogant,  a  word  denoting  boastful 
blustering  presumption.     Cp.  v.  5 ;  Ixxv.  4. 

the  prosperi/yl  Lit.  the  peace.  Cp.  Job  xxi.  9,  "their  houses  are  in 
peace  without  fear." 


PSALM    LXXIII.  4-8.  433 

For  tJiere  are  no  hands  in  their  death  :  4 

But  their  strength  is  firm. 

They  are  not  in  trouble  as  other  men ;  5 

Neither  are  they  plagued  like  other  men. 

Therefore  pride  compasseth  them  about  as  a  chain ;  6 

Violence  covereth  them  as  a  garment. 

Their  eyes  stand  out  with  fatness :  7 

They  have  more  than  heart  could  wish. 

They  are  corrupt,  and  speak  wickedly  concerning  oppression:  8 

They  speak  loftily. 


4.  no  bands &'c.\  The  meaning  maybe  that  they  are  not  bound  and 
delivered  over  like  "pale  captives"  to  premature  death  (cp.  the  para- 
phrase of  P.B.V.  "they  are  in  no  peril  of  death"):  or  that  they  have 
no  torments  of  pain  and  disease  (R.V.  vcvaxg.  pangs)  in  their  death,  but 
have  a  peaceful  end  to  a  prosperous  life.     Cp.  Job  xxi.  13,  23. 

But  the  mention  of  death  seems  premature,  and  the  rhythm  of  the 
Hebrew  is  halting:  sense  and  rhythm  both  gain  by  a  simple  emendation 
which  is  adopted  by  most  editors : 

For  they  have  no  torments : 

Sound  and  stalwart  is  their  body, 

5,  6.        They  have  no  share  in  the  misery  of  mortals ; 

Neither  are  they  plagued  along  with  other  men: 
Therefore  pride  is  as  a  chain  about  their  neck; 
Violence  covereth  them  as  a  garment. 
Though  "man  is  born  for  misery"  Qob  v.  7),  they  escape  the  com- 
mon, lot  of  humanity,  and  consequently  their  pride  and  brutality  are 
unchecked.     For  the  metaphors  cp.  Prov.  i.  9;  Ps.  cix.   18.     Chains 
were  worn  on  the  neck  in  Eastern  countries  for  ornament  by  men  as 
well  as  women,  and  also  as  badges  of  office  (Gen.  xli.  42  ;  Dan.  v.  7). 

7.  According  to  the  Massoretic  Text  the  first  line  describes  the  insolent 
look  of  these  sleek-faced  villains.  Cp.  Job  xv.  27.  But  the  LXX  and 
Syr.  represent  a  different  reading,  which  suits  the  probable  sense  of  the 
next  line  better,  and  gets  rid  of  a  grammatical  anomaly.     Render 

Their  iniquity  cometh  forth  from  the  heart: 
The  imaginations  of  their  mind  overflow. 
The  word  for  heart  is  the  same  as  that  in  xvii.  10,  which  according  to 
Robertson  Smith  {Religion  of  the  Semites,  p.  360)  means  properly  the 
midriff.  The  verse  is  thus  a  continuation  oiv.  6.  "Out  of  the  abund- 
ance of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh";  and  no  tear  or  shame  controls 
their  utterance  of  their  thoughts.     Cp.  Jer.  v.  28. 

8.  The  rhjrthm  seems  to  require  a  different  division  of  the  verse  from 
that  given  by  the  Massoretic  accentuation,  thus ; 

They  scoff,  and  talk  of  evil: 
Of  oppression  do  they  talk  from  on  high. 
Not  the  commandments  of  God  (Deut.  vi.  7;  xi.  19)  but  their  own 

PSALMS  28 


434  PSALM    LXXIII.  9— ii. 

9  They  set  their  mouth  against  the  heavens, 
And  their  tongue  walketh  through  the  earth. 

10  Therefore  his  people  return  hither : 

And  waters  of  a  full  cup  are  wrung  out  to  them. 

11  And  they  say,  How  doth  God  know  ? 
And  is  there  knowledge  in  the  most  High  ? 

nefarious  designs  are  the  subject  of  their  conversation:  they  talk  "as  if 
they  were  gods  and  their  words  oracles."  Cp.  Is.  xiv.  13.  P.B.V. 
"their  talking  is  against  the  most  High"  (Great  Bible  from  Munster)  is 
untenable. 

9.  The  A.V.  gives  a  good  sense:  they  blaspheme  God  and  dictate 
to  men.    Cp.  Dan.  vii.  25.    But  probably  the  R.V.  is  right  in  rendering, 

They  have  set  their  mouth  In  the  heavens. 
The  clause  expands  the  words  of  the  preceding  verse  "from  on  high." 
They  make  an  impious  claim  of  divine  authority,  and  dictate  to  men  as 
though  the  earth  belonged  to  them. 

10,  11.     The  mass  of  men  are  carried  away  by  their  evil  example. 

10.  A  difficult  verse.  The  general  sense  appears  to  be  that  attracted 
by  the  prosperity  and  pretensions  of  the  wicked  a  crowd  of  imitators 
turn  to  follow  them,  and  in  their  company  drink  to  the  dregs  the  cup  of 
sinful  pleasure.  The  Psalmist's  temptation  is  intensified  as  he  contem- 
plates the  popularity  of  the  wicked.  Cp.  xlix.  13.  The  details  however 
are  obscure.  Therefore,  because  they  are  deluded  by  the  extravagant 
pretensions  of  the  wicked.  The  pronoun  his  is  commonly  explained  to 
refer  to  the  wicked  regarded  as  a  whole,  or  to  some  conspicuous  leader 
among  them.  The  context  hardly  allows  of  its  reference  to  God.  But 
the  LXX  and  Syr.  may  preserve  the  true  reading  'my  people,'  the 
Psalmist  speaking  with  sorrow  of  his  deluded  countrymen.  Return 
should  rather  be  turn;  hither ^  to  the  wicked  and  their  pernicious  ways. 

The  reading  of  the  Kihlbh  given  in  R.V.  marg.,  he  will  bring  back  his 
people  hither,  finds  no  support  from  the  Ancient  Versions,  and  admits  of 
no  satisfactory  explanation.  Waters  of  fulness  are  drained  by  them 

is  a  metaphor  for  the  enjoyment  of  pleasure;  or  possibly  for  imbibing 
pernicious  principles.  Cp.  Job  xv.  16;  and  the  saying  of  Jose  ben 
Joezer,  "Let  thy  house  be  a  meeting  house  for  the  wise. ..and  drink 
their  words  with  thirstiness."     Pirqe  Aboth,  i.  4,  cp.  12. 

11.  The  speakers  in  this  verse  are  not  'the  wicked,'  but  the  deluded 
mass  of  their  followers  described  in  v.  10.  They  adopt  the  language  of 
their  leaders,  and  question  God's  knowledge  of  their  doings  in  particular, 
and  even  His  omniscience  in  general.  Cp.  x.  4,  11,  13.  The  names  of 
God — El,  the  Mighty  One,  'Elyon,  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the  Universe — 
are  chosen  so  as  to  accentuate  the  blasphemy  of  their  scepticism. 

12 — 14.  The  Psalmist's  temptation  as  he  contemplated  the  scene. 
Some  conunentators  regard  these  verses  as  the  continuation  of  the 
speech  \nv.  11,  giving  the  thoughts  of  the  followers  of  the  wicked,  the 


PSALM    LXXIII.  12—15.  435 


Behold,  these  are  the  ungodly,  •  « 

Who  prosper  in  the  world ;  they  increase  in  riches. 
Verily  I  have  cleansed  my  heart  in  vain,  13 

And  washed  my  hands  in  innocency. 

For  all  the  day  long  have  I  been  plagued,  14 

And  chastened  every  morning. 

If  I  say,  I  will  speak  thus ;  15 

Behold,   I   should  offend    against  the  generation   of    thy 
children. 

speaker  in  ttu.  13,  14  being  any  individual  among  them.  But  it  is  pre- 
ferable to  regard  them  as  the  words  of  the  Psalmist  himself,  expressing 
the  thoughts  which  he  had  been  tempted  to  indulge,  (i)  The  form  of 
the  sentence,  Behold,  such  &c.,  points  to  a  summing  up  (cp.  Job  v.  27; 
viii.  19,  20;  xviii.  i\)\  (2)  'the  wicked'  is  a  more  natural  designation 
for  the  Psalmist  than  for  their  own  followers  to  use ;  (3)  there  is  nothing 
to  shew  that  the  speaker  xxiv.  15  is  another  than  the  speaker  in  w.  13, 
14 ;  (4)  the  LXX  (followed  by  the  P.B.V.)  inserts  And  I  said  at  the 
beginning  of  ».  13. 

12.  Behold,  sucli  axe  the  wicked! 

And  being  always  at  ease   they  have  gotten  much  sub- 
stance. 
At  ease  is  a  favourite  word  in  Job:  e.g.  iii.  26;  xii.  6  (A.V.  prosper)', 
xvi.  12;  XX.  20;  xxi.  23;  cp.  Jer.  xii.  i. 

13.  Verily]  The  same  word  ak  as  in  v.  i.  R.V,  Surely  in  vain 
have  I  cleansed  my  heart.  If  the  wicked  prosper  thus,  his  endeavours 
after  holiness  have  been  wasted.  There  is  no  reward  for  the  righteous : 
nay  {v.  14)  his  own  reward  has  been  chastisement.  He  would  not  have 
claimed  to  be  sinless  any  more  than  Job  (cp.  Prov.  xx.  9),  but  he  has 
a  good  conscience.  For  the  second  line  cp.  Ps.  xxvi.  6.  The  meta- 
phor is  derived  from  the  ceremonies  of  the  Levitical  ritual.  See  Ex. 
XXX.  i7ff.;  cp.  Deut.  xxi.  6. 

14.  For  &c.]  Apparently  the  recompence  of  his  piety  has  been 
continual  chastisement.  The  wicked  are  not  plagued  (v.  5),  but  for 
him  there  has  been  constant  renewal  of  divinely  inflicted  sufferings. 
Cp.  xxxix.  10,   11;  Job  vii.  18. 

15 — 28.  Faith  triumphant  in  the  conviction  of  an  ultimate  judge- 
ment and  the  consciousness  of  the  supreme  blessedness  of  fellowship 
with  God. 

15—17.     Instead  of  parading  his  doubts,  he  wrestled  with  them  imtil 
in. the  sanctuary  the  solution  of  them  was  revealed  to  him. 
15.    If  I  had  said,  I  will  speak  thus ; 

Behold,  I  had  dealt  treacherously  with  the  generation  of  thy 
children  (R.V.).  • 

If  he  had  paraded  his  perplexities,  and  made  open  profession  of  the 
wicked  man's  creed  (Job  xxi.  15),  he  would  have  been  faithless  to  the 

28—2 


436  PSALM   LXXIII.  16—20. 

16  AVhen  I  thought  to  know  this, 
It  was  too  painful  for  me ; 

17  Until  I  went  into  the  sanctuary  of  God ; 
Then  understood  I  their  end. 

18  Surely  thou  didst  set  them  in  slippery  places  : 
Thou  castedst  them  down  into  destruction. 

19  How  are  they  brought  into  desolation,  as  in  a  moment ! 
They  are  utterly  consumed  with  terrors. 

20  As  a  dream  when  one  awaketh ; 

So,  O  Lord,  when  thou  awakest,  thou  shalt  despise  their 
image. 

interests  of  God's  family.     In  the  O.T.  Israel  as  a  people  is  called 
Jehovah's  son  (Ex.  iv.   22)  or  Jehovah's  sor.s  (Deut.  xiv.    i),  but  the 
individual  does  not  yet  claim  for  himself  the  title  of  son  except  in  an 
official  and  representative  capacity  (ii.  7).     The  recognition  of  that 
closer  personal  relation  is  reserved  for  the  N.T.  (Gal.  iii.  26). 
16,  17.    And  I  kept  thinking  how  to  understand  this : 
It  was  misery  in  mine  eyes: 
Until  I  went  into  the  sanctuary  of  God, 
And  considered  their  latter  end. 
As  he  kept  pondering  how  to  reconcile  the  facts  of  experience  with  the 
revealed   truth  of    God's  character  and  promises,    the  sight  of    the 
world's  disorder  seemed  intolerable,  until  in  the  Temple,  the  place 
of  God's  Presence,  where  He  reveals  His  power  and  glory  (Ixiii.  2),  he 
was  enabled  to  realise  the  transitoriness  of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked, 
and  their  nothingness  in  the  sight  of  God.     The  sanchiary  (lit.  as  in 
Ixviii.  35,  samtuaries)  is  to  be  understood  literally:  the  explanation  of  it 
as  "the  sacred  mysteries  of  God's  Providence"  (cp.  Wisdom  ii.  22)  is 
attractive  but  too  fanciful. 

18 — 20.  The  awful  fate  of  the  wicked  is  the  negative  solution  of  the 
problem. 

18.  Surely  in  slippery  places  dost  thou  appoint  their  lot: 
Suddenly  dost  thou  cast  them  down  into  ruin. 

Surely,  as  in  w.  i,  13,  means  *  after  all.'  They  are  set  in  dangerous 
places  where  they  will  stumble  and  fall.  Cp.  xxxv.  6;  Jer.  xxiii.  12. 
The  word  for  rui7t  occurs  elsewhere  only  in  Ixxiv.  3. 

19.  How  are  they  l)ecome  a  desolation  in  a  moment! 
They  are  at  an  end,  they  are  consumed  with  terrors. 

The  word  terrors,  found  here  only  in  the  Psalter,  is  a  favourite  word 
in  Job  in  similar  connexions  (xviii.  11,  14,  &c.). 

20.  As  a  dream'\     Cp.  Job  xx.  8;  Is.  xxix.  7. 

when  thou  mvahest]  When  thou  arousest  thyself,  a  diflTerent  word 
from  that  in  the  previous  line,  vMed  in  vii.  6,  xxxv.  23,  of  God  bestirring 
Himself  to  judgement.  The  word  may  mean  in  the  city  (R.V.  marg. 
and  the  Ancient  Versions);    but  this  rendering  yields  no  satisfactory 


PSALM    LXXIII.  21—24.  437 


Thus  my  heart  was  grieved,  21 

And  I  was  pricked  in  my  reins. 

So  foolish  was  I,  and  ignorant :  22 

I  was  as  a  beast  before  thee. 

Nevertheless  I  am  continually  with  thee :  23 

Thou  hast  holden  me  by  my  right  hand. 

Thou  shalt  guide  me  with  thy  counsel,  24 

1  1 J  And  afterwards  receive  me  to  glory. 

sense:  the  paraphrase  of  P.B.V.,  *so  shalt  thou  make  their  image  to 
vanish  out  of  the  city,'  is  quite  unjustifiable. 

their  image]  Cp.  xxxix.  6,  note.  All  their  brave  pomp  is  a  phantom, 
a  mere  counterfeit  of  reality,  an  eidolon -^  and  God  rates  it  at  its  true 
value. 

21,  22.     The  Psalmist's  confession  of  his  error. 

21.  T%us]  R.V.  For.  If  this  rendering  is  adopted,  the  connexion 
is  with  ihe  general  sense  of  the  preceding  verses: — 'I  failed  to  perceive 
the  truth  until  my  eyes  were  opened  in  the  sanctuary,  for^  &c.  But  it 
is  better  to  render : 

When  my  heart  grew  sour, 

And  I  was  pricked  In  my  reins, 

I  was  brutish  and  Ignorant, 

I  became  a  mere  beast  with  thee. 
He  confesses  the  folly  of  his  former  impatience.  He  had  Ibwered 
himself  to  the  level  of  a  beast  (xlix.  10),  for  what  distinguishes  man 
from  the  lower  animals  is  his  power  of  communion  with  God.  Behe- 
moth, rendered  beasty  might  be  taken,  as  in  Job  xl.  15,  to  mean  'the 
hippopotamus,'  as  an  emblem  for  'a  monster  of  stupidity, '  but  the  more 
general  rendering  is  preferable.  The  reins  {renes,  the  kidneys)  were 

regarded  as  the  seat  of  the  emotions.     Cp.  vii,  9. 

23 — 26.  The /<?j^V/z'^ solution  of  the  Psalmist's  perplexity:  the  only 
true  and  abiding  happiness  is  to  be  found  in  fellowship  with  God. 

23.  Nevertheless]  lAt.^  But  as  for  me,  I  am  ^z.  Render,  Whereas 
I  am  &c.  He  contrasts  his  real  position  of  fellowship  with  God  with 
his  former  delusion  and  also  with  the  insecurity  of  the  wicked. 

thou  hast  holden  &c.]  Better  as  R.V.,  thou  hast  holden  my  right 
hand.     Cp.  Ixiii.  8. 

24.  with  thy  counsel]  Tacitly  he  contrasts  the  course  of  his  life  with 
that  of  the  wicked,  for  counsel  is  an  attribute  of  the  Divine  Wisdom 
(Prov.  viii.  14),  which  the  wicked  despise  (Prov.  i.  25,  30). 

to  glory]  Or,  with  glory  (R.V.  marg.);  or,  as  the  word  is  often 
translated,  with  honour. 

The  meaning  of  this  verse  is  much  disputed.  Can  we  suppose  that 
the  words  bore  for  the  Psalmist  the  sense  which  they  naturally  bear 
for  the  Christian  in  the  fuller  light  of  the  Gospel  ?  Do  they  express  his 
faith  that  God's  guidance  of  lum  through  this  life  will  be  followed  by 


438  PSALM    LXXIII.  25. 

25  Whom  have  I  in  heaven  but  thee  f 

And  there  is  none  upon  earth  that  I  desire  besides  thee. 

reception  into  the  glory  of  His  Presence  after  death?  Or  do  they 
simply  express  his  confidence  that  God  will  guide  him  safely  through 
his  present  troubles,  so  that  in  the  end  honour,  not  shame,  will  be  his  lot, 
and  his  acceptableness  to  God  will  be  demonstrated  to  the  world? 
Delitzsch  finds  in  them  the  larger  hope,  and  thinks  that  here,  as  in 
xlix.  15,  there  is  a  reference  to  the  assumption  of  Enoch  (Gen.  v.  24); 
but  he  admits  that  there  was  as  yet  no  divine  promise  holding  out  the 
prospect  of  a  heavenly  triumph  to  the  struggling  church  on  earth  upon 
which  such  a  hope  could  rest.  If  the  Psalmist  possessed  this  definite  hope, 
we  might  have  expected  that  he  would  lay  more  stress  upon  it  as  affording 
a  solution  of  his  perplexities.  Such  a  hope  moreover  would  rise  far 
above  the  general  level  of  the  O.T.  view  of  a  future  life,  at  any  rate  till 
the  latest  period.  And  no  parallel  can  be  quoted  for  the  absolute  use 
of  'glory'  in  the  sense  of  'heavenly'  or  'eternal  glory.'  Elsewhere  in 
the  Psalter  kdbod  is  used  in  the  sense  of  'honour'  (Ixii.  7;  Ixxxiv.  11; 
cxii.  9;  cxlix.  5);  and  in  Job  and  Proverbs,  to  which  it  is  natural  to 
turn  for  the  elucidation  of  the  language  of  a  Psalm  so  closely  connected 
with  the  reflections  of  the  'Wise,'  it  bears  the  same  sense.  It  is  often 
coupled  with  riches  and  life,  and  contrasted  with  shame.  See  Job  xix. 
9;  xxix.  20;  Prov.  iii.  16,  35;  viii.  18;  xv.  33;  xxi.  21;  xxii.  4. 

It  seems  therefore  that  as  the  Psalmist  anticipates  that  judgement  will 
overtake  the  wicked  in  this  world,  so  he  looks  for  such  a  deliverance 
and  advancement  in  this  world  as  will  visibly  demonstrate  that  he  is  the 
object  of  God's  loving  favour,  and  prove  that  "there  is  a  reward  for  the 
righteous."  Cp.  Ixxi.  20,  ai.  This  life  is  for  him  the  scene  of  God's 
dealings  with  men,  and  a  full  vindication  of  God's  moral  government 
is  looked  for  within  the  limits  of  individual  experience.  See  further  in 
Introd.  pp.  xciii  fF. :  and  consult  Oehler's  O.  T.  Theology^  §  246,  and 
Schultz's  a  T,  Theology,  ch.  xlii. 

It  may  be  noted  that  the  LXX,  followed  of  course  by  the  Vulg.,  sees 
no  reference  here  to  a  future  life,  but  renders,  '  *  In  thy  counsel  didst 
thou  guide  me,  and  with  glory  didst  thou  receive  me." 

If  this  view  is  correct,  the  Psalmist's  faith  is  even  grander  than  if  he 
looked  forward  to  glorification  in  a  fixture  life.  He  rises  victorious 
over  the  world  of  sense  and  appearance  in  the  inward  certainty  of  the 
reality  of  his  communion  with  God,  and  the  absolute  conviction  that 
this  is  the  highest  good  and  the  truest  happiness  of  which  man  is 
capable.  Such  a  knowledge  is  eternal  life ;  and  the  possibility  of  it  is 
in  itself  a  pledge  that  the  communion  thus  begun  cannot  suddenly  be 
interrupted  by  death,  but  must  be  carried  on  to  an  ever  fuller  perfec- 
tion. 

25.  But  thee  is  rightly  supplied  in  the  first  line,  which  receives  its 
completion  and  explanation  from  the  second.  The  idea  which  logically 
is  one  is  divided  into  two  clauses  for  the  sake  of  the  poetical  rhythin. 

beside  thee\  Lit.  with  thee.  If  I  have  Thee,  there  is  none  else  in 
heaven  and  earth  whom   I   desire.      Thou    art  my  only  good  and 


PSALM    LXXIII.  26-28.  439 

My  flesh  and  my  heart  faileth  :  26 

But  God  is  the  strength  of  my  heart,  and  my  portion  for  ever. 
For  lo,  they  that  are  far  from  thee  shall  perish :  27 

Thou  hast  destroyed  all  them  that  go  a  whoring  from  thee. 
But  //  is  good  for  me  to  draw  near  to  God :  28 

I  have  put  my  trust  in  the  Lord  God, 
That  /  may  declare  all  thy  works. 

source  of  happiness  in  the  whole  universe.  Cp.  xvi.  2,  R.V.,  "Thou 
art  my  Lord ;  I  have  no  good  beyond  thee." 

26.  God  is  the  strength  of  my  hearty  Lit. ,  the  rock  of  my  heart. 
Though  bodily  and  mental  powers  fail,  God  is  his  sure  refuge  in 
every  danger  (Ixii.  2,  6,  7),  the  possession  which  cannot  be  taken  from 
him  (xvi.  5  ;  cxlii.  5).  Never,  now  that  he  has  come  to  his  right  mind, 
will  he  look  for  any  other  refuge  (Is.  xliv.  8),  or  envy  those  "whose 
portion  in  life  is  of  the  world"  (xvii.  14). 

27,  28.     The  final  contrast  of  death  and  life. 

27.  they  that  are  far  from  thee\  Better,  they  that  go  far  from  thee, 
Vulg.,  qui  elongant  se  a  te.  Desertion  of  God  the  source  of  life  (xxxvi. 
9)  can  lead  only  to  ruin  and  death. 

all  them  that  go  a  whoring  from  thee]  All  Israelites  who  are  faithless 
to  the  covenant  with  God.  The  figure  of  marriage  is  used  to  express 
the  closeness  of  Jehovah's  relation  to  His  people  (Hos.  ii.  2  ff. ;  Is.  liv. 
5,  6;  and  often),  and  consequently  apostasy  is  spoken  of  as  infidelity  to 
the  marriage  vow. 

28.  But  as  for  me,  to  draw  near  to  Ood  Is  good  for  me  : 
In  the  Lord  Jehovah  have  I  made  my  refuge; 
That  I  may  speak  of  all  thy  works. 

Emphatically  he  contrasts  himself  with  those  who  *go  far  from  God.* 
Once  he  had  been  tempted  to  ask  what  profit  there  was  in  serving  God, 
and  openly  to  speak  (z/.  1 5)  of  his  doubts :  but  now  he  can  find  an  end- 
less theme  for  praise  in  the  dealings  of  God  with  the  righteous  and  the 
wicked.  The  LXX  reads,  "that  I  may  declare  all  thy  praises 

in  the  gates  of  the  daughter  of  Sion,"  as  in  ix.  14;  and  this  may 
preserve  the  original  reading,  for  the  present  Heb.  text  sounds  incom- 
plete. The  P.B.V.  "to  speak  of  all  thy  works  in  the  gates  of  the 
daughter  of  Sion"  combines  the  LXX  with  the  Heb. 

PSALM  LXXIV. 

This  Psalm  and  Ps.  Ixxix  are  closely  connected  in  thought  and 
language^,  and  reflect  the  same  historical  situation.     If  they  are  not 

^  Comp.  Ixxiv.  1,  9,  10  with  Ixxix.  5,  how  long,  for  ever :  Ixxiv.  3,  7  with  Lxxix.  i, 
the  desecration  of  the  sanctuary:  Ixxiv.  1  with  lxxix.  5,  God's  wrath:  Ixxiv.  t  with 
lxxix.  13,  sheep  of  thy  pasture'.  Ixxiv.  2  with  lxxix.  i,  thine  inheritance:  Ixxiv.  10, 
18,  22,  23  with  lxxix.  4,  12,  the  reproaches  of  the  enemy:  Ixxiv.  7,  10,  18,  21  with 
lxxix.  6,  9,  God's  name. 


440  PSALM    LXXIV. 


from  the  same  pen,  they  must  at  least  belong  to  the  same  perivod,  and 
must  be  considered  together. 

The  circumstances  under  which  they  were  written  stand  out  clearly. 
The  holy  land  has  been  overrun  by  heathen  enemies;  the  Temple 
has  been  desecrated  and  burnt  to  the  ground;  Jerusalem  is  in  ruins; 
numbers  of  Israelites  have  been  slaughtered,  and  their  bodies  left 
unburied;  Israel  is  the  scorn  of  neighbouring  nations;  the  outward 
ordinances  of  religion  are  suspended ;  Jehovah  seems  permanently  to 
have  cast  off  His  people,  and  its  fortunes  seem  destined  to  know  no 
recovery ;  no  one  can  foresee  the  end  of  its  humiliation. 

It  has  generally  been  thought  that  there  are  two  periods,  and  only  two, 
to  which  this  description  can  apply : — the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by 
the  Chaldeans  in  B.C.  586,  and  the  oppression  of  the  Jews  by  Antiochus 
Epiphanes  in  B.C.  170 — 165.  Almost  all  commentators  who  admit  the 
existence  of  Maccabaean  Psalms  in  the  Psalter  at  all  agree  in  referring 
these  Psalms  to  the  latter  occasion,  and  we  may  consider  it  first. 
Antiochus  IV,  sumamed  Epiphanes,  became  king  of  Syria  in  B.C.  175. 
After  his  second  expedition  to  Egypt,  B.  c.  1 70,  he  invaded  Jerusalem, 
plundered  the  Temple  of  its  treasures,  and  massacred  thousands  of  the 
people.  "All  the  house  of  Jacob  was  covered  with  confusion"  (i  Mace, 
i.  20 — 28).  Two  years  later,  after  his  fourth  Egyptian  campaign, 
Antiochus  sent  a  force  under  his  general  Apollonius  to  occupy  Jeru- 
salem. He  seized  the  city  by  treachery,  plundered  it  and  set  it  on  fire, 
massacred  many  of  the  people,  sold  many  women  and  children  as  slaves, 
and  fortifying  the  city  of  David,  established  a  S)nrian  garrison  there 
(i  Mace.  I.  29  ff.).  Antiochus  next  resolved  to  stamp  out  the  Jewish 
religion.  He  promulgated  an  edict  prohibiting  the  practice  of  all  its 
distinctive  ceremonies  upon  pain  of  death,  and  ordering  the  Jews  to  take 
part  in  heathen  rites.  The  Temple  was  desecrated ;  an  idol  altar  set  up 
on  the  altar,  and  sacrifices  offered  upon  it  to  Zeus  Olympios;  all  the 
copies  of  the  Law  that  could  be  found  were  destroyed  or  defaced,  and 
their  possession  was  made  a  capital  offence.  Many  Israelites  turned 
apostate,  but  many  preferred  death  to  the  abnegation  of  their  religion. 
The  resistance  inaugurated  by  Mattathias  at  Modin  was  crowned  with 
success.  Under  the  heroic  leadership  of  his  son  Judas  the  Jews  re- 
covered their  liberty,  and  in  B.C.  165  the  Temple  was  cleansed  and 
re-dedicated  with  great  rejoicings  (i  Mace.  iv.  36  ff.). 

In  many  respects  these  Psalms  appear  remarkably  to  reflect  the 
circumstances  of  this  period ;  they  illustrate  and  are  illustrated  by  the 
narrative  in  i  and  2  Maccabees  in  a  number  of  details ;  and  in  particular 
the  complaints  put  into  the  mouth  of  Mattathias  (i  Mace.  ii.  6  ff.)  and 
Judas  (2  Mace.  viii.  2  ff.)  present  many  points  of  resemblance.  The 
special  arguments  urged  in  favour  of  the  Maccabaean  date  are  (i)  that  the 
absence  of  prophets  spoken  of  in  Ixxiv.  9  was  a  marked  characteristic  of 
the  Maccabaean  times  (i  Mace.  iv.  46;  ix.  27 ;  xiv.  41),  whereas  Jeremiali 
and  Ezekiel  survived  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  for  many  years,  and 
the  former  had  predicted  the  duration  of  the  captivity:  (2)  that  the 
existence  of  synagogues  (Ixxiv.  8)  points  to  a  late  period  of  Jewish 
history:  (3)  that  the  language  of  the  Psalms  implies  that  Israel  was 
suffering  a  r^/4''z<?«J  persecution  (Ixxiv.  10,  18,  22):  (4)  that  the  'signs' 


PSALM    LXXIV.  441 


of  the  heathen  in  the  Temple  and  the  absence  of  Israel's  'signs'  (Ixxiv. 
4,  9)  clearly  refer  to  the  introduction  of  idolatrous  emblems  and  the 
attempt  to  destroy  the  Jewish  religion. 

Upon  these  grounds  these  Psalms  have  very  generally  been  assigned 
to  the  period  between  B.C.  170  and  B.C.  165,  or  more  particularly 
between  the  desecration  of  the  Temple  in  B.C.  168  and  its  re-dedication 
in  B.C.  165.  At  first  sight  the  arguments  appear  to  be  convincing. 
But  it  has  already  been  pointed  out  in  the  introduction  to  Ps.  xliv  that 
the  history  of  the  growth  of  the  Psalter  makes  the  presence  of  Maccabaean 
Psalms  in  the  Elohistic  collection  highly  improbable.  In  view  of  this 
improbability  it  is  necessary  further  to  examine  the  arguments  alleged  in 
proof  of  the  Maccabaean  date.  Now  ( i )  though  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel 
lived  for  several  years  after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the  complaint 
of  Ixxiv.  9  is  intelligible,  if  the  Psalm  was  written,  as  it  may  well  have 
been,  after  their  death.  It  finds  at  least  a  partial  parallel  in  Lam.  ii.  9. 
Further,  though  the  question  'How  long'  may  seem  strange  in  the  face 
of  Jeremiah's  prediction  of  the  duration  of  the  Captivity,  it  could  still 
be  asked  even  after  the  first  Return  (Zech.  i.  12).  (2)  It  will  be 
shewn  in  the  notes  on  Ixxiv.  8  that  the  LXX,  the  oldest  authority  for 
the  text  and  interpretation  of  the  passage,  finds  no  allusion  in  it  to 
synagogues,  but  understands  it  of  the  solemn  feasts,  the  suspension  of 
which  is  deplored  in  Lamentations  as  one  of  the  great  calamities  of 
the  Exile.  (3)  Every  war  against  Israel  was  in  a  sense  a  religious 
war,  and  the  language  is  no  more  than  might  have  been  used  with 
reference  to  any  occasion  when  the  humiliation  of  Israel  gave  the 
heathen  opportunity  to  speak  contemptuously  of  Israel's  God.  (4)  The 
'signs'  of  the  enemy  may  equally  well  mean  the  military  ensigns  of  the 
Chaldeans,  and  the  absence  of  Israel's  'signs'  may  refer  to  the  suspen- 
sion of  festivals  and  other  outward  ordinances  of  religion. 

Thus  the  special  arguments  for  the  Maccabaean  date  break  down  upon 
examination.  But  further,  there  are  allusions  which  fit  the  earlier  date 
better  than  the  later,  and  there  are  some  marked  features  of  the  Macca- 
baean period  which  are  conspicuously  absent. 

(i)  The  description  of  the  burning  and  destruction  of  the  Temple 
and  the  demolition  of  the  city  agrees  with  the  account  of  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  by  the  Chaldeans  (2  Kings  xxv.  9,  10),  whereas  in  the 
Syrian  troubles  only  the  gates  of  the  Temple  were  burnt  and  some  of 
the  subordinate  buildings  destroyed  (i  Mace.  iv.  38),  and  though  the 
city  had  suffered,  it  does  not  seem  to  have  been  laid  in  ruins. 

(2)  The  prolonged  desolation  of  the  city  and  humiliation  of  Israel 
point  decidedly  to  the  earlier  occasion.  The  interval  from  the  outrage 
of  Antiochus  to  the  re-dedication  of  the  Temple  was  only  three  years, 
and  even  from  his  first  invasion  of  Jerusalem  only  five  years,  a  short 
period,  surely,  to  account  for  the  strong  expressions  in  Ps.  Ixxiv. 

(3)  The  mockery  of  the  neighbouring  peoples  was  a  conspicuous 
feature  at  the  time  of  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  (Ps.  cxxxvii;  Ezek. 
xxv).  (4)  The  parallels  with  Jeremiah,  Lamentations,  and  Ezekiel  are 
at  least  as  striking  as  those  with  i  Maccabees^. 

*  Comp.  Ixxiv.  4  with  Lam.  ii.  6,  7;  Ixxiv.  7  with  Lam.  ii.  2;  Ixxiv.  9  with  Lam. 
ii.  6,  9  ;  Ixxix.  6,  7  with  Jer.  x.  25 ;  Ixxiv.  i,  Ixxix.  13  with  Jer.  xxiii.  i  ;  and  further 


references  in  the  notes. 


442  PSALM    LXXIV. 


Arguments  from  silence  are  no  doubt  precarious,  but  it  must  be  noted 
that  these  Psalms  contain  no  reference  to  some  prominent  features  of  the 
Maccabaean  times.  There  is  no  allusion  to  the  intrigues  which  had  dis- 
graced the  hierarchy,  or  to  the  religious  divisions  of  the  time  and  the 
apostasy  of  many  of  the  people,  or  to  the  deliberate  attempt  of 
Antiochus  to  enforce  idolatry  and  destroy  the  Jewish  religion. 

On  the  whole,  then,  the  view  which  seems  most  in  accordance  with 
the  evidence  is  that  these  Psalms  were  written  some  fifteen  or  twenty 
years  after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  about  the  same  time  as  the 
Lamentations.  The  author  might  have  been  an  eye-witness  of  the 
destruction  of  the  Temple,  which  he  describes  so  graphically,  while  at 
the  same  time  the  exile  had  lasted  long,  enough  to  make  it  seem  as 
though,  in  spite  of  Jeremiah's  predictions  of  restoration,  God  had 
permanently  rejected  His  people.  This  hypothesis  we  may  at  any  rate 
take  as  the  basis  of  our  study,  referring  to  the  Book  of  Maccabees  only 
for  illustration.1 

It  has  been  suggested  that  these  Psalms,  though  originally  written 
with  reference  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  were  re-touched  to  adapt 
them  to  the  circumstances  of  the  later  struggle.  The  possibility  may  be 
borne  in  mind,  but  the  conjecture  does  not  admit  of  proof.  Naturally 
the  Psalms  would  have  been  favourites  at  that  time,  and  this  may 
account  for  many  of  the  coincidences  of  thought  and  expression. 

It  may  indeed  be  the  case  that  it  has  been  too  hastily  assumed  by 
the  majority  of  commentators  that  these  Psalms  must  refer  to  one  or 
other  of  the  periods  above  mentioned.  Ewald  would  connect  them, 
together  with  xliv,  Ix,  Ixxx,  Ixxxv,  with  disasters  which  befel  the 
restored  community  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  fifth  century  B.C.,  to  which 
reference  is  made  in  Neh.  i.  3.  But  it  must  be  noted  that  Nehemiah's 
concern  is  for  the  city  only :  there  is  no  mention  of  any  desecration  of 
the  Temple. 

Robertson  Smith  {Old  Test,  in  JeTvish  Ch.^  ed.  2,  p.  438)  prefers 
Ewald's  earlier  view,  and  connects  them  with  the  rebellion  of  the  Jews 
under  Artaxerxes  Ochus  (circa  B.C.  350),  which  was  put  down  with 
great  severity.  Our  knowledge  of  the  history  of  that  period  is,  however, 
extremely  scanty,  and  the  hypothesis  lacks  evidence. 

Psalm  Ixxiv  may  be  divided  into  three  stanzas,  thus : 

i.  The  Psalmist  expostulates  with  God  for  abandoning  His  people, 
and  entreats  Him  to  come  to  their  help,  enforcing  his  appeal  by  a  vivid 
description  of  the  liavoc  which  the  enemy  had  wrought  in  the  sanctuary, 
and  the  despair  which  is  seizing  upon  Israel  (i — 9). 

ii.  He  renews  his  expostulation,  bidding  God  remember  that  His 
honour  is  at  stake,  and  recalling,  at  once  by  way  of  pleading  with  God 
and  for  his  own  consolation,  the  sovereignty  of  Israel's  King  m  history 
and  in  nature  (10 — 17). 

iii.  Repeating  the  arguments  he  has  already  used,  he  once  more 
urgently  entreats  God  not  to  abandon  His  people  to  the  mercy  of  their 
foes,  or  any  longer  to  endure  the  insults  which  are  heaped  upon  Him 
daily  (18 — 23). 

1  On  the  question  of  Maccabaean  Psalms  generally,  see  Ititrod.  p.  xliv  flf. 


PSALM    LXXIV.  1—4.  443 

Maschil  of  Asaph. 

O  God,  why  hast  thou  cast  us  off  for  ever  ?  74 

Why  doth   thine   anger   smoke  against  the  sheep  of  thy 

pasture  ? 
Remember  thy  congregation,  which  thou  hast  purchased  of  a 

old; 
The  jQ^  of  thine  inheritance,  which  thou  hast  redeemed ; 
This  mount  Zion,  wherein  thou  hast  dwelt. 
Lift  up  thy  feet  unto  the  perpetual  desolations ;  3 

Even  all  that  the  enemy  hath  done  wickedly  in  the  sanctuary. 
Thine  enemies  roar  in  the  midst  of  thy  congregations  ;  4 

On  Maschil  se^  Introd.  p.  xix. 

1 — 3.  An  appeal  to  God,  Who  seems  to  have  abandoned  and  forgotten 
the  people  and  city  of  His  choice. 

1.  for  ever]  God's  rejection  of  His  people  seems  to  have  become 
permanent.  The  same  thought  recurs  in  vv.  3,  10,  19,  Ixxix.  5.  Cp. 
Lam.  V.  20;  Ps.  xliv.  23;  Lam.  iii.  31. 

smoke']  A  metaphor  for  the  outward  signs  of  the  fire  of  wrath.  Cp. 
xviii.  8 ;  Ixxx.  4 ;  Lam.  ii.  3,  4. 

the  sheep  of  thy  pasture]  The  exact  phrase  recurs  only  in  Ixxix.  13; 
c.  3;  Jer.  xxiii.  i;  Ezek.  xxxiv.  31;  but  cp.  xcv.  7.  The  title  implies 
that  Israel  has  a  right  to  claim  God's  loving  care  in  virtue  of  His  rela- 
tion to  it :  a  relation  which  v.  2  points  out  was  initiated  by  God  Himself. 
The  representation  of  God  as  Israel's  shepherd  is  common.  See  Ixxx.  i ; 
Ixxvii.  20;  Ixxviii.  52;  Is.  xl.  11;  Jer.  xxxi.  10;  Ezek.  xxxiv.  iifF. 

2.  Remember]     Cp.  z/z/.  18,  22;  Lam.  v.  i;  Is.  Ixii.  6. 
purchased... redeemed]     Reminiscences  of  the  Song  of  Moses  (Ex.  xv. 

13,  16).     Cp.  Ixxvii.  15;  Ixxviii.  35;  Deut.  xxxii.  6. 

the  rod  &c.]     Render  with  R.V., 

Whlcli  thou  hast  redeemed  to  be  the  tribe  of  thine  Inheritaiice. 

The  nation  is  called  a  tribe,  as  in  Am.  iii.  i  it  is  called  2,  family.  So 
too  in  Jer.  x.  16  (  =  li.  19) ;  cp.  Is.  Ixiii.  17. 

this  mount  Zion]    Omit  this:  the  pronoun  here  serves  for  the  relative. 

dwelt]  Cp.  Ixviii.  16.  The  verb  is  that  from  which  later  Judaism 
derived  the  term  Shechinah  to  denote  the  abiding  Presence  of  God 
among  His  people. 

3.  Lift  up^  thy  feet]  Bestir  Thyself:  come  in  might  and  majesty  to 
visit  and  deliver.  the  perpetual  desolations]  R.  V.  the  perpetual 
ruins:  a  word  found  elsewhere  only  in  Ixxiii.  18.  Cp.  the  threat,  Jer. 
XXV.  9,  and  the  promises,  Is.  Iviii.  12,  Ixi.  4. 

even  all  Sac]  Better  as  R.V.,  All  the  evil  that  the  enemy  hath 
done  in  the  sanctuary;  or  R.V.  marg.,  The  enemy  hath  7vr ought  all  evil. 

4 — 9.  A  graphic  picture  of  the  desecration  of  the  Temple  by  the 
heathen  enemies  of  Israel. 

4.  Render,  Thine  adversaries  roared  In  tlie  midst  of  thy  meeting- 


444  PSALM    LXXIV.  5—7. 

They  set  up  their  ensigns /<?r  signs. 

5  A  man  was  famous  according  as  he  had  Hfted  up 
Axes  upon  the  thick  trees. 

6  But  now  they  break  down  the  carved  work  thereof 
At  once  with  axes  and  hammers. 

7  They  have  cast  fire  into  thy  sanctuary, 

They  have  defiled  by  casting  down  the  dwelling  place  of  thy 
name  to  the  ground. 

place.  Moed  may  mean  either  the  place  or  the  time  at  which  God 
meets  His  people,  as  of  old  He  met  them  at  "the  tent  of  meeting"  (Ex. 
xxix.  42 — 44).  Here  probably  the  Temple  is  meant.  Its  courts  were 
filled  with  heathen  foes  instead  of  reverent  worshippers :  they  rang  with 
wild  shouts  of  triumph  instead  of  the  praises  of  Israel.  Cp.  Lam.  ii.  6,  7. 
they  set  up  their  ensigns  for  signs\  Lit.,  their  signs  as  signs.  Pro- 
bably their  military  ensigns  or  standards  (Num.  ii.  2)  are  meant.  The 
erection  of  these  in  the  Temple  itself  was  a  visible  sign  of  its  desecration, 
and  of  the  completeness  of  the  triumph  of  the  heathen.  Many  commen- 
tators however  suppose  that  religious  emblems  and  ceremonies  are 
meant,  and  those  who  regard  this  Psalm  as  Maccabaean  suppose  that 
the  idolatrous  altars  erected  and  rites  celebrated  by  command  of  Antio- 
chus  are  referred  to.     See  i  Mace.  i.  45 — 49,  54,  59,  iii.  48. 

6,  6.  The  R.V.  gives  the  probable  sense  of  these  verses,  but  does  not 
reproduce  the  pictorial  tenses,  which  represent  the  work  of  destruction 
as  though  it  were  going  on  before  the  reader's  eyes.     Render: 

They  seem  as  men  that  lift  up 

Axes  upon  a  thicket  ortrees. 

And  now  the  carved  work  thereof  together 

They  are  battering  down  with  hatchet  and  hammers. 
The  enemy  are  compared  to  wood-cutters  hewing  down  a  forest  Qei. 
xlvi.  22,  23) ;  and  the  simile  may  have  been  suggested  by  the  fact  that  the 
carved  work  on  the  Temple  walls  represented   "palm  trees  and  open 
flowers"  (i  Kings  vi.  29). 

The  P.B.V.,  "  He  that  hewed  timber  afore  out  of  the  thick  trees  was 
known  to  bring  it  to  an  excellent  work.  But  now  they  break  down 
&c.,"  introduced  into  the  Great  Bible  from  Miinster,  gives  a  suggestive 
contrast  between  the  skill  of  the  artist  and  the  vandalism  of  the 
destroyer ;  but  the  present  Heb.  text  cannot  bear  this  meaning. 

7.  They  have  set  thy  sanctuary  on  fire; 

They  have  profaned  the  dwelling  place  of  thy  name  even  to 
the  ground.  (R.V.) 
The  verse  appears  to  speak  of  a  complete  destruction  of  the  Temple 
by  fire.  This  was  done  by  Nebuzaradan  (2  Kings  xxv.  9,  10)  but  not  by 
the  emissaries  of  Antiochus,  for  Judas  found  the  main  building  standing, 
though  the  gates  had  been  burned  and  the  priests'  chambers  pulled 
down  (i  Mace.  iv.  38).  Comp.  the  stress  which  Ezekiel  lays  on  the 
desecration  of  the  sanctuary  (vii,  21,  22,  24).     See  also  Lam.  ii.  2. 


PSALM    LXXIV.  8— lo.  445 


They  said  in  their  hearts,  Let  us  destroy  them  together : 

They  have  burnt  up  all  the  synagogues  of  God  in  the  land. 

We  see  not  our  signs  : 

There  is  no  more  any  prophet : 

Neither  is  there  among  us  any  that  knoweth  how  long. 

O  God,  how  long  shall  the  adversary  reproach  ? 

For  the  dwellingplace  of  thy  name  cp.  Deut.  xii.  11;  xvi.  2,  6,  11, 
&c. ;  Jer.  vii.  12;  Ps.  xxvi.  8. 

8.  They  said  in  their  heart,  Let  us  crush  them  altogether: 
They  burned  up  all  the  meeting  places  of  God  In  the  land. 

For  the  form  of  expression  cp.  Ixxxiii.  4. 

The  interpretation  of  this  verse  is  specially  important  in  its  bearing 
on  the  date  of  the  Psalm.  It  would  be  a  strong  argument  for  the  late 
date  if  it  really  contained  an  allusion  to  synagogues.  Though  the  origin 
of  these  buildings  for  purposes  of  worship  and  instruction  is  hidden  in 
obscurity,  it  can  hardly  have  been  earlier  than  the  post-exilic  period. 
(See  Schiirer,  Hist,  of  the  Jewish  People^  Div.  ii.  §  27,  E.T.  ii.  ii.  54.) 
But  it  is  doubtful  whether  there  is  any  such  allusion.  The  word  trans- 
lated synagogues  is  the  same  as  that  used  in  v.  4,  meaning  either //«<:<?  or 
time  of  meeting.  In  the  plural  it  always  has  the  latter  meaning.  Now 
if  the  Psalm  were  Maccabaean  and  the  passage  referred  to  synagogues, 
it  might  be  expected  that  the  LXX  translators,  working  no  long  time 
afterwards,  would  have  so  understood  it.  But  they  do  not;  and  ap- 
parently they  had  a  different  text  before  them,  for  they  render :  Coviey 
let  us  cause  the  feasts  of  the  Lord  to  cease  out  of  the  land.  Similarly  the 
Syriac.  These  versions  then  understand  the  words  to  refer  to  the 
festivals  or  solemn  assemblies.  Now  the  cessation  of  the  festivals  is 
one  of  the  points  mentioned  in  the  Lamentations  (i.  4 ;  ii.  6)  as  a  special 
calamity;  and  in  Hos.  ii.  11  the  Heb.  word  presumed  by  the  LXX 
here  is  used  in  the  prediction  of  the  cessation  of  religious  festivals  in 
the  Captivity.  This  reading  and  interpretation  suit  the  context.  The 
stated  festivals  were  among  the  'signs,'  the  symbols  of  God's  presence 
and  favour,  of  which  v.  9  speaks. 

9.  our  signs]  The  outward  and  visible  symbols  of  our  religion,  such 
as  sabbath  and  festival,  which  God  *'had  caused  to  be  forgotten  in 
Zion"  (Lam.  ii.  6).  The  sabbath  is  spoken  of  as  a  sign  in  Ex.  xxxi.  13, 
17;  Ezek.  XX.  12,  20.  The  words  would  of  course  be  specially  appro- 
priate to  the  time  at  which  Antiochus  attempted  to  suppress  all  the 
distinctive  ordinances  of  the  Jewish  religion  (i  Mace.  i.  45,  46,  60,  61). 
Note  the  contrast  with  the  'signs'  of  hostile  domination,  v.  4. 

there  is  no  more  any  prophet]  A  characteristic  of  the  Maccabaean 
age  (i  Mace.  iv.  46;  ix.  27;  xiv.  41):  but  the  complaints  of  the  exile 
are  not  dissimilar  (Lam.  ii.  9;  Ezek.  vii.  26);  and  even  after  the  Return 
the  angel  in  Zechariah's  vision  (i.  12)  asks  'How  long?' 

10.  11.  Once  more  the  Psalmist  expostulates  with  God  for  His  in- 
action. 

10.     How  long]  Taking  up  the  last  words  of  v.  9,  the  Psalmist  begins 


446  PSALM   LXXIV.  ii— 14. 

Shall  the  enemy  blaspheme  thy  name  for  ever  ? 
11  Why  withdrawest  thou  thy  hand,  even  thy  right  hand  ? 

Pluck  //  out  of  thy  bosom. 
13  For  God  is  my  King  of  old, 

Working  salvation  in  the  midst  of  the  earth. 

13  Thou  didst  divide  the  sea  by  thy  strength : 

Thou  brakest  the  heads  of  the  dragons  in  the  waters. 

14  Thou  brakest  the  heads  of  leviathan  in  pieces, 

And  gavest  him  to  be  meat  to  the  people  inhabiting  the 
wilderness. 


the  second  division  of  the  Psalm  with  an  appeal  parallel  to  that  in  tjv.  i — 3. 
There  he  entreats  God  to  have  pity  on  His  people's  need,  here  to  have 
regard  to  His  own  honour. 

reproach... blaspheme]  In  act  and  word.  Like  the  Assyrians,  Is.  x, 
yff.,  xxxvii.  23  ff.  ;    and  Syrians,  Dan.  vii.  8,  25;  xi.  36;  i  Mace  ii.  6. 

11.  Why  drawest  thou  back  thy  hand,  even  thy  right  hand? 
(Pluck  it)  out  of  thy  bosom  (and)  consume  (them). 

The  right  hand  which  in  days  of  old  was  stretched  out  to  annihilate 
the  Egyptians  (Ex.  xv.  12),  is  now  as  it  were  thrust  idly  into  the  folded 
garment.     Cp.  Lam.  ii.  3. 

12 — 17.  Yet  God's  mighty  works  of  Redemption  and  Creation  attest 
His  power  to  interpose  for  the  deliverange  of  His  people.  Cp.  Ixxvii. 
10  ff. 

12.  Fori  Better  as  R.V.,  Yet.  In  spite  of  His  present  inactivity 
God  has  been  and  still  is  Israel's  King.  The  Psalmist  speaks  in  the 
name  of  the  nation.     Cp.  Ex.  xv.  18;  Ps.  xliv.  4;  Hab.  i.  12. 

salvation]     Lit.  salvations,  manifold  and  great  acts  of  deliverance. 

in  the  midst  of  the  earth]  As  in  Ex.  viii.  22,  the  phrase  implies  that 
His  wonders  are  wrought  in  the  sight  of  all  the  nations  and  attest  His 
claim  of  universal  sovereignty  (Ixxvii.  14). 

13.  Thoti]  Vv.  13,  14,  15,  17  all  begin  with  an  emphatic  Thou; 
V.  16  with  Thine.  It  is  Thou  and  none  other,  Who  didst  and  doest 
all  these  things.  The  Asaphite  Psalms  are  full  of  references  to  the 
Exodus. 

by  thy  strength]  Cp.  Ixxvii,  14;  Ex.  xv.  13.  The  dragons  or  sea 
monsters,  and  leviathan,  either  the  crocodile  or  some  vague  mythological 
monster,  are  symbolical  of  Egypt.  Cp.  Is.  xxvii.  i ;  Ii.  9 ;  Ezek. 
xxix.  3. 

in  the  waters]  Lit.  upon  the  waters,  the  symbolical  monsters  being 
imagined  as  floating  upon  the  surface  of  the  water.  The  reference  of 
course  is  to  the  destruction  of  Pharaoh's  army  in  the  Red  Sea. 

14.  Thou  brakest ^c.  Thou  didst  crush... thou  didst  give  him  &c 
The  dead  bodies  of  the  Egyptians  were  cast  up  on  the  shore  (Ex.  xiv. 
30)  to  be  devoured  by  the  wild  beasts  of  the  desert.  Cp.  Ezek.  xxix. 
3 — 5.     For  'people'  applied  to  animals  cp.  Prov.  xxx.  25,  26. 


PSALM    LXXIV.  IS— 20.  447 

Thou  didst  cleave  the  fountain  and  the  flood :  »s 

Thou  driedst  up  mighty  rivers. 

The  day  ts  thine,  the  night  also  is  thine  :  x6 

Thou  hast  prepared  the  light  and  the  sun. 

Thou  hast  set  all  the  borders  of  the  earth  :  17 

Thou  hast  made  summer  and  winter. 

Remember  this,  ^ka/  the  enemy  hath  reproached,  O  Lord,    18 

And  //lal  the  foolish  people  have  blasphemed  thy  name. 

O  deliver  not  the  soul  of  thy  turtledove  unto  the  multitude  19 

o/t/ie  wicked: 
Forget  not  the  congregation  of  thy  poor  for  ever. 
Have  respect  unto  the  covenant :  «o 

15.  Thou  didst  cleave  fountain  and  torrent : 
Thou  didst  dry  up  perennial  rivers. 

God's  omnipotence  was  shewn  alike  in  cleaving  the  rock  so  that  water 
flowed  out  (Ex.  xvii.  6;  Num.  xx.  8;  Ps.  Ixxviii.  15;  Is.  xlviii.  21), 
and  in  drying  up  the  perennial  stream  of  the  Jordan  (Josh,  iii,  iv.  23). 

16,  17.  AU  the  fixed  laws  and  ordinances  of  the  natural  world  were 
established  and  are  maintained  by  God, 

16.  The  day  &c.]    TMne  is  the  day  and  the  night  is  thine. 

the  light  and  the  sun]  Possibly  equivalent  to  'the  moon  and  the  sun* 
(civ.  19);  but  more  probably  *the  luminaries  and  especially  the  sun.' 
Cp.  Gen.  i.  14,  16. 

17.  the  borders  of  the  earth]  The  divisions  of  land  and  sea  (civ.  9 ; 
Job  xxxviii.  8fF. ;  Jer.  v.  22),  and  the  apportionment  of  the  land  among 
the  nations  (Deut.  xxxii.  8;  Acts  xvii.  26). 

18 — 23.  Emboldened  by  his  contemplation  of  the  power  of  God  in 
history  and  in  nature  the  Psalmist  returns  to  prayer. 

18.  the  foolish  people]  R.V.  a  foolish  people.  The  epithet  denotes 
the  moral  perversity  of  opposition  to  God.  Cp.  xiv.  i,  note.  It  is 
applied  to  the  heathen  in  Deut.  xxxii.  21. 

19.  The  rendering  of  R.V.,  0  deliver  not  the  soul  of  thy  turtle- 
dove unto  the  wild  beast,  is  preferable  to  that  of  R.V.  marg.,  0  deliver 
not  thy  turtledove  unto  the  greedy  multitude.  The  dove  is  an  emblem  of 
the  defenceless  people. 

forget  not  &c.]  Forget  not  the  family  of  thine  aflElicted  ones  for 
ever :  or,  the  life  of  thins  afflicted  ones.  There  is  a  play  upon  the 
different  senses  of  the  word  chayyath:  in  the  first  line  it  means  wild 
beast  (living  creature),  in  the  second  family  (or  Itfe).  For  the  meaning 
family  see  note  on  Ixviii.  10. 

20.  the  covenant]  With  the  patriarchs,  Gen.  ix.  9ff.;  xvii.  2fF.; 
with  the  nation  at  the  Exodus,  Ex.  xxiv.  8;  with  David,  Ps.  Ixxxix. 
3»  39- 


448  PSALM   LXXIV.  21—23. 


For  the  dark  places  of  the  earth  are  full  of  the  habitations 
of  cruelty. 
31  O  let  not  the  oppressed  return  ashamed  : 
Let  the  poor  and  needy  praise  thy  name. 

22  Arise,  O  God,  plead  thine  own  cause  : 

Remember  how  the  fooHsh  man  reproacheth  thee  daily. 

23  Forget  not  the  voice  of  thine  enemies : 

The  tumult  of  those  that  rise  up  against  thee  increaseth 
continually. 

the  dark  places  of  the  earth\  The  heathen  lands  where  Israel  was  in 
exile.     We  might  also  render,  the  dark  places  of  the  laud,  i.e.  the 

caves  and  hiding-places  where  the  persecuted  Israelites  took  refuge, 
and  where  they  were  tracked  out  and  butchered  (i  Mace.  i.  53, 
ii.  27  ff.). 

are  full  of  the  habitations  of  cruelty']  R.V.  violence.  If  the  text  is 
right,  the  sense  seems  to  be  'places  where  violence  makes  its  home.' 
But  the  expression  is  a  strange  one,  and  the  emendation  are  full  of 
itisolence  and  violence,  adopted  by  many  commentators,  which  requires 
a  very  slight  change  in  the  consonants  of  the  text,  is  plausible.  Cp. 
Ixxiii.  6;  Gen.  vi.  11,  13. 

21.  O  let  not  the  oppressed  (Sic]  Let  not  the  crushed  or  down-trodden 
(ix.  9 ;  x.  18)  turn  back  from  Thee  unanswered  and  disappointed. 

let  the  poor  &c.]  Let  the  afflicted  have  cause  to  praise  Thee  for 
answered  prayer. 

22.  23.  A  final  appeal.  Elsewhere  the  Psalmist  prays  'plead  my 
cause'  (xliii.  i),  but  Israel's  cause  is  God's  cause:  His  honour  is  at 
stake. 

the  foolish  man]  The  fool,  the  members  of  'the  foolish  people,' z/.  18. 
The  Targ,  paraphrases,  "the  reproach  of  thy  people  from  the  foolish 
king,"  but  there  is  nothing  to  shew  that  this  meant  Antiochus  rather 
than  Nebuchadnezzar.  daily\    All  the  day  (R.V.). 

23.  thine  enemies']    Thine  adversaries,  as  in  v.  4. 

increaseth']  Rather,  ascendeth  (R-V.),  to  heaven,  challenging  Thee 
to  act.     Cp.  Is.  xxxvii.  29. 


PSALM   LXXV. 

In  one  of  his  prophecies  of  the  approaching  judgement  which  was  to 
shatter  the  power  of  Assyria  and  set  Israel  free,  Isaiah  compares  the 
rejoicings  with  which  the  dehverance  would  be  celebrated  to  the 
rejoicings  of  the  Passover  festival.  "Ye  shall  have  a  song,  as  in  the 
night  when  a  holy  feast  is  kept ;  and  gladness  of  heart,  as  when  one 
goeth  with  a  pipe  to  come  into  the  mountain  of  the  Lord,  to  the  Rock 
of  Israel"  (Is.  xxx.  29).  Of  such  songs  this  and  the  following  Psalm 
may  well — like  Pss.  xlvi — xlviii  in  the  Korahite  collection— be  examples. 


PSALM    LXXV.  449 


They  are  closely  connected  in  thought  and  language^,  and  may  naturally 
be  referred,  if  not  to  the  same  author,  at  least  to  the  same  period.  They 
speak  of  a  great  act  of  judgement,  by  which  God  had  condemned  the 
proud  pretensions  of  some  boastful  enemy ;  of  a  supernatural  annihilation 
of  the  hostile  forces  which  had  threatened  Zion,  the  city  of  His  choice, 
whereby  He  had  manifested  His  Presence  and  power  among  His 
people.  The  destruction  of  Sennacherib's  army  was  just  such  an  act  of 
judgement,  such  a  direct  intervention  on  behalf  of  Zion.  Sennacherib, 
like  Pharaoh,  had  challenged  Jehovah  to  a  trial  of  strength;  and 
through  the  Assyrian  prophecies  of  Isaiah  there  runs  the  thought  that  it 
was  a  crisis  comparable  to  the  Exodus,  and  second  only  to  the  Exodus 
in  importance.  These  Psalms  are  full  of  coincidences — indirect  rather 
than  direct — with  Isaiah's  prophecies  of  that  period,  and  they  breathe 
an  intensity  of  feeling  which  indicates  that  the  poet  himself  had  ex- 
perienced that  crisis  of  uttermost  peril  and  marvellous  deliverance. 
The  addition  in  the  LXX  title  of  Ps.  Ixxvi,  'A  song  with  reference 
to  the  AssyrianSy*  whether  due  to  tradition  or  conjecture,  shews  that 
the  Psalm  was  at  an  early  date  connected  with  the  deliverance  from 
Sennacherib. 

Some  commentators  have  supposed  that  these  Psalms  celebrate  Mac- 
cabaean  victories,  such  as  those  of  Judas  over  Apollonius  ( i  Mace.  iii. 
ro  flF.)  and  Seron  (i  Mace.  iii.  13  ff.)-  ^^^t  the  general  improbability 
of  the  presence  of  Maccabaean  Psalms  in  the  Elohistic  collection  has 
already  been  pointed  out,  and  there  is  nothing  in  the  Psalms  themselves 
to  support  this  view.  They  speak  of  a  signal  Divine  judgement  super- 
naiurally  inflicted,  rather  than  of  victories  won  like  those  of  Judas, 
not  indeed  without  special  help  from  God,  but  still  by  the  valour  of  his 
soldiers. 

The  position  of  these  Psalms  is  significant.  Following  as  they  do 
upon  the  urgent  appeal  of  Ps.  Ixxiv,  they  supply  an  answer  to  it, 
"Remember,"  the  compiler  of  the  collection  seems  to  say,  "how  in 
one  supreme  crisis  God  proved  His  power  to  help  His  people." 

Psalm  Ixxv  is  cast  into  a  vividly  dramatic  form,  and  speaks  in  a  tone 
of  prophetic  authority. 

i.  The  people  address  God  with  thanksgiving  for  the  recent  mani- 
festation of  His  power  on  their  behalf  (i).  God  speaks  in  answer, 
assuring  them  that  ever  and  anon  at  the  fitting  moment  He  exercises 
judgement :  though  all  may  seem  confusion  and  men's  hearts  fail  them, 
He  maintains  the  order  which  He  has  established  in  the  world  (2,  3). 

ii.  Fortified  by  this  Divine  utterance,  the  Psalmist  addi'esses  the 
proud  enemies  of  Israel,  warning  them  against  presumptuous  boasting, 
for  Israel  looks  to  no  human  ally  for  help,  but  to  God  the  judge,  the 
sovereign  arbiter  of  human  destiny,  Who  holds  in  His  hands  the  cup  of 
judicial  wrath  to  administer  to  those  who  resist  His  will  (4 — 8). 

iii.  While  the  wicked  are  thus  punished,  Israel  (on  whose  behalf  the 
Psalmist  speaks)  will  offer  unceasing  praise  to  God ;  confident  that  the 


1  Comp.  Ixxv.  I  with  Ixxvi.  t,  the  name  of  God  ;  Ixxv.  9  with  Ixxvi.  6,  the  God  of 
Jacob :  Ixxv.  2,  7  with  Ixxvl  8,  9 ;  and  the  general  tone  of  triumph  and  thanksgiving 
which  pervades  both. 


29 


450  PSALM    LXXV.  i- 


power  of  the  wicked  will  be  utterly  destroyed,  and  the  righteous  be 
brought  to  honour  (9,  10). 

Compare  the  Song  of  Hannah,  i  Sam.  ii.  i — 10.  On  the  title,  For 
the  Chief  Musician ;  set  to  Al-tashcheth.  A  Psalm  of  Asaph,  a  Song ; 
see  J  111  rod.  pp.  xxi,  xxvii,  and  Introd.  to  Ps.  Ivii. 


To  the  chief  Musician,  Al-taschith,  A  Psalm  or  Song  of  Asaph. 

75  Unto  thee,  O  God,  do  we  give  thanks,  unto  thee  do  we  give 
thanks : 
For  that  thy  name  is  near  thy  wondrous  works  declare. 

2  When  I  shall  receive  the  congregation 

I  will  judge  uprightly. 
\  3  The  earth  and  all  the  inhabitants  thereof  are  dissolved : 


1.  The  theme  of  the  Psalm:  thanksgiving  for  the  recent  mani- 
festation of  God's  presence  and  power  among  His  people. 

for  that  thy  name  is  near  thy  wondrozis  works  declare"]  The  A.V., 
retained  in  R.V.  marg.,  gives  a  good  sense,  but  such  a  personification 
of  God's  wondrous  works  is  without  analogy,  and  elsewhere  'wondrous 
works  '  is  always  the  object  to  'declare  '  or  similar  verbs.  Hence  it  is 
better  to  render  with  R.V. : 

We  give  thanks  unto  thee,  0  God ; 

We  give  thanks,  for  thy  name  Is  near: 

Men  tell  of  thy  wondrous  works. 
God's  *  Name '  is  the  compendious  expression  for  His  Being  as  it  is 
revealed  to  men.  Cp.  the  striking  parallel  in  Isaiah's  prediction  of  the 
coming  judgement  on  the  Assyrians  (xxx.  27  fF.),  a  passage  which  should 
be  carefully  studied  in  connexion  ^vith  this  Psalm,  "  Behold  the  name  of 
Jehovah  cometh  from  far."  Though  God  is  always  'near'  (Deut.  iv.  7), 
yet  in  an  especial  sense  He  is  '  near '  when  He  manifests  His  presence 
(xxxiv.  18;  cxlv.  18).  men  tell  ^c]     God's  miracles  of  deliverance 

(ix.  I ;  Ixxi.  1 7,  note)  are  in  every  one's  mouth. 

2,  3.  God  speaks,  as  in  xlvi.  ro,  and  His  words  are  virtually  an 
answer  to  men's  thoughts.  Men  may  have  thought  that  He  had  abdi- 
cated His  function  as  Judge  of  all  the  earth:  not  so:  He  was  only 
waiting  for  the  fitting  moment  for  action. 

2.  When  I  reach  the  appointed  time, 
I  Judge  uprightly. 

The  'appointed  time'  (cii.  13;  Hab.  ii.  3;  Acts  xvii.  31)  is  the 
proper  moment  foreordained  in  the  Divine  counsels  and  known  to  God. 
The  intervention  of  Jehovah  at  the  moment  when  the  Assyrians  are  ripe 
for  judgement  is  a  favourite  thought  with  Isaiah  (x.  32,  33;  xviii.  4,  5). 

The  second  /  is  emphatic:  /,  whatever  men  may  do;  /,  whatever 
men  may  think. 

3.  The  first  line  virtually  forms  the  protasis  of  the  sentence :  Though 


I 


PSALM    LXXV.  4—6.  451 

I  bear  up  the  pillars  of  it.     Selah. 

I  said  unto  the  fools,  Deal  not  foolishly :  4 

And  to  the  wicked,  Lift  not  up  the  horn : 

Lift  not  up  your  horn  on  high :  5 

Speak  not  with  a  stiff  neck. 

For  promotion  conieth  neither  from  the  east,  6 

Nor  from  the  west,  nor  from  the  south. 

the  earth  &c. ;  I  have  set  up  the  pillars  of  it.  Though  all  the  world 
is  in  tenor  and  confusion,  /  (emphatic)  have  established  a  moral  order 
in  it.  The  mateiial  world  is  often  compared  to  a  building  with  its 
foundations  and  pillars  (i  Sam.  ii.  8;  Job  ix.  6;  xxxviii.  4  ff.) ;  and  the 
moral  world  is  described  by  the  same  figure.     Cp.  xi.  3 ;  Ixxxii.  5. 

/  bear  up\  Lit.  /  have  proportioned,  or,  adjusted  by  line  and  measure. 
The  rendering  of  R.  V.  marg.,  When  the  earth... I  set  up,  will  mean  that 
when  confusion  reigns,  God  re-establishes  order :  but  it  is  better  to  un- 
derstand the  perfect  tense  (/  have  set  up)  of  the  fundamental  laws  which 
God  has  from  the  first  ordained. 

4,  5.  A  warning  to  all  presumptuous  braggarts,  based  on  the  Divine 
utterances  of  ^'^z/.  2,  3.  It  is  disputed  whether  the  speaker  is  still  God, 
as  in  w.  2,  3,  or  the  poet,  but  the  latter  alternative  is  preferable.  The 
interposition  of  Se/ah  marks  the  end  of  the  Divine  speech,  and  /  said 
naturally  introduces  a  fresh  speaker.  Moreover  there  is  no  break  between 
V.  5  and  V.  6,  but  it  is  clear  that  God  is  no  longer  speaking  in  w.  6,  7. 

4.  I  say  unto  the  arrogant.  Deal  not  a^ogantly.  Cp.  Ixxiii.  3; 
v.  5.  Rabshakeh  and  his  colleagues  and  the  Assyrians  in  general  were 
the  very  type  of  such  boastful,  defiant  arrogance  (Is.  xxxvii.  23;  x. 
7ff.;  Nah.  i.  11). 

Liyi  not  up  the  horn\  A  metaphor,  derived  from  animals  tossing 
their  heads,  to  denote  overweening,  defiant  self- consciousness  of 
strength. 

5.  speak  not  with  a  stiff  neck^  Better,  as  R.V.  marg.,  Speak  not  inso- 
lently with  a  haughty  neck.  Cp.  i  Sam.  ii.  3 ;  and  for  neck  =  haughty  necky 
see  Job  xv.  id.  Not  should  not  have  been  italicised  in  A.V.  A  single 
negative  governs  both  clauses  in  the  Heb.  though  our  idiom  requires 
its  repetition.  There  is  an  interesting  various  reading  in  the  LXX, 
**  Speak  not  unrighteousness  against  God."  They  read  in  their  text  the 
word  for  Rock,  which  differs  by  only  one  consonant  from  the  word  for 
neck  (TlV  — "Ifc^lV) ;  and  it  is  noteworthy  that  this  title  of  God  occurs  in 
Is.  XXX.  29.     Cp.  Hab.  i.  12, 

6—8.  The  reason  for  this  warning.  Israel  looks  to  God  alone  for 
help,  and  He  is  the  supreme  arbiter  of  human  destinies. 

6.  According  to  one  reading  of  the  Heb.  text  we  must  render, 
For  neither  from  the  east,  nor  from  the  west, 

Nor  yet  from  the  wilderness,  (cometh)  lifting  up. 
The  wilderness,  to  the  S.  of  Palestine,  stands  for  the  south :  and  the 


452  PSALM    LXXV.  7—10. 


;  But  God  is  the  judge  : 
He  putteth  down  one,  and  setteth  up  another. 

8  For  in  the  hand  of  the  Lord  there  is  a  cup,  and  the  wine  is 

red; 
It  is  full  (?/■  mixture;  and  he  poureth  out  of  the  same  : 
But  the  dregs  thereof,  all  the  wicked  of  the  earth  shall  wring 

them  out,  and  drink  the?n. 

9  But  I  will  declare  for  ever ; 

I  will  %\ng  praises  to  the  God  of  Jacob. 
10  AH  the  horns  of  the  wicked  also  will  I  cut  off ; 
Bid  the  horns  of  the  righteous  shall  be  exalted. 

sense  is,  Exalt  not  yourselves,  for  exaltation  comes  from  no  quarter  of 
the  compass,  but  from  God.  But  it  is  better  to  follow  a  slightly  different 
reading,  which  is  that  of  all  the  Ancient  Versions  except  the  Targum, 
and  render  the  second  line,  Nor  yet  from  the  -wilderness  of  mountains, 
(cometh  our  help).  The  sentence  is  an  aposiopesis,  to  be  completed 
with  words  such  as  those  of  cxxi.  i,  2.  Israel  looks  not  to  any  quarter 
of  the  compass  for  human  help,  but  to  God  alone.  The  North  is  not 
mentioned  because  the  Assyrians  were  approaching  from  that  quarter. 

7.  the  Judge]     Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  22. 

sdteth  uj>]    Lifteth  up.     Cp.  1  Sam.  ii.  6,  7 ;  Ps.  cxlvii.  6. 

8.  The  judgement  is  described  under  the  figure  of  a  cup  of  wine,  which 
God  gives  the  wicked  to  drink.  The  figure  is  a  common  one.  See 
Jer.  XXV.  15  ff.,  27  ff.;  xlix.  12;  li.  7;  Is.  li.  17  ff.;  Job  xxi.  20;  Ps.  xi. 
6;  Ix.  3.  is  red'\  Or,  foameth  (R.V.).  77iixture\  Herbs  and 
spices  to  make  it  more  seductive  and  intoxicating. 

but  the  dregs  &c.]  Surely  the  dregs  thereof  all  the  wicked  of  the 
earth  shall  drain  up  and  drink.  They  must  drink  the  draught  of 
God's  vsrath  to  the  last  drop.  Cp.  Is.  li.  17.  Rosenmiiller  quotes  in 
illustration  from  an  Arabic  poet,  "We  gave  the  Hudheilites  the  cup  of 
death  to  drink,  whose  dregs  are  confusion,  disgrace,  and  shame." 

9s  10.     The  vow  of  praise  and  the  assurance  of  triumph. 

9.  But  as  for  me,  I  will  declare  for  ever.  It  is  easy  to  supply 
'thy  wondrous  works.'  But  the  LXX  reads  (with  change  of  one  letter) 
I  will  rejoice y  which  may  be  right.    Cp.  ix.  14;  Is.  xxix.  19. 

For  ever  may  mean  '  while  life  lasts '  (i  Sam.  i.  22) :  or  is  he  speaking 
as  the  representative  of  the  immortal  people  ? 

10.  will  I  C7it  off]  If  the  poet  is  the  speaker,  he  speaks  in  the  name 
of  Israel,  confident  that  in  God's  strength  they  will  be  able  to  complete 
the  humiliation  of  their  proud  foes.  Cp.  Mic.  iv.  13.  But  the  speaker 
may  be  God,  answering  the  vow  of  praise  with  a  fresh  promise.  Cp. 
xlvi.  10.     For  the  figure  cp.  Zech.  i.  18  flf. 

shall  be  exalted]  Shall  be  lifted  up  (R.V.).  Cp.  i  Sam.  ii.  10. 
*  The  righteous  one '  is  Israel,  righteous  by  contrast  with  the  wicked 
Assyrians.     Cp.  Hab.  i.  13. 


PSALM    LXXVl.   1-3.  453 


PSALM  LXXVl. 

The  occasion  of  this  Psalm  has  already  been  discussed  in  the  Intro- 
duction to  Ps.  Ixxv.  Its  structure  is  clearly  marked,  and  should  be 
compared  with  that  of  Ps.  xlvi.  It  consists  of  four  stanzas  of  three 
verses  each,  the  close  of  the  first  and  third  being  marked  by  Selah. 

i.  God  has  once  more  revealed  Himself  in  Zion,  by  shattering  the 
power  of  the  foes  which  assailed  her  (i — 3). 

ii.  Triumphantly  He  returns  from  the  scene  of  their  discomfiture, 
where  hero  and  warrior,  chariot  and  horse,  lie  still  in  death  (4 — 6). 

iii.  None  can  resist  Him  when  He  puts  forth  His  power  as  Judge 
and  Saviour  (7 — 9). 

iv.  Man's  opposition  does  but  enhance  His  glory.  Let  Israel  render 
due  thanksgiving,  and  the  neighbouring  nations  pay  fitting  homage,  to 
Him  Who  subdues  kings  and  princes  at  His  will  (10 — 12). 

On  the  title.  For  the  chief  Musician,  on  stringed  instruments.  A 
Psalm  of  Asaph,  a  Song,  see  Introd.  pp.  xxi,  xxiv.  The  LXX  adds, 
as  in  Ps.  Ixxx,  with  rcferetice  to  the  Assyrian. 

To  the  chief  Musician  on  Neginoth,  A  Psalm  or  Song  of  Asaph. 

In  Judah  is  God  known  :  76 

His  name  is  great  in  Israel. 

In  Salem  also  is  his  tabernacle,  2 

And  his  dwelling  place  in  Zion. 

There  brake  he  the  arrows  of  the  bow,  3 

The  shield,  and  the  sword,  and  the  battle.     Selah. 

1 — 3,  God  has  once  more  shewn  His  might  in  Zion  by  shattering 
the  power  of  her  assailants. 

1.  knowri\  Lit. ,  one  who  has  made  Himself  known.  By  this  recent 
deliverance  He  has  once  more  **made  Himself  known  in  her  palaces  as 
a  sure  refuge"  (xlviii.  3;  cp.  ix.  16;  Is.  xxxiii.  13). 

his  name  is greafl     Cp.  Ixxv.  i;  xlvii.  2;  xlviii,  i,  10;  Ixxvii.  13. 

Israel]  The  covenant  name,  denoting  the  people  of  God's  choice. 
Now  that  the  kingdom  of  Israel  had  fallen,  Judah  was  the  representa- 
tive of  the  whole  nation. 

2.  And  he  hath  set  Ms  pavilion  in  Salem, 
And  his  habitation  in  Zion. 

For  the  words  pavilion  and  habitation  applied  to  the  Temple  see 
xxvii.  5  ;  Ixviii.  5.  The  words  may  however  mean  the  covert  and  lair 
of  a  lion  (x.  9 ;  civ.  22 ;  Am.  iii.  4) ;  and  it  is  possible  that  the  Psalmist 
intends  to  describe  God  as  the  lion  of  Judah,  who  has  issued  forth  from 
His  lair,  and  seized  His  prey.     Cp.  v.  4,  and  the  simile  in  Is.  xxxi.  4. 

Salem  is  either  an  old  name  for  Jerusalem  (Gen.  xiv.  18),  or  a  poeti- 
cal abbreviation.  The  name  means  'unharmed,'  'at  peace,'  and  it  is 
doubtless  used  with  allusion  to  the  recent  escape  of  Zion  from  destruc- 
tion (Is.  xxxiii.  20). 

3.  There  hath  he  broken  the  lightnings  of  the  bow.    The  destnic- 


454  PSALM   LXXVI.  4—6. 

4  Thou  art  more  glorious  and  excellent  than  the  mountains  oi 

prey. 

5  The  stouthearted  are  spoiled,  they  have  slept  their  sleep  : 
And  none  of  the  men  of  might  have  found  their  hands. 

6  At  thy  rebuke,  O  God  of  Jacob, 

Both  the  chariot  and  horse  are  cast  into  a  dead  sleep. 

tion  of  Sennacherib's  army  apparently  took  place  at  some  distance  from 
Jerusalem,  but  Jerusalem  is  naturally  spoken  of  as  the  scene  of  God's 
action,  because  it  was  the  seat  of  His  presence  (xlvi.  5  ff.)  and  it  was  on 
her  behalf  that  He  put  forth  His  power. 

For  broken  cp.  xlvi.  9;  Hos.  ii.  18;  Is.  ix.4;  Jer.  xlix.  35;  and  more 
generally,  Is.  xiv.  75.  Arrows  are  called  lightnings  from  the  swiftness  of 
their  flight,  rather  than  from  any  reference  to  fire-laden  darts  (vii.  13, 
note).      Tht  battle  includes  all  instruments  and  equipments  for  war. 

4 — 6.  The  manifestation  of  God's  majesty  in  the  discomfiture  of  the 
enemy.  ^ 

4.  A  difficult  verse.  Two  renderings  are  grammatically  possible: 
either.  Illustrious  art  Thou,  majestic,  from  tlie  mountains  of  prey: 
or,  more  than  the  mountains  of  prey.  The  second  rendering  however 
appears  to  involve  an  unsuitable  comparison,  whether  mountains  of  prey 
is  explained  to  mean  the  strongholds  of  the  invaders,  or  as  a  metaphor 
for  the  invaders  themselves,  and  the  first  rendering  is  certainly  prefer- 
able. It  describes  God  either  as  issuing  forth  from  mount  Zion  to  spoil 
the  foe  (Ixviii.  35);  or  better,  as  a  lion  returning  from  the  mountains 
where  he  has  hunted  his  prey.  Cp.  Is.  xiv.  25,  "I  will  break  the 
Assyrian  in  my  land,  and  tipon  my  moujitains  tread  him  under  foot." 
The  fierce  lion  of  Assyria  who  ''filled  his  caves  with  prey,  and  his  dens 
with  ravin"  (Nah.  ii.  11  ff. ;  iii.  i)  had  met  his  match. 

The  LXX  has,  from  the  eternal  mountains  (cp.  Hab.  iii.  6),  a  reading 
which  is  preferred  by  some  commentators,  and  understood  to  mean  the 
mountains  of  Zion,  on  which  God  has  placed  His  throne. 

The  word  rendered  majestic  (A.V.  excellent)  is  applied  to  God  in  Is. 
X.  34:  "Lebanon,"  the  emblem  of  the  Assyrians,  "shall  fall  by  a 
vinjestic  on^ :  Is.  xxxiii.  21,  "There  Jehovah  will  be  with  us  in 
majesty^\-  cp.  the  cognate  word  in  Ex.  xv.  11,  ^^f?iajestic  in  holiness.'''' 

6.      The  stouthearted'^     For  illustration  cp.  Is.  x.  1 2  ff. 

are  spoiled]  Lit.  have  let  themselves  be  spoiled.  Cp.  Is.  xvii.  14; 
xxxiii.  I.  they  have  slept  their  sleep]    They  slumber  their  (last) 

sleep,  the  sleep  of  death  (Jer.  Ii,  39,  57;  Nah.  iii.  18). 

havefowid  their  hands]  Their  hands  refused  to  act ;  tlfeir  strength  was 
paralysed;  in  spite  of  all  their  haughty  boastings.  Is.  x.  10,  13,  14,  32. 

6.     At  thy  rebuke]     Cp.  ix.  5;  xviii,  15;  Is.  xvii.  13. 

are  cast  into  a  dead  sleep]  A  word  which  denotes  a  deep,  superna- 
tu rally  caused  slumber.  It  is  usual  to  say  that  'chariot  and  horse'  stand 
by  metonymy  for  charioteers  and  horsemen :  but  surely  poetry  imagines 
chariots  as  well  as  horses  to  be  alive.     The  "pransing  horses"  and 


PSALM   LXXVI.  7—11.  455 

Thou,  even  thou,  art  to  be  feared :  ^ 

And  who  may  stand  in  thy  sight  when  once  thou  art  angry  ? 
Thou  didst  cause  judgment  to  be  heard  from  heaven ;  s 

The  earth  feared,  and  was  still, 

When  God  arose  to  judgment,  9 

To  save  all  the  meek  of  the  earth.     Selah. 

Surely  the  wrath  of  man  shall  praise  thee  :  "  lo 

The  remainder  of  wrath  shalt  thou  restrain. 

Vow,  and  pay  unto  the  Lord  your  God :  n 

the  "bounding  chariots"  (Nah.  ii.  3,  4;  iii,  2),  all  the  nish  and  roar  of 
the  battle,  are  still  and  silent  as  the  grave.     Cp.  Is.  xliii.  17. 

7 — 9.     It  was  the  irresistible  judgement  of  God, 

7.  to  be  feared^     The  same  word  as  in  v.  12,  and  in  xlvii.  «. 
who  may  stand\     Cp.  Nah.  i.  6 ;  Ps.  i.  5 ;  cxxx.  3. 

8.  Thou  didst  cause  judgement  to  be  heard'\  Or,  as  R.V.,  sentence. 
God  pronounced  sentence  upon  the  proud  Assyrian  when  He  intervened 
for  the  rescue  of  His  people.     Cp.  xlvi.  6;  Is.  xx*.  30;  i  Sam.  ii.  10. 

from  heaven]  For  though  God  has  chosen  Zion  for  His  earthly 
dwelling-place,  His  true  abode  and  seat  of  judgement  is  in  heaven. 

the  meek  of  the  earth']  Cp.  Is.  xi.  4;  Zeph.  ii.  3.  Israel,  regarded 
ideally  as  'the  righteous  one'  (Ixxv.  10),  and  contrasted  witli  'the 
wicked  of  the  earth '  (Ixxv.  8),  is  meant. 

10 — 12.     The  lessons  of  judgement.* 

10.  the  wrath  of  man  shall  praise  thee]  All  rebellion  against  God's 
will  must  in  the  end  redound  to  God's  glory:  it  serves  to  set  His 
sovereignty  in  a  clearer  light  (Ex.  ix.  16).  Excellently  the  P.B.V., 
'shall  turn  to  thy  praise.' 

the  remainder  of  wrath  shalt  thou  restrain]  All  that  will  not  submit 
shall  be  subdued.  The  sense  is  good,  but  it  is  very  doubtful  if  the  verb 
can  bear  this  meaning.  Hence  R.V.,  Tlie  residue  of  wrath  shalt  thou 
gird  upon  thee.  But  whose  wrath  is  meant?  Surely  it  cannot  be 
God's  wrath,  with  which  He  girds  Himself  to  complete  the  destruction 
of  the  foe,  for  the  reference  of  wrath  in  the  two  clauses  of  the  verse  to 
different  persons  is  awkward,  and  it  is  difficult  to  see  what  can  be  meant 
by  the  residue  of  God's  wrath.  Rather  it  must  be,  as  in  the  preceding 
line,  man's  wrath  that  is  meant.  God  girds  on  Himself  as  an  ornament 
the  last  futile  efforts  of  human  wrath,  turning  them  to  His  own  honour: 
or  girds  them  on  as  a  sword,  making  the  wrath  of  His  enemies  to 
minister  to  their  final  discomfiture.  Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  11,  "Your  spirit 
(i.e.  wrath)  is  a  fire  which  shall  devour  you."  The  peculiar  rendering 
of  the  LXX,  "shall  keep  festival  imto  thee,"  may  however  point  to  a 
diflferent  reading,  meaning,  shall  honour  thee.  The  P.B.V.  *the  fierce- 
ness of  them'  is  a  misprint  for  of  other,  the  original  rendering  of  the 
Great  Bible.     See  Driver,  Far.  Psalter^  p.  xviii. 


456  PSALM    LXXVI.  12. 

Let  all  that  be  round  about  him  bring  presents  unto  him 
that  ought  to  be  feared. 
[2  He  shall  cut  off  the  spirit  of  princes  : 
He  is  terrible  to  the  kings  of  the  earth. 

11.  Let  Israel  pay  the  vows  it  made  in  its  hour  of  peril  (Ixvi.  13) ; 
let  the  nations  that  dwell  near  God's  city  and  people  bring  their  presents 
— a  phrase  used  only  of  bringing  solemn  tribute  to  God  (Ixviii.  29 ;  Is. 
xviii,  7).  **Many,"  we  read  in  2  Chron.  xxxii.  23,  "brought  gifts  unto 
Jehovah  to  Jerusalem,"  after  the  great  deliverance. 

unto  him  that  ought  to  be  feared]  Lit.  unto  the  fear,  the  same  word 
as  in  Is.  viii.  13. 

12.  He  shall  cut  off]  Cp.  the  simile  in  Is.  xviii.  4,  5,  describing  how 
Jehovah  will  destroy  the  plans  of  the  Assyrians  just  as  they  are  coming 
to  maturity:  and  Rev.  xiv.  18,  19. 

the  spirit  of  princes]     Their  pride  and  fury.     Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  1 1. 
the  kings  of  the  earth]     Cp.  xlviii.  4. 

PSALM  LXXVIL 

This  Psalm  breathes  the  spirit  of  Habakkuk,  and  uses  language  closely 
resembling  that  of  his  *  Prayer.'  As  Habakkuk  watched  the  advance  of 
the  Chaldeans,  and  foresaw  that  they  were  to  be  the  executioners  of 
God's  judgement  upon  Judah,  his  faith  was  tried  to  the  uttermost. 
Could  such  an  apparent  triumph  of  pride  and  violence  be  consistent 
with  the  Divine  government  of  the  world  ?  His  questionings  were 
answered  with  the  assurance  that  pride  and  injustice  must  inevitably 
come  to  ruin,  while  righteousness  endures;  but  the  assurance  was 
coupled  with  the  warning  that  its  realisation  might  be  long  delayed. 
And  when  the  prophet  prayed  that  God  would  hasten  His  work  lest  the 
delay  should  prove  too  great  a  strain  for  the  faith  of  His  waiting  people, 
in  place  of  a  direct  answer  there  rose  before  his  mind  the  vision  of  God's 
Advent  to  judge  His  enemies  and  redeem  His  people.  That  Advent  he 
describes  in  language  borrowed  from  the  great  deliverances  and  visi- 
tations of  the  past,  conveying  the  same  fundamental  idea  as  that  of  this 
Psalm,  that  Israel's  past  is  the  pledge  for  Israel's  future^. 

When  the  Psalmist  wrote,  the  blow  had  fallen.  Israel  was  in  exile. 
It  is  clearly  no  merely  private  and  personal  sorrow  which  overwhelms 
his  spirit,  but  the  apparent  rejection  of  Israel  by  God.  But  in  the  light 
of  Israel's  past  history  he  is  taught  to  believe  that  this  rejection  cannot  be 
permanent.  In  the  recollection  of  that  marvellous  past  he  finds  the 
ground  of  hope  for  the  future.  The  God  who  led  His  people  out  of  the 
bondage  of  Egypt  can  bring  them  back  from  their  Exile  in  Babylon. 

The  structure  of  the  Psalm  is  regular.  There  are  two  main  divisions, 
in  each  of  which  there  are  two  stanzas,  marked  off  by  Selah.  The  second 

1  For  fuller  explanation  of  Habakkuk's  magnificent  ode  I  may  refer  to  my 
Doctrine  of  the  Prophets,  pp.  281  ff. 


PSALM   LXXVII.  457 


and  third  stanzas  fall  into  equal  subdivisions  of  three  verses.  In  the 
fourth  stanza  the  rhythm  changes;  instead  of  six  distichs  we  have  four 
tristichs;  but  the  number  of  lines  is  the  same.  The  last  verse  stands 
by  itself  as  the  conclusion. 

L     The  problem. 

1.  Introduction.  The  Psalmist  relates  how  in  the  day  of  distress 
he  strove,  but  in  vain,  to  find  comfort  in  prayer  (i — 3). 

2.  In  the  watches  of  the  night  he  pondered  on  the  past  history 
of  Israel  (4 — 6),  and  asked  himself  whether  God  could  have 
irrevocably  rejected  His  people  (7 — 9). 

ii.     The  solution. 

3.  The  answer  to  such  questionings  must,  he  feels,  be  looked  for 
in  God's  revelation  of  Himself  in  history  (10 — 12),  especially  in 
His  redemption  of  Israel  out  of  Egypt  (13 — 15). 

4.  On  the  grandeur  of  that  manifestation  he  dwells  at  length 
(16-19). 

In  conclusion  he  points  to  God's  guidance  of  His  people  through 
the  wilderness  (20). 

Some  commentators  regard  w.  16 — 19  as  a  fragment  of  another 
Psalm,  mainly  on  the  ground  of  the  change  of  rhythm,  and  a  supposed 
want  of  connexion  with  what  precedes  and  follows.  But  though  the 
rhythm  changes,  tristichs  taking  the  place  of  distichs,  the  length  of  the 
stanza  is  the  same — twelve  lines — as  that  of  the  two  preceding  ones. 
The  first  stanza  contains  a  tristich  {v.  2),  and  it  should  be  noted  that 
w.  I  and  16  are  both  marked  by  the  figure  of  'epanaphora '  or  rhetori- 
cal repetition. 

Attention  has  also  been  called  to  the  abruptness  of  the  close  of  the 
Psalm,  and  it  has  been  suggested  that  it  is  either  incomplete  or  muti- 
lated. But  this  abruptness  is  a  mark  of  the  poet's  skill.  He  ends  with 
the  thought  which  he  would  leave  impressed  on  the  reader's  mind  for 
his  consolation — God's  providential  guidance  of  His  people.  Any 
addition  would  weaken  the  effect.  The  reader  is  left  to  draw  the 
inference  that  God's  guidance  will  continue,  and  that,  as  He  redeemed 
Israel  from  the  bondage  of  Egypt,  He  can  redeem  them  from  exile  in 
Babylon.  The  parallel  between  the  Exodus  from  Babylon  and  the 
Exodus  from  Egypt  is  constantly  present  to  the  minds  of  the  prophets. 

The  resemblance  of  the  Psalm  to  the  Prayer  of  Habakkuk  has  already 
been  referred  to.  It  has  been  much  disputed  whether  the  Psalmist  is 
imitating  the  Prophet,  or  the  Prophet  the  Psalm.  On  literary  grounds 
alone  it  would  be  difficult  to  decide,  though  the  presumption  is  perhaps 
in  favour  of  the  originality  of  Habakkuk.  But  if  (as  I  believe)  the 
Prayer  of  Habakkuk  is  an  integral  part  of  his  book,  not  a  later  addition, 
and  if  the  Psalm  belongs  to  the  time  of  the  Exile,  the  Psalmist  must  be 
the  borrower. 

Compare,  besides  Hab.  iii,  Ex.  xv;  and  Pss.  cxlii.  i — 3;  cxliii.  4 — 6. 


458  PSALM    LXXVII.  1—3. 


To  the  chief  Musician,  to  Jeduthun,  A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

77  I  cried  unto  God  with  my  voice, 

Even  unto  God  with  my  voice ;  and  he  gave  ear  unto  me. 

2  In  the  day  of  my  trouble  I  sought  the  Lord ; 
My  sore  ran  in  the  night,  and  ceased  not : 
My  soul  refused  to  be  comforted. 

3  I  remembered  God,  and  was  troubled: 

I  complained,  and  my  spirit  was  overwhelmed.     Selah.     ' 

On  the  title,  For  the  cMef  Musician  ;  after  the  manner  of  Jeduthan 
(R.V.),  see  Introd.  to  Ps.  Ixii. 

1 — 3.  The  Psalmist  relates  how,  under  the  pressure  of  calamity,  he 
could  find  no  consolation  even  in  prayer. 

1.  "Aloud  unto  God  let  me  cry, 

Yea,  aloud  unto  God,  and  he  will  give  ear  to  me." 

2.  (Thus)  in  the  day  of  my  distress  I  sought  the  Lord: 

My  haoid  was  stretched  out  in  the  night,  and  slacked  not ; 
My  soul  refused  to  be  comforted. 

3.  When  I  would  fain  remember  God,  I  was  disquieted: 
When  I  would  fain  muse  in  prayer,  my  spirit  fainted. 

The  precise  force  of  the  tenses  of  the  original  is  difficult  to  determine. 
The  perfects  in  v.  2,  and  again  in  vv.  4,  5,  however,  shew  that  the  poet 
is  relating  a  past  experience.  In  v.  i  he  quotes,  as  it  were,  the  words  in 
which,  in  that  hour  of  sorrow,  he  resolved  to  betake  himself  to  prayer, 
and  in  v.  3,  in  tenses  which  recall  the  emotion  of  the  time,  though 
their  force  can  hardly  be  given  in  a  translation,  he  describes  his  failure 
to  find  comfort. 

In  its  rendering  my  sore  ran,  the  A.V.  follows  Jewish  authorities 
in  taking  hand  in  the  sense  of  blow  or  wound  (Job  xxiii,  2).  *  My  wound 
was  unstanched,'  is  a  metaphor  for  'my  sorrow  was  unrelieved.'  But 
the  rendering  of  R.V.  given  above  is  preferable.  He  sought  God  day 
and  night,  with  hands  unceasingly  outstretched  in  the  attitude  of  prayer 
(xxviii.  2,  note;  Ex.  xvii.  11,  12).  The  text  however  is  doubtful.  The 
verb  which  means  literally  'was  poured  out,'  is  not  a  natural  one  to 
apply  to  the  hand;  and  the  use  of  the  same  verb,  and  substantives 
derived  from  the  root  of  the  verb  rendered  'slacked,'  in  Lam.  ii.  18,  19; 
iii.  49,  with  reference  to  tears,  suggests  that  the  original  reading  may 
have  been,  '  Mine  eye  poured  down  in  the  night,  and  slacked  not.'  So 
the  Targ. 

my  soul  &c.]  Like  Jacob,  mourning  for  the  loss  of  Joseph  (Gen. 
xxxvii.  35);  and  Rachel,  weeping  for  her  children  (Jer.  xxxi.  J5). 

3.  For  the  word  rendered  '  disquieted  '  cp.  xlii.  5,11;  xliii.  5.  In 
Iv.  17  it  is  joined  with  that  rendered  'muse  in  prayer,'  which  recurs 
in  w.  6  b,  12  b,  and  denotes  meditation,  musing  prayer,  musing  or 
plaintive  speech.  * 

my  spirit  &c.]  Cp.  cxlii.  3 ;  cxliii.  4,  in  contexts  full  of  parallels  to 
this  Psalm. 


PSALM    LXXVII.  4—7.  459 


Thou  boldest  mine  eyes  waking:  4 

I  am  so  troubled  that  I  cannot  speak. 

I  have  considered  the  days  of  old,  5 

The  years  of  ancient  times. 

I  call  to  remembrance  my  song  in  the  night :  6 

I  commune  with  mine  own  heart : 

And  my  spirit  made  diligent  search. 

Will  the  Lord  cast  off  for  ever?  7 

And  wHl  he  be  favourable  no  more? 


4 — 9.     In  the  vigils  of  the  night  he  pondered  on  the  history  of  the 
past,  and  asked  himself  with  earnest  questionings   whether  it   were 
possible  that  God  could  have  utterly  cast  oflf  His  people,  and  changed 
His  character  as  a  gracious  and  merciful  God. 
4.  Thou  heldest  open  the  lids  of  mine  eyes: 

I  was  perplexed,  and  could  not  speak. 
6.  I  considered  the  days  of  old, 

The  years  of  ages  past,  (saying), 

6.  "  Let  me  remember  my  song  in  the  night: 
Let  me  muse  in  my  heart ; " 

And  my  spirit  inquired,  (saying), 

7.  "  For  age  after  age  will  the  Lord  cast  off? 
And  will  he  not  once  again  shew  favour?" 

4.  The  word  rendered  waking  \x\.  A.V.,  watching  xn  R.V. ,  probably 
means  the  guards  or  lids  of  the  eyes.  The  general  sense  is  clear.  In 
his  agony  of  sorrow  he  was  sleepless  and  speechless :  it  was  God  who 
withheld  sleep  from  his  eyes.  He  was  'troubled,'  perplexed  and 
agitated  (Gen.  xli.  8 ;  Dan.  ii.  3)  by  the  riddle  of  Israel's  present 
rejection  and  humiliation,  and  in  this  perplexity  he  pondered  (z^.  5) 
on  the  glorious  record  of  God's  mercies  to  His  people  in  the  days 
of  old. 

5.  **  Not  pathetic  only  but  profound  also  and  of  the  most  solid 
substance  was  that  reply  made  by  an  old  Carthusian  monk  to  the  trifler 
who  asked  him  how  he  had  managed  to  get  through  his  life  : — Cogitavi 
dies  antiques ,  et  annos  aeternos  in  mente  habui.^* 

6.  In  the  first  two  lines  he  tells  us  how  he  bade  himself  recall  the 
songs  of  thanksgiving  which  he  had  once  been  able  to  sing  in  the  night, 
the  quiet  time  of  meditation  and  thanksgiving  (xlii.  8 ;  xcii.  2 ;  Job  xxxv. 
10),  in  contrast  to  his  present  cries  of  anguish  or  silence  of  despair. 

Song  means  literally  'song  to  the  accompaniment  of  stringed  instru- 
ments.' P.B.V.  'and  search  out  my  spirits,'  follows  the  reading  of  the 
LXX  and  some  other  Ancient  Versions. 

7.  The  emphasis  is  on  for  ever;  lit.  for  ages  to  come,  which  are 
compared  with  the  ages  past  {v.  5) ;  a  different  word  from  that  in  v.  8, 
and  Ixxiv.  i.     Cp.  Ixxxv.  5. 

For  'shew  favour,'  cp.  xliv.  3;  li.  18  j  Ixxxv.  i;  cvi.  4. 


46o  PSALM    LXXVII.  8— ii. 

8  Is  his  mercy  clean  gone  for  ever? 
Doth  his  promise  fail  for  evermore? 

9  Hath  God  forgotten  to  be  gracious? 

Hath  he  in  anger  shut  up  his  tender  mercies?     Selah. 

10  And  I  said,  This  is  my  infirmity: 

But  I  will  remember  the  years  of  the  right  hand  of  the  most 
High. 

11  I  will  remember  the  works  of  the  Lord: 
Surely  I  will  remember  thy  wonders  of  old. 

8.  Is  Ms  loYingkindness  at  an  end  for  ever? 
Hatli  his  promise  failed  for  all  generations? 

Cp.  Ixxxv.  5;  cv.  8. 

9.  Has  He  forgotten  or  deliberately  abandoned  those  attributes 
which  He  once  proclaimed  as  the  essence  of  His  Nature  (Ex.  xxxiv.  6)  ? 
Cp.  Hab.  iii.  2,  "In  wrath  wilt  thou  remember  mercy." 

10 — 20.  The  history  of  the  past  is  the  most  convincing  answer  to 
these  questions,  the  best  cordial  for  his  fainting  spirits.    Cp.  Is.  Ixiii.  7  ff. 

10 — 15.  The  Psalmist  resolves  to  recall  the  exhibition  of  God's 
character  in  the  deliverance  of  His  people  from  Egypt. 

10.  And  I  said  introduces  the  argument  by  which  the  Psalmist 
thrusts  aside  the  possibility  of  an  affirmative  answer  to  his  questionings. 
But  the  rest  of  the  verse  is  obscure,  and  has  been  very  variously  ex- 
plained. The  piecise  sense  of  the  word  rendered  my  infirmity  is 
doubtful;  and  in  the  second  line  the  word  sJi'ndth  may  mean  years,  or, 
changing.  If  the  rendering  years  is  adopted,  the  verb  /  will  remember 
must  be  supplied  from  v.  \i.     Two  explanations  deserve  consideration. 

(i)  This  apparent  desertion  of  Israel  by  God  is  my  suffering,  and  I 
must  bear  it  (cp.  Jer.  x.  19);  but  for  my  consolation  I  will  recall />^tf 
years  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High,  "the  years  of  ages  past  "  (z;. 
5),  in  which  the  sovereign  power  of  the  Ruler  of  the  world  was  put 
forth  on  behalf  of  His  people. 

(ii)  //  is  my  weakness  which  prompts  these  questionings.  To  think 
that  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High  doth  change!  that  His  power  can 
ever  grow  feeble  (Is.  1.  2)  or  His  will  change  (Mai.  iii.  6) ! 

The  explanation,  'This  is  what  grieveth  me,  that  the  right  hand  of 
the  Most  High  doth  change,'  is  untenable,  for  v.  \o  clearly  introduces 
the  answer  to  his  doubts. 

The  authority  of  the  Ancient  Versions  is  in  favour  of  taking  sh^noth  in 
the  sense  of  change^ ^  but  on  the  other  hand  the  first  explanation  retains 
the  sense  in  which  the  word  has  already  occurred  in  v.  5. 

11.  I  will  make  mention  of  the  deeds  of  Jali; 
Yea,  I  will  remember  thy  wonders  of  old. 

'  The  Targ.  however  gives  alternative  renderings. 


PSALM    LXXVII.  12—16.  461 

I  will  meditate  also  of  all  thy  work,  « 

And  talk  of  thy  doings. 

Thy  way,  O  God,  is  in  the  sanctuary:  13 

Who  is  so  great  a  God  as  our  God  ? 

Thou  ari  the  God  that  doest  wonders ;  m 

Thou  hast  declared  thy  strength  among  the  people 

Thou  hast  with  thine  arm  redeemed  thy  people,  15 

The  sons  of  Jacob  and  Joseph.     Selah. 

The  waters  saw  thee,  O  God,  the  waters  saw  thee;   they  i6 

were  afraid : 
The  depths  also  were  troubled. 

The  A.V.  remember  follows  the  Qre\  the  R.V.  make  mention  is  the 
reading  of  the  Kthtbh.     Cp.  Is.  Ixiii.  7. 

The  name  J  ah  recalls  the  deliverance  from  Egypt  {Ex.  xv.  2;  cp. 
Ps.  Ixviii.  4),  the  greatest  of  all  God's  wonderful  works. 

12.  I  will  meditate  also  upon  all  thy  work, 
And  muse  on  thy  doings.     (R.V.) 

For  work  cp.  Hab.  iii.  2. 

13.  in  the  sanctuary]  Better,  in  holiness.  Cp.  Ex.  xv.  1 1.  All  the 
plan  and  method  of  God's  dealings  in  the  world  moves  in  the  sphere  of 
holiness,  separate  from  all  sin  and  imperfection,  in  accord  with  the  per- 
fection of  His  Nature.    Cp.  Habakkuk's  appeal  to  God's  holiness  (i.  12.) 

who  &c.]  Who  is  a  great  god  {El)  like  God  {Elohim)!  For  Elohim 
no  doubt  originally  stood  Jehovah  as  in  the  passage  of  Moses'  song, 
which  the  Psalmist  has  in  mind  (Ex.  xv.  11). 

14.  Thou  art  the  God  &c.]  The  true  El,  the  living,  Almighty  God 
(v.  4;  xlii.  2).  The  epithet  that  doest  wonders  is  borrowed  from  Ex. 
XV.  II.     Cp.  Is.  xxv.  I. 

thoti  hast  declared  &c.]  Render,  Thou  didst  make  known  thy 
strength  among  the  peoples.    Cp.  Ex.  xv.  13,  14;  ix.  16. 

15.  Thou  hast  &c.]  With  a  (strong)  arm  didst  thou  redeem  thy 
people.     Cp.  Ex.  XV.  13,  16;  vi.  6;  Ps.  Ixxiv.  2. 

the  sons  of  Jacob  and  Joseph]  According  to  the  Targum,  Joseph  is 
named  because,  by  preserving  the  hves  of  his  brethren  in  Egypt,  he 
became  as  it  were  a  second  father  of  the  nation.  But  more  probably 
Joseph  is  named  as  the  father  of  Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  the  ancestors 
of  the  most  powerful  tribes  of  the  Northern  Kingdom.  Cp.  Ixxviii.  67 ; 
Ixxx.  i;  Ixxxi.  5.  In  Amos  (v.  6,  15;  vi.  6)  Joseph  denotes  the 
Northern  Kingdom.  In  Obad.  18,  the  house  of  J acob  and  the  house  of 
Joseph  stands  for  the  whole  nation.  Cp.  Zech.  x.  6;  Ezek.  xxxvii.  16, 
19;  xlvii.  13;  xlviil  32. 

16 — 19.  The  manifestation  of  God's  sovereignty  over  nature  in  that 
supreme  act  of  redemption. 

16.  The  waters  and  depths  of  the  Red  Sea  are  personified,  as  though 
they  were  conscious  of  the  presence  of  their  Creator  and  Lord.     Cp. 


462  PSALM    LXXVIl.  17—20. 


17  The  clouds  poured  out  water: 
The  skies  sent  out  a  sound : 
Thine  arrows  also  went  abroad. 

18  The  voice  of  thy  thunder  was  in  the  heaven: 
The  lightnings  lightened  the  world; 

The  earth  trembled  and  shook. 

19  Thy  way  is  in  the  sea, 

And  thy  path  in  the  great  waters, 
And  thy  footsteps  are  not  known. 

20  Thou  leddest  thy  people  like  a  flock 
By  the  hand  of  Moses  and  Aaron. 

Hab.  iii.  10,  "The  mountains  saw  thee,  they  were  afraid":  and  Ps. 
cxiv.  3;  Ex.  XV.  5,  8.  We  miss  in  translation  the  pictorial  force  of 
the  Heb.  tenses:  lit.  they  are  afraid,  the  depths  also  tremble. 

17.  God  came  in  storm  and  earthquake.  So  the  poet  develops  the 
thought  of  Ex,  xiv.  24,  25.  Cp.  Ps.  xviii.  7  ff. ;  xcvii,  3ff. ;  and  the 
parallel  passage  in  Hab.  iii.  10,  11,  where  tempest  (R.V.)  is  the  cognate 
substantive  to  the  verb  rendered  poured  out  here. 

sent  out  a  sound]  Better  (cp.  Hab.),  uttered  a  voice,  i.e.  thundered. 
God's  arrows  are  the  flashes  of  lightning. 

18.  in  the  heaven]  The  word  galgal,  derived  from  a  root  meaning 
to  roll^  was  understood  by  the  Jewish  commentators  to  mean  the  vault 
or  circuit  of  the  heaven.  More  probably  it  should  be  rendered  in  the 
whirlwind  (R.V.),  or,  with  rumbling,  the  rolling  of  the  thunder  being 
conceived  of  as  the  rolling  of  God's  chariot-wheels.     Cp.  Hab.  iii.  8. 

19.  Thy  way  was  in  the  sea, 

And  thy  paths  in  the  great  waters, 
And  thy  footsteps  were  not  known.    (R.V.) 
Cp.  Hab.  iii.  15.     The  A.V.  path  follows  the  Qri;  R.V.  paths  the 
Kthibh  and  the  Ancient  Versions.     The  sea  flowed  back  where  Israel 
passed,  and  no  visible  trace  of  God's  victorious  march  was  left: — a 
parable  of  His  method  of  working.     Cp.  Job  xxiii.  8  ff. 

20.  Conclusion.  The  convulsions  of  nature  were  the  heralds  of 
deliverance  (Luke  xxi.  28),  and  the  Shepherd  of  Israel  led  forth  His  flock 
under  the  guidance  of  His  chosen  servants.  Cp.  Ex.  xv.  13;  Ps.  Ixxviii. 
52  IT. ;  Ixxiv.  I,  note.  The  words  of  the  last  line  come  from  Num. 
xxxiii.  I ;  cp.  Mic.  vi.  4;  Is.  Ixiii.  11  ff. 

PSALM  LXXVIII. 

In  Ps.  Ixxvii  the  poet  recalls  God's  wonderful  works  of  old  for  the 

encouragement  of  his  faith  in  the  hour  of  distress.  In  this  Psalm  he 
invites  his  hearers  to  draw  a  lesson  of  warning  for  themselves  from  the 
past  history  of  the  nation.  Again  and  again  Israel  had  forgotten  the 
great  works  which  Jehovah  had  done  for  them,  and  with  base  ingratitude 


PSALM    LXXVIlI.  463 

and  shovt-memoried  faithlessness  had  rebelled  against  His  government, 
or  tempted  Him  by  distrust  of  His  goodness.  The  Psalmist  holds  up 
the  picture  to  his  contemporaries,  in  the  hope  that  they  may  be  taught 
to  avoid  repeating  the  sins  of  their  forefathers. 

Though  the  Psalm  refers  to  the  behaviour  of  the  whole  nation, 
Ephraim  (if  the  text  of  v.  9  is  sound)  seems  to  be  singled  out  at  the 
outset  as  especially  guilty  j  and  the  Psalm  concludes  with  the  choice  of 
Zion  as  the  seat  of  the  sanctuary  and  David  as  the  king  of  Israel,  in  a  way 
which  indicates  that  the  writer  had  some  reason  for  dwelling  upon  the 
position  of  Jerusalem  and  the  Davidic  kingdom  as  the  special  objects  of 
Jehovah's  favour.  But  the  rebuke  of  Ephraim  is  not  the  main  purpose 
of  the  Psalm.  Its  intention  is  evidently  positive,  to  draw  warnings  for 
the  present  and  the  future  from  the  consideration  of  the  past. 

It  is  impossible  to  fix  the  date  of  the  Psalm  with  any  certainty.  That 
the  history  is  brought  down  to  the  time  of  David  and  no  further  does  not 
prove  that  it  was  written  then.  It  presumes  the  existence  of  the  Temple 
{v.  69),  and  apparently  the  separation  of  the  kingdoms.  It  has  been 
said  that  "the  didactic  use  of  past  history  is  in  itself  decisive  against  a 
pre-Exile  date,"  and  that  **it  would  be  foolish  to  separate  it  from 
Pss.  cv — cvii."  But  the  didactic  use  of  past  history  is  to  be  found  in  the 
earliest  prophets;  and  though  Pss.  cv,  cvi  belong  to  the  same  class  of 
historical  Psalms,  it  does  not  necessarily  follow  that  they  ail  belong  to  the 
same  period.  There  are  some  remarkable  differences,  and  Pss.  cv — cvii 
contain  clear  allusions  to  the  Captivity,  which  this  Psalm  does  not. 
V.  69  speaks  of  the  Temple  in  language  which  makes  it  difftcult  to 
suppose  that  it  had  already  been  destroyed.  Moreover  it  is  at  least 
noteworthy,  that  the  Psalmist  refers  to  those  plagues  only  which  are 
described  in  the  Jehovistic  narrative  in  Exodus  (J),  and  according  to  a 
very  probable  reading  and  explanation  of  v.  48,  to  all  of  tliem.  He 
does  not  refer  to  the  plague  of  darkness  described  in  the  Elohistic  nar- 
rative (E)  only,  nor  to  the  plagues  of  lice  and  boils  described  only  in 
the  Priestly  code  (P).  Of  course  the  poet  was  not  bound  to  mention 
every  plague,  but  it  is  a  not  unnatural  inference  that  he  was  familiar 
with  J  only,  while  it  was  still  in  circulation  as  a  separate  work.  If  so, 
the  Psalm  must  have  been  written  at  a  relatively  early  date.  On  the 
other  hand  the  use  of  the  title  "the  Holy  One  of  Israel"  {v.  41) 
indicates  that  it  is  not  earlier  than  the  time  of  Isaiah,  who  originated 
this  title  to  express  the  truth  revealed  to  him  in  the  vision  of  his  Call 
It  may  however  bi'long  to  that  period,  and  may  have  been  written  in 
view  of  the  hostility  of  the  Northern  Kingdom  to  Judah  (Is.  vii,  viii),  or 
more  probably  in  view  of  the  fall  of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  as  a  warn- 
ing to  Judah  to  beware  lest,  though  Zion  was  the  city  of  God's  choice, 
and  the  house  of  David  chosen  to  rule  His  people,  they  too,  like  Shiloh 
and  Ephraim,  might  be  rejected.  At  such  a  time  moreover  the  thought 
of  the  divine  choice  of  Jerusalem  might  naturally  be  offered  as  a  ground 
of  hope  and  confidence. 

The  Psalm  falls  for  the  most  part  into  stanzas  of  eight  and  sixteen 
verses.  Vv.  17,  18;  40,  41;  56,  57,  form  a  kind  of  initial  refrain,  in 
which  the  dominant  idea  of  the  Psalm, — Israel's  rebellion  and  temptation 
of  God — is  repeated  and  emphasised.    The  Psalmist  does  not  follow  the 


464  PSALM    LXXVIII.  I. 

historical  order  of  events,  but  relates  first  the  care  of  Jehovah  for  Israel 
and  Israel's  ingratitude  towards  Jehovah  in  the  wilderness  ( 1 2 — 39),  and 
then  the  miracles  of  the  Exodus  and  the  settlement  in  Canaan  (40  ff.). 

i.  The  purpose  of  the  Psalm  stated; — to  draw  warning  and  in- 
struction for  the  present  from  the  past  history  of  Israel,  by  recapitulating 
its  course  and  enforcing  its  lessons  in  accordance  with  the  divine  com- 
mand, that  the  ingratitude  and  unfaithfulness  of  the  past  might  not  be 
repeated  (i — 8). 

ii.  Israel's  history  had  been  a  strange  record  of  forgetfulness  and 
disloyalty  to  the  God  Who  had  brought  them  out  of  Egypt  and 
provided  for  their  wants  in  the  wilderness  with  loving  care  (9—16). 

iii.  In  spite  of  His  care  they  rebelled  against  Him  and  tempted  Him 
by  doubting  His  power  and  goodness,  so  that  even  while  He  provided 
for  their  wants  He  was  forced  to  punish  them  for  their  sin  (17 — 31). 

iv.  The  chastisements  of  the  wilderness  produced  only  temporary 
and  superficial  amendment,  and  it  was  due  to  God's  forbearance  that 
they  were  not  utterly  destroyed  (32—39). 

V.  It  was  no  momentary  aberration,  but  repeated  and  defiant 
rebellion,  in  utter  forgetfulness  of  all  that  they  owed  to  Jehovah  for 
redeeming  them  from  the  bondage  of  Egypt.  The  Psalmist  relates  the 
wonders  which  accompanied  their  deliverance,  in  order  to  set  Israel's 
ingratitude  in  the  strongest  light.  Jehovah  destroyed  their  enemies, 
and  brought  them  safely  into  the  land  which  He  had  prepared  for  them 

(40—55). 

vi.  But  there  again  they  tempted  God  and  rebelled  against  Him,  till 
He  forsook  His  dwelling-place  in  Shiloh,  and  abandoned  them  to  their 
enemies  (56 — 64). 

vii.  Yet  once  more  He  had  mercy  on  them,  and  when  He  delivered 
them  from  their  enemies.  He  chose  Judah  instead  of  Ephraim,  Zion  in 
place  of  Shiloh,  and  appointed  David  to  be  the  shepherd  of  His  people 

(65-72). 

Comp.  generally,  besides  Pss,  cv,  cvi,  Deut.  xxxii. 

Maschil  of  Asaph. 

78  Give  ear,  O  my  people,  to  my  law: 

Incline  your  ears  to  the  words  of  my  mouth. 

On  the  title,  Maschil  of  Asaph,  see  Introd.  p.  xix, 

1 — 8.  The  Psalmist's  solemn  invitation  to  his  countrymen  to  listen 
to  his  teaching.  He  proposes  to  set  forth  the  lessons  to  be  drawn  from 
Israel's  past  history,  in  obedience  to  God's  command  to  hand  on  the 
tradition  of  His  mighty  works  for  the  encouragement  and  warning  of 
each  successive  generation. 

1,  2.  Cp.  the  opening  of  Ps.  xlix,  noting  that  while  there  *all 
peoples '  are  addressed,  in  accordance  with  the  wider  scope  of  the 
teaching  of  the  *  Wise  Men, '  here  Israel  is  addressed  in  the  spirit  of 
prophecy.     It  was  the  function  of  prophecy  to  interpret  the  past,  as 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  2-4.  46s 


I  will  open  my  mouth  in  a  parable: 

I  will  utter  dark  sayings  of  old: 

Which  we  have  heard  and  known, 

And  our  fathers  have  told  us. 

We  will  not  hide  them  from  their  children, 

Shewing  to  the  generation  to  come 

The  praises  of  the  Lord,  and  his  strength, 

well  as  to  foretell  the  future.  my  lazv\     Rather,  my  teaching,  as 

in  Prov.  i.  8,  and  often.     See  note  on  i.  2. 

2.  On  the  words  parable  and  dark  sayings  or  enigmas  see  note  on 
xlix.  4.  The  Psalmist  has  no  mere  narrative  of  facts  to  recount,  but  a 
history  full  of  significance  for  those  who  can  penetrate  its  hidden  mean- 
ing. It  is  a  '  parable '  not  for  Israel  only,  but  for  every  individual  in 
the  Christian  Church.  dark  sayings  of  old]  Lessons  drawn  from  the 
history  of  ancient  times,  from  the  Exodus,  when  Israel  was  *  born ' 
as  a  nation,  onward.     Cp.  Ixxvii.  5. 

This  verse  is  freely  quoted  by  St  Matthew  (xiii.  34,  35),  in  a  form 
which  does  not  agree  exactly  either  with  the  Heb.  or  with  the  LXX, 
with  reference  to  our  Lord's  teaching  in  parables.  "All  these  things 
spake  Jesus  in  parables  unto  the  multitudes ;  and  without  a  parable 
spake  he  nothing  unto  them :  that  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken 
through  the  prophet,  saying, 

I  will  open  my  mouth  in  parables  ; 

I  will  utter  things  hidden  from  the  foundation  of  the  world." 

The  words  of  the  Psalmist  are  not  a  direct  prophecy  of  the  Messiah's 
method  of  teaching;  but  just  as  Christ  as  perfect  Man  summed  up  in 
Himself  and  fulfilled  the  manifold  experiences  of  the  people  of  God,  so 
as  the  perfect  Teacher  He  adopted  the  methods  of  the  teachers  of 
the  old  dispensation,  and  *  fulfilled '  them  by  carrying  them  to  their 
highest  perfection.  As  the  Psalmist  used  the  facts  of  Israel's  history  to 
convey  the  lesson  which  he  desired  to  teach,  so  Christ  used  the  pheno- 
mena of  Nature  and  the  experiences  of  Life.        Cp.  Introd.  pp.  Ixxix  ff. 

3,  4.  It  is  best  to  place  a  fuil  stop  at  the  end  of  v.  2,  and  connect 
tfv.  3,  4  thus : 

The  things  which  we  have  heard  and  known, 

And  our  fathers  have  told  to  us, 

We  will  not  hide  from  their  sons, 

Telling  to  another  generation  the  praises  of  Jehovah, 

And  his  strength  and  his  wondrous  works  that  he  hath  done. 
With  line  2  cp.  xliv.  i ;  Judg.  vi.  13. 

*  From  ottr  sons '  might  have  been  expected  rather  than  '  from  l/ieir 
sons  ' :    but  the  pronoun  their  is  significant.      It  implies  that  the  trust 
was  committed  to  the  speakers  by  their  ancestors  not  for  themselves 
only  but  for  future  generations.     Excellently  Keble : 
"The  tale  our  fathers  used  to  tell 
We  to  their  children  owe." 


PSALMS 


30 


466  PSALM   LXXVIII.  5—8. 


And  his  wonderful  works  that  he  hath  done. 

5  For  he  established  a  testimony  in  Jacob, 
And  appointed  a  law  in  Israel, 

Which  he  commanded  our  fathers, 

That  ihey  should  make  them  known  to  their  children : 

6  That  the  generation  to  come  might  know  them^  even  the 

children  ivhich  should  be  born ; 
WJio  should  arise  and  declare  the7n  to  their  children: 

7  That  they  might  set  their  hope  in  God, 
And  not  forget  the  works  of  God, 

But  keep  his  commandments: 

8  And  might  not  be  as  their  fathers, 

A  stubborn  and  rebellious  generation; 

A  generation  that  set  not  their  heart  aright, 

And  whose  spirit  was  not  stedfast  with  God. 

The  praises  of  JeJiovah  are  His  praiseworthy  acts.  Cp.  xxii.  3,  30, 
31.     For  wondrous  works  see  note  on  Ixxi.  17.     Cp.  cxlv.  4  ff. 

5.  a  testimony.. .a  taw]  Not  the  Mosaic  legislation  generally,  but 
the  express  precept  which  enjoined  upon  Israelite  parents  the  duty  of 
teaching  their  children  the  great  facts  of  Israel's  history,  that  the 
remembrance  of  them  might  be  handed  down  from  generation  to 
generation.  See  Ex.  x.  2;  xii.  26,  27;  xiii.  8  ff.,  14;  Deut.  iv.  9; 
vi.  20  ff.     Cp.  in  the  N.T.  2  Tim.  ii.  2. 

that  they  should  ma/:e  theyn  /mo-um]  Them  refers  to  "the  things 
which  we  have  heard  and  known  "  &c.,  w.  3,  4.     Cp.  Deut.  iv.  9. 

6.  The  A.V.  follows  the  Massoretic  division  of  the  verse;  but  it  is 
better  to  connect  the  clauses  thus : 

That  another  generation  might  know, 

That  sons  which  should  be  born  might  arise  and  tell  their  sons. 

7.  their  hope\     Or,  their  confidence,  as  Pro  v.  iii.  26. 

and  not  forget]     "Lest   thou  forget"   is   the  constantly   recurring 
warning  in  Deuteronomy  (iv.  9,  &c.). 
the  works  of  God]    Or,  as  R.V.  in  Ixxvii.  11,  the  deeds  of  God. 

8.  as  their  fathers]  Primarily,  the  generation  of  the  wandering  in 
the  wilderness ;  but  the  warning  was  true  for  almost  every  age. 

stubborn  and  rebellious]  Epithets  applied  in  Deut.  xxi.  18  to  the  son, 
whom  no  admonition  or  chastisement  would  reform,  and  for  whom 
accordingly  nothing  remained  but  the  penalty  of  death.  Cp.  Jer.  v.  23 ; 
Deut.  ix.  7ff. ;  xxxi.  27;  xxxii.  5,  20. 

that  set  not  their  heart  arighf]  Failed  to  direct  and  prepare  it  with 
stedfast  purpose  to  serve  God.     Cp.  t'.  37. 

whose  spirit  was  not  stedfast]  Better,  as  in  v.  37,  was  not  faithful. 
Fickleness,  instability,  untrustwortliiness,  were  the  characteristics  of 
Israel's  conduct. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  9—12.  467 


The  children  of  Ephraim,  being  armed,  and  carrying  bows, 

Turned  back  in  the  day  of  battle. 

They  kept  not  the  covenant  of  God, 

And  refused  to  walk  in  his  law; 

And  forgat  his  works, 

And  his  wonders  that  he  had  shewed  them. 

Marvellous  things  did  he  in  the  sight  of  their  fathers, 

In  the  land  of  Egypt,  ///  the  field  of  Zoan. 

9 — 16.  Israel's  disobedience  and  ingratitude,  in  spite  of  all  God's 
mercies  to  them  at  the  Exodus  and  in  the  wilderness. 

9.  This  verse  presents  serious  difficulties,  (i)  It  seems  to  speak  of 
some  well-known  act  of  cowardice  on  the  part  of  the  Ephraimites.  But 
why  should  cowardice  in  war  be  censured,  when  it  is  disloyalty  to  God  of 
which  the  Psalmist  is  speaking?  It  has  been  suggested  that  it  refers 
to  the  slackness  of  Ephraim  in  prosecuting  the  conquest  of  Canaan 
(Judg.  i),  regarded  as  shewing  their  distrustfulness  of  God,  in  view  of 
all  the  mighty  works  that  He  had  done  for  them  in  the  past.  But  it 
seems  better  to  understand  it  figuratively  (cp.  v.  57),  to  mean  that  the 
Ephraimites  were  like  cowards  who  flee  in  battle,  and  failed  to  fight  for 
the  cause  of  God.  (2)  Why  are  the  Ephraimites  particularly  named, 
when  the  context  refers  to  all  Israel  ?  Possibly  to  point  forward  to  the 
rejection  of  Ephraim  and  choice  of  Judah  which  is  the  climax  of  the 
Psalm  (z;.  67).  w.  10,  11  must  then  be  taken  with  v.  9,  as  a  literal 
description  of  the  disobedience  and  unfaithfulness  of  the  Ephraimites. 

After  all  attempts  to  explain  it,  the  verse  remains  obscure,  and  many 
commentators  suppose  that  it  is  an  interpolation  or  that  the  text  is  in 
some  way  corrupt.  The  absence  of  parallelism  and  rhythm  casts  some 
suspicion  on  it  independently;  and  it  may  possibly  have  been  a  gloss 
suggested  by  v.  57,  and  inserted  here  as  an  illustration  of  Israel's  want 
of  stedfastness  {v.  8).  v.  10  would  follow  naturally  on  v.  8,  introduc- 
ing the  description  of  the  rebellious  generation,  whose  conduct  is  held 
up  to  reprobation  for  the  admonition  of  their  descendants. 

10.  the  covenant  of  God'\      See  Ex.  xix.  5;  xxiv.  3,  7,  8. 

11.  And  they  forgat  his  doings, 

And  his  wondrous  works  that  he  had  shewed  them  (R.V.). 

12.  In  the  sight  of  their  fathers  he  did  wonders.    Cp.  Ixxvii.  14. 
in  the  field  of  Zoan]     Zoan,   known  to  the  Greeks  as   Tanis,   was 

situated  on  the  E.  bank  of  the  Tanitic  branch  of  the  Nile.  It  was  famous 
as  the  capital  of  the  Hyksos  dynasty,  and  was  refounded  by  Ramses  II, 
the  Pharaoh  of  the  oppression.  It  is  described  by  Mr  Petrie,  who 
excavated  it  in  1883 — 4,  as  **a  city  which  was  only  inferior  to  the  other 
capitals — Thebes  and  Memphis — in  the  splendour  of  its  sculptures." 
The  phrase  "field  of  Zoan"  for  the  district  in  which  it  was  situated  has 
been  found  in  an  Egyptian  inscription. 

After  this  brief  allusion  to  the  plagues,  of  which  he  intends  to  speak 
in  detail  afterwards  (43^".),  the  Psalmist  passes  on  at  once  to  the 
Exodus  and  the  journey  through  the  wilderness. 

30—2 


468  PSALM    LXXVIII.  13—18. 

13  He  divided  the  sea,  and  caused  them  to  pass  through; 

And  he  made  the  waters  to  stand  as  a  heap. 
M  In  the  daytime  also  he  led  them  with  a  cloud, 

And  all  the  night  with  a  light  of  fire. 
'5  He  clave  the  rocks  in  the  wilderness, 

And  gave  ihem  drink  as  out  ^the  great  depths. 
16  He  brought  streams  also  out  of  the  rock, 

And  caused  waters  to  run  down  like  rivers. 

■  7  And  they  sinned  yet  more  against  him 

By  provoking  the  most  High  in  the  wilderness. 
18  And  they  tempted  God  in  their  heart 

13.  He  divided  the  sea\  Lit.  clave,  as  in  v.  15;  the  word  which  is 
used  in  Ex.  xiv.  16;  Is.  Ixiii.  12;  Neh.  ix.  11. 

as  an  heap]     Cp.  Ex.  xv.  8 ;  Ps.  xxxiii.  7. 

14.  And  he  led  them  with  the  cloud  by  day  (cp.  Ex.  xiii.  21),  as 
a  sheplierd  leads  his  flock  {v.  53;  Ixxvii.  20). 

15.  16.     He  clave  rocks  in  the  wilderness, 

And  gave  them  drink  as  out  of  the  depths  abundantly : 
And  he  brought  forth  streams  out  of  a  cliff. 
Two  different  words  are  used,  with  reference  to  the  two  occasions 
upon  which  the  Israelites  were  miraculously  supplied  with  water:  first 
in  Rephidim  at  the  beginning  of  their  journey  when  Moses  was  com- 
manded to  smite  *the  rock'  (Ex.  xvii.  6),  and  secondly,  in  Kadesh,  at 
the  close  of  their  wanderings,  when  Moses  smote  *  the  cliff,'  to  which  he 
was  commanded  to  speak  (Num.  xx.  8  ff.).  The  depths  are  the  reservoirs 
of  water  hidden  in  the  earth  (xxxiii.  7;  Gen.  vii.  11;  Deut.  viii.  7). 

17 — 31.  In  spite  of  these  miracles  of  mercy  they  sinned  yet  more, 
and  tempted  God  in  their  unbelief,  so  that  while  He  supplied  their 
wants  He  was  compelled  to  punish  them  for  their  sin.  The  order  is 
logical  not  chronological.  The  first  murmurings  for  food  (Ex.  xvi) 
preceded  the  giving  of  the  water:  and  the  narratives  of  Ex.  xvi  and 
Num.  xi  are  fused  into  one. 

17.     Yet  went  they  on  still  to  sin  against  him. 

Rebelling  against  the  Most  High  in  the  land  of  drought. 

Both  the  occasions  refen-ed  to  in  vv.  15,  16  were  connected  with 
murmuring.  The  names  ai  Massah  and  Aleribah  preserved  the  memory 
of  Israel's  sin  in  tempting  God  and  striving  with  Him.  And  to  these 
sins  they  added  other  sins.  Note  how  the  words  'rebel'  and  'tempt' 
recur  like  a  refrain  at  the  beginning  of  each  division  of  the  Psalm  {vv. 
17,  18;  40,  41;  56).  Cp.  xcv.  9 ;  cvi.  7,  14,  33,  43;  Ex.  xvii.  2,  7; 
Num.  xiv.  22;  XX.  10,  24;  Deut.  i.  26,  43;  vi.  16;  ix.  23;  xxxiii.  8; 
&c.  The  two  words  sum  up  Israel's  behaviour :  they  rebelled  against 
God  by  constant  disobedience  to  His  revealed  Will;  they  tempted  Him, 
by  sceptical  doubts  of  His  goodness,  and  insolent  demands  that  He 
should  prove  His  power. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  19—24.  469 


By  asking  meat  for  their  lusL 

Yea,  they  spake  against  God;  they  said,  19 

Can  God  furnish  a  table  in  the  wilderness? 

Behold,  he  smote  the  rock,  that  the  waters  gushed  out,  20 

And  the  streams  overflowed ; 

Can  he  give  bread  also  ? 

Can  he  provide  flesh  for  his  people  ? 

Therefore  the  Lord  heard  this,  and  was  wroth:  21 

So  a  fire  was  kindled  against  Jacob, 

And  anger  also  came  up  against  Israel ; 

Because  they  believed  not  in  God,  22 

And  trusted  not  in  his  salvation: 

Though  he  had  commanded  the  clouds  from  above,  23 

And  opened  the  doors  of  heaven, 

And  had  rained  down  manna  upon  them  to  eat,  24 

And  had  given  them  of  the  corn  of  heaven. 

18.  by  asking  &c.]  By  asking  food  for  their  appetite  :  a  diflferent 
word  from  that  rendered  hist  in  v.  30.  The  allusion  is  not  to  the 
demand  for  flesh,  but  to  the  doubt  whether  God  could  provide  food  for 
the  people  at  all  (Ex.  xvi.  2  ff.).  In  the  verses  which  follow,  the  murmur- 
ings  which  preceded  the  first  sending  of  manna  and  quails  (Ex.  xvi)  are 
fused  with  those  which  preceded  the  second  sending  of  quails  (Num.  xi). 

19.  Can  God  furnish^     R.V.,  Can  God  prepare? 

20.  can  he  provide]  R.V.,  Will  he  provide?  The  narrative  is 
thrown  into  a  graphic  poetical  form.  Unbelief  reaches  its  climax  in  the 
words y^r  his  people.  If,  as  He  says,  we  are  His  people,  let  Him  provide, 
and  provide  liberally,  for  our  wants.    Bread... fleshy  as  in  Ex.  xvi.  8,  12. 

21.  Therefore  when  Jehovah  heard,  he  was  wroth : 
And  a  fire  was  kindled  against  Jacob, 

And  anger  also  went  up  against  Israel. 

Cp.  vv.  59,  62.  Afire  alludes  to  the  punishment  of  the  murmuring 
Israelites  by  the  burning  at  Taberah  (Num.  xi.  i  ff.),  before  the  second 
giving  of  quails. 

Went  lip  is  a  metaphor  from  smoke.     Cp.  xviii.  8;  Ixxiv.  i. 

22.  For  a  moment  they  had  believed  (Ex.  xiv.  31),  but  they  soon 
fell  away.  Cp.  Num.  xiv.  1 1,  a  verse  which  might  serve  as  a  motto  for 
this  Psalm.  his  salvation']  Of  which  they  had  had  such  marvellous 
proof  in  the  Exodus  (Ex.  xiv.  13  ;  xv.  2). 

23.  Yet  he  commanded  the  skies  above, 
And  opened  the  doors  of  heaven; 

24.  And  he  rained  down  manna  upon  them  to  eat, 
And  gave  them  the  com  of  heaven. 

25.  Everyone  did  eat  the  bread  of  the  mighty, 
He  sent  them  provision  to  the  full. 


470  PSALM   LXXVIII.  25—28. 

25  Man  did  eat  angels'  food: 

He  sent  them  meat  to  the  full. 

26  He  caused  an  east  wind  to  blow  in  the  heaven: 
And  by  his  power  he  brought  in  the  south  wind. 

27  He  rained  flesh  also  upon  them  as  dust, 

And  feathered  fowls  like  as  the  sand  of  the  sea: 

28  And  he  let  it  fall  in  the  midst  of  their  camp, 
Round  about  their  habitations. 


The  A.V.  rendering  of  the  verbs  in  vv.  23,  i\  as  pluperfects  is  contrary 
to  the  rules  of  Hebrew  grammar.  The  connexion  of  thought  is  that  God 
was  wroth  at  the  unbelief  of  the  Israelites,  and  yet  He  provided  for 
their  wants.  The  Psalmist  does  not  follow  the  order  of  time  in  his 
recital,  but  combines  the  different  murmurings,  and  then  the  different 
provisions  of  manna  and  quails. 

The  doors  of  heaven,  as  of  some  vast  storehouse:  cp.  'the  windows 
(or  'flood-gates')  of  heaven,'  2  Kings  vii.  2,  19;  Mai.  iii.  10.  The 
Psalmist  closely  follows  the  language  of  Exodus  xvi.  4,  "Behold,  I 
will  rain  bread  from  heaven  for  you."     Cp.  cv.  40;  John  vi.  31. 

Corn  of  heaven  may  allude  to  the  granular  form  of  the  manna  (Ex. 
xvi.  31). 

Angels'  food  (LXX,  Vulg. ,  Syr.)  is  probably  a  right  paraphrase  of  the 
words  the  bread  of  the  ??ughty,  though  the  term  is  nowhere  applied 
to  the  angels.  But  cp.  ciii.  -20.  Wisd.  xvi.  20,  "Thou  feddest  thine 
own  people  with  angels'  food,'"  naturally  follows  the  LXX.  It  is  a 
question  whether  we  should  render  ^Everyone  did  eat'  &c.  cp.  Ex.  xvi. 
16,  18,  21;  or  man,  Sis  contrasted  with  angels:  cp.  the  Targ.  "The 
sons  of  men  ate  bread  which  came  down  from  the  dwelling  of  the 
angels"  :  but  the  former  is  probably  right.  For  to  the  fill  cp.  Ex.  xvi. 
3,8,  12. 

26.  He  led  fortli  the  east  wind  In  the  heaven: 
And  by  his  power  lie  guided  the  south  wind: 

27.  And  he  rained  flesh  upon  them  as  the  dust, 
And  winged  fowl  as  the  sand  of  the  seas. 

The  sending  of  quails  is  connected,  as  in  Ex.  xvi,  with  the  sending  of 
the  manna;  but  the  language  of  the  Psalm  follows  the  description  of  the 
second  sending  of  quails  in  Num.  xi. 

The  verbs  in  v.  26  are  the  same  as  those  in  v.  52.  Cp.  Ex.  x.  13 ; 
Num.  xi.  31.  East  and  South  are  separated  for  the  sake  of  rhythm.  A 
S.E.  wind  brought  up  the  quails  from  'the  sea,'  i.e.  the  Red  Sea. 
"The  period  when  they  were  brought  to  the  camp  of  Israel  was  in 
spring,  when  on  their  northward  migration  from  Africa.  According 
to  their  well-known  instinct,  they  would  follow  up  the  coast  of  the 
Red  Sea  until  they  came  to  its  bifurcation  by  the  Sinaitic  Peninsula, 
and  then  would  cross  at  the  narrow  part."  Tristram,  Nat.  Hist,  of 
Bible,  p,  231. 

28.  their  camp... their  habitations']     Cp.  Ex.  xvi.  13;  Num.  xi.  31. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  29—35.  471 

So  they  did  eat,  and  were  well  filled :  29 

For  he  gave  them  their  own  desire; 

They  were  not  estranged  from  their  lust.  30 

But  while  their  meat  was  yet  in  their  mouths, 

The  wrath  of  God  came  upon  them,  3' 

And  slew  the  fattest  of  them, 

And  smote  down  the  chosen  men  of  Israel. 

For  all  this  they  sinned  still,  32 

And  believed  not  for  his  wondrous  works. 

Therefore  their  days  did  he  consume  in  vanity,  33 

And  their  years  in  trouble. 

When  he  slew  them,  then  they  sought  him:  34 

And  they  returned  and  inquired  early  after  God. 

And  they  remembered  that  God  ivas  their  rock,  35 

And  the  high  God  their  redeemer. 

29.  for  he  gave  them  &c.]  For  he  brought  them  that  for  which 
they  lusted.     Cp.  cvi.  14;  Num.  xi.  4,  34. 

30.  They  were  not  estranged  from  their  lust, 
Their  food  was  yet  in  their  mouth, 

31.  When  the  anger  of  God  went  up  against  them, 
And  slew  of  the  lustiest  of  them, 

And  laid  low  the  young  men  of  Israel. 
Even  before  they  had  been  surfeited  with  the  quails — an  allusion  to 
Num.   xi.  20 — the  judgement  fell  upon  them  (Num.  xi.  33),  and  the 
plague  broke  out.     God  punishes  men  by  answering  their  prayers,  a 
truth  which  even  heathen  moralists  recognised. 

32 — 39.  These  judgements  failed  to  reform  them,  and  further  chas- 
tisements produced  only  temporary  and  superficial  amendments.  Yet 
in  spite  of  all,  God  continued  to  shew  them  mercy. 

32.  The  further  sin  of  murmuring  and  unbelief  on  the  return  of  the 
spies,  for  which  they  were  condemned  to  wander  in  the  wilderness. 
See  Num.  xiv,  esp.  v.  21  ff. 

for  his  wondrous  works]     I.e.,  because  of.     Better,  as  R.V.,  In. 

33.  in  vanity... in  troitble]  Or,  as  a  breath,  unsubstantial  and  trans- 
itory (xxxix.  5,  11;  Ixii.  9):  with  sudden  terror  (Lev.  xxvi.  16). 

34.  When  he  slew  them,  then  they  would  inquire  after  him: 
And  return  and  seek  God  earnestly. 

The  tenses  denote  the  repeated  alternations  of  punishment  and  repent- 
ance.    Cp.  Jud.  ii.  1 1  ff. 

35.  their  rock]     Cp.  Deut.  xxxii.  4  ff. 

the  high  God]  God  Most  High,  El  Elyon,  a  combination  found  else- 
where only  in  Gen.  xiv.  iSff.  But  cp.  Ixxiii.  11;  and  vii.  17,  xlvii.  2, 
Jehovah  Elyon;  Ivii.  2,  Elohlm  Elyon. 


472  PSALM    LXXVIII.  36—40. 


3^  Nevertheless  they  did  flatter  him  with  their  mouth, 

And  they  lied  unto  him  with  their  tongues. 
37  For  their  heart  was  not  right  with  him, 

Neither  were  they  stedfast  in  his  covenant. 
33  But  he,  being  full  of  compassion,  forgave  their  iniquity,  and 
destroyed  them  not: 

Yea,  many  a  time  turned  he  his  anger  away, 

And  did  not  stir  up  all  his  wrath. 
30  For  he  remembered  that  they  were  but  flesh; 

A  wind  that  passeth  away,  and  cometh  not  again. 

40  How  oft  did  they  provoke  him  in  the  wilderness, 

36.  But  they  flattered  him  with  their  mouth, 
And  lied  unto  him  Mth  their  tongue  (R.V.). 

As  though  God  were  a  man  who  could  be  deceived  by  hypocrisy.  Cp. 
Is.  xxix.  13. 

According  to  the  Massoietic  reckoning,  this  is  the  middle  of  the  2527 
verses  of  the  Psalter,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  titles  of  the  Psalms 
are  frequently  reckoned  as  verses  in  the  Hebrew  text  {Introd,  p.  xvi). 

37.  right... stedfast\  Or,  stedfast... faithful.  Cp.  v.  8,  where  the 
same  words  are  used.  The  heart  is  the  organ  of  thouglit  and  will, 
which  determines  the  moral  and  religious  character,  the  seat  of  true 
repentance  and  amendment  of  life  (li.  10  ;  Ivii.  7). 

38.  This  verse  describes  the  general  attributes  of  God,  in  virtue  of 
which  {v.  39)  He  spared  Israel  in  spite  of  their  guilt.     Render  : 

But  he,  being  full  of  compassion,  forgiveth  iniquity  and  de- 

stroyeth  not, 
And  ofttimes  tumeth  his  anger  away, 
And  stirreth  not  up  all  his  wrath. 
Cp.  Ex.  xxxiv.  6,  7;  xxxii.  10,  12;  Num.  xiv.  i8ff. ;  Deut.  iv.   31. 
"  V.  38  is,  according  to  Kiddtishin  30a:,  the  middle  of  the  5896  lines 
{(jrlX'^i)  of  the  Psalter.     According  to  Maccoth  22b,  Ps.  Ixxviii.  38  and 
Deut.  xxviii,  58,  59,  xxix.  8  were  recited,  when  the  forty  stripes  save 
one,  which  Paul  five  times  suffered  (2  Cor.  xi.  24),  were  inflicted  on  the 
offender."     (Delitzsch). 

39.  For  kc]  And  he  remembered  &c.  T^jy^  denotes  the  frailty  of 
human  nature,  including  moral  as  well  as  physical  weakness:  a  wind 
&c.  symbolises  the  transitoriness  of  human  life.  Cp.  Ivi.  4;  ciii.  14  fF.; 
Gen.  vi.  3  ;  Job  vii.  7  flf. 

40 — 55.  But  as  God  multiplied  His  mercies,  Israel  multiplied  its 
acts  of  rebellion :  and  in  order  to  set  the  heinousness  of  their  ingratitude 
in  a  still  stronger  light,  the  Psalmist  goes  back  to  recount  the  miracles 
which  preceded  and  prepared  for  the  Exodus. 

40.  41.     An  emphatic  repetition  o{  vv.  17,  18. 

provoke  him]  Rather,  as  in  z/z/.  8,  17,  56,  rebel  against  him.  Both 
words,  7ebei  against  and  grieve,  occur  together  in  Is.  Ixiii.  10. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  41—44.  473 

y^;?^ grieve  him  in  the  desert! 

Yea,  they  turned  back  and  tempted  God,  41 

And  limited  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

They  remembered  not  his  hand  :  42 

Nor  the  day  when  he  delivered  them  from  the  enemy. 

How  he  had  wrought  his  signs  in  Egypt,  43 

And  his  wonders  in  the  field  of  Zoan: 

And  had  turned  their  rivers  into  blood;  44 

And  their  floods,  that  they  could  not  drink. 


41.  And  they  turned  again  and  tempted  God, 
And  provoked  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

limited  (A.V.)  would  mean  "entertained  mean  and  circumscribed 
notions  of  His  power  and  goodness  and  faithfulness"  (Kay),  or  'hindered 
His  action  by  their  unbelief  (Matt.  xiii.  58).  But  more  probably  the 
word  means  ^(jz/^'y^^^/ (LXX,  Syr.,  Jer.). 

the  Holy  One  of  Israel']  A  title  characteristic  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  and 
found  in  the  Psalter  only  here  and  in  Ixxi.  22,  Ixxxix.  18.  It  denotes  that 
it  was  in  His  character  of  a  Holy  God  that  Jehovah  had  become  the  God 
of  Israel.  Though  the  title  is  not  used  in  the  Pentateuch,  the  thought 
is  expressed  there.  In  the  chastisements  of  His  people  Jehovah  proved 
Himself  to  be  a  Holy  God,  Who  could  not  tolerate  sin;  and  it  was 
because  Moses  and  Aaron  failed  to  acknowledge  that  holiness,  that  they 
were  punished  by  exclusion  from  Canaan  (Num.  xx.  12,  13). 

42.  his  hand]  His  power  exerted  on  their  behalf.  See  Ex.  iii.  19, 
and  often.  nor  the  day  &c.]  Nor  the  day  when  he  redeemed  them 
from  the  adversary  (R.V.). 

43.  How  he  set  his  signs  in  Egypt  (R.V.) :  words  borrowed  from 
Ex.  x.  1,2,  "my  signs  which  I  have  set  among  them."     Cp.  cv.  27. 

Only  six,  or,  if  v.  48  or  v.  50  refers  to  the  murrain,  possibly  seven, 
plagues  are  mentioned,  the  plagues  of  lice,  boils,  and  darkness  being 
omitted.  The  order  is  different  from  that  of  Exodus,  coinciding  with  it 
only  in  the  first  and  last  plagues.  It  is  of  course  possible  that  the 
Psalmist,  treating  the  narrative  with  poetic  freedom,  only  mentions  the 
principal  plagues,  and  intentionally  omits  the  others:  but  it  is  note- 
worthy that  the  three  which  he  does  not  mention  are  just  those  the  ac- 
counts of  which  are  judged  by  critics  upon  grounds  of  style  to  have  been 
derived  from  different  documents  :  the  plague  of  darkness  from  the 
'Elohistic  document,'  and  the  plagues  of  lice  and  boils  from  the  '  Priestly 
Code.'  The  accounts  of  the  remaining  seven  are  in  the  main  derived 
from  the  'Jehovistic  document.'  See  Driver's  Introd.  to  the  Lit.  of  the 
O.  T.,  pp.  22  fif.  It  certainly  looks  as  if  the  Psalmist  used  the  'Jehovistic 
document,'  while  it  was  in  circulation  as  a  separate  work. 

44.  And  turned  their  rivers  into  blood. 

And  their  streams,  that  they  could  not  drink. 
See  Ex.  vii,  17  ff.     The  word  for  'rivers'  {j>'dr)  is  one  specially  used  of 
the  Nile  and  its  canals. 


474  PSALM    LXXVIII.  45—49. 

45  He  sent  divers  sorts  of  flies  among  them,  which  devoured 

them; 
And  frogs,  which  destroyed  them. 

46  He  gave  also  their  increase  unto  the  caterpillar, 
And  their  labour  unto  the  locust. 

47  He  destroyed  their  vines  with  hail, 
And  their  sycomore  trees  with  frost. 

48  He  gave  up  their  cattle  also  to  the  hail, 
And  their  flocks  to  hot  thunderbolts. 

49  He  cast  upon  them  the  fierceness  of  his  anger. 
Wrath,  and  indignation,  and  trouble, 


45.  The  fourth  and  second  plagues,  Ex.  viii.  ^oflF.,  viii.  i  ff.  The 
word  rendered  divers  sorts  of  flies,  or,  swarms  of  flies  (R.V.),  is  used 
only  with  reference  to  this  plague  (Ex.  viii;  Ps.  cv.  31),  and  probably 
means  some  venomous  kind  of  fly,  such  as  abound  in  Egypt. 

46.  The  eighth  plague,  Ex.  x.  i  ff. 

their  increase]  The  produce  of  the  land  (Ixvii.  6).  The  word 
rendered  'caterpillar'  is  not  used  in  Exodus,  but  often  occurs  elsewhere, 
and  probably  denotes  the  locust  in  the  larva  or  pupa  state. 

47.  He  MUed  their  vines  &c.  The  seventh  plague,  Ex.  ix.  1 3  ff. 
Cp.  cv.  33.  Grapes  and  figs  are  among  the  fruits  frequently  repre- 
sented in  paintings  in  Egyptian  tombs.  The  sycomore  was  and  is  one 
of  the  common  trees  of  Egypt,  much  valued  for  its  durable  wood,  of 
which  mummy  cases  were  commonly  made. 

with  frostl  This  is  the  rendering  of  the  LXX,  Aq.,  Syr.,  Jer.,  but 
g7'eat  hailstones  (R.V.  marg.)  or  lumps  of  ice  is  more  probably  the  mean- 
ing. 

48.  And  lie  gave  over  their  beasts  to  the  hail. 
And  their  cattle  to  fiery  lightning's. 

As  the  text  stands,  the  reference  is  to  the  destmction  of  the  Egyptian 
cattle  as  well  as  the  crops  by  the  lightning  which  accompanied  the  hail- 
storm (Ex.  ix.  28).  But  two  Hebrew  MSS.,  with  which  agrees  ^he 
version  of  Symmachus,  read  Deber,  'pestilence'  in  place  of  Barad, 
'hail.'  Now  Deber  is  the  word  used  in  Ex.  ix.  3  ff.  of  the  murrain 
which  attacked  the  cattle.  Resheph,  the  word  rendered  yf^rrj/  light- 
nings, is  also  used  of  burning  fever  in  Deut.  xxxii.  24;  Hab.  iii.  5;  in 
the  latter  passage  in  parallelism  with  Deber.  It  seems  possible, 
therefore,  that  this  verse  originally  referred  to  the  fifth  plague,  the 
murrain  on  the  cattle.  The  LXX,  Syr.,  Jer.,  Targ.  however  support 
the  Massoretic  Text. 

49 — 51.  The  culmination  of  the  plagues  in  the  death  of  the  first- 
bom. 

49.  He  cast  ufon  them  the  fierceness  of  his  anger]  Lit.,  he  sent,  as  in 
V.  45.     The  same  phrase  is  found  in  Job  xx.  23. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  50-54.  475 

By  sending  evil  angels  among  them. 

He  made  a  way  to  his  anger;  50 

He  spared  not  their  soul  from  death, 

But  gave  their  life  over  to  the  pestilence; 

And  smote  all  the  firstborn  in  Egypt;  51 

The  chief  of  their  strength  in  the  tabernacles  of  Ham : 

But  made  his  own  people  to  go  forth  like  sheep,  52 

And  guided  them  in  the  wilderness  like  a  flock. 

And  he  led  them  on  safely,  so  that  they  feared  not:  53 

But  the  sea  overwhelmed  their  enemies. 

And  he  brought  them  to  the  border  of  his  sanctuary,  54 

by  sending  evil  angels  among  them]  R.V.,  a  band  of  angels  of 
evil:  lit.  a  mission  of  evil  angels:  not  wicked  angels,  but  destroying 
angels,  commissioned  by  God  to  execute  His  purposes  of  punishment. 
Cp.  "the  destroyer,"  Ex.  xii.  23;  and  see  2  Sam.  xxiv.  i6f.;  2  Kings 
xix.  35  ;  Job  xxxiii.  22. 

50.  He  jnade  a  way  to  his  anger]  Lit.,  lie  levelled  a  path  for  his 
anger,  i.e.  gave  it  free  course. 

btct  gave  their  life  over  to  the  pestilence"]  This  is  the  natural  rendering 
of  the  words  in  this  context.  The  rendering  of  R.V.  marg.,  gave  their 
beasts  over  to  the  murrain,  is  that  of  the  Ancient  Versions.  But  a  refer- 
ence to  the  murrain  is  out  of  place  here,  where  the  Psalmist  is  clearly 
describing  the  culmination  of  the  plagues  in  the  destruction  of  the  first- 
born. He  emphasises  the  fact  that  after  minor  plagues  had  failed  to 
touch  Pharaoh's  conscience,  God  finally  attacked  the  very  lives  of  the 
Egyptians. 

51.  the  chief  of  their  strength]  The  beg^inning,  or,  firstlings  of 
strength,  a  term  applied  to  firstborn  sons  in  Gen.  xlix.  3;  Deut.  xxi. 
17.     So  cv.  36. 

in  the  tabernacles  of  Hani]  R.V.  tents.  Ham  was  the  ancestor  of 
Mizraim,  i.e.  Egypt,  Gen.  x.  6.     Cp.  cv.  23,  27;  cvi.  22. 

52 — 65.  God's  guidance  of  Israel  through  the  wilderness  into 
Canaan.  Cp.  Ex.  xv.  13 — 17.  The  circumstances  of  the  Journey  have 
been  already  recounted  in  vv.  13  ff. 

52.  But  made  &c.]  But  he  led  forth  his  people  like  sheep.  The 
verb  is  that  which  is  commonly  used  of  the  journeyings  of  the  Israelites 
from  stage  to  stage  through  the  wilderness  (Ex.  xv,  22  &c.).  The  figure 
of  Israel  as  Jehovah's  flock  is  a  favourite  one  in  the  Asaphile  Psalms 
(Ixxiv.  I  note). 

53.  feared  not]  In  contrast  to  their  enemies,  who  were  seized  with 
panic  (Ex.  xiv.  25),  Israel  had  no  cause  for  fear  (Ex.  xiv.  13).  Not  of 
course  that  they  never  gave  way  to  fear  (Ex.  xiv.  10). 

overwhelmed]   The  same  word  as  that  rendered  covered  \n  Ex.  xv.  10. 

54.  The  border  of  his  sanctuary  may  mean  the  land  of  Canaan,  as 
that  in  which  He  purposed  to  place  His 'temple,  and  this  mountain  may 


476  PSALM    LXXVIII.  55—59. 

Even   to  this   mountain,   which   his  right  hand   had   pur- 
chased. 

55  He  cast  out  the  heathen  also  before  them, 
And  divided  them  an  inheritance  by  Hne, 

And  made  the  tribes  of  Israel  to  dwell  in  their  tents. 

56  Yet  they  tempted  and  provoked  the  most  high  God, 
And  kept  not  his  testimonies  : 

57  But  turned  back^  and  dealt  unfaithfully  like  their  fathers : 
They  were  turned  aside  like  a  deceitful  bow. 

58  For  they  provoked  him  to  anger  with  their  high  places, 
And  moved  him  to  jealousy  with  their  graven  images. 

59  When  God  heard  this^  he  was  wroth, 
And  greatly  abhorred  Israel: 

denote  Mount  Zion.  But  it  is  preferable  to  render  to  his  holy  border, 
the  land  separate  from  all  other  lands,  to  be  consecrated  by  His  Presence, 
and  known  henceforth  as  the  Holy  Land :  and  in  the  next  line,  to  the 
mountain  land,  which  &c.  This  is  the  sense  in  Ex.  xv.  17,  which 
evidently  was  in  the  poet's  mind.  Cp.  Deut.  iii.  25 ;  Is.  xi.  9. 
65.    And  he  drove  out  the  nations  before  them, 

And  allotted  them  for  the  portion  of  their  inheritance: 
i.e.  distributed  the  land  of  the  Canaanites  among  the  Israelites  by  lot. 
Cp.  Josh,  xxiii.  4;  Ps.  cv.  11. 

56 — 58.  The  unfaithfulness  of  Israel  in  Canaan  during  the  period  of 
the  Judges. 

56.  Yet  &c.]  Yet  they  tempted  and  rebelled  against  God  the 
Most  High.  In  spite  of  all  God's  goodness  to  them,  they  persisted  in 
their  old  unfaithfulness.  Cp.  w.  17,  18;  40,  41.  God  the  Most  High 
is  not  El  Elyon,  as  in  v.  35 ;  but  Elohim  Elyorty  the  equivalent  of 
Jehovah  the  Most  Highy  vii.  17;  xlvii.  2. 

his  testirnoniesl  His  commandments,  regarded  as  bearing  witness  to 
His  will.     Cp.  xix.  7;  xxv.  10. 

57.  unfaithfully]  Or,  as  R.V.,  treacherously.  Cp.  Hos.  v.  7; 
vi.  7.  like  a  deceitful  bow]  Which  misses  the  mark  and  dis- 
appoints its  owner.     Cp.  Hos.  vii.   16. 

58.  They  provoked  Jehovah,  the  "jealous  God"  Who  can  tolerate 
no  rival  (Ex.  xx.  5),  by  their  adoption  of  Canaanite  idolatries.  Cp. 
Deut.  xxxii.  i6,  21. 

69 — 64.  Once  more  therefore  God  punished  them  for  their  sins, 
abandoning  them  to  their  enemies  and  even  suffering  the  Ark  to  be 
captured. 

59.  Cp.  f.  21.  and  greatly  abhorred  Israel]  Better,  and  utterly 
rejected  Israel.  Israel  here  can  hardly  mean  Ephraim  only,  as  some 
commentators  hold;  for  neither  sin  nor  punishment  was  limited   to 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  60—65.  477 

So  that  he  forsook  the  tabernacle  of  Shiloh,  60 

The  tent  which  he  placed  among  men; 

And  delivered  his  strength  into  captivity,  61 

And  his  glory  into  the  enemy's  hand. 

He  gave  his  people  over  also  unto  the  sword ;  62 

And  was  wroth  with  his  inheritance. 

The  fire  consumed  their  young  men;  63 

And  their  maidens  were  not  given  to  marriage. 

Their  priests  fell  by  the  sword;  64 

And  their  widows  made  no  lamentation. 

Then  the  Lord  awaked  as  one  out  of  sleep,  65 

And  like  a  mighty  man  that  shouteth  by  reason  of  wine. 

Ephraim,  and  the  sanctuary  of  Shiloh,  though  in  Ephraimite  territory, 
was  the  sanctuary  of  all  Israel. 

60.  placed^  Lit.  caused  to  dwell.  The  use  of  this  word  here  and  in 
Josh,  xviii.  i  (A.V.  set  up)  was  probably  suggested  by  its  frequent  use  with 
reference  to  the  dwelling  of  God  among  His  people.     Cp.  Jer.  vii.  12. 

On  the  position  and  history  of  Shiloli  see  note  on  i  Sam.  i,  3. 

61.  his  strength... his  glory]  The  Ark,  the  symbol  and  seat  of  His 
majesty  (r  Sam.  iv.  21  f;  Ps.  cxxxii.  8),  was  suffered  to  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  Philistines  (1  Sam,  iv.  11  ff.). 

the  enefii/s  hand]    The  adversary's  hand.     (R.V.) 

62.  See  i  Sam.  iv.  2,  10,  17. 

63.  Fire  devoured  their  young  men  ; 

And  their  maidens  had  no  marriage  song.     (R.V.) 
The  fire  of  war  (Num.  xxi.  28)  consumed  the  young  men,  so  that  the 
maidens  remained  unmarried. 

64.  and  their  widows  &c.]  This  line  recurs  word  for  word  in 
Job  xxvii.  15.  In  the  universal  distress  the  customary  rites  of  mourning 
were  not  performed,  even  for  a  husband  (2  Sam.  xi.  26,  27). 

65 — 66.  At  length  Jehovah  took  pity  on  His  people,  and  delivered 
them  from  their  adversaries. 

65.  While  Plis  people  were  at  the  mercy  of  their  enemies  He  seemed 
to  be  asleep.     Cp.  xliv.  23,  note. 

that  shouteth  &c.]  Cp.  Is.  xlii.  13,  14.  "The  daring  figure  of  God's 
awaking  as  from  sleep,  and  dashing  upon  Israel's  foes,  who  are  also 
His,  with  a  shout  like  that  of  a  hero  stimulated  by  wine,  is  more 
accordant  with  Eastern  fervour  than  with  our  colder  imagination  ;  but 
it  wonderfully  expresses  the  sudden  transition  from  a  period,  during 
which  God  seemed  passive  and  careless  of  His  people's  wretcliedness, 
to  one  in  which  His  power  flashed  forth  triumphant  for  their  defence." 
(Maclaren).  Many  modem  commentators  follow  the  LXX,  Targ.,  and 
Jer.,  in  rendering  like  a  giant  who  has  been  ovcrcojne  with  wine.  This 
gives  a  good  parallelism  to  the  preceding  line,  but  the  verb  does  not 
occur  elsewhere  in  this  sense,  and  bold  as  are  the  similes  of  the 
Psalmists,  this  would  be  scarcely  seemly. 


478  PSALM   LXXVIII.  66— 71. 

66  And  he  smote  his  enemies  in  the  hinder  parts : 
He  put  them  to  a  perpetual  reproach. 

67  Moreover  he  refused  the  tabernacle  of  Joseph, 
And  chose  not  the  tribe  of  Ephraim: 

68  But  chose  the  tribe  of  Judah, 
The  mount  Zion  which  he  loved. 

69  And  he  built  his  sanctuary  like  high  />a/aces, 
Like  the  earth  which  he  hath  established  for  ever. 

70  He  chose  David  also  his  servant, 
And  took  him  from  the  sheepfolds: 

71  From  following  the  e7C'cs  great  with  young  he  brought  him 
To  feed  Jacob  his  people, 

And  Israel  his  inheritance. 

66.  A /id  he  smote  &c.]  Render  with  R.V.,  And  he  smote  his 
adversaries  backward,  a  general  allusion  to  the  victories  over  the 
Philistines  and  other  enemies  of  Israel  under  Samuel,  Saul,  and  David. 
The  A.V.  follows  Jewish  authorities  in  seeing  a  reference  to  i  Sam.  v.  6  Si. 

67 — 69.     The  choice  of  Zion. 

67.  Moreover  &c.]  And  he  rejected  the  tent  of  Joseph,  i.e.  Shiloh 
in  the  tribe  of  Ephraim.  The  Ark  was  never  brought  back  there,  and  if 
Shiloh  was  not  actually  destroyed  by  the  Philistines,  it  ceased  to  be  the 
sanctuary  of  the  nation.  Jeremiah  points  to  the  fall  of  Shiloh  as  a 
warning  to  his  incredulous  contemporaries,  who  refused  to  believe  that 
Jehovah  could  possibly  desert  Jerusalem  and  allow  His  Temple  to  be 
destroyed  (Jer.  vii.  12,  14;  xxvi.  6,  9).  Stanley  observes  that  the  first 
division  of  the  history  of  the  Chosen  People  ended  with  the  overthrow 
of  the  first  sanctuary,  as  the  second  division  terminated  in  the  fall  of  the 
second  sanctuary,  and  the  third  by  the  still  vaster  destruction  of  the  last 
Temple  of  Jerusalem.      The  Jewish  Church,  Lect.  xvii. 

68.  which  he  loved\     Cp.  Ixxxvii.  2  ;  xlvii.  4. 

69.  like  high  palaces]  Rather,  like  the  heights  of  heaven,  which 
along  with  the  earth  are  emblems  of  grandeur  and  stability. 

70 — 72.     The  choice  of  David  as  king. 

70.  David  his  servant]  Though  any  Israelite  might  profess  himself 
Jehovah's  servant  in  addressing  Him,  only  a  few  who  were  raised  up  to 
do  special  service  or  who  stood  in  a  special  relation  to  Jehovah,  such  as 
Abraham,  Moses,  Joshua,  David,  Job,  are  distinguished  by  this  title  of 
honour.  Cp.  i  Sam.  iii.  18;  vii.  5,  8;  i  Kings  viii.  24;  Ps.  Ixxxix.  3, 
20;  cxxxii.  10. 

71.  From  following  the  ewes  with  their  young  ones  he  brought 

him, 
To  be  shepherd  of  Jacob  his  people  &c. 
This  natural  metaphor  for  the  ruler's  care  of  his  people  was  especially 
appropriate  in  the  case  of  David,  who  was  taken  from  being  the  shep- 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  72.     LXXIX.  i.  479 

So  he  fed  them  according  to  the  integrity  of  his  heart ; 
And  guided  them  by  the  skilfulness  of  his  hands. 

herd  of  Jesse's  flock  to  be  the  shepherd  of  Jehovah's  flock.  Cp.  2  Sam. 
V.  2. 

72.  f/ie  integrity  of  his  hearty  Cp.  i  Kings  ix.  4;  Ps.  vii.  8;  ci.  2\ 
and  the  use  of  the  cognate  adjective  in  xv.  2  ;  xviii.  23. 

the  skilfulness\  The  regal  faculty  of  discernment  which  Solomon 
desired  (i  Kings  iii.  9),  and  with  which  he  was  so  richly  endowed 
(i  Kings  iv.  29). 


PSALM   LXXIX. 

The  occasion  of  this  Psalm  has  already  been  discussed  in  the  Intro- 
duction to  Ps.  Ixxiv.     It  consists  of  three  stanzas. 

i.  The  Psalmist  tells  God  of  the  invasion  of  His  land,  the  desecration 
of  His  Temple,  the  destruction  of  His  city,  the  slaughter  of  His  servants, 
the  reproach  of  His  people  (i — 4). 

ii.  He  entreats  God  to  show  mercy  to  Israel,  and  not  to  punish  them 
any  more  for  the  sins  of  their  forefathers,  but  to  chastise  their  wanton 
oppressors  (5—8). 

iii.  Once  more  he  pleads  for  help  and  pardon,  urging  that  the  honour 
of  God's  name  is  at  stake,  and  that  the  outrages  of  the  heathen  should 
not  go  unpunished ;  and  he  concludes  with  a  vow  of  perpetual  praise 
from  the  restored  nation  (9 — 13). 

This  Psalm,  together  with  Ps.  cxxxvii,  is  prescribed  in  the  Talmudic 
treatise  Sopherim  (xviii.  3)  for  use  on  the  9th  day  of  the  month  Ab,  the 
day  on  which  the  destruction  of  both  the  first  and  the  second  Temple 
was  commemorated.     Cp.  Zech.  vii.  3. 

A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

O  God,  the  heathen  are  come  into  thine  inheritance;  79 

Thy  holy  temple  have  they  defiled; 
They  have  laid  Jerusalem  on  heaps. 

1 — 4.  The  Psalmist  tells  his  grief  to  God :  His  land  is  overrun  by 
heathen,  His  temple  is  desecrated.  His  city  is  in  ruins,  His  people  are 
slaughtered,  the  survivors  are  the  scorn  of  their  neighbours. 

1.  Cp.  Jer.  li.  51;  Lam.  i.  10;  and  for  the  desecration  of  the 
Temple  cp.  Ixxiv.  7;  Ezek.  vii.  21,   22. 

the  heathen]  Lit.  as  in  ziv.  6,  10,  the  nations :  but  where,  as  here, 
the  nations  are  in  antagonism  to  God  and  His  people,  the  rendering 
heathen  may  be  retained.  thiyie  inheritance]     Ilere  of  the  holy 

land  (cp.  Ex.  xv.  17):  more  commonly  of  the  people  (Ixxiv.  2;  Ixxviii. 
62,  71). 

on  heaps]    I.e.  in  ruins  :  perhaps  an  allusion  to  the  prophecy  of  Micah 


48o  PSALM    LXXIX.   2—5. 

a  The  dead  bodies  of  thy  servants  have  they  given 
To  be  meat  unto  the  fowls  of  the  heaven, 
The  flesh  of  thy  saints  unto  the  beasts  of  the  earth. 

3  Their  blood  have  they  shed  like  water 

Round  about  Jerusalem;  and  there  was  none  to  bury  them. 

4  We  are  become  a  reproach  to  our  neighbours, 

A  scorn  and  derision  to  them  that  are  round  about  us. 

5  How  long.  Lord?  wilt  thou  be  angry,  for  ever? 
Shall  thy  jealousy  burn  like  fire? 

(iii.  12;  cp.  Jer.  xxvi.  18).     For  the  archaic  use  of  'on,'  Wright  {Bible 
Word-Book,  p.  436)  quotes  Shakespeare,  Heiiry  V,  v.  2.  39 ; 
And  all  her  husbandry  doth  lie  on  heaps, 

2.  The  horrors  of  a  remorseless  slaughter  were  aggravated  by  the 
disgrace  of  the  corpses  being  left  unburied,  in  accordance  with  the 
threats  of  the  law  (Deut.  xxviii.  26)  and  prophets  (Jer.  vii.  33;  viii.  2; 
ix.  22;  XV.  3;  xvi.  4;  xix.  7). 

thy  se}'va7its...thy  saints]  These  titles  are  not  meant  to  plead  Israel's 
merits,  but  Israel's  relationship  to  God  in  virtue  of  His  covenant  with 
them  (Ixxiv.  20;  1.  5). 

3.  like  water]  Freely,  and  as  though  it  were  of  little  worth.  Con- 
trast cxvi.  15. 

none  to  Imry  them]  Cp.  Jer.  xiv.  16.  This  passage  is  quoted  freely 
in  I  Mace.  vii.  17  with  reference  to  the  murder  of  certain  Assideans  by 
the  high  priest  Alcimus,  "He  took  of  them  threescore  men  and  slew 
them  in  one  day,  according  to  the  words  which  one  wrote,  The  flesh  of 
thy  saints  and  their  blood  did  they  shed  round  about  Jerusalem,  and 
they  had  none  to  bury  them."  Clearly  the  meaning  cannot  be  that  the 
Psalm  was  written  with  reference  to  that  event,  for  by  that  time  (B.C. 
162)  the  situation  of  affairs  was  wholly  different  from  that  described  in 
the  Psalm.  Judas  had  won  many  victories,  and  the  Temple  had  been 
re-dedicated.  Moreover  the  Psalm  implies  a  much  more  extensive 
slaughter  of  Israelites,  and  that  by  heathen,  not  by  a  treacherous 
Israelite.  There  is  probably  another  reminiscence  of  z^.  3  in  i  Mace.  i. 
37,  "They  shed  innocent  blood  on  every  side  of  the  sanctuary,  and 
defiled  it." 

4.  A  repetition  of  xliv.  13,  with  the  change  of  'thou  makest  us'  to 
*we  are  become.'  Cp.  Ixxx.  6;  Ezek.  xxii.  4;  xxv.  6  fif.  Dan.  ix.  16 
combines  this  verse  with  v.  8  a. 

5 — 8.  Prayer  that  God  will  cease  to  be  angry  with  His  own  people 
and  will  punish  their  destroyers. 

6.    How  long,  Jehovah,  wilt  thou  he  aaigry  for  ever? 
(How  long)  shall  thy  jealousy  bum  like  fire  ? 

As  in  xiii.  1,  faith  combines  two  questions  into  a  self-contradictory 
expression.  How  long  and /or  ever  are  characteristic  words  of  Ps.  Ixxiv 
{w.  I,  10,  19).     Cp.  Ixxx.  4;  Ixxxix.  46. 

Shall  thy  jealousy  burn  like  fire]     "Jehovah  thy  God  is  a  devouring 


PSALM   LXXIX.  6— lo.  481 


Pour  out  thy  wrath  upon  the  heathen  that  have  not  known  6 

thee, 
And  upon  the  kingdoms  that  have  not  called  upon  thy  name. 
For  they  have  devoured  Jacob,  ^ 

And  laid  waste  his  dwelling  place. 

O  remember  not  against  us  former  iniquities :  8 

Let  thy  tender  mercies  speedily  prevent  us: 
For  we  are  brought  very  low. 

Help  us,  O  God  of  our  salvation,  for  the  glory  of  thy  name:  9 
And  deliver  us,  and  purge  away  our  sins,  for  thy  name's 

sake. 
Wherefore  should  the  heathen  say.  Where  is  their  God?         10 

fire,  a  jealous  God"  (Deut.  iv.  24).  He  cannot  endure  a  divided  alle- 
giance, and  must  punish  Israel  for  its  sin.  Cp.  Deut.  xxix.  20;  Zeph. 
i.  18. 

6.  upon  the  heathen  &c.]  Not  upon  the  nations  as  such,  but  upon 
the  nations  which  refuse  to  acknowledge  Jehovah,  and  make  havoc  of 
His  people.  Render  with  R.V.,  that  know  thee  not... that  call  not 
upon  thy  name. 

7.  his  dwelling  place']  R.V.  his  habitation,  mar g.  J>astu re:  a  dif- 
ferent word  however  hom  pasture  in  v.  13. 

TJv.  6,  7  recur  in  Jer.  x.  25.  At  first  sight  it  would  appear  that  the 
prophecy  must  be  earlier  than  the  Fall  of  Jerusalem,  and  that  the 
Psalmist  must  be  quoting  from  the  prophet.  But  ch.  x  in  its  present 
form  can  hardly  be  from  the  pen  of  Jeremiah  himself:  w.  i — 10  at 
any  rate  can  hardly  be  his  :  and  vv,  23 — 25  appear  to  be  a  composite 
passage.  The  insertion  of  '  yea,  they  have  devoured  him  and  consumed 
him'  after  'Jacob,'  looks  like  the  transformation  of  poetry  into  prose, 
and  it  is  possible  that  the  Psalm  is  the  original. 

8.  Remember  not  against  us  the  iniquities  of  our  forefathers 
(R.V.).  For  these  sins  Israel  in  the  Exile  knew  that  it  was  suffering  (Lam. 
V.  7),  in  accordance  with  the  warnings  of  the  law  (Ex.  xx.  5).  For  the 
phrase  cp.  Jer.  xi.  10.  But  the  next  verse  shews  that  the  Psalmist  does 
not  claim  that  his  own  generation  is  innocent.     Cp.  Lev.  xxvi.  39,  40. 

prevent  us]  Come  to  meet  us.  See  on  lix.  lo.  It  is  an  appeal  to  the 
fundamental  revelation  of  God  as  a  merciful  God  (Ex.  xxxiv.  6). 

9 — 12.  Repeated  prayers  for  deliverance  for  the  honour  of  God's 
Name. 

9.  for  the  glory  of  thy  namel  Lit.  for  the  sake  of  the  glory  of  thy 
name  (xxix.  2 ;  Ixvi.  2).  If  Thou  art  not  moved  by  the  sight  of  our  suf- 
ferings, at  least  be  jealous  for  Thine  own  honour,  lest  the  heathen  should 
think  that  Israel's  God  is  powerless  to  help  His  people. 

purge  azuay]     Or,  mahe  atonement  for.     See  note  on  Ixv.  3. 

10.  Wherefore  &c.]  The  same  plea  in  cxv.  2  (cp.  also  cxv.  i  with 
V.  9);  Joel  ii.  17.     Cp.  Ex.  xxxii.  12;  Ps.  xUi.  3;  Mic.  vii.  10. 


PSALMS 


31 


482  PSALM   LXXIX.  ii— 13. 

Let  him  be  known  among  the  heathen  in  our  sight 

By  the  revenging   of  the  blood   of  thy  servants  which  is 
shed. 
'  Let  the  sighing  of  the  prisoner  come  before  thee; 

According  to  the  greatness  of  thy  power 

Preserve  thou  those  that  are  appointed  to  die: 
12  And  render  unto  our  neighbours  sevenfold  into  their  bosom 

Their    reproach,    wherewith    they   have    reproached    thee, 
O  Lord. 
[3  So  we  thy  people  and  sheep  of  thy  pasture 

Will  give  thee  thanks  for  ever: 

We  will  shew  forth  thy  praise  to  all  generations. 

lei  him  be  knotvii]     Better : 

Let  vengeance  for  thy  servants'  blood  that  is  shed 
Be  made  known  among  the  heathen  in  our  sight. 
Defer  not  vengeance  to  some  future  generation :  let  us  see  with  our 
own  eyes  the  fitting  punishment  of  the  enemies  of  Israel.  This  verse 
and  V.  9  are  based  upon  Ueut.  xxxii.  43.  Note  how  the  thought  of 
vengeance  goes  side  by  side  with  that  of  deliverance  in  Is.  xxxv,  4; 
xlvii.  3;  lix.  17;  Ixi.  2;  Ixiii.  4;  and  in  Jer.  1.  15,  28;  ii.  6,  11,  36, 
chapters  which  also  probably  date  from  the  Exile. 

11.  The  same  phrases  recur  in  cii.  20. 

thy  power]  Lit.  thine  arm,  a  word  which  recalls  the  memories  of  a 
glorious  past  (Ex.  xv.  16;  Ps.  xliv.  3). 

those  that  are  appointed  to  die]  Lit.,  the  sons  of  death.  It  is  not 
necessar)'  to  understand  these  expressions  literally  of  prisoners  sentenced 
to  execution :  more  probably  they  denote  the  prison  and  the  living  death 
of  exile  (Is.  xlii.  7;  xlix.  9;  Ixi.  i). 

12.  our  neighbours]  Cp.  v.  4 :  the  nations  around,  such  as  the 
Ammonites,  Moabites,  and  Edomites,  which  instead  of  sympathising 
rejoiced  at  Israel's  calamity.     Cp.  Ezek.  xxv. 

sevenfold]  Cp.  Gen.  iv.  15;  and  contrast  Christ's  law  of  forgiveness, 
Matt,  xviii.  22. 

into  their  bosom]  A  metaphor  from  the  practice  of  carrying  articles  in 
the  folds  of  the  dress.  It  further  suggests  the  idea  of  full  and  intimate 
recompence.     Cp.  Is.  Ixv.  6;  Jer.  xxxii.  18;  Luke  vi.  38. 

13.  Concluding  vow  of  thanksgiving.  Israel  will  then  be  able  to 
render  its  tribute  of  unceasing  praise  to  its  Lord  and  Shepherd. 

sheep  of  thy  pasture]     Cp.  Ixxiv.  i,note;  Ixxx.  i. 
thy  praise]     Cp.  Ixxiv.  2^;  Ixxviii.  4.     To  set  forth  Jehovah's  praise 
was  Israel's  mission,  Is.  xliii.  21. 


PSALM   LXXX.  483 


PSALM  LXXX. 

The  Psalm  begins  with  a  prayer  to  the  Shepherd  of  Israel  once  more 
to  manifest  His  power  and  lead  His  people  to  victory  (i — 3). 

How  long,  pleads  the  Psalmist,  will  God  continue  to  be  angry  with 
His  people  and  abandon  them  to  the  mockery  of  their  enemies  (4 — 7)  ? 

He  reminds  God  of  the  care  which  He  had  once  bestowed  upon  the 
vine  of  Israel,  and  of  its  former  luxuriant  growth :  why  then  has  He 
now  withdrawn  His  protection  and  abandoned  it  to  the  ravages  of  its 
foes  (8—13)? 

Once  more  he  prays  that  God  will  visit  and  restore  His  people,  and 
bind  them  to  Himself  by  a  new  bond  of  allegiance  (14 — 19). 

The  refrains  (3,  7,  19)  mark  a  strophical  arrangement,  and  vv.  8 — 19 
naturally  fall  into  two  divisions,  8 — 13,  14 — 19.  But  there  are  indica- 
tions of  some  dislocation  of  the  text  of  vv.  14.K,  and  it  is  possible  that 
the  strophical  arrangement  was  originally  more  complete. 

This  Psalm  throws  into  the  form  of  a  prayer  those  hopes  for  the 
restoration  of  the  Northern  tribes  and  the  reunion  of  all  Israel,  which  are 
found  m  the  prophets  from  the  time  of  Amos  onward,  and  are  expressed 
in  the  fullest  detail  by  Jeremiah  (iii.  11 — 15;  xxxi.  i — 21),  and  Ezekiel 
(xxxvii.  15 — 28),  and,  probably  at  a  still  later  date,  after  the  first 
Return  from  the  Exile,  in  Zech.  ix — xi.^  It  must  have  been  written 
after  the  fall  of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  when  political  rivalry  between 
Israel  and  Judah  was  at  an  end ;  and  it  may  have  been  written  either 
before  the  Exile  or  after  the  Return  from  Babylon,  for  the  language  of 
^^*  3>  7>  19  does  not  necessarily  imply  that  the  whole  nation  was  in  exile. 
But  more  probably  it  was  written  during  the  Babylonian  exile;  for  (i) 
^^'  3>  7»  19  ^''G  most  naturally  interpreted  as  a  prayer  for  the  termina- 
tion of  the  exile:  (2)  vv.  12  ff.  seem  to  describe  the  land  as  wholly 
overrun  by  enemies  and  the  national  existence  as  for  the  time  at  an 
end:  and  {3)  the  resemblances  of  language  to  Pss.  Ixxiv  and  Ixxix  are 
in  favour  of  referring  it  to  the  same  period-^. 

On  the  whole  then,  though  the  Psalm  may  be  a  prayer  of  the  post- 
exile  congregation  for  the  fuller  restoration  of  Israel,  and  doubtless  was 
so  used  by  them,  it  seems  best  to  regard  it  as  originally  the  prayer  of 
Israel  in  exile  for  a  complete  national  restoration.  The  special  interest 
shewn  in  the  tribes  of  the  Northern  Kingdom  {v.  2)  may  have  been  due 
to  the  connexion  of  the  author  with  one  of  those  tribes :  but  it  is  sufficiently 
accounted  for  by  the  prominence  given  to  Israel's  restoration  in  Jere- 
miah and  Ezekiel.  "The  brotherly  love  of  Judah  for  Israel  (cp.  Ixxvii. 
15;  Ixxxi.  5)  is  a  reflection  (if  we  may  expand  the  thought  of  the 
Asaphite  Psalmists  in  accordance  with  Jer.  xxxi.  9,  20)  of  the  fatherly 
love  of  Jehovah  for  His  'first-born.'  Man's  self-will  (Hos.  v.  1 1)  cannot 
permanently  make  void  the  divine  idea  of  all- Israel."     (Cheyne.) 

According  to  the  Massoretic  accentuation  the  title  runs,  For  the  chief 

1  For  a  discussion  of  the  date  of  Zech.  ix — xi  the  writer  would  refer  to  his  Doctrine 
0/  the  Prophets,  pp.  445  ff. 

2  With  V.  I  cp.  Ixxiv.  i;  Ixxix.  13;  with  v.  4  cp.  Ixxiv.  i,  9,  10;  Ixxix.  5;  with 
V.  6  cp.  Ixxix.  4,  12;  with  v.  18  cp.  Ixxix.  6,  9. 

31  —  2 


484  PSALM    LXXX.  I,  2. 

Musician,  set  to  Shoshannim  {lilies) :  a  testimony  of  Asaph,  a  Psalm : 
but  the  analogy  of  the  title  of  Ps,  Ix  suggests  the  connexion  of  the 
words  Shoshannim  Ediith^  i.e.  {Like)  lilies  is  the  testijfiony,  pure 
and  beautiful.  These  would  be  the  opening  words  of  some  well-known 
song  in  praise  of  the  Law,  to  the  melody  of  which  the  Psalm  was  to  be 
sung.  Cp.  the  titles  of  Pss.  xiv,  Ixix;  and  see  Introd.  p.  xxvi.  The 
LXX  adds  to  the  title,  A  Fsalm  concerning  the  Assyrian,  as  in  Ps. 
Ixxvi. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Shoshannim-Eduth,  A  Psalm  oi  Asaph. 

80  Give  ear,  O  Shepherd  of  Israel, 

Thou  that  leadest  Joseph  like  a  flock; 
Thou  that  dwellest  between  the  cherubims,  shine  forth. 
2  Before  Ephraim  and  Benjamin  and  Manasseh 

1 — 3.     A  prayer  for  the  restoration  of  God's  favour  to  His  people. 

1.  The  Psalmist  addresses  God  (i)  as  the  Shepherd  of  Israel,  a  title 
which  is  the  correlative  of  the  words  in  Ixxix.  13,  thy  people  and  the 
flock  of  thy  pasture  (cp.  Ixxiv.  1),  and  appeals  to  their  claim  on  His 
protecting  care :  {^)  as  thou  that  leddest  Joseph  like  a  flock,  recalling 
His  providential  guidance  of  them  through  the  wilderness  (Ixxvii.  10 ; 
Ixxviii.  52) :  (3)  as  thou  that  sittest  enthroned  upon  the  Cherubim, 
words  which  suggest  the  double  idea  of  the  King  enthroned  in  heaven 
and  yet  dwelling  in  the  midst  of  His  people  (i  Sam.  iv.  4;  2  Sam.  vi. 
2  ;  2  Kings  xix.  15),  and  are  here  clearly  intended  to  recall  the  Presence 
of  God  with  His  people  in  the  wilderness  manifested  from  the  'mercy- 
seat'  above  the  Ark  (Ex.  xxv.  22).  Israel  is  the  nation  as  a  whole; 
Joseph  represents  the  tribes  of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  in  which  the 
Psalmist  has  a  special  interest.  Cp.  Jacob  and  Joseph,  Ps.  Ixxvii.  15. 
The  use  of  the  title  Shephej-d  may  allude  to  the  use  of  the  word  in 
Jacob's  blessings  of  Joseph,  Gen.  xlviii.  15  {fed  =^  shepherded),  xlix.  24. 

shine  fortJi\  Manifest  Thyself  in  power  and  glory  for  our  deliverance. 
Cp.  1.  1 ;  xciv.  I ;  Deut.  xxxiii.  2. 

2.  Ephraim,  Benjamin,  and  Manasseh  were  united  by  the  tie  of 
conmion  descent  from  Jacob's  beloved  wife  Rachel,  who  is  regarded  by 
Jeremiah  (xxxi.  15)  as  the  mother  of  the  Northern  Kingdom,  and  they 
are  named  as  representatives  of  that  Kingdom.  According  to  Num.  ii. 
1 7  ff.  these  tribes  encamped  to  the  West  of  the  Tabernacle,  and  marched 
immediately  behind  it  {^.  24).  Before  Ephraim  &c.  therefore  means, 
'placing  Thyself  at  their  head  as  a  victorious  leader,  as  Thou  didst  go 
before  them  of  old  in  the  journeyings  of  the  wilderness.'  At  first  sight 
it  may  seem  strange  that  Benjamin  is  reckoned  among  the  Northern 
tribes,  for  partially  at  any  rate  it  sided  with  Rehoboam  (i  Kings  xii.  21 ; 
1  Chr.  xi.  3,  23;  XV.  8,  9);  but  the  one  tribe  remaining  to  David  was 
Judah  (i  Kings  xi.  13,  32,  36),  and  Benjamin  must  be  reckoned  to  the 
Northern  Kingdom  to  make  up  Ten  tribes,  for  Simeon  had  become 
merged  in  Judah  and  is  not  counted.  The  principal  Benjamite  towns 
of  Bethel,  Gilgal,  and  Jericho  belonged  to  the  Northern  Kingdom. 


PSALM    LXXX.  3—5.  485 


Stir  up  thy  strength, 

And  come  and  save  us. 

Turn  us  again,  O  God, 

And  cause  thy  face  to  shine;  and  we  shall  be  saved. 

O  Lord  God  ghosts, 

How  long  wilt  thou  be  angry  against  the  prayer  of  thy 

people? 
Thou  feedest  them  with  the  bread  of  tears; 
And  givest  them  tears  to  drink  in  great  measure. 

stir  tip  thy  strenglh'\  Put  in  action  thy  might  (xx.  6)  which  seems 
to  be  dormant.  cojne  and  save  us'\    R.  V.,  come  to  save  us :  lit. 

comey^r  salvation  ox  deliverance  for  us. 

3.  Tu7-ii  lis  agaiti]  Usually  taken  to  mean  bring  us  back  from  exile, 
or  more  generally,  restore  us:  repair  our  broken  fortunes.  Cp.  Ix.  i. 
But  is  it  not  rather  an  allusion  to  Ephraim's  prayer  in  Jer.  xxxi.  18, 
interpreted  in  Lam.  v.  2 1  in  a  spiritual  sense?  National  repentance  is  the 
condition  of  national  restoration;  and  it  must  be  God's  own  work. 
Make  us  return  to  Thee,  and  return  to  us  (z/.  14)  with  Thy  favour  as  of 
old ;  then  and  not  till  then  shall  we  be  saved. 

caitse  thy  face  to  shine'\  Shew  us  Thy  favour  as  of  old :  words  bor- 
rowed from  the  great  Aaronic  benediction.  Num.  vi.  25.    Cp.  Ps.  iv.  6. 

4 — 7.  How  long  shall  Israel  continue  to  be  the  object  of  Jehovah's 
displeasure,  and  the  scorn  of  neighbouring  nations? 

4.  0  Lord  God  of  hosts\  Jehovah  Elohim  Tsebdothy  as  in  lix.  5. 
For  the  meaning  see  note  on  xlvi.  7.  There  is  a  special  significance  in 
the  repeated  appeals  to  Jehovah  (4,  14,  19)  by  the  title  which  denotes 
His  universal  sovereignty,  and  therefore  His  ability  to  help  Israel  in  its 
humiliation,  and  also  recalls  the  days  when  He  went  forth  with  Israel's 
armies  to  victory. 

how  long  wilt  thou  be  angry"]  Lit.  hast  thou  been  fuming.  For  the 
verb  cp.  Ixxiv.  i.  The  tense  denotes  'how  long  hast  Thou  been  and 
wilt  Thou  continur  to  be  angry,'  and  implies  that  Israel's  distress  has 
already  lasted  long.     Cp.  Ixxiv.  9,  10;  Ixxix.  5. 

against  the  prayer  of  thy  people]  As  the  punishment  for  the  sins  of 
their  ancestors  (Prov.  i.  28  ff.;  Lam.  iii.  8).  Perhaps  the  smoke  of  the 
divine  wrath  is  thought  of  as  a  thick  cloud  which  interposes  between 
them  and  God;  see  Lam.  iii.  44.  We  might  render  in  spite  of  the 
prayer,  but  the  rendering  of  A.V.  and  R. V.  is  the  more  forcible.  God's 
indignation  against  His  people  is  so  intense,  that  even  their  prayers  are 
an  offence  to  Him.  On  the  wrath  of  God  as  the  manifestation  of  His 
holiness  see  Oehler's  O.  T.  Theology,  §  48. 

The  LXX  and  Syr.  read  thy  servant  or  thy  servants  for  thy  people. 

6.    Thou  hast  fed  them  with  hread  of  tears, 

And  given  them  tears  to  drink  in  large  measure, 
i.e.  made  tears  their  daily  portion :  cp.  xlii.  3 ;  cii.  9.     In  large  measure. 


486  rSALM    LXXX.  6—10. 


6  Thou  makest  us  a  strife  unto  our  neighbours: 
And  our  enemies  laugh  among  themselves. 

7  Turn  us  again,  O  God  ghosts, 

And  cause  thy  face  to  shine;  and  we  shall  be  saved. 

8  Thou  hast  brought  a  vine  out  of  Egypt: 
Thou  hast  cast  out  the  heathen,  and  planted  it. 

9  Thou  preparedst  roojn  before  it, 

And  didst  cause  it  to  take  deep  root,  and  it  filled  the  land. 

10  The  hills  were  covered  with  the  shadow  of  it, 

And  the  boughs  thereof  were  like  the  goodly  cedars. 

lit.  by  the  tierce^  or  third  part  of  some  larger  measure,  probably  the  hath 
{=ej)hah,  in  dry  measure),  and  if  so  containing  nearly  three  gallons:  a 
liuge  drinking  goblet,  though  but  a  tiny  measure  for  the  dust  of  the 
earth,  Is.  xl.  12,  the  only  other  place  where  the  word  occurs. 

LXX,  Syr.,  Jer.,  read  us  for  theifi. 

6.  a  strife  &c.]  An  object  of  contention  (Jer.  xv.  10):  the  petty 
states  round  about  (Ixxix.  4,  12),  Edomites,  Arabians,  and  the  like, 
quarrel  among  themselves  for  our  territory.  Lagarde  conjectures  that 
we  should  read  manod,  shaking  (of  the  head),  for  madon,  j/r^y^,  as  in 
xliv.  14,  w'hich  would  suit  the  parallelism  better. 

taugh  among  themselves']  Rather,  to  their  heart''s  content^  so,  laugh 
scornfully.     Cp.  Ixxix.  4. 

P.  B.  V.  *  laugh  us  to  scorn '  follows  LXX,  Vulg, ,  Jer. 

8 — 13.  Under  the  figure  of  a  vine,  once  carefully  tended  and  spread- 
ing far  and  wide  in  luxuriant  growth,  but  now  exposed  to  the  ravages  of 
wild  beasts,  the  Psalmist  contrasts  God's  former  care  for  His  people 
with  their  present  plight.  The  figure  of  the  vine  may  have  been  sug- 
gested by  Gen.  xlix.  22.  See  Hos.  x.  i;  Is.  v.  i — 7;  xxvii,  1 — 6; 
Jer.  ii.  21 ;  xii.  10  ff.  "The  vine  was  the  emblem  of  the  nation  on  the 
coins  of  the  Maccabees,  and  in  the  colossal  cluster  of  golden  grapes 
which  overhung  the  porch  of  the  second  Temple;  and  the  grapes  of 
Judah  still  mark  the  tombstones  of  the  Hebrew  race  in  the  oldest  of 
their  European  cemeteiies,  at  Prague."     Sinai  and  Palestine,  p.  164. 

8.  Thou  broughtest  a  vine  out  of  Egypt  (R.V.):  the  verb  is  one 
which  can  be  applied  to  the  transplantation  of  a  vine,  or  the  migration 
of  a  people,  as  in  Ixxviii.  52.  Thou  didst  drive  out  the  nations, 
and  plantedst  it.      See  Ex.  xxiii.  28  ft". ;  xv.  17  ;  Ps.  xliv.  2;  Ixxviii.  55. 

9.  Thozi  preparedst  room  before  it]  As  the  vinedresser  prepares  the 
ground  for  his  vine  by  clearing  away  the  stones  and  thorns  and  all  that 
would  hinder  its  free  growth  (Is.  v.  2),  so  God  prepared  Canaan  for 
Israel  by  the  expulsion  of  its  old  inhabitants. 

and  didst  cause  it  &c.]  Rather,  and  it  struck  deep  its  roots,  and 
fiUed  the  land. 

10.  The  hills]    The  mountains. 

the  goodly  cedars]    Cedars  of  God  {El),  those  "which  he  hath  planted, " 


PSALM    LXXX.  II  — 15.  487 

She  sent  out  her  boughs  unto  the  sea, 
And  her  branches  unto  the  river. 

Why  hast  thou  thai  broken  down  her  hedges, 

So  that  all  they  which  pass  by  the  way  do  pluck  her? 

The  boar  out  of  the  wood  doth  waste  it, 

And  the  wild  beast  of  the  field  doth  devour  it. 

Return,  we  beseech  thee,  O  God  ghosts: 

Look  down  from  heaven,  and  behold. 

And  visit  this  vine; 

And  the  vineyard  which  thy  right  hand  hath  planted, 

the  indigenous  cedars  of  Lebanon,  noblest  of  forest  trees.  Cp.  "moun- 
tains of  God"  (xxxvi.  6).  The  alternative  rendering  of  R.  V.  marg.,  And 
the  cedars  of  God  with  the  botighs  thereof,  gives  the  same  sense  as  the 
LXX.  The  vine  grew  so  that  it  overshadowed  the  mountainous  country 
to  the  South,  and  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  on  the  North,  an  allusion  to 
the  ideal  boundaries  of  the  Promised  Land,  as  described  in  Deut.  xi.  24 
(where  '  the  wilderness  '= '  the  mountains  '  here).  That  the  next  verse 
clearly  refers  to  the  Eastern  and  Western  boundaries  is  an  argument  in 
favour  of  this  interpretation. 

11.  She  sent  out  her  branches  unto  the  sea, 
And  her  shoots  unto  the  River  (R.V.), 

spreading  westward  to  the  Mediterranean,  and  eastward  to  the  Euphrates, 
boundaries  approximately  realised  in  the  time  of  David  and  Solomon. 
See  Ixxii.  8;  Gen.  xv.  18;  Ex.  xxiii.  31;  Deut.  xi.  24;  2  Sam.  viii.  6; 
I  Kings  iv.  24. 

12.  Why  &c.]  The  question  is  half  expostulation,  half  inquiry,  for 
Israel's  present  plight  is  a  riddle  to  the  Psalmist. 

hedges'\  R.V.  fences.  Vineyards  were  always  carefully  fenced  to 
protect  them  (Is.  v.  5).    Almost  the  same  words  recur  in  Ixxxix.  40,  41. 

13.  The  boar  out  of  the  forest  doth  ravage  it, 
And  the  wild  beasts  of  the  field  feed  on  it. 

"  Under  Hermon,"  says  Dr  Tristram,  *'in  the  vineyard  districts,  we 
heard  grievous  lamentations  of  the  damage  done  to  the  vines  by  the 
boars,  which  not  only  devour  the  grapes,  but  also  munch  up  the  bearing 
shoots."  Nat.  Hist,  of  Bible,  p.  56.  Israel's  land  is  laid  waste  by 
remorseless  enemies. 

14—19.  Repeated  prayers  for  the  restoration  of  God's  favour  to 
Israel. 

14.  Return'\  Or,  as  R.V. ,  Turn  again.  It  is  the  intransitive  form 
-of  the  verb  turn  us  again  in  vv.  3,  7,  19. 

15.  This  verse  presents  serious  ambiguities  and  difficulties.  The 
first  word  may  be  rendered  as  a  substantive,  in  close  connexion  with  v. 
14,  and  the  vineyard,  or  better  as  R.V.  and  the  stock:  or,  as  in  R.V. 
marg.,  as  a  verb:   and  protect  (or  maintain)  that  which  thy  right 


488  PSALM    LXXX.  16—19. 

And  the  branch  that  thou  madest  strong  for  thyself. 

i^j  //  is  burnt  with  fire,  //  is  cut  down : 
They  perish  at  the  rebuke  of  thy  countenance. 

17  Let  thy  hand  be  upon  the  man  of  thy  right  hand, 

Upon  the  son  of  man  whom  thou  madest  strong  for  thyself. 

18  So  will  not  we  go  back  from  thee : 
Quicken  us,  and  we  will  call  upon  thy  name. 

19  Turn  us  again,  O  Lord  God  of  hosts, 

Cause  thy  face  to  shine ;  and  we  shall  be  saved. 

hand  hath  planted.  The  second  rendering  is  preferable,  though  not 
wholly  free  from  difficulty. 

the  branch^  Or,  the  son,  which  is  the  literal  meaning  of  the  word. 
Cp.  Ex.  iv.  12 ;  Hos.  xi.  i.  Probably  an  allusion  to  Gen.  xlix.  22. 
The  Targum  interprets,  "and  upon  Messiah  the  king,  whom  thou  hast 
made  strong  for  thyself. "  But  the  primary  reference  is  obviously  to  the 
nation. 

madest  strong]  Tending  it  with  loving  care  till  it  grew  up :  cp.  Ixxxix. 
11 ;  Is.  i.  2. 

16.  The  gender  of  the  word  shews  that  //  refers  to  the  vine.  Cut 
down,  as  fit  for  nothing  but  fuel.     Cp.  Is.  xxxiii.  12;  Ezek.  xv.  4. 

they  perish  &c.]  The  figure  is  dropped.  The  Israelites  perish,  for 
God  has  not  merely  hidden  His  face,  but  turned  it  upon  them  in  anger. 
It  has  been  conjectured  that  there  has  been  some  displacement  of  the 
text,  and  various  rearrangements  have  been  proposed.  Thus  Cheyne 
would  read  the  verses  in  this  order:  11,  14,  15,  12,  13,  16.  Let  them 
perish  will  then  refer  to  Israel's  enemies.  Then  too  there  may  have 
been  some  confusion  between  15  Z*  and  17  ^. 

17.  A  repetition  of  v.  15,  dropping  the  metaphor.  Extend  Thy 
hand,  put  forth  Thy  power  to  protect  the  people  which  Thy  right  hand 
niade  into  a  nation  and  delivered  from  Egypt.  The  son  of  man  describes 
it  as  affected  by  human  frailty  and  therefore  needing  divine  help.  The 
personification  of  Israel  as  Jehovah's  son  underlies  the  language  of  the 
verse.  Possibly  there  is  an  allusion  to  B  enj am  in  =  '  ?,on  of  the  right 
hand.' 

18.  So  shall  we  not  go  back  from  thee  (R.V.),  bound  to  Thee  by  a 
fresh  tie  of  allegiance,  quicken  iis]  The  restoration  of  our 
national  life  (Hos.  vi.  2)  will  evoke  a  fresh  response  of  grateful  praise. 

19.  O  Lord  God  of  Jiosts]  There  is  a  climax  in  the  use  of  divine 
names  in  the  refrains  (3,  7,  19).  The  Psalmist  clenches  his  appeal  by 
the  use  of  the  covenant  name  Jehovah,  along  with  the  title  expressive  of 
universal  sovereignty,  God  of  hosts. 


PSALM    LXXXI.  489 


PSALM  LXXXI. 

The  beginning  of  each  month  was  marked  by  the  blowing  of  the 
silver  trumpets  (Num.  x.  10);  but  the  first  day  of  the  month  Ethanim 
or  Tisri  (Sept. — Oct.),  the  seventh  month  of  the  ecclesiastical  year  and 
the  first  of  the  civil  year,  was  kept  as  a  solemn  festival  and  was  called 
'the  Day  of  trumpet-blowing'  or  'the  Feast  of  trumpets'  (Num.  xxix. 
r ;  Lev.  xxiii,  24).  Upon  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  same  month,  at  the 
full  moon,  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  began  (Lev.  xxiii.  39).  To  this 
double  celebration  v.  3  plainly  alludes ;  and  we  find  that  from  ancient 
times  this  Psalm  has  been  the  New  Year's  Day  Psalm  of  the  Jewish 
Church,  and  that  by  an  apparently  unanimous  Jewish  tradition  it  is 
connected  with  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles.  It  is  unreasonable  to  disre- 
gard the  evidence  of  practice  and  tradition,  and  maintain  that  the  Psalm 
was  intended  for  the  Passover,  on  the  ground  of  the  reference  to  the 
Exodus  in  v.  5.  In  point  of  fact  its  contents  are  more  appropriate  to 
the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  than  to  the  Passover.  The  Feast  of  Taber- 
nacles was  the  most  joyous  of  all  the  feasts,  and  the  opening  verses  are 
a  call  to  a  jubilant  celebration.  The  Feast  of  Tabernacles  was  the  time 
appointed  for  the  septennial  recitation  of  the  Law  (Deut.  xxxi.  10); 
and  the  leading  thoughts  of  the  Psalm  are  that  allegiance  of  Israel  to 
Jehovah  alone  which  was  the  fundamental  principle  of  the  Law; 
Jehovah's  deliverance  of  Israel  from  Egypt,  which  was  the  ground  upon 
which  that  claim  rested;  and  Israel's  failure  in  its  duty  and  consequent 
loss  of  promised  blessing. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  three  divisions : 

i.  A  call  to  celebrate  the  festival  with  shout  and  song  and  blowing 
of  trumpets,  for  it  is  a  divine  ordinance  for  Israel  (i — 5). 

ii.  Throwing  himself  back  in  imagination  to  the  time  of  the  Exodus, 
the  Psalmist  hears  the  voice  of  God  proclaiming  the  decree  for  Israel's 
liberation,  and  the  fundamental  principle  of  the  covenant  made  at  Sinai, 
the  absolute  allegiance  of  Israel  to  Jehovah  as  their  God  (6 — 10). 

iii.  But  Israel  would  not  obey,  and  Jehovah  was  forced  to  leave  them 
to  experience  the  consequences  of  their  obstinate  self-will.  Yet  even 
now,  if  they  would  obey  His  commands,  He  would  subdue  their  enemies, 
and  satisfy  them  with  the  promised  blessings  of  plenty  (11 — 16). 

Some  commentators  regard  the  Psalm  as  a  combination  of  two  frag- 
ments, 1 — 5  a,b^  5  c — 16,  on  the  ground  of  the  want  of  connexion  be- 
tween 5  b  and  5  c,  the  dissimilarity  in  style  between  the  two  parts,  and 
the  unsuitability  of  the  latter  part  for  a  festival  hymn.  But  these  argu- 
ments are  not  convincing.  If  the  transition  in  v.  5  is  somewhat  abrupt, 
it  is  not  more  so  than  is  frequently  the  case;  that  the  Psalmist  should 
pass  from  a  summons  to  the  celebration  of  the  festival  to  a  consideration 
of  its  religious  significance  is  perfectly  natural;  and  a  review  of  Jehovah's 
relation  to  Israel  is  surely  not  unsuitable  for  a  festival  hymn,  in  view 
alike  of  the  general  commemorative  purpose  of  the  festival,  and  of  the 
particular  fact  that  it  was  the  occasion  for  the  septennial  recitation  of 
the  Law,  which  was  based  upon  that  relation.  That  rejoicing  should 
be  tempered  by  warning  is  fully  in  accord  with  the  prophetic  spirit  of 
the  Asaphic  Psalms.     Comp.  also  Ps.  xcv. 


490  PSALM   LXXXI.  1—3. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  Psalm  by  which  its  date  can  be  fixed  with 
certainty.  It  contains  several  allusions  to  Deut.  xxxii,  and  z/z/.  11,  12 
may  be  a  reminiscence  of  Jer.  vii.  24.  The  summons  to  the  festival 
implies  that  the  Temple  was  standing,  and  from  w.  14,  15  it  may  be 
inferred  that  the  nation  was  threatened  or  oppressed  by  foreign  enemies. 
Perhaps  it  may  belong  to  the  later  years  of  the  kingdom,  and  if  so, 
probably  to  the  reign  of  Josiah. 

It  is  the  special  Psalm  for  Thursday  as  well  as  for  New  Year's  Day 
according  to  the  ancient  Jewish  usage.  See  Introd.  p.  xxvii.  Pre- 
sumably the  title  in  the  LXX  once  contained  a  reference  to  this  usage, 
as  the  Old  Latin  Version  has  Qiiinta  Sabbat i\  but  it  has  disappeared 
from  all  but  one  or  two  MSS  of  the  LXX. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Gittith,  A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

81  Sing  aloud  unto  God  our  strength  ; 

Make  a  joyful  noise  unto  the  God  of  Jacob. 

2  Take  a  psalm,  and  bring  hither  the  timbrel, 
The  pleasant  harp  with  the  psaltery. 

3  Blow  up  the  trumpet  in  the  new  moon, 

In  the  time  appointed,  on  our  solemn  feast  day. 

On  the  title,  For  the  chief  Musician;  set  to  the  Gittith  (R.V.),  see 
Introd.  p.  XXV. 

1 — 3.  A  call  to  the  joyous  celebration  of  the  festival,  addressed  to 
the  whole  congi-egation  (z/.  i),  to  the  Levites  as  the  appointed  leaders 
of  the  Temple  music  {v.  2),  and  to  the  Priests,  whose  special  duty  it  was 
to  blow  the  trumpets  {v.  3).  See  Num.  x.  8,  10;  Josh.  vi.  ^^.\i  Chr. 
V.  i2fF.,  vii.  6;  Ezra  iii.  10. 

1.  God  our  strength^     Cp.  Ex.  xv.  2;  Ps.  xlvi.  r. 

2.  Take  a  psalm  &c.]  Or,  Raise  a  psalm  and  sound  the  timbrel. 
The  timbrel,  or  tabret,  was  a  tambourine  or  hand  drum ;  the  psaltery, 
like  the  harp,  a  stringed  instrument, 

3.  the  triunpet'\  Pleb.  shophdr,  the  horn,  as  distinguished  from  the 
metal  trumpet.  In  the  Pentateuch  the  use  of  the  shdphdr'is  only  pre- 
scribed in  connexion  with  the  year  of  Jubilee  (Lev,  xxv.  9),  but  accord- 
ing to  practice  it  was  used  for  the  New  Year  as  well. 

in  the  new  moo7i]  The  Targum  expressly  states  that  the  new  moon 
of  Tisri  is  meant  here,  and  there  is  no  sufficient  reason  for  setting  aside  this 
ancient  Jewish  tradition  and  supposing  that  the  new  moon  of  Nisan,  the 
first  month  of  the  ecclesiastical  year,  is  meant,  on  the  gi-ound  that  the 
contents  of  the  Psalm  shew  that  the  festival  at  the  full  moon  referred  to 
in  the  next  line  must  be  the  Passover. 

in  the  time  appointed  &c.]  Better,  at  the  full  moon,  for  the  day  of 
our  feast.  If  the  month  referred  to  is  Tisri,  our  feast  must  be  the 
Feast  of  Tabernacles,  which  began  at  the  full  moon  on  the  15th  of  that 
month.  It  was  often  called  simply  "the  feast"  (i  Kings  viii.  2,  &c.), 
and  was  regarded  as  the  most  joyous  of  all  the  feasts.     The  trumpet 


PSALM    LXXXI.  4—6.  491 

For  this  ivas  a  statute  for  Israel, 
And  a  law  of  the  God  of  Jacob. 

This  he  ordained  in  Joseph y^^-  a  testimony,  i 

When  he  went  out  through  the  land  of  Egypt: 
Where  I  heard  a  language  that  I  understood  not. 

I  removed  his  shoulder  from  the  burden :  i 

blowing  at  the  beginning  of  the  month  is  regarded  as  pointing  fonvard 
to  it,  and  it  was  repeated  on  the  day  itself,  in  accordance  with  the  law 
of  Num.  X.  10. 

4,  5.  The  reason  for  the  celebration  in  the  divine  appointment  of 
the  festival  as  a  memorial  of  God's  goodness  to  Israel. 

4.  For  it  is  a  statute  for  Israel, 

An  ordinance  of  the  God  of  Jacob.     (R.  V.) 
//  refers  to  the  feast.     The  title  God  of  Jacob  carries  our  thoughts 
back  beyond  the  Exodus  to  the  providential  dealings  of  Jehovah  with 
the  great  ancestor  of  the  nation  (Gen.  xlvi.  1  ff.). 

5.  He  appointed  it  in  Joseph  for  a  testimony  (R.V.):  to  bear 
continual  witness  to  His  care  of  Israel.  when  &c.]  Render, 
When  lie  (i.e.  God)  went  out  against  (or  over)  the  land  of  Egypt,  to 
execute  judgement  upon  the  Egyptians.     See  Ex.  xi.  4. 

where  /  heard  a  language  that  I  understood  no/}  The  poet  identifies 
himself  with  his  nation  and  speaks  in  the  name  of  Israel  of  old.  It 
was  an  aggravation  of  their  misery  that  they  were  toiling  for  masters 
whose  language  they  could  not  understand.  This  meaning  however, 
though  Ps.  cxiv.  I  offers  a  parallel,  is  hardly  adequate  here.  It  is  possible 
to  render,  The  speech  of  one  that  I  know  not  do  I  hear,  and  to  regard 
the  line  as  the  words  of  the  poet  himself,  introducing  the  divine  oracle 
which  follows.  He  suddenly  breaks  off,  hearing  a  supernatural  voice 
addressing  him.  Cp.  Job  iv.  16;  and  for  the  introduction  of  God  as  the 
speaker,  Ps.  Ix.  6;  Ixii.  11.  But  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  the  poet 
could  speak  of  God  as  one  ivhom  I  know  not:  the  phrase  must  surely 
mean  more  than  'strange,'  'unearthly':  and  it  is  preferable  to  render. 
The  speech  of  one  that  I  knew  not  did  I  hear.  The  Psalmist  speaks 
in  the  person  of  Israel  at  the  time  of  the  Exodus.  This  he  can  do, 
since  Israel  of  all  time  is  one  in  virtue  of  the  continuity  of  its  national 
life.  Israel  then  began  to  hear  Jehovah  (such  is  the  proper  force  of  the 
tense  in  the  original).  Whom  it  had  not  yet  learned  to  know  as  the  self- 
revealing  God  of  redemption,  speaking  to  it  in  the  wondrous  works  of 
the  deliverance  from  Egypt.  See  Ex.  iii.  13;  vi.  1  ff. ,  7.  The  substance 
of  the  words  which  Israel  heard  in  Egypt  is  given  in  the  next  verse, 
which  contains  God's  decree  for  Israel's  liberation  from  servitude : 

6.  I  have  removed  his  shoulder  from  the  burden : 
His  hands  shall  go  free  from  the  basket. 

The  term  'basket'  docs  not  occur  in  Exodus,  but  baskets  for  caiTying 
the  burdens  of  bricks  or  clay  so  often  referred  to  in  Exodus  (i.  11 ;  ii. 
1 1 ;  V.  4,  5 ;  vi.  6,  7)  are  frequently  represented  in  Egyptian  paintings. 


492  PSALM    LXXXI.  7—10. 

His  hands  were  delivered  from  the  pots. 

7  Thou  calledst  in  trouble,  and  I  delivered  thee ; 
I  answered  thee  in  the  secret  place  of  thunder: 
I  proved  thee  at  the  waters  of  Meribah.     Selah. 

8  Hear,  O  my  people,  and  I  will  testify  unto  thee : 
O  Israel,  if  thou  wilt  hearken  unto  me; 

9  There  shall  no  strange  god  be  in  thee; 
Neither  shalt  thou  worship  a?iy  strange  god. 

10  I  ai7i  the  Lord  thy  God, 

Fj'om  the  pots  (A.V.),  x.^.from  making  the  pots  (P.B.V.),  is  an  impro- 
bable explanation. 

The  P.B.V.  in  z/.  5,  "when  he  came  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt  and 
had  heard  a  strange  language,"  is  derived  through  the  Vulg.  from  the 
LXX.  Similarly  Jerome ;  but  it  is  probably  only  a  conjectural  render- 
ing of  a  difficult  passage,  and  does  not  represent  a  different  text. 

7.  From  the  divine  decree  for  Israel's  liberation  the  transition  to  an 
address  to  Israel  is  easy.  Israel  of  the  present  is  regarded  as  one  with 
Israel  of  the  past. 

Thoti  calledst  &c.]  For  the  phrase  cp.  1.  15;  and  for  the  fact,  Ex. 
ii.  2  3ff. 

in  the  secret  place  0/  thunder]  In  the  covert  of  the  thunder-cloud  God 
conceals  and  reveals  Himself  (xviii.  ri,  13;  Ixxvii.  17  ff.)-  At  the 
passage  of  the  Red  Sea,  when  Israel  was  sore  afraid  and  cried  out  unto 
Jehovah,  He  "looked  forth  upon  the  host  of  the  Egyptians  through  the 
pillar  of  fire  and  of  cloud,  and  discomfited  the  host  of  the  Egyptians  " 
(Ex.  xiv.  10,  24). 

I  proved  thee  at  the  tvaters  of  MeribaK\  Testing  thy  faith  and  obedi- 
ence. The  name  Meribah  or  Strife  was  a  reminder  of  repeated  unbelief 
and  ingratitude  (Ex.  xvii.  7;  Num.  xx.13;  Ps.  Ixxviii.  20);  of  the  long 
'controversy'  (Mic.  vi.  2)  of  a  long-suffering  God  with  an  obstinate 
people.  It  is  possible  that  the  reference  to  this  miracle  in  particular 
was  suggested  by  the  libations  of  water  at  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles, 
which  commemorated  the  supply  of  water  in  the  wilderness. 

8 — 10.  Israel's  duty  of  allegiance  to  Jehovah  alone ;  the  fundamental 
principle  of  the  covenant.  Israel  in  the  wilderness  is  primarily  ad- 
dressed, but  Israel  of  every  age  is  included. 

8.  Hear . .  .and  I  ivill  testify  unto  thee']  Or,  I  will  protest  unto  thee, 
of  solemn  warning  and  exhortation.  Cp.  1.  7 ;  and  numerous  passages 
in  Deuteronomy,  e.g.  vi.  4;  v.  i,  6;  iv.  26;  xxx.  19:  xxxi.  28. 

if  thou  wilt  hearken  «&c.]  Better  as  R.V.,  if  thou  wouldest  hearken 
unto  me  ! 

9.  no  strange  god]     Cp.  xliv.  20;  Deut.  xxxii.  16. 

any  strange  god]  Any  alien  god.  Cp.  Deut.  xxxii.  12.  Absolute 
fidelity  to  Jehovah  was  the  fundamental  principle  of  the  Sinaitic 
covenant,  embodied  in  the  first  'word'  of  the  Decalogue. 


PSALM    LXXXI.  11—15.  493 

Which  brought  thee  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt: 

Open  thy  mouth  wide,  and  I  will  fill  it. 

But  my  people  would  not  hearken  to  my  voice;  n 

And  Israel  would  none  of  me. 

So  I  gave  them  up  unto  their  own  heart's  lust:  12 

And  they  walked  in  their  own  counsels. 

0  that  my  people  had  hearkened  unto  me,  13 
And  Israel  had  walked  in  my  ways  ! 

1  should  soon  have  subdued  their  enemies,  14 
And  turned  my  hand  against  their  adversaries. 

The  haters  of  the  Lord  should  have  submitted  themselves  15 

unto  him : 
But  their  time  should  have  endured  for  ever. 

10.  I  am  Jehovah  thy  God, 

Which  brought  thee  up  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt. 

Cp.  Ex.  XX.  2  ff. ;  Deut.  xx.  i.  To  Jehovah  Israel  owed  its  existence. 
The  fact  that  He  redeemed  it  from  Egypt  constituted  His  claim  upon 
its  allegiance.     Cp.  i  John  iv.  10. 

open  «Sdc.]  God  is  ready  liberally  to  satisfy  all  their  needs.  Cp. 
Matt.  vii.  7,  II. 

11,  12.     Israel's  disobedience  and  its  punishment. 

11.  But  my  people  hearkened  not  to  my  voice.  For  my  people... 
Israel  in  a  similar  complaint  see  Is.  i.  3. 

12.  So  I  let  them  go  after  the  stubbornness  of  their  heart, 
That  they  might  walk  in  their  own  counsels.     (R.V.). 

God  punishes  men  by  leaving  them  to  their  own  self-willed  courses 
of  action,  which  prove  their  ruin.  Cp.  Job  viii.  4 ;  Prov.  i.  30  fF. ; 
Rom.  i.  24  ff.;  2  Thess.  ii.  10  ff.  'Stubbornness'  is  a  favourite  word 
with  Jeremiah  (vii.  24,  &c.),  occurring  elsewhere  only  in  Deut.  xxix.  19. 

Most  editions  both  of  tlie  Bible  and  of  the  Prayer  Book  wrongly  print 
hearts'  for  heart's.  See  Scrivener,  AiUh.  Ed.  of  Engl.  Bible,  p.  152, 
and  Earky  Psalter  of  y^t^i^,  p.  313. 

13—16.  Yet  God's  mercy  is  inexhaustible.  Even  now  if  Israel 
would  obey  Him,  He  would  subdue  their  enemies,  and  bless  them 
abundantly.     Cp.  Is.  xlviii.  17 — 19. 

13.  0  that  my  people  were  hearkening  unto  me, 
That  Israel  would  walk  in  my  ways ! 

14.  I  should  soon  subdue  their  enemies. 

And  turn  my  hand  against  their  adversaries. 
In  myways  is  the  contrast  to  in  their  own  counsels.    (Jer.  vii.  23,  24.) 
The  hand  which  is  now  turned  against  Israel  in  chastisement  would 
be  turned  against  their  enemies. 

15.  The  haters  of  Jehovah  should  come  cringing  unto  Mm, 
So  that  their  time  should  be  for  ever. 


494  PSALM   LXXXI.  i6. 

i6  He  should  have  fed  them  also  with  the  finest  of  the  wheat: 
And  with  honey  out  of  the  rock  should  I  have  satisfied  thee. 

Unto  him  may  mean  to  yehovah  or  to  Israel-,  but  apparently  the  latter. 
Jehovah's  enemies  are  the  enemies  of  His  people,  and  He  would  force 
them  to  pay  homage,  however  reluctantly  (Ixvi.  3  note),  to  Israel;  that 
so  Israel's  time  of  prosperity  might  know  no  end,  the  nation's  life  never 
fail. 

16.     Tense  and  person  both  present  serious  difficulties,  and  it  seems 
necessary  to  emend  the  text  of  the  first  line,  and  read : 
Yea,  I  would  feed  him  with  the  fat  of  wheat, 
And  with  honey  out  of  the  rock  would  I  satisfy  thee. 

^m  =  Israel.  The  transition  to  direct  address  in  /.  1  ('thee')  seems 
harsh,  but  is  not  uncommon  in  Heb.  The  third  person  'them'  or 
'him'  in  LXX,  Jer.,  Syr.,  is  probably  only  a  correction  to  avoid  it. 
We  have  here  another  reminiscence  of  Deut.  xxxii,  vv.  13,  14.  Cp. 
cxlvii.  14.  To  an  obedient  people  God  would  fulfil  His  ancient  pro- 
mises of  blessing.     Cp.  Ex.  iii.  8;  Deut.  vii.  12,  13;  viii.  6  iT. 


PSALM   LXXXIL 

This  Psalm  is  a  vision  of  judgement.  It  sets  forth,  in  a  highly 
poetical  and  imaginative  form,  the  responsibility  of  earthly  judges  to 
the  Supreme  Judge,  Whose  representatives  they  are,  and  from  Whom 
they  derive  their  authority.  The  dramatic  form,  the  representation  of 
God  as  the  Judge,  and  the  introduction  of  God  Himself  as  the  speaker, 
are  characteristics  common  to  several  of  the  Asaphic  Psalms.  See 
Pss.  1,  Ixxv,  Ixxxi. 

God  takes  His  stand  as  Judge  in  a  solemn  assembly :  Plis  delegates 
appear  before  His  tribunal  (i). 

SteiTily  He  upbraids  them  for  their  injustice  and  partiality,  and  bids 
them  remember  what  the  duties  of  their  office  are  (2 — 4). 

But  they  are  incapable  of  reformation,  and  the  foundations  of  society 
are  being  shaken  by  their  misconduct.  Though  they  bear  the  lofty 
title  of  gods,  they  shall  share  the  common  fate  of  men  (5 — 7). 

The  Psalmist  concludes  with  a  prayer  that  God  will  Himself  assume 
the  government  of  the  world  (8). 

In  Ps.  1  the  nation  of  Israel  is  assembled  fi^r  judgement :  here  the 
authorities  of  the  nation  who  have  abused  their  trust  are  put  upon  their 
trial.  The  evil  complained  of  has  been  common  in  Oriental  countries 
in  all  ages,  and  ancient  Israel  was  no  exception.  Exhortations  to  main- 
tain the  purity  of  justice  are  common  in  the  Law:  complaints  of  its 
maladministration  are  frequent  in  the  Prophets.  One  passage  in  par- 
ticular— Is.  iii.  13  ff. — presents  a  close  parallel.  "Jehovah  standeth  up 
to  plead,  and  standeth  to  judge  the  peoples.  Jehovah  will  enter  into 
judgement  with  the  elders  of  His  people,  and  the  princes  thereof:  for  ye 
— ye  have  devoured  the  vineyard:  the  spoil  of  the  afflicted  is  in  your 


PSALM   LXXXII.  495 

houses :  what  mean  ye  that  ye  crush  my  people,  and  grind  the  face  of 
the  afflicted  ?  saith  the  Lord,  Jehovah  of  hosts." 

The  authorities  of  the  nation  are  called  gods  {vv.  i,  6)  as  being  the 
representatives  of  God,  sons  of  the  Most  High  {v.  6)  as  exercising  a 
pov/er  delegated  by  the  supreme  Ruler  of  the  world.  The  judgement 
which  they  give  is  God's  (Deut.  i.  17).  Even  if  it  be  held  that  Elohim 
should  be  rendered  C^^  rather  than  the  judges  in  Ex.  xxi.  6;  xxii.  8,  9, 
28;  I  Sam.  ii.  25,  it  is  clear  that  the  administration  of  justice  at  the 
sanctuary  by  those  who  were  regarded  as  the  representatives  of  God  is 
meant  in  these  passages,  and  the  direct  application  of  the  title  Elohim 
to  judges  in  the  Psalm  is  fully  intelligible.  This  interpretation  is  the 
oldest,  for  it  is  not  only  given  by  the  Targum,  but  was  that  generally 
current  in  our  Lord's  time,  as  is  clear  from  His  use  of  the  passage  in 
John  X.  34  ff.,  and  it  is  the  simplest  and  most  natural.  Two  other 
explanations  however  require  notice. 

(i)  Some  commentators  think  that  the  Psalm  refers  to  foreign  rulers, 
by  whom  the  nation  of  Israel  was  being  oppressed.  The  prayer  of  v.  8, 
it  is  said,  proves  that  the  reference  cannot  be  merely  to  the  injustice  of 
Israelite  judges,  for  God  is  entreated  to  arise  and  judge  the  world.  But 
the  judgement  of  Israel  is  often  regarded  as  part  of  a  universal  judge- 
ment. Sec  Ps.  vii.  6  ff. :  and  particularly  the  passage  of  Isaiah  already 
referred  to,  where  Jehovah  is  standing  up  to  judge  the  peoples,  when  He 
summons  the  elders  and  princes  of  Israel  to  account  for  oppressing  their 
poor  countrymen.  The  language  of  vv.  2 — 4  tallies  exactly  with  the 
language  used  elsewhere  of  the  oppression  of  poor  and  defenceless 
Israelites  by  the  rich  and  powerful :  there  is  not  the  slightest  hint  that 
the  terms  '  poor '  and  '  afflicted '  are  transferfed  to  Israel  as  a  nation. 
And  lastly,  though  heathen  princes  claimed  divine  titles  (Ezek.  xxviii. 
2,  6;  Is.  xiv.  14)  it  is  improbable  that  the  Psalmist  would  acknowledge 
their  right  to  them  as  he  does. 

(ii)  Others  think  that  by  Elohim  angels  are  meant,  and  hold  that 
the  Psalm  refers  generally  to  God's  judgement  upon  unjust  judges  in 
heaven  and  earth ;  or  more  particularly  to  the  judgement  of  the  patron- 
angels  of  the  nations.  This  view,  proposed  by  Bleek,  is  adopted  by 
Cheyne,  who  says,  * '  The  charge  brought  against  these  patron-angels  of 
the  nations  (see  Dan.  x,  xii)  is  that  they  have  (in  the  persons  of  their 
human  subordinates)  permitted  such  gross  violence  and  injustice,  that 
the  moral  bases  of  the  earth  are  shaken."  If  this  view  is  to  be  adopted, 
it  is  certainly  the  case  that  "  no  Psalm  makes  a  stronger  demand 
than  this  on  the  historic  imagination  of  the  interpreter."  But  (i)  as  has 
already  been  remarked  in  the  note  on  Iviii.  i  with  reference  to  a  similar 
interpretation  of  that  Psalm,  there  is  nothing  in  the  context  to  justify  the 
importation  of  an  idea  which  belongs  to  the  later  development  of  Jewish 
theology.  (2)  The  idea  that  angels  can  be  punished  with  death  is 
startling,  and  foreign  to  the  O.T,  view  of  angelic  nature.  (3)  There  is 
not  the  slightest  hint  that  vv.  2 — 4  refer  to  anything  but  the  oppression 
of  men  by  men.  The  language,  as  has  been  pointed  out  above,  closely 
resembles  that  of  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  and  there  is  no  reason  for 
taking  it  in  a  non-natural  sense. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  Psalm  to  fix  its  date.     The  evils  complained 


496  PSALM    LXXXII.   1—3. 

of  were  constantly  recurring,   especially  of  course   when   the   central 
government  was  weak. 

This  Psalm  is  the  Psalm  for  the  third  day  of  the  week  in  the  ancient 
Jewish  liturgy.     See  hitrod.  p.  xxvii. 


A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

82  God  standeth  in  the  congregation  of  the  mighty; 
He  judgeth  among  thej^od^ 

2  How  long  will  ye  judge  unjustly, 

And  acce|)t  the  persons  of  the  wicked?     Selah. 

3  Defend  the  poor  and  fatherless: 

Do  justice  to  the  afflicted  and  needy. 

1.  A  vision  of  God  as  the  Judge  of  judges. 

God'\  Originally  no  doubt  Jehovah,  for  which  the  Elohistic  editor 
has  substituted  Elohhn.  standelh']   Or,  takdh  his  stand:  solemnly 

takes  His  place  as  president,     Cp.  Is.  iii.  13  a;  Am.  vii.  7;  ix.  r. 

in  the  congregation  of  the  niighty\  I.e. ,  as  P.  B.  V.,  of  princes.  But  we 
must  rather  render,  in  the  assembly  of  God  {El\  i.e.,  not  the  congrega- 
tion of  Israel,  though  this  is  called  the  congregation  of  Jehovah  (Num. 
xxvii.  17;  cp.  Ps.  Jxxiv,  2),  but  an  assembly  summoned  and  presided 
over  by  God  in  His  capacity  of  Almighty  Ruler. 

he  judgeth  &c.]  In  the  midst  of  gods  {Elohim)  will  he  judge.  Ac- 
cording to  the  view  adopted  above,  the  judges  and  authorities  of  Israel 
are  meant  hy  gods.  It  might  indeed  be  supposed  that  the  poet  intended 
to  represent  God  as  holding  His  court  surrounded  by  angels,  like  an 
earthly  king  in  the  midst  of  his  courtiers  (cp.  i  Kings  xxii.  19;  Job  i, 
ii) ;  and  so  probably  the  Syriac  translator  understood  the  verse:  "God 
standeth  in  the  assembly  of  the  angels,  and  in  the  midst  of  the  angels 
will  He  judge."  But  Elohim  can  hardly  have  a  different  meaning  from 
that  which  it  has  in  v.  6,  where  it  clearly  refers  to  the  judges  w^ho  are 
put  on  their  trial;  and  the  address  in  v.  1  would  be  unintelligible  if 
the  persons  addressed  had  not  already  been  mentioned. 

2 — 4.  God  speaks,  arraigning  the  judges  for  injustice  and  partiality, 
and  bidding  them  perform  their  duties  faithfully. 

2.  accept  the  persons']  Or,  as  R.V.,  respect  the  persons,  shewing 
partiality  to  the  rich  and  powerful.  Strict  impartiality  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  justice  is  frequently  enjoined  in  the  Law.  Favouring  the  poor 
is  condemned  as  well  as  favouring  the  rich.  See  Ex.  xxiii.  2,  3,  6 — 8  ; 
Lev.  xix.  15,  35;  Deut.  i.  17;  xvi.  i8ff. :  cp.  Prov.  xviii.  5;  xxiv.  23. 
The  music  strikes  up  to  emphasise  the  question,  and  as  it  were  give 
time  for  an  answer.  But  the  judges  have  no  defence,  and  God  proceeds 
to  remind  them  of  their  duty. 

3.  Judge  the  weak  and  fatherless : 

Do  justice  to  the  afflicted  and  destitute. 


PSALM    LXXXIT.  4—7.  497 

Deliver  the  poor  and  needy:  < 

Rid  //lem  out  of  the  hand  of  the  wicked. 

They  know  not,  neither  will  they  understand;  i 

They  walk  on  in  darkness: 

All  the  foundations  of  the  earth  are  out  of  course. 

I  have  said,  Ye  «r^  gods;  ^ 

And  all  of  you  are  children  of  the  most  High. 

But  ye  shall  die  like  men,  J 

4.  Rescue  the  weak  and  needy: 

Deliver  them  out  of  the  hand  of  the  wicked. 
Cp.  Is.  i.  17;  X.  I,  2.     Human  authorities  are  God's  representatives 
to  see  that  the  weak  and  friendless  have  justice  done  them.     See  Ex. 
xxii.  22  ff. ;  Deut.  x.  17,  18;  Ps.  x.  14,  18;  Mai.  iii.  5:  and  comp.  the 
portrait  of  the  ideal  ruler  in  Ps.  Ixxii.  12  ff. ;  Is.  xi.  3,  4. 

5 — 7.  The  character  of  these  judges  described  and  their  sentence 
pronounced. 

5.  God  is  still  the  speaker;  but  instead  of  addressing  the  culprits, 
He  describes  their  incorrigible  blindness  and  obstinacy,  before  He  pro- 
nounces sentence  on  them.  They  have  no  knowledge,  neither  will 
they  get  understanding,  though  these  are  the  needful  qualifications 
for  a  judge  { i  Kings  iii.  9  ff. ) :  they  walk  on  to  and  fro  in  darkness, 
complacently  self-satisfied  with  their  ignorance  and  moral  darkness: 
and  consequently  all  the  foundations  of  the  earth  are  shaken,  the 
principles  upon  which  the  moral  order  of  the  world  is  based  are  im- 
perilled. Cp.  xi.  3,  Ixxv.  3,  for  the  metaphor;  and  generally,  Prov.  ii. 
10—15. 

6.  I  said,  Ye  are  gods, 

And  all  of  you  sons  of  the  Most  High  (R.V.). 

I  is  emphatic.  It  is  by  God's  appointment  that  they  have  been  in- 
vested with  divine  authority  to  execute  judgement  in  His  name.  Cp.  the 
language  used  of  the  king,  ii.  7 ;  Ixxxix.  27. 

To  the  words  of  this  verse  our  Lord  appealed  (John  x.  34  ff.),  when 
the  Jews  accused  Him  of  blasphemy  because  He  claimed  to  be  one  with 
God.  In  virtue  of  their  call  to  a  sacred  ofifice  as  representatives  of  God 
the  judges  of  old  time  were  called  gods  and  sons  of  the  Most  High,  and 
this  in  spite  of  their  unworthiness.  Was  it  then  blasphemy,  He  asked, 
for  one  who  had  received  a  special  consecration  and  commission  as 
God's  representative,  one  whose  life  and  work  bore  witness  to  that  con- 
secration, to  call  Himself  the  Son  of  God  ? 

On  the  surface  this  may  seem  to  be  a  verbal  argument  such  as  the 
Jews  themselves  would  have  used ;  but  the  real  significance  of  the  quo- 
tation lies  deeper.  The  fact  that  it  was  possible  for  men  so  to  represent 
God  as  to  be  called  gods  or  divine  was  a  foreshadowing  of  the  Incar- 
nation. "There  lay  already  in  the  Law  the  germ  of  the  truth  which 
Christ  announced,  the  union  of  God  and  man."     Bp  Westcott. 

7.  Btii]     R. v.,  Nevertheless.     Though  they  bear  this  high  title,  it 

PSALMS  32 


498  PSALM    LXXXII.  8. 

And  fall  like  one  of  the  princes. 
Arise,  O  God,  judge  the  earth: 
For  thou  shalt  inherit  all  nations. 

will  not  exempt  them  from  punishment.  They  shall  die  like  common 
men,  and  fall  like  any  other  princes  whose  ruin  is  recorded  in  history 
(Hos.  vii.  7).  Or  is  there  an  allusion  to  the  princes  mentioned  in 
Ixxxiii.  9  fif.  ? 

8.  The  Psalmist  has  watched  the  trial  and  condemnation  of  Israel's 
judges ;  and  the  sight  stirs  him  to  appeal  to  God  Himself  to  assume  the 
office  of  Judge  not  only  for  Israel  but  for  all  the  world.  If  Israel's 
judges  have  failed  so  lamentably  in  their  duty  towards  their  own  country- 
men, how  can  Israel  rule  the  world,  though  all  the  nations  have  been 
promised  to  its  kings  for  their  inheritance  (ii.  8)  ?  Nay,  God  Himself — 
Thou  is  emphatic — must  take  possession  of  all  the  nations  as  their 
Sovereign  and  their  Judge. 

PSALM  LXXXIIL 

The  vision  of  the  judgement  of  unjust  rulers  who  oppress  God's 
people  within  the  nation  is  followed  by  a  prayer  for  the  judgement  of 
the  nations  which  threaten  to  destroy  God's  people  as  a  nation  from 
without.  The  nations  around  are  represented  as  joining  in  an  unhal- 
lowed confederacy  against  Israel.  Their  aim  is  nothing  less  than  to 
frustrate  the  counsel  of  God,  and  blot  the  very  name  of  Israel  out  of 
remembrance.  The  ancient  enemies  of  Israel,  the  Moabites  and  Am- 
monites, are  the  leaders  of  the  coalition;  vnih  them  are  urvited  the 
Edomites,  Amalekites,  and  AraV)ian  tribes  from  the  desert:  Philistia, 
Tyre,  and  even  Assjn-ia,  appear  as  their  auxiliaries. 

In  spite  of  the  apparent  definiteness  of  the  historical  circumstances, 
it  is  impossible  to  fix  the  occasion  of  the  Psalm  with  any  certainty. 

(i)  Many  commentators  connect  it  with  the  events  related  in  i  Mace.  v. 
Provoked  by  the  success  of  Judas  in  restoring  the  Temple,  "the  na- 
tions round  about"...  "took  counsel  to  destroy  the  generation  of  Jacob 
that  was  among  them,  and  thereupon  they  began  to  slay  and  destroy 
the  people."  Judas  accordingly  turned  his  arms  against  them,  and  of 
the  tribes  and  nations  named  in  the  Psalm,  the  Edomites,  Ammonites, 
Philistines,  and  Tyrians  are  mentioned  among  the  enemies  whom  he 
defeated.  The  Ishmaelites  and  perhaps  Gebal  and  the  Hagarenes  might 
be  included  among  the  Arabians  {v.  39);  but  the  Moabites  no  longer 
existed  as  an  independent  nation,  and  the  Amalekites  had  long  been 
destroyed  (i  Chr.  iv.  42  f.).  It  is  assumed  that  the  names  of  ancient 
enemies  are  vaguely  used  for  the  tribes  inhabiting  the  territories  which 
formerly  belonged  to  them,  or  are  introduced  to  heighten  the  effect. 
Assyria  is  supposed  to  mean  Syria,  or  possibly  the  Samaritans.  But 
(i)  the  narrative  of  i  Mace,  does  not  speak,  as  the  Psalm  does,  of  a 
confederacy.  {2)  The  prominence  of  "the  children  of  Lot"  in  the  Psalm 
does  not  suit  a  time  when  Moab  had  ceased  to  exist.     (3)  While  it  is 


PSALM    LXXXIII.  499 


possible  that  Asshur  might  mean  Syria,  it  is  hardly  possible  that  the 
most  bitter  enemies  of  the  Jews  could  be  mentioned  merely  as  the 
auxiliaries  of  less  important  nations. 

(ii)  Other  commentators  think  that  the  Psalm  refers  to  the  coalition 
against  Jehoshaphat  described  in  2  Chron.  xx.  Upon  that  occasion  the 
Moabites  and  Ammonites  took  the  leading  part :  they  were  joined  by 
Arabians^  and  Edomites,  and  the  combined  forces  made  their  rendez- 
vous in  Edom^  before  invading  Judah.  The  aim  of  the  invaders  (2  Chr. 
XX.  ii)  corresponds  to  that  described  in  the  Psalm,  and  the  result  of 
the  victory  {v.  -29)  is  the  confession  of  Jehovah's  power  for  which  the 
Psalmist  prays ;  while  the  prominent  part  taken  by  the  Asaphite  Levite 
Jahaziel  gives  a  link  of  connexion  with  an  Asaphite  Psalm.  But  of  the 
nations  named  in  the  Psalm  the  Ishmaelites  and  Hagarenes,  Gebal  and 
Amalek,  Philistia,  Tyre,  and  Assyria,  are  not  mentioned  in  Chronicles. 
Even  if  we  could  suppose  that  the  Ishmaelites,  Hagarenes  and  Gebal 
correspond  to  the  Meunites,  and  that  Amalek  is  included  in  Edom 
(Gen.  xxxvi.  12),  there  is  no  hint  that  the  coalition  against  Jehoshaphat 
was  supported  by  the  Philistines  and  Phoenicians,  though  we  learn 
from  Amos  i.  6,  9,  that  they  were  in  alliance  with  Edom  against  Judah 
at  an  early  date ;  while  the  mention  of  Assyria  at  this  period,  even  as  an 
auxiliary,  is  isolated  and  perplexing. 

(iii)  Others  again  refer  the  Psalm  to  the  Persian  period,  and  connect 
it  with  the  opposition  to  the  rebuilding  of  the  city  described  in  Nehemiah 
iv.  iff.,  7ff.,  where  Arabians,  Ammonites,  and  Ashdodites  are  men- 
tioned among  the  enemies  of  Judah.  In  this  case  Asshur  must  stand  for 
Persia,  as  in  Ezra  vi.  22.  Robertson  Smith  (C>/^  Tesf.  in  Jewish  Ch. 
ed.  2,  p.  439)  refers  it  to  the  time  of  Artaxerxes  Ochus,  c.  350  B.C.,  or 
later.  But  the  circumstances  of  the  first  occasion  present  no  really  close 
correspondence  to  the  situation  described  in  the  Psalm;  and  of  the 
details  of  the  time  of  Ochus  we  are  wholly  ignorant. 

In  fact  history  records  no  one  single  occasion  upon  which  the  nations 
and  tribes  mentioned  in  the  Psalm  were  united  in  a  confederacy  against 
Israel.  On  the  whole,  the  invasion  recorded  in  2  Chron.  xx  offers  the 
closest  parallel  and  the  best  illustration,  and  the  Psalm  may  have  been 
written  with  reference  to  it.  It  is  possible  that  nations  which  did  not 
actually  join  the  confederacy  may  have  threatened  to  do  so;  or  enemies 
of  Israel,  actual  and  possible,  past  and  present,  are  enumerated  in  order 
to  heighten  the  effect,  and  forcibly  represent  the  formidable  nature  of  the 
danger.  Poetry  is  not  history,  and  as  Bishop  Perowne  observes, 
"divine  inspiration  does  not  change  the  laws  of  the  imagination,  though 
it  may  control  them  for  certain  ends." 

It  is  of  course  possible  that  the  Psalm  refers  to  some  episode  in 
Jewish  history  of  which  no  record  has  been  preserved ;  nor  must  the 
possibility  be  excluded  that  the  Psalm  is  not  historical  but,  so  to  speak, 
ideal.     A  poet,  pondering  on  such  a  passage  as  Micah  iv.  11 — 13,  at 

1  For  the  corrupt  reading  of  the  Mass.  Text  in  v.  i  some  0/  the  Ammonites:  we 
should  probably  read  with  the  LXX  some  of  the  Mcunlm  (i  Chr.  iv.  41 ;  2  Chr. 
xxvi.  7).  Josephus  {Ant.  ix.  i,  2)  says  that  the  Moabites  and  Ammonites  took  with 
them  a  great  body  of  Arabians. 

*  For  Arafn  (Syria)  in  v,  2  Edom  must  certainly  be  re.id. 


32 2 


500  PSALM   LXXXITI.  1—3. 


a  time  when  neighbouring  nations  were  menacing  Judah,  might  expand 
that  prophecy  in  a  concrete  form  into  the  prayer  of  this  Psalm,  that, 
though  enemies  from  every  side  should  conspire  to  destroy  Israel, 
Jehovah  would  frustrate  their  schemes,  and  make  their  malice  an 
occasion  for  the  exhibition  of  His  own  supremacy. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  two  main  divisions. 

i.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  God  will  not  remain  an  inert  and  indif- 
ferent spectator,  while  enemies  close  in  upon  His  people  from  every 
side  with  intent  to  destroy  them  utterly  (i — 8). 

ii.  May  He  discomfit  them  as  He  discomfited  the  Midianites  and 
Canaanites  of  old,  till  they  yield  Him  homage;  or  if  they  will  not 
submit,  may  He  disperse  and  destroy  them  till  they  are  forced  to  ac- 
knowledge His  supremacy  (9 — 18). 


A  Song  or  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

83  Keep  not  thou  silence,  O  God : 

Hold  not  thy  peace,  and  be  not  still,  O  God. 

3  For  lo,  thine  enemies  make  a  tumult: 
And  they  that  hate  thee  have  lift  up  the  head. 

3  They  have  taken  crafty  counsel  against  thy  people, 
And  consulted  against  thy^  hidden  ones. 

1 — 4.  An  urgent  prayer  that  God  will  come  to  the  rescue  of  His 
people,  whom  their  enemies  are  conspiring  to  annihilate. 

1.  Keep  not  &c.]  0  God  [Elohlm),  keep  not  still,  lit.  let  there  be  no 
rest  to  thee.  hold  not  thy  peace']  Or,  be  not  silent.  Cp.  xxviii.  i ; 
XXXV.   22;  xxxix.  12. 

be  not  still]  Neitlier  take  thou  rest,  0  God  [El).  For  the  phrases 
of  this  verse  cp.  Is.  Ixii.  i,  6,  7.  God  seems  to  be  indifferent  to  the 
danger  of  His  people :  their  enemies  are  mustering  unrebuked :  but  He 
has  only  to  speak  the  word,  and  their  schemes  will  be  utterly  frustrated 
(Ixxvi.  6ff.). 

2.  make  a  tumult]  A  word  denoting  the  uproar  and  tumult  of  a 
throng  of  people :  the  substantive  for  multitude,  frequently  used  of  a 
great  army,  is  derived  from  it:  cp.  xlvi.  3,  6;  Is.  xvii.  12;  xxix.  5, 
7,  8 ;  2  Chr.  XX.  2,  12,  15,  24. 

thine  enernies. .  .they  that  hate  thee]  For  Israel's  enemies  are  Jehovah's 
enemies :  their  plot  to  destroy  His  people  is  a  plot  to  frustrate  the 
purposes  and  put  an  end  to  the  worship  of  Jehovah.  Cp.  against  thee, 
V.  5;  and  Judg.  v.  31. 

3.  They  have  taken... and  constdted]  They  are  taking... and  con- 
sulting together.  Jehovah's  hidden  ones  are  His  people  whom  He 
conceals  in  His  pavilion  in  the  day  of  trouble  (xxviL  5;  xxxi.  20),  those 
to  whom  He  has  given  an  asyliun  from  their  enemies.  The  later  Greek 
Versions  (Aq.  Symm.  Theod.)  and  Jerome  read  the  singular,  thy  secret 
place,  i.e.  the  temple,  cp.  Ezek.  vii.  22. 


PSALM   LXXXIII.  4—8.  501 

They  have  said,  Come,  and  let  us  cut  them  off  from  being  a  4 

nation; 
That  the  name  of  Israel  may  be  no  more  in  remembrance. 
For  they  have  consulted  together  with  one  consent ;  5 

They  are  confederate  against  thee : 

The  tabernacles  of  Edom,  and  the  Ishmaelites  \  6 

Of  Moab,  and  the  Hagarenes; 

Gebal,  and  Ammon,  and  Amalek;  7 

The  PhiUstines  with  the  inhabitants  of  Tyre; 
Assur  also  is  joined  with  them:  8 

4.  from  being  a  nation']  Their  aim  is  to  obliterate  the  name  of 
Israel  from  the  map  of  the  world.  For  the  phrase  op.  Jer.  xlviii.  2 ; 
and  see  Ixxiv.  8;  i  Mace.  v.  2.  that  the  name  &c.]  More  accurately, 
and  so  the  name  of  Israel  shall  be  remembered  no  more. 

5.  they  are  confederate  against  thee]  Lit.,  against  thee  do  they 
make  a  covenant.     Cp.  v.  2. 

6 — 8.  An  enumeration  of  the  confederate  peoples.  From  the  south- 
east come  the  Edomites,  who  inhabited  the  mountainous  region  be- 
tween the  Dead  Sea  and  the  Gulf  of  Akaba,  and  the  Ishmaelites,  who 
roamed  over  the  deserts  from  the  borders  of  Egypt  to  the  north-west 
shore  of  the  Persian  Gulf  (Gen.  xxv.  18) :  from  the  east  of  the  Dead 
Sea  come  the  Moabites,  and  from  the  north-east  the  Hagarenes  or 
Hagrites  who  lived  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Hauran,  east  of  Gilead 
(i  Chr.  V.  10,  19,  to); — they  are  mentioned  in  the  inscriptions  of 
Sennacherib  along  with  the  Nabatheans.  Gebal  is  not  the  Gebal  of 
Ezekiel  xxvii.  9  to  the  north  of  Tyre  (Byblus),  but  the  northern  part  of 
the  mountains  of  Edom,  southward  of  the  Dead  Sea,  a  district  known 
to  Pliny  as  Gebalene.  The  Ammonites,  ancient  and  bitter  foes  of 
Israel,  come  from  their  home  beyond  the  Jordan,  the  Amalekites  from 
the  southern  deserts  between  the  Arabah  and  the  Mediterranean.  The 
maritime  states  of  the  Philistines  on  the  west  and  Tyre  on  the  north 
have  joined  them,  and  even  the  remote  Assyria  sends  a  contingent  to 
support  the  confederacy. 

6.  The  tabernacles  k-z.]  The  tents  of  Edom  and  the  Ishmaelites, 
i.e.  the  nomadic  Edomites  and  Ishmaelites  who  dwell  in  tents.  Cp. 
Hab.  iii.  7.  of  Moab]     Omit  of. 

7.  the  Philistines]  Lit.  Philistia.  In  Am.  i.  6ff.,  pfF,,  Philistia 
and  Tyre  are  censured  for  surrendering  Israelite  captives  to  Edom, 
which  in  its  turn  {ru.  11)  is  condemned  for  unbrotherly  hostility  to 
Israel. 

8.  Assur]  Assyria.  The  mention  of  Assyria  as  an  auxiliary  of 
Moab  and  Ammon  seems  to  imply  that  it  was  not  yet  a  leading  power, 
which  would  fall  in  with  an  early  date  for  the  Psalm.  Assyria  is  not 
known  to  have  come  in  contact  with  Israel  until  the  reign  of  Jehu,  who 
paid  tribute  to  Shalmaneser  II  in  B.C.  842.  Still  in  the  time  of 
Jehoshaphat  the  Assyrians  appear  to  have  made  conquests  in  Phoenicia 


502  PSALM   LXXXIIl.  9—12. 

They  have  holpen  the  children  of  Lot.     Selah. 

9  Do  unto  them  as  unto  the  Midianites ; 

As  to  Sisera,  as  to  Jabin,  at  the  brook  of  Kison: 
«o  Which  perished  at  En-dor: 

They  became  as  dung  for  the  earth. 
««  Make  their  nobles  Uke  Oreb,  and  Hke  Zeeb: 

Yea,  all  their  princes  as  Zebah,  and  as  Zalmunna: 
»«  Who  said,  Let  us  take  to  ourselves 

The  houses  of  God  in  possession. 

and  Syria,  and  the  Ammonites  might  have  procured  help  from  them  as 
they  did  from  Syria  at  an  eariier  date  (2  Sam.  x.  6). 

If  the  Psalm  belongs  to  the  Persian  or  Maccabaean  age,  Assyria  must 
stand  for  Persia  or  Syria.  Theodoret  suggests  that  the  Samaritans,  as 
Assyrian  colonists,  are  meant.  Lagarde,  followed  by  Cheyne,  cuts  the 
knot  by  reading  Geshur  for  Asshur  (see  1  Sam.  iii.  3);  but  this  petty 
Syrian  kingdom  would  hardly  be  mentioned  as  an  important  ally. 

they  have  holpen]  Lit.  they  have  been  an  arm^  i.e.  a  help.  Cp.  Is. 
xxxiii.  2. 

the  children  of  Lot]  The  Moabites  and  Ammonites,  who  seem  to  be 
singled  out  as  the  leaders  of  the  confederacy.  Cp.  2  Chron.  xx.  i.  The 
phrase  occurs  in  Deut.  ii.  9,  19,  the  only  other  passages  in  O.T.  outside 
of  Genesis  where  Lot  is  mentioned.  It  points  to  the  unbrotherly  cha- 
racter of  the  hostility  of  these  nations  by  recalling  their  common  descent. 

9 — 12.  Prayer  for  their  destruction  as  the  Canaanites  were  destroyed 
by  Deborah  and  Barak,  and  the  Midianites  by  Gideon. 

9.  Do  thou  unto  them  as  unto  Midlan  ; 

As  unto  Sisera,  as  unto  Jabin,  at  the  torrent  of  Kishon. 
The  victory  of  Gideon  over  the  confederate  forces  of  the  Midianites, 
Amalekites,  and  Arabians  (Judg.  vii,  viii)  is  referred  to  by  Isaiah  as  a 
typical  triumph  (ix.  4 ;  x.  26).  They  fell,  like  Jehoshaphat's  enemies 
(2  Chr.  XX.  23),  by  one  another's  hands.  For  the  rout  of  the  Canaanites 
see  Judg.  iv,  v.  The  storm-swollen  torrent  of  the  Kishon  contributed 
to  the  victory  (Judg.  v.  21). 

10.  En-dor  is  not  mentioned  in  the  narrative  of  Judges,  but  it  was 
situated  in  the  same  valley  as  Taanach  and  Megiddo,  which  are  named 
in  Judg.  v.  19,  and  is  mentioned  along  with  them  in  Josh.  xvii.  11. 

as  dung]  Omit  as.  A  contemptuous  expression  for  the  fate  of  un- 
buried  corpses.     Cp.  2  Kings  ix.  37 ;  Jer.  viii.  2  ;  &c. 

11.  The  Psalmist  returns  to  Gideon's  victory.  Oreb  and  Zeeb 
U*  Raven'  and  'Wolf')  were  the  princes,  i.e.  generals,  of  the  Midianites 
j(Judg.  vii.    25;  Is.  X.    26);   Zebah  and  Zalmunna  were  the  kings  of 

Midian  (Judg.  viii.  5  ff.,  12,  18  ff.). 

12.  Who  have  said,  Let  us  take  for  ourselves  in  possession 
The  habitations  (or,  pastures)  of  God. 

Who  refers  to  the  present  enemies  of  Israel,  not  to  the  Midianites. 


PSALM    LXXXIIl.  13—17.  503 


O  my  God,  make  themjike_a_wheel;  13 

As  the  stubble  before  the  wind. 

As  the  fire  burneth  a  wood,  14 

And  as  the  flame  setteth  the  mountains  on  fire ; 

So  persecute  them  with  thy  tempest,  15 

And  make  them  afraid  with  thy  storm. 

Fill  their  faces  with  shame;  x6 

That  they  may  seek  thy  name,  O  Lord. 

Let  them  be  confounded  and  troubled  for  ever;  17 

God's  habitations  or  pastures  are  the  land  which  He  has  given  to  His 
people  Israel.  Cp.  2  Chr.  xx.  11.  The  LXX  reads  altar ^  or  according 
to  another  reading,  sanctuary. 

13 — 18.  Renewed  prayer  for  the  dispersion  and  destmction  of  the 
enemy  expressed  by  figures  from  nature.  The  final  end  and  object  of 
all  is  that  they  may  acknowledge  Jehovah  to  be  supreme. 

13.  make  them  like  a  wheel]  Rather,  like  "whirllTig  dust  or  chaff. 
Anything  whirled  away  before  the  wind  may  be  meant.  Thomson 
{Land  and  Book,  p.  563)  thinks  that  the  globular  heads  of  the  wild 
artichoke  may  be  meant.  They  are  light  as  a  feather,  and  in  the 
autumn  when  they  break  off  from  the  parent  stem  * '  thousands  of  them 
come  scudding  over  the  plain,  rolling,  leaping,  bounding  with  vast 
racket,  to  the  dismay  both  of  the  horse  and  rider."  The  Arabs,  who 
call  it  'akkub,  "  derive  one  of  their  many  forms  of  cursing  from  this 
plant :   '  May  you  be  whirled  like  the  ^akkiib  before  the  wind. ' " 

as  the  stubble]  As  stubble.  Dry,  light,  broken  straw,  whirled 
away  from  the  threshing  floor,  which  was  usually  in  an  exposed  situ- 
ation to  catch  the  wind,  is  meant.  Cp.  Is.  xvii.  1 3 ;  xxix.  5 ;  Jer.  xiii.  24 ; 
Ps.  i.  4. 

14, 15.    As  fire  that  consumeth  a  forest, 

And  as  flame  that  burneth  up  mountains; 
So  Shalt  thou  pursue  them  with  thy  tempest, 
And  dismay  them  with  thy  hurricane. 

God's  wrath  is  a  fiery  blast  which  at  once  kindles  and  fans  the  flame 
(Is.  xxix.  6;  xxx.  27,  30,  33),  and  pursues  and  consumes  His  enemies 
like  a  fire  in  the  forest  or  on  the  mountains.  "Before  the  rains  came," 
says  Thomson  {Land  and  Book,  p.  341),  "this  whole  mountain  side  was 
in  a  blaze.  Thorns  and  briars  grow  so  luxuriantly  here  that  they  must 
be  burned  off  always  before  the  plough  can  operate.  The  peasants 
watch  for  a  high  wind,  and  then  the  fire  catches  easily,  and  spreads 
with  great  rapidity."     Cp.  Is.  x.  16 — 19;  Jer.  xxi.  14. 

16.  Fill  their  faces  with  shame]  Or,  disgrace.  Let  them  be  dis- 
graced by  defeat  and  disappointed  in  their  project.  But  this  is  only  as 
the  means  to  the  higher  end,  that  they  may  seek  Jehovah's  name, 
recognising  in  Israel's  God  the  God  of  revelation,  and  submitting 
themselves  to  His  Will. 


504  PSALM    LXXXIII.  i8. 

Yea,  let  them  be  put  to  shame,  and  perish: 
j8  That    me7i   may    know   that   thou,    whose   name   aloiie   is 
JEHOVAH,  "^=^-s^ 

Art  the  most  High  over  all  the  earth. 

17.     Let  them  be  ashamed  and  dismayed  for  ever; 
Yea,  let  them  be  put  to  confusion  and  perish : 
18     That  they  may  know  that  thou,  whose  name  is  JEHOVAH, 
even  thou  alone, 
Art  the  Most  High  over  all  the  earth. 
The  primary  object  of  chastisement  is  conversion  {v.  i6);  but  if  they 
will  not  acknowledge  Israel's  God  as  the  God  of  revelation,  let  them  be 
compelled  by  reiterated  judgements  to  recognise  Him  as  the  Almighty 
Ruler.     Cp.  Is.  xxxvii.  20;  2  Chr.  xx.  29.     The  ruin  with  which  they 
threaten  God's  people  will  recoil  upon  themselves  (vi.  10;  xxxv.  4,  26). 
For  'know'  see  lix.  13:  and  generally,  cp.  xcvii.  S,  9;  Is.  xxvi.  9 — 11. 


PSALM  LXXXIV. 

With  Ps.  Ixxxiii  the  Asaphile  division  of  the  Elohistic  collection  ends  ; 
and  Pss.  Ixxxiv — Ixxxix  form  an  appendix  to  that  collection,  which 
shews  but  few  indications  of  the  hand  of  the  Elohistic  editor.  It  can 
however  still  be  traced  in  Ps.  Ixxxiv  in  the  phrase  Jehovah  Elohim 
Tsebdoth  {v.  8),  and  in  the  absolute  use  of  God  {v.  9),  by  the  side  of 
Jehovah  {vv.  i,  2,  3,  8,  11,  12). 

Ps.  Ixxxiv  is  a  companion  poem  to  Pss.  xlii — xliii.  It  is  animated  by 
the  same  spirit  of  enthusiastic  devotion  to  the  service  of  God  and  love 
for  the  worship  of  the  Temple.  It  makes  use  of  the  same  expressions 
(e.g.  tabernacles,  or  dwelling-place,  v.  i ;  the  living  God,  v.  2 ;  appear 
before  God,  v.  7) ;  and  it  presents  the  same  structure  of  three  equal 
stanzas,  which  are  divided  by  musical  interludes,  instead  of  by  refrains 
as  in  Pss.  xlii — xliii. 

These  Psalms  may  have  been  written  by  the  same  poet,  though 
under  widely  different  circumstances.  In  Pss.  xlii — xliii  the  leading 
motive  is  the  pain  of  being  debarred  from  approaching  the  sanctuary : 
in  Ps.  Ixxxiv  it  is  joy  at  the  privilege  of  access  to  it.  The  author's  feet 
seem  to  be  already  standing  in  the  gates  of  Jerusalem.  It  is  virtually  a 
pilgrim  song,  though  it  is  not  included  in  the  special  collection  of 
"Songs  of  Going  up"  {Introd.  p.  xxviii). 

It  clearly  belongs  to  a  time  when  the  Temple  was  standing,  and  its 
services  were  regularly  carried  on ;  and  if  thirte  anointed  (v.  9)  refers  (as 
it  is  most  natural  to  suppose)  to  the  king,  it  must  be  assigned  to  the 
period  of  the  monarchy.  But  more  than  this  it  is  impossible  to  say. 
Some  attempts  to  fix  the  date  of  the  companion  Pss.  xlii — xliii  have 
been  considered  in  the  introduction  to  those  Psalms,  and  shewn  to  be 
improbable.  Certainly  it  cannot,  as  Delitzsch  supposes,  be  so  early  as 
the  time  of  David.  The  Temple  is  a  permanent  building  with  courts 
and  chambers  annexed  to  it  for  resident  ministers ;  its  services  appear  to 


FSALM    LXXXIV.  i,  2.  505 

be  of  long  standing;  and  pilgrimages  to  it  are  an  established  part  of  the 
national  religious  life. 

But  as  "  the  Psalter  in  its  spiritual  fulness  belongs  to  no  special  time," 
so  *'this  Psalm  is  the  hymn  of  the  Divine  life  in  all  ages.  It  brings 
before  us  the  grace,  and  the  glory  of  sacrifice,  of  service,  of  progress, 
where  God  alone,  the  Lord  of  Hosts,  is  the  source  and  the  strength  and 
the  end  of  effort."     (Bp  Westcott.) 

The  Psalm  is  divided  into  three  equal  stanzas  by  Selah,  marking  a 
musical  interlude  after  w.  4  and  8.  At  first  sight  this  division  seems 
unsatisfactory,  because  it  separates  verses  of  similar  form  and  meaning ; 
and  it  may  be  thought  preferable  to  treat  the  Ps.  as  consisting  of  two 
stanzas  only:  w.  i — 7;  8 — 12.  But  the  triple  division  is  probably 
right,  and  corresponds  to  the  triple  division  of  Pss.  xlii — xliii.  The 
second  and  third  stanzas  open  with  words  suggested  by  the  close  of  the 
first  and  second  stanzas  respectively,  and  the  connexion  of  thought 
appears  to  be  as  follows : 

i.  The  Psalmist's  eager  longing  for  the  house  of  God  (j,  2);  the 
happiness  of  those  who  dwell  there  (3,  4). 

ii.  Plappy  too  are  those  who  in  the  strength  of  God  surmount  all 
obstacles,  and  appearing  in  His  Presence  offer  their  prayers  (5 — 8). 

iii.  The  preciousness  of  the  privilege  of  access  to  God,  Who  is  the 
unfailing  source  of  blessing  for  those  who  trust  in  Him  (9 — 12). 

Beside  Pss.  xlii — xliii,  Pss.  xxvii,  Ixi,  Ixiii  should  be  compared. 

On  the  title.  For  the  chief  Musiciaji ;  set  to  the  Gittitli,  A  Psalm 
of  tlie  sons  of  Eorah  (R.V.),  see  Introd.  pp.  xxi,  xxv,  and  pp.  223  ft. 

To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Gittith,  A  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

How  amiable  are  thy  tabernacles,  O  Lord  of  hosts !  84 

My  soul  longeth,  yea,  even  fainteth  for  the  courts  of  the  2 
Lord  : 

1,  2.     The  Psalmist's  delight  in  the  house  of  God. 

1.  How  amiable  are  thy  tabernacle s\  Or,  How  dear  is  thy  dwelling- 
place.  Amiable  is  no  longer  used  of  things,  in  the  sense  of  worthy  to  be 
loved.  For  dwelling-place  see  note  on  xxvi.  8.  The  plural  of  the 
original,  as  in  xliii.  3,  may  be  'amplificative,'  expressing  the  dignity  of 
the  house  of  God;  or  it  may  be  used  with  reference  to  the  various 
buildings  of  which  the  Temple  was  composed. 

Lord  of  hosts]     See  note  on  xlvi.  7. 

2.  My  soul  hath  pined,  yea,  even  fainted.  The  verbs  are  perfects, 
and  it  seems  best  to  suppose  that  he  is  recalling  the  earnest  longings 
which  are  even  now  finding  satisfaction,  as  his  feet  stand  in  the  Temple 
courts,  and  his  heart  and  flesh  sing  for  joy  unto  the  living  God.  The 
latter  verb  denotes  joyous  singing,  such  as  that  with  which  pilgrims 
enlivened  their  journey.  Cp.  Jer.  xxxi.  1 2  ;  and  the  cognate  substan- 
tive in  Ps.  xlii.  4.  Soul^  heart,  axxdjlesh,  the  emotions,  the  reason  and 
the  will,  with  the  living  organism  of  the  body  through  which  they  act, 
make  up  the  whole  man.     See  xvi.  9;  Ixxiii.  26;  and  cp.  i  Thess.  v.  23. 


5o6  PSALM    LXXXIV.  3,  4- 

My  heart  and  my  flesh  crieth  out  for  the  living  God. 

Yea,  the  sparrow  hath  found  a  house, 

And  the  swallow  a  nest  for  herself,  where  she  may  lay  her 

young, 
Even  thine  altars,  O  Lord  of  hosts,  my  King,  and  my  God. 
Blessed  are  they  that  dwell  in  thy  house : 
They  will  be  still  praising  thee.     Selah. 


the  living  God]  The  same  phrase  [El  chay)  as  in  xlii.  1.  God  Him- 
self is  the  final  object  of  desire ;  the  Temple  is  only  the  means  of  realis- 
ing His  Presence. 

3,  4.     The  happiness  of  those  who  find  a  home  in  the  Temple. 

3.  The  Psalmist  envies  the  privilege  of  the  birds  which  build  their 
nests  within  the  precincts  of  the  Temple.  If  even  they  are  allowed  to 
find  a  home  there,  surely  he  may  expect  a  welcome.  As  at  an  earlier 
time  the  surrounding  scenery  was  eloquent  to  the  poet  of  his  own  mis- 
fortunes (xlii.  7),  so  now  a  feature  in  the  Temple  courts  expresses  the 
longing  of  his  heart.  No  doubt  the  figure  is  abruptly  introduced.  The 
picture  is  painted,  and  left  to  the  reader  to  interpret.  But  it  is  unne- 
cessary to  suppose  that  the  text  is  defective,  and  must  be  emended  by 
the  insertion  of  words  to  give  the  sense :  'Birds  have  their  nests,  and  so 
have  I  found  (or  rather,  would  I  fain  find)  a  home  by  thine  altars. ' 
The  direct  address  to  God  is  not  out  of  place,  because  though  the 
Psalmist  does  not  directly  mean  himself  by  the  sparrow  and  swallow, 
his  own  longing  breaks  through  the  figure  and  moulds  the  language. 

sparrow... swallow]  Cp.  Prov.  xxvi.  2.  Tsippor,  rendtxe^  sparrotu^ 
is  a  generic  term  for  small  birds :  dror  is  rendered  dove  by  the  LXX, 
Targ.,  and  Syr.,  but  probably  means  swallow.  In  ancient  Greece  as  in 
the  East  the  birds  which  nested  in  temples  were  accounted  sacred. 
Comp.  the  stoiy  of  Aristodicus  at  the  temple  of  Branchidae  (Herodotus 
i.  159) ;  and  "still  the  swallow  seeks  the  temple  enclosure  at  Jerusalem, 
and  the  mosque  of  Omar,  as  a  secure  and  safe  nesting-place."  (Tris- 
tram, Nat.  Hist.of  the  Bible,  p.  •206.) 

ffiay  lay]     Rather,  hath  laid. 

even  thine  altars]  Not  of  course  the  actual  altar  but  its  neighbour- 
hood.    Or  we  may  render,  by  thine  altars. 

my  King  and  my  God]     See  v.  1 ;  cp.  xliv.  4. 

4.  Blessed]  Or,  happ)y,  as  in  i.  i ;  and  so  \xi  w.  5,  12.  Not  those 
who  are  "of  the  household  of  God"  in  the  wider  sense  (xxiii.  6;  xxvii. 
4;  cp.  Eph.  ii.  19),  but  the  actual  ministers  of  the  Temple  appear  to  be 
meant.  They  can  be  stilly  i.e.  again  and  again,  raising  their  Halle- 
lujahs. 

5 — 8.    Yet  not  only  those  are  happy,  who  reside  within  the  precincts 

of  the  Temple,  but  those  who  in  the  strength  of  God  surmounting  every 
obstacle  appear  in  His  Presence  and  offer  their  prayers. 


PSALM   LXXXIV.  5—7.  507 

Blessed  is  the  man  whose  strength  is  in  thee ; 
In  whose  heart  are  ihi^Yi^^  of  them. 
'  Who  passing  through  the" valley  of  Baca  make  it  a  well ; 
The  rain  also  filleth  the  pools. 
They  go  from  strength  to  strength, 

5.  Happy  are  tlie  men  whose  strength  Is  In  thee ; 
In  whose  hearts  are  the  highways  (to  Zion). 

Happy  are  those  whose  minds  are  wholly  set  on  pilgiimage  to  Zion. 
The  phrase  is  peculiar  and  to  Zion  must  be  supplied ;  but  this  is  prefer- 
able to  rendering  highways  are  in  their  hearts^  and  explaining  highways 
as  a  metaphor  for  right  ways  of  life.  The  Targ.,  in  whose  hearts  is 
confidence^  is  probably  only  a  free  paraphrase.  Wellhausen  would  follow 
the  LXX,  and  read  goings  up,  i.e.  pilgrimages.     See  Introd.  p.  xxix. 

6.  Passing  through  the  vale  of  Baca  they  make  it  a  place  of 

springs, 
Yea,  the  early  rain  clotheth  it  with  blessings. 

The  word  Baca  is  derived  from  the  root  which  means  to  weep,  but  it 
nowhere  means  weeping,  for  which  words  of  a  different  form  are  used. 
Here,  as  in  2  Sam.  v.  23,  it  probably  denotes  some  kind  of  balsam- tree, 
so  called  from  the  'tears'  of  gum  which  it  exudes.  The  vale  of  Baca 
or  the  balsam-trees  was  some  vale  which,  like  the  vale  of  Elah  or  the 
terebinth  (i  Sam.  xvii.  2),  and  the  vale  of  Shittim  or  acacias,  took  its 
name  from  the  trees  which  grew  there.  Balsam-trees  are  said  to  love 
dry  situations,  growing  plentifully  for  example  in  the  arid  valley  of 
Mecca;  and  this  is  clearly  the  point  of  the  reference.  The  vale  of  Baca 
was  some  waterless  and  barren  valley  through  which  pilgrims  passed 
on  their  way  to  Jerusalem ;  but  faith  turns  it  into  a  place  of  springs, 
finding  refreshment  under  the  most  untoward  circumstances,  while  God 
refreshes  them  with  showers  of  blessing  from  above,  as  the  autumnal 
rains  clothe  the  dry  plains  with  grass  and  flowers.  Cp.  Is.  xxxv.  i  fF., 
6ff.  J  xli.  i8ff. ;  and  see  Trxsir^LVci's  Natural  Hist,  of  the  Bible,  pp.  30, 
455,  for  a  graphic  description  of  the  marvellous  way  in  which  the  rains  in 
Palestine  transform  the  country  from  a  brown  and  dusty  desert  to  a  lovely 
garden.  Once  more  we  have  to  note  the  singularly  bold  use  of  meta- 
phor which  is  characteristic  of  this  poet. 

The  familiar  phrase  'the  vale  of  tears'  comes  from  the  Vulg.  vallis 
lacrimartim,  and  it  is  possible  that  such  an  allusion  to  the  derivation  of 
the  word  is  intended.  It  is  natural  to  regard  the  pilgrim's  experience 
as  a  parable  of  the  pilgrimage  of  life,  but  this  secondary  application 
must  not  be  allowed  to  supersede  the  original  meaning. 

This  verse  has  suffered  a  strange  fate  in  translation.  The  English 
Versions  follow  Jewish  authorities  in  taking  berdchoth  as  the  plural  of 
berechdh,  'a  pool,'  not,  as  it  must  be,  oi berdcJidh,  'blessing.'  The  LXX 
renders.  The  lawgiver  shall  give  blessings,  taking  moreh  to  be  connected 
with  tordh,  law :  and  similarly  Jerome,  Tfu  teacher  shall  be  clothed  with 
blessing,  a  rendering  followed  by  Luther. 

7.  They  go  from   strength   to   strength}     Instead  of  fainting  on 


5o8  PSALM    LXXXIV.  8,  9. 

Every  one  of  them  in^^n  appeareth  before  God. 

8  O  Lord  God  ghosts,  hear  my  prayer: 
Give  ear,  O  God  of  Jacob.     Selah. 

9  Behold,  O  God  our  shield, 

And  look  upon  the  face  of  thine  anointed. 


their  toilsome  journey  they  gain  fresh  strength  as  they  advance.  Cp. 
Is.  xl.  31 5  and  for  the  form  of  expression,  John  i.  16;  2  Cor.  iii.  18. 

every  one  of  them  in  Zion\  Better  as  R.V.,  every  one  of  them  ap- 
peareth before  God  in  Zion.  The  words  every  one  of  them  are  not  in 
the  original,  but  may  legitimately  be  supplied,  the  use  of  the  verb  in 
the  singular  individualising  the  different  members  of  the  company. 

The  LXX  read  El  Elohim, '  God  of  Gods,'  for  el  Elohim,  'unto  God,' 
and  thence,  through  the  Vulg.,  came  Coverdale's  rendering,  And  so  the 
God  of  Gods  apeareth  vnto  the  in  Sion.  The  P.B.V.,  while  giving  the 
right  construction  to  the  Heb.  sentence,  has  retained  God  of  Gods. 

appeareth  before  God]  The  technical  term  for  visiting  the  sanctuary 
at  the  great  Festivals.     Cp.  xlii.  2,  note. 

8.  A  prayer  for  favourable  audience,  uttered  apparently  by  the 
Psalmist  as  the  leader  of  the  pilgrims  on  their  arrival  in  the  Temple. 

9 — 12.     The  pilgrims'  prayer,  and  the  ground  of  their  confidence. 

9.  The  Psalmist's  prayer  for  favourable  audience  in  v.  8  is  succeeded, 
after  a  musical  interlude  {selah),  by  a  prayer  offered  by  all  the  pilgrims 
together.  Contrast  ^our  shield'  with  'my  prayer'  (v.  8),  and  the  singular 
which  recurs  in  v.  10. 

The  first  line  admits  of  two  renderings,  (i)  As  in  the  A.V.,  'our 
shield  '  may  be  taken  as  a  vocative  in  apposition  to  God,  Who  is  styled 
a  shield  in  v.  i  r,  and  frequently  elsewhere,  e.g.  iii.  3 ;  xxviii.  7 ;  lix.  1 1 ; 
Gen.  XV.  I.  {2)  As  in  R.V.  marg.,  Behold  our  shield,  O  God,  'our 
shield '  may  be  taken  as  the  object  of  the  verb,  in  parallelism  with  and 
referring  to  *  thine  anointed '  in  the  next  line.  This  rendering  is  com- 
mended by  the  parallelism,  and  not  excluded  by  the  order  of  the  words 
in  the  original:  the  king  is  styled  'our  shield  '  in  Ixxxix.  18  (R.V.),  and 
there  is  nothing  unnatural  in  the  application  in  the  same  context  of  the 
same  epithet  to  the  king  and  to  God,  Whose  representative  the  king  was 
acknowledged  to  be. 

look  upon  the  face  of  thine  anointed^  Graciously  accept  him.  But  who  is 
meant  by  thitte  anointed?  Is  it  the  king,  the  high-priest,  or  the  people  ? 
Those  who  maintain  that  the  Psalm  is  post-exilic  suppose  that  the  high- 
priest  or  the  people  is  thus  designated.  But  though  the  high-priest  is 
called  the  anointed  priest  (Lev.  iv.  3,  5,  16;  vi.  22),  he  is  never  called 
the  ajiointed  of  Jehovah:  and  it  is  very  doubtful  whether  this  title  is  ever 
applied  to  the  people.  Ps.  Ixxxix.  38  and  Hab.  iii.  13  are  quoted,  but 
do  not  establish  the  usage.  The  most  natural  explanation  is  that  the 
king  is  meant.  Nor  is  the  prayer  out  of  place.  The  welfare  of  the 
nation  was  bound  up  with  the  welfare  of  the  king.    And  if  the  king  was 


PSALM    LXXXIV.  lo,  ii.  509 


For  a  day  in  thy  courts  is  better  than  a  thousand. 
I  Imd  rather  be  a  doorkeeper  in  the  house  of  my  God, 
Than  to  dwell  in  the  tents  of  wickedness. 
For  the  Lord  God  is  a  sun  and  shield : 

one  who  like  Hezekiah  or  Josiah  had  effected  a  great  reformation,  the 
Psalmist  might  well  feel  that  the  religious  privileges  which  he  prized 
depended  upon  the  continuance  of  the  king's  life.  It  certainly  cannot 
be  inferred  from  the  words  that  the  Psalmist  was  himself  a  king,  but 
rather  the  reverse. 

10.  For  a  day  &c.]  Tbj6.-coimexigJi  pf  thought  is.-obscure.  For 
apparently  introduces  a  reason  for  the  foregoing  prayer.  A  'good  day/ 
i.e.  a  day  of  festivity  and  rejoicing,  was  regarded  as  a  propitious  occasion 
for  preferring  requests  (i  Sam.  xxv.  8).  A  day  spent  in  Jehovah's 
courts  was  better  than  a  thousand  others,  and  therefore  the  most  oppor- 
tune occasion  for  this  prayer.  Some  commentators  connect  this  verse 
with  7JV.  I — 7,  taking  tjv.  8,  9  as  parenthetical,  and  regard  it  as  giving 
the  reason  for  the  desire  to  enter  the  Temple  which  is  the  dominant 
idea  of  the  Psalm.  But  neither  of  these  explanations  is  quite  satis- 
factory, and  the  difficulty  disappears  if  we  render,  Surely  a  day  &c. 
After  offering  the  prayer  of  v.  9  the  Psalmist  returns  to  the  thought 
which  inspires  his  song,  the  blessedness  of  approach  to  God  in  His 
house. 

*  One  day  '  (P.  B.  V.)  comes  from  the  LXX  through  the  Vulg. 

/  had  rather  be  a  doorkeeper']  Lit.,  be  at  the  threshold.  Delitzsch 
thinks  that  this  is  an  allusion  to  the  ofhce  of  the  Korahites  as  "keepers 
of  the  thresholds  of  the  tent"  (i  Chron.  ix.  19).  If  so,  the  reference 
must  be  to  some  subordinate  position,  and  not  to  the  distinguished  office 
of  "keeper  of  the  threshold"  (2  Kings  xxii.  4;  xxv.  18);  for  the  sense 
clearly  is,  *  I  had  rather  perform  the  humblest  service  at  the  temple  of 
Him  who  tolerates  no  evil  (v.  4)  than  be  entertained  as  a  guest  where 
wickedness  makes  its  home.'  But  the  meaning  may  simply  be,  I  had 
rather  stajid^  or,  lie,  at  the  threshold,  wait  humbly  at  the  gate  as  a  sup- 
pliant.    Cp.  LXX,  irapapiTTTeicrdai,  Vulg.  abiecttis  esse. 

The  tents  of  wickedness  probably  refers  to  the  heathen  neighbours  of 
whose  scoffing  this  Psalmist  had  had  such  a  bitter  experience  (xlii.  3, 
10).     Cp.  cxx.  5. 

11.  a  sun  and  shield]  R.V.,  A  sun  and  a  shield.  Nowhere  else  in 
the  O.T.  is  Jehovah  directly  called  a  sun,  though  the  ideas  conveyed 
by  the  metaphor  are  frequent.  Cp.  xxvii.  i;  Is.  x.  17;  Ix.  19,  20; 
Mai.  iv.  2.  Perhaps  the  prevalence  of  sun-worship  in  the  East  led  to 
the  avoidance  of  so  natural  and  significant  a  metaphor.  Even  here  the 
oldest  Versions  either  had  a  different  reading  or  shrank  from  a  literal 
rendering.  The  LXX  and  Theodotion  have :  For  the  Lord  God  loveth 
jnercy  and  truth.  The  Targ.  paraphrases.  For  the  Lord  God  is  like  a 
high  wall  and  a  strong  shield,  reading  shemesh  (  =  sun),  but  taking  it  in 
the  sense  of  battlement  (R.V.  pinnacles)  which  it  has  in  Is.  liv.  it. 
The  Syr.  gives,  our  sustainer  and  our  helper.  Only  the  later  Greek 
Versions  and  Jerome  render  the  Massoretic  text  literally. 


5TO  PSALM   LXXXIV.  12. 


The  Lord  will  give  grace  and  glory : 

No  good  thing  will  he  withhold  from  them  that  walk  up- 
rightly. 
12  O  Lord  of  hosts, 
Blessed  is  the  man  that  trusteth  in  thee. 

the  Lord  &c.]  Favour  (Gen.  xxxix.  21),  honour  (Ixxxv.  9;  i  Kings 
iii.  13),  and  prosperity  (Ixxxv.  12)  are  the  reward  of  the  upright.  Cp. 
the  parallel  in  Prov.  iii.  33 — 35,  which  speaks  of  God's  blessing  on  the 
habitation  of  the  righteous,  of  His  bestowal  of  favour  on  the  lowly,  and 
of  the  honour  which  is  the  inheritance  of  the  wise.  Grace  and  glory  sug- 
gest to  us  ideas  which  were  hardly  in  the  Psalmist's  mind,  though  his 
words  include  all  divine  blessings,  and  he  would  not  have  drawn  the 
sharp  distinction  between  temporal  and  spiritual  things  which  we  are 
accustomed  to  do.  But  the  temporal  blessings  of  the  Old  Covenant  are 
the  types  of  the  spiritual  blessings  of  the  New ;  and  the  promise,  like  so 
many  sayings  in  the  Psalter,  receives  a  larger  sense  and  a  spiritual 
meaning  in  the  light  of  the  Gospel.      See  Rom.  v.  2 ;  i  Pet.  v.  10. 

them  that  walk  uprightly]  Making  sincere  devotion  to  God  and 
perfect  integrity  in  their  dealings  with  men  the  rule  of  their  lives.  Cp. 
XV.  2,  note;  ci.  2,  6. 

12.  O  Lord  of  hosts]  The  addition  of  God  in  P.  B.  V.,  as  in  v.  8, 
comes  from  the  Roman  or  unrevised  Latin  Psalter  (see  p.  Ixxii),  and  is 
found  in  some  MSS.  of  the  LXX. 

PSALM  LXXXV. 

The  restoration  of  Israel  from  exile  is  a  proof  that  God  has  forgiven 
His  people  and  taken  them  back  into  favour  as  He  promised  (Jer.  xxxiii. 
8  fif.).  Yet  the  present  condition  of  Israel  seems  to  shew  that  God's 
anger  still  rests  upon  it.  Only  a  feeble  remnant  has  returned.  Disap- 
pointment and  disaster  are  crushing  them.  The  national  life  has  not 
revived.  The  great  hopes  held  out  by  the  prophets,  especially  in 
Is.  xl — Ixvi,  in  connexion  with  the  Return,  have  not  been  realised. 
And  therefore  the  nation  prays  for  a  fresh  manifestation  of  God's  saving 
power  to  gladden  His  people  (i — 7). 

Listening  for  an  answer  the  Psalmist  receives  the  assurance  that  God's 
purposes  of  good  toward  His  faithful  people  will  surely  be  fulfilled.  He 
will  dwell  among  them  and  bless  them,  fulfilling  the  prophetic  promises 
of  the  establishment  of  His  kingdom  among  men  (8 — 13). 

Such  is  the  argument  of  the  Psalm ;  and  we  can  hardly  be  wrong  in 
referring  it  to  the  early  days  of  the  Return  from  Babylon.  The  best 
illustration  of  it  is  to  be  found  in  the  prophecies  of  Haggai  and  Zechariah, 
especially  in  Zech.  i.  12  ff.,  and  with  this  period  (c.  B.C.  520)  it  should 
be  connected,  rather  than  with  the  time  of  Nehemiah.  It  was  written 
to  meet  the  depression  and  despondency  which  were  rapidly  crushing 
the  life  out  of  the  feeble  church  of  the  restoration,  with  the  assurance 
that  the  prophetic  promises  of  a  glorious  Messianic  future  were  not  a 


PSALM    LXXXV.  1—3.  511 

delusion,  but  that  God  would  establish  His  kingdom  in  His  land. 
Thought  and  language  shew  familiarity  with  Is.  xl — Ixvi. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  two  divisions,  (i)  the  pleading  of  mercies  already 
received  (i — 3)  as  the  ground  of  prayer  (4 — 7),  and  (ii)  the  answer  of 
hope  (8 — 13):  and  it  has  been  suggested  that  the  first  part  was  to  be 
sung  by  the  people,  the  second  by  the  priest.  At  any  rate  w.  i — 7  may 
express  the  thoughts  of  the  people;  t/v.  8 — 13  the  inspired  conviction  of 
some  'soul  of  nobler  tone,'  prophet  or  priest,  who  wrote  the  Psalm. 

The  appropriateness  of  this  Psalm  as  one  of  the  Proper  Psalms  for 
Christmas  Day  is  obvious.  It  is  full  of  Messianic  hopes.  The  Incar- 
nation is  the  true  answer  to  the  prayer  of  Israel :  and  in  Christ  almost 
every  word  of  the  second  part  finds  its  fulfilment.  The  message  of 
peace  (Luke  ii.  14),  the  nearness  of  salvation  (Matt.  i.  21;  Luke  ii. 
30  ff.),  the  divine  glory  dwelling  in  the  earth  (Luke  ii.  32;  John  i.  14), 
the  union  of  lovingkindness  and  truth,  of  righteousness  and  peace 
(John  i.  17;  Rom.  v.  i),  the  advent  of  God  preceded  by  righteousness 
making  a  way  for  His  people  to  walk  in : — these  blessings  were  imparted 
in  Christ  in  a  fulness  and  a  reality  far  transcending  anything  that  the 
Psalmist  could  have  anticipated. 


To  the  chief  Musician,  A  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

Lord,  thou  hast  been  favourable  unto  thy  land :  85 

Thou  hast  brought  back  the  captivity  of  Jacob. 

Thou  hast  forgiven  the  iniquity  of  thy  people,  a 

Thou  hast  covered  all  their  sin.     Selah. 

Thou  hast  taken  away  all  thy  w^rath  :  3 

Thou  hast  turned  thyself  iiom.  the  fierceness  of  thine  anger. 

1 — 3.     God  has  forgiven  and  restored  His  people. 

1.  thotc  hast  been  favo2irable\  Thou  art  propitiated :  once  more  Thou 
graciously  acceptest  Thy  people,  and  receivest  them  back  into  Thy  favour. 
The  ban  of  Jer.  xiv.  10,  12  is  removed.  Cp.  Ixxvii.  7;  cvi.  4;  Haggai 
i.  8. 

thou  hast  brought  back  the  captivity  of  ^acob]  Or,  as  R.V.  marg., 
returned  to.  But  more  probably  the  phrase  means,  thou  hast  turned 
the  fortune  of  Jacob.  See  note  on  liii.  6.  Here  doubtless  the  resto- 
ration of  the  nation  from  the  Babylonian  exile  is  meant. 

2.  The  Heb.  words  describe  sin  (i)  as  depravity  or  moral  distortion; 
(2)  as  a  wandering  from  the  way,  or  missing  the  mark;  and  forgiveness 
( i)  as  the  removal  of  a  burden,  (2)  as  the  covering  of  the  otTence,  which 
would  otherwise  meet  the  eye  of  the  judge  and  call  for  punishment. 
Cp.  xxxii.  I,  2,  5. 

3.  Thou  hast  taken  away\  Lit.  withdrawn,  or  drawn  in^  the  wrath 
which  was  let  loose  against  us. 

from  the  fierceness  of  thine  anger}  Poured  out  upon  Israel  for  its  sin. 
See  Jer.  xxx.  24;  Lara.  i.  12;  iv.  11.     Cp.  Ex.  xxxii.  12. 


ST2  PSALM    LXXXV.  4—8. 

4  Turn  us,  O  God  of  our  salvation, 

And  cause  thine  anger  towards  us  to  cease. 

5  Wilt  thou  be  angry  with  us  for  ever  ? 

Wilt  thou  draw  out  thine  anger  to  all  generations  ? 

6  Wilt  thou  not  revive  us  again  : 

That  thy  people  may  rejoice  in  thee? 

7  Shew  us  thy  mercy,  O  Lord, 
And  grant  us  thy  salvation. 

8  I  will  hear  what  God  the  Lord  will  speak : 

For  he  will  speak  peace  unto  his  people,  and  to  his  saints : 

4 — 7.  Yet  in  spite  of  forgiveness  and  restoration,  much  is  still  lack- 
ing. Oh  that  God  would  wholly  withdraw  His  wrath,  and  gladden 
His  people  with  a  full  salvation  I     Cp.  the  prayer  of  cxxvi.  4. 

4.  Turn  us\  I.e.  Restore  us.  Cp.  Ixxx.  3.  For  R.V.  marg. 
Turn  to  us,  cp.  Is.  Ixiii.  1 7 ;  but  the  rendering  of  the  text  is  preferable. 

cause  thine  anger  &c.]  Lit.  break  off  thine  indignation  with  us:  cease 
to  be  provoked  with  us.  The  cognate  verb  is  constantly  used  of  Israel's 
'provocation'  of  Jehovah  (e.g.  Jer.  vii.  18  ff.). 

5.  For  the  pleading  question  cp.  Ixxvii.  7  ff. 

wilt  thou  draw  out  &c.]  I.e.  protract,  prolong,  continue  thine  anger 
to  one  generation  after  another  (Ixxvii.  8). 

6.  Wilt  thou  not  revive  us  agaiii]  Wilt  not  THOU  turn  and  quicken 
lis?  restoring  our  national  life  according  to  the  promises  of  the  prophets. 
See  Hos.  vi.  2;  Hab.  ii.  4;  Ezek.  xxxvii.  3  ff .  Cp.  Ps.  Ixxi.  20;  Ixxx. 
18.  Thou  is  emphatic.  Thou  Who  alone  canst,  Thou  Who  art 
pledged  to  it  by  Thy  word. 

7.  Shew  us  &c.]  Cause  us  to  see  thy  lovingkindness,  upon  which  we 
have  a  claim  as  Thy  beloved  ones  {v.  8). 

8 — 13.  The  Psalmist  listens  for  Jehovah's  answer  to  His  people's 
prayer;  and  conveys  to  them  the  assurance  that  rich  abundance  of 
blessing  is  in  store  for  those  who  fear  Him. 

8.  I  will  hear]  Or,  Let  me  hear.  Cp.  Ixii.  11;  and  the  striking 
parallel  in  Hab.  ii.  i,  which  the  LXX  makes  even  closer  by  its  reading, 
what  the  Lord  God  will  speak  with  me  (lit.  in  me),  from  which  comes 
the  P.B.V.,  what  the  Lord  God  will  say  concerning  me. 

God  the  Lord]    The  mighty  God  [El),  Jehovah. 

he  will  speak  &c.]  Or,  he  speaketh  peace.  He  will  not  always  be 
wroth,  but  will  forthwith  utter  the  '  thoughts  of  peace '  which  He  has  all 
along  cherished  (Jer.  xxix.  11).  This  reconciliation  must  result  in  the 
welfare  of  His  people.    Cp.  cxxii.  6  ff. ;  and  for  the  phrase,  Zech.  ix.  10. 

and  to  his  saints]  Or,  even  to:  for  'his  saints'  are  synonymous  with 
'his  people.'  It  is  as  the  objects  of  His  lovingkindness  {v.  7)  not  for 
any  merits  of  their  own,  that  they  look  for  His  favour.  For  the  mean- 
ing of  'saints'  see  note  on  1.  5,  and  Appendix,  Note  i. 


PSALM   LXXXV.  9—11.  513 


But  let  them  not  turn  again  to  folly. 

Surely  his  salvation  is  nigh  them  that  fear  him ; 

That  glory  may  dwell  in  our  land. 

Mercy  and  truth  are  met  together ; 

Righteousness  and  peace  have  kissed  each  other. 

Trutli  shall  spring  out  of  the  earth; 

And  righteousness  shall  look  down  from  heaven. 

but  let  them  not  turn  again  to  folly]  The  folly  of  self-confidence 
(xlix.  13)  leading  to  unbelief  and  disobedience,  which  has  been  the 
cause  of  their  past  misfortunes.  Such  a  note  of  warning  is  not  out  of 
place,  but  the  reading  of  the  LXX,  and  to  those  who  turn  their  heart  to 
hi/n,  is  preferred  by  some  editors. 

9.  The  Psalmist  expands  the  results  of  that  word  of  peace. 

them  that  fear  hitnl  Those  who  answer  to  their  calling  as  'saints.* 
Cp.  ciii.  I  r,  13,  17. 

that  glory  tnay  dwell  in  our  land]  'Glory'  is  the  manifest  Presence 
of  Jehovah,  which  Ezekiel  saw  departing  from  the  doomed  city  (x.  i8), 
but  returning  to  it  in  the  glorious  restoration  (xliii.  4  ff).  Cp.  Is.  Ix.  i,  2 ; 
Zech.  ii.  5.  'Dwell'  is  the  word  specially  used  of  the  abiding  of  God 
among  His  people,  from  which  later  Heb.  derived  the  term  Shechinah 
for  the  Presence  of  God  in  the  Tabernacle  and  Temple  (Ex.  xl.  34,  35 ; 
2  Chr.  vii.  1—3).  Comp.  Zech.  ii.  10,  11;  viii.  3.  The  promise  of  the 
words  was  to  be  fulfilled  in  the  Incarnation  (John  i.  14). 

The  meaning  'honour'  in  contrast  to  the  shame  and  humiliation 
which  are  now  Israel's  portion  is  inadequate,  though  this  may  be  included 
as  a  result  of  the  return  of  that  greater  Glory. 

10.  Does  this  verse  speak  of  the  divine  attributes  which  conspire 
togetlier  in  the  work  of  salvation,  or  of  the  human  virtues  which  will 
characterise  the  new  community?  Primarily  of  the  former.  God's 
lovingkindness  and  truth — the  love  which  moved  Him  to  enter  into 
covenant  with  Israel,  and  the  faithfulness  which  binds  Him  to  be  true 
to  His  covenant — meet  in  Israel's  redemption.  Righteousness  and 
peace  greet  one  another  with  joyous  welcome.  Jehovah  is  a  righteous 
God  and  therefore  a  Saviour  (Is.  xlv.  21).  Because  salvation  is  His 
eternal  purpose  and  He  cannot  change  His  purpose,  therefore  He  recon- 
ciles His  people  to  Himself.  For  lovingkindness  and  truth  as  attributes 
of  God — often  as  here  almost  personified  as  ministering  angels — see  Ex. 
xxxiv.  6;  Ps.  xxv.  10;  xl.  11;  Ivii.  3,  10;  Ixi.  7;  Ixxxvi.  15;  Ixxxix. 
14;  cxv.  I ;  cxxxviii.  2;  Mic.  vii.  20.  For  the  connexion  of  'righteous- 
ness' with  salvation  see  on  Ixv.  5,  and  note  the  frequency  of  this  thought 
in  Is.  xl.  flf. 

While  however  divine  attributes  are  primarily  meant,  the  correspond- 
ing human  virtues  (Prov.  iii.  3;  Is.  xxxii.  16  f.)  need  not  be  excluded. 
The  restored  community  will  reflect  the  attributes  of  God  to  which  it 
owes  its  existence.  Cp.  Hos.  ii.  19,  20;  Zech.  viii.  8,  16,  19.  This 
thought  is  more  clearly  brought  out  in  the  next  verse. 

11.  Trutli  springeth  out  of  the  earth ; 

And  righteousness  hath  looked  down  from  heaven.     (R.V.) 

PSALMS  23 


Sh  psalm    LXXXV.  12,  13. 

12  Yea,  the  Lord  shall  give  that  which  is  good ; 
And  our  land  shall  yield  her  increase. 

13  Righteousness  shall  go  before  him ; 
And  shall  set  us  in  the  way  of  his  steps. 

Truth  springs  up  as  a  natural  growth  in  response  to  God's  manifesta- 
tion of  His  saving  righteousness.  Harmony  between  earth  and  heaven 
is  perfected.     Cp.  Hos.  ii.  ■zi  flf.;  Is.  xlvs  8.  Milton  must  have  had 

this  passage  in  his  mind  in  the  Ode  on  the  Nativity: 
Yea,  truth  and  justice  then 
Will  down  return  to  men, 

Orb'd  in  a  rainbow;  and,  like  glories  wearing, 
Mercy  will  sit  between. 
Throned  in  celestial  sheen, 
•         "With  radiant  feet  the  tissued  clouds  down  steering ; 
And  heaven,  as  at  some  festival, 
Will  open  wide  the  gates  of  her  high  palace  hall. 

12.  Material  prosperity  will  go  hand  in  hand  with  moral  progress. 
Earth  responds  to  the  divine  blessing.  Cp.  Lev.  xxvi.  4 ;  Deut.  xxviii. 
12;  Ps.  Ixvii.  6.  The  fmitfulness  of  the  land  is  a  constant  feature 
in  pictures  of  the  Messianic  future ;  and  point  is  given  to  the  promise 
by  the  fact  that  the  returned  exiles  had  been  suffering  from  scarcity 
(Haggai  i.  lof). 

13.  Jehovah  Himself  appears  to  lead  His  people  forv/ard.  Before 
Him  as  a  herald  goes  the  righteousness  which  moves  Him  to  the  salva- 
tion of  His  people ;  and  (it)  shall  make  his  footsteps  a  way  (to  walk 
in) ;  so  that  His  people  may  follow  without  let  or  hindrance;  an  allusion 
possibly  to  the  '  way '  so  often  spoken  of  in  the  later  chapters  of  Isaiah 
(xxxv.  8;  xlii.  16;  xlviii.  17;  xlix.  11;  li.  io;lvii.  14;  Ixii.  10).  The 
words  are  obscure,  but  this  rendering,  adopted  by  R.V.,  is  the  best. 
Other  renderings  are ;  (1)  and  shall  set  its  footsteps  in  the  way  of  his  foot- 
steps, i.e.  follow  Him  closely,  cp.  Is.  Iviii.  8;  lii.  12 ;  or,  (2)  which  gives 
a  similar  sense,  shall  give  heed  to  the  way  of  his  footsteps  ;  or  (5)  and  shall 
set  its  footsteps  in  the  way,  march  forward  freely  and  unrestrainedly,  in 
contrast  to  the  gloomy  picture  of  Is.  lix.  14;  or  (4)  shall  set  his  footsteps 
in  the  way,  move  God  to  march  forth  in  saving  might. 

PSALM  LXXXVI. 

This  Psalm  is  a  mosaic  of  fragments  from  other  Psalms  and  scrip- 
tures^.     It  claims  no  poetic  originality,   yet  it  possesses  a   pathetic 

1  The  references  are  given  in  the  notes.  Pss.  xxv,  xxvi,  xxvii,  xl,  liv  are  quoted 
almost  verbatim.  Pss.  v,  vi  (?),  ix,  xvii,  xxii,  xxviii,  xxxi,  1  (?),  Iv,  Ivi,  Ivii,  Ixxii, 
Ixxvii,  cxvi,  cxxx  (?)  seem  to  have  been  laid  under  contribution,  though  where  the 
language  is  general,  it  is  impossible  to  say  that  it  is  derived  from  one  Ps.  rather  than 
another.     The  use  of  the  two  groups  xxv — xxviii,  liv — Ivii  is  noticeable. 

Of  other  books,  Ex.  xxxiv.  6  is  quoted  verbatim:  and  the  Psalmist  seems  to  be 
further  indebted  to  Ex.  xv.  ii;  Deut.  iii.  24;  xxviii.  58;  xxxii.  22;  Is.  xxiv.  i5(?); 
xlix.  8,  13 ;  Jer.  xxxii.  39. 


PSALM   LXXXVI.  I.  515 

earnestness  and  tender  grace  of  its  own.  It  is  distinguished  by  the 
seven  times  repeated  use  of  Adonai,  *  Lord,'  in  addressing  God,  a  title 
which  expresses  the  consciousness  of  specially  belonging  to  God,  of 
standing  under  His  immediate  guidance  and  protection.  To  this  title 
corresponds  the  Psalmist's  designation  of  himself  as  God's  servant,  and 
the  son  of  His  handmaid  {v.  16,  cp.  w.  3,  4).  The  Psalm  furnishes  at 
least  one  noble  phrase  which  is  unique  {v.  1 1  b\  and  in  v.  9  it  rises  to  a 
height  of  Messianic  hope  not  surpassed  elsewhere.  It  is  the  composition 
of  some  pious  soul  whose  mind  was  steeped  with  the  scriptures  already 
in  existence,  and  who  recast  reminiscences  of  them  into  a  prayer  to  suit 
his  own  particular  needs.  Primarily  it  appears  to  be  an  expression  of 
personal  devotion,  rather  than  a  prayer  for  the  use  of  the  congregation ; 
though  sometimes  perhaps  the  Psalmist  identifies  himself  with  the  com- 
munity of  which  he  is  a  member,  and  speaks  of  its  circumstances  and 
needs  as  his  own  {vv,  13,  14). 

It  is  the  only  Psalm  in  the  Third  Book  which  has  the  name  of 
David  prefixed  to  it.  The  title  A  Prayer  of  David  can  only  mean  that 
it  is  an  imitation  of  the  Pi'ayers  of  David  (Ixxii.  20),  and  was  probably 
never  intended  to  mean  more  than  this.  It  cannot  have  been  written 
till  after  the  Return  from  the  Captivity  (to  which  v.  13  maybe  an 
allusionj,  but  at  what  period  there  is  nothing  to  shew.  The  author 
apparently  had  the  Elohistic  collection  in  his  hands  as  revised  by  its 
editor  (Inirod.  p.  Ivi),  for  he  quotes  Ps.  liv.  3  in  v.  14  in  the  Elohistic 
form. 

One  thought  leads  to  another  and  no  definite  structural  arrangement 
can  be  traced  in  the  Psalm.     It  may  perhaps  be  divided  as  follows. 

i.  A  series  of  petitions,  each  followed  by  some  reason  which  the 
Psalmist  urges  for  the  hearing  of  his  prayer  (i — 5). 

ii.  Renewing  his  supplication,  he  finds  a  ground  of  confidence  in 
the  incomparable  nature  of  God,  which  suggests  the  thought  of  the 
universal  homage  which  will  one  day  be  offered  to  Him  as  the  only  true 
God  {6—10). 

iii.  Prayers  for  guidance  and  vows  of  thanksgiving  lead  on  to  the 
description  of  present  dangers.  Pleading  God's  revealed  character  as  a 
God  of  lovingkindness,  he  prays  for  further  blessing,  and  such  a  clear 
token  of  God's  favour  as  may  prove  to  his  enemies  that  he  is  under 
God's  protection  (ii — 17). 

A  Prayer  of  David. 

Bow  down  thine  ear,  O  Lord,  hear  me  :  86 

For  I  a?n  poor  and  needy. 

1 — 6.  A  series  of  petitions,  each  supported  by  the  ground  on  which 
the  Psalmist  pleads  for  a  hearing. 

1.  Bow  down  &c.]  A  common  form  of  invocation.  Cp.  xvii.  6; 
xxxi.  2;  Is.  xxxvii.  17;  &c.  hear  me]    Answer  me  (Iv.  2). 

for  J  am  poor  and  needy]  Or,  afllicted  and  needy :  and  therefore  one 
of  those  whom  God  has  specially  promised  to  help  (xii.  5).  From  xl. 
17  (  =  lxx.  5);  cp.  cix.  22. 

33—2 


5i6  PSALM   LXXXVI.  2—9. 

2  Preserve  my  soul ;  for  I  am  holy ; 

O  thou  my  God,  save  thy  servant  that  trusteth  in  thee. 

3  Be  merciful  unto  me,  O  Lord : 
For  I  cry  unto  thee  daily. 

4  Rejoice  the  soul  of  thy  servant : 

For  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  lift  up  my  soul. 

5  For  thou.  Lord,  ar^  good,  and  ready  to  forgive ; 

And  plenteous  in  mercy  unto  all  them  that  call  upon  thee. 

6  Give  ear,  O  Lord,  unto  my  prayer ; 

And  attend  to  the  voice  of  my  supplications. 

7  In  the  day  of  my  trouble  I  will  call  upon  thee : 
For  thou  wilt  answer  me. 

8  Among  the  gods  f/iere  is  none  like  unto  thee,  O  Lord ; 
Neither  are  there  any  works  like  unto  thy  works. 

9  All  nations  whom  thou  hast  made  shall  come 

2.  Presa-ve  my  soul'\  —  xxv.  20. 

for  I  am  holy\  R.V.  godly  fails  to  bring  out  the  connexion  of  the 
word  with  chesed,  'lovingkindness'  {w.  5,  13,  15).  Cheyne  gives 
duteous  in  love.  But  the  passive  sense  beloved,  'the  object  of  thy  loving- 
kindness,'  is  far  more  suitable.  He  pleads  not  his  own  merits,  but  the 
covenant  relation  into  which  God  has  brought  him  as  an  Israelite.  See 
on  1.  5  ;  Ixxxv.  8. 

3.  Be  gracious  unto  me,  0  Lord; 

For  unto  thee  do  I  cry  all  the  day  long. 
See  Ivii.  i,  2,  and  elsewhere  (iii.  4;  iv.  i ;  &c.). 

4.  Rejoice  SlcJ]     Cp.  xc.  15. 

for  unto  thee  «S:c.]  From  xxv.  i.  God  alone  is  the  object  of  his 
desires,  his  aspirations,  his  prayers.     Cp.  cxliii.  8;  Lam.  iii.  41. 

5.  ready  to  forgive']  The  exact  word  is  found  only  here,  but  for  the 
thought  see  Ps.  cxxx.  4 ;  and  for  the  whole  verse  cp.  Ex.  xxxiv.  6  f. 

6 — 10.  Renewed  supplication  for  a  hearing.  The  Psalmist  is  sure  of 
an  answer,  for  Jehovah  is  the  only  true  God,  Whom  all  nations  will  one 
day  acknowledge. 

6.  Taken  from  Iv.  i,  2;  v.  2;  xxviii.  2;  cp.  cxxx.  2. 
attend]     R.V.  hearken. 

7.  From  Ixxvii.  2  ;  xvii.  6. 

8.  There  is  none  like  thee  among  the  gods,  0  Lord; 
And  there  is  nought  like  thy  works. 

Based  upon  Ex.  xv.  11,  which  is  frequently  imitated  elsewhere;  and 
Deut.  iii.  24.  In  v.  5  the  Psalmist  dwelt  on  God's  Tvillingness  to 
answer  prayer ;  here  he  comforts  himself  with  the  thought  of  His  ability. 
His  is  the  power  possessed  by  none  of  those  who  are  called  gods  and 
worshipped  as  such. 

9.  Apparently  a  reminiscence  of  Ps.   xxii.   27,  combined  possibly 


PSALM    LXXXVI.  10—14.  517 

And  worship  before  thee,  O  Lord ; 

And  shall  glorify  thy  name. 

For  thou  art  great,  and  doest  wondrous  things:  xo 

Thou  art  God  alone. 

Teach  me  thy  way,  O  Lord  ;  I  will  walk  in  thy  truth  :  " 

Unite  my  heart  to  fear  thy  name. 

I  will  praise  thee,  O  Lord  my  God,  with  all  my  heart :  12 

And  1  will  glorify  thy  name  for  evermore. 

For  great  is  thy  mercy  toward  me :  »3 

And  thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  the  lowest  hell. 

O  God,  the  proud  are  risen  against  me,  m 

with  Is.  xxiv.  15  ('glorify  ye. ..the  name  of  Jehovah')  and  other  pas- 
sages. But  the  verse  is  remarkable  for  the  distinctness  and  fulness  of 
its  Messianic  hope,  and  for  the  thought  implied  in  the  words  whom  thou 
hast  made,  that  the  nations  cannot  fail  ultimately  to  fulfil  the  will  of  their 
Creator  (Rev.  iv.  11).     It  is  taken  up  and  expanded  in  Rev.  xv.  3,  4. 

10.  Cp.  Ixxvii.  13,  14;  Ixxii.  18;  Ixxxiii.  18;  and  Ex.  xv.  11; 
xxxiv.  10. 

11.  Teach  me  thy  way,  O  Lord]     Word  for  word  from  xxvii.  11. 

/  will  walk  in  thy  truth"]  When  Thou  dost  teach  me  Thy  way. 
From  XX vi.  3. 

unite  my  heart  to  fear  thy  name]  Let  it  be  no  longer  divided  between 
Thee  and  other  attractions ;  let  all  its  powers  and  affections  be  concen- 
trated in  reverence  to  Thee  as  Thou  hast  revealed  Thyself  in  the  works 
of  creation  and  in  acts  of  redemption.  The  unity  and  uniqueness  of 
God  demand  unity  of  heart  in  His  worshippers  (Deut.  vi.  4,  5;  x.  12). 
Such  singleheartedness  is  frequently  expressed  by  the  phrases  *a  whole 
heart,'  *a  perfect  heart,'  but  the  verb  unite  is  found  here  only  in  this 
sense.  Doubtless  it  is  an  allusion  to  the  promise  in  Jer.  xxxii.  39,  **I 
will  give  them  one  heart  and  one  way,  that  they  may  fear  me  for  ever. " 
Cp,  too  Deut.  xxviii.  58. 

The  LXX  and  Syr.  read  the  consonants  with  different  vowels  [yichad 
for  yached),  let  fuy  heart  rejoice  to  fear  thy  name. 

12.  13.     Cp.  Ivii.  9,  10;  ix.  i;  1.  15,  23. 

with  all  7ny  heart]  R.V.  with  my  whole  heart ;  when  the  prayer  of 
V.  1 1  is  granted. 

thy  mercy]    Thy  lovingkindness. 

and  thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  the  lonvest  hell]  From  the 
nethermost  Sheol.  From  Ivi.  13  (  =  cxvi.  8);  Deut.  xxxii.  12.  De- 
liverance from  imminent  danger  of  death  may  be  meant ;  yet  here  the 
Psalmist  may  identify  himself  with  the  nation,  and  refer  to  its 
deliverance  from  the  death  of  the  exile.     Cp.  Ixxxv.  6. 

14.  Again,  though  the  Psalmist  may  be  referring  to  personal  circum- 
stances, it  is  not  impossible  that  he  is  alluding  to  dangers  by  which  the 
community  was  threatened.  The  verse  is  taken  almost  word  for  word 
from  liv.  3,  with  perhaps  a  reminiscence  of  xxii.  16  {^assembly  of  evil 


5iS  PSALM    LXXXVI.  15—17. 

And  the  assemblies  of  violent  men  have  sought  after  my 
soul; 

And  have  not  set  thee  before  them, 
ts  But   thou,    O  Lord,  art  a   God  full  of  compassion,   and 
gracious, 

Longsuffering,  and  plenteous  in  mercy  and  truth. 
16  O  turn  unto  me,  and  have  mercy  upon  me ; 

Give  thy  strength  unto  thy  servant, 

And  save  the  son  of  thine  handmaid. 
'7  Shew  me  a  token  for  good ; 

That  they  which  hate  me  may  see  /'/,  and  be  ashamed  : 

Because  thou,  Lord,  hast  holpen  me,  and  comforted  me. 

doers ').  The  variation  fj'oud  for  strangers  may  be  accidental :  the  con- 
sonants of  the  two  words  zedIm  and  zarim  are  easily  confused,  D  (1) 
and  R  (1)  being  much  alike  in  Hebrew.  It  should  be  noted  that  Ps. 
liv.  is  quoted  in  its  *Elohistic'  fonn,  so  that  apparently  the  collection 
had  already  been  made  and  edited  by  the  Elohistic  editor. 
assemblies'X    Assembly,  or  congregation. 

15.  Word  for  word  from  Ex.  xxxiv.  6.  With  his  proud  and  merciless 
enemies  he  contrasts  the  revealed  character  of  God,  as  the  ground  of  the 
prayer  which  follows.  Though  he  may  have  deserved  punishment,  God 
cannot  surely  abandon  him  to  them. 

longsuffcring\     Or,  slow  to  anger  (R.V.). 

16.  O  turn  ^c^^     From  xxv.  16. 

have  mercy  upon  me]  Render,  be  gracious  unto  me,  to  shew  the 
connexion  with  the  attribute  'gracious'  in  v.  15. 

thy  servant... the  son  of  thine  handmaid]  Cp.  cxvi.  16.  'The  son  of 
thine  handmaid'  is  a  synonym  for  *thy  servant,'  denoting  a  closer 
relationship,  for  sei-vants  'born  in  the  house'  (Gen.  xiv.  14)  were  the 
most  trusted  dependents.  Cp.  "of  the  household  of  God,"  Eph.  ii.  19. 
It  has  been  conjectured  that  the  Psalmist,  like  Samuel,  was  early  dedi- 
cated to  the  service  of  God ;  but  the  words  do  not  necessarily  convey 
this  meaning. 

17.  a  token  for  good]  Some  visible  and  unmistakable  sign  of  Thy 
favour  towards  me.  Cp.  Jer.  xxiv.  6;  Ezra  viii.  22;  Neh.  v.  19; 
xiii.  31. 

that  they  &c.]  That  they  wMoli  hate  me  may  toe  ashamed  when 
they  see  that  thou  &c.  Cp.  xl.  3;  vi.  10;  xxxv.  4:  and  for  holpen... 
comforted.  Is.  xlix.  8,  13. 

PSALM  LXXXVII. 

This  Psalm  is  fittingly  placed  here,  for  it  expands  the  thought  of 
Ixxxvi.  9  in  the  style  and  the  spirit  of  prophecy.  It  is  terse,  abrupt, 
enigmatic,  like  a  prophetic  oracle ;  in  its  breadth  of  view  and  fulness  of 
Messianic  hope  it  vies  with  the  grandest  of  prophetic  utteiances.     It 


PSALM    LXXXVII.  519 

depicts  Zion  as  the  metropolis  of  the  universal  kingdom  of  God,  into 
which  all  nations  are  adopted  as  citizens.  The  franchise  of  Zion  is  con- 
ferred upon  them  as  though  it  were  theirs  by  right  of  birth.  It  stands 
alone  in  the  peculiar  form  in  which  the  idea  is  embodied,  though  many 
prophecies  lead  up  to  it.  See  especially  Is.  ii.  2 — 4  (  =  Mic,  iv.  i — 3); 
Is.  xi.  10 ;  xviii.  7  ;  xix.  19  ff. ;  xliv.  5  ;  Ix.  i  ff. ;  Zeph.  ii.  11;  iii.  9,  10 ; 
Zech.  ii.  11;  viii.  20 — 23.  Like  Isaiah  (xix.  24  f.)  the  poet  sees  the 
most  inveterate  foes  of  the  kingdom  of  God  acknowledging  His 
sovereignty ;  he  sees  nations  the  most  bitterly  antagonistic  to  Israel, 
the  most  diametrically  opposed  in  character  to  the  true  spirit  of  Israel, 
the  most  remote  from  the  influence  of  Israel,  brought  into  harmony 
with  Israel,  and  adopted  into  its  commonwealth. 

Thus  the  Psalm  is  a  prediction  of  the  incorporation  of  all  nations  into 
the  Church  of  Christ,  and  the  establishment  of  the  new  and  universal 
nationality  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  It  is  a  prophecy  in  O.T.  language 
of  "the  Jenisalem  that  is  above,  which  is  our  mother"  (Gal.  iv.  26). 
It  looks  forward  to  the  time  when  the  Gentiles  shall  no  longer  be 
"alienated  from  the  commonwealth  of  Israel  "  but  "fellow  citizens  with 
the  saints,  and  of  the  household  of  God  "  (Eph.  ii.  12,  19).  We  must 
not  indeed  read  the  full  Christian  idea  of  the  new  birth  into  the  words 
"This  one  was  born  there,"  for  primarily  they  refer  to  nations  not  to 
individuals ;  yet  we  may  see  in  them  a  foreshadowing  of  the  truth  that  a 
new  birth  is  requisite  for  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  God  (John  iii.  3  ff.). 
The  Psalm  has  been  assigned,  with  considerable  plausibility,  to  the 
age  of  Hezekiah.  (i)  The  same  loving  enthusiasm  for  Zion,  and  the 
same  hopes  of  the  conversion  of  the  nations,  meet  us  in  the  Psalms  and 
prophecies  of  that  period.  See  especially  Pss.  xlvi,  xlvii,  xlviii,  Ixxvi ; 
Is.  xix.  24  f.  (2)  'Rahab'is  Isaiah's  name  for  Egypt  (xxx.  7,  R.V.), 
which  was  a  leading  power  at  the  time ;  Babylon  was  brought  into  contact 
with  Judah  (Is.  xxxix) ;  the  Philistines  had  been  subjugated  by  Hezekiah 
(2  Kings  xviii.  8);  the  Ethiopians  were  coming  into  notice  (Is.  xviii; 
xxxvii.  9);  and  after  the  retreat  of  Sennacherib  many  nations  sent  con- 
gratulatory embassies  to  Plezekiah  with  gifts  for  the  Temple  (2  Chron. 
xxxii.  23). 

On  the  other  hand  the  parallels  of  thought  and  language  with  the 
later  part  of  the  book  of  Isaiah  (especially  xliv.  5;  Ix.  i  ff.)  and  Zecha- 
riah,  are  not  less  striking;  and  the  mention  of  Babylon  rather  than 
Assyria  points  to  a  date  after  that  power  had  taken  the  place  of  Assyria 
as  the  mistress  of  Western  Asia.  Egypt,  the  ancient  enemy,  and  Babylon, 
the  recent  oppressor,  are  named  as  the  typical  foes  of  God's  people.  It 
seems  best  then  to  suppose  that  the  Psalm  was  written  (like  Ps.  Ixxxv) 
after  the  Return  from  Babylon,  to  cheer  the  drooping  spirits  of  those 
returned  exiles  who  were  in  danger  of  being  utterly  disheartened  by  the 
disappointing  contrast  between  the  weakness  and  insignificance  of  their 
little  community,  and  the  grandeur  and  magnificence  of  the  prophetic 
promises  of  the  future  glory  and  greatness  of  Zion.  In  poetic  language 
and  with  prophetic  authority  it  reasserts  the  fundamental  truths  of 
Jehovah's  choice  of  Zion,  and  of  Zion's  destiny  in  relation  to  the  nations. 
Never  had  such  encouragement  been  more  needed;  never  was  such  a 
faith  more  clearly  the  fruit  of  divine  inspiration. 


520  PSALM   LXXXVII.  i,  2. 

The  Psalm  consists  of  two  stanzas  with  a  conduding  verse. 

i.  Zion  is  the  city  of  God,  founded  and  beloved  by  Him,  the  heir  of 
glorious  promises  (i — 3). 

ii.  God  proclaims  that  it  is  His  will  to  reconcile  her  ancient  eneniies 
to  Himself  and  incorporate  them  as  her  citizens.  Zion  shall  be  the 
'    mother-city  of  the  nations  of  the  world  (4 — 6). 

iii.  A  picture  of  the  rejoicing  of  those  who  find  in  her  the  source  of 
every  joy  (7). 

A  Psalm  or  Song  for  the  sons  of  Korah. 

87  His  foundation  is  in  the  holy  mountains. 
2  The  Lord  loveth  the  gates  of  Zion 
More  than  all  the  dwellings  of  Jacob. 

1 — 3.     The  glory  of  Zion  the  city  of  God. 

1.  The  Psalmist's  heart  is  full  of  his  theme.  He  states  it  abruptly 
in  a  verse  of  a  single  line  (cp.  xviii.  i) : 

'Tis  his  foundation  upon  the  holy  mountains : 
which  stands  by  itself  as  a  kind  of  title  to  his  poem  or  inscription  on  his 
picture.     Zion  is  a  city  founded  by  God  Himself  (Is.  xiv.  32).     Its  site 
is  consecrated  (ii.  6;  xliii.  3;  xlviii.  i,  and  often)  by  the  ownership  and 
presence  of  Jehovah. 

The  plural  mountams  (cp.  cxxxiii.  3)  may  be  merely  poetical,  or  it 
may  refer  to  the  different  hills  upon  which  Jerusalem  stood,  or  generally 
to  the  mountainous  region  in  which  it  was  situated.  "Jerusalem  was 
on  the  ridge,  the  broadest  and  most  strongly  marked  ridge  of  the  back- 
bone of  the  complicated  hills,  which  extend  through  the  whole  country 
from  the  Desert  to  the  plain  of  Esdraelon."  Like  Rome  and  Constanti- 
nople, it  stood  upon  a  "multiplicity  of  eminences,"  and  "the  peculiarity 
imparted  to  its  general  aspect  and  to  its  history  by  these  various  heights 
is  incontestable."  Stanley,  Sinai  and  Palestine, -^p.  176,  177.  Comp. 
note  on  xlviii.  2. 

The  brevity  and  abruptness  of  the  verse  have  led  some  commentators 
to  conjecture  that  the  first  line  has  been  lost,  and  others  to  combine  vv. 
I,  2  in  construction  (cp.  R.V.  marg.)  thus: 

His  foundation  upon  the  holy  mountains  doth  Jehovah  love, 
Yea,  the  gates  of  Zion  &c. 

The  conjecture  is  unnecessary,  and  though  the  combination  of  z^.  1,2 
would  give  a  good  parallelism,  the  Ancient  Versions  support  the  divi- 
sion of  the  Massoretic  Text,  and  the  abrupt  beginning  is  in  accordance 
with  the  terse  oracular  style  of  the  Psalm. 

P.B.V.  ^her  foundation'  is  untenable.  The  gender  of  the  pronoun  in 
the  Heb.  shews  that  it  cannot  refer  to  the  city. 

2.  the  gates  of  Zion']  A  poetical  expression  for  the  city,  specially 
appropriate  with  reference  to  the  thought  of  the  crowd  of  pilgrims 
(cxxii.  2)  entering  it  from  all  nations  (Is.  Ix.  11 ;  Rev.  xxii.  14). 

more  than  all  the  dwellings  of  Jacob]  Better  than  any  of  the  other 
cities  of  Israel,  though  they  too  are  goodly  (Num.  xxiv.  5,  where  the 
same  word  is  rendered  'tabernacles'). 


PSALM    LXXXVII.  3—5.  521 

Glorious  things  are  spoken  of  thee,  3 

0  city  of  God.     Selah. 

1  will  make  mention  of  Rahab  and  Babylon  to  them  that  4 

know  mg : 
Behold  Philistia,  and  Tyre,  with  Ethiopia  j 
This  man  was  born  there. 
"And  of  Zion  it  shall  be  said,  This  and  that  man  was  born  in  5 

her: 


3.  Glorious  things  are  spoken  of  thee']  This  need  not  be  limited  to 
the  utterance  of  tjv.  4  ff.,  but  may  include  the  great  prophetic  promises 
generally,  such  as  Is.  li.  iff.,  xi.  10,  xix.  2off.  ;and,  if  the  Psalm  is 
post-exilic,  Ix.  i  ff.  O  city  of  God]  Of  His  choice,  His  love. 
His  care.     Cp.  xlvi.  4;  xlviii.  i,  2,  8. 

4 — 6.  The  nations  of  the  world  shall  be  enrolled  as  Zion's  children ; 
and  Zion  shall  be  glorified  by  this  accession  of  unnumbered  fresh  citizens. 

4.  God  Himself  is  the  speaker  (cp.  Ix.  6 ff.).  I  will  make  mention 
of,  solemnly  and  publicly  acknowledge,  Rahab  and  Babylon,  as  among 
them  that  know  me,  that  own  Me  as  their  God  and  worship  Me. 
Cp.  xxxvi.  10;  ix.  10;  V.  11;  Is.  xix.  i\.  Rahab'^  is  a  nickname  for 
Egypt  (Is.  xxx.  7;  li.  9;  Ps.  Ixxxix.  10).  It  may  have  been  the  name 
of  some  mythological  sea-monster  (Job  xxvi.  12,  ix.  13,  R.V.)  chosen  as 
an  emblem  of  Egypt  (cp.  Is.  li.  9),  or  it  may  simply  mean  'Arrogance.* 
Its  use  here  is  significant :  the  ferocious  monster  is  tamed;  the  blustering 
antagonist  is  reconciled. 

Behold  &c.]  God  points  as  it  were  to  each  of  these  nations  in  succes- 
sion and  says,  This  one  was  born  there,  namely  in  Zion.  By  this 
divine  edict  each  of  them  is  invested  with  the  full  rights  and  privileges 
of  citizenship  as  though  they  had  been  bom  in  Zion. 

It  is  God's  purpose  to  reconcile  all  nations  to  Himself.  Egypt,  the 
world-power  of  the  South,  the  ancient  and  hereditary  enemy  of  God's 
people ;  Babylon,  the  world-power  of  the  North,  the  cruel  oppressor  of 
later  times;  warlike  Philistia,  by  which  Israel  had  so  often  been 
harassed  ;  proud  Tyre,  the  haughty  representative  of  commerce  and 
wealth;  distant  Ethiopia,  famous  for  its  stalwart  warriors  (Is.  xviii.  7); 
— all  will  be  brought  to  recognise  Jehovah  as  their  God ;  all  shall  be 
incorporated  into  the  commonwealth  of  Israel  (Eph.  ii.  12).  The 
thought  is  the  same  as  that  of  Is.  xix.  24,  25,  though  it  is  expressed  in 
different  language. 

5.  The  Psalmist  speaks,  echoing  the  divine  decree  from  Zion's  point 
of  view,  dwelling  upon  the  honour  which  will  accrue  to  Zion  by  this 
accession  of  citizens. 

*  It  may  be  noted  that  this  name  is  differently  spelt  in  Hebrew  from  Rahab 
in  Josh.  ii.  i  ff.,  and  is  derived  from  a  different  root.     This  is  Rahab,  that  Rdchab. 


522  PSALM    LXXXVII.  6,  7. 

And  the  Highest  himself  shall  establish  her. 

6  The  Lord  shall  count,  when  he  writeth  up  the  people, 
.^Jjkat  this  ma7i  was  born  there.     Selah. 

7  As  well  the  singers  as  the  players  on  instruments  jv^g//  be 

All  my  springs  are  in  thee.  ' 

Yea,  of  Zion  it  shall  be  said, 

Each  and  every  one  was  horn  in  her ; 

And  the  Most  High  himself  shall  establish  her. 

Not  merely  certain  specified  nations  but  all  the  nations  shall  call  Zion 
their  mother-city.  One  after  another  comes  to  be  reckoned  among  her 
children  ^  Grammatically  it  is  possible  to  understand  each  and  every 
one  of  individuals,  but  the  context  is  decisive  in  favour  of  taking  this 
verse  to  refer  to  nations,  as  w.  4  and  6  do.  Each  nation,  reckoned  as 
a  whole,  receives  the  right  of  citizenship.  Individuals  receive  it  as 
members  of  their  nation. 

The  LXX  and  some  other  Ancient  Versions  xtnditr  hath  founded  her ; 
but  shall  establish  her,  as  xlviii.  8,  is  certainly  right.  Under  the  pro- 
tection and  blessing  of  the  Sovereign  Ruler  of  the  world  she  grows  ever 
stronger  and  nobler  as  each  fresh  nation  joins  the  universal  kingdom  of 
God. 

6.  Jehovah  shall  reckon,  when  he  registers  the  peoples, 
•This  one  was  born  there.' 

Jehovah  holds  His  census  of  the  nations,  and  writes  their  names  down 
in  His  book.  One  after  another  of  them  He  registers  as  'bom  in  Zion.' 
It  is  the  official  confirmation  of  their  rights  of  citizenship.  Allusions  to 
the  registers  of  citizens  are  found  in  Ixix.  28;  Is.  iv.  3 ;  Ezek.  xiii.  9 ;  and 
the  importance  attached  to  genealogical  registers  appears  in  Ezra  ii,  62. 

7.  Conclusion.  The  Psalm  ends  as  abmptly  as  it  began,  with  a 
verse  which  is  enigmatic  in  its  brevity.  It  is  best  explained  as  an 
outline  picture  of  the  universal  rejoicing  with  which  the  citizens  of  Zion 
greet  their  mother. 

And  singing  as  well  as  dancing  (shall  they  chant), 
•AU  my  fountains  are  in  thee.' 

The  rendering  dancing  is  preferable  to  playing  on  the  flute  (cp.  A.V., 
R.V.  marg,).  For  dancing  as  an  expression  of  religious  rejoicing  see 
XXX.  11;  cxlix.  3;  cl.  4;  Ex.  XV.  20;  2  Sam.  vi.  16. 

The  second  line  is  their  anthem.  It  may  even  be  a  fragment  of  some 
well-known  hymn.  My  fountains  is  to  be  understood  metaphorically, 
as  'fountains  of  salvation'  in  Is.  xii.  3.  Cp.  Ps.  xxxvi.  q  f. ;  Ixxxiv.  6; 
Ezek.  xlvii.  1;  Joel  iii.  18;  Zech.  xiv.  8.  It  is  possible,  but  less 

satisfactory,  to  take  the  verse  as  the  Psalmist's  apostrophe  to  Zion : 

Both  they  that  sing  and  they  that  dance, 
All  my  fountains  are  in  thee : 

*  The  reading  of  the  LXX,  though  due  apparently  simply  to  a  textual  error  in  the 
Greek  (jx-qTrfp  for  |u.rjTi,  Vulg.  7iuntquic€),  catches  the  spirit  of  the  Psalm  too  strikingly 
to  be  passed  over:  O  AI other  Sion,  shall  a  vtan  say. 


PSALM    LXXXVITT.  523 

"meaning  that  every  source  of  pleasure,  music,  singing,  &c.  was  to  be 
found  in  Zion"  (Bp  Perowne).     So  Milton  in  his  paraphrase: 
Both  they  who  sing  and  they  who  dance 

With  sacred  songs  are  there ; 
In  thee  fresh  brooks  and  soft  streams  glance, 
And  all  my  fountains  clear. 
The  obscurity  of  the  verse  must  however  be  acknowledged.     Cheyne 
thinks  that  it  may  be  "a  fragment  of  a  description  of  a  joyous  proces- 
sion."    Cp.  Ixviii.  25.     Is  it  possible  that  it  is  not,  strictly  speaking, 
part  of  the  Psalm,  but  a  liturgical  direction  to  sing  the  anthem  "All  my 
fountains  are  in  thee "  at  the  end  of  the  Psalm,  as  an  expression  of  the 
joy  of  Zion's  citizens  ? 


PSALM  LXXXVIIL 

Tliis  is  the  saddest  Psalm  in  the  whole  Psalter.  It  is  a  pathetic  cry  of 
hopeless  despair  in  the  midst  of  unrelieved  suffering.  In  other  Psalms  the 
light  breaks  through  the  clouds  at  last:  here  the  gloom  is  deepest  at 
the  close.     It  is  characteristic  that  the  last  word  is  darkness. 

Is  the  Psalmist  describing  his  ovni  personal  experience,  or  does  he 
speak  in  the  name  of  the  nation?  There  is  much  to  be  said  for  the 
view  that  the  speaker  is  Israel  in  exile,  "lamenting  its  exclusion  from  the 
light  of  its  Lord's  Presence."  Possibly,  as  may  be  the  case  in  Lam.  iii, 
the  community  identifies  itself  with  the  typical  sufferer  Job,  and  borrows 
his  language  to  describe  its  sufferings.  So  the  Psalm  is  interpreted 
in  the  Targum,  which  paraphrases  v.  6,  "Thou  hast  placed  me  in  exile 
which  is  like  the  nether  pit";  and  in  the  Syriac  Version,  which  prefixes 
the  title,  "Concerning  the  people  which  was  in  Babylon." 

But  while  the  Psalm  was  doubtless  so  applied  in  liturgical  use,  there  is 
nothing  in  it  which  demands  the  national  interpretation,  and  much  which 
it  is  most  natural  to  regard  as  primarily  personal;  and  it  seems  best  to 
regard  it  as  springing  out  of  the  personal  experience  of  some  heavily 
afflicted  saint.  He  had  been,  it  would  seem,  a  victim  of  the  painful  and 
loathsome  disease  of  leprosy  from  his  childhood.  Life  had  been  for 
him  a  living  death.  lie  stood  on  the  brink  of  the  grave :  nay,  though 
still  alive  on  earth,  he  seemed  to  have  been  plunged  into  the  darkness 
of  Sheol.  Banished  from  society,  he  could  have  no  part  in  the  joys  of 
life;  excluded  from  the  Temple,  he  could  have  no  share  in  the  worship 
which  was  the  outward  and  visible  sign  of  God's  covenant  with  His 
people.  The  wrath  of  God  seemed  to  be  resting  upon  him.  Nor  could 
he  look  forward  to  a  life  through  death  in  which  his  soul  "delivered 
from  the  burden  of  the  flesh"  would  be  "in  joy  and  felicity."  Death, 
as  it  then  seemed,  must  sever  the  covenant  relation  between  God  and 
His  people.  Sheol  was  the  land  of  oblivion,  where  neither  He  remem- 
bered them,  nor  they  remembered  Him.  Still  less  could  he  console 
himself  with  the  hope  of  a  joyful  resurrection. 

Such  a  Psalm  brings  home  to  us,  as  no  other  does,  a  sense  of  the 
shadow  which  rested  upon  the  life  of  ancient  Israel,  and  of  the  precious- 
ness  of  the  revelation  of  eternal  life  in  Jesus  Christ  (Heb.  ii.  14,  15).    It 


524  PSALM    LXXXVIIL 

is  moreover  a  noble  example  of  a  faith  which  trusts  God  utterly  in  spite 
of  all  discouragement,  and  cleaves  to  God  most  passionately  when  God 
seems  to  have  withdrawn  Himself  most  completely. 

The  Psalm  presents  many  parallels  with  similar  Psalms,  with  the 
Book  of  Lamentations,  and  with  the  Book  of  Job,  with  which  the  author 
must  have  been  familiar,  and  from  which  he  borrows  language  for  the 
portraiture  of  his  own  sufferings.  Who  he  was,  it  is  idle  to  speculate. 
Uzziah  in  his  leprosy,  Hezekiah  in  his  sickness,  Jeremiah  in  his  dun- 
geon, have  been  suggested.  Ingenious,  but  improbable,  is  the  conjec- 
ture of  Delitzsch,  that  Heman  the  Ezrahite,  in  conjunction  with  other 
sages  of  Solomon's  time,  was  the  author  of  the  Book  of  Job,  and  that 
in  this  Psalm  he  records  his  personal  experiences,  which  are  there  ex- 
panded in  a  dramatic  form. 

The  Psalm  may  be  analysed  as  follows  : 

i.  After  an  introductory  invocation  the  Psalmist  pleads  the  intensity 
of  his  sufferings,  if  so  be  he  may  move  God  to  pity.  He  is  at  the  point 
of  death ;  nay  already  counted  as  a  dead  man ;  deserted  by  his  friends ; 
plunged  as  it  were  into  the  very  depths  of  Sheol  by  the  visitation  of 
God's  wrath  ( I— 8). 

ii.  He  has  no  hope  in  life.  Yet  he  has  continued  instant  in  prayer. 
Can  God  display  His  power  and  love  in  the  unseen  world  ?  Nay,  that 
is  incredible  (9 — 12). 

iii.  Still  he  casts  himself  upon  God.  Why  does  God  reject  him,  and 
drive  him  to  distraction  by  the  terrors  of  His  wrath,  hemming  him  in 
and  isolating  him  so  that  no  ray  of  sympathy  relieves  the  misery  of  his 
life(  13-18)? 

The  Psalm  is  appointed  as  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Good  Friday, 
doubtless  because  the  Ancient  Fathers  interpreted  it,  like  Ps.  xxii,  as 
the  utterance  of  the  suffering  Christ. 

The  title  is  composite.  The  first  half,  A  song,  a  Psalm  of  the  sons 
of  Korah,  unless  it  is  a  mere  accidental  repetition  of  the  title  of  Ps. 
Ixxxvii,  indicates  that  it  was  taken  from  the  Korahite  collection.  The 
second  half,  For  the  Chief  Musician;  set  to  Mahalath  Leannoth. 
Maschil  of  Heman  the  Ezrahite,  gives  the  musical  setting  and  tra- 
ditional authorship.  Leannoth  may  mean  'for  singing  antiphonally'; 
but  more  probably  Mahalath  Leannoth,  i.e.  'sickness  to  afflict'  is  the 
title  of  the  melody  to  which  the  Psalm  was  to  be  sung,  which  may  or 
may  not  have  been  identical  with  that  called  Mahalath  in  the  title  of 
Ps.  liii.  On  Maschil  see  Introd.  p.  xix. 

The  designation  of  Heman  and  Ethan  as  Ezrahites  in  the  titles  of 
this  and  the  following  Psalm  is  perplexing. 

(i)  In  I  Kings  iv.  31,  Ethan  the  Ezrahite,  Heman,  Calcol,  and 
Darda  are  named  as  famous  sages,  whose  wisdom  was  surpassed  by  that 
of  Solomon.  In  i  Chron.  ii.  6,  we  have  the  same  four  names  (for 
Dara  is  an  obvious  error  of  transcription  for  Darda)  given  as  sons 
or  descendants  of  Zerah.  It  is  natural  to  infer  that  the  patronymic 
Ezrahite  means,  as  it  may  legitimately  do,  'of  the  family  of  Zerah.' 
Heman  and  Ethan  consequently  belonged  to  the  tribe  of  Judah.  It 
is  not  stated  whether  the  four  sages  of  i  Kings  iv.  31  were  contemporary 
with  Solomon  or  not.     The  comparison  would  be  more  forcible  if  they 


PSALM    LXXXVIII.  I,  2.  525 

were  the  most  famous  sages  of  all  past  time  known  to  the  historian. 
But  on  the  other  hand  it  need  not  be  supposed  that  they  were  literally 
sons  of  Zerah,  for  'sons'  in  genealogical  language  frequently  means 
'descendants,'  and  in  i  Kings  they  (or  at  least  the  last  three  of  them) 
are  called  'the  sons  of  Mahol.' 

(ii)  In  I  Chron.  xv.  17,  19  Heman  and  Ethan  appear  along  with 
Asaph  as  leaders  of  the  Temple  music.  Heman,  who  was  a  Korahite, 
represented  the  family  of  Kohath ;  Asaph  that  of  Gershom ;  Ethan  that 
of  Merari.  In  i  Chron.  xxv.  5  Heman  is  called  "the  king's  seer,"  and 
from  a  comparison  of  i  Chron.  xvi.  41,  42;  xxv.  i  ff.  with  xv.  17,  19  it 
has  been  inferred  that  Ethan  was  also  called  Jeduthun. 

It  is  certainly  natural  to  suppose  that  the  famous  musicians  are  meant 
here,  and  that  these  Psalms  were  traditionally  ascribed  to  them,  or 
were  in  some  way  connected  with  the  guilds  or  choirs  which  bore  their 
names,  as  the  Psalms  of  Asaph  were  connected  with  the  guild  or  choir 
of  Asaph.  Accordingly  various  attempts  have  been  made  to  explain 
how  Levites  could  also  be  called  Ezrahites.  It  has  been  conjectured 
that  they  were  Judahites  who  had  been  adopted  into  the  Levitical  guild, 
or  Levites,  who  as  dwelling  in  the  territory  assigned  to  the  family  of 
Zerah  were  reckoned  to  belong  to  that  family  (cp.  Judg.  xvii.  7).  But 
these  conjectures  are  precarious,  and  it  seems  most  probable  that  Heman 
and  Ethan  the  musicians  have  been  wrongly  identified  with  their  name- 
sakes the  famous  sages. 


A  Song  or  Psalm  for  the  sons  of  Korah.     To  the  chief  Musician  upon  Mahatath 
Leannoth,  Maschil  of  Heman  the  Ezrahite. 

0  Lord  God  of  my  salvation,  g3 

1  have  cried  day  and  night  before  thee : 

Let  my  prayer  come  before  thee  :  , 

1 — 8.  The  Psalmist  appeals  for  a  hearing,  stpporting  his  appeal  by 
a  pathetic  description  of  the  chastisements  by  which  God  has  brought 
him  to  the  very  edge  of  the  grave. 

1.  O  Lord  God  &c.]  Jehovah,  the  God  of  my  salvation.  Cp. 
xxvii.  9. 

/  have  cried  day  and  night  before  thee\  Parallels  such  as  xxii.  2  sug- 
gest that  this  is  the  meaning  intended,  but  it  is  difficult  to  extract  it  from 
the  Heb.  text,  even  if  we  assume  that  "the  broken  language  corresponds 
to  the  weakness  of  the  gasping  sufiferer"  (Kay).  An  ingenious  and 
plausible  emendation  removes  the  difficulty  thus : 

Jehovah  my  Gpd,  I  have  cried  for  help  In  the  day  time, 
And  in  the  night  hath  my  crying  been  before  thee. 
Cp.  V.  \i\  XXX.  1 ;  Job  xix.  7 ;  Ps.  xlii.  8.    Though  God  has  forsaken 
him,  he  can  still  address  Him  as  my  God  (xxii.  r).     Like  Job,  he  must 
appeal  to  God  even  when  God  seems  wholly  alienated  from  him. 

2.  come  before  thee']  Enter  into  thy  presence  (R.V.  from  P.B.V.). 
Cp.  xviii.  6;  Ixxix.  11. 


526  PSALM    LXXXVIII.  3—6. 

Incline  thine  ear  unto  my  cry ; 

3  For  my  soul  is  full  of  troubles : 

And  my  life  draweth  nigh  unto  the  grave. 

4  I  am  counted  with  them  that  go  down  into  the  pit : 
I  am  as  a  man  f/iaf  hath  no  strength : 

5  Fre^  among  the  dead, 

Like  the  slain  that  lie  in  the  grave, 
Whom  thou  rememberest  no  more  : 
And  they  are  cut  off  from  thy  hand. 

6  Thou  hast  laid  me  in  the  lowest  pit, 

my  prayer... my  cry]  Cp.  xvii.  i ;  Ixi.  i.  The  word  for  *cry '  denotes 
a  shrill  piercing  cry,  frequently  of  joy,  but  sometimes,  as  here,  of  sup- 
plication, "expressive  of  emotional  excitement  such  as  an  Eastern 
scruples  not  to  use  in  prayer  "  (Cheyne). 

3.  Ju?r  &.C.]  He  pleads  the  urgency  of  his  need  as  the  ground  for  a 
hearing. 

draweth  nigh  &c.]  Hath  drawn  nigh  unto  Sheol,  the  gloomy  nether 
world  which  is  the  abode  of  the  departed.     Cp.  vi.  5  ;  cvii.  18. 

4.  He  is  regarded  as  a  dying  man.  The  pit  is  the  grave  or  Sheol. 
Cp.  xxviii.  i;  cxliii.  7;  xxii.  29;  Prov.  i.  \i. 

that  hath  no  strength]  Like  the  feeble  shadows  of  the  dead.  Or  as 
R.V.,  that  hath  no  help  :  cp.  the  cognate  word  in  xxii.  19,  rendered  in 
R.V.,  O  thou  viy  succour. 

5.  Free  atnong  the  dead]  There  can  hardly  be  any  allusion  to  Job 
iii.  19,  where  the  word  is  used  of  a  welcome  release  from  servitude,  for 
it  is  a  far-fetched  interpretation  to  suppose  that  a  new  turn  is  given  to 
the  phrase  and  that  it  here  means  '  dismissed  against  his  will  from  the 
sers'ice  of  God.*  Render  as  R.V.,  cast  off,  or  R.V.  marg.,  cast  away. 
A  cognate  word  is  used  for  '  the  house  of  separation '  in  which  Uzziah 
lived  as  a  leper  {2  Chron.  xxvi.  21). 

Another  but  doubtful  translation  is,  My  couch  is  among  the  dead: 
cp.  Job  xvii.  13. 

the  slain  &c.]  The  slain  in  battle,  whose  corpses  are  flung  into  a 
nameless  common  grave.     Cp.  Ezek.  xxxii.  24  flf. 

whom  thou  retnemberest  no  more]  Sheol  is  the  'land  of  oblivion,* 
where  men  neither  remember  God  (vi.  5 ;  xxx.  9)  nor  are  remembered 
by  Him.  They  are  cut  off  from  thy  hand,  severed  from  Thy  gracious 
help  and  protection.  Cp.  xxxi.  22;  Lam.  iii.  54;  1  Chron.  xxvi.  21. 
On  this  gloomy  view  of  the  future  state  see  Introd.  pp.  xciii  ff. 

6.  Thou  hast  laid  me]  God  is  treating  him  as  though  he  were  actually 
dead.     The  same  word  is  used  in  the  same  connexion  in  xlix.  14. 

in  the  lowest  pit]  The  nether  world  in  the  depths  of  the  earth.  Cp. 
Ixxxvi.  13;  Ixiii.  9;  Lam.  iii.  55.  The  Targum  explains  it  allegorically 
of  the  Exile.  ' '  Thou  hast  placed  me  in  exile  which  is  like  the  nether 
pit."  in  darkness]     R.V.  in  dark  places.    So  Sheol  is  described  in 

cxhii.  3;  Lam.  iii.  6.     Cp.  Job  x.  21,  23. 


PSALM    LXXXVlll.  7—9.  527 

In  darkness,  in  the  deeps. 

Thy  wrath  lieth  hard  upon  me,  j 

And  thou  hast  afflicted  me  with  all  thy  waves.     Selah. 

Thou  hast  put  away  mine  acquaintance  far  from  me;  j 

Thou  hast  made  me  an  abomination  unto  them : 

I  am  shut  up,  and  I  cannot  come  forth. 

Mine  eye  mourneth  by  reason  of  affliction :  1 

Lord,  I  have  called  daily  upon  thee, 

I  have  stretched  out  my  hands  unto  thee. 

in  the  deeps]  A  word  generally  used  of  the  depths  of  the  sea :  here 
metaphorically  of  the  depths  of  misery  (Ixix.  15;  cp.  Lam.  iii.  54),  or  as 
another  synonym  for  Sheol,  which  was  supposed  to  be  situated  below 
the  sea.     Cp.  Ixxi.  20;  Job  xxvi.  5. 

The  LXX  and  Syr.  however  read  *  shadow  of  death  '  or  *  deep  gloom ' 
(xUv.  19,  note).  This  reading  only  implies  a  transposition  of  the  con- 
sonants in  the  Heb.  text,  and  is  supported  by  the  parallel  passage  in 
Job  X.  21,  22,  which  seems  to  be  in  the  Psalmist's  mind. 

7.  Thy  wrath  &c.]     Cp.  xxxii.  4;  xxxviii.  2. 

thou  hast  afflicted  me  with  all  thy  waves']    Cp.  xlii.  7  for  the  metaphor. 

8.  Like  Job  he  is  deserted  even  by  his  familiax  friends  (not  merely 
acquaintance^  as  A.V.),  and  this  is  due  to  the  act  of  God,  Who  has 
smitten  him  with  a  sickness  which  makes  them  loathe  even  the  sight  of 
him.  Cp.  xxxi.  11 ;  Job  xix.  13  ff.,  19.  He  seems  ^o  describe  himself 
as  a  leper  like  Job.  Leprosy  was  a  living  death  (Num.  xii.  12):  more 
than  any  other  disease  it  was  regarded  as  the  direct  '  stroke '  of  God  (Job 
xix.  21).  The  leper  was  cut  off  from  all  society  and  even  from  taking 
part  in  the  public  worship  of  God,  and  was  compelled  to  live  alone  (Lev. 
xiii.  46 ;  2  Chr.  xxvi.  2 1 ).  The  reference  is  of  course  not  to  the  tem- 
porary seclusion  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  whether  a  man  was  really 
a  leper  (Lev.  xiii.  4  ff.),  but  to  the  permanent  separation  from  society, 
in  which  the  leper  was  virtually  a  prisoner,  not  daring  to  expose  himself 
to  the  public  gaze  (Job  xxxi.  34). 

Possibly  however  the  last  line  of  the  verse  is  not  literal  but  metaphor- 
ical, describing  the  hopelessness  of  his  condition  as  a  prisoner  who  cannot 
escape.     Cp.  Job  iii.  23;  xiii.  27;  xix.  8;  Lam.  iii.  7. 

St  Luke  seems  to  allude  to  this  verse  in  his  narrative  of  the  Crucifixion, 
ch.  xxiii.  49. 

9 — 12.  Again  (cp.  v.  i)  he  pleads  the  constancy  of  his  prayers.  His 
strength  is  failing.  He  will  soon  be  dead ;  and  in  the  grave  he  will  be 
beyond  the  reach  of  God's  love  and  faithfulness.  Cp.  Job  x.  20  ff. ; 
xvii.  II  ff. 

9.  Mine  eye  mourneth]  R.V.  wasteth  away.  The  sunken,  lack- 
lustre eye  is  the  sure  sign  of  suffering.     Cp.  vi.  7;  xxxi.  9;  Job  xvii.  7. 

stretched  out]  R.V.  spread  forth,  in  the  attitude  of  prayer.  Cp. 
(though  the  word  is  different)  xliv,  20;  cxliii.  6;  Is.  i.  15. 


528  PSALM    LXXXVIII.  10—13. 

10  Wilt  thou  shew  wonders  to  the  dead? 

Shall  the  dead  arise  and  praise  thee  ?     Selah. 

11  Shall  thy  lovingkindness  be  declared  in  the  grave? 
Or  thy  faithfulness  in  destruction  ? 

12  Shall  thy  wonders  be  known  in  the  dark  ? 

And  thy  righteousness  in  the  land  of  forgetfulness  ? 

13  But  unto  thee  have  I  cried,  O  Lord  ; 

And  in  the  morning  shall  my  prayer  prevent  thee. 


10.  This  and  the  two  following  verses  can  hardly  be,  as  some  com- 
mentators suppose,  the  prayer  to  which  he  refers  in  v.  9.  The  connexion 
of  thought  seems  to  be  this.  He  has  prayed  that  God  will  shew  him 
His  marvellous  lovingkindness,  but  he  will  soon  be  beyond  the  reach  of 
it,  for  of  course  from  his  point  of  view  there  can  be  but  one  answer  to 
the  questions  of  vv.  10 — 12,  and  that  a  negative  one.  In  despair  he 
asks; 

Wilt  thou  do  wonders  for  the  dead? 

Shall  the  shades  arise  and  praise  thee  ? 
To  do  'wonders'  is  the  prerogative  of  God  (Ex.  xv.  ii ;  Ps.  Ixxvii. 
II,  J 4):  to  give  thanks  to  Him  for  them  is  the  duty  of  man:  l^ut  the 
Psalmist  cannot  believe  that  even  God  will  work  such  a  miracle  that  the 
dead  shall  arise  and  praise  Him.  Rephdim^  the  Heb.  word  for  'shades,' 
denotes  the  dead  as  weak  and  nerveless  ghosts.  Arise  might  mean  no 
more  than  '  stand  up,'  referring  to  what  takes  place  in  the  unseen  world, 
but  the  parallel  of  Is.  xxvi.  14  suggests  that  it  is  a  resurrection  of  which 
the  poet  speaks  as  inconceivable.     Cp.  Job  xiv.  12. 

11.  To  proclaim  God's  lovingkindness  and  faithfulness  is  the  delight 
of  His  people  (xl.  10;  xcii.  2),  but  in  the  grave  they  will  neither  have 
cause  nor  power  to  do  it.  These  two  attributes,  so  often  coupled 
together,  are  the  keynote  of  Ps.  Ixxxix. 

'Destruction,'  Heb.  Abaddon,  is  almost  a  proper  name  for  Sheol  as 
the  place  of  ruin :  elsewhere  only  in  the  '  Wisdom  literature,'  Job  xxvi.  6; 
xxviii.  22;  xxxi.  12;  Prov.  xv.  11;  xxvii.  20.  Cp.  Rev.  ix.  11,  where 
it  is  the  name  of  "the  angel  of  the  abyss,"  Gk.  Apollyon,  'the  Destroyer.' 

12.  Nay,  God's  wonders  will  not  even  be  known  in  Darkness,  nor 
His  righteousness,  His  faithfulness  to  His  covenant  (Ixxi.  2,  and  often), 
in  the  land  of  Oblivion :  where  men  neither  remember  God  (vi.  5)  nor 
are  remembered  by  Him  [v.  5) ;  where  thought  feeling  and  action  are 
at  an  end.  See  Eccl.  ix.  5,  6,  10;  and  even  in  Ecclesiasticus  xvii.  27,  28, 
Baruch  ii.  17,  we  hear  the  echo  of  Is.  xxxviii.  18  f 

13 — 18.  Death  brings  no  hope.  Will  not  God  then  listen  to  his 
prayer  and  grant  him  some  relief  in  his  extremity  of  suffering  and 
solitude  ? 

13.  But  as  for  me,  unto  thee,  Jehovah,  have  I  cried  for  help, 
And  in  the  morning  shall  my  prayer  come  before  thee. 

He  contrasts  himself  with  the  dead,  whose  covenant  relation  with 


PSALM    LXXXVIII.  14—18.  529 

Lord,  why  castest  thou  off  my  soul  ?  m 

Why  hidest  thou  thy  face  from  me  ? 

I  am  afflicted  and  ready  to  die  from  fny  youth  up:  is 

While  I  suffer  thy  terrors  I  am  distracted. 

Thy  fierce  wrath  goeth  over  me ;  16 

Thy  terrors  have  cut  me  off. 

They  came  round  about  me  daily  like  water ;  17 

They  compassed  me  about  together. 

Lover  and  friend  hast  thou  put  far  from  me,  xS 

A?id  mine  acquaintance  into  darkness. 

God  is  at  an  end.     He  at  least  can  still  pray,  and  in  spite  of  all  dis- 
couragement will  not  cease  to  pray. 

Prevent  =  *go  to  meet,'  as  in  lix.  10;  Ixxix.  8.  The  first  thought  of 
each  day  shall  be  prayer.     Cp.  v.  3;  Iv.  17. 

14.  Questions  of  surprise  and  expostulation.  Cp.  Ixxiv.  i;  Ixxvii.  7. 
For  the  second  line  cp.  Job  xiii.  24;  Ps.  xiii.  i.  God  "shuts  out  his 
prayer,"  Lam.  iii.  8. 

15.  Will  God  have  no  pity  upon  one  v.hose  whole  life  has  been 
spent  at  the  point  of  death?  Could  this  be  said  of  Israel  as  a  nation? 
'From  youth'  is  of  course  frequently  used  of  the  nation  (cxxix.  i,  2; 
Jer.  xxxii.  30;  &c,),  but  Israel's  existence  had  not  been  continuously 
wretched  and  precarious. 

while  I  suffer  &c.]  I  have  home  thy  terrors  (till)  I  am  distracted. 
Terrors  is  a  favourite  word  with  Job.  Ihe  word  rendered  distracted 
occurs  here  only  and  is  of  doubtful  meaning.  Possibly  it  is  a  false  read- 
ing for  another  word  meaning  /hm/  or  stupefied  (xxxviii,  8). 

16.  The  fiery  streams  of  thy  -wrath  have  gone  over  me. 
Cp.  xiii.  7 ;  but  for  waves  he  substitutesy?^rj/  wraths. 

Thine  alarms,  a  word  found  only  in  Job  vi.  4,  have  made  an  end  of 
me  (Lam.  iii.  53), 

17.  They  have  surrounded  me  like  water  all  the  day  long; 
They  have  encompassed  me  about  together. 

The  figure  oiv.  16  is  continued.  The  flood  of  calamity  threatens  to 
engulf  him,  and  there  is  none  (t/.  18)  to  stretch  out  a  helping  hand 
to  the  drowning  man. 

18.  Cp.  V.  8;  xxxviii.  11;  Job  xix.  13. 

and  mine  aeqnaintance  into  daj-kncss]  A  difficult  phrase.  Another 
possible  rendering  is,  my  familiar  friends  are  darkness :  darkness 
takes  the  place  of  friends:  cp.  Job  xvii.  14. 

We  take  leave  of  this  sad  singer  with  his  riddle  unsolved,  with  no  ray 
of  light  piercing  the  gloom;  yet  believing  in  the  fact  of  God's  love 
though  he  can  only  see  the  signs  of  His  wrath,  appealing,  like  Job,  to 
God,  though  God  seems  utterly  hostile  to  him ;  assured  that  if  he  has 
any  hope  at  all,  it  is  in  God  alone.     His  faith  has  met  its  reward. 


34 


530  PSALM    LXXXIX. 


PSALM  LXXXIX. 

This  Psalm  presents,  with  singular  force  and  pathos,  the  dilemma 
which  must  have  pei-plexed  many  a  pious  soul  in  the  Exile.  On  the 
one  hand,  the  assured  lovingkindness  and  faithfulness  of  God  and  His 
explicit  promise  of  an  eternal  dominion  to  the  house  of  David ;  on  the 
other  hand,  the  sight  of  the  representative  of  that  house  a  discrowned 
exile,  and  his  kingdom  plundered  and  desolate.  How  could  the  con- 
tradiction be  reconciled? 

The  Psalm  consists  of  an  introduction,  followed  by  three  main  divi- 
sions.    Its  argument  may  be  traced  as  follows. 

i.  The  Psalmist's  purpose  is  to  celebrate  the  lovingkindness  and 
faithfulness  of  Jehovah,  which  he  is  persuaded  are  eternal  and  unlimited. 
They  have  been  manifested  in  the  covenant  with  David,  and  the  solemn 
proclamation  of  that  covenant  is  given  as  from  the  mouth  of  God  Him- 
self{i-4). 

ii.  After  this  introduction,  marked  off  as  such  by  a  musical  interlude, 
the  Psalmist  proceeds  to  celebrate  the  praise  of  Jehovah,  dwelling  espe- 
cially upon  the  power  and  faithfulness  which  are  the  double  guarantee 
for  the  performance  of  His  promises.  Heaven  and  the  angels  praise 
Him,  for  they  know  that  there  is  none  like  Him  (5 — 7) ;  He  manifests 
His  sovereignty  in  nature  and  in  history  as  the  Creator  and  Ruler  of 
the  world,  and  His  moral  attributes  of  righteousness  and  judgement, 
lovingkindness  and  truth,  are  the  climax  of  His  glory  (8 — 14).  Happy 
the  people  who  have  such  a  God,  and  whose  king  is  the  special  object 
of  His  choice  and  care  (15 — 18). 

iii.  The  mention  of  the  king  forms  the  transition  to  the  next  division, 
which  is  a  poetical  expansion  of  the  promise  to  David  recorded  in 
1  Sam.  vii.  On  that  memorable  occasion  Jehovah  had  solemnly  cove- 
nanted to  strengthen  and  support  the  king  of  His  choice,  to  give  him 
victory  over  all  his  enemies,  to  extend  his  dominion  to  the  boundaries 
foretold  of  old,  to  adopt  him  as  His  firstborn  and  make  him  supreme 
over  the  kings  of  the  earth,  to  give  eternal  dominion  to  his  seed  after 
him.  Though  the  sins  of  his  descendants  might  demand  punishment, 
the  divine  covenant  that  his  seed  and  his  throne  should  endure  for  ever, 
would  be  sacred  and  inviolable  (19 — 37). 

iv.  Having  thus  confronted  God  with  His  own  promises,  the  Psalmist 
proceeds  to  confront  Him  with  the  actual  state  of  things  which  is  in 
glaring  contradiction  to  those  promises.  He  has  abandoned  king  and 
people  to  defeat,  disgrace,  ruin  (38 — 45).  Remonstrance  is  followed  by 
earnest  pleading.  Life  is  short.  If  relief  come  not  soon,  the  Psalmist 
cannot  Uve  to  see  the  proof  of  God's  faithfulness,  and  meanwhile  he  and 
all  God's  servants  are  forced  to  endure  the  contemptuous  insults  of  their 
heathen  conquerors  (46 — 51). 

Thus  the  motive  of  the  Psalm  is  the  contradiction  between  God's 
chara"cter  and  promises  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  fate  of  the  king  and 
people  of  Israel  on  the  other  hand.  The  keywords  of  the  Psalm  are  loving- 


I 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  531 


kindness  zxAfaUhfulness^  each  of  which  occurs  seven  times  {;vv.  1,  2,  5, 
8,  14,  24,  28,  33,  49).  Cp.  aXso  faithful  (28,  37),  I  will  not  be  false  (33), 
/will  not  lie  (35),  covenant  (3,  28,  34,  39),  oath  {3,  35,  49).  Love  moved 
Jehovah  to  enter  into  the  covenant  with  the  house  of  David  :  fiiithful- 
ness  binds  Him  to  keep  it.  The  enthusiastic  praises  of  Jehovah's  majesty 
{w.  5ff.),  and  the  detailed  recital  of  the  splendour  and  solemnity  of  the 
promise  [vv.  i9flf.),  serve  to  heighten  the  contrast  of  the  king's  present 
degradation,  while  at  the  same  time  they  are  a  plea  and  a  consolation. 
Can  such  a  God,  is  the  Psahnist's  argument,  fail  to  make  good  so 
solemn  a  promise?  How  the  contradiction  is  to  be  solved  is  left  entirely 
to  God.  Hope  does  not  yet  take  the  shape  of  prayer  for  the  advent  of 
the  Messianic  king. 

The  Psalm  was  probably  written  during  the  Exile.  It  can  hardly  be 
earlier  than  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  and  the  downfall  of  the  Davidic 
kingdom,  and  on  the  other  hand  there  is  nothing  to  indicate  that  it  is 
later  than  the  Return  from  Babylon.  Vv.  38  ff.  receive  their  most 
natural  interpretation  if  it  was  written  while  Jehoiachin  was  still  a  dis- 
honoured captive  in  Babylon,  i.e.  before  B.C.  561.  For  they  seem  to 
speak  of  an  individual  who  is  the  representative  of  David  and  bears 
the  title  of  Jehovah's  anointed,  and  yet  is  actually  dethroned  and  dis- 
honoured ;  and  the  feeling  of  bitter  disappointment  which  they  breathe 
was  more  natural  when  the  fall  of  the  kingdom  was  comparatively  recent, 
than  it  would  have  been  after  the  Return,  when  at  least  the  dawn  of 
hope  had  begun,  and  a  step  had  been  taken  towards  the  solution  of  the 
problem  which  perplexed  the  Psalmist.  V.  14  a  is  borrowed  in  v.  1  of 
the  Restoration  hymn,  Ps.  xcvii. 

The  theory  that  the  Psalm  was  written  after  the  conquest  of  Judah  by 
Shishak  in  the  reign  of  Rehoboam  (i  Kings  xiv.  25ff. ;  2  Chron.  xii. 
2  ff.)  is  wholly  improbable.  The  language  oiw.  38  ff.  must  refer  to  some- 
thing more  than  a  temporary  disaster,  however  serious :  moreover  use  is 
certainly  made  of  Ps.  Ixxx.  12  in  w.  40,  41,  and  possibly  of  Pss.  Ixxiv, 
Ixxix  in  w.  41,  46,  50,  51,  Psalms  which  cannot  well  be  earlier  than 
the  Fall  of  Jerusalem. 

The  exilic  date  is  supported  by  the  parallels  in  Jer.  xxxiii.  21,  22,  26, 
and  Ezek.  xxxiv.  23,  24;  xxxvii.  24,  25,  the  only  passages  in  prophecy 
where  the  phrase  'David  my  servant'  is  used  (except  Is.  xxxvii.  35  =  2 
Kings  xix.  34).  Cp.  too  Ezek.  xxxiv.  29;  xxxvi.  6,  15  with  w.  50,  51  ; 
the  conjunction  of  'lovingkindness'  and  'faithfulness'  in  Lam.  iii.  22, 
23;  and  the  lament  over  the  capture  of 'Jehovah's  anointed' in  Lam. 
iv.  20. 

The  choice  of  this  Psalm  as  a  Proper  Psalm  for  Christmas  Day  is 
doubtless  due  to  its  containing  the  recital  of  the  great  Messianic  promise 
to  David.  But  the  whole  Psalm,  and  not  merely  that  part  of  it,  is 
appropriate,  for  the  Incarnation  was  the  true  solution  of  the  Psalmist's 
perplexity,  as  the  supreme  demonstration  of  the  lovingkindness  and 
faithfulness  of  God  in  the  fulfilment  of  His  promises.     Cp.  Luke  i.  32  f. 


34— a 


532  PSALM    LXXXIX.  1—4. 

Maschil  of  Ethan  the  Ezrahite. 

89  I  will  sing  of  the  mercies  of  the  Lord  for  ever : 

With  my  mouth  will  I  make  known  thy  faithfulness  to  all 
generations. 
k  For  I  have  said  Mercy  shall  be  built  up  for  ever : 
f  Thy  faithfulifi^s  shalt  thou  establish  in  the  very  heavens. 

3  I  have  made  a  covenant  with  my  chosen, 
I  have  sworn  unto  David  my  servant, 

4  Thy  seed  will  I  stablish  for  ever, 

And  build  up  thy  throne  to  all  generations.     Selah. 

On  Ethan  the  Ezrahite  see  Intr.  to  Ps.  Ixxxviii. 

1 — 4.  The  Psalmist  states  his  theme :  the  lovingkindness  and  faith- 
fulness of  Jehovah,  which  he  is  persuaded  can  never  fail ;  and  the  promise 
of  eternal  dominion  to  the  house  of  David. 

1.  God's  lovingkindnesses  and  faithfulness  are  an  unfailing  theme 
for  grateful  song.  The  past  lovingkindnesses  of  God  are  unalterable 
facts ;  His  faithfulness  to  His  promises  is  beyond  question :  thus  in 
these  opening  verses  the  poet's  faith  rises  triumphantly  over  the  circum- 
stances in  which  he  is  situated. 

the  mercies]  Better,  the  lovingkindnesses,  and  so  throughout  the 
Psalm.  *  Lovingkindness '  and  '  faithfulness  '  are  its  key-words,  each 
occurring  seven  times.  Cp.  Is.  Iv.  3,  "the  sure  "  (or  ''faithful ")  "loving- 
kindnesses shewn  to  David." 

with  my  mouth']     Aloud  and  openly. 

2.  For  I  have  said]  *I  have  deliberately  come  to  this  conclusion.* 
Thus  emphatically  the  poet  introduces  the  motive  for  his  song.  He  is 
persuaded  that  one  stone  after  another  will  continue  to  be  laid  in  the 
building  of  God's  lovingkindness  till  it  reaches  to  heaven  itself,  even 
though  it  may  now  seem  to  be  a  deserted  ruin.  Though  for  rhythmical 
reasons  the  verse  is  divided  into  two  lines,  its  sense  must  be  taken  as  a 
whole:  'Lovingkindness  and  faithfulness  shall  be  built  up  and  es- 
tablished for  ever  in  the  heavens.' 

For  the  metaphorical  use  of  'build*  cp.  Job  xxii.  23;  Jer.  xii.  16; 
Mai.  iii.  15.  The  choice  of  the  word,  as  well  as  of  'establish'  in  the 
next  line,  is  suggested  by  their  use  in  v.  4. 

in  the  very  heavens]  High  as  the  heavens  (xxxvi.  5) ;  or  in  the  region 
where  it  is  beyond  the  reach  of  earthly  vicissitudes  (cxix.  89,  90). 

Many  editors  would  read,  Thou  hast  said.,. My  faithfulness  shall  be 
established  &c.,  a  change  partly  supported  by  the  LXX  and  Jer.  But 
the  structure  of  the  Psalm  is  against  the  change,  for  the  verses  run  in 
pairs,  and  v.  1  is  clearly  to  be  connected  with  v,  I :  moreover  the  em- 
phatic '  I  have  said '  is  by  no  means  superfluous. 

3.  4.  These  verses  contain  the  sum  of  the  promise  to  David  and  his 
seed  (2  Sam.  vii.  5  fF.)  which  is  expanded  in  w.  19  fF.  It  is  in  relation 
to  this  promise  in  particular  that  the  poet  intends  to  sing  of  God's  loving- 
kindness and  faithfulness.     Almost  every  word  is  taken  from  the  narra- 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  5—7.  533 

And  the  heavens  shall  praise  thy  wonders,  O  Lord  : 
Thy  faithfulness  also  in  the  congregation  of  the  jinints. 
For  who  in  the  heaven  can  be  compared  unto  the  Lord  ? 
JV/w  among  the  sons  of  the  mighty  can  be  likened  unto  the 

Lord? 
God  is  greatly  to  be  feared  in  the  assembly  of  the  saints, 

tive  of  7  Sam.  vii.  For  *  David  my  servant '  see  w.  5,  8,  16,  and  cp. 
TTu.  19,  20,  21,  25,  27,  28,  29:  for  'establish'  see  w.  12,  13,  16,  26: 
for  'for  ever'  see  w.  13,  10,  24,  26,  29:  for  'seed'  and  'throne'  see 
w.  12,  13,  16:  for  'build  '  see  v.  27.  'Chosen  '  represents  v.  8  (cp.  Ps. 
Ixxviii.  70  f ).  *  Covenant '  however  does  not  belong  to  the  phraseology 
of  2  Sam.  vii  (but  see  2  Sam.  xxiii.  5);  nor  is  the  promise  spoken  of 
there  as  confirmed  by  an  oath. 

The  introduction  of  God  as  the  speaker  without  any  prefatory  '  Thou 
hast  said  *  is  surprisingly  abrupt.  It  is  possible  that  the  word  has  drop- 
ped out.  But  Hebrew  leaves  much  to  be  understood,  and  misunder- 
standing is  here  impossible. 

6 — 18.  The  adoring  recital  of  God's  attributes  which  follows  here  has 
a  twofold  purpose  in  relation  to  the  subject  of  the  Psalm.  It  is  a  plea 
with  God,  and  it  is  an  encouragement  to  Israel.  His  omnipotence 
guarantees  His  ability,  His  faithfulness  is  the  pledge  of  His  will,  to 
perform  His  promises  to  David. 

6 — 7.  Jehovah's  incomparableness  is  ever  being  celebrated  in  heaven. 
The  angelic  beings,  "who  best  can  tell,"  as  standing  nearest  to  the 
throne  of  God,  and  partaking  most  of  His  nature,  know  that  there  is 
none  like  Him.     (Cp.  Milton,  Far.  Lost^  Book  V.  160,  ff.). 

6.  The  heaveTts,  in  contrast  to  the  earth,  include  the  whole  celestial 
order  of  being.     Cp.  xix,  i ;  1.6. 

thy  wonders]  The  word  in  the  Heb.  is  in  the  singular.  It  denotes  not 
the  wondrousness  of  God  in  the  abstract,  but  His  wonderful  course  of 
action  regarded  as  a  whole,  of  which  His  '  wonderful  works '  are  the 
several  parts.  The  word  conveys  the  idea  of  what  is  mysterious,  super- 
natural, divine.  (See  on  Ixxi.  17.)  It  is  especially  appropriate  here, 
since  the  choice  of  David  was  a  factor  in  the  great  plan  which  was  to  be 
consummated  in  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation.     Cp.  Is.  ix.  6. 

thy  faithfulness  &c.]  Yea,  thy  faithfulness  In  the  assembly  of  the 
holy  ones.  It  is  not  the  congregation  of  Israel,  but  'the  company  of 
heaven '  that  is  meant,  as  in  Job  v.  i  and  xv.  1 5,  where  we  have  the 
same  parallel  between  'heavens*  and  'holy  ones.'  Holy  themselves, 
as  supernatural  beings  (though  only  relatively  holy,  Job  xv.  15),  they 
best  know  the  absolute  holiness  of  God  and  can  praise  Him  most 
worthily  (Is.  vi.  3),  as  they  watch  the  revelation  of  His  wisdom  in  the 
unfolding  of  His  purposes  of  grace  (Eph.  iii.  10). 

6,  7.    For  who  in  the  sky  can  be  compared  nnto  Jehovah  7 
Who  is  like  Jehovah  among  the  sons  of  God, 
A  God  greatly  to  be  dreaded  in  the  council  of  the  holy  ones. 


534  PSALM    LXXXIX.  8— to. 

And  to  be  had  in  reverence  of  all  them  that  are  about  him. 

8  O  Lord  God  of  hosts, 

Who  is  a  strong  Lord  like  unto  thee  ? 
Or  to  thy  faithfulness  round  about  thee  ? 

9  Thou  rulest  the  raging  of  the  sea : 

When  the  waves  thereof  arise,  thou  stillest  them. 

10  Thou  hast  broken  Rahab  in  pieces,  as  one  that  is  slain ; 


And  to  be  feared  above  all  tbat  are  round  about  Mm? 

God's  nature  is  unique,  incomparable.  Even  among  celestial  beings 
there  is  none  that  can  be  compared  with  Him. 

The  phrase  bne  elim^  found  elsewhere  only  in  xxix.  i,  denotes  angels. 
It  might  be  rendered  sons  of  the  mighty,  describing  them  as  mighty 
celestial  beings;  or  sons  of  the  gods ^  beings  "belonging  to  the  class  of 
superhuman,  heavenly  powers "  (Cheyne) ;  but  it  is  best  taken  as  a 
doubly-formed  plural,  and  rendered  as  in  R.V.  marg.,  sons  of  God  (El) ; 
synonymous  with  bne  Eldhtm  in  Job  i.  6;  ii.  i ;  xxxviii.  7. 

With  V.  7  cp.  Is.  viii.  13.  The  angels  form  the  council  of  the  great 
King  (Job  XV.  8,  R.V.  marg.;  Jer.  xxiii.  18,  22),  but  He  towers  above 
them  all  in  unapproachable  majesty. 

8 — 14.  Jehovah's  incomparableness  is  manifested  in  nature  and  in 
history. 

8.  God  of  hosts']  A  significant  title  in  this  connexion.  See  i  Kings 
xxii.  19;  and  note  on  xlvi.  7. 

Who  Is  a  mighty  ond  like  tbee,  0  Jab? 

And  thy  faithfulness  Is  round  about  thee. 
Name  and  question  both  recall  the  great  hymn  of  redemption,  Ex.  xv. 
1,  II.  Cp.  Ixviii.  4;  2  Sam.  vii.  22.  Strength  and  faithfulness  are  the 
attributes  upon  which  the  Psalmist  dwells,  as  the  pledge  for  the  fulfil- 
ment of  the  promise.  Faithfulness  surrounds  Him  like  an  atmosphere  of 
light,  as  in  a  different  aspect  "clouds  and  darkness  are  round  about 
him  "  (xcvii.  2). 

9,  10.  In  this  and  the  following  verses  THOU,  thine  are  the  em- 
phatic words. 

the  raging]  Or,  proud  swelling.  Cp.  xlvi.  3.  The  sea  represents 
the  most  turbulent  and  formidable  of  the  powers  of  nature.  Cp.  xciii. 
3  f. ;  Job  xxxviii.  1 1 .  From  the  sea  of  nature  the  poet  turns  to  the  sea 
of  nations  of  which  it  is  the  emblem  (Ixv.  7).  At  the  Red  Sea  God  proved 
His  sovereignty  over  both.  For  Rahab  as  a  name  of  Egypt  see  note  on 
Ixxxvii.  4.  Broken  in  pieces  denotes  crushing  defeat  (xliv.  ig)x  as  one  that 
is  slain  expresses  the  result ;  the  ferocious  monster  lies  pierced  through 
and  harmless.  A  comparison  of  Job  xxvi.  12,  13  (on  which  see  Dr 
Davidson's  notes)  suggests  that  the  language  is  chosen  so  as  to  allude 
not  only  to  the  destruction  of  the  Eg5rptians  at  the  Red  Sea,  but  to  the 
primitive  mythological  idea  of  a  conflict  between  God  and  the  powers 
of  nature  personified  as  '  Rahab.' 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  II— 14.  535 


Thou  hast  scattered  thine  enemies  with  thy  strong  arm. 

The  heavens  are  thine,  the  earth  also  is  thine  :  n 

As  for  the  world  and  the  fulness  thereof,  thou  hast  founded 

them. 
The  north  and  the  south  thou  hast  created  them :  12 

Tabor  and  Hermon  shall  rejoice  in  thy  name. 
Thou  hast  a  mighty  arm  :  13 

Strong  is  thy  hand,  and  high  is  thy  right  hand. 
Justice  and  judgment  are  the  habitation  of  thy  throne :  14 

Mercy  and  truth  shall  go  before  thy  face. 

with  thy  strong  arm]  Better,  With  the  arm  of  thy  strength  didst 
thou  scatter  thine  enemies.    Cp.  Is.  li.  9,  10. 

11.  THINE  are  the  heavens,  THINE  also  the  earth : 

The   world   and  the   fulness  thereof,  THOU  hast  founded 
them. 
Cp.  xxiv.  I,  2;  1.  12;  Ixxviii.  69;  Job  xxxviii.  4;  Prov.  Hi.  19. 

12.  The  north  and  the  south]  The  furthest  extremities  of  the  world. 
Cp.  Job  xxvi.  7. 

Tabor  and  Herman']  These  mountains  are  named,  not  so  much  to 
represent  the  West  and  East  of  the  land,  as  because  they  are  the  grandest 
and  most  conspicuous  natural  features  of  Palestine.  Tabor  is  described 
as  a  **  strange  and  beautiful  mountain,"  towering  **  over  the  monotonous 
undulations  of  the  surrounding  hills,"  and  "so  thickly  studded  with  trees, 
as  to  rise  from  the  plain  like  a  mass  of  verdure."  In  Jer.  xlvi.  18  it  is  used 
as  an  emblem  of  pre-eminence.  Hermon  was  "the  image  of  unearthly 
grandeur,  which  nothing  else  but  perpetual  snow  can  give ;  especially  as 
seen  in  the  summer,  when  '  the  firmament  around  it  seems  to  be  on  fire.' " 
Stanley,  Sinai  and  Palestine,  pp.  350,  404. 

shall  rejoice  in  thy  name]  Better  as  R.V.,  rejoice.  Nature  is  a 
revelation  of  its  Creator,  and  rejoices  in  the  fulfilment  of  its  office.  Cp. 
xix.  I ;  Ixv.  12,  13. 

13.  THINE  is  an  arm  with  might.  •Arm,'  'hand,'  'right  hand' 
(terms  frequently  used  in  connexion  with  the  Exodus,  e.g.  Ex.  xv.  6,  9, 
12,  16)  denote  not  merely  power  but  the  exertion  of  power;  and  the  use 
of  verbs  in  the  second  line,  lit.  Thy  hand  sheweth  strength,  thy  right 
hand  exalteth  itself,  emphasises  the  thought,  that  God  not  only  possesses 
but  exercises  His  power. 

14.  Righteousness   and  judgement  are  the  foundation  of  thy 

throne : 
Lovlngkindness  and  truth  attend  thy  presence. 
The  first  line  recurs  in  xcvii.  2.  Cp.  too  xxxiii.  5.  Righteousness,  or 
the  principle  of  justice,  and  yW^<f/w^;?/',  or  the  application  of  it  in  act,  are 
the  basis  of  all  true  government,  divine  as  well  as  human  (Prov.  xvi.  12; 
xxv.  5).  Lovingkindness  and  truth  are  represented  as  angels  attending 
in  God's  Presence  (xcv.  2),  ready  to  do  His  bidding  (xliii.  3),  rather  than 
as  couriers  preceding  llim. 


536  PSALM   LXXXIX.  15—18. 

15  Blessed  is  the  people  that  know  |J^e  jpyfn]  f^Qimd.! 

They  shall  walk,  O  Lord,  in  the  light  of  thy  countenance. 

16  In  thy  name  shall  they  rejoice  all  the  day  : 
And  in  thy  righteousness  shall  they  be  exalted. 

17  For  thou  art  the  glory  of  their  strength  : 
And  in  thy  favour  our  horn  shall  be  exalted. 

lijFor  the  Lord  is  our  defence  ; 

^^And  the  Holy  One  of  Israel  is  our  king. 

16 — 18.  Happy  the  people  that  have  such  a  God,  and  whose  King  is 
the  vicegerent  of  such  a  Sovereign.  These  verses  form  the  transition  to 
the  second  division  of  the  Psalm,  tjv.  19  ff.  From  the  praise  of  God  it 
is  natural  to  pass  on  to  the  felicity  of  His  people,  and  from  the  mention 
of  the  people  to  the  king  who  is  their  head  and  His  representative. 

15.  Happy  the  people  that  know  the  shout  of  Joy, 

That  walk,  Jehovah,  in  the  light  of  thy  countenance. 
Tericdh  may  mean  the  jubilant  shouting  with  which  religious  festivi- 
ties were  celebrated  (xxvii.  6;  xxxiii.  3;  Ixxxi.  i ;  xcv.  i,  2;  2  Sam.  vi. 
15);  or  the  acclamation  with  which  a  king  was  greeted  (xlvii.  r,  5; 
Num.  xxiii.  21);  or  the  blowing  of  trumpets  upon  certain  solemn 
occasions  (Lev.  xxiii.  24;  Num.  xxix.  i).  Happy  indeed  is  Israel  when 
it  can  thus  gi-eet  its  God  (cxliv.  15),  enjoying  the  sunshine  of  His  favour 
(iv.  6). 

16.  shall  they  rejoice... shall  they  be  exalted\  Render  with  R,V.  do 
they  rejoice... are  they  exalted.  Jehovah's  revelation  of  Himself  is  at 
once  the  source  and  the  subject  of  their  joy :  His  unswerving  adherence 
to  His  covenant  is  the  secret  of  their  prosperity. 

17.  Jehovah  alone  is  the  strength  of  which  they  boast.    Cp.  xliv.  6  flf. 
in  thy  favour]     Cp.  xliv.  3;  xxx.  7. 

our  horn  shall  be  exalted]  So  the  Qre,  with  the  LXX  and  Syr.  The 
Klhibh^  with  which  agree  Targ.  and  Jer.,  has  wilt  thou  exalt  our  horn. 
Cp.  Ixxv,  5,  10.  By  the  change  of  person,  the  poet  claims  his  share 
in  this  glorious  inheritance.  "  They  gives  place  to  we  unconsciously,  as 
his  heart  swells  with  the  joy  that  he  paints."     (Maclaren.) 

18.  For  to  Jehovah  helongeth  our  shield; 
And  our  King  to  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

Shield,  as  in  xlvii.  9,  is  a  metaphor  for  the  king  as  the  protector  of 
his  people.  The  king  of  Israel  belongs  to  Jehovah,  because  he  is  ap- 
pointed by  Him  to  be  His  representative,  as  his  title  Jehovah^s  anointed 
testifies;  he  derives  his  authority  from  Him,  and  therefore  can  claim 
His  protection.  For  Holy  One  of  Israel  see  note  on  Ixxi.  22. 

The  A.V.  is  grammatically  unjustifiable;  and  the  R.V.  marg.  render- 
ing of  the  second  line,  Even  to  the  Holy  One  of  Israel  our  King,  though 
grammatically  possible,  and  supported  by  some  Ancient  Versions,  is  less 
suitable  to  the  context. 

19 — 37.  The  mention  of  the  king  in  7/.  18  naturally  leads  up  to  the 
covenant  with  David  which  was  briefly  alluded  to  in  w.  3,  4.     The 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  19—24.  537 

Then  thou  spakest  in  vision  to  thy  ^^V  Q"^.  '9 

And  saidst,  I  havqj^^]  ji^lp  upon  07ie  that  is  miglity; 
I  have  exalted  one  chosen  out  of  the  people. 

1  have  found  David  my  servant;  20 
With  my  holy  oil  have  I  anointed  him : 

With  whom  my  hand  shall  be  established :  21 

Mine  arm  also  shall  strengthen  him. 

The  enemy  shall  not  exact  upon  him ;  22 

Nor  the  son  of  wickedness  afflict  him. 

And  I  will  beat  down  his  foes  before  his  face,  23 

And  plague  them  that  hate  him. 

But  my  faithfulness  and  my  mercy  shall  be  with  him  :  24 

Psalmist  now  recites  the  promise  in  detail  in  a  poetical  expansion  of  the 
narrative  in  1  Sam.  vii. 

19.  Then'\  On  the  well-known  occasion  already  referred  to  in 
w.  3,  4.  in  vision']     See  2  Sam.  vii.  17. 

to  thy  holy  one]  Nathan,  or  more  probably  David,  as  the  principal 
recipient  of  the  message.  So  some  MSS.  But  the  traditional  text, 
supported  apparently  by  all  the  Ancient  Versions,  reads  the  plural,  to 
thy  saints^  or  rather  to  thy  beloved;  i.e.  the  people  of  Israel,  for  whom 
the  promise  made  through  David  to  Nathan  was  intended.  The  word 
rendered  thy  beloved  denotes  Israel  as  the  object  ot  that  lovingkijidness 
which  the  Psalmist  is  celebrating.     See  1.  5,  and  Appendix,  Note  I. 

/  have  laid  help]  Endowed  him  with  the  power  and  assigned  to  him 
the  office  of  helping  My  people  in  their  need.  For  laid=  *  conferred, '  of 
the  Divine  endowment  of  the  king,  see  xxi.  5 ;  and  for  help  as  a  Divine 
gift  to  the  king,  see  xx.  2.  The  phrase  is  unusual,  but  the  conjectures 
a  diadem  (cp.  v.  39)  or  strength  are  unnecessary. 

one  that  is  mighty]  Cp.  2  Sam.  xvii.  10.  The  word  is  chosen  with 
reference  to  the  Divine  '  might '  of  which  he  was  the  representative,  f.  1 3  : 
cp.  XX.  6;  xxi.  13. 

one  chosen]     Cp.  v.  3;  Ixxviii.  70;   i  Kings  viii.  16. 

20.  I  have  found]  Sought  out  and  provided.  Cp.  i  Sam.  xiii.  14; 
xvi.  i;  Acts  xiii.  22.  David  my  servant]    See  on  Ixxviii.  70,  and  cp. 

2  Sam.  iii.  18;  vii.  5,  8.  have  I  anointed  him]    i  Sam.  xvi.  i,  12  f. 

21.  With  whom  &c.]  My  helping  hand  shall  continually  be  with 
him :  a  stronger  equivalent  for  *'  the  Lord  was  with  him,"  i  Sam.  xviii. 
12,  14;  2  Sam.  V.  10. 

22.  shall  not  exact  upon  him]  Shall  not  oppress  him  as  a  creditor 
oppresses  a  debtor.  But  the  sense  is  doubtful,  and  the  word  probably 
means  surprise  him,  fall  upon  him  unawares,  as  in  Iv.  15. 

nor  the  son  of  wickedness  afflict  him]  The  phrase  is  taken  from  2  Sam. 
vii.  10,  where  however  it  is  applied  to  the  people. 

23.  But  I  Will  beat  down  his  adversaxies  before  him, 
And  smite  them  that  bate  him. 

24.  And  my  faithfulness  and  lovlngkindness  shall  be  with  him. 


538  PSALM    LXXXIX.  25—30. 

And  in  my  name  shall  his  horn  be  exalted. 

25  I  will  set  his  hand  also  in  the  sea, 
And  his  right  hand  in  the  rivers. 

26  He  shall  cry  unto  me,  Thou  art  my  Father, 
My  God,  and  the  rock  of  my  salvation. 

27  Also  I  will  make  him  my  firstborn, 
Higher  than  the  kings  of  the  earth. 

28  My  mercy  will  I  keep  for  him  for  evermore, 
And  my  covenant  shall  stand  fast  with  him. 

29  His  seed  also  will  I  make  to  endure  for  ever. 
And  his  throne  as  the  days  of  heaven. 

30  If  his  children  forsake  my  law, 
And  walk  not  in  my  judgments ; 

25.  in  the  sea. ..in  the  rivers]  R.V.,  on  the  sea... on  the  rivers;  i.e. 
I  will  extend  his  dominion  to  the  Mediterranean  on  the  west,  and  to  the 
Euphrates  on  the  north-east,  the  boundaries  of  the  land  according  to 
ancient  promise.  See  Gen.  xv.  18  ;  Ex.  xxiii.  31 ;  Deut.  xi.  24;  i  Kings 
iv.  24;  cp.  Ps.  Ixxii.  8;  Ixxx.  11.  The  plural  rivers  is  a  poetical  gene- 
ralisation, or  may  denote  the  Euphrates  and  its  canals. 

26.  The  promise  made  to  David  on  behalf  of  Solomon  is  here  ex- 
tended to  David  himself.  For  my  God,  and  the  rock  of  my  salvation  cp. 
xviii.  2;  Deut.  xxxii.  15. 

27.  I  also  corresponds  to  the  emphatic  He  at  the  beginning  of  v.  26. 
It  is  God's  answer  to  David's  cry  of  filial  love.  The  titles  son  2Xi^  first' 
born  applied  to  Israel  (Ex.  iv.  22 ;  Jer.  xxxi.  9)  are  conferred  upon  the 
king  who  is  Israel's  representative  :  and  the  promise  made  to  Israel 
(Deut.  xxvi.  19,  cp.  xxviii.  i)  is  here  transferred  to  David, 

I  also  will  appoint  him  as  firstborn, 
Most  high  above  the  kings  of  the  earth. 
David's  posterity  is  included  in  his  person :  and  the  high  promise, 
never  fully  realised  in  any  of  his  successors,  points  forward  to  Him 
Whom  St  John  styles  in  language  borrowed  from  this  verse  and  v.  37, 
"the  faithful  witness,  the  firstborn  of  the  dead,  and  the  prince  of  the 
kings  of  the  earth." 

28.  29.  The  emphasis  is  on  for  evermore.  The  permanence  of  the 
promise  is  expressed  in  the  strongest  terms.     Cp.  2  Sam.  vii.  13,  16. 

Once  more  too  the  notes  of  lovingkindness  and  faithfulness  are 
sounded,  for  the  word  rendered  shall  stand  fast  is  from  the  same  root 
as  the  word  for  faithfulness ;  hence  R.  V.  marg.  shall  be  faithful. 

as  the  days  of  heaven]  I.e.  for  ever;  the  heaven  is  the  emblem  of 
permanence  as  well  as  stability.  Again  a  phrase  originally  referring  to 
the  nation  (Deut.  xi.  21)  is  applied  to  the  king. 

30 — 34.  The  sins  of  David's  descendants  will  bring  chastisement  to 
them,  but  they  will  not  annul  the  promise  to  David.     Man's  unfaithful- 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  31—37.  539 

If  they  break  my  statutes,  31 

And  keep  not  my  commandments ; 

Then  will  I  visit  their  transgression  with  the  rod,  32 

And  their  iniquity  with  stripes. 

Nevertheless  my  lovingkindness  will  I  not  utterly  take  from  33 

him, 
Nor  suffer  my  faithfulness  to  fail. 

My  covenant  will  I  not  break,  34 

Nor  alter  the  thing  that  is  gone  out  of  my  lips. 
Once  have  I  sworn  by  my  hoHness  35 

That  I  will  not  lie  unto  David. 

His  seed  shall  endure  for  ever,  36 

And  his  throne  as  the  sun  before  me. 

It  shall  be  established  for  ever  as  the  moon,  37 

And  as  a  faithful  witness  in  heaven.     Selah. 

ness  cannot  make  void  the  faithfulness  of  God,  though  it  may  modify 
the  course  of  its  working. 

31.  I/they  dr^ak]    Lit.  profane. 

32.  7''Ae  rod... stripes]  From  2  Sam.  vii.  14,  where  the  fuller  phrases 
the  rod  of  men...  the  stripes  of  the  children  of  men  seem  to  mean  correc- 
tion such  as  even  human  parents  know  they  must  administer.  The 
paternal  relation  involves  the  duty  of  chastisement  (Prov.  xxiii.  1 3  f. ; 
Heb,  xii.  9  f.). 

33.  But  my  lovingkindness  will  I  not  break  oflf  from  Mm, 
Neither  be  false  to  my  faithfulness. 

The  word  rendered  break  off  is  an  unusual  one  to  apply  to  loving- 
kindness,  and  its  form  is  anomalous.  The  change  of  one  letter  however 
gives  the  word  used  in  i  Chr.  xvii.  13,  I  will  not  take  away,  and  this 
emendation  should  probably  be  adopted.  Be  false  to  is  the  word  found 
in  I  Sam.  xv.  29,  "The  Strength  of  Israel  will  not  lie." 

34.  break"]  Lit.  profane,  as  in  z/.  31.  God's  covenant,  like  His  laws, 
is  a  sacred  thing.  Men  may  violate  His  laws,  but  He  will  not  violate 
His  covenant. 

the  thing  that  is  gone  out  of  my  lips]  The  word  once  spoken  is  irre- 
vocable.    The  phrase  is  used  of  vows  in  Num.  xxx.  12;  Deut.  xxiii.  23. 

35—37.    The  irreversible  nature  of  a  promise  confirmed  by  God's  oath. 

35.  Once]     Once  for  all  (LXX  aTra^,  Vulg.  semel) :  or,  one  thing. 
have  /sworn]     Cp.  v.  3.  by  my  holiness]     See  note  on  Ix.  6. 
that  I  will  not  lie]     R.V.  omits  that^  and  makes  this  clause  parallel 

to,  not  dependent  on,  the  preceding  line. 

36.  Cp.  w.  4,  29;  Ixxii.  5,  7,  17. 

37.  Construction  and  meaning  are  doubtful,  (i)  The  original  pas- 
sage in  2  Sam.  vii.  16  is  in  favour  of  making  his  throne  the  sul)ject  to 
shall  be  established.,  and  against  the  marginal  alternatives  of  R.V.,  As  the 


540  PSALM   LXXXIX.  38,  39. 

38  But  thou  hast  cast  off  and  abhorred, 
Thou  hast  been  wroth  with  thine  anointed. 

39  Thou  hast  made  void  the  covenant  of  thy  servant : 
Thou  hast  profaned  his  crown  by  casting  it  to  the  ground. 

vioon  which  is  established  for  ever,  and  as  the  faithful  witness  in  the 
sky:  or,  and  is  a  faithful  witness  in  the  sky. 

(a)  The  A. V. ,  with  which  substantially  agrees  the  R.  V. ,  And  (as)  the 
faithful  witness  In  the  slcy,  raises  the  question  what  is  meant  by  *  the 
faithful  witness  in  the  sky.'  Is  it  the  sun,  or  the  moon,  or  the  rainbow  ? 
Or  is  it  the  fixed  laws  of  nature  which  are  appealed  to  in  Jer.  xxxi.  35, 
36,  xxxiii.  20  f.,  25  f.,  as  a  symbol  of  the  permanence  of  God's  covenant 
with  Israel  and  with  David?  This  last  explanation  is  the  best,  but  it 
seems  somewhat  far-fetched;  and  the  omission  of  the  particle  of  com- 
parison as  points  (3)  to  another  rendering :  And  the  witness  in  the  sky 
Is  faithful.  The  witness  is  God  Himself,  Who  thus  confirms  His 
promise  with  a  final  attestation.  Cp.  Jer.  xlii.  5,  "Jehovah  be  a  true 
2xvdi  faithful  witness  against  us":  Job  xvi.  19,  "my  witness  is  in  heaven." 

38 — 45.  But  present  realities  are  in  appalling  contrast  to  this  glorious 
promise :  the  king  is  rejected  and  dethroned,  his  kingdom  is  overrun  by 
invaders,  his  enemies  are  triumphant. 

38.  And  THOU,  thou  hast  cast  off  and  rejected, 
Hast  been  enraged  with  thine  anointed. 

The  Psalmist  has  drawn  out  God's  promise  in  the  fullest  detail,  and 
now  he  confronts  God  with  it: — thou  Who  art  omnipotent,  faithful, 
and  just;  THOU  Who  hast  made  this  promise,  and  confirmed  it  with 
the  most  solemn  oath;  thou  hast  broken  it !  Some  punishment  might 
have  been  expected  (yv.  30  ff.),  but  not  this  total  abandonment  {yv.  33 
ff.).  David's  heir  has  the  same  fate  as  Saul  (i  Sam.  xv.  23,  26),  in 
spite  of  the  express  promise  that  it  should  not  be  so  {2  Sam.  vii.  15). 

The  audacity  of  the  expostulation  scandalised  many  ancient  Jewish 
commentators,  and  the  famous  Aben-Ezra  of  Toledo  (d.  1167)  relates 
that  there  was  a  certain  wise  and  pious  man  in  Spain,  who  would  neither 
read  nor  listen  to  this  Psalm.  But  the  boldness  is  that  of  faith,  not  of 
irreverence:  it  finds  a  parallel  in  xhv.  pff.,  and  in  Habakkuk's  ques- 
tionings (i.  2flf.,  13  ff.). 

39.  Thou  hast  abhorred  the  covenant  of  thy  servant: 
Thou  hast  cast  his  desecrated  crown  to  the  ground. 

Thine  anointed.,  thy  servant  (cp.  v.  20)  include  both  David  and  the 
successor  who  represents  him.  The  titles  plead  the  claim  which  the 
king  had  on  God's  protection. 

The  word  nezer  means  (i)  consecration,  and  (2)  the  crown  or  diadem 
of  the  high  priest  (Ex.  xxix.  6)  or  the  king  (2  Sam.  i.  10),  as  the  mark 
of  consecration  to  their  ofl5ce.  For  the  plirase  profaned  to  the  ground 
cp.  Ixxiv.  7. 

40.  Insensibly  the  king  is  identified  with  the  nation  whose  head  and 
representative  he  was.  The  first  line  is  taken  from  the  description  of 
Israel  as  a  vine  in  Ixxx.  12. 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  40—47.  541 

Thou  hast  broken  down  all  his  hedges ;  40 

Thou  hast  brought  his  strong  holds  to  ruin. 

All  that  pass  by  the  way  spoil  him  :  4» 

He  is  a  reproach  to  his  neighbours. 

Thou  hast  set  up  the  right  hand  of  his  adversaries ;  42 

Thou  hast  made  all  his  enemies  to  rejoice. 

Thou  hast  also  turned  the  edge  of  his  sword,  43 

And  hast  not  made  him  to  stand  in  the  battle. 

Thou  hast  made  his  glory  to  cease,  44 

And  cast  his  throne  down  to  the  ground.' 

The  days  of  his  youth  hast  thou  shortened  :  45 

Thou  hast  covered  him  with  shame,     Selah. 

How  long,  Lord  ?   wilt  thou  hide  thyself,  for  ever  ?  46 

Shall  thy  wrath  burn  like  fire  ? 

Remember  how  short  my  time  is :  47 

hedges]     Or,  as  R.V.  in  Ixxx,  12,  fences. 

41.  The  first  line  from  Ixxx.  13,  witli  the  substitution  oi  spoiliox 
pluck:  the  second  from  Ixxix.  4;  cp.  xhv.  13.  The  'neighbours' are 
surrounding  nations,  once  tributary  to  Israel. 

42.  Thou  hast  set  up]   R.V.  thou  hast  exalted.    Contrast  w.  19,  24. 
to  rejoice]    The  malignant  delight  of  enemies  is  constantly  deprecated 

as  an  aggravation  of  the  bitterness  of  misfortune.     Cp.  xxv.  2 ;  xxx.  i ; 
XXXV.  19,  24  fF.  ;  xxxviii.  16;  and  the  close  parallel  in  Lam.  ii.  17. 

43.  Yea,  thou  tuirnest  back  the  edge  of  his  sword  (R.V.) :  i.e.  not 
as  A.V.  might  seem  to  mean,  bluntest  it,  but  as  the  parallelism  shews, 
makest  it  give  way  in  battle.     Cp.  2  Sam.  i.  22. 

44.  his  glory]     R.V.  his  brightness :  the  lustre  of  his  kingdom. 

46.  He  is  prematurely  old.  Cp.  cii.  23.  The  words  might  be  figura- 
tively applied  to  the  nation  (Hos.  vii.  9),  or  to  the  kingdom,  prematurely 
brought  to  an  end :  but  it  is  more  natural  to  regard  them  as  referring 
to  the  king  himself.  Jehoiachin  was  but  18  (2  Kings  xxiv.  8),  or 
according  to  2  Chron.  xxxvi.  9,  only  8  years  old,  when  he  came  to  the 
throne,  and  he  reigned  only  three  months  and  ten  days.  The  prime  of 
his  life  was  spent  in  exile,  apparently  in  actual  confinement  in  which  he 
was  literally  'clothed  with  dishonour'  (2  Kings  xxv.  29). 

46 — 51.  The  Psalmist  appeals  to  God  to  withdraw  His  wrath  and 
remove  this  contradiction,  pleading  the  shortness  of  life  and  the  taunts 
of  God's  enemies  as  grounds  for  a  speedy  answer. 

46.  How  long,  Jehovah,  wilt  thou  hide  thyself  for  ever? 
(How  long)  shall  thy  wrath  bum  like  fire? 

A  repetition  of  Ixxix.  5,  with  slight  variations. 

47.  Literally,  if  the  text  is  right,  0  remember  what  a  fleeting  life  I 
ami  but  it  is  possible  that  the  letiers  of  the  word  clieled  have  been 


542  PSALM    LXXXIX.  48—50. 

48  What  man  is  he  that  liveth,  and  shalTnot  see  death  ? 
Shall  he  deliver  his  soul  from  the  hand  of  the  grave  ?   Selah. 

49  Lord,  where  are  thy  former  lovingkindnesses, 
Which  thou  swarest  unto  David  in  thy  trutj^i  ? 

50  Remember,  Lord,  the  reproach  of  thy  servants ; 

How  I  do  bear  in  my  bosom  the  reproach  of  all  the  mighty 
people;  '      -'^-'^'-^^^- 

accidentally  transposed  and  that  we  should  read  chddel^  as  in  xxxix. 
4:  how  frail,  or,  transitory,  I  am.  As  in  that  Psalm  (cp.  v.  13)  and  in 
Job  vii.  6  ff,  xiv.  i  ff,  the  shortness  and  uncertainty  of  life  are  pleaded  as  a 
ground  for  the  speedy  restoration  of  God's  favour.  The  Psalmist  desires 
to  see  the  solution  of  the  riddle  with  his  own  eyes,  and  doubtless  he  gives 
utterance  to  the  feelings  of  many  pious  souls  in  the  Exile,  whose  faith 
was  tried  by  the  thought  that  they  would  not  live  to  see  the  fulfilment 
of  the  prophecies  of  restoration. 

wherefore  &c.]  For  what  vanity  hast  thou  created  all  the  sons  of 
men  I     Must  life  end  thus  in  unsatisfied  longing?     Cp.  xxxix.  5,  11. 

48.  What  man  is  he  that  shall  live  on,  and  not  see  death, 
That  shall  deliver  his  soul  from  the  hand  of  Sheol? 

The  word  for  man  is  geber,  'strong  man,'  as  distinguished  from 
women,  children,  and  non-combatants,  as  much  as  to  say,  What  man  is 
so  strong  that  he  shall  live  on  and  escape  the  iron  grasp  of  Death? 

**  There  is  no  armour  against  fate, 
Death  lays  his  icy  hand  on  kings." 

49.  After  an  interlude  of  music  the  Psalmist  resumes  his  prayer.  He 
returns  to  the  thoughts  of  God's  lovingkindness  and  faithfulness,  from 
which  he  started  (z/.  i).  But  His  lovingkindnesses  seem  to  belong  to  an 
age  that  is  past  and  gone:  have  they  vanished  never  to  return?  The 
faith  which  had  to  look  for  the  manifestation  of  God's  love  in  this  world 
was  often  sorely  tried.  See  Ps.  Ixxvii ;  Is.  Ixiii.  For  the  question  cp. 
Judg.  vi.  13;  and  for  the  second  line,  Mic  vii.  20. 

in  thy  truth']    In  thy  faithfulness. 

50.  the  reproach  of  thy  servant s\  The  taunts  which  they  have  to  bear 
as  the  servants  of  a  God  Who,  say  their  enemies,  cannot  or  will  not  help 
them.     Cp.  Ixxiv.  10,  r8,  22;  Ixxix.  4,  10. 

how  I  do  bear  &c.]  The  Massoretic  text  must  be  rendered,  How  I  do 
bear  in  my  bosom  all  the  many  peoples.  It  is  grammatically  anomalous 
and  gives  no  satisfactory  sense.  A  simple  emendation,  which  has  some 
support  from  Ancient  Versions,  reads  thus: 

How  I  hear  in  my  bosom  the  dishonouring  of  the  peoples. 

Cp.  the  similar  phrase  with  the  same  word  for  'dishonouring'  (A.V. 
shame)  in  Ezek.  xxxiv.  29;  xxxvi,  6,  15.  As  a  faithful  Israelite  he 
must  perforce  bear  the  burden  of  his  people's  shame. 


PSALM    LXXXIX.  51,  52.  543 


Wherewith  thine  enemies  have  reproached,  O  Lord  ;  51 

Wherewith  they  have   reproached   the   footsteps   of  thine 
anointed. 

Blessed  be  the  Lord  for  evermore.     Amen,  and  Amen.  52 

61.     Cp.  Ixxix.  T2,  of  which  v.  50  is  also  a  partial  reminiscence. 

the  footsteps  of  thine  anoinied\  They  are  like  a  rabble  hooting  and 
insulting  him  wherever  he  goes.  Cp.  xvii.  11;  Jer.  xii.  6  (R.V.).  May 
not  the  phrase  have  been  suggested  by  the  recollection  of  actusd  insults 
offered  to  the  discrowned  Jehoiachin  as  he  was  led  through  the  streets 
of  Babylon  in  the  conqueror's  triumph?  Insults  offered  to  the  king  are 
insults  at  once  to  Jehovah  and  to  the  people  whose  representative  he 
was. 

The  Targum  interprets  the  words  of  the  delay  of  Messiah's  Advent. 
"For  thine  enemies  reproach,  O  Lord,  they  reproach  the  slowness  of 
the  footsteps  of  Thine  Anointed." 

53.  The  doxology  marks  the  close  of  Book  iii.  Cp.  xli.  13;  Ixxii.  18, 
19;  cvi.  48.  In  P.B.V.  it  is  joined,  somewhat  incongruously,  to  the 
preceding  verse.  But  though  it  is  no  part  of  the  original  Psalm,  it  is 
entirely  in  harmony  with  the  spirit  of  it,  as  an  expression  of  the  faith 
which  can  bless  God  even  when  the  visible  signs  of  His  love  are  with- 
drawn.    Cp.  Job  i.  21. 


APPENDIX. 


Note  I. 


On  the  word  Chasid. 


Thf.  word  chdstd  is  characteristic  of  tlie  Psalter,  in  which  it  is  found 
25  times.  Elsewhere  it  occurs  only  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  8;  i  Sam.  ii.  9; 
Prov.  ii.  8;  Jer.  iii.  12;  Mic.  vii.  2.  (2  Sam.  xxii.  26,  and  2  Chr.  vi.  41 
are  of  course  not  independent  passages.)  It  is  variously  rendered  in 
A.V.,  *godly,'  'merciful,'  or,  after  the  Sept.  ocrios,  Vulg.  sanctuSy 
'holy,'  'saints.'  Its  exact  meaning,  however,  is  disputed.  Is  it  (r) 
active,  denoting  the  character  of  the  man  who  practises  dutiful  love 
(chesed)  to  God  and  to  his  fellow-men  (A.V.  and  R.V.  'godly'  or 
'merciful'):  or  (2)  passive,  denoting  the  state  of  one  who  is  the  object 
of  God's  lovingkindness  (R.V.  marg.,  'one  that  He  favoureth:'  cp. 
A.V.  marg.  to  Ixxxvi.  2)?  The  form  of  the  word  is  not  decisive  between 
the  two  senses,  and  appeal  must  be  made  to  the  usage  of  the  word. 
In  favour  of  (i)  it  is  urged  that  the  word  certainly  has  an  active  sense 
in  cxlv.  17  and  Jer.  iii.  12,  where  it  is  applied  to  God:  and  also  in 
Ps.  xii.  i;  xviii.  25;  xliii.  i ;  Mic.  vii.  2  ;  where  it  is  used  of  the  quality 
of  lovingkindness  between  man  and  man. 

On  the  other  hand  in  favour  of  (2)  it  may  be  urged  that  the  substan- 
tive chesed  from  which  the  adjective  chdstd  is  derived  denotes  in  the 
Psalter  almost  without  exception  God's  lovingkindness  to  man.  It 
occurs  there  127  times,  and  in  three  cases  only  is  it  used  of  man's  love  to 
man  (cix.  12,  16;  cxli.  5),  though  this  sense  is  common  elsewhere.  It  is 
never  used  in  the  Psalter  of  man's  love  to  God,  and  indeed  it  is  doubtful 
whether  it  is  really  so  used  at  all.  The  passages  generally  quoted  (Hos. 
vi.  4,  6 ;  Jer.  ii.  2)  are  not  decisive. 

If  the  ])rimary  meaning  of  chasid  is  to  be  governed  (as  seems  reason- 
able) by  that  of  chesed  in  the  Psalms,  it  must  certainly  mean  'one  who 
is  the  object  of  Jehovah's  lovingkindness.'  And  this  sense  suits  the 
predominant  usage  of  the  word  best.  It  is  used  15  times  with  a  pronoun 
to  express  the  relation  of  the  covenant  people,  or  individuals  in  it,  to 
Jehovah  (My,  Thy,  His  chasidim),  in  connexions  where  the  position 
into  which  they  have  been  brought  by  Jehovah's  grace  is  a  more  appro- 
priate thought  than  that  of  their  response  to  that  grace  either  by  love  to 
God  or  love  to  th|ir  fellow-men.  It  is  not  man's  love  to  God  or  to  his 
fellow-man  which  is  pleaded  as  the  ground  of  acceptance  or  urged  as  the 
motive  for  duty,  but  the  fact  that  Jehovah  by  His  free  lovingkindness 
has  brought  the  nation  and  its  members  into  covenant  with  Himself.  In 
its  primary  sense  then  the  word  implies  no  moral  praise  or  merit ;  but  it 


APPENDIX.  545 

came,  not  unnaturally,  to  be  connected  with  the  idea  oi chesed  as  'loving- 
kindness'  between  man  and  man,  and  to  be  used  of  the  character  which 
reflected  that  love  of  which  it  was  itself  the  object ;  and  finally  was 
applied  even  to  God  Himself. 


Note  II. 
On  the  Title  'Most  High.* 

The  usa^e  of  the  title  'Most  High'  {Elyon)  should  be  carefully 
examined. 

(i)  As  used  by  non-Israelites,  it  appears  as  the  designation  of  the 
Supreme  God  in  the  mouth  of  the  Canaanite  priest-king  Melchisedek 
(Gen.  xiv.  i8 — 22);  it  is  employed  by  Balaam  (Num.  xxiv.  16);  it  is 
put  into  the  mouth  of  the  presumptuous  king  of  Babylon  (Is.  xiv.  14). 

(2)  Its  application  to  Jehovah  from  the  Israelite  standpoint  is  limited 
to  poetry.  It  occurs  in  Deut.  xxxii.  8  (note  the  connexion  with  the  par- 
tition of  the  earth  among  the  naimis)\  Lam.  iii.  35,  38;  and  21  times 
in  the  Psalter  [and  in  2  Sam.  xxii.  i4  =  Ps.  xviii.  13],  always,  with 
one  exception  (cvii.  11),  in  the  first  four  books.  It  is  nowhere  found 
in  the  Prophets. 

(3)  In  the  Aramaic  of  the  Book  of  Daniel  it  occurs,  in  one 
peculiar  passage  (vii.  18 — 27)  in  the  plural  of  majesty;  and  a  synonymous 
word  is  used  frequently,  but,  with  one  exception  (vii,  25),  in  the 
mouth  of  Nebuchadnezzar  or  Belshazzar,  or  in  words  addressed  to 
them.  It  comes  to  be  a  favourite  word  with  the  author  of  Ecclesiasticus 
(li^tcrroj,  without  the  article),  and  occurs  also  in  2  Mace.  iii.  31. 

Note  III. 
On  the  He]5rew  Tenses. 

The  English  reader  may  be  at  a  loss  to  understand  how  it  can  so 
often  be  doubtful  whether  a  verb  should  be  rendered  by  the  past  or 
the  future  tense.  The  uncertainty  arises  from  the  peculiar  character  of 
the  Hebrew  Tenses,  which  denote  mode  of  action  rather  than  timt  of 
action.  The  fundamental  idea  of  the  '  perfect '  (sometimes  called  the 
*  past ')  is  completed  action  :  the  fundamental  idea  of  the  *  imperfect ' 
(sometimes  called  the  '  future  ')  is  incomplete  action. 

In  simple  narrative  prose  the  'perfect'  usually  refers  to  the  past, 
and  the  '  imperfect '  to  the  future.  But  in  the  higher  styles  of  poetry 
and  prophecy  both  tenses  are  used  with  much  greater  freedom. 

(i)  A  future  event  may  be  regarded  as  having  already  taken 
place,  either  in  order  that  it  may  be  more  forcibly  presented  to  the 
mind,  or  because  it  is  contemplated  as  being  absolutely  certain  to 
happen ;  and  in  such  cases  the  perfect  tense,  sometimes  called  the 
'perfect  of  certainty,'  or  '  prophetic  perfect,'  is  used.  See  Ps.  xxii.  29  ; 
xxxvii.  20. 

PSALMS  35 


546  APPENDIX. 


(2)  A  past  event  may  be  regarded,  for  the  sake  of  vivid  descrip- 
tion, as  being  still  in  progress,  and  the  '  imperfect '  tense  may  be 
employed  with  reference  to  it.  Thus  in  Ps.  vii.  15,  'the  ditch  he  was 
making^  (imperf )  represents  the  wicked  man  as  still  engaged  upon  his 
plot  when  it  proves  his  own  ruin.  This  usage  corresponds  to  the 
'  historic  present,'  and  is  very  common  in  poetry. 

The  'imperfect'  is  also  used  as  a  frequentative,  of  repeated  action, 
and  to  express  general  truths. 

Hence  it  is  often  doubtful,  as  in  numerous  instances  in  Ps.  xviii, 
whether  a  Hebrew  imperfect  refers  to  the  past  or  the  future,  and  should 
be  rendered  by  past,  present,  or  future.  The  decision  must  be  regulated 
by  the  context  and  the  general  view  taken  of  the  sense  of  the  passage. 
Not  seldom  the  peculiar  force  of  the  Hebrew  tenses  cannot  be  expressed 
in  an  English  translation  without  awkward  circumlocutions. 


NEW    TESTAMENT    QUOTATIONS 
FROM    THE    PSALMS. 


Psalm  ii.  i,  2 
7 
8,9 

IV.  4 

V.  9 

VI.  la 


via.  2 

4-6 

6 
X.  7 

xiv.  I  r,  21:!', 
xvi.  8 — II 

\ob 

xviii.  2  ^ 

.       49 

XIX.  4 

xxii.  I 

7 
8 
18 

22 
xxiv.  I 
xxxi.  5  a 

xxxii.  J,  2 
xxxiv.  8 

12 — ii 

20 
XXXV.  I9<5 
xxxvi.  I  b 
xxxvii.  1 1  a 
xxxviii.  1 1 
xl.  6—8 
xli.  9 

xlii.  5 


quoted  Acts  iv.  25,  26. 

Acts  xiii.  33 ;   Heb.  i.  5  ;  v.  5. 

Rev.  ii.  26,  27;  xii.  5;  xix.  15. 
,,         Eph.  iv.  26. 
,,         Rom.  iii.  13. 
,,         John  xii.  27. 

Matt.  vii.  23;  Lk.  xiii.  27. 

Matt.  xxi.  16. 

Heb.  ii.  6—8. 

I  Cor.  XV.  27;  Eph.  i.  22. 

Rom.  iii.  14. 
;    ,,         Rom.  iii.  10 — 12. 

Acts  ii.  25 — 28. 
.,         Acts  xiii.  35. 
,,         Heb.  ii.  13. 
M         Rom.  XV.  9. 
,,         Rom.  X.  18. 
„         Matt,  xxvii.  46;  Mk.  xv.  34. 

Matt,  xxvii.  39;  Mk.  xv.  29;  Lk.  xxiii.  ^^. 
„         Matt,  xxvii.  43. 
„         John  xix.  24;  cp.  Matt,  xxvii.  35;  Mk.  xv. 

24;  Lk.  xxiii.  34. 
„         Heb.  ii.  12. 

I  Cor.  X.  26  [28]. 
,,         Lk.  xxiii.  46. 
,,         Rom.  iv.  7,  8. 
„         I  Pet.  ii.  3. 
t,         I  Pet.  iii.  10 — 12. 
„         John  xix.  36. 
„         John  XV.  25. 
,,         Rom.  iii.  18. 

Matt.  V.  5. 
,,         Lk.  xxiii.  49. 
,,         Heb.  X.  5 — 7. 
M         John  xiii.  18. 

Lk.  i.  68. 

Matt.  XX  .i.  38;  Mk.  xiv.  34. 


35—2 


548 


NEW   TESTAMENT   QUOTATIONS 


Psalm  xliv.  22 

quoted 

Rom.  viii.  36. 

xlv.  6,  7 

,, 

Heb.  i.  8,  9. 

xlviii.  1 

,, 

Matt.  V.  35. 

li.  4 

,, 

Rom.  iii.  4. 

liii.  1—3 

,, 

Rom.  iii.  10—12. 

Iv.  22 

I  Pet.  V.  7. 

Ixii.  12 

,, 

Matt.  xvi.  27 ;  Rom.  ii.  6. 

Ixviii.  18 

,, 

Eph.  iv.  8. 

Ixix.  4 

,, 

John  XV.  25. 

9a 

,, 

John  ii.  17. 

gb 

Rom.  XV.  3. 

21 

Matt,  xxvii.  34,  48;  Mk.  xv.  36;  Lk.  xxiii. 
36;  John  xix.  28,  29. 

22,  23 

,, 

Rom.  xi.  9,  10. 

25 

5) 

Acts  i.  20. 

Ixxii.  18 

Lk.  i.  68. 

Ixxviii.  2 

,, 

Matt.  xiii.  35, 

24 

,, 

John  vi.  31. 

Ixxxii.  6 

,, 

John  x.  34. 

Ixxxvi.  9 

,, 

Rev.  XV.  4. 

Ixxxviii.  8 

,, 

Lk.  xxiii.  49. 

Ixxxix.  10 

,, 

Lk.  i.  51. 

20 

,, 

Acts  xiii.  22. 

xc.  4 

j^ 

2  Pet.  iii.  8. 

xci.  II,  12 

,, 

Matt.  iv.  6;  Lk.  iv.  10,  11. 

13 

Lk.  x.  19. 

xciv.  II 

1  Cor.  iii.  20. 

H 

,, 

Rom.  xi.  I,  2. 

xcv.  7 II 

>) 

Heb.  iii.  7— 11,  15,  18;  iv.  i,  3,  5,  7. 

xcvii.  7 

Heb.  i.  6. 

xcviii.  3 

Lk.  i.  54. 

cii.  25—27 

,, 

Heb.  i.  10 — 12. 

ciii.  17 

,, 

Lk.  i.  50. 

civ.  4 

>> 

Heb.  i.  7. 

cv.  8,  9 

,, 

Lk.  i.  72,  73- 

cvi.  10 

,, 

Lk.  i.  71. 

45 

,, 

Lk.  i.  72. 

48 

Lk.  i.  68. 

cvii.  9 

Lk.  i.  53. 

cix.  8 

>> 

Acts  i.  20. 

25 

Matt,  xxvii.  39. 

ex.  1 

Matt.  xxii.  44;  Mk.  xii.  36;  Lk.  xx.  42,  43; 
Acts  ii.  34,  35;  Heb.  i.  13.  Cp.  Matt. 
xxvi.  64;  Mk.  xiv.  62;  xvi.  19;  Lk.  xxu. 
69 ;  I  Cor.  XV.  25 ;  Eph.  i.  20 ;  Col.  iii.  i ; 
Heb.  i.  3;  viii.  i ;  x.  12,  13;  xii.  2;  i  Pet, 
iii.  22. 

4 

,, 

Heb.  V.  6;  vi.  20;  vii.  17,  21. 

cxi.  9  a 

Lk,  i.  6S. 

9^ 

II 

Lk.  i.  49- 

FROM   THE    PSALMS.  549 


Psalm  cxii.  9 

quoted 

2  Cor.  ix.  9. 

cxvi.  10 

»» 

2  Cor.  iv.  13. 

cxvii.  I 

»> 

Rom.  XV.  II. 

cxviii.  6 

)> 

Heb.  xiii.  6. 

22,  23 

»» 

Matt.  xxi.  42;  Mk.  xii.  10,  11;  Lk.  xx.  17; 

Acts  iv.  II ;  I  Pet.  ii.  4,  7. 

25,  26 

" 

Matt.  xxi.  9;  xxiii.  39;  Mk.  xi.  9;  Lk.  xiii. 
35;  xix.  38;  John  xii.  13. 

cxxxii.  5 

5> 

Acts  vii.  46. 

II 

>» 

Acts  ii.  30. 

17 

Lk.  i.  69. 

CXXXV.    I4<T! 

,, 

Heb.  X.  30. 

cxl.  3  b 

„ 

Rom.  iii.  13. 

cxliii.  1  b 

>» 

Rom.  iii.  20. 

cxlvi.  6 

Acts  iv.  24;  xiv.  15. 

This  list  includes  a  few  passages  which  are  not  formally  introduced  as 
quotations,  though  they  are  taken  directly  from  the  Psalms :  but  it  does 
not  attempt  to  collect  the  numerous  indirect  allusions  and  references  to 
the  thought  and  language  of  the  Psalms  which  are  to  be  found  in 
the  New  Testament. 


INDEX 


Aben  Ezra  quoted,  540 

Abraham,  promises  to,  423 

Absalom's  rebellion,  see  David 

acrostic  Psalms,  Ixiv 

Adullam,  320 

Ahab,  243 

Ahaz,  254,  308 

Ahithophel,  307 

AldmMh,  xxv,  255,  267 

alphabetic  Psalms,  ixiv 

Al-tasche.th.  xxvii,  yi\ 

Ama'ekites,  501 

Amaziah,  339 

Ammonites,  501 

Amos,  483 

angels,  475,  496,  533;  functions  of,  279; 

guardians  of  nations,  495 
anointed  of  Jehovah,  504,  508 
anthropomorphism,  477 
anthropof)alhy,  239 
Antiochus  Epiphanes,  440 
appear  before  God,  228,  508 
Aquila,  Ixxi,  and  no\.&s  passim 
Arabic  poetry,  xxxv 
Aramaic  language,  Ixx 
Aram-naharaim,  338 
Ark,  the  symbol  of  Jehovah's  Presence, 

238,    261,    354,   379:    capture   of,  477; 

translation  to  Zion,  375 ;  to  the  Temple, 

375^^    , 
arm  of  God,  535 
Artaxerxes  Ochus,  236,  442,  499 
Asaph, 427 
Asaph,  Psalms  of,  xxxiii,  276  ff.,  427  ff.  ; 

their  characteristics,  428  ff. 
Assyria,  501 
Assyrians,  deliverance  of  Jerusalem  from, 

see  Sennacherib 
Athanasius  quoted,  ciii 
Augustine  quoted,  cv,  372 
Authorised  Version,    Ixxiv,    and    notes 

passim 
Azkdrd,  407 

Babylon,  519  ff. ;  see  Exile 
Baca,  vale  of,  507 
Baethgen  quoted,  258 
balsam-trees,  507 
Bashan,  3S6 


Basil  quoted,  ciii 

Bath-sheha,  285 

Benjamin,  tribe  of,  392 

Bickell  quoted,  267 

birds,  sacred,  506 

Black,  J.  S.,  quoted,  390 

bloodguiltiness,  293 

bones,  meaning  of,  232,  292 

book  of  life,  406 

bottle,  319 

'  bring  back   the  captivity,'  meaning  of 

phrase,  303 
Bruston  quoted,  248 

Calvin  quoted,  cvi 

Carlyle  quoted,  285 

chdsld,  233,  279,  544 

Cheyne  quoted,    .-.xxvii,   306,   327,    483, 

488,  495,  .523,  &c. 
Christ,   interpretation   of  Pss.    referring 

to,  Ixxxii.     See  Messianic  hope 
Christian  character,  work  of  the  Pss.  In 

developing,  cvi 
Church,  De.nn,  quoted,  cvi 
Chry.'-ostom  quoted,  c,  cii,  353 
Coleridge  quoted,  cvii 
covenant  of  God,  240,  279,  282,  447 
Coverdale's  version,  Ixxiii ;  quoted,  349, 

&c. 
Cromwell,  378 

daughter  of  Tyre,  251 

daughters  of  Judah,  266 

David  the  founder  of  the  P.salter,  xli  ff.  ; 
Psalms  of,  meaning  of  the  title,  xxxiii, 
284;  Psalms  connected  by  their  titles 
or  by  conjecture  with  events  in  his  life, 
at  (;ibeah,  332;  at  Gath,  315;  during 
Saul's  persecution,  295,  304,  320 ;  his 
war  with  Edom,  235,  338  ;  the  transla- 
tion of  the  Ark,  375;  his  sin  and  re- 
pentance, 2S5;  the  time  of  Absalom's 
rebellion,  227,  307,  325,  344,  347,  352 

David's  last  words,  416 ;  Messianic  pro- 
mises made  to  him,  530  ff. 

Davidson,  Professor  A.  B.,  quoted,  534 

death,  O.  T.  view  of,  xciii  ff.,  267  ff., 
273  f-.  431  ff  •  526  ff. 

Deborah,  song  of,  xxxix,  376  ff. 


552 


INDEX. 


decalogue,  280,  282,  492 

Degrees,  Songs  of,  xxviii 

Delitzsch  quoted,  274,  325,  360,  472,  &c. 

Dillmann  quoted,  408 

Doeg,  295 

dogs,  334 

dove,  309.  384 

doxologies,  423,  543 

'dramatic  lyrics,'  xxxiv,  244 

Driver  quoted,  286,  389 

Duhm,  on  date  of  the  Pss.,  xxxviii 

Earle  quoted,  Ixxiv,  249 

early  rain,  364 

east  wind,  265 

Ecclesiasticus,  prologue  to,  xiii,  xlvi 

Edmund,  St,  his  favourite  Ps.,  418 

Edom,  David's  conquest  of,  338 

Edomites,  501 

Egypt,  references  to,  377,  394 

El,  see  God 

Eloah,  see  God 

Eldhivt,  see  God 

Elo/nfn,  judges  addressed  as,  327,  495 

Elohistic  Psalms,  Iv,  223 

Endor,  502 

Engedi,  320 

Enoch,  supposed  reference  to,  274,  438 

Ephraim,  342 

Ephraimites,  467 

Epiphany,  Psalm  for  the,  418 

Ethan,  348,  427,  524  f. 

Ethdfilin,  489 

Ethiopia,  395 

Ewald  quoted,  227,  332,  338,  442,  &c. 

Exile,  Psalms  referring  to  the,  xliv,  303, 
396,  430,  456,  483;  restoration  from, 
375,  510,  519,  531  ;  its  significance,  377 

Ezekiel,-4<>i,  412,  483,  531 

Ezrahite,  524  f. 

figurative  language  :  derived  from  chaff, 
503  ;  conquered  enemies,  370  ;  cup  of 
wine,  340,  452 ;  desert  travel,  330 ;  dove, 
309,  384  ;  falling  wall,  349  ;  flock,  443 
Levitical  ritual,  435 ;  morass,  399 
mountain  fires,  503  ;  neck-chains,  433 
progress  of  an  oriental  king,  380 ;  regis 
ters  of  citizens,  406,  522  ;  smoke,  379 
snowstorm,  386 ;  swollen  river,  398 
wax,  379 ;  winds,  472 

flesh,  317,  353,  361,  472,  505 

flood=nver,  368 

fool,  meaning  of  term,  271,  301 

forgiveness,  words  for,  288 

full  moon,  490 

future  life,  view  of,  xciii  ff.,  268  ff.,  273  f. 

431  f-.  437  f-.  526  fr. 

gall,  404 

gate  of  the  city,  401 
Gebal,  501 

Gideon's  victory,  502 
Gilead,  342 


Gift  it  h,  XXV,  490 

glory,  437  f.,  510 

glory=soul,  324 

glory  of  God,  see  God 

God  =  Jehovah,  389 

God,  Hebrew  words  for :  El,  Iv,  277, 
297,  322,  353  ;  Elonh,  Iv,  278  ;  Eldhtfn, 
Iv,  277,  &c.  ;  the  Name  of,  238  304, 
450 ;  His  Name  Jehovah,  277  •  Ji?- 
hovah  Tsebddth='Lo'RT>  of  Hosts,  2?= 
257.  485,  488  ;  J  ah,  j8c.  467 

His  titles:  Adonaz,  'Lord,'  5i«,: 
'Elyon,  '  Most  High.'  256.  278.  aai, 
434.  471.  476,  545;  tiie  living  Gcd. 
228;  King,  237,  260,  391,  446;  Rock, 

232,  348,  439  :  Judge,  429,  i,bo  494  ^-  " 
lion  of  Judah,  453  ;  a  sun  and  shield, 
509  ;  God  of  Abraham.  262  ;  of  Jacob, 
258 ;  Holy  One  of  Israel,  415,  473 ; 
Shepherd  of  Israel,  430 

His  attributes :  faithfulness,  531 ; 
holiness,  341 ;  light,  233  ;  lovingkind- 
ness,  231,  242,  322,  354,  530  ;  righteous- 
ness,  293,   363,  410,   513,    535 ;   truth, 

233.  322,  325,  513 ;  jealousy,  476 ; 
wrath,  485  ;  attributes  personified,  233, 
322,  535 

His  glory,  481,  513;  His  sovereignty, 
290 ;  His  incomparableness,  533 ;  His 
revelation  of  Himself,  288 ;  the  Spirit 
of  God,  292 ;  His  covenant  with  Israel, 
240;  with  David,  532;  His  wondrous 
works,  413;  His  arm,  535;  anthropo- 
morphic descriptions  of,  477 ;  descrip- 
tion of  His  Advent,  277  ;  introduced  as 
Speaker,  280,  429 ;  revealed  in  Nature 
and  in  History,  534;  to  be  acknow- 
ledged by  the  nations,  504,  516  ;  com- 
munion with  Him  man's  highest  good, 
353  ff.,  438 

gods,  judges  addressed  as,  327,  495 

Gospel  of  Peter,  404 

grace,  510 

Great  Bible,  Ixxiii.  380,  381,  and  notes 
passim 

Gregory  VII,  249 

grin,  334 

Habakkuk,  Prayer  of,  376,  456 

Hagarenes,  501 

Haggai,  377,  510 

hair,  worn  long  in  vows,  390 

Ham,  475 

harvest  thanksgiving,  Ps.  for,  372 

health,  374 

heart,  353,  472,  505        ,       ^       .  . 

Hebrew  language,  mode  of  writing,  Ixvu 

Hebrew  poetry,    various    kinds    of,    ix ; 

form  of,  Ix  ff. ;  strophical  arrangement, 

Ixiii ;    alphabetic  or  acrostic   Psalms, 

Ixiv 
Hebrew  tenses,  545 
Hebrew  Text  of  O.T.,  Ixv  ff.  ;  date  of 

MSS.,  Ixv;  history  of,  Ixvi ;  imperfec- 


INDEX. 


553 


tions  of,  Ixvi ;  apparent  errors  in,  230, 
246,  267,  318,  330,  335,  395,  411,  474, 
494,  539.  542,  &c. 

Henian,  524  f. 

Hernion,  230,  386,  535 

Hexapla,  Origan's,  Ixxi 

Hezekiah,  xliv,  253,  366,  417,  519,  524 

history,  allusions  to  earlier,  characteristic 
of  Pss.  of  Asaph,  429  ;  the  Flood,  301  ; 
Babel,  310 ;  the  plagues,  473 ;  the 
Exodus,  376  ff.,  491  fif.  ;  passage  of  the 
Red  Sea,  368,  446,  461,  492 ;  destruc- 
tion of  the  Egyptians,  446  ;  Sinai,  277, 
382 ;  journey  through  the  wilderness, 
382,  447,  468  ff. ;  Korah,  310,  312 ; 
crossing  of  the  Jordan,  368;  occupa- 
tion of  Canaan,  237,  260 ;  period  of  the 
Judges,  383  ff.,  502  ;  capture  of  the 
Ark,  477 

history,  didactic  use  of,  429,  463 

Holy  One  of  Israel,  415,  473 

holy  ones,  533 

Horace  quoted,  256 

Hosei.,  277 

hours  of  prayer,  312 

house  of  God,  400 

Huguenots,  377 

hyssop,  291 

'  Imprecatory  Psalms,'  Ixxxviii  ff.,  398  ff. 

incense,  370 

innocence,  assertions  of,  Ixxxvii  f.  ;  na- 
tional, 236,  240 

interpretation  of  Psalms  as  referring  to 
our  Lord,  Ixxxii,  308,  398,  465 

Isaiah,  Pss.  connected  with  prophecies 
of,  254,  277,  296,  448,  494,  519 

Isaiah  xl — Ixvi,  Pss.  related  to,  286,  375, 
519 

Ishmaelites,  501 

Israel,  history  of,  reviewed,  462  ff.;  hopes 
for  the  restoration  of  the  Northern 
tribes,  377,  483  ;  the  '  Messianic  na- 
tion,' 373 

ivory  palaces,  250 

Jabin,  502 

jackals,  356 

Jacob,  430,  461 

Jah,  380 

Jeduthun,  xxvi,  348,  427,  458 

Jehoiachin,  Pss.  thought  to  refer  to,  227, 

396,  531,  540 
Jehoram,  243 

Jehoshaphat,  xliv,  254,  375,  499 
Jehovah  Tsebddth,  257;  see  God 
Jeremiah,  Psalms   attributed  to,  xxxvi, 

xliv,  307,  396  ff.,  410,  524;  prophecies 

of,  referred  to,  483 
Jeroboam  II,  243 
Jerome's  work  on  the  Psalter,  Ixxii  ;  his 

version  referred  to,  327,  507,  and  notes 

passim 


Jerusalem,  situation   of,  263,  520;  love 

for,  345 
John  Hyrcanus,  242 
Jonadab,  410 
Jonathan,  347 
Joseph,  430,  461 
Josiah,  277,  332,  490 
Jotham,  268 
Judah,  tribe  of,  342,  392 
Judas  foreshadowed,  308 
Judas  Maccabaeus,  440 
judges  censured,  325  ff,  494  ff. 

Kadesh,  468 

Kay  quoted,  286,  326,  368,  414,  &c. 

Keble  quoted,  465 

Keilah,  men  of,  304,  318 

Kimchi  quoted,  326 

king,  position  and  typical  significance  of 
the  Israelite,  Ixxvi  ff.,  243,  416  ff.  ; 
lofty  language  applied  to,  243  ff.  ; 
duties  of,  4i6ff.;  the  ideal,  4i6ff.  ; 
shield  a  metaphor  for,  536 ;  his  re- 
lation to  Jehovah,  536 ;  Jehovah's 
firstborn,  538 

Korah,  224,  310,  31,2 

Korah,  Psalms  of  the  Sons  of,  xxxiii, 
223  ff. ;  their  characteristics,  224  f. ; 
date,  225 

Korahites,  history  of  the,  224 

Kri,  see  Q're 

Kthlbh,  Ixvii,  306,  335,  414,  434,  461, 
462,  536,  &c. 

Lagarde  quoted,  236,  258 

Latin  Versions,  Ixxi 

law,  meaning  of  word,  465 ;  references 
to  the,  270,  291 

leper,  life  of  a,  523 

leprosy,  sin  compared  to,  289 

Levites,  490 

life,  blessing  of  long,  346 

liturgical  use,  Psalms  probably  written 
for,  360,  365,  372,  489;  altered  for,  285, 
303,  332,  407  ;  in  Jewish  Church,  xxvii, 
259,  287,  373,  378,  418,  479,  489,  490, 
496 ;  in  Christian  Church,  353,  373, 
378,  418;  see  also  Proper  Psalms 

living  God,  see  God 

LoRD  =  Jehovah,  see  God 

Lord  =  Adonai,  see  God 

Lord  of  hosts,  see  God 

Lot,  children  of,  502 

lovingkindness,  513 

Luther,  cvi,  255,  287 

Maccabaean  Psalms,  supposed,  xliv  ff., 
227,  234  f.,  339,  344,  375,  417,  430,  440, 
449.  498 

Maccabees,  history  of  the,  440 

Maclaren  quoted,  256,  477,  536 

Mahalath,  301 

Mahalath  Leannothy  524 

man,  Heb.  words  for,  269,  299,  317,  542 


554 


INDEX. 


Manasseh,  308 

Manasseh,  tribe  of,  342 

marriage  procession,  252 

marvellous  works,  413 

Maschil,  xix 

Massah,  468 

Massord,  ixv 

Miissorelic    Text,    Ixv  ff. ;    see   IJtbreiu 

Text 
Matthew's  Bible,  Ixxiii 
meekness,  247 
memorial,  the,  407 
Meribah,  468,  492 
Messianic    hope,    Jxxvi  ff.  ;     the    royal 

Messiah,  Ixxvi ;  the  suffering  Messiah, 

Ixxix ;    the   Son   of   Man,   Ixxx ;    the 

Advent  of  God,  Ixxxi ;  the  destinj'  of 

the  nations,  Ixxxiii 
Messianic   Psalms,    243,    259,    308,   378, 

397.  417,  511,  515.  518  ff. 
Messianic  references  in  the  Targum,  see 

Targwn 
Micah,  268,  269,  276,  277 
Michtajn,  xx 
Midianites,  502 
Milton  quoted,  324,  514,  523 
viizrnor^  xiv,  xix 
Moab,  342 

Moabite  stone,  335,  340 
moe,  399 
monster,  412 
Morians,  395 
Moses,     Blessing    of,     376;     Song     of, 

alluded  to,  443,  461,  534,  &c. 
mourning,  rites  of,  477 
Miinster  quoted,  380,  392,  404,  434,  444, 

&c. 
Musician,  the  chief,  xxi 

Name  of  God,  238 ;  see  God 

Naphtali,  tribe  of,  392 

Nathan,  537 

nations,  destiny  of,  Ixxxiii  ff.,  521;  to 
bring  tribute  to  Jehovah,  394,  455 ;  to 
recognise  His  supremacy,  258,  259, 
261,  367,  373,  504;  and  worship  Him, 
517 ;  to  become  citizens  of  Zion,  518  ff. ; 
summoned  to  hear  instruction,  269, 
371 ;  to  submit  to  the  true  king,  420; 
relation  of  Israel  to,  Ixxxiv,  372  f. 

nations,  hostility  of  the  neighbouring, 
to  Israel,  239,  482,  486,  498  ff. 

nature,  a  revelation  of  God,  447,  535 ; 
a  witness  to  man's  action,  279 

Neginah,  344 

Neglndth,  xxiv 

Nehemiah,  Pss.  attributed  to  the  age  of, 
xliv,  332,  442,  499 

Nehllotk,  xxiv 

new  moon,  490 

nobles,  oppression  of  poor  by,  296 

nomad  life,  language  of,  405 

Northern  Israel,  tribes  of,  mentioned, 
484  ;  hopes  for  restoration  of,  377,  483 


Oehler's   O.  T.  Theology   quoted,  277, 

280,  293,  438,  485,  &c. 

oil,  symbol  of  joy,  249 

Old  Testament,  position  of  Psalter  in, 
xiii ;  triple  division,  xiii ;  order  of 
Books,  xiv ;  text  of,  Ixv  ff.  ;  Ver- 
sions of,  Ixviii  ff.  ;  limitations  of  view 
in,  xc;  some  ruling  ideas  in,  xcif. ; 
relation  to  N.  T.,  Ixxxviiff.,  xciii 

Onias  III,  227 

Ophir,  250 

oral  tradition,  xxxv;  importance  at- 
tached to,  236,  466 

Oreb,  502 

Origen,  Ixxi 

Ovid  quoted,  228,  324 

parable,  269 

parallelism  in  Hebrew  poetry,  Ix  ff. 

Pashhur,  307 

'  Passion  Psalms,'  Ixxix  f ,  398 

Passover,  Psalms  for,  360,  365 

penitence,  language  of,   framed   by   the 

Psalter,  287 
penitential  Psalms,  287 
Pentecost,  Psalm  for,  372 
Perowne,    Bp,  quoted,  xcviii,   290,  326, 

352,  368,  499.  523,  &c. 
Peshltta,  Ixx 
Petrie  quoted,  467 
Philistines,  342,  501 
Pirqe  Aboth  quoted,  434 
plagues,  the,  463 
praises,  as  a  name  for  the  Psalms,  xiv, 

263 
Prayer  Book  Version,  Ixxiiff.;  renderings 

e.\plained,  251,  312,  317,  324,  380,  392, 

404,    412,    420,    422,    459,    492,    508, 

520,  &c. 
prayers,  as  a  name  for  the  Psalms,  xv, 

424,  5^5 

prevent,  335,  481,  529 

priests,  490 

Proper  Psalms,  259,  262,  321,  378,  511, 
524.  531 

Propertius  quoted,  275 

prophecy,  connexion  of  Psalms  with,  x, 
276,  325,  428 ;  cessation  of,  445 ;  '  double 
sense'  of,  Ixxxii  f.     See  Messianic  hope 

prosperity  of  the  wicked,  problem  of 
the,  xcii,  268  ff,,  298,  431 

psalm,  xiv 

Psalms,  Book  of,  general  characteristics, 
ix;  relation  to  other  Books  of  O.  T., 
x;  historical  importance,  xi ;  critical 
study,  xi;  devotional  use,  xii ;  posi- 
tion in  O.  T.,  xiii;  names,  xiv;  num- 
bering, XV ;  division  into  books,  xvii; 
middle  verse  and  line  of,  472  ;  collec- 
tion and  growth,  I ;  steps  in  formation, 
Iviii ;  date  of  collection,  lix  ;  object  of 
compilation,  1 ;  previous  collections, 
liii  ff.;  divisions  for  recitation,  ci;  known 
by    heart,    cii;    Messianic    hope    in, 


INDEX. 


555 


Ixxvi  ff. ;  theology  of,  Ixxxv  ff.;  litera- 
ture, cviii 

Psalms,  titles  of,  xviii  ff. ;  oral  transmis- 
sion of,  XXXV ;  adapted  and  altered, 
XXXV  ;  authorship  and  age  of,  xxxv  ff.  ; 
arrangement,  lix  ;  alphabetic  or  acros- 
tic, Ixiv  ;  poetical  form  of,  Ix  ;  strophi- 
cal  arrangement,  Ixiii ;  imprecatorj', 
Ixxxviii  ff.,  398  ff. ;  supposed  to  be 
written  in  the  name  of  the  nation,  li  ff., 
286, 316,  409,  523 ; secondary,  409,  514 ; 
repeated,  300,  407 

Psalms  of  Solomon,  xlviii 

psalter,  xiv;  see  Psalvis,  Book  oj 

psaltery,  490 

purpose,  Heb.  idea  of  Divine,  290 

Q're,  Ixvii,  335,  414,  461,  462,  536,  &c. 

quick  =  alive,  312 

quotations  from  Psalms  in  N.  T.,  547  ff. 

kahab  =  Egypt,  521,  534 

registers  of  citizens,  406,  522 

Rehoboam,  531 

reins,  437 

rejoicing  at  the  ptmishment  of  the  wicked, 

Ixxxviii  ff.,  298,  306,  330 
Rephidim,  468 
resurrection,  hope  of,  in  O.  T. ,  xciii  f., 

273 
retribution,    desire    for,   in    the    O.  T., 

xciff.,  298,  315,  330 
return   from   Babylon,   366,    375  ff.  ;    its 

significance,  377 
Reuben,  384 

Revised  Version,  Ixxv,  and  notes  passn/i 
Riehm  quoted,  243 
righteousness,  of  God,  see-6'<?^;  of  man, 

247.  513 
Robinson  quoted,  241 
Rosenmiiller  quoted,  452 

sacred  mountain  of  Asiatic  mythology, 
264 

sacrifice,  Ixxxvi ;  prophetic  view  of,  276; 
the  sanction  of  the  covenant,  279; 
victims  offered  in,  371,  406;  spiritual, 
281,  294  ;  various  terms  for,  295 

saints,  279,  512,  544 

Salem,  453 

Salmon,  385 

Sanday  quoted,  235 

Savonarola,  377 

Schultz's  O.  T.  Theology  quoted,  348 

Schiirer  quoted,  445 

Scrivener  quoted,  232,  493   &c. 

Seba,  421 

Sela,  343 

Selah,  .XX ii 

self-rigliteousness,  supposed,  Ixxxvii  ff. ; 
372 

Sennacherib,  Psalms  connected  with  de- 
liverance of  Jerusalem  from,  xl,  253  ff., 
303,  360,  366,  372,  448  ff.,  453  ff. 


Septuagint,  Ixviii  ff.  ;  its  history,  Ixviii; 
MSS.,  Ixix;  value,  Ixix ;  influence  on 
P.  B.  v.,  Ixxiv;  readings  of,  230,  246, 
251,  258,  262,  267,  272,  278,  282,  314, 
316,  323,  327,  328,  331,  335,  340,  361, 
367.  387.  395.  4",  4H.  419,  423,  433- 
434.  439.  445.  449.  45i.  454.  47°,  49°. 
507.  508,  509.  513.  517.  527,  &c. 

servant  ot  Jehovah,  478,  518 

shadow  of  death,  241 

Shakespeare  quoted,  297,  334,  355 

Sheba,  421 

Shechem,  341,  385 

Shechmah,  443 

SJiemmith,  xxv 

Sheoly  273 

shield,  a  title  uf  God,  336,  509 ;  of  kings, 
262 

S/itsrgaio7i,  XX 

Shiloh,  destruction  of,  477  f 

Shir,  xix 

Shoshannim,  xxvi,  245,  398,  484 

Shushan  eduth,  xxvi,  339 

sin,  different  words  for,  288,  511 ;  con- 
fessed and  repented  of,  289;  punish- 
ment of,  481 

sin  and  suffering,  popular  view  of  the 
relation  of,  Ixxxviii 

Sinai,  allusions  to,  277,  382 

Sisera,  502 

slavery,  Israelite  view  of,  239 

Smith,  G.A.,  quoted,  230 

Smith,  Robertson,  quoted,  235,  236,  281, 
321,  345,  383,  433,  442,  499,  &c. 

snail,  329 

snake  charmers,  328 

Solomon,  references  to,  244,  416 

Solomon,  Psalms  of,  xlviii 

song,  xix 

Songs  of  Degrees,  xxviii 

sons  of  God,  534 

soul,  229,  353,  505 

Spirit  of  God,  292 

Stanley  quoted,  478,  486,  520,  535 

Succoth,  341 

Symmachus,  Ixxi,  and  not^i, passim 

synagogues,  445 

Syriac  Version,  l.\x,  and  notes  />assi//t 

Taberah,  469 

Tabernacles,  Pss.  for  Feast  of,  372, 
489 

table,  404 

Tabor,  535 

Talmud  quoted,  242,  390 

Targum,  Ixx  ;  Messianic  references  in, 
Ixx,  244,  346  f.,  417,  543;  quoted,  244, 
248,  301,  346  f.,  378,  380,  388,  417,  448, 
48S,  507.  509.  523.  526,  543,  &c. 

Tarshish,  265,  421 

tell,  266 

Tenqjle,  references  to,  Ixxxvi ;  pilgrim- 
ages to,  362,  504  ;  worship  at,  228,  362; 
love  for,   352,  504 ;   place  where  God 


556 


INDEX. 


reveals  Himself,  436;  destruction  of, 
440  ;  significance  of  the  restored,  393 

terrible  things,  363 

Theodotion,  Ixxi,  and  x\oX.e.s  passim 

Theology'  of  the  Psalms,  Ixxxv  ff. ;  rela- 
tion to  ordinances  of  worship.  Ixxxv; 
alleged  self-righteousness  of  the  Psalm- 
ists, Ixxxviif.,  372;  imprecatory  Psalms, 
Ixxxviiiff. ;  future  life,  xciii  ff..  268  ff., 
273  f-,  431  f-,  437  f-  526  ff  ;  view  of 
death,  273  f.,  526  ff.  ;  destruction  of 
the  wicked  why  desired,  xci,  298 

Theophany,  description  of  a,  277  f. 

Thomson  quoted,  399,  503 

timbrel,  490 

Tisri,  489 

titles  of  Psalms,  xviii  ff.  ;  referring  to 
character  of  poem,  xix  ;  musical  setting 
or  performance,  xxi ;  instruments,  xxiv; 
pitch  of  music,  xxv;  melody,  xxvi ; 
liturgical  use,  xxvii;  authorship  or 
source,  xxix,  xxxiii ;  occasion,  xxx ; 
value  of  the  titles,  xxx  ff. :  variations 
in  MSS.  and  Versions,  xxxi 

tongue,  sins  of  the,  297,  359 

Tristram  quoted,  329,  356,  399,  404,  470, 
487,  506,  &c. 

Trumpets,  Feast  of,  489 

truth,  291,  513 

Tyre,  251,  501 

Uzziah,  268,  524 


vale  of  tears,  507 

vales,  365 

Versions,   Ancient,    Ixv  ff., 

passim 
Versions,  English,  l.xxii  ff. 


and    notes 


vindictiveness,  apparent  spirit  of,  Ixx  ff., 

Ixxxviii  ff.,  298,  306,  330 
vine  as  emblem  of  Israel,  486 
vinegar,  404 
vintage  songs,  321 
Vulgate,  Ixxii,  and  notes  passim 

watches  of  the  night,  355 

wealth,  impotence  of,  267 

week.  Psalms  for  days  of,  xxvii 

Wellhausen  on  the  date  of  the  Psalms, 
xxxvii 

Westcott,  Bp,  quoted,  248,  505 

'Wisdom'  of  Israel,  xi;  Psalms  con- 
nected with,  267  f. ,  432 

wise,  271 

wonders,  533 

wondrous  works  of  God,  413 

Wright's  Bible  Word-Book  quoted,  334, 
480,  6cc. 

Wycliffe  quoted,  349 

Yinnon,  417 

Zalmon,  385 

Zalmunna,  502 

Zebah,  502 

Zebulun,  tribe  of,  392 

Zechariah,  prophecies  of,  377,  510 

Zech.  ix — xi,  483 

Zeeb,  502 

Zion,  the  city  of  God,  256 ;  the  abode  of 
Jehovah,  278;  metropolis  of  the  na- 
tions, 519 

Ziphites,  304  f. 

Zoan,  467 

Zurich  Bible,  Ixxiii 


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