^i OF PRI«-^
\^3o
A
A TRANSLATION AND COMMENTARY
OF THE
BOOK OF PSALMS
FOR THE USE OF THE
MINISTRY AND LAITY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
/
AUGUSTUS THOLUCK, U.D., Ph.D.
touslatrh from tljB Stmu:
WITH A CAREFUL COMPARISON OF THE PSALM-TEXT
WITH THE ORIGINAL TONGUES.
BY THE
Rev. J. ISIDOR MOMBERT.
Thy Word is a lamp unto Ihy feet, and a mght unto mt path. — JPsalm, cxix. 105.
PHILADELPHIA:
WILLIAM S. & ALFRED MARTIEN,
608 Chestnut Street.
1858.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
Translator's Preface v
Preface to the English Edition ix
Preface to the German Edition xiii
Introduction 1 — 56
Sec. I. — The Psalter in the Christian Church 1 — 14
Sec. II. — The form, division, design, and use of the Psalter
in Old Testament Times 14—22
Sec. III.— The Authors of the Psalms 22—32
Sec. IV. — Doctrine and Ethics^f the Psalms 32 — 56
I. — God and the Government of the World 32 — 36
11.— Man and Sin 36—39
III. — Piety and Morality of the Psalmists 39 — 45
IV.— The Future 46—48
v.— The Messiah 48—56
Commentary 57 — 497
TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE.
The fiae Christian spirit and unassuming intelligence which pervade
the writings of Dr. Tholuck have not only endeared him to theolo-
gians and intelligent Christians on the Continent, but secured for
him a large number of admirers in this country. Almost all his
cxegetical writings, with the exception of this Commentary on the
Psalms, have long been before the British public. Peculiar diffi-
culties lay in the way, and deterred translators from the execution
of the work. These difficulties are referred to by Dr. Tholuck
himself in his Preface to this translation : it may not, however, be
amiss here to advert to them in brief, so that my position as the
translator of this work may from the outset be clearly understood.
The text of the Psalms in the German edition is based on that of
Luther, with such emendations by Dr. Tholuck as were rendered
indispensably necessary by certain inaccuracies which occur in
Luther's version, and other indistinct renderings which obscure the
sense and connection. Every one familiar with Luther's translation
knows how much it is at variance with the English authorized
version; but Dr. Tholuck' s Commentary is based on the former in
its emendated condition. A literal translation of Tholuck's version
would have rendered the valuable Commentary to a very great extent
useless to English readers, whereas the substitution of the English
authorized version for Tholuck's would have produced an incon-
gruity not less fatal to the use of the work. The only way I could
see to meet this difficulty was this. Tholuck's German work was
intended to meet the wants of the German public : the English
translation is intended to meet the wants of the British public.
Tholuck based his version on Luther's, which is the popular version
in Germany: in my translation I have taken the English authorized
A* ^ V
VI TRANSLATOR S PREFACE.
version, printed in parallels, as the base of operation. The princi-
ples on which I have sought to harmonize the Grerman version with
the English and Dr. Tholuck's Commentary have been the fol-
lowing :
First: Never to alter when the two versions corresponded in
sense.
Second : "Whenever the original Hebrew warranted a rendering
different from that in the English authorized version, which had
been adopted by Dr. Tholuck, and furnished a new idea, or one
which the English version would not have suggested, to put it either
in brackets in the text of the Psalms or in separate foot-notes.
Third : Not to undertake any alteration without having, besides
the versions of Luther, Tholuck, and other eminent German ver-
sionists, diligently consulted and carefully weighed the Hebrew
original, the Septuagint, and the Vulgate versions.
The version thus obtained harmonizes with that of Tholuck,
resembles sufficiently the English authorized version to bring the
alterations which have been undertaken into prominent relief, from
the fact that the smallest divergence from the latter will at once
arrest the attention of the English Bible reader, and though it does
not state the detailed steps of criticism^ furnishes its results. How
far Dr. Tholuck, to whom a portion of the sheets have been sub-
mitted, approves of the way in which I have endeavoured to meet
these difficulties, will be seen from the following passage, which
occurs in his last communication to me : "I have gained the con-
viction from the sheets which lie before me, that you are perfectly
capable of meeting, as well as it can be done, the difficulty arising
from the relation of my translation to the English authorized
version."
The Introduction will be found peculiarly valuable to Bible
students.
The chief merits of the Commentary consist in the highly spirit-
ual strain of its devotion, its concise and suggestive intelligence,
and rich historical and illustrative character. There are many
ministers who have not the time to enter into the learned and
TRANSLATOR S PREFACE. Vll
critical disquisitions whicli fill the pages of more voluminous works,
while there are others who have no relish for critical treatises and
contentions with Hebrew roots. Neither of these classes will con-
sult Tholuck in vain. But all ministers and laymen, who wish to
raise their own devotion and refresh their spirits by listening to
the sweet Psalmist of Israel, will find that much of the Psalmist's
holy flame has been caught by his German commentator, and that
he understands to touch cords which must elicit sympathy from every
Christian heart. Here is a thoroughly pious but also an intelligent
Commentary on the Psalms, which I consider to belong to that kind
of books wanted to raise the standard of religious instruction, and
to impress the minds of the many with the fact, that religion is not
insipid, and engages no less the afi"ections than the understanding.
I have adopted a diff"erent arrangement from that of the German
volume : there the Psalm-text is followed by the Introduction and
the Commentary, while in the English edition the Introduction and
analysis precede the Psalm-text, and the Commentary succeeds it.
Ministers and students in particular, who often require the histo-
rical references and illustrative matter, or the bare outline of thought
of a psalm, will find this arrangement, which presents the intro-
ductory matter separate from the exegetical, very advantageous.
The verses of the Psalm-text correspond to the verses in the
German edition, which agrees with the versic division adopted in
the Hebrew, the Septuagint, and the Vulgate, but often difiers from
that which prevails in the English authorized version, in which the
titles are generally given in a separate form, whereas in the original
tongues they are always counted as verses. The same remark
applies also to the references to various portions of the book of
Psalms.
Respecting the translation of the Commentary, I have endea-
voured to follow closely the sense of the original, and having
caught the German idiom, to express it in an English idiomatic
form. I have done so from the conviction that a slavish adherence
to the words renders many translations from the German obscure
and heavy. I know, from a comparison of several English transla-
Vlll TRANSLATOR S PREFACE.
tions with their Grerman originals, that in very many instances the
epithet ^^mistij," which is so lavishly fastened upon German works,
ought more appropriately to be laid to the charge of the translators,
who have sometimes furnished literal translations, which to under-
stand, however, transcends the capacity not only of English readers,
but of the very authors of the works. I know German authors
who, though good English Scholars, have been utterly unable to
identify the English translations of their works as their own pro-
ductions, and expressed their astonishment that their translations
could sell.
It has been my humble endeavour to do justice to Dr. Tholuck
and to the British public, but must not be considered to subscribe
to all the views set forth by the author. My prayer is, that the
blessing of God may attend the perusal of this Commentary in the
study, the closet, and the family, and that the lofty conceptions,
the humble penitence, the strong faith, and the silent resignation
of the royal bard, may charm the minds and captivate the hearts
of the readers, and prove as beneficial to them as the study of this
work has been to me. The example of the Psalmists, who lived
more than a thousand years before the advent of our Lord, who
were confined to the law and the shadow of things to come, and
bad only dim views of the glory so clearly revealed to us in the
gospel, has often put me to the blush, and tended, I trust, to
deepen my convictions of sin, and to increase my faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ. May such be the experience of all who read this
book !
I beg here thankfully to record my gratitude to Dr. Tholuck for
his readiness in writing a preface to this translation, and to
acknowledge the kindness and encouragement I have received
from many friends while this work was in progress.
J. ISIDOR MOMBERT.
PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION.
Having been invited by the translator of this Commentary to
write a Preface to the English version, it aifords me pleasure from
the outset to familiarize the British public with my object in lay-
ing this Commentary before the public of my native country.
Debarred of the privilege of Christian instruction and Christian
example, I shared, up to my nineteenth year, the then prevalent
rationalistic views. My scientific (theological) studies did not
result in my conversion to the faith of the gospel. It was brought
about by the instrumentality of a noble Christian layman, who
belonged to the small number of those who, under the influence of
Matthias Claudius of Hamburg, and the cooperation of the breth-
ren (unitas fratrum,^ had in that period of universal infidelity kept
alive the faith in the word of God's truth. His luminous example
of a Christian walk, more than what he told me, led me to think,
and assured me at least of this, that Jesus is the Son of God, and
that his doctrine and example make up a complete moral ideal,
which man must appropriate for the purpose of attaining to rest
and finding peace. Then I believed in Christ; I was able to
kneel before him and to pray to him. Then he became the friend
of my soul, whom I learned to consult in all things, as I had for-
merly consulted my conscience. But how far remote was I at
that time from the position of a doctrinally correct Christian!
Only some portions of the New Testament fell in with my taste:
X PREFACE TO, THE ENGLISH EDITION.
these were the Gospel of John and the Epistle of James; the Old
Testament, I am constrained to make the confession, I loathed,
like Marcion of old. I had till that time studied the Oriental
languages only. Not a long time after this, I was, without my
having taken any steps to that effect, requested by the religious
department of Government (^Ministerium des Cultus) to deliver
theological lectures on the Old Testament, in the place of De Wette,
who had been deposed. I found myself in a great strait. I went
to solicit the help of Neander.
He knew how to meet my doubts and scruples relating to
Christianity, with wisdom and gentleness; but though himself a
Jew, he shared, respecting the Old Testament, the universally
diffused rationalistic views — with this exception, that his religious
zeal prompted him to search in its pages for those religious truths
which are allied to Christianity. The share of Christian feeling
which entered into my faith, placed me in strong opposition to
rationalism, and I held it my duty to combat in my lectures on the
Old Testament also, every view advanced by the rationalistic
school.
I gradually arrived at the conviction that the criticism and exe-
gesis on the Old Testament, as set forth by the old theologians, did
not in any way hold good in every instance. I endeavoured for
some time, while the struggle between my religious and my scien-
tific conscience was going on, to justify these old views only; but
at last I could no longer continue blind to such a contradiction,
and the thing to be done was to reconstruct in a new spirit that
old theology, as in fact it had already been done with reference to
the New Testament. I derived considerable aid in that task from
Calvin's Commentary/ on the Psalms : it disclosed to me a religious
depth in this one book of the Old Testament, which opened my
eyes for many other glories of the Old Testament scriptures.
PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION. XI
Progressing in this knowledge, I learned to understand that the
Christian Revelation is indeed a tree without a root, as long as it
is not understood in its intimate connection with God's revelation
of salvation in the Old Testament. My newly-prepared editions
of the Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, and the Sermon
on the Mount, which have recently been published, contain fur-
ther proof of this fact.
I had to continually perceive that the students]^ had no other
available help in their study of the Book of Psalms than the Com-
mentary of De Wette, which just on this Book of the Old Testa-
ment is particularly meagre in religious knowledge. The explicit
and valuable Commentary of Hengstenberg had then not yet
appeared, and owing to its great bulk is hardly circulated among
students. Our Christian laity feel the want of a more intimate
familiarity with the Old Testament, for which Hengstenberg's
Commentary is not at all designed. In writing my Commentary
on the Psalms, my object was this : to interpret the Book of Psalms
in the spirit of Calvin; and hasing it on the helps derived from
the newly-gained vietvs of modern times, to adapt the volume to the
wants of the people, and also to p7'ofessional men, who, besides
strictly grammatical Commentaries, look for a guide to the spirit-
ual understanding of this portion of Holy Writ.
I am hardly in a position to say whether similar wants exist in
England. I must in this respect rely on the judgment of the
translator. I should think that there is such a want; there are in
England and Scotland many laymen especially, who are little
acquainted with the Old Testament itself, or with its traditional
exegesis.
The main misgiving I entertained about a translation of my
Commentary on the Psalms, arose from the circumstance that my
Exposition was based on Luther's version, and only then deviated
XU PREFACE TO THE ENGLISH EDITION.
from it when the sense rendered it unavoidably needful. The
relation of my version to that of Luther is similar to that which the
criticism of Wetsteiu and Griesbach, in the editions before Lach-
mann's time, sustains to the New Testament, namely, to leave
Luther's version intact, even where it was not quite happy, and
only then to alter when positive errors occurred. The English
authorized version of the Bible, composed at a later period, and
supported by a richer exegetical apparatus, is better than Luther's,
as far as the correct rendering of the sense is concerned, although
Luther's excels it in richness of expression. I wholly confide in
the judgment of the translator to meet this difficulty in the best
manner.
It is my heart's desire that this English version may prove to
many English readers the means of producing an attachment for
this precious Book of the Psalms like that which I formed while
this volume was preparing.
Dil. TIIOLUCK.
PREFACE TO THE GERMAN EDITION.
Soon after the commencement of my academical course, some
twenty or more years ago, I began to lecture on the Psalms. I
felt at that time, and have done ever since, on re-delivering the
said Lectures or on reading the Psalms, the want of a Commentary
which should familiarize our cotemporaries with the religious con-
tents of these immortal songs, as Calvin's work had done in his
days. From that time I have encouraged and desired those whose
special vocation I thought to lie in that direction, to execute such
a work.
But my desire, which I know was also that of many others, has
all this time remained ungratified. I have therefore myself under-
taken the present work on the Psalms. It has been my intention
to familiarize not only theologians, but the public at large, with
their religious contents : the learned and linguistic investigations
necessarily connected with such a work have, so far as the under-
standing of the text is concerned, been either received according
to the results to which they have led, or been referred to in sepa-
rate notes. I have written this Commentary with a view to the
great boon which these songs have been for more than three thou-
sand years to pious Jews and Christians, and with the elevating
knowledge that even now there are millions of human beings, who
just in the words of the Psalms express in their prayers the long-
ings of their souls and the gratitude of their hearts to God. May
it tend to give to all who lack it, the firm conviction that the
Psalter comprises indeed a treasure of the most diverse and of the
most holy religious experience, and that it deserves to continue, in
every epoch of time, the Prayer-book of the Christian world ! It
is indeed true that the knowledge of the Psalmists is not in all
points equal to the knowledge which flows from Christian illumina-
tion. The interpretation of the Old Testament in particular, is in
XIV PREFACE TO THE GERMAN EDITION.
this respect too a want, especially for the laity, to the end that they
may not confound the stand-points of the different periods of the
revelations of God. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that the
Christian Church finds in the Psalms for many of her wants an
appropriate, a truly Christian, or as I should like to say, a truly
human expression, and that they constitute, for the liturgical use
of the people, and for the private devotion of individuals, a trea-
sury, sacred by its antiquity, for which it is impossible to substi-
tute any other.
These are the feelings with which I have undertaken this Com-
mentary, to which the prayers which accompany them correspond.
If I had known, when I began this volume, that the theologian who
seems especially qualified for the execution of a work of this kind,
would so soon publish a Commentary on the Psalms, I should not
have published mine. I have seen the first volume of Dr. Heng-
stenberg's Commentary, and entertain the hope that my work,
owing to its peculiar construction, will not prove superfluous, but
that both works will join to meet the existing want.
I have still briefly to advert to the critical position I occupy in
my Commentary. The authenticity of the titles has, with a few
exceptions, been taken as established. I declare from the outset,
that I have been far from making of this acceptation an article of
faith, or from attaching to it any special religious importance.
Every candid theologian will admit that, in the case of some of the
titles, there may be entertained by no means unfounded misgivings
respecting their authenticity. But I feel constrained to confess
that the manner in which the titles have in modern times been
treated, appears to me nothing short of the highest degree of criti-
cal arbitrariness. Instead of winnowing where necessary the his-
torical traditions, supported by weighty reasons, they are now from
the outset set aside, for the purpose of substituting in their place
the utterances of the most unbounded subjectivity. What confi-
dence can be placed in a criticism, the judgments of which present
among themselves such powerful contradictions?* Are we not
^ E. g. Köster and Maurer observe, ad. Psalm li. tliat the psalm con-
tains nothing which contradicts its title, that David is the author, and that
verses 20, 21, are an addition of a later date, Ewald, on the other hand,
states that v. 20 throws the clearest historical light on the whole psalm,
and that it belongs to the period shortly after the destruction of the Temple!
Krahmer remarks, ad. Psalm xxxii. that the authorship of David is alto-
PREFACE TO THE GERMAN EDITION. XV
entitled to the demand, that the critic — to say the very least —
should look at these titles, as the Commentators of the New Tes-
tament regard the diplomatically constituted text of Lachmann,
which they are bound to adhere to in all instances except those
where unmistakeable external or internal reasons render a deviation
from it absolutely necessary?
This is the position which I have adopted; fVom this point of
view I have endeavoured to understand and to historically explain
the Psalms, according to the hints furnished by the titles. I think
that in this manner objections which had been started have in more
than one instance been set aside, and that the authenticity of the
titles has been verified; but even if this were not the case, it was
necessary that some one should put forth the eflPort and make the
attempt. The critics, therefore, who start with different views,
cannot regard my method as blameworthy.
The translation is that of Luther, from which, however, I have
deviated in those instances where the sense was incorrect or the
connection dark. I fancy that I am not mistaken in thinking that
the printing of the text in separate lines and paragraphs, will mate-
rially facilitate to laymen the understanding of the Psalms and
their connection with the context.
A. THOLUCK.
gether to he called in question, that its tone is milder, more polished and soft,
than the psalms of David; while Ewald observes, "The song is clearly
ancient, thoroughly primitive, the mark of a strong mind." According to
Hitzig, Psalm ii. "is one of the latest." Maurer refers it to the time of Heze-
kiah ; and according to Ewald it cannot belong to a period later than the
days of Solomon, etc.
Das schöne Buch, das Richtscheid guter Sitten,
Die starke Kraft, den Himmel zu erbitten.
Des Lebens Trost, der Muth zum Sterben giebt,
Was der Held sang, den Gott durchaus geliebt.
Ward durch den Saal der ganzen Welt gesungen,
Und regte sich in aller Christen Zungen.
Opitz.
INTHODUCTION.
SECTION I.
THE PSALTER IN THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
»
The Book of Psalms should be approached with feelings of
reverence. The saints of the Jewish community and the Chris-
tian Church have, from the earliest times, found in its words the
expressions of their most secret feelings. Appropriating its com-
plaints and promises, they have struggled before God in prayer.
The Psalter was the earliest prop of Christian worship. The
present liturgies of most Christian churches are greatly indebted
to the Book of Psalms for a large number of their sublimest senti-
ments, which now, at every service, in prayer ascend anew to
Heaven. Piety, Jewish or Christian, if genuine, and not formal,
has derived more nourishment from the Psalms than from any
other soui'ce. The Council of Toulouse prohibited (a. d. 1229)
the use of the Bible to laymen, the Book of Psalms excepted. We
may account for the diligent use of the Psalms for devotional pur-
poses, from the fact that, more than any other book of the Scrip-
tures, they contain the efiusions of subjective piety, and meet on
that account in a more immediate manner the wants of Christian
devotion. Luther says, "Other books talk much of the works o^
saints, but little of their words. The noble virtue and manner of
the Psalter is a pattern of another kind. Its perusal is so delight-
ful, because not only are the works of saints recounted, but the
words given in which they spoke and prayed to God." In our
day, the Psalms most thoroughly enter into the religious life of
Christendom. They are the prayers of the Roman Catholic Mass
Service, and of the Liturgy of the Church of England. In the
greater portion of reformed churches they serve as spiritual songs :
the Catholic priest daily prays them in his breviary, and, bound
with many editions of the New Testament, they form now the book
of devotion of many Protestants.
"What sort of history would that be, which should record all the
spiritual experiences, disclosures, and struggles, which holy men
have in the course of time associated with separate passages in the
COMMENTARY ON TUE PSALMS.
/ÖPsalms, and should indicate their influence on the inward history
of the heroes of the kingdom of God !
When our Lord instituted the holy Supper, he sung psalms with
his apostles. (Matt. xxvi. 30.) He testified to his disciples that
the traits of his fate were delineated in the Psalms. (Luke xxiv.44.)
He referred his opponents to a prophetic Psalm as inspired by the
Holy Ghost. (Matt. xxii. 43.) The extent to which his humilia-
tion and exaltation were, mirror-like, beheld by him in the Psalms,
may be illustrated by the fact, that even on the cross, when
expressing the desertion of his soul, he used not his own words,
but adopted the language of his typical ancestor. (Matt, xxvii. 46.)
Paul and Silas, at dead of night, praise God in psalms from the
dungeon. (Acts xvi. 25.) Paul exhorts the Christian Church to
sing psalms. (Col. iii. 16; Eph. v. 19.) Tertullian mentions, in
the second century, that Christians were wont to sing psalms at^
the Agapae, and that pious husbands and wives repeated them
antiphonically, i. e. by alternate responses. The Psalms have,
ever since the first century, formed an essential portion of Chris-
tian worship.
From some passages in the writings of Augustine and other
authors, we gather that an entire psalm was sung (or partly sung
and partly read) after the reading of a portion of the epistolary part
of the New Testament. The order of the Psalms was adhered to.
Then followed the Gospel lesson. (August. Op. vol. v. Serms. .
176, 165, vol. iv.) The singing differed from the choral song
of the later Roman Catholic Church. It was congregational,
though the manner of its execution changed and varied. Hilary,
Chrysostom, and Augustine state, that these Psalms were fre-
quently sung by the congregation, sometimes recited by separate
individuals, and repeated by the rest. The antiphonical plan was
very common in the East, and since the days of Ambrose, also in
the West. The congregation, divided into two choirs, alternately
repeated the verses. Sometimes the precentor sung one half, and
the congregation responded, as e. g. Psalm cxxxvi. in the words,
"For his mercy endureth for ever."* We have said they were
sung: this term must be qualified. Artistic singing, with unna-
tural variations and difficult notes, is altogether out of the question.
According to our information on the subject, there obtained varia-
tions rising from solemn recitation to choral song. Athanasius
had the Psalms (according to Augustine) recited with so slight a
modulation of voice, as to resemble simple repetition : it appears to
* Both are comprised in the term "Antiphonic." The same variety in
the manner of singing the Psalms obtains at present in the Roman Catholic
services: a variety, not only afifected by different festivals, but also by
different localities. See, concerning the usages of the Romish Church,
and antiquity in general, the Sections " De Antiphonis" and "De Psalmis,"
in Gavanti's Thesaurus Sacrorum Rituum, ed. Merati Romae, 1738, vol. ii.
INTRODUCTION. ö
have been something like the chanting of the Psalms in the Church
of England. Many ancient Christian Churches, however, used to
sing. (August. Conf. 10, 33. Ep. 31.) We may indeed infer from
several circumstances, especially from the strophic nature of the
Psalms, that the singing in the African churches was not choral,
but solemn cantillation. Of this more hereafter. (See sec. ii.)
Some Psalms answered particular ends. From the earliest
times, e. g. Psalm li. was called, par excellence, The Penitential
Psalm : an epithet which, since the days of Origen, became attached
to seven psalms, (Psalms vi. xxxii. xxxviii. Ii. cii. cxxx. cxlii.),
reference being made to the Old Testament, where a seven-fold
sprinkling took place at the purification of lepers, and Naaman the
Syrian was ordered to wash seven times in Jordan. The morning
service opened with Psalm Ixiii., the evening with Psalm cxli.:
during Passion-week, Psalm xxii. etc. In the formation of the
services of the Romish Church, the Psalter was introduced into
the Mass. The oldest Mass books consisted of three parts : the
sacramentarimn, containing the prayers of the officiating priest;
the lectionariimi, containing portions of the Scriptures; and the
antiphonarium, containing the Psalms and antiphonies, or verses
from the Psalms and the Prophets, which served as the introitus,
and was so called from the antiphonic method of singing. The
gTaduale of the Mass reminds us of the place which the Psalms
occupied in the ancient service. That psalm which was sung
before the reading of the Gospel, was called Responsorium gra-
duale, because two choristers intonated it from an elevated place,
(the steps of the amhon,} when it was taken up by the congrega-
tion. The Psalms are so distributed in the Liturgy of the Church
of England, that in the daily liturgical service, according to her
original institutions, the whole Psalter is prayed once a month:
the antiphonic method obtains, priest and people alternating in the
recitation of the single verses. The use of the Psalms was, how-
ever, not confined to public service. After the Jewish precedent
of the three hours for prayer (Dan. vi. 10; cf. Psalms Iv. xviii. lix.
xvii.) it was deemed right at certain hours of the day to give
verbal expression to the silent prayer, which ought to animate the
spiritual life of every Christian. The words of the Psalms fur-
nished that expression. The monks of the East used, in the eighth
century, to pray three psalms at each of the said three prayer hours.
The seven canonical prayer hours of the Romish Church were even
then developing themselves,* reference being made to Ps. cxix. 164,
* Jerome writes to a mother, whom he furnishes with counsel for her
daughter (Ep. 107. ad Loetam:) " Prseponatur ei probte fidei et morum et
pudicitigö virgo veterana, quae illam doceat et assuescat exemplo ad ora-
tiones et PsaZwos noctu consurgere : raa?iö hymnos cantare, tertia, sezta, nona
hora stare in acie quasi bellatricem Christi, accensaque lucernula reddere
sacrificium vesjperlinum." Here are mentioned /wc hours for prayer.
4 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
"Seven times a day do I praise thee, because of thy righteous
judgments." These seven hours are the matntina before sunrise,
when songs of praise were prayed (laudes:) the ßrst after sunrise,
the third between sunrise and noon, the sixth at noon, the ninth
between noon and sunset, the vespers in the evening, and the com-
plctorium at the close of day before retiring to rest. The Psalms
occupy an important position in the prayers, lessons, and hymns,
arranged according to the different hours of the day and seasons of
the year, since they are prayed through once a week
The Psalms exerted a third influence on the expressions of
Christian piety and Christian worship in particular, since Christian
song was formed with them and after their model. They are
referred to (Eph. v. 19; Col. iii. 16,) in connection with spiritual
songs, which latter are to be apprehended as songs sudden!)/ inspir-
ed hy the Holy Spirit («üToap^e^iao-^aaT*.) It appears from 1 Cor.
xiv. 26, that at that time the Spirit of God raised also in this
respect extraordinary powers in the Church. That influence of
the Spirit appears to have so powerfully existed in the Church of
the second century, that Tertullian, writing of his own times,
records it as the prevailing custom after the love-feast to invite
any one present according to their several capacity to sing songs to
God, which were either taken from the Scriptures or suggested to
the mind of the individual. (Apolog. c. 39.) It is evident that
the former are psalms, the latter spontaneous^^rical effusions no
doubt developed by them.* " The simplicit^which characterizes
the composition of the Psalms," says Herder, (for nothing can be
more simple than the parallelism of the Psalms — which is, as it
were, a double choir — alternately asking and responding, exhorting
and confirming,) " rendered its possession to simple-minded Chris-
tian communities in times of oppression no less than in seasons of
hope and joy the very boon of Heaven. Hence its early use in the
Christian Church; hence from the earliest times, before Christian
poets could exist, those loud hymns, which caused the Romans to
notice their meetings ; they were psalms." Even the New Testa-
ment contains imitations of the Psalms, if we may designate as
Christian-f the songs of Zacharias, of Mary, and of the angels at
the birth of our Lord. The most ancient strictly Christian songs
appear to have been hymns celebrating the praises of Christ, as
1 Tim. iii. 16. The pagan procurator, Pliny, writes to Trajan,
(about 100, A. D.) that the Christians were in the habit of meet-
ing on a certain day be/ore sunrise, singing hymns to the praise
of Christ as God. Caius, (Euseb. Eccles. Hist. v. 28.) a Christian
* With this view coincides Bishr. — The Christian poets and historians
of Rome, p. 4.
f So 1 Tim. iii. 16; Eph. v. 14, are held to be fragments of early Chris-
tian songs.
INTRODUCTION. 5
author of the second century, says, "How many psalms and odes
of the brethren have we got, composed from the beginning by be-
lievers, in which Christ is celebrated as Grod I" This class of hymns
found its type in the psalms of praise. Others, based upon the
psalms of the New Testament, as mentioned above, reverted medi-
ately to the Old Testament. Sometimes Christian song was the
mere echo of the Psalms, as appears from several preserved frag-
ments of spiritual songs, used in the ancient Greek Church. An
influence from another quarter originated about the fourth century.
The form of classical songs began to be imitated in Western Eu-
rope, which gave rise to hi/mns* in the narrow sense of the word.
They, however, were less frequently used by the people, and rather
occasioned the introduction of the strictly musical, i. e., artistic sa-
cred song. We are entirely indebted to the Psalms as models, not
only for hymns sung by the people, but for choral songs in general,
Luther, in particular, has composed many hymns after the
Psalms: "Lord, look down from heaven," (^"Ach Gott vom Him-
mel sieh darein/') after Ps. xii. : "The Lord be merciful to us,"
Q^ Es wolle Gott um gnaedig sein,") after Ps. Ixvii. : "Were God
not with us at this time," (" Waer' Gott nicht mit uns diese Zeit,")
after Ps. cxxiv. : " Out of deep sorrow I cry to Thee," ("Av^ tie-
fer Noth schrei ich zu Dir") after Ps. cxxx. The majestic hymn,
"Now praise the Lord, my soul," Q'Nun loh' meine Seele den
Herrn") by John Gramann, is composed after Ps. ciii.: "My
hope doth stand in God alone," (^^ Allein zu Gott mein' Hoffnung
steht") by Lobwasser, after Psalm xxxvii. efc.f The gift of song,
aroused by Luther's example, flows after the Reformation in the
Lutheran Church, in pure and copious streams, reflecting the free
effusions of the Christian mind. The Reformed Church, on the
other hand, adhering in her songs more closely to the letter of the
Scriptures, arranged the Psalms metrically for her service, though
of course an arrangement of this kind presents less vivacity and
freshness than free song. The French, Swiss, Dutch, and Angli-
can Churches use this metrical version. Lobwasser composed a
translation from the French, for the use of the German churches.
A long chain of testimonies may be adduced to show the influ-
ence of the Psalms on the Christian life of great men. Athana-
sius, bishop of Alexandria, in the fourth century, says, "They
appear to me a mirror of the soul of every one who sings them ;
they enable him to perceive his own emotions, and to express them
in the words of the Psalms. He who hears them read receives
them as if they were spoken for him. Conscience-struck, he will
* Carmina, as distinguished from Cantica.
f A more detailed account and proof may be found, in a work of rare
investigation and exquisite learning, whicli we have frequently consulted:
Ferdinand V/olf ou the Lais, Sequences, and Obsequies. Heidelberg,
1841.
1*
6 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
either humbly repent, or hearing how the trust of believers was
rewarded by God, rejoice as if his mercy were promised to him in
particular, and begin to thank God. Yes, in its pages you find
portrayed man's whole life, the emotions of his soul and the frames
of his mind. We cannot conceive of anything richer than the
Book of Psalms. If you need penitence, if anguish or temptation
have befallen you, if you have escaped persecution and oppression,
or are immersed in deep affliction, concerning each and all you
may find instruction, and state it to God in the words of the Psal-
ter!" Let us add Ambrose, the pious bishop of Milan, in the
fourth century : " The law instructs, history informs, prophecy
predicts, correction censures, and morals exhort. In the Book of
Psalms you find the fruit of all these, as well as a remedy for the
salvation of the soul. The Psalter deserves to be called, the praise
of God the glory of man, the voice of the Church, and the most
beneficial confession of faith. The Psalms teach me to avoid sin,
and to unlearn my being ashamed of repentance. Such a king,
such a prophet, teaches me by his example to make atonement for
past transgression and to avoid sin for the future. In the Psalms,
delight and instruction vie with one another : we sing for enjoy-
ment, and read for instruction." Augustine relates with deep
feeling, in his Confessions, what a treasure the Psalms were to him
at the time of his conversion: "How did I then," says he in
addressing God, "converse with thee, when I read the Psalms of
David, those songs full of faith, those accents which exclude all
pride! How did I address thee in those Psalms; how did they
kindle my love to thee; how did they animate me if possible to
read them out to the whole world as a protest against the pride of
the human race. And yet they arc sung in the whole world, 'no-
thing is hid from their heat.'* How violent was my indignation
against the Manichseans (the heretical sect, who entirely rejected
the Old Testament,) and yet felt pity for their not knowing those
holy riches, those remedies, and their raging against the antidote
that might have healed them. I wish they had been at my side —
yet without my knowledge — beheld my countenance and heard my
voice, when I read the fourth Psalm — what a blessing it was to
me ! Oh, that they could have heard — but without my knowledge
of their being within hearing (lest they should fancy I were speak-
ing for their sakes,) — what I said to thee at the occasion of those
words." He then states with profound emotion, what passed in
his soul at the reading of every separate verse of that Psalm.
To unite ancient with modern days, let us hear how an intimate
disciple of St. Bernard, in the twelfth century, represents the
Psalter as the mirror of Christian virtue. "Be ready to do every
good, but be equally ready to bear any evil, that thy mouth with-
* A beawtiful allusion to Psalm xix. 7.
INTRODUCTION. 7
out being reproved by thine heart may sing with David, (0pp.
vol. ii. S. Bernardi. p. 934,) 'My heart is prepared, my God,
my heart is prepared,' (Ps. Ivii. 8.) — (the German version rcn-
ders the word, 'fixed,' of the English A. V. by 'prepared,'
cf. margin) — prepared by Thine aid to perform the good, but
also prepared to suffer evil; and prepared to suffer because 'I
will sing and give praise,' t. c. bless and praise Thee for both.
And forthwith the godly man stirs himself by saying, 'Awake
psaltery and harp,' i. e. my heart and my flesh, to glory in
the living God; the heart for His mercies, the flesh for its suf-
ferings. So David elsewhere shows his resignation to God, by
saying, 'I will keep thy precepts;' and more than this, he said
also, ' I was not moved, when opposition arose and persecution
raged. At the persecution of my rival, the cursing of my servant
(Shimei,) the murderous designs of my son, I became not moved,
but obeyed Thy commandments, requited good for evil to those
who returned evil for good. I was anxious for the welfare and
sorry for the death of my persecutors, I could brook to be despised
by my servant, but not bear to be avenged by my friends.' Behold
long before the Gospel the virtue of the Gospel, Thus prepared,
David went to meet his Lord with childlike confidence. '1 have
run without a false step, and corrected the perverse as many as I
could,' Come, then, Lord, and meet me, who run to meet Thee,
And as I cannot attain unto thy loftiness, except thou condescend to
give me thy right hand, 'Try me, and know my thoughts: and
see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way
? everlasting; i. e. to Christ who is the way in which, and eternity
■ to which we are going,"
/ / The words of Luther's pregnant Preface to the Psalter are well
* /known: we make from it the following extract: "The human
heart is like a vessel in a tempestuous sea, tossed to and fro by the
storms from the four quarters of the world. Fear and care of
future mishap are roaring here; grief and sadness on account of
present evil there. Hope and courage respecting future happiness
are blowing here; while assurance and joy on account of present
good are sounding there. Such tempests teach one to be in ear-
nest now to open, and now to pour out one's heart. He who is in
fear and trouble talks in other strains about mishap than he who
lives in joy; and he who lives in joy in other strains about joy
than he who lives in fear. It comes not from the heart (they say)
when a sad one tries to laugh and a glad one to weep; i. e. his
i heart is neither opened nor poured out. But what do you find
I most in the Psalms? Earnest speech in all manner of tempests,
I Where can you find more appropriate expreasions of joy than in
I the Psalms of praise and thanksgiving? You look right into the
Ayj heart of saints, as into fair and pleasant gardens or heaven itself,
^^\and behold beautiful, laughing, and delicate flowers of all manner
8 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of fair and joyous thoughts towards God and his love springing
lustily into life. Again, where can you find more profound, plain-
tive, and wretched words of grief than in the Psalms of complaint?
Once more, you look into the heart of saints as into death or hell.
How gloomy and dark their mournful visions of God ! So again,
when the Psalms speak of fear and hope, they abound in words so
significant, that no painter could thus portray, no Cicero nor orator
thus describe them."
Let us now hear Calvin. In the Preface of his Exposition of
the Psalms, he mentions with holy earnestness the blessing he
himself had derived from being engaged in that work, and the aid
with which his own experience, both temporal and spiritual, fur-
nished him in the Exposition of the Psalms of the Bible. But
let him speak for himself. "If the reading of my Commentaries
yield to the Church of God as much blessing as their preparation
has conferred upon me, I shall never repent having undertaken
the task." ''Should the labour bestowed on this work prove a
blessing to my readers, may they know, that the experience of such
struggles and difficulties (though unimportant in itself,) through
which it has pleased the Lord to take me, has materially helped
me, not only to apply in its place whatever useful knowledge I
might possess, but to enter more thoroughly into the author's
design and the purpose of the Psalms." Calvin, who may be trul^
said to have, probably more than any other man, imbibed the spirit
of the Psalms, says concerning their contents: "Not without good
grounds am I wont to call this book an anatomy of all parts of the
soul, since no one can experience emotions, whose portrait he could
not behold reflected in its mirror. Yes, the Holy Spirit has there
depicted in the most vivid manner every species of pain, afiliction,
fear, doubt, hope, care, anxiety, and turbulent emotion, through
which the hearts of men are chased. Other portions of the Scrip-
tures contain commandments, whose transmission the Lord enjoined
upon his servants; but in the Psalms, the Prophets communing
with God and uncovering their inmost feelings, call and urge every
reader to self-examination to such a degree, that of the numerous
infirmities to which we are liable, and of the many failings which
oppress us, not one remains concealed. How great and rare again
for the human heart to be thus driven out of all its hiding-places,
liberated from hypocrisy (that most fearful of vices,) and exposed
to the light. Lastly, if calling on God is the surest means of our
salvation — if better and more reliable directions for it than those
contained in the Book of Psalms are not to be obtained, then every
one who reads this book has attained to an essential part of the
Divine doctrine. Earnest prayer originates in our sense of need;
afterwards in our faith in the Divine promises. The reader of the
Psalms finds himself both aroused to feel his misery, and exhorted
to seek for its remedy. The Psalter unfolds every encouragement
INTRODUCTION. 9
to prayer. It is not merely confined to promises, but men are
introduced who, on the one hand invited by God, and on the other
hindered by the flesh, take courage in prayer: if therefore we are
beset by doubt and scruple, here we may learn to combat, till the
disenthralled spirit rises anew to God. And more than this, we
may learn prayerfully to struggle through hesitation, fear, and
faint-heartedness, till comfort be attained. For, be it remembered,
that though unbelief keep the door shut to our prayers, we must
not desist when our wavering hearts are being tossed to and fro,
but persevere until faith mounts victoriously from her struggles.
Again, the Psalms inspire us with the most desirable of all things,
in not only teaching us to approach God in confidence, but to
openly unbare before him all those failings which a false sense of
shame otherwise forbids us to own. They furnish, moreover, the
clearest directions how we may render to God that sacrifice of
praise which he declares as most acceptable to him. You cannot
read anywhere more glorious praises of God's peculiar grace towards
his Church or of his works; you cannot find anywhere such an
enumeration of man's deliverances or praises for the glorious proofs
of his fatherly care for us, or a more perfect representation to
praise him becomingly, or more fervent exhortations to the dis-
charge of that holy duty. But however rich the book may prove
in all these respects to fit us for a holy, pious and just life, its
chief lesson is how we are to bear the cross, and to give the true
evidence of our obedience, by parting with our affections, to sub-
mit ourselves to God, to suffer our lives to be entirely guided by
his will, so that the bitterest trial, because he sends it, seems
sweet to us. Finally, not only is the goodness of God praised in
general terms to secure our perfect resignation to him, and to
expect his aid in every time of need, but the free forgiveness of
our sins, which alone can effect our peace of conscience and recon-
ciliation to God, are in particular so strongly recommended, that
there is nothing wanting to the knowledge of eternal life."
Some, probably influenced by their antipathy for the matter of
the Psalms, find it difiicult to get reconciled to their form, and
feel disposed to call the poetic claim of the Psalms, which is by
no means their highest claim, into question. Men of that stamp
have never been wanting. To their shame, we adduce an evidence
in favour of the Psalms which an eminent scholar of classical
antiquity, Henry Stephanus, furnishes in the preface of his Com-
mentary on the Psalms.* He states his having met at Rome
with some who, from a one-sided attachment to classical lore,
denied the poetic merit of the Psalms, and charged the poet
Antonius Flaminius with the folly of attempting to reproduce in
* IJber Psalmorum Davidis ciun Cathol. Exposit. Ecclesiastica. Paris,
1562.
10 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Romaa verse the contents of the Psalter, which, said they, was
nothing else than "committing seed to the arid sand." The
learned Stephanas further states that, on adducing several illustra-
tions, especially Psalm civ., he showed them that, "so for from
questioning the poetry of the Psalms of David, there existed no
production which could be conceived more poetical, harmonious,
and heart-stirring, and mostly more ecstatic, than just the Psalms;*
that Flaminius, therefore, had not selected an unfruitful subject,
but was simply incompetent for the performance of the task."
A passage taken from A. H. Franke's Devotional Exposition of
the Psalms, (Halle, 1731, 2 vols.) may form the transition from
the Reformation to our times. He says, (vol. i., p. 904) " Where
that is found, such Psalms are rightly understood. The man who
has not the Spirit of Christ, nor denies himself, nor daily takes up
his cross and follows Christ, has no relish for the Psalms. They
gladden not his heart, but appear to him like withered straw —
altogether stale. But let him be brought into similar courses of
affliction and suffering, and experience the sneers and mockery of
the world for righteousness' and Christ's sake — let him find out the
difficulty of the task to surmount every obstacle from within and
from without, and yet serve the Lord God in spirit and in truth —
and he will learn that David's heart underwent other struggles
besides those which sprung from his external relations. He will
mark in his daily warfare the same enmity which Grod has
appointed to take place between Christ and Belial, and between
the followers of Christ and the followers of Satan, and find that
struggle expressed in the Psalms ; as the very first, in fact, states
it : * Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the
ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the
seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord ;
and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be
like a tree planted by the rivers of water.' He, then, who is
resolved to deny himself, to part with the world, her pomp and
riches, and the favour of man, to take the word of God for his
sole guide, and carry a peaceful conscience to his dying bed, will
experience the intensity of the struggle which is required, and
learn rightly to understand the Psalms."
As belonging to modern times, the words of a celebrated
politician, John Jacob Moser, (1785) equally renowned as a
statesman, and experienced as a Christian, are worthy of special
notice. He had been engaged in severe struggles for the rights of
* Prolatis deinde aliquot excmplis, addebam, tantum abesse ut Davidici
Psalmi nihil cum poesi commune habere putarem, ut contra nihil illis esse
froiTuliripov, nihil esse /ucvirntLnp^v, nihil esse yipyinf'jv. nihil denique plerisque
in locis Si5vj!u/mßix.JjTifiov aut esse aut fingi posse existimarem. — Melanchthon,
who has written a somewhat poor Commentary on the Psalms, quoted by
A. H. Franke, says, "Hie liber elegantissimus est in toto mundo!"
INTRODUCTION. 11
his country, and had been on that account unlawfully imprisoned
by his sovereij^n for a period of five years, during which the Bible
and hymn book were his sole companions. The Psalms made him
understand his position. In harmony with the voices of every
century he says,* '' Those who have never experienced great and
continuous distress of body and of mind, neither understand the
Psalms nor know how to use them. Thus I found it for many
years. I fancied that I understood the words, but they were to
me a sealed book. For a long time I would not read them at all.
Its cries out of the depths, its enormous complaints, though
regarding them not as mere poetry, I considered exaggerated
hypochondriac sentiments; and my feelings thoroughly revolted
at David's desire to be revenged upon his enemies. Single verses,
in particular cases, sometimes instructed, comforted, and exhorted
me. The treasure of experience, lucid wisdom, profoundly inti-
mate and extensive knowledge of the human heart, contained in
them; what was meant by faithfulness to oneself — by strict and
honest examination of the most secret questions of the soul — by
confidence in God, his omnipotence, and love — by attachment to
him in doubt and hesitancy — by looking up to his Father's heart
with the deepest sense of personal unworthiness; what was meant
by the anchorage of faith in raging storms — by the 'Aber doch,'
of which Luther has so much to say — by theVords, 'I nothincj,
but Thou Omnipresent, Eternal One, in, with, over us all;' what
was meant by the consciousness of Thy gracious call; what was
the state of mind described in the words —
'Although my heart say No to me,
Thy word shall be more sure to me,' —
that a fainting soul should be refreshed, revived, and elevated by
the smallest ray of hope — that she might rise from the dust, and
still in the dust believe herself to be God's creature — that in the
prospect of impending peril and sinking she might still cling to
him; what it was, in articulo mortis, to say —
'I live and die, Lord Christ, to thee,
In death and life belong to thee,' —
that the omnipotent, quickening Spirit should govern to the end
of the world the entire Church of believers — that there is but one
God, one truth, one way, one faith, one experience, one * Spiritus
Rector,' throughout all times and generations; how much these
things contribute to establish and confirm the heart in the truth —
to inspire confident courage in every kind of trouble and con-
sciousness of individual unworthiness — to gain spiritual strength —
to judge correctly of the connection between good and evil in the
world — to produce a firm and sure step in the path of life j how
* Doctor Leidemit. Frankfort, 1783.
12 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
far they contribute to the enjoyment of our earthly existence — of
a calm, refreshing, and joyous prospect of our transition into the
kingdom; with how much assurance we may link ourselves to the
gigantic chain of the experience of thousands of years, and with
tears of ecstatic joy glory even now in the hope of recounting
them with David and all the saints, and of blending our voices
with the harmony of praise and adoration throughout a blissful
eternity; what lies involved in so many other feelings of ineifable
delight to our hearts, though too spiritual to be expressed: — all
this gradually dawned upon me, and caused me to thank God for
the Psalms when I found myself in great tribulation, anguish, and
temptation, both from within and without. Oh, how precious .
and dear was then the possession of the Psalms; how much com-
fort, light, and strength have they imparted to my fainting soul.
I often not only missed the way, but lost the very trace of it. I
sat me down, as if I had become petrified. One word from the
Psalms was a sunbeam to me ; like a lark, I settled on the pinions
of that eagle ; carried by her, I scaled the rock, and beheld from
that eminence the world, with its cares and mine, stretched out
beneath me; I acquired to think, infer, mourn, pray, wait, hope,
and speak in the spirit of David — 'I thank thee, O Lord, that
thou hast humbled me.' I acquired to know and understand the
rights of God — his purposes of love and faithfulness to every man,
but especially to myself — his mighty wisdom towards us his
creatures in our present state of probation, as well as the blessed-
ness, benefit, and necessity of sufferings for our cleansing, purifica-
tion, and perfection. I learned to esteem myself happy in being
permitted to endure sufiering. I attained to a better knowledge
of the wisdom and love of God, the truth of his word and assur-
ance, the unalterable faithfulness of his promises, the riches of his
mercy and long-sufiering; of my own dependence, insufficiency,
nothingness, and inability without him, of the wickedness and
deceit of ray heart, of the world, of men, and of the profound wis-
dom of God in the blending of evil with good. I became less in
my own sight, more suffering and affectionate, more sparing and
forgiving, more severe with myself, more lenient to others. I
learned to trust God in all my ways, and to renounce the claims of
fame, honour, and comfort. It was nourishment to my soul to be
enabled to say — ' Lord, let me possess but Thee.' I asked for no
more aid in temporal concerns than his wisdom might find good
for the best of my soul. I learned to become more contented in
my desires, more moderate in my enjoyments. I was enabled
with tears to express my gratitude for mercies, which formerly I
counted not as iDlessings, but as my right and due. If my soul
would keep holyday, the Psalms became my temple and my
altar. Next to the writings of the New Testament, they are now
to me ray dearest and most precious book — the golden mirror, the
INTRODUCTION. 13
cylopaedia of the most blessed and fruitful knowledge and experi-
ence of my life ; to thoroughly understand them will be the .
occupation of eternity, and our second life will form their com- ^
mentary."
Though our days are not rich in testimonies of this kind, they
are by no means wanting — nay, they are not wanting on the part
of those lofty minds, whom our nation counts among her classics.
Prominent amongst these is Herder, of whose manifold statements,
setting forth the value of the Psalms, we insert here but one
expression, which recommends itself both by its freedom and
truthfulness. " The use of the Psalms became the blessing of
humanity, not only on account of their contents, but also on
account of their form. Just as no lyric poet among the Greeks
and the Romans furnished such a mass of doctrine, consolation,
and instruction, so there is hardly anywhere to be found so rich a
variety of tone in every species of song as here.
sand years have the Psahns frequently and differently been trans-
lated and imitated, and still there are many neio formations of
their much-embracing and rich maimer j^ossible. They are
flowers, which change their appearance in every tirne and in every
soil — hut always bloom in the beauty of youth. Just because the/'
Psalter contains the simplest lyrical expressions of the most dive;?-
sified feelings — it is the hymn-book for all times."* /
Herder's observations in his "Spirit of Hebrew Poetry," con-
cerning the Psalms as a whole, and particular classes of them,
contain many excellent hints for expositors. Andrew Cramer,
who as a poet ranks among our classics, and as a preacher stands
as a model for all times, has in a yet higher degree merited of the
interpretation of the Psalms. The treatises which accompany his
Translation of the Psalmsf are so many testimonies of their
religious and poetic value. To the testimony of Cramer, we string
that of Stolberg, in his Treatise on the Psalms, contained in
vol. iii. of his History of Religion. John Mueller, the historian,
has many beautiful sayings on the spirit and influence of the
Psalms. Writing to his brother, he says: — ''David yields me
every day the most delightful hour. There is nothing Greek,
nothing Koman, nothing in the West, nor in the land towards
midnight, to equal David, when the God of Israel chose to praise
him higher than the gods of the nations. The utterance of his
mind sinks deep into the heart, and never in my life, never have I
thus seen God." *'The Psalms," he says elsewhere, "teach one to
* Treatises and Letters on the Belles Lettres. Works, vol. xvi. p. 17.
f Poetical Translation of the Psalms, with Treatises. Leipsic, 1759.
It must not be confounded with the Lyrical Translation of the Psalms, by
Joseph Anthony Cramer. HildesUeim, 1787. This work of a Catholic
author has no value.
14 COMMENTARY ON THK PSALMS.
prize a muct tried life.''* Even Lichtenberg, though not exactly
a man who would suffer his mind to be captivated by his feelings,
expresses himself with earnestness and warmth concerning the
moral and religious tendency of the Psalms.j'x'^ngs," which like'"'
the Psalms have thus stood the test of three thousand years, con-
tain a germ for eternity.
SECTION II.
OP THE FORM, DIVISION, DESIGN, AND USE OP THE PSALTER
IN OLD TESTAMENT TIMES.
The poetry of the Old Testament is of a twofold kind. It
embraces Lyric songs, which originally streamed forth as the
emotions of the heart for the personal gratification of the singer,
and Didactic poems, which were composed with a view to others,
and were on that account aided by reflection. The latter are either
brief sentences, as the Proverbs of Solomon, or more extensive
poems, as the Book of Job, which possesses however a lyrical cha-
racter, because it describes the personal struggles of its author.
The lyric songs of the Old Testament, with one exception, (2 Sam.
i. 19,) are all of a religious kind, and go by the term of "Psalms,"
i. e. songs sung with musical accompaniment. Such songs were
offered to the Lord when he led Israel out of Egypt. The people
sang the song of deliverance, and Miriam and the women, singing
and playing the timbrel, repeated the first verse. (Exod. xv. 20, 21.)
Psalm xc. is a psalm of Moses. The song of Deborah is another
ancient psalm. (Judges v.) The prophets of Samuel's school used
to sing, (1 Sam. xix. 20, 21;)| but above all, David united from
his earliest youth the art of singing with that of playing the harp,
and practised daily, (1 Sam. xviii. 10.) The instrument which he
used was the harp or guitar; he played it with his hand, (1 Sara.
xvi. 23; xviii. 10.) His beautiful funeral ditty on the death of
Jonathan shows that he also used to tune his strings for other
themes than the praise of God. (2 Sam. i. 19-27.) The Psalter
being a collection of religious songs, has only preserved the
spiritual songs of David.
The forjn of the lyric poetry of the Old Testament deserves to
be noticed. The definition of poetry as "bound speech/' points to
* Jno. of Mueller's Works, vol. v. pp. 122. 244.
f Lichtenberg's Works, vol. i. pp. 15. 87.
j "Prophesying," i. e. a prophetically inspired recitation or song.
INTRODUCTION. 15
the fact that the poet imposes fetters and proscribes a measure,
both to the expression of his sentiments and to the sentiments
themselves. This renders the utterance of the most stirring emo-
tions harmonious and beautiful. This fetter is in the poems of
classical antiquity the syllabic measure or metre, while it appears
in the songs of several Eastern nations, (who are however not
unacquainted with measure,') as e. g. the Hindoos, Persians, and
Ai-abs, as rhi/me, and in those of the Icelanders and Spaniards as
assonance. The parallelism of the verse-memhers binds the speech
of Old Testament poetry. This form of poetry obtains also among
the Chinese. We can easily conceive that the most impassioned
speech did not only assume a metrical form, but involuntarily pass
into it, since enthusiasm has an invariable tendency for rhythmical
expression, even in outward movements; hence we find the dance
joined to worship and singing;* hence David danced before the
ark of the covenant.f It strikes one as strange, that a poet should
fetter himself with searching for like-sounding loords in the moment
of most vivid excitement. But is not the musical effect of like-
sounding words clearly seen ? as is the case with assonance and the
parallelism of members, where the words frequently correspond in
so exact a manner that they actually rhyme in the original. But
this is not all. The origin of that poetic form may be accounted
for on other grounds. Under the impulse of strong emotion,
thought ignores to express itself in simple proportions : it either
separates into synonymous members of a qualifying tendency, or
into antithesis. What, then, is more natural than that these
members thus mutually related in thought, should by rhyme,
assonance, or parallelism, become equally so in form? (Gren. iv.
23. Psalm viii. 5; xxv. 4.) In Hebrew poetry a thought most
frequently resolves itself into symmetrical and synonymous mem-
bers till it gets exhausted. Sometimes a second or third member
adds some new and closely allied defining remark; or proposition
and counter-proposition (thesis and anti-thesis) are placed together
symmetrically.
Thus we have in Psalm i. 1, three, and in verse 2, two proposi-
tions, exactly corresponding in sense, and used only for the
exhaustion of the idea: in verse 3, we find there is first the
leading thought which advances through the succeeding three
propositions in such a manner, that the last expresses in a direct
form the indirect statements of the former. In Psalm ii. the two
* Exod. XV. 20. Psalm cxlix. 3 ; cl. 4. The opinion which refers the
rhyme of romantic poetry to Arabic origin must be held as obsolete.
Rhyme may be found in Latin ecclesiastical hymns as early as the fifth
century: it exists also in the earliest Celtic songs, and flows successively
through many verses, as in Oriental poems. Vide Wolf, p. 279.
f 2 Sam. vi. IG. On the connection between music and dancing, vide
Herder's Spirit of Hebrew Poetry, vol. 11. p. 206.
16 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
members of the first five verses are respectively synonymous : in
verse 12, the first two members are synonymous, the third con-
tinues the idea, while the last introduces the antithesis. Not
unfrequently word corresponds to word in the two members of a
verse; this, however, does not necessarily belong to the law of
parallelism. Such parallelisms occur also in the prophets, when
their language gets impassioned, which otherwise is rather rheto-
rical than poetical. Compare in particular the Book of Lamenta-
tions with the Prophecies of Jeremiah. In Hab. iii. Isaiah xii.
Jonah ii. may be seen some psalms of the prophets. (Isa. xxxviii.
Hezekiah's.)
The Psalter, which the Jews of the later period divided as early
as two hundred years before Christ* into five books, (Psalms i. xli.
xlii. Ixxii. Ixxiii. Ixxxix. xc. cvi. cvii. and cl.) corresponding to
the five books of the Pentateuch, is exclusively designed for reli-
gious purposes, and contains, therefore, religious songs only. The
edification of individuals, however, was less contemplated than that
of the congregation, as is the case with our hymn books. Hence
many Psalms bear the title, *'To the chief musician," by which
was meant the Levitical musician, whose office it was to conduct
the worship of the congregation. That arrangement explains,
firstly, why David's secular funeral ditty on Jonathan, recorded in
the historic books, finds no place in the Psalter, and why but two
psalms of Solomon, (Psalms Ixxii. and cxxvii.) who, according to
1 Kings iv. 32, composed one. thousand and five songs, have been
inserted. It would indeed appear, from verse 33 of the passage
alluded to, that Solomon's Song possessed a less religious character;
and when it is said, in verse 29, that he possessed ''largeness of
heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore," we may interpret
that he compassed the boundaries of knowledge as the ocean does
the shores of the earth. Even Psalm cxxvii. though piously con-
ceived, contemplates social prosperity. Secondly, it may be inferred
from the design of the Psalms, that the personal songs of David
were intentionally excluded from the collection of the Psalms;
hence the absence of his last song. (2 Sam. xxiii.) When the col-
lection and arrangement into five books of the separate Psalms took
place, we know not; that it was a gradual process is evident from
the following details : The first book, excepting Psalms i. ii. x.
xxxiii. which are without titles, contains songs of David only; the
second book, chiefly the songs of his musicians, the songs of Korah
and Asaph, with a supplement of Davidic songs. (Psalms Ii. — Ixv.
Ixviii. — Ixx.) The compiler of the third bookf has inserted the
words, "The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended,"
* This division is that of the LXX.
f Linguistic grounds show that the compiler of the second book did not
add that sentence. See De Wette's Comment, on the Psalms, p. 18.
INTRODUCTION. 17
between this and the second: it was therefore no lonpjer his inten-
tion to collect Davidic songs. The fourth and ßfth books, again,
contain some of the psalms of David, but the number of those
which appear to have been used in the services of the Second
Temple increase, while some Ijear distinct marks of having been com-
posed after the return from the captivity. (Psalms cxxvi. cxxxvii.
cxlix.) The hypothesis of a gradual collection alone explains the
recurrence of the same Psalms with slight deviations. (Cf. Psalm
xiv. with liii.; xl. 18 with Ixx.) The restoration and rearrange-
ment of the temple-worship took place during the reigns of Hezekiah
and Josiah, Songs of praise occupied a prominent place in the
feasts; hence it is thought that the collections of the Psalms were,
in all probability, if not earlier, then instituted. It appears from
Prov. XXV. 1, that Hezekiah gave orders for a collection of SoIO'
mon's Proverhs; according to 2 Chron. xxix. 30, he caused the
Songs of David to be sung; how probable, therefore, that he
ordered a collection of the Songs of David and his musicians to be
made. The Psalter, in its present form, however, cannot be traced
to a time anterior to the Second Temple.
The titles of the Psalms did not originate with the compilers,
but with those who first wrote them down, or in the authors them-
selves. For it is not uncommon with poets among the ancient
Arabians and Syrians, to prefix their own names to their poems :
thus the prophets frequently place their names at the head of their
prophecies, (Isa. i. 2; Jer. i. 4; Hos. i. 2,) as e. g. Balaam, in Num-
bers xxiv. 3. 15, Habakkuk's Psalm (Hab. iii.,) and the Song of
Hezekiah, (Isa. xxxviii. 9.) That David adhered to the same prac-
tice is undeniably clear from 2 Samuel xxiii. 1, cf. also the title to
Psalm xviii. which had been seen by the author of the Books of
Samuel (2 Sam. xxii.)* Those titles may confidently be ascribed
to David himself, which are couched in poetic language, and relate
to the contents of the Psalm ; e. g. Psalm xxii. if we render with
Luther, ** Concerning the early pursued hind," and refer this to
David himself; and Psalm Ivi. where David describes himself as a
mute, innocent dove in a foreign country. Those Psalms, how-
ever, which simply have, "Of David," may have been added at
their being written down for the first time, since the author's name
was not immaterial to the admirer of a song. If the addition of
the titles originated with the compilers in the days of Hezekiah,
we should be shut up to the supposition that certain verbal tradi-
tions respecting the separate psalms had been transmitted, which
certainly is the less probable case. The opinion has been diffused
in modern times, that the compilers determined the titles from
* The Song of Lamentation (2 Sam. i.) is not likely to have been recorded
in "The Book of the Upright, without any account of the author and tho
theme: 17 and 18 verses furnish the words of the title.
'2*
18 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
mere supposition, or the indications contained in the historical
books; but (Ps. vii. Ix.) not all the statements are connected with
the historical books, while those which are, Psalm liv. excepted,
are by no means taken from them literally, (Psalms xxxiv. li. lii.
Ivii. lix. Ix.) and in Psalm Ivi. there even occurs a slight difference
in matter, as compared with 1 Sam. xxi. etc.
Respecting the design and use of the Psalms, we may divide
them as to their contents into songs of praise, of thanksgiving, of
complaint, and instruction, as Psalm i. and xxxvii. A portion of
them may at once be regarded as p?-o vers, or colloquies of the heart
toith God; (Ps. xix. 15, where A. V. renders, "The meditation of
my heart.") Hence the first two collections of the Psalms are
called (Pa. Ixxii. 20,) " The Prayers of David:' These, partly
sung under circumstances in which the psalmists coidd not possibly
contemplate anything but their own immediate need, were after-
wards designed for congregational use, and furnished with the
addition, "To the chief musician," and the direction on which
instruments they were to be performed. David however, who calls
himself (2 Sam. xxiii. 1,) "the sweet Psalmist of Israel," com-
posed others expressly for the use of the congregation, as e. g. on
the removal of the ark to Mount Zion, (Psalms xv. xxiv.) on
going to war, on triumphal festivities, (Ps. xx. xxi. Ixviii.) and
on pilgrimages to the sanctuary. (Ps. cxxii.) Personal relations
are of course entirely absent in that species of psalms. On this
point, it has already been observed that psalms too personal in
their allusions were excluded : if, however, certain psalms, to
judge from the occasions to which their titles refer, lead us to
expect individual references, as e. g. Psalm lii. liv, Ivi. Ivii. we
should remember that the absence of historical allusion has its
analogy in the spiritual songs of Luther, Paul, Gerhard, etc.
It is the mark of religious morbidity if a pious poet cannot free
himself from his personal relations, while it indicates strength if
he knows to enter into general truths and the relations of God to
man and his Church. In the measure as a Christian's piety is
developed, he learns to find under even extraordinary difficulties in
the Lord's Prayer the expression adapted to his need. The Psalms
of David may have been extensively circulated during his lifetime :
we read (2 Sam. i. 18) that he caused the funeral ditty on Jona-
than to be learned by heart: the same song had been inserted into
a collection of National Songs, " The Book of Jasher," (the book
of the upright.)* To infer from the title, Psalm Ix. was intended
to be committed to memory. David had appointed singers, (1 Chron.
xvi. 37. 41.) both at the ark of the covenant and the tabernacle,
who chiefly used his own compositions: we may also presume that
* It is not likely that tliat book contained Psalms, because it appears
chiefly to have celebrated great heroes and heroic feats.
INTRODUCTION. 19
David himself used to sing psalms in the service (cf. Psalm xx.
xxi. and Ps. xxvi. 6, 7.) In the time of Amos, about two hun-
dred years after David, his Psalms were so popular that the nobility
used to frame secular songs on their model, (Amos. vi. 5.) Heze-
kiah appointed the singing of the Psalms as part of the divine ser-
vice, (2 Chron. xxix. 30:) so did Ezra and Nehemiah in the ser-
vice of the Second Temple, (Ezra iii. 10, 11; Neh. xii. 24, 45.)
Even such psalms, which, with slight deviations, are repetitions or
compositions of the Psalms of David, as e.g. Psalms liii. Ixx. cviii.
and the final verses at a later period added to others, (Psalms xiv.
Ixviii. XXXV.) indicate the diligent use of Davidic songs, both
during the captivity and the period of the Second Temple.
Song and music were prominent features of divine worship in
David's time. This is evident from the large number of two hun-
dred and eighty-eight Levites who were expressly appointed for
singing and the performance of music. (1 Chron. xxv. [xxvi.] 7.)
Not less than two hundred and fifty-five singing men and singing
women returned from the exile. (Neh. vii. 67.) Leaders were
appointed to the several divisions, Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun,
(1 Chron. xxv. 6.) A singer is mentioned (1 Chron. xv. [xvi,]
22,) on the occasion of the removal of the ark, whose special busi-
ness it was to teach song. So in the time of the Second Temple
the singers had their leaders. (Neh. xii. 24; xlii. 46.) "David
beautified their feasts, and set in order the solemn times perfectly,
that they might praise his holy name, and that the temple might
sound from morning." (Sir. xlvii. 12. [10.])
The chief instruments used by the Levites were, according to
the records of the Books of Chronicles, cymbals, harps, and lutes;
according to Psalm v. 1, we should add the flute, which is fre-
quently noticed on Egyptian monuments. At processions, females
played the '■'■doff," i. e. the bass-tambourine, which is still very
common in the East. The monuments of ancient Egypt show this
instrument to have been struck by females at religious festivals.
The same monuments, six thousand years old, have representations
of a large number of stringed instruments; an eight-stringed harp,
a three-stringed guitar.* The Israelites may have brought them
from Egypt. The music and song of the Levites used to be per-
formed at the times of the morning and evening sacrifices, but
chiefly on Sabbaths and festivals. (Psalms Isxxi. xcii. cxviii.)
After the priests had finished the sacrifice, while the trumpets
sounded, the Levites, accompanied by music, used to begin their
song. (1 Chron. xvi. 40 — 42; 2 Chron. xxix. 25 — 30; Psalm xx. 4;
Neh. xii. 42, 43; 1 Mace, iv, 54.) The picture of a proces-
sion of the ark through the outer court, accompanied by song and
music, is indicated in Psalm Ixviii. 25 — 28.
* The name "lute" is, like the instrument itself, of Oriental origin; its
Arabic name is "alaud."
20 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
"They have seen thy goings, 0 God.
^^ Even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
"The singers went before, the players on instruments followed
after.
"Among them were the damsels playing with timbrels.
"Bless ye God in the congregations, even the Lord, from the
fountain of Israel." (Cf. margin.)
Nearest to the ark were the singers, then came tlie players ou
stringed instruments along with damsels striking the tambourine.
Even a verse of their song is given. In the description of the
dedication of the temple of Solomon, the music of the Levites on
stringed instruments was accompanied by the sound of the silver
trumpets of the priests. Even the Pagans found those songs so
sweet, that during the captivity they asked the Levites for some
of their Psalms. (Ps. cxxxviii. 3.)
Antiphonic choruses obtained in the remotest times. (Cf. Exod.
XV. 20, 21.) They existed during the period of the Second Tem-
ple. (Nell. xii. 40 — 42.) Those choruses distributed among them-
selves the contents of the songs, and were not confined to the mere
repetition of the same tune in a lower key, as is the custom in the
modern East. (Niebuhr's Travels, i. p. 176.) This is evident from
many psalms, (Psalms xx. Ixviii. cxviii. cxxxii. cxxxiv.) but chiefly
from Psalm cxxxvi. where the refrain, "For his mercy endureth
for ever," was doubtless sung by a chorus. We should then con-
ceive of sacred song as either consisting of two responding choruses
or of a Levite precentor, responded by a chorus of Levites.
Responsive song seems to have been common among the ancient
Egyptians.* Responses, indeed, belong to the character of national
song."!" It is a question how far the congregation took part in sing-
ing. To the best of our knowledge, the Old Testament nowhere
mentions congregational sacred singing. It appears that the
Levites only used to sing at public worship. There is nothing
strange in this, if we bear in mind the relation of the priesthood
to the people under the Jewish economy. The service of the
Roman Catholic Church corresponds in this respect also to the idea
and form of the Old Testament service. In the former the share
of the people has since about the sixth century been restricted to
the antiphonies of the ^^formulte solennes," and even that small
share passed at a later period into the "schola cantorum," It may
* Champillion describes an ancient Egyptian grotto-painting, represent-
ing a singer accompanied by a musician, and supported by two choruses,
consisting of males and females. (Hengstenberg's Moses and Egypt,
p. 133.) The support may probably mean, that now the choruses perform
simultaneously (the females only marking the time), and then the singer
performs a solo.
f Wolf, p. 122, etc., who shows that the refrain occurs in the oldest
species of national song, the Icelandic, etc.
INTRODUCTION. 21
even be questioned whether the refrains frequently occurring in
the Psahus, (Psahus xlii. xliii. xlvi. Ivii.) or other emphasized final
words, were sung by the people at all, and not entirely confined to
the singers. Since, however, from the period after the exile, the
prayers and songs used to receive the confirmation of the people
by an "Amen," while they lifted up their hands and bowed their
heads, (Neh. viii. 6,) we may assume that the Hebrew people* used
to sing formulae, similar to those to which in the ninth and tenth
centuries the share of the Roman Catholic people was restricted,
viz. — Hallelujah, and Kyrie Eleyson;"!" at all events it is not
improbable that the people joined in the singing of the refrain. A
similar relation obtained in the synagogue service of the later Jews.
But apart from the service there existed religious songs among the
people; we may especially assume the existence of Songs of Pil-
grimage. (Psalm cxxii.) Many think that the so-called ''Songs
of Degree" (in Luther's version, ''Songs in the Higher Choir,"
because he believed that they used to be sung from the high choir
like the Psalms of the ancient church,) were songs of pilgrimage
used by the Israelites, who went up to the temple at Jerusalem to
the three great festivals. Here we have once more a resemblance
to the Roman Catholic Church, for the so-called " Songs of Pil-
grimage" (Hoffman, pp. 113 — 129,) are among the oldest sacred
national songs. The songs in 2 Sam. i. 18, Psalm Ix. seem to be
national, because they were intended to be learnt by heart.
Another question remains. What was the vianner of singing?
The more common view inclines to a cantillare rather than a can-
tare. Something like the Mass service, or the intonations of the
Lutheran clergy at the altar — a solemn chanting, during which the
voice rests with diversified modulations on separate notes. This
view has in its favour that, probably, every species of national song
was originally sung only in that manner. Fauriel says, that the
singing of the Greek clephts resembles cathedral song; Walker,
that the ancient Irish bards used thus to sing the songs of Ossian.
Synagogic singing (the notes of which may be found in the peri-
odical, "The Jew" [7)er Jude,"] Selig, vol. ii. p. 80,) and the sing-
ing of the Mohammedans at the reading of the Koran and the
Dsikr (i. e. the recitation of the name of the Deity,) are of the
same kind. Lane (^Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyp-
tians, Lond. 1836, vol. ii. pp. 92, 192) gives specimens. Even
Greek religious songs (in the second century) were sung in a man-
ner related to cathedral song, as appears from Bellermann's
"Hymns of Dionysius and Mesomedes," Berlin, 1840. Synagogic
* Habcrfeld (Baruch or the Doxologies of the Bible. Leips. 1806,)
expatiates on the antiphonies of the Old Testament service, but furnishes
suppositions only. He admits, as is maintained by some, that Sir. 1. 24,
is an antiphony of the people, which is the most important passage.
f Hoffman's History of Sacred Song, 1832. P. 7, etc.
22 COMMENTARY ON TUE PSALMS.
singing, the liturgic singing of the Mohammedans, and the more
ancient Christian cathedral song, coincide in the lengthening and
modulating of certain final notes; they are, among the Jews, the
word "echadj" one, in the formula, "Thy God is one God/' in
the Mohammedan Dsikrs, the syllable "Al," in Allah; in the
Mass-services, the syllable, " Jah," in Hallelujah.* The cantilla-
tion of the Psalms is again probable from their nature, which ren-
ders their separation into strophes of equal length impossible.
Unequal strophes occur in most of the Psalms : their separation is
not always certain even in the case of refrains (e.g. Ps. xlii. xliii.)
the number of the verses does not correspond, while their length
varies. We can only assume then a tune running on, as in the
case of the said Greek songs, and if so, that amounts to cantilla-
tion. For the same reason the singing of psalms in the ancient
Christian Church cannot have been our choral song. (v. p. 2.)
The prominent position of the precentor in the synagogue and
the ancient Church seems to agree with this view. The design
of some Psalms, (e .g. Psalms xxi. cxviii.) unmistakeably points to
solo performance. Others present exceptions. Logical strophes
of an equal number of verses occur in Psalms i. ii. xii. xxiv. xli.
cxiv. cxxviii. etc. But was the repetition of the same tune con-
fined to these ? According to the titles of Psalms Ivii. — lix. etc.
several psalms differing in matter were sung to the same tune
(perhaps the same manner); may not this, again, point to cantilla-
tiou?
SECTION III.
THE AUTHORS OF THE PSALMS.
The history and place of David in the kingdom of God accord
to him our chief interest. We have more psalms from him than
from any one else. There are seventy-four psalms headed by his
name — a small number, if compared with the one thousand and
five songs of Solomon. It must be assumed for certain, that we
have only a selection, as appears from the two psalms which,
though recorded in the books of Samuel, find no place in the
Psalter. We introduce our remarks on David in the words of
Sirach : " In all his works he praised the holy one Most High,
with words of glory, with his whole heart he sung songs, and
* Vide Buxtorf, Synagoga Judaica, p. 205. Lane, vol. ii. p. 197. Wolf,
etc. This lengthened note of the mass was called Neuma, i. e. Pneuma ; it
was afterwards based on texts, which, because they followed the Hallelu-
jah, were termed "Sequences."
INTRODUCTION. 23
loved him that made him. He set singers also before the altar,
that by their voices they might make sweet melody, and daily
sing praises in their songs. He beautified their feasts, and set in
order the solemn times, until the end, that they might praise his
holy name, and that the temple might sound from morning. The
Lord took away his sins and exalted his horn for ever; he gave
him a covenant of kings and a throne of glory in Israel." (Sir.
xlvii. 9—13.)
From comparing 1 Sam. xvi. 17 — 19, with chap. xvii. 13, 14. 28,
it appears that his hand was wont to strike the harp, when it was
thought too weak for combat and war: he was feeding his father's
sheep, while his elder brothers went out into the field. We have
reason to think, that even at so tender an age he did not confine
himself to accompanying the harp with the songs of others, but
that the praise of God was the favourite theme of his own com-
positions. How great a testimony to the power and humility of
his faith is furnished in the words of glorious renown, which the
heroic youth addressed to the Philistine: "Thou comest to me
with a sword, with a spear, and with a shield; but I come to thee
in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of
Israel, whom thou hast defied. This day will the Lord deliver
thee into mine hand ; that all the earth may know that there is a
God in Israel. And all this assembly shall know that the Lord
saveth not with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's, and
he will give you into our hands." (1 Sam. xvii. 45 — 47.) Who
can forbear to recognize in these words the humble power of faith,
which resounds to us afterwards in the song of the aged man
(Ps. xviii. XXX. xxxi.) ? " For by thee I have run through a
troop : and by my God have I leaped over a wall." " For who is
a God, save the Lord? or who is a rock, save our God?" His
playing of the harp was able to overcome the gloomy mind of Saul,
because the Spirit of God influenced his playing and songs.
Taken to the king's court, he forgot not his art. He practised it
daili/ (1 Sam. xviii. 10,) and doubtless derived from it comfort in
many a sad hour, for his chequered path began there. The king
gave him his affection, and it is said of the royal prince, that "he
loved him as his own soul." (1 Sam. xviii. 1.) Eut suspicion
was lurking in the already darksome mind of Saul, when the
people praised the shepherd youth's valour above his own, (1 Sam.
xviii. 7,) and during an attack of melancholic passion he cast a
javelin at the harmless singer. Saul regaining strength, and
shrinking from a personal attack, appointed David to the post of a
captain over a thousand, actuated by the same treacherous motive
which David himself afterwards entertained against Uriah, viz.
that the foe might kill him in the battle. (1 Sam. xviii. 25.)
David married the king's daughter; their union, contrary to
Eastern habit, was not entered upon by external necessity, but by
24 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the bonds of love. (1 Sam. xviii. 20.) The hand of the Lord
protected David in his campaigns : Saul fell so greatly, that he
actually asked Jonathan and his servants to assassinate David:
overcome by Jonathan's reasonings he yielded for a time to feel-
ings of penitence; (1 Sam. xix. 6;) but David's fresh victories
rekindled his displeasure. He cast another javelin at him, which
again entered the wall. He sent murderers after him — but Michael's
love and cleverness made a way for escape. It is natural that the
courtiers of such a monarch should resemble him. The words of
David, (in 1 Sam. xxiv. 10; xxvi. 19; Ps. vii.*) and the conduct
of Doeg, (1 Sam. xxii. 9. 13,) show that they fanned the flame of
suspicion, and accused the harmless young man of secret designs
against the life and crown of the king. The expectation of the
king's favour or of gain may have prompted them to falsehood;
but there was yet another motive which came powerfully into
play. Such was the jealousy of the tribe of the Benjaminites, to
whom Saul belonged, against the youth of the tribe of Judah,
whose ascension to the throne they feared might result in their
being obliged to yield place to others. All the courtiers of Saul
were Benjaminites; (1 Sam. xxii. 7;) so was Cush (Ps. vii.) and
mocking Shimei. (2 Sara, xvi.)"!" Finally, we must not overlook
that their enmity found ample fuel in the piety of David, for there
were but few that could rightly appreciate it, and many who felt
reproved by its exhibition. Obliged to flee from the court, he
hastened to the school of the prophets on the plains (Najoth) near
Ramah, between whom and himself there existed already spiritual
sympathies. A brief interval of some kind of understanding with
Saul seems then to have followed, since David was expected to
take his place at the king's table. (1 Sam. xx. 25.) He knew,
however, how little reliance was to be reposed in the changeable
king, and Jonathan confirmed his first fears. Then commenced
those days of exile, of which he sings in Psalm Ivi. 9. " Thou
teilest my wanderings ; put thou my tears into thy bottle. Are
tUcy not in thy book?"| His next place of refuge was Nob, close
* Introd. to Psalm vii.
f Cf. Introd. to Psalms v. and Ixxviii.
j At the close of the nari'ative of the meeting of Jonathan and David,
before his departure, we read, (1 Sam. xx. 42,) «'And he arose and
departed; and Jonathan went into the city. ^' Which city ? Gibea, close
to Ramah, the place of Saul's nativity, seems to have been his usual
residence. (1 Sam. x. 20; xi. 4; xv. 34; xxiii. 19; xxvi. 1.) But it is
said (1 Sam. xvii. 54,) that David took the head of Goliath to Jerusalem,
and from the immediate sequel one feels inclined to infer that Saul
occasional!}'' resided there. Once for all observe, that the idea of great
distances respecting the places of Judea, referred to in David's history,
should be abandoned. Gibea and Bethlehem were about four miles —
Gibeon, the place of the tabernacle, (which according to IMovers on the
books of Chron. p. 293, etc., is identical with Gibea,) about seven miles —
INTRODUCTION. 25
to Jerusalem, (iride ad. Ps. lix,) wbere the tabernacle was at that
time; he there weut to Ahimelech, the high priest, the descendant
of Eli. (1 Sam. xxii. 11; xiv. 3.) The close intimacy of the
youthful David with the sons of the prophets, and his warm
friendship with the high priest, furnish a striking testimony to his
great attachment for the sanctuary and its officers. " Who is,"
said Ahimelech to the king, "so faithful among all thy servants
as David, which is the king's son-in-law, and goeth at thy bidding,
and is honourable in thine house? Did I then (to-day) hcgin to
inquire of God for him?" After Doeg had slain that man,
David immediately took his son under his protection. (1 Sam.
xxii. 23.) He next thinks of a place of refuge out of his native
country, remote from the power of Saul. He resorted accordingly
to G-ath of the Philistines; but recognized and led before Achish,
it was only by a stratagem that he was able to escape the ven-
geance ofthat king. ( Vide ad. Ps. Ivi.) On returning into Saul's
kingdom, he first looked for an asylum in the tribe of Judah, then
removed to the more distant regions of the Dead Sea to Kcjilah,
near Hebron, and then still further towards the South to the most
inaccessible mountain heights along the borders of the Dead Sea,
into the wilderness of Ziph, of Mahon, and J^ngedi — into mouiv
tain passes which are expressly called "the rocks of the wild
goats," (1 Sam. xxiv. 3,) at an altitude of fifteen hundred feet
above the level of the sea. ( Vide ad. Ps. Ivii.) The southernmost
point is the wilderness of Pharan. On his retreat he had, how-
ever, not remained alone. Four hundred and soon six hundred
men, ruined in their affairs, and hoping to better their condition
through David,* had joined him. (1 Sam. xxii. 2; xxiii. 13.)
Nothing, however, was more remote from his thoughts than to
lead them in rebellion against whom he knew to be " the anointed
of the Lord;" he only employed them in skirmishes against
foreign tribes. Saul, who was twice delivered into his hands, he
twice treated with a generosity that touched his fierce persecutor
and caused him to exclaim, "Thou art more righteous than I;
for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee
Ramah nine miles — Jericho twenty-four miles — the Dead Sea (which is,
hoAvever, sixty- six miles in length) about thirty-six miles from Jerusalem.
The greatest extent of the whole country did not exceed the distance from
Berlin to Halle, i. e. from Sidon to Sodom one hundred and thirty-two
miles, the greatest breadth from Rabbath Ammon to Joppa eighty-four
miles. And yet according to 2 Samuel xxiv. the population of the
country amounted, in the reign of David, to 1,300,000 valiant men that
drew the sword ; hence since the total population of a country generally
equals four times the number of adult males — to about five millions.
Still more diminutive appears the size of the kingdom of Judah — one day's
journey on foot — i. e. sixty miles in length, and forty-two in breadth.
* Many of them probably entertained views of David's future similar to
those of Abigail. (1 Sam. xxv. 28-30.)
3
26 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
evil. And thou hast showed this day, how thou hast dealt well with
me; forasmuch as wlien the Lord had delivered me into thine
hand, thou killedst me not. For if a man find his enemy, will he
let him go well away? Wherefore the Lord reward thee good
for that thou hast done unto me this day. And now, behold, I
know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of
Israel shall be established in thine hand. Swear now, therefore,
unto me by the Lord, that thou wilt not cut oif my seed after me,
and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house."
(1 Sam. xxiv. 17 — 21.) David's words on this occasion, and on
his second encounter with Said (chap, xxvi.) should be well
noticed ; they exhibit so distinct an agreement between the mind
of David and the sentiments which pervade many of his psalms,
that their very expression bears a strong resemblance, (l'ü/cad.
P.salms xi. and xvi.) "The Lord judge between me and thee,
and the Lord avenge me of thee; but mine hand shall not be upon
thee." "As the Lord livcth, the Lord shall smite him; or his
day shall come to die, or he shall descend into battle and perish.
The Lord forbid that I should stretch furth mine hand against the
Lord's anointed." "If the Lord have stirred thee up against me,
let him accept an offering; Lut if they he the children qfjnen,
cursed he thn/ he/ore the Lord ; for they have driven me out this
day from abiding in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, Go, serve
other gods." "And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day
in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the
Lord, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation."
The continuous reference in the Psalms to multitudes of
enemies, to fraud, deceit, and persecution, to desire of revenge
and thirst for blood, to David's repeatedly calling himself one
innocently persecuted, to his escape into the mountains, to the
abandonment of all earthly hopes, to persecutors set upon him like
wild beasts; (Psalms xxii. Ivii. v. etc.) all these produce but poor
impressions on such minds, who only listen to the voice of the
poet, and perceive ia them poetic forms only. We should bring
the history of David to them, to perceive that such passages
express the much-stirred life of a much-tried man. Although the
historic basis for the understanding of the Psalms, furnished
in the books of Samuel, could be desired more extensive, it is
nevertheless sufficient for enabling us to recognize the funda-
mental traits of the events and conditions of mind, to which allu-
sion is made in the Psalms.
Even the generous conduct of David had not yet cured Saul of
his suspicion; the former preferred, tired of his long wanderings
on mountains and plains, once more to try his fortune with the
Philistines. No longer alone, but heading six hundred warriors,
and a heroic fame for his precursor, he might expect a good
reception with Achish, on offering his services to him. He met
INTRODUCTION. 27
one, and engaged in expeditions against the Amalekitcs and other
nations, continued there until at last his loyalty was put to a severe
test, when the Philistines made preparations for war against Saul.
He manifested on that occasion the same sagacity of which he
had furnished the evidence in other junctures. Foreseeing the
result, he responded iu undivided terms to the call of Achish:
(1 Sam. xxviii. 2 :) he next joined, accompanied by his people,
the van of the army, and found his anticipations realized. The
misgivings of the Philistine captains as to the propriety of permit-
ting this Hebrew to march against his countrymen, effected his
being sent back. (1 Sam. xxix.) His wanderings had now
reached their termination. After Saul was killed in that battle,
the tribe of Judah chose David for their king. It had been a
time of much-tried waiting, covering not less than ten years.
David had stood the test with persevering faith. How noble the
generosity which, after the death of Saul, caused him to rear a
standing memorial to his valour in his song, "Of the bow," where
he sings: "Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their
lives, and in their death they were not divided : they were swifter
than eagles, they were stronger than lions. Ye mountains of
Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain upon you, nor
fields of offerings : for there the shield of the mighty is vilely cast
away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with
oil." How warmly flows the expression of his gratitude to those
who had buried Saul. (2 Sam. ii. 5, 6.) As he had sworn to Saul
at their meeting, (1 Sam. xxiv. 22,) he showed kindness to his
descendants: (2 Sam. iv. 5 — 12, and ix. 3, etc.) though afterwards,
to perform an imagined piece of necessary justice, he suffered him-
self to be misguided to deliver seven of Saul's sons into the hands
of the Gibeonites. (2 Sam. xxi.)
How touchingly he expresses (Psalm xviii.) the deep gratitude
that filled his heart after he had overcome his time of trial, when
he forcibly describes how the hand of God had visibly been
stretched out from heaven, and drawn him out of great waters.
He did not at once obtain the government of the entire nation :
his own tribe (Judah) alone acknowledged him, (which in num-
bers, however, nearly equalled the rest,*) and he ruled it at Hebron
for seven years and a half, while the other eleven tribes remained
under the descendants of Saul. After that period they, too, ren-
dered him homage. One of his first acts was the arrangement of
the priestly worship, and the removal of the ark to Zion. la
* Cf. the data of the census, 2 Sam. xxiv. 9, from which, however, the
Chronicles anJ Josephus deviate a little. The number of the tribe of Judah
is, indeed, disproportionately great, especially as we find (1 Kings xii. 21,)
the army of the kingdom of .Judah and Benjamin limited to one hundred
and eighty thousand men. According to Numb. i. 27, the tribe of Judah
was stronger than all the rest.
28 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
victorious campaigns he then successively humbled the Philistines,
the Ecloniites, the Moabites, the Ammonites, and the Syrians, and
extended the frontiers of his kingdom to the Euphrates. His fame
spread to distant regions. (2 Sam. viii. 9; v. 11.) The sceptre of
his kingdom was confirmed to his race for eternal times. (2 Sam.
vii. 13.) An event occurred, however, which deeply aifected the
honoured and aged king, and reminded him of his former days of
tribulation.
Absalom's ambition gave rise to revolt, and once more drove him
from the capital towards the region of that wilderness, where he
had spent the greater portion of his days when he fled from Saul.
(^Vide ad. Psalms iii. Iv. Ixiii.) He had even to quit the bounda-
ries of Canaan, and go beyond Jordan. Of less importance was
the insurrection of the Benjaminite, Sheba, (^vide ad. Ps. Ixxviii.)
and the projected rebellion of Adonijah. In the seventieth year
of his life, after a reign of forty years and six months, David died,
and was buried at Jerusalem. His noble principles of government
are expressed in Psalm ci.: one of his subjects furnishes the fol-
lowing testimonial, in Psalm Ixxviii. 70 — 72: "God chose David
also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds; from following
the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people,
and Israel his inheritance. So he fed them according to the inte-
grity of his heart, and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands."
As with a mother's faithfulness he tended the nursing lambs when
he was their shepherd, so he transferred that faithfulness to his
people when he became their shepherd.
This is a bird's eye view of the history of David. The different
Psalms may be referred, if not with certainty, yet with more or less
of probability, to the different periods of his life. The fact that
most of them were composed in days of tribulation, during the
time of his residence at the court of Saul, (Psalms v. xli. lix. Ixix.
cxl.) the time of his flight before Saul (Psalms iii. iv. vi. vii. xi.
xiii. xxii. xxxiv. Iii. Ivi. Ivii. cxlii.) and Absalom, (Psalms iii. xxvii.
Iv. Ixiii.) should not surprise us, since the harp was just in seasons
of that kind the comfort of the pious minstrel.
A great number of our own hymns were composed in the gloomy
days of the thirty years' war. The use of David's plaintive songs
at worship caused him constantly to renew and multiply the praises
of God for his aid and deliverance, an exercise from which he
doubtless derived much benefit. As to the remainder of his
Psalms, some were composed for special use at certain public festi-
vals, (Psalms XV. xxiv. xx. xxi. Ixviii. cxxii.;) others were occa-
sioned by incidents of war, (Psalms ix. x. Ix.;) some are didactic,
(Psalm xxxvii.) others psalms of nature, (Psalms viii. xix. xxix.j)
some psalms of praise, (Psalms xvi. xviii. xxiii. xxx. cxxxviii.)
others penitential, (Psalms xxxii. li.;) Psalms ii. and x. are Mes-
sianic.
INTRODUCTION. 29
Glancing at the religious-moral character of David, and then at
the character of his Psalms, we recognize courage and warmth of
heart as its most prominent features. The boy who slew a lion
and a bear, slung the stone with so much assurance at the face of
gigantic Goliath, that he fell to the earth. But the tender youth —
ruddy and of a fair countenance, (1 Sam. xvii. 42) — shows himself
equally susceptible to tender emotions. His heart lacked no sus-
ceptibility for any kind of love : his union to Michal was, as has
been already noticed, not the result of convenience, but of genuine
affection. (1 Sam. xviii. 20.) Jonathan, his friend, loved him
^'as his oion soul." Filial piety was so sacred to him, that in his
greatest troubles, he never forgot a child's duties, but cared for his
father and mother. (1 Sam. xxii. 3.) His paternal tenderness
towards his children almost knew no limits. (2 Sam. xviii. 33;
xii. 18.) We have already noticed his loyalty to his king in spite
of all persecution. How soon his royal indignation could kindle
when it regarded the administration of justice towards his subjects,
appears from 2 Sam. xii. 5. The tender relations subsisting between
him and the people of Jerusalem reveals touchingly the scene of
his flight before Absalom : <'And all the country wept with a loud
voice, and all the people passed over." (2 Sam. xv. 23.) The
noble general is seen in 2 Sam. xxiii. 17. His faithfulness of
promise was infallible ; the words in which he mourned the violent
death of honest Abuer breathe simultaneously love and indignation.
(Cf ad. Psalm Iviii.) His anger for the murder of Ishbosheth,
committed against his promise to the contrary, could hardly be kept
within bounds. (2 Sam. iv. 12.) He was soon angry, but gave
grateful hearing to calming speech. (1 Sam. xxv. 25 — 35.)";^ But
the root of all his virtues was '■'■ the fear of God." In every situa-
tion of life, he looked up to the Lord, (with this correspond the
words which history furnishes concerning him.) The boy who
with his sling faced the Philistine expected the power of victory
from the Lord. (1 Sam. xvii. 45.) He thanked the Lord, when
his persecutor was delivered into his hand, and to the Lord he
prays for strength, that he might not sin against him. (1 Sam.
xxiv. 7.) He deemed it as a mercy of the Lord that Abigail's
admonition preserved him for sinning, (1 Sam. xxv. 32, 33;) he
besought the Lord for counsel in his martial enterprises, (1 Sam.
xxiii. 2; 2 Sam. v. 19, 23;) he humbly acknowledged the will of
the Lord when he lost the throne, and had to bear the contempt of
rebellious subjects, (2 Sam. xv. 25; xvi. 11, 12;) he praised the
Lord with deep gratitude and humility when he received the
glorious promises of the future of his race, (2 Sam. vii. 18, etc.;')
when the exultation in which he burst forth, singing and dancing
before the ark of the Lord, was met with derision, he said to
Michal, "It was before the Lord, which chose me before thy
father, and before all his house, to appoint me ruler over the
3*
30 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
people of the Lord, over Israel : therefore will I play before the
Lord. And I will yet be more vile than thus, and will be base in
mine own sight." (2 Sam. vi. 21, 22.) The loftiness of such
expressions of his piety in word and deed, would seem to render
the offence of his adultery with Bathsheba, and his sin against
Uriah, the more enormous. While it is habitual with legally
righteous Pharisees and the servants of sin, who just understand
the clever avoidance of a2:>pearances, to heap the rudest reproach
on David for those transgi'essions, and acclaim the right of rising
far above him, it is, especially for practical ministers, matter of
indispensable necessity to regard that event in its true nature.
Now if on the one hand it be apparent that David by no means
rushed without all thought headlong to the commission of his
double crime, but that sin also in his case gradually lured the weak
into her net, and that on the other if anywhere in this case the
depth of repentance seems to have equalled the greatness of the
crime, we may well ask, Who dares to throw the first stone on the
fallen one? See also Comment, to Psalm li.
We shall now endeavour to apprehend the peculiar features of
the Davidic compositions in relation to the psalms of other authors.
One diiference is strikingly apparent. A certain child-like warmth
and simplicity seems peculiar to the Psalms of David. (Psalms xi.
xvi. xxiii. xxvii. Ixi. cxxxi. and cxxxiii.) If we are anxious to gain
the impression of a heart peaceful and happy in God, we have only
to read hispsalms. The same expressions of that peculiar child-like
familiarity with God, and silent resignation, occur also in some of
his sentiments in the historic books. As such we count his already
named reply to the mockery of his wife Michal, the expression of
his gratitude for Abigail's dehortation from vengeance against
Nabal, the words of resignation on his being compelled to leave
Jerusalem for fear of Absalom, etc. (2 Sam. xv. 25, 26.) On the
other hand his Psalms portray the energy and courage of the youth
who slew Goliath, and of the man who became the terror of sur-
rounding nations, wielded the sceptre of the kingdom with a firm
hand, and irrevocably punished oppression. (Psalms xviii. Ix. ci.
lii. Iviii.) We are now-a-days wont to conceive of a hero as
endowed with a stoical mastery of his affections, and chiefly of his
grief. In the heroes of antiquity, however, weeping and tears
were deemed no disgrace. History records the violent outbreak of
David's grief as most ovei'whelming on receiving the news of
Absalom's death. (2 Sam. xviii. 33.) Regarding the Psalter as
reflecting the inward history of the man, which accompanied out-
ward acts, we may perceive how deeply all his experiences entered
into his heart. The Psalms make us to look down into the abysses
of grief and despair. It is truly elevating to observe how, while
praying and singing, his soul mounts sometimes as it were on the
steps of a ladder, from verse to verse, to joyous exultation, and the
INTRODUCTION. 31
psalm wbicli was begun in a tone of deepest complaint, ends with
triumphant song. This is most distinctly and remarkably indi-
cated in Psalm xxii. Sometimes the voice of exultation M'ill burst
through the anguish of the prayer, as in Psalm vi. 9; xxviii. 6:
he perceives inward communications from God, which tear (Psalms
xii. 6; xiv. 4; xxxii. 8; xxvii. 8) him as it were at once from out
of the deepest tribulation. Some psalms of grief and hesitancy,
beginning with an "In the Lord do I put my trust," (Psalms xi. 1;
XXV. 2; xxvi. 2,) shine like beacons. Taken as a whole, the Psalms
of David possess not the plenitude of poetic imagination, though
that exists in some. Exceedingly beautiful and grand is the
execution of the image at the beginning of Psalm xviii. which
contrasts the days of his affliction with those of his prosperity.
Psalms xxix. ex. and cxxxix. are sublime.
Since we find that poetry, music, and song were more frequently
united in one person in remote antiquity than in later times, when
those activities became more separate, there arises spontaneously
the supposition, that the individuals whom David appointed as
chief musicians and leaders of the Levites, as they combined music
and song, were also versed in poetry. (The three leaders, Asaph,
Heman, and Jeduthun, were, according to Chronicles, both chief
musicians and chief singers.) The example of David must have
exerted a great influence. It appears from Amos vi. 5, that the
nobility used to frame secular songs on the model of David's com-
positions. How much more may the spiritual songs of David
have served as models ! How exact an imitation of David is the
Psalm in Hab. iii. Asaph, Heman, and perhaps Jeduthun, are
mentioned as seers, while Ethan and Heman, who, according to
Chronicles and the titles of Psalms Ixxxviii. Ixxxix. were Levitic
singers, are accounted among the wisest of men, (1 Kings iv. 31 ;
[v. 11.]) The titles ascribe twelve psalms to Asaph, (Psalm 1.
73 — 83,) eleven to the children of Korah. Some psalms, how-
ever, cannot have had Asaph, the cotemporary of David, for their
author (e. g. Psalms Ixxiv. Ixxvii. Ixxix. Ixxx.,) as they unmis-
takeably refer to the last times of the Jewish empire : the same is
the case with the psalm of Ethan, (Psalm Ixxxix.) It may be
concluded, that the psalms of Asaph were by no means designated
by his name without sufficient reasons for it, because, in some
respects, they really bear strong marks of resemblance. It is not
improbable that the name, "Asaph," stands for the entire family
of singers of Asaph's children, so that no particular regard was
paid to the poetic productions of their separate authors. So the
Korahite psalms are ascribed to that family as a whole. As the
names of Jacob, Joseph, and Ephraim are used to designate their
entire races, why might not the same apply to the name of Asaph?
Most parties, at least, are now agreed that Jeduthun, in Psalms
xxxix. and Ixxvii. refers to the Jeduthun family of singers. The
32 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
race of Asaph reaches down to the latest times: 2 Chron. xx. 14,
Jehasiel, a Levite of the children of Asaph, is named as a prophet
in the days of Jehosaphat, who is probably to be regarded as the
author of Psalm Ixxxiii. (Cf. ad. Psalm Ixxxiii.) Descendants of
Asaph returned from the exile, according to Neh. vii. 47, not less
than one hundred and forty-eight, according to Ezra ii. 41, one hun-
dred and twenty-eight singers; and since, according to Nehemiah
vii. 47, the number of male and female singers who returned was
two hundred and forty-five, it is evident that the greater number
were Asaphites : though Jeduthunite singers are mentioned as well.
(Neh. xi. 17.) Excellent, as to form and contents, are the didac-
tic poems of Asaph, (Psalms 1. and Ixxiii.) The other psalms of
Asaph are distinguished by a certain vivacity and freshness. (On
the psalm of Ethan, vide Psalm Ixxxix. Com.) The psalms of
the children of Korah stand highest for poetic symmetry, elevation,
vivacity, and warmth of sentiment, (Psalms xlii. — xlix. Ixxxiv.
Ixxxv. Ixxxvii. Ixxxviii.) Some of these psalms were composed
by Levites in the times of David, e. g. Psalms xlii. xliii. xlvii.
Ixxxiv. J others, however, refer to the days of Hezekiah and the
invasion of Sennacherib. (Psalms xlvi. xlviii. Ixxxvii.) The Ko-
rahite songs, as well as the Asaphite, bear a certain peculiarity,
which shows that the singers of certain families educated them-
selves after the model of their predecessors. Psalm Ixxxviii. alone,
besides the general designation, bears also the name of Heman.
(Cf. ad. Psalm Ixxxviii.)
There are, besides, a song of Moses, (Psalm xc.) which bears
most thoroughly the expression of his austerity, and two songs of
Solomon. (Psalms Ixxii. cxxvii.) Psalm cxxxii. which was sung
at the dedication of Solomon's Temple, (Solomon's prayer contains,
according to Chronicles, some passages of this Psalm,) may perhaps
have him for its author. (Cf. ad. Psalm cxxxii.)
SECTION IV.
DOCTRINE AND ETHICS OF THE PSALMS.
I. — God and the Government of the World.
Herder says, "There is no attribute, no perfection of God left
unexpressed, in the simplest and most powerful manner, in the
Psalms and the Prophets." In fact, we can hardly realize how
much energy and freshness the Christian belief in God would lose,
were the lofty and eternal expressions of the Psalms on the being
and attributes of God withdrawn from the Christian Church.
INTRODUCTION. 33
How many of such forcibles passages, stamped upon our memory
since infiincy's tender age, have entered into our emotions and
thoughts, and often quite unconsciously originated those represen-
tations of God which we feel inclined to regard as the vaho-al
expression of every human heart. Here that God is praised, who,
before the mountains, the earth, and the world had been created,
is from everlasting to everlasting — who surrounds his creatures,
inquiring everywhere — whose presence cannot be avoided, whether
in heaven above, or the depth below — from whom darkness can-
not hide — who reigns as the Lord omnipotent, from the beginning,
in the heavens — who thunders in his might — who telleth the
number of the stars, and calleth them all by their names — who is
good unto all, has compassion on all his works, and giveth food
to the young ravens which cry — who delighteth not in the strength
of the "horse nor the legs of a man, but taketh pleasure in them that
fear him and hope in his mercy — who, like as a father pitieth his
children, pitieth those that fear him, and dealeth not with us after
our sins, nor rewardeth us according to our iniquities. Whatever
truths and praises can be said of the wisdom, eternity, omnipotence,
holiness, and mercy of God, are expressed in the Psalms, such as
Psalms xc. xci. xcvii. xxxiii. ciii. civ. and cxxxix. Here is a piety
which, on the one hand losing itself full of praise in the care of
God, as in Psalm cxix., preserves on the, other, a clear and opened
eye for his glory in nature, before whose view the declaration in
the book of the law and that in the book of nature entirely commin-
gle, e. g. Psalm xix. Here we have the unceasing praise of God
— in gloomy as well as in joyous days, for mercies temporal and
spiritual — in every variety of tone and expression. The last psalms
(exlvii. exlviii. and cl.), the many-toned echo of the entire book,
or like the end of a long chain call with their unceasing ''Praise
ye the Lord," upon Israel and all mankind, the heights and the
depths and the heavenly spirits, to offer the sacrifice of their praise
to the Lord. Those who adhere to the erroneous opinion (Psalms
xxix. civ. cxlv.) that the God of Israel was the God of the nation
only in that sense, that the people believed, besides Him, in other
though impotent heathen deities, may derive more correct views from
the Psalms. " For God is the King of all the earth : sing ye praises
with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen : God sitteth
upon the throne of his holiness." (Psalm xlvii. 7, 8.) "0 God
of our salvation, who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth,
and of them that are afar off upon the sea." (Psalm Ixv. 5.)
"Among the gods there is none like unto thee, 0 Lord; neither
are there any works like unto thy works. All nations whom thou
hast made shall come and worship before thee, 0 Lord, and shall
glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wondrous things:
thou art God alone." (Psalm Ixxxvi. 8 — 10.) Because, says the
Psalmist, God has created the heathen, therefore they shall come
84 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
and worship before hira. He says (verse 8), "Among the gods
there is none like unto thee, 0 Lord;" and yet, in verse 10, "Thou
art God alone." Is this not sufficient to indicate how passages are
to be taken, in which it is certainly said, that God is greater than
any other god? (Psalms xev. 3; Ixxvii. 14; xcvii. 9.) What else
does it mean, but that all who are regarded as gods are nothing
when compared with Him ? This is distinctly asserted in Psalm
xcvi. 5 : " All the gods of the nations are idols (i. e. nonentities :)
but the Lord made the heavens." With this corresponds the
language of the prophets. So it is said in Jeremiah xxvii. 5: "/
have made the earth, the man and the beast that are zipon the
ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have
given it unto tohoni it seemed meet unto me." So in Deut x. 14;
iv. 39 : "Behold, the heaven and the heaven of heavens is the Lord's
thy God, the earth (also,^ with all that therein is." "Know there-
fore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord he is
God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath : {there) is none
else."
Contrasted with the gods of the heathen, which are less than
their worshippers, which have eyes and see not, and ears and hear
not — the God of Israel appears as the living God, who governs the
world, and that in righteousness ; who maintaineth the right and
cause of the innocent, and sitteth enthroned as the righteous Judge,
(Psalm ix. 5 ;) who throweth the ungodly into the ditch, and causeth
their desire to perish, (Psalms vii. 17; cxii. 10;) who preserveth
the soul of His saints, and delivereth them out of the hand of the
wicked, (Psalm xcvii. 10;) who heareth the cry of the righteous,
(Psalm xxxiv. 18;) delivereth them out of all trouble, and maketh
their eyes to see their desire upon their enemies, (Psalm liv. 9;)
who causeth the godly to prosper in whatsoever he doeth, (Psalm
i. 3,) wealth and riches to be in his house, (Psalm cxii. 3,) that
they shall not be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine
they shall be satisfied, (Psalm xxxvii. 16;) for " I have been young,
and now I am old : yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor
his seed begging bread." (Psalm xxvii. 25.) All these things are
continually being repeated in the course of the world, though fre-
quently the contrary really takes or seems to take place, so that
expressions like those quoted, will both edify and startle pious read-
ers. It is necessary for their right understanding first to inspect
those passages, which show that the Psalmist, no less than we, had
to realize the experience of innocence being crushed, and malice
triumphant, of virtue struggling with poverty and wretchedness,
and of wickedness revelling in abundance. "I have seen the
wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay-
tree." (Psalm xxxvii. 35.) "The ways of the wicked prosper
always: thy judgments are far above out of his sight: as for all his
enemies, he puffcth at them." (Psalm x. 5.) "The wicked des-
INTRODUCTION. 35
troy the foundations, what can the righteous do?" (Psalm xi. 3.)
Asaph says, that his steps had almost slipped at the sight of the
undisturbed prosperity of the wicked, when it seemed as if he had
cleansed his heart in vain and washed his hands in innocency to
no purpose. (Psalm Ixiii. 1 — 15.) Had not David to empty the
cup of sorrow for ten yeare and to bear privation and peril? But
what is the meaning of the assurances that God is ruling the world,
causing the prosperity of the righteous, and throwing the wicked into
their own net? They simply mean that "right is right after all"
(this is Luther's rendering of Psalm xeiv. 15,) '^tandem bona causa
triumphat." They express the truths so deeply inscribed upon the
hearts of all men, and confirmed by revelation, that the Divine gov-
ernment of the world is based on justice, that evil is ever condemned
by its indestructible laws, and that its condemnation will sooner
or later be made manifest. For the further elucidation of the
before quoted passages, we should add such as these: "Cast thy
burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee." "He will not
leave for ever the righteous in trouble." (Ps. Iv. 22.) "Many are
the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivereth him out of
them all." (Ps. xxxiv. 20.) "Light is sown for the righteous,
and gladness for the upright in heart." (Ps. xcvii. 11.) "Unto
the upright there ariseth light in the darkness, from Him who is
gracious, and full of compassion and righteous." (Ps. cxii. 4.)
But when is that light to rise ? Very often here on earth, after
weeks, or years, and if not to the fathers yet to their children.
(Ps. cii. 29.) "God overturns the measure of the ungodly, when
it gets full." "When wrong gets too insolent, it commits suicide."
"Man proposes, but God disposes." "Lightly come, lightly go."
"Ill-gotten gains don't prosper." "Took by fraud, comes to
naught." "Honest gain will ever remain." "The world's the
world after all; depend on it, and you're sure to fall." "Avarice
gathers itself poor, charity pays itself rich." " Honesty is the best
policy." Could these proverbs have originated with the people, if
there were no temporal revelations of a righteous government of
the world? We hear the voice of experience when David says,
that he had not seen the seed of the righteous begging for bread,
but that he had beheld the sudden disappearance of the wicked,
though he spread himself like a green bay-tree, (Ps. xxxvii. 25.
36;) and Asaph states: "Then understood I their end: surely
Thou didst set them in slippery places : thou castedst them down
into destruction. How are they brought into desolation, as in a
moment; they are utterly consumed with terrors." (Ps. Ixxiii.
17 — 19.) The truly pious and upright man is a fliithful friend, a
kind neighbour, a conscientious citizen, a careful parent, and dili-
gent at his occupation: is it conceivable that his descendants
should be reduced to penury and find no friends ! (Cf ad. Ps.
xxxvii. 25, and Ps. i.) The ungodly, on the other hand, who
36 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
rears his fortune by wrong means, can hardly be said to attain to
pure joy, while he has more dangerous enemies in his passions
than amongst his numerous adversaries : how easily may he fall
from his height! Cases which compel children to return their
parents' ill-gotten gain are of frequent occurrence. The laws of
the Divine government of the world, however, are analogous to
those of summer and winter, sunshine and rain, health and disease,
youth and old age, and many other things. Considered in the
aggregate they may be referred to certain rules and arrangements,
though they apply not always in particular instances. But as in
our present state of probation, the full revelation of the justice of
God is held in check by his long-suffering, that the field of the
world might exhibit both wheat and tares, (Rom. ii. 4; Matt. xiii.
30,) so all the particular judgments of God refer for their consum-
mation to the last judgment. Although the expectations of the
Old Testament saints respecting the future were on the whole
concealed in darkness, there are nevertheless distinct references to
the last judgment to be found in the Prophets and the Psalms.
See Ps. i. 5, 6; xxxvii. 37, 38; xvii. 14, 15; xlix. 15, 16; Ixxiii.
23, 24; xcvi. 13; xcviii. 9, in the Commentary. The belief in
the justice of the Divine government of the world expressed by
the Psalmists, yields therefore on the one hand the character of
hope with respect to the future, and shows on the other that it de-
rived its nourishment from the daily experience of the present.
To this let us add the following. Every attempt to determine the
limits within which Divine justice is wont or able to reveal itself
as a universal law, would be labour lost. The history of the Jew-
ish nation in general, of the kingdom of Judah and Israel in par-
ticular, and the fate of the eTews down to the present time, show
the more regular appearance of such revelations in certain cycles;
moreover, the descent to sensible revelations belongs to the charac-
ter of the ancient economy : now, does all this not entitle us to the
assumption, that the Divine government of the world was wont
even in the case of individuals more frequently than with us, to
crown piety with blessings and requite injustice with curse?
Thus much is certain, that the Prophets did not confine the an-
nouncement of Divine judgments to nations, but proclaimed them
to individuals, when sin was followed by immediate punishment.
{E. <j. Isa. xxii. 15, etc.) Jer. xxviii.; 2 Sam. xxiv. 12, 13.)
This explains the confidence with which the Psalmists insist upon
the principle that the good can never fare ill.
II. — Man and Sin.
Our apprehension of the majesty and holiness of God should be
accompanied by a sense of our own nothingness and sin. The
Psalmist, alluding to the statement in Genesis, speaks of man as
INTRODUCTION. 37
made a little lower than God, (Luther,) that God hath put all
things under his feet, and glories in the fact that man, though
externally more helpless than any other creature, does by virtue of
his Godlike soul wield the government of nature. (Ps. viii.) Yet
how defective is that dominion at present! ( FiVZe ad. Ps. viii. 7.)
How small is the manifestation of that dignity, the capacity of
which man certainly possesses; how circumscribed and humbling
his present bodily existence; how much exposed to accident and
how soon destroyed! Hence the same David says, "The Lord
knoweth our frame: he remembereth that we are dust. As for
man, his days are as grass : as a flower of the field, so he flourish-
eth. For the wind passeth over it and it is gone, and the place
thereof shall know it no more." (Ps. ciii. 14 — 16.) "Surely men
of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree a lie : to be laid
in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.'^ (Ps. Ixii.
9.) And in the eighth Psalm, which celebrates the dignity of
man, he exclaims in contemplation of the infinity and greatness of
God in his works, " What is man, that thou art mindful of him,
and the son of man, that thou visitest him?" Thus do the Psalms
speak of the impotency and finiteness of man. This our perish-
able condition is by no means the necessary and absolute barrier of
created existence, but the efi'ect of internal discord originated by
sin. It manifests "the wrath of God because of sin." (Cf.Ps. xc.
7 — 9.) The authors of the Psalms are so alive to a sense of guilt,
that the voice of their conscience is audible amid all the accidental
trials and sorrows of life and the mischiefs perpetrated by ene-
mies, and that they acknowledge the justice of the Divine cha.«tise-
ments. (Ad. Ps. xxxviii. 21; cxli. 5.) They feel themselves not
entitled to the reception of Divine blessings without the confession
of their unworthiness. The exultant spring song of praise in
Psalm Ixv. is preceded by a confession of sin.* They acknowledge
that were God to enter into judgment with man, and to mark bis
iniquities, none could stand before him; (Ps. cxxx. 3; cxliii. 2;
cf. 1 Kings viii. 46; Eccl. vii. 21; Job ix. 2; xiv. 4; xv. 14-16;)
that unconscious sin, regarded as a condition which apparently
contradicts the original of a pure and holy human kind, needs the
Divine forgiveness; that sinfulness does not enter into our nature
by imitation from without, but that it is in us from the first stages
of our existence. (Ps. li. 7.) Far from seeking a ground for jus-
tification in our native depravity, David made that confession to
indicate the sincerity of his repentance and to show that he was
alive to the full extent of his guilt. What an evidence of the
de2yth of the perception of sin is furnished in expressions of pain
and grief like those in Psalm xsxii. "My bones waxed old
* De Wette concludes that the people had experienced some national
calamity, and that the Psalm was composed in exile.
4
38 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
through my roaring all the day long : my moisture is turned into
the drought of summer."* While natural reason talks only of
trespasses against the moral law or man, and on that account re-
mains so cold at the commission of sin, every transgression is
regarded in the Psalms as a trespass against the Divine word
and the living God, whose will originates the moral law. "Thy
word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee."
(Ps. cxix. 11.) Conscious of his greatest oflPence against man, he
cries, "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned," rightly apprehend-
ing that the most objectionable element of sin is its encroachment
upon the Divine law and the proof of man's wilful separation from
and opposition to Grod. Where is to be found a more touching con-
fession of a guilt-convicted conscience than in Psalm xxxii. 3, 4?
"When I kept silence (intended to conceal,) my bones waxed
old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy
hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought
of summer." The Psalmists occasionally speak of innocence and
the purity of their hands, (Ps. vii. 9; xviii. 21 — 26; xvii. 3; xxvi.
2 — 6; xli. 13,) but the preceding observations clearly show that
they refer not to absolute integrity before God, but rather to guilt-
lessness towards man. In Psalm xxxviii. the experience of
affliction awakes a painful sense of guilt in David, and yet he
gives expression to the consciousness of his innocence. He says
(Ps. Ixix. 4,) "They that hate me without a cause, are more than
the hairs of mine head," and then adds, "0 God, thoii knowest
my foolishness : and my sins are not hid from thee." (Cf. in Ps.
XXV. verses 7. 11. 18, with verses 19 — 21, and in Ps. xli. verse 5
with verse 13.) The assertion of his purity in Psalm xvii. 3, 4, is
preceded by "Let my sentence come forth from thy presence: let
thine eyes behold the things that are equal." It is incontestably
clear from Psalm vii. 3 — 5, that David refers in verse 8, "Judge
me, 0 Lord, according to my righteousness and according to mine
integrity, that is in me," to righteousness and integrity in relation
to specific accusations. And if such were not the case, might not
a man, while assuring us of the sincerity of his piety, be at the
same time conscious of daily failings and multiform guilt? Such
sincerity shows itself when we delight in the commandments of
God, and strive to obey them; though the surmounting of obstacles
* Contemplating passages of Scripture so solemn, we are, against our
inclination, reminded of the folly of interpreters. As, however, benefit
may accrue from knowing with what impure hands interpreting theolo-
gians have touched this book, and to show our sympathy with the distress
of the Church in this respect, let us adduce an instance : A. W. Krahmer,
a modern interpreter, (The Psalms Translated and Interpreted, Leips.
1837, vol. i. p. 90,) says that David could not have been the author of this
psalm (Ps. xxxii.), "Because he ivas then not a fever patient, but well and in
good health."
INTRODUCTION. 39
constitutes the business of tliis life. Who would have expected a
confession of sin (Ps. xl. 12,) after the description of a heart so
completely resigned to the will of God, as that which precedes it?
The same Asaph who declares God to be his sole consolation and
portion, was not far from joining in the outrage of the wicked,
"that there is no righteous God in heaven." (Ps. Ixxiii.) How
frequently occur expressions like these: ''I will keep thy statutes.
I will not forget thy word," in Psalm cxix.; but that prevents not
David from praying, " Let thy merciful kindness be for my com-
fort." (Ps. cxix. 76.) It is to be noticed, that however much the
Psalmists refer to their integrity, they never demand, but suppli-
cate aid and deliverance at the hands of the righteous God : that
they hope in that name by which the Lord had named himself
(Exod. xxxiv. 6,) '< Merciful and gracious, long-suflFering, and
abundant in goodness and truth." (Psalms xxxi. 4; xl. 12; Ixix.
30: cxix. 77; xli. 4; xxv. 11; lii. 11; Ixxix. 9; ciii. 8; cxlv. 8.
III. — TJie Piety and Morality of the Psalmists.
Piety is the sense of the relation of our dependence on God. It
may be servile, accompanied by a sense of fear and separation
from God; or child-like, accompanied by love, reconciliation to,
and lenity with God. When the thought of Divine justice enters
into a sinner's consciousness, his being afraid of God will be pro-
portioned to his realizing the estrangement of his heart from God.
The Psalmist expresses that fear in almost appalling terms: "My
flesh trembleth for fear of thee." (Psalms cxix. cxx.) But when
God reveals himself to sinful man as gracious and forgiving, while
his conscience in spite of his faults and infirmities testifies to his
desire to obey the Divine commandments, love and the condition
of peace with God will ensue. The institution of sacrifices for the
atonement of sins of error and weakness had revealed God to his
people as the forgiver of sins; and in the important passage in Ex.
xxxiv. 6, 7, he proclaimed his name as " The Lord, the Lord
God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in good-
ness and truth, keeping mercy unto the thousandth generation,
forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin, and that will by no
means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon
the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and
to the fourth generation." The revelation of the God of love
avowing blessings to the pious down to the thousandth, and pun-
ishment to the ungodly (Cf. Psalm ciii. 17, 18, notes,) down to
the third and the fourth generation, was well adapted to kindle
reciprocal love in the hearts of the children of Israel. The
Psalms show that the Old Testament saints stood to God in the
relation of love to a much greater extent than we imagine. Who
can remain untouched on hearing the words of David at the begin-
40 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
ning of tlie Psalm of thanksgiving, which he sung towards the
close of his life, and which may be regarded as the result of his
experience of life? "I will love thee, 0 Lord, my strength."
(Psalm xviii. 1.) "Thou art my Lord, all my goods I prefer not
to thee." (Psalm xvi. 2.) " This I know, for God ^s for me."
No Christian could describe in sweeter language the peace of recon-
ciliation than we find it done in Psalms xvi. xxiii. ciii. Ixxiii. xxvi.
xxvii. Ixxi. 14 — 24, etc. How happy must have been their com-
munion with God who say, " How excellent is thy lovingkindness,
O God ! therefore the children of men put their trust under the
shadow of thy wings, they are abundantly satisfied with the fatness
of thy house, and thou makest them drink of the river of thy
pleasures." (Psalm xxxvi. 8, 9.) ''Blessed is the man whom
thou choosest and causest to approach unto thee, that he may
dwell in thy courts; he shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy
house, even of thy holy temple." (Psalm Ixv. 5.) " Thy loving-
kindness is better than life — when I remember thee upon my bed,
and meditate on thee in the night watches." (Psalm Ixiii. 4. 7.)
It is always the mark of a strong and healthy divine life, when the
traces of God are recognized in surrounding nature. Do classical
songs celebrate the traces of God in nature? The Psalms contain
the sublimest and most fervent praises of the majesty of God
which is everywhere revealed in nature. (Cf. sec. iv. 1. on God
and the Government of the World.) From the relation to God
springs the relation to his law. All must bow to his law, either
%oillingly or %tnwillingly. So the Jews of the Old Testament were
mostly coerced to the keeping of the covenant of God; (Jer. xxxi.
32 ;) but there were many who loved the lawgiver as well as his
law. The Psalms furnish most remarkable evidences of this kind :
they begin with Psalm i. : — the law is described as the deliyht of
man : as sweeter than honey and the honeycomb : as the riches,
the peculiar portion and possession of the pious : as the song in
the house of his pilgrimage (Psalms xix. 8 — 11, cxix. 54. 56, 57.
103. 111.) Is it possible to find an instance of more thorough
absorption of the human will in the law of God than this? "I
delight to do thy will, 0 my God : yea, thy law is within my
heart." (Psalm xl. 9.) We are therefore entitled to the assump-
tion, that morality of the purest kind, as the effect of filial love to
God, formed part of the obedience of the Old Testament saints.
The depth of their convictions of sin on the one hand, and their
fervent sense of intimacy and communion with God on the other,
must also have led to the knowledge that virtue could only exist
under and by such a combination. The Psalms declare that only
in God's light can man see light, (Psalm xxxvi. 9,) and that God
fashioneth the hearts of men. (Psalm xxxiii. 15.) The pious
singers pray to be guided by the light and counsel of God : to be
led through the paths of his commandments : and to be kept by the
INTRODUCTION.
41
mercy of God, when their feet hegin to slip. (Psalms xliii. 3;
cxxxix. 24; v. 9 ; xxv. 5; xxvii. 11; cxix. .85; xciv. 18.) They
beg for the Spirit of God as the source of their strength for every
kind of good. (Psalms li. 13; cxliii. 10.)
We must, however, not apprehend the filial relationship of the
Old Testament saints as uninterrupted and continuous : every grave
transgression tended to banish it, and it could not he regained
without severe struggles. David mourns at being since his fall
deprived of "a constant spirit," "the spirit of joy," and ''the help
of God." (Ps. li. 12, etc. in Luther's version.) The intensity of
internal discord under such circumstances, is proportioned to the
distinct apprehension, that sacrifices have no atoning virtues in
themselves, but possess only a tfpical meaning, (Psalm li. 18, 19.)
that the real sacrifice is the offering of our will to God, and the
reception of his law into our hearts. (Psalm xl. 7 — 9.) Faith,
however, always conquers despondency, and the Spirit stamps the
assurance of the forgiveness of specific transgressions so powerfully
even on the minds of individuals, that David afterwards exclaims,
full of confidence, " Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered." (Psalm xxxii. 1.) Two questions arise in
connection with this subject. How could forgiveness take place
before the atonement of our Lord Jesus? and could the Old Testa-
ment saints be called regenerated ? Those who put the first, for-
get that successive events in time are eternally prese??/ before God:
hence Paul's mighty declaration, that from before the creation of
man, yea, from before the foundation of the world, God chose
believers in Christ to holiness. (Eph. i. 4.) The whole of God's
relationship to man rests therefore on the presumption of an eternal
objective atonement in Christ. Regarding the second question, it
is well known that the Lutheran Church sets forth regeneration as
embodying repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. The Old Testa-
ment saints could not have that faith, because Christ had not been
preached to them : it might be said that they believed in the Mes-
siah, but, everything else abstracted, they do not associate the for-
giveness of their sins with the Messiah. Therefore regeneration
applies only in so far to Old Testament saints, that there were some
in whom the consciousness of repentance and peace with God pre-
dominated : though that could not by any means be so confirmed
and clear an inward condition as it is with believers in the gospel
of the incarnate Saviour.
The moral attitude towards their enemies has always formed an
objection to the morality of the Psalmists. Instead of the mild
voice of placability and compassion, we hear the tumult of revenge,
and prayers for the condemnation of their enemies. Augustine
already felt its offensiveness and endeavoured to palliate it by
observing, that there was no reference to the ivishes of the Psalm-
ists, but to predictions of such of God's visitations, which were
4*
42 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
doubtlessly suspended over confirmed sinners. (0pp. v. Sermo. 22;
also Luther ad. Psalm Iv.) In modern times the opinion seems to
obtain, that love to enemies is enjoined as a duty in the New Tes-
tament only. The gratuitousness of that opinion is apparent from
consulting correct translations of Lev. xix. 18; Ex. xxiii. 4, 5;
Prov. xxiv. 17, 18. 29; xxv. 21, 22; Job xxxi. 29; Sirach
xxviii. 1 — 11. To form a right estimate of the misgivings alluded
to, we should consider the end contem-platcd hy punishment. The
common view is that with God and the pious punishment springs
from love and contemplates the improvement of man. But what is
to be done if you have to deal with an incorrigible sinner ? If
this is denied as positively true, its possibility ought to be admitted,
and should even that be objected'to, provision ought to be made
for the case which renders improvement within a fixed period of
time inconceivable, because a better system of control is to be
waited for. Nobody, methinks, would maintain that the consoli-
dation of man's impenitence ought to cancel his liability to punish-
ment, especially because, supposing him freed from positive punish-
ment, the so-called natural punishment, viz. internal discord or
spiritual death, is sure to visit him with an increased force accord-
ing to the measure of his obstinacy. The end of improvement
therefore cannot exhaust the purpose of punishment. Philosophy
agrees with Christianity, that the specific purpose of punishment is
retribution; i. e. the welfare of the individual is to be disturbed in
the same measure as he has disturbed or infringed upon the law of
God or the State. Hence it appears that to deny the punishment
of a hardened sinner (not on personal ground, but from a sense of
the holiness of the Divine law,) is as little to be regarded as evi-
dencing moral imperfection, as it would be to desire that those who
are susceptible for improvement, should by means of correctives be
brought to their senses. The objection is met, if it can be shown
that the imprecations and prayers for Divine punishment do not
flow from the vindictive disposition (viz. personal irritability and
passion) of the Psalmists, but from the motives just now alluded
to. Those supplications would then correspond to the earnest
desire of a good monarch or a just judge to discover the guilty that
justice might be administered, and the expressions of David, the
private individual, ought to be referred to those noble motives
which developed the principles he uttered when a king. (Ps. ci. 8.)
We are constrained to assume this in the case at least of David's
Psalms, from having first perused the historic record of his deeds,
which more than any words breathe a forgiving disposition, we pass
on to the reading of his psalms. If his acts were untainted by vin-
dictive passion, is it likely that it should only attach to his words ?
But we find many expressions in unison with his deeds; e. g. "If
I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with me, (yea, I
have delivered him that without cause is mine enemy:) let the
INTRODUCTION. 43
enemy persecute my soul and take it : yea, let him tread down my
life upon the earth." (Ps. vii. 5, 6.) Here again he refers to the
same persecution, (Ps. cxli. ö :) "Let the righteous (God) smite
me, it shall be a kindness; and let him reprove me, it shall be an
excellent oil which shall not break my head, for yet my prayer
shall be at their offences." ''They rewarded me evil for good
to the spoiling of my soul. But as for me, when they were sick,
my clothing was sackcloth : I afflicted my soul with fasting, and
my prayer returned into mine own bosom." (Ps. xxxv. 12, 13.)
So in Psalm xxxviii. 21, "They also that render evil for good are
mine adversaries : because I follow the thing that good is." " For
my love, they are my adversaries; but I give myself unto prayer.
And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love."
(Ps. cix. 4, 5.) The didactic Psalm xxxvii. opens with "Fret not
thyself (get not angry) because of evil doers." Now when the
same man calls, (Ps. vii. 35,) upon God as Judge, and utters iu
Psalm cix. imprecations, it is but fair to refer his thirst for the
punishment of sin to purer motives than personal vindictive passion.
We are indeed for the most part enabled to judge of the source
from which his prayers for punishment flow. There uniformly
exist motives similar to those so sublimely expressed in Psalm
Ixiv. 10, 11, "And all men shall fear and shall declare. It is the
Lord's work; and they shall wisely mark his doing. The righteous
shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in him : and all the
upright in heart shall glory."
The Psalmists frequently state sentiments like the following as
the motives of their prayers for the punishment of their enemies:
that the holiness of God and his righteous government of the world
should be acknowledged, that the faith of the pious should be
strengthened, that they should praise God, that the haughtiness of
the ungodly should be brought within bounds, that they should
know that God is the righteous judge of the world, and that the
fulfilment of his glorious promises should not fail. (Psalm v. 11, 12;
ix. 20, 21; xii. 9; xxviii. 4, 5; xxii. 23 — 32; xxxv. 24; xl. 17;
lix. 14; cix. 27; cxlii. 8.) Aye, they even boast of their hatred
against their enemies, because "they hate God." (Psalm
cxxxix. 21.) Offence may be taken at their straightway putting
down their own enemies as those of God. But what evidence have
we that they do it straiglttwai/? Returning to David, who is
prepared to deny the impiousness of the two chief sections of his
persecutors? A king passionate to madness, breathing slaughter
against his son-in-law to whom he was greatly indebted ; courtiers
thirsting for blood, like a Doeg, who on no other ground than that
of gaining the favour of his sovereign could kill eighty helpless
priests; or an Ahithophel, beguiling Absalom to revolt against his
father and to stain the honour of royalty, (2 Sam. xvi. 21;) in
sight of wickedness so great, David may well advocate the claims
44 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of God. Confining ourselves to the general meaning of the term
"enemies," the description in the Psalms may often appear over-
drawn. We should realize the fact, that in certainly most instances
reference is made to vile traitors of a sanguinary disposition, to
rebels and assassins; and that in some places David speaks as
king, -who as a ruler is obliged to wield the sword which God has
entrusted to his keeping. This applies to Psalm Iviii. which is
distinguished for its many imprecations, and to all the psalms
which refer to Absalom, e.g. Psalm Ixiii. We do not even in the
New Testament meet with absolute forgiving love either in God or
his servants. The wrath of God is said to abide on those who
believe not on his Son, (John iii. 36:) that "it is a fearful thing
to fall into the hands of the living God:" that "God is a con-
suming fire." (Heb. x. 31; xii. 29.) In terms not less offensive
than those in the Psalms, Christ announces judgment to the cursed,
(Matt. XXV. 41,) and foretells the judgment of God to those who
had rejected the Son. (Matt. xxi. 41, 44; Luke xxiii. 29, 30.)
Was it not Peter who, in the name of God, announced death to
Ananias and Sapphira, and did not the event show that his speech
was far from being idle passion? Did he not say to Simon the
sorcerer, in holy indignation, "Thy money perish with thee," yet
not without adding, "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness"?
(Acts viii. 20. 22.) Did not Paul strike Elymas the sorcerer with
blindness, and call him a child of the devil? Did he not solemnly
"deliver unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh" (1 Cor. v. 5,)
the wicked Corinthian who had married his step-mother, and say,
"Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward
him according to his works" ? (2 Tim. iv. 14.) As a proof that
these were not the expressions of the Apostle's personal passion,
we refer to his aff"ectionate advocacy in behalf of the Corinthian
evil-doer, after he had heard of his improvement, (2 Cor. ii.) and
to his saying concerning the very persons who had deserted him
during his defence at the tribunal, immediately after the threaten-
ing statement about Alexander, "May it not be laid to their
charge." (2 Tim. iv. 16.) The Lord said to his two disciples,
who (it seems not from personal passion but from pure love to
their Master) desired fire to descend from heaven, and to consume
the Samaritans "as Elias did:" "Know ye not what manner of
spirit ye are of?" (Luke ix. 55.) They said it from love to Christ:
but are vindictive feelings for the sake of others impossible ? It
does not follow that their anger was pure, because it arose in behalf
of another. The "ye" occurs in the original in a position which
emphasises and places it in antithesis to "Elias." It would then
appear that our Lord declared the inferiority of the legal position
of the Old Testament, not because the desire of retribution ought
to be excluded from the religion of reconciliation, but because it
ought not to predominate in it. The question may finally arise,
INTRODUCTION. 45
Are we then compelled to assume that the unhallowed flame of
personal passion did in no case blend with the holy fire of the
Psalmists ? We cannot even say this of the Apostles. (Acts xv. 29 ;
xxiii. 3; Phil. iii. 2; Gal. v. 2.) Whether the anger of impas-
sioned speech be such "which worketh not the righteousness of
God," (James i. 20,) or such as was felt by Christ (Mark iii_. 2)
himself, may generally be gathered from its nature, when delight
transpires at the thought of being permitted to be the instrument
of Divine retribution, when specific kinds of retribution are prayed
for with evident satisfaction, or when the thought of retribution is
regarded with complacency by the speaker, etc. Several expressions
in Psalms cix. and lix. bear the stamp of passion : so do Psalms
cxlix. 7, 8; cxxxvii. 8, 9; Iviii. 11; — xli. 11, may have flowed
from such a disposition. DiflPerent individuals will hold difi'erent
views on other psalms. The vindictive psalms respecting the
heathen, as e.g. Psalm Ixxix. 6, ''Pour out thy wrath upon the
heathen that have not known thee; and upon the kingdoms that
have not called upon thy name," suggest particular considerations.
The victory of the heathen over Israel threatened indeed the
destruction of true religion. Read the impassioned description of
the Chaldean conquest of the country (Psalm Ixxiv.) : the heathen
triumphantly asked, " Where is now their God ?" (Ps. Ixxix. 10;)
while on the other hand at the victories of Israel the sanctuary at
Jerusalem was honoured with gifts of foreign nations, the power of
the God of Israel acknowledged, and Messianic hopes awakened.
(Com. ad. Psalm Ixxvi. Ixxxvii.) Besides all this, it should be
observed that hatred against a nation as a whole excludes not
kindly sympathy towards individuals, as shown by the more noble
custom of war at all times, in even religious wars, such as the
Crusades. An instance of this kind occurs in 2 Kings vi. 22.
Prom this point of view even Lessing once advocated the so-called
vindictive Psalms.*
* During Lessing's residence at Hamburg, a violent attack was made
upon the Rev. Mr. Goetge, who resisted a proposition to cancel from the
fast-day prayer the words, "Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that
have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon
thy name." Lessing, who from a predilection for the stage had forsaken
the pulpit, composed just then a sermon — a sermon! aye, and on the very
text, Psalm Ixxix. 6, after the manner of Sterne, entitled, Sermon from
two texts. Psalm Ixxix. 6, "Pour out," etc. and Matt. xxii. 39, "Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself," by Yorick, translated from the
English. He had only a few copies printed, his object being to show to
the conceited modernisers that there were others more clever than they,
and sent one copy to their leader, the Rev. Alberti. Nicolai says that
Alberti took fright, declaiing that a man like Lessing was not to be trifled
with, and that he was afraid of the effect of the sermon on the public.
Lessing suppressed the pamphlet at his instance. The preface only has
been preserved; but Lessing's meaning is clear. This was the story:
" Colonel Shandy and his faithful Trim went out for a walk. They found
46 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
lY.— TJie Future.
Christianity neither refers to "the bei/ond'' the grave, nor to
continuation after death. Christian hope, i. e. faith applied to the
future, has for its object the completion of the kingdom of God, of
which it may be said with equal truth that it has come and has not
yet come. Its completion will be threefold. At its completion all
who are ordained to it shall he received into it, so that the body of
Christ shall be complete : the dominion of God in the heart of
individuals shall be complete, and the power of sin cancelled : the
outward shall correspond to the inward, for the outward should be
the display or manifestation of the inward, which would imply the
cessation of discord and evil. The Messianic psalms contemplate
this latter object, and as the kingdom of God cannot be said to
have absolutely come before the end of time, so cannot those pro-
phecies be said to have met their proper fulfilment before then.
The departing Christian therefore is not to expect perfect bliss
immediately after death, but in the future at the end of the pre-
sent dispensation. In so far, however, as Christ has already
effected his communion with God this side the grave, there is in
store for him, if not complete, at all events some kind of bliss
immediately after death. A certain degree of bliss after death
must therefore be assumed in the case of the Old Testament saints,
who enjoyed communion with God here below, though certainly
less complete than theirs whose communion with God was effected
by Christ. On that account the ancient Church used to represent
the condition of the Old Testament saints beyond the grave as a
twilight, limhus pair urn, in which they were waiting for Christ, as
it is said of Abraham, that he rejoiced to see the day of Christ.
Their fear of death, as expressed in several psalms, but most
on the road a starved man in a ragged French uniform, sustaining himself
on a crutch, because he had one foot maimed. With his eye silently bent
to the ground, he took off his hat; but his melancholic look spoke for him.
The colonel gave him several shillings without counting them. Trim
pulled a penny from his pocket, and presenting it, said, 'French dog.'
The colonel kept silence for some seconds, and then said, turning to Trim,
'Trim, he is a man, and not a dog.' The French invalid had followed
them. In answer to the colonel's opeech, Trim gave him another penny,
and again said, 'French Dog.' 'And Trim, he is a soldier.' Trim stared,
gave another penny, and said, 'French dog.' 'And Trim, he has fought
for his country, and been severely wounded.' Trim pressed his hand,
giving another penny, and said, 'French dog.' 'And Trim, this soldier is
a good and unhappy husband, has a wife and four uneducated children.'
Trim, with a tear in his eye, gave all he had left in his pocket, and said,
though in a low voice, 'French do; ' On reaching home he conferred on
this topic with Yorick. Yorick sail, 'It is evident Trim hates the whole
nation which is hostile to his country, but he knows how to love each indi-
vidual of it when he is worthy of his love' This gave occasion to Yorick's
preaching the following sermon."
INTRODUCTION. 47
strongly in Psalm Ixxxviii. ought therefore not to startle us. A
pious Israelite could realize full joy only in view of that ultimate
future, when the great festival of joy is to take place on Mount
Zion, and all the dead are to marcji forth from their silent cham-
ber. (Isaiah xxv. 6; xxvi. 19.) ^'he account which we possess of
Enoch (Gen. v. 24,) shows at how early a period the opinion pre-
vailed that death could not interrupt that communion with God
which the godly enjoyed with him on earth. Our Lord's argu-
ment for immortality, in reply to the tempting question of the
Sadducees, which he cited from the Pentateuch, (Matt. xxii. 32;
Luke XX. 37, 38,) alludes profoundly to the connection subsisting
between earthly communion with Cod and future blessedness. (Cf.
Heb. xi. 16.) If the Eternal (such is our Saviour's meaning) has
entered into so close a communion with man, that he calls himself
Jiis God, how can such a relation b3 only of a temporal and transi-
tory nature? We ask further, ^ hy should man, enjoying inti-
mate communion with God, not be sensible of the eternity of his
relation to him? Since Christ refers to "eternal life" as begin-
ning on earth, and attaining to perfection beyond the grave, may
not the Old Testament saints, at times of their most intimate com-
munion with God, have equally possessed the presentiment, nay,
the certainty of its eternity? Is it likely that the man who, while
the subject of continuous tribulation and intense agony of soul,
could exclaim, "This I know, God is mine!" (Psalm Ivi. 10. See
also Psalm Ixxiii. 25, 26,) should believe that all would be over
with death? If a Psalmist derives consolation from "dwelling in
the house of the Lord for ever," and says of the pious that " like
a green olive tree they abide in the house of God, and trust in
the mercy of God, for ever and ever," (Psalm Hi. 10, 11,) and if,
as is shown in the commentary on the respective passages, the
abiding in the house of God designates "imiissoluhility of commu-
nion xoith God," is it not clear that the pledge of the Spirit
wrought a confidence in the mind of the Psalmists extending
beyond the grave? Taking such prophetic moments for granted,
may we not equally assume, that sentiments embodying in a gene-
ral way thoughts like this, " Continue upright, for the end of that
man is peace, but the transgressors shall be destroyed altogether,"
and similar ones expressing God's unfailing judgment of the
impious, gave rise to presentiments extending beyond the grave ?
The expressions of such hopes are, however, met with; their some-
what scanty occurrence may be sufficiently explained on the
assumption, that the dawning of such hopes was linked to the
holiest moments of their spiritual life. We may quote Psalm
xlviii. 15, "Yea, this God is our God for ever and ever, he will
guide us heyond death." (Psalm Ixviii. 21 is held in more general
terms.) Still more explicit are Psalms Ixix. 16; xvi. 8 — 11; xvii.
14, 15; Ixxiii. 23, 24. The strong distinction which these pas-
48 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
sages draw between tlie worldly-minded who have their consolation
in this world, and the children of G-od, renders any other interpre-
tation inadmissible. It is truly remarkable that just these Psalms,
more than any others, express the utmost sense of oneness with
and happiness in God.
V. — The Messiah.
The prophets of the Old Testament have predicted a time, when
Israel covered with the spirit of grace and supplication (Zech. xii.
10,) should become a righteous people and inherit the land for
ever, (Isaiah Ix. 21,) when the old covenant to the observance of
which they had to be coerced should cease, and the law be written
in their hearts, (Jeremiah xxxi. 31 — 33,) when all nations of
the earth should flow to Zion, call upon the name of the Lord, and
serve him with one consent. (Isaiah ii; Zeph. iii. 9.) David, the
servant of God, should be raised, in the person of an oiFspring of
David, who in the capacity of the good shepherd should feed the
people of God; a covenant of peace should be made with universal
nature, which ceasing to be hurtful to man, should thenceforth
minister to his comfort. (Ezekiel xxxiv. 23 — 31) " It would be
inexplicable," says a modern commentator, (Koester, ad. Psalm
Ixxii. p. 113,) "were the Psalms to contain no reference to an
idea of such paramount importance to the Jewish religion as that
of the Messiah." Since the Psalms as lyrical poems express those
religious sentiments which the faith of the people, taught by the
law and the prophets, was calculated to inspire, it would indeed
be strange, if the prophetic article of faith of the Messiah were
absent from their prayers. The more so, as we know from David's
last song (which is preserved in 2 Sam. xxiii.) that Messianic
hopes animated his soul and entered into his poems. We insert
that passage, because important to our estimate and understanding
of the Messianic prophecies of David :*
"David the son of Jesse, said,
"The man raised up on high said,
"The anointed of the God of Jacob,
"And the sweet Psalmist of Israel:
"The Spirit of the Lord spake by me,
"And his word was in my tongue,
* Luther's Translation, esp. of v. 3. misleads: so do the Vulg. Syr. and
ixx. The Chaldee paraphrase inserts the Messiah, but forcibly. We agree
in the main with Tremellius, de Wette, F. of Meyer, cf. also the Engl, yer-
sion. On translating with Ewald (The Pract. Books of the Old Testament,
vol. i. p. 100,) "When one is ruling justly over men, when one is ruling
in the fear of God, it is as wlien it grows light of a morning," the possi-
bility of a Messianic allusion is certainly avoided, but v. 5 shows also this
rendering to bo eqiially inadmissible.
INTRODUCTION. 49
" The Grod of Israel said,
" The Rock of Israel spake to me :
*' A ruler over men in righteousness,
"A ruler in the fear of God.
" As the sun riseth at the light of the morning,
"Even on a morning without clouds,
"As the tender grass springing out of the earth
"By clear shining after rain.
"Although my house be not so with God:
" Yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant
"Ordered in all things and sure,
"For all my salvation and all my desire, doth not
"He make it to grow?
" But the ungodly shall be all of them as thorns thrust away,
"Because they cannot be taken with hands,
"But the man that shall touch them
"Must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear,
"And they shall be utterly burned with fire on the spot."
We gather in the first place from this passage that David felt him-
self conscious of being Divinely inspired, especially when speaking
of the Messiah. Our Lord confirms this (Matt. xxii. 43,) with
reference to Psalm ex. The Psalmists are also elsewhere conscious
of Divine influence. (Psalm xlix. 5; xii. 6.) We gather, again,
that the fundamental prophecy in 2 Sam. vii. 12 — 16, became in
his prophetic moments more distinctly developed to him. On his
first hearing it, he was greatly affected by the thought of the per-
petuity of regal dignity among his ofispring. "Who am I, 0 Lord
God? and what is my house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?"
he exclaims with touching humility, "and this was yet a small
thing in thy sight, 0 Lord God : but thou hast spoken also of
thy servant's house for a great while to come, and is this the
manner of man, 0 Lord God?"* No other and no loftier thought
than that of a perpetual progeny on the throne of his kingdom did
probably then enter his mind: in Psalm Ixxxix. 30. 37, the pro-
mise is similarly understood, and in Psalm xviii. 50, he praises
God, "who showeth mercy to David, His anointed, and to his seed
for evermore." Those, however, who consult history, and believe
in a connection of revelation between the Old and New Testaments,
as well as in the gift of prophecy, are sensible that in those words
the Spirit of God referred to Him in whom the promise became
fulfilled. (Luke i. 32, 33.) This view may be held, though the
main essence of the prophecies made to him should have been con-
cealed from David during his lifetime, as e. g. Peter may never
* According to 1 Chron. xvii. 17, "And hast regarded me according to
the estate of a man of high degree."
5
50 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
until the last moments of his existence have understood the mean-
ing of our Lord's prophecy concerning his end. (John xxi. 18.)
The Prophets did certainly apprehend the more profound sense.
"Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that
good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to
the house of Judah. In those days and at that time, I will cause
the branch of righteousness to grow up unto David : and he shall
execute judgment and righteousness in the land. For thus saith
the Lord : David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of
the house of Israel." (Jer. xxxiii. 14, etc.') Cf. what is said Isaiah
xi. 1, etc. of the rod out of the stem of Jesse. It cannot be denied
that the prophets knew that the prediction should meet its ultimate
fulfilment in the One great descendant of David. But was that
knowledge hid from David ? Believing, as he did, in the Messiah,
in the King of Zion as described in Psalms ii. and ex. to whom
the uttermost parts of the earth should obey, who should be a priest
for ever after the order of Melchizedek, (Ps. ii. 7; ex. 4,) is it
likely that the thought should never have entered his mind, that
the eternal kingdom of his house had reference to that descendant?
At his departure from life, if not earlier, David knew at least, that
the Messiah whose victories he had celebrated in Psalms ii. and ex.
should spring from his progeny. In his above quoted last pro-
phecy, he sees a ruler over men in righteousness and in the fear
of God from his house, during whose reign an unclouded sun shall
shine on men and the earth yield a rich increase. (Cf. ad. Ps.
Ixvii. 7.) He says that God's everlasting covenant with him had
determined as much;* that all ungodly powers would be compelled
to yield to the conquering might of his house. These words may
be regarded as exhibiting the clear fundamental type of David's
Messianic hopes. Our collection of Psalms contains two Messianic
psalms of David, (Psalms ii. ex.) one of Solomon, (Psalm Ixxii.)
to which must be added Psalm xlv.
A few observations on matter and form are needed for the cor-
rect understanding of the Messianic psalms. If we understand
the prophecies as j^ f edict ions of tlie life of Jesits on]y, it will follow,
that only some particulars met a literal fulfilment. Even the
modern Jews, searching for Messianic predictions in that sense,
deem themselves entitled to the confident assertion, that the Old
Testament contains but few of that kind. We ask, Is the kingdom
of Christ to be confined to the brief period of not quite three years
of his ministry on earth ? It is but the beginning of that consum-
mation in the future kingdom of glory to which we have refer-
* To understand what is said of the ruler collectively of the whole house
of David is equally admissible. It would even then exhibit a development
of the prophecy in 2 Sam. vii., though David would then not have under-
stood the full meaning of the promise.
INTRODUCTION. 51
red, p. 46. Prophecy points to every gradation of Christ's existence
and the total extension of his kingdom, down to its final completion.
(1 Cor. XV. 28; xiii. 12; 2 Pet. iii.; Rev. xxi.) Supposing this
to be seen and granted, we have further to consider, that prophecy
refers to the Messiah and his kingdom in terms which have neither
been fulfilled during the period of Christ's appearance on earth,
nor in the history of the Christian Church, while they no less answer
the expectations which we entertain of the future kingdom of God.
The Messiah is certainly described as accomplishing his earthly
mission in the character of a prophet and teacher endowed with
the Spirit of God, of the servant of God, gentle and beneficent,
despised by his nation and enduring great sufi"eriogs. (Isaiah
xlii. 49. 53; Zech. ix. 11.) But a far greater number of passages
set him forth as a valiant king, endowed with Divine power, who
is to subdue the heathen and to establish the lasting temporal
prosperity of his people. (Ps. ii. ex. Ixxii.; 2 Sam. xxiii. 3, 6, as
well as Ps. xlv. which is to be regarded as Messianic, use similar
terms.) Here we ought to distinguish between the fundamental
ideas of such prophecies and the form in which they are expressed.
When reference is made to the condition of the saved, they ai*e
described as sitting down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, as
entering paradise, as being received into everlasting habitations, as
joining the Saviour in drinking anew of the fruit of the vine in
his Father's kingdom, as being set some over few, others over
many cities, etc. In the Apocalypse, the prophetic book of the
New Testament, are depicted the heavenly Jerusalem as coming
down upon the earth — the heavenly marriage at which the guests
are to be furnished with fine linen, clean and white — the river of
the water of life, and on its banks the tree of life, yielding its fruit
every month, the leaves whereof are for the healing of the nations
— the temple of God with the ark of the testaments, etc. (Chaps.
xxi. xix. 7, 8; xi. 19.) Of the condemned on the other hand it
is said in the Gospels and the Apocalypse, that they shall be cast
into hell-fire, that their worm shall not die, that they shall be
excluded from the marriage feast, that they shall be cast into outer
darkness, where is weeping and gnashing of teeth. It has never
been doubted that Christians are to grasp the fundamental ideas of
such descriptions, and to regard the form of their expression as
adaptations to our present power of comprehension. This is clear
from the variety of forms and figures. In some passages of Reve-
lations express explanations are given; e. g. chap. xix. 8, ''The fine
linen is the righteousness of saints." The same remarks apply to
the predictions of the prophets concerning the kingdom of Christ.
Their prophetic visions are related to their fulfilment as are the
visions of Christ, the Apostles, and the Prophets of the New Tes-
tament, to the period of the completion of the kingdom of Christ.
Just as we employ the most beautiful and significant conditions of
52 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the present as representations of the future, so did the prophets
respecting the future kingdom of the Messiah. In the time of the
Old Testament as well as among Christians, the weak and sensuous
can only realize the substance iu the symbol, while the more intel-
ligent distinguish between symbol and thought. Hence the Messiah
is represented invested with the three chief oflBces of the Jewish
theocracy, as King, Priest, and Prophet. It is said in one place,
that the nations shall show themselves willing to be instructed in
Mount Zion, or that knowledge shall be sent to them, and that
universal peace shall revisit the earth; in another, that the Philis-
tines, Edom and Moab, shall be conquered, and the river of Egypt
be dried up; in a third place, "Egypt shall do sacrifice and
oblation. In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to
Assyria, and the Assyrians shall come into Egypt, and the Egypt-
ians into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians.
In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria,
even a blessing in the midst of the land; whom the Lord of Hosts
shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the
work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance." (Isaiah ii. xlii.
1—6; Ix. 11; ix. 6, 7; xi. 14, 15; xix. 23—25.)
The conversion of the heathen is sometimes spoken of in
terms which almost make one think that they were all to become
Jews, (Isaiah xix. 21; Ixvi. 20; Zech. xiv. 16,) while the same
passages contain expressions which point to the abrogation of the
ceremonial law. (Isaiah xix. 19; Ixvi. 21; Zech. xiv. 20, 21.) In
one place the wild beasts are represented as tame, in another, that
God will desti'oy them: that the sun shall no more go down; and
again, that God shall be their sun. (Isaiah xi. 6; Ixv. 25; Ezek.
xxxiv. 25; Isaiah Ix. 20.) The variety of these figures shows that
we can only retain the general thoughts which they embody. Just
where everything seems to point to a narrow and Jewish horizon,
some expression or other occurs which plainly indicates that all
cannot be taken in a literal sense. Joel e. g. chap. iii. had spoken
of the judgment of God upon the heathen, after which Jerusalem
should become holy and no stranger pass through her any more,
(Joel iii. 17;) he then says, ''It shall come to pass in that day,
that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall
flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters,"
— all temporal allusions — but immediately after we have, "and a
fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord and shall water
the valley of Shittim." Here we are all of a sudden on spiritual
territory, for Shittim is a place on the plains of the Moabites,
where the Israelites encamped when they contemplated their inva-
sion of Canaan, so that the meaning is, "The spiritual water of
life shall spread from the centre of the land to its frontiers."
Similar is the passage in Ezek. xlvii. etc. "Waters issued out from
under the threshold of the house^ which being brought forth into
INTRODUCTION. 53
the sea, tlie waters shall be healed, on the banks whereof trees shall
grow, that shall bring forth new fruits every month, because their
waters thcj/ issued out of the sanctuarT/." Here is another instance.
After the prophecy of the new covenant, by which the law should
be written on the hearts of men, we have in Jer. xxxi. 38, etc. the
following passage, which seems to proclaim the mere outward
enlargement of the city of Jerusalem: "Behold the days come,
saith the Lord, that the city shall be built to the Lord from the
tower of Ilananeel unto the gate of the corner. And the measur-
ing line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and
shall compass about to Goath. And the whole valley of the dead
bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook of Kidron,
unto the corner of the horse-gate towards the east, shall be holy
unto the Lord." The sublime meaning of this prophetic utterance
is the sanctification of everything unclean and unholy at Jerusalem.
The hill of Gareb was the abode of lepers, and the valley of the
dead bodies and of the ashes, the unclean valley of Hinnom, where
the corpses of malefactors used to be burnt. The prophet's mean-
ing is, "Every unclean spot shall then be included into the sanctu-
ary."*
But to return to the Messianic Psalms. The preceding remarks
are equally applicable to them. They depict the Messiah as a king
appointed of God 5 as swaying the sceptre of righteousness, under
whose reign God will lavish all his blessings on the people; as
causing rebels to feel the edge of his sword, but as blessing the
obedient. But what of the fulfilment of these predictions ? In
part it has already taken place, though it will be more completely
realized in Christ's blissful dominion over his Church, and his judg-
ments by which he will eventually triumph over all opposing powers
(Cf. ad. Ps. ii.) Psalm xlv. is peculiar in its kind, since it alle-
gorically represents the admission of Israel and the heathen into
Messiah's kingdom by the figure of a marriage. f
* Vide for more proof, Hengstenberg's Christol. vol iii.
f Cf. the interpretation of that psalm. It has been repeatedly shown
that both love and marriage songs are found among the Hindoos, the Ara-
bians, and Persians, which, though ■without any allusions to a spiritual
meaning, celebrate the soul's relation to God. This has been done for the
purpose of supporting the view which attribiites to the Song of Solomon a
mystical allusion to the relation of God to Israel. We have recently
received some interesting contributions in this respect by Lane, who cites
(vol. ii. p. 194,) the following lines extracted from a song used by Moham-
medan monks at their religious solemnities: "The image of thy form vis-
ited me in my sleep. I said, Oh, vision, who has sent thee? He said, I am
sent by him whom thou knowest, whose love captivated thee. The loved
of my heart visited me in the obscurity of night. I rose, to honour him,
till he sat down. I said. Oh, thou my desire, and all my delight, art thou
come at noon of night, and wert not afraid of the watchmen? He said, I
feared them, but love has taken my soul and my breath." Lane compares
5*
54 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
In conjunction with these royal psalms we have another kind
of Messianic psalms, which we may designate as psalms of the
kingdom. As some portions of the prophets celebrate the Mes-
sianic kingdom, without making mention of its head, the Messiah,
so also several psalms, vide Psalms xlvii. Ixvii. Ixviii. Ixxvi. xcvi.
xcvii. xcviii. Some of them indicate that great victories of Israel
over neighbouring nations, in consequence of which even the
heathen had to acknowledge the majesty of the God of Israel, and
probably to send gifts to Jerusalem, gave rise to the hope^ that all
nations would gloriously join Israel, and all the princes and
nations of the earth hereafter worship the God of Abraham. Vide
esp. Psalm xlvii.
The Psalms contain yet another class of predictions, viz. the
typical or prefigurative, as e. g. Psalms xvi. xxii. xl. Ixix. As
Bome of their expressions are said in the New Testament to have
met their fulfilment in Christ, there have been from the earliest
times many commentators who thought that the Psalmist had,
while composing them, a lively representation of the Messiah, and
as it were, composed them in His soul.* This is a very strange
notion, for it is nowhere hinted that the Psalmist did ever com-
pose a psalm in the mind of another, and not in his own. Add
to this that the character of these psalms in no way difi'ers from
those which David and others composed under personal affliction.
Hence some of the psalms of complaint, passages from which are
in the New Testament applied to Christ, have not without caprice
been designated as Messianic, and others because they do not
occur in the New Testament as Davidic. Why should Psalm Ixix.
be referred to the Messiah, and why not Psalm xxviii. xxxv. Ixiv.
Ixxxvi. etc.? Indeed, one of the psalms, the expressions of which
were appropriated by the Redeemer himself, (viz. Psalm xxxi. 6,)
has not been included in the list of Messianic Psalms. f Many
minds have been led astray by the notion, that all the passages of
the Old Testament which our Lord and his apostles have described
as fulfilled in the New Testament history apply to it exclusively.
The very opposite, however, appears from citations such as Matt,
ii. 15. 18; xiii. 14; John vi. 45; 1 Cor. ix. 10, efc.J John v. 46,
it to Song of Solomon iii. 2 — 7. He remarks, however, that six of these
verses find place in a common worldly love song which occurs in an edition
of the "Thousand and one Nights," Calcutta, vol. i. p. 425, showing that
such songs occasionally are void of every mark from which their spiritual
sense could be inferred.
* Among the moderns, Seiler, (Prophecy and its fulfilment, 1794,
p. 188,) Muentinghe, Hensler, Dereser, Pareau, Kaiser, Hengstenberg,
(Christol. vol. i. but differently in his Comm. on the Psalms.)
f Augustine, A. H. Francke, Brenz, Calov, H. Michaelis, etc., however,
regard also this Psalm as Messianic.
X Cf. my work, "The Old Testament in the New Testament." Second
Edition, 1839.
INTRODUCTION. 55
our Lord appeals to the fact, that Moses prophesied concerning
him. Only the five following passages in the Pentateuch have
from the earliest times been regarded as predictions of Christ,
Gen. iii. 15. [iv. 1.] xii. 3; xlix. 10; Numb. xxiv. 17; Deut.
xviii. 18. Did Christ refer to these only ? Certainly not. His
manner of showing (John iii. 14) that the idea of his atonement
was already expressed in the Old Testament, indicates that he no
doubt desired us to regard the entire sacrificial institutions as well as
other phenomena of the Old Testament, e. g. the history of men
like David, as typical and pre-indicative of what should be com-
pletely fulfilled by him. It is said (Matt. v. 18) that every tittle
of the law must be fulfilled ; would not this imply a fulfilment in
the sense just indicated? We maintain that Christ and his apos-
tles quoted the Psalms as predictions of New Testament events in
the last sense. Every pious man under the ancient economy, who
sufi"ered for God's cause, but triumphed at last, was a type of what
should be completely fulfilled in Christ : hence it is said (1 Peter
i. 11) that the Spirit of Christ in the prophets foretold them the
sufi'erings of Christ. The Spirit of Christ so stirred the minds of
the prophets that they could anticipatively speak of him. Some
of the typical psalms, as will appear in the Commentary, are really
of such a character that without assuming the Psalmists to have
soared beyond their usual religious consciousness, they defy every
attempt at explanation. E. g. Psalm xxii. in which after the hard-
est struggles and most lacerating complaints, the Psalmist is filled
with so irresistible a sense of confident victory, that he ventures
to describe the conversion of the whole world as the consequence of
his struggles and victories. In Psalm xvi. he expresses himself in
such confident and clear terms respecting his future hope, which
can only be expected in a disciple of the New Testament. A large
portion of commentators have from the earliest times held, that
the fulfilment of a psalm in Christ does by no means imply its
exclusive application to Christ, but is based upon the typical
character of the Old Testament. Bishop Theodoret observes in
the fifth century, ad. Ps. lix., that it strictly refers to the affliction
of the exiled Jews, but typically to the Redeemer and the afilic-
tion which his rejection would bring upon the nation : the vener-
able Bede, the oracle of the eighth century, refers it as properly
applicable to the times of the Maccabees. Theodoret explains
Psalm xl. which (Heb. x. 5 — 9) is applied to Christ, primarily of
David, secondarily of Christ. Ambrose, Augustine, and Athana-
sius have, on the other hand, explained these two psalms as if they
spoke in the name of Christ and his Church only. This double
manner of interpretation occurs also among the commentators of
the later Roman Catholic Church. One of their most eminent
men, the learned Benedictine Calmet, at the beginning of the
56 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
eighteen century, maintains* (ad. Ps. xl. and Ixix.) that David
appears as the type of Christ, and that several passages in Ps. xxii.
and most in Ps. xvi. treat of David.
The typical interpretation of the Psalms in which the singer
speaks in the first person, became general in the Reformed Church.
Even Calvin, Bucerus, Beza, Musculus, Rivet, adopt it clearly and
confidently. According to Luther's view, however, David speaks
in those passages in the person of Christ, so that we have really
the words of Christ: this view has generally been adopted by
Lutheran divines, e. g. Bugenhagen, Brenz, Calov, A. H. Francke,
Greier, etc. Melanchthon already deviates from it and says, (ad.
Ps. xxii. xli.) that David recounts his oicn siifferings and deliver-
ances, though with the consciousness of their being types of the
sufferings and deliverances of the Messiah. Other psalms which
Luther applied to Christ and his kingdom, meet with a different
explanation at the hands of Melanchthon. Luther explained Psalm
XX. of David, and Psalm xxi. though connected with it, of the Mes-
siah. The majority of Lutheran interpreters followed him in this
respect; not so Melanchthon, who says that Psalm xxi. as well as
Psalm XX. treat of one and the same King. The desire of collecting
if possible many predictions of Christ, has so far biased some inter-
preters of the Psalms, that they dispute the validity of the titles.
In spite of the title of Psalm iii. which states that it was composed
when David fled from Absalom his son, Augustine explains it of
Christ and his enemies: so also Cocceius, A. H. Francke, etc.
Now, does it not imply distrust in the mighty and sure evidences
of Christian truth, if in defiance of undeniable facts, we obstinately
insist upon some less important piece of evidence ? Besides, we
should bear in mind, that we are not to consider the Psalter,
though containing several prophetic songs, as a prophetical book,
but that as far as it concerns the predictions respecting Christ
and his kingdom, we are chiefly referred to the writings of the
prophets.
* Commentarius literalis in Omnes libros Vet. et Novi Test. vol. iv.
COMMENTAEY.
PSALM I.
A DIDACTIC psalm, for its contents' sake (which resemble Psalm
cxii.) designedly placed at the beginning of the book. It expresses
in noble yet simple language the gospel truth, that '' godliness is
profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is,
and of that which is to come/' (1 Tim. iv. 8.) Popular wisdom,
viz. the daily experience of life compressed into proverbs, is in
perfect agreement with that proposition; e.g. "Honesty is the
best policy." " Ill-gotten gains don't prosper," *' Lightly come,
lightly go," etc. Particular exceptions to such expressions will of
course occur on earth, the land of faith, but an attentive observer
cannot help noticing their truth in the aggregate.
The confirmation of the doctrine of this psalm which Divine jus-
tice has provided in the history of the Jewish nation, appeals
strongly to the conscience of believers. It promises blessings and
salvation to the kings of Israel who fear the Lord, visitation and
multiform punishment to those who forsake him : Israel a flourish-
ing kingdom among the kingdoms of the earth, with a king and
the sanctuary, before the advent of the Messiah — without kings <
and priests, a proverb and a byeword among men, (Deut. xxviii. ^
37,) after their rejection of him. It has been shown in the Intro- "
duction how the saints of the Old Testament used to reconcile par-
ticular exceptions to this rule with their faith in the mundane gov-
ernment of a righteous God, such as the spectacle of crushed inno-
cence contrasted with the assurance of the wicked, or that of the
want of the godly contrasted with the abundance of the ungodly.
We who live under the Gospel dispensation, and understand clearly
what they did but darkly apprehend, seek the ultimate solution of
all mysteries in the final judgment, which is to complete all the
judgments of earth; and as we now admire the long-sutFering and
goodness of God by which he intends to lead the rebellious to
repentance, (Rom, ii. 4,) so shall we then tremble at the justice
57
58 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
with which he will judge the obdurate. Many passages of the
Old Testament, especially of the Psalms, point, though with less
clearness, to that final solution of all mysteries. So does this
psalm, as do also Psalms xxxvii. xlix. and Ixxiii.
The Psalmist contrasts the godly with the ungodly as two differ-
ent generations, describes the difference of their destiny on earth,
(v. 1 — 4,) and from it infers with still more assurance their ulti-
mate destinies at the final judgment which is to complete God's
temporal judgments, (v. 5.) The last verse comprehensively
repeats the doctrine in both respects.
1 "OLESSED is the man that walketh not in the counsel
JD of the ungodly,
Nor standeth in the way of sinners,
Nor sitteth in the seat of the scorniTul.
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord ;
And in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
That bringeth forth his fruit in his season ;
His leaf also shall not wither ;
And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so;
But are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous :
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.
V. 1, 2. The generation of the righteous refuse to be deter-
mined and controlled in their resolutions by the ungodly; they
have in their actions no communion with sinners, and shun the
society of those who keep not holy the name of Grod. The law of
God is not only the sole rule of conduct, but the delight of the
pious. The saints of the Old Testament, though without the
"grace and truth," and confined to "the law and the shadow of
things to come," for "grace and truth came by Jesus Christ,"
(John i. 17 J Col. ii. 17,) had so great a delight in the law of the
Lord, that they did meditate on it day and night, and were able to
say with the Psalmist, " Oh, how love I thy law ! it is my medita-
tion all the day." Psalm cxix. 97.) True, the law had expressly
enjoined it upon them ; and the Psalmist had no doubt clearly
before his mind the words in Josh. i. 8: "This book of the law
shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein
day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that
is written therein ; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous,
PSALM I. 59
and then thou shalt have good success." But the language of the
Psalms clearly shows that delight and love prompted many an Old
Testament saint to comply with the demands of the law.
V. 3. Trees planted by the water side are in a thriving condi-
tion, from the humidity which impregnates their pith, so that
their leaves continue green — in the case of some, e. g. the olive
tree, all the year round (Psalm lii. 10) — and they yield their fruit
in their season. So the soul of man gets watered and fecundated
from communion with God and delight in his law, so that he
appears healthy while othei-s decay, and finds strength adequate to
the calls of duty. '' I know both how to be abased," says the
apostle, " and I know how to abound : everywhere and in all things
I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound
and to sufi'er need. / can do all things through Christ who
strengtheneth me." (Phil. iv. 12.) The assertion of the Psalmist,
that " whatsoever he doeth shall prosper," is apparently liable to
many exceptions, but when thoroughly fathomed will hold good in
its strictest sense. He refers not to every act of the godly, but
only to such " that are wrought in God," (John iii. 21) — he
speaks of i\\e pious deeds of the pious. The old Adam and the
new are waging war while flesh and blood attach to man ; hence
many acts are done which cannot succeed; but is it possible that
acts which flow from the new Adam should prove otherwise than
successful ? In performing them, man is simply the instrument of
God; how then can at any time ill-success attend to that which
the eternal God accomplishes by his instruments ? The prophet
Jeremiah propounds the same sentiment, (chap. xvii. 7, 8 :)
"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the
Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and
that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when
heat Cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful
in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."
V. 4. As the pious who derives the strength and fecundation
of his soul from the word of God is like a firmly rooted tree, so he
who lives without God in the world is like drifted chafi". He who
has nothing sure in heaven, cannot have anything firm on earth.
His views and resolutions change with the weather, as James says,
"a double-minded man (doubter) is unstable in all his ways."
(James i. 8.) Just as the wind carries away the light chafi" from
the loftily situated threshing-floors of the East, when the corn is
winnowed, so are they scattered. (Job xxi. 18 ; Ps. xxxv. 5; Hos.
xiii. 4.) Can a man confidently pursue the path of life if his views
and principles are devoid of firmness ? If the most confirmed
miscreants and usurpers, (and such ripened evil-doers are the
exceptions,) who seemed with unwavering step to pursue their end
for the greater portion of their life, have been known to reel at
certain decisive moments, as though the soil were receding from
60 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
under their feet, how much more does this apply to beginners in
evil! Universal experience thus shows the inconstancy of the
prosperity of the wicked, and that is the judgment which they
prepare for themselves on earth.
V. 5. The temporal judgments of God will be completed in
eternity. When the Lord shall have sent forth his angels, and
gathered the entire assembly of the righteous on earth, then shall
the ungodly, though already frequently scattered here below, be as
chaff before the blast of the final judgment, and find no place in
the congregation of the righteous. (Isaiah iv. 4; xi. 9; Ix. 21 j
Mai. iv.)
V. 6. It often appears as if God were unmindful of the path
of thorns which his children have to tread here in "time," and
they often think every way of escape cut off; but "The Lord
knoweth the way of the righteous." His eye fixedly rests on it,
and beholds the blessed issue where they can only see the boundary
of thorns. The way of the ungodly, though broad and secure in
the sight of men, suddenly breaks off and ends with terror. ''The
Lord shall laugh at the wicked, for he seeth that his day is coming."
(Psalm xxxvii. 13.)
PSALM XL
A HORTATORY psalm against the princes who oppose Messiah, the
anointed King of God.
The author is not mentioned in the title, but Acts iv. 25 refers
its authorship to David. Even if the Messianic character of this
psalm were denied, and it were explained of a rebellion of some
tributary nations against a king of Israel, it would still have to be
assigned to the times of David or Solomon, since in the later
periods of Judah there lived no king sufiiciently powerful that this
psalm could apply to him. But it cannot be referred to the events
in the history of David or Solomon : it cannot apply to the times
of David, for, to mention but one thing, it clearly treats of the
rebellion against a newly instituted king, and David on ascending
the throne had not subdued all the tribes of Israel, much less
foreign nations; it cannot refer to Solomon's accession, for that as
well as the whole of his reign was strictly peaceful,* on which
* 1 Kings V. 3, 4. The insurrections mentioned 1 Kings xi. 14. 23, were
trifling in themselves, and belong to the last period of the king's reign.
The psalm could not have been composed then, because Solomon was at
that time too much immersed in idolatry to compose such a psalm. To
those who refer it to the accession of Solomon, (Ewald, Bleek,) it may be
PSALM II. 61
account Solomon was called par excellence ''the prince of peace.'*
David rather composed it in the spirit, when he contemplated the
future useless resistance of the nations of the earth against his
royal Son. It was shown in the Introduction how David, medi-
tating on the prophecy made to him, (2 Sam. vii.,) was led to the
thought that the Messiah should spring from his own house. In the
song from the last period of his life, (quoted pp. 48, 49,) we have
a clear evidence of his Messianic hopes : the contents of that song
may be compared with this psalm. The object of David's hopes in
the song is the coming of a righteous and holy King from his own
house, during whose reign universal prosperity should spring up
like an unclouded sunrise, (Cf. ad. Psalm Ixvii. 7,) while the
ungodly should perish. In this psalm he beholds the eternal
Sovereign of his house entering upon his reign, the princes of the
earth rebelling against him, the Lord, while assuring him of victory,
exhorting them to obey him. As David calls himself divinely
inspired in 2 Samuel xxiii., and Christ says (Matt. xxii. 43) that
David spoke Psalm ex. in the spirit, we may assume inspiration in
this psalm. Its manner of expression indicates as much. Majesty
and life characterize this beautiful psalm : the kings, God, and
lastly the Messiah, appear in dramatic succession. Tranquillity
ensues at last. Most Jewish interpreters consider the king here
referred to, to be the Messiah. Messiah means "the anointed
one," (John i. 41,) and this very king is described in verse 6 as
the Anointed of God.*
Respecting the manner in which the Redeemer is mentioned,
we refer to Introduction, page 50. Offence has been taken at the
punishment with which the opponents of Messiah are threatened;
but the same occurs in our Lord's own words in the New Testa-
ment. While the Saviour uses similar terms in representing the
citizens of his kingdom as rebellious, and ''killing the heir,"
(Luke xix. 14; Matt. xxi. 38,) he likewise declares that the wicked
shall be slain, and those "who would not that he should reign over
them" be destroyed. (Matt. xxi. 41 ; Luke xix. 27.) "Whosoever
shall fall on this stone shall be broken," says he, "but on whomso-
ever it shall fall, it shall grind him to powder." Such is the har-
mony of the words of prophecy and those of the New Testament.f
The prophetic Psalmist is translated to the time of the appear-
ance of the Son of God as king of the earth, and hears the rebellious
replied that there is no allusion whatever to a rebellion on the part of sub-
dued nations: again it is a question whether if v. 6 be rendered '■'■Upon
Zion,^' it may be said of Solomon, that he was anointed upon Zion.
(Cf.l Kings i. 38.)
* The Hebrew has not the word from which the name "Messiah" is
derived, but one cognate to it and in poetic use.
f Cf. to this Psalm and the prophetic psalms in general, (Sack's Apolo-
getik, 2d edition, 1841, p. 278,) etc.
6
V.
62 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
speech of the princes, (v. 1 — 3.) For a while God seems to sleep,
but then awakes like a hero, making the indisputable declaration,
that no mortal can despise the king whom he has instituted,
(v. 4 — 6.) Then appears the Messiah, to testify to the dominion
over all flesh which the Father has conferred upon him, (v. 7 — 9.)
The royal prophet, finally, exhorts the kings of the earth to timely
obedience, ere punishment befall them, (10. 12.)
1 TTTHY do the heathen rage,
VV And the people imagine a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying,
"Let us break their bands asunder,
And cast away their cords from us."
4 He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh :
The Lord shall have them in derision.
5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath,
And vex them in his sore displeasure :
^6 " Yet have I anointed my king
Upon my holy hill of Zion."*
7 I will declare the decree (of the Lord) :
The Lord hath said unto me, "Thou art my Son;
This day have I begotten thee.
8 Ask of me.
And I shall give thee the heathen /or thine inheritance,
And the uttermost parts 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 now therefore, 0 ye kings :
Be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
11 Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry,
And ye perish /rom the way,
For his wrath is soon kindled.
Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.
V. 1 — 3. The spirit of prophecy reveals to David, that the
world will not willingly submit to the government of the Prince of
Peace. His spirit hears the wild rage and tumult which usher in
rebellion, but discerns also its ill-success. He beholds their gath-
ering— for darkness has its potentates — and however much rent
* Or, " Over my holy hill of Zion."
PSALM II. 63
and divided they may be, in one thing they are of one mind.
"We will not have this one to reign over us." (Luke xix. 14.)
" My yoke is easy and my burden is light," said the Saviour when
he was on earth, and yet but few were willing to bow beneath
those light bands and blessed cords — John had to complain in
those days that "He came to his own and his own received him
not." They who refuse to wear those light bands are injuring
themselves most by bringing down upon them the righteous judg-
ment of Him, who will not suffer his honour to be trampled under
foot with impunity. The New Testament as well as this psalm
state, that rejecting the Messiah is the same as rejecting the
Lord of heaven and earth, since here the bands and .cords of the
Anointed of God are described as God's own. The Prophets refer
in language still more decisive to the unbelief and rebellion of
men against the Messiah. " He was so despised that they hid
their faces from him and we esteemed him not." (Isa. liii. 3.)
The prophet Zechariah personifies Messiah, the Shepherd whom
the people reward with the contemptible sum of thirty pieces of
silver. (Zech. xi. 12.) Daniel says, "And after three-score
and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself."
(Dan. ix. 26.)
V. 4 — 6. There are tumults and commotions on earth; the
children of God get afraid, and ask, " 0 Lord, how long?" But
'tis calm and bright in the heavens. "He that sitteth in the
heavens shall laugh, the Lord shall have them in derision." He
would do so, were he man. " It is he that sitteth upon the circle
of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers, that
stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as
a tent to dwell in. That bringeth the princes to nothing; — he
maketh the judges of the earth as vanity." (Isa. xl. 22, 23.)
Our heart must be where God is. If we leave it on the raging
and stormy earth, it joins in the raging and the storm; if we lift
it to the peace and happiness of God's Heaven, his peace and hap-
piness flow to us. The Lord has his time to laugh and to continue
silent, but "Thinkest thou that I shall always be silent and thou
fearest me not?" he asks (Isa. Ivii. 11.) No; he will speak, and
so speak that "whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle."
But for a little while will he suffer his anointed One to be des-
pised, as if he did not heed it. Within that brief period falls our
existence. His voice will then be heard in all the earth, and his
mighty acts will ask, "Shall men be able to depose whom / have
created and instituted as king?" God has instituted him as king:
shall this king lack subjects? No, as the apostle has it, "At the
name of Jesus eve^y knee shall bow, and eye?-^ tongue shall confess
that he is the Lord." (Phil. ii. 9.) If not willingly, they will be
compelled to do it unwillingly : should they deny his righteousness
and love, they will not be able to deny his majesty and glory. This
64 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
king is set upon or over Zion, viz. the heavenly Jerusalem of
which Paul speaks. (Gal. vi. 16 ; iv. 26.)
V. 7 — 9. The prophet now hears the king's own speech. He
speaks of his divine generation and appointment, which being
from everlasting can never be destroyed. His royal majesty, how-
ever, was not revealed till after the time of his obedience on earth,
and he was "declared to be the Son of God with power by the
resurrection from the dead.'' (Rom. i. 4.) Paul connects this
passage with the time of Christ's resurrection, because not till then
did his Sonship become manifest to them. (Acts xiii. 33.) Israel
and its kings are sometimes called "sons of God." (Ex. iv. 22;
2 Sam. vii. .14; Psalm Ixxxix. 27.) But they bear the name of
children and sons of God in a very important sense, simply on
account of having experienced the love of God. The Messiah, on
the other hand, is the Son of God indeed, above whom the hea-
vens were opened, and the voice of God said: "This is my
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." He testifies in this
place that the ends of the earth are his possession. No king in
Israel ever received promise like this. The limits of Israel were
"from the Red Sea even unto the Sea of the Philistines, and from
the desert unto the river." (Ex. xxiii. 31; Ps. Ixxx. 12.) More
remote frontiers are set to King Messiah: "He shall have domin-
ion from sea to sea, and from the river (Euphrates) to the ends of
the earth." (Ps. Ixxii. 8; Zech. ix. 10.) He who had not where
to lay his head on earth, said nevertheless, "Thou hast given to
thy Son power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as
many as thou hast given him;" and again, "All mine are thine,
and thine are mine." Our Lord did not take the world with the
sceptre of the mighty on earth, but with the mild sceptre of peace.
But as the shepherd uses his staff" only among the sheep that hear
his voice, but wears a sword against wolves, so the good Shepherd
wears a sword along with his staff", and says, concerning the evil
servant, "The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he
looketh not for him, and at an hour that he is not aware of, and
shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the
hypocrites : there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
(Matt. xxiv. 50, 51.) The Saviour is called "a Lamb;" but
there is also mentioned the wrath of the Lamb ; as it is written
that they shall say to the mountains and to the rocks, " Fall on us,
and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and
from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of his wrath is
come; and who shall be able to stand?" (Rev. vi. 16, 17.) " He
that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life; and he that
believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God
abideth on him." (John iii. 36.)
V. 10 — 12. With such thoughts of the wrath to come the
royal prophet exhorts the kings of the earth to be instructed
PSALM III. 65
betimes. They are to rejoice in the possession of such a ruler,
but to remember that the sceptre of his protection may be turned
into the rod of punishment. He bids them to kiss the Son, which
is a mark of homage and adoration, (1 Sam. x. 1,) and to confide
in and take refuge with him, which involves an amount of power
beneath the shelter of which they may securely brave any tempest.
Conscious that the possession of him includes that of everything
else, the Psalmist calmly closes this impassioned song with the
words: '' Blessed are all ther/ that put their trust in him."
PSALM III.
A PRAYER of David, falling into that period of sore temptation,
when Absalom, his beloved son, sought to deprive him of his
crown and life. At the end of the ten years of Saul's bitter perse-
cution, David may have considered the time of his exile for ever
gone. But it was to return once more towards the latter end of
his life, caused by his own son, and Ahithophel, a treacherous
friend. A messenger came to David informing him that the
people were running after Absalom saying, " The hearts of the
men of Israel are after Absalom." But David said to all his ser-
vants that were with him at Jerusalem, "Arise and let us flee, for
we shall not else escape from Absalom !" Thus, accompanied by a
few of his faithful followers and the tears of a great portion of the
people, with covered head and barefooted, he went over Mount
Olivet towards the river Jordan to wait in the desert for the issue
of things at Jerusalem. (2 Sam. xvii. 21 — 24.) The event is
touchingly described in 2 Sam. xv. During his absence from
the city, David appears to have experienced the continuous
alternation of various degrees of calm repose and great anxiety
and fear. (Cf. Ps. Iv. xxviii.) Most of the psalms which he com-
posed during that flight in the desert, or still later, betray great
anxiety. This psalm, expressive of filial confidence in the midst
of trouble, accords best with that melancholic disposition of peace,
which may be traced in the words of the humbled king on the
first day after his departure from the city. Compare also his con-
ciliating language to Shimei. (2 Sam. xvi.) Since the contents of
the psalm show that it was sung in the evening, (v. 6,) we may
infer that it was composed on the evening of that first day when
the king took night-quarters at Bahurim, close by Jerusalem.
(2 Sam. xvi. 5—14.)
6*
66 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
1 A PSALM of David, when lie fled from Absalom
11. his son.
2 Lord, how are they increased that trouble me ?
Many are they that rise up against me.
3 Many there he which say of my soul,
There is no help for him in God. Selah.
4 But thou, 0 Lord, art a shield for me ;
My glory, and the lifter up of mine head.
5 I cried unto the Lord with my voice,
And he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.
6 I lay me down and sleep;
I awake;* for the Lord sustaineth me.
7 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people,
That have set themselves against me round about.
8 Arise, 0 Lord ; save me, 0 my God :
For thou smitest all mine enemies upon the cheek-bone ;
Thou breakest the teeth of the ungodly.
9 Salvation is with the Lord :
Thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah.
V. 1. What a share of sad experience for the humbled king
was compressed into that one day. His throne is lost, the sanctu-
ary left behind; bis beloved son has become his persecutor, and a
highly esteemed and trusty friend (Psalm Iv. 14, 15,) turned a
traitor; faithless subjects have derided him, and even thrown
stones at him ! (2 Sam. xvi. 6, 7.) Tired and worn out with the
fatigues of the day, he has reached his night quarters, (2 Sam.
xvi. 14,) and withal can retire in profound calm of mind, as it is
here portrayed !
His excitement is yet alive at the beginning of the psalm.
The first impression of the insurrection is evident (v. 2, 3.) The
thought of the Lord however inspires confidence (v. 4, 5.) He
then lies down, sure of the blessing of God upon himself and the
faithful people of God (v. 6—9.)
V. 2, 3. He might well complain of the multitude of his
opponents. Hardly more than six hundred men had remained
with him, (2 Sam. xv. 18,) since the people without Jerusalem
had in masses joined rebellious Absalom. (2 Sam. xv. 13.) They
said, in their overweening confidence, of him who, in innumerable
instances, had experienced the most wonderful deliverances of
* We may translate with A, V. in the past time, and render, "I laid me
down and slept," "I awaked." The psalm would then have been sung in
the morning ; but the subsiding in gradual calm towards the end, adapts
it more for an evening song.
PSALM III. 67
God, "There is no help for him in God/' Shimei in particular
had indulged in blasphemy like this : "The Lord hath delivered
the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son ; and behold thou
art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man."
(2 Sam. xvi. 8.)
V. 4, 5. He had still a small number of faithful adherents.
Valiant Joab and Abishai surrounded him. But he confides not
in the spear and shield of man. The Lord is his shield: he hopes
to be reinstated to honour by him, and trusts that he will lift up
his bowed head again. "Cursed be the man that trusteth in man,
and maketh flesh his arm." (Jer. xvii. 5.) The priests wished to
carry away the ark of the covenant : David sent it back, and said,
with mild resignation, "Carry back the ark of God into the city:
if I shall find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me
again, and show me both it and his habitation; but if he thus say,
I have no delight in thee; behold, here am I, let him do to me as
seemeth good unto him." (2 Sam. xv. 25, 26.) He then directs
his thoughts to the holy hill, and knows that, though remote from
it, he is not remote from Him who hears from there. Selah fol-
lows this expression, which always occurs after emphatic thoughts,
when song used to be followed by a musical interlude.
F. 6, 7. Peaceful and quieted he is about to lay him down in
the midst of a rebellious people : he feels as if the Lord were stand-
ing by his side, and holding him with his right hand. Who
among Christians does imitate him in similar circumstances?
V. 8, 9. The recollection of great deliverances now rushed
upon his mind. His song at the close of his life was, "The Lord
is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my
strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my
salvation, and my high tower." (Psalm xviii. 3.) Every experi-
ence which formed the basis of these expressions burst upon his
soul. His enemies had frequently compassed him as wild beasts,
but he had escaped from their mouth. (Psalm xxii. 17. 22.) The
remembrance of such experiences kindled the hope that the Lord
would help him, and break the teeth of the wild animals which
were turned against him. He looks not around him on earth: his
confidence and hope centre in God alone. " Salvation is with the
Lord," as if he had said, What other help do I require? We may
understand the people for whom he prays to designate the mass of
the rebellious, which might then be paraphrased. Let not my
blinded subjects suffer for the folly and wickedness of some few!
The term "people of God," however, means frequently in the
Psalms, the generation of the godly, the real Israel after the Spirit,
(Psalms xiv. 4; Ixxii. 2,) and as such it may here have designated
the faithful portion of the people, who from faith in God had con-
tinued faithful to their rightful monarch. (Psalm Ixxxix. 9 ; see
also ad. Ixiii. 12.)
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM IV.
A PSALM of comfort of David, which probably belongs to the
period when David, returning with his men to the town of Ziklag,
which the king of the Philistines had given him, found that the
Amalekites had invaded and burnt it, and carried off the women
and children.
The six hundred who had followed David became then so filled
with distrust and exasperation against David, that they actually
talked of stoning him. (1 Sam. xxx. 6.) That event would satis-
factorily explain v. 6, and especially vs. 6 — 8. The psalm was
composed in the evening, (see v. 9.) David looks to Grod for
strength and consolation, (v. 1.) He remembers his worldly-
minded associates, and chides them for their hasty abandonment of
confidence in his good cause, (vs. 2 — (i.) He supplicates God for
the return of prosperity, (v. 7,) though he already derives more
enjoyment and blessings from his communion with the Lord, than
they do from their temporal possessions, (v. 8.) Strengthened
by these thoughts, he retires peacefully to rest under the shield
and protection of God.
1 n^O the chief Musician, on the Harp, a Psalm of
1 David.
2 Hear me when I call, 0 God of my righteousness ;
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress j
Have mercy upon me and hear my prayer.
3 0 ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into
shame ?
Sow long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing ?
Selah.
4 But know that the Lord hath chosen His holy one j
The Lord will hear when I call unto him.
5 Stand in awe, and sin not:
Commune with your own heart
Upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
6 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,*
And put your trust in the Lord.
7 There he many that say, "Who will show us any good?"
Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
8 Thou hast put gladness in my heart.
More than in the time that their corn and their wine
increased.
9 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep :
For thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.
* Or, "right sacrifices."
PSALM IV. 69
V. 2. Taking his refuge in prayer, he practically expresses his
conviction, that however much the unbelieving may feel inclined
to ascribe to blind and unconscious fate events like that just real-
ized, (viz. the unexpected invasion of the Amalekites,) that all
visitations, however unexpected or distressing they be, are lodged
in the hands of God, and by him dispensed to men. By calling
him the God of his righteousness, he testifies that he, to whose will
every human destiny is to be referred, does not conduct the govern-
ment of the world in an arbitrary manner, but after a standard of
eternal truth and equity, and views his own case in that light: —
"Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress," shows that he is
not a novice in his communion with God, but that in similar situa-
tions he has frequently communed with him, and experienced that
the prayers of the tried and distressed are not uttered in vain, but
that there is an ear in heaven which is sure to hear them.
V. 3, 4. He then contemplates the case of his associates, who
had joined him in the confidence that God would not leave him,
his pious servant. David's example may teach us how to defend
our honour, though we should with David regard it as the gift of
God. It is hardly probable that he alludes to the ro7/al glory,
derived from Samuel's having anointed him, as he could not assert
that during the lifetime of Saul, without appearing rebellious.
Moreover, he caused himself with the consent of the people once
more to be anointed after the death of Saul. (2 Sam. ii. 4.) But
he may refer to that glory of peculiar Divine protection, which is
enjoyed by the faithful servants of God, (v. 4.) We find, however,
that the opinion obtained pretty generally, that the son of Jesse
was to inherit the kingdom. (1 Sam. xxv. 28.)
Very probably many of those who were trying their chance with
David shared in that opinion, though there is nothing that should
have prevented him from remembering his prerogative in secret
prayer to God. But however that may be, he first remonstrates
with his followers, that not only his enemies, but they, his professed
friends, should yield themselves to the deterioration of his glory,
and leasingly doubt the continuance of God's protection because of
a transient bitter experience. He calls them, par excellence, "sons
of men," ^. e. heroes, or as Luther renders, "Lords." He appeals
to his conviction that God, who had once for all separated him for
his service, would not prove faithless in his promise, and that his
prayers to God on that ground possess intrinsic worth. Here we
have the identical grounds for that confidence which the children of
God display in their prayers; i. e. He who has once chosen them in
his Son can never prove faithless to his promises. That faith ren-
ders our prayers to God eflScacious.
V. 5, 6. Conscious of the complete amalgamation of his cause
with that of God, he is able to exhort those who seemed to despair
of his cause, to stand in awe at such wickedness. In the stillness
70 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of night, he calls upon his passionate followers to come to them-
selves duriflg the quietude of nightly repose, when things appear
so different from what they do in the bustle of the day. He chides
them for having hitherto omitted to pay the sacrifices which are
well pleasing to God, and expresses his conviction, that God will
be sure to do his part and fulfil his promises, if they would but
perform theirs. These words of David contain the exhortation of
James the apostle, "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to
you." (James iv. 8.)
V. 7, 8. After this exhortation follows his prayer to God, to
perform his work and to lift up the light of his countenance upon
him to whom he had made such great promises. The high priest's
benediction upon the people of God was, "The Lord make his face
shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee." Every member
of the true Israel was entitled to apply a share of that blessing to
himself. Hence the frequent allusions to it in the Psalms. (Psalm
xxxi. 17; Ixvii. 2; Ixxx. 20; Ixxxix. 16.) A beaming counte-
nance is expressive of love and joy: now if God regard man with
such a face, how can good fail to come ? David moreover declares
that he for his part is not only hoping for the merey of God for the
future, nor merely desiring it in its external manifestations, but
that his goodness has already prepared so abundant a flow of joy in
his heart as greatly to excel that loudest of earthly joys in Pales-
tine— the joy of harvest and vintage time, (Isaiah ix. 3; Jeremiah
xlviii. 33,) when hill and dale reverberate with the festive sounds
of joy. The same joying in God is sublimely expressed in Psalms
xvi. xxiii. xxxvi. Ixxiii. etc. How much the associates of David
were attached to temporal riches may be seen 1 Sam. xxx. 22.
V. 9. In this communion with God, a calm so deep and a joy
so intense have filled the Psalmist's mind, that in the enjoyment
of profoundest peace he can lay him down, counting all human
protection and human watchmen as nothing, and deems himself
perfectly safe beneath the shelter of his Lord.
PSALM V.
A PSALM of complaint of David, probably belonging to the
period of his residence at the court of Saul; for he could not use
verse 8, when during his flight he was alternately driven to the
Judaean wilderness, to the Philistines, or elsewhere. While he
was at Saul's court, a hostile faction sought to fan his suspicions,
to which he was naturally addicted, by saying that David was aim-
ing at his life and coveting his throne. That faction chiefly com-
PSALM V. 71
prised members of the tribe of Saul (Benjaminites,) from whom the
majority of courtiers were selected. To these belonged Cush, of
whom David complains, (Psalm vii.) and Shiraei, who showed his
attachment to Saul and hostility towards David at the time of the
conspiracy of Absalom. At the incitement of the Benjaminites
there arose a conspiracy during the last years of the reign of David.
(Cf. 1 Sam. xxii. 7; xxvi. 19; 2 Sam. xvi. 8; xix. 16; xx. 1. Cf.
also Introduction to Psalm Ixxviii.) The instance of Doeg (Cf. In-
troduction to Psalra lii.) shows how sanguinary and unscrupu-
lous some of his enemies were.
We gather from verse 4, that this psalm was sung in the morn-
ing. After having tuned his mind into a prayerful mood (vs. 2, 3,)
the Psalmist edifies himself with the thought, that the God to
whom he is praying delights in the honest and sincere of heart,
but despises the ungodly (vs. 4 — 8.) This forms the ground of
his prayer, that God would effectively manifest his hatred against
unrighteousness, to the end that his praise might for ever be on the
lips of all his servants (vs. 9 — 13.)
1 n^"^0 the chief Musician, on- the Flute, A Psalm of
1 David.
2 Give ear to my words, 0 Lord, consider the warmth of
my grief:*
3 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my
God:
For unto thee will I pray.
4 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, 0 Lord ;
In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and
will look up.
5 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wicked-
ness:
Neither shall evil dwell with thee.
6 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight:
Thou batest all workers of iniquity.
7 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing:
The Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.
8 But as for me, I will come into thy bouse in the fulness
of love to thee,
And in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.
9 Lead me, 0 Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine
enemies;
Make thy way straight before my face.
* Cf. Psalm xxxix. 4, in the original.
72 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
10 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth ;
Their inward part is very wickedness;
Their throat is an open sepulchre ;
They flatter with their tongue.
11 Make them guilty, 0 God;
Let them fall from their own counsels ;
Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions ;
For they have rebelled against thee.
12 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice;
Let them ever shout for joy, because thou protectest
them ;
Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.
13 For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous ;
With favour wilt thou crown him as with a shield.
V. 2, 3. In his affliction David neither consumes his grief
within himself nor complains before man, but gives vent to his
oppressed heart by directing his complaints to Him who can send
relief. While others devour their troubles in silent obstinacy, or
give free course to them before men in talkative weakness, but
grow dumb before God, true Christians get neither hardened in
their sorrow nor soft and loquacious before man, but silently carry
their sorrow to Him who knows best how to heal. David calls the
Lord his King and his God. How significant ! He is sure of
being heard; for would a righteous king shut his ears against his
subjects? or God, who has said to man, *'I am thy God!" refuse
protection, if supplicated ?
V. 4. As we should begin all things with God, so David begins
the day with him : before holding intercourse with man, he seeks
for communion with God. Early in the morning he takes his
cause to God, as his efficient advocate, and confidently looks up to
him for the direction of his afi"airs.
V. 5 — 8. The insolence of the wicked is so far from making
him afraid, that it only increases the confidence of his prayer.
While the wicked grow more determinate and daring, there is
nothing more certain than that He who according to his nature
hates all wickedness, will sooner or later effectively manifest the
promises of his word. The Psalmist speaks of his love and fear
with which he will frequent the house of God, not to boast himself,
but because the man of prayer feels the need of being subjectively
conscious of his adoption into God's family, to endue his prayers
with more trust. Did not our Lord, to express the grantability*
of his prayer in a more distinct manner, say, "I pray not for the
* I have coined this word, to escape a circuitous mode of expression. —
[Trans.]
PSALM V. 73
world, but for them -wliicli thou hast given me"? Why then
should not a pious man address God in language like this: "0
Lord, thou wilt not leave me; for my inmost consciousness tells
me that I am thine ; my love to thee yields this evidence" ? By
"the temple," we must understand "the tabernacle:" (Cf Psalm
Ixv. 5:) "temple" designates any large building: so in Psalm
xxvii. 4, the temple is mentioned, in verse 6 the tabernacle; so in
1 Sam. i. 9 ; iii. 3, the tabernacle is called the temple. At the
time when David composed this Psalm, the tabernacle was at Nob,
which was so near to Jerusalem, that the city could be seen from
there.* David could therefore easily repair there for public wor-
ship. His friendship with Ahimelech the priest, and the expres-
sions of the latter (1 Sam. xxii. 15; cf. chap, xxi.) show David's
faithfulness to the sanctuary.
V. 9. The term, " righteousness of God," as used in the Psalms,
frequently includes the ideas of kindness and lenity, as does the
German "Rechtschaffenheit." The Psalmist invokes the kindness
of God to lead him in a straight path ; the plain way being that in
which men do not stumble, and are preserved from mishap. (Psalm
xxvii. 11; Jer. xxxi. 9.) Possibly that righteousness may be
meant here, which God demands from man. David's prayer would
then be, not to deviate from the right path, lest he should not
thrust himself into danger; according to Prov. xi. 5, "The right-
eousness of the perfect shall direct his way; but the wicked shall
fall by his own wickedness." David prays for being kept in the
right path '^because of his enemies;" for as the cause of the godly
is the cause of God, so the abuses of the wicked against them
affect Ilim who calls himself their God and their King. Cf.
Ps. xxii. 9.
V. 10. The description of the impiousness of his enemies
strengthens his conviction that God will not linger with the
administration of his justice. Their speech is treacherous and
their throat an open sepulchre — by throat he means the calumnies
which they utteredf — they flatter with their tongues and hide mis-
chief in the secret recesses of their minds. We may readily con-
ceive that they pretended to be mightily zealous for the prosperity
of Saul, since he himself gave them to understand that he con-
sidered all those who did not desire the destruction of David as
his personal enemies. (1 Sam. xxii. 8.)
V. 11. '^ Make tliem guilt I/" means, " May Divine justice cause
them to feel their guilt by the failure of their enterprises, and make
them perceive that they did not only oppose man but God." The
Lord said (Deut. xxxii. 35,) "To me belongeth vengeance and
* Robinson's Palestine, vol. ii. p. 368.
•j- The throat as well as the tongue are organs of speech, as is clear from
the Hebrew of Psalm cxlix. 6.
74 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
recompense." TJiat sentence caused David to refrain from taking
vengeance into his own hands and to refer it to God, as he said to
Saul, " The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord avenge
me of thee; but mine hand shall not be upon thee." (1 Sam.
xxiv. 12.) He supplicated revenge at the hands of God, not for
his personal gratification, but mainly because the cause of calum-
niated and oppressed innocence is always that of God, and because
his glory gets sullied when wickedness triumphs. Haughty men
have certainly not the remotest idea that God sets so great a value
on poor mortals, that he should consider his eternal majesty
injured, when they are injured. They no more think that their
blows will strike heaven, than they do when they tread the dust or
mud under foot. But the less they think so, the more fit does it
seem to Divine wisdom now and then to furnish the most palpable
evidence how precious are to him those '* little ones," as Christ
calls them: with this correspond the words of the prophet, "He
that toucheth you, toucheth the apple of His eye." (Zech. ii. 8.)
V. 12. As another ground for the supplicated manifestation of
God's punitive justice, the Psalmist adduces the eternal praise and
gratitude of the entire company of the godly which should be paid
to him. For God is not like an unfeeling idol, unheedful of the
joyful praises and sacrifices of gratitude which man, his creature,
pays to him, but he is like a father, who rejoices in the honour
and love which his children bear to him. David, here and else-
where, so completely regards all the pious as one component whole,
where if "one member be honoured all the members rejoice with
it," (1 Cor. xii. 26,) that he considers his own deliverance as
their common interest; for are not benefits conferred on individuals
pledges to the rest?
V. 13. The promise to the righteous is universal, and excludes
none from its blessings. Nothing is said of reward or merit, but
grace shall crown and compass them : the same grace shall be their
most sure defence. As the huge shields of antiquity were a cover
and safeguard for the whole body, so there is no assault of the ene-
my, and no danger, from which the grace of God is not a sufficient
protection.
PSALM VL
Some commentators hold that this Psalm, and Psalms xxvi, xxvii.
xxxi. xxxviii. xxxix. xli. Ixix. Ixxxviii. which resemble it, were
composed in great bodily afilictions, while others regard the allu-
sions to disease which occur here and in Isaiah i. 5, 6; liii. 3, as
descriptive of physical sufferings resulting from the persecutions to
which the Psalmist was exposed. Both views contain some truth.
rSALM VT. 75
Disease must be considered as the primary cause for complaint in
Psalm xli., to which are added the sufferinj^s inflicted by the
arrogance of malicious enemies, so Psalm Ixix. 21, 22. In others,
mental sufferings are excited by the enemy, which like every kind
of acute and profound suffering is sure to affect the body. Thus
David complaius (Psalm Ixix.) that the abuse of his enemies
makes him ill, and that his illness gave them new occasion to hurt
him. In Psalm xxxi. 10, 11, he says that his grief had diseased
his physical frame ; verse 9 shows that the primary source of suf-
fering in this psalm is to be sought with the enemy. But while
daily mortification attending a sense of innocence, grief at the
wickedness of men, (Cf Psalm cxix. 53, "Horror hath taken
hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law,") and
the fear of having to deal with an angry God, made a united
onslaught upon the mind, is it likely that such manifold pain
should leave the body unaffected? The composition of this psalm
no doubt belongs to the period of Saul's persecutions, when every
morning brought new dangers, and new terrors frightened the
wanderer from every asylum, to those days of tears of which he
has sung, (Psalm Ivi. 9 :) "Count the days of my flight: put thou
my tears into thy bottle."
It is truly affecting to mark how David in this prayer, after the
manner of genuine men of prayer, mounts from the abyss of
despair to the triumphant consciousness that his petition is heard.
He begins in mournful lays, declaring that affliction has reached a
climax, and that his strength is wholly broken, (v. 2 — 4.) To
some extent calmed, he vows songs of gratitude as they are pleasing
to Grod, and gets absorbed in the contemplation of that grief
which he has now borne for so long a time, (v. 5 — 8.) Then
issues forth from the depths of his soul the divine "Amen," and
he who just now lay in the abyss of despair, causes triumphal
notes to ascend to heaven, (v. 9 — 11.) This beautiful evidence of
genuine and deep-felt prayer, viz. the sudden assurance of being
heard, bursting forth from grievous complaint, may be also seen in
Psalms vii. 18; xxii. 25; xxviii. 6; Ivi. 13, 14; Ixsv. 10, 11.
1 'T^O the chief Musician, on the Harp, to the eighth tune,*
X A Psalm of David.
2 0 Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger,
Neither chasten me in thine hot displeasure.
3 Have mercy upon me, 0 Lord: for I am weak:
0 Lord, heal me; for my bones are vexed.
^ The stringed instruments of the Hebrews were probably like those of
the Greeks, drawn and tuned according to different keys and tunes. For
ancient performers were not able to play different tunes on the same
iastrument, but obliged to use different instruments.
76 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
4 My soul is also sore vexed :
But thou, 0 Lord, how long?
5 Return, 0 Lord, deliver my soul :
Oh, save me for thy mercies' sake !
6 For in death there is no remembrance of thee.
In the grave who shall give thee thanks?
7 I am weary with my groaning;
All the night make I my bed to swim ;
I water my couch with my tears.
8 Mine eye is consumed because of grief;
It waxeth old, for I am troubled everywhere.
9 Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity !
For the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping.
10 The Lord hath heard my supplication ;
The Lord will receive my prayer.
11 Let all mine enemies be ashamed and sore vexed:
Let them return a7id be ashamed suddenly.
V. 2. Though man's malice scourges David, he looks forth-
with up to the Hand in heaven, without whose permission no hand
on earth dares stir. He inquires into the last reason of his visita-
tion, and refuses not to acknowledge his tribulation as the well-
deserved judgment of God. He prajs not for the removal of the
chastising rod, but only that God would not apply it in his anger,
and vouchsafe to him the assurance of his reconciliation. (Cf.
Ps. xxxviii. 1 ; Jer. x. 24.) As applicable to all psalms of
complaint, we should bear in mind the following fact. Those holy
men, feeling the hand of the Lord resting upon them, deemed the
displeasure of God as the bitterest drop in their cup of sorrow.
Thus David prays, (Ps. xxv. 17, 18,) "The troubles of my heart
are enlarged; bring thou me out of my distresses. Look upon
mine affliction and my pain, and fonjive all my sin." Thus the
sons of Korah sing at a time of national calamity, " Wilt thou be
angry with us for ever? wilt thou draw out thine anger to all gen-
erations?" (Ps. Ixxxv. 6; Cf. Notes to Ps. xxxviii. 2 — 6.) How
far remote from such wholesome humiliation is the mass of man-
kind, who curse and swear at man, or even, should they ultimately
trace back their misfortune to the Hand in heaven, hlasjjheme God
instead of accusing themselves.
V. 3, 4. Deep and especially lasting agony of mind cannot
but undermine the physical frame. Hence David laments that
because his soul is sore vexed to its foundation, his bones, the
foundations of the material body, are equally vexed and shaken.
But as God often desires things to reach a climax like this, David
represents the extremity of his sorrow as a motive that God would
PSALM VII. 77
not delay his mercy any longer. "We may infer frem tLe expres-
sion, "0 Lord, how long?" that he had already spent years of
misery. Those who have been disciplined in the school of sorrow
will confess that it is not so much the greatness of misery as its
continuous duration which undermines body and soul. History
shows us David, not as effeminately soft, but as a hero who braved
many a fierce battle. Is it likely that he should break out into
unbounded lamentation at transient and light afflictions ?
V. 5, 6. If God be our God, we anticipate to receive at his
hands peace and happiness. Hence the sufferer considers God as
having entirely deserted him: he cries therefore, "Return, 0
Lord !" But he asserts no claim, not even in his great tribula-
tions, but simply prays to God for deliverance, and that for his
mercies' sake. He regards the praise of G-od as constituting the
real business of his life; he praised him in the day of affliction,
how great will his glory be after his deliverance. He is con-
vinced that a life thus spent in childlike, happy gratitude, is a
sweet savour to God, and asks therefore, "In the grave, who shall
give thee thanks?"
V. 7, 8. Trouble disturbed his peace by day, grief by night.
How intense must have been his affliction, who as a tender boy
slew a Goliath with his sling, and as a man wept for nights toge-
ther! Tears had deprived his eyes of vision — they had grown dim,
as in old ag-e. How vehement the flow of sorrow that could draw
streams of tears. He says that he is troubled everyxohere — for his
persecutors gave him no rest; and history shows that even where
he deemed himself secure among his friends, e.g. at Kagilah and
Siph, fear and covetousness turned his friends into traitors.
F. 9 — 11. When God is not a mere thought without and above
us, but dwells essentially in our hearts, we are sure of the blessing,
that while we are perseveringly struggling in prayer to hear the
Divine, "Amen." How marvellous a change! A minute ago he
lay in the abyss of despair, now he has scaled the heavens. He
knows that his prayer is heard, and the eye of faith, to which the
invisible becomes visible, beholds ail his enemies put to flight. He
beholds them suddenly put to shame, for God renders it manifest
to his children that it is hü aid, by sending it unawares.
PSALM VIL
A PSALM of complaint of David, belonging to the period of his
flight. Verse 5 refers to the magnanimity he exhibited in sparing
his persecutor, whom God had delivered into his hands, and stop-
ping the hand of vengeful Abishai. (1 Sam. xxvi. 9.) It was said
7* ■
78 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
in the introduction to Psalm v. that the members of the tribe of
Saul the Benjaminite, were the chief accusers of the son of Jesse.
They accused him who had said in the hour of temptation, "The
Lord forbid that I should stretch forth mine hand against the
Lord's anointed," (1 Sam. xxvi. 11,) of aiming at the crown and
life of the king. In fact, David in his after-interview with Saul
told him, that the accusations of hostile men had mainly brought
about his proscription. (1 Sam. xxvi. 19.) Their hatred of David's
piety, their envy at his former greatness, no less than the covetous-
ness which made them court the favour and gifts of Saul, and
lastly, their jealousy of tribe against the scion of the house of
Judah, combined in stirring them to continuous hostilities against
the innocent man.
David turning him from his persecutors to God Almighty, asserts
the glory of a good conscience, (v. 2 — b.) Dismayed at the injus-
tice and malice suffered to exist in this world, the sceptre of which
is swayed by a holy God, who has no pleasure in iniquity, he raises
an affecting cry for help, invoking Divine righteousness to dispose
of mundane affairs, (v. 7 — 10.) Soothing his soul, and calming his
jnind, he declares (however much human pusillanimity may differ
from him) that the judgments of God are daily being repeated, and
that his lingering with their execution arises mainly from his desire
to wait for the repentance of men, (v. 11 — 14.) His eye then looks
into the future, and he beholds with certainty, that the hardened
offender who refuses to repent, will eventually become his own
judge and executor, (v. 15 — 18.)
^A
COMPLAINT of David, which he sang unto the
Lord, concerning the words of Cush the Benjaminite.
0 Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust :
Save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me :
Lest they tear my soul like a lion,
Rending it in pieces, while there is not a deliverer.
0 Lord my God, if I have done this ;
If there be iniquity in my hands ;
If I have rewarded evil unto him that was at peace with
me;
(Yea, I have delivered him that without cause is mine
enemy :)
Let the enemy persecute my soul and take it ;
Yea, let him tread down my life upon the earth,
And lay mine honour in the dust. Selah.
Arise, 0 Lord, in thine anger.
Lift up thyself because of the rage of mine enemies ;
And awake for me, thou, who hast ordained judgment.
PSALM VIT. 79
8 So shall the congregation of the people compass thee
about :
(Then) over them return thou on high.
9 The LoKD shall judge the people :
Judge me, 0 Lord, according to my righteousness,
And according to mine integrity that is in me.
10 Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end!
But establish the just :
For the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins.
11 My defence is of God,
Which saveth the upright in heart,
12 God is a righteous judge,
And God is angry with the ivicTced every day.
13 If he (Saul) turn not, He hath whetted his sword ;
He hath bent his bow, and made it ready.
14 He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death ;
He hath made his arrows flaming.
15 Behold he (the persecutor) travaileth with iniquity,
And hath conceived mischief,
And brought forth falsehood.
16 He made a pit, and digged it.
And is fallen into the ditch which he made.
17 His mischief shall return upon his own head,
And his violent dealing shall come down upon his own
pate.
18 I will praise the Lord according to his righteousness.
And will sing praise to the name of the Lord most high,
V. 2. Stepping into the presence of God, in the language of
complaint, David's heart appears to have lost its hold; but it is
only appearance, for he at once declares himself to be one of those
who spread their complaints before God in faith and covfidence.
V. 3 — 6. He is so conscious of his innocence that he ventures
to challenge Divine judgments, should the accusations of his ene-
mies prove just. "If I have done this" (without particularly spe-
cifying the accusation, for it had spread through all the country,
and the thousands of Saul's pursuing hosts were so many accusers
charging him with conspiracy,) " If there be iniquity in my hands,"
says he, similar to his expressions in his interview with Saul,
" wherefore doth my Lord thus pursue after his servant ? for what
have I done? or what evil is in mine hand?" (1 Sam. xxvi. 18.)
Christians find it no easy task to repress the flame of anger at
unjust accusations, and to quench the rising passion, lest they
should render evil for evil. But David achieved greater things
80' COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
in rendering good to tliose wlio wittout cause were his enemies.
When the passionate Abishai turned his spear against Saul, David
held him back, lest the anointed of God should fall by an assas-
sin's hand. It is not with a desire to appear meritorious before
God that he refers to that magnanimous deed, he rather reminds
God and himself of the justice of his cause, for confidence in
prayer is necessarily increased by the consciousness that we appear
before our holy God in a just cause and with a clear conscience.
V. 7 — 9. Though refraining to be the judge of his own affairs,
and well remembering the words of the Lord, "Vengeance is mine,
I will recompense," he deemed it proper to invite him to action
who has undertaken the work of recompense on earth 3 thus he said
to Saul, "The Lord judge between me and thee, and the Lord
avenge me of thee ; but mine hand shall not be upon thee." (1 Sam.
xxiv. 12.) Anxious to show that he desires not the gratification
of personal revenge, but that God should assert his dignity as the
judge of the world, he calls upon God to institute a judgment on
all nations and their iniquities, only hoping that his own cause
might be regarded as one of the innumerable ones which the right-
eous Judge could not suffer to remain unpunished. Most of us
almost entirely forget, on witnessing the countless transgressions
of law which daily transpire within our sight, that they are all
recorded in the memory of the righteous Judge of the world. But
David sees with his mind's eye how that Judge who forgets no
sins, save those which he forgives on the condition of faith and
repentance, comes down from heaven, mounts the tribunal, collects
the world before it, gives sentence in a moment, and reascends to
heaven. Although appearances go in a thousand instances against
that faith, we dare not doubt the possibility of its being at any
given moment evidenced as a fact.
K 10. He raises that petition which flows from every Chris-
tian heart on reading in the Lord's prayer the words, "Deliver us
from evil." Such desires are not vain imaginings. The very fact
that they may so powerfully well forth from pious hearts, is an evi-
dence that at some future period they will meet their fulfilment.
V. 11 — 14. David is none of those pious dreamers, who, lost
in their contemplation as to what God may do in heaven and here-
after, forget what he is daily doing on earth within the sight of all.
He perceives that His sword is whetted already, that His bow is
bent, and that the arrow lingers on the string simply because the
long-suffering of God is as great as his justice, and because he is
waiting even for the repentance of a Saul. Instruments of death
and flaming arrows point to the custom of the ancients, who hav-
ing enveloped their arrows in combustible matter, lighted and then
sent them off.
V. 15 — 17. David equally perceives that God is not obliged to
send down from heaven the rods to chastise, and flaming arrows to
PSALM VIII. 81
destroy the wicked, but that they are everywhere present on earth.
In innumerable instances the wicked prepare their own scourge in
their wickedness, and perish by their own iniquities; as Luther
says, " Whence could God get ropes enough to hang every thief, if
they did not do it themselves?" and as the Prophet says, ''The
strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they
shall both burn together, and none shall quench them." (Isaiah
i. 31.)
V. 18. The manner of his concluding shows the truthfulness
of his beginning the psalm with "0 Lord my God, in thee do I
put my trust;" for we repeatedly forget to thank God after, David
thanks God br/ore, the reception of benefits, singing praise to the
name of the Most High, while the present furnishes him only with
themes of complaint.
PSALM YIIL
A PSALM of praise, like Psalm iv. composed at night, and equally
sublime, calm, and solemn. The solemn peace and brightness of
an eastern nocturnal sky seem to be shed on it. David may have
composed it when he was feeding his father Jesse's sheep on the
plains of Bethlehem. (1 Sam. xvii. 15.)
The fundamental idea of this beautiful psalm is the glory of God
on earth, as it appears to man, the noblest of his earthly creatures.
The eyes of the Psalmist repose at night upon the infinite starry
heavens : the more he is lost in the contemplation of their glory,
and the more he considers that glory shed there in such lavish
majesty, as to render it hardly credible that there should have
remained any for the earth, the greater is his astonishment when
reverting his look he meets the same revelation of Divine majesty
on earth. He beholds it in the noblest of God's creatures — iu
man, and that in his earliest development — in the faltering accents
of sucklings, (v. 3.) The dominion of the Spirit makes itself
known in the faculty of speech; herein man resembles God; and
makes him the priest and king of nature, the head of the visible
creation, (v. 4 — 9.)
1 n^O the chief Musician, to the tune of Gath, A Psalm
_L of David.
2 0 LoKD our Lord,
How excellent is thy name in all the earth !
Who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
82 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
3 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings
Hast thou ordained strength (prepared for thyself an
army)
Because of thine enemies,
That thou mightest still the enemy and the adversary.
4 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers,
The moon and the stars, which thou hast prepared ;
5 What is man, that thou art mindful of him ?
And the son of man, that thou visitest him ?
6 Tor thou hast made him a little lower than God,
And hast crowned him with glory and honour.
7 Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of
thy hands ;
Thou hast put all things under his feet :
8 All sheep and oxen.
Yea, and the beasts of the field ;
9 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea,
And whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
10 0 Lord our Lord,
How excellent is thy name in all the earth !
V. 2. We see the Psalmist, lost in the contemplation of the
brilliancy of the skies, which seems to eclipse everything else, turn
back to the earth and himself. Some in gazing upon the splen-
dour of the heavens forget the glories of earth, and others absorbed
in the glory of earth have no eyes for the majesty of heaven.
David adopts the proper course, in using the infinity of heaven as
a means of expressing with deeper humility his gratitude to God
for what he possesses on earth. Had he felt inclined to speak of
the glories of the earth, he might have referred to the immeasura-
ble deep, to the heads of the everlasting hills, to the wonders
above and the wonders below, to leviathan in the waters and the
unicorn in the desert. (Job xxxix. xli.) If he had enumerated
all these, he would still have omitted that handiwork of God,
wherein the brightest efFulgency of his glory is to be found — man
created in the image of God.
F. 3. He regards man from his tender infancy, and from the
first traces of awakening mind. The strength which God has pre-
pared for himself out of the mouth of babes we cannot refer to any-
thing characteristic of infancy except the faculty of speech : it is
no objection to this view that "babes and sucJdings" are men-
tioned; for the word in the original for "babes," describes those
that are able to walk, (see Lam. i. 5,) and Hebrew mothers used
to suckle their infants down to their third year. The Psalmist,
therefore, though naming sucklings, may nevertheless think of
PSALM VIII. 83
their faculty of speech. That faculty of speech, which indicates
the existence of mind in even the tender age of childhood (not to
make mention of other marvels belonging to the world of children,)
is a veritable army of God against his adversaries, against those
that would deprive him of the glory which is his due. The
Psalmist seems to have chosen his justification of God against his
adversaries from the marvels of infant age, because, as nature and
history combine to show, Divine omnipotence takes a peculiar
delight to confound his enemies by the instrumentality of the weak
and unseemly. Our Lord cited this very expression of the
Psalmist, when the high priests and scribes were displeased with
the children, crying in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of
David:" and when they said, *' Hearest thou what these say?"
Jesus replied, "Yea, have ye never read, out of the mouth of
babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?" (Matt. xxi. 16.)
As though he had said. Has not Divine omnipotence always held
the little ones and the unseemly, worthy of the dignity to herald
forth and testify to his glory, when the great ones of the earth
have arrogantly despised it?
V. 4 — 6. The silence of the Psalmist about the noblest lumi-
nary of heaven — the sun — reference being made to the moon and
the stars only, has led to the just inference that he composed this
psalm at night. The transparent clearness of the eastern nocturnal
sky, and the splendour of its stars, are far superior to ours. He
calls the heavens " the work of God's fingers," to designate it as a
work of art immeasurably beyond any work of art prepared by
human fingers. It is said in the book of Job (xxxvi. 29, xxxviii.
33,) " Can any understand the spreading of the clouds, or the
noise of his tabernacle?" " Knowest thou the ordinances of
heaven? Canst thou set the dominion thereof in the earth? He
then speaks of the rulers of night — the moon and the stars, which
certainly impress us with a more profound sense of the majesty of
God than the sun himself, seeing that they spread away on the
illimitable expanse of heaven, and enter into distances more remote
than human eye can scan. " Lift up your eyes on high, and
behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host
by number : he calleth them all by names, by the greatness of his
might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth." (Isaiah
xl. 26.)
y. 5 — 7. If such riches of splendour and majesty are shed on
the heavens above till lost in infinity, who would expect to find
the same glorious God on earth? We must not sufi"er our eyes to
get so dazzled with the splendours aloft, that we become insensible
to the recognition of the mercy and glory of God, with which his
paths on earth are overflowing. Would God be as great as he is,
if he were only great in the heights but not in the depths — in the
great but not in the small ? He has created man in his image on
84 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
earth ; how then can that earth be mean over which He has placed
his image as king and ruler ? David alludes to the ancient record
which says, " Let us make man in our image, after our likeness :
and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the
fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth." When
at the close of the sixth day the earth stood arrayed in her spring
garments, swelling with riches on her surface and in her depths,
with flocks on her plains, beasts in her forests, birds in the air,
fish in the waters, the treasury of metals in her bowels, standing
like a temple waiting for its priest — God created man and insti-
tuted him priest in that temple. The word of God gave existence
to everything else; but into nia7i he breathed his Spirit, and made
him by the light of his reason and the holiness of his will his rep-
resentative before his other creatures on earth. While others get
conscious of this dignity in pride and haughtiness, David, lost in
meek admiration, adores his Lord.
F. 8, 9. This king of the earth enters his realm as weak, as
naked, and helpless as any other creature, and is not adult man,
externally considered, the most defenceless of creatures? The lion
has his tooth, the crocodile its coat of mail, the birds their wings,
the fish their fins; but which is man's weapon for attack, which his
shield for defence? The Spirit from God: therefore all must
obey him. The cattle on the pastures, wild beasts roaming the
forest, birds flying below the expanse of heaven, fish swimming in
the depths of the sea, they all must obey him — man is their lord
and king. Aye, if our hearts were in that condition and relation
to God, in which they ought to be, (the relation of feudal lord and
feudal servant,) every new victory which we gain over surround-
ing nature, every sacrifice off'ered to us by the animal or vegetable
kingdoms, by the depths of the sea or the entrails of mountains,
and which subserve to our nourishment or clothing, the produce of
art or the inquiries of science, would elicit psalms of gratitude and
praise from our hearts. Is not our outward helplessness and indi-
gence by the side of our inward strength and riches, a powerful
admonition that these goods are the gifts of Divine munificence ?
But elated by arrogance the feudal servant has rebelled against his
feudal lord. We ought to consider ourselves servants, but rise as
independent lords of creation; we ought to be the priests of God,
re-offering to him, and using for his glory, whatsoever his creation
has provided for us, but have become idolaters, worshipping the
idols of our own selves. It is one of the effects of that rebellion,
that our royal sceptre became broken, and that only a fragment of
it remains in our hands. Although a great portion of creation
yields even now to the inquiries, and is submissive to the will of
man, our present knowledge and power are but poor fragments of
the glory which we were originally destined to enjoy. Though by
the aid of multiform art and means we succeed in the subjugation
PSALM IX. 85
of a portion of nature, we cannot but feel how remote is our
dominion from that of which it is said, "He spake and it was
done, he commanded and it stood fast." The presentiment of
such a dominion has again been experienced since the time when
we beheld the perfect image of God on earth, who by the simple
act of his holy will could quench disease, sway his sceptre over
death, command the storm, and walk on the waves of the deep.
The Son, who alone is free indeed, can make us free too. (John
viii. 36.) This is the reason why this passage, that " All things
are put under his feet," is applied in the New Testament to him,
in whom Grod and man were manifested in perfect unity. (1 Cor.
XV. 27.)
V. 10. The Psalmist concludes with the same exulting praise
with which he began; and on comparing the conclusion with the
beginning we find, that David mainly contemplated the celebration
of the glory of God on earth.
PSALM IX.
A PSALM of thanksgiving, followed by new complaint. So in
Psalm xxxi. 8, 9, complaint is preceded by joyous hope and (v. 15)
again succeeded by resignation, (cf. Ps. xl.) Transitions of this
kind will not surprise those who are familiar with the ways of our
inner life and experienced in the school of prayer. The heart of
man is in hours of tribulation like the pendulum of a clock, which
oscillates from the right to the left — now from God, then to him;
or like a wave — now rising, now falling, now elevated by hope,
now crushed by despair. The history of David yields incidents
which may more clearly explain the triumph in the first part, and
the complaint and supplication in the second part, of this psalm.
When David had led his armies victoriously against the kings of
Syria in the north, and extended the boundaries of his dominion,
the Bedouin tribes of the Edomites embraced the opportunity to
invade the land destitute of troops from the south. That event
also occasioned the composition of Psalm Ix. We shall show in
the introduction to that psalm, that that event must have been
very disastrous and perilous to David's kingdom, as the hostile
army might have reached the capital after a march of two or three
days. Assuming the composition of the psalm to have taken place
at that crisis, both the triumph at the beginning and the complaint
and supplications towards the end are sufficiently explained. Diffi-
culties arise, however, from Psalm x. which in many points, chiefly
towards the close, so strongly resembles Psalm ix. that it might
86 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
almost be regarded (especially because it has no title,) as a con-
tinuation of the latter, or at least be referred to the same period
and the same author. But it seems less admissible to refer
Psalm X. to the oppression of the country by the invading hosts of
the Edomites, because it seems rather to speak of anarchy among
the inhabitants themselves : again it seems hardly credible that if
such a state of things really ever existed during the reign of David,
the sa77ie king who (Ps. ci. 3 — 5) so emphatically declares his
administration of justice, should instead of wielding the sword of
justice, nevertheless have indulged in complaints like those in
Psalm X. It will be seen in the introduction to Psalm x. that
those difficulties may be overcome, and paying special regard to
Ps. X. 16, it will after all be the best plan to refer Psalm x. to
the same event.
The one experience of God's victorious aid against his enemies,
which David celebrates (v. 2 — 7,) causes him, like a pious man, to
revert to the everlasting truth, that the Lord rules the world in
righteousness, (v. 8 — 13.) Strengthened by this thought, he prays
the more trustfully, that the Governor of the world would, under
the present national calamity, protect the rights of the oppressed,
lest impotent man should deem himself stronger than Him who
has declared himself as the Refuge of Israel.
1 n^O the chief Musician to the tune, "Death to the son,"
JL A Psalm of David.
2 I will praise thee, 0 Lord, with my whole heart;
I will show forth all thy marvellous works.
3 I will be glad and rejoice in thee:
I will sing praise to thy name, 0 thou Most High,
4 Because mine enemies are turned back.
And did fall and perish at thy presence.
5 For thou hast maintained my right and my cause ;
Thou sätest in the throne judging right.
6 Thou hast rebuked the heathen,
Thou hast destroyed the wicked.
Thou hast put out their name for ever and ever.
7 The destructions of the enemy are come to a perpetual end :
And thou hast destroyed their cities;
Their (the enemies') memorial is perished with them.
8 But the Lord shall endure for ever:
He hath prepared his throne for judgment.
9 And he shall judge the world in righteousness.
He shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.
10 The Lord also will be a refuge for the poor,
A refuge in times of trouble.
PSALM IX. 87
11 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee.
For thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
12 Sing praises to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion:
Declare among the people his doings.
13 When he maketh inquiry for blood, he remembereth them :
He forgetteth not the cry of the humble.
14 Have mercy upon me, 0 Lord ;
Consider my trouble ivhich I suffer of them that hate me.
Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death :
15 That I may show forth all thy praise in the gates of the
daughter of Zion :
I will rejoice in thy salvation.
16 The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made :
In the net which they hid is their own foot taken.
17 The Lord is known by the judgment which he executeth :
The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands.
Meditation ! Selah.
18 The wicked shall be turned into Sheol,
And all the heathen that forget God.
19 For the needy shall not alway be forgotten :
The expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.
20 Arise, 0 Lord ; let not man prevail :
Let the heathen be judged in thy sight.
21 Put them in fear, 0 Lord :
That the heathen may know themselves to he hut men.
Selah.
V. 2 — 4. Whenever the banners of his army wave victoriously,
or the frontiers of his empire get extended, David seeks the theme
of his praise, not in his own feats of heroism, nor in the strategy
and valour of his generals and people, but in Jehovah. He calls
the deeds of his God marvellous worJcs. In proportion to the
humility of the recipient of Divine favours is his readiness to
regard his experiences as marvellous; for he not only sees God in
every event, but deems himself utterly unworthy of his blessed
experience. The proper way of celebrating our victories is unques-
tionably after the manner of David, to triumph and rejoice in God,
and to sing praise to the name of the Most High, and not in foolish
reliance on our own strength to harden our hearts, or to turn giddy
in the boast of our wisdom and resources.
V. 5 — 9. While other heroes acknowledge only blind chance
as presiding over battle fields, and dispensing victory, David looks
upon the scene of contest as a judgment, and beholds hovering
above it the judgment-seat of God, on which the Lord of lords is
88 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
enthroned, of whom it is written, " He changeth the times and the
seasons : he removeth kings and setteth up kings : he giveth
wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know under-
standing." (Daniel ii. 21.) Confidence of this kind will inspire
armies and their leaders with courage, if conscious that they fight
for a just cause, and consider the battle-field as the judgment-seat
of the Ruler of the world. Though Grod sometimes permits the
just cause to succumb, and the unjust to triumph in the scene of
action, such victories are only transient; and if but the holy flame,
lighted by the consciousness of a just cause, do not expire in the
hearts of the conquered, are sure to issue in the final subjugation
of unjust powers. Nay, the transient defeats of those engaged in
a just combat, will from the nature of the case, become the means
of fanning their courage and daring to a brighter flame, and then
adduce final victory. The foe had but lately celebrated his triumphs,
and filled the cities and the country with his triumphal shouts.
Now the cities lie in ruins, the mouth of the haughty silenced in
death; and the Lord has shown that however arrogant may be the
bearing of man, no human power can ever push him from his
throne. Hence David's faith infers, from this single act of God's
judgment, that, however much human circumstances may give way
and the righteous be crushed under foot, the Lord will continue to
judge the world in righteousness, while it shall last. This single
assistance of God in the past, is to David a gate through which he
passes with intrepid confidence to spread before the Lord his com-
plaints in present affliction.
V. 10, 11. The victorious king knew himself but recently rich
and mighty, but aware that the Lord loves to humble the lofty, he
did not triumph without fear: now knowing himself poor and
oppressed, he is of good courage, aware that the Lord loves to
glorify himself in their seeking him, as he well knew from his own
experience.
V. 12, 13. Praise for past mercies blends with that of hope for
the future. He feels sure that God, who has called himself a God
''of great faithfulness," will not at that time become untrue to his
name, provided the poor seek not within themselves for refuge, but
show by crying to Heaven that their strength is of God. He not
only calls upon himself, but, because he prays for a national cause,
upon all the people, to celebrate the praises of God for bis past and
future mercies.
V. 14, 15. Prayer succeeds his praise. He prays in faith who
calls God, "Thou that liftest me up from the gates of death."
That name, if it is not quoted from books, but learnt in the school
of life, and actually confirmed by multiform experience, will be like
a rock, on which the man of prayer may take his stand, and raised
above every earthly source of doubt, know that he is more near to
PSAIM X. 89
beavea. He is none of tHose who pray in distress only, but omit
to pray after help has come : no, David prays for help, that he may
show Jbrth the praise of God in louder and more Joyous strains,
■in the gates of the daughter of Zion, viz. in those gatherings and
assemblies which used to be held at the city-gates.
V. 16, 17. Faith translates the future into the present: the eye
of faith sees the work as already accomplished. They have dug
pits. The proposal is man's, the disposal God's. His judgments
which are daily transpiring within our sight, but are noticed by the
eye of faith alone, show that the wicked is snared in the work of
his own hands, and caught in the net which he had set for others.
This is a passage, at the performance of which song ceased, and a
musical interlude took place to facilitate the meditation which is
expressly solicited. (Cf ad. Ps. iii. 5.)
V. 18, 19. The Psalmist soars from the separate judgment of
the heathen, who had attacked the possession of God, because they
had forgotten him, to the hope of that time when all their attacks
shall be confounded, and the hope of the afflicted saints become
visibly manifest. (Cf. ad. Ps. vii. 10.)
V. 20, 21. David invokes the mighty arm of God to arise, that
the heathen may know the God of Israel, and the false delusion be
destroyed that any mortal can oppose and prevail against him.
Indeed, not only the heathen, but we all, require the occasional
powerful manifestation of the arm of God, (for, though servants,
we are given to the delusion that we are lords,) that if we refuse
to get softened by his love, he humble us by his terrors.
PSALM X.
We stated in the introduction to Psalm ix. that the connection of
the two psalms favours the view which refers this Psalm to the
period when the Edomites invaded the country then stripped of
troops. We may infer from the customs of the Edomite Bedouins,
that previous to their collecting and advancing a large army, sepa-
rate hordes had invaded the southern districts, and rapaciously
spread themselves. We learn from the historic records, that after
the destruction of Jerusalem, and the abduction of the greater
portion of its inhabitants, the hostile neighbouring nations invaded
the deserted country, and Psalm Ixxiv. 20 says, that the whole
country was filled with dens of robbers. A similar condition may
have ensued from the invasion of the Edomites in the southern
districts, for some time had necessarily to elapse before the army,
90 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
which David had sent from Syria, headed by Joab and Abishai,
could reach the spot. The wicked are indeed described in terms
which would better apply to ungodly Israelites, but the heathen
are similarly spoken of in Psalms Isxiv. 10, Ixxix. 10, xciv. 7, and
it was but natural that the humiliation of the nation which so boldly
boasted of the protection of their God, should pour the contempt
of the heathen on him, (Isaiah xxxvii. 33.) The wicked are said
(v. 7) to have done much mischief with their tongues, which cannot
well apply to hostile troops. Supposing the country as occupied
fbr some time by the Edomite Bedouins, it is a fair question whe-
ther their intercourse with the oppressed people might not have led
to cursing and fraud, deceit and overbearing threats; as e.g. Isaiah
describes the Jews complaining against Moab : *' We have heard of
the pride of Moab, he is very proud : even of his haughtiness, and
his pride, and his wrath." (Isaiah xvi. 6.) The rapacity which
despises God, and makes its lust (arrogance) its God, described in
verses 3, 4, has a complete parallel in what Habakuk says of the
rapacity of the Chaldeans : " They take up all of them with the
angle, they catch them in their net and gather them in their drag;
therefore they rejoice and are glad. Therefore they sacrifice unto
their net, and burn incense unto their drag : because by them their
portion is fat and their meat plenteous. Shall they therefore empty
their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations ?'' (Hab. i.
15 — 17.) Verse 8 needs not be taken literally, as it may be
regarded as a figure taken from a robber; but if the Psalm refers
to the invasions of the Edomites, it is strikingly illustrated by
enemies, who promiscuously pitched their Bedouin tents, to carry
on from there their depredations.*
The psalm begins in sorrowful strains, invoking the manifesta-
tion of Divine justice, because the rapacious foe makes himself
equal to God and heeds not his judgments, (v. 1 — 6.) David
separately describes the violence of the oppressors as seen in their
speech and works, and states that the delay of punishment ren-
dered their obduracy the more confirmed, as his reasons for evoking
the righteousness of God, (v. 7 — 11,) and bases thereon his appeal
to the Ruler of the world, (v. 12, 13,) but forthwith gathers such
strength of confidence, that he proclaims with undoubting cer-
tainty, that the Lord will also at this time show that he is the
King of Israel, (v. 14—18.)
* See Morgenland and Abendland, Stuttg. 1841, vol. ii. p. 305, -vvhicli
mentions robberies on the way to Jericho, stating, "That here more than
anywhere else cruelties have been committed, is owing to the vicinity of
the savage Bedouins, who pitch their moveable camps to the right of this
road along the Dead Sea, and plunder travellers as opportunities present
themselves." The Edomites took this identical road from the south along
the Dead Sea. Cf. In trod, to Ps. Ix. and Note (*) of Introd. to Ps. Ixxxiii.
PSALM X. 91
1 '\17HY standest thou afar off, 0 Lord?
VV Why hidest tliou thy self m times of trouble?
2 The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor :
They (the poor) are taken in the devices that they (the
■wicked) have imagined.
3 For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire,
The covetous blesseth it (his desire,) and contemneth
the Lord.
4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, thinks
God will not punish.
All his thoughts are, " There is no God."
6 His ways are always prosperous.
Thy judgments are far above out of his sight:
As for all his enemies, he puffeth at them.
6 He hath said in his heart, " I shall not be moved;
For I shall never he in adversity."
7 His mouth is full of cursing and oppression and fraud :
His tongue worketh mischief and iniquity.
8 He sitteth in the lurking places of the villages :
In the secret places doth he murder the innocent :
His eyes are privily set against the poor.
9 He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den :
He lieth in wait to catch the poor :
He doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.
10 He croucheth, a?rc^ humbleth (or " stoopeth down") him-
self.
That the poor may fall by his strong ones (claws.)
11 He hath said in his heart, " God hath forgotten :
He hideth his face, he will never see zY."
12 Arise, 0 Lord ; 0 God, lift up thine hand :
Forget not the afflicted.
13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God ?
He hath said in his heart, "Thou wilt not require it.^*
14 Thou hast seen it;
For thou beholdest mischief and spite ; thou markest it
on thine hand :
The poor committeth himself unto thee ;
Thou art the helper of the fatherless.
15 Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man :
Seek out his wickedness till thou find none.
16 The Lord is King for ever and ever :
The heathen are perished out of his land.
9^ COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
17 Lord, thou hast heard the desire of the afflictedj
Thou wilt strengthen their heart,
Thou wilt cause thine ear to hear :
18 To judge the fatherless and the oppressed.
That man, who is of the earth, may no more resist thee.
V. 1. We are prone, when misfortune and helplessness oppress
us, to regard God as standing afar off, because goodness and power
belong to his being; nor unjustly so, for however much the pre-
sence of God within us may strengthen our hearts in desperate
circumstances, the existence of outward trouble is always a sign
that our unity with God is not yet completely established nor mani-
fested in its last effects, which, however, can never take place on
earth.
F. 2, 3. Where wickedness has led to victory and proud lust
gained its end, is it matter of surprise that they who already are at
open rebellion with God make their own pride their god, and pay
to it the sacrifices which rightfully belong to the Ruler of the
world? It becomes thus manifest that the work of the wicked
cannot well prosper without leading to the idolatry of sin and the
contempt of God. David feels himself justified to call the Almighty
to action.
V. 4. Though gross offenders do not always verbally deny the
existence of God, such denial is virtually involved in the disbelief
of God's punitive justice. To believe in the God of heaven above
and not to be afraid of his judgment to come, does it signify any-
thing else than the denial of the very attribute which causes the
pious to bend their knees before him ? If God were really confined
to heaven, as the wicked says in Job xxii. 13, 14, *' How doth
God know? can he judge through the dark cloud? Thick clouds
are a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the
circuit of heaven;" who would feel inclined to pray to so Epicu-
rean a God, and pay to him the sacrifices of obedience and thanks-
giving?
F. 5, 6. It is true, indeed, that in isolated instances, at least,
the judgments of God keep for a long time remote from the
wicked : hence the arrogance of his appearance and the delusion of
his security for the future. God, as is here stated, often suffers the
works of the wicked to prosper for a long time, but he suffers it
solely that the fall from his height be the more terrific, and he
share the fate of Nebuchadnezzar, in whose fall the people thus
rejoiced: "How art thou fallen from heaven, 0 Lucifer, Son of the
Morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst
weaken the nations!" (Isaiah xiv. 12.)
F. 7 — 11. The Psalmist now details the violence of the enemy.
His aim is to assure the hearts of the pious that the display of
PSALM XI. 93
God's power will eventually take place. He describes the haughty
derisions and threats of the tongue, which victorious and oppres-
sive nations are wont to utter against the oppressed — pictures them
as robbers hid in tbe lurking places of the villages, and as lions
lying in ambush in their dens to catch unwary passers by. They
would refrain from such conduct if they did believe in a God who
will never forsake his children, and whose eyes are always looking
upon the earth. (Psalm xi. 4.)
V. 12 — 14. David now calls upon God to bring their contemp-
tuous speech to nought and their untruth to light : he asserts his
remoteness from such unbelief, and his conviction that every
oppression of the afflicted is actually inscribed upon the hand of
God. He derives great consolation from the very attributes by
which God has described himself, as when e. g. he calls himself
"The helper of the fatherless." The poor may confidently commit
their cause to him, not only as their wisest Advocate, but as their
Father, as the Father of all who have no father on earth.
F. 15, 16. Animated by this faith he confidently asserts that the
arm of strength, now defyingly set against heaven, will be broken.
He finds not sufficient protection and consolation for his people in
his own royal dignity, but the Lord is king for ever and ever. He
knows how to preserve his faithful subjects and to expel the hea-
then.
V. 17, 18. Behold ! how his faith is changed into sight. His
prayer is heard, God himself has put the holy assurance into his
heart. The Lord in heaven will know how to justify his glory
against the resistance of man whose home is the earth.
PSALM XL
A PSALM of comfort, replete with filial trust, and clearly referring
to the period of Saul's persecution. David sought and found an
asylum for a great portion of these years of anguish in the high
mountains of the wilderness of Judah not far from the Dead Sea.
As he said to Saul: "The king of Israel is come out to seek a flea,
as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains." Saul had
pursued him to the rocks of the wild goats, i. e. to the highest
peaks, scaled by the wild goats only. It accords with history that
David's enemies address him (v. 1) in the plural, for during the
latter period of his flight he had six hundred faithful companions
about him.
The beginning of the psalm seems to indicate that it was com-
posed when David was on the plains, perhaps in some town or
94 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
other, and that this speech proceeded either from well-meaning
friends or mocking enemies. Indignantly but in childlike confi-
dence, and sure of his eternal foundation in God, he rebuts the
supposition of a cowardly flight, though he confesses that the
wicked invoke heaven and earth against the upright, and that his
own resources are exhausted, (v. 1 — 3.) But he is sure that the
Holy Lord sits enthroned as a spectator of these earthly tumults
and commotions, who, though satisfied with looking on for a time,
will eventually reveal himself as judge, (v. 4 — 7.)
^T
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 In the Lord put I my trust :
How say ye to my soul, "Flee as a bird to your moun-
tain?"
3 For, lo, the wicked bend their bow,
They make ready their arrow upon the string.
That they may privily shoot at the upright in heart.
4 If the foundations be destroyed,
What can the righteous do?
5 The Lord is in his holy temple.
The Lord's throne is in heaven :
His eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.
6 The Lord trieth the righteous :
But the wicked, and him that loveth violence, his soul
hateth.
7 Upon the wicked he shall rain lightnings,
Fire and brimstone, and a burning tempest :
This shall be the portion of their cup.
8 For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness ;
The upright behold his countenance.
V. 2. The well-meant counsel of unbelieving friends and the
knowledge of the wicked, that should they succeed to deprive
David of his God, he himself would be delivered into their hand,
seemed to combine to drive him into despair. Firm of heart he
heads this psalm with the confession, " In the Lord put I my trust,"
repelling thereby every temptation of hesitancy and fear. He had
frequently sought an asylum on mountain heights, in caverns and
chasms, against the pursuing storm. But here he means to say,
that though having used every earthly means for safety, his confi-
dence was not based on them, but on the eternal foundation of
God in heaven. The wicked seek to grieve him by saying, that
in the time of danger he knew no better refuge than that of the
hunted bird, which tremblingly flies from the reach of man into
PSALM XI. 95
the thicket of mountain woods. His bold faith despises his
despisei'S and reproaches them for only knowing earthly mountains,
but being utterly ignorant of the Rock of Ages, of that God " who
was before the mountains were brought forth, or the earth and the
world had been formed, even from everlasting to everlasting."
(Psalm xc. 1.) He says that he used to to confide in the Eternal
Rock even in those days, when he sought for shelter and refuge
on the mountains of earth. For the godly in the use of earthly
means ever remember that " except the Lo7'd build the house, they
labour in vain who build it; except the Lord keep the city, the
watchman waketh but in vain." (Psalm cxxvii. 1.) In tilling the
soil they say, "The one planteth, the other watereth, but God
giveth the increase." (1 Cor. iii. 7.) Engaging in battle they cry,
"The sword of the Lord and of Gideon," (Judges vii. 20,) for
whenever Gideon is placed be/ore the sword of the Lord, idolatry
will ensue and the blessing vanish.
V. 8, 4. David shows why a feeble heart may" be filled with
hesitancy. The malice of the wicked not only stalks about in
broad noonday, but they shoot their arrows at the godly in secret
and in the dark. Thus the persecutions of the suspicious king
equally embraced stratagem and open violence. David complains
that the foundations are destroyed, for no prerogative whether
Divine or human could any longer secure him against enmity unto
death, (t. e. of Saul.) When even kings disregard justice and
use the power conferred upon them not for the quenching but for
the 2)r act ice of tyranny, what is the righteous to do?
V. 5. Because all the resources of David are gone, and there
is no helper for him on earth, he directs his looks to heaven. It
is the chief evidence of our faith, to look to heaven for the light
of salvation when darkness surrounds us here on earth. This
seems easy; for almost all confess to the belief that God governs
the world; but when hard and unheard of afflictions scatter uni-
versal gloom around us, very few indeed are able to retain this
faith as the anchor of their soul. David's faith is immovable : he
knows that, however much justice, faith, and confidence may seem
to have fled from the earth, he continues holy and unchangeable
on his heavenly throne, who is able in a moment to reverse the
most desperate condition. The Governor of the world apparently
suffers "men to be as the creeping things that have no ruler over
them," (Hab. i. 14,) but David is sure that the Keeper of Israel
neither sleepeth nor slumbereth, that his eyes behold and his eye-
lids try the children of men, and that he will never suff'er the
eternal boundaries which separate right from wrong to be effaced.
V. 6 — 8. Now if the eternal boundaries of right and wrong can
never be efi'aced from the memory of God, and if according to this
eternal law he distinguishes between the godly and the ungodly,
(though many days may pass before him in whose sight a day is as
96 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
a thousand years, till liis hour come,) that hour cannot fail to
strike nor that day to dawn, when he will effectively manifest that
distinction to the world. Sodom and Gomorrah with their fire
and brimstone, the burnt shores of the Dead Sea, as David beheld
them from the mountainous heights of the wilderness of Judah,
along with numberless separate judgments of God as recorded in
history, furnish the proofs that the final judgment of evil cannot fail
to come. Because God is righteous and loveth righteousness, says
David, therefore the day must come, when the upright shall behold
his countenance for ever.
PSALM XII.
A PSALM of complaint, composed during the residence of David at
the court of Saul, when haughty hypocrites threatened to destroy
him by their tongue. (Cf Introd. to Ps. v. and Hi.)
He begins with a piteous complaint of the insolence of his many
opponents, (v. 2 — 5.) Because to him applies what Paul said
concerning himself, *'We are perplexed, but not in despair,"
(2 Cor. iv. 8,) and because in spite of the storm which troubles
his soul, faith has cast her anchor into firm ground, the prophetic
word of God rises in his mind, that there is still help with the
Lord, (v. 6.) Based on this word of God, the truth of which can
never fail, his soul gets calmed, and he concludes in the enjoy-
ment of profound peace, (v. 8, 9.)
1 rpo the chief Musician, to the eighth tune, A Psalm
JL of David.
2 Help, Lord ; for the godly man ceaseth ;
For the faithful fail from among the children of men.
3 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour:
With flattering lips and with a double heart do they
speak.
4 The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips,
And the tongue that speaketh proud things :
5 Who have said, "With our tongue we will prevail;
Our lips are our own: who is lord over us?"
6 " For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the
needy,
Now will I arise," saith the Lord ;
" I will set him in safety /row him that puffeth at him."
PSALM XII. 07
7 The words of the Lord are pure words:
As silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
8 Thou shalt keep them, 0 Lord,
Thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
9 The wicked walk on every side,
Like the rising of a tempest upon the sons of men.
V. 2. God never permits the entire cessation of the godly,
tliougli the masses of men serve Moloch, Baal, or other idols.
There remained, even in those days, a small band of the people of
God. There were in Israel, Samuel and his school of prophets
faithful to God, with whom David took refuge when Saul's tyranny
began to persecute him unto death. (1 Sam. xix. 18.) Among the
corrupt courtiers themselves a faithful Jonathan was found. The
small company of the godly seems almost to vanish among the
multitude of the carelesss and impious — especially when they get
afraid. It happened thus to David, though he was not altogether
devoid of courage, for he states in this passage and verses 6. 8,
that there was still a remnant left. Our experience, alas, shows
only too often how prone we are in desponding moods to doubt the
existence of any good men on earth, and to opine that the Church
has never seen worse times than ours. The example of David
should teach us, on the one hand, that true faith, just because its
glory is so difficult to be recognized by the carnal eye, has never
been more general; and on the other, that it (true faith) is so
indispensable to men, that the generation of the godly has never
wholly ceased.
V. 3 — 5. Realizing the condition of the people, with whom he
daily commingles, he denounces their hypocrisy and pride. Where
calumny leads to gain, as was the case at the court of Saul (who
incited it by promised reward, (1 Sam. xxii. 8,) wicked confidence
in a lying tongue is sure to exist in those who owe their prosperity
to their wickedness, and who, like the robber in Ps. x. 3, ascribe
that praise to their tongue, which belongs to God. Their unbe-
lieving delusion emboldens them to assert that they are masters of
their destiny and to disclaim the authority of the Lord in heaven.
Could a pious man like David be the spectator of such atrocious
conduct without supplicating Heaven, that, however much the
godly might be willing to suffer their honour to be laid low, the
Lord of heaven and earth would not suffer them with impunity to
contemn his?
V. 6. Hark! the Divine voice rises from the lowest chamber of
his heart. Faith, nourished by the word of God, is indeed an
oracle within us, whose voice we hear in every gloomy hour. The
oracle proclaims to him that though God protract his vengeance,
his help will not fail for ever.
9
98 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 7. He seeks to strengthen himself with his consciousness of
the infallibility of the words of the Lord, by comparing them with
purest silver that has been purified seven times. The peculiar
emphasis with which David speaks of the infallibility of this Divine
sentence, renders it probable that we must regard it less as an
intuition of his faith, as they occur elsewhere, (Ps. xii. 7;
xxxvi. 1; xlix. 5; 1. 7, etc.^ than the prophetic utterance of Sam-
uel, Gad, or some other prophet. We feel the blessings of Scrip-
ture passages thus inscribed upon the heart, when in hours of
affliction and just at the right moment, faith brings them to our
remembrance, and applies them to the confirmation of our hopes.
David, as a prophet, had undoubtedly experienced the utterance
of the Divine voice in his own heart; but history adduces likewise
instances which show that he derived edification from the words of
the prophets. The oracle from which he gathers confidence
(Ps. Ix. 8. 10) seems to point to a similar prophetic communica-
tion.
V. 8. Prayer, inspired by the Spirit of God, always compre-
hends universal need in the particular, and the pious, in praying
for himself, actually prays for all the pious. So David, as the
representative of the small band of the godly in his time, virtually
prays for all godly men. He conceives of the human race as
divided into two camps and two generations, the one of whom fight
in huge masses and great strength, while the other, though small
in number and with little strength of their own, advance under
the banner of that God who has promised victory to the righteous
cause. David denies not that the generation of the children of
this world enjoy for the time being many victories and great
power, and even owns that their machinations and oppressions fre-
quently cause the earth to shake as from an earthquake, and so to
perplex the godly that he hardly knows where to establish himself.
But he suiFers not these thoughts to weaken his courage, provided
the gate of prayer be open, and the small and oppressed band be
sure that the Mighty God is on their side.
PSALM XIII.
A PSALM of complaint, composed when persecution had raged for
a long time, troubled him, and made his enemy more overbearing.
Hence we infer that it belongs to the latter period of Saul's perse-
cution.
The complaint of this psalm is one of gentle grief, expressing
the fear that the enemy will after all prevail, (v. 2 — 5.) But the
PSALM XIII. i)9
mercy of a Grod, wto is ready to help, once more consoles David,
who, animated by this hope, publishes his praise, (v. 7.)
'1
''O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 How long wilt thou forget me, 0 Lord?
For ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?
3 How long shall I grieve in my soul,
Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me ?
4 Consider and hear me, 0 Lord, my God:
Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death ;
5 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him ;
And those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
6 But I have trusted in thy mercy;
My heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
7 I will sing unto the Lord,
Because he hath dealt bountifully with me.
V. 2, 3. The anxious question, "How long?" occurs four times;
an anxious question, familiar to those who have like David been
trained in the school of sorrows. If, on the one hand, they complain
that the continuance of suflFering involves a greater trial than its
strength, they confess on the other, that continued heat is needed to
show whether the plant of faith be deeply rooted. David complains
that God has forgotten him; this does not imply that faith was
really extinct in his soul (for the end of this Psalm shows his
childlike hope in God.) Just as nobody can prevent the birds
from flying to his head, though he may prevent their building a
nest, so probably no pious mau could ever forbid tempting thoughts
to pass transiently through his soul in gloomy hours, when all
signs of the nearness of God were absent. David at once corrects
his expression by stating that the Lord God is still with him, and
only laments his inability to see his joy-giving countenance. Four
times he raises his "How long?" We ought to know the Divine
reply. It ever runs: " Till thou art matured, in the heat of tribu-
lation."
V. 4, 5. His eye is already dim like his who hastens to the
grave. (Cf. Psalm vi. 8.) He prays that he may not sleep the
sleep of death. He cannot brook the thought that his enemy has
triumphed over him. If it had been simply his own cause he
could have borne the sting thereof; when, however, as in the case
of David, who was anointed as king over Israel, and in this respect
hopefully thought of by the small band of his pious cotemporaries,
(1 Sam. XXV. 30,) the truth of God itself is at stake, and the deri-
sion of the wicked applies less to the servant of God than to the
100 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Lord himself, its sting is unbearable to a pious heart. However,
as the godly live in a world where evil of every kind is met by the
long suifering of God, and as experience shows many a sanguinary
Saul transformed into a Paul, it is proper that they should strengthen
themselves against such trials of their faith, and admire the long-
suffering of God, who in many instances permits men to despise
with impunity his honour, simply because his love will give the
tare the chance of becoming good wheat. It was doubtless no
small trial of faith when Stephen, the first martyr, expired beneath
the falling stones, and Saul witnessed it with triumphant joy.
There were probably even at that time some Christians present who,
in their zeal for the honour of God, were praying for a flash of
lightning to descend on the head of Saul ! But none of them guessed
what the Lord had decreed in his eternal counsel.
V. 6, 7. We notice again that David founds his hope neither
on his merits nor on his just cause, "But I have trusted in Thy
MERCY." Oh, that the struggling mind would not in its afflictions
part with the consciousness, that a God merciful and ready to
help is the witness of all the spectacles of our conflicts, who in per-
mitting them to continue can only have gracious motives. Thun-
der and lightning are as yet round David while he sings his songs
of praise; as Luther has observed, "While Satan raged around
him he used quietly to sing his little psalm."
PSALM XIV.
A PSALM of complaint. It is doubtful whether v. 7 oi'iginally
belongs to it. It was probably added as a liturgical expression
during the Babylonish captivity, to which it would admirably
apply, (Psalm liii. with some variations, still more expressly
applies to it.) This seems to have been the case with Psalms xxv.
xxxiv. li. Ixix. The final words of the Lord's prayer, according to
Matthew, are a similar liturgical addition. If v. 7 belong not to
this psalm, we may unhesitatingly assume that David composed it
at the court of Saul, under circumstances similar to Psalm xii.
(Cf. V. 1.) But if it do, then David composed it as king, for Zion
is mentioned as the sanctuary of God. In the latter case David,
who calls himself, 2 Sam. xxiii. 1, " The sweet Psalmist of
Israel," may have composed it for the use of the people at worship.
There is certainly this objection. In Psalm ci. which all ascribe
to David, he says, with a royal sense of justice, "He that worketh
deceit shall not dwell within my house : he that telleth lies shall
not tarry in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the
land, that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the
PSALM XIV. 101
Lord." (Psalm cvii. 7, 8.) Now is it probable that during tho
reign of so determined a ruler, prevalence of the ungodly over the
people of Grod could have been affirmed in such unqualified terms?
But parrcnetic songs at public worship, do not so much describe
the actual condition, as they represent the general relations of the
wicked to the godly, which renders this objection by no means
decisive. Since, however, the final verses of several psalms appear
to belong to a later period, and there are other peculiarities,* we in-
cline to the view which regards v. 7 as a liturgical addition. David
states here, as in Psalm xii., that the mass of men have forsaken
God, and resist his true servants, (v. 1 — 3.) He prophecies in the
name of God their certain destruction, (v. 4, 5,) and confidently
assures them of their inability to prevail, (v. 6.)
1 'T'^O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 The fool hath said in his heart, " There is no God,"
They are corrupt, they have done abominable works,
There is none that doeth good.
3 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children
of men,
To see if there were many that did understand, and ask
for God.
4 They are all gone aside,
They are all together become filthy :
There is none that doeth good, no, not one.
5 "Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge?
Who eat up my people as they eat bread,
And call not upon the Lord."
6 There were they in great fear:
For God is in the generation of the righteous.
7 Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor,
But the Lord is his refuge.
8 Oh, that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion !
When the Lord bringeth back the captivity of his people,
Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
V. 2. The Psalmist inquires for the reason why the great mass
of mankind will not refrain from the commission of sin by legal
restraints or humane considerations. He accounts for it from the
fact that they are devoid of faith in the living God, who manifests
* We allude e. g. to the circumstance that in Psalms xxv. and xxxiv. the
respective verses successively occur in the order of the Hebrew alphabet,
and that just the final verses of both psalms go beyond the last letter of
the alphabet.
9*
102 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
himself by his judgments; for were it otherwise, though legal
restraints and humane considerations cannot effect it, yet would
their fear of his holy eye, and his unfailing punishments, set a
boundary to their recklessness. Inveterate blindness alone can
deny the existence of God, when nature and history utter their
myriads of voices to the contrary. Hence David, and the Scrip-
tures in general, call the denier of God a fool and a madman,
while V. 2 assigns wisdom only to such who make the fear of the
righteous Judge the law of their lives.
V. 3, 4. Since the unspeakable long-suiFering of God permits
months and years to elapse before we read in the destinies of man
indisputable marks that our holy God lays human affairs to heart,
David represents God as having for a time refrained from taking
any interest in the world, and as awakening suddenly to the exer-
cise of his office. Just as if the humble followers of God (v. 5)
were lost to his sight, and his eyes were only resting on evil doers.
Their sin is described in gradation. They do not understand,
because a true knowledge of things divine forms the basis of pro-
per conduct towards God; they do not ask for God, because they
only care for him whose clear and sure insight apprehends him as
their highest possession; they are (/07ie aside, because he who cares
not for him is sure to get estranged from him, and to deviate from
his paths; and they are all together become filthy, (i. e. worthless,^
because man's proper strength and fitness for virtue must well from
the fountain of communion with God.
V. 5, 6. As in Psalm xii. 6, the believing Psalmist heard the
Divine oracle in the midst of earthly confusion, so here. So Micah,
the prophet, addresses the heads of Jacob, and the princes of the
house of Israel, who know not God, "Who also eat the flesh of my
people, and flay their skin from off them; and they break their
bones, and chop them in pieces, as for the pot, and as flesh within
the caldron." (Micah iii. 8.) Thep'jopZe o/ Coc? are, as shows v. 5,
and other passages, (Ps. xxiv. 6, Ixxii. 2, Ixxiii. 1, cxii. 2; Ezek.
xiii. 9; Jer. vii. 23, xxiv. 7,) the generation of the righteous, the
true Jacob and Israel of God. (Psalm Ixxiii. 1.) When the Lord,
whom they thought firm asleep, shall raise his voice, and they shall
perceive that he is awake, and that he will in his own time show
his royal sceptre to pride-intoxicated man, then shall terror over-
take them, and they shall find that they did not strive against man
but against God.
V. 7. David now addresses the haughty mockers of the simpli-
city of the faithful, who in their misery quietly wait for God as
their Saviour. The carnal mind thinks nothing more foolish than
to see the pious, while the feet of wicked men crush them with
impunity, with a calmness amounting to utter disregard, continue
in the praise of God. Would/atVA be needed if the heavens were
to rend, and the hand of God to appear every time when the godly
PSALM XV. 103
endure violence ? Hence the godly acquiesce in the delays of God
and continue to confide in him, though their own counsel come a
thousand times to nought. They know that the cessation of human
counsel gives free scope to the Divine.
F. 8. The expression, "Bringeth back the captivity of his
people," does not by any means always refer to real captivity, of
which Psalm Ixxxv. furnishes the clearest proof. Then after deli-
verance from the exile, the bringing of the captivity is implored
many passages show this more or less clearly. (Psalm cxlvi. 7
Job xliii. 10; Ezek. xvi. 53, cf. 55; Zeph. iii. 20; Jer. xxx. 18
Hos. vi. 1. 11.) Even Deut. xxx. 3, is to some extent a figurative
expression, which serves to denote the turning of all misery. Since
the people of God have above been described as the generation of
the righteous, these words may convey the sense that David implores
the aid of God for all the righteous in Israel who are afilicted and
oppressed, to the end, that the whole nation, restored and renewed
in righteousness, might sing praises unto the Lord. But from the
similarity of the final verses in other psalms, it is better to regard
this last verse as a liturgical addition made during the Babylonish
captivity.
PSALM XV.
This festive song was occasioned by David's removing the ark
of the covenant from Kirjath Jearim (according to Eusebius between
five and six miles from Jerusalem,) where, since its return from the
land of the Philistines, it had been for upwards of sixty years, in
solemn procession to Zion the seat of royalty. (2 Sam. vi.; 1 Chron.
xiii. 14.) The rashness of Uzzah had, as is well known, for a time
prevented the execution of the design, for David, terror-struck,
took the ark to the house of Obed-edom the Levite, which was by
the roadside. But three months later its execution took place.
The solemn procession was headed by priests playing the cornet,
followed by other priests, the heads of the tribes, military dignitaries,
and numerous Levites playing harps, psalteries, timbrels, cornets,
and cymbals. David in a linen ephod, and dancing to the rhythm
of the music, led the choir: it thus moved solemnly from the house
of Obed-edom, which seems to have been near to Jerusalem, to the
capital. It was a day of universal joy and gratitude: peace offer-
ings and burnt offerings were sacrificed on the altars. David
blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts; and to increase
the flow of popular joy, he distributed meat and drink among them.
Psalm xxiv. was sung on the same occasion, during the entrance
104 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of the procession into the gates of the royal castle; the present
Psalm may have been sung either on the road or in the interior of
the castle. This was a rare occasion for David, " the sweet Psalmist
of Israel," (2 Sam. xxiii. 1,) to serve the congregation of God with
his gifts of song: so Moses accompanied the setting forward and
resting of the ark (Num. x. 35, 36) with pious exclamations. The
antiquity of this Psalm and of Psalm xxiv. is apparent from their
being quoted in Isaiah xxxiii. 14 — 16.
At first the ark of the covenant was inseparable from the taber-
nacle; but from the time it fell into the hands of the Philistines
it returned no more to its place, i. e. Shiloh, where the tabernacle
was at that time, but remained at Kirjath Jearim, in the house of
a Levite. David built a tabernacle for it on Mount Zion, while
the tabernacle with the holy vessels, and especially the altar of
burnt oifering, remained at Gribeon (according to Josephus about
five or six miles from Jerusalem.) In the days of Saul the ark
was at Nob, the city of the priests, close to Jerusalem (see ad. Ps.
V. 8;) but since, at Saul's cruel bidding, the priests were killed
and the city destroyed, (1 Sam. xxii. 18, 19,) it was probably then
removed to Gibeon. On comparing together the different passages
in the historic books, (2 Sam. vi. 17; 1 Kings iii. 15; 2 Chron. i.
4 — 6; 1 Chron. xvi.,) it will be seen that both the tabernacle for
the ark on Zion and the tabernacle of the covenant had their priests,
Levites, and porters, and that services were held in both places,
though, according to 1 Chron. xvi. (xvii.) 40. (cf. 4, 5.) xxi. (xxii.)
28 — 80, it would seem chiefly before the tabernacle of the covenant.
Kespecting the question which of the two tabernacles is meant in
those Psalms of David which speak of the tabernacle or the house
of God and its services, we must presume that the Israelites, and
therefore the Psalmist, of that time regarded the two and their
services as one ichole, as did the ancient churches regarding their
baptistries; for the tabernacle on Zion represented the Holiest of
Holies, and on that account was held in greater reverence.* The
reason why David did not remove the tabernacle along with the
ark to Zion is, probably, that the many journeys had rendered the
already five hundred years' old tabernacle unfit for use, as indeed
after the erection of the Temple it was deposited as a holy relic
only. As appears more clearly from Psalm xxiv. this Psalm was
probably also a choral song. Perhaps the precentor or David
himself sung the question in v. 2 solo, and the chorus of the Levites
* As an evidence of this view may be adduced 1 Chron. vi. (vii.) 31;
(where Luther renders, "When the ark rested," instead of, "After the
ark had come to rest.") It is clear that the term " The house of the Lord"
includes the place where the ark was, but also the tabernacle, as shows
V. 32. Hence v. 39 mentions Asaph as one of the officers of the house who,
according to chap. xvi. ministered at the tabernacle. Michaelis adopts the
same view.
PSALM XV. 105
gave the reply. The fundamental thought of Psalm xv. is this:
He only, who shows his piefy not only in" the temple but in his life,
is 'worthy of the prerogative of dwelling in the house of God. As it
is the object of this psalm to show' the indissoluble connection
between the adoration of God in the temple and its evidences in
life, it cannot seem strange that it insists upon our duties towards
man. After the positive reply in v. 3, that neither sacrifice nor
praise in the temple are well-pleasing to Grod, if unaccompanied by
obedience to his commandments, so the following verses show as it
■were in a mirror some of the grosser violations of duty towards man,
the perpetrators of which are absolutely excluded from communion
■with God.
1 A PSALM of David.
2 Lord, who shall sojourn in thy tabernacle?
Who shall dwell in thy holy hill ?
3 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh right-
eousness.
And speaketh the truth from his heart.
4 He that backbiteth not with his tongue,
Nor doeth evil to his neighbour,
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.
5 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned ;
But he honoureth them that fear the Lord.
He that sweareth to Ms own hurt, and changeth not.
6 He that putteth not out his money to usury.
Nor taketh reward against the innocent.
He that doeth these things shall never be moved.
F. 2. The sojourning and dwelling in the house of God cannot
mean a real continuous abode. Familiarity with the house of God
where the pious has spent the most hallowed hours of his life, and
most emphatically realized the presence of God, is to the Psalmist
the emblem of familiarity with God in general and the blessings
flowing from it. Hence to be separated from the tabernacle or the
house of God, meant with him to be excluded from the tn^eioonore-
gation of Israel, from communion with the Lord and th/pTeroga-
tives connected therewith. This follows unmistakeably from the
the conclusion of this psalm, and also from Psalms xxiii. 6-
xxvii. 5; xxxi. 21; xxxvi. 9; Ixi. 5; and Ixv. 5. How strongly
David's heart and its holiest emotions were attached to the house
of God, smce the ark had been firmly established on Zion, may be
seen from his longing for the habitation of God in Zion," as
recorded m 2 Sam. xv. 25, (cf. the Hebrew.) Need we surprised
106 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
then if that habitation of God became to him the centre of every
mercy? He represents his participation in the adoration of Grod
as a prerogative. This shows that there were some at least in
Israel, who deemed the observance of holy rites, the sacrifice and
the praise of God not hard duties imposed upon them, but mercies
of God. David, however, uses these expressions, because he looked
beyond those merely outward acts. He questions God himself,
and expects a reply by Divine illumination.
V. 3. David affirms not, that the observance of holy rites, and
the offering of sacrifices, are well-pleasing to God : he, on the con-
trary, regards those services as merciful immunities and Divine
privileges, shared by those who offer to God the sacrifice of a pure
walk and a sincere heart. A walk of this kind we call a sacrifice,
because walking in obedience to God's commandments involves
the continuous sacrifice of our own will to that of God. There
may exist, indeed, an upright walk, a righteousness and a veracity,
which, because not flowing from the remembrance of God and the
conscious obedience to his holy commandments, establish no claim
whatsoever to the blessings conferred upon the children of God.
But it is equally certain, that none can claim the title of a child
of God, but he who strives to prove his obedience to the will of
God, in word and in deed.
V. 4c. David had expressed in one sentence the sum total of
what God demands from his genuine followers. The profound
delusion of man renders nothing more common than that all of us
preserve no small amount of security of conscience, when our
duties to man are stated in general terms, e. g. that we are to love
our neighbour, not to injure but to aid him. Nor do we attain to
a proper sense of our guilt, till the mirror of the Divine command-
ments he held before every separate recess of the heart. Hence
David rests not satisfied with a general statement of duties, but
specifies much prevailing offences, which thousands indulge in,
who, with an unruffled conscience, and free from the fear of being
regarded as hypocrites, approach the sanctuary of God. He
begins with the violation of character, which since our usefulness
among men depends on it, must be regarded as a real possession,
as the wise man has it, "A good name is rather to be chosen than
great riches." (Prov. xxii. 1.) He next refers to every kind of
offence against the law of love to our neighbour, and lastly adverts
to the expressions of remarkable passion, as evidenced in scorn
and abuse. Though thousands of Christians may deem obedience to
these commands only a poor criterion of piety, it cannot be denied
that hundreds and thousands go Sabbath after Sabbath to the sanc-
tuary, professedly for the worship of God, who, were they to test
themselves by these, the requirements of God, would be convicted
by their own consciences.
V. 5, Here he asserts a demand, of which the mass of those
PSALM XV. 107
■who lift their hands to God think probably still less than of the for-
mer ; viz. that we should form our estimate of human merit only
hy the standard of Divine law. Can any one, save he who regards
and loves God as his highest good, esteem as nothing the splen-
dour which great riches and distinction, great talents and other
amiable qualities, shed on man, if unaccompanied by the fear of
God? Are there many to be found who can truthfully affirm that
they prize godliness as the most precious and valuable tie which
links them to man, so that they infinitely prefer the intercourse of
devout, plain, and uneducated saints to that of the talented and
highly-gifted ungodly? Or, do you find many Christians, who
esteem truthfulness towards our neighbour so valuable a possession,
that rather than forego it they will suffer injury and loss of every
and any kind? As there is nothing more common than to measure
the duty of veracity and faithfulness by the standard of profit and
loss, he most assuredly has the law of God deeply engraven in
his heart, who at the decisive moment of trial is willing rather to
part with property, wife, child, or his own life, than to fail in
veracity and faithfulness. We may account for the self-delusion
of many on this point, who think better of themselves than they
ought, from the fact that what they omit to do from fear of secu-
lar laws which punish the violation of promise, they fancy to have
omitted from reverence for eternal laws. What a flood of faithless
actions would rush upon us were secular law to leave the violation
of promise as unpunished as it does that of truth — for how great is
the dominion of untruth in the world ! Who can deny this, since
in sjiite of the rigour of secxdar laio, they are everywhere so uni-
versally obtaining?
V. 6. As the original speaks not of usury but of interest, it
might appear that the law had exacted too much; the expression
would certainly exclude from the sanctuary of God a countless
number of Christians who least expect it. To obviate so hard an
opinion, Luther (and E. V.) prefei'red the term ^^ usury," as
denoting "a?i. extravagant interest." Though the law had alto-
gether prohibited the lending on interest, (Exod. xxii. 25; Levit.
XXV. 36,) the term ''usury" is nevertheless expressive of the spirit
of that law. As the manner of money-investment differed in those
days from ours, and money used to be lent to the poor and helpless
only, the law alludes to the hardheartedness of those who, instead
of assisting their neighbour by gifts, even refused to make any
advances to him, except on interest. The taking of reicard refers
primarily to judges, who prefer their own interests to justice; but
applies equally to all who, bribed by temporal considerations, pro-
tect an unjust cause. ^^He that doeth these things shall never he
■moved." These words plainly indicate, that David speaks not of
an external participation in the worship of Israel only. This con-
clusion reverts to the question in v. 2, viz. " Who is worthy of
108 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
sojourning in the tabernacle of God?" and renders it more evident
that the Psalmist meant by dwelling in God's tabernacle something
more than a mere participation in external worship. Since this
verse, as well as Psalm i. 5, contains a profound anticipation of
the most remote future, we must not be surprised that Jewish and
Christian interpreters conclude the psalm to refer from the begin-
ning to dwelling in the everlasting habitations. (Luke xvi. 9.) This
conclusion is correct, because only those shall share in the com-
munion of the kingdom in glory who were no strangers to it on
earth, for the path which leads to communion with God both here
and there is the same, viz. obedience to the commandments of
God, (v. 2.)
PSALM XVI.
A SONG of praise of David, replete with the brightest confidence
and joy in God, which stretch beyond the grave.* We cannot
determine the occasion on which the minstrel became so powerfully
conscious of his communion with God. The immortal hopes which
David here expressed in a rapturous hour, could not be realized by
him before they met their fulfilment in Christ, who is the first-bora
from the dead, has conquered death, and taken its sting away.
(Col. i. 18; 1 Cor. xv. 20—22. 56, 57; Heb. ii. 14.) Hence the
apostles Peter and Paul declare that the Holy Ghost, speaking by
the mouth of David, refers in these words to that first-born from
the dead who had destroyed the power of death. (Acts ii. 25 — 31;
xiii. 35 — 37.) We cannot positively infer from verse 1, that this
psalm was composed in times of affliction; for a pious man thus
commits his ways to God in even the prosperous days of a life
which is subject to the alternations of fortune. V. 2 expresses the
fundamental thought of the psalm: ^^God is the highest possebSion
of the ptosis." Reflecting on this thought, David again sees man-
kind divided into two classes — those who know that possession, and
those from whom it is concealed. He resolves to join the little
band of the former, but turns in dismay from the latter, (v. 3, 4.)
He is lost in the meditation of the riches and fulness that spring
from his communion with God ; he confines himself not to the pre-
sent, but expresses his conviction of future prosperity, (v. 6 — 8.)
* Ewald: "The bright splendours of sublime peace and the cordial
intensity of accomplished experience veils the whole. As there is but one
great emotion in the poet's soul, so his song is but one gently flowing
stream, without storms or difficult transitions, while the secret flame
gradually gains in intensity."
PSALM xvr. 109
At this stage the Spirit of God leads him to the contemplation of
that eternal state of things which Christ having rendered possible
became first fulfilled in Him. He perceives that saints go through
the grave to heaven, the scene of life, of fulness of joy and plea-
sures for evermore.
^A
GOLDEN Psalm (or "a writing") of David.
Preserve me, 0 God:
For in thee do I put my trust.
2 0 my soul, thou hast said unto the LoRD, Thou art my
Lord:
My welfare is nought beyond thee ;
3 Up ! to the saints that are in the earth,
And to the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.
4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after
another;
Their drink offerings of blood will I not offer,
Nor take up their names (of the idols) into my lips.
5 The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance and of
my cup :
Thou maintainest my lot.
6 The lines are (or the lot is) fallen unto me pleasantly:
Yea, I have a goodly heritage.
7 I will bless the Lord, who hath given me counsel :
My reins also instruct me in the night seasons.
8 I have set the Lord always before mine eyes:
Because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoiceth:
My flesh also shall dwell securely.
10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in Sheol :
Neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.*
11 Thou wilt show me the path of life :
In thy presence is fulness of joy;
At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
V. 1. The conviction that God in the most emphatic sense is his
God, which David realized more profoundly than ever in this hour
* Or, "Mine holy ones to see the grave." Translating in the plural
makes no change in the sense; for the promise is fulfilled to the holy ones
of God through the Holy One of God, who is the first-born from the dead.
Translating "to see the grave" (to see corruption) or "decay," makes no
material difference. For David could only in a prophetic sense express
the hope of not seeing the grave, i. e. of continuing in death, (Cf. John xi.
25, 26,) as it could only be fulfilled to him through Christ.
10
110 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of sublime and blessed experience, leads him to commit himself
and all his destinies for ever unto God. We hear no anxious cry
for help, no expression of need to unburden his oppressed heart;
but from the happiness and plenitude of the present he looks
towards the future. He trusts in the Lord. He trusts in him ;
and what kind of trust must have filled in that hour his soul who
was able to utter the sequel of this psalm !
V. 2. There are sometimes epochs in the life of the godly, when
moments decide for eternity. David speaks as if in some hour of
the past he had for ever made that decision which our Lord
demands from his followers, (Matt. vi. 24.) It is indeed not diffi-
cult to say that all our welfare is nought beyond God, if it be only
the expression of intellectual assent; but if it mean a decision of
the will, which once for all spontaneously and unreservedly subjects
every and any earthly possessions to the highest of possessions,
(i. e. to God,) how small their number who can affirm that they
have come to such a decision. But we must assume that even ia
the case of Old Testament saints, like David and Asaph, (Psalm
Ixxiii. 26,) who thus express themselves, it was only on certain
days or hours that their soul could in so clear and firm a manner
soar to this decision. And why? Because if that decision were
immoveably to abide on the heavens of our soul throughout the
period of our earthly existence, it would, like a spiritual sun, pierce
all our resolves, and completely absorb sin.
F. 3. Enjoying the delight which the presence of God imparts
to his servants, David feels that his faith is not isolated on earth,
but that he has gained much from the community of saints, which
the Christian language calls "the Church," though the Old Testa-
ment designates it as ^' ihQ people of God," "the generation of the
righteous," "the tr^ie Israel of God." (Cf. ad. iii. 9; xiv. 4, 5.)
As Isaiah cries, " LTp to the law and to the testimony," (Isaiah
viii. 20,) so David calls upon his soul to delight in those only who
through their communion with God are in communion with him.
The very same parties who are called elsewhere "the poor and the
needy," (Psalm xii. 6; xiv. 6,) are here described as "the excel-
lent," (the glorious ones.) So Peter writes of the disciples of
Christ, " If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are
ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you." (1 Peter
iv. 14.) The addition, " that are in the earth" (i. e. the country
of the Philistines,) might be explained from supposing him, dur-
ing the composition of this psalm, as an exile from the land of
God, perhaps with the Philistines; but it is preferable to under-
stand here, as in Psalm ci. 8, "the holy land," and that David
means to comprise in the term all who are promiscuously scattered
within the frontiers of Palestine.
V. 4. Looking at that little band, (Psalm xii. 1,) he cannot
forbear mentioning those who choose them other masters. (Exodus
PSALM XVT. Ill
XX. 3; Isaiah xlii. 8.) David may refer to idolaters only, (compare
1 Sam. xxvi. 19, where David said to Saul, " If the childrea of
men have stirred thee up against me, cursed be they before the
Lord; for they have driven me out this day from abiding in the
inheritance of the Lord, (for he had to seek refuge with the Philis-
tines,) saying, Go, serve other gods,") but the antithesis to the
truly pious in the land, as well as other passages in which David
describes the wicked as idolaters, (Psalm x. 3; xii. 5; lix. 6, etc.)
render it probable that he refers to all whose hearts are estranged
from God. They may appear happy, and the sight of their pros-
perity may cause the pious to stagger. But seasons when all the
heaven of God fills the heart that loves God, (and David was then
blessed with such a season,) render it very evident that those who
are deprived of this can have no satisfaction in their prosperity,
that their welfare is trouble, and their joy intense pain. " Many
sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he that trusteth in the Lord,
mercy shall compass him about." (Psalm xxxii. 10.) To express
his thorough detestation of idolaters, he describes them by their
most horrible acts — the frightful drink offerings mingled with
blood, which they sometimes used to present to their idols. (Zech.
ix. 7.) He will not even pollute his lips by naming their idols.
(Exod. xxiii. 13.)
F. 5, 6. He shows that those alone are well trained in the
school of piety who find their fullest satisfaction in the possession
of the only God, and desire nought beyond him, through whom all
other earthly possessions can only be truly and satisfactorily
enjoyed. For as all the enjoyments of creation, if partaken con-
trary to the limits and purposes which God has assigned, and with-
out any remembrance of the Giver, are bitter and insipid, so God
alone renders the enjoyment of creation pleasant. He regards his
happiness in God, not as an act or merit of his own, as if he had
sought God, but because God always takes the initiative to benefit
even those who have not yet sought him, and offers himself to their
choice. Hence David deems it a merciful lot to have been born
in Israel, where God has deposited his testimonies, and met him
from his earliest childhood.
V. 7. He thinks not only of outward means of grace, such as
those of education, the sanctuary, or the instructions of Samuel
and other pious men, but as man is unable to find the living God
without the inward guidance of the Holy Spirit in the proper use
of the means of grace, he mentions the spiritual counsel and
instructions which his reins had imparted to him at night, i. e.
according to Old Testament usage, his emotions, his feelings. In
the stillness of night, after the bustle and distraction of the day,
the monitor from within speaks and points us from time to
eternity.
V. S. He has set the Lord always before his eyes; in other
112 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
words, he has not suffered his senses to turn to the right or to the
left. If the mind's eye be thus firmly set upon the Lord, the
experience will not fail, that in him are to be found abundant
means of securing temporal and eternal happiness. When men
turn to the right and to the left to spy the means of comfort, but
are unable to find satisfaction in God, the reason is, that the all-
sufliciency of God is revealed to those alone who can muster sufii-
cient courage and perseverance, with an undiverted eye, to look
at their eternal possession.
V. 9, 10. Thoughts of immortal bliss are sure to arise in the
soul of man, when, like David, full of the fear of God, he finds
himself ushered into the Holiest of Holies, in communion with
God, and attains to the knowledge that God is his all-suflScient
good, in whose possession he may for ever prosper. So the Spirit
of God shows to the bard the glorious vistas of eternity which lie
open to man, since Christ has conquered death.* He is filled
with the hope of salvation. Heart and soul, as the spiritual part
of man, are glad and rejoice; but the flesh also shall dwell securely.f
V. 10 expands this thought. The soul shall not be consigned to
Sheol, nor the holy one of God to the grave and to corruption.
Not that the holy one of God is to escape death, but as Christ in
saying, "Whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die,"
simply means what is expressed in the preceding verse, *' He that
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live," (John xi.
25, 26,) so this passage simply means that Sheol is the pathway,
and the grave of corruption the gate, to imperishable glory for the
children of God. It is said elsewhere, " But God will redeem my
soul from the power of Sheol, for he shall receive me." (Psalm xlix.
16.) What David expresses by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost
has neither been fulfilled in him nor any other saint, since only by
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead were life and
immortality brought to light. The Old Testament saints were
gathered with the fathers, and perhaps partly translated into a
higher sphere of life; but as complete salvation is only to be
attained through union with Christ, the indwelling Spirit of whom
shall also quicken our newly glorified bodies, (Romans viii. 11,) so
the fathers gathered to God had to wait for the advent of Christ,
as he said of Abraham himself, that he rejoiced to see his day.
(John viii. 56.) Now since the Saviour, the first and only man
\ Ewald: "The steady glow of the sublimest spiritual exclusion and
clarity raises the poet far above the future and its threatenings, and he
clearly realizes that such a continuance of the spirit in God banishes all
fear, whether of bodily pain or of death, but that the body must finally
enjoy rest, where true life is found, since deliverance of the soul from the
grave must be possible with Him who desires nothing but life."
f Cf. the antitheses of body and spirit; Isaiah x. 18; Psalm Ixxiii. 26;
Job xiv. 22. |3tj>, which Luther translates "will lie," ia used Isaiah xxvi.
19, Psalm xciv. 17, "of lying in the grave."
PSALM xvir. 113
who rose from the grave as the conqueror of death, in a condition
no longer subject to death, thus became exalted at the right hand
of the Father, and since, according to his own statement, the mem-
bers shall share in the experience of the Head, "Where I am,
there shall my servant be also," it follows that this prophecy of
David shall only be fulfilled in Christ the Head and his members.
"It is a faithful saying : For if we be dead with him, we shall also
live with him : if we suffer, we shall also reign with him." (2 Tim.
ii. 11, 12.)
V. 11. He can hardly find words to express the sublimity and
loveliness of his final destiny: life and fulness of joy and pleasures
for evermore, and that in the presence and at the right hand of
God, depicting, as it were, how the rivers of satisfaction and of peace,
which even now fill his soul, shall enlarge into a boundless ocean.
Similar is the expression of our Lord, that the water which he
gives to those who believe in him, shall be in them a well of water
springing up into everlasting life. (John iv. 1-4.)
PSALM XVII.
A PSALM of complaint, composed in the time of Saul's persecu-
tion, to which an allusion is found in verse 11, where the plural is
used with reference to David and his followers. (Cf. ad. Ps. iv.
and xi.) The singular in verse 13 probably refers to Saul.
The Psalmist gathers confidence in prayer from the conscious-
ness of his just cause, (v. 1.) He can trustfully expose himself to
the judgment of God in the thing of which they accuse him. The
word of God is the guiding-star of his ways, which prevents the
slipping of his footsteps, (v. 2 — 5.) Full of a firm trust, he ventures
to lay claim to God's special providence, (v. 6 — 9.) He states to
God the zeal and assurance, the pride and unrelenting sanguinary
efforts, of his persecutors unto death, (v. 10 — 12.) The anxiety of
his cry for aid is proportioned to the vividness of this description.
They are people, whose sole welfare is confined to the things of
this world, (v. 13, 14.) David, however, feels himself conscious
of the eternal inheritance which the Lord will grant to them who
love him, (v. 15.)
^A
PRAYER of David.
Hear justice, 0 Lord,
Attend unto my cry.
Give ear unto my prayer, thatgoeth not out of feigned lips.
114 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
2 Let my sentence come fortli from thy presence ;
Let thine eyes behold the things that are equal (or "the
right.")
3 Thou hast proved mine heart ;
Thou has visited me in the night ;
Thou hast tried me, and hast found nothing ;
I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
4 Concerning the works of men,
By the word of thy lips I have tried the paths of the
transgressor.*
5 Hold up my goings in thy paths,
That my footsteps slip not.
6 I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, 0 God :
Incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.
7 Show thy marvellous loving-kindness,
0 thou Saviour of those that put their trust in thee,
From those that rise up against thy right hand.
8 Keep me as the apple of the eye.
Hide me under the shadow of thy wings,
9 From the wicked that waste me.
From my deadly enemies, who compass me about.
10 They are enclosed in their own fat:
With their mouth they speak proudly.
11 They have now compassed us in our steps :
They have set their eyes bowing down to the earth;
12 Like as a lion that is greedy of his prey.
And as it were a young lion sitting in secret places.
13 Arise, 0 Lord, disappoint him, cast him down :
Deliver my soul from the wicked by thy sword :
14 From men, by thine hand,'0 Lord,
From men of the world, lohich have their portion in
this life.
And whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure:
They satisfy their children, and leave the rest of their
substance to their babes.
15 As for me, I shall behold thy face in righteousness :
1 shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.
V. 1. David first expresses in this prayer the righteousness of
his cause. Since there is no greater drawback in our approaches to
God than an evil conscience, and no prayer rises to Heaven more
confidently than that in a righteous cause, we need not wonder at
* Cf. IDC in Ps. xxxvii. 37, if on be regarded in the Mascul.
PSALM XVII. 115
David's placing his consciousness of wrongful accusation and per-
secution at the head of this prayer to strengthen his faith. It is
quite true, that the ungodly may have to glory in a just cause, but
since they refuse to own that God governs the world, their thoughts
stop at the judgment-seat of their own consciences; and since they
cannot call upon God in faith, they carry their troubles rather with
grudging pride than with manly perseverance. The righteousness
of his cause stimulates David, praying and weeping, earnestly to
refer it to Him who rules the world in righteousness. If a wrong-
fully accused man were to rest satisfied with the testimony of a
good conscience, and were on that account to omit prayer, would
he not rob God of his honour, by failing to recommend justice to
the Righteous Judge of the world? Aware that a hypocritical
mind is with God the most potent destroyer of the power of prayer,
David adds that in his prayers, the mouth is the interpreter of an
innocent heart. For the nature and groundlessness of the accusa-
tions which were brought against him, cf. ad. Ps. v. and Ps. vii.
V. 2, 3. He must have a good conscience who calls the Omni-
scient Judge to his aid. David enjoys one. (Cf. Ps. vii. 4 — 6.)
He points to the silent watches of the night, where the Spirit of
God had tried his conscience and sifted his thoughts (to hours of
such awful solemnity as described in Job iv. 13, etc.) and his heart
was clear of the charges which were brought against him. The
historical books contain similar testimonies to the purity of David's
conscience. (1 Samuel xxiv. 12; xxvi. 18. 23.)
V. 4, 5. David's life corresponds, not only in this instance,
but throughout, to what Paul in Rom. xii. 2, requires in Christians.
He regards the word of God as the law of his own actions, and
the standard to which to refer those of others. It is the character-
istic of genuine piety peculiarly becoming to Christians, to con-
scientiously regard their own and their neighbours' lives in the
light, and to judge of them hy the standard, of God's word. Con-
siderate conduct like this secures that heavenly wisdom which
David enjoyed, and which leads us so to know and pursue the
paths of God, that our footsteps glide not.
V. 6 — 8. David trusts that He who guides the starry host in
their course, who has made the seven stars and Orion, (Amos v. 8,)
forgets not the lone fugitive on the mountains of Judah. He
trusts that he keeps him as the apple of the eye, that he may hide
himself under the shadow of his wings as the timid chicken under
that of the hen, and with childlike confidence prays for the exhi-
bition of the marvellous loving-kindness of God. However foolish
prayers like these may seem to those who are devoid of the testi-
mony of the love of God in their hearts, they are familiar to us
Christians, who know that God has given his only begotten Son to
die for us, for we ask in childlike simplicity and trustfulness,
''Shall he not with him give us all things P"
116 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 9 — 14. David states that his persecutors are most deter-
minately set upon his destruction; that they try to stop every
means of escape; that they are arrogant, secure in their voluptu-
ous prosperity, and on that account insensible to humane feelings;
that they indulge in proud boasting, (Cf Job xv. 27; Psalm
Ixxiii. 7;) that they are confirmed and sanguinary spoilers, for
ever on the scent and pursuit of the fugitives; and (as the history
of David amply shows) that they are children of this world, who
have not the Lord before them, whose fulness of earthly goods is
so great that not only is there enough for their children, but even
a portion left for their grandchildren.
F. 15. Exposed to such persecutors, aiming not only at the
earthly possessions but the life of David, he might be thought to
be in a darkness from which every ray of hope is excluded. But
unenvious of the pleasure of those who fatten on such husks, David
glories in the prospect of the eternal joys of the world to come.
Wondrously enlightened by the Holy Ghost, he speaks with a
clearness which seems possible to Christian minds only, of the glo-
ries of heaven, where the struggle with sin shall be changed into
perfect righteousness, faith into face-to-face vision, satiation with
the divided goods of this life into satiation with the one perfect
good, which renders everything besides unnecessary. The expres-
sion, 'Ho be satisfied with the likeness of God," has only one paral-
lel passage (Num. xii. 8 :) " With him (Moses) will I speak mouth
to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the
similitude (form) of the Lord shall he behold." The likeness,
similitude, and form, are to be understood as defined outlines con-
trasted with an indistinct perception. David probably alludes to
the passage in Numbers.
PSALM XVIII.
The king, who speaks in this psalm, makes himself known in
V. 44. 51. It is David who sings this song of praise to his
God, after he had delivered him from all his enemies, therefore
from Absalom and Sheba. It was therefore composed during the
last years of his reign, when he was upwards of sixty years old,
(he lived to the good old age of seventy.) Though old age is
somewhat perceptible, there still remain his noble, heroic mind,
his fervent faith and glowing love to God, along with the full con-
sciousness of a long life, rich in experience and vicissitude. The
sacred historian set so important a value on this psalm, as embody-
ing the concentrated experience of the great king, that he assigned
PSALM XVIII. 117
it a place among the historic records, (2 Sam. xxii.) in a form
which, owing to verbal tradition and the circulation of some
incomplete copies, varies in some respects from that of this psalm.*
The king's deep gratitude, in the retrospect of the guidance of
his life, as the fundamental sentiment of this psalm, appears from
the accumulation of predicates by which he seeks to exhaust the
description of what the Lord has been to him throughout his long
life, and to indicate the results of his experience, (v. 2, 3.) He
then states the theme of his song; death and destruction have
assailed him more than any other, but he has found in a thousand
instances that there is a prayer-hearing and answering God,
(v. 4 — 7.) That expression is not sufl&ciently strong : the signal
experiences of his whole life combine into a figure. The earth
trembled, the heavens bent, the Lord almost visibly descended in
lightnings and tempests, and drew the nigh-drowned David out of
great waters, (v. 8 — 19.) All he has to say is, budlike, com-
pressed into this figure. He now separates the leaves. His life
has been the theatre of God's punitive justice, (v. 20 — 28.) His
God gave him strength and glorious victory in war, (v. 29 — 43.)
Enemies at home and abroad had to submit: once deeply humili-
ated, he is now highly exalted, (v. 44 — 46.) Feelings excited by
an experience of this kind cannot but issue in gratitude and praise
to Him who has done such great things.
1 ^0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, the servant
_L of the Lord, who spake unto 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,
2 I will love thee, 0 Lord, my strength.
3 0 Lord, my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;
My buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high
tower.
4 I called upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised :
And I was delivered from mine enemies.
5 The billows of death compassed me,
And the floods of ungodly men made me afraid.
* We have doubtless an older form of this song in the book of Samuel,
which is clear from peculiarities of language ; but its readings are less sat-
isfactory, and it appears to owe its origin to verbal tradition, (which is
also rendered probable from certain approximations to the common dialect
of the people, v. 37. 40. 41. 48.) The text in the Psalms may have been
taken from one of the king's own manuscripts, which in linguistic respects
was afterwards somewhat modified.
118 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
6 The cords of Sheol compassed me about :
The snares of death prevented me.
7 In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto
my God :
He heard my voice out of his temple,
And my cry before him came into his ears.
8 Then the earth shook and trembled ;
The foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken,
Because he was wroth.
9 There went up a smoke out of his nostrils.
And devouring fire out of his mouth;
Coals were kindled by it.
10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down :
And darkness was under his feet.
11 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly:
Yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.
12 He made darkness his secret place;
His pavilion round about him
Were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.
13 Out of the brightness, that is before him, passed through
his thick clouds
Hail stones and coals of fire.
14 The Lord also thundered in the heavens,
And the Highest gave his voice —
Hail stones and coals of fire.
15 Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them ;
And he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them.
16 Then the beds of the sea were seen.
And the foundations of the world were discovered
At thy rebuke, 0 Lord,
At the blast of the breath of thy nostrils.
17 He stretched (his arm) from above, he took me,
He drew me out of great waters.
18 He delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from them which hated me :
Which were too strong for me.
19 They prevented me in the day of my calamity:
But the Lord was my stay.
20 He brought me forth also into a large place;
He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
21 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness;
According to the cleanness of my hands hath he recom-
pensed me.
PSALM XVIII. 119
22 For I have kept the ways of the Lord,
And have not wickedly departed from my God.
23 For all his judgments were before me,
And I did not put away his statutes from me.
24 I was also upright before him,
And I kept myself from mine iniquity.*
25 Therefore hath the Lord recompensed me
According to my righteousness.
According to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight.
26 With the merciful thou wilt show thyself merciful ;
With an upright man thou wilt show thyself upright ;
27 With the pure thou wilt show thyself pure ;
But with the frowardthou wilt show thyself froward.f
28 For thou wilt save the afflicted people ;
But wilt bring down high looks.
29 For thou wilt light my lamp :
The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.
30 For by thee I have run through a troop (or " broken an
host:")
And by my God have I leaped over a wall.
31 As for God, his Avay is perfect:
The word of the Lord is tried (or "refined-pure:")
He is a buckler to all those that trust in him ;
32 For who is God save the Lord ?
Or who is a rock save our God ?
33 It is God that girdeth me with strength,
And maketh my way perfect.
34 He maketh my feet like hinds' feet,
And setteth me upon my high places.
35 He teacheth my hands to war,
So that a bow of steel is bent by mine arms.
36 Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation :
And thy right hand hath holden me up,
And thy condescension hath made me great.
37 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me.
That my feet (lit: "ancles") did not slip.
38 I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them :
Neither did I turn again until they were consumed ;
* The expression "from mine iniquity" is striking. It might at first
sight be regarded as alluding to connate depravity, (Ps. li. 7,) but from
comparison with Prov. xx. 9, Ps. xxvi. 1, it seems more natural to explain
it "the iniquity to which I feel myself tempted."
f Or, «' With the faithless thou wilt show thyself faithless."
120 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
39 I have wounded them that were not able to rise :
They are fallen under my feet.
40 For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle :
Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.
41 Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies,
That I might destroy them that hate me.
42 They cried, but there was none to save them :
Even unto the Lord, but he answered them not.
43 Then did I beat them small as the dust before the wind :
I did cast them out as the dirt in the streets.
44 Thou hast delivered me from the strivings of my people,
And thou Kast made me the head of the heathen :
A people who7n I have not known serve me.
45 As soon as they heard of me, they did obey me :
The sons of the stranger (or "of the strange land") did
flatter me.
46 The sons of the stranger (or "of the strange land") did
fade away.
And were afraid out of their close places.
47 The Lord liveth ; and blessed be my Rock ;
And let the God of my salvation be exalted.
48 It is God that avengeth me.
And subdueth the people under me.
49 He delivereth me from mine enemies :
Yea, thouliftest me up above those that rise up against me :
Thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
50 Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, 0 Lord, among
the heathen,
And sing praises unto thy name.
51 Great deliverance giveth he to his king,
And showeth mercy to his anointed.
To David, and to his seed for evermore.
V. 1. The same inscription, except the words "to the chief
musician" and " the servant of the Lord," occurs in the copy of
this psalm in the book of Samuel. It consequently preceded this
psalm at a very remote period, and the historian omitted those
expressions only which were ill-adapted to historical composition.
In all probability it was composed by David himself; its solemn
poetic expression favours this view: cf. the solemn introductions
to the song of Balaam, (Numbers xxiv. 4. 16,) the speeches of the
prophets, (Isaiah xiii. 1; Hab. i. 1; Nah. i. 1,) and the psalm in
Habakkuk. (Hab. iii. 1.) It is by no means strange that David
calls himself "the servant of God," though that appellative occurs
PSALM XVIII. 121
besides only ia Psalm xxxvi. 1. The term "servant of God" is
used either of any pious man, anxious to make the commandments
of God the rule of his life, or of those who are called to specific
services of God. In the former sense David calls himself "the
servant of God," (Psalm xix. 12. 14,) in the latter he is so called,
by others. (Psalm Ixxxix. 4. 21.) In the historical books too he
calls himself "the servant of God." (2 Sam. vii. 26; xix. 20;
xxiii. 1.) The apostles designate themselves in the same manner,
as the servants of God. (Titus i. 1; James i. 1.) The expression,
"and from the hand of Saul," after mention had been made of his
remaining enemies, should be explained by the usage of singling
out the chief of a class.
F. 2, 3. The confession of David's cordial love to God in the
beginning of the psalm is very touching, for it represents, as it
were, the sum total of his experience. The great mass of men, and
kings in particular, remember in the retrospect of a life rich in
mercies, the gifts, only. David manifests in simple and hearty
expressions his consciousness that a life eventful like his, with all
its gifts and mercies, is mainly designed to direct his eyes to the
Giver of all good. His God is one and all to him : while others
yield to the temptation to seek for other helpers besides God, he
hardly knows how to find words to express the all-sufiiciency of
God, and the riches of salvation treasured up in him. There is,
however, one condition on which alone those riches can be enjoyed.
We must call upon God in faith if we desire to participate in the
fulness of his grace. David, therefore, energetically asserts that
help is ready and secure, provided that believing prayer be not
wanting. Just as our physical hunger gets satisfied by opening
our mouth before the benefactor who would fill it, so our souls, and
the mouth of the soul is prayer. (Psalm Ixxxi. 11.)
y. 4 — 7. Let the deliverances of God be ever so great and signal,
unbelief will not fail to lessen, nor insensibility to requite them with
ingratitude. David, anxious to exculpate himself from ingratitude,
and to move unbelievers by his testimony, speaks of the mercies he
had received in the strongest expressions which language can fur-
nish. He powerfully contrasts heaven and hell,, death and God,
himself \n the deptlis, God in the heights, the billows of destruction
and the snares of death, and his sole weapon, unseemly in appear-
ance, but if used in faith all-sufficient — the weapon of prayer. He
uses figurative language; but his history shows that the billows of
death did really often compass and threaten to devour him. In
more than one instance there was but one step between David and
the sword of the destroyer. The javelin thrust at him entered the
wall above his shoulder, he escaped through a window from his
pursuers, and the seam of a mountain separated him from his
deadly enemies. (1 Sam. xxiii. 26.)
V. 8 — 19. David calls the full force of poetical imagery to aid,
122 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
to describe in a becoming manner the marvels of bis deliverances.
He means to say that they were as manifest as the signs of heaven
and earth, as sudden and powerful as the phenomena in the king-
dom of nature surprise terrified mortals. Deliverance being his
theme, he might have taken the figure from the peaceable pheno-
mena of the heavens. But since man heeds heaven more in amger
than in blessing, and regards God more when he descends to earth
in the storm than in the rainbow, David describes the blessing
condescension of God by the figure of a tempest. In order to
thoroughly appreciate the beauty and truthfulness of this figure,
we should endeavour to realize the full power of an oriental storm,
as it is described in Psalm xxix. (Cf. ad. Psalm xxix.) Solitary
lightning precedes the discharge — this is meant by the coals in v. 9 :
the clouds approach the mountain summits — ''the heavens bow/'
as verse 10 has it; the storm shakes its pinions,* (v. 11;) enwrapped
in thick clouds as in a tent, God descends to the earth; hail (not
unfrequently attending eastern storms, Psalm Ixxviii. 48,) and
lightning issue from the black clouds, through the dissolving layers
of which is seen the fiery splendour which hides the Lord of nature,
(v. 12, 13.) He speaks — and thunder is his voice: he shoots —
and flashes of lightning are his arrows. At his rebuke and at the
blast of his breath, the earth recedes : the sea foams up and its
beds are seen : the land bursts and the foundations of the world
are discovered, (v. 14 — 16.) And lo! an arm of deliverance
issues forth from the black clouds and the destructive fire, grasps
the wretched one who had cried out from the depths, pulls him
forth, and delivers him from all his enemies! Yes, the hand of the
Lord has done marvellous things in the life of David. But the eye
of faith alone could perceive in them all the hand of God. Thou-
sands whose experiences of the delivering hand of God are not less
signal than those of David, stop short at the powers of nature, and
instead of bending the knee before the all-merciful God, content
themselves to express with cold hearts their admiration of the
changes of the destiny of man.
V. 20 — 25. The full energy of David's mind had in the pre-
ceding verses depicted in lofty touches the works of God. He
now details them. His first sentiment is, that God rules the
destinies of man, and rewards sincerity, and that human affairs are
in the aggregate governed by the laws of punitive justice. It
would be folly to infer from this passage, that David intended to
assert absolute sinlessness before the Highest. No, the sublime
record of the conviction of sin in Israel furnished in the speech of
* The cherub with the countenances of man, the lion, the bull, and the
eagle, (combining in itself, as it were, the intelligence, majesty, strength,
and life of nature,) was a symbol of the powers of nature. When powerful
elements, as in a storm, are serving God, he is said to ride on a cherub.
PSALM XVIII. 123
Elipliaz to Job, which sends a chill through marrow and bones, is
doubtless expressive of David's confession of sin : —
"Now a thing was stealthily brought to me,
"And mine ear received the whispering thereof.
"In thoughts of the visions of the night,
" When deep sleep falleth on men. Fear came upon me and
trembling,
"Which made all my bones to shake.
"Then a spirit passed before my face,
"And the hair of my flesh stood up.
"There stood — but I knew not the form thereof — an image
before mine eyes :
"I heard a still voice, saying,
"Shall mortal man be just before God?
"And man pure before his Maker?
"Behold, he putteth no trust in his servants,
"And his angels he chargeth with folly."*
What shall we make of the penitential psalms and their mournful
complaints of the praises of God, who forgives sin, if David feels
himself guiltless before him ? This passage is to be understood in
the sense in which Paul speaks on the one hand, of rejoicing in
a good conscience, (2 Cor. i. 12,) of which nobody was to rob
him, and says on the other, " For I know nothing by myself,"
(i. e. according to Luther, "I am not conscious of anything my-
self":) "yet am I not hereby justified; but he that judgeth me is
the Lord." (1 Cor. iv. 4.) John writes in consecutive order,
" But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light — the blood of
Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." (1 John i. 7.) It
is very evident from all this that it is one thing sincerely to strive
to walk according to the commandments of God, and another to he
free from all sin. David might have praised the cleanness of his
hands, the caution of his xoays, and the constancy of his having
had before his eyes the statutes of God, but it was no doubt accom-
panied by the acknowledgment of the necessity of the daily forgive-
ness of his sins. He says, Psalm xix. 12, " Who can understand
his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults," immediately after
the assertion that the commandments of God have instructed him,
and that in keeping of them there is great reward, just as if he
had been anxious to prevent people thinking too highly of him.
Comparing himself with others, he spoke highly of himself — but
before God he did on that account no less join the rank and file of
the millions of the children of men, whose hope is salvation by
grace.
V. 26 — 28. From his own experience, that they who trust in
* Job iv. 12—18.
124 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
God trust well, and that those who do not forsake him 'will never
be forsaken by him, David is induced to state the general law,
which regulates the conduct of God to man. To terrify hypocrites
and the despisers of God, he shrinks not from using the expression
that "with the froward (faithless) he will show himself froward."
Similar language occurs, Lev. xxvi. 23, 24 ,• Prov. iii. 24. The
fact that men treat the severity and terrors of the Divine judg-
ments, as stated in the Scriptures, with utter indifference, seems to
render it almost matter of necessity that unusual language should
be used to rouse them from their lethargy ; of such a nature is the
passage before us. The meaning, however, is simply this. God
will forsake and suddenli/ put to shame those who forsake him.
Although the preparation for such sudden destruction would in
general language be termed ''faithlessness," we find that even men
in daily life absolve themselves from the duty of keeping faith
with the faithless. Such a procedure is with God nothing but the
administration of the immutahle lavs of punitive justice.
V. 29 — 43. He proceeds to praise separately the greatness and
variety of Divine mercies, especially the aid and support he had
received in his martial enterprises. Heroes who have gained vic-
tories by personal prowess and bodily strength, which was more the
case in ancient than in modern times, are wont to look to them-
selves, and to ascribe to the arm of flesh the praise which belongs
to God. How much then is David to be admired, who in every
respect refers both his strength and victories to God. The lamp
of V. 29 is, as in Psalm cxxxii. 17, the symbol of joy and bless-
ing; the ways of God in v. 31, mean his gracious promises.
When he asks, v. 32, "For who is God save the Lord? or who
is a rock save our God?" his meaning is not that there are other
gods, but that whatever sources of might, or strength, or happiness
men may conceive, their only source, though rarely acknowledged,
is the God of Israel. As in ancient times heroes were not only
praised for skilfulness in battle, but also for skilfulness in fight;
(Joel ii. 7;) and as David was, during the term of his persecu-
tion, compelled to seek his safety more by flight to the mountain
heights than by actual combat; he forgets not to praise the Lord
for the possession of that skilfulness, (v. 34; Hab. iii. 19.) An
uncommon amount of muscular strength was needed to bend the
heavy steel bows. Besides this weapon of attack, he names also
the shield as his weapon of defence, (v. 35, 36.) The chances of
falling are greatest in narrow paths — but God had supported him,
(v. 37.) The successes of his wars have rendered it evident who
did fight with him, (v. 38 — 43.) Expressions like these we read
here may sound too martial and sanguinary, and doubts may be
entertained whether those who are led by the Spirit of Jesus would
use them ; but we must not forget to distinguish between a war-
rior, whom God has instituted into his oflicCj and other Christians.
PSALM XVIII. 125
Now if the office of destroying be instituted as much against those
who disturb order from without, and sin against the justice of Grod,
as government and police are against the disturbers of order from
within, then the martial courage, which glories in feats of destruc-
tion, cannot be wrong, provided they were done in a righteous
cause, and therefore to the glory of Grod. The justice and causes
of the wars of David are certainly not always stated; but is it
likely that one who in private life used to shrink from unjustly
shedding one drop of blood — though it were that of his adver-
saries*— would have wilfully begun unjust wars ? The justice of
his wars against rebels like Absalom and Sheba is established — yet
how lenient was his conduct towards individuals after the victory !
(2 Sam. xix.) 2 Sam. x. records the gross contempt of the laws
of nations which provoked the second Syrian war, while Psalm ix.
and Ix. speak of the fierce invasions which led to the subjugation
of Edom.
V. 44 — 46. Not only foreign foes rose up against him, his own
people suffered themselves several times to be misled to rebel against
their anointed king. But he carried eventually the palm, through
the Lord. (Psalm Ixxviii. 70, 71.) He had at one time been the
poor and unknown shepherd of his father Jesse's flocks; for ten
years a fugitive, tossed about like a dry leaf, which the wind is
chasing: strangers and his own people had assailed him; yet the
once deeply abased David is now highly exalted, and abides at the
end of his career, the battle over, the honour and glory of his faith-
ful followers, the terror of all his adversaries. He is become the
type of his great descendant, to whom it behoved through many
tribulations to enter into His glory. (Luke xxiv. 26.) It is said
of the risen Saviour, that he showed unto his disciples from the
Scriptures, that ''Christ ought to have suflFered these things and
to enter into his glory;" we cannot doubt that he instructed them
from the example of the Old Testament saints, and David in par-
ticular, that the royal road to the kingdom is "out of tribulation
to glory;" which if trod by the members, could not have been with-
held from the Head.
V. 47, 48. He exultingly owns the Lord as the King of kings,
exclaiming, "The Lord liveth," or "Let the Lord live," an address
of praise formerly paid to kings. (1 Sam. x. 24.) He had gone
into all his battles relying on the Lord's aid, and therefore thanks
the Lord for it. Though he praises God for the revenge granted
unto him, it is to be remembered that in the Scriptures the term
"revenge" has a different sense from that which it bears in general
language. It refers not to gratification of selfish passion, but to
* Notice his conduct towards Saul, or that at the murder of his rival
Ishbosheth, the son of Saul, (2 Sam. iv. 11 ; iii, 28, etc.) at the murder of
Abner, etc.
11*
126 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the exercise of recompense needed for the maintenance of holy
laws. So rulers are said to bear the sword of revenge. (Rom.
xiii. 4.) Is it likely that David should have thanked God for that
"revenge'^ if he had not been sure that he was fighting for a just
cause and that at God's bidding?
V. 50, 51. His gratitude causes him to mount higher and
higher. With a true missionary spirit he holds it but a little thing
to oflFer gratitude to the Lord in the congregations of Israel: — he
would like as a missionary to go to all the nations and to loudly
praise and magnify the God of Israel. How copious must the
stream of gratitude flow in the heart of one, who, deeming house
and country too confined for his songs of praise, cannot feel at ease
till they sound throughout all the world, and all the nations of the
earth form his audience ! David's praise and gratitude are not
confined to the past and the present. We are reminded of what
Nathan the prophet had told him: "I will set up thy seed after
thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish
his kingdom; he shall build an house for my name, and I will
stablish the throne of his kinr/dom /or ever." (2 Sam. vii. 12, 1.3.)
He praises beforehand the blessings promised to his seed. This
prophecy has an ultimate reference to that seed of David, who in a
higher sense is to build the house of the Lord, and to wear the
crown, when all earthly crowns shall have ceased, and Israel after
the flesh shall have become Israel after the Spirit. (Gal. vi. 16; iv.
26.) His praise therefore, though perhaps not thoroughly realized
by David himself, points ultimately to Christ and his kingdom, to
" the lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, who hath pre-
vailed to open the book and to loose the seven seals thereof." (Rev.
V. 5.)
PSALM XIX.
A SONG of praise, celebrating the proclamation of God in nature
and in the law. Since v. 8 proceeds without any marked transition
to the praise of the law, and since the remaining portion of the
psalm is not equal to the sublimity of the former, it might be held
that the two portions were originally two separate songs; but this
view falls at once to the ground, since the first would have no con-
clusion, and the second no beginning. It is evident from Psalm
xxix. 10, 11, and xciii. 4, 5, that the transition from nature to reli-
gion, or the connexion of the praise of the revelation of God in
nature with that in the law, was by no means unusual with the
Psalmists. Sudden and unconnected transitions of this kind are of
frequent occurrence; e.g. Psalm xxxvi. 6, a passage worthy of our
PSALM XIX. * 127
ßpecial regard, because the Psalmist, engaged in describing the
blessings and protection enjoyed by the godly in spite of the oppo-
sition of the ungodly, suddenly adverts to the traces of divine
mercy in nature: a transition which is certainly very striking.
The first portion of this psalm refers to the speech, the proclama-
tion, or sermon of God in the heavens, v?hich would greatly facilitate
the transition to the word of God in the law: or we may more cor-
rectly say that the praise of God's voice in nature is the introduction
to the praise of the law, which was the main object of the Psalmist.
Nor does the poetic sublimity of expression which distinguishes
the former from the latter portion, militate against the unity of
both, because sublimity is the distinguishing characteristic of the
psalms of nature.
The Psalmist, deeply impressed with the blessings of piety and
of the divine law, looks at nature and the heavens, and feels that
an attentive observer may listen to the majestic evidence of the
glory of God. The heavens preach a never ceasing sermon on
God, which goes as far as the heavens themselves, (v. 2 — 5.) The
sun is the chief preacher, from whose rays there is nothing con-
cealed, (v. 5 — 7.) Dwelling on the object which so deeply affects
him, David proceeds to the praise of the law, which so powerfully
testifies to the self-same God : he declares it intrinsically good and
sure, and on that account refreshing and enlightening to man,
(v. 8, 9.) Its commandments are pure and true, and therefore
immutable and righteous, and the sweetest possession of man,
(v. 10, 11.) The Psalmist speaks from his own experience that
they have admonished him, but as if he had said too much, he
forth with prays for the forgiveness of his secret and unconscious sins.
He is not even sure to be free from presumptuous sins, (v. 12.
14.) He concludes his prayer in a peaceful and confident frame
of mind, sure that God is his strength and his Redeemer, (v. 15.)
^T
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament showeth his handiwork.
3 Day unto day uttereth speech,
And night unto night showeth knowledge.
4 It is not a speech or a language,
The voice whereof is not heard.
5 The sound thereof is gone out through all the earth,
And the words thereof to the end of the world,
Where he hath set a tabernacle for the sun,
6 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
And rejoiceth as a hero to run the race.
128: COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
7 His going forth is from the end of the heaven,
And his circuit unto the ends of it :
And there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
8 The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul :
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the
simple.
9 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart :
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the
eyes.
10 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever :
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous
altogether.
11 More precious are they than gold, yea, than much fine
gold:
Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
12 Moreover by them is thy servant warned:
And in keeping of them there is great reward.
13 (But) who can mark his errors ?
Cleanse thou me from unknown faults.
14 Keep back thy servant also from intentional sins;*
Let them not have dominion over me :
Then shall I be upright,
And I shall be innocent from great transgression.
15 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my
heart.
Be acceptable in thy sight,
0 Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.
V. 2. Lost in marvel he contemplates the expanse of heaven, of
which it is said, (Job xxxvii. 18,) " Canst thou like him spread
out the sky, firm as a molten looking-glass?" Who keeps the stars
and spheres in their liquid space? Who directs the course of their
* Theword n.iTnt»")i*lT> always means '^intentional sins," (Deut. i. 43;
xvii. 13; Exod. xxi. 14,) in contradistinction to ,13323 used v. 13, of "wre-
conscious sins," (Lev. iv. 2; v. 15.) niari ^^ used when God restrains man
from sin, (Gen. xx. 6; 1 Sam. xxv. 39.) The masculine plural, though
less frequent than the feminine plural, designates abstract terms. (Psalm
xvi. 6.) From these details tj'iiT should be translated "presumption," in
the sense of wilful transgression. If we render with a great many, "from
proud presumptuous men," the best explanation is that of Aben Ezra,
"from the society and seduction of the wicked." This view, however,
would introduce an extraneous thought into the text, and not cope with
the connection.
PSALM XIX. 129
thousands and hundreds of thousands, side by side, above and
below one anothci*, so that none of them faileth, comes too early or
too late? Though all preachers on earth should grow silent, and
every human mouth cease from publishing the glory of God, the
heavens above will never cease to declare and proclaim his majesty
and glory.
V. 3. They are for ever preaching; for like an unbroken chain
their message is delivered from day to day, and from night to
night. At the silence of one herald, another takes up his speech.
One day like the other discloses the same spectacles of his glory,
and one night like the other the same wonders of his majesty.
V. 4. Though nature be hushed and quiet when the sun in his
glory has reached the zenith on the azure sky — though the world
keep her silent festival when the stars shine brightest at night —
yet, says the Psalmist, they sjyeak; aye, holy silence itself is a
speech, provided there be the ear to hear it.
V. 5. Their sound is coextensive with the heavens, their
speech coextensive with the earth. Paul declares on this ground
the heathen is inexcusable; for if their hearts were but pure, the
splendours of the glorious majesty above would become reflected in
their hearts, and be the witnesses of their Creator. Nature gives
us the information we ask her for, but no more : but the heathen
would not ask for a holy and almighty God. The poet speaks here
of the noblest witness whom God has set in the heavens. Though
the infinite hosts of the stars fill our minds with more ineffable
and illimitable anticipations than the sun, yet is the impression of
his majesty more definite, and on that account more overwhelming.
He stands like the ambassador and representative of God in the
heavens. We find that man, whose heart is so strongly attached
to the creature, has worshipped this work of God rather than him-
self. David speaks of the sun as a man who, worn out with the
fatigues of the day, returns to his home. Thus when night sets in,
he daily retires for rest to his habitation at the seam of the sky.
(Hab. iii. 11, in the original.)
V. 6, 7. But at morn, refreshed and joyous, he steps like a
bridegroom from his chamber on the azure expanse, and like the
heroes of old, mighty in the race, he steadily and manfully runs his
course. He passes over the vault of heaven, and his rays reach to
the limits of his course. Behold him in his splendour, restlessness,
and poicer, as the preacher to insensible man. If we were not so
insensible and obdurate in heart as we are, the sight of the sun
and the heavens could hardly fail causing us to infer the glory of
the invisible being of God from the glory lavished upon his
creature, and making us to alternately realize ecstatic joy and holy
awe. Multitudes praise with untiring zeal the beauty of creation,
and point it out as worthy of their affection and admiration, and
are yet devoid of the thought, that the glory of the Creator is
130 COMMENTARY ON THE 1»SALMS.
loftier by far, and that he is worthier by far of our love and adora-
tion : yea, they would be ashamed to speak with equal warmth of
the love of God. Others again, while admiring God in nature, are
unable to recognize him in the Scriptures. The heavens and the
earth do certainly set forth the omnipotence and wisdom, the love
and majesty of God; but the Bible only sets forth his holiness.
Equal susceptibilities for the holi/, the beautiful, and the sublime,
are needed, if the omnipotence, wisdom, love, and majesty, of the
laws of the moral government, are to aifect man as do those of the
physical, and if the great moral phenomena of the Bible are to
produce impressions, as do the phenomena of the heavens and the
earth. The holy, we grant, may be called the beautiful, as it con-
sists in the harmony of the soul in itself and with God; we grant
also, that a holi/ soul is sure to be a beautiful soul. But many,
though transported with the beauty of nature, or delighted with a
human work of art, have no susceptibility for the secret develop-
ment of a soul in harmony with itself and God. The Psalmist is
not less affected by the moral beauty of the Divine law, and the
soul yielding itself to it, than by the grandeur and beauty of nature.
He recognizes on that account, in the speech of the heavens and of
the earth, the same voice of God which speaks in the law. Hence
the rapid transition, which cannot but remain unintelligible to a
great many.
V. 8, 9. The same God of omnipotence and wisdom, mercy
and majesty, has revealed himself in his law. His law is true and
spotless in itself, sure and convincing to man : on that account it
renders happy the wretched, and makes wise the foolish. This
thought is differently expressed in verses 8, 9, to stamp it more
thoroughly upon our hearts. He who has experienced this, will
recognize in the law the omnipotence of God reflected in nature,
and consider the statutes of the law as eternal as are the laws of
nature: he will admire the wisdom by virtue of which the moral
commandments are so marvellously adapted to the wants of the
human heart: he will get refreshed by the love which, though it
rigorously insists upon the observance of its statutes, aims only at
our own happiness : he will worship before the Divine Majesty, the
expression of which is equally sublime in the events of the moral
government, as in the phenomena of nature.
V. 10, 11. The commandments of the fear of the Lord are
imm^ttable because of their purity, and righteous because of their
truth. If man receives them into his will, he will find them more
precious than any earthly riches, and sweeter than the sweetest
food. Just as medicine does not cure, nor food nourish, until it
has been masticated, and entered into our constitution, so a merely
outward gaze and admiration cannot yield an idea of that precious-
ness and sweetness : they are not tasted until the commandments
of God have been received into our will:
PSALM XX. 131
V. 12, 13. The Psalmist, not satisfied with outwardly admiring
and adoring the commandments of God, adopted them as the law
of his life. He, therefore, calls himself the servant of God, and
can speak of the enjoyment of the great reward of holiness already
here on earth. For if the reception of the will of God into ours
confers upon us the privilege of revealing God in and through us,
and of becoming his instruments and representatives on earth, then
a holy life is a participation of the eternal life of God. Are we,
therefore, not justified in speaking of the ^r^a^ reward of godliness?
But David, as if afraid to have said too much, forthwith remem-
bers secret faults which need Divine forgiveness. The grace of
God so influences the regenerate Christian, that conscious and
intentional sins do indeed vanish, and only unconscious and
thoughtless sins remain. So David thinks first of transgressions
of this light nature. But as the regenerate, while the tendency to
evil which he derives from Adam is not yet wholly extinct, can
never become sufiiciently secure to answer for himself in evil hours,
when temptation from without and desire from within meet, so
David will not surrender himself to a false security, but seeks in
God the strength and grace which are to preserve him from inten-
tional sin.
V. 14. Concerning intentional sins he prays, "Let them not
have dominion over me," thinking that a condition of that kind
could only be brought about by some sudden invasion or act of
violence done to our better man. In the event of the preserving
care of God not failing him, he hopes to reach the position, that
transgression whether great or small shall find no place in his
life.
V. 15. These expressions indicate peace in God. Our pray-
ers, because they are hardly at any time the pure eifusions of the
Holy Spirit, require, as well as our good works, the pe^tVion of for-
giveness. His petition, however, that the words of his mouth might
be well-pleasing in the sight of God, makes us feel that he was by
no means devoid of the assurance that they were so. " My God
and my Redeemer" is the last word in which his soul reposes.
PSALM XX.
A PSALM of supplication, occasioned by the king's going out to
war. We infer from verse 8 that it belongs to the time of David,
for the Jews had no chariots before the Syrian war, (Judges i. 19 ;
iv. 3,) and from the cavalry of Solomon being specially named,
they seem to have had no cavalry either : the Syrian army, on the
132 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
other hand, had many chariots. (2 Sam. viii. 4; x. 18.) The
king being spoken of in the third person is no objection to David's
being the author, (Psalm xlviii. 51 ;) on occasions of this kind he
doubtless showed himself as the Psalmist of Israel, and composed
the hymns which were sung by the Levites. (2 Sam. xsiii. 1.)
The people supplicate* in holy simplicity, in the songs of the
Levites (v. 2 — 6,) the grace of God and his assistance for their
king going out to war, and confidingly pray for the accomplishment
of his designs. Strengthened by the prayers of the people, the
king himself expresses his confidence, and with his mind's eye
beholds his enemies already laid low, (v. 7 — 9.) Then follows
another supplication of the people, (v. 10.) From the allusion in
verse 4, v. 2 — 6 may be regarded as sung during sacrifice, because
sacrifices used to be offered at the beginning of a warfare, and the
sacrifices themselves accompanied by music and song.
1 ^0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
The Levites sing :
2 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble ;
The name of the God of Jacob defend thee.
3 Send thee help from the sanctuary,
And strengthen thee out of Zion.
4 Remember all thy offerings,
And accept thy burnt sacrifice. Selah.
5 Grant thee according to thine own heart,
And fulfil all thy counsel.
6 We will rejoice in thy salvation.
And in the name of our God we will set up our banners :*
The Lord fulfil all thy petitions.
David sings:
7 Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed;
He will hear him from his holy heaven.
With the saving strength of his right hand.
8 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses:
But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.
9 They are brought down and fallen :
But we are risen, and stand upright.
The Levites sing :
10 Save, Lord, the king;
He (the Lord) will hear us when we call.
* Or, "We lift up the name of our God."
PSALM XX. 133
V. 2, 3. We here notice that the king and his people go to
war as if they went in the service of God, and on that account
implore his aid. (Cf. ad. Ps. xviii. 38 — 43.) As wars are sub-
jected to alternations and times of need, the aid of Heaven is
implored for seasons when earthly resources may be exhausted.
As the people whose weakness found it so diflBcult a task to look
up to the invisible God, were favoured with a visible sanctuary on
Zion, they pray for help from Zion. They call upon the God of
Jacob, that is, the God of his descendants, to whom was confirmed
the mercy which guided their ancestor. The name (Ps. lii. 11;
liv. 3; Isaiah xxx. 27; Prov. xviii. 10,) of the God of Jacob,
because the name is expressive of his character, as if the Psalmist
had said, "The God of Jacob help us, according to all the power
and glory which we seek to express in the name which we give to
him."
V. 4. Just as Christians rejoice in comfort that their prayers
will be heard through the Redeemer, who has made them accepta-
ble to God, so the ancient Israelites regarded sacrifice as the
Divinely instituted means for rendering their prayers well-pleasing
to God. The Psalmist prays therefore that his prayers may be
acceptable to God.
V. 5, 6. As it is impossible for a pious man to expect that the
promptings of covetousness or ambition should be heard by a holy
God, so we may regard the present petition as an evidence of the
good conscience of David in this warfare, which we cannot but
think was undertaken in a righteous cause : he therefore confi-
dently solicits the protection of God, since without such a good
conscience the prayers would be devoid of heartiness and trust.*
The Psalmist moreover is so sure that the prayers of his people
will be answered, that he lets the people beforehand rejoice at his
safety, and proclaims beforehand the fulfilment of his petitions.
The true relation of a king and his subjects may be noticed here.
The people rejoice at the safety of their king, as if it were their
own : for the life of a people should be in their king, and the life
and safety of a king in his people.
V. 7 — 9. The king derives much hope from the knowledge
that he is not isolated, but represented by all his people. If a
human parent will listen to the united cry of his children, how
much more will God hear, when in a just cause a whole people and
their king pray to him ! We need not be astonished that the hea-
then nations with whom David went to war put their trust in cha-
riots and in horses, when we remember that even among Christians
many are prone to forget God, in proportion to their possession of
* If this psalm was sung when David went during the second Syrian war
against the Syrians and the Ammonites, then history records the cause of
this war as most just. (2 Samuel x.)
12
134 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
earthly resources. The heavenly mind of David, however, makes
itself heard, " But we will remember the name of the Lord our
God," declaring that that name is to him and his people a more
potent defence than any weapon. We may presume that a general
like David neglected none of the earthly resources which the Lord
had placed within his reach. How admirable his demeanour, that
he none the less perseveres to have his eye fixed on the aid of the
invisible God ! He knows himself so strong in that aid, that his
prophetic vision beholds his enemies as already fallen and crushed,
and his people standing upright.
V. 10. Edified by these words, the people finally repeat with a
more courageous heart their call for help.
PSALM XXL
A PSALM of thanksgiving, probably sung after the victory prayed
for in Psalm xx. (Cf. v. 3, with Ps. xx. 5.) The following cir-
cumstance renders it probable that the composition of this psalm
took place after the victory over the allied hosts of the Syrians and
Ammonites. The king of the Ammonites wore, according to
2 Sam. xii. 30, a crown a talent of gold in weight (about fifty-six
pounds,) which David put on his head after his defeat. That pas-
sage runs as if David had been without a royal diadem before.
Should this be so, this psalm may have been composed after the
complete victory over the Syrians and the Ammonites, and after
the complete restoration of peace at some triumphal solemnity.
The king is spoken of in the third person from v. 2 — 8 ; but we
assume that David expresses his gratitude himself in language at
once sublime and simple. V. 9 — 14 address the king; and while
the former portion of the psalm is expressive of gratitude for the
past, the latter contains two predictions, which, after their great
victories, are well becoming the people.
1 nnO the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
The King sings :
2 The king shall joy in thy strength, 0 Lord ;
And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
3 Thou hast given him his heart's desire,
And hast not withholden the request of his lips. Selah.
PSALM XXI. ^^^
For thou overwlielmest Mm with the blessings of good-
ness
Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head.
6 He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him,
Uveii length of days, for ever and ever.
6 His glory is great in thy salvation:
Honour and majesty (ornament) hast thou laid upon him.
7 For thou hast made him most blessed for ever :
Thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance.
8 For the king trusteth in the Lord,
And through the mercy of the Most High he shall not be
moved.
The Levites sing :
9 Thine hand shall find out all thine enemies :
Thy right hand shall find out those that hate thee.
10 Thou Shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time ot thy
anger: .
The Lord shall swallow them up in his wrath,
And the fire shall devour them.
11 Their fruit shalt thou destroy from the earth,
And their seed from among the children of men.
12 For they intended evil against thee :
They imagined a mischievous device,
Which they were not able to perform. ^
13 Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back :
When thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy
strings against the face of them.
14 Be thou exalted. Lord, in thine own strength!
We will sing and praise thy power.
F 2 3 There are many who, when reduced to want, or
embarking' in some great enterprise and distrustful of their own
power, can to God for aid, but after having been successful, forge
Lm whose assistance they had Invoked; and though they do not
always ascribe the honour to themselves rest wholly satisfied with
thei/ successes, and go no further David, after having been
crowned with Victory, looks first to the Lord, and gives the honour
to him. Yea, he regards every new victory as a new seal set to
the mercy of God and a confirmation of his divine favour, it is
this which hallows his joy. . , ^ ^u v,^i <.P LJa
V. 4—8 If David had before been without the symbol ot his
rovai dignity, viz. the diadem, he was the more justified in prais-
ing the goodness of God, which had now transferred it from the
136 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
head of an enemy to hts own. The words of the king in verse 5
are striking, because the term "for ever and ever" diifers from " for
ever," which generally denotes a long period. It is not improba-
ble that David alluded to the word of prophecy, "And thine house
and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee : thy
throne shall be established for ever," (2 Sam. vii. 16;) and refers
to the life he was to live in his descendants, as he indeed lives and
reigns for ever in that descendant of his, who sways the sceptre
over the spiritual Israel. The Psalmist further declares before the
people, that however great and glorious he may appear, he glories,
not in his own deeds, but in the assistance and adornment which
the Lord had conferred upon him: and acknowledges his Lord and
Master as the only source of blessing and joy. This he still more
distinctly affirms in verse 8, and commits the future to the mercy
of God.
V. 9 — 13. The king had committed his future to the mercy of
the Lord. The people in their turn do now express bright hopes
and great predictions for his future. The prosperity of a kingdom
no less requires blessings and peace at home than defence against
enemies from without. They hopefully foretell to David that his
enemies shall not escape out of his hand, that he shall make them
as wood in a fiery oven, that not only his own martial chivalry shall
sustain him, but that the wrath of God shall come to his aid, and
as often our most dangerous enemies spring up from the revenge
of the descendants of our adversaries, to render the victory complete
their descendants also shall not escape vengeance. The heathen
disbelieving the divine appointment of David and the divine call
o/his people, had arrogantly framed their designs without remem-
bering the Lord: therefore their devices came to nought, for the
Lord fights for his king and for his people.
V. 14. Once more they attest that the strength and glory
of David's kingdom is the Lord's — a thought which — since He is
mighty — will crush his adversaries, but elevate his faithful followers
to gratitude and praise.
PSALM XXII.
A PLAINTIVE song, proceeding as it were from the lowest abyss of
tribulation, such as David might have uttered in an hour of intense
peril, an instance of which occurs in 1 Sam. xxiii. 26. The deep
distress which characterizes the description of his misery, (v. 2 — 11,)
is penetrated by a petition in verse 12, but again absorbed by the
affecting complaint of extreme peril down to v. 19. Then his cry
for help gets stronger in v. 20. 22, and the song rises to a wonder-
PSALM xxn. IST
fül hope. The procrastination of his deliverance shall become a
festival of joy to all the afflicted in Israel, (v. 23 — 27.) Infinite in
space, and infinite in time, shall the message of that deliverance
reach all the nations of the earth down to the most remote futu-
rity; rich and poor shall alike be satisfied and worship Him,
(v. 28—32.)
This psalm is wonderful indeed : such a fear In the lowest abyss,
and so triumphant a prediction — a prediction of successes which
David could never have said of himself as a man. As in other
psalms, (Cf ad. Ps. xvi.) so here, the Spirit of God had raised the
Psalmist to so lofty a consciousness, in virtue of which he affirmed
what in quite a subordinate sense only met its fulfilment in himself,
though in the fullest sense in his great Descendant. He had been
in situations where he heard the rivers of death sweep past him,
and had presentiments of death, and might therefore as a man hope
that his deliverance would be the consolation of many a pious
Israelite — -but his expressions go far beyond what can apply to his
circumstances. A higher spirit must have come upon him, at
whose suggestions he expressed descriptions and hopes far beyond
his human sphere, which though possibly containing a certain sub-
ordinate truth in his own case, met their full realization in his anti-
type, the Messiah. Our Lord himself no doubt regarded this
psalm in this light, when at his approaching death he uttered
its opening words ; and the assumption of many commentators has
not a little probability, that the plaintive cry at the beginning, and
the triumphant exclamation at the close of the psalm, were simul-
taneously before the soul of the Redeemer.
1 n^O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, concerning
_L the hind, pursued at dawn.
2 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ?
Why art thou so far from helping me, and from the
words of my roaring ?
3 0 my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not ;
And in the night season, and am not silent.
4 But thou art the Holy One,
That art enthroned upon the praises of Israel.
5 Our fathers trusted in thee :
They trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
6 They cried unto thee, and were delivered:
They trusted in thee, and were not confounded.
7 But I am a worm, and no man :
A reproach of men, and despised of the people.
8 All they that see me laugh me to scorn:
They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
12*
138 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 "He trusted on tbe Lord, let him save him:
Let him deliver him if he delight in him."
10 But thou art he that took me out of the womb:
Thou didst keep me in safety when I was upon my
mother's breasts.
11 I was cast upon thee from my birth :
Thou art my God from my mother's womb.
12 Be not far from me; for trouble is near;
For there is no helper.
13 Many bulls have compassed me :
Strong hulls of Bashan have beset me round.
14 They gaped upon me with their mouths,
As ravening and roaring lions.
15 I am poured out like water,
And all my bones are sundered :
My heart is like wax ;
It is melted in the midst of my bowels.
16 My strength is dried up like a potsherd;
And my tongue cleaveth to my jaws;
And thou hast brought me into the dust of death.
17 For dogs have compassed me :
The assembly of the wicked have inclosed me :
They pierced my hands and my feet.*
18 I may tell all my bones :
They look and stare upon me.
19 They part my garments among them,
And cast lots for my vesture.
20 But be not thou far from me, 0 Lord ;
0 my strength, haste thee to help me.
21 Deliver my soul from the sword ;
My lonely onef from the power of the dog.
22 Save me from the lion's mouth:
For thou hast heard me from the horns of the buffaloes.
23 I will declare thy name unto my brethren :
In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
* Some translate, 'Ms a lion they have surrounded my hands and feet."
But is it correct to say that lions surround our hands and feet? They
rather rush at man. Aben Ezra indeed observes, "We resist with the
hands, and flee with the feet." But who would resist a lion with his
hands? The expression is inapplicable, even if we understand men as those
who surround him. Who would say of his persecutors, "They have sur-
rounded my hands and my feet" ?
f Or, "My soul," "My life."
PSALM xxir. 139
24 Ye that fear the Lord, praise him ;
All ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him ;
And fear him, all ye the seed of Israel,
25 For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affiction of
the afflicted;
Neither hath he hid his face from him ;
But when he cried unto him, he heard.
26 My praise shall he of thee in the great congregation :
I will pay my vows before them that fear him.
27 The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied :
They shall praise the Lord that seek him:
Your heart shall live for ever,
28 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto
the Lord :
And all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before
thee.
29 For the kingdom is the Lord's :
And he is the governor among the nations.
30 And they that he rich upon earth shall eat and worship :
All they that lie in the dust shall bow before him :
And they that live in distress.
31 A seed shall serve him ;
They shall proclaim the Lord from generation to gene-
ration.
32 They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness
Unto a people that shall be born, for he hath done well.
V. 1. The expression, "The hiad of the dawn," which in the
original forms the title of this psalm, indicates in the same manner
as the words, "The mute dove among enemies," (Psalm Ivi.) the
subject of his burden. He compares himself to a hind pursued at
early dawn, and probably points to the time of day at which the
persecution took place.
V. 2. His representing himself as a man forsaken of God,
seems to argue so low a stage of despair, as if not even a spark of
faith had remained in him; but as he hastens to pour out his grief
before God, and twice exclaims, " Mt/ God," we see that in spite
of despair he has not made shipwreck of his faith. He complains
here that God has forsaken him, in the same sense in which he
says elsewhere, "Why standest thou afar off, 0 Lord? why hidest
thou thyself in times of trouble?" (Psalm x. 1.) Because God is
almighty and merciful, we are prone to think him afar off when we
cannot discern the traces of his omnipotence and mercy. Though
unbelief and obstinacy will in the heat of temptation ask " Why?"
140 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
we must in the case of David regard it as expressive of his aston-
ishment that he should have reached such a cUmax of wretched-
ness : this remark applies also to Psalm x. 1, and Isaiah Ixiii. 17.
V. 3. This verse shows even more clearly than the last words
of V. 2, that the reference is not to transient, but continuous
misery. At the same time it is evident that David, though called
upon in his deep and continuous anxieties to experience the great-
est trials which can possibly befall a pious man, and though his
prayers met a shut door with God, was none of those faint-hearted
people who give over at the first unsuccessful attempt, and go in
search of other doors. He continued to stand before that one
door, and though it refused to open for weeks and months together,
he was sure in his faith that he was before the right door, and that
there was none oilier which could supply its place.
V. 4 — 6. He goes on to state that which had kept up hig
courage, viz. the myriads of praises in the congregation of the
righteous, of which the Holy One of Israel has prepared for himself
a throne — the long list of the fathers, who bore the uniform testi-
mony, that '■'■they who trust in the Lord shall never he confounded P
As if he had said, '■'■ I must not forget that I am a member of the
great body of the congregation, and on that account the sharer of
the same mercy as all others before me; and the God to whom all
the fathers cried is the same God in whose hands is the govern-
ment of the world to this day." Now, though contemplations like
these became on the one hand to the warrior of faith a rock for
edification, they proved on the other a stone of stumbling for fall-
ing. " Why does He not help me, as he has helped them? Why do
my prayers fall back into my bosom, hurled back like impotent
arrows ? Is it because I am an excommunicated member, no longer
counted in his congi-egation ?" Such are the temptations of faith
by which the adversary intensifies the temptations of soul and body,
when the pious are committed to the furnace of trials.
V. 7 — 9. Attacking him, they attacked Him in whom he had
placed his hope. Those who can sympathize in such situations
with a pious man, know that that is the most lacerating kind of
contempt. Because such an one loves God more than himself, he
would rather encounter floods of derision himself, than that one
drop should fall on the name of his God. The contempt was of a
two-fold kind : it was either expressive of the daring unbelief that
there is no ear in heaven which hears praying mortals, or it con-
veyed the no less fearful accusation that David at least was of the
race of hypocrites, who have no right to apply the promises of God
to themselves. In this latter sense the same mockery was heard
before the cross of Golgotha. (Matt, xxvii. 43.) But their mockery
is turned into glory, "iZe trusted in God." This is the glory of
Christ and of David; the inscription of their lives, written by the
finger of God. The shaking of the head and the opened mouth
PSALM xxn. 141
denote mocking delight. (2 Kings xix. 21; Job xvi. 4; Matt,
xxvii. 39.)
V. 10, 11. David repeats in faith, what they say in unbelief:
their mockery he counts his glory. Yes, the Lord takes pleasure
in him. God was his Father, when he could not take care of him-
self: he experienced him as his God all the days of his life. We
see the infant translated from the mother's womb to the light of
day — the mother's breast provides it with nourishment, while yet
unable to partake of any other; and while we think that the tender
plants might perish a hundred times, the guardian angels of God
watch over them. All these things produce no grateful impressions
on us, simply because we daily experience them. Dut David is
impressed by them, and in childlike manner states first those proofs
of Divine protection which he shares with the rest of mankind, and
then mentions (v. 11) that he has always found God in his chequered
life as his God, i. e. as his Father.
7. 12. Not until now bursts a cry for help from his oppression
of anxiety. His desperate condition itself becomes the foundation
into which he casts his anchor.
V. 13, 14. His enemies in their blind rage are more like beasts
than men — like bulls inflamed to fury — like lions opening their
mouths when they roar for prey.
V. 15, 16. Having spoken of outward difficulties, he now depicts
the efiiects of anxiety upon his soul. The less we anticipate to meet
so uncommon an emotion, through sufferings, in a heroic mind like
David's, the more correct is our conclusion as to their uncommon-
ness and enormity. But from their nature they cannot with all
their greatness have been more than the shadow of the sufferings of
the Son of God on the cross. In proportion to the superiority of
Him, whom David in his spirit called his Lord, (Matt. xxii. 45,)
over David, are the sufferings of Christ greater than those of David.
As poured-out water will dissolve on the ground, so David says
that his strength is dissolved — that his bones, the supports of the
human frame, are sundered — and that trouble has melted his heart.
The sap of his life is dried up like a burnt-out potsherd: his tongue
is languid from the anxiety of his soul : yea, he lies in the dust
among the dead.
V. 17 — 19. He had before compared his persecutors to furious
bulls and blood-thirsty lions ; he now describes them as greedy dogs,
run astray, which in the East like wild beasts attack man. They
have pierced his hand and feet and as it were pinned him. This
expression, which to David could only be a figure, and that a
striking one,* carries him far beyond his own circumstances. The
spirit of prophecy prompts him to point to the event which was to
be fulfilled on Golgotha. The flesh and bodily strength are so
* The Psalmist may have retained the figure of "greedy dogs tearing
his hands and feet;" then the connexion explains the expression.
142 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
entirely gone tliat he can count his bones : a condition so wretched
would, under ordinary circumstances, elicit pity even from the
heart of enemies — but blind revenge has made his enemies so
savage that its contemplation yields them delight. They behold
the lifeless corpse lie at their feet, and cast lots for his vesture.
We expect to hear the troubled Psalmist sing of shameless robbery
rather than of their raffling for his vesture, and recognise therefore
in this expression another typical reference to the future. (John
xix. 24.)
V. 20 — 22. He is unable to find any strength in himself nor
help on earth : for days and nights he has cried in vain : the confi-
dence he displayed hitherto, while troubles were increasing and
not decreasing, had given new stings to their mockery, a new edge
to their scorn; yet he continues to pray. He calls the Lord his
strength, to show that his hopes are not on earth but in heaven.
The mouth of the lion, the horns of the wild bufi"alo, and the sword,
must be taken as figures of present danger of death.
V. 23 — 25. It is incontrovertibly clear from this passage, that
temptation never so completely broke David that it deprived him
of the consciousness of strength to resist. Lo ! grief and complaint
vanish suddenly. He resolves to sing songs of praises — not only
in his intercourse with friends, but in the public assemblies, to
exhort his brethren, yea, all his brethren in faith, to imitate his
example, and to blend their praises with his. For since all the
children of God form one spiritual body, is therefore the victory of
one not the glory of the rest? So Paul desires the Corinthians
that ''they also helping together by prayer for him, that for the
gift bestowed upon him by the means of many persons, thanks may
be given by many on his behalf." (2 Cor. i. 11.) A double truth
is apparent in this deliverance : men befriend the high, God most
loves to befriend the humble (low;) and prayer is the instrument
which will force the bars of the gate of heaven.
V. 26, 27. David uses a peculiar figure to denote the blessings
which the marvellous dealings of God with him were to confer upon
the congregation. It was customary in times of great danger to
make vows of thank-offerings, which were prepared into meals,
where the poor in particular were permitted to join. So David
represents the payment of his gratitude as a feast, where all the
afflicted shall be filled, for which the pious shall praise the Lord
and rejoice for evermore. It is evident from the nature of the
case that no real feast is meant; but this gets yet more apparent from
V. 30, which says that the rich and the poor on earth shall alike
get filled at that feast. The feast and the thank-offering are rather
figurative expressions of the grateful proclamation of the merciful
works of God which is to take place in the congregation. In many
other places occurs the performance of vows as denoting prayers of
gratitude, (Cf. ad. Psalm 1. 14. 23.) When it is said that the
PSALM XXIII. 143
needy shall be filled by the message of the mercies of God as at a
great feast, we recognise in the expression the description of the
abundant fulness of nourishment which from that message shall
accrue to the inner man; while the typical nature of the words of
David stamps the expression with its proper significance. So Isaiah
foretold, in reference to the days of redemption, "And in this
mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of
wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees
well refined." (Isaiah xxv. 6.)
V. 28 — 32. The boundaries of Israel are too narrow for his
hope : the message shall be heard to the ends of the world, and
from the ends of the world shall men be invited to the feast; the
worship of the true God shall be the fruit. Who will gainsay, he
continues in v. 29, that, though the heathen seem to have no master
(even now the sceptre of the Lord is invisibly swayed over them :
<'He ruleth in the midst of his enemies.") He will in his own
good time cause them to come, that there shall be one fold and one
Shepherd? The 2^^^^''' were almost exclusively gathered at the
feasts of thank-ofi"erings; but the rich as well shall come to tins
feast; for who among us is not poor in the possession of the goods
which it yields? As this message is unlimited in space, so it shall
be in time, and go from generation to generation. The Psalmist
finally praises the righteousness of God, but be it remembered that
his righteousness includes love. (Cf. ad. Psalm v. 9.) The upshot
of all is, that the wonderful glory after extreme sufi'erings shall
become the exhibition for the display of every Divine attribute — an
exhibition of mercy, which shall inform the Church, down to the
most distant future of the fulness of the love of God; and of the
riches of his o;race.
PSALM XXIII.
A PSALM of praise, which exhibits the purest efi'usion of a soul
reconciled to God, and expresses the one thought oi' hapjnncss in
and ivith God. The blessed hour in which the bard composed this
psalm knew neither the law with its terrors nor sin with its tempta-
tions. Christians use this beautiful psalm as the expression of the
most peculiar emotions which their consciousness of salvation in
Christ has excited in them. This song yields not only the pre-
sentiments of the blessings of the kingdom of grace, but since the
Church militant does at no time experience those blessings in so
undimmed a light, may we not say that it yields the presentiment
of eternal happiness, which, in Rev. vii. 17, is described in these
144 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
words: ''The Lamb which is iu the midst of the throne shall feed
them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and
God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes"?
^A
PSALM of David.
2 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want anything.
3 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures :
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
4 He refresheth my soul :
He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his
name's sake.
5 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death,
I will fear no evil ; for thou art with me :
Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
6 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of
mine enemies:
Thou anointest my head with oil;
My cup runneth over.
7 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.
V. 2. The spell of childlike simplicity shed over this psalm
seems to refer it, like Psalm viii., to the period when David was
feeding his father's sheep. The transient allusion to enemies in
verse 6, presents the only objection to this view. But those words
need not be regarded as descriptive of present enemies. The first
portion of his stay at the court of Saul seems the most likely,
because then the recollections of his shepherd-life were still fresh.
We find that man's proneness to forget God is proportioned to the
magnitude of the blessings he confers on him. IIow delightful to
see David lift his soul to God, not only in the hour of affliction, but
also in the enjoyment of perfect peace. Can we conceive of any-
thing more impotent and helpless than a flock of sheep? Again,
who pursues his path in more perfect security and peace, than the
flock which feeds under the staff" of a faithful shepherd? Thus
helpless and unconcerned the children of God pass through life.
They say to themselves, He will think for me : he will care for me :
he will fight for me. The aged Israel calls the God of Abraham
and Isaac his ''Shepherd." (Gen. xlviii. 15, in the original.)
Isaiah prophesies of the period of redemption, "He shall feed his
flock like a shepherd : he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and
PSALM XXIII. 145
carry tliem in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with
young." (Isaiah xl. 11.) The Psalmist sings, ''Give ear, 0 Shep-
herd of Isi-ael, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock." (Ps. Ixxx. 2.)
The Prophets declare that "God will visit his people, and feed
them as their shepherd, by the Messiah, the Son of David." (Ezek.
xxxiv. 23; Jer. xxxi. 10.) And when He came, he said of him-
self: '*/ am the good ShepJierd, and know my sheep, and am
known of mine. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and
they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man jiluck them out of my hand."
(John X. 14. 27, 28.) ''I shall not want anything," sings the
bard, expressing thereby that God is his all-sufficient good : pos-
sessing him, he has everything. His words show that while he
says this, his soul is like a clear sheet of water or a cloudless sky.
Our anxiety, care, and restlessness arise, because God does not
suffice us.
V. 2, 3. He describes the blessings of the shepherd's crook,
first in figurative then in plain language — Lovely provision is made
to satisfy the hungry and thirsty of the flock. The lamb is fur-
nished with a green pasture, i. e. fresh and nourishing food, and
may repose beside the still (Isaiah viii. 6) waters, where its thirst
gets quenched and refreshing breezes blow. He now expresses his
meaning in plain language — Refreshment of his soul by Divine
instruction, and the treading of paths in which going astray or
falling are impossible. This David knows, that such grace is not
enjoyed by him because of any personal merit, but the Lord does it
all for his name's sake. (Ps. xxxi. 4; xxv. 11, etc.) That name
he himself declared to be ^^ merciful and gracious, longsnffering,
and abundant in goodness and truth." (Exod. xxxiv. 6.) He will
never prove faithless to that name: and as the name of God indi-
cates his Being, if he is said to do anything for his name's sake,
the meaning is that his merciful intentions flow from the ocean of
mercy of his Being.
V. 4, 5. The path of the flock is alternately along sunny moun-
tain sides and through dark and narrow rock-bound valleys; but
the lambs fear no mishap, knowing that a mighty shepherd's staff"
presides over their helplessness. So David yields not to the dreamy
illusion, that the godly are free from affliction on earth, but is well
aware that their bread is often steeped in tears. It is a beautiful
ti'ait of David's piety, that his happiness is not confined to bright
sunshine, but that he is not afraid in the dark vale, and for ever
finds a source of joy in the Shepherd's staff" which presides over
him. He drops the figure in verse 5, and denotes his enemies as
the evil in the dark valley. A well-spread table is within their
sight, at which he is seated with anointed head (Luke vii. 46) and
an overflowing cup. He shows that a mind reposing in God, while
sure of his mercy, may feast on the peace of God, undisturbed by
13
146 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
external calamity. Such a sentiment would be natural in a Chris-
tian, who as a child of the New Covenant may cheerfully exclaim,
"Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God
that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that
died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is ever at the right hand
of God, who also maketh intercession for us?" (Rom. viii. 33, 34;)
but confidence like that expressed in the Psalm before us is truly
marvellous in an Old Testament saint.
V. 6. The assurance of reconciliation is accompanied by the
assurance that no events in time can shorten, and no limits of time
circumscribe, the love and mercy of God. So the mighty faith of
David grasps the promises of God, steadfastly and calmly contem-
plating the alternations of uncertain life, and firmly convinced of
the immoveability of the Divine counsel. The Lord will never
forsake his people. The concluding words are very striking, " I
shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever."^ It is evident that
David refers not to a continuous residence in the tent of the ark or
the tabernacle: he rather considers the house of God as the sym-
bol of communion with God and the congregation of the righteous.
(Ps. lii. 10; cf. ad. Ps. xv. 1.) These words therefore furnish an
evidence that the blessings previously mentioned designate not
only the external blessings of man, but rather the enjoyments
which the Lord provides in the sanctuary for his people, the riches
of which David describes elsewhere in overwhelming fulness,
''How precious is thy loving-kindness, 0 God! that the children
of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. The?/ get
drunk loith the riches of thine house, thou mähest them drink of
the river of thi/ pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of light:
in thy light do we see light." (Ps. xxxvi. 8 — 10.)
PSALM XXIV.
A SONG of praise, sung on the same occasion as Psalm xv. when
the procession of the Levites had come near to the ancient castle
of Zion. (Cf. Introduction to Psalm xv.) The praise of having
won many victories, which are ascribed to the ark, clearly intimates
the days of David, for after it attained to its rest on Moriah, (Ps.
cxxxii. 14; cf. ad. Ps. xlvii.) it was no more taken into the camp.
The bard, anxious to express the solemnity of the moment,
declares that the sanctuary of Him is entering who has founded
the world and all that dwell therein. This gives rise to the ques-
* "One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I
may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life." (Ps. xxvii. 4.)
PSALM XXIV. 147
tion, Wlio is worthy to step into the vicinity of such a sanctuary?
(v. 1 — 3.) The generation of the true worshippers of God are
known by the purity of their hearts and hands (cf. Ps. xv.) and
not by their sacrifices. The hoary, grey castle gates, through which
many a wordly king of the Jebusites had entered, are too low to
receive the King of Heaven; they are therefore called upon to
raise their heads. As yet tliey knew him not in his dignity. A
mighty echo returns the question, "Who is the King of Glory?"
It is the Lord strong and mighty. How many victories have been
won by his ark? The gates must not deny admission to Him. But
the question re-echoes once more, as if to furnish the occasion for
a louder and more confident declaration of glory, (v. 7 — 10.)
^A
PRAYER of David.
First Clioir.
The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof;
The world, and they that dwell therein.
2 For he hath founded it above the seas,
And established it above the floods.
3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord ?
Or who shall stand in his holy place ?
Second Clioir.
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart;
Who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn
deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is the generation of them that seek him,
That seek his face, 0 Jacob. Selah.
First Choir.
7 Lift up your heads, 0 ye gates;
And be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors ;
And the King of glory shall come in.
Second Clioir.
8 Who is this King of glory ?
First Choir.
9 The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, 0 ye gates ;
Even lift them up, ye everlasting doors ;
And the King of glory shall come in.
148 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Second Choir.
10 Who is this King of glory ?
First Choir.
The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.
v. 1, 2. The name of God would not so easily glide over our
lips, nor would our minds evince so great an aptitude to wander
in our prayers, if we were able to concentrate at the time being
the sum total which that name includes. To impress the people
with the dignity attaching to the services before the sanctuary of
Israel, David deems it necessary to begin with an intimation of the
infinite majesty of Him before whom they were henceforth to appear
on the holy mount. Though he declares the small band of Israel
as his peculiar possession — though to Jacob only he showeth his
word, and to Israel his statutes and judgments, (Ps. cxlvii. 19,)
nevertheless the earth, its fulness, and its inhabitants, are his too.
The more numerous his subjects, the greater should be the grati-
tude of Israel for his election of grace. It is said in v. 2, that he
hath founded the earth ahove the sea and above the floods; this is
explained by the fact that the land rises above the waters, and the
Psalmist intends to show his marvel at the waters surrounding and
not swallowing up the earth.*
V. 3 — 6. This description of the true worshippers of God cor-
responds to that of Psalm xv. It is not the scrupulous payment of
external offerings, nor regular attendance in the sanctuary, nor the
punctilious observance of sacred rites. But the participation in
the act of adoration in the holy place, and the privilege of being
permitted to bring oflPerings to God, and made to depend on the
purity of heart and hands of the worshippers, which is still further
defined by a refraining from every species of vanity and deceitful
speech. We Christians ought to regard our services, not so much
as duties, but as sacred privileges. He says, "This is the genera-
tion of them that seek him, that seek his face," intimating that
those who pretend to care for God and to seek him, but strive not
for purity of heart and hands, must be regarded as hypocrites. In
calling that generation pa7- excellence Jacob, David makes a dis-
tinction similar to that made by Paul in Eom. ix. 6, between a
Jacob after the flesh and a Jacob after the Spirit. ■j' Paul indeed
* Ps. xxxiii. 7 ; Job xxvi. 10. Other commentators hold that the
Psalmist considers the earth as sTvimming in the waters, and alludes to
Gen. TÜ. 11, forgetting that the fountains of the great deep mentioned
there are in the womb of the earth; on the other hand it is said, Job
xxvi. 7, that the earth hangeth upon nothing.
f Cf. Israel Ps. Ixxiii. 1 ; xxv. 22 ; Isa. xlix. 3, etc. Israel is the more
solemn name for Jacob. The whole people is called Jacob, Ps. xlvii. 5.
PSALM XXV. 149
informs us that the promises of God became verified to this
Spiritual Israel with the advent of Messiah, though the large mass
of the people rejected him.
V. 7 — 10. The procession is now approaching the castle gates
of the seat of Jcbusite royalty, which David had conquered. Its
doors are called everlasting,* i. e. ancient doors. History describes
the Jebusites as a peculiarly powerful and firmly established nation
of Palestine : that castle therefore was probably for a long time the
seat of Jebusite royalty. (Josh. x. 1. 23.) The doors in the east
moreover are much lower than ours.f And is so uncommon a
king to hold his entrance without the gates lifting up their heads,
i. e. the raising of their capitals? As if hurt at so uncommon a
demand, the gates are made to inquire who that unknown king of
glory might be — who had never before entered through them.
Thrice they receive with increased confidence the response, that He
is the Lord of Hosts, he who won the victories which are still in
the memory of all.
PSALM XXV.
A SONG of complaint, either composed during the latter portion of
David's residence at the court of Saul, or during the years of his
exile.
Starting with the presence of his enemies the Psalmist seeks
comfort from the consciousness that he supplicates the assistance
of God as an intimate friend and not as a stranger, (v. 1 — 3.)
But he is aware of his need to pray for further guidance from
above for his advancement in righteousness, and to ask for the for-
giveness of many transgressions, (v. 4 — 11.) He knows and con-
fesses that the fear of the Lord leads to an ever-increasing illumi-
nation, and to the enjoyment of every good, (v. 12 — 14.) He
builds his hope on these convictions, and prays earnestly for Divine
aid against his enemies, (v. 15 — 21.)
1 \ PSALM of David.
Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my souL
2 0 my God, I trust in thee :
Let me not be ashamed.
Let not mine enemies triumph over me.
* This word refers not to the future, as 1 Kings viii. 13, but to the past,
as Isa. Iviii. 12; Hab. iii. 6; Ez. xxxvi. 2.
f Faber. Observations on the East, vol. i. p. 94, etc.
13*
450 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
3 Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed :
Let them be ashamed that wickedly despise thee.
4 Show me thy ways, 0 Lord;
Teach me thy paths.
5 Lead me in thy truth, and teach me :
For thou art the God of my salvation ;
On thee do I wait daily.
6 Remember, 0 Lord, thy tender mercies and thy loving-
kindnesses.
Eor they are from everlasting.
7 Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions :
According to thy mercy remember thou me
For thy goodness' sake, 0 Lord.
8 Good and upright is the Lord ;
Therefore will he teach sinners in the way.
9 The meek will he guide in judgment :
And the meek will he teach his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth
Unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.
11 For thy name's sake, 0 Lord, pardon mine iniquity;
For it is great.
12 What man is he that feareth the Lord?
Him shall he teach in the best way.
13 His soul shall lodge in goodness;
And his seed shall possess the land.
14 The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him ;
And he will show them his covenant.*
15 Mine eyes are ever towards the Lord :
For he shall pluck my feet out of the net.
16 Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me;
For I am desolate and afiiicted.
17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged :
0 bring thou me out of my distresses.
18 Look upon mine affliction and my pain ;
And forgive all my sins.
19 Consider mine enemies how many they be.
And they hate me with cruel hatred.
20 0 keep my soul and deliver me :
Let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.
* Or, "The Lord holds intimate converse with them that fear him; he
makes a covenant vrith them to instruct them."
PSALM XXV. 151
21 Let Integrity and uprightness preserve me ;
For I wait on thee.
22 Redeem Israel, 0 God, out of all his troubles,*
V. 1 — 3. " Unto thee, 0 Lord, do I lift tip my soul," is his
cry, forgetting earthly treasures, men, and ever^'thing beside God,
as it ought to be when we mean to pray aright. His enemies
mock and oppress him; but knowing that in their worst appear-
ance they are merely chastising rods in the hands of God, he
prays for deliverance by the hand of God. How appeasing the
thought that when men show enmity towards us they are simply
the chastising rods in the hands of God, which must cease to strike
as soon as his end is accomplished. David finds it difficult to bear
the mockincr triumph of his enemies, because, as has been already
more than once observed, he cannot put up with the denial of the
truthfulness of the promises of God. He calls his enemies, in
verse 3, " wicked despisers of God," i. e. such as do not keep his
laws. He hopes, because it is the eternal law of God, that none
who wait on him shall ever be ashamed. We must assume that he
refers to idtimate confusion, for we could not well deny that the
pious have occasionally to succumb.
V. 4 — 7. He numbers himself with those who icait upon the
Lord and trust in him. But he is afraid to say too much : he
shrinks from describing himself as too righteous, and prays there-
fore that God, the only source of his salvation, might graciously
direct him by his Spirit and lead him into his paths. He disavows
all claim and merit, and appeals to the mercies and goodness of
God, as the only sources of man's salvation. By adding '' ichich
are from everlasting^" he means to say that were God at any time
to cease revealing himself to man by those glorious attributes, it
would be tantamount to his ^^ proving untrue to himseJfJ' He
certainly remembers sin as the wall of partition which may step
between man and the mercy of God : especially the transgressions
of his youth, the period of our lives when the solemnity of the
Divine law is not sufficiently realized by man. But shall the
source from which he derives eveiy other good, refuse to yield the
forgiveness of his sins?
V. 8 — 10. As coals feed the fire, so the remembrance of the
truths of our faith should keep alive the flame of our prayers. He
derives comfort from his conviction that God, being good and
upright, cannot but lead into the paths of holiness those who really
desire to be instructed in them. The proud despise such instruc-
tion; David knows himself humbled; the humble and meek are,
however, the very parties whom God will guide and teach. These
truths therefore increase his comfort, which is still more enhanced
* Cf. Introduction to Psalm xiv.
152 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
by his conviction that the paths of the Lord are fraught with the
riches of mercy and truth, to all who are earnestly bent upon obey-
ing his law. He beautifully expresses the great truth, set forth
by our Lord, John vii. 17, that they are neither able nor entitled to
form a judgment of the ways and commandments of God, who only
apprehend them with their understanding: they must be obeyed,
if their power is to be felt.
V. 11 — 14. Prayer for forgiveness interrupts his meditation,
and very properly so : for no sooner do we realize the blessings of a
holy and pure life, than we get conscious of our many failings. He
is unable to present a more powerful shield to his threatening con-
science than the name of God's own choosing, which most tho-
roughly sets forth his glorious character. (Cf. ad. Psalm xxiii. 3.)
Having appeased the voice of conscience, he continued to delight
his soul with the contemplation of the blessed consequences of a
godly life. He is sure that the fear of the Lord is the best way :
the soul of the pious shall pitch her tent and lodge in goodness as
in a fruitful land — shall reach her home and possess it for ever.
The thought of the last expression requires some further elucida-
tion. Moses made the promise " to possess the land" (to inherit
the earth,) in a literal sense to his people, (Deut. iv. 22; xl. 5;
xxxvi. 6. 18,) but since his days it has been used to denote perfect
peace, as is apparent from Prov. ii. 21. (Cf. ad. Psalm xxxvii. 8, 9.
The Psalmist further declares that God will hold intimate commu-
nion (Cf Prov. iii. 32; and Job xxiv. 4, in the Hebrew,) with
them that fear him, instruct them by his Spirit, and establish them
in the truth.
V. 15, 16. Conscious of his sincerity, he yields once more to
the hope of deliverance, pleading that all other helpers had for-
saken him, and that the troubles of his heart are very great, at the
same time disclaiming personal merit.
V. 19 — 22. At the close of his prayer he resumes the petition
and complaint of the beginning, still enjoying the same comforts,
viz. the testimony of a good conscience towards his enemies, and a
heart assured that all help must come from above. Compare also
the remarks on Psalm xiv. 7.
PSALM XXVL
A SONG of complaint belonging to the time of Saul's persecution,
in which David expresses the innocence of his life and his love of
the sanctuary, and prays that on that account his destiny may not
be like that of the ungodly, when they are visited with the judg-
ments of God.
^A
PSALM XXVI. 153
PSALM of David.
Judge me, 0 Lokd ;
For I have walked in mine integrity:
I trust also in the Lord, therefore I shall not slide.
2 Examine me, 0 Lord, and prove me;
Try my reins and my heart.
3 For thy loving-kindness is before mine eyes :
And I have walked in thy truth.
4 I have not sat with vain persons,
Neither have I communed with dissemblers.
5 I have hated the congregation of evil doers ;
And have not sat with the wicked.
6 I will wash mine hands in innocency:
So will I compass thine altar, 0 Lord :
7 That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving,
And tell of all thy wondrous works,
8 Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house,
And the place where thine honour dwelleth.
9 Gather not my soul with sinners,
Nor my life with bloody men :
10 In whose hands is mischief.
And their right hand is full of bribes.
11 But as for me I will walk in mine innocence:
Redeem me, and be merciful unto me.
12 My foot standeth in an even place:
In the congregations will I bless the Lord.
V. 1. David received no justice at the hands of men, for the
king himself had become a servant of injustice. The blessing that
a Judge in heaven presides over all the judges on earth, cannot be
sufficiently prized till we get reduced to circumstances like these.
We have noticed his innocence at the persecutions of Saul,
(Ps. vii. 4, etc.) He clings to hope though years had passed
away without having produced any visible change. He enters
into the secret of the presence of Grod with his "I trust in the
Lord." Who can help admiring his unflagging faith? Who
feels not that these words are more than mere hollow phrases ?
V. 2 — 8. His own conscience yields so powerful a testimony
against the untrue accusations circulated by his enemies, that he
knows his heart and mind free from any stain in that respect.
His marvellous adherence to integrity in his conduct towards Saul
was the result of his piety. He evinced that piety in refusing to
associate with evil doers j he no doubt increased thereby the num-
154 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
ber of bis adversaries, and fanned tbe flame of tbeir passion. He
furtber showed it by paying to God tbe outward marks of adoration,
by bis offerings on tbe altar, bis songs of praise, and his preference
of tbe bouse of tbe Lord to every other dwelling. (Psalm xxiii. 6;
xxvii. 4; xxxvi. 9. Cf. on the house of the Lord ad. Psalm
xxiii. 6.) If "the honour of God" in this place be regarded to
be tbe glory of God as manifested above the ark of the covenant,
(Ezek. ix. 3; x. 4; 1 Sam. iv. 21; Ps. Ixxviii. 61,) it is to be
borne in mind that it cannot apply to Zion, for it was not removed
there until David's accession to the throne; again, tbe ark was in
Saul's time at Kirjatb-jearim, but to judge from 1 Chron. xiii. 3,
no service seems to have been held there in tbe days of Saul.
For these reasons we bad better understand tbe " honour" or
" glory" of God, of his majesty which is especially experienced
and found, when all tbe people pray to their God, as David says,
Psalm Ixiii. 3, "Thus have I seen thee in tbe sanctuary — seen thy
power and thy glory."
V. 9 — 12. Assured that God does not cease even on earth to
make a marked distinction between tbe godly and tbe ungodly,
but being then apparently exposed to tbe superiority of the foe,
(for tbe sword was hourly suspended above his head,) be prays
God to make a difference between bis destiny and that of the
wicked. (Ps. xxvii. 3, 4.) He describes tbe wicked as full of
mischief and ready to take bribes. The last clause seems not
applicable to bis then persecutors : by limiting it to cornipt
judges exclusively we narrow tbe expression: it is rather a general
description of dishonesty and corrupt disposition.* On the other
band, we are entitled to tbe supposition that Saul by no means
failed to reward bis abettors for accusing and persecuting David.
(1 Sam. xxii. 7, 8.) David once more declares bis resolution to
walk after the commandments of God, and since God likes nothing
more than being praised by sincere hearts, be vows not only to
celebrate bis praise in the closet, but to publish it in the great
congregations of tbe godly.
PSALM XXVII.
A PSALM of comfort, replete with strong faith and poetical beauty.
David confidently asserts that though numerous hosts should rise
against him, or bis nearest and dearest friends forsake him, be is
* Prov. XY. 27. "He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house:
but he that hateth gifts shall live." Sir. xx. 31. "Gifts and offerings
blind the wise." Sir. xl. 12. "All gifts and ill-gotten goods shall vanish,
but honesty shall abide for ever."
PSALM XXVII. 155
sure to ultimately triumph through the Lord. From special
attention being had to verses 3, 4, 6, 10, 12, and their comparison
with several psalms which were composed during the persecution
of Absalom, (Ps. Ixiii. 42, 43,) it seems very probable that this
psalm falls into the same period.
When all the people had risen against David, he fervently and
joyfully clings to his God, (v. 1 — 3.) He regards the communion
with God, which he had enjoyed in the sanctuary, as his highest
good, and looks at the sanctuary as a sure asylum, where he yet
hopes to sing his praises, (v. 4 — 6.) After this lofty flight of his
soul, complaint gets audible but only for a moment — it immedi-
ately re-assumes the expression of confidence, (v. 7 — 10.) The
injustice and violence of his enemies raise his courage to pray.
What would his condition be without his trust in God ? He
therefore encourages himself in the fervour and assurance of
faith, (v. 11—14.)
^A
PSALM of David.
The Lord is my light and my salvation ;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of m j life ;
Of whom shall I be afraid ?
Though the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes,
should come upon me to eat up my flesh,
They shall stumble and fall.
Though an host should encamp against me.
My heart shall not fear:
Though war should rise against me.
In this will I he confident.
One tJmig have I desired of the Lord,
That will I seek after;
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days
of my life ;
To behold the beauty* of the Lord,
And to look at his temple.
For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion :
In the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me :
He shall set me upon a rock.
And now shall mine head be lifted above mine enemies
round about me:
Therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I Avill sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
* In the Hebrew, "loveliness."
156 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
7 Hear, 0 Lord, when I cry with my voice :
Have mercy also upon me and answer me.
8 My heart reminds thee of thy word: " Seek ye my face."
Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
9 Hide not thy face far from me ;
Put not thy servant away in anger:
Thou hast been my help ; leave me not,
Neither forsake me, 0 God of my salvation.
10 When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the Lord will take me up.
11 Teach me thy way, 0 Lord,
And lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
12 Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies :
For false witnesses are risen up against me.
And such as breathe out cruelty.
13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness
of the Lord
14 In the land of the living.* Wait on the Lord:
Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart :
Wait, I say, on the Lord.
Y. 1, 2. Here, as in Ps. xlix. 6; Ixxiii. 1, we see a heart, which
having struggled some time with the temptation of despair mounts
triumphantly, fearlessly braving every storm, conscious that while
God is for us, we need not fear if the whole world be against us.
This triumph of faith is impossible if we lack the assurance that
God is reconciled to us : hence it arises in the soul of Old Testa-
ment saints as a transient ray of light, which is soon succeeded by
former darkness. Only Paul was able all his life long to enjoy the
assurance which he expresses in Rom. viii. 31, etc. "My light,
my salvation, the strength of my life," is "my All in All," where
I find concentrated everything in the search of which others have
to pursue many roads.
V. 3, 4. Convinced that the combined strength of mortals is
nothing compared unto God, David neither fears hostile armies nor
an entire people risen in rebellion. He uses similar language in
Ps. iii. 6, 7, "I laid me down and slept, I awaked for the Lord
sustained me: I will not be afraid often thousands of people, that
have set themselves against me round about." On his flight before
Absalom, he left behind him his palace, his residence, his crown,
his wife and children : he thinks of none of these, but it is the
highest object of his desire "to dwell in the house of the Lord all
the days of his life," so when he was in the desert (Ps. Ixiii.) his
* Cf. Gen. 1. 15, in the Hebrew.
PSALM xxvir. 157
soul thirsted for God and his sanctuary more than for anything
else. 2 Sam. xv. 25, shows how all his desires concentrated in the
hope of his seeing again the sanctuary on Zion. The holiest experi-
ences of his life were connected with the sanctuary, he therefore
desired to be never separated from it. It is there where he realized
the delight of holy communion with Grod, which he describes
Ps. xxxvi. 8 — 10; Ixxxiv. 11. *'To behold the beauty of the
Lord" in connection with <' looking at his temple" is best explained
by Luther, who renders, ''to behold the beautiful services (worship)
of the Lord." Psalm xcii. 2, describes the same delights. " It is a
precious thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises
unto thy name, 0 most High." These passages show that many
of the pious in Israel regarded their worship not as an outward
formality, performed in obedience to the law, but that they poured
their whole soul into it and derived spiritual strength from it.
David goes beyond the delights of worship : he longs " to look at
the sanctuary." This meaning* is not "outward admiration," nor
the solemn sentiments only to which the holy place might give
rise, but the contemplation of the symbolical meaning of the holy
ritual: for just as our weak eyes are only able to look at the sun
when he is reflected in the mirror of the waters, so spiritual truths
were accessible to the ancients only when they were reflected in
the mirror or the symbol. f Another psalm which falls into this
period depicts in almost the same words the longing of the exiled
king for the sanctuary and its services, (Ps. Ixiii. 2, 3.)
V. 5, 6. The tabernacle presented an asylum to the pursued.
(1 Kings ii. 29.) He therefore names the pavilion of God as his
place of refuge in all the tempests of his life: the same thought is
expressed in Psalm Ixi. 5. (Cf Ps. xxxi. 21.) David having
spoken of the temple in verse 4, names in verses 5, 6, the taber-
nacle, which shows, as was observed ad. Psalm v. 8, that the taber-
nacle used to be called the temple.\ Another figure describes the
manner of his deliverance from danger. "He shall set me upon a
rock." In that manner he had during his former years of sufi'er-
ing often escaped from his persecutors. While the children of the
* The Hebrew means rather "mental looking at a thing" than physical.
f "A former race, more affected by sensuous impressions, must have
possessed a greater sense (adaptation) for symbolical language : it may be
said that entire nature showed her physiognomy to them." 0. Mueller,
Prolegora. of Mythology, p. 258. Cf. Baehr's Symbolism of the Mosaic
Ritual, 2 vols. 1837 and 1839.
J Commentators who dispute the Davidic origin of this psalm, have not
satisfactorily explained David's speaking here of the Tabernacle. Krahmer
says, "The temple which was built in the form of the tabernacle." Others
(Gesenius) think that Ezek. xli. 1, is as much "tent" as "temple." Cf.
however Bcetticher's Specimens of the Old Testament Interpretations,
p. 237.
14
158 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
world celebrate only secular triumphs after such marvellous preser-
vations and deliverances, and praise and magnify their good for-
tune, David thinks beforehand of the praises he intends to sing to
his Lord, and he does it with an evident foretaste of holy delight.
V. 7 — 10. He had struggled through much anxiety to the con-
fidence here expressed; but as the waves of the heart undulate,
and light and shade alternate in trouble, fear breaks forth once
more, though it is raised and supported by divine consolation.
With the key of a divine promise as ancient as Moses, (Deut.
iv. 29; cf. 2 Chron. xv. 2; Psalm cv. 4,) he unlocks the door that
leads to God, and takes God at his own word, whereby he teaches
us how the word of God should, like the echo in mountainous
regions, find a thousandfold echo in our hearts, to raise our confi-
dence by its repeated calls. Having laid hold of God in his word,
he continues to pray for the experience of its jjower: for by the
unveiling of the countenance of God he understands the experience
of his favour. He prays in the right manner, disowning all other
help save that of God. We may have earthly resources, and apply
to them, but we are to do it in God, not without him. David is so
sure of divine favour, that though all earthly supports however
near and dear should fail, he knows that God will always remain
the same. Parental hearts are susceptible of the tenderest love for
their ofi^pring, but God has promised far greater : "Can a woman
forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the
son of her womb? i/ea, they may forget, yet will not I forget thee."
(Isa. xlix. 15.) God is David's first and last resource: he presents
indeed a powerful contrast to an unbelieving world, to whom God,
if haply they think of him, is only the stop-gap of earthly helpers.
But the Lord is a jealous God, who will not give his glory to
another. (Exod. xxxiv. 14.)
F. 11, 12. It is touching to notice his prayers for Divine assist-
ance that transgression may not deprive him of the glory which
until then even his enemies were obliged to leave him; viz. the
glory of a good conscience. Now that the father went to war against
his son, the king against his own people, there were many occasions
for stumbling, either from weakness or severity. Certain calumnies
of his enemies were not wanting: 2 Sam. xv. 3, 4, state the rumours
detrimental to the character of David which had been circulated by
Absalom, and 2 Sam. xvi. 8, the unjust railings which Shimei
uttered in the interest of Absalom.
F. 13, 14. We may supply the thought of David to the words,
"I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the
Lord in the land of the living," from. Psalm cxix. 92, where he says,
''Unless the law bad been my delights, I shoidd then have per ished
in mine affliction" If he had not trusted in the Lord, he would
indeed have been undone; for in his circumstances there was no
PSALM XXVIII. 159
hope for him with men. Hoping in the Lord he encourages himself,
that though his help be delayed, he will not look out for any other
help. There is no more dignified species of worship to be found,
than that of exemplifying our faith in the omnipotence and wisdom
of God, by humble and joyous perseverance under the greatest
difficulties.
PSALM XXVIII.
A SONG of complaint, belonging to the time of Absalom's persecu-
tion, as appears from verses 8, 9, where David prays for himself
the king, and for his loyal subjects. (Cf. Ps. Ixiii. 12.)
In some mournful hour of that time he prays Grod not to suflfer
the innocent to be destroyed with the guilty, (v. 1 — 5.) His faith
then mounts suddenly to prophetic certainty : he thanks the Lord
for having answered his prayers, and expresses his conviction that
the blessing of Grod will rest on the king and the people, (v. 6 — 9.)
^A
PSALM of David.
Unto thee will I cry, 0 Lord, my rock ; be not silent
to me:
Lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go
down into the pit.
Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee.
When I lift up my hands towards thy holy oracle.
Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers
of iniquity,
Which speak peace to their neighbours,
But mischief is in their hearts.
Give them according to their deeds,
And according to the wickedness of their endeavours :
Give them after the work of their hands ;
Render to them their desert.
Because they regard not the works of the Lord,
Nor the operation of his hands,
He shall destroy them, and not build them up.
Blessed he the Lord,
Because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
160 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
7 The Lord is mj strength and my shield ;
My heart trusted in him, and I am helped:
Therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth;
And with my song will I praise him.
8 The Lord is their strength (i. e. the faithful followers of
the king,)
And he is the saving strength of his anointed.
9 Save thy people, and hless thine inheritance ;
Feed them also, and lift them up for ever.
V. 1. David's refuge is with God — this evidences his faith and
good conscience. For however much suffering dims the life of all,
there are but few who make the Lord their refuge. Most men
either inwardly consume their grief in obstinate silence, or give
vent to it in idle complaints, or conquered by despair succumb to
misfortune. The reason is just this, that most men shrink from
approaching God through infidelity or accusing consciences, and
know not the blessedness of confiding in his omnipotence and
mercy. David indicates the greatness of his danger by saying,
that he resembles those who have no hope on earth.
V. 2. His supplication is fervent — the waters are come unto
his soul. He has not indulged in lukewarm speech before God,
but cried and lifted up his hands to the Holiest of Holies : viz.
toward the seat of the ark, the visible sanctuary which God had
provided for Israel, because they found it so difl&cult to raise their
hearts to heaven.
V. 3 — 5. Far from believing that God makes no difference
between the righteous and the ungodly and treats both indiscrimi-
nately alike, he forms the hope of his consolation from the character
of God. In verse 5, the root of the evil works of the wicked is
shown, who will not regard the doings of the Lord — those evidences
of his power, wisdom, and righteousness, which in every place he
has exhibited to the attentive observer.
V. 6, 7. Hearty petitions imply the assurance that they will be
answered. Hence no surprise need be felt if assurance often fur-
nishes the Amen. So here in the case of David. If his assurance
was of the right kind, we have to regard his Amen not as a human
response, but like assurance itself, the effect of the Holy Spirit.
Being able like a hero to look to the Lord and to trust in his
strength, his help is come.
F. 8, 9. ''The Lord is their strength." This refers to his
faithful followers, who had not joined the multitude in siding with
Absalom. He refers to these in Psalm Ixiii. 12, "But the king
shall rejoice in God; ever^ one that sweareth hy him shall glory,"
as in Psalm iii. he concludes with praying in verse 9 for these —
the chosen people, the people and inheritance of God.
PSALM XXIX. 161
PSALM XXIX.
A ÖLORIOÜS psalm of praise sung during a tempest, the majesty of
which shakes universal nature, so much so that the greatness of
the power of the Lord is felt by all in heaven and on earth. This
Lord is the God of his people, who blesses them with strength and
peace.
To rightly appreciate the feelings of the bard, one ought to
realize an oriental storm, especially in the mountainous regions of
Palestine, which, accompanied by the terrific echoes of the encir-
cling mountains, by torrents of rain like waterspouts, often scatters
terror on man and beast, destruction on cities and fields.*
^A
PSALM of David.
Give unto the Lord, 0 ye mighty, f
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
2 Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name;
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
3 The voice of the Lord is upon the waters ;
The God of glory thundereth :
The Lord is above great waters.
4 The voice of the Lord is powerful ;
The voice of the Lord is full of majesty.
5 The voice of the Lord breaketh the cedars ;
Yea, the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon.
6 He maketh them also to skip like calves:
Lebanon and Sirion like young buffaloes.
7 The voice of the Lord divideth the flames of fire.
8 The voice of the Lord shaketh the wilderness ;
The Lord shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh,
9 The voice of the Lord maketh the hinds (for terror)
to calve,
And denudeth the forests:
And in his temple the utterance of all is, "glory."
* Wilson, the traveller, describes such a tempest in the neighbourhood
of Baalbek; "I was overtaken by a storm, as if the floodgates of heaven
had burst; it came on in a moment, and raged with a power which sug-
gested the end of the world. Solemn darkness covered the earth: the rain
descended in torrents, and sweeping down the mountain side, became by
the fearful power of the storm transmuted into thick clouds of fog." Cf.
also our Lord's parable, taken from life, in Matt. vii. 27.
f Or, "Ye sons of God."
u*
162 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
10 The Lord sittetli enthroned upon the floods ;
Yea, the Lord sitteth King for ever.
11 The Lord will give strength unto his people ;
The Lord will bless his people with peace.
V. 1, 2. The Psalmist translates himself to the regions above,
where the events of earth are prepared. The mighty ones of God
or the sons of God, t. e. his heavenly spirits, are represented as
spectators, while the Lord is about to send the messengers of his
power to the earth. The Psalmist calls upon them to praise the
mighty Lord in the beauty of holiness, i. e. after the solemn man-
ner of priests. (Psalm ex. 3.) Heaven is properly the Temple of
God, (verse 9 ; Ps. xi. 4,) of which earthly temples are only the
representations. Saints on earth adore and worship at the rising
of the Lord's tempests — how much more the holy ones in heaven !
V. 3, 4. The solemn repetition of " The voice of the Lord,"
occurs seven times. A sevenfold thunder is mentioned Rev. x. 4.
It is as if the voice of thunder were audible in sevenfold peals.
The waters float as yet heavily along the sky, while the thunder
rages with majesty and power in the heavens above them. (Cf. Ps.
civ. 3; cxlviii. 4.)
V. 5 — 9. The thunder of the Lord descends to the earth in the
lofty regions of Northern Palestine, in the high mountains of
which its power is felt first. The ancient cedars, crowded together
on Lebanon and Sirion, (i. e. Anti-Lebanon,) leap at the mighty
thunder peals, like calves skipping on the pasture or like young
bufl*aloes, and are torn down. The thunder descending to the
earth, separates into hissing lightning. The level country, the
deserts, the pastures — as far as the southern frontier of Palestine,
the wilderness of Kadesh, where the country of the Edomites
begins — all shake and tremble. Storm and lightning divest the
trees of the forest of their garment, and terror-struck the timid
hinds give premature birth to their young. The celestial specta-
tors gaze upon the scene, and the sound of "Glory, glory!" rever-
berates through the heavenly temple.
V. 10, 11. The Psalmist sees these things not with his physical
but with his spiritual eye : the majesty of the Lord, however great
and glorious it did appear to him at all times, seems more royal
still on his beholding the King of nature enthroned over the floods
of water. This revelation of his majestic power was transient: but
the power itself is his for ever and for ever. " Happy are we," he
concludes, "if this God is our God: happy are we, for he will give
us strength and peace."
PSALM XXX. 163
PSALM XXX.
A HUMBLE and joyful psalm of praise after deliverance from
great affliction. Its title and its contents can be harmonized on
the supposition, that David composed it when he dedicated the
place for the building of the Temple, on which God had com-
manded him to erect an altar after the deliverance of the country
from the pestilence. (1 Chron. xxi. 18 ; xxii. 1.) The details of
that event were as follows. In spite of the monitions of Joab, not
to sin against the Lord, David had insisted upon taking the census
of the martial strength of his nation. Joab, afraid of the resist-
ance of the people, had, accompanied by a military escort, gone
through the country for that purpose. (2 Sam. xxiv. 4j 1 Chron.
xxi. 4.) Though the historical books are not explicit as to the
motives of the king, yet the manner of the expressions used seems
to indicate that David yielded to the promptings of pride — that he
sought in the exact knowledge of his available resources to gratify
his ambition, and in the enrolment of those of his subjects who
were corapeteot to take up arms, to find a coercive which should
render the participation in new military enterprises obligatory to
all his subjects.
The assumption of the latter view is suggested by the question
of Joab, ''My lord king, are they not all my lord's servants?"
This measure is the more striking because it falls into the latter
portion of the life of David, when his kingdom was not exposed to
any danger. The unpopularity of that measure with the people
may be inferred from the circumstance, that Joab was obliged to
go through the country under military escort, and that he could
not make up his mind to extend the census to Benjamin, a tribe
much inclined to resistance. (1 Chron. xxi. 6. Cf. on the aver-
sion of Benjamin to the king, Introduction to Psalm Ixxviii.)
The pestilence raged for three days in the land as a Divine pun-
ishment for the daring of the king. David and the elders of
Israel, clothed in sackcloth, (i. e. mourning apparel,) fell upon
their faces with prayers of repentance. Then was the plague
stayed, and Gad, the aged prophet, who had stood by David from
his youth, delivered the Divine commission to him, that he was to
build an altar on the place where the pestilence was stopped, on
Moriah. The sacredness in which David held that spot was pro-
portioned to the depths of his repentance. It was to him a stand-
ing memorial of the mercy of God. On that identical spot he
determined to erect the temple, the building of which he could
only prepare but not execute in his advanced age. The Psalm
expresses feelings such as we should or might expect then, (after
such events,) at the dedication of that place for the buiiding of
the temple. His security of pride, which led to the taking of the
164 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
census, is expressed in verses 7, 8, while v. 9 — 11 denote his fear
of being consumed by the judgment of Grod. (Cf 2 Sam. xxiv. 17.)
He glories at the brief duration of the anger of the Lord in
verses 5, 6. Feelings of deep humility and vivid joy alternate in
this beautiful psalm.
He glories in his deliverance from the brink of the precipice,
(v. 2—4,) and invites the godly to celebrate the riches of the
longsuflfering and mercy of God, who suffers his anger to endure
but for a little, (v. 5, 6.) He describes his former security, as
well as his complaint when chastisement broke in, (v. 7, 11,) and
regards his deliverance as the most emphatic exhortation to the
unceasing praise of the Lord, (v. 12, 13.)
1 A PSALM and Song of David at the dedication of the
a\. temple.
2 I will extol thee, 0 Lord ; for thou hast lifted me up,
And hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
3 0 Lord my God, I cried unto thee,
And thou hast healed me.*
4 0 Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave :
Thou hast kept me alive, while others went down to
the pit.
5 Sing unto the Lord, 0 ye saints of his,
And give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
6 For his anger endureth but a moment;
But his favour for life.
Weeping may come in the evening,
But joy in the morning.
7 And in my prosperity I said,
"I shall never be moved."
8 Lord, by thy favour thou hadst made my mountain to
stand strong:
But thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.
9 I cried to thee, 0 Lord ;
And unto the Lord I made supplication.
10 What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to
the pit?
Shall the dust praise thee ? shall it declare thy truth ?
11 Hear, 0 Lord, and have mercy upon me :
Lord, be thou my helper.
12 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing:
Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with
gladness :
* Or, "Thou hast restored me."
PSALM XXX. 165
13 To the end that my soul* may sing praise to thee, and
not be silent.
0 Lord, my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
v. 2 — 4. History coincides with the sentiments of this psalm.
David so far from expecting to remain untouched by the pestilence,
prompted by his love for his people, actually called the punish-
ment upon his own guilty head. Hence his lively gratitude.
He says that he could have borne least the triumphant rejoicings
of his foes at home and abroad. Is it possible to think of any-
thing more humiliating than that he should expire beneath the
chastising strokes of that God, in whose aid he had so often
gloried, and whose support had carried him to so lofty a position?
He was preserved alive, while others went down to the pit. For
this he had reason to thank and praise the Lord in deep humility
but in great joy withal. From the expression, "And thou hast
healed me," in verse 3, it does not follow that the king himself
was ill, since the words "to heal" and "to build" are used in the
Old Testament to denote any kind of healing. David tottered
when his kingdom tottered.
V. 5, 6. It is beautifully instructive to notice how the Psalmists
rise from their individual to general experience : identifying them-
selves with the Church they address the Church. The consoling
sentiment of verse 6, has dried myriads of tears since David
uttered it for the first time. True, our life is made up of so much
trouble and anguish, and such a perpetual alternation of light and
shade, that hardly a day passes without its sorrow for the present,
its care for the future. But the assurance of Divine favour invari-
ably enriches our souls with peace and gladness under present
trouble no less than in sight of fears of the future, and the severity
of Divine wrath is felt by those who are reconciled to God for
hours and moments only: the pious are therefore entitled to say
with David, that the proportion of their sense of Divine favour
and inward joy to Divine wrath and inward trouble, is like that of
their whole life to a moment. This sentiment in the mouth of
David shows that he did not determine the measure of his enjoy-
ments and pleasures by what is so called by the many — for since
few have to drain a larger cup of affliction than fell to his lot, his
delight in life must have been based upon his delight in the love
of God. Who else would during so many years of affliction have
composed the number of songs of gratitude and praise which David
did? (Isa. liv. 7, 8.)
* The original has "soul" (or "tongue") without the pronoun, but such
omissions of the pronoun are by no means rare, (Jer. xxxi. 47; xiv. 10;
Psalm Ix. 6; cxlix. 5.)
166 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
V. 7, 8. David with all his faults is ever ready to admit that
the chastisement of God is just, an extremely difficult admission to
the majority of men. The ancient declaration of Moses, "that
when Israel waxed fat he kicked," (Deut. xxxii. 15,) finds its daily
confirmation in life. Though there is nothing more dissonant with
a truly pious man, than in prosperity to arrive at a carnal security,
yet some even of the pious occasionally yield to this temptation.
David is far from saying with Nebuchadnezzar, "Is not this great
Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the
might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?" (Daniel
iv. 27.) On the contrary he says, "Lord, by thy favour thou
hadst made my mountain to stand strong." But his very readiness
to trace back all his glory to Grod exposed him to the danger of
mingling self-elevation with his heartfelt joy at the mercy of Grod ;
or he may have resembled those who in their confession, "Grod be
merciful to me a sinner," are wont to give the whole emphasis to
the word me instead of merciful; or in praising and considering
the gift of God, he may have rejoiced more at the gift than at the
Giver. The exact computation and mobilisation of his forces indi-
cates a state of mind but little befitting the aged king, who had
triumphed over all his enemies, and knew his kingdom secure. He
had yet to learn what is expressed in Psalm cxix. 67, "Before I
was brought low I went astray; but now have I kept thy word,"
''Thou hast made my mountain to stand strong," may refer to
Zion, but "mountain" is probably a figurative expression for
'' majesty," (t. e. royal highness.)
V. 9 — 11. When the Lord hid his countenance, David sought
to move him by his vows, and regarding his earthly existence in
the sole aspect of setting forth the glory of God, supplicated the
assistance of the Lord.
V. 12, 13. He and the elders of Israel had lain on their faces
in mourning apparel before the Lord. Now he was permitted to
gird himself with gladness : he determines to make the praises of
the Lord the business of his life, and his preparations for the
building of the temple are subservient to that intention.
PSALM XXXL
A PLAINTIVE psalm, composed under a sense of great desertion,
from which the Psalmist, however, rises to confidence and firm
courage. It evidently belongs to the period of David's flight, when
the persecution had been raging for some time, and began to get
intolerable, (v. 11.) Commentators have referred this psalm to the
PSALM XXXI. 167
same period as 1 Sam. xxiii. 26, simply because both there and in
V. 23 of this psahu the same word stands in the original.*
Conscious of his confidence in the Lord, he begins the psalm
with believing supplication, (v. 2 — 9;) his cry for help, however,
becomes more painful and touching on his realizing the continu-
ance and magnitude of his sufferings, (v. 10 — 19;) but placing,
on the other hand, the riches of the mercy of the Lord before his
soul, he feels edified and strengthened to a degree, that he wonders
how he could have hesitated : and concludes with an exhortation to
the godly to repose unwavering trust in the Lord, (v. 22 — 25.)
1 n^^O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 In thee, 0 Lord, do I put my trust;
Let me never be ashamed :
Deliver me in thy righteousness (goodness.)
3 Bow down thine ear to me ;
Deliver me speedily : be thou my strong rock,
For an house of defence to save me.
4 For thou art my rock and my fortress ;
Therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me.
5 Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me :
For thou art my strength.
6 Into thine hand I commit my spirit :
Thou hast redeemed me, 0 Lord God of truth.
7 I hate them that regard lying vanities :
But I trust in the Lord.
8 I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy :
For thou hast considered my trouble ;
Thou hast known my soul in adversities ;
9 And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy :
Thou hast set my feet in a large room (space.)
10 Have mercy upon me, 0 Lord, for I am in trouble:
Mine eye is consumed with grief,
Yea, my soul and my belly.
* Jeremiah and .Jonah have used this psalm in later times, and borrowed
some of its expressions. Cf. Sam. iii. 54, with verse 23; Jer. xx. 10, with
verse 14; Jonah ii. 3, with verse 23; Jonah ii. 9, with verse 7; also Psalm
xliv. 14; Ixxix. 4, with verse 12. That the prophets used the Psalms, and
not the Psalmist the prophets, may be inferred from the fondness of Jere-
miah to weave the sayings of the ancients into his compositions : it is
unmistakable e. g. in Psalm i. 3; xxxiii. 7. Cf. in general. Küper, Jeremias
librorum sacrorum interpres atque index, Berlin, 1837 — a work which is
not j-et sufficiently estimated.
168 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
11 For my life is spent with grief,
And my years with sighing :
My strength faileth because of my punishment,
And my bones are consumed.
12 I am become a reproach among all mine enemies,
But especially among my neighbours,
And a fear to my kindred:
They that see me without flee from me.
13 I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind :
I am like a broken vessel.
14 For I have heard the slander of many :
Fear is on every side :
While they take council together against me.
They devise to take away my life.
15 But I trust in thee, 0 Lord :
I say, "Thou art my God."
16 My times are in thy hand :
Deliver me from the hand of mine enemies.
And from them that persecute me.
17 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant :
Save me for thy mercies' sake.
18 Let me not be ashamed, 0 Lord, for I have called upon
thee:
The wicked shall be ashamed,
They shall be silenced in Sheol.
19 The lying lips shall be put to silence
Which speak grievous things proudly
And contemptuously against the righteous.
20 Oh how great is thy goodness,
Which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee ;
Which thou showest to them that trust in thee before
the sons of men !
21 Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence
From the device of man :
Thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion
From the strife of tongues.
22 Blessed he the Lord:
For he hath showed me his marvellous kindness
In a strong city.
23 For I said in my haste,
I am cut off from before thine eyes :
Nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplications
When I cried unto thee.
PSALM xxxr. 169
24 0 love the Lord, all ye his saints :
For the Lord preservcth the faithful,
And plentifully rewardeth the proud doer.
25 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart,
All ye that hope in the Lord.
V. 2 — 4. The prayer for speedy deliverance shows the greatness
of his affliction, while verses 10, 11, indicate that he was not inex-
perienced in the school of sorrows. How many prayers, equally
believing, may have preceded this, without having effected the
cessation of his season of suffering. We cannot sufficiently admire
these words, "In thee do I put my trust," which with every new
day of suffering, rise in undiminished strength. Though a thousand
times sent away, we should find it an easy thing to return a thou-
sand times to the same door, did we but possess the assurance of
of David that ilih is the only way to salvation: for he knows of no
other rock nor fortress than God.
V. 5 — 9. Most men suffer shipwreck on one of two cliffs; they
either march so securely in this life, where, as one of the Fathers
observes, man is ever walking on glass, as if no mishap could
befall them ; or, aware of the uncertainty of human prosperity, they
toil and labour in seeking to keep every disturbance of it at a dis-
tance, just as if they were able to see and manage everything.
David, though perfectly conscious of the thousandfold dangers which
beset our every step, yet equally convinced of the utter insufficiency
of human foresight, avoids either mistake. He is anxious for his
life, but anxious in such a manner that he commits it to the best
of advocates. His confidence is not the trial of a novice, who for
the first time tests his faith and his God. He is enabled to call
God by a name, which if learnt from experience and not from books,
is itself a potent shield in the clay of temptation. He calls him the
God of truth, i. e. faithfulness, knows the inanity of every other
hope, and is sure that God rcniemhers him in days of adversity.
V. 10, 11. The contrast of past experience with present facts
impresses him with the full extent of his tribulation. Though a
hero in mind, though disciplined in the school of sorrows, yet the
grief of his soul has so afiected him that his sap of life is consumed
and his body attenuated. The sting of conscience has blended
with the external causes of his misery. Great evil, according to
the divinely instituted connexion between sin and evil, always tends
to awaken man's consciousness of guilt. Though in his present
troubles innocent before man, he knew himself impure (Cf. ad. Ps.
vi. 1) before God, and called therefore his misery his punishment.
V. 12 — 14. Though these and similar expressions in the Psalms
cannot always be taken in a literal sense, (Cf Ps. Ixix. 9; Ixxxviii.
19,) they may be conceived as literally true in the case of David.
15
170 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
A man exiled by his king, who would reward with his royal favour
those who betrayed him, (1 Sam. xxii. 8; xxiii. 21,) could not but
become the reproach of those whose houses he used to frequent.
Nor does the fear of his kindred seem strange, since their connexion
with him (especially at a time when enmity towards an individual
became transferred upon all his family) was no doubt fraught with
danger to them. We read indeed that David, in order to secure
the safety of his parents, deemed it necessary to remove them to
the land of the Moabites. (1 Sam. xxii. 3.) It was even true that
his nearest relatives and friends had forgotten him like a dead man:
he could no longer meet with Jonathan, and probably saw his re-
latives during his decennial flight on that one occasion only when
he met them in the cave of Adullam. (1 Sam. xxii. 1.) That cave
was near Bethlehem, the town of David's tribe, (cf. the locality in
the narrative 2 Sam. xxiii. 13, etc.,') and he seems afterwards not
to have been so near the capital. "Fear on every side" was expe-
rienced by David more than any one else; for no secret nook nor
corner of the country was too remote to prevent infuriated Saul
from attempting the seizure of the fugitive. Add to all this his
many treacherous and false friends.
V. 15 — 19. David's faith stands the test in the midst of all these
temptations of outward affliction : he neither regards the number
nor the strength of his enemies, but looks to the hand of God, who
distributes the fortunes of men. So the believing child of God,
instead of settling his affairs with his enemies, commits them to
God from his closet, and while they deem themselves quite secure,
the strength of his prayers arrays Heaven against them.
V. 20 — 22. The consideration of his own experience of the
goodness of God, and that in the midst of his severe trials, leads
him to break forth into its admiration. His heart is deeply moved.
He speaks of the goodness of God in general toward all that fear
him, because he knows that no arbitrariness comes into play, but
as all who approach the sun are, irrespective of choice or favour,
warmed and illumed by his genial beams, so the goodness of God
does after the same law benefit those who seek and fear the Lord.
Many who repose their trust in God are by the fear of man deterred
from honouring him before men. David therefore expressly states,
that genuine trust in Him ought always to be accompanied by the
confession of him as our sole helper, before all men. Significant
are the terms that God has laid tip that goodness for the pious, and
that he showeth it to them; meaning that God reserves more good-
ness by far than he shows. The Lord has his festina lente, and
the choicest of his favours are reserved for another world. (See 1
Cor. ii. 9.) But the goodness of God is also displayed to the wicked,
as our Lord says in Matt. v. 45, and even the brute creation shares
in it. But since this goodness is received according to the measure
of individual susceptibility, and since none save believers possess
PSALM XXXII. 171
tbe susceptibility for tbe spiritual goods of God, and since, more-
over, none can be truly happy with earthly gifts and possessions
save those who receive and use them in the right manner, David
may well praise the 2)<^culiar goodness of God towards his children.
From the fact that the tabernacle presented an asylum to fugitives,
he figuratively states that the pious are hid in the pavilion of God,
but afterwards changes the figure and compares the protection of
God to a well-fortified city.
V. 23 — 25. He attempts not to conceal that he too has had his
weak hours. He is the more ready to make this humiliating con-
fession, because it sets the longsufi"eriag of God in a stronger
light, (who remembers that his saints are still endued with flesh
and blood,) and leads to the edifying of desponding minds. He
turns to such desponding souls with the express exhortation not to
get languid in their love to God, nor to lose courage in the strug-
gles which are appointed for them by transient hours of doubt,
nor to measure their power of resistance by their own resources,
but by trusting in the Lord to wait for his assistance and support.
PSALM XXXII.
A PENITENTIAL prayer of David, apparently referring to the trans-
gression to which Psalm li. alludes, with this difi'erence, that in
Psalm li. there seems to exist a mind which longs for forgiveness,
and here one which has realized it after the confession of sin. It
appears therefore that Ps. li. was composed immediately upon, this
some time after David's fall. If according to the title of Ps. li.
David composed it after Nathan came to him, we cannot expect it to
contain sentiments likely to have occurred immediately after his fall,
for Nathan did not meet David till after Bathsheba had given birth
to a child. (2 Sam. sii. 14. Cf xi. 27.) David seems therefore
to have hesitated with the confession of his crime for an entire
year. The silence before God, which is mentioned in verse 3,
ought in this case to be referred to the whole extent of time which
preceded that event. It is difiicult to suppose such an obduracy
in David, although the historical books seem to indicate as much.
Is it likely that David should have entertained a moment's mis-
giving as to the meaning of the parable of Nathan? Not until
plainly accused by Nathan did the king as if awaking from the
sleep of sin exclaim, "I have sinned against the Lord." There is,
172 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
however, another misgiving besides this. In Psalm li. David has'
not yet received forgiveness, but prays for it. But Nathan pro-
nounced the consoling sentence, "The Lord also hath put away
thy sin," immediately upon David's confession. The last misgiv-
ing is certainly not very important, since it is a generally acknow-
ledged experience, that there is often a great gulf between the
objective word of forgiveness, presented from without, and its sub-
jective appropriation by man, which hesitating conscience is unable
to bridge without great struggles. The prophet pronounced for-
giveness j but it was a different thing for David to appropriate and
rejoice in it before the Lord. The ßrst objection requires a gi-eater
consideration. It is very strange indeed that according to the
title of Psalm li. and the historical record David should after so
great a fall have walked before God in a state of impenitence.
The question arises. Will not in the case of such a man confession
and repentance have immediately succeeded the deed? which
deed? — adultery. The faithless act against Uriah succeeded it.
He confesses his silence before God in verse 3. Impenitence in a
certain sense cannot be denied, but all depends upon the right con-
ception of that impenitence. Nobody will believe that David,
after all we know of him, should like other transgressors have —
without much trouble — banished that transgression from his
thoughts. If by impenitence is meant brutality and insensibility,
we emphatically declare that he did not remain impenitent. But
let it once be clearly seen that faith is a necessary ingredient of
true repentance, and that a penitent sinner cannot sincerely
approach God in prayer without some trust and faith in him, and
it will be equally clear that there is another kind of impenitence,
devoid not so much of the compunctions of conscience as of faith,
when terrified conscience is thoroughly alive to guilt, and just on
that acco%int hesitates to confess it before God. We cannot con-
ceive otherwise of the state of David's mind at that time, and
verses 3, 4, of this Psalm furnish the most striking evidence of this
view. They exhibit a struggle of conscience, which deprives the
impenitent transgressor of rest by day and night, the scourge of
which causes flesh and bones to be consumed — ^just such a strug-
gle as we should presume it in the case of a singer of psalms like
those of David. However incredible it may appear to many, that
a man who shrinks from confessing his sin before God, should pos-
sess so awakened a conscience and endure so much grief at its
compunctions — yet they who are acquainted with the peculiar phe-
nomena of psychical life, cannot but know that such inward condi-
tions are sure to follow the transgressions of seriously minded
people. Just because the holiness and love of God are not mere
empty words to them, but because they have practically experi-
enced the marvellous goodness of God, it comes to pass that their
PSALM XXXII. 173
own transgressions appear to them in the same light as did the
crime of fratricide to Cain, and they exclaim with him, "Mine
iniquity is greater than that it may be forgiven." They are afraid
of the countenance of God, the marvellous loveliness of which they
have so often experienced — and they would much rather flee from
before it. They have the presentiment that their sin, the heinous-
ness of which terrifies them already, if meditated upon in prayer be-
fore God, will assume a still more terrific aspect : owing to the threat-
euings of the accuser from within, they venture not to believe that
before God the compunctive power of their consciences will be sharp-
ened, nor that they will be pardoned. They prefer, therefore,
without prayer, their eyes turned away from God, to pursue their
path and to consume their grief — to disclosing it before God. The
circumstance that David listened to Nathan's parable with such
apparent insensibility, ought not to make us hesitate in the assump-
tion, that such was the case with David. We ought to consider
that, unless Joab had violated his pledge to secrecy, the king's
transgression was by no means generally known — that more than
a year had elapsed before Nathan appeared before David — that
Nathan stated his parable in the form of a legal case — and that its
true significance could only be surmised on the supposition that
the matter was generally known, and that Nathan appeared imme-
diately after its occurrence before the king. The condition of
David is, however, not to be regarded exclusively in the light of
reproaching conscience. We may assume a change of things,
involving moments in which excuses and accusations were con-
tending, as Paul describes, (Rom. ii. 15.) Let those who regard
the magnitude of his transgression as unaccountable remember, that
most people overlook in the estimate of this transgression the fact,
that however terrific the fatality may have been in this instance,
evil always engenders evil, and that he who has fallen once,
is by the force of circumstances ever propelled to new transgres-
sions. David had originally no intention to deprive Uriah of his
wife, his sole aim being to conceal his own sin, as is intimated in
2 Sam. xi. 9 — 13. David did not write his letter to Joab until
his cunning device had proved a failure. He still listens to the
voice of conscience — cannot persuade himself to assassination, but
adopts a measure of ridding himself of his servant, which sug-
gested a variety of thoughts which tended to excuse his conduct
and to appease his protesting conscience : e. g. that in every war
many must fall — that if Uriah should be killed, he would at least
fall like a hero and as a defender of the kingdom. Let no one
condemn David until he has judged himself and answered the
candid question, Whether in no relation of his life one sin has not
led him to the commission of a second or a third, and he has not
sought by excuses of a similar kind to silence the voice of his con-
science.
15*
174 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
1 A PSALM of David, giving instruction.*
Blessed is he wJiose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not
iniquity,
And in whose spirit there is no guile.
3 When I kept silence my bones waxed old.
Through my roaring all the day long.
4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me :
My moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah.
6 Therefore I acknowledge my sin unto thee,
And mine iniquity do I not hide :
I said, "I will confess my transgressions unto the LoRD ;"
And thou forgavest the guilt of my sin. Selah.
6 For this shall every one that is godly pray unto thee
In a time when thou mayest be found:
Surely the floods of great waters,
They shall not come nigh unto him.
7 Thou art my hiding place ;
Thou shalt preserve me from trouble;
Thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance.
Selah.
8 "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which
thou shalt go:
I will guide thee with mine eye."
9 Be ye not as the horse.
Or as the mule, which have no understanding:
Whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle.
Which will not come near unto thee (of themselves.)
10 Many sorrows (or pains) shall be to the wicked:
But he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass
him about.
11 Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous:
And shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.
V. 1, 2. David utters these words as if he had got breath again
after an overwhelming oppression of his soul, and speaks of his
own experience as if it were the experience of every one. The
words of Nathan, " The Lord also hath put away thy sin," were, as
appears from Psalm li. not sufficient to give him peace. There are
* Or, "A Poem."
PSALM XXXII. 175
many passages in the Scriptures wliich, if the Holy Ghost were
simultaneously to write them into our hearts, would at once stop
our struggles and banish our griefs. The fight of faith which lasts
all our life long consists first in this, that the words of the Bible
are by the struggle of faith in our souls to be transcribed into the
book of our hearts. As Luther has it, "The great secret of Chris-
tian faith consists in the little words: '7, for me, and me.'" Joy
did not return until the Holy Ghost bad borne witness in the heart
of David to the words of Nathan. His expression of joy is accom-
panied by the condition on which alone joy can be attained. He
says, "In whose spirit there is no guile," i. e. deceit. The dis-
cord of the soul can never be removed while the deceit of self-excuse
and self-righteousness continues.
F. 3, 4. Rarely, if ever, have human words expressed the
struggle of conscience in language so profoundly touching as here.
His fevered soul lacked the all-potent cordial, "Thy sins are for-
given thee :" its absence caused his body to pine and wither away.
His excuses of self distilled like separate drops upon his burning
conscience, which immediately dissolved them into vapour. He
sometimes sought to justify himself, and tried to convince himself
that there was no ground for his grievous complaint, and sometimes
thought that his wounds were incurable.
V. 5. The internal discord having reached its climax, pressed
out at last the blissful confession. The brief antithesis, "I said, I
will confess my transgressions unto the Lord — and thou forgavest
the guilt of my sin," expresses in a pleasing and touching manner
the facility afforded to sinful man in his inward struggles, provided
he be able and willing to confess and to believe.
V. 6, 7. He affirms his own experience as the universal lot of
the godly. They embrace the moment when salvation is still
nigh, ere the floods of judgment come which sweep the hardened
sinner away. The inward struggle must issue in the sinner's turn-
ing to God, and his hoping for aid by his mercy : if it does not,
his end will be like that of Judas, who though not without peni-
tence, (Matt, xxvii. 3,) but lacking the ability and willingness to
acknowledge his sin and to believe in God, went and hanged him-
self Having for a year been without God — and therefore without
protection — David once more feels himself in the hiding-place.
This conviction renders him so happy, that he hears, as it were, the
voice of God himself, cheering him with paternal friendliness.
V. 8. The latter clause of this verse, "I will guide thee with
mine eye," shows that the verse itself is not to be regarded as a
promise which David addresses to sinners, but rather as an oracular
expression, as they occur in several other psalms, (Cf. ad. Ps. xl. 4;
xii. 6.) It is the Spirit of the Lord, who from the inmost cham-
bers of the soul, as if from the ark of the covenant, addresses his
words of comfort and encouragement to sinners.
176 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 9. David now addresses the servants of sin who refuse to
turn unto the Lord, until he causes them to feel his hands, and
holds them in with bit and bridle. Beasts— such is the Psalmist's
meaning — have no understanding, and on that account need the
bit and bridle from without, to be managed; but man, to whom
God has given his Spirit, should govern and tame himself from
within. Shame upon him who, having received the Divine spark,
instead of being impelled from within, needs chastisement from
without to lead him to his Lord and God !
V. 10, 11. David describes the great foolishness of those who
look for happiness and joy anywhere and everywhere except in
God: man, forgetful of God, chases after happiness and joy,
ignoring all the while that in turning from God he only increases
his sorrow and pain. "Only he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy
shall compass him about." David has just realized once more this
blessed truth, so blessed that he must needs invite every one to
become the sharer of his felicity.
PSALM XXXIII.
A PSALM of praise, celebrating in lively and joyous measures the
Creator and Governor of the world, who has chosen Israel for his
peculiar possession, and imparts his peculiar favour to those who
fear him.
The Psalmist utters a powerful and joyous invitation to the praise
of God, (v. 1 — 3 :) he celebrates his omnipotence as the omnipo-
tence of righteousness and love, (v. 4 — 11,) and glories in Israel's
enjoying the peculiar protection of that God. It must be secure
under such a protection, for everything that is and takes place on
earth is mysteriously connected with his hand, while all earthly
strength is derived from him, (v. 12 — 17.) They who fear him
shall experience his power. This thought expands into the same
exultation with which this psalm begins.
1 "p E JOICE in the Lord, 0 ye righteous :
JLv For praise is comely for the upright.
2 Praise the Lord with harp :
Sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of
ten strings.
3 Sing unto him a new song ;
Play skilfully with trumpet sound.
PSALM XXXIII. 177
4 For the word of the Lord is right ;
And all his doings are done in faithfulness.
5 He loA^eth righteousnes and judgment:
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made ;
And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap :
He layeth up the depth 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 counsel of the heathen to nought :
He maketh the devices of the people of none effect.
11 The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever,
The thoughts of his heart to all generations.
12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord ;
Arid the people whom he hath chosen for his own
inheritance-
is The Lord looketh from heaven ;
He beholdeth all the sons of men.
14 From his firm throne
He looketh upon all the inhabitants of the earth.
15 He leadeth their hearts alike;
He considereth all their works.
16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host :
A mighty man is not delivered by much strength.
17 An horse is a vain thing for safety :
Neither shall any be delivered by their (the horses')
great strength.
18 Behold the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him,
Upon them that hope in his mercy;
19 To deliver their soul from death,
And to keep them alive in famine.
20 Our soul waiteth for the Lord :
He is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in him,
Because we have trusted in his holy name.
22 Let thy mercy, 0 Lord, be upon us,
According as we hope in thee.
V. 1 — 3. The Psalmist invites the righteous and the upright
in heart to praise the Lord, because none but they know how to do
178 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
it aright. The melody of the voice without the melody of the heart
cannot please the Lord. Such is the praise of the ungodly. The
pious only can praise him in truth, for they only rejoice in his pro-
mises, and appreciate his omnipotence and goodness. The bard,
feeling that the heart and the senses are too slow and lifeless for
setting forth the praises due to God, calls the sound of the harp to
his aid, to arouse the indolent spirits, and to give pinions to his
praises. He calls for a new (Ps. xl. 4; xcvi. 1) song — as if all the
former ones were not sufficient. Because human praises are at the
best unworthy, the nations of antiquity as well as Israel used to
accompany them by sacrifices, intending thereby as it were to
complete and make up for the deficiency and poverty of human
praise. The mention of the trumpet alludes to those sacrifices, as
sacrifices used to be offered accompanied by the sound of the
trumpet.
V. 4, 5. The first object of praise is that God fulfils his pro-
mises. Surely there cannot be anything more joyful to a pious
man than to see that the divers glorious promises of God are for
ever being fulfilled in the guidance of men in obedience to laws as
unchangeable as those which direct the courses of the heavenly
bodies. If we shall hereafter review the guidances of his people
from eternity, may they not, to use the expression, seem like so
many incarnations of the eternal word and the eternal promises of
God? We shall then see, what the Psalmist here praises in faith —
that all the ways of the Lord are righteousness and goodness.
The full glory of these attributes is not felt till we realize them as
the attributes of the omnipotence of God : what would be the con-
dition of us, the creatures, were his omnipotence other than the
omnipotence of righteousness and love? For this reason the
Psalmist praises in the following verses the omnipotence of God.
V. 6 — 9. How much toil and labour intervenes between the
resolution and completion of our works ? With God the word, the
breath of his mouth, and the commandment, are at once the
deed.* Thus he formed the heavens and their host. Nothing
greater could be predicated of the omnipotence of God : the
Psalmist singles out one miracle of omnipotence which strikingly
exhibits the wisdom and goodness of the Creator. Though the
waters of the ocean are higher than the face of the earth, the secret
hand of Omnipotence keeps them back that they dare not flood the
land. " Will ye not tremble at my presence, saith the Lord, which
have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual
decree, that it cannot pass it : and though the waves thereof toss
themselves, yet cannot they prevail ; though they roar, yet can
they not pass over it?" (Jer. v. 22; cf. Psalm xxiv. 2; civ. 9; Job
* The heathen poet, Longinus, has praised the sublimity of this sentiment
of the Psalmist.
PSALM XXXIII. 179
xxxviii. 8.) Again, the womb of the earth conceals snhterraneous
floods; these would devour the face of the earth and all on it, if
the hand of Omnipotence did not hold them back so that they must
remain in the depth. Who does not fear and tremble before a God
like this ? But they who can believe that this omnipotence is the
omnipotence of love, burst forth the rather in exultant joy.
V. 10 — 12. Israel is entitled to that belief — the belief that the
omnipotence of God is that of love, for the Lord has chosen Israel
for his own inheritance. What an election ! His thoughts are
eternal thoughts of grace which no power can annul. (Horn. xi. 29.)
This is the consolation of the Church of God in sight of her ene-
mies. In the days of the Old Testament, when the Church was a
temporal kingdom, like the kingdoms of the earth, her enemies
were the heathen in their dominions; her enemies now are the ene-
mies of Christ: the servants of Christ get edified by these promises
that the merciful counsel of God cannot be overthrown, and that
he bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought. Though
scanned with the eye of sense, there never was a little band that
had so little hope to prevail over their enemies, as the small band
of Christians against whom the whole world stands in battle array;
but with regard to the eternal counsel of mercy which God has
decreed concerning his people, they entertain not a moment's doubt
as to their ultimate success.
V. 13 — 17. People of God, he means to say, let not the world
persuade you that the throne on which your king is seated is an
idle easy chair; no, he is seated on a throne, on a judgment-seat,
from the lofty eminence of which proceed the destinies of the
world. People of God, he means to say, firmly believe, that all
things are either openly or in a hidden manner subject to the influ-
ence of his might; not only the works of men, which are evidently
so, since the issue never rests with them, but also the secret mov-
ings of their hearts, which God can strike with blindness, and can
make foolish the understanding of the prudent, and wise the hearts
of babes. People of God, believe not in appearances according to
which kings conquer by their might and warriors triumph in battle
by the strength of their horses : it is appearance only, for as all
earthly power is borrowed from the Governor of the world, he may
withdraw it at any time and give it to tvhoinsoever he pleases : so
that all the victories on earth are won by his strength.
V. 18 — 22. While such omnipotence terrifies those who fear
not the Lord, it is rich in consolation to those who hope in his
mercy. The whole people commit themselves to the Lord, rejoic-
ing in him and trusting in his name.
180 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM XXXIV.
A SONG of thanksgiving, composed on the same occasion (1 Sam.
xxi. 11, etc.) as Psalm Ivi. with this difference, that Psalm Ivi. was
composed in the midst of the danger which threatened David, when
the courtiers of Achish the king of the Philistines, with whom he
had taken refuge, were persecuting him, while the psalm before us
was composed after he had escaped from that danger. Though we
owe our most beautiful spiritual songs or hymns to special circum-
stances, they treat not of these, but alternately mount to universal
complaints or to universal praises of God. So the Psalmist praises
not so much his special deliverance, as the mercy of God, who
hears the cry of the afflicted. The title names Abimelech and not
Achish; which may be explained on the presumption that Abime-
lech (i. e. father of kings) was a general title of the Philistine
kings, as was Pharaoh (i. e. the king) of the Egyptian. In Gen.
XX. 2; xxvi. 1, two different kings of Gerar, the Philistine capital,
are called Abimelech.
Filled with gratitude, the Psalmist promises to make the praise
of God the business of his life, because he hears the prayers of the
afflicted, (v. 2 — 8.) He also calls upon others to open their eyes
and hearts because the goodness of God is everywhere manifest,
and annexes the condition on which alone it can be experienced,
(v. 9 — 11.) The indispensable condition is the fear of the Lord,
which he earnestly and affectionately recommends from verses
12 — 23, and to which his assurance of faith ascribes glorious pro-
1 K PSALM of David, when he changed his behaviour
j\- before Abimelech: who drove him away, and he
departed.
2 I will bless the Lord at all times :
His praise shall continually he in my mouth.
3 My soul shall make her boast in the Lord:
The afflicted shall hear thereof and be glad.
4 0 magnify the Lord with me,
And let us exalt his name together.
5 I sought the Lord, and he heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
6 They that look unto him, get lightened:
And their faces are not ashamed.
7 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard 7im,
And saved him out of all his troubles.
PSALM XXXIV. 181
8 The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them
that feax" him,
And delivereth them.
9 0 taste and see that the Lord is good :
Blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
10 0 fear the Lord, ye his saints :
For there is no want to them that fear him.
11 The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger:
But they that seek the Lord shall not want any good
thing.
12 Come, ye children, hearken unto me:
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
13 What man is he that desireth a happy life
Arid loveth ma7iy days, that he may see good?
14 Keep thy tongue from evil,
And thy lips from speaking guile.
15 Depart from evil, and do good;
Seek peace,* and pursue it.
16 The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous,
And his ears are open unto their cry.
17 The face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
18 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth,
And delivereth them out of all their troubles.
19 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart ;
And saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
20 Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
But the Lord delivereth him out of them all.
21 He keepeth all his bones:
Not one of them is broken.
22 Evil shall slay the wicked:
And they that hate the righteous shall be guilty.
23 The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants:
And none of them that trust in him shall be guilty. f
V. 2 — 4. Every day of a pious man's life is marked with the
monuments and tokens of the mercy of God, so that he has every
day to sing a new song. But each separate experience of that
kind should fill our heart to such a degree as to furnish the theme
of gratitude and praise for the entire period of our lives. With a
feeling of this kind, we see David celebrate the deliverance he has
just experienced. He realizes the fact that many hearts will echo
* /. e. honesty, "good;" cf. Ps. xxxv. 20; xxxvii. 37, in the Hebrew,
f Cf. Introduction to Psalm xiv.
16
182 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
back his songs of praise, because the joys of the godly are always
universal. He invites the sharers of his feelings not to keep them
"within their joyful hearts, but to blend their praises with his,
because songs of praise rise more triumphantly to heaven as bright
flames than as isolated sparks.
V. 5 — 8. He was no doubt greatly afraid. What fate could
he expect to meet were he delivered into the hand of Achish?
The alternative was, that he, as a national foe, who had slain
Goliath and actually carried his sword during this flight, (1 Sam.
xxi. 9,) would either be sacrificed to the vengeance of the Philis-
tines, or ignominiously delivered into the hand of Saul, his enemy.
This poor man cried unto the Lord, who heard him, and delivered
him out of all his troubles. He therefore calls upon all, when
reduced to the extremity of trouble, neither to turn to the right
nor to the left, but to Him who is all-sufficient. We often fear
that we are forsaken — but not so. He surrounds us with his Divine
messengers, as with an invisible host : and while we look anxiously
for help on earth, they fight our battles. If our eyes were opened
like those of Elisha's young man, we should frequently, when we
are most inclined to despair, see horses and chariots of fire round
about us. (2 Kings vi. 17.)*
V. 9 — 11. Heaven and earth are replete with the goodness of
God. We omit to open our mouths and eyes, on which account
the Psalmist desires us to taste and to see. Such an invitation would
be unavailing to the ungodly, to whom if they persist in their
obduracy even the best gifts are fraught with destruction, and to
whom rays of light turn into consuming flashes of lightning. He
therefore addresses himself to the saints, who in virtue of their ex-
ercised senses (Heb. v. 11,) are able to see the hidden sweet in the
bitter, and the bow of peace above the darkened cloud. "They
have no want," means not exemption from the common lot of mor-
tals, as is clear from verse 20, where it is said that '' many are the
afflictions of the righteous." But if blessings attend us like those
which David affirms himself to enjoy in Psalm xxiii. 5, that in
sight of his enemies he is seated at a full table with anointed head
— we must be silent about want. We shall feel no want though
we be in want. The possession of power and strength cannot of
itself secure satisfaction and prosperity. The lion, armed with
mouth and claws, has often to suffer hunger, while helpless and
afflicted men, whose only refuge is the Lord, have enough and to
spare.
* One angel of the Lord is mentioned, who at the same time is said to
encavip round about. This seems to indicate that the word "angel" which
primarily means " a message from God," denotes here as well as in many
other passages of the Old Testament, not one separate angel, but the efflu-
ence of Divine strength. Cf. Sack. Comm. Theol. p. 19, v. Coelln. Bibl.
Theol. vol. i. p. 191.
PSALM XXXIV. 183
V. 12 — 19. Most men consider untruth, fraud, and oppression,
the surest means of prosperity. This leads David most urgently to
exhort them to regard the fear of the Lord as the true source of
temporal prosperity. To rouse the indolent, he clothes his exhorta-
tion in the form of a question, "What man is he that desireth a
happy life?" as if he had asked, How is it, that, while every one
without exception desires to be happy, there are so few who adopt
the proper means for the attainment of happiness, but on the con-
trary make themselves wretched and miserable by their own mis-
takes? He names two things, which, though they may sometimes
fail, will in most instances tell upon men, and lay a solid founda-
tion to their temporal prosperity. Firstly, let none imagine that
crooked ways and falsehood are the royal roads to prosperity, for
even in a spiritual sense the straight way is always the shortest.
Secondly, to confound all evil backbiting by the practice of good
works. However much enmity against God may influence the
wicked against the good qualities of the godly, there will always be
a class of men, who find it impossible so effectually to silence the
judge from within, that they should desire to acknowledge the
merit of these, who with firm perseverance and strict conscientious-
ness are bent upon the pursuit of righteousness and virtue. Much
time may be needed till such acknowledgment be forthcoming, and
in the case of thousands be looked for in vain; David therefore
once more regards the righteous in affliction, and comforts us by
saying, that the Lord at least does not ignore a pure and true life,
that his eyes look upon his servants, that his ears are open to their
cry, and that though not exempt from troubles and affliction, his
deliverance is sure to come.
V. 20 — 23. "Many are the afflictions of the righteous:" this
might at first sight seem contradictory of verses 10, 11 ; but
we should remember that the pious often lack that purity and
irreprehensibility of conduct, which compels the esteem of the
world ; the difficulty of attaining it, and that even after it has been
attained we are utterly unable to impress the consciences of the tho-
roughly obdurate. The truth must then stand that " many are the
the afflictions of the righteous," or as the New Testament expresses
it, "It behoves us through much tribulation to enter into the king-
dom of Grod." And it is a good thing that such is the case. For
vpere the pious freed from every trouble and affliction, motives to
piety would become impure, faith would grow faint, prayer cease,
and carnal security abound. The Psalmist comforts us that the
afflictions of the righteous are under a powerful protection. The
Lord has said that the hairs of our head are numbered : so we are
told here that not the smallest bone of the godly can be hurt with-
out his permission. (Psalm xxxv. 10.) But guilt shall not leave
the wicked, for it cannot be forgiven until it be confessed, repented
of; and covered by faith.
184 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM XXXV.
We are familiar with the position of the Psalmist. Secret perse-
cution, (v. 7, 8,) and false accusations, (v. 11,) were met by a
peaceful and forgiving disposition on his part, (v. 12, 13.) Cf.
Introduction to Psalm vii. Other circumstances are in harmony
with the situation of David. The bard refers to himself in v. 27,
as to a man noticed by many. Verse 16 may suggest the courtly
banquet of the king: David uses words similar to v. 1 — 3 in 1 Sam.
xxiv. 16. The urgency of the request, and the manner in which
danger and trouble are introduced, seem to cope better with the
period of Saul's persecution than with that of David's residence at
his court.
V. 1 — 10 state the theme of the Psalmist — a mighty cry for
help and a solemn vow of gratitude : v. 11 — 16, he shows the justice
of his cause as contrasted with that of his persecutors, who proved
themselves insensible to his proofs of tender sympathy, and requited
his sympathy in thei?' suffering with malevolent joy at his own.
Having stated before the throne of God's justice this by no means
unimportant point in his case, he renews his supplication, (v. 17,)
and concludes with a new vow of heartfelt gratitude, (v. 25.)
A
PSALM of David.
1 Plead mi/ cause, 0 Lord, with them that strive with me :
Fight against them that fight against me.
2 Take hold of shield and buckler,*
And stand up for mine help.
3 Draw out also the spear,
And stop the way against them that persecute me ;
Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.
4 Let them be confounded and put to shame
That seek after my soul :
Let them be turned hack and brought to confusion
That devise my hurt.
5 Let them he as chaff before the wind ;
And let the angel of the Lord chase them.
6 Let their way be dark and slippery :
And let the angel of the Lord persecute them.
7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit,t
Which without cause they have digged for my soul.
* /. e. a large shield which covers the Avhole body.
•j- Travellers mention pits which are dug to catch lions alive, covered on
the top with boughs and canes, (Shaw's Travels in North Africa, p. 153.)
But these seem to have been pits in which nets were placed. Verse 8
renders this view necessary.
PSALM XXXV. 185
8 Let destruction come upon them at unawares ;
And let the net, that thej have hid, catch them.
Into that very destruction let them fall.
9 But my soul shall be joyful in the Lord:
It shall rejoice in his salvation.
10 All my bones shall say,
Lord, who is like unto thee,
Which deliverest the afflicted from him that is too strong
for him,
Yea, the afflicted and the needy from him that spoileth
them ?
11 False witnesses did rise up ;
They laid to my charge things that I knew not.
12 They rewarded me evil for good,
My soul is orphaned.
13 But as for me,
When they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth:
I afflicted my soul with fasting.
And my prayer returned into mine own bosom.*
14 I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or
brother.
I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth/or hismoiher.
15 But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered them-
selves together:
Yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me,
and I knew not /or what:
They did tear me, and ceased not :
16 With hypocritical mockers in feasts,f
They gnashed upon me with their teeth.
17 Lord, how long wilt thou look on ?
Rescue my soul from their destructions,
My life from the lions.
18 I will give thee thanks in the great congregation:
I will praise thee among much people.
19 Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice
over me :
Neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without
a cause.
* /. e. ■when lie who prayed, as it happened in cases in deep distress, fell
on his knees and inclined his head to the ground, (1 Kings xviii. 42.)
f Or, "AVith mocking gluttons," or, "like gourmands" (of. Job xxxiv. 36,
in the original;) or, "quizzing epicui-es."
16*
186 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
20 For they speak not peace :
But they devise deceitful matters against them that are
quiet in the land.
21 Yea, they open their mouth wide against me,
And say. Aha ! aha ! our eye hath seen it.
22 This thou hast seen, 0 Lord :
Keep not silence : 0 Lord, he not far from me.
23 Stir up thyself, and awake to my judgment.
Even unto my cause, my God and my Lord.
24 Judge me, 0 Lord my God, according to thy righteous-
ness;
And let them not rejoice over me.
25 Let them not say in their hearts, "Ah! so would we
have it."
Let them not say, ""We have swallowed him up."
26 Let them he ashamed and brought to confusion together
That rejoice at mine hurt:
Let them be clothed with shame and dishonour
That magnify themselves against me.
27 Let them shout for joy, and he glad,
That favour my righteous cause :
Yea, let them say continually, " Let the Lord he magnified.
Which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant."
28 And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness
And of thy praise all the day long.
V. 1 — 3. Human weakness, which can only speak figuratively
of God, conceives of the distribution of Divine justice as of a war-
fare carried on with human weapons, though the weapons of the
righteous Lord against his enemies are not made of brass. Such
figurative representations of God tend to furnish us with a more
vivid apprehension of his powerful help. "Say unto my soul, I
am thy salvation," expresses the Psalmist's desire for that secret
and inward encouragment direct from God, which he is sure to im-
part in the hour of need. .
V. 4 — 10. He prays that according to the law of retaliation,
confusion should befall the contemners, and that those who were
trumpeting forth their pride should be scattered like chafi" before
the wind, that those who in their haughty confidence deemed them-
selves strong as mountains should see the soil give way under their
feet, and that those who had digged pits for others might in their
own pits be destroyed. We have often seen it thus in life, though
the longsufFering of God checks the hand of justice, as long as
there is any hope that the weed may become good wheat. Most
PSALM xxxvr. 187
people in prayers of this kind are solely concerned witli their own
deliverance — -but the spirit of David rejoices in the prospect of the
moment, when as it wei'e moved with gratitude in all his bones, he
will ascribe all the glory to the Lord, and confess that no other
help can be compared to his.
V. 11 — 16. Oppression and violence are never more painful
than when they proceed from those who have experienced the proofs
of our love. We have already seen (Psalm vii. 5) to how great an
extent that species of painful experience fell to the lot of David.
Saul himself, ashamed of his conduct, and weeping over it, had
said to David, "Thou art more righteous than I, for thou hast
reioardcd me good, tvhereas I have rewarded thee evil." (1 Sam.
xxiv. 17.) David, though speaking of several, may either have
alluded to Saul in particular or to his courtiers possessed of hostile
intentions against him. Let it be observed that he not only refers
to benefits which our hand may confer without any cordial sympathy,
but to such evidences of love as necessarily imply the interest of
our hearts. He had j^^ct^f^d for those who now persecute him.
Such sympathy with their sufferings they now requite with malevo-
lent joy at his. The malicious accusations of verse 11, have already
been considered in Psalm vii. Verse 16 may respect the king
only, who joined by flattering courtiers used to vent his rage against
the afflicted exile; or David may contemplate particular companions
of the king, accustomed to join the epicures at the royal table.
(Cf Psalm Ixix. 13.)
V. 17 — 28. These verses depict still more graphically the rade
fury of malevolent joy. The righteous God in heaven cannot be
silent at such triumphs of wickedness: their impudence must lead
to the display of his vengeance. David is aware that he has still
some friends in the country, at once the friends of God and of
righteousness, who would regard (v. 27) the triumph of his cause
as the universal triumph of righteousness, and accordingly praise
the Lord for it. His tongue shall gratefully join their praise.
PSALM XXXVI.
A LOFTY psalm of supplication, in which the Psalmist starting from
his own temptation and persecution (v. 12) represents men as if
divided into two families or armies. While the wicked devise only
evil against the children of God, he beholds the wings of a blessed
God spread over these as their protection. Inspired by this vision
he prays trustfully for himself.
188 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
1 rpO the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, the servant
_L of the Lord.
2 The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart,*
That there is no fear of God before their eyes.
3 For they flatter him (God) in their own eyes (^. e. as they
think,)
Until their iniquity be found to be hateful. f
4 The words of their mouth are iniquity and deceit :
They have left off to be wise, and to do good.
5 They devise mischief upon their bed;
They set themselves in a way that is not good ;
They abhor no evil.
6 Thy mercy, 0 Lord, is in (or, "as far as") the heavens:
A7id thy faithfulness reaeheth unto (or, "as far as") the
clouds.
7 Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God ;
Thy judgments are like great seas.
0 Lord, thou preservest man and beast.
8 How precious is thy loving-kindness, 0 God !
The children of men put their trust under the shadow of
thy wings.
9 They get drunk with the riches of thine house :
And thou makest them drink of the river of thy pleasures.
10 For with thee is the fountain of life :
In thy light do we see light.
11 0 spread thy loving-kindness over them that know thee ;
And thy righteousness over the upright in heart.
12 Let not the foot of pride come against me.
And let not the hand of the wicked remove me.
13 Alreadyl are the workers of iniquity fallen :
They are cast down, and shall not be able to rise.
* Or, "a Divine oracle says from the depth of my heart concerning the
•wickedness of the ungodly." This rendering of this difficult passage agrees
in the main with that of Symmachus and Luther. The view of Maurer may
also be defended, who regards the words, "Divine voice" as a title. Jer.
xxiii. 31, shows that iZDJiD may be a noun substantive. That view has the
advantage of beautiful correspondence in verse 1, while our explanation
has the double inconcinnity that the first hemistich announces the Divine
voice, and the second begins it at once, and that the contents of the Psalm
are not exactly stated, in calling it a Divine oracle " concerning the wicked-
ness of the ungodly," or concerning wickedness for the ungodly." It is
rather an oracular consolation for the suffering godly.
f Tholuck translates verse 3, "For they flatter God, as they think to
perform their evil with greater security, and to give vent to their hatred."
% Cf. Ps. xiv. 5, xlviii. 7, in the Hebrew.
PSALM xxxvr. 189
V. 2 — 5. Tliere are moments in our life, when the dimness and
mystery of the course of the world suddenly dissolve, and the world,
seen in the light of faith, assumes a new appearance. David seems
to have composed this psalm in such a moment of physical eleva-
tion. When he beheld with unusual charity the blessedness of the
children of God, in spite of their trials and temptations, he felt the
Spirit of God breathe upon him as upon a prophet, and under the
influence of the Divine afllatus uttered an oracular sentence respect-
ing the wicked, i. e. respecting their persecutions of the righteous.
Their professed fear of the Lord is hypocrisy, which does not avail
with God, though they imagine that under its cloak they can carry
on their mischief with greater impunity. As a corrupt tree cannot
bear good fruit, nor thorns yield grapes, so all they do, however
much it glitters, is only mischief and destruction.
V. 6 — 8. He turns from the wretched oppressors to the oppressed
children of God. Desirous to depict the blessedness of their con-
dition in spite of the devices of the wicked, his thoughts expand,
and describe the vast and infinite extent of Divine mercy, truth,
and righteousness, the chief portion of which benefits the pious.
He affirms the goodness of God to reach to the heavens, and his
truth to the clouds; whereby he means to say that the universe is
filled with them, and that human eyes are unable to measure their
dimensions. The expressions that righteousness is like the moun-
tains of God, I. e. like glorious and immense mountains, (Gen.
xiii. 10 ; Psalm Ixxx. 11,) and that his judgments are like great
seas, denote the immoveability of the eternal foundations of right,
and the apparency of their existence in the world. How rich in
mercy must be the wings of Divine Providence, since not only man
but also beast are sheltered in their vast shade! Such and similar
expressions may easily glide over our lips, but to retain them
immoveably in our heart is a problem of faith which hardly one in
a thousand can solve. There is no mystery of Christianity more
difficult to believe than the simple truth that righteousness, truth,
and goodness secretly pervade the chaos of transgression and
injustice, of misery and woe, which fill the world. By truth (the
word used in the German version) is meant the faithfulness of God
in the fulfilment of his promises. The natural man treats this very-
adhesion to the faithfulness of God on the part of the godly as sheer
folly in sight of occurrences which to all appearance contradict
the word of God, and in a world which seems governed by any
other power rather than the tears and the prayers of some few
wretched croakers, they who in spite of all this — for instance, like
David on his flight, in his exile, in tribulation, and nakedness, and
in peril of death — can say, concerning the promises of God, "Thy,
faithfulness reacheth unto the clouds" — have stood the test of faith.
If any ask for the evidence that faith like this is not extinct, let
them read the song of steel and brass which John the Magnanimous
190 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
sang after the battle of Mühlberg, in a situation not less desperate
than that of David, "As it pleaseth God, so it j^leaseth me."
V. 9, 10. Though the Psalmist had spoken in the former part
of the psalm of man in general, it is evident from these verses that
he specially adverted to the children of God. David describes the
blessings of the house of Grod in such lofty terms, that some inter-
preters have thought him to allude to the everlasting habitations,
where the treasury of God vrith the plenitude of its riches shall be
displayed before believers.* But we have already seen from other
psalms, that the Psalmists regard the house of God as a figure of
the sum total of every and any blessing which is enjoyed in com-
munion with God: this is apparent from the sentence which follows
immediately afterwards, *' For loith thee is the fountain of life."
(Cf ad. Psalm xv. 1; xxiii. 6.) So David sings, (Psalm Ixv. 5,)
"Blessed is the man whom thou choosest and causest to approach
unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts : we shall be satisfied
with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple." The
sacred bard's meaning is, therefore, that though apparently the
ungodly enjoy abundance in their life, yet because their souls con-
tinue hungering and thirsting, it really is the lot of believers to
experience what is meant by real satisfaction and abundance. It
cannot be denied, that a morsel of dry bread and a cup of cold
water consumed with a grateful heart, and the consciousness of the
presence of God, is a feast with which no royal feast can stand the
comparison : while the wicked take one gift after the other from
morn till night, without even a thought of the bounteous hand
which bestows them, David's eye of faith beholds high above the
clouds the source, the blessings whereof water and make fruitful
all the earth. Now, since the sum-total of the good which man
enjoys flows from God, the children of God may rest satisfied that
they shall not fall short in its distribution. *'In thy light do we
see light," refers primarily to happiness and good of every kind,"}"
but finds a peculiarly beautiful application in the light of know-
ledge, which can never guide us in the right direction, except it
have been lighted by the eternal light of God, as Daniel has it,
"He revealeth the deep and secret things; he knoweth what is in
the darkness, for the light dwelleth with him," (Dan. ii. 22;) yea,
the living fountain of the knowledge of God is only to be sought
with God, nor has any one ever found God except by God.
V. 11 — 13. Thus far the description, now follows prayer.
Having had to suffer from the devices of the wicked, he prays God
in mercy to reveal himself to all the godly as the great Being
* Cf. the Commentaries of Kimchi, Venema, Klauss, p. 212.
f As Job says, "Oh, that I were as in months past, as in the days when
God preserved me, wlien his candle shined upon my head, and when by his
light I walked through darkness." (Job xxix. 2, 3.)
PSALM XXXVII. 191
whom they adore and worship, and to graciously confer the same
happy experience upon himself. His prophetic vision sees the
judgment as already accomplished. Indeed the present prosperity
of the wicked can only be regarded as a term of the longsuffering
of God, which gives them the opportunity, by repentance, to escape
the final judgment of God.
PSALM XXXVII.
A DIDACTIC psalm on the ultimate victory of the children of God
over the wicked. Though the Psalmist does not explicitly refer
that victory to eternity, the consciousness of future judgment must
have been alive in his heart, since otherwise he could not well have
so confidently held out a happy end to the godly and an unhappy
one to the ungodly, (cf. verses 37, 38, with Ps. i. 5.) The reit-
erated prediction, moreover, that the children of God shall inherit
the earth, and the wicked be destroyed, (v. 9. 28, 29,) can only
have a meaning on the supposition that David, overlooking the
present, had before his mind the victorious future of the godly.
These allusions of the Psalmist have been more clearly expressed
by the Prophets. Isa. xi. 9; Ix. 21; Zech. xiv. 21; Mai. iv. 1—3,
(ch. iii. 19—21.)
This psalm exhibits no progi'ession of thought, but repeats like
a musical composition the same theme in diff"erent variations.
A
PSALM of David.
1 Fret not thyself because of evil doers,
Neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut clown like the grass,
And wither as the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land and be honest.*
4 Delight thyself also in the Lord ;
And he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.
5 Commit thy way unto the Lord ;
Trust also in him : and he shall bring it to pass.
6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light,
And thy judgment [i. e. right) as the noonday.
* Luther: "Earn an honest livelihood."
192 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
7 Be silent to the Lord, and wait patiently for him :
Fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way,
Because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath:
Fret not thyself in any wise to do evil :
9 For evil doers shall be cut off:
But those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit
the earth.
10 For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not he :
Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and he shall
not he.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth ;
And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
12 The wicked plotteth against the just.
And gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
13 The Lord shall laugh at him :
For he seeth that his day is coming.
14 The Avicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent
their bow,
To cast down the poor and needy.
And to slay such as be of upright conversation.
15 Their sword shall enter into their own heart,
And their bows shall be broken.
16 A little that a righteous man hath
Is better than the riches of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken:
But the Lord upholdeth the righteous.
18 The Lord knoweth the days of the upright:
And their inheritance shall be for ever.
19 They shall not be ashamed in the evil time :
And in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
20 For the wicked shall perish,
And the enemies of the Lord shall he as the fat of lambs
(or, "like the pride of the pastures:")
They shall consume ; into smoke shall they consume away.
21 The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again :
But the righteous showeth mercy and giveth.
22 For such as he blessed of him (the Lord) shall inherit the
earth :
And they that he cursed of him shall be cut off.
23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord:
And he delighteth in his way.
PSALM XXXVII. 193
24 Thougli he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down :
For the Lord upholdeth Jiim with his hand.
25 I have been young and now am old ;
Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his seed begging bread.
26 ITe is ever merciful, and lendeth;*
And his seed is blessed.
27 Depart from evil and do good;
And dwell for evermore.
28 For the Lord loveth judgment (right,)
And forsaketh not his saints ;
They are preserved for ever :f
But the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land,
And dwell therein for ever.
30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom,
And his tongue talketh of judgment (right.)
31 The law of God is in his heart ;
None of his steps shall slide. -
32 The wicked watcheth the righteous,
And seeketh to slay him.
33 The Lord will not leave him in his hand,
Nor condemn him when he is judged.
34 Wait on the Lord, and keep his way,
And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land :
When the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.
35 I have seen the wicked in great power,
And spreading himself like a green bay tree.
36 Yet he passeth away, and lo he was not :
Yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.
37 Mark the honest 7na7i, and behold the upright (or, "Pre-
serve piety and honesty:")
For the end of that man is peace. J
* Psalm cxii. 5.
f According to ancient readings this verse is probably to be rendered,
«'But the wicked shall be destroyed, and the seed of the ungodly shall be
cut off."
J Instead of Luther's version, which is also that of Jerome and Aben Ezra
(with which cf. the use of ^yij^ Psalm cxii. 5,) a more correct rendering is
probably, "For the good man has an end," i. e. a good end. The render-
ing, " Mark the honest man, and behold the upright, for the man of peace
shall have offspring," which has been preferred by many ancient and
modern translators, is inadmissible. The respective Hebrew word ri'^^lPIit
17
194 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
38 But the transgressors shall be destroyed together:
The wicked shall be cut off at last.
39 But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord :
Jle is their strength in the time of trouble.
40 And the Lord shall help them and deliver them:
He shall deliver them from the wicked,
And save them, because they trust in him.
V. 1, 2. Godly people, if they do not take great care, are
exposed to fall a prey to the two sins which David mentions. On
seeing the enterprises of the ungodly crowned with success, they
are prone to yield either to personal and passionate indignation, or
to envy at what is granted to the former and withheld from them-
selves. The Psalmist cheeks that foolish indignation by the con-
sideration, that compared with the final and eternal salvation of the
godly, the most redeeming prosperity of the wicked would vanish
as speedily as the grass which lustily grows at morn, but struck by
the heat of the sun, and the fiery breath of the east wind, is so
faded and withered at even, that it is cut off and cast into the oven
for fuel. (Matt. vi. 30; James i. 11.)
V. 3 — 6. On the other hand the prosperity of the godly is
immoveably firm : its very protraction only secures its imperishable
duration. Steadfastly observe therefore the condition on which
that prosperity depends. It is faith and hope in the Lord: simple
honesty in our several avocations: delight and satisfaction in the
communion with God as contrasted with the thousandfold allure-
ments of the world : and lastly, let our anxieties and burdens be
neither complained of in melancholy strains nor discarded in light-
mindedness, but rolled upon the Lord. Our righteousness may then
abide for a time in darkness, or seem ignominious in the sight of
men — the day is sure to come when it shall shine as a light, and
our judgment (i. e. right) as the midday sun.
V. 7 — 11. Where faith is wanting we need not be surprised to
see the heart riding on billows in the storms of life. Having
asked for faith, David may also desire the silence of the heart.
Besides, is not our premature haste to help ourselves, instead of
quietly waiting for the arm of the Lord, the very means of shutting
out Divine help? But he chiefly insists upon the silence of the
heart, because a heart moved with passion under pressure is most
inclined to get wrathful against the ungodly, and by doing so, to
fall into sin. This exhortation shows that the Psalmist's repeat-
edly threatening destruction to the wicked, which occurs both here
and elsewhere, flows not from passion, but from his calm contem-
is undoubtedly more correctly rendered "end." Job xlii. 12; Prov. xxiv.
14.) Stier has the merit, by collating with Prov. xxiii. 18; xxiv. 14. 20,
to have first shown, that no other rendering is admissible in this place.
PSALM XXXVII. 195
plation of the eternal and necessary order of the righteousness of
Grod. Striking is the prediction that the godly shall inherit the
earth, which has already occurred, Psalm xxv. 13. It was origi-
nally made to Israel on entering Canaan; but it has since then
been repeated in a spiritual sense, and the prophets point to a
period when Israel shall destroy the ungodly, and the seed of the
truly righteous only possess the land. Our Lord took up this very
prediction, (Matt. v. 5,) and explained its profound meaning.
Though the prediction meets a partial fulfilment in that the pros-
perity of the wicked comes frequently to a sudden and terrific end,
while honesty is the best policy, yet the entire fulfilment thereof
will take place, when the completed community of the righteous,
after the exclusion of every tare and every plant which the Father
hath not planted, (Matt. xv. 13,) shall take possession of that new
earth, "wherein dwelleth righteousness." (2 Peter iii. 13.)
V. 12 — 15. It is true, says the Psalmist, that while the wicked
are suffered to bend their bow (as is the case on earth,) the godly
do not experience much of the unclouded peace and delight which
ai'e described in verse 11. But while the godly still weep and
hesitate, the Lord laugheth, because he sees that future day as
already present, when every blow of the wicked shall return upon
his own head. Now, if man have faith, the nature of which is to
regard the future as the present, may he not on that account dry
his tears and join in the laugh of his God ?
V. 16 — 26. David denies not that with respect to temporal
possessions the godly may fare worse than others, but he gives an
answer similar to that which Luther addressed from his dying bed
to his children : " Children, I leave you no riches, but I leave you
a rich God." Who would despair, when God declares his own
treasury to be the possession of his children? Though not com-
pletely opened to them on earth, what more can they desire, while
they have the assurance "that they shall be satisfied in the days of
famine" ? But the Psalmist seems to imply more than this. How
often does it happen on earth that the righteous receives more
than enough! Suppose we put the question, "Who spends more
in alms and charities, the poor people of the godly, or the rich
crowd of the ungodly?" we shall find that the small bag of the for-
mer, though continually drained, gets by secret influences from
above, like the cruse of oil of the widow of Sarepta, ever filled
anew. Does not this indicate that they are people who have access
to the treasury of God ? On the other hand how frequently does
it happen that the rich ungodly, anxious to get still more — (for to
gain much, much must be staked) — gets suddenly set fast in loss
and debt, from which he cannot extricate himself. The experi-
ence of a whole life lay spread out before David, and he unhesi-
tatingly affirms that he has never seen the righteous forsaken, nor
his children reduced to penury. Is it possible to deny this truth ?
196 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Especially if we look upon the righteous as one who conscientiously
discharges the duties of his avocation, and shows in his life mercy
and charily. Suppose that peculiar circumstances were to com-
bine, and apparently forsaken of God and man, he were reduced to
momentary want — he can nevermore become a beggar. Proverbs
such as these, "He who does well will fare well," " Honesty needs
not beg for bread," would never have arisen, if the words of the
Psalmist did not contain a great truth. In brief, suppose mischief
of every kind to combine and fall at once on a pious and devout
man, it would indeed be strange if a true life before God and man
should not secure true friends in the time of need, if he who has
been to many a friend in need should not himself find a friend in
need. So the Psalmist declares in verse 26, that the righteous has
not only enough for himself and his children, but while the rich
shut their hand, he has even enough for strangers.
V. 27 — 34. Meanwhile, he goes on to specify the virtues
needed for genuine righteousness; they are these: the earnest
striving to obey the will of God — wise thoughts and words — and
the law of God written in the heart. Then let the wicked lie in
ambush, or human judges pronounce sentence of death : the Lord
will provide a way for escape !
Y. 35 — 40. David had seen it so in this life, before the last
day was come ; with how much more security may he rely upon the
ßnal issue of things, especially since as children of the New Cove-
nant we see with much greater clarity how that issue will termi-
nate.
PSALM XXXVIIL
David deeply aggrieved, realizes before God the burden of his
sufferings as the punishment of his sins, though he attests his inno-
cence with regard to his enemies. "They that render me evil for
good, are mine adversaries, because I follow the thing which is
good," (v. 21.) But does not our conscience frequently disclose to
us that our innocent sufferings from enemies are a just judgment
of God? Appearances are here even stronger than in Psalm 6,
that reference is made to suffering from disease, from sores and
leprosy, (v. 8 — 12 :)* so leprous Job said, "My kinsfolk have failed,
and my familiar friends have forgotten me." (Job xix. 14.) This
latter expression, which occurs in verse 12, also occurs in Psalm
* Hetzel, Ewald, Krahmer, Köster; Jerome translates verse 12: Amici
contra lepram meam steterunt.
PSALM xxxviir. 197
xxxi. 12, 13; Ixix. 9; Ixxxviii. 19, although there is no necessary
reference to leprosy in those passages. It appears from Genesis
iv. 23; Isa. i. 5, 6; liii. 3, that disease, loounds, and sores, were
used to denote every kind of suffering and pain. It will therefore
be more correct to seek the primary cause of this painful complaint
in the fiery persecution, which, however, probably aided by some
particular transgression, aroused David's sense of guilt and the
thought of the Divine wrath. Lost in himself, the Psalmist com-
plains in the first two strophes of the burden of his soul and body,
but feels the wrath of God in his bodily and psychical pains,
(v. 2 — 11.) He then looks around him: his friends leave him,
his enemies daily devise new mischief; he suffers without remon-
strating, for his hope is in the Lord, (v. 12 — 16.) He states to
God his misery — on the one hand his awakened knowledge of him-
self, the voluptuous prosperity of his enemies, and their great
wrong on the other, (v, 17 — 21,) and bases thereon his prayer for
aid and deliverance.
^A
PSALM of David, to bring to remembrance.
2 0 Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath :
Neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.
3 For thine arrows stick fast in me,
And thy hand presseth me sore.
4 Tliere is no soundness in my flesh
Because of (or, "before") thine anger; neither is there
any rest in my bones
Because of (or "before") my sin.
5 For mine iniquities are gone over mine head :
As an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
6 My wounds stink and are corrupt.
Because of my foolishness.
7 I am troubled ; I am bowed down greatly ;
I go mourning all the day long.
8 For my loins are filled with burning :
And there is no soundness in my flesh.
9 I am feeble and sore broken:
I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart.
10 Lord, all my desire is before thee ;
And my groaning is not hid from thee.
11 My heart panteth, my strength faileth me :
As for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me.
12 My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore ;
And my kinsmen stand afar off.
17*
198 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
13 They also that seek after my life lay snares for me :
And they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things,
And imagine deceits all the day long.
14 But I, as a deaf man, hear not;
And I am as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.
15 Thus I am as a man that heareth not,
And in whose mouth are no reproofs (or "remonstrance.")
16 For in thee, 0 Lord, do I hope:
Thou wilt hear, 0 Lord, my God.
17 For I said, Hear me,
Lest otherwise they should rejoice over me !
Lest when my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves
against me !
18 For I am ready to halt,
And my sorrow is continually before me.
19 For I declare mine iniquity;
I am sorry for my sin.
20 While mine enemies are alive,* and they are strong:
And they that hate me wrongfully, are multiplied.
21 They also that render evil for good are mine adversaries ;
Because I follow the thing that good is.
22 Forsake me not, 0 Lord:
0 my God, be not far from me.
23 Make haste to help me,
0 Lord my salvation.
V. 2 — 6. It is not uncommon that a strong sense of guilt is
attendant upon afflictions, into which pious people are brought
without any fault of their own. Stimulated by the thought that
God must have his wise designs in sending them, we search for
concealed guilt. Transgressions which until then had been unno-
ticed suddenly advance into prominent relief in the hour of suffer-
ing. More than this, our deportvient in affliction, our impatient
complaints, our fears and our shrinking from prayer, render us
more familiar with the condition of our hearts than in days of
prosperity. Our awakened consciences regard then every blow of
the enemy as a scourging of God — every act of injustice of men as
a sting of Divine justice — and every disease as an arrow sent from
God. David probably remembered some particular transgression.
Expressions of a sense of guilt accompanying suffering, occur also
in Psalms vi. 2; xxv. 18; xxx. 8; xxxi. 11; xxxix. 9; xl. 13;
cxliii. 2.
* Perhaps, but less probably, "Tlaey who hate me without cause are
many."
PSALM XXXVIII, 199
F. 7 — 11. He derives consolation in his aiBiction from the
knowledge that his every complaint is well known to God. If that
conviction is clearly apprehended, it yields of itself a rich consola-
tion. For if the tempter succeeds in protracted suffering to per-
suade the soul that God is perfectly unconcerned about it, then we
must regard such persuasion as a temptation of the fiercest kind.
F. 12 — 16. His friends have deserted him; even good-meaning
people, as e.g. the inhabitants of Kegilah, (1 Sam. xxiii.) deemed
it dangerous to hold any communion whatsoever with the exile.
The inactivity on the part of our friends is generally accompanied,
under such circumstances, by greater inveteracy on the part of
enemies. Faith is much strengthened by stating all this to a God
who declares it to be his peculiar office to aid the orphan and the
forsaken. We are entitled to hope for the aid of the Lord, accord-
ing as the accusations of our adversaries are unfounded, and every
attempt of remonstrating against their obduracy and cunning is
useless, and according as the sufferer, as does David, absolutely
commits the justice of his cause to God as to his best advocate.
(Cf. Isaiah liii. 7; 1 Peter ii. 23.) Experience confirms it, that if
we have to deal with any crafty and embittered foes, resigned suf-
fering is more likely to benefit than a zealous apprehension of our
good cause. Suffering of this kind will finally disarm our adversa-
ries, and cause the better-minded no longer to persist in inactivity.
F. 17 — 21. His enemies are exalted and rejoice, while he,
hardly able to prevent a deep fall, mourns in humility and peni-
tence to have by his own sins adduced such severe chastisements
on the part of God. He prays therefore that should he succumb
to their unheard-of attacks, they might not be permitted to triumph
over him, as if the cause of the godly were entirely destroyed.
Bearing in mind that the eye of the nation was fixed on David
since many years, and all were waiting for the final issue of things,
it is clear that his total defeat would be interpreted as a public
signal that God had ceased to be king in Israel.' To show more
markedly the contrast between himself and his enemies, he states
that so far from having by any fault of his own caused their animo-
sity, they had, on the contrary, even stood proof of shame at the
displays of his love to them. God hears the fervent prayers of his
children for the visible manifestation of his attributes now as he
ever did of old. But Christians should bear in mind of what
manner of spirit they are, (Luke ix. 55,) that their faith, superior
to that of the ancients, ought to soar above the things seen and
temporal, to the things not seen and eternal.
F 22, 23. He grounds his prayer for the assistance of God, on
the magnitude of his own misery, and the ready acknowledgment
of his guilt, as well as the hard-hearted arrogance and pride of his
enemies, and confesses that his sole help is with God.
200 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM XXXIX.
A PECULIAR psalm of complaint, containing the confession of des-
perate struggle of soul, which resolves itself into a mournful prayer.
The Psalmist represents the fearful extent of his misery. Words
of murmuring and accusation against God had arisen in his soul,
but he had checked their eagerness to break forth. He would not
for his own sufferings' sake have the name of God contemned, and
therefore resolved to suppress the tumult of his soul, and to be
silent, (v. 13.) But the commotion of his heart was too vehement.
His depression burst forth once, and like Job he wished for the
end of his life.
Now the agitated complaint changes into humble supplication.
He is aware of the shortness of this sorrowful life : but that know-
ledge is no solid foundation for the anchor of hope. His hesitating
soul regains the solid and well-known foundation in his God,
(v. 6 — 8.) He will humbly hope for deliverance from the Lord.
The Lord is sure to afford some joyous moments, just because the
term of our sorrowful life is brief, (v. 9 — 14.)
irp
0 the chief Musician of the Jeduthunites, A Psalm
of David.
2 I said, "I will take heed to my ways,
That I sin not with my tongue :
I will keep my mouth with a bridle,
While the wicked is before me."
3 I was dumb with silence,
I held my peace even from good ;
And my sorrow was stirred.
4 My heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned :
Then spake I with my tongue.
5 "Lord, make me to know mine end,
And the measure of my days, what it is ;
That I may know what time I have here."
6 Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth;*
And mine age is as nothing before thee :
Verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity.
Selah.
7 Surely every man walketh in a vain show :
Surely they are disquieted in vain :
He heapeth up riches^ and knoweth not who shall gather
them.
* Properly, "Several spans."
PSALM XXXIX. 201
8 And now, Lord, what wait I for ?
My hope is in thee.
9 Deliver me from all my transgressions :
Make me not the reproach of the foolish:
10 I will be dumb, I will not open my mouth :
For thou wilt do it (well.)
11 Remove thy stroke away from me:
I am consumed by the blow of thine hand.
12 When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity,
Thou makest his beauty to consume away as by the moth :
Surely every man is vanity. Selah.
13 Hear my prayer, 0 Lord,
And give ear unto my cry;
Hold not thy peace at my tears :
For I am a stranger with thee,
A7id a sojourner, as all my fathers were.
14 0 spare me, that I may recover strength,
Before I go hence, and be no more.
V. 2, 3. How true and graphic is this description of inward
struggle in hours of distress, when we have not faith enough to
humble ourselves before God, and yet are not sufficiently unbe-
lieving to deny him before his enemies. The heart will then not
shrink from the contradiction, to maintain the honour of the Lord
before others, and to deny it to ourselves. It is like a man who
seeks to master a monster which he cannot kill, by kneeling on its
back: its roaring has ceased, though not its panting and groaning.
V. 4, 5. It implied a greater extremity of despair in the ease
of the children of the Old Covenant than in ours (because they
lacked our clear insight into the future,) to renounce earthly exist-
ence and to desire death. So Job exclaimed in his deepest wretch-
edness, " Oh, that I might have my request, and that God would
grant me the thing that I long for: even that it would please God
to destroy me: that he would let loose his hand and cut me off!"
(Job vi. 8, 9.) And Elias, "It is enough; now, 0 Lord, take
away my life, for I am not better than my fathers." (1 Kings xix. 4.)
And Jonah, " Therefore now, 0 Lord, I beseech thee, take
my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live."
(Jonah iv. 3.) The fear of the Lord has as yet prevented David
from reaching that point of extremity to wish straightway for
death: in his then state of mind he only asked to know when
it should take place.
V. 6, 7. He no longer wishes for but complains of the near-
ness of death and the frailty of human life. Prosperity intoxicates
men to a security, as if they had to live for ever, (Psalm xlix. 12;)
202 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
SO most men are, even in old age, anxious for after days — so does
the covetousuess of misers increase and not decrease with their
years. When affliction enters, and now destroys this and that
foundation of prosperity, the nothingness of human life gets soon
apparent.
V. 8. Life is short indeed, and no sufferer needs to anticipate
centuries of misery. If prosperity therefore is to come at all, it
must come soon. Hence David indulges the hope, that the day
of joy will dawn to him after his nights of sorrow. He depends
not, after the manner of the worldly-minded, upon a caprice of the
goddess of fortune or chance — but though in his depression he felt
half inclined to forsake the Lord, he patiently returns to him,
knowing that the destinies of man are lodged in his hand, to place
his hope in him.
V. 9 — 12. His challenge of God is transmuted into prayer, the
answer of which he means silently and trustfully to wait for. He
acquaints Grod with his grief: he describes his beauty to have van-
ished by his stealthily consuming grief of the chastisement of God,
like the beauty of a garment by the secret gnawing of a moth.
This has taught him the frailty of man.
V. 13, 14. He seeks by this representation also to move the
heart of God to mercy. Man traverses life like a pilgrim and a
stranger, making but a short stay: the law has enjoined kindness
to strangers. (Exod. xxii. 21; Lev. xix. 10.) It is said that "the
Lord preserveth the strangers, he relieveth the fatherless and
widow." (Psalm cxlvi. 9.) He asks whether he, a stranger of
God on earth, (Job x. 2,) may not hope for seasons of joy and
refreshing. Though those who know that this life is a time of dis-
cipline and probation for the next, are not surprised that the
draught of our earthly cup is mixed of hitter herbs only, still it is
to be remembered that God knows the weakness of the human
mind — that we are dust and ashes — and that therefore it cannot
be deemed a wrongful prayer to pray with David, that God would,
by the infusion of a few sweet drops, render the bitter draught
more palatable. "As all my fathers were," probably refers to the
confessions of Abraham and Jacob. (Gen. xxiii. 4; xlvii. 9; Heb.
xi. 13.) In similar terms David says (1 Chron. xxix. 14, 15,)
after the humble confession, that the costly material, which he had
procured for the building of the Temple, was really the property of
God, " For we are strangers before thee and sojourners, as were all
our fathers : our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is
none abiding."
PSALM XL. 203
PSALM XL.
A PSALM like Psalm ix. simultaneously expressive of gratitude and
complaint. Gratitude for deliverance is the leading sentiment;
then follows the cry for help in view of impending dangers; and
in Averse 18 there ensues a final calm. The portion of the psalm
which begins with verse 14, occurs in Psalm Ixx. in a separate
form. Situations such as this psalm presumes them, in which
danger and persecution were still threatening after remarkable
deliverances, constantly occurred in the life of David during this
flight before Saul. He had scarcely retired from the town of
Kegilah to the wilderness of Siph, before the Siphites send word
to Saul: having afterwards escaped from Saul into the wilderness
of Maon and fled to Engedi, Saul pursued him as far as there:
having in the wilderness of Siph escaped from Saul a second
time, he is so depressed at the snares and persecutions which com-
passed him on every hand, that weary of the unceasing chase and
flight, he says, '' I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul :
there is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape
into the land of the Philistines, and Saul shall despair of me to
seek me any more in any coast of Israel, so shall I escape out of
his hand." (1 Sam. xxvii. 1.)
With a solemn and grateful mind he praises the deliverance he
has just experienced, (v. 2 — 5 :) contemplating his manifold expe-
rience of the marvellous love of God, he ardently desires worthily
to thank the Lord; and knowing that sacrifice of itself is not suf-
ficient, he promises to render the sacrifice of himself, of his will,
according to the requirements of the law, besides his cheerful tes-
timony to the justice, goodness, and faithfulness of God in the con-
gregation, (v. 6 — 11.) Now for the first time remembering the
uncertain soil of the present, he sends up his fervent petitions
(v. 13 — 17,) and concludes with a calmed mind, (v. 18.)
^T
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
I waited patiently for the Lord ;
And he inclined unto me, and heard mj cry.
He brought me up also out of an horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
A7id established my goings.
And he hath put a new song in my mouth,
£ven praise unto our God :
204 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Many shall see it, and fear,
And shall trust in the Lord.
5 Blessed is that man that maketh the Lord his trust,
And respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
6 Many, 0 Lord my God, are thy wonderful works which
thou hast done,
And thy thoughts ivhich are to us-ward:
Nothing can be compared unto thee (or "be made like :")
I would declare and speak of them but they are more
than can be numbered.
7 Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire;
Mine ears hast thou opened* [i. e. thou hast revealed it
to me:)
Burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.
8 Then said I, Lo, I comeif
In the volume of the book it is written of me,
9 I delight to do thy will, 0 my God :
Yea, thy law is within my heart.
10 I have preached righteousness in the great congregation :
Lo, I have not refrained my lips, 0 Lord, thou knowest.
11 I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart ;
I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation :
I have not concealed thy loving-kindness and thy truth
from the great congregation.
12 Withold not thou thy tender mercies from me, 0 Lord :
Let thy loving-kindness and thy truth continually pre-
serve me.
13 For innumerable evils have compassed me about;
Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me.
So that I am not able to look up ;
They are more than the hairs of mine head :
Therefore my heart forsaketh me.
14 Be pleased, 0 Lord, to deliver me :
0 Lord, make haste to help me.
* /. e. The inward ear; another figure is, The awakening of the ear.
(Isaiah 1. 4.)
•J- fj^ denotes here, Succession in time, (Jer. xxii. 15; Ps. Ivi. 10.) hfij^ia
is explained by Kimchi, by supplying ^'135^, and that not in the tcmjile only,
(Ps. Ixv. 3; Ixxi. 16; xcv. 6.) Stier compares less happily iri!Ä!3 '^i*^
Numb. xxii. 38; 2 Sam. xix. 21.
PSALM XL. 205
15 Let them be ashamed and confounded together
That seek after my soul to destroy it ;
Let them be be driven backward and put to shame
That wish me evih
16 Let them be desolate for a reward of their shanie
That say unto me, Aha ! aha !
17 Let all those that seek thee
Rejoice and be glad in thee:
Let such as love thy salvation
Say continually, "The Lord be magnified."
18 But I a7n poor and needy;
Yet the Lord thinketh upon me :
Thou art my help and my deliverer ;
Make no tarrying, 0 my God.
V. 2 — i. David describes his anguish and peril of life, by the
figure of a man who, e. g. like Joseph or Jeremiah, having been
thrown into a cistern, sinks deeper and deeper into the mire. (Cf.
ad. Ps. Isix. 3.) When the Lord had stretched out his mighty
hand to him, he felt like one who, deUvered from such a perilous
situation, has by some helping hand been set upon a rock. He
projects to celebrate this new theme in new accents, and rejoices
in the thought that his own experience should prove subservient
to the piety of others.
F. 5. Those who are strongly attached to appearances are prone
rather to cling to the mighty ones on earth whom they see, than
to God whom they do not see. But while "He giveth to all men
liberally and upbraideth not," //teyare proud — while He is faithful,
they deal in lies. How much better to trust in God than in man !
V. 6 — 9. This one experience opens to David the wonders of
Divine mercy in general. Who can vividly realize them, without
feeling constrained to proclaim them to a blinded world, that pass
them day after day without seeing or hearing them? David is
thus constrained, but is none of those who consider that words
alone can do it. He not only knows the insufficiency of human
speech in these matters, but is equally conscious that gratitude
needs works as the concomitants of words. In his relation to God
he is not satisfied with tliose works which suffice to the great mass
of mankind. He has not forgotten the saying of Samuel, his fatherly
friend, that "to obey is better than sacrifice," (1 Sam. xv. 22 ;) nor
received it on human authority, but the Spirit of God has confirmed
it to his mind. Whatever name the difi'erent kinds of sacrifice
may bear, he knows that they are the symbols of the self-sacrifice
of man. Man ofi"ers them with an obscure feeling that the sacrifice
of his will is as yet incomplete. On that account David testifies
18
206 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
before the Lord, that he has sacrificed his own will and adopted the
Divine as his, and that the law of God is for him not only inscribed
upon the tables of stone, but written upon his heart. But, it is
asked, how can David say so, since he immediately after declares
that "his iniquities are more than the hairs on his head"? The
Spirit of God, we answer, had certainly put these sublime words
into the mouth of David, which in their fullest sense, however,
could only be uttered by the Son of God, who said, "I seek the
will of my Father," and, *' My meat is to do the will of him that
sent me." Just at that moment, when he had soared aloft in
prayer, the expression may have been true of David (for imperfect
man may bring such sacrifices of self in his prayers;) but in his
life it was a truth of only gradual development. Christ, however,
who became man to lay down his life for man by the perfect
resignation of his will, could in the fullest sense say, " Sacrifice
and offering thou wouldest not, but a hody hast thou prepared me,"
(Heb. X. 5,) i. e. for sacrifice — for he made a sacrifice to God of
the life he lived in the body, and of the body itself.
V. 10, 11. Gratitude is to be an act; but who that experiences
gratitude Gan repress the words ? Though the wonders of Divine
mercy cannot be numbered, should we not count as many as we
are able? So David deems it his duty to preach to the godly,
that the mercy of God, which has yielded so much fruit to him,
may likewise yield fruit to others.
V. 12, 13. While speaking of the past love and faithfulness of
God, he is reminded of the present and the immediate future
before him, and feels how little he can spare the continuance of
that love and faithfulness. He has formed lofty views of the
duties of the godly, and expressed his heart's desire that his own
will should be absorbed by that of God; but this only causes him
to pass a more severe sentence on his past life, to recognize the
hand of a just God in his suflFerings, however undeserved they
might appear to human eyes, and to measure the number of his
offences by the number of his sufferings. These expressions fur-
nish the clue, why afflictions, which less conscientious men could
have better borne than David, so completely prostrated him.
V. 14 — 18. With a humble and contrite heart he now cries
for help, and summoning his adversaries before the Divine judg-
ment-seat, enumerates the proofs of their inhuman disposition :
they aim at his life, rejoice at his tears, and every new disaster
which befalls him. On the other hand, he infers from his past
experiences the exultation to which his own deliverance would give
rise among the children of God, confesses the Lord as his all-
sufiicient help, and prays, weakened by the endless chain of afflic-
tion, for the speedy forthcoming of that help.
PSALM XLI.
PSALM XLI.
207
A PLAINTIVE psalm composed in sickness, which was attended by
the haughtiness of enemies and the faithlessness of friends. It can-
not welf fall into the period of David's reign, because it is impro-
bable that such potent adversaries should have surrounded the
kinc', or if they had, he would no doubt from the sick-bed have
concerted means to check their malice. It is therefore better to
refer it to the period of his residence at the court of Saul. AVe
know that he was there surrounded by crafty men, who in every
way sought to calumniate him with the king, (v. 7.) It is by no
means improbable that his friends and associates dealt with him
in a hostile manner, though there is no historic record to that
effect. Psalm Ixix. refers to similar circumstances, (cf. verse 21.)
The Psalmist, conscious of his desertion, promises the reward pf
blessing to those who will espouse the cause of the aflaicted m
their time of calamity, (v. 2 — i :) previous to presenting his peti-
tion to the Lord, he confesses his readiness to regard his disease as
a well-merited chastisement, (v. 5 :) he complains of the cunning
of enemies, that his friends cannot be depended upon, (v. 6—10;)
and prays for health for the purpose of punishing the faithless, and
of knowing thereby that the Lord has not wholly cast him off,
(v. 11—13.)
1 rr^O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 Blessed is lie tliat considereth the poor :
The Lord will deliver him in the day of evil. ^
3 The Lord will preserve him, and keep him alive;
And he shall be blessed upon the earth :
And thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his
enemies. .
4 The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing :
Thou wilt turn all his bed in his sickness.
5 I said, Lord, be merciful unto me :
Heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.
6 Mine enemies speak evil of me,
"When shall he die, and his name perish?"
7 And if they come to see me, they speak vanity (or,
"falsehood":)
Their heart gathereth iniquity,
They go abroad and tell it.
8 All that hate me whisper together against me:
Against me do they devise my hurt.
208 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 "An evil disease," say tliey, "cleavetli fast unto him:
And now that lie lieth he shall rise up no more."
10 Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which
did eat of my bread,
Hath lifted up his heel against me.
11 But thou, 0 Lord, be merciful unto me,
And raise me up, that I may requite them.
12 By this I know that thou favourest me,
That mine enemy shall not triumph over me.
13 But as for me, thou upholdest me in mine integrity,
And settest me before thy face for ever.
Blessed le the Lord God of Israel
From everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.
F. 2 — 10. The kind of recompense which the Psalmist ex-
pressed in verse 4, shows that he understands by the poor, one
afflicted with disease. He prefaces his petition with the confession
of his guilt, because the lenity of the judgment of God is propor-
tionate to the severity with which we judge ourselves. By his
enemies we have to understand such courtiers as disliked David,
partly on account of his piety, partly on account of the high position
he held at court. They cannot, without a breach of etiquette, omit
to visit him in the sick-chamber, but they partly contort his sayings
to calumniate him with the king, and partly rejoice at his sufferings.
The expression " to lift up the heel," which David says of his friend,
is equivalent to "to strike out (kick) against one," (Gen. xlix. 17,)
and denotes cunning insolence. Our Lord's (John xiii. 18) apply-
ing this parage to Judas, must be taken in a typical sense; and it
may be worth noticing that our Saviour omits the words, " in whom
I trusted."
V. 11 — 13. The words, "that I may requite them," seem to
express personal vindictive desires, and to contradict the sentiment
of Psalm XXXV. 13. Most interpreters regard the Psalmist as
speaking in his capacity of king, and contemplating as such the
exercise of legal punishment. But was it necessary that he should
for that purpose wait for the restoration of his health? Personal
vindictive feeling can hardly be denied; but all depends upon the
kind of recompense which he desired. He may have simply meant
to say that he intended to part with his faithless friend, and to
cause the king or other influential persons to punish his cunning
enemies, which would be a degree of revenge by no means unpar-
donable. Looking upon his sickness as a Divine chastisement,
he determines to regard his recovery as an evidence of the continued
favour of God. The doxology which occurs at the end of this
Psalm was added by transcribers, who thus concluded the first book
of the Psalms. (Cf. Psalms Ixxii. Ixxxix. cvi.)
PSALMS XLII. XLIII. 209
PSALMS XLII. XLIII.
These two psalms of complaint make up, as show the recurring
verses xlii. 6. 12, xliii. 5, one whole. The voice of longing for
the sanctuary at Jerusalem is heard in the regions of Lebanon.
To infer from the title, the exile seems to be a Korahite Levite.
Similar yearnings occur in Psalms Ixi. Ixiii. Ixxxiv. Psalm Ixxxiv.
notices the striking circumstance that the banished Korahite, who
longs for the sanctuary, shares the exile of a king, and expresses
his anxiety to return conjointly tvltli the king, and quasi in the
soul of that king. Psalm Ixxxiv. applies to no other king than to
David on his flight before Absalom (Cf. ad. Ps. Ixxxiv.) beyond
Jordan : this favours the presumption that the mourning Levite of
this Psalm sang on the same occasion in the soul of the aggrieved
king. 2 Sam. xv. 24, states that Levites accompanied David on his
flight : the ark of the covenant which they bore was certainly by
order of the king taken back to the city, but it does not follow from
that circumstance that all the Levites returned. It would be diflBicult
to state another occasion when a Levite was exiled just in the region
beyond Jordan,* while the description of the locality agrees with
David's residence at Mahanaim. David's longing for the sanctuary
is known from 2 Sam. xv. 25, and other Psalms. (Cf. ad. Ps.
Ixxxiv.) While the Psalm begins with a deep sense of yearning
for the place where the bard had enjoyed rich communings with
God, rebellious enemies mockingly tell him that his God has forsaken
him, (v. 2 — 4.) He comforts himself to some extent by the recol-
lection of the former beautiful seasons of worship (v. 5,) and soothes
his moved soul with the firm belief that help is sure to come, (v. 6.)
Scarcely soothed, grief bursts forth anew : the land of his exile, the
perpetual rushing of the mountain streams, furnish a figure of his
great grief. But since the Lord daily and hourly provides to his
people opportunities of praise, the Psalmist directs his plaintive
cries unto him, and by the exercise of faith succeeds once more to
appease his troubled heart, (v. 9 — 12.) But his grief rises a third
time, and streams forth in loud cries for help, until the same refrain
brings for the third time peace to his mind. (Ps. xliii, 1 — 5.)
(Psalm xlii.)
1 n^O the chief Musician, and instruction of the Sons of
X Korah.t
2 As the hart panteth after the water brooks,
So panteth my soul after thee, 0 God.
* According to Ewald, the Psalmist was, on the transport to Babylon,
detained for a night in the vicinity of Hermon. (?)
f Cf. ad. Ps. xxxii. 1. Perhaps with reference to practical wisdom of
life. (Cf. b^i^ipn Jos. i. 8.)
18* " ^ '
210 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
3 My soul thlrsteth for God, for the living God :
When shall I come and appear before God.
4 My tears have been my meat day and night,
"While they continually say unto me, "Where is thy God?"
5 When I remember these tilings^ I pour out my soul in me :
How I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to
the house of God,
With the voice of joy and praise.
With a multitude that keep holyday.
6 Why art thou cast down, 0 my soul?
And why art thou disquieted in me?
Hope thou in God : for I shall yet praise him,
Who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
7 My soul is cast down within me :
Whilst I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and
from the mountains of Hermon,
From the little hill.
8 Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts ;
All thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
9 Yet the Lord will command his loving-kindness in the
daytime.
And in the night his song shall he with me,
And my prayer unto the God of my life.f
10 I will say unto God my rock. Why hast thou forgotten me ?
Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the
enemy ?
11 As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me;
While they say daily unto me, "Where is thy God?"
12 Why art thou cast down, 0 my soul?
And why art thou disquieted within me?
Hope thou in God : for I shall yet praise him.
Who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
(Psalm xliii.)
1 TUDGE me, 0 God, and plead my cause
«J Against an ungodly nation:
0 deliver me from deceitful and unjust men.
•j- Should the transition from the complaint in v. 8 appear too sudden,
interpret: "The day will bring help, and at night I shall be able to give
thanks." (Cf. Ps. Ixvi. 17.) "I cried unto him with my mouth, and now
I extol him with my tongue." This interpretation regards niiDri ^s a prayer
of thanksgiving. ^ ' '
PSALM XLIII. 211
2 For thou art the God of my strength :
Why dost thou cast me off?
Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the
enemy ?
3 0 send out thy light and thy truth :
Let them lead me ;
Let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy taber-
nacles.
4 Then will I go unto the altar of God,
Unto God my exceeding joy:
And upon the harp "will I praise thee,
0 God, my God.
5 Why art thou cast down, 0 my soul?
And why art thou disquieted within me?
Hope in God: for I shall yet praise him.
Who is the health of my countenance, and my God.
(Psalm xlii.)
V. 2 — 4. The outward sanctuary was the tie which united
the godly and their God: there they enjoyed the happiest hours in
holy communion with him. Hence this strong yearning for the
sanctuary. The Psalmist compares the complaints of his longing
to the panting of a thirsty hart; so incessant is the flow of his
tears, that his bread is steeped in them. Mockers sneer at his
king's trust in God, whose cause he has identified with his own.
V. 5, 6. The present being painful, and the future uncertain,
his troubled mind reverts to the past, and he enjoys once more in
memory the delights of the communion of the children of God
before his countenance. That retrospect elicits tears, but they are
at once expressive of grief and joy. The realization of the past
mercy of God, accompanied by the thought of his unchanging char-
acter, gives rise to hope for the future, and he gains a sufficient
amount of strength to address and comfort his soul.
V. 7, 8. The grief of a deeply afflicted soul is like a wave of
the sea, which now sinks, but immediately lifts itself again. So
grief returns on his beholding the place of his exile.* It was in
* The name, "The land of Jordan," is used not to designate the source
of Jordan, but because Canaan proper did not extend beyond Jordan,
(v. Reland's Palestine, p. 4.) This name denotes therefore the exile remote
from Canaan. The Ilermon of the ancients is, according to Seezen, the
same as the modern Heish mountains. On Robinson's map Mahanaim is
certainly some miles distant from the Heish mountains, in the mountains
of Gilead ; but Lebanon, Hermon, and Gilead form a connected chain, or
may at least be regarded as such, as appears from Bochard's testimony
quoted in Bachiene's description of Palestine, vol. i. 1, § 126. The use of
the plural Q'iiüin shows indeed that Hermon in a wide and not in the
narrow sense is meant.
212 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the mountains of Gilead, beyond the frontiers of Canaan — a coun-
try rich in natural wonders. But what are the beauties of nature
to a soul that is conscious of being exiled from the sanctuary of
God? Beauteous nature round about, with its mountain streams,
where one gush of water seems uproariously to call for the next,
is to him a figure of the billows of adversity, which had gone over
him. The most beautiful scenery appears to a saddened heart as
clad in mourning apparel, while a simple pasture may tune a glad-
dened one to exultant joy.
V. 9 — 12. Those who are rich in past experience possess in it
an eminence from which they may also enjoy genial prospects of the
future. Strengthened by the contemplation of the past, he acquaints
God, who had so often proved himself to be his rock, with his
grief, and above all with his great sorrow, harder to bear than
death itself, that his enemies deride his faith, and for the second
time he allays the tumult of his mind.
(Psalm xliii.)
V. 1 — 5. Soliloquy has ceased; he invokes Divine aid in a
state of mind which almost borders on despair. Neither transient
enjoyment nor temporal good, but the delights of worship and the
praise of God, which sounds so feebly at a distance from the accus-
tomed sanctuary, occasion his painful yearnings for Zion. Having
thus committed his cause to the Lord, he succeeds for the last time
to appease his troubled soul.
PSALM XLIV.
A SONG of complaint, which probably belongs to the period when
Nebuchadnezzar carried away Jehoiachin the king and thirty-two
noble Israelites into captivity. Many commentators have explained
V. 10 — 17 and v. 20 as descriptive of the condition of the Jews in
exile; this view is not coi'rect, for v. 6 — 8 seems to point to the
hope of victory; nothing is said about the destruction of the sanc-
tuary, and the people were then fjir from regarding the judgments
of God as unmerited on their part, which they were called upon to
endure for the sake of God, as v. 21 — 23 state. Many expressions
in books, which originated in the exile, prove the contrary, (Ezra
ix. 7. 13; Neh. i. 6; ix. 30. 33; xiii. 18; Lam. i. 8. 18. 22;
iv. 6. 13 — 15; v. 16; Dan. ix. 4, etc.;') expressions difi"ering from
those employed here occur also in Psalms Ixxix. 6; Ixxxv. 3.
The two characteristics of this psalm are the captivity and the deep
PSALM XLIV. 213
humiliation of the people, and the consciousness that idolatry was
not the cause of their sore trial. For on an inspection of the epoch
from Josiah to the captivity, with a view to find the time when the
king and the nation were not adicted to idolatry, and yet visited
with great calamities and captivity, it appears there is none,
except that of the carrying away of king Jehoiachin. Several
prisoners had been carried to Babylon during the reign of Jehoia-
kim, (Dan. i. 3, etc,') but they were few. (Cf. In trod, to Ps. Ixxiv.)
Verses 12 — 17 apply to the days of Jehoiachin or Zedekiah only.
It cannot fall under the government of the latter (e. g. the period
when Jerusalem was besieged by the generals of Nebuchadnezzar,)
because the nobility and priests were then guilty of gross idolatry,
which was committed in the temple itself, (Ezraviii. ; 2 Chron.
xxxvi. 14; see Introd. to Psalm Ixxiv.) and because Jeremiah
expressly states that the destruction of the city took place for idol-
atry's sake. (Jer. xxii. 9.) Though (2 Chron. xxxvi. 9,) it is
stated that Jehoiachin, during the three months of his government,
'Mid that which was evil in the sight of the Lord," it is apparent
from the description in Jer. xxii. 10, etc. of the kings after Josiah,
that the youthful king Jehoiachin, mourned for by many, had, in
accordance with the immutable counsel of God, to suifer for the
sins of the nation. Nothing else is mentioned of Shallum, the son
of Josiah, who immediately after his accession to the throne was
by Necho in his early youth taken a captive to Egypt. Of Jehoia-
kim who in his pride built lofty palaces, extorted the people, shed
innocent blood, and oppressed the land, it is said, ''They shall not
lament for him, saying, Ah, my brother! or, Ah, my sister! they
shall not lament for him, saying. Ah, lord! or. Ah, his glory!
He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth
beyond the gates of Jerusalem.^' But concerning Jehoiachin, (or
Coniah,) the people lament: "Is this man a despised, broken idol?
is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure ? wherefore are they cast out,
he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not ?
Now idolatry had ceased already in the days of Jehoiakim, and it
is said, (2 Kings xxiv. 3, 4,) that he was delivered into the hands
of his enemies for the sins of idolatrous Manasseh. How natural
therefore was it for a pious man during the reign of innocent
Jehoiachin to say that affliction had come upon them not on account
of their iniquities !
At a time when the land was laid desolate by the devastations
of the foe, (v. 20,) while the foe was still in its borders, (v. 17,)
much people destroyed by him, and Israel deeply humiliated,
(v. 12 — 17,) the thoughts of the Levite singer revert to the
ancient works of God, to the period when the Lord was still
favouring his people, (v. 2 — 4;) he consoles himself by remember-
ing that the same God is still King, and able to give victory to
those who rely not on their own strength, but confide in his
214 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
strong arm, (v. 5 — 9.) He successively contemplates the sliame
which the Lord has suffered to come upon his people; he thinks
of their routed armies, of their ignominious captivity, of the foe in
their borders, (v. 10 — 17,) and all this (which the Lord had
threatened as their punishment if they forsook him, Deut. iv.
25 — 27; xxviii. 37,) now at a time when the nation clings close to
her God, (v. 18 — 23.) He then cries, almost despairingly, for
help, (v. 24,) but concludes with a humble prayer for mercy, (v. 25.)
^T
0 the Chief Musician, A Poem of the sons of Korah.
2 We have heard with our ears, 0 God,
Our fathers have told us,
What work thou didst in their days.
In the times of old.
3 JIow thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand,
But plantedst them ;
JIow thou didst afflict the nations.
But extendedst them.
4 For they got not the land in possession by their own
sword,
Neither did their own arm save them;
But thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy
countenance,
Because thou hadst a favour unto them.
5 0 God, thou art he, my king !
Command deliverances for Jacob !
6 Through thee will we push down our enemies :
Through thy name will we tread them under that rise
up against us.
7 For I will not trust in my bow.
Neither can my sword save me.
8 But thou hast saved us from our enemies.
And hast put them to shame that hated us.
9 In God we boast all the day long,
And praise thy name for ever. Selah.
10 But thou hast cast off, and put us to shame ;
And didst not go forth with our armies.
11 Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy;
And they which hate us spoil for themselves.
12 Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat ;
And hast scattered us among the heathen.
13 Thou seilest thy people for nought,
And dost not increase thi/ wealth by their price.
PSALM XLIV- 215
14 Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours,
A scorn and derision to them that are round about us.
15 Thou makest us a byword among the heathen,
A shaking of the head among the nations.
16 My confusion is continually before me,
And the shame of my face hath covered me,
17 For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth ;
By reason of the enemy and the vengeful.
18 All this is come upon us:
Yet have we not forgotten thee.
Neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.
19 Our heart is not turned back,
Neither have our steps declined from thy way;
20 Though thou hast sore broken us in the land of jackals,
And covered us with the shadow of death.
21 If Ave have forgotten the name of our God,
Or stretched out our hands to a strange god ;
22 Shall not God search this out?
For he knoweth the secrets of the heart.
23 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long;
We are counted as sheep for the slaughter.
24 Awake, why sleepest thou, 0 Lord?
Arise, cast us not oif for ever.
25 Wherefore hidest thou thy face,
Ä7id forgettest our affliction and our oppression ?
26 For our soul is bowed down to the dust ;
Our belly cleaveth unto the earth.
27 Arise for our help,
And redeem us for thy mercies' sake.
V. 2, " Hath not the Lord made thee and established thee ?
Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations;
ask thy father, and he will show thee; thy elders, and they will
tell thee." Thus saith the Lord in Deut. xxxii. 6, 7, etc. and goes
on to remind his people how he had, with the affection of a father,
established, led, and guarded them of old. The Psalmist obeys
this Divine commandment in causing his memory to go back to the
days of the beginning of his nation. It was the admirable occupa-
tion of old men in Israel, to immortalize the works of the Lord in
the nation, that the remembrance might in a continuous chain go
from century to century. (Psalm Ixxviii. 3 — 6.) The Psalmist
refers God's merciful dealings in hoary antiquity to the uninter-
rupted testimony as transmitted from one generation to the next,
216 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
and thereby intimates that the antiquity of their occurrence does
not in any way impair their certainty and credibility. Other
nations hand down to future generations the great events of anti-
quity in songs and histories — but while their songs sing of the
heroism of their ancestors, the songs of Israel celebrate the works
of God.
V. 3, 4. The Lord had found the nation " in a desert land and
in the waste howling wilderness, as an eagle stirreth up her nest,
fluttereth over her young, spreadetli abroad her wings, taketh them,
beareth them on her wings: so the Lord alone did lead him."
(Deut. xxxii. 10, 11.) He had destroyed nations that were rooted
in their native soil, and established his people in their borders and
multiplied them. Israel had to fight for the possession of those
new borders. But faith knows that the strength in man is not his,
but the Lord's, who has created heaven and earth. The Psalmist
therefore confesses that it was the hand of God which brought
those mighty feats to pass.
F. 5 — 9. This self-same God is still the King. How encour-
aging a thought, and is there any other way in which a nation can
attain to unwavering trust ? Human strength and wisdom change
with the generations, but the Lord's arm is the same in every cen-
tury. If a nation desires to share his mercy and his might, she
must ascribe the honour to him alone. Though Israel had ceased
from idolatry since the days of godly Josiah, the Lord had need in
the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim to say to Jeremiah,
''Stand in the courts of the Lord's house, and speak unto all the
cities of Judah, which come to worship in the Lord's house, all the
words that I command thee to speak unto them ; diminish not a
word : if so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his
evil ways, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do
unto them because of the evil of their doings." (Jer. xxvi. 2, 3.)
V. 10 — 15. Victory had departed from the arms of Israel since
the godly Josiah's defeat in the battle of Megiddoh : the arms of
Jehoiakim gave way in the wars against Nebuchadnezzar, Moab,
and Amnion, (2 Kings xxiv. 2;) and when the Chaldeans besieged
Jerusalem, in the days of Jehoiachin, it fell almost without a blow.
Nebuchadnezzar, covered with rich spoil, appeared for the second,
perhaps the third (Cf. Introd. to Ps. Ixxiv.) time before Jeru-
salem, and carried off many nobles, e. g. Daniel and Ezekiel, and
many costly vessels from the temple (Dan. i. 2; 2 Chron. xxxvi. 10)
of the Lord. There is no need for explaining the dispersion among
hostile nations of the abduction of captives to Babylon, since it
was customary in the wars of that time to carry captives into foreign
countries, and to sell them as slaves. Joel e. //. accuses the com-
mercial nation of the Philistines of having sold the children (Joel
iv. 6) of Jerusalem to the remote Greeks of Asia Minor, and Amos
the Syrian of having sold the captives to the Edomites. (Amos i. 6.)
PSALM XLIV. 217
But the deep humiliation of Israel before all the surrounding
nations which is here mentioned, and which fulfilled the prediction
of Deut. xxviii. 37, refers certainly to the abduction of a great
portion of the nation to Babylon. The disasters and calamities of
Israel were the rejoicing of all the surrounding nations, the Edom-
ites. Ammonites, etc.; and when Nebuchadnezzar afterwards des-
troyed the city, Edom aided him, and exclaimed with malicious
joy, "Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof." (Psalm
cxxxvii. 7.) The shaking of the head denotes here, as in Psalm
xxii. 8, derisive joy.
V. 16, 17. The Psalmist still hears the voice of the enemy,
(Ps. Ixxiv. 23,) and feels the ignominy of his people more deeply
than his own. His eye has not only to behold the destruction, but
the derision in the face of the destroyer.
V. 18. The Lord says (Deut. iv. 23, 24,) "Take heed unto
yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the Lord your God which
he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness
of anything which the Lord thy God hath forbidden thee : for the
Lord thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God:" adding,
" Ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be des-
troyed; and the Lord shall scatter you among the nations, and ye
shall be less few in number among the heathen, whither the Lord
shall lead you." The heart of the Psalmist is seized by that most
dangerous of temptations, that the word of God is no longer con-
sistent, for he affirms of his nation and himself, "that they have
not dealt falsely in his covenant." But, as is always the case when
man thinks that God has become faithless to his covenant, so here
the Psalmist had neither ivhoUj/ nor deepli/ understood the word
of God. Let man but grasp it in its dejjth and fulness, and it will
never contradict itself. Idolatry was not the only violation of the
covenant, though none other is mentioned there. The Lord says,
in Deut. xxviii. 15. 32. 37, "But it shall come to pass, if thou
wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to
do all the commandments and his statutes, which I command thee
this day, that all their curses shall come upon thee and overtake
thee. Thou shalt become an astonishment, a proverb, and a
byword among all nations, whither the Lord shall lead thee. Thy
sons and thy daughters shall be given unto another people, and
thine eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all the day
long; and there shall be no might in thy hand." Is this not the
sense in which the keeping of the covenant is explained in Ps. 1.?
Is not all sin, in its deeper sense, idolatry? But we are always
more prone to accuse God of faithlessness than our own hearts.
V. 19 — 23. The bard ventures to affirm that they have not
declined from the ways of God, while the sequel of his words shows
that all he means to say amounts just to this: that the nation as a
whole stretched out their hands to the true God, and had the
19
218 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
statutes and the covenant of the Lord in their mouths. But what
if God dealt with the people according to the words of Psalm
1. 16, 17, " What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that
thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth; seeing thou hatest
instruction, and eastest mj' words behind thee?" It appears that
the Psalmist was in his own mind not quite sure of the innocence
of his people, for he speaks as if he were afraid of the just accusa-
tions, that though having done away with outward idolatry, they
were attached to their idols in their hearts, as Ezekiel reproves
those "whose hearts cling to their idols." How much is needed
for a whole nation to afBrm, as does the Psalmist here, that they
endure their suffering, not on account of their own guilt, but solely
for the sake of their God and their faith, which Paul was permitted
to say of the Christians, (Ptom. viii. 36.) The Psalmist calls his
country the land of jackals and of the shadow of death, to intimate
its deserted condition, for the desert is the haunting-place of
jackals.
F. 24 — 27. Though the heart of believers cannot but retain
the conviction that an active God wields the sceptre of the universe,
expressions of despair in time of great temptation pass even their
lips, to challenge as it were the manifestation of the Divine arm.
But the wild waves soon subside in the mind of the bard, his sole
appeals being to his own affliction and to the Jove and mercy of
God.
PSALM XLV.
An exquisitely beautiful and poetic psalm, which were it found
elsewhere than in the collection of the sacred songs of Israel, might
be regarded as the nuptial song of an earthly king, whose bride is
exhorted to forget her father's house and to yield herself entirely
to her spouse and lord. The allegorical sense of this poem is ren-
dered highly probable, from the simple consideration that a secular
song of such a nature would not have been received into a collec-
tion of sacred songs.* John the Baptist calls our Lord Jesus the
* There are various objections to the allegorical interpretation of this
psalm, but grave difficulties attach also to the explanations which regard
the king as a worldly monarch of Persia, or Israel, or as Solomon. To
regard him as a king of Persia (Augusti, llosenmüUer, and formerly De
Wette) is prohibited by the following considerations: — Other tributary
nations besides Tyre would be mentioned: and Israelites would not have
pvaised him in similar epithets; nor would the position of the psalm occur
among such ancient songs. It is objected to its .application to a king of
PSALM XLV. 219
Bridegroom, and the people of Israel liis bride. (John iii. 29.)
Our Lord himself describes his union to his people by the figure of
a marriage feast. (Matt. xxii. 2; of. 2 Cor. xi. 2; Kev. xxix. 7.)
After the same manner this psalm represents Messiah as a king,
Israel as his affianced bride and queen, and pagan nations as her
associates or friends, who along with her are introduced into the
palace. The prophets (Isa. xi.; Mich. v. 3,) describe Messiah as a
victorious king of righteousness, wisdom and kindness. Israel
shall be the trunk-nation of the new kingdom, and the heathen be
received into Israel, believing in the Messiah. This is stated in
different figures. (Isaiah ii. 3.) It is described in another form
Ezek. viii. 23, "Thus saith the Lord of hosts; in those days it
shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages
of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a
Jew, saying. We will go with you; for we have heard that God is
with you." The spiritual union of God to his people is frequently
represented by the figure of a marriage. (Hos. 2; Jer. iii. 1, etc.;
Israel (Ewald, Hitzig,) that Tyre would not have paid tribute to so unim-
portant a kingdom as Israel (for nn3>2 iimst be regarded as tribute see Ps.
Ixxii. 10; Isaiah Ix. 6;) that foreign kings would not have sent their
daughters into the harem of such a king; that v. 17 could not apply to
him ; and that an Israelitisli song of such a nature would not have been
received into the Jewish canon. Its application to Solomon (Calvin, Gro-
tius, Hupfeld) has against it that v. 5 ascribes a martial character to the
king; that v. 17 speaks of a series of ancestors, while Solomon's sole
ancestor was David. Its application to a later monarch of Judah, which is
defended by Bleek (Commentary to the Hebrews, vol. ii. p. 154,) seems
most admissible, though it must be confessed that the flattery — "Thou
shalt make thy sons princes in all the earth," or, "in all the land," would
be too strong if addressed to a later Jewish king, the lord of a country the
dimensions of which were fifty miles by thirty. (See Introd. § iii.) It is,
moreover, very questionable whether the contents of the psalm agree with
such an hypothesis. Firstly, the proper object of praise is the king in
general, v. 18, and the wedding is only described because in connection
with him, while the bride is quieted by a reference to his glory. Secondly,
much depends upon the correctness of the common view, wliich regards
tlie virgins who follow the queen as her friends, introduced for the comple-
tion of the picture. But the' bride is not comforted by a reference to that
retinue, it being expressly stated that the virgins are brought unto him,
the king, which is rendered more emphatic still by v. 17. The word ^^^.f]
is, in fact, applied both to the queen and her companions. Verse 10 also
alludes to such an equalization. We think that a careful consideration of
the additional fTi5^:iTi?2 in v. 15, and of v. 16, necessarily leads to the con-
clusion to regard the virgins as brides, among whom the ^3'^' is prima inter
parts. If this be the case, the application of the psalm to a worldly monarch
is inadmissible. Among the different translations of J^^-;nT^ »ii'jj in the
title, that which renders, "A song concerning the beloved," seems most
preferable on grounds of language and of matter, which, after what has
been adduced, seems best to agree with the contents of the psalm.
220 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Isa. liv. 5. Cf. Song of Solomon and Introd. §§ 4, 5.) Compare
especially Ezek. xvi. where Israel is described as a virgin of
Canaanite extraction, poor at her birth, whom the Lord educated,
bathed, anointed, and adorned with broidered garments and costly
jewels, but who had become unfaithful to him. The Psalmist
declares in an enraptured state of mind his intention to sing a song
to his king, (v. 2.) He praises his beauty and chivalry, his victo-
rious warfares in the interest of truth and holy love : he affirms
righteousness to be the fundamental part of his government, and
depicts his majesty in figures borrowed from worldly monarchs, one
of which is his riches in wives, (v. 3 — 10.) Eastern potentates
have one favourite wife, who is styled the queen : the nation to
whom belong the promises occupies her place, and is according to
a wife's duty to forget her father's house and her former connections,
and shall by way of reward receive tribute from the wealthiest
nations of the earth. This wife, with the retinue of all other
nations of the earth, holds a glorious entrance into the royal palace.
The oifspring of that union shall be princes all over the earth,
more glorious than all the royal offspring of David, (v. 11 — 17.)
That king is worthy of eternal praises, and the nations shall praise
him for ever and ever for his greatness and his love, (v. 18.)
^T
0 the chief Musician, to the tune " The lilies," a Song
of the sons of Korah concerning the beloved, au
instruction.*
2 My heart welleth forth a fair song:
I say: I will sing touching the king:
My tongue is as the pen of a ready writer.
3 Thou art fairer than the children of men :
Grace is poured into thy lips :
Therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.
4 Gird thy sword upon tJiT/ thigh, 0 3Iost Mighty,
With thy glory and thy majesty.
5 And in thy majesty ride prosperously
Because of truth, and mercy,t cind righteousness;
And thy right hand shall teach thee marvellous things.
6 Thine arrows hit sharp into the heart of the king's
enemies ;
WTiile the people fall under thee.
* So Gesenius in Tlies. otherwise tlie rendering "Song of loves," would
be more preferable.
t pniZ ^^^ mD3> occur equally conjoined Zeph. ii. 3. These two asyn-
detically united words make up one idea, like two asyndetically united ad-
jectives (cf. Ewald's Hebrew Grammar, od Edition, | 538.)
PSALM XLV. 221
7 Thy throne,* 0 God, is for ever and ever:
The sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of justice.
8 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness :
Therefore God, tliy God, hath anointed thee
With the oil of ghidness above thy fellows.
9 All thy garments s7neU of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia,
Out of ivory palaces the sound of the harp maketh thee
glad.
10 Kings' daughters are among thy glories.
Upon thy right hand standeth the queen in gold of Ophir.
11 Hearken, 0 daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear ;
Forget also thine own people, and thy father's house;
12 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty:
For he is thy Lord, and thou shalt worship him.
13 And the daughter of Tyre shall with a gift entreat thy
favour,
The richest among the nations.
14 The king's daughter entereth all gloriously:
Her clothing is of wrought gold.
15 She is brought unto the king in raiment of embroidery :
The virgins her companions that follow her f
Are brought unto thee.
16 With gladness and rejoicing are they brought unto thee:
They enter into the king's palace.
17 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children.
Whom thou shalt make princes in all the earth.
18 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations :
Therefore shall the nations praise thee for ever and ever.
V. 2. The words of the poet well from a joyous and deeply-
moved mind. The thought that he is about to devote his pen to
the praise of his king inspires him with sublime enthusiasm. So
rapid is the pulsation of his heart, that the pen of the tongue knows
hardly to keep pace with the emotions of his heart.
V. 3 — 5. The bard seems already inclined to describe his king
as a bridegroom; he therefore praises his beauty. His beauty flows
from the possession of spiritual riches: it consists in the graceful-
ness of the words of his lips, which God has given to him. The
* The text -will also admit the rendering, "Thy throne is a throne of
God." Aben Ezra compares 2 Chron. xv. 8. The instances which Ewald
(I 547) adduces are not to the point, Gesenius quotes (| 141) Song of Sol.
i. 15, which is most admissible, though the passage is also susceptible of
another grammatical structure.
f Germ, version renders " playmates." Equally correct is "friends."
19*
222 COMMENTARY ON THE I'SALMS.
prophet represents Messiah's victory over the world by the figure
of a warfare — and mentions on that account the brave sword of his
royal hero. Truth and mercy blended with righteousness are the
object for which he fights. His enemies are the enemies of right-
eousness and mercy — they are struck to the heart by his never-
missing arrows.
V. 6 — 8. This Divine throne is perpetual, because justice is the
sceptre of this kingdom. Since all other sceptres are but weak
representations of this sceptre, righteousness and justice are pos-
sessed by them in an imperfect manner only : the Lord has there-
fore anointed this king with the oil of gladness more than any other.
He is indeed the. joy of his people.
V. 9, 10. As the king passes along, his full garments emit the
richest and most delightful odours, (Cant. i. 3 :) he is gladdened
by lovely songs. Among his riches are his wives : among these
only one is " his dove," (Cant. vi. 7, 8,) and hers is the preroga-
tive, arrayed in gold, to stand to his right.
V. 11 — 13. The words which were of old addressed to woman,
(Gen. ii. 24; Comp. xii. 1,) are in a spiritual sense enjoined upon
this bride. The Lord, whose jealous love for man will not endure
another beside him, can only favour her with his love on her for-
saking home and natural ties — for not only his love but his right
entitle him to that demand. Who would refuse to bring this sacri-
fice, that is alive to what he shall gain in lieu? As the prophet
promises to the new Jerusalem, the people of which shall be all
righteous, (Isa. Ix. 21,) all the riches of the earth as her posses-
sion— all the flocks of Kedar, all the gold and incense of Sheba,
(Isa. Ix. 6, 7,) and as Solomon declares, that the kings of Tarshish
and of the isles shall bring presents, and the kings of Sheba offer
gifts to Messiah, (Psalm Ixxii. 10,) so the Psalmist promises to the
wife, who has entered tJiis covenant, the gifts of the richest of na-
tions. (Ez. xxvii.)
V. 14 — 16. As Isaiah beheld in his rapturous ecstasy the flow-
ing together, (Isaiah Is. 8, 9,) of all the nations of the earth with
all their possessions — so the Psalmist sees the entrance of these
wives into the regal palace to the great marriage feast — gloriously
adorned, for the Lord has provided their wedding garments, (Matt.
xxii. 12,) in joy and delight, for they who have enjoyment like this,
need none other. Foremost in the procession is Israel, the good olive
tree chosen from the beginning, into which all who wish to belong
to the kingdom of Grod must be grafted, (Rom. xi. 17;) but the fol-
lowing friends are led to the same delights — they also are brovght
as wives unto the king, who is anointed with the oil of gladness.
V. 17. The new connection is also glorious to the king. Many
were his glorious and royal ancestors down to Jesse, but now there
are born to him the eternal kings, sons as the dew from the womb
of the morning, (Ps. ex. 3 ; cf. also Isa. liii. 10,) who shall, as princes,
PSALM XLVI. 223
occupy the thrones of the world. So our Lord promised to his
disciples: "Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed
me in the regeneration (of all things,) when the Son of Man shall
sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel,'^ (Matt. xix. 28.) And Paul
says, "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?"
(1 Cor. vi. 2.)*
V. 18. The glory of the king is the proper theme of the song.
Seized with a sense of grateful homage, the Psalmist translates
himself down to the remotest future, to join through remote gene-
rations the praises of the nations of the earth to the Lord, who hath
done such great things for (hem.
PSALM XLVI.
Since the separation of the kingdoms of Judah and Israel, the
holy city had become several times the prey of heathen enemies,
Shishak, king of Egypt, marched against the city as early as in the
fifth year of Rehoboam, and carried off the treasures of the king.
Edom and Philistia had joined him, and the children of Judah
were sold to the remote Greek Asia Minor, Joel mourns over
the plunder of the treasures of the Temple, (Joel iv. 5,) and the
sale of the children of Judah, (Joel iv. 16, 17, 18. 21.) The king
of Assyria threatened from the north with similar destruction in
the days of Hezekiah. Desire of conquest had several times brought
the kings of that remote empire against Egypt. Sennacherib was
on his march against Egypt, but contemplated at the same time to
reduce the king of Judah and other minor kings in Mesopotamia
and Syria to tributaries, (Isaiah ix. 9.) Isaiah describes in a vision
the terror of the Jewish nation at the approach of that northern
foe. " JSe is come to Aiath, he is passed to Migron : at Michmash
he hath laid zip his carriages: they are gone over the passage : they
have taken up their lodging at Geba: Ramah is a/raid: Gibeah
of Saul is fled. Lift up thy voice, 0 daughter of Gallim; cause
it to be heard unto Laish, 0 poor Anathofh. Madmenah is removed;
the inhabitants of Gebim gather themselves to flee. As yet shall he
remain at Nob'\ that day : he shall shake his hand against the
mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem," (Isaiah x.
* Stier has not observed unjustly, that this verse ought to be regarded
as addressed to the royal bride, since it would be a comfort to her respect-
ing what is said v. 11. But the present reading prohibits that view.
•j- Whence Jerusalem could be seen.
224 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
28, etc.') As yet the king threatens only, probably because he finds
the city too strong, and is afraid of delay. He sends his troops be-
fore all the fenced cities of Judah, that none might remain iu his
rear, (2 Kings viii. 18.) Hezekiah seeks to satisfy the foe by pay-
ing a heavy tribute, (2 Kings xviii. 14 — -16,) — (thirty times as
heavy as that which Pharaoh, Necho had exacted, for Sennacherib
asked for three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold,
while Necho had demanded one hundred talents of silver and one
talent of gold, — 2 Kings xxiii. 33 ;) but Sennacherib remains in
the country. He came in the autumn of 713 : the fields remained
untilled, and the country had to suffer famine and oppression for
two years, (Isa. xxxvii. 30.) In the meantime Hezkeiah had opened
negotiations with Egypt and the far distant king of Ethiopia, (Isa.
xxxvi. 9; Ch. xviii.) Sennacherib encamped before the fortress of
Lachish, about thirty miles from Jerusalem, ordered his generals and
satraps to besiege the capital. '' Woe for the multitude of many peo-
ple which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and for the rushing
of nations that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters. '^
(Isa. xvii. 12.) When Shishak, king of Egypt, had marched against
Jerusalem, it fell, for "when Rehoboam forsook the law of the
Lord," the Lord caused a prophet to proclaim : '* Ye have forsaken
me, and therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak."
(2 Chron. xii. 1 — 9.) When a hundred years later the Philistines
and Arabians marched against Jerusalem, in the reign of Jehoram,
they "carried away all the substance that was found in the king's
house, and his sons also, and his wives," for Jehoram had seduced
Judah to idolatry and slain his brothers; therefore the prophet
Elijah foretold that a great plague should befall himself and his peo-
ple. (2 Chron. xxi. ll — 17.) When thirty years after the Syrians
marched against Jerusalem, in the reign of Joash, "they destroyed
all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all
the spoil of them unto the king of Damascus," "because they had
forsaken the Lord God of their fathers." (2 Chron. xxiv. 23, 24.)
But while the godly Hezekiah lies in prayer before the Lord, he hears
the Divine reply: "Whereas thou hast prayed to me, against Sen-
nacherib, king of Assyria, this is the word which the Lord hath
spoken concerning him," etc. (Isa. xxxvii. 15;) and the Lord
smote in one night in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and
four score and five thousand with the 'plagues, so that those who
remained had to flee in ignominy. The knowledge of this miracle
spread far and wide among the nations, and the Greek historian
Herodotus (ll. 141) narrates it three hundred years later in a fabu-
lous form. Many songs of praise were composed at that time by
Hezekiah, the Levites, and others. (Psalms xlviii. Ixvi. Ixxvi.)
Victories gained by an oppressed people, not with bow and spear,
nor the arm of flesh, but by the strong hand of the Lord, occasion
psalms, at the singing of which the whole nation feels that "the
PSALM XLVI. 225
Lord who rules heaven and earth — he is our God." The historical
and instructive books of the nation praise this work of the Lord,
and remote generations derived strength and consolation from the
remembrance thereof (1 Mace. vii. 41. Sir. xlviii. 24.) This psalm
was at that time composed by a Levite, aud its contents correspond
to the prophecy of Isaiah. (Cf. Isa. xvii. 12 ; viii. 7, 8, with v. 3, 4 ;
Isa. xxxiii. 21, with v. 5; Isa. xvii. 14, with v. 16.) The senti-
ment of this psalm is that of Luther's famous hymn, ''A strong
fortress is our God."
1 rpo the chief Musician, A Song of the sons of Korah, to
X the tune of the virgins.
Chorus.
2 God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
3 Therefore Avill not we fear,
Though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of
the sea;
4 Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.
Selah.
5 There is a river,
The streams whereof shall make glad the city of God,
The holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High.
6 God is in the midst of her ;
She shall not be moved :
God shall help her at early morn.
7 The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved :
He uttered his voice, the earth melted.
The People.
8 The Lord of hosts is with us ;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
Cho7'us.
9 Come, behold the words of the Lord,
What desolations he hath made in the earth.
10 He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth;
He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder;
He burnetii the chariot with fire.
11 Be still, and know that I am God:
Exalted among the nations,
Exalted in the earth.
226 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
The People.
12 The Lord of hosts is with us ;
The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
V. 2 — 4. Isaiah describes the approach of the enemy thus :
^'Woe for the multitude of many people, which make a noise like
the noise of the sea, and for the rushing of nations, that make a
rushing like the rushing of mighty waters." (Ch. xvii. 12.) And
he says elsewhere, (Ch. viii. 7, 8,) " Now therefore behold, the
Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and
many, even the king of Assyria and all his glory : and he shall
come up over all his channels and go over all his banks: and he
shall pass through Judah; he shall overflow and go ovei", he shall
reach even to the neck; and the stretchings of his wings shall
fill the breadth of thy land, 0 Immanuel." But God, who for cen-
turies has been the protection and refuge of his people, rises like a
rock high above the waters, and though everything around do shake,
the hearts of believers remain firm.
V. 5 — 8. Isaiah says (xxxiii. 20,21), "Thine eyes shall see
Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken
down, not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither
shall any of the cords thereof be broken. But there the glorious
Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams." Such
a river round about his city is the Lord — no foes can pass it, no
mighty one bridge it. Happy the people with whom the Lord
dwelleth, who know that were he to suffer them to be endangered,
he would endanger himself. "God shall help her at early morn,"
says the Psalmist, and the prophet states, "and behold at evening-
tide trouble; and before the morning he is not. This is the por-
tion of them that spoil us, and the lot of them that rob us," " and
when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead
corpses." (Isa. xxxvii. 36.) However much the nation may rage,
they grow dumb at the voice of the God of Jacob.
V. 9 — 12. Where the Lord goes to the war, the wars of man
must cease; for his wars are for the establishment of peace. The
Psalmist speaks as if the help which the Lord had vouchsafed to
the city of David would cause the whole earth to share in her peace,
and such was really the case. Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, Ethio-
pia, and Phoenicia, rose in resistance, but were in part crushed by
the conqueror's foot. After his disaster before Jerusalem, Senna-
cherib returned to Nineveh, where his sons slew him, and thus was
the might of Assyria broken. The proud king was a chastising
rod in the hands of God, but the rod boasted against the hand that
led it, and was broken. Beautifully sublime are the words of Isaiah
— would that every conqueror were instructed by these words,
"Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath per-
formed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will
PSALM XLVII. 227
punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the
glory of his high looks. For he saith : By the strength of my hands
I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I am prudent: and I have re-
covered the bounds of the people, and have robbed their treasures,
and I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man : and my
hand hath found as a nest the riches of the people : and as one
gathereth eggs that are left have I gathered all the earth; and
there was none that moved the wing, or opened mouth, or peeped.
JShall the axe boast itse/f against Mm tliat hewcth therewitli? or
shall the saw magnify itself against him that shaketh it?" (Isa. x.
12, etc.) Such are the words of the prophet. The Psalmist pro-
pounds the same doctrine to the nations of the earth, " Be still,
and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted in the
earth." Happy is the people with whom is such a God, whose
refuge is the God of Jacob !
PSALM XLVII.
The period of the composition of this beautiful psalm, replete
with exultant joy, rests chiefly on the interpretation of verse 6.
Does it in a direct manner refer to the ascent of the ark — or
merely alluding to it, denote the victory of God? The former is
the natural view; the psalm falls then into the time of David,
when the ark still used to be taken into the field, (2 Sam. xi. 11,
and Psalm Ixviii.*) It is very dubious, according to 1 Kings viii. 8,
whether after its removal to the temple it ever accompanied the
army, though 2 Chron. xiii. 12, seems to speak /or it. Considering
that this psalm is placed between two others which belong to the
days of Sennacherib, and that just at that time Messianic hopes
revived, one feels inclined to refer it to the days of Hezekiah
rather than to those of David. ( Vide ad. Psalms Ixxvi. Ixxxvii.)
But since the indirect allusion to the ascent of the ark seems rather
strange (for the victory over Sennacherib was not gained by the
force of arms), we incline to the former view. We presume accord-
ingly that the ark had returned from a victory. The Psalmist rises
from that victory to the prospect, that hereafter all the nations of
the earth shall be subject to that king, to whom they already
belong, though they do not confess it. The Psalmist proclaims in a
* Verse 30, whicli speaks of the temple, implies no more a later period
than does Psalm v. 8.
228 COMMENTARY ON THK PSALMS.
sublime lyrical flight (v. 10), the prophetical declaration of Isa. ii.
2, 3. Compare especially Psalm Ixxxvii.
1 rp
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
2 0 clap your hands, all ye people ;
Shout unto God with the voice of triumph.
3 For the Lord most high is terrible :
Jle is a great king over all the earth.
4 He shall subdue the people under us.
And the nations under our feet.
5 He shall choose our inheritance for us,
The excellency of Jacob whom he loved. Selah.
6 God is gone up with a shout,
The Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
7 Sing praises to God, sing praises :
Sing praises unto our King, sing praises.
8 For God is the King of all the earth :
Sing ye praises with understanding.
9 God reigneth over the heathen :
God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.
10 The princes of the people are gathered
Unto one people of the God of Abraham :
For the excellent of the earth belong unto God :
He is greatly exalted.
V. 2 — 5. Alive to the magnitude of the Lord's doings for his
people, the Psalmist deems it not enough that thei/ only should
express their gratitude to him : he calls upon all the nations of the
earth to pay their homage to him with gestures of joy and songs of
praise, which was customary to do at the anointing of monarchs.
(2 Kings xi. 12; 1 Sam. x. 24.) The earth is his, though its
inhabitants have as yet forborne to pay their homage to him. He
has made Israel the heart of mankind : if he willeth, all nations
must serve Israel. He has appointed all the nations of the earth
for the inheritance of Israel, (Isaiah liv. 3; Zeph. ii. 9:) he
has decreed and chosen the excellency of Jacob, the beloved,
which is to make him great before the nations. (Isaiah xlix, 3;
Luke ii. 32.)
V. 6 — 10. The ark reascends the sanctuary amid the sound of
the trumpet and songs of praises: the whole world is to join in the
praises of Israel. Jehovah is also the God of the heathen : the
nations shall come some day with their praises, and become one
people of the God of Abraham, even as Israel. (Psalm ii. 8; Rev.
xi. 15; Zech. xiv. 9.)
PSALM XLVIII. 229
PSALM XLVIII.
A SONG of praise which belongs to the same period as Psalm
xlvi. The sentiments of this psalm are even more sublime and
joyous, the gratitude of astonishment more lively, on the people
opening their eyes in the morning as if after an oppressive dream,
and beholding the vast array of corpses of those whose presence
dismayed them the day before. And it was as a dream to the mock-
ing foe, "And the multitude of all the nations that fight against
Ariel (Jerusalem,) even all that fight against her and her munition,
and that distress her, shall be aB a dream of a night vision. It
shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and behold he
eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a
thirsty man dreameth, and behold he drinketh; but he awaketh,
and behold he is faint, and his soul has appetite : so shall the mul-
titude of all the nations be that fight against mount Zion," (Isaiah
xsix. 7, 8.)
^A
SONG and Psalm of the Sons of Korah.
2 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised
In the city of our God, on the mountain of his holiness.
3 Beautiful for situation,*
The joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion,
On the sides of the north, the city of the great King,
4 God is known in her palaces as her refuge.
5 For, lo, the kings were assembled (or, "took counsel,")
They passed away together.
6 They saw it (the city) and so they marvelled;
They were dismayed and fled.
7 Fear took hold upon them there,
And pain, as of a woman in travail.
8 Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish
With an east wind.
9 As we have heard, so have we seen
In the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God :
God hath established it for ever. Selah.
10 We have thought of thy loving-kindness, 0 God,
In the midst of thy temple.
11 According to thy name, 0 God,
So is thy praise unto the ends of the earth :
Thy right hand is full of righteousness.
* Tholuck renders, "A beautiful hill, the joy of the whole earth is Mount
Zion, a joy of the earth to the remotest north, the city of the great king."
230 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
12 Let Mount Zion rejoice,
Let the daughters of Judah be glad (i. e. the provincial
towns,)
Because of thy judgments.
13 Walk about. Zion, and go round about her :
Tell the towers thereof.
14 Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider (or "roam through")
her palaces ;
That ye may tell it to the generation following.
15 Yea, this God is our God for ever and ever:
He will be our guide, even beyond death.
F. 2 — 4. In their fearful anticipations they had already seen
their beautiful city turned to ruins, and their temple into smoke
and ashes. They rejoice in holy astonishment to see her in the
rosy light of dawn, strong and unhurt as ever. Many miracles of
mercy had already been exhibited on the holy mount. The Psalm-
ist would fain have the whole world be acquainted with the cove-
nant of mercy, to join in his rejoicing at the strong protector who
rules over her palaces.
V. 5 — 7. The proud king, who called himself the great king,
boasted that the kings of Hamath and Arpad were serving him.
(Isa. X. 8; xxxvi. 4.) He himself did not advance before the city,
but remained before Lachish, (inde ad. Ps. xlvi.,) about thirty
miles distant; but he felt the disaster of his army before Jerusa-
lem, and he was obliged to flee. The kings were assembled; but
the King of kings said once more, *'Take counsel together and it
shall come to nought; speak the word and it shall not stand; for
God is with us." (Isa. viii. 10.) The flight was so sudden, that it
seemed as if the mere sight of the holy city had driven them back.
The Lord did at that time address the proud conqueror by the
mouth of his prophet: "But I know thy abode, and thy going out,
and thy coming in, and thy rage against me. Because thy rage
against me, and thy tumult, is come up into m,ine ears ; therefore
will I put my hook in thy nose, and my hridle in thy lips, and I
will turn thee hack hy the way hy which thou earnest." (Isaiah
xxxvii. 28, 29.)
V. 8. The Psalmist's meaning probably is, that God, who wrecks
the ships at sea by the east wind, has done his miracles here. But
the Phoenicians were probably allied with the king of Assyria.
Isaiah xxxiii. 21. 23, may refer to this circumstance: "But there
the glorious God will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams,
wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass
PSALM XLVIII. 231
thereby. Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen
their mast; they could not spread the sail."*
V. 9 — 12. They had often heard that the Lord is king in
Zion, and has engraven her walls in his right hand. Now they
once more experienced it. The repeated fulfilment of such pro-
mises of God become so engraven upon the human heart that they
cannot be effaced. Where else then in the temple of God, kneel-
ing in the sanctuary, are we to expect to find a people after such
deliverances? If it has not been realized before that these judg-
ments go forth from the Lord of lords, it is sure to be felt in the
sanctuary. The fame of such acts of the Lord spread the glory of
his name to the ends of the earth, and brought the embassy of the
king of Babylon from a remote country. "Hezekiah was magni-
fied in the sight of all nations from thenceforth, and many brought
gifts unto the Lord to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah, king
of Judah,'' (2 Chron. xxxii. 22, 23.) The right hand of the Lord
is stretched out over the whole earth, for ever dispensing righteous-
ness, though it may not become manifest until the end of days.
Although the rod of chastisement had immediately threatened the
capital only, yet all the cities of Judah suffered even more than
the capital ; for their fields had been laid waste and their goods
spoiled. It was, therefore, not only a festival of rejoicing to the
capital, but to the whole country in all its borders. They probably
hastened from every part of the country to the temple of the Lord,
with songs of praise and rejoicing.
V. 13, 14. Unhurt, entirely unhurt, appears Jerusalem in the
morning sun : while the clouds concealed her, one might have
thought that not a stone had remained on its place; but the clouds
disperse, "God has made himself known in her palaces as a
refuge." The record of mercy so great was well worthy of being
transmitted to succeeding generations like a precious jewel, and
the exhortation of the Psalmist has been acted upon. (Cf. Psalm
xlvi.)
V. 15. If God remains the same, then the grandchildren will
experience the mercy which was enjoyed by their believing fathers.
If God so marvellously glorifies himself to weak mortals in this life,
will he suffer them to decay into dust and ashes after death ? Faith
in a blissful eternity awakes most vividly when the mercy of God
powerfully shines upon our temporal existence.
* This is an address to the enemy: if, contrary to our supposition,
mighty, seafaring Tyre was not allied with Assyria, the prophet's refer-
ence to sails and masts would be a figurative description of the vessel of
the State, which is not probable.
232 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM XLIX.
A DIDACTIC psalm, concerning the uncertain prosperity of the
proud rich, their certain death, the victory of the godly, and their
final reception with God. (Cf. Ps. xxxvii. 73.) The Psalmist had
been alarmed at and tempted by the insolent security of the sump-
tuous children of the world; but his scruples vanished and the
struggle ended. He publishes aloud the revelations of God to his
soul, and invites attention, (v. 2 — 5.) The pride of the rich, how-
ever lofty, must cease, (v. 6 — 13.) They are carelessly secure:
flatterers render them still more so, but the godly rules them ; while
they depart to the grave, he is redeemed by the hand of the Lord,
(v. 14 — 16.) He comforts others with the sources of his encourage-
ment. Divine wisdom only can raise us above the lot of beasts,
(v. 17—21.)
^T
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
2 Hear this, all ye people ;
Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the world :
3 Both low and high,
Rich and poor, together.
4 My mouth shall speak of wisdom ;
And the meditation of my heart shall he of under-
standing.
5 I will incline mine ear to the oracle (of the Lord,)*
I will open my dark sayingf upon the harp.
6 Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil.
When the iniquity of my heels (pursuers) shall compass
me about?
7 Of them that trust in their wealth,
And boast themselves in the multitude of their riches ?
8 None of them can by any means redeem his brother,
Nor give to God a ransom for him :
9 (For the redemption of their soul is precious,
And it ceaseth for ever:)
10 That he should still live for ever.
And not see corruption.
11 He rather shall see it.
Wise men die,
The foolish and the ignorant perish together,
And leave their wealth to others.
* /. e. "To hear it intuitively from the Lord."
f Properly, "an apothegm."
PSALM XLIX. 233
12 Their inward thought is, that their houses shall continue
for ever,
A7id their dwelling places to all generations ;
They call their lands after their own names (or, "their
name is published over the land.")
13 Nevertheless man being in honour abideth not:
He is like the beasts that perish.
14 This their way is their folly :
Yet their followers approve their sayings. Selah.
15 Like sheep they are driven to Sheol:
Death is their shepherd (or, "driver.")
And the upright shall soon have dominion over them,
And their beauty shall consume in Sheol, from their
dwelling.*
16 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol:
For he shall receive me. Selah.
17 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich,
"When the glory of his house is increased :
18 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away:
His glory shall not descend after him.
19 Though while he lived he blessed his soul :
(And Wien will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.)
20 He shall go to the generation of his fathers ;
They shall never see light.
Man that is in honour, and understandeth not,
is like the beasts that perish.
V. 2 — 7. The Psalmist calls upon the whole human race to
give ear to his words, with which the Spirit of God has inspired
him; for he is conscious that he is about to utter a truth which,
alike Divine as to its origin and effects, is capable of imparting
wisdom to the rich, comfort and strength to the poor. He has
heard a Divine voice, and purposes to accompany its recital on the
harp. (Cf. ad. Ps. xii. 6.) He has had to struggle and to fear, but
Divine and not human wisdom gave him peace. He sings of the
struggle of his own heart. He had often feared when the sur-
rounding ungodly became powerful. If others therefore feel after
the same manner, they need not be ashamed. But the Psalmist
instructs himself by the Divine oracle : so may others instruct them-
selves by the word of God, and with the same amount of comfort
as the Psalmist.
V. 8 — 11. A rich man may buy much with his money, goods
of every kind, pleasures, honours, but he cannot buy eternal life.
* Or, "Their form shall go to Sheol: they must go from their d-welling
to be consumed," (for "a consuming.")
20*
234 COMME>fTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Can that be called a happy life which every hour removes us fur-
ther from happiness ? However much people may differ in other
respects, death brings them to the same level. Happy the man
who at his departure has riches which he need not leave to others !
V. 12, 13. They know it, but will not know it. Excluding the
light of the day, they prefer the artificial light which they them-
selves have made. They persuade themslves that their houses rest
on another foundation than that of the earth. If a rich man feels
inclined to deceive himself, he is sure to find many abettors. Their
names are praised on earth — may they not think that that which
applies to every man, has no reference to them, *'Unto dust shalt
thou return " 't As beasts are destined for the slaughter, so man is
doomed to die : no earthly glory, however great it be, can save
from death.
F. 14, 15. Their hope is imaginary: the density of the mist
which surrounds them is proportioned to the number of their flat-
tering abettors : it will disperse when their hour has struck. They
loved to drive others, death now will drive them. Death will lift
his rod and drive them from their dwelling to the gloomy regions
below. The night passes — but yesterday the rulers, to-day they
are the ruled ; for if the kingdom of God triumph not in time, it is
sure to triumph in eternity.
V. 16. My soul will not remain in Sheol; the way of all of us
is downwards, but in the case of some it points again upwards. The
God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, who took to himself Enoch
and Moses, will also receive me. (Psalm Ixxiii. 24.)
V. 17 — 21. Who will be so foolish and fear? If we have much
on earth, we can only keep it on earth. They praise themselves
and hear the echo from others; but when the lamp of their life
extinguishes, their light has set for ever. Divine wisdom only
raises us above the destiny of beasts. Man in all his glory, if de-
prived of Divine wisdom, is like the beast, and shall perish.
PSALM L.
A DIDACTIC psalm showing that the sacrifices of praise and
thanksgiving are the sacrifices by which God desires to be praised.
(Cf. Psalm xl. 1; li. 18, 19; Ixix. 31, 32.)
As amid signs of nature, which proclaimed his majesty, God
once appeared as the lawgiver, so he comes now as the judge, (v. 1
— 3). Heaven and earth must behold and hearken, (v. 4 — 6.)
The outward servant of the law, who offends more from obtuseness
than from wicked motives, is in majestic irony pointed to the in-
ward worship of God, (v. 7 — 15). So in the language of flaming
PSALM L. 235
wrath, the hypocrite (v. 16 — 23.) Though the divinely instituted
peace, thank, and sin-offerings of the Mosaic dispensation, were
only intended to answer the end of impressing man with a sense
of the insufficiency of his praises, thanksgivings, and sufferings for
sin, as well as the necessity of substitution to render them sufficient,
— though sacrifices therefore might and ought to have been the
true worship of the heart, they were far from being so. Some,
owing to the lassitude of the human heart, which pi-efers to worship
God by outward acts rather than inward, regarded the outward sacri-
fice as the main point, and the sacrifice of the heart as of secondary
moment, while others cared not even for the former, and were satis-
fied with having the law on their lips. The Spirit of Grod rested on
the Psalmist, who describes under his influence the coming Lord as
judge. As once he went out from Sinai, (Judges v. 4 — Seir includes
Sinai,') so he now goes out from Zion, the beautiful city of God, ad-
dressing himself to formal worshippers and hypocrites.
A PSALM of Asaph.
1 The mighty God, eve7i the Lord, hath spoken,
And called the earth
From the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof.
2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God hath shined.
3 Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence :
A fire shall devour before him,
And it shall be very tempestuous round about him.
4 He shall call to the heavens from a"bove.
And to the earth, that he may judge his people.
5 " Gather together unto me my Saints
Those that have made a covenant with me by
sacrifice."
6 And the heavens shall declare his righteousness:
For God is judge himself. Selah.
7 Hear, 0 my people, and I will speak ;
0 Isral, and I will testify against thee :
1 am God, even thy God.
8 I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices
Or thy burnt-ofi"erings, to have been continually before me.
9 I will take no bullock out of thy house,
JVor he goats out of thy folds.
10 For every beast of the forest is mine,
And the cattle upon the hills, where they are by thousands.
11 I know all the fowls of the mountains;
And the wild beasts of the field are mine.
236 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
12 If I were hungry, I would not tell thee ;
For the world is mine, and the fulness thereof.
13 Will I eat the flesh of bulls.
Or drink the blood of goats ?
14 Offer unto God thanksgiving:
And pay thy vows unto the Most High :
15 And call upon me in the day of trouble:
I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.
16 But unto the wicked God saith,
What hast thou to do to declare my statutes,
Or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth ;
17 Seeing thou batest instruction,
And castest my words behind thee ?
18 When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him,
And hast been partaker with adulterers.
19 Thou givest thy mouth to evil,
And thy tougue 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 ;
Thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as
thyself:
But I will reprove thee, and set them in order before
thine eyes.
22 Now consider this, ye that forget God,
Lest I tear i/ou in pieces, and there be none to deliver.
23 Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me:
And to him that ordereth his conversation aright
Will I show the salvation of God.
V. 1 — 4. Asaph introduces the Lord by a lofty name, to impress
his hearers with his majesty. He calls the whole earth, yea, hea-
ven and earth, as witnesses to the great judgment of his nation.
It is the same Lord who has fixed his tabernacle in Zion, and there
manifested himself to the people of his covenant in mercy and right-
eousness. The long-suffering of God has long been silent, he will
now make it known that his long-suffering was not indifference, but
mercy. He sends fire and tempests before him as his messengers,
announcing the approaching Judge.
V. 5, 6. The covenant at the foot of Sinai had been made by
sacrifice : they are the saints of God who continue to remember the
obedience which they had then yielded. These are to be gathered
first; that they may learn to do in the spirit what now they are
doing in the flesh; God himself is the judge: therefore the hea-
vens declare it far and wide, that he holds a righteous judgment.
PSALM L. 237
V. 7 — 13. He gives his name before he speaks: it is God, the
God of his people. 0 Israel, who hast so often experienced the
righteousness and love of that God — what may thy feelings be,
when he announces himself as thy God? When he calls to account,
man thinks that is for the sake of outward works. It is SD deeply
impressed upon the heart of man that his life should be a continu-
ous worship, that he seeks to calm his conscience by outward offer-
ings and works of obedience at least. But they can neither calm
the conscience nor satisfy God. Do you think that by offering
bullocks and goats you can really give anything to the Lord? Oh,
man, thou hast received them from him; who gave ever anything
to him ? He has not need to look to thy stables and their scanty
occupants. The beasts hid in the forest, the cattle that are by
thousands on the hills, the fowl of the air, and the wild beasts roam-
ing the fields — are all his and before him. Why indeed should
he ask for bullocks and goats ? such gifts cannot benefit him, they
can only benefit thee!
V. 14, 15. Art thou anxious to know the sacrifice which ia
acceptable to him ? It is ihe'jthanksgiving and praise of a believing
heart : they must proceed from a believing heart, for none can
thank and praise, but they who, strong in faith, receive every bless-
ing and possession which earth can yield, from the hand of God.
See how great is his mercy, since his very requirements are blessed
promises. To call upon him in the day of trouble, to tahe salvation
and to offer thanksgiving : such are the sacrifices he desires us to
bring. Oh, God, how merciful art thou, who placest such glorious
promises into thy requirements !
V. 16 — 20. God, who looketh at the heart, says to the hypo-
crite, What availeth thy boasting before men with the recounting
of my commandments, what availeth the utterance of my covenant
with thy lips, while I know that thou art averse to Divine disci-
pline? Where is the obedience to the words of the covenant of
Sinai? If thou lovest discipline, why dost thou not at least de-
nounce the sins of others? Thou knowest the sixth and seventh
commandments, why makest thou fellowship with thieves and
adulterers ? Why breakest thou the eighth, breakest it shamefully,
and givest false testimony against thine own brother? These things
thou dost, and in long-suffering I look on for a long time. Thou
thinkest that my thoughts are like thine; but the time will come,
sooner or later, when I shall surely punish thee, and it will then
appear that I have not forgotten anything, though I was silent, and
all will be set in order before thine eyes.
V. 21 — 23. Now consider this, ye that forget God, give heed
to my word. I warn you ere the day come, when salvation is gone !
Mark it well: lohoso offereth believing praise to me, glorifieth me:
he that ordereth his way by mine, shall see the salvation of God!
238 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM LI.
We refer the reader to the introduction to Psahn xxxii. which was
probably occasioned by the same transgression which is specified in
the title of this psalm. David had passed a considerable time in
a gloomy sense of guilt and despair of the mercy of God, but con-
vinced by Nathan's address that the Lord was still caring for him,
and had not entirely rejected him, he gathered courage once more
to seek his God, to confess his guilt before him, and to struggle for
his former consciousness of Divine aid, and the spirit of spon-
taneous and cordial love, the absence of which he now so painfully
realized, (v. 14.) Many similar prayers may at that time have
ascended to heaven, though this only is preserved to us. It fur-
nishes the evidence of the depth of his sense of guilt, of David's
habitual relation to God, and of his knowledge of the way to recon-
ciliation. If it be asked how a man like David could fall to such
a degree, we refer to Psalm xxxii. where it was shown in how
fearful a manner the history of even a David exhibits the fatality
of evil, which with an unrelenting force urges, as it were, even the
disinclined, from the first step of guilt on to the second, and from
the second to the third. David had never anticipated that the
bloodguiltiness, for which he mourns in v. 16, would ever have
been added to his adultery.
Re-appearing with downcast eye before his God, he seeks to
regain his afi"ection by the confession of his guilt, that abstracting
from human relations he had recognized the eternity of his guilt
as a violation of the eternal laws of God, and that he was conscious
not only of the sinfulness of his works, but of his heing, (v. 6 — 8.)
He knows the delights of the forgiveness of sins, (v. 9 — 11,) and
recollects the time when God was reigning over and in him,
(v. 12 — 14.) If it is to return once more, he promises to make
the conversion of transgressors the end of his life, (v. 15 — 17.) He
knows God's fundamental condition of the forgiveness of sins,
(v. 18—19.)
1.2 n^O the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan
J_ the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to
Bathsheba.
3 Have mercy upon me, 0 God,
According to thy loving-kindness :
According unto the multitude of thy tender mercies
Blot out my transgressions.
4 Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,
And cleanse me from my sin.
PSALM LI. 239
5 For I acknowledge my transgressions:
And my sin is ever before me.
6 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,
And done evil in thy sight:
That thou mightest be justified when thou speakest,
And be clear when thou judgest.
7 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity (or, I was gotten of
sinful seed;)
And in sin did my mother conceive me.
8 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts :
And in the hidden ^art thou shalt make me to know
wisdom.
9 Purge (lit. "free me from sin with") me with hyssop, and
I shall be clean :
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
10 Make me to hear joy and gladness;
That the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.
11 Hide thy face from my sins,
And blot out all mine iniquities.
12 Create in me a clean heart, 0 God;
And renew a constant (or, " established") spirit within me.
13 Cast me not away from thy presence ;
And take not thy Holy Spirit from me.
14 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation;
And strengthen me with a willing spirit.
15 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways ;
And sinners shall be converted unto thee.
16 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness,
0 God, thou God of my salvation ;
And my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness.*
17 0 Lord, open thou my lips ;
And my mouth shall show forth thy praise.
18 For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it;
Thou delightest not in burnt-offering.
19 The sacrifices of God «re a broken spirit :
A broken and a contrite heart, 0 God, thou wilt not
despise.
20 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion :
Build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
* Righteousness = love, cf. ad. Psalm v. 9.
240 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
21 Then shalt thou be pleased with the sacrifices of right-
eousness,
With burnt-oflFering and whole burnt- offerin g :
Then shall they offer bullocks upon thine altar.*
V. 3 — 5. David appeal's before his Lord burdened with uncom-
mon and grave transgression. He intimates his consciousness of
it by representing himself as a man altogether disfigured by pollu-
tion, requiring a thorough, i. e. a long-continued ablution before he
can get clean, and who, owing to the greatness and uncommonness
of his sin, can only attain to purity by a great and uncommon dis-
play of the mercy of God.
V. 6 — 8. That conviction of sin, which stops at its finite rela-
tion to man, against whom we have sinned, cannot be called a true
one. For the guilt of our transgressions against man does by no
means get effaced with Grod as quickly as the tears of those whom
we have offended on earth dry away, but every oifence against man
is a violation of the eternal law of God. So David confessed that
though having transgressed human law, by far the greatest and
most terrible accusation of his conscience was this, "Thou hast
transgressed the statutes and commandments of the law of God !"
He felt himself condemned by his conscience without being accused
of men (for supposing God to have continued silent, then the con-
nection of his transgressions was not even known among the peo-
ple,) and having sinned against God, he could not but acknowledge
the justice of the condemning sentence of God. And that is the
very point which every sinner must reach who desires to realize
the forgiveness of his sins. As Paul says, "If we would judge
ourselves, we should not be judged." (1 Cor. xi. 31.) The right
conviction of sin comprehends its being acknowledged, not only in
works, but also in our entire heing. The knowledge that the root
of our sin is based on an absence of love to God, points to deep-seated
corruption. So David confesses sinfulness to begin with the life
of man, and that not only his works, but man himself, is guilty
before God. He is well aware of the difficulty of such a confession
to the self-complacent heart of man. Now the Lord desires us
above all things to be truthful to ourselves, for otherwise we cannot
be truthful to him. Man must on that account not withdraw him-
* The observations on Psalm xiv. 7, apply to the last two verses of this
psalm. They were added when the psalm was sung in the exile (Rosen-
müller, Umbreit, Köster.) As v. 19 seemed to speak too lightly of the sacri-
fices, so V. 21 seems to reestablish their import. The varying interpre-
tations of Calvin, Bucer, Muis, Paulus, De Wette, Ewald, are either wrong
or not clear. According to our view, the last couplet contains two, while
the former ones have three verses each, which is also the case with Psalms
XXXV. 27 ; xxxviii. 22. Köster divides the psalm after the formula 4, 9, 4,
which is by no means to bo preferred.
PSALM LI. 241
self from God. The Psalmist is so thoroughly impressed with the
resistance of his sinful nature to yield to such a confession, that he
ascribes his knowledge to Divine illumination.
V. 9 — 11. He ventures to supplicate forgiveness after his con-
fession : he is a leper needing to be purged with hyssop : (Lev.
xiv. 4 :) he is blood-stained, and God alone can remove the stain.
(Isaiah i. 18.) The allusion to hyssop is significant. This
unseemly shrub, which thrives on rubbish and walls, symbolical of
Divine condescension, mixed with the noble wood of the cedar,
symbolical of Divine majesty, used to be employed in purifications
from sin (Numb. xix. 6,) and leprosy, which latter may be regarded
as a symbol of sin. Both the greatness and condescension of God
are needed for the reconciliation of man. The Psalmist desires to
intimate his need of Divine condescension.* He longs to hear
that word, which, though its sound die away in the hearing of the
self-satisfied, settles refreshing as the morning dew on the broken
heart, having joy and delights in its retinue, namely, the word/or-
give7iess.
V. 12 — 14. Judiciously judging that our future cannot improve,
while the past remains uncancelled, David prayed for forgiveness
of the past before he turns from the present to the future. Equally
conscious that the beginning and progress of improvement must
take place in the strength of God, he turns to the source from
which every good gift is derived, praying not only for this virtue
or that, but for a clean heart, and having no confidence in his own
resolves, he supplicates a new, firm, and constantf Spirit from
above. From the contemplation of his transgression, his yearning
look reverts to the past, when the hand of C^od rested blessingly
on him, when the holy Spirit of God gave strength to his heart,
when he was daily experiencing the aid of God, and his works
were voluntary off'erings.
V. 15 — 17. Were such seasons to return once more, how great
should his thank-ofi'erings be. He here vows, and afterwards
really performed in Psalm xxxii. 9, and many other psalms, to
show his gratitude by referring every one in need of forgiveness to
this fountain of forgiveness. Since God desires not the praise of
unclean lips, we need not be astonished that David still feels hia
lips tied. Bloodguiltiness oppresses his soul. Recollecting the
time of his communion with Him who has the power to condemn
and to absolve, and having regained courage, he supplicates him
first to remove guilt from his heart, and thereby the restraint from
his lips. If he opens his lips, no accuser will be sufiiered to shut
them again, for who can bind on earth what is loosed in heaven?
V. 18, 19. He would give any and everything were the seasons
* Cf. Hengstenberg's Moses and Egypt, p. 183.
t Cf. -^133 Geu. xli. 32.
21
242 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
to return wlien he enjoyed communion with God, a cheerful heart
and a constant spirit, when the protection of God was spread out
over him, and his Spirit reigned in his heart. Let none imagine
that the price of many thousand offerings were too much for him ;
sacrifice and burnt-offering, if they could buy his peace, he would
gladly give. The wisdom which was given to him in hours of
illumination (vide ad. Psalm xl. 7; Psalm 1.) taught him that
God prizes only the broken bones of the burnt-offering if emblem-
atic of the broken heart, and the slain beast if emblematic of the
slain self-will of the offerer. Though this expression sounds as if
David rejected all sacrifice, other passages of Holy Writ show that
such a manner of expression is selected for the purpose of directing
special attention to the last member of a sentence : e. g. Paul says,
"He therefore that despiseth (man,) despiseth not man 5«iGod."*
Sacrifice is the yielding^ resigning, or giving uj) of a thing. The
best sacrifice which a sinner can offer God is his heart, which gives
up its sinful will, as hitherto exhibited in acts, to the consuming
flame of repentance, and yields its newly-awakened desire in child-
like faith to God, to be strengthened and glorified by him. (Cf.
Psalm xxxiv. 19 j Isa. Ivii. 15.)
•PSALM LII.
A PSALM of David occasioned by the following circumstances. On
his flight from the court and the borders of Israel, he had entered
the house of Ahimeleeh, the priest, at Nob, and asked him for a
meal and a weapon. Doeg, the director of the herdsmen and
flocks of the king, hereupon accused David and the priest of a con-
spiracy against the life of the king, and afterwards, in obedience to
the injunction of Saul, slew eighty-five helpless priests whom none
other of the servants of the king ventured to touch. (1 Sam. xxi.
1 — 10; xxii. 1 — 20.) David probably penned this psalm after
Abiathar, the son of Ahimeleeh, had come and apprized him of the
event. (1 Sam. xxii. 20, 21.)
1.2 rpo the chief Musician, a Poem of David, when Doeg
X the Edomite came and told Saulj and said unto
him, David is come to the house of Ahimeleeh. f
3 Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, 0 tyrant,
Since the goodness of God endureth continually ?
* 1 Thess. iv. 8; Winer's Grammar of the New Testament, p. 4G4.
■j- 1 Samuel, xxii. 9.
PSALM LH. 243
4 Thy tongue devisetli mischiefs,
Like a sharp razor, 0 worker of deceit !
5 Thou lovcst evil more than good ;
And lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.
6 Thou lovest all devouring words,
0 thou deceitful tongue.
7 God shall likewise destroy thee for ever,
He shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thi/ dwell-
ing-place,
And root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.
8 The righteous also shall see, and fear,
And shall laugh at him :
9 " Lo, this is the man that made not God his strength ;
But trusted in the abundance of his riches,
And strengthened himself in his wickedness."
10 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God :
1 trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.
11 1 will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it ;
And I will wait on thy name ;
For it is good before thy saints.
V. 3. The mighty ones, on prospei'ing in their affairs, arro-
gantly think to have wrested the dominion from the hands of the
Lord, and the weak in faith persuade themselves that such is really
the case. But just on that account God will not persist in silence.
David has so often had occasion to experience this, that he can
now defy appearances, and while the mischief of men seemingly
wields the sceptre, to exclaim: "The goodness of God endureth
continually."
V. 4 — 6. One should think that even savages would benefit the
homeless, whose life is endangered by unjust hatred and suspicion.
On Saul's inquiring of his servants the abode of the fugitive
David, and promising them reward, they at least persist in silence.
A lenient word of defence would have been appropriate; for Saul
in his blindness thinks that David aims at his life. They are
silent — but Doeg speaks. He fans by treacherous speech the sus-
picions of Saul instead of softening them. He declares that he has
seen the compassionate priest giving a meal and a weapon to the
anointed of the Lord, who was obliged to flee beyond the borders
of Israel. He asperses charity with treason. (Cf. Saul's speech to
Ahiraelech, 1 Sam. xxii. 23.) He could anticipate the conse-
quences : the word escapes, cutting like a sharp razor. The king
orders eighty-five innocent men, helpless priests of God in linen
ephods, (1 Sam. xxii. 18,) to be slain. The servants of the king
244 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
shrink "with dismay from the deed — not so the traitor, who adds
murder to his treason.
V. 7, 8. " God will show himself froward with the froward."
(Psalm xviii. 27.) He causes him to encounter what he devised
against others. He is now concealed in the shadow of God,
proudly spreading his boughs like a mighty tree; but the hand of
God is stronger by far, and he shall be cut down. The Lord shall
make him a spectacle to the righteous : they shall laugh at his folly
and fear the righteous Lord. History is replete with spectacles of
this kind to those who have the seeing eye, though the temporal
judgments of God are still influenced by the long-suffering of God.
(Rom. ii. 4, 5.)
V. 9. Those who have not the protection of God seek for pro-
tection in the things of this world. Doeg, the director of the
herdsmen and flocks of Saul, was in all probability not a poor man :
yet he suffered himself to be enticed by the reward of riches.
(1 Sam. xxii, 7.) It frequently happens that riches render a man
more covetous than poverty. Doeg sought for strength in his
wickedness, not in virtue.
V. 10, 11. It is the eternal assurance of faith, which no appear-
ance can bafile, that he who has cast his root in God, shall flourish
in the house of God — i. e. in communion with him. Those who do
not see it in time shall assuredly see it in eternity. He shall
flourish and prosper like the favoured olive-tree, which yields much
fruit without almost any culture, and its leaves fade not even in
winter. (Jer. xi. 6.) David ascribes all the praise to God, for he
does it and none else. He therefore confides in his name, and
calmly waits for the revelation of this name. Though others may
ignore it, to his people God always continues a cornucopia of mercy
and grace. The greatness and beauty of their thoughts and hopes
are all concealed in the name of the Lord.
PSALM LIIL
With slight variations the same as Psalm xiv. The alterations
were intended to render it more adapted for liturgical usage in the
time of the captivity.
PSALM Liy.
Threatened with treason from the citizens of Keilah, the pur-
sued servant of God fled to the woody mountain heights near the
town of Siph. (1 Sam. xxiii. 14, 15.) His friend Jonathan came
PSALM LIV. 245
there to comfort him, (1 Sam. xxiii. 16,) but the treachery of men
disturbs him even there, for the Siphites sent word to Saul.
(1 Sam. xxiii. 19.)
The Psahnist has hardly begun to pour out his complaint,
(v. 1 — 5,) and his soul gets more calmed, (v. 6 — 8;) yea, he
rejoices in victory, while affliction is as yet present with him,
(V. 9.)
1 ^0 the chief Musician on the harp, and instruction of
X David,
2 When the Siphites came and said to Saul: Doth not
David hide himself with us ?
3 Save me, 0 God, by thy name,
And secure me justice by thy strength.
4 Hear my prayer, 0 God;
Give ear to the words of my mouth.
5 For strangers (barbarians) are risen up against me,
And oppressors seek after my soul:
They have not set God before them. Selah.
6 Behold, God is mine helper ;
The Lord is with them that uphold my soul.
7 Evil shall fall back upon mine enemies :
Cut them off in thy faithfulness.
8 I will freely sacrifice unto thee :
I will praise thy name, 0 Lord, for it is good.
9 For he hath delivered me out of all trouble :
And mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies.
V. 3 — 7. Men were treacherous, therefore the servant of God,
on being forsaken by men, flees to the Lord. He may well do it,
for he believes that God will hear his prayers. They have not set
God before them; no wonder, therefore, that they violate justice
and ignore love. They even ignore it towards the harmless one
who has been unjustly pursued for years, and chased through
forests and deserts because of the caprice of a suspicious tyrant.
David prays in the faith, which is the "substance of things hoped
for, the evidence of things not seen." (Heb. xi. 1.) He roams
through the wood and the desert, but the eye of faith espies the
salvation of God. God will be the helper of him whom all men
have forsaken. God will recompense and cause their mischief to
fall back upon their own head; he will do it in his faithfulness, for
his word is yea and amen; and he did do it, for while Saul was on
his pursuit a messenger arrived, saying, " Haste thee and come,
for the Philistines have invaded the land," (1 Sam. xxiii. 27:) and
the rock where the deliverance of David took place was called for
a memorial, " The rock of escape."
21*
246 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 8, 9. Many vow thank-offerings in the hour of need, and
after the need is past, perform them with an unwilling disposition;
but David performs them with a joyous heart. Why should he do
otherwise, seeing that the name of the Lord is so rich in mercy?
The future becomes the present to the eye of faith : in the midst
of distress he beholds deliverance; pursued by his enemies, he
sees his desire in their downfall : for it is the delight of the pious
to see by the judgments of God that "the government on earth is
in the hand of the Lord." (Sir. x. 4.) David saw this the second
time, when on the Siphites thinking to deliver him into the hands
of Saul, the Lord delivered his pursuers into his own. Even Saul,
covered with shame, and overpowered by the hand of the Lord,
was then constrained to exclaim, "Blessed be thou, mi/ son David:
thou shalt both do great things, and also shalt still prevail."
(1 Sam. xxvi. 25.)
PSALM LV.
A PSALM of David, composed on his escape from Absalom in the
wilderness near Jordan, where he was informed of the evil counsel
of Ahithophel, without knowing that Absalom had refused it.
(2 Sam. xvii. 21, 22.)
The psalm begins in great disquietude of mind, (v. 2 — 9.;) the
picture of the city, ruled by rebels, and of his faithless friend,
arises before the eye of the exiled king, (v. 10 — 15.) His heart
revives, he takes comfort from the hope of the ultimate triumph of
his prayers, and concludes with an expression of hope, which,
however, seems to denote that his disquietude was only partially
conquered; (v. 16 — 24.)
irp
0 the chief Musician on the harp, an instruction of
David.
Give ear to my prayer, 0 God :
And hide not thyself from my supplication.
Attend unto me, and hear me :
I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise ; (or, " I roam
in my complaint and cry;")
Because of the voice of the enemy,
Because of the oppression of the wicked ;
For they cast iniquity upon me.
And in wrath they hate me.
PSALM LV.
247
5 My heart is sore pained within me :
And the terrors of death are fallen upon me :
6 Tearfulness and trembling are come upon me,
And horror hath overwhelmed me.
7 And I said, Oh, that I had wings like a dove !
For then would I fly away, and be at rest.
8 Lo, then would I wander far off,
Aiid remain (or, " find rest") in the wilderness. Selah.
9 I would hasten my escape
From the sweeping storm and tempest.
10 Destroy, 0 Lord, and divide their tongues :_
For I have seen violence and strife in the city.
11 Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof:
Mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it.
12 Wickedness is in the midst thereof:
Deceit and guile depart not from her streets.
13 For it was not an enemy that reproached me ;
Then I could have borne it:
Neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself
against me ;
Then I would have hid myself from him:
14 But it was thou, a man whom I made mine equal,
My guide, and mine acquaintance.
15 We took sweet counsel together.
And walked unto the house of God in company (or, " with
the crowd.")
16 Let death seize upon them.
And let them go down alive into Sheol,
For wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.
17 As for me, I will call upon God;
And the Lord shall save me.
18 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray.
And cry aloud:
And he shall hear my voice.
19 He shall deliver my soul in peace from the battle that is
against me :
For there are many against me.
20 God shall hear, and afflict them,
Even he that sitteth on the throne from everlasting.
Selah.
Because they have no changes,
Therefore they fear not God.
248 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
21 He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace
with him :
He hath broken his covenant.
22 The words of his mouth was smoother than butter,
But war was in his heart :
His words were softer than oil,
Yet were they drawn swords.
23 Cast thy burden upon the Lord,
And he shall sustain thee :
He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
24 But thou, 0 God, shalt bring them down into the pit of
destruction :
Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their
days;
But I will trust in thee.
V. 2 — 5. It was an anxious hour when David poured out his
soul in this psalm before the Lord. On his first leaving the city
(Cf. Psalm iii.) he enjoyed a calm mind, but learning the insult
conferred upon him by his own son in obedience to the counsel of
Ahithophel, (2 Sam. xvi. 21,) as well as Ahithophel's new schemes
for his destruction, he became deeply moved. He has neither
rest nor peace : in the measure as his heart is excited, so roams his
complaint — now in this direction, now in that. He hears as it
were the voice of the enemy from Jerusalem, and is afraid lest
they should lay hands on the Lord's anointed. And his own
deluded child leads his enemies. His heart may well be sore
pained.
F. 6 — 9. He prepares to leave the frontiers of Canaan, (Of. ad.
Psalm xlii. 7:) he feels the presence of men a burden, and would
like best to hasten to remote deserts. We smart more beneath
the strokes which the hand of man, than those which the hand of
God, inflicts upon us : he got almost wroth with the fair counte-
nance of man. Like a timid dove, chased by the tempest, hastens
to her window, (Isaiah Ix. 8,) so he desires simply to fly away to
some remote desert or elsewhere, to find a refuge from the rising
storm.* Absalom was advancing with an army of upwards of
twenty thousand, (2 Sam. xviii. 7,) and his faithless subjects fol-
low the new sovereign.
* He was already in a desert when he received the news from the city,
(see In trod. ad. Psalm Ixiii.) but that desert near Jordan on the northern
portion of the Dead Sea was not far from Jerusalem, and might at any time
be occupied by the foe. But David desires to wander to a remote desert
— totally separate from human intercourse. So Jeremiah exclaims, "Oh,
that I had in the wilderness a lodging-place of wayfaring men ; then would
I leave my people and go from them." (Jer. ix. 2.)
PSALM LV. 249
V. 10 — 12. He has received news respecting the state of things
in the city. (1 Sam. xvii. 21.) We may readily imagine "what
things are, when rebels dethrone the rightful sovereign.* David
had preferred the odium of flight to exposing the whole city to the
edge of the sword. (2 Sam. xv. 14.) Violence and strife, sad
watchmen, go about her walls. Sorrow reigns in her midst.
Wickedness within, deceit and guile without her gates where the
markets were held. There the kings used to establish their
throne, (1 Kings xxii. 10; Jer. xxxviii. 7,) giving counsel and
judgment to the people. Absalom probably there conferred with
Ahithophel, and there sat in judgment too; for with the promise
of more equitable judgments, he had seduced the people to desert
his father. (2 Sam. xv. 4.) But besides these acts of oppression,
the thought of the transgression which Absalom committed in the
sight of all Israel grieved David most : his deluded son had at the
instigation of a treacherous friend perpetrated incest with his
father's wives, that ''all Israel shall hear that he had caused his
father's name to he abhorred." (2 Sam. xvi. 21.) The insulted
king exclaims, ''Destroy, 0 Lord, divide their tongues. '' His first
thought on hearing of Ahithophel's desertion was, "0 Lord, I
pray thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel to foolishness/' (2 Sam.
XV. 31,) and his prayer was heard.
V. 13 — 15. We know what we have to expect from an enemy:
if we can protect ourselves, we need not move. But if a friend
aims a blow, we have not only gained a foe, but lost a friend : we
feel the blow, though we should succeed in evading it. Honest
David, who had remained faithful for many years to Saul, his infu-
riated persecutor, must have doubly felt such blows. How great
had been his attachment to Ahithophel ! " As if a man had
inquired at the oracle of God, so was the counsel of Ahithophel to
David." (2 Sam. xvi. 23.) David had given him his heart, raised
him to equality with himself in government, shown to him sweet
friendship at home, and in sight of all the people gone with him to
the temple of God. Thus treated a king his subject. That same
friend could now advise "to cause the name of David to be abhor-
red by all Israel. '^ David, thou who didst find a Jonathan, and
experience in him the sweets of friendship, hast been obliged to
taste in this case its bitter!
F. 16 — 18. Is David, so greatly disappointed in his friend, and
having by the treachery of a friend lost the love of his people as
well as his throne, to be blamed for desiring the due recompense
of such great wickedness? His mind gets calmer, and he uses the
remedy, which when all others have vanished still remains to the
* A better translation may probably be, "Yea, I see." David would
then describe how with his mind's eye he sees the punishments for which
he prayed as already accomplished.
250 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
godly, namely, prayer. Knowing, however, that God is not satis-
fied with a transient emotion of the heart, that he desires above all
faith, and as faith cannot otherwise reveal itself than in persevering
prayer, though helj) may be delayed, he promises to persevere in
prayer to the end. A master in prayer like David could make this
promise the easier, since he did not so much regard the fruit of
prayer as prayer itself, and was no doubt familiar with its delights.
He specifies three hours of the day, at which he promises to call
upon God with a loud voice, meaning thereby that the loud cry of
the mouth should in the interval be echoed back by the gentle
voice of the heart.
V. 19 — 22. Though unablc/to see that his prayer is answered,
he believes it. To this effect he assures himself that his prayer
will be answered for two reasons. The first, that the government
of God is the same now as it was of old; the second, that there is
no hope of a change for the better with the rebels who fear not
God. Remembering them anew, he once more tells God that
theirs is an uncommon oifence against God and man, in having
violated the bonds of friendship, and deceived under the mask of
hypocrisy.
V. 23, 24, The commencement of this psalm showed how
heavy was the burden which oppressed his heart. How great is
the blessedness of the godly in being able to pray ! He has got
rid of the burden by casting it upon the Lord. (Psalm xxxvii. 5;
1 Peter v. 7.) His faith unflinchingly adheres to the eternal law,
that the righteous shall never be moved — the righteous being he
who cleaves to God. The Old Testament saints had to adhere to
this with less light of revelation than that which we enjoy, and yet
probably kept it better than we. He desires the immediate fulfil-
ment of the truth of his hope, in praying for an extraordinary
divine punishment to remove his adversaries in the midst of their
days. And so it happened, for Ahithophel, the originator of the
mischief, hanged himself; Absalom died suddenly by the hand of
Joab ; the greater part of his rebellious followers perished in the
ravines of the mountains of Ephraim, in the wood of Ephraim,
where the decisive battle took place, and many were consumed by
the sword. (2 Sam. xviii. 8.)
PSALM LVI.
A PSALM of David, when he had fled from the court of Saul and
the land of his fathers to the Philistines in Gath, where they seized
him who had slain Goliath. (1 Sam. xxi. 10.) He had still with
him the sword of Goliath, which Ahimelech gave him. Gath was
PSALM LVI. 251
moreover the native city of Goliath. His enterprise was on that
account very hazardous. He did indeed not go before the king
(1 Sam. xxi. 12, etc.) of his own accord, but, intending to conceal
himself, was seized.
This psalm was probably composed at the time when they were
searching for him. Twice bitterly complaining against man, he
twice gets strengthened through faith in the word of Him against
whom all mankind cannot prevail, (v. 5 — 11, 12.)
1 n^O the chief Musician, concerning the silent dove in a
JL far-away country, A golden Psalm of David, when
the Philistines took him in Gath.
2 Be merciful unto me, 0 God : for man would swallow
me up ;
He fighting daily oppresseth me.
3 Mine enemies would daily swallow me up ;
For thei/ be many that fight against me, 0 thou Most High.
4 What time I am afraid,
I will trust in thee.
5 In God I will praise his word,
In God I have put my trust;
I will fear not what flesh can do unto me.
6 Every day they wrest my words :
All their thoughts are against me for evil.
7 They gather themselves together.
They hide themselves, they mark my steps,
When they wait for my soul.
8 Shall they escape by iniquity?
In thine anger cast down the people, 0 God.
9 Thou teilest my wanderings :
Put thou my tears into thy bottle :
Are they not in thy book ?
10 When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn
back:
This I know; FOR God is for me, (or, " God is mine.")
11 In God will I praise his word :
In the Lord will I praise his word.
12 In God have I put my trust :
I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
13 Thy vows are upon me, 0 God, (or, " I owe vows unto
thee, 0 God:")
I will render praises unto thee.
252 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
14 For thou hast delivered my soul from death :
Wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling (or, " my feet
from falling,"*)
That I may walk before God in the light of the living ?
V. 1 — 3. The title furnishes the index to the sense of David's
desertion, in which he calls himself an innocent mute dove, driven
away from her native country. He submitted to everything with-
out any resistance. Encountering everywhere enemies, he regards
all men as such. (Cf. v. 5.) He had but recently experienced the
enmity of Doeg, and meets new enemies in a foreign land, where
he might at least have hoped to he secure from Saul. They would
daily swallow him up. Saul gave him no rest. At Nob he found
Doeg, and here the enemies of his nation, who are equally füs ene-
mies. So many are against him, and that insolently, for they
despise the regal dignity which the Lord had conferred upon him.
V. 4, 5. He has no one with him in whom to confide : but he
trusts in that support which though invisible to human eye is yet
beheld by faith — the word of the Lord. What is all flesh com-
pared to that rock : as he refers to some specific word, he probably
alludes to the word of the Lord, by which Samuel had promised the
royal throne of Israel to the shepherd youth. Jonathan, though
Saul's son, (1 Sam. xxiii. 17,) trusted in that word; and Saul
himself submitted to it and said to David, " Thou shalt do both
great things and also shalt still prevail." (1 Sam. xxvi. 25.)
F. 6 — 8. David contemplates his present experience among
the Philistines. They probably assembled and consulted whether
he was the man or not — whether they should take him before
Achish or attack him at once; they followed his steps lest they
should lose sight of him. But he is sure that if the word of a king
is to be depended on, much more that of the Lord of heaven and
earth. Shall mischief prosper against the anointed of God ? No,
his adversaries are cast down.
V. 9 — 12. Thus he strengthens his soul. His tears are despised
by men — but they are precious before God, like precious wine,
enclosed in leathern bottles. He sufiers not one of them to be lost.
The tears of the pious are quickly dried up before the eyes of
men — they seem vile unto them — but the angels of God gather
them up and take them to their place. The days of the wander-
ings of his servant, and all his tears, are written in the book of
God. Does not this apply to the tears of all his servants ? What
an account will that be, when God shall one day reproach oppress-
ors and tyrants with the tears of crushed innocence ?
With thoughts like these the Psalmist edifies himself, while as
* /. e. -without "Wilt not thou deliver." Translate "For hast not thou
delivered ray soul from death, my feet from falling, that," etc.
PSALM Lvir. 253
yet the tears flow down his cheeks. He sees the enemies recede.
He neither knows the manner of his escape nor the end of the
days of his wanderings — he has neither peace, nor happiness, nor
joy, but ''this I know, that God is mine." This is the blessed
language of a heai-t reconciled to God. How much more should
we Christians use language like this ! Blessed be God who is so
near to his creatures! The word, the word is before the soul of
David : on it he takes his standing as on a high rock, at the base
of which the waves are breaking, and cries courageously, "I will
not be afraid what man can do unto me."
V. 13, 14. He thinks of songs of praise while he sings as yet
psalms of complaint, of vows of gratitude while he prays. He
knows not lioic his escape will be — but he is sure that some escape
will come. Such deliverances need not always be miraculous. In
this instance it was the sagacity of the persecuted king which
opened the door of escape : the thought was given him to feign
madness before the king. Others would have praised their own
sagacity at such a thought, but David knows that even wise
thoughts flow to man in the hour of need from no other source
than from the Father of light, from whom cometh every good and
perfect gift.
PSALM LVII.
A PSALM composed when David fled from Saul in the cave
which is referred to in Psalm cxlii., and which because it is with-
out any other distinction called **the cave," is probably that cele-
brated cave where David with his six hundred followers lay con-
cealed, (Cf. 1 Sara, xxiii. 13,) when Saul entered and David cut
ofi" the skirt of his robe, (1 Sam. xxiv. 4.) The king, accompanied
by three thousand followers, chased* him to the loftiest alpine
* A traveller (Fuerer of Hainendorf) describes the wilderness of Engedi,
■where that momitain was : "It is a long and awful mountain range by the
Dead Sea, where only few shepherds dwell, that have no houses, but live
with their cattle in the caverns of the rocks." A difficult path through
cliffs led from Engedi, situate on the shore, to Jerusalem, (2 Chron. xx. 16.)
Robinson says respecting it, (Palestine, vol. ii. p. 438:) "This path
descends in zikzak, frequently below the most precipitous corner, which
horses only know how to make, and runs partly along projecting rocks
down the perpendicular side of the clifiF and then down the almost equally
precipitous ruins. My companion had roamed over the heights of Lebanon
and the mountains of Persia, I myself ascended the Alps, but neither of us
liad ever met with so difficult and perilous a pass." The sea is seen
1500 feet below the spectator (not 500 according to the Text, vide Hall.
Lit. Zeit. 1842. No. 71.)
22
254 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
heights — "to the sheep-cotes/' where the cattle was driven in the
hottest summer months only — to hunt him in every hiding-place.
There was a cave, in the darkened cool of which David and his
men were hid. Such caves in Palestine and the East are fre-
quently enlarged hy human hands, and so capacious that they
accomodate thousands of people. This song of complaint was sung
during the hours of suspense which David spent there to wait until
the calamity was overpast, (v. 2,) in which he only gradually
gains a stout heart, (v. 8.) His life was really suspended by a
hair if Saul or any of his attendants had espied him !
The psalm begins with a mind already grown calm, twice aris-
ing from the mournful present to the sublime hope that the Lord
shall display his glory overall the earth, (v. 2 — 6, 7 — 12.)
1 ^0 the chief Musician, to the tune, "Destroy not," A
_L golden Psalm of David, when he fled from Saul
in the cave.
2 Be merciful unto me, 0 God, be merciful unto me :
For my soul trusteth in thee (or, "fleeth to thee:")
Yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge,
Until these calamities be overpast.
3 I will cry unto God most high :
Unto God that performeth all things for me.
4 He shall send from heaven, and save me
From the reproach of" him that would swallow me up.
Selah.
God shall send forth his mercy and his faithfulness.
5 My soul is among lions :
And I lie even among them that are set on fire,
Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
And their tongue a sharp sword.
6 Be thou exalted, 0 God, above the heavens;
Let thy glory he above all the earth.
7 They have prepared a net for my steps;
My soul is bowed down :
They have digged a pit before me.
Into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.
8 My heart is fixed, 0 God, my heart is fixed (or, " pre-
pared:") t
I will sing and give praise.
9 Awake up, my glory ; awake, psaltery and harp :
I myself will awake early.
10 I will praise thee, 0 Lord, among the people:
I will sing unto thee among the nations.
PSALM LVII. 255
11 For thy mercy is as far as the heavens,
And thy faithfuhiess as far as the clouds.
12 Be thou exalted, 0 God, above the heavens :
Let thy glory be above all the earth.
V. 2 — 4. This is the basis of David's trust, that he ascribes
the honour to his God, and knows no other refuge under whose
pinions he can flee. He means to seek a shelter there, till the
tempest is over. What may his fears have been on bearing from
the back part of the cavern the noise of the three thousand war-
riors, or seeing some one enter the cave ! He knows that his God
is not an inactive God, but that the hand of God is free and power-
ful, when his own is lamed. The heavens — the dwelling-place of
God — are high, but his arm is not shortened that it could not
reach down. Happy are we that his mercy and faithfulness is not
only concealed from above us in the clouds, but becomes apparent
and reigns on earth among the children of men.
V. 5, 6. It is awful indeed to live amongst lions and tigers
with savage glaring eyes and blood-red mouths, but it is more awful
to dwell among men with the hearts of tigers, for the means of
oppression with which the lion and the tiger are furnished are con-
fined to their mouths and claws, while man has everything which
his understanding may shape into instruments of malice. His
teeth are his spear and arrows, and the tender weak tongue he
wields as a sharp sword. He who attacks the servants of the Lord
attacks the Lord himself. David therefore cries to God to show
his enemies the consequences of laying hands on his servants. He
prays him to disclose his majesty above the heavens, and his glory
over all the earth, that they might see that they are no mean peo-
ple who serve sueli a God.
V. 7. His glance once more reverts to the pit before him; his
soul is bowed down and near the fall, but mentally he sees them
who digged the pit fall into it themselves. They had prepared a
net for the fugitive, but the persecutors really got caught in it.
This should elicit a Selah from every feeling heart !
F. 8 — 10. He declares before his God with jubilant joy that
his heart is fixed : the plaintive cry is changed into the song of
rejoicing and the play of the psaltery. He awakens his soul, and the
strings of his harp, feeling that having experienced mercy so rich,
his every nerve and vein ought to thrill with ecstatic joy. How
remiss are men in praising the Lord for undeserved benefits !
David intends to awake with the dawn that the praise of the Lord
may be his first thought. He is not satisfied with singing before
his people in his own house : had he a voice that could be heard by
all the nations of the earth, he would fain exert it to make them
the participators of his praise and thanksgiving.
F. 11, 12. A hard and ungrateful heart beholds even in pros-
256 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
perity only isolated drops of divine grace; but a grateful one like
David's, though chased by persecutors and striking the harp in the
gloom of a cave, looks upon the mercy and faithfulness of God as
a mighty ocean, waving and heaving from the earth to the clouds,
and from the clouds to the earth again.
PSALM LVIII.
This psalm refers not to real judges, which verse 2 seems to inti-
mate, but, as shows verse 3, to such as exercise oppression in the
land. When it is said, ''Ye divide the violence of your hands,"
or, " Ye weigh it," the allusion seems to be to self-revenge as
checking the exercise of the law. It would be difficult to account
for David's composing a psalm against the unjust judges of Saul,
still less against his own, whom he would rather have made to feel
the severity of the laws. Several circumstances render it very
probable that this psalm was occasioned when Joab and his brother
had given vent to their vengeance in assassinating Abner, who had
slain their brother Asahel at Gibeon in battle. (2 Sam. iii. 30.)
Abner, the valiant and generous, of whom David said after his
decease, "Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man
fallen this day in Israel ?" had come full of confidence to David
that he might deposit into his hands the sceptre over the remain-
ing tribes of Israel. Not only the vengeance but the ambition of
Joab, who would not endure him as a rival in the favour of David,
had led him to violate hospitality by his base act — an act so base,
that in the eyes of David's servants it appeared to fall upon his
own head — as if he had broken good faith. He says therefore, "I
and my kingdom are guiltless before the Lord for ever from the
blood of Abner the son of Ner : let it rest on the head of Joab and
on all his father's house; and let there not fail from the house of
Joab one that hath an issue, or that is a leper, or that leaneth on
a staff, or that falleth on a sword, or that lacketh bread." He wept
with a loud voice on the grave of the noble hero, and sang his
funeral ditty. "Died Abner as a fool dieth? Thy hands were not
bound, nor thy feet put into fetters : as a man falleth before wicked
men, so feilest thou." The haughtiness and passion of Joab and
his brother had become so intense that he exclaimed, "These men,
the sons of Zeruiah, be too hard for me : the Lord shall reward the
doer of evil according to his wickedness." (2 Sam. iii. 39.) Yet
he intended not to subject them to righteous punishment, as he did
immediately afterwards the sons of Kimmon the Beerothite, who
assassinated Ishbosheth the son of Saul. (2 Sam. iv. 12.) But the
PSALM LVIII. 257
sons of Zeruiah were too powerful for him, and he therefore com-
mitted their punishment to God — though he never forgot their
heinous crime, for on his death-bed he remembered the innocently-
shed blood of the prince in Israel, (1 Kings ii. 5,) and charged
his son to punish it.
1 n^O the chief Musician, to the tune " Destroy not," a
X golden Psalm of David.
2 Do ye indeed speak righteousness, 0 congregation?
Do ye judge uprightly, 0 ye sons of men?
8 Yea, in heart ye work wickedness ;
Ye weigh the violence of your hands in the earth.
4 The wicked are estranged from the womb :
They go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.
6 Their poison is like the poison of a serpent :
Thet/ are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear ;
6 Which will not hearken to the voice of charmers,
Be the charmer never so cunning.
7 Break their teeth, 0 God, in their mouth :
Break out the great teeth of the young lions, 0 Lord.
8 Let them melt away as waters which run continually :
When they bend their bow to shoot their arrows, let them
be as cut in pieces, (or, "blunted.")
9 As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass
away:
Zilce the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not
see the sun,
10 Before your pots can feel the thorns.
He shall take them away as with a whirlwind, both living
and burning.
11 The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance:
He shall wash his feet in the. blood of the wicked.
12 So that a man shall say, Verily, there is a reward for the
righteous :
Verily, he is a God that judgeth in the earth.
V. 2, 3. People seek always to justify self-revenge though it
interferes with the exercise of the law; these two fierce brothers
may probably have made it their boast that they did right. But
the funeral ditty on Abner which David sang, compelled them to
hear before all the people that the noble hero fell by the violence
of assassins. They could not even say, We have dealt with Abner
as he dealt with our brother, for Asahel fell by the hand of Abner
in open battle, nor did Abner aim his spear at him till after he had
22*
258 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
in vain addressed to him words of earnest and friendly admoni-
tion. (2 Sam. ii. 23.) David calls it a -wickedness in or from the
heart, for the deed had been perpetrated with forethought and
cunning.
F. 4 — 6. Nor was it a single act of violence : he could have
forgiven that. Deceit and oppression lay blended with courage in
the breast of the two brothers. Penitence would have prevented
the second crime, if it had merely been the ebullition of passion.
The same Joab, while saying to Amasa, his envied under-captain,
"Art thou in health, my brother?" (or, "Peace be with thee, my
brother/') thrust with his left hand the sword into his body.
(2 Sam. XX. 10.) His heart was filled with untameable venom,
the poison of envy and ambition, which neither severity nor leni-
ency could conquer. Serpents may be charmed by the sound of
music so that they do not emit their poison — not so these children
of wrath, David had resisted the temptation of Joab to fill him
with suspicion against his faithful subject, and he had no doubt
expressed himself in the language of confidence and gentleness.
(2 Sam. iii. 24, 25.) The poisonous adder could not be charmed
— his perilous bite was done the more secretly.
F. 7 — 10. The sovereign feels himself too weak to use the arm
of justice against these powerful men. He therefore calls upon
the Lord to do justice, to destroy the success of their schemes con-
trived by cunning and violence, to break their destructive strength
as one deprives wild beasts of their teeth, as water dissolves, as if
one breaks the point of the spear, as a creeping snail melts, as an
abortion dissolves in the womb, as the tempests of the desert tears
away the half-burnt thorns ere the pots can feel their flame.
V. 11, 12. It is the comfort of kings, that if they are too weak
for the ^administration of justice, there is a King above whose
hands are never tied. The King of kings gives these signs to show
that though much power is conferred upon mortals, no one can
deprive him of his sceptre.
PSALM LIX.
A PSALM of David composed when Saul had first cast the javelin
at him, and then after his escape caused his house to be watched
at night that he might seize and kill him on the morrow. But
Michal, his wife, had secretly let him go out at an unguarded place,
and he fled at night to the neighbouring Ramah,* to Samuel and
* Now Soba, according to Robinson's Palestine, vol. ii. p. 581, etc., at a
distance of about ten miles from Jerusalem. (Cf. Introduction, page 24,
note X)
PSALM LIX. 259
his school of prophets, (1 Sam. xix. 18,) where this psalm was
probably composed. We may perceive to how great aa extent the
Spirit of God reigned in that circle, from the fact that the three
separate companies whom Saul sent out to seize David felt the
Spirit of God come upon them, and they began to prophesy, as in
fact even Saul on coming was overwhelmed by the strength of the
Spirit. (1 Sam. xix. 20, etc.')
1 ^0 the chief Musician, to the tune, "Destroy not," A
J_ golden psalm of David, when Saul sent, and they
watched the house to kill him.
2 Deliver me from mine enemies, 0 my God :
Defend me from them that rise up against me.
3 Deliver me from the workers of iniquity,
And save me from bloody men.
4 For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul :
The mighty are gathered against me ;
Not /or my transgression, nor /or my sin, 0 Lord.
5 They run and prepare themselves without my fault :
Awake to meet me, and behold.
6^Thou therefore, 0 Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel,
Awake to visit all the heathen:
Be not merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah.
7 Let them return at evening :
And make a noise like a dog.
And go round about the city.
8 Behold, they belch with their mouth :
Swords are in their lips :
For who, say they, doth hear?
9 But thou, 0 Lord, shalt laugh at them ;
Thou shalt have all the heathen in derision.
10 0, my strength, I will wait upon thee :*
For God 18 my defence.
11 God shall prevent me by his mercy :
God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.
12 Slay them not (suddenly) lest my people forget :
Scatter them by thy power ;
And bring them down, 0 Lord our shield.
13 For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips
Let them even be taken in their pride :
And for cursing and lying which they speak.
* Fourteen MSS. and all the ancient versions read i-ts instead of yf$.
260 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
14 Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may
not he:
And let them know that God ruleth in Jacob
Unto the ends of the earth. Selah.
15 And at evening let them return ;
And let them make a noise like a dog,
And go round about the city.
16 Let them wander up and down for meat,
Though they be not satisfied, and will stay all night.
17 But I will sing of thy power ;
Yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning :
For thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of
my trouble.
18 Unto thee, 0 my strength, will I sing:
For God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.
F. 2, 3. Though having effected his escape, David still prays
for deliverance from Saul and his people, for their wrath was still
alive, and they soon came to Ramah to seize him : the messengers
are three times in succession overcome by the Spirit — at last the
king himself. The character of the servants of Saul, who, devoid
of love and truthfulness, were not better than their master, may be
inferred from their becoming the abettors of malice, and not having
the courage of Jonathan to take the part of innocence. Doeg was
amongst their number.
V. 4, 5. If we have to deal with such people, innocence is a
great comfort, for he who is conscious of his innocence knows indubi-
tably that God is his ally and may courageously invoke his aid like
David, "Awake to meet me, 0 Lord, and behold."
V. 6. Shall not the Judge of the world send help? David
feels here as we do when judgment is delayed in time : we then
long for the last judgment, that all iniquity may for ever cease.
In a similar manner he prayed elsewhere (Psalm vii. 8. 10) for the
last judgment, and consoled himself by it to attain to a more perfect
assurance of the righteous judgment of God in his own case. At
the judgment of the heathen, tlft judgment of Jieathemsh-minded
Israel will not fail to take place, (Psalm Ixxv. 9 ; cf. also Psalm
Ixxxii. 8,) for God is good to that Israel only that are of a dean
heart. (Psalm Ixxiii. 1.)
V. 7. His imagination depicts them as already standing and
waiting with open mouths for prey, but they have to stand and
wait from morning till evening, and roara like hungry dogs round
about and through the city.
V. 8, 9. The servants were like the suspicious king, and had
indeed excited his Suspicions. ( Vide Introd. ad. Ps. Ixix.) How
PSALM LX. 261
many lies and calumnies may they not have concocted while they
stood on the watch ! But God, who will hold the proud heathen
in derision, will equally laugh at them. Though the heavens are
high above the earth, his ear yet reacheth to the earth; and
whether mischief be talked of aloud or low, nothing escapes his
ear.
V. 10, 11. Deprived of personal strength, he looks to that
defence which constitutes his strength. He who who makes but
one step to meet God is met by his mercy for thousands of miles.
V. 12. The benefits which God now and then confers upon one
and another ought never to be forgotten by us: we should always
remember the arm which reached out of the clouds in the hour of
danger. But as even the pious are prone to forget nothing more
quickly than this very thing, David prays God not suddenly to con-
sume them, but only to scatter and humiliate them, that they may
for ever remember that the Lord did bow them down, and that he
is the shield of his people. By "my people'' David probably
means the generation of the righteous, which is called the people
of God, (cf. ad. Ps. iii. 9; Ps. xiv. 4,) thinking of the sincere
Israelites' with whom he was then staying, viz. Samuel and the sons
of the prophets. He felt himself in fellowship with them by say-
ing, "0 Lord, our shield." (Psalm Ixxii. 10.)
V. 13 — 15. He considers once more their impiousness, for the
purpose of strengthening his conviction that the punishment of
God, though delayed, will assuredly be revealed to them, for the
government of God is preeminently manifest to Jacob after the
spirit. (Ps. xxiv. 6.) The sin of their mouth, the curses by which
they persecute the innocent, their pride before God and man, shall
become the net in which, like so many before them, they shall be
caught. Their present punishment shall be this: they shall roam
about greedy of prey, but find none, and shall in the evening behold
that the spoil has escaped them.
V. 16 — 18. They had to wander about when evening came,
having lost the prey, and hungry wake through the night; while
David, like a bird which has escaped the snare of the fowler,
attunes in the morning his song of praise to Him who in the day of
need is the refuge of his people.
PSALM LX.
A SONG of complaint and cry for help when, while David was
engaged in the north of his kingdom against the Syrians of Zobah
and their allies from Mesopotamia, (2 Sam. x. 16,) the Edomites
262 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
had invaded the south, and he was obliged to send Joab and
Abishai* his brother with an army to meet them, who turned them
back (2 Sam. viii. 13; 1 Chron. xviii.) in the valley of Salt,f
where the boundaries of Edom and Palestine met. There were
probably only few troops in the kingdom, and they had been beat,
(v. 12.) It was this critical juncture which determined David to
send back his generals with so large a portion of his army. Two
short days' marches would suffice to bring the Edomites to Hebron,
and seven hours from Hebron to Jerusalem. The king had there-
fore good grounds for complaining that the country was trembling.
The foe had probably made further advances into the country,
and only on Joab's approach retired from the mountains and
ravines on the way to Hebron to the valley of Salt, where at a later
period Amaziah routed the Edomites. (2 Kings xiv. 7.)
1.2 'pO the chief Musician, to the tune, " The lily of the
X testimony," A golden psalm of David to be learnt
by heart: when he strove with Mesopotamia and
the Syrians of Zobah, when Joab returned and
smote of Edom in the valley of Salt twelve
thousand.
3 0 God thou hast cast us off, thou hast scattered us,
Thou hast been displeased ; 0 turn thyself to us again.
4 Thou hast made the country to tremble; thou hast
broken it :
Heal the breaches thereof; for it shaketh.
5 Thou hast showed thy people hard things :
Thou hast made us to drink of the wine of astonishment.
6 Thou hast given a banner to them that feared thee,
To which they may flee because of the truth. Selah.
7 That thy beloved may be delivered;
Save with thy right hand, and hear me (or, "hear us".)
8 God hath spoken in his holiness
I will rejoice thereat, "I will divide Schechem,
And mete out the valley of Succoth.
9 Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine :
Ephraim also is the shield of mine head ;
Judah is my sceptre ; and
* Abishai, who is described as a general (1 Chron. xviii.) may at that
time (as 2 Sam. x. 10) have commanded a portion under Joab. But
(2 Sam. viii. 13) the king himself is described as victor.
•]- This valley is at the southern point of the Dead Sea, at the side of a
remarkable mountain side of mineral salt, which at some places is as high
as 150 feet. (Robinson's Palestine, vol. iii. 1, p. 23.)
PSALM LX. 263
10 Moab is my washpot ;
Over Edom will I cast out my shoe ;
Philistia, triumph thou because of me."*
11 Who will bring me into the strong city ?
Who will lead me into Edom ?
12 Wilt not thou, 0 God, which hadst cast us off?
And thou, 0 God, which didst not go out with our armies ?
13 Give us help from trouble:
For vain is the help of man.
14 Through God we shall do valiantly:
For he it is that shall tread down our enemies.
V. 3 — 5. The course of life alternates between the heights and
the depths. Such was the experience of David. At the pinnacle
of triumph, enlarging the boundaries of his country, the mournful
tidings suddenly came upon him. He describes the country as a
wall which has been shaken and rent, and the consternation of the
people as if they were drunk with intoxicating wine and had almost
lost their senses.
V. 6, 7. There is a banner, however, to which those who fear
the Lord may fly. Such are the gracious promises of God, which
he will not dishonour, but fulfil because of his mercy and truth.
(Rom. XV. 8.) David doubts not for a moment that although
called to endure great affliction they continue to abide in the love
of God. That may have been a difficult thing to them of old — but
it is an easy thing to those in the Gospel dispensation, who have
the words of reconciliation in their hearts.
V. 8 — 10. The prophetic words of Samuel, Gad, and Nathan,
had often declared the kindly designs of God respecting David,
and their words were diffused among all the people : e. g. Abner
refers to them before the whole nation. (2 Sam. iii. 18.) David
comforts himself now with such a Divine message by the mouth of
a prophet — he rejoices in tribulation. The meaning of that utter-
ance is this : God, who has created all nations, the earth and every-
thing in it, has the power to distribute, as he pleases, the countries
of Israel as well as the countries of surrounding peoples. This
oracle mentions, first, two then flourishing cities, Succoth, in the
valley of Jordan in the East, and Schechem opposite to it in the
West, then two of the most flourishing provinces in the east of
Jordan; rich Gilead, and the mighty tribe of Manasseh, to the
west of Jordan, the two most powerful tribes; Ephraim, the pro-
tecting helmet of the kingdom by its rich population, (Gen. xlviii.
19; Deut. xxxiii. 17;) and Judah, of whom Jacob's prophecy was
said, "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver
* Or paraphrased, "Philistia, shout to me, the Conqueror."
264 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
from between his feet, until Shiloh come." (Gen. xlix. 10.) They
are the Lord's. But also the countries of enemies shall serve — Moab
in the East, Edom in the South, and Philistia in the West (the
North is not mentioned, because the banner of David had already
been victorious there.) As after the labours of the day the hero
takes the washpot and throws off his shoes — so Moab becomes his
washpot, and over Edom he casts his shoe — which in ancient times,
in India as well as in Abyssinia and Palestine, was the symbol of
conquest. (Ruth iv. 7.) Philistia also shall render homage to
Him, Such was the burden of the prophecy.
F. 11, 12. This is the banner to which David flies. Contem-
plating it, we may confidently hope that the same God who did
abase can also raise him. His hand shall lead him even to Petra,
(^. e. rock, 2 Kings xiv. 7,) which seems unapproachable by human
strength. That marvellous rock-city of the Edomites is surrounded
by rocks, some of which are three hundred feet high, and a single
path twelve feet in width leads to it. The city itself is partly hewn
out of the cloven rocks, and its ruins, which, however, belong to a
later period, fill travellers with amazement. Obadiah, prophesying
against Edom, has mentioned that rocky stronghold. " The pride
of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts
of the rock, whose habitation is high ; that saith in his heart, Who
shall bring me down to the ground ? Though thou exalt thyself
as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence
will I bring thee down, saith the Lord." (Obad. v. 3, 4.) He who
like David appropriates the Divine promise, is not dismayed at even
such a rocky stronghold. At the eve of his life the old hero-king
used to sing at the remembrance of conquests like the present,
"By thee I have run through a troop, and by my God have I leaped
over a wall." (Ps. xviii. 30.)
V. 13, 14. Who is more proud of the arm of flesh than a hero
in the sense of his own strength? Not so David. He has just
now experienced once more that it is God who is able to exalt and
to abase him, and he therefore loudly declares that the help of man
is vain, and that the victories of heroes are gained through God
alone.
PSALM LXI. 265
PSALM LXI.
A PSALM of David, sung at Malianain, beyond Jordan on the
borders of Palestine, when he fled from before Absalom. (Cf. ad.
Psalm iii. 42.)
^0 the chief Musician, A Psalm on the harp of David.
'T
2 Hear my cry, 0 God ;
Attend unto my prayer.
3 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my
heart is overwhelmed :
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
4 For thou hast been a shelter for me,
And a strong tower from the enemy.
5 I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever:
I will make my refuge in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
6 For thou, 0 God, hast heard my vows :
Thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.
7 Thou wilt prolong the king's life:
A7id his years as many generations.
8 He shall abide before God for ever:
0 prepare (or, " show unto him") mercy and truth, which
may preserve him.
9 So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever,
That I may daily perform my vows.
V. 2 — 5. David seems to have sung this psalm in an hour when
his soul was more composed : it contains much trust and assurance
that he should reascend his throne. Remote from the sanctuary,
he feels himself prompted from afar to call upon his God. He
regards his fear as great waves, and his trust in God like a lofty
rock rising above them; he regards his enemies as if assailing him,
and his God as a tower which he can enter and abide there' in
security. He has so fre'qucntly enjoyed happiness in the taberna-
cle of God that there he shelters himself, feeling as safe as a chicken
under the wing of the hen. (Psalm xxvii. 5; xsxi. 21.)
V. 6 — 9. The heritage (?*. e. reward, Job xxxi. 2; cf. Wisd.
V. 5; Gal. iii. IS,) of those that fear the Lord is his rich mercy,
and if that is rich to all who call upon him, how much more so to
a king whose cause is a just one. Full of this confidence, David
calls upon his God, he himself reminding him of his royal dignity.
(Psalm xviii. 51; xxi. 2; xxviii. 8, 9; Ixiii. 12.) The glorious
promise which he received by Nathan, the prophet, arises before
his soul, " And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established
for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever."
23
266 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
(2 Sam. vii. 16.) This promise and the hope that he and his off-
spring shall for ever occupy the throne before the face of the Lord
yields him comfort, while he regards the faithfulness and love of
God as the defences to the right and to the left of his throne. He
promises nevermore to forget that he owes these blessings neither
to his own sagacity and valour nor to blind fate, but that he will
for ever sing praises to the name of the Lord, and that his whole
life shall be the payment of the vows which he made in the hour
of need.
PSALM LXII.
A PSALM of calm trust and exhortation, which David composed
when he resided at the court of Saul, and calumniating tongues
accused him of secret conspiracy, thereby seeking to rob him of
the king's confidence, and to cast him down from his elevated
position.
1 n^O the chief Musician of the choir of Jeduthun, A
JL Psalm of David.
2 Truly my soul is silent to God :
From him cometh my salvation.
3 He only is my rock and my salvation ;
ffe is my defence : I shall not be greatly moved,
4 How long will ye press upon a man,
And seek to destroy him all of you :
As a bowing wall and as a tottering fence ?
5 They only consult to cast him down from his excellency:
They delight in lies :
They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.
Selah.
6 My soul, be thou silent only to God ;
For my hope is from him.
7 He only is my rock and my salvation :
ITe is my defence ; I shall not be moved.
8 With God is my salvation and my glory :
The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
9 Trust in him at all times, ye people,
Pour out your heart before him :
God is a refuge for us. Selah.
10 Surely men of low degree are nothing,
And men of high degree are a lie :
To be laid in the balance,
They are altogether lighter than nothing.
PSALM LXIII. 267
11 Trust not In wrong,
And become not vain in robbery:
If riches increase, set not your heart upon them.
12 God hath spoken once :
Twice have I heard this;
That power belgngeth unto God.
13 Also unto thee, 0 Lord, helongeth mercy :
For thou renderest to every man according to his work.
V. 2 — 5. On fathoming in the process of self-examination the
very foundations of our soul, we sometimes comfort ourselves as it
were with the words, There is still a little spark of faith and trust
left. So David solaces and strengthens himself with the words,
My soul is quietly resigned to God and waits for his aid. I know
of no other help — and though perchance I stumble — I shall never
fall. I am already crushed like a tottering wall, but however much
you may press upon me, I shall never fall. He intimates to them,
that though their assaults are not done openly, he is right well
aware of their secret efforts to undermine his safety.
V. 6 — 9. He once more descends to the foundation of his soul.
Calmness has already ensued, yet he seeks to attain a still greater
peace. How great is the happiness of this inward calm. What
others seek in the creature he seeks in the Almighty. His salva-
tion, glory, strength, and refuge are all in God, who gives to crea-
tion whatever happiness, glory, strength, and refuge it can yield to
mortals. How great is his happiness in that calm of his soul ! He
invites all to pour out their heart before the Eternal One that they
may enjoy the same peace.
V. 10 — 13. Our estimate of man depends upon our estimate
of God. David knows that men of low and high degree, if sepa-
rated from the primal fount of every good, weigh nothing, and are
less than nothing. Riches are nothing, especially ill-gotten ones.
Man is not to get proud when riches increase. But such is the
course of things, that in proportion as the gifts of God are rich,
men confide more in the gifts than in the rich giver. But holy
David is better instructed. Once and again he has heard the
Divine voice in his soul, that power helongeth unto God only, (Job
xxxiii. 14; cf Psalm xl. 5.) This powerful God is merciful : can
then any merit attach to our poor works? and yet the Lord render-
eth to every pious man according to his imperfect pious work.
PSALM LXIIL
A PSALM of David composed on his flight before Absalom, after
he had left Jerusalem, and having reached the desert banks of
268 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Jordan, was waiting for further news from the city. (2 Sam. xv.
23. 28; xvi. 2; xvii. 16. 29.) The pUice is a profound wilder-
ness. The wilderness of Judah, along the entire western shoi'e of
the Dead Sea, had been David's refuge for years, when Saul pur-
sued him. Once adorned with the diadem, he may have little
thought that he should have to revisit that desert. But as a fugi-
tive king, he was obliged to seek it once more. The wilderness of
Judah extends to Jordan above the Dead Sea, where the territories
of Judah and Benjamin meet, (cf. Josh, xviii. 22, with xv. 61)* —
it is a waste without any supply of water. In that neighbourhood
there remains an easy ford to the present day, and probably David
and his people crossed the river there. Gilgal was situate in that
region, and this is the place where David on his return from Maha-
naim crossed Jordan. (2 Sam. xix. 15.)
1 A PSALM of David, when he was in the wilderness of
A Judah.
2 0 God, thou art my God ; early will I seek thee :
My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longetli for thee
In a dry and thirsty land, where no water is ;
3 To see thy power and thy glory,
So as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.
4 Because thy lovingkindness is better than life.
My lips shall praise thee.
5 Thus will I bless thee while I live :
I will lift up my hands in thy name.
6 My soul shall be satisfied as ^vith marrow and fatness;
And my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
7 When I remember thee upon my bed
I meditate on thee in the night watches.
8 Because thou hast been my help,
Therefore in the shadoAv of thy wings will I rejoice.
9 My soul cleaveth to thee :
Thy right hand upholdeth me.
10 But those that seek my soul to destroy it,
Shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
11 They shall fall by the sword :
They shall be a portion for jackals.
12 But the king shall rejoice in God;
Every one that sweareth by him shall glory:
But the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped.
* There were no signs of vegetation either along the ujiper coast or in
the valley, with the exception of a narrow strip of reeds and rushes below,
along either side of the basin, here and there dotted with tamarisks and a
species of the Arabian willow. (Robinson's Palestine, vol. ii. p. 4D5.)
PSALM LXIII. 269
V. 2. He begins as every prayer that is to be heard ought to
beo-in; the power of prayer con&ists in the knowledge that God is
our God. The body suffers in a dry and thirsty land; his friends
indeed had to furnish him with rpfreshmeuts for the period of his
abode in the desert. (2 Sam. xvi. 2.) But the king's soul thirsts
more for God than bodily refreshments. His very flesh longs for
him. Is it not known to every prayerful man, that when God
refreshes the soul, he also refreshes the body ?
V. 3 — 5. Here is the reason of his longing for God. He
remembers the delightful experience of his power and glory in the
sanctuary. " TJmsha.ve I seen thee," i. e. so desirable, so refresh-
ing to body and soul. We know from other psalms, that David
felt most at home with God in tl»e house of God. (Cf. ad. Psalm
xxvii ) 2 Sam. xv. 25, informs us that on leaving Jerusalem, the
hope of seeing again the tabernacle and the house of God formed
the pinnacle of David's desires. As life is valueless without the
taste of Divine mercy, David glories that his lovingkindness is better
than life, and because out of the abundance of the heart the mouth
speaketh, therefore his lips shall praise him. He has known him
as so desirable to be possessed, that he promises to make his praise
the business of his life. Praying, he lifts up his hands in the name
of the Lord, i. e. with his heart and mind fixed on him.
V. 6, 7. How happy may the heart of man become through
God! There was no other ground for the praise of David. The
crown torn from off his brow — his own son a rebel — a gloomy pre-
sent and an uncertain future stood before his soul — round about
him the desert; but his heart is so satisfied that his mouth must
break forth in songs of praise. Such is his employment in day-time,
and at night, when the mouth must be silent, his heart continues
the praise. He thinks not to go again asleep, but continues ia
meditation during the night watches — there are three of them — as
soon as the thought of God has once entered his soul.
F. 8, 9. Hope in his present tribulation^causes him unceasingly
to think of God. As a bird, sheltered in the rich foliage from the
heat of the sun, sings its merry notes, so he celebrates his songs of
praise from the shadow of the wings of God. He feels as if the
eternal God were visibly present, upholding him with his right
hand, therefore his soul cleaves to him.
V. 10, 11. They who seek to destroy his life shall meet with
the fate they have planned for him. The sword shall consume
them in the war which was about to begin — their bodies shall
remain unburied, the prey of jackals which feed on corpses. And
this came literally to pass. For in the battle, in the forest of
Ephraim, one portion of the people were consumed by the sword,
and another perished in the wooded rocks and abysses. (2 Sam.
xviii. 8.)
F. 12. The mouth of the faithless rebels is now filled with deceit
23*
270 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
and lies, but it sliall be stopped — the king shall yet rejoice in his
God — commend and praise those faithful subjects, who will swear
by no other name than that of their lawful sovereign. (Cf. Gen,
xlii. 15.) " The Lord reigueth I"
PSALM LXIV.
A SONG of complaint of David, when he was at the court of Saul,
and calumniating and lying tomgues sought his downfall.
irp
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 Hear my voice, 0 God, in my prayer :
Preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
8 Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked :
From the throng of the workers of iniquity,
4 Who whet their tongue like a sword.
And bend their hows to shoot their arrows, even bitter
words ;
5 That they may shoot in secret at the godly ;
Suddenly do they shoot at him and fear not.
6 They encourage themselves in an evil matter:
They commune of laying snares privily ;
They say, " Who shall see them?"
T They search out iniquities ;
"We are ready with diligent cunning."
Both the inward thought of every one of them, and the
heart, is deep.
8 But God shall shoot at theni ^vith an arrow;
Suddenly shall they be wounded.
9 So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon them-
selves :
All that see them shall laugh at them.
10 And all men shall fear, and shall declare the "work of God ;
For they shall wisely consider of his doing.
11 The righteous shall be glad in the Lord and shall trust
in him ;
And all the upright in heart shall glory.
V. 2 — 5. There is no reference here to his mortal enemies, as
is the case in those psalms which were composed during his flight;
PSALM LXV. 271
for some considerable time elapsed before the king dared to aim at
bis life. He simply speaks of such calumniators as laid their
snares in secret, could not bear his piety, and envied him of the
royal confidence.
V. 6, 7. The honest and straightforward youth is surprised at
the artifice with which they set their evil engines to work, for an
honest man pursues a straight course. "The children of this world
are wiser than the children of light." An honest-minded man
gets acquainted with the shallows of the heart by perceiving them
in others. With the expression of the Psalmist accord the words
of the prophet, " The heart is deceitful above all things, and des-
perately wicked: who can know it?" (Jer. xvii. 9.)
V. 8, 9. The wisdom of God exceeds the utmost cunning of
men- he changeth their wisdom into folly, and overturneth their
measure when it is filled.
V. 10, 11. God does not exercise his judgments for the grati-
fication of our passions or revenge, but with the sublime and holy
design to instruct us that his hand pierces the doings of man, and
that the works of men, even of the ungodly, must serve him as
instruments for the accomplishment of his own purposes; that the
righteous may ever rejoice in heart for being under the jurisdic-
tion of such a Lord ; and lastly, that the community of believers
should render to him the praises which he is worthy to receive.
We must, therefore, be on our guard, lest in rejoicing at the down-
fall of the ungodly by the hand of God, we dim the sacred flame
by unholy feelings.
PSALM LXV.
A SONG of praise composed in the spring, when the Lord had
richly blessed the land, the pastures were beginning to be clothed
with flocks, and the hills and valleys covered with corn. It was
probably sung at the passover, for a sheaf of the first fruits used to
be oftered on the second day of the passover, after which harvest
commenced. Verses 2 — 9 are the preparation for the theme of the
psalm; the grace of prayer (v. 2, 3,) is followed by the confession
of sins (v. 4,) the expression of gratitude for spiritual delights in
the sanctuary (v. 5,) the recognition of Divine power and mercy
in nature amongst men (v. 6 — 8,) with the final praise of pecu-
liarly merciful revelations in the kingdom of nature, for which they
noio return their thanks (v. 9 — 12.)
272 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
1 rpo the chief Musician, A Psalm and Song of David.
2 Praise is silently offered to thee, 0 God, in Sion:*
And unto thee shall the vow be performed.
3 0 thou that hearest prayer,
Unto thee shall all flesh come.
4 Iniquities oppress me :
Our sins, cover thou them.
5 Blessed is the man whom thou choosest,
And causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in
thy courts:
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house,
Even of thy holy temple.
6 Hear us according to thy marvellous righteousness,
0 God of our salvation.
Who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth,
And of them that are afar off hy the sea :
7 Which by his strength setteth fast the mountains ;
Being girded with power.
8 Which stilleth the noise of the seas,
The noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people.
9 They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at
thy tokens :
Thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening
to rejoice. t
10 Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it :
Thou greatly enrichest it with the well of God, which is
full of water :
Thou preparest them corn.
When thou hast so provided for it.
11 Thou waterest the ridges thereof abundantly:
Thou causest rain to enter the furrows thereof:
Thou makest it soft with showers :
Thou blessest the springing thereof.
12 Thou crownest the year with thy goodness;
And thy paths drop fatness.
13 They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness.
And the little hills are girded with joy.
14 The pastures are clothed with flocks;
The valleys also are covered over with corn ;
They shout for joy, they also sing.
* Or, "Thou art praised with silent resignation in Sion, 0 God."
f Or, " Thou makest glad all that live in the East and in the West."
PSALM LXV. 273
V. 2, 3. David names the two sacrifices of tlie pious, whicli are
demanded in Psalm 1., adding the important point, that the voice
of our own will must be silent. (Isaiah xxx. 15.) For many praise
God for those things which are in conformity to their own inclina-
tions. The reason of the scanty exhibition of praise and thanks-
giving, is that everything is not sufficiently received as from the
hand of the Lord. These spiritual sacrifices are offered in Zion.
Though all prayers, even those which men direct to fictitious deities,
are known to the true God (for which reason the Psalmist adds,
*'Unto thee shall all flesh come," cf. v. 6,) yet real prayer always
presupposes the existence of right knowledge and genuine faith.
Such sacrifices receives the Lord in Zion, as nowhere else on
earth.
V. 4, 5. Every prayer should begin with the confession that
our lips are unclean, for without that conviction no one is able in
humble reverence to realize before God the grace of being ijermitted
to pray. But it must not stop there, for the heart which groans
under the. weight of the heavy stone called sin, cannot mount to
heaven. The stone must be removed, and the removal is effected
by grace and forgiveness. It is impossible that the voice of prayer
can pierce the heavens, if we cannot say with a lightened heart,
" J/y God." The heart is constantly wavering "like a wave of the
sea driven with the wind and tossed," (James i. 6,) while there is
any doubt left that God is my God. So David desires the forgive-
ness of sins, before he begins to thank and iwaise. As a sinner
who has enjoyed grace, he is with the congregation alive to the
unmerited gift of the Lord of their being permitted to call upon
him in this place where rich consolation flows in such copious
streams. The temple and the house of God either designate the
tabernacle, or the place where the ark stood. (See ad. -Ps. xv. on
the courts, cf. ad. Ps. Ixxxiv. 2.)
V. 6 — 9. Before expressing their gratitude for the peculiar
blessing which hurried them to the house of God, their mind rises
to the contemplation of the wonderful works of God. They dis-
tinctly declare that all the blessings and comforts. of all the nations
of the earth flow from this fountain. It implies the confession that
the prayers of the heathen, however erroneous their ideas of God
may be, do after all ascend to the throne of the God of Israel. It
has been expressly pointed out by a prophet, that the same paternal
hand which brought Israel out of Egypt, did also lead and bless
pagan nations. (Amos ix. 7, in agreement with Ps. Ixvii. 5.) God
has displayed his powerful arm in nature as well as in history; he
has given roots to the mountains that they move not; he stilleth
the noise of the waves of the sea (Ps. xlvi. 4 ; xciii. 3,) and of the
nations. These manifestations of the works of God scatter simul-
taneously fear and joy to the ends of the earth.
F. 10, 11. This God reveals himself as Or)inipotent at the
274 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
return of every spring, and uses his might for the bestowal of bless-
ings. He opens the flood-gates of heaven — sends wholesome showers
from autumn, when the early rain falls, down to spring, when the
fruit of the field begins to bud and to spring up and needs the latter
rain. The wells and the channels of water which men dig, dry up,
but the well of God gets never exhausted though it have much land
to water. Thus the corn of men gets prepared The furrows get
humid, the water presses them down, and genial showers soften
everything, and lo, the blessing of God waves in its golden beauty!
V. 12 — 14. The goodness of God crowns the year as a diadem
does the brow. Men find out his goings by the blessing of his
paths. The pastures of the wilderness are clothed with verdant
richness — the very hills are girded with joy and gladness. Jocund
flocks clothe the pastures as with a garment — the corn waves in the
valleys so richly that the soil cannot be seen. Are these rejoicings
of nature to find no echo in the human heart? Yes; they vie in
their rejoicings, their rejoicings swell into praise and happy harvest
songs.
PSALM LXVI.
Many interpreters consider v. 9 — 12 descriptive of the sufferings
in the exile at Babylon, and the psalm expressive of gratitude for
deliverance. It militates against this view, that v. 13 — 20 are
spoken by an individual, who ascribes that deliverance to his prayer,
and is able to say of himself, that he has not regarded iniquity in
his heart, while the nation looked at the exile as the punishment
of their sins. (Cf. ad. Ps. xliv.; cvi. 6.) The individual who here
expresses the gratitude of a whole nation for their deliverance,
regarding it as an answer to his prayers, cannot be any other than
king Hezekiah, who lay in fervent prayer before the Lord when the
Assyrians were besieging Jerusalem, (2 Kings xix. 15,) to whom
the Lord sent Isaiah, saying, "Thus saith the Lord God of Israel,
That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of
Assyria I have heard." (2 Kings xix. 20; cf. Ps. xlvi. 48.) It
appears from Isaiah xxxviii. 9, that Hezekiah used to compose
psalms. The fundamental sentiment of the Psalmist is joy — and
joy so great that he invites all the earth to share it with him,
(v. 1 — 4.) From the wonderful works of God in the present, he
reverts to the imperishable deeds of God in the past, and thence
infers that the entire history of the world is under his almighty
power, (v. 5 — 7.) He approaches the object of his joy, and praises
the mighty deliverance, (v. 8 — 12.) But he forgets not his own
PSALM LXVI. 275
gratitude, and fulfils the vows which he made in the time of need,
(v. 13 — 15.) He shows also the ground of the answer to his
prayers, namely, that God hears the prayers of the upright,
(v. 16—20.)
'T^O the chief Musician, a Song or Psalm.
1 Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands :
2 Sing forth the honour of his name :
Make his praise glorious.
3 Say unto God, How terrible* are thy works !
Through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies
render homage unto thee.
4 All the earth shall worship thee,
And shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name.
Selah.
5 Come and see the works of God :
He is terrible in his doing toward the children of men.
6 He turned the sea into dry land:
They went through the flood on foot :
Thereat do we rejoice in him.
7 He ruleth by his power for ever ;
His eyes behold the nations :
The rebellious dare not exalt themselves. Selah.
8 0 bless our God, ye peoples,
And make the voice of his praise to be heard :
9 Which putteth our souls into life,
And sufi"ereth not our feet to be moved.
10 For thou, 0 God, hast proved us :
Thou hast tried us, as silver is tried.
11 Thou broughtest us into the net ;
Thou laidest affliction upon our loins.
12 Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads ;
We went through fire and through water :
But thou broughtest us out to a place of refreshing.
13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings ;
I will pay thee my vows,
14 Which my lips have uttered,
And my mouth has spoken when I was in trouble.
15 1 will offer unto thee burnt sacrifices of fatlings, with the
incense of rams;
I will offer bullocks with goats. Selah.
* Terrible, t. e. "So marvellous as to excite terror."
276 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
16 Come and hear, all ye tliat fear God,
And I will declare what he hath done for my soul. ^
17 I cried unto him with my mouth.
And praise lay beneath my tongue. '^
18 If I had regarded iniquity in my heart,
The Lord would not have heard me :
19 But verily God hath heard me :
He hath attended to the voice of my prayer..
20 Blessed he God, which hath not turned away my prayer,
Nor his mercy from me.
V.l — 4. The humiliation of proud Sennacherib, whose empire
extended from the interior of Asia to Egypt, before the walls of
Jerusalem, was an event which, as has been shown in the remarks
on Psalm xlvi. and xlviii., spread gladness throughout all the sur-
rounding countries. - The Psalmist could, therefore, not without
good grounds, invite all the earth to sing praise to the name of the
Lord. Hezekiah had supplicated God in the hour of need: "Now,
therefore, 0 Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all the
kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord, even thou
only." (Isaiah xxxvii. 20.) To God alone they ascribe the vic-
tory: it was neither bow, nor spear, nor any other earthly weapon,
but the Lord from heaven who fought. The God who did perform
that miracle is the God of old — the same God who led Israel with
dry feet out of Egypt and across Jordan. Faith regards these
records not as old but as new, and on that account daily experi-
ences them as new. When conquering hosts advance it seems as
if God were not noticing them; but the Psalmist comforts the
congregation by declaring that *' his eyes behold the nations," and
that "he ruleth by his power for ever," that it may be known that
nobody possesses power on earth save he to whom the Lord has
delegated it, and that it is only to be wielded as long as he is will-
ing to give it.
V. 5 — 12. Where has the Lord manifested himself as he has
done before the walls of Zion? The Psalmist invites even the
heatheu nations to join in Israel's songs of praise. He then
describes their tribulation. The Assyrians had partly carried
their fenced cities, imposed a heavy tax on the nation, and com-
pelled Hezekiah to empty the temple-treasury. (2 Kings xviii. 15,
16.) But all to no pm-jiose. The hostile army continued in the
land for the space of two years; the fields could not be sowed —
famine oppressed the nation. (Isaiah xxxvii. 30.) They were
obliged to listen to taunting language against the king, the people,
and the God of Israel. (Isaiah xxxvi. 18, 19.) Isaiah upbraided
Sennacherib by telling him that God had long ago resolved upon
that calamity by his determinate counsel : " Hast thou not heard
PSALM LXVI. 277
long ago, how I have done it; and of ancient times, that I have
formed it? Now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest bo
to lay waste defenced cities into ruinous heaps. Therefore their
inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and con-
founded : they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb,
as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be
grown up." (Isaiah xxxvii. 26, 27.) The Psalmist might indeed
say that he and his nation had been translated out of death into
life, their foot had been in the net, and their shoulders burdened;
that they had gone through fire and through water, (Isaiah xliii. 2;
Ezek. XV. 6, 7;) and that men, who knew not that human
power is derived from God, had haughtily ridden over their heads.
(Isaiah Ivii. 23; Lam. v. 5.) The bard declares also that they
had been cast into the crucible and tried as silver. With this
accords the prediction of Isaiah, "Turn ye unto him from whom
the children of Israel have deeply revolted. For in that day every
man shall cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold, which
your own hands have made unto you for a sin." (Isaiah xxxi. 6, 7.)
But " the Lord, who killeth and maketh alive, who bringeth down
to the grave and bringeth up/' (1 Sam. ii. G,) did also bring them
up out of that grave.
V. 13 — 15. We read in 2 Kings xix. 15, that Hezekiah in
his need went not to man, but prayed before the Lord, saying,
"0 Lord God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubim, thou
art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth :
thou hast made heaven and earth. Lord, bow down thine ear and
hear: open, Lord, thine eyes and see: and hear the words of Sen-
nacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God. Of a
truth. Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and
their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire : for they were no
gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone : therefore they
have destroyed them. Now therefore, 0 Lord our God, I beseech
thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the
earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only."
Though there are found but few whose thanksgivings equal the
warmth of their petitions, Hezekiah at least determines not to con-
tinue in the debt of God, and to ofi"er his choicest possessions upon
the altar of the Lord.
V. 16 — 20. Can he be silent who has made experience like this?
No, the experience of every individual pious man is the common
possession of all. The mouth of Hezekiah was uttering prayer,
when through his trust songs of praise were under his tongue. He
is aware that prayer must be the expression of an honest heart. In
supplicating the throne of God the eye must not throw side-glances
at earthly supports. Such prayers the Lord will hear and grant.
24
278 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM LXVII.
The hope of the conversion of the world forms the theme of this
psalm.
1 npO the chief Musician on the harp, A Psalm or Song.
2 God be merciful unto us and bless us ;
And cause his face to shine upon us. Selah.
3 That thy way may be known upon earth,
Thy salvation among all the heathen.
4 Let the people praise thee, 0 God;
Let all the people praise thee.
5 0 let the nations be glad and sing for joy:
Because thou judgest the people righteously,
And leadest the nations upon earth. Selah.
6 Let the people praise thee, 0 God;
Let all the people praise thee.
7 The earth yieldeth her increase ;
And God, even our own God, shall bless us.
8 God shall bless us ;
And all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
F. 2, 3. This is the blessing which Aaron, the high priest,
pronounced, in the days of hoary antiquity, upon Israel. (Numb,
vi. 24.) The shining countenance of God on his people is a gracious
one, the lustre of which refreshes the hearts, and pours blessings
on all the ways of the people. The blessings of God on Israel were
manifold: the more spiritual ones used to be spiritually understood:
the Psalmist, therefore, prays for the most spiritual of all blessings,
that the salvation of God might rise in Israel, and its lustre shine
upon all the nations of the earth. He remembered the Divine pro-
mise made to Abraham: "In thy seed shall all the nations of the
earth be blessed:" and in a most disinterested manner prayed for
his people a blessing, which simultaneously involves the salvation
of the world, as the Lord says, " Salvation is of (or from) the Jews,"
The way of the Lord, which is here referred to, is none other than
that of which Isaiah prophesied, saying, "And it shall come to pass
in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be
established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above
the hills: and all nations shall flow into it, and many people shall
go and say, ' Come ye and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways,
PSALM LXVII. 279
and we will walk in his paths : for out of Zion shall go forth the
law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." (Isa. ii. 2, 3;
cf. Ps. ex. 2.)
V. 4. Now they call upon him by many and false names, but
in that day there shall be one Lord and his name one. (Zech.
xiv. 9.) "For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that
they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with
one consent. (Zeph. iii. 9.)
F. 5. Then shall the nations know the Lord, to whom now they
have built altars as to the unknown God! (Acts xvii. 23.) They
have already enjoyed benefits and blessings from the God of Israel :
but they thanked Baalim, Moloch, and Jupiter for them. Amos
asks, "Have I not brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt?
and the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Syrians from Kir?"
(Amos ix. 7,) that his own people might know that the God of
Israel equally determines the destinies of the heathen. The heathen
themselves shall know it, when their days shall have come.
V. 6. The heart of the Psalmist rejoices at the thought, that
the day shall come, when all the prayers and songs of praise which
ascend to heaven shall praise only one name. In the days of David
there were about five million souls in the narrow borders of Israel,
who did lift their hands to the living God. Now hundreds of
millions from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same
call upon his name, though the full completion of the Psalmist's
hope has not yet arrived.
V. 7. Many commentators interpret "the increase of the earth,"
of the fruit of the field; but the Psalmist can only have figurativly
spoken of the fruit of the field in this connection. He intended to
designate by it the multiform spiritual and temporal blessings which
should then appear. Hosea prophecies in the same sense, placing
temporal and spiritual blessings in juxtaposition. "And it shall
come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear
the heavens, and they shall hear the earth ; and the earth shall hear
the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and they shall hear Jezreel
(i. e. the Israel sown by God.) And I will sow her unto me in
the earth, and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained
mercy; and I will say to not my people, Thou art my people; and
they shalt say. Thou art my God." (Hos. ii. 21 — 23.) As the
same prophet says elsewhere: "I will be as the dew unto Israel: he
shall grow as the lily and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His
branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and
his smell as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow shall
return; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine: the
memorial thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon. Ephraim shall
say, What have I to do any more with idols ? I have heard him
and observed him: I am like a green fir tree. From me is thy
fruit found." (Hos. xiv. 6 — 9.)
280 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 8. Yes, the Lord shall be to Israel like a bright refreshing
fountain; but his blessing is the blessing of the world, and there
shall be channels made so that waters may stream forth unto all the
lands of the earth.
PSALM LXVIII.
A SUBLIME psalm to the praise of God. Its ancient origin appears
from the character of its language.* The authorship of David is
confirmed by verse 28, which represents the twelve tribes as still
united : after the division of the kingdom they did no more con-
jointly worship in the temple, and after the captivity of the tribes
the former kingdom could not be mentioned, since individuals only
did return. f The occasion of the psalm may be conceived as a
gained victory, from which the ark was brought home to Zion. (Cf.
Introduction ad. Ps. xlvii.)
The opening verses (v. 2 — 7) celebrate in the words of Moses
the victorious power of Jehovah: verses 8 — 15 praise the mani-
festations of Divine protection and triumphant strength in the early
days of the nation : and (v. 16 — 19) Mount Zion where the Lord
God of Israel, having humbled his enemies, has fixed his abode,
mighty and glorious as once on Sinai. Verses 20 — 24 praise the
future hopes of Israel from such a God. In verses 25 — 28 the
details of the procession arrest the attention of the Psalmist j and
verses 29 — 32 stretch beyond the final victories of all the enemies
of the kingdom of God. Cf. ad. Psalm xlvii. Ixxvi.) The final
strophe (v. 33 — 36) exhorts all the nations of the earth to worship
this God.
1 n^O the chief Musician, A Psalm or Song of David.
2 Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered :
Let them also that hate him flee before him.
3 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away:
As wax melteth before the fire,
jSo let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
* To judge from the antiquity of its language, the concise description,
the thoroughly, fresh, forcible, and occasional artlessly ironical expression
of its poetry, we consider this poem as one of the most ancient monuments
of Hebrew poetry. — Boeitcher.
f Ps. Ix. 9. The mention of the separate tribes is a mark of the anti-
quity of the psalm.
PSALM LXVIII.
2BI
4 But let the righteous be glad ;
Let them rejoice before God:
Yea, let them exceedingly rejoice.
5 Sing unto God, sing praises to his name ;
Extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name
JAH.*
And rejoice before him.
6 A father of the fatherless, and a judge of the widows,
Is God in his holy habitation.
7 God setteth the exiled into their homes,
He bringeth out the captives,
But causeth the rebellious to dwell in the desert.
8 0 God, when thou wentest forth before thy people.
When thou didst march through the wilderness; Selah:
9 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the pre-
sence of God. r^ J c
That Sinai shook at the presence of God, the God of
Israel.
10 Thou, 0 God, didst shake out a gracious rain.
Whereby thou didst refresh thine inheritance, when it
was weary.
11 Thy congregation dwelt therein :
Thou, 0 God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the
poor.
12 The Lord gave the word (word of victory?)
Great was the company of those that published it, (or,
messengers of victory to the great army.")
13 Kings of armies did flee apace :
And she that tarried at home divided the spoil.
14 When ye shall lie (again) among your borders (border
stones,)
Ye shall be as the wings of a dove covered with silver,
And her feathers with yellow gold.
15 When the Almighty scattered kings in it,
It was white as snow in Salmon.
16 Ye mountains of God, ye mountains of Bashan,
Ye high mountains, ye mountains of Bashan,
17 Why, 0 ye high mountains, why do ye blink
At the hill tvhich God desireth to dwell in ?
Yea, the Lord will dwell in it for ever.
* Or, " Make way for him, who rideth through the plain, Jehovah is his
name, rejoice before him."
24*
282 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
18 The cliariots of God are many thousands and thousands
of angels :
The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the )io\y place.
19 Thou hast ascended on high,
Thou hast led captivity captive :
Thou hast received gifts from men ;*
Yea, the rebellious also shall dwell with the Lord God.
20 Blessed he the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits,
Even the God of our salvation. Selah.f
21 He that is our God is the God of salvation ;
And unto God the Lord helo7ig the issues from death. J
22 But God shall wound the head of his enemies,
And the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in
his trespasses.
23 The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan,
I will bring them again from the depths of the sea :
24 That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine ene-
mies,
And the tongue of thy dogs in the same.
25 They have seen thy goings, 0 God ;
Even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.
26 The singers went before, the players on instruments
folloived after;
Among them loere the damsels playing with timbrels.
27 " Bless ye God in the congregations.
Even the Lord, from the fountain of Israel."
28 There is little Benjamin with their ruler,
The princes of Judah and their council.
The princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.
29 Thy God hath commanded thy strength:
Strengthen, 0 God, that which thou hast wrought for us.
30 Because of thy temple at Jerusalem
Shall kings bring presents unto thee.
31 Rebuke the beast of the reed.
The multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the people, §
* Or, " In men," i. e. men themselves as gifts.
•j- Or, " The God who bears for us, is our help."
J Luther renders, "And the Lord God, who delivereth irom death."
But E. V. is more correct. Cf Ps. xlviii. 15.
I The beast of the reeds is the lion, concealed in the reeds of Jordan,
(Jer. xlix. 19; 1. 44; Zech. xi. 3.) Lions and bulls denote strong nations,
the calves the lesser tribes.
PSALM LXVIir. 283
Till every one submit himself with pieces of silver ;*
Scatter thou the people that delight in war.
32 Princes shall come out of Egypt ;
Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.
33 Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth;
0 sing praises unto the Lord; Selah :
34 To him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens from
everlasting :
Lo, he doth send out his voice, and that a mighty voice. f
35 Ascribe ye strength unto God:
His excellency is over Israel,
And his strength is in the clouds.
36 0 God, thou art terrible out of thy holy places :
The God of Israel is he that giveth strength and power
unto his people.
Blessed he God.
V. 2 — 7. The invocation, which the priests used to sing
(Numb. X. 35,) in the days of Moses when the ark set forward,
had become verified in this instance. It is indeed a theme which in
ever new variations is being repeated at different epochs in the his-
tory of the kingdom of God, until the final judgment shall absorb
and complete all the preceding judgments of God. Verse 5 alludes
to the eastern custom of levelling the roads before monarchs on
their journeys, (Isaiah xl. 3, 4.) The ark of the Lord in the pro-
cession must not be lost sight of.
V. 8 — 15. Proofs of Divine government are adduced from the
history of Israel. The power and guardian care of God had
become evident in the miracles, (Exod. xix. 18; Lev. iv. 11;
Psalm cxiv. 6.) on that^ Sinai, in the blessings which revived the
fainting people during their forty years' leadings in the wilderness,
and finally in the victories by which the holy land became the pro-
perty of the people of God. The Psalmist remembers Deborah's
(Judges V. 4, 5,) song in verses 8, 9. Having in verse 11 referred
to the possession of Canaan as a proof of Divine mercy, he remem-
bers, as in Psalm Ixxviii. 60, etc., the attacks and humiliations
which the nation bad to encounter in the days of the Judges, and
still lingering on the song of Deborah, speaks of female messengers
of victory — for it was customary for women to sing songs of victory,
(Exodus XV. 20; 1 Sam. xviii. 6.) To this is added the joyful
* Cf. respecting this construction Gesen. Thes. S. V. q^»^ against Mau-
rer's objections.
•}• Or, "Lo ! he shall send out his thunder, the thunder of might."
j The use of ^\ is peculiar to this passage, and Psalm Ixxviii. 54;
civ. 25: it indicates a well-known subject.
284 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
employment of the women, to divide the spoil for which the war-
riors had fought. After wearisome battles the people shall once
more abide within their borders, glittering in their conquered gold
and silver. The Psalmist next refers to Gideon's victory over the
Midianites, the theatre of which lay in the mountains of Ephraim
and the surrounding regions. That victory is celebrated in Psalm
Ixxxiii. The mountain of Salmon is in that district not far from
Schechem, which was covered with slain as with flakes of snow.*
F. 16 — 19. The bard descends from the past to the present.
The insignificant mount Zion has attained to*an honour distin-
guishing it above all other mountains, (Isa. ii. 2.) The God of
Israel fights with spiritual hosts, (2 Kings vi. 15, 16; Ps. ciii. 20:
Judges V. 20;) as he appeared on Sinai in days of yore, so he stilf
ruleth by his might: he has just ascended to Zion, having taken
captive his enemies, and received gifts and worship from men:
even the rebellious shall submit to him. The apostle Paul applies
in Eph. iv. 8 — 10, this passage to Christ, who ascended to heaven,
conquered his opponents, and gave gifts unto men. This is a simi-
lar adaptation of the Old Testament as that in Rom. x. 6, 7. The
apostle's meaning is, that the God of the Old Testament is also the
God of the New Testament : as there the victorious God of Israel
ascended on high, so here Christ carrying his own with him as
conquered. Paul had just said, "But unto every one of us is given
grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ," and connect-
ing with it the citation says, ''and gave gifts unto men."
V. 20 — 24. Trust for the future is based on the victory of the
present; the Lord will deliver his people from the deepest gulfs —
though the foes of Israel lie concealed on the woody heights of
Bashan or the depths of the sea, (Cf. Amos ix. 3,) they shall not
escape from the hand of the Lord.
V. 25 — 28. The Psalmist delights in the lovely spectacle of
the solemn procession. The choruses of male singers come first,
the players on instruments next — men with stringed instruments,
the damsels with the tambourines, which in the East to the
present day are carried by females. The contents of their songs of
praise are stated in brief: they are exhortations to the nation, which
since the days of the fathers, i. e. the patriarchs, is Jehovah's pos-
session, to make the praise of the Lord their peculiar and continu-
ous occupation. The tribe of David, with the heads of the two
northern tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, are mentioned in lieu of
the rest.
V. 29 — 32. The Lord has taken his abode on Zion and estab-
lished his kingdom. The divinely inspired Psalmist beholds its
infinitely glorious destiny, to incorporate in itself all the nations of
* The snow might probably allude to their numerous silver jewellery.
The spoil of jewellery oi gold is mentioned in Judges viii.
PSALM LXIX. 285
the earth. We may gather from this passage that the declarations
of the prophets concerning war and victories on earth, of gold and
silver that shall be brought to Jerusalem, (Psalm Ixxii. 10; Isaiah
Ix. 6, 7,) have fundamentally a spiritual meaning, for we have also
in this place an immediate reference to the worship of the only true
God, in which the mighty Egypt and the distant Ethiopia shall
engage. (Psalm xlvii, 67; Zeph. iii. 10.)
V. 33 — 35. The Psalmist, as if anxious to demonstrate the
necessity of the future worship of the Lord by all the nations of the
earth, speaks of his primeval power in heaven, the expression of
which mortals hear in the voice of thunder, basing thereon a call
upon all the kingdoms of the earth to pay homage to the eternally
Almighty Lord. That homage, however glorious, is connected
with the acknowledgment of the dignity and destiny of Israel — for
Israel is the theatre of his revelation — the people from whom the
salvation of God shall flow to the rest of the nations.
PSALM LXIX.
A PLAINTIVE psalm, which must belong to the period when
David was still at the court of Saul, for he complains of his dail^
acquaintances (v. 13. 21, 22;) his piet^ is the cause of his
reproach (v. 8. 10;) he complains of reproach and derision, not of
persecutions unto death. He refers not to the king himself, but
to those who persecuted and calumniated him from envy, flattery,
and impiousness. (Cf. 1 Sam. xxiv. 10; xxvi. 19; and ad.
Ps. vii.) We find in the history of David (1 Sam. xxvi. 19)
an invocation of Divine justice against the obdurate in heart, and
an imprecation on the delusion of the same parties, of whom he
indignantly expresses himself in verse 23, etc.
The figurative allusion to captives in verse 34, renders it proba-
ble that this psalm was like many others sung both during the
Babylonish captivity, and at the later temple-services with the
addition of verses 35—37. (Cf. ad. Ps. xiv. 7; xxv. 22; li. 20, 21.)
The Psalmist begins his song in a profound sense of need, after
he had for a long time sent his prayers in vain to heaven (v. 2 — 4.)
Conscious of his innocence he has to endure bitter calumny — men
hate in him the cause of God (v. 5 — 10.) The very grief of his
sufierings is the object of derision (v. 11 — 13.) He seeks for
strength in prayer — in prayer to Him who is the secret witness of
his reproach and struggles (v. 14 — 20.) His heart is broken, he is
reduced to the bed of languishing, but instead of the food of sym-
pathy they bring him gall and vinegar (v. 21 — 22.) His indigna-
286 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
tion arises at obduracy so profound : remembering the word of the
Lord, "Vengeance is mine, I will recompense/' (Deut. xxxii. 35,)
he is resolved, however, quietly to endure and persevere (v. 30,)
but invokes his vengeance of him who has declared that it
belongs unto him, (v. 20 — 29.) His song has made him more
calm, he looks forward to the time when to the great delight of the
pious he will not only offer visible sacrifices, but those which
above all are well-pleasing to the Lord, (Psalm 1. 23;) songs of
praise which flow from a grateful heart, (v. 30 — 34.)
1 ^0 the chief Musician, to the tune " the lilies," A Psalm
JL of David.
2 Save me, 0 God ;
For the waters are come in unto my soul.
3 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing:
I am come into deep waters, and the floods will sweep
me off.
4 I am weary of my crying : my throat is dried :
Mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.
5 They that hate me without a cause
Are more than the hairs of mine head :
They that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrong-
fully, are mighty :
I shall restore that which I took not away :
6 0 God, THOU knowest my foolishness ;
And my sins are not hid from thee.
7 Let not them that wait on thee, 0 Lord GoD of hosts,
Be ashamed for my sake ;
Let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake,
O God of Israel.
8 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach ;
Shame hath covered my face.
9 I am become a stranger unto my brethren,
And an alien unto my mother's children.
10 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up ;
And the reproaches of them that reproached thee are
fallen upon me.
11 When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting,
That was to my reproach.
12 I made sackcloth also my garment;
And I became a proverb to them.
13 They that sit in the gate speak against me;
And I was the song of the drunkards.
PSALM LXIX. 287
14 But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, 0 Lord, in an
acceptable time;
0 God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the
truth of thy salvation.
15 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink :
Let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of
the deep waters.
16 Let not the waterflood sweep me oflf.
Nor let the deep swallow me up, •
And let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.
17 Hear me, 0 Lord ; for thy lovingkindness is good :
Turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender
mercies.
18 And hide not thy face from thy servant ;
For I am in trouble ; hear me speedily.
19 Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it:
Deliver me because of mine enemies.
20 Thou knowest my reproach, and my shame, and my dis-
honour :
Mine adversaries are all before thee.
21 Reproach hath broken my heart ;
And I am full of heaviness :
And I look for some to take pity, but there is none;
And for comforters, but I find none.
22 They give me also gall for my meat ;
And in my thirst they give me vinegar to drink.
23 Let their table become a snare before them :
And when they think themselves in peace, let it become
a trap.
24 Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not :
And make their loins continually to shake.
25 Pour out thine indignation upon them,
And let thy wrathful anger take hold of them.
26 Let their habitation be desolate ;
And let none dwell in their tents.
27 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten ;
And they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast
wounded.
28 Add punishment unto their iniquity:*
And let them not come into thy righteousness.
29 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living.
And not be written with the righteous.
* Or reader with Luther, "Let them fall from one siu into another."
288 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
30 But I am poor and sorrowful :
Let thy salvation, 0 God, set me up on high.
31 I will praise the name of God with a song,
And will magnify him with thanksgiving.
32 This also shall please the Lord better than an ox
Or bullock that hath horns and hoofs.
33 The humble shall see this, and be glad :
And your heart shall live that seek God.
34 For the Lord heareth the poor.
And despiseth not his prisoners.
Chorus.
35 Let the heaven and earth praise him,
The seas, and everything that moveth therein.
36 For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah,
That they may dwell there, and have it in possession.
37 The seed also of his servants shall inherit it :
And they that love his name shall dwell therein.
V. 2, 3. As Joseph was cast into the pit by his brothers, (Gen.
xxxvii. 24,) as Jeremiah was thrown into the dungeon of mire,*
(Jer. xxxviii. 6,) so David regards himself as cast into a pit, in
the miry depth of which he is unable to find a standing, while the
floods threaten to sweep him away. We hear him as an old man,
looking back to those days from the royal throne, praise the Lord :
"He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of great waters."
(Ps. xviii. 17.)
V. 4. His piteous complaints begin not with the first stroke of
the chastising rod, as effeminate minds are wont to do; but the
hero of the battle-field, who had slain his ten thousands, is equally
a hero in endurance. Weeks and months had passed over his use-
less sorrow, his throat had got dried with crying, his eyes weak
with looking in vain for the arm of the Lord. A change seemed to
have come over the heart of Saul, but the voice of calumny rose
anew, and an evil spirit seized the king. The blows of the rod
became the blows of the club, among which he did not least feel
that the door of access to the Lord was shut, that he had to wait in
vain. He seeks comfort in God for his ineffectual waiting on God.
V. 5. By far the greater number of the courtiers and servants
of Saul belonged to his own tribe — the tribe of Benjamin. (1 Sam.
xxii. 7.) They shared in all probability the sentiments of Cusli
* They are cisterns for the collection of rain-water, with so narrow an
opening above that a stone is sufficient to shut them : the reason is to keep
out the drifted sand. They gradually widen below, and if not full of water
are full of mire.
PSALM LXIX. 289
the Benjaminite, of whose envenomed speech complaint is made in
Psalm vii. The king went at a later period, accompanied by three
thousand young men, in pursuit of the fugitive. (1 Sam. xxiv. 3.)
As was the king, so were his servants. Innocent in heart, David
was perfectly at a loss to understand why the anger of the king did
not subside. He sought for reconciliation after the bitterest per-
secution, asking from the innocence of his heart, "What have I
done? what is mine iniquity?" (I Sam. xx. 1.) His expression,
"I shall restore that which I took not away," is a proverbial form
of speech descriptive of all kinds of unfounded accusation. David,
complaining of being innocently persecuted, was far from desiring
to suffer as guilty. Socrates, on his wife visiting him in prison and
grieving at his suffering without a cause, asked her whether she
would rather see him suffer as guilty. So David's Qomplaint simply
purports to remind Grod of his eternal justice, the administration
of which he has of his own accord pledged to man.
y. 6. It is one of the wiles of Satan that man, when persecuted
with innocent reproaches, gets more prone to delude himself as to
his real guilt. Not so David. He ignores righteousness before the
Lord, though he may courageously show his face to man. He may
therefore confidently expect that He who had so often called him-
self the judge of the widow and the orphan, will not suffer his
righteous cause to perish.
Y. 7. The sufferings of a servant of God are never confined to
him as an individual. Whenever the Lord succours his people in
general, when and wheresoever it may be, it affects every individual,
and is to every one of them a seal of mercy — while on the other
hand the cause of the individual is equally the cause of all the rest;
The Church is one body — you cannot touch a toe without affecting
the whole body. "Whether one member suffer, all the members
suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice
with it." (1 Cor. xii. 26.) Happy is that servant of the Lord who
suffers not as an individual, but as a mevihcr, for the whole body
suffers with him, strengthening his cause in the Lord.
V. 8 — 10. David adduces the evidence that it was not his own
cause only that was at stake, for he was zealous not only for his
cause, but for that of his God. The sacred earnestness to which
he gave expression as a king in words like these, "A froward heart
shall depart from me : I will not know a wicked person," (Ps. ci. 4,)
dated not from his accession to the throne, but accompanied him
from his father Jesse's flock to the court of Saul. He became on
that account an object of derision to men like Doeg and Cush, and
not only to them but to his nearest kinsmen. (Cf. Ps. xxxviii. 12,
13.) David already had to realize the words of our Saviour, that
"a man's foes shall be they of his own household because of the
truth." He refers not to his natural brothers, for his friends did
25
290 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
not accompany liim to the residence,* but lie means his friends by
marriage at the court of Saul, Jonathan excepted. They are called
brothers. (2 Sam. i. 26; Gen. xiv. 14; xxiv. 27.) The "house of
God" designates not only the tabernacle, but the congregation that
used to assemble there, that generation of the children of God of
which he speaks Psalm Ixxiii. 15. (Cf. Ps. xv. 1; xxiii. 6; xxvii.
4; Hi. 10.) "VVe have already noticed the fulness of meaning and
abundance of riches which to David lay concealed in the term,
''The house of God." "The children of men get drunk with the
riches of thine house." (Psalm xxxvi. 9.) One thing have I
desired of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the
house of the Lord all the days of my life." (Psalm xxvii. 4.) But
however much his soul was kindled with love for the house of his
God, his zeal w^is that of a servant, while Christ's zeal was that of
the son of the house; hence the disciples of our Saviour, on behold-
ing his zeal for the temple, remembered that then this passage
met its true fulfilment. (John ii. 17.) David feels himself strong
and thoroughly armed in being able to identify his cause with that
of the Lord. But on the other hand, how great are the sufferings
of that man in this earth of sin and wickedness, who feels every
reproach which touches God, as touching himself!
V. 11 — 13. They who see that the honour of God is insulted
when their own is, weep away their life gi-ieving and mourning.
But does it stand to reason, that those who have no tears for their
own sins should appreciate the tears shed because of the sins of
others? Yes, the very persons that occasion those tears mock at
them. They sit at the gates where idlers assemble, (Ruth iv. 1 ;
Prov. xxxi. ol,) and the inns where drunkards meet, (Job xxx. 9,)
gossiping and singing away the conscientious scruples which the
sight of a man, who weeps over the sins of the race, might possibly
have aroused.
V. 14. While tJiei/ prate and sing, the pious bard reverts to
prayer. Human resources are exhausted — he confines himself to
God alone. He must wait, but he hopes earlier or later to catch
the moment when Divine goodness, though at present hid behind
the cloud, shall send forth her glorious beams. He might in prayer
have consoled himself with the crown promised to the believing
sufferer, but though all his sufferings were endured in the cause of
the Lord, in hoping for an answer he neither takes his stand on his
sufferings nor on his works, but prays, " In the ynultitude of thy
mercy hear me."
F. 15, 16. His feet threaten to sink in the mire; the tumult
* It may also be inferred that they remained at Bethlehem, from the
fact that when David on his flight got to the cave Adullam, we are told that
Lis brothers came to see him. That cave was only a few miles distaat from
Bethlehem, not far from Thekoa. (1 Sam. xxii. 1.)
PSALM LXIX. 291
of Ills enemies comes rolling like a miglity flood of waters. He
deprecates the extremity of woe. Those cisterns have a narrow
mouth, which if shut, bring painful and bitter death to the unhappy
prisoner who is confined in them. So David prays that the one
vista of the bright heavens above might not be stopped, that the pit
might not shut its mouth over him.
V. 17 — 19. His prayer gains in intensity: his consolation flows
from the unchangeable attributes of God, which are now as they
were then, the fount of comfort to the pious, of which, however,
we Christians only have received the true pledge. His hope is not
based on his works, nor his sufferings, but on the mercy and lov-
ingkindness of the Lord. Let him in his great trouble only behold
the face of the Lord, and he is happy to know that He is nigh, and
he is comforted.
V. 20. His anxiety only makes him say that his God does not
see him. David knows that when the eye of man is averted from
the humbled, and has no delight in him, then the eye of God
fixedly rests upon him, and that there is on earth no spectacle more
glorious to the Lord, than that which exhibits the perseverance of
his saints under the cross. When the pious cannot see the Divine
countenance radiant with mercy, their distress and anxiety makes
them say that God has veiled his countenance and retired from
earth into heaven. "Thou knowest my reproach, my shame, and
my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee." Thus he
exclaims. It is one of our most potent consolations that the earthly
struggles of the pious are as it were performed on a stage, while
the Eternal with his angels and the host of perfected saints are the
spectators.
V. 21, 22. As elsewhere in the case of David, (cf. ad. Ps. vi.)
so here spiritual conflict had aft'ected his physical frame. The
reproach which had broken his heart, also crushed his body. The
ungodly cannot sympathize with the spiritual sufferings of the ser-
vants of God, because they are not familiar with them, but they
are able to perceive and sympathize with bodily sufferings. The
humiliated man hoped to find in them this kind of sympathy. But
they give him gall for meat and bitter for drink. This is a figura-
tive, not a literal expression. (Cf. Jer. ix. 14; xxiii. 15.) The
experience of David as an imperfect saint, in an imperfect and
figurative sense, became literally fulfilled in Christ, the perfectly
holy one. (Matt, xxvii. 34.)
V. 23 — 27. Patient endurance in the heat of tribulation, and
the forgiveness of our neighbour's off"ences, are our duties, while it
is the office of God. to distribute justice among the obdurate. The
deeply humiliated man had abandoned all hope that the hard hearts
of his adversaries would ever relent. He therefore invokes the
Divine justice to cause the mischief which they had prepared for
others to fall upon their own head. They were singing at the
292 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
carousing table while the servant of God fasted and wept : so shall
the tahle of their delight, where they were sure of peace, become
their suare. They had abused their eyes to make them run through
the land for the destruction of the saints of God: so their eyes
shall be darkened. They had abused their strength to strike down
the godly : so they shall tremble for fear, that their loins shake.
(Nahum ii. 10; Isa. xxi. 3.) They had felt themselves secure in
their palaces, (Ps. xlix. 12 :) so their houses shall become desolate.
For the hand of God had smitten the pious; but they delighted in
it^ and boasted as their doings what God had brought about.
V. 28, 29. It is the curse of sin to beget new sin : so the
poisonous root in them shall display all its fibres, but the justifica-
tion of God remain to the honest in heart, unto whom it is pro-
mised. Sin is remitted only where it is acknowledged, but where
it is denied it will be punished. Those who carry death in their
heart, so that the mouldering odour issues from their mouths, shall
find no place in the book of the living !
V. 80 — 34. When God shall arise, who has said that he
"resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble;" and "for
the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will
I arise," (Ps. xii. 6,) and verify his word this time : then will the
sufierer bring his offerings — not such as others bring — not the gifts
which are offered with hands, but those which are offered with the
heart, a song of praise and thanksgiving out of a full heart. Then
shall not only his own cause be triumphant, but there shall be a
universal triumph of the congregation of the children of God.
Men are most prone to favour the mighty and the rich. God
adopts a divine method; and he whose throne is in the heaven of
heavens chiefly delights in those who are poor and of a contrite
spirit, and tremble at his word. (Isa. Ixvi. 2; Ps. cxlvii. 10, 11.)
The term "prisoner" should be interpreted of every kind of afflic-
tion. (Lam. iii. 34; cf. Ps. Ixviii. 7, and ad. Ps. xiv. 7; Ixxix. 11.)
V. 35 — 37. When Israel was in the furnace of tribulation,
they applied to their hearts this prayer of David. They were then
poor and imprisoned; they prayed in the words of David, and like
David were heard. Hence this addition to the prayer of David
which was probably sung by a chorus. *
PSALM LXX.
This is a portion of Psalm xl. (v. 14 — 18,) which probably used
to be prayed by itself in the time of the Babylonish captivity.
\
PSALM LXXI. 293
PSALM LXXI.
A DIGNITARY (v. 21) ricli in eventful experience (v. 7) supplicates
in old age, (v. 0. 17,) and after a season in which the whole nation
bad experienced many and great troubles, (v. 20,) the Lord to pro-
tect him by his mighty hand, since impious enemies aim even at his
life, (v. 10, 11.) The mild and amiable language of an old man,
who is resigned to and happy in Grod, pervades this psalm. After
a short sigh (v. 1 — 3) he recollects as motives for confidence, his
many wonderful deliverances and experiences from his earliest
childhood, (v. 4 — 8,) his helpless old age, (v. 9,) and the wicked
arrogance of his enemies, (v. 10, 11.) He will not abandon hope,
but trust continually, hoping to be preserved to be enabled to pub-
lish to his children and grandchildren the strength and power of
the Lord, (v. 14 — 19.) He has shared the humiliation of his
nation, but trusts to share their elevation, and to see the return of
former days of greatness, (v. 20, 21.) He abandons himself to the
confident expectation to still glorify his Lord in songs and with the
psaltery, (v. 22—24.)
1 TN thee, 0 Lord, do I put my trust:
JL Let me never be put to confusion.
2 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape :
Incline thine ear unto me, and save me.
3 Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may con-
tinually resort:
Thou hast promised to save me ;
For thou art my rock and my fortress.
4 Deliver me, 0 my God, out of the hand of the wicked,
Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
5 For thou art my hope, 0 Lord God :
Thou art my trust from my youth.
6 By thee have I been holden up from the womb :
Thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels:"
My praise shall be continually of thee»
7 I am as a wonder unto many ;
For thou art my strong refuge.
8 Let my mouth be filled with thy praise,
And tvith thy honour all the day.
9 Cast me not off in the time of old age ;
Forsake me not when my strength faileth.
* Or, "Thou art my benefactor from my mother's womb."
25*
294 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
10 For mine enemies speak against me ;
And they that lay wait for my soul take counsel together,
11 Saying, "God hath forsaken him:
.Persecute and take him ; for there is none to deliver him."
12 0 God, be not far from me:
0 my God, make haste for my help.
13 Let them be confounded a7id consumed
That are adversaries to my soul ;
Let them be covered with reproach and dishonour
That seek my hurt.
14 But I will hope continually,
And will yet praise thee more and more.
15 My mouth shall show forth thy righteousness
And thy salvation all the day ;
For I know not the numbers thereof.
16 I will go in the strength of the Lord God ;*
1 will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only.
17 0 God, thou hast taught me from my youth :
And hitherto have declared thy wondrous works.
18 Now also when I am old and greyheaded,
0 God, forsake me not;
Until I have showed thy strength unto this generation,
And thy power to every one that is to come.
19 Thy righteousness also, 0 God, is very high.
Who hast done great things : 0 God, who is like unto thee !
20 Thou, which hast showed us great and sore troubles,
Shalt quicken us again.
And shalt bring us up again from the depths of the earth.
21 Thou shalt increase my greatness.
And comfort me on every side.
22 I Avill also praise thee with the psaltery,
^ven thy faithfulness, 0 my God:
Unto thee will I sing with the harp,
0 thou Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee;
And my soul which thou hast redeemed.
24 My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the
day long :
For they are confounded, for they are brought unto
shame, that seek my hurt.
* Or, "I come before the Lord -with the praise of his power."
PSALM LXXI. 295
V. 1 — 3. The old man, cast down by the visitations of Divine
providence, appears before his God. He is supported by the pro-
mise of the Lord, that those who trust in him shall never be put to
confusion, and his faith, confirmed by the experience of his whole
life, that the Lord is indeed a rock and a fortress.
. V. 4 — 8. He has a solid foundation — the experience of a long
life. He has clung to faith and hope throughout the entire period
of his existence — even from his youth, where lightsomeness presents
so powerful an obstacle to their exertion. His experience is of an
extraordinary kind— he is as a wonder unto many, and the excellence
of his experience arises from having sought in the Lord his only
refuge. He did not like most men recognize the hand of God only
when in an extraordinary manner it became manifest in life ; but his
eye of faith regards the ordinary works of God as miracles. The
translation from his mother's womb to the light of day is to him au
object of praise. (Ps. xxii. 10, 11.) And really is not the preserva-
tion of the embryo in its narrow confines a miracle ? is it not a pledge
simultaneous with man's growing into being, of our after experience
in life, that we have a God "who bringeth us out of death to light?''
(Psalm Ixviii. 21.) Is not the reason of our finding so little to praise
to be sought in our having no eyes for his daily miracles? The
Psalmist has eyes for the daily miracles of the Lord — and therefore
his mouth is daily full of the praise of the Lord.
V. 9 — 13. If God did help in the time of our youth and man-
hood, when our own strength aided us to overcome many difficulties,
how much more will Jiis strength deliver us when ours is gone.
Especially when the wicked challenge his mighty arm. For God
will never suffer it to be said that he forsakes those who all their
life long have not forsaken him.
V. 14, 15. But whatever may happen, the Psalmist will not
cease to persevere even in the night of tribulation. Though unable
to proclaim the salvation of God as the result of actual present expe-
rience, he does it by faith and hope. He is sure that the con-
tinuous flow of his most ardent praise is always greatly sm-passed
by his salvation.
F. 16. Weak in himself, his faith assures him of strength
through the strength of the Lord God. And as those who wait
upon the Lord shall renew their strength and mount up with wings
as eagles, so the old man is seen walking in that strength which
comes from above. The praise which youth bestows on earthly
goods, because still unacquainted with their insufficiency, lies far
behind him. The praise which manhood in the proud conscious-
ness of its own strength bestows on the strength of man, he has
seen turned to shame. Of all things which men are wont to praise
in old age, one only is left as praiseworthy — the righteousness and
296 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
goodness of the Lord.^ This is the proper employment of old age
— the supports of earth must diminish in our estimate in the measure
as we recede from them.
r. 17 — 19. He regards it as the chief concern of his life to
proclaim the wondrous works of Grod : if spared any longer on earth,
that shall be the end of his life. Are there better preachers of the
works of Grod to be found than hoary parents in the circle of their
children, or grandparents in that of their grandchildren?
F. 20, 21. The public sufferings of the nation seem to have
brought low into the dust his greatness; but he hopes to share the
elevation of his people.
V. 22 — 24. We think it a lovely sight to see an old man spend
his days in singing the praise of God with trembling lips to the
notes of the harp. And there is no more beauteous sight to God —
and the notes of that harp sound up to the highest heavens. Faith
did inspire the pious old man with his confidence; his future songs
of praise become therefore the foundation of his hope.
PSALM LXXII.
An easy and lively flowing song, which contains a prayer for the
righteous and merciful protection of a king and the blessing of his
people, for his acknowledgment by the whole world and the eternal
duration of his kingdom. As the psalm refers to the future, it
must either have been composed at an earthly monarch's accession
to the throne or apply to a future king; but the promises here made
are by far too lofty and great to be even in the flight of poetic ima-
gination applicable to a king. A poet speaks, indeed, in Psalm
Ixxxix. 37, 38, of David in terms similar to v. 5 and 17; but while
there eternal duration and government are promised to the posterity
of David, eternal dominion and the homage of the heathen are pro-
mised here to the hing himself. Again, in Psalm Ixxxiv. 26, a
kingdom is promised to David from the Mediterranean Sea to
Euphrates, which he really obtained. The king in this psalm, how-
ever, shall reign from the river to the ends of the earth, (Zech. ix.
10; Micah v. 3,) language perfectly analogous to the expressions
of the prophets respecting Messiah. There is, indeed, a great
probability that Zechariah the prophet had the present prediction
before him. As, moreover, the title ascribes this psalm to Solomon,
* The word "righteousness" always equals in the Psalms "integrity,"
and is therefore equivalent to "faithfulness and lenity." — Cf. ad. Psalm
v. 9.
PSALM LXXII. 297
it cannot apply to any other king than Him whom Solomon acknow-
ledges as his superior, and whom David called "his Lord." (Ps.
ex. 1.)*
The theme of the first half of this heautiful psalm is taken up
and completed in the second. V. 1 — 4 celebrate the righteousness,
V. 5 — 11 the fulness of blessing and glory of the king; v. 12 — 14
repeat the praise of the righteousness and mercy, and v. 15 — 17
of the blessing and glory of his government.
A
PSALM of Solomon.
1 Give the king thy judgments, 0 God,
And thy righteousness unto the king's son.
2 That he may judge the people with righteousness,
And thy poor Avith judgment.
3 Let the mountains bring peace to the people.
And the little hills, by righteousness.
4 He shall judge the poor of the people,
He shall save the children of the needy,
And shall break in pieces the oppressor.
5 They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure,
Throughout all generations.
6 He shall come down like rain upon the mo^Yn grass:
As showers that water the earth.
7 In his days shall the righteous flourish;
And abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. ^
8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea.
And from the river unto the ends of the earth.
9 They that dwell in the wilderness 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.
12 For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth ;
The poor also, and him that hath no helper.
13 He shall spare the poor and needy.
And shall save the souls of the needy.
14 He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence:
And precious shall their blood be in his sight.
* The Ixx. renders the ^ of the title, "Concerning Solomon," but they
do it in violation of the renderings of all the other titles. This psalm is
referred to Messiah by Rosenmüller, Hengstenbei'g, Umbreit, Köster.
298 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
15 And tliey shall live, and to him shall be given of the
gold of Sheba :
Prayer also shall be made for him continually ;
And daily shall he be praised.
16 There shall be an abundance of corn in the earth up to
the top of the mountains :
The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon :
And tJuT/ of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17 His name shall endure for ever :
His name shall be continued as long as the sun :
And 7nen shall be blessed in him :
All nations shall call him blessed.
18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
Who only doeth wondrous things.
19 And blessed he his glorious name for ever:
And let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen,
and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
V. 1 — 4. The glory of the Almighty, whom Israel praises, be-
cause "he executeth judgment and righteousuess iu Jacob,"
(Psalm xcix. 4,) refers to him who is his visible representative on
earth. So Isaiah says of Messiah, that he shall order and estabUsh
his kingdom with judgment and with justice from henceforth even
for ever, (Isa. ix. 7;) and that "with righteousness shall he judge
the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth."
(Isa. xi. 4.) As the Eternal sways the sceptre of righteousness
for the best of his oppressed followers on earth, so he has instituted
his Anointed One to conquer the earth for the meek. (Matt. v. 5.)
The people referred to in v. 2 — 11 are none other than the true
people and Israel of God, (see ad. Psalm xiv. 4; Ixxiii. 1;) the
peace and salvation of that people shall spring up in so rich a pro-
fusion, that they shall reach from the valleys to the high moun-
tains, and be seen from every quarter.
F. 5 — 8. The Psalmist now addresses in lively measures the
king himself, announcing to him the endless duration of his govern-
ment. Christian knowledge and indeed the sublime anticipations
of the prophets (Isa. Ix. 19, 20) regard the present form of the
earth and the skies with their starry hosts as transient, but the
Psalmist expresses the common view, which apprehends the glori-
ous stars as of gi'eater duration than the earth. (Psalm Ixxxix. 37.)
As mild rain upon the mown grass, so shall the earth prosper and
flourish, when he shall open the flood-gates of his blessing — even
that earth which shall bo inhabited by none but the generation of
the righteous. The extension of Israel had been promised to
PSALM LXXIII. 299
reach from Euphrates to the Mediterranean, (Deut. xi. 24; of.
G-en. XV. 18,) nor did David's kingdom extend any further,
(Psalm Ixxxix. 26 ;) but these borders expand before the prophet's
vision, "He shall have dominion from sea to sea," i. e. to the
Indian main. (Amos viii. 12.) Verse 11 prohibits the narrowing
of these frontiers.
V. 9 — 11. The most uncivilized, the most distant, and most
opulent nations shall pay their homage to Him; the barbarous
inhabitants of the desert, the remote Isles of the west, and the
kings of rich Arabia (Sheba) and Ethiopia (Seba) shall lick the
dust of his feet, i. e. they shall he prostrate in the attitude of
adoring homage, and give an effective expression of their homage
by the multitude of their gifts, as Isaiah has declared it in sublime
measures. (Isa. Ix. 6 — 9; Psalm Ixviii. 30; xcvi. 7, 8; Ixxvi. 12.)
V. 12 — 14. The whole world shall acknowledge that he is a king
of perfect righteousness, a Saviour of the poor and needy. (Cf.
Ps. cxvi. 15, and ad. verse 14.)
F. 15 — 17. The plenitude of the blessings he shall bring, lies
condensed in the term, "They shall live." They shall offer the
choicest gifts. It will be their everlasting and blessed occupation
to praise and pray for him before God. (Rev. v. 8 — 10.) It has
been asked how the poor and needy could offer gifts of the gold of
Arabia to their king. On the one hand verse 10 cannot be under-
stood literally, but refers to the spiritual gifts, in the same way as
Isa. Ix. 17 cannot be literally explained: on the other hand be it
observed that the poor and needy shall be redeemed and enriched
by this king: they belong to the righteous, who according to verse
7, shall flourish, and for whom according to verse 16, the earth
shall unfold her riches. The fulness of temporal and spiritual
blessings in the completed kingdom of God is described in figures
similar to those which we have noticed in Psalm Ixvii. 7. So is
the fulness of the land, for it shall shake there as on the heights of
Lebanon, and the fulness of the cities, in which numerous iuhabi-
tants shall stream like a river. (Mich. ii. 12.) Then shall the
ancient blessing of Abraham (Gen. xxii. 18; xxvi. 4) be fulfilled,
for in this descendant of Abraham shall all the families of the
earth be blessed, and him shall they praise.
F. 18 — 20 contain a praise, which announces the end of the
second book of the Psalms.
PSALM LXXIII.
A PSALM of comfort at the prosperity of the wicked, like Psalms
xxxvii. xxxix. xlix.
The chain of thoughts which are named at the beginning had
300 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
been long before the Psalmist's mind : the sufFerings of the godly,
and the undisturbed prosperity of the wicked who regard neither
heaven nor earth, the temptation to which the godly are exposed,
when God seems to be unfaithful to his promises, (v. 2 — 14.)
Appearances spoke as it were with conquering force, but if the
Psalmist had believed in them, he would virtually have denied that
which he esteemed far more precious and certain than any appear-
ances— he would have become a traitor to the generation of the
children of his God, (v. 15.) He went into the sanctuary of his
soul to seek the solution of the enigma with Him who knows how
to solve any and every enigma of life, (v. 17.) In the light of this
revelation he sees how foolish and ignorant he had been in having
given scope to those doubts. "The shadow image of the pros-
perity of the wicked is gone when they awake. But thou guidest
me here below by thy right hand, and will ultimately receive me to
glory." Thus spake God in the sanctuary of his soul. The Psalm-
ist as if awaking from his deep meditation, (Psalm cxsxix. 18,)
and saving himself from the multitude of his thoughts, (Psalm
xciv. 10,) sets the result of all his struggles at the head of his
song. "Yet God is good to Israel." The storm being overpast,
the calm which ensued in his soul was the brighter. He praises
God with a strength and intensity hardly equalled in any monu-
ment of antiquity, as that good which far excels all others, (v. 25
—28.)*
A
PSALM of Asaph.
1 Yet God is good to Israel,
Even to such as are of a clean heart.
2 But as for me my feet were almost gone;
My steps had well nigh slipped.
3 For I was envious at the foolish,
When 1 saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 For they have no pains till their death :
But their strength is firm.
5 They are not in trouble as other men ;
Neither are they plagued like other men ;
* How beautiful is tliis psalm. A brief maxim, the result of many medi-
tations, begins and ends the poem. He reverts in a quick and unobserved
manner to his position, describes his error, and having set this picture in
the fullest light, changes the song. He is ushered into the council of des-
tinies, and regards himself as a brute in his former judgments. New vows
to God, as yet proportioned to the former figure of doubt, rise to the warmest
sentiment, till another maxim concludes the song, A beautiful psalm of
instruction as to matter and arrangement. — Herder.
PSALM LXXIII. 301
6 Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain :
Violence covereth them as a garment.
7 Their eyes stand out with fatness :
The thoughts of their hearts transgress.
8 They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppres-
sion.
They speak loftily.
9 They set their mouth against the heavens,
And their tongue walketh through the earth.
10 Therefore his people return hither :
And waters of a full cup are wrung out to them.
11 And they say, "How doth God know?
And is their knowledge in the Most High ? ^
12 Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world :
They increase in riches.
13 Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain,
And washed my hands in innocency.
14 For all the day long have I been plagued,
And chastened every morning."
15 If I had said, I will speak like they.
Behold, I should have been a traitor to the generation of
thy children.
16 When I thought to know this,
It zvas too painful for me ;
17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God ;
And took note of their end.
18 Surely thou didst' set them in slippery places;
Thou castedst them down into destruction.
19 How they are brought into desolation, as in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
20 As a dream when 07ie awaketh;
So, 0 Lord, when they awake, thou shalt despise their
image.*
21 Thus my heart was grieved.
And I was pricked in my reins.
22 So foolish loas 1 and ignorant :
I was as a beast before thee.
23 Nevertheless I am continually with thee.
Thou hast holden 7ne by my right hand. j_^
24 Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel,
And afterward receive me to glory.
* Or, "When thou wakest them." "n,
26
802 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
25 Whom have I heaven hut thee F
And there is none upon earth that I desire but thee.
26 My flesh and my heart faileth :
But God is the strength of my heart, and my portion
for ever.
27 For, lo, they that are from thee shall perish :
Thou shalt destroy all them that go a whoring from thee.
28 But it is good for me to draw near to God :
I have put my trust in the Lord GoD,
That I may declare all thy works.
V. 1. We all confess to the indubitable article of faith, that
God governs the world. How different would our perseverance in
affliction be were we indubitably to believe it. But affliction is
generally accompanied by dejection, dejection issues in doubt,
doubt gives rise to mental conflict; the struggle gets intense, but
the multitude of the heavy and gloomy thoughts of the heart must
ultimately yield the bright and sublime result to which Asaph
gives expression, ^'YetGodis good unto Israel!" Is it possible
that a mind so intimately united with God as that which speaks
in verses 25, 26. 28, should ever murmur against him? Let every
man become a liar, that God be true. (Rom. iii. 4.) It should be
noticed that the Old Testament saints distinguished, like Paul,
(Rom. ix. 6; Gal. vi. 16; cf. ad. Psalm cxxv. 5; cxxviii. 6; also
ad. Ps. xxiv. 6; xxv. 22,) between Israel after the flesh and Israel
after the spirit. The Israel of whom the Psalmist speaks are such
as are of a clean heart.
V. 2 — 5. On measuring the prosperity of men by their outward
successes, we shall find that just those who disregard justice and
the laws of God are, if not always, yet very often, in prosperous
circumstances, and the haughty show which they make of their
wealth is the touch-stone on which the faith of the godly is to be
tried. The distributive justice of God was in days of old as it is
now, visible in the history of a nation as a whole, but not always
in the life of individuals. The outward prosperity of the ungodly
ought never to be a stumbling-block to those who, in their commu-
nion with God, have tasted that there is nothing on earth or in
heaven which can exceed the possession of himself. Not even in
those rare instances, when having stifled the scruples of conscience
as well as the appetite of their hearts for something better, the
ungodly deem themselves happy in their own opinion. They are
acquainted only with what they have, not with what they are
deprived of. But he who knows what the^ are deprived of cannot
well envy them. In the measure as we are envious, we lack com-
munion with God in our hearts. For where that exists in power,
who would exchange it for the prosperity of a thousand worlds ?
PSALM LXXIII. S03
V 6—9 Pride and violence are sure to arise when the chil-
dren of the world have become secure in their prosperity, for they
oX know themselves as the masters of their happiness^ Pride
be omcs their ornament, (Prov. i. 9,) and oppression, like a gai-
^entT accompanies them' everywhere. Their taces express volup-
Siousness- the images of their heart "overpass the deeds of the
wTcked '' (Jer v. 27, 28.) Their words are the words of reproach
Their worklthe works of oppression : there is -thmg in W^^^
nothing on earth which they do not consider as «ruZer their con roL
L it likely that they who tr'ace not their own strength back to (xod
should be^afraid of his strength, and that they who are not afraid
of the strength of God should fear right and law on earth ?
V 10-Ü. Temptations of that kind may, however, though
transientlv only, cause the elect of God to hesitate. Though doubt
bSHo roofn the heart, who can prohibit the thoughts which
nass throu^^h the unguarded mind? We hear even a man like
Te reiÄise a doubting complaint to Heaven "^^he hour of temp-
tation '' Righteous art thou, 0 Lord, when I plead with thee . yet let
me reason the case with thee : wherefore doth the way of the wicked
piosperT m^^^^^^ all they happy that de^l^ery treacher-
Ts y ? Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken roo they
^row vea thev bring forth fruit; thou art near in their mouth and
Ir fÄeir^eins^ But thou,' O Lord, knowest -e: thou has
seen me and tried my heart toward thee " (Jer-/ii- l-^;) "
was the experience of isaph that the people of God had joined he
band of the wicked that they might drink in abundance^ To ^rm^
TaruntntA" 7^^^^^ '^^ ~
The r?°hteous and the unrighteous; else it cannot believe in God.
If now the pious leave out of sight that the march of ^mne jus^
ticeon earth is often very gentle-indeed so f ^^^^^^^^/"'J^^^.
ears can hardly hear it: that here below is the time of long sutter-
ino- which through goodness leadeth to repentance, but that on
thai account the d^y of wrath shall in no way fail to come, (Rom
hat account y^ ^^^^^ ^^.^^^ ^^^^]%^>t'."IJ^
doubts as to the existence of a God, who beholds and delights n
tt who Lt pure hands and hearts :su^ doub^ are generd y
followed by murmuring, judging, and chiding with the Go^ernor
of tte world^ ^^ approached Asaph, and tried to infuse
such thouohis into his mind, but he knew the meaning of he
weet word of being a child of God. To become a traitor to the
JneratTon of his children is to him the most terrible of thoughts.
The en oyments and experiences of those who belong to that gene-
ration are\-ealities whici bid defiance to all appearance, and keep
Jhe heart fixed on God, even when the thoughts begin to roam and
h tub to wander. He found it a hard conflict : he had thought .
304 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
and wrestled. This caused him to descend to that deep where all
the riddles of life are solved : at the deepest foundation of his heart
was the sanctuary of his communion with God. He forced entrance
into that, and was commanded to look at the end.
V. 18 — 20. However firmly established in their own eyes, the
soil beneath them is slippery. When we open our eyes at day-
break the dream of the night is vanished : so on their awaking shall
their shadow-happiness vanish. When our faith shall become
vision, then their dreams shall be like foam.
V. 21, 22. How foolish do grief and envy at so unsubstantial a
prosperity appear in the light of this reply !
V. 23, 24. Concerning himself he has on the contrary heard
an oracular declaration, which is an ample equivalent for every
and anything. The path of the godly may be slippery and rough,
but an invisible hand will hold their right hand, guide them with
a wise counsel, and ultimately, after shame and wretchedness, lead
them in honour and glory to that place, where they shall be
received by Him who was their highest good on earth.
V. 25, 26. Ought not man, after such a revelation, to collect
all the love which hitherto was attached to the creature, and give
it to him who is able to fill the void of hearts throughout eternity ?
After such a solution of his enigmas, the flames of Asaph's love to
God begin to burn so brightly in his heart, that they absorb every
other. He has felt anew, perhaps, more than ever, the riches of
his possession in his God — he declares it in jubilant language, which
reminds one of the Apostle's triumphant exclamation. (Rom.
viii. 33 — 38.) The blessing of the nocturnal hours of doubt in the
case' of God's chosen people becomes manifest in this, that when
the multitude of their thoughts have, like a huge heap of ashes,
covered the flame of their love to God and almost extinguished it,
the moment will arrive when faith shall blow away the heap of
ashes, and the flame ascend with irresistible force to heaven. A
man, so intimately united with God, as Asaph here expresses it,
cannot but by his union get refreshed in body and mind; yet while
he with the clearest consciousness connects the possession of every
bodily and spiritual good with his highest possession, he feels con-
strained to furnish the testimony, that whatever may be called goods
is as nothing to him heside God.
F. 27, 28. They who know no other life than that of this earth
shall perish and go into eternal death, when the shadow which they
regarded as the substance shall have ceased. But they who had
that life and that joy which are imperishable in death, shall con-
tinue, and the declaration of his works shall be their occupation
for ever and ever.
PSALM liXXlV. 305
PSALM LXXIV.
A PSALM, composed after the devastation of the kingdom of
Judah (b. c. 588) by the Chaldeans, and the spoiling and burn-
ing of the Temple. Many interpreters, both ancient and modern,
have thought that the psalm refers to the profanation and spoiling
of the Temple which Antiochus Epiphanes, king of Syria, brought
on Israel (b. c. 167,) and which is mentioned in 1 Mace. i. 30,
and Josephus' Archgeol. xii. v. 4. This opinion appears to receive
a striking confirmation from v. 9, which declares that there are no
more prophets in the land,^ and speaks of the erection of signs in the
Templef, while v. 8 seems to refers to the st/nagogues, which were
probably built after the time of the exile. | But the Book of
Psalms was long before that time incorporated into the Jewish
canon — it can, on that account, contain no psalm of so late a date.
In 1 Mace. vii. 17, moreover. Psalm Ixxix. 3 is quoted as Holy
Writ. Add to this, that the king of Syria did profane and spoil
the Temple, but not destroy and burn it,§ and in spite of the
detailed account, which the book of Maccabees and Josephus give
of the ravages of the Syrians, there is no mention made of the burn-
ing of the synagogues.
As an introduction to those psalms which refer to the destruc-
tion of Jerusalem and the abduction into exile, we subjoin a brief
view of the prophetic history relative to that solemn judgment of
God.
The Lord, to whom the future is as the present, had early
caused to be published as warnings what he had determined in his
council concerning Jerusalem. Who can forbear being deeply
* The complaint, that there were no prophets, was made in the days of
the Maccabees, for prophecy was silent from Malachi to John the Baptist,
t. e. for four hundred years, [9ide 1 Mace. ix. 27.)
f Antiochus Epiphanes ordered a small altar for idol worship to be built
upon the altar of the sanctuary, (1 Mace. i. 54.) Modern interpreters have
almost of one accord thought that this passage refers to a statue of Jupiter
Olympius, which had been erected upon the altar, but Hengstenberg with
reference to v. 59, has rendered the incoi'rectness of that view indubitable.
(See Contrib. to the Introd. to the Old Testament. Vol. i. p. 186.)
% They are mentioned in Josephus de hello Jud. vii. 3.
§2 Mace. i. 8; via. 33; 1 Mace. iv. 38. 48. Maurer quotes the last
verse as an evidence of the burning of the Temple, but that verse must be
interpreted by those passages which speak of the burning of the gates only.
It is conceivable that after the profanation of the Temple, and the estab-
lishment of idol-altars in the Temple, many alterations took place in the
interior, though that does not prove the burning or destruction of the
entire edifice.
26*
806 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
impressed with the omniscience of God, which stretches over cen-
turies, as well by the solemnity of Divine justice, on reading that
immediately after the building of the Temple the Lord appeared to
Solomon, uttering upwards of four hundred years before the
destruction the threat, "But if ye shall at all turn from following
me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and
my statutes which I have set before you, then will I cut off Israel
out of the land ichich I have given them : and this house, which 1
have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight: and Israel
shall he a proverb and a hyeword atnong all people : and at this
house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished
and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the Lord done thus
unto this land, and to this house?" (1 Kings ix. 6, 7.) Prophecy
gets more explicit and definite with the approach of the threatened
catastrophe. Micah, who lived in the reign of Hezekiah, pre-
dicted more than one hundred years before the event, the country
to which Israel should be carried. " Be in pain and labour to
bring forth, 0 daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail : for now
shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the
field, and thou shall go even to Babylon." (Micah iv. 10.) Isaiah
foretold, in the reign of the same king not long afterwards, the
same event, when the king of Babylon, moved by the mighty
judgments of God upon Sennacherib, had sent ambassadors to
Hezekiah, (cf. ad. Ps. xlviii. 10 — 12,) and Hezekiah, vainly
ambitious, showed them his treasures. ''Then said Isaiah to
Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Lord of hosts : Behold the days
come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers
have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon :
nothing shall be left, saith the Lord." (Isaiah xxxix. v. 6.) Nor
were the words of the old prophet unremembered one hundred
years later, when Jeremiah, persecuted by the nation on account
of his upbraidings, referred before all the people of Judah to the
words of Micah (Jer. xxvi. 18,) the prophet. As the days of
visitation approached, the prophecies, too, became more bright and
overwhelming. The nation had to experience several preludes of
the final catastrophe. Jerusalem appears to have been taken by
Nebuchadnezzar as early as the fourth year of Jehoiakim, again in
the eleventh,* when youthful Jeconiah, his mother, and wives,
along with ten thousand eight hundred and thirty-two of the flower
of Israel, were carried by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. (Cf. Introd.
ad. Psalm xliv.)
In Palestine, Jeremiah, the man of grief and the witness of God
* Cf. Dan. i. 1. Hengstenberg's Contribut. to the Introd. to the Old
Testament. Vol. i. p. 152. Keil on Chronicles, pp. 24. 439; and Movers's
Researches on the Books of Chronicles, p. 333.
PSALM LXXIV. 807
to an apostate race, was left as the sole holy watchman of the
house and people of God in the midst of a rebellious generation of
false prophets, idolatrous priests, sanguinary and deluded princes.
He had received the divine command to threaten and reprove, or
to admonish and edify, those who were not past edifying, in the
gloomy days which were about to set in. He almost uninterrupt-
edly, and with the most definite details, predicted the destruction
of Jerusalem and the captivity. The Lord called him when a
youth to his office. He had a presentiment of the impending evil
days; and he obeyed the Divine call not without strong resistance
from within. Immediately after his call, which took place in the
thirteenth year of Josiah, about fifty years before the catastrophe, at
a time lohen profound peace and prosjyerity rested upon the nation,
he had a vision of that ultimate visitation. " And the word of
the Loi'd came unto me the second time, saying. What seest thou?
And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward
the north. Then the Lord said unto me. Out of the north an evil
shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. For, lo, I
will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the
Lord; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne
at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls
thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah." (Jer. i.
13 — 15.) A brief delay of peace was granted up to the death of
Josiah (|609,) the much mourned-for king. From that period
the nation, under Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, rushed into ever-grow-
ing destruction, and the Lord proclaimed the irrevocability of his
judgment, saying, " Though Moses and Samuel stood before me,
yet m,y mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of rny
sight, and let them go forth." (Jer. xv. 1.) Jehoiakim, madly
deluded, cut the book of the warning prediction, which Jeremiah
had written, into pieces, and burnt it in the fire. (Jer. xxxvi. 22, 23.)
He destroyed also with the sword, Uriah, the prophet, who had
predicted the impending calamity, and cast his corpse into the
graves of the common people. (Jer. xxvi. 20 — 23.) Jeremiah,
though surrounded by prison, scourging, cruelty, and peril of
death, was, according to the promise of the Lord, (Jer. i. 19,)
miraculously preserved alive. The king's vain hope was, in spite
of the prophet's admonition to the contrary, in Egypt; supported
by that rotten tree he actually ventured to revolt against Nebu-
chadnezzar, to whom he was tributary. The king of the Chalde-
ans now advanced with his hosts, took Jerusalem, carried Jeco-
niah, eighteen years old, who had ascended the throne of his
father Jehoiakim, along with ten thousand of the noblest amongst
the people, to Babylon, instituted Zedekiah, his uncle, as king,
after having rendered him by heavy oaths a tributary vassal to
Babylon. Eight years afterwards Zedekiah violated his oaths —
again in opposition to the admonitions of the prophet — trusting iu
308 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the hope of aid from Egypt. Lying prophets proclaimed predic-
tions which fell in with popular likings, e. g. that the captivity of
Jeconiah should soon terminate — they thus fanned the delusion,
and furnished the most undeniable evidence that the prophecies of
Jeremiah and other true prophets were not the results of human
inspiration. (Cf. the remarkable 28th chapter of Jeremiah.) The
armies of the angry king of the Chaldeans once more invaded
Palestine, laid waste the provincial towns, and besieged Jerusalem.
Despite the bonds and chains which fell to his reward, Jeremiah
prophesied, saying, ^^ Beliold, 1 will give this city into the hand of
the king of Babylon, and he shall take it: and Zedekiah king of
Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, hut shall
surely he delivered into the hand of the king of Bahylon, and shall
speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes,
and he shall lead Zedekiah to Bahylon, and there shall he be until
I visit him." (Jer. xxxii. 3 — 5; xxxiv. 2, 3.) The strong city
resisted for eighteen months. At one period a ray of hope was
seen. The hosts of Egypt advanced to help, and the Chaldeans
retired from Jerusalem to meet them. Zedekiah sent a message
to the prophet : " Pray now unto the Lord our God for us." This
was the last refuge of their hope. The word of the prophet once
more declared, "Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel: Thus
shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to inquire
of me: behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come forth to help you,
shall return to Egypt into their own land. And the Chaldeans
shall come again and fight against this city, and take it and burn
it with fire." (Jer. xxxvii. 7, 8.) The Chaldeans returned, and
it is terrible to say — while the foe stood at the gates, while schism,
famine, and pestilence raged within the city, the people instead of
turning to the living God, as their only refuge, began to worship
idols. Ezekiel, far away in Mesopotamia, on the banks of Cha-
boras, had a vision of these horrors. In a vision he felt himself
seized by a lock of his hair, "and," saith he, "the spirit lifted me
up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the
visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that
looketh towards the north." What did the seer's eye behold? He
saw first at the northern entrance of the inner court a Canaanite
idol, then at the eastern entrance in deeply concealed apartments,
the walls covered with hieroglyphics, with images of beasts and
creeping things, and seventy elders oifering incense to the Egyptian
idols : then at the northern entrance there sat women weeping for
the Syrian Thammuz, ^. e. Adonis : and in the inner court five and
twenty priests, with their backs towards the temple of the Lord,
worshipped the sun towards the east after the manner of the Pet--
sians. (Ezek. viii.) Should such abominations be sufi"ered with
impunity ?
In the colony established at the banks of Chaboras, Ezekiel felt
PSALM LXXIV.
309
for the calamities of his native country, and prophesied her future
iudo-ments. Like a man convulsed by pain, he raises his bitter
com^'plaint for the sword of death which is drawn against Jerusalem.
(Ezek. xxi. 19, etc.) The hosts of the king of Babylon have gone
forth, and he beholds in a vision the indecision of the king whether
he is'to march against the Ammonites or against Jerusalem, sees
him consulting heathen soothsayers, and how the lots decide against
Jerusalem. " The ivorcl of the Lord came to me again, saying,
Also, thou son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the
hing of Babylon may come: both tioain shall come forth out of one
land : and choose thou a place, choose it at the head of the way to
the city. Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rahhath of
the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem, the defenced. For the
king of Babylon stood at the parting of the xoay, at the head of the
two ways, to use divination : he shook Ms arrows (^jp^^j to shake
or wave : these arrows had a name inscribed upon them,) he con-
suited loith images, he looked in the liver. At his right hand was
the divination for Jerusalem, to appoint battering rams, to open the
mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint
battering rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a
fort." (Ezek. xxi. 19, etc.') Ezekiel visibly describes in a still more
striking manner by his own person, the events which, at a great
distance in time and space, should on the day of visitation transpire
at Jerusalem. Before the eyes of his companions in exile he was
ordered to depart, after the symbolic manner of the prophets, with
his baggage on his shoulders, to dig through the wall, and to
remove it in the twilight, as a sign unto the house of Israel. And
the word of the Lord commanded him to say at the same time, " I
am your signj like as I have done, so it shall be done unto them
(j/ow;) they shall remove and go into captivity. And the prince
that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder in the twilight,
and shall go forth: they shall dig through the wall to carry out
thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with
his eyes. (Indicative of mourning: cf 2 Sam. xv. 30.) My net
also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare:
and I will bring him to Babylon, to the land of the Chaldeans; yet
he shall not see it, though he shall die there." (Ezek. xii. 11, etc.)
Josephus narrates (Archaeol. x. 7. 2,) that the prediction^ ot
Ezekiel was sent by letters to the king, and that the contradiction
which he thought to perceive between it and that of Jeremiah only
confirmed his obduracy. Now Jeremiah had not said that the
fuoitive king should see the land of Babylon, but that he should
see Nebuchadnezzar. The predictions of the two prophets, how-
ever, were fulfilled with so astonishing an exactness, which can
hardly fail to terrify hardened sinners at all times and in every
310 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
place, and to confirm the wavering in their faith in God, the gov-
erner of the world.
Nebuchadnezzar did either not appear in person at Jerusalem,
or felt disinclined to share the fatigues of a siege of eighteen
months. Like Pharaoh-Necho in the days of Josiah, (2 Kings
xxiii. 33,) Nebuchadnezzar had fixed his camp at Riblah, on the
frontier of Syria and Palestine. On the ninth day of the fourth
month of the eleventh year of king Zedekiah, the Chaldean gene-
rals entered the city, and Zedekiah, accompanied by a few faithful
followers, escaped at night out of the city, along the king's garden,
through the gate on both walls. The Chaldeans before the city
saw, pursued, and overtook him on the road to Jericho : he was
carried to Riblah, and loaded with reproaches, for his faithlessness
had to submit to judgment. His children were butchered before
his eyes, Tiis oion eyes were put out, and bound in chains he was
led to Babylon. Thus was fulfilled the prediction of Ezekiel, that
he should be brought to Babylon, yet he should not see it : Ezekiel
having made mention of the unbelieving carelessness of the people,
who said, "The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth;"
when the Lord God said, '■'■ I am the Lord ^ Iwill speaJc, and the
word which I speak shall come to pass: it shall be no more pro-
longed." (Ezek. xii. 22. 25; cf. Jer. xxxix.) Be not deceived,
God is not mocked. The generals went, according to Josephus,
immediately after the conquest of the city, to the temple, for it
was the most important building, and its treasures the bait of con-
querors. Before determining what to do with the city and the
temple, they sent to consult the king. Not until a month after-
wards did they break down the ornaments of the temple, (Jer.
lii. 17,) and burn the king's palace, the temple, and the chief build-
ings. The more respectable class of the people, that were still
left, were carried away captive; only vinedressers and husbandmen
(Jer. lii. 16) were left behind, upon whom whom was imposed the
payment of a moderate tax. The lenient Babylonish viceroy dwelt
at Mizpah : under him and round Jeremiah a new congregation
was formed. Nebuchadnezzar, who had doubtlessly been informed
of Jeremiah's efi'orts to stay the folly of the people, had offered
him glorious distinction at Babylon, but Jeremiah preferred to
share the fate of the small remnant of his nation. The viceroy
was slain, however, after hardly two months had elapsed, and the
terrified people fled from the vengeance of the Chaldeans to Egypt,
again contrary to the express word of the Lord. (Jer. xlii.) Jere-
miah, the most faithful of pastors, would not even then forsake the
faithless band : he accompanied them, though proclaiming to them
in the most definite language that they should not stay there, but
that Nebuchadnezzar would pursue them thither. (Jer, xliii. 10,
e<c.) He came upon them, and the last remnant of the rejected
people of God, who were driven into every direction, after having
PSALM LXXIV. 311
rewarded the faithfulness of the prophet of the Lord by slaying
him with wicked hands, were also carried to Babylon.
Psalm Isxiv. was composed after the destruction had occurred,
though the hostile army had not yet gone (v. 23,) when the deso-
lation had become so great that bands of robbers had established
themselves in the city, (v. 20.) One of the few who were left
behind must be regarded as the author of this psalm.
In language of deep emotion rises the call for help, (v. 1, 2.)
The bard is silent of temporal injury; he only weeps for the ruin
of the glorious temple, the burning of the synagogues, and the
absence of a prophet to proclaim the end of the woe, (v. 3 — 11.)
For his comfort he causes the ancient records of Divine omnipo-
tence which prevailed over human oppression, as well as the monu-
ments of Divine omnipotence in nature, to pass before his mind's
eye, (v. 12 — 17.) Edified thereby, he finds courage to pray that
God, the protector of the needy, would not deliver into the power
of the foe the timid turtledove, (v. 18 — 21.) Reanimated by hope,
he even calls upon the arm of the eternal for a renewed attack^
(v. 22, 23.)
'k
N Instruction of Asaph.
0 God, why hast thou cast us off for ever ?
Why doth thme anger smoke against the sheep of thy
pasture ?
2 Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased
of old ;
The tribe of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed;
This Mount Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.
3 Lift up thy feet unto the perpetual desolations ;
Even all that the enemy hath done wickedly in the
sanctuary.
4 Thine enemies roar in the midst of thy congregations ;
They set up their ensigns /or signs.
5 They appear like those who have lifted up
Axes upon the thick trees.
6 But now they break down the carved work thereof at once
With axes and hammers,
7 They have cast fire into thy sanctuary,
They have defiled hy casting doivn the dwelling-place of
thy name to the ground.-
8 They said in their hearts, " Let us destroy them together."
They have burned up all the synagogues of God in the land.
312 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 We see not our signs :
There is no more any prophet :
Neither is there among us any that knoweth how long.
10 0 God, how long shall the adversary reproach?
Shall the enemy blaspheme thy name for ever ?
11 Why withdrawest thou thy hand, even thy right hand?
Pluck it out of thy bosom and finish.
12 For God is my King of old.
Working salvation in the midst of the earth.*
13 Thou didst divide the sea by thy strength:
Thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters;
14 Thou brakest the heads of the crocodiles in pieces,
And gavest them to he meat to the people inhabiting the
wilderness.
15 Thou didst cleave the fountain and the flood:
Thou driedst up mighty rivers.
16 The day is thine, the night also is thine :
Thou hast prepared the light and the sun.f
17 Thou hast set all the borders of the earth :
Thou hast made summer and winter.
18 Remember this, that the enemy hath reproached the Lord,
And that the foolish people have blasphemed thy name.
19 0 deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the multi-
tude of the loiched:
Forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever.
20 Have respect unto the covenant :
For the dark places of the earth are full of the habita-
tions of cruelty.
21 0 let not the oppressed be turned away in shame:
Let the poor and needy praise thy name.
22 Arise, 0 God, plead thine own cause :
Remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily.
23 Forget not the voice of thine enemies :
The tumult of those that rise up against thee ascendeth
continually.
V. 1. "For he is our God: and we are the people of his pas-
ture, and the sheep of his hand." So said the people in Psalm
xcv. 7. Would a shepherd pain his flock to such a degree? It
* Exod. viii. 18, states that God, by the 'control over nature, in Egypt,
gave a sign to Pharaoh, that He was Lord in Egypt.
f Or, "Thou hast appointed the course of the lights and of the sun."
PSALM LXXIV. 313
was a time when tlie whole nation was called upon to reflect upon
the sentiment in 2 Mace. vi. 14 — 16: "For not as with other
nations, whom the Lord patiently forbeareth to punish till they be
come to the fulness of their sins, so dealeth he with us, lest that,
being come to the height of sin, he should take vengeance of us;
and though he punish with adversity, yet doth he never forsake his
people. But let this that we have spoken be for a warning unto
us." Shall Grod be silent for ever? If so, would not then the
words of Psalm 1. 21 be verified? ^^ Thou tlioughtest that I ivas
altogether such mi one as thyself."
V. 2. Israel is indeed the Lord's inheritance from of old; it
grieves him, therefore, that he is compelled to use such severe
measures with him. The Lord himself asks, "Is Ephraim my dear
son? Is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do
earnestly remember him still : therefore my bowels are troubled for
him : I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the Lord. (Jer.
xxxi. 20.) From words like these they could infer that the Lord
"doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men." (Lam.
iii. 83.) •
V. 3 — 7. Robbed of his possessions, his city and country laid
waste, his friends slain or carried into captivity, the Psalmist's
greatest grief is on account of the profanation of the sanctuary
by wicked hands. Instead of psalms and songs of praise the tri-
umphant roarings of heathen warriors are heard. As in the
days of Antiochus Epiphanes, so probably at this time the heathen,
as appears from v. 9, set up in the temple their signs, holy things,
altars, and rites. The axe fell upon the holy symbols, as if they
were common wood. It may easily be imagined that the enemy
had removed every precious thing from the temple, before they set
fire to it. Jeremiah, indeed, reports as much. The two celebrated
pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece in the outer court,
(1 Kings vii. 15;) the gilt folding-doors, the colossal golden
vine, the symbol of Israel, (Psalm Isxs. 9;) the splendid
carpenters' work of cedar, with carved figures of cherubim,
palm-trees, and open flowers, all overlaid with gold, (1 Kings
vii. 15 — 35,) were there. How many precious, how many holy
remembrances of the present and the past ! And all this fell beneath
the strokes of the axe and the hammer, as if a man were felling
wood.
V. 8. They contemplate total destruction. The synagogues
throughout the country were burned. Now it appears that syna-
gogues or houses of worship did not spring up before the captivity
of Israel, when they were no longer able to resort to the temple for
purposes of worship. From this circumstance many have thought
that this psalm ought to be referred to the days of the Maccabees.
But, as was observed above, there is no record that Antiochua
27 ■>:
314 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Epiphanes did burn tlie synagogues in the country. Others apply
the passage to idolatrous high places and sanctuaries, of which,
though destroyed by the godly Josiah, some might have remained;
but it does not stand to reason that the pious bard should mourn
their being consumed by fire, nor would he have called them the
synagogues of God. Others again explain it of the settlements of
the schools of the prophets; but they had most likely ceased by
this time, else he would not have complained that there were no
more prophets. Others again refer it to the noted places, where
God had revealed himself to his people. But these were not known
to the heathen, nor were they distinguished by any external marks.
There is, however, nothing to prevent the supposition that as early
as then, there were scattered throughout the country synagogues
for purposes of prayer, if not for the reading of the Scrip-
tures.*
V. 9. The holy signs mean the entire sacred ritual, emblems,
sacred relics in the temple, circumcision, sacrifices; hence the
prophets are mentioned in connection with them. It was a Divine
judgment, according to the prediction of Ezekiel: " Mischief shall
come upon mischief, and rumour (judgment) shall be upon rumour;
then shall they seek a vision from the prophet; but the law shall
perish from the priest, and counsel from the ancients." (Ezekiel
vii. 26.) Although in those hard times Jeremiah continued a holy
watchman among the people, who had not only predicted the desola-
tion but also the end of the calamity, (Jer. xxv. 11, 12,) yet in spite
of all this, a man who saw before him seventy long years of woe,
might, overwhelmed by his grief, utter complaint like this, because
there was no star of hope for the immediate future. If the author
of this psalm was one of the fugitives in Moab or Edom, (Jer.
xl. 11,) and composed it at the juncture when Jeremiah had, with
the last remnant of Israel, fled to Egypt — the expression that there
was no prophet left would be accounted for. But since verses 10,
18, 23, seem to imply the presence of the Chaldeans in the coun-
try, yea, in the city itself, the psalm must belong to the time when
Jeremiah, bound in chains, had already been sent to Ramah to be
carried with the remnant to Babylon. (Jer. xl. 1.) The intense
grief of the Psalmist might, however, have expressed itself in lan-
guage, which is not to be taken quite literally. Jeremiah himself
says, "Her gates are sunk into the ground: he hath destroyed and
broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the Gentiles;
the law is no more : her prophets also find no vision from the
Lord." (Lam. ii. 9.)
* The passage 2 Kings iv. 23, seems to imply that pious Israelites used
to assemble with the prophets on Sabbaths and new moons. Perhaps "the
assembly of the elders," in Psalm cvii. 32, (which was, however, composed
after the exile,) may, asKöster thinks, mean " assemblies for prayer."
PSALM LXXIV. 315
V. 10, 11. Having enumerated the causes of his grief, the
lacerated mind of the Psahuist once more reverts to the complaint
in the beginning. Then he asked, Why? — now he prays that their
unprecedented humiliation may not be of long duration.
V. 12 — 15. The comfort which he derives from the past his-
tory of Israel brings relief. He calls the nation of the Egyptians
a monster, and the crocodile of the water, because that rapacious
beast is peculiar to the river Nile, see Ezek. xxix. 3; Isa. li. 9.
The pursuing hosts of Pharaoh were drowned in the waters and
their bodies cast ashore to become the food of jackals, the inhabi-
tants of the wilderness. The Omnipotence of God provided for
his people in the most opposite manner, now breaking streams out
of the cloven rock, (Exod. xvii. 6; Numb. xx. 8,) and now drying
up mighty rivers, which used not to dry up in summer. (Josh,
iii. 14, etc.)
V. 16, 17. The same God has inscribed his Omnipotence on
the book of nature. Not accident, which is lawless, but the living
God has framed the eternal laws of the courses of the sun and
the moon. (Psalm cxlviii. 6.) His law reigns on the earth as it
does in the skies: 'tis he who made the change of seasons and set
the borders of countries and nations. (Acts xvii. 26.)
V. 18, 19. This is the foundation on which the Psalmist bases
his prayer to God, to display in the profound ignominy of his peo-
ple the eternal rights of that Omnipotence which governs history
and enacts the laws of nature. He calls his nation the turtledove
of God — at this time not on account of their purity and innocence,
but because of their helplessness and timidity, for he immediately
prays, "Forget not the congregation of tliij i-toorT
Y. 20, 21. He cannot appeal to any righteousness of his own.
"Look upon the Covenant." This is the eternal asylum of the
saints of God even in the greatest peril. And though they have
broken it, shall the unbelief of m;t . make the faithfulness of God
without effect? (Rom. iii. 3.) The country must have been deso-
late to a fearful extent if in their great calamity, when all the ties
of law and order had ceased, every secret place of the land had
become a den of murderers.
F. 22, 23. The savage tumult of the foe rages as yet without
intermission in the capital and the borders of the land. Though
the nation herself is the originator of all those evils, yet the name
of the God of Israel is for their sakes reproached! (Isaiah Iii. 5;
xlviii. 11.)
316 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM LXXV.
A SONG of praise, expressive of tte firm confidence that deliverance
is nigh. Verse 7 shows that the deliverance has respect to an
enemy who comes from the north, for it says that deliverance is to
proceed neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the
south, i. e. the desert of Arabia, (cf. Psalm cxxvi. 4 :) for a similar
reason the east, the west, and the south only are mentioned,
(Psalm Ix. 10.) Since Psalm Ixxvi. speaks definitely of the deliv-
erance of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib, and since
Israel did not experience any other great deliverance from a north-
ern foe than this — it may be concluded that the Psalmist raised
this song of praise at the time when it was observed at Jerusalem
that the pestilence had commenced its ravages in the camp of the
foe.
The sudden and fearful manifestation of the hand of God from
heaven against the proud, causes the Psalmist to recognize in that
judgment a prelude of the final judgment of God on evildoers.
He begins with a description of the praise of the wondrous works
of Jehovah, which shall then be sung, (v. 2,) adduces a prophetic
sentence like those which Isaiah had in those days repeatedly
addressed to the haughty king who would not own that he was
only an instrument in the hands of the Omnipotent, v. 3 — 6, (cf ad.
Psalms xlvi. xlviii.) He next ascribes the sole honour of deliv-
erance to God, (v. 7, 8,) proclaims the Divine judgment on evil-
doers, (v. 9,) and thinks with exultant joy of his future songs of
triumph, naming as it were as their theme the promises of God,
(V. 10, 11.)
1 'pO the chief Musician, A Psalm or Song of Asaph, to
JL the tune " Destroy not."
2 Unto thee, 0 God, do we give thanks,
Unto thee do we give thanks:
For that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.
3 " When I have taken a set time,
I will judge uprightly.
4 The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved:
I bear up the pillars of it. Selah.
6 I say unto the fools, deal not foolishly :
And to the wicked, lift not up the horn :
6 Lift not up your horn on high:
Speak not with a stiff neck."
7 For promotion cometh neither from the east,
Nor from the west, nor from the desert.
PSLAM LXXV. 317
8 But God is the judge:
He putteth down one, and setteth up another.
9 For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup,
And the wine foameth, it is full of mixture ;
And he poureth out of the same :
But the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall
wring them out, and drink them.
10 But I will declare for ever ;
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
11 "All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off;
But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted."
V. 2. The name of God is " merciful and gracious, long-suffer-
ing, and abundant in goodness and truth." The Lord himself
referred to his name, Exod. xxxiv. 5, 6. A new revelation of its
truth is at band, and the Psalmist hears beforehand the praises of
his delivered nation.
V. 3 — 6. The fulfilment is at band. Isaiah prophecies in
similar terms, (Isaiah x. 12 — 15,) "I shall take a set time," saith
the word of the Lord. Israel did no doubt experience at that
time the grief, of which Asaph says, "I was envious at the foolish,
when I saw the prosperity of the wicked." (Psalm Ixxiii. 3.)
Many a time may they have asked, ''0 Lord, bow long?" The
word of God reminds them that there is a suitable time for the
manifestation of Divine justice; though the earth and the heavens
should in the meantime shake, and human pusillanimity imagine
the worst — when the set time shall have arrived, even a whole
world of tumult and confusion must again turn quiet. So should
we, when all around us is in confusion, and the firmest strongholds
give way, still retain the belief, that God is only waiting for his
set time. Divine visitations will least fail to appear when the pride
of wretched mortals ventures to measure itself with the Lord in
heaven, for God can never suffer mortals to. deprive him of his
honour. (Isaiah xlii. 8.)
V. 7, 8. In virtue of the promised revelation the Psalmist dis-
dains to look for elevation from any other quarter than from him
who has promised to bold judgment in his time. He looks to
every direction from which the people might have expected deliv-
erance to come, e. (j. from the kings of Egypt or Ethiopia, as in
fact those princes had really gone forth to the aid of Israel. (See
Introd. to Psalm xlvi.) God alone shall be the judge and the
refuge : and thus it came to pass. Not human weapon, but the
blow of the hand of God destroyed the proud Sennacherib : " For
the victory of battle standeth not in the multitude of an host: but
strength cometh from heaven.'^ (1 Mace. iii. 19.)
F. 9, 10. As the head of a family passes the cup at table, so the
27*
318 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Lord, whose throne is in the heavens, hands to mortals, according
to their deserts, the cup of consolation or of folly. As myrrh
(Mark xv. 23) is put into wine to impart to it a stupifying virtue,
so God presents to evil doers an intoxicating cup, which they must
empty to the poisonous dregs. When the judgment began, the
servants of Sennacherib had to drink of that cup, and " fell into
their sleep." (Ps. Ixxvi. 6.)
V. 11. The Psalmist cannot grow weary with praising. His
imperishable theme is the truth "that the righteous shall finalli/
prevail.
PSALM LXXVL
A SONG of praise for the deliverance of Jerusalem from the hand
of Sennacherib. (Cf. ad. Ps. xlvi. xlviii.) This psalm was proba-
bly composed by the same Asaphite, soon after the deliverance of
Zion, who composed Psalm Ixxv. hcfore that event. It strikingly
depicts the eventful history of that time. As in Psalm xlviii. so
here the bard commences with praising the city of God, where he
had long since revealed his glory, and now also brought to an end
the strife of men, (v. 2 — 4.) He next describes how the mighty
ones, drunk with the intoxicating cup of God, have, with all their
apparatus of war, sunk powerless in the sleep of death, and been
obliged to leave their spoil to the servants of Jehovah, (v. 5 — 7.)
As it were, still stupified by the voice of the judgment, he now
speaks of the solemnity of the Divine judgments, (v. 8 — 10.) God
weaves himself a wreath of honcfur from the vain rebellion of mor-
tals. The Psalmist, therefore, finally calls upon the heathen, as in
Psalm xlvi. to pay their homage to the Lord, (v. 11 — 13.)
1 rpO the chief Musician on the harp, A Psalm or Song
X Asaph.
2 In Judah is God known :
His name is great in IsraeL
3 In Salem also is his tabernacle,
And his dwelling-place in Zion.
4 There brake he the arrows of the bow,
The shield, and the sword, and the battle. Selali.
5 Thou art glorious and excellent
From the mountains of prey.*
* This translation is sanctioned on comparing Cant. iv. 8 ; others render,
"More glorious than the mountains full of prey," i. e. the mountains of
the enemy, Trho came from the mountains of Mesopotamia ; cf. Nah. iii. 18.
PSALM LXXVI. 319
6 The stouthearted are spoiled,
They are sunk into their sleep:
And none of the men of might have found their hands.
7 At thy rebuke, 0 God of Jacob,
Both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep.
8 Thou, even thou, art to be feared :
And who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry ?
9 Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven;
The earth feared, and was still,
10 When God arose to judgment.
To save all the meek of the earth. Selah.
11 Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee :
The remainder of wrath shall praise thee.*
12 Vow, and pay unto the Lord your God :
Let all that be round about him bring presents unto him
that is to be feared.
13 He shall cut oflf the spirit (or, " the courage") of princes :
Jle is terrible to the kings of the earth.
V. 2. The preceding psalm had praised the approaching new
revelation of the Divine name; now after it has become true and
been sealed anew that "God is yet good in Israel," the Psalmist
can with increased confidence say that the name of the Lord is
known and glorious in Israel. We Christians read and repeat it
with sublime joy, knowing that eveiy title to grace, every privilege,
has passed from the Israel after the flesh to that Israel of whom
the apostle speaks in Gal. iii. 16. It may now be said of this
Israel after the spirit that, "In Judah is God known, his name is
glorious in Israel." The Church of true believers is now the
theatre of the glory of God. The Church in which, says the
apostle, is manifested the manifold wisdom of God, is a glorious
revelation even to the principalities and powers in heavenly
places, (Ephes. iii. 10.) Knowing ourselves the members of the
same body, conjointly with the people of the ancient covenant,
with how increased a sense of sympathy do we peruse God's deal-
ings with them ! The tribe of Judah designates the entire nation
as in Psalm csiv. 2.
V. 3, 4. Psalm xlviii. 2, praises after the same manner, that
the Lord has set up his tabernacle in Salem (the ancient name of
Jerusalem, (Gen. xiv. 18 ;) and the author of Psalm xlvi. lauds
the Lord in verse 10, for having terminated those wars before
Jerusalem, which Sennacherib had for many years carried on in a
large portion of the then known world. But the report of the fact
* Or, "With them thou girdest thyself," i. e. they shall surround thee
with praises.
320 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALM3.
that the proud waves were stayed here, that just before the heights
of Salem, "the hook was put into his nose, and the bridle into his
lips," (Isaiah xxxvii. 29,) coupled with the name of the God of
Israel, could hardly fail to spread throughout all lands, (Psalm
xlviii. 11.)
V. 5—7. The Lord had foretold "that I will break the
Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under
foot." (Isaiah xiv. 25.) They came to the mountains of Jerusalem
for prey, but they were obliged to leave prey behind them on those
very mountains. The expression of the Psalmist with reference to
sleep, into which the men of might helplessly fell, is the more sig-
nificant, since a tendency to sleep accompanies the pestilence. A
profound stupor had inperceptibly translated the sleepers into
eternal sleep. "When they arose early in the morning, behold,
they were all dead corpses." (2 Kings xix. 35.) The poet paints
the scene as if we were accompanying him into the camp, a short
time ago so full of life, but now covered with the silence of death.
Nahum refers in similar terms to the ultimate destiny of Assyria :
"Thy shepherds slumber, 0 king of Assyria; thy valiant ones
shall dwell in the dust; thy people is scattered upon the moun-
tains, and no man gathereth them." (Nahum iii. 18.)
V. 8 — 10. " Thou, even thou art to be feared," we exclaim
with the Psalmist. The repetition of "thou" seems to say, that he
alone is to be feared who is able to disperse with a single breath
the united strength of the world. The judgment came from
heaven. The visitation was too great to refer it to chance or to
any human power. The words of the prophet concerning the
wicked are generally true: "The wicked are like the troubled sea,
when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There
is no peace to the wicked." (Isaiah Ivii. 20, 21.) But even the
wicked must be silent, when the bared arm of the Lord visibly
pierces the clouds,
V. 11 — 13. Believers may with unshaken confidence look at
the rage of man. For it is certain that all mankind, the godly as
well as the wicked, must serve the Lord — the one of their own
accord, the other against their will. The eternal and self-consist-
ing Creator turns the fury of man into a wreath of honour. So
the Scriptures say God raised (i. e. set him up in history) Pharaoh
simply for the purpose that he and all his raging should become
instrumental to God's name becoming declared throughout all the
earth. (Rom. ix. 17.) The horn of Sennacherib was broken, his
fury put an end to, but the whole power of the foe was not yet des-
troyed. A remnant had yet to be conquered. But that remnant
also must serve the Lord. The Psalmist considers the solemn
judgments of the God of Israel to have been an irresistible sermon
to all the princes of the earth, and calls upon them to pay their
homage to this God, who is able to break all human pride. He
PSALM LXXVII. 321
probably says tbis in allusion to the fact, tbat at that time sur-
rounding nations, most likely the Egyptians and Ethiopians, who
were endangered by' Sennacherib, brought gifts for Hezekiah and
the Temple. (2 Chron. xxxii. 23.) Psalm Ixxxvii. gives expres-
sion to still brighter Messianic hopes, most probably in connection
with the same event.
PSALM LXXYII.
A MELANCHOLIC song of complaint, deriving consolation from the
wonderful works of God in the past. We can hardly conceive that
the Psalmist intended to conclude the poem with the remembrance
of the exodus from Egypt, though the preparative verses 14 — 17
might possibly dispense with a conclusion, as it is indeed wanting
to Psalm Ixxviii.; but the probability is far greater that the Psalmist
was prevented from pursuing the narrative of the marvellous works
of God and bringing thus the poem to a close.
Troubles and struggles in prayer have for a long time continued
day and night with the Psalmist, (v. 2 — 4.) He dwells on the
joyous times of the past, and meditates on the thoughts of God,
(v. 5 — 7.) He inquires whether more gladsome days were to
arise, (v. 8 — 12.) He derives strength and comfort from the
thought that God did prove himself a covenant God, (v. 13, 14.)
When the Lord delivered his people, he brought them through the
great waters by ways unknown to men, and led them as his flock,
(V. 15—21.)
0 the chief Musician of the Jeduthunites, A Psalm of
Asaph.
I cried unto God with my voice,
Even unto God with my voice ; and he gave ear unto me.
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord :
My hand was stretched out in the night, and ceased not :
My soul refused to be comforted.
I remembered God, and was troubled :
I meditated, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.
Thou boldest mine eyes waking :
I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
I have considered the days of old,
The years of ancient times.
322 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
7 I call to remembrance my song in the night :
I commune with mine own heart:
And my spirit maketh diligent search.
8 "Will the Lord cast off for ever?
And will he be favourable no more?
9 Is his mercy clean gone for ever?
Doth his promise fail for evermore?
10 Hath God forgotten to be gracious ?
Hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies?" Selah.
11 And I say, "This my affliction
Is A CHANGE OF THE RIGHT HAND OP THE MoST HiGH."
12 I will remember the works of the Lord :
Surely I will remember thy wonders of old.
13 I will meditate also of all thy work,
And talk of thy doings.
14 Thy way, 0 God, is in the sanctuary:
Who is so great a God as our God?
15 Thou art the God that doest wonders:
Thou hast declared thy strength among the nations :
16 Thou hast with thine arm redeemed thy people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph.* Selah.
17 The waters saw thee, 0 God, the waters saw thee :
They were afraid:
The depths also were troubled.
18 The clouds poured out water :
The skies sent out a sound:
Thine arrows also went abroad
19 The voice of thy thunder was in the heaven (or, "in the
whirlwind:")
Thy lightnings lightened the world:
The earth trembled and shook:
20 Thy way is in the sea.
And thy path in the great waters,
And thy footsteps are not known.
21 Thou leddest thy people like a flock ^
By the hand of Moses and Aaron.
V. 2. Asaph informs us that, unlike the many, he had not poured
out the trouble of his heart indiscriminately, but that he had set a
term to his cries, even that terra, to which the complaint of mortals
should alone be directed, he cried unto God.
V. 3. He did not in a superficial manner ease his heart by pray-
* Cf. ad. Psalm Ixxs. 2.
PSALM LXXVII. ö)i6
ing now and then, as many people declare to have prayed, when,
after having turned their eyes to a thousand helpers, they have
now and then looked up to heaven. But Asaph had for nights
stretched forth his hands, though his soul refused to be comforted
by that means of grace. They are real men of prayer with whom,
when answers fail to be forthcoming, the thirst for prayer gets not
weakened, but inflamed with greater ardour. Beginners get weary
and look out for other helpers. Asaph's faith did not waver; he
knew that they who perseveringly and believingly knock at the
door, will sooner or later get admittance.
V. 4. There are moments in the life of every believer when
God and his ways become unintelligible to them. They get lost in
profound meditation, and nothing is left them but a desponding
sigh. But we know, from Paul the Apostle, that the Holy Spirit
intercedes for believers with God, when they utter such sighs.
(Rom. viii. 26.)
V. 5. Disquieted in heart he cannot find sleep. He has cried
again and again, but his mouth grew silent for a time, and he gave
himself to deep thought. Whenever silence and thought like
this occur Sifter j>ra^e7-s long and loud, though the mouth be quiet
the heart continues in secret prayer.
V. 6, 7. He selects the theme which believers in trouble ought
always to choose ; the days when the goodness of God was seen and
tasted. He makes mention of songs of praise, which he had sung
at night. This shows him to have been one of those godly men
who are peculiarly fond, in the still loneliness of night, to hold
communion with God. Such remembrances appease the tempest of
the soul, so that we gather courage and comfort ourselves with the
words, "Thou art his, he will never leave thee." But Satan may
withal turn these sweet remembrances into temptations; e.g. when
our soul inquires, "Why is it not always so?" or when troublesome
thoughts arise, like those expressed in the succeeding verses.
V. 8 — 11. We have seen that these despairing thoughts arose
after continued and silent suiFering. It is to be noticed that the
doubt which is here expressed is not the doubt of unbelief, but of
hesitancy and pusillanimity: for he is unable thoroughly to believe
the suggestions of pusillanimity. Will God, who had said that his
name is " Merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in
goodness and truth," (Exod. xxxiv. 6,) become untrue to his name?
Will God, to whose attributes it belongs to be good and faithful
to his promises, make an exception in my case? Impossible.
V. 12 — 14. Pie turns therefore his attention to the manifesta-
tions of the power and mercy of God in ancient times. His doings
are different from the doings of the gods whom the heathen worship.
He does not mean to affirm the existence of other gods, but to
shame the folly of the world, which will not be satisfied with this
one God, whose wondrous power is so great. (Psalm xcvi. 5.)
324 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 15 — 20. He contemplates the memorable miracle of the
exode from Egypt, which is to all believers in Israel a figure, how
God brings his people out of the gloom of tribulation. Then God
powerfully manifested that the elements must obey at his bidding,
if he but moves his hand towards the deliverance of his people.
(Cf. Notes ad. Psalm Ixxviii. 13.) As a slave at the approach of
his master, so the billows tremble at the approach of God. A
north-east wind had divided the waters. The Psalmist describes
poetically the power of the Divine operations as the power of a
tempest. (Cf. ad. Psalm xviii. 10, etc.) But Moses seems to speak
of a storm which fought against Pharaoh. (Exodus xiv. 24.) The
Lord of Hosts has a way of his own, on which none can follow him.
When the waters returned his footsteps were gone. Well may the
Christian poet say, "Every way there is a way to him, and means
he has the many." As a shepherd leads his helpless flock, so the
Lord led his people faithfully by the hand of his chosen servants.
(Micah vi. 4; Numbers xxxiii. 1.)
PSALM LXXVIII.
A PSALM of instruction, being a dehortation to the people from the
disobedience and inconstancy of their ancestors. (Cf. Psalm cvi.)
The psalm contemplates, however, another end, namely, to justify
the removal of the sanctuary from Shiloh in the tribe of Ephraim,
to Zion in the tribe of Judah. The psalm concludes with that jus-
tification as with its leading thought, (v. 67 — 72.) It is expressed
in verses 9 — 12, that the dehortation is specifically applicable to
the children of Ephraim, who had taken no warning from the exam-
ple of their forefathers. Circumstances must have induced the
choice of this theme : the inducement was furnished by the jealousy
of the tribe of Ephraim, which had occasioned as early as the days
of David, variance, schism, and even rebellion. (2 Sam. xix. 40;
2 Sam. XX.; 1 Chron. xxi. 6.)* It should be remembered that
Benjamin belonged to Ephraim, the reason being that Rachel was
the mother of both Benjamin and Joseph; these three sons of
Rachel used to follow immediately behind the ark, when it was
removed. (Cf. ad. Psalm Ixxx. 2.) This relation of Benjamin to
Ephraim is perfectly clear from 2 Sam. xix. 20, since Shimei, who
affirms himself to belong to the tribe of Joseph, was a Benjamiuite.
* Joab's reluctance to take the census in Benjamin, probably arose from
the opposition of that tribe.
PSALM LXXVIII. 325
a Sam. xix. 16, 17; xvi. 5.) This furnislies a clue to theexist-
fno- variance. Since Saul belonged to the tribe of Benjamin and
bad greatly preferred the children of that tribe, (1 Sam. xxii. < ,)
Ephraim had lost much of its importance by David's accession to
the throne. Hence David was for the space of seven years acknow-
led«-ed by Judah only, until Abner secured for him the acknow-
ledgment of the other tribes. (2 Sam. iii.) The spark of discord,
however, continued to glow, until it kindled into a flame at the
above-mentioned occasion. The insurrection of Sebna, who was a
Beniaminite, towards the close of the reign of David, furnishes the
evidence of secretly-continued opposition. Hence one of David s
singers might feel himself called upon to seek to justify the rejec-
tion of Ephraim on account of its guilt and the call of Judah.
Asaph shows that while the sanctuary continued at Shiloh in
Ephraim, Israel had to endure shame, and that even the ark tell
into the liands of the foe, (v. 61,) until the Lord awoke as it were,
from his sleep, and gave to Israel new victories, under Samuel and
David, transplanting at the same time the sanctuary to Jerusalein,
from the tribe of Ephraim into that of Judah, (v. 65—68.) So
Jeremiah (Jer. vii. 14, 15) addresses the kingdom of Judah,
"Therefore will I do unto this house, which is called by my name,
wherein ye trust, and unto the place, which I gave to you and to
your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh. And I will cast you out
of my sio-ht, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole
seed of Ephraim." Had this psalm been composed in later times,
as is the opinion of many commentators, on what grounds should
its author have confined himself to the description of Ephraim s
sins hefore David, and omitted to reproach them with their falling
away from the Divinely chosen race of kings? Why should he
have satisfied himself with speaking of the idolatry in the time ot
the Judges, and be silent about their ignominious idolatry in the
days of Jeroboam? The psalm can therefore not well be referred
to a later period than that of David. It furnishes the remarkable
evidence that the Pentateuch must then have been well known,
since the Psalmist not only follows the thread of its history, but
evidently dwells on specific passages of the Book of Numbers, (v. 21.
28—31.) ^;. , ,. ,
The Psalmist having assigned as the reason of his descending to
antiquity, his desire that the children should be admonished by
the works of God to their fathers, as well as by the disobedience
of these (v. 1—8 ;) and having accused Ephraim of unteachable-
ness- enumerates from verses 13—55 the instances of the obduracy
and 'faithlessness of the nation, as well as of the goodness and
majesty of God. He-accuses (v. 56—64) the disobedient children,
who refused to fake warning from the example of their fathers:
that accusation applies peculiarly to the tribe of Ephraim, because
under the reign of that tribe the sanctuary was with them, and
28
326 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Israel had to endure great sliame at the hands of the Philistines.
The sanctuary being now established on Zion, he beholds in a pro-
phetic vision its eternal duration, for what else is the Christian
Church than that spiritual Zion, which issued forth from the tem-
poral Zion ? (Gal. iv. 26.) ,
A
N Instruction of Asaph.
1 Give ear, 0 my people, to my law:
Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable:
I will utter dark sayings of old :
3 Which we have heard and known,
And our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide tliem from their children,
Showing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,
And his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath
done.
5 For he established a testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which he commanded our fathers.
That they should make them known to their children :
6 That the generation to come might know tliem,
Even the children tvhich should be born ;
Who should arise and declare them to their children :
7 That they might set their hope in God,
And not forget the works of God,
But keep his commandments:
8 And might not be as their fathers,
A stubborn and rebellious generation;
A generation that set not their heart aright,
And whose spirit was not steadfast with God.
9 The children of Ephraim, being armed and carrying bows,
Turned back in the day of battle.
10 They kept not the covenant of God,
And refused to walk in his law;
11 And forgat his works.
And his wonders that he had showed 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 ;
And he made the waters to stand as an heap.
PSALM LXXVIII. 327
14 In the daytime also he led them with a cloud,
And all the night with a light of fire.
15 He clave the rocks in the wilderness,
And gave thein drink as out o/ the great depths.
16 He brought streams also out of the rock,
And caused waters to run down like rivers.
17 And they sinned yet more against him
By provoking the Most High in the wilderness.
18 And they tempted God in their heart
By asking meat for their lust.
19 Yea, they spake against God;
They said, "Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?
20 Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out,
And the streams overflowed;
Can he give bread also?
Can he provide flesh for his people? "
21 Therefore the Lord heard tliis, and was wroth :
So a fire was kindled against Jacob,
And anger also came up against Israel:
22 Because they believed not in God,
And trusted not in his salvation :
23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above,
And opened the doors of heaven,
24 And had rained down manna upon them to eat,
And had given them of the corn of heaven.
25 Man did eat the bread of the mighty :
He sent them meat to the full.
26 He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven :
And by his power he brought in the south wind.
27 He rained flesh also upon them as dust,
And feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea :
28 And he let it fall in the midst of their camp,
Round about their habitations.
29 So they did eat and were well filled :
For he gave them their own desire.
30 They were not estranged from their lust.
But while their meat was yet in their mouths,
31 The wrath of God came upon them,
And slew the fattest of them,
And smote down the young men of Israel,
32 For all this they sinned still,
And believed not for his wondrous works.
328 commentaäy on the psalms.
33 Therefore their days did he consume in vanity,
- And their years in trouble.
34 When he slew them, then they sought him :
And they returned and inquired early after God.
35 And they remembered that God was their rock,
And the high God their redeemer.
36 Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth.
And they lied unto him with their tongues.
37 For their heart was not right with him,
Neither were they steadfast in his covenant.
38 But, he being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity,
And destroyed them not:
Yea, many a time turned he his anger away.
And did not stir up all his wrath.
39 For he remembered that they were hut flesh;
A wind that passeth away and cometh not again.
40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness,
And grieve him in the desert?
41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God,
And limited the Holy One of Israel.
42 They remembered not his hand.
Nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.
43 How he had wrought his signs in Egypt,
And his wonders in the field of Zoan :
44 And had turned their rivers into blood;
And their floods, that they could not drink.
45 He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured
them:
And frogs, which destroyed them.
46 He gave also their increase unto the caterpillar,
And their labour unto the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with hail.
And their sycamore trees with frost.
48 He gave up their cattle also to the hail.
And their flocks to flashes of lightning.
49 He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger.
Wrath, and indignation, and trouble.
By sending evil angels among them,
50 He made a way to his anger ;
He spared not their soul from death.
But gave their life over to the pestilence ;
61 And smote all the firstborn in Egypt;
The chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham :
PSALM LXXVIII. 329
52 But made his own people to go fortli like sheep,
And guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
63 And he led them on safely, so that they feared not :
But the sea covered their enemies.
54 And he brought them to the border of his holiness,
Even to this mountain (or, "mountainous country")
wliich his right hand had purchased.
55 He cast out the heathen also before them,
And divided them an inheritance by line,
And made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.
56 Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God,
And kept not his testimonies:
57 But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers :
They were turned aside like a deceitful bow.
68 For they provoked him to anger with their high places,
And moved him to jealousy with their graven images.
59 When God heard tliis, he was wroth.
And greatly abhorred Israel:
60 So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh,
The tent which he placed among men ;
61 And delivered his strength into captivity,
And his glory into the enemy's hand.
62 He gave his people over also unto the sword;
And was wroth with his inheritance.
63 The fire consumed their young men ;
And their maidens were not given to marriage.
64 And their priests fell by the sword ;
And their widows made no lamentation.
65 Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep.
And like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.
66 And he smote his enemies in the hinder part:
He put them to a perpetual reproach.
67 Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph,
And chose not the tribe of Ephraim :
68 But chose the tribe of Judah,
The mount Zion which he loved.
69 And he built his sanctuary like the heights of heaven,
Like the earth which he hath established for ever.
70 He chose David also his servant,
And took him from the sheepfolds:
71 From following the ewes great with young
He brought him to feed Jacob his people,
And Israel his inheritance.
28*
330 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
72 So lie fed them according to the integrity of his heart ;
And guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.
V. 1 — 4. The Psalmist appears before the people as an
exhorter, who addresses instructive sentences to them, the historic
narratives being at the same time living instructions. His object
is to give instruction concerning the praise, the power, the glory,
and the miracles of God.
V. 5 — 8. He justifies his exhortation by a reference to the
Divine commandment, which enacts the transmission of all the
laws and commandments of God from the mouth of the fathers to
their children and grandchildren, (Deut. iv. 9; x. 6, 7; Exod.
xii. 26,) with the twofold object of immortalizing among them the
commandments and the works of the Lord, and of furnishing in
the rebellion and inconstancy of their ancestors perpetual examples
of warning. For if among the children of this world, the example
and education of the parents produce a generation who go even
more astray from God than their fathers, so among the children of
God ought penitent parents, by the recollection of their experience
and sinfulness, to warn their posterity, and thus lead them to
greater holiness.
V. 9 — 12. Ephraim especially needed that instruction. In
the day of battle they had been like bow-men who did not stand
their ground. This figure, like that in verse 57, indicates their
faithfulness in the cause of God. The miracles of God in Egypt
are not enumerated here; their enumeration begins with verse 43.
Egypt is here called the field of Zoan. Zoan was the capital of
Lower Egypt, about twenty-five miles distant from the land of
Goshen. In its place there remains to the present day the village
of San. It is not mentioned as an ancient and large city in the
narrative of the miracles in Egypt, though reference is made to it
in Numb. xiii. 22.
V. 13. The Psalmist now meditates on the miraculous exode
of the children of Israel. The Scriptures state that Divine provi-
dence employed a natural means, namely, an east wind, for the
accomplishment of that miracle. " North-west winds are very com-
mon to that locality. The Red Sea terminates above Suez, in a bay
where there is not more than a mile's distance between the oppo-
site shores, and even below Suez the distance does not exceed
three miles ; at low water several depths of that locality get quite
dry. Now the Israelites were marching just in the direction of
Suez, and we may conceive that at the word of Moses, a wind from
the east or from the north-east dried the sea at low water just in
that neighbourhood, while the flood above Suez was repressed into
the bay, and below Suez into the sea. Israel, therefore, marched
as it were between two walls of water, while at day-break the
waters which had been repressed into the bay burst forth with
PSALM LXXVIir. 331
renewed force upon the pursuing hosts of Pharaoh.* The remem-^
brance of this marvellous event has also been preserved by Greek
writers. f
V. 14 — 16. In ancient times and even now, men carrying
poles to which are attached vessels filled with fire, precede armies
and caravans, as leaders and guides. t God condescending to a
sensuous people, became himself their guide, and gave them a
sensible token of his protection. On the exode he made the waters
stand like walls — in the desert he turned the rocks into water-
eprings, (Exod. xvii. 6,) satisfying man and beast with their copi-
ous supply. (Numb. xx. 11.)
V. 17 — 20. In fresh remembrance of such unusual testimonies
of Divine condescension, deprived of all human aid in the waste
wilderness, and depending on God alone, they dared to provoke in
shameless unbelief Him on vrhose bounty alone they depended.
(Cf. Psalm cvi.) They had been miraculously preserved by the
supply of manna: the low crowd of the Egyptians, that had come
out with them, began to lust after the diet to which they had been
accustomed in Egypt, and Israel, became seduced by them.
(Numb. xi. 4.)§ After all their experience, they doubt the Divine
omnipotence, (Ps. cvi. 12, 13,) as if it were to be regarded as
nothing, when it refused to gratify their lusts. Unbelief is so
deeply rooted in the human heart, that when God performs mira-
cles on earth, unbelief doubts whether he can perform them in
heaven, and when he does them in heaven, whether he can do
them on earth? (Cf Matt. xvi. 1.)
V. 21, 22. The fire was a real fire. The manifestations of
Divine wrath are as sensible and unmistakeable as are those of his
love: it is recorded in Numb. xii. how God revealed his majesty,
which a rude nation had insulted. The Psalmist makes a literal
reference to that event. The anger of God arose because they
would not believe in him. Doubting his omnipotence is tanta-
mount to robbing God of his honour j hence it is said of Abraham
that because he was strong in faith he gave to God the honour due
to him. (Rom. iv. 20.)
* Cf. Niebiihr's Description of Arabia, p. 410, with the map of the neigh-
bourhood of Suez in Robinson's Palestine, i. p. 90, etc. and Von Raumer's
Exode of the Israelites, 1837, p. 16, where the view is defended that the
passage took place more to the south, where the sea is fifteen miles in
width.
f Diod. Sic. iii. 39, Artapanus in Euseb. prgep. ev. ix. 27.
j Rosenmüller, The Ancient and Modern East, ii. p. 4.
I The people were by no means confined to the manna: they had cattle,
and when they passed along the sea-shore, fish: they could also cultivate the
soil, since during the forty years they resided for a considerable time in
several places. October sowing is fit for reaping in April. But all this
was not sufiicient for the wants of the mass of the nation, and Numb. xi. 22,
points to this fact.
332 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 23 — 25. The manna with which the people were fed is
called here, ''The bread of heaven/' because descending as it were
from the hand of Grod, it was found mixed with the dew on the
land: it is called "the bread of the mighty/' ?. e. of the noble,
because it was a tender and delicious food, which to this day con-
tinues a favourite dish of the Eastern nobility. Divine providence
seems in this case again to have employed a natural means in a
supernatural manner. For down to the present day, manna is a
well-known natural produce in the South of Italy, and the East in
particular. It is a sweet gum-like juice, which at sunrise in the
shape of dried granules, just like the manna in the wilderness, is
found in some parts on the leaves, in others on the boughs and
trunks of certain trees, and is consumed in the East as a delicacy,
but unknown to cause any medicinal effects. Now this produce,
known as manna, has different qualities in different localities, and
is found under different circumstances, and the qualities of the
manna of the Israelites do not exactly correspond to any of the
mannas which are known to us. The disparity consists chiefly in
this, that in the days of Moses manna was found all the year round,
while the modern manna obtains only for some months, the former
on the earth, mixed with dew, the modern on trees, and but very
seldom on the ground. It has been supposed on that account, that
the ancient manna was produced by the exhalations of plants,
which fell with the dew to the earth, as several travellers have
found that the dew in the East is sweet and sticky. All things
considered, it is clear that nature now yields a produce only similar
to that which Providence then supplied in a supernatural manner.
The natural appearance of manna depends upon varying circum-
stances, since in our times it is but rarely met with, and in the
neighbourhood of Sinai frequently only after an interval of five or
six years.*
V. 26 — 31. It is not uncommon that large numbers of quails,
which come across the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf, are
found in Arabia and Egypt.f Since the Psalmist speaks of a
south-east wind, the birds probably came from the Persian Gulf
through Southern Arabia to Sinai; the statement of Moses that
they fell down in heaps, is confirmed by the fact, that those awk-
wardly flying birds lose their strength by a passage across the sea.
The judgment of God subsequent to the gratification of their insa-
tiable lust presents a warning example. God in his anger will
sometimes hear the foolish prayers of men, while the real and mer-
ciful granting of our petitions often consists in this, that Provi-
* Cf. esp. RosetimüUer's Bibl. Natur. History, i. p. 316, etc. and Von
Raumer's Exode of the Israelites.
f Vide Josephus, Diodorus Siculus, aud modern travellers in Rosenmül-
ler's Schol. in Exodum. chap. 16.
PSALM LXXVIII. 333
dence supplies something different from what we had prayed for.
The Divine indignation fell also upon the strength and the youth
of Israel, to show that the strong could not in reliance upon their
strength presume to measure themselves with God, or to rebel
against him. (Ps. cxlvii. 10, 11.)
V. 32, 33. The miracles of the wrath, no less than those of the
mercy of God, however, made hardly any impression upon them,
so that the justice of God performed its last judgments in that not
one of those who had come out of Egypt should see the land of
promise which God had sworn to them. (Numb. xiv. 28, etc.}
V. 34 — 37. The punitive judgment of God produced, how-
ever, some effect: they came to themselves for days and weeks,
when the strokes of God fell too violently upon them : but where
penitence produced by fear does not issue in a turning to God in
faith and love, it will last no longer than till the last thunderings
of Divine wrath have died away. Their penitence struck no roots.
" It fell upon stony ground, and because it had no root it withered
away." The Psalmist had spoken (v. 8,) of the apostacy and dis-
ohedience of the people; he now speaks of their cfiangeability and
the untrustiness of their repentance.
V. 38, 39. Who can forbear trembling on meditating upon the
various scourges of God which are already now in the world, while
we live in the time of longsuffering, where God desires to lead sin-
ners through mercy to repentance? If now the cup of wrath is
only poured out half, what will it be when it shall be wholly emp-
tied? The Psalmist says that in spite of all the punishments on
the people in the wilderness, God did not stir up all his wrath, but
exerted his sparing mercy. In his wisdom and goodness he has
made provision for the temptations and difficulties which surround
helpless and needy mortals : he is not the hard master who would
reap where he has not sown. (Matt. xxv. 24.)
V. 40 — 43. Moses, (Numb. xiv. 22,) speaks often great tempt-
ings of God in the wilderness, which were reprehensible in propor-
tion to the miraculous assistance of God, and the unfailing certainty
with which temporal transgression was succeeded by temporal pun-
ishment. The Psalmist now reverts to the miracles in Egypt, to
which he had made allusion in v. 12.
V. 44 — 51. The miracles of Egypt, the ten plagues, of which
the Psalmist enumerates only a few, were natural phenomena as
they occur in that country in this day; but in the days of Moses
they had miraculously accumulated and intensified, that Pharaoh
should know, that not he in his pride, but Jehovah, was the true
king of Egypt, vide Exod. viii. 22. The waters of the river Nile,
the usually sweet drink of the Egyptians, turn at a certain season
of the year reddish, like blood, (Joel iii. 4 shows that the reference
is only to the colour of blood;) and though the waters tisually con-
tinue drinkable in that condition, yet they became loathsome to the
taste of the Egyptians. Musquitoes, which under ordinary circum-
334 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
stances area great plague in Egypt, and frogs, multiplied; locusts,
which are less frequent, destroyed the crops; terrific tempests,
accompanied by hail, discharged upon the cattle, the vineyards,
and trees, while the pestilence slayed the firstborn,*
V. 52 — 55. The weak nation, accustomed to the work of slaves,
would never have freed themselves by the force of arms. God
himself led them forth as a shepherd does his flock. He gave thetn
sensible evidence that he was marching before them, and yet they
were afraid, as we read Exod. xiv. 11; but that fear sprung from
their unfathomable unbelief. Nevertheless, the mercy of the God
of Abraham brought their descendants into the land of promise,
that mountainous country which was the object of Joshua's long-
ing.f
V. 56 — 58. The Psalmist speaks of the second generation, (Cf.
ad. verse 33,) but instead of being warned by the example of their
fathers, they imitated it. The Psalmist refers especially to the
times of the Judges, when the large mass of the nation reverted to
idolatry, set up idols, and idolatrous high places, unmindful of the
words of Moses. (Lev. xxvi. 30, cf. with Numb, xxxiii. 52.)
V. 59 — 61. Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, used already
in the wilderness to march immediately behind the sanctuary,
(Numb. X. 21—24; ii. 18—24; Psalm. Ixxx. 3;) and when the
nation came to rest, the sanctuary was placed at Shiloh, in the
tribe of Ephraim. Israel marched against their enemies under the
banner of Ephraim, and the ignominy of Israel fell also on Ephraim's
head; and Ephraim deserted the ark of the covenant. Terror
seized upon the Philistines when they heard that the ark had
marched out against them. When the news reached them they
exclaimed, "Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of
these mighty gods? These are the gods that smote the Egyptians
with all the plagues in the wilderness!" But the banner of
Ephraim gave way, and the ark of the covenant fell into the hands
of the Philistines. (1 Sam. iv.)
V. 62 — 64. Then followed the humiliation of the whole nation,
as it is described in thef books of Samuel. The high-priests Hophni
and Phinehas died in that battle, in which thirty thousand men of
Israel fell. The widow of Phinehas died of terror, and her last
words were, "The glory is departed from Israel, because the ark of
God is taken." (1 Sam. iv. 21, 22; Job. xxvii. 15.)
V. 65 — 68. Then the Lord, like a hero awaking refreshed from
sleep, once more protected the nation under David, to avenge the
* Cf. Hengstenberg's Moses and Egypt, p. 93, etc. EosenmüUer's
Ancient and Modern East, vol. i. p. 275, etc.
f Deut. iii. 25. Though Israel did not at once upon their possession of
the country take Mount Zion, the reference may be to Mount Zion as the
ultimate goal of the possession of the whole country. It is, however, bet-
ter to regard jTf as in Psalm Ixviii. 9 ; civ. 25, and »^»^, as is often the case
in the sense of a mountain range.
PSALM LXXIX. 335
ancient reproacli of the Philistines. But he chose him a new tribe
and a new dwelling-place.
V. 69 — 72. Sublime as in the heavens, and established like the
earth upon eternal rocks, he fixed his sanctuary on that hill of
which the prophets afterwards said, that "it should be exalted
above the hills, and that all nations should flow unto it." (Isaiah
ii. 2.) The faithful shepherd of his flocks of sheep, who tenderly
cared for the suckling ewes, was called to become the shepherd
of men. (So 1 Chron. xviii. 7.) He now feeds his people, as once
he fed his flocks with faithfulness and his sheep with diligence.
He who fears the works and the ways of the Lord is sure to
acknowledge him.
PSALM LXXIX.
A PSALM of complaint, composed in the days of Israel's calamity.
Though the burning and destruction of the temple are not speci-
fied as in Psalm Ixxiv. the reference is nevertheless to the same
event, and the composition of the poem must have taken place
after the consummation of the calamity that had come upon the
city, for Jerusalem is said to have become a heap of stones, (v. 1,)
the whole country laid waste, (v. 7,) and neighbouring nations to
have taken vengeance upon Israel, (v. 12.) The spoiling of the
temple by Nebuchadnezzar had taken place in the reigns of Jehoia-
kim and Jeconiah, and the country had greatly suffered from the
invasions of the foe. But a destruction like that which is implied
in the phraseology of the present psalm had not occurred at that
time, since Nebuchadnezzar only carried off the innocent Jeconiah
and established in his stead his uncle Zedekiah as tributary king,
that Israel might continue in vassalage. (Cf. ad. Ps. Ixxiv. and xliv.)
Deeply alive to the degradation of Israel by heathen nations, the
Psalmist describes the sufi'erings of this nation and of the holy city
in particular, (v. 1 — 4;) he invokes the punitive judgment of God
upon the heathen, and his forgiving mercy upon the sins of his
nation, (v. 5 — 9 ;) he presumes to remind the Lord that the igno-
miny of the nation is his own, and demands a due requital. He
jromises to God songs of praise such as none other than his own
people are able to render, (v. 10 — 13.)
A
PSALM of Asaph.
0 God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance;
Thy holy temple have they defiled;
They have laid Jerusalem on heaps.
336 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
2 The dead bodies of thy servants have they given
To he meat unto the fowls of the heaven,
The flesh of thy saints
Unto the beasts of the earth.
3 Their blood have they shed like water round about Jeru-
salem ;
And there was none to bury them.
4 We are become a reproach to our neighbours,
A scorn and derision to them that are round about us.
5 How long, Lord ? wilt thou be angry for ever ?
Shall thy zeal burn like fire?
6 Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not
known thee.
And upon the kingdoms that have not called 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 mercies speedily prevent us :
For we are brought very low.
9 Help us, 0 God of our salvation,
For the glory of thy name :
And deliver us, and purge away our sins.
For thy name's sake.
10 Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God?
Let there be known among the heathen in our sight
The avenging of the blood of thy servants ivhich is shed.
11 Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee;
According to the greatness of thy power
Preserve the children of death :
12 And render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom
Their reproach, wherewith they have reproached thee, 0
Lord.
13 So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture
Will give thee thanks for ever :
We will show forth thy praise to all generations.
V. 1 — 4. Not in common warfare but with unheard-of fury had
the heathen done outrage to the holy places and their inhabitants.
In their arrogance they regarded the possession of God as their
own. They treated the' temple as if He had ceased to exist to
whose honour it had been built. Not content with the massacre
of the servants of the God of Israel, they refused to them the last
PSALM LXXX. 337
honours, in leaving their corpses unburied as meat for the birds of
prey and jackals. Neighbouring nations, who had for centuries
been the witnesses tbat Israel bad the Lord fur their Shepherd,
raised the voice of derision, which with the people fell also upon
their God.
V. 5 — 9. Their degradation had continued unpunfshed for some
time already. Shall the heathen not now as in days of old be
brought to the knowledge that the King of kings is ruler in Israel ?
The Psalmist is nevertheless aware that the heathen are only instru-
ments in the hands of the Lord. He therefore prays for forgive-
ness of the sins of the nation, who not only on account of present
iniquity, but on account of the transgression of their ancestors, had
deserved the visitation of Divine anger. He prays for deliverance
not on account of any merits or virtues which they possess — but for
his name's sake, /or Jus name's sake.
V. 10 — 13. When God has so intertwined his name with that
of his people, and his own honour so intimately interwoven with
the history of his people, as in the case of Israel, does it not follow,
that the destiny of his nation affects the honour of his name? The
Psalmist cannot resist the desire that the shed blood should not
remain unavenged. The sighing of the prisoners (cf. ad. Ps.
Ixix. 34) is too piteous, and those that are left have almost fallen
a prey to death. The heathen nations had used the language of
derision and aided in the destruction of Jerusalem, (Ezek. xxv. 12,
etc.; Jer. xlvii.; Obad. 10, etc.; Ps. cxvii.;) in reproaching Israel
they had reproached the Covenant-God of Israel. The Psalmist in
praying for the requital of their reproach, supplicates the vindica-
tion of his God. When other nations are delivered from a degrading
condition they praise their fate or dumb idols. Israel only knows
who is their Shepherd, to whom they owe their pasture, therefore
Israel promises, if spai-ed through their present night of tribulation,
to show forth the praises of the living God.
PSALM LXXX.
A SONG of complaint, composed at a time when the worst had not
yet happened to Israel, but when various heathen nations were
wasting the country: we cannot determine whether its composition
took place in the days of the idolatrous monarchs before Josiah, or
in the period of tribulation before the reign of Zedekiah.
The author of this beautiful psalm recalls the times of old, when
29
338 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the Lord used to marcTi before his people, on their going out to
battle, (v. 2 — 4.) But in the present time, tears are the meat
and drink of the nation, which alternately falls into the hands of
neighbours or of the foe, (v. 5 — 8;) and yet the Lord himself had
miraculously planted that vine and given it room to spread.
Why should it now be undermined by wild beasts? (v. 9 — 15.)
Shall its planter quietly look on, when it is treated like a weed?
(v. 16 — 20.) Each strophe concludes with emphatic cries for
deliverance.
1 n^O the chief Musician, to the tune "the lilies of the
JL law," A Psalm of Asaph.
2 Give ear, 0 Shepherd of Israel,
Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock ;
3 Thou that dwellest hetiveen the cherubim, shine forth.
Before Ephraim, and Benjamin, and Manasseh, stir up
thy strength,
And come and save us.
4 Turn us again, 0 God, and cause thy face to shine;
And we shall be saved.
5 0 Lord God of hosts,
How long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy
people ?
6 Thou feedest them with the bread of tears ?
And givest them tears to drink in great measure.
7 Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours :
And our enemies laugh among themselves.
8 Turn us again, 0 God op hosts,
And cause thy face to shine; and we shall be
saved.
9 Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt :
Thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it.
10 Thou preparedst rooin before it.
And didst cause it to take deep root.
And it filled the land.
11 The hills were covered with the shadow of it,
And the boughs thereof were like the cedars of God.
12 She sent out her boughs unto the sea,
And her branches unto the river (Euphrates.)
13 Why hast thou then broken down her hedges.
So that all they which pass by the way do pluck her ?
14 The boar out of the wood doth waste it ;
And the wild beast of the field doth devour it.
psalm lxxx. 339
15 Return, we beseech thee, 0 God of hosts:
Look down from heaven, and behold, and visit
this vine.
16 And protect that which thy right hand hath planted.
And the branch (or, "the son") that thou madest strong
for thyself.
17 It is burned with fire, it is cut down :
They perish at the rebuke of thy countenance.
18 Let thy hand be upon the man of thy right hand.
Upon the son of man ivJiom thou madest strong for thyself.
19 So will not we go back from thee:
Quicken us, and we will call upon thy name.
20 Turn us again, 0 Lord God of hosts.
Cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved.
V. 2 — 4. The Psalmist prays for the return of the glorious
days of old, when the ark of the Lord headed the armies of his
people; he therefore calls the God of Israel the Shepherd who
goes before his flock. Joseph stands for Israel. (Ps. Ixxvii. 16;
Ixxxi. 6; Obad. 18.) The three tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh,
and Benjamin, the three sons of Rachel, (Numb. ii. 18 — 24;
X. 21 — 24,) went immediately behind the ark. Whenever the ark
arose against the enemy, (Numb. x. 35,) Moses used to exclaim,
''Hise up. Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered; and let them
that hate thee flee before thee." The Psalmist repeats this excla-
mation. *' Cause thy face to shine upon us," was the blessing of
Aaron; the Psalmist prays for the renewal of that blessing.
V. 5 — 8. The Psalmist solemnly addresses God as the Lord
God of hosts, because he supplicates him to fight for his people.
Though only certain numbers of the chosen servants of God among
the people sought for aid from heaven, the Psalmist expresses
himself as if the whole nation were praying. If they had really
sent with one voice their prayers to heaven they would never have
been rejected, for great is the strength when a whole nation of one
accord, as it were like one man, importunes the Lord of heaven !
No doubt they had all their share in the tears, though certainly
not in the prayers. Their bread was so steeped in tears that they
became their food, and so copious was their weeping that their
tears became their drink. (Psalm xlii. 4.) He speaks of their
neighbours and enemies as if diff"erent nations had successively
invaded Palestine, as e. g. it was the case under Jehoiakim:
shortly before him Pharaoh Necho had conquered Jerusalem and
deposed Joash; then followed the invasion of Nebuchadnezzar;
and according to 2 Kings xxiv. 2, the Syrians, Moabites, and
Ammonites attacked the nation towards the close of Jehoiakim's
reign.
340 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 9 — 14. The prophets have often represented the people of
God by the figure of the noble vine. (Isaiah v. 1 — 7; xxvii. 2 — 6j
Jer. xii. 10; u. 21; Hos. xiv. 8; Ezek. xvii. 3—10; xix. 10. The
symbol of a very large golden vine was therefore suspended above
the gate of the vestibule of the temple. The noble vine was taken
from Egypt, and its culture also took place in Lower Egypt, where
the Israelites dwelt; but room was given it in Canaan to grow and
spread. She sent her roots far into the earth, and her tendrils
high up to the skies, so that she overshadowed mountains and
darkened the lofty cedars.* She spread abroad, from the Mediter-
ranean to Syria, to the river Euphrates, to those borders which
Moses had promised (Exod. xxiii. 31,) and David secured to the
kingdom. But the hedge which used to surround the vineyard is
now broken down. (Isaiah v. 5.) Not only may all who pass by
pluck ofi" her grapes, but the wild beasts of the forest come to des-
troy her, and the boar undermines the soil.
V. 15 — 20. But even the darkest days cannot be sufficiently
gloomy to prevent faith retaining the hope that a vine which God
had planted with so much tender care should not lie near to his
heart. God may cause a people which he has brought up to
endure great afflictions, but when their chastisement is consum-
mated, he will once more vouchsafe his aid. "0 that my people
had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways. I
should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand
against their adversaries." But afflicted Israel often forgot that
God never turns his hand until it has accomplished its end with
his people. Asaph and a few like-minded persons might have
promised, that though chastised by the rod of God, they would not
leave him if he were to remove the rod. But if only a few noble
plants were left among all the people, they were obliged, in agree-
ment with the Divine arrangements, to share the stroke which fell
upon the whole nation, just as the single member must share the
disease which aft'ects the whole body. Believers should then com-
fort themselves in the faith that that which happens to others as a
just recompense is to them a cori-ective, which, provided they con-
tinue in the fear of the Lord, is sure to issue in their ultimate
advantage. We may then have the assurance which is repeatedly
expressed in this psalm, that the gloomiest and thickest darkness
may cease at any moment, that every wound may be healed, as
soon as the Lord is pleased to lift up the light of his countenance.
* Rof=ennmller, The East, iv. 89, speaking of the Persian vines, says,
"The plant rises to the loftiest heights above the highest trees."
PSALM LXXXI. 341
PSALM LXXXI.
A PASSOVER psalm, which contains at the same time a sermon of
God to his people. Verse 6 shows that the passover is meant.*
Asaph, the cotemporary of David, is probably the author. It is
very probable that this psalm was sung when the pious Hezekiah
solemnized his large passover at Jerusalem, to which he had
actually invited apostate Israel into, and there came indeed some
of Ashar, Mana.sseh, and Zebulun, to worship at Jerusalem, in the
place which the Lord had commanded them. (2 Chron. xxx. 11.)
We know that then some of the Psalms of David and of Asaph
were sung, (2 Chron. xxix. 30:) and the address of the Deity in
this psalm is peculiarly applicable to that portion of the kingdom
of Israel which had forsaken the Lord.
The Psalmist joyfully begins with the exhortation to solemnize
the passover according to the Divine injunction, with pleasant
music and the psaltery, (v. 2 — 6.) He then introduces God as
speaking, as He had addressed his people from Sinai, (v. 7 — 11.)
He then, like the prophets, filled by the Holy Ghost, complains in
the name of God of the former obstinacy of Israel, and gives them
promises on condition of their faithfulness, (v. 12. 17.)
1 ^0 the chief Musician, to the tune of Gath, A Psalm
JL of Asaph.
2 Sing aloud unto God our strength:
Make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob.
3 Raise a psalm and strike the timbrel.
The pleasant harp with the psaltery.
4 Blow up the trumpet in the new moon,
In the full moon, on our solemn feast day.
5 For this is a statute for Israel,
And a la-w of the God of Jacob.
6 This he ordained in Joseph /or a testimony,
When he went out against the land of Egypt :
Where I heard a language that I understood not :
7 "I removed his shoulder from the burden:
His hands were delivered from the basket.
8 Thou calledst in trouble, and I delivered thee ;
I answered thee in the sacred place of thunder :
I proved thee at the waters of strife. Selah.
9 Hear, 0 my people, and I will testify unto thee.
0 Israel, if thou wilt hearken unto me ;
* Lutlier renders verse 4, "In our feast of tabernacles."
29*
342 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
10 There shall no strange god be in thee;
Neither shalt thou -worship any strange god.
11 I am the Lord thy God,
"Which brought thee out of the land of Egypt :
Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it."
12 But my people will not hearken to my voice;
And Israel would none of me.
13 So I gave them up unto the imaginations of their hearts;
That they might walk in their own counsels.
14 0 that my people would hearken unto me.
And Israel walk in my ways !
15 I should soon subdue their enemies,
And turn my hand against their adversaries.
16 The haters of the Lord should be forced to homage,
And their time should endure for ever.
17 He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat ;
And with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied
thee.
V. 2 — 4. The Sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual
feasts of Israel were days of thanksgiving and joy. On those occa-
sions thanksgivings are returned partly for the goodness of God in
the historic guidance of Israel, partly for his annual blessings in
the kingdom of nature. (Deut. xvi. 11. 14; cf. Numb. x. 10.)
Hence at the occasion of the passover, the Psalmist calls for the
Levites, upon whom it devolved to tune the hearts to gladness by
the joyous sound of musical instruments. He calls for joyous
psalms accompanied by the solemn-sounding tambourine, the clear
notes of the harp and lute, bidding them to give the signal with
the majestic voice of the bugle at the beginning of the month,
(namely, new moon,) and in the midst of the month (namely, full
moon,) for the festive gathering of all the people at the sanctuary.
Sacrifice used to be accompanied by the sound of silver trumpets.
(Numb. X. 10.)
V. 5, 6. Godly people regard the joy and peace of religious
festivities as divine gifts. God gave Israel the privilege of rejoic-
ing at those days. They may, yea, they shall rejoice; for the
passover is the memorial of the time when God entered into cove-
nant with his people — when after they had forgotten him, he spoke
to them by words and works. The giving of the law did indeed
not occur until three months after the exode from Egypt. But
since the deliverance from the Egyptian thraldom was Israel's obli-
gatory tie for the covenant of Sinai, and since God had brought
them out of Egypt, for the very purpose of their becoming the peo-
ple of his inheritance, the deliverance and the giving of the law
PSALM LXXXI. 84B
might be conceived as intimately connected. (Exod. six. 3 — 8.)
The passover may be said to be the festival of the birth and life of
Israel.
V. 7 — 11. The Lord revealed himself and made known his
name to his people at the exode and the giving of the law. He
was the same God whom their fathers knew, but whom, under the
pressure of the yoke of Egypt, and while surrounded by an idolatrous
nation, they had forgotten. (Exod. iii. 13; Amos v. 25,26.) He
spoke by a mighty act when he removed the burden which so heavily
pressed upon their shoulders. There are still existing £g^j)tian
sculjJtwes, ivhich re23resent the Israelites with the vessels in which they
carried the clay and the tiles. He answered their cry in sending aid
by the tempest which destroyed their pursuers. (Psalm Ixxvii. 19.)
He manifested himself to them by his miracles in the desert.
(Numb. XX. 10 — 12.) Having done so much for his people, he wag
fairly entitled to exact their obedience: he had established the
claims of his all-suffigiency for them, that they should not go to
seek for help elsewhere. These were the demands which God put
forth from Sinai, and of these the Psalmist here reminds them;
and more than this, God, in his injSnite compassion, actually invited
the nation as it were to test his all-sufficiency. Let them open
their hearts and mouths ever so wide, he would fill them; as infants
and young birds are fed by their mothers, so he would satisfy them.
(Psalm ciii. 5.)
V. 12, 13. But the people were not satisfied with a God like
him, and the God of Israel had to complain, " Israel will none of
me." (Jer. ii. 5.) He gave them up and made them experience
their nothingness without him. Man will return to the all-suffi-
cient God, though by circuitous and thorny paths, if some tender
parts continue in his heart; but if these are gone, then the judg-
ment of induration will ensue.
V. 14 — 17. Is there a human heart that can remain unmoved
on beholding the love of a superior despised by his inferior — say
that of a king by a beggar? Should not the stones be moved ou
hearing God complain, that his people has despised him? Why
does He complain? Does it impoverish Him? Does the spring
suffer hurt, when a thirsty fool would rather perish than drink its
waters? No, God, who is rich in mercy, complains of his despised
love, because Hehath no 'pleasure in the death of the wicked. How
great is the chain of testimony, furnished by the books of the
history of Israel, showing that Israel was only then happy, when
they hearkened to the Lord. The foolish people often complained
in dark days, that their peace was far off when it was close at
hand, for as the Lord here promises, He would soon have delivered
them from all their enemies. But they hewed themselves broken
cisterns, and forsook the fountain of living waters. (Jer. ii. 13.)
The various and noble blessings which they might enjoy are here
344 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
depicted to them by tlie figure of temporal goods, of fine wheat,
oil, and honey, which God can cause to flow out of rocks. (Deut.
xxxii. 13.) But such is man, he complains that his happiness is
far away, and in departing from his Q-od, he departs from his
happiness.
PSALM LXXXII.
A PSALM of complaint against unjust judges.
The corruption of judicial administration during several epochs
of the Jewish kingdom, appear from passages like Isaiah i.;
Amos ii.; Mic. vii. The high demands which truly pious mon-
archs put upon their judges, and which in the main agree with this
psalm, appear from the address of Jehoshaphat to the judges,
whom he had instituted. (2 Chron. xix. 5 — 7.) He said to
them, " Take heed what ^e do: for ye judge not for man, but for
the Lord, toho is ivith i/oii in the judgment. Wherefore noio let
the fear of the Lord he vpon you: take heed and do it: for there is
no iniquity tcith the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor
taking of gifts."
The Psalmist beholds the Lord as it were visibly stepping
among his representatives on earth as Judge Supreme, calling
them to account, because of their undermining and destroying the
distinctions between right and wrong, for the preservation of which
they had been instituted, (v. 2 — 4.) Deluded, they hear not —
therefore the foundations of the earth begin to move, (v. 5.)
They are addressed once more: "The office is indeed from the
Lord, but ye, the bearers thereof, are mortal men," (v. 6, 7.)
But from the conviction that even that admonition would prove
fruitless, the Psalmist calls upon the Judge Supreme, that He, to
whom everything which is opposed to the kingdom of God must
yield after all, would bring an effectual judgment on earth against
everything which opposes the Lord, (v. 8.)
^A
PSALM of Asaph.
God standeth in the congregation of the mighty :
He judgeth among the gods.
" How long will ye judge unjustly,
And take the part of the wicked ? Selah.
Secure right to the poor and fatherless :
Do justice to the afflicted and needy.
PSALM LXXXII. 345
4 Deliver the poor and needy:
Rid them out of the hand of the wicked."
5 They know not, neither will they understand ;
They walk on in darkness:
All the foundations of the earth totter.
6 "I have said, Ye are gods;
And all of you are children of the Most High.
7 But ye shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes."
8 Arise, 0 God, judge the earth:
For thou shalt inherit all nations.
V. 1. It is the congregation of Israel in which the Lord
appears as Judge Supreme, where no other judgment than that
which is according to his eternal laws is permitted. (Psalm
Ixxiv. 2; cxlix. 2.) Because it is the office of judges to distribute
recompense on earth in God's stead, and according to his justice
and laws, they are in the Pentateuch called "gods." (Exod.
xxii. 28.) They judge not for man, but as Jehoshaphat says, "/or
the Lord, who is with them in the judgment."
V. 2 — 4. The Judge Supreme had for a long time been lenient
to the unjust administrators of the divine office. Previous to his
exercising eifective judgments, he commissions his servants to pro-
claim the word of admonition. They make fellowship with the
unjust, who are like them, and for the sake of covetousness with-
hold justice from the poor and the fatherless, for whose protection
in particular earthly tribunals are invested with power. And is
God, who is called the father of the fatherless and the judge
of the widows, (Psalm Ixviii. 6,) and has said, "Cursed be he that
perverteth the judgment of the stranger, fatherless, and widow,"
(Deut. xxvii. 19,) to look at it with impunity? Here is the mighty
consolation of those who have no strength and support of their own,
that God, who has invested earthly tribunals with his power, for
the special purpose of protecting the helpless against oppressors,
will assuredly watch over their proceedings, and seize the sceptre
when his Judges pervert justice and become oppressors.
V. 5, 6. When mortals to whom God has lent strength forget
that their strength is only a loan, and presume to regard them-
selves as lords, then their proud hearts get enshrouded with dark-
ness and delusion so great that they become proof against all exhor-
tation. The effects of that perversion are plain. Where right-
eousness and justice are perverted into injustice, the foundations of
the earth get moved, for justice and law are the cements of fami-
lies and states.
V. 7. God speaks once more. He says, as it were, "I have
made you the bearers of My Godhead, the children of the Most
346 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
High, in whom by virtue of your office, and the power reposed in
that office, My Holy Godhead, which ruleth the world, may be seen
as if reflected in a glass — but you who are the bearers of that power
continue after all nothing more or less than what you are, mortal
men; you are like other men and other potentates (2 Sam. ix. 11;
Judges xvi. 7. 11; 1 Kings xix. 2) doomed to die; God in insti-
tuting you as his vicegerents means not to renounce his own judi-
cial office." Death, which levels all men, is the most effective
sermon for earthly rulers. Our Lord refers to this passage in John
X. 34, when the Jews reviled him in that he made himself equal
to God. "If he called them gods," said he, "unto whom the word
of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken, say ye of him,
whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, ' Thou
blasphemest,' because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not
the works of my Father, believe me not; but if I do, though ye
believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know and believe,
that the Father is in me and I in him." All this means, "If the
Scriptures confer the name of gods on those unjust judges, because
they are instituted to execute on earth the office and works of God,
how much less offence ought you to take at my saying, I and my
Father are one, I all whose works reveal the glory of the Father
on earth."
V. 8. Aware that most of the potentates and nobles of the earth
refuse to get wise by the thought of death, but that they think
because their lands are called after their own names, therefore their
houses shall continue for ever, (Ps. xlix. 12,) the Psalmist now
calls upon the Judge of the world to execute an effective judgment,
that mortals might know that they are vassals, and that he is the
only Lord and Master, to whom everything must yield which is
opposed to the kingdom of God. (Cf ad. Ps. lix. 6, and vii. 7.)
PSALM LXXXIII.
A PSALM of supplication, composed when many nations from beyond
Jordan and the South were threatening to destroy the people at
once. It was sung in the reign of Jehoshaphat, at the critical
juncture which is recorded 2 Chronicles xx. The chief enemies
were the Edomites, from Mount Seir, south of Palestine; the
Ishmaelites, an Arabian nation, who with the Midianites (Judges
viii. 22. 24) resided south-east in the vicinity of Moab; still more
to the east dwelt the Hagarenes, (1 Chron. v. 10; xix. 20,) — in
the neighbourhood of Amalek, to the south, near Edom, there was
Gebal — both Arabian tribes; the Ammonites lived in the east in
PSALM LXXXIII. 347
the clircction of Syria: to these came from the north-west Philistia
and Tyre, and from the north the remote Assyria. It appears from
verse 9 that the first-named lesser tribes, viz. the children of Lot
(i. e. Ammon and Moab,) were their chief enemies. 2 Chronicles
XX. states that a mighty host of the Moabites and Ammonites, and
of the countries beyond Amnion,* had unexpectedly marched against
Jehoshaphat; also from Syria,"}" (v. 2;) so that the king in great
anxiety entered the temple and prayed, "0 Lord God of our
fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all
the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power
and might, so that none is able to withstand thee? They come to
cast us out of t'hy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
0 our God, wilt thou not judge them ? for we have no might against
this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what
to do: but our eyes are upon thee." And all Judah stood before
the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jehaziel, a Levite of the
sons of Asaph, who said, "Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabi-
tants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, thus saith the
Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great
multitude; for the battle is not yours but God's. To-morrow go
ye down against them : behold they come up by the cliff of Ziz, and
ye shall find them at the end of the valley before the wilderness of
Jeruel. Ye shall not need to fight in this battle : set yourselves,
stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, 0 Judah
and Jerusalem : fear not nor be dismayed : to-morrow go out against
them, for the Lord will be with you." Those nations were already
within a sixteen hours' march from Jerusalem. So far had they
advanced on the desert road along the Dead Sea. The next morn-
ing Jehoshaphat went to meet them, while the people and the
appointed singers were moving forward in the beauty of holiness,
and sang, "Praise the Lord, for his mercy endureth for ever."
And when they came to Mizpah, lo ! they found the earth covered
with dead bodies, with an abundance of riches and precious jewels,
for dissensions had arisen among the enemies, and the one had
killed the other; and Jehoshaphat and his people, laden with rich
spoil, returned to Jerusalem with psalteries, and harps, and trumpets,
unto the house of the Lord. It seems that all those tribes, as in a
migration of nations, had left their countries with all their riches,
* 2 Chron. xx. 1, should be rendered "beyond" instead "beside the
Ammonites."
f They marched round the southei'n point of the Dead Sea, "along the
same road which to this day is frequented by the Arabs on their predatory
excursions: it goes along the shore to Ain Dschedi (the well of goats;") to
this day there remains a rocjky pass, which goes up towards Jerusalem,
which in 2 Chronicles xx. 16 is called "Ziz." — Eobinson's Palestine, vol. ii.
p. 446.
348 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
to take at once possessioa of tlie land of Israel, as Jeliosliapliat and
the author of this psalm express it. (Cf. 2 Chron. xx. 11, with
Psalm Ixxxiii. 5. 13 ; cf. Keil on Chronicles, p. 246.) It is to be
noticed, that the Psalmist has intentionally selected from ancient
history the example of the Midianites, for as in the days of Jehos-
haphat, it was the Arabian tribes, who were then assembled,
"Midianites, Amalekites, Ishmaelites, and the children of the east;"
(Judges vi. 33; vii. 12; viii. 24,) the victory of Gideon moreover
coincides with this narrative, for it is said of the nations who fought
with Midian that "<Ae Lord set every 'inan's sword against his
felloio." (Judges vii. 22.) The examples of Sisera and Jabin may
possibly have been adduced because they were Canaanites (which
term included the Phoenicians, Obad. 20,) and may therefore con-
tain a more specific reference to enemies in the west. The historical
books give no account of an alliance of the Philistines and Assyrians
and the other nations, but their participation may have been like
that of the Syrians* of a mediate kind, as in the days of David
the Syrians came to the aid of the Ammonites, but had in their
turn to ask Mesopotamia for help, (2 Sam. x. 16;) or those nations
might simply have pi-omised their aid.
Since Jehoshaphat and his Levites are said to have gone forth
to meet the foe singing psalms, we may assume that it was this
psalm which they sang, and that the Levite of the sons of Asaph,
who is mentioned 2 Chron. xx. 14, is the author. He first invokes
the Lord for the manifestation of his power, since the foe contem-
plated nothing less than the total destruction of that nation which
was under his peculiar protection, (v. 2 — 5.) He reverts to ancient
history, considering that it would not be the first time that the
savage hordes of eastern nations had to succumb to the small band
of those who had the Lord for their ally, (v. 6 — 13.) The people
of God pray for victory, not only for the sake of temporal benefit,
but that all the kingdoms of the earth should know that the nation
which to a man confides in the Lord, may rely on him in times of
the most imminent peril, (v. 14 — 19.)
^A
SONG or Psalm of Asaph.
2 Keep not thou silence, 0 God :
Hold not thy peace, and be not still, 0 God.
3 For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult:
And they that hate thee have lifted up the head.
4 They have taken crafty counsel against thy people,
And consulted against thy hidden ones.
* Possibly 2 Chron. xx. 2, and 2 Sam. viii. 13, ought, according to another
reading, to be rendered "Edom" inatead of "Aram."
PSALM LXXXIII. 349
5 They have said, " Come, and let us cut them off from
being a nation;
That the name of Israel maybe no more in remembrance."
6 For they have consulted together with one consent:
They are confederate against thee:
7 The tents of Edom, and the Ishmaelites;
Of Moab, and the Hagarenes ;
8 Gebal, and Ammon, and Amalek;
The Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre ;
9 Assur also is joined with them:
He lends his arm to the children of Lot. Selah.
10 Do unto them as unto the Midianites;
As to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the brook of Kison :
11 Which perished at En-dor :
They became as dung for the earth.
12 Make their nobles like Oreb, and like Zeeb :
Yea, all their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunna:
13 Who said, "Let us take to ourselves
The houses of God in possession."
14 0 my God, make them like a wheel (or, "whirlwind;")
As the stubble before the wind.
15 As the fire burneth a wood,
And as the flame setteth the mountains on fire;
16 So persecute them with thy tempest.
And make them afraid with thy storm.
17 Fill their faces with shame ;
That they may seek thy name, 0 Lord.
18 Let them be confounded and troubled for ever;
Yea, let them be put to shame, and perish :
19 That men may know that thou, whose name alone is
JEHOVAH,
Art the Most High over all the earth.
V. 2 — 5. The God of Israel addressed his people, not only by
words, but by ivorks. In faith they now pray for such an utter-
ance by works. The foe has determined the destruction of that
nation, to which it has been said, "He that toucheth you, toucheth
the apple of his eye." (Zech. ii. 8.) Ought not a people to whom
this is said cast all their care upon God, though the whole world
should rise up against them? Yea", they who lift up their bead
against them virtually lift it against their Covenant-God.
V. 6 — 10. The children of Lot come as enemies. The tribes,
whom Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt, had spared,
(2 Chron. xx. 10,) come now to requite their good with evil.
30
350 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Philistia, their old hereditary foe, has lent his aid, and as remote
Mesopotamia strengthened the king of Syria by her forces when he
marched against David, so now were the resources of the enemy
increased from Syria or Assyria. The Psalmist probably mentions
intentionally the name of the most distant nation.
V. 11 — 13. The day of Midian. The heart of an Israelite
beats high at the remembrance of that day. "Thoii hast broken
the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his
oppressor, as in the day of Midian." Such is the jubilant exclama-
tion of Isaiah while about to describe the advent of the great king-
dom of peace under Messiah. (Isa. ix. 4.) On that day Gideon,
with three hundred valiant men^ routed the people, "who lay along
in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and whose camels
were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude."
(Judges vii. 12.) On that day they cried, " The sioord of the Lord
and of Gideon," and all their enemies were scattered. The Lord
had then verified the words which the prophet had now told to
Jehoshaphat, *' Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great
multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's." So it happened
also when Deborah, the heroic woman, went with Barak against
Sisera, the captain of the Philistines, and a woman smote a nail
in his temples, (Judges iv. 21;) when Deborah sang, "They fought
from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera."
(Judges V. 20.) Their captains should fall like Oreb and Zeeb,
the captains of the Midianites; and their kings like Zebah and
Zalmunna, the kings of the Midianites, who in reliance on human
strength had resolved to take the possession of God.
V. 14 — 19. All their might and power are to pass away swift
and light as the stubble before the wind, as the splendour of the
mountain wood, when the tempest sets it on fire from the base to
its proud summit. The Psalmist contemplates even in their fall
nothing but the glory of God. They should learn to know and
seek the power of that name which they had insulted in His cove-
nant people. History concludes the record of that miracle of the
Lord in these words, "And the fear of the Lord was on all the
kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the Lord fought
against the enemies of Israel." (2 Chron. xx. 29.) This was a
revelation of the arm of the Lord similar to that when he struck
Sennacherib with the plague under the walls of Jerusalem.
PSALM LXXXIV.
A SONG expressive of longing for the sanctuary at Jerusalem, sung
by the Levites at Mahauaim; which one of David's Levites, placing
PSALM LXXXIV. 351
Liraself in his royal master's position, composed during his flight
before Absalom, when they were at Mahanaim, beyond Jordan.
(Cf. ad. Psalms xlii. xliii. Ixiii.)
Verses 10, 11, clearly show that this psalm refers to a king, who
remote from the sanctuary feels an intense longing for it. No other
kings were in exile before the destruction of Jerusalem beside the
wicked Manasseh and Jeconiah. It cannot have been composed
for the former, nor is it likely that it was for the latter, since in
that case there would certainly be some reference to the ignominy
of the nation at that time. Psalm xlii. 7 shows that it relates to
the flight of David. We know that he (Psalms xxiii. xxvii. Ixi.
Ixiii. ; 2 Sam. xv. 25, 26,) longed for the sanctuary as his highest
possession.
This beautiful psalm is replete with the peace of Grod. The
longing for the sanctuary is symbolical of thirst for communion
with God, (v. 2 — 5.) The procession to the house of God is sym-
bolical of a walk in God and with God, which goes from strength
to strength. The measure of the vividness of the Psalmist's con-
templation is also the measure of the intensity of his prayer for
his king, to be once more favoured with the sight of the sanctuary.
He concludes in the confidence that he has not prayed in vain,
(v. 10—13.)
1 n^O the chief Musician, to the tune of Gath, a Psalm of
JL the sons of Korah.
2 How amiable are thy tabernacles, 0 Lord of hosts !
3 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth
For the courts of the Lord : my heart and my flesh rejoice
In the living God.
4 Yea, the sparrow hath found an house,
And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay
her young.
Near thine altars, 0 Lord of hosts,
My King, and my God.
5 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house :
They will be still praising thee. Selah.
6 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee ;
Who in their heart remember thy ways.
7 Who passing through the vale ©f tears* make it a well ;
The rain also covereth it with blessings.
8 They go from strength to strength,
Every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
* This is probably the same shrub which the Arabs still call "Baca,"
from its distilling an odoriferous gum, from the verb, "Bacha, to distil
like tears." — Translator.
352 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 0 Lord G-od of hosts, hear my prayer :
Give ear, 0 God of Jacob. Selah.
10 Behold, 0 God, our shield,
And look upon the face of thine anointed.
11 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand.
I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God,
Than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
12 For the Lord God is a sun and shield: -
The Lord will give grace and glory:
No good thing will he withhold
From them that walk uprightly.
13 0 Lord of hosts.
Blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.
V. 2 — 5. The recollection of his former enjoyments in the
vicinity of the sanctuary causes the Psalmist to strengthen his long-
ing for the sanctuary by introducing into *it his own feelings
towards the Lord. His soul longs for the courts,* for he was a
Levite and not a priest. Priests only were permitted to approach
the inner sanctuary. His humility is great, for the privilege of
passing its very threshold is enough to fill him with rapturous
delight. His longing, like that of the king in Psalm Ixiii. 2, 8,
weakens both heart and flesh. His soul rejoiceth in the living
God. Yes, it must have been the living God, who makes himself
felt and tasted by his people — none other than he could have
infused yearnings for communion with him so great as to consume
both body and soul. Irrational creatures, such as the sparrow and
the swallow, unable to prize their privilege, enjoy what the bard
and his king are deprived of Ancient nations — the Arabs among
their number — used to grant an asylum to birds within the sacred
precincts of their temples, and even the buildings themselves.
The walls of the Tabernacle were wooden, a yard deep, hung with
carpets, and oyer these there was a double leather-hanging: the
courts contained columns with capitals, where birds might easily
build their nests. We have no information respecting the arrange-
ment of the Tabernacle of Zion. The Psalmist probably refers to
the sacred precincts, since the expression, " thine altars," cannot
be understood in a strictly literal sense. The reason of the Psalm-
* The ancient Tabernacle had only one court, the court of the priests.
This passage suggests therefore the idea of the Temple, (of. Ixv. 5 ; xcvi. 8;
c. 4;) but, 1 — the plural may be poetically used instead of the singular;
2 — the court of the Tabernacle may already have had a compartment for
the people, (Iken antig: sacra. ;) 8 — the bard may refer to the courts of the
two sanctuaries, that on Zion as well as the Tabernacle, (cf. xv. 1.) The
Tabernacle on Zion had two, and the Tabernacle several doorkeepers.
(1 Chron. xvi. 38. 42.)
PSALM LXXXV. 353
ist's longing for the house of God is expressed in the words,
*' Blessed are they that dwell in thy house : they shall praise thee
for evermore." His soul longs for the praise of the Lord in the
holy congregation. How much is needed until we find the greatest
delight of our lives in the praise of the Lord I
V. 6 — 8. His imagination depicts the blessedness of being per-
mitted to go up to Zion ; he probably alludes to the holy pilgrims,
who used to go up to Jerusalem to the three great feasts, singing
psalms. The processions to the sanctuary are to him symbolical
of a walk of communion with Grod. The tears which are shed on
that road become rich fountains — yea, like the latter rain, which
ripens the crops and yields rich blessings. This is the blessing of
the tears which are shed in faith. Every station on that way yields
new strength, and thus they go on — though weeping — on and ever
onwards till they at last arrive in Zion. Is there a more beautiful
figure of home-sick bearers of the cross who are on the pilgrimage
to the heavenly Zion ?
V. 9. He prays for that blessing. One so initiated in the
delights and secrets of communion with God as he, heard no doubt
the amen in his heart while he was yet praying.
V. 10, 11. The happiness of the Psalmist is intimately allied
to that of the king. He prays so earnestly for the happiness of
the latter, that it is clear to see that his own return to Zion depends
on that of the anointed of the Lord. He may have been one of
the doorkeepers, whom David had appointed on Zion and in the
Tabernacle. The house of God in itself could never have been as
delightful to him as was the communion with God, which he had
realized there more than anywhere else. He had enjoyed more
happiness in the courts of that communion with God, than is to be
enjoyed in the fulness of the houses of the ungodly.
V. 12, 13. A pious heart, under the influence of God, receives
from him what the material sun imparts to the outward man —
light, warmth, and joy. Armed hosts here threatened peril — the
band of David was small — but the Lord is a shield to his people,
and in him, and not in men, have they reposed their hope.
PSALM LXXXV.
A SONG of complaint, composed during the time subsequent to the
return of Israel from the captivity, when they had to contend
with want and misery in their recovered land, and with hostile
nations around them. Nehemiah, moved by their wretchedness,
had obtained the permission of king Artaxerses to go to their
assistance; but even then there were strife and want in the newly
SO*
354 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
founded city. (Neh. i. 3; chap, iv.) Psalm cxxvi. waa composed
under similar circumstances.
With a sense of unworthiness and guilt, the Psalmist (whose
language bears a strong resemblance to the prayer of Nehemiah)
regards it a great mercy that the Lord has turned the captivity,
though he tastes the remainder of the wrath of God in the calamity
and ignominy which still continue, (v. 2 — 8.) His faith assures
him of the Divine promise that the help of the Lord is at hand,
and he beholds in a vision the fulness of salvation, which is here-
after to come upon Zion, (v. 9 — 14.)
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah.
^T
2 Lord, thou hast been favourable unto thy land :
Thou hast turned the captivity of Jacob.
3 Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people,
Thou hast covered all their sin. Selah.
4 Thou hast taken away all thy wrath:
Thou hast turned thy self irova the fierceness of thine anger.
5 Turn us, 0 God of our salvation.
And cause thine anger towards us to cease.
6 Wilt thou be angry with us for ever?
Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations ?
7 Wilt thou not revive us again :
That thy people may rejoice in thee?
8 Show us thy mercy, 0 Lord,
And grant us thy salvation.
9 I will hear what God the Lord will speak :
For he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints :
If they turn not again to folly.
10 Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him;
That glory may dwell in our land.
11 Mercy and truth are met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
12 Truth shall spring out of the earth;
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
13 Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good ;
And our land shall yield her increase.
14 Righteousness shall go before him ;
And shall set us in the way of his steps.*
V. 2 — 8. The Lord had punished the apostasy of Israel by
delivering them into the hands of their oppressors and driving them
* Tholuck renders, "And he shall proceed in his Ways."
PSALM LXXXVT. 355
from the land of his Inheritance. That punishment bore its fruit.
The people tasted in it the anger of God; yea, they taste it in the
residue of their affliction. They know with David that " He hath
not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our
iniquities." (Psalm ciii. 10.) Hence they know, that though their
apostasy deserved everlasting anger, it would not yet last for ever.
The Psalmist is as sure of the mercy of God as he feels himself
conscious of guilt.
V. 9 — 14. God makes epochs in the life of his servants, so that
at times the transgressions of the past are forgiven and erased from
the book of his remembrance. Man may then begin anew. The
Psalmist predicts here such a time as coming, except new follies
should bring new chastisements. He sees salvation approaching.
It can only come when Israel shall be pure and holy. That shall
be the time of which Isaiah prophesies, "They shall not hurt nor
destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea " (Isa. ix. 9.)
The space between earth and heaven shall be filled with truth and
righteousness. The land shall abound in blessings. (Cf. ad. Psalm
Ixvii. 7.) The Lord himself shall come to his people, righteous-
ness shall be his harbinger, and none shall be able to stay him in
his course.
PSALM LXXXVI.
A PLAINTIVE psalm of David, which seems to date from the time
of the persecution of Saul. It is related to Psalm vi.
He prays in that assurance which springs from the knowledge of
a pious and sincere heart, (v. 2 — 4,) of great trouble, (v. 1. 6, 7,)
the certainty of Divine mercy, (v. 5,) and the power of Divine
omnipotence, (v. 8 — 10.) He prays above all to be kept in the
fear of the Lord, (v. 11,) having already richly experienced his
mercy, (v. 12, 13.) He may therefore hope for present deliver-
ance, and that protection which the Lord has promised to his chil-
dren, (v. 14—17.)
^A
PRAYER of David.
Bow down thine ear, 0 LoKD, hear me :
For I am poor and needy.
Preserve my soul ; for I am holy :
0 thou, my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
356 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
3 Be merciful unto me, 0 Lord :
For I cry unto thee daily.
4 Rejoice the soul of thy servant:
For unto thee, 0 Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive ;
And plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee :
6 Give ear, 0 Lord, unto my prayer;
And attend to the voice of my supplications.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee :
For thou wilt answer me.
8 Among the gods there is none like unto thee, 0 Lord :
Neither are there any works like unto thy works.
9 All nations whom thou hast made
Shall come and worship before thee, 0 Lord;
And shall glorify thy name.
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things :
Thou art God alone.
11 Teach me thy way, 0 Lord;
I will walk in thy truth:
Unite my heart to fear thy name.*
12 I will praise thee, 0 Lord my God, with all my heart:
And I will glorify thy name for evermore.
13 For great is thy mercy toward me :
And thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
14 0 God, the proud are risen against me.
And the assemblies of violent men have sought after my
soul;
And have not set thee before them.
15 But thou, 0 Lord, art a God full of compassion, and
gracious,
Longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
16 0 turn unto me, and have mercy upon me;
Give thy strength unto thy servant.
And save the son of thine handmaid.
17 Show me a token for good ;
That they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed:
Because thou, Lord, hast holpen me, and comforted me.
V. 1. Although our poverty and need are by no means the
highest and ultimate grounds on which the unanswerableness of
our prayers is based, it is nevertheless certain that God has declared
* Tholuck renders, "Keep my heart to the one thing — to fear thy name."
PSALM LXXXVT. 357
it to be his peculiar office to help the poor, "For the oppression of
the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the
Lord," (Psalm xii. 6 :) on the other hand, it is equally certain
that men do not begin to call upon the Lord, until the earth can
no longer satisfy them, and they feel that they are poor and needy.
V. 2 — 4. There is nothing more loathsome to God than hypo-
crisy. David knows this, and seeks to obtain the assurance of his
conscience that his love and trust in God are sincere, that he calls
upon him and longs for him more than for anything besides.
Should it be said, "If the confidence of prayer were based in this,
then the door of prayer would be shut to gross offenders," we
answer, that sincere repentance is an equally solid foundation for the
support of a praying sinner, and an equally potent means of pro-
tection for the encouragement of a doubtiog conscience.
V. 5 — 7. What would all human sincerity and holiness avail,
if God were to deal with us according to justice? David's first
support lies therefore in the love and mercy of God — which are
attainable on the one condition, that man call upon and seek the
Lord in his trouble. He applies that universal condition to him-
self, (v. 6,) declaring (v. 7,) that he had cried to the Lord not
effeminately nor on trivial grounds, but in trouble so great, that
none but he could send deliverance.
V. 8 — 10. There are two kinds of doubt which in temptation
interpose between ourselves and God — either, whether God loould,
or whether he could, help us. David had repelled the former, and
now shows that the latter also cannot prevail against him. When-
ever a human being on earth has obtained help, that help comes
from the Lord, for idols, the offspring of human thought, which
are worshipped by the heathen, are utterly impotent. The Psalmist
is so thoroughly affected by this truth, that he realizes the prophetic
presentiment that every nation should eventually worship Him.
He states this great hope with a profound allusion to its final cause,
namely, ^^ All the heathen whom thou hast made." Indeed no
greater contradiction is to be conceived than that the spirit derived
from God should for ever be unmindful of its origin. Verse 8
might give rise to the supposition that he referred to other gods
hesides the God of Israel. But who are the gods of the heathen,
if the God of Israel has made all the heathen ? He furnishes the
unmistakeable reply by saying in verse 10, "Thou art God alone."
V. 11. Although immersed in outward trouble, we find that the
Psalmist, after the manner of real men of prayer, prefaces the peti-
tion, "Give us this day our daily bread, and deliver us from evil,"
by the petition, "Let thy name be hallowed in me." He confesses
that his mind is as yet imperfectly illumined and his heart impei'-
fectly fixed on God; stamping as untrue every standard and rule
of life which is contrary to the eternal laws of God, he prays that
by growing enlightenment he might attain to a more perfect know-
358 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
ledge of the ways of God, and that all the interests and desires
which usually affect the hearts of men, might in his case hecome
subordinate to the one thing needful, "to fear the name of the
Lord."
V. 12, 13. He contemplates the paramount importance of his
petition, "to fear the name of the Lord with an undivided heart."
He has already experienced mercy so great and undeserved, that
his gratitude for it shall never cease. The deliverances of the
Lord ought to be received in such a manner that every one of them
should bring us a step nearer to heaven, and prompt us to serve
the Lord with a more undivided heart.
V. 14 — 16. He refers now to his outward trouble. His adver-
saries are they who have not set the Lord before them — who take
even offence at his filial piety, as appears from verse 17 and other
Psalms. The ground of his hope that the Lord would grant his
prayer lies neither in a sense of innocence, nor personal claims, to
which he feels himself entitled, but in that glorious name which
the Lord has given himself. (Exod. xxxiv. 6.) David appropri-
ates his share of the blessing, which lies in that name of the Lord,
not according to a specific prerogative, whether as king or a favour-
ite of Grod, but resting on a title which he held in common with
the meanest in Israel, that of a servant of God.
V. 17. His desire is that the whole world might see that none
trust the Lord in vain. His enemies had reproached the faith
which he had exhibited in his affliction. He prays that their
unbelief should be put to shame, which unfits them to think of a
living God, for ever working by love, and causes them to regard the
Lord as an indolent being, who, deaf to the cry of his children,
shuts himself up in heaven. These words do not, as some think,
necessarily imply David's asking for some specific or miraculous
token, (Psalm Ixxi. 7 :) he regards deliverance itself as a token.
We ask whether it be not true, that in the measure as we recog-
nize the mysteriously governing influence of God in every day
events, we regard those things as signs and miracles, which to
others appear as common-place ?
PSALM LXXXVII.
A GLORIOUS psalm. Its theme is the great hope of the conversion
of the world to the sanctuary of Zion. The supposition that its
date is to be referred to the time of the deliverance of Jerusalem
from Sennacherib, is highly probable, from the fact that several
psalms of the sons of Korah celebrate in consequence of that
event the praises of Jerusalem, (Psalm xlvi. xlviii. Ixxvi.) and
PSALM LXXXVII. 359
connect similar hopes with them. (Psalm xlvi. 11; Ixxvi. 12.) It
might he ohjected to this supposition, that Babylon and not Assy-
ria is mentioned as oiFering homage, and that Babylon did only then
begin to get more known in Palestine. But it may also be used as
a confirmation. It is said (Psalm Ixxvi. 12,) that the surrounding
nations should ofi"er gifts; we know also that Babylon sent an
embassy, (vide ad. Psalm xlviii. 10, 11;) and 2 Chron. xxxii. 23
states that other nations brought gifts for Hezekiah and the tem-
ple. As has been remarked ad. Psalm Ixxviii. 12, the probable
reference is to the Egyptians and the Ethiopians, who were equally
endangered by Sennacherib. Does this not render it probable that
the Psalmist should specify those nations which brought gifts, and
on that account name Babylon and be silent about Assyria?
Philistia may have belonged to them, since Hezekiah had but
lately reduced the Philistines to subjection. (2 Kings xviii. 8.)
Add to all this, that Isaiah, who wrote at that time, gives expres-
sion to similar hopes. He says of Ethiopia, "At that day shall a
present be brought to the Lord of hosts from the nation extended
and fierce — the people terrible from the district beyond (Meroe,)
a nation most mighty and victorious, whose land is cut through by
rivers, to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts, the Mount
Zion.'^ (Isaiah xviii. 7.) And of Egypt and Assyria, "In that
day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and Assyria, even a bless-
ing in the midst of the land, whom the Lord of hosts shall bless,
saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my
hands, and Israel mine inheritance." (Isa. xix. 24, 25.)
A
PSALM or Song of the Sons of Korah.
1 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 The Lord loveth the gates of Zion
More than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of thee,
0 city of God. Selah.
4 "I will name Rahab and Babylon among them that know
me:
Behold Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia;
These were born there."
5 And of Zion it shall be said,
This and that man was born in her :
And the highest himself shall establish her.
6 The Lord shall count, when he writeth up the nations:
These were born there. Selah.
7 Singers and dancers :
All my springs of joy are in thee.
360 COMMENTARY ON THE fSALMS.
V. 1. The Psalmist in praising the everlasting foundations of
Jerusalem, has probably still before his mind's eye the miraculous
deliverance of the city, which has but just transpired, (see Psalms
xlviii. 4; xlvi. 5, 6.) Since the gates of a city form a chief por-
tion of its fortifications, the phrase, ''Gates of Zion," is to be
regarded as a poetic description of the whole of Zion, just as Zion,
as a chief portion of the city, designates the entire city, (see v. 3.)
On that account "mountains" are spoken of (the city being built
on three hills, Psalm cxxv. 2,) which are here called the "holy
mountains," because they became holy on account of the sanctu-
aries which were ei-ected on them. There is no reference to Jeru-
salem according to her earthly aspects, with her streets, and walls,
and palaces. .Why should that be loved more than all the dwell-
ings of Jacob ? The reference is to the eternal glory of Jerusalem,
in that it was the centre of adoration of the true God. If that city
where the king resides is the capital, the eye and crown of a coun-
try, how much more is Jerusalem the eye and crown of the land,
where the Lord resides in the sanctuary, worshipped by all Israel !
" Glorious things are spoken of thee." Is it possible that more
glorious things can be said of a city, than that as the heart with
the -fount of its warm blood is placed in the centre of the body, so
she is placed in the midst of the nations, that out of her should be
carried to them the knowledge of the only true God and of his
Son? He hears her spoken of by myriads of voices, but he hears
first the Lord himself proclaiming the future glory of Zion.
V. 2 — 4. The nations arise in rapid succession — they are aston-
ished, and engage in praises, (v. 5.) At last, as if instructed by
their voices, the Psalmist himself begins the praise, (v. 6, 7.)
The miracles which the mighty arm of the Lord had then achieved
before Jerusalem — when he made "wars to cease unto the end of
the earth," (Psalm xlvi. 10,) when foreign nations, in acknowledg-
ment of the works of the God of Israel, came with gifts — might
well originate the presentiment of a time when the God of Israel
should be acknowledged as the only God on earth. "To be born"
in the holy city, i. e. to belong to her as a child ; we Christians,
as many of us as are of heathen extraction, must recognize our
spiritual mother in the congregation of Israel. Was it not the
Christian mother Church of Jerusalem that gave her breasts to the
entire heathen world, which with the Son scattered the knowledge
of the Father over the earth ? Are not we the branches of the
wild olive tree, that have grafted upon the good olive tree? (Rom.
xi. 17.) All the nations which are here specified — Egypt, Baby-
lon, Philistia, and Abyssinia — became all engrafted at the time
when love and missionary zeal were glowing in the Christian
Church, and regarded Zion as their spiritual mother. That was
the glorious time when it was said of them other Church, "Sing, O
barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry
PSALM LXXXVIII. 361
aloud, thou that didst not travail with child : for more are the chil-
dren of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith
the Lord." (Isa. liv. 1.) And again, "Lift up thine eyes round
about, and see : all they gather themselves together, they come to
thee : thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be
nursed at thy side." (Isa. Ix. 4.)
V. 5. One shall tell the other how many nations shall find in
her their spiritual home : it will be seen that it is the Lord who
builds her so gloriously.
V. 6. The Lord will enrol his new citizens in the book of life,
as Isaiah says, " And it shall come to pass, that he that is left
in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy,
even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem."
(Isa. iv. 3.)
V. 7. Every spring of joy shall be opened there. Isaiah says
of the day of Messiah, "With joy shall ye draw water out of the
wells of salvation." (Isa. xii. 3.) They shall for ever praise the
Lord with songs, the timbrel, and the dance. (Psalm cxlix. 3 ; cl. 4 ;
cf Exod. XV. 20.)
PSALM LXXXVIII.
Heman, the author of this psalm, is probably the Levite chief
musician of David, who (1 Chron. vi. 33; xv. 17) is mentioned
along with Ethan,* (vi. 44; xv. 17,) as also the very next psalm is
ascribed to Ethan, the Ezrahite. Heman, the Levite, who is called
(1 Chron. XXV. 1. 5) a seer, i. e. a prophet and chief musician,
was of the race of Kahath, the son of Levi, of whom Korah also
was descended, so that this psalm may be ascribed to the Korahites
in general, but to Henian in particular.
A song of deep complaint, the occasion of which is not known.
His despair is so great that he was unable, as is the case in other
psalms, to rise to joyous confidence by means of his song; but
while a mourner can still carry his sorrow to the Lord, and call
upon him as his Saviour, hope cannot entirely have fled from his
soul.
1 A SONG or Psalm of the sons of Korah. To the
jla. chief Musician, to be sung to the flute (?) an
instruction of Heman the Ezrahite.
2 0 Lord God of my salvation,
I have cried day and night before thee :
* On the difiSculties aee the remarks on the title of Psalm Izxxix.
31
362 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
3 Let my prayer come before thee :
Incline thine ear unto my cry ;
4 For my soul is full of troubles :
And my life draweth nigh unto Sheol ;
5 I am counted with them that go down into the pit :
I am as a man that hath no strength:
6 I am alone among the dead,
Like the slain that lie in the grave,
Whom thou rememberest no more :
And they (who) are cut off from thy hand.
7 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit,
In darkness, in the deeps.
8 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me.
And thou hast oppressed me with all thy waves. Selah.
9 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me ;
Thou hast made me an abomination unto them :
I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
10 Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction:
Lord, I have called daily upon thee,
I have stretched out my hands unto thee,
11 "Wilt thou show wonders to the dead?
Shall the dead arise and praise thee ? Selah.
12 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave ?
Or thy faithfulness in destruction ?
13 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark ?
And thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?"
14 But unto thee have I cried, 0 Lord ;
And in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
15 Lord, why castesth thou off my soul?
Wliy hidest thou thy face from me ?
16 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up:
While I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
17 Thy fierce wrath goeth over me ;
Thy terrors stifle me.
18 They surround me daily like water ;
They compass me about together.
19 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me,
And mine acquaintance into darkness.
V. 2 — 10. The troubles of tlie complaining bard are very great.
His energies are checked, his friends have deserted him, and he
appears to himself like one of the dead, who are insensible to the
PSALM LXXXIX. 363
genial sun, and removed from the favour and protection of God.*
In the measure as the night of melancholy is gloomy and enwraps
all around in her sable fold, must our admiration rise for the faith
of him who withal continues in prayer. The faith of the tempted
may appear like an extremely slender thread — for such is the effect
of melancholy — but the thread, which under such serious circum-
stances does not break, cannot be altogether powerless; it is
stronger than the most courageous confidence of sunny days. The
Psalmist, as he states in verse 9, sees no outlet, but he believes iu
one, else why should he pray ?
F. 11 — 13. There is silence in the land of the dead; we Chris-
tians clearly know that their Hallelujah shall hereafter put to shame
the unbelievers, who used to mock at their confidence on earth;
though now they triumph over their silent graves, and the name
of God, in which the former used to confide, becomes a reproach
here. The troubled bard prays on that account to be delivered
from going down into the pit in his dumb pain, that he might still
be privileged to declare the glory and honour of the Lord in the
land of the living. (Psalm vi. 6.)
V. 14 — 19. He lives with God; from early morn to the eve
he lives with him; this is evident from his pouring out his soul
before the Lord at early morn. It may therefore be assumed that
though his prayer dies away in the accents of complaint, the light
of hope continued to burn in his soul.
PSALM LXXXIX.
A PLAINTIVE psalm of a faithful subject who lived during the last
period of the Jewish empire, probably in the days of Jeconiah, (cf.
v. 46,) who after a reign of three months was deposed by Nebu-
chadnezzar, and carried into exile after having witnessed the plun-
dering of the temple. (2 Kings xxiv.) How much he was loved
and mourned for by his people, appears from Jer. xxii. 24 — 29.
The conclusion of the psalm sounds almost as if the king himself
were complaining of his humiliation, especially verse 48; but that
verse is perfectly intelligible on the supposition that the Psalmist
was the king's friend, and if the rendering of verse 19, which we
have given in a note, should be correct, the king can in no wise
be regarded as the author. It has been shown in Psalms xlii.
Ixxxiv., that Korahite Levites used to compose psalms in the
* " A poetical description of the condition of the dead, not as it is in
reality, but as it appears to us." — J". D. Michcelis.
364 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
soul of David, i. e. identifying their interests so completely with
his that they spoke in his name. The historical references which
we have furnished would contradict the title, if Ethan the Ezra-
hite is held to be the Levite musician of that name, or that Ethan
the Ezrahite who was famed for his wisdom,* 1 Kings iv. 31 :
V. 11.
The Psalmist begins in joyous and trustful strains, with his con-
viction of the infallibility of the promise made to David, (v. 2 — 5.)
The grounds of his faith are the majesty and the power of God,
which rule universal nature, while it is the ground of his hope
that this Grod is the King of Israel, (v. 6 — 19.) Thus confirming
his heart in faith and hope, he reminds God of the promises which
David had received by Nathan, (v. 20 — 38,) but gives free course
to his complaints, that the calamities of the present presented a
striking contrast to the glory of those prospects, (v. 39 — 52.)
'k
N Instruction of Ethan the Ezrahite.
2 I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever ;
With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to
all generations.
3 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever :
Thy faithfulness hast thou established in the very heavens.
4 "I have made a covenant with my chosen,
I have sworn unto David my servant,
5 Thy seed will I establish for ever,
And build up thy throne to all generations. Selah."
6 And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, 0 Lord :
Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.
7 For who in the clouds can be compared unto the Lord ?
Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto
the Lord ?
8 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
9 0 Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee ?
Or to thy faithfulness round about thee ?
10 Thou rulest the raging of the sea :
When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
11 Thou hast broken Egypt in pieces, as one that is slain;
Thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
* But he seems to have been none other than the Levite. See Keil on
Chi'ooicles, p. 164, on 1 Chron. ii. 6, and Movers on Chronicles, p. 237.
PSALM LXXXIX.
365
12 The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine :
As for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast
founded them.
13 The north and the south thou hast created them:
Tabor and Hermon rejoice in thy name.
14 Thou hast a mighty arm :
Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
15 Justice and judgment are the foundation of thy throne:
Mercy and truth shall go before thy face.
16 Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound:
They shall walk, 0 Lord, in the light of thy countenance.
17 In thy name shall they rejoice all the day:
And in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
18 For thou art the glory of their strength :
And by thy favour our horn shall be exalted.
19 For the Lord is our shield :
And the Holy One of Israel is our king.*
20 Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, ^
And saidst, "I have laid help upon one that is mighty;
I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
21 I have found David my servant ;
With my holy oil have I anointed him :
22 With whom my hand shall be established:
Mine arm also shall strengthen him.
23 The enemy shall not overwhelm him ;
Nor the son of wickedness quench him.
24 And I will beat down his foes before his face,
And plague them that hate him.
25 But my faithfulness and my mercy shall he with him:
And in my name shall his horn be exalted.
26 I will set his hand also in the sea.
And his right hand in the rivers.
27 He shall cry unto me, " Thou art my father,
My God, and the rock of my salvation."
28 Also I will make him my firstborn.
Higher than the kings of the earth.
29 My mercy will I keep for him for evermore,
And my covenant shall stand fast with him.
30 His seed also will I make to endure for ever.
And his throne as the days of heaven.
* Or, "For from the Lord is our shield, and from the Holy One in Israel
ovir King."
31*
366 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
81 If his children forsake my law,
And walk not in my judgments ;
32 If they profane my statutes,
And keep not my commandments ;
33 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod,
And their iniquity with stripes.
34 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take
from him.
Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
85 My covenant will I not break,
Nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
36 Once have I sworn by my holiness
That I will not lie unto David.
37 His seed shall endure for ever,
And his throne as the sun before me.
38 It shall be established for ever as the moon.
And the witness in heaven is faithful. Selah.
89 But thou hast cast off and abhorred,
Thou hast been wrath with thine anointed.
40 Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant :
Thou hast profaned his crown hy casting it to the ground.
41 Thou hast broken down all his hedges ;
Thou hast brought his strongholds to ruin.
42 All that pass by the way spoil him :
He is a reproach to his neighbours.
43 Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries ;
Thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice.
44 Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword,
And hast not made him to stand in the battle.
45 Thou hast made his splendour to cease.
And cast his throne down to the ground.
46 The days of his youth hast thou shortened :
Thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.
47 How long, Lord ? wilt thou hide thyself for ever ?
Shall thy wrath burn like fire ?
48 Remember how short my time is :
To what vanity thou hast made all men.
49 "What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death?
Shall he deliver his soul from the hand of Sheol ? Selah.
50 Lord, where are thy eternal lovingkindnesses,
Which thou swarest unto David in thy truth?
61 Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants ;
ffow I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the
mighty people ;
PSAI.M LXXXIX. 367
52 Wherewitli thine enemies have reproached, 0 Lord ;
Wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine
anointed.
Blessed be the Lord for evermore. Amen«, and Amen.
V. 2 — 5. The Psalmist, from the full assurance of the infalli-
bility of Divine promise, begins with praising in the name of all
generations the mercy of God, whose faithfulness, far exalted above
earth and its changes, is established in the heavens. His confidence
is the result of a Divine promise, the burden of which he relates.
From a comparison of this trustful beginning with his sad complaint
from verse 89 downwards, we may gather the true state of mind of
devout people in great affliction. They are neither so callous and
insensible, that the stroke of the proving hand of God makes no
impression upon them, nor so soft and indolent that they at once
lose all their confidence. Their eyes shed tears while joy sits
enthroned on their brow.
7. 6 — 15. Little-minded mortals, overcome by adversities,
frequently doubt the faithfulness of God. But the wonderful ways
of the Lord are known and his faithfulness praised in the congre-
gation of the saints in heaven. He is God alone. The might and
strength of the inhabitants of heaven are his gift. He has the
ability to fulfil his promises, while his faithfulness, which encircles
him like a stream, is the pledge of his toillingness. He is the God
who of old restrained the billows of the main, when he led bis
people through it, and slew the sea-monster* of Egypt. He is the
God who created the heavens and the earth. How then should the
heavens and the earth be able to refuse obedience to his command-
ments? He has made the north and the south. Tabor in the west
and snowy Hebron in the east. He has made them as it were the
visible praises of his name. Immoveable justice controls his invin-
cible arm, and mercy and truth are for ever before his face. Where
is the doubter?
V. 16 — 19. The people may well rejoice who worship this God,
and are called to his feasts by the sound of the trumpet : their
strength is in their strong God. The hor-n is the symbol of strength
and power. (1 Sam. ii. 1; Ps. xcii. 11.)
V. 20 — 38. Reverting to the Divine promise of verses 4, 5,
which is preserved in 2 Samuel vii., he now details it poetically.
(The author of Psalm cxxxii., which was composed on the occasion
of the removal of the ark into the temple of Solomon, supplicates in
virtue of this promise mercy for the king.) Nathan, namely, "thy
holy one," addressed David, not of his own accord, but he heard
the word of God in a moment of prophetic ecstasy, i. e. in a vision.
* Cf. Gesenius Thesam*. sub. v. ^^Hl
368 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
The term vision is used in the prophets of revelations to the mind,
even when they heard the utterance of the Divine voice within.
(Isa. ii. 2; Hab. ii. 2.) David was not of royal extraction — he was
raised from the people, to the end that his election should be alto-
gether the Lord's doing. He experienced the paternal favour of
the Lord : the young shepherd became a sovereign whose dominions
extended from the shores of the Mediterranean to the rivers Euphra-
tes and Tigris. If the kings of the earth, because invested with great
might and glory, as well as the administration of justice, are called
par excellence, the sons of God, then David, who had been raised
from the people, and only desired to be an instrument in the hands
of God, was the first-horn among them. The sceptre of Israel is
to remain for ever with his posterity. His descendants, on trans-
gressing, shall indeed feel the Father's chastisement, but the mercy
of Grod shall never depart from David as it was removed from Saul.
(2 Sam. vii. 15.) Men are accustomed to speak of things terres-
trial as subjected to change, and of things celestial as exalted above
it. So when the sacred bards wish to indicate eternal duration,
they mention the duration of the sun and the moon. (Jer. xxxiii.
20; see ad. Psalm Ixxii. 17.) The witness is not less trustworthy
than the testimony is mighty: for he is not a man who might speak
the untruth, but he is the witness in the clouds.* The promise
which here receives so solemn an attestation from God, would, how-
ever, have remained unfulfilled, if after the fall of David's kingdom,
the branch had not sprouted forth from the felled stem of Jesse,
whose kingdom over the spiritual Israel shall never come to an end.
(Jer. xi. 2; Luke i. 32, 33.)
V. 39 — 46. The gloomy present is now, after the manner of
Ps. xliv. 10, placed side by side of the glorious promises and for-
mer doings of God. Psalm Ixxx. describes the sad condition of
the last days of the kingdom in similar terms. " Thou hast short-
ened the days of his youth," may be paraphrased by, " Thou hast
made him by trouble an old man in his youth," with which the
following clause, " Thou hast covered him with shame," well
agrees.
V. 47 — 52. Convinced that this life is not given to man for
the exclusive purpose of his consuming it in grief and pain, the
Psalmist earnestly prays for speedy refreshment, especially since
death is frequently so early and sudden in its appearance. His
prayer is chiefly for the king, but the ignominy of the king is also
that of his faithful servants; he, therefore, complains no less of
the ignominy of the servants of God than of his own.
* Jewish and Christian interpreters understand this of the rainbow, but
the rainbow which appears when the sun pierces the rainy clouds is, accord-
ing to Gen. ix. 14, 15, simply the pledge that the flood is not to re-appear.
PSALM XC.
PSALM XC.
A BEAUTIFUL song, replete ■with solemnity and sadness, as hearty
as it is solemn. It is not difficult to recognize in it the voice of
the ancient lawgiver.* The ancient bard looks to God at the close
of a life rich in trials and the experience of many hard visitations,
especially of a fearful mortality of his fellows, and with an unfin-
ished task before him. He looks to the omnipotent eternal God,
whom he has known as the refuge of his people, and longs for the
renewal of the lifting up of his gracious countenance. The psalm
opens with the expression of his faith, firm as a rock, in the eternal
God, (v. 2.) Human life appears especially short if contrasted
with the eternity of God, (v. 3 — 6.) The wrath of God against
sin is the cause that life gets so shortened, (v. 7 — 10.) Men do
not consider this: he prays, therefore, for true wisdom, (v. 11, 12.)
An enterprise is at hand, in which the people need a gracious God :
the Psalmist prays, therefore, for the Lord's gracious return,
(v. 13—17.)
A
PRAYER of Moses the man of God.
1 Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place 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, thou art God.
3 Thou turnest man to dust:
And sayest, " Return, ye children of men."
4 For a thousand years in thy sight
Are hut as yesterday when it is past,
And as a watch in the night.
5 Thou carriest them away as with a flood;
They are as a sleep:
In the morning tliey are like grass which groweth up.
6 In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up ;
In the evening it is cut down, and withereth.
* The sublime pathos and solemnity of this psalm mount to the Divine.
Its manner and matter are original and powerful, and would justly be
ascribed to Moses the man of God, if the motives were more accurately
known which justified the collector in that supposition. Moses might well
have been seized by the solemn thoughts of this psalm at the end of his
career in the wilderness. It is evident that the bard is a man grown old
in mighty enterprises, and stands on the verge of life." — Ewald. See also
the remarks of Slier on the affinities of the language of this psalm and that
of Moses.
370 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
7 For we are consumed by thine anger,
And by thy wrath are we troubled (or, "we pass away.")
8 Thou hast set our iniquities before thee.
Our unknown sin in the light of thy countenance.
9 For all our days are passed away in thy wrath:
"We spend our years as a tale that is told.*
10 The days of our years are threescore years and ten;
And if by reason of strength they he fourscore years,
Yet is their strength labour and sorrow :
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
11 Who knoweth the power of thine anger?
Even according to thy fear, so is thy wrath. f
12 So teach us to number our days.
That we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
13 Return, 0 Lord, how long?
And have mercy upon thy servants.
14 0 satisfy us early with thy mercy ;
That we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
15 Make us glad according to the days wherein thou hast
afflicted us.
And the years wherein we have seen evil.
16 Let thy work appear unto thy servants,
And thy glory unto their children.
17 And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us ;
And establish thou the work of our hands upon us ;
Yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.
V. 1, 2. It is our great consolation to know that Grod changes
not, and that the God of our fathers is our God. The retrospect
of Moses extended only over the then brief history of his people
and that of the patriarchs. The range of our retrospect is greater
and more extensive by far, and on that account more potent to
strengthen our faith, for it embraces the innumerable host of godly
men, whose experience falls under our inspection, who read the
words of Moses three and thirty centuries after he bad penned
them. God, who was before any creature, is also much greater
than anything which he has created. The creature may well look
up to him. In writing the following words the Psalmist has before
his mind's eye the history of creation, and regards the mountains
which appeared above the surface of the waters as the oldest chil-
dren of the earth, (cf Psalm civ. 5 — 8.)
V. 3 — 6. Ihat address to God leads to the thought, which fills
* Or, " Our years pass away as a thought."
I Luther; "Who is afraid, as he ought, of thy wrath?"
PSALM XC. 371
his mind, the sad thought of the frailty of human life. As long as
the eyes of men are not turned heavenwards, and simply range
among the creatures of the earth, the sense of that frailty is not so
profound, for multitudes of creatures count their life by the day or
the hour, while man counts it hy years! Moreover, how great is
the skill of most men to shut the thought of death completely out
of their minds. (Ps. xlix. 12.) Moses describes human frailty with
regard to the eternity of God. The generations of men change
before God, as if their were but a moment between their coming
and going: now he suffers one generation to pass away and now
another to arise.* The future seems long to us, but the past short
beyond measure. Short seems the day which has been spent in
labour, still shorter a watch of the night (the Hebrews used to
count three) wfiich has passed during our sleep. The life of man
is equally fleet before God. When it is passed, it appears even to
man to condense as a night's sleep into one moment. It is like
the grass in the east, which after a fruitful shower grows up high
as if by a magic spell, but which, when the scorching east wind
passes over it, completely withers within two days, (James i. 11,)
is cut down and used for fuel.
V. 7 — 10. The remembrance of the longevity of the patriarchs
had no doubt been preserved : it gradually decreased, and there
were probably few who, in the days of Moses, lived more than a
hundred years. But on those who had left Egypt as adults fell the
specific Divine judgment, that with the exception of Caleb and
Joshua, not one of their number was held worthy to enter the pro-
mised land, and that they should die during their forty years' wan-
derings in the desert, so that none lived more than eighty years.
Moses felt justified in complaining that the wrath of God was short-
ening human life, inasmuch as disease, infirmity of old age, and
the struggle of death, with its cold perspiration, did not belong to
the original destiny of man; "for though horses, cows, and other
beasts die, their death is not owing to the wrath of God, but a
transient necessity. But the death of man is a grievous trouble,
because man is a creature destined to be like God." (Luther.)
Moses was therefore right in ascribing the brevity of human life
to the wrath of God on account of sin, since no doubt sin, the pas-
* Luther: "It happens that just as men die daily because of sin, so others
are born daily, but on the same condition as those "who died," (cf. Psalm
civ. 29, 30.) Modern expositors render with reference to Gen. iii. 19,
"Return to the dust, ye children of men," so Aben Ezra and Kimchi.
But could then the "to the dust" be dispensed with ? The sentence more-
over would be too tautological, hence several have unduly strained the i
e. g. Amyraldus: Nee id (dying) uni aut alteri tantum accidit. Sententia
est, quam de omnibus in Universum pronuncias, cum dicis: filii hominum,
etc. Many old commentators, Bucer, Strigel, Calov, Cocceius, Geier,
understand "return ye" of the resuscitation after the resurrection.
372 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
sions, intemperance, covetousness, and unkindness, etc. are the chief
causes of the gradual diminution of human longevity, while the
evil consequences of sin are to be regarded as Divine punishments.
The Psalmist was the more justified in his assertion, from his daily-
experience in witnessing the death of a generation of six hundred
thousand men. He deemed it necessary to remind us that after
all, our sense of the enormity of sin is but incomplete, and that
therefore we are more guilty before God than we are aware. He
refers therefore to sin, which though hid to us is known to God ;
for how much is needed to attain to a right conception of but one
sin, c. g. of our murmuring against God in trials. He names three-
score years and ten as the common term of human life, an age
which in our days is reached by a few only, and the average would
be about threescore years. Moses, indeed, lived to the good old
age of a hundred and twenty years, but this must be regarded as
an exception, for Joshua speaks of himself as highly favoured in
having retained the strength of manhood up to his eighty-fifth
year. (Josh. xiv. 11.) Moses connects his complaints of the bre-
vity of human life with those of its troubles. The words of Job
are very apposite : " Man that is born of a woman is of few days,
and full of trouble." (Job xiv. 1.) Moses therefore was not satis-
fied with what are commonly termed the joys of life; his vocation
was particularly difficult and trying during the hardship of the
journey through the desert and in the struggle with an ever obsti-
nate people.* This sentiment will be found to hold universally
true the more men try to go through life on the ^^ narrow ivay ;"
"and though it was a delightful life, it was yet labour and vanity."
How could it be otherwise, even if we simply bear in mind that
"all that will live godly shall suffer persecution." (2 Tim. iii. 12.)
The Psalmist says, "labour and vanity," adding, "for it is soon
cut off and we fly away." Our most delightful hours, as far as
they are of purely earthly origin, are liours only, and they are
gone before we have thoroughly enjoyed them. •
V. 11, 12. How difficult is it to bring men to recognize in the
troubles of life the chastening hand of God, and to induce them to
walk in the fear of the Lord. They say, as St. Jerome once said
in plaintive strains, that men would be worse off than beasts if they
were, besides all the misery of life, still to believe in the wrath of
God both here and hereafter. Some regard the troubles of life
simply as the fate of blind necessity, saying that death ought nei-
ther to be desired nor feared. Most men take not even the trouble
of thinking about it, and live as if there were neither death nor
God : few, few only get humbled by trouble, and turn their eyes
* Luther renders Numb. xii. 3, "Moses was sorely tried above all the men
which were upon the face of the earth;" but the E. V. is more correct; so
also Hengstenberg's Authenticity of the Pentateuch, vol. i. 174.
PSALM XCI. 373
meekly and penitently to the direction from whence their strokes
come. How touching is this humble prayer for true wisdom in the
mouth of the much-tried lawgiver. He desires to attain to greater
obedience to the Divine commandments in consideration of the
wrath of God on account of sin.
V. 13 — 17. When the Lord purchased his people and led them
forth out of Egypt, his mercy was richly visible over them, "as an
eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth
abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings : so the
Lord alone did lead him. But Jeshurun waxed fat and kicked:
then he forsook God who made him. They provoked him to jeal-
ousy with strange gods, with abominations provoked him to anger.
And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their
end shall be : for they are a very froward generation, children in
whom is no faith." Thus complains Moses in his last song, (Dent,
xxxii. 11 — 20 ;) he had to share a portion of the wrath of God,
(Deut. xxxii. 50, 51; Numb. xx. 12; cf Psalm xcv. 8 — 11.) This
explains his prayer for the return of Divine favour, that the Lord
would satisfy them "early," i. e. soon, with his mercy, once more
act a father's part to them, the more so, as the solution of the great
problem was at hand — they had reached the frontiers of the land for
the possession of which they were to fight. We know from the life
of Moses how thoroughly he was instructed in the truth that through
the Lord we can do valiantly — and have in this place another tes-
timony of the same truth : the importunate repetition of his prayer
shows how well he knew that everything depends on the blessing
of God.
PSALM XCL
A JOYOUS psalm, full of the assurance of faith.* The precentor
promises, the chorus vows, and finally, the Lord himself gives the
promise.
The Precentor.
1 TJE that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High
JLL Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
The Choir.
2 I will say of the Lord,
Jle is my refuge and my fortress :
My God; in him will I trust.
* Is it possible to set forth the providence of God in a more trustful and
tender manner?
374 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
The Precentor.
3 Surely lie will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
And from the noisome pestilence.
4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings
shalt thou trust:
His truth is thy shield and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night ;
Nor for the arrow that flieth by day ;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness ;
Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
7 Though a thousand fall at thy side, and ten thousand at
thy right hand ;
It shall not come nigh thee.
8 Yea* with thine eyes shalt thou behold
And see the reward of the wicked.
The Choir.
9 Yea, thou, 0 Lord, art my refuge.
The Precentor.
The Most High thou hast made thy habitation.
10 There shall no evil befall thee.
No plague shall come nigh thy dwelling.
11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee,
To keep 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 adder:
The young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under
feet.
The Precentor and the Choir.
14 " Because he hath set his love upon me.
Therefore will I deliver him:
I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him :
I will he with him in trouble :
I will deliver him, and honour him,
16 With long life will I satisfy him.
And show him my salvation."
* s""! is used in the same sense Psalm xxxii. C, of. Kftster.
PSALM XCI. 875
V. 1. Though there is nothing more common than for men to
profess that they are under the protection of the Most High, yet
are there but few who really believe what that profession involves.
The Psalmist invites us to consider what such a profession implies.
No power in heaven or on earth can prevail against the Most High,
for he is Almighty. Men who are under his protection may dis-
card all their fears.
V. 2. He is confident of his ability to pray to the Almighty in
faith as to his reconciled God — his trust and hope. That faith has
its steps and degrees. It is but rarely, and even then only for a
limited period, that we witness man's faith so confident of his
union with Grod, and of his being an instrument of the Lord, as to
entertain an absolute certainty under even particular circum-
stances, that his prayer will be granted and his work prosper. It
is known to all that every work performed in the Lord must
eventually prosper, and that in the hour of danger things cannot
happen to us otherwise than as the Lord has determined them, and
as they are beneficial to us. It is a great thing not to stagger in this
conviction. But he only is a truly prophetic man who feels in his
own heart what the Lord intends to do in present emergency, and
speaks and acts according to his assurance. Only to this highest
degree of faith belongs the promise which the Psalmist goes on to
set forth; this is in perfect harmony with the promises which our
Lord himself has made to faith. (Matt. xvii. 20; Luke x. 19;
Mark xvi. 17, 18.)
F. 3 — 8. A voice from heaven seems to accompany the pro-
mise of God, that no persecution is able to hurt believers, but that
the pinions of the Lord shall cover them as a hen spreads her
wings over her chicken, and that every arrow shall fall back power-
less from the certainty of his promise. The Psalmist expands this
thought on account of the variety of dangers and perils to which
we are exposed. We may paraphrase it as follows: "Whatever
species of weapofl the tempter may use against the children of
God, whenever and wherever he may come, the protection of the
Lord is all-sufficient, and you need not seek for any other. As a
general, conscious of having a great work to perform, stands with a
calm look and firm foot, while the balls whiz past him on the right
hand and on the left, saying, I know that the ball which is to touch
me is not yet cast; so stands a prophetic believer in danger's hour,
conscious that the lightning will go past his head, that the waters
will dry up at his feet, and the arrow fall back from his chest,
because the Lord loilleth it thus. Have not men of faith been seen,
filled with this confidence, to rush into the ranks of the foe, to
struggle through tempest and wave, and to sleep in the midst of
those who were infected with the pestilence?" There is a great
beauty in the Psalmist's borrowing his figures from pestilence and
376 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
disease. For the singular fact, that fearless confidence is a certain
preservative against contagion, explains to us how assurance of
faith is a breastplate in the hour of danger, from which the poisoned
arrow must fall back. The arrow that flieth by noonday may also
be explained of the Simoom, or the sun-stroke, as the cause of dis-
ease and death.
V. 9 — 13. The believer's repeated confession that God is his
sole refuge, is again responded to by the most consoling promise.
No evil shall befall them. Their path through life lies across many
stones and rocks, but they shall not stumble, for invisible hands
carry them — guardian angels surround them. Hostile and destruc-
tive powers of nature cannot prevail against them. (Luke x. 19.)
Satan cited this beautiful and rich promise in support of his futile
eifort to tempt our Lord to the display of a vain act of prowess.
(Matt. iv. 6.) This promise may be said to have been made with
a special reference to Christ, not because Satan applies it to him,
but because that oneness with God, which is assured that particu-
lar prayers will be granted and particular works will prosper,
received in no instance a greater exemplification than in his.
Satan, however, misapplied the promise, for it is said, "He shall
give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways,"
which, however, applies only to loays traced out hy God — to the
ways of duty and vocation. The tempter limited our Lord to a
work of selfish vanity, and God is not a servant to sin.
v. 14 — 16. God himself appears for the purpose of making a
still more profound impression of that rich consolation, and of con-
firming the faith of his servants — "He sets his love upon me —
knows my name — calls upon me;" these are the characteristics of
believing godliness; the Lord will draw nigh to those who thus
draw nigh to him. (James iv. 8.) Long life being mentioned
among the promised goods, corresponds to the character of the old
covenant, which referred a sensuous people to temporal reward.
(Deut. V. 16.) We have already observed, e. g. Psalm xxxvii. 9,
that the Divinely-inspired Psalmist had more spiritual conceptions
of those passages which the common Israelites took in a literal
sense. The Psalmist may, therefore, at the time when he was
composing this sublime psalm, have had the presentiment of some-
thing more than the extension of temporal existence in speaking
of long life. So the apostles employed the terms death and life,
light and darkness, peace and righteousness, and others with which
they were familiar from the Old Testament, in a far more profound
sense.
PSALM xcir. 37T
PSALM XCII.
SoNOS accompanied witli music used to be sung on Sabbaths as
Well as on other festive occasions. Several songs seem to be strung
together in this portion of the Psalms.* This one celebrates the
righteousness of the Divine government of the world, as it is praised
iu many others, especially Psalm xxxvii.
'k
PSALM or Song for the Sabbath day.
2 It is a precious thing to give thanks unto the Lord,
And to sing praises unto thy name, 0 Most High :
3 To show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning,
And thy faithfulness every night,
4 Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery ;
Upon the harp with a solemn sound.
5 For thou. Lord, hast made me glad through thy work:
I will triumph in the works of thy hands.
6 0 Lord, how great are thy works I
And thy thoughts are very deep.
7 And brutish man knoweth not;
Neither doth a fool understand this.
8 When the wicked spring as the grass,
And when all the workers of iniquity do flourish ;
It is that they shall be destroyed for ever.
9 But thou, Lord, art Most High for evermore.
10 For, lo, thine enemies, 0 Lord,
For, lo, thine enemies shall perish;
All the workers of iniquity shall be scattered.
11 But my horn shall thou exalt like the horn o/an unicorn
(or, "buffalo";)
I shall be anointed with fresh oil.
12 Mine eye also shall see my desire on mine enemies,
And mine ears shall hear wy desire of the wicked that
rise up against me.
13 The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree:
He shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
* Psalms xcv. xcvi. xcvii. xcviii. xcix. c. These songs have a certain
affinity of language, c. ^. the anadiplosis xcii. 10; xciv. 3; xcvi. 13; the
repetition of the phrase xciii. •!) iu xcvi, 10, the ü'iniH"'i3"iS Psalms
xcv. 3; xcvi. 4; xcvii. 9.
32*
378 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
14 Those that be planted in the house of the Lord
Shall flourish in the courts of our God.
15 They shall bring forth fruit in old age;
They shall be fat and flourishing;
16 To show that the Lord is upright :
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
V. 2 — 5. Here is the expression of a mind which regards the
service of God, and song in particular, not only as a duty, but as
a real delight. The works and doings of the Lord incite such
songs. The Psalmist's theme at first embraces all the works and
doings of God in nature and in the history of man, but he soon
confines himself to the latter.
V. 6 — 9. His faith assures him that it is a holy God who rules
the world; on that account he admires and adores, when he can-
not thoroughly understand. Proud sages, whom he, however, calls
fools, begin to doubt the depth of the thoughts of God, when they
are unable to understand them. Humble faith, however, com-
plains of the weakness of human knowledge, and sees itself called
upon to admire the more. Our admiration of the Divine govern-
ment of the world is more matter of faith than of experience; so
the Psalmist points to what is concealed behind appearances.
"The workers of iniquity do flourish, but it is that they shall be
destroyed for ever, and that thou, Lord, art Most High for ever-
more."
V. 10 — 12. Assured of the triumph of the kingdom of God
over the kingdoms of the world in the aggregate, and his enemies
being those of the Lord, he gives expression to the hope of
triumph with regard to himself. The horn is a symbol of strength,
vide Psalm Ixxxix. 18.
V. 13 — 16. The certainty of the ultimate triumph of the king-
dom of God causes his mind to overflow with the description of the
eternal youth of those who derive their strength from the Lord.
The palm-tree remains green all the year round, in the cold of
winter no less than in the heat of summer:* the age of the cedar
is counted not by years but by centuries. This is a figure of those
who are planted in the courts of the Lord, and derive the sap of
their life from the house of God : it is clear that the house of God
denotes communion with God in general. ( Vide ad. Psalm xxiii. 6;
lii. 10.) Even in old age, though every other mental power
should have vanished, they shall be strong and fresh while pro-
claiming that the Lord is upright. Experience instructs us that
* The open country moreover wears a sad aspect now: the soil is rent
and dissolves into dust at every breath of wind ; the green of the meadows
is almost entirely gone — the palm-tree alone preserves in the drought and
heat its verdant roof of leaves." — Schubert's Jour nei/ to the jEast, vol. ii.p. 138.
PSALM XCIII.
379
pious old men are the most powerful and efficient witnesses and
preachers to younger generations; in whom piety bears the sweetest
fruit the nearer they are to their grave— while their physical
strength and their knowledge succumb to the infirmity attendant
upon old age.
PSALM XCIII.
A SONG of praise, celebrating the glory of the Divine government.
1 rpHE Lord reigneth, lie is clothed with majesty ;
X The Lord is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath
girded himself:
The world also is established, that it cannot be moved.*
2 Thy throne is established of old :
Thou art from everlasting.
3 The floods have lifted up, 0 Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice :
The floods raise their waves.
4 Mightier than the noise of many waters
Are the waves of the sea :
But mightier still
Is the Lord on high.
5 Thy testimonies are very sure :
Holiness becometh thine house, 0 Lord, for ever.
y; 1 — 4. Adornment and honour grace earthly potentates as
the expressions of the majesty of their vocation; but all^ their
adornment and glory as well as their vocation are the gifts of
Divine grace; therefore not one of them can be compared with
God for adornment and glory. He has established the world,
the separate lands of which are ruled by the kings of the earth;
behold in this the proof of his might. Giving existence to all, he
himself received it from none. Self-existence is his eternal pro-
perty. Behold in this the proof of his majesty. The billows of
the tempests rise high as if intent upon splashing against the
clouds : their howling is terrific. But greater by far is the Lord
on high : none of the waves can overthrow his throne, which from
eternity he has established in the heavens. (Ps. xlvi. 4; Ixv. 8.)
* One feels almost tempted to translate with some of the old interpreters,
"The world also shall be firmly established;" but cf. ad. Psalm xcvi. 10 j
civ. 6.
380 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 5. If reverence be due to the words of a transitory king of
the earth, how much more is it so to the words of the King of
kings ! The Psalmist prostrates himself reverentially before it as
before the words of the Highest Majesty, and regards with rever-
ence the earthly place where that majesty is revealed.
PSALM XCIV.
A PSALM of prayer, sung at times when the heathen poured
reproach upon the people of God, and practised injustice in the
land.
The Psalmist invokes the Judge of the earth not to defer the
punishment of the proud, (v. 1 — 3.) He describes the arrogant
bearing of the wicked (v. 4 — 7,) and reproves the folly of idolatry,
which will not believe in an omniscient God, (v. 8 — '11-) The
instruction of God is the comfort of the pious in the day of
adversity, (v. 12 — 15.) The Psalmist confesses that without the
assistance and consolation of the Lord he should never have been
able to stand, (v. 16 — 19.) Though the Lord may seem to have
fellowship with wrong, yet shall the faith of the pious be never
put to shame, (v. 20 — 23.)
1 A LORD God, to whom vengeance belongeth;
\J 0 God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shine forth.
2 Lift up thyself, thou Judge of the earth :
Render a reward to the proud.
3 Lord, how long shall the wicked,
How long shall the wicked triumph ?
4 JTow long shall they utter and speak hard things ?
And all the workers of iniquity boast themselves ?
5 They break in pieces thy people, 0 Lord,
And afflict thine heritage.
6 They slay the Avidow and the stranger,
And murder the fatherless.
7 Yet they say, " The Lord shall not see,
Neither shall the God of Jacob regard it."
8 Understand, ye brutish among the people:
And 1/e fools, when will ye be wise ?
PSALM XCIV. 381
9 He that planted the ear, shall he not hear ?
He that formed the eye, shall he not see?*
10 He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct ?
He that teacheth man what he knoweth.
11 The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man,
That they are vanity.
12 Blessed is the man whom thou chastenegt, 0 LoRD,
And teachest him out of thy law ;
13 To give him rest from the days of adversity,
Until the pit he digged for the wicked.
14 For the Lord will not cast off his people,
Neither will he forsake his inheritance.
15 But judgment shall return unto righteousness rf
And all the upright in heart shall follow it.
16 Who will rise up for me against the evil doers ?
Who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity ?
17 Unless the Lord had been my help.
My soul had almost dwelt in silence.
18 When I say. My foot slippeth;
Thy mercy, 0 Lord, upholdeth me.
19 In the multitude of my troubles within me
Thy comforts delight my soul.
20 Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee,
Which frameth mischief against the law ?
21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the
righteous.
And condemn the innocent blood.
22 But the Lord is my defence;
And my God is the rock of my refuge.
23 And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity,
And shall cut them off by their own wickedness ;
Yea, the Lord our God shall cut them off.
V. 15. The intrinsic power of truth, the consciousness of which
is manifested in the words of this verse, has at all times given rise
to the hope of an ultimate conversion and restoration of the world.
The expression of the Psalmist seems to confirm it, though he con-
fines himself to saying that " all the npright in heart shall follow
it." It seems that evil is accompanied by the spell of delusion, so
•Herder says, "Is it possible to address more pointedly our modern
philosophers, who deny design in nature ? The heathen predicated of their
idols what they attribute to their dead, abstract nature ;" that which the
prophets say against the former applies equally to the latter.
f Luther renders, "Right must remain right."
382 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
that the eye, though created for the perception of truth, is unable
to discern the intrinsic power of the truth.
v. 20. The throne of iniquity is to be explained of the throne
of a hostile pagan power uniting enmity against the law of God
with their hostility against his people. So Psalm cxxv. 3, speaks
of the "rod of the wicked," or " of wickedness." .
PSALM XCV.
A BEAUTIFUL festive psalm. (Cf Psalm c.) The Koman and
Anglican Churches use it, especially verse 6, as an introduction of
their services.
Exhortation to the joyous praise of God, (v. 1, 2.) He is more
worthy of praise than all other objects of adoration, ^v. 4, 5.)
Israel above all must praise him, for he has made them his people,
and led them as a faithful shepherd. 0 that they would anew give
ear to his voice on the day consecrated to his service, (v. 6, 7,) and
be admonished by the conduct of their ancestors, who after so
many benefits yet hardened their hearts, and were on that account
excluded from the rest of God.
First Choir.
1 A COME, let us sing unto the Lord :
\J Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our
salvation.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving,
And make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
3 For the Lord is a great God,
And a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the deep places of the earth:*
The height of the hills is his also.
5 The sea is his, and he made it.
And his hands formed the dry land.
6 0 come, let us worship and bow down :
Let us kneel before the Lord our maker.
7 For he is our God ;
And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of
his hand.
0 that ye would hear his voice to-day !
* Or, "What the earth conceals."
PSALM XCV.
Second Choir.
8 Harden not your heart, as in the contention
And as in the day of temptation in the wilderness :
9 When your fathers tempted me,
Proved me, though they saw my work.
10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation,
And said, " It i% a people that do err in their heart,
And they would not know my ways."
11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath
That they should not enter into my rest.
Y. 1 — 5. Holy joy in God, not discord and dejection, appears
here in the old covenant as the fundamental sentiment of adora-
tion. God, who effects " the salvation" of his people, has a thousand
claims upon '< their gratitude." There is no need of eloquence in
man to exalt him, for his works speak aloud and furnish infinite
matter for songs of praise.
F. 6, 7. Every emotion of the heart seeks for an adequate
expression. Hence the Psalmist is not satisfied with asking for
devotional feelings, but prays for the work of adoration and humilia-
tion, by bowing down and kneeling. He praises chiefly that work
of the Lord which deserved special consideration when Israel
assembled for purposes of worship. He is " the Lord our maker,"
or as Moses has it, " the Rock that begat thee, the God that formed
thee." (Deut. xxxii. 18.) He found Israel as a troop of slaves,
who were no people. He gave them the law, guided and fed them
as a shepherd, {vide ad. Ps. xxxiii. 1,) his faithful hand holding
the staff. They had often been faithless, but the " To-day' for
ever resounds anew, "For the gifts and calling of God are without
repentance." (Rom. xi. 29.)
y. 8 — 11. Lest the people should regard the admonition need-
less, God himself appears, reminding them of the faithlessness of
their ancestors, (Exod. xvii.) and its serious consequences. As it is
no easy thing firmly to believe in the love of our invisible Father
high above the clouds, so will this Father assuredly be lenient
towards the weakness of men. As regards his people he had showed
himself to them, become visible, and appeared, as it were, before
them in his miracles; but in spite of all this they provoked him
anew in the wilderness, by asking, " Is the Lord among us or not?"
(Exod. xvii. 7.) Their unbelief was by no means a transient weak-
ness. The Lord had to bear its effusions for forty years. It then
became manifest that they were not worthy to enter into the rest
which he had prepared for them in Canaan; besides Caleb and
Joshua, not one of their six hundred thousand men entered there.
This passage is beautifully explained Hebrews iv. 7, etc. Since
384 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
God addressed the same admonition to later generations, the apos-
tle concludes that the rest which Grod had prepared for the people
in the earthly Canaan was not the right one ; that there was
another rest, from which men might exclude themselves through
unbelief.
PSALM XCVI.
Although Psalms xcvi. — c. make no specific mention of the
Messiah, they are nevertheless (Psalm xcix. excepted) Messianic,
because they set forth his work and repeat the frequent declara-
tions of the prophets. They show how the messages of the pro-
phets entered into the hearts of pious Israelites, inspired them, and
how the lyric poets familiarized the people more with their con-
tents, from the fact of their forming part of the temple service.
The theme of these psalms is the Messiah's advent on earth, for
the purpose of establishing a kingdom of righteousness, of holding
a judgment in which idols shall be demolished, the only true God
receive universal homage, (Ps. xcvii. 7,) and the God of Israel be
preached over the whole earth. With this accord the predictions
of the prophets, and Isaiah attunes a song similar to this, " Sing
unto the Lord a new song," etc. (Isa. xlii. 10.) According to
1 Chronicles xvi. this psalm in conjunction with some verses of
Psalms cv. and cvi. was sung at the removal of the ark into the
sanctuary. Kindred in contents are especially Psalms xlvii. and
Ixvii.
The Lord shall be praised in all the earth and at all times,
(v. 1 — 3.) He is worthy: all other gods are nothing, (v. 4 — 6.)
All the heathen must worship hira in holy reverence, (v. 7 — 9.)
The proclamation of the Lord's monarchy is an object of joy so
great that even inanimate nature is forced to utter her voice and to
praise the Lord, (v. 10 — 13.)
^0
SING unto the Lord a new song:
Sing unto the LoRD, all the earth.
Sing unto the Lord, bless his name;
Preach his salvation from day to day.
Declare his glory among the heathen,
His wonders among all people.
For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised :
He is to be feared above all gods.
PSALM XCVI.
6 For all the gods of the nations are idols :*
But the Lord made the heavens.
6 Honour and majesty are before him:
Strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Give unto the Lord, 0 ye kindreds of the people,
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
8 Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name ;
Bring an offering, and come into his courts.
9 0 worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness :
Fear before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth :
The world also shall be established that it shall not be
moved :
He shall judge the people righteously.
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad ;
Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof (or, "all that is
therein.")
12 Let the field be joyful and all that is therein:
And let all the trees of the wood rejoice
13 Before the Lord : for he cometh,
For he cometh to judge the earth :
He shall judgef the world with righteousness.
And the people with his truth.
V. 1 — 6. Songs of praise shall be addressed unto the Lord
with renewed faith and renewed love, not only by his people but
by the whole earth, not only now and then, but from day to day.
The knowledge of this God is to reach all the nations from the
narrow borders of a country the greatest extension of which, from
Sidon to Sodom, comprised not more than about 130 miles: the
words of the prophet shall be fulfilled, "Then will I turn to the
people a pure language, that they may call upon the name of the
Lord, to serve him with one consent." (Zeph. iii. 9.) It was
incredible to men, but the Lord had imparted that assurance to
the hearts of his elect. "All the gods of the nations are idols."
The proper meaning of idol is "a vanity" — "a nothing," (1 Cor.
via. 4;) they demand adoration without having done any works.
"But the Lord made the heavens." Though glorious on earth,
the fulness of his glory is in his heavenly sanctuary.
V. 7 — 9. It is proper that the nations should approach such a
God with praises and offerings in the festal adornment of priests,
(Cf Psalm xxix. 2.)
* Literally, "are nothings," /. e. fancies of the mind.
f Or, "x-ule."
38
386 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 10 — 13. He who is the sole king of creation made and
established the world in so solid a manner that it cannot be moved,
though generations of rebels seek to scatter into it universal con-
fusion. He judges the nations in righteousness: believers are
sure of this, and shall see it when he shall establish his visible
kingdom. It will not be a reign of terror, but to all who obey his
laws a reign of joy, and of joy so great, that inanimate nature her-
self shall participate in " the glorious liberty of the children of
God," (Rom. viii 21,) and give loud utterance to her rejoicing.
PSALM XCVII.
This description of the advent of the Lord as the Judge of the
earth is similar to Psalm xviii. The Psalmist confines himself,
however, not to judgment in its literal sense, but comprises in that
term every divine energy which brings about the cessation of evil.
In the same way our Lord says, "The prince of this world is
judged." (John xvi. 11.) This is evident, for the conversion of
idolaters to the living God is stated as a result of that judgment,
(v. 7.) So Malachi (Mai. iii. 2, 3,) names as one result of the
Divine judgment the purifying and sanctifying of the priesthood of
Israel. We who behold in history the partial manifestation at
least of the Psalmist's vision, are entitled to the assertion that
"the theme of this Psalm is the triumpli of Christ over an unbe-
lieving world in its present partial fulfilment and ultimate com-
pletion."
1 rr^HE Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice;
X Let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.
2 Clouds and darkness are round about him :
Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of his
throne.
3 A fire goeth before him,
And burneth up his enemies round about.
4 His lightnings enlightened the world:
The earth saAv and trembled.
5 The hills melted 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 the people see his glory.
PSALM XCVII. 387
7 Confounded be all tliey that serve graven images,
That boast themselves of idols:
AVorship him, all ye gods !
8 Zion heard, and was glad ;
And the daughters of Judah rejoiced
Because of thy judgments, 0 Lord.
9 For thou Lord, art Most High in all the earth;
Thou art greatly exalted above all gods.
10 Ye that love the Lord, hate evil:
He preserveth the souls of his saints ;
He delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
11 Light is sown for the righteous,*
And gladness for the upright in heart.
12 Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous;
And give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
Y. 1 — 6. ''The Lord reigneth." He reigus now, thouah his
longsuffering bears with his adversaries. This is not a fearful but
a comforting truth: the source of rejoicing to all who love the
good, even to remote isles that shall hereafter gratefully acknow-
ledge it. (Isa. xlii. 4. 10.) Dark clouds enwrap his throne.
This is meant to symbolize the severity of the judge; but there is
every reason for courage, since righteousness and judgment are the
foundations of the throne. The fire of his anger consumes his
adversaries. Though now it often seems as if he had laid his
sceptre for a while aside, it shall then become manifest that he is
"the Lord of the whole earth.'' As far as the heavens extend, so
far shall his righteousness be made known. The term righteous-
ness must not be confined to retributive justice, but extended to
all the attributes which come into play in the revelation of his
Being, among which is included that of "goodness." (^See ad.
Ps. V. 9.) This is the reason why the latter half of the verse
speaks of his '■^ glory."
y. 7 — 9. Vain pretenders to divine dignity shall then come to
nought, and great exulting shall be in the city of God, when the
Lord shall be revealed, such as he is now, though unacknow-
ledged, "Exalted far above all gods."
V. 10 — 12. They only who hate evil, as does the king, are
owned as citizens in the city of God. "The foundation of God
standeth sure, having this seal: let everyone that nameth the
name of Christ depart from iniquity." (2 Tim. ii. 19.) They may
safely trust in the immutability of the divine law, according to
which joy and gladness shall ultimately arise to the pious, and on
that account cannot but praise him for evermore.
* Or, "Light shall arise to the righteous."
388 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM XCVIII.
This psalm is the echo of Psalm xcvi. Its contents are, the final
great revelation, the ultimate triumph of God, when his salvation
and his righteousness, the revelation of which is promised to Israel,
shall be revealed to his own people and to the whole world.
A
PSALM.
1 0 sing unto the Lord a new song ;
For he hath done marvellous things :
His right hand, and his holy arm,
Hath gotten him the victory,
2 The Lord hath caused his salvation to be made known,
His righteousness hath he revealed before the heathen.
3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth
Toward the house of Israel:
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth:
Make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.
5 Sing unto the Lord with the harp ;
With the harp, and the voice of a psalm.
6 With trumpets and sound of cornet
Make a joyful noise before the Lord, the King.
T Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof;
The world, and they that dwell therein.
8 Let the floods clap their hands :
Let the hills be joyful together
9 Before the Lord ; for he cometh to judge the earth :
With righteousness shall he judge the world,
And the people with equity.
PSALM XCIX.
A HORTATORY psalm, which calls upon Israel to worship their
God and King, who reigns in righteousness, and has shown much
favour to his people.
First Choir.
1 rpHE Lord reigneth — let the people tremble :
JL He that sitteth between the cherubim — let the earth
be moved.
PSALM XCIX. 389
2 The Lord is great in Zion ;
And he is high above all the people.
3 Let them praise thy great and terrible name ;
Jf'or it is holy.
4 And the strength of the king who loveth judgment !
Thou dost establish equity.
Thou executest judgment and righteousness in Jacob.
Second Choir.
5 Exalt ye the Lord our God,
And worship at his footstool ;
For he is holy.
First Choir.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests,
And Samuel among them that call upon his name;
They called upon the Lord, and he answered them.
7 He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar:
They kept his testimonies.
And the ordinance that he gave them.
8 Thou answerest them, 0 Lord, our God !
Thou wast a God that forgavest them (the people,)
Though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.
Second Choir.
9 Exalt the Lord our God,
And worship at his holy hill ;
For the Lord our God is holy.
F. 1 — 5. The Lord is a mighty King: at the revelation of hia
power everything must tremble. For centuries he has exercised
judgment in Israel, therefore Israel above all nations shall worship
him. They shall worship at his footstool, i. e. near the ark and ia
the temple. (1 Chron. xxviii. 2; Psalm cxxxii. 7; Isaiah Ix. 13;
Lam. ii. 1; Ezek. xliii. 7.) This expression is to indicate, that
however marvellous the revelation of God in his visble sanctuary
may appear, its glory is not to be compared with the sanctuary of
heaven, in which all his fulness is expanded.
V. 6 — 9. God had in his mercy favoured his people with
mighty intercessors, such as Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, the two
former of whom are here as the celebrated representatives and
intercessors of their nation called j^rfests, though Moses was not a
priest. (Exod. xxxii. 31, 32; Psalm cvi. 28; 1 Sam. xii. 19;
Jer. XV. 1.) He had revealed his mercy in drawing nigh unto
his people. He had punished their transgressions, but his method
33*
390 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
was lenient, (2 Sam. vii. 14 :) he had not removed his favour from
them, but forgave them for their intercessors' sake. Shall Israel
forget this?
PSALM C.
A TEMPLE song, as Psalm xcv., which was probably sung during
the march of a procession. (Cf. v. 4; Ps. cxviii. 19.) The refresh-
ing words of verse 5 seem to have been frequently repeated in
these songs: this seems to be the legitimate inference from
Ezra iii, 11; 1 Mace. iv. 24; 1 Chron. xvi. 34. They occur
also in Psalms cvi. cvii. cxviii. cxxxvi. and in psalms whose date
falls after the captivity.
^A
PSALM of Praise.
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness:
Come before his presence with singing!
Know ye that the Lord he is God :
It is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves,
To be his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
And into his courts with praise :
Be thankful unto him, a7id bless his name,
For the Lord is good ; his mercy is everlasting ;
And his truth e'ndureth to all generations.
PSALM CI.
This psalm contains the principles of David's government.* Many
commentators think that this psalm was composed during the period
of his persecution ; but from his calling Jerusalem the city of God,
the ark seems already to have been on Mount Zion. If the words
in V. 2 — "When thou wilt come to me," should refer to the ark,
the date of the psalm falls into the period when David, afraid to
receive the ark, but hearing of the blessing it brought upon the
* "It may easily be seen that the poet is a mighty potentate, and David,
for the nobility of David's mind is throughout discernible." — Ewald.
PSALM CI. ^^^
touse of Obed-edom, intended to remove it from there to the capital,
and offered new vows to his God on that occasion.
He will sing of the chief virtues of royal government, which he
intends to cultivate. He begins with his private life, (v. 1, Z.)
Slanderousand proud servants shall be kept from his court (v. ö—ö)
but he will attract faithful servants, and purify the city ot God
from transgressors, (v. 6-8.) This psalm is one of the few (viz.
cxxvii, cxiviii.) which refer to the admimstration of a secular
calling. Luther observes, '' This psalm is written against factious
men, who pretend to much holiness in condemning domesticity,
matrimony, and anything that is high and low on earth.
1 A PSALM of David.
I will sing of mercy and judgment :
Unto thee, 0 Lord, will I sing (or "play. )
2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way.
When thou wilt come unto me.
I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.
3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes:
I hate the work of them that turn aside;
Jt shall not cleave to me.
4 A froward heart shall depart from me :
I will not know a wicked person.
5 Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will 1 cut ofl :
Him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not
I suffer. „ , , 1 ^1 0. xi-
6 Mine eyes look upon the faithful of the land, that they
may dwell with me :
He that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me.
7 He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house:
He that telleth lies shall not tarry m my sight.
8 I will early destroy all the wicked of the land:_
That I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the
Lord.
7. 1 2 Mercy and judgment, the chief qualities of a king's
government, form the theme of his song. He calls it a song of
praise, because holiness prompts him to such resolutions. We
refer the words, "When thou wilt come unto me, * to the arK,
* Interpreters are greatly at variance as to the meaning of J^^ P^s^?;g^^
Luther renders, "Before them that belong unto me:" adding, Some Rabbis
wUl no doubt find fault with my free rendering, but I prefer plain sense to
The^r amSguous words." David's meaning is, "Those who enter my
house, Te belong to me." Abeu Ezra, Kimchi, refer to a coming of the
392 COMMENTAKY ON THE PSALMS.
the object of his longing, which he brought up with rejoicing, and
before which he danced in the gladness of his heart. (2 Sam. vi.)
Its arrival on Zion made that day a day of new and holy resolves,
as we are wont to turn over a new leaf on experiencing unexpectedly
the goodness of the Lord. Everything should be holy in the city
which was henceforth to contain the visible sanctuary cl his God.
He would especially be holy within his house, i. e. hi? family, since
the public and private life of kings often presents a strange contrast.
V. 3 — 7. It is his intention to strive as a rj.ier after righteous-
ness, to get faithful and godly courtiers around him. He had
during his residence at the court of Saul learnt how greatly kings
are plagued with sycophants, slanderers, and proud men, like Doeg
and Cush, who driving the faithful away, seek only their own gain,
and to become the lords of their lords. A prince once observed that
he was not afraid of those that are far away, but of those who were
following his steps, because these were far more inclined to injure
him. David vows in general terms that he will not bear with the
wicked; he then expresses his hatred against calumniators and the
proud, who had never an eye to the king's, though always to their
own interest. He will be on the look out for the faithful of the
land, whereby he intimates that they are by no means numerous.
Duke Frederic once said, "The older I get the less I know whom
to trust." A prince should not get weary of seeking, for it is worth
the trouble. Even in regarding a country which is governed by a
Nero or a Caracalla, it may still be said that their righteous servants
prevented more evil than they themselves did. David detests
lying as much as slander, for he himself is honest and loves the
truth. The temptation to untruth and flattery in the case of ser-
vants and confidential attendants of great lords is confessedly most
common. It must be very common, since there are but few princes
who so thoroughly loathe it as David did, and since many are not
even as wise as that abbot who said of the brethren who made the
most reverential bow, "I know that they do not look at me, but at
the key which is fastened to my girdle."
V. 8. The purifying of his immediate circle of attendants is
spirit of prophecy; and the majority of modern translators regard the words
as a longing sigh for Divine assistance, "When wilt thou come unto me
with thine aid?" But how can the simple "come unto me" mean the assist-
ance of God? How strange such a sigh? Theodoret regards the passage
as a question, but as a question of surprise why God did not enter into a
heart which was already entirely devoted to him ? Münster, Bucer, Calvin,
Grotius, who refer the date of the psalm to before the ascension of David,
render, "When wilt thou raise me to the throne?" or, "When thou shalt
raise me to the throne." Still different from the rest is Rudinger, "When-
ever thou wilt come to me," i. e. "When I am with mine;" and Tremellius,
"When thou shalt come to call me to account." Maurer, "When shall I
be prosperous?" .Jarchi, "Until the right way shall come unto me." Our
explanation may be seen in Calmet and Venema.
PSALM CIL 393
only the beginoing for the purifying of the whole land. The unholy
city, which now contains the sanctuary of the Lord, shall be holy
to the Lord. David purposes to attack sin of any kind wherever
it might appear. Sensible that such a work cannot be done at
once, he vows to renew his resolve from day to day, and with new
strength to enter upon the work.
PSALM CII.
The inscription denotes the object of the psalm. It is a psalm for
the afflicted. It was written, as appears from verses 14 — 18, dur-
ing the exile, after it had lasted for some considerable time, and
the seventy years which the prophets had stated as its duration
had almost expired, (v. 14.)
Remote from his native country, exposed to the reproach of ene-
mies— the Psalmist's life is slowly advancing, (v. 1 — 12.) But
the time of deliverance is at hand. The Spirit assures him that
the Lord will soon rebuild Zion, and that the kings of the heathen
shall hereafter be converted to the Lord, who does such mighty
works, (v. 13 — 23.) This elevation of mind is succeeded by gloom
— the voice of complaint is heard once more — but only for a
moment, for he is raised again by looking to the Eternal, whose
omnipotence is unchangeable, and who will show his salvation to
his posterity at least, if not to himself.
1 A PRAYER of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed,
XL and poureth out his complaint before the Lord.
2 Hear my prayer, 0 Lord,
And let my cry come unto thee.
3 Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble ;
Incline thine ear unto me : in the day when I call
Answer me speedily.
4 For my days are consumed like smoke,
And my bones are burned as an hearth (or, "faggots.")
5 My heart is smitten, and withered like grass ;
So that I forget to eat my bread.
6 By reason of the voice of my groaning
My bones cleave to my flesh.
7 I am like a pelican of the wilderness :
I am like an owl in ruins.
8 I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.
394 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 Mine enemies reproach me all the day;
And they that are mad against me are sworn against me.
10 For I have eaten ashes like bread,
And mingled my drink with weeping,
11 Because of thine indignation and thy wrath :
For thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.
12 My days are like a shadow that declineth;*
And I am withered like grass.
13 But thou, 0 Lord, sbalt endure for ever;
And thy remembrance unto all generations.
14 Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion :
For the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.
15 For thy servants take pleasure in her stones,
And have mercy uponf the dust thereof.
16 So the heathen shall fear the name of the Lord,
And all the kings of the earth thy glory.
17 When the Lord shall build up Zion,
He shall appear in his glory.
18 He will regard the prayer of the destitute,
And not despise their prayer.
19 This shg,!! be written for the generation to come :
And the people which shall be created shall praise the LoRD.
20 For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary ;
From heaven did the Lobd behold the earth;
21 To hear the groaning of the prisoner ;
To loose those that are appointed to death;
22 To declare the name of the Lord in Zion,
And his praise in Jerusalem ;
23 When the people are gathered together.
And the kingdoms, to serve the Lord,
24 He weakened my strength in the way.
He shortened my days.
25 I said, 0 my God, take me not away in the midst of my days :
Thy years are throughout all generations.
26 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth :
And the heavens are the work of thy hands.
27 They shall perish, but thou shalt endure :
Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment ;
As a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be
changed :
* Or, "Like an extended (i. e. stretched out) shadow."
f /. 6. "are grieved at,"
1
PSALM CIL 395
28 But thou art the same,
And thy years shall have no end,
29 The children of thy servants shall continue,
And their seed shall be established before thee.
Y. 2 — 5. He begins to call upon God with the fervour of one
who is sure that his prayer reaches to heaven. The glow of these
complaints shows that the wailing is not only personal, but refers,
like the lamentations of Jeremiah, to the humiliation of a people
which was formerly highly honoured before God and men and to
whom the Psalmist belongs. The debasement of his nation has
struck the deepest wounds into the heart of this Psalmist as it did
to Jeremiah — though both solely grieve on account of the sin
which had occasioned such chastisements. (Lam. i. 8. 18; ii. 14,
etc.) His days pass on like the extended evening shadow; flames
rage within, his heart is withered, he loathes to eat, and his flesh
is faint; like a bird of the desert, like a lone sparrow deprived of
his consort, he seeks in his pain for solitude.
V. 13 — 18. The Lord may have changed his dealings with
Israel — but his Behig remains eternally the same. He had caused
it to be proclaimed that the captivity should come to an end after a
certain term. "I will not make a full end of thee; but I will cor-
rect thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpun-
ished." (Jer. XXX. 11.) "As yet they shall use this speech in the
land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall bring again
their captivity : The Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and
mountain of holiness. And there shall dwell in Judah itself, and
in all the cities thereof together, husbandmen, and they that go
forth with flocks." (Jer. xxxi. 23, 24.) The term of the chastise-
ment had even been revealed, " These nations shall serve the king
of Babylon seventy years." (Jer. xxv. 11; cf. Zech. i. 12; Dan.
ix. 2.) The complainant's hope has in these declarations some-
thing to seize, by means of which he mounts to so joyous an assu-
rance, that he proclaims the building of Jerusalem, and looks for-
ward to a time when the kings of the heathen shall fear the God
of Israel.
V. 19 — 23. As the history of the Lord's people is a sermon —
so is especially the history of tliis deliverance. For mercy rebuilds
Zion — the praise of the Lord shall be on the lips of its new inha-
bitants, so that they shall be the evangelists of the true God, at
the time when the Lord shall add the heathen nations to the people
of God. (Psalm xlvii. 10.)
F. 24 — 29. The prospects of the future are thus glorious and
bright; but shall the Psalmist be spared to see it? He feels that
his strength is gone. Yet however much things in heaven and on
earth may change, the Being of the Lord remains unchanged.
396 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Heaven and earth are his handiwork, with which he as it were sur-
rounds himself as with a vesture. The vesture may change, but
he, whom it surrounds, endureth for ever. He may linger with
revealing himself in the present, but the children of his servants
shall experience his blessings.
PSALM cm.
A PSALM of praise, no less expressive of the peace of a soul recon-
ciled to God than JPsalm xxiii. Psalms like the present show that
the evangelical spirit of the New Testament came occasionally upon
the servants of God, who lived under the Old Covenant.
It is the Psalmist's intention to praise the Lord for the benefits
which he had himself experienced, among which he regards the
forgiveness of sins as the greatest, (v. 1 — 5.) He then praises the
benefits which Israel had experienced in conjunction with the for-
giving mercy of the Lord, (v. 7 — 19.) The soul of the Psalmist
is so filled with the necessity to praise the Lord — a want than
which none more noble can be conceived — that he calls upon all the
creatures of God to praise him, (v. 20 — 22.)
A
PSALM of David.
Bless the Lord, 0 my soul :
And all that is within me, bless his holy name.
Bless the Lord, 0 my soul,
And forget not all his benefits.
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities ;
Who healeth all thy diseases ;
Who redeemeth thy life from destruction ;
Who crowneth thee with lovinskindness and tender
mercies :
Who satisfieth thy mouth* with good things;
So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.
The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment
For all that are oppressed.
He made known his ways unto Moses,
His acts unto the children of Israel.
* "Thine age?" Thol. de Wette. "Thy desire." Lxx. Vulg.
PSALM cm. 397
8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
9 He will not always chide :
Neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10 He hath not dealt Avith us after our sins ;
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
11 For as the heaven is high above the earth,
So great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
12 As far as the east is from the west.
So far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
13 Like 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 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone ;
And it shall know no more the place thereof.
17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to ever-
lasting upon them that fear him.
And his righteousness unto children's children;
18 To such as keep his covenant,
And to those that remember his commandments to do them.
19 The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens;
And his kingdom ruleth over all.
20 Bless the Lord, ye his angels.
That excel in strength, that do his commandments,
Hearkening unto the voice of his word.
21 Bless ye the Lord, all 7/e his hosts ;
Ye ministers of his that do his pleasure.
22 Bless the Lord, all his works,
In all places of his dominion :
Bless the Lord, 0 my soul.
V. 1 — 5. The Psalmist reproves as it were the remissness and
indolence of the human heart to praise the Lord, and repeatedly
calls upon his soul to engage in that occupation. He confesses
that enough of goodness has been shown to him, and that man
chiefly requires a good memory for the benefits of Grod. He begins
not like others with the enumeration of temporal benefits, such as
health, wife, ofispring, and the like, however much they ought to
be gratefully acknowledged; but above all he thanks the Lord for
ih& forgiveness of his sins. In mentioning diseases he alludes to
34
398 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
the noxiousness of sin, and in naming destruction his reference
is to the punishment due to sin, "which the grace and mercy of God
averts. The fountain of Divine mercy for his people is so copious,
that they shall remain ever young, and that their leaves shall not
wither, (Psalm i.) Similar in import is the figure of the eagle,
who attains to the highest age among birds, and as they moult
annually, may be said to renew themselves and to get young again.
(Isaiah xl. 31; Ixv. 20.) The glory of the old age of the godly
consists in this, that while the faculties for sensuous no less than
mental enjoyment gradually decline, and the hearth of life gets
thus deprived of its fuel, the blessings of godliness not only con-
tinue to refresh the soul in old age, but are not until then most
thoroughly enjoyed. The sun of piety rises the warmer in propor-
tion as the sun of life declines.
F. 6 — 18. The Psalmist looks now from himself to his nation
and her experience of Divine deliverance, especially in the days of
her youth at the time of the great deliverance by Moses. No merit
gave them a title, but the mercy and grace of God were the only
sources ofthat blessing. He punished them in his anger but "in
measure." (Jer. xxx. 11; Isaiah liv. 8.) However much he pun-
ishes, his punishment does not come up to our iniquities; the
psalmist here alludes to the beautifully evangelical name of God.
(Exod. xxxiv. 6.) High as the heaven is above the earth, is his
mercy over his servants, and he removes the recollection of their
transgressions as far as the east is from the west. The Psalmisjt
twice adds "those that fear him," and then, "to such as keep his
covenant." In doing so, he repels that carnal view of Divine love,
which forgets that faith and repentance are the conditions on which
the Lord promises to become our father. David often felt this
filial relation to God. (Psalms xvi. xxiii. xxxii.) He confesses
that the mercy of God is a pure act of grace : he is merciful because
we are nothing and are only strong in him.- Man is as frail as the
flower of the field, which after the scorching east wind has passed
over it for a day or two, dies and others grow up in its stead.
What can man do without God? Just those who know these things
and make him their refuge, experience his mercy and overflowing
goodness, which are extended to their posterity, provided they do
not render themselves unworthy of them. The added condition of
verse 18 shows the misapprehension of those who think that the
promise of the blessings on godly parents unto the thousandth gener-
ation, (Exod. XX. 5, 6.) might be so interpreted that hardened off-
spring could enjoy the favour of God for their father's sake, while
pious offspring could for their father's sake be rejected. It is clear
that this was not the meaning of Moses, for it is said of the wicked
"unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me," while
it is said of the godly, " showing mercy unto thousands of them
PSALM CIV.
that love me and keep my commandments.^ After this represen-
tation of the adorable attributes of the Lord, he concludes the des-
cription with the truth that his throne is established in the heavens,
high above the fluctuations of earthly life, and that all, willingly or
unwillingly, must serve him.
V. 20 — 22. These thoughts have so edified the pious Psalmist
that his own praise and that of men seems insufficient to him ; he
calls therefore heavenly spirits to his aid, the servants of might,
forming as it were the Lord's army, as well as all creatures that
form part of his infinite dominion. But he finally reverts to his
own soul, lest engaged with calling upon others h.e should neglect
his own duty.
PSALM CIV.
A GLORIOUS psalm of nature. It begins with a description of the
habitation of God and of his ministering powers, (v. 2 — 4.)
Adverting to the beginning of creation there follows a description
of the origin of the habitable globe, (v. 5 — 9,) of God's care for
the wild beasts in the loneliness of the forest, for cattle, for man
who had received more than he needed, for the vegetable kingdom,
the birds in the top of the trees, and for the occupants of the
loftiest mountainous regions, (v. 10 — 18.) He turns to the stars
of heaven, the wonderful alternations of day and night and attend-
ant spectacles, (v. 19 — 23,) and proceeds to the miracles of the
deep, (v. 24 — 26;) though the creatures of God are innumerable
yet not one of them is uncared for: shall he not provide food, who
gives life? (v. 27 — 30.) His glory is not transient, (v. 31, 32.)
Who can regard such a God without praising him and desiring the
return of all those who have forsaken him ? (v. 33 — 35.)
1 T>LESS the Lord, 0 my souL
J3 0 Lord my God, thou art very great:
Thou art clothed with honour and majesty.
2 Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment :
Who streichest out the heavens like a tent :
3 Who layeth his upper chambers above, the waters rf
Who maketh the clouds his chariot:
Who walketh upon the wings of the wind :
* Cf. Deut. xxiv. 16; Lev. xxvi. 39; Jer. xxxi. 29, 30; Ezek. xviii.—
Hengstenberg's Authenticity of the Pentateuch, ii. 544.
•}■ This is a better rendering than "of waters," for the sensuous idea of
man conceives of God as enthroned above the clouds, in the luminous heights
which spread away into infinity. Cf. Psalm cxlviii. 4, where the clouds
are the waters above the skies, beyond which the Lord sits enthroned.
400 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
4 Who maketli the winds his angels (messengers,)
A flaming fire his ministers.
5 Who laid the foundations of the earth,
That it should not be removed for ever.
6 Thou coveredst it with the deep as ivith 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 rose, the valleys sank down —
Unto the place which thou hast founded for them.
9 Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over ;
That they turn not again to cover the earth.
10 He sendeth the springs into the valleys.
Which flow among the hills.
11 They give drink to every beast of the field :
The wild asses quench their thirst.
12 By them the fowls of the heaven have their habitation,
And sing among the branches.
13 He watereth the hills from his chambers:
The earth is satisfied with the fruit of thy works.
14 He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle.
And herb for the service of man :
That he may bring forth food out of the earth;
15 And wine that maketh glad the heart of man.
To make his face to shine more than oil :
And bread which strengtheneth man's heart.
16 The trees of the Lord are full of sap :
The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted ;
17 Where the birds make their nests :
As for the stork, the fir trees are her house.
18 The high hills are a refuge for the wild goats ;
And the rocks for the conies.
19 He appointed the moon for seasons :
The sun knoweth his going down.
20 Thou makest darkness, and it is night :
Wherein all the beasts of the forest do creep /oriÄ.
21 The young lions roar after their prey,
And seek their meat from God.
22 The sun ariseth, they gather themselves together,
And lay them down in their dens.
23 Man goeth forth unto his work
And to his labour until the evening.
PSALM CIV.
401
24 0 Lord, how manifold are thy works !
In wisdom hast thou made them all :
The earth is full of thv riches.
25 So is this great and wide sea,
Wherein are things creeping innumerahle,
Both small and great beasts.
26 There go the ships :
There is that leviathan, zvhom thou hast made to play
therein.
27 These wait all upon thee ;
That thou mayest give them their meat in due season.
28 That thou givest them they gather :
Thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.
29 Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled :
Thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to
their dust.
80 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.
83 I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live :
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
84 My speech shall be sweet to him :
I will be glad in the Lord.
85 Let the sinners be consumed out of the earth,
And let the wicked be no more.
Bless thou the Lord, 0 my soul. Praise ye the Lord.
F. 1. This call upon his soul to praise the Lord is impressively
repeated at the close of the psalm. The works of God give a
mirror-like reflection of his being. (Rom. i. 20.) The diversity
and extension of creation testify of his glory and majesty.
V. 2 — 4. The description beginning with the highest heaven
gradually descends to the earth and its inhabitants. The vaulted
sky is the tent, the light of heaven the garment of God, which
conceals him, the invisible one. His upper chamber (people ia
the East used to retire to the upper chamber when they wished for
solitude) is reared up in bright sether on the slender foundation of
rainy clouds. (Ps. cxlviii. 4.) Undulating clouds and the wings
of the tempest are bis royal chariot. The winds and flames of fire,:
34*
402 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
hastening from those heights to this lower world, are his minister-
ing spirits.*
V. 5 — 9. With reference to the history of creation, the Psalmist
now turns to the lower regions of earth. The habitation of God in
the heavens is firmly established, though the waters be its rafters:
nor does the earth sink, though her weight seem to draw her into
the deep. The waters covered her in the beginning like a gar-
ment to the highest summits of her mountains; the Lord spoke,
the waters were gathered into the ocean, and mountains and val-
leys stood forth. Omnipotence has set a bound to the waters,
though they are above and lighter than the earth and seem to over-
flow it. (>S'ee ad. Ps. xxiv. 2.)
V. 10 — 12. There are streams in the lone desert, invisible to
man, giving drink to the beast of the field. The wild ass is very
shy and dwells in the desert. By their lone banks the birds war-
ble their notes, if not to human ears, to the Creator who made
them.
V. 13 — 15. The waters distil from the mountains for the benefit
of man and beast. The cattle, more dependent on water and
grass than men, for whom the vine grows to gladden their hearts,
so that their faces get radiant with joy, and shine as with ointment.
(Sir. xxxi. 34; xl, 20.) This passage may be explained as show-
ing that the truly pious need not restrict themselves to the barest
necessities of life, but that they who have the means may enjoy
the gifts of God. But the words of Sirach are first in considera-
tion, " Wine and music rejoice the heart, hut the love of wisdom is
above them both." Moreover, that which is lawful is not always
expedient, and love prompts sometimes to the denial of what is
lawful. (1 Cor. vi. 12.)
F. 16 — 18. Irrigated from above, the vegetable kingdom blos-
soms and flourishes. The Psalmist confines himself to the cedar
as the queen thereof. Life is difi"used up to the top of the loftiest
trees and the summit of the highest mountains. A lone butterfly
may be seen on the heights of Chimborazo.
V. 19 — 23. The sun and the moon are, as it were, for the ser-
vice of our globe : they divide the year into day and night. The
night hides life in her lap, and the day brings it forth. The lion
roars in the stillness of night, and cries to God for food. When
* The most natural construction recommends the translation, "He
maketh his angels winds," (of. Köster;) it has been remarked (ad. Psalm
xxxiv. 8) that the term "angel," literally message, or emanation from God,
does not always denote personal beings, but also the ministering powers of
God in nature. This would justify that translation, and Psalm cxlvii. 15
may be compared, where it is said, that the word of God, being sent out,
runneth swiftly. But when light is called the garment, «ether the chamber,
and clouds the chariot, one cannot help thinking that the elements of
nature, e. g. the winds, should be called messengers.
PSALM CIV. 403
the beasts of the forest retire to their dens, man goes forth to hia
work.
V. 24 — 26. Having enumerated only a small portion of the
works of God, the Psalmist feels his inability to comprehend them
all. His astonishment is his adoration. From the few particulars
he had named, he makes the universal conclusion, ''In wisdom
hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy riches.'' He
recollects having passed by the life in the deep. The vastness and
greatness of the sea alone would sufl&ce to strike us with astonish-
ment, even if it were an uninhabited infinity. But its infinite
vastness hides an infinite world : an innumerable diversity of
beasts, small and great. Its surface is alive, and there is busy
life down to the lowest coral boughs. Its surface carries man, who
transplants his arts and his passions from the land to the ocean, and
trading and warring, inventing and discovering, animates the waste
face of the deep with the spectacles of earth. A race of creatures
merrily move in it as their home, and play in its billows.
F. 27 — 30. According to the judgment of merely sensuous
observation, the food which millions of creatures are consuming
every moment flows from other sources than the hand of God, and
secondary causes too easily conceal the final cause. But the truly
Grod-fearing man looks through every concealment and veiling, and
adores the ever-rich God, who has for many thousand years pro-
vided the meat "in due season," (i. e. when they require it,) for
the millions of guests and children on earth, on mountain height,
in the air and the ocean, that look to his hand, without his treas-
ury having grown any the poorer during these many thousand years.
(Psalm cxlv. 15.) Their food cannot come from any other hand
than that from which their life proceeds. But their life is God's,
for by him breathe and live all that are alive; their breath is his,
and if he takes it away they die ; so the whole creation would per-
ish if God were to take away from it what is his.
V. 31, 32. The glory and majesty of God are subject to no
change. When he had created the world he said, "Behold, it is
very good." Though man did not continue in that goodness, and
brought confusion into the world, yet does the Lord rejoice in his
works, and will preserve them until they shall have accomplished
their ends. He gives the signal and the universe obeys, and at his
appi-oaeh trembles like Sinai in reverential submission. (Exod.
xix. 18.)
V. 33 — 35. It is indeed the most worthy employment of an
entire existence to sing the praises of such a God. While the
Psalmist says this, and with a sense of joy concludes his prayer,
his mind contemplates to how small an extent the Lord is acknow-
ledged. This gives rise to the prayer that the wicked should cease
to be in this beautiful earth. (Psalm vii. 10; xxxvii. 38; cxlv. 20.)
404 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS,
PSALM cy.
A PSALM of praise. Its design is to recommend the faithful pre-
servation of the Divine law by a recital of the Divine leadings of
the nation, from the days of Abraham to their entrance into Canaan.
The proclamation of the name of the Lord among the heathen is
called for in the beginning of the psalm, as in Psalms xcvi. 3;
xcviii. 4; c. 1. The first fifteen verses occur in conjunction with
Psalm xcvi., in the psalm which was sung at the setting up of the
ark, which is mentioned in 1 Chron. xvi. The historical facts of
this and the succeeding psalm have partly been explained, ad.
Psalm Ixxviii.
1 A GIVE thanks unto the Lord ;
\J Call upon his name:
Make known his deeds among the people.
2 Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him:
Talk ye of all his wondrous works.
3 Glory ye in his holy name :
Let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord.
4 Seek the Lord and his strength :
Seek his face evermore.
5 Remember his marvellous works that he hath done ;
His wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;
6 0 ye seed of Abraham his servant,
Ye children of Jacob his chosen.
7 He, the Lord, is our God :
His judgments are in all the earth.
8 He hath remembered his covenant for erer,
The word which he commanded to a thousand generations.
9 Which covenant he made with Abraham,
And his oath unto Isaac;
10 And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law,
And to Israel /or an everlasting covenant:
11 Saying, " Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan,
The lot of your inheritance."
12 When there were but a few men in number:
Yea, very few, and strangers in it.
13 When they went from one nation to another.
From one kingdom to another people ;
14 He suffered no man to do them wrong :
Yea, he reproved kings for their sakes ;
PSALM cv. 405
15 Saying, " Touch not mine anointed,
And do my prophets no harm."
16 Moreover he called for a famine upon the land:
He brake the whole staff of bread.
17 He sent a man before them, even Joseph,
Who was sold for a servant :
18 Whose feet they hurt with fetters :
He was laid in iron :
19 Until the time that his word came :
The word of the Lord tried him.
20 The king sent and loosed him ;
Even the ruler of the people, and let him go free.
21 He made him lord of his house.
And ruler of all his possessions,
22 To bind his princes at his pleasure;
And teach his senators wisdom.
23 Israel also came into Egypt,
And Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
24 And he increased his people greatly;
And made them stronger than their enemies.
25 He turned their heart to hate his people.
To deal subtilly with his servants.
26 He sent Moses his servant,
And Aaron whom he had chosen.
27 They showed his signs among them,
And wonders in the land of Ham.
28 He sent darkness, and made it dark ;
And they rebelled not against his word.
29 He turned their waters into blood.
And slew their fish.
30 Their land brought forth frogs in abundance.
In the chambers of their kings.
31 He spake, and there came divers sorts of flies,
And lice in all their coasts.
32 He gave them hail for rain.
And flaming fire in their land.
33 He smote their vines also and their fig trees ;
And brake the trees of their coasts.
34 He spake, and the locusts came.
And caterpillars, and that without number, '
35 And did eat up all the herbs in their land,
And devoured the fruit of their ground.
406 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
86 He smote also all the firstborn in their land,
The chief of all their strength.
37 He brought them forth also with silver and gold:
And there was not one feeble person among their tribes.
38 Egypt was glad when they departed:
For the fear of them fell upon them.
39 He spread a cloud for a covering;
And fire to give light in the night.
40 The people asked, and he brought quails,
And satisfied them with the bread of heaven.
41 He opened the rock, and the waters gushed out ;
They ran in the dry places like a river.
42 For he remembered his holy promise,
And Abraham his servant.
43 And he brought forth his people with joy.
And his chosen with gladness :
44 And gave them the lands of the heathen :
And they inherited the labour of the people ;
45 That they might observe his statutes.
And keep his laws.
Praise ye the Lokd.
F. 11. Cf. Gen. xiii. 17.
V. 15. The anointed and the prophets are the patriarchs who
experienced the protection of God in their intercourse with Abime-
lech and Pharaoh, (Gen. xii. 17 j xx. 3;) they are called prophets
and the anointed, (Gen. xx. 7,) on account of their near relation
to God.
v. 19. The word of the Lord, i. e. the God-sent dream of
Joseph.
F. 22. Chiefly the wisdom for the government of the country.
F. 28. Pharaoh and the Egyptians were always obedient for the
moment.
PSALM CVI.
A PSALM of praise, composed during the exile, (v. 4, 5. 47,) con-
taining the confession of guilt which the nation had contracted by
their unbelief from the beginning, with the added prayer that the
PSALM cvi. 407
Lord would, now as then, be merciful to the chastened people,
(V. 47.)
1 TJALLELUJAH !
JjL 0 give thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the Lord ?
W7io can show forth all his praise ?
3 Blessed are they that keep judgment,
And he that doeth righteousness at all times.
4 Remember me, 0 Lord, with the favour that thou hast
promised unto thy people :
Oh, visit me with thy salvation ;
5 That I may see the good of thy chosen,
That I may rejoice in the gladness of thy nation,
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 understood not thy wonders in Egypt ;
They remembered not the multitude of thy mercies ;
But provoked him at the sea, even at the Red Sea.
8 Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake.
That he might make his mighty power to be known.
9 He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up :
So he led them through the depths, as through the
wilderness.
10 And he saved them from the hand of him that hated them.
And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
11 And the waters covered their enemies :
There was not one of them left.
12 Then believed they his words;
They sang his praise.
13 They soon forgat his works ;
They waited not for his counsel:
14 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness.
And tempted God in the desert.
15 And he gave them their request ;
But sent leanness into their soul.*
16 They strove against Moses also in the camp,
And Aaron the saint of the Lord.
* Or, "A disease against their life."
408 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
17 The earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
And covered the company of Abiram.
18 And a fire was kindled in their company;
The flame burned up the wicked.
19 They made a calf in Horeb,
And worshipped the molten image.
20 Thus they changed their glory
Into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass.
21 They forgat God their Saviour,
Which had done great things in Egypt;
22 Wondrous works in the land of Ham,
And terrible things by the Red Sea.
23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them,
Had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach,
To turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.
24 Yea, they despised the pleasant land,
They believed not his word:
25 But murmured in their tents,
And hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord.
26 Therefore he lifted up his hand against them.
To overthrow them in the wilderness :
27 To overthrow their seed also among the nations,
And to scatter them in the lands.
28 They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor,
And ate the sacrifices of the dead.
29 Thus they provoked him to anger with their inventions:
And the plague brake in upon them.
30 Then stood up Phinehas, and executed judgment :
And so the plague was stayed.
31 And that was counted unto him for righteousness
Unto all generations for evermore.
32 They angered him also at the waters of strife.
So that it went ill with Moses for their sakes:
33 For they provoked his spirit,
So that he spake unadvisedly with his lips.
34 They did not destroy the nations,
Concerning whom the Lord commanded them :
35 But were mingled among the heathen.
And learned their works.
36 And they served their idols :
Which were a snare unto them.
37 Yea, they sacrificed their sons
And their daughters unto devils,
PSALM CYI. 409
88 And shed innocent blood,
Even the blood of their sons and of their daughters,
Whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan :
And the land was polluted with blood.
39 Thus were they defiled with their own works,
And went a whoring with their own inventions.
40 Therefore was the wrath of the Lord kindled against
his people,
Insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance.
41 And he gave them into the hand of the heathen ;
And they that hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies also oppressed them.
And they were brought into subjection under their hand.
43 Many times did he deliver them ;
But they provoked him with their counsel.
And were brought low for their iniquity.*
44 Nevertheless he regarded their affliction,
When he heard their cry:
45 And he remembered for them his covenant,
And repented according to the multitude of his mercies,
46 He made them also to be pitied
Of all those that carried them captives.
47 Save us, 0 Lord our God,
And gather us from among the heathen,
To give thanks unto thy holy name,
And to triumph in thy praise.
48 Blessed he the Lord God of Israel
From everlasting to everlasting:
And let all the people say, Amen. Hallelujah.
V. 1. The expression, "Hallelujah," %. e. "Praise ye the
Lord," is prefixed for encouragement's sake to other Psalms.
Cxi. — cxiii. on "0 give thanks unto the Lord,"' etc., see ad.
Psalm c. 5.
V. 4 — 5. The Psalmist sufiers with his nation, and hopes to be
exalted with his people, humiliation and repentance being the con-
ditions, though he confesses in the name of his people that their
tribulation is a just punishment. As in Psalm Ixxvii. so here
there follows a recounting of alternate faithlessness on the part of
the people and of faithfulness on the part of God, who punishes
but " in measure," and has never forgotten his covenant of grace.
/. e. "decreased in numbera/'^
35
410 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 12. Cf. Exod. xiv. 31.
V. 16. Cf. Numb. xi. xvi.
V. 20. The lionour and glory of the people is their glorious
God. Cf. Eom. i. 23.
V. 24. Cf. Numb. xiii. 33.
F. 30. Cf Numb. xxv. 7.
V. 31. Cf Numb. xxv. 12.
F. 32. Cf. Numb. xx. 13.
F. 48. This Doxology denotes the end of the fourth book of
the Psalms.
PSALM CVII.
A PSALM of thanksgiving and of praise. It invites to gratitude
those who had been redeemed from the Babylonish captivity, as
well as all who are delivered from any kind of trouble, and praises
in particular the gracious guidance of Grod which brought Israel
back into their land.
The children of Israel, brought from the wilderness to their
native land, shall praise him who heard them when they called
upon him, (v. 1 — 9.) All who were imprisoned because of diso-
bedience, called upon him and were delivered, shall praise him,
(v. 10 — 16.) All whose sins had brought them to the gates of
death, but on calling upon him were heard, shall praise him,
(v. 17 — 22.) All who on experiencing the vicissitudes of the sea,
called upon him, and were brought to the desired haven, shall
praise him, (v. 23 — 32.) Because of the sins of the people he had
laid waste their flourishing country, but madeit fruitful again, and
blessed the people, (v. 33 — 38.) They had borne misfortune and
trouble, but he had raised them from the dust. The pious shall
rejoice over it, and Israel give heed that they may learn to thank
the Lord, (v. 39—43.)
^0
GIVE thanks unto the Lord, for he is good:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy :
And gathered them out of the lands.
From the east, and from the west.
From the north, and from the sea.
They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way;
They found no city to dwell in.
PSALM cvir. 411
5 Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble,
And he delivered them out of their distresses.
7 And he led them forth by the right way,
That they might go to a city of habitation.
8 Oh, that me7i would praise the Lord /or his goodness,
And /or his wonderful works to the children of men!
9 For he satisfieth the longing soul.
And filleth the hungry soul with goodness.
10 Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Being bound in affliction and iron ;
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God,
And contemned the counsel of the Most High :
12 Therefore he brought down their heart with labour ;
They fell down, and there was none to help.
13 Then they cried: unto 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 in sunder.
15 Oh, that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,
And for his wonderful works to the children of men !
16 For he hath broken the gates of brass.
And cut the bars of iron in sunder.
17 The fools because of their transgression,
And because of their iniquities, were afflicted,
18 Their soul abhorred all manner of meat ;
And they drew near unto the gates of death.
19 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble,
And he saved them out of their distresses.
20 He sent his word, and healed them,
And delivered them from their destructions.
21 Oh, that men would praise the Lord /or his goodness.
And /or his wonderful works to the children of men!
22 And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving.
And declare his works with rejoicing.
23 They that went down to the sea in ships.
That did business in great waters ;
24 These saw the works of the Lord,
And his wonders in the deep.
25 For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,
Which lifted up the waves thereof.
412 COMMENTAKY ON THE PSALMS.
26 They mounted up to the heaven,
They went down again to the depths:
Their soul was melted because of trouble.
27 They reeled to and fro, and staggered like a drunken man,
And were at their wit's end.
28 Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble,
And he brought them out of their distresses.
29 He made the storm a calm,
So that the waves thereof were still.
30 Then were they glad because they were quiet :
So he brought them unto their desired haven.
31 Oh, that men would praise the Lord for his goodness,
And for his wonderful works to the children of men !
32 Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people.
And praise him in the assembly of the elders.
33 He turned rivers into a wilderness.
And the watersprings into dry ground;
34 A fruitful land into barrenness,
For the wickedness of them that dwelt therein.
35 He turned the wilderness into a standing water.
And dry ground into watersprings.
36 And there he made the hungry to dwell.
That they might prepare a city for habitation ;
37 And sow the fields and plant vineyards.
Which yielded fruits of increase.
38 He blessed them also, so that they were multiplied greatly ;
And suffered not their cattle to decrease.
39 Again, they were minished and brought low
Through oppression, afiliction, and sorrow.
40 He poured contempt upon princes.
And caused them to wander in the wilderness, where there
is no way.
41 Yet did he set the poor on high from affliction.
And made him families like a flock.
42 The righteous shall see it and rejoice:
And all iniquity shall stop her mouth.
43 Whoso is wise, and will observe these things,
Even they shall understand the lovingkindness of the LoRD.
V. 1. This invitation to praise prefixed to Psalm cvi. recurs
also Psalm cxviii. 1.
V. 3. The enumeration of the different countries is either
poetical or refers, beside the captive Israelites at Babylon, to the
PSALMS CVIIT. CIX. 413
dispersed of the nation who had fled to surrounding countries, e. g.
Egypt, Moab, etc. Cf. ad. Psalm Ixxiv. 9.
y. 10 — 22. Commentators are divided in their opinion whether
the reference is to Israel in the Babylonish captivity, or to prison
and disease in general. But why should this passage not have a
more general application besides its primary reference to Israel ?
The praise in verse 20, "He sent his word," is very remarkable:
the word is described as the effusion of God, his ministering angel.
This expression conceals the truth, that every Divine operation in
the world is effected by his eternal word.
V. 23 — 32. If the Psalmist in the preceding verses simply
contemplated the trouble of his nation in exile, it cannot but strike
us as strange that he connects them with trials of a more general
kind, such as mariners have to endure; and the best (Solution of
the difficulty is to assume that the reference was not exclusively to
Israel, but to all similarly afHicted.
V. 33 — 41. There is again a more special regard to the experi-
ence of his nation : the language resembles Isaiah xli. 18, and pro-
bably alludes to that passage.
PSALM CVIII.
At a time of great national depression this Psalm was composed of
two portions of older psalms, of Psalm Ivii. 8 — 12 and Psalm Ix.
7 — 14, and the latter portion is intended to remind God of his
promises, to fulfil them to his people.
PSALM CIX.
It was perhaps composed under circumstances similar to Psalm
Ixix. The object of derision, (v. 25,) of imprecation, (v. 17 — 28,)
and persecution unto death, (v. IG,) to those whom he had loved
and benefitted (v. 4, 5,) David refrained from every opposition
except that of prayer. "But I give myself unto prayer," (v. 4.)
In calling him to vengeance who says, "Vengeance is mine, I will
recompense," he flings back their curse with such a vehemence
upon their head, that the impression remains that he was not alto-
gether devoid of vindictive feelings, although his enemies appear
as unsusceptible to the love of God and man, and David expressly
35*
414 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
declares, (v. 27,) that all he desires is, that they may know that
the Lord is God* (see Introduction, the paragraph on the ethics of
the Psalms, and also notes, ad. Ps. xli. 11.)
He describes the enormous guilt of his adversaries, (v. 1 — 5.)
He imprecates upon them what they had imprecated upon him,
(v. 11 — 21,) and appeals to the mercy of God in portraying his
wretched condition, (v. 21 — 25.) He prays for the manifestation
of the retributive justice of God, and that his enemies might attain
to knowledge, and promises sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving,
(v. 25—30.)
T
0 the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
1 Hold not thy peace, 0 God of my praise :
2 For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the
deceitful are opened against me :
They have spoken against me with a lying tongue,
3 They compassed me about also with words of hatred ;
And fought against me without a cause.
4 For my love they are my adversaries :
But I give mi/self unto prayer.
5 And they have rewarded me evil for good,
And hatred for my love.
6 Set thou a wicked man over him :
And let the accuser stand at his right hand.
7 When he shall be judged, let him be condemned:
And let his prayer become sin.
8 Let his days be few ;
And let another take his office, f
9 Let his children be fatherless,
And his wife a widow.
10 Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg :
Let them seek their bread also out of their desolate places.
11 Let the extortioner catch all that he hath;
And let the strangers spoil his labour.
* D. Michaelis (also Muentinghe, Mendelssohn, Knapp, 1st Edition)
holds that verses 6 — 19 are the expressions of the cursing adversary who
speaks in the singular. But, first, verse 15 has the plural; secondly, verse
17 can only apply to the adversary; and, thirdly, verse 20 shows that
David sent back the curses upon the head of his enemies.
f Some translate, "his goods," (D. Michaelis,) but since his possessions,
his goods are not mentioned till verse 11, and since the present clause is
parallel to the thought, "he shall early end his life," it is better to trans-
late, "his office."
PSALM CIX. 415
12 Let ttcre be none to extend mercy nnto him:
Neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.
13 Let his posterity be cut off; ^^^.A
And in the generation following let their name be blotted
14 Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the
Lord;
And let not the sin of his mother be blotted out.
15 Let them be before the Lord continually,
That he may cut off the memory of them from the earth.
16 Because that he remembered not to show mercy,
But persecuted the poor and needy man,
That he might even slay the broken in heart.
17 As he loved cursing so let it come unto him :
Ashe delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.
18 As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment,
So let it come within him like water,
And like oil into his bones.
19 Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him.
And for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.
20 Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the Lord,
And of them that speak evil against my soul.
21 But do thou for me, 0 GoD the Lord,
For thy name's sake :
Because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me ;
22 For I am poor and needy,
And my heart is wounded within me.
23 I am gone like the shadow when it declineth:
I am tossed up and down like the locust,
24 My knees are weak through fasting ;
And my flesh faileth of fatness.
25 I became also a reproach unto them :
JVhen they look upon me they shake their heads.
26 Help me, 0 Lord my God:
0 save me according to thy mercy : •
27 That they may know that this is thy hand;
That thou. Lord, hast done it.
28 Let them curse, but bless THOU :
When they arise, let them be ashamed ;
But let thy servant rejoice.
* The first "them," refers to the sin and iniquity of verse 14; the second
"them," to the adversaries.
416 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
29 Let mine adversaries be clothecl with shame,
And let them cover themselves with their own confusion,
as with a mantle.
80 I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth;
Yea, I will praise him among the multitude.
31 For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor,
To save liim from those that condemn his soul.
F. 1 — 5. Beginning with calling God his praise, David con-
temptuously casts off the reports and defence of men, and confesses
the all-sufficiency of God in the conduct of his affairs. He has to
deal with men who, so far from having been provoked by unkind-
ness on his part, stood proof against the love and benefits which he
had shown to them. Their most venomous reproaches could not
excite David to personal revenge. He remembered that the Lord
had said, "Vengeance is mine: I will recompense." Thus he
prayed while they were raging, supplicating patience for himself
and recompense for his reproachers. (Psalms xxxv. 13; cxli. 5.)
V. 6 — 16. However terrible these deprecations may sound,
they are uttered as sinful only if their fulfilment yields delight and
not pain to the utterer : if we were compelled to say that David
would not have greatly preferred the conversion of his adversaries
toithout such a retribution, than with and iy it (the retribution.)
But when the punishment of hardened sinners is desired so vehe-
mently, as is the case here, its eventual occurrence is generally
regarded with complacency. Equanimity is always allied to Divine
wrath. The curse is this: he shall find an unrelenting accuser
before the tribunal of men, condemnation in the judgment of God
— his prayer shall be changed into sin (as it must be in the case of
the obdurate) — his life be cut off in the midst of his days — his
office be given to strangers, so that his wife and children shall be
in want — his posterity be cut off — and the transgression of the
parents be visited on such of their posterity as are alike unto them.
(See ad. Psalm ciii.; Matt, xxiii. 35.) We should not forget that
however hard, uncommon, and terrible these words may sound,
God nevertheless daily brings that curse upon gross sinners: their
life often comes to a sudden and fearful end, the last sigh assumes
the form of a blassphemy on their unclean lips, their wife and chil-
dren are in want, and the transgressions and passions of parents
reappear in the lives of unworthy offspring. Every consequence of
sin is a punishment, and punishments proceed from the living God.
And is not man permitted to desire that God should do what he
really does, provided he desire it in that sense in which God does it?
We are not familiar with the family history of the "son of perdi-
tion," the hardened Judas; but in so far as we are acquainted
with his history, that curse was realized in him. He was con-
PSALM ex. ^^"^
demned in the judgment of God, (Matt. xxvi. 24;) Ins prayer, if
he prayed at all, can only have been that of despair; he ended his
life in the midst of his days, and another took his office^ Feter
has therefore justly applied this passage to him. (Acts \-/^-J
V. 17—20. The adversary indulged in cursing, as it he were
altogether unaware of its meaning: so shall cursing fall to his lot,
pierce his bone and marrow, that he may learn what cursing is.
Divine punishment deals with the sinner as the sinner has dealt with
God: attacking the right and dignity of God and man he is him-
self attacked in his prosperity, that he may learn v^hat He has done
F. 21—25 He represents his wretched condition to Ixod, wno
might perchance be moved to vouchsafe his aid: he takes his stand-
ing on grace, not on right, and describes the consequences of his
troubles: he is like a disappearing evening shadow, like the locust,
chased from place to place, grief makes him loathe nourishment,
* and strength has fled from his body. „ ^ , , ^ i„-^oolf
V. 26—31. In praying for the help of God, he confines himselt
not to his own reel/are, but prays for the hand of God to become
known among men as the hand of a righteous Judge. The Fsalmist
endeavours to assure himself of Divine favour, since, if we are con-
vinced that God is our friend, all the enterprises, attacks, and ennai-
iies of men shall prove utteriy vain and impotent. In praying ne
attains to the assurance of eventual deliverance, and promises
unrestrained praise and gratitude among men, because, though
men may have condemned the poor, the Lord is as a mighty advo-
cate at their right hand, who will crown their cause with victory.
PSALM ex.
A PSALM of David, celebrating the victory of Messiah as a priestly
king.* Just as the prophets represent the Messiah under the
* Those Tvho reject the Messianic interpretation of this psalm must
either straightway reject the title, or render it "a psa m concerning
S "I may be shown that the psalm cannot refer to a king of Israel
Cou d it be said of such a one that God would set him down at his right
hand' 1 Chron. xxviii. 5; xxix. 23, have been quoted in support of this
exposition- but the throne of Israel which is there called the throne of
STd^ fers to the throne which God himself had estabhshed m Israe Ion
which the king is seated as a representative and not as ^n assessor Eiiald
Ls the forced?endering, " sit thouin my triumphal car ;" the view of Amchi
and Ä th.at being seated at the right hand of God is expressive of
Svine m otection, is more admissible ; but it can be shown that being sensed
at the rK hand of a king denotes famiUarity with him andapart^„pat^on
ThSdtnly No king of Israel moreover held the regal and pnestly
418 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
threefold character of king, (Isa. ix. 11 5 Zech. ix.) prophet and
priest, and describe his victory over the world, now by the figure
of a martial triumphal procession, now as a reconcilement by
priestly activity, by prayer and vicarious suffering, and again by
instruction, so Psalms ii. Ixxii. ; 2 Sam. xxiii. set forth the Mes-
siah as a victorious king, and Psahn ex. as a Divine Sovereign,
uniting in himself regal and priestly dignity. The fulfilment of
history reveals the manner in which the ideas involved in that
figurative description should find their realization. The Son of
God, after having been a teacher, benefactor, and sufferer in a
state of humiliation, should make atonement for his people, attain
thereby to government, and eventually reveal in outward glory the
kingdom of God, which he had inwardly established. Cf. ad.
Psalm ii. The figurative sense of the expressions borrowed from
earthly warfare is clear from the circumstance that the sovereign
militant is called a priest, who makes atonement for his people,
and that his army are an army of priests. Our Lord himself
states, (Matt. xxii. 43,) that David called his son ''in spirit," his
Lord, i. e. inspired by God. 2 Samuel xxiii. 2, David ascribes to
himself Divine inspiration.
David hears '' in spirit" the call of God, which invites the Mes-
siah to the participation of his power and gives him the victory,
(v. 1 — 3.) His call, like that of Melchizedek, is that of a priestly
king ; supported by his God he shall have dominion over all bis
enemieS; (v. 4 — 7.)
A PSALM of David.
1 The Lord said unto my Lord,
"Sit thou at my right hand.
Until I make thine enemies thy footstool."
office conjointly. 1 Sam. xiii. 9; xiv. 32; 2 Sam. vi. 17, 18; 1 Kings
viii. 5, are quoted to show that the kings of Israel did offer sacrifice; but
that refers to the slaying of the victims only, which in former times was done
by the owner and not by the pi'iest. See Winer's Lexicon, s. v. ^^ Sacrifice,"
p. 213. It can be demonstrated that this is the meaning of 1 Kings viii. 5,
where it is said that Solomon and the people did sacrifice. The fact that
the Psalmist has to go back to hoary antiquity for the purpose of finding
an instance of the union of the priesthood and roj'ality, militates still fur-
ther against this view. When Uzziah presumed to sacrifice upon the altar
of incense, he was smitten with leprosy, (2 Chron. xxvi.) The warriors of
the king in this psalm are priestly warriors. Ewald and Maurer acknow-
ledge that the psalm belongs to the age of David. KöUcr, who defends the
Messianic interpretation, calls it, "a song the artistic finish and poetic
elevation of which render it sublime." It breaks off suddenly, but that is
by no means a proof that it is merely a fragment, Cf. Psalms Ixxxix.
Ixxviii. Ixivii.
PSALM ex. 419
2 The Lord shall send the rod {i. e. sceptre) of thy strength
out of Zion :
Rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power,
In the beauties of holiness, more than the womb of the
morning,
Thou shalt have the dew of thy youth.
4 The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, _
" Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
5 The Lord at thy right hand
Shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath.
6 He shall judge among the heathen.
He shall fill the places with the dead bodies;
He shall wound the heads over many countries.*
T He shall di-ink of the brook in the way :
Therefore shall he lift up the head.
7. 1, 2. David hears, as in 2 Sam. xxiii. 1—3, ''in the spirit,"
(Cf Rev. i. 10,) a Divine oracle respecting the Messiah. The
Lord promises Divine perfection of power to his descendant, and
David straicrhtway ackncwleds^es as bis Lord him who enjoys such
superhuman dignity. Although the phrase, ''until I make thine
enemies thy footstool," does not expressly state that his being
seated at the ri^ht hand of God should continue till that time and
then cease, yet "the Psalmist contemplates the possession of Divine
perfection of power for the specific purpose of victory over his
enemies. The apostle has taken these words in the same sense
when he says, (I Cor. xv. 24—26,) "The last enemy that shall be
destroyed is death," and mentions as a consequence the surrender
of the kingdom to God the Father. When Christ shall have con-
quered everything in man which opposes the completion ot the
kin<rdom of God, then shall the dominion of God over behevers
cea^etobe one mediated by Christ, but God shall be aUm all.
Zion, the outward primarily, but ultimately the spiritual Zion and
Israel, shall be the centre, whence the dominion of God over man
shall begin and from whence it shall be extended. "Out ot Zion
shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
(Isaiah ii. 3.) "In the midst of his enemies," i. e. the bon ot
God shall display his dominion while encircled by his enemies.
This is an emphatic description of his victorious power.
7. 3. Those who fight beneath the standard of that king follow
him with willing hearts. He reigns over them because he is their
priest, has through his mediation purchased them of God and sanc-
* Tholuck's version is, "He shall judge among the heathen, he shall
make a great slaughter, he shall crush the heads far over the country.
420 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
tified them as priests. (Rev. i. 6; Isaiah Ixi. 6.) Hence they are
said to appear festively adorned, i. e. in the garb of priests. (Psalm
xxix. 2; 1 Chron. xvi. 29; 2 Chron. xx. 21.) They go into the
wars of their Grod, as into a holy assembly. So Psalm xcvi. 9 calls
upon the nations, "0 worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness:
fear before him all the earth.'' The Lord calls his people "a little
flock ; " but compares them elsewhere to a corn of mustard seed
which grows into a large tree and becomes the shelter of the birds
of the air, and " the voice of a great multitude, as the voice of many
waters and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia :
for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth." (Rev. xix. 6.) Isaiah
says, (Isa. liv. 1 — 3,) "Sing, 0 barren, thou that didst not
bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not
travail with child : for more are the children of the desolate than
the children of the married wife, saith the Lord. Enlarge the
place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine
habitations : for thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on
the left." Fresh and innumerable as the dew-drops in the splen-
dour of dawn shall be the youthfully strong hosts of this king.
(2 Sam. xvii. 12; Psalm cxxxiii. 3; Mic. v. 6; Job. xxxviii. 28.)
"The inhabitants shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell
therein shall be forgiven their iniquity." (Isa. xxxiii, 24.)
F. 4. The Lord has solemnly and irrevocably sworn that this
king is a priest — not a priest of the Levite order, but a patriarchal
priest, after the order of Melchizedek, (Gen. xiv. :) His priesthood
is eternal. Passages in the Prophets predict the cessation of the
Levitical priesthood in the last time.*
V. 5, 6. The Lord shall fight at the right hand of his anointed,
and conquer all his adversaries. He shall greatly extend his vic-
tories among the heathen. As a hero, unspoiled and without much
stoppage, drinks of the brook by the way, (Cf. Judges vii. 5 — 7,)
so shall He combat without stoppage, and therefore boldly raise his
head.f
* Isa. Ixvi. 21; Zech. xiv. 20, 21. The great doctrine of this passage is
expanded in the Epistle to the Hebrews, (chap, vii.) In the same manner,
Zechariah predicts the union of regal'and priestly dignity in the Messiah,
(chap, vi.) Chap. iii. 6 of that prophet are next to Isa. liii. the most
important Messianic passages in the Old Testament.
f Amyraldus: "Hostibus ne momentum quidem temporis dabit ad respi-
randum. Adeo ut vix ipse sibi hoc indulgeat, ut in eorum persecutione,
levata aliquantisper galea, aquam e torrente haustam properantissime
bibat." Several commentators, Solomon ben Melech, Bucerus, D. Michtelis,
explain with reference to Numb, xxiii. 24: "He shall still his thirst at the
stream of blood by the way." Luther, Calov, Stier: "On the way, i. e. on
the way of life, he shall drink of the waters of affliction," for water means
sufferings, (Ps. Ixix. 1) — on that account he became exalted above every
creature, (Phil. ii. 8, 9.)
PSALM CXI. 421
PSALM CXI.
A PSALM of praise, celebrating the manifold goodness of God,
especially towards his people. Luther regards it at a paschal psalm,
and verse 5 as a praise of the paschal Lamb.
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
X I will praise the Lord with my whole heart,
In the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation.
2 The works of the Lord are great.
Sought out of all them that have pleasure therein.*
3 His work is honourable and glorious :
And his righteousness endureth for ever.
4 He hath made his wonderful works to be remembered :
The Lord, gracious and full of compassion.
5 He hath given meat unto them that fear him :
He will ever be mindful of his covenant.
6 He hath showed his people the power of his works.
That he may give them the heritage of the heathen.
7 The works of his hands are verity and judgment ;
All his commandments are sure.
8 They are established for ever and ever.
And are done in truth and uprightness.
9 He sent redemption unto his people :
He hath commanded his covenant for ever :
Holy and reverend is his name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom:
A good understanding have all they that do his com-
mandments :
His praise endul-eth for ever.
V. 1 — 4. The Psalmist confesses himself prompted from within
to the praise of the Lord. Considering the concealment of that
praise as tantamount to depriving the Lord of half his glory, he
resolves to publish it in the right place, namely, the assembly of
believers. The works of the Lord furnish rich materials for his
praise. All possible desires of his people are already satisfied in
the works of the Lord : many of them may, at first sight, be stum-
bling blocks and rocks of offence to us, but the longer the mind of
man is engaged and absorbed in the contemplation of the works of
the Lord, and the more human wisdom, instead of running in the
van of the doings of God, modestly retires to the rear, the more
* Ol-, "Enough for all their (the tipright's) desire."
36
422 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
will they manifest the most perfect wisdom. His honour and
glory are everywhere visible, for all his works display his right-
eousness; i. e. his perfect justice and praiseworthiness. {Vide ad.
Ps. xcviii. 2.) His marvellous works are so widely diffused and
unmistakeable, that mankind cannot lose their memory, and that
even in the worst times, which witness the servitude of the flesh,
his worshippers cannot be wanting. He meets deluded man in a
thousand ways, for His every work and doing, if viewed from a
right point of view, is a guide to the gracious and compassionate
Lord.
V. 5 — 9. He hath never left unsupplied the wants of those
that fear him, (Psalm cxxxii. 15) — procured food in the desert,
and drink to gush out of rocks: he will never repent of his cove-
nant with the patriarchs. He is also the God of the heathen, and
though not recognized, has manifested the works of his hands
among them, (Amos ix. 7,) but above all. He has shown them to
his people, (Ps. cxlvii. 19, 20,) and given them the possession of
the heathen for an heritage. As his commandments are true and
just, so are his works. Therefore his commandments are eternal :
they continue as the fundamental laws of his kingdom for ever and
ever. He has by his power redeemed his people, and given them
an everlasting covenant.
V. 10. The praise of the Lord is followed by the praise of the
fear of the Lord: praise is succeeded by exhortation. The fear of
the Lord is the starting point of all true tvisdom: any inquiry
respecting things celestial or things terrestrial, if conducted in the
fear of the Lord, is sure to lead to the right way : but it is no less
the true source of real wisdom of life; for since "godliness is pro-
fitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is and
of that which is to come,'' (1 Tim. iv. 8,) it proves also a blessing
in every temporal work and pursuit. (Ps. cxix. 98 — 100.) The
praise of the Lord neither can nor shall cease for ever.
PSALM CXIL
A PSALM of instruction, similar to Psalms i. and xxxvii.
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
J. Blessed is the man that fearetli the Lord,
That delighteth greatly in his commandments.
2 His seed shall be mighty upon earth :
The generation of the upright shall be blessed.
PSALM CXIII.
42^
3 Wealtli and riches sliall he in his house ;
And his righteousness endureth for ever.
4 Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness,
From him who is gracious, and full of compassion, and
righteous.
5 That man shall/are well who showeth favour and lendeth :
He shall guide his affairs with judgment.
6 Surely he shall not be moved for ever :
The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.
7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings :
His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is established, he shall not be afraid,
Until he see his desire upon his enemies.
9 He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor ;
His righteousness endureth for ever ;
His horn shall be exalted with honour.
10 The wicked shall see it, and be grieved ;
He shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away:
The desire of the wicked shall perish.
PSALM CXIIL
A PSALM of praise. The Lord, though high and lifted up, conde-
scends to favour the lowly, regards it his peculiar employment to
advocate their cause, and to conduct them from the dust to glory.
This is the fundamental idea in the songs of Hannah and Mary.
(1 Sam. ii.; Luke i.) This psalm seems to be the echo of the for-
mer; see verse 9, and cf. verses 7, 8, with 1 Samuel ii. 8: " God
is a father of the fatherless and a judge of the widows." (Psalm
Ixviii. 6.) This beautiful appellative contains the same truth.
Psalms cxiii. csiv. cxv. cxvi. cxvii. and cxviii. form a cycle of
prayers which the Jews call Hallel, and used to sing at some of
their festivals, especially at the Passover. (This is stated in the
Talmud, and alluded to in Matthew xxvi. 30.)
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
X Praise, 0 ye servants of the Lord, . ■
Praise the name of the Lord.
2 Blessed be the name of the Lord
From this time forth and for evermore.
424 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
3 From the rising of the sun unto the going dovm of the same
The Lord's name is to be praised.
4 The Lord is high above all nations,
A7id his glory as far as the heavens.
5 Who is like unto the Lord our God,
Who dwelleth on high,
6 Who humbleth himself to behold
The things that are in heaven and in the earth ?
7 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,
And lifteth the needy out of the dunghill ;
8 That he may set him with princes.
Even with the princes of his people.
9 He maketh the barren woman to dwell in an house
Like a joyful mother of children.
Praise ye the Lord.
PSALM CXIV.
A PSALM of praise, simple and sublime, which celebrates God's
powerful deliverance of his people from Egypt.
1 "ITTHEN Israel went out of Egypt,
V V The house of Jacob from a people of strange language ;
2 Judah became his sanctuary,
And Israel his dominion,
3 The sea saw it, and fled :
Jordan was driven back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams.
And the little hills like lambs.
5 What ailed thee, 0 thou sea, that thou fleddest ?
Thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back ?
6 Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams ?
And ye little hills, like lambs ?
7 Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the God of Jacob ;
8 Which turned the rock into a standing water,
The flint into a fountain of waters.
V. 1 — 4. Israel have ceased to be their own masters from the
time when the Lord purchased them as his grateful possession by
PSALM cxv. 425
his wonderful deliverance out of Egypt, and gave them on Sinai
his law; they are now a kingdom of priests and a royal priesthood,
(Exod. xix. 6.) How mighty is the God under whose protection
they are, whom nature obeyed, before whom the invincible ocean
fled, the solid foundations of the mountains gave way, so that they
skipped like rams and lambs !
V. 5, 6. The Psalmist intends emphatically to shame the
obtuseness of men, one portion of whom refuse obedience to the
Lord, while the other pass by in indifference. He asks, therefore,
the irrational but potent forces of nature to name the overwhelm-
ing power before which the mountains and the sea tremblingly
receded.
V. 7, 8. He now pronounces for the first time the name of the
Lord, and calls not only upon the mountains and the sea, but upon
the earth to tremble before the Lord, as Sinai trembled and
smoked when the Lord descended on it. (Exod. xix. 18.) Reverting
once more to the history of Israel, he shows that even the most
solid elements of the earth must dissolve at the word of God.
PSALM CXV.
A PSALM of prayer and of praise, composed in a time of pagan
oppression. As it is a temple-song, like those which, after the
return from captivity, used to be sung in antiphonics or choruses,
(Ezra iii. 11,) it probably belongs to that period.
May the Lord glorify his people before the blind heathen for his
name's sake, (v. 1 — 8.) The people encourage themselves to con-
fidence and experience of the Divine blessing, (v. 9 — 15.) Men
enjoy mundane existence for the praise of God : he shall therefore
be praised for ever and ever, (v. 16 — 18.)
^N
The Levite singers.
OT unto us, 0 Lord, not unto us,
But unto thy name give glory,
For thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.
Wherefore should the heathen say.
Where is now their God?
But our God is in the heavens:
He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of men's hands.
36*
426 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
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 :
Feet have they — but they walk not:
Neither speak they through their throat.
8 They that make them let them become like unto them;
And every one that trusteth in them.
The Precentor.
9 0 Israel, trust thou in the Lord :
The Chorus.
He is their help and their shield.
The Precentor.
10 0 house of Aaron, trust in the Lord :
The Chorus.
He is their help and their shield.
The Precentor.
11 Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord :
The Chorus.
He is their help and their shield.
The Levite singers.
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 shall increase you more and more,
You and your children.
15 Ye are blessed of the Lord
Which made heaven and earth.
16 The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's :
But the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17 The dead praise not the Lord,
Neither any that go down into silence.
PSALM cxv. 427
18 But WE will bless the Lord
From this time forth and for evermore.
Praise the Lord.
V. 1 — 3. The people penitently confess that for their virtue's
or merit's sake they have no claim upon the redemption of the
Lord, and pray that the Lord would have mercy for his name's
sake. (Isaiah xlviii. 11 j Ps. cxxxv. 15 — 18.) Are the heathen
to regard, as they do, the God of Israel as a phantom of impotence ?
The people meet that wicked thought in holy boldness with the
shield of faith, since their God is as infinite as the heavens, and
does whatever he wills. The union of the two sentences in v. 3,
shows that the appellative, "God in the heavens," implies no limit-
ation of power, but that he is exalted above earthly limits as the
heavens are high and infinite above the earth,
V. 4 — 8. How shall the idols of the heathen sustain a com-
parison with this God? They are formed of earthly materials,
while the living God has made man : they owe their existence to
human hands, and though representations of the human form are
inferior to man, for they are soulless representations. It is the
curse of every false religion that man becomes like his god : the
worshippers of a soulless god get soulless themselves. The indig-
nant Psalmist wishes them that punishment.
V. 9 — 11. The congregation gather strength and encourage-
ment to persevere in their confidence, exhorting the laity, the
priests, (Psalm cxviii. 2, 3,) and then all who fear the Lord. In
Psalm cxxxv. 19, 20, where this exhortation is repeated, (also v.
15 — 18 are taken from this psalm,) the Levites are mentioned
besides the priests of the house of Aaron. For the sake of greater
vividness the two halves of v. 9 — 11 were probably sung by the
precentor and the chorus, (Neh. xii. 42,) in such a manner that
the latter fell in when the former had done.
V. 12 — 15. The entire chorus pronounces the blessing of God,
who is not a soulless idol, but the Creator and Governor of heaven
and earth, upon the house of Israel, the house of Aaron, all that
fear him, both great and small, upon present and future genera-
tions.
V. 16 — 18. The Lord is enthroned in the heavens, exalted
above all. He has prepared the earth for the special benefit of
man. (Isaiah xlv. 18.) He has prepared it designing that they
should inhabit it and enjoy the light of life, and by their praises
render it a temple of the Lord, for this can be done by the living
only. (Ps. vi. 6; Ixxxviii. 11.) The congregation of Israel pro-
mise the fulfilment of that task, and will praise him for evermore.
428 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM CXVI.
A DELIGHTFUL psalm of thanksgiving, some passages of which,
e. g. V. 3. 5. 11, are taken from other psalms: its language too
refers its date to the period after the captivity.
The Psalmist deems himself happy for having experienced the
blessings of granted prayers, (v. 1 — 6;) in his trouble he had
prayed in faith, enjoys present peace, and would gladly recompense
the goodness of the Lord, (v. 7 — 12.) He expresses the enthusi-
astic resolution henceforth to pray and praise right from the heart,
(v. 13—19.)
1 'THIS is my delight, that the Lokd hath heard
-L My voice and my supplications.
2 Because he hath inclined his ear unto me,
Therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.
3 The sorrows of death compassed me,
And the pains of hell gat \x6^'\ upon me:
I found trouble and sorrow.
4 Then called I upon the name of the Lord ;
0 Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
5 Gracious is the Lord, and righteous;
. Yea, our God is merciful.
6 The Lord preserveth the simple:
1 was brought low, and he helped me.
7 Return unto thy rest, 0 my soul ;
For the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.
8 For thou hast delivered my soul from death,
Mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.
9 I will walk before the Lord
In the land of the living.
10 I believed, therefore have I (or, "though I said") spoken :
I am greatly afflicted:
11 I said in my haste,
All men are liars.
12 What shall I render unto the Lord
For all his benefits toward me ?
13 I will take the cup of salvation,
And call upon the name of the Lord.
14 I will pay my vows unto the Lord
Now in the presence of all his people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord
Is the death of his saints.
PSALM CXVI. 429
16 0 Lord, truly I am thy servant;
I am thy servant, and the son of thy handmaid:
Thou hast loosed my bonds.
17 I will oflFer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving,
And will call upon the name of the Lord.
18 I will pay my vows unto the Lord
Now in the presence of all his people,
19 In the courts of the Lord's house.
In the midst of thee, 0 Jerusalem.
Praise ye the Lord.
V. 1, 2. It is indeed a great thing to know from our own expe-
rience that we have a reconciled Father in heaven, who cares for
us, and, though infinitely exalted, hears the cry of poor trouhled
mortals. The Psalmist speaks in joyous strains of the gracious
answers to his prayers, and regards them as a solemn admonition,
in every kind of trouble, to cling to the true helper.
F. 3 — 6. The suppliant could look back upon the experience
of a David, and adopts the language of David to describe the abyss
of his perils, (Psalm xviii. 4 :) he is happy in being able to join
the thousands and thousands who, from their own experience, con-
fess to the righteousness of the beautiful name which the Lord has
given himself, Exod. xxxiv. 6. "The Lord preserveth the simple."
(Psalm cxix. 130; Acts ii. 47.) The term simple equals the "sim-
plicity" of the New Testament, namely, that pure mind towards
God, which, without looking out for help from any other quarter,
and free from all dissimulation, expects salvation from him alone.
V. 7 — 12. This passage denies not the necessity incumbent
upon the godly to strive for peace of heart, though deliverance from
the Lord should linger to be forthcoming. Psalm xciv. 19 shows
the very contrary; but man is weak, and peace is generally subse-
quent to the answer to our prayers. The Psalmist exhorts himself
to be at ease, now that every motive for uneasiness has vanished.
He has been delivered from death, he resolves therefore to spend
his recovered life with a constant regard to Him to whom be owes
his present happiness. The prayer of faith only is effectual : the
Psalmist therefore testifies that in temptation he was by no means
devoid of faith. He believed when he sighed, "I am greatly
afläicted."* His faith made him even then confess to the treachery
of every human aid, and to cling solely to the heavenly Helper,
(Psalm xxxi. 23,) as it is said elsewhere, "It is better to trust in
the Lord than to put confidence in man." (Psalm cxviii. 8.)
V. 13 — 19. As it were astonished at the magnitude of Divine
* Paul cites this passage, 2 Cor. iv. 13, from the LXX., which, however,
does not well suit the conaection.
430 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
goodness, he asks, verse 12, how he could sufficiently display his
gratitude. This is a question which should every day stream from
the heart of man, since there is nothing more reprehensible than to
thoughtlessly receive the blessings of God as matters of course.
The reply to that question needs not much consideration, since God
has expressly declared (Ps. 1. 23) that a sincere prayer of thanks-
giving is the most grateful sacrifice to him. Such sacrifices the
Psalmist resolves to offer openly in the presence of all the people;
he will pay his vows in the courts of the temple (congregational
worship Was then confined to that locality.) The figure of verse
13 requires elucidation. Feasts of joy were connected with thank-
offerings, at which a libation of wine used to be poured out in
honour of the Lord : he, therefore, calls the cup of thanksgiving
the cup of salvation. Verse 15 points back to Psalm Ixxii. 14.
PSALM CXVII.
This psalm, which invites not only Israel but all the nations of the
earth to engage in the praise of the Lord, (Rom. xv. 11,) as Psalms
xcvi. 1; c. 1, used to be sung at the festivals in the temple.
1 A PRAISE the Lord, all ye nations:
VJ Praise him, all ye people.
2 For his merciful kindness ruleth mightily over us :
And the truth of the Lord endureth for ever.
Praise ye the Lord.
PSALM CXVIIL
A SUBLIME festal psalm. Verses 5 — 18 favour the view that it
was sung concerning a victorious prince, but the sequel does not
agree with that view, since verses 19 — 26 are addressed to several
persons, nor can that prince be identified. He cannot be David,
for several internal reasons. The formula description of temple
songs — verses 1. 29, as well as verses 2 — 4, cf. with Psalms cxv.
cxxxvi. — indicate that the psalm belongs to a period subsequent to
the captivity. (Cf. ad. Ps. c. 5.) But no king of Israel of that
age could use the language of verses 5 — 18. The only remaining
PSALM cxviir. 431
view is that the whole people speak in that passage of their degra-
dation before and during the exile, (Cf. Ps. Ixxi. 20, with verse
17,) and their marvellous deliverance. Verse 24 shows that it was
sung at a feast, and verses 15. 27 that it was the feast of taber-
nacles. (Cf. ad. Ps. xxvii.)*
The procession moves towards the temple; Levite singers heard
it, and invite to the praise of the Lord in the liturgic formula, with
which they also conclude, (v. 1 — 4.) The precentor sings of the
trouble of the people, of the infallibility of Divine aid, and the
courageous faith of the delivered, (v. 5 — 18.) The people desire
to pay their gratitude to the Lord, and the Levites posted inside
the court invite them thither, (v. 19, 20.) The people celebrate
the mercy which exalts the deeply-humiliated, (v. 21 — 25.) An-
other invitation from the Levites from the court follows, (v. 26, 27,)
and the singers conclude in the name of the congregation with the
resolution to praise the Lord and an invitation thereto, (v. 28, 29.)
The Levite singers of the procession.
1 r\ GIVE thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good :
\J Because his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Let Israel now say,
That his mercy endureth for ever.
3 Let the house of Aaron now say,
That his mercy endureth for ever.
4 Let them now that fear the Lord say,
That his mercy endureth for ever.
The Precentor.
5 I called upon the Lord in distress :
The Lord answered me and set me free.
6 The Lord is on my side ;
I will not fear : what can man do unto me ?
7 The Lord taketh my part with them that help me :
Therefore shall I see my desire upon them that hate me.
8 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in man.
* Since our Lord and his apostles apply verse 22 to the Messiah (Matt.
xxi. 42, Acts iv. 11,) Tarnov, Calov, Geyer, have interpreted the -whole
psalm not only of the Messiah but as the language of the Messiah, yet not
without being conscious of the forcedness of their interpretation. Theo-
doret, Augustin, and Klauss regard verses 5 — 18 as said by the congrega-
tion ; Luther explains the first verses of that passage in the same sense,
saying that it was indifferent to him whether the Psalmist was speaking in
verses 10 — 13 of himself or of Christians. If that passage and verse 21
are inapplicable to the Messiah, it follows that our Lord, by quoting verse
22 in his address to the Pharisees, simply means to say that the expression
of the Psalmist had its truth and fulfilment also iu relation to himself.
432 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
9 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in princes.
10 All nations compassed me about ;
But in the name of the Lord will I destroy them.
11 They compassed me about;
Yea, they compassed me about:
But in the name of the Lord will I destroy them.
12 They compassed me about like bees ;
They are quenched as the fire of thorns :
For in the name of the Lord I will destroy them.
13 They thrust sore at me that I might fall:
But the Lord helped me.
14 The Lord is my strength and song,
And is become my salvation.
15 The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tabernacles
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 works of the Lord.
18 The Lord hath chastened me sore:
But he hath not given me over unto death.
The Levite singers of the procession.
19 Open to me the gates of righteousness :
I will go into them, and I will praise the Lord :
The Levite singers in the outer court.
20 This is the gate of the Lord,
Into which the righteous shall enter.
The Levite singers of the procession.
21 I will praise thee : for thou hast heard me.
And art become my salvation.
22 The stone which the builders refused
Is become the head stone of the corner.
23 This is the Lord's doing:
It is marvellous in our eyes.
24 This is the day which the Lord hath made:
We will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Save now, I beseech thee, 0 Lord:
0 Lord, I beseech thee, send now prosperity.
PSALM cxvin. 433
Tlie Levite singers in the outer court.
26 Blessed he he that cometh in the name of the LoRD:
We have blessed you out of the house of the Lord.
27 God is the Lord, which hath showed us light :
Bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the
altar.*
The Levite singers of the procession.
28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee :
Thou art my God, I will exalt thee.
29 0 give thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good ;
For his mercy endureth for ever.
v. 1 — 4. The joyous formula which is to celebrate the praise
of the Lord, receives, by the repetition of its last clause by the
people and the priests in particular, a strong amen.
V. 5 — 14. The prayer-hearing and answering God has assured
their hearts that he is an all-sufficient helper ; and though helpless
men and even the princes of the earth should promise their aid,
the honour is always due to Ms protection. The glorious deliver-
ance which the people of God had realized gives them the assur-
ance of future triumphs. Now since from the establishment of the
Church of Christ, the Israel after the flesh has become the Israel
after the spirit, and partakes of the promises and privileges of the
ancient covenant people, the Church is entitled to the appropria-
tion of the confidence which is expressed in this passage, and to
join in the solemn words of this psalm. Luther appropriated this
psalm for his peculiar comfort, and had, according to Matthesius,
verse 17 written against his study wall, writing, "This is my psalm,
which I love. Though I love all the Psalms and the Scriptures,
and regard them as the comfort of my life, yet have I had such,
experience of this psalm, that it must remain, and shall be called
my psalm, for it has been very precious to me, has delivered me
out of many troubles, and without it neither emperor, kings, the
wise and prudent, nor saints, could have helped me."
V. 15 — 18. Immediately after Israel's return from the capti-
vity, they kept a solemn feast of tabernacles, which feast was held
in special reverence by the people, (Ezra iii. 4; cf. Neh. viii. 15;)
this psalm, could not, however, have been sung on that occasion,
because the temple was as yet unbuilt, though it was sung at a time
when the memory of the wonderful right hand of the Lord, which
having sorely chastised them had exalted them again, was still
alive in their remembrance.
* Tholuck renders, "Decorate the feast with wreaths to the horns of the
altar."
37
434 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 19, 20. An address to the temple-gates, similar to that in
Psalm xxiv. 7. Here, however, the people, and not the Lord him-
self, desire to enter and to sacrifice in the Divinely appointed place
for worship. "The gates of righteousness" are so called, as may
be inferred from verse 20, since really none but the righteous were
to be admitted. (See ad. Psalm xv.)
V. 21 — 25. The gratitude for granted prayer is followed by
the proverbial expression (v. 22,) which sets forth that deliverance
came to the people of God, at a tiuie when its deep degradation
gave no sort of hope that it should ever attain to so exalted an
honour. The essential part of this honour consisted in their being
raised from the dust of humiliation, that they should become
the foundation in the building of the eternal kingdom of God.
Salvation flows from the Jews; Israel is the good olive tree on
which the Gentiles have been grafted. Since with the single
exception of the day of atonement, all the Divinely appointed feasts
were days of rejoicing, the feast of tabernacles in particular, which
Josephus calls the greatest of feasts, the invitation to rejoicing
contemplates primarily festal gladness, which became, however,
heightened by songs of praise for experienced deliverance. The
very expressive, "Save, 0 Lord (Hosannah,) 0 Lord, send now
prosperity," with which our Lord's entrance into Jerusalem was
hailed, (Matt. xxi. 9,) was so entensively used by the Jews at the
feast of tabernacles, that the boughs with which they constructed
the booths were called "Hosannah," and the seventh day of the
feast distinguished as the great Hosannah.
V. 26, 27. Every one should enter into the temple in the name
of the Lord,, i. e. in obedience to his commandment and with
thoughts of him : those who entered in that manner should be
welcomed with the blessing of the Lord. The expression, "he
that cometh in the name of the Lord," has been particularly
applied to the Messiah, who came in obedience to the command
and in the power of God, whose enti'ance into Jerusalem was also
hailed with these words. (Matt. xxi. 9; cf. Luke xiii. 25.)* The
people used on those festive days to carry branches of the olive,
balsam, myrtle, and palnj-trees in their hands, and to build with
them booths in their roofs, in their courts, but also in the courts of
the temple. Neh. viii. 16. (The feast fell not into spring-time,
but after the fruit and vine harvest.) Those booth garlands should
extend to the horns of the altar of burnt-ofi'erings.'j"
* It is very questionable ■whether this expression has occasioned the
Messiah's appellation of ö Ip^ofAivo;. From Rev. xxii. 20, it seems more pro-
bable that the term denotes him as the object of desire. Cf. also Gen.
xlix. 10; Isa. xl. 10; lix. 20; Hag. ii. 8.
f See Stier for what may be said in favour of the rendering of Luther,
the LXX. and Jerome.
PSALM CXIX. 435
F. 28, 29. The resolution of thanksgiving, which seems, as it
were, to grow out of the preceding exhortation, is followed by the
invitation which stands at the commencement of this subhme
psalm.
PSALM CXIX.
A PSALM of praise in celebration of the law. The Masorites notice
that verse 122 excepted, the law, the word, or the testimony are
mentioned in every verse, (cf. however, verse 132.) There is no
connection between the verses, since the psalm is composed m the
order of the Hebrew alphabet. {See foot-note to Introd. to Ps. xiv.)
But that outward forpi of consecutive order is no more exclusive ot
a deeper current of feeling than is the constraint of rhyme with
which modern poets fetter their compositions. Verse 17b testifaes
to the deep feeling and humility of the author. The whole psalm
is pervaded by a profound sense of the sublimity of the Divine
law in connection with a sense of personal unworthiness. Though
repetitions occur in some verses, and others correspond to the
expressions of other psalms, yet there are those which contain
peculiar and touching thoughts which especially adapt them tor
texts of sermons. We confine ourselves to a summary ot the lead-
ing thoughts on the law.*
The Psalmist expresses his estimate of the law, verse 1UÖ— a
feelinc^ ^hich, since he uttered it, has been re-echoed by myriads
of human hearts. "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light
unto my path," (cf. v. 59.) The law of God is to him not only
the object of idle contemplation, nor an instruction in outward cere-
monies, but 2. practical counsellor for every circumstance and emer-
gency of life: so he calls in verse 24 the testimonies of God the
men of his counsel. It would be impossible for him to recognize
in the law such a dominion over his life, and such a corrector, if
he did not regard it as the eternal word of God, (v. S9, 90. 96.
152 160.) That word governs the world. "It continueth this
day'according to thy word: for all are thy servants," (v- 91.)
What a theme for a sermon! He especially recommends the
savin o- doctrine of the law to young men, who while they are most
easily"developed and trained, are also easily deluded and led astray.
The beautiful words of verse 9 have been the polar star on the
path of life to multitudes of young men. His acquaintance with
the legislator of those commandments fills him with holy fear.
* Most passages are remembered by every child. It is the most beautiful
nark of the excellency of a doctrine when it instructs a child. — Herder.
436 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
" My flesh tremblett for fear of thee : and I am afraid of thy judg-
ments," (v. 120.) He has experienced that this legislator has
instituted his laws not for the benefit of himself, but for the welfare
of man, and, in language similar to Psalm xix. S — 11, he praises
with a rare heartiness the blessing of his possessing those command-
ments; he calls them his treasure, (v. 56,) now more precious than
gold and silver, (v. 72. 127. 162,) now his peculiar portion and
heritage, (v. 57. 111.) The more he gets acquainted with them,
the more he learns that the fear of the Lord is the greatest wisdom
and best sagacity, (cf. Psalm cxi. 10.) He speaks of the wondrous
things which he beholds in the law, (v. 18. 27.) The word of
God has been his best comfort in afiBiction, (v. 28. 50. 92,) while
trouble and humiliation have led him to that knowledge which
remains concealed to the majority of men, (v. 67. 71. 75.) In the
possession of that knowledge he knows himself wiser than his
teachers and the ancients, (v. 99, 100.) He knows no greater
grief than to see others break the law, and does all in his power
that his open avowal of the law shall lead men to acknowledge its
dignity and honour, (v. 136. 139. 158. 46. 109.) This exposes
him to the necessary consequence of persecution, but cannot move
him from his position, (v. 61. 157. 161.) The more he experiences
shame and hostility at the hands of the despisers of God, the
greater becomes his zeal and striving to commune with those that
fear the Lord, (v. 63. 79.)
ALEPH.
1 "DLESSED are the undefiled in the way,
X) Who walk in the law of the Lord.
2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies,
And that seek him with the whole heart.
3 They also do no iniquity :
They walk in his ways.
4 Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.
6 0 that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes !
6 Then shall I not be ashamed,
When I have respect unto all thy commandments.
7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart.
When I shall have learned the judgments of thy right-
eousness.
8 I will keep thy statutes :
0 forsake me not utterly.
BETH.
9 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way ?
By taking heed thereto according to thy word.
I PSALM CXIX. 437
10 With my whole heart have I sought thee :
0 let me not wander from thy commandments.
11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart,
That I might not sin against thee.
12 Blessed art thou, 0 Lord :
Teach me thy statutes.
13 With my lips have I declared
All the judgments of thy mouth.
14 I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
15 I will meditate in thy precepts.
And have respect unto thy ways.
16 I will delight myself in thy statutes :
1 will not forget thy word.
GIMEL.
17 Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live,
And keep thy word.
18 Open thou mine eyes.
That I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
19 I am a stranger in the earth:
Hide not thy commandments from me.
20 My soul breaketh
For the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times,
21 Thou hast rebuked the proud,
Cursed are they which do err from thy commandments.
22 Remove from me reproach and contempt;
For I have kept thy testimonies.
23 Princes also did sit and speak against me :
But thy servant did meditate in thy statutes.
24 "Thy testimonies also are my delight
And the men of my counsel.
DALETH.
25 My soul cleaveth unto the dust.
Quicken thou me according to thy word.
26 I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me :
Teach me thy statutes.
27 Make me to understand the way of thy precepts :
So shall I talk of thy wondrous works.
28 My soul melteth for heaviness :
Strengthen thou me according unto thy word.
37*
438 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
29 Remove from me the way of lying :
And grant me thy law graciously.
30 I have chosen the way of truth :
Thy judgments have I laid before me.
31 I have stuck unto thy testimonies :
0 Lord, put me not to shame.
32 I will run the way of thy commandments,
When thou shalt enlarge (or, "comfort") my heart.
HE.
33 Teach me, 0 Lord, the way of thy statutes :
And I shall keep it unto the end.
34 Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law ;
Yea, I shall ohserve it with my whole heart.
35 Make me to go in the path of thy commandments;
For therein do I delight.
36 Incline my heart unto thy testimonies.
And not to covetousness.
37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity :
And quicken thou me in thy way.
38 Stablish thy word unto thy servant.
Which is promised to thy fear.
39 Turn away my reproach which I fear:
For thy judgments are good.
40 Behold, I have longed after thy precepts;
Quicken me in thy righteousness.
VAU.
41 Let thy mercies come also unto me, 0 Lord,
Even thy salvation, according to thy word,
42 So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth
me:
For I trust in thy word.
43 And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth ;
For I have hoped in thy judgments.
44 So shall I keep thy law continually
For ever and ever.
45 And I will walk at liberty ;
For I seek thy precepts.
46 I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings,
And will not be ashamed.
47 And I will delight myself in thy commandments.
Which I have loved.
rsALM cxix. 489
48 My tands also will I lift up unto thy commandments,
"which I have loved ;
And I -will meditate in thy statutes.
ZAIN,
49 Remember the word unto thy servant,
Upon which thou hast caused me to hope.
60 This is my comfort in my affliction:
For thy word hath quickened me.
51 The proud have had me greatly in derision.
Yet have I not declined from thy law.
52 I remember thy judgments of old, 0 Lord ;
And have comforted myself.
53 Horror hath taken hold upon me
Because of the wicked that forsake thy law.
64 Thy statutes have been my songs
In the house of my pilgrimage. ^
65 I have remembered thy name, 0 Lord, in the night.
And have kept thy law.
56 This I had (or, "this was my treasure,")
Because I kept thy precepts.
CHETH.
57 Thou art my portion, 0 Lord :
I have said that I would keep thy words.
68 I entreated thy favour (or, "prayed before thy face")
with mi/ whole heart:
Be merciful unto me according to thy word.
59 I thought on my ways.
And turned my feet unto thy testimonies.
60 I made haste and delayed not
To keep thy commandments.
61 The bands of the wicked have robbed me :
But I have not forgotten thy law.
62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee,
Because of thy righteous judgments.
63 I am a companion of all them that fear thee,
And of them that keep thy precepts.
64 The earth, 0 Lord, is full of thy mercy :
Teach me thy statutes.
TETH.
65 Thou hast dealt well with thy servant, 0 Lord,
According unto thy word.
440 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
66 Teach me good judgment and knowledge :
For I have believed thy commandments.
67 Before I. was brought low I went astray :
But now have I kept thy word.
68 Thou art good, and doest good;
Teach me thy statutes.
69 The proud have forged a lie against me :
But I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart.
70 Their heart is as fat as grease ;
But I delight in thy law.
71 It is good for me that I have been brought low,
That I might learn thy statutes.
72 The law of thy mouth is better unto me
Than thousands of gold and silver.
JOD.
73 Thy hands have made me and fashioned me:
Give me understanding, that I may learn thy command-
ments.
74 They that fear thee will be glad when they see me ;
Because I have hoped in thy word.
75 I know, 0 Lord, that thy judgments are right,
And that thou in faithfulness hast brought me low.
76 Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort,
According to thy word unto thy servant.
77 Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live :
For thy law is my delight.
78 Let the proud be ashamed; for they dealt perversely
with me without a cause.
Bid I will meditate in thy precepts.
79 Let those that fear thee turn unto me.
And those that have known thy testimonies.
80 Let my heart be sound in thy statutes ;
That I be not ashamed.
CAPH.
81 My soul fainteth for thy salvation ;
I hope in thy word.
82 Mine eyes fail for thy word, •
Saying, When wilt thou comfort me?
83 For I am become like a bottle* in the smoke :
Yet do I not forget thy statutes.
* /. e. a leathern bottle.
441
PSALM OXIX. ^^
84 How many are tlie days of thy servant ?
When wilt thou execute judgment on them that perse-
cute me ?
85 The proud have digged pits for me,
Which are not after thy law.
86 All thy commandments are faithful:
They persecute me wrongfully; help thou me.
87 They had almost consumed me upon earth;
But I forsook not thy precepts.
88 Quicken me after thy lovingkindness ;
So shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.
LAMED.
89 For ever, 0 Lord, thy word is settled in heaven.
90 Thy faithfulness is unto all generations:
Thou hast established the earth, and it ahideth.
91 They continue this day according to thme ordmances:
For all are thy servants.
92 Unless thy law had been my dehghts, ^
I should then have perished in mine affliction.
93 I will never forget thy precepts:
For with them thou hast quickened me.
94 I am thine, save me ;
For I have sought thy precepts.
95 The wicked have waited for me to destroy me:
But I will consider thy testimonies.
96 I have seen an end of all perfection:
But thy commandment is exceeding broad (or, con-
tinueth.")
MEM.
97 0 how love I thy law!
It is my meditation all the day.
98 Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser
than mine enemies :
For it is ever with me (or, "For it is my treasure for
Gvcr I
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers:
For thy testimonies are my meditation.
100 I understand more than the ancients,
Because I keep thy precepts.
101 I have refrained my feet from every evil way,
That I might keep thy word.
442 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
102 I have not departed from thy judgments :
For thou hast taught me.
103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste !
Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth !
104 Through thy precepts I get understanding:
Therefore I hate every false way.
NUN.
105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,
And a light unto my path.
106 I have sworn, and I will perform it,
That I will keep thy righteous judgments.
107 I am brought low very much :
Quicken me, 0 Lord, according unto thy word.
108 Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offerings of my
mouth, 0 Lord,
And teach me thy judgments.
109 My soul is continually in my hand ;
Yet do I not forget thy law.
110 The wicked have laid a snare for me :
Yet I erred not from thy precepts.
111 Thy testimonies have I taken as an heritage for ever:
For they are the rejoicing of my heart.
112 I have inclined mine heart to perform thy statutes alway,
Hven unto the end.
BAMECH.
113 I hate vain thoughts:
But thy law do I love,
114 Thou art my hiding place and my shield :
I hope in thy word.
115 Depart from me, ye evildoers :
For I will keep the commandments of my God.
116 Uphold me according unto thy word, that I may live :
And let me not be ashamed of my hope.
117 Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe:
And I will have respect unto thy statutes continually.
118 Thou hast trodden down all them that err from thy
statutes :
For their deceit is falsehood.
119 Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross ;
Therefore I love thy testimonies.
PSALM CXIX. 4^2
120 My flest trembleth for fear of thee ;
And I am afraid of thy judgments.
AIN.
121 I have done judgment and justice:
Leave me not to mine oppressors.
122 Be surety for thy servant for good :
Let not the proud oppress me.
123 Mine eyes fail for thy salvation,
And for the word of thy righteousness,
124 Deal with thy servant according unto thy mercy,
And teach me thy statutes.
125 I am thy servant; give me understanding,
That I may know thy testimonies.
126 It is time for thee, Lord, to work,
For they have made void thy law.
127 Therefore I love thy commandments above gold ;
Yea, above fine gold. ,
128 Therefore I esteem all % precepts concerning ail things
to be right;
And I hate every false way.
PE.
129 Thy testimonies are wonderful :
Therefore doth my soul keep thern.^
130 The entrance of thy words giveth light ;
It giveth understanding unto the simple.
131 I opened my mouth, and panted:
For I longed for thy commandments.
132 Look thou upon me, and be merciful unto me,
As thou usest to do unto those that love thy name
133 Order my steps in th;;^ word:
And let not any iniquity have dommion over me.
134 Deliver me from the oppression of man :
So will I keep thy precepts.
135 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant;
And teach me thy statutes.
136 Rivers of waters run down mine eyes.
Because they keep not thy law.
TZADDI.
137 Righteous art thou, 0 Lord,
And upright are thy judgments.
444 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
138 Thy testimonies that thou hast commanded
Are righteous and very faithful.
139 My zeal hath consumed me,
Because mine enemies have forgotten thy words.
140 Thy word is very pure :
Therefore thy servant loveth it.
141 I am small and despised:
Yet do not I forget thy precepts.
142 Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness,
And thy law is the truth.
143 Trouble and anguish have taken hold on me :
Yet thy commandments are my delights.
144 The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting :
Give me understanding, and I shall live.
KOPH.
145 I cried with my whole heart ; hear me, 0 Lord :
I will keep thy statutes.
146 I cried unto thee ; save me,
That I may keep thy testimonies.
147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried ;
I hoped in thy word.
148 Mine eyes prevent the night watches,
That I might meditate in thy word.
149 Hear my voice according unto thy lovingkindness:
0 Lord, quicken me according to thy judgment.
150 They draw nigh that follow after mischief:
They are far from thy law.
151 Thou art near, 0 Lord :
And all thy commandments are truth.
152 Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old
That thou hast founded them for ever.
RESH.
153 Consider mine affliction, and deliver me :
For I do not forget thy law.
154 Plead my cause, and deliver me :
Quicken me according to thy word.
155 Salvation is far from the wicked :
For they seek not thy statutes.
156 Great are thy tender mercies, 0 Lord :
Quicken me according to thy judgments.
157 Many are my persecutors and mine enemies ;
Yet do I not decline from thy testimonies ;
PSALM CXIX. 445
158 I beheld the transgressors, and was grieved:
Because they kept not thy word.
159 Consider how I love thy precepts : . , . ,
Quicken me, 0 Lord, according to thy lovmgkmdness.
160 Thy word is trne from the beginning:
And every one of thy righteous judgments endureth tor
ever.
SCHIN.
161 Princes have persecuted me without a cause :
But my heart standeth in awe of thy word,
162 I rejoice at thy word.
As one that findeth great spoil.
163 I hate and abhor lying :
But thy law do I love.
164 Seven times a day do I praise thee
Because of thy righteous judgments.
165 Great peace have they which love thy law:
And they shall have no stumbling-block.
166 Lord, I have hoped for thy salvation,
And done thy commandments.
167 My soul hath kept thy testimonies ;
And I love them exceedingly.
168 I have kept thy precepts and thy testimonies :
For all my ways are before thee.
TAU.
169 Let my cry come near before thee, 0 Lord:
Give me understanding according to thy word.
170' Let my supplication come before thee :
Deliver me according to thy word.
171 My lips shall utter praise,
When thou hast taught me thy statutes.
172 My tongue shall speak of thy word :
For all thy commandments are righteousness.
173 Let thine hand help me ;
For I have chosen thy precepts.
174 I have longed for thy salvation, 0 Lord ;
And thy law is my delight.
175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee ;
And let thy judgments help me.
176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep ; seek thy servant ;
For I do not forget thy commandments.
38
446 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM CXX.
Luther renders the title of the following fifteen short psalms, ''A
Song from the higher choir." The words in the original mean,
" A Song of steps," and the translator has concluded from that
term, that they were sung from a higher, more elevated place, as
it were a choir, to secure their being more distinctly heard.* The
meaning ofthat title is, however, not yet established; the common
view that they are songs which were sung on the pilgrimage to
Jerusalem is beset with many objections.
This psalm is the song of a man in affliction, who experiences
calumny and disquietude among strangers.
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 In my distress I cried unto the Lord,
And he heard me.
2 Deliver my soul, 0 Lord, from lying lips,
And from a deceitful tongue.
3 What shall be given unto thee?
Or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue ?
4 It is as the sharp arrows of the mighty,
With coals of juniper.
5 Woe is me, that I sojourn in Mesech,
That I dwell in the tents of Kedar !
6 My soul hath long dwelt
With him that hateth peace.
7 I am for peace : but when I speak.
They are for war.
V. 1, 2. The Psalmist is so familiar with the ways of God
that he is able to preface his complaints with the confession that
he supplicates a prayer-hearing God. He then specifies his trou-
bles: they are pains caused by unjust calumniations. Undaunted
believers are never free from them.
V. 3, 4. He cannot refrain from uttering an imprecation
against that false tongue, which prepares cutting pain like sharp
arrows, and lasting pain like the coals of the broom or juniper tree,
which are said to retain the heat for weeks and months together.
V. 5 — 7. He mentions the remote nations of the Moschian
mountains along the Caspian Sea and of the tent-dwelling Arabs,
* Luther's Works, Ed. Walch. iv. 2387. c.
PSALM CXXI. 447
as we should mention the Turks and Tartars if we wished to des-
cribe barbarian nations. He is retained against his will in that
rude and hostile fellowship, and finds himself unable to silence
their discord by the most conscientious effort on his part not to
provoke them. Paul, in exhorting us to live peaceably with all
men, foreseeing that it does not entirely depend on ourselves,^ adds,
'< if it be possible," and "as much as lieth in you.' (Rom. xn. i».)
However difficult his unwilling residence amidst such uncongenial
elements may have been, and however long it might have seemed
to him, yet it may be inferred from verse 1, that he bore without
murmuring or despairing the delay of Divine aid, and looked trust-
fully into the future.
PSALM CXXI.
A PSALM of consolation, which promises to those who seek aid
from the Lord alone, the fulness and comfort of his protection.
\ SONG from the higher choir.
First Choir.
1 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
From whence cometh my help.*
2 My help cometh from the Lord,
AVhich made heaven and earth.
Second Choir.
3 He will not suffer thy foot to be moved :
He that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4 Behold he that keepeth Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is thy keeper :
The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6 The sun shall not smite thee by day,
Nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil :
He shall preserve thy soul : . .
8 The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in
From this time forth, and even for evermore.
* Or perhaps more correctly, «'Shall I lift up mine eyes to the hills?
Whence shall my help come?"
448 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 1. The common translation of this verse suggests the idea
that an afflicted person, remote from the holy land, looks longingly
towards its distant hills. The hills must then be regarded as those
of Zion, from which, though destroyed, the bard still expects
deliverance. The expected help from the hills must also be the
same which in the sequel he calls the help from the Lord. If the
former half of this verse be, however, read as a question, " Shall I
lift up mine eyes unto the hills? Whence should my help
come?''* we have then the thought that a people besieged in a
fortress look for help into the distance, (Nah. ii. 2,) which help
would first appear on the mountain summit. According to this
view the Psalmist reproves himself for looking out for earthly
help, to give greater prominence to the thought that his only aid is
with the Creator of heaven and earth.
V. 4 — 6. The Divine Amen to that confidence is added in
sweet and figurative language. The weak in faith are prone to
imagine, at the delay of Divine deliverance, that God, after the
manner of human watchmen, and in spite of the office he has
undertaken, is asleep. But that can never apply to the keeper of
Israel. (Gen. xxviii. 15; Isaiah xxvii. 3; Deut. xxxii. 10.) He
who has led the people of his inheritance from the days of their
youth, as an eagle leadeth her young, spread his wings over them
and kept them as the apple of his eye, (Deut. xxxii. 10, 11,) will
assuredly stand as a keeper by the side of those who ignore every
other aid save that of the Lord; he will be to them as a cooling
shade in the heat of noon; as a defender in battle, so that neither
the sun, nor the moon, nor day, nor night, shall do them any harm.
The Psalmist's reference to the moon is probably a parallelism,f
though the allusion may be to the heavy and injurious night dews
of the East.
V. 7, 8. A general blessing succeeds the promise. The terms,
''going out," and "coming in," embrace, according to the Old
Testament phraseology, every act of the vocation of life. (Deut.
xxviii. 6; xxxi. 2; 2 Sam. iii. 25.)
PSALM CXXII.
A PSALM which was sung on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The
inhabitants of the provincial towns used to proceed in caravans to
Jerusalem, singing psalms. This may be inferred from Luke ii.
* So Venema, Ewald.
f By the association of Ideas: cf. Hitzig ad. Isa. xiii. 10. Umbreit,
"The moonshine shall not prevent sleep."
PSALM cxxir. 449
41. 44. Since the psalms of degree belong mostly to the exile and
a later day,* and since in the days of David there was no sanctu-
ary at Gibeon, (cf. ad. Ps. xv.) it may be doubted whether those
processions to Jerusalem were instituted so early, and whether this
song does not belong to a later period. But the tabernacle and
the ark of the covenant were doubtless the sanctuary kkt e^ox/it,
and David was anxious to make Jerusalem the capital of his king-
dom ; it is, therefore, not altogether improbable that he instituted
the annual processions to Zion.f This view is supported by the
fact, that after Solomon the reference could no longer be to the
processions of the tribes of Israel, but only to those of the tico tribes
of Judah and Benjamin. Still less could the tribes be mentioned
after the exile, nor could the thrones of judgment of the house of
David. If David is the author of this psalm, he composed it, like
many others, for the use of the pious of his nation.
SONG of David from the higher choir.
A
1 I was glad when they said unto me,
Let us go into the house of the Lord,
2 Our feet shall stand
Within thy gates, 0 Jerusalem.
3 Jerusalem is builded
As a city that is compact together :
4 Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord ;
It is a law to Israel
To give thanks unto the name of the Lord.
5 For there are set thrones of judgment,
The thrones of the house of David.
6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem :
They shall prosper that love thee.
7 Peace be within thy walls,
And prosperity within thy palaces.
8 For my brethren and companions' sakes,
I will now say, Peace be within thee.
9 Because of the house of the Lord our God
I will seek thy good.
V. 1, 2. The Psalmist reverts to the beginning of his festive
pilgrimage, to the moment when friends and relatives invite him to
it. The thought of it is a thought of delight. His longing mind
overleaps the intermediate space, and he sees himself with the pil-
grims within the gates of Jerusalem.
* Even De Wette refers Psalm cxxxii. to the days of Solomon.
■j- Compare the longing with which Psalm Ixxxiii. speaks of the pilgrim-
age to the sanctuary.
38*
450 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 3. The first object of the pilgrims' astonishment is the
extent of the city, where one house is built close to the other, while
gardens and open spaces intervene between the buildings in smaller
places. This is the most common view, but a modern expositor,
remarks that this meaning is cold.* Going back to David's time
we may translate, *' That is compact together," and interpret as
follows. Before David, Jerusalem consisted of two parts, the
castle, held by the Jebusites, and the remaining portion of the
city. David conquered Zion, and no doubt connected those por-
tions of the city, as he afterwards connected by bridges Mount
Zion and Mount Moriah. It is said, 2 Sam. v. 9, that David built
round about from Millo (the city of Zion) and inward (which may,
however, equally apply to fortifications.) The astonishment at the
extent of the city, which was efiected by the established junction
of the diflferent parts, would therefore be explained.
V. 4, 5. The thought rises from the outward beauty of the city
to its inward dignity. It is the city to which, according to an
ancient and now renewed law, the tribes go up to worship : it is
the city where the house of David administers the civil law : it is
the centre of religion and of the state. The thrones are the judg-
ment-seats of the kings. (1 Kings xxii. 10; Jer. xxxviii. 7.) But
why speak in the plural? Perhaps because such seats were erected
before the gates, (cf. Michöelis' Mosaic Law, i. sec. 57,) where
judgment took place. (Psalm cxxvii. 5; Amos v. 10. 12.) It is
but natural that David speaks of his house. (Cf. 2 Sam. vii. 16;
iii. 1; Psalm xviii. 51.)
V. 6 — 9. David loved Zion, and therefore built a house of the
Lord, and because he had built there a house of the Lord, his heart
became still more attached to it. He therefore prays for her peace
and prosperity within and without, in her walls and palaces, both
for her inhabitants' sake and the house of the Lord, which was the
glory of Jerusalem and the joy of David. (Ps. xxiii. 6, etc.)
PSALM CXXIII.
A PRAYER of the whole nation in a condition of long-continued
humiliation.
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 Unto thee lift I up mine eyes,
O thou that dwellest in the heavens.
* Gesenius Thes. S. V. *ian
PSALM OXXIV. 451
2 Behold, as the eyes of servants looTc unto the hand of
their masters,
And as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress ;
So our eyes wait upon the Lord our God,
Until that he have mercy upon us.
3 Have mercy upon us, 0 Lord, have mercy upon us:
For we are exceedingly filled with contempt.
4 Our soul is exceedingly filled
With the scorning of those that are at ease,
And with the contempt of the proud.
V. 1. The Psalmist directs his prayer and intercession to God,
like a man who feels the degradation of his people as his own, and
is himself greatly visited by it. The Psalmists are wont to call
God their God, for their peculiar comfort, just at the time when
no ray of hope is visible on earth ; so here the Psalmist addresses
the Lord, who dwelhth in the heavens. He is sure that the attacks
of men cannot hurt the Lord, that the sceptre of his might is
unbroken, and that his eyes reach as far as the heavens.
V. 2. Men but rarely escape the temptation of looking out for
human help when they are in trouble, but the Psalmist here
solemnly declares that he and his people are fixedly gazing upon
the hand of the Omnipotent, from whom all the powerful on earth
have received and are daily receiving their power, all the wise their
wisdom, and all helpers the strength to help.* While such a fixed
gaze upon the Lord gives to him his due honour, it yields to man
continued peace and moderation. While we look to human hands
for help, hope and fear alternate ; but if they, who may be sure of
a gracious God, look to his hands, confidence is sure to ensue.
V. 3, 4. These verses seem to intimate that contempt had been
carried on for some time past, and that the faith of the servants of
God had stood a long trial. This renders the perseverance of
verse 2 the more astonishing. They had got tired of suffering : we
need not much to get so. This short and hearty psalm contains,
however, not the expression of passionate impatience, but rather of
believing moderation.'
PSALM CXXIV.
A BRIEF but powerful song of praise, like many psalms of David
in the first book. Some, though on insufficient grounds, have
*Savary, Letters on Egypt, p. 135:— "The slaves, having their hands
crossed on their chest, stand silently at the end of the hall. _ With their
eyes fastened on their matter, they seek to anticipate his every -wish."
452 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
regarded it as a fragment which, after the exile, was used by the
pilgrims on their processions.
The first verses possess peculiar energy, from the repetition of
the former clause in verses 1 and 2, and the accumulation of images
in the after clauses. Verse 7 announces the victory with joyous
vivacity — a victory under circumstances when every hope of deliv-
erance seemed to have fled. Verse 8 expresses the confession and
vow that he to whom everything must obey, because he has made
everything, should be the sole help and consolation of Israel. Now
if the Israel, who on account of that experience could sing this
song of praise, continues now in the assembly of the redeemed of
the Lord Jesus Christ, then has the ancient song of praise, like
many others, been transferred from the past to the present: the
Church of Christ shall experience the same deliverance, and sing
the same songs of praise.
A SONG of David from the higher choir.
1 If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
Now may Israel say;
2 If it had not been the Loed who was on our side,
When men rose up against us :
3 Then they had swallowed us up quick,
When their wrath was kindled against lis :
4 Then the waters had overwhelmed us,
The stream had gone over our soul :
5 Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.
6 Blessed be the Lord,
Who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.
7 Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the
fowlers :
The snare is broken, and we are escaped.
8 Our help is in the name of the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
PSALM CXXV.
This psalm of prayer and consolation points to a time when the
" rod of the wicked" ruled over Israel, and when many of the peo-
ple were seduced by oppression or bad example to make fellowship
with the wicked. The rod of the wicked most probably denotes the
power of heathen oppressors, (Ps. xciv. 20;) then "the righteous
PSALM cxxv. 453
that put forth their hands unto iniquity" are either those who sup-
port the oppression of heathen despots, or those who get seduced
to idolatry.
The Psalmist, having confidently proclaimed the termination of
the heathen rule, (v. 1 — 3,) supplicates God to bless the faithful
of his people, but to adequately punish the rebels, (v. 4, 5.)
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 They that trust in the Lord shall he as Mount Zion,
Which cannot be removed, hut abideth for ever.
2 As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
So the Lord is round about his people
From henceforth even for ever.
3 For the rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot (or,
" small band") of the righteous;
Lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity.
4 Do good, 0 Lord, unto those that he good.
And to them that are upright in their hearts.
5 As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways,
The Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of
iniquity :
But peace shall he upon Israel.
V. 1, 2. Not less firm than Zion, the mount of God, are they
who put their trust in the Lord of that sanctuary. The mountains
which encircle Jerusalem symbolize the high protection with which
God encircles his people, a protection as immovable as their foun-
dations. (Zech. ii. 5.) In speaking of the eternal duration of
Mount Zion, the Psalmist contemplates not the mountain as such,
but regards it as the centre of the kingdom of God, whence the
Messianic salvation proceeds, (Isa. ii. 3,) and which in that sense
may be called imperishable. The very psalm which celebrates the
removal of the ark from Zion to Moriah declares that the Lord
shall dwell for ever in Zion. (Psalm cxxxii. 13, 14.*)
V. 3. This verse applies the confidence expressed in the pre-
ceding verses. The Psalmist complains of the long-continued
oppression of the people of God. In describing God as the eternal
protection of his people, he by no means intimated thereby that he
would exempt them from trial and affliction. The promise is not
exemption from stumbling, but exemption from falling. God will
not forget his covenant, nor punish beyond measure. (Ps. xxxvii. 24;
xciv. 18.) The noncontinuance of the rod of the wicked is
the consolation of the Psalmist.
V. 4, 5. This passage renders it clear that the Psalmist includes
454 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
not in the terms, "the people of God" and "Israel/' those who
carnally belong to them, for he expressly implores blessings for the
small band of the upright in heart, while those who walk in crooked
paths shall be driven away with the ungodly. The reference is
here as elsewhere, (Psalm Ixxiii. 1; xiv. 4,) to the true Israel.
For them he desires peace. The same remarks apply to the final
verses of Psalms cxxviii. cxxx. cxxxi.
PSALM CXXVI.
This psalm belongs to that period after the captivity, when inter-
nal troubles and external hostilities pressed upon the nation. Cf.
the account furnished in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah and the
introduction to Psalm Ixxxv., which was composed under similar
circumstances.
The Psalmist praises the past dealings of God in the happy
recollection of the delights which they felt on returning from the
captivity, (v. 1 — 3.) He prays for the further manifestation of
Divine help, and derives comfort from the knowledge that tears
and sorrows lead to joy, (v. 4 — 6.)
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 When the Lord turned again the captivity 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 heathen,
The Lord hath done great things for them.
3 The Lord hath done great things for us ;
Whereof we are glad.
4 Turn again our captivity, 0 LoRD,
As the streams in the south.
5 They that sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.
6 He that goeth forth and vreepeth,
Bearing precious seed,
Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.
^ V. 1 — 3. When things which we deem incredible come even-
tually to pass, we are prone to regard them as dreams and not as
PSALM CXXVI. 455
realities. The prophets had predicted the measure of Divine pun-
ishment. (Jer. xxix. 10; xxv. 12.) Yet their deliverance, when
it came, appeared to the people as a blissful dream. In proportion
to the incredibility of that event would have been their guilt ia
denying the Omnipotent as the originator thereof. The Psalmist
testifies, however, that the rejoicings of the delivered were not con-
fined to what they saw, but that they ascribed appropriate praise
and glory to the Lord in heaven. How could they do otherwise
when even the blind heathens had their eyes opened and cried :
"The Lord hath done great things for them." Indeed there is
something so marvellous in the determination of King Cyrus to
suifer a great people, who had settled in his country and filled it
with prosperity, to depart from his borders, that the learned con-
fess themselves unable to satisfactorily account for the motives of
the king of Persia, and not a few of them assume that he must
have had some kind of faith in the God of the Israelites.* The
Psalmist gratefully repeats in the name of the people, " The Lord
hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad." Though he
has grounds for complaint, he is unwilling to fail in the duty of
thanksgiving for mercies already received.
V. 4 — 6. It has been shown in the notes to Psalm xiv. 7,f that
the expression, " to turn the captivity," is in the Old Testament
figuratively employed for the turning of every kind of misery.
Narrowed in the means requisite for the building of the new
city, assailed by the surrounding heathen nations, who interfered
with the erection of the temple and calumniated them to the king
of Persia, the Israelites who had returned from the captivity had
sufiicient ground to implore farther assistance from the Lord. The
country is as it were like an arid desert. The Psalmist prays that
the Lord would treat it like the streams in the waste land in the
south of Palestine, which dry up in summer, but get refilled with
water in autumn and spring. (Job vi. 15.) In this prayer the
Psalmist derives strength from the hope which has met innumera-
ble fulfilments in the kingdom of nature and in history, but especi-
ally in the experience of the children of God. (Heb. xii. 11.) The
sower casts his seed if not in tears, yet in the sweat of his brow,
but when the merry time of harvest comes, all is joy and gladness.
The combat leads to victory, sorrows to joy, death to life. Our
Lord expresses the same truth by another figure. ''Except a corn
of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone : but if it
die, it bringeth forth much fruit." That truth cheers the Psalm-
ist in the prospect of the future; though as he says in verses 1, 2,
the past has already confirmed it to him. (Jer. xxxi, 9.) This
passage is applicable to suffering Christians; either to their strug-
* Cf. The decree of Cyrus, Ezra i.
t Cf. Psalm Ixxxv. 5, in the Hebrew.
456 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
gles this side the grave or their triumphs beyond; the first
verses of the passage are also explained either of the joy of the
redeemed on earth or of their entrance upon the bliss of eternity.
Augustin interprets the title, "A Song of Degrees, i. e. a Song of
drawing upwards/' of the drawing (going) up to the heavenly
Jerusalem, This is right, inasmuch as the deliverance from the
captivity of sin and death should in an increased measure excite
those feelings of gratitude which Israel must have felt on being
delivered from their corporeal captivity; in this respect again is
the history of the outward theocracy a type of the history of the
Church. Luther says, *' Let us overlook the peculiar prisons (i. e.
with respect to the Babylonish captivity,) and explain this psalm
of the common prison and deliverance of the entire human race."
PSALM CXXVII.
This beautiful psalm is the other one which is preserved of Solo-
mon. (Cf Psalm Ixxii.) Its pious wisdom of life is peculiarly
consonant with the early life of Solomon. Luther, "We see that
Solomon instructs us in the things which are needed for the pre-
servation of governments (political or domestic,) and that he seldom
treats of the subject which so much engaged the attention of his
father, namely, "righteousness." We read, Prov. x. 22, "The
blessing of the Lord maketh rich without trouble;" xyi. 9, "A
man's heart deviseth his way; but the Lord directeth his steps;"
and, viii. 15, wisdom says, "By me kings reign, and princes decree
justice." Cf Eccl. ix. 11; viii. 16.*
A
SONG of Solomon from the higher choir.
1 Except the Lord build the house,
They labour in vain that build it :
Except the Lord keep the city,
The watchman waketh hut in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late,
To eat the bread of sorrows :
For be giveth it to his beloved wJiile asleep.
3 Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord :
And the fruit of the womb is his reward.
* Cf. the linguistic comparisons of Stier ad. loc.
PSALM CXXVTI. 457
4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man ;
So are children of the youth.
5 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them:
They shall not be ashamed,*
When they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
y. 1, 2. Although there is nothing more certain than that the
ability of man depends on the supplies from the inexhaustible
treasure-house of the Lord, and the success of man on the combi-
nation of outward circumstances which are beyond the control of
mortals, yet those who are not yet convinced that " we live, and
move, and have our being" in God, are ever inclined to look upon
themselves as the originators of their prosperity. The design of
this psalm is to reprove that ungrateful and proud idolatry. Men
build and keep watch, but if they do it without God it is all in vain.
The term "house" maybe interpreted as "household" or "family,"
but it is better to regard it as a literal house, since afterwards the
city is mentioned. The term "watchman," however, seems to
have a more extensive meaning, (as Ps. cxxx. 6;) it applies to all
who are responsible for the prosperity of a city, such as the magis-
trates and councillors. The prophets are called "watchmen" in the
Old Testament. (Isa. lii. 8; Ezek. iii. 17.)
V. 3. Having stated in general terms the futility of man's
efforts without God, the Psalmist now addresses those for whom his
remarks are designed, to point out to them still more particularly
that effort and anxiety alone are not enough; for many seek to
account for the failures of men, by saying that they have not suffi-
ciently exerted themselves. The last clause of this verse has been
much ridiculed by the careless, as if it were favouring a pious
aversion to labour, and even Luther has fallen into a misapprehen-
sion in interpreting "the sleep" as "peace of conscience." But
from what precedes, it is evident that Solomon's meaning is tanta-
mount to the old proverb, "Everything depends on the blessing of
God;" or as P. Gerhard has it, "You cannot take anything from
God by care and anxiety — you must pray for it." Should any one,
however, feel inclined to force the passage, let him do so, but bear
in mind "that it is given to the beloved of God while they are
asleep;" but those who pretend to be the beloved of God must not
forget that though it is true that the Lord can and does give it to
his people while they are asleep, yet there is also the injunction of
the apostle, "If any will not work, neither shall he eat." (2 Thess.
iii. 10.)
F. 4. The Psalmist now illustrates by a most forcible example
how everything depends on the blessing of God. Is there any-
* Or, "Their father.? shall not be ashamed."
39
458 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
tting of greater moment in a household, after toiling, care, and
anxiety have had their due weight, than the possesswji of children P
People are very rarely heard to say that God has not given them a
wife or a fortune, though even the ungodly will thoughtlessly
observe that the Lord has given or refused them children. It is
said in Genesis, where the fruitfulness of matrimony is the theme,
"God blessed them." Thus we are wont to call children the bless-
ing of matrimony . This one instance must render it patent to the
most blind, that with all our efforts and cares, prosperity depends
on the secret influence of God.
V. 5, 6. The Psalmist takes occasion to depict the excellency
of the blessing of children. A number of grown up children, begot
in the strength of youth, are like so many protecting weapons in
the assault and the defence, like arrows shot by a strong and
expert archer. Happy is the man who has the quiver of his house
full of them ! Such fathers are blessed even in the judgment when
they treat with their enemies in the gate, {see ad. Psalm cxxii.
5;) their sons become their spokesmen. "While he lived" (the
father of a well-trained son) "he saw and rejoiced in him: and
when he died, he was not sorrowful. He left behind him an
avenger against his enemies, and one that shall requite kindness
to his friends." (Sir. xxx. 5, 6.)
PSALM CXXVIII.
A PSALM which celebrates the blessing of domestic piety. Luther
calls it a loeddinfj-song for Christians. The impressiveness of the
psalm arises from the Psalmist's addressing himself to his readers
personally.
A
SONG from the higher choir.
Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord;
That walketh in his ways.
For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands :
Happy shalt thou 6c, and it shall he well with thee.
Thy wife shall he as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine
house :
Thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed
That feareth the Lord,
The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion :
And thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days
of thy life.
PSALM CXXVIII. 459
6 Yea, tliou shalt see thy children's children,
Arid peace upon Israel.
V. 1. The fear of God flows like a fertilizing stream over the
temporal existence of men. The Psahnist rightly praises it as the
only solid foundation for a happy household.
V. 2. The first promise respects the blessing of nourishment,
the second that of matrwiovi/, the third that of children. While
mere early rising and sitting up late are not sufficient in the case
of the ungodly, (Ps. cxxvii. 2,) moderate exertion will, by the
blessing of God, secure the wants of those who fear the Lord. The
promises of the Scriptures seem to speak of supernatural bless-
ings flowing through invisible channels, and it cannot be denied
that the ways by which the blessing of God flows into a Christian
household, and causes it to prosper, are frequently concealed from
our view. It is, however, only natural that the fear of God, in
rendering men moderate, contented, honest, and diligent, must
ever prove the source of prosperity in every vocation of life. Add
to this, that those who work in faith and love are joyful and easy
workers. May it, therefore, not be said that the fear of God in
part at least removes that curse from labour which ushered it into
the world? (Gen. iii. 17.)
V. 3. Why rejoices man in the blessing of a prospering work?
If he has to reap its benefits alone, his joy is scanty and silent; he
should like to extend them to a house, to spread a table, that they
who are one flesh and blood with him should share the reward of
his toils. Thus the Psalmist considers the second and third bless-
ings. He compares the wife and the children to the two noble
plants, the vine and the olive tree, from which the most choice
liquids are obtained. He refers the wife to the interior of the
house, because her proper domain is there, and not in the streets
and market-places; the children he describes as seated at the table,
because they appear peculiarly pleasant when they look up to their
father's hand, and joyously consume the food before them. He com-
pares the wife to the vine, the clusters of which no less rejoice the
eye than their juice gladdens the heart; it is a plant which needs
support, extremely delicate, and yet bearing such strong fruit. He
may probably have thought that the children, the fruit of her body,
cling to her, numerous and beautiful, as the grapes to the vine.
He compares the children to olive branches, not on account of
their beauty, but on account of their great number in the tree and
the excellency of their fruit.
V. 4. 6. The blessing having been pronounced in the third
person, is now addressed in a direct form to those who fear the
Lord. After the removal of the ark from Mount Zion, the name
of Zion used to denote the sanctuary of God, and Jerusalem itself
the centre thereof. (Ps. xx, 3.) He who has built his house in
460 COMMENTABY ON THE PSALMS.
the fear of God cannot but rejoice in the building and flourishing
of the city of God. Such a building of houses in the fear of God
is the most eflacient means towards the good of Jerusalem. Since
men regard the continuance of their own lives in those of their
offspring as a peculiar blessing, and frequently are more concerned
for the welfare of their children than their own, the Psalmist holds
out a long posterity. The Israel which is praised here must be the
true Israel, for it is the condition of the godly which is praised.
(>See ad. Ps. cxxv. 5.)
PSALM CXXIX.
A PSALM of complaint. It belongs to a period when many calami-
ties having passed over the nation, the Lord had graciously removed
their last affliction as he had their former, (v. 4.) To this is
annexed an imprecation on all the enemies of Zion.
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth,
May Israel now say:
2 Many a time have they afflicted me from my youth:
Yet they have not prevailed against me.
3 The ploughers ploughed upon my back:
They made long their furrows.
4 The Lord u righteous:
He hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked.
5 Let them all be counfounded and turned back
That hate Zion.
6 Let them be as tlie grass wpon the housetops,
Which withereth afore it groweth up:
7 Wherewith the mower filleth not his hand;
Nor he that bindeth sheaves his bosom.
8 Neither do they which go by say,
" The blessing of the Lord be upon you :
We bless you in the name of the Lord."
V. 1 — 4. The Psalmist exhorts his nation to the contemplation
of their afflictions from the days of their youth, i. e. the exode from
Egypt to the present hour, since the believing consideration of
past affliction and past deliverance is most conducive to courageous
PSALM CXXX. 461
perseverance. Their wounds had been deep : the plough had as it
were gone over their backs, and left long furrows behind it. Yet
the end has always been this: they have not prevailed against me.
When the seed falls into deep furrows, it will yield fruit, and the
Lord cut asunder the cords of their yoke whenever the people were
yielding the desired fruit.
V. 5 — 8. In view of the long ranks of the enemies of Zion,
the desire arises that they might all be put to shame : so Christians,
though constrained to own that the sufferings of the Church are a
capital crucible for the separation of her dross, can hardly suppress
the desire that the enemies of the Church of God should cease.
The imprecation of the Psalmist is no other judgment than that
which arises from the condition of the enemies of the Church.
They have no root, like the grass on the earth-covered roofs of the
houses of the poor in the East; it is a poor crop, and does not
deserve the salutation which used to be addressed to the mowers,
" The Lord be with you." (Ruth ii. 4.)
PSALM CXXX.
A PSALM of complaint in deep sorrow, (v. 1 — 4,) but full of confi-
dence and encouragement for Israel, (v. 5 — 8.)
A
SONG from the higher choir.
1 Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, 0 Lord.
2 Lord, hear my voice:
Let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.
3 If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities,
0 Lord, who shall stand?
4 But there is forgiveness with thee,
That thou mayest be feared.
5 I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait,
And in his word do I hope.
6 My soul waiteth for the Lord
More than they that watch for the morning:
That watch for the morning.
7 Let Israel hope in the Lord:
For with the Lord there is mercy,
And with him is plenteous redemption.
8 And ke shall redeem Israel
From all his iniquities. v
39*
462 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
V. 1 — 4. As a cry for help is heard from an abyss, so the
troubled bard sends his cry from earth to heaven. He complains
not, as most men do, of iindeserved suffering, nor asks, Why hap-
pens this to me? why happens this to me? He rather confesses
that all men ought to consider all their sufferings as the well
deserved punishment of their sins, and asserts that if the sins of
men were adequately punished, they could not stand before God.
He holds the evangelical doctrine of the New Testament, by
declaring according to Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7, that the existence and
prosperity of sinners are only possible because of Divine forgive-
ness, and that God exerts forgiveness for the very purpose of kind-
ling the fear of God in a more vivid and powerful manner. (Psalm
cxliii. 2.)
v. 5 — 8. Confiding in the true word of the Lord and the surety
of his promises, (Psalm xxxiii. 4; Ivi. 11,) he trains himself in
perseverance. His soul waits upon God, as watchmen look out for
the light of day in a dark night. (Isa. xxi. 11.) The confidence
which has cheered his own heart animates him to exhort all the
associates of his nation to bear in mind that God deals with us not
according to our deserts but according to his mercy. We may
therefore expect much and even new redemption at his hands, till
it shall be completed at last, when the true Israel of God shall be
redeemed from all their sins and their melancholy consequences.
PSALM CXXXL
A PSALM of David, which sets forth the confession of his calm
resignation to the will of God. Some think that it is descriptive
of David's readiness not prematurely to desire the throne of Saul.
But there are many other circumstances to be conceived, which
could have occasioned this brief but charming psalm.
A
SONG of David from the higher choir.
Lord, my heart is not haughty,
Nor mine eyes lofty ;
Neither do I walk in great matters,
Or in things too high for me.
Surely I have behaved and quieted my soul,
As a child that is weaned of his mother :
My soul is even as a weaned child.
PSALM cxxxir. 463
3 Let Israel hope in the Lord
From henceforth and for ever.
V. 1, 2. Common experience teaches us, that the more man
has, the more he- desires. Hence the rich are if anything more
hable than the poor, to fall into the universal temptation of being
dissatisfied with what the Lord has apportioned to them, and
of striving after higher things. The conduct of a victorious king,
blessed with prosperity and power, who is content with what the
Lord has meted out to him, demands a special acknowledgment.
The Psalmist neither denies the temptation of passion nor the
occasional commotion of his mind. He is afraid of the ingratitude
of which he would become guilty, and the unfailing retribution of
Divine justice, and has therefore succeeded to calm his soul, like
the weaned infant which nestles in his mother's bosom without
desire.
V. 3. Assured of the blessing of his own conduct, the Psalm-
ist calls upon all his associates in faith to set their hope on the
Lord, who in due time will grant to every one what he requires.
PSALM CXXXIL
A PSALM of supplication, which was sung at the removal of the
ark from the tabernacle on Zion into the temple on Moriah. As
verses 8 — 10 occur in the dedication prayer of Solomon, 2 Chron.
vi. 41, 42, we must assume that either Solomon is the author of
this psalm, or that the author of the Chronicles took that passage,
which is wanting in the version of the prayer which is furnished
in 1 Kings viii.,from this psalm, and added it to Solomon's prayer,
because he knew that the king had uttered it on that occasion.
The prayer supplicates Divine mercy, on the plea of the fidelity
which David displayed in his zeal for God, and especially for the
building of a house for the ark, (v. 1 — 5.) The people, having
stated that the ark used formerly to wander from place to place,
begin to worship, (v. 6, 7,) and pray for mercy on the sanctuary
and the government, (v. 8 — 10.) They cite as a pledge of their
coufidence the word which the Lord spoke unto Nathan, (v. 11 — 12.)
Now the Lord himself speaks, promising to dwell in Zion, to bless
the provisions of the people, to give salvation to the priests, and
might and victory to the royal house, (v. 13 — 18.)
464 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
A SONG from the higher choir.
First Ohoir.
1 Lord remember David,
And all his pains.
2 How he sware unto the Lord,
And vowed unto the mighty G-od of Jacob ;
3 " Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house,
Nor go up into my bed ;
4 I will not give sleep to mine eyes,
Or slumber to mine eyelids,
5 Until I find out a place for the Lord,
An habitation for the mighty Crod of Jacob."
Second Clioin
6 Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah :
We found it in the fields of the wood.
7 We will go into his tabernacles ;
We will worship at his footstool.
First Choir.
8 Arise, 0 Lord, into thy rest ;
Thou, and the ark of thy strength.
9 Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness ;
And let thy saints shout for joy.
10 For thy servant David's sake
Turn not away the face of thine anointed.
Second Choir.
11 The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David;
He will not turn from it;
Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.
12 ^' If thy children will keep my covenant
And my testimony that I shall teach them.
Their children shall also sit upon thy throne for ever-
more."
The Tivo Choirs.
13 For the Lord hath chosen Zion ;
He hath desired it for his habitation.
14 " This is my rest for ever :
Here will I dwell ; for I have desired it.
15 I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.
PSALM CXXXII. 465
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation :
And her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
17 There will I make the horn of David to bud;
I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed.
18 His enemies will I clothe with shame :
But upon himself shall his crown flourish."
V. 1 — 5. The pains of David cannot mean anything else but his
varied eflForts to establish the sanctuary, and to arrange and beautify
its worship. As a single proof is mentioned his anxiety for the
place of the ark. It is uncertain whether the adduced determina-
tion of David respects the foundation of a house for the ark (that
is the building of the temple,) and the words which are put into
the mouth of David are simply an expansion of the concise expres-
sion in 2 Samuel vii. 2, (Acts vii. 46,) or only expressive of his
desire to prepare a permanent place for the ark on Mount Zion.
Verse 6 favours the latter supposition. 2 Samuel vi. contains no
further details respecting his determination to remove the ark from
Kirjath Jearim, where it had been accidentally deposited. (Cf.
Introd. ad. Ps. xv.) On the other hand, 1 Chronicles xiii. (xiv.)
speaks of the complaint of David to the captains of Israel that the
ark had not been sufficiently honoured by Saul, from which com-
plaint we may infer the zeal with which David carried on its
removal to Zion. The powerful and poetically executed expres-
sions are still further confirmed by an oath. There is no need that
they should be taken literally. (Prov. vi. 4.)
V. 6, 7. The people confirm the declaration of David, by
stating to have heard from of old, that the ark used to be in the
tribe of Ephraim, i. e. at Shiloh, that in their own time it was at
Kirjath Jearim, i. e. the city of the wood, that therefore they had
found it in a wild region, (v. 6.) Then follows an invitation to
worship at the sanctuary of God. We have remarked on Psalm
xcix. 5, that the visible sanctuary, and the ark in particular, was
called the footstool oi God, as an admonition that the sensible could
after all be only a poor representation of the eternal.
V. 8 — 10. The ark approaches the sanctuary, (Numb. x. 35;)
blessings always attend the entrance of the Lord. The church and
the civil government are two institutions, on which the prosperity
of the state and the people depend. The people implore, therefore,
blessings and salvation for their priests,* and permanent dominion
for their kings.
V. 11, 12. The most potent weapon with God is his own word.
They remind him, therefore, as did Ethan in Psalm Ixxxix. 20, etc.
of the solemn words which he had spoken by Nathan, and which
* The Chaldee translator regards the saints as Levites; the reference
seems hardly to the godly among the people: the Psalmist probably means
the priests.
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
must at that ttime have been still fresh in the memory of all.
Solomon too made mention of those glorious words of comfort in
his prayer at the dedication of the temple. (1 Kings via. 25.)
V. 13 — 18. It may seem strange that the eternal resting-place
of God on Zion should be spoken of at the very moment when the
ark was being removed from Zion to Moriah. This objection
might be set aside by the fact, that Zion and Moriah were at first
separated by a gulf, but afterwards united by bridges, and could
therefore be regarded as one: as in fact the gulf is now filled up,
and Moriah no longer discernible as a separate hill. But it is
more correct to say, that Zion stands for Jerusalem, as is clear
from verses 15 — 17; and we Christians should therefore bear in
mind that the ancient Israel continues in the Israel of God of the
New Testament, (Gal. vi. 16,) and Zion in the Christian Church.
Calvin says, <' Christ has by his advent, extended Mount Zion to
the ends of the earth."* The full pleasure of the Lord in this
kingdom which he established according to the free resolve of his
mercy, animates him to make glorious promises to people, (Psalm
cxi. 5,) priest and king. On the expression ''horn/' see notes to
Psalm cxii. 9, and on "lamp," cf. Psalm xviii. 29.
PSALM CXXXIIL
A JOYOUS and hearty psalm. Its theme is the blessing of frater-
nal unity among associates. Commentators regard either the union
of the tribes under the sceptre of David, as the occasion of the
psalm, (2 Sam. v. 3,) or the great assembly of the people during
the reign of David, when Solomon was anointed as king, and Zadok
as the liigh priest of the people. (1 Chron. xxix. [xxx.] 22.) One
of the three great feasts, the passover in particular, when all the
tribes met together at Jerusalem, (Psalm cxxii. 4,) may, however,
have inspired David with this psalm, in praise of fraternal unity.
Verse 3 alludes to a gathering in Zion.
A
SONG of David from the higher choir.
1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brethren to dwell together in unity !
2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head.
That ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard:
That went down to the skirts of his garments ;
* Could the prophets have said that all the nations should flow to Zion,
and that the Temple should become the house of prayer of all nations, if
they had not regarded Zion as the symbol of the kingdom of God?
PSALM CXXXTV. 4(>t
3 As the dew of Hermon,
And as the dew that descended upon the mountains of
Zion:
For there the Lord commanded the blessing,
Even life for evermore.
F. 1. The Psalmist calls it good and pleasant for associates of
the same faith not only to preserve unity, but to express it by dtcell-
ing together, as it was the case when all the worshippers of the
One God used to flow together to the one centre of his adoration
at the annual three great feasts. The adjectives ^oocZ and p?easan<
denote the blessedness of such a fellowship of love, based on faith.
V. 2, 3. Two beautiful figures describe the benefits resulting
from such a dwelling together — the fragrant oil of anointing with
which the high priest used to be anointed, the most sacred and fra-
grant of oils, (Exod. XXX. 24; xxxvii. 29; Lev. viii. 10,) as well
as the deio, noted for its copiousness (see ad. Psalm ex. 3,) and
refreshing power. The blessing of that fellowship is therefore
gratifying to the senses and strengthening to the heart. It is over-
flowing and all-embracing, so that it bears and refreshes the very
meanest. This is the meaning of the expression that the fragrant
oil copiously poured upon the head, descends to the ends of the
reverential beard, yea, to the skirts of the garments. The second
figure applies the former to the case in hand. The Psalmist means
to say, these figures are exemplified in Zion. Hermon is a very
high mountain, enshrouded in clouds. The valleys at the base of
such mountains have a peculiarly copious supply of dew. The dew
of Hermon denotes the most abundant dew, which is to descend
upon the community of the pious in Zion. This psalm of praise
on the unity of brethren is confirmed by the statements of the New
Testament respecting the glorious blessings of fraternal unity,
which blessings, however, will not be completed until the comple-
tion of the kingdom of God shall have taken place. The last words
of the second figure show that it has ceased to be a simile, and
treats of the exemplification of the blessings of unity in Zion and
the brethren there assembled. They indicate that the promise
belongs to Zion. The word " blessing" is explained by the more
pregnant term ''life."
PSALM CXXXIV.
A SONG of praise for the Levites, who were appointed to hold the
night watch in the temple.
The oifices of the Levites were threefold. They officiated in
holy things, conducted the singing, and guarded . the temple.
468 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
(1 Chron. xxvi. [xxvii.;] Lev. viii. 35.) The temple was guarded
also during the day, to ward oif the approach of unclean persons;
but the watch was kept up especially at night.
This psalm and 1 Chronicles ix. (x.) 33, show that praise used
to be offered at night. The coming and retiring Levites invite
each other to praise by responses. Verse 3 speaks of God the
Creator to denote his power, from which believers may venture to
hope everything.
A
SONG from the higher choir.
The coming Temple-guard.
1 Behold, bless ye the Lord,
All ye servants of the Lord,
Which by night stand in the house of the Lord.
2 Lift up your hands to the sanctuary,
And bless the Lord.
The retiring Temple-guard.
3 The Lord that made heaven and earth.
Bless thee out of Zion.
PSALM CXXXV.
A SONG of praise for all the people, for those who stand in the
courts of the temple, (v. 2.) God is worthy to be praised, for
Israel is his peculiar treasure, and he is greater than all the gods,
(v. 4 — 6.) This is seen from his government in nature, (v. 7,) no
less than from the ,past experience and guidance of his people,
(v. 8 — 12.) He will be merciful to his people for ever, (v. 13, 14.)
The idols are soulless and powerless formations of men's hands,
(v. 15 — 18.) Repeated invitations to praise are addressed to the
people, the priests, and the Levites, (v. 19, 20.) Cf. with the last
verses Psalm cxv. 3 — 10.
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
jL Praise ye the name of the Lord ;
Praise him, 0 ye servants of the Lord.
2 Ye that stand in the house of the Lord,
In the courts of the house of our God.
PSALM cxxxv. 469
3 Praise the Lord ; for the Lord is good :
Sing praises unto his name ; for it is pleasant.
4 For the Lord hath chosen Jacob unto himself,
And Israel for his peculiar treasure.
5 For I know that the Lord is great
And that our Lord is above all gods.
6 Whatsoever the Lord pleaseth, that doeth he
In heaven and in earth,
In the seas, and all deep places.
7 He causeth the clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth ;
He maketh lightnings for the rain ;
He bringeth the wind out of his treasuries,
8 Who smote the firstborn of Egypt,
Both of man and beast.
9 Who sent tokens and wonders into the midst of thee, 0
Egypt,
Upon Pharaoh, and upon all his servants.
10 Who smote great nations,
And slew mighty kings ;
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
And Og king of Bashan,
And all the kingdoms of Canaan:
12 And gave their land /or an heritage.
An heritage unto Israel his people.
13 Thy name, 0 Lord, e7idiireth for ever;
And thy memorial, 0 Lord, throughout all generations,
14 For the Lord will judge his people,
And he will repent himself concerning his servants.
15 The idols of the heathen are silver and gold.
The work of men's hands.
16 They have mouths — but they speak not;
Eyes have tney — but they see not;
17 They have ears — but they hear not ;
Neither is there an^ breath in their mouths.
18 They that make them are (or, "shall become") like unto
them:
So is every one that trusteth in them.
19 Bless the Lord, 0 house of Israel:
Bless the Lord, 0 house of Aaron :
20 Bless the Lord, 0 house of Levi :
Ye that fear the Lord, bless the Lord.
21 Blessed, be the Lord out of Zion,
Which dwelleth at Jerusalem.
Praise ye the Lord.
40 ^
470 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM CXXXVI.
A RESPONSIVE song in praise of God, the God of gods and the
Lord of lords, who has established the monuments of his miracles
in nature and in the history of Israel. A second chorus always
repeats the final clause, "For his mercy endureth for ever."
1 A GIVE thanks unto the Lord ; for he is good ;
\J For his mercy endureth for ever.
2 0 give thanks unto the God of gods :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
3 0 give thanks to the Lord of Lords :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
4 To him who alone doeth great wonders :
For his mercy endureth for ever, •
5 To him that by wisdom made the heavens:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
6 To him that stretched out the earth above the waters:
For his mercy eiidureth for ever.
7 To him that made great lights :
For his mercy e^idureth for ever.
8 The sun to rule by day :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
9 The moon and stars to rule by night :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
1 0 To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
11 And brought out Israel from among them :
For his mercy endureth for ever :
12 With a strong hand, and with a stretchei^ out arm:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
13 To him which divided the Red Sea into parts:
For his mercy endureth for ever:
14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it:
For his mercy endureth for ever:
15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
16 To him which led his people through the wilderness:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
17 To him which smote great kings :
For his mercy endureth for ever :
PSALMS CXXXVII. 471
18 And slew famous kings :
For his mercy endureth for ever:
19 Sihon king of the Amorites :
For his mercy endureth for ever:
20 And Og the king of Bashan :
For his mercy endureth for ever:
21 And gave their land for an heritage:
For his mercy endureth for ever:
22 ^ven an heritage unto Israel his servant:
For his mercy endureth for ever.
23 Who remembered us in our low estate:
For his mercy endureth for ever:
24 And hath redeemed us from our enemies :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
25 Who giveth food to all flesh :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
26 0 give thanks unto the God of heaven :
For his mercy endureth for ever.
PSALM CXXXVII.
A PSALM of a Levite, a master in song. It was composed soon
after the return from the captivity, when the remembrance of its
ignominy was still fresh in the mind of the people.
1 T) Y the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down,
JD Yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.
2 We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.
3 For there they that carried us away captive required of
us a song ;
And they that wasted us required of us mirth,
Saying^ "Sing us one of the songs of Zion."
4 How shall we sing the Lord's song
In a strange land ?
5 If I forget thee, 0 Jerusalem,
Let my right' hand forget her cunning.
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.
472 COMMENTAKY ON THE PSALMS.
7 Remember, 0 Lord, the children of Edom
In the day of Jerusalem ;
Who said, "Rase it,
Rase it, even to the foundation thereof."
8 0 daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed (or,
"thou destroyer;")
Happy shall he he, that rewardeth thee
As thou hast served us.
9 Happy shall he he,
That taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.
V. 1. The foreign land was rich and fascinating.* Many had
yielded to its fascination, and preferred a permanent settlement to
the granted return into their own native country. But withal the
hearts of the greater portion of the people, and especially of the
priests and Levites, were so powerfully attached to the sanctuary
and the city of God, that joy was a stranger to them. They sat by
the streams of the richly irrigated land and shed their tears into
its streams.
F. 2, 3. The Levites had carried their harps, which they had
so frequently strung in praise of the Lord in the temple, as
precious memorials of happier days, into the land of their exile.
There they sat by the water's edge in the shade of the willow-tree,
but the charm of the scenery was unable to subdue their grief, and
they hung their harps on the willows. The heathen seem to have
heard of the joyous psalms which Israel used to sing to the Lord;
they may have occasionally listened to them, and they must have
been sweet to their ears. As Belshazzar wished for the vessels of the
temple, so they wished for its holy songs, that they might enjoy
a merry hour. If they had been able to practise their art under
ordinary circumstances, it would have been utterly impossible to
them to sing a mirthful psalm,-}" especially before the originators
of their tribulation.
V. 4 — 6. This is the Psalmist's courageous reply to the strange
request. They wanted them to sing remote from the place to
which their hai'ps and songs were exclusively devoted. He prizes
his fair art, but he would rather that his hand should forget it and
his tongue cleave to the roof of his mouth, than that the thought
of Jerusalem should vanish from his mind. The place where he
* Compare the description which the Assyrian gives of the beauty of the
land to which he intends to transplant the Jews ; he probably refers to the
province of Babylon. — Isa. xxxxvi. 17; 2 Kings xviii. 32. But see Hitzig.
f "As he that taketh away a garment in cold weather, and as vinegar
upon nitre, so is he that singeth songs to an heavy heart" (or, "singeth
them himself.") — Prov. xxv. 20.
PSALM CXXXVIII. 473
used to practise it lies in ruins; Jerusalem is above his chief
delights; how should he sing songs of joy within sight of her
ruins?
V. 7—^9. He is unable to retain any longer his intense grief for
the destroyed city, as j'et lying in ruins; it breaks forth into a cry
of vengeance against the Edomites, who in the day when Jerusa-
lem fell inflamed the destroyers to greater fury, and against Baby-
lon, which because Cyrus had spared it stood as yet undestroyed.
He imprecates upon their guilty heads the punitive judgments
which had already been foretold by the prophets. (Obad. v. 8 — 16;
Ezek. XXV. 12, 13; Jer. xlix. 7.) It cannot be denied that the
Psalmist's language like that of Psalm cix. bears the stamp of pas-
sion; but we should remember that, according to the barbarous
usage of those days, the slaughter of infants belonged to the prac-
tice of war, when a fortress had been carried by storm. (2 Kings
viii. 12; Isa. xiii. 16; Nah. iii. 10.) At a much later period we
find that the barbarity of the Greeks was so great, that according
to Athenaeup, during an insurrection the mob had the children of
the rich trampled to death by oxen, and that when the aristocracy
had regained their power, they ordered their enemies along with
their wives and children to be cast into the flames. We owe our
more civilized usages to the propagation of Gospel sentiments,
which, though they have not yet brought about the abolition of
war, have nevertheless by their genial beams lessened the dismal
horror of its night.
PSALM CXXXVIII.
A SONG of praise full of exuberant joy. It begins with praising
God for past deliverance, (v. 1- — 3;) rejoices in the acknowledg-
ment of God by all the kings of the earth, (v. 4 — 6 ;) and finally
expresses confidence for the future, (v. 7, 8.) No period in the
history of David furnishes so appropriate an occasion for the com-
position of this psalm, as that of the death of Saul, which brought
his ten years of afiliction to an end, and transferred the sceptre into
the hand of the fugitive.
A
P^^i:i|lf of David.
I will praise thee with my whole heart :
Before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.
40*
474 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
2 I will worship toward thy holy temple,
And praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy
truth ("faithfulness:")
For thou hast magnified thy word ("promise") above all
thy name.
3 In the day when I cried thou answeredst me,
And strengthenedst me with strength in my soul.
4 All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, 0 Lord,
When they hear the words of thy mouth.
5 Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the Lord :
For great is the glory of the Lord.
6 Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the
lowly :
But the proud he knoweth afar off.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me :
Thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of
mine enemies.
And thy right hand shall save me.
8 The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me:*
Thy mercy, 0 Lord, endureth for ever :
Forsake not the works of thine own hands.
V. 1 — 3. The Psalmist's praise of the Lord is not confined to
his lips — it flows from his heart. Assured of the incomparable
excellence of his Grod, he extols him before the gods which are the
boast of the heathen. His own dwelling is insufficient for his song
— he goes to the temple to celebrate the glories of his God before
the assembled multitude. In other instances, the theme of the
delivered is, that God has again verified his name, but in the pre-
sent instance the overflowing joy of the Psalmist leads him to say,
that he had exceeded the hopes he entertained of his name. His
soul is not only filled with joy but with holy strength. He derives
that strength from the Lord himself, which fact renders it suffi-
ciently evident that he means to use it only against those who
rebel against the Lord. " The v:ay of the Lord is strength to the
•upright." (Prov. x. 29.)
V. 4 — 6. We are not surprised that the Psalmist, overcome by
the exuberance of his joy, should call upon the kings (2 Sam. v.
11, 12; viii. 11,) of the earth to become his companions in praise.
These words assume the Psalmist to be a person of distinction,
whose fate would attract the attention of foreign princes: so it is
written of David; "And the fame of David went out into all lands :
and the Lord brought the fear of him upon all nations." (1 Chron.
* Or, "The Lord will bring it to pass for my sake."
PSALM CXXXIX. 475
xiv. 17.) His most illustrious experience, however, was, that the
high exaltation of the Lord does not prevent him from mercifully-
looking down upon those that are humhled to the dust, nor from
detecting the proud afar off.
V. 7, 8. He explains the nature of his hope of Divine
deliverance. He anticipates not, as do the carnally-minded, that
God would secure him against every arrow of adversity, but his
hope is that the Lord, if it be his pleasure, would resuscitate him
from death and lead him out of darkness into light. Confident
that he has to ascribe his deliverance to Divine mercy, which
mercy moreover has its foundation in the unchangeable Being of
God, he commits himself into his hands for the future, and
believes that he shall experience him as the same God for ever.
(Phil. i. 12.)
PSALM CXXXIX.
A MAJESTIC psalm. The sacred bard begins a close self-examina-
tion with the thought of the omniscience of God, (v. 1 — 6,) and
seeks to trace the influence of the omnipresence of God on an evil
conscience, (v. 7 — 12.) He accounts for the naturalness of such
a state of things from man's entire dependence on God, (v. 13 — 18.)
Overcome by the strength and infinity of these thoughts he pauses
— confessing before the omnipotent and omnipresent God, that be
has no fellowship with the despisers of the Lord, and that he strives
to walk in his ways, (v. 19 — 24.)
rpO the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
1 0 Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising,
Thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou winnowest my path and my lying down,
And art acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word in my tongue,
But, lo, 0 Lord, thou knowest it altogether.
5 Thou hast beset me behind and before,
And laid thine hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me ;
It is high, I cannot attain unto it.
7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit ?
Or whither shall I flee from thy presence ?
47& COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
8 If I ascend up to heaven, thou art there :
If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou art there t
9 /f I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea J
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.if
13 For thou hast prepared my reins :
Thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
14 I will praise thee ; for I am fearfully and wonderfully
made :
Marvellous are. thy works ;
And that my soul knoweth right well.
15 My body was not hid from thee,
When I was made in secret.
And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earthr
16 Thine eyes did see my substance,! J^^ being imperfect;
And in thy book all of them were written,
What days they should be fashioned, when ae yet there
was none of them.
17 How precious (or, "difficult") also are thy thoughts unto
me, 0 God !
How great is the sum of them !
18 7f I should count them,
They are more in number than the sand:
When I awake, I am still with thee.
19 Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, 0 God:
Depart from me therefore, ye bloody men.
20 For they speak against thee wickedly,
And thine enemies take thy name in vain,
21 Do not I hate them, 0 Lord, that hate thee ?
And am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee ?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred:
I count them mine enemies.
23 Search me, 0 God, and know my heart:
Try me, and know my thoughts :
* Or, " Darkness darkeneth not before thee."
, f Or, "Darkness is as "the light."
X "My embryo."
PSALM CXXXIX. 477
24 And see If there he any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.
Y. 1 — 6. The thought of the omniscience of God ought ia
every prayer to purify our souls, while that of his omnipresence ought
to sanctify it. These thoughts stand in more prominent relief
when a man like David seeks to fathom his heart before the Lord.
Whatsoever happens to man, when he is awake or asleep, his
thoughts ere they are born, his words ere they are formed on his
tongue, are known to Godj he is round about all his creatures;
man is no more able to withdraw himself from the presence of God,
than he is to visit a place where the heavens are not over him.
This thought suggests to his mind the ommpresoice of God. Who
is there to grasp and fathom that Spirit who thus grasps and
fathoms ours?
V. 7 — 12. When the guilty get conscious of the omniscience
of God, their terrified conscience suggests to them, as it did to
Cain, flight. But flight is vain. Neither height nor depth, neither
the east nor the west, are remote from God. His discerning spirit,
his countenance, and his ri(jht hand, are co-extensive with space,
to seize the guilty fugitive. Ascend to heaven or descend to Sheol,
(Amos ix. 2,) travel on the wings of the dawn, (Mai. iii. 20,)
whose rosy hue is in a moment scattered from the east to- the west,
but all to no purpose. Space can nowhere hide the guilty. He
desires to be covered with darkness; but to the light of the Divine
eye the night is light and shines as the day. Although these
revelations of the Being of God by the Psalmist set forth truths
which are universally acknowledged, yet is it by no means an easy
thing to have our souls so thoroughly imbued with them, and to
express them after the forcible manner of David. Else how could
it happen that thoughts like these, which are sufficient to rouse
the profoundest sleeper, are acknowledged as truths by thousands,
and yet exert so little influence upon their lives?
V. 13 — 15. Who can have a truer and more intimate know-
ledge of man than man's Maker? He knows us better than we
know ourselves; we cannot hide our inner man from him. How
marvellously has he made us ! In the womb he prepared our bodies
and reins, i. e. the seat of the feelings which communicate to us
the voice of God. (See ad. Psalm xvi. 7.) There is at first sight
something strange in the expression of verse 15, that the body was
curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth, but this is only
said by way of comparison. Job furnishes the counterpart to it by
saying, " Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I
return thither." (Job i. 21.) The embryo is asleep in the womb
as are the dead in the grave ; it waits for the light of this world as
478 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
they do for that of the next. This comparison of the womb and
the grave is very beautiful, since it points to the grave as the birth-
place of the resurrection-life.
V. 16. Grod who gave him existence saw from the beginning
his entire development to the end, and only in seeing it before-
hand he gave him existence, retaining as the Creator his power
over the creature. The Psalmist says, "In thy book all the days
were written." This is an expression borrowed from human habits :
men write down their thoughts when they wish to remember things,
(Mai. iii. 16; Ps. Ivi. 9,) or plan a scheme. In applying this lan-
guage to God, he intends thereby to denote the certainty and
unchangeableness of the knowledge of God.
V. 17, 18. The Psalmist once more (cf. v. 6) bursts forth into
devout astonishment; he contrasts himself — so entirely dependent
on God — with the Almighty, and feels his inability of continuing
the thought of the designs of God respecting man any further.
He sinks into a profound meditation, but on coming to himself,*
finds that he has by no means finished thinking.
V. 19 — 22. He pauses and completely overwhelmed with feel-
ings of adoration towards so marvellous a God, indignantly sepa-
rates himself /rom the felloiosTiip of those who sin against him.f
He is conscious that love to God is sincere in proportion to our
hating those who have fallen to so low a state that they are actually
capable of hating God. This passage explains the hatred of the
Psalmists towards their enemies : they are their enemies because
they are the enemies of God.
V. 23, 24. Looking up to the Omniscient, he finishes his self-
examination. He possesses the consciousness of his ability to stand
before the Lord, and knows that the path which deviates from
God's is the path of misery. (Ps. xxxii. 10; xxxiv. 22; xvi. 4.)
He feels, however, that the grace of God alone can keep him in his
happy frame of mind, and sustain him in his hatred of everything
that is opposed to God, and therefore superadds to his confession
the prayer that the Lord would graciously keep him in the narrow
way which is eternal; while it is said of the way of the ungodly
that it shall perish. (Ps. i. 6.)
* If the interpretation of Geier and most commentators be preferred,
viz. — " Meditantem somnus obruit, evigilantem mox tui meditatio subit,"
cf. Ps. Ixiii. 7.
f " The Psalmist is so overcome by the infinite glory of the state of mind
to which he has risen, and with which he would not part on any considera-
tion, that his overflowing and melting heart is at that moment only capable
of regarding opposition from without with abhorrence." — Ewald.
PSALM CXL. 479
PSALM CXL.
A PSALM of David, similar in matter to those which he composed
during the persecution of Saul. Cf. Psalms xxxv. hv. Ivi. Ivu. Ixiv.
1 rpo the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
2 Deliver me, 0 Lord, from the evil man:
Preserve me from the violent man ;
3 Which imagine mischiefs in their heart;
Continually are they gathered together /or war.
4 They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent;
Adders' poison is under their lips. Selah. ^
5 Keep me, 0 Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
Preserve me from the violent man ;
Who have purposed to overthrow my goings;
6 The proud have hid a snare from me, and cords ;
They have spread a net by the wayside ;
They have set gins for me. Selah.
7 But I say unto the Lord, "Thou art my God:
Hear the voice of my supplications, 0 Lord.
8 0 God the Lord, the strength of my salvation.
Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.
9 Grant not, 0 Lord, the desires of the wicked:
Further not his wicked device ;
Lest they exalt themselves. Selah.
10 On the head of those that compass me about,
Let the mischief of their own lips fall.
11 Let burning coals fall upon them :
Let them be cast into the fire ;
Into deep pits, that they rise not up again.
12 An evil speaker shall not be established in the earth:
Evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow Mm.
13 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the
afflicted.
And the right of the poor.
14 Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name :
The upright shall dwell in thy presence.
480 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
PSALM CXLI.
This psalm contains several passages the interpretation of whicli
is perhaps more doubtful than those of any other psalm, and accord-
ingly, contrary views as to its contents are likely to arise. Our
translation, which is close to the original, points immediately to
the memorable escape which David granted to Saul in the cave at
Engedi. (1 Sam. xxiv.) It is singular enough that this psalm,
like David's earlier ones, has the peculiarity of the alternation in
the singular and plural numbers. (See ad. Ps. xi.) It should not
be overlooked that Psalam cxlii. falls into the same period.
David has escaped from peril of life, and so magnanimously con-
quered the great temptation of his heart to requite evil with evil,
that even Saul could not withhold his admiration, (1 Sam. xxiv.
18 — 20 j) but he is still exposed to danger as before, nor knows
himself secure against temptation; he lifts therefore his hands in
prayer, assuring himself of the gratefulness of his prayer to God,
(v. 1, 2.) Conscious of his inclination to requite evil with evil,
he prays for strength to persevere in innocence in word and deed,
(v. 3, 4.) He states as a proof of his sincerity, that he regards the
sufferings to which he is exposed as the righteous visitations of
God, and has on that account no ill feeling towards his enemy,
(v. 5, 6.) He now courageously implores speedy deliverance from
the fierce persecution, (v. 7 — 10.)
A
PSALM of David.
1 Lord, I cry unto thee : make haste unto me :
Give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee.
2 Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense ;
And the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a watch, 0 Lord, before my mouth;
Keep the door of my lips.
4 Incline not my heart to ani/ evil thing,
To practise wicked works with men that work iniquity :
And let me not eat of their dainties.
5 Let the righteous smite me, — it shall he a kindness :
And let Him reprove me, — it shall he an excellent oil,
which shall not break my head :
For yet my prayer also shall he in their evil doings.*
* /. e. Though they continue in evil doings, "I -will pray." The linguistic
justification of this rendering is based on Zech. viii. 20; Prov. xxiv. 27. —
Uwald, I 619.
PSALM CXLI. 481
6 When their judges* were set free in rocky places,
They heard my words ; for they were sweet.
7 Our bones are scattered at the mouth of Sheol,
As when one plougheth the land and draweth furrows in it.
8 But mine eyes are unto thee, 0 God the Lord :
In thee is my trust ; leave not my soul destitute.
9 Keep me from the snares which they have laid for me,
And the gins of the workers of iniquity.
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
Whilst that I withal escape. f
V. 1, 2. David intimates by these expressions, that sacrifices,
especially those of incense, with their fragrant odours, were symbol-
ical prayers offered to the Lord. He compares, (Exod. xxx. 7;
1 Kings xviii. 29; 2 Kings xvi. 15; Mai. i. 11,) therefore, his
prayer to the burning of incense, and to the meat-offering. The
former was offered every morning and evening, the latter in the
evening only. He hopes that it might be as grateful to God as
fragrant incense.
F. 3, 4. Those who know the manly heart of the heroic David
will readily understand the great temptation to which he was exposed,
of failing in his duty towards a persecutor such as Saul, if not by
active exertions, at least by unguarded language : but he conquered
his stout heart. He was one of those heroes of whom Solomon
says, "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he
that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city." (Prov. xvi. 32.)
This demands no less our admiration than his humble self-knowledge,
which prompts him to pray for further grace from heaven, to be
kept from unguarded speech, and from sinking to the level of the
wicked.
V. 5, 6. David humbly regards his troubles as Divine correctives,
although they were occasioned by his enemies. (Cf. ad. Ps. xxxviii.
2 — 6.) In the disastrous day of his exit from Jerusalem, he could
reply to the deriding language of Shimei, "Let him curse, because
the Lord hath said unto him, curse David." (2 Sam. xvi. 11.)
The verses under consideration testify no less of his faith in the
providence of God than of his deep sense of guilt, which enabled
him to discern in all his visitations the paternal hand of love. (Heb.
xii. 7.) The Righteous of verse 5, is God himself. J The reason
* It militates against the rendering of Lutlier, "They were thrown" over
at or into the clefts of the rocks (^Ewald, 2d. edit.,) which has been adopted
by modern interpreters, that the most natural rendering of I'l'i^ would be
"from the rock."
f Or, "Let the wicked fall into their own nets together, whilst I escape."
X This view, which was already propounded by so early a writer as Amy-
raldus, has recently, and, as it seems, independently, been advocated by
41
482 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
of David's making this confession is, that there is nothing more
calculated to quench personal vindictiveness towards our enemies,
than to regard them as instruments in the hands of God. David
adopted that course with reference to the abuses of Shimei, and
was able to persevere in prayer under the abuse of Saul. (Ps.
XXXV. 13 ; cix. 4.) It was this which enabled him to display that
magnanimous act to which he refers in verse 6; he refers not only
to the act, but also to his words which accompanied it. They are
preserved 1 Sam. xxiv. 12 — 16, and bear so powerful an impress
of passionless tranquillity that even Saul exclaimed, " Thou art
more righteous than I!"
V. 7 — 10. He now bewails his misery and prays for deliverance.
In Psalm xxii. 15, he said that his bones were sundered. In the
same manner he says in this place of himself and his associates,
that their bodies are torn as ploughed and furrowed land, that their
bones are scattered and their life brought^ to the borders of death.
Gins and snares are repeatedly set for them. But the tried servant
of God has sufficiently experienced that his God "taketh the wise
in their own craftiness: and the counsel of the froward is carried
headlong." (Job v. 13.) The last clause of his prayer is bright-
ened hy hope.
PSALM CXLII.
The occasion of this psalm of complaint has been stated ad. Psalm Ivii.
1 AN Instruction of David ; a Prayer when he was in
iX the cave.
2 I cried unto the Lord with my voice ;
With my voice unto the Lord did I make my supplication.
3 I poured out my complaint before him ;
I showed before him my trouble.
4 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,
Then thou knewest my path.
In the way wherein I walked
Have they privily laid a snare for me.
5 I look on my right hand, and see,
But there is no man that will know me.
Refuge faileth me ;
No man careth for my soul.
Maurer ■with reference to Isaiah xxiv. 16. The absence of the article
before ft'^lS ^^ ^^ objection in a poetical composition. If "the righteous"
be regarded as a man, of. Prov. xrvii. 6; Eccl. vii. 6.
PgALM CXLIir. ' 48t
6 I cried unto thee, 0 Lord :
I said, thou art my refuge
And my portion in the land of the living.
7 Attend unto my cry ; for I am brought very low :
Deliver me from my persecutors;
For they are stronger than I.
8 Bring my soul out of prison,
That I may praise thy name :
The righteous shall compass me about,
When thou shalt deal bountifully with me.
F. 2, 3. Peril so evident and imminent as that in which we
find David, is sufficient to check the courage and destroy the faith
of many an experienced Christian; to such an extent that he shall
be at a loss to ease himself of his grief by prayer. But David
enjoys perfect composure of mind, and unbosoms his cares before
the Lord.
Y. 4 — 6. He contrasts his limited vision with the unlimited
vision of Grod, who not only sees the path when it is lost to man,
(Ps. i. 6,) but knows a way of escape from the midst of death. TPs.
Ixviii. 21.) This thought composes his soul in circumstances which,
were he to be guided by his own observations, would certainly
make him fall a prey to despondency, for he sees himself com-
pletely surrounded by nets and snares. He looks in vain to his
right for a human defender. (<S'ee ad. Ps. cxxi. 5.) There were,
indeed, his attendant warriors, but even if they had been courage-
ous and powerful enough to try their strength against that of Saul,
it was not David's intention to settle his contest with the king in a
sanguinary manner. He clings entirely to the Lord, whom he
calls his refuge and his very own portion in the land of the living,
i. e. on earth.
V. 7, 8. Almost overwhelmed by his desperate position, he
cries anew for help. Yet even in extreme peril like this, David
can remember that the faith of the small band of believers is allied
to his destiny. He prays, therefore, for his own deliverance, also
for their sakes, and with a view to an increase of their faith.
PSALM CXLIIL
The Psalmist struggles in a state of deep depression previous to
ofi"eriug his prayer to attain the mastery over the consciousness of
his guilt, which rises like a separating wall between God and him-
484 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
self, (v. 1 — 3,) but derives strength from remembering tbe former
manifestation of Divine mercy, (v. 4 — 6.) He prays now for deliv-
erance, (v. 7 — 9,) and for grace to be preserved from transgres-
sions, to wbicli frail man is so liable in great trouble, (v. 10 — 12.)
A
PSALM of David.
1 Hear my prayer, 0 Lord,
Give ear to my supplications:
In thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.
2 And enter not into judgment with thy servant :
For in thy sight shall no man living be justified.
3 For the enemy hath persecuted my soul ;
He hath smitten my life down to the ground;
He hath made me to dwell in darkness,
As those that have long been dead.
4 Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me;
My heart within me is desolate.
5 I remember the days of old ;
I meditate on all thy works ;
I muse on the work of thy hands.
6 I stretch forth my hands unto thee :
My soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.
7 Hear me speedily, 0 Lord:
My spirit faileth :
Hide not thy face from me,
Lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit.
8 Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning ;
For in thee do I trust:
Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk :
For I lift up my soul unto thee.*
9 Deliver me, 0 Lord, from mine enemies:
I flee unto thee to hide me.
10 Teach me to do thy will;
For thou art my God :
Thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness, f
11 Quicken me 0 Lord, for thy name's sake :
For thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble,
12 And of thy mercy cut ofi" mine enemies.
And destroy all them that afflict my soul:
For I am thy servant.
* Tholuck renders, "For I disclose my soul to thee."
f /. e. "Uprightness," i. e. "straight, even."
PSALM CXLIII. 485
V. 1 — 3. The faithfulness of God in the fulfilment of his pro-
mises and his righteousness (which term in the Old Testament
includes also his mercy, see ad. Psalm v. 9,) are the two Divine
attributes on the exercise of which the granting of our prayers
depends. Who would expect it from that righteousness which
rewards man according to his deserts? since even those who call
themselves the servants of Grod (v. 12) are at best unprofitahh ser-
vants? David knows this, and strives from the outset for the
attainment of childlike confidence and the consciousness of pardon,
(Psalm Ixv. 4;) for all our righteousness is like a filthy rag when
looked at in the light of Divine purity. (Isaiah Ixiv. 6.) The
apostle confirms the same truth. (Rom. iii. 20.) So Job confessed,
"I know it so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?
If he will contend with him, he cannot answer him one of a thou-
sand." (Job ix. 2, 3.)
V. 4 — 6. We know that the heart of David was not stoically
unfeeling in its struggles; he was a man, and had human passions.
He was not ashamed to confess his depression. He did not give
way to it, however, without resistance, and anxiously looked for
the means to attain to a mastery over himself, and grasped that glo-
rious weapon of defence which is furnished by the meditation of the
former works of God in the guidance and deliverance of his people.
(Ps. xxii. 4, 5.) To this means he joined prayer, and he did pray
indeed. His soul was looking out for God, as land parched and.
burst by the drought of summer waits as it were with, open mouth
for the blessing of rain.
V. 7 — 9- He prays like one who is experienced and tried in
the school of prayer. By asking God to show him the way where-
in he should walk, he intimates his conviction, that no human
power could point out the way of escape out of the net of affliction,
wherein he lies a captive. On that account he has not put his
trust in man. For why should he confide in those, who if willing,
have not the ability to deliver? The useless expression of our
grief to man breaks the strength of the soul. David trusts only in
his God, and to him he discloses his grief.
F. 10 — 12. Heavy affliction blinds our eyes, and renders us
liable to have recourse to wrong means, and to stumble, and espe-
cially to forfeit Divine favour by our impatient murmurings. The
Psalmist prays for the guidance of the good Sjnrit (Neh. ix. 20)
of God along with outward assistance. In the measure as we lose
the sense of our strength in seasons of adversity, we derive com-
fort from the belief that there is a power without and above us,
which will come to the aid of those who themselves are poor and
helpless. (2 Cor. xii. 9.) The Psalmist's soul is deeply humbled
and prostrated; he prays for deliverance for God's mercy and
righteousness' (see ad. Psalm v. 9) sake, and flees in his utter help-
41*
486 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
lessness to the Lord his refuge — like a servant who has no means
of defence of his own, but is obliged to look to his master for
weapon and protection. (Psalm cxvi. 16.)
PSALM CXLIV.
This psalm is called a psalm of David, because it consists for the
most part of Davidic sentences, (verses 1, 2, 3. 5, 6, 7. 9.) Also
verses 12 — 15 are probably derived from some composition of
David.* The last mentioned verses suggest the view that this
psalm was composed for the comfort of the people, and that the
people are speaking in it. The manner in which the name of
David is mentioned in verse 10, shows that the entire authorship
does not belong to him.
The Psalmist having trustfully praised the Lord as his rock,
(v. 1, 2,) points to the indigence of helpless man, (v. 3, 4,) and
prays for deliverance, (v. 5 — 8.) He repeats his prayer, (v. 9 — 11,)
and implores the return of the prosperity which was formerly
enjoyed by the kingdom of David, (v. 12 — 14,) and concludes with
a blessing on the people, (v. 15.)
A
PSALM of D^Yid.
1 Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
Which teacheth my hands to war,
And my fingers to fight :
2 My goodness, and my fortress;
My high tower, and my deliverer;
My shield, and he in whom I trust;
Who subdueth my people under me.
3 Lord, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him !
Or the son of man, that thou makest account of him !
4 Man is like to nothing ;
His days are as a shadow that passeth away.
5 Bow thy heavens, 0 Lord, and come down :
Touch the mountains, and they shall smoke.
6 Cast forth lightning, and scatter them:
Shoot out thine arrows, and destroy them.
* This appears from the crowded character of the language and the stiff
connection with "j^Jii verse 12.
' PSALM CXLV. 487
7 Send thine hand from above ;
Rid me, and deliver me out of great waters,
From tiie hand of strange children ;
8 Whose mouth speaketh vanity,
And their right hand is a right hand of falsehood.*
9 I will sing a new song unto thee, 0 God :
Upon a psaltry and an instrument of ten strings will I
sing praises unto thee.
10 It is he that giveth victory unto kings :
Who delivereth David his servant from the hurtful sword.
11 Rid me, and deliver me from the hand of strange children,
Whose mouth speaketh vanity.
And their right hand is a right hand of falsehood :
12 That our sons ma^/ be as plants
Grown up in their youth ;
That our daughters mai/ be as corner columns,
Cut like those of palaces ;
13 That our garners mai/ be full,
Affording all manner of store:
That our sheep may bring forth thousands
And ten thousands in our pastures.
14 That our oxen may be strong to labour:
That there be no breaking in, nor going out;t
That the7'e be no complaining in our streets.
15 Happy is that people, that is in such a case :
Yea, happy is that people, whose God is the Lord.
PSALM CXLV.
An easy-flowing song of praise. It is the eflPusion of a grateful
heart. Verses 1 — 7 denote the strong impulse of the Psalmist to
engage in the praise of the Lord. Verses 8 — 13 praise the mercy
and goodness as well as the glory of the government of God,
(v. 14 — 20,) his mercy to the afflicted and his real children, and
to a certain extent to every living thing. Verse 21 reverts to the
thought of verses 1, 2. The Jews remark on this psalm, which is
indeed the "Our Father" of every grateful heart, <'that he is a
* Tholuck renders, "And tbeir oaths are perjuries."
f Tholuck renders, "That our princes may be established, that there be
no breaking in of war, nor going out to war, that there be no shouting in
our streets." •
488 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
son of the world to come, who is able to pray this psalm three times
a day from his heart/'
A PSALMoiVraiiseoi David.
1 1 will extol thee, my God, 0 King ;
And I will bless thy name for ever and ever.
2 Every day will I bless thee ;
And I will praise thy name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised ;
And his greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall praise thy works to another,
And shall declare thy mighty acts.
5 I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty.
And of thy wondrous works.
6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts :
And I will declare thy greatness.
7 They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great
goodness,
And shall sing of thy righteousness.
8 The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion ;
Slow to anger, and of great mercy.
9 The Lord is good to all :
And his tender mercies are ovet all his works.
10 All thy works shall praise thee, 0 Lord ;
And thy saints shall bless thee.
11 They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom,
And talk of thy power ;
12 To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts,
And the glorious majesty of his kingdom.
13 Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And thy dominion endureth throughout all generations.
14 The Lord upholdeth all that fall.
And raised up all those that be bowed down.
15 The eyes of all wait upon thee ;
And thou givest them their meat in due season.
16 Thou openest thine hand.
And fillest every living thing with mercy,
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways.
And holy in all his works.
18 The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him,
To all that call upon him in truth.
PSALM CXLV. 489
19 He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him :
He also will hear their cry and will save them;
20 The Lord preserveth all them that love him :
But all the wicked will he destroy.
21 My mouth shall speak the praise of the LoKD :
And let all flesh bless his holy name for ever and ever.
F. 1, 2. The Psalmist, profoundly conscious that the Lord is
infinitely worthy to receive the praise of men, states his resolution
to praise and extol him, not in a transient manner only, but every
day of his life.
V. 3, 4. Human virtue and greatness have their limits, where
spots appear and poverty begins; but the greatness of God is
unsearchable and inexpressible. Human glory has its limits even
in time (i. e. the present life,) and frequently reaches not to the
succeeding generation, but the glory of God endures throughout all
generations.
F. 5 — 7. The Psalmist resolves to make the majesty of God
and his wondrous works which outreach the stretch of human
thought, the themes of his songs of praise. He contemplates
thereby not only his own gratification (for peace is the blessed con-
sequence of praise,) but that of others, and determines to invite
them that they might all join in his praise.
F. 8, 9. It is his desire to testify of the majesty of God, but
speaks of his grace, long suffering, and mercy. (Exod. xxxiv. 6.)
The reason is that these are the attributes of God which enable
men to make his majesty the object of their praise. Dismantling
the majesty of God of its terrors, they render it the object of our
rejoicings. The mystery of his goodness can only be revealed to
rational beings, i. e. to men, and among these only to such whose
eyes are opened, i. e. to the pious. (^See ad. Psalm xxxiii. 1.) But
his goodness is everywhere manifest, and the spacious folds of his
mantle of mercy furnish a hiding-place to every living creature.
F. 10 — 12. The minds of the pious perceive the traces of good-
ness which the Almighty has stamped on all his creatures; they,
therefore, may say, "All thy works shall praise thee, 0 Lord."
Since, however, the mouths of the pious alone can give an audible
expression to that praise, the Psalmist immediately adds, that it
belongs to the saints of God to testify of his glory among the chil-
dren of men. The kingdom of God will be the last on earth, and
in this respect, at least, maintain its superiority over the kingdoms
of this world, even on the supposition that its glory did not excel
in other respects. All the kingdoms of this world are only strug-
gling to become like that perfect empire, and shall ultimately be
dissolved and perfected in it.
F. 13 — 16. The Psalmist having praised goodness and mercy
490 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
as the noblest qualities of the majesty of God, now notices that it
is chiefly manifested in the condescension of Grod to the condition
of the afflicted and the humble. This thought expands the range
of his vision; he is constrained to admire the condescension of the
majestic Ruler, which condescension in his government of the
world extends to the meanest and most insignificant of his crea-
tures. Men call it natural instinct which prompts all creatures to
seek their food, and praise nature for having provided for the
several necessities of all. The eye of the Psalmist, however, sees
the living God engaged in daily spreading the table for every
living creature. As the eyes of children look up to the hands of
their parents, so the eyes of every creature look up to the stretched-
out hand of God, which has for thousands of years daily distributed
innumerable gifts, provided to all their meat in due season, (Ps.
civ. 27,) and never grown empty. Men with unmoved hearts speak
of all these things as of a work of natural necessity, but the Psalmist
sees mercy in them, and this fills his soul with adoration.
V. 17 — 20. The earth and everything on it fell within the range
of David's vision when he spoke of the goodness of God. Nor did
he overlook the fact, that as those that fear the Lord have eyes for
beholding his goodness, so do they alone possess open mouths for
getting perfectly satisfied with his goodness. (Ps. Ixxxi. 11.)
Though the Lord makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good,
and sends his rain on the just and on the unjust, so that none goes
away with empty hands, yet what are the blessings of sunshine and
rain when compared with the glorious blessings which the Lord
bestows upon them that fear him? The Church of his saints is the
theatre where the marvellous wisdom and love of God are most
gloriously revealed. Hence the apostle declares that by these
revelations ** the manifold wisdom of God becomes known unto the
principalities and powers in heavenly places." (Eph. iii. 10.) His
mercies are conditional. He reveals himself to those only that call
upon him, not only with their lips but with their hearts in sincerity.
He graots only "the desires of them that fear him," for they only
ask according to his will, (1 John v. 14,) and subjecting their will
to his, pray, " Thy will be done." He saves and preserves them,
for though they must often succumb on earth, he will at least
"destroy the wicked," (see ad. Ps. civ. 35,) but "deliver them from
every evil work, and preserve them unto his heavenly kingdom,"
(2 Tim. iv. 18,) yea, "their light affliction, which is but for a
moment, worketh for them a far more exceeding and eternal weight
of glory." (2 Cor. iv. 17.)
F. 21. The Psalmist will not sufier his mouth to be silent with
the praise of so glorious a God, but woe, if not every man will join
in that praise for ever and ever !
PSALM CXLVII. 491
PSALM CXLVI.
A TEMPLE psalm. The people resolve not to put their trust in
men, however potent they may be, (v. 1 — 5.) They praise the
sceptre of righteousness and mercy with which God, who has created
all things, governs the world, and has established his eternal throne
in Zion, the kingdom of God, (v. 6 — 10.)
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
JT Praise the Lord, 0 my soul.
2 While I live will I praise the Lord:
I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.
3 Put not your trust in princes,
They are the sons of men, in whom there is no help.
4 His breath goeth away, he returneth to his earth ;
In that very day his thoughts perish.
5 Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help,
Whose hope is in the Lord his God :
6 Which made heaven, and earth,
The sea, and all that therein is :
Which keepeth truth (faithfulness) for ever :
7 Which executeth judgment for the oppressed :
Which giveth food to the hungry.
The Lord looseth 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 preserveth the strangers;
He relieveth the fatherless and widow:
But the way of the wicked he turneth upside down.
10 The Lord shall reign for ever,
Even thy God, 0 Zion, unto all generations.
Praise ye the Lord.
PSALM CXLVII.
A TEMPLE psalm of the people, composed soon after their return
from the captivity, when Jerusalem rose once more from the dust,
(V. 2. 13, 14.)
The Psalmist praises in glowing and sweet strains the mercy of
492 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
Grod, which is revealed to the humiliated nation and his humble
worshippers as the mercy of the Almighty, (v. 1 — 6.) He cele-
brates the paternal love of God to the most helpless of his creatures,
and his peculiar delight in the meek, (v. 7 — 11.) He comforts
the rebuilding city with the assurance of Divine aid, praises the
universal traces of God's omnipotence in nature, and glories in the
thought that the Almighty King has favoured Israel above all the
nations of the earth, (v. 12 — 20.)
1 pHAISE ye the Lord :
JL For it is good to sing praises unto our God;*
For it is pleasant; such praise is comely.
2 The Lord doth build up Jerusalem :
He gathered together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He healeth the broken in heart,
And bindeth up their griefs.
4 He telleth the number of the stars ;
He calleth them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord, and of great power :
His understanding is infinite.
6 The Lord lifteth up the meek :
He casteth the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving ;
Sing praise upon the harp unto our God :
8 Who covereth the heaven with clouds,
Who prepareth rain for the earth,
Who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains.
9 He giveth to the beast his food,
And to the young ravens which cry.
10 He delighteth not in the strength of the horse:
He taketh not pleasure in the bones of a man.
11 The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him,
In those that hope in his mercy.
12 Praise the Lord, 0 Jerusalem ;
Praise thy God, 0 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 filleth thee with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth :
His word runneth very swiftly.
* Or, "For it is a preciouf? thing."
PSALM CXLVII. 493
16 He givetli snow like -wool :
He scattereth the hoarfrost like ashes.
17 He casteth forth his ice (hail) like morsels:
Who can stand before his cold ? ^
18 He sendeth out his word, and melteth them :
He causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.
19 He showeth his word unto Jacob,
His statutes and his judgments unto Israel.
20 He hath not dealt so with any nation:
And as for Azs judgments, they have not known them.
Praise ye the Lord.
F. 1 — 6. The Psalmist animates himself and others to engage
in the praise of the Lord, by the consideration that that exercise
is no less beneficial to the heart than it is a comely duty. He
expresses his gratitude for the manifest mercies of God, as dis-
played in the return of the scattered nation of broken-hearted
Israel to their native borders, in the rebuilding of Jerusalem, and
the binding up of the wounds of the nation. He only who telleth
the infinite host of the stars and calleth them all by their names
could have performed such mighty works. The Lord delights
especially in uplifting the low and debasing the high.
V. 7 — 11. He now praises in lofty strains the condescending
goodness of God, who in a wondrous manner prepares the rain in
the clouds, so that even the high mountains must yield food to the
beasts; who with paternal solicitude is mindful of the young ravens,
which, deserted by their own parents,* cry to the Lord of heaven
as to their only helper. He chiefly delights in those who, unable
to boast of their own strength, /ear him and hope in his mercy.
V. 12 — 20. The Psalmist now addresses Zion, which is privi-
leged to call this God, her God. He bids the inhabitants to look
hopefully upon the new but weak beginnings in their land, pro-
mising strength to the city, blessings to her inhabitants, peace and
prosperity to the land within its borders. He seeks to raise their
confidence by again pointing to the irresistible strength of Divine
Omnipotence. The words of God become his executing servants
on earth. He scatters snow like woolly fleeces, the hoarfrost like
ashes, and hail like morsels : he contracts the air into intolerable
frost: he commands his wind to blow and all is melted. All these
things are great blessings of his goodness and Omnipotence: but
the greatest blessing of Israel is that they have a God who in his
condescending love has given them a clear revelation of his -will,
so that they need no longer ask, Who shall go up to heaven, who
* This has given rise to the German idiom of "raven father" and "raven
mother," as descriptive of unnatural or cruel parents.
42
494 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
shall go over the sea and bring unto us the word of God? The
word is now nigh unto them, in their mouths and in their hearts,
that they may do it. (Deut. xxx. 12 — 14.)
PSALM CXLVIII.
Psalms exlviii. and el. seem to be placed at the conclusion of the
Psalter, as if it were intended that their perpetually recurring,
"Praise ye," should form a many- voiced echo of the praise which
fills every preceding psalm. Everything is invited to praise :
nothing is too high, nothing too low. The Psalmist begins (v. 1)
with the loftiest heights, descends (v. 7) to the lowest depths,
addresses the elements and kingdoms of nature, reascends to man,
addressing every rank and order of society, and finally turns to that
people which is the priesthood among men, as man is the priest
among the creatures on earth. The song of the youths in the fiery
furnace seems to be an echo of this psalm.
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
X Praise ye the Lord from the heavens :
Praise him in the heights.
2 Praise ye him, all his angels:
Praise ye him, all his hosts.
3 Praise ye him, sun and moon :
Praise him, all ye stars of light.
4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens,
And ye waters that he above the heavens.
5 Let them praise the name of the Lord :
For he commanded — and they were created.
6 He hath also stablished them for ever and ever :
He hath made a decree which they shall not pass.
7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
Ye dragons,* and all deeps :
8 Fire, and hail ; snow, and vapours ;
Stormy wind fulfilling his word :
9 Mountains, and all hills:
Fruitful trees, and all cedars:
10 Beasts, and all cattle ;
Creeping things, and winged birds :
* Or, "Ye sea-monsters."
PSALM CXLIX. 495
11 Kings of the earth, and all people ;
Princes, and all judges of the earth :
12 Both 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 heaven.
14 He also exalteth the horn of his people,
The praise of all his saints ;
^ven of the children of Israel, a people near unto him.
Priaise ye the Lord.
F. 1 — 6. The Psalmist begins with the heavens above : with
the twofold hosts of the Lord, the armies of his angels and the
shining planets and stars without number. They are placed io
different regions of the heavens (for Grod is enthroned high above
the lower heavens, Psalm civ. 3,) and he therefore addresses all the
heavens, and then the clouds which move along the skies. It has
been stated already (Ps. exiv. 10) how these appeals to inanimate
creation are to be understood. Though every creature is full of the
praise of God, yet it belongs to man alone to give an audible expres-
sion to their praise. The Psalmist indicates that the unchangeable
laws and decrees according to which those countless worlds pursue
their course, denote the object of their praises.
V. 7 — 14. Wisdom and Omnipotence, worthy to be praised,
are also scattered over the earth, and the depths of the sea abound
with them. The phenomena of nature are his messengers: the
animal and vegetable kingdoms down to their lowest stages bear
the impress of the goodness and Omnipotence of Grod, and are
therefore a song of praise on his glorious attributes. But man ia
chiefly invited to praise the Lord. It devolves upon him, as the
priest of nature, above every other creature : every rank, every age,
and every generation, have abundant cause for engaging in this
praise. As man is peculiarly blessed as the race of priests in the
midst of inanimate creation, so is Israel peculiarly blessed as the
race of priests among men.
PSALM CXLIX.
While Psalms cxlviii. and cl. invite all beings to praise. Psalms
cxlvii. and cxlix. address the newly established community at Jeru-
salem. They are invited to praise the Lord for his past goodness
496 COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS.
towards them, (v. 1 — 5,) and new victories are promised to them,
(v. 6—9.)
1 pRAISE ye the Lord.
A. Sing unto the Lord a new song,
And his praise in the congregation of saints.
2 Let Israel rejoice in him that made him:
Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
3 Let them praise his name in the dance :
Let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and harp.
4 For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people :
He will beautify the meek with salvation.*
5 Let the saints be joyful in glory:
Let them sing aloud upon their beds.
6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,t
And a two-edged sword in their hand :
7 To execute vengeance upon the heathen.
And punishments upon the people;
8 To bind their kings with chains.
And their nobles with fetters of iron ;
9 To execute upon them the judgment written :
This honour have all his saints.
Praise ye the Lord.
V. 1 — 5. The Psalmist invites the people to recommence the
praise of the Lord as it were with new courage and a new tongue.
(Psalms xl. 4; Ixxxix. 2.) All men belong to God, for he made
them : but Israel is doubly his, and in a twofold sense the work of
his hands, (^^ee ad. Psalm xcv. 6.) Israel therefore shall sing
praises to him, which accompanied by the manifold sound of festive
instruments are to sink the more deeply into their hearts. He
delivered his people from great misery : let all that belong to that
people sing his praises in the festive assemblies, as well as on their
lonely beds.
V. 6 — 9. Their mouth was full of praise on account of their
past deliverance: but hostile nations rose up once more against
them. (Neh. iv. 7.) They now took comfort from the promises
of the prophets, (Isaiah xlii. 10 — 13,) and indulged in the hope
that they should ultimately triumph over all their adversaries, and
treat them as the idolatrous nations of Canaan were treated by the
command of God. (Cf. Neh. xiii. 1 — 3.) These promises have a
spiritual meaning, (cf ad. Psalms ii. and ex.) so Zechariah pre-
* Or, "He gloriously helpeth the wretched."
f Or, "Let their mouth exalt the Lord."
PSALM CL. 497
diets that there shall be no more the Canaanites in the house of
the Lord of hosts, (Zech. xiv. 21;) but the less spiritually inclined
people thought more of victories to be achieved with drawn swords
in campaigns, such as the crusaders undertook against the oppres-
sors ot the holy land: "With psalms in their mouths, but the
whetted sword in their hands."
PSALM CL.
This psalm, like Psalm cxlviii. opens with an invitation of praise
addressed to the hosts of spirits in the heavens, depicts the jubi-
lant joy of the many instruments in the sanctuary, and ends with
the all-embracing invitations into which the entire Psalter resolves
itself — " Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. Hal-
lelujah."
1 p RAISE ye the Lord.
_L Praise God in his sanctuary :
Praise him in the firmament of his power.
2 Praise him in his mighty acts :
Praise him according to his excellent greatness.
3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet :
Praise him with the psaltery and harp.
4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance :
Praise him with stringed instruments and organs.
5 Praise him with the loud cymbals:
Praise him with the high sounding cymbals.
6 Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.
Praise ye the Lord.
THE END.
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