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Published by the author of this volume, and for sale
by James Munroe & Company, 134, Washington Street,
Boston : —

1. A New Translation of the Book of Job, with an
Introduction and Notes, chiefly explanatory. Second Edi-
tion. 1838.

2. A New Translation of the Hebrew Prophets, ar-
ranged in Chronological Order, with Notes, &;c. In Three
Volumes. Second Edition. 1843.

3. A New Translation of the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes,
and the Canticles, with Introductions and Notes, chiefly
explanatory. 1846.

A

NEW TRANSLATION

OF

THE PSALMS.

NEW TRANSLATION

BOOK OF PSALMS,

AN INTRODUCTION,

NOTES, CHIEFLY EXPLANATORY.

By GEORGE R. NOYES, D. D.,

HANCOCK PROFESSOR OF HEBREW, ETC., AND DEXTER LECTURER
IN HARVARD UNIVERSITY.

SECOND EDITI ON.

BOSTON:
JAMES MUNROE AND COMPANY.

LONDON:

CHAPMAN, BROTHERS, 121, NEWGATE ST.

1846.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1846, by
James Munroe and Company,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.

CAMBRIDGE:

METCALF AND COMPANY,

PRINTERS TO THE UNIVERSITY.

INTRODUCTION.

I. General Character and Value of the Psalms.

The Book of Psalms has been styled by some of the German
critics, in allusion to a portion of Grecian literature, The Hebrew
Anthology ; that is, a collection of the lyric, moral, historical,
and elegiac poetry of the Hebrews. Regarded in this light alone,
it presents a most interesting subject of literary taste and curi-
osity. Many of these psalms must have been composed some
hundreds of years before the period which is commonly assigned
to the origin of the Iliad of Homer. But it is not with them
as with many of the productions of the classic Muse, of which the
antiquity constitutes their greatest claim upon the attention of the
scholar, and of which the subjects possess little or no interest for
the world in its manhood. It was the privilege of the Hebrew
bards to be employed upon subjects possessing an interest as en-
during as the attributes of God and the nature of dependent man.
Their poetry has the deep foundation of eternal truth. It comes,
for the most part, in language the most glowing, from the very
depths of the soul, rich in sentiments adapted to the soul's most
urgent wants. Hence its living spirit, its immortal freshness.
Hence its power of reaching the hearts of all men, in all countries
and in all ages. Where, in the whole compass of literature, can
one find more of the " thoughts that breathe and words that burn "
than in the Hebrew Anthology] Then, too, what variety is there
in the subjects of these ancient compositions ! How diverse the
states of heart and fortune that occasioned them ! How various
1*

6 INTRODUCTION.

the strains of joy, sorrow, gratitude, love, hope, confidence, fear,
remorse, and penitence, which come from the sacred lyre ! There
is scarcely a conceivable state of the human soul, in which one
may not repair to the Psalter, as it were to a sympathizing friend.

What a sensation would be produced in the literary world by
such a collection of poetry as is presented in the Book of Psalms,
could it come recommended by the attraction of novelty ! But the
truth is, that, in general, the ear is accustomed to these admirable
productions, before the mind can comprehend their meaning or
feel their beauty ; so that, in maturer life, it requires no incon-
siderable effort to give them that attention which is necessary for
the reception of the impressions they are adapted to impart.

Another obstacle to a proper estimate of the poetry of the Scrip-
tures is the very imperfect translation, and wretched arrangement,
in which it has been presented to English readers. Let the lover
of poetry imagine what impressions he should receive from the
odes of CoUins or Gray, cut up into fragments like the verses in
the common version of the Bible, and he may comprehend what
injustice has been done to the Hebrew poets.

The compositions in the Book of Psalms are the productions of
various authors and periods, belong to different species of poetry,
and possess various degrees of poetic merit. While some of them
present the fresh gushes of excited feeling, or the calmer expres-
sion of the sublimest sentiments, in the boldest language of poetry,
others consist only of moral maxims artificially arranged in a sen-
tentious style, or of elaborate and imitative prayers and praises,
prepared for the public worship of God.

The Psalms, says De Wette, are lyric poems. This is all that
is implied in the name which they bear. ^Fa^i^iog, from xpdUtiv,
chordas tangere, jidihus canere, signifies the music of a stringed
instrument, the sound of the lyre; then, a song sung to the music of
the lyre. This word is used by the Alexandrian translators for the
Hebrew nbjD, as well as il'uUeir for the verb "i^^T ; but these
Hebrew words, whatever may be their etymology, have the signi-
fication of song accompanied with music. Psalter (-ifaXnlQiov) , the
name which, in imitation of the Greeks, we give to the collection
of Psalms, properly denotes a stringed instrument; and the appel-

INTRODUCTION. 7

lation is to be understood in the same manner as when we give to
a collection of lyric poems the title of The Lyre. The Jews call
the Psalms D'Snn, songs of praise^ and the collection D"'bnr) n.3p,
also, abbreviated, D'bn, an appellation which applies to a part
only of the Psalms. The term, □n.DT? or Dn^K^, songs, odes,
would be more correct.

The Psalms are lyric, in the proper sense ; for with the He-
brews, as in the ancient world generally, song and music were
connected, and the titles to most of the Psalms determine their
connection with music, though in a manner which is unintelligible
to us. These compositions deserve, moreover, the name of lyric,
on account of their character as works of taste. The essence of
lyric poetry is the immediate expression of feeling ; and feeling is
the sphere to which most of the Psalms belong. Pain, sorrow,
fear, hope, joy, confidence, gratitude, submission to God, every
thing that moves and elevates the soul, is expressed in these
hymns.

In the Psalms we have merely the remains of the lyric poetry
of the Hebrews. The productions of this class were undoubtedly
far more numerous than would seem to have been the case from
these remains, and spread through a wider and more diversified
field. The Psalter is chiefly composed of religious and devotional
hymns ; but it cannot be maintained that the lyric poetry of the
Hebrews was exclusively devoted to the service of religion and
of public worship. Tlie supposition is sufficiently contradicted
by those invaluable examples of another species of lyric poetry,
which are preserved in other parts of the Scriptures ; such as
David's elegy over Saul and Jonathan, the song at the well
(Numb. xxi. 17), and especially the Song of Solomon ; although
the last belongs to a somewhat different branch of poetical compo-
sition. In the Book of Psalms itself, there is one production
which possesses an altogether secular character, namely, Psalm
xlv. For most of the hymns which are extant, we are indebted
probably to the religious use to which they were consecrated,
rather than to any common poetical sympathy ; and hence so few
secular songs have been preserved from destruction.

8 INTRODUCTION.

In respect to their contents and character, the Psalms have been
classified in the following manner.*

I. Hymns in praise of Jehovah. 1. Generally as God of na-
ture and of man, Ps. viii., civ., cxlv. 2. As God of nature and
of Israel, Ps. xix., xxix., xxxiii., Ixv., xciii., cxxxv., cxxxvi.,
cxlvii., and others. 3. As God of Israel, Ps. xlvii., Ixvi., Ixvii.,
Ixxv. 4. As the saviour and helper of Israel, Ps. xlvi., xlvii.,
xlviii., Ixxv., Ixxvi.; and of individuals, Ps. xviii., xxx., cxxxviii.,
and others.

II. National psalms, containing allusions to the ancient history
of the Israelites, and to the relation of the people to Jehovah,
Ps. Ixxviii., cv., cvi., cxiv.

III. Psalms of Zion and of the temple, Ps. xv., xxiv., Ixviii.,
Ixxxi., Ixxxvii., cxxxii., cxxxiv., cxxxv.

IV. Psalms relating to the king, Ps. ii., xx., xxi., xlv., Ixxii.,
ex.

V. Psalms which contain complaints under affliction and the
persecution of enemies, and prayers for succour ; the most nu-
merous class, comprising more than a third part of the vi^hole col-
lection. These psalms of complaint are, — 1. Personal, relating
to the case of an individual, Ps. vii., xxii., Iv., Ivi., cix., and
others. 2. National, Ps. xliv., Ixxiv., Ixxix., Ixxx., cxxxvii.,
and others. 3. Personal and national at the same time, Ps. Ixix.,
Ixxvii,, cii. From these divisions proceed still others. 4. Gen-
eral psalms of complaint, reflections on the wickedness of the
world, Ps. x., xii., xiv., xxxvi. 5. Didactic psalms, respecting
the condition of the pious and the godless, Ps. xxxvii., xlix.,
Ixxiii. 6. Psalms of thanksgiving for deliverance from enemies,
which also pass over into the first class, Ps. xxxiv., xl. and
others.

VI. Religious and moral psalms. 1. Odes to Jehovah with
special allusions, Ps. xc, cxxxix. 2. Expressions of religious
conviction, hope, confidence, Ps. xxiii., xci., cxxi., cxxvii.,
cxxviii. 3. Expressions of religious experience, resolutions, &c.,

* See De Wette's Commentar tlber die Psalmen, p. 3. Biblical
Repository for 1833, p. 448.

INTRODUCTION. 9

Ps. xlii., xliii., ci., cxxxi. 4. Development of religious or moral
ideas, Ps. i., cxxxiii. 5. Didactic poems relating- to religion,
Ps. xxxii., 1. 6. Collections of proverbs, in alphabetical order,
Ps. cxix. The few which cannot be brought under any of the
foregoing classes and divisions either constitute new ones by
themselves or possess an intermediate character.

It will be perceived, tliat, in this classification, proposed by
De Wette, no place is assigned to psalms relating to the Messiah.
This is in accordance with the opinion of the above-mentioned
distinguished commentator, and others, who reject the doctrine of
a double sense in the Scriptures, that there is not in the Book of
Psalms any prediction relating to the Messiah. The question
whether any, and, if any, how many, of the Psalms relate to the
Messiah, is attended wuth considerable difficulty. At first view,
it would be natural to expect that the lyrical productions of the
Jewish poets, as well as the writings of the prophets, would con-
tain allusions to the Messiah. But when we come to examine
those which have been chiefly referred to as containing the Mes-
sianic hopes, such as the ii., xvi., xxii., xl., xlv., Ixxii., ex., we
seem to find, on the principles of historical interpretation which
are applied to all other books, in some of them no predictions
whatever, but only references to the past or the present; in others,
only glowing anticipations, which seem to refer to the writer of
the psalm, or to Jewish kings contemporary with him. The ques-
tion can be decided only by a critical examination of each psalm.
But it deserves consideration, whether Christ may not be said to
have fulfilled what is written in the Psalms concerning him, when
he filled out, or completed, what was valuable in the experience,
or precious in the hopes, of David and other servants of God,
which are the proper subjects of the Psalms. His life and suflfer-
ings were analogous to theirs, but of a higher character and
attended with more glorious results. This view is confirmed by
the interpretation of the Psalms which has generally prevailed in
the Christian church. The ever-recurring remark of the common
expositor is, " This psalm in part refers to David, and in part to
Jesus Christ" ; or, " This psalm is fulfilled in a lower sense in

10 INTRODUCTION.

David, but in a higher and better sense in Christ." But the sup-
position that the psalm itself contains more senses than one seems
to contradict all just views of the nature of language. In regard
to some of the references * made to the Psalms by Paul and Peter,
and the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, it seems necessary
to suppose that they were not inspired as critics and interpreters,
but that they argued according to a mode of reasoning and of inter-
pretation which they held in common with their contemporaries,
but which cannot be regarded as valid at the present day.

Now it is an indisputable fact, that the ancient Jews, without
regard to any just laws of interpretation, and especially in pursu-
ance of the typical or the allegorical method, applied hundreds of
passages of the Old Testament to the Messiah, which no one in
modern times can suppose to relate to him.f It would be singu-
lar, therefore, if we did not find traces of the same mode of apply-
ing Scriptural passages in the writers of the New Testament.

It is probable, that, in some cases, the reference in the New
Testament to a passage in the Psalms is merely in the way of
rhetorical illustration, or oi argumentum ex concessis; for instance,
in John xiii. 18, Matt. xxii. 44, &c. But this explanation cannot
be applied to such passages as Acts iv. 25, xiii. 33, and several
in the Epistle to the Hebrews, without doing violence to language.

These observations are offered for the consideration of those
who can find no psalm of which, in its primary sense, the Messiah
is the exclusive subject. There are, however, two or three
psalms, such as Ps. ii. and Ps. ex., of which the Messiah is sup-
posed to be the exclusive subject by some distinguished critics,
who, in the exposition of the Scriptures, hold fast the established
principles of interpretation which are applied to all other books.
For those who agree with them, some of the preceding remarks
may be less necessary.

Professor Tholuck, of Halle, observes, — " It must be confessed
that many psalms are called Messianic which are not so in reality.
There are some, for example, in which the Messiah has been sup-

* Acts iv. 25, xiii. 33, Heb. i. 5, 6, x. 5, &c.

t See Schoettgen's Horae Hebraicae et Talmudicoo, passim.

INTRODUCTION. H

posed to speak directly, and in the first person. But we are not
authorized to consider any psalms as strictly Messianic except the
second and the hundred and tenth ; and in these the Messiah
does not himself speak, but is spoken of in the third person.
Those psalms, in which the poet introduces himself in the first
person, must be regarded as the songs of David, or of some other
composer." *

The peculiar religious character of the Psalms, which distin-
guishes them from the productions of other nations of antiquity,
is well worthy of the attention of such as are disposed to doubt
the reality of the Jewish revelation. I do not refer to the pro-
phetic character which some of them are supposed to possess,
but to the comparative purity and fervor of religious feeling which
they manifest ; the sublimity and justness of the views of the
Deity, and of his government of the world, which they present ;
and the clear perception of a spiritual good, infinitely to be pre-
ferred to any external possession, which is found in them. Let
them be considered as the expression and fruit of the principles
of the Jewish religion, as they existed in the minds of pious
Israelites, and do they not bear delightful testimony to the reality
of the revelation alleged to have been made to the Hebrew nation,
and of the peculiar relation which the Most High is said to have
sustained towards them ?

Let the unbeliever compare the productions of the Hebrew
poets with those of the most enlightened periods of Grecian litera-
ture. Let him explain how it happened, that, in the most cele-
brated cities of antiquity, which human reason had adorned with
the most splendid trophies of art, whose architecture it is now
thought high praise to imitate well, whose sculpture almost gave
life to marble, whose poetry has never been surpassed, and whose
eloquence has never been equalled, a religion prevailed so absurd
and frivolous as to be beneath the contempt f of a child at the

* See Bibliotheca Sacra, Vol. I., p. 365.

t I speak of the prevailing religion. I do not regard the excel-
lent views of God and providence, entertained by a few of the
Grecian philosophers, such, for instance, as those attributed to

12 INTRODUCTION.

present day ; while in an obscure corner of the world, in a nation
in some respects imperfectly civilized, were breathed forth those
strains of devotion which now animate the hearts of millions, and
are the vehicle of their feelings to the throne of God. Let him
say if there be not some ground for the conclusion, that, whilst
the corner-stone of the heathen systems of religion was unassisted
human reason, that of the Jew^ish was an immediate revelation
from the Father of lights.

The hearts of the pious for ages have felt the value of the
Psalms, as helps to devotion ; and many have labored for expres-
sions in which to set forth their praise. For its truth, as well as
beauty, we quote the following description by Bishop Home, who
yet saw some things in them which modern views of interpreta-
tion will not permit us to find.

*' In them," says he, " we are instructed to conceive of the
subjects of religion aright, and to express the different affections
which, when so conceived of, they must excite in our minds.
They are, for this purpose, adorned with the figures, and set off
with all the graces, of poetry ; and poetry itself is designed yet
farther to be recommended by the charms of music thus conse-
crated to the service of God ; that so delight may prepare the way
for improvement, and pleasure become the handmaid of wisdom,
while every turbulent passion is calmed by sacred melody, and the
evil spirit is still dispossessed by the harp of the son of Jesse.
This little volume, like the paradise of Eden, affords us in perfec-
tion, though in miniature, every thing that groweth elsewhere,
' every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food ' ; and
above all, what was there lost, but is here restored, the tree of life
in the midst of the garden. That which we read as matter of
speculation in the other Scriptures is reduced to practice when
we recite it in the Psalms ; in those, faith and repentance are de-
scribed, but in these they are acted ; by a perusal of the former
we learn how others served God, but by using the latter we serve
him ourselves."

Socrates in the Memorabilia of Xenophon, as inconsistent with the
tenor of my remarks.

INTRODUCTION I3

*' The hymns of David," says Milman, " excel no less in sub-
limity and tenderness of expression than in loftiness and purity
of religious sentiment. In comparison with them, the sacred po-
etry of all other nations sinks into mediocrity. They have em-
bodied so exquisitely the universal language of religious emotion,
that (a few fierce and vindictive passages excepted, natural in
the warrior-poet of a sterner age) they have entered, with un-
questioned propriety, into the ritual of the holier and more perfect
religion of Christ. The songs, which cheered the solitude of the
desert caves of Engedi, or resounded from the voice of the Hebrew
people, as they wound along the glens or the hill-sides of Judea,
have been repeated for ages in almost every part of the habitable
world, in the remotest islands of the ocean, among the forests of
America, or the sands of Africa. How many human hearts have
they softened, purified, exalted I Of how many wretched beings
have they been the secret consolation ! On how many communi-
ties have they drawn down the blessings of Divine Providence,
by bringing the affections into unison with their deep devotional
fervor ! ' '

Luther, in his preface to the Psalter, has the following just re-
marks : — "A human heart is like a ship on a wild sea, driven
by liigh winds from the four quarters of the world. Here rush
fear and anxiety on account of future calamity, there press afflic-
tion and sorrow, caused by present evil ; here blow hope and con-
fidence in future prosperity, there come security and joy in present
good. These high winds teach a man to speak with earnestness,
to open his heart, and pour out the bottom of it. For he who is
in fear and distress speaks of trouble very differently from one
who is in joy ; and he who is in joy speaks of joy very differently
from one who is in fear. It comes not from the heart, it is said,
when a sad man laughs, or a joyful man weeps ; that is, the bot-
tom of his heart stands not open, and nothing comes forth. But
what is the greater part of the Psalter, but such earnest speech in
the midst of high winds of every kind 1 Where do we find a
sweeter voice of joy than in the psalms of thanksgiving and
praise ? There you look into the heart of all the holy, as into a
beautiful garden, as into heaven itself. What delicate, sweet,
2

14 INTRODUCTION.

and lovely flowers are there springing up of all manner of beauti-
ful, joyous thoughts towards God and his goodness I On the
other hand, where do you find more profound, mournful, pathetic
expressions of sorrow than the plaintive psalms contain ? There
again you look into the heart of all the holy, as into death, yea,
as into the pit of despair. How dark and gloomy is it there, in
consequence of all manner of melancholy apprehension of God's
displeasure? So also when the Psalmists speak of fear or hope,
they use such words, that no painter could so delineate, and no
Cicero or eloquent orator so describe them."

Perhaps the maledictions or imprecations, contained in some of
the psalms, may appear inconsistent with the views which have
been advanced. I am here willing to admit the unsoundness of
some of the explanations which have been given of these impre-
cations. They cannot all, as has been supposed, be regarded as
predictions or denunciations of the punishment which awaits evil-
doers. Some of them, at least, are wishes or prayers. See
Ps. cxxxvii. 8. But on this subject it should be remembered
that —

I. Many prayers against enemies, contained in the Psalms, are
equivalent to prayers for personal safety. They were composed
by the head of the nation, in a state of war, when prayer for the
destruction of enemies was equivalent to prayer for preservation
and success. So Christian ministers are accustomed to pray for
success for the arms of their country. So on our national festivals
we are accustomed to thank God that he enabled our fathers to
overcome their enemies. What is harsh, therefore, in prayers of
this kind is incidental to a state of warfare. This explanation
will also apply to the psalms composed by David during his perse-
cution by Saul. These prayers should never be used by private
Christians with respect to personal enemies.

II. Another consideration is, that those prayers are expressed
in the strong language of poetry ; and that some of the particular
thoughts and expressions, which are connected with the general
subject of the prayer, result from an effort for poetic embellish-
ment and effect, rather than from vindictiveness of feeling.

ITT. The imprecations which are not included in the classes

INTRODUCTION. 15

above mentioned are extremely few. I shall not undertake to
reconcile a part of Ps. Ixix., cix., and cxxxvii. with the spirit
of the Jewish religion, and far less with the spirit of Him who
said, " Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven," and who spent his last
breath in prayer for his murderers, — " Father, forgive them, for
they know not what they do ! "

But is it strange that a human soul should be embittered by
persecution so as occasionally to utter a sentiment inconsistent
with the religion which it professes ; that one, who had even
spared the life of his deadly enemy when entirely in his power,
should, under circumstances of great provocation, express personal
feelings inconsistent with his own general character, and with the
spirit of his religion 1 Why should not the language of David,
as well as his conduct, be sometimes inconsistent with what is
right? It must be remembered, too, that, in the Jewish rehgion,
the duty of forgiveness had been less insisted on, because the age
was not prepared to comprehend it. The law was our school-
master to bring us unto Christ. There are no imaginable circum-
stances in which Christians would be justifiable in using the
language of the psalms above referred to, or similar language, in
their addresses to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

A writer in the Andover Bibliotheca Sacra* has undertaken,
if we understand him, to maintain the absolute rectitude of all
these imprecations, and their immediate inspiration by the Deity.
But if this be so, then are Christian ministers in general very
deficient in their duty, and there is far too little cursing in Chris-
tian pulpits. If the psalms in question are consistent with abso-
lute rectitude, then our Saviour's precept, to " bless them that
curse us, and to pray for them that despitefully use us," cannot
be; unless, indeed, to pray /or our enemies be to pray that " in-
iquity may be added to their iniquity," " that they may be blotted
out of the book of the living," " that there may be none to show
them compassion, and none to pity their fatherless children,"
and that "their little ones may be taken and dashed against the
stones."

* Vol. I., p. 102.

16 INTRODUCTION.

It was not, I suppose, a want of common sense or of Christian
feeling-, but adherence to an unfounded theory of inspiration, that
led the writer in the Bibliotheca Sacra to maintain a view ap-
parently so inconsistent, not only with the precepts and spirit of
Christ, but with the general feelings of the Christian church.
For the attempt to explain the imprecations of the Psalms as sim-
ple predictions, which has been made by interpreters from the
time of Augustin * to the present day, shows the uncongeniality
of such imprecations with the feelings of Christians. A recent
Orthodox commentator on the Psalms, well known by some of
his writings which have been translated in this country, adopts
substantially the view which I have given of the subject. Having
suggested every excuse for these imprecations of which the case
admits, and, especially, having suggested whether some of them
may not have been uttered as disinterested prayers for simple di-
vine retribution, rather than as expressions of personal feeling and
passion, he says : — " If now the question be asked, whether in
no case the unholy fire of personal anger mingled itself with the
holy fire of the Psalmist, we dare not maintain such a thing even
of the Apostles. f Whether in excited speech the anger be such
as ' worketh not the righteousness of God,' J or such as that with
which Christ himself was animated,^ may generally be known
from the nature of the case, namely, when there is an evident
satisfaction in being permitted to be the instrument of divine retri-
bution, or when particular kinds of retribution are prayed for with
evident pleasure, or when it is manifest that the representation
of them is connected with delight on the part of the speaker.
Thus, Ps. cix. and lix. contain many expressions of a passionate
character; Ps. cxlix. 7, 8, cxxxvii. 8, 9, Iviii. 10, and xli. 10, may
also have proceeded from a similar feeling. On other passages
individual feeling may decide differently." ||

^ Opp., Vol. v., Serm. 22. So Luther on Ps. Iv.
t Acts XV. 39, xxiii. 3, Phil. iii. 2, Gal. v. 12.
t James i. 20. § Mark iii. 5.

II Tholuck's Uebersetzung und Auslegung der Psalmen, Halle,
1843, p. Ixiii.

INTRODUCTION. 17

For all that is pure and wholesome in religion and morality,
and adapted to promote peace and good-will among men, one
would be glad to adduce all possible authority. But the solicitude
to obtain a divine sanction for hating and cursing even enemies
would be truly marvellous, did we not know to what extremes
good men are sometimes led by attachment to theory.

The following are the sentiments of Dr. Durell, an eminent di-
vine and scholar of the English Episcopal church, and principal
of one of the colleges in the University of Oxford, in the last cen-
tury : — " The common opinion is," says he, " that these impre-
cations are prophetic denunciations of God's judgments upon im-
penitent sinners. This, in some cases, may be true ; but surely
it cannot be so in all those parts where they are denounced by
the imperative ; where the author imprecates not against God''s
enemies, not against the enemies of the state, but against his oion
enemies. The most probable account of this matter in my humble
opinion is this, that God Almighty (though in a particular sense
the God of Abraham and his offspring) did not interpose by his
grace, or act upon the minds of his peculiar people, not even of
their prophets, in an extraordinary manner, except when he vouch-
safed to suggest some future event, or any other circumstance that
might be for the public benefit of mankind. In all other respects,
I apprehend they were left to the full exercise of their free will,
without control of the divine impulse. Now God had abundantly
provided, in that code of moral and ceremonial institutes which he
had given his people for their law, that the poor, the fatherless,
the widow, and stranger, should be particularly regarded ; whence
they ought to have learned to be merciful, as their Father in
heaven is merciful ; and it must be confessed that we sometimes
find such behaviour and sentiments in the Jews, with respect to
their enemies, as may be deemed truly Christian. See Ps. xxxv.
13, 14, &c. But in that very system of laws, it was also, for
wise reasons, ordained, that they should have no intercourse with
the seven nations of the Canaanites, but should absolutely exter-
minate them ; whence they unwarrantably drew this inference,
that they ought to love their neighbours, hut hate their enemies, as
our Lord declares, Matt. v. 43. From these devoted nations they
2*

18 INTRODUCTION.

extended the precept to the rest of mankind that were not within
the pale of their church ; nay, sometimes to their own domestic
enemies, those of their own blood and communion with whom
they were at variance. Hence, therefore, the horrid picture which
is drawn of that nation by the Greek and Roman authors ; from
whom I forbear to bring any instances, as they are well known,
and so numerous that they might iill a volume.

' ' How far it may be proper to continue the reading of these
psalms in the daily service of our church, I leave to the consider-
ation of the legislature to determine. A Christian of erudition
may consider these imprecations only as the natural sentiments of
Jews, which the benign religion he professes abhors and con-
demns. But what are the illiterate to do, who know not where
to draw the line between the law and the gospel 1 They hear
both read, one after the other, and I fear too often think them both
of equal obligation, and even take shelter under Scripture to cover
their curses. Though I am conscious I here tread upon slippery
ground, I will take leave to hint, that, notwithstanding the high
antiquity that sanctifies, as it were, this practice, it would, in the
opinion of a number of wise and good men, be more for the credit
of the Christian church to omit a few of those psalms, and to sub-
stitute some parts of the gospel in their stead." *

II. Authors of the Psalms.

The opinion has long since been exploded, that David was the
sole author of the Psalms. For the contents of some of them
prove that they were written during the captivity at Babylon.

According to tbe Hebrew inscriptions, which are translated in
the common English version of the Scriptures, and which form
the Italic titles in the following translation, the authors of the
Psalms are Moses, David, Solomon, Asaph, Ileman, Ethan, and
the sons of Korah.

But great uncertainty rests on these inscriptions, because sev-
rral of ihcm are inconsistent with the contents of the psalms to
wlii( h they are prefixed. It is, indeed, not improbable that the

Durell's Critical Remarks, p. 1'

INTRODUCTION. 19

name of the author was originally prefixed to his composition by
his own hand. This is said to have been the practice of the Ori-
ental poets from a very remote age, as it certainly was of several
of the Hebrew prophets. If this were the case with respect to
the Psalms, it is probable that many of the titles were lost in con-
sequence of the use made of them in public worship, and that
their place was afterwards partially supplied by uncertain tra-
dition or mere conjecture. What is certain is, that many of the
inscriptions are at undeniable variance with the contents of the
psalms to which they are prefixed ; and this fact tends to throw
discredit on those with which the tenor of the composition suffi-
ciently agrees.

To David the Hebrew titles ascribe seventy-one psalms, —
according to some editions, seventy-four. Of these, many contain
positive internal evidence of the accuracy of their titles. From
his fame, as a player upon the harp, when he was invited to play
before Saul, from his appellation of the sweet psalmist of Israel,
and from the tradition of antiquity, there can be no doubt that he
was the author of most of those which are ascribed to him, and of
some which have no title. But several of the psalms which bear
David's name cannot be his, as they contain allusions to the Baby-
lonian captivity, and similar events belonging to a later age,
besides occasional Chaldaisms.

" The inscriptions indicating the authorship of David," says
Eichhorn, " cannot be all right; not, however, on account of the
greatness of the number ascribed to him. Who knows not, that,
as a shepherd and in a private station, David knew no truer friend
than his harp ; and that, when a king, he gloried in his songs
more than in his crown? The whole course of his life, whether
joyous or sorrowful, he introduced into his compositions. Who,
then, can be surprised at the number of psalms of lamentation
which come under his name? Who ever suffered more, or more
variously, or more undeservedly, than David ? From the con-
dition of a shepherd he raised himself to the throne. Through
what hosts of enviers and enemies must he have pressed before he
reached it ! More than once was he obliged to flee from the jave-

20 INTRODUCTION.

lin of Saul with his harp in liis hand ; what w^onder, then, that it
sounded his terrors? How often was he compelled to rove through
the wilderness to avoid the persecution of one who should have
loved and protected him, as a member of his house and successor
to his throne ! And when these dangers were past, long was it
before the dangers of his life were past. Ishbosheth contended
with him as a rival aspirant for the throne ; and until the whole
royal family was extinct, he never felt himself at rest. Then he
engaged, with various success, in war with the neighbouring
kings, from Egypt to the Euphrates ; and at last, after so many
victories, he was destined to find his most dangerous enemy in the
person of his own son, the rebellious Absalom. Amid so many
and bitter calamities, the number of his poetic sighs and lamen-
tations is not a matter of surprise. Besides, is it at all probable
that the brief chronicles of the Hebrews make us acquainted with
all his domestic afflictions through the whole course of his life 1
These, however, are not less hard to be borne than public ca-
lamities." *

The characteristics of David's poetry are said by the same dis-
tinguished critic to be loveliness and deep feeling. With him
agrees so good a judge of poetry as the author of The Pleasures of
Hope. " His trails of inspiration are lovely and touching, rather
than daring and astonishing. His voice, as a worshipper, has a
penetrating accent of human sensibility, varying from plaintive
melancholy to luxuriant gladness, and even rising to ecstatic rap-
lure. In grief, his heart is melted like wax, and deep answers to
deep, whilst the waters of affiiction pass over him ; or his soul is
led to the green pastures by the quiet waters, or his religious con-
fidence pours forth the metaphors of a warrior in rich and exulting
succession. ' The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my de-
liverer,— my God, my strength, in ivhom I will trust, — my buck-
ler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high ioioer.^ Some of
the sacred writers may excite the imagination more powerfully
than David, but none of them appeal more interestingly to the
heart. Nor is it in tragic so much as in joyous expression, that

* Eiiilcilung ill das Alte Test., § G22.

INTRODUCTION. 21

I conceive the power of his genius to consist. Its most inspired
aspect appears to present itself, when he looks abroad upon the
universe with the eye of a poet, and with the breast of a glad and
grateful worshipper. When he looks up to the starry firmament,
his soul assimilates to the splendor and serenity which he contem-
plates. This lofty but bland spirit of devotion reigns in the eighth
and in the nineteenth psalm. But above all, it expands itself in
the hundred and fourth into a minute and diversified picture of the
creation. Verse after verse, in that psalm, leads on the mind
through the various objects of nature as through a mighty land-
scape, and the atmosphere of the scene is colored, not with a dim
or mystic, but with a clear and warm light of religious feeling.
He spreads his sympathies over the face of the world, and rejoices
in the power and goodness of its protecting Deity. The impres-
sion of that exquisite ode dilates the heart with a pleasure too in-
stinctive and simple to be described."

To Moses only one psalm is ascribed, namely, the ninetieth.
In this beautiful elegy there is nothing absolutely inconsistent
with the supposition that he was the author of it. Most critics,
however, have supposed it to savor of a later age. Grotius re-
marks, " that it was not composed by him, but adapted by the
author to the circumstances and feelings of Moses, containing
sentiments which he might have expressed." The writers of the
Talmud ascribe the ten psalms following the ninetieth to Moses ;
but they do this upon the wholly unfounded supposition, that
those psalms which have no title are to be attributed to the au-
thor whose name occurs in the next preceding title. The ninety-
ninth certainly could not have been written by him, since it con-
tains the name of the prophet Samuel, who was not born till
nearly three hundred years after the death of Moses.

Twelve psalms, namely, Ps. 1. and Ixxiii.-lxxxiii., are ascribed
to Asaph, a celebrated Levite, and chief of the choirs of Israel in
the time of David. 1 Chron. xvi. 4, 5. That he was a poet, and
composed as well as sung, is evident from 2 Chron. xxix. 30.
Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Le-

22 INTRODUCTION.

vitcs to sing praise unto the Lord ivith the words of David, and of
Asaph the seer. But he could have been the author of but a
small portion of these twelve psalms. Ps. Ixxiv., Ixxvii., Ixxix.,
Ixxx., indisputably belong to the times of the captivity, and sev-
eral of the rest have with good reason been referred to the same
period. They may, however, have been WTitten by a later poet
of the same name. Eichhorn, Rosenmiiller, and De Wette are of
opinion, that, of all the psalms ascribed to Asaph, the contem-
porary of David, only the fiftieth is decidedly his. This, how-
ever, is enough to place him in the number of poets of the very
first order. It is marked by a deeper vein of thought, and a loftier
tone of sentiment, than any of the compositions of David. In
Asaph, the poet and the philosopher are combined. " He was,"
says Eichhorn, " one of those ancient wise men who felt the in-
sufficiency of external religious usages, and urged the necessity of
cultivating virtue and purity of mind." It may well be said of
him, as of the scribe in the New Testament, that he ivas not far
from the kingdom of God.

Eleven psalms, the forty-second and forty-third being supposed
to be one psalm, namely, Ps. xlii.-xlix., and Ixxxiv., Ixxxv.,
Ixxxvii., and Ixxxviii., are ascribed to the sons of Korah, a
Levitical family of singers. 1 Chron. vi. In consequence of the
ambiguity of the Hebrew preposition, it has been doubted whether
the inscription is intended to designate them as the authors of these
psalms, or only as the musicians who were to perform them in the
temple. The preposition, however, is the same that denotes au-
thorship in the case of those psalms which are ascribed to David.
Heman the Ezrahite, whose name occurs in the title of one of
these psalms, may have been one of the sons or descendants of
Korah ; or the mention of him in the inscription may have arisen
from the amalgamation of contradictory titles. The titles were
prohahly given them by some one wlio liad learned from tradition
tliut they were liic productions of the sons of Korah, but had not
been informed of the names of their respective authors. It is
probable that only a few of the most distinguished sons of Korah
were concerned in their production. Whatever may be the true

INTRODUCTION. 23

explanation of their inscriptions, it is almost universally conceded
that the psalms in question were not written hy David. In style
they differ materially from his. Whoever was their author, they
are not unworthy of Asaph. No psalms in the whole collection
possess a more permanent interest. None indicate a richer imag-
ination, or a more powerful inspiration. None breathe a bolder,
freer spirit of enthusiasm, or contain more sublime and affecting
sentiments. Most of them, especially Ps. xlii., xlvi., and Ixxxiv.,
belong to that order of compositions, which, having once passed
through the mind, are never forgotten ; and which are most re-
membered in seasons when much that passes for poetry, being
weighed in the balance, is found lighter than vanity.

In the Hebrew titles, the eighty-eighth psalm is ascribed to
Heman, and the eighty-ninth to Ethan, both called Ezrahites.
The persons intended were, probably, Levitical singers in the
time of David, mentioned in 1 Chron. vi. 33, 44. But there can
be little doubt that the titles are wrong, and that these psalms
belong to a later age than that of David.

To Solomon only two of the psalms are inscribed, namely, the
seventy-second and one hundred twenty-seventh. But these could
scarcely have been written by him. It has been suggested that
his name was prefixed to the latter, merely because the first verse
mentions the building of a house ^ which the author of the title
supposed to refer to the temple. Of the seventy-second he seems
to be the subject, rather than the author. It is not improbable,
however, that some of the psalms were written by Solomon, since,
in 1 Kings iv. 32, he is said to have written one thousand and
five songs.

The remaining fifty-one psalms have in the Hebrew no titles
indicating their authors. And, from what has been said of the
Hebrew inscriptions, it follows that the authors of more than half
of the psalms are unknown to us. As to the inscriptions which
are added in the ancient versions, they are evidently the conjec-
tures of editors and copyists. Modern interpreters, also, have

24 INTRODUCTION.

exercised their saoraeity in assigning authors to the anonymous
psalms. But their conjectures are not worthy of consideration.

III. Titles of the Psalms.

Besides the names of the authors, some of the titles indicate the
species of the composition ; some the occasion and subject of it ;
some refer to the leader of the choir of singers ; some to the
musical instrument to be used ; and some to the tune to which the
psalm was to be sung. Respecting the origin and antiquity of
these titles, the opinion of Rosenmiiller is as plausible as any that
has been offered.

" I doubt not that all the psalms once had a title containing the
name of the author, and in some instances the occasion of the
composition, as was the custom of the Arabic, Syriac, and He-
brew poets. But those titles which relate to the air, or the
instrument, to which the psalm was to be sung, appear to have
proceeded from those who, at various periods, made use of the
psalms for public worship. Thus, in 2 Sam. xxii., which con-
tains the eighteenth psalm, there is in the title no mention of the
leader of the music. The use of the psalms in public worship
affords a reason for the mutilation or loss of the more ancient in-
scriptions, which mentioned the name of the author and the occa-
sion and subject of the psalm. Those who collected the psalms
at different periods undertook to supply the deficiency of titles
from their own judgment or fancy, without a due regard to manu-
scripts, or to the tenor of the psalm. Not a few seem to have
been added by commentators, copyists, and even readers. This
is proved by the Greek, Syriac, Arabic, Latin, and even by some
Ilobrew manuscripts. In many cases, probably, a conjecture,
placed by a reader in the margin of a manuscript, was in course
of time introduced into the text. Hence it may be seen how it
happens that many of the psalms are at variance with their titles,
and could not have been written by the author to whom they are
assigned. Wc conclude, therefore, that all the Hebrew titles are
not to be ra.shly rejected, nor indiscriminately received. But with
the help of sound criticism and interpretation, we must distinguish

INTRODUCTION. 25

those which were given by the poet from those which were added
by a later hand. ' '

To indicate the species of composition with respect to the senti-
ment, the metre, or the music to which it was adapted, the He-
brew terms Mismor, Shir, Shir-Mismor, Mismor-Shir, Maschil,
Michtam, Shiggaion, and Shir-Hammachaloth are used.

With the exception of the last term, it is doubtful whether it
can be ascertained in what respects these titles diifer, and still
more doubtful, whether there are words in English to express
their difference. What is certain is, that they all denote a spe-
cies of psalm, with respect to the sentiment, the measure, or the
music. I have thought it better to translate all of them by the
next generic term which is applicable to all of them, rather
than to puzzle the English reader with the Hebrew terms Mich-
tam and Maschil, or the barbarous English psalm-song or song-
psalm.*

The title Maschil is very probably derived from the verb signi-
fying to be ivise, and hence translated by some critics a didactic
psalm. It occurs as the title of thirteen psalms. But several of
those to which it is prefixed have not the character commonly
understood by didactic, and it is not prefixed to some that have
that character. Thus, it is prefixed to Psalms Iv., Ixxxviii,, and
cxlii., and not to the fiftieth.

Michtam is sometimes translated golden, but it is difficult to per-
ceive any peculiar excellence in the six psalms, namely, Ps. xvi.,
Ivi., Ivii., Iviii., lix., Ix., to which it is prefixed, which should
gain for them the distinguishing epithet of golden. According to
modern taste, there are many others far more deserving of this
appellation. The same objection may be made to the supposition,
that they derive their appellation from their being hung up in the
temple in golden letters, like the Moallacat in the temple at
Mecca. Besides that there is no evidence of such a Hebrew
custom, what is there in these six psalms which should give them
such a distinction above the rest? On the whole, there seems

* See Dr. Geddes'a Version.
3

26 INTRODUCTION.

to be no more probable derivation of the word, than that which
makes it denote writing, that is, composition, psalm; D/^DH, by
a change of the labials D and 2 being written for DHI)?, which
occurs in Is. xxx. 9, in the title of a song.

The hundred and forty-fifth is called Tehillah, Praise; and so
excellent was this psalm always accounted by the Jews, that the
title of the whole book of Psalms, Sephir Tehillim, The Book of
Praises, was taken from it. The Jews used to say, " He cannot
fail of being an inhabitant of the heavenly Canaan, who repeats
this psalm three times a day."

Some suppose Shiggaion to denote a song of lamentation. But
this is very uncertain.

Fifteen psalms, cxx, -cxxxiv., are entitled Shir-Hammacha-
loth, literally, Song of steps, or of ascents; in the common ver-
sion, Song of degrees. By some they are termed Odes of ascen-
sion, or Pilgrim songs, and are supposed to have derived their
name from the circumstance, that they were sung when the peo-
ple went up to worship in Jerusalem, at the annual festivals.
To go up to Jerusalem, was a common expression with reference
to journeys to the metropolis. Thus, our Saviour says, " Behold,
we go up to Jerusalem." It is supposed that they travelled in
the Oriental manner, not single, but in companies, and chanted
these psalms by the way. Psalms cxx. and cxxiii., however, do
not seem suitable for such an occasion.

Others suppose them to refer to the return from the captivity,
that return being styled an ascent, or going up. Ez. vii. 9.
To this supposition it is objected, that Ps. cxxii. 1 speaks of
going up to the house of the Lord, which of course was in ruins
when they were returning from the captivity.

Others suppose the term steps to refer to a peculiarity in the
structure of some of these psalms, according to which a sentiment
or expression of the preceding verse is introduced and carried for-
ward in the next, so that tliere shall be a sort of climax, or ascend-
ing scries of similar sentiments. Thus, Ps. cxxi.,

*' I lift up mine eyes to the hills ;
Whence comcth mi/ help 1
Ml/ help comcth from Jehovah,
WJio made heaven and earth.

INTRODUCTION. 27

He will not suffer thy foot to stumble,
Thy guardian doth not slumber.
Behold ! the guardian of Israel
Doth neither slumber nor sleep, ^^ &c.

But this peculiarity is found in only a few of the psalms to which
the title is prefixed.

Michaelis has intimated that the word steps may have reference
to a particular species of metre, and denote something like feet
in English. He refers to the poetry of the Syrians, in which one
species is distinguished by the term denoting steps. But what the
metre is cannot be ascertained.

Luther, Hammond, and others, suppose the word to be a mu-
sical term, denoting that these psalms are to be sung in a higher
tone of voice or key.

Other parts of the titles denote the air or tune to which the
psalm is to be sung, by referring to the first words, or to the name,
of psalms which are now lost. See Ps. Ivii., Iviii., lix. Others
relate to the instruments of music, the choir of singers, and the
leader, as may be understood from the translation and the notes.

In this connection we may say a word of the term Selah.
Its signification is extremely doubtful. But its use is very gen-
erally admitted to have been that of a musical sign for the direc-
tion of the singers. But whether it denotes a pause, or slowness
of time, or a change of tune, or a repeat, equivalent to the Italian
Da capo, or a rest for the vocal performers, whilst the musicians
were alone to be heard, critics are divided in opinion. The last
seems the most probable opinion, namely, that the term denotes
silence! or pause! and that its use was to direct the singers who
chanted the notes of the psalm to pause a little, while the instru-
ments played an interlude, or symphony.

IV. The Collection of the Psalms, and their Division
INTO Books.

The psalms appear to have been collected at different times and
by different persons. This is manifest from the division into five

28

INTRODUCTION.

books, which is certainly as ancient as the Septuagint version.
For this version contains the doxologies which are placed at the
end of the first four books, Ps. xli. 13, Ixxii. 18-20, Ixxxix. 52,
cvi. 48. The cause of this division, says Jahn, may be gathered
from the character of the psalms contained in each book. Almost
all the psalms of the first book are the work of David. In the
second, there are twenty-two of David, one of Asaph, and eight
anonymous, ascribed to the Korahites. The third contains one,
the eighty-sixth, ascribed to David, and this doubtful ; the re-
mainder are partly Asaph's, partly the work of an uncertain au-
thor, and partly anonymous. Two only in the fourth book are
ascribed to David, and one, the ninetieth, to Moses, the others
being anonymous. In the fifth, fifteen are assigned to David, one
is ascribed conjecturally to Solomon, and the rest are anonymous.
These five books of the Psalms, therefore, are evidently so many
different collections, following each other in the order in which
they were made. The first person w'ho began the collection put
together the psalms of David ; the second, those psalms of David
which it was still in his power to glean, admitting a few others ;
the third had no psalms of David in view, and when he wished to
join his own collection to the former, he added the note at the end
of the second book, — " Here end the psalms of David, the son of
Jesse," Ixxii. 20. The fourth collected anonymous psalms, and
therefore his book exhibits only one of Moses, the ninetieth, and
two of David, the hundred and first and the hundred and third,
the latter of which, however, is certainly not his. The last made
a collection of whatever sacred poems he could gather ; he has,
therefore, fifteen of David, and thirty anonymous. This view of
the subject readily accounts for the fact, that some psalms con-
tained in an earlier collection again occur in a later, as the four-
teenth and fifty-third, the fifty-seventh and hundred and eighth.

The age and the authors of these collections it is impossible to
ascertain. But as in the first collection, as well as in the rest,
there are some psalms which appear to have been written during
the captivity, we may conclude that no one of them was made till
the time of the captivity. Some of the others must have been
made at dilfcrent times after the return from Babylon. The last

INTRODUCTION. 29

two books are supposed by several critics of eminence to contain
psalms referring even to the times of the Maccabees.

" We must," says De Wette, " suppose that the collection of
the Psalms was made gradually. There is a prevailing want of
order in it ; pieces of like character are not brought together ;
songs of David are found scattered in all the five books ; those of
Asaph are separated as widely from each other as those of the
Korahites, etc. But again, in the midst of this disorder, we re-
mark a certain order ; the majority of David's psalms stand to-
gether, Ps. iii. - xli. It is so also with the songs of the Korah-
ites, of Asaph, and the songs of degrees ; a circumstance which
evinces that tliey have been brought together from many separate
collections. In this view, we may also account for the fact, that
one psalm occurs twice. Ps. xiv. is the same with Ps. liii. But
less satisfactorily does this account for the recurrence of separate
portions of psalms, as in the case of Ps. Ix. and Ps. cviii.

"It is as little possible for us to know who were the authors of
the several particular collections, as w ho was the compiler of the
whole. It cannot be true, as many suppose, that David himself
prepared the first collection ; because among the first psalms there
appear several of an altogether later date, as Ps. xiv., xliv., xlv.,
xlvi., xlviii. Besides, David would hardly have given himself
the honorable appellation of " serv^aut of Jehovah," which is an-
nexed to his name in two of the titles, Ps. xviii., xxxvi. Even
Carpzov looked upon the first collection as a private undertaking.*
The age of these collections may be determined with greater cer-
tainty. The first two, Ps. i. - Ixxii., cannot have been completed
until after the captivity, since pieces are found in them which be-
long to the period of the captivity, Ps. xiv., xliv., xlv. ; but the
collection of the whole was certainly not finished until a con-
siderable time afterwards, though it must have been completed
before the translation of Jesus Sirac. 130 B. C, — as early as
which the collection of Psalms was probably translated into Greek.
As it respects the design of the collection of the psalms, it may
be remarked, that they who suppose it was made in behalf of the

* Introd. ad Libr. Can., (fee, Part II., p. 107.
3*

30 INTRODUCTION.

musical service of the temple entertain too limited views of the
object ; * besides that this supposition is irreconcilable with the
fact of its having probably originated from private collections. A
religious use, however, was undoubtedly the aim by which the
collectors were guided, at least in general. Ps. xlv., which is so
entirely secular, must be considered as an accidental exception,
unless we are indebted for its insertion to the allegorical method
of interpretation, which may also have been the means of preserv-
ing from destruction the Song of Solomon.

"In the mode of dividing and numbering the several psalms,
the Hebrew manuscripts, and the Seventy and Vulgate, occasion-
ally differ from the printed Hebrew text. In many manuscripts,
the first psalm is numbered with the second, and in like manner
the forty-second with the forty-third, and the one hundred and six-
teenth with the one hundred and seventeenth. On the other hand,
a new psalm is commenced with Ps. cxviii. 5 ; indeed, Ps. cxviii.
is divided in some manuscripts into three psalms. The Seventy
also formerly numbered the first psalm with the second ; and they
still differ in common with the Vulgate from the ordinary method
of enumeration, after the tenth psalm, inasmuch as they join to-
gether psalms ninth and tenth, and thus fall one number or psalm
behind the Hebrew text, as far as to the one hundred and forty-
seventh psalm, which they separate into two, and thus return back
once more to the old enumeration. They also unite Ps. cxiv.
with Ps. cxv., but immediately afterwards divide Ps. cxvi. into
two, so that this difference is cancelled on the spot. It is neces-
sary to be acquainted with this different mode of numbering, be-
cause the Fathers quote by it. The Seventy have besides an
apocryphal psalm cli., on the victory of David over Goliah."

V. IMeans of understanding the Psalms.

In order that the Psalms may be understood in the fulness of
their meaning, beauty, and spirit, the most important directions to
an English reader are these three.

Comp. Eichhorn, § G26.

INTRODUCTION. 3I

1. Gain some knowledge of Jewish antiquities. Be so familiar
with the history, the manners and customs, the climate and scen-
ery, and the modes of thinking and feeling of the Hebrews, that
you may receive such impressions from the sacred poetry as would
be received by an enlightened inhabitant of ancient Jerusalem.
*' It is not enough," says Bishop Lowth, " to be acquainted with
the language of this people, their manners, discipline, rites, and
ceremonies ; we must even investigate their inmost sentiments,
the manner and connection of their thoughts ; in one word, we
must see all things with their eyes, estimate all things by their
opinions. We must endeavour as much as possible to read He-
brew as the Hebrews would have read it." For this object, they
who have less taste for the simple and immethodical narrative of
the sacred historians may be referred to the more elaborate, but
popular and interesting, history of the Jews by Milman. For con-
sultation, every one who wishes to understand his Bible should
own Jahn's Biblical Archaeology, which has been translated in
this country.

2. In addition to a general knowledge of the Jewish history and
antiquities, it is of great use to ascertain the subject, the occasion,
and the author of the psalm. It is true that these points can
rarely be discovered with any considerable degree of certainty.
Many of the captions prefixed to the psalms in this translation
must be regarded in the light of theories or conjectures. As such,
however, they may be regarded as useful. We may be more able
to comprehend the sentiment and feel the spirit of a psalm, if we
only assign to it an occasion similar to that for which it was com-
posed. At best, however, as has been remarked by Bishop
Lowth, " much of the harmony, propriety, and elegance of the sa-
cred poetry must pass unperceived by us, who can only form dis-
tant conjectures of the general design, but are totally ignorant of
the particular application." The following remarks of Michaelis
are also highly deserving of consideration. " There are some,"
says he, " who undertake to explain the Psalms from the histori-
cal parts of Scripture, as if every occurrence were known to them,
and as if nothing had occurred during the reign of David which

32 INTRODUCTION.

was not committed to writing. This, however, considering the
extreme brevity of the sacred history, and the number and magni-
tude of the facts which it relates, must of course be very far from
the truth. The causes and motives of many wars are not at all
adverted to, the battles that are related are few, and those the
principal. Who can doubt, though ever so inexperienced in mili-
tary affairs, that many things occurred which are not mentioned,
between the desertion of Jerusalem by David, and that famous
battle which extinguished the rebellion of Absalom 1 They, who
will not allow that they are ignorant of a great part of the Jewish
history, will be apt to explain more of the psalms upon the same
principle, and as relating to the same facts, than they ought ;
whence the poetry will appear tame and languid, abounding in
words, but with little variety of description or sentiment.

*' Others have recourse to mystical interpretations, or convert
those historical passages which they do not understand into proph-
ecies. Into none of these errors would mankind have fallen, but
through the persuasion that the whole history of the Jews was
minutely detailed to them, and that there were no circumstances
with which they were unacquainted."

3. It is of the utmost consequence to attend to the characteris-
tics of the language and structure of Hebrew poetry. In order to
avoid important errors, the reader of Hebrew poetry must espe-
cially keep in mind one of its features, by which it is distinguished
from the poetry of the Western world, namely, its boldness in
the use of figurative and metaphorical language. Many mistakes
have arisen from interpreting the language of Eastern hyperbole
in too strict a sense. As an instance of the kind of language to
which 1 refer, I may mention the eighteenth psalm, from verse
ninth to the eighteenth. The simple fact that God aided David
and the Israelites in battle is the foundation of this magnificent
description. The Supreme Being is represented as interposing
in tlie midst of a tempest, and the tempest itself is described in
language extremely hyperbolical. Compare Hab. iii. 3, &c.

As an instance of error arising from the neglect of this charac-
l4;rii>tic of Hebrew poetry, it may be mentioned that several

INTRODUCTION. gg

learned critics have gravely undertaken to explain what habitation
David could provide for Jehovah in a single day ; that is, before
he literally gave sleep to his eyes, or slumber to his eyelids. From
inattention to the same thing, Psalm li. 5 has been made to con-
vey a meaning at war with the attributes of God, with common
sense, and with other portions of the sacred volume.

In regard to the construction of Hebrew poetry, so far as quan-
tity is concerned, we are entirely ignorant. It is true, that now
and then a scholar has arisen who thought he could perceive the
measures of Greek and Latin verse in the productions of the He-
brew poets. Josephus, too, speaks of the trimeters and pentame-
ters of David. St. Jerome, also, observes, — " If any one doubt
that the Hebrews employed similar measures to those of Horace,
Pindar, Alcseus, and Sappho, let him read Philo, Josephus, Ori-
gen, and Eusebius, and find by their testimony whether my asser-
tion be true." But the ears of a vast majority of Hebrew scholars
have not been able to detect any such measures in Hebrew poetry,
nor to distinguish it from prose, so far as mere sound, or quantity,
is concerned. That, in the ancient mode of pronouncing the He-
brew language, such measures existed, it is not necessary to deny.
But if the ears of ninety-nine in a hundred are to be trusted, it is
impossible to discover them.*

What is obvious in the sacred poetry is a division into lines of
nearly equal length, or containing nearly the same number of syl-
lables, two of which lines generally form a verse, or complete a
sentence. In several compositions, the initial letters of the suc-
cessive lines or stanzas follow the order of the letters of the He-
brew alphabet. This is the case with seven of the psalms, four
chapters of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and the last chapter of
Proverbs, from the tenth verse to the end.

But the most important feature in the construction of Hebrew
verse is as obvious in a translation as in the original. It is what

* For a good view of this subject, see the Introduction to De
Wette's Commentary on the Psalms, and the works to which he
refers. A translation of it may be found in the Bibhcal Repository
for July, 1833.

34 INTRODUCTION.

may be called a rhythm of sentiment. A period is divided into
members, generally two, but sometimes more, which, as it were,
balance each other by thought corresponding to thought in repe-
tition, in amplification, in reply, or in contrast.

This feature of Hebrew poetry is called parallelism. The illus-
tration of it constitutes the great merit of Dr. Lowth. A more
complete view of its varieties has been given by De Wette, in his
Introduction to the Psalms, which I shall in substance transcribe.*

The Hebrew rhythm, namely, the parallelism of members, is
nothing more nor less than a rhythmical proportion, and that of
the simplest sort, between the larger sections or members of a
period, the smaller being neglected. Nothing is more simple
than the symmetry, the proportion between two parts of a whole,
— the proportion between several begins to require more ingenuity
and calculation. Thus, the relation between parallel lines is the
simplest that we can conceive to exist between different lines ; the
triangle, the square, already begin to be more complex, and the
circle is the most perfect of all figures. It might also be remarked,
that every period consisting of two propositions forms a whole,
and suffices for a full expression of the voice and satisfying of the
ear ; while a single proposition is insufficient for either. The
breast is still elevated, the ear continues to listen, and yet there
is nothing more to be said, nothing more to be heard. In fact,
the parallelism of members seems to be a fundamental law of
rhythm. It obviously lies at the foundation of the rhyme, where
one verse is made to answer to the other. The more complicated
forms of rhyme, in the stanza, sonnet, &c., were invented at a
comparatively later period ; but even in these the law of parallel-
ism may still be detected ; at least, the ottave rime and the sonnet
naturally fall into two divisions, each answering to the other. f
In like manner, the relation of the hexameter and pentameter is
that of parallelism, and even the lyric strophes admit perhaps of

* See IJil.Iical Repository for 1833, p. 494.

t In llie former, the two concliuling verses are parallel to the
first six, and in the second there is the same relation between the
first eight and tlie last six verses.

INTRODUCTION. 35

being referred to the same form. The relation of the strophe,
antistrophe, and epode, on the contrary, already indicates the
transposition of the parallelism to the more perfect form of the
triang-le.

But in what does the parallelism of members in the Hebrew-
poetry consist, and how is it indicated ? Here we must forget all
the demands which might be made by the delicate, musical ear of
the Greeks, so sensitive to the measure of time, or by that of the
modems, so partial to similitude of sound. The Hebrew has
neither the one nor the other. His rhythm belonged more to the
thought than to the outward form and sound ; and he therefore
indicated his rhythmical divisions by the divisions of the thought,
and the proportion of the rhythmical propositions by that of the
subject-matter.

The following circumstances contributed perhaps in some
measure to the formation of this rhythm of thought. The He-
brew, and whoever like him stands at that point of intellectual
cultivation where the mind is in a condition to seize only certain
general and simple relations of things, is fond of presenting his
ideas and feelings in short sentences ; these sentences are con-
nected with each other in a manner which possesses but little
variety, usually according to the law of resemblance and contrast
(a law which readily presents itself to the observing understand-
ing), and for the most part only in couplets, because the combina-
tion of several sentences implies already the notice of a greater
variety of relations. This speaking in short sentences is still fur-
ther favored by the impassioned tone of the speaker ; for, in the
fulness and glow of inspiration and internal feeling, the words are
slow to adapt themselves to the thought, the speaker struggles
with language, and wrests from it nothing but single short expres-
sions. A peculiar fondness is manifested in this style of speaking
for tautology and comparison. There is a want of versatility and
variety of expression, and yet there is a wish to express one's self
fully, and to present the subject in various points of light ; hence
the same thing is often repeated in synonymous expressions and
figures. Now, if a person who speaks in this way is disposed to
introduce into his discourse a regular rhythm, a proportion be-

36 INTRODUCTION.

tvveen the several propositions presents itself as a ready expedient,
whose original law will be that of resemblance and contrast, the
law by which, in other cases, one proposition is arranged with
another.

After these remarks, nothing will appear more natural than
the following form of discourse, Job vii. 1 - 3 : —

" Is there not a hard service for man on the earth 1
Are not Iiis days as the days of a hireling 1
As a servant who panteth for the shade.
And as a hireling who looketh for his reward,
So am I made to possess months of affliction,
And wearisome nights are appointed for me."

" The earth is the Lord's, and all that is thereir ;
The world, and they who inhabit it.
For he hath founded it upon the seas,
And established it upon the floods."

Ps. xxiv. 1,2; —

where each thought is twice expressed, and after each such repe-
tition there is a pause.

But the parallelism of members is of different kinds. In the
first place, it differs according to the different laws of the asso-
ciation of thoughts.* The two principal laws of resemblance
and contrast or antithesis produce the synonymous and antithetic
parallelism, according to the terminology of Lowth ; a third is
founded simply upon a resemblance in the form of construction
and progression of the thoughts, and this we may call with Lowth
the synthetic parallelism. With the synonymous parallelism be-
longs also the identical, or the repetition with suspense ; for exam-
ple, Job xviii. 13 :< —

" The limbs of his body are consumed.
Yea, his limbs are devoured by the first-born of death."

Under the term synonymous is included also comparison.

* This is the basis of the classification of parallelism given by
Lowth, Lect. XIX.

INTRODUCTION. 37

subordination, etc. But as we are concerned at present chiefly
with the rhythmical form, we shall venture upon another classifi-
cation, and only retain the logical arrangement in the minor
divisions.

I. Thought is represented by words ; hence, it will frequently
happen, where there is a perfect resemblance or antithesis of
thoughts, that the words will he equal, at least in their number ;
and sometimes, on account of the similar construction and po-
sition of the words, there will also be a certain resemblance of
sound. This we may call the original, perfect kind of paral-
lelism of members, which coincides with metre and rhyme, yet
without being the same with them. Such is the kind of paral-
lelism in which the song of Lamcch is composed. Gen. iv. 23.
The translation can present nothing more than the equality in the
number and position of the words ; the rhyme must be omitted : —

" Adah and'^Zillah, hear my voice !
Ye wives of Lamech, mark my speech !
For I have slain a man for my wound.
And a young man — for my hurt.
If Cain was avenged seven-fold.
Then Lamech — seventy times seven."

Here all is nearly equal, except the places marked with a dash,
where the words must be supplied from the preceding member.
Similar examples of rhyme occur in Ps. viii. 5, xxv. 4, Ixxxv.
11, cvi. 5.* For more see Schindler,t and Leut\vcin.|

Verses similar in their termination, but unequal in the number
of their words, and without exact parallelism of thought, occur
in the following passage, Job x. 17 : —

" Thou renewest thy witnesses against me.
And increasest thine anger toward me ;
New hosts continually rise up against me."

* The references are to the verses as numbered in the Hebrew
Bible, in which the inscriptions in the Psalms to " the leader of the
music," &c., are numbered as one verse, and in which the number-
ing of other verses varies a little from that of the English version.

t Tract, de Accent. Hebr., p. 81, seq. \ L. c, p. 51, seq.
4

38 INTRODUCTION.

Equality in the number of words, together with exact propor-
tion of thought, is a case of frequent occui-rence in Job ; for
example, chap. vi. 5 : —

" Doth the wild ass bray in the midst of grass,
Or doth the ox low over his fodder? "

Comp. ch. vi. 23, viii. 2.

We have an example of equality in words, with antithesis of
thought, Ps. XX. 9 : —

" They stumble and fall,
But we stand and are erect."

Comp. Is. Ixv. 13.

Also in the synthetic parallelism, equality in the number of
words sometimes occurs ; for example, Ps. xix. 8 : —

" The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul ;
The precepts of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple."

For many examples of this case, in which the number of
words is equal, see Leutwein, p. 64, seq.

II. But this external proportion of words is not the essential
part of the parallelism of members. It may be adopted, it is
true, as a rule, that the number of words is about equal, especial-
ly in certain books, as the Proverbs of Solomon, and Job; but
in the Psalms a great inequality prevails. This inequality is of
diflcrcnt kinds, as follows.

1. The simple unequal parallelism, in which one of the mem-
bers is too short, compared with the other ; for example, Ps.
Ixviii. 33 : —

" Ye kingdoms of the earth, sing unto God ;
Sing praises to the Lord."

This construction frequently produces a grand effect ; for ex-
ample, Ps. xxxvii. 13, xlviii. 5, Job xiv. 14, where the con-
ciseness of expression adds in one case to the vividness of the
thought, in the other to its emphasis.

Yet in tiicsc examples the inequality seems to have arisen
fn.m tJKi brevity of th(> thouglit ; it fell naturally into these

INTRODUCTION. 39

words, and the poet let it pass. Hence, it is still not inconceivable
that there might have been a metre. We also sometimes sacrifice
metre to conciseness of thought, to emphasis, to a pause.

2. But a still more frequent kind of unequal parallelism, viz.
the complex, admits not of this explanation. It consists in this,
that either (a) the first member, or (b) the second member, is
composed of two propositions, so that a complex member corre-
sponds to a simple one. This structure arises whenever, in addition
to the principal parallelism of thought, another subordinate par-
allelism presents itself to the poet in the full flow of his thoughts
and feelings ; hence, we most frequently meet with it in lively,
impassioned passages. It occurs more rarely in the book of Job,
commonly in the speeches of Job himself, which sometimes rise
to the lofty lyric style ; but it is frequently to be met with in the
Psalms. Hence, there are also different kinds of parallelism,
according to the logical connection of the propositions : —

N) The synonymous ; for example, Ps. xxxvi. 7 : —

* ' Thy righteousness is like the high mountains ;
Thy judgments are a great deep ;
Thou, O Lord, preservest man and beast ! "

Job x. 1 : —

" I am weary of my life ;
I will give myself up to complaint ;
I will speak in the bitterness of my soul."

Comp. Job iii. 5, vii. 11, Ps. cxti. 10.
3) The antithetic, Ps. xv. 4 : —
" In whose eyes a vile person is contemned ;'
But who honoreth them that fear the Lord ;
Who sweareth to his neighbour, and changeth not."

Comp. Job X. 15, Ps. xlix. 11.
j) The synthetic, Ps. xv. 5 : —
" He that lendeth not his money for interest.
And taketh not a bribe against the innocent.
He,- that doeth these things shall never fall."

Comp. Job X. 17, XX. 26, Ps. xxii. 25, xiv. 7, xviii. 31.

' 40

INTRODUCTION.

3. Sometimes the simple member is disproportionably small,
so that the inequality is still more striking ; for example, Ps. xl.

10: —

" I have proclaimed thy righteousness in the great congrega-
tion,
Lo, I have not restrained my lips,
O Lord, thou knowest."
Sometimes a noble effect is thus produced ; for example, Ps.
xci. 7 : —

'< A thousand shall fall by thy side.
And ten thousand at thy right hand,
But thee it shall not touch."

Comp. Cant. vi. 4.

Frequently there is a parallelism in each several proposition
and member ; for example, Ps. Ixix. 21 ; —

" Reproach hath broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness ;
I look for pity, but there is none ;
For comforters, but find none."

Here belongs also Ps. Ixix. 5 : —

"More numerous than the hairs of my head are they who
hate me without reason ;
Mighty are they who seek to destroy me, being my enemies

without cause ;
I must restore what I took not aw^ay."
4. Sometimes the complex member is increased to three or
four propositions ; for example, Ps. i. 3 : —

" He is like a tree planted by streams of water.
That bringeth forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaves also do not wither ;
All that he doeth shall prosper."
Comp. Ps. Ixv. 10, Ixviii. 31, Ixxxviii. 6. This form is particu-
larly frequent in the prophets, who, approaching, as they generally
do, nearer to prose, often allow the parallelism to flow almost into
a free, prosaic diction. Members with three propositions occur in
Amos i. 5, ii. M, Mic. v. 4. Indeed, no less than four propo-

INTRODUCTION. 41

sitions sometimes form one member, and with a grand effect ; for
example, Amos iv. 13 : —

" For behold, he formed the mountains and created the wind ;
He declareth to man what is his thought ;
He maketh the morning darkness,
And walketh upon the high places of the earth ;
Jehovah, God of hosts, is his name."

5. Instead of the full subordinate parallelism, we sometimes
find only a short clause or supplement, for the most part in the
second member ; for example, Ps. xxiii. 3 : —
" He reviveth my spirit ;
He leadeth me in the right paths.
For his name's sake."
Comp. Ps. V. 3, xxvii. 11, 12, &c.

In these forms of parallelism the proportion is apparently de-
stroyed ; but it is not so, provided we suppose it to consist, not in
the number of the words and extent of the period, but in the
thoughts. The relation between two thoughts remains essentially
the same, although one of them may be more fully developed than
the other. As it does not depend in the least upon the measure
of the words, a considerable inequality in these makes no differ-
ence. It were well if we could but always forget, Avhat was un-
known to the Hebrew, the rule which requires a measure of time
in rhythm.

III. Out of the parallelism which is rendered unequal by the
complexity of one of the members, there arises, in the case of a
still greater fulness of thought, another, in which the equality is
restored by both members becoming complex. Here richness of
matter is combined with perfect proportion of form. The modes
of combination are again the same, and accordingly we meet with
the same species of parallelism : —

K) The synonymous ; for example, Ps. xxxi. 11 : —
" For my life is wasted with sorrow,
And my years with sighing ;
My strength faileth by reason of my affliction.
And my bones are consumed on account of all my enemies."
4*

42

INTRODUCTION.

Sometimes the members have an alternate correspondence ; for
example, Ps. xl. 17 : —

"But let all who seek thee
Be glad and rejoice in thee ;
Let those who love thy protection
Ever say, — ' Exalted be Jehovah.' "

Comp. Ps. XXXV. 26, xxxvii. 14, Cant. v. 3, Ps. Ixxix. 2, Mic.
i. 4.

3) The antithetic ; for example, Ps. xxx. 6 : —

" For his anger endureth but a moment,
But his favor through life ;
Sorrow may be a guest for the night.
But joy Cometh in the morning."

Comp. Ps. Iv. 22.

Sometimes there is an alternate correspondence in the antith-
esis ; Ps. xliv. 3 : —

" With thine own hand didst thou drive out the nations,
And plant our fathers ;
Thou didst destroy the nations.
And cause our fathers to flourish."
Comp. Is. liv. 10.

1) There are also instances of this double parallelism with
the synthetic structure ; for example, Cant. ii. 3 : —

" As the apple-tree among the trees of the forest.
So is my beloved among the sons ;
In his shadow I love to sit down,
And his fruit is sweet to my taste."

" As high as are the heavens above the earth.
So great is his mercy to them that fear him ;
As far as the east is from the west.
So far hath he removed our transgressions from us."

Ps. ciii. 11, 12.

Sometimes there are triplet parallelisms, both of the synony-
mous and synthetic class. Thus,

INTRODUCTION. 43

" The floods, O Jehovah,

The floods lift up their voice ;

The floods lift up their roaring.

Mightier than the voice of many waters,

Yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.

Is Jehovah in his lofty habitation."

Ps. xciii. 3, 4.

" Thy thunder roared in the whirlwind ;

Thy lightning illumined the world ;

The earth trembled and shook.

Thy way was through the sea,

And thy path through great waters.

And thy footsteps could not be found."

Ps. Ixxvii. 18, 19.

This species of double parallelism occurs with peculiar fre-
quency in the prophets ; corap. Am. i. 2, iii. 4 seq., iv. 4 seq., ix.
2 seq., Mic. i. 4 seq., iii. 6 seq., Nah. i. 1, ii. 1 seq., Hab. i. 13,
16. Indeed, they were not satisfied with the latitude of this form,
but gave to one of the members, or even to both, more than two
propositions, and sometimes as many as four; for example, Hab.
iii. 17 : —

" For the fig-tree shall not blossom.

And there shall be no fruit upon the vine ;

The produce of the olive shall fail.

And the fields shall yield no food ;

The flocks shall be cut off from the folds.

And there shall be no herd in the stalls."
Comp. Amos ii. 9, v. 5, vii. 17, Mic. ii. 13, vii. 3, Hab. ii. 5, iii. 17.
In the better poets these subordinate propositions are short, in
the other long, which occasions a sort of dragging ; for example,
Zeph. iii. 19, 20.

IV. But we should entertain too narrow a view of the paral-
lelism of members, if we supposed it to consist exclusively in the
proportion of the thoughts. For how could we dispose of the
numerous passages where this is entirely wanting, — where the
thoughts are found to correspond to each other neither by their
resemblance, nor by antithesis, nor by synthesis 1 The parallelism

44 INTRODUCTION.

of members assumed further a simply external rhythmical form,
such as rhyme is. Originally and according to rule, it was ex-
pressed in the matter ; but next it left its impression as a distinct
form, even where the matter did not correspond to it. The pro-
portion grew habitual, and hence greater freedom and license in
the thoughts were sometimes tolerated ; besides, the constant re-
currence of resemblance and antithesis would have been tedious
both to poet and hearer. This species of parallelism we shall call
the rhythmical, because it consists simply in the form of the period.
Examples of it occur in all the kinds.*

1) With the number of the words nearly equal ; for example,
Ps. xix. 12: —

" By them also is thy servant warned,
And in keeping of them there is great reward."

2) With striking inequality in the number of the words ; for
example, Ps. xxx. 3 : —

" O Jehovah, my God !
I called upon thee, and thou hast healed me."

3) With a double and a simple member ; for example, Ps. xiv.
7: —

" O that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion !
When the Lord bringeth back the captives of his people.
Then shall Jacob rejoice, and Israel be glad."

It is deserving of remark, how the rhythmical parallelism
makes good its place, where three parallel thoughts occur, and
there is no internal ground for dividing them into exactly two
members ; for example, Ps. i. 1 : —

" Happy the man that walkcth not in the paths of the un-
righteous.
Nor standelh in the way of sinners.
Nor sitteth in the seat of scoffers."

It is highly important to distinguish this sort of parallelism,
in order to avoid the mistakes which have so frequently arisen from
the abuse of the jjarallelism of members as an exegetical help.

INTRODUCTION. 45

4) With two double members ; for example, Ps. xxxi. 23 : —
" I said in my distress,
I am cut off from before thine eyes,
But thou didst hear the voice of my supplication,
When I cried unto thee."
When the members of this rhythmical parallelism are more
than double, which is sometimes the case, it approaches very near
to prose ; it is too loose a form to retain an exuberant matter with-
out passing over into the prosaic style. With good poets, this is
rarely the case, but it sometimes occurs ; for example. Am. vi. 10 ;
with the later and less correct, it happens more frequently ; for ex-
ample, Mai. i. 6, Zech. xiii. 3, x, 6, Zeph. iii. 8. The length of
the members contributes in a special manner to destroy the rhyth-
mical form. But while this form of parallelism brings us to the
utmost limits of the province of rhythm, it also settles the question,
that the parallelism of members is really a rhythmical form, which
there would be room to doubt, if we had nothing but parallelism of
thoughts.

The simply rhythmical parallelism holds the most prominent
place in the Lamentations of Jeremiah. Here the parallelism of
thoughts is to be reckoned almost among the exceptions, and when
it does occur, it is, for the most part, the subordinate parallelism
of a member by itself; in general, the rhythm alone predominates,
and that too with a regularity which is rare among Hebrew poets,
producing here a suitable effect, namely, monotony of complaint.
The following orders of rhythm may be traced in the Lamen-
tations.* In chapters first and second, the verses consist of three
members, the first two of which constitute one parallel, and stand
over against the third, as the second parallel. Each member has
besides a csBSura, which coincides with the sense and the accent.
Still, however, we are sometimes under the necessity of abandon-
ing the accents, because they follow the sense, while the rhythm
is independent of the sense. According to the accents, the first
parallel is sometimes simple, for example, ch. ii. 6, yet without

« Comp. Lowth. Preelect., XXII., p. 257, seq.

46 INTRODUCTION.

a valid logical ground. The periods in ch. i. 7, and ch. ii. 19,
are distinguished by having four members. It is remarkable that
the length of these verses should so greatly exceed those which
elsewhere occur in Hebrew poetry. Lowth is of the opinion that
these long verses are adapted to lamentation, and it must be ac-
knowledged that they do have a tendency to produce a certain im-
pression of melancholy. Ch. iii. has only verses of one member,
■without parallelism ; yet this one member is rhythmically divided
in such a manner as to produce, if not a complete rhythmical par-
allelism, yet a supplementary clause which conduces to repose.
Here again the accents sometimes stand in the way ; for example,
ch. iii. 3, where Dm hj is not enough to form a supplementary
clause. Tiphcha, also, sometimes changes place with Zakeph
Katon, although the rhythmical caesura is always the same. Per-
haps, however, every three verses are to be considered as a rhyth-
mical whole, as they are connected by having the same initial let-
ters. Ch. V. is of the same structure with ch. iii., except that it
has a real short rhythmical parallelism, which, however, the au-
thors of the accents did not consider as complete, and therefore
have not separated with Athnach. Ch. iv. has double parallelism,
but for the most part simply rhythmical.

We must notice one more exception in Hebrew rhythm.
There sometimes occur separate propositions of a single member,
almost always introduced with design, since the poet lingers upon
the thought ; we may conceive it to be accompanied with a long
pause ; for example, Ps. xxiii. 1, xxv. 1. Here the poet indicates,
as it were, the tone and character of the song, and after a pause,
again collects himself. Cant. vii. 6 is beautiful : —

*' How fair, how pleasant art thou, love, in delights ! "
where the poet loses himself, as it were, in the contemplation of
beauty. In Job x. 22 the voice sinks with two parallel clauses
beautifully to repose.

i •' In this peculiar conformation, or parallelism of the sentences,"
says Lowth, " I apprehend a considerable part of the Hebrew
metre to consist ; though it is not improbable that some regard
was also paid to the numbers and feet. But of this particular
we have at present so little information, that it is utterly impos-

INTRODUCTION. 47

sible to determine whether it were modulated by the ear alone,
or according to any settled or definite rules of prosody."

" The nervous simplicity and conciseness of the Hebrew
muse," says the poet Campbell, " prevent this parallelism from
degenerating into monotony. In repeating the same idea in
different words, she seems as if displaying a fine opal, that dis-
covers fresh beauty in every new light to which it is turned.
Her amplifications of a given thought are like the echoes of a
solemn melody, — her repetitions of it like the landscape reflected
in the stream ; and whilst her questions and responses give a hfe-
like effect to her compositions, they remind us of the alternate
voices in public devotion, to which they were manifestly adapted."

The parallelism affords an important aid in interpretation.
For sometimes the meaning of one member of a verse is clear,
where that of the other is ambiguous. Thus, the new transla-
tion of Ps. xxiv. 4 is confirmed by the parallelism, though it
does not depend upon it. In Ps. Iv. 15 : —

" May sudden death seize upon them!
May they go down to the underworld alive ! "

the second line is no doubt intended to be synonymous with the
first, and is completely explained by it.

What goes beyond this simple rhythm, in the rhythmical art of
the Hebrews, amounts to but little. Here belongs, —

1. The artificial arrangement of the alphabetical psalms.
Thus Ps. XXV., xxxiv., xxxvii., cxi., cxii., cxix., cxlv., Prov.
xxxi. 10 seq., the Lamentations of Jeremiah, with the exception
of the last chapter, are alphabetically arranged by the initial let-
ters of the verses, and this in different ways. Commonly each
verse begins with a new letter; in Ps. xxxvii., however, only
every other verse, though with interruption and change ; in Ps.
cxix. and Lam. iii., there are alphabetical strophes, as it were,
that is, a series of verses have the same initial letters ; in Ps. cxi.,
cxii., the half-verses are alphabetically arranged. This arrange-
ment answers for us the valuable purposes of proving the exist-
ence of the parallelism of members, and of confirming the system

48 INTRODUCTION.

of accentuation in the division of verses and half- verses, respecting
which we might otherwise have our doubts, as well as respecting
the whole law of parallelism. The alphabetical arrangement is
supposed by many * to have been intended to assist the memory.
Michaelis, indeed, was of the opinion, that it was employed in the
first place in the funeral dirge as an aid to the mourners, and
afterwards employed on other occasions. Lowth supposes that the
alphabetic poetry " was confined altogether to those compositions
which consisted of detached maxims, or sentiments without any
express order or connection." I consider the alphabetic arrange-
ment as a contrivance of the rhythmical art, an offspring of the
later vitiated taste. When the spirit of poetry is flown, men cling
to the lifeless body, the rhythmical form, and seek to supply its
absence by this. In truth, nearly all the alphabetical compositions
are remarkable for the want of connection (which I regard as the
consequence, instead of the cause, of the alphabetical construction),
for common thoughts, coldness and languor of feeling, and a low
and occasionally mechanical phraseology. The thirty-seventh
psalm, which is the most free in its alphabetical arrangement, is
perhaps alone to be excepted from this censure, and in truth is one
of the best didactic poems of the Hebrews. The Lamentations
are, indeed, possessed of considerable merit in their way, but still
betray an unpoetic period and degenerated taste.

In many of the alphabetic pieces we observe certain irregu-
larities and deficiencies, which many (as Capell) have incorrectly
imputed to the transcribers, who were the least exposed to com-
mit mistakes in these compositions, since they were confined by
the peculiar arrangement itself. In Ps. xxv. two verses begin
with X, none with 3 ; yet the word "riSx in the second verse
(like the interjection of the Greek tragedians ojuoi) might not
have been included in the verse, or (as Bengcl conjectures) might
have been written in the margin, in which case the following ?]3
would restore the alphabetical order. Also in this, and in Ps.
xxxiv., the 1 is wanting ; perhaps it should be restored by the 1

* As Lowth, p. 20, 259, and Michaelis on Lowth, p. 562, ed.
Rosenm.

INTRODUCTION. 49

in the beginning of the second hemistich of the verse commencing
with n ; and so also, perhaps, the p, which is wanting in the
seventeenth verse of the former psalm, should be replaced by the
p in "'nip-iVr?, at the beginning of the second hemistich. On the
other hand, two verses begin with 1, and after the last letter, P,,
follows another £3. This last we find also at the close of the
thirty-fourth psalm. Michaelis supposes the 3 is counted twice,
on account of its double pronunciation, as Pe and Fe. Hasse*
erected upon it a 'paleo graphical hypothesis peculiar to himself,
which is hardly capable of being sustained, and gives no satis-
factory explanation of the phenomenon to be explained. Accord-
ing to this, the concluding £3, with a softer pronunciation, takes
the place of the tf> in the Greek alphabet. The conjecture of
Bengel f is no better, who supposes that 1 and £3 both sprung out
of the Phoenician Vau and Fau, and that the latter stands for the
former ; then the supernumerary verse with 5 must come in the
place of l.J Rosenmiiller (1st edit.) considers both verses as
the additions of a later hand, by which these psalms were pre-
pared for the public service. But this could not be the case in
respect to Ps. xxxiv. at least, as the last verse is necessary to the
concluding of the whole ; the conclusion of the twenty-fifth psalm
is also very appropriate, and cannot well be dispensed with. In
Ps. xxxvii., V precedes 3, ;? is wanting, and V is repeated.
Bengel accounts for this not unsatisfactorily from the interchange-
able use of i* and ^ in Chaldee. Others resort for help to criti-
cism. The thirty-ninth verse begins with njj-rwi'n'i, where per-
haps the 1 was not regarded. In Ps. cxlv. the verse with J is
wanting, which, according to Michaelis, has fallen out of the text.
In Lam. ii., iii., iv., 3 precedes ^% which Bengel explains in the
same manner as the similar fact in Ps. xxxvii. The order only
is different ; it was the custom to place letters of a similar sound
together.

* Eichhorn's Allg. Bibl., VIII., p. 42, seq.
t L. c, p. 14, N. 13.

X Another explanation of this irregularity is given by Vogel in
Capelli Grit., T. I., p. 123.
5

50 INTRODUCTION.

Perhaps all these irregularities are to be ascribed to the neg-
ligence and unskilfulness of the poets, as we impute to the same
causes the many harsh and inelegant rhymes of our older ecclesi-
astical poets. The hypothesis of Bengel, that of many alpha-
betical psalms we have only the first imperfect sketch, amounts to
nearly the same thing. The occurrence of the same irregularities
in Psalms xxv. and xxxiv. proves their relation to each other ; and
the circumstance, that m3, to redeem, forms the conclusion of
both, may be regarded as a characteristic trait in these popular
elegiac psalms (for such I esteem them), as the later Jews in
their oppression were always hoping for redemption.

2. We find in the Hebrew poetry the first beginnings of a
complex rhythmical structure, similar to our strophes. In Ps.
xlii.,xliii., an odd verse (refrain) forms the conclusion of a greater
rhythmical period. Something of the same kind, though not
complete, occurs in Ps. cvii., where verses 1-9, 10-16, 17-32,
are separated by a nearly similar conclusion. The prophecies
Is. ix. 7-x. 4, and Am. i. 2-ii. 16, are upon the same plan.
Gesenius (on Isaiah) supposes that the same kind of refrain is to
be found in a part of Solomon's Song. There is a singular spe-
cimen of art in Ps. xlix., where the thirteenth and twenty-first
verses are word for word alike, except that by the change of a
single letter, pV in the one becomes J"'^^ in the other, so that a
different sense is produced where the sound is entirely similar.

3. The rhythm Iry gradation in the psalms of degrees is a
remarkable form. It consists in this, that the thought or expres-
sion of a preceding verse is resumed and carried forward in the
next ; for example, Ps. cxxi. : —

*' I lift up mine eyes to the hills ;
Whence comcth my help 7
My help cometh from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to stumble ;
Thy guardian doth not slumber.
Behold ! the guardian of Israel
Doth neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is thy guardian ;

INTRODUCTION. 51

The Lord is thy shade at thy right hand.

The sun shall not smite thee by day,

Nor the moon by night.

The Lord loill preserve thee from all evil ;

He will preserve thy life.

The Lord will preserve thee, when thou goest out, and when

thou comest in,
From this time forth for evermore."

Gesenius has pointed out the same arrangement in the song
of Deborah, and in Is. xxvi., where verses 5, 6 read thus : —

" The lofty city he hath laid loio,
He hath laid her low to the ground ;
He hath levelled her with the dust.
The foot shall trample upon her,
The feet of the poor, the steps of the needy."

A form somewhat similar to this in modern poetry is the
triolet ; but it differs in making the whole composition turn upon
one principal thought.

The question whether the Psalms were sung by choirs may
be distinctly answered in the affirmative, so far as it regards the
Temple Psalms, and all which were destined for the public ser-
vice. It is still the custom in the synagogue for the assembly
to respond as a choir to the chant of the chorister ; and Miriam
with her women formed an alternate chorus, Ex. xv. By sup-
posing many of the Psalms to have been sung in this way, we
shall perceive in them a greater degree of propriety, spirit, and
grandeur. Thus in that, of which every other line is, For his
mercy endureth for ever, the repetition of these words might have
had an excellent effect, when sung by way of response to a choir
which sung the other line, though to a mere reader such repetition
may appear tedious. Ps. xxiv., cxxxv., cL, and others, are evi-
dently adapted to the same mode of performance. But it by
no means follows that we must divide the Psalms themselves
into choruses, as Nachtigall, Kuinoel, and others have done
in their translations ; it is probable that tJio chorus simply re-

52 INTRODUCTION.

pcated.* But even were this not the case, yet this division is a
matter of too much uncertainty to be safely attempted. It is very
doubtful whether the singing was alternate or responsive in all
cases where there is a change of the person speaking ; for the
Orientals are extremely fond of such a change of the person
speaking, even in poems which are not sung, f

In what way song was connected with the dance it is impossible
to determine. Few of the Psalms which we now possess prob-
ably ever had any connection with the dance. Songs like that
of the women upon David's victory were performed dancing ;
it could hardly be the case, however, that the two performances
were so connected as to resemble the music and dance of modern
times. The dance, perhaps, consisted for the most part of cer-
tain figures, which were executed by the files of dancers, chiefly
in circles, as the Hebrew name SiriD seems to indicate ; and the
step, if not perfectly artless, was free and without rule. % In
this case, the dance of the Hebrews was the same in relation to
other modes of dancing, as was their rhytlmi compared with the
rhythm of other nations.

The l;isi direction in regard to the mode of using the Psalms
may be given in the language of Dr. Hammond, citing the opin-
ion of the ancient fathers.

*' Form thy spirit by the affection of the psalm, saith St. Au-
gustine. If it be the affection of love, enkindle that within thy
breast, that thou mayest not speak against thy sense, and knowl-
edge, and conscience, when thou sayest, I ivill love thee, O Lordj
my strength ! If it be an affection of fear, impress that on thy

* Such is the present custom in the East. The chorus repeats
the melody in a lower key. See Niebuhr's Travels, I., 176.

t Comp. Jahn, Einleit. ins A. T., II., 723,

\ Such is still the manner of the female dancers of the East.
One of tliem takes the lead, cxtcmjwrizing the steps and movement,
which the otliera imitate, following in a circle. See Niebuhr's
Travels, I., 184; Lady Montague's Letters, Let. 30. For other
authorities, sec Jahn's Bibl. Archaol., I., 1, 405.

INTRODUCTION. 53

divine poetry, which thou chantest out to others, O, consider this,
ye that forget God, lest he pluck you aivay, and there le none to
deliver you. If it be an affection of desire, which the Psalmist in
a holy transportation expresseth, let the same breathe in thee ;
accounting, as St. Chrysostom minds thee on Psalm xlii., that,
when thou recitest these words, Like as the hart desireth the loater-
hrooJcs, so longeth my soul after thee, O God ! thou hast sealed a
covenant, betrothed and engaged thy soul to God, and must never
have a coldness or indifferency to him hereafter. If it be the
affection of gratitude, let thy soul be lifted up in praises, come
with affections this way inflamed, sensible of the weight of mer-
cies of all kinds, spiritual and temporal, with all the enhancements
that the seasonable application thereof to the extremities of thy
wants can add to thy preservations, and pardons, and joys ; or
else the reciting the hallelujahs vf'iW be a most ridiculous piece
of pageantry. And so likewise for the petitory part of the
Psalms, let us be always in a posture ready for them, with our
spirits minutely prepared to dart them up to. heaven. And what-
ever the affection be, let the heart do what the words signify."

The translator leaves the principles and views, which governed
him in his labors, to be inferred from the work itself. In one
particular, however, some may be at a loss to know the reason
for the translation which I adopt. I refer to the name of the
Supreme Being, Jehovah. As it is a proper name, and not a
mere appellative, like the terms God and Lord, perhaps the strict
rules of interpretation require that it should be always translated by
the same term. But as the same great Being is denoted, whether
his name be translated the Lord, or Jehovah, I have thought it
best, in many cases, not to alter the name to which the feelings
of the devout have been so long accustomed. The word Jehovah
is now very seldom used in prayers, and of course cannot have
those devout feelings connected with it which belong to appel-
lations of the Supreme Being which are habitually used. It may
be well to mention, that, in all the other books of the Scriptures
5*

54 INTRODUCTION.

which I have translated, I have in every instance used the word
Jehovah where the corresponding term occurs in the original.

Ill this edition I have carefully revised the translation by a new
comparison of it with the original, and by the aid of some English
and German versions, which I had not seen when the first edition
was printed. I have also added a number of pages to the Intro-
duction, and some explanatory notes, which, without materially
increasing the size of the volume, will I hope add to its value.

Cambridge, August 15, 1846.

THE PSALMS

THE PSALMS.

BOOK I

PSALM I.

The happiness of the righteous and the misery of the wicked.

1 Happy the man, who walketh not in the paths of the

unrighteous,
Nor standeth in the way of sinners.
Nor sitteth in the seat of scoffers ;

2 But whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
And who meditates on his precepts day and night.

3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
That bringetb forth its fruit in its season.
Whose leaves also do not wither ;

All that he doeth shall prosper.

4 Not so the unrighteous ;

They are like chaff, which the wind drive th away.

5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand in judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the just.

6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked Icadeth to ruin.

58 THE PSALMS. [ii.

PSALM n.

Vain attempts of the nations against the king anointed by God.

1 Why do the heathen rage,

And the nations meditate a vain thing ?

2 Why do the kings of the earth rise up,
And the princes combine together,

Against Jehovah, and against his anointed king ?

3 " Let us break their bonds asunder ;
Let us cast away from us their fetters ! "

4 He that sitteth in heaven will laugh ;
The Lord will have them in derision.

5 Then shall he speak to them in his wrath.
And confound them in his hot displeasure.

6 " I myself have anointed my king,
Upon Zion, my holy hill."

7 I will declare the decree of Jehovah ;

He hath said to me : — " Thou art my son ;

This day I have begotten thee.
s Ask of me, and I will give thee the nations for thine
inheritance.

And the ends of the earth for thy possession.
9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron ;

Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."

10 Be wise, therefore, O ye kings !

Be admonished, ye rulers of the earth !

11 Be subject to Jehovah with awe.
And fear before him with tremblinc !

III.] THE PSALMS. 59

12 Kiss the son, lest he be angry, and ye perish in your way ;
For soon shall his wrath be kindled !
Happy are all they who seek refuge in him !

PSALM in.

Trust in God in a time of distress.
A psalm of David^ when he fled from his son Absalom.

1 How many, O Lord, are mine enemies !
How many are they who rise up against me !

2 How many are they who say of me,

" There is no help for him with God ! "

3 But thou, O Lord, art my shield.

My glory, and the lifter up of my head.

4 I call upon the Lord with my voice,
And he heareth me from his holy hill.

5 I lay me down and sleep ;

I awake, for Jehovah sustaineth me.

6 I will not fear the ten thousands of people
Who on every side set themselves against me.

7 Arise, O Lord ! Save me, O my God !

For thou smitest the cheek of all my enemies ;
Thou breakest the teeth of the wicked.

8 Deliverance cometh from the Lord ;
May thy blessing be with thy people !

(30 THE PSALMS. [iv.

PSALM IV.

A prayer for deliverance from enemies ; with a remonstrance to them, and
expressions of confidence in divine aid. It may, with the last psalm,
have been occasioned by the rebellion of Absalom. But it is rather re-
markable that there is no particular allusion to the affecting circum-
stance of David's own son being at the head of it.

For the leader of the music ; to he accompanied icith stringed instru-
ments. A psalm of David.

1 Hear me, when I call, O God of my righteousness !
Thou hast helped me, when I was in trouble, —
Have pity upon me, and hear my prayer !

2 How long, O men, will ye dishonor my dignity }
How long will ye love vanity, and seek disappointment ?

3 Know ye that the Lord hath exalted one that is devoted

to him ;
The Lord will hear, when I call upon him.

4 Stand in awe, and sin no more !

Commune with your hearts upon your beds, and desist !
6 Offer righteous sacrifices.
And put your trust in the Lord !

6 There arc many who say, Who will show us any

good ?
Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us !

7 Thou puttest gladness into my heart,

Greater than theirs, when their corn and wine arc abun-
dant.

8 I will lay me down in peace, and sleep ;

For thou alone, O Lord, makest me dwell in safety.

v.] " THE PSALMS. 61

PSALM V.

Prayer of a pious man for aid against impious, deceitful, and sanguinary
enemies. It may be referred to the rebellion of Absalom, or to the per-
secution of David in the court of Saul.

For the leader of the music ; to he accompanied with wind instru-
ments. A psalm of David.

1 Give ear to my words, O Lord !
Have regard to my cry !

2 Listen to the voice of my supplication, my King and my

God!
For to thee do I address my prayer.

3 In the morning shalt thou hear my voice, O Lord !

In the morning will I direct my prayer to thee, and look
for help.

4 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness ;
The unrighteous man dwclleth not with thee.

5 The haughty shall not stand in thy sight ;
Thou hatest all that do iniquity.

6 Thou destroyest them that speak falsehood ;
The man of blood and deceit Jehovah abhorreth.

7 But I, through thy great goodness, will come to thy

house ;
In thy fear will I worship at thy holy temple.

8 Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness, because of

mine enemies ;
Make thy path straight before my face !

9 For in their mouth there is no truth ;
Their heart is all malignity ;

Their throat is an open sepulchre ; '

They flatter with their tongue.
6

g2 THE PSALMS. [vr.

10 Requite them, O God !

Let them be confounded in their devices !

Cast them out for the multitude of their transgressions ;

For against thee have they rebelled !

11 But let all, that put their trust in thee, rejoice ;

Let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest

them ;
Let them, that love thy name, be joyful in thee !

12 For thou, O Lord, dost bless the righteous ;

With favor dost thou encompass him, as with a shield.

PSALM VL

A prayer of one in great distress.

For the leader of the music ; to he accompanied with stringed instru-
ments; to the octave. Jl psalm of David.

1 O Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger ;
Chasten me not in thy hot displeasure !

2 Have pity upon me, O Lord, for I am weak !
Heal me, O Lord, for my bones tremble !

3 My soul, also, is sore troubled ;
And thou, O Lord, how long

4 Return, O Lord, and deliver me ;

O save me according to thy mercy !

5 For in death no praise is given to thee;

In the underworld who can give thee thanks ?
c I am weary with groaning ;
All the night I make my bed to swim.
And drench my couch with my tears.

VII.] THE PSALMS. 63

7 Mine eye is wasted with grief ;

It hath become old because of all my enemies.

8 Depart from me, all ye that do iniquity ; v"^
For the Lord heareth the voice of my weeping.

9 The Lord heareth my supplication ;
The Lord accepteth my prayer.

10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and utterly con-
founded ;
They shall be turned back and put to shame suddenly.

PSALM VII.

Prayer against an enemy, or, perhaps, against enemies in general.

A psalm of David^ wJiich he sang to Jehovah^ on account of the re-
proaches of Cush the Benjamite.

1 O Jehovah, my God, to thee do I look for help !
Save me from them that persecute me, and deliver me !

2 Lest mine enemy tear me hke a lion ;

Lest he rend me in pieces, while there is none to help.

3 O Jehovah, my God ! If I have done this, —
If there be iniquity upon my hands,

4 If I have rendered evil to my friend,

Or have despoiled him that without cause is mine en-
emy,—

5 Let my adversary pursue and take me ;
Let him trample me to the ground.
And lay me prostrate in the dust !

64 THE PSALMS. [yn.

6 Arise, O Lord, in thine anger ;

Lift thyself up against the rage of mine enemies ;
Awake for me ! Ordain judgment !

7 Let the assembly of the nations compass thee about,
And on their account ascend thy throne !

8 The Lord judge th the nations ;

Judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness,
And. requite me according to my integrity !

9 O let the wickedness of the wicked be at an end ;
But establish the righteous !

For thou, O God of justice, tricst the heart and the
reins !

10 My shield is with God,

Who saveth the upright in heart.

11 God is a righteous judge ;

And God is ever angry with the wicked.

12 If he do not desist. He sharpeneth his sword ;
He bendeth his bow, and maketh it ready ;

13 He prepareth for him the instruments of death ;
He shooteth his burninir arrows.

14" Behold, he travailed with iniquity,

And conceived mischief,

But hath brought forth disappointment !
15 He made a pit and digged it,

And is fallen into the ditch which he made.
IG His mischief returncth upon his own head.

And his violence cometh down upon his own pate.
17 I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness ;

I will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high.

VIII.] THE PSALMS. 65

PSALM VIII.

The greatness of the Creator, and his goodness to man.

For the leader of the music ; to he accompanied with the gittith. A
psalm of David.

1 O Jehovah, our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth !
Thou hast set thy glory above the heavens !

2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou or-

dained praise ;
To put thine adversaries to shame,
And to silence the enemy and avenger.

3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,
The moon and the stars which thou hast ordained ;

4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him.
And the son of man, that thou carest for him !

5 Yet thou hast made him little lower than God ;
Thou hast crowned him with glory and honor.

6 Thou hast given him dominion over the works of thy

hands ;
Thou hast put all things under his feet ;

7 All sheep and oxen.

Yea, and the beasts of the forest ;
S The birds of the air, and the fishes of the sea.

And whatever passeth through the paths of the deep.
9 O Jehovah, our Lord,

How excellent is thy name in all the earth !

66 THE PSALMS. [ix.

PSALM IX.

A thanksgiving ode for victory and deliverance from enemies 5 with prayers
for future help. Supposed to have been composed after the wars men-
tioned in 2 Samuel, ch. viii.

For the leader of the music ; to be sung in the manner or loith the
voice of virgins. To the Benites. A psalm of David.

1 I WILL praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart ;
I will show forth all thy marvellous works.

2 I will be glad and rejoice in thee ;

I will sing praise to thy name, O thou Most High !

3 All my enemies are turned back ;
They fall and perish at thy presence !

4 For thou dost defend my right and my cause ;
Thou sittest upon the throne, a righteous judge.

5 Thou rebukest the nations ;
Thou dcstroyest the wicked ;

Thou blottest out their name for evermore !

6 The enemy is fallen, — a desolation for ever!
Thou, O Lord, hast destroyed their cities !
Their memory itself has perished !

7 The Lord reigncth for ever ;

He hath prepared his throne for judgment.

8 He judgeth the world in righteousness ;

He administcreth judgment to the nations with uprightness.

9 Yea, the Lord is the refuge of the oppressed ;
A refuge in times of trouble.

10 Tlicy, who know thy name, put their trust in thee ;
For thou, O Lord, forsakest not them that seek thee !

11 Sing praises to the Lord, who reigneth in Zion ;
Declare his doings among the people !

X.] THE PSALMS. 67

12 As the avenger of blood, he remembereth the distressed ;
He forgetteth not their complaint.

13 " Have pity upon me, [said I, ] O Lord !

Look upon my affliction through them that hate me ;
Lift me up from the gates of death !

14 That I may show forth all thy praise in the gates of the

daughter of Zion ;
That I may rejoice in salvation by thee."

15 The nations have sunk into the pit which they made ;
In the net, which they hid, is their own foot taken.

16 Thus it is known that the Lord executeth judgment ;
The wicked are ensnared in the work of their own

hands.

17 The wicked shall be driven into the underworld ;
Yea, all the nations that forget God.

IS For the poor shall not always be forgotten ;

The hopes of the afflicted shall not perish for ever.

19 Arise, O Lord ! Let not man prevail ;
Let the nations be judged by thee !

20 Strike terror into them, O Lord !

Let the nations know that they are but men !

PSALM X.

A prayer against impious, deceitful, and blood-thirsty foreign enemies.

1 Why standest thou afar off, O Lord >
Why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble ?

2 Through the haughtiness of the wicked the poor are in

distress ;

68 THE PSALMS. [x.

They arc caught in the wiles which are contrived for
them.

3 The wicked boasteth of his heart's desire ;

The rapacious renounceth and contemneth the Lord.

4 The wicked [saith] in his haughtiness, " He careth not!"
All his thoughts are, " There is no God."

5 His course is always prosperous ;
Thy judgments are far from him ;

As for all his enemies, he puffeth at them.

6 He saith in his heart, " I shall never fall ;
" I shall never be in adversity."

7 His mouth is full of perjury, deceit, and oppression ;
Mischief and injustice are upon his tongue.

8 He sitteth in the lurking-places of the villages ;
In secret places doth he murder the innocent ;
His eyes are secretly fixed upon the poor.

9 He secretly lieth in wait, like a lion in a thicket ;
He lieth in wait to seize upon the helpless ;

He catcheth the poor, drawing him into his net.

10 He croucheth, and lowereth himself.
And the wretched fall into his paws.

11 He saith in his heart, " God doth forget ;
He hideth his face ; he doth never see it."

12 Arise, O Lord ! 0 God, lift up thine hand !
Forget not the distressed !

13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God,
And say in his heart, " He careth not for it " ?

( 14 Thou dost see it ! yea, thou beholdest malice and oppression,
And markest it upon thy hand !
The poor committcth himself to thee ;
Thou art the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break thou the arm of the unjust and wicked man ;
Seek out his wickedness, till thou canst find none !

XI.] THE PSALMS. 69

16 The Lord is king for ever ;

The gentiles shall perish out of his land.

17 Thou, O Lord, wilt hear the desires of the distressed ;
Thou wilt strengthen their hearts ;

Thou wilt lend a listening ear !
IS Thou wilt maintain the cause of the fatherless and the
oppressed,
That henceforth none may be driven from the land !

PSALM XI.

An expression of trust in God, as a security from the plots and assaults of
enemies.'

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 In the Lord do I put my trust. Why say ye to me,
" Flee, like a bird, to your mountain ?

2 For, lo, the wicked bend their bow ;

They make ready their arrows on the string,
To shoot in secret at the upright in heart.

3 If the pillars be broken down.
What can the righteous do .^ "

4 The Lord is in his holy palace ;
The Lord's throne is in heaven ;

His eyes behold, his eyehds prove the children of men.

5 The Lord trieth the righteous ;

But the wicked, and the lover of violence, his soul hateth.

6 Upon the wicked he will rain lightning ;

Fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the por-
tion of their cup.

7 For the Lord is righteous ; he loveth righteousness ;
The upright shall see his face.

70 THE PSALMS. [xii.

PSALM XII.

A prayer for protection against calumniating foes.
For the leader of the music ; to the octave. A psalm of David.

1 Help, Lord, for the good man ceaseth ;
The faithful are failing among men.

2 They speak falsehood one to another ;

With flattering lips, with a double heart, do they speak.

3 May the Lord destroy all flattering lips,
And the tongue which speaketh proud things !

4 Who say, " With our tongues will we prevail ;
Our lips are our reliance ;

Who is lord over us ? "

5 For the oppression of the poor and the sighing of the

wretched,
Now will I stand up, saith the Lord ;
I will set in safety him whom they puff at.

6 The words of the Lord are pure ;

Like silver purified from earth in a furnace,
Seven times refined.

7 Thou, O Lord, wilt watch over them ;

Thou wilt preserve them from this generation for ever.

8 The wicked walk on every side.
When the vilest of men are exalted.

XIII., XIV.] THE PSALMS. 71

PSALM XIII.

Supplication for deliverance from enemies, and confidence of obtaining it.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 How long, O Lord, wilt thou utterly forget me ?
How long wilt thou hide thy face from me ?

2 How long shall I have anxiety in my soul,
And sorrow in my heart all the day ?

How long shall my enemy be exalted over me ?

3 Look down and hear me, O Lord, my God !
Enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death !

4 Lest my enemy say, " I have prevailed against him ! "
Lest my adversaries rejoice, when I am fallen.

5 Yet will I trust in thy goodness ;
My heart shall rejoice in thy salvation ;

6 I will sing to the Lord, that he hath dealt kindly with me.

PSALM XIV.

The complaint of a pious man in exile concerning the wickedness of men,
and supplication for the restoration of the Israelites from captivity.

For the leader of the music. Ji psalm of David.

1 The fool saith in his heart, " There is no God."
They are corrupt ; their doings are abominable ;
There is none that doeth good.
' 2 The Lord looketh down from heaven upon the children
of men.
To see if there are any that have understanding.
That have regard to God.

72 THE PSALMS. [xv.

3 They are all gone out of the way ; they are every one

corrupt ;
There is none that doeth good ; no, not one.

4 Shall not the evil-doers be requited,
Who devour my people like bread,
And call not upon the Lord ?

5 Yea, then shall they be in great fear ;

For the Lord is with the race of the righteous.

6 Ye deride the conduct of the poor ;
But the Lord is their refuge.

7 O that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion !
When the Lord bringeth back the captives of his people,
Then shall Jacob rejoice, and Israel be glad.

PSALM XV.

The qualifications of an acceptable worshipper. This psalm may have
been composed when David removed the ark to the tabernacle on Mount
Zion J 2 Sam. ch. vi.

v3 psalm of David.

1 Lord, who shall abide at thy tabernacle,

Who shall dwell upon thy holy hill ?

2 He that walketh uprightly, and doeth righteousness.
And speakelh the truth from his heart ;

3 He that slandereth not with his tongue,
That doeth no injury to his neighbour.

And uttcreth no reproach against his neighbour ;

XVI.] THE PSALMS. 73

4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned ;
But who honoreth them that fear the Lord ;

Who sweareth to his neighbour, and changeth not ;

5 He that lendeth not his money for interest,
And taketh not a bribe against the innocent :
He that doeth these things shall never fall.

PSALM XVI.

The person who is the subject of this psalm expresses his entire depend-
ence upon God, his gratitude for divine goodness, his satisfaction with
the condition assigned him, and his firm hopes of future protection and
favor.

A psalm of David.

1 Preserve me, O God, for to thee do I look for help !

2 I have said to Jehovah, Thou art my Lord ;
I have no happiness beyond thee !

3 The holy that are in the land, and the excellent,
In them is all my delight.

4 They who hasten after other gods shall have multiplied

sorrows ;
Their drink-offerings of blood I will not offer,
Nor will I take their names upon my lips.

5 Jehovah is my portion and my cup ;
Thou wilt maintain my lot !

6 My portion hath fallen to me in pleasant places ;
Yea, I have a goodly inheritance.

7 I will bless the Lord, who careth for me ;
Yea, in the night my heart admonisheth me.

8 I set the Lord before me at all times ;
Since he is at my right hand, I shall not fall.

7

74 THE PSALMS. [xvii.

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my spirit rejoiceth ;
Yea, my flesh dwelleth in security.

10 For thou wilt not give me up to the underworld ;
Nor wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see the pit.

11 Thou wilt show me the path of life ;
In thy presence is fulness of joy ;

At thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.

PSALM XVII.

A prayer for help against impious enemies ; together with expressions of
confidence in the favor of God.

w5 psalm of David.

1 Heau the righteous cause, O Lord,
Attend to my cry ;

Give ear to my prayer from lips without deceit !

2 May my sentence come forth from thy presence ;
May thine eyes behold uprightness !

3 Prove my heart ; visit me in the night ;

Try me like gold, and thou shalt find nothing!

4 My thoughts do not vary from my lips.
As to the deeds of men.

Through the word of thy lips I have kept me from the
paths of the destroyer.

5 Support my steps in thy paths.
That my feet may not slip !

6 I call upon thee, 0 God, for thou wilt hear me !
Incline thine car to me, and listen to my prayer !

7 Show forth thy loving-kindness, O thou that savest by thy

right hand
Them that seek refufire in thee from their adversaries !

XVIII.] THE PSALMS. 75

8 Guard me as the apple of the eye ;
Hide me under the shadow of thy wings

9 From the wicked who assault me,

From my deadly enemies who compass me about !

10 They shut up their hard heart ;

With their mouth they speak haughtily.

11 They encompass us in all our steps ;

They fix their eyes upon us, that they may cast us on
the ground.

12 They are like a lion, eager for his prey ;
Like a young lion, lurking in secret places.

13 Arise, O Lord, disappoint them, cast them down !
Deliver me from the wicked by thy sword,

14 From men, by thy hand, O Lord, from men of the world,
Whose portion is in life ; whom thou loadest with thy

treasure ;
Whose children have enough, and leave their superfluity
to their posterity.

15 But I through righteousness shall see thy face ;

I shall be satisfied with the revival of thy countenance.

PSALM XVIIL

For the leader of the music. Jl psalm of Davidy the servant of the
Lord, icho spake to the Lord the words of this song, in the day that
the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies^ and from
the hand of Saul : And he said, —

1 I LOVE thee, O Jehovah, my strength !

2 Jehovah is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer ;
My God, my strength, in whom I trust ;

My shield, my strong defence, and my high tower.

76 THE PSALMS. [xviii.

3 I called upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
And was delivered from my enemies.

4 The snares of death encompassed me ;

The floods of destruction filled me with dismay ;

5 The snares of the underworld surrounded me,
And the nets of death seized upon me.

6 In my distress I called upon the Lord,
And cried unto my God ;

He heard my voice from his palace,

And my cry came before him into his ears.

7 Then the earth quaked and trembled ;

The foundations of the mountains rocked and were shaken,
Because his wrath was kindled.

8 A smoke went up from his nostrils.
And fire from his mouth devoured ;
Burning coals shot forth from him.

9 He bowed the heavens, and came down ;
And darkness was under his feet ;

10 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly ;
Yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.

11 And he made darkness his covering ;

His pavilion round about him was dark waters and thick
clouds of the skies.

12 At the brightness before him, his thick clouds passed away ;
Then came hailstones and coals of fire.

13 The Lord also thundered from heaven,
And the Most High uttered his voice.
Amid hailstones and coals of fire.

14 He sent forth his arrows, and scattered them ;
Continual lightnings, and discomfited them.

15 Then the channels of the deep were seen,
And the foundations of the earth were laid bare
At thy rebuke, O Lord,

At the blast of the breath of thy nostrils !

XVIII.] THE PSALMS. 77

16 He stretched forth his hand from above ; he took me,
And drew me out of deep waters.

17 He deHvered me from my strong enemy ;

From my adversaries, who were too powerful for me.

18 They fell upon me in the day of my calamity.
But the Lord was my stay.

19 He brought me forth into a lai'ge place ;

He delivered me, because he delighted in me.

20 The Lord hath rewarded me according to my righteousness;
According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recom-
pensed me.

21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord,

And have not wickedly departed from my God.

22 For all his laws were in my sight ;

I did not put away his statutes from me.

23 I was upright before him,
And kept myself from iniquity.

24 Therefore hath the Lord rewarded me according to my

righteousness.
According to the cleanness of my hands before his eyes.

25 To the merciful thou showest thyself merciful ;
To the upright thou showest thyself upright ;

26 To the pure thou showest thyself pure,

And to the perverse thou showest thyself perverse.

27 For thou savest the afflicted people.

But the haughty countenance thou bringest down.

28 Thou causest my lamp to shine ;
Jehovah, my God, enlighteneth my darkness.

29 For through thee I have broken through troops ;
Through my God I have leaped over walls.

30 The ways of God are just and true ;
His word is pure, tried in the fire ;

And come trembling from their strongholds.
7*

78 THE PSALMS. [xviii.

He is a shield to all who put their trust in him.

31 Who, then, is God, save Jehovah >
And who is a rock, save our God ?

32 It is God that girded me with strength,
And made my way plain.

33 He made my feet like the hind's,
And set me in my high places ;

34 He taught my hands to war,

So that my arm bent the bow of brass.

35 Thou gavest me the shield of thy protection ;
Thy right hand held me up,

And thy goodness made me great.

36 Thou didst make a wide path for my steps.
So that my feet did not stumble.

37 I pursued my enemies, and overtook them.
And turned not back till I had destroyed them.

38 I smote them, so that they could not rise ;
They fell under my feet.

39 Thou didst gird me with strength for the battle ;
Thou didst cast down my adversaries under me.

40 Thou didst cause my enemies to turn their backs.
So that I destroyed them that hated me.

41 They cried, but there was none to help ;
To Jehovah, but he answered them not.

42 I beat them small, like dust before the wind ;
I cast them out as the dirt of the streets.

43 Thou hast delivered me from the assaults of the nations ;
Thou hast made me the head of the kingdoms.
Nations whom I knew not serve me ;

44 They who have only heard of me obey me.

Yea, men of a strange land submit themselves to me ;

45 Men of a strange land fade away, like a leaf.

XIX.] THE PSALMS. 79

46 Jehovah is the living God ; blessed be my rock ;
Exalted be the God of my salvation !

47 It is God who hath given me vengeance,
And subdued the nations under me ;

48 He delivered me from my enemies ;

Yea, thou hast lifted me up above mine adversaries ;
Thou hast saved me from the violent man !

49 Therefore I will give thanks to thee, O Lord, among the

nations,
And sing praises to thy name !

50 Great deliverance giveth he to his king.
And showeth mercy to his anointed,
To David and to his race for ever.

PSALM XIX.

The glory of God manifested in the material creation, and in the law given
to man. Prayer for forgiveness and deliverance from temptation.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 The heavens declare the glory of God ;

The firmament showeth forth the work of his hands.

2 Day uttereth instruction unto day.

And night showeth knowledge unto night.

3 They have no speech, nor language.
And their voice is not heard ;

4 Yet their sound goeth forth to all the earth.
And their words to the ends of the world.

In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,
5 Which cometh forth like a bridegroom from his chamber,
And rejoiceth, like a strong man, to run his course.

80 THE PSALMS. [xix.

6 He goeth forth from the extremity of heaven,
And maketh his circuit to the end of it ;
And nothing is hid from his heat.

7 The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul ;
The precepts of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple ;

8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart ;
The commandments of the Lord are pure, enlightening

the eyes ;

9 The service of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever ;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous al-
together.

10 More precious are they than gold ; yea, than much fine gold ;
Sweeter than honey, and the honeycomb.

11 By them also is thy servant warned.

And in keeping of them there is great reward.

12 Who knoweth his own offences ?

0 cleanse thou me from secret faults !

13 Keep back also thy servant from presumptuous sins ;
Let them not have dominion over me !

Then shall I be upright ;

1 shall not be polluted with gross transgression.

14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in thy sight,

O Lord, my strength and my redeemer !

XX.] ^ THE PSALMS. 81

PSALM XX

Prayer of a people for their king going to war. It may have been composed
when David was going to war with the Syrians. 2 Sam. ch. viii.-x.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 May the Lord hear thee in the day of trouble ;
May the name of the God of Jacob defend thee !

2 May he send thee help from his sanctuary,
And strengthen thee out of Zion !

3 May he have regard to all thine offerings,
And accept thy burnt sacrifice !

4 May he grant thee thy heart's desire.
And fulfil all thy purposes !

5 We will rejoice in thy protection ;

We will triumph in the name of our God,
When the Lord hath fulfilled all thy petitions.

6 Now I know that the Lord helpeth his anointed.
That he heareth him from his holy heaven,

And aideth him with the saving strength of his right hand.

7 Some glory in chariots, and some in horses.
But we in the name of the Lord our God.

8 They stumble and fall.
But we stand and are erect.

9 The Lord save the king !
May he hear us, when we call !

82 THE PSALMS. [xxi.

PSALM XXL

Triumphal song of a people for the victories of their king.
For the leader of the music, A psalm of David.

1 The king rejoiceth in thy strength, O Lord !
Yea, he doth greatly exult in thy protection.

2 Thou hast given him his heart's desire.

And hast not denied him the request of his lips.

3 Yea, thou hast met him with rich blessings.

Thou hast placed a crown of pure gold upon his head.

4 He asked life of thee ; thou gavest it him ;
Even long life, enduring for ever.

5 Great is his glory through thine aid ;
Honor and majesty hast thou laid upon him.

6 Thou hast made him blessed for evermore ;

Thou hast made him glad with the joy of thy countenance.

7 For the king trustcth in the Lord ;

And through the goodness of the Most High he shall
never fall.

8 Thy hand shall overtake all thine enemies ;
Thy right hand shall overtake them that hate thee.

9 Thou wilt make them like a burning oven in the time of

thine anger ;
Jehovah shall swallow them up in his wrath,
And the fire shall devour them.

10 Their offspring shalt thou destroy from the earth ;
And their race from the sons of men.

11 For they spread a net of mischief against thee ;

Tliey devised plots against thee, but they did not prevail.

XXII.] THE PSALMS. 83

12 Therefore thou wilt cause them to turn their backs ;
Thou wilt make ready thine arrows upon the strings

against them.

13 Exalt thyself, O Lord, by thy strength !

So will we sing, and praise thy mighty deeds.

PSALM XXIL

A prayer of one in deep distress on account of his enemies, together with
expressions of confidence in divine aid, and hopes of future prosperity,
and of the extension of the knowledge and worship of God.

For the leader of the music. To the tune of " The hind of the morn-
ing." ^ psalm of David.

1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ?

Why so far from mine aid, and from the words of my cry ?

2 O my God, I cry during the day, but thou hearest not ;
In the night also, but I have no rest !

3 And yet thou art holy,

Dwelling amid the praises of Israel !

4 Our fathers trusted in thee ;

They trusted, and thou didst save them.

5 They called upon thee, and were delivered ;
They trusted in thee, and were not disappointed.

6 But I am a worm, and not a man ;

The reproach of men, and the scorn of the people.

7 All who see me scoff at me ;

They open wide the lips ; they shake the head.

8 " He trusted in the Lord, let him help him ;

Let him deliver him, since he delighted in him ! "

g4 THE PSALMS. [xxii.

9 Surely thou art he that didst bring me into the world ;
Thou didst make me lie secure upon my mother's breast !

10 Upon thee have I cast myself from my birth ;
Thou hast been my God from my earliest breath !

11 O be not far from me, for trouble is near ;
For there is none to help !

12 Many bulls surround me ;

Strong bulls of Bashan close me in on every side.

13 They open their mouths wide against me,
Like a ravening and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water.

And all my bones are out of joint ;
My heart is become like wax ;
It melteth in my bosom.

15 My strength is dried up like an earthen vessel,
And my tongue cleaveth to my jaws ;

Thou hast brought me to the dust of death !

16 For dogs have surrounded me ;

The assembly of the wicked have encompassed me ;
They have pierced my hands and my feet.

17 I can count all my bones ;

They gaze, and feast their eyes upon me.

18 They divide my garments among them,
And for my vesture they cast lots.

19 But be not thou far from me, O Lord !
O my strength, make haste to mine aid !

20 Deliver my life from the sword ;

My blood from the power of the dog ;

21 Save me from the lion's mouth ;

Shield me from the horns of the buffaloes !

22

I will proclaim thy name to my brethren ;
In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.

XXIII.] THE PSALMS. 85

23 Praise him, ye worshippers of Jehovah !
Extol him, all ye race of Jacob,

And fear him, all ye race of Israel !

24 For he hath not despised nor abhorred the misery of the

afflicted,
Nor hath he hid his face from him ;
But when he cried unto him, he heard.

25 My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation ;
I will pay my vows before them that fear him !

26 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied ;
They that seek the Lord shall praise him ;
Your hearts shall be glad for ever and ever !

27 All the ends of the earth shall remember, and turn to the Lord ;
All the families of the nations shall worship before thee !

28 For the kingdom is the Lord's ;
He is the governor of the nations.

29 All the rich of the earth shall eat and worship ;

They also shall bow before him, who are going down to

the dust.
Who cannot keep themselves alive.

30 The future generation shall serve him ;

The race which is to come shall hear of the Lord.

31 They shall come, and declare his righteousness ;
His mighty deeds to the people that shall be born.

PSALM XXIII.

God our shepherd.
A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures ;
He leadeth me beside the still waters.

8

86 THE PSALMS. [xxiv.

3 He reviveth my spirit ;

He leadeth me in the right paths,
For his name's sake.

4 When I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil, for thou art with me ;

Thy crook and thy staff, they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me,
In the presence of mine enemies.
Thou anointest my head with oil ;
My cup runneth over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days

of my life.
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

PSALM XXIV.

Hymn to Jehovah, occasioned by the introduction of the ark of the cove-
nant into the tabernacle, or temple.

Ji psalm of David.

1 The earth is the Lord's, and all that is therein ;
The world, and they who inhabit it.

2 For he hath founded it upon the seas,
And established it upon the floods.

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord ?
And who shall stand in his holy place .'*

4 He that hath clean hands and a pure heart ;
Who hath not inclined his soul to falsehood,
Nor sworn deceitfully.

XXV.] THE PSALMS. 87

5 He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
And favor from God, his helper.

6 This is the race of them that seek him ;
That seek thy face, O God of Jacob !

7 Lift up your heads, O ye gates !

Lift yourselves up, ye everlasting doors.
That the glorious king may enter in !

8 " Who is this glorious king ? "
Jehovah, strong and mighty ;
Jehovah, mighty in battle.

9 Lift up your heads, O ye gates !

Lift yourselves up, ye everlasting doors,
That the glorious king may enter in !

10 " Who is this glorious king ? "

Jehovah, God of hosts, he is the glorious king.

PSALM XXV.

A prayer for deliverance from enemies, for instruction in duty, for divine
forgiveness, and for a distressed nation.

A psalm of David.

1 To thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul !

2 O my God, I trust in thee ! Let me not be put to shame !
Let not my enemies triumph over me !

3 Yea, none that hope in thee shall be put to shame ;
They shall be put to shame who wickedly forsake thee.

88 THE PSALMS. [xxv.

4 Cause me to know thy ways, O Lord ;
Teach me thy paths !

5 Lead me in thy truth, and teach me ;

For thou art the God from whom cometh my help ;
In thee do I trust at all times !

6 Remember thy loving-kindness, O Lord, and thy tender

mercy.
Which thou hast exercised of old !

7 Remember not the faults and transgressions of my youth ;
According to thy mercy remember thou me,

For thy goodness' sake, O Lord !

8 Good and righteous is the Lord,
Therefore showeth he to sinners the way ;

9 The humble he guideth in his statutes,
And the humble he teach eth his way.

10 All the doings of the Lord are mercy and truth,
To those who keep his covenant and his precepts.

11 For thy name's sake, O Lord,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great !

12 Who is the man that feareth the Lord ?

Him doth he show the way which he should choose.

13 He shall himself dwell in prosperity,
And his offspring shall inherit the land.

14 The Lord is the friend of them that fear him,
And he will teach them his covenant.

15 Mine eyes are ever directed to the Lord,
For he will pluck my feet from the net.

16 Look upon me, and pity me.
For I am desolate and afilicted !

17 Lighten the sorrows of my heart,
And deliver me from my troubles !

XXVI.] THE PSALMS. 89

18 Look upon my affliction and distress,
And forgive all my sins !

19 Consider how many are my enemies,
And with what violence they hate me !

20 Guard thou my life, and deliver me !

Let me not be put to shame, for I have trusted in thee !

21 Let innocence and uprightness preserve me.
For on thee do I rest my hope !

22 Redeem Israel, O God, from all his troubles !

PSALM XXVL

A prayer for deliverance from distress, with protestations of the righteous-
ness of hinn who offers it. It is commonly supposed to relate to the per-
secution of David by Saul.

A psalm of David.

1 Be thou my judge, O Lord, for I have walked in up-

rightness !
I have put my trust in the Lord, therefore shall I not fall.

2 Examine me, O Lord, and prove me ;
Try my reins and my heart !

3 For thy kindness is ever before my eyes.
And I walk in thy truth.

4 I sit not with men of falsehood.

And go not in company with dissemblers.

5 I hate the assembly of evil-doers.
And do not sit with the wicked.

6 I wash my hands in innocence.
And go around thine altar, O Lord,

7 To utter the voice of thanksgiving.
And tell of all thy wondrous works !

8*

90 THE PSALMS. [xxvii.

8 0 Lord, I love the house of thine abode,
The place where thine honor dwelleth !

9 Gather not my breath with sinners.
Nor my life with men of blood,

10 In whose hands is mischief,

And whose right hands are full of bribes !

11 But as for me, I walk in integrity ;

O redeem me, and be merciful to me !

12 My feet tread in a straight path ;

In the congregation will I bless the Lord.

PSALM XXVII.

A pious man in distress expresses his confidence in God, and his earnest
desire for his temple. He then prays for relief in his desolate condition,
and trusts that he shall obtain it. This psalm may have been composed
on the same occasion as the last.

A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation ;
Whom shall I fear }

The Lord is the shield of my life ;
Of whom shall I be afraid }

2 When the wicked came upon me to devour me.

Even my persecutors and enemies, they stumbled and fell.

3 Though a host should encamp against me, my heart shall

not fear ;
Though war should rise against me, yet will I be confident.

4 One thing have I desired of the Lord ; that do I yet seek ;
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days

of my life,
To behold tlie glory of the Lord,
And to gaze upon his temple.

XXVII.] THE PSALMS. 91

5 For in the day of trouble he will hide me in his pavilion ;
Yea, in the secret place of his tabernacle will he shelter me ;
He will set me upon a rock.

6 Yea, already doth he lift my head above my enemies,

who are around me ;
Therefore in his tabernacle will I offer sacrifices with the

sound of trumpets ;
I will sing, yea, with instruments of music I will givQ

praise to the Lord.

7 Hear my voice, O Lord, when I cry unto thee ;
Have pity upon me, and answer me !

8 When I think of thy precept, " Seek ye my face ! "
Thy face, Lord, do I seek.

9 O hide not thou thy face from me ;

Cast not thy servant away in displeasure !
Thou hast been my help, do not leave me ;
Do not forsake me, O God, my helper !

10 For my father and my mother have forsaken mc ;
But the Lord will take me up.

11 Teach me thy way, O Lord,

And lead me in the right path, because of my enemies !

12 Give me not up to the will of my adversaries !
For false witnesses have risen up against me,
And such as breathe out injustice.

13 I trust that I shall see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living ! Hope thou in the Lord !

14 Be of good courage ; let thy heart be strong ;
Hope thou in the Lord !

92 THE PSALMS. [xxviii.

PSALM XXVIII.

Prayer for aid; and for the punishment of enemies, with strong hopes of
being heard.

A psalm of David.

1 To tliec do I cry, O Lord ! O my rock, be not silent

to me,
Lest, if thou answer me not, I become like those who go
down to the pit !

2 Hear the voice of my supplication, when I cry unto thee,
When I lift up my hands to thy most holy sanctuary !

3 Draw me not away with the impious, and with evil-doers,
Who speak peace to their neighbours, while mischief is

in their hearts !

4 Give them according to their deeds, and the wickedness

of their conduct ;
Give them according to the work of their hands ;
Render to them their desert !

5 For they regard not the doings of the Lord, nor the work

of his hands ;
Therefore shall he destroy them, and never build them up.

6 Praised be the Lord, for he hath heard the voice of my

supplications !

7 The Lord is my strength, and my shield ;
My heart trustcth in him, and he helpeth me ;
Therefore doth my heart exult.

And in my song I will praise him.

8 Jehovah is the strength of his people ;

lie is the protecting shield of his anointed.

9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance ;
Feed them also, and build them up for ever !

XXIX.] THE PSALMS. 93

PSALM XXIX.

The glory of God, as manifested in a thunder-storm.
^ psalm of David.

1 Give to Jehovah, O ye sons of God,
Give to Jehovah glory and praise !

2 Give to Jehovah the glory due to his name ;
Worship Jehovah in holy attire !

3 The voice of Jehovah is heard above the waters ;
The God of glory thundereth,

Jehovah above the great waters.

4 The voice of Jehovah is powerful ;

The voice of Jehovah is full of majesty ;

5 The voice of Jehovah breaketh the cedars ;
Yea, Jehovah breaketh the cedars of Lebanon ;

6 Yea, he maketh them to leap like a calf ;
Lebanon and Sirion like a young buffalo.

7 The voice of Jehovah divideth the flames of fire.

8 The voice of Jehovah maketh the wilderness tremble ;
Yea, Jehovah maketh the wilderness of Kadesh tremble.

9 The voice of Jehovah maketh the hinds bring forth,
And layeth bare the forests ;

While, in his palace, every one declareth his glory.

10 Jehovah sitteth above the storm ;
Yea, Jehovah sitteth king for ever.

11 Jehovah will give strength to his people ;
Jehovah will bless his people with peace.

94 THE PSALMS. [xxx.

PSALM XXX.

A song of thanksgiving for deliverance from distress.
A psalm of David. To the air of songs for the dedication of a house.

1 I WILL extol thee, O Lord, for thou hast lifted me up.
And hast not suffered my enemies to rejoice over me.

2 O Jehovah, my God,

I called upon thee, and thou hast healed me !

3 O Lord, thou hast raised me up from the underworld ;
Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to

the pit !

4 Sing unto the Lord, O ye his servants,
And praise his holy name !

5 For his anger endureth but a moment,
But his favor through life ;

Sorrow may be a guest for the night,
But joy Cometh in the morning.

6 I said in my prosperity, I shall never be moved !

7 Thou, O Lord, by thy favor, hast made my mountain strong ;
Thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled !

8 I cried unto thee, O Lord,

To the Lord I made supplication :

9 " What will my blood profit. thee, that I should go down

to the pit ?
Can dust praise thee ? Can it declare thy faithfulness .>

10 Hear, O Lord, and have pity upon me !
Be thou, O Lord, my helper ! "

11 Thou didst turn my mourning into dancing;

Thou didst loose my sackcloth, and gird me with gladness.

XXXI.] THE PSALMS. 95

12 Therefore I will sing praise to thee, and not be silent ;
O Jehovah, my God, I will give thanks to thee for ever !

PSALM XXXI.

A prayer for deliverance, in the confident hope of being heard.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 In thee, O Lord, do I trust; let me never be put to

shame ;
According to thy goodness deliver me !

2 Bow down thine ear to me ; help me speedily !

Be to me a strong rock, a high fortress, for my deliverance !

3 For thou art my rock and my high fortress ;

Be thou also my guide, and lead me, for thy name's sake !

4 Draw me out of the net which they have secretly laid

for me,
For thou art my strength !

5 Into thy hand I commit my life ;

Thou wilt deliver me, O Lord, thou God of truth !

6 I hate those who regard lying vanities.
And put my trust in the Lord.

7 I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy,
That thou hast looked upon my trouble.
And hast had regard to my distress ;

8 That thou hast not given me up to the hands of my enemies,
But hast set my feet in a wide place.

9 Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am in trouble !
My face is consumed with grief ;

Yea, my spirit, and my body.
10 For my life is wasted with sorrow,
And my years with sighing ;

9g THE PSALMS. [xxxi.

My strength faileth by reason of my affliction,
And my bones are consumed on account of all my
enemies.

11 I have become the scorn of my neighbours,
And the terror of my acquaintance ;
They who see me abroad flee from me.

12 I am forgotten, like a dead man ;
I am like a broken vessel.

13 I hear the slander of many ; fear is on every side ;
For they take counsel together against me ;
They devise to take away my life.

14 But I trust in thee, O Jehovah !
I say, " Thou art my God ! "

15 My destiny is in thy hand ;

Deliver me from the power of my enemies and persecutors !

16 Let thy face shine upon thy servant,
And save me through thy mercy !

17 Let me not be put to shame, O Lord ! for I have called

upon thee ;
Let the wicked be put to shame ;
Let them be silenced in the grave !

18 Let lying lips be put to silence.

Which speak proud things against the righteous,
With haughtiness and contempt !

19 O how great is thy goodness, which thou treasurest up

for them that fear thee ;
Which thou showest to them that trust in thee, before the
sons of men !

20 Thou hidest them in the secret place of thy presence

from the machinations of men ;
Thou shelterest them in thy pavilion from the violence
of tongues.

XXXII.] THE PSALMS. 97

21 Praised be the Lord, for he hath shown me his wonderful

kindness,
As in a fortified city !

22 I said in my distress,

I am cut off from before thine eyes ;

But thou didst hear the voice of my supplication,

When I cried unto thee.

23 0 love the Lord, all ye his servants,
For the Lord preserveth the faithful,
And requiteth the proud in full measure !

24 Be of good courage ; let your hearts be strong,
All ye who trust in the Lord !

PSALM XXXII.

The happiness of him whose sins are forgiven. This psalm is commonly
supposed to express the feelings of David after his reproof by Nathan
the prophet. See 2 Sam. eh. xii.

A psalm of David.

1 Happy is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose

sin is pardoned !

2 Happy the man to whom Jehovah imputeth not iniquity.
And in whose spirit there is no guile !

3 While I kept silence, my bones were wasted.
By reason of my groaning all the day long.

4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me ;
My moisture dried up, as in summer's drought.

5 At length I acknowledged to thee my sin.
And did not hide my iniquity.

9

98 THE PSALMS. [xxxiii.

I said, I will confess my transgression to the Lord ;
And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin !
6 Therefore shall every pious man pray to thee, while thou
mayst be found ;
Surely the floods of great waters shall not come near him.

I Thou art my hiding-place ; thou preservest me from

trouble ;
Thou compassest me about with songs of deliverance.

8 I will instruct thee, and show thee the way thou shouldst

go;
I will give thee counsel, and keep mine eye upon thee.

9 Be ye not like the horse or the mule, which have no under-

standing,
Whose mouths must be pressed with the bridle and curb.
Because they will not come near thee !
10 The wicked hath many sorrows ;

But he that trusteth in the Lord is encompassed with mer-
cies.

II Rejoice in the Lord, and be glad, ye righteous ;
Shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart !

PSALM XXXIII.

A hymn to Jehovah as the creator and governor of the world; and the
special protector of the Jewish nation.

1 Rejoice, O ye righteous, in the Lord !
For praise becometh the upright.

2 Praise the Lord with the harp ;

Sing to him with the ten-stringed psaltery !

3 Sing to him a new song ;

Play skilfully amid the sound of trumpets !

XXXIII.] THE PSALMS. 99

4 For the word of the Lord is right,
And all his acts are faithful.

5 He loveth justice and equity ;

The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made,
And all the hosts of them by the breath of his mouth.

7 He gathereth the waters of the sea, as a heap ;
He layeth up the deep in storehouses.

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord ;

Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him !

9 For he spake, and it was done ;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

10 The Lord bringeth the devices of the nations to nothing ;
He frustrateth the designs of kingdoms.

11 The purposes of the Lord stand for ever ;
The designs of his heart to all generations.

12 Happy the nation whose God is Jehovah ;

The people whom he hath chosen for his inheritance.

13 The Lord looketh down from heaven ;
He beholdeth all the children of men ;

14 From his dwelling-place he beholdeth all the inhabitants

of the earth ;

15 He, that formed the hearts of all.
And observeth all their works.

16 A king is not saved by the number of his forces,
Nor a hero by the greatness of his strength.

17 The horse is a vain thing for safety.

Nor can he deliver his master by his great strength.

18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him ;
Upon them that trust in his goodness ;

19 To save them from the power of death.
And keep them alive in famine.

100 THE PSALMS. [xxxiv.

20 The hope of our souls is in the Lord ;
He is our help and our shield.

21 Yea, in him doth our heart rejoice ;
In his holy name we have confidence.

22 May thy goodness be upon us, O Lord,
According as we trust in thee !

PSALM XXXIV.

Thanksgiving for deliverance from distress, and a description of the happi-
ness of the good and the misery of the wicked.

A psalm of David, when he feigned himself mad before Mimelech^
who drove him away, and he departed.

1 I WILL bless Jehovah at all times ;

His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

2 In the Lord doth my soul boast ;
Let the afflicted hear, and rejoice !

3 O magnify the Lord with me.
And let us exalt his name together !

4 I sought the Lord, and he heard me.
And delivered me from all my fears.

5 Look up to him, and ye shall have light ;
Your faces shall never be ashamed.

6 This afflicted man cried, and Jehovah heard,
And saved him from all his troubles.

7 The angels of the Lord encamp around those who fear him.
And deliver them.

8 O taste, and see how good is the Lord !
Happy the man who trusteth in him !

XXXIV.] THE PSALMS. 101

9 0 fear the Lord, ye his servants !
For to those who fear him there shall be no want.

10 Young lions want and suffer hunger ;

But they who fear the Lord want no good thing.

11 Come, ye children, hearken to me !
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12 Who is he that loveth life,

And desireth many days, in which he may see good .'

13 Guard well thy tongue from evil,
And thy lips from speaking guile !

14 Depart from evil, and do good ;
Seek peace, and pursue it !

15 The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous,
And his ears are open to their cry.

16 But the face of the Lord is against evil-doers.
To cut off their remembrance from the earth.

17 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth,
And delivereth them from all their troubles.

18 The Lord is near to them that are of a broken heart,
And saveth such as are of a contrite spirit.

19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous ;
But the Lord delivereth him from them all.

20 He guardeth all his bones ;

Not one of them shall be broken.

21 Calamity destroyeth the wicked.

And they who hate the righteous suffer for it.

22 Jehovah redeemeth the life of his servants.

And none that put their trust in him will suffer for it.

102 THE PSALMS. [xxxv.

PSALM XXXV.

A prayer for help against enemies ; commonly supposed to relate to the
persecution of David by Saul and his courtiers.

A psalm of David.

1 Contend, O Lord, with them that contend with me !
Fight against them that fight against me !

2 Take hold of shield and buckler,
And stand up for my help !

3 Draw forth the spear and the axe against my persecutors ;
Say to me, " I am thy salvation."

4 May they be confounded and put to shame, who seek my

life;
May they be turned back with disgrace, who devise my
hurt!

5 May they be like dust before the wind ;
May the angel of the Lord drive them !

6 May their way be dark and slippery,

And may the angel of Jehovah pursue them !

7 For without cause they have laid for me a snare ;
Without cause they have digged for me a pit.

8 May unforeseen destruction come upon them !

May the snare which they have laid lay hold on them-
selves.
And may they fall into destruction !

9 Then shall my soul rejoice in the Lord ;
It shall exult in his protection.

10 All my bones shall say, Who, O Lord, is like thee,
Who dost rescue the afflicted from the oppressor,
The afflicted and destitute from the spoiler ?

11 False witnesses have risen up ;

They charge me with that which has not entered my mind.

XXXV.] THE PSALMS. 103

12 They repay me evil for good ;
They bereave me of my all.

13 And yet I, during their sickness, clothed myself with sack-

cloth,
And afflicted myself with fasting,
And my prayer was turned to my bosom.

14 I behaved myself as if he had been my friend or brother ;
I bowed down in sadness, as one mourning for his mother.

15 But at my fall they rejoice, and gather themselves to-

gether ;
Revilers whom I know not assemble themselves against

me ;
They tear me without ceasing.

16 With base men who mock for their bread,
They gnash at me with their teeth.

17 How long, O Lord, wilt thou look on ?

O rescue my life from the destruction they plot for me ;
My precious life from those young lions !

18 I will thank thee in the great assembly ;
Before a numerous people I will praise thee.

19 Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully triumph

over me ;
Let them not wink with the eye, who hate me without
cause !

20 For they speak not peace ;

They devise deceit against them that are quiet in the land.

21 Yea, they open their mouths wide against me ;
They say, " Aha, aha, our eye seeth it ! "

22 Thou seest it, O Jehovah ; be not silent !
O Lord, be not far from me !

23 Arouse thyself; awake for my defence !
My God and my Lord, awake to my cause !

104 THE PSALMS. [xxxvi.

24 Judge me according to thy righteousness, O Jehovah, my

God!
Let them not triumph over me !

25 Let them not say in their hearts, " Aha ! we have our

wish ! "
Let them not say, " We have swallowed him up ! "

26 May they all be confounded and brought to shame,
Who rejoice at my calamity !

May they be clothed with ignominy and disgrace,
Who exalt themselves against me !

27 Let them shout for joy, and be glad,
Who favor my righteous cause ;

Let them ever say, " The Lord be praised.
Who delighteth in the prosperity of his servant ! "

28 So shall my tongue speak of thy righteousness,
And daily repeat thy praise.

PSALM XXXVI.

Complaint of the wickedness of men; description of the goodness of God;
prayer for help.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David^ the servant of the
Lord.

1 To speak of the guilt of the wicked is in my heart ;
He hath no fear of God before his eyes.

2 He flattereth himself in his own eyes ;
To discover his iniquity is hateful to him.

3 The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit ;
He neglecteth to be wise and to do good.

4 He deviseth mischief upon his bed ;
He perse vereth in an evil way ;
He abhorreth not sin.

XXXVII.] THE PSALMS. 105

5 Thy goodness, O Lord, reacheth to the heavens,
And thy faithfulness to the clouds ;

6 Thy righteousness is like the high mountains ;
Thy judgments are a great deep ;

Thou, O Lord, preservest man and beast !

7 How precious is thy loving-kindness, O God !

Yea, the sons of men seek refuge under the shadow of thy
wings.

8 They are satisfied with the abundance of thy house ;
And thou causest them to drink of the full stream of thy

pleasures.

9 For with thee is the fountain of life ;
Through thy light we see light.

10 O continue thy loving-kindness to them that know thee ;
And thy favor to the upright in heart !

11 Let not the foot of the proud come upon me,
Nor the hand of the wicked remove me !

12 Lo ! already are the workers of iniquity fallen ;
They are cast down ; they are unable to rise !

PSALM XXXVII.

A didactic psalm on the rewards of the righteous and the punishment of
the wicked.

A psalm of David.

1 Be not thou angry on account of the wicked,
Nor be envious of those who do iniquity.

2 For soon shall they be cut down, like grass,
And wither like the green herb.

106 THE PSALMS. [xxxvii.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good ;
Abide in the land, and seek righteousness.

4 Place thy delight in the Lord,

And he will give thee thy heart's desires.

5 Cast thy cares upon the Lord ;

Trust in him, and he will give thee success !

6 He will cause thy justice to shine forth like the light,
And thy righteousness like the noonday's brightness.

7 Repose thou on the Lord,
And in him place thy trust !

Be not angry on account of the prosperous ;
On account of him that deviseth deceit !

8 Cease from anger ; give not way to wrath ;
Be not provoked, so as to do evil !

9 For evil-doers shall be rooted out ;

But they who trust in Jehovah, they shall inherit the land.

10 Yet a little while, and the wicked shall be no more ;
Thou mayst look for his place, and he will not be found.

11 But the meek shall inherit the land.

And delight themselves in the fulness of prosperity.

12 The wicked man plotteth against the just,
And gnasheth at him with his teeth.

13 Jehovah laugheth at him ;

For he seeth that his day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword.
And bend their bow.

To cast down the afflicted and the needy.
And to slay the upright.

xxxvii.] THE PSALMS. IO7

15 Their swords shall enter their own hearts,
And their bows shall be broken in pieces.

16 Better is the little of the righteous man
Than the great abundance of the wicked ;

17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
But the Lord will uphold the righteous.

18 The Lord careth for the life of the upright,
And their inheritance shall endure for ever.

19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time.

And in the days of famine they shall have enough.

20 But the wicked shall perish ;

Yea, the enemies of the Lord shall be consumed, like the

glory of the fields ;
They shall be consumed into smoke.

21 The wicked borroweth, and repayeth not ;
But the righteous is merciful and bountiful.

22 For they who are blessed by God shall inherit the land.
And they who are cursed by him shall be rooted out.

23 The steps of the good man are directed by the Lord ;
He delighteth himself in his way.

24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down,
For the Lord holdeth him by the hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old ;
Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his offspring begging bread.

26 He is ever merciful and lendeth.
And his offspring shall be blessed.

108 THE PSALMS. [xxxvii.

27 Depart from evil, and do good,

So thou shalt dwell in the land for ever.

28 For the Lord loveth righteousness,
And forsake th not his servants ;
They are preserved for ever ;

But the posterity of the wicked shall be rooted out.

29 The righteous shall inherit the land,
And shall dwell therein for ever.

30 The mouth of the righteous uttereth wisdom,
And his tongue speaketh what is right.

31 The law of his God is in his heart ;
His footsteps shall not slip.

32 The wicked watcheth the righteous.
And seeketh to slay him ;

33 The Lord will not leave him in his hand.

Nor suffer him to be condemned, when he is judged.

34 Trust in the Lord, and keep his way,

And he will exalt thee to the possession of the land.
Whilst thou shalt see the destruction of the wicked !

35 I have seen a wicked man in great power,
And spreading himself like a green cedar ;

36 But he passed away, and, lo ! he was no more ;
Yea, I sought him, but he was not found.

37 Mark the righteous man, and behold the upright ;
For the end of that man shall be peace !

38 But transgressors will all be destroyed ;
The wicked shall be rooted out at the last.

XXXVIII.] THE PSALMS. 109

39 The salvation of the just is from the Lord.
He is their strength in the time of trouble.

40 The Lord will help and deliver them ;

He will deliver them from their enemies, and save them,
Because they trust in him.

PSALM XXXVIIL

A prayer of one in deep affliction. It may have been occasioned by the
affair of Bathsheba, or by some other offence of David.

A jpsalm of David. To bring to remcmhrance.

1 O LoED, rebuke me not in thy wrath,
Nor chasten me in thy hot displeasure !

2 For thine arrows have deeply pierced me,
And thy hand hath been heavy upon me.

3 There is no soundness in my flesh, because of thine anger;
Nor rest in my bones, because of my sin.

4 For my iniquities have gone over my head ;

Like a heavy burden, they are more than I can bear.

5 My wounds putrefy and are loathsome on account of my

folly.

6 I am bent ; I am bowed down greatly ;
I go mourning all the day long.

7 For my loins are full of burning heat.
And there is no soundness in my flesh.

8 I am weakened and bruised exceedingly ;

I roar by reason of the disquietude of my heart.

9 O Lord, thou knowest all my desire.
And my groaning is not hidden from thee !

10

110 THE PSALMS. [xxxviii.

10 My heart panteth ; my strength faileth me ;
The very Hght of my eyes is gone from me.

11 My friends and acquaintance keep aloof from my woe,
And my kinsmen stand afar off:

12 While they who seek my life lay snares for me ;
They who seek my hurt threaten destruction,
And meditate deceit all the day long.

13 But I, like a deaf man, hear not ;

And, like a dumb man, open not my mouth.

14 I am like one who heareth nothing.
And in whose mouth is no reply.

15 For in thee, O Lord, do I put my trust;
Thou wilt hear, O Lord, my God !

16 For I have prayed, Let them not rejoice over me ;
Let them not exult at the slipping of my feet !

17 For I am ready to fall.

And my pain doth never leave me ;

18 For I confess my iniquity,

And am troubled on account of my sin.

19 But my enemies flourish and are strong ;
They who hate me without cause are multiplied.

20 They who repay good with evil are my enemies,
Because I follow that which is good.

21 Forsake me not, O Lord !

O my God, be not far from me !

22 Make haste to mine aid, 0 Lord, my salvation!

XXXIX.] THE PSALMS. HI

PSALM XXXIX.

Complaints of one in affliction respecting the shortness and vanity of hu-
man life, with expressions of submission, and prayer for relief.

A psalm of David. For the leader of the music of the Jeduthunites.

1 I SAID, I will take heed to my ways,
That I may not sin with, my tongue ;

I will keep my mouth with a bridle,
While the wicked is before me.

2 I was dumb with silence ; I spake not even what was good ;
But my pain was increased.

3 My heart was hot within me ;

In my anguish the fire burst forth.
And I spake with my tongue :

4 Lord, make me to know mine end.
And the number of my days,

That I may know how frail I am !

5 Behold, thou hast made my days as a hand-breadth,
And my life is as nothing before thee ;

Yea, every man in his firmest state is altogether vanity.

6 Surely every man walketh in a vain show ;
Surely he disquieteth himself in vain ;

He heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather
them.

7 What, then, O Lord, is my hope ?
My hope is in thee !

8 Deliver me from all my transgressions ;
Let me not be the reproach of scoffers !

9 Yet I am dumb ; I open not my mouth ;
For thou hast done it !

112 THE PSALMS. [xl.

10 But remove from me thine infliction ;

For I am perishing by the blow of thine hand.

11 When thou with rebukes dost chasten man for iniquity,
Thou causest his glory to waste away like a moth !
Surely every man is vanity.

12 Hear my prayer, O Lord ;
Give ear to my cry ;

Be not silent at my tears !

For I am but a stranger with thee,

A sojourner, as all my fathers were.

13 O spare me, that I may recover strength.
Before I go away, and be no more I

PSALM XL.

Thanksgiving for past favors, resolutions of obedience to the divine will,
and prayer for continued mercy.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 I TRUSTED steadfastly in the Lord,
And he listened, and heard my cry.

2 He drew me out of a horrible pit.
Out of the miiy clay ;

He set my feet upon a rock.
And made my steps firm.

3 He hath put into my mouth a new song,
A song of praise to our God.

Many shall see, and fear.
And put their trust in the Lord.

4 Happy the man who maketh the Lord his trust,
And resorteth not to men of pride and falsehood !

XL.] THE PSALMS. 113

5 Many, O Lord, my God, are the wonderful works

which thou hast done ;
Many have been thy gracious purposes toward us ;
None can be compared to thee ! I would declare and

rehearse them,
But they are more than can be numbered.

6 In sacrifice and oblation thou hast no pleasure ;
Mine ears thou hast opened ;
Burnt-offering and sin-offering thou requirest not.

7 Therefore I said, " Lo, I come ;

In the scroll of the book it is prescribed to me ;

8 O my God, to do thy will is my delight.
And thy law dwelleth in my heart 1 "

9 I have proclaimed thy righteousness in the great assembly ;
Lo, I have not restrained my lips,

0 Lord, thou knowest !

10 I hide not thy justice in my heart ;

1 declare thy faithfulness and thy salvation !

I conceal not thy mercy and truth from the great assembly.

11 Withdraw not from me thy tender mercies, O Lord !
May thy loving-kindness and thy truth continually pre-
serve me !

12 For evils innumerable have encompassed me ;
My iniquities have overtaken me ;

I cannot see the end of them ;

They are more than the hail's of my head,

And my heart dieth within me.

13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me !
O Lord, make haste to mine aid !

14 May they all be confounded and covered with shame
Who seek to take away my life !

10*

114 THE PSALMS, [xli.

Let them be driven back with disgrace
■ Who desire to do me injury !

15 Let them be overwhelmed with confusion
Who cry out to me, Aha ! aha !

16 But let all who seek thee
Be glad and rejoice in thee !

Let those who love thy protection
Ever say, " The Lord be praised ! "

17 I am poor and afflicted, yet the Lord thinketh upon me ;
Thou art my help and my deliverer ;

My God, make no delay !

PSALM XLI.

Prayer of one in affliction, whose enemies desired and plotted his destruc-
tion.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 Happy is he who hath regard to the poor !
The Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.

2 The Lord will preserve him, and keep him alive ;
He shall be happy on the earth ;

Thou wilt not give him up to the will of his enemies !

3 The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of disease ;
Thou wilt raise him up from his sickness !

4 I said, O Lord, be merciful to me !
Heal me, for I have sinned against thee !

5 My enemies speak evil of me !

" When will he die, and his name perish ? "

XLi.] THE PSALMS. 115

6 If one come to see me, he speaketh falsehood ;
His heart gathereth malice ;

When he goeth abroad, he uttereth it.

7 All that hate me whisper together against me ;
Against me do they devise mischief :

8 " His base conduct cleaveth to him fast ;
He lieth down, and he shall never arise ! "

9 Yea, my familiar friend in whom I trusted, who did eat

of my bread.
He hath lifted up his heel against me.

10 But do thou, O Lord, have pity upon me ;
Raise me up, that I may requite them !

11 By this I know that thou favorest me,
Because my enemy doth not triumph over me.

12 As for me, thou wilt uphold me in my integrity ;
Thou wilt set me before thy face for ever !

13 Praised he Jehovah, the God of Israel,
From everlasting to everlasting. Amen ! Amen !

BOOK II

PSALM XLII., XLIII.

The aspirations of an afflicted exile after the temple and worship of God.
For the leader of the music. A song of the sons of Korah.

1 As the hart panteth for the water-brooks,
So panteth my soul for thee, O God !

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

3 My tears have been my food day and night,

While they say to me continually, " Where is thy God ? "

4 When I think of it, I pour out my soul in grief ;

How I once walked in procession with the multitude to

the house of God,
Amid sounds of joy and praise with the festive multitude !

5 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,
Him, my deliverer and my God !

6 My soul is cast down within me.

While I remember thee from the land of Jordan and

Hermon,
From the mountain Mizar.

XLii., XLiii.] THE PSALMS. 117

7 Deep calleth for deep ; thy cataracts roar ;

All thy waves and billows have gone over me !

8 Once the Lord commanded his kindness by day,
And by night his praise was with me,
Thanksgiving to the God of my life.

9 Now I say to God, my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me }
Why go I mourning on account of the oppression of the

enemy >

10 The reproaches of the enemy are like the crushing of

my bones.
While they say to me continually," Where is thy God } "

11 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,
Him, my deliverer and my God !

1 Judge me, O God, and defend my cause against a

merciless nation !
Deliver me from unjust and deceitful men !

2 Thou art the God of my refuge ; why dost thou cast me off ?
Why go I mourning on account of the oppression of the

enemy >

3 O send forth thy light and thy truth ; let them guide me ;
Let them lead me to thy holy mountain, and to thy

dwelling-place !

4 Then will I go to the altar of God,
To the God of my joy and exultation ;

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,
Him, my deliverer and my God !

yS THE PSALMS. [xliv.

PSALM XLIV.

Prayer of a pious Israelite for the relief of his oppressed and persecuted
nation.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of the sons of Korah.

1 O God ! we have heard with our ears,
Our fathers have told us,

What deeds thou didst in their days,
In the days of old.

2 With thine own hand didst thou drive out the nations.
And plant our fathers ;

Thou didst destroy the nations.
And cause our fathers to flourish.

3 For not by their own swords did they gain possession of

the land.
Nor did their own arms give them victory ;
But thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy

countenance ;
For thou didst favor them !

4 Thou also art my king, O God !
O send deliverance to Jacob !

5 Through thee we may cast down our enemies ;
Through thy name we may trample upon our adversaries !

6 I trust not in my bow.

Nor can my sword save me.

7 But it is thou only who savest us from our enemies.
And puttest to shame those who hate us !

8 In God will we glory continually ;
Yea, we will praise thy name for ever !

9 Yet now thou hast cast us off, and put us to shame ;
Thou goest not forth with our armies.

XLiv.] THE PSALMS. 119

10 Thou makest us turn back from the enemy,

And they who hate us make our goods their prey.

11 Thou makest us hke sheep, destined for food,
And scatterest us among the nations.

12 Thou sellest thy people for naught,

And increasest not thy weaUh by their price.

13 Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours,

A scorn and a derision to those who are around us.

14 Thou makest us a byword among the nations,
And causest the people to shake their heads at us.

15 My ignominy is continually before me,
And shame covereth my face,

16 On account of the voice of the scoffer and the reviler.
And on account of the enemy and the avenger.

17 All this hath come upon us ;
Yet have we not forgotten thee.

Nor have we been false to thy covenant.

18 Our hearts have not wandered from thee,
Nor have our feet gone out of thy path ;

19 Though thou hast crushed us in a land of jackals,
And covered us with thick darkness.

20 If we had forgotten the name of our God,

Or stretched forth our hands to a strange God,

21 Surely God would search it out.

For he knoweth the secrets of the heart.

22 But for thy sake we are killed all the day ;
We are counted as sheep for the slaughter.

23 Awake ! why sleepest thou, O Lord ?
Arise ! cast us not off for ever !

24 Wherefore dost thou hide thy face.
And forget our affliction and oppression ?

120 THE PSALMS. [xlv.

25 Our soul is bowed down to the dust ;
Our body cleaveth to the earth.

26 Arise, O Thou, our strength.

And deUver us, for thy mercy's sake !

PSALM XLV.

The praises of a king.

For the leader of the music. To he accompanied with the Shoshannim.
A lovely song of the sons of Korah.

1 My mind is overflowing with a pleasant theme ;
I will address my song to the king ;

May my tongue be like the pen of a ready writer !

2 Thou art the fairest of the sons of men ;
Grace is poured upon thy lips ;

For God hath blessed thee for ever !

3 Gird thy sword to thy thigh, 0 hero,
Thy glory and ornament !

4 In thy glorious array ride forth victoriously.
On account of truth, and mildness, and justice ;
And thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things !

5 Thine arrows are sharp ;
Nations shall fall before thee ;

They shall pierce the hearts of the king's enemies.

6 Thy throne is God's for ever and ever ;

The sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of equity !

7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest iniquity ;
Therefore hath God, thy God, anointed thee
With the oil of gladness above thy fellows !

XLV.] THE PSALMS. 121

8 All thy garments are myrrh, aloes, and cassia ;
From ivory palaces stringed instruments delight thee.

9 Daughters of kings are among thy chosen women ;
On the right hand stands the queen

In gold of Ophir.

10 Listen, O daughter ; consider, and incline thine ear ;
Forget thy people and thy father's house !

11 For the king is captivated with thy beauty ;
He is now thy lord ; honor thou him !

12 So shall the daughter of Tyre seek thy favor with gifts,
The rich among the people.

13 All glorious is the king's daughter in her apartment ;
Her robe is embroidered with gold.

14 In variegated garments shall she be led to the king ;
The virgin companions that follow her shall be brought

unto thee.

15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought ;
They shall enter the king's palace.

16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children,
Whom thou shalt make princes through all the land.

17 I will make thy name memorable throughout all gen-

erations ;
So shall the nations praise thee for ever and ever !

11

122 THE PSALMS. [xlvi.

PSALM XLVL

Thanksgiving for victory over enemies, and trust in God as a national
refuge and defence.

For the leader of the music. Of, or for, the sons of Korah. To he
sung in the manner, or with the voice, of virgins.

1 God is our refuge and strength ;
An ever present help in trouble.

2 Therefore will we not fear, though the earth be changed ;
Though the mountains tremble in the heart of the sea ;

3 Though its waters roar and be troubled,

And the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.

4 Her river with its streams shall make glad the city

of God,
The holy dwelling-place of the Most High.

5 God is the midst of her, she shall not be moved ;
God will help her, and that full early.

6 The nations raged ; kingdoms were moved ;
He uttered his voice, the earth melted.

7 The Lord of hosts is with us ;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.

8 Come, behold the doings of the Lord !
What desolations he hath made in the earth !

9 He causeth wars to cease to the end of the earth ;

He hath broken the bow, and snapped the spear asunder,
And burned the chariots in fire.
10 " Desist, and know that I am God ;

I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted
throughout the earth ! "

XLVii.] THE PSALMS. 123

11 The Lord of hosts is with us ;
The God of Jacob is our refuge.

PSALM XLVIL

A hymn of thanksgiving to Jehovah, as the giver of victory to the
Israelites.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of the sons of Korah.

1 O CLAP your hands, all ye nations !
Shout unto God with the voice of triumph !

2 For terrible is Jehovah, the Most High,
The great king over all the earth.

3 He hath subdued nations under us,
And kingdoms under our feet ;

4 He hath chosen for us an inheritance,
The glory of Jacob, whom he loved.

5 God goeth up with a shout ;
Jehovah with the sound of the trumpet.

6 Sing praises to God, sing praises !
Sing praises to our king, sing praises !

7 For God is king of all the earth ;
Sing to him hymns of praise !

8 God reigneth over the nations ;
God sitteth upon his holy throne.

9 The princes of the nations gather themselves together
To the people of the God of Abraham ;

For the mighty of the earth belong to God ;
He is supremely exalted.

124 THE PSALMS. [xlviii.

PSALM XLVIIL

A hymn of thanksgiving for the deliverance of Jerusalem from invading
enemies.

A psalm of the sons of Korah.

1 Great is Jehovah, and greatly to be praised
In the city of our God, upon his holy mountain.

2 Beautiful in its elevation is Mount Zion,
The joy of the whole earth ;

The joy of the farthest North is the city of the great king ;

3 In her palaces God is known as a refuge.

4 For, lo ! kings were assembled against it ;
They passed away together.

5 As soon as they saw, they were astonished ;
They were confounded, and hasted away.

6 There terror seized upon them,
And pain, as of a woman in travail.

7 They were scattered, as by the east wind.
Which breaks in pieces the ships of Tarshish.

8 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.

9 We think of thy loving-kindness, O God,
In the midst of thy temple !

10 As thy name, O God, so thy praise, extendeth to the ends

of the earth;
Thy right hand is full of righteousness !

11 Mount Zion rejoiceth.

The daughters of Judah exult.

On account of thy righteous judgments.

XLix.] THE PSALMS. 125

12 Go round about Zion ; number her towers ;

13 Mark well her bulwarks ; count her palaces ;
That ye may tell it to the next generation !

14 For this God is our God for ever and ever ;
He will be our guide unto death.

PSALM XLIX.

The condition of the righteous and the wicked. The rich oppressor not to
be envied. The comfort of the virtuous, when they are oppressed, in
the consideration that God is their friend.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of the sons of Korah.

1 Hear this, all ye nations ;

Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world ;

2 Both high and low, rich and poor alike !

3 My mouth shall speak wisdom,

And the meditation of my mind shall be understanding.

4 I will incline mine ear to a poem ;
I will utter my song upon the harp.

5 Why should I fear in the days of adversity,
When the iniquity of the insidious encompasseth me ;

6 They, that trust in their riches,

And glory in the greatness of their wealth ?

7 No one can redeem his brother from death,
Nor give a ransom for him to God,

9 That he should live to eternity,
And not see the pit.

8 Too costly is the redemption of his life,
And he giveth it up for ever.

11*

126 THE PSALMS. [xlix.

10 For he seeth that wise men die,

As well as the foolish and the ignorant ;

They perish alike,

And leave their wealth to others.

11 They imagine that their houses will endure for ever,
And their dwelling-places from generation to generation,
And that their names will be celebrated on the earth.

12 Yet man, who is in honor, abideth not ;
He is like the beasts that perish.

13 Such is the way which is their confidence !

And they who come after them approve their maxims.

14 Like sheep they are cast into the underworld ;
Death shall feed upon them ;

And the upright shall soon trample upon them.
Their form shall be consumed in the underworld.
And they shall no more have a dwelling-place ;

15 But God will redeem my life from the underworld ;
Yea, he will take me under his protection.

16 Be not thou afraid, when one becomes rich ;
When the glory of his house is increased !

17 For when he dieth, he will carry nothing away ;
His glory will not descend after him.

18 Though in his life he thought himself happy, —
Though men praised thee, while thou wast in prosperity, —

19 Yet shalt thou go to the dwelling-place of thy fathers.
Who never more shall see the light !

20 The man who is in honor, but without understanding,
Is like the beasts that perish.

L.] THE PSALMS. ^ 127

PSALM L.

The true way of serving God 5 or, outward forms of no avail without in-
ternal rectitude.

A psalm of Asaph.

1 The mighty God, Jehovah, speaketh, and calleth the

earth,
From the rising to the setting sun.

2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shineth forth.

3 Our God Cometh, and will not be silent ;
Before him is a devouring fire.

And around him a raging tempest.

4 He calleth to the heavens on high.

And to the earth, while he judgeth his people :

5 " Gather together my worshippers before me,
Who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice ! "

6 (And the heavens shall declare his righteousness,
For it is God himself that is judge.)

7 " Hear, O my people, and I will speak !
O Israel, and I will admonish thee !

For I am God, thine own God.

8 I reprove thee not on account of thy sacrifices ;
For thy burnt-oflTerings are ever before me.

9 I will take no bullock from thy house.
Nor he-goat from thy folds ;

10 For all the beasts of the forest are mine,
And the cattle on a thousand hills.

11 I know all the birds of the mountains.

And the wild beasts of the field are before me.

128 THE PSALMS. [u

12 If I were hungry, I would not tell thee ;
For the world is mine, and all that is therein.

13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls.
Or drink the blood of goats ?

14 Offer to God thanksgiving.

And pay thy vows to the Most High !

15 Then call upon me in the day of trouble,

I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me ! "

16 And to the wicked God saith,

" To what purpose dost thou talk of my statutes ?
And why hast thou my laws upon thy lips ?

17 Thou, that hatest instruction

And castest my words behind thee !

18 When thou seest a thief, thou art in friendship with him.
And hast fellowship with adulterers.

19 Thou lettest loose thy mouth to evil,
And thy tongue frameth deceit;

20 Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother;
Thou slanderest thine own mother's son.

21 These things hast thou done, and I kept silence ;
Hence thou thoughtest that I was altogether like thyself;
But I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thee.

22 Mark this, ye that forget God,

Lest 1 tear you in pieces, and none deliver you !

23 " Whoso offcreth praise honoreth me ;
And to him who hath regard to his ways
Will I show salvation from God."

LI.] THE PSALMS. 129

PSALM LI.

A prayer for forgiveness of sins.

For the leader of the music. A fsalm of David, ichen JVathan the
prophet came unto him, after his intercourse with Bathshcha.

1 Be gracious to me, O God, according to thy loving-

kindness ;
According to the greatness of thy mercy, blot out my
transgressions !

2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin !

3 For I acknowledge my transgressions.
And my sin is ever before me.

4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,
And in thy sight have I done this evil ;
So that thou art just in thy sentence.
And upright in thy judgment.

5 Behold ! I was born in iniquity.

And in sin did my mother conceive me.

6 Behold ! thou desirest truth in the heart ;
So teach me wisdom in my inmost soul !

7 Purge me with hyssop, until I be clean ;
Wash me, until I be whiter than snow !

8 Make me to hear joy and gladness.

So that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice !

9 Hide thy face from my sins.
And blot out all my iniquities !

10 Create within me a clean heart, O God !
Renew within me a steadfast mind !

11 Cast me not away from thy presence,
And take not thy holy spirit from me !

130 THE PSALMS. [lii.

12 Restore to me the joy of thy protection,
And may a free spirit sustain me !

13 Then will I teach thy ways to transgressors,
And sinners shall be converted to thee.

14 Deliver me from the guilt of blood, O God, the God of

my salvation,
That my tongue may sing aloud of thy goodness !

15 O Lord ! open thou my lips,

That my mouth may show forth thy praise !

16 For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it ;
Thou delightest not in burnt-offerings.

17 The sacrifice which God loveth is a broken spirit ;

A broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise !

18 Do good to Zion according to thy mercy ;
Build up the walls of Jerusalem !

19 Then shalt thou be pleased with right sacrifices,
With whole burnt-offerings ;

Then shall bullocks be offered upon thine altar.

PSALM LII.

Remonstrance against a proud and malignant enemy, and prediction of his
downfall.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David^ ichen Doeg, the
Edomite, came and told Saulj and said to him^ David is come to
the house of Ahimclech.

1 Why gloriest thou in mischief, thou man of violence }
The goodness of God yet continueth daily.

Liii.] THE PSALMS. 131

2 Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs,

Like a sharp razor, thou contriver of deceit !

3 Thou lovest evil more than good,
And lying more than to speak truth.

4 Thou lovest all devouring words,

0 thou deceitful tongue !

5 Thee also shall God utterly destroy !

He shall seize thee, and tear thee from thy dwelling-place,
And uproot thee from the land of the living.

6 The righteous shall see and fear.
And make him a subject of scorn.

7 " Behold the man that made not God his strength.
But trusted in the abundance of his riches,

And placed his strength in his wickedness."

8 But I shall be like a green olive-tree in the house of God ;

1 will trust in the goodness of God for ever and ever.

9 I will ever praise thee for what thou hast done ;
I will trust in thee on account of thy goodness
Before the eyes of thy worshippers !

PSALM LIII.

Complaintof the wickedness of men; uttered, probably, by one living under
severe oppression in a foreign land, whither he had been carried captive.

For the leader of the music. To he s^ing on wind instruments.

1 The fool saith in his heart, " There is no God ! "
They are corrupt; their doings are abominable ;
There is none that doeth good.

132 THE PSALMS. [liv.

2 God looketh down from heaven upon the children of men,
To see if there are any that have understanding,

That have regard to God.

3 They are all gone astray ; they are every one corrupt ;
There is none that doeth good, no, not one.

4 Shall not the evil-doers be requited,
Who eat up my people like bread,
And call not upon God ?

5 Yea ! there shall fear come upon them.
Where no fear is ;

For God will scatter the bones of him that encampeth

against thee ;
Thou shalt put them to shame, for God despiseth them !

6 O that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion !
When God bringeth back the captives of his people,
Jacob shall rejoice and Israel be glad.

PSALM LIV.

A prayer against enemies.

For the leader of the music. To he sung on stringed instruments.
A psalm of David,, when the Ziphites came and said to Said, Doth
not David hide himself with us ?

1 Save me, O God, by thy name,
And by thy strength defend my cause !

2 O God, hear my prayer,

Give ear to the words of my mouth !

3 For enemies have risen up against me,
And oppressors seek my life ;

They have not set God before them.

LV.] THE PSALMS. I33

4 Behold ! God is my helper ;
The Lord is the support of my life.

5 He will repay evil to my enemies ;

For thy truth's sake, O God, cut them off!

6 With a willing heart will I sacrifice to thee ;

I will praise thy name, O Lord ! for it is good ;

7 For thou hast delivered me from all trouble.

So that my eye hath looked with satisfaction upon my
enemies !

PSALM LV.

A prayer against enemies, especially against a treacherous friend.

For the leader of the music. To he sung on stringed instruments.
A psalm of David.

1 Give ear to my prayer, O God !
Hide not thyself from my supplication !

2 Attend unto me and hear me !

I wander about mourning and wailing,

3 On account of the clamors of the enemy.
On account of the violence of the wicked.
For they bring evil upon me,

And in wrath set themselves against me.

4 My heart trembleth in my bosom,

And the terrors of death have fallen upon me.

5 Fear and trembling have seized me,
And horror hath overwhelmed me.

6 O, think I, that I had wings like a dove !
For then would I fly away, and be at rest.

7 Behold, I would wander far away.
And take up my abode in a wilderness.

12

134 THE PSALMS. [lv.

8 I would hasten away to a shelter
From the rushing wind and tempest.

9 Confound, O Lord, divide their counsels !
For I behold violence and strife in the city.

10 Day and night do these go about its walls ;
In the midst of it are iniquity and mischief.

11 Wickedness is in the midst of it ;
Oppression and fraud depart not from its streets.

12 It was not an enemy that reviled me,
Then I could have borne it ;

Nor one that hated me, who rose up against me ;
From him I could have hid myself.

13 But it was thou, a man regarded as my equal.
My friend and my acquaintance ;

14 We held sweet converse together.

And walked to the house of God in company.

15 May sudden death seize upon them !

May they go down to the underworld alive !

For wickedness is in their dwellings, in the midst of them.

16 As for me, I will call upon God,
And Jehovah will save me.

17 At evening, at morn, and at noon I mourn and sigh.
And he will hear my voice.

18 He will deliver me in peace from my conflict ;
For many have risen up against me.

19 God will hear me and bring them down.
He that hath been judge of old.
Because they have had no reverses,
Therefore they have no fear of God.

LVi.] THE PSALMS. I35

20 They lift up their hands against their friend,
And break their covenant with him.

21 Their speech was softer than butler,
But war was in their heart ;

Their words were smoother than oil,
Yet were they drawn swords.

22 " Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain thee ;
He will never suffer the righteous to fall ! "

23 Yea, thou, O God, wilt bring them down into the lowest pit!
Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days.
But I will trust in thee !

PSALM LVI.

A prayer for help by one surrounded by enemies.

For the leader of the music. To he sung to the tune of " The dumb
dove among strangers." A psalm of Davidy zchen the Philistines
took him in Gath.

1 Have pity upon me, O God, for man panteth for my life ;
My adversary daily oppresseth me !

2 Mine enemies daily pant for my life.

And many are they who war proudly against me.

3 When I am in fear,

I will put my trust in thee !

4 I will glory in the promise of God ;

In God do I put my trust ; I will not fear ;
What can flesh do to me ?
6 Every day they wrest my words ;
All their thoughts are against me for evil.

136 THE PSALMS. [lvii.

6 They gather themselves together, they hide themselves,

they watch my steps.
Lying in wait for my life.

7 Shall they escape by their iniquity ?

In thine anger cast down the people, O God !

8 Count thou my wanderings ;
Put my tears into thy bottle !

Are they not recorded in thy book ?

9 When I cry to thee, my enemies shall turn back ;
This I know, that God is for me.

10 I will glory in the promise of God ;

I will glory in the promise of Jehovah.

11 In God do I put my trust ; I will not fear ;
What can man do to me ?

12 Thy vows are upon me, O God !
I will render praises to thee !

13 For thou hast delivered me from death ;
Yea, my feet from falling ;

That I may walk before God in the light of the living.

PSALM LVII.

For the leader of the music. To he sung to the tune of " Do not de-
stroy.'' A jJsalm of David., when he fled from Saul in the cave.

1 Have pity upon me, O God, have pity upon me.
For in thee doth my soul seek refuge !

Yea, in the shadow of thy wings do I take shelter,
Until these calamities be overpast !

2 I call upon God the Most High,

Upon God, who performeth all things for me ;

Lvii.] THE PSALMS. 137

3 He will send from heaven, and save me ;

He will put to shame him that panteth for my life ;
God will send forth his mercy and his truth.

4 My life is in the midst of lions ;

I dwell among them that breathe out fire ;
Among men whose teeth are spears and arrows,
And whose tongue is a sharp sword.

6 Exalt thyself, O God, above the heavens,
And thy glory above all the earth !

6 They have prepared a net for my steps ;
My soul is bowed down ;

They have digged a pit before me,
But into it they have themselves fallen.

7 My heart is strengthened, O God, my heart is strength-

ened!
I will sing and give thanks.

5 Awake, my soul ! awake, psaltery and harp !
I will wake with the early dawn.

9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the nations ;
I will sing to thee among the kingdoms !

10 For thy mercy reacheth to the heavens.
And thy truth to the clouds !

11 Exalt thyself, O God, above the heavens,
And thy glory above all the earth !

12

138 THE PSALMS. [lviii.

PSALM LVIII.

An invective against wicked rulers. Prayers and hopes for their destruction.

For the leader of the music. To the tune of '•'-Do not destroy.^' A
psalm of David.

1 Do ye, indeed, administer justice faithfully, ye mighty

ones ?
Do ye judge with uprightness, ye sons of men ?

2 Nay, in your hearts ye contrive iniquity ;
Your hands weigh out violence in the land !

3 The wicked are estranged, from their very birth ;
The liars go astray, as soon as they are born.

4 They have poison, like the poison of a serpent;
Like the deaf adder's, which stoppeth her ear ;

5 Which listeneth not to the voice of the charmer,
And of the sorcerer, skilful in incantations.

6 Break their teeth, O God, in their mouths !
Break out the great teeth of the lions, 0 Lord !

7 May they melt away like a stream of water ;
When they aim their arrows, may they be broken !

8 May they be like the snail, which melts away as it goes;
Like the abortion of a woman, that seeth not the sun !

9 Before your pots feel the heat of the thorns,
Whether fresh, or burning, may they be blown away !

10 The righteous shall rejoice, when he seeth such vengeance ;
He shall bathe his feet in the blood of the wicked.

11 Then shall men say, " Truly there is a reward for the

righteous !
Truly there is a God who is judge upon the earth ! "

Lix.] THE PSALMS. 139

PSALM LIX.

The contents of this psalm seem much better suited to a case of invasion
from heathen enemies, than to the case referred to in the Hebrew in-
scription. See verse 5.

For the leader of the music. To the tune of " Do not destroy.'" A
psalm of Davidy when Saul sent^ and they watched the house to
kill him.

1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God !
Defend me from them that rise up against me !

2 Deliver me from the doers of iniquity,
And save me from men of blood !

3 For, lo ! they lie in wait for my life ;
The mighty are gathered against me,

Without any offence or fault of mine, O Jehovah !

4 Without any offence of mine they run and prepare them-

selves ;
Awake to help me, and behold !

5 Do thou, O Jehovah, God of hosts, God of Israel,
Awake to punish all the nations !

Show no mercy to any wicked transgressors !

6 Let them return at evening.
Let them howl like dogs,
And go round about the city !

7 Behold ! with their mouths they belch out mahce ;
Swords are upon their lips ;

" For who," say they, " will hear ? "

8 Yet thou, O Lord, wilt laugh at them ;
Thou wilt hold all the nations in derision !

9 O my Strength, to thee will I look !
For God is my defence ;

140 THE PSALMS. [lix.

10 My merciful God will come to my aid ;

God will let me look with joy upon my enemies.

11 Slay them not, lest my people forget ;
Scatter them by thy power, and cast them down,
O Lord, our shield !

12 All the words of their lips are sin ;
Let them be overtaken in their pride.

For the curses and the falsehood which they utter !

13 Consume them in thy wrath ; consume them that they be

no more,
That they may know that God ruleth in Jacob,
Even to the ends of the earth !

14 Let them return at evening.
Let them howl like dogs.
And go round about the city !

15 Let them wander about for food.

When they have passed the night unsatisfied !

16 But I will sing of thy power ;

Yea, in the morning will I sing aloud of thy mercy ;
For thou hast been my defence.
My refuge in the day of my distress.

17 To thee, O my Strength, will I sing !

For God is my defence ; a God of mercy to me.

LX.] THE PSALMS. 141

PSALM LX.

Prayer for success, and hopes of victory and conquest in a very disastrous
state of public affairs.

For the leader of the music ; upon the Shushan-Eduth ; a psalm of
David for instruction ; when he was at strife with the Syrians of
Mesopotamia, and the Syrians of Zoha ; when Joah returned and
smote twelve thousand Edomites in the valley of Salt.

1 O God, thou hast forsaken us ; thou hast broken us in

pieces ;
Thou hast been angry ! O revive us again !

2 Thou hast made the land tremble ; thou hast rent it ;

0 heal its breaches, for it tottereth !

3 Thou hast caused thy people to see hard things ;
Thou hast made us drink the wine of reeling.

4 Lift up a banner for them that fear thee.

For the sake of thy faithfulness, that they may escape !

5 That thy beloved may be delivered,
Save with thy right hand, and answer me !

6 God promiseth in his holiness ; I will rejoice ;

1 shall yet divide Shechem,

And measure out the valley of Succoth.

7 Gilead shall be mine, and mine Manasseh ;
Ephraim shall be my helmet.

And Judah my sceptre ;

8 Moab shall be my wash-bowl ;
Upon Edom shall I cast my shoe ;
I shall triumph over Philistia !

9 Who will bring me to the strong city .''
Who will lead me into Edom ?

142 THE PSALMS. [lxi.

10 Wilt not thou, O God, who didst forsake us,
And didst not go forth with our armies ?

11 Give us thine aid in our distress.
For vain is the help of man !

12 Through God we shall do valiantly ;
For he will tread down our enemies.

PSALM LXI.

A prayer of an exile for help, for restoration to his native land, and for the
health and prosperity of the king.

For the leader of the music. To he sung upon stringed instruments.
A psalm of David.

1 Hear my cry, O God !
Attend to my prayer !

2 From the extremity of the land I cry unto thee in deep

sorrow of heart ;
Lead me to the rock that is high above me !

3 For thou art my refuge,

My strong tower against the enemy.

4 I shall dwell in thy tabernacle for ever ;

I will seek refuge under the covert of thy wings.

5 For thou, O God, wilt hear my vows,

And give me the inheritance of those who fear thy name.

6 O prolong the life of the king !

May his years extend through many generations !

7 May he reign for ever before God !

Grant that mercy and truth may preserve him !

8 So will I sing praise to thy name for ever ;
I will daily perform my vows.

LXii.] THE PSALMS. I43

PSALM LXII.

Trust in God in circumstances of distress.
For the leader of the music of the Jeduthunites. A psalm of David.

1 On God alone my soul reposeth ;
From him comelh my deliverance !

2 He alone is my rock and my salvation ;

He is my safeguard, I shall not wholly fall !

3 How long will ye continue to assault a single man ?
How long will ye all seek to destroy me,

Like a bending wall, or a tottering fence ?

4 They study how to cast me down from my eminence ;
They delight in falsehood ;

They bless with their mouths, but in their hearts they
curse.

5 My soul, repose thou on God alone.
For from him cometh my hope !

6 He alone is my rock and my salvation ;
He is my safeguard, I shall not fall.

7 From God cometh my help and my glory ;
My strong rock, my refuge, is God.

8 Trust in him at all times, ye people !
Pour out your hearts before him !
God is our refuge !

9 Truly men of low degree are vanity.
And men of high degree are a lie ;
Placed in the balance.

They are all lighter than vanity.

144 THE PSALMS. [lxiii.

10 Trust not in extortion ;

Place no vain hopes in rapine !

If riches increase, set not your heart upon them !

11 Once hath God promised, twice have I heard it,
That power belongeth unto God.

12 To thee also, O Lord, belongeth mercy,

For thou dost render to every man according to his work !

PSALM LXin.

Aspirations after God, and confidence in his protection. Supposed to
have reference to the circumstances of David during the rebellion of
Absalom.

A psalm of Davidy when he icas in the wilderness of Judah.

1 O God, thou art my God ! earnestly do I seek thee !
My soul thirsteth, my flesh longeth for thee,

In a dry, thirsty land, where is no water !

2 Thus I look toward thee in thy sanctuary,
To behold thy power and thy glory !

3 For thy loving-kindness is better than life ;
Therefore my lips shall praise thee !

4 Thus will I bless thee, while I live ;
In thy name will I lift up my hands !

6 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,
And with joyful lips my mouth shall praise thee !

6 When I think of thee upon my bed,
And meditate on thee in the night-watches,

7 For thou art my help.

And in the shadow of thy wings I rejoice,

8 My soul cleaveth to thee ;
Thy right hand holdeth me up.

LXiv.] THE PSALMS. I45

9 While they who seek to destroy my hfe
Shall themselves go down into the depths of the earth ;

10 They shall be given up to the sword,
And be a portion for jackals.

11 But the king shall rejoice in God ;

All that swear by him shall be honored ;
But the mouth of liars shall be stopped.

PSALM LXIV.

Prayer for protection from enemies. Supposed to refer to David's calum-
niators in the court of Saul, or during the rebellion of Absalom.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

Hear my voice, O God, when I pray !
Preserve my life from the terrors of the enemy !

2 Hide me from the assembly of the wicked.
From the brawling crowd of evil-doers !

3 For they sharpen their tongues like a sword,
They aim their poisoned words like arrows,

4 To shoot in secret at the upright ;
Suddenly do they shoot at him without fear.

5 They prepare themselves for an evil deed ;
They commune of laying secret snares :

" Who," say they, " will see them ? "

6 They meditate crimes : " We have finished," say they,

" our plans ! "
The heart and bosom of every one of them are deep.

7 But God will shoot an arrow at them ;
Suddenly shall they be wounded.

13

146 THE PSALMS. [lxv.

8 Thus their own tongues shall bring them down ;
All who see them will flee away.

9 Then will all men stand in awe,
And declare what God hath done,
And attentively consider his work.

10 The righteous shall rejoice, and trust in the Lord ;
All the upright in heart shall glory.

PSALM LXV.

Trust in the power and goodness of God.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 To thee belongeth trust, to thee praise, O God in Zion,
And to thee shall the vow be performed !

2 O Thou that hearest prayer.
To thee shall all flesh come !

3 My iniquities are heavy upon me ;

But thou wilt forgive our transgressions !

4 Happy is he whom thou choosest.

And bringest near thee to dwell in thy courts !
May we be satisfied with the blessings of thy house.
Thy holy temple !

5 By wonderful deeds dost thou answer us in thy goodness,
O God, our salvation.

Who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth.
And of the most distant seas !

6 Thou makest fast the mountains by thy power,
Being girded with strength !

Lxvi.] THE PSALMS. I47

7 Thou stillest the roar of the sea,
The roar of its waves,

And the tumult of the nations.

8 They who dwell in the ends of the earth are awed by thy

signs ;
Thou makest the regions of the morning and of the even-
ing to rejoice !

9 Thou visitest the earth and waterest it ;
Thou enrichest it exceedingly ;

The river of God is full of water.
Thou suppliest the earth with corn.
When thou hast thus prepared it.

10 Thou waterest its furrows,
And breakest down its ridges ;
Thou makest it soft with showers,
And blessest its increase.

11 Thou crownest the year with thy goodness ;
Thy footsteps drop fruitfulness ;

12 They drop it upon the pastures of the wilderness.
And the hills are girded with gladness.

13 The pastures are clothed with flocks,
And the valleys are covered with corn ;
They shout, yea, they sing for joy.

PSALM LXVI.

Thanksgiving to God after deliverance from great distress.
For the leader of the music. Jl psalm.

1 Shout joyfully unto God, all ye lands !

2 Sing ye the honor of his name ;
Make his praise glorious !

148 THE PSALMS. [lxvi.

3 Say unto God, How terrible are thy doings !

Through the greatness of thy power thine enemies are
suppliants to thee !

4 Let all the earth worship thee ;

Let it sing praise to thee, let it sing praise to thy name !

5 Come, behold the works of God !

How terrible his doings among the sons of men !

6 He turned the sea into dry land ;
They went through the deep on foot ;
Then we rejoiced in him.

7 By his power he ruleth for ever ;
His eyes are fixed upon the nations ;
Let not the rebellious exalt themselves !

8 O bless our God, ye nations,

And make the voice of his praise to be heard !

9 It is he who preserveth our lives.
And sufFereth not our feet to stumble.

10 Thou hast, indeed, proved us, O God !
Thou hast tried us as silver is tried.

11 Thou broughtest us into a snare,

And didst lay a heavy burden upon our backs ;

12 Thou didst cause men to ride upon our heads.
And we have gone through fire and water ;

But thou hast brought us to a place of abundance.

13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings ;
I will pay thee my vows,

14 The vows which my lips uttered.
Which my mouth promised in my trouble.

15 Burnt sacrifices of fallings will I offer to thee with the

fat of rams ;
Bullocks, with he-goats, will I sacrifice to thee.

Lxvii.] THE PSALMS. I49

16 Come and hear, all ye who fear God,
And I will relate what he hath done for me !

17 I called upon him with my mouth,
And praise is now upon my tongue.

18 If I had meditated wickedness in my heart,
The Lord would not have heard me ;

19 But surely God hath heard me ;

He hath had regard to the voice of my supplication.

20 Blessed be God, who did not reject my prayer,
Nor withhold his mercy from me !

PSALM LXVII.

A hymn of praise.

For the leader of the music. To be sung on stringed instruments.
A psalm.

1 O God, be merciful to us, and bless us,
And cause thy face to shine upon us !

2 That thy doings may be known on earth.
And thy saving power to all the nations.

3 Let the nations praise thee, O God,
Yea, let all the nations praise thee !

4 Let all the nations be glad, and shout for joy !
For justly dost thou judge the kingdoms.
And govern the nations on the earth.

5 Let the nations praise thee, O God !
Yea, let all the nations praise thee !

6 For the earth hath yielded her increase,
And God, our God, hath blessed us.

7 May God continue to bless us.

And may all the ends of the earth fear him !
13*

150 THE PSALMS. [lxviii.

PSALM LXVIII.

A triumphal ode, on the occasion of the removal of the ark to Mount Zion.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 Let God arise, and his enemies are scattered,
And they who hate him flee before him !

2 As smoke is dispersed, so thou dispersest them ;
As wax melteth before the fire,

So perish the wicked before the face of God.

3 But the righteous are glad and rejoice in his presence,
Yea, they exult exceedingly.

4 Sing unto God ; sing praises to his name !

Prepare the way for him who rideth through the desert !
Jehovah is his name ; be joyful in his presence !

5 The father of the fatherless, and the protector of the

widow,
Is God in his holy habitation.

6 God causeth the forsaken to dwell in houses ;

He leadeth forth to prosperity them that are bound ;
But the rebellious shall dwell in a barren land.

7 O God, when thou didst go before thy people.
When thou didst march through the wilderness,

8 The earth quaked, and the heavens dropped at the pres-

ence of God ;
Yea, Sinai trembled at the presence of God, the God of
Israel.

9 Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain ;
Thou didst strengthen thy wearied inheritance.

10 Thy people established themselves in the land ;
Thou, O God, in thy goodness, didst prepare it for the
needy !

Lxviii.] THE PSALMS. 151

11 The Lord gave the song of victory ;

Virgin minstrels pubhshed it to the numerous host.

12 " The kings with their armies have fled, — have fled !
»And the matron at home divideth the spoil.

13 Ye may repose yourselves in the stalls,
Like the wings of a dove covered with silver,
And her feathers with shining gold."

14 When the Most High destroyed the kings in the land,
It was white [with their bones] like Salmon.

15 Ye lofty hills, ye hills of Bashan,

Ye many-topped hills, ye hills of Bashan,

16 Why frown ye, ye many-topped hills.

At the hill in which God is pleased to dwell,
In which Jehovah will dwell for ever ?

17 The chariots of God are myriads, yea, thousands of

thousands ;
The Lord is in the midst of them, as upon Sinai, in the

sanctuary.
IS Thou hast ascended on high.

Thou hast led captive the vanquished,
Thou hast received gifts among men.
And even among the rebellious wilt thou dwell, O Lord

God!

19 Praised be the Lord daily !

When we are heavy-laden, the Mighty One is our help.

20 Our God is a God of salvation ;

From the Lord God cometh deliverance from death.

21 But God smiteth the head of his enemies.

Even the hairy crowns of those who go on in their iniquity.

22 " I will bring them back," saith the Lord, " from Bashan ;
I will bring them back from the deep sea ;

152 THE PSALMS. [lxviii.

23 That thy foot may be dipped in their blood,

That thy dogs may drink the blood of thine enemies."

24 We have seen thy procession, O God,

The procession of my God, my king, to his sanctuary !

25 The singers go before, the minstrels follow,
Amidst damsels playing on timbrels.

26 Praise ye God in your assemblies ;

Praise the Lord, all ye from the fountain of Israel !

27 Here is Benjamin, the youngest, and his leaders ;
The chiefs of Judah, and their band ;

The chiefs of Zebulon, and the chiefs of Naphtali.

28 Thy God has ordained thy strength, [O Israel !]
Show forth thy might, O God, thou who hast wrought for

us !

29 Because of thy temple in Jerusalem
Shall kings bring presents to thee.

30 Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds, ^
The multitude of bulls with the calves of the nations.

So that they shall cast themselves down with masses of

silver ;
Scatter thou the nations that delight in war !

31 Princes shall come out of Egypt ;

Ethiopia shall haste with outstretched hands to God.

32 Ye kingdoms of the earth, sing unto God ;
Sing praises unto the Lord ;

33 To him who rideth upon the ancient heaven of heavens !
Behold, he uttereth his voice, his mighty voice !

34 Give glory to God,

Whose majesty is in Israel, and whose might is in the
clouds !

Lxix.] THE PSALMS. I53

35 Terrible art thou, O God, from thy sanctuary !

The God of Israel giveth strength and power to his people.
Praised be God !

PSALIVI LXIX.

Prayer for aid against enemies. Hope of deliverance, and of return from
exile.

For the leader of the music. Upon the Shoshannim. A psalm of
David.

1 Save me, O God,

For the waters press in to my very life !

2 I sink in deep mire, where is no standing ;

I have come into deep waters, and the waves flow over me.

3 I am weary with crying ; my throat is parched ;
Mine eyes are wasted, while I wait for my God.

4 More numerous than the hairs of my head are they who

hate me without reason ;

Mighty are they who seek to destroy me, being my ene-
mies without cause ;

I must restore what I took not away.

6 O God, thou knowest my offences.
And my sins are not hidden from thee !

6 Let not them that trust in thee through me be put to shame,
O Lord, Jehovah, God of hosts !

Let not them that seek thee through me be confounded,
O God of Israel !

7 For on account of thee do I suffer reproach,
And shame covereth my face !

8 I am become a stranger to my brothers ;
Yea, an alien to my mother's sons.

154 THE PSALMS. [lxix.

9 For zeal for thy house consumeth me,
And the reproaches of them that reproach thee fall upon
me.

10 When I weep and fast,
That is made my reproach ;

11 When I clothe myself in sackcloth,
Then I become their by-word.

12 They who sit in the gate speak against me,
And I am become the song of drunkards.

13 Yet will I address my prayer to thee, O Lord !

May it be in an acceptable time according to thy gi'eat

goodness !
Hear, O God, and afford me thy sure help !

14 Save me from the mire, and let me not sink ;

May I be delivered from my enemies, — from the deep
waters !

15 Let not the water-flood overflow me ;
Let not the deep swallow me up,

And let not the pit close her mouth upon me !

16 Hear me, O Lord, since great is thy loving-kindness ;
According to the abundance of thy tender mercies look

upon me !

17 Hide not thy face from thy servant ;

I am greatly distressed, O make haste to mine aid !

18 Draw near to me, and redeem my life ;
Deliver me because of my enemies !

19 Thou knowest my reproach, and dishonor, and shame ;
All my adversaries are in thy view !

20 Reproach hath broken my heart, and I am full of heavi-

ness ;
I look for pity, but there is none ;
For comforters, but find none.

LXix.] THE PSALMS. I55

21 For my 'food they give me gall,

And in my thirst they give me vinegar to drink.

22 May their table be to them a snare ;

May it be a trap to them, while they are at ease !

23 May their eyes be darkened, that they may not see ;
And cause their loins continually to shake !

24 Pour out upon them thine indignation.

And may the heat of thine anger overtake them !

25 Let their habitation be desolate,
And let none dwell in their tents !

26 For they persecute those whom thou hast smitten,
And talk of the pain of those whom thou hast wounded.

27 Add iniquity to their iniquity.

And let them never come into thy favor !

28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living ;
Let not their names be written with the righteous !

29 But I am poor, and sorrowful ;

May thine aid, O God, set me on high !

30 Then will I praise the name of God in a song ;
I will give glory to him with thanksgiving.

31 More pleasing shall this be to Jehovah
Than a full-horned and full-hoofed bullock.

32 The afflicted shall see, and rejoice ;

The hearts of them that fear God shall be revived.

33 For Jehovah heareth the poor,

And despiseth not his people in their bonds.

34 Let the heaven and the earth praise him ;
The sea, and all that move therein !

35 For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah,
That they may dwell therein, and possess it.

36 Yea, the posterity of his servants shall possess it.
And they that love him shall dwell therein.

156 THE PSALMS. [lxx., lxxi.

PSALM LXX.

This psalm is a repetition of the last five verses of the fortieth psalm, Vi^ith
some slight variations.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of David, for remembrance.

1 Make haste, O God, to deliver me,
O Lord, come speedily to mine aid !

2 May they all be confounded, and covered with shame,
Who seek to take my life !

May they be driven back with disgrace
Who desire to do me injury !

3 May they be turned back with shame
Who cry out to me, " Aha ! aha ! "

4 But let all who seek thee be glad and rejoice in thee !
Let them that love thy protection ever say,

" The Lord be praised ! "

5 But I am poor and needy ;
O God, hasten to mine aid !

Thou art my help and my deliverer,
O Lord, make no delay !

PSALM LXXI.

Prayer for assistance against enemies, and hope of deliverance. Com-
monly supposed to have been composed by David in his old age, during
the rebellion of Absalom.

1 In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust !
Let me never be put to shame !

2 In thy goodness deliver and rescue me ;
Incline thine ear to me and save me !

Lxxi.] THE PSALMS. I57

3 Be thou the rock of my abode, where I may continually

resort !
Thou hast granted me deliverance ;
For thou art my rock and my fortress !

4 Save me, 0 my God, from the hand of the wicked,
From the hand of the unjust and cruel !

5 For thou art my hope, O Lord, Jehovah !
Thou hast been my trust from my youth !

6 Upon thee have I leaned from my birth ;

From my earliest breath thou hast been my support ;
My song hath been continually of thee I

7 I am a wonder to many.
But thou art my strong refuge.

8 Let my mouth be filled with thy praise ;
Yea, all the day long, with thy glory.

9 Cast me not off in mine old age ;
Forsake me not, when my strength faileth !

10 For my enemies speak against me.

And they who lay wait for my life consult together :

11 " God," say they, " hath forsaken him ;

Pursue and seize him ; for he hath none to deliver him ! "

12 O God, be not far from me !

Come speedily to mine aid, O my God !

13 Let them perish with shame who are my enemies ;

Let them be covered with contempt and dishonor who
seek my hurt !

14 But I will hope continually ;

I shall yet praise thee more and more.

15 My mouth shall speak of thy goodness,
Of thy sure protection all the day long ;
For thy mercies are more than I can number.

14

158 THE PSALMS. [lxxi.

16 I will celebrate thy mighty deeds, O Lord, Jehovah !
I will make mention of thy goodness, of thine only !

17 O God, thou hast taught me from my youth,
And thus far have I declared thy wondrous deeds ;

18 And now, when I am old and gray-headed,
O God, forsake me not,

Until I make known thine arm to the next generation,
Thy mighty power to all that are to come !

19 For thy goodness, O God, reacheth to the heavens ;
Wonderful things doest thou !

O God, who is like unto thee ?

20 Thou hast suffered us to see great and grievous troubles ;
Thou wilt again give us life.

And wilt bring us back from the depths of the earth !

21 Thou wilt increase my greatness ;
Thou wilt again comfort me !

22 Then will I praise thee with the psaltery ;
Even thy faithfulness, O my God !

To thee will I sing with the harp,
O Holy One of Israel !

23 My lips shall rejoice, when I sing to thee.

And my soul, which thou hast redeemed from death ;

24 My tongue also shall continually speak of thy righteous-

ness.
For all who seek my hurt are brought to shame and con-
founded.

Lxxii.] THE PSALMS. I59

PSALM LXXII.

Prayer for a righteous and prosperous reign for a king. The Hebrew title of
this psalm is ambiguous, admitting of the translation Of, or For, Solo-
mon. It is, perhaps, most probable that it was prefixed by some one
who supposed Solomon to be the subject, rather than the author, of the
psalm.

For, or of, Solomon.

1 To the king, O God, give thy justice.
And to the son of a king thy righteousness !

2 Yea ! he shall judge thy people with equity.
And thine oppressed ones with justice.

3 For the mountains shall bring forth peace to the people,
And the hills, through righteousness.

4 He shall defend the oppressed of the people ;
He shall save the needy,

And break in pieces the oppressor.

5 They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon shall

endure.
From generation to generation.

6 He shall be like rain descending on the mown field ;
Like showers which water the earth.

7 In his days shall the righteous flourish.

And great shall be their prosperity, as long as the moon
shall endure.

S He shall have dominion from sea to sea,
And from the river to the ends of the earth.

9 They that dwell in the desert shall bow before him.
And his enemies shall lick the dust.

10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents ;
The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts ;

11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him ;
All nations shall serve him.

160 THE PSALMS. [lxxii.

12 For he shall deliver the poor who crieth for aid,
And the oppressed who hath no helper.

13 He shall spare the weak and the needy,
And save the lives of the poor.

14 He shall redeem them from deceit and violence,
And their blood shall be precious in his sight.

15 He shall prosper, 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 an abundance of corn in the land ;

Even on the tops of the mountains its fruit shall shake like

Lebanon,
And they of the cities shall flourish as the grass of the

earth.

17 His name shall endure for ever ;

His name shall be continued as long as the sun.
By him shall men bless themselves ;
All nations shall call him blessed.

18 Praised he God, Jehovah, the God of Israel,
Who alone doeth wonderful things !

19 Praised he his glorious name for ever !

May his glory fit the whole earth ! Amen ! Amen !

20 Here end the psalms of David, the son of Jesse.

BOOK III

PSALM LXXIII.

A meditation on the ways of Providence in the distribution of happiness
and misery, or in appointing the condition of the wicked and of the
righteous. The subject is similar to that of Ps. xxxvii., xxxix., and xlix.,
and of the book of Job.

A psalm of Asaph.

1 Truly God is good to Israel,
To those who are pure in heart.

2 Yet my feet almost gave way ;
My steps had well nigh slipped ;

3 For I was envious of the proud,

When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 For they have no pains to the day of their death ;
Their bodies are in full health.

5 They have not the woes of other men,
Neither are they smitten like other men.

6 Therefore pride encircleth their neck, as a collar ;
Violence covereth them, as a garment.

7 From their bosom issueth their iniquity ;
The designs of their hearts burst forth.

8 They mock, and speak of malicious oppression ;
Their words are haughty ;

14*

162 THE PSALMS. [lxxhi.

9 They stretch forth their moulh to the heavens,
And their tongue goeth through the earth ;

10 Therefore his people walk in their ways,
And there drink from full fountains.

11 And they say, " How doth God know ?

How can there be knowledge with the .Most High ? "

12 Behold these ungodly men !

They are ever prosperous ; they heap up riches.

13 Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain ;

In vain have I washed my hands in innocence.

14 For every day have I been smitten ;
Every morn have I been chastened.

15 If I should resolve to speak like them,

Surely I should be treacherous to the family of thy
children.

16 So when I studied to know this,
It was painful to my eyes ;

17 Until I went into the sanctuaries of God,
And considered what was their end.

18 Behold ! thou hast set them on slippery places ;
Thou castest them down into unseen pits.

19 How are they brought to desolation in a moment,
And utterly consumed with sudden destruction !

20 As a dream when one awaketh,

Thou, O Lord, when thou awakest, wilt make their vain
show a derision.

21 When my heart was vexed
And I was pierced in my reins,

22 Then I was stupid and without understanding ;
I was like one of the brutes before thee.

23 Yet am I ever under thy care ;

By my right hand thou dost hold me up.

Lxxiv.] THE PSALMS. 163

24 Thou wilt guide me with thy counsel,
And at last receive me with glory.

25 Whom have I in heaven but thee,

And whom on earth do I love in comparison with thee ?

26 Though my flesh and my heart fail,

God is the strength of heart, and my portion for ever.

27 For, lo ! they who are far from thee perish ;

Thou destroyest all who estrange themselves from thee.

28 But it is good for me to draw near to God ;
I put my trust in the Lord God,

That I may declare all thy works.

PSALM LXXIV.

Prayer on account of the desolation of the temple, and other grievous
afflictions of the Hebrew nation.

Jl psalvi of Asaph.

1 O God, why hast thou cast us off for ever ?

Why doth thine anger smoke against the flock of thy
pasture }

2 Remember the people which thou didst purchase of old ;
Thine own inheritance, which thou didst redeem ;
That Mount Zion, where thou once didst dwell !

3 Hasten thy steps to those utter desolations !

Every thing in the sanctuary hath the enemy abused !

4 Thine enemies roar in the place of thine assemblies ;
Their own symbols have they set up for signs.

5 They appeared like those who raise the axe against a

thicket ;

6 They have broken down the carved work of thy temple

with axes and hammers ;

164 THE PSALMS. [lxxiv.

7 They have cast fire into thy sanctuary ;

They have profaned and cast to the ground the dwelling-
place of thy name.

8 They said in their hearts, " Let us destroy them all to-

gether ! "
They have burned all God's places of assembly in the land.

9 We no longer see our signs ;
There is no prophet among us,

Nor any one that knoweth how long this desolation shall
endure.

10 How long, O God, shall the adversary revile ?
Shall the enemy blaspheme thy name for ever ?

11 Why withdraw est thou thy hand, even thy right hand ?
Take it from thy bosom, and destroy !

12 Yet God was our king of old.

Working salvation in the midst of the earth.

13 Thou didst divide the sea by thy power ;

Thou didst crush the heads of the sea-monsters in the
waters.

14 Thou didst break in pieces the head of the crocodile ;
Thou gavest him for food to the inhabitants of the desert.

15 Thou didst cleave forth the fountain and the stream ;
Thou didst dry up perennial rivers.

16 Thine is the day, and thine the night ;
Thou didst prepare the light and the sun.

17 Thou didst establish all the boundaries of the earth ;
Thou didst make summer and winter.

18 O remember that the enemy hath reviled Jehovah ;
That an impious people hath blasphemed thy name !

19 Give not up the life of thy turtle-dove to the wild beast ;
Forget not for ever thine afflicted people !

Lxxv.] THE PSALMS. 165

20 Have regard to thy covenant !

For all the dark places of the land are full of the abodes
of cruelty.

21 O let not the afflicted go away ashamed !
Let the poor and needy praise thy name !

22 Arise, O God ! maintain thy cause !
Remember how the impious revileth thee daily !

23 Forget not the clamor of thine adversaries,

The noise of thine enemies, which continually increaseth !

PSALM LXXV.

Thanksgiving in view of deliverance from enemies. This psalm contains
no indication of the time of its composition, except that it resembles
those which were composed in the later ages of the kingdom.

For the leader of the music. To the tune of ^^ Do not destroy." A
jtsalm of Asaph.

1 We give thanks to thee, O God, we give thanks to thee,

and near is thy name ;
Men shall declare thy wondrous deeds !

2 " When I see my time.
Then will I judge with equity ;

3 The earth trembles, and all her inhabitants.
But I uphold her pillars."

4 I say to the proud. Behave not proudly !
To the wicked. Lift not up your heads !

5 Lift not up your heads on high,
And speak not with a stifl' neck !

166 THE PSALMS. [lxxvi.

6 For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor west,

nor south ;

7 But it is God who is judge ;

He putteth down one, and setteth up another.

8 For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup ;
The wine is foaming and full of spices,
And of it he poureth out ;

Even to the dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drink it.

9 Therefore I will extol him for ever ;

I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.

10 " I will bring down all the power of the wicked ;
But the righteous shall lift up their heads."

PSALM LXXVL

Thanksgiving for victory over powerful enemies. This psalm probably
belongs to the same age with the preceding.

For the leader of the music. Upon stringed instruments. A psalm
of Asaph.

1 In Judah is God known ;
Great is his name in Israel.

2 In Jerusalem is his tabernacle.
And his dwelling-place in Zion.

3 There brake he the lightning of the bow.

The shield, the sword, and all the weapons of battle.

4 More glorious and excellent art thou
Than those mountains of robbers !

5 Spoiled are the stout-hearted ;
They sank into their sleep ;

The hands of the mighty were powerless.

Lxxvii.] THE PSALMS. Ig7

6 Before thy rebuke, O God of Jacob,

Fell chariot and horseman into a deep sleep !

7 Thou, thou, O God, art terrible !

Who can stand before thee in thine anger ?

8 Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven ;
The earth trembled and was still,

9 When God arose to judgment.

To save all the oppressed of the earth !

10 The wrath of man shall praise thee.

When thou girdest on the whole of thy wrath !

11 Make and perform vows to Jehovah, your God !

Let all who dwell around him bring gifts to the terrible One,

12 Who casteth down the pride of princes.
Who is terrible to the kings of the earth !

PSALM LXXVII.

Prayer in a season of great public calamity. Consolation and hope derived
from meditation upon former favors of God to the nation.

For the leader of the music of the JedutMmites. A ■psalm of Asaph-

1 I CALL upon God ; I ciy aloud for help ;
I call upon God, that he would hear me !

2 In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord ;

In the night is my hand stretched forth continually ;
My soul re fuse th to be comforted.

3 I remember God, and am disquieted ;

I think of him, and my spirit is overwhelmed.

4 Thou keepest mine eyelids from closing ;
I am distressed, so that I cannot speak !

5 I think of the days of old,
The years of ancient times.

168 ^ THE PSALMS. [lxxvii.

6 I call to remembrance my songs in the night ;
I meditate in my heart,

And my spirit inquireth.

7 Will the Lord be angry for ever ?
Will he be favorable no more ?

8 Is his mercy utterly withdrawn for ever ?

Doth his promise fail from generation to generation ?

9 Hath God forgotten to be gracious ?
Hath he in anger shut up his compassion ?

10 Then I say, This is mine affliction,

A change in the right hand of the Most High.

11 I remember the deeds of Jehovah ;
I think of thy wonders of old.

12 I meditate on all thy works,
And talk of thy doings.

13 Thy ways, O God, are holy !
W^ho so great a god as our God ?

14 Thou art a God who doest wonders ;

Thou hast manifested thy power among the nations.

15 With thy strong arm thou didst redeem thy people.
The sons of Jacob and Joseph.

16 The waters saw thee, O God !
The waters saw thee, and feared.
And the deep trembled.

17 The clouds poured out water,
The skies sent forth thunder,
And thine arrows flew.

18 Thy thunder roared in the whirlwind ;
Thy lightning illumined the world ;
The earth trembled and shook.

19 Thy way was through the sea.
And thy path through great waters.
And thy footsteps could not be found.

Lxxviii.] THE PSALMS. 169

20 Thou didst lead thy people like a flock,
By the hands of Moses and Aaron.

PSALM LXXVIII.

Admonition to keep God's commandments, and to remember his former
dealings toward the nation of Israel.

A psalm of Asaph.

1 Give ear, O my people, to my teaching !
Incline your ears to the words of my mouth !

2 I will open my mouth in a poem ;

I will utter sayings of ancient times.

3 What we have heard, and learned,
And our fathers have told us,

4 We will not hide from their children ;

Showing to the generation to come the praises of Jehovah,
His might, and the wonders he hath wrought.

5 For he appointed statutes in Jacob,
And established a law in Israel,
Which he commanded our fathers
To make known to their children ;

6 So that the generation to come might know them 5
The children, which should be born, and rise up,
Who should declare them to their children ;

7 That they might put their trust in God,
And not forget his deeds.

But keep his commandments ;

8 And might not be, like their forefathers,
A stubborn and rebellious generation,

A generation whose heart was not fixed upon God,
And whose spirit was not steadfast toward the Almighty.
15

170 THE PSALMS. [lxxviii.

9 The children of Ephraim were like armed bowmen,
Who turn their backs in the day of battle.

10 They kept not the covenant of God,
And refused to walk in his law ;

11 And forgot his mighty deeds,

And the wonders he had shown them.

12 Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers,
In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

13 He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through ;
Yea, he made the waters to stand as a heap.

14 By day he led them by a cloud.
And all the night by a light of fire.

15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness.

And gave them drink, as from the great deep.

16 From the rock he brought flowing streams,
And made waters to run down like rivers.

17 Yet still they sinned against him.

And provoked the Most High in the desert.

18 They tempted God in their hearts.
By asking food for their delight.

19 Yea, they spake against God, and said,

" Can God spread a table in the wilderness ?

20 Behold ! he smote the rock, and the waters flowed,
And streams gushed forth ;

Is he also able to give bread ?

Can he provide flesh for his people ? "

21 When Jehovah heard this, he was wroth ;
So a fire was kindled against Jacob,

And anger arose against Israel,

22 Because they believed not in God,
And trusted not in his aid.

Lxxviii.] THE PSALMS. 171

23 Yet he had commanded the clouds above,
And had opened the doors of heaven ;

24 And had rained down upon them manna for food,
And had given them the corn of heaven.

25 Every one ate the food of princes ;
He sent them bread to the full.

26 Then he caused a strong wind to blow in the heavens.
And by his power he brought a south wind ;

27 He rained down flesh upon them as dust,
And feathered fowls as the sand of the sea.

28 He caused them to fall in the midst of their camp,
Round about their habitations.

29 So they did eat and were filled ;
For he gave them their own desire.

30 Their desire was not yet satisfied.
And their meat was yet in their mouths,

31 When the wrath of God came upon them.
And clew their strong men.

And smote down the chosen men of Israel.

32 For all this they sinned still.

And put no trust in his wondrous works.

33 Therefore he consumed their days in vanity.
And their years in sudden destruction.

34 When he stew them, they sought him ;
They returned, and sought earnestly for God ;

35 And remembered that God was their rock,
And the Most High their redeemer.

36 But they only flattered him with their mouths.
And spake falsely to him with their tongues.

172 THE PSALMS. [lxxviii.

37 For their hearts were not true to him,
Nor were they steadfast in his covenant.

38 Yet, being full of compassion, he forgave their iniquity,
And would not utterly destroy them ;

Often he restrained his indignation,
And stirred not up all his anger.

39 He remembered that they were but flesh ;
A breath, that passeth and cometh not back.

40 How often did they provoke him in the wilderness !
How often did they anger him in the desert !

41 Again and again they tempted God,
And offended the Holy One of Israel.

42 They remembered not his hand.

Nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy ;

43 What signs he had wrought in Egypt,
And what wonders in the fields of Zoan.

44 He turned their rivers into blood.

So that they could not drink of their streams.

45 He sent amongst them flies, which devoured them,
And frogs, which destroyed them.

46 He gave also their fruits to the caterpillar,
And their labor to the locust.

47 He destroyed their vines with hail,
And their sycamore-trees with frost.

48 He also gave up their cattle to hail.
And their flocks to hot thunderbolts.

49 He sent against them the fierceness of his anger,
Wrath, indignation, and woe,

A host of angels of evil.

50 He made a way for his anger,
He spared them not from death.

But gave up their lives to the pestilence.

Lxxviii.] THE PSALMS. I73

51 He smote all the firstborn in Egypt ;

The first fruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.

52 But he led forth his own people Hke sheep,
And guided them like a flock in the wilderness.

53 He led them on safely, so that they feared not,
While the sea overwhelmed their enemies.

54 He brought them to his own sacred border,

Even to this mountain which his right hand had acquired.

55 He cast out the nations before them.

And divided their land by a measuring-line, as an inherit-
ance.
And caused the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.

56 Yet they tempted and provoked God, the Most High,
And kept not his statutes ;

57 Like their fathers, they were faithless and turned back ;
They turned aside, like a deceitful bow.

58 They provoked his anger by their high places,
And stirred up his jealousy by their graven images.

59 God saw this, and was wroth,
And greatly abhorred Israel ;

60 So that he forsook the habitation at Shiloh,
The tabernacle where he dwelt among men,

61 And delivered his strength into captivity,
And his glory into the hand of the enemy.

62 His own people he gave up to the sword,
And was wroth with his own inheritance.

63 Fire consumed their young men,

And their maidens did not bewail them.

64 Their priests fell by the sword.

And their widows made no lamentation.

65 But at length the Lord awaked as from sleep,
As a hero who had been overpowered by wine ;

15*

X74 THE PSALMS. [lxxix.

66 He smote his enemies, and drove them back,
And covered them with everlasting disgrace.

67 Yet he rejected the tents of Joseph,

And would not dwell in the tribe of Ephraim ;

68 But chose the tribe of Judah,
The Mount Zion which he loved !

69 Where he built, like the heavens, his sanctuary ;
Like the earth, which he hath established for ever.

70 And he chose David, his servant,
And took him from the sheepfolds ;

71 From tending the suckling ewes he brought him
To feed Jacob his people.

And Israel his inheritance.

72 He fed them with an upright heart.
And guided them with skilful hands.

PSALM LXXIX.

Lamentation for the desolation of the city and the temple.
A psalm of Asaph.

1 O God, the nations have come into thine inheritance.
They have polluted thy holy temple,

They have made Jerusalem a heap of ruins !

2 They have given the dead bodies of thy servants to be

food for the birds of heaven ;
The flesh of thy worshippers to the wild beasts of the
earth !

3 Their blood have they shed like water around Jerusalem,
And there was none to bury them !

Lxxix.] THE PSALMS. 175

4 We have become the reproach of our neighbours,
The scorn and derision of those around us.

5 How long, O Lord, wilt thou be angry ?
How long shall thy jealousy burn like fire ?

6 Pour out thy wrath on the nations which acknowledge thee

not.
And on the kingdoms which call not upon thy name !

7 For they have devoured Jacob,
And laid waste his dwelling-place.

8 0 remember not against us former iniquities ;
Let thy tender mercy speedily succour us,

9 For we are brought very low !

Help us, O God of our salvation, for the honor of thy

name ;
For thy name's sake save us, and forgive our iniquities !

10 Why should the nations say, " Where is their God ? "
May the revenging of the blood of thy servants, which hath

been shed.
Be manifested among the nations before our eyes !

11 Let the cry of the prisoner come before thee !
According to the greatness of thy power preserve -those

that are appointed to die !

12 And return sevenfold into our neighbours' bosoms

The reproach with which they have reproached thee,
O Lord !

13 So shall we, thy people, and the flock of thy pasture,
Give thanks to thee for ever.

And show forth thy praise to all generations.

176 THE PSALMS. [lxxx.

PSALM LXXX.

Prayer for deliverance in a time of great national calamity.

For the leader of the music. Upon the Shushan-Eduth. Jl psalm
of Asaph.

1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
Thou who leadest Joseph like a flock.

Thou who sittest between the cherubs, shine forth !

2 Before Ephraim, and Benjamin, and Manasseh, exert thy

strength.
And come and save us !

3 O God, restore us !

Show us the light of thy countenance, and we shall be
saved !

4 O Lord, God of hosts.

How long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy
people ?

5 For thou causest them to eat the bread of tears.
And givest them tears to drink, in full measure.

6 Thou hast made us the object of strife to our neighbours.
And our enemies hold us in derision.

7 Restore us, O God of hosts !

Show us the light of thy countenance, and we shall be
saved !

8 Thou didst bring a vine out of Egypt ;
Thou didst expel nations, and plant it.

9 Thou didst prepare a place for it ;

It spread its roots, and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shade.
And the tall cedars by its branches.

Lxxxi.] THE PSALMS. 177

11 It sent out its boughs to the sea,
And its branches to the river.

12 Why hast thou now broken down its hedges,
So that all who pass by do pluck from it ?

13 The boar from the wood doth waste it.

And the wild beast of the forest doth devour it.

14 O God of hosts, return, we beseech thee,
Look down from heaven, and behold,
And have regard to this vine !

15 Protect what thy right hand planted.

The branch which thou madest strong for thyself !

16 It is burnt with fire ; it is cut down ;
Under thy rebuke they perish.

17 May thy hand be over the man whom thy right hand hath

established.
The man whom thou madest strong for thyself!
IS So will we no more turn back from thee ;

Revive us, and upon thy name alone will wc call !
19 Restore us, O Lord, God of hosts 1

Show us the light of thy countenance, and we shall be
saved !

PSALM LXXXI.

Exhortation to religious obedience. Adapted to the celebration of the feast
of Tabernacles, or, as some suppose, of the Passover. See Levit. xxiii.
4, &c., and 33, &c.

For the leader of the music. On the Gittith. A psalm of Asaph.

1 Sing joyfully to God, our strength !
Shout with gladness to the God of Jacob !

2 Raise a song, and strike the timbrel,

The sweet-sounding harp, and the psaltery !

178 THE PSALMS. [lxxxi.

3 Blow the trumpet at the new moon ;
At the full moon, also, our festal day !

4 For this is a statute for Israel,
A law of the God of Jacob ;

5 He appointed it as a memorial in Joseph,
When he went out of the land of Egypt,
Where he heard a language which he knew not.

6 "I relieved, [said he,] thy shoulders from their burden ;
Thy hands were removed from the hod.

7 Thou didst call in trouble, and I delivered thee ;
In the secret place of thunder I answered thee ;
I proved thee at the waters of Meribah.

8 Hear, O my people, and I will admonish thee !
O Israel, that thou wouldst hearken to me !

9 Let there be no strange god within thee,
Nor worship thou any foreign god !

10 I, Jehovah, am thy God,

Who brought thee out of the land of Egypt ;
Open wide thy mouth, and I will fill it !

11 But my people would not listen to my voice,
And Israel would not hearken to me.

12 So I gave them up to the obstinacy of their hearts.
And they walked according to their own devices.

13 " O that my people had hearkened to me !
That Israel had walked in my ways !

14 Soon would I have brought low their enemies,
And turned my hand against their adversaries.

15 The haters of Jehovah should have become suppliants to

them.
And their prosperity should have endured for ever.

Lxxxii.] THE PSALMS. I79

16 With the finest of the wheat I would have fed them,
And with honey out of the rock would I have satisfied
them."

PSALM LXXXII.

Against unjust Jewish magistrates ; or, against tyrannical foreign kings,
who oppressed the Jewish nation.

Ji psalm of Asaph.

1 God standeth in his holy assembly,
He judgeth in the midst of the gods.

2 " How long will ye judge unjustly,
And favor the cause of the wicked ^

3 Defend the poor and the fatherless ;

Do justice to the wretched and the needy !

4 Deliver the poor and the destitute ;
Save them from the hand of the wicked !

5 They are without knowledge and without understanding ;
They walk in darkness ;

Therefore all the foundations of the land are shaken.

6 I have said. Ye are gods.

And all of you children of the Most High ;

7 But ye shall die like men,

And fall like the rest of the princes."

8 Arise, O God, judge the earth !
For all the nations are thy possession.

180 THE PSALMS. [lxxxiii.

PSALM LXXXIIL

Prayer against the enemies of the Jewish nation ; commonly supposed to
have been composed in the days of Jehoshaphat, when a combination of
the neighbouring kings was formed against Judah.

A psalm of Asaph.

1 O God, keep not silence !

Hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God !

2 For, lo ! thine enemies begin to rage.
And they who hate thee lift up their heads.

3 For they form secret plots against thy people,
And consult together against thy chosen ones.

4 " Come," say they, " let us blot them out from the num-

ber of the nations.
That the name of Israel may no more be remembered ! "

5 With one consent they consult together,
Against thee do they form a league,

6 The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Of Moab and the Hagarenes,

7 Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek,

The Philistines, with the inhabitants of Tyre.

8 The Assyrians also are joined with them ;
They lend their strength to the children of Lot.

9 Do to them as to the Midianites,

As to Sisera, as to Jabin at the brook Kison,

10 Who perished at Endor,

And were trampled like dung to the earth.

11 Make their chiefs like Oreb and Zeeb ;

Yea, all their princes as Zeba and Zalmunna !

12 Who say, " Let us seize on God's habitations ! "

Lxxxiv.] THE PSALMS. 181

13 Make them, O my God, like whirling chaff.
Like stubble before the wind !

14 As fire consumeth the forest,

And as flame setteth the mountains in a blaze,

15 So pursue them with thy tempest.
And terrify them with thy storm !

16 Cover their faces with shame.

That they may seek thy name, O Jehovah !

17 Let them be confounded !

Yea, let them be put to shame, and perish !

18 That they may know that thy name alone is Jehovah ;
That thou art the Most High over all the earth.

PSALM LXXXIV.

Aspirations after the worship of God in the sanctuary.

For the leader of the music. On the Gittith. A psalm of the sons
of Korah.

1 How lovely are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts !

2 My soul longeth, yea, fainteth, for the courts of the Lord ;
My heart and my flesh cry aloud for the living God.

3 The very sparrow finds an abode.

And the swallow a nest, where they may lay their young,
By thine altars, O Lord of hosts,
My king and my God !

4 Happy they who dwell in thy house,
Who are continually praising thee !

5 Happy the man whose glory is in thee.
In whose heart are the ways to Zion !

6 Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a fountain,
And the early rain covereth it with blessings.

16

182 THE PSALMS. [lxxxv.

7 They go on from strength to strength,
Until they appear before God in Zion.

8 Hear my prayer, O Lord of hosts !
Give ear, O God of Jacob !

9 Look down, O God, our shield.

And behold the face of thine anointed !

10 For a day spent in thy courts is better than a thousand ;

I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of God,
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

11 For the Lord God is a sun and a shield ;
The Lord giveth grace and glory ;

No good thing doth he withhold
From them that walk uprightly.

12 O Lord of hosts,

Happy the man who trusteth in thee !

PSALM LXXXV.

A prayer for the establishment and prosperity of the Jewish nation after
their return from captivity.

For the leader of the music. A psalm of the sons of Korak.

1 O Lord, thou hast been favorable to thy land ;
Thou hast brought back the captives of Jacob ;

2 Thou didst forgive the iniquity of thy people.
And cover all their sins !

3 Thou didst take away all thy displeasure.
And abate the fierceness of thy wrath.

4 Restore us, O God, our saviour,
And let thine anger towards us cease !

Lxxxvi.] THE PSALMS. 183

5 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever ?

Wilt^ thou continue thy wrath from generation to genera-
tion ?

6 Wilt thou not revive us again,

That thy people may rejoice in thee ?

7 Show us thy compassion, O Lord,
And grant us thy powerful aid !

8 I will hear what God Jehovah saith !

Truly he speaketh peace to his people, and to his servants ;
Only let them not turn again to folly !

9 Yea, his aid is near to them that fear him,
That glory may dwell in our land.

10 Mercy and truth shall meet together,
Righteousness and peace shall kiss each other ;

11 Truth shall spring out of the earth ;
Righteousness shall look down from heaven.

12 Yea, Jehovah will give prosperity,
And our land shall yield her increase.

13 Righteousness shall walk before him.
And keep her steps in the way.

PSALM LXXXVI.

This psalm corresponds very well with its title. There are numerous sea-
sons in the life of David to which it will apply.

A "prayer of David.

1 Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear me.
For I am poor and distressed !

2 Preserve my life, for I am devoted to thee !

Save, O thou my God, thy servant who trusteth in thee !

184 THE PSALMS. [lxxxvi.

3 Have pity upon me, O Lord,
For to thee do I cry daily !

4 Revive the soul of thy servant,

For to thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul !

5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive,
Yea, rich in mercy to all that call upon thee !

6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer,

And attend to the voice of my supplication !

7 In the day of my trouble I call upon thee.
For thou dost answer me !

8 Among the gods there is none like thee, O Lord,
And there are no works like thy works !

9 All the nations which thou hast made must come and wor-

ship before thee, O Lord,
And glorify thy name !

10 For great art thou, and wondrous are thy works ;
Thou alone art God !

11 Teach me, O Lord, thy way,
That I may walk in thy truth ;
Unite all my heart to fear thy name !

12 I will praise thee, O Lord, my God, with my whole heart;
I will give glory to thy name for ever !

13 For thy kindness to me hath been great ;

Thou hast delivered me from the depths of the underworld !

14 O God, the proud have risen against me ;
Bands of cruel men seek my life ;

For thee they have no regard !

15 But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion and kind-

ness.
Long-suffering, rich in mercy and truth !

16 Look upon me, and have compassion upon me !
Impart thy strength to thy servant,

And save the son of thy handmaid !

LXXXvii.,Lxxxviii.] THE PSALMS. 185

17 Show me a signal token of thy favor,

That my enemies may see it and be confounded ;
Because thou, O Lord, helpest and comfortest me !

PSALM LXXXVII.

The glory of Zion, as the source and centre of the religion of the world.
* Jl psalm of the sons of Korah.

1 Her foundation is upon the holy mountains ;

2 Jehovah loveth the gates of Zion
More than all the dwellings of Jacob.

3 Glorious things are said of thee,
O city of God !

4 " I name Egypt and Babylon among them theft know me ;
Behold ! Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia,

They also were born there."

5 And of Zion it shall be said,

" Men of every nation were born there.
And the Most High hath established her."

6 Jehovah, when he numbereth the nations, shall write,
" These were born there ! "

7 Singers as well as dancers, —
All my springs are in thee !

PSALM LXXXVIII.

Prayer of one in deep and various distress.

A psalm of the sons of Korah. For. the leader of the music. Upon
wind instruments. A psalm of Heman^ the Ezrahite.

1 O Lord, God of my salvation,
To thee do I cry by day.
And by night is my prayer toward thee !
16*

18g THE PSALMS. [lxxxvui.

2 Let my supplication come before thee ;
Incline thine ear to my cry !

3 For my soul is full of misery,

And my life draweth near to the underworld.

4 I am counted with those who are going down to the pit ;
I am .like one who hath no strength left,

5 Like one laid low among the dead.
Like the slain "who lie in the grave,
Whom thou no more rememberest.
And who are cut off from thy protection.

6 Thou hast placed me in a deep pit,
In a dark and deep abyss.

7 Thy wrath presseth hard upon me.

And thou afflictest me with all thy waves !

8 Thou ha&t put mine acquaintances far from me,
Yea, thou hast made me their abhorrence ;

I am shut up, and cannot go forth.

9 Mine eyes languish by reason of my affliction.
I call upon thee daily, O Lord,

To thee do I stretch out my hands !

10 Canst thou show wonders to the dead ?
Shall the dead arise, and praise thee ? •

11 Shall thy goodness be declared in the grave,
Or thy faithfulness in the place of corruption ?

12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark,
And thy justice in the land of forge tfulness ?

13 To thee do I cry, O Lord,

In the morning doth my cry come before thee !

14 Why, O Lord, dost thou cast me off .^
Why hidest thou thy face from me .''

15 I have been afflicted and languishing from my youth ;
I suffer thy terrors, and am distracted.

Lxxxix.] THE PSALMS. 187

16 Thy fierce wrath overwhelmeth me ;
Thy terrors utterly destroy me.

17 They surround me daily like water ;
They compass me about together.

18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me ;
My acquaintances are withdrawn from my sight.

PSALM LXXXIX.

Prayer for the race and kingdom of David.
A psalm of Ethan, the Ezrahite.

1 I WILL sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever ;
With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all

generations !

2 For I know that thy mercy endureth for ever ;
Thou hast established thy truth like the heavens.

3 " I have made a covenant with my chosen •
I have sworn to David, my servant ;

4 Thy family I will establish for ever,

And build up thy throne to all generations."

5 The heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord,
And the assembly of the holy ones thy truth !

6 Who in the heavens can be compared to Jehovah ?
Who is like Jehovah among the sons of God ?

7 A God greatly to be feared in the assembly of the holy

ones,
And to be had in reverence above all who are around him ^

8 O Jehovah, God of hosts !

Who is mighty like thee, O Jehovah ?
And thy faithfulness is round about thee.

188 THE PSALMS. [lxxxix.

9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea ;
When the waves thereof rise, thou stillest them !

10 Thou didst break Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain ;
Thou didst scatter thine enemies with thy mighty arm.

11 The heavens are thine ; thine also is the earth ;

The world and all that is therein, thou didst found them.

12 The North and the South were created by thee ;
Tabor and Hermon rejoice in thy name.

13 Thine is a mighty arm ;

Strong is thy hand, and high thy right hand.

14 Justice and equity are the foundation of thy throne ;
Mercy and truth go before thy face.

15 Happy the people that know the trumpet's sound !
They walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance ;

16 In thy name they daily rejoice,

And in thy righteousness they glory !

17 For thou art the glory of their strength ;
Yea, through thy favor we lift up our heads !

18 For from Jehovah is our shield.

And from the Holy One of Israel is our king.

19 Once thou spakest in a vision to thy holy one,

And saidst, — " I have laid help on one that is mighty ;
I have exalted one chosen from the people ;

20 I have found David, my servant ;
With my holy oil have I anointed him.

21 With him shall my hand be firm.
And my arm shall support him.

22 The enemy shall not have power over him,
Nor shall the unrighteous man oppress him.

23 For I will beat down his foes before him,
And overthrow them that hate him.

24 My faithfulness and mercy shall be with him,
And through my name shall his head be exalted.

Lxxxix.] THE PSALMS. 189

25 I will extend his hand to the sea,
And his right hand to the rivers.

26 He shall say to me, ' Thou art my father.
My God, and the rock of my salvation ! '

27 I will also make him my first-born.
Highest of the kings of the earth.

28 My mercy I will continue to him for ever ;
My covenant with him shall be steadfast.

29 I will make his family to endure for ever ;

And his throne shall be as lasting as the heavens.

30 Should his children forsake my law,
And walk not in my statutes,

31 Should they break my commandments.
And observe not my precepts,

32 I will punish their transgressions with a rod.
And their iniquity with stripes.

33 But my kindness will I not withdraw from him,
Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.

34 I will not break my covenant.

Nor alter what hath gone from my lips.

35 Once have I sworn in my holiness.
That I will not be false unto David.

36 His family shall endure for ever.
And his throne as the sun before me.

37 It shall be established for ever like the moon ;
Like the faithful witness in the sky."

38 TBut now thou forsakest, and abhorrest,
And art angry with thine anointed.

39 Thou hast made void the covenant with thy servant ;
Thou hast cast his crown to the ground.

40 Thou hast broken down all his hedges ;
Thou hast brought his strongholds to ruin.

190 THE PSALMS. [lxxxix.

41 All who pass by plunder him ;

He is a reproach to his neighbours.

42 Thou hast lifted up the right hand of his enemies ;
Thou hast made all his adversaries to rejoice.

43 Yea, thou hast turned the edge of his sword,
And made him unable to stand in battle.

44 Thou hast brought his glory to an end.

And hast cast down his throne to the ground.

45 Thou hast shortened the days of his youth ;
Thou hast covered him with shame.

46 How long, O Lord, wilt thou utterly hide thyself ^
How long shall thine anger burn like fire ?

47 Remember how short is my life.

To what frailty thou hast created all men !

48 What man liveth, and seeth not death ?

Who can deliver himself from the underworld ?

49 Where, Lord, is thy former loving-kindness
Which thou didst swear to David in thy truth ?

50 Remember, O Lord, the reproach of thy servants.

How I bear in my bosom the taunts of all the many nations,

51 With which thine enemies have reproached me, O Lord,
With which they have reproached the footsteps of thine

anointed !

52 Praised he Jehovah for ever !
Amen, yea, amen !

BOOK IV.

PSALM XC.

The eternity of God, and the frailty of man. Prayer for divine mercy and
forbearance.

A prayer of Moses, the man of God.

1 Lord, thou hast been our refuge
In all generations !

2 Before the mountains were brought forth,

Or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting art thou, O God !

3 But man thou turnest again to dust,

And sayest, " Return, ye children of men! "

4 For a thousand years are, in thy sight.
As yesterday when it is past.

And as a watch in the night.

5 Thou earnest him away, as with a flood ;
He is a dream ;

In the morning, he springeth up like grass,

6 Which flourisheth and shooteth up in the morning,
And in the evening is cut down, and withered.

7 For we are consumed by thine anger,
And by thy wrath are we destroyed.

8 Thou settest our iniquhies before thee.
Our secret sins in the light of thy presence.

192 THE PSALMS. [xci.

9 By reason of thine anger all our days vanish away ;
We bring our years to an end like a thought.

10 The days of our life are threescore years and ten,
And, by reason of strength, may be fourscore years ;
Yet is the pride of them weariness and sorrow ;
For it vanisheth swiftly, and we fly away.

11 Yet who attendeth to the power of thine anger ?
Who with due reverence regardeth thine indignation .''

12 Teach us so to number our days,

That we may apply our hearts to wisdom !

13 Desist, O Jehovah ! How long ?

Have compassion upon thy servants !

14 Satisfy us speedily with thy mercy.

That we may rejoice and be glad all our days !

15 Make us glad according to the time in which thou hast

afflicted us,
According to the years in which we have seen adversity !

16 Let thy deeds be known to thy servants.
And thy glory to their children !

17 Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish for us the work of our hands ;
Yea, the work of our hands, establish thou it !

PSALM XCI.

The happiness of him who puts his trust in God.

1 He who sitteth under the shelter of the Most High
Maketh his abode in the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I say to Jehovah, Thou art my refuge and my fortress,
My God, in whom I trust.

xci.] THE PSALMS. I93

3 Surely he will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
And from the wasting pestilence ;

4 He will cover thee with his feathers,
And under his wings shalt thou be safe ;

His faithfulness shall be thy shield and buckler.

5 Thou shalt not be afraid of the terror of the night,
Nor of the arrow that flieth by day ;

6 Nor of the pestilence that walketh in darkness,
Nor of the plague that destroyeth at noonday.

7 A thousand shall fall by thy side,
And ten thousand at thy right hand,
But thee it shall not touch.

8 Thou shalt only behold with thine eyes.
And see the recompense of the wicked.

9 Because thou hast made the Lord thy refuge,
And the Most High thy shelter,

10 No evil shall befall thee.

Nor any plague come near thy dwelling.

11 For he will give his angfels charge over thee,
To guard thee in all thy ways ;

12 They shall bear thee up in their hands.
Lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and the adder ;

The young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under
foot.

14 " Because he loveth me, I will deliver him ;

I will set him on high, because he hath regard to my name.

15 When he calleth upon me, I will answer him ;
I will be with him in trouble ;

I will deliver him, and bring him to honor.

16 With long life will I satisfy him,
And show him my salvation."

17

194 THE PSALMS. [xcii.

PSALM XCII.

Praise to God, as the moral governor of the world.
A fsalm for the Sahhath-day.

1 It is a good thing to give thanks to the Lord,
And to sing praises to thy name, O Most High !

2 To show forth thy loving-kindness in the morning.
And thy faithfuhiess every night,

3 Upon the ten-stringed instrument and the lute.
Upon the harp with a solemn sound.

4 For thou, Lord, hast made me glad by thy doings ;
In the works of thy hands I greatly rejoice !

5 How great are thy works, O Lord !
How deep thy purposes !

6 But the unwise man knoweth not this,
And the fool understandeth it not.

7 When the wicked spring up like grass,
And all who practise iniquity flourish.
It is but to be destroyed for ever !

8 Thou, O Lord, art for ever exalted !

9 For, lo ! thine enemies, O Lord,
For, lo ! thine enemies perish,

And dispersed are all who do iniquity !

10 But my horn thou exaltest, like the buffalo's ;
I am anointed with fresh oil.

11 Mine eye hath gazed with joy upon mine enemies ;
Mine ears have heard with joy of my wicked adversaries.

12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree ;
They shall grow up like the cedars of Lebanon ;

xciii., xciv.] THE PSALMS. 195

13 Planted in the house of the Lord,

They shall flourish in the courts of our God.

14 Even in old age they bring forth fruit ;
They are green and full of sap ;

15 To show that the Lord, my rock, is upright,
That there is no unrighteousness in him.

PSALM xcin.

Praise of God as the controller of all nature, and the protector of his
people.

1 Jehovah reigneth ; he is clothed with majesty ;
Jehovah is clothed with majesty, and with strength girded ;
Therefore the earth standeth firm, and cannot be moved,

2 Thy throne was established of old ;
Thou art from everlasting !

3 The floods, O Jehovah,

The floods lift up their voice.
The floods lift up their roaring !

4 Mightier than the voice of many waters.
Yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.
Is Jehovah in his lofty habitation.

5 Thy promises are most sure ;

Holiness becometh thy house, O Jehovah, for ever !

PSALM XCIV.

Prayer for the punishment of the oppressors of the Jewish nation.

1 O Lord, thou God of vengeance !
O thou God of vengeance, shine forth !

196 THE PSALMS. [xciv.

2 Rouse thyself, thou judge of the earth !
Render a recompense to the proud !

3 How long, O Lord, shall the wicked,
How long shall the wicked triumph ?

4 How long shall their lips pour forth insolence ?
How long shall all the evil-doers boast ?

5 O Lord, they trample upon thy people,
And oppress thine inheritance !

6 They slay the widow, and the stranger,
And murder the fatherless ;

7 And they say, " The Lord doth not see ,
The God of Jacob doth not regard it ! "

8 Be instructed, ye most stupid of mankind !
O, when, ye fools, will ye be wise ?

9 He that planted the ear, shall he not hear ?
He that formed the eye, shall he not see ?

10 He that chastiseth nations, shall not he punish ?

He that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know ?

11 The Lord knoweth the thoughts of men,
That they are vanity.

12 Happy the man, O Lord, whom thou correctest.
Whom by thy teaching thou makest wise ;

13 To give him peace in the days of adversity.
Until a pit be digged for the wicked !

14 For the Lord will not forsake his people,
Nor abandon his own inheritance.

15 For judgment shall return to justice,

And all the upright in heart shall follow it.

16 Who will rise up for me against the wicked ?
Who will stand up for me against the evil-doers >

xcv.] THE PSALMS. I97

17 If the Lord had not been my help,

I had well nigh dwelt in the land of silence.

IS When I think that my foot is slipping,
Thy goodness, O Lord, holdeth me up !

19 In the multitude of anxieties within me,
Thy consolations revive my soul.

20 Wilt thou be allied with the throne of iniquity.
Which deviseth mischief against law ?

21 They band together against the life of the righteous,
And condemn innocent blood.

22 But the Lord is my fortress.

And my God the rock of my refuge.

23 He will bring upon them their own iniquity ;

Yea, through their own wickedness he will cut them off;
Yea, the Lord, our God, will cut them off.

PSALM XCV.

Exhortation to praise and obey God.

1 O COBIE, let us sing to the Lord ;

Let us raise a voice of joy to the rock of our salvation !

2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving.
And sing joyfully to him with psalms !

3 For Jehovah is a great God ;
Yea, a great king over all gods.

4 In his hands are the depths of the earth ;
His, also, are the heights of the mountains.

5 The sea is his, for he made it ;
The dry land also his hands formed.

17*

198 THE PSALMS. [xcvi.

6 O come, let us worship and bow down !
Let us kneel before the Lord, our maker !

7 For he is our God,

And we the people of his pasture and the flock of his hand.

O that ye would now hear his voice !

8 " Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,

As in the day of temptation in the wilderness,

9 Where your fathers tempted me

And tried me, although they had seen my works.

10 Forty years was I offended with that race,

And I said. They are a people of a perverse heart,
And who have no regard to my ways.

11 Therefore I sware, in my wrath.

That they should not enter into my rest."

PSALM XCVI.

Exhortation to the praise and worship of God. This psalm is, with some
slight variations, a part of that contained in 1 Chron., ch. xvi., and said to
have been composed by David on the occasion of the translation of the
ark to Mount Zion. See 1 Chron. xvi. 7, 23-33.

1 O SING to Jehovah a new song.
Sing to Jehovah, all the earth !

2 Sing to Jehovah ; praise his name.
Show forth his salvation, from day to day !

3 Proclaim his glory among the nations.
His wonders among all people !

4 For Jehovah is great, and greatly to be praised ;
He is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the nations are idols ;
But Jehovah made the heavens.

xcvii.J THE PSALMS. 199

6 Honor and majesty are before him,
Glory and beauty are in his holy abode.

7 Give to Jehovah, ye tribes of the people,
Give to Jehovah glory and praise !

8 Give to Jehovah the glory due to his name ;
Bring an offering, and come into his courts !

9 O worship Jehovah in holy attire !
Tremble before him, all the earth!

10 Say among the nations, Jehovah is king ;

The world shall stand firm ; it shall not be moved ;
He will judge the nations in righteousness.

11 Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice ;
Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof ;

12 Let the fields be joyful, with all that is therein,
Let all the trees of the forest rejoice

13 Before Jehovah ! for he cometh.
He cometh to judge the earth !

He will judge the world with justice,
And the nations with faithfulness.

PSALM XCVII.

Praise to God as the supreme ruler, the punisher of the idolatrous enemies
of the Jews, and the rewarder of his worshippers. This psalm was prob-
ably occasioned by some victory gained by the Jews.

1 The Lord reigneth, let the earth rejoice !
Let the multitude of isles be glad !

2 Clouds and darkness are round about him.
Justice and equity are the foundation of his throne.

3 Before him goeth a fire.

Which burneth up his enemies around.

4 His lightnings illumine the world ;
The earth behold eth and trembleth.

200 THE PSALMS. [xcviii.

5 The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

6 The heavens declare his righteousness,
And all nations behold his glory.

7 Confounded be they who worship graven images.
Who glory in idols !

To him, all ye gods, bow down !

8 Zion hath heard, and is glad.
And the daughters of Judah exult

On account of thy judgments, O Lord !

9 For thou, O Lord, art most high above all the earth ;
Thou art far exalted above all gods !

10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil !
He preserveth the lives of his servants.

And delivereth them from the hand of the wicked.

11 Light is sown for the righteous.
And joy for the upright in heart.

12 Rejoice, O ye righteous, in the Lord,
And praise his holy name !

PSALM xcvin.

A psalm of praise to God, probably on a similar occasion with the last.
A psalm.

1 Sing to the Lord a new song ;
For he hath done marvellous things ;

His own right hand and his holy arm have gotten him tlie
victory !

2 The Lord hath made known his salvation ;

His goodness hath he manifested in the sight of the nations.

xcix.] THE PSALMS. 201

3 He hath remembered his mercy and truth toward the house

of Israel,
And all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of
our God.

4 Shout unto the Lord, all the earth !
Break forth into joy, and exult, and sing !

5 Sing to the Lord with the harp.
With the harp, and the voice of song !

6 With clarions, and the sound of trumpets.
Make a joyful noise before the Lord, the king !

7 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof 5
The world, and they that dwell therein ;

8 Let the rivers clap their hands.
And the mountains rejoice together

9 Before the Lord ! for he cometh to judge the earth !
With righteousness will he judge the world,

And the nations with equity.

PSALM XCIX.

Hymn of praise.

1 Jehovah reigneth, let the nations tremble !

He sitteth between the cherubs, let the earth quake !

2 Great is Jehovah upon Zion,

He is exalted over all the nations.

3 Let men praise thy great and terrible name !
It is holy.

4 Let them declare the glory of the king who loveth justice !
Thou hast established equity ;

Thou dost execute justice in Jacob !

202 THE PSALMS. [c.

5 Exalt ye Jehovah, our God,

And bow yourselves down at his footstool !
He is holy.

6 Moses and Aaron, with his priests,
And Samuel, who called upon his name,

They called upon Jehovah, and he answered them.

7 He spake to them in the cloudy pillar ;
They kept his commandments.

And the ordinances which he gave them.

8 Thou, O Jehovah, our God, didst answer them ;
Thou wast to them a forgiving God,

Though thou didst punish their transgressions !

9 Exalt Jehovah, our God,

And worship at his holy mountain !
For Jehovah, our God, is holy.

PSALM G.

Exhortation to praise God.
A psalm of praise.

1 Raise a voice of joy unto the Lord, all ye lands !

2 Serve the Lord with gladness ;

Come before his presence with rejoicing !

3 Know ye that Jehovah is God !

It is he that made us, and we are his ;
His people, and the flock of his pasture.

4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving.
And his courts with praise ;

Be thankful to him, and bless his name !

CI.] THE PSALMS. 203

5 For the Lord is good ; his mercy is everlasting ;
And his truth endureth to all generations.

PSALM CI.

Resolution of a king to govern with justice. This psalm is supposed to
have been composed by David, vv^hen he removed the ark to Mount
Zion.

A psalm of David.

1 I WILL sing of goodness and justice ;
To thee, O Lord, will I sing !

2 I will have regard to the way of uprightness ;
When thou shalt come to me,

I shall walk within my house with an upright heart.

3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes ;
I hate the conduct of transgressors ;

It shall not cleave to me.

4 The perverse in heart shall be far from me ;
I will not favor a wicked person.

5 The secret slanderer I will cut off ;

Him that hath a haughty look and a proud heart I will
not endure.

6 Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they

may dwell with me ;
He that walketh in the way of uprightness shall serve me.

7 He who practiseth deceit shall not dwell in my house ;
He who telleth lies shall not remain in my sight.

8 Every morning will I destroy the wicked of the land,
Till I cut off from the city of Jehovah all evil-doers.

204 THE PSALMS. [cii.

PSALM CIL

This psalm was undoubtedly composed in the time of the captivity, and
probably near the close of it, when hopes were cherished of a restora-
tion.

A prayer of the afflicted, when in deep distress he poureth out his com-
plaint before Jehovah.

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord,
And let my cry come unto thee !

2 Hide not thy face from me in the day of my trouble ;
Incline thine ear to me when I call ;

Answer me speedily !

3 For my life is consumed like smoke,

And my bones are burned like stubble. /

4 My heart is smitten and withered like grass ;
Yea, I forget to eat my bread.

5 By reason of my sighing my bones cleave to my skin ;

6 I am like the pelican of the wilderness ;
I am like the owl of the desert.

7 I am sleepless,

I am like a solitary bird upon the house-top.

8 All the day long my enemies reproach me ;
They who rage against me curse by me.

9 For I eat ashes like bread.

And mingle my drink with tears,

10 On account of thine indignation and thy wrath ;
For thou hast lifted me up and cast me down !

11 My life is like a declining shadow.
And I wither like grass.

12 But thou, O Lord, endurest for ever.

And thy name from generation to generation !

cii.] THE PSALMS. 205

13 Thou wilt arise and have pity upon Zion,

For the time to favor her, yea, the set time, is come.

14 For thy servants take pleasure in her stones ;
Yea, they have a regard for her dust.

15 Then shall the nations fear the name of Jehovah,
And all the kings of the earth thy glory.

16 For Jehovah will build up Zion ;
He will appear in his glory.

17 He will regard the prayer of the destitute,
And not despise their supplication.

18 This shall be written for the generation to come.
That the people to be born may praise Jehovah.

19 For he looketh down from his high sanctuary.
From heaven doth he cast his eye upon the earth,

20 To listen to the sighs of the prisoner,

To release those that are doomed to death ;

21 That they may declare the name of Jehovah in Zion,
And his praise in Jerusalem,

22 When the nations are assembled together,
And the kingdoms to serve Jehovah.

23 He weakeneth my strength by the way.
He shorteneth my days.

24 I say, O my God, take me not away in the midst of my

days.
Thy years endure through all generations !

25 Of old hast thou laid the foundations of the earth,
And the heavens are the work of thy hands ;

26 They shall perish, but thou shalt endure ;
Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment ;
Thou shalt change them as a vesture.

And they shall be changed ;
18

206 THE PSALMS. [cm.

27 But thou art the same ;
Thy years have no end !

28 The children of thy servants shall abide,

And their posterity shall be established before thee.

PSALM cm.

Praise to God for his righteousness and mercy.
A psalm of David.

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul.

And all that is within me, bless his holy name !

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all his benefits !

3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities ;
Who healeth all thy diseases ;

4 Who redeemeth thy life from the grave ;

Who crowneth thee with loving-kindness and tender mer-
cies;

5 Who satisfieth thine old age with good,

So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The Lord executeth justice
And equity for all the oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses,
His doings to the children of Israel.

8 The Lord is merciful and kind.
Slow to anger and rich in mercy.

9 He doth not always chide.

Nor doth he keep his anger for ever.

cm.] THE PSALMS. 207

10 He hath not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor requited us according to our iniquities.

11 As high as are the heavens above the earth,
So great is his mercy to them that fear him.

12 As far as the east is from ihe west.

So far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

13 Even as a father pitieth his children,
So the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

14 For he knoweth our frame.

He remembereth that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are as grass ;

As a flower of the field, so he flourisheth.

16 The wind passeth over it, and it is gone ;
And its place shall know it no more.

17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlast-

ing to them that fear him.
And his goodness to children's children,

18 To such as keep his covenant.

And remember his commandments to do them.

19 The Lord hath established his throne in the heavens.
And his kingdom ruleth over all.

20 Bless the Lord, ye his angels.

Ye mighty ones^who do his commands,
Hearkening to the voice of his word !

21 Bless the Lord, all ye his hosts ;

Ye, his ministers, who do his pleasure !

22 Bless the Lord, all his works.
In all places of his dominion !
Bless the Lord, O my soul !

208 THE PSALMS. [civ.

PSALM CIV.

The power and goodness of God, as displayed in the works of creation and
providence.

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul !

O Lord, my God ! thou art very great !
Thou art clothed with glory and majesty !

2 He covereth himself with light as with a garment ;
He spreadeth out the heavens like a curtain ;

3 He layeth the beams of his chambers on the waters ;
He maketh the clouds his chariot ;

He rideth upon the wings of the wind.

4 He maketh the winds his messengers,
The flaming lightnings his ministers.

5 He established the earth on its foundations ;
It shall not be removed for ever.

6 Thou didst cover it with the deep as with a garment ;
The waters stood above the mountains !

7 At thy rebuke they fled ;

At the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.

8 The mountains rise, the valleys sink,

In the place which thou hast appointed for them.

9 Thou hast established a bound which the waters may

not pass.
That they may not return and cover the earth.

10 He sendeth forth the springs in brooks ;
They run among the mountains ;

11 They give drink to all the beasts of the forest ;
In them the wild asses quench their thirst.

CIV.] THE PSALMS. 209

12 About them the birds of heaven have their habitation,
Which sing among the branches.

13 He watereth the hills from his chambers ;

The earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works I

14 He causeth grass to spring up for cattle,
And herbage for the service of man ;

He bringeth forth food out of the earth,

15 And wine that gladdeneth the heart of man,
Making his face to shine like oil,

And bread that strengtheneth man's heart.

16 The trees of the Lord are full of sap.

The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted ;

17 There the birds build their nests ;

In the cypresses the stork hath her abode.

18 The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats.
And the rocks for the jerboas.

19 He appointed the moon to mark seasons ;
The sun knoweth when tO' go down.

20 Thou makest darkness, and it is night.
When all the beasts of the forest go forth !

21 The young lions roar for prey.
And seek their food from God.

22 The sun ariseth, they withdraw themselves,
And lie down in their dens.

23 Man goeth forth to his work,

And to his labor, until the evening.

24 O Lord, how manifold are thy works !
In wisdom hast thou made them all !
The earth is full of thy riches !

18*

210 THE PSALMS. [civ.

25 Lo ! this great and wide sea !

In it are living creatures innumerable,
Animals small and great.

26 There go the ships ;

There is the leviathan, which thou hast made to play
therein.

27 All these look up to thee

To give them their food in due season.

28 Thou givest it to them, they gather it ;

Thou openest thine hand, they are satisfied with good.

29 Thou hidest thy face, they are confounded ;
Thou takest away their breath, they die,
And return to the dust.

30 Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created.
And thou renewest the face of the earth.

31 The glory of the Lord shall endure for ever ;
The Lord shall rejoice in his works ;

32 He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth ;
He toucheth the hills, and they smoke.

33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live,

I will sing praise to my Gt)d while I have my being.

34 May my meditation be acceptable to him !
I will rejoice in the Lord.

35 May sinners perish from the earth,
And the wicked be no more !
Bless the Lord, O my soul !
Praise ye the Lord !

cv.] THE PSALMS. 211

PSALM CV.

Commemoration of God's goodness to the nation of Israel from the earliest
period of their history. The first fifteen verses of this psalm are a part of
David's hymn on the removal of the ark to Zion, contained in 1 Chron.
xvi. 8-22.

1 O GIVE thanks unto the Lord ;
Call upon his name ;

Make known his deeds among the people !

2 Sing unto him ; sing psalms unto him ;
Tell ye of all his wondrous works !

3 Glory ye in his holy name ;

Let the hearts of them that seek the Lord rejoice !

4 Seek Jehovah, and his majesty ;
Seek his face continually !

5 Remember the wonders he hath wrought,
His miracles and the judgments of his mouth,

6 Ye offspring of Abraham his servant,
Ye children of Jacob his chosen 1

7 Jehovah, he is our God,

His judgments are over all the earth.

8 He remembereth his covenant for ever.

And his promise to the thousandth generation ;

9 The covenant which he made with Abraham,
And the oath which he gave to Isaac ;

10 Which he confirmed to Jacob for a decree,
And to Israel for an everlasting covenant ;

11 " To thee," said he, " will I give the land of Canaan
For the lot of your inheritance."

12 When they were yet few in number.
Very few, and strangers in the land ;

212 THE PSALMS. [cv.

13 When they went from nation to nation.
From one kingdom to another people,

14 He suffered no man to oppress them.
Yea, he rebuked kings for their sakes.

15 " Touch not," said he, " mine anointed,
And do my prophets no harm ! "

16 Again, when he commanded a famine in the land.
And broke the whole staff of bread,

17 He sent a man before them ;
Joseph was sold as a slave.

18 His feet they hurt with fetters ;
He was bound in chains of iron ;

19 Until his prediction came to pass.
And the word of the Lord proved him.

20 Then the king sent and loosed him ;
The ruler of nations, and set him free ;

21 He made him governor of his house.
And lord of all his possessions ;

22 To bind his princes at his pleasure,
And teach his counsellors wisdom.

23 Israel also came into Egypt,

And Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham ;

24 Where God increased his people greatly,
And made them stronger than their enemies.

25 He turned their hearts to hate his people.
And form devices against his servants.

26 Then sent he Moses his servant.
And Aaron, whom he had chosen.

27 They showed his signs among them.
And his wonders in the land of Ham.

28 He sent darkness upon them, and made it dark ;
And they did not disobey his word.

cv.] THE PSALMS. 213

29 He turned their waters into blood,
And caused their fish to die.

30 Their land brought forth frogs in abundance,
Even in the chambers of their kings.

31 He spake, and there came flies,
And lice in all their coasts.

32 Instead of rain he gave them hail,
And flaming fire in their land.

33 He smote also their vines and fig-trees.
And broke the trees of their coasts.

34 He spake, and the locusts came,
Destructive locusts without number,

35 Which ate up all the herbage in their land.
And devoured the fruits of their fields.

36 Then he smote all the first-born in their land.
The first fruits of all their strength.

37 He led forth his people with silver and gold ;
Nor was there one feeble person in all their tribes.

38 Egypt was glad when they departed.
For their terror had fallen upon them.

39 He spread out a cloud for a covering,
And fire to give light by night.

40 They asked, and he brought quails.

And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.

41 He opened the rock, and the waters gushed forth.
And ran in the dry places like a river.

42 For he remembered his holy promise.
Which he had made to Abraham his servant ;

43 And he led forth his people with joy,
And his chosen with gladness.

44 He gave to them the lands of the nations.
And they inherited the labor of the Gentiles ;

214 THE PSALMS. [cvi.

45 That they might observe his statutes,
And obey his laws.
Praise ye the Lord !

PSALM CVI.

Commemoration of the national sins of the Jews throughout their history,
and of God's mercies to them. This is evidently a psalm of the cap-
tivity. See verses 46, 47,

1 Praise ye the Lord !

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good ;
For his mercy endureth for ever !

2 Who can utter the mighty deeds of Jehovah ?
Who can show forth all his praise .''

3 Happy are they who regard justice,
Who practise righteousness at all times !

4 Remember me, O Lord, with the favor promised to thy

people ;
O visit me with thy salvation !

5 That I may see the prosperity of thy chosen,
That I may rejoice in the joy of thy people,

^ That I may glory with thine inheritance !

6 We have sinned with our fathers ;

We have committed iniquity ; we have done wickedly.

7 Our fathers in Egypt did not regard thy wonders ;
They remembered not the multitude of thy mercies ;
But rebelled at the sea, the Red sea.

8 Yet he saved them for his own name's sake,

That he might make his mighty power to be known.

cvi.] THE PSALMS. 215

9 He rebuked the Red sea, and it was dried up,
And he led them through the deep as through a desert.

10 He saved them from the hand of him that hated them,
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.

11 The waters covered their enemies ;
There was not one of them left.

12 Then believed they his words,
And sang his praise.

13 But they soon forgot his deeds,
And waited not for his counsel.

14 They gave way to appetite in the wilderness,
And tempted God in the desert ;

15 And he gave them their request.
But sent upon them a plague.

16 They also envied Moses in the camp.
And Aaron, the holy one of Jehovah.

17 Then the earth opened, and swallowed up Dathan,
And covered the company of Abiram,

18 And a fire was kindled in their company ;
The flames burned up the wicked.

19 They made a calf in Horeb,
And worshipped a molten image ;

20 They changed their God of glory
Into the image of a grass-eating ox.

21 They forgot God, their saviour.

Who had done such great things in Egypt,

22 Such wonders in the land of Ham,
Such terrible things by the Red sea.

23 Then he said that he would destroy them ;

Had not Moses, his chosen, stood before him in the breach.
To turn away his wrath, that he might not destroy them.

216 THE PSALMS. [cvi.

24 They also despised the pleasant land,
And believed not his word ;

25 But murmured in their tents,

And would not hearken to the voice of Jehovah.

26 Then he lifted up his hand against them,

And swore that he would make them fall in the wilderness ;

27 That he would overthrow their descendants among the

nations,
And scatter them in the lands.

28 They also gave themselves to the worship of Baal-peor,
And ate sacrifices offered to lifeless idols.

29 Thus they provoked his anger by their practices,
And a plague broke in upon them.

30 Then stood up Phinehas, and avenged the crime,
And the plague was stayed.

31 And this was counted to him for righteousness.
To all generations for ever.

32 They provoked him also at the waters of Meribah,
And evil befell Moses on their account.

33 For they provoked his spirit.

So that he spake inconsiderately with his lips.

34 They did not destroy the nations.
As Jehovah had commanded them.

35 They mingled themselves with the heathen,
And learned their practices.

36 They even worshipped their idols.
And thus they became to them a snare.

37 Their sons and their daughters they sacrificed to demons,

38 And shed the blood of the innocent,

The blood of their own sons and daughters.

cvi.] THE PSALMS. 217

Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan ;
And the land was polluted with blood.

39 Thus they defiled themselves with their works,
And played the harlot with their practices.

40 Then burned the anger of Jehovah against his people,
So that he abhorred his own inheritance.

41 And he gave them into the hand of the nations.
And they that hated them ruled over them.

42 Their enemies oppressed them,

And they were bowed down under their hand.

43 Many times did he deliver them,

But they provoked him by their devices.
And they were brought low for their iniquities.

44 Yet, when he heard their cries,
He regarded their affliction ;

45 He remembered his covenant with them,

And relented according to the greatness of his mercy,

46 And caused them to find pity
Among all that carried them captive.

47 Save us, O Jehovah, our God, and gather us from among

the nations.
That we may give thanks to thy holy name.
And glory in thy praise !

48 Blessed he Jehovah^ the God of Israel^
From everlasting to everlasting I

And let all the people say. Amen !
Praise ye Jehovah !

19

BOOK V

PSALM CVII.

The goodness of God to various classes of men. This psalm appears from
its contents to have been composed some time after the return from the
Babylonish captivity.

1 O GIVE thanks to the Lord, for he is good ;
For his mercy endureth for ever !

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say it,

Whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy ;

3 Whom he hath gathered from various lands.
From the east, the west, the north, and the south.

4 They were wandering in a solitary desert.
They found no way to a city to dwell in.

5 They were hungry and thirsty,
And their souls fainted within them.

6 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
And he delivered them out of their distress.

7 He led them in a straight way.

Till they came to a city where they might dwell.

8 O let them praise the Lord for his goodness.
For his wonderful works to the children of men !

9 For he satisfieth the thirsty,

And the hungry he filleth with good.

evil.] THE PSALMS. 219

10 They dwelt in darkness and the shadow of death,
Being bound in affliction and iron ;

11 Because they disobeyed the commands of God,
And contemned the will of the Most High ;

12 Whose hearts he brought down by hardship ;
Who fell down, and there was none to help.

13 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
And he saved them out of their distresses ;

14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And brake their bands asunder.

15 O let them praise the Lord for his goodness,
For his wonderful works to the children of men !

16 For he hath broken the gates of brass,
And cut the bars of iron asunder.

17 The foolish, because of their transgressions,
And because of their iniquities, were afflicted ;

18 They abhorred all kinds of food ;
They were near to the gates of death.

19 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
And he delivered them out of their distresses ;

20 He sent his word, and healed them.
And saved them from their destruction.

21 O let them praise the Lord for his goodness,

. For his wonderful works to the children of men !

22 Let them offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And declare his works with joy !

23 They who go down to the sea in ships.
And do business in great waters,

24 These see the works of the Lord,
And his wonders in the deep.

25 He commandeth, and raise th the stormy wind.
Which lifteth high the waves.

220 THE PSALMS» [cvii.

26 They mount up to the heavens,
They sink down again to the depths,
Their soul melteth with distress ;

27 They reel and stagger like a drunken man,
And all their skill is vain.

28 Then they cry to the Lord in their trouble.
And he saveth them out of their distresses ;

29 He turneth the storm into a calm,
And the waves are hushed ;

30 The mariners rejoice that they are still,
And he bringeth them to their desired haven.

31 O let them praise the Lord for his goodness,
For his wonderful works to the children of men !

32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people.
And praise him in the assembly of the elders !

33 He turneth rivers into a desert,
And water-springs into dry ground ;

34 A fruitful land into barrenness.

For the wickedness of them that dwell therein.

35 He turneth the desert into a lake of water,
And dry ground into water-springs ;

36 And there he causeth the hungry to dwell.
And they build a city for habitation ;

37 And sow fields and plant vineyards.
Which yield a fruitful increase.

38 He blesseth them, so that they multiply greatly,
And sufTereth not their cattle to decrease.

39 When they are diminished and brought low
By oppression, affliction, and sorrow,

40 He poureth contempt upon princes.

And causeth them to wander in a pathless wilderness ;

41 But he raiscth the poor from their affliction.
And increaseth their families like a flock.

cviii.J THE PSALMS. 221

42 The righteous see it and rejoice,
And all iniquity shutteth her mouth.

43 Whoso is wise, let him observe this.

And have regard to the loving-kindness of Jehovah !

PSALM CVIII.

This psalm is composed of parts of two other psalms ; namely, Ps. Ivii.
7-11, and Ps. Ix. 5-12. It has been conjectured that it was compiled
for some public occasion in the later period of the Jewish nation.

A psalm of David.

1 O God, my heart is strengthened !
I will sing and give thanks.

2 Awake, my soul ! awake, my psaltery and harp !
I will wake with the early dawn.

3 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the nations ;
I will sing to thee among the kingdoms !

4 For thy mercy reacheth to the heavens,
And thy truth above the clouds.

5 Exalt thyself, O God, above the heavens,
And thy glory above all the earth !

6 That thy beloved may be delivered.
Save with thy right hand, and answer me !

7 God promiseth in his holiness ; I will rejoice ;
I shall yet divide Shechem,

And measure out the valley of Succoth ;

8 Gilead shall be mine, and mine Manasseh ;
Ephraim shall be my helmet.

And Judah my sceptre.

9 Moab shall be my wash-bowl ;
Upon Edom shall I cast my shoe ;
I shall triumph over Philistia.

19*

222 THE PSALMS. [cix.

10 Who will bring me to the strong city ?
Who will lead me into Edom ?

11 Wilt not thou, O God, who didst forsake us.
Who didst not go forth with our armies ?

12 Give us thine aid in our distress.
For vain is the help of man !

13 Through God we shall do valiantly ;
For he will tread down our enemies.

PSALM CIX.

Prayer against enemies.
For the leader of the music. A jjsahn of David.

1 O God of my praise, be not silent !

2 For the mouths of the wicked and the deceitful are opened

against me ;
They speak against me with a lying tongue.

3 They assault me on every side with words of hatred ;
They fight against me without a cause.

4 For my love they are my adversaries,
Although I prayed for them.

5 They repay me evil for good.
And hatred for love.

6 Set thou a wicked man over him.

And let an adversary stand at his right hand !

7 When he is judged, may he be condemned.
And may his prayer be accounted a crime !

8 May his days be few.

And another take his office !

9 May his children be fatherless.
And his wife a widow !

cix.] THE PSALMS. 223

10 May his children be vagabonds and beggars,

And seek their bread far from their ruined dwellings !

11 May a creditor seize on all that he hath,
And may a stranger plunder his substance !

12 May there be none to show him compassion.
And none to pity his fatherless children !

13 May his posterity be cut off;

In the next generation may his name be blotted out !

14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered by the

Lord,
And may the sin of his mother never be blotted out !

15 May they be before the Lord continually ;

And may he cut off their memory from the earth !

16 Because he remembered not to show pity,
But persecuted the afflicted and the poor man,
And sought the death of the broken-hearted.

17 As he loved cursing, let it come upon him ;

As he delighted not in blessing, let it be far from him !

18 May he be clothed with cursing as with a garment ;
May it enter like water into his bowels.

And like oil into his bones !

19 May it be to him like the robe that covereth him.
Like the girdle with which he is constantly girded !

20 May this be from the Lord the recompense of mine adver-

saries.
And of them that speak evil against me !

21 But do thou, O Jehovah, my God, take part with me.
For thine own name's sake !

Great is thy mercy, O deliver me !

22 For I am afflicted and poor.

And my heart is wounded within me.

23 I am going, like a declining shadow ;
I am cast out as a locust.

224 THE PSALMS. [ex.

24 My knees are weak from fasting,
And my flesh is wasted away.

25 I am a reproach to my enemies ;

They gaze at me ; they shake their heads.

26 Help me, O Jehovah, my God !

O save me, according to thy mercy !

27 Let them know that this is thy hand,
That thou, O Lord, hast done it !

28 Let them curse, but do thou bless !

When they arise, let them be put to shame ;
But let thy servant rejoice !

29 May my enemies be clothed with ignominy ;

May they be covered with their shame, as with a mantle !

30 I will earnestly praise the Lord with my lips ;
In the midst of the multitude I will praise him.

31 For he standeth at the right hand of the poor,

To save him from those who would condemn him.

PSALM ex.

This psalm is commonly regarded as prophetic of the kingdom of Christ.
Many modern critics, however, supposing that Jesus, in appealing to this
psalm for the purpose of silencing the Jews, reasons ex concessis, i. e.
from premises conceded by his opponents, rather than from what was
true in itself, consider the psalm as an ode to a victorious king living in
the time of the author of the composition.

A psalm of David.

1 Jehovah said to my lord,
" Sit thou at my right hand.

Until I make thy foes thy footstool."

2 Jehovah will extend the sceptre of thy power from Zion ;
Thou shall rule in the midst of thine enemies !

cxi.J THE PSALMS. 225

3 Thy people shall be ready, when thou musterest thy

forces, in holy splendor ;
Thy youth shall come forth like dew from the womb of
the morning.

4 Jehovah hath sworn, and he will not repent :
" Thou art a priest for ever,

After the order of Melchisedeck ! "

5 The Lord is at thy right hand,

He shall crush kings in the day of his wrath.

6 He shall execute justice among the nations ;
He shall fill them with dead bodies.

He shall crush the heads of his enemies over many lands.

7 He shall drink of the brook in the way ;
Therefore shall he lift up his head.

PSALM CXL

Hymn of praise for God's goodness in his works and word.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

I will praise Jehovah with my whole heart,

In the society of the righteous, and in the congregation.

2 The works of the Lord are great.

Sought out by all who have pleasure in them.

3 His deeds are honorable and glorious.
And his righteousness endureth for ever.

4 He hath established a memorial of his wonders ;
The Lord is gracious and full of compassion.

5 He giveth meat to them that fear him ;
He is ever mindful of his covenant.

6 He showed his people the greatness of his works,
When he gave them the inheritance of the heathen.

226 THE PSALMS. [cxii.

7 The deeds of his hands are truth and justice ;
All his commandments are sure ;

8 They stand firm for ever and ever,
Being founded in truth and justice.

9 He sent redemption to his people ;
He established his covenant for ever ;
Holy and venerable is his name.

10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom ;

They who keep his commandments have a good under-
standing ;
His praise endureth for ever.

PSALM cxn.

The blessedness of the righteous man.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

Happy the man who feareth the Lord,
Who taketh delight in his commandments !

2 His posterity shall be mighty on the earth ;
The race of the righteous shall be blessed.

3 Wealth and riches shall be in his house ;
His righteousness shall endure for ever.

4 To the righteous shall arise light out of darkness ;

He is gracious and full of compassion and righteousness.

5 Happy the man who hath pity and lendeth ! -
He shall sustain his cause in judgment ;

6 Yea, he shall never stumble ;

The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.

7 He is not afraid of evil tidings ;

His heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

cxiii.] THE PSALMS. 227

8 His heart is firm ; he hath no fear,
Till he see his desire upon his enemies.

9 He hath scattered blessings ; he hath given to the poor ;
His righteousness shall endure for ever ;

His horn shall be exalted with honor.
10 The wicked shall see and be grieved ;

He shall gnash with his teeth and melt away ;
The desire of the wicked shall perish.

PSALM CXIII.

The condescending goodness of God.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

Praise, O ye servants of the Lord,
Praise the name of the Lord !

2 Blessed be the name of Jehovah
From this time forth, even for ever !

3 From the rising to the setting sun,
May the Lord's name be praised !

4 The Lord is high above all nations ;
His glory is above the heavens.

5 Who is like the Lord, our God,
That hath his abode on high,

6 Who yet stoopeth down to behold

What passeth in the heavens and on the earth ?

7 He raiseth the poor from the dust,

And exalteth the needy from the dunghill,

8 And setteth him among princes.
Even among the princes of his people.

9 He causeth the barren woman to dwell in her house,
And to be a joyful mother of children.

Praise ye the Lord !

228 THE PSALMS. [cxiv., cxv.

PSALM CXIV.

On the coming forth from Egypt, under the guidance of God.

1 When Israel came forth from Egypt,

The house of Jacob from a people of strange language,

2 Judah was his sanctuary,
And Israel his dominion.

3 The sea beheld, and fled ;
The Jordan turned back.

4 The mountains skipped like rams,
And the hills like lambs.

5 What aileth thee, O thou sea, that thou fleest ?
Thou, Jordan, that thou turnest back ?

6 Ye mountains, that ye skip like rams,
And ye hills like lambs ?

7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the God of Jacob ;

8 Who turned the rock into a standing lake.
And the flint into a fountain of water !

PSALM CXV.

Prayer that Jehovah would display his glory as the true God, by giving aid
to his people against the w^orshippers of idols.

1 Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us,
But unto thy name give glory.

For thy mercy, and thy truth's sake !

2 Why should the nations say,
" Where is now their God ? "

cxv.] THE PSALMS. 229

3 Our God is in the heavens ;
He doeth whatever he pleaseth.

4 Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men's hands ;

5 They have mouths, but they speak not ;
Eyes have they, but they see not ;

6 They have ears, but they hear not ;
Noses have they, but they smell not ;

7 They have hands, but they handle not ;
They have feet, but they walk not ;
Nor do they speak with their throats.

8 They that make them are like unto them ;
And so is every one that trusteth in them.

9 O Israel, trust thou in the Lord !
He is our help and our shield.

10 O house of Aaron, trust ye in the Lord !
He is our help and our shield.

11 Ye that fear the Lord trust in the Lord !
He is our help and our shield.

12 The Lord hath been mindful of us ; he will bless us ;
He will bless the house of Israel ;

He will bless the house of Aaron.

13 He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and

great.

14 The Lord will increase you more and more,
You and your children.

15 Blessed are ye of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

16 The highest heaven is the Lord's ;

But the earth he hath given to the sons of men.

17 The dead praise not the Lord ;
None who go down into silence !

20

230 THE PSALMS. [cxvi.

18 But we will bless the Lord,

From this time forth even for ever !
Praise ye the Lord !

PSALM CXVI.

Thanksgiving for deliverance from distress.

1 I REJOICE that the Lord hath heard my supplication,

2 That he hath inclined his ear to me and heard me ;
I will call upon him as long as I live.

3 The snares of death encompassed me,

And the pains of the underworld seized upon me ;
I found distress and sorrow.

4 Then called I upon the Lord :

0 Lord, deliver me !

5 Gracious is the Lord, and kind ;
Yea, our God is merciful.

6 The Lord preserveth the simple ;

1 was brought low, and he helped me,

7 Return, O my soul, to thy rest !

For Jehovah hath dealt kindly with thee.

8 For thou hast preserved me from death ;
Thou hast kept mine eyes from tears,
And my feet from falling !

9 I shall walk before the Lord,
In the land of the living.

10 I had trust, although I said,

" I am grievously afflicted ! "

11 I said in my distress,
" All men are liars."

cxvii.] THE PSALMS. 231

12 What shall I render to the Lord
For all his benefits to me ?

13 I will take the cup of salvation,
And call upon the name of the Lord ;

14 I will pay my vows to the Lord,
In the presence of all his people.

15 Precious in the eyes of the Lord

Is the life of his pious worshippers.

16 Hear, O Lord, for I am thy servant ;

I am thy servant, the son of thy handmaid !
Thou hast loosed my bonds.

17 I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving,
And will call upon the name of the Lord.

18 I will pay my vows to the Lord
In the presence of all his people,

19 In the courts of the house of the Lord,
In the midst of thee, O Jerusalem !
Praise ye the Lord !

PSALM CXVII.

A psalm of praise.

1 Praise the Lord, all ye nations !
Praise him, all ye people !

2 For great toward us hath been his kindness.

And the faithfulness of the Lord endureth for ever.
Praise ye the Lord !

2^ THE PSALMS. [cxviii.

PSALM CXVIII.

A psalm of thanksgiving and triumph for deliverance from danger and vic-
tory over enemies.

1 O GIVE thanks to the Lord, for he is good ;
For his goodness endure th for ever !

2 Let Israel now say,

His goodness endureth for ever !

3 Let the house of Aaron now say.
His goodness endureth for ever !

4 Let all who fear the Lord say,
His goodness endureth for ever !

5 I called upon the Lord in distress ;
He heard, and gave me deliverance.

6 The Lord is on my side, I will not fear ;
What can man do to me ?

7 The Lord is my helper ;

I shall see my desire upon my enemies.

8 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in man ;

9 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in princes.

10 All the nations beset me around ^

But in the name of the Lord I destroyed them.

11 They beset me on every side ;

But in the name of the Lord I destroyed them.

12 They beset me around like bees ;

They were quenched like the fire of thorns,
For in the name of the Lord I destroyed them.

cxviii.] THE PSALMS. 233

13 Thou didst assail me with violence to bring me down !
But the Lord was my support.

14 The Lord is my glory and my song ;
For to him I owe my salvation.

15 The voice of joy and salvation is in the habitations of the

righteous :
" The right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly ;

16 The right hand of the Lord is exalted ;

The right hand of the Lord doeth valiantly."

17 I shall not die, but live,

And declare the deeds of the Lord.

18 The Lord hath sorely chastened me,
But he hath not given me over to death.

19 Open to me the gates of righteousness,
That I may go in, and praise the Lord !

20 This is the gate of the Lord,
Through which the righteous enter.

21 I praise thee that thou hast heard me,
And hast been my salvation.

22 " The stone which the builders rejected
Is become the chief corner-stone.

23 This is the Lord's doing ;

It is marvellous in our eyes !

24 This is the day which the Lord hath made ;
Let us rejoice and be glad in it !

25 Hear, O Lord, and bless us !

Hear, O Lord, and send us prosperity ! "

26 " Blessed be he that cometh in the name of the Lord !
We bless you from the house of the Lord."

27 " Jehovah is God, he hath shone upon us ;

Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar ! "
20*

234 THE PSALMS. [cxix.

28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee ;
Thou art my God, and I will exalt thee !

29 O give thanks to the Lord, for he is kind,
For his goodness endureth for ever !

PSALM CXIX.

The excellence of the divine laws, and the happiness of those who observe
them. The aim of the poet seems to have been to present these two
ideas in every possible variety of expression.

1 Happy are they whose ways are pure.
Who walk in the law of the Lord !

2 Happy are they who observe his ordinances,
And seek him with their whole heart ;

3 Who also do no iniquity.
But walk in his ways !

4 Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.

5 O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes !

6 Then only shall I not be ashamed.

When I have respect to all thy commandments.

7 Then shall I praise thee with an upright heart,
When I shall have learned thy righteous laws.

8 I will keep thy statutes ;
Do not utterly forsake me !

9 How shall a young man keep his way pure ?
By taking heed to it according to thy word.

10 With my whole heart have I sought thee ;

O let me not wander from thy commandments !

11 Thy word have I hid in my heart,
That I might not sin against thee.

12 Blessed be thou, O Lord !
O teach me thy statutes !

cxix.] THE PSALMS. 235

13 With my lips do I declare

All the precepts of thy mouth.

14 In the way of thine ordinances I rejoice
As much as in the greatest riches.

15 I meditate on thy precepts,
And have respect unto thy ways.

16 I delight myself in thy statutes ;
I do not forget thy word.

17 Deal kindly with thy servant, that I may live,
And have regard to thy word !

18 Open thou mine eyes,

That I may behold the deep things of thy law !

19 I am a stranger in the earth ;

O hide not thy precepts from me !

20 My soul fainteth within me.

On account of her perpetual longing for thy laws.

21 Thou rebukest the proud, the accursed,
Who wander from thy commandments.

22 Remove from me reproach and contempt,
For I observe thine ordinances !

23 Princes sit and speak ag£^inst me.

But thy servant meditateth on thy statutes.

24 Thine ordinances are my delight.
Yea, they are my counsellors.

25 My soul is bowed down to the dust ;
O revive me, according to thy promise !

26 I have declared my ways, and thou hast heard me ;
Teach me thy statutes !

27 Make me to understand the way of thy precepts !
So will I meditate on thy wonderful works.

THE PSALMS. [cxix.

2S My soul melteth away for trouble ;
O lift me up according to thy promise !

29 Remove from me the way of falsehood,
And graciously grant me thy law !

30 I have chosen the way of truth,
And set thy statutes before me.

31 I cleave to thine ordinances ;

O Lord, let me not be put to shame !

32 I will run in the way of thy commandments,
When thou shalt enlarge my heart.

33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes,
That I may keep it to the end !

34 Give me understanding, that I may keep thy law.
That I may observe it with my whole heart !

35 Lead me in the path of thy commandments,
For in them I have my delight.

36 Incline my heart to thine ordinances.
And not to the love of gain !

37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity,
And quicken me in thy law !

38 Fulfil thy promise to thy servant.

Which thou hast made to him who feareth thee !

39 Turn away the reproach which I fear ;
For thy statutes are good.

40 Behold, I have longed for thy precepts ;
O quicken thou me, in thy righteousness !

41 Let thy mercies come to me, O Lord,
And thy help according to thy promise !

42 So shall I be able to answer him that reproacheth me ;
For I trust in thy promise.

cxix.] THE PSALMS. 237

43 O take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth ;
For I trust in thy judgments.

44 So shall I keep thy law continually,
For ever and ever.

45 I shall walk in a wide path,
For I seek thy precepts.

46 I will speak of thine ordinances before kings,
And will not be ashamed.

47 I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I love ;

48 I will lift up my hands to thy precepts, which I love ;
I will meditate on thy statutes.

49 Remember thy promise to thy servant,
With which thou hast caused me to hope !

50 This is my comfort in my affliction.
For thy promise reviveth me.

51 The proud have had me greatly in derision,
Yet have I not swerved from thy law.

52 I remember thy judgments of old, O Lord !
And I comfort myself.

53 Indignation burneth within me.

On account of the wicked who forsake thy law.

54 Thy statutes have been my song
In the house of my pilgrimage.

55 In the night, O Lord, I think of thy name.
And keep thy law !

56 This have I as my own,
That I keep thy precepts.

57 Thou art my portion, O Lord !

I have resolved that I will keep thy precepts.

58 I entreat thy favor with my whole heart ;

Be gracious unto me according to thy promise !

238 THE PSALMS. [cxix,

69 I think on my ways,

And turn my feet to thy statutes ;

60 I make haste, and delay not,
To keep thy commandments.

61 The snares of the wicked surround me ;
Yet do I not forget thy law.

62 At midnight I rise to give thanks to thee,
On account of thy righteous laws.

63 I am the companion of all who fear thee,
And who obey thy precepts.

64 The earth, O Lord, is full of thy goodness ;
O teach me thy statutes !

65 Thou dost bless thy servant, O Lord,
According to thy promise !

66 Teach me sound judgment and knowledge !
For I have faith in thy commandments.

67 Before I was afflicted, I went astray ;
But now I keep thy word.

68 Thou art good and doest good ;
O teach me thy statutes !

69 The proud forge lies against me,

But I keep thy precepts with my whole heart.

70 Their heart is senseless, like fat ;
But I delight in thy law.

71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted,
That I might learn thy statutes.

72 The law of thy mouth is better to me
Than thousands of gold and silver.

73 Thy hands have made and fashioned me ;

Give me understanding, that I may learn thy command-
ments !

cxix.] THE PSALMS. 239

74 They who fear thee shall see me and rejoice,
Because I trust in thy promise.

75 I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right,
And that in faithfulness thou hast afflicted me.

76 O let thy loving-kindness be my consolation.
According to thy promise to thy servant !

77 Let thy tender mercies come to me, that I may live !
For thy law is my delight.

78 May the proud be put to shame, who wrong me without

cause !
But I will meditate on thy precepts.

79 Let those who fear thee turn unto me.
And they that know thine ordinances !

80 May my heart be perfect in thy statutes.
That I may not be put to shame !

81 My soul fainteth for thy salvation ;
In thy promise do I trust.

82 Mine eyes fail with looking for thy promise ;
When, say I, wilt thou comfort me ?

83 Yea, I am become like a bottle in the smoke.
Yet do I not forget thy statutes.

84 How many are the days of thy servant }

When wilt thou execute judgment upon my persecutors ?

85 The proud have digged pits for me ;
They who do not regard thy law.

86 All thy commandments are faithful ; ^

They persecute me without cause ; help thou me !

87 They had almost consumed me from the earth ;
But I forsook not thy precepts.

88 Quicken me according to thy loving-kindness.
That I may keep the law of thy mouth !

240 THE PSALMS. [cxix.

89 Thy promise, O Lord, abideth for ever,
Being established like the heavens ;

90 Thy faithfulness endureth to all generations.
Thou hast established the earth, and it abideth.

91 They continue to this day according to their ordinances.
For they are all subject to thee.

92 Had not thy law been my delight,

I should have perished in my affliction.

93 I will never forget thy precepts ;
For by them thou revivest me.

94 I am thine, help me !
For I seek thy precepts.

95 The wicked lie in wait to destroy me.
But I will have regard to thine ordinances.

96 I have seen an end of all perfection ;
But thy law is exceeding broad.

97 O how I love thy law !
It is my daily meditation.

9S Thou hast made me wiser than my enemies by thy pre-
cepts.

For they are ever before me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers.

For thine ordinances are my meditation.

100 I have more wisdom than the ancients,
Because I keep thy precepts.

101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way.
That I might keep thy word.

102 I depart not from thy statutes,
For thou teachest me !

103 How sweet are thy words to my taste ; ,
Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth !

cxix.] THE PSALMS. 241

104 From thy precepts I learn wisdom ;
Therefore do I hate every false way.

105 Thy word is a lamp to my feet,
And a light to my path.

106 I have sworn, and I will perform it.
That I will keep thy righteous statutes.

107 I am exceedingly afflicted ;

Revive me, O Lord, according to thy word !

108 Accept, O Lord, the free-will offering of my mouth,
And teach me thy statutes !

109 My life is continually in my hand.
Yet do I not forget thy law.

110 The wicked lay snares for me,

Yet do I not go astray from thy precepts.

111 I have made thine ordinances my possession for ever ;
For they are the joy of my heart.

112 I have inclined my heart to perform thy statutes always.
Even to the end.

113 I hate impious men,
And thy law I do love.

114 Thou art my hiding-place and my shield ;
In thy promise I put my trust !

115 Depart from me, ye evil-doers.

For I will keep the commandments of my God !

116 Uphold me according to thy promise, that I may live ;
And let me not be ashamed of my hope !

117 Do thou hold me up, and I shall be safe.

And I will have respect to thy statutes continually !

118 Thou castest off all who depart from thy laws ;
For their deceit is vain.

21

242 THE PSALMS. [cxix.

119 Thou throwest away all the wicked of the earth, like dross ;
Therefore I love thine ordinances.

120 My flesh trembleth through fear of thee,
And I am afraid of thy judgments.

121 I have done justice and equity ;

0 leave me not to mine oppressors !

122 Be surety for thy servant for good ;
Let not the proud oppress me !

123 Mine eyes fail with looking for thy help,
And for thy gracious promise.

124 Deal with thy servant according to thy mercy,
And teach me thy statutes !

125 I am thy servant ; give me understanding,
That I may know thine ordinances !

126 It is time for thee, O Lord, to act!
For men have made void thy law.

127 Therefore I love thy commandments above gold.
Yea, above fine gold.

128 Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things

to be right ;

1 hate every false way.

129 Thine ordinances are wonderful ;
Therefore do I observe them.

130 The communication of thy precepts giveth light ;
It giveth understanding to the simple.

131 I open my mouth and pant ;

For I long for thy commandments.

132 Look thou upon me, and be gracious to me,

As thou usest to do to those who love thy name !

133 Establish my footsteps in thy word.

And let no iniquity have dominion over me !

cxix.] THE PSALMS. 243

134 Redeem me from the oppression of men,
So will I keep thy precepts !

135 Let thy face shine on thy servant,
And teach me thy statutes !

136 Rivers of water run down mine eyes.
Because men keep not thy law.

137 Righteous art thou, O Lord,
And just are thy laws !

138 The ordinances which thou hast made are just,
And altogether righteous.

139 My zeal consumeth me,

Because my enemies forget thy words.

140 Thy word is very pure.
Therefore thy servant loveth it.

141 I am of mean condition and despised ;
Yet do I not forget thy precepts.

142 Thy righteousness is everlasting righteousness,
And thy law is truth.

143 Trouble and anguish have taken hold of me.
But thy laws are my delight.

144 The justice of thine ordinances is everlasting ;
Give me understanding, and I shall live !

145 I cry with my whole heart ;

Hear me, O Lord, that I may keep thy statutes.

146 I cry unto thee ; save me.

That I may observe thine ordinances.

147 I come before the dawn with my prayer ;
I trust in thy promise !

148 My eyes anticipate the night-watches,
That I may meditate upon thy word,

244 THE PSALMS. [cxix.

149 Hear my voice according to thy loving-kindness ;
O Lord, revive me according to thy mercy !

150 They draw nigh, whose aim is mischief;
They are far from thy law ;

151 Yet thou art near, O Lord,

And all thy commandments are truth ! *

152 Long have I known concerning thine ordinances.
That thou hast founded them for ever.

153 Look upon my affliction, and deliver me !
For I do not forget thy law.

154 Maintain my cause, and redeem me ;
Revive me according to thy promise !

155 Safety is far from the wicked.
Because they seek not thy statutes.

156 Great is thy compassion, O Lord !
Revive thou me according to thine equity !

157 Many are my persecutors and my enemies.
Yet have I not departed from thine ordinances.

158 I behold the transgressors and am grieved,
Because they regard not thy word.

159 Behold, how I love thy precepts !

O Lord, revive me according to thy loving-kindness !

160 All thy words are true.

And thy righteous statutes endure for ever.

161 Princes have persecuted me without a cause ;
But my heart standeth in awe of thy word.

162 I rejoice in thy word.

As one that hath found great spoil.

163 I hate and abhor lying,
And thy law do I love.

cxiK.] THE PSALMS. 245

164 Seven times a day do I praise thee,
On account of thy righteous statutes.

165 Great peace have they who love thy law ;
They shall not fall into calamity.

166 Lord, I wait for thy help,
And keep thy commandments !

167 My soul observeth thine ordinances.
And loveth them exceedingly.

168 I keep thy precepts, and thine ordinances ;
For all my ways are before thee.

169 Let my prayer come near before thee, O Lord !
According to thy promise, give me understanding 1

170 Let my supplication come before thee ;
O deliver me according to thy promise !

171 My lips shall pour forth praise,
When thou hast taught me thy statutes.

172 My tongue shall sing of thy word ;
For all thy commandments are right.

173 Let thy hand be my help,

For I have chosen thy precepts !

174 I long for thine aid, O Lord,
And thy law is my delight.

175 Let me live, and I will praise thee ;
Let thy judgments help me !

176 I wander like a lost sheep ; seek thy servant !
For I do not forget thy commandments.

21*

246 THE PSALMS. [cxx., cxxi.

PSALM CXX.

Complaints concerning enemies, especially deceivers and calumniators.
A psalm of steps.

1 In my distress I call upon the Lord,
And he answereth me.

2 O the Lord, deliver me from lying lips,
From the deceitful tongue !

3 What profit to thee,

Or what advantage to thee, is thy false tongue ?

4 It is like the sharp arrows of the mighty ;
Like coals of the juniper.

5 Alas for me, that I sojourn in Mesech,
That I dwell in the tents of Kedar !

6 Too long have I dwelt
With them that hate peace !

7 I am for peace ; yet, when I speak for it.
They are for war.

PSALM CXXI.

Confidence of safety under the protection of God.
A psalm of steps.

1 I LIFT up mine eyes to the hills ;
Whence cometh my help ?

2 My help cometh from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

3 He will not suffer thy foot to stumble ;
Thy guardian doth not slumber.

cxxii.] THE PSALMS. 247

4 Behold ! the guardian of Israel
Doth neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord is thy guardian ;

The Lord is thy shade at thy right hand.

6 The sun shall not smite thee by day,
Nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will preserve thee from all evil ;
He will preserve thy life.

8 The Lord will preserve thee, when thou goest out and

when thou comest in,
From this time forth for ever.

PSALM CXXII.

Hymn of the Israelites on their journey to the festivals in Jerusalem.
A psalm of steps. By David.

1 I AM glad when they say to me.
Let us go up to the house of the Lord !

2 Soon shall our feet stand
Within thy gates, O Jerusalem !

3 Jerusalem, the rebuilt city !
The city that is joined together !

4 Thither the tribes go up.

The tribes of the Lord, according to the law of Israel,
To praise the name of the Lord.

5 There stand the thrones of judgment,
The thrones of the house of David.

6 Pray ye for the peace of Jerusalem !
May they prosper that love thee !

7 Peace be within thy walls.

And prosperity within thy palaces !

248 ^ THE PSALMS. [cxxiii., cxxiv.

8 For my brethren and companions' sake will I say,
Peace be within thee !

9 For the sake of the house of the Lord
Will I wish thee prosperity !

PSALM CXXIIL

Prayer for the deliverance of the Jewish nation from oppression.
Ji song of steps.

1 To thee do I lift up mine eyes,

O Thou who dwellest in the heavens !

2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their

masters.
And as the eyes of a maiden to the hand of her mistress,
So do our eyes look to Jehovah, our God,
Until he have pity upon us.

3 Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us.
For we are overwhelmed with contempt !

4 We sink under the scorn of the insolent,
And the contempt of the proud.

PSALM CXXIV.

Thanksgiving for deliverance from national calamity.
M psalm of steps. By David.

1 If the Lord had not been for us,
Now may Israel say.

cxxv.] THE PSALMS. 249

2 If the Lord had not been for us,
When men rose up against us,

3 Then had they swallowed us up alive.
When their wrath burned against us ;

4 Then the waters had overwhelmed us ;
The streams had gone over our heads ;

5 The proud waters had gone over our heads.

6 Blessed be the Lord,

Who hath not given us a prey to their jaws !

7 We have escaped, like a bird from the snare of the fowler ;
The snare is broken, and we have escaped.

8 Our help is with the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

PSALM CXXV.

Trust in Jehovah, as the protector of Israel.
A psalm of steps.

1 They who trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion,
Which cannot be moved, which standeth for ever.

2 As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
So the Lord is round about his people.
Henceforth, even for ever !

3 For the sceptre of the wicked shall not re.main upon the

portion of the righteous,
Lest the righteous put forth their hands to iniquity.

4 Do good, O Lord, to the good,
To them that are upright in heart !

6 But such as turn aside to their crooked ways.
May the Lord destroy them with the evil-doers !
Peace be to Israel !

250 THE PSALMS. [cxxvi., cxxvii.

PSALM CXXVI.

Prayer of those who had returned from captivity for the restoration of the
exiles remaining at Babylon.

A 'psalm of steps.

1 When Jehovah brought back the captives of Zion,
We were like them that dream ;

2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
And our tongue with singing.

Then said they among the nations,

" Jehovah hath done great things for them ! "

3 Yea, Jehovah hath done great things for us.
For which we are glad.

4 Bring back, O Lord, the rest of our captives.
Like streams in a dry land !

5 They who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.

6 He who goeth forth weeping, with his seed.
Shall return rejoicing, with his sheaves.

PSALM CXXVII.

Without the blessing of God nothing prospers.
A psalm of steps. By Solomon.

1 Except the Lord build the house.
The builders labor in vain ;
Except the Lord guard the city.
The watchman waketh in vain.

cxxviii.] THE PSALMS. 251

2 In vain ye rise up early, and go to rest late,
And eat the bread of care !

The same giveth he his beloved in sleep.

3 Behold ! children are an inheritance from the Lord,
And the fruit of the womb is his gift.

4 As arrows in the hand of the warrior,
So are the children of youth ;

6 Happy the man that hath his quiver full of them !
They shall not be put to shame ;
They shall destroy the enemies in the gate.

PSALM CXXVIII.

The advantages of piety. x

A psalm of steps.

1 Happy is he who feareth the Lord,
Who walketh in his ways !

2 Thou shalt eat the labor of thine hands ;

Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee !

3 Thy wife shall be like a fruitful vine within thy house ;
Thy children like olive-branches round about thy table.

4 Behold ! thus happy is the man who feareth the Lord !

5 Jehovah shall bless thee out of Zion,

And thou shalt see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the
days of thy life ;

6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children.
Peace be to Israel !

252 THE PSALMS. [cxxix., cxxx.

• PSALM CXXIX.

Grateful acknowledgment of past deliverances, and hopes of future aid
and support.

1 Much have they afflicted me from my youth,
May Israel now say ;

2 Much have they afflicted me from my youth,
Yet have they not prevailed against me.

3 The ploughers ploughed up my back ;
They made long their furrows ;

4 But Jehovah was righteous ;

He cut asunder the cords of the wicked.

5 Let all be driven back with shame
Who hate Zion !

6 Let them be as grass upon the house-tops,
Which withereth before one pulleth it up ;

7 With \vhich the mower fflleth not his hand,
Nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosom !

8 And they who pass by do not say,

" The blessing of the Lord be upon you !
We bless you in the name of the Lord ! "

PSALM CXXX.

Prayer for forgiveness and help for Israel.
A psalm of steps.

1 OtJT of deep waters do I cry to thee, O Lord !

2 O Lord, listen to my voice,

Let thine ears be attentive to my supplication !

cxxxi.] THE PSALMS. 253

3 If thou, Lord, shouldst treasure up transgressions,
Lord, who could stand ?

4 But with thee is forgiveness,
That thou mayst be feared.

5 I trust in the Lord ; my soul doth trust,
And in his promise do I confide.

6 My soul waiteth for the Lord

More than the watchman for the morning ;
Yea, more than the watchman for the morning !

7 O Israel, trust in the Lord !
For with the Lord is mercy,

And with him is plenteous redemption.

8 He will redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.

PSALM CXXXI.

Profession of humility and contentment.
A psalm of steps. Of David.

1 O Lord, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty ;
I aim at nothing which is too great or too high for me !

2 Yea, I have composed and quieted my soul.
Like a weaned child with regard to his mother ;
My soul is like a weaned child.

3 O Israel, trust in the Lord,
Henceforth, even for ever !

22

^4 THE PSALMS. [cxxxii.

PSALM CXXXII.

Prayer at the dedication of the temple. With verses 8 - 10, compare
2 Chron. vi. 41, 42,

A psalm of steps.

1 O Lord, remember David,
And all his affliction !

2 How he sware to Jehovah,

And vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob :

3 " I will not go into my house,
Nor lie down on my bed,

4 I will not give sleep to my eyes.
Nor slumber to my eyelids,

5 Until I find a place for Jehovah,

A habitation for the Mighty One of Jacob."

6 Behold, we heard of it at Ephratah ;
We found it in the fields of Jaar.

7 Let us go into his tabernacle ;
Let us worship at his footstool !

8 Arise, O Jehovah, into thy rest.
Thou, and the ark of thy glory !

9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness,
And thy holy ones shout for joy !

10 For the sake of thy servant David,
Reject not the prayer of thine anointed !

11 Jehovah hath sworn in truth unto David,
And he will not depart from it :

" The fruit of thy body will I set upon the throne.

12 If thy children keep my covenant.
And my statutes, which I teach them.
Their children also throughout all ages
Shall sit upon thy throne."

cxxxin.] THE PSALMS. 255

13 For Jehovah hath chosen Zion ;

He hath desired it as his dwelling-place.

14 " This is my resting-place for ever ;
Here will I dwell, for I have chosen it.

15 I will abundantly bless her provision ;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.

16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation,
And her holy ones shall shout aloud for joy.

17 There will I exalt the power of David ;

I have prepared a light for mine anointed.

18 His enemies will I clothe with shame,
And the crown shall glitter upon his head."

PSALM CXXXIII.

Praise of unity among brethren.
A psalm of steps. By David.

1 Behold, how good and pleasant it is
For brethren to dwell together in unity !

2 It is like precious perfume upon the head.
Which ran down upon the beard.

The beard of Aaron,

Which went down to the very border of his garments ;

3 Like the dew of Hermon,

Like that which descendeth upon the mountains of Zion.
For there Jehovah commandeth a blessing.
Even prosperity for ever.

256 THE PSALMS. [cxxxiv., cxxxv.

PSALM CXXXIV.

Exhortation to the servants of the temple to celebrate the praises of God.
A psalm of steps.

1 O PRAISE the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord,
Who stand in the house of the Lord by night !

2 Lift up your hands to the sanctuary,
And praise the Lord !

3 May the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Bless thee out of Zion !

PSALM CXXXV.

A psalm of praise to Jehovah.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

Praise ye the name of the Lord !
Praise him, O ye servants of the Lord !

2 Ye who stand in the house of the Lord,
In the courts of the house of our God !

3 Praise ye the Lord, for he is good ;
Praise his name, for he is kind !

4 For the Lord chose Jacob for himself,
And Israel for his own possession.

6 I know that the Lord is great ;

That our Lord is above all gods.
6 All that the Lord pleaseth, that he doeth,

In heaven and upon earth.

In the sea, and in all deeps.

cxxxv.j THE PSALMS. 257

7 He causeth the clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth ;
He maketh lightnings with the rain ;

He bringeth the wind from his store-houses.

8 He smote the first-born of Egypt,
Both of man and beast.

9 He sent signs and wonders into the midstof thee, O Egypt,
Against Pharaoh and all his servants !

10 He smote many nations,
And slew mighty kings ;

11 Sihon, the king of the Amorites,
And Og, the king of Bashan,
And all the kings of Canaan,

12 And gave their land for an inheritance,
For an inheritance to Israel, his people.

13 Thy name, O Lord, endureth for ever,
And thy glory to all generations !

14 For the Lord maintaineth the cause of his people ;
He hath compassion on his servants.

15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold.
The work of men's hands.

16 They have mouths, but they speak not ;
Eyes have they, but they see not.

17 They have ears, but they hear not ;
And there is no breath in their mouths.

18 They that make them are like them ;
So is every one that trusteth in them.

19 Praise the Lord, O house of Israel !
Praise the Lord, O house of Aaron !

20 Praise the Lord, O house of Levi !
Ye that fear the Lord, bless the Lord !

21 Praised be the Lord out of Zion,
He that dwelleth in Jerusalem !
Praise ye the Lord !

22*

258 THE PSALMS. [cxxxvi.

PSALM CXXXVL

A psalm of thanksgiving.

1 O GIVE thanks to the Lord, for he is kind ;
For his goodness endureth for ever \

2 O give thanks to the God of gods ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

3 O give thanks to the Lord of lords ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

4 To him who alone doeth great wonders ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

5 To him that made the heavens with wisdom ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

6 To him that spread out the earth upon the waters ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

7 To him that made the great lights ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

8 The sun to rule the day ;

For his goodness endureth for ever !

9 The moon and stars to rule the night ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

10 To him that smote the first-born of Egypt ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

11 And brought Israel from the midst of them ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

12 With a strong hand and an outstretched arm ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

13 To him who divided the Red sea into parts ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

cxxxvii.] THE PSALMS. 259

15 And overthrow Pharaoh and his host in the Red sea ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

16 To him who led his people through the wilderness ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

17 To him who smote great kings ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

18 And slew mighty kings ;

For his goodness endureth for ever !

19 Sihon, the king of the Amorites ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

20 And Og, the king of Bashan ;

For his goodness endureth for ever !

21 And gave their land for an inheritance ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

22 For an inheritance to Israel his servant ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

23 Who remembered us in our low estate ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

24 And redeemed us from our enemies ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

25 Who giveth food unto all ;

For his goodness endureth for ever !

26 O give thanks to the God of heaven ;
For his goodness endureth for ever !

PSALM CXXXVII.

The sadness of the captivity at Babylon.

1 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat dov/n, yea, we

wept.
When we remembered Zion.

2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the land.

260 THE PSALMS. [cxxxviii.

3 For there they that carried us away captive required of us

a song ;
They that wasted us required of us mirth :
" Sing us one of the songs of Zion ! "

4 How shall we sing Jehovah's song
In a strange land ?

6 If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget her cunning I

6 If I do not remember thee.

Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth !
If I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy !

7 Remember, 0 Lord, the conduct of the children of Edom
In the day of the calamity of Jerusalem !

Who said, " Raze it.

Raze it to the very foundations ! "

8 O daughter of Babylon, thou destroyer !
Happy be he who requiteth thee

As thou hast dealt with us !

9 Happy be he who taketh thy little ones
And dasheth them against the stones !

PSALM CXXXVIII.

Thanksgiving for deliverance.
Ji 'psalm of David.

1 1 WILL praise thee with my whole heart ;
Before the gods will I sing praise to thee ;

2 I will worship toward thy holy temple.

And jiraise thee for thy goodness and thy truth ;

For thou hast magnified thy promise above all thy praise !

cxxxix.] THE PSALMS. 261

3 In the day when I called, thou didst hear me ;
Thou didst strengthen me, and encourage my soul.

4 All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord,
When they hear the promises of thy mouth !

5 Yea, they: shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
For great is the glory of the Lord.

6 The Lord is high, yet he looketh upon the humble,
And the proud he knoweth from afar.

7 Though I walk through the midst of trouble, thou wilt re-

vive me ;
Thou wilt stretch forth thy hand against the wrath of my

enemies ;
Thou wilt save me by thy right hand !

8 The Lord will perform all things for me ;
Thy goodness, O Lord, endureth for ever ;
Forsake not the works of thine hands !

PSALM CXXXIX.

The universal presence and knowledge of God.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 O Lord, thou hast searched me and known me !

2 Thou knowest my resting and my rising ;
Thou understandest my thoughts from afar !

3 Thou seest my path and my lying down.
And art acquainted with all my ways !

4 Before the word is upon my tongue.
Behold, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether !

6 Thou besettest me behind and before,
And layest thine hand upon me !

262 THE PSALMS. [cxxxix.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me ;
It is high, I cannot attain to it !

7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit,

And whither shall I flee from thy presence ?

8 If I ascend into heaven, thou art there !

If I make my bed in the underworld, behold, thou art there !

9 If I take the wings of the morning,

And dwell in the remotest parts of the sea,

10 Even there shall thy hand lead me,
And thy right hand shall hold me !

11 If I say. Surely the darkness shall cover me ;
Even the night shall be light about me.

12 Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee,
But the night shineth as the day ;

The darkness and the light are both alike to thee !

13 For thou didst form my reins ;

Thou didst weave me in my mother's womb.

14 I will praise thee ; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made ;
Marvellous are thy works,

And this my soul knoweth full well !

15 My substance was not hidden from thee.
When I was made in secret,

When I was curiously wrought in the lower parts of the
earth.

16 Thine eyes did see my substance, while yet unformed.
And in thy book was every thing written ;

My days were appointed before one of them existed.

17 How precious to me are thy thoughts, O God !
How great is the sum of them !

18 If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand ;
When I awake, I am still with thee !

19 O that thou wouldst slay the wicked, O God !
Ye men of blood, depart from me !

cxL.] THE PSALMS. 263

20 For they speak evil against thee ;

Thine enemies are lifted up to utter impiety.

21 Do I not hate them that hate thee, O Lord ?
Do I not abhor them that rise up against thee ?

22 Yea, I hate them with perfect hatred ;
I count them mine enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart ;
Try me, and know my thoughts ;

24 And see if there be any idolatrous way in me,
And lead me in the ancient way !

PSALM CXL.

Prayer for aid against the wicked.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man ;
Save me from the man of violence !

2 Who meditate mischief in their hearts,
And daily stir up war.

3 They sharpen their tongues like a serpent ;
The poison of the adder is under their lips.

4 Defend me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked ;
Preserve me from men of violence.

Who have purposed to cause my fall !

5 The proud have hidden snares and cords for me ;
They have spread a net by the way-side ;
They have set gins for me.

6 I say to Jehovah, Thou -art my God ;

Hear, O Jehovah, the voice of my supplication !

7 O Lord, Jehovah, thou art my powerful aid ;
Thou shelterest my head in the day of battle.

264 THE PSALMS. [cxli.

8 Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked ;
Let not their devices prosper ;

Let them not exalt themselves !

9 As for the heads of those that encompass me,
Let the mischief of their own lips cover them !

10 Let burning coals fall upon them ;
May they be cast into the fire,

And into deep waters from which they shall never arise !

11 The slanderer shall not be established upon the earth ;
Evil shall pursue the violent man to destruction.

12 I know that Jehovah will maintain the cause of the afflicted,
And defend the rights of the poor.

13 Yea, the righteous shall praise thy name ;
The upright shall dwell in thy presence !

PSALM CXLL

A prayer for deliverance from enemies.
For the leader of the music. A psalm of David.

1 I CRY to thee, O Lord ! make haste unto me !
Give ear to my voice, when I cry unto thee !

2 Let my prayer come before thee as incense.

And the lifting up of my hands, as the evening sacrifice !

3 Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth ;
Keep the door of my lips !

4 Let not my heart incline to any evil thing ;

Let me not practise wickedness with the impious.
And let me not eat of their delicacies !

5 Let the righteous smite me ; it shall be a kindness ;
Let him reprove me, and it shall be oil for my head ;

cxLii.] THE PSALMS. 265

Let him repeat it, and my head shall not refuse it ;
But now I pray against their wickedness !

6 May their judges be hurled over the side of the rock !
Then let them hear my words, which are peaceful.

7 Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the underworld,
Like clods of earth and chips of wood upon the ground.

8 But to thee do my eyes look, O Lord Jehovah,
In thee is my trust ;

Let not my life be poured out !

9 Preserve me from the snares which they have laid for me,
And from the gins of evil-doers !

10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets together,
Whilst I make my escape !

PSALM CXLII.

Prayer for deliverance from enemies.
A psalm of David ; a prayer^ when he was in the cave.

1 I CRY unto the Lord with my voice ;

With my voice to the Lord do I make my supplication.

2 I pour out my complaint before him ;
I declare before him my distress.

3 When my spirit within me was overwhelmed.
Thou knewest my path !

In the way which I walk, they have hid a snare for me.

4 I look on my right hand, and behold.
But no man will know me ;
Refuge faileth me ;

No one careth for me.
23

266 THE PSALMS. [cxliii.

5 I cry to thee, O Lord !

I say, Thou art my refuge.

My portion in the land of the living.

6 Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low ;
Deliver me from my persecutors,

For they prevail against me !

7 Bring me out of prison,
That I may praise thy name !

The righteous shall gather around me.
When thou shalt show me thy favor.

PSALM CXLIIL

A prayer for deliverance from enemies.
A psalm of David.

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord ; give ear to my supplications !
In thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness !

2 Enter not into judgment with thy servant.

For before thee shall no man living be found righteous.

3 For my enemy pursueth me ;

He hath smitten me to the ground ;
He hath made me dwell in darkness.
As those that have been long dead.

4 My spirit within me is overwhelmed ;
My heart within me is desolate.

5 I remember the days of old ;
I meditate on all thy works ;

I muse on the deeds of thy hands.

6 I stretch forth my hands unto thee ;

My soul thirsteth for thee, like a parched land.

cxLiv.] THE PSALMS. 267

7 Hear me speedily, O Lord !
My spirit faileth ;

Hide not thy face from me,

Lest I become like those who go down to the pit !

8 Cause me to see thy loving-kindness speedily,
For in thee do I trust !

Make known' to me the way which I should take,
For to thee do I lift up my soul !

9 Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies ;
For in thee do I seek reiiige !

10 Teach me to do thy will.
For thou art my God !

Let thy good spirit lead me in a plain path !

11 Revive me, O Lord, for thy name's sake !

In thy righteousness, bring me out of my distress !

12 And in thy compassion, cut off mine enemies,
And destroy all that distress me !

For I am thy servant.

PSALM CXLIV.

Thanksgiving, prayer against enemies, and supplication for blessings upon
the people.

A psalm of David.

1 Blessed be Jehovah, my rock.
Who teacheth my hands to war,
And my fingers to fight !

2 He, who is'my benefactor and my fortress ;
My high tower, and my deliverer ;

My shield, in whom I seek refuge ;
Who subdueth the nations under me. .

268 THE PSALMS. [cxliv.

3 Lord, what is man, that thou art mindful of him,

Or the son of man, that thou makest account of him ?

4 Man is hke a vapor ;

His life is like a shadow that passeth away.

5 Bow thy heavens, O Lord, and come down ;
Touch the mountains, that they may smoke !

6 Cast forth lightnings, and scatter them ;
Shoot forth thine arrows, and destroy them !

7 Send forth thine hand from above ;
Rescue and save me from deep waters ;
From the hands of aliens,

8 Whose mouth uttereth deceit.

And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood !

9 I will sing to thee a new song, O God !

Upon a ten-stringed psaltery will I sing praise to thee ;

10 To thee, who givest salvation to kings,

Who deliverest David, thy servant, from the destructive
sword !

11 Rescue and deliver me from the hands of aliens.
Whose mouth uttereth deceit,

And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood !

12 That our sons may be as plants.
Grown up in their youth ;

Our daughters as well polished corner-pillars.
Like those of a palace !

13 That our gamers may be full,
Affording all kinds of store ;

That our sheep may bring forth thousands '
And ten thousands in our streets ;

14 That our cattle may be fruitful ;

That there be no breaking in, nor going out,
And no outcry in our streets ;

cxLv.] THE PSALMS. 269

15 Happy the people that is in such a state !
Yea, happy the people whose God is Jehovah !

PSALM CXLV.

Praise to God for his righteous and merciful government and kind provi-
dence.

A song of praise. By David.

1 I WILL extol thee, my God, my King !
I will praise thy name for ever and ever !

2 Every day will I bless thee,

And praise thy name for ever and ever !

3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised ;
Y^a, his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall praise thy works to another.
And shall declare thy mighty deeds.

6 I will speak of the glorious splendor of thy majesty,
And of thy wonderful works.

6 Men shall speak of the might of thy terrible deeds.
And I will declare thy greatness ;

7 They shall proclaim the praise of thy great goodness,
And sing of thy bounty.

8 The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion,
Slow to anger, and rich in mercy.

9 Jehovah is good to all.

And his tender mercies are over all his works.

10 All thy works praise thee, O Lord,
And thy servants bless thee !

11 They speak of the glory of thy kingdom,
And talk of thy power ;

23*

27ft THE PSALMS. [cxlvi.

12 To make known to the sons of men thy mighty deeds,
And the glorious majesty of thy kingdom.

13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

And thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.

14 The Lord upholdeth all that fall.

And raiseth up all that are bowed down.

15 The eyes of all wait upon thee.

And thou givest them their food in due season ;

16 Thou openest thine hand,

And satisfiest the desire of every living thing.

17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways.
And merciful in all his works.

18 The Lord is nigh to all that call upon him.
To all that call upon him in truth.

19 He fulfilleth the desire of them that fear him ;
He heareth their cry, and helpeth them.

20 The Lord preserveth all that love him ;
But all the wicked he will destroy.

21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord ;

Let all men bless his holy name for ever and ever !

PSALM CXLVI.

The justice and mercy of God.

1 Praise ye the Lord !
Praise the Lord, O my soul !

2 I will praise the Lord, as long as I live ;

I will sing praises to my God, while I have my being.

3 Put not your trust in princes,

In the son of man, in whom is no help !

4 His breath goeth forth ; he returneth to the dust ;
In that very day his designs perish.

cxLVii.] THE PSALMS. 271

5 Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help ;
Whose hope is in the Lord, his God !

6 He made heaven and earth,
The sea, and all that is therein ;
He keepeth truth for ever.

7 He maintaineth the cause of the oppressed ;
He giveth food to the hungry ;

The Lord setteth free the prisoners.

8 The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind ;
The Lord raiseth them that are bowed down ;
The Lord loveth the righteous.

9 The Lord defendeth the alien ;

He relieveth the fatherless and the widow ;
But the way of the wicked he maketh crooked.
10 The Lord shall reign for ever,

Thy God, O Zion, to all generations !
Praise ye the Lord !

PSALM CXLVIL

The power and goodness of God, and his peculiar favor to Israel.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

For it is good to sing praises to our God ;
For praise is pleasant and becoming.

2 The Lord rebuildeth Jerusalem ;

He gathereth together the exiles of Israel.

3 He healeth the brolcen in heart.
And bindeth up their wounds.

4 He counteth the number of the stars ;
He calleth them all by their names.

5 Great is our Lord, and mighty in power ;
His understanding is infinite.

272 THE PSALMS. [cxlvii.

6 The Lord lifteth up the lowly ;

He casteth the wicked down to the ground.

7 Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving ;
Sing praises to our God upon the harp !

8 He covereth the heavens with clouds ;
He prepareth rain for the earth ;

He causeth grass to grow upon the mountains ;

9 He giveth to the beast his food,

And to the young ravens, that cry to him.

10 He delighteth not in the strength of the horse.
He taketh not pleasure in the feet of men.

11 The Lord taketh pleasure in those who fear him,
In those who trust in his mercy.

12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem !
Praise thy God, O Zion !

13 For he hath strengthened the bars of thy gates ;
He hath blessed thy children within thee.

14 He maketh peace in thy borders.

And satisfieth thee with the finest of the wheat.

15 He sendeth forth his command to the earth ;
His word runneth very swiftly.

16 He giveth snow like wool.

And scattereth the hoar-frost like ashes.

17 He casteth forth his ice like morsels ;
Who can stand before his cold .?

18 He sendeth forth his word and mclteth them ;
He maketh his wind to rise, and the waters flow.

19 He publishcth his word to Jacob,
His statutes and laws to Israel.

20 He hath dealt in this manner with no other nation ;
No other nation hath known his statutes.

Praise ye the Lord !

cxLViii.] THE PSALMS. 273

PSALM CXLVIII.

Invocation of the heavens and the earth to praise the Lord,

1 Praise ye the Lord !

Praise the Lord from the heavens !
Praise him in the heights !

2 Praise him, all ye his angels !
Praise him, all ye his hosts !

3 Praise ye him, sun and moon !
Praise him, all ye stars of light !

4 Praise Jiim, ye highest heavens !

Ye waters, that are above the heavens !

5 Let them praise the name of the Lord ;
For he commanded, and they were created.

6 He hath also established them for ever ;

He hath given them a law, which they do not transgress.

7 Praise the Lord on the earth,
Ye sea-monsters, and all deeps !

8 Fire and hail, snow and vapor.
Thou tempest, that fulfiUest his word !

9 Ye mountains, and all hills !
Fruit-trees, and all cedars !

10 Ye wild beasts, and all cattle !

Ye creeping things, and winged birds !

11 Ye kings, and all people.

Princes, and all judges of the earth !

12 Young men and maidens.
Old men and children !

13 Let them praise the name of the Lord !
For his name alone is exalted ;

His glory is above the earth and heavens.

274 THE PSALMS. [cxlix.

14 He exalteth the power of his people,
The glory of all his servants,
The children of Israel, the people near to him.
Praise ye the Lord !

PSALM CXLIX.

Praise to God for national blessings, especially for success against foreign
enemies.

1 Praise ye the Lord !

Sing unto the Lord a new song !

His praise in the assembly of his worshippers !

2 Let Israel rejoice in him that made him ;
Let the sons of Zion be joyful in their king !

3 Let them praise his name in the dance ;

Let them praise him with the timbrel and harp !

4 For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people ;
He will beautify the distressed with salvation.

5 Let the pious rejoice in their glory,
Let them shout for joy upon their beds !

6 Let the praises of God be in their mouth,
And a two-edged sword in their hand,

7 To execute vengeance upon the nations.
And punishment upon the people !

8 To bind their kings with chains.
And their nobles with fetters of iron ;

9 To execute upon them the sentence which is written ;
Such honor have all the pious.

Praise ye the Lord !

CL.] THE PSALMS. 275

PSALM CL.

Exhortation to praise God.

1 Praise ye the Lord !
Praise God in his sanctuary !
Praise him in his glorious firmament !

2 Praise him for his mighty deeds !

Praise him according to his excellent greatness !

3 Praise him with the sound of trumpets !
Praise him with the psaltery and harp !

4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance !
Praise him with stringed instruments and pipes !

5 Praise him with the clear-sounding cymbals !
Praise him with the high-sounding cymbals !

6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord !
Praise ye the Lord !

NOTES

24

NOTES

Ps. I.

This psalm sets forth in vivid and picturesque description the
happiness of the righteous and the misery of the wicked. It is
quite a probable supposition, that it was prefixed by one of the com-
pilers of the Psalms, see p. 27, &c., as an introduction to his collec-
tion. This may be the reason, that, in some manuscripts, it seema
not to have been numbered with the other psalms, and in others to
have been united with the second psalm.

The promises of the Jewish religion, limited as they are to the
present world, are to be regarded as statements of what is generally
true, or of what is the tendency of piety and virtue, other things
being equal. Our Saviour, in his instructions, makes much less
account of outward good than the Jewish writers. He had meat to
give, as well as to eat, which the world knew not of He promises
his followers something better than length of days, or riches and
honors; a treasure which the world can neither give nor take away,
namely, riches of the soul, a heart at peace with itself and with
God, a consciousness of the divine favor, and a hope extending into
eternity, — in a word, spiritual and everlasting life.

3. — like a tree. In a country where water was scarce and the
trees and herbs were often parched with heat, this image was more
striking than it can appear to us, who live in a climate where the
trees are usually green, wherever they stand. See Bush's Illus-
trations, ad loc.

5. — shall not stand. This may be understood in a general
sense, that the wicked shall fall into ruin, or in a legal sense, that

280 NOTES.

they shall fail in their cause. — in judgment : i. e. when they are
judged by the Almighty. The allusion is to those signal seasons
of retribution with which divine Providence visits evil-doers in this
world. Comp. Is. iii. 14, Mai. iii. 5, Job xix. 29. — in the assem-
bly of the just : i. e. in the assembly of the righteous Israelites, who
are preserved and blessed by the Almighty, the wicked shall not
be found, having been separated therefrom by the just judgments
of God. Comp. Is. i. 24-28, iv. 2-6.

6. — knoweth : i. e. he is well acquainted with the righteous,
and cares for them.

Ps. II.

This psalm purports to have been composed by a king, soon after
his inauguration to his office. He is full of pious confidence in
God, as having appointed him to his high destiny. He feels him-
self to be the earthly representative of Jehovah, and regards the at-
tempts of subject nations to throw oif his yoke as offences against
his God. The sentiments which he expresses are not very differ-
ent from those which have been entertained by modern kings and
their supporters, though the language is peculiar to a king of Israel,
an Eastern monarch of a peculiar religious faith. The young king
feels sure that the attempts of his enemies, being offences against
Jehovah, as well as himself, the anointed vicegerent of Jehovah,
will be frustrated, and that he shall be signally victorious over them
all. He earnestly admonishes the insurgents to desist from their
rebellious attempts, and put themselves under the protection of
Jehovah by paying homage to his earthly representative, before they
should feel the effects of his anger.

The language of the psalm in verse seventh evidently implies
that the writer of the psalm is the king who is the subject of it,
whether it be David or some other Jewish king. The rebellion
described in it is also represented as existing in the time of the
writer. It is only in a typical sense, therefore, that Christ and his
kingdom can be regarded as the subject of the psalm. This has
been the general opinion of the Christian church. Thus, the ver-
sion of the Scriptures published by Barker in 1606, before the com-
mon version, has for the caption of this psalm, — "The prophet
David rejoiceth that, notwithstanding his enemies' rage, yet God
will continue his kingdom for ever, and advance it even to the end
of the world, and therefore exhorteth kings and rulers that they

NOTES. 281

would humbly submit themselves under God's yoke, because it is
in vain to resist God, Herein is figured Christ's kingdom." But
there is no reason for supposing that the writer had in view any
kingdom but his own. See Introduction, p. 9.

2. — Against Jehovah. The government of the Israelites was
theocratic. Jehovah was regarded as king of the Jewish state, so
that the nations which combined against it are represented as com-
bining against Jehovah. Thus, in 1 Chron. xxix. 23, Solomon is
said to have sat upon the throne of Jehovah, that is, the throne of
Israel. — his anointed king. This epithet v^^as appropriate to
every king of Israel, as receiving from Jehovah the power and au-
thority, of which consecration by pouring oil upon the head was the
outward symbol.

4. — will laugh. This expression is designed to represent in a
lively manner the futility of exertions made in opposition to the
will of Jehovah.

7. This verse expresses the confidence of the writer, who was
king of Israel, that he was the special care of Jehovah as king.
— Thou art my son : i. e. Thou art my favored king, dear to me
as a son. The term son of God is used in the Scriptures in
different senses, sometimes denoting that one is the object of special
love to God, as a son is to a father ; see Ex. iv. 22 ; sometimes de-
noting a moral resemblance to the Deity, as a son resembles his
father; thus Christians are called sons of God; and sometimes the
expression denotes resemblance to God in power and dominion ;
thus the term is applied to kings. Sometimes two of these senses
are united. In this verse the expression seems to be one both of
endearment and of office. — begotten thee : i. e. made thee my
favored king. Comp. Ps. Ixxxix. 26, 27, 2 Sam. vii. 14.

8. — ends of the earth. A hyperbolical expression, denoting
the most distant lands. •

11. Be subject to Jehovah : i. e. in a political sense, by submitting
to the king of Israel, his vicegerent. See the note on ver. 2.

12. Kiss the son. Give the sign of political subjection and hom-
age to the king of Israel. See 1 Sam. x. 1. — lest he be angry :
i. e. lest Jehovah be angry ; the pronoun here referring to the more
distant antecedent.

24*

282 NOTES

Ps. III.

The subject of this psalm is a pious man in eminent station, prob-
ably king David, surrounded by enemies who regarded his down-
fall as certain. But he has confidence in the protection of Jehovah,
and prays to him as one who can and will deliver him. The
superscription of this psalm assigns it to David, and mentions the
occasion on vv^hich it was composed, namely, his flight from his re-
bellious son Absalom. If this be correct, it is singular that there
should be in the psalm no allusion to the feelings which must have
agitated the royal parent's heart, on being compelled to flee for his
life from his own son.

2. — no help, &c. : i. e. it is all over with him ; God will not
interfere to save him.

3. — My glory : the cause or vindicator of my glory and great-
ness. — lifter up of my head. The image may be drawn from a
person sinking in deep waters, or from one whose head is bowed
down and his eyes fixed on the ground in affliction.

4. — with my voice : i. e. probably, with my whole voice, ear-
nestly or aloud.

7. — smitest the cheek, &c. Images drawn from the slaying of
a wild beast.

Ps. IV.

The occasion of this psalm was similar to that of the last. On
account of verse eighth, some suppose it to have been composed on
ihe evening of the day when the preceding psalm was sung.

1. — O God of my righteousness : i. e. vindicator of my right-
eous cause.

2. — dishonor my dignity : i. e. my royal dignity by your con-
spiracy and rebellion. — seek disappointment: i. e. How long will
ye seek ends which will prove vain and be sure to disappoint you?
Comp. Ps. vii. 14.

4. — upon your beds : in the season and place for independent
reflection. — desist : i. e. from your unrighteous or rebellious
undertakings.

5. Offer righteous sacrifices : i. e. Think not to please God by
sacrifices offered witiiout pure and pious intentions. Or, Offer sac-
rifices which are due.

NOTES.

283

6. — JVko will skoiOj &c. : i. e. Even many of my friends are
discouraged, and long for the least bright interval of success.

7. — corn and wine J &c. Is. ix. 3. "They rejoice before thee
with the joy of harvest."

Ps. V.

3. In the morning, &c. These words, being repeated in the par-
allel line, are probably to be understood as referring, not to a cus-
tomary time of prayer, but to the earnestness with which the writer
called upon the Deity, and the speedy aid which he hoped to ob-
tain. See Ps. Ixxxviii. 13.

4. — dwelleth not, &c. : i. e. as a guest, or friend ; i. e. he en-
joys not thy favor and protection. Comp. Ps. xv. 1, Ixi. 4.

5. — stand in thy sight : i. e. they find no favor with thee, as
explained by the parallel line, and by the preceding verse.

8. — thy righteousness: i. e. that which thou requirest, which
is pleasing to thee. — because of mine enemies : i. e. because my
enemies study to ensnare me. Comp. Jer. xx. 10.

9. — Their heart : literally, inward part ; used to denote the
seat of the feelings, intentions, &c. Ps. xlix. 11, Ixi v. 6. — an
open sepulchre : an image of destruction ; because, when a sepul-
chre is open, it is for the purpose of receiving a person into it.
Possibly the danger of falling into an opened sepulchre may be re-
ferred to.

10. — Cast them out : i. e. Destroy them from the congregation
of thy people, who are favored and blessed by thee. Comp. Ps. i. 5.
— For against thee, &c. : i. e. by rebelling against the king of thine
appointment.

Ps. VI.

This psalm seems to contain nothing which indicates the occa-
sion on which it was composed. If it be a composition of David,
it may be referred to his situation in his flight from his son Absa-
lom as well as to any which the Jewish history records.

1. — not in thine anger : i. e. in measure, with kindness and
moderation.

3. — how long ; i. e. wilt thou be angry; or how long wilt

thou delay to help me ? The incompleteness of the sentence was
designed to be expressive of emotion.

284 NOTES.

5. For in death^ &c. The poet mentions as a reason why his
life should be spared, that in the regions of the dead he should
have no opportunity or ability to praise God. The ancient He-
brews do not appear to have attained to faith in a desirable immor-
tality after death. They supposed that the disembodied spirits of
the righteous and wicked alike went to a dark place under ground,
called Sheol, where they existed in a half-conscious, thoughtless,
inactive condition. See the New Translation of Job, p. 123.

6. — to swim : i. e. with tears. A hyperbolical expression to
denote the depth of his grief

8. Depart, &c. Having made his supplication to the Deity, the
poet, after a pause, breaks forth into the language of hope and
triumph.

Ps. VII.

This psalm contains the prayer of a persecuted person against his
enemies, especially against one enemy who had uttered gross
calumny against him. The inscription of the psalm sets forth that
it was occasioned by the calumnies of a certain Cush, a Benjamite.
There is no mention in the Scripture history of such a person ; but
it is probable that he was one of the courtiers of Saul, who, know-
ing the hatred of his master towards David, had pretended to be
David's friend in order the more effectually to secure his ruin by
his calumnies.

This psalm is called a Shiggaion of David. That the term de-
notes a particular species of psalm is evident. But what it is, is
altogether uncertain. See p. 26.

3. — If I have done this : i. e. which my enemy or the courtiers
of Saul lay to my charge. See 1 Sam. xxiv. 10, xxvi. 9-11.

7. — thy throne : the lofty judgment-seat of Jehovah upon
Mount Zion seems to be denoted. The judgment which God ad-
ministers is scenically represented in images borrowed from the
circumstances of Eastern tribunals, which were usually held in the
midst of large assemblies.

10. My shield, Sec. : i. e. God is, as it were, the shield-bearer of
the righteous^ he defends them.

11. — ever angry, &c. : i.e. though he may seem to overlook
their wickedness, yet he in fact is preparing for them punishment,
as is set forth in ver. 12, 13.

12. If he do not desist : i. e. If the wicked man do not desist
from his purpose. — He sharpeneth : i. e. God sharpeneth.

NOTES. 285

13. — burning arrows : i. e. lightning.

14. — disappointment : or delusion, that which is false to one's
expectations.

Ps. VIII.

It is a very plausible supposition, that this psalm was composed
by David while in the employment of a shepherd, before he came
into the sphere of human passions and regal cares. The images
which it contains are drawn from the starry heavens, which in his
nightly watches he had so often contemplated, and from the herds
and flocks which were his daily care.

The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews appears to apply this
psalm to the Messiah j but he could do it only in the mystical or
allegorical sense. David is evidently speaking, not of any particu-
lar man, but of mankind in general, in distinction from the glorious
works above them and the inferior animals below them.

1. — TIiou hast setj &c. : otherwise. Set thou, &c.

2. — babes and sucklings. This phrase is supposed by most
modern critics to refer to literal babes and sucklings, the glory of
God being illustrated by the manner in which infants draw their
nourishment from the breast ; or by their childish prattle, and the
curious questions which they sometimes propose. It appears to me
that the words, being used in connection with enemy and avenger,
are rather used in a figurative sense, as when our Saviour says, —
" Having hidden these things from the wise and prudent, thou hast
revealed them to babes." Matt. xi. 25. They are terms of hu-
mility or disparagement in reference to man ; perhaps such men as
the author of the psalm, who were so highly blessed as to have
reason to praise God, or who were gifted with poetic inspiration so
as to be able to celebrate worthily his high praises.

5. — than God. This is the usual meaning of the term, and is
best suited to the connection. It is so rendered in some of the
English versions, previous to the common version. The expression
probably refers particularly to man's sovereignty over the animal
creation.

6. — all things under his feet. The connection evidently limits
this expression to the lower animals, enumerated in the following
lines. Roberts observes that the expression is a common one in
Hindostan. Thus they say, — " Ah ! a mighty king was he ; all
things were under his feet."

286 NOTES.

Pa. IX.

This psalm appears to be an ode of triumph and thanksgiving on
account of a victory, with prayers for continued aid. It evidently
has reference to foreign enemies of the whole Jewish nation. It
may have been composed after the wars mentioned in 2 Sam.
eh. viii., or it may have had an occasion not recorded in the Jewish
annals.

To the Benites : or To Ben; the name of an individual.

1. — marvellous works : namely, such as are mentioned in
verses 3 and 4.

3. — at thy presence : i. e. because thou wert present, aiding me
and destroying them.

4. — upon the throne: i. e. the seat of judgment,

6. — Their memory ^ &c. This is a hyperbolical expression,
denoting the completeness of the downfall of David's enemies.

12. — avenger of blood : i. e. of the blood of his servants and
worshippers, shed by their enemies.

13. — gates of death : i. e. of Sheol, conceived of as a strong
palace under ground, with gates and bars ; a conception founded on
the idea, that no return from the habitation of the dead is possible,
Comp. Job xxxviii. 17, Is. xxxviii. 10.

14. — in the gates of the daughter of Zion. In the gates of
cities the great multitude used to assemble. By a peculiar idiom of
the Hebrew and Syriac languages, the daughter of a city means its
inhabitants. Thus, daughter of Tyre denotes the Tyrians, Ps, xlv,
12 J daughter of Jerusalem^ the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Is. xxxvii.
22 ; daughter of my people^ my countrymen, Is, xxii. 4, Jer. iv. 11,
ix. 7, The city itself, in reference to the inhabitants personified as
a virgin, is the mother city. See 2 Sam. xx. 19, Gal. iv. 26. See
Gesen. Heb. Lex. on n^.

15. The answer to his prayer is now described in the ruin of his
enemies.

16. At the end of this verse occur the words Higgaion! Selah !
the meaning of which probably is. Instrumental music! Pause ! i. e.
Let the singers pause, and the instrumental music strike up,

17. — into the underworld : i, e. they shall turn back and flee
from their enemies, till they are destroyed, or go down into Sheol,
the receptacle of all the dead.

NOTES. 287

Ps. X.

In the Septuagint, and some other ancient versions, this psalm
forms the concluding part of the last. But the subject of it seems
to be different. Ps. ix. is a song of triumph, Ps, x. one of complaint
and distress. It seems to have been occasioned by the incursions
of foreign enemies into the land of Israel. See ver. 16 and 18.

1. — afar off : God is said to stand afar off, and to hide himself
when he does not give his aid. On the other hand, he is said to
be with a person or a people, when he aids or delivers them.

3. — boasteth of his heart's desire. The meaning may be, that
he succeeds in obtaining all that he desires, or that he boasts of
the success of his evil plans.

4. — He careth not: i. e. God careth not.

5. — far from him : i. e. he thinks not of them.

13. Wherefore doth the wicked, &c. : i. e. Why dost thou, by suf-
fering the wicked to go unpunished, give him occasion to contemn
Ihee ?

14. — markest it upon thy hand: i. e. for the purpose of re-
membering it. Thus, Isaiah xlix. 16, — " Behold, I have graven thee
on the palms of my hands ; thy walls are ever before my eyes."
See also Maundrell's Travels, p. 126, Amer. edit.

15. — Seek out^ &c. The Hebrews expressed the destruction
of a thing by the expression to seek and not find it. Job vii. 21, Is.
xli. 12.

Ps. XI.

Of the occasions recorded in the Scriptures on which David
might have composed this psalm, the most probable seems to be his
persecution by Saul. But as the psalm is not very appropriate to
that occasion, it may have been written by David or some other
poet on some occasion which is not recorded.

In opposition to the timid counsels of dejected friends, who rep-
resented his affairs as desperate, the poet expresses a sublime confi-
dence in the aid which God would afford to the righteous cause, as
the omniscient governor of men, the defender of the righteous and
the punisher of the wicked.

The abruptness with which the third verse commences has a fine
effect, and places in a strong light the thought, that in the most

288 NOTES.

discouraging circumstances man should not despair, seeing there is
a righteous government in the heavens.

2. — bend their hoto, &c. Observe the continuance of the fig-
ure draw^n from the bird flying away before the archer, ver. 1.

3. If the pillars he broken down : i. e, the distinguished sup-
porters of what is right in a state, firm and true patriots. Comp.
Is. xix. 10 : —

" The pillars of the land are cast down,
And all who labor for hire are grieved in heart."

— can the righteous do: i. e. what else can he do, but to endeavour
to escape ?

Q. — burning wind : referring to the wind Samuin, on which
see the note on Job iii. 5, or Robinson's Calmet, Art. Wind.

— portion of their ciip. It is a favorite mode of representing pun-
ishment among the Hebrews, that the wicked shall be made to drink
it. See Job xx. 23, Ps. Ixxv. 8.

7. — see his face : i. e. enjoy his favor. When God withholds
his favor, he is said to hide his face. Comp. Ps. xvii. 15.

Ps. XJI.

This psalm is one of complaint on account of the degeneracy of
the times, especially of the efforts made to weaken just authority
by calumny and treachery. If the psalm be a production of David,
it may be referred to the time of the rebellion of Absalom. Others
refer it to the persecution of David by Saul and his courtiers.

4. — With our tongues, &c. : i. e. By uttering calumnies against
the rulers, and deceiving the people.

6. T^ie words of the Lord, &c. This refers to the promises of
Jehovah, such as that in the preceding verse.

8. — the vilest of men : otherwise, they who are a terror to men.

Ps. XIII.

The poet complains of being forgotten by Jehovah, looks to him
for aid, and by the exercise of devotion attains to peace and confi-
dence. The psalm may be referred to the time of David's perse-
cution by Saul. Some of the Jewish commentators suppose the

NOTES. 289

subject of the psalm to be the whole exiled Jewish people per-
sonified.

3. — Enlighten my eyes. When a person is in a faint and dying
condition, the sight seems to go from his eyes. Hence, the phrase
Enlighten my eyes means, Restore me from my faint and languishing
condition. So in 1 Sam. xiv. 27, " He put forth the end of the rod
that was in his hand, and dipped it in an honeycomb, and put his
hand to his mouth ; and his eyes were enUghtcjied.'^ Comp. Ezra
ix. 8, Ps. xix. 8.

Ps. XIV.

In this psalm, a Hebrew poet, living in exile with his country-
men, wiio experienced harsh treatment from their enemies, brings
his complaint to God respecting the wickedness of men. In his
melancholy state of feeling, all appears to him to be disorder and
corruption. He represents God himself as surveying from his
heavenly throne the sons of men and their proceedings on the earth,
like a watchman on the top of some lofly tower. He is said to
search diligently to find a man of true wisdom and piety, but with-
out success. The poet expresses the confident expectation that
these evil-doers will meet with a righteous retribution, and sighs
for the deliverance of his countrymen from captivity.

It is probable that verse seventh relates to the captivity at Bab-
ylon, rather than to the temporary expulsion of David and his
followers by Absalom. Of course David could not have been the
author of it.

This psalm we find repeated, with some alterations, in Ps. liii.
The book of Psalms being made up of at least five smaller collec-
tions, the compiler of the second collection inserted in it Ps. liii.,
either from inadvertence or on account of the variations in his copy
of it.

1. The fool : i. e. unwise in a moral and religious point of view.
The ideas of impiety and folly were closely associated in the mind
of a Hebrew.

3. — wo, not one. This is a poetical, hyperbolical way of de-
scribing general depravity. It is the language of indignation, in-
spired by the oppression of the Jewish people by their enemies.
See ver. 4.

7. — out of Zion : i. e. from God, the supreme king of Israel,
whose earthly dwelling-place was said to be on Mount Zion.
25

290 NOTES.

Ps. XV.

It has been commonly supposed that this psalm was composed by
David on the occasion of the removal of the ark of the covenant
to Mount Zion, and the consecration of the new tabernacle, as re-
corded in 2 Sam. vi. 12, &c. But it is also appropriate to religious
worship on any occasion.

1. — abide, — dwell. These terms probably have reference to
the circumstance, that a Jewish worshipper, coming from a distant
part of Palestine, would tarry some time in Jerusalem, for the pur-
pose of worship.

3. — his neighbour : i. e. any one, according to Hebrew usage.

Ps. XVI.

In this psalm, David, being in circumstances of danger, looks to
God for help. He acknowledges that all his happiness is in God, —
expresses his feeling of dependence upon him, his hatred of idolatry,
and his determination not to adopt any heathenish customs, — avows
his satisfaction with the outward condition assigned him, his confi-
dence in divine aid to deliver him from the danger of death, and
his hopes of iuture protection and favor.

Nothing can be more evident than that David is the subject of
the psalm throughout. For the writer uses the first person through-
out, and gives no notice that he writes in the name of any other
person. But on account of the use which is made of the psalm by
the Apostles Peter and Paul, in Acts ii. 25 and xiii. 34, it has com-
monly been supposed to refer in the literal sense to David, and in
the mystical or typical sense to Christ. They who have no belief
in a mystical sense of Scripture must suppose an error of interpre-
tation on the part of the Apostles.

2. — beyond thee: i. e. thou art the only source of my happiness.

4. — drink-offerings of blood. It is uncertain whether tiiis ex-
pression is to be understood literally to be blood, which the heathen
actually mixed in their libations when they bound themselves to the
commission of some dreadful deed, or whether their libations are
figuratively called offerings of blood to denote the horror with which
the writer regarded them. — take their names : i. e. of worship-
pers of idols. I will have no intercourse with them.

NOTES. 291

5. — my portion and my cup. An image drawn from a festive
entertainment. The meaning is, I am indebted to Jehovah for all
that I have. He is my patron and benefactor.

7. — admonisheth me. In the stillness of the night, the season
of reflection as well as of repose, my heart admonishes me to re-
member and praise God.

8. — / shall not fall : i. e. into ruin ; or, I shall not waver, or
lose my confidence.

9. — my hearty — my spirit.^ — my flesh. These three terms
are only an emphatic way of denoting the whole person. Thus,
Ps. Ixxxiv. 2, —

"My soul longeth, yea, fainteth, for the courts of the Lord ;

My heart and ray flesh cry aloud for the living God."
So in Ixiii. 1, —

" O God, thou art my God 1 earnestly do I seek thee !

My soul thirsteth, my flesh longeth for thee."

The expression, My flesh dwelleth in security, therefore, means, I
dwell in security. The Hebrew expression, rendered dwell in se-
curity, is the same which is used in Deut. xxxiii. 12, translated in
the common version, — " The beloved of the Lord shall dwell in
safety by him." So in Judges xviii. 7, — " How they dwelt care-
less, after the manner of the Zidonians." In Jer. xxiii. 6, and xxxiii.
16, — " Israel shall dwell safely." See also Deut. xxxiii. 28, Judges
viii. 11. To dwell in security, then, means to be safe from calamity,
or to be fearless of calamity. It cannot mean to hope for an escape
from one which has already overtaken a person.

10. — give me up to the underworld, Sl'Xt^S, to Sheol, not m
Sheol. To express the latter meaning, the preposition 3 would
have been used. Comp. in the original, Ps. xlix. 10, Job xxxix. 14.
The expression. Thou icilt not give me up, or leave me, to the under-
world, means. Thou wilt not suflTer me to be brought to the grave,
or to a premature death, by the enemies which threaten me. — thy
holy one. The received text of the Hebrew reads, thy holy ones.
Many critics prefer the latter reading, as the more difficult one, i. e.
the least likely to have been designedly put into the text by tran-
scribers. On account of the parallelism and the reading of the an-
cient versions, I prefer the singular, thy holy one, referring to the
writer of the psalm. — to see the pit : i. e. to die. That this is
the proper translation and sense of the phrase is obvious from the
following passages, where the same term, nn*^, is used. Ps. xlix. 9, —

292 NOTES.

" That he should live to eternity,
And not see the jjit.''

Ps. vii. 15, Job xxxiii. 24, 28, 30, Prov. xxvi. 27, Rzek. xix. 4, 8.
See also Gesen. Lex. on tiie word nnt^. There can, in view of
Hebrew usage and of the connection, be no reasonable doubt that
I have translated the verse correctly, and that the meaning is, Thou
wilt not suffer me to come to a premature grave by the hands of
my enemies. What mystical meaning the verse may have is left to
the consideration of mystics.

11. — path of life, &c. : i. e. Thou wilt show me the means of
preserving my life, or of obtaining deliverance and happiness; thou
hast in thy gift fulness of joy and perpetual pleasures.

It may be remarked, that the most distinguished scholars, such as
Hammond, Grotius, Le Clerc, Calvin, and others, suppose that
David is the subject of the psalm throughout. So the authors of
the common version, as appears from its caption to this psalm. It
was only in a mystical sense that they applied it to Christ. For a
more critical examination of this psalm, see Christian Examiner for
July, 1834, p. 347, &c.

Ps. XVII.

The subject of this psalm is very similar to that of the last. A
pious man in circumstances of distress looks to God for help, and
makes solemn protestations of his innocence to the Searcher of
hearts. He urges his requests with earnestness, on account of the
general wickedness of his adversaries, as well as their deadly en-
mity towards himself. He sets forth the prosperous outward con-
dition of his enemies, but congratulates himself on having a superior
happiness in communion with God, and hopes of his favor.

1. — lips without deceit. This probably refers rather to the gen-
eral sincerity of his language, than to the sincerity of this particular
prayer.

2. — my sentence : i. e. of acquittal, my justification. — behold
uprightness : i. e. have regard to my uprightness in relation to that
with which I am charged by my enemies.

3. — in the night : i. e. when secret plans are usually adopted
by those who wish to escape detection. — fnd nothing : i. e.
nothing of evil ; no dross.

5. — in thy paths : i. e. in obedience to thy precepts.

NOTES. 293

8. — shadow of thy wings : i. e. as the bird gathers her brood
under her wings. Comp. Matt, xxiii. 37.

10. — their hard heart: literally, their fat. Fat, according to
Hebrew usage, denotes that which is inert, unfeeling.

14. — men of the world: i. e. who love the world, in distinction
from the religious, the spiritually minded. — llliose portionisin
life: i. e. Whose most valued good is in life. Whether the term
in life is spoken of in contrast with the life after death, or whether
a mere worldly life is spoken of in contrast with a life of religion
and communion with God, is doubtful. If the doctrine of immor-
tality is alluded to, the psalm could hardly have been written by
David. See Ps. vi. 5. In Ps. xvi. 2, occurs the sentiment, " I
have no happiness beyond thee," and in xvi. 5, " Jehovah is my
portion and my cup." Perhaps it is most probable that it is with
such a portion that a "portion in life " is contrasted. See the note
on Ps. xlix. 15.

15. — shall see thy face: i. e. enjoy thy favor; hold intimate com-
munion with thee. — with the revival of thy countenance: liter-
ally, with the awaking of thine image. The word nilDJ^, imagey
similitude, or manifestation, is used in Numb, xii. 8, where it is
said, " And the similitude of the Lord shall he behold." In this
verse it is parallel with n\J3, thy face, and seems to be synonymous
with it. The Septuagint, Syriac, Arabic, Ethiopic, and Vulgate
versions construe the line substantially as I have done. So Drs.
Hammond and Geddes. Otherwise, / shall be satisfied, ichen I
aicake,with thy countenance. But this is not a natural construction.
If it be admissible, the meaning of ichen I atcake may be, when
I awake in the morning, after the composition of the psalm, or
every morning ; or, when I awake from my present state of ad-
versity ; or, when I awake from the sleep of death.

Ps. XVIII.

The subject and design of this psalm are sufficiently evident from
its inscription, and from 2 Sam. xxii. 1, &c. It was probably writ-
ten by David near the close of his reign, in view of the experience
of his whole life.

2. — my strong defence : literally, my horn of defence, or safety.
The horn is often used by the Hebrews as a symbol of strength or
power, the image being drawn from animals which us", their horns
for defence or assault.

25*

^94 NOTES.

4. — snares of deaths — floods of destruction. We are not to
suppose that death was conceived of as a mighty hunter, or of" the
floods of destruction " as corresponding to the Acheron of the
Greek poets. These conceptions cannot be shown to have pre-
vailed among the Hebrews. Snares and floods are often used as
images of danger and overwhelming calamity.

6. — Ms palace : i. e. from heaven. See xi. 4.

7. &c. This magnificent theophany is to be regarded as a poetic
fiction in the Oriental hyperbolic style. It is doubtful whether, in
the description from verse seventh to the fifteenth, any thing of an
historical nature is intimated, except that God gave remarkable suc-
cess to the means which David employed for his deliverance. It
is possible that the idea is conveyed, that God helped David in bat-
tle by means of a thunder-storm. But it is more probable that the
storm is introduced only to heighten the grandeur and impressive-
ness of the theophany. Comp. Ps. cxliv. 5, 6, Habak. iii. 4, 5, 6.

8. Jl smoke went up^ &c. An image of anger, borrowed from the
circumstance, that animals, when enraged, breathe iiard, so that, in
cold weather, their breath ascends like smoke. Comp. Job iv. 9.
— Burning coals : i. e. lightning.

9. — hoiocd the heavens^ «fec. In a storm the sky seems to come
down lower. The thick and dark clouds are in fact near us.

10. — rode upon a cherub. Jehovah is elsewhere represented as
on a throne borne upon cherubs, i. e. beings of a celestial nature,
Jiavitig a form composed of the figures of a man, an ox, a lion, and
an eagle, symbols of strength and wisdom. In this passage, how-
ever, the cherubs seem to be a personification of the thunder-clouds
and the wind.

15. — foundations of the earth. The expression seems to be
equivalent to the channels of the deep^ i. e. the bottom of the sea,
in the parallel line.

19. — a large 2>loce : i. e. freedom from the danger and distress,
the opposite of straits.

26. — thou showest thyself perverse. See the note on Prov.
iii. 34.

28. — my lamp to shine. See the notes on Job xviii. 6, xxix. 3.

30. — His icord is pure^ &c. : i. e. His promise, when tried,
will stand the test.

33. — like the hind's: i. e. in swiftness. Swiftness of foot was
a great qualification of an ancient warrior. Comp. 1 Chron. xii. 8,

NOTES. 295

2 Sam. i. 23. So an epithet of Achilles in Homer is noSag wy.vg^
the swift-footed.

34. — bow of brass. It is probable that the bow was actually of
brass, or bronze, i. e. of copper tempered with another metal, which
came into use before iron or steel. See Hesiod, ^'Enyai xai 'Hfii^aiy
V. 149, «&c. ; Lucret. De Rer. Nat., Lib. V., v. 1282 ; Herod., I. 25.

Ps. XIX.

2. Day uttereth instruction^ &c. : i. e. Every day hands down to
the following day, and every night to the following night, the
knowledge of God's glory.

3. They have no speech^ &c. : i. e. Their speech is not that of the
human voice ; they utter no articulate sounds. Their language is a
silent, but real, language. Mr. Addison has adopted this meaning in
his versification of the psalm : —

" What though in solemn silence all
Move round this dark terrestrial ball ?
What though no real voice nor sound
Amid their radiant orbs be found .^
In reason's ear, they all rejoice.
And utter forth a glorious voice ;
For ever singing, as they shine,
'The hand that made us is divine.' "

There is another mode of rendering, which seems to be that of the
Sepluagint and Vulgate, and which is admissible : —

" It is no speech nor language,
Of which the voice is not heard ;
Their sound goeth forth to all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world."

4. In them, referring to the heavens, may allude to that part
of them near the horizon, where the sun was supposed to have
his tabernacle or pavilion, into which he retired after his journey
through the heavens in the day, and from which he came forth
fresh and vigorous in the morning.

5. — like a bridegroom. The allusion is to the joyous, youthful
freshness of the bridegroom. Some, however, suppose it to be to
the freshness of his dress. — a strong man : or hero. It is to be

296 NOTES.

recollected that swiftness of foot was one of the greatest recommen-
dations of a hero of antiquity. See the note on xviii. 33.

7. — reviving the soul : literally, bringing back the soul or spirit
when it is drooping, and, as it were, leaving the body. See Lam
i. 16, Ruth iv. 15.

8. — are pure: i. e. free from error and imperfection. — en
lightening the eyes. This expression is nearly equivalent to re
joicing the hearty in the parallel line. See the note on xiii. 3.

12. Who knoweth^ &c. : i. e. Who can estimate the number and
magnitude of his own sins ? — secret faults : i. e. those of whicl
I am unconscious ; those which escape the detection of conscience
blinded, as it often is, by error, passion, and sin.

13. — presumptuous sins: i. e. those committed knowingly
deliberately, and with a high hand. As the word sins is supplied
some translate /yoTTi the presumptuous j i. e. the proud.

Ps. XX.

6. Ifow I know, &c. This is evidently sung by a different choir
from that which sung ver. 1-5, and ver. 9. Some suppose that
David himself is the speaker; others, another choir representing
another portion of the people.

Ps. XXI.

This is a psalm of thanksgiving, which some suppose to be on ac-
count of the victory prayed for in the preceding psalm. Others think
it may have been written after the victory over the united hosts of the
Syrians and Ammonites. See 2 Sam. ch. xii. The psalm evidently
appears, from ver. 1 - 6, to relate to a king then living, and the opin-
ion that it relates to the Messiah is without the slightest foundation.

4. — enduring for ever. A hyperbolical expression for very
long. Comp. ver. 6, Dan. ii. 4, iii. 9, 2 Sam. vii. 13.

8. Here the king is addressed by another choir.

Ps. XXII.

In this psalm, a pious Israelite makes his supplication to God in
the midst of great distress, on the borders of despair. God had

NOTES. 297

heard his ancestors when they cried for help, but himself he allowed
to be reduced to the utmost contempt on account of his religion,
1-9. Yet he retains his confidence in God, and prays for help,
enumerating the dangerous and fierce enemies which encompassed
him, 12-18, repeating his supplications, 19-21. And now, as in
several of the psalms which begin with lamentation, the poet rises
to the confidence that he and his companions in religious fidelity,
though at present afflicted and depressed, will one day greatly pros-
per, and that the true religion will have an extensive triumph.

The psalm is ascribed to David, and if this ascription be correct,
the occasion of its composition was probably the same with that of Ps.
v., vi., xii., and similar psalms. But the psalm is not very descriptive
of any circumstances in the life of David which are recorded in the
Jewish history. It may be said, however, that the Jewish history
is very brief, and that many seasons of distress may have occurred
to David which have not been recorded.

One reason for doubting whether the psalm relates to the circum-
stances of David is, that the persecutions which the writer suffers
seem to have been occasioned by his religion, and that, in the latter
part of the psalm, the relief which the writer and his brothers in
affliction are to experience is connected with the flourishing state
of the true religion. But the difficulties of David WMth Saul and
with liis son Absalom do not appear to have arisen from his re-
ligion. It is not improbable, therefore, that the psalm was written
by some Jewish prophet, who with his followers was exposed to
contempt on account of his adherence to Jehovah and his religion,
in the midst of idolatry and vice. In the case of Jeremiah, i.
17-19, ix. 1-6, xi. 18-23, xv. 15-21, we have an instance of a
prophet in very similar circumstances to those described in this
psalm, and using similar language.

The psalm has been supposed by many interpreters to refer to
the sufferings of Jesus and liis subsequent exaltation. A decisive
objection to this opinion is, that the writer is introduced praying in
the first person, and describing his past and present condition. If
the writer had intended his language to refer to a person who was
to live many hundred years after the composition of the psalm, he
was bound to inform us of it in some way. In the absence of
such information, we are bound to believe that the writer of the
psalm is the subject of it. Besides, it appears to me that the spirit
of the psalm bears no great resemblance to the spirit of Jesus.
There is no spirit of martyrdom in it. He speaks of impending

298 NOTES.

death in a very different manner from that in which Jesus spake of
his. As to the expressions, " They have pierced my hands and my
feet," and " They divide my garments among them, and for my ves-
ture they cast lots," these are evidently statements of matters of fact,
of what had happened to the writer of the psalm, and not predic-
tions of the future. There is nothing in the New Testament appli-
cation of them inconsistent with this view. As to the typical or
mystical sense which has been assigned to this and other psalms, it
seems to be beyond the province of the interpreter. There are no
human means by which to ascertain it. None but the divine spirit
can be sure what it is. As has been well observed by Ernesti, in
his Principles of Biblical Interpretation,* — "Nor, in searching for
this typical sense, is there need of the care and talents of an inter-
preter. For it is revealed by the information and testimony of the
Holy Spirit, beyond whose showing we should not in this matter
attempt to advance."

The hind of the morning. This was probably the name of some
other poem or song, to the measure of which this psalm was sung
or chanted. Compare the expression, the song of " the bow," in
2 Sam. i. 18. The phrase probably denotes the morning sun scat-
tering his first rays upon the earth ; as the Arabian poets call the
rising sun the gazelle, comparing his rays with the horns of that
animal. Quotations to this effect may be seen in Rosenmuller
ad loc.

1. — forsaken me. The meaning is explained by the parallel
line, Why so far from mine aid, &c., and by Ps. x. 1. It is
equivalent to the question. Why am I left without any visible
means of escaping with my life ?

2. — have no rest : i. e. from my fears, anxieties, and persecu-
tions.

3. — art holy : i. e. not approving the wickedness of my ene-
mies. Comp. Jer. xii. 1. Otherwise, £nd yet thou art the Holy
One, i. e. the peculiar God of the Jewish nation.

6. — a worm : i. e. weak, despised, trampled on, as a worm,
12. — bulls, — bulls of Bashan, &c. These are images of

mighty and fierce enemies.

14. — poured out like water. To melt, or be dissolved, was an

image of fear and consternation with the Hebrews. Comp. Josh.

vii. 5.

* Vol. I., p. 25, Engl, translation.

NOTES. 299

15. My strength^ &c. Sadness and sorrow have quite dried
up my vital moisture ; I have scarce strength* enough left to com-
plain, but am just on the point to expire, and to be laid in my
grave.

16. — dogs: i. e. my enemies, greedy and fierce as dogs.

— pierced my hands and my feet. I am now satisfied that the ren-
dering, bound, which in the former edition I adopted from De Wette
and Evvald, is not supported by the Arabic word to which they
refer. But whether the term "•"IND should be rendered, with the
Vulgate, Like a lion my hands and my feet, as Gesenius de-
cides, or They have pierced, <Scc., with the majority of interpret-
ers, admits of considerable doubt. That the enemies should sur-
round his hands and his feet, like a lion, is not a very natural
expression. It seems more natural to me to suppose that his ene-
mies are represented as piercing his hands and feet with their ar-
rows, or other weapons, so that he becomes entirely helpless.
Besides, the comparison of the lion occurs only a few verses before.
On the whole, as the rendering, they have pierced, is deducible from
the word, whether we retain the present reading, or adopt the va-
rious one nxD, I have concluded to adopt it, though it may be, in
a measure, liable to a similar objection to that urged against the
translation of the Vulgate and of Gesenius.

17. — my bones : i. e. on account of my emaciation.

IS. They divide my garments, &c. The sense may be. My ene-
mies are so sure of my death, that they proceed to divide my gar-
ments, as if I were dead ; or. My enemies look on me as their prey,
and divide my possessions, even my garments, among themselves.

20. — the sword : i. e. the danger of death. — My blood : lit-
erally, My darling; a poetic name, to denote the life.

22. — my brethren : i. e. in country and religion.

26. The afflicted shall eat, &c. : i. e. The oppressed countrymen
of the poet, who had shared his dangers and suiferings, shall par-
take of the festal sacrifices, and share his joy and gladness.

27. — the ends of the earth : i. e. the inhabitants of the most dis-
tant lands.

29. — the rich, &c. These, with the poor in the next line, are
mentioned as composing the whole of mankind. Comp. Ps. xlix. 2.

— eat and worship : i. e. keep the festivals and worship. — going
down to the dust: i. e. ready to sink into the grave on account of
extreme want and misery.

31. — his righteousness : i. e. in granting protection and deliv-
erance to the writer of the psalm. See ver. 24.

300 NOTES.

Ps. XXIII.

This psalm, which needs no analysis, was not probably written
during the royal poet's pastoral life, but after he had become ac-
quainted with adversity, and had been surrounded by enemies,
whom, however, he had probably subdued. See ver. 5.

3. — reviveth my spirit : i. e. refreshes me when drooping and
fainting with fatigue, distress, &c. — in the right paths ^ &c. The
allusion is still kept up to the sheep or flock, who are led, not over
mountains, or through bushes and stony places, but in the plain and
beaten paths.

4. — darkest valley^ &c. The allusion is still to the flock, and
the meaning is, that, if, like the flock, the poet should stray into
some gloomy valley as dark as death, he should fear no evil, being
under the care of the Heavenly Shepherd.

5. Here the image is changed. The blessings received by the
poet are so great as to be compared to a feast. — anointest^ &c.
To the abundance and luxury of a feast it belongs, according to the
customs of the East in ancient and modern times, to pour fragrant
oil on the guests. Comp. Matt. xxvi. 7, Amos vi. 6.

6. — / shall dioell^ &c. : i. e. Released from the dangers and
toils of war, I shall have abundant opportunity to worship thee in
the sanctuary.

Ps. XXIV.

In this psalm, it is set forth that Jehovah, the maker of heaven
and earth, has yet a chosen dwelling-place upon the earth, where
he is to be worshipped by the pure and righteous. This glorious
heavenly king of the Jewish nation is represented as entering the
sanctuary, which is personified and exhorted to receive him wor-
thily.

It is commonly supposed that the occasion of it was the transfer
of the ark of the covenant to the tabernacle on Mount Zion, as re-
lated in 2 Sam. vi. 1, &c. But it seems more probable to me, that
the psalm was written after the time of David, and that the gates
which are so strikingly personified in the seventh verse are the gates
of the temple. In this case, we may suppose the psalm to have been
sung at the consecration of the temple, and the removal of the ark

NOTES. 301

to it. There can be no doubt that this is one of the psalms which
were sung responsively by several choirs of singers.

5. — And favor. There can be no doubt that npTi* is often used
in the sense of favor or kindness. See Gesenius, ad verb. This
rendering is also supported by the Septuagint and Vulgate, and the
parallelism.

6. — O God of Jacoh. This reading and rendering are sup-
ported by the Septuagint, Vulgate, Arabic, and some manuscripts.
Others, without altering the reading, translate, Theij that seek thxj
face are Jacoh^ i. e. the true Jacob, or Israel of God.

7. Lift up your heads, &c. Here, by a highly poetical concep-
tion, the gates even of the splendid temple of Solomon are repre-
sented as being too low for the entrance of the symbol of the King
of kings. They are commanded to elevate and expand themselves
for his admission, or to assume an attitude suited to the grandeur of
the occasion.

Ps. XXV.

This is the first of the alphabetic psalms, each verse beginning
with a letter in the order of the Hebrew alphabet. See p. 47, &c.

4. — thij %oays : i. e. those which are acceptable to thee.

5. — thy truth : i. e. the true righteousness or piety which thou
requires!.

7. — of my youth: i. e. when, through want of knowledge and
consideration, or strength of appetite and passion, one is most prone
to go astray.

10. — his covenant: i. e. his laws, to the observers of which he
has covenanted peculiar protection and favor.

11. — thy name's sake : i.e. in order to manifest thy^oodness
and mercy, as in ver. 7.

Ps. XXVI.

3. — before my eyes : i. e. in my thoughts continually,

6. — icash my hands in innocence : not " I perform the ceremo-
ny of washing my hands in testimony of my innocence," but " I
keep myself innocent." Comp. Ixxiii. 13. — go around thine
altar : i. e. bring offerings, and frequently appear around thine altar
for the purpose of thanksgiving.

8. — thine honor dwelleth. This may mean, " where thy glori-

26

302 NOTES.

ous presence is found"; or, " where thy wisdom, goodness, and
mercy are manifested in hearing prayer, accepting worship," &c,

Ps. XXVII.

4. — the glory of the Lord. The phrase seems here to denote
the sacrifices, incense, and other objects in the temple.

5, — in. his pavilion, — secret place of his tabernacle. These
are metaphorical expressions, denoting simply the sure protection
and safety which would be afforded by God.

10. — rmj father, &c. Figurative expressions to denote extreme
desertion. — take me up : i. e. under his protection, and be my
patron.

Ps. XXVIII.

2. — most holy sanctuary : namely, that part of the tabernacle
or temple called the holy of holies.

5. — doings of the Lord : i. e. in his moral government of the
world, such as the punishments which he often inflicts on evil-
doers.

Ps. XXIX.

1. — sons of God: angels or the inhabitants of heaven seem to
be denoted. See Ps. Ixxxix. 6.

2. — holy attire : in allusion to the garments worn by priests.
See Exod. xxxix. 1.

3. The voice of Jehovah: i. e. the thunder. A personification.
— the gxeat waters : i.e. the waters above the firmament. Comp.
ver, 10, civ. 3, Gen. i. 7.

6. — Sirion : another name of Hermon. Deut. iii. 9.

9, — the hinds, &c. : i. e. through terror. Comp. 1 Sam. iv.
19. — in his palace: i. e. in heaven.

Ps. XXX.

7. — made my mountain strong. This may be a metaphorical
expression, meaning, thou hast placed me in safety. Comp. xxvii.
5. Or, less probably, my mountain may mean my power, my
greatness.

NOTES. 303

9. — dust : i. e. my body, turned to dust.

11. — sackcloth: the garment of mourning. Comp. 2 Sam. iii.
31, 1 Kings XX. 32.

Ps. XXXI.

The occasion of this psalm seems to be altogether uncertain.
*' It is a mixture of prayers, and praises, and professions of confi-
dence in God, all which do well together and are helpful to one
another. Faith and prayer must go together. He that believes,
let him pray ; and he that prays, let him believe ; for the prayer of
faith is the prevailing prayer."

6. — lying vanities : i. e. idols. Deut. xxxii. 21, Jer. ii. 5, x. 15.

12. — like a broken vessel : i. e. neglected and despised, as
worthless.

15. — destiny : literally, times : i. e. what takes place in times ;
namely, events, fortunes, destinies. So we speak of good times,
bad times, &c.

20. — secret place, &c. See the note on xxvii. 5.

21. — As in a fortified city ; i. e. I have been protected by him
as effectually as I could have been by a fortified city.

Ps. XXXII.

2. — no guile : i. e. He does not dissemble with God in his
acknowledgment of sin and profession of penitence.

3. — kejjt silence : i. e. did not acknowledge my sins to God.
— my bones. Comp. Prov. xvii. 22.

4. — My moisture: i. e. vital moisture, life-blood.

6. — floods of great waters. An image denoting overwhelming
calamities.

9. — Because they will not come near thee. The meaning is. Be
ye not distrustful of God, and unwilling to approach him in confi-
dence and obedience, like the horse and the mule, who will not
come, near the owner to observe his directions, unless they are
forced by the bridle and curb.

Ps. XXXIII.
2. — /ta?7>, — psaltery. Both these instruments seem to have

304 NOTES.

been harps of different species. It is not known in what respects
they differed.

17. The horse, &c. Comp. Prov. xxi. 31.

Ps. XXXIV.

This is the second alphabetical psalm. See page 47, &c. The
Hebrew inscription assigns an occasion for the composition of the
psalm. But it is not very consistent with this inscription, that the
psalm should contain no definite allusions to the circumstances of
David, and that it should contain so much of a merely didactic na-
ture, drawn from the general experience of human life. It is also
doubtful whether any of the alphabetical psalms belong to so early
a period as that of David.

5. — shall have light : i.e. your countenances shall be bright-
ened with joy. See the note on xiii. 3. — be ashamed : i. e.
through disappointment, failure of your expectations.

6. This afflicted man. The poet points to himself, as an instance
of one delivered from trouble.

7. — angels of the Lord. Comp. Gen. xxxii. 1, 2, 2 Kings vi. 17.
10. Young lions. It is doubtful whether this is to be understood

in a literal or a figurative sense. According to the former, the
meaning will be, that even young lions, with all their strength, can-
not always procure food for themselves ; according to the latter,
young lions will mean powerful and rapacious men, who are often
reduced to want. Perhaps the last is preferable. Comp. xxxv. 17,
Iviii. 6, Jer. ii, 15.

20. — all his bones : an emphatic expression to denote the whole
man. Comp. xxxv. 10.

21. — destroyeth : because he has none to deliver him, like the
righteous.

Ps. XXXV.

One opinion in regard to the occasion of this psalm is mentioned
in the text. Another is, that it relates to the enemies of David
who sided with Absalom. Perhaps the most probable supposition
is, that the occasion of the psalm is unknown.

5. — Maij the angel of the Lord drive them : i. e. so that they
shall stumble and fall. Probably the writer conceived of the angel

NOTES. 305

as a person employing the elements, or human means, to inflict
punishment on his enemies. In verse sixth the translation should
have been angel of the Lord^ as in this verse.

13. — turned to my bosom : i. e. I prayed with my head bent
towards my bosom. This was a posture in prayer said to be com-
mon among the Orientals. Comp. 1 Kings xviii. 42. In Lane's
Modern Egyptians, Vol. I., p. 109, a Mahometan posture in prayer
somewhat similar is represented.

19. — wink with the eye. The parallelism seems to show that
this was a token of triumph.

20. — not peace: i. e. what is injurious and destructive.

21. — seeth it : i. e. what we have long wished for concerning
our enemy.

22. — he not silent : i. e. do not refuse to answer my prayer.

Ps. XXXVI.

It seems to me to be idle to think of finding in the history of
David an occasion for a psalm having so general a subject as this.

1. To speak, &c. The translation of this difficult passage which
I have adopted is substantially that of Luther, Le Clerc, Gesenius,
and De Wette. Somewhat similar commencements of poetical
compositions may be seen in xlv. 1, ci. 1, Is. xlv. 1.

2. — in his oicn eyes : i. e. the wicked flatters and beguiles his
own conscience.

6. — a great deep. This expression seems here to refer to the
extent and all-pervading character of the divine judgments, rather
than to their unsearchableness or mysteriousness.

8. — abundance of thy house. The world full of the riches of
God's bounty seems here to be figuratively represented as a father's
house filled with wealth.

9. — of life : i. e. of happiness. — Through thy light, &c. :
i, e. Through thy favor we enjoy happiness or prosperity. Comp.
iv. 6, Esth. viii. 16, Is. lix. 9.

11. — remove me : i. e. compel me to wander from my house,
city, country, &c.

Ps. XXXVII.

This is the third of the alphabetical psalms. See pp. 47, 48.
26*

306 NOTES.

3. — Abide in the land ^ &c. : i.e. Do not forsake the land in
despair, on account of the oppression which you are obliged to en-
dure. Con)p. X. 18.

9. — inherit the land. Tiiis expression seems here, and in verse
11, to denote a quiet, undisturbed possession of the country, unmo-
lested by oppressors. In other passages it may have a figurative
sense.

13. — his day : i. e. of punishment. Comp. verse 36, Job
xviii. 20.

18. — their inheritance shall endure for ever : i. e. in the land
of Canaan, as in ver. 11, 27, 29. They shall never be driven from
the land. If the phrase be used in a figurative sense, it is plain,
from the connection, that it must denote temporal blessings.

21. The wicked borroiceth, &c. It is probable, from the connec-
tion, that the meaning of this verse is, that the wicked is continually
borrowing, without having the means to repay, while the righteous
has the ability to be generous. Comp. Deut. xxviii. 12.

37, 38. Comp. Prov. xxiii. 18, xxiv. 14, 20, v. 4, Job xlii. 12.
Otherwise, For the posterity of that man shall be peace, i. e. pros-
perous. — The wicked shall be rooted out at the last : otherwise,
The posterity of the wicked shall be rooted out.

Ps. XXXVIII. "

The opinion of some commentators, that this and other psalms
represent the condition of the whole Jewish nation, under the im-
age of a single man in distress, seems to me to carry very little
probability with it.

3. — no soundness in imj fiesh. A condition of distress is proba-
bly represented figuratively by disease.

4. — gone over my head, &c. : i. e. The consequences of my
sins have overwhelmed me like a flood of waters.

14. — is no reply : i. e. who is able to give no answer, or re-
proof, to those who upbraid him.

18. For I confess, &c. He gives a reason why he hopes to be
heard.

Ps. XXXIX.

2. — even what teas good : i. e. Lest I should say something
wrong, I resolved to say nothing either good or bad.

NOTES. 307

3. — the fire hurst forth. The fire of discontent and complaint
seems to be intended. Dr. Henry thus correctly comments upon
it : — " Binding the distempered part did but draw the humor to it.
He could bridle his tongue, but could not keep his passion under."

6. — in a vain show : literally, iri an image, i, e. as Dr. Ham-
mond remarks, — " Our life is but a picture or image, shadow or
dream of life ; it vanisheth in a trice."

8. — all my transgressions : i. e. from my distresses, the conse-
quences of my transgressions.

Ps. XL.

In this psalm the writer gives fervent thanks to God for some
great deliverance which he had experienced, and for many general
mercies. He expresses also the feeling, that the best acknowledg-
ment which he can make to God is, not by sacrifices, but by obedi-
ence to his law. The latter part of the psalm contains a prayer for
deliverance from evils and dangers which still encompassed the
writer.

It is so plain that the writer of the psalm who begins in the first
person, "I trusted steadfastly," &c., is the subject of it throughout,
that it is surprising that any one, who rejects the typical or alle-
gorical mode of interpretation as unfounded, can suppose the psalm
to relate to any other person except the writer of it. The psalm
contains no prophecy of any kind, but only thanksgiving for the
past, a description of the present, and prayer for the future. The
author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, adopting an erroneous trans-
lation of the Septuagint version, namely, " A body thou hast pre-
pared for me," instead of, " Mine ears thou hast opened," applies
verses 6—8 to the Messiah. But he does this according to the
typical or allegorical mode of interpretation which he employs else-
where in the Epistle, and which was regarded as valid by his con-
temporaries. It is only in this typical sense, that the great mass of
Christian interpreters have supposed the psalm to relate to the
Messiah. In its primary sense, they have supposed David to be the
subject of it throughout.

The last five verses are found repeated as the seventieth psalm,
which was probably an extract from this for purposes of religious
worship.

6. — Mine ears thou hast opened. This may mean. Thou hast
revealed to me the truth, that sacrifices and oblations are not accept-

308 NOTES.

able to thee, except as they are expressive of inward feeling, of an
obedient will, and the devotion of one's self to God ; or. Thou hast
inclined me to obey thy commands ; as one's ears are opened, or
attentive, either to receive information or to listen to commands as a
servant. In 1 Sam. ix. 15, xx. 2, 12, 13, xxii. 8, 17, the expres-
sions, " he had told in his ear," " will show it me," are, in the
Hebrew, "'JTi<~nX hSj or hSj^, " he had uncovered," or " will
uncover my ear." Comp. Is. 1. 4, 5. In Ruth iv. 4, "I thought to
advertise thee," is, in the original, " I thought to uncover thine ear."
Comp. Job xxxiii. 16, xxxvi. 10. On the whole, the first mean-
ing seems best supported by analogous phrases, and by the con-
nection.

7. Therefore I said : i. e. to myself, I purposed. A very com-
mon Hebrew idiom. — Lo, I come : i. e. instead of bringing sacri-
fices and offerings, I come and personally devote myself to thy ser-
vice ; I stand ready to do thy will. So Le Clerc, " Venio, ut tibi
parerem." Some critics find a difficulty in making the phrase " I
come" mean so much as I come in the icay of obedience. It is
true, there is no instance of phraseology precisely similar. But the
connection is very much in favor of this meaning, and it is difficult
to conceive what other meaning David could have had, when he
said, "I come." We may even suppose verse eighth to be the
completion of the thought, which he may not have fully expressed
in the words " I come." That is, supposing that he intended to
say, / come to do thy will., the parenthesis " In the scroll of the
book it is prescribed to me " being introduced, instead of closing
the sentence in form, he closes it virtually by the exclamation, "O
my God, to do thy will is my delight," &c. — In the scroll of the
hook : i. e. the book of the law, of the well known Oriental form.
Some understand the phrase to denote the book of the divine pur-
poses. But it does not seem agreeable to the phraseology of the
Scriptures that any one should say of himself, that it was written
in the divine mind that he should be obedient to the will of God.
The connection in this passage rather points us to the book-roll of
the divine law. — it is prescribed to vie. The same Hebrew ex-
pression is used in 2 Kings xxii. 13, translated in the common ver-
sion, " Our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book,
to do according unto all that which is written concerning us," where
the meaning evidently is, " prescribed to us." Comp. Esth, ix. 23,
Prov. xxii. 20, lios. viii. 12. Another translation of verse seventh
is given by Gesenius and Ewald, as follows : —

NOTES. 309

" Then I said, Lo, I come
With the scroll of the book which is prescribed to me."

That of De Wette is, " Lo, I come with the scroll of the book writ-
ten in my heart"; a free rendering for "written upon me." But
if, by " coming with the scroll of the book," we understand, with
Ewald, that the poet came into the temple before God with the
•book of the law in his hands, this would be a mere symbol, as
much as the offering of sacrifices, and might be performed without
true obedience. The translation, or rather paraphrase, of De Wette
strikes me as quite forced.

12. — My iiiiquities have overtaken me. Some who apply the
whole psalm exclusively to the Messiah, being pressed with the
difficulty which this line presents, translate, " My distresses have
overtaken me." But there is no clear case in the Scriptures, in
which p'i/*, though a word of very common occurrence, denotes dis-
tress or calamity, except in passages where, by synecdoche of the
effect for the cause, it denotes that distress which is the conse-
quence of sin. If, therefore, we do not translate the line, My ini-
quities, &c., we must translate My punishments, or My distresses,
the consequences of my sins. 2 Sam. xvi. 12 may seem to be an
exception. But why may not David have regarded the rebellion
of Absalom as a punishment for his sins .' The new translation,
therefore, which Professor Stuart * proposes, does not remove tho
difficulty.

Ps. XLI.

This psalm is commonly supposed to have been composed by
David during the rebellion of Absalom. A dangerous sickness, as
well as the reproaches and persecution of domestic enemies, seem
to have been the occasion of it.

1. — the poor. The poet is led to make this commendation of
kindness to the afflicted, in consequence of having felt the want
of it.

4. — sinned against thee : i. e. I am suffering on account of my
sins against thee.

8. — clcaveth, &c. : i. e, in its consequences ; in the miseries
which are upon him.

* Excursus to Hebrews, p. 591.

310 NOTES.

9. — who did eat of my hread. If the same sentiment prevailed
among the Hebrews, which prevails at the present day among the
Bedouin Arabs, of sacred regard to the person and property of one
with whom they have eaten bread and salt, the language is very
forcible, — lifted up his heel : a metaphor drawn from the horse,
which attacks with its heels. This language may well have been
used by our Saviour, in John xiii. 18, in the way of rhetorical illus-
tration or emphasis.

13. This doxology was, in all probability, placed here by the
collector of this first book of forty-one psalms. See p. 27, &c.

Ps. XLII., XLIII.

These two psalms undoubtedly form but one composition. They
have one subject, and are written in the same style. The conclud-
ing verse, or refrain, is the same that occurs in Ps. xlii. and which
is repeated after every five verses. In forty-six Hebrew manu-
scripts, there is no separation between the two psalms. For beauty
of imagery, depth and naturalness of religious feeling, and the very
striking manner in which the voice of religion in the poet's inmost
soul is heard in the refrains, stilling the tempest of anxiety and
grief caused by his situation, this psalm is so admirable that it prob-
ably has no superior in any language. It seems to have been writ-
ten in exile, among enemies of the Jewish nation and religion.

1. As the hart, &c. " In the East, where streams are not
common, and where the deer are so often chased by their savage
cotenants of the forest and the glade, no wonder that they are
often driven from their favorite haunts to the parched grounds.
After this, their thirst becomes excessive ; but they dare not return
to the water, lest they should again meet the enemy. When the
good Ramar and his people went through the thirsty wilderness, it
is written, ' As the deer cried for water, so did they.' In going
through the desert yesterday, my thirst was so great, I cried out
like the deer for water." Roberts's Illustrations.

2. — the living God : in contradistinction from the idol gods,
by the worshippers of which the poet was surrounded. — appear
before God : i.e. in his house of worship. The Hebrews attached
an importance to the place of worship almost beyond the conception
of Christians at the present day.

5. — / shall yet j)raise him, &c. : i. e. I shall yet be delivered
or restored, and thus have cause to praise him.

NOTES. 811

6. —. of Jordan. This may mean the land beyond the Jordan,
or the land lying near the sources of the Jordan.

7. Deep calleth, &c. : i. e. One billow calleth for another to fol-
low close upon it; i. e. one trouble comes upon me after another in
quick succession. — cataracts, &c. The irresistible and over-
whelming calamities which came upon the poet are denoted.

8. — his praise was with me : i. e. on account of the happy con-
dition in which I found myself. — God of my life : i. e. the
Preserver of my life.

XLIII. 3. — thy light and thy truth : i. e. thy favor and thy
faithfulness. See xxxvi. 9, and the note.

Ps. XLIV.

This psalm is supposed by Calvin and many modern interpreters
to have been composed in the time of the Maccabees ; see 1 Mace.
ch. i., 2 Mace. ch. v.; a supposition to which there seems to be no
valid objection, and which is as well suited to the contents of the
psalm as any which has been made.

12. — sellest, &c. This language is probably figurative, denot-
ing, Thou deliverest thy people into the hands of their enemies,
without promoting thine own interest or honor.

22. — for thy sake : i. e. for no other reason than our attach-
ment to thy service and worship. Comp. 1 Mace. ch. i.

25. — boiced down, — cleaveth, &c. These are images denot-
ing extreme depression and sorrow. Comp. cxiii, 7, Lam. ii. 10,
Job ii. 8.

Ps. XLV.

.This ode appears to have been composed by some courtly bard,
on the occasion of the king's taking to himself a queen. There
seems to be no objection to the prevalent opinion, that it was com-
posed on the marriage of Solomon with a daughter of the king of
Egypt, as recorded in 1 Kings iii. 1. It has been objected, that the
ascription of warlike qualities to the king is inconsistent with this
supposition. But has it been the custom of poet laureates, or even
of writers of dedicatory epistles to kings, to confine themselves to
strict history, in setting forth the praises of their patrons? We must
also recollect that Oriental usage allows a much higher degree of

312 NOTES.

exaggeration than that of the Western world. The application of
the ode to Solomon as its subject is, however, matter of conjecture,
favored by the fact that Solomon is known to have married a for-
eign princess. But it may have been composed in honor of several
of the Jewish kings.

The ode begins with a sort of procemium, having some resem-
blance to a poet's address to his Muse, ver. 1. The king is then
praised for his personal beauty and graceful speech, ver. 2 ; for his
military qualifications, ver. 3-5, and the stability and rectitude of
his government, ver. 6, 7; for the splendor of his dress, and the
magnificence of his establishment, especially for the beauty and
high birth of the members of his harem, among whom the queen is
preeminent, ver. 8, 9. Then follows an appropriate apostrophe to
the queen, ver. 10 - 12, and a description of her splendid dress and
retinue, ver. 13-15, and of her future happiness as the mother of
a long line of kings and princes, ver. 16. Finally, the poet ex-
presses his conviction that he, by his poem, shall preserve her
name and fame to all coming generations.

In this general account of the ode most Christian interpreters
agree. But it has been maintained that there is a sense in which
the language is applicable to Jesus Christ. Thus, the English ver-
sion most in use before King James's has the following caption to
the psalm : — "The majesty of Solomon, his honor, strength, beau-
ty, riches, and power, are praised ; and also his marriage with the
Egyptian, being an heathen woman, is blessed, if that she can re-
nounce her people and the love of her country, and give herself
wholly to her husband. Under the which figure the wonderful
majesty and increase of the kingdom of Christ, and the church, his
spouse, now taken of the Gentiles, is described."

The arguments by which the application of the psalm to our
Saviour has been defended are the same as those which have been
used in relation to the Canticles, and may be answered in the same
way. See the Introd. to Cant., p. 120, &c.

The unknown author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, who de-
lights in mystical or allegorical interpretations, has applied two
verses of this psalm to Jesus Christ. But it by no means follows
that he would have applied the whole of it to him. The allegorical
interpretation knows no laws. All the acknowledged laws, by
which the meaning of language is obtained, lead to its absolute and
entire rejection. With respect to the application of verses sixth
and seventh by the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, it was

NOTES. 313

made according to a mode of interpretation which was regarded by
his contemporaries as valid, but which can have no force with a
logical interpreter of the present day. It seems that the Jews
do not regard the province of inspiration as extending to matters of
interpretation. Thus, Maimonides,* giving the sentiments of the
Jewish doctors or wise men, says, — "In disquisition, and reason-
ing, and judgment in the law, prophets are on a level with other
wise men of equal abilities, who are not endued with the spirit of
prophecy. If a thousand prophets, all equal to Elijah and Elisha,
should offer an interpretation of any precept, and a thousand and
one wise men should give a contrary interpretation of it, we are
bound to abide by the opinion of the thousand and one wise men,
and to reject the opinion of the thousand illustrious prophets." It
appears to me that this distinction is just. Infallible inspiration
will assert, not argue. When one undertakes to argue, he refers
the matter, by the very nature of the process, to the reason and judg-
ment of him whom he addresses.

Shoshannim. Musical instruments, probably so called from their
resemblance in form to lilies.

1. — is overflowing : literally, bubbles up, or boils over. — like
the pen of a ready writer : i. e. may I compose as fast as a ready
writer can take down words with his pen or reed.

2. Personal beauty was regarded as an important accomplishment
in a hero by the ancients. Thus, David, in 1 Sam. xvi. 12, is
praised for his beauty. So in Homer, Agamemnon, Achilles, Hec-
tor, &c.

3. 4, 5. Instead of promising to the king in general terms pros-
perity and victory, the poet, in a vivid and picturesque way, repre-
sents him as arming for the conflict, and going forth among the
nations, adorned with all the regal virtues and achieving the most
splendid victories.

6. Thy throne is God's : i. e. is upheld and prospered by God.
So, in Ps. civ. 16, trees of the Lord denoted trees planted and nour-
ished by God. This translation and exposition, as given by Gesenius
in his Hebrew Thesaurus, p. 98, and his Hebrew Grammar, § 141, 1
regard as on the whole the most probable. It is also the translation
of the Jewish critic, Aben Ezra, who refers to 1 Chron. xxix. 23,
Then Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord, &c. That the term

* Porta Mosis, Pococke's Works, Vol. I., p. 18; also, Allen's Modern Judaism,
p. 21

27

314 NOTES.

God should be applied to Solomon or a Jewish king is a supposi-
tion which is not without support from Hebrew usage, as has been
shown by many writers. But it seems to me rather more probable
that it is used in the same sense as in verse seventh, and in the
psalms generally. If any prefer the rendering of the common ver-
sion, the meaning will be, " Thy throne, O mighty king," &c.
The supposition, that the king who is the subject of the psalm is
addressed as the Supreme Being, is repelled by the connection in
verse seventh,* and by the whole contents of the psalm. Whatever
may be the true interpretation, this cannot be. A translation of the
line somewhat different is given by De Wette, namely, —

" Thy throne of God shall stand for ever " ;
i. e. thy throne given and upheld by God, &c. Another well
known construction is that of Griesbach and others, —

" God is thy throne for ever and ever " ;
i. e. God is the support and foundation of thy throne. But as
sceptre is the subject, not the predicate, of the proposition in the
parallel line, it seems more natural to regard throne as the sub-
ject, not the predicate, in this. — for ever and ever. This is a
common Oriental idiom to express long duration. See Ixi. 5, xxi.
4, with the note, 2 Sam. vii. 13, 1 Chron. xvii. 11-14.

7. — anointed thee with the oil of gladness : i. e. has given thee
great joy or prosperity. Comp. xxiii. 5, Is. Ixi. 3. The image
seems to be borrowed from the use of fragrant oil at feasts and simi-
lar occasions. ■— above thy fellows : i. e. above other kings.

8. — ivory palaces : i. e. adorned or bordered with ivory.

9. — thy chosen women : literally, thy precious or dear ones ;
evidently in reference to other members of the harem, as distin-
guished from the queen.

10. — Forget thy people : i. e. Dispel the regret which you may
have on leaving your nation and the liouse of your fither.

12. — daughter of Tyre : i. e. the Tyrians. See the note on ix. 14.
16. Instead of thy fathers, «&c. As you part from royal parents,
you shall be the mother of royal children.

Ps. XLVI.

2. — though the earth he changed : i. e. though the earth be-
come sea, and the sea land.

* This is admitted by Stuart on Hebrews, p. 294.

NOTES. 315

4. Her river ^ &c. : i. e. of Jerusalem, the city of God. We
need not inquire what particular river or streams are meant. A
gentle river with its streams seems to be used as an image to de-
note the peaceful state of Jerusalem, as contrasted with a condition
of war and commotion.

5. — full early: literally, before morning appears; i. e. with
the utmost readiness, as a person who means to accomplish a favorite
object rises early for it. Comp. Jer. vii. 13, 25.

6. — He uttered his voice, &c. The meaning seems to be, that
the inhabitants of the earth melted, as it were, with terror at the
sound of his voice, and were wholly discomfited.

Ps. XLVII.

4. — an inheritance : i. e. the land of Palestine, called " the
glory of Jacob " in the next line, and "the glory of all lands " in
Ezek. XX. 15.

5. — goeth up with a shout, &c. This alludes, probably, to the
carrying of the ark in solemn procession to Mount Zion, on its return
from some war to which it may have been carried. Comp. 1 Sam.
iv. 3-5, 2 Sam. vi. 15, xi. 11.

9. The princes of the nations. It seems most agreeable to the
phraseology to understand this of the nations mentioned as subdued
in verse third. Otherwise, leaders of the tribes of Israel have been
supposed to be denoted.

Ps. XLVIII.

The most common and the most probable supposition respecting
the occasion of this psalm is, that it was composed in reference to
the victory obtained by Jehoshaphat over the combined forces of
the Moabites, Ammonites, and Edomites, as recorded in 2 Chron.
ch. XX. Others have referred it to the deliverance from the invasion
of Sennacherib.

2. — of the whole earth. This must be regarded as the hyper-
bolical description of a Hebrew poet, ascribing his own patriotic
feelings to the inhabitants of foreign lands. — The joy of the
farthest North. This rendering is favored by the parallelism more,
and by the grammatical construction at least as much, as the flat

316 NOTES.

translation most commonly given to the line. It is adopted by
De Wette, Tholuck, and Gesenius. See Ges. Thesaur. on HDy.

7. — ships of Tarshish : i. e. which, sailing probably from Phoe-
nicia to so distant a place as Tarshish in Spain, would be the
largest and strongest of ships.

8. — have heard: i. e. from our fathers.

10. — of righteousness : manifested in the punishment of the
enemies of thy people, equivalent to righteous judgments in the
next verse.

11. — daughters of Judah. It may be considered as doubtful,
whether this phrase denotes the lesser cities of Judah in comparison
with the metropolis, or the female minstrels who celebrated the
victories of the Jews. See Ixviii. 11.

Ps. XLIX.

The subject of this didactic psalm is substantially the same as
that of Ps. xxxix., Ixxiii., and in fact of the whole book of Job. It
is designed to meet the doubts which arise in the mind, on the
contemplation of the manner in which good and evil are distributed
in the world ; the wicked often enjoying prosperity, and the right-
eous suffering adversity. In this psalm, spiritual good, internal
peace, a sense of the friendship of God, and confidence in his pro-
tection, are set forth as more than a balance for all the advantages
of prosperous wickedness.

It is observable that wealth alone is mentioned as the evidence
of the prosperity of the wicked. It is not improbable, therefore,
that the poet was one of many who were suffering under the op-
pression and extortion of rich and powerful enemies ; possibly for-
eign enemies, enemies of the Jewish nation.

1. Hear this, &c. The poet begins with the solemn dignity of
a prophet, summoning the whole world to listen to a lesson of re-
ligious wisdom which concerns every class of men.

4. — incline mine ear. This may mean that the poet would
give close attention to whafhe was about to sing upon the harp;
or, that he would listen in order to receive what should be suggested
to his soul, as other poets are said to listen to the Muse.

8. — the redemption of his life : i. e. from death. I have re-
versed the order of the eighth and ninth verses for the sake of
clearness.

NOTES. 317

11. — their names will he celebrated, &c. : more literally, that
men shall call upon their names, &c.

12. — man, who is in honor, &c. ; i. e. possessed of dignity,
wealth, &c.

13. — the way, &c. : i. e. of thinking and acting. See ver. 11.

14. Like sheep : i. e. huddled together into the lower world, as
sheep into a fold. — Death shall feed upon them : i. e. consume them ;
or, Death shall feed them, i. e. be their shepherd, rule them. The
term np"! admits of either rendering. — trample upon them: i. e. on
the graves of those whom they feared when alive.

15. — will redeem my life from the underworld, &c. This lan-
guage is in itself ambiguous; it being doubtful whether the meaning
is, that God would lengthen out the life of the writer, and not suffer
him to go down to a premature grave, while his insidious adversa-
ries were cut off, like slaughtered beasts ; or whether the meaning
is, that God would restore him to life after he was dead and buried.
Similar language is found in Hosea xiii. 14, —

"I would ransom them from the power of the grave ;
I would redeem them from death ;
O death, I would be thy plague !
O grave, I would be thy destruction !
But repentance is hidden from mine eyes."

In this passage from Hosea the meaning is, that God was willing
to save the nation of Israel from temporal destruction. So in Ps.
Ixxxix. 48, we read, —

" What man liveth, and seeth not death ^
Who can deliver himself from the underworld ? "

In these lines, too, the meaning is, that no one can help dying and
going down to the grave. These passages seem to favor the opin-
ion, that by God's redeeming the poet's life from the underworld is
meant, that God would not permit him to go down into it prema-
turely, and not that he would raise him from the dead. It appears,
too, from verse fifth, that he was in danger from insidious foes ; so
that the thought is agreeable to the connection, that God would not
suffer these foes to bring him to a premature grave.

On the other hand, the course of remark which the poet pursues
might lead us, from our Christian point of view, to the idea of im-
mortal felicity, as the great distinction between the good and the
bad. The poet himself says, in verse tenth, that the wise die some
27*

318 NOTES.

time or other, as well as the foolish. But we must remember that
thoughts, which are familiar to us, might not be in the mind of a
Hebrew writer of this age. In the Book of Job, of Ecclesiastes, of
Proverbs, and other books of the Old Testament, we might expect
the doctrine of immortality to be brought in, to account for the suf-
ferings of the righteous. But we do not find it. See the Introduc-
tions to Job, Ecclesiastes, and Proverbs. If the doctrine were
known to the writers of the Psalms, we might expect it to be stated
more distinctly, and to occupy an important place in the minds of
the writers. On the whole, therefore, it seems most probable that
faith in a happy immortality is not what is expressed by the writer
in this verse, but only confidence of deliverance from the danger of
death. Inward, spiritual good, the friendship of God, and trust in
him at all times, appear to have constituted, in the rnind of the
poet, the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, how-
ever improbable it may seem at first view to a Christian, that those
who had attained such elevated religious sentiments in other re-
spects should be destitute of faith in a desirable immortality of the
human soul. See the note on vi. 5. — take me under his protec-
tion. For a similar use of npS , see Ixxiii. 24, Deut. iv. 20.
17. — carry nothing away.

" Linquenda tellus, et domus, et placens
Uxor; neque harum, quas colis, arborum
Te, praeter invisas cupressos,
Ulla brevem dominum sequetur." Hor. Carm. ii. 11.

Ps. L.

The sublime theophany with which this psalm is introduced,
ver. 1 — 6, is to be regarded as a poetical representation, the mean-
ing of which is, that the sentiments, promises, and denunciations
which follow have the sanction of divine authority. The mode of
representation is designed to arrest the attention of the reader.

1. — calleth the earth: i. e. summons the inhabitants of the
whole earth as witnesses.

2. — perfection of beauty. See xlviii. 2, Lam. ii. 15. — shin-
eth forth : i. e. appears in splendor.

3. — icill not be silent : i. e. his approach is manifested by
thunder. Comp. Exod. xix.

NOTES.

319

4. — the heavens, — the earth : i. e. calls the inhabitants of
them to be, as it were, witnesses of proceedings in court.

5. — my worshippers, &c, : they who profess to be my wor-
shippers, and have bound themselves to worship and serve me by a
covenant confirmed by the blood of sacrifices, wishing that they
might be dealt with like the victims, if they did not fulfil their
engagements.

11. — before me: i. e. I know them, as in the preceding line,
and consequently have them ready at my service.

20. Thou sittest: i. e. in company with others, in public places.
— thine own mother's son. Polygamy being allowed among the
Hebrews, they who were born of the same mother were in a more
intimate relation to each other than they who had only the same
father.

21. — I kept silence : i. e. did not make known my displeasure
by the infliction of punishment.

Ps. LI.

The inscription assigns the occasion on which this psalm was
composed ; namely, the sin of David in relation to Bathsheba and
Uriah. There would be no good reason for questioning the cor-
rectness of this inscription, were it not for the last two verses,
which seem to imply a later age than that of David, Hence it be-
comes necessary to question the correctness of the inscription, or
the genuineness of the last two verses. As these verses do not
seem to have any connection with the general subject of the psalm,
perhaps the latter alternative is preferable.

3. — ever before me : i. e. my guilt haunts me night and day,
reproaching me with ingratitude to God.

4. Against thee, thee only. The writer, if David, had deeply in-
jured his fellow-man. But he felt his guilt most deeply in relation
to God, to whom, as being king, he was alone accountable. He
had been guilty of ingratitude to his infinite benefactor, who had
raised him from obscurity to a throne ; so that his feeling of ill-
desert in relation to man was, as it were, swallowed up by his
sense of guilt in relation to God. In the hyperbolical language of
strong emotion, he therefore says, " Against thee, thee only, have I
sinned."

5. Behold ! I was born in iniquity, &c. It has been doubted

320 NOTES.

whether the iniquity mentioned in this verse was that of the writer,
or of the writer's mother. Eminent critics are divided in opinion
on the subject. In the book of Job we read, —

" Man, that is born of woman.

Is of few days and full of trouble."
" What is man, that he should be clean,

And he that is born of woman, that he should be innocent? "

But in these passages of Job, the being born of woman is men-
tioned by way of lightening human guilt, and showing that man was
more worthy of divine compassion on that account. But in this
psalm, the writer seems deeply humbled with a sense of his actual
guilt, and ready to exaggerate rather than to lessen it. It seems
better suited to this state of feeling, that the poet should be speaking
of his own personal iniquity, rather than that he should be exagger-
ating his low condition by representing that he was born of sinful
parents. This consideration would alleviate instead of increasing
his guilt. It appears to me, therefore, rather more probable that
to be born in iniquity and conceived in sin means to be born a
sinner, but not in a strict metaphysical sense. The writer is a
poet, using the hyperbolical language of strong emotion. Under
a deep sense of guilt, he expresses the thought, that he had been
not only a great sinner on particular occasions, but an habitual
sinner ; that he had sinned against God a long time, even from his
youth, so that he might say that he was, as it were, born in in-
iquity and conceived in sin. Comp. xxii. 9, 10, Iviii. 3, Is. xlviii.
8, Job xxxi. 18. So, when we hear it said that one is born a poet,
an orator, a mathematician, &c., we do not think of understanding
the language to the letter.

6. — wisdom : i. e. moral strength, moral and religious prin-
ciple.

10. — steadfast mind: i. e. moral strength, fixed purposes in
that which is good.

12. — a free spirit. It seems to be doubtful whether this phrase
denotes the divine spirit freely bestowed, or the willing, ready, free
spirit of David, when he should obtain forgiveness of sin, and re-
lief from fear, anxiety, &c. I ])refer the latter, as the term " free "
is nowhere else ascribed to the spirit of God, and as there is no
pronoun or article prefixed to refer the terra to God.

13. — thy ways : i. e. the ways which thou approvest ; thy
precepts.

NOTES. 321

Ps. LII.

1. JVhy gloriestj &c. : i. e. Why do you anticipate success in
your evil designs against me, from whom the favor of God is never
withdrawn ?

8. — like a green olive-tree^ &c. : i. e. I shall flourish and pros-
per, and be under God's special protection, like an olive-tree planted
in the courts of God's house.

Ps. LIII.
See the notes on Ps. xiv.

Ps. LV.

The occasion of this psalm is not indicated with any degree of
certainty. It is most commonly referred to the rebellion of Ab-
salom.

10. — these : i. e. violence and strife.

15. — alive. Comp. Numb. xvi. 33.

19. — 710 reverses : i. e. because they have had uniform success,
they persist in their designs, without fear of God.

Ps. LVI.

The dumb dove^ &c. This appellation was probably given to the
Hebrew nation, while exiled in a foreign land, and may have been
the title to a song. Comp. Ixxiv. 19, and the paraphrase of the
Sept. Some critics, not thinking the Jewish inscription of this
psalm well suited to its contents, have supposed that it was com-
posed by some exile in Babylon.

8. — my wanderings : i. e. in order to escape my pursuers.
See ver. 1. — into thy bottle. As this figure is rather harsh, in
itself considered, some suppose that there is an allusion to a custom,
similar to that which prevailed among the Romans, of collecting
tears occasioned by the loss of a deceased person into a glass vial,
which was deposited in the sepulchre of the dead. See Adam's
Antiquities, p. 483. De Wette refers to the traveller Morier, as
showing that traces of this custom exist among the Persians. — in
thy book : i. e. as it were, in a register, for remembrance.

NOTES.

Ps. LVII.

— to the tune of ^^ Do not <]^estroy" : i. e. of some psalm which
began with those words. There is much reason to doubt whether
the Jewish inscription, assigning the occasion of this psalm, be
correct.

4. — whose teeth : an expression suggested by the term lions,
to which ferocious men are compared in the former part of the
verse.

5. — above the heavens, &c. : namely, by displaying thy good-
ness in relieving me from my distress.

6. — My soul is bowed down : i. e. I despair of escaping the
plots and snares of my enemies ; or, perhaps, in a physical sense,
*' I am brought low " by their artifices.

7. — is strengthened : i. e. has gained courage, firmness, confi-
dence, in contradistinction to a desponding, trembling heart. See
cxii. 7.

8. — my soul : literally, my glory : i. e. my dearest, most glo-
rious part ; like i/iibv iplXov 7jToq in Homer. Other instances of
a similar use of the word are in vii. 5, xvi. 9, Gen. xlix. 6.
— icake with the early dawn : otherwise, wake the early dawn.

Ps. LVIII.

If the Jewish inscription of this psalm be correct, it may be re-
ferred to the times of Saul. But the contents of it favor the opinion
of several critics, that it is the production of some unknown author
in private life.

2. — weigh out : i. e. from what should be scales of justice, ye
weigh out violence instead of equity.

3. The wicked, — The liars. The connection seems to show that
the writer is speaking of particular persons, namely, corrupt judges
and magistrates, and not of the wicked and liars in general.

5. — the voice of the charmer. See the note on Eccles. x. 11.

8. — the snail, which melts aicay, &c. Allusion is here made
to the slimy track which the snail leaves behind, and which the
writer regarded as consuming its life.

9. — feel the heat of the thorns. This proverb seems to be bor-
rowed from the fires which in the East used to be lighted in the

NOTES. 323

open air for culinary purposes. The fuel would sometimes be
blown away by a sudden gust of wind, before it had answered its
purpose. The defeat of the plans of the wicked, before they were
executed, would thus be represented.

Ps. LIX.

6. Let them return at evenings &c. : i, e. At the close of the day,
which they have spent in vain in lying in wait for me, let them
return from their employment. — howl like dogs : i.e. which in
the East, often having no owner, go about the city howling with
hunger for whatever may be cast about the walls of a city. See
ver. 15.

7. — who — will hear : i. e. God will not hear, nor punish.
Comp. X. 11.

11. Slay them not^ &c. : i. e. Put not an end to them by sudden
destruction, but by lingering misery, so that they may be an exam-
ple of infamy which may not be forgotten.

Ps. LX.

— Shushan-Eduth. This term seems to denote a musical instru-
ment, but why it received its peculiar appellation, " lily of testi-
mony," is a difficult question. The instrument may have been of
the form of a lily, and called lily of testimony from its consecration
to the testimony, or revelation, of God. — Joab returned^ &c.
See 1 Chron. xviii. 13. Dr. Geddes remarks on the Jewish title to
this psalm : — " Whoever undertakes to reconcile the title of this
psalm to any part of David's history will find it a hard attempt.
It is, indeed, by some [such as Venema, Dathe, and Houbigant]
supposed to have been written by David, not during his war with
the Syrians, but in the beginning of his reign. But this hypothesis
to me appears at least equally unfounded. David was successful
in all his wars; and never could say what is here put in his
mouth. But when, then, was the psalm most probably composed ?
Plainly, after some great disaster had befallen the hosts of Judah ;
and I can find no period so proper as at the commencement of the
reign of Hezekiah. See his speech to the priests and Levites,
2 Chron. xxix. 5." Others refer the psalm to the time of the
Maccabees.

324 NOTES.

3. — the wine of reeling : a common image in the Scriptures to
denote the reception of punishment from God, which causes him
on whom it is inflicted to reel like a drunkard.

6. God promiseth^ &c. " This is a beautiful transition. The
psalmist is already certain that his prayer has been heard ; and, in-
stead of continuing his plaintive expostulations, breaks forth into
joyful exultation, in the hope that he shall not only be rescued
from his present enemies, but shall also recover the ancient terri-
tories that had been wrested from the house of David, both within
and without the limits of Israel." Geddes. — measure out : i. e.
as a conquered land, for distribution among his followers.

7. — my helmet : the chief defence of me and my kingdom.
— my sceptre: i. e. the seat of my government; the sceptre being
the badge of government.

8. Moab shall be my wash-bowl : i, e. shall be in the most abject
subjection, and used for the meanest services. — cast my shoe.
It was considered the lowest menial office of a servant to bear the
shoes of his master, when he had taken them off. Comp. Matt,
iii. 11.

Ps. LXI.

This psalm is usually referred to the time of the rebellion of
Absalom. But it is doubtful whether the psalm was composed by
David.

2. — the rock that is high above me : i. e. Grant me safety and
deliverance, greater than I can attain by my own strength.

5. — And give me the inheritance^ &c. : i. e. a residence in, or
dominion over, the holy land, the land of Israel.

7 — before God : i. e. under God's protection ; as it were,
under his eye.

Ps. LXII.

If this psalm be a composition of David, it may most probably be
referred to the time of Saul's persecution.

3. — Like a bending wall, &c. : i. e. with rude violence, and
with confidence of overthrowing one in so dangerous a condition.

9. — are vanity, — are a lie : i. e. they disappoint expectation ;
they cannot afford the help which one needs.

10. — in extortion : i. e. in what is obtained by extortion ;
viz. wealth.

NOTES. 325

11. Once, — twice. The Hebrew way of expressing that a thing
is done repeatedly. The design is to impart solemnity and import-
ance to the truth declared in the next line.

12. — belongeth mercy: i. e. not only power, as in the preced-
ing line, but mercy or goodness in delivering and blessing those
that trust in thee, and in punishing their wicked enemies.

Ps. LXIII.

2. Thus, &c. i. e. With such earnest desire. — thy poioer and
thy glory : i. e. the symbols of them.

10. — a portion for jackals : i. e. because they shall have no
burial.

11. — swear by him: because it is implied that they who swear
by the true God reverence and worship him.

Ps. LXIV.

4. — without fear : i. e. of God, or of punishment.

5. — will see them : i. e. the snares, and so escape them.

7. — will shoot, &c. : i. e. in the midst of their secret plans
which no man can detect, God shall discover, disappoint, and de-
stroy them.

8. — Jlee away: i. e. in horror of their exemplary punishment.

Ps. LXV.

This psalm contains nothing from which we can infer with the
least confidence the author, the occasion, or the time of the com-
position. It is well suited for public worship on any occasion.

8. — awed by thy signs : i. e. the operations of God, which
most clearly manifest his agency, such as are enumerated in the
following verses. — regions of the morning, &c. : i. e. the East
and the West, the places where the sun rises and sets.

9. — The river of God, &c. i. e. The source whence God sup-
plies the rain.

11. Tliou crownest: i. e. makest it rich and beautiful. — drop
fruitfulness : i. e. wherever thou goest, blessings spring up.
28

326 NOTES.

Ps. LXVI.

This psalm was evidently written after some great national de-
liverance. But whether it relates to the time after David's peace-
able establishment on the throne, or to the time after the destruc-
tion of Sennacherib's army, or to the time after the return ft-om the
captivity at Babylon, it is difficult to decide.

3. — are suppliants to thee: i. e. to thy chosen people, of whom
thou art the supreme king. Comp. xviii. 44.

11. — a snare: i. e. into danger or distress.

12. — to ride upon our heads. This image seems to be bor-
rowed from a man riding at full speed upon a horse, who is sup-
posed to lean forward over the head of the horse.

17. — And praise is now, &c. i. e. on account of the deliver-
ance which I have experienced.

Ps. LXVIII.

From the contents of this psalm, it seems probable that it was
composed on the occasion of the return of the ark of the covenant
from some victorious war, and its reconveyance to Mount Z'lon.
See xlvii. 5, and the note. Dr. Geddes thinks that it may have
been composed " after David's signal and repeated victories over
the combined forces of the Edomites, Ammonites, and Syrians,
when the ark was brought back in triumph to Jerusalem." See
2 Sam. viii.-xii. I cannot, with De Wette, see any decisive traces
of a later period.

2. — the wicked. By this term are probably here denoted the
idolatrous enemies of the Israelites, who were in general worship-
pers of the true God.

4. — Prepare the tcay, &c. See Isaiah xl. 3, and the note.

— rideth through the desert. See xviii. 10, and the note.

8. — Yea, Sinai, &c. : literally, This Sinai, &c.

9. — a plentiful rain. This probably refers to the miraculous
supply of manna. — wearied inheritance : i. e. the people of
Israel.

11. — the song of victory : i. e. occasion for it by giving victory.

— Virgin minstrels, &c. : more strictly, Female minstrels, &c.
Comp. Exod. XV. 20, 1 Sam. xviii. 6.

NOTES. 327

13. — repose yourselves in the stalls, &c. The meaning of this
difficult verse, which seems as probable as any, is, that those who
had been engaged in war might now, on their return, enjoy peace-
ful repose amid their flocks and herds, having enriched themselves
with spoils of gold and silver. Comp. Judg. v. 16, Gen. xlix. 15.

14. — like Salmon: i. e. when this mountain was covered with
snow.

16. JVJnj frown ye, &c. : i. e. through envy on account of the
peculiar honor conferred upon Zion.

17. The chariots of God, &c. A figurative description of the
majesty of God, and his power to deliver his people. — m the
sanctuary. The sanctuary is here regarded as a second Sinai.

18. — on high: i.e. upon Mount Zion. Comp. Ps. xxiv., in
reference to the conveyance of the ark of the covenant to Mount
Zion after a victory obtained by the Israelites. — received gifts^
&c. i. e. presents from conquered enemies, who were made to pay
tribute. Comp. 2 Sam. viii. 6. — even among the rebellious : i, e.
among the Israelites, who had often proved rebellious. Comp.
Numb. XXXV. 34.

22. / will bring them back : i. e. the enemies, as the connection
shows. Comp. Amos ix. 1, 2, &c.

26. — from the fountain, &c. : i. e, who originate from him.

28. — Show forth thy might : i. e. by continuing and strength-
ening the power of Israel.

30. — wild beast of the reeds. This, at first view, may seem
most naturally to refer to the crocodile, or the river-horse, as the
emblem of Egypt. But as the Egyptians were not at war with
the Israelites, when the psalm was probably written, and as Egypt
is mentioned in the next verse as about to be a worshipper of
Jehovah, Lowth and others have supposed the lion to be referred
to, as the emblem of Syria. — bulls with the calves, &c. i. e.
powerful nations and those of inferior strength ; or, bulls may de-
note commanders, and calves, common soldiers. — masses of sil-
ver, &c. : i. e. as a tribute.

31. — outstretched hands: i. e. either in supplication, or in
bringing presents to the temple.

33. — ancient heaven, &c. : i. e. which he built and inhabited
of old. Comp. xviii. 10.

34. — Whose majesty, &c. : i. e. Who manifests himself as the
mighty ruler of Israel, and who thunders in the clouds.

35. — from thy sanctuary. Comp. xx. 2.

328 NOTES.

Ps. LXIX.

From verses 33-36, it seems highly probable that this psalm was
written during the captivity at Babylon. From verse sixth, it may
be inferred that the author was a prophet, or some person of great
distinction. Some suppose that the whole Jewish nation is repre-
sented by the writer as an individual. It appears to me that liis
language would have been different, had this been his design.

4. — / must restore what I took not away. This seems to be a
proverbial expression denoting the infliction of a penalty, or extor-
tion of property, in relation to the innocent,

5. — thou knowest my offences, &c. : i. e. that I am not an of-
fender. This verse is not a confession of sin, but a protestation of
innocence. The writer maintains that he is a sufferer, not for his
sins, but for his piety. See verse 7, &c.

6. — through me, &c. : i. e. when I, thy pious worshipper, am
seen to be a prey to my enemies.

8. — a stranger, &c. : i. e. on account of being changed in ap-
pearance through grief and suffering.

9. — consumeth me : i. e. proves my destruction.

12. — sit in the gate. It is well known that the gates of cities
in the East were places of public resort for business, conversation,
&c. See Jahn's Archseol. § 180.

21. — gall. The meaning of the original term, it'XI, is alto-
gether uncertain. From the common meaning of the term, as
denoting the head, Gesenius conjectures that it was the poppy,
referring to papaveris capita in Livy, Others suppose it was the
hemlock.

22. May their table, &c. : i. e. that in which they find their en-
joyment.

26. — talk of the pain, &c. : i. e. in derision.
31. — bullock : i. e. offered in sacrifice.

Ps. LXXI.

7. — a tconder to many : i. e. on account of my extraordinary
calamities.

20. — bring us back from the depths of the earth: i. e. from the
extreme miseries in which we are involved.

NOTES.

Ps. LXXII.

On account of the power and greatness ascribed to the king who
is the subject of this psalm, some have supposed that the Messiah
is denoted. It appears to me, that, if we make due allowance for
the hyperbolical language of Hebrew poetry, and that which was
and is applied to monarchs in the East, the psalm contains nothing
that the poet may not have said in reference to Solomon, or any other
Jewish king. Comp. Ixxxix. The most prevalent opinion in the
Christian church has been, that Solomon is the immediate subject
of the psalm, and that only in a mystical or typical sense the
Messiah is shadowed forth. See the caption of the common version.
~ 1. — the king, — the son of a king. The same person is de-
noted by both expressions. May the king, who is also the son of a
king, &c. The repetition is agreeable to the nature of the Hebrew
parallelism.

3. — the mountains shall bring forth peace, &c. Here the
mountains and the hills of Palestine, i. e. the whole land, are said
to bring forth peace like the natural productions of the earth; i. e.
abundantly.

6. — mown field. See the note on Is. xxvi. 19.
8. — from sea to sea : i.e. from the Mediterranean to the far-
thest known sea on the east, namely, the Indian Ocean. — the
river : i. e. the Euphrates. The meaning of the verse-is, that the
dominion of the great king shall be unlimited. Burder quotes from
Mr. Hugh Boyd's account of his embassy to Ceylon a passage
which shows the adulation which is paid to an Eastern monarch,
liis courtiers addressing him in the language, " that the head of
the king of kings might reach beyond the sun " ; " that he might
live a thousand years," &c. He also quotes from Davy's Account
of Ceylon the following language, as addressed to the king : —
" Increase of age to our sovereign of five thousand years 1 In-
crease of age, as long as the sun and moon last ! Increase of age,
as long as heaven and earth exist ! "

10. — Tarshish in Spain is probably mentioned as the most dis-
tant place in the West, and Sheha in Arabia, and Seba in Ethiopia,
as the most distant places in the East and South.

16. — on the tops of the mountains : i. e. where corn might be
least expected to grow. — shake like Lebanon : be tall and luxu-
riant, waving with the wind, like trees on Mount Lebanon.
28*

3S0 NOTES.

17. — By him shall men bless themselves : i. e. They shall say,
May God make us as happy as that great king ! " In thee shall
Israel bless, saying, God make thee as Ephraim and as Manasseh ! "
Gen. xlviii. 20.

18. Verses eighteenth and nineteenth do not belong to the
psalm, but were probably added by the collector of Ps. xlii. — Ixxii.,
as a doxology at the end of his book. Verse twentieth was with-
out doubt added by the same person.

Ps. LXXIII.

The subject of this psalin is similar to that of Ps. xlix. It may
also be compared with Ps. xvi., xvii., xxxvii., xxxix., and the whole
book of Job. It sets forth the exercises of a pious mind in view of
the manner in which happiness and misery are distributed in this
world; or in view of the prosperit}' of the wicked, when compared
with the poet's own sufferings. Notwithstanding all the difficulties
which the subject presents to the poet's mind, he begins with confi-
dence in God, and ends with it. Spiritual good, fellowship with
God, a sense of his favor, and confidence in his guidance and bless-
ing, are to him more than a compensation for all the outward pros-
perity of the wicked, which is of short duration and ends in de-
struction. There is the same doubt, whether the doctrine of im-
mortality be contained in this psalm, as in respect to Ps. xlix. It
may be here observed, that this psalm, with Ps. xvi., xvii., xlix.,
contains the strongest intimations of this sentiment of any of the
psalms. If it be not found in these four, it is found in none of
them.

This psalm, like Ps. xlix., may have been composed in a de-
pressed state of the Jewish nation, perhaps during the captivity,
when the author, with other pious Israelites, was suffering oppres-
sion from the enemies of his nation. It is true, that there was an
Asaph, the contemporary of David ; see 2 Chron. xxix. 30. But
nothing obliges us to consider that Asaph as the author.

1. — to Israel. This term seems to be used here for the true
Israel, the "pure in heart," mentioned in the parallel line. Comp.
Is. xlix. 3, Romans ix. 6.

2. — gave foaxj : i. e. I began to doubt respecting the goodness
and justice of God.

6. — as a collar^ or neck-ornament. A lifted up or stiff neck

NOTES. 331

was with the Hebrews a sign of pride. Hence pride is said to en-
compass their necks. See Ixxv. 5.

9. — to the heavens. A strong h3^perbolical expression to denote
proud speaking. A similar one is found in the parallel line.

10. — his people : i. e. the people of God. — dri?ik from full
fountains : i. e. become corrupted by the evil ways of the prosperous
wicked.

15. — to the family of thy children: i. e. the true Israel, the
devoted worshippers of God, ver. 1.

17. — the sanctuaries of God: i. e. the holy places of the temple,
where he sought the will and purposes of God, and learned them.
Some suppose that by sanctuaries of God are denoted the recesses of
the divine mind.

20. — ichen thou aicakest, Sec. The Hebrew verb, like the
English, being used both in a transitive and intransitive sense, there
is here an ambiguity. The meaning may be, when thou aicakest the
wicked from their dreatn of uninterrupted prosperity and enjoyment,
or, in the intransitive sense, when thou awakest to action, or to judg-
ment; as in XXXV. 23. — vain shoic : i. e. their unsubstantial great-
ness and prosperity. The original term is the same which is thus
translated in xxxix. 6.

21. — pierced in my reins : i. e. pained and vexed, as in the
parallel line, with the prosperity of the wicked.

24. — receive me with glory : i, e. receive me with honor under
his protection, and set me free from danger and distress. Comp.
xlix. 15. Others understand it. Thou wilt receive me into lieaven
after death. But if this were the writer's meaning, it is remarkable
that it is not expressed more distinctly, and that the same sentiment
is not expressed ofiener and more prominently in other psalms. It
is also to be observed that temporal ruin seems in verse twenty-
seventh, and other parts of the psalm, to be contrasted with the
blessedness of the righteous. If the psalm was written during the
captivity, one cannot be confident that the writer does not here al-
lude to the doctrine of the soul's immortality; still less can he be
confident that he does make such an allusion.

Ps. LXXIV.

It appears from the contents of this psalm, that it could not have
been written before the desolation of the city and temple of Jeru-

3S2 NOTES.

salem by the Chaldaeans, and of course it could not have had for its
author Asaph, the contemporary of David. Some suppose that the
psalm refers to the calamities occasioned by Antiochus Epiphanes,
as recorded in 1 Mace. ch. i. So Venema and RosenmOUer. This
seems the most appropriate reference on many accounts, nor do any
considerations in relation to the completion of the canon of Scripture
forbid it. It is also favored by verse ninth, where it is said, " There
is no prophet among us." But Jeremiah lived after the destruction
by the Chaldseans. On the other hand, if verses sixth and seventh
imply that the temple was destroyed and burned, they are inconsist-
ent with the supposition that the invasion of Antiochus is referred
to. There is no reason to believe that he burned or destroyed the
temple. RosenmOller thinks that these verses only imply that the
temple was injured by fire and profaned.

4. — Their oicn symbols, &c. : i. e. The symbols' of their own
religion, in place of the "signs" of the covenant between God and
us, namely, the sacrifices and other religious symbols. See 1 Mace,
i. 43-59, Joseph. Ant. xii. 5, 4.

9. — our signs. See the note on ver. 4.

11. — from thy bosom. "This word" says Roberts, " does not
always, in Eastern language, mean the breast; but often the lap, or
that part of the body where the long robe folds round the loins.
Thus, in the folds of the garment, in front of the body, the Orientals
keep their little valuables, and there, when they are perfectly at
ease, they place their hands."

13. the sea-monsters, &c. ; i. e. Pharaoh and his hosts.

14. — the crocodile : the well-known emblem of Egypt.

20. — thy covenant : i. e. by which thou didst promise the land
of Canaan to thy people. — dark places, &c. : i. e. caverns, prob-
ably, which abounded in Palestine.

Ps. LXXV.

1. — and near is thy name : i. e. upon our lips; we frequently
praise it. Others understand " thy name " to be a redundant ex-
pression for " thou," and that the meaning is. Thou art near us, or
helpest us.

2. When I see, &c. In verses 2, 3 and 10, the Deity is intro-
duced as speaking; the poet speaks in the remaining verses. What
is represented as said by the Deity may have been sung by a dif-
ferent choir, in response to the remainder of the psalm.

NOTES. 333

Ps. LXXVI.

4. — mountains of robbers, Slc. : i.e. Thou hast displayed thy
power and glory, by enabling thy people to overcome the enemies,
which have occupied the fastnesses in the mountains, and there de-
posited their prey,

Ps. LXXVII.

3. I remember God, &c. : i. e. how kind he has been in former
times, but I Sm troubled the more when I compare his former favor
with our present misery.

6. — my songs in the night, &-c, : i. e. in commemoration of the
former favors of God.

10. — ^ change in the right hand of the Most High : i. e. The
right hand of the Most High, which has been exerted in my favor
and against my enemies, has been withdrawn from me. Or we may
translate, A change is in the right hand, &c. : i. e. The right hand
of God can change my affliction into prosperity. But we might
have expected some adversative particle before "A change" ifec, if
the latter were the meaning.

16-19. In these verses the passage through the Red Sea is
poetically described.

17. — thine arroics : i. e. the lightnings.

Ps. LXXVIII.

There seem to be no indications in this didactic psalm of the
period in which it was written. Only from verses ninth and sixty-
seventh, we may infer, with considerable confidence, that it was not
wiitten till after the separation of the ten tribes.

25. — the food of princes : i. e. excellent food.

49. — A host of angels of evil. It seems doubtful, whether the
plagues of Egypt are here personified as messengers 9f evil, or
whether personal angels are represented as the ministers of God in
producing these plagues. The latter supposition is most agreeable
to the representation of the later Jewish writers.

50. — made a icay, &c. : i. e. gave it free course.

57. — like a deceitful bow: i. e. which sends the arrow in a
false direction, so that it does not hit the mark.

334 NOTES.

58. — high places : i.e. places of worship for idols.

61. — his strength — his glory: i. e. the ark of the covenant.
See 1 Sam. iv. 21, 22.

63. — did not bewail them : i. e. in the midst of the general ter-
ror and calamity, they had no time to give to the customary lamenta-
tions for the dead.

72. He fed them : i. e. ruled over them.

Ps. LXXIX.

This psalm seems to have been written on the same occasion as
Ps. Ixxiv.

2. — food for the birds, &c. See ver. 3.

11. — appoi?ited to die: i. e. destined to death by their enemies,
literally, sons of death.

Ps. LXXX.

This psalm seems to contain nothing which determines the
calamitous time in which it was composed.
^hushan-Eduth. See note on the caption of Ps. Ix.

I. — sittest between the cherubs. This may mean that God sits
or rides on a throne borne by living cherubs. Comp. xviii. 10,
and the note. Or it may refer to the images of cherubs which were
over the ark of the covenant, where God was supposed to manifest
himself See Exod. xxv. 22.

5. — bread of tears: i. e. grief comes daily, while in conse-
quence of our affliction we forget to take our ordinary food.

II. — the sea : the Mediterranean. — the river : the Euphrates.
13. The hoar, &c. This is to, be considered as a part of the

imagery. We need not inquire who is denoted by the boar.

15. — madest strong for thyself : i. e. raised up to be a great
nation to accomplish thine own purposes.

16. — they j)erish : i. e. the Israelites.

17. — over the man, &c. : i. e. the people of Israel collectively.

Ps. LXXXI.

— the Gittith : a musical instrument of the nature of the lyre,
deriving its name from MJ to strike.

NOTES. 335

5. — language ichich he knew not. Comp. cxiv. i. In the
original there is a change in the pronoun, which it is not well to
imitate in English.

6. — from the hod : i. e. something used in carrying bricks or
mortar. But it appears, from the use of the word in other passages,
to have been more like a basket than a modern hod.

7. — in the secret place of thunder^ &c. : i, e. enveloped in
the dark thunder-cloud. Comp. xviii. 11, Nahum i. 3, Ex. xiv.
24, 25.

10. — Open wide, &c. : i. e. I will satisfy your desires of good,
however large they may be.

Ps. LXXXII.

1. — ?iis holy assembly: literally, the assembly of God: i. e. the
assembly of Israel, of which God was the supreme king. Other-
wise, the assembly of the angels. — in the midst of the gods : i. e.
kings, or earthly magistrates. Otherwise, angels.

2. — favor the cause, &c.: i. e. be influenced in your judgment
by the outward condition of the parties rather than by the merits of
the case.

5. — foundations, &c. : i. e. the land is threatened with ruin.

6. — said. Ye are gods : i. e. exalted you far above the condition
of common men, to one resembling that of God, by investing you
with yoiir dignity, as kings or magistrates.

Ps. LXXXIII.

I. — keep not silence : i. e. hear our prayer.

3. — thy chosen ones : literally, thy hidden ones ; i. e. hidden, as
it were, in God's house.

9. — to the Midianites. See Judges, ch. vii. — Sisera, — Ja-
bin, &c. See Judges, ch. iv.

II. See Judges, vii. 25, viii. 5, &c.

12. — God's habitations: i. e. the land of Palestine.

Ps. LXXXIV.

This psalm, which bears considerable resemblance to Ps. xlii. ind

336 NOTES.

xliii., may have been composed on the same or a similar occa-
sion.

3. The very sparroio, &c. By this language the poet expresses
the hardship of his own condition, when prevented by exile or a
similar hindrance from visiting the temple of God.

5. — In whose heart are the ways, &c. : i. e. Who loves the ways
which lead to the house of God.

6. — through the valley of Baca, &c. Baca was probably a dry,
barren, desolate valley, a vale of tears, or of weeping, according to the
primary meaning of the term. But they who had their hearts set on
Jerusalem and the temple would pass through it as joyfully as if it
were filled with streams. Or, Wherever they go, blessings accom-
pany them.

7. — from strength to strength : i.e. they shall continually in-
crease in strength.

9. — of thine anointed: i. e. the king of the nation. In praying
for the nation, the poet does not forget to pray for the king.

Ps. LXXXV.

8. I will hear, &c. The poet, having made his prayer, represents
himself as listening to the voice of Jehovah, as to an oracle, and
receiving a favorable answer.

10. Mercy and truth. Sec. The whole verse means that mercy,
fidelity, righteousness, and prosperity shall flourish and abound
where they have been wanting; the representation being drawn
from the meeting of friends who have been long absent.

11. Truth shall spring out of the eurth, &c. The meaning of
this verse is commonly supposed to be, that truth or uprightness
shall flourish among men like plants that spring out of the earth,
and that the righteousness, i. e. the mercy, of God will be mani-
fested in blessings upon the righteous community. But it may be
doubted whether the poet intended to express any other idea than
the universal prevalence of truth and righteousness, representing the
one as springing out of the earth like plants, and the other as show-
ing itself in the skies like the sun.

13. Righteousness shall walk before him, &c. The meaning
seems to be, that men shall walk uprightly before God, and go on
steadily in their course. The opposite sentiment occurs in Is.
lix. 14.

NOTES. 337

Ps. LXXXVII.

This psalm is illustrated by those passages in Isaiah winch pre-
dict a time when the religion of Jehovah, made known to the
Israelites, shall be the religion of the world. See Is. ch. ii. xi. xix.

1. Her foundation : i. e. that of the city of God, Jerusalem, ver. 3,
or that of Zion, ver. 1, regarded as the representative of Jerusalem.

4. / name Egypt, &c. Jehovah is here introduced as speaking.
— They also were horn there: i. e. The inhabitants of Egypt,
Babylon, &c., shall be regarded as citizens of Jerusalem, professing
the religion and acknowledging the government of the nation chosen
by God. The same thoughts are expressed in the next two verses,
in which the poet is the speaker.

7. Singers as well as dancers, &c. The meaning seems to be,
that all the ministers of joy, of which singers and dancers are men-
tioned as an example, and all the springs or sources of happiness
are to be found in Jerusalem, the capital city of the world, " the joy
of the whole earth."

Ps. LXXXVIII.

This psalm is most generally supposed to have been written in the
time of the captivity. But it does not seem to afford sufficient indi-
cation that it was designed to express the afflicted condition of the
whole Jewish nation, as some critics have supposed. The terms
Mahalath Leannoth, which appear in the inscription in the common
version, mean to he sung to, or accompanied with, wind instruments.

7. — all thy waves. Comp. xlii. 7, and the note.

8. — I am shut up: i. e. by calamity, distress, &c., as by prison
walls.

10. - 12. The meaning seems to be, Do good to me now, while
I am in life ; for after 1 am dead, there will be no opportunity fur it.
Comp. vi. 5. — place of corruption, — land of forgetful 7iess :
i. e. Sheol, the common receptacle of all the dead. See Job xxviii.
22.

Ps. LXXXIX.

As this psalm contains no allusion to the destruction of the city
and temple of Jerusalem, it was probably written in some calamitous
29

338 NOTES.

period of the Jewish nation before the captivity. But whether it
was written by Hezekiah, or by some one for him, or after the de-
feat and death of Josiah, or at some other period, there seem to be
no sufficient means of ascertaining.

5. The heavens^ &c. : i. e. The inhabitants of heaven, the angels,
as appears from the parallel line.

6. — sons of God: i. e. inhabitants of heaven, angels.

8. — is round about thee : i. e. encircles thee ; is the element in
which thou dost exist.

10. Rahab : a significant appellation of Egypt, referring to her
pride and fierceness, as of a huge sea-monster.

12. — Tahor and Herman. One being in the West and the other
in the East from the place where the poet wrote, these mountains
are probably used to denote the West and the East, as is made prob-
able by the parallelism. — rejoice in thy name: i. e, in thee, as
their Creator, according to the parallelism.

15. — know the trumpet' s sound : i. e. calling them to the festivals,
offerings, &c. See Levit. xxiii. 24, Numb. x. 10. — in the light
of thy countenance : i. e. shall enjoy thy favor. Comp. iv. 6,

17. — lift up our heads : i. e. are confident, courageous, victo-
rious.

18. — our shield: i. e, our king, as in the parallel line. Comp.
ver. 3, 4.

19. — in a vision, &c. See 2 Sam. vii. 4-17.

24. — through my name : i. e. through me. — his head: liter-
ally, his horn.

25. I will extend his hand : i. e. his power, dominion. By "the
sea" and "the rivers," the Mediterranean and the Euphrates are
probably denoted.

27. — my first-born. This phrase is well explained by the
parallel line. All kings, according to the conceptions of the He-
brews, might be called sons of God. See Ixxxii. 6. An emi-
nent king of Israel, distinguished above other kings, would, accord-
ing to the same phraseology, be called the first-born son of God.

37. — Like the faithful witness, &c. : i. e. the moon, as in the
parallel line. The moon, by its everlasting duration, would be a
good witness of the divine fidelity in the performance of his promise.
Others suppose the rainbow to be denoted.

38. The poet now contrasts with the great promises, which have
been recited, the present condition of the nation, when its king, one of

NOTES. 339

the successors of David, was deprived of his throne, or had lost his
power.

47. — To what frailty^ &.c. The poet urges the shortness of
life as a reason why God should show mercy speedily, before the
opportunity should pass away.

50. — thereproach of thy servants : i. e. the Israelites.

Ps. XC.

If the title of this psalm be correct, it was w^ritten by Moses in
view of the calamities, and especially the peculiar waste of life, in
the passage through the wilderness, and is illustrated by Numb. ch.
xiv. But it is the opinion of some eminent critics, such as Grotius,
Kennicott, Geddes, and others, that the psalm was rather com-
posed in the time of the captivity. Whichever supposition be
adopted, the reader must remember that it was written in peculiar
circumstances of calamity, and that parts of it do not apply to all
men in all conditions.

3. — to dust. See Gen. ill. 19.

4. — a watch in the night. The Hebrews in the more ancient
times divided the night into three watches ; in the time of Christ,
into four. A watch in the night, therefore, denotes the space of three
or four hours.

9. — like a thought : i. e. as swiftly as a thought passes the mind.
A similar expression occurs in the Greek poet Theognis,

" Ai'ipa wots roJiua TcuQi^/srai aY?.aog i^§tj.^*

10. — the pride of them: i.e. that of which they can be most
proud ; the best and most flourishing part of them, to which we attach
the greatest value.

11. — thine anger, &c. : i. e. which is manifested in the vanity
and shortness of life.

12. — to number our days : i. e. to consider how few they are.

13. Desist: i. e. from thine anger. Exod. xxxii. 12. — How
long ; i. e. wilt thou be angry ? Comp. vi. 3, and the note.

16. — thy deeds: i. e. of mercy to us.

Ps. XCI.

1. — sittcth under the shelter, &c. : i. e. he wlio resorts to God

340 NOTES.

by faith, trust, and holy communion. — Makcth his abode, &c. : i. e.
shall find protection.

8. — only behold : i. e. thou shalt look on, in perfect security,
while punishment is inflicted on the wicked.

9. — thy refuge. In the Hebrew, my refuge. Hence the
Septuagint translates the line, Because thou, O Lord, art my refuge;
supposing that a different person, or singer, was to recite it. I can-
not think the couplet was intended to be divided in this way.
Whether the conjecture of Lowth* is to be adopted, or some ac-
cidental change of the person of the pronoun on the part of the
writer is to be supposed, I believe that I have given the true mean-
ing of the verse.

Ps. XCIV.

This psalm seems to have been composed in a season of national
calamity. Some refer it to the time of the captivity ; others to that
of the tyranny of Antiochus Epiphanes.

10. He that chastiseth nations : He that brings punishment and
ruin on whole nations, shall he not punish your oppressors in
particular?

11. — That they are vanity : i, e. that men are vanity, or weak,
without power to accomplish their proud purposes.

15. — judgment shall return to justice, Olc. : i. e. however much
the judgments of God may seem to depart from justice, while the
wicked prosper and the righteous are afflicted, they shall at last
return to a strict conformity to it, so that all the upright shall ap-
prove of them.

20. — throne of iniquity, &c. Comp. 1 Mace. ch. i.

23. — their own iniquity : i. e. the destruction which they plotted
against others.

Ps. XCV.

This psalm seems to have been composed to be used in the public
worship of God, and perhaps on some festival occasion, such as that
of the feast of tabernacles.

3. — over all gods : i. e. all the pretended gods of the Gentiles.

7. — flock of his hand ; i. e. which his hand leadeth.

♦ L«cture XXVI

NOTES. 341

8. The Supreme Being is now introduced as speaking. — Meri-
bah. See Exod. xvii. 7.

11. — I sware, &c. See Numb. xiv. 21-23, xxxii. 10, &c.
— my rest : i. e. the land which I had destined for their resting-
place.

Ps. XCVI.

This psalm corresponds to a part of one which is recorded in
1 Chron. ch. xvi., as having been sung on a different occasion. Per-
haps it was used on the dedication of the second temple, after the
return from the captivity at Babylon. It is entitled in the Septua-
gint version, " An ode of David, sung when the house of God was
built, after the captivity."

6. — his holy abode: i. e. in heaven. See cii. 19.

11 - 13. The whole creation is called upon to rejoice on account
of the coming of Jehovah to reign. But as Jehovah is at all times
the ruler of the world, his coming to reign must be understood in a
peculiar sense, and this sense, according to the conceptions of a
Jewish poet of that age, can be no other than that of the extension
of the Hebrew theocracy over the heathen nations. God would
judge tlie world, when the heathen nations were punished through
tile Jews, were brouglu under their dominion, and adopted their
religion, having renounced their own false gods. Comp. ii., Ixxxvii.,
Jxxxix., xcvii.; ex., and various passages in the prophets.

Ps. XCVII.

2. Clouds, &c. Comp. xviii. 11, Ixxxix. 14.

6. The heavens, &c. : i. e. The whole universe, the heavens and
the earth, acknowledge and proclaim him the righteous and terrible
judge. Comp. 1. 6.

7. — all ye gods, &c. The connection shows that heathen gods
are denoted. Though they have no real existence, they are figura-
tively represented as bowing down before the majesty of Jehovah.
Comp. Numbers xxxiii. 4. The inability of the heathen gods to
protect the nations which worshipped them is probably alluded to.
Comp. Is. ch. xlvi.

11. Light is soicn, &c. Though prosperity may be absent for a
time, like seed which is hidden in the ground, yet in due time it
shall spring up like seed.

29*

342 NOTES.

Ps. C.

3. — It is he that made us^ &c. In this connection, these
words probably refer not so much to the fact that God created all
mankind, as to that of his having constituted the Jews a people, and
framed their national polity. Comp. cxlix. 2, Deut. xxxii. 6.

Ps. CI.

1. — of goodness and justice: i. e. which it is my resolution to
practise, rewarding the good and punishing the wicked.

2. — JVheji thou shah come tome: i. e. to prove me. Otherwise,
When wilt thou come to me? i. e. to bless me.

3. — before my eyes^ &c. I will not propose to myself any
wicked scheme.

6. — dwell icith me : i.e. as my ministers and counsellors, as is
intimated in the parallel line.

Ps. CII.

6. — like the pelican : i. e. I take no delight in society, but seek
for solitary places like the pelican. — like the owl : i. e. in my
doleful lamentations. Some think the pelicanus onocrotalus is
denoted ; a meaning which is favored by the etymology of the
Hebrew term.

7. — a solitary bird : referring probably to some bird of night,
like the owl, in reference to the writer's sleeplessness, mentioned in
tlie preceding line.

8. — curse by me : i. e. in imprecating curses either upon them-
selves or upon others, they refer to me, as an example of extreme
misery. Comp. Jer. xxix. 22, Is. Ixv. 15,

9. — ashes like bread, &c. : through grief, I lie down in ashes and
neglect to take my food. See xlii. 3, Job ii. 8, Ezek. xxvii. 30.

10. — lifted me up, &c. This may mean, that he was lifted up
as by a whirlwind, in order to be dashed to the ground ; or, that he
was raised to an exalted station, and then cast down from his emi-
nence. Perhaps the first is preferable.

11. — a declining shadow: i. e. which continually becomes
fainter and fainter, and soon vanishes away. Comp. cix. 23.

NOTES. 843

13. — the set time, &,c. Comp. Jer. xxv. 12, 13, xxix. 10.

14. — in her stones : i, e. her scattered stones and her solitary
dust are more precious to thy worshippers than the goodliest palaces
in Babylon.

16. — in his glory. The meaning may be, that he shall be
worshipped with the ancient ceremonies upon Zion, which seems to
be favored by the parallel line ; or, that the glorious power and
goodness of God shall be manifested in behalf of Israel.

17. — the destitute : i. e. the Israelites, as a people.

18. This shall be written : i. e. the interposition of God in de-
livering his people and building up Zion.

20. — doomed to death : a figurative expression, denoting the
threatened extinction of the Jewish nation and name.

22. When the nations are assembled, &c. When the Jewish
nation, after the return from exile, shall have extended its dominion
and its religion over the nations of the world. See the note on
xcvi. 11, &c.. Is. xlv. 14, Ixi., Joel iii.

23. — bij the way : i. e. of life, the passage through life.

24. — Thy years endure, &c. The unchangeableness and
eternity of God seem to be introduced with reference to the thought
expressed in ver. 28, namely, that Israel should yet abide before God
in the promised land.

Ps. cm.

5. — like the eagle's. " It has been a popular opinion, that the
eagle lives and retains its vigor to a great age ; and that, beyond the
common lot of other birds, it moults in its old age, renews its
feathers, and is restored to youthful strength again. Whether the
notion is in any degree well founded or not, we need not inquire.
It is enough for a poet, whether sacred or profane, to have the
authority of popular opinion to support an image introduced for il-
lustration or ornament. See Isaiah xl. 31. Aristot. Hist. Animal.,
Lib. IX., c. 33. Plin. Nat. Hist., Lib. X., c. 3. Horus Apollo,
Lib. II., c. 92." Harris.

12. — our transgressions: i. e. the punishment due for our
transgressions.

14. — our frame: i. e. of what materials we are formed.

21. — Ye, his ministers, &c. : i.e. his ministering spirits in
heaven, angels.

344 NOTES.

Ps. CIV.

1-4. Tlie imagery is borrowed from tlie splendor of Oriental
monarchs, setting forth how far Jehovah surpasses them in those
things in which their magnificence is usually displayed, namely, in
robes, tents, palaces, chariots, and servants.

3. — on the waters : i. e. the waters above the firmament, and
which rest upon it as a solid support. See Gen. i. 7. These
waters above the firmament are, as it were, the foundation of the
dwelling-place of God. — clouds his chariot. Comp. xviii. 11,
xxix. 3.

4. — winds his messengers, &c. He makes the winds and light-
nings, which bid defiance to human control, to obey and serve him,
as if endowed with intelligence. Comp. cxlviii. 8, Job xxxviii. 35.

6, 8. Comp. Gen. i. 2, 9.

11. — the wild asses: i.e. which, being very wild, and living in
liie most solitary deserts, might be thought specially liable to suffer
from the want of water.

13. — fruit of thy icorks : i. e. of the clouds.

16. Tlie trees of the Lord, &c. : i. e. The wild trees of the forest,
which were not planted by man and receive no culture from him.

18. — the jerboas. See the note on Prov. xxx. 26.

19. — to mark seasons, &c. See Gen. i. 14, Ecclesiasticus
xliii. 6, 7.

26. — the leviathan, &c. In Job xli. 1, &c., the leviathan
denotes the crocodile. But the term was probably applied to other
huge sea-monsters.

30. — thy spirit, &c. Comp. xxxiii. 6, Gen. ii. 7, Eccles. xii. 7,
Job xxxiii. 4.

32. — it tremhleth, &c. Earthquakes and volcanoes may be
alluded to in this verse.

Ps. CV.

The first fifteen verses of this psalm are a part of the hymn said
to have been given by David to the singers, on the removal of the
ark to Zion, which is contained in 1 Chron. ch. xvi. It is tlie con-
jecture of Daihe, that some poet, after the return from the captivity
at Babylon, adapted these fifteen verses, with an addition of his own,
to the dedication of the second temple ; as the same or some con-

NOTES. 345

temporary poet had adapted another fragment of the same hymn,
namely, Ps. xcvi., to a similar purpose. De Wette supposes the
hymn in Chronicles to have been compiled from the Psalms.
11. — the lot^ &c. : i. e. the assigned portion of the earth.

14. — rebuked kings, ifec. See Gen. xii. 17, xx. 3-7.

15. — anointed, — prophets, Sec. : i. e. Abraham and the pa-
triarchs.

19. — the word of the Lord, «fec. : namely, that which Joseph
uttered respecting the future.

25. He turned their hearts, &c. The more God blessed the
Israelites and increased their numbers, the greater was the jealousy
of the Egyptians, which at length settled into confirmed hatred.
The Hebrews were accustomed to attribute to the direct agency of
God what took place under his permission, foresight, and provi-
dence. Comp. Matt. vi. 13.

32. — flaming fire : i. e. lightning.

34. — Destructive locusts, &.C. Undoubtedly a species of locust,
different from that in the preceding line, is denoted. The Hebrew
term comes from a root signifying to lick up, or devour.

37. — silver, &c. See Exod. oh. xii.

40. — Iread of heaven : i. e. the manna.

44. — the labor : i. e. the fruits of the labor.

Ps. CVI.

3. — practise righteousness at all times. The general sentiment
of this verse is probably expressed with reference to the unhappy
condition of the Jewish nation in consequence of their wickedness.

5. — thy chosen : i. e. the Israelites, called the inheritance of
God in the next line but one.

7. _ rebelled, &c. See Exod. xiv. 11, 12.

12, — sang his praise. See Exod. xv. 1, &c.

13, — waited not for his counsel : i. e. did not wait patiently to
see what were the designs of God, and how he would accomplish
them.

14, 15. See Numb. ch. xi.
16, 17. See Numb. ch. xvi.
19. See Exod. ch. xxxii.

23. — in the breach. This figurative expression refers to the
breach made by an enemy in the walls of a fortified city. One

346 NOTES.

stands in the breach for the purpose of opposing the enemy, and
preventing the destruction of the city. See Exod. ch. xxxii., xxxiii.
24. See Numb. ch. xiii., &c.

27. Comp. Numb. xiv. 28-30, Lev. xxvi. 33, Deut. ch. xxviii.

28. — Baal-peor. See Numb. ch. xxv.
32. See Numb. ch. xx., Deut. i. 37.

36. — they became : i. e. the heathen. — a snare : i. e. caused
their ruin.

37. — to demons. So the Septuagint translates the term D'"1B^,
in this verse and in Deut. xxxii. 17. From the etymology of the term,
we may infer, perhaps, that it denotes malignant spirits ; but it is
not necessary to suppose that precisely the same notions were
entertained of demons in the time of this composition, as in that of
the New Testament. The worship of Moloch is probably re-
ferred to.

39. — played the harlot : i. e. left the true God, to worship false
gods. — with their practices : i. e. the practices of the heathen.

Ps. CVII.

In this national psalm of thanksgiving, the reader will observe
the art of the poet in dividing it into strophes, or divisions, closing
with a form of thanksgiving, as the burden of the song. In verses
1-3 the subject is stated, and then follow the strophes, closing
with verses 8, 9 ; 15, 16 ; 21, 22 ; 31, 32 ; 43.

4. — in a solitary desert. This may refer to the literal fact,
that many of the Jews fled from the Chaldaeans through the desert
to Egypt, &c. ; or it may be a figurative expression, referring to
the miseries of exile.

10. — darkness and the shadoic of death : i. e. in the profound
darkness of a gloomy dungeon. — in affliction and iron. This
may be a hendyadis for afflictive iron; or the meaning may be,
that they were bound by their affliction, no less than by heavy
chains. Perhaps the language of the whole verse figuratively de-
scribes the misery of the exile in Babylon.

20. — sent his tcord : i.e. commanded.

25 — 27. The classical reader may be pleased by comparing with
this description of a storm that of Ovid, Trist., Lib. I., Eleg. 2 : —

NOTES. 347

" Me miserum, quanti monies volvuntur aquarura !

Jamjam tacturos sidera summa putes.
Quantae diducto subsidunt aequore valles I

Jamjam tacturas tartara nigra putes.
Rector in incerto est, nee quid fugiatve petatve
Invenit; ambiguis ars stupet ipsa malis."

33-36. This language seems to have special reference to the
depopulation of Palestine, and the subsequent restoration of the
Jews.

Ps. CIX.

If this psalm was written by David, the curses contained in it
have probable reference to his enemies at the court of Saul. Re-
specting these imprecations, see pp. 14-18. The following re-
marks of the Rev. Dr. French,* Master of Jesus College, Cambridge,
England, and Mr. Skinner, a Fellow of the same College, agree
very well with mine, though I cannot think that the spirit even of
the Jewish religion fully justifies these imprecations: — "It may
be observed, with reference to the imprecations found particularly
in this psalm, and in Ps. Ixix., that the morality which they breathe
does not ill accord either with the general character of the Mosaic
dispensation, or with the state of religious knowledge to which the
Jewish nation had attained. The love of our enemies was a duty
first distinctly and positively inculcated by the divine Author of the
Christian fiith. This pure and sublime doctrine did not form a
part of the law delivered to the Jews, because of ' the hardness of
their hearts.'

" Let it not be urged, that it would have been better, if the
sacred volume had nowhere exhibited the ' holy men,' who were
of old, thus betraying, even in their intercourse with God, a deep
resentment of the unprovoked injuries which they were continually
suffering from the wicked. These very passages of Scripture con-
vey an useful and a very important lesson. For they teach Chris-
tians, in the most forcible manner, the value of those preeminent
advantages which are enjoyed by them under the gospel."

6. — a wicked man over him : i. e. as a judge to hear his cause.
— over him. This may refer to the principal enemy of David, or

* See the note on this psalm, in their "New Translation/' <fcc.

348 NOTES.

possibly to his enemies collectively, as the plural occurs in verse
fifteenth. — an adversary^ &c. : i. e. to accuse and plead against
him in court.

7. — his prayer^ &c. There is some doubt, whether this ex-
pression denotes a petition for pardon to a human judge, or prayer
to God. The parallel line favors the former supposition ; the use
of the word translated prayer in other passages, the latter.

8. -^- take his office : i. e. which is vacated by his death.
16. — the poor man, &c. : such as the poet,

23. — shadoic. See the note on cii. 11. — cast out as a lo-
cust. An image of destruction, drawn from locusts, which are driven
by winds, or by noises, fires, «&c., made by men, from the fields
into the water or waste places.

31. — at the right hand, &c. : i. e. as his advocate.

Ps. ex.

The difficulties relating to particular portions of ihis psalm have
been, in good measure, removed by modern investigation. But it
is still an unsettled question among critics, who is the principal sub-
ject of the psalm, or who is meant by " my lord," in the first line,
— "Jehovah said to my lord," or, more literally, " The oracle," or
"solemn declaration, of Jehovah to my lord." There are three
opinions upon the subject.

I. Christian interpreters generally, until within a comparatively
recent period, have supposed Jesus Christ to be the person addressed
in the first line, and that the psalm predicts in figurative language
his glorious condition after his resurrection, and the triumphs of
him and his religion over all opposition. In favor of this opinion
it is alleged, that David is said in the Jewish inscription to be the
author of the psalm, and of course could not acknowledge a com-
mon Jewish king as his lord. But especially the use made of the
psalm by our Saviour, in Matt. xxii. 43-45, and by the Apostles,
in Acts ii. 34, 1 Cor. xv. 25, Heb. i. 13, x. 13, is urged as decisive
of the question. Some expressions in the psalm are also said to be
more applicable to Jesus Christ than to a common Jewish king.
In illustration of these views, see Christian commentators gen-
erally.

II. Some modern critics, such as RosenmUller and Kuinoel,
and some Jewish critics in ancient and modern times, have sup-

NOTES. 349

posed the future Messiah, according to the Jewish conceptions of
him, to be the subject of the psalm ; while they maintain that its
representation of him as a temporal king, a warrior, a conqueror, and
shedder of blood, is inconsistent with any thing which we know of
Jesus of Nazareth.

III. Other critics, such as Herder,* Geddes, De Wette, and
Ewald, maintain that the psalm relates to a Jewish king, living in
the time of the writer, — either David or some other Jewish king ;
and that it expresses the sanguine hopes of some Jewish poet in
favor of his sovereign, whom he is disposed to eulogize in the lan-
guage of exaggeration which was commonly applied to Eastern
monarchs. In behalf of this opinion, it is urged, that the ascription
of the psalm to David, as its author, by some unknown hand, is of
little or no weight, when it is considered that several of the titles
of the psalms must be acknowledged to be erroneous; that the first
line of it evidently supposes the person who is called "my lord"
to be living on earth in the time of the writer, and cannot refer to
the distant future ; and finally, that the attributes of a common
Jewish king are all which the writer does in fact express in the
language which he has used. In regard to the use made of the
psalm by Christ and the Apostles, it is also said, that they may
have argued ex concessis, i. e. from the acknowledged opinions of
their opponents or contemporaries, without vouching for their cor-
rectness ; or that they may have made use of the language of the
psalm to express ideas for which it was not originally designed ;
or that their inspiration did not extend to matters of criticism and
interpretation.

Without going into a discussion of the difficult subjects connected
with the question of the application of the psalm, I shall endeavour
to give the meaning of its language according to what must have
been the conceptions of the writer,

1. — Sit thou at my right hand: i. e. Be associated with me in
the government of my people ; Be next in honor to me. The lan-
guage is borrowed from a king commanding his son to sit with him
on his throne. Comp. 1 Kings i, 13, 17. Jehovah was regarded
as the supreme king of the Jewish nation, and Mount Zion as the
seat of his government. Thus, in cxlix. 2, "Let the sons of Zion
be joyful in their king!" cxxxiv. 3, "May the Lord, who made

* Spirit of Hebrew Poetry, Vol. II., p. 282, &c., Amer. transl.

30

350 NOTES.

heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion ! " cxxxv. 21, " Praised bo
the Lord out of Zion, he that dwelleth in Jerusalem ! " cxxxii. 13,
" For Jehovah hath chosen Zion ; he hath desired it as his dwelling-
place." Jehovah being thus, in a peculiar sense, the supreme
king of Israel, the throne of Judea was called the throne of Jeho-
vah, see 1 Chron. xxix 23 ; and the human king of Israel is said to
sit on the throne of Jehovah, i. e. at the right hand of Jehovah, the
supreme king of Israel, as his vicegerent, participating in the gov-
ernment of his people. So in Zech. xiii. 7, "Awake, O sword,
against my shepherd, even against my fellow, saith Jehovah of
hosts." A common appellation of kings in ancient times was that
of shepherds; and Jehovah being regarded as the supreme king
of Israel, his shepherd or earthly king is styled the fellow or
associate of Jehovah in the government of his people. To be the
fellow or associate of Jehovah amounts to the same thing as to sit
upon his right hand. In Josephus, VI. 11, 9, Jonathan is said to
sit on the right hand of the king, and Abner on the left. Roberts,
who was a missionary in Hindostan, says, — "The host always
places a distinguished guest on his right hand," RosenmUller quotes
from an ancient history of Arabia : — " The Radaf," i. e. the one
second in rank to the king, "sits at his right hand." The lan-
guage, " Sit thou at my right hand," amounts to the same thing as
that in ii. 7, "Thou art my son," «fec., on which see the note.
— thy footstool : i. e. completely subdue them. See Josh. x. 24, 25.
The particle until does not imply that the king was not to sit at the
right hand of God after his enemies were subdued. The expres-
sion is similar to that which we use when we say, " I hope you
will be well, or behave well, till I return." See 1 Tim. iv. 13.

2. — in the midst of thine enemies : i. e. shalt control them, have
thetn in subjection.

3. — he ready : i. e. prompt to go to war with thee. — when thou
musterest thy forces : literally, in the day of thy host. — in holy
splendor: i.e. equipped in the best or choicest manner. So the
Median soldiers are called " sanctified ones," i. e. set apart for the war
against Babylon, Is. xiii. 3. So in Jer. vi. 4, " Sanctify war against
her," li. 27. — like dew, &c. : i. e. numerous as the drops of
morning dew. Perhaps at the same time their freshness may
have been had in view.

4. — a priest for ever: i. e. during thy whole life. Comp.
Exod. xxi. 6, Deut. xv. 17, 1 Sam. i. 22, and the note on xlv. 6.
The greatness of the promise consists in the circumstance, that the

NOTES. 351

sanctity of the priest would be united with the dignity of the king
in the great personage to whom it is given ; thus making him in a
higher degree the object of the divine care and favor. Comp,
Zech. vi. 13. — the order of Mehhisedeck : i. e. in the same way
as Melchisedeck united the dignity of a priest and a king. See
Gen. xiv. 18.

5. The Lord is at thy right hand. To be at one's right hand is
not the same thing as to sit at one's right hand. It means, to be
one's defender, ready to assist him. See xvi. 8, cxxi. 5. I under-
stand, therefore, The Lord, as denoting the Supreme Being, and
that the king who is the subject of the psalm is here addressed.
Otherwise, with a change of the vowel-points, the line might be
rendered, My lord at thy right hand, [O Jehovah,] shall, &c.

7. He shall drink of the brook, &c. Here, I suppose, by a sudden
change of person, which is not uncommon in Hebrew poetry, (see
civ. 9, 10,) the king, who was addressed by the poet in verse fifth,
is here introduced in the third person, as pursuing his enemies, and
as refreshing and strengthening himself for such pursuit by drink-
ing water from a brook which he finds in the way.

I have thus, without entering into an examination of various
opinions, given what seems to me the literal meaning of the lan-
guage of the psalm. Whether the warrior-king whom it describes
is to be regarded as a temporal king of Israel, or only as an image
or type of Christ in his triumphant state in heaven, the language
being understood in a figurative or in a mystical sense, is a question
which must be decided in view of all the considerations which
were glanced at in the introduction to the notes on this psalm.

Ps. CXI.

This is one of the alphabetical psalms, in which each half-verse
begins with a different letter, according to the order of the Hebrew
alphabet. See p. 47, &c.

1. — society, — congregation, &c. : i. e. of righteous Israelites,
assembled in the temple.

2. — Sought out, &c, : i. e. as being worthy of regard and ad-
miration.

4, — a memorial, &c. : i. e. in his dealings with the Israelites,
as recorded in their history,

9. — redemption, &c. : i. e. from Egyptian slavery.

352 NOTES.

Ps. CXII.

This is an alphabetical psalm of the same kind as the last. See
the remarks on Ps. i.

3. — His righteousness shall endure: i. e. The consequences or
reward of it.

4. — He is gracious^ &c. It is doubtful, whether this is said of
the righteous man, or of God. From verse fourth of the last psalm,
which seems to have had the same author as this, the last is the
probable meaning.

9. — His horn, &c. An emblem of power and authority, bor-
rowed from animals whose strength was in their horns.

Ps. CXIV.

In this psalm, the subject of which is the deliverance of the
Israelites from Egyptian bondage, the principal idea is, that all ob-
stacles, even those presented by nature itself, must give way before
the power of Jehovah. " This psalm," says Herder, " is one of
the finest odes in any language. The abrupt brevity with which
each particular is expressed, the astonished admiration ascribed to
the sea, to the Jordan, to the mountains and hills, and repeated in
the interrogatory form, the sublime explanation, that it all pro-
ceeded from a single glance of Jehovah, who looked upon them
from the clouds, a look which converted rocks and stones to streams
and living fountains, — all these give us, in the compass of this little
ode, the substance of a long description." It may have been de-
signed for the celebration of the feast of the passover.
/ 2. — his sanctuary : i. e. the people set apart, and, as it were,
consecrated, to be his peculiar people. — his dominion : .i. e. the
people of which he was king in a peculiar, theocratic sense.

Ps. CXV.

This psalm seems to have been composed when the nation was
in distress, or in great danger, on account of foreign enemies. But
it is idle to undertake to conjecture the particular occasion of it.

1. J^ot unto usj &c. : i. e. Help and deliver us, if not on our

NOTES. 355

own account, yet on account of the honor of thy own name, and of
thy promises to the patriarchs. Comp. Ezek. xxxvi. 22.

8. — like unto them : i. e. equally without power and worthless.

17. The dead praise not, &c. See the note on vi. 5.

Ps. CXVI.

There have been many conjectures in relation to the time and
occasion of the composition of this psalm. On account of some
Chaldee idioms which occur in it, I think the opinion of Dr. Ham-
mond tlie most probable, namely, that it was written by some pious
Israelite after the return from the captivity at Babylon.

3. — pains of the underworld. The literal meaning probably is,
straits of the underworld. The meaning of the whole verse is, that
the writer was in imminent danger of death.

7. Return — to thy rest, &c. : i. e. Be again tranquil, after thy
anxiety and agitation.

9. — walk before the Lord: i. e. aiming to serve him and do
his will.

10. / had trust, &c. : i. e. I did not cease to place confidence
in God.

11. — All men are liars: i. e. disappoint the hopes that are
placed in them. All reliance on human aid is vain.

13. — the cup of salvation, &c. : i. e. of thanksgiving for the de-
liverance which I have obtained from God. It seems to have been
customary, after offering a sacrifice for some great deliverance, to
make a feast, at which the host would take a cup of wine, and,
having partaken of it, pass it round to his guests. Comp. Matt,
xxvi. 27,

16. — the son of thy handmaid: i. e, thy servant or slave, as in
the parallel line. The children of a female slave belonged of right
to her master.

Ps. CXVIII.

This psalm was probably composed to be sung on the occasion of
the deliverance of some king of Israel from the dangers of war.
Different parts of it were probably to be performed by separate
choirs of singers, representing the king, the priests, and the people.
The author and the date of the composition, as well as the particu-
30*

354 NOTES.

lar king who is the subject of it, are wholly unknown. It ia
probable, however, that it was composed after the erection of the
temple, and of course was not a production of David. Some apply
the psalm to Hezekiah, after his deliverance from sickness, and from
the invasion of Sennacherib. Some suppose that it was sung at
the dedication of the second temple, after the return from the cap-
tivity ; some, that it relates to the time of the Maccabees, when
Simon was made governor of the Jews ; see 1 Mace. ch. xiii., xiv.
Another opinion is, that it is not an individual, but the whole
people of Israel personified, that is introduced as giving thanks for
deliverance. We cannot find in the psalm sufiicient reasons to
justify this view. In the Lamentations of Jeremiah, and in Isaiah,
ch. xl. — Ixvi., there appears, however, to be such a personification of
the Jewish people. But some indications in the particular passage
in which such a use of language is maintained seem necessary to
justify the opinion. Some of the ancient Jews, perhaps those who
lived in the time of Christ, regarded the psalm as prophetic of the
Messiah, and some suppose that Christ and the Apostles regarded
it as such. See Matt. xxi. 42, Acts iv. 11. But the most common
opinion of interpreters is, that those verses are quoted only by
way of accommodation, or rhetorical illustration, or, at least, are
applied to Jesus in a mystical, not a literal, sense.

13. Thou didst assail, &c. An address to his enemy.

19. — the gates of righteousness : so called because the righteous
enter them for worship.

22. The stone which the builders rejected, &c. : i, e. He, whose
claims were disregarded and despised by the chief men of the nation,
has now attained to the highest dignity among his people. As was
intimated in the introduction to this psalm, history does not seem
to supply us with the means of determining who is meant by the
stone which the builders rejected. Venema and RosenmUller refer
it to Simon, whose history is recorded in 1 Mace. ch. xiii., xiv.;
De Wette and Tholuck to the whole Jewish people.

24. — which the Lord hath made : i. e. so happy and dis-
tinguished.

26. — that Cometh in the name of the Lord. This language
seems to be more applicable to a prince than to the whole people.

27. — to the horns of the altar : i. e. in order to be sacrificed.

NOTES. 355

Ps. CXIX.

This is another of the alphabetical psalms, but of a different struc
ture from any of the preceding. It is divided into as many sections,
of eiglit verses each, as tliere are letters in the Hebrew alphabet,
namely, twenty-two, — all the lines of the first section beginning
with the first letter of it, Aleph, of the second with Beth, and so
to the last in the order of the alphabet. From the structure and
character of the psalm, it is generally supposed to have been writ-
ten in the later period of the Jewish nation.

19. I am a stranger^ &c. As a stranger wandering in a foreign
land feels the need of the guidance of friends, so man, a stranger in
the earth, needs the guidance of God.

25. — to the dust : i. e. of death. See the parallel line, and
xxii. 15.

26. I have declared my icays, &c. : i. e. I have made known to
thee my affiiirs, my purposes, my condition, and my dangers, and
sought thine aid.

32. — enlarge my heart : i. e. increase my intelligence ; see
1 Kings iv. 29; or, grant me deliverance from trouble. See
Is. Ix. 5.

42. — him that reproachcth mc : i. e. on account of n)y reliance
on thee.

43. — takenot the icord of truth, &c. : i. e. do not deal with me
so that I shall be ashamed to mention thy word or thy promise, in'
which I have often gloried, respecting the deliverance which thou
givest to the righteous, and the punishment which thou inflictest on
the wicked.

54. — have been my song : i. e. the subject of my song or re-
joicing. — house of my pilgrimage. This expression may refer to
the exile in Babylon, or to human life in general.

56. — as my otcn : i. e. my peculiar happiness.

79. — turn unto me: i. e. unite themselves witii me and rejoice
in my deliverance. See ver. 74.

83. — a bottle in the smoke : which, being made of skins, became
shrivelled by smoke.

84. How many are the days, &c. : i. e. How short is my life.
89. — like the heavens. Comp. Jer. xxxi. 35, 36, Luke xxi. 33.
91. They continue: i. e. the heavens and the earth.

108. — free-will offerings &c. : i. e. my prayer, which I freely offer.

356 NOTES.

118. — their deceit is vain : i. e. tlieir deceitful plans shall be
unsuccessful, and disappoint iheir expectations.

127. Therefore : i. e. Because I am thy servant ; ver. 125.

139. Ml/ zeal consumeth me : i. e. I burn with indignation.

142. — everlasting righteousness : i. e. never to be dispensed
with, or made void.

148. — anticipate the night-watches, &c. : i. e. I am awake be-
fore the watchmen announce the night-watches, and need no warn-
ing from them.

Ps. CXX.

It seems probable that this psalm was composed by one living in
exile, though not in Mesech and Kedar ; for these places were at
an immense distance from each other. Mesech was a barbarous
country in the North, between Iberia, Armenia, and Colchis; and
Kedar was a district in Arabia. The terms are used figuratively to
denote barbarous countries, as we should speak of living among
Turks or Hottentots. For what may be said on the appellation,
" A psalm of steps,'' which is given to this and the fourteen follow-
ing psalms, see p. 26.

3. — what advantage, Sic. The sense of the verse is, that the de-
ceitful tongue does not profit, but rather injures, him that em-
ploys it.

4. — Like coals of the juniper : which was thought by the ancients
to have great heat, and to retain it long. See Harris's Nat. Hist., p.
237, &c. But there is great reason to doubt whether the juniper is
the plant referred to in this passage. It is more probable that the
broom is the plant denoted, the Arabic name of which, according
to Dr. Robinson, is the same as the Hebrew, and the roots of which
are regarded by the Arabs as yielding the best charcoal. See Ges.
Thesaur. on Dii"^, and Robinson's Biblical Researches in Palestine,
Vol. I., p. 299. I retain the term juniper instead of broom from
rhetorical considerations.

Ps. CXXI.

This psalm seems to have been composed by a poet who was
exiled from Jerusalem, if not from Palestine. If written by David,
it may refer to the time of the rebellion of Absalom.

1. — to the hills : i. e. of Palestine, on which God, as the king

NOTES. 357

of Israel, was regarded as having his peculiar abode. Comp. xiv.
7, cxxxv. 21, cxxxiv. 3, 1 Kings viii. 42-44.

6. — J^or the moon by night. We have no evidence, except
what is implied in this passage, that the Jews ascribed any noxious
influences to the moon. Perhaps, therefore, the verse may mean
nothing more than that no injury should be received by day or by
night. It is not impossible, however, that injury received from
passing the night in the open air may have been ascribed to the
moon.

Ps. CXXII.

It is not probable that this psalm was written by David. See
ver. 3 and 5.

3. — joined together: i, e. wholly built up, without vacant
spaces.

Ps. CXXV.

It appears from verse third, that this psalm was composed at a
time when Palestine was oppressed by foreign enemies, or in great
danger from them.

3. — the portion of the righteous : i, e. the land of Israel. See
cv. 11. — Lest the righteous, &c. : i. e. Lest the Jews be tempted
by idolatrous oppressors to renounce the worship and service of
Jehovah.

5. — their crooked ways : i. e. of the heathen oppressors, or evil-
doers, mentioned in the next line.

Ps. CXXVI.

1. — that dream: i. e. we could scarcely believe our senses, that
so great and glorious an event had taken place.

4, — Lihe streams in a dry land. The streams in hot countries,
especially in the southern deserts, dry up in the summer months,
but return after the periodical rains. See the note on Job vi. 15, &c.
The land of Palestine deprived of its inhabitants during the cap-
tivity might be compared to one of these deserts forsaken by its
streams; and the return of the exiles in crowds to their native land
might be compared to torrents of water returning in the season of
rain.

358 NOTES.

5,6. These verses are well paraphrased by Patrick. "Then
this small handful of people, who are come to plant themselves here
again, and have laid the foundation of the temple with a great
mixture of sadness and tears, Ezra iii. 12, shall shout for joy to see
so great an increase, and this pious work by their help brought unto
perfection ; just as we behold the poor husbandman, going to and fro
with a little seed, which in a scarce year he throws with a heavy
heart into the ground, returning again and again from the field with
songs of joy in his mouth, when the harvest comes to reward his
past labors with a plentiful crop of corn."

Ps. CXXVII.

1. — build the house, &c. There seems no good reason for re-
ferring this to the temple. The expression is rather proverbial,
referring to houses in general.

2. — bread of care: i. e. earned by anxious labor. — in sleep.
This is an hyperbolical expression to denote that what others aim to
gain by wearisome efforts God gives to the righteous without any
such painstaking, as it were, while they sleep. Comp. Matt. vi.
34. Probably nothing more is expressed than the sentiment of
verse first, namely, that without the blessing of God nothing prospers.

5. — enemies in the gate. The meaning may be, that they shall
destroy the enemy in the gate of their own city, or that they shall
invade the cities of a foreign nation. Comp. Gen. xxii.17, xxiv. 60.

Ps. CXXVIII.

2. — eat the labor : i. e. the fruits of the labor, &c. Thou shall
not sow and another reap. Comp. Lev. xxvi. 16, Deut. xxviii. 33.

3. — fruitful vine. The fruitfulness of the vine is the only point
of comparison. — within thy house : where the customs of the East
required the matron to be a great part of the time.

5. — out of Zionj &c. See the note on ex. 1.

Ps. CXXIX.

This psalm, which recounts the many past afflictions of the

NOTES. 359

Jewish nation, and the deliverances which God had afforded it, and
closes with imprecations against its enemies, was probably written
soon after the return from the captivity.

2. — from my youth .-i.e. from the time of the bondage in Egypt.
Comp. Hos. ii. 15, xi. 1.

3. — ploughed up, &c. A figurative expression to denote stripes,
and this to denote oppression in general.

4. — cut asunder the cords: i. e, delivered from servitude.

6. — grass upon the house-tops. The roofs of the houses being
flat and often covered with earth, grass would spring up on them, but
would soon perish with the heat of the sun. See Jahn's Archaeol.
§ 34.

8. — The blessing, &c. This appears to have been a usual
salutation in time of harvest. See Ruth ii. 4.

Ps. CXXX.

This psalm appears to have been written by one who was suffer-
ing, in common with his countrymen, under the pressure of some
great national calamity. No period seems more suitable for such a
prayer than the time of the captivity.

3. — treasure up, &c. : i. e. in thy memory, for the purpose of
strictly punishing them.

4. — That thou mayst be feared, Hope of mercy leads to the
reverence and love of God. Despair would engage one for ever in a
course of sin. Before the prodigal can return to his father, he must
feel sure that he has a father to whom he can return.

8. . — From all his iniquities : i. e. from the consequences, or
punishment, of them.

Ps. CXXXI.

This psalm may have been composed by David, when he was ac-
cused of aiming to deprive Saul of his throne. It may have been
used by the Jews after the captivity, on account of the accusations of
Sanballat.

2. — Like a iceaned child : i. e. I commit myself to thy care,
acquiesce in my condition, and submit to be disposed of as thou
pleasest.

36Q NOTES.

Ps. CXXXII.

6, — heard of it at Ephratah^ &c. Epkratah probably here
denotes the country of Ephraim, in which was Shiloh, where the ark
of God remained several years. The fields of Jaar probably refer to
Kirjath-jearirn, where the ark was kept a long time. The meaning
in connection with what follows seems to be, that, having heard of
the ark in different and distant places, and as removed from place
to place, they might now rejoice that it had a settled abode.

15. — hless her provision^ &c. To Zion, regarded as represent-
ing the nation, abundance and prosperity are promised.

16. — clothe her priests with salvation : i. e. cause them to give
continual thanks for salvation granted to the people.

17. — a light, &c. This was an emblem of splendor and pros-
perity. See xviii. 28, Job xxix. 3, and the note.

Ps. CXXXIII.

2. — precious perfume, &c. See the note on Eccles. vii. 1.
— the border of his garments: i. e., as seems probable, the upper
border, which went round his neck.

3. Like the dew of Hermon. In a country where little or no rain
falls except at particular seasons, the dew is most grateful to the
parched hills. It also descends in abundance. " We were suf-
ficiently instructed by experience what the holy Psalmist means by
the dew of Hermon, our tents being as wet with it as if it had
rained all night." — Maundrell's Journey, &c., p. 97, Amer, edit.

Ps. CXXXIV.

1. — by night. It was the duty of the priests and Levites to
serve in the temple day and night. The service by night is men-
tioned in particular, as being more arduous. Levit. viii. 35,1 Chron.
ix. 33.

2. — to the sanctuary. See xxviii. 2.

NOTES. 361

Ps. CXXXVII.

This beautiful psalm was probably written very soon after tiie
captivity in Babylon, while the memory of the sufferings and indig-
nities connected with it was fresh in the mind of the author.

5. — her cunning. In this connection, skill in playing on the
harp seems to be referred to. Otherwise, Let my right hand forget
me.

6. — m,ij tongue cleave., &lc. : i. e. refuse its office in singing.

7. — children of Edom : who had shown great hostility to the
Israelites, and joined with th« Chaldseans in effecting the destruc-
tion of Jerusalem. Comp. Ezek. xxv. 12, Obad. 10. Respecting
the imprecations in ver. 7-9, with which the patriotic can in some
degree sympathize, but which the Christian can scarcely approve,
see p. 14, &c.

Ps. CXXXVIII.

This psalm is commonly supposed to refer to the circumstances
of David, when, after the death of Saul, he was established on the
throne. The term "^DT? temple., ver. 2, seems to point to a later
age than that of David.

1. — Before the gods : i. e. Before the kings of the earth. See
ver. 4. Otherwise, Before the angels of God ; otherwise. Before
Go .

2. — thy promise above all thy praise : i. e. thou hast fulfilled thy
promise, and more than fulfilled it, and hast done more than has
ever been said or conceived of thee.

6, — knoweth from afar : i. e. takes cognizance of them for the
purpose of punishment.

8. — Forsake not the works of thine hands : i. e. Complete what
thy hands have begun.

Ps. CXXXIX.

It appears, from ver. 19-24, that this admirable psalm, to at-
tempt to set forth the excellence of wiiich by descriptive epithets
would be folly, was in some degree occasional. The author seems
to have been led to the composition of it by false charges against
the uprightness of his intentions, and the sincerity and purity of his
31

362 NOTES.

course, in respect to the worship and service of Jehovah. On
account of the reference to idolatry, and certain Chaldaizing forms
vi'hich occur in it, some critics refer the psalm to a later age than
that of David.

5. — laycst thine hand upon me : i. e. hast nie completely in thy
povirer.

9. — wings of the morning : i. e. if I could move as swiftly as
the rays of the morning sun, which in an instant go from one end
of heaven to the other.

15. — curiously wrought in the lower parts of the earth. This
language seems to amount to the same thing as that in ver. 13,
Thou didst weave me in my mother's womb, i. e, in as dark a place
as the lower parts of the earth.

17. How precious to me are thy thoughts: i. e. How highly
valued, precious in the contemplation, are thy purposes of wisdom
and goodness, as displayed in the formation and care of man ! It
appears to me that De Wette and Gesenius unnecessarily depart
from the common meaning of the term 'ip"'^ when they ascribe to it
here the meaning incomprehensiUe^ inconceivable.

18. — When I aicake, I am still toith thee : i. e. I am still engaged
in meditating upon thee, and what thou hast done.

24. — in the ancient way : i. e. the good old way of the worship
of Jehovah, sanctioned by the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. Comp. Jer. vi. 16.

Ps. CXL.

This psalm is commonly supposed to have been composed by
David in reference to the persecution of Saul and his courtiers.

3. — sharpen their tongues like a serpent. Perhaps there may
be reference to the serpent's putting out his forked tongue, and
moving it rapidly, so as to appear to sharpen it.

Ps. CXLI.

If this psalm was written by David, it may have had the same
general occasion as the last. But it seems to contain no special
allusions to the circumstances of David. It is most probable that
the author and the occasion of the psalm are unknown.

4. — eat of their delicacies : i. e. associate with them at their

NOTES. 363

sumptuous feasts, where their evil designs are discussed. Or, the
expression may be a figurative one to denote participation in their
cherished designs.

5. — oil for my head : as grateful as perfumed oil, which was
poured on the head of guests. See cxxxiii. 2, and the note. Comp.
Prov. xxvii. 6, Eccles. vii. 5. But now I pray against their
wickedness : i. e. But now, when I experience treatment the re-
verse of what is right and kind, I am impatient under it, and pray
against my enemies who inflict it. See Doederlein's Scholia ad
loo. The pronoun their refers to the enemies of the poet, whom he
mentions in the next verse,

6. — over the side of the rock : according to an ancient mode
of punishing malefactors. See 2 Chron. xxv. 12. — Then let
them hear my words, &c. " But how," asks RosenmCiller, " could
they hear his words, after being thrown from the rock? " But this
question makes no allowance for the language of passionate emo-
tion, which will not bear a strict analysis. St. Paul says that he
delivered Hymeneus and Alexander to Satan, that they might learn
not to blaspheme. An uncompromising teacher ! we might say,
in the spirit of RosenmUller's question. We may, however, sup-
pose that the words, let them hear, refer to the survivors, the people
warned by the fate of the judges or rulers.

7. Our hones are scattered, &c. : i. e. The bones of our country-
men, friends, or followers. This may be understood as a literal
description of what had been done by the enemies of the writer, or
as a metaphorical description of the low condition to which he and
his followers were reduced.

Ps. CXLII.

According to the Hebrew inscription, this psalm was composed
by David to express the feelings which he had while in the cave
of Adullam, 1 Sam. eh. xxii., or in that of Engedi, 1 Sam. ch. xxiv.
Some suppose this title to have been a conjecture of the person
who placed it there, founded on verse seventh. Bring me out of
prison, &c.

3. — was overwhelmed, — kneioest : better, — is overwhelmed^
— knowest, &c.

7. — out of prison : i. e. out of my distress.

364 NOTES.

Ps. CXLIII.

This psalm, if composed by David, may refer to his distress dur-
ing his persecution by Saul, or during the rebellion of Absalom.
This is one of the psalms which some Jewish and some modern
critics suppose to be designed for the use of the whole people, per-
sonified as a single individual in distress. Without doubt, many of
the psalms were designed for the use of the whole people of Israel,
like Christian hymns for the use of a congregation. But whether
there is a personification of the people in the psalms of complaint
is very doubtful. Such a view needs more positive support than
we find in those psalms.

3. — in darkness : i. e. in hopeless calamity. See the next
verse.

Ps. CXLIV.

This psalm, if composed by David, seems to refer to a time when
he was established on the throne, but was yet exposed to many
dangers from his own rebellious subjects, and from the Philistines,
and other foreign enemies. It contains so many verses borrowed
from other psalms, that there is considerable plausibility in the con-
jecture of De Wette, that it was composed, or rather compiled, long
after the age of David.

3. Comp. viii. 4.

5. Comp. xviii. 9.

6. Comp. xviii. 14.

7. Comp. xviii. 16.

12. — Groicn up in their youth. It is somewhat doubtful, whether
this line belongs to sons or io plants. The expression in their youthj
in the Hebrew, is not applied to plants, but only to persons, and
thus favors the former application. On the other hand, it may be
said that the term youth may be used metaphorically.

14. — breaking in: i. e. of enemies into the walls of our cities.
— going out : i. e. in flight, or into captivity.

Ps. CXLV.

Tiiis is another of the alphabetical psalms, constructed like the

NOTES. 365

twenty-fifth and thirty-fourth. See p. 47, &c. The ancient Jews
had so high an opinion of its excellence, that they used to say, that
a man could not fail to be a child of the world to come, who would
repeat this psalm three times every day.

9. Jehovah is good, &c. : read. The Lord is good, &c.

Ps. CXLVI.

This is a psalm of solemn praise to God, designed probably for
public worship in the temple. It is a very ancient opinion, that it
was composed after the return from the captivity, being ascribed in
the Septuagint version to Haggai and Zechariah.

8. — openeth the eyes of the blind. This is probably a figurative
expression, denoting that the Lord restores from distress to pros-
perity, when there are no hopes from human aid. Comp. Is. xxxv.
5, xlii. 7.

9. — he maketh crooked : i. e. defeats their designs ; prevents
them from attaining the object at which they aim.

Ps. CXLVII.

This psalm appears, from ver. 2, in connection with 13 and 14,
to have been composed after the return from the captivity.

3. — the broken in heart : an instance of which is his restoring
those who were exiles at Babylon.

10. — in the feet of men : i. e. not in infantry more than in
cavalry. He needs neither the one nor the other. Otherwise,
feet of men may denote swiftness of foot, which was considered a
great accomplishment in an ancient warrior.

15. — His word runneth very swiftly : i. e. that which he com-
mands is speedily effected.

18, He sendeth forth his word: i. e. gives command.

Ps. CXLVIII.

1. — from the heavens : i. e. ye angels who are from the heav-
ens, in contradistinction from things on the earth, ver. 7. — in the
hei<rhts : i. e. the heavens.

366 NOTES.

2. — all ye his hosts : i. e. of angels. Comp. 1 Kings xxii. 19.
4. — Ye waters^ &c. Comp. civ. 3, Gen. i. 7.
9. — all cedars : which are mentioned in particular as represent-
ing all wild trees.

14. — near to him. Comp. Deut. iv. 7.

Ps. CXLIX.

This psalm contains no indications of the time when it was com-
posed. The conjecture of Theodoret, that it was written after the
return from the captivity, when the nation was established, and had
obtained considerable success over their enemies, seems to be as
plausible as any.

1. — a new song. The epithet new seems to denote nothing
more than that the psalm had not been before sung, implying, per-
haps, that there was new occasion to sing the praise of God.

2. — in him that made him: i. e. as a nation. Comp. Deut.
xxxiii. 6.

4. - — icith salvation : i. e. deliverance from their enemies, or
victory over them. The distressed probably denote here the people
of Israel, mentioned in the parallel line.

5. — in their glory : i. e. the glorious condition in which God,
their king, has placed them.

6. — a tico-edged sword, &c. Comp. ii., ex., &c., Neh. iv.
13, &c.

9. — which is written. This may refer to the command given
to the Israelites to destroy the nations of Palestine, in Deut. ch. vii.,
or, more probably, to what is written in the book of the divine
mind, and referred to in ii., ex., &c. Comp. Ivi. 8, cxxxix. 16,
Jude, ver. 4, Rev. xiii. 8, xx. 15.

Ps. CL.

It may be supposed that the first and last lines of this psalm were
ng by the whole company of singers, and that the other lines

were sung responsively by different portions of it.

1. — in his sanctuary : i. e. in the temple. — m his glorious

firmament : i. e. in heaven, referring to the angels.

su

NOTES. 367

5. — cymbals, &c. For what information may be had respect-
ing the musical instruments of the Hebrews, see PfeifFer on the
Music of the Ancient Hebrews, translated in the Biblical Repository
for October, 1835; Jahn's Archaeology, § 92-96.

THE END.

BS195.2.N951846

A new translation of the book of Psalms,

Princeton Theological Seminary-Speer Library

7

1012 00150 1651