,^'i OF PRIIVCfJg;^
s^fOtOGICAL StVi^^
36
V,
rn
THE
PSALMS
TRANSLATED AND EXPLAINED
BY
J. A. ALEXANDER
PROFESSOR IN THE THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY AT PRINCETON
VOLUME I
NEW YORK BAKER AND SCRIBNER 145 NASSAU STREET
1850
F.ntered according to Act of Congress, in tho j-ear 1850, by
JOSEPH ADDISON ALEX AND KR,
In the Cleric's Office of tlic United States District Conrt for the District of
New Jersey.
C . W . BENEDICT, Stereotyper
'iOl William st.
PREFACE.
The present publication owes its origin to Hengstenberg's Commentary on the Psahns. The original design was to make that work, by abridgment and other unessential changes, more acceptable and useful to the English reader than it could be in the form of an exact translation. It was soon found, however, that by far the most important part of such a book would be a literal version of the He- brew text, and that this was precisely what could not be obtained at second hand, by the awkward and unsatisfying process of translating a translation, but must be derived directly from an independent scrutiny of the original. In attempting this, the deviations from Hengstenberg, con- tinually in form and not unfrequently in substance, ren- dered it wholly inexpedient and improper to make him responsible for what was really a new translation. The only course remaining therefore was to make this general acknowledgment, that his work is the basis of the one now offered to the public, and that more has been directly drawn from that source than from all others put together. The present writer has so freely availed himself of Heng- stenberg's translations, exegetical suggestions, and illus- trative citations, in preparing his own version and expla-
iv PREFACE.
natory comments, that nothing could have led him to forego the advantage of inserting that distinguished name upon his title-page, except a natural unwillingness to make it answerable for the good or evil which is really his own. At the same time, he considers it by no means the least merit of the book, that it presents, in a smaller com- pass and a more familiar dress, the most valuable results of so masterly an exposition.
In justice to his work and to himself, the author wishes it to be distinctly understood, that he has aimed exclu- sively at explanation, the discovery and statement of the meaning. To this he has confined himself for several reasons ; first, because a wider plan would have required a larger book than was consistent with his general pur- pose ; then, because this is really the point in which assistance is most needed by the readers of the Psalter ; and lastly, because he had especially in view the wants of ministers, who are better able than himself to erect a doctrinal, devotional, or practical superstructure on the exegetical basis which he has endeavoured here to furnish. It follows of course, that the book is not designed to su- persede the admirable works in common use, except so fai as it may be found to correct their occasional errors of translation or verbal exposition.
It may be thought that in order to accomplish this de- sign, the author might have satisfied himself with a bare translation. But experience has more and more convinced him, that the meaning of an author cannot be fully given in another language by the use of exact equi- valents, which are in fact so few, that the deficiency can only be supplied by the addition of synonymous expressions,
PREFACE. Y
or by explanatory paraphrase, or by exegetical remark directly added to the text, or by the use of all these means together. The idea which he has endeavoured here to realize is that of an amplified translation. In the version properly so called, he has endeavoured to preserve, not only the strength but the peculiar form of the original, which is often lost in the English Bible, by substituting literal for figurative and general for specific terms, as well as by a needless deviation from the order of the words in Hebrevv^, upon which the emphasis, if not the sense, is frequently dependent, and which has here been carefully restored wherever the difference of idiom would suffer it, and sometimes, it may possibly be thought, without regard to it. Another gratuitous departure from the form of the original, which has been perhaps too scrupulously shunned, but not, it is believed, without advantage to the general character of the translation, arises from the habit of con- founding the tenses, or merging the future and the past in a jejune and inexpressive present. The instances where this rule has been pushed to a rigorous extreme may be readily detected, but will not perhaps be thought to outweigh the advantage of preserving one of the most marked and striking features of the Hebrew language.
The plan of the book, as already defined, has excluded not only all devotional and practical remark, but all at- tempt to give the history of the interpretation, or to enu- merate the advocates and authors of conflicting expositions. This, although necessary to a complete exegetical work, would rather have defeated the design of this one, both by adding to its bulk and by repelling a large class of readers. It has therefore been thought better to exclude
y\ PREFACE.
it, or rather to reserve it for a kindred work upon a larger scale, if such should hereafter be demanded by the public. The same course has been taken with respect to a great mass of materials, relating to those topics which would naturally find their place in a Critical Introduction. Many of these, and such as are particularly necessary to the exposition, have been noticed incidentally as they occur. But synoptical summaries of these, and full dis- cussions of the various questions, as to the age and authors of the several psalms, the origin and principle of their ar- rangement, the best mode of classification, and the prin- ciples on which they ought to be interpreted, would fill a volume by themselves, without materially promoting the main object of the present publication. As the topics thus necessarily excluded will probably constitute a prin- cipal subject of the author's private and professional studies for some time to come, he is not without the hope of being able to bring something of this kind before the public, either in a separate work upon the Psalms, or in a general Introduction to the Scriptures.
The difficulty of discussing these preliminary matters within reasonable compass, although great in the case of any important part of Scripture, is aggravated by the peculiar structure of the Psalter, the most miscellaneous of the sacred books, containing a hundred and fifty compositions, each complete in itself, and varying in length, from two sentences (Ps. cxvii) to a hundred and seventy-six (Ps. cxix), as well as in subject, style, and tone, the work of many au- thors, and of difterent ages ; so that a superficial reader might be tempted to regard it as a random or fortuitous collection of unconnected and inconf^ruous materials.
PREFACE. vii
A closer inspection shows, however, that this heteroge- neous mass is not without a bond of union ; that these hundred and fifty independent pieces, different as they are, have this in common, that they are all poetical, not merely imaginative and expressive of feeling, but stamped externally with that peculiar character of parallelism, which distinguishes the higher style of Hebrew composi- tion from ordinary prose. A still more marked resemblance is that they are all not only poetical but lyrical, i. e. songs, poems intended to be sung, and with a musical accompa- niment. Thirdly, they are all religious lyrics, even those which seem at first sis^ht the most secular in theme and spirit, but which are all found on inquiry to be strongly expressive of religious feeling. In the fourth place, they are all ecclesiastical lyrics, psalms or hymns, intended to be permanently used in public worship, not excepting those which bear the clearest impress of original connec- tion with the social, domestic, or personal relations and experience of the writers.
The book being thus invested with a certain unity of spirit, form, and purpose, we are naturally led to seek for something in the psalms themselves, which may determine more definitely their relation to each other. The first thing of this kind that presents itself is the existence, in a very large proportion, of an ancient title or inscription, varying in length and fulness ; sometimes simply descri- bing the composition, as a psalm, a song, a prayer, etc. ; sometimes stating the subject or historical occasion, either in plain or enigmatical expressions ; sometimes directing the performance, by indicating the accompanying instru- ment, by specifying the appropriate key or mode, or by
yiii PREFACE.
naming the particular performer ; these various intimations occurring sometimes singly, but frequently in combination.
The strenuous attempts which have been made by modern writers to discredit these inscriptions, as spurious additions of a later date, containing groundless and erro- neous conjectures, often at variance with the terms and substance of the psalm itself, are defeated by the fact that they are found in the Hebrew text, as far as we can trace its history, not as addenda, but as integral parts of the composition ; that such indications of the author and the subject, at the commencement of a composition, are familiar both to classical and oriental usage ; and that the truth of these inscriptions may in every case be vindicated, and in none more successfully than those which seem at first sight least defensible, and which have therefore been ap- pealed to, with most confidence, as proofs of spuriousness and recent date.
The details included in this general statement will be pointed out as they occur, but are here referred to by an- ticipation, to explain and vindicate the constant treatment of the titles in this volume as an integral part of the sacred text, which in some editions of the Bible has been muti- lated by omitting them, and in others dislocated or con- fused, for purposes of reference, by passing them over in the numeration of the verses. As this last arrangement is familiar to all readers of the English Bible, an attempt has been made in the following exposition to consult their convenience, by adding the numbers of the English to those of the Hebrew text, wherever they are difterent.
Another point of contact and resemblance between these apparently detached and independent compositions
PREFACE. ix
is the frequent recurrence of set phrases and of certain forms extending to the structure of whole psalms, such as the alphabetical arrangement, in which the successive sentences or paragraphs begin with the letters of the He- brew alphabet. This is the more remarkable because these alphabetic psalms have all a comrnon character, distinguishing them from the rest, to wit, that instead of a progression of ideas, they consist of variations on a theme propounded at the outset, whether this be re- garded as the cause or the effect of the peculiar form itself.
The same inquiries which have led to these conclusions also show, that the arrangement of the psalms in the col- lection is by no means so unmeaning and fortuitous as may at first sight seem to be the case, but that in many instances at least, a reason may be found for the juxtapo- sition, in resemblance or identity of subject or historical occasion, or in some remarkable coincidence of general form or of particular expressions. If in some cases it is difficult to trace the reason of the collocation, there are others in which two psalms bear so intimate and obvious a mutual relation, that they seem to constitute a pair or double psalm, either because they were originally meant to match each other, or because one has been subsequently added for the purpose. Sometimes, particularly in the latter part of the collection, we may trace not only pairs but trilogies and even more extensive systems of con- nected psalms, each independent of the rest, and yet to- gether forming beautiful and striking combinations, par- ticularly when the nucleus or the basis of the series is an ancient psalm, for instance one of David's, to which others
X PREFACE.
have been added, in the way of variation or of imitation, at a later period, such as that of the Captivity.
Although the facets jast mentioned are sufficient to evince, that the Book of Psalms was not thrown together at random, but adjusted by a careful hand, the principle of the arrangement is not always so apparent, or of such a nature, as to repress the wish to classify the psalms and reduce them to some systematic order. The most obvious arrangement would be that by authors, if the data were sufficient. But although the titles ascribe one to Moses, seventy-two to David, two to Solomon, twelve to Asaph, one to Ethan, and eleven to the Sons of Korah, it is doubtful in some of the cases, more particularly those last mentioned, whether the title was designed to indicate the author or the musical performer, and more than fifty are anonymous. In some of these the hand of David may be still distinctly traced, but as to most, we are abandoned to conjecture, which of course affords no solid basis for a satisfactory or useful distribution.
Another principle of classification is the internal char- acter, the subject, style, and manner of the psalms. This was applied by the older writers, in accordance with the forms of artificial rhetoric, and with endless variety in the result. But the best application of the principle is that proposed by Hengstenberg, and founded on the tone of pious feeling which the psalm expresses ; whether joyous, as in the general psalms of praise and more especially in those of thanksgiving ; or sad, as in the querulous and penitential psalms ; or calm, as in most of the prophetic and didactic psalms. All these, however, are arrange- ments which the reader can make best to please himself,
PREFACE, ^[
and which are rather the results of exposition than pre- liminary aids to it.
Apart from these attempts at systematic distribution and arrangement, there is also a question with respect to the division of the Psalter as it stands. There is an an- cient division into five parts, corresponding, as the Rabbins say, to the five books of Moses, and indicated by doxologies at the close of Ps. xli, Ixxii, Ixxxix, cvi, while Ps. cl is itself a doxology, winding up the whole. The modern critics, more especially in Grermany, have tasked their ingenuity to prove that these are distinct collections, con- temporaneous or successive, of detached compositions, afterwards combined to form the present Psalter. But they never have been able to account, with any plausi- bility or show of truth, for the remarkable position which the psalms of David occupy in all parts of the book. A much more probable hypothesis, though coupled with a theory, to say the least, extremely dubious, is that of Hengstenberg, who looks upon the actual arrangement as the work of Ezra, or some other skilful and authoritative haad, and accounts for the division into five books as fol- lows. The first book (Ps. i — xli) contains only psalms of David, in which the use of the divine name Jehovah is predominant. The second (Ps. xlii — Ixxii) contains psalms of David and his contemporaries, i. e. Solomon, Asaph, and the Sons of Korah, in which the predominant divine name is Elohim. The third (Ps. Ixxiii — Ixxxix) contains psalms of Asaph and the Sons of Korah, in which the name Jehovah is predominant. The fourth (Ps. xc — cvi) and fifth (cvii — cl) contain, for the most part, psalms of later date, the principal exceptions being one by
xii PREFACE.
Moses (Ps. xc), and several of David's, to which others in the same strain have been added, in the way ah-eady mentioned.
However ingenious this hypothesis may be, it will be seen at once that it contributes very little to the just ap- preciation or correct interpretation of the several psalms, except by enabling us, in certain cases, to derive illustra- tion from a more extended context, as the reader will find stated in its proper place. Even granting therefore the historical assumption upon which it rests, and the favourite doctrine as to the divine names, with which it is to some extent identified, it will be sufficient for our present pur- pose to have stated it in outline, leaving the reader to compare it with the facts as they successively present themselves, and reserving a more full investigation of the general question to another time and place.
The best arrangement for the ordinary student of the Psalter is the actual arrangement of the book itself ; first, because we have no better, and the efforts to invent a better have proved fruitless ; then, because, as we have seen, there are sufficient indications of a principle or pur- pose in this actual arrangement, whether we can always trace it there or not ; and lastly, because uniform tradi- tion and analogy agree in representing it as highly pro- bable, that this arrangement was the work of Ezra, the inspired collector and redacteur of the canon, so that even if nothing more should ever be discovered, w^ith respect to his particular design or plan, we have still the satisfaction of relying, not on chance, but on a competent or rather an infallible authority, as well as the advantage of studying the psalms in a connection and an order which may pos-
PREFACE. xiii
sibly throw light upon them, even when it seems to us most fortuitous or arbitrary.
If any subdivision of the book is needed, as a basis or a means of more convenient exposition, it may be obtained by taking, as the central column of this splendid fabric, its most ancient portion, the sublime and affecting Prayer of Moses, known from time immemorial as the Ninetieth Psalm, and suffering this, as a dividing line, to separate the whole into two great parts, the first composed entirely of psalms belonging to the times of David, the other of a few such, with a much greater number of later composi- tions, founded on them and connected with them.
This simple distribution seems to secure all the sub- stantial advantages of Hengstenberg's hypothesis, without its complexity or doubtful points. Among the latter may be reckoned the extraordinary stress laid by this eminent interpreter on what may be called Symbolical Arithmetic, or the significance ascribed to the number of verses, of Selahs, of Jehovahs, of Elohims, used in any given psalm. Setting out from the unquestionable fact, that certain numbers are symbolically used in the Old Testament ; that seven is the symbol of the covenant, twelve of the theocracy, ten of completeness or perfection, five of the reverse, etc., he attempts to trace the application of this principle throughout the psalms, and not, as might have been expected, without many palpable failures to estab- lish his favourite and foregone conclusion. The effect which this singular prepossession might have had upon his exposition is prevented by his happily restricting it entirely to form and structure, and putting it pre- cisely on a level with the alphabetical arrangement
xiv PREFACE
of the Hebrews, and with rhyme as used by other nations. There is still, however, reason to regret the space allotted to this subject in his volumes, and good ground for excluding it from works of an humbler and more popular description. As all the views of such a mind, however, are at least entitled to consideration, this subject may appropriately take its place among the topics of a Critical Introduction.
With respect to the historical relations of the Psalter and its bearings on the other parts of Scripture, it will be sufficient to remind the reader, that the Mosaic system reached its culminating point and full development in the reign of David, when the land of promise was in full pos- session, the provisions of the law for the first time fully carried out, and a permanent sanctuary secured and, we may even say, prospectively erected. The chain of Mes- sianic promises, which for ages had been broken, or con- cealed beneath the prophetic ritual, was now renewed by the addition of a new link, in the great Messianic promise made to David (2 Sam, vii) of perpetual succession in his family. As the head of this royal race from which the Messiah was to spring, and as the great theocratical model of succeeding ages, who is mentioned more frequently in prophecy and gospel than all his natural descendants put together, he was inspired to originate a new kind of sacred composition, that of Psalmody, or rather to educe from the germ which Moses had planted an abundant harvest of religious poetry, not for his own private use, but for that of the Church, in the new form of public service which he added by divine command to the Mosaic ritual. As an inspired psalmist, as the founder and director of the tem-
PREFACE. XV
pie-music, and as a model and exemplar to those after him, David's position is unique in sacred history. As his mili- tary prowess had been necessary to complete the conquest of the land, so his poetical and musical genius was ne- cessary to secure his influence upon the church forever. The result is, that no part of the Bible has been so long, so constantly, and so extensively familiar, both to Jews and Christians, as the Psalms of DAvm. This denominatio a potiori is entirely correct, as all the other writers of the psalms, excepting Moses, merely carry out and vary what had been already done by David ; and as if to guard the system from deterioration, the further we proceed the more direct and obvious is this dependence upon David, as " the man raised up on high, the anointed of the Grod of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel" (2 Sam. xxiii. 1), the master and the model of all other psalmists, from the days of Solomon to those of Ezra.
The interesting questions which have so often been dis- cussed, as to the theology and ethics of the Psalter, and especially in reference to the doctrine of a Messiah and a future state, and to the so-called imprecations of the psalms, can be satisfactorily settled only by detailed in- terpretation of the passages concerned, and any summary anticipation of the general result may here be spared, al- though it would be highly appropriate in a Critical Intro- duction.
After this brief statement of preliminary points which might be fully treated in an Introduction, it only remains to add, in explanation of the plan adopted in the work itself, that the reader is constantly supposed to be familiar with the Hebrew text and with the authorized version.
xvi PREFACE.
but that in order to make the exposition accessible to a larger class of educated readers, the original words have been introduced but sparingly, and only for the purpose of saving space and avoiding an awkward circumlocution. The translation of the text is printed in italic type as prose, partly for a reason just assigned, to save room ; partly because it is really prose and not verse, according to the common acceptation of those terms ; partly, be- cause the effect of the poetical element, so far as it exists, is weakened rather than enhanced when printed as irre- gular blank verse ; but especially because the version is not meant to stand by itself or to be continuously read, but to be part and parcel of the exposition, and to be qualified by the accompanying paraphrase and comments.
The religious uses of the Psalms, both doctrinal and practical, though not directly aimed at in these volumes, are so far from being undervalued by the author, and in- deed so essential to his ultimate design, that any effect which the book may have, however humble or remote, in the promotion of this end, will be esteemed by him as its most flattering success and the most acceptable reward of his exertions.
Princeton^ May 1, 1850.
THE PSALMS.
PSALM I.
The book opens with an exquisite picture of the truly Happyf Man, as seen from the highest ground of the old dispensation. He is described both literally and figujcatively, positively and negatively, directly and by contrast, with respect both to his character and his condition, here and hereafter. The compres- sion of all this into so short a composition, without confusion or obscurity, and with a high degree of graphic vividness, shows what the psalm is in a rhetorical or literary point of view, apart from its religious import and divine authority. Its moral design is both didactic and consolatory. There is no trace of any particular historical occasion or allusion. The terms em- ployed are general, and admit of an easy application to all times and places where the Vvord of God is known. The psalm indeed contains a summary of the doctrine taught in this book and in the scriptures generally, as to the connexion be-- tween happiness and goodness. It is well placed, therefore, as an introduction to the whole collection, and although anonymous, was probably composed by David. It is altogether worthy of this origin, and corresponds, in form and substance, to the next psalm, which is certainly by David. The two seem indeed to form a pair or double psalm, of which arrangement there are several other instances. The structure of the first psalm is
VOL. I. 1
2 PSALM I.
symmetrical but simple, and the style removed from that of ele- vated prose by nothing but the use of strong and lively figures.
1. The Happy Man is first described in literal but negative expressions, i. e. by stating what he does not habitually do. The description opens with a kind of admiring exclamation. {Oh) the blessedness of the man! The plural form of the original {^felicities or happinesses), if anything more than a grammatical idiom like ashes, tneans, &c. in our language, may denote ful- ness and variety of happiness, as if he had said. How completely happy is the Qnan ! The negative description follows. Happy the man ivho has not walked, a common figure for the course of life or the habitual conduct, which is furthermore suggested by the use of the past tense, but without excluding the present, who has not walked and does not walk, in the counsel, i. e. live after the manner, on the principles, or according to the plans, of wicked {men), and in the way of sinners has not stood. The word translated sinners properly denotes those who fall short of the standard of duty, as the word translated ivicked denotes those who positively violate a rule by disorderly conduct. To- gether they express the whole idea of ungodly or unrighteous men. And in the seat, not the chair, but the company, or the place where men convene and sit together, of scorners, scoffers, those who treat religion with contempt, has not sat. The three verbs denote the three acts or postures of a waking man, namely, walking, standing, sitting, and are therefore well adapted to express the whole course of life or conduct. It is also possible that a climax was intended, so that walking, standing and sitting in the company of sinners will denote successive stages of dete- rioration, first occasional conformity, then fixed association, then established residence among the wicked, not as a mere spectator or companion, but as one of themselves. The same kind of negative description reappears in Psalm xxvi. 4, 5, and in Jer. XV. 17. It is of course implied that no one, of whom any of
PSALM I. 3
these things can be affirmed, is entitled to the character of a Happy Man.
2. A positive trait is now added to the picture. Having shown what the truly happy man does not, the Psalmist shows us what he does. But, on the contrary, in contrast with the previous description, in the law of Jehovah, i. e. the written revelation of his will, and more especially the Pentateuch or Law of Moses, which lay at the foundation of the Hebrew Scriptures, {is) his delight, not merely his employment, or his trust, but his pleasure, his happiness. And in his laiv he will meditate, i. e. he does so and will do so still, not merely as a theme of speculation or study, but as a cherished object of affection, a favourite subject of the thoughts, day and night, i. e. at all times, in every interval of other duties, nay in the midst of other duties, this is the theme to which his mind spon- taneously reverts. The cordial attachment to an unfinished revelation, here implicitly enjoined, shows clearly what is due to the completed word of God which we possess.
3. The literal description of the Happy Man, both in its negative and positive form, is followed by a beautiful comparison, expressive of his character and his condition. And he is, or he shall be ; the present and the future insensibly run into each other, so as to suggest the idea of continuous or permanent con- dition, like the past and present in the first verse. And he is, or shall be, like a tree, a lively emblem of vitality and fruitful- ness. He is not, however, like a tree growing wild, but like a tree planted, in the most favourable situation, on or over, i. e. overhanging, streams of water. The original words properly denote canals or channels, as customary means of artificial irrigation. Hence the single tree is said to overhang more than one, because surrounded by them. The image presented is that of a highly cultivated spot, and implies security and care.
4 PSALM I.
such as could not be enjoyed in the most luxuriant wilderness or forest. The divine culture thus experienced is the cause of the effect represented by the rest of the comparison. Which (tree) will give, or yield, its fruit in its season, and its leaf shall not wither; it shall lose neither its utility nor beauty. This is then expressed in a more positive and prosaic form. And all, or every thing, which he, the man represented by the verdant fruitful tree, shall do, he shall 7nake to 'prosper, or do prosperously, with good success. This pleasing image is in perfect keeping with the scope of the psalm, which is not to de- scribe the righteous man, as such, but the truly happy man, with whom the righteous man is afterwards identified. The neglect of this peculiar feature of the composition impairs its moral as well as its rhetorical effect, by making it an austere declaration of what will be expected from a good man, rather than a joy- ous exhibition of his happy lot. That the common experience, even of the best men, falls short of this description, is because their character and life fall short of that presented in the two preceding verses. The whole description is not so much a pic- ture drawn from real life, as an ideal standard or model, by striv- ing to attain which onr aims and our attainments will be eleva- ted, though imperfect after all.
4. Not so the ivicked. The direct description of the Happy Man is heightened and completed by comparison with others. Not so the ivicked, i. e. neither in condition nor in character. The dependence of the one upon the other is suggested by de- scribing them as wicked, rather than unhappy. Not so, i. e. not thus happy, (are) the ivicked, because they are wicked, and are therefore destitute of all that constitutes the happiness be- fore described. The immediate reference, in the phrase not so, is to the beautiful, well-watered, green, and thriving tree of the preceding verse. To this delightful emblem of a healthful happy state the Psalmist now opposes one drawn likewise from
PSALM I. 5
the vegetable world, but as totally unlike the first as possible. The wicked are not represented by a tree, not even by a barren tree, a dead tree, a prostrate tree, a shrub, a weed, all which are figures not unfrequent in the Scriptures. But all these are more or less associated with the natural condition of a living plant, and therefore insufficient to present the necessary contrast. This is finely done by a comparison with chaff, which, though a vegetable substance, and connected in its origin with one of the most valuable products of the earth, is itself neither living, fruitful, nor nutritious, but only fit to be removed and scattered by the wind, in the ancient and oriental mode of winnowing. There is a double fitness in the emblem here presented, as suggesting the idea of intrinsic worthlessness, and at the same time that of contrast with the useful grain, with which it came into existence, and from which it shall be separated only to be blown away or burnt. Not so the wicked, but like the chaff, which the wind drives away. The same comparison is used in Psaim xxxv. 5. Isa. xvii. 1.3. xxix. 5. Hos. xiii. .3. Zeph. ii. 2. Job xxi. 18, and by John the Baptist, in Mat. iii. 12, with obvious allusion to this psalm, but with a new figure, that of burning, which seems to be intended to denote final and com- plete destruction, while in all the other cases, the idea suggested by the chaff being blown away is that of violent and rapid disappearance.
5. Therefore, because they are unlike a living tree, and like the worthless chaff, fit only to be scattered by the wind, wicked (men) shall not stand, i. e. stand their ground or be able to sustain themselves, in the judgment; i. e. at the bar of God. This includes two ideas, that of God's unerring estimation of all creatures at their real value, and that of his corresponding action towards them. The wicked shall neither be approved by God, nor, as a necessary consequence, continue to enjoy his favour, even in appearance. Whatever providential inequali-
"6 PSALM I.
ties may now exist will all be rectified hereafter. The wicked shall not always be confounded with their betters. They shall not stand in the judgment, either present intermediate judg- ments, or the final judgment of the great day. And sinners^ the same persons under another name, as in v. 1, [shall not sta7id) in the congregation, or assembly, of righteous (men.) They shall not continue intermingled with them in society as now, and, \vhat is more important, they shall not forever seem to form part of the church or chosen people, to which the word translated congregation is constantly applied in the Old Testa- ment. Whatever doubt may now exist, the time is coming when the wicked are to take their proper place and to be seen in their true character, as totally unlike the righteous.
6. The certainty of this event is secured by God's omniscience, from which his power and his justice are inseparable. How- ever men may be deceived in their prognostications, he is not. The Lord, Jehovah, the God of Revelation, the covenant God of Israel, knoivs, literally (is) knoiving, i. e. habitually knows, or knows from the beginning to the end, the ivay of righteous (men), i. e. the tendency and issue of their character and con- duct. As if he had said, the Lord knows whither they are go- ing and where they will arrive at last. This is a clear though indirect assertion of their safety, here and hereafter. I The figure of a way is often used to express the character and conduct it- self ; but this idea is here implied or comprehended in that of destiny, as determined by the character and conduct. There is no need, therefore, of taking the verb know in any other than its usual and proper sense. The verse is an appeal to the divine omniscience for the truth of the implied assertion, that the righteous are safe and will be happy, as well as for that of the express assertion, with which the whole psalm closes. The way of loicked {^men,) in the same sense as before, shall perish, i. e. end in ruin. The apparent solecism of making a
PSALM TI. 7
way perish only brings out in more prominent relief the truth really asserted, namely, the perdition of those who travel it. This completes the contrast, and sums up the description of the truly Happy Man, as one whose delight is in the law and his happiness in the favour of Jehovah, and whose strongest nega- tive characteristic is his total want of moral likeness here to those from whom he is to dwell apart hereafter.
PSALM 11.
A SUBLIME vision of the nations in revolt against Jehovah and his Anointed, with a declaration of the divine purpose to main- tain his King's authority, and a warning to the world that it must bow to him or perish.- The structure of this psalm is ex- tremely regular. It naturally falls into four stanzas of three verses each. In the first, the conduct of the rebellious nations is described. In the second, God replies to them by word and deed. In the third, the Messiah or Anointed One declares the divine decree in relation to himself. In the fourth, the Psalmist exhorts the rulers of the nations to submission, with a threaten- ing of divine wrath to the disobedient, and a closing benedic- tion on believers. The several sentences are also very regular in form, exhibiting parallelisms of great uniformity. Little as this psalm may, at first sight, seem to resemble that before it, there is really a very strong affinity between them. Even in form they are related to each other. The number of verses and of stanzas is just double in the second, which moreover begins, as the first ends, with a threatening, and ends, as the
\
8 PSALM II.
first begins, with a beatitude. There is also a resemblance in their subject and contents. The contrast indicated in the first is carried out and rendered more distinct in tlie second. The Arst is in fact an introduction to tlie second, and the second to -.rhat follows. And as the psalms which follow bear the name of David, there is the strongest reason to believe that these two are his likewise, a conclusion confirmed by the authority of Acts iv. 25, as well as by the internal character of the psalm itself. The imagery of the scene presented is evidently borrowed from the warlike and eventful times of David. He cannot, however, be himself the subject of the composition, the terms of which are wholly inappropriate to any king but the Messiah, to whom they are applied by the oldest Jewish writers, and again and again in the New Testament. This is the fhst of those prophetic psalms, in which the promise made to David, with respect to the Messiah (2 Sam. vii. 16. 1 Clir. xvii. 11 — 14), is wrought into the lyrical devotions of the ancient church. The supposition of a double reference to David, or some one of his successors, and to Christ, is not only needless and gratuitous, but hurtful to the sense by the confusion which it introduces, and forbidden by the utter mappropriateness of some of the ex- pressions used to any lower subject. The style of this psalm, although not less pure and simple, is livelier than that of the first, a difference arising partly from tlie nature of the subject, but still more from the dramatic structure of the composition.
1 . This psalm opens, like the first, with an exclamation, here expressive of astonishment and indignation at the wickedness and folly of the scene presented to the psalmist's view. TV/it/ do 7iations make a 7ioise, tumultuate, or rage? The Hebrew verb is not expressive of an internal feeling, but of the outward agitation which denotes it. There may be an allusion to the rolling and roaring of the sea, often used as an emblem of popu- lar commotion, both in the Scriptures and the classics. The
4*
PSALM II. * 9
past tense of this verb (ivhy have they raged ?) refers to the commotion as ah-eady begun, while the future in the next clause expresses its continuance. And peoples, not people in the col- lective sense of persons, but in the proper plural sense of na- tions, races, will imagine, i. e. are imagining and will continue to imagine, vanity, a vain thing, something hopeless and im- possible. The interrogation in this verse implies that no ra- tional solution of the strange sight could be given, for reasons assigned in the remainder of the psalm. This implied charge of irrationality is equally well founded in all cases where the same kind of opposition exists, though secretly and on the smallest scale.
2. The confused scene presented in the first verse now be- comes more distinct by a nearer view of the contending parties. ( Why will) the Icings of earth set themselves, or, without re- peating the interrogation, the kings of earth will set themselves^ or take their stand, and rulers consult together, literally sit to- gether, but with special reference to taking counsel, as in Ps. xxxi. 14 (13), against Jehovah and against his Anointed, or Messiah, which is only a modified form of the Hebrew word here used, as Christ is a like modification of the corresponding term in Greek. External unction or anointing is a sign, in the Old Testament, of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and especially of those conferred on prophets, priests, and kings, as ministers of the theocracy, and representatives of Christ himself. To kings particularly, as the highest and most comprehensive order, and peculiar types of Christ in his supremacy as Head of the Church, the sacred history applies the title of the Lord's Anointed. The rite of unction is explicitly recorded in the case of Saul, David, and Solomon, and was probably repeated at the coro- nation of their successors. From the verse before us, and from Dan. ix. 26, the name Messiah had, before the Advent,
come into use among the Jews as a common designation of the 1*
10 PSALM JI.
great Deliverer and King whom they expected. (Compare John i. 41 with V. 49 of the same chapter, and with Mark xv. 32.) The intimate relation of the Anointed One to God himself is indicated even here by making them the common object of at- tack or rather of revolt. In Acts iv. 25 — 27, this description is applied to the combination of Herod and Pilate, Jews and Gen- tUes, against Jesus Christ, not as the sole event predicted, but as that in which the gradual fulfilment reached its culmination. From that quotation, and indeed from the terms of the prophecy itself, we learn that nations here does not mean gentiles or heathen as opposed to jews, but whole communities or masses of mankind, as distinguished from mere personal or insulated cases of resistance and rebellion.
3. Having described the conduct of the disaffected nations and their chiefs, he now introduces them as speaking. In the preceding verse, they were seen, as it were, at a distance, tak- ing counsel. Here they are brought so near to us, or we to them, that we can overhear their consultations. Let us break their bands, i. e. the bands of the Lord and his Anointed, the restraints imposed by their authority. The form of the Hebrew verb may be expressive either of a proposition or of a fixed determination. We will break their bands, we are resolved to do it. This is in fact involved in the other version, where let us break must not be understood as a faint or dubi- ous suggestion, but as a summons to the execution of a formed and settled purpose. The same idea is expressed, with a slight modification, in the other clause. And ive will casty or let us cast aiva,y from us their cords, twisted ropes, a stronger term than bands. The verb, too, while it really implies the act of breaking, suggests the additional idea of contemptuous facility, as if they had said, let us fling away from us with scorn these feeble bands by which we have been hitherto confined. The application of this passage to the revolt of the Ammonites and
PSALM II. 11
other conquered nations against David, or to any similar rebel- lion against any of the later Jewish kings, as the principal sub- ject of this grand description, makes it quite ridiculous if not profane, and cannot therefore be consistent with the principles of sound interpretation. The utmost that can be conceded is that David borrowed the scenery of this dramatic exhibition from the wars and insurrections of his own eventful reign. The language of the rebels in the verse before us is a genuine ex- pression of the feelings entertained, not only in the hearts of individual sinners, but by the masses of mankind, so far as they have been brought into collision with the sovereignty of God and Christ, not only at the time of his appearance upon earth, but in the ages both before and after that event, in which the prophecy, as we have seen, attained its height, but was not finally exhausted or fulfilled, since the same rash and hopeless opposition to the Lord and his Anointed still continues, and is likely to continue until the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, (Rev. xi. 15), an expression borrowed from this very passage.
4, As the first strophe or stanza of three verses is descriptive of the conduct of the rebels, so the next describes the corre- sponding action of their sovereign, in precisely the same order, telling first what he does (in vs. 4, 5), and then what he says (in V. 6), so that these two stanzas are not only regular in their internal structure but exactly fitted to each other. This sym- metrical adjustment is entitled to attention, as that feature of the Hebrew poetry which fills the place of rhythm and metre in the poetry of other nations. At the same time it facilitates interpretation, when allowed to speak for itself without artifi- cial or unnatural straining, by exhibiting the salient points of the passage in their true relation. The transition here is a sublime one, from the noise and agitation of earth to the safety and tranquillity of heaven. No shifting of the scene could be
13 PSALM II.
more dramatic in effect or form. While the nations and their kings exhort each other to cast off their allegiance to Jehovah, and thereby virtually to dethrone him, he reposes far above them and beyond their reach. Sitting in the heavens, i. e. resident and reigning there, lie laughs or will laugh. This figure, strong and almost startling as it is, cannot possibly be misunderstood by any reader, as a vivid expression of con- temptuous security on God's part, and of impotent folly on the part of men. At them may be supplied from Ps. xxxvii. 13, and lix. 9 (8) ; but it is not necessary, and the picture is perhaps more perfect, if we understand the laughter here to be simply expressive of contempt, and the idea of directly laughing at them to be first suggested in the other clause. The Lord, not Jehovah, as in v. 2, but Adhonai, the Hebrew word properly denoting Lord or Sovereign as a divine title, the Lord shall mock thetn, or mock at them, as the strongest possible expres- sion of contempt. This verse conveys in the most vivid man- ner, one indeed that would be inadmissible in any uninspired writer, the fatuity of all rebellious opposition to God's will. That such is often suffered to proceed long with impunity, is only, in the figurative language of this passage, because God first laughs at human folly and then smi:tes it. " Who thought," says Luther, "when Christ suffered and the Jews triumphed, that God was laughing all the time ?" Beneath this bold anthropomorphism there is hidden a profound truth, namely, that to all superior beings, and above all to God him- self, there is something in sin not only odious but absurd, some- thing which cannot possibly escape the contempt^of higher much less of the highest intelligence.
5. This contemptuous repose and seeming indifference shall not last forever. Then, after having thus derided them, then, as the next stage in this fearful process, he will speak to them,., as they, after rising up against him, spoke to one another in v.
PSALM II. 13
3. And in his heat, i. e. his hot displeasure, the wrath to which the laughter of v. 4 was but a prelude, he %vill agitate them, terrify them, make them quake with fear, not as a separate act from that described in the first clause, but by the very act of speaking to them in his anger, the words spoken being given in the following verse.
6. The divine address begins, as it were, in the middle of a sentence ; but the clause suppressed is easily supplied, being tacitly involved in what precedes. As if he had said, you renounce your allegiance and assert your independence, and I, on my part, the pronoun when expressed in Hebrew being commonly emphatic, and here in strong antithesis to those who are addressed. You pursue your course and I mine. The translation yet, though inexact and arbitrary, brings out the antithesis correctly in a different form from that of the original. And I have constituted, or created, with allusion in the Hebrew to the casting of an image, or as some less probably suppose to unction, I have constituted my King, not simply a king, nor even the king, neither of which expressions would be adequate, but my king, one who is to reign for me and in in- dissoluble union with me, so that his reigning is identical with mine. This brings out still more clearly the intimate relation of the Anointed to Jehovah, which had been indicated less distinctly in v. 2, and thus prepares us for the full disclosure of their mutual relation in v. 7. And I have constituted my King upon Zion, my hill of holiness, or holy hill, i. e. con- secrated, set apart, distinguished from all other hills and other places, as the seat of the theocracy, the royal residence, the capital city, of the Lord and of his Christ, from the time that David took up his abode, and deposited the ark there. The translation over Zion would convey the false idea, that Zion was itself the kingdom over which this sovereign was to xeign, whereas it was only the visible and temporary centre* of a
14 PSALM II.
kingdom coextensive with the earth, as we expressly read in V. 8 below. This shows that the application of the verse before us to David himself, although intrinsically possible, is utterly at variance with the context and the whole scope of the composition.
7. We have here another of those changes which impart to this whole psalm a highly dramatic character. A third person- age is introduced as speaking without any formal intimation in the text. As the first stanza (v. 1 — 3) closes with the words of the insurgents, and the second (v. 4 — 6) with the words of the Lord, so the third (vs. 7 — 9) contains the language of the king described in the preceding verse, announcing with his own lips the law or constitution of his kingdom. / will declare^ or let me declare, the same form of the verb as in v. 3, the decree, the statute, the organic law or constitution of my kingdom. The Hebrew verb is followed by a preposition, which may be expressed in English, without any change of sense, by render- ing the clause, / will declare, or make a declaration, i. e. a public, formal announcement, {as) to the law or constitution of my kingdom. This announcement is then made in a historical form, by reciting what had been said to the king at his inaugu- ration or induction into office. Jehovah said to me, My son (art) thou, this day have I begotten thee. Whether this be re- garded as a part of the decree or law itself, or as a mere pre- amble to it, the relation here described is evidently one which carried with it universal dominion as a necessary consequence, as well as one which justifies the use of the expression my king in V. 6. It must be something more then than a figure for intense love or peculiar favour, something more than the filial relation which the theocratic kings, and Israel as a nation, bore to God. (Ex. iv. 22. Deut. xiv. 1, 2. xxxii. 6. Isai. Ixiii. 16. Hos. xi. 1. Mal. i. 6. Rom. ix. 4.) Nor will any explanation of the terms fully meet the requisitions of the context except
PSALM II. 15
one which supposes the relation here described as manifest in time to rest on one essential and eternal. This alone accounts for the identification of the persons as possessing a common interest, and reigning with and in each other. This profound sense of the passage is no more excluded by the phrase this day, implying something recent, than the universality of Christ's dominion is excluded by the local reference to Zion. The point of time, like the point of space, is the finite centre of an infinite circle. Besides, the mere form of the declaration is a part of the dramatic scenery or costume, with which the truth is here invested. The ideas of a king, a coronation, a hereditary suc- cession, are all drawn from human and temporal associations. This day have I begotten thee may be considered therefore as referring only to the coronation of Messiah, which is an ideal one. The essential meaning of the phrase I have begotten thee is simply this, / aTn thy father. The antithesis is perfectly identical with that in 2 Sam. vii. 14, " I will be his father, and he shall be my son." Had the same form of expression been used here, this day am I thy father, no reader would have understood this day as limiting the mutual relation of the par- ties, however it might limit to a certain point of time the formal recognition of it. It must also be observed, that even if this day be referred to the inception of the filial rela<|ph, it is thrown indefinitely back by the form of reminiscence or narration in the first clause of the verse. Jehovah said to me, but when ? If understood to mean from everlasting or eternity, the form of expression would be perfectly in keeping with the other figu- rative forms by which the Scriptures represent things really ineff'able in human language. The opinion that this passage is applied by Paul, in Acts xiii. 33, to Christ's resurrection, rests upon a misapprehension of the verb raised up, which has this specific meaning only when determined by the context or the addition of the words from the dead, as in the next verse of the same chapter, which is so far from requiring the more general
16 PSALM 11.
expressions of the preceding verse to be taken in the same sense, that it rather forbids such a construction, and shows that the two verses speak of different stages in the same great process, first the raising up of Jesus in the same sense in which God is said to have raised him up in Acts ii. 30. iii. 22, 26. vii. 36, i. e. bringing him into being as a man, and then the raising up from the dead, which the Apostle himself introduces as another topic in Acts xiii. 34. There is nothing, therefore, incon- sis-tent with the statement that the Psalmist here speaks of eternal sonship, either in the passage just referred to, or in Heb. V. 5, where the words are only cited to prove the solemn recog- nition of Christ's sonship, and his consequent authority, by God himself. This recognition was repeated, and, as it were, real- ized at our Saviour's baptism and transfiguration (Matth. iii. 17. xvii. 5), when a voice from heaven said, " This is my beloved Son in whom I am v/ell pleased, hear ye him I"
8. The recital of Jehovah's declaration to his Son is still con- tinued. Ask of me and I will give nations {as) thy heritage^ i. e. thy portion as my son, and {as) thy {2^e7'manent) 2'>ossession, from a verb denoting to hold fast, the ends of the earthy a com- mon Old Testament expression for the whole earth, the re- motest bounds ♦id all that lies between them. The phrase is never applied to a particular country, and cannot therefore be explained of Palestine or David's conquests, without violently changing the sublime to the ridiculous. The only subject, who can be assumed and carried through without absurdity, is the Messiah, who, as the Son and heir of God, had a right to ask this vast inheritance. That he had asked it and received it, is implied in the dominion claimed for him in vs. 2 and 3, where the nations are represented in revolt against him as their rio'htful sovereign. It was to justify this claim that the divine decree is here recited, the constitution of Messiah's kingdom, in which its limits are defined as coextensive with the earth.
PSALM II. 17
9. This extensive grant had been accompanied by that of power adequate to hold it. That power was to be exercised in wrath as well as mercy. The former is here rendered promi- nent, because the previous context has respect to audacious rebels, over whom Messiah is invested with the necessary power of punishment, and even of destruction. Thou shalt break them ivith a rod (or sceptre) of iron, as the hardest metal, and therefore the best suited to the use in question. By a slight change of pointing in the Hebrew, it may be made to mean, thou shalt feed them (as a shepherd) with a rod of iro7i, which is the sense expressed in several of the ancient versions, and to which there may be an ironical allusion, as the figure is a common one to represent the exercise of regal power. (See for example 2 Sam. vii. 7, and Micah vii. 14.) Like a letter's vessel thou shalt shiver them, or dash them in pieces, which last however weakens the expression by mul- tiplying words. The idea suggested by the last comparison is that of easy and immediate destruction, perhaps with an im- plication of worthlessness in the object. This view of the Messiah as a destroyer is in perfect keeping with the New Testament doctrine, that those Avho reject Christ will incur an a"-o-ravated doom, and that Christ himself is in^me sense the destroyer of those who will not let him be then- Saviour, or, to borrow terms from one of his own parables, in strict agreement with the scene presented by the psalm before us, " those mine enemies which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither and slay them before me." (Luke xix. 27.) That false view of the divine nature which regards God as delighting in the death of the sinner, is more revolting but not more danger- ous than that which looks upon his justice as extinguished by his mercy, and supposes that the death of Christ has rendered perdition impossible, even to those who will not believe in him. The terms of this verse are repeatedly applied to Christ in the Book of Revelation (ii. 27. xii. 5. xix. 15.)
18 PSALM II.
10. The description having reached its height in the preced- ing verse, there is here a sudden change of manner, a transition to the tone of earnest admonition, still addressed, however, to the characters originally brought upon the scene. And now {oh) kings, after all that you have seen and heard, after this demonstration that you cannot escape from the dominion of Messiah, and that if you persist in your rebellion he will cer- tainly destroy you, be wise, act wisely ; be warned, be admon- ished of your danger and your duty, (oh) judges of the earth ! A specific function of the regal oflice is here used as an equiva- lent or parallel to Icings in the first clause, just as rulers is employed for the same purpose in v. 2. The change of tone in this last strophe shows that the previous exhibition of Mes- siah as invested with destroying power was, as it usually is in Scripture, only introductory to another aspect of the same great object, which becomes more clear and bright to the con- clusion of the psalm. At the same time the original dramatic structure is maintained ; for the speaker, in this closing stanza, is the Psalmist himself,
11. Ser'ce the Lord, Jehovah, in the way that he requires, by acknowledging his Anointed as your rightful sovereign. Serve the Lord with fear, religious awe, not only on account of his tremendous majesty, but also in view of his vindicatory justice and destroying power. And shout, as a customary recognition of a present sovereign, with trembling, an external sign of fear, employed as an equivalent or parallel to fear itself. The word translated shout may also mean rejoice, as joy is often publicly expressed by acclamation. The sense will then be, and rejoice with trembling, i. e. exercise those mingled feelings which are suited to your present situation, in full view of God's wrath on one side, and his mercy on the other. This explanation agrees well with the transition, in these verses,
PSALM 11. X9
from the tone of terrible denunciation to that of friendly admo- nition and encouragement.
12. Lest the exhortation, in the preceding verse, should seem to have respect to Jehovah as an absolute sovereign, without reference to any other person, the attention is again called to his King, his Anointed, and his Son, as the sovereign to whom homage must be paid in order to escape destruction. Kiss the Son, an ancient mode of doing homage or allegiance to a king (1 Sam. X. 1), sometimes applied to the dress, and sometimes to the person, either of the sovereign or the subject himself. Even in modern European courts the kissing of the hand has this significance. In the case before us, there may possibly be an allusion to the kiss as a religious act among the heathen. (1 Kings xix. 18. Hos. xiii. 2. Job xxxi. 27.) Kiss the Soil, the Son of God, the Messiah, so called by the Jews in Christ's time (John i. 50. Matth. xxvi. 63. Mark xiv. 61. Luke xxii. 70) ; do him homage, own him as your sovereign, lest he he angry, and ye lose the way, i. e. the way to happiness and heaven, as in Ps. i. 6, or perish from the way, w^hich is the same thing in another form, or 'perish by the way, i. e. before you reach your destination. All these ideas are suggested by the Hebrew phrase, which is unusual. The necessity of prompt as well as humble submission is then urged. For his wrath will soon burn, or be kindled. The translation, " when his wrath is kindled but a little," does not yield so good a meaning, and requires two of the original expressions to be taken in a doubtful and unusual sense. The same view of the Messiah as a judge and an avenger, which appeared in v. 9, is again presented here, but only for a moment, and as a prelude to the closing beatitude or benediction. Blessed {are) all, oh the feli- cities of all, those trusting him, believing on him and confid- ing in him. This delightful contrast of salvation and perdition, at one and the same view, is characteristic of the Scriptures,
20 PSALM III.
and should teach us not to look ourselves, and not to turn the eyes of others, towards either of these objects without due regard to the other also. The resemblance in the language of this verse to that of Ps. i. 1 and 6, brings the two into connexion, as parts of one harmonious composition, or at least as kindred and contemporaneous products of a single mind, under the influence of one and the same Spirit.
PSALM III.
This Psalm contains a strong description of the enemies and dangers by w^hich the writer was surrounded, and an equally strong expression of confidence that God would extricate him from them, with particular reference to former deliverances of the same kind. Its place in the collection does not seem to be fortuitous or arbitrary. It Avas probably among the first of David's lyrical compositions, the two which now precede it having been afterwards prefixed to the collection. In these three psalms there is a sensible gradation or progressive development of one great idea. The general contrast, which the first exhibits, of the righteous and the wicked, is reproduced, in the second, as a war ajjainst the Lord and his Anointed. In the third, it is still further individualized as a conflict between David, the great historical type of the Messiah, and his enemies. At the same time, the expressions are so chosen as to make the psalm appropriate to its main design, that of furnishing a vehicle of pious feeling to the church at large and to its individual mem-
PSALM III. 2j
bers, in their own emergencies. The structure of the psahn is regular, consisting of four double verses, besides the title.
1. A Fsalm of David, literally {pelonging) to David, i. e. as the author. This is not a mere inscription, but a part of the text and inseparable from it, so far as we can trace its history. It was an ancient usage, both among classical and oriental writers, for the author to introduce his own name into the first sentence of his composition. The titles of the psalms ought, therefore, not to have been printed in a different type, or as something added to the text, which has led some editors to omit them altogether. In all Hebrew manuscripts they bear the same relation to the body of the Psalm, that the inscriptions in the Prophets or in Paul's epistles bear to the substance of the com- position. In the case before us, as in every other, the inscrip- tion is in perfect keeping with the psalm itself, as well as with the parallel history. Besides the author's name, it here states the historical occasion of the composition. A Psalm of David, in his fleeing, when he fled, /row the face, from the presence, or before, Absalom his son. (See 2 Sam. xv. 14, 17, 30.) Such a psalm might well be conceived, and even composed, if not actually written, in the midst of the dangers and distresses which occasioned it. There is no need therefore of supposino- the reference to be merely retrospective. That the terms used are so general, is because the psalm, though first suggested by the writer's personal experience, was intended for more general use.
2 (1). Oh Lord, Jehovah, the name of God as self-existent and eternal, and also as the covenant God of Israel, how many, or how multijjlied, are my foes, my oppressors or tormentors I This is not a question, but an exclamation of surprise and grief. Many risiir^ vp agaifist me. The sentence may either be completed thus : many (are they) that rise up against me ; or
22 PSALM III.
the construction of the other clause may be continued. (How) vnany (are there) rising up agai?ist me! The same peri- phrasis for enemies is used by Moses, Deut. xxviii. 7. What is here said of the multitude of enemies agrees well with the historical statement in 2 Sam. xv. 13. xvi. 18.
3 (2). (There are) many saying, or, (how) many (are there) saying, to my soul, i. e. so as to affect my heart, though really said of him, not directly addressed to him. (Compare Ps. xxxv. 3. Isai. li. 23.) There is ru> salvation, deliverance from evil, whether temporal, spiritual, or eternal. There is no salvation for him, the sufferer, and primarily the psalmist himself, in God^ i. e. in his power, or his purpose, implying either that God does not concern himself about such things, Ps. x. 11, or that he has cast the sufferer ofi; Ps. xlii. 4, 1 1 (3, 10). Ixxi. 1 1 . xxii. 8, 9. (7, 8). Matth. xxvii. 43. This is the language, not of despondent friends, but of malignant enemies, and is really the worst that even such could say of him. For, as Luther well says, all the temptations in the world, and in hell too, melted together into one, are nothing when compared with the temptation to despair of God's mercy. — The first stanza, or double verse, closes, like the second and fourth, with the word Selah. This term occurs seventy-three times in the Psalms and three times in the prophecy of Habakkuk. It corresponds to rest, either as a noun or verb, and like it is properly a musical term, but generally indicates a pause in the sense as well as the performance. See below, on Ps. ix. 17 (16). Like the titles, it invariably forms part of the text, and its omission by some editors and trans- lators is a mutilation of the word of God. In the case before us, it serves as a kind of pious ejaculation to express the writer's feelin2:s, and at the same time warns the reader to reflect on what he reads, just as our Saviour was accustomed to say, He that hath ears to hear let him hear.
PSALM III, 23
4 (3). From his earthly enemies and dangers he looks up to God, the source of his honours and his tried protector. The connexion is similar to that between the fifth and sixth verses of the second psalm. The and (not but) has reference to a tacit comparison or contrast. This is my treatment at the hands of men, and thoii, on the other hand, oh Lord, Jehovah, (art) a shield about me, or around me, i. e. coverino- my whole body, not merely a part of it, as ordinary shields do. This is a favourite metaphor with David; see Ps. vii. 11 (10). xviii. 3 (2). xxviii. 7. It occurs, however, more than once in the Pentateuch. See Gen. xv. 1. Deut. xxxiii. 29.— My honour, i. e. the source of the honours I enjoy, with particular refer- ence, no doubt, to his royal dignity, not as a secular distinction merely, but in connexion with the honour put upon him, as a type and representative of Christ. The honour thus bestowed by God he might well be expected to protect. My honour, and the {one) raising my head, i. e. making me look up from my despondency. The whole verse is an appeal to the Psalm- ist's previous experience of God's goodness, as a ground for the confidence afterwards expressed.
5 (4). (With) my voice to the Lord, Jehovah, I will call, or cry. The future form of the verb is probably intended to express continued or habitual action, as in Ps. i. 2. I cry and will cry still. And he hears me, or, then he hears me, i. e. when I call. The original construction shows, in a peculiar manner, the dependence of the last verb on the first, which can hardly be conveyed by an exact translation. The second verb is not the usual verb to hear, but one especially appropriated to the gracious hearing or answering of prayer. And he hears (or answers) me from his hill of holiness, or holy hill. This, as we learn from Ps. ii. 6, is Zion, the seat and centre of the old theocracy, the place where God visibly dwelt among his people. This designation of a certain spot, as the earthly resi-
24 PSALM III.
dence of God, was superseded by the incarnation of his Son, whose person thenceforth took the place of the old sanctuary. It was, therefore, no play upon words or fanciful allusion, when our Saviour " spake of the temple of his body" (John ii. 21), but a disclosure of the true sense of the sanctuary under the old system, as designed to teach the doctrine of God's dwelling with his people. The same confidence with which the Christian now looks to God in Christ the old believer felt towards the holy hill of Zion. Here again the strophe ends with a devout and meditative pause, denoted as before by Selah.
6 (5). /, even I, whose case you regarded as so desperate, have lain down, ayid slept, {and) awaked, notwithstanding all these dangers, for the Lord, Jeliovah, will sustain me, and I therefore have no fears to rob me of my sleep. This last clause is not a reason for the safety he enjoys, which would require the past tense, but for his freedom from anxiety, in reference to wiiich the future is entirely appropriate. This construction, the only one which gives the Hebrew words their strict and full sense, forbids the supposition that the Psalm before us was an evening song, composed on the night of David's flight from Jerusalem. If any such distinctions be admissible or necessary, it may be regarded as a morning rather than an evening hymn.
7 (6). The fearlessness implied in the preceding verse is here expressed. / tvill owt he afraid of myriads, or multitudes, the Hebrew word being used both in a definite and vague sense. It also contains an allusion to the first verb in v. 2 (1), of which it is a derivative. I will not he afraid of myriads of people, either in the sense of persons, men, or by a poetic license for the people, i. e. Israel, the great mass of whom had now revolted. Whom they, my enemies, have set, or posted, rimnd ahoiU against me. This is a simpler and more accurate
PSALM 111. 25
construction than the reflexive one, wlio have set {themselves) against me round about, althousfh the essential meanins; still remains the same. The sum of the whole verse is, that the same courage, which enabled him to sleep without disturbance m the midst of enemies and dangers, still sustained him when those enemies and dangers were presented to his waking senses.
8 (7). That this courage was not founded upon self-reliance, he now shows by asking God for that which he before ex- pressed his sure hope of obtaining. Arise, oh Lord, Jehovah ! This is a common scriptural mode of calling upon God to mani- fest his presence and his power, either in wrath or favour. By a natural anthropomorphism, it describes the intervals of such manifestations as periods of inaction or of slumber, out of which he is besought to rouse himself. Save me, even me, of whom they say, there is no help for him in God. See above, V. 3 (2). Save me, oh my God, mine by covenant and mutual engagement, to whom I therefore have a right to look for deliverance and protection. This confidence is warranted moreover by experience. For thou hast, in former exigencies, smitten all my enemies, without exception, {on the) cheek or jaw, an act at once violent and insulting. See 1 Kings xxii. 24. Micah iv. 14 (v. 1.) Lam. iii. 30. The teeth of the tvicked, here identified with his enemies, because he was the champion and representative of God's cause, thou hast broken, and thus rendered harmless. The image present to his mind seems to be that of wild beasts eager to devour him, under which form his enemies are represented in Ps. xxvii. 2.
9 (8). To the Lord, Jehovah, the salvation, which I need and hope for, is or belongs, as to its only author and dispenser. To him therefore he appeals for the bestowment of it, not on himself alone, but on the church of which he was the visible
VOL. I 2
26 PSALM IV.
and temporary head. On thy people {be) thy blessing I This earnest and disinterested intercession for God's people forms a noble close or winding up of the whole psalm, and is therefore preferable to the version, on thy p)^ople (is) thy blessing, wiiich, though equally grammatical, is less significant, and indeed little more than a repetition of the fact asserted in the first clause, whereas this is really an importunate petition founded on it. The whole closes, like the first and second stanzas, with a solemn and devout pause. Selah.
PSALM IV,
The Psalmist prays God to deliver him from present as from past distresses, v. 2(1.) He assures the haters of his regal dig- nity, that God bestowed it and will certainly protect it, vs. 3, 4 (2, 3.) He exhorts them to quiet submission, righteousness, and trust in God, vs. 5, 6 (4, 5.) He contrasts his own satisfaction, springing from such trust, with the hopeless disquietude of others, even in the midst of their enjoyments, vs. 7, 8 (6, 7.) He closes with an exquisite proof of his tranquillity by falling asleep, as it were, before us, under the divine protection, v. 9 (8.) The resemblance of the last verse to v. 6 (5) of the pre- ceding psalm, together with the general similarity of structure, shows that, like the first and second, they were meant to form a pair or double psalm. For the reasons given in explaining Ps, iii. 6 (5), the third may be described as a morning and the fourth as an evening psalm. The historical occasion is of course the same in both, though mentioned only in the title of the third,
PSALM IV. 27
while the musical directions are given in the title of the fourth. The absence of personal and local allusions is explained by the object of the composition, which was not to express private feelings merely, but to furnish a vehicle of pious sentiment for other sufferers and the church at large.
1 . To the chief musician, literally the overseer or superin- tendent, of any work or labour (2 Chron. ii. 1, 17. xxxiv. 12), and of the temple music in particular (1 Chron. xv. 21.) The psalm is described as belonging to him, as the performer, or as intended /or him, to be given to him. This shows that it was written for the use of the ancient church, and not for any merely private purpose. That this direction was not added by a later hand, is clear from the fact that it never appears in the latest psalms. The same formula occurs at the beginning of fifty-three psalms, and at the close of the one in the third chap- ter of Habakkuk. A more specific musical direction follows. In, on or with, stringed instruments. This may either qualify chief musician, as denoting the leader in that particular style of performance, or direct him to perform this particular psalm with that kind of accompaniment. A psalm to David, i. e. belonging to him as the author, just as it belonged to the chief musician, as the performer. The original expression is the same in both cases. Of David conveys the sense correctly, but is rather a paraphrase than a translation.
2 (1). The psalm opens with a prayer for deliverance founded on previous experience of God's mercy. In my calling, when I call, hear me, in the pregnant sense of hearing favourably, hear and answer me, grant me what I ask. Oh my God of righteousness, my righteous God ! Compare my hill of holi- ness, Ps. ii. 6, and his hill of holiness, Ps. iii. 5 (4). The appeal to God, as a God of righteousness, implies the justide of tlie Psalmist's cause, and shows that he asks nothin£? incon-
28 PSALM IV.
sistent with God's holiness. The same rule should govern all oar prayers, which must be impious if they ask God to deny himself. The mercy here asked is no new or untried favour. It is because he has experienced it before that he dares to ask it now. In the pressure^ or confinement, a common figure for distress, which I have heretofore experienced, thou hast widened, or made room, for me, the corresponding figure for relief. All he asks is that this may be repeated. Have mercy upon ine, or he gracious unto me, now as in former times, and hear my prayer. This appeal to former mercies, as a ground for claiming new ones, is characteristic of the Bible and of true religion. Among men, past favours rq,ay forbid all further ex- pectations ; but no siich rule applies to the Divine compassions. The more we draw from this source, the more copious and exhaustless it becomes.
3 (2). ^ons of man! In Hebrew, as in Greek, Latin, and German, there are two words answering to maji, one generic and the other specific. When placed in opposition to each other, they denote men of high and low degree, as in Ps. xlix. 3 (2.) Ixii. 10 (9.) Prov. viii. \. It seems better, therefore, to give the phrase here used its emphatic sense, as signifying men of note or eminence, rather than the vague one of men in general or human beings. This agrees moreover with the probable occasion of this psalm, viz. the rebellion of Absalom, in which the leading men of Israel were involved. To tvhat {titne), i. e. how long, or to ivhat (^point), degree, of wickedness ; most probably the former. How long {shall) my honour, not merely personal but official, {be) for shame, i. e. be so accounted, or {be converted) into shame, by my humiliation ? David never loses sight of his religious dignity, as a theocratical king and a type of the Messiah, or of the insults off"ered to the latter in liis person. The question, how longl impjies that it had lasted lono" enough, nay too long, even when it first began, in other
PSALM IV. 29
words that it was wrong from the beginning. (Hoiv long) loill ye love vanity, or a vain thing, in the sense both of a fooUsh hopeless undertalving, and of something morally defective or worthless. The same word is used above in reference to the insurrection of the nations against God and Christ (Ps. ii. 1), {How long) will ye seek a lie, i. e. seek to realize a vain imagination or to verify a false pretension, with particular refer- ence perhaps to the deceitful policy of Absalom (2 Sam. xv. 4, 7.) As the love of the first clause denotes the bent of their affections, so the seek of this clause signifies the acting out of their internal dispositions. Compare Ps. xxxiv. 15 (14) and Zeph. ii. 3. The feeling of indignant surprise, implied in the interrogation, is expressed still further by a solemn pause. Selah. See above, on Ps. iii. 3 (2). The position of this word, here and in v. 5 (4) below, seems to forbid the division of the psalm into strophes or stanzas of equal length.
4 (3). The pause at the close of the preceding verse ex- presses feeling. The connexion of the verses, as to sense, is as intimate as possible. The and at the beginning of the verse before us has reference to the exhortation implied in the fore- going question. (See above, on Ps. ii. 6.) Cease to love vanity and seek a lie, and know, be assured, that the Lordy Jehovah, hath set apart, the same verb used to signify the segregation of Israel from the rest of men (Ex. viii. 18. ix. 4. xi. 7. xxxiii. 16), here applied to the designation of an indi- vidual to the highest theocratical dignity. The Lord hath set apart for himself, for his own service, the execution of his own plans, and the promotion of his own honour. It was not therefore an attack on David, but on God himself and the Messiah whom he represented. The Hebrew word "l^pn^ de- rived from "ipri love to God or man, may either signify an ob- ject of the divine mercy, or one actuated by religious love. If both ideas are included, which is altogether probable, neither
30 PSALM IV.
godly nor any other single word in English is an adequate translation. The predominant idea seems to be the passive one, so that the words are not so much descriptive of religions character as of divine choice : and know that the Lord hath set apart for the accomplishment of his own purpose one selected in his sovereign mercy for that purpose. This is mentioned as a proof that their hostility \vas vain, and that the prayer of v. 2 (1) would certainly be heard and answered.. This followed as a necessary consequence from the relation which the Psalmist bore to God, not only as a godly man, but as a theocratic sovereign. The Lord, Jehovah, will hear, in my calling, when I call, unto him. The terms of the open- ing petition are here studiously repeated, so as to connect the prayer itself with the expression of assured hope that it will be answered.
5 (4). The address to his enemies is still continued, but merely as a vehicle of truth and his own feelings. Rage and sin not, i. e. do not sin by raging, as you have done, against me, the Lord's Anointed, and indirectly therefore against himself. This construction of the Hebrew words, though not the most obvious or agreeable to usage, agrees best with the context and with the Septuagint version, adopted by Paul in Ephesians iv. 26, where the precept, he ye angry and sin not, seems to be a positive prohibition of anger, i, e. of its wilful continuance, as appears from what the Apostle adds, perhaps in allusion to the last clause of the verse before us. Some, it is true, have understood Paul as meaning, be angry upon just occasions, but be careful not to sin by groundless anger or excess. But even if this be the sense of the words there, it is entirely inappro- priate here, where the anger of the enemies was altogether sinful, and they could not therefore be exhorted to indulge it. There is still another meaning Avhich the Hebrew words will bear. The verb strictly means to be violently moved with any
PSALM IV. 31
passion or emotion, whether anger (Prov. xxix. 9), grief (2 Sam. xviii. 33), or fear (Isai. xxxii. 11.) It might therefore be translated here, tremble, stand in awe, mid sin not. But tliis, although it yields a good sense, cuts off all connexion between David's words and those of Paul, and makes the explanation of the latter still more difficult. The English word rage not only conveys the sense of the original correctly, but is probably connected with it in its etymology. — The command to cease from raging against God and his Anointed is still further carried out in the next clause. Say in your heart, to yourselves, and not aloud, much less with clamour, w^hat you have to say. The Hebrew verb does not mean to speak but to so.y, and, like this English word, is always followed by the words spoken, except in a few cases where they can be instantly supplied from the context. E. g. Ex. xix. 2-5, " So Moses went unto the people and said (not spake) to them" what God had just commanded him. Gen. iv. 8, " And Cain said to Abel his brother (not talked with him)," let us go into the field, as appears from what immediately follows. Compare 2 Chron. ii. 10 (11.) It might here be rendered, say {so) in your heart, i. e. say we will no longer sin by raging against David ; but the other is more natural, and agrees better with what follows. Say (what you do say) in your heart, iipon your bed, i. e. in the silence of the night, often spoken of in Scripture as the season of reflection (Eph. iv, 26), and he still, be silent, implying repentance and submission to authority. The effect of this exhortation to be still is beautifully strengthened by a pause in the performance. Selah.
6 (5). Before his enemies can be successful they must have a fear of God and a faith, of which they are entirely destitute. This confirmation of the Psalmist's hopes is clothed in the form of an exhortation to his enemies. Offer offerings, or sacrifice sacrifices, of righteousness, i. e. righteous sacrifices.
32 PSALM IV.
prompted by a right motive, and implying a correct view of the divine nature. There may be an allusion to the hypocrit- ical services of Absalom, and especially his pretended vow (2 Sam. XV. 7, 8.) The form of expression here is borrowed from Deut. xxxiii. 19. As an indispensable prerequisite to such a service, he particularly mentions faith. A7id trust ill the Lord, Jehovah, not in any human help or temporal ad- vantasces.
7 (6). Many {there are) saying, Who ivill show lis good? This may be an allusion to the anxious fears of his companions in misfortune, but is more probably a picture of the disquiet and unsatisfied desire arising from the want of faith and right- eousness described in the foreo:oin2: verse. Of all who do not trust in God it may be said, that they are continually asking tvho U'ill shoiv ns good, who will show us Avherein happiness consists, and how we may obtain it ? In contrast with this restlessness of hope or of despair, he shows his own acquaint- ance with the true source of tranquillity by a petition founded on the ancient and authoritative form in which the High Priest was required to bless the people (Num. vi. 24 — 26.) •' The Lord bless thee and keep thee ; the Lord make his face shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee ; the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace." Two of these solemn benedictions are here mingled in a prayer. Lift upon us the light of thy countenance, oh Lord, Jehovah! The light of the countenance is a favourite figure in the Psalms, for a favourable aspect or expression. See Ps. xxxi. 17 (16.) xliv. 4 (3). Ixxx. 4 (3.) The "lifting up may have reference to the rising of the sun, or be put in opposition to the act of looking lown or away from any object, as a token of aversion or dis- pleasure. TJpo7i us extends the prayer to his companions in misfortune, or to all God's people, or to men in general, as if he had said, this is the only hope of our lost race. The pliural
PSALM IV. 33
form may be compared with those in the Lord's Prayer, as indicating the expansive comprehensive spirit of true piety.
8 (7). The faith, of which his enemies were destitute, he possessed in such a measure, that the mere anticipation of God's favour made him happier, in the midst of his distresses, than his foes in the actual possession of their temporal advan- tages. Thou hast given gladness in tny heart, not to my heart, but to me in my heart, i. e. a real, inward, heartfelt gladness, more than the time, or more than when, i. e. more than they ever enjoyed when, their corn and their ivine abounded, or increased. The original nouns properly denote the new corn and wine of the passing year, the fresh fruits of the field and vineyard. The reference may be either to the pro- verbial joy of harvest and of vintage, or to the abundant stores of David's enemies contrasted with his own condition when dependent on a faithful servant for subsistence (2 Sam. xvi. 1,2.)
9 (8). With this faith in the divine protection, he has no- thing even to disturb his rest. In 'peace, tranquillity, com- posure, at once, or at the same time, by the same act, I loill lie down and will sleep, or rather go to sleep, fall asleep, which is the meaning of the Hebrew verb in Gen. ii. 21. xli. 5. 1 Kings xix, 5, and elsewhere. Nothing could be more natural and beautiful, as a description of complete tranquillity, than this trait borrowed from the physical habits of the young, the healthy, and those free from all anxiety, to whom the act of lying down and that of sleeping are almost coincident. The ground of this security is given in the last clause. For thou^ Lord, Jehovah, alone in safety, or security, wilt make me du'ell. The future form, though not exclusive of the present (see above, on Ps. i. 2), should be retained because it indicates the Psalmist's assured Hope of something not yet realized, and
VOL. I. 2^
34 PSALM IV.
is thus in perfect keeping with v. 8 (7.) — Alone may be con- nected with what goes before : for thou Lord, and no other, thou, even though all other friends and advanta2;es should fail me, art sufficient to protect me and provide for me. Or it may- be connected with what follows : alone, in safety, thou tvilt tnake me divell. There is then an allusion to the repeated application of the same Hebrew word to Israel as dwelling apart from other nations under God's protection and in the en- joyment of his favour. See Num. xxiii. 9. Dent, xxxiii. 28, 29, and compare Micah vii, 14. Jer. xlix. 31. Deut. iv. 7, 8. 2 Sam, vii. 23. What was originally said of the people is then transferred, as in v. 4 (3) above, to David, not as a private member of the ancient church, however excellent, but as its theocratic head and representative, in whom, as afterwards more perfectly in Christ, the promises to Israel were verified and realized. This last interpretation of alone is so striking, and agrees so well with the other allusions in this context to the Pentateuch, e. g. to Lev. xxv. 18, 19, and Deut. xxxiii. 12 in this verse, and to Num. vi. 24 — 26 in v. 7 (6), that some combine the two constructions, and suppose alone to have a kind of double sense, as if he had said, thou alone wilt make me dwell alone. — Although the form of this verse has respect to the particular historical occasion of the psalm, the sentiment is so exj^ressed as to admit of an unforced application to the case of every suffering believer, and to the distresses of the church at large, for whose use it was not only left on record but originally written.
PSALM V. 35
PSALM V.
The Psalmist prays for the divine help, v. 2 (1), on the ground that Jehovah is his King ^nd his God, v. 3 (2), that he early and constantly invokes his aid, v. 4 (3), that the ene- mies, from whom he seeks to be delivered, are the enemies of God, vs. 5, 6 (4, 5), and as such must inevitably perish, v. 7 (6), while he, as the representative of God's friends, must be rescued, v. 8 (7). He then goes over the same ground afresh, asking again to be protected from his enemies, v. 9 (8), again describing them as desperately wicked, v. 10 (9), again appealing to God's justice to destroy them, v. 11 (10), and again anticipating certain triumph, v. 12 (11), on the ground of God's habitual and uniform dealino" with the ricrhteous, v. 13 (12). As the two preceding psalms appeared to constitute a pair, so this one seems to contain such a pair or double psalni within itself. It is also obvious, that this is but a fu^rther vari- ation of the theme which runs through the preceding psalms, and therefore an additional proof that their arrangement in the book is not fortuitous or arbitrary. If v. 4 (3) of this psalm be supposed to mark it as a morning hymn, its affinity to the two before it becomes still more close and striking.
1 . To (or for) the Chief Musician. See above, on Ps. iv. 1. To (or for) Nehiloth. This, though undoubtedly a part of the original inscription, is obscure and enigmatical. Its very obscurity indeed may be regarded as a proof of its an- tiquity and genuineness. Some understand it to mean flutes^ or wind-instruments in general, as Neginoth, in the title of the
36
PSALM V.
fourth psalm, means stringed instruments. The sense woul 1 then be : (to be sung) to (an accompaniment of) flutes or wind- instruments. But as the Hebrew word is nowhere else used in this sense, and the preposition here employed is not the one prefixed to names of instruments, and flutes are nowhere men- tioned as a part of the temple music, others make Nehiloth the name of a tune, or of another song to the melody of wiiich this was to be adapted : (to be sung) to (the air of) Nehiloth. Others follow the ancient versions in making it refer, not to the musical performance, but the subject of the psalm : (as) to inheritances, lots, or destinies, viz. those of the righteous and the wicked. This is favoured by the circumstance, that most of the other enigmatical inscriptions of the psalms may be more probably explained as having reference to their theme or subject than in any other manner. — The title closes, as in the foregoing psalm, by ascribing it to David, as its author. Nor is there any thing, as we shall see, to militate against the truth of this inscription.
2 (1). To my ivorcls, oh Loi'd, Jehovah, give ear, perceive ■my tlioiight. Attend not only to my vocal and audible peti- tions, but to my unexpressed desires, to those " groanings which
.cannot be uttered," but are no less significant to God than lan- guage. (Rom. viii. 26, 27.) The second verb suggests the idea of attention, as well as that of simple apprehension.
3 (2). Hearken to the voice of my crying, or my cry for help, to which the Hebrew word is always specially applied. My king and my God, not as a mere creator and providential ruler, but as the covenant God and king of Israel, whom David represented. As he was himself the king of Israel, so God was his king, the lord paramount or sovereign, in whose right he reigned. This address in\'olves a reason why his prayer must be heard. God, as the king of his people, could not deny
PSALM V. ^7
them his protection, and they asked no other. For to thee, and thee only, ivill I pray. As if he had said : it is in this capa- city that I invoke thee, and I therefore must be heard. This is a specimen of that na^Q^oia^ or freedom of speech towards God, which is recognized as an effect and evidence of faith, in the New as well as the Old Testament. Heb. iv. 16. x. 19. 35. 1 John ii. 28. iii. 21. iv. 17. v. 14.
4 (3). Oh Lord, Jehovah, {in) the morning thou shalt hear my voice. This is not so much a request to be heard as a resolution to persist in prayer. The reference may be either to stated hours of prayer or to early devotion as a proof of earnestness and faith. See Ps. Iv. 18 (17.) Ixxxviii. 14 (13). {Iri) the mor?iing I will set (my prayer) in order, to (or for) thee. There is here a beautiful allusion to the Mosaic ritual, which is unavoidably lost in a translation. The Hebrew verb is the technical term used in the Old Testament to signify the act of arranging the wood upon the altar (Gen. xxii. 9. Lev. i. 7. 1 Kings xviii. 33) and the shewbread on the table (Exod. xl. 23. Lev. xxiv. 6, 8.) It would therefore necessarily sug- gest the idea of prayer as an oblation, here described as a kind of morning sacrifice to God. And I ivill look out, or watch, for an answer to my prayers. The image presented is that of one looking from a wall or tower in anxious expectation of approaching succour. A similar use of the same verb occurs in Hab. ii. 1 and Micah vii. 7. True faith is not contented with the act of supplication, but displays itself in eager expect- ation of an answer.
5 (4.) Here, as elsewhere, the Psalmist identifies his cause with God's, and anticipates the downfal of his enemies because they are sinners and therefore odious in God's sight. For not a God delighting in %oickedness {art) thou, as might appear to be the case if these should go unpunished. It is necessary,
38 PSALM V.
therefore, for the divine honour, that they should not go un- punished. Not ivith thee, as thy guest or friend, shall evil, or the hod {inan), dwell. For an opposite use of the same figure, see below, Ps. xv. 1. Ixi. 5 (4.) It is still implied, that the im- punity of sinners would appear as if God harboured and abetted them, and therefore must be inconsistent with his honour as a holy God.
6 (5). What was said in the preceding verse of sin is here, to prevent misapprehension, said of sinners. They shall not stand, the proud, or insolent, here put for wicked men in general and for the Psalmist's enemies in particular, before thine eyes. Thou canst not bear the presence of thy moral opposites. Sin is not only opposed to God's will, but repug- nant to his nature. By ceasing to hate it, he would cease to be holy, cease to be perfect, cease to be God. This idea is expressed more directly in the other clause. Thou hast hated, and must still hate, all doers of iniquity. This last word is originally a negative, meaning inanity or nonentity, but like several other negatives in Hebrew, is employed as a strong term to denote moral deficiency and worthlessness.
7 (6.) As the preceding verse extends what was said of sin in the abstract to personal offenders, so here what was said of the divine dispositions is applied to divine acts. That which God hates he must destroy. Particular classes of transgressors are here put, as before, by way of specimen or sample, for the whole ; with special reference, however, to the sins of David's enemies. Thou ivilt destroy speakers of falsehood ; see above, on Ps. iv, 3 (2.) A man of blood, literally bloods, the plural form being commonly used where there is reference to blood- guiltiness or murder. See Gen. iv. 10, 11. Ps. li. 16 (14.) A man of blood and fraud, a bloody and deceitful man, the hardy Jehovah, will ablior; he must and will show his abhor-
PSALM V. 39
rence by the punishment of such offenders. This confident anticipation of God's righteous retributions really involves a prayer for the deliverance of the Psalmist from his enemies.
8 (7.) For the same reason he is equally confident in the anticipation of his own deliverance. Since his enemies must perish as the enemies of God, he must escape, not on account of his own merit, nor simply as an object of God's favour, but as the champion of his cause, his earthly vicegerent, the type and representative of his Messiah. And I, as distinguished from these sinners, in the abundance of thy mercy, which excludes all reliance on his own strength or goodness, will come to thy house, the tabernacle set up on Mount Zion by David. I ivill worship, literally prostrate or bow myself, to- wards thy temple of holiness, thy holy temple, or rather palace, so called as the residence of Israel's divine king, and therefore no less applicable to the tabernacle than the temple. See 1 Sam. i. 9. iii. 3. Ps. xxvii. 4. xxviii. 2. Towards, not in, because the worshippers did not go into the sanctuary itself, but worshipped in the court, with their faces turned towards the place of God's manifested presence. Such usages are now superseded by the advent of the true sanctuary. See above, on Ps. iii. 5 (4.) I7i thy fear, the reverence engendered even by the view and the experience of God's mercy. There may be an allusion in this verse to David's painful sense of his exclu- sion from the house of God (2 Sam. xv. 25) ; but it cannot be merely an anticipation of renewed acc^ to the sanctuary, which was equally open to all others, and could not therefore be used to indicate the contrast between his condition and that of others. The verse is rather an engagement to acknowledge God's delivering mercy in the customary manner. See below, Ps. Ixvi. 13. As if he had said : while my enemies perish by the hand of God, I shall be brought by his mercy to give thank? for my deliverance at his sanctuary.
40 PSALM V.
9 (8.) The Psalmist here begins his prayer and argument anew, pursuing the same order as before. Oil Lord, Jehovah, lead me, guide me safely, in thy righteousness, i. e. in the exercise of that same justice which destroys my enemies, on accoimt of my enemies, that they may not triumph ; make straight before iny face thy way, i. e. mark out a safe and easy path for me to tread. The explanation of the %vay as that of duty and obedience, although not at variance with scriptural usage, is less suited to the context here, in which the prayer throughout is for protection and deliverance.
10 (9.) The same reason as before is now assigned for his deliverance from his enemies, viz. because they were the ene- mies of God, and they were such because they were atrocious sinners. For there is nothing in his onouth, i. e. the mouth of any one of them, or of all concentrated in one ideal person, sure or certain, i. e. true. Their inside, their heart, their real disposition, as distinguished from the outward appearance, (w) mischiefs, injuries, or crimes, consists of nothing else. A grave opened, to receive the victim, {is) their throat, like that of a devouring monster. Or the throat may be mentioned as an organ of speech, as in Ps. cxlix. 6. cxv. 7, and compared with the grave as a receptacle of corruption or a place of destruction. Their tongue they smooth, or make smooth, by hypocrisy or flattery, as the wicked woman is said to make her words smooth^ Pro v. ii. 16. vii. 5. The Septuagint version of this clause is quoted by Paul (Rom. iii. 13), with several other passages from the Old Testament, as a strong description of human depravity. The last words are rendered in that version, ' with their tongues they have used craft or deceit,' an idea really included in the literal translation.
11 (10.) Condemn them, literally make them guilty, i. e. re- cognize and treat them as such, oh God ! They shall fall, i. e.
PSALM V. 41
they must, they cannot but fall, a common figure for destruction (Ps. xxxvi. 13. cxli. 10), from their plans, i. e. before they can accomplish them, or in consequence, by means of them. (Com- pare Hos. xi. 6.) In the fullness, or abundance, of their sins, thrust them forth, cast them out from thy presence, and down from their present exaltation. For they have rebelled against thee, not me, or against me only as thy instrument and repre- sentative. Or the opposition may be between rebelling against God and simply sinning against man. The imperative and future forms, in this verse, both express the certainty of the event, with an implication of approving acquiescence. Such expressions, in the Psalms, have never really excited or en- couraged a spirit of revenge in any reader, and are no more fitted to have that effect than the act of a judge who condemns a criminal to death or of the officer who executes the sentence. The objections often urged against such passages are not natural, but spring from over-refinement and a false view of the Psalms as expressions of mere personal feeling. See below, on Ps. vii. 13 (12.)
12 (11.) The transition and contrast are the same as in v. 8 (7) above. While the wicked perish, the righteous shall have cause for everlasting joy. And all {those) trusting in thee, making thee their refuge, shall be glad; forever shall they shout (or sing) for joy, and (not wit'hout cause, for) thon loilt cover over (or protect) them ; and in thee, in thy presence and thy favour, shall exult, or triumph, (the) lovers of thy name, i. e. of thy manifested excellence, which is the usual sense of this expression in the Old Testament. The believers and lovers of God's name, here spoken of, are not merely friends of the Psalmist who rejoice in his deliverance, but the great congre- gation of God's people, to which he belonged, and of which he was the representative, so that his deliverance was theirs, and
42 PSALM VI.
a rational occasion of their joy, not only on his account but on their own.
13 (12.) The confident hope expressed in the foregoing verse was not a groundless or capricious one, but founded on the nature of God and the uniform tenor of his dispensations. The Psalmist knows what God will do in this case, because he knows what he does and will do still in general. For thou wilt bless, and art wont to bless, the righteous, the opposite of those described in vs. 5 — 7 (4 — 6) and 10, 11 (9, 10), oh Loi'd, Jehovah I Like the shield, as the shield protects the soldier, {so with) favour thou ivilt surroujid him, or enclose him, still referring to the righteous. See the same comparison in Ps. iii. 4 (3.) The confident assertion that God will do so, implies that he has done so, and is wont to do so, to the righteous as a class. And this affords a reasonable ground for the belief, expressed in the preceding verse, that he will do so also in the present case.
PSALM VI.
The Psalmist prays for the removal of God's chastisements, v. 2 (1), because they have already brought him very low, vs. 3, 4 (2, 3), because the divine glory will be promoted by his rescue, v. 5 (4), and obscured by his destruction, v. 6 (o), and because, unless speedily relieved, he can no longer bear up under his sufferings, vs. 7, 8 (6, 7.) He is nevertheless sure of the divine compassion, v. 9 (8.) His prayer is heard and will
PSALM VI. 43
be answered, v. 10 (9), in the defeat and disappointment of his enemies, by whose malignant opposition his distress was caused, V. 11 (10.) This reference to his enemies constitutes the Unk of connexion between this psalm and the foregoing series, and maintains the contrast, running through that series, be- tween two great classes of mankind, the righteous and the wicked, the subjects of Messiah and the rebels against him, the friends and foes of the theocracy, the friends and foes of David, as an individual, a sovereign, and a type of the Messiah. At the same time, this psalm differs wholly from the others in its tone of querulous but humble grief, which has caused it to be reckoned as the first of the Penitential Psalms. This tone is suddenly exchanged, in v. 9 (8), for one of confident assur- ance, perfectly in keeping with what goes before and true to nature.
1. For the Chief Musicia7t, (to be sung) ivith stringed instruments ujdoji the eighth. This last word corresponds exactly to our. octave ; but its precise application in the ancient music, we have now no means of ascertaining. An instrument of eight strings, which some suppose to be the sense, could hardly be described by the ordinal number eighth. We probably lose little by our incapacity to understand these technical expressions, while at the same time their very ob- scurity may serve to confirm our faith in their antiquity and genuineness, as parts of the original composition. This psalm, like the three which immediately precede it, describes itself as a psalm of (or by) David, belonging to David, as its author. The correctness of this statement there is as little- reason to dis- pute in this as in either of the other cases.
2 (1). Oh Lord, Jehovah, do not in thine anger rebuke me, and do 7iot in thy heat, or hot displeasure, chasten me. Both the original verbs properly denote the conviction and reproof of
44 PSALM VI.
an offender in words, but are here, as often elsewhere, applied to providential chastisements, in which God speaks with a re- proving voice. This is not a prayer for the mitigation of the punishment, like that in Jer. x. 24, but for its removal, as appears from the account of the answer in vs. 9 — 11 (8 — 10.) Such a petition, Avhile it indicates a strong faith, at the same time recognises the connexion between suffering and sin. In the very act of asking for relief, the Psalmist owns that he is justly punished. This may serve to teach us how far the con- fident tone of the preceding psalms is from betraying a self- righteous spirit, or excluding the consciousness of personal unworthiness and ill-desert. The boldness there displayed is not that of self-reliance, but of faith.
3 (2.) Have 7nercy upon me, or he g7'acious unto me, oh Lord, Jehovah, for drooping, languishing, <2W I. The original construction is, for I am (o?2e who) droojos or withers, like a blighted plant. Like a child complaining to a parent, he describes the greatness of his suffering as a reason for relieving him. Heal 7ne oh Lord, Jehovah, for shaken, agitated with distress and terror, are my bones, here mentioned as the strength and framework of the body. This might seem to indicate corporeal disease as the whole from which he prays to be delivered. But the absence of any such allusion in the latter part of the psalm, and the explicit mention there of enemies as the occasion of his sufferings, shows that the pain of body here described was that arising from distress of mind, and which could only be relieved by the removal of the cause. To regard the bodily distress as a mere figure for internal anguish, would be wholly arbitrary and destructive of all sure interpre- tation. The physical effect here ascribed to moral causes is entirely natural and confirmed by all experience.
4 (3). The Psalmist himself guards against the error of sup-
PSALM VI. 45
posing that his worst distresses were corporeal. Aiid my soul, as well as my body, or more than my body, which merely sym- pathizes with it, is greatlij agitated, terror-stricken, the same word that was applied to the bones in the preceding verse. The description of his suffering is then interrupted by another apos- trophe to God. And thou, oh Lord, Jehovah, until when, how long ? The sentence is left to be completed by the reader : how long wilt thou leave me thus to suffer ? how long before thou wilt appear for my deliverance ? This question, in its Latin form, Domine quousque, was Calvin's favourite ejacula- tion in his times of suffering, and especially of painful sick-
ness.
5 (4.) The expostulatory question is now followed by direct petition. Return, oh Lord, Jehovah, deliver my soul, my life, my self, from this impending death. As God seems to be ab- sent Avhen his people suffer, so relief is constantly described as his return to them. {Oh) save me, a still more comprehensive term than that used in the first clause, for the sake of thy mer- cy, not merely according to it, as a rule or measure, but to vin- dicate it from reproach and do it honour, as a worthy end to be desired and acconiDlished.
6 (5.) As a further reason for his rescue, he now urges that without it God will lose the honour, and himself the happiness, of his praises and thanksgivings. For there is 7iot in death, or the state of the dead, thy remembrance, any remembrance of thee, hi Sheol, the grave, as a general receptacle, here paral- lel to death, and like it meaning the unseen world or state of the dead, ivho ivill acknowledge, or give thanks, to thee ? The Hebrew verb denotes that kind of praise called forth by the expe- rience of goodness. The question in the last clause is equivalent to the negative proposition in the first. This \^erse does not prove that David had no belief or expectation of a future state,
46 PSALM VI.
nor that the intermediate state is an unconscious one, but only that in this emergency he looks no further than the close of life, as the appointed term of thanksgiving and praise. Whatever might eventually follow, it was certain that his death would put an end to the praise of God, in that form and those circum- stances, to which he had been accustomed. See below, on Ps. XXX. 10 (9.) Ixxxviii. 11—13 (10—12.) cxv. 17, 18, and com- pare Isaiah xxxviii. 18. So far is the argument here urged from being weakened by our clearer knowledge of the future state, that it is greatly strengthened by the substitution of the second or eternal death.
7 (6). J am iveary in (or of) my groaning, I have become wearied with it, and unless I am relieved, I shall (still as hitherto) make my bed swim every night, tny couch with tears I shall dissolve, or make to flow. The uniform translation of the verbs as presents does not bring out their full meaning, or express the idea, suggested in the Hebrew by the change of tense, that the grief which had already become Avearisome must still continue without mitigation, unless God should interpose for his deliverance. Thus understood, the verse is not a mere description, but a disguised prayer.
8 (7.) Mine eye has failed, grown dim, a common symptom both of mental and bodily distress, from vexation, not mere grief, but grief mixed with indignation at my enemies. It has groicn old, dim like the eye of an old man, a still stronger ex- pression of the same idea, in (the midst of) all my enemies, or in (consequence of) all my enemies, i. e, of their vexatious conduct. Compare Ps. xxxi. 10 (9.) In these two verses he resumes the description of his own distress, in order to show that the argument in v. 6 (5) was appropriate to his case, as that of one draw'ing near to death, and therefore likely soon to lose the capacity and opportunity of praising God.
PSALM VI. 47
9 (8). Here the key abruptly changes from the tone of sor- rowful complaint to that of joyful confidence. No gradual transiJ;ion could have so successfully conveyed the idea, that the prayer of the psalmist has been heard and will be answered. The effect is like that of a whisper in the sufferer's ear, while still engrossed with his distresses, to assure him that they are about to terminate. This he announces by a direct and bold address to his persecuting enemies. Depart from me, all ye doers of iniquity, the same phrase that occurs in Ps. v. 6 (5.) The sense is not that he will testify his gratitude by abjuring all communion with the wicked, but that his assurance of di- vine protection relieves him from all fear of his wicked foes. When God arises, then his enemies are scattered. This sense is required by the last clause of v. 8 (7), and confirmed by a comparison with v. 11 {\{))—For the Lord, Jehovah, hath heard the voice of my iveeping, or my weeping voice. The mfrequency of silent grief is said to be characteristic of the orientals, and the same thing may be observed in Homer's pic- tures of heroic manners.
10 (9.) Jehovah hath heard my supplication. The assu- rance of this fact relieves all fear as to the future. Jehovah my prayer will receive. The change of tense is not unmeaning or fortuitous. The combination of the past and future represents the acceptance as complete and final, as already begun and certain to continue. The particular petition thus accepted is the one expressed or implied in the next verse.
11 (10.) Ashamed and confounded, i. e. disappointed and struck with terror, shall be all my enemies. The desire that they may be, is not expressed, but involved in the confident anticipation that they will be. In the second verb there is an obvious allusion to its use in vs. 3, 4 (2, 3.) As he had been terror-stricken, so shall they be. As they filled him with con-
48 PSALM VII.
sternation, so shall God fill them. They shall return^ turn l)ack from their assault repulsed ; they shall he ashamed, filled \vi th shame at their defeat ; and that not hereafter, (^?^) a ino- nient^ instantaneously.
PSALM VII.
The Psalmist still prays for deliverance from his enemies, Vs. 2, 3 (1, 2), on the ground that he is innocent of that where- with they charge him, vs. 4 — 6 (3 — 5.) He prays for justice to himself and on his enemies, as a part of that great judical process which belongs to God as the universal judge, vs. 7 — 10 (6 — 9.) He trusts in the divine discrimination between innocence and guilt, vs. 11, 12 (10, 11.) He anticipates God's vengeance on impenitejit offenders, vs. 13, 14 (12, 13.) He sees them forced to act as self-destroyers, vs. 15 — 17 (14 — IG.) At the same time he rejoices in God's mercy to himself, and to the whole class whom he represents, v. 18 (17.)
The penitential tone, ^vhich predominated in the sixth psalm, here gives way again to that of self-justification, perhaps be- cause the Psalmist here speaks no longer as an individual, but as the representative of the righteous or God's people. The two views which he thus takes of himself are perfectly con- sistent, and should be suffered to interpret one another.
1. Shiggaion, i. e. wandering, error. The noun occurs only here and, in the plural form, Hab. iii. 1, but the verb from
PSALM VII. 49
which it is derived is not uncommon, and is applied by Saul to his own errors with respect to David. 1 Sam. xxvi. 21. See also Ps. cxix. 10, 118. Hence some explain the word here as denoting moral error, sin, and make it descriptive of the subject of the psalm. See above, on Ps. v. 1. Still more in accordance with the literal meaning of the root is the opinion that it here denotes the wandering of David at the period when the psalm was probably conceived. In either case, it means a song of wandering or error, which he sang, in the literal sense, or in the secondary one of poetical com- position, as Virgil says, I sing the man and arms, i. e. they are the subject of my poem. To the Lord, Jehovah, to whom a large part of the psalm is really addressed. Concerning (or because of) the ivords of Cush the Benjamite. It is clear from vs. 4 — 6 (3 — 5), that the ivords referred to were calum- nious reports or accusations. These may have been uttered by one Cush, a Benjamite, who nowhere else appears in history. But as this very circumstance makes it improbable that he would have been singled out, as the occasion of this psalm, from among so many slanderers, some suppose Cush to be Shimei, who cursed David when he fled from Absalom (2 Sam. xvi. 5 — 13.) As the psalm, however, seems much better suited to the times of Saul, some suppose Cush, which is pro- perly the Hebrew name of Ethiopia, to be here an enigmatical name applied to Saul himself, in reference to the blackness of his heart, and perhaps to his incorrigible wickedness. See Jer. xiii. 23 and Amos ix. 7. The description Benjamite, is equally appropriate to Saul (1 Sam. ix. 1, 2. xvi. 5, 11) and Shimei, who indeed w^ere kinsmen. This explanation of the word Cush is less forced than it might otherwise appear, be- cause enigmatical descriptions of the theme are not unfrequent in the titles of the Psalms. See above, on Ps. v. 1, and be- low, on Ps. ix. 1. xxii. 1. liii. 1. Ivii. 1. Ix, 1.
VOL. I. , 3
50 PSALM VII.
2 (1). The Psalm opens with an expression of strong con- fidence in God, and a prayer founded on it. Oh Lord, Jeho- vah, 77iy God, not merely by creation but by special covenant, in thee, as such, and tiierefore in no other, / have trusted, and do still trust. This relation and this trust entitle him to audi- ence and deliverance, ^ave me frorii all my persecutoj-s, or pursuers, a term frequently employed in David's history. See 1 Sam. xxiv. 15 (14.) xxvi. 20. By these we are here to under- stand the whole class of worldly and ungodly men, of which Saul was the type and representative. The all suggests the urgency of the necessity, as a motive to immediate inter- j)osition. — And exti-icate me, or deliver me. The primary idea of the verb translated save is that of making room, enlarging. See above, on Ps. iv. 2 (1.)
3 (2.) Liest he tear, like a lio7i, 'my soul. The singular form, following the plural in the foregoing verse, may have particular reference to Saul, or to the class of which he was a type, personified as an ideal individual. The imagery of the verse is borrowed from the habits of wild beasts, with which David was familiar from a child. See 1 Sam. xvii. 34 — 37. The soul or life is mentioned as the real object of attack, and not as a mere periphrasis for the personal pronoun, as if my soul were equivalent to me. Rending, or breaking the bones, and there is none delivering, or with none to deliver.
4 (3.) He proceeds upon the principle that God will not hear the prayer of the wicked, and that he must hear that of the righteous. He proceeds, therefore, to assert his innocence, not his freedom from all sin, but from that particular offence with which he had been charged. Oh Lord, Jehovah, my God, as in V. 2 (1), if I have done this, which follows, or this of which I am accused, referring to " the Avords of Gush," the calum- nies, which gave occasion to the psalm itself. If there is.
PSALM VII. 51
with emphasis on the verb, which might have been omitted in Hebrew, and is therefore emphatic, if there is indeed, as my accusers say, perverseness, iniquity, in tny palms^ in the palms of my hands, here mentioned as instruments of evil. The apodosis of the sentence is contained in v. 6 (5) below.
5 (4.) If I have repaid my friend, one at peace with me, evil, and spoiled, plundered, {one) distressing me, acting as my enemy, without a cause. There seems to be an allusion here to the two periods of David's connexion with Saul, that of their friendly intercourse, and that of their open enmity. During neither of these had David been guilty of the sins charged upon him. He had not conspired against Saul while in his service (1 Sam. xxii, 7, 8), and when persecuted by him he had spared his life (1 Sam. xxiv. 10, 11.) Some suppose this last fact to be here referred to, and translate the second clause, yea I have delivered him that without cause is mine enemy. The Hebrew verb is certainly used elsewhere in this sense (2 Sam. xxii. 20. Ps. vi. 5), but its primary meaning seems to be that of stripping or spoiling a conquered enemy. The first construction above given is moreover much more natural, and agrees better with the grammatical dependence of the second verb upon the first.
6 (5.) His consciousness of innocence is expressed in the strongest manner by invoking the divine displeasure if the charge can be established. A71 enemy, or by poetic licence, the enemy, whether Saul or the ideal enemy referred to in v. 3 (2,) shall p)ursue, or tnay pursue, which is equivalent to say- ing, let the enemy pursue my soul, the figure being still the same as in v. 3 (2) above, but carried out with more minute- ness, and overtake (it), and trample to the earth tny life, and 'W,y honour in the dust make dwell, i. e. completely prostrate and degrade. Some regard honour as equivalent to soul aiid
52 PSALM VII.
life, the intelligent and vital part, which is the glory of man's constitution. But the analogy of Ps. iii. 4 (3) and iv. 3 (2) makes it more probable that in this case also there is reference to the Psalmist's personal and official honour. The allusion, however, is not so much to posthumous disgrace as to present humiliation. All this he imprecates upon himself if really guilty of the charges calumniously brought against him. The solemnity of this appeal to God, as a witness and a judge, is enhanced by the usual pause. Selah.
7 (6.) Upon this protestation of his innocence he founds a fresh prayer for protection and deliverance. Arise, arouse thy self, oh Lord, Jehovah. See above, on Ps. iii. 8 (7.) Arise in thhie anger, raise thyself, or he exalted, in, i. e. amidst, the r agings of my enemies. The idea because of tny enemies is rather implied than expressed. The sense directly intended seems to be that as his enemies are ras-ino:, it is time for God to arise in anger too. As they rage against hnn, he calls upon God to rise in anger against them. And aivake, a still stronger figure than arise, because implying sleep as well as inactivity. Aivake unto me, at my call and for my benefit. Judgtnent hast thou co7nnianded or ordained. Let that judgment now be executed. He appeals to the general administration of God's justice, as a ground for expecting it in this one case. As it was part of the divine plan or purpose to do justice, both on friends and foes, here was an opportunity to put it into execution.
8 (7.) Aiid the congregation of natioiis shall surround thee, which in this connexion is equivalent to saying, let it sur- round thee. The most probable sense of these obscure words is, appear in the midst of the nations as their judge. The same connexion between God's judicial government in general and his judicial acts in a particular case, that is implied in the
PSALM VII. 53
preceding verse, is here embodied in the figure of an oriental king dispensing justice to liis subjects in a popular assembly. And above it, the assembly, to the high place, or the height, return thou. This may either mean, return to heaven when the judgment is concluded, or, which seems more natural, resume thy seat as judge above this great ideal congregation. Above it, thus assembled to receive thee, to the high place, or the judgment seat, return thou, after so long an absence, pre- viously intimated by the summons to arise and awake. In- action, sleep, and absence from the judgment seat, are all bold metaphors for God's delay to save his people and destroy their enemies.
9 (8.) The same thing is now expressed in a direct and for- mal manner. Jehovah ivill judge, is to judge, the nations. This is laid down as a certain general proposition, from which the Psalmist draws a special inference in the shape of a petition. Judge 7ne, oh Lord, Jehovah I If it be true that God will judge the world, redress all wrong, and punish all iniquity, let him begin with me. Let me share now in the justice which is to be universally administered. Judge me, oh Lord, accord- ing to tny right, and ony completejiess, or perfection, over me^ i. e. according to my innocence which covers and protects me. All such expressions must be qualified and explained by the confession of unworthiness in Ps. vi. and elsewhere, which suf- ficiently demonstrates that the Psalmist here makes no claim to absolute perfection and innocence, nor to any whatever that is independent of God's sovereign mercy.
10 (9.) Let cease, I pray, the badness of ivicked (men). The future has an optative meaning given to it by the Hebrew particle (b53) which is often rendered ?tow, not as an adverb of time, but of entreaty. Between man and man, it is frequently equivalent to if you please in modern parlance. When ad-
54 PSALM VIJ.
dressed to God, it scarcely admits of any other version than I pray. The assonance or paronomasia in the common version, tvickedness of the ivicked, is not found in the original, where two words, not akin to one another, are employed. The plural form of wicked is also lost or left ambiguous in the common version. — And thoic wilt confirm, or establish, a righteous {inan), and a trier of hearts and reins, constantly used in Scripture for the internal dispositions, {is the) righteous God, or {cirt thou) oh righteous God, which last agrees best with the direct address to God in the preceding clauses. This does not merely mean that God is omniscient, and therefore able thus to try the hearts and reins, but that he actually does it. Here he is specially appealed to, as a judge or umpire between Saul, or " the wicked" whom he represented, and " the righteous," of whom David w^as the type and champion.
11 (10.) My shield (is) upon God. My protection or de- fence depends on him alone. The figure is the same as in Ps. iii. 4 (3) and v. 13 (12.) Here again the hope of personal de- liverance is founded on a general truth, as to the course of the divine administration. My shield {is) upon God, saving, or ivho saves, the Saviour of, the upright, straight-forward, or sincere in heart. This is a new indirect assertion of his own integrity and innocence.
12 (11.) The second word in the original of this verse may be either a participle or a noun, so that the clause admits of two translations, God {is) a righteous judge, and, God {is) judging, i. e. judges, the righteous. The first would be a re- petition of the general truth taught in v. 9 (8) above, but here applied to the punishment of the wicked, as it is there to the salvation of the innocent. According to the other construction, the verse before us presents both ideas : God judges the right- eous, i. e. does him justice, and God is angry every day. The
PSALM VII. 55
object of this anger, although not expressed, is obvicms, and is even rendered more conspicuous by this omission. As if he had said : ' God, who does justice to the righteous, has Ukewise objects for his indignation.'
13 (12). If he, the sinner at whom God is angry, will not turn, i. e. turn back from his impious and rebeUious under- takings, his sivord he ivill %vhet, i. e. with a natural though sudden change of subject, God will whet his sword, often re- ferred to as an instrument of vengeance. His how lie has trod- den on, alluding to the ancient mode of bending the large and heavy bows used in battle, a7id made it ready. The bow and the sword were the most common weapons used in ancient warfare. The past tense of these verbs implies that the instru- ments of vengeance are prepared already, and not merely viewed as something future.
14 (13.) And at him (the wicked enemy) he has aimed, or directed, the instruments of death, his deadly weapons. This is still another step in advance. The weapons are not only ready for him, but aimed at him. His arroivs to {be) burning he will make, i. e. he will make his arrows burning arrows, in allusion to the ancient military custom of shootino- io-nited darts or arrows into besieged towns, for the purpose of setting them on fire, as well as that of personal injury. The figurative terms in these two verses all express the certainty and promptness of the divine judgments on incorrigible sinners. For even these denunciations are not absolute, but suspended on the enemy's repentance or persistency in evil. That significant phrase, if Jie will not turn, may be tacitly supplied as qualifying every threatening in the book, however strong and unconditional in its expressions.
15 (14.) Behold, he, the wicked man, will writhe, or travial^
56 PSALM VII.
[with) iniquity, (towards others), and co7iceive mischief (to him- self), and bring forth falsehood, self-deception, disappointment. The meEining seems to be that while bringing his malignant schemes to maturity, he will unconsciously conceive and bring forth ruin to himself.
16 (15.) The same idea is then expressed by other figures, borrowed perhaps from certain ancient modes of hunting. A ivell he has digged, i. e. a pitfall for his enemy, and hoUoioed it, or made it deep, and fallen into the pit he is making, or about to make. The change from the past tense to the future seems to place the catastrophe between the inception and com- pletion of the plan. The translation of the last verb as a sim- ple preterite is entirely ungrammatical.
17 (16.) Still a third variation of the same theme. His Tnis- chief shall return upon his owji head, literally into it, like a falling body which not only rests upon an object but sinks and is embedded in it. And o?i his own crowji his violence, includ- ing* the ideas of injustice and cruelty, shall come down.
18 (17.) While the wicked enemy of God and his people is thus made to execute the sentence ofi himself, the Psalmist al- ready exults in the experience of God's saving mercy. I will praise the Lord, Jehovah, i. e. acknowledge his favours. See above, on Ps, vi. 6 (5.) Acccn'ding to his right, desert, or due, as in V. 9 (8) above. Or according to his righteousness, his justice, i.e. the praise shall correspond to the display just made of this attribute, as well in the deliverance of the Psalmist as in the destruction of his enemies, A7id I tvill sing praise, praise by singing, praise in song, the name, the manifested excellence, (see above, on Ps. v. 12 (11),) of the Lord, Jehovah, High or Most High. He will praise the Lord in this exalted character, as manifested by his dealings in the case which gave occasion
PSALM VIII. 57
to the Psalm. The resolution thus expressed may be considered as fulfilled in the Psalm itself, so confident is he that it cannot be performed before his prayer is ansAvered, Or the words may be understood as engaging to continue these acknowledgments hereafter.
PSALM VIII.
This psalm begins and ends with an admiring recognition of God's manifested excellence, vs. 2 (1) and 10 (9.) In the in- termediate verses, the manifestation is traced, first in the inani- mate creation, vs. 3, 4 (2, 3), and then in animated nature, vs. 5 — 9 (4 — 8), with particular reference to man's superiority. This is indeed the main subject of the psalm, the glory of God in nature being only introduced to heighten his goodness to mankind. We have here, therefore, a description of the dig- nity of human nature, as it was at first, and as it is to be re- stored in Christ, to whom the descriptive terms may therefore be applied, without forced or fanciful accommodation on the one hand, and without denying the primary generic import of the composition on the other.
1. To the Chief Musician, on (or according to) the Gittith. This word, which reappears in the titles of two other psalms (the eighty-first and eighty-fourth), would seem, from its form, to be the feminine of Gitti, which always means a Gittite or inhabitant of Gath. See Josh.xiii. 3. 2 Sam. vi. 10. xv. 18. As David once resided there, and had afterwards much intercourse 3#
58 PSALM VIII.
■with the inhabitants, the word may naturally here denote an instrument there invented or in use, or an air, or a style of per- formance, borrowed from that city. Some prefer, however, to derive it from the primary sense of Gath in Hebrew, which is ivine-press, and apply it either to an instrument of that shape, or to a melody or style Avhich usage had connected with the joy of vintage or the pressing of the grapes. Either of these explanations is more probable than that which derives Gittith from the same root with neginoth in the titles of Ps. iv and vi. and gives it the same sense, viz. stringed instruments, or the music of stringed instruments. Besides the dubious etymology on which this explanation rests, it is improbable that two such technical terms would have been used to signify precisely the same thing. The only further observation to be made upon this title is, that all the psalms to which it is prefixed are of a joyous character, which agrees well with the supposition that it signities an air or style of musical performance. The as- cription of this Psabn to David, as its author, is fully con- firmed by its internal character.
2 (1). Jehovah, our Lord, not of the Psalmist only, but of all men, and especially all Israel, hoiv glorious (is) thy 7ia??ie, thy manifested excellence, (see above, Ps. v. 11. vii. 17.) in all the earth, ivJiich give thy glory, i. e. which glory of thine give or place, above the heavens. The verbal form here used is, in every other place where it occurs, an imperative, and should not therefore, without necessity, be otherwise translated. Thus understood, the clause contains a prayer or \vish, that the divine glory may be made still more conspicuous. To give or place glory on an object, is an idiomatic phrase repeatedly used elsewhere, to denote the conferring of honour on an inferior. See Num. xxvii. 20. 1 Chron. xxix. 25. Dan. xi. 21. It here implies that the glory belonging to the frame of nature is not inherent but derivative.
PSALM VIII. 59
3 (2). From the mouth of babes and sucJclings thou hast founded strength. The instinctive admiration of thy works,
even by the youngest children, is a strong defence against those who would question thy being or obscure thy glory. The Septuagint version of the last words in this clause, thou hast prepared (or provided) praise, conveys the same idea with a change of form, since it is really the praise or admiration of the child that it is described in the original as strength. This ver- sion is adopted by Matthew, in his record of our Lord's reply to the Pharisees, when they complained of the hosannas uttered by the children in the temple (Matth. xxi. 16). That allusion does not prove that Christ was the primary subject of this psalm, but only that the truth expressed in the words quoted was exemplified in that case. If the Scriptures had already taught that even the unconscious admiration of the infant is a tribute to God's glory, how much more might children of ma- turer age be suffered to join in acclamations to his Son. The sense thus put upon the words of David agrees better with the context than the one preferred by some interpreters, viz. that the defence in question is afforded by the structure and progress of the child itself. If this had been intended, he would hardly have said from the mouth, or have confined his subsequent allusions to the splendor of the firmament. — The effect or rather the legitimate tendency of this spontaneous testimony is to silence enemy and avenger, i. e. to stop the mouths of all malignant railers against God, whose cavils and sophisms are put to shame by the instinctive recognition of God's being and his glory by the youngest children.
4 (3.) When I see thy heave7is, the ivork of thy fingers, an expression borrowed from the habits of men, to whom the fin-
. gers are natural organs of contrivance and construction, tJie moon and the stars vjhich thou hast fixed, or settled in their several spheres. As we constantly associate the sky and sun
60 PSALM VIII.
together, the latter, although not expressly mentioned, may be considered as included in the subject of the first clause. Or the mention of the moon and stars without the sun may be un- derstood to mark this as an evening hymn. There is no ground, however, for referring this psalm to the pastoral period of David's life, or for doubting that it was composed when he was king.
5 (4). The sentence begun in the preceding verse is here completed. When I see thy heavens, &c. what is man, frail man, as the original Avord signifies, that thou shouldst remem- her him, think of him, attend to him, and {any) son of man, ox the son of man, as a generic designation of the race, that thou shouldst visit him, i. e. according to the usage of this figure, manifest thyself to him, either in wrath or mercy. See Gen. xviii. 14. xxi. 1. Pwuth i. 6. &c. Here of course the latter is intended. The scriptural idea of a divine visitation is of something which reveals God's special presence and activity, whether as a friend or foe. The interrogation in this verse implies a strong negation of man's worthiness to be thus honoured, not in comparison with the material universe, to which he is in truth superior, but with the God whose glory the whole frame of nature was intended to display and does display, even to the least matured and cultivated minds. It was with a view to this comparison, and not for its own sake, or as the main subject of the psalm, that the glory of creation was referred to the foregoing verse.
6 (5.) A7id remove him little from divinity, i. e. from a divine and heavenly, or at least a superhuman state. The Hebrew noun is the common one for God, but being plural in its form, is sometimes used in a more vague and abstract sense, for all conditions of existence higher than our own. 1 Sam. xxviii. 13. Zech. ix. 7. Hence it is sometimes rendered aw^e/s
PSALM VIII. 61
in the Septuagint, which version, although inexact, is retained in the New Testament (Heb. ii. 7), because it sufficiently expresses the idea which was essential to the writer's argument. The verb in this clause strictly means to make or let one want, to leave deficient. Eccles. iv. 8. vi. 2. The form here used (that of the future with vav conversive) connects it in the closest manner with the verb of the preceding verse, a construction which maybe imperfectly conveyed by the omission of the aux- iliary verbs in English. ' What is man that thou shouldst remember him, and visit him, and make him want but little of divinity, and crown him with honour and glory V The Hebrew order of the last clause is : and (tvith) ho?iour and glory crown him. These nouns are elsewhere put together to express royal dignity. Ps. xxi. 1. 6 (5.) xlv. 4 (3.) Jer. xxii. 18. 1 Chron. xxix. 25. There is an obvious allusion to man's being made in the imao-e of God, with dominion over the inferior creation. Gen. 1. 26, 28. ix. 2. This is predicated not of the individual but of the race, which lost its perfection in Adam and recovers it in Christ. Hence the description is pre-eminently true of him, and the application of the words in Heb. ii. 7 is entirely legiti- mate, although it does not make him the exclusive subject of the psalm itself.
7 (6.) The same construction is continued through the first clause of this verse. Make him rule, i. e. what is man that thou shouldest make him rule, in, among, and by implica- tion over, the ivorks, the Other and inferior creatures, of thy hands. The use of the future form in Hebrew up to this point is dependent on the question and contingent particle (ivhat is man that) in v. 5 (4.) The question being now exhausted or exchanged for a direct affirmation, the past tense is resumed. All, every thing, hast thou put under his feet, i. e. subjected to his power. The application of these terms to Christ, (1 Cor. XV. 27. Eph. i. 22) as the ideal representative of human nature
62 PSALxM VIII.
in its restored perfection, is precisely similar to that of the ex- pressions used in the preceding verse.
8 (7.) This verse contains a mere specification of the general term all in the verse before it. Sheep, or ratherj^ocA-5, including sheep and goats, and oxen, as a generic term for larger cattle, a7id also, not only these domesticated animals but also, beasts of the field, which always means in scripture wild beasts, (Gen. ii. 20. iii. 14. 1 Sam. xvii. 44. Joel 1.20) field being used in such connexions to denote not the cultivated land but the open, unenclosed, and wilder portions of the country. The whole verse is a general description of all quadrupeds or beasts, whether tame or wild.
9 (8). To complete the cycle of animated nature, the inhabit- ants of the air and water are now added to those of the earth, Bird of heaven, a collective phrase, denoting the birds of the sky, i, e. those which fly across the visible heavens. The com- mon version, ** fowl of the air," is descriptive of the same objects, but is not a strict translation. And fishes of the sea, and {every thing) passing in, or through, the paths of the sea. Some read, without supplying any \M\\\^, fishes of the sea pass- ing through the paths of the sea. But this weakens the expression, and is also at variance with the form of the original, where ^j(255m^ is a singular. Others construe it with man, who is then described as passing over the sea and ruling its inhabit- ants. But neither the syntax nor the sense is, on the whole, so natural as that proposed above, which makes this a residuary comprehensive clause, intended to embrace whatever might not be included in the more specific terms by which it is preceded. The dominion thus ascribed to man, as a part of his original pre- rogative, is not to be confounded with the coercive rule which he still exercises over the inferior creation (Gen. ix. 2. James
rSALM IX. 63
iii. 7), although this is really a relic of his pristine state, and at the same time an earnest of its future restoration.
10 (9.) Jehovah, our Lord, how glorious is thy name in all the earth, not only made so by the splendor of the skies, but by God's condescending goodness to mankind. With this new evidence and clearer view of the divine perfection, the Psalmist here comes back to the point from which he started, and closes with a solemn repetition of the theme propounded in the open-
ing sentence.
PSALM IX.
This psalm expresses, in a series of natural and striking al- ternations, gratitude for past deliverances, trust in God's power and disposition to repeat them, and direct and earnest prayer for such repetition. We have first the acknowledgment of former mercies, vs. 2 — 7 (1 — 6) ; then the expression of trust for the future, vs. 8 — 13 (7 — 12) ; then the petition founded on it, vs. 14, 15 (13, 14.) The same succession of ideas is re- peated : recollection of the past, vs. 16, 17 (15, 16) ; anticipation of the future, vs. 18, 19 (17, 18) ; prayer for present and imme- diate help, vs. 20, 21 (19, 20). This parallelism of the parts makes the structure of the psalm remarkably like that of the seventh. The composition was intentionally so framed as to be a vehicle of pious feeling to the church at any period of strife and persecution. The form is that of the Old Testament ;
V
64 PSALM IX.
but the substance and the spirit are common to both dispen- sations.
1. To the Chief Musician. Al-muth-lahhen. This enig- matical title has been variously explained. Some understand it as descriptive of the subject, and make lahhen an anagram of Nabal, the name of one of David's enemies, and at the same time an appellative denoting fool, in which sense it is frequently applied to the wicked. See for example Ps, xiv. 1. The whole would then mean 07i the death of the fool, i. e. the sinner. Such enigmatical changes are supposed to occur in Jer. XXV. 26. li. 1. 41. Zech. ix. 1 . Others, by a change of point- ing in the Hebrew, for al-muth read alamoth, a musical term occurrino; in the title of Ps. xlvi. or a coonate form ahnuth, and explain lahhen to mean for Ben, or the {children of) Ben, one of the Levitical singers mentioned in 1 Chr. xv. 18. Neither of these explanations seem so natural as a third, which sup- poses muth-lahben to be the title, or the first words, or a pro- minent expression, of some other poem, in the style, or to the air of which, this psalm was composed. After the maniier, or to the air, of (the song or poem) Death to the son, or the death of the son. Compare 2 Sam. i. 18, where David's elegy on Saul appears to be called Kesheth or the Bow, because that word is a prominent expression in the composition. As it can- not be supposed that the expression was originally without meaning, the obscurity, in this and many similar cases, is rather a proof of antiquity than of the opposite.
2 (1.) / will thank Jehovah, praise him for his benefits, with all my heart, sincerely, cordially, and with a just appreciation of the greatness of his favours. I ivill recount all thy won- ders, the wonderful things done by thee, with special reference to those attested by his own experience. The change from the third to the second person is entirely natural, as if the Psalmist's
PSALM IX. 65
warmth of feeling would not suffer him to speak any longer merely of God, as one absent, but compelled him to turn to him, as the immediate object of address. There is no need, therefore, of supplying thee in the first clause, and construing Jehovah as a vocative,
3 (2). I ivill joy and triumph hi thee, not merely in thy presence, or because of thee, i, e. because of what thou hast done, but in communion with thee, and because of my personal interest in thee. The form of the verbs, both here and in the last clause of the preceding verse, expresses strong desire and fixed determination. See above, on Ps. ii. 3, I tvill praise, or celebrate in song. See above, on Ps. vii. 18 (17,) Thy name, thy manifested excellence. See above, on Ps, v. 12 (11.) (Thou) Highest, or Most High! See above, on Ps. vii, 18 (17.) Here again there is special reference to the proofs of God's supremacy afforded by his recent dealings with the Psalmist and his enemies.
4 (3.) In the turning of my enemies back, i. e. from their assault on me, which is equivalent to saying, in their retreat, their defeat, their disappointment. This may either be con- nected with what goes before, and understood as a statement of the reason or occasion of the praise there promised — ' I will celebrate thy name when (or because) my enemies turn back' — or it may begin a new sentence, and ascribe their defeat to the agency of God himself — * when my enemies turn back (it is because) they are to stumble, ajid perish from thy presence, from before thee, or at thy presence, i. e. as soon as thou appearest. The Hebrew preposition has both a causative and local meaning. The form of the verbs does not neces- sarily imply that the deliverance acknowledged was still future, but only that it might occur again, and that in any such case, whether past or yet to come, Jehovah was and would be
ee PSALM IX.
the -true author of the victory achieved. The act of stumbling implies that of falling as its natural consequence, and is often used in Scripture as a figure for complete and ruinous failure.
5 (4.) This was not a matter of precarious expectation, but of certain experience. Fo?' thou hast made, done, executed, wrought out, and thereby maintained, w?/ cause and my right. This phrase is always used elsewhere in a favourable sense, and never in the vague one of simply doing justice, whether to the innocent or guilty. See Deut. x. 18. 1 Kings viii. 45, 4-9. Ps. cxl. 12, and compare Isaiah x. 2. And this defence was not merely that of an advocate, but that of a judge, or rather of a sovereign in the exercise of those judicial functions which belong to royalty. See Prov. xx. 8. Thoii hast sat, and sit- test, 071 a throne, the throne of universal sovereignty, judging right, i. e. rightly, or a judge of righteousness, a righteous judge. See above, on Ps. vii. 12 (11). In this august character the Psalmist had already seen Jehovah, and he therefore gives it as a reason for expecting him to act in accordance with it now.
6 (5.) The forensic terms of the preceding verse are now explained as denoting the destruction of God's enemies. Thou hast rebuked nations, not merely individuals but nations. God's chastisements are often called rebukes, because in them he speaks by act as clearly as he could by word. Thou hast destroyed a ivicked (one), i. e. many a wicked enemy, in former times, in other cases, and that not with a partial ruin, but with complete extermination even of their memory. Their name, that by which men are distinguished and remembered, thou hast blotted out, erased, effaced, obliterated, to perpetuity and eternity, an idiomatic combination, coincident in sense, though not in form, with the English phrase, forever and ever. This vpr^e does not refer exclusively to any one manifestation of God's
PSALM IX 67
power and wrath, but to the general course of his dealings with his enemies, and especially to their invariable issue, the destruc- tion of the adverse party.
7 (6.) The enemy, or as to the enemy, a nominative absolute placed at the beginning of the sentence for the sake of empha- sis— -finished, completed, are (Jiis) ruiJis, desolations, forever, i. e. he is ruined or made desolate forever. The construction of the first word as a vocative — oh enemy, ended are {thy) de- solations forever, i. e. the desolations caused by thee — affords a good sense, but is neither so agreeable to usage nor to the con text as the one first given. Still less so are the other versions which have been given of this difficult clause. E. g. The enemies are completely desolate forever ; — the enemies are con- sumed, (there are) ruins (or desolations) forever, &c. The address is still to Jehovah, as in the preceding verse. And (their) cities, viz. those of the enemy, hast thou destroyed. According to the second construction above given, this would mean, thou (oh enemy) hast destroyed cities, but art now destroyed thyself. The same reasons as before require us to prefer Jehovah as the object of address. Gone, perished, is their very memory. The idiomatic form of the original in this clause cannot be retained in a translation. The nearest approach to it would be, gone is their memory, themselves. This may either mean their me- mory, viz. {that of) themselves, i. e. their own ; or, 'perished is their memory {ajid) themselves {with it.) There seems to be an obvious allusion to the threatenings against Amalek in the books of Moses (Exod. xvii. 14. Num. xxiv. 20. Deut. xxv. 19), which received their literal fulfilment in the conquests of Saul and David (1 Sam. xv. 3, 7. xxvii. 8, 9. xxx. 1, 17. 2 Sam. viii. 12. 1 Chron. iv. 43.) But this is evidently here presented merely as a sample of other conquests over the surrounding nations (2 Sam. viii. 11 — 14), and even these as only samples
68 PSALM IX.
of the wonders wrought by God for his "^wn people, and cele- brated in V. 2 (1) above.
8 (7.) And Jehovah to eternity, forever, ivill sit, as he sits novv^ upon the throne and judgment-seat. He has set up for judgment, for the purpose of acting as a judge, his throne. It is not as an absolute or arbitrary ruler, but as a just judge, that Jehovah reigns. This recognition of God's judicial cha- racter and othce as perpetual is intended to prepare the way for an appeal to his righteous intervention in the present case.
9 (8.) And lie, himself, with emphasis upon the pronoun, is to judge the ivorld, the fruitful and cultivated earth, as the Hebrew word properly denotes, here put for its inhabitants, in justice, or righteousness, i. e. in the exercise of this divine per- fection. He ivill judge, a different Hebrew verb, to which we have no equivalent, he will judge nations, peoples, races, not mere individuals, in equities, in equity, the plural form denot- ing fulness or completeness, as in Ps. i. 1. As the preceding verse describes Jehovah's kingship as judicial, so the verse be- fore us represents him in the actual exercise of his judicial functions.
10 (9.) And (so) will Jehovah be a high place, out of reach of danger, hence a refuge, /br the oppressed, literally the bruised or broken in pieces, a high place, refuge, hi times of distress, literally at tivies in distress, i. e. at times (when men are) in distress. God's judicial sovereignty is exercised so as to relieve the sufferer and deliver those in danger.
11 (10). A7id in thee loill trust, as now so in all time to come, the knowers of thy name, those who know the former exhibitions of thy greatness and thy goodness, all which are included in the name of God. See v. 3 (2), and Ps. viii. 2 (1)
v/
PSALM IX. 69
vii. 18 (17.) V. 12 (11.) For thoit hast not forsaken thy seekers, or {those) seeking thee, oh Lord, Jehovah, i. e. seeking thy favour in general, and thy protection against their enemies in particular. The certain knowledge of this fact is laid as the foundation of the confidence expressed in the first clause.
12 (11). Sing, make music, give praise by song or music, to Jehovah, as the God of Israel, inhabiting Zion, i. e. the sanctuary there established. Or the words may mean sit- ting, as a king, enthroned, (in) Zion, which agrees well with the use of the same verbs in vs. 5, 8 (4, 7,) above, although the other version is favoured by the obvious allusion to the sym- bolical import of the sanctuary under the Mosaic law, as teaching the great doctrine of God's dwelling among men. See above, on Ps. iii. 5 (4). v. 7 (6.) Zion is here represented as the centre of a circle reaching far beyond the house of Israel, and indeed co-extensive with the earth. Tell, declare, make known, in, among, the nations, his exploits, his noble deeds, the wonders mentioned in v. 2 (1.) We have here, in this inspired formula of worship, a clear proof that the ancient church believed and understood the great truth, that the law was to go forth from Zion and the word of the Lord from Jeru- salem. Isai. ii. 3. Mic. iv. 2.
13 (12.) For seeking blood, or as an inquisitor of blood, he has remembered, he remembers, it, i. e. the blood ; he has not forgotten the cry of the distressed. God is here revealed in the character which he assumes in Gen. ix. 5, where the same verb and noun are used as in the first clause of the verse before us. The word translated blood is in the plural form. See above, on Ps. V. 7 (6.) Hence the literal translation of the next words is, he has remembered them, i. e. the bloods or murders. The cry meant is the cry of suffering and complaint, with particular reference to Gen. iv. 10. Accordinsc to another reading? of the
70 PSALM IX.
last clause, the cry is that of the meek or humble, not of the distressed. But the common text affords a better sense and really includes the other, as the innocence of the sufferers is implied, though not expressed. The general import of the verse is that God's judgments, though deferred, are not aban- doned, that he does not forget even what he seems to disregard, and that sooner or later he will certainly appear as an avenger. Murder is here put, as the highest crime against the person, for all others, and indeed for wickedness in general.
14 (13.) Have mercy upon me, or be gracious to me, oh Jehovah, see 7ny suffering from my haters, raising me from the gates of death. The view previously taken of God's faith- fulness and justice is now made the ground of an importunate petition for deliverance from present dangers and distress. "My haters, those who hate me. From my haters may be taken as a pregnant construction, meaning : see my suffering (and free me) from my enemies. Thus in 2 Sam. xviii. 19, * Jehovah hath judged him from the hand of his enemies' means * hath done him justice (and so freed him) from the power of his enemies.' See a similar expression in Ps. xxii. 22 (21) below. It seems more natural and obvious, however, in the case before us, to give from a causal meaning. ' See my distress (arising) from, or caused by, those who hate me.' Raising me does not denote an accompanying act, as if he had said, see my distress, and at the same time lift me up, &c. It is rather descriptive of a cer- tain divine character or habit, and agrees with the pronoun of the second person understood. ' Thou that liftest me up,' that art accustomed so to do, that hast done so in other cases, with an implied prayer, do so now. The gates of death may have refer- ence to the image of a subterranean dungeon, from which no prisoner can free himself; or it may be simply a poetical ex- pression for the entrance to the grave or the state of the dead. Compare Isai. xxxviii. 10 and Matth. xvi. 18.
PSALM IX. ^j
15 (14.) That I may recount all tliy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zio7i, may joy in thy salvation. This is one important end for which he asks to be delivered, namely, that God may have the praise of his deliverance. There is a trace, in the Hebrew text, of an original plural form, praises, which might then denote praiseworthy deeds, actions worthy to be celebrated. But the singular form occurs with all in Ps. cvi. 2 below. — The gates here mentioned are contrasted with those of the preceding verse. The God who saves him from the gates of death shall be praised for this deliverance in the gates of the daughter of Zion. This last expression is supposed by some to be a personification of the people inhabiting Zion or Jerusalem, who are then put for Israel at large, as the church or chosen people. Others regard the genitive construc- tion as equivalent to a simple apposition, as in river of Eu- phrates, or in our familiar phrase, the city of Jerusalem. The personification is then that of the city itself, considered as an ideal virgin, and on that account called daughter, by a usage similar to that of the corresponding word in French. In either case, there is an obvious reference to the ancient church, as the scene or the witness of the Psalmist's praises. — The verb in the last clause may be made to depend upon the particle at the beginning of the verse, (that) I may exult ; or it may be still more emphatically construed as an independent proposition, I will exult in thy salvation. The form of the verb is the same as in Ps. ii. 3 above. The second verb itself occurs in v. 11 of that psalm, and as in that case, may either denote an inward emo- tion or the outward expression of it, I ivill shout. — In thy sal- vation, i. e. in the possession or experience of it, and in ac- knowledgment of having thus experienced or possessed it.
16 (15.) Sunk are nations in a pit they made; in a net which they hid, taken is their foot. This may be either a confident anticipation of the future as if already past, or a fur-
72 PSALM IX.
ther reference to previous deliverance, as a ground of hope for others yet to come. — Nations^ whole nations, when opposed to God. Compare Ps. ii. 1. The accessory idea of Gentiles, heathen, would be necessarily suggested, at the same time to a Hebrew reader. Most versions have the definite forms, the pit, the net ; but the indefinite form of the original is equally intelligible in English, and therefore preferable as a more exact translation. The ellipsis of the relative, a pit (which) they inade, is common to the Hebrew idiom and our own. The fio-ures are borrowed from ancient modes of huntinor. See above, on Ps. vii. 16 (15.) — Their foot, their own foot, not that of the victim, whose destruction they intended.
17 (16.) Known is Jehovah, or has made himself known. Justice has he done, or judgment has he executed. In the work of his (picn) hands ensnared is a wicked {^nan), Hig- goAon, meditation. Selah, pause. God has revealed himself as present and attentive, notwithstanding his apparent oblivion and inaction, by doing justice on his enemies, or rather by making them do justice on themselves, converting their devices against others into means of self-destruction. In view of this most striking attestation of God's providential government, the reader is summoned to reflect, and enabled so to do by a signifi- cant and solemn pause. The sense of meditation or reflection is clear from Ps. xix. 15 (14) and Lam. iii. 62. See below, on Ps. xcii. 4 (3). The addition of Uiggaion to Selah here con- firms the explanation already given of the latter word. See above, on Ps. iii. 3 (2). With this understanding of the terms, we may well say, to ourselves or others, in view of every signal providential retribution, especially where sin is con- spicuously made its own avenger, Uiggaion Selah !
18 (17.) The ivicked shall turn back even to hell, to death, or to the grave, all nations forgetful of God. The enemies
PSALM IX. 73
of God and of his people shall be not only thwarted and re- pulsed but driven to destruction ; and that not merely indi- viduals but nations. For the meaning of Sheol, see above, on Ps. vi. 6 (5.) The figure of turning back, retreating, failing, is the same as in v. 4 (3) above. The idea expressed is not that of being turned directly into hell, but that of turning back, first to one's original position, and then beyond it, to the grave or hell. In the last clause there is an allusion to the implied charge of forgetfulness on God's part in v. 13 (12) above. He had not forgotten the 'poor innocents,' as they feared and as their enemies believed ; but these very enemies had forgotten him, and must now abide the consequences of their own forgetful- ness.— The future forms of this verse may have reference to the same things mentioned in the verse preceding as already past. It seems more natural, however, to explain them as a confident anticipation of results precisely similar to those which had already been produced by the same causes. As Jehovah had already caused the heathen to become their own destroyers, so he might be expected to renew the same judicial process in another case.
19 (18.) For not forever shall the poor he forgotten, (and) the hope of the hiinihle perish to eternity. However long God may appear to be forgetful of his suffering people, even this seeming oblivion is to have an end. Still another allusion to the charge or imputation of forgetfulness implied in v. 13 (12) above. The difference between the readings humble and afflicted (0*1135 and d^'^SJ') is not essential, as the context shows that the humble meant are humble suff'erers.
20 (19.) Arise, Jehovah! Let not man, frail man, be strong. Let nations, or the heathen, be judged, and as a necessary consequence condemned, before thy face, in thy pre- sence,. at thy bar. Here again, as in vs. 13, 14 (12, 13), the
VOL. I. 4
74 PSALM IX.
expression of strong confidence is made tlie occasion of an earnest prayer. So far is an implicit trust from leading men to cast off fear and restrain prayer before God. — On the exhortation to arise, as from a state of previous inaction, see above, Ps. iii. 7 (G.) For the full sense of the word translated man^ see above, on Ps. viii. 5 (4.) — Let him 7iot he strong, i. e. let him not so appear, or so esteem himself. Let him have no occasion, by indulgence or prolonged impunity, to cherish this delusion or to practise this imposture. The absurdity of mak- ing man the stronger party in this strife with God is so pre- posterous, that God is summoned to arise for the purpose of exploding it. — To be judged, in the case of the wicked, is of course to be condemned. To be judged in God's pre- sence, or at his tribunal, is of course to be condemned without appeal.
21 (20.) Se?, place, or join, oh Jehovah, fear to them. Let nations kiiow, or then shall nations know, {that) man, not God, («re) they. Selah. God is entreated so to frighten them, that they may become conscious of their own insignificance and weakness. — The word translated fear is elsewhere used to sig- nify a razor. Hence some would render the first clause, apply the razor to them, i. e. shave them, in allusion to the oriental feeling with respect to the beard. But this seems far-fetched, and the masoretic reading yields a better sense. The precise import of the first phrase seems to be, set fear as a guard over them (Ps. cxli. 3) or join it to them as a constant companion. The word translated tnan is still the same as in the foreo-oino; verse, and was therefore intended to suggest the idea of human frailty as contrasted with divine omnipotence.
PSALM X. 75
PSALM X.
The Psalmist complains of God's neglect and of the malice of his enemies, vs. 1 — 11. He prays that both these subjects of complaint may be removed, vs. 12 — 15. He expresses the most confident assurance that his prayer will be heard and an- swered, vs. 16 — 18.
The Septuagint and Vulgate unite this with the ninth psalm as a single composition. But each is complete in itself, and the remarkable coincidences even of expression only show that both were meant to form a pair or double psalm like the first and second, third and fourth &c. From the same facts it is clear, that this psalm, though anonymous, is like the ninth the work of David, and that both were probably composed about the same time. ^
1. For what (cause), why, oh Jehovah, tvilt thou stand afar, wilt thou hide at times (when we are) in trouble ? The ques- tion really propounded is, how this inaction can be reconciled with what was said of God in Ps. ix. 10 (9.) — To stand afar off, is to act as an indifferent or at the most a curious spectator. Wilt thou hide, i. e. thy self or thine eyes, by refusing to see, as in Lev. xx. 4. 1 Sam. xii. 3. The futures imply present action and the prospect of continuance hereafter. The question is not merely why he does so, but why he still persists in doing so. — The singular phrase, at times in trouble, occurs only here and in Ps. ix. 10 (9), a strong proof of the intimate connexion of the two psalms, and perhaps of their contemporary composi-
76 PSALM X.
tion. — This expostulation betrays no defect either of reverence or faith, but on the contrary indicates a firm belief that God is able, and must be Avilling, to deliver his own people. Such demands are never uttered either by skepticism or despair.
2. In the pride of the wicked hums the sufcrer ; they are caught in devices which they have contrived. This very ob- scure verse admits of several different constructions. The first verb sometimes means to persecute, literally to bur7i after, or pursue hotly. Gen. xxxi. 36. 1 Sam. xvii. 53. In one case it seems to have this meaning even without the preposition after- Lam. iv. 19. The sense would then be, i7i the pride of the wicked he ivill persecute, &cc. But the collocation of the words seems to point out 'iDJ as the subject, not the object, of the verb. The sufferer's burning may denote either anger or an- guish, or a mixed feeling of indignant sorrow. — The adjective ip^ means afflicted, suffering, whether from poverty or pain. Poor is therefore too specific a translation. In the Psalms this word is commonly applied to innocent sufferers, and especially to the people of God, as objects of malignant persecution. It thus suggests the accessory idea, which it does not formally express, of righteousness or piety. — In the last clause there is some doubt as to the subject of the first verb. If referred to the wicked, the sense will be, that they are taken in their own devices. If to the poor, that they are caught in the devices of the wicked. The first is favoured by the analogy of Ps. vii. 15—17 (14—16) and Ps. ix. 16, 17 (15, 16.) But the other agrees better with the context, as a description of successful wickedness.
3. For a ivicked (9na7i) boasts of (or sirmply praises) the desire of his soul, a?id win?ii?ig, (i. e. when he wins) blesses, despises Jeho- vah. This seems to be a description of the last stage of corruption, in which men openly defend or applaud their own vices, and im-
PSALM X. 77
piously thank God for their dishonest gains and other iniquitous successes. — The preterite forms, has praised &c. denote that it always has been so, as a matter of familiar experience. The desire of his soul means his natural selfish inclination, his heart's lust. And ivinning, i. e. when he wins or gains his end, with special reference to increase of wealth. Hence the word is sometimes used to signify the covetous or avaricious grasper after wealth by fraud or force. The same participle, joined with a cognate noun, is rendered "greedy of gain" in Prov. i. 19. XV. 27, and" given to covetousuess" in Jer. vi. 3. viii. 10. See also Hab. ii. 9, where the true sense is given in the margin of the English Bible, — He who gains an evil gain blesses (and) despises Jehovah, i. e. expresses his contempt of him by thank- ing him, whether in jest or earnest, for his own success. He blesses God, and thereby shows that he despises him. An illustrative parallel is Zech. xi. 4, 5. "Thus saith the Lord my God, Feed the flock of the slaughter, whose possessors slay them and hold themselves not guilty, and they that sell them say, Blessed is the Lord, for I am rich." This parallel more- over shows that blesses, in the verse before us, does not mean blesses himself, as some suppose, but blesses God.
4. A ivicked {inari), according to his pride, ivill not seek. There is no God (are) all his thoughts. Pride is here ex- pressed by one of its outward indications, loftiness of look, or as some suppose the Hebrew phrase to signify originally, elevation of the nose. — Will not seek, i. e. seek God, in prayer (Ps. xxxiv. 4), or in the wider sense of worship (Ps. xiv. 2), or in that of inquiring the divine w^U (Gen. xxv. 22), all which religious acts are at variance with the pride of the human heart. — All his thoughts, not merely his opinions, but his plans, his pur- poses, which is the proper meaning of the HebreAV word. The language of his life is, that there is no God. — Another construc- tion of the first clause is as follows. Tlie wicked, according to
78 PSALM X.
Ids 2')ride, {says), He, i. e. God, toill not require, judicially in- vestigate, and punish, as in Ps. ix. 13 (12), and in v. 13 below, where there seems to be a reference to the words before us, as uttered by the wicked man himself. — A third construction thus avoids the necessity of supplying says. ' As to the wicked in his pride — He will not require, there is no God — are all his thoughts.' This may be transferred into our idiom as follows. All the thoughts of the wicked in his pride are, that God will not require, or rather that there is no God, In favour of the first construction given is the fact that it requires nothing to be supplied like the second, and does not disturb the parallelism of the clauses like the third. Common to all is the imputation of proud self-confidence and practical atheism to the sinner,
5, His ivays are Jinn, or will be firm, in all time, always. A height, or high thing, {are) thy judgments from before him, away from him, out of his sight. {As foi^ his enemies he ivill pifff at the7n, as a natural expression of contempt, or he will blow upon them, i, e, blow them away, scatter them, "with ease. This describes the prosperity and success of sinners, not only as a fact already familiar, but as something which is likely to continue. Hence the future forms, Avhich indicate continuance hereafter, just as the preterites in v, 3 indicate actual ex- perience,— The only other sense which can be put upon the first clause is, his ways are tivisted, i. e. his actions are per- verse. But the Chaldee paraphrase, the cognate dialects, and the analogy of Job xx. 21, are in favour of the rendering, Ids ways are strong, i. e, his fortunes are secure, his life is prosper- ous, which moreover agrees best with the remainder of the verse, as a description of the sinner's outward state. Thus understood, the second clause describes him as untouched or unaffected by God's providential judgments, and the third as easily ridding himself of all his human adversaries. Both ton^ether represent him as impregnable on all sides, in appear-
PSALM X.
79
ance equally beyond the reach of God and man. (Compare Luke xviii. 2, 4.) As this immunity from danger, strictly un- derstood, could exist only in appearance, the whole verse may be regarded as an expression of the sinner's own opinion rather than his true condition.
6. He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved ; to gen- eration and generation, (I am one) who (shall) not (be) in evil, or as the same Hebrew phrase is rendered in the English ver- sion of Ex. V. 19, in evil case, i. e. in trouble, in distress. This is a natural expression of the proud security engendered in the natural man by great prosperity. He hath said, implying that the cause has already been in operation long enough to show its natural effect. In his heart, to himself, in a spirit of self- gratulation and self-confidence. To age and age, throughout all ages or all generations. The strength of this expression shows that the speaker is not a real person, but the ideal type of a whole class. The sinner, who thus says in his heart, is not the sinner of one period or country, but the sinner of all times and places, one who never disappears or ceases thus to feel and act. — The form of the last clause in Hebrew is peculiar and emphatic. He does not simply say, I shall never be in evil or adversity, but I am he, I am the man, who shall never be in evil, as if the very supposition of such a contingency, however justified by general experience, would be not only groundless but absurd in this one case. (Compare Isaiah xlvii. 8 — 10.) There could scarcely be a stronger expression of the self-rely- ing spirit of the sinner, as contrasted with the saints' implicit confidence in God's will and power, not only to preserve him from falling, but to raise him when he does fall.
7. {Of) cursing his mouth is full and deceits and oppres- sion. Under his tongue {are) trouble and iniquity. He now gives a more particular description of the Avicked man, bes;in-
80 PSALM X.
ning with his sins against his neighbour, and among these with his sins of word or speech. If this be a correct view of the whole verse, the cursing, mentioned in the first clause, is most probably false swearing, or the invocation of God's name, and imprecation of his wrath upon one's self, in attestation of a falsehood. This kind of cursing is closely connected with the fraud and violence which follow. The Hebrew word ij?;, to which the older writers gave the sense of fraud, is now com- monly explained to mean oppression, so that with the noun preceding it denotes injustice, injury to others, both by fraud and violence. — Under the tongue may have reference to the poison of serpents, or to the use of the tongue for speaking, as in Ps. Ixvi. 17, where the same phrase occurs in the original, though not in the common version. — Toil, labour, trouble, en- dured by others as the consequence of his deceits and violence. — For the meaning of the last word in the verse, see above, on Ps. v. 6 (5.) — Oppression is here reckoned among sins of speech, because the latter may be made the means of violent injustice, by tyrannical command, by unjust judgment, or by instigating others to deprive the victim of his rights. If only fraud had been referred to, this description of the sins commit- ted with the tongue would have been palpably defective.
8. He IV ill sit in the lurking place of villages ; iji the secret places he ivill slay the innocent ; his eyes for the sufferer ivill hide, watch secretly, or lie in wait. From sins of word he now proceeds to those of deed or outward action. The wicked enemy is here represented as a robber. The futures, as in v. 5, imply that what is now is likely to continue. Sitting implies patient waiting for his prey or victim, Tlie hirking place, the place where murderers and robbers usually lurk or lie in wait. Where such crimes are habitually practised, there is commonly some spot especially associated with them, either as the scene of the iniquity itself, or as a place of refuge and resort to those who perpetrate it. — The mention of villages is
PSALM X. 81
no proof that the psalm relates to any specific case of lawless violence, but only that the Psalmist gives individuality to his de- scription by traits directly drawn from real life. A slight change in the form of expression would convert it into a poetic simile. * As the robber sits in the lurking-place of villages &c.' The verb hidehas the same sense as in Prov. i. 11, 18. — The word translated sufferer (nsbn for '?{b^ri) is peculiar to this psalm, and was not improbably coined for the occasion, as a kind of enig- matical description, in which David seems to have delighted. A Jewish tradition makes it mean thy host, i. e. the church of God ; but this, besides being forced in itself, is forbidden by the use of the plural in v. 10 below. Others derive it from an Arabic root, meaning to be black, dark, gloomy, sad, unhappy. A third hypothesis explains it as a compound of two Hebrew words, one meaning weak or sick, the other sad or sorrowful, and both together representing the object of the enemy's malice, in the strongest light, as a sufferer both in mind and body.
9. He will lurk in the hiding-place as a lion in his den ; he ivill lurk (or lie in wait) to catch the sufferer ; he ivill catch the sufferer by dratvi7ig him into his net, or in draw- i7ig him {toimrds him) loith his net. That the preceding verse contains a simile, and not a description of the enemy as an actual robber, is here rendered evident by the addition of two ncAv comparisons, applied to the same object. In the first clause he is compared to a lion, in the second to a hunter. See above, on Ps. vii. 16 (15). ix. 16 (15), and below, on Ps. xxxv. 7. Ivii. 7 (6). The force of the futures is the same as in the foregoing verse. — His den, his shelter, covert, hiding-place. The Hebrew word is commonly applied to any temporary shed or booth, composed of leaves and branches. He lies in wait to seize the prey, and he succeeds, he accomplishes his purpose A third possible construction of the last clause is : in his draw- ing (i. e. when he dratvs) his net. The whole verse, with the 4*
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one before it, represents the wicked as employing craft no less than force for the destruction of the rio-hteons.
10. And hrinsed he will sink ; and by (or in, i. e. into the power of) his stroiig ones fall the si(ffe?-ers, the victims. These are represented, in the first clause, by a collective singu- lar, and in the second by a plural proper, that of the unusual word used in v. 8 above. Its peculiar etymology and form might be imitated in an English compound, such as sick-sad, weak-sad, or the like. By his strong ones some would under- stand the strong parts of the lion, teeth, claws &c. ; others the same parts personified as w^arriors. But even in the foregoing verse, the figure of a lion is exchanged for that of a hunter, and this again gives place here to that of a military leader or a chief of robbers, thus insensibly returning to the imagery of V. 8. These numerous and rapid changes, although not in accordance with the rules of artificial rhetoric, add greatly to the life of the description, and are not without their exegetical importance, as evincing that the whole is metaphorical, a varied tropical exhibition of one and the same object, the combined craft and cruelty of wicked men, considered as the enemies of God and of his people. According to this view of the passage by his strong ones we may understand the followers of the hostile chief, those who help him and execute his orders, or the ideal enemy himself, before considered as an individual, but now resolved into the many individuals, of whom the class, which he represents, is really composed.
11. He hath said in his heart, God hath forgotten, he hath hidden his face, he hath not seen, doth not see, and will not see, forever. The opening words are the same, and have the same sense, as in v. 6 above. The three parallel clauses which follow all express the same idea, namely, that God takes no note of human offences. This is first expressed by the
PSALM X. 83
figure of forgetfulness ; then by that of deliberately refusing to see, as in v. 1 above ; then by a literal and direct affirmation that he does not see, either the sufferings of his people or the malice of their enemies ; and that this is not a transient or occasional neglect, but one likely to continue forever.
12. Arise, Jehovah! Almighty {God), raise thy hajid! Forget not suffei-ers (or the wretched)! The impious incre- dulity, expressed in the preceding verse, is now made the ground of an importunate petition. God is besought to do a"\vay with the appearance of inaction and indifference. See above, on Ps. vii. 7 (6). Blaise thy hand, exert thy power. The second name by which God is addressed (bs^) is one ex- pressive of omnipotence, and may be correctly rendered by our phrase. Almighty God. As the name Jehovah appeals to his covenant relation to his people, as a reason for granting their requests, so this invokes his power as necessary to their de- liverance and the vindication of his own honour from the im- putation of forgetfulness cast upon him by his enemies. This imputation he is entreated, in the last clause, to wipe off by showing that he does remember. Forget not is, in this con- nexion, tantamount to saying, show that thou dost not forget. Here, as in Ps. ix. 13 (12), the margin of the Hebrew Bible reads (fi'ii25>) meek or humble, while the text has (d't^^S') suf- fering or afflicted. The Kethib, or textual reading, is re- garded by the highest critical authorities, as the more ancient, and therefore, except in some rare cases, entitled to the pre- ference.
13. On what (ground) has the wicked contemned God, has he said in his heart, Thou ivilt not require ? The question implies the sin and folly of the conduct described. The past tense suggests the inquiry why it has been suffered to go on so long. Contemned, i, e, treated with contempt. The refer-
84 PSALM X.
ence is not to inward feeling merely, but to its external mani- festation. The second clause shows how the feeling has been manifested. Said in his heart, is here repeated for the third time in this psalm. See vs. 6, 11, above. — The direct address to God in the last clause is peculiarly emphatic. The wicked man not only speaks irreverently of him, but insults him to his face. — Thou ivilt not reqiih'e. The Hebrew verb includes the ideas of investigation and exaction. Thou wilt not inquire into my conduct or require an account of it. See v. 4 above, and compare Ps. ix. 13 (12.) The whole verse contains an in- direct expostulation or complaint of the divine forbearance towards such high-handed and incorrigible sinners.
14. Thou hast seen (this particular instance of iniquity); for trouble, the suffering occasioned by such sins, and jprovo- cation, that afforded by such sins, thou ivilt behold, it is thy purpose and thy habit to behold it, to give ivitJi thy hand a becoming recompense, or to give into thy hand, i. e. to lay it up there in reserve, as something to be recompensed hereafter. Upon thee the sufferer ivill leave (his burden), will rely. An or2:)han, here put for the whole class of innocent and helpless sufferers, thou hast beeyi helping; God has ever been a helper of the friendless, and may therefore be expected to do likewise now. The whole verse is an argument drawn from the general course of the divine administration. Hence the preterite and future forms. Thou hast seen in this case, for thou always wilt see in such cases. — For the meaning of trouble 2L\idi provocation, see above, on Ps. vi. 8 (7). vii. 15 (14.)
15. Break thou the arm, destroy the power, of the iviched ; and the bad {inaii), or as to the bad man, thou ivilt seek for his wickedness (and) not find it. This may either mean, thou wilt utterly destroy him and his wickedness, so that when sought for it cannot be found (Ps. xxxvii. 36,) or, thou wilt judi-
PSALM X. 85
cially investigate his guilt, and punish it till nothing more is left to punish. The Hebrew verb (tT)^"!) has then the same sense as in vs. 4, 13, above, and there is a direct allusion to the sin- ner's boast tliat God will not inquire into men's acts or require an account of them. There may be a latent irony or sarcasm, as if he had said, thou wilt find nothing, as he boasts, but in a very different sense ; not because there is nothing worthy of pun- ishment, but because there will be nothing left unpunished.
16. Jehovah {is) Icing ! He is not dethroned, as his enemies imagine ; he is still king, and will so remain, perpetuity and eternity, forever and ever. Lost, perished, are nations, the heathen, i. e. hostile nations, yro?^^, out of, his land, the Holy Land, the Land of Israel, the land of which he is the king in a peculiar sense, distinct from that of providential ruler. The Psalmist sees Jehovah still enthroned, not only as the sovereign of the world, but as the sovereign of his people. (See Num. xxiii. 21. Deut. xxxiii. 5.) The nations or heathen of this verse may be either literal or spiritual gentiles (Jer. ix. 25. Ezek. xvi. 3.) The Psalm is so framed as to express the feel- ings of God's people in various emergencies. The preterite tense in the last clause represents the destruction of God's ene- mies as already past, not only on account of its absolute cer- tainty, but because the process of destruction, although not completed, is begun and will infallibly continue. Here, as often elsewhere, earnest prayer is followed by the strongest expres- sion of confidence and hope.
17. The desire of the meek (or humble) thou hast heard ^ Jehovah! Their desire is already accomplished. And this not merely once for all. Thou tvilt settle (or confirni) their heart, i. e. dispell their fears and give them courage, by new assurances of favour and repeated answers to their prayers. Thou tvilt incline thine ear, or make it attentive, caiise it to
S6 PSALM X.
listen, to their future no less than their past petitions. The figure of a fixed or settled .heart recurs more than once below. See Ps. li. 12 (1 0). Ivii. 8 (7). cxii. 7. The essential idea is that of a firm resolution, as opposed to timid doubt and vacillation.
18. To judge, or do justice to, the orphan and the bruised, or oppressed. See above, on Ps. ix. 10 (9.) This clause seems properly to form a part of the preceding verse ; thou wilt incline thine ear to judge &c. The remainder of the verse is a distinct proposition. He shall not add (or continue) any longer to resist, or defy, i. e. to set God at defiance. The sub- ject of these verbs is placed last for the sake of greater emphasis. 'Man, frail man, from the earth, springing from it, and belong- ing to it. See Gen iii. 19. For the full sense of the ^vord translated man, see above, on Ps. viii. 5 (4). ix. 20 (19,) and com- pare the whole prayer in the latter passage with the one before us. The sense here is, that weak and shortlived man shall not continue to insult and defy Almighty God. It implies a wish or prayer, but is in form a strong expression of the Psalmist's confident assurance that it will be so, and in connexion with the similar expressions of the two preceding verses, forms a worthy and appropriate close of the entire composition. The original of this verse is commonly supposed to exhibit an example of the figure called paronomasia, an intentional resemblance, both in form and sound, between two words of very difi'erent meaning. The Avords supposed to be so related here are those translated to defy (f^S'') and earth ("fli^). This peculiarity of form, if really designed and significant, is one which cannot be com- pletely reproduced in any version. There is reason to suspect, however, that in this as in many other eases, the resemblance is fortuitous, like that which frequently occurs in a translation, without anything to match it in the original. E, g. in the Vul- gate version of Gen. viii. 22, astus and cBStas, and in that of Gen. xii. 16, oves et boves.
PSALM XI. 87
PSALM XT.
The Psalmist is advised, by friends or foes, to escape by flight from the inextricable difficulties in which he finds him- self involved, vs. 1 — 3. This he refuses to do, as inconsistent with his faith in the rip:hteousness and grace of God, vs. 4 — 7. The logical relation of these parts makes the form of the whole somewhat dramatic, although this peculiarity is much less marked than in the second psalm. The language is not so much that of a historical person as of an ideal sufferer, repre- senting the wbole class of persecuted innocents. There is no specific reference to any incidents in David's life, although some of the images were probably suggested by his recollections, both of Saul's persecution and of Absalom's rebellion. The gen- eral resem.blance of this psalm to that before it, and the special resemblance of v. 2 to Ps. x. 8, 9, may account for its position in the Psalter. The very difficulties of this psalm are proofs of its antiquity and strong corroborations of the title, which as- cribes it to David.
1. To the chief musician, belonging to him as the performer, and to David, as the author. In Jehovah I have trusted, and do still trust. Hoiv will (or ca7i) ye say to my soul. Flee (to) your mountain (as) a bird ? The profession of confi- dence in God at the beginning is the ground of the following interrogation, Avhich implies wonder and disapprobation. How can ye say so ? really means, ye should not say so. The ques- tion seems to be addressed to timid or desponding friends, rather than to taunting and exulting enemies, as some suppose, — To
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nny soul does not simply mean to me, but so as to affect my feelings. See above, on Ps. iii. 3 (2.) In the genuine text the Yetbjiee is plural, because addressed to the whole class repre- sented by the ideal sufferer in this case. Hence the frequent change of number throughout the psalm. See above, on Ps. x. 10. The exhortation to flee must be understood as implying that there is no longer any hope of safety. — To your moun- tain, as a customary place of refuge, not for birds, but for per- secuted men. The comparison with a bird has no particular connexion with this clause, but is a kind of afterthought, sug- gesting the idea of a solitary helpless fugitive. (Compare 1 Sam. xxvi. 20 and Lam. iii. 52.) There may be an allusion to the words of the angel in Gen. xix. 17, as there certainly is to one or both these places in our Lord's exhortation to his follow- ers, Matth. xxiv. 16.
2. For lo, the wicked will tread (i. e. hend) the hoio ; they have fixed their arrow on the string, to shoot in darkness at the straightforward (upright) of heart. These are still the words of the advisers introduced in the preceding verse, assigning a reason for the advice there given. — Tread the how ; see above, on Ps. vii. 13 (12.) Will tread, are about to tread, are tread- ing. The preterite which follows refers to a later point of time. The speakers are supposed to describe what they see actually passing. ' They are bending the bow, (and now) they have fixed the arrow on the string.' The graphic vividness of the description is impaired, if not destroyed, by giving both the verbs a present form. — Fixed, i. e. in its proper place. The same verb occurs above, in Ps. vii. 13 (12.) Make ready is too vao"ue in the case before us. — hi darkness, in the dark, in se- cret, treacherously. See above, Ps. x. 8, 9. — The straight of heart, the upright and sincere. "We do not use the adjective in this sense ; but we have the cognate substantive, rectitude^ which properly means straightness.
PSALM XL gg
3. For the pillars {or foundations) ivill he (are about to be) destroyed : tvhat has the righteous done, i. e. accomplished ? The pillars or foundations are those of social order or society itself. These are said to be destroyed, when truth and right- eousness prevail no longer, but the intercourse of men is gov- erned by mere selfishness. The question in the last clause implies that the righteous has ejffected nothing, in opposition to the prevalent iniquity. The past tense represents this as a matter of actual experience, but as one Avhich still continues. The substitution of any other form in the translation is gratui- tous and ungrammatical. The true relation of the tenses is correctly given in the Prayer Book Version. For the founda- tions i(7iU be cast doivn, and what hath the righteous done ?
4. Jehovah {is) in his palace (or temple) of holiness ; Je- hovah (or as to Jehovah), in the heavens {is) his throne. His eyes behold, his eyelids prove the sons of men. He is so ex- alted that he can see, and so holy that he must see and judge the conduct of his creatures. By an equally grammatical but less natural construction, the whole verse may be thrown into a sin- gle proposition. ' Jehovah in his holy temple, Jehovah whose throne is in heaven, his eyes, &c.'— For the meaning of the word translated temple, see above on Ps. v. 8 (7) — Eyelids are mentioned as a poetical parallel to eijes, being the nearest equiva- lent afforded by the language.— Tr?/ or prove, as if by seeing through them. With the whole verse compare Ps. cii. 20 (lO.")
5. Jehovah the righteous will prove, will prove the righteous, and the ivicked and the lover of violence his soul hates. The sentence might also be divided thus : Jehovah tvill prove the righteous and the ivicked, and the lover of violence his soid hates. Different from both is the masoretic interpunction, which seems, however to be rather musical than grammatical or logical.— The divine proof or trial of the righteous implies
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favour and approval like the knowledge spoken of in Ps. i. 6 ;
but in neither case is it expressed. Violence, including the ideas of injustice and cruelty. See above, on Ps. vii. 17 (16.) His soul has hated and still hates. This is not simply equiva- lent to he hates, but denotes a cordial hatred. Odit ex animo. He hates with all his heart.
6. He will rain on wicked i^nen) snares, fire and brimstone, and a raging loiyid, the portion of their cup. The mixed metaphors show that the whole description is a tropical one, in which the strongest figures elsewhere used, to signify destruc- tion as an effect of the divine wrath, are combined. Rain is a natural and common figure for any copious communication from above, whether of good or evil. Snares are a favourite meta- phor of David for inextricable difficulties. See above, vii. 16 (15), ix. 16 (15), X. 9. — Fire and bi'i^nstone zxe familiar types of .sud- den and complete destruction, with constant reference to the great historical example of Sodom and Gomorrah. See Gen. xix. 24, and compare Ezek. xxxviii. 22. Job xviii. 15. — Raging wind, literally wind (or blast) of furies, is another natural but independent emblem of sudden irresistible inflictions. The second Hebrew word is elsewhere used for strong indignation (Ps. cxix. 53), and is once applied to the ragings (or ravages) of famine. (LiB.m. v. 10.)— The portion of their cup, or their cup-portion, something measured out for them to drink, ac- cording to the frequent Scriptural representation, both of God's wrath and favour, as a draught, or as the cup containing it. Compare Ps. xvi. 5. xxiil. 5, with Matt. xx. 22, 23. xxvi. 39. The meaning of the whole verse is that, notwithstanding the pre- sent security of the ungodly, they shall, sooner or later, be abundantly visited with every variety of destructive judgment.
7. For righteous (is) Jehovah; righteousness he loves; the upright (man) shall his face behold. The for suggests the
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intimate connexion between God's judgments on the wicked and his favour to the righteous. The second clause is a neces- sary inference from the first. The nature of God determines his judgments and his acts. He who is righteous in himself cannot but approve of righteousness in others. The righteous- ness of others is in fact nothing more than conformity to his will and nature. Nor does he merely approve of righteous- ness in the abstract ; he rewards it in the person of the right- eous man. This idea is expressed in the last clause, which admits of several constructions. It may mean that the upright shall behold his face, i. e. enjoy his favourable presence, as in Ps. xvii. 15. But the collocation of the singular noun and the plural verb, with the analogy of v. 4 above, is in favour of a different construction : his face shall behold (or does behold) the righteous, i. e. view them with favour and affection. Be- cause the original expression is not properly his face, but their face OY faces, Luther explains this as a reason why God loves the righteous, to wit, because their faces look upon {the) right, or that which is right. Another construction, founded on the same fact, is, the righteous shall behold (it with) their faces. It is better, however, to regard this as an instance of that re- markable idiom in Hebrew, which applies to the One True God, verbs, nouns, and pronouns in the plural, and which some explain as a pluralis majestaticus, like that employed by kings at present, and others as a form of speech transferred from poly- theism to the true religion. Most probably, however, it was intended to express the fulness of perfection in the divine na- ture, not without a mystical allusion to the personal distinction in the godhead. The most remarkable examples of this usage may be found in Gen. i. 26. iii. 22. xi. 7. Job xxxv. 10. Ps. Iviii. 12. Ecc. xii. 1. Isai. vi. 8. liv. 5. — The face is here, like the eyelids in v. 4, a poetical equivalent to eyes, and the same parallelism reappears in Ps. xxxiv. 16, 17 (15, 16): ' the eyes
92 PSALM XII.
of Jehovah (are) towards the righteous ;' * the face of Jehovah (is) against evil-doers.'
PSALM XII.
This psalm consists of two parts easily distinguished ; a complaint with an expression of desire, and a promise with an expression of confidence and hope. The Psalmist laments the waning number of good men, v. 2 (1), and the abounding of iniquity, v. 3 (2), to which he desires and expects that God will put an end, vs. 4, 5 (3, 4). In answer to this prayer, he receives an assurance of protection and deliverance for the righteous, v. 6 (5), on which he rests as infallibly certain, v. 7 (6), and consoles himself under present trials, v. 8 (7).
There seems to be no specific reference to the persecution of the Jews by the Gentiles, or of David by Absalom or Saul. The contrast exhibited is rather that between the risfhteous and the wicked as a class, and the psalm seems designed to be a permanent vehicle of pious sentiment for the church or chosen people under persecution by malignant enemies. It contains an unusual number of difficult expressions in propor- tion to its length ; but these are not of such a nature as to make its general import doubtful or obscure.
1. To the Chief Musician, on, the eighth (or octave), a Psahyi of David. This title is identical with that of the sixth Psalm, except that Neginoth is here omitted.
PSALM XIT. 93
2 (1.) Save, Jehovah, for the merciful (or the object of divine mercy) ceaseth, for the faithful fail from {among) the sons of men. The adjective n^cn^ whether taken in an active or a passive sense, is descriptive of the pious or godly man. See above, on Ps. iv. 4 (3.) The preterite form of the verbs (lias ceased, have failed,) represents the fearful process as already begun. The word rendered faithful in the last clause may also have the abstract sense of truth, fidelity. See below, Ps. XXXI. 24 (23), and compare Isai. xxvi. 2. In either case, the whole verse is a strong hyperbolical description of the small number of good men left in the community, and their consequent exposure to the malice of the wicked. Such expressions, as Luther well suggests, are too familiar in the dialect of common life to be mistaken or produce perplexity.
3 (2.) Va7iity, i. e. falsehood, the^j will speak; as they now do, so will they persist in doing ; {each) man with his neighbour, not merely with another man, but with his friend, his brother, towards whom he was particularly bound to act sincerely. Compare Eph. iv. 25. A lip of smoothness, or of smooth things, i. e. flattering. See above, on Ps. v. 10 (9.) This may be connected either with what goes before or with what fol- lows. * They speak falsehood, each to his neighbour, with a flattering lip.' Or, ' (With) a flattering lip (and) with a double heart will they speak.' A heart and a heart, i. e. a double heart, as a stone and a st07ie means "divers weio-hts." Deut. XXV. 13. By a double heart we are probably to understand, not mere dissimulation or hypocrisy, but inconsistency and instability of temper, which leads men to entertain opposite feelings towards the same object. Compare the description of the " doubleminded man" in James i. 8.
4 (3.) May Jehovah destroy all lips of smoothness, flattering lips, {and every) to?igue speaking great things, i. e. speaking
94 PSALM XII.
proudly, boasting. The form of the Hebrew verb is one com- monly employed to express an optative meaning ; but as this form is often poetically used for the future proper, it might be rendered here, Jehovah ivill destroy. There is no inconsistency between the flattering lips and the boastful tongue, because the subject of the boasting, as appears from what follows, is the flattery or deceit itself. As if he had said, Jehovah will destroy all flattering lips, and every tongue that boasts of their possession or use. For an example of such boasting, see Isaiah xxviii. 15.
5 (4.) Who have said, By our tongues will lue do mightily, our lips {are) with tis, who is lord to us, or over us ? This is an amplified specification of the phrase speaking great things in the preceding verse. By our tongues, literally, as to, with respect to our tongues. The idea of agency or instrumentality is suggested by the context. Do mightily, exercise power, show ourselves to be strong. Our lips are with us may either mean they are our own, at our disposal, or, they are on our side. The idea of the whole verse is, by our own lips and our tongues we can accomplish what we will.
6 (5.) From the desolation of the lur etched, from the sighing of the poor, noio ivill I arise, shall Jehovah say, I will place in safety hiin that shall jiOb^^i for it. The preposition from has a causal meaning, because of, on account of. The tvretcJied, afflicted, suff'erers. See above, on Ps. ix. 13 (12). I ivill arise ; see above, on Ps. iii. 8 (7). The future, shall Jehovah say^ implies that the promise is not yet uttered, much less fulfilled. An analogous use of the same form of the same verb runs through some of the prophecies and especially the later chap- ters of Isaiah. — The last clause is obscure and may also be translated, ' from him that puff'eth at him, — ' him at whom they puff' — 'him whom they would blow away,' &;c. The most;
PSALM XII. 95
probable meaning is the one first given, according to which the verse contains a promise of deliverance to those who especially desire and need it.
7 (6.) TJte sayings of Jehovah are pure sayi7igs, silver purged in a furrmce of earthy refined seven times. The Psalmist does not use the term commonly translated words, but one derived from the verb to say, with obvious allusion to the use of the verb itself in the preceding verse. What Jehovah there says, the promises there given, are here declared to be true without any mixture of mistake or falsehood. This is ex- pressed by the favourite figure of pure metallic ore. The idea of extreme or perfect purity is conveyed by the idiomatic phrase, purified seven times, i. e. repeatedly, or sevenfold, i. e. completely. Compare Dan. iii. 19. The general meaning of the verse is clear, but it contains one phrase which is among the most doubtful and disputed in the whole book. This is the phrase y^i^b 'b^^'$'2. To the common version above given, m a furnace of earth, and to another somewhat like it, purged in a furnace as to (i. Q.frotn) the earth, or earthy particles, it has been objected, that y^5^ never means earth as a material. Some avoid this difficulty by translating, in a furnace on the earth (or ground^ or, in the workshop (laboratory) of the earth, i. e. the mhie ; but this is not the place where ores are purified. It is further objected to all these translations, that they attach a sup- posititious meaning to the noun b'^bs'. It is therefore explained by some as a variation of bs'in, lord or master, and the whole clause made to mean, purified silver