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diff --git a/44027.txt b/44027.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 113d478..0000000 --- a/44027.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13888 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Expositor's Bible: The Psalms, Volume -III, by Alexander Maclaren - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Expositor's Bible: The Psalms, Volume III - -Author: Alexander Maclaren - -Editor: W. Robertson Nicoll - -Release Date: October 24, 2013 [EBook #44027] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE: PSALMS VOL III *** - - - - -Produced by Douglas L. Alley, III, Colin Bell and the -Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net -(This file was produced from images generously made -available by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE - - - - - EDITED BY THE REV. - W. ROBERTSON NICOLL, M.A., LL.D. - _Editor of "The Expositor"_ - - - - - - THE PSALMS - - - BY - ALEXANDER MACLAREN, D.D. - - - - - _VOLUME III._ - PSALM XC.-CL. - - - - - NEW YORK - A. C. ARMSTRONG AND SON - 51 EAST TENTH STREET - 1894 - - - - - THE EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE. - - _Crown_ 8_vo, cloth, price_ $1.50 _each vol._ - - - FIRST SERIES, 1887-8. - - Colossians. - By A. MACLAREN, D.D. - - St. Mark. - By Very Rev. the Dean of Armagh. - - Genesis. - By Prof. MARCUS DODS, D.D. - - 1 Samuel. - By Prof. W. G. BLAIKIE, D.D. - - 2 Samuel. - By the same Author. - - Hebrews. - By Principal T. C. EDWARDS, D.D. - - - SECOND SERIES, 1888-9. - - Galatians. - By Prof. G. G. FINDLAY, B.A. - - The Pastoral Epistles. - By Rev. A. PLUMMER, D.D. - - Isaiah I.-XXXIX. - By Prof. G. A. SMITH, D.D. Vol. I. - - The Book of Revelation. - By Prof. W. MILLIGAN, D.D. - - 1 Corinthians. - By Prof. MARCUS DODS, D.D. - - The Epistles of St. John. - By Rt. Rev. W. ALEXANDER, D.D. - - - THIRD SERIES, 1889-90. - - Judges and Ruth. - By R. A. WATSON, M.A., D.D. - - Jeremiah. - By Rev. C. J. BALL, M.A. - - Isaiah XL.-LXVI. - By Prof. G. A. SMITH, D.D. Vol. II. - - St. Matthew. - By Rev. J. MONRO GIBSON, D.D. - - Exodus. - By Very Rev. the Dean of Armagh. - - St. Luke. - By Rev. H. BURTON, M.A. - - - FOURTH SERIES, 1890-1. - - Ecclesiastes. - By Rev. SAMUEL COX, D.D. - - St. James and St. Jude. - By Rev. A. PLUMMER, D.D. - - Proverbs. - By Rev. R. F. HORTON, D.D. - - Leviticus. - By Rev. S. H. KELLOGG, D.D. - - The Gospel of St. John. - By Prof. M. DODS, D.D. Vol. I. - - The Acts of the Apostles. - By Prof. STOKES, D.D. Vol. I. - - - FIFTH SERIES, 1891-2. - - The Psalms. - By A. MACLAREN, D.D. Vol. I. - - 1 and 2 Thessalonians. - By JAMES DENNEY, D.D. - - The Book of Job. - By R. A. WATSON, M.A., D.D. - - Ephesians. - By Prof. G. G. FINDLAY, B.A. - - The Gospel of St. John. - By Prof. M. DODS, D.D. Vol. II. - - The Acts of the Apostles. - By Prof. STOKES, D.D. Vol. II. - - - SIXTH SERIES, 1892-3. - - 1 Kings. - By Ven. Archdeacon FARRAR. - - Philippians. - By Principal RAINY, D.D. - - Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther. - By Prof. W. F. ADENEY, M.A. - - Joshua. - By Prof. W. G. BLAIKIE, D.D. - - The Psalms. - By A. MACLAREN, D.D. Vol. II. - - The Epistles of St. Peter. - By Prof. RAWSON LUMBY, D.D. - - - SEVENTH SERIES, 1893-4. - - 2 Kings. - By Ven. Archdeacon FARRAR. - - Romans. - By H. C. G. MOULE, M.A. - - The Books of Chronicles. - By Prof. W. H. BENNETT, M.A. - - 2 Corinthians. - By JAMES DENNEY, D.D. - - Numbers. - By R. A. WATSON, M.A., D.D. - - The Psalms. - By A. MACLAREN, D.D. Vol. III. - - - EIGHTH SERIES, 1895-6. - - Daniel. - By the Ven. Archdeacon F. W. FARRAR. - - The Book of Jeremiah. - By Prof. W. H. BENNETT, M.A. - - Deuteronomy. - By Prof. ANDREW HARPER, B.D. - - The Song of Solomon and Lamentations. - By Prof. W. F. ADENEY, M.A. - - Ezekiel. - By Prof. JOHN SKINNER, M.A. - - The Minor Prophets. - By Prof. G. A. SMITH, D.D. Two Vols. - - - - - THE PSALMS - - - - - - BY - ALEXANDER MACLAREN, D.D. - - - - - - _VOLUME III_ - PSALMS XC.-CL. - - - - - - NEW YORK - A. C. ARMSTRONG AND SON - 51 EAST TENTH STREET - 1894 - - - - - CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - PSALM XC. 3 - - " XCI. 14 - - " XCII. 26 - - " XCIII. 33 - - " XCIV. 38 - - " XCV. 48 - - " XCVI. 55 - - " XCVII. 60 - - " XCVIII. 68 - - " XCIX. 71 - - " C. 78 - - " CI. 81 - - " CII. 87 - - " CIII. 101 - - " CIV. 111 - - " CV. 124 - - " CVI. 137 - - " CVII. 155 - - " CVIII. 169 - - " CIX. 172 - - " CX. 183 - - " CXI. 193 - - " CXII. 198 - - " CXIII. 205 - - " CXIV. 210 - - " CXV. 214 - - " CXVI. 221 - - " CXVII. 229 - - " CXVIII. 231 - - " CXIX. 244 - - " CXX. 292 - - " CXXI. 297 - - " CXXII. 303 - - " CXXIII. 307 - - " CXXIV. 310 - - " CXXV. 313 - - " CXXVI. 318 - - " CXXVII. 323 - - " CXXVIII. 327 - - " CXXIX. 331 - - " CXXX. 335 - - " CXXXI. 341 - - " CXXXII. 344 - - " CXXXIII. 355 - - " CXXXIV. 359 - - " CXXXV. 361 - - " CXXXVI. 366 - - " CXXXVII. 370 - - " CXXXVIII. 376 - - " CXXXIX. 382 - - " CXL. 393 - - " CXLI. 398 - - " CXLII. 405 - - " CXLIII. 410 - - " CXLIV. 418 - - " CXLV. 424 - - " CXLVI. 434 - - " CXLVII. 440 - - " CXLVIII. 448 - - " CXLIX. 454 - - " CL. 458 - - - - - BOOK IV. - - _PSALMS XC.-CVI._ - - - - - PSALM XC. - - 1 Lord, a dwelling-place hast Thou been for us - In generation after generation. - 2 Before the mountains were born, - Or Thou gavest birth to the earth and the world, - Even from everlasting, Thou art God. - 3 Thou turnest frail man back to dust, - And sayest, "Return, ye sons of man." - 4 For a thousand years in Thine eyes are as yesterday when it was - passing, - And a watch in the night. - 5 Thou dost flood them away, a sleep do they become, - In the morning they are like grass [which] springs afresh. - 6 In the morning it blooms and springs afresh, - By evening it is cut down and withers. - - 7 For we are wasted away in Thine anger, - And by Thy wrath have we been panic-struck. - 8 Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, - Our secret [sins] in the radiance of Thy face. - 9 For all our days have vanished in Thy wrath, - We have spent our years as a murmur. - 10 The days of our years--in them are seventy years, - Or if [we are] in strength, eighty years, - And their pride is [but] trouble and vanity, - For it is passed swiftly, and we fly away. - 11 Who knows the power of Thine anger, - And of Thy wrath according to the [due] fear of Thee? - 12 To number our days--thus teach us, - That we may win ourselves a heart of wisdom. - - 13 Return, Jehovah; how long? - And have compassion upon Thy servants. - 14 Satisfy us in the morning [with] Thy loving-kindness, - And we shall ring out joyful cries and be glad all our days. - 15 Gladden us according to the days [when] Thou hast afflicted us, - The years [when] we have seen adversity. - 16 To Thy servants let Thy working be manifested, - And Thy majesty upon their children. - 17 And let the graciousness of the Lord our God be upon us, - And the work of our hands establish upon us, - Yea, the work of our hands establish it. - - -The sad and stately music of this great psalm befits the dirge of a -world. How artificial and poor, beside its restrained emotion and -majestic simplicity, do even the most deeply felt strains of other -poets on the same themes sound! It preaches man's mortality in immortal -words. In its awestruck yet trustful gaze on God's eternal being, in -its lofty sadness, in its archaic directness, in its grand images so -clearly cut and so briefly expressed, in its emphatic recognition of -sin as the occasion of death, and in its clinging to the eternal God -who can fill fleeting days with ringing gladness, the psalm utters once -for all the deepest thoughts of devout men. Like the God whom it hymns, -it has been "for generation after generation" an asylum. - -The question of its authorship has a literary interest, but little -more. The arguments against the Mosaic authorship, apart from -those derived from the as yet unsettled questions in regard to the -Pentateuch, are weak. The favourite one, adduced by Cheyne after -Hupfeld and others, is that the duration of human life was greater, -according to the history, in Moses' time than seventy years; but -the prolonged lives of certain conspicuous persons in that period -do not warrant a conclusion as to the average length of life; and -the generation that fell in the wilderness can clearly not have -lived beyond the psalmist's limit. The characteristic Mosaic tone in -regarding death as the wages of sin, the massive simplicity and the -entire absence of dependence on other parts of the Psalter, which -separate this psalm from almost all the others of the Fourth Book, are -strongly favourable to the correctness of the superscription. Further, -the section vv. 7-12 is distinctly historical, and is best understood -as referring not to mankind in general, but to Israel; and no period -is so likely to have suggested such a strain of thought as that when -the penalty of sin was laid upon the people, and they were condemned to -find graves in the wilderness. But however the question of authorship -may be settled, the psalm is "not of an age, but for all time." - -It falls into three parts, of which the two former contain six -verses each, while the last has but five. In the first section (vv. -1-6), the transitoriness of men is set over against the eternity of -God; in the second, (vv. 7-12) that transitoriness is traced to its -reason, namely sin; and in the third, prayer that God would visit His -servants is built upon both His eternity and their fleeting days. -The short ver. 1 blends both the thoughts which are expanded in the -following verses, while in it the singer breathes awed contemplation -of the eternal God as the dwelling-place or asylum of generations -that follow each other, swift and unremembered, as the waves that -break on some lonely shore. God is invoked as "Lord," the sovereign -ruler, the name which connotes His elevation and authority. But, -though lofty, He is not inaccessible. As some ancestral home shelters -generation after generation of a family, and in its solid strength -stands unmoved, while one after another of its somewhile tenants is -borne forth to his grave, and the descendants sit in the halls where -centuries before their ancestors sat, God is the home of all who -find any real home amidst the fluctuating nothings of this shadowy -world. The contrast of His eternity and our transiency is not -bitter, though it may hush us into wisdom, if we begin with the trust -that He is the abiding abode of short-lived man. For this use of -_dwelling-place_ compare Deut. xxxiii. 27. - -What God has been to successive generations results from what He is in -Himself before all generations. So ver. 2 soars to the contemplation -of His absolute eternity, stretching boundless on either side of "this -bank and shoal of time"--"From everlasting to everlasting Thou art -God"; and in that name is proclaimed His self-derived strength, which, -being eternal, is neither derived from nor diminished by time, that -first gives to, and then withdraws from, all creatures their feeble -power. The remarkable expressions for the coming forth of the material -world from the abyss of Deity regard creation as a birth. The Hebrew -text reads in ver. 2_b_ as above, "Thou gavest birth to"; but a very -small change in a single vowel gives the possibly preferable reading -which preserves the parallelism of a passive verb in both clauses, "Or -the earth and the world were brought forth." - -The poet turns now to the other member of his antithesis. Over -against God's eternal Being is set the succession of man's -generations, which has been already referred to in ver. 1. This -thought of successiveness is lost unless ver. 3_b_ is understood as -the creative fiat which replaces by a new generation those who have -been turned back to dust. Death and life, decay and ever-springing -growth, are in continual alternation. The leaves, which are men, -drop; the buds swell and open. The ever-knitted web is being ever -run down and woven together again. It is a dreary sight, unless one -can say with our psalm, "_Thou_ turnest.... _Thou_ sayest, Return." -Then one understands that it is not aimless or futile. If a living -Person is behind the transiencies of human life, these are still -pathetic and awe-kindling, but not bewildering. In ver. 3_a_ there is -clear allusion to Gen. iii. 19. The word rendered "dust" may be an -adjective taken as neuter = _that which is crushed_, _i.e._ dust; or, -as others suppose, a substantive = _crushing_; but is probably best -understood in the former sense. The psalm significantly uses the word -for _man_ which connotes frailty, and in _b_ the expression "sons of -man" which suggests birth. - -The psalmist rises still higher in ver. 4. It is much to say that -God's Being is endless, but it is more to say that He is raised above -Time, and that none of the terms in which men describe duration have -any meaning for Him. A thousand years, which to a man seem so long, -are to Him dwindled to nothing, in comparison with the eternity -of His Being. As Peter has said, the converse must also be true, -and "one day be with the Lord as a thousand years." He can crowd a -fulness of action into narrow limits. Moments can do the work of -centuries. The longest and shortest measures of time are absolutely -equivalent, for both are entirely inapplicable, to His timeless -Being. But what has this great thought to do here, and how is the -"For" justified? It may be that the psalmist is supporting the -representation of ver. 2, God's eternity, rather than that of ver. -3, man's transiency; but, seeing that this verse is followed by one -which strikes the same note as ver. 3, it is more probable that here, -too, the dominant thought is the brevity of human life. It never -seems so short, as when measured against God's timeless existence. -So, the underlying thought of ver. 3, namely, the brevity of man's -time, which is there illustrated by the picture of the endless flux -of generations, is here confirmed by the thought that all measures of -time dwindle to equal insignificance with Him. - -The psalmist next takes his stand on the border-moment between to-day -and yesterday. How short looks the day that is gliding away into the -past! "A watch in the night" is still shorter to our consciousness, -for it passes over us unnoted. - -The passing of mortal life has hitherto been contemplated in immediate -connection with God's permanence, and the psalmist's tone has been -a wonderful blending of melancholy and trust. But in ver. 5 the -sadder side of his contemplations becomes predominant. Frail man, -frail because sinful, is his theme. The figures which set forth man's -mortality are grand in their unelaborated brevity. They are like some -of Michael Angelo's solemn statues. "Thou floodest them away"--a bold -metaphor, suggesting the rush of a mighty stream, bearing on its tawny -bosom crops, household goods, and corpses, and hurrying with its spoils -to the sea. "They become a sleep." Some would take this to mean falling -into the sleep of death; others would regard life as compared to a -sleep--"for before we are rightly conscious of being alive, we cease -to live" (Luther, quoted by Cheyne); while others find the point of -comparison in the disappearance, without leaving a trace behind, of -the noisy generations, sunk at once into silence, and "occupying no -more space on the scroll of Time than a night's sleep" (so Kay). It is -tempting to attach "in the morning" to "a sleep," but the recurrence -of the expression in ver. 7 points to the retention of the present -division of clauses, according to which the springing grass greets -the eye at dawn, as if created by a night's rain. The word rendered -"springs afresh" is taken in two opposite meanings, being by some -rendered _passes away_, and by others as above. Both meanings come from -the same radical notion of change, but the latter is evidently the -more natural and picturesque here, as preserving, untroubled by any -intrusion of an opposite thought, the cheerful picture of the pastures -rejoicing in the morning sunshine, and so making more impressive the -sudden, sad change wrought by evening, when all the fresh green blades -and bright flowers lie turned already into brown hay by the mower's -scythe and the fierce sunbeams. - - "So passeth, in the passing of an hour, - Of mortal life, the leaf, the bud, the flower." - -The central portion of the psalm (vv. 7-12) narrows the circle of -the poet's vision to Israel, and brings out the connection between -death and sin. The transition from truths of universal application is -marked by the use of _we_ and _us_, while the past tenses indicate -that the psalm is recounting history. That transitoriness assumes -a still more tragic aspect, when regarded as the result of the -collision of God's "wrath" with frail man. How can such stubble but -be wasted into ashes by such fire? And yet this is the same psalmist -who has just discerned that the unchanging Lord is the dwelling-place -of all generations. The change from the previous thought of the -eternal God as the dwelling-place of frail men is very marked in this -section, in which the destructive anger of God is in view. But the -singer felt no contradiction between the two thoughts, and there is -none. We do not understand the full blessedness of believing that God -is our asylum, till we understand that He is our asylum from all -that is destructive in Himself; nor do we know the significance of -the universal experience of decay and death, till we learn that it is -not the result of our finite being, but of sin. - -That one note sounds on in solemn persistence through these verses, -therein echoing the characteristic Mosaic lesson, and corresponding -with the history of the people in the desert. In ver. 7 the cause -of their wasting away is declared to be God's wrath, which has -scattered them as in panic (Psalm xlviii. 5). The occasion of that -lightning flash of anger is confessed in ver. 8 to be the sins -which, however hidden, stand revealed before God. The expression for -"the light of Thy face" is slightly different from the usual one, -a word being employed which means a luminary, and is used in Gen. -i. for the heavenly bodies. The ordinary phrase is always used as -expressing favour and blessing; but there is an illumination, as from -an all-revealing light, which flashes into all dark corners of human -experience, and "there is nothing hid from the heat thereof." Sin -smitten by that light must die. Therefore, in ver. 9, the consequence -of its falling on Israel's transgressions is set forth. Their days -vanish as mists before the sun, or as darkness glides out of the -sky in the morning. Their noisy years are but as a murmur, scarce -breaking the deep silence, and forgotten as soon as faintly heard. -The psalmist sums up his sad contemplations in ver. 10, in which -life is regarded as not only rigidly circumscribed within a poor -seventy or, at most, eighty years, but as being, by reason of its -transitoriness, unsatisfying and burdensome. The "pride" which is -but trouble and vanity is that which John calls "the pride of life," -the objects which, apart from God, men desire to win, and glory in -possessing. The self-gratulation would be less ridiculous or tragic, -if the things which evoke it lasted longer, or we lasted longer to -possess them. But seeing that they swiftly pass and we fly too, -surely it is but "trouble" to fight for what is "vanity" when won, -and what melts away so surely and soon. - -Plainly, then, things being so, man's wisdom is to seek to know two -things--the power of God's anger, and the measure of his own days. -But alas for human levity and bondage to sense, how few look beyond -the external, or lay to heart the solemn truth that God's wrath is -inevitably operative against sin, and how few have any such just -conception of it as to lead to reverential awe, proportioned to the -Divine character which should evoke it! Ignorance and inoperative -knowledge divide mankind between them, and but a small remnant have -let the truth plough deep into their inmost being and plant there -holy fear of God. Therefore, the psalmist prays for himself and his -people, as knowing the temptations to inconsiderate disregard and to -inadequate feeling of God's opposition to sin, that His power would -take untaught hearts in hand and teach them this--to count their -days. Then we shall bring home, as from a ripened harvest field, -the best fruit which life can yield, "a heart of wisdom," which, -having learned the power of God's anger, and the number of our days, -turns itself to the eternal dwelling-place, and no more is sad, when -it sees life ebbing away, or the generations moving in unbroken -succession into the darkness. - -The third part (vv. 13-17) gathers all the previous meditations into a -prayer, which is peculiarly appropriate to Israel in the wilderness, -but has deep meaning for all God's servants. We note the invocation of -God by the covenant name "Jehovah," as contrasted with the "Lord" of -ver. 1. The psalmist draws nearer to God, and feels the closer bond of -which that name is the pledge. His prayer is the more urgent, by reason -of the brevity of life. So short is his time that he cannot afford to -let God delay in coming to him and to his fellows. "How long?" comes -pathetically from lips which have been declaring that their time of -speech is so short. This is not impatience, but wistful yearning, -which, even while it yearns, leaves God to settle His own time, and, -while it submits, still longs. Night has wrapped Israel, but the -psalmist's faith "awakes the morning," and he prays that its beams may -soon dawn and Israel be satisfied with the longed-for loving-kindness -(compare Psalm xxx. 5); for life at its longest is but brief, and he -would fain have what remains of it be lit with sunshine from God's -face. The only thing that will secure life-long gladness is a heart -satisfied with the experience of God's love. That will make morning in -mirk midnight; that will take all the sorrow out of the transiency of -life. The days which are filled with God are long enough to satisfy us; -and they who have Him for their own will be "full of days," whatever -the number of these may be. - -The psalmist believes that God's justice has in store for His -servants joys and blessings proportioned to the duration of their -trials. He is not thinking of any future beyond the grave; but his -prayer is a prophecy, which is often fulfilled even in this life and -always hereafter. Sorrows rightly borne here are factors determining -the glory that shall follow. There is a proportion between the -years of affliction and the millenniums of glory. But the final -prayer, based upon all these thoughts of God's eternity and man's -transitoriness, is not for blessedness, but for vision and Divine -favour on work done for Him. The deepest longing of the devout heart -should be for the manifestation to itself and others of God's work. -The psalmist is not only asking that God would put forth His acts -in interposition for himself and his fellow-servants, but also that -the full glory of these far-reaching deeds may be disclosed to their -understandings as well as experienced in their lives. And since he -knows that "through the ages an increasing purpose runs," he prays -that coming generations may see even more glorious displays of Divine -power than his contemporaries have done. How the sadness of the -thought of fleeting generations succeeded by new ones vanishes when -we think of them all as, in turn, spectators and possessors of God's -"work"! But in that great work we are not to be mere spectators. -Fleeting as our days are, they are ennobled by our being permitted -to be God's tools; and if "the work of our hands" is the reflex or -carrying on of His working, we can confidently ask that, though we -the workers have to pass, it may be "established." "In our embers" -may be "something that doth live," and that life will not all die -which has done the will of God, but it and its doer will "endure for -ever." Only there must be the descent upon us of "the graciousness" -of God, before there can flow from us "deeds which breed not shame," -but outlast the perishable earth and follow their doers into the -eternal dwelling-place. The psalmist's closing prayer reaches further -than he knew. Lives on which the favour of God has come down like a -dove, and in which His will has been done, are not flooded away, nor -do they die into silence like a whisper, but carry in themselves the -seeds of immortality, and are akin to the eternity of God. - - - - - PSALM XCI. - - 1 He that sits in the secret place of the Most High, - In the shadow of the Almighty shall he lodge. - - 2 I will say to Jehovah, "My refuge and my fortress, - My God, in whom I will trust." - - 3 For He, He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler - From the pestilence that destroys. - 4 With His pinions shall He cover thee, - And under His wings shalt thou take refuge, - A shield and target is His Troth. - 5 Thou shalt not be afraid of the terror of the night, - Of the arrow [that] flies by day, - 6 Of the pestilence [that] stalks in darkness, - Of the sickness [that] devastates at noonday. - 7 A thousand may fall at thy side, - And a myriad at thy right hand, - To thee it shall not reach. - 8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou look on, - And see the recompense of the wicked. - - 9_a_ "For Thou, Jehovah, art my refuge." - - 9_b_ The Most High thou hast made thy dwelling-place. - 10 No evil shall befall thee, - And no scourge shall come near thy tent. - 11 For His angels will He command concerning thee, - To keep thee in all thy ways. - 12 Upon [their] hands shall they bear thee, - Lest thou strike thy foot against a stone. - 13 Upon lion and adder shalt thou tread, - Thou shalt trample upon young lion and dragon. - - 14 "Because to Me he clings, therefore will I deliver him - I will lift him high because he knows My name. - - 15 He shall call on Me, and I will answer him; - With him will I, even I, be in trouble, - I will rescue him and bring him to honour. - 16 [With] length of days will I satisfy him, - And give him to gaze on My salvation." - - -The solemn sadness of Psalm xc. is set in strong relief by the -sunny brightness of this song of happy, perfect trust in the Divine -protection. The juxtaposition is, however, probably due to the verbal -coincidence of the same expression being used in both psalms in -reference to God. In Psalm xc. 1, and in xci. 9, the somewhat unusual -designation "dwelling-place" is applied to Him, and the thought -conveyed in it runs through the whole of this psalm. - -An outstanding characteristic of it is its sudden changes of persons; -"He," "I," and "thou" alternate in a bewildering fashion, which has -led to many attempts at explanation. One point is clear--that, in -vv. 14-16, God speaks, and that He speaks of, not to, the person who -loves and clings to Him. At ver. 14, then, we must suppose a change -of speaker, which is unmarked by any introductory formula. Looking -back over the remainder of the psalm, we find that the bulk of it is -addressed directly _to_ a person who must be the same as is spoken _of_ -in the Divine promises. The "him" of the latter is the "thee" of the -mass of the psalm. But this mass is broken at two points by clauses -alike in meaning, and containing expressions of trust (vv. 2, 9_a_). -Obviously the unity of the psalm requires that the "I" of these two -verses should be the "thou" of the great portion of the psalm, and the -"he" of the last part. Each profession of trust will then be followed -by assurances of safety thence resulting, ver. 2 having for pendant vv. -3-8, and ver. 9_a_ being followed by vv. 9_b_-13. The two utterances -of personal faith are substantially identical, and the assurances which -succeed them are also in effect the same. It is by some supposed that -this alternation of persons is due simply to the poet expressing partly -"his own feelings as from himself, and partly as if they were uttered -by another" (Perowne after Ewald). But that is not an explanation of -the structure; it is only a statement of the structure which requires -to be explained. No doubt the poet is expressing his own feelings or -convictions all through the psalm: but why does he express them in this -singular fashion? - -The explanation which is given by Delitzsch, Stier, Cheyne and many -others takes the psalm to be antiphonal, and distributes the parts -among the voices of a choir, with some variations in the allocation. - -But ver. 1 still remains a difficulty. As it stands it sounds flat -and tautological, and hence attempts have been made to amend it, -which will presently be referred to. But it will fall into the -general antiphonal scheme, if it is regarded as a prelude, sung by -the same voice which twice answers the single singer with choral -assurances that reward his trust. We, then, have this distribution -of parts: ver. 1, the broad statement of the blessedness of dwelling -with God; ver. 2, a solo, the voice of a heart encouraged thereby to -exercise personal trust; vv. 3-8, answers, setting forth the security -of such a refuge; ver. 9_a_, solo, reiterating with sweet monotony -the word of trust; vv. 9_b_-13, the first voice or chorus repeating -with some variation the assurances of vv. 3-8; and vv. 14-16, God's -acceptance of the trust and confirmation of the assurances. - -There is, no doubt, difficulty in ver. 1; for, if it is taken as an -independent sentence, it sounds tautological, since there is no -well-marked difference between "sitting" and "lodging," nor much -between "secret place" and "shadow." But possibly the idea of safety -is more strongly conveyed by "shadow" than by "secret place," and -the meaning of the apparently identical assertion may be, that he -who quietly enters into communion with God thereby passes into His -protection; or, as Kay puts it, "Loving faith on man's part shall be -met by faithful love on God's part." The LXX. changes the person of -"will say" in ver. 2, and connects it with ver. 1 as its subject ("He -that sits ... that lodges ... shall say"). Ewald, followed by Baethgen -and others, regards ver. 1 as referring to the "I" of ver. 2, and -translates "Sitting ... I say." Hupfeld, whom Cheyne follows, cuts the -knot by assuming that "Blessed is" has dropped out at the beginning of -ver. 1, and so gets a smooth run of construction and thought ("Happy is -he who sits ... who lodges ... who says"). It is suspiciously smooth, -obliterates the characteristic change of persons, of which the psalm -has other instances, and has no support except the thought that the -psalmist would have saved us a great deal of trouble, if he had only -been wise enough to have written so. The existing text is capable of a -meaning in accordance with his general drift. A wide declaration like -that of ver. 1 fittingly preludes the body of the song, and naturally -evokes the pathetic profession of faith which follows. - -According to the accents, ver. 2 is to be read "I will say, 'To -Jehovah [belongs] my refuge,'" etc. But it is better to divide as -above. Jehovah _is_ the refuge. The psalmist speaks _to_ Him, with the -exclamation of yearning trust. He can only call Him by precious names, -to use which, in however broken a fashion, is an appeal that goes -straight to His heart, as it comes straight from the suppliant's. The -singer lovingly accumulates the Divine names in these two first verses. -He calls God "Most High," "Almighty," when he utters the general truth -of the safety of souls that enter His secret place; but, when he speaks -his own trust, he addresses Jehovah, and adds to the wide designation -"God" the little word "my," which claims personal possession of His -fulness of Deity. The solo voice does not say much, but it says enough. -There has been much underground work before that clear jet of personal -"appropriating faith" could spring into light. - -We might have looked for a Selah here, if this psalm had stood in -the earlier books, but we can feel the brief pause before the choral -answer comes in vv. 3-8. It sets forth in lofty poetry the blessings -that such a trust secures. Its central idea is that of safety. That -safety is guaranteed in regard to two classes of dangers--those from -enemies, and those from diseases. Both are conceived of as divided -into secret and open perils. Ver. 3 proclaims the trustful soul's -immunity, and ver. 4 beautifully describes the Divine protection -which secures it. Vv. 5, 6, expand the general notion of safety, into -defence against secret and open foes and secret and open pestilences; -while vv. 7, 8, sum up the whole, in a vivid contrast between the -multitude of victims and the man sheltered in God, and looking out -from his refuge on the wide-rolling flood of destruction. As in -Psalm xviii. 5, Death is represented as a "fowler" into whose snares -men heedlessly flutter, unless held back by God's delivering hand. -The mention of pestilence in ver. 3 somewhat anticipates the proper -order, as the same idea recurs in its appropriate place in ver. 6. -Hence the rendering "word," which requires no consonantal change, is -adopted from the LXX. by several moderns. But that is feeble, and -the slight irregularity of a double mention of one form of peril, -which is naturally suggested by the previous reference to Death, -is not of much moment. The beautiful description of God sheltering -the trustful man beneath His pinions recalls Deut. xxxii. 11 and -Psalms xvii. 8, lxiii. 7. The mother eagle, spreading her dread wing -over her eaglets, is a wonderful symbol of the union of power and -gentleness. It would be a bold hand which would drag the fledglings -from that warm hiding-place and dare the terrors of that beak and -claws. But this pregnant verse (4) not only tells of the strong -defence which God is, but also, in a word, sets in clear light man's -way of reaching that asylum. "Thou shalt take refuge." It is the word -which is often vaguely rendered "trust," but which, if we retain its -original signification, becomes illuminative as to what that trust -is. The flight of the soul, conscious of nakedness and peril, to -the safe shelter of God's breast is a description of faith which, -in practical value, surpasses much learned dissertation. And this -verse adds yet another point to its comprehensive statements, when, -changing the figure, it calls God's _Troth_, or faithful adherence -to His promises and obligations, our "shield and target." We have -not to fly to a dumb God for shelter, or to risk anything upon a -Peradventure. He has spoken, and His word is inviolable. Therefore, -trust is possible. And between ourselves and all evil we may lift the -shield of His Troth. His faithfulness is our sure defence, and Faith -is our shield only in a secondary sense, its office being but to -grasp our true defence, and to keep us well behind that. - -The assaults of enemies and the devastations of pestilence are -taken in vv. 5, 6, as types of all perils. These evils speak of a -less artificial stage of society than that in which our experience -moves, but they serve us as symbols of more complex dangers besetting -outward and inward life. "The terror of the night" seems best -understood as parallel with the "arrow that flies by day," in so far -as both refer to actual attacks by enemies. Nocturnal surprises were -favourite methods of assault in early warfare. Such an explanation -is worthier than the supposition that the psalmist means demons that -haunt the night. In ver. 6 Pestilence is personified as stalking, -shrouded in darkness, the more terrible because it strikes unseen. -Ver. 6_b_ has been understood, as by the Targum and LXX., to refer -to demons who exercise their power in noonday. But this explanation -rests upon a misreading of the word rendered "devastates." The other -translated "sickness" is only found, besides this place, in Deut. -xxxii. 24 ("destruction") and Isa. xxviii. 2 ("a destroying storm," -lit. a storm of destruction), and in somewhat different form in Hosea -xiii. 14. It comes from a root meaning _to cut_, and seems here to -be a synonym for pestilence. Baethgen sees in "the arrow by day" the -fierce sunbeams, and in "the _heat_ (as he renders) which rages at -noonday" the poisonous simoom. The trustful man, sheltered in God, -looks on while thousands fall round him, as Israel looked from their -homes on the Passover night, and sees that there is a God that judges -and recompenses evil-doers by evil suffered. - -Heartened by these great assurances, the single voice once more -declares its trust. Ver. 9_a_ is best separated from _b_, though -Hupfeld here again assumes that "thou hast said" has fallen out -between "For" and "Thou." - -This second utterance of trust is almost identical with the first. -Faith has no need to vary its expression. "Thou, Jehovah, art my -refuge" is enough for it. God's mighty name and its personal possession -of all which that name means, as its own hiding-place, are its -treasures, which it does not weary of recounting. Love loves to repeat -itself. The deepest emotions, like song-birds, have but two or three -notes, which they sing over and over again all the long day through. He -that can use this singer's words of trust has a vocabulary rich enough. - -The responsive assurances (vv. 9_b_-13) are, in like manner, -substantially identical with the preceding ones, but differences -may be discerned by which these are heightened in comparison with -the former. The promise of immunity is more general. Instead of -two typical forms of danger, the widest possible exemption from -all forms of it is declared in ver. 10. _No_ evil shall come -near, _no_ scourge approach, the "tent" of the man whose real and -permanent "dwelling-place" is Jehovah. There are much beauty and -significance in that contrast of the two homes in which a godly -man lives, housing, as far as his outward life is concerned, in a -transitory abode, which to-morrow may be rolled up and moved to -another camping-place in the desert, but abiding, in so far as his -true being is concerned, in God, the permanent dwelling-place through -all generations. The transitory outward life has reflected on it -some light of peaceful security from that true home. It is further -noteworthy that the second group of assurances is concerned with -active life, while the first only represented a passive condition of -safety beneath God's wing. In vv. 11, 12, His angels take the place -of protectors, and the sphere in which they protect is "in all thy -_ways_"--_i.e._, in the activities of ordinary life. The dangers -_there_ are of stumbling, whether that be construed as referring to -outward difficulties or to temptations to sin. - -The perils, further specified in ver. 13, correspond to those of -the previous part in being open and secret: the lion with its roar -and leap, the adder with its stealthy glide among the herbage -and its unlooked-for bite. So, the two sets of assurances, taken -together, cover the whole ground of life, both in its moments of -hidden communion in the secret place of the Most High, and in its -times of diligent discharge of duty on life's common way. Perils -of communion and perils of work are equally real, and equally may -we be sheltered from them. God Himself spreads His wing over the -trustful man, and sends His messengers to keep him, in all the paths -appointed for him by God. The angels have no charge to take stones -out of the way. Hinderances are good for us. Smooth paths weary and -make presumptuous. Rough ones bring out our best and drive us to -look to God. But His messengers have for their task to lift us on -their palms over difficulties, not so that we shall not feel them -to be difficult, but so that we shall not strike our foot against -them. Many a man remembers the elevation and buoyancy of spirit which -strangely came to him when most pressed by work or trouble. God's -angels were bearing him up. Active life is full of open and secret -foes as well as of difficulties. He that keeps near to God will pass -unharmed through them all, and, with a foot made strong and firm by -God's own power infused into it, will be able to crush the life out -of the most formidable and the most sly assailants. "The God of peace -shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly." - -Finally, God Himself speaks, and confirms and deepens the previous -assurances. That He is represented as speaking _of_, not _to_, His -servant increases the majesty of the utterance, by seeming to call -the universe to hear, and converts promises to an individual into -promises to every one who will fulfil the requisite conditions. These -are threefold. - -God desires that men should cling to Him, know His name, and call -on Him. The word rendered "cling" includes more than "setting love -upon" one. It means to bind or knit oneself to anything, and so -embraces the cleaving of a fixed heart, of a "recollected" mind, -and of an obedient will. Such clinging demands effort; for every -hand relaxes its grasp, unless ever and again tightened. He who thus -clings will come to "know" God's "name," with the knowledge which is -born of experience, and is loving familiarity, not mere intellectual -apprehension. Such clinging and knowledge will find utterance in -continual converse with God, not only when needing deliverance, but -in perpetual aspiration after Him. - -The promises to such an one go very deep and stretch very far. "I -will deliver him." So the previous assurance that no evil shall -come nigh him is explained and brought into correspondence with the -facts of life. Evil may be experienced. Sorrows will come. But they -will not touch the central core of the true life, and from them God -will deliver, not only by causing them to cease, but by fitting us -to bear. Clinging to Him, a man will be "drawn out of many waters," -like Peter on the stormy lake. "I will set him on high" is more than -a parallel promise to that of deliverance. It includes that; for a -man lifted to a height is safe from the flood that sweeps through -the valley, or from the enemies that ravage the plain. But that -elevation, which comes from knowing God's name, brings more than -safety, even a life lived in a higher region than that of things -seen. "I will answer him." How can He fail to hear when they who -trust Him cry? Promises, especially for the troubled, follow, which -do not conflict with the earlier assurances, rightly understood. "I -will be with him in trouble." God's presence is the answer to His -servant's call. God comes nearer to devout and tried souls, as a -mother presses herself caressingly closer to a weeping child. So, no -man need add solitude to sadness, but may have God sitting with him, -like Job's friends, waiting to comfort him with true comfort. And His -presence delivers from, and glorifies after, trouble borne as becomes -God's friend. The bit of dull steel might complain, if it could feel, -of the pain of being polished, but the result is to make it a mirror -fit to flash back the sunlight. - -"With length of days will I satisfy him" is, no doubt, a promise -belonging more especially to Old Testament times; but if we put -emphasis on "satisfy," rather than on the extended duration, it may -fairly suggest that, to the trustful soul, life is long enough, -whatever its duration, and that the guest, who has sat at God's table -here, is not unwilling to rise from it, when his time comes, being -"satisfied with favour, and full of the goodness of the Lord." The -vision of God's salvation, which is set last, seems from its position -in the series to point, however dimly, to a vision which comes after -earth's troubles and length of days. The psalmist's language implies -not a mere casual beholding, but a fixed gaze. Delitzsch renders -"revel in My salvation" (English translation). Cheyne has "feast his -eyes with." Such seeing is possession. The crown of God's promises -to the man who makes God his dwelling-place is a full, rapturous -experience of a full salvation, which follows on the troubles and -deliverances of earth, and brings a more dazzling honour and a more -perfect satisfaction. - - - - - PSALM XCII. - - 1 Good is it to give thanks to Jehovah, - And to harp to Thy name, Most High; - 2 To declare in the morning Thy loving-kindness, - And thy faithfulness in the night seasons, - 3 Upon a ten-stringed [instrument], even upon the psaltery, - With skilful music on the lyre. - - 4 For Thou hast gladdened me, Jehovah, with Thy working, - In the works of Thy hands will I shout aloud my joy. - 5 How great are Thy works, Jehovah, - Exceeding deep are Thy purposes! - 6 A brutish man knows not, - And a fool understands not this. - - 7 When the wicked sprang like herbage, - And all the workers of iniquity blossomed, - [It was only] for their being destroyed for ever. - 8 But Thou art [enthroned] on high for evermore, Jehovah! - 9 For behold Thy enemies, Jehovah, - For behold Thy enemies--shall perish, - All the workers of iniquity shall be scattered. - - 10 But Thou hast exalted my horn like a wild ox, - I am anointed with fresh oil (?). - 11 My eye also gazed on my adversaries, - Of them that rose against me as evil-doers my ear heard. - 12 The righteous shall spring like the palm, - Like a cedar in Lebanon shall he grow. - - 13 Planted in the house of Jehovah, - They shall spring in the courts of our God. - 14 Still shall they bear fruit in old age, - Full of sap and verdant shall they be. - 15 To declare that Jehovah is upright, - My Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. - - -Authorities differ in their arrangement of this psalm. Clearly, -the first three verses are a prelude; and if these are left out of -account, the remainder of the psalm consists of twelve verses, which -fall into two groups of six each, the former of which mainly deals -with the brief prosperity and final overthrow of the wicked, while -the latter paints the converse truth of the security and blessedness -of the righteous. Both illustrate the depth of God's works and -purposes, which is the psalmist's theme. A further division of each -of these six verses into groups of three is adopted by Delitzsch, and -may be accepted. There will then be five strophes of three verses -each, of which the first is introductory; the second and third, a -pair setting forth the aspect of Providence towards the wicked; and -the fourth and fifth, another pair, magnifying its dealings with the -righteous. Perowne takes the eighth verse, which is distinguished -by containing only one clause, as the kernel of the psalm, which -is preceded by seven verses, constituting the first division, and -followed by seven, making the second. But this arrangement, though -tempting, wrenches ver. 9 from its kindred ver. 7. - -Vv. 1-3 are in any case introductory. In form they are addressed -to Jehovah, in thankful acknowledgment of the privilege and joy -of praise. In reality they are a summons to men to taste its -gladness, and to fill each day and brighten every night by music of -thanksgiving. The devout heart feels that worship is "good," not only -as being acceptable to God and conformable to man's highest duty, -but as being the source of delight to the worshipper. Nothing is -more characteristic of the Psalter than the joy which often dances -and sings through its strains. Nothing affords a surer test of -the reality of worship than the worshipper's joy in it. With much -significance and beauty, "Thy loving-kindness" is to be the theme of -each morning, as we rise to a new day and find His mercy, radiant as -the fresh sunshine, waiting to bless our eyes, and "Thy faithfulness" -is to be sung in the night seasons, as we part from another day which -has witnessed to His fulfilment of all His promises. - -The second strophe contains the reason for praise--namely, the -greatness and depth of the Divine works and purposes. The works -meant are, as is obvious from the whole strain of the psalm, those -of God's government of the world. The theme which exercised earlier -psalmists reappears here, but the struggles of faith with unbelief, -which are so profoundly and pathetically recorded in Psalm lxxiii., -are ended for this singer. He bows in trustful adoration before the -greatness of the works and the unsearchable depth of the purpose of -God which directs the works. The sequence of vv. 4-6 is noteworthy. -The central place is occupied by ver. 5--a wondering and reverent -exclamation, evoked by the very mysteries of Providence. On either -side of it stand verses describing the contrasted impression made -by these on devout and on gross minds. The psalmist and his fellows -are "gladdened," though he cannot see to the utmost verge or deepest -abyss of Works or Plans. What he does see is good; and if sight -does not go down to the depths, it is because eyes are weak, not -because these are less pellucid than the sunlit shallows. What -gladdens the trustful soul, which is in sympathy with God, only -bewilders the "brutish man"--_i.e._, the man who, by immersing his -faculties in sense, has descended to the animal level; and it is too -grave and weighty for the "fool," the man of incurable levity and -self-conceit, to trouble himself to ponder. The eye sees what it is -capable of seeing. A man's judgment of God's dealings depends on his -relation to God and on the dispositions of his soul. - -The sterner aspect of Providence is dealt with in the next strophe -(vv. 7-9). Some recent signal destruction of evil-doers seems -to be referred to. It exemplifies once more the old truth which -another psalmist had sung (Psalm xxxvii. 2), that the prosperity -of evil-doers is short-lived, like the blossoming herbage, and not -only short-lived, but itself the occasion of their destruction. The -apparent success of the wicked is as a pleasant slope that leads -downwards. The quicker the blossoming, the sooner the petals fall. -"The prosperity of fools shall destroy them." As in the previous -strophe the middle verse was central in idea as well as in place, so -in this one. Ver. 8 states the great fact from which the overthrow -of the wicked, which is declared in the verses before and after, -results. God's eternal elevation above the Transitory and the Evil -is not merely contrasted with these, but is assigned as the reason -why what is evil is transitory. We might render "Thou, Jehovah, art -high (lit. a height) for evermore," as, in effect, the LXX. and other -old versions do; but the application of such an epithet to God is -unexampled, and the rendering above is preferable. God's eternal -exaltation "is the great pillar of the universe and of our faith" -(Perowne). From it must one day result that all God's enemies shall -perish, as the psalmist reiterates, with triumphant reduplication -of the designation of the foes, as if he would make plain that the -very name "God's enemies" contained a prophecy of their destruction. -However closely banded, they "shall be scattered." Evil may make -conspiracies for a time, for common hatred of good brings discordant -elements into strange fellowship, but in its real nature it is -divisive, and, sooner or later, allies in wickedness become foes, and -no two of them are left together. The only lasting human association -is that which binds men to one another, because all are bound to God. - -From the scattered fugitives the psalmist turns first to joyful -contemplation of his own blessedness, and then to wider thoughts -of the general well-being of all God's friends. The more personal -references are comprised in the fourth strophe (vv. 10-12). The -metaphor of the exalted horn expresses, as in Psalms lxxv. 10, -lxxxix. 17, triumph or the vindication of the psalmist by his -deliverance. Ver. 10_b_ is very doubtful. The word usually rendered -"I am anointed" is peculiar. Another view of the word takes it for -an infinitive used as a noun, with the meaning "growing old," or, as -Cheyne renders, "wasting strength." This translation ("my wasting -strength with rich oil") is that of the LXX. and other ancient -versions, and of Cheyne and Baethgen among moderns. If adopted, the -verb must be understood as repeated from the preceding clause, and -the slight incongruity thence arising can be lessened by giving a -somewhat wider meaning to "exalted," such as "strengthen" or the -like. The psalmist would then represent his deliverance as being like -refreshing a failing old age, by anointing with fresh oil. - -Thus triumphant and quickened, he expects to gaze on the downfall -of his foes. He uses the same expression as is found in Psalm xci. -8, with a similar connotation of calm security, and possibly of -satisfaction. There is no need for heightening his feelings into -"desire," as in the Authorised and Revised Versions. The next clause -(ver. 11_b_) "seems to have been expressly framed to correspond with -the other; it occurs nowhere else in this sense" (Perowne). A less -personal verse (ver. 12) forms the transition to the last strophe, -which is concerned with the community of the righteous. Here the -singular number is retained. By "the righteous" the psalmist does not -exactly mean himself, but he blends his own individuality with that -of the ideal character, so that he is both speaking of his own future -and declaring a general truth. The wicked "spring like herbage" (ver. -7), but the righteous "spring like the palm." The point of comparison -is apparently the gracefulness of the tree, which lifts its slender -but upright stem, and is ever verdant and fruitful. The cedar in -its massive strength, its undecaying vigour, and the broad shelves -of its foliage, green among the snows of Lebanon, stands in strong -contrast to the palm. Gracefulness is wedded to strength, and both -are perennial in lives devoted to God and Right. Evil blooms quickly, -and quickly dies. What is good lasts. One cedar outlives a hundred -generations of the grass and flowers that encircle its steadfast feet. - -The last part extends the thoughts of ver. 12 to all the righteous. -It does not name them, for it is needless to do so. Imagery and -reality are fused together in this strophe. It is questionable -whether there were trees planted in the courts of the Temple; but -the psalmist's thought is that the righteous will surely be found -there, and that it is their native soil, in which rooted, they are -permanent. The facts underlying the somewhat violent metaphor are -that true righteousness is found only in the dwellers with God, that -they who anchor themselves in Him, as a tree in the earth, are both -stayed on, and fed from, Him. The law of physical decay does not -enfeeble all the powers of devout men, even while they are subject to -it. As aged palm trees bear the heaviest clusters, so lives which are -planted in and nourished from God know no term of their fruitfulness, -and are full of sap and verdant, when lives that have shut themselves -off from Him are like an old stump, gaunt and dry, fit only for -firewood. Such lives are prolonged and made fruitful, as standing -proofs that Jehovah is upright, rewarding all cleaving to Him and -doing of His will, with conservation of strength, and ever-growing -power to do His will. - -Ver. 15 is a reminiscence of Deut. xxxii. 4. The last clause is -probably to be taken in connection with the preceding, as by Cheyne -("And that in my Rock there is no unrighteousness"). But it may also -be regarded as a final avowal of the psalmist's faith, the last -result of his contemplations of the mysteries of Providence. These -but drive him to cling close to Jehovah, as his sole refuge and his -sure shelter, and to ring out _this_ as the end which shall one day -be manifest as the net result of Providence--that there is no least -trace of unrighteousness in Him. - - - - - PSALM XCIII. - - 1 Jehovah is King, with majesty has He clothed Himself, - Jehovah has clothed Himself, has girded Himself with strength, - Yea, the world is set fast [that] it cannot be moved. - 2 Fast is set Thy throne from of yore, - From eternity art Thou. - - 3 The streams, Jehovah, have lifted up, - The streams have lifted up their voice, - The streams lift up their tumult. - 4 Above the voices of many waters, - Mighty [waters], ocean breakers, - Mightier is Jehovah on high. - - 5 Thy testimonies are utterly to be trusted: - Holiness fits Thy house, - Jehovah, for length of days. - - -This is the first of a group of psalms celebrating Jehovah as King. -It is followed by one which somewhat interrupts the unity of subject -in the group, but may be brought into connection with them by being -regarded as hymning Jehovah's kingly and judicial providence, as -manifested in the subjugation of rebels against His throne. The -remaining members of the group (Psalms xcv.-c.) rise to a height of -lyric exultation in meditating on the reign of Jehovah. Psalms xciii. -and xciv. are followed by two (xcv: vi.) beginning with ringing calls -for new songs to hail the new manifestation of Himself, by which -Jehovah has, as it were, inaugurated a new stage in His visible reign -on earth. Psalm xcvii. again breaks out into the joyful proclamation -"Jehovah is King," which is followed, as if by a chorus, with a -repeated summons for a new song (Psalm xcviii.). Once more the -proclamation "Jehovah is King" is sounded out in Psalm xcix., and -then the group is closed by Psalm c., with its call to all lands to -crowd round Jehovah's throne with "tumult of acclaim." Probably the -historical fact underlying this new conviction of, and triumph in, -the Kingdom of Jehovah is the return from exile. But the tone of -prophetic anticipation in these exuberant hymns of confident joy can -scarcely fail of recognition. The psalmists sang of an ideal state to -which their most glorious experiences but remotely approximated. They -saw "not yet all things put under Him," but they were sure that He is -King, and they were as sure, though with the certitude of faith fixed -on His word and not with that of sight, that His universal dominion -would one day be universally recognised and rejoiced in. - -This short psalm but strikes the keynote for the group. It is -overture to the oratorio, prelude of the symphony. Jehovah's -reign, the stability of His throne, the consequent fixity of the -natural order, His supremacy over all noisy rage of opposition -and lawlessness, either in Nature or among men, are set forth -with magnificent energy and brevity. But the King of the world is -not a mere Nature-compelling Jove. He has spoken to men, and the -stability of the natural order but faintly shadows the firmness of -His "testimonies," which are worthy of absolute reliance, and which -make the souls that do rely on them stable as the firm earth, and -steadfast with a steadfastness derived from Jehovah's throne. He not -only reigns over, but dwells among, men, and His power keeps His -dwelling-place inviolate, and lasting as His reign. - -Ver. 1 describes an act rather than a state. "Jehovah has become -King" by some specific manifestation of His sovereignty. Not as -though He had not been King before, as ver. 2 immediately goes on to -point out, but that He has shown the world, by a recent deed, the -eternal truth that He reigns. His coronation has been by His own -hands. No others have arrayed Him in His royal robes. The psalmist -dwells with emphatic reiteration on the thought that Jehovah has -clothed _Himself_ with majesty and girded _Himself_ with strength. -All the stability of Nature is a consequence of His self-created and -self-manifested power. That Strength holds a reeling world steady. -The psalmist knew nothing about the fixity of natural law, but his -thought goes down below that fixity, and finds its reason in the -constant forth-putting of Divine power. Ver. 2 goes far back as well -as deep down or high up, when it travels into the dim, unbounded -past, and sees there, amidst its mists, one shining, solid substance, -Jehovah's throne, which stood firm before every "then." The word -rendered _from of yore_ is literally "from then," as if to express -the priority of that throne to every period of defined time. And even -that grand thought can be capped by a grander climax: "From eternity -art Thou." Therefore the world stands firm. - -But there are things in the firm world that are not firm. There are -"streams" or perhaps "floods," which seem to own no control, in their -hoarse dash and devastating rush. The sea is ever the symbol of -rebellious opposition and of ungoverned force. Here both the natural -and symbolic meanings are present. And the picture is superbly -painted. The sound of the blows of the breakers against the rocks, -or as they clash with each other, is vividly repeated in the word -rendered "tumult," which means rather a blow or collision, and here -seems to express the thud of the waves against an obstacle. - -Ver. 4 is difficult to construe. The word rendered "mighty" is, -according to the accentuation, attached to "breakers," but stands -in an unusual position if it is to be so taken. It seems better to -disregard the accents, and to take "mighty" as a second adjective -belonging to "waters." These will then be described as both -multitudinous and proud in their strength, while "ocean breakers" -will stand in apposition to _waters_. Jehovah's might is compared -with these. It would be but a poor measure of it to say that it was -more than they; but the comparison means that He subdues the floods, -and proves His power by taming and calming them. Evidently we are -to see shining through the nature-picture Jehovah's triumphant -subjugation of rebellious men, which is one manifestation of His -kingly power. That dominion is not such as to make opposition -impossible. Antagonism of the wildest sort neither casts doubt on its -reality nor impinges a hair's-breadth on its sovereignty. All such -futile rebellion will be subdued. The shriek of the storm, the dash -of the breakers, will be hushed when He says "Peace," and the highest -toss of their spray does not wet, much less shake, His stable throne. -Such was the psalmist's faith as he looked out over a revolted world. -Such may well be ours, who "hear a deeper voice across the storm." - -That sweet closing verse comes by its very abruptness with singular -impressiveness. We pass from wild commotion into calm. Jehovah -speaks, and His words are witnesses both of what He is and of what -men should and may be. Power is not an object for trust to fasten -on, unless it is gracious, and gives men account of its motives and -ends. Words are not objects for trust to fasten on, unless they have -power for fulfilment behind them. But if the King, who sets fast -earth and bridles seas, speaks to us, we may utterly confide in His -word, and, if we do, we shall share in His stable being, in so far -as man is capable of resemblance to the changeless God. Trust in -firm promises is the secret of firmness. Jehovah has not only given -Israel His word, but His house, and His kingly power preserves His -dwelling-place from wrong. - -"Holiness" in ver. 5 expresses an attribute of Jehovah's house, not -a quality of the worshippers therein. It cannot but be preserved -from assault, since He dwells there. A king who cannot keep his own -palace safe from invaders can have little power. If this psalm is, -as it evidently is, post-exilic, how could the singer, remembering -the destruction of the Temple, speak thus? Because he had learned the -lesson of that destruction, that the earthly house in which Jehovah -dwelt among men had ceased to be His, by reason of the sins of its -frequenters. Therefore, it was "burned with fire." The profaned house -is no longer Jehovah's, but, as Jesus said with strong emphasis on the -first word, "_Your_ house is left unto you desolate." The Kingship of -Jehovah is proclaimed eloquently and tragically by the desolated shrine. - - - - - PSALM XCIV. - - 1 God of vengeances, Jehovah, - God of vengeances, shine forth. - 2 Lift up Thyself, Judge of the earth, - Return recompense to the proud. - - 3 For how long, Jehovah, shall the wicked, - For how long shall the wicked exult? - 4 They well out, they speak--arrogance, - They give themselves airs like princes--all these workers of - iniquity. - 5 Thy people, Jehovah, they crush in pieces, - And Thine inheritance they afflict. - 6 Widow and stranger they kill, - And orphans they murder. - - 7 And they say, "Jah sees [it] not, - And the God of Jacob considers it not." - 8 Consider, ye brutish among the people, - And ye fools, when will ye be wise? - 9 The Planter of the ear, shall He not hear? - Or the Former of the eye, shall He not see? - 10 The Instructor of the nations, shall He not punish,-- - The Teacher of knowledge to man? - 11 Jehovah knows the thoughts of men, - For they are [but] a breath. - - 12 Happy the man whom Thou instructest, Jehovah, - And teachest from Thy law, - 13 To give him rest from the days of evil, - Till there be digged for the wicked a pit. - 14 For Jehovah will not spurn away His people, - And His inheritance He will not forsake. - 15 For to righteousness shall judgment return, - And after it shall all the upright in heart [follow]. - 16 Who will rise up for me against the evil-doers? - Who will set himself for me against the workers of iniquity? - 17 Unless Jehovah had been a help for me, - My soul had soon dwelt in silence. - 18 When I say, "My foot slips," - Thy loving-kindness, Jehovah, stays me. - 19 In the multitude of my divided thoughts within me, - Thy comforts delight my soul. - - 20 Can the throne of destruction be confederate with Thee, - Which frameth mischief by statute? - 21 They come in troops against the soul of the righteous, - And innocent blood they condemn. - 22 But Jehovah is to me a high tower, - And my God the rock of my refuge. - 23 And He brings back upon them their iniquities, - And by their own evil will He root them out, - Jehovah our God will root them out. - - -The theme of God the Judge is closely allied to that of God the King, -as other psalms of this group show, in which His coming to judge the -world is the subject of rapturous praise. This psalm hymns Jehovah's -retributive sway, for which it passionately cries, and in which it -confidently trusts. Israel is oppressed by insolent rulers, who have -poisoned the fountains of justice, condemning the innocent, enacting -unrighteous laws, and making a prey of all the helpless. These -"judges of Sodom" are not foreign oppressors, for they are "among the -people"; and even while they scoff at Jehovah's judgments they call -Him by His covenant names of "Jah" and "God of Jacob." There is no -need, therefore, to look beyond Israel for the originals of the dark -picture, nor does it supply data for fixing the period of the psalm. - -The structure and course of thought are transparent. First comes an -invocation to God as the Judge of the earth (vv. 1, 2); then follow -groups of four verses each, subdivided into pairs,--the first of -these (vv. 3-6) pictures the doings of the oppressors; the second -(vv. 7-11) quotes their delusion that their crimes are unseen by -Jehovah, and refutes their dream of impunity, and it is closed by -a verse in excess of the normal number, emphatically asserting -the truth which the mockers denied. The third group declares the -blessedness of the men whom God teaches, and the certainty of His -retribution to vindicate the cause of the righteous (vv. 12-15). -Then follow the singer's own cry for help in his own need, as one -of the oppressed community, and a sweet reminiscence of former aid, -which calms his present anxieties. The concluding group goes back to -description of the lawless law-makers and their doings, and ends with -trust that the retribution prayed for in the first verses will verily -be dealt out to them, and that thereby both the singer, as a member -of the nation, and the community will find Jehovah, who is both "my -God" and "our God," a high tower. - -The reiterations in the first two verses are not oratorical -embellishments, but reveal intense feeling and pressing need. It is -a cold prayer which contents itself with one utterance. A man in -straits continues to cry for help till it comes, or till he sees it -coming. To this singer, the one aspect of Jehovah's reign which was -forced on him by Israel's dismal circumstances was the judicial. -There are times when no thought of God is so full of strength as -that He is "the God of recompenses," as Jeremiah calls Him (li. -56), and when the longing of good men is that He would flash forth, -and slay evil by the brightness of His coming. They who have no -profound loathing of sin, or who have never felt the crushing weight -of legalised wickedness, may shrink from such aspirations as the -psalmist's, and brand them as ferocious; but hearts longing for the -triumph of righteousness will not take offence at them. - -The first group (vv. 3-6) lifts the cry of suffering Faith, which -has almost become impatience, but turns to, not from, God, and so -checks complaints of His delay, and converts them into prayer. "How -long, O Lord?" is the burden of many a tried heart; and the Seer -heard it from the souls beneath the altar. This psalm passes quickly -to dilate on the crimes of the rulers which forced out that prayer. -The portrait has many points of likeness to that drawn in Psalm -lxxiii. Here, as there, boastful speech and haughty carriage are -made prominent, being put before even cruelty and oppression. "They -well out, they speak--arrogance": both verbs have the same object. -Insolent self-exaltation pours from the fountain of their pride in -copious jets. "They give themselves airs like princes." The verb in -this clause may mean _to say among themselves_ or _to boast_, but is -now usually regarded as meaning _to behave like a prince_--_i.e._, -to carry oneself insolently. Vain-glorious arrogance manifest in -boasting speech and masterful demeanour characterises Eastern rulers, -especially those who have risen from low origin. Every little village -tyrant gave himself airs, as if he were a king; and the lower his -rank, the greater his insolence. These oppressors were grinding the -nation to powder, and what made their crime the darker was that -it was Jehovah's people and inheritance which they thus harassed. -Helplessness should be a passport to a ruler's care, but it had -become a mark for murderous attack. Widow, stranger, and orphan are -named as types of defencelessness. - -Nothing in this strophe indicates that these oppressors are foreigners. -Nor does the delusion that Jehovah neither saw nor cared for their -doings, which the next strophe (vv. 7-11) states and confutes, imply -that they were so. Cheyne, indeed, adduces the name "God of Jacob," -which is put into their mouths, as evidence that they are pictured as -knowing Jehovah only as one among many tribal or national deities; but -the name is too familiar upon the lips of Israelites, and its use by -others is too conjectural, to allow of such a conclusion. Rather, the -language derives its darkest shade from being used by Hebrews, who are -thereby declaring themselves apostates from God as well as oppressors -of His people. Their mad, practical atheism makes the psalmist blaze -up in indignant rebuke and impetuous argumentation. He turns to them, -and addresses them in rough, plain words, strangely contrasted with -their arrogant utterances regarding themselves. They are "brutish" (cf. -Psalm lxxiii. 22) and "fools." The psalmist, in his height of moral -indignation, towers above these petty tyrants, and tells them home -truths very profitable for such people, however dangerous to their -utterer. There is no obligation to speak smooth words to rulers whose -rule is injustice and their religion impiety. Ahab had his Elijah, and -Herod his John Baptist. The succession has been continued through the -ages. - -Delitzsch and others, who take the oppressors to be foreigners, -are obliged to suppose that the psalmist turns in ver. 8 to those -Israelites who had been led to doubt God by the prosperity of the -wicked; but there is nothing, except the exigencies of that mistaken -supposition, to show that any others than the deniers of God's -providence who have just been quoted are addressed as "among the -people." Their denial was the more inexcusable, because they belonged -to the people whose history was one long proof that Jehovah did see -and recompense evil. Two considerations are urged by the psalmist, -who becomes for the moment a philosophical theologian, in confutation -of the error in question. First, he argues that nothing can be in the -effect which is not in the cause, that the Maker of men's eyes cannot -be blind, nor the Planter of their ears deaf. The thought has wide -applications. It hits the centre, in regard to many modern denials as -well as in regard to these blunt, ancient ones. Can a universe plainly -full of purpose have come from a purposeless source? Can finite persons -have emerged from an impersonal Infinity? Have we not a right to argue -upwards from man's make to God his maker, and to find in Him the -archetype of all human capacity. We may mark that, as has been long ago -observed, the psalm avoids gross anthropomorphism, and infers, not that -the Creator of the ear has ears, but that He hears. As Jerome (quoted -by Delitzsch) says, "Membra sustulit, efficientias dedit." - -In ver. 10 a second argument is employed, which turns on the thought -that God is the educator of mankind. That office of instructor cannot -be carried out unless He is also their chastiser, when correction -is needed. The psalmist looks beyond the bounds of Israel, the -recipient of special revelation (cf. ver. 12), and recognises, what -seldom appears in the Old Testament, but is unquestionably there, the -great thought that He is teaching all mankind by manifold ways, and -especially by the law written in their hearts. Jewish particularism, -the exaggeration into a lie of the truth of God's special revelation -to Israel, came to forget or deny God's education of mankind. Alas -that the same mistake was inherited by so many epochs of the Church! - -The teaching of the strophe is gathered up in ver. 11, which exceeds -the normal number of four verses in each group, and asserts strongly -the conclusion for which the psalmist has been arguing. The rendering -of _b_ is, "For (not That) they (_i.e._ men) are but a breath." "The -ground of the Omniscience which sees the thoughts of men through and -through is profoundly laid in the vanity, _i.e._ the finiteness, of -men, as the correlative of the Infiniteness of God" (Hupfeld). - -In the strophe vv. 12-15, the psalmist turns from the oppressors -to their victims, the meek of the earth, and changes his tone from -fiery remonstrance to gracious consolation. The true point of view -from which to regard the oppressors' wrong is to see in it part of -God's educational processes. Jehovah, who "instructs" all men by -conscience, "instructs" Israel, and by the Law "teaches" the right -interpretation of such afflictive providences. Happy he who accepts -that higher education! A further consolation lies in considering the -purpose of the special revelation to Israel, which will be realised -in patient hearts that are made wise thereby--namely, calm repose of -submission and trust, which are not disturbed by any stormy weather. -There is possible for the harassed man "peace subsisting at the heart -of endless agitation." - -If we recognise that life is mainly educational, we shall neither -be astonished nor disturbed by sorrows. It is not to be wondered at -that the schoolmaster has a rod, and uses it sometimes. There is -rest from evil even while in evil, if we understand the purpose of -evil. Yet another consolation lies in the steadfast anticipation of -its transiency and of the retribution measured to its doers. That is -no unworthy source of comfort. And the ground on which it rests is -the impossibility of God's forsaking His people, His inheritance. -These designations of Israel look back to ver. 5, where the crushed -and afflicted are designated by the same words. Israel's relation -to Jehovah made the calamities more startling; but it also makes -their cessation, and retribution for them on their inflicters, more -certain. It is the trial and triumph of Faith to be sure, while -tyrants grind and crush, that Jehovah has not deserted their victims. -He cannot change His purpose; therefore, sorrows and prosperity are -but divergent methods, concurring in carrying out His unalterable -design. The individual sufferer may take comfort from his belonging -to the community to which the presence of Jehovah is guaranteed for -ever. The singer puts his convictions as to what is to be the upshot -of all the perplexed riddles of human affairs into epigrammatic -form, in the obscure, gnome-like saying, "To righteousness shall -judgment return," by which he seems to mean that the administration -of justice, which at present was being trampled under foot, "shall -come back to the eternal principle of all judicial action, namely, -righteousness,"--in shorter words, there shall be no schism between -the judgments of earthly tribunals and justice. The psalmist's hope -is that of all good men and sufferers from unjust rulers. All the -upright in heart long for such a state of things and follow after it, -either in the sense of delight in it ("Dem Recht muessen alle frommen -Herzen zufallen"--Luther), or of seeking to bring it about. The -psalmist's hope is realised in the King of Men, whose own judgments -are truth, and who infuses righteousness and the love of it into all -who trust in Him. - -The singer comes closer to his own experience in the next strophe -(vv. 16-19), in which he claims his share in these general sources -of rest and patience, and thankfully thinks of past times, when he -found that they yielded him streams in the desert. He looks out upon -the multitude of "evil-doers," and, for a moment, asks the question -which faithless sense is ever suggesting and pronouncing unanswerable: -"Where shall I find a champion?" As long as our eyes range along the -level of earth, they see none such. But the empty earth should turn -our gaze to the occupied throne. There sits the Answer to our almost -despairing question. Rather, there He stands, as the proto-martyr -saw Him, risen to His feet in swift readiness to help His servant. -Experience confirms the hope of Jehovah's aid; for unless in the past -He had been the singer's help, he could not have lived till this hour, -but must have gone down into the silent land. No man who still draws -breath is without tokens of God's sufficient care and ever-present -help. The mystery of continued life is a witness for God. And not -only does the past thus proclaim where a man's help is, but devout -reflection on it will bring to light many times when doubts and tremors -were disappointed. Conscious weakness appeals to confirming strength. -If we feel our foot giving, and fling up our hands towards Him, He -will grasp them and steady us in the most slippery places. Therefore, -when divided thoughts (for so the picturesque word employed in ver. 19 -means) hesitate between hope and fear, God's consolations steal into -agitated minds, and there is a great calm. - -The last strophe (vv. 20-23) weaves together in the finale, as -a musician does in the last bars of his composition, the main -themes of the psalm--the evil deeds of unjust rulers, the trust -of the psalmist, his confidence in the final annihilation of the -oppressors, and the consequent manifestation of God as the God -of Israel. The height of crime is reached when rulers use the -forms of justice as masks for injustice, and give legal sanction -to "mischief." The ancient world groaned under such travesties of -the sanctity of Law; and the modern world is not free from them. -The question often tortures faithful hearts, "Can such doings be -sanctioned by God, or in any way be allied to Him?" To the psalmist -the worst part of these rulers' wickedness was that, in his doubting -moments, it raised the terrible suspicion that God was perhaps on the -side of the oppressors. But when such thoughts came surging on him, -he fell back, as we all have to do, on personal experience and on an -act of renewed trust. He remembered what God had been to him in past -moments of peril, and he claimed Him for the same now, his own refuge -and fortress. Strong in that individual experience and conviction, he -won the confidence that all which Jehovah had to do with the throne -of destruction was, not to connive at its evil, but to overthrow -it and root out the evil-doers, whose own sin will be their ruin. -Then Jehovah will be known, not only for the God who belongs to, and -works for, the single soul, but who is "our God," the refuge of the -community, who will not forsake His inheritance. - - - - - PSALM XCV. - - 1 Come, let us raise shrill cries of joy to Jehovah, - Let us shout aloud to the Rock of our Salvation. - 2 Let us go to meet His face with thanksgiving, - With songs let us shout aloud to Him. - 3 For Jehovah is a great God, - And a great King above all gods. - 4 In whose hand are the deep places of the earth, - And the peaks of the mountains are His. - 5 Whose is the sea, and He made it, - And the dry land His hands formed. - - 6 Come, let us worship and bow down, - Let us kneel before Jehovah our Maker, - 7 For He is our God, - And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. - - To-day, if ye would listen to His voice, - 8 Harden not your hearts, as [at] Meribah, - As [in] the day of Massah in the wilderness, - 9 Where your fathers tempted Me, - Proved Me and saw My work. - 10 Forty years loathed I [that] generation, - And said, "A people going astray in heart are they, - And they know not My ways." - 11 So that I sware in My wrath, - "Surely they shall not come into My rest." - - -This psalm is obviously divided into two parts, but there is no -reason for seeing in these two originally unconnected fragments. -Rather does each part derive force from the other; and nothing is -more natural than that, after the congregation has spoken its joyful -summons to itself to worship, Jehovah should speak warning words as -to the requisite heart-preparation, without which worship is vain. -The supposed fragments are fragmentary indeed, if considered apart. -Surely a singer has the liberty of being abrupt and of suddenly -changing his tone. Surely he may as well be credited with discerning -the harmony of the change of key as some later compiler. There could -be no more impressive way of teaching the conditions of acceptable -worship than to set side by side a glad call to praise and a solemn -warning against repeating the rebellions of the wilderness. These -would be still more appropriate if this were a post-exilic hymn; for -the second return from captivity would be felt to be the analogue of -the first, and the dark story of former hard-heartedness would fit -very close to present circumstances. - -The invocation to praise in vv. 1, 2, gives a striking picture of -the joyful tumult of the Temple worship. Shrill cries of gladness, -loud shouts of praise, songs with musical accompaniments, rang -simultaneously through the courts, and to Western ears would have -sounded as din rather than as music, and as more exuberant than -reverent. The spirit expressed is, alas! almost as strange to many -moderns as the manner of its expression. That swelling joy which -throbs in the summons, that consciousness that jubilation is a -conspicuous element in worship, that effort to rise to a height of -joyful emotion, are very foreign to much of our worship. And their -absence, or presence only in minute amount, flattens much devotion, -and robs the Church of one of its chief treasures. No doubt, there -must often be sad strains blended with praise. But it is a part of -Christian duty, and certainly of Christian wisdom, to try to catch -that tone of joy in worship which rings in this psalm. - -The three following verses (3-5) give Jehovah's creative and -sustaining power, and His consequent ownership of this fair world, as -the reasons for worship. He is King by right of creation. Surely it -is forcing unnatural meanings on words to maintain that the psalmist -believed in the real existence of the "gods" whom he disparagingly -contrasts with Jehovah. The fact that these were worshipped -sufficiently warrants the comparison. To treat it as in any degree -inconsistent with Monotheism is unnecessary, and would scarcely -have occurred to a reader but for the exigencies of a theory. The -repeated reference to the "hand" of Jehovah is striking. In it are -held the deeps; it is a plastic hand, "forming" the land, as a potter -fashioning his clay; it is a shepherd's hand, protecting and feeding -his flock (ver. 7). The same power created and sustains the physical -universe, and guides and guards Israel. The psalmist has no time -for details; he can only single out extremes, and leave us to infer -that what is true of these is true of all that is enclosed between -them. The depths and the heights are Jehovah's. The word rendered -"peaks" is doubtful. Etymologically it should mean "fatigue," but -it is not found in that sense in any of the places where it occurs. -The parallelism requires the meaning of _heights_ to contrast with -_depths_, and this rendering is found in the LXX., and is adopted by -most moderns. The word is then taken to come from a root meaning "to -be high." Some of those who adopt the translation _summits_ attempt -to get that meaning out of the root meaning _fatigue_, by supposing -that the labour of getting to the top of the mountain is alluded to -in the name. Thus Kay renders "the mountains' toilsome heights," and -so also Hengstenberg. But it is simpler to trace the word to the -other root, _to be high_. The ownerless sea is owned by Him; He made -both its watery waste and the solid earth. - -But that all-creating Hand has put forth more wondrous energies than -those of which heights and depths, sea and land, witness. Therefore, -the summons is again addressed to Israel to bow before "Jehovah our -Maker." The creation of a people to serve Him is the work of His -grace, and is a nobler effect of His power than material things. It -is remarkable that the call to glad praise should be associated with -thoughts of His greatness as shown in creation, while lowly reverence -is enforced by remembrance of His special relation to Israel. We -should have expected the converse. The revelation of God's love, -in His work of creating a people for Himself, is most fittingly -adored by spirits prostrate before Him. Another instance of apparent -transposition of thoughts occurs in ver. 7_b_, where we might have -expected "people of His hand and sheep of His pasture." Hupfeld -proposes to correct accordingly, and Cheyne follows him. But the -correction buys prosaic accuracy at the cost of losing the forcible -incorrectness which blends figure and fact, and by keeping sight -of both enhances each. "The sheep of His hand" suggests not merely -the creative but the sustaining and protecting power of God. It is -hallowed for ever by our Lord's words, which may be an echo of it: -"No man is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." - -The sudden turn from jubilant praise and recognition of Israel's -prerogative as its occasion to grave warning is made more impressive -by its occurring in the middle of a verse. God's voice breaks in upon -the joyful acclamations with solemn effect. The shouts of the adoring -multitude die on the poet's trembling ear, as that deeper Voice is -heard. We cannot persuade ourselves that this magnificent transition, -so weighty with instruction, so fine in poetic effect, is due to the -after-thought of a compiler. Such an one would surely have stitched -his fragments more neatly together than to make the seam run through -the centre of a verse--an irregularity which would seem small to a -singer in the heat of his inspiration. Ver. 7_c_ may be either a wish -or the protasis to the apodosis in ver. 8. "If ye would but listen to -His voice!" is an exclamation, made more forcible by the omission of -what would happen then. But it is not necessary to regard the clause as -optative. The conditional meaning, which connects it with what follows, -is probably preferable, and is not set aside by the expression "His -voice" instead of "My voice"; for "similar change of persons is very -common in utterances of Jehovah, especially in the Prophets" (Hupfeld). -"To-day" stands first with strong emphasis, to enforce the critical -character of the present moment. It may be the last opportunity. At all -events, it is an opportunity, and therefore to be grasped and used. -A doleful history of unthankfulness lay behind; but still the Divine -voice sounds, and still the fleeting moments offer space for softening -of heart and docile hearkening. The madness of delay when time is -hurrying on, and the longsuffering patience of God, are wonderfully -proclaimed in that one word, which the Epistle to the Hebrews lays hold -of, with so deep insight, as all-important. - -The warning points Israel back to ancestral sins, the tempting of -God in the second year of the Exodus, by the demand for water (Exod. -xvii. 1-7). The scene of that murmuring received both names, Massah -(temptation) and Meribah (strife). It is difficult to decide the -exact force of ver. 9_b_. "Saw My work" is most naturally taken -as referring to the Divine acts of deliverance and protection -seen by Israel in the desert, which aggravated the guilt of their -faithlessness. But the word rendered "and" will, in that case, -have to be taken as meaning "although"--a sense which cannot be -established. It seems better, therefore, to take "work" in the -unusual meaning of acts of judgment--His "strange work." Israel's -tempting of God was the more indicative of hardheartedness that it -was persisted in, in spite of chastisements. Possibly both thoughts -are to be combined, and the whole varied stream of blessings and -punishments is referred to in the wide expression. Both forms of -God's work should have touched these hard hearts. It mattered not -whether He blessed or punished. They were impervious to both. The -awful issue of this obstinate rebellion is set forth in terrible -words. The sensation of physical loathing followed by sickness is -daringly ascribed to God. We cannot but remember what John heard in -Patmos from the lips into which grace was poured: "I will spue thee -out of My mouth." - -But before He cast Israel out, He pled with them, as ver. 10_b_ goes -on to tell: "He said, 'A people going astray in heart are they.'" He -said so, by many a prophet and many a judgment, in order that they -might come back to the true path. The desert-wanderings were but a -symbol, as they were a consequence, of their wanderings in heart. -They did not know His ways; therefore they chose their own. They -strayed in heart; therefore they had an ever-increasing ignorance of -the right road. For the averted heart and the blind understanding -produce each other. - -The issue of the long-protracted departure from the path which God -had marked was, as it ever is, condemnation to continue in the -pathless wilderness, and exclusion from the land of rest which God -had promised them, and in which He Himself had said that He would -make His resting-place in their midst. But what befell Israel in -outward fact was symbolical of universal spiritual truth. The hearts -that love devious ways can never be restful. The path which leads -to calm is traced by God, and only those who tread it with softened -hearts, earnestly listening to His voice, will find repose even on -the road, and come at last to the land of peace. For others, they -have chosen the desert, and in it they will wander wearily, "for ever -roaming with a hungry heart." - -The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews is laying hold of the very -kernel of the psalm, when he adduces the fact that, so many centuries -after Moses, the warning was still addressed to Israel, and the -possibility of entering the Rest of God, and the danger of missing -it, still urged, as showing that the Rest of God remained to be won -by later generations, and proclaiming the eternal truth that "we -which have believed do enter into rest." - - - - - PSALM XCVI. - - 1 Sing to Jehovah a new song, - Sing to Jehovah, all the earth. - 2 Sing to Jehovah, bless His name, - Publish the glad tidings of His salvation from day to day. - 3 Recount among the nations His glory, - Among all peoples His wonders. - - 4 For great is Jehovah, and to be praised exceedingly, - Dread is He above all gods. - 5 For all the gods of the people are Nothings, - And Jehovah made the heavens. - 6 Honour and majesty are before Him, - Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary. - - 7 Give to Jehovah, ye families of the peoples, - Give to Jehovah glory and strength. - 8 Give to Jehovah the glory of His name, - Take an offering and come into His courts. - 9 Worship Jehovah in holy attire, - Tremble before Him, all the earth. - - 10 Say among the nations, "Jehovah is King," - Yea, the world is set fast [that] it cannot be moved, - He shall deal judgment to the peoples in equity. - 11 Let the heavens rejoice and let the earth exult, - Let the sea thunder and its fulness, - 12 Let the plain rejoice and all that is in it, - Then shall all the trees of the forest ring out joyful cries, - 13 Before Jehovah, for He comes, - He comes to judge the earth, - He will judge the world in righteousness, - And peoples in His faithfulness. - - -The praise of Jehovah as King has, in the preceding psalms, chiefly -celebrated His reign over Israel. But this grand coronation anthem -takes a wider sweep, and hymns that kingdom as extending to all -nations, and as reaching beyond men, for the joy and blessing of -a renovated earth. It falls into four strophes, of which the first -three contain three verses each, while the last extends to four. These -strophes are like concentric circles, drawn round that eternal throne. -The first summons Israel to its high vocation of Jehovah's evangelist, -the herald who proclaims the enthronement of the King. The second sets -Him above all the "Nothings" which usurp the name of gods, and thus -prepares the way for His sole monarchy. The third summons outlying -nations to bring their homage, and flings open the Temple gates to -all men, inviting them to put on priestly robes, and do priestly acts -there. The fourth calls on Nature in its heights and depths, heaven and -earth, sea, plain and forest, to add their acclaim to the shouts which -hail the establishment of Jehovah's visible dominion. - -The song is to be new, because a new manifestation of Jehovah's -Kinghood has wakened once more the long-silent harps, which had been -hung on the willows of Babylon. The psalm is probably a lyric echo of -the Restoration, in which the prophet-singer sees the beginning of -Jehovah's world-wide display of His dominion. He knew not how many -weary years were to pass in a weary and God-defying world, before his -raptures became facts. But though His vision tarries, His song is no -over-heated imagining, which has been chilled down for succeeding -generations into a baseless hope. The perspective of the world's -chronology hid from him the deep valley between His standpoint and the -fulfilment of his glowing words. Mankind still marches burdened, down -among the mists, but it marches towards the sunlit heights. The call to -sing a new song is quoted from Isa. xlii. 10. The word in ver. 2_b_ -rendered "publish glad tidings" is also a favourite word with Isaiah -II. (xl. 9, lii. 7, etc.). Ver. 3_a_ closely resembles Isa. lxvi. 19. - -The second strophe is full of allusions to earlier psalms and -prophets. The new manifestation of Jehovah's power has vindicated -His supremacy above the vanities which the peoples call gods, and -has thereby given new force to old triumphant words which magnified -His exalted name. Long ago a psalmist had sung, after a signal -defeat of assailants of Jerusalem, that God was "great and greatly -to be praised" (Psalm xlviii. 1), and this psalmist makes the old -words new. "Dread" reminds us of Psalm xlvii. 2. The contemptuous -name of the nations' gods as "Nothings" is frequent in Isaiah. -The heavens, which roof over all the earth, declare to every land -Jehovah's creative power, and His supremacy above all gods. But the -singer's eye pierces their abysses, and sees some gleams of that -higher sanctuary of which they are but the floor. There stand Honour -and Majesty, Strength and Beauty. The psalmist does not speak of -"attributes." His vivid imagination conceives of these as servants, -attending on Jehovah's royal state. Whatsoever things are lovely, and -whatsoever are august, are at home in that sanctuary. Strength and -beauty are often separated in a disordered world, and each is maimed -thereby, but, in their perfection, they are indissolubly blended. -Men call many things strong and fair which have no affinity with -holiness; but the archetypes of both excellences are in the Holy -Place, and any strength which has not its roots there is weakness, -and any beauty which is not a reflection from "the beauty of the Lord -our God" is but a mask concealing ugliness. - -The third strophe builds on this supremacy of Jehovah, whose -dwelling-place is the seat of all things worthy to be admired, -the summons to all nations to render praise to Him. It is mainly -a variation of Psalm xxix. 1, 2, where the summons is addressed -to angels. Here "the families of the peoples" are called on to -ascribe to Jehovah "glory and strength," or "the glory of His name" -(_i.e._, of His character as revealed). The call presupposes a new -manifestation of His Kingship, as conspicuous and earth-shaking -as the thunder-storm of the original psalm. As in it the "sons of -God" were called to worship in priestly garb, so here, still more -emphatically, Gentile nations are invited to assume the priestly -office, to "take an offering and come into His courts." The issue -of Jehovah's manifestation of kingly sway will be that Israel's -prerogative of priestly access to Him will be extended to all men, -and that the lowly worship of earth will have characteristics which -assimilate it to that of the elder brethren who ever stand before -Him, and also characteristics which distinguish it from that, and -are necessary while the worshippers are housed in flesh. Material -offerings and places consecrated to worship belong to earth. The -"sons of God" above have them not, for they need them not. - -The last strophe has four verses, instead of the normal three. The -psalmist's chief purpose in it is to extend his summons for praise -to the whole creation; but he cannot refrain from once more ringing -out the glad tidings for which praise is to be rendered. He falls -back in ver. 10 on Psalm xciii. 1, and Psalm ix. 8. In his quotation -from the former psalm, he brings more closely together the thoughts -of Jehovah's reign and the fixity of the world, whether that is taken -with a material reference, or as predicting the calm perpetuity -of the moral order established by His merciful rule and equitable -judgment. The thought that inanimate nature will share in the joy -of renovated humanity inspires many glowing prophetic utterances, -eminently those of Isaiah--as, _e.g._, Isa. xxxv. The converse -thought, that it shared in the consequences of man's sin, is deeply -stamped on the Genesis narrative. The same note is struck with -unhesitating force in Rom. viii., and elsewhere in the New Testament. -A poet invests Nature with the hues of his own emotions, but this -summons of the psalmist is more than poetry. How the transformation -is to be effected is not revealed, but the consuming fires will -refine, and at last man will have a dwelling-place where environment -will correspond to character, where the external will image the -inward state, where a new form of the material will be the perpetual -ally of the spiritual, and perfected manhood will walk in a "new -heaven and new earth, where dwelleth righteousness." - -In the last verse of the psalm, the singer appears to extend his -prophetic gaze from the immediate redeeming act by which Jehovah -assumes royal majesty, to a still future "coming," in which He will -judge the earth. "The accession is a single act; the judging is a -continual process. Note that 'judging' has no terrible sound to a -Hebrew" (Cheyne, _in loc._). Ver. 13_c_ is again a verbatim quotation -from Psalm ix. 8. - - - - - PSALM XCVII. - - 1 Jehovah is King, let the earth exult, - Let many lands be glad. - 2 Cloud and deep darkness are round Him, - Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of His throne. - 3 Fire goes before Him, - And devours His enemies round about. - - 4 His lightnings lighted up the world, - The earth saw and trembled. - 5 Mountains melted like wax, from before the face of Jehovah, - From before the face of the Lord of the whole earth. - 6 The heavens declared His righteousness, - And all the peoples saw His glory. - - 7 Shamed are all they who serve graven images, - Who boast themselves of the Nothings. - Worship Him, all ye gods! - 8 Zion heard and was glad, - And the daughters of Judah exulted, - Because of Thy judgments, Jehovah. - 9 For Thou, Jehovah, art most high above all the earth, - Thou art exceedingly exalted above all gods. - - 10 Ye who love Jehovah, hate evil; - He keeps the souls of His favoured ones, - From the hand of the wicked He delivers them. - 11 Light is sown for the righteous man, - And for the upright-hearted, gladness. - 12 Be glad, ye righteous, in Jehovah, - And give thanks to His holy memorial. - - -The summons to praise the King with a new song (Psalm xcvi.) is -followed by this psalm, which repeats the dominant idea of the group, -"Jehovah is King," but from a fresh point of view. It represents His -rule under the form of a theophany, which may possibly be regarded -as the fuller description of that coming of Jehovah to judgment with -which Psalm xcvi. closes. The structure of both psalms is the same, -each being divided into four strophes, normally consisting of three -verses each, though the last strophe of Psalm xcvi. runs over into -four verses. In this psalm, the first group of verses celebrates the -royal state of the King (vv. 1-3); the second describes His coming -as a past fact (vv. 4-6); the third portrays the twofold effects -of Jehovah's appearance on the heathen and on Zion (vv. 7-9); and -the last applies the lessons of the whole to the righteous, in -exhortation and encouragement (vv. 10-12). The same dependence on -earlier psalms and prophets which marks others of this group is -obvious here. The psalmist's mind is saturated with old sayings, -which he finds flashed up into new meaning by recent experiences. He -is not "original," and does not try to be so; but he has drunk in the -spirit of his predecessors, and words which to others were antiquated -and cold blaze with light for him, and seem made for his lips. He -who reads aright the solemn significance of to-day will find it no -less sacred than any past, and may transfer to it all which seers and -singers have said and sung of Jehovah's presence of old. - -The first strophe is mosaic-work. Ver. 1 (_lands_=_isles_) may be -compared with Isa. xlii. 10, li. 5. Ver. 2_a_ is from Exod. xix. 9, -16, etc., and Psalm xviii. 9. Ver. 2_b_ is quoted from Psalm lxxxix. -14. Ver. 3_a_ recalls Psalms l. 3 and xviii. 8. The appearance of God -on Sinai is the type of all later theophanies, and the reproduction -of its principal features witnesses to the conviction that that -transient manifestation was the unveiling of permanent reality. The -veil had dropped again, but what had been once seen continued always, -though unseen; and the veil could and would be drawn aside, and the -long-hidden splendour blaze forth again. The combination of the pieces -of mosaic in a new pattern here is striking. Three thoughts fill the -singer's mind. God is King, and His reign gladdens the world, even away -out to the dimly seen lands that are washed by the western ocean. "The -islands" drew Isaiah's gaze. Prophecy began in him to look seawards and -westwards, little knowing how the course of empire was to take its way -thither, but feeling that whatever lands might lie towards the setting -sun were ruled, and would be gladdened, by Jehovah. - -Gladness passes into awe in ver. 2_a_, as the seer beholds the cloud -and gloom which encircle the throne. The transcending infinitude of the -Divine nature, the mystery of much of the Divine acts, are symbolised -by these; but the curtain is the picture. To know that God cannot -be known is a large part of the knowledge of Him. Faith, built on -experience, enters into the cloud, and is not afraid, but confidently -tells what it knows to be within the darkness. "Righteousness and -judgment"--the eternal principle and the activity thereof in the -several acts of the King--are the bases of His throne, more solid -than the covering cloud. Earth can rejoice in His reign, even though -darkness may make parts of it painful riddles, if the assurance is held -fast that absolute righteousness is at the centre, and that the solid -core of all is judgment. Destructive power, symbolised in ver. 3 by -fire which devours His adversaries, the fire which flashed first on -Sinai, is part of the reason for the gladness of earth in His reign. -For His foes are the world's foes too; and a God who could not smite -into nothingness that which lifted itself against His dominion would -be no God for whom the isles could wait. These three characteristics, -mystery, righteousness, power to consume, attach to Jehovah's royalty, -and should make every heart rejoice. - -In the second strophe, the tenses suddenly change into pure narrative. -The change may be simply due, as Cheyne suggests, to the influence -of the earlier passages descriptive of theophanies, and in which the -same tense occurs; but more probably it points to some event fresh in -the experience of Israel, such as the return from Babylon. In this -strophe again, we have mosaic. Ver. 4_a_ is quoted from Psalm lxxvii. -18. With ver. 4_b_ may be compared Psalm lxxvii. 16. Ver. 5_a_ is like -Micah i. 4, and, in a less degree, Psalm lxviii. 2. "The Lord of the -whole earth" is an unusual designation, first found in a significant -connection in Josh. iii. 11, 13, as emphasising His triumph over -heathen gods, in leading the people into Canaan, and afterwards found -in Zech. iv. 14, vi. 5, and Micah iv. 13. Ver. 6_a_ comes from the -theophany in Psalm l. 6; and ver. 6_b_ has parallels in both parts of -Isaiah--_e.g._, Isa. xxxv. 2, xl. 5, lii. 10--passages which refer -to the restoration from Babylon. The picture is grand as a piece of -word-painting. The world lies wrapped in thunder-gloom, and is suddenly -illumined by the fierce blaze of lightning. The awestruck silence of -Nature is wonderfully given by ver. 4_b_: "The earth saw and trembled." -But the picture is symbol, and the lightning-flash is meant to set -forth the sudden, swift forth-darting of God's delivering power, which -awes a gazing world, while the hills melting like wax from before His -face solemnly proclaim how terrible its radiance is, and how easily -the mere showing of Himself annihilates all high things that oppose -themselves. Solid-seeming and august powers, which tower above His -people's ability to overcome them, vanish when He looks out from the -deep darkness. The end of His appearance and of the consequent removal -of obstacles is the manifestation of His righteousness and glory. The -heavens are the scene of the Divine appearance, though earth is the -theatre of its working. They "declare His righteousness," not because, -as in Psalm xix. they are said to tell forth His glory by their myriad -lights, but because in them He has shone forth, in His great act of -deliverance of His oppressed people. Israel receives the primary -blessing, but is blessed, not for itself alone, but that all peoples -may see in it Jehovah's glory. Thus once more the psalm recognises the -world-wide destination of national mercies, and Israel's place in the -Divine economy as being of universal significance. - -The third strophe (vv. 7-9) sets forth the results of the theophany -on foes and friends. The worshippers of "the Nothings" (xcvi. 5) -are put to confusion by the demonstration by fact of Jehovah's -sovereignty over their helpless deities. Ver. 7_a_, _b_, recall -Isa. xlii. 17, xliv. 9. As the worshippers are ashamed, so the gods -themselves are summoned to fall down before this triumphant Jehovah, -as Dagon did before the Ark. Surely it is a piece of most prosaic -pedantry to argue, from this flash of scorn, that the psalmist -believed that the gods whom he had just called "Nothings" had a real -existence, and that therefore he was not a pure Monotheist. - -The shame of the idolaters and the prostration of their gods heighten -the gladness of Zion, which the psalm describes in old words that -had once celebrated another flashing forth of Jehovah's power (Psalm -xlviii. 11). Hupfeld, whom Cheyne follows, would transpose vv. 7 and -8, on the grounds that "the transposition explains what Zion heard, -and brings the summons to the false gods into connection with the -emphatic claim on behalf of Jehovah in ver. 9." But there is no need -for the change, since there is no ambiguity as to what Zion heard, if -the existing order is retained, and her gladness is quite as worthy a -consequence of the exaltation of Jehovah in ver. 9 as the subjugation -of the false gods would be. With ver. 9 compare Psalm lxxxiii. 18, -and Psalm xlvii. 2. - -The last strophe (vv. 10-12) draws exhortation and promises from the -preceding. There is a marked diminution of dependence on earlier -passages in this strophe, in which the psalmist points for his own -generation the lessons of the great deliverance which he has been -celebrating. Ver. 12_a_ is like Psalm xxxii. 11; ver. 12_b_ is -from Psalm xxx. 4; but the remainder is the psalmist's own earnest -exhortation and firm faith, cast into words which come warm from -his own heart's depths. Love to Jehovah necessarily implies hatred -of evil, which is His antagonist, and which He hates. That higher -love will not be kept in energy, unless it is guarded by wholesome -antipathy to everything foul. The capacity for love of the noble is -maimed unless there is hearty hatred of the ignoble. Love to God is -no idle affection, but withdraws a man from rival loves. The stronger -the attraction, the stronger the recoil. The closer we cleave to -God, the more decided our shrinking from all that would weaken our -hold of Him. A specific reference in the exhortation to temptations -to idolatry is possible, though not necessary. All times have -their "evil," with which God's lovers are ever tempted to comply. -The exhortation is never out of place, nor the encouragement which -accompanies it ever illusory. In such firm adherence to Jehovah, -many difficulties will rise, and foes be made; but those who obey it -will not lack protection. Mark the alternation of names for such. -They are first called "lovers of God"; they are then designated as -His "favoured ones." That which is first in time is last in mention. -The effect is in view before it is traced to its cause. "We love Him -because He first loved us." Then follow names drawn from the moral -perfecting which will ensue on recognition and reception of God's -favour, and on the cherishing of the love which fulfils the law. They -who love because they are loved, become righteous and upright-hearted -because they love. For such the psalmist has promise as well as -exhortation. Not only are they preserved in and from dangers, but -"light is sown" for them. Many commentators think that the figure -of light being sown, as seeds are buried in the ground to shoot up -in beauty in a future spring-time, is too violent, and they propose -to understand "sown" in the sense of _scattered on_, not _deposited -in_, the earth, "so that he, the righteous, goes forward step by step -in the light" (Delitzsch). Others would correct into "is risen" or -"arises." But one is reluctant to part with the figure, the violence -of which is permissible in an Eastern singer. Darkness often wraps -the righteous, and it is not true to experience to say that his way -is always in the sunlight. But it is consolation to know that light -is sown, invisible and buried, as it were, but sure to germinate -and fruit. The metaphor mingles figures and offends purists, but it -fits closer to fact than the weakening of it which fits the rules of -composition. If we are God's lovers, present darkness may be quieted -by hope, and we may have the "fruit of the light" in our lives now, -and the expectation of a time when we shall possess in fulness and in -perpetuity all that light of knowledge, purity, and gladness which -Jesus the Sower went forth to sow, and which had been ripened by -struggles and sorrows and hatred of evil while we were here. - -Therefore, because of this magnificent theophany, and because of its -blessed consequences for loving souls, the psalmist ends with the -exhortation to the righteous to rejoice. He began with bidding the -world be glad. He now bids each of us concentrate that universal -gladness in our own hearts. Whether earth obeys Him or not, it is for -us to clasp firmly the great facts which will feed the lamp of our -joy. God's holy memorial is His name, or His self-revealed character. -He desires to be known and remembered by His acts. If we rightly -retain and ponder His utterance of Himself, not in syllables, but in -deeds, we shall not be silent in His praise. The righteous man should -not be harsh and crabbed, but his soul should dwell in a serene -atmosphere of joy in Jehovah, and his life be one thanksgiving to -that mighty, never-to-be-forgotten Name. - - - - - PSALM XCVIII. - - 1 Sing to Jehovah a new song, - For wonders He has done, - His right hand has brought Him salvation, and His holy arm - 2 Jehovah has made known His salvation, - To the eyes of the nations He has revealed His righteousness. - 3 He has remembered His loving-kindness and His faithfulness - to the house of Israel, - All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. - - 4 Shout aloud to Jehovah, all the earth, - Break forth into shrill cries of joy and make melody, - 5 Make melody to Jehovah with the lyre, - With lyre and voice of melody. - 6 With trumpets and blast of horn, - Shout aloud before Jehovah, the King. - - 7 Let the sea thunder and its fulness, - The world and the dwellers therein, - 8 Let streams clap hands, - Together let mountains ring out joyful cries, - 9 Before Jehovah, for He comes to judge the earth, - He will judge the world in righteousness, - And peoples in equity. - - -The two preceding psalms correspond in number and division of verses. -The first begins with a summons to sing to Jehovah; the second, with -a proclamation that He is King. A precisely similar connection exists -between this and the following psalm. Psalm xcviii. is an echo of Psalm -xcvi., and Psalm xcix. of Psalm xcvii. The number of verses in each of -the second pair is nine, and in each there is a threefold division. -The general theme of both pairs is the same, but with considerable -modifications. The abundant allusions to older passages continue here, -and the second part of Isaiah is especially familiar to the singer. - -The first strophe (vv. 1-3), though modelled on the first of Psalm -xcvi., presents the theme in a different fashion. Instead of -reiterating through three verses the summons to Israel to praise -Jehovah, and declare His glory to the nations, this psalm passes at -once from the summons to praise, in order to set forth the Divine -deed which evokes the praise, and which, the psalmist thinks, will -shine by its own lustre to "the ends of the earth," whether it has -human voices to celebrate it or not. This psalmist speaks more -definitely of Jehovah's wonders of deliverance. Israel appears rather -as the recipient than as the celebrator of God's loving-kindness. The -sun shines to all nations, whether any voices say "Look," or no. Ver. -1_a_ is from Psalm xcvi. 1; vv. 1_c_-3 weave together snatches of -various passages in the second part of Isaiah, especially Isa. lii. -10, lix. 16, lxiii. 5. The remarkable expression "brought salvation -to Him" (from the second passage in Isaiah) is rendered by many -"helped Him," and that rendering gives the sense but obliterates -the connection with "salvation," emphatically repeated in the two -following verses. The return from Babylon is naturally suggested as -best corresponding to the psalmist's words. That was "the salvation -of our God," who seemed to have forgotten His people, as Isa. xlix. -2 represents Israel as complaining, but now, before "the eyes of -all nations," has shown how well He remembers and faithfully keeps -His covenant obligations. Israel is, indeed, Jehovah's witness, and -should ring out her grateful joy; but Jehovah's deed speaks more -loudly than Israel's proclamation of it can ever do. - -The second strophe (vv. 4-6) corresponds to the third of Psalm -xcvi.; but whereas there the Gentiles were summoned to bring -offerings into the courts of Jehovah, here it is rather the glad -tumult of vocal praise, mingled with the twang of harps, and the -blare of trumpets and horns, which is present to the singer's -imagination. He hears the swelling chorus echoing through the courts, -which are conceived as wide enough to hold "all the earth." He has -some inkling of the great thought that the upshot of God's redeeming -self-manifestation will be glad music from a redeemed world. His -call to mankind throbs with emotion, and sounds like a prelude to -the melodious commingling of voice and instrument which he at once -enjoins and foretells. His words are largely echoes of Isaiah. -Compare Isa. xliv. 23, xlix. 13, lii. 9, for "break forth into," and -li. 3 for "voice of melody." - -The final strophe is almost identical with that of Psalm xcvi., but, in -accordance with the variation found in vv. 1-3, omits the summons to -Israel to proclaim God's Kinghood among the nations. It also inverts -the order of clauses in ver. 7, and in ver. 7_b_ quotes from Psalm -xxiv. 1, where also "the fulness of it" precedes, with the result of -having no verb expressed which suits the nouns, since "the world and -the dwellers therein" cannot well be called on to "thunder." Instead -of the "plain" and "trees of the forest" in the original, ver. 8 -substitutes streams and mountains. The bold figure of the streams -clapping hands, in token of homage to the King (2 Kings xi. 12; Psalm -xlvii. 1) occurs in Isa. lv. 12. The meeting waves are conceived of as -striking against each other, with a sound resembling that of applauding -palms. Ver. 9 is quoted from Psalm xcvi., with the omission of the -second "He cometh" (which many versions of the LXX. retain), and the -substitution of "equity" for "His faithfulness." - - - - - PSALM XCIX. - - 1 Jehovah is King--the peoples tremble; - Throned [on] the cherubim--the earth totters. - 2 Jehovah in Zion is great, - And exalted above all the peoples. - 3 Let them praise Thy great and dread name, - Holy is He. - - 4 And the strength of the King loves judgment, - Thou, Thou hast established equity, - Judgment and righteousness in Jacob hast Thou wrought. - 5 Exalt Jehovah our God, - And prostrate yourselves at His footstool, - Holy is He. - - 6 Moses and Aaron among His priests, - And Samuel among them that call [on] His name; - They called on Jehovah, and He, He answered them. - 7 In a pillar of cloud He spoke to them, - They kept His testimonies, - And the statute [which] He gave them. - 8 Jehovah our God! Thou, Thou didst answer them, - A forgiving God wast Thou unto them, - And executing retribution for their deeds. - 9 Exalt Jehovah our God, - And prostrate yourselves at His holy mountain, - For holy is Jehovah our God. - - -Delitzsch has well called this psalm "an earthly echo of the seraphic -Trisagion," the threefold proclamation of the Divine holiness, -which Isaiah heard (Isa. vi. 3). It is, as already noted, a pendant -to Psalm xcviii., but is distinguished from the other psalms of -this group by its greater originality, the absence of distinct -allusion to the great act of deliverance celebrated in them, and its -absorption in the one thought of the Divine holiness. Their theme -is the event by which Jehovah manifested to the world His sovereign -rule; this psalm passes beyond the event, and grasps the eternal -central principle of that rule--namely, holiness. The same thought -has been touched on in the other members of the group, but here it -is the single subject of praise. Its exhibition in God's dealings -with Israel is here traced in ancient examples, rather than in recent -instances; but the view-point of the other psalms is retained, in so -far as the Divine dealings with Israel are regarded as the occasion -for the world's praise. - -The first strophe (vv. 1-3) dwells in general terms on Jehovah's -holiness, by which august conception is meant, not only moral purity, -but separation from, by elevation above, the finite and imperfect. Ver. -1 vividly paints in each clause the glory reigning in heaven, and its -effect on an awestruck world. We might render the verbs in the second -part of each clause as futures or as optatives (_shall tremble, shall -totter_, or _Let peoples tremble_, etc.), but the thought is more -animated if they are taken as describing the result of the theophany. -The participial clause "throned on the cherubim" adds detail to the -picture of Jehovah as King. It should not, strictly speaking, be -rendered with a finite verb. When that vision of Him sitting in royal -state is unveiled, all people are touched with reverence, and the solid -earth staggers. But the glory which is made visible to all men has its -earthly seat in Zion, and shines from thence into all lands. It is by -His deeds in Israel that God's exaltation is made known. The psalmist -does not call on men to bow before a veiled Majesty, of which they -only know that it is free from all creatural limitations, lowliness -and imperfections; but before a God, who has revealed Himself in acts, -and has thereby made Himself a name. "Great and dread" is that name, -but it is a sign of His loving-kindness that it is known by men, and -thanksgiving, not dumb trembling, befits men who know it. The refrain -might be rendered "It is holy," referring to the name, but vv. 5 -and 9 make the rendering _Holy is He_ more probable. The meaning is -unaffected whichever translation is adopted. - -Jehovah is holy, not only because lifted above and separated from -creatural limitations, but because of His righteousness. The second -strophe therefore proclaims that all His dominion is based on -uprightness, and is a continual passing of that into acts of "judgment -and righteousness." The "And" at the beginning of ver. 4, following the -refrain, is singular, and has led many commentators to link the words -with ver. 3_a_, and, taking the refrain as parenthetical, to render, -"Let them give thanks to Thy great and dread name, [for it is holy], -and [to] the strength of the King [who] loveth," etc. But the presence -of the refrain is an insuperable bar to this rendering. Others, as -Delitzsch and Cheyne, regard "the strength of the king" as dependent -on "established" in ver. 4_b_, and suppose that the theocratic monarch -of Israel is represented as under Jehovah's protection, if he reigns -righteously. But surely one King only is spoken of in this psalm, -and it is the inmost principle and outward acts of His rule which -are stated as the psalmist's reason for summoning men to prostrate -themselves at His footstool. The "And" at the beginning of the strophe -links its whole thought with that of the preceding, and declares -eloquently how closely knit together are Jehovah's exaltation and His -righteousness. The singer is in haste to assert the essentially moral -character of infinite power. Delitzsch thinks that love cannot be -predicated of "strength," but only of the possessor of strength; but -surely that is applying the measuring line of prosaic accuracy to lyric -fervour. The intertwining of Divine power and righteousness could not -be more strongly asserted than by that very intelligible attribution to -His power of the emotion of love, impelling it ever to seek union with -uprightness. He is no arbitrary ruler. His reign is for the furtherance -of justice. Its basis is "equity," and its separate acts are "judgment -and righteousness." These have been done in and for Jacob. Therefore -the call to worship rings out again. It is addressed to an undefined -multitude, which, as the tone of all this group of psalms leads us to -suppose, includes the whole race of man. They are summoned to lift high -the praise of Him who in Himself is so high, and to cast themselves low -in prostrate adoration at His footstool--_i.e._, at His sanctuary on -Zion (ver. 9). Thus again, in the centre strophe of this psalm, as in -Psalms xcvi. and xcviii., mankind are called to praise the God who has -revealed Himself in Israel; but while in the former of these two psalms -worship was represented as sacrificial, and in the second as loud music -of voice and instrument, here silent prostration is the fitting praise -of the holiness of the infinitely exalted Jehovah. - -The third strophe turns to examples drawn from the great ones of -old, which at once encourage to worship and teach the true nature of -worship, while they also set in clear light Jehovah's holiness in -dealing with His worshippers. Priestly functions were exercised by -Moses, as in sprinkling the blood of the covenant (Exod. xxiv.), and -in the ceremonial connected with the consecration of Aaron and his -sons (Lev. viii.), as well as at the first celebration of worship in -the Tabernacle (Exod. xl. 18 _sqq._). In the wider sense of the word -_priest_, he acted as mediator and intercessor, as in Exod. xvii. 12, -in the fight against Amalek, and xxxii. 30-32, after the worship of the -golden calf. Samuel, too, interceded for Israel after their seeking a -king (1 Sam. xii. 19 _sqq._), and offered sacrifices (1 Sam. vii. 9). -Jeremiah couples them together as intercessors with God (xv. 1). - -From these venerable examples the psalmist draws instruction as -to the nature of the worship befitting the holiness of Jehovah. -He goes deeper than all sacrifices, or than silent awe. To call -on God is the best adoration. The cry of a soul, conscious of -emptiness and need, and convinced of His fulness and of the love -which is the soul of His power, is never in vain. "They called, and -He"--even He in all the unreachable separation of His loftiness from -their lowliness--"answered them." There is a commerce of desire -and bestowal between the holy Jehovah and us. But these answers -come on certain conditions, which are plain consequences of His -holiness--namely, that His worshippers should keep His testimonies, -by which He has witnessed both to His own character and to their -duty. The psalmist seems to lose sight of his special examples, and -to extend his view to the whole people, when he speaks of answers -from the pillar of cloud, which cannot apply to Samuel's experience. -The persons spoken of in ver. 8 as receiving answers may indeed be -Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, all of whom were punished for evil deeds, -as well as answered when they cried; but more probably they are the -whole community. The great principle, firmly grasped and clearly -proclaimed by the singer, is that a holy God is a forgiving God, -willing to hearken to men's cry, and rich to answer with needed -gifts, and that indissolubly interwoven with the pardon, which He -in His holiness gives, is retribution for evil. God loves too well -to grant impunity. Forgiveness is something far better than escape -from penalties. It cannot be worthy of God to bestow or salutary -for men to receive, unless it is accompanied with such retribution -as may show the pardoned man how deadly his sin was. "Whatsoever -a man soweth that shall he also reap" is a law not abrogated by -forgiveness. The worst penalty of sin, indeed--namely, separation -from God--is wholly turned aside by repentance and forgiveness; but -for the most part the penalties which are inflicted on earth, and -which are the natural results of sin, whether in character, memory, -habit, or circumstances, are not removed by pardon. Their character -is changed; they become loving chastisement for our profit. - -Such, then, is the worship which all men are invited to render to -the holy Jehovah. Prostrate awe should pass into the cry of need, -desire, and aspiration. It will be heard, if it is verified as real -by obedience to God's known will. The answers will be fresh witnesses -of God's holiness, which declares itself equally in forgiveness and -in retribution. Therefore, once more the clear summons to all mankind -rings out, and once more the proclamation of His holiness is made. - -There is joyful confidence of access to the Inaccessible in the -reiteration in ver. 9 of _Jehovah our God_. "Holy is He," sang the -psalmist at first, but all the gulf between Jehovah and us is bridged -over when to the name which emphasises the eternal, self-existent -being of the holy One we can add "our God." Then humble prostration -is reconcilable with confident approach; and His worshippers have not -only to lie lowly at His footstool, but to draw near, with children's -frankness, to His heart. - - - - - PSALM C. - - 1 Shout aloud to Jehovah, all the earth. - 2 Serve Jehovah with gladness, - Come before His face with joyful cry. - 3 Know ye that Jehovah He is God, - He, He has made us, and His are we, - His people and the sheep of His pasture. - 4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving, - His courts with praise, - Give thanks to Him, bless His name. - 5 For Jehovah is good, for ever endures His loving-kindness, - And to generation after generation His faithfulness. - - -The Psalms of the King end with this full-toned call to all the earth -to do Him homage. It differs from the others of the group, by making no -distinct mention either of Jehovah's royal title or of the great act -of deliverance which was His visible exercise of sovereignty. But it -resembles them in its jubilant tone, its urgent invitation to all men -to walk in the light which shone on Israel, and its conviction that the -mercies shown to the nation had blessing in them for all the world. The -structure is simple. A call to praise Jehovah is twice given, and each -is followed by reasons for His praise, which is grounded, in the first -instance (ver. 3), on His dealings with Israel, and, in the second, on -His character as revealed by all His works. - -Ver. 1 consists of but a single clause, and, as Delitzsch says, is -like the signal-blast of a trumpet. It rings out a summons to "all -the earth," as in Psalm xcviii. 4, which is expanded in ver. 2. The -service there enjoined is that of worship in the Temple, as in ver. -4. Thus, the characteristic tone of this group of psalms echoes here, -in its close, and all men are called and welcomed to the Sanctuary. -There is no more a Court of the Gentiles. Not less striking than the -universality of the psalm is its pulsating gladness. The depths of -sorrow, both of that which springs from outward calamities and of -that more heart-breaking sort which wells up from dark fountains in -the soul, have been sounded in many a psalm. But the Psalter would -not reflect all the moods of the devout soul, unless it had some -strains of unmingled joy. The Christian Year has perfect days of -sunlit splendour, when all the winds are still, and no cloud darkens -the unbroken blue. There is no music without passages in minor keys; -but joy has its rights and place too, and they know but little of the -highest kind of worship who do not sometimes feel their hearts swell -with gladness more poignant and exuberant than earth can minister. - -The reason for the world's gladness is given in ver. 3. It is -Jehovah's special relation to Israel. So far as the language of the -verse is concerned, it depends on Psalm xcv. 7. "He hath made us" -does not refer to creation, but to the constituting of Israel the -people of God. "We are His" is the reading of the Hebrew margin, and -is evidently to be preferred to that of the text, "Not we ourselves." -The difference in Hebrew is only in one letter, and the pronunciation -of both readings would be the same. Jewish text-critics count fifteen -passages, in which a similar mistake has been made in the text. Here, -the comparison of Psalm xcv. and the connection with the next clause -of ver. 3 are decidedly in favour of the amended reading. It is to -be observed that this is the only place in the psalm in which "we" -and "us" are used; and it is natural to lay stress on the opposition -between "ye" in ver. 3_a_, and "we" and "us" in _b_. The collective -Israel speaks, and calls all men to rejoice in Jehovah, because of -His grace to it. The psalm is, then, not, as Cheyne calls it, "a -national song of thanksgiving, with which an universalistic element -is not completely fused," but a song which starts from national -blessings, and discerns in them a message of hope and joy for all -men. Israel was meant to be a sacred hearth on which a fire was -kindled, that was to warm all the house. God revealed Himself _in_ -Israel, but _to_ the world. - -The call to praise is repeated in ver. 4 with more distinct reference -to the open Temple gates into which all the nations may now enter. -The psalmist sees, in prophetic hope, crowds pouring in with glad -alacrity through the portals, and then hears the joyful tumult of -their many voices rising in a melodious surge of praise. His eager -desire and large-hearted confidence that so it will one day be are -vividly expressed by the fourfold call in ver. 4. And the reason -which should draw all men to bless God's revealed character is that -His self-revelation, whether to Israel or to others, shows that the -basis of that character is goodness--_i.e._, kindness or love--and -that, as older singers have sung, "His loving-kindness endures for -ever," and, as a thousand generations in Israel and throughout the -earth have proved, His faithful adherence to His word, and discharge -of all obligations under which He has come to His creatures, give -a basis for trust and a perpetual theme for joyful thanksgiving. -Therefore, all the world has an interest in Jehovah's royalty, and -should, and one day shall, compass His throne with joyful homage, and -obey His behests with willing service. - - - - - PSALM CI. - - 1 Of loving-kindness and judgment will I sing, - To Thee, Jehovah, will I harp. - 2 I will give heed to the way of perfectness, - When wilt Thou come to me? - I will walk with a perfect heart - Within my house. - 3 I will not set before my eyes any villainous thing, - The doing of transgressions do I hate, - It shall not cleave to me. - 4 A perverse heart shall depart from me, - Evil will I not know. - - 5 The secret slanderer of his neighbour, - Him will I root out, - The lofty-eyed and proud-hearted, - Him will I not endure. - 6 My eyes are on the faithful of the land, - That they may dwell with me, - He who walks in the way of perfectness, - He shall serve me. - 7 He shall not dwell in my house - Who practises deceit, - He that speaks lies - Shall not be established before my eyes. - 8 Every morning will I root out - All the wicked of the land, - To cut off from the city of Jehovah - All workers of iniquity. - - -The contents of this psalm go far towards confirming the correctness of -the superscription in ascribing it to David, as Ewald acknowledges. To -call it an ideal description of a Jewish king, dramatically put into -such a ruler's mouth, does not do justice to the ring of earnestness -in it. No doubt, subjective impressions are unreliable guides, but it -is difficult to resist the impression that a kingly voice is audible -here, speaking no ideal description, but his own stern resolves. It is -a royal "proclamation against vice and immorality," appropriate to the -beginning of a reign. If we accept the superscription, and interpret -the abrupt question in ver. 2 "When wilt Thou come to me?" as the -utterance of David's longing to see the Ark set in Jerusalem, we get -a most fitting period for the psalm. He had but recently ascended the -throne. The abuses and confusions of Saul's last troubled years had -to be reformed. The new king felt that he was God's viceroy, and here -declares what he will strive to make his monarchy--a copy of God's. He -gives evil-doers fair warning, and bids all true men be sure of his -favour. But he will take heed to himself, before he seeks to purge his -court. So the psalm, though it has no strophical arrangement, falls -into two main parts, in the first of which the king lays down the rule -of his own conduct, and, in the second, declares war against the vermin -that infest especially an Eastern court--slanderers, arrogant upstarts, -traffickers in lies. His ambition is to have Jehovah's city worthy of -its true King, when He shall deign to come and dwell in it. Therefore -his face will be gracious to all good men, and his hand heavy on all -evil-doers. The psalm is "A Mirror for Magistrates," to quote the title -of an old English book. - -The first words of the psalm seem at first sight incongruous with -its contents, which are singularly devoid of praise. But they are -not meant to refer to the psalm, but declare the singer's purpose -for his whole life. If the speaker is a real character, he is a -poet-king. Of whom is that singular combination of royalty and -minstrelsy so true as of David? If the speaker is an ideal, is it -not peculiar that the first qualification of the ideal king should -be that he is a poet? The suggestion that "loving-kindness and -judgment" are here the monarch's virtues, not Divine attributes, is -negatived by usage and by the following clause, "To Thee, _Jehovah_, -will I sing." But it is as a king that the psalmist vows to praise -these twin characteristics of the Divine rule; and his song is to be -accompanied by melodious deeds, which shape themselves after that -pattern for rulers and all men. Earthly power is then strongest -when, like God's, it is informed by loving-kindness and based on -righteousness. In this connection, it is significant that this psalm, -describing what a king should be, has been placed immediately after -the series which tells who the true King of Israel and the world is, -in whom these same attributes are ever linked together. - -Vv. 2-4 outline the king's resolves for himself. With noble -self-control, this ruler of men sets before himself the narrow, -thorny way of perfectness, not the broad, flowery road of indulgence. -He owns a law above himself and a far-off goal of moral completeness, -which, he humbly feels, is yet unattained, but which he vows will -never be hidden from his undazzled eyes, by the glitter of lower -earthly good, or the rank mists of sensual pleasures. He had abundant -facilities for reaching lower aims, but he turns from these to "give -heed" to the way of perfectness. That resolve must be clearly and -strongly made by every man, prince or peasant, who would attain to -the dominion over self and externals, which is man's true royalty. - -The suddenly interjected question of longing, "When wilt Thou come to -me?" is best explained by connecting it with David's desire that the -Ark should be permanently domiciled in Jerusalem--a desire which was -checked by his reflections on his own unworthiness (2 Sam. vi. 9). -Now he feels that, on the one hand, his whole-hearted desire after -righteousness makes him capable of receiving such a guest; and that, -on the other, his firmest resolves will be evanescent, without God's -presence to confirm his wavering and to help him to make his resolves -into acts. He longed for that "coming" of the symbol of God's dwelling -with men, not with heathenish desire to have it as a magic-working -charm against outward foes, but as helping his faith to grasp the fact -that God was with him, as his ally in the nobler fight against his own -baseness and his position's temptations. We dare not ask God to come -to us, unless we are conscious of desire to be pure; we cannot hope to -realise that desire, unless He is with us. So, the natural sequel of -determination to give heed to the way of perfectness is petition to -Him, to come very near and take up His abode with us. - -After this most significant interruption, the stream of resolutions -runs on again. In the comparative privacy of his house, he will "walk -with a perfect heart," ever seeking to translate his convictions of -right into practice, and regulating his activities by conscience. -The recesses of an Eastern palace were often foul with lust, and hid -extravagances of caprice and self-indulgence; but this ruler will -behave there as one who has Jehovah for a guest. The language of ver. -3 is very energetic. "Any villainous thing" is literally "a thing of -Belial"; "the doing of transgressions" is literally "doing deeds that -turn aside", _i.e._ from the course prescribed. He will not take -the former as models for imitation or objects of desire. The latter -kindle wholesome hatred; and if ever he is tempted to dally with sin, -he will shake it off, as a venomous reptile that has fastened on him. -"A perfect heart" will expel "a perverse heart," but neither will the -one be gained nor the other banished without vehement and persistent -effort. This man does not trust the improvement of his character to -chance or expect it to come of itself. He means to bend his strength -to effect it. He cannot but "know evil," in the sense of being aware -of it and conscious of its seductions; but he will _not_ "know" -it, in the sense of letting it into his inner nature, or with the -knowledge which is experience and love. - -From ver. 5 onwards, the king lays down the principles of his public -action, and that mainly in reference to bad men. One verse suffices -to tell of his fostering care of good men. The rest describes how he -means to be a terror to evil-doers. The vices against which he will -implacably war are not gross crimes such as ordinarily bring down -the sword of public justice. This monarch has regard to more subtle -evils--slander, superciliousness, inflated vanity ("proud-hearted" in -ver. 5 is literally wide in heart, _i.e._ dilated with self-sufficiency -or ambition). His eyes are quick to mark "the faithful in the land." -He looks for those whose faithfulness to God guarantees their fidelity -to men and general reliableness. His servants shall be like himself, -followers of "the way of perfectness." In that court, dignity and -office will go, not to talent, or to crafty arts of servility, or to -birth, but to moral and religious qualities. - -In the last two verses, the psalm returns to evil-doers. The actors -and speakers of lies shall be cleared out of the palace. Such base -creatures crawl and sting about the purlieus of courts, but this -prince will have his immediate _entourage_ free from them. He longs -to get rid of the stifling atmosphere of deceit, and to have honest -men round him, as many a ruler before and since has longed. But not -only palace, but city, has to be swept clean, and one cleansing at -the beginning of a reign will not be enough. So "every morning" the -work has to be done again. "Ill weeds grow apace," and the mower must -not get weary of his scythe. God's city must be pure. "Without are -... whatsoever worketh and maketh a lie." - -The psalm is a God-given vision of what a king and a kingdom might -and should be. If David wrote it, his early resolves were sadly -falsified. "I will set no villainous things before my eyes"--yet from -his "house," where he vowed to "walk with a perfect heart," he looked -on Bathsheba. "He that speaks lies shall not be established in my -sight"--yet Absalom, Ahithophel, and the sons of Zeruiah stood round -his throne. The shortcomings of the earthly shadows of God's rule -force us to turn away to the only perfect King and Kingdom, Jesus -Christ and His realm, and to the city "into which shall in nowise -enter anything that defileth." - - - - - PSALM CII. - - 1 Jehovah, hear my prayer, - And let my cry come to Thee. - 2 Hide not Thy face from me in the day of my trouble, - Bend to me Thine ear, - In the day that I call answer me speedily. - - 3 For my days are consumed in smoke, - And my bones are burned like a brand. - 4 Smitten like herbage and dried up is my heart, - For I have forgotten to eat my bread. - 5 Because of the noise of my groaning, - My bones stick to my flesh. - 6 I am like a pelican of the desert, - I am become like an owl of the ruins. - 7 I am sleepless, - And am become like a sparrow lonely on the roof. - 8 All day long my enemies reproach me, - They that are mad at me curse by me. - 9 For ashes like bread have I eaten, - And my drink with tears have I mingled. - 10 Because of Thy indignation and Thy wrath, - For Thou hast caught me up and flung me away - 11 My days are like a long-drawn-out shadow, - And I like herbage am dried up. - - 12 But Thou, Jehovah, sittest enthroned for ever, - And Thy memorial is to generation after generation. - 13 Thou, Thou shalt arise, shalt pity Zion, - For it is time to show her favour, - For the appointed time is come. - 14 For Thy servants delight in her stones, - And [to] her dust they show favour. - 15 And the nations shall fear the name of Jehovah, - And all the kings of the earth His glory, - - 16 Because Jehovah has built up Zion, - He has been seen in His glory, - 17 He has turned to the prayer of the destitute, - And has not despised their prayer. - 18 This shall be written for the generation after, - And a people [yet] to be created shall praise Jah. - 19 Because He has looked down from His holy height, - Jehovah has gazed from heaven upon the earth, - 20 To hear the sighing of the captive, - To free the children of death, - 21 That they may tell in Zion the name of Jehovah, - And His praise in Jerusalem, - 22 When the peoples are assembled together, - And the kingdoms to serve Jehovah. - - 23 He has brought down my strength in the way, - He has cut short my days. - 24 I said, "My God, take me not away at the half of my days," - [Since] Thy years endure through all generations. - 25 Of old Thou didst found the earth, - And the heavens are the work of Thy hands. - 26 They, they shall perish, but Thou, Thou shalt continue, - And all of them like a garment shall wear out, - Like a robe shalt Thou change them, and they shall be changed. - 27 But Thou art He, - And Thy years shall never end. - 28 The sons of Thy servants shall dwell, - And their seed shall be established before Thee. - - -Verses 13, 14, show that the psalm was written when Zion was in -ruins and the time of her restoration at hand. Sadness shot with -hope, as a cloud with sunlight, is the singer's mood. The pressure -of present sorrows points to the time of the Exile; the lightening -of these, by the expectation that the hour for their cessation has -all but struck, points to the close of that period. There is a -general consensus of opinion on this, though Baethgen is hesitatingly -inclined to adopt the Maccabean date, and Cheyne prefers the time of -Nehemiah, mainly because the references to the "stones" and "dust" -recall to him "Nehemiah's lonely ride round the burned walls," and -"Sanballat's mocking at the Jews for attempting to revive the stones -out of heaps of rubbish" ("Orig. of Psalt.," p. 70). These references -would equally suit any period of desolation; but the point of time -indicated by ver. 13 is more probably the eve of restoration than the -completion of the begun and interrupted re-establishment of Israel -in its land. Like many of the later psalms, this is largely coloured -by earlier ones, as well as by Deuteronomy, Job, and the second -half of Isaiah, while it has also reminiscences of Jeremiah. Some -commentators have, indeed, supposed it to be his work. - -The turns of thought are simple. While there is no clear strophical -arrangement, there are four broadly distinguished parts: a prelude, -invoking God to hearken (vv. 1, 2); a plaintive bemoaning of the -psalmist's condition (vv. 3-11); a triumphant rising above his -sorrows, and rejoicing in the fair vision of a restored Jerusalem, -whose Temple-courts the nations tread (vv. 12-22); and a momentary -glance at his sorrows and brief life, which but spurs him to lay hold -the more joyously on God's eternity, wherein he finds the pledge of -the fulfilment of his hopes and of God's promises (vv. 23-28). - -The opening invocations in vv. 1, 2, are mostly found in other -psalms. "Let my cry come unto Thee" recalls Psalm xviii. 6. "Hide not -Thy face" is like Psalm xxvii. 9. "In the day of my straits" recurs -in Psalm lix. 16. "Bend to me Thy ear" is in Psalm xxxi. 2. "In the -day when I call" is as in Psalm lvi. 9. "Answer me speedily" is found -in Psalm lxix. 17. But the psalmist is not a cold-blooded compiler, -weaving a web from old threads, but a suffering man, fain to give -his desires voice, in words which sufferers before him had hallowed, -and securing a certain solace by reiterating familiar petitions. They -are none the less his own, because they have been the cry of others. -Some aroma of the answers that they drew down in the past clings to -them still, and makes them fragrant to him. - -Sorrow and pain are sometimes dumb, but, in Eastern natures, -more often eloquent; finding ease in recounting their pangs. The -psalmist's first words of self-lamentation echo familiar strains, as -he bases his cry for speedy answer on the swiftness with which his -days are being whirled away, and melting like smoke as it escapes -from a chimney. The image suggests another. The fire that makes -the smoke is that in which his very bones are smouldering like a -brand. The word for _bones_ is in the singular, the bony framework -being thought of as articulated into a whole. "Brand" is a doubtful -rendering of a word which the Authorised Version, following some -ancient Jewish authorities, renders _hearth_, as do Delitzsch and -Cheyne. It is used in Isa. xxxiii. 14 as = "burning," but "brand" -is required to make out the metaphor. The same theme of physical -decay is continued in ver. 4, with a new image struck out by the -ingenuity of pain. His heart is "smitten" as by sunstroke (compare -Psalm cxxi. 6, Isa. xlix. 10, and for still closer parallels Hosea -ix. 16, Jonah iv. 7, in both of which the same effect of fierce -sunshine is described as the sufferer here bewails). His heart -withers like Jonah's gourd. The "For" in ver. 4_b_ can scarcely -be taken as giving the reason for this withering. It must rather -be taken as giving the proof that it was so withered, as might be -concluded by beholders from the fact that he refused his food -(Baethgen). The psalmist apparently intends in ver. 5 to describe -himself as worn to a skeleton by long-continued and passionate -lamentations. But his phrase is singular. One can understand that -emaciation should be described by saying that the bones adhered to -the skin, the flesh having wasted away, but that they stick to the -flesh can only describe it, by giving a wide meaning to "flesh," as -including the whole outward part of the frame in contrast with the -internal framework. Lam. iv. 8 gives the more natural expression. -The psalmist has groaned himself into emaciation. Sadness and -solitude go well together. We plunge into lonely places when we -would give voice to our grief. The poet's imagination sees his own -likeness in solitude-loving creatures. The pelican is never now seen -in Palestine but on Lake Huleh. Thomson ("Land and Book," p. 260: -London, 1861) speaks of having found it there only, and describes -it as "the most sombre, austere bird I ever saw." "The owl of the -ruins" is identified by Tristram ("Land of Israel," p. 67) with the -small owl _Athene meridionalis_, the emblem of Minerva, which "is -very characteristic of all the hilly and rocky portions of Syria." -The _sparrow_ may be here a generic term for any small song-bird, but -there is no need for departing from the narrower meaning. Thomson -(p. 43) says: "When one of them has lost his mate--an every-day -occurrence--he will sit on the housetop alone and lament by the hour." - -The division of ver. 7 is singular, as the main pause in it falls -on "am become," to the disruption of the logical continuity. The -difficulty is removed by Wickes ("Accentuation of the Poetical -Books," p. 29), who gives several instances which seem to establish -the law that, in the musical accentuation, there is "an apparent -reluctance to place the main dividing accent after the first, or -before the last, word of the verse." The division is not logical, and -we may venture to neglect it, and arrange as above, restoring the -dividing accent to its place after the first word. Others turn the -flank of the difficulty by altering the text to read, "I am sleepless -and must moan aloud" (so Cheyne, following Olshausen). - -Yet another drop of bitterness in the psalmist's cup is the frantic -hatred which pours itself out in voluble mockery all day long, making -a running accompaniment to his wail. Solitary as he is, he cannot get -beyond hearing of shrill insults. So miserable does he seem, that -enemies take him and his distresses for a formula of imprecation, and -can find no blacker curse to launch at other foes than to wish that -they may be like him. So ashes, the token of mourning, are his food, -instead of the bread which he had forgotten to eat, and there are -more tears than wine in the cup he drinks. - -But all this only tells how sad he is. A deeper depth opens when he -remembers why he is sad. The bitterest thought to a sufferer is that -his sufferings indicate God's displeasure; but it may be wholesome -bitterness, which, leading to the recognition of the sin which evokes -the wrath, may change into a solemn thankfulness for sorrows which -are discerned to be chastisements, inflicted by that Love of which -indignation is one form. The psalmist confesses sin in the act of -bewailing sorrow, and sees behind all his pains the working of that -hand whose interposition for him he ventures to implore. The tremendous -metaphor of ver. 10_b_ pictures it as thrust forth from heaven to grasp -the feeble sufferer, as an eagle stoops to plunge its talons into a -lamb. It lifts him high, only to give more destructive impetus to -the force with which it flings him down, to the place where he lies, -a huddled heap of broken bones and wounds. His plaint returns to its -beginning, lamenting the brief life which is being wasted away by sore -distress. Lengthening shadows tell of approaching night. His day is -nearing sunset. It will be dark soon, and, as he has said (ver. 4), his -very self is withering and becoming like dried-up herbage. - -One can scarcely miss the tone of individual sorrow in the preceding -verses; but national restoration, not personal deliverance, is -the theme of the triumphant central part of the psalm. That is no -reason for flattening the previous verses into the voice of the -personified Israel, but rather for hearing in them the sighing of -one exile, on whom the general burden weighed sorely. He lifts his -tear-laden eyes to heaven, and catches a vision there which changes, -as by magic, the key of his song--Jehovah sitting in royal state -(compare Psalms ix. 7, xxix. 10) for ever. That silences complaints, -breathes courage into the feeble and hope into the despairing. In -another mood the thought of the eternal rule of God might make man's -mortality more bitter, but Faith grasps it, as enfolding assurances -which turn groaning into ringing praise. For the vision is not only -of an everlasting Some One who works a sovereign will, but of the -age-long dominion of Him whose name is Jehovah; and since that name -is the revelation of His nature, it, too, endures for ever. It is -the name of Israel's covenant-making and keeping God. Therefore, -ancient promises have not gone to water, though Israel is an exile, -and all the old comfort and confidence are still welling up from -the Name. Zion cannot die while Zion's God lives. Lam. v. 19 is -probably the original of this verse, but the psalmist has changed -"throne" into "memorial," _i.e._ _name_, and thereby deepened the -thought. The assurance that God will restore Zion rests not only on -His faithfulness, but on signs which show that the sky is reddening -towards the day of redemption. The singer sees the indication that -the hour fixed in God's eternal counsels is at hand, because he sees -how God's servants, who have a claim on Him and are in sympathy -with His purposes, yearn lovingly after the sad ruins and dust of -the forlorn city. Some new access of such feelings must have been -stirring among the devouter part of the exiles. Many large truths are -wrapped in the psalmist's words. The desolations of Zion knit true -hearts to her more closely. The more the Church or any good cause -is depressed, the more need for its friends to cling to it. God's -servants should see that their sympathies go toward the same objects -as God's do. They are proved to be His servants, because they favour -what He favours. Their regards, turned to existing evils, are the -precursors of Divine intervention for the remedy of these. When good -men begin to lay the Church's or the world's miseries to heart, it is -a sign that God is beginning to heal them. The cry of God's servants -can "hasten the day of the Lord," and preludes His appearance like -the keen morning air stirring the sleeping flowers before sunrise. - -The psalmist anticipates that a rebuilt Zion will ensure a worshipping -world. He expresses that confidence, which he shares with Isa. -xl.-lxvi., in vv. 15-18. The name and glory of Jehovah will become -objects of reverence to all the earth, because of the manifestation of -them by the rebuilding of Zion, which is a witness to all men of His -power and tender regard to His people's cry. The past tenses of vv. -16, 17, do not indicate that the psalm is later than the Restoration. -It is contemplated as already accomplished, because it is the occasion -of the "fear" prophesied in ver. 15, and consequently prior in time to -it. "Destitute," in ver. 17, is literally _naked_ or _stript_. It is -used in Jer. xvii. 6 as the name of a desert plant, probably a dwarf -juniper, stunted and dry, but seems to be employed here as simply -designating utter destitution. Israel had been stripped of every beauty -and made naked before her enemies. Despised, she had cried to God, -and now is clothed again with the garments of salvation, "as a bride -adorneth herself with her jewels." - -A wondering world will adore her delivering God. The glowing hopes -of psalmist and prophet seem to be dreams, since the restored Israel -attracted no such observance and wrought no such convictions. But the -singer was not wrong in believing that the coming of Jehovah in His -glory for the rebuilding of Zion would sway the world to homage. His -facts were right, but he did not know their perspective, nor could he -understand how many weary years lay, like a deep gorge hidden from -the eye of one who looks over a wide prospect, between the rebuilding -of which he was thinking, and that truer establishment of the city of -God, which is again parted from the period of universal recognition -of Jehovah's glory by so many sad and stormy generations. But the -vision is true. The coming of Jehovah in His glory will be followed -by a world's recognition of its light. - -That praise accruing to Jehovah shall be not only universal, but -shall go on sounding, with increasing volume in its tone, through -coming generations. This expectation is set forth in vv. 18-22, -which substantially reiterate the thought of the preceding, with -the addition that there is to be a new Israel, a people yet to be -created (Psalm xxii. 31). The psalmist did not know "the deep things -he spoke." He did know that Israel was immortal, and that the seed -of life was in the tree that had cast its leaves and stood bare and -apparently dead. But he did not know the process by which that new -Israel was to be created, nor the new elements of which it was to -consist. His confidence teaches us never to despair of the future -of God's Church, however low its present state, but to look down -the ages, in calm certainty that, however externals may change, the -succession of God's children will never fail, nor the voice of their -praise ever fall silent. - -The course of God's intervention for Israel is described in vv. 19, -20. His looking down from heaven is equivalent to His observance, -as the all-seeing Witness and Judge (compare Psalms xiv. 2, xxxiii. -13, 14, etc.), and is preparatory to His hearing the sighing of -the captive Israel, doomed to death. The language of ver. 20 is -apparently drawn from Psalm lxxix. 11. The thought corresponds to -that of ver. 17. The purpose of His intervention is set forth in -vv. 21, 22, as being the declaration of Jehovah's name and praise -in Jerusalem before a gathered world. The aim of Jehovah's dealings -is that all men, through all generations, may know and praise Him. -That is but another way of saying that He infinitely desires, and -perpetually works for, men's highest good. For our sakes, He desires -so much that we should know Him, since the knowledge is life eternal. -He is not greedy of adulation nor dependent on recognition, but He -loves men too well not to rejoice in being understood and loved by -them, since Love ever hungers for return. The psalmist saw what -shall one day be, when, far down the ages, he beheld the world -gathered in the temple-courts, and heard the shout of their praise -borne to him up the stream of time. He penetrated to the inmost -meaning of the Divine acts, when he proclaimed that they were all -done for the manifestation of the Name, which cannot but be praised -when it is known. - -If the poet was one of the exiles, on whom the burden of the general -calamity weighed as a personal sorrow, it is very natural that -his glowing anticipations of national restoration should be, as -in this psalm, enclosed in a setting of more individual complaint -and petition. The transition from these to the purely impersonal -centre of the psalm, and the recurrence to them in vv. 23-28, are -inexplicable, if the "I" of the first and last parts is Israel, but -perfectly intelligible if it is one Israelite. For a moment the tone -of sadness is heard in ver. 23; but the thought of his own afflicted -and brief life is but a stimulus to the psalmist to lay hold of God's -immutability and to find rest there. The Hebrew text reads "_His_ -strength," and is followed by the LXX., Vulgate, Hengstenberg, and -Kay ("He afflicted on the way with His power"); but the reading -of the Hebrew margin, adopted above and by most commentators, is -preferable, as supplying an object for the verb, which is lacking in -the former reading, and as corresponding to "_my_ days" in _b_. - -The psalmist has felt the exhaustion of long sorrow and the shortness -of his term. Will God do all these glorious things of which he has -been singing, and he, the singer, not be there to see? That would -mingle bitterness in his triumphant anticipations; for it would be -little to him, lying in his grave, that Zion should be built again. The -hopes with which some would console us for the loss of the Christian -assurance of immortality, that the race shall march on to new power and -nobleness, are poor substitutes for continuance of our own lives and -for our own participation in the glories of the future. The psalmist's -prayer, which takes God's eternity as its reason for deprecating his -own premature death, echoes the inextinguishable confidence of the -devout heart, that somehow even its fleeting being has a claim to be -assimilated in duration to its Eternal Object of trust and aspiration. -The contrast between God's years and man's days may be brooded on in -bitterness or in hope. They who are driven by thinking of their own -mortality to clutch, with prayerful faith, God's eternity, use the one -aright, and will not be deprived of the other. - -The solemn grandeur of vv. 25, 26, needs little commentary, but it -may be noted that a reminiscence of Isaiah II. runs through them, -both in the description of the act of creation of heaven and earth -(Isa. xlviii. 13, xliv. 24), and in that of their decaying like -a garment (Isa. li. 6, liv. 10). That which has been created can -be removed. The creatural is necessarily the transient. Possibly, -too, the remarkable expression "changed," as applied to the visible -creation, may imply the thought which had already been expressed in -Isaiah, and was destined to receive such deepening by the Christian -truth of the new heavens and new earth--a truth the contents of -which are dim to us until it is fulfilled. But whatever may be the -fate of creatures, He who receives no accession to His stable being -by originating suffers no diminution by extinguishing them. Man's -days, the earth's ages, and the aeons of the heavens pass, and still -"Thou art He," the same Unchanging Author of change. Measures of time -fail when applied to His being, whose years have not that which all -divisions of time have--an end. An unending year is a paradox, which, -in relation to God, is a truth. - -It is remarkable that the psalmist does not draw the conclusion -that he himself shall receive an answer to his prayer, but that -"the children of Thy servants shall dwell," _i.e._ in the land, -and that there will always be an Israel "established before Thee." -He contemplates successive generations as in turn dwelling in the -promised land (and perhaps in the ancient "dwelling-place to all -generations," even in God); but of his own continuance he is silent. -Was he not assured of that? or was he so certain of the answer to his -prayer that he had forgotten himself in the vision of the eternal God -and the abiding Israel? Having regard to the late date of the psalm, -it is hard to believe that silence meant ignorance, while it may -well be that it means a less vivid and assured hope of immortality, -and a smaller space occupied by that hope than with us. But the -other explanation is not to be left out of view, and the psalmist's -oblivion of self in rapt gazing on God's eternal being--the pledge of -His servants' perpetuity--may teach us that we reach the summit of -Faith when we lose ourselves in God. - -The Epistle to the Hebrews quotes vv. 25-27 as spoken of "the Son." -Such an application of the words rests on the fact that the psalm -speaks of the coming of Jehovah for redemption, who is none other -than Jehovah manifested fully in the Messiah. But Jehovah whose -coming brings redemption and His recognition by the world is also -Creator. Since, then, the Incarnation is, in truth, the coming of -Jehovah, which the psalmist, like all the prophets, looked for as -the consummation, He in whom the redeeming Jehovah was manifested -is He in whom Jehovah the Creator "made the worlds." The writer of -the Epistle is not asserting that the psalmist consciously spoke of -the Messiah, but he is declaring that his words, read in the light -of history, point to Jesus as the crowning manifestation of the -redeeming, and therefore necessarily of the creating, God. - - - - - PSALM CIII. - - 1 Bless Jehovah, my soul, - And all within me [bless] His holy name! - 2 Bless Jehovah, my soul! - And forget not all His benefits, - 3 Who forgives all thy iniquity, - Who heals all thy diseases, - 4 Who redeems thy life from the pit, - Who crowns thee [with] loving-kindness and compassions, - 5 Who satisfies thy mouth (?) with good, - [So that] thy youth is renewed like the eagle. - - 6 Jehovah executes righteousness - And judgments for all the oppressed. - 7 He made known His ways to Moses, - To the children of Israel His great deeds. - 8 Full of compassion and gracious is Jehovah, - Slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness. - 9 He will not continually contend, - And will not keep His anger for ever. - 10 Not according to our sins has He dealt with us, - And not according to our iniquities has He recompensed us. - 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, - [So] great is His loving-kindness to them that fear Him. - 12 As far as sunrise is from sunset, - [So] far has He put our transgressions from us. - 13 As a father has compassion on his children, - Jehovah has compassion on them that fear Him. - 14 For He--He knows our frame, - Being mindful that we are dust. - 15 Frail man--like grass are his days, - Like a flower of the field, so he flowers. - 16 For a wind passes over him and he is not, - And his place knows him no more. - 17 But the loving-kindness of Jehovah is from everlasting even to - everlasting upon them that fear Him, - And His righteousness is to children's children; - 18 To those who keep His covenant, - And to those who remember His statutes to do them. - - 19 Jehovah has established His throne in the heavens, - And His kingdom rules over all. - 20 Bless Jehovah, ye His angels, - Ye mighty in strength, who perform His word, - Hearkening to the voice of His word! - 21 Bless Jehovah, all His hosts, - Ye His ministers, who perform His will! - 22 Bless Jehovah, all His works, - In all places of His dominion! - Bless Jehovah, my soul! - - -There are no clouds in the horizon, nor notes of sadness in the -music, of this psalm. No purer outburst of thankfulness enriches the -Church. It is well that, amid the many psalms which give voice to -mingled pain and trust, there should be one of unalloyed gladness, -as untouched by sorrow as if sung by spirits in heaven. Because it -is thus purely an outburst of thankful joy, it is the more fit to be -pondered in times of sorrow. - -The psalmist's praise flows in one unbroken stream. There are no -clear marks of division, but the river broadens as it runs, and -personal benefits and individual praise open out into gifts which are -seen to fill the universe, and thanksgiving which is heard from every -extremity of His wide dominion of loving-kindness. - -In ver. 1-5 the psalmist sings of his own experience. His _spirit_, -or _ruling self_, calls on his "soul," the weaker and more feminine -part, which may be cast down (Psalms xlii., xliii.) by sorrow, and -needs stimulus and control, to contemplate God's gifts and to praise -Him. A good man will rouse himself to such exercise, and coerce -his more sensuous and sluggish faculties to their noblest use. -Especially must memory be directed, for it keeps woefully short-lived -records of mercies, especially of continuous ones. God's gifts are -all "benefits," whether they are bright or dark. The catalogue of -blessings lavished on the singer's soul begins with forgiveness and -ends with immortal youth. The profound consciousness of sin, which -it was one aim of the Law to evoke, underlies the psalmist's praise; -and he who does not feel that no blessings could come from heaven, -unless forgiveness cleared the way for them, has yet to learn the -deepest music of thankfulness. It is followed by "healing" of "all -thy diseases," which is no cure of merely bodily ailments, any more -than redeeming of life "from the pit" is simply preservation of -physical existence. In both there is at least included, even if we do -not say that it only is in view, the operation of the pardoning God -in delivering from the sicknesses and death of the spirit. - -The soul thus forgiven and healed is crowned with "loving-kindness -and compassions," wreathed into a garland for a festive brow, and its -adornment is not only a result of these Divine attributes, but the -very things themselves, so that an effluence from God beautifies the -soul. Nor is even this all, for the same gifts which are beauty are -also sustenance, and God satisfies the soul with good, especially -with the only real good, Himself. The word rendered above "mouth" is -extremely difficult. It is found in Psalm xxxii. 9, where it seems -best taken in the meaning of _trappings_ or _harness_. That meaning -is inappropriate here, though Hupfeld tries to retain it. The LXX. -renders "desire," which fits well, but can scarcely be established. -Other renderings, such as "age" or "duration"--_i.e._, the whole -extent of life--have been suggested. Hengstenberg and others regard -the word as a designation of the soul, somewhat resembling the other -term applied to it, "glory"; but the fact that it is the soul which -is addressed negatives that explanation. Graetz and others resort to -a slight textual alteration, resulting in the reading "thy misery." -Delitzsch, in his latest editions, adopts this emendation doubtingly, -and supposes that with the word _misery_ or _affliction_ there is -associated the idea "of beseeching and therefore of longing," whence -the LXX. rendering would originate. "Mouth" is the most natural word -in such a connection, and its retention here is sanctioned by "the -interpretation of the older versions in Psalm xxxii. 9 and the Arabic -cognate" (Perowne). It is therefore retained above, though with some -reluctance. - -How should a man thus dealt with grow old? The body may, but not the -soul. Rather it will drop powers that can decay, and for each thus -lost will gain a stronger--moulting, and not being stripped of its -wings, though it changes their feathers. There is no need to make -the psalmist responsible for the fables of the eagle's renewal of -its youth. The comparison with the monarch of the air does not refer -to the process by which the soul's wings are made strong, but to the -result in wings that never tire, but bear their possessor far up in -the blue and towards the throne. - -In vv. 6-18 the psalmist sweeps a greater circle, and deals with God's -blessings to mankind. He has Israel specifically in view in the earlier -verses, but passes beyond Israel to all "who fear Him." It is very -instructive that he begins with the definite fact of God's revelation -through Moses. He is not spinning a filmy idea of a God out of his own -consciousness, but he has learned all that he knows of Him from His -historical self-revelation. A hymn of praise which has not revelation -for its basis will have many a quaver of doubt. The God of men's -imaginations, consciences, or yearnings is a dim shadow. The God to -whom love turns undoubting and praise rises without one note of discord -is the God who has spoken His own name by deeds which have entered into -the history of the world. And what has He revealed Himself to be? The -psalmist answers almost in the words of the proclamation made to Moses -(vv. 8, 9). The lawgiver had prayed, "I beseech Thee . . . show me -now Thy ways, that I may know Thee"; and the prayer had been granted, -when "the Lord passed by before him," and proclaimed His name as "full -of compassion and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy and -truth." That proclamation fills the singer's heart, and his whole soul -leaps up in him, as he meditates on its depth and sweetness. Now, after -so many centuries of experience, Israel can repeat with full assurance -the ancient self-revelation, which has been proved true by many "mighty -deeds." - -The psalmist's thoughts are still circling round the idea of -forgiveness, with which he began his contemplations. He and his -people equally need it; and all that revelation of God's character -bears directly on His relation to sin. Jehovah is "long of -anger"--_i.e._, slow to allow it to flash out in punishment--and as -lavish of loving-kindness as sparing of wrath. That character is -disclosed by deeds. Jehovah's graciousness forces Him to "contend" -against a man's sins for the man's sake. But it forbids Him to be -perpetually chastising and condemning, like a harsh taskmaster. -Nor does He keep His anger ever burning, though He does keep His -loving-kindness aflame for a thousand generations. Lightning is -transitory; sunshine, constant. Whatever His chastisements, they have -been less than our sins. The heaviest is "light," and "for a moment," -when compared with the "exceeding weight of" our guilt. - -The glorious metaphors in vv. 11, 12, traverse heaven to the zenith, -and from sunrise to sunset, to find distances distant enough to -express the towering height of God's mercy and the completeness of -His removal from us of our sins. That pure arch, the topstone of -which nor wings nor thoughts can reach, sheds down all light and heat -which make growth and cherish life. It is high above us, but it pours -blessings on us, and it bends down all round the horizon to kiss the -low, dark earth. The loving-kindness of Jehovah is similarly lofty, -boundless, all-fructifying. In ver. 11_b_ the parallelism would be -more complete if a small textual alteration were adopted, which would -give "high" instead of "great"; but the slight departure which the -existing text makes from precise correspondence with _a_ is of little -moment, and the thought is sufficiently intelligible as the words -stand. Between East and West all distances lie. To the eye they bound -the world. So far does God's mercy bear away our sins. Forgiveness -and cleansing are inseparably united. - -But the song drops--or shall we say rises?--from these magnificent -measures of the immeasurable to the homely image of a father's -pity. We may lose ourselves amid the amplitudes of the lofty, -wide-stretching sky, but this emblem of paternal love goes straight -to our hearts. A pitying God! What can be added to that? But that -fatherly pity is decisively limited to "them that fear Him." It is -possible, then, to put oneself outside the range of that abundant -dew, and the universality of God's blessings does not hinder -self-exclusion from them. - -In vv. 14-16 man's brief life is brought in, not as a sorrow or as -a cloud darkening the sunny joy of the song, but as one reason for -the Divine compassion. "He, He knows our frame." The word rendered -"frame" is literally "formation" or "fashioning," and comes from -the same root as the verb employed in Gen. ii. 7 to describe man's -creation, "The Lord God _formed_ man of the dust of the ground." It -is also used for the potter's action in moulding earthen vessels -(Isa. xxix. 16, etc.). So, in the next clause, "dust" carries on -the allusion to Genesis, and the general idea conveyed is that of -frailty. Made from dust and fragile as an earthen vessel, man by his -weakness appeals to Jehovah's compassion. A blow, delivered with the -full force of that almighty hand, would "break him as a potter's -vessel is broken." Therefore God handles us tenderly, as mindful of -the brittle material with which He has to deal. The familiar figure -of fading vegetation, so dear to the psalmists, recurs here; but it -is touched with peculiar delicacy, and there is something very sweet -and uncomplaining in the singer's tone. The image of the fading -flower, burned up by the simoom, and leaving one little spot in the -desert robbed of its beauty, veils much of the terror of death, and -expresses no shrinking, though great pathos. Ver. 16 may either -describe the withering of the flower, or the passing away of frail -man. In the former case, the pronouns would be rendered by "it" and -"its"; in the latter, by "he," "him," and "his." The latter seems the -preferable explanation. Ver. 16_b_ is verbally the same as Job vii. -10. The contemplation of mortality tinges the song with a momentary -sadness, which melts into the pensive, yet cheerful, assurance that -mortality has an accompanying blessing, in that it makes a plea for -pity from a Father's heart. - -But another, more triumphant thought springs up. A devout soul, -full-charged with thankfulness based on faith in God's name and ways, -cannot but be led by remembering man's brief life to think of God's -eternal years. So, the key changes at ver. 17 from plaintive minors -to jubilant notes. The psalmist pulls out all the stops of his organ, -and rolls along his music in a great _crescendo_ to the close. The -contrast of God's eternity with man's transitoriness is like the -similar trend of thought in Psalms xc., cii. The extension of His -loving-kindness to children's children, and its limitation to those -who fear Him and keep His covenant in obedience, rest upon Exod. -xx. 6, xxxiv. 7; Deut. vii. 9. That limitation has been laid down -twice already (vv. 11-13). All men share in that loving-kindness, -and receive the best gifts from it of which they are capable; but -those who cling to God in loving reverence, and who are moved by that -blissful "fear" which has no torment, to yield their wills to Him -in inward submission and outward obedience, do enter into the inner -recesses of that loving-kindness, and are replenished with good, of -which others are incapable. - -If God's loving-kindness is "from everlasting to everlasting," will -not His children share in it for as long? The psalm has no articulate -doctrine of a future life; but is there not in that thought of -an eternal outgoing of God's heart to its objects some (perhaps -half-conscious) implication that these will continue to exist? May -not the psalmist have felt that, though the flower of earthly -life "passed in the passing of an hour," the root would be somehow -transplanted to the higher "house of the Lord," and "flourish in -the courts of our God," as long as His everlasting mercy poured its -sunshine? We, at all events, know that His eternity is the pledge of -ours. "Because I live, ye shall live also." - -From ver. 19 to the end, the psalm takes a still wider sweep. It now -embraces the universe. But it is noticeable that there is no more -about "loving-kindness" in these verses. Man's sin and frailty make -him a fit recipient of it, but we do not know that in all creation -another being, capable of and needing it, is found. Amid starry -distances, amid heights and depths, far beyond sunrise and sunset, -God's all-including kingdom stretches and blesses all. Therefore, all -creatures are called on to bless Him, since all are blessed by Him, -each according to its nature and need. If they have consciousness, -they owe Him praise. If they have not, they praise Him by being. -The angels, "heroes of strength," as the words literally read, are -"His," and they not only execute His behests, but stand attent before -Him, listening to catch the first whispered indication of His will. -"His hosts" are by some taken to mean the stars; but surely it is -more congruous to suppose that beings who are His "ministers" and -perform His "will" are intelligent beings. Their praise consists in -hearkening to and doing His word. But obedience is not all their -praise; for they, too, bring Him tribute of conscious adoration -in more melodious music than ever sounded on earth. That "choir -invisible" praises the King of heaven; but later revelation has -taught us that men shall teach a new song to "principalities and -powers in heavenly places," because men only can praise Him whose -loving-kindness to them, sinful and dying, redeemed them by His blood. - -Therefore, it is no drop from these heavenly anthems, when the psalm -circles round at last to its beginning, and the singer calls on his -soul to add its "little human praise" to the thunderous chorus. -The rest of the universe praises the mighty Ruler; he blesses the -forgiving, pitying Jehovah. Nature and angels, stars and suns, seas -and forests, magnify their Maker and Sustainer; we can bless the God -who pardons iniquities and heals diseases which our fellow-choristers -never knew. - - - - - PSALM CIV. - - 1 My soul, bless Jehovah, - Jehovah my God, Thou art exceeding great, - Thou hast clothed Thyself with honour and majesty; - 2 Covering Thyself with light as with a garment, - Stretching out the heavens like a curtain. - 3 Who lays the beams of His chambers in the waters, - Who makes clouds His chariot, - Who walks on the wings of the wind, - 4 Making winds His messengers, - Flaming fire His servants. - - 5 He sets fast the earth upon its foundations, - [That] it should not be moved for ever and aye. - 6 [With] the deep as [with] a garment Thou didst cover it, - Above the mountains stood the waters. - 7 At Thy rebuke they fled, - At the voice of Thy thunder they were scared away. - 8 --Up rose the mountains, down sank the valleys-- - To the place which Thou hadst founded for them. - 9 A bound hast Thou set [that] they should not pass over, - Nor return to cover the earth. - - 10 He sends forth springs into the glens, - Between the hills they take their way. - 11 They give drink to every beast of the field, - The wild asses slake their thirst. - 12 Above them dwell the birds of heaven, - From between the branches do they give their note. - 13 He waters the mountains from His chambers, - With the fruit of Thy works the earth is satisfied. - 14 He makes grass to spring for the cattle, - And the green herb for the service of men, - To bring forth bread from the earth, - 15 And that wine may gladden the heart of feeble man; - To cause his face to shine with oil, - And that bread may sustain the heart of feeble man. - 16 The trees of Jehovah are satisfied, - The cedars of Lebanon which He has planted, - 17 Wherein the birds nest; - The stork--the cypresses are her house. - 18 The high mountains are for the wild goats, - The rocks are a refuge for the conies. - - 19 He has made the moon for (_i.e._, to measure) seasons, - The sun knows its going down. - 20 Thou appointest darkness and it is night, - Wherein all the beasts of the forest creep forth. - 21 The young lions roar for their prey, - And to seek from God their meat. - 22 The sun rises--they steal away, - And lay them down in their dens. - 23 Forth goes man to his work - And to his labour till evening. - 24 How manifold are Thy works, Jehovah! - In wisdom hast Thou made them all, - The earth is full of Thy possessions. - 25 Yonder [is] the sea, great and spread on either hand, - There are creeping things without number, - Living creatures small and great. - 26 There the ships go on, - [There is] that Leviathan whom Thou hast formed to sport in it. - 27 All these look to Thee, - To give their food in its season. - 28 Thou givest to them--they gather; - Thou openest Thy hand--they are filled [with] good. - 29 Thou hidest Thy face--they are panic-struck; - Thou withdrawest their breath--they expire, - And return to their dust. - 30 Thou sendest forth Thy breath--they are created, - And Thou renewest the face of the earth. - - 31 Let the glory of Jehovah endure for ever, - Let Jehovah rejoice in His works. - 32 Who looks on the earth and it trembles, - He touches the mountains and they smoke. - 33 Let me sing to Jehovah while I live, - Let me harp to my God while I have being. - 34 Be my meditation sweet to Him! - I, I will rejoice in Jehovah. - 35 Be sinners consumed from the earth, - And the wicked be no more! - Bless Jehovah, my soul! - Hallelujah! - - -Like the preceding psalm, this one begins and ends with the -psalmist's call to his soul to bless Jehovah. The inference has -been drawn that both psalms have the same author, but that is much -too large a conclusion from such a fact. The true lesson from it -is that Nature, when looked at by an eye that sees it to be full -of God, yields material for devout gratitude no less than do His -fatherly "mercies to them that fear Him." The key-note of the psalm -is struck in ver. 24, which breaks into an exclamation concerning -the manifoldness of God's works and the wisdom that has shaped -them all. The psalm is a gallery of vivid Nature-pictures, touched -with wonderful grace and sureness of hand. Clearness of vision and -sympathy with every living thing make the swift outlines inimitably -firm and lovely. The poet's mind is like a crystal mirror, in which -the Cosmos is reflected. He is true to the uniform Old Testament -point of view, and regards Nature neither from the scientific -nor aesthetic standpoint. To him it is the garment of God, the -apocalypse of a present Deity, whose sustaining energy is but the -prolongation of His creative act. All creatures depend on Him; His -continuous action is their life. He rejoices in His works. The -Creation narrative in Genesis underlies the psalm, and is in the main -followed, though not slavishly. - -Ver. 1 would be normal in structure if the initial invocation were -omitted, and as ver. 35 would also be complete without it, the -suggestion that it is, in both verses, a liturgical addition is -plausible. The verse sums up the whole of the creative act in one -grand thought. In that act the invisible God has arrayed Himself in -splendour and glory, making visible these inherent attributes. That is -the deepest meaning of Creation. The Universe is the garment of God. - -This general idea lays the foundation for the following picture -of the process of creation which is coloured by reminiscences of -Genesis. Here, as there, Light is the first-born of Heaven; but the -influence of the preceding thought shapes the language, and Light -is regarded as God's vesture. The Uncreated Light, who is darkness -to our eyes, arrays Himself in created light, which reveals while -it veils Him. Everywhere diffused, all-penetrating, all-gladdening, -it tells of the Presence in which all creatures live. This clause -is the poetic rendering of the work of the first creative day. The -next clause in like manner deals with that of the second. The mighty -arch of heaven is lifted and expanded over earth, as easily as a -man draws the cloth or skin sides and canopy of his circular tent -over its framework. But our roof is His floor; and, according to -Genesis, the firmament (lit. expanse) separates the waters above from -those beneath. So the psalm pictures the Divine Architect as laying -the beams of His _upper chambers_ (for so the word means) in these -waters, above the tent roof. The fluid is solid at His will, and the -most mobile becomes fixed enough to be the foundation of His royal -abode. The custom of having chambers on the roof, for privacy and -freshness, suggests the image. - -In these introductory verses the poet is dealing with the grander -instances of creative power, especially as realised in the heavens. -Not till ver. 5 does he drop to earth. His first theme is God's -dominion over the elemental forces, and so he goes on to represent -the clouds as His chariot, the wind as bearing Him on its swift -pinions, and, as the parallelism requires, the winds as His -messengers, and devouring fire as His servants. The rendering of ver. -4 adopted in Hebrews from the LXX. is less relevant to the psalmist's -purpose of gathering all the forces which sweep through the wide -heavens into one company of obedient servants of God, than that -adopted above, and now generally recognised. It is to be observed -that the verbs in vv. 2-4 are participles, which express continuous -action. These creative acts were not done once for all, but are going -on still and always. Preservation is continued creation. - -With ver. 6 we pass to the work of the third of the Genesis days, -and the verb is in the form which describes a historical fact. The -earth is conceived of as formed, and already moulded into mountains -and valleys, but all covered with "the deep" like a vesture--a sadly -different one from the robe of Light which He wears. That weltering -deep is bidden back to its future appointed bounds; and the process is -grandly described, as if the waters were sentient, and, panic-struck -at God's voice, took to flight. Ver. 8_a_ throws in a vivid touch, -to the disturbance of grammatical smoothness. The poet has the scene -before his eye, and as the waters flee he sees the earth emerging, the -mountains soaring, and the vales sinking, and he breaks his sentence, -as if in wonder at the lovely apparition, but returns, in ver. 8_b_, -to tell whither the fugitive waters fled--namely, to the ocean-depths. -There they are hemmed in by God's will, and, as was promised to Noah, -shall not again run wasting over a drowned world. - -The picture of the emerging earth, with its variations of valleys and -mountains, remains before the psalmist's eye throughout vv. 10-18, -which describe how it is clothed and peopled. These effects are due to -the beneficent ministry of the same element, when guided and restrained -by God, which swathed the world with desolation. Water runs through -the vales, and rain falls on the mountains. Therefore the former bear -herbs and corn, vines and olives, and the latter are clothed with -trees not planted by human hand, the mighty cedars which spread their -broad shelves of steadfast green high up among the clouds. "Everything -lives whithersoever water cometh," as Easterns know. Therefore round -the drinking-places in the vales thirsty creatures gather, birds flit -and sing; up among the cedars are peaceful nests, and inaccessible -cliffs have their sure-footed inhabitants. All depend on water, and -water is God's gift. The psalmist's view of Nature is characteristic -in the direct ascription of all its processes to God. He makes the -springs flow, and sends rain on the peaks. Equally characteristic is -the absence of any expression of a sense of beauty in the sparkling -streams tinkling down the gloomy wadies, or in the rain-storms -darkening the hills, or in the green mantle of earth, or in the bright -creatures. The psalmist is thinking of use, not of beauty. And yet it -is a poet's clear and kindly eye which looks upon all, and sees the -central characteristic of each,--the eager drinking of the wild ass; -the music of the birds blending with the brawling of the stream, and -sweeter because the singers are hidden among the branches; the freshly -watered earth, "satisfied" with "the fruit of Thy works" (_i.e._, the -rain which God has sent from His "upper chambers"), the manifold gifts -which by His wondrous alchemy are produced from the ground by help -of one agency, water; the forest trees with their foliage glistening, -as if glad for the rain; the stork on her nest; the goats on the -mountains; the "conies" (for which we have no popular name) hurrying -to their holes in the cliffs. Man appears as depending, like the lower -creatures, on the fruit of the ground; but he has more varied supplies, -bread and wine and oil, and these not only satisfy material wants, -but "gladden" and "strengthen" the heart. According to some, the word -rendered "service" in ver. 14 means "tillage," a meaning which is -supported by ver. 23, where the same word is rendered "labour," and -which fits in well with the next clause of ver. 14, "to bring forth -bread from the earth," which would describe the purpose of the tillage. -His prerogative of labour is man's special differentia in creation. -It is a token of his superiority to the happy, careless creatures who -toil not nor spin. Earth does not yield him its best products without -his co-operation. There would thus be an allusion to him as the only -worker in creation, similar to that in ver. 23, and to the reference to -the "ships" in ver. 26. But probably the meaning of "service," which is -suggested by the parallelism, and does not introduce the new thought of -co-operation with Nature or God, is to be preferred. The construction -is somewhat difficult, but the rendering of vv. 14, 15, given above -seems best. The two clauses with infinitive verbs (_to bring forth_ -and _to cause to shine_) are each followed by a clause in which the -construction is varied into that with a finite verb, the meaning -remaining the same; and all four clauses express the Divine purpose in -causing vegetation to spring. Then the psalmist looks up once more to -the hills. "The trees of Jehovah" are so called, not so much because -they are great, as because, unlike vines and olives, they have not been -planted or tended by man, nor belong to him. Far above the valleys, -where men and the cattle dependent on him live on earth's cultivated -bounties, the unowned woods stand and drink God's gift of rain, while -wild creatures lead free lives amid mountains and rocks. - -With ver. 19 the psalmist passes to the fourth day, but thinks of -moon and sun only in relation to the alternation of day and night as -affecting creatural life on earth. The moon is named first, because -the Hebrew day began with the evening. It is the _measurer_, by whose -phases seasons (or, according to some, _festivals_) are reckoned. The -sun is a punctual servant, knowing the hour to set and duly keeping -it. "Thou appointest darkness and it is night." God wills, and His -will effects material changes. He says to His servant Night, "Come," -and she "comes." The psalmist had peopled the vales and mountains of -his picture. Everywhere he had seen life fitted to its environment; -and night is populous too. He had outlined swift sketches of tame -and wild creatures, and now he half shows us beasts of prey stealing -through the gloom. He puts his finger on two characteristics--their -stealthy motions, and their cries which made night hideous. Even -their roar was a kind of prayer, though they knew it not; it was -God from whom they sought their food. It would not have answered -the purpose to have spoken of "all the loves, Now sleeping in those -quiet groves." The poet desired to show how there were creatures that -found possibilities of happy life in all the variety of conditions -fashioned by the creative Hand, which was thus shown to be moved by -Wisdom and Love. The sunrise sends these nocturnal animals back to -their dens, and the world is ready for man. "The sun looked over the -mountain's rim," and the beasts of prey slunk to their lairs, and -man's day of toil began--the mark of his pre-eminence, God's gift for -his good, by which he uses creation for its highest end and fulfils -God's purpose. Grateful is the evening rest when the day has been -filled with strenuous toil. - -The picture of earth and its inhabitants is now complete, and the -dominant thought which it leaves on the psalmist's heart is cast into -the exultant and wondering exclamation of ver. 24. The variety as well -as multitude of the forms in which God's creative idea is embodied, -the Wisdom which shapes all, His ownership of all, are the impressions -made by the devout contemplation of Nature. The scientist and the -artist are left free to pursue their respective lines of investigation -and impression; but scientist and artist must rise to the psalmist's -point of view, if they are to learn the deepest lesson from the ordered -kingdoms of Nature and from the beauty which floods the world. - -With the exclamation in ver. 24 the psalmist has finished his -picture of the earth, which he had seen as if emerging from the -abyss, and watched as it was gradually clothed with fertility and -peopled with happy life. He turns, in vv. 25, 26, to the other half -of his Vision of Creation, and portrays the gathered and curbed -waters which he now calls the "sea." As always in Scripture, it -is described as it looks to a landsman, gazing out on it from the -safe shore. The characteristics specified betray unfamiliarity with -maritime pursuits. The far-stretching roll of the waters away out to -the horizon, the mystery veiling the strange lives swarming in its -depths, the extreme contrasts in the magnitude of its inhabitants, -strike the poet. He sees "the stately ships go on." The introduction -of these into the picture is unexpected. We should have looked for -an instance of the "small" creatures, to pair off with the "great" -one, Leviathan, in the next words. "A modern poet," says Cheyne, _in -loc._, "would have joined the mighty whale to the fairy nautilus." It -has been suggested that "ship" here is a name for the nautilus, which -is common in the Eastern Mediterranean. The suggestion is a tempting -one, as fitting in more smoothly with the antithesis of _small_ and -_great_ in the previous clause. But, in the absence of any proof that -the word has any other meaning than "ship," the suggestion cannot be -taken as more than a probable conjecture. The introduction of "ships" -into the picture is quite in harmony with the allusions to man's -works in the former parts of the psalm, such as ver. 23, and possibly -ver. 14. The psalmist seems to intend to insert such reference to -man, the only toiler, in all his pictures. "Leviathan" is probably -here the whale. Ewald, Hitzig, Baethgen, Kay, and Cheyne follow the -LXX. and Vulgate in reading "Leviathan whom Thou hast formed to sport -with him," and take the words to refer to Job xli. 5. The thought -would then be that God's power can control the mightiest creatures' -plunges; but "the two preceding 'there's are in favour of the usual -interpretation, 'therein'" (Hupfeld), and consequently of taking the -"sporting" to be that of the unwieldy gambols of the sea-monster. - -Verses 27-30 mass all creatures of earth and sea, including man, as -alike dependent on God for sustenance and for life. Dumbly these look -expectant to Him, though man only knows to whom all living eyes -are directed. The swift clauses in vv. 28-30, without connecting -particles, vividly represent the Divine acts as immediately followed -by the creatural consequences. To this psalmist the links in the -chain were of little consequence. His thoughts were fixed on its two -ends--the Hand that sent its power thrilling through the links, and -the result realised in the creature's life. All natural phenomena -are issues of God's present will. Preservation is as much His act, -as inexplicable without Him, as creation. There would be nothing to -"gather" unless He "gave." All sorts of supplies, which make the -"good" of physical life, are in His hand, whether they be the food -of the wild asses by the streams, or of the conies among the cliffs, -or of the young lions in the night, or of Leviathan tumbling amidst -the waves, or of toiling man. Nor is it only the nourishment of life -which comes straight from God to all, but life itself depends on His -continual inbreathing. His face is creation's light; breath from Him -is its life. The withdrawal of it is death. Every change in creatural -condition is wrought by Him. He is the only Fountain of Life, and the -reservoir of all the forces that minister to life or to inanimate -being. But the psalmist will not end his contemplations with the -thought of the fair creation returning to nothingness. Therefore -he adds another verse (30); which tells of "life re-orient out of -dust." Individuals pass; the type remains. New generations spring. -The yearly miracle of Spring brings greenness over the snow-covered -or brown pastures and green shoots from stiffened boughs. Many of -last year's birds are dead, but there are nests in the cypresses, -and twitterings among the branches in the wadies. Life, not death, -prevails in God's world. - -So the psalmist gathers all up into a burst of praise. He desires -that the glory of God, which accrues to Him from His works, may ever -be rendered through devout recognition of Him as working them all -by man, the only creature who can be the spokesman of creation. He -further desires that, as God at first saw that all was "very good," -He may ever continue thus to rejoice in His works, or, in other -words, that these may fulfil His purpose. Possibly His rejoicing in -His works is regarded as following upon man's giving glory to Him for -them. That rejoicing, which is the manifestation both of His love and -of His satisfaction, is all the more desired, because, if His works -do _not_ please Him, there lies in Him a dread abyss of destructive -power, which could sweep them into nothingness. Superficial readers -may feel that the tone of ver. 32 strikes a discord, but it is a -discord which can be resolved into deeper harmony. One frown from -God, and the solid earth trembles, as conscious to its depths of His -displeasure. One touch of the hand that is filled with good, and the -mountains smoke. Creation perishes if He is displeased. Well then may -the psalmist pray that He may for ever rejoice in His works, and make -them live by His smile. - -Very beautifully and profoundly does the psalmist ask, in vv. 33, -34, that some echo of the Divine joy may gladden his own heart, and -that his praise may be coeval with God's glory and his own life. This -is the Divine purpose in creation--that God may rejoice in it and -chiefly in man its crown, and that man may rejoice in Him. Such sweet -commerce is possible between heaven and earth; and they have learned -the lesson of creative power and love aright who by it have been -led to share in the joy of God. The psalm has been shaped in part -by reminiscences of the creative days of creation. It ends with the -Divine Sabbath, and with the prayer, which is also a hope, that man -may enter into God's rest. - -But there is one discordant note in creation's full-toned hymn, "the -fair music that all creatures made." There are sinners on earth; and -the last prayer of the psalmist is that that blot may be removed, and -so nothing may mar the realisation of God's ideal, nor be left to -lessen the completeness of His delight in His work. And so the psalm -ends, as it began, with the singer's call to his own soul to bless -Jehovah. - -This is the first psalm which closes with Hallelujah (Praise -Jehovah). It is appended to the two following psalms, which close -Book IV., and is again found in Book V., in Psalms cxi.-cxiii., -cxv.-cxvii., and in the final group, Psalms cxlvi.-cl. It is probably -a liturgical addition. - - - - - PSALM CV. - - 1 Give thanks to Jehovah, call on His name, - Make known among the peoples His deeds. - 2 Sing to Him, harp to Him, - Speak musingly of all His wonders. - 3 Glory in His holy name, - Glad be the heart of them that seek Jehovah! - 4 Inquire after Jehovah and His strength, - Seek His face continually. - 5 Remember His wonders which He has done, - His marvels and the judgments of His mouth. - 6 O seed of Abraham His servant, - Sons of Jacob, His chosen ones. - - 7 He, Jehovah, is our God, - In all the earth are His judgments. - 8 He remembers His covenant for ever, - The word which He commanded for a thousand generations; - 9 Which He made with Abraham, - And His oath to Isaac. - 10 And He established it with Jacob for a statute, - To Israel for an everlasting covenant, - 11 Saying, "To thee will I give the land of Canaan, - [As] your measured allotment;" - 12 Whilst they were easily counted, - Very few, and but sojourners therein; - 13 And they went about from nation to nation, - From [one] kingdom to another people. - 14 He suffered no man to oppress them, - And reproved kings for their sakes; - 15 [Saying], "Touch not Mine anointed ones, - And to My prophets do no harm." - - 16 And He called for a famine on the land, - Every staff of bread He broke. - 17 He sent before them a man, - For a slave was Joseph sold. - 18 They afflicted his feet with the fetter, - He was put in irons. - 19 Till the time [when] his word came [to pass], - The promise of Jehovah tested him. - 20 The king sent and loosed him, - The ruler of peoples, and let him go. - 21 He made him lord over his house, - And ruler over all his substance; - 22 To bind princes at his pleasure, - And to make his elders wise. - - 23 So Israel came to Egypt, - And Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham. - 24 And He made His people fruitful exceedingly, - And made them stronger than their foes. - 25 He turned their heart to hate His people, - To deal craftily with His servants. - 26 He sent Moses His servant, - [And] Aaron whom He had chosen. - 27 They set [forth] among them His signs, - And wonders in the land of Ham. - - 28 He sent darkness, and made it dark, - And they rebelled not against His words. - 29 He turned their waters to blood, - And slew their fish. - 30 Their land swarmed [with] frogs, - In the chambers of their kings. - 31 He spake and the gad-fly came, - Gnats in all their borders. - 32 He gave hail [for] their rains, - Flaming fire in their land. - 33 And He smote their vine and their fig-tree, - And broke the trees of their borders. - 34 He spoke and the locust came, - And caterpillar-locusts without number, - 35 And ate up every herb in their land, - And ate up the fruit of their ground. - 36 And He smote every first-born in their land, - The firstlings of all their strength. - 37 And He brought them out with silver and gold, - And there was not one among His tribes who stumbled. - 38 Glad was Egypt at their departure, - For the fear of them had fallen upon them. - 39 He spread a cloud for a covering, - And fire to light the night. - 40 They asked and He brought quails, - And [with] bread from heaven He satisfied them. - 41 He opened the rock and forth gushed waters, - They flowed through the deserts, a river. - 42 For He remembered His holy word, - [And] Abraham His servant; - 43 And He brought out His people [with] joy, - With glad cries His chosen [ones]; - 44 And He gave them the lands of the nations, - And they took possession of the toil of the peoples, - 45 To the end that they might observe His statutes, - And keep His laws. - Hallelujah! - - -It is a reasonable conjecture that the Hallelujah at the end of -Psalm civ., where it is superfluous, properly belongs to this psalm, -which would then be assimilated to Psalm cvi., which is obviously -a companion psalm. Both are retrospective and didactic; but Psalm -cv. deals entirely with God's unfailing faithfulness to Israel, -while Psalm cvi. sets forth the sad contrast presented by Israel's -continual faithlessness to God. Each theme is made more impressive by -being pursued separately, and then set over against the other. The -long series of God's mercies massed together here confronts the dark -uniformity of Israel's unworthy requital of them there. Half of the -sky is pure blue and radiant sunshine; half is piled with unbroken -clouds. Nothing drives home the consciousness of sin so surely -as contemplation of God's loving acts. Probably this psalm, like -others of similar contents, is of late date. The habit of historical -retrospect for religious purposes is likely to belong to times remote -from the events recorded. Vv. 1-15 are found in 1 Chron. xvi. as part -of the hymn at David's setting up of the Ark on Zion. But that hymn -is unmistakably a compilation from extant psalms, and cannot be taken -as deciding the Davidic authorship of the psalm. - -Vv. 1-6 are a ringing summons to extol and contemplate God's great -deeds for Israel. They are full of exultation, and, in their -reiterated short clauses, are like the joyful cries of a herald -bringing good tidings to Zion. There is a beautiful progress of -thought in these verses. They begin with the call to thank and -praise Jehovah and to proclaim His doings among the people. That -recognition of Israel's office as the world's evangelist does not -require the supposition that the nation was dispersed in captivity, -but simply shows that the singer understood the reason for the long -series of mercies heaped on it. It is significant that God's "deeds" -are Israel's message to the world. By such deeds His "name" is -spoken. What God has done is the best revelation of what God is. His -messengers are not to speak their own thoughts about Him, but to tell -the story of His acts and let these speak for Him. Revelation is not -a set of propositions, but a history of Divine facts. The foundation -of audible praise and proclamation is contemplation. Therefore the -exhortation in ver. 2_b_ follows, which means not merely "speak," but -may be translated, as in margin of the Revised Version, "meditate," -and is probably best rendered so as to combine both ideas, "musingly -speak." Let not the words be mere words, but feel the great deeds -which you proclaim. In like manner, ver. 3 calls upon the heralds to -"glory" for themselves in the name of Jehovah, and to make efforts -to possess Him more fully and to rejoice in finding Him. Aspiration -after clearer and closer knowledge and experience of God should ever -underlie glad pealing forth of His name. If it does not, eloquent -tongues will fall silent, and Israel's proclamation will be cold and -powerless. To seek Jehovah is to find His strength investing our -feebleness. To turn our faces towards His in devout desire is to -have our faces made bright by reflected light. And one chief way of -seeking Jehovah is the remembrance of His merciful wonders of old, -"He hath made His wonderful works to be remembered" (Psalm cxi. 4), -and His design in them is that men should have solid basis for their -hopes, and be thereby encouraged to seek Him, as well as be taught -what He is. Thus the psalmist reaches his main theme, which is to -build a memorial of these deeds for an everlasting possession. The -"wonders" referred to in ver. 5 are chiefly those wrought in Egypt, -as the subsequent verses show. - -Ver. 6 contains, in the names given to Israel, the reason for their -obeying the preceding summonses. Their hereditary relation to God -gives them the material, and imposes on them the obligation and the -honour, of being "secretaries of God's praise." In ver. 6_a_ "His -servant" may be intended to designate the nation, as it often does in -Isa. xl.-lxvi. "His chosen ones" in ver. 6_b_ would then be an exact -parallel; but the recurrence of the expression in ver. 42, with the -individual reference, makes that reference more probable here. - -The fundamental fact underlying all Israel's experience of God's -care is His own loving will, which, self-moved, entered into -covenant obligations, so that thereafter His mercies are ensured by -His veracity, no less than by His kindness. Hence the psalm begins -its proper theme by hymning the faithfulness of God to His oath, -and painting the insignificance of the beginnings of the nation, -as showing that the ground of God's covenant relation was laid in -Himself, not in them. Israel's consciousness of holding a special -relation to God never obscured, in the minds of psalmists and -prophets, the twin truth that all the earth waited on Him, and was -the theatre of His manifestations. Baser souls might hug themselves -on their prerogative. The nobler spirits ever confessed that it -laid on them duties to the world, and that God had not left Himself -without witness in any land. These two truths have often been rent -asunder, both in Israel and in Christendom, but each needs the other -for its full comprehension. "Jehovah is our God" may become the -war-cry of bitter hostility to them that are without, or of contempt, -which is quite as irreligious. "In all the earth are His judgments" -may lead to a vague theism, incredulous of special revelation. He who -is most truly penetrated with the first will be most joyfully ready -to proclaim the second of these sister-thoughts, and will neither -shut up all God's mercies within the circle of revelation, nor lose -sight of His clearest utterances while looking on His more diffused -and less perfect ones. - -The obligations under which God has come to Israel are represented -as a covenant, a word and an oath. In all the general idea of -explicit declaration of Divine purpose, which henceforth becomes -binding on God by reason of His faithfulness, is contained; but the -conception of a _covenant_ implies mutual obligations, failure to -discharge which on one side relieves the other contracting party -from his promise, while that of a _word_ simply includes the notion -of articulate utterance, and that of an _oath_ adds the thought of a -solemn sanction and a pledge given. God swears by Himself--that is, -His own character is the guarantee of His promise. These various -designations are thus heaped together, in order to heighten the -thought of the firmness of His promise. It stands "for ever," "to a -thousand generations"; it is an "everlasting covenant." The psalmist -triumphs, as it were, in the manifold repetition of it. Each of the -fathers of the nation had it confirmed to himself,--Abraham; Isaac -when, ready to flee from the land in famine, he had renewed to -him (Gen. xxvi. 3) the oath which he had first heard as he stood, -trembling but unharmed, by the rude altar where the ram lay in his -stead (Gen. xxii. 16); Jacob as he lay beneath the stars at Bethel. -With Jacob (Israel) the singer passes from the individuals to the -nation, as is shown by the alternation of "thee" and "you" in ver. 11. - -The lowly condition of the recipients of the promise not only exalts -the love which chose them, but the power which preserved them and -fulfilled it. And if, as may be the case, the psalm is exilic or -post-exilic, its picture of ancient days is like a mirror, reflecting -present depression and bidding the downcast be of good cheer. He who -made a strong nation out of that little horde of wanderers must have -been moved by His own heart, not by anything in them; and what He -did long ago He can do to-day. God's past is the prophecy of God's -future. Literally rendered, ver. 12_a_ runs "Whilst they were men of -number," _i.e._, easily numbered (Gen. xxxiv. 30, where Jacob uses -the same phrase). "Very few" in _b_ is literally "like a little," -and may either apply to number or to worth. It is used in the latter -sense, in reference to "the heart of the wicked," in Prov. x. 20, and -may have the same meaning here. That little band of wanderers, who -went about as sojourners among the kinglets of Canaan and Philistia, -with occasional visits to Egypt, seemed very vulnerable; but God -was, as He had promised to the first of them at a moment of extreme -peril, their "shield," and in their lives there were instances of -strange protection afforded them, which curbed kings, as in the case -of Abram in Egypt (Gen. xii.) and Gerar (Gen. xx.), and of Isaac in -the latter place (Gen. xxvi.). The patriarchs were not, technically -speaking, "anointed," but they had that of which anointing was but -a symbol. They were Divinely set apart and endowed for their tasks, -and, as consecrated to God's service, their persons were inviolable. -In a very profound sense all God's servants are thus anointed, and -are "immortal till their work is done." "Prophets" in the narrower -sense of the word the patriarchs were not, but Abraham is called -so by God in one of the places already referred to (Gen. xx. 7). -Prior to prophetic utterance is prophetic inspiration; and these -men received Divine communications, and were, in a special degree, -possessed of the counsels of Heaven. The designation is equivalent -to Abraham's name of the "friend of God." Thus both titles, which -guaranteed a charmed, invulnerable life to their bearers, go deep -into the permanent privileges of God-trusting souls. All such "have -an anointing from the Holy One," and receive whispers from His lips. -They are all under the aegis of His protection, and for their sakes -kings of many a dynasty and age have been rebuked. - -In vv. 16-22 the history of Joseph is poetically and summarily -treated, as a link in the chain of providences which brought about -the fulfilment of the Covenant. Possibly the singer is thinking about -a captive Israel in the present, while speaking about a captive -Joseph in the past. In God's dealings humiliation and affliction are -often, he thinks, the precursors of glory and triumph. Calamities -prepare the way for prosperity. So it was in that old time; and so -it is still. In this _resume_ of the history of Joseph, the points -signalised are God's direct agency in the whole--the errand on which -Joseph was sent ("before them") as a forerunner to "prepare a place -for them," the severity of his sufferings, the trial of his faith by -the contrast which his condition presented to what God had promised, -and his final exaltation. The description of Joseph's imprisonment -adds some dark touches to the account in Genesis, whether these are -due to poetic idealising or to tradition. In ver. 18_b_ some would -translate "Iron came over his soul." So Delitzsch, following the -Vulgate ("Ferrum pertransiit animam ejus"), and the picturesque -Prayer-Book Version, "The iron entered into his soul." But the -original is against this, as the word for _iron_ is masculine and the -verb is feminine, agreeing with the feminine noun _soul_. The clause -is simply a parallel to the preceding. "His soul" is best taken as -a mere periphrasis for _he_, though it may be used emphatically to -suggest that "his soul entered, whole and entire, in its resolve to -obey God, into the cruel torture" (Kay). The meaning is conveyed by -the free rendering above. - -Ver. 19 is also ambiguous, from the uncertainty as to whose word is -intended in _a_. It may be either God's or Joseph's. The latter is -the more probable, as there appears to be an intentional contrast -between "His word" in _a_, and "the promise of Jehovah" in _b_. If this -explanation is adopted, a choice is still possible between Joseph's -interpretation of his fellow-prisoners' dreams, the fulfilment of -which led to his liberation, and his earlier word recounting his own -dreams, which led to his being sold by his brethren. In any case, the -thought of the verse is a great and ever true one, that God's promise, -while it remains unfulfilled, and seems contradicted by present facts, -serves as a test of the genuineness and firmness of a man's reliance -on Him and it. That promise is by the psalmist almost personified, as -putting Joseph to the test. Such testing is the deepest meaning of all -afflictions. Fire will burn off a thin plating of silver from a copper -coin and reveal the base metal beneath, but it will only brighten into -a glow the one which is all silver. - -There is a ring of triumph in the singer's voice as he tells of the -honour and power heaped on the captive, and of how the king of many -nations "sent," as the mightier King in heaven had done (vv. 20 and -17), and not only liberated but exalted him, giving him, whose soul -had been bound in fetters, power to "bind princes according to his -soul," and to instruct and command the elders of Egypt. - -Vv. 23-27 carry on the story to the next step in the evolution of God's -purposes. The long years of the sojourn in Egypt are summarily dealt -with, as they are in the narrative in Genesis and Exodus, and the -salient points of its close alone are touched--the numerical growth of -the people, the consequent hostility of the Egyptians, and the mission -of Moses and Aaron. The direct ascription to God of all the incidents -mentioned is to be noted. The psalmist sees only one hand moving, and -has no hesitation in tracing to God the turning of the Egyptians' -hearts to hatred. Many commentators, both old and new, try to weaken -the expression, by the explanation that the hatred was "indirectly -the work of God, inasmuch as He lent increasing might to the people" -(Delitzsch). But the psalmist means much more than this, just as -Exodus does in attributing the hardening of Pharaoh's heart to God. - -Ver. 27, according to the existing text, breaks the series of verses -beginning with a singular verb of which God is the subject, which -stretch with only one other interruption from ver. 24 to ver. 37. It -seems most probable, therefore, that the LXX. is right in reading -_He_ instead of _They_. The change is but the omission of one -letter, and the error supposed is a frequent one. The word literally -means _set_ or _planted_, and _did_ is an explanation rather than a -rendering. The whole expression is remarkable. Literally, we should -translate "He" (or "They") "set among them words" (or "matters") -"of His signs"; but this would be unintelligible, and we must have -recourse to reproduction of the meaning rather than of the words. - -If "words of His signs" is not merely pleonastic, it may be rendered, -as by Kay, "His long record of signs," or as by Cheyne, "His varied -signs." But it is better to take the expression as suggesting that -the _miracles_ were indeed _words_, as being declarations of God's -will and commands to let His people go. The phrase in ver. 5, "the -judgments of His mouth," would then be roughly parallel. God's deeds -are words. His signs have tongues. "He speaks and it is done"; but -also, "He does and it is spoken." The expression, however, may be -like Psalm lxv. 4, where the same form of phrase is applied to sins, -and where it seems to mean "deeds of iniquity." It would then mean -here "His works which were signs." - -The following enumeration of the "signs" does not follow the order -in Exodus, but begins with the ninth plague, perhaps because of its -severity, and then in the main adheres to the original sequence, -though it inverts the order of the third and forth plagues (flies -and gnats or mosquitoes, not "lice") and omits the fifth and sixth. -The reason for this divergence is far from clear, but it may be noted -that the first two in the psalmist's order attack the elements; the -next three (frogs, flies, gnats) have to do with animal life; and the -next two (hail and locusts), which embrace both these categories, are -considered chiefly as affecting vegetable products. The emphasis is -laid in all on God's direct act. _He_ sends darkness, _He_ turns the -waters into blood, and so on. The only other point needing notice -in these verses is the statement in ver. 28_b_. "They rebelled not -against His word," which obviously is true only in reference to Moses -and Aaron, who shrank not from their perilous embassage. - -The tenth plague is briefly told, for the psalm is hurrying on to -the triumphant climax of the Exodus, when, enriched with silver and -gold, the tribes went forth, strong for their desert march, and Egypt -rejoiced to see the last of them, "for they said, We be all dead men" -(Exod. xii. 33). There may be a veiled hope in this exultant picture -of the Exodus, that present oppression will end in like manner. The -wilderness sojourn is so treated in ver. 39 _sqq._ as to bring into -sight only the leading instances, sung in many psalms, of God's -protection, without one disturbing reference to the sins and failures -which darkened the forty years. These are spread out at length, -without flattery or minimising, in the next psalm; but here the -theme is God's wonders. Therefore, the pillar of cloud which guided, -covered, and illumined the camp, the miracles which provided food and -water, are touched on in vv. 39-41, and then the psalmist gathers up -the lessons which he would teach in three great thoughts. The reason -for God's merciful dealings with His people is His remembrance of -His covenant, and of His servant Abraham, whose faith made a claim on -God, for the fulfilment which would vindicate it. That covenant has -been amply fulfilled, for Israel came forth with ringing songs, and -took possession of lands which they had not tilled, and houses which -they had not built. The purpose of covenant and fulfilment is that -the nation, thus admitted into special relations with God, should by -His mercies be drawn to keep His commandments, and in obedience find -rest and closer fellowship with its God. The psalmist had learned -that God gives before He demands or commands, and that "Love," -springing from grateful reception of His benefits, "is the fulfilling -of the Law." He anticipates the full Christian exhortation, "I -beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your -bodies a living sacrifice." - - - - - PSALM CVI. - - 1 Hallelujah! - Give thanks to Jehovah, for He is good, - For His loving-kindness [endures] for ever. - 2 Who can speak forth the mighty deeds of Jehovah? - [Who] can cause all His praise to be heard? - 3 Blessed are they who observe right, - He who does righteousness at all times. - 4 Remember me, Jehovah, with the favour which Thou bearest to Thy - people, - Visit me with Thy salvation; - 5 That I may look on the prosperity of Thy chosen ones, - That I may joy in the joy of Thy nation, - That I may triumph with Thine inheritance. - - 6 We have sinned with our fathers, - We have done perversely, have done wickedly. - 7 Our fathers in Egypt considered not Thy wonders, - They remembered not the multitude of Thy loving-kindnesses, - And rebelled at the Sea, by the Red Sea. - 8 And He saved them for His name's sake, - To make known His might; - 9 And He rebuked the Red Sea and it was dried up, - And He led them in the depths as in a wilderness; - 10 And He saved them from the hand of the hater, - And redeemed them from the hand of the enemy; - 11 And the waters covered their oppressors, - Not one of them was left; - 12 And they believed on His words, - They sang His praise. - - 13 They hasted [and] forgot His works, - They waited not for His counsel; - 14 And they lusted a lust in the wilderness, - And tempted God in the desert; - 15 And He gave them what they asked for, - And sent wasting sickness into their soul. - 16 They were jealous against Moses in the camp, - Against Aaron, the holy one of Jehovah. - 17 The earth opened and swallowed Dathan, - And covered the company of Abiram; - 18 And fire blazed out on their company, - Flame consumed the wicked ones. - - 19 They made a calf in Horeb, - And bowed down to a molten image; - 20 And they changed their Glory - For the likeness of a grass-eating ox. - 21 They forgot God their Saviour, - Who did great things in Egypt, - 22 Wonders in the land of Ham, - Dread things by the Red Sea. - 23 And He said that He would annihilate them, - Had not Moses, His chosen one, stood in the breach confronting - Him - To turn His anger from destroying. - - 24 And they despised the delightsome land, - They trusted not to His word; - 25 And they murmured in their tents, - They hearkened not to the voice of Jehovah; - 26 And He lifted up His hand to them, [swearing] - That He would make them fall in the wilderness, - 27 And that He would make their seed fall among the nations, - And scatter them in the lands. - - 28 And they yoked themselves to Baal-Peor, - And ate the sacrifices of dead [gods]; - 29 And they provoked Him by their doings, - And a plague broke in upon them; - 30 And Phinehas stood up and did judgment, - And the plague was stayed; - 31 And it was reckoned to him for righteousness, - To generation after generation, for ever. - - 32 And they moved indignation at the waters of Meribah, - And it fared ill with Moses on their account. - 33 For they rebelled against [His] Spirit, - And he spoke rashly with his lips. - 34 They destroyed not the peoples - [Of] whom Jehovah spoke to them; - 35 And they mixed themselves with the nations - And learned their works; - 36 And they served their idols - And they became to them a snare; - 37 And they sacrificed their sons - And their daughters to demons; - 38 And they shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and - daughters, - Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, - And the land was profaned by bloodshed. - 39 And they became unclean through their works, - And committed whoredom through their doings. - - 40 And the anger of Jehovah kindled on His people, - And He abhorred His inheritance; - 41 And He gave them into the hand of the nations, - And their haters lorded it over them; - 42 And their enemies oppressed them, - And they were bowed down under their hand. - 43 Many times did He deliver them, - And they--they rebelliously followed their own counsel, - And were brought low through their iniquity; - 44 And He looked on their distress - When He heard their cry; - 45 And He remembered for them His covenant, - And repented according to the multitude of His loving-kindness, - 46 And caused them to find compassion, - In the presence of all their captors. - - 47 Save us, Jehovah, our God, - And gather us from among the nations, - That we may thank Thy holy name, - That we may make our boast in Thy praise. - - 48 Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Israel, - From everlasting and to everlasting, - And let all the people say Amen. - Hallelujah! - - -The history of God's past is a record of continuous mercies, the -history of man's, one of as continuous sin. The memory of the former -quickened the psalmist into his sunny song of thankfulness in the -previous psalm. That of the latter moves him to the confessions in this -one. They are complements of each other, and are connected not only as -being both retrospective, but by the identity of their beginnings and -the difference of their points of view. The parts of the early history -dealt with in the one are lightly touched or altogether omitted in the -other. The key-note of Psalm cv. is, "Remember His mighty deeds"; that -of Psalm cvi. is, "They forgot His mighty deeds." - -Surely never but in Israel has patriotism chosen a nation's sins for -the themes of song, or, in celebrating its victories, written but one -name, the name of Jehovah, on its trophies. But in the Psalter we have -several instances of such hymns of national confession; and, in other -books, there are the formulary at the presentation of the first-fruits -(Deut. xxvi.), Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the Temple (1 -Kings viii.), Nehemiah's prayer (Neh. ix.), and Daniel's (Dan. ix.). - -An exilic date is implied by the prayer of ver. 47, for the gathering -of the people from among the nations. The occurrence of vv. 1 and 47, -48, in the compilation in 1 Chron. xvi. shows that this psalm, which -marks the close of the Fourth Book, was in existence prior to the -date of 1 Chronicles. - -No trace of strophical arrangement is discernible. But, after an -introduction in some measure like that in Psalm cv., the psalmist -plunges into his theme, and draws out the long, sad story of Israel's -faithlessness. He recounts seven instances during the wilderness -sojourn (vv. 7-33), and then passes to those occurring in the Land -(vv. 34-39), with which he connects the alternations of punishment -and relenting on God's part and the obstinacy of transgression on -Israel's, even down to the moment in which he speaks (vv. 40-46). -The whole closes with a prayer for restoration to the Land (ver. 47); -to which is appended the doxology (ver. 48), the mark of the end of -Book IV., and not a part of the psalm. - -The psalmist preludes his confession and contemplation of his -people's sins by a glad remembrance of God's goodness and enduring -loving-kindness and by a prayer for himself. Some commentators regard -these introductory verses as incongruous with the tone of the psalm, -and as mere liturgical commonplace, which has been tacked on without -much heed to fitness. But surely the thought of God's unspeakable -goodness most appropriately precedes the psalmist's confession, for -nothing so melts a heart in penitence as the remembrance of God's -love, and nothing so heightens the evil of sin as the consideration -of the patient goodness which it has long flouted. The blessing -pronounced in ver. 3 on those who "do righteousness" and keep the law -is not less natural, before a psalm which sets forth in melancholy -detail the converse truth of the misery that dogs breaking the law. - -In vv. 4, 5, the psalmist interjects a prayer for himself, the -abruptness of which strongly reminds us of similar jets of personal -supplication in Nehemiah. The determination to make the "I" of the -Psalter the nation perversely insists on that personification here, -in spite of the clear distinction thrice drawn in ver. 5 between -the psalmist and his people. The "salvation" in which he desires -to share is the deliverance from exile for which he prays in the -closing verse of the psalm. There is something very pathetic in this -momentary thought of self. It breathes wistful yearning, absolute -confidence in the unrealised deliverance, lowly humility which bases -its claim with God on that of the nation. Such a prayer stands in the -closest relation to the theme of the psalm, which draws out the dark -record of national sin, in order to lead to that national repentance -which, as all the history shows, is the necessary condition of -"the prosperity of Thy chosen ones." Precisely because the hope of -restoration is strong, the delineation of sin is unsparing. - -With ver. 6 the theme of the psalm is given forth, in language which -recalls Solomon's and Daniel's similar confessions (1 Kings viii. -47; Dan. ix. 5). The accumulation of synonyms for sin witnesses -at once to the gravity and manifoldness of the offences, and to -the earnestness and comprehensiveness of the acknowledgment. The -remarkable expression "We have sinned _with_ our fathers" is not to -be weakened to mean merely that the present generation had sinned -like their ancestors, but gives expression to the profound sense of -national solidarity, which speaks in many other places of Scripture, -and rests on very deep facts in the life of nations and their -individual members. The enumeration of ancestral sin begins with the -murmurings of the faint-hearted fugitives by the Red Sea. In Psalm -cv. the wonders in Egypt were dilated on and the events at the Red -Sea unmentioned. Here the signs in Egypt are barely referred to -and treated as past at the point where the psalm begins, while the -incidents by the Red Sea fill a large space in the song. Clearly, -the two psalms supplement each other. The reason given for Israel's -rebellion in Psalm cvi. is its forgetfulness of God's mighty deeds -(ver. 7_a_, _b_), while in Psalm cv. the remembrance of these is -urgently enjoined. Thus, again, the connection of thought in the pair -of psalms is evident. Every man has experiences enough of God's -goodness stored away in the chambers of his memory to cure him of -distrust, if he would only look at them. But they lie unnoticed, and -so fear has sway over him. No small part of the discipline needed for -vigorous hope lies in vigorous exercise of remembrance. The drying -up of the Red Sea is here poetically represented, with omission of -Moses' outstretched rod and the strong east wind, as the immediate -consequence of God's omnipotent rebuke. Ver. 9_b_ is from Isa. lxiii. -13, and picturesquely describes the march through that terrible -gorge of heaped-up waters as being easy and safe, as if it had -been across some wide-stretching plain, with springy turf to tread -on. The triumphant description of the completeness of the enemies' -destruction in ver. 11_b_ is from Exod. xiv. 28, and "they believed -on His words" is in part quoted from Exod. xiv. 31, while Miriam's -song is referred to in ver. 12_b_. - -The next instance of departure is the lusting for food (vv. 13-15). -Again the evil is traced to forgetfulness of God's doings, to which in -ver. 13_b_ is added impatient disinclination to wait the unfolding of -His counsel or plan. These evils cropped up with strange celerity. The -memory of benefits was transient, as if they had been written on the -blown sands of the desert. "They hasted, they forgot His works." Of -how many of us that has to be said! We remember pain and sorrow longer -than joy and pleasure. It is always difficult to bridle desires and be -still until God discloses His purposes. We are all apt to try to force -His hand open, and to impose our wishes on Him, rather than to let -His will mould us. So, on forgetfulness and impatience there followed -then, as there follow still, eager longings after material good and -a tempting of God. "They lusted a lust" is from Num. xi. 4. "Tempted -God" is found in reference to the same incident in the other psalm of -historical retrospect (lxxviii. 18). He is "tempted" when unbelief -demands proofs of His power, instead of waiting patiently for Him. In -Num. xi. 33 Jehovah is said to have smitten the people "with a very -great plague." The psalm specifies more particularly the nature of the -stroke by calling it "wasting sickness," which invaded the life of the -sinners. The words are true in a deeper sense, though not so meant. For -whoever sets his hot desires in self-willed fashion on material good, -and succeeds in securing their gratification, gains with the satiety -of his lower sense the loss of a shrivelled spiritual nature. Full-fed -flesh makes starved souls. - -The third instance is the revolt headed by Korah, Dathan, and -Abiram against the exclusive Aaronic priesthood (vv. 16-18). It was -rebellion against God, for He had set apart Aaron as His own, and -therefore the unusual title of "the holy one of Jehovah" is here -given to the high priest. The expression recalls the fierce protest -of the mutineers, addressed to Moses and Aaron, "Ye take too much -upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy" (Num. xvi. 3); and -also Moses' answer, "Jehovah will show ... who is holy." Envy often -masquerades as the champion of the rights of the community, when it -only wishes to grasp these for itself. These aristocratic democrats -cared nothing for the prerogatives of the nation, though they talked -about them. They wanted to pull down Aaron, not to lift up Israel. -Their end is described with stern brevity, in language coloured by -the narrative in Numbers, from which the phrases "opened" (_i.e._, -her mouth) and "covered" are drawn. Korah is not mentioned here, -in which the psalm follows Num. xvi. and Deut. xi. 6, whereas Num. -xxvi. 10 includes Korah in the destruction. The difficulty does not -seem to have received any satisfactory solution. But Cheyne is too -peremptory when he undertakes to divine the reason for the omission -of Korah here and in Deut. xi. 6, "because he was a Levite and his -name was dear to temple-poets." Such clairvoyance as to motives is -beyond ordinary vision. In ver. 18 the fate of the two hundred and -fifty "princes of Israel" who took part in the revolt is recorded as -in Num. xvi. 35. - -The worship of the calf is the fourth instance (vv. 19-23) in the -narrative of which the psalmist follows Exod. xxxii., but seems -also to have Deut. ix. 8-12 floating in his mind, as appears from -the use of the name "Horeb," which is rare in Exodus and frequent -in Deuteronomy. Ver. 20 is apparently modelled on Jer. ii. 11: "My -people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit." -Compare also Paul's "_changed_ the _glory_ of the incorruptible God -for the _likeness_," etc. (Rom. i. 23). "His glory" is read instead -"their glory" by Noldeke, Graetz, and Cheyne, following an old -Jewish authority. The LXX., in Codd. Alex. and Sin. (second hand), -has this reading, and Paul seems to follow it in the passage just -quoted. It yields a worthy meaning, but the existing text is quite -appropriate. It scarcely means that God was the source of Israel's -glory or their boast, for the word is not found in that sense. It is -much rather the name for the collective attributes of the revealed -Godhead, and is here substantially equivalent to "their God," that -lustrous Light which, in a special manner, belonged to the people of -revelation, on whom its first and brightest beams shone. The strange -perverseness which turned away from such a radiance of glory to -bow down before an idol is strikingly set forth by the figure of -bartering it for an image, and that of an ox that ate grass. The one -true Substance given away for a shadow! The lofty Being whose light -filled space surrendered: and for what? A brute that had to feed, -and that on herbage! Men usually make a profit, or think they do, on -their barter: but what do they gain by exchanging God for anything? -Yet _we_ keep making the same mistake of parting with Substance for -shadows. And the reason which moved Israel is still operative. As -before, the psalmist traces their mad apostasy to forgetfulness of -God's deeds. The list of these is now increased by the addition of -those at the Red Sea. With every step new links were added to the -chain that should have bound the recipients of so many mercies to -God. Therefore each new act of departure was of a darker hue of -guilt, and drew on the apostates severer punishment, which also, -rightly understood, was greater mercy. - -"He said that He would annihilate them" is quoted from Deut. ix. 25. -Moses' intercession for the people is here most vividly represented -under the figure of a champion, who rushes into the breach by which -the enemy is about to pour into some beleaguered town, and with his -own body closes the gap and arrests the assault (cf. Ezek. xxii. 30). - -The fifth instance is the refusal to go up to the land, which -followed on the report of the spies (vv. 24-27). These verses are -full of reminiscences of the Pentateuch and other parts of Scripture. -"The delightsome land" (lit. "land of desire") is found in Jer. iii. -19 and Zech. vii. 14. "They despised" is from Num. xiv. 31. "They -murmured in their tents" is from Deut. i. 27 (the only other place -in which the word for murmuring occurs in this form). Lifting up -the hand is used, as here, not in the usual sense of threatening to -strike, but in that of swearing, in Exod. vi. 8, and the oath itself -is given in Num. xiv. 28 _sqq._, while the expression "lifted up My -hand" occurs in that context, in reference to God's original oath -to the patriarch. The threat of exile (ver. 27) does not occur in -Numbers, but is found as the punishment of apostasy in Lev. xxvi. 33 -and Deut. xxviii. 64. The verse, however, is found almost exactly -in Ezek. xx. 23, with the exception that there "scatter" stands in -_a_ instead of _make to fall_. The difference in the Hebrew is only -in the final letter of the words, and the reading in Ezekiel should -probably be adopted here. So the LXX. and other ancient authorities -and many of the moderns. - -The sixth instance is the participation in the abominable Moabitish -worship of "Baal-Peor," recorded in Num. xxv. The peculiar phrase -"yoked themselves to" is taken from that chapter, and seems to refer -to "the mystic, quasi-physical union supposed to exist between a god -and his worshippers, and to be kept up by sacrificial meals" (Cheyne). -These are called sacrifices of the dead, inasmuch as idols are dead -in contrast with the living God. The judicial retribution inflicted -according to Divine command by the judges of Israel slaying "every -one his man" is here called a "plague," as in the foundation passage, -Num. xxv. 9. The word (lit. "a stroke," _i.e._ from God) is usually -applied to punitive sickness; but God smites when He bids men smite. -Both the narrative in Numbers and the psalm bring out vividly the -picture of the indignant Phinehas springing to his feet from the midst -of the passive crowd. He "rose up," says the former; he "stood up," -says the latter. And his deed is described in the psalm in relation -to its solemn judicial character, without particularising its details. -The psalmist would partially veil both the sin and the horror of its -punishment. Phinehas' javelin was a minister of God's justice, and -the death of the two culprits satisfied that justice and stayed the -plague. The word rendered "did judgment" has that meaning only, and -such renderings as _mediated_ or _appeased_ give the effect of the deed -and not the description of it contained in the word. "It was reckoned -to him for righteousness," as Abraham's faith was (Gen. xv. 6). It was -indeed an act which had its origin "in the faithfulness that had its -root in faith, and which, for the sake of this its ultimate ground, -gained him the acceptation of a righteous man, inasmuch as it proved -him to be such" (Delitzsch, Eng. Trans.). He showed himself a true son -of Abraham in the midst of these degenerate descendants, and it was -the same impulse of faith which drove his spear, and which filled the -patriarch's heart when he gazed into the silent sky and saw in its -numberless lights the promise of his seed. Phinehas' reward was the -permanence of the priesthood in his family. - -The seventh instance is the rebellion at the waters of Meribah -(Strife), in the fortieth year (Num. xx. 2-13). The chronological -order is here set aside, for the events recorded in vv. 28-31 -followed those dealt with in vv. 32, 33. The reason is probably -that here Moses himself is hurried into sin, through the people's -faithlessness, and so a climax is reached. The leader, long-tried, -fell at last, and was shut out from entering the land. That was in -some aspects the master-piece and triumph of the nation's sin. "It -fared ill with Moses on their account," as in Deut. i. 37, iii. 26, -"Jehovah was angry with me for your sakes." "His Spirit," in ver. -33, is best taken as meaning the Spirit of God. The people's sin is -repeatedly specified in the psalm as being rebellion against God, -and the absence of a more distinct definition of the person referred -to is like the expression in ver. 32, where "indignation" is that of -God, though His name is not mentioned. Isa. lxiii. 10 is a parallel -to this clause, as other parts of the same chapter are to other parts -of the psalm. The question which has been often raised, as to what -was Moses' sin, is solved in ver. 33_b_, which makes his passionate -words, wherein he lost his temper and arrogated to himself the power -of fetching water from the rock, the head and front of his offending. -The psalmist has finished his melancholy catalogue of sins in the -wilderness with this picture of the great leader dragged down by the -prevailing tone, and he next turns to the sins done in the land. - -Two flagrant instances are given--disobedience to the command to -exterminate the inhabitants, and the adoption of their bloody worship. -The conquest of Canaan was partial; and, as often is the case, the -conquerors were conquered and the invaders caught the manners of -the invaded. Intermarriage poured a large infusion of alien blood -into Israel; and the Canaanitish strain is perceptible to-day in the -fellahin of the Holy Land. The proclivity to idolatry, which was -natural in that stage of the world's history, and was intensified -by universal example, became more irresistible, when reinforced by -kinship and neighbourhood, and the result foretold was realised--the -idols "became a snare" (Judg. ii. 1-3). The poet dwells with special -abhorrence on the hideous practice of human sacrifices, which exercised -so strong and horrible a fascination over the inhabitants of Canaan. -The word in ver. 37 _demons_ is found only here and in Deut. xxxii. 17. -The above rendering is that of the LXX. Its literal meaning seems to -be "lords." It is thus a synonym for "Baalim." The epithet "Shaddai" -exclusively applied to Jehovah may be compared. - -In vv. 40-46 the whole history of Israel is summed up as alternating -periods of sin, punishment, deliverance, recurring in constantly -repeated cycles, in which the mystery of human obstinacy is set over -against that of Divine long-suffering, and one knows not whether -to wonder most at the incurable levity which learned nothing from -experience, or the inexhaustible long-suffering which wearied not in -giving wasted gifts. Chastisement and mercies were equally in vain. -The outcome of God's many deliverances was, "they rebelled in their -counsel"--_i.e._, went on their own stiff-necked way, instead of -waiting for and following God's merciful plan, which would have made -them secure and blessed. The end of such obstinacy of disobedience -can only be, "they were brought low through their iniquity." The -psalmist appears to be quoting Lev. xxvi. 39, "they that are left of -you shall pine away in their iniquity"; but he intentionally slightly -alters the word, substituting one of nearly the same sound, but with -the meaning of _being brought low_ instead of _fading away_. To -follow one's own will is to secure humiliation and degradation. Sin -weakens the true strength and darkens the true glory of men. - -In vv. 44-46 the singer rises from these sad and stern thoughts -to recreate his spirit with the contemplation of the patient -loving-kindness of God. It persists through all man's sin and God's -anger. The multitude of its manifestations far outnumbers that -of our sins. His eye looks on Israel's distress with pity, and -every sorrow on which He looks He desires to remove. Calamities -melt away beneath His gaze, like damp-stains in sunlight. His -merciful "look" swiftly follows the afflicted man's cry. No voice -acknowledges sin and calls for help in vain. The covenant forgotten -by men is none the less remembered by Him. The numberless number -of His loving-kindnesses, greater than that of all men's sins, -secures forgiveness after the most repeated transgressions. The -law and measure of His "repenting" lie in the endless depths of -His own heart. As the psalmist had sung at the beginning, that -loving-kindness endures for ever; therefore none of Israel's -many sins went unchastised, and no chastisement outlasted their -repentance. Solomon had prayed that God would "give them compassion -before those who carried them captive" (1 Kings viii. 50); and thus -has it been, as the psalmist joyfully sees. He may have written when -the Babylonian captivity was near an end, and such instances as those -of Daniel or Nehemiah may have been in his mind. In any case, it is -beautifully significant that a psalm, which tells the doleful story -of centuries of faithlessness, should end with God's faithfulness to -His promises, His inexhaustible forgiveness, and the multitude of -His loving-kindnesses. Such will be the last result of the world's -history no less than of Israel's. - -The psalm closes with the prayer in ver. 47, which shows that it was -written in exile. It corresponds in part with the closing words of -Psalm cv. Just as there the purpose of God's mercies to Israel was -said to be that they might be thereby moved to keep His statutes, -so here the psalmist hopes and vows that the issue of his people's -restoration will be thankfulness to God's holy name, and triumphant -pealing forth from ransomed lips of His high praises. - -Ver. 48 is the concluding doxology of the Fourth Book. Some -commentators suppose it an integral part of the psalm, but it is more -probably an editorial addition. - - - - - BOOK V. - - _PSALMS CVII.-CL._ - - - - - PSALM CVII. - - 1 Give thanks to Jehovah, for He is good, - For His loving-kindness [endures] for ever. - 2 Let the redeemed of Jehovah say [thus], - Whom He has redeemed from the gripe of distress, - 3 And gathered them from the lands, - From east and west, - From north and from [the] sea. - - 4 They wandered in the wilderness, in a waste of a way, - An inhabited city they found not. - 5 Hungry and thirsty, - Their soul languished within them, - 6 And they cried to Jehovah in their distress, - From their troubles He delivered them, - 7 And He led them by a straight way, - To go to an inhabited city. - 8 Let them give thanks to Jehovah [for] His loving-kindness, - And His wonders to the sons of men. - 9 For He satisfies the longing soul, - And the hungry soul He fills with good. - - 10 Those who sat in darkness and in deepest gloom, - Bound in affliction and iron, - 11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, - And the counsel of the Most High they rejected. - 12 And He brought down their heart with sorrow, - They stumbled, and helper there was none. - 13 And they cried to Jehovah in their distress, - From their troubles He saved them. - 14 He brought them out from darkness and deepest gloom, - And broke their bonds [asunder]. - 15 Let them give thanks to Jehovah [for] His loving-kindness, - And His wonders to the sons of men. - 16 For He broke the doors of brass, - And the bars of iron He hewed in pieces. - 17 Foolish men, because of the course of their transgression, - And because of their iniquities, brought on themselves - affliction. - 18 All food their soul loathed, - And they drew near to the gates of death. - 19 And they cried to Jehovah in their distress, - From their troubles He saved them. - 20 He sent His word and healed them, - And rescued them from their graves. - 21 Let them give thanks to Jehovah [for] His loving-kindness - And His wonders to the sons of men. - 22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, - And tell His works with joyful joy. - - 23 They who go down to the sea in ships, - Who do business on the great waters, - 24 They see the works of Jehovah, - And His wonders in the foaming deep. - 25 And He spoke and raised a stormy wind, - Which rolled high the waves thereof. - 26 They went up to the sky, they went down to the depths, - Their soul melted in trouble. - 27 They went round and round and staggered like one drunk, - And all their wisdom forsook them [was swallowed up]. - 28 And they cried to Jehovah in their distress, - From their trouble He brought them out. - 29 He stilled the storm into a light air, - And hushed were their waves. - 30 And they were glad because these were quieted, - And He brought them to the haven of their desire. - 31 Let them give thanks to Jehovah [for] His loving-kindness - And His wonders to the sons of men. - 32 And let them exalt Him in the assembly of the people, - And praise Him in the session of the elders. - - 33 He turned rivers into a wilderness, - And water-springs into thirsty ground, - 34 A land of fruit into a salt desert, - For the wickedness of the dwellers in it. - 35 He turned a wilderness into a pool of water, - And a dry land into water-springs. - 36 And He made the hungry to dwell there, - And they found an inhabited city. - 37 And they sowed fields and planted vineyards, - And these yielded fruits of increase. - 38 And He blessed them and they multiplied exceedingly, - And their cattle He diminished not. - - 39 And they were diminished and brought low, - By the pressure of ill and sorrow. - 40 "He pours contempt on princes, - And makes them wander in a pathless waste." - 41 He lifted the needy out of affliction, - And made families like a flock. - 42 The upright see it and rejoice, - And all perverseness stops its mouth. - - 43 Whoso is wise, let him observe these things, - And let them understand the loving-kindnesses of Jehovah. - - -Notwithstanding the division of Books which separates Psalm cvii. -from the two preceding, it is a pendant to these. The "gathering -from among the heathen" prayed for in Psalm cvi. 47 has here come -to pass (ver. 3). The thanksgiving which there is regarded as the -purpose of that restoration is here rendered for it. Psalm cv. had -for theme God's mercies to the fathers. Psalm cvi. confessed the -hereditary faithlessness of Israel and its chastisement by calamity -and exile. Psalm cvii. begins with summoning Israel as "the redeemed -of Jehovah," to praise Him for His enduring loving-kindness in -bringing them back from bondage, and then takes a wider flight, and -celebrates the loving Providence which delivers, in all varieties -of peril and calamity, those who cry to God. Its vivid pictures of -distress and rescue begin, indeed, with one which may fairly be -supposed to have been suggested by the incidents of the return from -exile; and the second of these, that of the liberated prisoners, is -possibly coloured by similar reminiscences; but the great restoration -is only the starting-point, and the bulk of the psalm goes further -afield. Its instances of Divine deliverance, though cast into -narrative form, describe not specific acts, but God's uniform way -of working. Wherever there are trouble and trust, there will be -triumph and praise. The psalmist is propounding a partial solution -of the old problem--the existence of pain and sorrow. They come as -chastisements. If terror or misery drive men to God, God answers, -and deliverance is assured, from which fuller-toned praise should -spring. It is by no means a complete vindication of Providence, and -experience does not bear out the assumption of uniform answers to -prayers for deliverance from external calamities, which was more -warranted before Christ than it is now; but the essence of the -psalmist's faith is ever true--that God hears the cry of a man driven -to cry by crushing burdens, and will give him strength to bear and -profit by them, even if He does not take them away. - -The psalm passes before us a series of pictures, all alike in the -disposition of their parts, and selected from the sad abundance -of troubles which attack humanity. Travellers who have lost their -way, captives, sick men, storm-tossed sailors, make a strangely -miscellaneous company, the very unlikenesses of which suggest the -width of the ocean of human misery. The artistic regularity of -structure in all the four strophes relating to these cannot escape -notice. But it is more than artistic. Whatever be a man's trouble, -there is but one way out of it--to cry to God. That way is never -vain. Always deliverance comes, and always the obligation of praise -lies on the "redeemed of Jehovah." - -With ver. 33 the psalm changes its structure. The refrains, which -came in so strikingly in the preceding strophes, are dropped. -The complete pictures give place to mere outline sketches. -These diversities have suggested to some that vv. 33-43 are an -excrescence; but they have some points of connection with the -preceding, such as the peculiar phrase for "inhabited city" (vv. -4, 5, 36), "hungry" (vv. 5, 36), and the fondness for references -to Isaiah and Job. In these latter verses the psalmist does not -describe deliverances from peril or pain, but the sudden alternations -effected by Providence on lands and men, which pass from fertility -and prosperity to barrenness and trouble, and again from these to -their opposites. Loving-kindness, which hears and rescues, is the -theme of the first part; loving-kindness, which "changes all things -and is itself unchanged," is the theme of the second. Both converge -on the final thought (ver. 43), that the observance of God's ways is -the part of true wisdom, and will win the clear perception of the -all-embracing "loving-kindness of Jehovah." - -New mercies give new meaning to old praises. Fresh outpourings of -thankfulness willingly run in well-worn channels. The children can -repeat the fathers' doxology, and words hallowed by having borne the -gratitude of many generations are the best vehicles for to-day's -praise. Therefore, the psalm begins with venerable words, which it -bids the recipients of God's last great mercy ring out once more. They -who have yesterday been "redeemed from captivity" have proof that "His -loving-kindness endures for ever," since it has come down to them -through centuries. The characteristic fondness for quotations, which -marks the psalm, is in full force in the three introductory verses. -Ver. 1 is, of course, quoted from several psalms. "The redeemed of -Jehovah" is from Isa. lxii. 12. "Gathered out of the lands" looks back -to Psalm cvi. 47, and to many prophetic passages. The word rendered -above "distress" may mean _oppressor_, and is frequently rendered so -here, which rendering fits better the preceding word "hand." But the -recurrence of the same word in the subsequent refrains (vv. 6, 13, -19, 28) makes the rendering _distress_ preferable here. To ascribe to -_distress_ a "hand" is poetical personification, or the latter word -may be taken in a somewhat wider sense as equivalent to a grasp or -grip, as above. The return from Babylon is evidently in the poet's -thoughts, but he widens it out into a restoration from every quarter. -His enumeration of the points from which the exiles flock is irregular, -in that he says "from north and from the _sea_," which always means -the Mediterranean, and stands for the west. That quarter has, however, -already been mentioned, and, therefore, it has been supposed that -sea here means, abnormally, the Red Sea, or "the southern portion -of the Mediterranean." A textual alteration has also been proposed, -which, by the addition of two letters to the word for _sea_, gives -that for _south_. This reading would complete the enumeration of -cardinal points; but possibly the psalmist is quoting Isa. xlix. 12, -where the same phrase occurs, and the _north_ is set over against the -sea--_i.e._, the west. The slight irregularity does not interfere with -the picture of the streams of returning exiles from every quarter. - -The first scene, that of a caravan lost in a desert, is probably -suggested by the previous reference to the return of the "redeemed -of Jehovah," but is not to be taken as referring only to that. It -is a perfectly general sketch of a frequent incident of travel. -It is a remarkable trace of a state of society very unlike modern -life, that two of the four instances of "distress" are due to the -perils of journeying. By land and by sea men took their lives in -their hands, when they left their homes. Two points are signalised -in this description,--the first, the loss of the track; the second, -the wanderers' hunger and thirst. "A waste of a way" is a singular -expression, which has suggested various unnecessary textual -emendations. It is like "a wild ass of a man" (Gen. xvi. 12), which -several commentators quote as a parallel, and means a way which is -desert (compare Acts viii. 26). The bewildered, devious march leads -nowhither. Vainly the travellers look for some elevation, - - "From whence the lightened spirit sees - That shady city of Palm Trees." - -No place where men dwell appears in the wide expanse of pathless -wilderness. The psalmist does not think of a particular city, but -of any inhabited spot, where rest and shelter might be found. The -water-skins are empty; food is finished; hopelessness follows -physical exhaustion, and gloom wraps their souls; for ver. 5_b_, -literally translated, is, "Their soul covered itself"--_i.e._, with -despondency (Psalm lxxvii. 3). - -The picture is not an allegory or a parable, but a transcript of -a common fact. Still, one can scarcely help seeing in it a vivid -representation of the inmost reality of a life apart from God. -Such a life ever strays from the right road. "The labour of the -foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to -come to the city." The deepest needs of the soul are unsatisfied; -and however outward good abounds, gnawing hunger and fierce thirst -torment at times; and however mirth and success seem to smile, joys -are superficial, and but mask a central sadness, as vineyards which -clothe the outside of a volcano and lie above sulphurous fires. - -The travellers are driven to God by their "distress." Happy they who, -when lost in a desert, bethink themselves of the only Guide. He does -not reject the cry which is forced out by the pressure of calamity; -but, as the structure of vv. 6, 7, shows, His answer is simultaneous -with the appeal to Him, and it is complete, as well as immediate. The -track appears as suddenly as it had faded. God Himself goes at the -head of the march. The path is straight as an arrow's flight, and -soon they are in the city. - -Ver. 6 is the first instance of the refrain, which, in each of the -four pictures, is followed by a verse (or, in the last of the four, -by two verses) descriptive of the act of deliverance, which again is -followed by the second refrain, calling on those who have experienced -such a mercy to thank Jehovah. This is followed in the first two -groups by a verse reiterating the reason for praise--namely, the -deliverance just granted; and, in the last two, by a verse expanding -the summons. Various may be the forms of need. But the supply of them -all is one, and the way to get it is one, and one is the experience -of the suppliants, and one should be their praise. Life's diversities -have underlying them identity of soul's wants. Waiters on God have -very different outward fortunes, but the broad outlines of their -inward history are identical. This is the law of His providence--they -cry, He delivers. This should be the harvest from His sowing of -benefits--"Let them give thanks to Jehovah." Some would translate -ver. 8, "Let them thankfully confess to Jehovah His loving-kindness, -and to the children of men [confess] His wonders"; but the usual -rendering as above is better, as not introducing a thought which, -however important, is scarcely in the psalmist's view here, and as -preserving the great thought of the psalm--namely, that of God's -providence to all mankind. - -The second scene, that of captives, probably retains some allusion to -Babylon, though an even fainter one than in the preceding strophe. It -has several quotations and references to Isaiah, especially to the -latter half (Isa. xl.-lxvi.). The deliverance is described in ver. 16 -in words borrowed from the prophecy as to Cyrus, the instrument of -Israel's restoration (Isa. xlv. 2). The gloom of the prison-house is -described in language closely resembling Isa. xlii. 7, xlix. 9. The -combination of "darkness and the shade of deepest gloom" is found in -Isa. ix. 2. The cause of the captivity described is rebellion against -God's counsel and word. These things point to Israel's Babylonian -bondage; but the picture in the psalm draws its colour rather than its -subject from that event, and is quite general. The psalmist thinks that -such bondage, and deliverance on repentance and prayer, are standing -facts in Providence, both as regards nations and individuals. One may -see, too, a certain parabolic aspect hinted at, as if the poet would -have us catch a half-revealed intention to present calamity of any -kind under this image of captivity. We note the slipping in of words -that are not required for the picture, as when the fetters are said -to be "affliction" as well as "iron." Ver. 12, too, is not specially -appropriate to the condition of prisoners; persons in fetters and -gloom do not _stumble_, for they do not move. There may, therefore, -be a half-glance at the parabolic aspect of captivity, such as poetic -imagination, and especially Oriental poetry, loves. At most it is a -delicate suggestion, shyly hiding while it shows itself, and made too -much of if drawn out in prosaic exposition. - -We may perceive also the allegorical pertinence of this second -picture, though we do not suppose that the singer intended such a -use. For is not godless life ever bondage? and is not rebellion -against God the sure cause of falling under a harsher dominion? and -does He not listen to the cry of a soul that feels the slavery of -subjection to self and sin? and is not true enlargement found in -His free service? and does He not give power to break the strongest -chains of habit? The synagogue at Nazareth, where the carpenter's -Son stood up to read and found the place where it was written, "The -Spirit of the Lord is upon Me. . . . He hath sent Me to proclaim -liberty to the captives," warrants the symbolical use of the -psalmist's imagery, which is, as we have seen, largely influenced by -the prophet whose words Jesus quoted. The first scene taught that -devout hearts never lack guidance from God. The second adds to their -blessings freedom, the true liberty which comes with submission and -acceptance of His law. - -Sickness, which yields the third type of suffering, is a commoner -experience than the two preceding. The picture is lightly sketched, -emphasis being laid on the cause of the sickness, which is sin, -in accordance with the prevailing view in the Old Testament. The -psalmist introduces the persons of whom he is to speak by the -strongly condemnatory term "foolish ones," which refers not to -intellectual feebleness, but to moral perversity. All sin is folly. -Nothing is so insane as to do wrong. An ingenious correction has -been suggested, and is accepted by Cheyne in the wake of Dyserinck, -Graetz, and others, by which "sick men" is read for "foolish men." -But it does not appear to the present writer to be so impossible as -Cheyne thinks to "conceive the psalmist introducing a fresh tableau -by an ethical term such as fools." The whole verse (17) lays more -stress on the sin than on the sickness, and the initial designation -of the sufferers as "fools" is quite in harmony with its tone. They -are habitual evil-doers, as is expressed by the weighty expression -"the way (or course) of their transgression." Not by one or two -breaches of moral law, but by inveterate, customary sins, men ruin -their physical health. So the psalmist uses a form of the verb in -ver. 17_b_ which expresses that the sinner drags down his punishment -with his own hands. That is, of course, eminently true in such gross -forms of sin as sow to the flesh, and of the flesh reap corruption. -But it is no less really true of all transgression, since all brings -sickness to the soul. Ver. 18 is apparently quoted from Job xxxiii. -20-22. It paints with impressive simplicity the failing appetite and -consequent ebbing strength. The grim portals, of which Death keeps -the keys, have all but received the sick men; but, before they pass -into their shadow, they cry to Jehovah, and, like the other men in -distress, they too are heard, feeble as their sick voice may be. -The manner of their deliverance is strikingly portrayed. "He sent -His word and healed them." As in Psalm cv. 19, God's word is almost -personified. It is the channel of the Divine power. God's uttered -will has power on material things. It is the same great thought as is -expressed in "He spake and it was done." The psalmist did not know -the Christian teaching that the personal Word of God is the agent -of all the Divine energy in the realm of nature and of history, and -that a far deeper sense than that which he attached to them would one -day be found in his words, when the Incarnate Word was manifested, -as Himself bearing and bearing away the sicknesses of humanity, -and rescuing not only the dying from going down to the grave, but -bringing up the dead who had long lain there. God, who is Guide and -Emancipator, is also Healer and Life-giver, and He is all these in -the Word, which has become flesh, and dwelt and dwells among men. - -Another travel-scene follows. The storm at sea is painted as a -landsman would do it; but a landsman who had seen, from a safe shore, -what he so vividly describes. He is impressed with the strange things -that the bold men who venture to sea must meet, away out there -beyond the point where sea and sky touch. With sure poetic instinct, -he spends no time on trivial details, but dashes on his canvas the -salient features of the tempest,--the sudden springing up of the -gale; the swift response of the waves rolling high, with new force in -their mass and a new voice in their breaking; the pitching craft, now -on the crest, now in the trough; the terror of the helpless crew; the -loss of steering power; the heavy rolling of the unmanageable, clumsy -ship; and the desperation of the sailors, whose wisdom or skill was -"swallowed up," or came to nothing. - -Their cry to Jehovah was heard above the shriek of the storm, and -the tempest fell as suddenly as it rose. The description of the -deliverance is extended beyond the normal single verse, just as that -of the peril had been prolonged. It comes like a benediction after -the hurly-burly of the gale. How gently the words echo the softness -of the light air into which it has died down, and the music which -the wavelets make as they lap against the ship's sides! With what -sympathy the poet thinks of the glad hearts on board, and of their -reaching the safe harbour, for which they had longed when they -thought they would never see it more! Surely it is a permissible -application of these lovely words to read into them the Christian -hope of preservation amid life's tempests,-- - - "Safe into the haven guide, - O receive my soul at last." - -God the guide, the emancipator, the healer, is also the stiller of the -storm, and they who cry to Him from the unquiet sea will reach the -stable shore. "And so it came to pass, they all came safe to land." - -As already observed, the tone changes with ver. 33, from which point -onwards the psalmist adduces instances of Providential working of a -different kind from those in the four vivid pictures preceding, and -drops the refrains. In vv. 33-38 he describes a double change wrought -on a land. The barrenness which blasts fertile soil is painted in -language largely borrowed from Isaiah. "Ver. 33_a_ recalls Isa. l. -2_b_; ver. 33_b_ is like Isa. xxxv. 7_a_" (Delitzsch). The opposite -change of desert into fertile ground is pictured as in Isa. xli. 18. -The references in ver. 36 to "the hungry" and to "an inhabited city" -connect with the previous part of the psalm, and are against the -supposition that the latter half is not originally part of it. The -incidents described refer to no particular instance, but are as general -as those of the former part. Many a land, which has been blasted by the -vices of its inhabitants, has been transformed into a garden by new -settlers. "Where the Turks' horse has trod, no grass will grow." - -Ver. 39 introduces the reverse, which often befalls prosperous -communities, especially in times when it is dangerous to seem rich for -fear of rapacious rulers. "The pressure" referred to in ver. 39 is the -oppression of such. If so, ver. 40, which is quoted from Job xii. -21, 24, though introduced abruptly, does not disturb the sequence of -thought. It grandly paints the judgment of God on such robber-princes, -who are hunted from their seats by popular execration, and have to hide -themselves in the pathless waste, from which those who cry to God were -delivered (vv. 41_b_ and 4_a_). On the other hand, the oppressed are -lifted, as by His strong arm, out of the depths and set on high, like -a man perched safely on some crag above high-water mark. Prosperity -returning is followed by large increase and happy, peaceful family -life, the chief good of man on earth. The outcome of the various -methods of God's unvarying purpose is that all which is good is glad, -and all which is evil is struck dumb. The two clauses of ver. 42, which -describe this double effect, are quoted from two passages in Job--_a_ -from xxii. 19, and _b_ from v. 16. - -The psalm began with hymning the enduring loving-kindness of Jehovah. -It ends with a call to all who would be wise to give heed to the -various dealings of God, as exemplified in the specimens chosen in it, -that they may comprehend how in all these one purpose rules, and all -are examples of the manifold loving-kindnesses of Jehovah. This closing -note is an echo of the last words of Hosea's prophecy. It is the broad -truth which all thoughtful observance of Providence brings home to a -man, notwithstanding many mysteries and apparent contradictions. "All -things work together for good to them that love God"; and the more they -love Him, the more clearly will they see, and the more happily will -they feel, that so it is. How can a man contemplate the painful riddle -of the world, and keep his sanity, without that faith? He who has it -for his faith will have it for his experience. - - - - - PSALM CVIII. - - 1 Steadfast is my heart, O God, - I will sing and harp, yea, my glory [shall sing]. - 2 Awake, harp and lute, - I will wake the dawn. - 3 I will give Thee thanks among the peoples, Jehovah, - And I will harp to Thee among the nations. - 4 For great above the heavens is Thy loving-kindness, - And to the clouds Thy troth. - 5 Exalt Thyself above the heavens, O God, - And above all the earth Thy glory. - - 6 That Thy beloved ones may be delivered, - Save with Thy right hand and answer me. - 7 God has spoken in His holiness, - I will divide Shechem and measure out the valley of Succoth. - 8 Mine is Gilead, mine Manasseh, - And Ephraim is the strength of my head, - Judah my baton of command. - 9 Moab is my wash-basin, - Upon Edom will I throw my shoe, - Over Philistia will I shout aloud. - 10 Who will bring me into the fortified city? - Who has guided me into Edom? - 11 Hast not Thou, O God, cast us off, - And goest not out, O God, with our hosts? - 12 Give us help from trouble, - For vain is help of man. - 13 In God we shall do prowess, - And He, He will tread down our oppressors. - - -Two fragments of Davidic psalms are here tacked together with slight -variations. Vv. 1-5 are from Psalm lvii. 7-11; and vv. 6-13 from -Psalm lx. 5-12. The return from Babylon would be an appropriate -occasion for thus revivifying ancient words. We have seen in -preceding psalms that Israel's past drew the thoughts of the singers -of that period, and the conjecture may be hazarded that the recent -deliverance suggested to some devout man, whose mind was steeped -in the songs of former days, the closeness with which old strains -suited new joys. If so, there is pathetic meaning in the summons to -the "psaltery and harp," which had hung silent on the willows of -Babylon so long, to wake their ancient minstrelsy once more, as well -as exultant confidence that the God who had led David to victory -still leads His people. The hopes of conquest in the second part, the -consciousness that while much has been achieved by God's help, much -still remains to be won before Israel can sit secure, the bar or two -in the minor key in ver. 11, which heighten the exultation of the -rest of the song, and the cry for help against adversaries too strong -for Israel's unassisted might, are all appropriate to the early -stages of the return. - -The variations from the original psalms are of slight moment. In ver. -1 the reduplication of the clause "Steadfast is my heart" is omitted, -and "my glory" is detached from ver. 2, where it stands in Psalm -lvii., and is made a second subject, equivalent to "I." In ver. 3_a_ -_Jehovah_ is substituted for _Lord_, and the copula "and" prefixed -to _b_. Ver. 4 is not improved by the change of "unto the heavens" -to "above the heavens," for an anti-climax is produced by following -"_above_ the heavens" with "_unto_ the clouds." - -In the second part, the only change affecting the sense is in ver. 9, -where the summons to Philistia to "shout aloud because of me," which is -probably meant in sarcasm, is transformed into the plain expression -of triumph, "Over Philistia will I shout aloud." The other changes are -"me" for "us" in ver. 6, the omission of "and" before "mine Manasseh" -in ver. 8, the substitution of a more usual synonym for "fenced" in -ver. 10, and the omission of the pronoun "Thou" in ver. 11. - - - - - PSALM CIX. - - 1 God of my praise, be not silent, - 2 For a wicked man's mouth and a mouth of deceit have they opened - on me. - 3 And with words of hate have they compassed me, - And have fought [against] me causelessly. - 4 In return for my love, they have been my adversaries, - But I--I was [all] prayer. - 5 And they have laid upon me evil in return for good, - And hate in return for my love. - - 6 Set in office over him a wicked man, - And may an adversary stand at his right hand! - 7 When he is judged, let him go out guilty, - And let his prayer be [counted] for sin! - 8 Be his days few, - His office may another take! - 9 Be his children orphans, - And his wife a widow! - 10 And may his children wander up and down and beg, - May they seek [bread] [far] from the ruins [of their house]! - 11 May a creditor get into his nets all that he has, - And may strangers plunder [the fruit of] his toil! - 12 May there be no one to continue loving-kindness to him, - And may there be no one that shows favour to his orphans! - 13 May his posterity be cut off, - In the next generation may their name be blotted out! - 14 Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before Jehovah, - And the sin of his mother not be blotted out! - 15 May they be before Jehovah continually, - And may He cut off their memory from the earth! - - 16 Because he remembered not to show loving-kindness, - And persecuted the afflicted and poor man, - And the heart-stricken, to do him to death. - 17 And he loved cursing--and it came on him, - And delighted not in blessing--and it remained far from him. - 18 And he clothed himself [with] cursing like his garment, - And it came like water into his inwards, - And like oil into his bones. - 19 May it be to him like a robe [with which] he covers himself, - And for a girdle [which] he continually girds on! - 20 Be this the wage of my adversaries from Jehovah, - And of those who speak evil against my soul! - - 21 But Thou, Jehovah, Lord, deal with me for Thy name's sake, - Because Thy loving-kindness is good, deliver me, - 22 Because afflicted and poor am I, - And my heart is pierced within me. - 23 Like a shadow when it stretches out am I gone, - I am shaken out, like the locust. - 24 My knees give out through fasting, - And my flesh falls away from fatness. - 25 And I--I have become a reproach to them, - They see me, they nod their head. - 26 Help me, Jehovah, my God, - Save me, according to Thy loving-kindness: - 27 That they may know that this is Thy hand, - Thou--Thou, Jehovah, hast done it. - 28 They--they curse, but Thou--Thou dost bless; - They arose, and were put to shame, - And Thy servant rejoices. - 29 My adversaries clothe themselves [with] disgrace, - And cover themselves like a mantle with their shame. - 30 I will praise Jehovah greatly with my mouth, - And amidst many will I praise Him. - 31 For He stands at the right hand of the poor, - To save him from those that judge his soul. - - -This is the last and the most terrible of the imprecatory psalms. -Its central portion (vv. 6-20) consists of a series of wishes, -addressed to God, for the heaping of all miseries on the heads of -one "adversary" and of all his kith and kin. These maledictions are -enclosed in prayers, which make the most striking contrast to them; -vv. 1-5 being the plaint of a loving soul, shrinkingly conscious -of an atmosphere of hatred, and appealing gently to God; while -vv. 21-31 expatiate in the presentation to Him of the suppliant's -feebleness and cries for deliverance, but barely touch on the -wished-for requital of enemies. The combination of devout meekness -and trust with the fiery imprecations in the core of the psalm is -startling to Christian consciousness, and calls for an effort of -"historical imagination" to deal with it fairly. The attempts to -attenuate the difficulty, either by making out that the wishes are -not wishes, but prophecies of the fate of evil-doers, or that vv. -6-20 are the psalmist's quotation of his enemies' wishes about him, -or that the whole is Messianic prediction of the fate of Judas or -of the enemies of the Christ, are too obviously makeshifts. It is -far better to recognise the discordance between the temper of the -psalmist and that enjoined by Christ than to try to cover it over. -Our Lord Himself has signalised the difference between His teaching -and that addressed to "them of old time" on the very point of -forgiveness of enemies, and we are but following His guidance when -we recognise that the psalmist's mood is distinctly inferior to that -which has now become the law for devout men. - -Divine retribution for evil was the truth of the Old Testament, as -forgiveness is that of the New. The conflict between God's kingdom -and its enemies was being keenly and perpetually waged, in most -literal fashion. Devout men could not but long for the triumph of -that with which all good was associated, and therefore for the -defeat and destruction of its opposite. For no private injuries, -or for these only in so far as the suffering singer is a member of -the community which represents God's cause, does he ask the descent -of God's vengeance, but for the insults and hurts inflicted on -righteousness. The form of these maledictions belongs to a lower -stage of revelation; the substance of them, considered as passionate -desires for the destruction of evil, burning zeal for the triumph of -Truth, which is God's cause, and unquenchable faith that He is just, -is a part of Christian perfection. - -The usual variety of conjectures as to authorship exists. Delitzsch -hesitatingly accepts the superscription as correct in assigning the -psalm to David. Olshausen, as is his custom, says, "Maccabean"; Cheyne -inclines to "the time of Nehemiah (in which case the enemy might be -Sanballat), or even perhaps the close of the Persian age" ("Orig. of -Psalt.," 65). He thinks that the "magnanimous David" could not have -uttered "these laboured imprecations," and that the speaker is "not a -brave and bold warrior, but a sensitive poet." Might he not be both? - -To address God as the "God of my praise," even at such a moment of -dejection, is a triumph of faith. The name recalls to the psalmist past -mercies, and expresses his confidence that he will still have cause to -extol his Deliverer, while it also pleads with God what He has done as -a reason for doing the like in new circumstances of need. The suppliant -speaks in praise and prayer; he asks God to speak in acts of rescuing -power. A praying man cannot have a dumb God. And His mighty Voice, -which hushes all others and sets His suppliants free from fears and -foes, is all the more longed for and required, because of those cruel -voices that yelp and snarl round the psalmist. The contrast between the -three utterances--his, God's, and his enemies'--is most vivid. The foes -have come at him with open mouths. "A wicked man's mouth" would read, -by a slight alteration, "a mouth of wickedness"; but the recurrence of -the word "wicked man" in ver. 6 seems to look back to this verse, and -to make the rendering above probable. Lies and hatred ring the psalmist -round, but his conscience is clear. "They have hated me without a -cause" is the experience of this ancient sufferer for righteousness' -sake, as of the Prince of all such. This singer, who is charged with -pouring out a flood of "unpurified passion," had, at any rate, striven -to win over hatred by meekness; and if he is bitter, it is the pain -and bitterness of love flung back with contumely, and only serving to -exacerbate enmity. Nor had he met with evil the first returns of evil -for good, but, as he says, "I was [all] prayer" (compare Psalm cxx. 7, -"I am--peace"). Repelled, his whole being turned to God, and in calm -communion with Him found defence and repose. But his patient meekness -availed nothing, for his foes still "laid evil" on him in return for -good. The prayer is a short record of a long martyrdom. Many a foiled -attempt of patient love preceded the psalm. Not till the other way had -been tried long enough to show that malignity was beyond the reach of -conciliation did the psalmist appeal to the God of recompenses. Let -that be remembered in judging the next part of the psalm. - -The terrible maledictions (vv. 6-20) need little commentary. They may -be left in all their awfulness, which is neither to be extenuated -nor degraded into an outburst of fierce personal vindictiveness. It -is something far more noble than that. These terrible verses are -prophecy, but they are prayers too; and prayers which can only be -accounted for by remembering the spirit of the old dispensation. -They are the more intense, because they are launched against an -individual, probably the chief among the foes. In vv. 6-15 we have -imprecations pure and simple, and it is noteworthy that so large a -part of these verses refers to the family of the evil-doer. In vv. -16-20 the grounds of the wished-for destruction are laid in the -sinner's perverted choice, and the automatic action of sin working -its own punishment is vividly set forth. - -Vv. 6-8 are best taken in close connection, as representing the -trial and condemnation of the object of the psalmist's imprecations, -before a tribunal. He prays that the man may be haled before a wicked -judge. The word rendered "set" is the root from which that rendered -"office" in ver. 8 comes, and here means to set in a position of -authority--_i.e._, in a judicial one. His judge is to be "a wicked -man" like himself, for such have no mercy on each other. An accuser -is to stand at his right hand. The word rendered _adversary_ (the -verb cognate with which is used in ver. 4) is "Satan"; but the -general meaning of hostile accuser is to be preferred here. With -such a judge and prosecutor the issue of the cause is certain--"May -he go out [from the judgment-hall] guilty." A more terrible petition -follows, which is best taken in its most terrible sense. The -condemned man cries for mercy, not to his earthly judge, but to God, -and the psalmist can ask that the last despairing cry to Heaven may -be unanswered, and even counted sin. It could only be so, if the -heart that framed it was still an evil heart, despairing, indeed, but -obdurate. Then comes the end: the sentence is executed. The criminal -dies, and his office falls to another; his wife is a widow, and his -children fatherless. This view of the connection gives unity to -what is otherwise a mere heap of unconnected maledictions. It also -brings out more clearly that the psalmist is seeking not merely the -gratification of private animosity, but the vindication of public -justice, even if ministered by an unjust judge. Peter's quotation of -ver. 8_b_ in reference to Judas (Acts i. 20) does not involve the -Messianic character of the psalm. - -Vv. 10-15 extend the maledictions to the enemy's children and -parents, in accordance with the ancient strong sense of family -solidarity, which was often expressed in practice by visiting -the kindred of a convicted criminal with ruin, and levelling his -house with the ground. The psalmist wishes these consequences to -fall in all their cruel severity, and pictures the children as -vagabonds, driven from the desolation which had, in happier days, -been their home, and seeking a scanty subsistence among strangers. -The imprecations of ver. 11 at first sight seem to hark back to an -earlier stage in the wicked man's career, contemplating him as still -in life. But the wish that his wealth may be "ensnared" by creditors -and stolen by strangers is quite appropriate as a consequence of his -sentence and execution; and the prayer in ver. 12, that there may -be no one to "draw out loving-kindness" to him, is probably best -explained by the parallel clause. A dead man lives a quasi-life in -his children, and what is done to them is a prolongation of what -was done to him. Thus helpless, beggars, homeless, and plundered, -"the seed of evil-doers" would naturally be short-lived, and the -psalmist desires that they may be cut off, and the world freed from -an evil race. His wishes go backwards too, and reach to the previous -as well as the subsequent generation. The foe had come of a bad -stock--parents, son, and son's sons are to be involved in a common -doom, because partakers of a common sin. The special reason for the -terrible desire that the iniquity of his father and mother may -never be blotted out seems to be, the desire that the accumulated -consequences of hereditary sin may fall on the heads of the third -generation--a dread wish, which experience shows is often tragically -fulfilled, even when the sufferers are far less guilty than their -ancestors. "Father, forgive them" is the strongest conceivable -contrast to these awful prayers. But the psalmist's petition implies -that the sins in question were unrepented sins, and is, in fact, a -cry that, as such, they should be requited in the "cutting off the -memory" of such a brood of evil-doers "from the earth." - -In ver. 16 a new turn of thought begins, which is pursued till ver. -20--namely, that of the self-retributive action of a perverted -choice of evil. "He remembered not" to be gracious to him who needed -compassion; therefore it is just that he should not be remembered -on earth, and that his sin should be remembered in heaven. He -deliberately chose cursing rather than blessing as his attitude and -act towards others; therefore cursing comes to him and blessing -remains far from him, as others' attitude and act to him. The world -is a mirror which, on the whole, gives back the smile or the frown -which we present to it. Though the psalmist has complained that -he had loved and been hated in return, he does not doubt that, in -general, the curser is cursed back again and the blesser blessed. -Outwardly and inwardly, the man is wrapped in and saturated with -"cursing." Like a robe or a girdle, it encompasses him; like a -draught of water, it passes into his inmost nature; like anointing -oil oozing into the bones, it steals into every corner of his soul. -His own doings come back to poison him. The kick of the gun which -he fires is sure to hurt his own shoulder, and it is better to be -in front of the muzzle than behind the trigger. The last word of -these maledictions is not only a wish, but a declaration of the Law -of Divine Retribution. The psalmist could not have found it in his -heart to pray such a prayer unless he had been sure that Jehovah paid -men's wages punctually in full, and that conviction is the kernel of -his awful words. He is equally sure that his cause is God's--because -he is sure that God's cause is his, and that he suffers for -righteousness and for the righteous Jehovah. - -The final part (vv. 21-31) returns to lowly, sad petitions for -deliverance, of the kind common to many psalms. Very pathetically, and -as with a tightening of his grasp, does the singer call on his helper -by the double name "Jehovah, Lord," and plead all the pleas with God -which are hived in these names. The prayer in ver. 21_b_ resembles that -in Psalm lxix. 16, another of the psalms of imprecation. The image of -the long-drawn-out shadow recurs in Psalm cii. 11. The word rendered -"am I gone" occurs here only, and implies compulsory departure. The -same idea of external force hurrying one out of life is picturesquely -presented in the parallel clause. "I am shaken out," as a thing which a -man wishes to get rid of is shaken out of the folds of a garment. The -psalmist thinks of himself as being whirled away, helpless, as a swarm -of locusts blown into the sea. The physical feebleness in ver. 24 is -probably to be taken literally, as descriptive of the havoc wrought -on him by his persecutions and trouble of soul, but may be, as often, -metaphor for that trouble itself. - -The expression in ver. 24_b_ rendered above "_falls away_ from fatness" -is literally "has become a liar," or faithless, which is probably a -picturesque way of saying that the psalmist's flesh had, as it were, -become a renegade from its former well-nourished condition, and was -emaciated by his sorrow. Others would keep the literal meaning of the -word rendered "fatness"--_i.e._, oil--and translate "My flesh has -shrunk up for lack of oil" (so Baethgen and Kay). - -One more glance at the enemies, now again regarded as many, and one -more flash of confidence that his prayer is heard, close the psalm. -Once again God is invoked by His name Jehovah, and the suppliant -presses close to Him as "my God"; once again he casts himself on that -loving-kindness, whose measure is wider than his thoughts and will -ensure him larger answers than his desires; once again he builds -all his hope on it, and pleads no claims of his own. He longs for -personal deliverance; but not only for personal ends, but rather -that it may be an undeniable manifestation of Jehovah's power. That -is a high range of feeling which subordinates self to God even while -longing for deliverance, and wishes more that He should be glorified -than that self should be blessed. There is almost a smile on the -psalmist's face as he contrasts his enemies' curses with God's -blessing, and thinks how ineffectual are these and how omnipotent -is that. He takes the issue of the strife between cursing men and a -blessing God to be as good as already decided. So he can look with -new equanimity on the energetic preparations of his foes; for he sees -in faith their confusion and defeat, and already feels some springing -in his heart of the joy of victory, and is sure of already clothing -themselves with shame. It is the prerogative of Faith to behold -things that are not as though they were, and to live as in the hour -of triumph even while in the thick of the fight. - -The psalm began with addressing "the God of my _praise_"; it ends -with the confidence and the vow that the singer will yet _praise_ -Him. It painted an adversary standing at the right hand of the wicked -to condemn him; it ends with the assurance that Jehovah stands at the -right hand of His afflicted servant, as his advocate to protect him. -The wicked man was to "go out guilty"; he whom God defends shall come -forth from all that would judge his soul. "If God be for us, who can -be against us? It is God that justifieth: who is he that condemneth?" - - - - - PSALM CX. - - 1 The oracle of Jehovah to my lord; - Sit Thou [enthroned] at My right hand, - Until I make Thine enemies the stool for Thy feet. - 2 The sceptre of Thy might shall Jehovah stretch forth from Zion, - "Rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies." - 3 Thy people are free-will offerings in the day of Thine army; - In holy attire, - From the womb of the dawn, - [Comes] to Thee the dew of Thy youth[s]. - 4 Jehovah has sworn and will not repent, - Thou art a priest for ever, - After the manner of Melchizedek. - - 5 The Lord at Thy right hand - Has crushed kings in the day of His wrath. - 6 He shall judge among the nations, - He has filled [the land] with corpses, - He has crushed the head over a wide land. - 7 Of the brook shall He drink on the way, - Therefore shall He lift up [His] head. - - -Does our Lord's attribution of this psalm to David foreclose the -question of its authorship for those who accept His authority? -Many, who fully recognise and reverently bow to that authority, -think that it does not, and appeal for support of their view to the -unquestionable limitations of His earthly knowledge. It is urged -that His object in His argument with the Pharisees, in which this -psalm is quoted by Him (Matt. xxii. 41-46 and parallels), is not to -instruct them on the authorship of the psalm, but to argue from its -contents; and though He assumes the Davidic authorship, accepted -generally at the time, yet the cogency of His argument is unimpaired, -so long as it is recognised that the psalm is a Messianic one, and -that the august language used in it of the Messiah is not compatible -with the position of One who was a mere human son of David (Driver, -"Introd.," p. 363, note). So also Dr. Sanday ("Inspiration," p. 420) -says that "the Pharisees were taken upon their own ground, and the -fallacy of their conclusion was shown on their own premises." But -our Lord's argument is not drawn from the "august language" of the -psalm, but from David's relationship to the Messiah, and crumbles to -pieces if he is not the singer. It may freely be admitted that there -are instances in our Lord's references to the Old Testament in which -He speaks from the point of view of His hearers in regard to it; but -these are cases in which nothing turned on the question whether that -point of view was correct or not. Here everything turns on it; and -to maintain that, in so important a crisis, He based His arguments -on an error comes perilously near to imputing fallibility to Him as -our teacher. Most of recent writers who advocate the view in question -would recoil from such a consequence; but their position is divided -from it by a thin line. Whatever the limitations of our Lord's human -knowledge, they did not affect His authority in regard to what He did -teach; and the present writer ventures to believe that He did teach -that _David_ in this psalm calls Messiah his Lord. - -If so, the psalm stands alone, as not having primary reference to an -earthly king. It is not, like other Messianic psalms, typical, but -directly prophetic of Messiah, and of Him only. We are not warranted -in denying the possibility of such direct prophecy; and the picture -drawn in this psalm, so far transcending any possible original among -the sons of men, has not full justice done to its majestic lines, -unless it is recognised as setting forth none other than the personal -Messiah. True, it is drawn with colours supplied from earthly -experiences, and paints a warrior-monarch. The prophet-psalmist, no -doubt, conceived of literal warfare; but a prophet did not always -understand the oracles which he spoke. - -The psalm falls into two parts: the Vision of the Priest-King and His -army (vv. 1-4); the King's Warfare and Victory (vv. 5-7). - -"The oracle of Jehovah" introduces a fresh utterance of God's, -heard by the psalmist, who thus claims to be the mouthpiece of the -Divine will. It is a familiar prophetic phrase, but usually found -at the close--not, as here, at the beginning--of the utterance to -which it refers (see, however, Isa. lvi. 8; Zech. xii. 1). The -unusual position makes the Divine origin of the following words more -emphatic. "My Lord" is a customary title of respect in addressing -a superior, but not in speaking _of_ him. Its use here evidently -implies that the psalmist regards Messiah as his king, and the best -comment on it is Matt. xxii. 43: "How then doth David in spirit call -Him Lord?" The substance of the oracle follows. He who is exalted to -sit at the right hand of a king is installed thereby as his associate -in rule. He who is seated by God at His right hand is received into -such mystery of participation in Divine authority and power, as -cannot be imposed on frail humanity. The rigid monotheism of the -Jewish singers makes this tremendous "oracle" the more remarkable. -Greek gods might have their assessors from among mortals, but who -shall share Jehovah's throne? "Solomon sat on the throne of the Lord -as king" (1 Chron. xxix. 23); but that is no parallel, nor does -it show that the oracle of this psalm simply states the dignity -of the theocratic king. Solomon's throne was Jehovah's, as being -established by Him, and since he represented Jehovah on earth; but to -sit at Jehovah's right hand means far more than this. That session -of Messiah is represented as the prelude to the exercise of Divine -power for His triumph over His foes; and that apparent repose, while -Jehovah fights for him, is singularly contrasted with his activity -as described in verses 6, 7. The singer speaks riddles about a union -of undisturbed tranquillity and of warlike strenuousness, which are -only solved when we see their fulfilment in Him who sitteth at the -right hand of God, and who yet goes with His armies where they go. -"He was received up, and sat on the right hand of God, . . . the Lord -also working with them" (Mark xvi. 19, 20). The opened heavens showed -to Stephen his Master, not sitting, but standing in the posture of -readiness to help him dying, and to receive him made more alive by -death. His foot shall be on the neck of His foes, as Joshua bade -the men of Israel put theirs on the conquered kings'. Opposition -shall not only be subdued, but shall become subsidiary to Messiah's -dominion, "a stepping-stone to higher things." - -The Divine oracle is silent, and the strain is taken up by the psalmist -himself, who speaks "in the spirit," in the remainder of the psalm, -no less than he did when uttering Jehovah's word. Messiah's dominion -has a definite earthly centre. From Zion is this King to rule. His -mighty sceptre, the symbol and instrument of His God-given power, is -to stretch thence. How far? No limit is named to the sweep of His -sway. But since Jehovah is to extend it, it must be conterminous with -the reach of His omnipotence. Ver. 2_b_ may be taken as the words -of Jehovah, but more probably they are the loyal exclamation of the -psalmist, moved to his heart's depths by the vision which makes the -bliss of his solitude. The word rendered "rule" is found also in -Balaam's prophecy of Messiah (Numb. xxiv. 19) and in the Messianic -Psalm lxxii. 8. The kingdom is to subsist in the midst of enemies. The -normal state of the Church on earth is militant. Yet the enemies are -not only a ring of antagonists round a centre of submission, but into -their midst His power penetrates, and Messiah dominates them too, for -all their embattled hostility. A throne round which storms of rebellion -rage is an insecure seat. But this throne is established through -enmity, because it is upheld by Jehovah. - -The kingdom in relation to its subjects is the theme of ver. 3, which -accords with the warlike tone of the whole psalm, by describing -them as an army. The period spoken of is "the day of Thy host," -or array--the time when the forces are mustered and set in order -for battle. The word rendered _free-will offerings_ may possibly -mean simply "willingnesses," and the abstract noun may be used as -in "I am--prayer" (Psalm cix. 4)--_i.e._, most willing; but it is -better to retain the fuller and more picturesque meaning of glad, -spontaneous sacrifices, which corresponds with the priestly character -afterwards ascribed to the people, and goes very deep into the -essence of Christian service. There are to be no pressed men or -mercenaries in that host. As Deborah sang of her warriors, these -"offer themselves willingly." Glad consecration of self, issuing in -spontaneous enlisting for the wars of the King, is to characterise -all His subjects. The army is the nation. These soldiers are to be -priests. They are clad in holy attire, "fine linen, clean and white." -That representation goes as deep into the nature of the warfare they -have to wage and the weapons they have to wield, as the former did -into the impulse which sends them to serve under Messiah's flag. -The priestly function is to bring God and man near to one another. -Their warfare can only be for the carrying out of their office. Their -weapons are sympathy, gentleness, purity. Like the Templars, the -Christian soldier must bear the cross on his shield and the hilt of -his sword. Another reading of this phrase is "on the holy mountains," -which is preferred by many, among whom are Hupfeld and Cheyne. But -the great preponderance of evidence is against the change, which -obliterates a very striking and profound thought. - -Ver. 3_c_, _d_ gives another picture of the host. The usual -explanation of the clause takes "youth" as meaning, not the young -vigour of the King, but, in a collective sense, the assembled -warriors, whom it paints as in the bloom of early manhood. The -principal point of comparison of the army with the dew is probably -its multitude (2 Sam. xvii. 12). The warriors have the gift of -un-aging youth, as all those have who renew their strength by serving -Christ. And it is permissible to take other characteristics of the -dew than its abundance, and to think of the mystery of its origin, -of the tiny mirrors of the sunshine hanging on every cobweb, of its -power to refresh, as well as of the myriads of its drops. - -But this explanation, beautiful and deep as it is, is challenged by -many. The word rendered "dawn" is unusual. "Youth" is not found -elsewhere in the sense thus assigned to it. "Dew" is thought to be -an infelicitous emblem. "From a linguistic point of view" Cheyne -pronounces both "dawn" and "dew" to be intolerable. Singularly -enough, in the next sentence, he deprecates a previous opinion of his -own as premature "until we know something certain of the Hebrew of -the Davidic age" ("Orig. of Psalt.," p. 482). But if such certainty -is lacking, why should these two words be "intolerable"? He approves -Bickell's conjectural emendation, "From the womb, from the dawn [of -life], Thy youthful band is devoted to Thee." - -Ver. 4 again enshrines a Divine utterance, which is presented in an -even more solemn manner than that of ver. 1. The oath of Jehovah -by Himself represents the thing sworn as guaranteed by the Divine -character. God, as it were, pledges His own name, with its fulness -of unchanging power, to the fulfilment of the word; and this -irrevocable and omnipotent decree is made still more impressive by -the added assurance that He "will not repent." Thus inextricably -intertwined with the augustness of God's nature, the union of the -royal and priestly offices in the person of Messiah shall endure -for ever. Some commentators contend that every theocratic king of -Israel was a priest, inasmuch as he was king of a priestly nation. -But since the national priestliness did not hinder the appointment -of a special order of priests, it is most natural to assume that -the special order is here referred to. Why should the singer have -gone back into the mists of antiquity, in order to find the type -of a priest-king, if the union of offices belonged, by virtue of -his kinghood, to every Jewish monarch? Clearly the combination was -unexampled; and such an incident as that of Uzziah's leprosy shows -how carefully the two great offices were kept apart. Their opposition -has resulted in many tragedies: probably their union would be still -more fatal, except in the case of One whose priestly sacrifice of -Himself as a willing offering is the basis of His royal sway. The -"order of Melchizedek" has received unexpected elucidation from the -Tel-el-Amarna tablets, which bring to light, as a correspondent of -the Pharaoh, one Ebed-tob, king of Uru-salim (the city of Salim, the -god of peace). In one of his letters he says, "Behold, neither my -father nor my mother have exalted me in this place; the prophecy [or -perhaps, arm] of the mighty King has caused me to enter the house of -my father." By the mighty King is meant the god whose sanctuary stood -on the summit of Mount Moriah. He was king of Jerusalem, because -he was priest of its god (Sayce, "Criticism and the Monuments," p. -175). The psalm lays stress on the eternal duration of the royalty -and priesthood of Messiah; and although in other Messianic psalms the -promised perpetuity may be taken to refer to the dynasty rather than -the individual monarch, that explanation is impossible here, where a -person is the theme. - -Many attempts have been made to fit the language of the psalm to -one or other of the kings of Israel; but, not to mention other -difficulties, this ver. 4 remains as an insuperable obstacle. In -default of Israelite kings, one or other of the Maccabean family has -been thought of. Cheyne strongly pronounces for Simon Maccabaeus, -and refers, as others have done, to a popular decree in his favour, -declaring him "ruler and high priest for ever" ("Orig. of Psalt.," p. -26). On this identification, Baethgen asks if it is probable that the -singer should have taken his theme from a popular decree, and have -transformed it (_umgestempelt_) into a Divine oath. It may be added -that Simon was not a king, and that he was by birth a priest. - -The second part of the psalm carries the King into the battle-field. -He comes forth from the throne, where He sat at Jehovah's right -hand, and now Jehovah stands at His right hand. The word rendered -_Lord_ in ver. 5 is never used of any but God, and it is best to -take it so here, even though to do so involves the necessity of -supposing a change in the subject either in ver. 6 or ver. 7, which -latter verse can only refer to the Messiah. The destructive conflict -described is said to take place "in the day of His wrath"--_i.e._, of -Jehovah's. If this is strictly interpreted, the period intended is -not that of "the day of Thine army," when by His priestly warriors -the Priest-King wages a warfare among His enemies, which wins them -to be His lovers, but that dread hour when He comes forth from His -ascended glory to pronounce doom among the nations and to crush all -opposition. Such a final apocalypse of the wrath of the Lamb is -declared to us in clearer words, which may well be permitted to cast -a light back on this psalm (Rev. xix. 11). "He has crushed kings" is -the perfect of prophetic certainty or intuition, the scene being so -vividly bodied before the singer that he regards it as accomplished. -"He shall judge" or give doom "among the nations,"--the future of -pure prediction. Ver. 6_b_ is capable of various renderings. It may -be rendered as above, or the verb may be intransitive and the whole -clause translated, _It becomes full of corpses_ (so Delitzsch); or -the word may be taken as an adjective, in which case the meaning -would be the same as if it were an intransitive verb. "The head over -a wide land" is also ambiguous. If "head" is taken as a collective -noun, it means rulers. But it may be also regarded as referring -to a person, the principal antagonist of the Messiah. This is the -explanation of many of the older interpreters, who think of Death or -"the prince of this world," but is too fanciful to be adopted. - -Ver. 7 is usually taken as depicting the King as pausing in His -victorious pursuit of the flying foe, to drink, like Gideon's men, -from the brook, and then with renewed vigour pressing on. But is not -the idea of the Messiah needing refreshment in that final conflict -somewhat harsh?--and may there not be here a certain desertion of -the order of sequence, so that we are carried back to the time -prior to the enthronement of the King? One is tempted to suggest -the possibility of this closing verse being a full parallel with -Phil. ii. 7-9. Christ on the way to His throne drank of "waters of -affliction," and precisely therefore is He "highly exalted." - -The choice for every man is, being crushed beneath His foot, or -being exalted to sit with Him on His throne. "He that overcometh, -to him will I give to sit down with Me on My throne, even as I also -overcame, and am set down with My Father on His throne." It is better -to sit on His throne than to be His footstool. - - - - - PSALM CXI. - - Hallelujah. - 1 [H] I will thank Jehovah with my whole heart, - [H] In the council of the upright and in the congregation. - 2 [H] Great are the works of Jehovah, - [H] Inquired into by all who delight in them. - 3 [H] Honour and majesty is His working, - [H] And His righteousness stands fast for aye. - 4 [H] He has made a memorial for His wonders, - [H] Gracious and compassionate is Jehovah. - 5 [H] Food has He given to those who fear Him, - [H] He remembers His covenant for ever. - 6 [H] The power of His works has He showed to His people, - [H] In giving them the inheritance of the nations. - 7 [H] The works of His hands are truth and judgment - [H] Trustworthy are all His commandments; - 8 [H] Established for aye and for ever, - [H] Done in truth and uprightness. - 9 [H] Redemption has He sent to His people, - [H] He has ordained His covenant for ever, - [H] Holy and dread is His name. - 10 [H] The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom, - [H] Good understanding [belongs] to all who do them; - [H] His praise stands fast for aye. - - -Another series of psalms headed with Hallelujah begins here, and -includes the two following psalms. The prefix apparently indicates -liturgical use. The present psalm is closely allied to the next. Both -are acrostic, and correspond verse to verse, as will appear in the -exposition. Together they represent God and the godly, this psalm -magnifying the Divine character and acts, the other painting the ideal -godly man as, in some real fashion, an "imitator of God as a beloved -child." Both are gnomic, and built up by accumulation of slightly -connected particulars, rather than flowing continuously in a sequence -which springs from one pregnant thought. Both have allusions to other -psalms and to the Book of Proverbs, and share with many of the psalms -of Book V. the character of being mainly working over of old materials. - -The Psalmist begins by a vow to thank Jehovah with his whole heart, -and immediately proceeds to carry it out. "The upright" is by -some understood as a national designation, and "council" taken as -equivalent to "congregation." But it is more in accordance with usage -to regard the psalmist as referring first to a narrower circle of -like-minded lovers of good, to whose congenial ears he rejoices to -sing. There was an Israel within Israel, who would sympathise with -his song. The "congregation" is then either the wider audience of the -gathered people, or, as Delitzsch takes it, equivalent to "_their_ -congregation"--_i.e._, of the upright. - -The theme of thanksgiving is, as ever, God's works for Israel; and -the first characteristic of these which the psalmist sings is their -greatness. He will come closer presently, and discern more delicate -features, but now, the magnitude of these colossal manifestations -chiefly animates his song. Far-stretching in their mass and in their -consequences, deep-rooted in God's own character, His great deeds draw -the eager search of "those who delight in them." These are the same -sympathetic auditors to whom the song is primarily addressed. There -were indolent beholders in Israel, before whom the works of God were -passed without exciting the faintest desire to know more of their -depth. Such careless onlookers, who see and see not, are rife in all -ages. God shines out in His deeds, and they will not give one glance of -sharpened interest. But the test of caring for His doings is the effort -to comprehend their greatness, and plunge oneself into their depths. -The more one gazes, the more one sees. What was at first but dimly -apprehended as great resolves itself, as we look; and, first, "Honour -and majesty," the splendour of His reflected character, shine out from -His deeds, and then, when still more deeply they are pondered, the -central fact of their righteousness, their conformity to the highest -standard of rectitude, becomes patent. Greatness and majesty, divorced -from righteousness, would be no theme for praise. Such greatness is -littleness, such splendour is phosphorescent corruption. - -These general contemplations are followed in vv. 4-6 by references -to Israel's history as the greatest example of God's working. "He -has made a memorial for His wonders." Some find here a reference to -the Passover and other feasts commemorative of the deliverance from -Egypt. But it is better to think of Israel itself as the "memorial," -or of the deeds themselves, in their remembrance by men, as being, -as it were, a monument of His power. The men whom God has blessed -are standing evidences of His wonders. "Ye are My witnesses, saith -the Lord." And the great attribute, which is commemorated by that -"memorial," is Jehovah's gracious compassion. The psalmist presses -steadily towards the centre of the Divine nature. God's works become -eloquent of more and more precious truth as he listens to their -voice. They spoke of greatness, honour, majesty, righteousness, but -tenderer qualities are revealed to the loving and patient gazer. The -two standing proofs of Divine kindness are the miraculous provision -of food in the desert and the possession of the promised land. But -to the psalmist these are not past deeds to be remembered only, but -continually repeated operations. "He remembers His covenant for -ever," and so the experiences of the fathers are lived over again by -the children, and to-day is as full of God as yesterday was. Still He -feeds _us_, still He gives us _our_ heritage. - -From ver. 7 onwards a new thought comes in. God has spoken as well -as wrought. His very works carry messages of "truth and judgment," -and they are interpreted further by articulate precepts, which are at -once a revelation of what He is and a law for what we should be. His -law stands as fast as His righteousness (vv. 3, 8). A man may utterly -trust His commandments. They abide eternally, for Duty is ever Duty, -and His Law, while it has a surface of temporary ceremonial, has a -core of immutable requirement. His commandments are _done_--_i.e._, -appointed by Him--"in truth and uprightness." They are tokens of His -grace and revelations of His character. - -The two closing verses have three clauses each, partly from the -exigencies of the acrostic structure, and partly to secure a more -impressive ending. Ver. 9 sums up all God's works in the two chief -manifestations of His goodness which should ever live in Israel's -thanks, His sending redemption and His establishing His everlasting -covenant--the two facts which are as fresh to-day, under new and -better forms, as when long ago this unknown psalmist sang. And he -gathers up the total impression which God's dealings should leave, -in the great saying, "Holy and dread is His name." In ver. 10 he -somewhat passes the limits of his theme, and trenches on the -territory of the next psalm, which is already beginning to shape -itself in his mind. The designation of the fear of the Jehovah as -"the beginning of wisdom" is from Prov. i. 7, ix. 10. "Beginning" -may rather mean "principal part" (Prov. iv. 7, "principal thing"). -The "them" of ver. 10_b_ is best referred, though the expression -is awkward, to "commandments" in ver. 7. Less probably it is taken -to allude to the "fear" and "wisdom" of the previous clause. The -two clauses of this verse descriptive of the godly correspond in -structure to _a_ and _b_ of ver. 9, and the last clause corresponds -to the last of that verse, expressing the continual praise which -should rise to that holy and dread Name. Note that the perpetual -duration, which has been predicated of God's attributes, precepts, -and covenant (vv. 3, 5, 8, 9), is here ascribed to His praise. Man's -songs cannot fall dumb, so long as God pours out Himself in such -deeds. As long as that Sun streams across the desert, stony lips will -part in music to hail its beams. - - - - - PSALM CXII. - - Hallelujah. - 1 [H] Happy the man who fears Jehovah, - [H] [Who] delights exceedingly in His commandments. - 2 [H] Mighty on the earth shall his seed be, - [H] The generation of the upright shall be blessed. - 3 [H] Wealth and riches are in his house, - [H] And his righteousness stands fast for aye. - 4 [H] There riseth in the darkness light to the upright,-- - [H] Gracious and pitiful and righteous is he. - 5 [H] Well is the man who pities and lends, - [H] He shall maintain his causes in [the] judgment. - 6 [H] For he shall not be moved for ever, - [H] In everlasting remembrance shall the righteous be held. - 7 [H] Of evil tidings he shall not be afraid, - [H] Steadfast is his heart, trusting in Jehovah. - 8 [H] Established is his heart, he shall not fear, - [H] Until he looks on his adversaries. - 9 [H] He has scattered abroad, he has given to the poor, - [H] His righteousness stands fast for aye, - [H] His horn shall be exalted with glory. - 10 [H] The wicked man shall see it and be grieved, - [H] He shall gnash his teeth and melt away, - [H] The desire of wicked men shall perish. - - -"Be ye perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect," might be -inscribed on this picture of a godly man, which, in structure and -substance, reflects the contemplation of God's character and works -contained in the preceding psalm. The idea that the godly man is, in -some real sense, an image of God runs through the whole, and comes out -strongly, at several points, in the repetition of the same expressions -in reference to both. The portrait of the ideal good man, outlined in -this psalm, may be compared with those in Psalms xv. and xxiv. Its -most characteristic feature is the prominence given to beneficence, -which is regarded as eminently a reflection of God's. The foundation -of righteousness is laid in ver. 1, in devout awe and inward delight -in the commandments. But the bulk of the psalm describes the blessed -consequences, rather than the essential characteristics, of godliness. - -The basis of righteousness and beneficence to men must be laid in -reverence and conformity of will towards God. Therefore the psalm -begins with proclaiming that, apart from all external consequences, -these dispositions carry blessedness in themselves. The close of the -preceding psalm had somewhat overpassed its limits, when it declared -that "the fear of Jehovah" was the beginning of wisdom and that to do -His commandments was sound discretion. - -This psalm echoes these sayings, and so links itself to the former -one. It deepens them by pointing out that the fear of Jehovah is a -fountain of joy as well as of wisdom, and that inward delight in the -Law must precede outward doing of it. The familiar blessing attached -in the Old Testament to godliness, namely, prosperous posterity, is -the first of the consequences of righteousness which the psalm holds -out. That promise belongs to another order of things from that of the -New Testament; but the essence of it is true still, namely, that the -only secure foundation for permanent prosperity is in the fear of -Jehovah. "The generation of the upright" (ver. 2) does not merely mean -the natural descendants of a good man--"It is a moral rather than a -genealogical term" (Hupfeld)--as is usually the case with the word -"generation." Another result of righteousness is declared to be "wealth -and riches" (ver. 3), which, again, must be taken as applying more -fully to the Old Testament system of Providence than to that of the New. - -A parallelism of the most striking character between God and the -godly emerges in ver. 3_b_, where the same words are applied to the -latter as were used of the former, in the corresponding verse of -Psalm cxi. It would be giving too great evangelical definiteness -to the psalmist's words, to read into them the Christian teaching -that man's righteousness is God's gift through Christ, but it -unwarrantably eviscerates them of their meaning, if we go to the -other extreme, and, with Hupfeld, suppose that the psalmist put in -the clause under stress of the exigencies of the acrostic structure, -and regard it as a "makeshift" and "stop-gap." The psalmist has -a very definite and noble thought. Man's righteousness is the -reflection of God's; and has in it some kindred with its original, -which guarantees stability not all unlike the eternity of that -source. Since ver. 3_b_ thus brings into prominence the ruling -thought of the two psalms, possibly we may venture to see a fainter -utterance of that thought, in the first clause of the verse, in which -the "wealth and riches" in the righteous man's house may correspond -to the "honour and majesty" attendant on God's works (cxi. 3_a_). - -Ver. 4 blends consequences of righteousness and characterisation -of it, in a remarkable way. The construction is doubtful. In _a_, -"upright" is in the plural, and the adjectives in _b_ are in the -singular number. They are appended abruptly to the preceding clause; -and the loose structure has occasioned difficulty to expositors, -which has been increased by the scruples of some, who have not given -due weight to the leading thought of correspondence between the human -and Divine, and have hesitated to regard ver. 4_b_ as referring to -the righteous man, seeing that in Psalm cxi. 4_b_ it refers to God. -Hence efforts have been made to find other renderings. Delitzsch -would refer the clause to God, whom he takes to be meant by "light" -in the previous clause, while Hitzig, followed by Baethgen, would -translate, "As a light, he (the righteous) rises in darkness for the -upright," and would then consider "gracious," etc., as in apposition -with "light," and descriptive of the righteous man's character as -such. But the very fact that the words are applied to God in the -corresponding verse of the previous psalm suggests their application -here to the godly man, and the sudden change of number is not so -harsh as to require the ordinary translation to be abandoned. However -dark may be a good man's road, the very midnight blackness is a -prophecy of sunrise; or, to use another figure, - - "If winter comes, can spring be far behind?" - -(Compare Psalm xcvii. 11.) The fountain of pity in human hearts must -be fed from the great source of compassion in God's, if it is to gush -out unremittingly and bless the deserts of sorrow and misery. He who -has received "grace" will surely exercise grace. "Be ye merciful, -even as your Father is merciful" (Luke vi. 36). - -Ver. 5 blends characteristics and consequences of goodness in -reverse order from that in ver. 4. The compassionate man of ver. -4_b_ does not let pity evaporate, but is moved by it to act and to -lend (primarily money, but secondarily) any needful help or solace. -Benevolence which is not translated into beneficence is a poor -affair. There is no blessing in it or for it; but it is well with -the man who turns emotions into deeds. Lazy compassion hurts him -who indulges in it, but that which "lends" gets joy in the act of -bestowing aid. The result of such active compassion is stated in ver. -5_b_ as being that such a one will "maintain his causes in judgment," -by which seems to be meant the judgment of earthly tribunals. If -compassion and charity guide a life, it will have few disputes, and -will contain nothing for which a judge can condemn. He who obeys the -higher law will not break the lower. - -Vv. 6-8 dwell mainly on one consequence of righteousness, namely, -the stability which it imparts. While such a man lives, he shall -be unmoved by shocks, and after he dies, his memory will live, -like a summer evening's glow which lingers in the west till a -new morning dawns. In ver. 7 the resemblance of the godly to God -comes very beautifully to the surface. Psalm cxi. 7 deals with -God's commandments as "trustworthy." The human parallel is an -_established_ heart. He who has learned to lean upon Jehovah (for -such is the literal force of "trusting" here), and has proved the -commandments utterly reliable as basis for his life, will have his -heart steadfast. The same idea is repeated in ver. 8 with direct -quotation of the corresponding verse of Psalm cxi. In both the word -for "established" is the same. The heart that delights in God's -established commandments is established by them, and, sooner or -later, will look in calm security on the fading away of all evil -things and men, while it rests indeed, because it rests in God. He -who builds his transient life on and into the Rock of Ages wins -rocklike steadfastness, and some share in the perpetuity of his -Refuge. Lives rooted in God are never uprooted. - -The two final verses are elongated, like the corresponding ones -in Psalm cxi. Again, beneficence is put in the forefront, as a -kind of shorthand summing up of all virtues. And, again, in ver. 9 -the analogy is drawn out between God and the godly. "He has sent -redemption to His people"; and they, in their degree, are to be -communicative of the gifts of which they have been made recipient. -Little can they give, compared with what they have received; but what -they have they hold in trust for those who need it, and the sure test -of having obtained "redemption" is a "heart open as day to melting -charity." In the former psalm, ver. 9_b_ declared that God has -"ordained His covenant for ever"; and here the corresponding clause -re-affirms that the good man's righteousness endures for ever. The -final clauses of both verses also correspond, in so far as, in the -former psalm, God's Name is represented as "holy and dread"--_i.e._, -the total impression made by His deeds exalts Him--and in the latter, -the righteous man's "horn" is represented as "exalted in glory" or -honour--_i.e._, the total impression made by his deeds exalts _him_. -Paul quotes the two former clauses of ver. 9 in 2 Cor. ix. 9 as -involving the truth that Christian giving does not impoverish. The -exercise of a disposition strengthens it; and God takes care that -the means of beneficence shall not be wanting to him who has the -spirit of it. The later Jewish use of "righteousness" as a synonym -for _almsgiving_ has probably been influenced by this psalm, in which -beneficence is the principal trait in the righteous man's character, -but there is no reason for supposing that the psalmist uses the word -in that restricted sense. - -Ver. 10 is not parallel with the last verse of Psalm cxi., which -stands, as we have seen, somewhat beyond the scope of the rest of -that psalm. It gives one brief glimpse of the fate of the evil-doer, -in opposition to the loving picture of the blessedness of the -righteous. Thus it too is rather beyond the immediate object of the -psalm of which it forms part. The wicked _sees_, in contrast with the -righteous man's _seeing_ in ver. 8. The one looks with peace on the -short duration of antagonistic power, and rejoices that there is a -God of recompenses; the other grinds his teeth in envious rage, as -he beholds the perpetuity of the righteous. He "shall melt away," -_i.e._, in jealousy or despair. Opposition to goodness, since it is -enmity towards God, is self-condemned to impotence and final failure. -Desires turned for satisfaction elsewhere than to God are sure to -perish. The sharp contrast between the righteousness of the good man, -which endures for ever, in his steadfast because trustful heart, and -the crumbling schemes and disappointed hopes which gnaw the life -of the man whose aims go athwart God's will, solemnly proclaims an -eternal truth. This psalm, like Psalm i., touches the two poles of -possible human experience, in its first and last words, beginning -with "happy the man" and ending with "shall perish." - - - - - PSALM CXIII. - - Hallelujah. - - 1 Praise, ye servants of Jehovah, - Praise the name of Jehovah. - 2 Be the name of Jehovah blessed - From henceforth and for evermore! - 3 From the rising of the sun to its going down, - Praised be the name of Jehovah. - - 4 High above all nations is Jehovah, - Above the heavens His glory. - 5 Who is like Jehovah our God? - Who sits enthroned on high, - 6 Who looks far below - On the heavens and on the earth; - - 7 Who raises the helpless from the dust, - From the rubbish-heap He lifts the needy, - 8 To seat him with nobles, - With the nobles of His people; - 9 Who seats the barren [woman] in a house, - --A glad mother of her children. - - -This pure burst of praise is the first of the psalms composing -the Hallel, which was sung at the three great feasts (Passover, -Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles), as well as at the festival -of Dedication and at the new moons. "In the domestic celebration of -the Passover night 'the Hallel' is divided into two parts; the one -half, Psalms cxiii., cxiv., being sung before the repast, before -the emptying of the second festal cup, and the other half, Psalms -cxv.-cxviii., after the repast, after the filling of the fourth cup, -to which the 'having sung an hymn' in Matt. xxvi. 30, Mark xiv. 26, -... may refer" (Delitzsch, _in loc._). - -Three strophes of three verses each may be recognised, of which the -first summons Israel to praise Jehovah, and reaches out through all -time and over all space, in longing that God's name may be known -and praised. The second strophe (vv. 4-6) magnifies God's exalted -greatness; while the third (vv. 7-9) adores His condescension, -manifested in His stooping to lift the lowly. The second and third -of these strophes, however, overlap in the song, as the facts which -they celebrate do. God's loftiness can never be adequately measured, -unless His condescension is taken into account; and His condescension -never sufficiently wondered at, unless His loftiness is felt. - -The call to praise is addressed to Israel, whose designation "servants -of Jehovah" recalls Isaiah II.'s characteristic use of that name in -the singular number for the nation. With strong emphasis, the _name_ -of Jehovah is declared as the theme of praise. God's revelation of His -character by deed and word must precede man's thanksgiving. They, to -whom that Name has been entrusted, by their reception of His mercies -are bound to ring it out to all the world. And in the Name itself, -there lies enshrined the certainty that through all ages it shall be -blessed, and in every spot lit by the sun shall shine as a brighter -light, and be hailed with praises. The psalmist has learned the -world-wide significance of Israel's position as the depository of the -Name, and the fair vision of a universal adoration of it fills his -heart. Ver. 3_b_ may be rendered "worthy to be praised is the name," -but the context seems to suggest the rendering above. - -The infinite exaltation of Jehovah above all dwellers on this -low earth and above the very heavens does not lift Him too high -for man's praise, for it is wedded to condescension as infinite. -Incomparable is He; but still adoration can reach Him, and men do -not clasp mist, but solid substance, when they grasp His Name. That -incomparable uniqueness of Jehovah is celebrated in ver. 5_a_ in -strains borrowed from Exod. xv. 11, while the striking description -of loftiness combined with condescension in vv. 5_b_ and 6 resembles -Isa. lvii. 15. The literal rendering of vv. 5_b_ and 6_a_ is, "Who -makes high to sit, Who makes low to behold," which is best understood -as above. It may be questioned whether "On the heavens and on the -earth" designates the objects on which His gaze is said to be -turned; or whether, as some understand the construction, it is to be -taken with "Who is like Jehovah our God?" the intervening clauses -being parenthetical; or whether, as others prefer, "in heaven" -points back to "enthroned on high," and "on earth" to "looks far -below." But the construction which regards the totality of created -things, represented by the familiar phrase "the heavens and the -earth," as being the objects on which Jehovah looks down from His -inconceivable loftiness, accords best with the context and yields an -altogether worthy meaning. Transcendent elevation, condescension, and -omniscience are blended in the poet's thought. So high is Jehovah -that the highest heavens are far beneath Him, and, unless His gaze -were all-discerning, would be but a dim speck. That He should enter -into relations with creatures, and that there should be creatures -for Him to enter into relations with, are due to His stooping -graciousness. These far-darting looks are looks of tenderness, and -signify care as well as knowledge. Since all things lie in His -sight, all receive from His hand. - -The third strophe pursues the thought of the Divine condescension as -especially shown in stooping to the dejected and helpless and lifting -them. The effect of the descent of One so high must be to raise the -lowliness to which He bends. The words in vv. 7, 8, are quoted from -Hannah's song (1 Sam. ii. 8). Probably the singer has in his mind -Israel's restoration from exile, that great act in which Jehovah had -shown His condescending loftiness, and had lifted His helpless people -as from the ash-heap, where they lay as outcasts. The same event -seems to be referred to in ver. 9, under a metaphor suggested by the -story of Hannah, whose words have just been quoted. The "barren" -is Israel (comp. Isa. liv. 1). The expression in the original is -somewhat obscure. It stands literally "the barren of the house," and -is susceptible of different explanations; but probably the simplest -is to regard it as a contracted expression for the unfruitful wife in -a house, "a housewife, but yet not a mother. Such an one has in her -husband's house no sure position.... If God bestows children upon her, -He by that very fact makes her for the first time thoroughly at home -and rooted in her husband's house" (Delitzsch, _in loc._). The joy -of motherhood is tenderly touched in the closing line, in which the -definite article is irregularly prefixed to "sons," as if the poet -"points with his finger to the children with whom God blesses her" -(Delitzsch, _u.s._). Thus Israel, with her restored children about -her, is secure in her home. That restoration was the signal instance -of Jehovah's condescension and delight in raising the lowly. It was -therefore the great occasion for world-wide and age-long praise. - -The singer did not know how far it would be transcended by a more -wonderful, more heart-touching manifestation of stooping love, when -"The Word became flesh." How much more exultant and world-filling -should be the praises from the lips of those who do know how low that -Word has stooped, how high He has risen, and how surely all who hold -His hand will be lifted from any ash-heap and set on His throne, -sharers in the royalty of Him who has been partaker of their weakness! - - - - - PSALM CXIV. - - 1 When Israel went forth from Egypt, - The house of Jacob from a stammering people, - 2 Judah became His sanctuary, - Israel His dominion. - - 3 The sea beheld and fled, - Jordan turned back. - 4 The mountains leaped like rams, - The hills like the sons of a flock. - - 5 What ails thee, Sea, that thou fleest? - Jordan, that thou art turned back? - 6 Mountains, that ye leap like rams? - Hills, like the sons of a flock? - - 7 At the presence of the Lord, writhe in pangs, O earth, - At the presence of the God of Jacob, - 8 Who turns the rock into a pool of water, - The flint into a fountain of waters. - - -It is possible that in this psalm Israel, restored from Babylon, is -looking back to the earlier Exodus, and thrilling with the great -thought that that old past lives again in the present. Such a -historical parallel would minister courage and hope. But the eyes of -psalmists were ever turning to the great days when a nation was born, -and there are no data in this psalm which connect it with a special -period, except certain peculiarities in the form of the words "turns" -and "fountain" in ver. 8, both of which have a vowel appended (_i_ in -the former, _o_ in the latter word), which is probably an archaism, -used by a late poet for ornament's sake. The same peculiarity is -found in Psalm cxiii. 5-9, where it occurs five times. - -A familiar theme is treated here with singular force and lyric -fervour. The singer does not heap details together, but grasps one -great thought. To him there are but two outstanding characteristics -of the Exodus one, its place and purpose as the beginning of Israel's -prerogative, and another, its apocalypse of the Majesty of Jehovah, -the Ruler of Nature in its mightiest forms. These he hymns, and then -leaves them to make their own impression. He has no word of "moral," -no application, counsel, warning, or encouragement to give. Whoso -will can draw these. Enough for him to lift his soaring song, and to -check it into silence in the midst of its full music. He would be a -consummate artist, if he were not something much better. The limpid -clearness, the eloquent brevity of the psalm are not more obvious -than its masterly structure. Its four pairs of verses, each laden -with one thought, the dramatic vividness of the sudden questions in -the third pair, the skilful suppression of the Divine name till the -close, where it is pealed out in full tones of triumph, make this -little psalm a gem. - -In vv. 1, 2, the slighting glance at the land left by the ransomed -people is striking. The Egyptians are to this singer "a stammering -people," talking a language which sounded to him barely articulate. -The word carries a similar contempt to that in the Greek "barbarian," -which imitates the unmeaning babble of a foreign tongue. To such -insignificance in the psalmist's mind had the once dreaded oppressors -sunk! The great fact about the Exodus was that it was the birthday of -the Nation, the beginning of its entrance on its high prerogatives. -If the consecration of Judah as "His sanctuary" took place when -Israel went forth from Egypt, there can be no reference to the later -erection of the material sanctuary in Jerusalem, and the names of -Judah and Israel must both apply to the people, not to the land, -which it would be an anachronism to introduce here. That deliverance -from Egypt was in order to God's dwelling in Israel, and thereby -sanctifying or setting it apart to Himself, "a kingdom of priests -and an holy nation." Dwelling in the midst of them, He wrought -wonders for them, as the psalm goes on to hymn; but this is the grand -foundation fact, that Israel was brought out of bondage to be God's -temple and kingdom. The higher deliverance of which that Exodus is -a foreshadowing is, in like manner, intended to effect a still more -wonderful and intimate indwelling of God in His Church. Redeemed -humanity is meant to be God's temple and realm. - -The historical substratum for vv. 3, 4, is the twin miracles of -drying up the Red Sea and the Jordan, which began and closed the -Exodus, and the "quaking" of Sinai at the Theophany accompanying the -giving of the Law. These physical facts are imaginatively conceived -as the effects of panic produced by some dread vision; and the -psalmist heightens his representation by leaving unnamed the sight -which dried the sea, and shook the steadfast granite cliffs. In -the third pair of verses he changes his point of view from that of -narrator to that of a wondering spectator, and asks what terrible -thing, unseen by him, strikes such awe? All is silent now, and the -wonders long since past. The sea rolls its waters again over the -place where Pharaoh's host lie. Jordan rushes down its steep valley -as of old, the savage peaks of Sinai know no tremors;--but these -momentary wonders proclaimed an eternal truth. - -So the psalmist answers his own question, and goes beyond it in -summoning the whole earth to tremble, as sea, river, and mountain had -done, for the same Vision before which they had shrunk is present -to all Nature. Now the psalmist can peal forth the Name of Him, the -sight of whom wrought these wonders. It is "the Lord," the Sovereign -Ruler, whose omnipotence and plastic power over all creatures were -shown when His touch made rock and flint forget their solidity and -become fluid, even as His will made the waves solid as a wall, and -His presence shook Sinai. He is still Lord of Nature. And, more -blessed still, the Lord of Nature is the God of Jacob. Both these -names were magnified in the two miracles (which, like those named in -ver. 3, are a pair) of giving drink to the thirsty pilgrims. With -that thought of omnipotence blended with gracious care, the singer -ceases. He has said enough to breed faith and hearten courage, and he -drops his harp without a formal close. The effect is all the greater, -though some critics prosaically insist that the text is defective and -put a row or two of asterisks at the end of ver. 8, "since it is not -discernible what purpose the representation [_i.e._, the whole psalm] -is to serve" (Graetz)! - - - - - PSALM CXV. - - 1 Not to us, not to us, Jehovah, - But to Thy name give glory, - For the sake of Thy lovingkindness, for the sake of Thy troth. - 2 Why should the nations say, - "Where, then, is their God?" - - 3 But our God is in the heavens, - Whatsoever He willed, He has done. - 4 Their idols are silver and gold, - The work of the hands of men. - 5 A mouth is theirs--and they cannot speak, - Eyes are theirs--and they cannot see, - 6 Ears are theirs--and they cannot hear, - A nose is theirs--and they cannot smell. - 7 Their hands--[with them] they cannot handle - Their feet--[with them] they cannot walk, - Not a sound can they utter with their throat. - 8 Like them shall those who make them be, - [Even] every one that trusts in them. - - 9 Israel, trust thou in Jehovah, - Their help and shield is He. - 10 House of Aaron, trust in Jehovah, - Their help and shield is He. - 11 Ye who fear Jehovah, trust in Jehovah, - Their help and shield is He. - - 12 Jehovah has remembered us--He will bless, - He will bless the house of Israel, - He will bless the house of Aaron, - 13 He will bless those who fear Jehovah, - The small as well as the great. - 14 Jehovah will add to you, - To you and to your children. - 15 Blessed be ye of Jehovah, - Who made heaven and earth! - - 16 The heavens are Jehovah's heavens, - But the earth He has given to the children of men. - 17 It is not the dead who praise Jehovah, - Neither all they who descend into silence. - 18 But we--we will bless Jehovah, - From henceforth and for evermore. - Hallelujah. - - -Israel is in straits from heathen enemies, and cries to Jehovah to -vindicate His own Name by delivering it. Strengthened by faith, which -has been stung into action by taunts aimed at both the nation and -its Protector, the psalmist triumphantly contrasts Jehovah in the -heavens, moving all things according to His will, with idols which -had the semblance of powers the reality of which was not theirs. -Sarcastic contempt, indignation, and profound insight into the effect -of idolatry in assimilating the worshipper to his god, unite in -the picture (vv. 3-8). The tone swiftly changes into a summons to -withdraw trust from such vanities, and set it on Jehovah, who can -and will bless His servants (vv. 9-15); and the psalm closes with -recognition of Jehovah's exaltation and beneficence, and with the vow -to return blessing to Him for the blessings, already apprehended by -faith, which He bestows on Israel. - -Obviously the psalm is intended for temple worship, and was meant -to be sung by various voices. The distribution of its parts may -be doubtful. Ewald would regard vv. 1-11 as the voice of the -congregation while the sacrifice was being offered; vv. 12-15 as that -of the priest announcing its acceptance; and vv. 16-18 as again the -song of the congregation. But there is plainly a change of singer at -ver. 9; and the threefold summons to trust in Jehovah in the first -clauses of vv. 9, 10, 11, may with some probability be allotted to a -ministering official, while the refrain, in the second clause of each -of these verses, may be regarded as pealed out with choral force. The -solo voice next pronounces the benediction on the same three classes -to whom it had addressed the call to trust. And the congregation, -thus receiving Jehovah's blessing, sends back its praise, as sunshine -from a mirror, in vv. 16-18. - -The circumstances presupposed in the psalm suit many periods of -Israel's history. But probably this, like the neighbouring psalms, is -a product of the early days after the return from Babylon, when the -feeble settlers were ringed round by scoffing foes, and had brought -back from exile a more intimate knowledge and contemptuous aversion -for idols and idolatry than had before been felt in Israel. Cheyne -takes the psalm to be Maccabean, but acknowledges that there is -nothing in it to fix that date, which he seeks to establish for the -whole group mainly because he is sure of it for one member of the -group, namely, Psalm cxviii. (_Orig. of Psalt._, 18 _sq._). - -The prayer in vv. 1, 2, beautifully blends profound consciousness -of demerit and confidence that, unworthy as Israel is, its welfare -is inextricably interwoven with Jehovah's honour. It goes very deep -into the logic of supplication, even though the thing desired is but -deliverance from human foes. Men win their pleas with God, when they -sue _in forma pauperis_. There must be thorough abnegation of all -claims based on self, before there can be faithful urging of the one -prevalent motive, God's care for His own fair fame. The under side -of faith is self-distrust, the upper side is affiance on Jehovah. God -has given pledges for His future by His past acts of self-revelation, -and cannot but be true to His Name. His lovingkindness is no -transient mood, but rests on the solid basis of His faithfulness, -like flowers rooted in the clefts of a rock. The taunts that had -tortured another psalmist long before (Psalm xlii. 3) have been flung -now from heathen lips, with still more bitterness, and call for -Jehovah's thunderous answer. If Israel goes down before its foes, the -heathen will have warrant to scoff. - -But, from their bitter tongues and his own fears, the singer turns, -in the name of the sorely harassed congregation, to ring out the -proclamation which answers the heathen taunt, before God answers it -by deeds. "Our God is in heaven"--that is where He is; and He is not -too far away to make His hand felt on earth. He is no impotent image; -He does what He wills, executing to the last tittle His purposes; and -conversely, He wills what He does, being constrained by no outward -force, but drawing the determinations of His actions from the depths -of His being. Therefore, whatever evil has befallen Israel is not a -sign that it has lost Him, but a proof that He is near. The brief, -pregnant assertion of God's omnipotence and sovereign freedom, which -should tame the heathens' arrogance and teach the meaning of Israel's -disasters, is set in eloquent opposition to the fiery indignation -which dashes off the sarcastic picture of an idol. The tone of the -description is like that of the manufacture of an image in Isa. xliv. -9-20. Psalm cxxxv. 15-18 repeats it verbatim. The vehemence of scorn -in these verses suggests a previous, compelled familiarity with -idolatry such as the exiles had. It corresponds with the revolution -which that familiarity produced, by extirpating for ever the former -hankering after the gods of the nations. No doubt, there are higher -weapons than sarcasm; and, no doubt, a Babylonian wise man could have -drawn distinctions between the deity and its image, but such cobwebs -are too fine-spun for rough fingers to handle, and the idolatry both -of pagans and of Christians identifies the two. - -But a deeper note is struck in ver. 8, in the assertion that, as -is the god, so becomes the worshipper. The psalmist probably means -chiefly, if not exclusively, in respect to the impotence just spoken -of. So the worshipper and his idol are called by the same name (Isa. -xliv. 9, _vanity_), and, in the tragic summary of Israel's sins and -punishment in 2 Kings xvii. 15, it is said, that "they followed after -vanity and became vain." But the statement is true in a wider sense. -Worship is sure to breed likeness. A lustful, cruel god will make his -devotees so. Men make gods after their own image, and, when made, the -gods make men after theirs. The same principle which degrades the -idolater lifts the Christian to the likeness of Christ. The aim and -effect of adoration is assimilation. - -Probably the congregation is now silent, and a single voice takes up -the song, with the call, which the hollowness of idolatry makes so -urgent and reasonable, to trust in Jehovah, not in vanities. It is -thrice repeated, being first addressed to the congregation, then to -the house of Aaron, and finally to a wider circle, those who "fear -Jehovah." These are most naturally understood as proselytes, and, in -the prominence given to them, we see the increasing consciousness in -Israel of its Divine destination to be God's witness to the world. -Exile had widened the horizon, and fair hopes that men who were not -of Israel's blood would share Israel's faith and shelter under the -wings of Israel's God stirred in many hearts. The crash of the triple -choral answer to the summons comes with magnificent effect, in the -second clauses of vv. 9, 10, 11, triumphantly telling how safe are -they who take refuge behind that strong buckler. The same threefold -division into _Israel_, _house of Aaron_, and _they who fear Jehovah_ -occurs in Psalm cxviii. 2-4, and, with the addition of "house of -Levi," in Psalm cxxxv. - -Promises of blessing occupy vv. 12-15, which may probably have been -sung by priests, or rather by Levites, the musicians of the Temple -service. In any case, these benedictions are authoritative assurances -from commissioned lips, not utterances of hopeful faith. They are -Jehovah's response to Israel's obedience to the preceding summons; -swiftly sent, as His answers ever are. Calm certainty that He will -bless comes at once into the heart that deeply feels that He is its -shield, however His manifestation of outward help may be lovingly -delayed. The blessing is parted among those who had severally been -called to trust, and had obeyed the call. Universal blessings have -special destinations. The fiery mass breaks up into cloven tongues, -and sits on each. Distinctions of position make no difference in its -reception. Small vessels are filled, and great ones can be no more -than full. Cedars and hyssop rejoice in impartial sunshine. Israel, -when blessed, increases in number, and there is an inheritance of good -from generation to generation. The seal of such hopes is the Name of -Him who blesses, "the Maker of heaven and earth," to whose omnipotent, -universal sway these impotent gods in human form are as a foil. - -Finally, we may hear the united voices of the congregation thus -blessed breaking into full-throated praise in vv. 16-18. As in ver. 3 -God's dwelling in heaven symbolised His loftiness and power, so here -the thought that "the heavens are Jehovah's heavens" implies both -the worshippers' trust in His mighty help and their lowliness even -in trust. The earth is man's, but by Jehovah's gift. Therefore its -inhabitants should remember the terms of their tenure, and thankfully -recognise His giving love. But heaven and earth do not include all the -universe. There is another region, the land of silence, whither the -dead descend. No voice of praise wakes its dumb sleep. (Comp. Isa. -xxxviii. 18, 19.) That pensive contemplation, on which the light of -the New Testament assurance of Immortality has not shone, gives keener -edge to the bliss of present ability to praise Jehovah. We who know -that to die is to have a new song put into immortal lips may still be -stimulated to fill our brief lives here with the music of thanksgiving, -by the thought that, so far as our witness for God to men is concerned, -most of us will "descend into silence" when we pass into the grave. -Therefore we should shun silence, and bless Him while we live here. - - - - - PSALM CXVI. - - 1 I love--for Jehovah hears - My voice, my supplications. - 2 For He has bent His ear to me, - And throughout my days will I call. - 3 The cords of death ringed me round, - And the narrows of Sheol found me, - Distress and trouble did I find. - 4 And on the name of Jehovah I called, - "I beseech Thee, Jehovah, deliver my soul." - - 5 Gracious is Jehovah and righteous, - And our God is compassionate. - 6 The keeper of the simple is Jehovah, - I was brought low and He saved me. - 7 Return, my soul, to thy rest, - For Jehovah has lavished good on thee. - 8 For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, - My eye from tears, - My foot from stumbling. - 9 I shall walk before Jehovah in the lands of the living. - - 10 I believed when I [thus] spake, - "I am greatly afflicted." - 11 I said in my agitation, - "All men deceive." - 12 What shall I return to Jehovah, - [For] all His goodness lavished on me? - 13 The cup of salvations will I lift, - And on the name of Jehovah will I call. - 14 My vows will I repay to Jehovah, - Oh! may I [do it] before all His people! - - 15 Precious in the eyes of Jehovah - Is the death of His favoured ones. - 16 I beseech Thee, Jehovah--for I am Thy servant, - I am Thy servant, the son of Thy handmaid, - Thou hast loosed my bonds. - 17 To Thee will I offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving, - And on the name of Jehovah will I call. - 18 My vows will I repay to Jehovah, - Oh! may I [do it] before all His people! - 19 In the courts of the house of Jehovah, - In the midst of thee, Jerusalem. - Hallelujah. - - -This psalm is intensely individual. "I," "me," or "my" occurs -in every verse but two (vv. 5, 19). The singer is but recently -delivered from some peril, and his song heaves with a ground-swell -of emotion after the storm. Hupfeld takes offence at its "continual -alternation of petition and recognition of the Divine beneficence and -deliverance, or vows of thanksgiving," but surely that very blending -is natural to one just rescued and still panting from his danger. -Certain grammatical forms indicate a late date, and the frequent -allusions to earlier psalms point in the same direction. The words -of former psalmists were part of this singer's mental furniture, and -came to his lips, when he brought his own thanksgivings. Hupfeld -thinks it "strange" that "such a patched-up (_zusammengestoppelter_) -psalm" has "imposed" upon commentators, who speak of its depth and -tenderness; it is perhaps stranger that its use of older songs has -imposed upon so good a critic and hid these characteristics from -him. Four parts may be discerned, of which the first (vv. 1-4) -mainly describes the psalmist's peril; the second (vv. 5-9), his -deliverance; the third glances back to his alarm and thence draws -reasons for his vow of praise (vv. 10-14); and the fourth bases the -same vow on the remembrance of Jehovah's having loosed his bonds. - -The early verses of Psalm xviii. obviously colour the psalmist's -description of his distress. That psalm begins with an expression -of love to Jehovah, which is echoed here, though a different word -is employed. "I love" stands in ver. 1 without an object, just as -"I will call" does in ver. 2, and "I believed" and "I spoke" in -ver. 10. Probably "Thee" has fallen out, which would be the more -easy, as the next word begins with the letter which stands for it in -Hebrew. Cheyne follows Graetz in the conjectural adoption of the same -beginning as in ver. 10, "I am confident." This change necessitates -translating the following "for" as "that," whereas it is plainly to -be taken, like the "for" at the beginning of ver. 2, as causal. Ver. -3 is moulded on Psalm xviii. 5, with a modification of the metaphors -by the unusual expression "the narrows of Sheol." The word rendered -_narrows_ may be employed simply as = distress or straits, but it is -allowable to take it as picturing that gloomy realm as a confined -gorge, like the throat of a pass, from which the psalmist could find -no escape. He is like a creature caught in the toils of the hunter -Death. The stern rocks of a dark defile have all but closed upon him, -but, like a man from the bottom of a pit, he can send out one cry -before the earth falls in and buries him. He cried to Jehovah, and -the rocks flung his voice heavenwards. Sorrow is meant to drive to -God. When cries become prayers, they are not in vain. The revealed -character of Jehovah is the ground of a desperate man's hope. His -own Name is a plea which Jehovah will certainly honour. Many words -are needless when peril is sore and the suppliant is sure of God. -To name Him and to cry for deliverance are enough. "I beseech Thee" -represents a particle which is used frequently in this psalm, and by -some peculiarities in its use here indicates a late date. - -The psalmist does not pause to say definitely that he was delivered, -but breaks into the celebration of the Name on which he had called, -and from which the certainty of an answer followed. Since Jehovah -is gracious, righteous (as strictly adhering to the conditions He -has laid down), and merciful (as condescending in love to lowly and -imperfect men), there can be no doubt how He will deal with trustful -suppliants. The psalmist turns for a moment from his own experience -to sun himself in the great thought of the Name, and thereby to come -into touch with all who share his faith. The cry for help is wrung -out by personal need, but the answer received brings into fellowship -with a great multitude. Jehovah's character leads up in ver. 6 to a -broad truth as to His acts, for it ensures that He cannot but care -for the "simple," whose simplicity lays them open to assailants, -and whose single-hearted adhesion to God appeals unfailingly to His -heart. Happy the man who, like the psalmist, can give confirmation -from his own experience to the broad truths of God's protection to -ingenuous and guileless souls! Each individual may, if he will, thus -narrow to his own use the widest promises, and put "I" and "me" -wherever God has put "whosoever." If he does he will be able to turn -his own experience into universal maxims, and encourage others to put -"whosoever" where his grateful heart has put "I" and "me." - -The deliverance, which is thus the direct result of the Divine -character, and which extends to all the simple, and therefore included -the psalmist, leads to calm repose. The singer does not say so in cold -words, but beautifully wooes his "soul," his sensitive nature, which -had trembled with fear in death's net, to come back to its rest. The -word is in the plural, which may be only another indication of late -date, but is more worthily understood as expressing the completeness of -the repose, which in its fulness is only found in God, and is made the -more deep by contrast with previous "agitation." - -Vv. 8, 9, are quoted from Psalm lvi. 13 with slight variations, the -most significant of which is the change of "light" into "lands." -It is noticeable that the Divine deliverance is thus described as -surpassing the psalmist's petition. He asked, "Deliver my soul." -Bare escape was all that he craved, but he received, not only the -deliverance of his soul from death, but, over and above, his tears -were wiped away by a loving hand, his feet stayed by a strong arm. -God over-answers trustful cries, and does not give the minimum -consistent with safety, but the maximum of which we are capable. What -shall a grateful heart do with such benefits? "I will walk before -Jehovah in the lands of the living," joyously and unconstrainedly -(for so the form of the word "walk" implies), as ever conscious of -that presence which brings blessedness and requires holiness. The -paths appointed may carry the traveller far, but into whatever lands -he goes, he will have the same glad heart within to urge his feet and -the same loving eye above to beam guidance on him. - -The third part (vv. 10-14) recurs to the psalmist's mood in his -trouble, and bases on the retrospect of that and of God's mercy the -vow of praise. Ver. 10 may be variously understood. The "speaking" -may be taken as referring to the preceding expressions of trust or -thanksgivings for deliverance. The sentiment would then be that the -psalmist was confident that he should one day thus speak. So Cheyne; -or the rendering may be "I believed in that I spake thus"--_i.e._, -that he spake those trustful words of ver. 9 was the result of sheer -faith (so Kay). The thing spoken may also be the expressions which -follow, and this seems to yield the most satisfactory meaning. "Even -when I said, I am afflicted and men fail me, I had not lost my -faith." He is re-calling the agitation which shook him, but feels -that, through it all, there was an unshaken centre of rest in God. -The presence of doubt and fear does not prove the absence of trust. -There may live a spark of it, though almost buried below masses of -cold unbelief. What he said was the complaint that he was greatly -afflicted, and the bitter wail that all men deceive or disappoint. He -said so in his agitation (Psalm xxxi. 22). But even in recognising -the folly of trusting in men, he was in some measure trusting God, -and the trust, though tremulous, was rewarded. - -Again he hurries on to sing the issues of deliverance, without -waiting to describe it. That little dialogue of the devout soul with -itself (vv. 12, 13) goes very deep. It is an illuminative word as -to God's character, an emancipating word as to the true notion of -service to Him, a guiding word as to common life. For it declares -that men honour God most by taking His gifts with recognition of -the Giver, and that the return which He in His love seeks is only -our thankful reception of His mercy. A giver who desires but these -results is surely Love. A religion which consists first in accepting -God's gift and then in praising by lip and life Him who gives -banishes the religion of fear, of barter, of unwelcome restrictions -and commands. It is the exact opposite of the slavery which says, -"Thou art an austere man, reaping where thou didst not sow." It is -the religion of which the initial act is faith, and the continual -activity, the appropriation of God's spiritual gifts. In daily life -there would be less despondency and weakening regrets over vanished -blessings, if men were more careful to take and enjoy thankfully all -that God gives. But many of us have no eyes for other blessings, -because some one blessing is withdrawn or denied. If we treasured all -that is given, we should be richer than most of us are. - -In ver. 14 the particle of beseeching is added to "before," a -singular form of expression which seems to imply desire that the -psalmist may come into the temple with his vows. He may have -been thinking of the "sacrificial meal in connection with the -peace-offerings." In any case, blessings received in solitude should -impel to public gratitude. God delivers His suppliants that they may -magnify Him before men. - -The last part (vv. 15-19) repeats the refrain of ver. 14, but with a -different setting. Here the singer generalises his own experience, -and finds increase of joy in the thought of the multitude who dwell -safe under the same protection. The more usual form of expression -for the idea in ver. 15 is "their _blood_ is precious" (Psalm lxxii. -14). The meaning is that the death of God's saints is no trivial -thing in God's eyes, to be lightly permitted. (Compare the contrasted -thought, xliv. 12.) Then, on the basis of that general truth, is built -ver. 16, which begins singularly with the same beseeching word which -has already occurred in vv. 4 and 14. Here it is not followed by an -expressed petition, but is a yearning of desire for continued or -fuller manifestation of God's favour. The largest gifts, most fully -accepted and most thankfully recognised, still leave room for longing -which is not pain, because it is conscious of tender relations with -God that guarantee its fulfilment. "I am Thy servant." Therefore the -longing which has no words needs none. "Thou hast loosed my bonds." His -thoughts go back to "the cords of death" (ver. 3), which had held him -so tightly. God's hand has slackened them, and, by freeing him from -that bondage, has bound him more closely than before to Himself. "Being -made free from sin, ye became the slaves of righteousness." So, in the -full blessedness of received deliverance, the grateful heart offers -itself to God, as moved by His mercies to become a living sacrifice, -and calls on the Name of Jehovah, in its hour of thankful surrender, -as it had called on that Name in its time of deep distress. Once more -the lonely suppliant, who had waded such deep waters without companion -but Jehovah, seeks to feel himself one of the glad multitude in the -courts of the house of Jehovah, and to blend his single voice in the -shout of a nation's praise. We suffer and struggle for the most part -alone. Grief is a hermit, but Joy is sociable; and thankfulness desires -listeners to its praise. The perfect song is the chorus of a great -"multitude which no man can number." - - - - - PSALM CXVII. - - 1 Praise Jehovah, all nations, - Laud Him, all peoples. - 2 For great is His lovingkindness over us, - And the troth of Jehovah endures for ever. - Hallelujah. - - -This shortest of the psalms is not a fragment, though some MSS. attach -it to the preceding and some to the following psalm. It contains -large "riches in a narrow room," and its very brevity gives force to -it. Paul laid his finger on its special significance, when he quoted -it in proof that God meant His salvation to be for the whole race. -Jewish narrowness was an after-growth and a corruption. The historical -limitations of God's manifestation to a special nation were means to -its universal diffusion. The fire was gathered in a grate, that it -might warm the whole house. All men have a share in what God does for -Israel. His grace was intended to fructify through it to all. The -consciousness of being the special recipients of Jehovah's mercy was -saved from abuse, by being united with the consciousness of being -endowed with blessing that they might diffuse blessing. - -Nor is the psalmist's thought of what Israel's experience proclaimed -concerning God's character less noteworthy. As often, lovingkindness -is united with troth or faithfulness as twin stars which shine out -in all God's dealings with His people. That lovingkindness is -"mighty over us"--the word used for _being mighty_ has the sense -of _prevailing_, and so "where sin abounded, grace did much more -abound." The permanence of the Divine Lovingkindness is guaranteed -by God's Troth, by which the fulfilment of every promise and the -prolongation of every mercy are sealed to men. These two fair -messengers have appeared in yet fairer form than the psalmist knew, -and the world has to praise Jehovah for a world-wide gift, first -bestowed on and rejected by a degenerate Israel, which thought that -it owned the inheritance, and so lost it. - - - - - PSALM CXVIII. - - 1 Give thanks to Jehovah, for He is good, - For His lovingkindness endures for ever. - 2 O let Israel say, - That His lovingkindness endures for ever. - 3 O let the house of Aaron say, - That His lovingkindness endures for ever. - 4 O let those who fear Jah say, - That His lovingkindness endures for ever. - - 5 Out of the strait place I called on Jah, - Jah answered me [by bringing me out] into an open place. - 6 Jehovah is for me, I will not fear, - What can man do to me? - 7 Jehovah is for me, as my helper, - And I shall gaze on my haters. - - 8 Better is it to take refuge in Jehovah - Than to trust in man. - 9 Better is it to take refuge in Jehovah - Than to trust in princes. - - 10 All nations beset me round about; - In the name of Jehovah will I cut them down. - 11 They have beset me round about, yea, round about beset me; - In the name of Jehovah will I cut them down. - 12 They beset me round about like bees, - They were extinguished like a thorn fire; - In the name of Jehovah will I cut them down. - 13 Thou didst thrust sore at me that I might fall, - But Jehovah helped me. - 14 Jah is my strength and song, - And He is become my salvation. - 15 The sound of shrill shouts of joy and salvation is [heard] in - the tents of the righteous; - The right hand of Jehovah does prowess. - 16 The right hand of Jehovah is exalted, - The right hand of Jehovah does prowess. - - 17 I shall not die, but live, - And I tell forth the works of Jah. - 18 Jah has chastened me sore, - But to death He has not given me up. - 19 Open ye to me the gates of righteousness, - I will go in by them, I will thank Jah. - - 20 This is the gate of Jehovah: - The righteous may go in by it. - - 21 I will thank Thee, for Thou hast answered me, - And art become my salvation. - - 22 The stone [which] the builders rejected - Is become the head [stone] of the corner. - 23 From Jehovah did this come to pass, - It is wonderful in our eyes. - 24 This is the day [which] Jehovah has made, - Let us leap for joy and be glad in it. - - 25 O, I beseech Thee, Jehovah, save, I beseech; - O, I beseech Thee, Jehovah, give prosperity. - - 26 Blessed be he that comes in the name of Jehovah, - We bless you from the house of Jehovah. - 27 Jehovah is God, and He has given us light; - Order the bough-bearing procession,-- - To the horns of the altar! - - 28 My God art Thou, and I will thank Thee, - My God, I will exalt Thee. - - 29 Give thanks to Jehovah, for He is good, - For His lovingkindness endures for ever. - - -This is unmistakably a psalm for use in the Temple worship, and -probably meant to be sung antiphonally, on some day of national -rejoicing (ver. 24). A general concurrence of opinion points to the -period of the Restoration from Babylon as its date, as in the case -of many psalms in this Book V., but different events connected with -that restoration have been selected. The psalm implies the completion -of the Temple, and therefore shuts out any point prior to that. -Delitzsch fixes on the dedication of the Temple as the occasion; but -the view is still more probable which supposes that it was sung on -the great celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles, recorded in Neh. -viii. 14-18. In later times ver. 25 was the festal cry raised while -the altar of burnt-offering was solemnly compassed, once on each of -the first six days of the Feast of Tabernacles, and seven times on -the seventh. This seventh day was called the "Great Hosanna; and not -only the prayers at the Feast of Tabernacles, but even the branches -of osiers (including the myrtles), which are bound to the palm branch -(_Lulab_), were called Hosannas" (Delitzsch). The allusions in the -psalm fit the circumstances of the time in question. Stier, Perowne, -and Baethgen concur in preferring this date: the last-named critic, -who is very slow to recognise indications of specific dates, speaks -with unwonted decisiveness, when he writes, "I believe that I can -say with certainty, Psalm cxviii. was sung for the first time at -the Feast of Tabernacles in the year 444 B.C." Cheyne follows his -usual guides in pointing to the purification and reconstruction of -the Temple by Judas Maccabaeus as "fully adequate to explain alike -the tone and the expressions." He is "the terrible hero," to whose -character the refrain, "In the name of Jehovah I will cut them down," -corresponds. But the allusions in the psalm are quite as appropriate -to any other times of national jubilation and yet of danger, such as -that of the Restoration, and Judas the Maccabee had no monopoly of -the warrior trust which flames in that refrain. - -Apparently the psalm falls into two halves, of which the former -(vv. 1-16) seems to have been sung as a processional hymn while -approaching the sanctuary, and the latter (vv. 17-29), partly at the -Temple gates, partly by a chorus of priests within, and partly by the -procession when it had entered. Every reader recognises traces of -antiphonal singing; but it is difficult to separate the parts with -certainty. A clue may possibly be found by noting that verses marked -by the occurrence of "I," "me," and "my" are mingled with others more -impersonal. The personified nation is clearly the speaker of the -former class of verses, which tells a connected story of distress, -deliverance, and grateful triumph; while the other less personal -verses generalise the experience of the first speaker, and sustain -substantially the part of the chorus in a Greek play. In the first -part of the psalm we may suppose that a part of the procession sang -the one and another portion the other series; while in the second -part (vv. 17-29) the more personal verses were sung by the whole -_cortege_ arrived at the Temple, and the more generalised other part -was taken by a chorus of priests or Levites within the sanctuary. -This distribution of verses is occasionally uncertain, but on the -whole is clear, and aids the understanding of the psalm. - -First rings out from the full choir the summons to praise, which -peculiarly belonged to the period of the Restoration (Ezra iii. 11; -Psalms cvi. 1, cvii. 1). As in Psalm cxv., three classes are called -on: the whole house of Israel, the priests, and "those who fear -Jehovah"--_i.e._, aliens who have taken refuge beneath the wings of -Israel's God. The threefold designation expresses the thrill of joy -in the recovery of national life; the high estimate of the priesthood -as the only remaining God-appointed order, now that the monarchy -was swept away; and the growing desire to draw the nations into the -community of God's people. - -Then, with ver. 5, the single voice begins. His experience, now to -be told, is the reason for the praise called for in the previous -verses. It is the familiar sequence reiterated in many a psalm and -many a life,--distress, or "a strait place" (Psalm cxvi. 3), a cry -to Jehovah, His answer by enlargement, and a consequent triumphant -confidence, which has warrant in the past for believing that no hand -can hurt him whom Jehovah's hand helps. Many a man passes through -the psalmist's experience without thereby achieving the psalmist's -settled faith and power to despise threatening calamities. We fail -both in recounting clearly to ourselves our deliverances and in -drawing assurance from them for the future. Ver. 5_b_ is a pregnant -construction. He "answered me in [or, into] an open place"--_i.e._, -by bringing me into it. The contrast of a narrow gorge and a wide -plain picturesquely expresses past restraints and present freedom -of movement. Ver. 6 is taken from Psalm lvi. 9, 11; and ver. 7 is -influenced by Psalm liv. 4, and reproduces the peculiar expression -occurring there, "Jehovah is among my helpers,"--on which compare -remarks on that passage. - -Vv. 8, 9, are impersonal, and generalise the experience of the -preceding verses. They ring out loud, like a trumpet, and are the -more intense for reiteration. Israel was but a feeble handful. Its -very existence seemed to depend on the caprice of the protecting -kings who had permitted its return. It had had bitter experience of -the unreliableness of a monarch's whim. Now, with superb reliance, -which was felt by the psalmist to be the true lesson of the immediate -past, it peals out its choral confidence in Jehovah with a "heroism -of faith which may well put us to the blush." These verses surpass -the preceding in that they avow that faith in Jehovah makes men -independent of human helpers, while the former verses declared that -it makes superior to mortal foes. Fear of and confidence in man are -both removed by trust in God. But it is perhaps harder to be weaned -from the confidence than to rise above the fear. - -The individual experience is resumed in vv. 10-14. The energetic -reduplications strengthen the impression of multiplied attacks, -corresponding with the facts of the Restoration period. The same -impression is accentuated by the use in ver. 11_a_ of two forms of -the same verb, and in ver. 12_a_ by the metaphor of a swarm of angry -bees (Deut. i. 44). Numerous, venomous, swift, and hard to strike -at as the enemies were, buzzing and stinging around, they were but -insects after all, and a strong hand could crush them. The psalmist -does not merely look to God to interpose for him, as in vv. 6, 7, but -expects that God will give him power to conquer by the use of his -own strengthened arm. We are not only objects of Divine protection, -but organs of Divine power. Trusting in the revealed character of -Jehovah, we shall find conquering energy flowing into us from Him, -and the most fierce assaults will die out as quickly as a fire of -dry thorn twigs, which sinks into ashes the sooner the more it -crackles and blazes. Then the psalmist individualises the multitude -of foes, just as the collective Israel is individualised, and brings -assailants and assailed down to two antagonists, engaged in desperate -duel. But a third Person intervenes. "Jehovah helped me" (ver. 13); -as in old legends, the gods on their immortal steeds charged at the -head of the hosts of their worshippers. Thus delivered, the singer -breaks into the ancient strain, which had gone up on the shores of -the sullen sea that rolled over Pharaoh's army, and is still true -after centuries have intervened: "Jah is my strength and song, and He -is become my salvation." Miriam sang it, the restored exiles sang it, -tried and trustful men in every age have sung and will sing it, till -there are no more foes; and then, by the shores of the sea of glass -mingled with fire, the calm victors will lift again the undying "song -of Moses and of the Lamb." - -Vv. 15, 16, are probably best taken as sung by the chorus, -generalising and giving voice to the emotions excited by the -preceding verses. The same reiteration which characterised vv. 8, -9, reappears here. Two broad truths are built on the individual -voice's autobiography: namely, that trust in Jehovah and consequent -conformity to His law are never in vain, but always issue in joy; and -that God's power, when put forth, always conquers. "The tents of the -righteous" may possibly allude to the "tabernacles" constructed for -the feast, at which the song was probably sung. - -Vv. 17-19 belong to the individual voice. The procession has reached -the Temple. Deeper thoughts than before now mark the retrospect of past -trial and deliverance. Both are recognised to be from Jehovah. It is -He who has corrected, severely indeed, but still "in measure, not to -bring to nothing, but to make capable and recipient of fuller life." -The enemy thrust sore, with intent to make Israel fall; but God's -strokes are meant to make us stand the firmer. It is beautiful that -all thought of human foes has faded away, and God only is seen in all -the sorrow. But His chastisement has wider purposes than individual -blessedness. It is intended to make its objects the heralds of His -name to the world. Israel is beginning to lay to heart more earnestly -its world-wide vocation to "tell forth the works of Jehovah." The -imperative obligation of all who have received delivering help from Him -is to become missionaries of His name. The reed is cut and pared thin -and bored with hot irons, and the very pith of it extracted, that it -may be fit to be put to the owner's lips, and give out music from his -breath. Thus conscious of its vocation and eager to render its due of -sacrifice and praise, Israel asks that "the gates of righteousness" may -be opened for the entrance of the long procession. The Temple doors are -so called, because Righteousness is the condition of entrance (Isa. -xxvi. 2: compare Psalm xxiv.). - -Ver. 20 may belong to the individual voice, but is perhaps better -taken as the answer from within the Temple, of the priests or Levites -who guarded the closed doors, and who now proclaim what must be -the character of those who would tread the sacred courts. The gate -(not as in ver. 19, _gates_) belongs to Jehovah, and therefore -access by it is permitted to none but the righteous. That is an -everlasting truth. It is possible to translate, "This is the gate -_to_ Jehovah"--_i.e._, by which one comes to His presence; and that -rendering would bring out still more emphatically the necessity of -the condition laid down: "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." - -The condition is supposed to be met; for in ver. 21 the individual -voice again breaks into thanksgiving, for being allowed once more to -stand in the house of Jehovah. "Thou hast answered me": the psalmist -had already sung that Jah had answered him (ver. 5). "And art become -my salvation": he had already hailed Jehovah as having become such -(ver. 14). God's deliverance is not complete till full communion -with Him is enjoyed. Dwelling in His house is the crown of all His -blessings. We are set free from enemies, from sins and fears and -struggles, that we may abide for ever with Him, and only then do we -realise the full sweetness of His redeeming hand, when we stand in -His presence and commune evermore with Him. - -Vv. 22, 23, 24, probably belong to the priestly chorus. They set -forth the great truth made manifest by restored Israel's presence -in the rebuilt Temple. The metaphor is suggested by the incidents -connected with the rebuilding. The "stone" is obviously Israel, weak, -contemptible, but now once more laid as the very foundation stone -of God's house in the world. The broad truth taught by its history -is that God lays as the basis of His building--_i.e._, uses for the -execution of His purposes--that which the wisdom of man despises and -tosses aside. There had been abundant faint-heartedness among even the -restored exiles. The nations around had scoffed at these "feeble Jews," -and the scoffs had not been without echoes in Israel itself. Chiefly, -the men of position and influence, who ought to have strengthened -drooping courage, had been infected with the tendency to rate low the -nation's power, and to think that their enterprise was destined to -disaster. But now the Temple is built, and the worshippers stand in it. -What does that teach but that all has been God's doing? So wonderful is -it, so far beyond expectation, that the very objects of such marvellous -intervention are amazed to find themselves where they stand. So rooted -is our tendency to unbelief that, when God does what He has sworn -to do, we are apt to be astonished with a wonder which reveals the -greatness of our past incredulity. No man who trusts God ought to be -surprised at God's answers to trust. - -The general truth contained here is that of Paul's great saying, "God -hath chosen the weak things of the world that He might put to shame -the things that are strong." It is the constant law, not because -God chooses unfit instruments, but because the world's estimates of -fitness are false, and the qualities which it admires are irrelevant -with regard to His designs, while the requisite qualities are of -another sort altogether. Therefore, it is a law which finds its -highest exemplification in _the_ foundation for God's true temple, -other than which can no man lay. "Israel is not only a figure of -Christ--there is an organic unity between Him and them. Whatever, -therefore, is true of Israel in a lower sense is true in its highest -sense of Christ. If Israel is the rejected stone made the head of the -corner, this is far truer of Him who was indeed rejected of men, but -chosen of God and precious, the corner stone of the one great living -temple of the redeemed" (Perowne). - -Ver. 24 is best regarded as the continuation of the choral praise in -vv. 22, 23. "The day" is that of the festival now in process, the -joyful culmination of God's manifold deliverances. It is a day in -which joy is duty, and no heart has a right to be too heavy to leap -for gladness. Private sorrows enough many of the jubilant worshippers -no doubt had, but the sight of the Stone laid as the head of the -corner should bring joy even to such. If sadness was ingratitude -and almost treason then, what sorrow should now be so dense that it -cannot be pierced by the Light which lighteth every man? The joy of -the Lord should float, like oil on stormy waves, above our troublous -sorrows, and smooth their tossing. - -Again the single voice rises, but not now in thanksgiving, as might -have been expected, but in plaintive tones of earnest imploring -(ver. 25). Standing in the sanctuary, Israel is conscious of its -perils, its need, its weakness, and so with pathetic reiteration of -the particle of entreaty, which occurs twice in each clause of the -verse, cries for continued deliverance from continuing evils, and -for prosperity in the course opening before it. The "day" in which -unmingled gladness inspires our songs has not yet dawned, fair as -are the many days which Jehovah has made. In the earthly house of -the Lord thanksgiving must ever pass into petition. An unending day -comes, when there will be nothing to dread, and no need for the -sadder notes occasioned by felt weakness and feared foes. - -Vv. 26, 27, come from the chorus of priests, who welcome the entering -procession, and solemnly pronounce on them the benediction of -Jehovah. They answer, in His name, the prayer of ver. 25, and bless -the single leader of the procession and the multitudes following. The -use of ver. 26_a_ and of the "Hosanna" (an attempted transliteration -of the Hebrew "Save I beseech") from ver. 25 at Christ's entrance -into Jerusalem probably shows that the psalm was regarded as -Messianic. It is so, in virtue of the relation already referred to -between Israel and Christ. He "cometh in the name of Jehovah" in a -deeper sense than did Israel, the servant of the Lord. - -Ver. 27_a_ recalls the priestly benediction (Numb. vi. 25), and -thankfully recognises its ample fulfilment in Israel's history, -and especially in the dawning of new prosperity now. Ver. 27_b_, -_c_, is difficult. Obviously it should be a summons to worship, as -thanksgiving for the benefits acknowledged in _a_. But what is the -act of worship intended is hard to say. The rendering "Bind the -sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar," has against -it the usual meaning of the word rendered _sacrifice_, which is -rather _festival_, and the fact that the last words of the verse -cannot possibly be translated "_to_ the horns," etc., but must mean -"as far as" or "even up to the horns," etc. There must therefore -be a good deal supplied in the sentence; and commentators differ -as to how to fill the gap. Delitzsch supposes that "the number of -the sacrificial animals is to be so great that the whole space of -the courts of the priests becomes full of them, and the binding of -them has therefore to take place even up to the horns of the altar." -Perowne takes the expression to be a pregnant one for "till [the -victim] is sacrificed and its blood sprinkled on the horns of the -altar." So Hupfeld, following Chaldee and some Jewish interpreters. -Others regard the supposed ellipsis as too great to be natural, and -take an entirely different view. The word rendered _sacrifice_ in the -former explanation is taken to mean a _procession_ round the altar, -which is etymologically justifiable, and is supported by the known -custom of making such a circuit during the Feast of Tabernacles. -For "cords" this explanation would read _branches_ or _boughs_, -which is also warranted. But what does "binding a procession with -boughs" mean? Various answers are given. Cheyne supposes that the -branches borne in the hands of the members of the procession were -in some unknown way used to bind or link them together before they -left the Temple. Baethgen takes "with boughs" as = "bearing boughs," -with which he supposes that the bearers touched the altar horns, for -the purpose of transferring to themselves the holiness concentrated -there. Either explanation has difficulties,--the former in requiring -an unusual sense for the word rendered _sacrifice_; the latter in -finding a suitable meaning for that translated _bind_. In either -_c_ is but loosely connected with _b_, and is best understood as -an exclamation. The verb rendered _bind_ is used in 1 Kings xx. -14, 2 Chron. xiii. 3, in a sense which fits well with "procession" -here--_i.e._, that of marshalling an army for battle. If this meaning -is adopted, _b_ will be the summons to order the bough-bearing -procession, and _c_ a call to march onwards, so as to encircle -the altar. This meaning of the obscure verse may be provisionally -accepted, while owning that our ignorance of the ceremonial referred -to prevents complete understanding of the words. - -Once more Miriam's song supplies ancient language of praise for -recent mercies, and the personified Israel compasses the altar with -thanksgiving (ver. 28). Then the whole multitude, both of those who -had come up to the Temple and of those who had welcomed them there, -join in the chorus of praise with which the psalm begins and ends, -and which was so often pealed forth in those days of early joy for -the new manifestations of that Lovingkindness which endures through -all days, both those of past evil and those of future hoped-for good. - - - - - PSALM CXIX. - - -It is lost labour to seek for close continuity or progress in this -psalm. One thought pervades it--the surpassing excellence of the -Law; and the beauty and power of the psalm lie in the unwearied -reiteration of that single idea. There is music in its monotony, -which is subtilely varied. Its verses are like the ripples on a sunny -sea, alike and impressive in their continual march, and yet each -catching the light with a difference, and breaking on the shore in a -tone of its own. A few elements are combined into these hundred and -seventy-six gnomic sentences. One or other of the usual synonyms for -the Law--viz., word, saying, statutes, commandments, testimonies, -judgments--occurs in every verse, except vv. 122 and 132. The prayers -"Teach me, revive me, preserve me--according to Thy word," and the -vows "I will keep, observe, meditate on, delight in---Thy law," are -frequently repeated. There are but few pieces in the psalmist's -kaleidoscope, but they fall into many shapes of beauty; and though -all his sentences are moulded after the same general plan, the -variety within such narrow limits is equally a witness of poetic -power which turns the fetters of the acrostic structure into helps, -and of devout heartfelt love for the Law of Jehovah. - -The psalm is probably of late date; but its allusions to the -singer's circumstances, whether they are taken as autobiographical or -as having reference to the nation, are too vague to be used as clues -to the period of its composition. An early poet is not likely to have -adopted such an elaborate acrostic plan, and the praises of the Law -naturally suggest a time when it was familiar in an approximately -complete form. It may be that the rulers referred to in vv. 23, -46, were foreigners, but the expression is too general to draw a -conclusion from. It may be that the double-minded (ver. 113), who err -from God's statutes (ver. 118), and forsake His law (ver. 53), are -Israelites who have yielded to the temptations to apostatise, which -came with the early Greek period, to which Baethgen, Cheyne, and -others would assign the psalm. But these expressions, too, are of so -general a nature that they do not give clear testimony of date. - - - Sec. [H] - - 1 Blessed the perfect in [their] way, - Who walk in the law of Jehovah! - 2 Blessed they who keep His testimonies, - That seek Him with the whole heart, - 3 [Who] also have done no iniquity, - [But] have walked in His ways! - 4 Thou hast commanded Thy precepts, - That we should observe them diligently. - 5 O that my ways were established - To observe Thy statutes! - 6 Then shall I not be ashamed, - When I give heed to all Thy commandments. - 7 I will thank Thee with uprightness of heart, - When I learn Thy righteous judgments. - 8 Thy statutes will I observe; - Forsake me not utterly. - -The first three verses are closely connected. They set forth in -general terms the elements of the blessedness of the doers of the -Law. To walk in it--_i.e._, to order the active life in conformity -with its requirements--ensures perfectness. To keep God's testimonies -is at once the consequence and the proof of seeking Him with -whole-hearted devotion and determination. To walk in His ways is the -preservative from evil-doing. And such men cannot but be blessed with -a deep sacred blessedness, which puts to shame coarse and turbulent -delights, and feeds its pure fires from God Himself. Whether these -verses are taken as exclamation or declaration, they lead up -naturally to ver. 4, which reverently gazes upon the loving act of -God in the revelation of His will in the Law, and bethinks itself of -the obligations bound on us by that act. It is of God's mercy that -He has commanded, and His words are meant to sway our wills, since -He has broken the awful silence, not merely to instruct us, but to -command; and nothing short of practical obedience will discharge -our duties to His revelation. So the psalmist betakes himself to -prayer, that he may be helped to realise the purpose of God in giving -the Law. His contemplation of the blessedness of obedience and of -the Divine act of declaring His will moves him to longing, and -his consciousness of weakness and wavering makes the longing into -prayer that his wavering may be consolidated into fixity of purpose -and continuity of obedience. When a man's ways are established to -observe, they will be established by observing, God's statutes. For -nothing can put to the blush one whose eye is directed to these. - - "Whatever record leap to light, - He never shall be shamed." - -Nor will he cherish hopes that fail, nor desires that when -accomplished, are bitter of taste. To give heed to the commandments -is the condition of learning them and recognising how righteous they -are; and such learning makes the learner's heart righteous like them, -and causes it to run over in thankfulness for the boon of knowledge -of God's will. By all these thoughts the psalmist is brought to his -fixed resolve in ver. 8, to do what God meant him to do when He gave -the Law; and what the singer had just longed that he might be able to -do--namely, to observe the statutes. But in his resolve he remembers -his weakness, and therefore he glides into prayer for that Presence -without which resolves are transient and abortive. - - - Sec. [H] - - 9 Wherewith shall a young man cleanse his path? - By taking heed, according to Thy word. - 10 With my whole heart have I sought Thee, - Let me not wander from Thy commandments. - 11 In my heart have I hid Thy saying, - That I may not sin against Thee. - 12 Blessed art Thou, Jehovah, - Teach me Thy statutes. - 13 With my lips have I rehearsed - All the judgments of Thy mouth. - 14 In the way of Thy testimonies have I rejoiced, - As over all [kinds of] wealth. - 15 In Thy precepts will I meditate, - And will have respect to all Thy paths. - 16 In Thy statutes will I delight myself, - I will not forget Thy word. - -The inference drawn from ver. 9, that the psalmist was a young man, -is precarious. The language would be quite as appropriate to an aged -teacher desirous of guiding impetuous youth to sober self-control. -While some verses favour the hypothesis of the author's youth (ver. -141, and perhaps vv. 99, 100), the tone of the whole, its rich -experience and comprehensive grasp of the manifold relations of the -Law to life, imply maturity of years and length of meditation. The -psalm is the ripe fruit of a life which is surely past its spring. -But it is extremely questionable whether these apparently personal -traits are really so. Much rather is the poet "thinking ... of the -individuals of different ages and spiritual attainments who may use -his works" (Cheyne, _in loc._). - -The word rendered "By taking heed" has already occurred in vv. 4, 5 -("observe"). The careful study of the Word must be accompanied with -as careful study of self. The object observed there was the Law; -here, it is the man himself. Study God's law, says the psalmist, and -study Thyself in its light; so shall youthful impulses be bridled, -and the life's path be kept pure. That does not sound so like a young -man's thought as an old man's maxim, in which are crystallised many -experiences. - -The rest of the section intermingles petitions, professions, and -vows, and is purely personal. The psalmist claims that he is one of -those whom he has pronounced blessed, inasmuch as he _has_ "sought" -God with his "whole heart." Such longing is no mere idle aspiration, -but must be manifested in obedience, as ver. 2 has declared. If a -man longs for God, he will best find Him by doing His will. But no -heart-desire is so rooted as to guarantee that it shall not die, nor -is past obedience a certain pledge of a like future. Wherefore the -psalmist prays, not in reliance on his past, but in dread that he -may falsify it, "Let me not wander." He had not only sought God in -his heart, but had there hid God's law, as its best treasure, and as -an inward power controlling and stimulating. Evil cannot flow from a -heart in which God's law is lodged. That is the tree which sweetens -the waters of the fountain. But the cry "Teach me Thy statutes" -would be but faltering, if the singer could not rise above himself, -and take heart by gazing upon God, whose own great character is the -guarantee that He will not leave a seeking soul in ignorance. - -Professions and vows now take the place of petitions. "From the -abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh," and the word hid in it -will certainly not be concealed. It is buried deep, that it may grow -high. It is hidden, that it may come abroad. Therefore ver. 13 tells -of bold utterance, which is as incumbent on men as obedient deeds. - -A sane estimate of earthly good will put it decisively below the -knowledge of God and of His will. Lives which despise what the world -calls riches, because they are smitten with the desire of any sort -of wisdom, are ever nobler than those which keep the low levels. And -highest of all is the life which gives effect to its conviction that -man's true treasure is to know God's mind and will. To rejoice in -His testimonies is to have wealth that cannot be lost and pleasures -that cannot wither. That glad estimate will surely lead to happy -meditation on them, by which their worth shall be disclosed and their -sweep made plain. The miser loves to tell his gold; the saint, to -ponder his wealth in God. The same double direction of the mind, -already noted, reappears in ver. 15, where quiet meditation on God's -statutes is associated with attention to the ways which are called -His, as being pointed out by, and pleasing to, Him, but are ours, as -being walked in by us. Inward delight in, and practical remembrance -of, the Law are vowed in ver. 16, which covers the whole field of -contemplative and active life. - - - Sec. [H] - - 17 Deal bountifully with Thy servant, that I may live, - So will I observe Thy word. - 18 Open my eyes, that I may behold - Wonders out of Thy law. - 19 A stranger am I on the earth, - Hide not from me Thy commandments. - 20 Crushed is my soul with longing - Towards Thy judgments at all times. - 21 Thou hast rebuked the proud [so that they are] cursed, - Those who wander from Thy commandments. - 22 Remove from me reproach and shame, - For Thy testimonies do I keep. - 23 Princes also sit and speak with one another against me, - Thy servant meditates on Thy statutes. - 24 Also Thy testimonies are my delight, - The men of my counsel. - -In ver. 17 the psalmist desires continued life, mainly because it -affords the opportunity of continued obedience. He will "observe Thy -word," not only in token of gratitude, but because to him life is -precious chiefly because in its activities he can serve God. Such -a reason for wishing to live may easily change to a willingness to -die, as it did with Paul, who had learned that a better obedience was -possible when he had passed through the dark gates, and therefore -could say, "To die is gain." Vv. 18, 19, are connected, in so far as -the former desires subjective illumination and the latter objective -revelation. Opened eyes are useless, if commandments are hidden; and -the disclosure of the latter is in vain unless there are eyes to -see them. Two great truths lie in the former petition--namely, that -scales cover our spiritual vision which only God can take away, and -that His revelation has in its depths truths and treasures which can -only be discerned by His help. The cognate petition in ver. 19 is -based upon the pathetic thought that man is a stranger on earth, and -therefore needs what will take away his sense of homelessness and -unrest. All other creatures are adapted to their environments, but he -has a consciousness that he is an exile here, a haunting, stinging -sense, which vaguely feels after repose in his native land. "Thy -commandments" can still it. To know God's will, with knowledge which -is acceptance and love, gives rest, and makes every place a mansion -in the Father's house. - -There may possibly be a connection between vv. 20 and 21--the -terrible fate of those who wander from the commandments, as described -in the latter verse, being the motive for the psalmist's longing -expressed in the former. The "judgments" for which he longed, -with a yearning which seemed to bruise his soul are not, as might -be supposed, God's judicial acts, but the word is a synonym for -"commandments," as throughout the psalm. - -The last three verses of the section appear to be linked together. -They relate to the persecutions of the psalmist for his faithfulness -to God's law. In ver. 22 he prays that reproach and shame, which -wrapped him like a covering, may be lifted from him; and his plea -in ver. 22_b_ declares that he lay under these because he was true -to God's statutes. In ver. 23 we see the source of the reproach and -shame, in the conclave of men in authority, whether foreign princes -or Jewish rulers, who were busy slandering him and plotting his ruin; -while, with wonderful beauty, the contrasted picture in _b_ shows the -object of that busy talk, sitting silently absorbed in meditation on -the higher things of God's statutes. As long as a man can do that, -he has a magic circle drawn round him, across which fears and cares -cannot step. Ver. 24 heightens the impression of the psalmist's rest. -"Also Thy testimonies are my delight"--not only the subjects of his -meditation, but bringing inward sweetness, though earth is in arms -against him; and not only are they his delights, but "the men of his -counsel," in whom he, solitary as he is, finds companionship that -arms him with resources against that knot of whispering enemies. - - - Sec. [H] - - 25 My soul cleaves to the dust, - Revive me according to Thy word. - 26 My ways I told and Thou answeredst me, - Teach me Thy statutes. - 27 The way of Thy precepts make me understand, - And I will meditate on Thy wonders. - 28 My soul weeps itself away for grief, - Raise me up according to Thy word. - 29 The way of lying remove from me, - And [with] Thy law be gracious to me. - 30 The way of faithfulness I have chosen, - Thy judgments have I set [before me]. - 31 I have cleaved to Thy testimonies; - Jehovah, put me not to shame. - 32 The way of Thy commandments will I run, - For Thou dost enlarge my heart. - -The exigencies of the acrostic plan are very obvious in this section, -five of the verses of which begin with "way" or "ways," and two -of the remaining three with "cleaves." The variety secured under -such conditions is remarkable. The psalmist's soul cleaves to the -dust--_i.e._, is bowed in mourning (cf. xliv. 25); but still, though -thus darkened by sorrow and weeping itself away for grief (ver. 28), -it cleaves to "Thy testimonies" (ver. 31). Happy in their sorrow are -they who, by reason of the force which bows their sensitive nature to -the dust, cling the more closely in their true selves to the declared -will of God! Their sorrow appeals to God's heart, and is blessed if it -dictates the prayer for His quickening (ver. 25). Their cleaving to His -law warrants their hope that He will not put them to shame. - -The first pair of verses in which "way" is the acrostic word (vv. -26, 27) sets "my ways" over against "the way of Thy precepts." The -psalmist has made God his confidant, telling Him all his life's -story, and has found continual answers, in gifts of mercy and inward -whispers. He asks, therefore, for further illumination, which will -be in accordance with these past mutual communications. Tell God thy -ways and He will teach thee His statutes. The franker our confession, -the more fervent our longing for fuller knowledge of His will. "The -way of Thy precepts" is the practical life according to these, the -ideal which shall rebuke and transform "my ways." The singer's -crooked course is spread before God, and he longs to see clearly -the straight path of duty, on which he vows that he will meditate, -and find wonders in the revelation of God's will. Many a sunbeam is -wasted for want of intent eyes. The prayer for understanding is vain -without the vow of pondering. The next pair of "way-" verses (vv. 29, -30) contrasts ways of "lying" and of "faithfulness"--_i.e._, sinful -life which is false towards God and erroneous in its foundation -maxims, and life which is true in practice to Him and to man's -obligations. The psalmist prays that the former may be put far from -him; for he feels that it is only too near, and his unhelped feet too -ready to enter on it. He recognises the inmost meaning of the Law as -an outcome of God's favour. It is not harsh, but glowing with love, -God's best gift. The prayer in ver. 29 has the psalmist's deliberate -choice in ver. 30 as its plea. That choice does not lift him above -the need of God's help, and it gives him a claim thereon. Our wills -may seem fixed, but the gap between choice and practice is wide, and -our feebleness will not bridge it, unless He strengthens us. So the -last verse of this section humbly vows to transform meditation and -choice into action, and to "run the way of God's commandments," in -thanksgiving for the joy with which, while the psalmist prays, he -feels that his heart swells. - - - Sec. [H] - - 33 Teach me, Jehovah, the way of Thy statutes, - And I will keep it to the end. - 34 Make me understand so that I may keep Thy law, - And I will observe it with [my] whole heart. - 35 Make me walk in the path of Thy commandments, - For in it I delight. - 36 Incline my heart to Thy testimonies, - And not to plunder. - 37 Make my eyes go aside from beholding vanity, - In Thy ways revive me. - 38 Confirm to Thy servant Thy promise, - Which tends to Thy fear. - 39 Make my reproach pass away which I dread, - For Thy judgments are good. - 40 Behold, I have longed for Thy precepts, - In Thy righteousness revive me. - -Vv. 33 and 34 are substantially identical in their prayer for -enlightenment and their vow of obedience. Both are based on the -conviction that outward revelation is incomplete without inward -illumination. Both recognise the necessary priority of enlightened -reason as condition of obedient action, and such action as the test -and issue of enlightenment. Both vow that knowledge shall not remain -barren. They differ in that the former verse pledges the psalmist -to obedience unlimited in time and the latter to obedience without -reservation. But even in uttering his vow the singer remembers his need -of God's help to keep it, and turns it, in ver. 35, into petition, -which he very significantly grounds on his heart's delight in the Law. -Warm as that delight may be, circumstances and flesh will cool it, -and it is ever a struggle to translate desires into deeds. Therefore -we need the sweet constraint of our Divine Helper to make us walk in -the right way. Again, in ver. 36 the preceding profession is caught -up and modulated into petition. "Incline my heart" stands to "In it -I delight," just as "Make me walk" does to "I will observe it." Our -purest joys in God and in His Will depend on Him for their permanence -and increase. Our hearts are apt to spill their affection on the earth, -even while we would bear the cup filled to God. And one chief rival of -"Thy testimonies" is worldly gain, from which there must be forcible -detachment in order to, and as accompaniment of, attachment to God. All -possessions which come between us and Him are "plunder," unjust gain. - -The heart is often led astray by the eyes. The senses bring fuel to -its unholy flames. Therefore, the next petition (ver. 37) asks that -they may be made, as it were, to pass on one side of tempting things, -which are branded as being "vanity," without real substance or worth, -however they may glitter and solicit the gaze. To look longingly on -earth's good makes us torpid in God's ways; and to be earnest in the -latter makes us dead to the former. There is but one real life for -men, the life of union with God and of obedience to His commandments. -Therefore, the singer prays to be revived in God's ways. Experience of -God's faithfulness to His plighted word will do much to deliver from -earth's glamour, as ver. 38 implies. The second clause is elliptical -in Hebrew, and is now usually taken as above, meaning that God's -promise fulfilled leads men to reverence Him. But the rendering "who is -[devoted] to Thy fear" is tenable and perhaps better. The "reproach" in -ver. 39 is probably that which would fall on the psalmist if he were -unfaithful to God's law. This interpretation gives the best meaning to -ver. 39_b_, which would then contain the reason for his desire to keep -the "judgments"--_i.e._, the commandments, not the judicial acts--which -he feels to be good. The section ends with a constantly recurring -strain. God's righteousness, His strict discharge of all obligations, -guarantees that no longing, turned to Him, can be left unsatisfied. The -languishing desire will be changed into fuller joy of more vigorous -life. The necessary precursor of deeper draughts from the Fountain -of Life is thirst for it, which faithfully turns aside from earth's -sparkling but drugged potions. - - - Sec. [H] - - 41 And let Thy lovingkindnesses come to me, Jehovah, - Thy salvation according to Thy promise. - 42 And I shall have a word to answer him that reproaches me, - For I trust in Thy word. - 43 And pluck not the word of truth out of my mouth utterly, - For I have waited for Thy judgments. - 44 And I would observe Thy law continually, - For ever and aye. - 45 And I would walk at liberty, - For I have sought Thy precepts. - 46 And I would speak of Thy testimonies before kings, - And not be ashamed. - 47 And I will delight myself in Thy judgments, - Which I love. - 48 And I will lift up my palms to Thy commandments [which I love], - And meditate on Thy statutes. - -There are practically no Hebrew words beginning with the letter -required as the initial in this section, except the copula -"and." Each verse begins with it, and it is best to retain it -in translation, so as to reproduce in some measure the original -impression of uniformity. The verses are aggregated rather than -linked. "And" sometimes introduces a consequence, as probably in -ver. 42, and sometimes is superfluous in regard to the sense. A -predominant reference to the duty of bearing witness to the Truth -runs through the section. The prayer in ver. 41 for the visits of -God's lovingkindnesses which, in their sum, make salvation, and are -guaranteed by His word of promise, is urged on the ground that, by -experience of these, the psalmist will have his answer ready for -all carpers who scoff at him and his patient faith. Such a prayer -is entirely accordant with the hypothesis that the speaker is the -collective Israel, but not less so with the supposition that he -is an individual. "Whereas I was blind, now I see" is an argument -that silences sarcasm. Ver. 43 carries on the thought of witnessing -and asks that "the word of truth"--_i.e._, the Law considered as -disclosure of truth rather than of duty--may not be snatched from the -witness's mouth, as it would be if God's promised lovingkindnesses -failed him. The condition of free utterance is rich experience. -If prayers had gone up in vain from the psalmist's lips, no glad -proclamation could come from them. - -The verbs at the beginnings of vv. 44-46 are best taken as optatives, -expressing what the psalmist would fain do, and, to some extent, has -done. There is no true religion without that longing for unbroken -conformity with the manifest will of God. Whoever makes that his -deepest desire, and seeks after God's precepts, will "walk at -liberty," or _at large_, for restraints that are loved are not bonds, -and freedom consists not in doing as I would, but in willing to do -as I ought. Strong in such emancipation from the hindrances of one's -own passions, and triumphant over external circumstances which may -mould, but not dominate, a God-obeying life, the psalmist would fain -open his mouth unabashed before rulers. The "kings" spoken of in ver. -46 may be foreign rulers, possibly the representatives of the Persian -monarch, or later alien sovereigns, or the expression may be quite -general, and the speaker be a private person, who feels his courage -rising as he enters into the liberty of perfect submission. - -Vv. 47, 48, are general expressions of delight in the Law. Lifting -the hands towards the commandments seems to be a figure for reverent -regard, or longing, as one wistfully stretches them out towards some -dear person or thing that one would fain draw closer. The phrase -"which I love" in ver. 48 overweights the clause, and is probably a -scribe's erroneous repetition of 47_b_. - - - Sec. [H] - - 49 Remember the word to Thy servant, - On which Thou hast caused me to hope. - 50 This is my comfort in my affliction, - That Thy promise has given me life. - 51 The proud have derided me exceedingly, - From Thy law I have not declined. - 52 I have remembered Thy judgments [which are] from of old, Jehovah, - And I have comforted myself. - 53 Fiery anger has seized me because of the wicked, - Who forsake Thy law. - 54 Thy statutes have been songs for me, - In my house of sojourning. - 55 I remembered Thy name in the night, Jehovah, - And observed Thy law. - 56 This good has been mine, - That I have kept Thy precepts. - -This section has only one verse of petition, the others being mainly -avowals of adherence to the Law in the face of various trials. -The single petition (ver. 49) pleads the relation of servant, as -giving a claim on the great Lord of the household, and adduces God's -having encouraged hope as imposing on Him an obligation to fulfil -it. Expectations fairly deduced from His word are prophets of their -own realisation. In ver. 50, "This" points to the fact stated in -_b_--namely, that the Word had already proved its power in the past -by quickening the psalmist to new courage and hope--and declares that -that remembered experience solaces his present sorrow. A heart that -has been revived by life-giving contact with the Word has a hidden -warmth beneath the deepest snows, and cleaves the more to that Word. - -Vv. 51-53 describe the attitude of the lover of the Law in presence -of the ungodly. He is as unmoved by shafts of ridicule as by the -heavier artillery of slander and plots (ver. 23). To be laughed out -of one's faith is even worse than to be terrified out of it. The -lesson is not needless in a day when adherence and obedience to -the Word are smiled at in so many quarters as indicating inferior -intelligence. The psalmist held fast by it, and while laughter, with -more than a trace of bitterness, rung about him, threw himself back -on God's ancient and enduring words, which made the scoffs sound very -hollow and transient (ver. 52). Righteous indignation, too, rises -in a devout soul at sight of men's departure from God's law (ver. -53). The word rendered "fiery anger" is found in xi. 6 ("a wind of -_burning_"), and is best taken as above, though some would render -_horror_. The wrath was not unmingled with compassion (ver. 136), -and, whilst it is clearly an emotion belonging to the Old Testament -rather than to the Christian type of devotion, it should be present, -in softened form, in our feelings towards evil. - -In ver. 54 the psalmist turns from gainsayers. He strikes again the -note of ver. 19, calling earth his place of transitory abode, or, -as we might say, his inn. The brevity of life would be crushing, -if God had not spoken to us. Since He has, the pilgrims can march -"with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads," and all about -their moving camp the sound of song may echo. To its lovers, God's -law is not "harsh and crabbed ... but musical as is Apollo's lute." -This psalm is one of the poet's songs. Even those of us who are not -singers can and should meditate on God's law, till its melodious -beauty is disclosed and its commandments, that sometimes sound stern, -set themselves to rhythm and harmony. As God's words took bitterness -out of the thought of mortality, so His name remembered in the night -brought light into darkness, whether physical or other. We often lose -our memory of God and our hold of His hand when in sorrow, and grief -sometimes thinks that it has a dispensation from obedience. So we -shall be the better for remembering the psalmist's experience, and -should, like him, cling to the Name in the dark, and then we shall -have light enough to "observe Thy law." Ver. 56 looks back on the -mingled life of good and evil, of which some of the sorrows have just -been touched, and speaks deep contentment with its portion. Whatever -else is withheld or withdrawn, that lot is blessed which has been -helped by God to keep His precepts, and they are happy and wise who -deliberately prefer that good to all beside. - - - Sec. [H] - - 57 My portion is Jehovah, - I have said that I would observe Thy words. - 58 I have sought Thy favour with my whole heart, - Be merciful to me according to Thy promise. - 59 I have thought on my ways, - And turned my feet to Thy testimonies. - 60 I hasted and delayed not - To observe Thy commandments. - 61 The cords of the wicked have enwrapped me, - Thy law have I not forgotten. - 62 At midnight will I rise to thank Thee, - Because of Thy righteous judgments. - 63 A companion am I of all who fear Thee, - And of those who observe Thy precepts. - 64 Of Thy lovingkindness, Jehovah, the earth is full, - Thy statutes do Thou teach me. - -Ver. 57 goes to the root of the matter in setting forth the resolve -of obedience as the result of the consciousness of possessing God. He -who feels, in his own happy heart, that Jehovah is his portion will -be moved thereby to vow to keep His words. This psalmist had learned -the evangelical lesson that he did not win God by keeping the Law, -but that he was moved to keep the Law because he had won God; and he -had also learned the companion truth, that the way to retain that -possession is obedience. - -Ver. 58 corresponds in some measure to ver. 57, but the order of -clauses is inverted, _a_ stating the psalmist's prayer, as ver. 57_b_ -did his resolve, and _b_ building on his cry the hope that God would -be truly his portion and bestow His favour on him. But the true ground -of our hope is not our most whole-hearted prayers, but God's promise. -The following five verses change from the key of petition into that -of profession of obedience to, and delight in, the Law. The fruit of -wise consideration of one's conduct is willing acceptance of God's law -as His witness of what is right for us. The only "ways" which sober -consideration will approve are those marked out in mercy by Him, and -meditation on conduct is worthless if it does not issue in turning our -feet into these. Without such meditation we shall wander on bye-ways -and lose ourselves. Want of thought ruins men (ver. 59). But such -turning of our feet to the right road has many foes, and chief among -them is lingering delay. Therefore resolve must never be let cool, -but be swiftly carried into action (ver. 60). The world is full of -snares, and they lie thick round our feet whenever these are turned -towards God's ways. The only means of keeping clear of them is to fix -heart and mind on God's law. Then we shall be able to pick our steps -among traps and pits (ver. 61). Physical weariness limits obedience, -and needful sleep relaxes nervous tension, so that many a strenuous -worker and noble aspirant falls beneath his daylight self in wakeful -night seasons. Blessed they who in the night see visions of God and -meditate on His law, not on earthly vanities or aims (ver. 62). Society -has its temptations as solitude has. The man whose heart has fed in -secret on God and His law will naturally gravitate towards like-minded -people. Our relation to God and His uttered will should determine our -affinities with men, and it is a bad sign when natural impulses do not -draw us to those who fear God. Two men who have that fear in common -are liker each other in their deepest selves, however different they -may be in other respects, than either of them is to those to whom -he is likest in surface characteristics and unlike in this supreme -trait (ver. 63). One pathetic petition closes the section. In ver. -19 the psalmist had based his prayer for illumination on his being -a stranger on earth; here he grounds it on the plenitude of God's -loving-kindness, which floods the world. It is the same plea in another -form. All creatures bask in the light of God's love, which falls on -each in a manner appropriate to its needs. Man's supreme need is the -knowledge of God's statutes; therefore, the same all-embracing Mercy, -which cares for these happy, careless creatures, will not be implored -in vain, to satisfy his nobler and more pressing want. All beings get -their respective boons unasked; but the pre-eminence of ours is partly -seen in this, that it cannot be given without the co-operation of our -desire. It will be given wherever that condition is fulfilled (ver. 64). - - - Sec. [H] - - 65 Good hast Thou done with Thy servant, - Jehovah, according to Thy word. - 66 Good judgment and knowledge teach me, - For I have believed Thy commandments. - 67 Before I was afflicted, I went astray, - But now have I observed Thy saying. - 68 Good art Thou and doing good, - Teach me Thy statutes. - 69 The proud have trumped up a lie against me, - I, I with all [my] heart will keep Thy precepts. - 70 Gross as fat is their heart, - I, I delight in Thy law. - 71 Good for me was it that I was afflicted, - That I might learn Thy statutes. - 72 Good for me is the law of Thy mouth, - Above thousands of gold and silver. - -The restrictions of the acrostic structure are very obvious in this -section, five of the eight verses of which begin with "Good." The -epithet is first applied in ver. 65 to the whole of God's dealings -with the psalmist. To the devout soul all life is of one piece, and -its submission and faith exercise transmuting power on pains and -sorrows, so that the psalmist can say-- - - "Let one more attest, - I have lived, seen God's hand through a lifetime, - And all was for best." - -The epithet is next applied (ver. 66) to the perception (lit. taste) -or faculty of discernment of good and evil, for which the psalmist -prays, basing his petition on his belief of God's word. Swift, sure, -and delicate apprehension of right and wrong comes from such belief. -The heart in which it reigns is sensitive as a goldsmith's scales or -a thermometer which visibly sinks when a cloud passes before the sun. -The instincts of faith work surely and rapidly. The settled judgment -that life had been good includes apparent evil (ver. 67), which is -real evil in so far as it pains, but is, in a deeper view, good, -inasmuch as it scourges a wandering heart back to true obedience -and therefore to well-being. The words of ver. 67 are specially -appropriate as the utterance of the Israel purified from idolatrous -tendencies by captivity, but may also be the expression of individual -experience. The epithet is next applied to God Himself (ver. 68). How -steadfast a gaze into the depths of the Divine nature and over the -broad field of the Divine activity is in that short, all-including -clause, containing but three words in the Hebrew, "Good art Thou and -doing good"! The prayer built on it is the one which continually -recurs in this psalm, and is reached by many paths. Every view of -man's condition, whether it is bright or dark, and every thought of -God, bring the psalmist to the same desire. Here God's character and -beneficence, widespread and continual, prompt to the prayer, both -because the knowledge of His will is our highest good, and because a -good God cannot but wish His servants to be like Himself, in loving -righteousness and hating iniquity. - -Vv. 69 and 70 are a pair, setting forth the antithesis, frequent -in the psalm, between evil men's conduct to the psalmist and his -tranquil contemplation of, and delight in, God's precepts. False -slanders buzz about him, but he cleaves to God's Law, and is -conscious of innocence. Men are dull and insensible, as if their -hearts were waterproofed with a layer of grease, through which no -gentle rain from heaven could steal; but the psalmist is all the more -led to open his heart to the gracious influences of that law, because -others close theirs. If a bad man is not made worse by surrounding -evil, he is made better by it. - -Just as in vv. 65 and 68 the same thought of God's goodness is -expressed, ver. 71 repeats the thought of ver. 67, with a slight -deepening. There the beneficent influence of sorrow was simply declared -as a fact; here it is thankfully accepted, with full submission and -consent of the will. "Good for me" means not only good in fact, but _in -my estimate_. The repetition of the phrase at the beginning of the next -verse throws light on its meaning in ver. 71. The singer thinks that -he has two real goods, pre-eminent among the uniform sequence of such, -and these are, first, his sorrows, which he reckons to be blessings, -because they have helped him to a firmer grasp of the other, the real -good for every man, the Law which is sacred and venerable, because it -has come from the very lips of Deity. That is our true wealth. Happy -they whose estimate of it corresponds to its real worth, and who have -learned, by affliction or anyhow, that material riches are dross, -compared with its solid preciousness! - - - Sec. [H] - - 73 Thy hands have made me and fashioned me, - Give me understanding that I may learn Thy commandments. - 74 Let those who fear Thee see me and rejoice, - For I have waited for Thy word. - 75 I know, Jehovah, that Thy judgments are in righteousness, - And that [in] faithfulness Thou hast afflicted me. - 76 Oh let Thy lovingkindness be [sent] to comfort me, - According to Thy promise to Thy servant. - 77 Let Thy compassions come to me that I may live, - For Thy law is my delight. - 78 Let the proud be shamed, for they have lyingly dealt perversely - with me; - I, I meditate on Thy precepts. - 79 Let those who fear Thee turn to me, - And they shall know Thy testimonies. - 80 Let my heart be sound in Thy statutes, - That I be not shamed. - -Prayer for illumination is confined to the first and last verses of -this section, the rest of which is mainly occupied with petitions for -gracious providences, based upon the grounds of the psalmist's love -of the Law, and of the encouragement to others to trust, derivable -from his experience. Ver. 73 puts forcibly the thought that man is -evidently an incomplete fragment, unless the gift of understanding -is infused into his material frame. God has begun by shaping it, and -therefore is pledged to go on to bestow spiritual discernment, when -His creature asks it. But that prayer will only be answered if the -suppliant intends to use the gift for its right purpose of learning -God's statutes. Ver. 74 prays that the psalmist may be a witness -that hope in His word is never vain, and so that his deliverances -may be occasions of widespread gladness. God's honour is involved -in answering His servant's trust. Vv. 75-77 are linked together. -"Judgments" (ver. 75) seem to mean here providential acts, not, as -generally in this psalm, the Law. The acknowledgment of the justice -and faithfulness which send sorrows precedes the two verses of -petition for "lovingkindness" and "compassions." Sorrows still sting -and burn, though recognised as sent in love, and the tried heart -yearns for these other messengers to come from God to sustain and -soothe. God's promise and the psalmist's delight in God's law are -the double ground of the twin petitions. Then follow three verses -which are discernibly connected, as expressing desires in regard to -"the proud," the devout, and the psalmist himself. He prays that -the first may be shamed--_i.e._, that their deceitful or causeless -hostility may be balked--and, as in several other verses, contrasts -his own peaceful absorption in the Law with their machinations. He -repeats the prayer of ver. 74 with a slight difference, asking that -his deliverance may draw attention to him, and that others may, -from contemplating his security, come to know the worth of God's -testimonies. In ver. 79_b_ the text reads "they shall know" (as the -result of observing the psalmist), which the Hebrew margin needlessly -alters into "those who know." For himself he prays that his heart may -be sound, or thoroughly devoted to keep the law, and then he is sure -that nothing shall ever put him to shame. "Who is he who will harm -you, if ye be zealous for that which is good?" - - - Sec. [H] - - 81 My soul has pined for Thy salvation, - For Thy word have I waited. - 82 My eyes have pined for Thy promise, - Saying, When wilt Thou comfort me? - 83 For I am become like a wine-skin in the smoke; - Thy statutes have I not forgotten. - 84 How many are the days of Thy servant? - When wilt Thou execute judgment on my persecutors? - 85 The proud have digged pits for me, - --They who are not according to Thy law. - 86 All Thy commandments are faithfulness, - Lyingly they persecute me, help Thou me. - 87 They had all but made an end of me on earth, - But I, I have not forgotten Thy precepts. - 88 According to Thy lovingkindness revive me, - And I will observe the testimonies of Thy mouth. - -This section has more than usual continuity. The psalmist is -persecuted, and in these eight verses pours out his heart to God. -Taken as a whole, they make a lovely picture of patient endurance and -submissive longing. Intense and protracted yearning for deliverance -has wasted his very soul, but has not merged in impatience or -unbelief, for he has "waited for Thy word." His eyes have ached with -straining for the signs of approaching comfort, the coming of which -he has not doubted, but the delay of which has tried his faith. This -longing has been quickened by troubles, which have wrapped him round -like pungent smoke-wreaths eddying among the rafters, where disused -wine-skins hang and get blackened and wrinkled. So has it been with -him, but, through all, he has kept hold of God's statutes. So he -plaintively reminds God of the brevity of his life, which has so -short a tale of days that judgment on his persecutors must be swift, -if it is to be of use. Vv. 85-87 describe the busy hostility of his -foes. It is truculently contrary to God's law, and therefore, as is -implied, worthy of God's counter-working. Ver. 85_b_ is best taken -as a further description of the "proud," which is spread before God -as a reason for His judicial action. The antithesis in ver. 86, -between the "faithfulness" of the Law and the "lying" persecutors, is -the ground of the prayer, "Help Thou me." Even in extremest peril, -when he was all but made away with, the psalmist still clung to -God's precepts (ver. 87), and therefore he is heartened to pray for -reviving, and to vow that then, bound by new chains of gratitude, he -will, more than ever, observe God's testimonies. The measure of the -new wine poured into the shrivelled wine-skin is nothing less than -the measureless lovingkindness of God; and nothing but experience of -His benefits melts to obedience. - - - Sec. [H] - - 89 For ever, Jehovah, - Thy word is set fast in the heavens. - 90 To generation after generation lasts Thy faithfulness, - Thou hast established the earth, and it stands firm. - 91 According to Thy ordinances they stand firm to-day, - For all [things] are Thy servants. - 92 Unless Thy law had been my delight, - Then had I perished in my affliction. - 93 Never will I forget Thy precepts, - For with them Thou hast revived me. - 94 To Thee do I belong, save me, - For Thy precepts have I sought. - 95 For me have the wicked waited to destroy me, - Thy testimonies will I consider. - 96 To all perfection have I seen a limit, - Thy commandment is exceeding broad. - -The stability of nature witnesses to the steadfastness of the Word -which sustains it. The Universe began and continues, because God puts -forth His will. The heavens with their pure depths would collapse, -and all their stars would flicker into darkness, if that uttered -Will did not echo through their overwhelming spaces. The solid earth -would not be solid, but for God's power immanent in it. Heaven and -earth are thus His servants. Ver. 91_a_ may possibly picture them -as standing waiting "_for_ Thine ordinances," but the indefinite -preposition is probably better regarded as equivalent to _In -accordance with_. The psalmist has reached the grand conceptions of -the universal reign of God's law, and of the continuous forth-putting -of God's will as the sustaining energy of all things. He seeks to -link himself to that great band of God's servants, to be in harmony -with stars and storms, with earth and ocean, as their fellow-servant; -but yet he feels that his relation to God's law is closer than -theirs, for he can delight in that which they unconsciously obey. -Such delight in God's uttered will changes affliction from a foe, -threatening life, to a friend, ministering strength (ver. 92). Nor -does that Law when loved only avert destruction; it also increases -vital power (ver. 93) and re-invigorates the better self. There is -a sense in which the law _can_ give life (Gal. iii. 21), but it -must be welcomed and enshrined in the heart, in order to do so. The -frequently recurring prayer for "salvation" has a double plea in -ver. 94. The soul that has yielded itself to God in joyful obedience -thereby establishes a claim on Him. He cannot but protect His own -possession. Ownership has its obligations, which He recognises. -The second plea is drawn from the psalmist's seeking after God's -precepts, without which seeking there would be no reality in his -profession of being God's. To seek them is the sure way to find -both them and salvation (ver. 94). Whom God saves, enemies will -vainly try to destroy, and, while they lurk in waiting to spring -on the psalmist, his eyes are directed, not towards them, but to -God's testimonies. To give heed to these is the sure way to escape -snares (ver. 95). Lifelong experience has taught the psalmist that -there is a flaw in every human excellence, a limit soon reached -and never passed to all that is noblest in man; but high above all -achievements, and stretching beyond present vision, is the fair ideal -bodied forth in the Law. Since it is God's commandment, it will not -always be an unreached ideal, but may be indefinitely approximated -to; and to contemplate it will be joy, when we learn that it is -prophecy because it is commandment. - - - Sec. [H] - - 97 How I love Thy law! - All the day is it my meditation. - 98 Wiser than my enemies do Thy commandments make me, - For they are mine for ever. - 99 More than all my teachers am I prudent, - For Thy testimonies are my meditation. - 100 More than the aged do I understand, - For Thy precepts have I kept. - 101 From every evil path have I held back my feet, - That I might observe Thy word. - 102 From Thy judgments have I not departed, - For Thou, Thou hast instructed me. - 103 How sweet are Thy promises to my palate, - More than honey to my mouth! - 104 By Thy precepts I have understanding, - Therefore I hate every path of falsehood. - -One thought pervades this section, that the Law is the fountain -of sweetest wisdom. The rapture of love with which it opens is -sustained throughout. The psalmist knows that he has not merely more -wisdom of the same sort as his enemies, his teachers, and the aged -have, but wisdom of a better kind. His foes were wise in craft, -and his teachers drew their instructions from earthly springs, and -the elders had learned that bitter, worldly wisdom, which has -been disillusioned of youth's unsuspectingness and dreams, without -being thereby led to grasp that which is no illusion. But a heart -which simply keeps to the Law reaches, in its simplicity, a higher -truth than these know, and has instinctive discernment of good and -evil. Worldly wisdom is transient. "Whether there be knowledge, it -shall be done away," but the wisdom that comes with the commandment -is enduring as it (ver. 98). Meditation must be accompanied with -practice, in order to make the true wisdom one's own. The depths of -the testimonies must be sounded by patient brooding on them, and -then the knowledge thus won must be carried into act. To do what we -know is the sure way to know it better, and to know more (vv. 99, -100). And that positive obedience has to be accompanied by abstinence -from evil ways; for in such a world as this "Thou shalt not" is the -necessary preliminary to "Thou shalt." The psalmist has a better -teacher than those whom he has outgrown, even God Himself, and His -instruction has a graciously constraining power, which keeps its -conscious scholars in the right path (ver. 102). These thoughts draw -another exclamation from the poet, who feels, as he reflects on his -blessings, that the law beloved ceases to be harsh and is delightsome -as well as healthgiving. It is promise as well as law, for God will -help us to be what He commands us to be. They who love the Lawgiver -find sweetness in the law (ver. 103). And this is the blessed effect -of the wisdom which it gives, that it makes us quick to detect -sophistries which tempt into forbidden paths, and fills us with -wholesome detestation of these (ver. 104). - - - Sec. [H] - - 105 A lamp to my foot is Thy word, - And a light to my path. - 106 I have sworn, and have fulfilled it, - To observe Thy righteous judgments. - 107 I am afflicted exceedingly, - Jehovah, revive me according to Thy word. - 108 The free-will offerings of my mouth accept, I pray Thee, - Jehovah, - And teach me Thy judgments. - 109 My soul is continually in my hand, - But Thy law I do not forget. - 110 The wicked have laid a snare for me, - Yet from Thy precepts I do not stray. - 111 Thy testimonies have I taken as my heritage for ever, - For the joy of my heart are they. - 112 I have inclined my heart to perform Thy statutes, - For ever, [to the] end. - -A lamp is for night; light shines in the day. The Word is both, to -the psalmist. His antithesis may be equivalent to a comprehensive -declaration that the Law is light of every sort, or it may intend to -lay stress on the varying phases of experience, and turn our thoughts -to that Word which will gleam guidance in darkness, and shine, a better -sun, on bright hours. The psalmist's choice, not merely the inherent -power of the Law, is expressed in ver. 105. He has taken it for his -guide, or, as ver. 106 says, has sworn and kept his oath, that he would -observe the righteous decisions, which would point to his foot the -true path. The affliction bemoaned in ver. 107 is probably the direct -result of the conduct professed in ver. 106. The prayer for reviving, -which means deliverance from outward evils rather than spiritual -quickening, is, therefore, presented with confidence, and based upon -the many promises in the Word of help to sufferers for righteousness. -Whatever our afflictions, there is ease in telling God of them, and -if our desires for His help are "according to Thy word," they will be -as willing to accept help to bear as help which removes the sorrow, -and thus will not be offered unanswered. That cry for reviving is -best understood as being "the free-will offerings" which the psalmist -prays may be accepted. Happy in their afflictions are they whose chief -desire even then is to learn more of God's statutes! They will find -that their sorrows are their best teachers. If we wish most to make -advances in His school, we shall not complain of the guides to whom He -commits us. Continual alarms and dangers tend to foster disregard of -Duty, as truly as does the opposite state of unbroken security. A man -absorbed in keeping himself alive is apt to think he has no attention -to spare for God's law (ver. 109), and one ringed about by traps is apt -to take a circuit to avoid them, even at the cost of divergence from -the path marked out by God (ver. 110). But, even in such circumstances, -the psalmist did what all good men have to do, deliberately chose his -portion, and found God's law better than any outward good, as being -able to diffuse deep, sacred, and perpetual joy through all his inner -nature. The heart thus filled with serene gladness is thereby drawn to -perform God's statutes with lifelong persistency, and the heart thus -inclined to obedience has tapped the sources of equally enduring joy. - - - Sec. [H] - - 113 The double-minded I hate, - But Thy law I love. - 114 My shelter and my shield art Thou, - For Thy word have I waited. - 115 Depart from me, ye evil-doers, - That I may keep the commandments of my God. - 116 Uphold me according to Thy promise that I may live, - And let me not be ashamed of my hope. - 117 Hold me up and I shall be saved, - And have regard to Thy statutes continually. - 118 Thou makest light of all those who stray from Thy statutes, - For their deceit is a lie. - 119 [Like] dross Thou hast cast aside all the wicked of the earth, - Therefore I love Thy testimonies. - 120 My flesh creeps for fear of Thee, - And of Thy judgments I am afraid. - -This section is mainly the expression of firm resolve to cleave -to the Law. Continuity may be traced in it, since vv. 113-115 -breathe love and determination, which pass in vv. 116, 117, into -prayer, in view of the psalmist's weakness and the strength of -temptation, while in vv. 118-120 the fate of the despisers of the Law -intensifies the psalmist's clinging grasp of awe-struck love. Hatred -of "double-minded" who waver between God and idols, and are weak -accordingly, rests upon, and in its turn increases, whole-hearted -adherence to the Law. - -It is a tepid devotion to it which does not strongly recoil from -lives that water down its precepts and try to walk on both sides of -the way at once. Whoever has taken God for his defence can afford -to bide God's time for fulfilment of His promises (ver. 114). And -the natural results of such love to, and waiting for, His word are -resolved separation from the society of those whose lives are moulded -on opposite principles, and the ordering of external relations in -accordance with the supreme purpose of keeping the commandments of -Him whom love and waiting claim as "my God" (ver. 115). But resolves -melt in the fire of temptation, and the psalmist knows life and -himself too well to trust himself. So he betakes himself to prayer -for God's upholding, without which he cannot live. A hope built on -God's promise has a claim on Him, and its being put to shame in -disappointment would be dishonour to God (ver. 116). The psalmist -knows that his wavering will can only be fixed by God, and that -experience of His sustaining hand will make a stronger bond between -God and him than anything besides. The consciousness of salvation -must precede steadfast regard to the precepts of the God who saves -(ver. 117). To stray from the Law is ruin, as is described in vv. -118, 119. They who wander are despised or made light of, "for their -deceit is a lie"--_i.e._, the hopes and plans with which they deceive -themselves are false. It is a gnarled way of saying that all godless -life is a blunder as well as a sin, and is fed with unrealisable -promises. Dross is flung away when the metal is extracted. Slag from -a furnace is hopelessly useless, and this psalmist thinks that the -wicked of the earth are "thrown as rubbish to the void." He is not -contemplating a future life, but God's judgments as manifested here -in providence, and his faith is assured that, even here, that process -is visible. Therefore, gazing upon the fate of evil-doers, his flesh -creeps and every particular hair stands on end (as the word means). -His dread is full of love, and love is full of dread. Profoundly are -the two emotions yoked together in vv. 119_b_ and 120_b_, "I _love_ -Thy testimonies ... of Thy judgments I am _afraid_." - - - Sec. [H] - - 121 I have done judgment and righteousness, - Thou wilt not leave me to my oppressors. - 122 Be surety for Thy servant for good, - Let not the proud oppress me. - 123 My eyes pine for Thy salvation - And for Thy righteous promise. - 124 Deal with Thy servant according to Thy lovingkindness, - And teach me Thy statutes. - 125 Thy servant am I; give me understanding, - That I may know Thy testimonies. - 126 It is time for Jehovah to work, - They have made void Thy law. - 127 Therefore I love Thy commandments - More than gold and more than fine gold. - 128 Therefore I esteem all Thy precepts to be right, - Every false way do I hate. - -The thought of evil-doers tinges most of this section. It opens with -a triplet of verses, occasioned by their oppressions of the psalmist, -and closes with a triplet occasioned by their breaches of the Law. In -the former, he is conscious that he has followed the "judgment" or law -of God, and hence hopes that he will not be abandoned to his foes. The -consciousness and the hope equally need limitation, to correspond with -true estimates of ourselves and with facts; for there is no absolute -fulfilment of the Law, and good men are often left to be footballs for -bad ones. But in its depths the confidence is true. Precisely because -he has it, the psalmist prays that it may be vindicated by facts. "Be -surety for Thy servant"--a profound image, drawn from legal procedure, -in which one man becomes security for another and makes good his -deficiencies. Thus God will stand between the hunted man and his foes, -undertaking for him. "Thou shalt answer, Lord, for me." How much the -fulfilment in Christ has exceeded the desire of the psalmist! "The -oppressors' wrong" had lasted long, and the singer's weary eyes had -been strained in looking for the help which seemed to tarry (compare -ver. 82), and that fainting gaze humbly appeals to God. Will He not end -the wistful watching speedily? Vv. 124, 125, are a pair, the psalmist's -relation of servant being adduced in both as the ground of his prayer -for teaching. But they differ, in that the former verse lays stress -on the consonance of such instruction with God's lovingkindness, -and the latter, on its congruity with the psalmist's position and -character as His servant. God's best gift is the knowledge of His will, -which He surely will not withhold from spirits willing to serve, if -they only knew how. Vv. 126-128 are closely linked. The psalmist's -personal wrongs melt into the wider thought of wickedness which does -its little best to make void that sovereign, steadfast law. Delitzsch -would render "It is time to work for Jehovah"; and the meaning thus -obtained is a worthy one. But that given above is more in accordance -with the context. It is bold--and would be audacious if a prayer did -not underlie the statement--to undertake to determine when evil has -reached such height as to demand God's punitive action. But, however -slow we should be to prescribe to Him the when or the how of His -intervention, we may learn from the psalmist's emphatic "Therefores," -which stand co-ordinately at the beginnings of vv. 127, 128, that the -more men make void the Law, the more should God's servants prize it, -and the more should they bind its precepts on their moral judgment, and -heartily loathe all paths which, specious as they may be, are "paths of -falsehood," though all the world may avow that they are true. - - - Sec. [H] - - 129 Wonderful are Thy testimonies, - Therefore my soul keeps them. - 130 The opening of Thy words gives light, - It gives understanding to the simple. - 131 My mouth did I open wide, and panted, - For I longed for Thy commandments. - 132 Turn to me and be gracious to me, - According to the right of those who love Thy name. - 133 Establish my steps by Thy promise, - And let not iniquity lord it over me. - 134 Redeem me from the oppression of men, - That I may observe Thy precepts. - 135 Cause Thy face to shine upon Thy servant, - And teach me Thy statutes. - 136 My eyes run down [in] streamlets of water, - Because men observe not Thy law. - -Devout souls do not take offence at the depths and difficulties of -God's word, but are thereby drawn to intenser contemplation of them. We -weary of the Trivial and Obvious. That which tasks and outstrips our -powers attracts. But the obscurity must not be arbitrary, but inherent, -a clear obscure, like the depths of a pure sea. These wonderful -testimonies give light, notwithstanding, or rather because of, their -wonderfulness, and it is the simple heart, not the sharpened intellect, -that penetrates furthest into them and finds light most surely (ver. -130). Therefore the psalmist longs for God's commandments, like a -wild creature panting open-mouthed for water. He puts to shame our -indifference. If his longing was not excessive, how defective is ours! -Ver. 132, like ver. 122, has no distinct allusion to the Law, though -the word rendered in it "right" is that used in the psalm for the Law -considered as "judgments." The prayer is a bold one, pleading what is -justly due to the lovers of God's name. Kay appropriately quotes "God -is not _unrighteous_ to forget your work and labour of _love_, which ye -have showed towards His _name_" (Heb. vi. 10). One would have expected -"Law" instead of "name" in the last word of the verse, and possibly -the conception of Law may be, as it were, latent in "name," for the -latter does carry in it imperative commandments and plain revelations -of duty. God's Name holds the Law in germ. The Law is but the expansion -of the meaning of the Name. "Promise" in ver. 133 (lit. saying) must be -taken in a widened sense, as including all God's revealed will. The -only escape from the tyranny of sin is to have our steps established by -God's word, and His help is needed for such establishment. Rebellion -against sin's dominion is already victory over it, if the rebel summons -God's heavenly reinforcements to his help. It is a high attainment to -desire deliverance from men, chiefly in order to observe, unhindered, -God's commandments (ver. 134). And it is as high a desire to seek -the light of God's face mainly as the means of seeing His will more -clearly. The psalmist did not merely wish for outward prosperity or -inward cheer and comfort, but that these might contribute to fulfilling -his deepest wish of learning better what God would have him to do (ver. -135). The moods of indignation (ver. 53) and of hatred (vv. 104, 113, -128) have given place to softer emotions, as they ever should (ver. -136). Tears and dewy pity should mingle with righteous anger, as when -Jesus "looked round about on them with anger, being with the anger -grieved at the hardening of their heart" (Mark iii. 5). - - - Sec. [H] - - 137 Righteous art Thou, Jehovah, - And upright are Thy judgments. - 138 In righteousness Thou hast commanded Thy testimonies, - And in exceeding faithfulness. - 139 My zeal has consumed me, - For my adversaries have forgotten Thy words. - 140 Well tried by fire is Thy promise, - And Thy servant loves it. - 141 Small and despised am I, - Thy precepts have I not forgotten. - 142 Thy righteousness is righteousness for ever, - And Thy law is truth. - 143 Distress and anguish have found me, - Thy commandments are my delight. - 144 Righteousness for ever are Thy testimonies, - Give me understanding that I may live. - -The first word suggested to the psalmist under this letter is -Righteousness. That august conception was grasped by devout Israelites -with a tenacity, and assumed a prominence in their thoughts, -unparalleled elsewhere. It is no mere yielding to the requirements of -the acrostic scheme which sets that great word in four of the eight -verses of this section (137, 138, 142, 144). Two thoughts are common to -them all, that Righteousness has its seat in the bosom of God, and that -the Law is a true transcript of that Divine righteousness. These things -being so, it follows that the Law is given to men in accordance with -the Divine "faithfulness"--_i.e._, in remembrance and discharge of the -obligations which God has undertaken towards them. Nor less certainly -does it follow that that Law, which is the "eradiation" of God's -righteousness, is eternal as its fontal source (vv. 142, 144). The beam -must last as long as the sun. No doubt, there are transient elements -in the Law which the psalmist loved, but its essence is everlasting, -because its origin is God's everlasting Righteousness. So absorbed is -he in adoring contemplation of it, that he even forgets to pray for -help to keep it, and not till ver. 144 does he ask for understanding -that he may live. True life is in the knowledge of the Law by which -God is known, as Jesus has taught us that to know the only true God -is life eternal. A faint gleam of immortal hope perhaps shines in -that prayer, for if the "testimonies" are for ever, and the knowledge -of them is life, it cannot be that they shall outlast the soul that -knows and lives by them. One more characteristic of God's righteous -testimonies is celebrated in ver. 140--namely, that they have stood -sharp tests, and, like metal in the furnace, have not been dissolved -but brightened by the heat. They have been tested, when the psalmist -was afflicted and found them to hold true. The same fire tried him -and them, and he does not glorify his own endurance, but the promise -which enabled him to stand firm. The remaining verses of the section -describe the psalmist's afflictions and clinging to the Law. Ver. 139 -recurs to his emotions on seeing men's neglect of it. "Zeal" here takes -the place of grief (ver. 136) and of indignation and hatred. Friction -against widespread godlessness generates a flame of zeal, as it should -always do. "Small and despised" was Israel among the great powers of -the ancient world, but he who meditates on the Law is armed against -contempt and contented in insignificance (ver. 141). "Distress and -anguish" may surround him, but hidden springs of "delight" well up in -the heart that cleaves to the Law, like outbursts of fresh water rising -to the surface of a salt sea (ver. 144). - - - Sec. [H] - - 145 I have called with my whole heart; answer me, Jehovah; - Thy statutes will I keep. - 146 I have called unto Thee, save me, - And I will observe Thy testimonies. - 147 I anticipated the morning twilight and cried aloud, - For Thy word I waited. - 148 My eyes anticipated the night watches, - That I might meditate on Thy promise. - 149 Hear my voice according to Thy lovingkindness, - Jehovah, according to Thy judgments revive me. - 150 They draw near who follow after mischief, - From Thy law they are far off. - 151 Near art Thou, Jehovah, - And all Thy commandments are truth. - 152 Long ago have I known from Thy testimonies, - That Thou hast founded them for ever. - -The first two verses are a pair, in which former prayers for -deliverance and vows of obedience are recalled and repeated. The -tone of supplication prevails through the section. The cries now -presented are no new things. The psalmist's habit has been prayer, -whole-hearted, continued, and accompanied with the resolve to keep by -obedience and to observe with sharpened watchfulness the utterances -of God's will. Another pair of verses follows (vv. 147, 148), which -recall the singer's wakeful devotion. His voice rose to God ere -the dim morning broke, and his heart kept itself in submissive -expectance. His eyes saw God's promises shining in the nightly -darkness, and making meditation better than sleep. The petitions -in ver. 149 may be taken as based upon the preceding pairs. The -psalmist's patient continuance gives him ground to expect an answer. -But the true ground is God's character, as witnessed by His deeds of -loving-kindness and His revelation of His "judgments" in the Law. - -Another pair of verses follows (vv. 150, 151), in which the hostile -nearness of the psalmist's foes, gathering round him with malignant -purpose, is significantly contrasted, both with their remoteness -in temper from the character enjoined in the Law, and with the yet -closer proximity of the assailed man's defender. He who has God near -him, and who realises that His "commandments are truth," can look -untrembling on mustering masses of enemies. This singer had learned -that before danger threatened. The last verse of the section breathes -the same tone of long-continued and habitual acquaintance with God -and His Law as the earlier pairs of verses do. The convictions of a -lifetime were too deeply rooted to be disturbed by such a passing -storm. There is, as it were, a calm smile of triumphant certitude -in that "Long ago." Experience teaches that the foundation, laid for -trust as well as for conduct in the Law, is too stable to be moved, -and that we need not fear to build our all on it. Let us build rock -on that rock, and answer God's everlasting testimonies with our -unwavering reliance and submission. - - - Sec. [H] - - 153 See my affliction, and deliver me, - For Thy law do I not forget. - 154 Plead my plea and redeem me, - Revive me according to Thy promise. - 155 Far from the wicked is salvation, - For they seek not Thy statutes. - 156 Thy compassions are many, Jehovah, - According to Thy judgments revive me. - 157 Many are my pursuers and my adversaries, - From Thy testimonies I have not declined. - 158 I beheld the faithless and loathed [them] - Because they observed not Thy promise. - 159 See how I love Thy precepts, - Jehovah, according to Thy lovingkindness revive me. - 160 The sum of Thy word is truth, - And every one of Thy righteous judgments endures for ever. - -The prayer "revive me" occurs thrice in this section. It is not -a petition for spiritual quickening so much as for removal of -calamities, which restrained free, joyous life. Its repetition -accords with other characteristics of this section, which is markedly -a cry from a burdened heart. The psalmist is in affliction; he is, as -it were, the defendant in a suit, a captive needing a strong avenger -(ver. 154), compassed about by a swarm of enemies (ver. 157), forced -to endure the sight of the faithless and to recoil from them (ver. -158). His thoughts vibrate between his needs and God's compassions, -between his own cleaving to the Law and its grand comprehensiveness -and perpetuity. His prayer now is not for fuller knowledge of the -Law, but for rescue from his troubles. It is worth while to follow -his swift turns of thought, which, in their windings, are shaped -by the double sense of need and of Divine fulness. First come two -plaintive cries for rescue, based in one case on his adherence to the -Law, and in the other on God's promise. Then his eye turns on those -who do not, like him, seek God's statutes, and these he pronounces, -with solemn depth of insight, to be far from the salvation which he -feels is his, because they have no desire to know God's will. That -is a pregnant word. Swiftly he turns from these unhappy ones to gaze -on the multitude of God's compassions, which hearten him to repeat -his prayer for revival, according to God's "judgments"--_i.e._, His -decisions contained in the Law. But, again, his critical position -among enemies forces itself into remembrance, and he can only plead -that, in spite of them, he has held fast by the Law, and, when -compelled to see apostates, has felt no temptation to join them, but -a wholesome loathing of all departure from God's word. That loathing -was the other side of his love. The more closely we cleave to God's -precepts, the more shall we recoil from modes of thought and life -which flout them. And then the psalmist looks wistfully up once -more, and asks that his love may receive what God's loving-kindness -emboldens it to look for as its result--namely, the reviving, which -he thus once more craves. That love for the Law has led him into -the depths of understanding God's Word, and so his lowly petitions -swell into the declaration, which he has verified in life, that its -sum-total is truth, and a perpetual possession for loving hearts, -however ringed round by enemies and "weighed upon by sore distress." - - - Sec. [H] - - 161 Princes have persecuted me without a cause, - But at Thy words my heart stands in awe. - 162 I rejoice over Thy promise, - As one that finds great booty. - 163 Lying I hate and abhor, - Thy law do I love. - 164 Seven times a day I praise Thee, - Because of Thy righteous judgments. - 165 Great peace have they that love Thy law, - And they have no stumbling-block. - 166 I have hoped for Thy salvation, Jehovah, - And Thy commandments have I done. - 167 My soul has observed Thy testimonies, - And I love them exceedingly. - 168 I have observed Thy precepts and Thy testimonies, - For all my ways are before Thee. - -The tone of this section is in striking contrast with that of the -preceding. Here, with the exception of the first clause of the first -verse, all is sunny, and the thunder-clouds are hull down on the -horizon. Joy, peace, and hope breathe through the song. Beautifully -are reverential awe and exuberant gladness blended as contemporaneous -results of listening to God's word. There is rapture in that awe; -there is awe in that bounding gladness. To possess that Law is -better than to win rich booty. The spoils of the conflict, which we -wage with our own negligence or disobedience, are our best wealth. -The familiar connection between love of the Law and hatred of lives -which depart from it, and are therefore lies and built on lies, -re-appears, yet not as the ground of prayer for help, but as part of -the blessed treasures which the psalmist is recounting. His life is -accompanied by music of perpetual praise. Seven times a day--_i.e._, -unceasingly--his glad heart breaks into song, and "the o'ercome of -his song" is ever God's righteous judgments. His own experience -gives assurance of the universal truth that the love of God's law -secures peace, inasmuch as such love brings the heart into contact -with absolute good, inasmuch as submission to God's will is always -peace, inasmuch as the fountain of unrest is dried up, inasmuch as -all outward things are allies of such a heart and serve the soul -that serves God. Such love saves from falling over stumbling-blocks, -and enables a man "to walk firmly and safely on the clear path of -duty." Like the dying Jacob, such a man waits for God's salvation, -patiently expecting that each day will bring its own form of help and -deliverance, and his waiting is no idle anticipation, but full of -strenuous obedience (ver. 166), and of watchful observance, such as -the eyes of a servant direct to his master (ver. 167_a_). Love makes -such a man keen to note the slightest indications of God's will, -and eager to obey them all (vv. 167_b_, 168_a_). All this joyous -profession of the psalmist's happy experience he spreads humbly -before God, appealing to Him whether it is true. He is not flaunting -his self-righteousness in God's face, but gladly recounting to God's -honour all the "spoil" that he has found, as he penetrated into the -Law and it penetrated into his inmost being. - - - Sec. [H] - - 169 Let my cry come near before Thy face, Jehovah, - According to Thy word give me understanding. - 170 Let my supplication come before Thy face, - According to Thy promise deliver me. - 171 My lips shall well forth praise, - For Thou teachest me Thy statutes. - 172 My tongue shall sing of Thy promise, - For all Thy commandments are righteousness. - 173 Let Thy hand be [stretched out] to help me, - For Thy precepts have I chosen. - 174 I long for Thy salvation, Jehovah, - And Thy law is my delight. - 175 Let my soul live and it shall praise Thee, - And let Thy judgments help me. - 176 I have strayed like a lost sheep, seek Thy servant, - For Thy commandments do I not forget. - -The threads that have run through the psalm are knotted firmly -together in this closing section, which falls into four pairs -of verses. In the first, the manifold preceding petitions are -concentrated into two for understanding and deliverance, the twin -needs of man, of which the one covers the whole ground of inward -illumination, and the other comprises all good for outward life, -while both are in accordance with the large confidence warranted -by God's faithful words. Petition passes into praise. The psalmist -instinctively obeys the command, "By prayer and supplication with -thanksgiving let your requests be made known." His lips give forth -not only shrill cries of need, but well up songs of thanks; and, -while a thousand mercies impel the sparkling flood of praise, the -chief of these is God's teaching him His righteous statutes (vv. -171, 172). In the next pair of verses, the emphasis lies, not on -the prayer for help, so much as on its grounds in the psalmist's -deliberate choice of God's precepts, his patient yearning for God's -salvation, and his delight in the Law, all of which characteristics -have been over and over again professed in the psalm. Here, once -more, they are massed together, not in self-righteousness, but as -making it incredible that, God being the faithful and merciful -God which He is, His hand should hang idle when His servant cries -for help (vv. 173, 174). The final pair of verses sets forth the -relations of the devout soul with God in their widest and most -permanent forms. The true life of the soul must come from Him, the -Fountain of Life. A soul thus made to live by communion with, and -derivation of life from, God lives to praise, and all its motions are -worship. To it the Law is no menace nor unwelcome restriction but a -helper. Life drawn from God, turned to God in continual praise, and -invigorated by unfailing helps ministered through His uttered will, -is the only life worth living. It is granted to all who ask for it. -But a lower, sadder note must ever mingle in our prayers. Aspiration -and trust must be intertwined with consciousness of weakness and -distrust of one's self. Only those who are ignorant of the steps -of the soul's pilgrimage to God can wonder that the psalmist's -last thoughts about himself blend confession of wandering like a -straying sheep, and profession of not forgetting God's commandments. -Both phases of consciousness co-exist in the true servant of God, -as, alas! both have grounds in his experience. But our sense of -having wandered should ever be accompanied with the tender thought -that the lost sheep _is_ a sheep, beloved and sought for by the -great Shepherd, in whose search, not in our own docile following -of His footsteps, lies our firmest hope. The psalmist prayed "Seek -Thy servant," for he knew how continually he would be tempted to -stray. But we know better than he did how wonderfully the answer has -surpassed his petition. "The Son of Man is come to seek and to save -that which was lost." - - - - - PSALMS CXX.-CXXXIV. - - -These fifteen psalms form a short psalter within the Psalter, each -having the same title (with a slight grammatical variation in Psalm -cxxi.). Its meaning is very doubtful. Many of the older authorities -understand it to signify "a song of steps," and explain it by a very -uncertain tradition that these psalms were sung on fifteen steps -leading from the court of the women to that of the men, each on -one step. The R.V.'s rendering, "degrees," uses that word in this -sense (like the Latin _gradus_). But though undoubtedly the word -means steps, there is no sufficient support for the tradition in -question; and, as Delitzsch well observes, if this were the meaning -of the title, "it would be much more external than any of the other -inscriptions to the Psalms." - -Another explanation fixes on the literal meaning of the word--_i.e._, -"goings up"--and points to its use in the singular for the Return -from Babylon (Ezra vii. 9), as supporting the view that these were -psalms sung by the returning exiles. There is much in the group of -songs to favour this view; but against it is the fact that Psalms -cxxii. and cxxxiv. imply the existence of the Temple, and the fully -organised ceremonial worship. - -A third solution is that the name refers to the structure of these -psalms, which have a "step-like, progressive rhythm." This is Gesenius' -explanation, adopted by Delitzsch. But the peculiar structure in -question, though very obvious in several of these psalms, is scarcely -perceptible in others, and is entirely absent from Psalm cxxxii. - -The remaining explanation of the title is the most probable--that the -"goings up" were those of the worshippers travelling to Jerusalem for -the feasts. This little collection is, then, "The Song Book of the -Pilgrims," a designation to which its contents well correspond. - - - - - PSALM CXX. - - 1 To Jehovah in my straits I cried, - And He answered me. - - 2 Jehovah, deliver my soul from the lying lip, - From the deceitful tongue. - 3 What shall He give to thee, and what more shall He give thee, - Deceitful tongue? - 4 Arrows of the Mighty, sharpened ones, - With coals of broom. - - 5 Woe is me that I sojourn in Meshech, - [That] I dwell beside the tents of Kedar! - 6 Long has my soul had her dwelling - With him who hates peace. - 7 I am--peace; but when I speak, - They are for war. - - -The collection of pilgrim songs is appropriately introduced by one -expressive of the unrest arising from compulsory association with -uncongenial and hostile neighbours. The psalmist laments that his -sensitive "soul" has been so long obliged to be a "sojourner" where -he has heard nothing but lying and strife. Weary of these, his soul -stretches her wings towards a land of rest. His feeling ill at ease -amidst present surroundings stings him to take the pilgrim's staff. -"In" this singer's "heart are the ways." - -The simplicity of this little song scarcely admits of separation -into parts; but one may note that an introductory verse is followed -by two groups of three verses each,--the former of which is prayer -for deliverance from the "deceitful tongue," and prediction that -retribution will fall on it (vv. 2-4); while the latter bemoans the -psalmist's uncongenial abode among enemies (vv. 5-7). - -The verbs in ver. 1 are most naturally referred to former experiences -of the power of prayer, which encourage renewed petition. Devout -hearts argue that what Jehovah has done once He will do again. Since -His mercy endureth for ever, He will not weary of bestowing, nor -will former gifts exhaust His stores. Men say, "I have given so -often that I can give no more"; God says, "I have given, therefore -I will give." The psalmist was not in need of defence against armed -foes, but against false tongues. But it is not plain whether these -were slanderous, flattering, or untrustworthy in their promises of -friendship. The allusions are too general to admit of certainty. At -all events, he was surrounded by a choking atmosphere of falsehood, -from which he longed to escape into purer air. Some commentators -would refer the allusions to the circumstances of the exiles in -Babylon; others to the slanders of the Samaritans and others who -tried to hinder the rebuilding of the Temple; others think that his -own hostile fellow-countrymen are the psalmist's foes. May we not -rather hear in his plaint the voice of the devout heart, which ever -painfully feels the dissonance between its deep yearnings and the -Babel of vain words which fills every place with jangling and deceit? -To one who holds converse with God, there is nothing more appalling -or more abhorrent than the flood of empty talk which drowns the -world. If there was any specific foe in the psalmist's mind, he has -not described him so as to enable us to identify him. - -Ver. 3 may be taken in several ways, according as "deceitful tongue" -is taken as a vocative or as the nominative of the verb "give," and as -that verb is taken in a good or a bad sense, and as "thee" is taken -to refer to the tongue or to some unnamed person. It is unnecessary -to enter here on a discussion of the widely divergent explanations -given. They fall principally into two classes. One takes the words -"deceitful tongue" as vocative, and regards the question as meaning, -"What retribution shall God give to thee, O deceitful tongue?" while -the other takes it as asking what the tongue shall give unto an unnamed -person designated by "thee." That person is by some considered to -be the owner of the tongue, who is asked what profit his falsehood -will be to him; while others suppose the "thee" to mean Jehovah, -and the question to be like that of Job (x. 3). Baethgen takes this -view, and paraphrases, "What increase of Thy riches canst Thou expect -therefrom, that Thou dost permit the godless to oppress the righteous?" -Grammatically either class of explanation is warranted; and the -reader's feeling of which is most appropriate must decide. The present -writer inclines to the common interpretation, which takes ver. 3 as -addressed to the deceitful tongue, in the sense, "What punishment -shall God inflict upon thee?" Ver. 4 is the answer, describing the -penal consequences of falsehood, as resembling the crimes which they -avenge. Such a tongue is likened to sharp arrows and swords in Psalms -lvii. 4, lxiv. 3, etc. The punishment shall be like the crime. For the -sentiment compare Psalm cxl. 9, 10. It is not necessary to suppose that -the "Mighty" is God, though such a reference gives force to the words. -"The tongue which shot piercing arrows is pierced by the sharpened -arrows of an irresistibly strong One; it, which set its neighbour in -a fever of anguish, must endure a lasting heat of broom-coals, which -consumes it surely" (Delitzsch). - -In the group of vv. 5-7, the psalmist bemoans his compulsory -association with hostile companions, and longs to "flee away and be -at rest." Meshech was the name of barbarous tribes who, in the times -of Sargon and Sennacherib, inhabited the highlands to the east of -Cilicia, and in later days retreated northwards to the neighbourhood -of the Black Sea (Sayce, "Higher Criticism and Monuments," p. 130). -Kedar was one of the Bedawin tribes of the Arabian desert. The -long distance between the localities occupied by these two tribes -requires an allegorical explanation of their names. They stand as -types of barbarous and truculent foes--as we might say, Samoyeds -and Patagonians. The psalmist's plaint struck on Cromwell's heart, -and is echoed, with another explanation of its meaning which he -had, no doubt, learned from some Puritan minister: "I live, you -know where, in Meshech, which they say signifies prolonging; in -Kedar, which signifies blackness; yet the Lord forsaketh me not" -(Carlyle, "Letters and Speeches," i. 127: London, 1846). The -peace-loving psalmist describes himself as stunned by the noise and -quarrelsomeness of those around him. "I am--peace" (compare Psalm -cix. 4). But his gentlest word is like a spark on tinder. If he but -speaks, they fly to their weapons, and are ready without provocation -to answer with blows. - -So the psalm ends as with a long-drawn sigh. It inverts the usual -order of similar psalms, in which the description of need is -wont to precede the prayer for deliverance. It thus sets forth -most pathetically the sense of discordance between a man and his -environment, which urges the soul that feels it to seek a better -home. So this is a true pilgrim psalm. - - - - - PSALM CXXI. - - 1 I will lift mine eyes to the hills; - Whence cometh my help? - 2 My help [comes] from Jehovah, - The Maker of heaven and earth. - - 3 May He not suffer thy feet to totter, - May thy Keeper not slumber! - 4 Behold, thy Keeper slumbers not; - Behold, He slumbers not nor sleeps - [Who is] the Keeper of Israel. - - 5 Jehovah is thy Keeper, - Jehovah is thy shade on thy right hand. - 6 By day the sun shall not smite thee, - Nor the moon by night. - - 7 Jehovah shall keep thee from all evil, - He shall keep thy soul. - 8 Jehovah shall keep thy going out and thy coming in, - From now, even for evermore. - - -How many timid, anxious hearts has this sweet outpouring of quiet -trust braced and lifted to its own serene height of conscious safety! -This psalmist is so absorbed in the thought of his Keeper that he -barely names his dangers. With happy assurance of protection, he says -over and over again the one word which is his amulet against foes -and fears. Six times in these few verses does the thought recur that -Jehovah is the Keeper of Israel or of the single soul. The quietness -that comes of confidence is the singer's strength. Whether he is -an exile, looking across the plains of Mesopotamia towards the blue -hills, which the eye cannot discern, or a pilgrim catching the first -sight of the mountain on which Jehovah sits enshrined, is a question -which cannot be decisively answered; but the power and beauty of -this little breathing of peaceful trust are but slightly affected by -any hypothesis as to the singer's circumstances. Vv. 1 and 2 stand -apart from the remainder, in so far as in them the psalmist speaks -in the first person, while in the rest of the psalm he is spoken to -in the second. But this does not necessarily involve the supposition -of an antiphonal song. The two first verses may have been sung by a -single voice, and the assurances of the following ones by a chorus or -second singer. But it is quite as likely that, as in other psalms, -the singer is in vv. 3-8 himself the speaker of the assurances which -confirm his own faith. - -His first words describe the earnest look of longing. He will lift -his eyes from all the coil of troubles and perils to the heights. -_Sursum corda_ expresses the true ascent which these psalms enjoin -and exemplify. If the supposition that the psalmist is an exile on -the monotonous levels of Babylon is correct, one feels the pathetic -beauty of his wistful gaze across the dreary flats towards the point -where he knows that the hills of his father-land rise. To look -beyond the low levels where we dwell, to the unseen heights where -we have our home, is the condition of all noble living amid these -lower ranges of engagement with the Visible and Transient. "Whence -comes my help?" is a question which may be only put in order to make -the assured answer more emphatic, but may also be an expression of -momentary despondency, as the thought of the distance between the -gazer and the mountains chills his aspirations. "It is easy to look, -but hard to journey thither. How shall I reach that goal? I am weak; -the way is long and beset with foes." The loftier the ideal, the more -needful, if it is ever to be reached, that our consciousness of its -height and of our own feebleness should drive us to recognise our -need of help in order to attain it. - -Whoever has thus high longings sobered by lowly estimates of self is -ready to receive the assurance of Divine aid. That sense of impotence -is the precursor of faith. We must distrust ourselves, if we are ever -to confide in God. To know that we need His aid is a condition of -obtaining it. Bewildered despondency asks, "Whence comes my help?" and -scans the low levels in vain. The eye that is lifted to the hills is -sure to see Him coming to succour; for that question on the lips of one -whose looks are directed thither is a prayer, rather than a question; -and the assistance he needs sets out towards him from the throne, like -a sunbeam from the sun, as soon as he looks up to the light. - -The particle of negation in ver. 3 is not that used in ver. 4, but -that which is employed in commands or wishes. The progress from -subjective desire in ver. 3, to objective certainty of Divine help as -expressed in ver. 4 and the remainder of the psalm, is best exhibited -if the verbs in the former verse are translated as expressions of -wish--"May He not," etc. Whether the speaker is taken to be the -psalmist or another makes little difference to the force of ver. 3, -which lays hold in supplication of the truth just uttered in ver. -2, and thereby gains a more assured certainty that it is true, as -the following verses go on to declare. It is no drop to a lower -mood to pass from assertion of God's help to prayer for it. Rather -it is the natural progress of faith. Both clauses of ver. 3 become -specially significant if this is a song for pilgrims. Their daily -march and their nightly encampment will then be placed under the -care of Jehovah, who will hold up their feet unwearied on the road -and watch unslumbering over their repose. But such a reference is -not necessary. The language is quite general. It covers the whole -ground of toil and rest, and prays for strength for the one and quiet -security in the other. - -The remainder of the psalm expands the one thought of Jehovah the -Keeper, with sweet reiteration, and yet comprehensive variation. -First, the thought of the last clause of the preceding verse is -caught up again. Jehovah is the keeper of the community, over which -He watches with unslumbering care. He keeps Israel, so long as Israel -keeps His law; for the word so frequently used here is the same as -is continually employed for observance of the commandments. He had -seemed to slumber while Israel was in exile, and had been prayed to -awake, in many a cry from the captives. Now they have learned that He -never slumbers: His power is unwearied, and needs no recuperation; -His watchfulness is never at fault. But universal as is His care, -it does not overlook the single defenceless suppliant. He is "_thy_ -Keeper," and will stand at thy right hand, where helpers stand, to -shield thee from all dangers. Men lose sight of the individual in -the multitude, and the wider their benevolence or beneficence, the -less it takes account of units; but God loves all because He loves -each, and the aggregate is kept because each member of it is. The -light which floods the universe gently illumines every eye. The two -conceptions of defence and impartation of power are smelted together -in the pregnant phrase of ver. 5_b_, "thy shade at thy right hand." - -The notion of shelter from evils predominates in the remainder of -the psalm. It is applied in ver. 6 to possible perils from physical -causes: the fierce sunlight beat down on the pilgrim band, and the -moon was believed, and apparently with correctness, to shed malignant -influences on sleepers. The same antithesis of day and night, work -and rest, which is found in ver. 3 appears again here. The promise is -widened out in ver. 7 so as to be all-inclusive. "All evil" will be -averted from him who has Jehovah for his keeper; therefore, if any -so-called Evil comes, he may be sure that it is Good with a veil on. -We should apply the assurances of the psalm to the interpretation of -life, as well as take them for the antidote of fearful anticipations. - -Equally comprehensive is the designation of that which is to be -kept. It is "thy soul," the life or personal being. Whatever may be -shorn away by the sharp shears of Loss, that will be safe; and if it -is, nothing else matters very much. The individual soul is of large -account in God's sight: He keeps it as a deposit entrusted to Him -by faith. Much may go; but His hand closes round us when we commit -ourselves into it, and none is able to pluck us thence. - -In the final verse, the psalmist recurs to his favourite antithesis -of external toil and repose in the home, the two halves of the -pilgrim life for every man; and while thus, in the first clause of -the verse, he includes all varieties of circumstance, in the second -he looks on into a future of which he does not see the bounds, and -triumphs over all possible foes that may lurk in its dim recesses, in -the assurance that, however far it may extend, and whatever strange -conditions it may hide, the Keeper will be there, and all will be -well. Whether or not he looked to the last "going out," our exodus -from earth (Luke ix. 31; 2 Peter i. 15), or to that abundant entrance -(2 Peter i. 11) into the true home which crowns the pilgrimage here, -we cannot but read into his indefinite words their largest meaning, -and rejoice that we have One who "is able to keep that which we have -committed to Him against that day." - - - - - PSALM CXXII. - - 1 I rejoiced when they said to me, - To the house of Jehovah let us go. - 2 Standing are our feet - In thy gates, Jerusalem. - - 3 Jerusalem that art built [again] - As a city that is compact together. - 4 Whither went up the tribes, the tribes of Jah, - --[According to] the precept for Israel-- - To give thanks to the name of Jehovah. - 5 For there were set thrones of judgment, - Thrones for the house of David. - - 6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; - Prosperous be they who love thee! - 7 Be peace within thy bulwark, - Prosperity within thy palaces. - 8 Because of my brethren and my companions' sake - Let me now wish thee peace. - 9 Because of the house of Jehovah our God - Let me now seek thy good. - - -This is very distinctly a pilgrim psalm. But there is difficulty in -determining the singer's precise point of view, arising from the -possibility of understanding the phrase in ver. 2, "are standing," -as meaning either "are" or "were standing" or "have stood." If it -is taken as a present tense, the psalm begins by recalling the joy -with which the pilgrims began their march, and in ver. 2 rejoices -in reaching the goal. Then, in vv. 3, 4, 5 the psalmist paints the -sight of the city which gladdened the gazers' eyes, remembers -ancient glories when Jerusalem was the rallying-point for united -worship and the seat of the Davidic monarchy, and finally pours out -patriotic exhortations to love Jerusalem and prayers for her peace -and prosperity. This seems the most natural construing of the psalm. -If, on the other hand, ver. 2 refers to a past time, "the poet, -now again returning home or actually returned, remembers the whole -pilgrimage from its beginning onwards." This is possible; but the -warmth of emotion in the exclamation in ver. 3 is more appropriate to -the moment of rapturous realisation of a long-sought joy than to the -paler remembrance of it. - -Taking, then, the former view of the verse, we have the beginning and -end of the pilgrimage brought into juxtaposition in vv. 1 and 2. It -was begun in joy; it ends in full attainment and a satisfied rapture, -as the pilgrim finds the feet which have traversed many a weary mile -planted at last within the city. How fading the annoyances of the -road! Happy they whose life's path ends where the psalmist's did! The -joy of fruition will surpass that of anticipation, and difficulties -and dangers will be forgotten. - -Vv. 3-5 give voice to the crowding thoughts and memories waked by that -moment of supreme joy, when dreams and hopes have become realities, and -the pilgrim's happy eyes do actually see the city. It stands "built," -by which is best understood _built anew_, rising from the ruins of -many years. It is "compact together," the former breaches in the walls -and the melancholy gaps in the buildings being filled up. Others take -the reference to be to the crowding of its houses, which its site, -a narrow peninsula of rock with deep ravines on three sides, made -necessary. But fair to his eyes as the Jerusalem of to-day looked, the -poet-patriot sees auguster forms rising behind it, and recalls vanished -glories, when all the twelve tribes came up to worship, according to -the commandment, and there was yet a king in Israel. The religious and -civil life of the nation had their centres in the city; and Jerusalem -had become the seat of worship because it was the seat of the monarchy. -These days were past; but though few in number, the tribes still were -going up; and the psalmist does not feel the sadness but the sanctity -of the vanished past. - -Thus moved to the depths of his soul, he breaks forth into exhortation -to his companion pilgrims to pray for the peace of the city. There is a -play on the meaning of the name in ver. 6_a_; for, as the Tel-el-Amarna -tablets have told us, the name of the city of the priest-king was Uru -Salim--the city of [the god of] peace. The prayer is that the _nomen_ -may become _omen_, and that the hope that moved in the hearts that -had so long ago and in the midst of wars given so fair a designation -to their abode, may be fulfilled now at last. A similar play of words -lies in the interchange of "peace" and "prosperity," which are closely -similar in sound in the Hebrew. So sure is the psalmist that God will -favour Zion, that he assures his companions that individual well-being -will be secured by loyal love to her. The motive appealed to may be so -put as to be mere selfishness, though, if any man loved Zion not for -Zion's sake but for his own, he could scarcely be deemed to love her -at all. But rightly understood, the psalmist proclaims an everlasting -truth, that the highest good is realised by sinking self in a passion -of earnest love for and service to the City of God. Such love is in -itself well-being; and while it may have no rewards appreciable by -sense, it cannot fail of sharing in the good of Zion and the prosperity -of God's chosen. - -The singer puts forth the prayers which he enjoins on others, and -rises high above all considerations of self. His desires are winged -by two great motives,--on the one hand, his self-oblivious wish for -the good of those who are knit to him by common faith and worship; on -the other, his loving reverence for the sacred house of Jehovah. That -house hallowed every stone in the city. To wish for the prosperity -of Jerusalem, forgetting that the Temple was in it, would have been -mere earthly patriotism, a very questionable virtue. To wish and -struggle for the growth of an external organisation called a Church, -disregarding the Presence which gives it all its sanctity, is no -uncommon fault in some who think that they are actuated by "zeal for -the Lord," when it is a much more earthly flame that burns in them. - - - - - PSALM CXXIII. - - 1 To Thee lift I mine eyes, - O Thou that art enthroned in the heavens. - 2 Behold, as the eyes of slaves are towards the hand of their - masters, - As the eyes of a maid are towards the hand of her mistress, - So [are] our eyes towards Jehovah our God, - Till He be gracious to us. - - 3 Be gracious to us, Jehovah, be gracious to us, - For we are abundantly filled with contempt. - 4 Abundantly is our soul filled - With the scorn of them that are at ease, - The contempt of the proud. - - -A sigh and an upward gaze and a sigh! No period is more appropriate, -as that of this psalm, than the early days after the return from -exile, when the little community, which had come back with high -hopes, found themselves a laughing-stock to their comfortable and -malicious neighbours. The contrast of tone with the joy of the -preceding psalm is very striking. After the heights of devout -gladness have been reached, it is still needful to come down to stern -realities of struggle, and these can only be faced when the eye of -patient dependence and hope is fixed on God. - -That attitude is the great lesson of this brief and perfect expression -of wistful yet unfaltering trust joined with absolute submission. The -upward look here is like, but also unlike, that in Psalm cxxi., in -that this is less triumphant, though not less assured, and has an -expression of lowly submission in the appealing gaze. Commentators -quote illustrations of the silent observance of the master's look by -his rows of slaves; but these are not needed to elucidate the vivid -image. It tells its own story. Absolute submission to God's hand, -whether it wields a rod or lavishes gifts or points to service, befits -those whose highest honour is to be His slaves. They should stand where -they can see Him; they should have their gaze fixed upon Him; they -should look with patient trust, as well as with eager willingness to -start into activity when He indicates His commands. - -The sigh for deliverance, in the second half of the psalm, is no -breach of that patient submission. Trust and resignation do not kill -natural shrinking from contempt and scorn. It is enough that they -turn shrinking into supplication and lamentations into appeals to -God. He lets His servants make their moan to Him, and tell how full -their souls have long been of men's scorn. As a plea with Him the -psalmist urges the mockers' "ease." In their security and full-fed -complacency, they laughed at the struggling band, as men gorged -with material good ever do at enthusiasts; but it is better to be -contemned for the difficulties which cleaving to the ruins of God's -city brings, than to be the contemners in their selfish abundance. -They are further designated as "haughty," by a word which the Hebrew -margin reads as two words, meaning "proud ones of the oppressors"; -but this is unnecessary, and the text yields a good meaning as it -stands, though the word employed is unusual. - -This sweet psalm, with all its pained sense of the mockers' gibes -and their long duration, has no accent of impatience. Perfect -submission, fixed observance, assured confidence that, "till He is -gracious," it is best to bear what He sends, befit His servants, and -need not hinder their patient cry to Him, nor their telling Him how -long and hard their trial has been. - - - - - PSALM CXXIV. - - 1 Had not Jehovah been for us, - --Thus let Israel say-- - 2 Had not Jehovah been for us, - When men rose against us: - 3 Then had they swallowed us alive, - When their wrath blazed out upon us; - 4 Then had the waters overwhelmed us, - The torrent had gone over our soul; - 5 Then had gone over our soul - The proud waters. - - 6 Blessed be Jehovah, - Who has not given us [as] a prey to their teeth. - 7 Our soul is like a bird escaped from the fowlers' snare; - The snare is broken, and we--we are escaped. - 8 Our help is in the name of Jehovah, - Maker of heaven and earth. - - -A sequence may be traced connecting this with the two adjacent -psalms. In Psalm cxxiii., patient resignation sighed for deliverance, -which here has been received and has changed the singer's note into -jubilant and wondering praise; while, in the next little lyric, we -have the escaped Israel established in Jerusalem, and drawing omens -of Divine guardianship from its impregnable position, on a mountain -girt by mountains. This psalm is an outgush of the first rapture of -astonishment and joy for deliverance so sudden and complete. It is -most naturally taken as the expression of the feelings of the exiles -on their restoration from Babylon. One thought runs through it all, -that the sole actor in their deliverance has been Jehovah. No human -arm has been bared for them; no created might could have rescued them -from the rush of the swelling deluge. Like a bird in a net panting -with fear and helplessness, they waited the fowler's grasp; but, lo, -by an unseen Power the net was broken, and they are free to wing -their flight to their nest. So, triumphantly they ring out at last -the Name which has been their help, abjuring any share in their own -rescue, and content to owe it all to Him. - -The step-like structure is very obvious in this psalm. As Delitzsch -puts it, "In order to take a step forward, it always goes back half -a step." But the repetitions are not mere artistic embellishments; -they beautifully correspond to the feelings expressed. A heart -running over with thankful surprise at its own new security and -freedom cannot but reiterate the occasion of its joy. It is quite -as much devotion as art which says twice over that Jehovah was on -the singers' side, which twice recalls how nearly they had been -submerged in the raging torrent, and twice remembers their escape -from the closely wrapping but miraculously broken snare. A suppliant -is not guilty of vain repetitions though he asks often for the same -blessing, and thanksgiving for answered petitions should be as -persistent as the petitions were. That must be a shallow gratitude -which can be all poured out at one gush. - -The psalmist's metaphors for Israel's danger are familiar ones. "They -had swallowed us alive" may refer to the open jaws of Sheol, as in -other psalms, but more probably is simply a figure drawn from beasts -of prey, as in ver. 6. The other image of a furious swollen torrent -sweeping over the heads (or, as here, over the soul) recalls the -grand contrast drawn by Isaiah between the gently flowing "waters of -Siloam" and the devastating rush of the "river," symbolising the King -of Assyria, which, like some winter torrent swollen by the rains, -suddenly rises and bears on its tawny bosom to the sea the ruins of -men's works and the corpses of the workers. - -The word rendered "proud" is a rare word, coming from a root meaning -_to boil over_, and may be used here in its literal sense, but is -more probably to be taken in its metaphorical meaning of haughty, and -applied rather to the persons signified by the waters than to the -flood itself. Vv. 6 and 7 are an advance on the preceding, inasmuch -as those described rather the imminence of danger, and these magnify -the completeness of Jehovah's delivering mercy. The comparison of -the soul to a bird is beautiful (Psalm xi. 1). It hints at tremors -and feebleness, at alternations of feeling like the flutter of some -weak-winged songster, at the utter helplessness of the panting creature -in the toils. One hand only could break the snare, and then the bruised -wings were swiftly spread for flight once more, and up into the blue -went the ransomed joy, with a song instead of harsh notes of alarm. -"We--we are escaped." That is enough: we are out of the net. Whither -the flight may be directed does not concern the singer in the first -bliss of recovered freedom. All blessedness is contained in the one -word "escaped," which therefore he reiterates, and with which the song -closes, but for that final ascription of the glory of the escape to the -mighty Name of Him who made heaven and earth. - - - - - PSALM CXXV. - - 1 They who trust in Jehovah - Are like Mount Zion, [which] cannot be moved, - For ever it shall sit steadfast. - 2 Jerusalem--mountains are round her, - And Jehovah is round His people - From now and for ever. - 3 For the sceptre of the wicked shall not rest on the lot of the - righteous ones, - Lest the righteous put forth their hands to iniquity. - - 4 Do good, Jehovah, to the good, - And to the upright in their hearts. - 5 And those who warp their crooked paths, - Jehovah shall make them go with the workers of iniquity. - Peace be upon Israel! - - -The references to the topography of Jerusalem in vv. 1, 2, do -not absolutely require, though they recommend, the supposition, -already mentioned, that this psalm completes a triad which covers -the experience of the restored Israel from the time just prior to -its deliverance up till the period of its return to Jerusalem. The -strength of the city perched on its rocky peninsula, and surrounded -by guardian heights, would be the more impressive to eyes accustomed -to the plains of Babylon, where the only defence of cities was -artificial. If this hypothesis as to the date of the psalm is -accepted, its allusions to a foreign domination and to half-hearted -members of the community, as distinguished from manifest workers -of evil, fall in with the facts of the period. The little band of -faithful men was surrounded by foes, and there were faint hearts -among themselves, ready to temporise and "run with the hare," as well -as "hunt with the hounds." In view of deliverance accomplished and of -perils still to be faced, the psalmist sings this strong brief song -of commendation of the excellence of Trust, anticipates as already -fulfilled the complete emancipation of the land from alien rule, -and proclaims, partly in prayer and partly in prediction, the great -law of retribution--certain blessedness for those who are good, and -destruction for the faithless. - -The first of the two grand images in vv. 1, 2, sets forth the -stability of those who trust in Jehovah. The psalmist pictures Mount -Zion somewhat singularly as "sitting steadfast," whereas the usual -expression would be "stands firm." But the former conveys still more -forcibly the image and impression of calm, effortless immobility. Like -some great animal couched at ease, the mountain lies there, in restful -strength. Nothing can shake it, except One Presence, before which the -hills "skip like young rams." Thus quietly steadfast and lapped in -repose, not to be disturbed by any external force, should they be who -trust in Jehovah, and shall be in the measure of their trust. - -But trust could not bring such steadfastness, unless the other figure -in ver. 2 represented a fact. The steadfastness of the trustful soul -is the consequence of the encircling defence of Jehovah's power. The -mountain fortress is girdled by mountains; not, indeed, as if it -was ringed about by an unbroken circle of manifestly higher peaks; -but still Olivet rises above Zion on the east, and a spur of higher -ground runs out thence and overlooks it on the north, while the -levels rise to the west, and the so-called Hill of Evil Counsel is on -the south. They are not conspicuous summits, but they hide the city -from those approaching, till their tops are reached. Perhaps the very -inconspicuousness of these yet real defences suggested to the poet -the invisible protection which to purblind eyes looked so poor, but -was so valid. The hills of Bashan might look scornfully across Jordan -to the humble heights round Jerusalem; but they were enough to guard -the city. The psalmist uses no words of comparison, but lays his two -facts side by side: the mountains round Jerusalem--Jehovah round His -people. That circumvallation is their defence. They who have the -everlasting hills for their bulwark need not trouble themselves to -build a wall such as Babylon needed. Man's artifices for protection -are impertinent when God flings His hand round His people. Zechariah, -the prophet of the Restoration, drew that conclusion from the same -thought, when he declared that Jerusalem should be "inhabited as -villages without walls," because Jehovah would be "unto her a wall of -fire round about" (Zech. ii. 4, 5). - -Ver. 3 seems at first sight to be appended to the preceding in defiance -of logical connection, for its "for" would more naturally have been -"therefore," since the deliverance of the land from foreign invaders -is a consequence of Jehovah's protection. But the psalmist's faith is -so strong that he regards that still further deliverance as already -accomplished, and adduces it as a confirmation of the fact that Jehovah -ever guards His people. In the immediate historical reference this -verse points to a period when the lot of the righteous--_i.e._, the -land of Israel--was, as it were, weighed down by the crushing sceptre -of some alien power that had long lain on it. But the psalmist is sure -that that is not going to last, because his eyes are lifted to the -hills whence his aid comes. With like tenacity and longsightedness, -Faith ever looks onward to the abolition of present evils, however -stringent may be their grip, and however heavy may be the sceptre -which Evil in possession of the heritage of God wields. The rod of the -oppressor shall be broken, and one more proof given that they dwell -safely who dwell encircled by God. - -The domination of evil, if protracted too long, may tempt good men, -who are righteous because they trust, to lose their faith and so -to lose their righteousness, and make common cause with apparently -triumphant iniquity. It needs Divine wisdom to determine how -long a trial must last in order that it may test faith, thereby -strengthening it, and may not confound faith, thereby precipitating -feeble souls into sin. He knows when to say, It is enough. - -So the psalm ends with prayer and prediction, which both spring from -the insight into Jehovah's purposes which trust gives. The singer -asks that the good may receive good, in accordance with the law of -retribution. The expressions describing these are very noticeable, -especially when connected with the designation of the same persons -in ver. 1 as those who trust in Jehovah. Trust makes righteous -and good and upright in heart. If these characteristics are to be -distinguished, _righteous_ may refer to action in conformity with -the law of God, _good_ to the more gentle and beneficent virtues, -and _upright in heart_ to inward sincerity. Such persons will get -"good" from Jehovah, the God of recompenses, and that good will be as -various as their necessities and as wide as their capacities. But the -righteous Protector of those who trust in Him is so, partly because -He smites as well as blesses, and therefore the other half of the law -of retribution comes into view, not as a petition, but as prediction. -The psalmist uses a vivid image to describe half-hearted adherents -to the people of Jehovah: "they bend their ways," so as to make them -crooked. Sometimes the tortuous path points towards one direction, -and then it swerves to almost the opposite. "Those crooked, wandering -ways," in which irresolute men, who do not clearly know whether they -are for Jehovah or for the other side, live lives miserable from -vacillation, can never lead to steadfastness or to any good. The -psalmist has taken his side. He knows whom he is for; and he knows, -too, that there is at bottom little to choose between the coward who -would fain be in both camps and the open antagonist. Therefore they -shall share the same fate. - -Finally the poet, stretching out his hands over all Israel, as if -blessing them like a priest, embraces all his hopes, petitions, -and wishes in the one prayer "Peace be upon Israel!" He means the -true Israel of God (Gal. vi. 16), upon whom the Apostle, with a -reminiscence possibly of this psalm, invokes the like blessing, and -whom he defines in the same spirit as the psalmist does, as those who -walk according to this rule, and not according to the crooked paths -of their own devising. - - - - - PSALM CXXVI. - - 1 When Jehovah brought back the captives of Zion, - We were like as if dreaming. - 2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, - And our tongues with joyful cries; - Then said they among the nations, - Jehovah has done great things with these [people]. - 3 Jehovah has done great things with us; - We were glad. - - 4 Bring back, Jehovah, our captives, - Like watercourses in the Southland. - 5 They who sow with tears - With joyful cries shall reap. - 6 [The husbandman] goes, going and weeping, - [While] bearing the handful of seed; - He shall surely come with joyful cries, - [When] bearing his sheaves. - - -As in Psalm lxxxv., the poet's point of view here is in the midst -of a partial restoration of Israel. In vv. 1-3 he rejoices over -its happy beginning, while in vv. 4-6 he prays for and confidently -expects its triumphant completion. Manifestly the circumstances -fit the period to which most of these pilgrim psalms are to be -referred--namely, the dawn of the restoration from Babylon. Here the -pressure of the difficulties and hostility which the returning exiles -met is but slightly expressed. The throb of wondering gratitude -is still felt; and though tears mingle with laughter, and hard -work which bears no immediate result has to be done, the singer's -confidence is unfaltering. His words set a noble example of the -spirit in which inchoate deliverances should be welcomed, and toil -for their completion encountered with the lightheartedness which is -folly if it springs from self-trust, but wisdom and strength if its -ground is the great things which Jehovah has begun to do. - -The word in ver. 1 rendered captives is capable of other meanings. -It is an unusual form, and is probably an error for the more common -word which occurs in ver. 4. It is most probable that the expressions -should be identical in both instances, though small changes in a -refrain are not infrequent. But if this correction is adopted, there -is room for difference of opinion as to the meaning of the phrase. -Cheyne, with the support of several other commentators, takes the -phrase to mean "turn the fortunes" (lit., a turning), but allows that -the "debate is not absolutely closed" (Critical Note on Psalm xiv. -7). The ordinary rendering is, however, more natural, "captivity" -being the mass of captives. Others would regard the two words in -vv. 1 and 4 as different, and render the former "those who return" -(Delitzsch) or "the returned" (Perowne). - -Sudden and great revolutions for the better have for their first -effect bewilderment and a sense of unreality. Most men have some -supreme moment of blessedness in their memories with which they were -stunned; but, alas! it is oftener the rush of unexpected miseries -that makes them wonder whether they are awake or dreaming. It is not -lack of faith, but slowness in accommodating oneself to surprising -new conditions, which makes these seem unreal at first. "The sober -certainty of waking bliss" is sweeter than the first raptures. It is -good to have had such experience of walking, as it were, on air; but -it is better to plant firm feet on firm ground. - -The mood of the first part of this little psalm is momentary; but -the steadfast toil amid discouragements, not uncheered by happy -confidence, which is pictured in the second part, should be the -permanent temper of those who have once tasted the brief emotion. The -jubilant laughter and ringing cries with which the exiles streamed -forth from bondage, and made the desert echo as they marched, -witnessed to the nations that Jehovah had magnified His dealings with -them. Their extorted acknowledgment is caught up triumphantly by the -singer. He, as it were, thanks the Gentiles for teaching him that -word. There is a world of restrained feeling, all the more impressive -for the simplicity of the expression, in that quiet "We became -glad." When the heathen attested the reality of the deliverance, -Israel became calmly conscious of it. These exclamations of envious -onlookers sufficed to convince the returning exiles that it was -no dream befooling them. Tumultuous feeling steadied itself into -conscious joy. There is no need to say more. The night of weeping was -past, and Joy was their companion in the fresh morning light. - -But the work was but partly done. Difficulties and hardships were not -abolished from the world, as Israel had half expected in the first -flush of joy. We all are apt to think so, when some long wished and -faintly hoped-for good is ours at last. But not such is the Divine -purpose for any life here. He gives moments of untroubled joy, when -no cloud stains the blue and all the winds are still, in order to -prepare us for toil amid tempests and gloomy skies. So the second -half of the psalm breathes petitions for the completion of the -Restoration, and animates the returned exiles with assurances that, -whatever may be their toils, and however rough the weather in which -they have to sow the seed, and however heavy the hearts with which -they do it, "the slow result of winter showers" is sure. Lessons -of persevering toil, of contented doing of preparatory work, of -confidence that no such labour can fail to be profitable to the doer -and to the world, have been drawn for centuries from the sweet words -of this psalm. Who can tell how many hearts they have braced, how -much patient toil they have inspired? The psalmist was sowing seed, -the fruit of which he little dreamed of, when he wrote them, and his -sheaves will be an exceeding weight indeed. - -The metaphor in ver. 4 brings before the imagination the dried -torrent-beds in the arid Negeb, or Southland, which runs out into the -Arabian desert. Dreary and desolate as these dried wadies lie bleaching -in the sunshine, so disconsolate and lonely had the land been without -inhabitants. The psalmist would fain see, not the thin trickle of a -streamlet, to which the returned captives might be compared, but a -full, great rush of rejoicing fellow-countrymen coming back, like the -torrents that fill the silent watercourses with flashing life. - -He prays, and he also prophesies. "They who sow with tears" are -the pioneers of the return, to whom he belonged. Vv. 6, 7, merely -expand the figure of ver. 5 with the substitution of the image -of a single husbandman for the less vivid, clear-cut plural. The -expression rendered "handful of seed" means literally a "draught of -seed"--_i.e._, the quantity taken out of the basket or cloth at one -grasp, in order to be sown. It is difficult to convey the force of -the infinitives in combination with participles and the finite verb -in ver. 6. But the first half of the verse seems to express repeated -actions on the part of the husbandman, who often goes forth to sow, -and weeps as he goes; while the second half expresses the certainty -of his glad coming in with his arms full of sheaves. The meaning -of the figure needs no illustration. It gives assurances fitted to -animate to toil in the face of dangers without, and in spite of a -heavy heart--namely, that no seed sown and watered with tears is -lost; and further, that, though it often seems to be the law for -earth that one soweth and another reapeth, in deepest truth "every -man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labour," -inasmuch as, hereafter, if not now, whatsoever of faith and toil and -holy endeavour a man soweth, trusting to God to bless the springing -thereof, that shall he also reap. In the highest sense and in the -last result the prophet's great words are ever true: "They shall not -plant, and another eat ... for My chosen shall long enjoy the work of -their hands" (Isa. lxv. 22). - - - - - PSALM CXXVII. - - 1 If Jehovah build not a house, - Vainly do its builders toil upon it; - If Jehovah keeps not a city, - Vainly wakes the keeper. - 2 Vain is it for you, ye that make early [your] rising and your - sitting down late, - That eat the bread of painful toil; - Even so He gives [it] to His beloved while in sleep. - - 3 Behold, sons are an heritage from Jehovah, - The fruit of the womb is [His] reward. - 4 Like arrows in the hand of a mighty man, - So are sons of [a father's] youth. - 5 Happy the man who has filled his quiver with them, - They shall not be ashamed - When they speak with enemies in the gate. - - -This pure expression of conscious dependence on God's blessing for -all well-being may possibly have special reference to the Israel of -the Restoration. The instances of vain human effort and care would -then have special force, when the ruins of many generations had to be -rebuilt and the city to be guarded. But there is no need to seek for -specific occasion, so general is this psalm. It sings in a spirit of -happy trust the commonplace of all true religion, that God's blessing -prospers all things, and that effort is vain without it. There is no -sweeter utterance of that truth anywhere, till we come to our Lord's -parallel teaching, lovelier still than that of our psalm, when He -points us to the flowers of the field and the fowls of the air, as -our teachers of the joyous, fair lives that can be lived, when no -carking care mars their beauty. - -In ver. 1 the examples chosen by the singer are naturally connected. -The house when built is one in the many that make the city. The owner's -troubles are not over when it is built, since it has to be watched. It -is as hard to keep as to acquire earthly goods. The psalmist uses the -past tenses in describing the vanity of building and watching unblessed -by God. "They" have built in vain, and watched in vain. He, as it were, -places us at the point of time when the failure is developed,--the -half-built house a ruin, the city sacked and in flames. - -Ver. 2 deals with domestic life within the built house and guarded -city. It is vain to eke out the laborious day by early beginning and -late ending. Long hours do not mean prosperous work. The evening meal -may be put off till a late hour; and when the toil-worn man sits down -to it, he may eat bread made bitter by labour. But all is in vain -without God's blessing. The last clause of the verse must be taken as -presenting a contrast to the futile labour reprehended in the former -clauses; and therefore the beautiful rendering of the A.V. must be -abandoned, though it has given many sweet thoughts to trustful souls, -and none sweeter than in Mrs. Browning's pathetic lines. But clearly -the contrast is between labour which effects nothing, but is like -spinning ropes out of sea-sand, and God's gift of the good which the -vain toil had aimed at, and which He gives to His beloved in their -sleep. "So" seems here to be equivalent to "Even so," and the thought -intended is probably that God's gift to His beloved secures to them -the same result as is ineffectually sought by godless struggles. - -This is no preaching of laziness masquerading as religious trust. -The psalmist insists on one side of the truth. Not work, but -self-torturing care and work, without seeking God's blessing, are -pronounced vanity. - -The remainder of the psalm dwells on one special instance of God's -gifts, that of a numerous family, which, in accordance with the Hebrew -sentiment, is regarded as a special blessing. But the psalmist is -carried beyond his immediate purpose of pointing out that that chief -earthly blessing, as he and his contemporaries accounted it, is God's -gift, and he lingers on the picture of a father surrounded in his old -age by a band of stalwart sons born unto him in his vigorous youth, -and so now able to surround him with a ring of strong protectors -of his declining days. "They shall speak with their enemies in the -gate." Probably "they" refers to the whole band, the father in the -midst and his sons about him. The gate was the place where justice -was administered, and where was the chief place of concourse. It is -therefore improbable that actual warfare is meant: rather, in the -disputes which might arise with neighbours, and in the intercourse of -city life, which would breed enmities enough, the man with his sons -about him could hold his own. And such blessing is God's gift. - -The lesson of the psalm is one that needs to be ever repeated. It -is so obvious that it is unseen by many, and apt to be unnoticed by -all. There are two ways of going to work in reference to earthly -good. One is that of struggling and toiling, pushing and snatching, -fighting and envying, and that way comes to no successful issue; -for if it gets what it has wriggled and wrestled for, it generally -gets in some way or other an incapacity to enjoy the good won, which -makes it far less than the good pursued. The other way is the way of -looking to God and doing the appointed tasks with quiet dependence -on Him, and that way always succeeds; for, with its modest or large -outward results, there is given likewise a quiet heart set on God, -and therefore capable of finding water in the desert and extracting -honey from the rock. The one way is that of "young lions," who, for -all their claws and strength, "do lack and suffer hunger"; the other -is that of "them that seek the Lord," who "shall not want any good." - - - - - PSALM CXXVIII. - - 1 Happy is every one that fears Jehovah, - That walks in His ways. - 2 The labour of thy hands shalt thou surely eat,-- - Happy art thou, and it is well with thee. - 3 Thy wife [shall be] like a fruitful vine in the inmost chambers - of thy house, - Thy children like young olive plants round thy table. - 4 Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed - Who fears Jehovah. - - 5 Jehovah bless thee out of Zion! - And mayest thou look on the prosperity of Jerusalem - All the days of thy life, - 6 And see children to thy children! - Peace be upon Israel! - - -The preceding psalm traced all prosperity and domestic felicity to -God's giving hand. It painted in its close the picture of a father -surrounded by his sons able to defend him. This psalm presents the same -blessings as the result of a devout life, in which the fear of Jehovah -leads to obedience and diligence in labour. It presents the inner side -of domestic happiness. It thus doubly supplements the former, lest -any should think that God's gift superseded man's work, or that the -only blessedness of fatherhood was that it supplied a corps of sturdy -defenders. The first four verses describe the peaceful, happy life of -the God-fearing man, and the last two invoke on him the blessing which -alone makes such a life his. Blended with the sweet domesticity of the -psalm is glowing love for Zion. However blessed the home, it is not to -weaken the sense of belonging to the nation. - -No purer, fairer idyll was ever penned than this miniature picture of -a happy home life. But its calm, simple beauty has deep foundations. -The poet sets forth the basis of all noble, as of all tranquil, -life when he begins with the fear of Jehovah, and thence advances -to practical conformity with His will, manifested by walking in the -paths which He traces for men. Thence the transition is easy to the -mention of diligent labour, and the singer is sure that such toil -done on such principles and from such a motive cannot go unblessed. -Outward prosperity does not follow good men's work so surely as the -letter of the psalm teaches, but the best fruits of such work are -not those which can be stored in barns or enjoyed by sense; and the -labourer who does his work "heartily, as to the Lord," will certainly -reap a harvest in character and power and communion with God, -whatever transitory gain may be attained or missed. - -The sweet little sketch of a joyous home in ver. 3 is touched with -true grace and feeling. The wife is happy in her motherhood, and -ready, in the inner chambers (literally _sides_) of the house, where -she does her share of work, to welcome her husband returning from -the field. The family gathers for the meal won and sweetened by his -toil; the children are in vigorous health, and growing up like young -"layered" olive plants. It may be noted that this verse exhibits a -home in the earlier stages of married life, and reflects the happy -hopes associated with youthful children, all still gathered under -the father's roof; while, in the latter part of the psalm, a later -stage is in view, when the father sits as a spectator rather than a -worker, and sees children born to his children. Ver. 4 emphatically -dwells once more on the foundation of all as laid in the fear of -Jehovah. Happy a nation whose poets have such ideals and sing of such -themes! How wide the gulf separating this "undisturbed song" of pure -home joys from the foul ideals which baser songs try to adorn! Happy -the man whose ambition is bounded by its limits, and whose life is - - "True to the kindred points of heaven and home"! - -Israel first taught the world how sacred the family is; and -Christianity recognises "a church in the house" of every wedded pair -whose love is hallowed by the fear of Jehovah. - -In vv. 5, 6, petitions take the place of assurances, for the singer -knows that none of the good which he has been promising will come -without that blessing of which the preceding psalm had spoken. -All the beautiful and calm joys just described must flow from -God, and be communicated from that place which is the seat of His -self-revelation. The word rendered above "mayest thou look" is in the -imperative form, which seems here to be intended to blend promise, -wish, and command. It is the duty of the happiest husband and father -not to let himself be so absorbed in the sweets of home as to have -his heart beat languidly for the public weal. The subtle selfishness -which is but too commonly the accompaniment of such blessings is to -be resisted. From his cheerful hearth the eyes of a lover of Zion -are to look out, and be gladdened when they see prosperity smiling -on Zion. Many a Christian is so happy in his household that his -duties to the Church, the nation, and the world are neglected. This -ancient singer had a truer conception of the obligations flowing from -personal and domestic blessings. He teaches us that it is not enough -to "see children's children," unless we have eyes to look for the -prosperity of Jerusalem, and tongues which pray not only for those in -our homes, but for "peace upon Israel." - - - - - PSALM CXXIX. - - 1 Sorely have they oppressed me from my youth, - Let Israel now say, - 2 Sorely have they oppressed me from my youth, - But they have not also prevailed against me. - 3 On my back the ploughers ploughed, - They made their furrows long. - 4 Jehovah the righteous - Has cut the cord of the wicked. - - 5 Let them be shamed and turned back, - All they who hate Zion. - 6 Let them be as the grass of the housetops, - Which, before it shoots forth, withers: - 7 With which the mower fills not his hand, - Nor the sheaf-binder his bosom; - 8 And the passers-by say not, - "The blessing of Jehovah be to you!" - "We bless you in the name of Jehovah!" - - -The point of view here is the same as in Psalm cxxiv., with which the -present psalm has much similarity both in subject and in expression. -It is a retrospect of Israel's past, in which the poet sees a uniform -exemplification of two standing facts--sore affliction and wonderful -deliverance. The bush burned, _nec tamen consumebatur_. "Cast down, -but not destroyed," is the summary of the Church's history. No doubt -the recent deliverance from captivity underlies this, as most of -the pilgrim psalms. The second part (vv. 5-8) blends confidence and -wish, founded on the experience recorded in the first part, and -prophesies and desires the overthrow of Israel's foes. The right -use of retrospect is to make it the ground of hope. They who have -passed unscathed through such afflictions may well be sure that -any to-morrow shall be as the yesterdays were, and that all future -assaults will fail as all past ones have failed. - -The words which Israel is called upon to say twice with triumphant -remembrance are the motto of the _Ecclesia pressa_ in all ages. Ever -there is antagonism; never is there overthrow. Israel's "youth" was -far back in the days of Egyptian bondage; and many an affliction -has he since met, but he lives still, and his existence proves that -"they have not prevailed against" him. Therefore the backward look is -gladsome, though it sees so many trials. Survived sorrows yield joy -and hope, as gashes in trees exude precious gums. - -Ver. 3 expresses Israel's oppressions by a strong metaphor, in which -two figures are blended--a slave under the lash, and a field furrowed -by ploughing. Cruel lords had laid on the whip, till the victim's -back was scored with long wounds, straight and parallel, like the -work of a ploughman. The Divine deliverance follows in ver. 4. The -first words of the verse do not stand in the usual order, if rendered -"Jehovah is righteous," and are probably to be taken as above; -"righteous" standing in apposition to "Jehovah," and expressing the -Divine characteristic which guaranteed and, in due time, accomplished -Israel's deliverance. God could not but be true to His covenant -obligations. Therefore He cut the "cord of the wicked." The figure -is here changed to one occasioned by the former. Israel is now the -draught ox harnessed to the plough; and thus both sides of his -bondage are expressed--cruel treatment by the former, and hard toil -by the latter, figure. The same act which, in the parallel 124th -Psalm, is described as breaking the fowler's snare, is in view here; -and the restoration from Babylon suits the circumstances completely. - -The story of past futile attempts against Israel animates the -confidence and vindicates the wish breathed in the latter half of the -psalm. To hate Zion, which Jehovah so manifestly loves and guards, -must be suicidal. It is something far nobler than selfish vengeance -which desires and foresees the certain failure of attempts against -it. The psalmist is still under the influence of his earlier metaphor -of the ploughed field, but now has come to think of the harvest. The -graphic image of the grass on flat housetops of clay, which springs -quickly because it has no depth of earth, and withers as it springs, -vividly describes the short-lived success and rapid extinction of -plots against Zion and of the plotters. The word rendered above -"shoots forth" is by some translated "is plucked up," and that -meaning is defensible, but grass on the housetops would scarcely be -worth plucking, and the word is used elsewhere for unsheathing a -sword. It may, therefore, be taken here to refer to the shooting out -of the spikelets from their covering. The psalmist dilates upon his -metaphor in ver. 7, which expresses the fruitlessness of assaults -on God's chosen. No harvest is to be reaped from such sowing. The -enemies may plot and toil, and before their plans have had time to -bud they are smitten into brown dust; and when the contrivers come -expecting success, there is nothing to mow or gather. "They look -for much, and behold little." So it has been; so it shall be; so it -should be; so may it be, wishes the psalmist; and true hearts will -say Amen to his aspiration. - -Such reapers have no joy in harvest, and no man can invoke Jehovah's -blessing on their bad work. Ver. 8 brings up a lovely little picture -of a harvest field, where passers-by shout their good wishes to the -glad toilers, and are answered by these with like salutations. It -is doubtful whether ver. 8_c_ is spoken by the passers-by or is the -reapers' responsive greeting. The latter explanation gives animation -to the scene. But in any case the verse suggests by contrast the -gloomy silence of Israel's would-be destroyers, who find, as all who -set themselves against Jehovah's purposes do find, that He blasts -their plans with His breath, and makes their "harvest an heap in the -day of grief and desperate sorrow." - - - - - PSALM CXXX. - - 1 Out of the depths have I cried to Thee, Jehovah. - 2 Lord, hearken to my voice, - Be Thine ears attent - To the voice of my supplications. - - 3 If Thou, Jah, shouldest mark iniquities, - Lord, who could stand?-- - 4 For with Thee is forgiveness, - That Thou mayest be feared. - - 5 I have waited for Jehovah, - And in His word have I hoped. - 6 My soul [hopes] for the Lord - More than watchers for the morning, - --Watchers for the morning. - - 7 Let Israel hope in Jehovah, - For with Jehovah is loving-kindness, - And in abundance with Him is redemption. - 8 And He--He will redeem Israel - From all his iniquities. - - -In a very emphatic sense this is a song of ascents, for it climbs -steadily from the abyss of penitence to the summits of hope. It falls -into two divisions of four verses each, of which the former breathes -the prayer of a soul penetrated by the consciousness of sin, and the -latter the peaceful expectance of one that has tasted God's forgiving -mercy. These two parts are again divided into two groups of two -verses, so that there are four stages in the psalmist's progress from -the depths to the sunny heights. - -In the first group we have the psalmist's cry. He has called, and -still calls. He reiterates in ver. 2 the prayer that he had long -offered and still presents. It is not only quotation, but is the cry -of present need. What are these "depths" from which his voice sounds, -as that of a man fallen into a pit and sending up a faint call? The -expression does not merely refer to his creatural lowliness, nor -even to his troubles, nor even to his depression of spirit. There -are deeper pits than these--those into which the spirit feels itself -going down, sick and giddy, when it realises its sinfulness. Unless a -man has been down in that black abyss, he has scarcely cried to God -as he should do. The beginning of true personal religion is the sense -of personal sin. A slight conception of the gravity of that fact -underlies inadequate conceptions of Christ's nature and work, and is -the mother of heresies in creed and superficialities and deadnesses -in practice. A religion that sits lightly upon its professor, -impelling to no acts of devotion, flashing out in no heroisms, rising -to no heights of communion--that is to say, the average Christianity -of great masses of so-called Christians--bears proof, in its languor, -that the man knows nothing about the depths, and has never cried to -God from them. Further, if out of the depths we cry, we shall cry -ourselves out of the depths. What can a man do who finds himself at -the foot of a beetling cliff, the sea in front, the wall of rock -at his back, without foothold for a mouse, between the tide at the -bottom and the grass at the top? He can do but one thing: he can -shout, and perhaps may be heard, and a rope may come dangling down -that he can spring at and clutch. For sinful men in the miry pit the -rope is already let down, and their grasping it is the same act as -the psalmist's cry. God has let down His forgiving love in Christ, -and we need but the faith which accepts while it asks, and then we -are swung up into the light, and our feet set on a rock. - -Vv. 3, 4, are the second stage. A dark fear shadows the singer's soul, -and is swept away by a joyful assurance. The word rendered above -"mark" is literally _keep_ or _watch_, as in ver. 6, and here seems -to mean to _take account of_, or _retain_ in remembrance, in order to -punish. If God should take man's sin into account in His dispositions -and dealings, "O Lord, who shall stand?" No man could sustain that -righteous judgment. He must go down before it like a flimsy hut before -a whirlwind, or a weak enemy before a fierce charge. That thought comes -to the psalmist like a blast of icy air from the north, and threatens -to chill his hope to death and to blow his cry back into his throat. -But its very hypothetical form holds a negation concealed in it. Such -an implied negative is needed in order to explain the "for" of ver. -4. The singer springs, as it were, to that confidence by a rebound -from the other darker thought. We must have tremblingly entertained -the contrary dread possibility, before we can experience the relief -and gladness of its counter-truth. The word rendered "forgiveness" is -a late form, being found only in two other late passages (Neh. ix. -17; Dan. ix. 9). It literally means _cutting off_, and so suggests -the merciful surgery by which the cancerous tumour is taken out of -the soul. Such forgiveness is "with God," inherent in His nature. -And that forgiveness lies at the root of true godliness. No man -reverences, loves, and draws near to God so rapturously and so humbly -as he who has made experience of His pardoning mercy, lifting a soul -from its abysses of sin and misery. Therefore the psalmist, taught -by what pardon has done for him in drawing him lovingly near to God, -declares that its great purpose is "that Thou mayest be feared," and -that not only by the recipient, but by beholders. Strangely enough, -many commentators have found a difficulty in this idea, which seems -sun-clear to those whose own history explains it to them. Graetz, for -instance, calls it "completely unintelligible." It has been very -intelligible to many a penitent who has been by pardon transformed into -a reverent lover of God. - -The next stage in the ascent from the depths is in vv. 5, 6, which -breathe peaceful, patient hope. It may be doubtful whether the -psalmist means to represent that attitude of expectance as prior to -and securing forgiveness or as consequent upon it. The latter seems -the more probable. A soul which has received God's forgiveness is -thereby led into tranquil, continuous, ever-rewarded waiting on Him, -and hope of new gifts springs ever fresh in it. Such a soul sits -quietly at His feet, trusting to His love, and looking for light and -all else needed, to flow from Him. The singleness of the object of -devout hope, the yearning which is not impatience, characterising -that hope at its noblest, are beautifully painted in the simile -of the watchers for morning. As they who have outwatched the long -night look eagerly to the flush that creeps up in the east, telling -that their vigil is past, and heralding the stir and life of a -new day with its wakening birds and fresh morning airs, so this -singer's eyes had turned to God, and to Him only. Ver. 6 does not -absolutely require the supplement "hopes." It may read simply "My -soul is towards Jehovah"; and that translation gives still more -emphatically the notion of complete turning of the whole being to -God. Consciousness of sin was as a dark night; forgiveness flushed -the Eastern heaven with prophetic twilight. So the psalmist waits for -the light, and his soul is one aspiration towards God. - -In vv. 7, 8, the psalmist becomes an evangelist, inviting Israel to -unite in his hope, that they may share in his pardon. In the depths -he was alone, and felt as if the only beings in the universe were -God and himself. The consciousness of sin isolates, and the sense of -forgiveness unites. Whoever has known that "with Jehovah is pardon" -is impelled thereby to invite others to learn the same lesson in -the same sweet way. The psalmist has a broad gospel to preach, the -generalisation of his own history. He had said in ver. 4 that "with -Jehovah is forgiveness" (lit. _the_ forgiveness, possibly meaning -_the needed forgiveness_), and he thereby had animated his own hope. -Now he repeats the form of expression, only that he substitutes -for "forgiveness" the loving-kindness which is its spring, and -the redemption which is its result; and these he presses upon his -fellows as reasons and encouragements for their hope. It is "abundant -redemption," or "multiplied," as the word might be rendered. "Seventy -times seven"--the perfect numbers seven and ten being multiplied -together and their sum increased sevenfold--make a numerical symbol for -the unfailing pardons which we are to bestow; and the sum of the Divine -pardon is surely greater than that of the human. God's forgiving grace -is mightier than all sins, and able to conquer them all. - -"He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities"; not only from their -consequences in punishment, but from their power, as well as from their -guilt and their penalty. The psalmist means something a great deal -deeper than deliverance from calamities which conscience declared to be -the chastisement of sin. He speaks New Testament language. He was sure -that God would redeem from all iniquity; but he lived in the twilight -dawn, and had to watch for the morning. The sun is risen for us; but -the light is the same in quality, though more in degree: "Thou shalt -call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins." - - - - - PSALM CXXXI. - - 1 Jehovah, not haughty is my heart, - And not lofty are mine eyes; - And I go not into great things, - Nor things too wonderful for me. - 2 I have calmed and quieted my soul, - Like a weaned child with its mother, - Like the weaned child is my soul with me. - - 3 Let Israel hope in Jehovah, - From now, even for evermore. - - -A quiet, because self-quieted, heart speaks here in quiet accents, -not unlike the "crooning" of the peaceful child on its mother's -bosom, to which the sweet singer likens his soul. The psalm is the -most perfect expression of the child-like spirit, which, as Christ -has taught, is characteristic of the subjects of the kingdom of -heaven. It follows a psalm of penitence, in which a contrite soul -waited on Jehovah for pardon, and, finding it, exhorted Israel to -hope in His redemption from all iniquity. Consciousness of sin and -conscious reception of redemption therefrom precede true lowliness, -and such lowliness should follow such consciousness. - -The psalmist does not pray; still less does he contradict his lowliness -in the very act of declaring it, by pluming himself on it. He speaks -in that serene and happy mood, sometimes granted to lowly souls, when -fruition is more present than desire, and the child, folded to the -Divine heart, feels its blessedness so satisfyingly that fears and -hopes, wishes and dreams, are still. Simple words best speak tranquil -joys. One note only is sounded in this psalm, which might almost be -called a lullaby. How many hearts it has helped to hush! - -The haughtiness which the psalmist disclaims has its seat in the -heart and its manifestation in supercilious glances. The lowly heart -looks higher than the proud one does, for it lifts its eyes to the -hills, and fixes them on Jehovah, as a slave on his lord. Lofty -thoughts of self naturally breed ambitions which seek great spheres -and would intermeddle with things above reach. The singer does not -refer to questions beyond solution by human faculty, but to worldly -ambitions aiming at prominence and position. He aims low, as far as -earth is concerned; but he aims high, for his mark is in the heavens. - -Shaking off such ambitions and loftiness of spirit, he has found -repose, as all do who clear their hearts of that perilous stuff. -But it is to be noted that the calm which he enjoys is the fruit of -his own self-control, by which his dominant self has smoothed and -stilled the sensitive nature with its desires and passions. It is -not the tranquillity of a calm nature which speaks here, but that -into which the speaker has entered, by vigorous mastery of disturbing -elements. How hard the struggle had been, how much bitter crying -and petulant resistance there had been before the calm was won, is -told by the lovely image of the weaned child. While being weaned it -sobs and struggles, and all its little life is perturbed. So no man -comes to have a quiet heart without much resolute self-suppression. -But the figure tells of ultimate repose, even more plainly than of -preceding struggle. For, once the process is accomplished, the child -nestles satisfied on the mother's warm bosom, and wishes nothing more -than to lie there. So the man who has manfully taken in hand his own -weaker and more yearning nature, and directed its desires away from -earth by fixing them on God, is freed from the misery of hot desire, -and passes into calm. He that ceases from his own works enters into -rest. If a man thus compels his "soul" to cease its cravings for what -earth can give, he will have to disregard its struggles and cries, -but these will give place to quietness; and the fruition of the -blessedness of setting all desires on God will be the best defence -against the recurrence of longings once silenced. - -The psalmist would fain have all Israel share in his quietness of -heart, and closes his tender snatch of song with a call to them -to hope in Jehovah, whereby they, too, may enter into peace. The -preceding psalm ended with the same call; but there God's mercy -in dealing with sin was principally in question, while here His -sufficiency for all a soul's wants is implied. The one secret of -forgiveness and deliverance from iniquity is also the secret of rest -from tyrannous longings and disturbing desires. Hope in Jehovah -brings pardon, purity, and peace. - - - - - PSALM CXXXII. - - 1 Remember, Jehovah, to David - All the pains he took - 2 Who swore to Jehovah, - [And] vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob, - 3 "I will not go into the tent of my house, - I will not go up to the bed of my couch, - 4 I will not give sleep to mine eyes, - To mine eyelids slumber, - 5 Till I find a place for Jehovah, - A habitation for the Mighty One of Jacob." - - 6 Behold, we heard [of] it at Ephrathah, - We found it in the Fields of the Wood. - 7 Let us come to His habitation, - Let us bow ourselves at His footstool. - - 8 Arise, Jehovah, to Thy rest, - Thou and the Ark of Thy strength. - 9 Let Thy priests be clothed with righteousness, - And Thy favoured ones utter shrill cries of joy. - 10 For the sake of David Thy servant, - Turn not away the face of Thine anointed. - - 11 Jehovah has sworn to David, - It is truth--He will not go back from it-- - "Of the fruit of thy body will I set on thy throne. - 12 If thy sons keep My covenant - And My testimonies which I will teach them, - Their sons also for ever and aye - Shall sit on thy throne." - - 13 For Jehovah has chosen Zion, - He has desired it for His dwelling. - 14 "This is My rest for ever and aye, - Here will I abide, for I have desired it. - 15 Her provision blessing I will bless, - Her poor will I satisfy with bread. - 16 Her priests also will I clothe with salvation, - And her favoured ones uttering will utter shrill cries of joy. - 17 There will I cause a horn to sprout for David, - I have trimmed a lamp for Mine anointed. - 18 His enemies will I clothe with shame, - But upon himself shall his crown glitter." - - -The continuance of "the sure mercies of David" to his descendants for -his sake is first besought from God, and is then promised, for his -sake, by God Himself, speaking in the singer's spirit. The special -blessing sought for is Jehovah's dwelling in His house, which is here -contemplated as reared after long toil. Expositors differ, as usual, -in regard to the date and occasion of this psalm. Its place among -the pilgrim psalms raises a presumption in favour of a post-exilic -date, and one class of commentators refers it confidently to the -period of the rebuilding of the Temple. But the mention of the Ark -(which disappeared after the destruction of Solomon's Temple) can -be reconciled with that supposed date only by a somewhat violent -expedient. Nor is it easy to suppose that the repeated references -to David's descendants as reigning in accordance with God's promise -could have been written at a time when there was no king in Israel. -Zerubbabel has, indeed, been suggested as "the anointed" of this -psalm; but he was not king, and neither in fact nor in idea was he -anointed. And could a singer in Israel, in the post-exilic period, -have recalled the ancient promises without some passing sigh for -their apparent falsification in the present? Psalm lxxxix. is often -referred to as the "twin" of this psalm. Its wailings over the -vanished glories of the Davidic monarchy have nothing corresponding -to them here. These considerations are against a post-exilic date, -for which the chief argument is the inclusion of the psalm in the -collection of pilgrim songs. - -If, on the other hand, we disregard its place in the Psalter and look -at its contents, it must be admitted that they perfectly harmonise -with the supposition that its occasion was the completion of -Solomon's Temple. The remembrance of David's long-cherished purpose -to build the House, of the many wanderings of the Ark, the glad -summons to enter the courts to worship, the Divine promises to David, -which were connected with his design of building a Temple, all fit -in with this view of the occasion of the psalm. Singularly enough, -some advocates of later dates than even the building of the second -Temple catch in the psalm tones of depression, and see indications -of its having been written when the glowing promises which it quotes -appeared to have failed. It is not in reference to "Nature" only that -"we receive but what we give." To other ears, with perhaps equal -though opposite bias, glad confidence in a promise, of which the -incipient fulfilment was being experienced, sounds in the psalm. To -some it is plain that it was written when Ark and king had been swept -away; to others it is equally clear that it presupposes the existence -of both. The latter view is to the present writer the more probable. - -The psalm is not divided into regular strophes. There is, however, -a broad division into two parts, of which vv. 1-10 form the first, -the pleading of Israel with Jehovah; and vv. 11-18 the second, the -answer of Jehovah to Israel. The first part is further divided into -two: vv. 1-5 setting forth David's vow; vv. 6-10 the congregation's -glad summons to enter the completed sanctuary, and its prayer for -blessings on the worshipping nation with its priests and king. The -second part is Jehovah's renewed promises, which take up and surpass -the people's prayer. It is broken by a single verse (13), which is an -interjected utterance of Israel's. - -"One remembers anything to another, when one requites him for what -he has done, or when one performs for him what one has promised him" -(Delitzsch). David's earnest longing to find a fixed place for the Ark, -his long-continued and generous amassing of treasure for the purpose of -building the Temple, are regarded as a plea with God. The solidarity -of the family, which was so vividly realised in old times, reaches its -highest expression in the thought that blessings to David's descendants -are as if given to him, sleeping in the royal tomb. Beautifully and -humbly the singer, as representing the nation, has nothing to say of -the toil of the actual builders. Not the hand which executes, but the -heart and mind which conceived and cherished the plan, are its true -author. The psalmist gives a poetic version of David's words in 2 Sam. -vii. 2. "See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the Ark of God -dwelleth in curtains," contains in germ all which the psalmist here -draws out of it. He, the aged king, was almost ashamed of his own ease. -"God gave him rest from his enemies," but he will not "give sleep to -his eyes" till he finds out a place for Jehovah. Wearied with a stormy -life, he might well have left it to others to care for the work which -the prophet had told him that he was not to be permitted to begin. -But not so does a true man reason. Rather, he will consecrate to God -his leisure and his old age, and will rejoice to originate work which -he cannot hope to see completed, and even to gather materials which -happier natures and times may turn to account. He will put his own -comfort second, God's service first. - -Such devotedness does make a plea with God. The psalmist's prayer goes -on that supposition, and God's answer endorses it as valid. He does -not require perfect faithfulness in His servants ere He prospers their -work with His smile. Stained offerings, in which much of the leaven of -earthly motives may be fermenting, are not therefore rejected. - -Vv. 6-10 are the petitions grounded on the preceding plea, and asking -that Jehovah would dwell in the sanctuary and bless the worshippers. -Ver. 6 offers great difficulties. It seems clear, however, that it -and the next verse are to be taken as very closely connected (note -the "we" and "us" occurring in them for the only time in the psalm). -They seem to describe continuous actions, of which the climax is -entrance into the sanctuary. The first question as to ver. 6 is what -the "it" is, which is spoken of in both clauses; and the most natural -answer is--the Ark, alluded to here by anticipation, though not -mentioned till ver. 8. The irregularity is slight and not unexampled. -The interpretation of the verse mainly depends on the meaning of the -two designations of locality, "Ephrathah" and "the fields of the -Wood." Usually the former is part of the name of Bethlehem, but the -Ark in all its wanderings is never said to have been there. Most -probably Shiloh, in which the Ark did remain for a time, is intended. -But why should Shiloh be called Ephrathah? The answer usually given, -but not altogether satisfactory, is that Shiloh lay in the territory -of Ephraim, and that we have instances in which an Ephraimite is -called an "Ephrathite" (Judg. xii. 5; 1 Sam. i. 1; 1 Kings xi. 26), -and therefore it may be presumed that the territory of Ephraim was -called Ephrathah. "The fields of the Wood," on the other hand, is -taken to be a free poetic variation of the name of Kirjath-jearim -(the city of the woods), where the Ark long lay, and whence it was -brought up to Jerusalem by David. In this understanding of the verse, -the two places where it remained longest are brought together, and -the meaning of the whole verse is, "We heard that it lay long at -Shiloh, but we found it in Kirjath-jearim." Delitzsch, followed by -Cheyne, takes a different view, regarding "Ephrathah" as a name for -the district in which Kirjath-jearim lay. He founds this explanation -on the genealogies in 1 Chron. ii. 19, 50, according to which -Caleb's wife, Ephrath, was the mother of Hur, the ancestor of the -Bethlehemites, and whose son Shobal was the ancestor of the people -of Kirjath-jearim; Ephrathah was thus a fitting name for the whole -district, which included both Bethlehem and Kirjath-jearim. In this -understanding of the names, the verse means, "We heard that the Ark -was at Kirjath-jearim, and there we found it." - -Ver. 7 must be taken as immediately connected with the preceding. -If the same persons who found the Ark still speak, the "tabernacle" -into which they encourage each other to enter must be the tent -within which, as David said, it dwelt "in curtains"; and the joyful -utterance of an earlier age will then be quoted by the still happier -generation who, at the moment while they sing, see the sacred symbol -of the Divine Presence enshrined within the Holy Place of the Temple. -At all events, the petitions which follow are most naturally regarded -as chanted forth at that supreme moment, though it is possible that -the same feeling of the solidity of the nation in all generations, -which, as applied to the reigning family, is seen in ver. 1, may -account for the worshippers in the new Temple identifying themselves -with the earlier ones who brought up the Ark to Zion. The Church -remains the same, while its individual members change. - -The first of the petitions is partly taken from the invocation in -Numb. x. 35, when "the Ark set forward"; but there it was a prayer -for guidance on the march; here, for Jehovah's continuance in His -fixed abode. It had wandered far and long. It had been planted in -Shiloh, but had deserted that sanctuary which He had once loved. It -had tarried for a while at Mizpeh and at Bethel. It had been lost -on the field of Aphek, been borne in triumph through Philistine -cities, and sent back thence in terror. It had lain for three months -in the house of Obed-edom, and for twenty years been hidden at -Kirjath-jearim. It had been set with glad acclaim in the tabernacle -provided by David, and now it stands in the Temple. There may it -abide and go no more out! Solomon and Hiram and all their workmen -may have done their best, and the result of their toils may stand -gleaming in the sunlight in its fresh beauty; but something more -is needed. Not till the Ark is in the Shrine does the Glory fill -the house. The lesson is for all ages. Our organisations and works -are incomplete without that quickening Presence. It will surely be -given if we desire it. When His Church prays, "Arise, O Lord, into -Thy rest, Thou and the Ark of Thy strength," His answer is swift and -sure, "Lo, I am with you always." - -From this petition all the others flow. If "the Ark of Thy strength" -dwells with us, we too shall be strong, and have that Might for -our inspiration as well as our shield. "Let Thy priests be clothed -with righteousness." The pure vestments of the priests were symbols -of stainless character, befitting the ministers of a holy God. The -psalmist prays that the symbol may truly represent the inner reality. -He distinguishes between priests and the mass of the people; but in -the Church to-day, as indeed in the original constitution of Israel, -all are priests, and must be clothed in a righteousness which they -receive from above. They do not weave that robe, but they must "put -on" the garment which Christ gives them. Righteousness is no hazy, -theological virtue, having little to do with every-day life and -small resemblance to secular morality. To be good, gentle, and just, -self-forgetting and self-ruling, to practise the virtues which all -men call "lovely and of good report," and to consecrate them all by -reference to Him in whom they dwell united and complete, is to be -righteous; and that righteousness is the garb required of, and given -by God to, all those who seek it and minister in His Temple. - -"Let Thy favoured ones utter shrill cries of joy." Surely, if they -dwell in the Temple, gladness will not fail them. True religion is -joyful. If a man has only to lift his eyes to see the Ark, what but -averted eyes should make him sad? True, there are enemies, but we are -close to the fountain of strength. True, there are sins, but we can -receive the garment of righteousness. True, there are wants, but the -sacrifice whereof "the meek shall eat and be satisfied" is at hand. -There is much unreached as yet, but there is a present God. So we may -"walk all the day in the light of His countenance," and realise the -truth of the paradox of always rejoicing, though sometimes we sorrow. - -The final petition is for the anointed king, that his prayers may be -heard. To "turn away the face" is a graphic expression, drawn from -the attitude of one who refuses to listen to a suppliant. It is harsh -in the extreme to suppose that the king referred to is David himself, -though Hupfeld and others take that view. The reference to Solomon is -natural. - -Such are the psalmist's petitions. The answers follow in the -remainder of the psalm, which, as already noticed, is parted in two -by an interjected verse (ver. 13), breaking the continuity of the -Divine Voice. The shape of the responses is determined by the form of -the desires, and in every case the answer is larger than the prayer. -The Divine utterance begins with a parallel between the oath of -David and that of God. David "sware to Jehovah." Yes, but "Jehovah -has sworn to David." That is grander and deeper. With this may be -connected the similar parallel in vv. 13 and 14 with ver. 5. David -had sought to "find a habitation" for Jehovah. But He Himself had -chosen His habitation long ago. He is throned there now, not because -of David's choice or Solomon's work, but because His will had settled -the place of His feet. These correspondences of expression point to -the great truth that God is His own all-sufficient reason. He is not -won to dwell with men by their importunity, but in the depths of His -unchangeable love lies the reason why He abides with us unthankful. -The promise given in ver. 12, which has respect to the closing -petition of the preceding part, is substantially that contained in -2 Sam. vii. Similar references to that fundamental promise to David -are found in Psalm lxxxix., with which this psalm is sometimes taken -to be parallel; but that psalm comes from a time when the faithful -promise seemed to have failed for evermore, and breathes a sadness -which is alien to the spirit of this song. - -Ver. 13 appears to be spoken by the people. It breaks the stream of -promises. God has been speaking, but now, for a moment, He is spoken -of. His choice of Zion for His dwelling is the glad fact, which the -congregation feels so borne in on its consciousness that it breaks -forth into speech. The "For" at the beginning of the verse gives -a striking sequence, assigning, as it does, the Divine selection -of Zion for His abode, as the reason for the establishment of the -Davidic monarchy. If the throne was set up in Jerusalem, because -there God would dwell, how solemn the obligation thereby laid on -its occupant to rule as God's viceroy, and how secure each in turn -might feel, if he discharged the obligations of his office, that God -would grant to the kingdom an equal date with the duration of His own -abode! Throne and Temple are indissolubly connected. - -With ver. 14 the Divine Voice resumes, and echoes the petitions of the -earlier part. The psalmist asked God to arise into His rest, and He -answers by granting the request with the added promise of perpetuity: -"Here will I dwell _for ever_." He adds a promise which had not been -asked--abundance for all, and bread to fill even the poor. The psalmist -asked that the priests might be clothed in righteousness, and the -answer promises robes of _salvation_, which is the perfecting and most -glorious issue of righteousness. The psalmist asked that God's favoured -ones might utter shrill cries of joy, and God replies with an emphatic -reduplication of the word, which implies the exuberance and continuance -of the gladness. The psalmist asked for favour to the anointed, and God -replies by expanded and magnificent promises. The "horn" is an emblem -of power. It shall continually "sprout"--_i.e._, the might of the -royal house shall continually increase. The "lamp for Mine anointed" -may be simply a metaphor for enduring prosperity and happiness, but -many expositors take it to be a symbol of the continuance of the -Davidic house, as in 1 Kings xv. 4, where, however, the word employed -is not the same as that used here, though closely connected with it. -The promise of perpetuity to the house of David does not fit into the -context as well as that of splendour and joy, and it has already been -given in ver. 12. Victory will attend the living representative of -David, his foes being clothed by Jehovah with shame--_i.e._, being -foiled in their hostile attempts--while their confusion is as a dark -background, against which the radiance of his diadem sparkles the more -brightly. These large promises are fulfilled in Jesus Christ, of the -seed of David; and the psalm is Messianic, as presenting the ideal -which it is sure shall be realised, and which is so in Him alone. - -The Divine promises teach the great truth that God over-answers our -desires, and puts to shame the poverty of our petitions by the wealth -of His gifts. He is "able to do exceeding abundantly above all that -we ask or think," for the measure of His doing is none other than -"according to the Power that worketh in us," and the measure of that -Power is none other than "the working of the strength of His might, -which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set -Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places." - - - - - PSALM CXXXIII. - - 1 Behold, how good and how pleasant [it is] - That brethren dwell in unity! - 2 Like the precious oil on the head, - Flowing down on the beard, - [Even] Aaron's beard, - That flows down on the opening of his garments. - 3 Like the dew of Hermon, that flows down on the mountains of Zion. - For there Jehovah has commanded the blessing, - Life for evermore. - - -It is natural to suppose that this psalm was occasioned by, or at -least refers to, the gathering of the pilgrims or restored exiles -in Jerusalem. The patriot-poet's heart glows at the sight of the -assembled multitudes, and he points with exultation to the good and -fair sight. Like the other short psalms in this group, this one is -the expression of a single thought--the blessing of unity, and that -not merely as shown in the family, but in the church-state of the -restored Israel. The remembrance of years of scattering among the -nations, and of the schism of the Northern tribes, makes the sight of -an united Israel the more blessed, even though its numbers are small. - -The psalm begins with a "Behold," as if the poet would summon others -to look on the goodly spectacle which, in reality or in imagination, -is spread before him. Israel is gathered together, and the sight is -good, as securing substantial benefits, and "pleasant," as being -lovely. The original in ver. 1_b_ runs, "That brethren dwell _also_ -together." The "also" suggests that, in addition to local union, -there should be heart harmony, as befits brothers. To speak in modern -dialect, the psalmist cares little for external unity, if the spirit -of oneness does not animate the corporate whole. - -His two lovely metaphors or parables set forth the same -thought--namely, the all-diffusive, all-blessing nature of such inward -concord. The repetition in both figures of the same word, "flows down," -is not merely due to the "step-like" structure common to this with -other of the pilgrim psalms, but is the key to its meaning. - -In the first emblem, the consecrating oil, poured on Aaron's head, -represents the gracious spirit of concord between brethren. The emblem -is felicitous by reason of the preciousness, the fragrance, and the -manifold uses of oil; but these are only to be taken into account in a -subordinate degree, if at all. The one point of comparison is the flow -of the oil from the priestly head on to the beard and thence to the -garments. It is doubtful whether ver. 2_d_ refers to the oil or to the -beard of the high priest. The latter reference is preferred by many, -but the former is more accordant with the parallelism, and with the use -of the word "flows down," which can scarcely be twice used in regard -to oil and dew, the main subjects in the figures, and be taken in an -entirely different reference in the intervening clause. The "opening" -(lit. _mouth_) of the robe is the upper edge or collar, the aperture -through which the wearer's head was passed. - -The second figure illustrates the same thought of the diffusive -blessing of concord, but it presents some difficulty. How can the -dew of Hermon in the far north fall on the mountains of Zion? Some -commentators, as Delitzsch, try to make out that "an abundant dew in -Jerusalem might rightly be accounted for by the influence of the cold -current of air sweeping down from the north over Hermon." But that is -a violent supposition; and there is no need to demand meteorological -accuracy from a poet. It is the one dew which falls on both mountains; -and since Hermon towers high above the lower height of Zion, and is -visited with singular abundance of the nightly blessing, it is no -inadmissible poetic licence to say that the loftier hill transmits it -to the lesser. Such community of blessing is the result of fraternal -concord, whereby the high serve the lowly, and no man grudgingly keeps -anything to himself, but all share in the good of each. Dew, like oil, -is fitted for this symbolic use, by reason of qualities which, though -they do not come prominently into view, need not be wholly excluded. -It refreshes the thirsty ground and quickens vegetation; so fraternal -concord, falling gently on men's spirits, and linking distant ones -together by a mysterious chain of transmitted good, will help to revive -failing strength and refresh parched places. - -That brotherly unity is blessed, not only because it diffuses itself, -and so blesses all in whose hearts it dwells, but also because -it is the condition on which still higher gifts are spread among -brethren by their brethren's mediation. God Himself pours on men the -sacred anointing of His Divine Spirit and the dew of His quickening -influences. When His servants are knit together, as they should be, -they impart to one another the spiritual gifts received from above. -When Christians are truly one as brethren, God's grace will fructify -through each to all. - -Ver. 3_b_, _c_, seem to assign the reason why the dew of Hermon will -descend on Zion--_i.e._, why the blessings of brotherly concord -should there especially be realised. There God has appointed to be -stored His blessing of life; therefore it becomes those who, dwelling -there, receive that blessing, to be knit together in closest bonds, -and to impart to their brethren what they receive from the Fountain -of all good. That Zion should not be the home of concord, or that -Jerusalem should not be the city of peace, contradicts both the name -of the city and the priceless gift which Jehovah has placed there for -all its citizens. - - - - - PSALM CXXXIV. - - 1 Behold, bless Jehovah, all ye servants of Jehovah, - Who stand in the house of Jehovah in the night seasons. - 2 Lift up your hands to the sanctuary, - And bless Jehovah. - - 3 Jehovah bless thee out of Zion, - The Maker of heaven and earth! - - -This fragment of song closes the pilgrim psalms after the manner of a -blessing. It is evidently antiphonal, vv. 1, 2, being a greeting, the -givers of which are answered in ver. 3 by a corresponding salutation -from the receivers. Who are the parties to the little dialogue is -doubtful. Some have thought of two companies of priestly watchers -meeting as they went their rounds in the Temple; others, more -probably, take vv. 1, 2, to be addressed by the congregation to the -priests, who had charge of the nightly service in the Temple, while -ver. 3 is the response of the latter, addressed to the speakers of -vv. 1, 2. 1 Chron. ix. 33 informs us that there was such a nightly -service, of the nature of which, however, nothing is known. The -designation "servants of Jehovah" here denotes not the people, but -the priests, for whose official ministrations "stand" is a common -term. They are exhorted to fill the night with prayer as well as -watchfulness, and to let their hearts go up in blessing to Jehovah. -The voice of praise should echo through the silent night and float -over the sleeping city. The congregation is about to leave the -crowded courts at the close of a day of worship, and now gives this -parting salutation and charge to those who remain. - -The answer in ver. 3 is addressed to each individual of the -congregation--"Jehovah bless _thee_!" and it invokes on each a share -in the blessing which, according to the preceding psalm, "Jehovah has -commanded" in Zion. The watchers who remain in the sanctuary do not -monopolise its blessings. These stream out by night, as by day, to -all true hearts; and they are guaranteed by the creative omnipotence -of Jehovah, the thought of which recurs so often in these pilgrim -psalms, and may be due to the revulsion from idolatry consequent on -the Captivity and Restoration. - -With this sweet interchange of greeting and exhortation to continual -worship, this group of psalms joyously ends. - - - - - PSALM CXXXV. - - 1 Hallelujah! - Praise the name of Jehovah, - Praise, ye servants of Jehovah, - 2 Who stand in the house of Jehovah, - In the courts of the house of our God. - 3 Praise Jah, for Jehovah is good; - Harp to His name, for it is pleasant. - 4 For Jah has chosen Jacob for Himself, - Israel for His own possession. - - 5 For I--I know that Jehovah is great, - And [that] our Lord is above all gods. - 6 Whatsoever Jehovah wills He has done, - In the heaven and in the earth, - In the seas and all depths; - 7 Who makes the vapours go up from the end of the earth, - He makes lightnings for the rain, - Who brings forth wind from His storehouses. - - 8 Who smote the first-born of Egypt, - Both of man and of cattle; - 9 He sent signs and wonders into thy midst, O Egypt, - On Pharaoh and all his servants. - - 10 Who smote many nations, - And slew mighty kings; - 11 Sihon, king of the Amorites, - And Og, king of Bashan; - 12 And gave their land [as] an inheritance, - An inheritance to Israel His people. - - 13 Jehovah, Thy name [endures] for ever, - Jehovah, Thy memorial [endures] to generation after generation. - 14 For Jehovah will right His people, - And will relent concerning His servants. - 15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, - The work of the hands of men. - 16 A mouth is theirs--and they cannot speak; - Eyes are theirs--and they cannot see; - 17 Ears are theirs--and they cannot give ear; - Yea, there is no breath at all in their mouths. - 18 Like them shall those who make them be, - [Even] every one that trusts in them. - - 19 House of Israel, bless ye Jehovah; - House of Aaron, bless ye Jehovah; - 20 House of Levi, bless ye Jehovah; - Ye who fear Jehovah, bless ye Jehovah. - 21 Blessed be Jehovah from Zion, - Who dwells in Jerusalem! - Hallelujah! - - -Like Psalms xcvii. and xcviii., this is a cento, or piece of mosaic -work, apparently intended as a call to worship Jehovah in the Temple. -His greatness, as manifested in Nature, and especially in His -planting Israel in its inheritance, is set forth as the reason for -praise; and the contemptuous contrast of the nothingness of idols is -repeated from Psalm cxv., and followed, as there, by an exhortation -to Israel to cleave to Him. We have not here to do with a song which -gushed fresh from the singer's heart, but with echoes of many strains -which a devout and meditative soul had made its own. The flowers -are arranged in a new bouquet, because the poet had long delighted -in their fragrance. The ease with which he blends into a harmonious -whole fragments from such diverse sources tells how familiar he was -with these, and how well he loved them. - -Vv. 1-4 are an invocation to praise Jehovah, and largely consist of -quotations or allusions. Thus Psalm cxxxiv. 1 underlies vv. 1, 2. But -here the reference to nightly praises is omitted, and the summons -is addressed not only to those who stand in the house of Jehovah, -but to those who stand in its _courts_. That expansion may mean that -the call to worship is here directed to the people as well as to the -priests (so in ver. 19). Ver. 3 closely resembles Psalm cxlvii. 1, -but the question of priority may be left undecided. Since the act of -praise is said to be "pleasant" in Psalm cxlvii. 1, it is best to -refer the same word here to the same thing, and not, as some would -do, to the Name, or to take it as an epithet of Jehovah. To a loving -soul praise is a delight. The songs which are not winged by the -singer's joy in singing will not rise high. True worship pours out -its notes as birds do theirs--in order to express gladness which, -unuttered, loads the heart. Ver. 4 somewhat passes beyond the bounds -of the invocation proper, and anticipates the subsequent part of the -psalm. Israel's prerogative is so great to this singer that it forces -utterance at once, though "out of season," as correct critics would -say. But the throbs of a grateful heart are not always regular. It -is impossible to keep the reasons for praise out of the summons to -praise. Ver. 4 joyfully and humbly accepts the wonderful title given -in Deut. vii. 6. - -In vv. 5-7 God's majesty as set forth in Nature is hymned. The -psalmist says emphatically in ver. 5 "I--I know," and implies the -privilege which he shared, in common with his fellow-Israelites -(who appear in the "our" of the next clause), of knowing what the -heathen did not know--how highly Jehovah was exalted above all their -gods. Ver. 6 is from Psalm cxv. 3, with the expansion of defining -the all-inclusive sphere of God's sovereignty. Heaven, earth, seas, -and depths cover all space. The enumeration of the provinces of His -dominion prepares for that of the phases of His power in Nature, -which is quoted with slight change from Jer. x. 13, li. 16. The -mysterious might which gathers from some unknown region the filmy -clouds which grow, no man knows how, in the clear blue; the power -which weds in strange companionship the fire of the lightning flash -and the torrents of rain; the controlling hand which urges forth the -invisible wind,--these call for praise. - -But while the psalmist looks on physical phenomena with a devout poet's -eye, he turns from these to expatiate rather on what Jehovah has done -for Israel. Psalmists are never weary of drawing confidence and courage -for to-day from the deeds of the Exodus and the Conquest. Ver. 8 is -copied from Exod. xiii. 15, and the whole section is saturated with -phraseology drawn from Deuteronomy. Ver. 13 is from Exod. iii. 15, the -narrative of the theophany at the Bush. That Name, proclaimed then as -the basis of Moses' mission and Israel's hope, is now, after so many -centuries and sorrows, the same, and it will endure for ever. Ver. 14 -is from Deut. xxxii. 36. Jehovah will right His people--_i.e._, deliver -them from oppressors--which is the same thing as "relent concerning His -servants," since His wrath was the reason of their subjection to their -foes. That judicial deliverance of Israel is at once the sign that -His Name, His revealed character, continues the same, unexhausted and -unchanged for ever, and the reason why the Name shall continue as the -object of perpetual adoration and trust. - -Vv. 15-20 are taken bodily from Psalm cxv., to which the reader is -referred. Slight abbreviations and one notable difference occur. In -ver. 17_b_, "Yea, there is no breath at all in their mouths," takes the -place of "A nose is theirs--and they cannot smell." The variation has -arisen from the fact that the particle of strong affirmation (yea) is -spelt like the noun "nose," and that the word for "breath" resembles -the verb "smell." The psalmist plays upon his original, and by his -variation makes the expression of the idols' lifelessness stronger. - -The final summons to praise, with which the end of the psalm returns -to its beginning, is also moulded on Psalm cxv. 9-11, with the -addition of "the house of Levi" to the three groups mentioned there, -and the substitution of a call to "bless" for the original invitation -to "trust." Ver. 21 looks back to the last verse of the preceding -psalm, and significantly modifies it. There, as in Psalm cxviii., -Jehovah's blessing comes out of Zion to His people. Here the people's -blessing in return goes from Zion and rises to Jehovah. They gathered -there for worship, and dwelt with Him in His city and Temple. Swift -interchange of the God-given blessing, which consists in mercies -and gifts of gracious deliverance, and of the human blessing, which -consists in thanksgiving and praise, fills the hours of those who -dwell with Jehovah, as guests in His house, and walk the streets of -the city which He guards and Himself inhabits. - - - - - PSALM CXXXVI. - - 1 Give thanks to Jehovah, for He is good, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 2 Give thanks to the God of gods, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever, - 3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - - 4 To Him who alone does great wonders, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 5 To Him who made the heavens by understanding, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 6 To Him who spread the earth above the waters, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 7 To Him who made great lights, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 8 The sun to rule by day, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 9 The moon and stars to rule by night, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - - 10 To Him who smote the Egyptians in their first-born, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 11 And brought forth Israel from their midst, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 12 With mighty strong hand and outstretched arm, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 13 To Him that cut the Red Sea into parts, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 15 And shook out Pharaoh and his host into the Red Sea, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - - 16 To Him who led His people in the wilderness, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 17 To Him who smote great kings, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 18 And slew mighty kings, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 19 Sihon, king of the Amorites, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 20 And Og, king of Bashan, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 21 And gave their land for an inheritance, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 22 An inheritance to Israel His servant, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - - 23 Who in our low estate remembered us, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever; - 24 And tore us from the grasp of our adversaries, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 25 Who gives bread to all flesh, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - 26 Give thanks to the God of heaven, - For His loving-kindness endures for ever. - - -This psalm is evidently intended for liturgic use. It contains -reminiscences of many parts of Scripture, and is especially based on -the previous psalm, which it follows closely in vv. 10-18, and quotes -directly in vv. 19-22. Delitzsch points out that if these quoted -verses are omitted, the psalm falls into triplets. It would then also -contain twenty-two verses, corresponding to the number of letters in -the Hebrew alphabet. The general trend of thought is like that of -Psalm cxxxv.; but the addition in each verse of the refrain gives a -noble swing and force to this exulting song. - -The first triplet is a general invocation to praise, coloured by the -phraseology of Deuteronomy. Vv. 2_a_ and 3_a_ quote Deut. x. 17. The -second and third triplets (vv. 4-9) celebrate Jehovah's creative power. -"Doeth great wonders" (ver. 4) is from Psalm lxxii. 18. The thought -of the Divine Wisdom as the creative agent occurs in Psalm civ. 24, -and attains noble expression in Prov. iii. In ver. 6 the word rendered -_spread_ is from the same root as that rendered "firmament" in Genesis. -The office of the heavenly bodies to rule day and night is taken from -Gen. i. But the psalm looks at the story of Creation from an original -point of view, when it rolls out in chorus, after each stage of that -work, that its motive lay in the eternal loving-kindness of Jehovah. -Creation is an act of Divine love. That is the deepest truth concerning -all things visible. They are the witnesses, as they are the result, of -loving-kindness which endures for ever. - -Vv. 10-22 pass from world-wide manifestations of that creative -loving-kindness to those specially affecting Israel. If vv. 19-22 are -left out of notice, there are three triplets in which the Exodus, -desert life, and conquest of Canaan are the themes,--the first (vv. -10-12) recounting the departure; the second (vv. 13-15) the passage -of the Red Sea; the third (vv. 16-18) the guidance during the forty -years and the victories over enemies. The whole is largely taken -from the preceding psalm, and has also numerous allusions to other -parts of Scripture. Ver. 12_a_ is found in Deut. iv. 34, etc. The -word for dividing the Red Sea is peculiar. It means to hew in pieces -or in two, and is used for cutting in halves the child in Solomon's -judgment (1 Kings iii. 25); while the word "parts" is a noun from the -same root, and is found in Gen. xv. 17, to describe the two portions -into which Abraham clave the carcasses. Thus, as with a sword, -Jehovah hewed the sea in two, and His people passed between the -parts, as between the halves of the covenant sacrifice. In ver. 15 -the word describing Pharaoh's destruction is taken from Exod. xiv. -27, and vividly describes it as a "shaking out," as one would vermin -or filth from a robe. - -In the last triplet (vv. 23-25) the singer comes to the Israel of the -present. It, too, had experienced Jehovah's remembrance in its time -of need, and felt the merciful grasp of His hand plucking it, with -loving violence, from the claws of the lion. The word for "low estate" -and that for "tore us from the grasp" are only found besides in late -writings--the former in Eccles. x. 6, and the latter in Lam. v. 8. - -But the song will not close with reference only to Israel's -blessings. "He gives bread to all flesh." The loving-kindness which -flashes forth even in destructive acts, and is manifested especially -in bringing Israel back from exile, stretches as wide in its -beneficence as it did in its first creative acts, and sustains all -flesh which it has made. Therefore the final call to praise, which -rounds off the psalm by echoing its beginning, does not name Him by -the Name which implied Israel's special relation, but by that by -which other peoples could and did address Him, "the God of heaven," -from whom all good comes down on all the earth. - - - - - PSALM CXXXVII. - - 1 By the streams of Babylon, there we sat, yea, wept, - When we remembered Zion. - 2 On the willows in the midst thereof - We hung our harps. - 3 For there our captors required of us words of song, - And our plunderers [required of us] mirth; - "Sing us one of the songs of Zion." - 4 How can we sing Jehovah's songs - In a strange land? - - 5 If I forget thee, Jerusalem, - May my right hand forget! - 6 May my tongue cleave to my palate, - If I remember thee not, - If I set not Jerusalem - Above the summit of my joy! - - 7 Remember, Jehovah, to the children of Edom - The day of Jerusalem, - Who said, "Lay bare, lay bare, - To the foundation therein." - 8 Daughter of Babylon, thou that art laid waste, - Happy he that requites thee - Thy doing which thou hast done to us! - 9 Happy he that seizes and dashes thy little ones - Against the rock! - - -The Captivity is past, as the tenses in vv. 1-3 show, and as is -manifest from the very fact that its miseries have become themes -for a psalm. Grief must be somewhat removed before it can be sung. -But the strains of triumph heard in other psalms are wanting in -this, which breathes passionate love for Jerusalem, tinged with -sadness still. The date of the psalm is apparently the early days -of the Return, when true-hearted patriots still felt the smart of -recent bondage and sadly gazed on the dear ruins of the city. The -singer passes in brief compass from tender music breathing plaintive -remembrance of the captives' lot, to passionate devotion, and at last -to an outburst of vehement imprecation, magnificent in its fiery -rush, amply explicable by Israel's wrongs and Babylon's crimes, -and yet to be frankly acknowledged as moving on a lower plane of -sentiment than is permissible to those who have learned to repay -scorn with gentleness, hate with love, and injuries with desires for -the injurer's highest good. The coals of fire which this psalmist -scatters among Israel's foes are not those which Christ's servants -are bidden to heap on their enemies' heads. - -Nothing sweeter or sadder was ever written than that delicate, deeply -felt picture of the exiles in the early verses of the psalm. We see -them sitting, as too heavy-hearted for activity, and half noting, as -adding to their grief, the unfamiliar landscape round them, with its -innumerable canals, and the monotonous "willows" (rather, a species -of poplar) stretching along their banks. How unlike this flat, tame -fertility to the dear home-land, with its hills and glens and rushing -streams! The psalmist was probably a Temple singer, but he did not find -solace even in "the harp, his sole remaining joy." No doubt many of -the exiles made themselves at home in captivity, but there were some -more keenly sensitive or more devout, who found that it was better to -remember Zion and weep than to enjoy Babylon. "Alas, alas! how much -less it is to hold converse with others than to remember thee!" So they -sat, like Michael Angelo's brooding figure of Jeremiah in the Sistine -Chapel, silent, motionless, lost in bitter-sweet memories. - -But there was another reason than their own sadness for hanging -their idle harps upon the willows. Their coarse oppressors bade them -sing to make mirth. They wished entertainment from the odd sounds of -foreign music, or they were petulantly angry that such dumb hang-dog -people should keep sullen faces, like unilluminated windows, when -their masters were pleased to be merry. So, like tipsy revellers, -they called out "Sing!" The request drove the iron deeper into sad -hearts, for it came from those who had made the misery. They had led -away the captives, and now they bid them make sport. - -The word rendered _plunderers_ is difficult. The translation adopted -here is that of the LXX. and others. It requires a slight alteration -of reading, which is approved by Hupfeld (as an alternative), -Perowne, Baethgen, Graetz, etc. Cheyne follows Halevy in preferring -another conjectural alteration which gives "dancers" ("and of our -dancers, festive glee"), but admits that the other view is "somewhat -more natural." The roystering Babylonians did not care what kind of -songs their slaves sang--Temple music would do as well as any other; -but the devout psalmist and his fellows shrank from profaning the -sacred songs that praised Jehovah by making them parts of a heathen -banquet. Such sacrilege would have been like Belshazzar's using the -Temple vessels for his orgy. "Give not that which is holy to dogs." -And the singers were not influenced by superstition, but by reverence -and by sadness, when they could not sing these songs in that strange -land. No doubt it was a fact that the Temple music fell into -desuetude during the Captivity. There are moods and there are scenes -in which it is profanation to utter the deep music which may be -sounding on perpetually in the heart. "Songs unheard" are sometimes -not only "sweetest," but the truest worship. - -The psalmist's remembrances of Babylon are suddenly broken off. His -heart burns as he broods on that past, and then lifts his eyes to see -how forlorn and forgotten-like Jerusalem stands, as if appealing to -her sons for help. A rush of emotion sweeps over him, and he breaks -into a passion of vowed loyalty to the mother city. He has Jerusalem -written on his heart. It is noteworthy that her remembrance _was_ -the exiles' crown of sorrow; it now becomes the apex of the singer's -joy. No private occasion for gladness so moves the depths of a soul, -smitten with the noble and ennobling love of the city of God, as does -its prosperity. Alas that the so-called citizens of the true city of -God should have so tepid interest in its welfare, and be so much more -keenly touched by individual than by public prosperity or adversity! -Alas that so often they should neither weep when they remember its -bondage nor exult in its advancement! - -Ver. 5_b_ is emphatic by its incompleteness. "May my right hand -forget!" What? Some word like "power," "cunning," or "movement" may -be supplied. It would be as impossibly unnatural for the poet to -forget Jerusalem as for his hand to forget to move or cease to be -conscious of its connection with his body. - -Ver. 6_d_ reads literally "Above the head of my joy": an expression -which may either mean the summit of my joy--_i.e._, my greatest -joy; or the sum of my joy--_i.e._, my whole joy. In either case the -well-being of Jerusalem is the psalmist's climax of gladness; and so -utterly does he lose himself in the community founded by God, that -all his springs of felicity are in her. He had chosen the better -part. Unselfish gladness is the only lasting bliss; and only they -drink of an unfailing river of pleasures whose chiefest delight lies -in beholding and sharing in the rebuilding of God's city on earth. - -The lightning flashes of the last part of the psalm need little -commenting. The desire for the destruction of Zion's enemies, which -they express, is not the highest mood of the loyal citizen of God's -city, and is to be fully recognised as not in accordance with -Christian morality. But it has been most unfairly judged, as if it -were nothing nobler than ferocious thirsting for vengeance. It is a -great deal more. It is desire for retribution, heavy as the count of -crimes which demands it is heavy. It is a solemn appeal to God to -sweep away the enemies of Zion, who, in hating her, rebelled against -Him. First, the psalmist turns to the treacherous kinsmen of Israel, -the Edomites, who had, as Obadiah says, "rejoiced over the children -of Judah in the days of their destruction" (Obad. 12), and stimulated -the work of rasing the city. Then the singer turns to Babylon, and -salutes her as already laid waste; for he is a seer as well as a -singer, and is so sure of the judgment to be accomplished that it is -as good as done. The most repellent part of the imprecation, that -which contemplates the dreadful destruction of tender infants, has -its harshness somewhat softened by the fact that it is the echo of -Isaiah's prophecy concerning Babylon (Isa. xiii. 16-18), and still -further by the consideration that the purpose of the apparently -barbarous cruelty was to make an end of a "seed of evil-doers," whose -continuance meant misery for wide lands. - -Undoubtedly, the words are stern, and the temper they embody is harsh -discord, when compared with the Christian spirit. But they are not -the utterances of mere ferocious revenge. Rather they proclaim God's -judgments, not with the impassiveness, indeed, which best befits -the executors of such terrible sentences, but still less with the -malignant gratification of sanguinary vengeance which has been often -attributed to them. Perhaps, if some of their modern critics had been -under the yoke from which this psalmist has been delivered, they -would have understood a little better how a good man of that age -could rejoice that Babylon was fallen and all its race extirpated. -Perhaps, it would do modern tender-heartedness no harm to have a -little more iron infused into its gentleness, and to lay to heart -that the King of Peace must first be King of Righteousness, and that -Destruction of evil is the complement of Preservation of Good. - - - - - PSALM CXXXVIII. - - 1 I will thank Thee, Jehovah, with my whole heart, - In presence of the gods will I harp to Thee. - 2 I will worship toward Thy holy Temple, - And will thank Thy name for Thy loving-kindness and for Thy truth, - For Thou hast magnified Thy promise above all Thy name. - 3 In the day [when] I called Thou answeredst me, - Thou didst make me bold--in my soul [welled up] strength. - - 4 Jehovah, all the kings of the earth shall thank Thee, - When they have heard the words of Thy mouth. - 5 And they shall sing of the ways of Jehovah, - For great is the glory of Jehovah. - 6 For Jehovah is high, and the lowly He regards, - And the lofty from afar off He knows. - - 7 If I walk in the midst of trouble Thou wilt revive me, - Against the wrath of mine enemies Thou wilt stretch forth Thy - hand, - And Thy right hand shall save me. - 8 Jehovah will complete [all] that concerns me; - Jehovah, Thy loving-kindness [endures] for ever; - The works of Thy hands abandon not. - - -This is the first of a group of eight psalms attributed to David in -the superscriptions. It precedes the closing hallelujah psalms, and -thus stands where a "find" of Davidic psalms at a late date would -naturally be put. In some cases, there is no improbability in the -assigned authorship; and this psalm is certainly singularly unlike -those which precede it, and has many affinities with the earlier -psalms ascribed to David. - -In reading it, one feels the return to familiar thoughts and tones. -The fragrance it exhales wakes memories of former songs. But the -resemblance may be due to the imitative habit so marked in the last -book of the Psalter. If it is a late psalm, the speaker is probably -the personified Israel, and the deliverance which seems to the singer -to have transcended all previous manifestations of the Divine name is -the Restoration, which has inspired so many of the preceding psalms. -The supporters of the Davidic authorship, on the other hand, point to -the promise to David by Nathan of the perpetuity of the kinghood in -his line, as the occasion of the psalmist's triumph. - -The structure of the psalm is simple. It falls into three parts, of -which the two former consist of three verses each, and the last of -two. In the first, the singer vows praise and recounts God's wondrous -dealings with him (vv. 1-3); in the second, he looks out over all the -earth in the confidence that these blessings, when known, will bring -the world to worship (vv. 4-6); and in the third, he pleads for the -completion to himself of mercies begun (vv. 7, 8). - -The first part is the outpouring of a thankful heart for recent -great blessing, which has been the fulfilment of a Divine promise. -So absorbed in his blessedness is the singer, that he neither names -Jehovah as the object of his thanks, nor specifies what has set his -heart vibrating. The great Giver and the great gift are magnified -by being unspoken. To whom but Jehovah could the current of the -psalmist's praise set? He feels that Jehovah's mercy to him requires -him to become the herald of His name; and therefore he vows, in -lofty consciousness of his mission, that he will ring out God's -praises in presence of false gods, whose worshippers have no such -experience to loose their tongues. Dead gods have dumb devotees; the -servants of the living Jehovah receive His acts of power, that they -may proclaim His name. - -The special occasion for this singer's praise has been some act, in -which Jehovah's faithfulness was very conspicuously shown. "Thou hast -magnified Thy promise above all Thy name." If the history of David -underlies the psalm, it is most natural to interpret the "promise" -as that of the establishment of the monarchy. But the fulfilment, -not the giving, of a promise is its magnifying, and hence one would -incline to take the reference to be to the great manifestation -of God's troth in restoring Israel to its land. In any case the -expression is peculiar, and has induced many attempts at emendation. -Baethgen would strike out "Thy name" as a dittograph from the -previous clause, and thus gets the reading "done great things beyond -Thy word"--_i.e._, transcended the promise in fulfilment--which -yields a good sense. Others make a slight alteration in the word "Thy -name," and read it "Thy heavens," supposing that the psalmist is -making the usual comparison between the manifestation of Divine power -in Nature and in Revelation, or in the specific promise in question. -But the text as it stands, though peculiar, is intelligible, and -yields a meaning very appropriate to the singer's astonished -thankfulness. A heart amazed by the greatness of recent blessings is -ever apt to think that they, glittering in fresh beauty, are greater, -as they are nearer and newer, than the mercies which it has only -heard of as of old. To-day brings growing revelations of Jehovah to -the waiting heart. The psalmist is singing, not dissertating. It -is quite true that if his words are measured by the metaphysical -theologian's foot-rule, they are inaccurate, for "the name of God -cannot be surpassed by any single act of His, since every single -act is but a manifestation of that name"; but thankfulness does not -speak by rule, and the psalmist means to say that, so great has been -the mercy given to him and so signal its confirmation of the Divine -promise, that to him, at all events, that whole name blazes with new -lustre, and breathes a deeper music. So should each man's experience -be the best teacher of what God is to all men. - -In ver. 3_b_ the psalmist uses a remarkable expression, in saying -that Jehovah had made him bold, or, as the word is literally, -_proud_. The following words are a circumstantial or subsidiary -clause, and indicate how the consciousness of inbreathed strength -welling up in his soul gave him lofty confidence to confront foes. - -The second part (vv. 4-6) resembles many earlier psalms in connecting -the singer's deliverance with a world-wide manifestation of God's -name. Such a consciousness of a vocation to be the world's evangelist -is appropriate either to David or the collective Israel. Especially -is it natural, and, as a fact, occurs in post-exilic psalms. Here -"the words of Thy mouth" are equivalent to the promise already -spoken of, the fulfilment of which has shown that Jehovah the High -has regard to the lowly--_i.e._, to the psalmist; and "knows the -lofty"--_i.e._, his oppressors--"afar off." He reads their characters -thoroughly, without, as it were, needing to approach for minute -study. The implication is that He will thwart their plans and judge -the plotters. This great lesson of Jehovah's providence, care for -the lowly, faithfulness to His word, has exemplification in the -psalmist's history; and when it is known, the lofty ones of the -earth shall learn the principles of Jehovah's ways, and become lowly -recipients of His favours and adoring singers of His great glory. - -The glowing vision is not yet fulfilled; but the singer was -cherishing no illusions when he sang. It _is_ true that the story -of God's great manifestation of Himself in Christ, in which He has -magnified His Word above all His name, is one day to win the world. -It _is_ true that the revelation of a God who regards the lowly is -the conquering Gospel which shall bow all hearts. - -In the third part (vv. 7, 8), the psalmist comes back to his -own needs, and takes to his heart the calming assurance born of -his experience, that he bears a charmed life. He but speaks the -confidence which should strengthen every heart that rests on God. -Such an one may be girdled about by troubles, but he will have an -inner circle traced round him, within which no evil can venture. He -may walk in the valley of the shadow of death unfearing, for God will -hold his soul in life. Foes may pour out floods of enmity and wrath, -but one strong hand will be stretched out against (or _over_) the -wild deluge, and will draw the trustful soul out of its rush on to -the safe shore. So was the psalmist assured; so may and should those -be who have yet greater wonders for which to thank Jehovah. - -That last prayer of the psalm blends very beautifully confidence and -petition. Its central clause is the basis of both the confidence in -its first, and the petition in its last, clause. Because Jehovah's -loving-kindness endures for ever, every man on whom His shaping -Spirit has begun to work, or His grace in any form to bestow its -gifts, may be sure that no exhaustion or change of these is -possible. God is not as the foolish tower-builder, who began and was -not able to finish. He never stops till He has completed His work; -and nothing short of the entire conformity of a soul to His likeness -and the filling of it with Himself can be the termination of His -loving purpose, or of His achieving grace. Therefore the psalmist -"found it in his heart to pray" that God would not abandon the works -of His own hands. That prayer appeals to His faithfulness and to His -honour. It sets forth the obligations under which God comes by what -He has done. It is a prayer which goes straight to His heart; and -they who offer it receive the old answer, "I will not leave thee till -I have done unto thee that which I have spoken to thee of." - - - - - PSALM CXXXIX. - - 1 Jehovah, Thou hast searched me and known [me]. - 2 Thou, Thou knowest my down-sitting and my up-rising, - Thou understandest my thought afar off. - 3 My walking and my lying down Thou siftest, - And with all my ways Thou art familiar. - 4 For there is not a word on my tongue, - --Behold, Thou, Jehovah, knowest it all. - 5 Behind and before Thou hast shut me in, - And hast laid upon me Thy hand. - 6 [Such] knowledge is too wonderful for me, - Too high, I am not able for it. - - 7 Whither shall I go from Thy spirit? - And whither from Thy face shall I flee? - 8 If I climb heaven, there art Thou, - Or make Sheol my bed, lo, Thou [art there]. - 9 [If] I lift up the wings of the dawn, - [If] I dwell at the farthest end of the sea, - 10 Even there Thy hand shall lead me, - And Thy right hand shall hold me. - 11 And [if] I say, "Only let darkness cover me, - And the light about me be [as] night," - 12 Even darkness darkens not to Thee, - And night lightens like day; - As is the darkness, so is the light. - - 13 For Thou, Thou hast formed my reins, - Thou hast woven me together in my mother's womb. - 14 I will thank Thee for that in dread fashion I am wondrously made - Wondrous are Thy works, - And my soul knows [it] well. - 15 My bones were not hid from Thee, - When I was made in secret, - [And] wrought like embroidery [as] in the depths of the earth. - 16 Thine eyes saw my shapeless mass, - And in Thy book were they all written, - The days [that] were fashioned, - And yet there was not one among them. - 17 And to me how precious are Thy thoughts, O God, - How great is their sum! - 18 Would I reckon them, they outnumber the sand; - I awake--and am still with Thee. - - 19 Oh, if Thou wouldest smite the wicked, O God! - --And [ye] men of blood, depart from me, - 20 Who rebel against Thee with wicked deeds, - They lift up [themselves] against Thee vainly (?) - 21 Do not I hate them which hate Thee, Jehovah? - And am not I grieved with those who rise against Thee? - 22 With perfect hatred I hate them, - They are counted for enemies to me. - 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart, - Try me and know my thoughts, - 24 And see if there be any way of grief in me, - And lead me in a way everlasting. - - -This is the noblest utterance in the Psalter of pure contemplative -theism, animated and not crushed by the thought of God's omniscience -and omnipresence. No less striking than the unequalled force and -sublimity with which the psalm hymns the majestic attributes of an -all-filling, all-knowing, all-creating God, is the firmness with which -the singer's personal relation to that God is grasped. Only in the last -verses is there reference to other men. In the earlier parts of the -psalm, there are but two beings in the universe--God and the psalmist. -With impressive reiteration, God's attributes are gazed on in their -bearing on him. Not mere omniscience, but a knowledge which knows -_him_ altogether, not mere omnipresence, but a presence which _he_ -can nowhere escape, not mere creative power, but a power which shaped -_him_, fill and thrill the psalmist's soul. This is no cold theism, -but vivid religion. Conscience and the consciousness of individual -relation to God penetrate and vitalise the whole. Hence the sudden turn -to prayer against evil men and for the singer's direction in the right -way, which closes the hymn, is natural, however abrupt. - -The course of thought is plain. There are four strophes of six verses -each,--of which the first (vv. 1-6) magnifies God's omniscience; -the second (vv. 7-12), His omnipresence; the third (vv. 13-18), His -creative act, as the ground of the preceding attributes; and the -fourth (vv. 19-24) recoils from men who rebel against such a God, -and joyfully submits to the searching of His omniscient eye, and the -guidance of His ever-present hand. - -The psalmist is so thoroughly possessed by the thought of his -personal relation to God that his meditation spontaneously takes the -form of address to Him. That form adds much to the impressiveness, -but is no rhetorical or poetic artifice. Rather, it is the shape in -which such intense consciousness of God cannot but utter itself. -How cold and abstract the awestruck sentences become, if we -substitute "He" for "Thou," and "men" for "I" and "me"! The first -overwhelming thought of God's relation to the individual soul is -that He completely knows the whole man. "Omniscience" is a pompous -word, which leaves us unaffected by either awe or conscience. But -the psalmist's God was a God who came into close touch with him, and -the psalmist's religion translated the powerless generality of an -attribute referring to the Divine relation to the universe into a -continually exercised power having reference to himself. He utters -his reverent consciousness of it in ver. 1 in a single clause, and -expands that verse in the succeeding ones. "Thou hast searched me" -describes a process of minute investigation; "and known [me]," its -result in complete knowledge. - -That knowledge is then followed out in various directions, and -recognised as embracing the whole man in all his modes of action -and repose, in all his inner and outward life. Vv. 2 and 3 are -substantially parallel. "Down-sitting" and "up-rising" correspond to -"walking" and "lying down," and both antitheses express the contrast -between action and rest. "My thought" in ver. 2 corresponds to "my -ways" in ver. 3,--the former referring to the inner life of thought, -purpose, and will; the latter to the outward activities which carry -these into effect. Ver. 3 is a climax to ver. 2, in so far as it -ascribes a yet closer and more accurate knowledge to God. "Thou -siftest" or _winnowest_ gives a picturesque metaphor for careful -and judicial scrutiny which discerns wheat from chaff. "Thou art -familiar" implies intimate and habitual knowledge. But thought and -action are not the whole man. The power of speech, which the Psalter -always treats as solemn and a special object of Divine approval or -condemnation, must also be taken into account. Ver. 4 brings it, too, -under God's cognisance. The meaning may either be that "There is no -word on my tongue [which] Thou dost not know altogether"; or, "The -word is not yet on my tongue, [but] lo! Thou knowest," etc. "Before -it has shaped itself on the tongue, [much less been launched from -it], thou knowest all its secret history" (Kay). - -The thought that God knows him through and through blends in the -singer's mind with the other, that God surrounds him on every side. -Ver. 5 thus anticipates the thought of the next strophe, but presents -it rather as the basis of God's knowledge, and as limiting man's -freedom. But the psalmist does not feel that he is imprisoned, or -that the hand laid on him is heavy. Rather, he rejoices in the -defence of an encompassing God, who shuts off evil from him, as well -as shuts him in from self-willed and self-determined action; and -he is glad to be held by a hand so gentle as well as strong. "Thou -God seest me" may either be a dread or a blessed thought. It may -paralyse or stimulate. It should be the ally of conscience, and, -while it stirs to all noble deeds, should also emancipate from all -slavish fear. An exclamation of reverent wonder and confession of the -limitation of human comprehension closes the strophe. - -Why should the thought that God is ever with the psalmist be put in -the shape of vivid pictures of the impossibility of escape from Him? -It is the sense of sin which leads men to hide from God, like Adam -among the trees of the garden. The psalmist does not desire thus to -flee, but he supposes the case, which would be only too common if -men realised God's knowledge of all their ways. He imagines himself -reaching the extremities of the universe in vain flight, and stunned -by finding God there. The utmost possible height is coupled with the -utmost possible depth. Heaven and Sheol equally fail to give refuge -from that moveless Face, which confronts the fugitive in both, and -fills them as it fills all the intervening dim distances. The dawn -flushes the east, and swiftly passes on roseate wings to the farthest -bounds of the Mediterranean, which, to the psalmist, represented the -extreme west, a land of mystery. In both places and in all the broad -lands between, the fugitive would find himself in the grasp of the -same hand (compare ver. 5). - -Darkness is the friend of fugitives from men; but is transparent to -God. In ver. 11 the language is somewhat obscure. The word rendered -above "cover" is doubtful, as the Hebrew text reads "bruise," which -is quite unsuitable here. Probably there has been textual error, -and the slight correction which yields the above sense is to be -adopted, as by many moderns. The second clause of the verse carries -on the supposition of the first, and is not to be regarded, as in the -A.V., as stating the result of the supposition, or, in grammatical -language, the apodosis. That begins with ver. 12, and is marked -there, as in ver. 10, by "even." - -The third strophe (vv. 13-18) grounds the psalmist's relation to -God on God's creative act. The mysteries of conception and birth -naturally struck the imagination of non-scientific man, and are to -the psalmist the direct result of Divine power. He touches them with -poetic delicacy and devout awe, casting a veil of metaphor over the -mystery, and losing sight of human parents in the clear vision of -the Divine Creator. There is room for his thought of the origin of -the individual life, behind modern knowledge of embryology. In ver. -13 the word rendered in the A.V. "possessed" is better understood in -this context as meaning "formed," and that rendered there "covered" -(as in Psalm cxl. 7) here means to _plait_ or _weave together_, and -picturesquely describes the interlacing bones and sinews, as in Job -x. 11. But description passes into adoration in ver. 14. Its language -is somewhat obscure. The verb rendered "wondrously made" probably -means here "selected" or "distinguished," and represents man as -the _chef d'oeuvre_ of the Divine Artificer. The psalmist cannot -contemplate his own frame, God's workmanship, without breaking into -thanks, nor without being touched with awe. Every man carries in his -own body reasons enough for reverent gratitude. - -The word for "bones" in ver. 15 is a collective noun, and might be -rendered "bony framework." The mysterious receptacle in which the -unborn body takes shape and grows is delicately described as "secret," -and likened to the hidden region of the underworld, where are the -dead. The point of comparison is the mystery enwrapping both. The -same comparison occurs in Job's pathetic words, "Naked came I out of -my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither." It is doubtful -whether the word rendered above "wrought like embroidery" refers -to a pattern wrought by weaving or by needlework. In any case, it -describes "the variegated colour of the individual members, especially -of the viscera" (Delitzsch). The mysteries of antenatal being are -still pursued in ver. 16, which is extremely obscure. It is, however, -plain that _a_ sets forth the Divine knowledge of man in his first -rudiments of corporeity. "My shapeless mass" is one word, meaning -anything rolled up in a bundle or ball. But in _b_ it is doubtful what -is referred to in "they all." Strictly, the word should point back to -something previously mentioned; and hence the A.V. and R.V. suppose -that the "shapeless mass" is thought of as resolved into its component -parts, and insert "my members"; but it is better to recognise a slight -irregularity here, and to refer the word to the "days" immediately -spoken of, which existed in the Divine foreknowledge long before they -had real objective existence in the actual world. The last clause of -the verse is capable of two different meanings, according as the Hebrew -text or margin is followed. This is one of a number of cases in which -there is a doubt whether we should read "not" or "to him" (or "it"). -The Hebrew words having these meanings are each of two letters, the -initial one being the same in both, and both words having the same -sound. Confusion might easily therefore arise, and as a matter of -fact there are numerous cases in which the text has the one and the -margin the other of these two words. Here, if we adhere to the text, -we read the negative, and then the force of the clause is to declare -emphatically that the "days" were written in God's book, and in a real -sense "fashioned," when as yet they had not been recorded in earth's -calendars. If, on the other hand, the marginal reading is preferred, a -striking meaning is obtained: "And for it [_i.e._, for the birth of the -shapeless mass] there was one among them [predestined in God's book]." - -In vv. 17, 18, the poet gathers together and crowns all his previous -contemplations by the consideration that this God, knowing him -altogether, ever near him, and Former of his being, has great -"thoughts" or purposes affecting him individually. That assurance -makes omniscience and omnipresence joys, and not terrors. The root -meaning of the word rendered "precious" is _weighty_. The singer -would weigh God's thoughts towards him, and finds that they weigh -down his scales. He would number them, and finds that they pass his -enumeration. It is the same truth of the transcendent greatness and -graciousness of God's purposes as is conveyed in Isaiah's "As the -heavens are higher than the earth, so are . . . My thoughts than your -thoughts." "I awake, and am still with Thee,"--this is an artless -expression of the psalmist's blessedness in realising God's continual -nearness. He awakes from sleep, and is conscious of glad wonder to -find that, like a tender mother by her slumbering child, God has -been watching over him, and that all the blessed communion of past -days abides as before. - -The fiery hatred of evil and evil men which burns in the last strophe -offends many and startles more. But while the vehement prayer that -"Thou wouldest slay the wicked" is not in a Christian tone, the -recoil from those who could raise themselves against such a God is -the necessary result of the psalmist's delight in Him. Attraction and -repulsion are equal and contrary. The measure of our cleaving to that -which is good, and to Him who is good, settles the measure of our -abhorrence of that which is evil. The abrupt passing from petition -in ver. 19_a_ to command in _b_ has been smoothed away by a slight -alteration which reads, "And that men of blood would depart from me"; -but the variation in tense is more forcible, and corresponds with the -speaker's strong emotion. He cannot bear companionship with rebels -against God. His indignation has no taint of personal feeling, but is -pure zeal for God's honour. - -Ver. 20 presents difficulties. The word rendered in the A.V. and -R.V. (text) "speak against Thee" is peculiarly spelt if this is its -meaning, and its construction is anomalous. Probably, therefore, the -rendering should be as above. That meaning does not require a change of -consonants, but only of vowel points. The difficulty of the last clause -lies mainly in the word translated in the A.V. _adversaries_ and in -the R.V. "_enemies_." That meaning is questionable; and if the word is -the nominative to the verb in the clause, the construction is awkward, -since the preceding "who" would naturally extend its influence to this -clause. Textual emendation has been resorted to; the simplest form of -which is to read "against Thee" for "Thine adversaries," a change of -one letter. Another form of emendation, which is adopted by Cheyne and -Graetz, substitutes "Thy name," and reads the whole, "And pronounce Thy -name for falsehoods." Delitzsch adheres to the reading "adversaries," -and by a harsh ellipsis makes the whole to run, "Who pronounce [Thy -name] deceitfully--Thine adversaries." - -The vindication of the psalmist's indignation lies in vv. 21, 22. -That soul must glow with fervent love to God which feels wrong done -to His majesty with as keen a pain as if it were itself struck. What -God says to those who love Him, they in their degree say to God: "He -that toucheth Thee toucheth the apple of mine eye." True, hate is not -the Christian requital of hate, whether that is directed against God -or God's servant. But recoil there must be, if there is any vigour of -devotion; only, pity and love must mingle with it, and the evil of -hatred be overcome by their good. - -Very beautifully does the lowly prayer for searching and guidance -follow the psalmist's burst of fire. It is easier to glow with -indignation against evil-doers than to keep oneself from doing evil. -Many secret sins may hide under a cloak of zeal for the Lord. So the -psalmist prays that God would search him, not because he fancies that -there is no lurking sin to be burned by the light of God's eye, like -vermin that nestle and multiply under stones and shrivel when the -sunbeams strike them, but because he dreads that there is, and would -fain have it cast out. The psalm began with declaring that Jehovah -had searched and known the singer, and it ends with asking for that -searching knowledge. - -It makes much difference, not indeed in the reality or completeness of -God's knowledge of us, but in the good we derive therefrom, whether we -welcome and submit to it, or try to close our trembling hearts, that -do not wish to be cleansed of their perilous stuff, from that loving -and purging gaze. God will cleanse the evil which He sees, if we are -willing that He should see it. Thoughts of the inner life and "ways" of -the outer are equally to be submitted to Him. There are two "ways" in -which men can walk. The one is a "way of grief or pain," because that -is its terminus. All sin is a blunder. And the inclination to such ways -is "in me," as every man who has dealt honestly with himself knows. -The other is "a way everlasting," a way which leads to permanent good, -which continues uninterrupted through the vicissitudes of life, and -even (though that was not in the psalmist's mind) through the darkness -of death, and with ever closer approximation to its goal in God, -through the cycles of eternity. And that way is not "in me," but I must -be led into and in it by the God who knows me altogether and is ever -with me, to keep my feet in the way of life, if I will hold the guiding -hand which He lays upon me. - - - - - PSALM CXL. - - 1 Deliver me, Jehovah, from the evil man, - From the man of violence guard me, - 2 Who plot evils in heart, - Every day they stir up wars. - 3 They have sharpened their tongue like a serpent, - Adders' poison is under their lips. Selah. - - 4 Keep me, Jehovah, from the hands of the wicked man, - From the man of violences guard me, - Who have plotted to overthrow my steps. - 5 The proud have hidden a snare for me and cords, - They have spread a net hard by the path, - They have set gins for me. Selah. - - 6 I said to Jehovah, My God art Thou, - Give ear, Jehovah, to the voice of my supplications. - 7 Jehovah, Lord, my stronghold of salvation! - Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle - 8 Grant not, Jehovah, the desires of the wicked, - Further not his plan. Selah. - - 9 They who compass me about lift up the head-- - The mischief of their own lips cover them! - 10 [Jehovah] rain hot coals on them! (?) - Let Him cause them to fall into fire, - Into floods, that they rise no more! - 11 The man with a [slanderous] tongue shall not continue on earth; - The man of violence--evil shall hunt him with blow upon blow. - - 12 I know that Jehovah will maintain the cause of the afflicted, - The right of the needy. - 13 Surely the righteous shall thank Thy name, - The upright shall dwell with Thy face. - - -In tone and contents this psalm has many parallels in the earlier -books, especially among the psalms ascribed to David. Its originality -lies principally in its use of peculiar words, and in the extreme -obscurity of a part of it. The familiar situation of a man ringed -about by slanderous enemies, the familiar metaphors of snares and -traps, the familiar venture of faith flinging itself into God's arms -for refuge, the familiar prayers for retribution, are all here. One -cannot argue about impressions, but the present writer receives the -impression strongly from the psalm that it is cast in the Davidic -manner by a later singer, and is rather an echo than an original -voice, while, no doubt, the feelings expressed, both of distress and -of confidence, are none the less felt by the singer, though he falls -back on familiar forms for their expression. - -The arrangement is in four strophes of approximately equal length, -the first and third of which consist of three verses of two clauses -each, while the fourth is abnormally elongated by having three -clauses in ver. 10, and the second (vv. 4, 5) has two verses of three -clauses each. Selah again appears as dividing the strophes, but is -omitted at the end of the fourth, to which a closing strophe of two -verses is appended. - -The first two strophes (vv. 1-3 and 4, 5) cover the same ground. Both -set forth the psalmist's need, and plead for deliverance. The first -verse of the second strophe (ver. 4) is almost identical with ver. -1. Both paint the psalmist's enemies as evil and violent, plotting -against him privily. The only difference in the two strophes is in the -metaphors describing the foes and their devices, and in the prominence -given in the first to their slanderous and sharp tongues. The forms of -their malice are like those in earlier psalms. A characteristic of -the Psalter is the prominence given to hostility which has but bitter -speech for its weapon (Psalm x. 7, lviii. 4). The slanderer's tongue is -sharp like a serpent's, with which the popular opinion supposed that -the venom was injected. The particular kind of serpent meant in ver. -3_a_ is doubtful, as the word is only found here. - -The figures for hostility in the second strophe are the other equally -familiar ones of setting snares and traps. The contrivers are here -called "proud," since their hostility to God's servant implies -haughty antagonism to God. But they are not too proud to resort to -tricks. Cunning and pride do not go well together, but they are -united in these enemies, who spread a net "by the hand of the path." - -In the third strophe, Faith rouses itself to lay hold on God. The -psalmist turns from contemplating what his foes are doing, to realise -what Jehovah is to him, and is wont to do for him. Since He is the -singer's God and protects him in all conflict, he "finds it in his -heart" to ask confidently that the plots of the foe may be wrecked. -Consciousness of danger drove the poet in the former strophes to -prayer; Jehovah's character and loving relations to him draw him, in -this one. - -"The day of battle" is literally "the day of armour"--when weapons -clash and helmets are fitting wear. Then Jehovah will be as a -head-piece to him, for He always gives the shape to His help which is -required at the moment. The words in ver. 8 for "desires" and "plan" -are found here only. - -The text here is evidently in some disorder, and the word which is -now awkwardly attached to the end of ver. 8 is by most commentators -carried over to ver. 9. The change of position clears away -difficulties in both verses, but a considerable crop remains in -this fourth strophe. The language becomes gnarled and obscure under -the stress of the poet's emotion, as he prays for the destruction of -his persecutors. If the transference of the word from ver. 8 to ver. -9 is accepted, that verse describes in vivid fashion what in prose -would have been cast into the form of, "_When_ my encompassers lift -up the head [_i.e._, in proud assault], _then_," etc. The psalmist -omits the particles which would give a hypothetical form, and prefers -to set the two things side by side, and leave sympathetic readers -to feel their connection. Ver. 10 is very obscure. According to the -Hebrew text, the first clause would have to be rendered, "Let coals -be thrown on them"; but such a rendering is "contrary to the usage of -the language." The Hebrew margin, therefore, corrects into, "Let them -[_i.e._, men indefinitely] cast down coals"; but this is harsh, and -the office is strange as one attributed to men. The emendation which -finds favour with most moderns substitutes for the inappropriate -verb of the present text that which is used in precisely the same -connection in Psalm xi. 6, and gives the reading, "Let Him [_i.e._, -Jehovah] rain coals on them." The following clause then swiftly adds -another element of horror. Fire rains down from above; fire yawns -below. They are beaten down by the burning storm, and they fall into -a mass of flame. The noun in ver. 10_c_ is found only here, and is by -some rendered "pits," by others "floods," and by others is corrected -into "nets." If "floods" is taken as the meaning, destruction by -water is set by the side of that by fire, as if the antagonistic -elements forgot their opposition and joined in strange amity to sweep -the wicked from the earth. The terrible strophe ends with the assured -declaration of the Divinely appointed transiency of the evil-doers, -especially of the slanderers against whom the psalmist took refuge -in Jehovah. They shall be soon cut off, and the hunters (ver. 5) -shall become the hunted. "Evil"--_i.e._, the punishment of their evil -deeds--shall dog their heels, and with stroke after stroke chase them -as dogs would follow vermin. - -In vv. 13, 14, the poet comes back to brighter thoughts, and his -words become limpid again with his change of mood. He "knows," as -the result of meditation and experience, that not only he, but all -the afflicted and needy, who are righteous and upright, have God on -their side. He will stand by their side in their hour of distress; He -will admit them to dwell by His side, in deep, still communion, made -more real and sweet by the harassments of earth, which drive them for -shelter and peace to His breast. That confidence is a certitude for -the psalmist. He announces it with an "I know," and seals it with -a "surely." Such is the issue of trouble which was spread before -Jehovah, and vented itself in prayer. - - - - - PSALM CXLI. - - 1 Jehovah, I have called on Thee; haste to me, - Give ear to my voice when I call to Thee. - 2 Let my prayer appear before Thee [as] incense, - The lifting up of my hands [as] an evening sacrifice. - - 3 Set a watch, Jehovah, before my mouth, - Keep guard over the door of my lips. - 4 Incline not my heart to any evil thing, - To practise wicked practices with men that work iniquity; - And let me not eat of their dainties. - - 5 Let the righteous smite me in kindness and reprove me, - [Such] oil for the head shall not my head refuse. - For so is it that my prayer shall continue in their - wickednesses. (?) - 6 Their judges are thrown down by the sides of the cliff, (?) - And they hear my sayings, that they are sweet. (?) - 7 As a man ploughing and cleaving the earth, - Our bones are strewn at the mouth of Sheol. - - 8 For toward Thee, Jehovah, Lord, are mine eyes [turned]; - In Thee do I take refuge--pour not out my soul. - 9 Keep me from the hands of the snare which they have laid for me, - And from the gins of the doers of iniquity. - 10 May the wicked fall into their own nets, - Whilst at the same time I pass by! - - -Part of this psalm is hopelessly obscure, and the connection is -difficult throughout. It is a prayer of a harassed soul, tempted to -slacken its hold on God, and therefore betaking itself to Him. Nothing -more definite as to author or occasion can be said with certainty. - -The allusions in vv. 6, 7, are dark to us, and the psalm must, in -many parts, remain an enigma. Probably Baethgen and Cheyne are -wise in giving up the attempt to extract any intelligible meaning -from ver. 5_c_ and ver. 6 as the words stand, and falling back on -asterisks. Delitzsch regards the psalm as being composed as suitable -to "a Davidic situation," either by David himself, or by some one who -wished to give expression in strains like David's to David's probable -mood. It would thus be a "Dramatic Idyll," referring, according to -Delitzsch, to Absalom's revolt. Ver. 2 is taken by him to allude to -the king's absence from the sanctuary, and the obscure ver. 6, to the -fate of the leaders of the revolt and the return of the mass of the -people to loyal submission. But this is a very precarious reference. - -The psalm begins with the cry to God to hear, which so often forms -the introduction to psalms of complaint and supplications for -deliverance. But here a special colouring is given by the petition -that the psalmist's prayers may be equivalent to incense and -sacrifice. It does not follow that he was shut out from outward -participation in worship, but only that he had learned what that -worship meant. "Appear" might be rendered "established." The word -means to be set firm, or, reflexively, to station oneself, and hence -is taken by some as equivalent to "appear" or "come" before Thee; -while others give prominence rather to the notion of stability in the -word, and take it to mean _continue_--_i.e._, be accepted. There may -be a reference to the morning sacrifice in the "incense," so that -both morning and evening ritual would be included; but it is more -natural to think of the evening incense, accompanying the evening -"meal offering," and to suppose that the psalm is an evening prayer. -The penetrating insight into the realities of spiritual worship which -the singer has gained is more important to note than such questions -about the scope of his figures. - -The prayer in vv. 3, 4, is for deliverance not from dangers, but from -temptation to sin in word or deed. The psalmist is not suffering -from the hostility of the workers of iniquity, but dreads becoming -infected with their sin. This phase of trial was not David's -in Absalom's revolt, and the prominence given to it here makes -Delitzsch's view of the psalm very doubtful. An earlier psalmist had -vowed to "put a muzzle on his mouth," but a man's own guard over -his words will fail, unless God keeps the keeper, and, as it were, -sets a sentry to watch the lips. The prayer for strength to resist -temptation to wrong acts, which follows that against wrong speech, is -curiously loaded with synonymous terms. The psalmist asks that his -heart, which is but too apt to feel the risings of inclination to -fall in with the manners around him, may be stiffened into wholesome -loathing of every evil--"To practise practices in wickedness with men -[perhaps, _great men_] who work iniquity." The clause rather drags, -and the proposed insertion of "Let me not sit" before "with men that -work iniquity" lightens the weight, and supplies a good parallel -with "Let me not eat of their dainties." It is, however, purely -conjectural, and the existing reading is intelligible, though heavy. -The psalmist wishes to keep clear of association with the corrupt -society around him, and desires to be preserved from temptations to -fall in with its luxurious sensuality, lest thereby he should slide -into imitation of its sins. He chose plain living, because he longed -for high thinking, and noble doing, and grave, reverend speech. All -this points to a period when the world fought against goodness by -proffering vulgar delights, rather than by persecution. Martyrs have -little need to pray that they may not be tempted by persecutors' -feasts. This man "scorned delights" and chose to dwell with good men. - -The connection of ver. 5 with the preceding seems to be that in it -the psalmist professes his preference for the companionship of the -righteous, even if they reprove him. It is better, in his judgment, -to have the wholesome correction of the righteous than to feast with -the wicked. But while this is the bearing of the first part of the -verse, the last clause is obscure, almost to unintelligibility, and -even the earlier ones are doubtful. If the Hebrew accents are adhered -to, the rendering above must be adopted. The division of clauses and -rendering adopted by Hupfeld and many others, and in the A.V. and R.V., -gives vividness, but requires "it shall be" to be twice supplied. The -whole sentence seems to run more smoothly, if the above translation is -accepted. "Oil for the head" is that with which the head is anointed -as for a feast; and there is probably a tacit suggestion of a better -festival, spread in the austere abodes of the righteous poor, than on -the tables loaded with the dainties of the wicked rich. - -But what is the meaning and bearing of the last clause of ver. 5? -No wholly satisfactory answer has been given. It is needless here -to travel through the various more or less violent and unsuccessful -attempts to unravel the obscurities of this clause and of the -next verse. One sympathises with Hupfeld's confession that it is -an unwelcome (_sauer_) task to him to quote the whirl of varying -conjectures. The rendering adopted above, as, on the whole, the least -unlikely, is substantially Delitzsch's. It means that the psalmist -"will oppose no weapon but prayer to his enemies' wickedness, and -is therefore in the spiritual mood susceptible to well-meaning -reproof." The logic of the clause is not very clear, even with this -explanation. The psalmist's continuance in prayer against the wicked -is not very obviously a reason for his accepting kindly rebuke. But -no better explanation is proposed. - -The darkness thickens in ver. 6. The words indeed are all easily -translatable; but what the whole sentence means, or what an allusion -to the destruction of some unnamed people's rulers has to do here, -or who they are who hear the psalmist's words, are questions as yet -unanswered. To cast men down "by the sides [lit., _hands_] of a -rock" is apparently an expression for the cruel punishment mentioned -as actually inflicted on ten thousand of the "children of Seir" (2 -Chron. xxv. 12). Those who, with Delitzsch, take the revolt under -Absalom to be the occasion of the psalm, find in the casting down -of these judges an imaginative description of the destruction of -the leaders of the revolt, who are supposed to be hurled down the -rocks by the people whom they had misled; while the latter, having -again come to their right mind, attend to David's word, and find -it pleasant and beneficent. But this explanation requires much -supplementing of the language, and does not touch the difficulty of -bringing the verse into connection with the preceding. - -Nor is the connection with what follows more clear. A various reading -substitutes "Their" for "Our" in ver. 7, and so makes the whole -verse a description of the bones of the ill-fated "judges" lying in -a litter at the base of the precipice. But apparently the reading -is merely an attempt to explain the difficulty. Clearly enough the -verse gives an extraordinarily energetic and graphic picture of -a widespread slaughter. But who are the slain, and what event or -events in the history of Israel are here imaginatively reproduced, is -quite unknown. All that is certain is the tremendous force of the -representation, the AEschylean ruggedness of the metaphor, and the -desperate condition to which it witnesses. The point of the figure -lies in the resemblance of the bones strewn at the mouth of Sheol -to broken clods turned up by a plough. _Sheol_ seems here to waver -between the meanings of the unseen world of souls and the grave. The -unburied bones of slaughtered saints "lie scattered," as unregarded -as the lumps of soil behind the ploughman. - -In vv. 8-10 the familiar psalm-tone recurs, and the language clears -itself. The stream has been foaming among rocks in a gorge, but -it has emerged into sunlight, and flows smoothly. Only the "For" -at the beginning of ver. 8 is difficult, if taken to refer to the -immediately preceding verses. Rather, it overleaps the obscure -middle part of the psalm, and links on to the petitions of vv. 1-4. -Patient, trustful expectance is the psalmist's temper, which gazes -not interrogatively, but with longing which is sure of satisfaction, -towards God, from amidst the temptations or sorrows of earth. The -reason for that fixed look of faith lies in the Divine names, so rich -in promise, which are here blended in an unusual combination. The -devout heart pleads its own act of faith in conjunction with God's -names, and is sure that, since He is Jehovah, Lord, it cannot be vain -to hide oneself in Him. Therefore, the singer prays for preservation -from destruction. "Pour not out my soul" recalls Isa. liii. 12, where -the same vivid metaphor is used. The prayer of the earlier verses was -for protection from temptation; here, circumstances have darkened, -and the psalmist's life is in danger. Possibly the "snares" and -"gins" of ver. 9 mean both temptations and perils. - -The final petition in ver. 10 is like many in earlier psalms. It was a -fundamental article of faith for all the psalmists that a great _Lex -Talionis_ was at work, by which every sin was avenged in kind; and -if one looks deeper than the outside of life, the faith is eternally -warranted. For nothing is more certain than that, whomsoever else a man -may harm by his sin, he harms himself most. Nets woven and spread for -others may or may not ensnare them, but their meshes cling inextricably -round the feet of their author, and their tightening folds will wrap -him helpless, like a fly in a spider's web. The last clause presents -some difficulties. The word rendered above "at the same time" is -literally "together," but seems to be used here, as in Psalm iv. 8 -(_at once_), with the meaning of _simultaneously_. The two things are -co-temporaneous--the enemies' ensnaring and the psalmist's escape. The -clause is abnormal in its order of words. It stands thus: "At the same -time I, while [until] I pass by." Probably the irregularity arose from -a desire to put the emphatic word "at the same time" in the prominent -place. It is doubtful whether we should translate "while" or "until." -Authorities are divided, and either meaning is allowable. But though -the rendering _until_ gives picturesqueness to the representation of -the snared foe restrained and powerless, until his hoped-for prey walks -calmly through the toils, the same idea is conveyed by "while," and -that rendering avoids the implication that the snaring lasted only as -long as the time taken for the psalmist's escape. What is uppermost -in the psalmist's mind is, in any case, not the destruction of his -enemies, but their being made powerless to prevent his "passing by" -their snares uncaptured. - - - - - PSALM CXLII. - - 1 With my voice to Jehovah will I cry, - With my voice to Jehovah will I make supplication. - 2 I will pour out before Him my complaint, - My straits before Him will I declare. - 3 When my spirit wraps itself in gloom upon me, - Then Thou--Thou knowest my path; - In the way wherein I have to go - They have hidden a snare for me. - 4 Look on the right hand and see, - There is none that knows me, - Shelter is perished from me, - There is no one that makes inquiry after my soul. - - 5 I have cried unto Thee, Jehovah, - I have said, Thou art my refuge, - My portion in the land of the living. - 6 Attend to my shrill cry, - For I am become very weak; - Deliver me from my pursuers, - For they are too strong for me. - 7 Bring out from prison my soul, - That I may thank Thy name; - In me shall the righteous glory, - For Thou dealest bountifully with me. - - -The superscription not only calls this a psalm of David's, but -specifies the circumstances of its composition. It breathes the same -spirit of mingled fear and faith which characterises many earlier -psalms; but one fails to catch the unmistakable note of freshness, -and there are numerous echoes of preceding singers. This psalmist -has as deep sorrows as his predecessors, and as firm a grasp of -Jehovah, his helper. His song runs naturally in well-worn channels, -and is none the less genuine and acceptable to God because it does. -Trouble and lack of human sympathy or help have done their best work -on him, since they have driven him to God's breast. He has cried in -vain to man; and now he has gathered himself up in a firm resolve -to cast himself upon God. Men may take offence that they are only -appealed to as a last resort, but God does not. The psalmist is too -much in earnest to be content with unspoken prayers. His voice must -help his thoughts. Wonderful is the power of articulate utterance in -defining, and often in diminishing, sorrows. Put into words, many a -burden shrinks. Speaking his grief, many a man is calmed and braced -to endure. The complaint poured out before God ceases to flood the -spirit; the straits told to Him begin to grip less tightly. - -Ver. 1 resembles Psalm lxxvii. 1, and ver. 3 has the same vivid -expression for a spirit swathed in melancholy as Psalm lxxvii. 3. -Hupfeld would transfer ver. 3_a_ to ver. 2, as being superfluous -in ver. 3, and, in connection with the preceding, stating the -situation or disposition from which the psalmist's prayer flows. -If so taken, the copula (And) introducing _b_ will be equivalent -to "But," and contrasts the omniscience of God with the psalmist's -faintheartedness. If the usual division of verses is retained, the -same contrast is presented still more forcibly, and the copula may -be rendered "Then." The outpouring of complaint is not meant to tell -Jehovah what He does not know. It is for the complainer's relief, -not for God's information. However a soul is wrapped in gloom, the -thought that God knows the road which is so dark brings a little -creeping beam into the blackness. In the strength of that conviction -the psalmist beseeches Jehovah to behold what He does behold. That -is the paradox of faithful prayer, which asks for what it knows that -it possesses, and dared not ask for unless it knew. The form of the -word rendered above "Look" is irregular, a "hybrid" (Delitzsch); -but when standing beside the following "see," it is best taken -as an imperative of petition to Jehovah. The old versions render -both words as first person singular, in which they are followed by -Baethgen, Graetz, and Cheyne. It is perhaps more natural that the -psalmist should represent himself as looking round in vain for help, -than that he should ask God to look; and, as Baethgen remarks, the -copula before "There is none" in ver. 4_b_ favours this reading, -as it is superfluous with an imperative. In either case the drift -of ver. 4 is to set forth the suppliant's forlorn condition. The -"right hand" is the place for a champion or helper, but this lonely -sufferer's is unguarded, and there is none who knows him, in the -sense of recognising him as one to be helped (Ruth ii. 10, 19). Thus -abandoned, friendless, and solitary, confronted by foes, he looks -about for some place to hide in; but that too has failed him (Job xi. -20; Jer. xxv. 35; Amos ii. 14). There is no man interested enough -in him to make inquiry after his life. Whether he is alive or dead -matters not a straw to any. - -Thus utterly naked of help, allies, and earthly hiding-place, what can -a man do but fling himself into the arms of God? This one does so, as -the rest of the psalm tells. He had looked all round the horizon in -vain for a safe cranny to creep into and escape. He was out in the -open, without a bush or rock to hide behind, on all the dreary level. -So he looks up, and suddenly there rises by his side an inexpugnable -fortress, as if a mountain sprang at once from the flat earth. "I have -said, Thou art my refuge!" Whoso says thus has a shelter, Some One -to care for him, and the gloom begins to thin off from his soul. The -psalmist is not only safe in consequence of his prayer, but rich; for -the soul which, by strong resolve, even in the midst of straits, claims -God as its portion will at once realise its portion in God. - -The prayer for complete deliverance in vv. 6, 7, passes into -calmness, even while it continues fully conscious of peril and of -the power of the pursuers. Such is the reward of invoking Jehovah's -help. Agitation is soothed, and, even before any outward effect has -been manifest, the peace of God begins to shed itself over heart and -mind. The suppliant still spreads his needs before God, is still -conscious of much weakness, of strong persecutors, and feels that he -is, as it were, in prison (an evident metaphor, though Graetz, with -singular prosaicness, will have it to be literal); but he has hold of -God now, and so is sure of deliverance, and already begins to shape -his lips for songs of praise, and to anticipate the triumph which -his experience will afford to those who are righteous, and so are -his fellows. He was not, then, so utterly solitary as he had wailed -that he was. There were some who would joy in his joy, even if they -could not help his misery. But the soul that has to wade through deep -waters has always to do it alone; for no human sympathy reaches to -full knowledge of, or share in, even the best loved one's grief. We -have companions in joy; sorrow we have to face by ourselves. Unless -we have Jesus with us in the darkness, we have no one. - -The word rendered above "shall glory" is taken in different meanings. -According to some, it is to be rendered here "surround"--_i.e._, -with congratulations; others would take the meaning to be "shall -crown themselves"--_i.e._, "triumph on my account" (Delitzsch, -etc.). Graetz suggests a plausible emendation, which Cheyne adopts, -reading "glory in," the resulting meaning being the same as that of -Delitzsch. The notion of participation in the psalmist's triumph -is evidently intended to be conveyed; and any of these renderings -preserves that. Possibly _surround_ is most in accordance with the -usage of the word. Thus the psalmist's plaints end, as plaints which -are prayers ever do, in triumph anticipated by faith, and one day to -be realised in experience. - - - - - PSALM CXLIII. - - 1 Jehovah, hear my prayer, give ear to my supplications, - In Thy faithfulness answer me, in Thy righteousness; - 2 And enter not into judgment with Thy servant, - For before Thee shall no man living be righteous. - 3 For the enemy has pursued my soul, - Crushed my life to the ground, - Made me to dwell in dark places, like the dead of long ago. - - 4 Therefore my spirit wraps itself in gloom in me, - Within me is my heart benumbed. - 5 I remember the days of old, - I muse on all Thy doings, - On the work of Thy hands I brood. - 6 I spread my hands to Thee, - My soul is towards Thee like a thirsty land. Selah. - - 7 Make haste, answer me, Jehovah; my spirit faints; - Hide not Thy face from me, - Lest I become like those that descend into the pit. - 8 Make me hear Thy loving-kindness in the morning, - For in Thee do I trust; - Make me know the way in which I should go, - For to Thee do I lift my soul. - 9 Deliver me from mine enemies, Jehovah, - For to Thee do I flee for refuge. (?) - - 10 Teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God; - Let Thy good spirit lead me in a level land. - 11 For Thy name's sake, Jehovah, quicken me; - In Thy righteousness bring my soul out of all straits; - 12 And in Thy loving-kindness cut off my foes, - And destroy all who oppress my soul, - For I am Thy servant. - - -This psalm's depth of sadness and contrition, blended with yearning -trust, recalls the earlier psalms attributed to David. Probably this -general resemblance in inwardness and mood is all that is meant by the -superscription in calling it "a psalm of David." Its copious use of -quotations and allusions indicate a late date. But there is no warrant -for taking the speaker to be the personified Israel. It is clearly -divided into two equal halves, as indicated by the Selah, which is not -found in Books IV. and V., except here, and in Psalm cxl. The former -half (vv. 1-6) is complaint; the latter (vv. 7-12), petition. Each part -may again be regarded as falling into two equal portions, so that the -complaint branches out into a plaintive description of the psalmist's -peril (vv. 1-3), and a melancholy disclosure of his feelings (vv. 4-6); -while the prayer is similarly parted into cries for deliverance (vv. -7-9), and for inward enlightenment and help (vv. 10-12). But we are not -reading a logical treatise, but listening to the cry of a tried spirit, -and so need not wonder if the discernible sequence of thought is here -and there broken. - -The psalmist knows that his affliction is deserved. His enemy could -not have hunted and crushed him (ver. 3) unless God had been thereby -punishing him. His peril has forced home the penitent conviction of -his sin, and therefore he must first have matters set right between -him and God by Divine forgiveness. His cry for help is not based -upon any claims of his own, nor even on his extremity of need, but -solely on God's character, and especially on the twin attributes -of Faithfulness and Righteousness. By the latter is not meant the -retributive righteousness which gives according to desert, but -that by which He maintains the order of salvation established by -His holy love. The prayer anticipates St. John's declaration that -God is "faithful and just to forgive us our sins." That answer in -righteousness is as eagerly desired as God's dealing on the footing -of retributive justice is shrunk from. "Enter not into judgment -with Thy servant" is not a prayer referring to a future appearance -before the Judge of all, but the judgment deprecated is plainly -the enmity of men, which, as the next verse complains, is crushing -the psalmist's life out of him. His cry is for deliverance from -it, but he feels that a more precious gift must precede outward -deliverance, and God's forgiveness must first be sealed on his soul. -The conviction that, when the light of God's face is turned on the -purest life, it reveals dark stains which retributive justice cannot -but condemn, is not, in the psalmist's mouth, a palliation of his -guilt. Rather, it drives him to take his place among the multitude -of offenders, and from that lowly position to cry for pardon to the -very Judge whose judgment he cannot meet. The blessedness of contrite -trust is that it nestles the closer to God, the more it feels its -unworthiness. The child hides its face on the mother's bosom when it -has done wrong. God is our refuge from God. A little beam of light -steals into the penitent's darkness, while he calls himself God's -servant, and ventures to plead that relation, though he has done -what was unworthy of it, as a reason for pardon. The significant -"For" beginning ver. 3 shows that the enemy's acts were, to the -contrite psalmist, those of God's stern justice. Vv. 3_a_, _b_, are -moulded on Psalm vii. 5, and _c_ is verbally identical with Lam. -iii. 6. "The dead of long ago" is by some rendered _dead for ever_; -but the translation adopted above adds force to the psalmist's sad -description of himself, by likening him to those forgotten ones away -back in the mists of bygone ages. - -In vv. 4-6 the record of the emotions caused by his peril follows. -They begin with the natural gloom. As in Psalm cxlii. 3 (with which -this has many points of resemblance, possibly indicating identity -of author), he describes his "spirit" as swathed in dark robes of -melancholy. His heart, too, the centre of personality, was _stunned_ -or _benumbed_, so that it almost ceased to beat. What should a -"servant" of Jehovah's, brought to such a pass, do? If he is truly -God's, he will do precisely what this man did. He will compel his -thoughts to take another direction, and call Memory in to fight -Despair and feed Hope. His own past and God's past are arguments -enough to cheer the most gloom-wrapped sufferer. "A sorrow's crown -of sorrow" may be "remembering happier things," but the remembrance -will be better used to discrown a sorrow which threatens to lord it -over a life. Psalm lxxvii. 5, 6, 11, 12, has shaped the expressions -here. Both the contrast of present misery with past mercy, and -the assurances of present help given by that past mercy, move the -psalmist to appeal to God, stretching out his hands in entreaty. -Psalm lxiii. 1 echoes in ver. 6_b_, the pathos and beauty of which -need no elucidation. The very cracks in parched ground are like -mouths opened for the delaying rains; so the singer's soul was gaping -wide in trouble for God's coming, which would refresh and fertilise. -Blessed is that weariness which is directed to Him; it ever brings -the showers of grace for which it longs. The construction of ver. -6_b_ is doubtful, and the supplement "thirsteth" (A.V. and R.V.) is -possibly better than the "is" given above. - -The second half of the psalm is purely petition. Vv. 7-9 ask -especially for outward deliverance. They abound with reminiscences of -earlier psalms. "Make haste, answer me" recalls Psalm lxix. 17; "my -spirit faints" is like Psalm lxxxiv. 2; "Hide not Thy face from me" -is a standing petition, as in Psalms xxvii. 9, cii. 2, etc.; "Lest -I become like those who descend into the pit" is exactly reproduced -from Psalm xxviii. 1. The prayer for the manifestation of God's -loving-kindness in the morning is paralleled in Psalm xc. 14, and -that for illumination as to the way to walk in is like Exod. xxxiii. -13; Psalm xxv. 4. The plea "To Thee do I lift my soul" is found in -Psalms xxv. 1, lxxxvi. 4. - -The plea appended to the petition in ver. 9_b_ is difficult. -Literally, the words run, "To Thee have I covered [myself]," which -can best be explained as a pregnant construction, equivalent to "I -have fled to Thee and hid myself in Thee." Much divergence exists -in the renderings of the clause. But a slight emendation, adopted -by Hupfeld and Cheyne from an ancient Jewish commentator, reads the -familiar expression, "I have fled for refuge." Baethgen prefers to -read "have waited," which also requires but a trivial alteration; -while Graetz reaches substantially the same result by another way, -and would render "I have hope." - -A glance at these three verses of petition as a whole brings out the -sequence of the prayers and of their pleas. The deepest longing of -the devout soul is for the shining of God's face, the consciousness -of His loving regard, and that not only because it scatters fears -and foes, but because it is good to bathe in that sunshine. The next -longing is for the dawning of a glad morning, which will bring to a -waiting heart sweet whispers of God's loving-kindness, as shown by -outward deliverances. The night of fear has been dark and tearful, -but joy comes with the morning. The next need is for guidance in the -way in which a man should go, which here must be taken in the lower -sense of practical direction, rather than in any higher meaning. That -higher meaning follows in vv. 10-12; but in ver. 8 the suppliant -asks to be shown the path by which he can secure deliverance from -his foes. That deliverance is the last of his petitions. His pleas -are beautiful as examples of the logic of supplication. He begins -with his great need. His spirit faints, and he is on the edge of -the black pit into which so much brightness and strength have gone -down. The margin is slippery and crumbling; his feet are feeble. One -Helper alone can hold him up. But his own exceeding need is not all -that he pleads. He urges his trust, his fixing of his desires, hopes, -and whole self, by a dead lift of faith, on God. That is a reason -for Divine help. Anything is possible rather than that such hope -should be disappointed. It cannot be that any man, who has fled for -sanctuary to the asylum of God's heart, should be dragged thence and -slain before the God whose altar he has vainly clasped. - -The last part (vv. 10-12) puts foremost the prayer for conformity -of will with God's, and, though it closes with recurring prayer -for outward deliverance, yet breathes desires for more inward -blessings. As in the preceding verses, there are, in these closing -ones, many echoes of other psalms. The sequence of petitions and -pleas is instructive. To do, not merely to know, God's will is the -condition of all blessedness, and will be the deepest desire of -every man who is truly God's servant. But that obedience of heart -and hand must be taught by God, and He regards our taking Him for -our God as establishing a claim on Him to give all illumination -of heart and all bending of will and all skill of hand which are -necessary to make us doers of His will. His teaching is no mere -outward communication of knowledge, but an inbreathing of power to -discern, and of disposition and ability to perform, what is His -will. Ver. 10_b_ is best taken as a continuous sentence, embodying -a prayer for guidance. The plea on which it rests remains the same, -though the statement of it as a separate clause is not adopted in -our translation. For the fact that God's spirit is "good"--_i.e._, -beneficently self-communicative--heartens us to ask, and binds Him to -give, all such direction as is needed. This is not a mere repetition -of the prayer in ver. 8, but transcends it. "A level land" (or, -according to a possible suggested emendation, _path_) is one in which -the psalmist can freely walk, unhindered in doing God's will. His -next petition goes deepest of the three, inasmuch as it asks for that -new Divine life to be imparted, without which no teaching to do God's -will can be assimilated, and no circumstances, however favourable, -will conduce to doing it. He may not have known all the depth which -his prayer sounded; but no man who has real desires to conform heart -and life to the supreme will of God but must have felt his need of -a purer life to be poured into his spirit. As this prayer is deep, -so its plea is high. "For Thy name's sake"--nothing can be pleaded -of such force as that. God supremely desires the glory of His name; -and, for the sake of men whose blessedness depends on their knowing -and loving it, will do nothing that can dim its lustre. His name is -the record of His past acts, the disclosure of that in Him which -is knowable. That name contains the principles of all His future -acts. He will be what He has been. He will magnify His name; and the -humblest, most tormented soul that can say, "Thou art my God," may be -sure that Divinely given life will throb in it, and that even its -lowliness may contribute to the honour of the name. - -The hunted psalmist cannot but come back, in the close of his psalm, -to his actual circumstances, for earthly needs do clog the soul's -wings. He unites righteousness and loving-kindness as co-operating -powers, as in ver. 1 he had united faithfulness and righteousness. -And as in the first verses he had blended pleas drawn from God's -character with those drawn from his relation to God, so he ends his -petitions with pleading that he is God's servant, and, as such, a fit -object of God's protection. - - - - - PSALM CXLIV. - - 1 Blessed be Jehovah my rock, who trains my hands for battle, - My fingers for war; - 2 My loving-kindness and my fortress, my high tower and my - deliverer, - My shield and He in whom I take refuge, - Who subdues my people under me. - - 3 Jehovah, what is man, that Thou takest knowledge of him? - The son of frail man, that Thou takest account of him? - 4 Man--he is like to a breath, - His days are like a shadow passing away. - - 5 Jehovah, bow Thy heavens and come down, - Touch the mountains that they smoke. - 6 Lighten lightning and scatter them, - Shoot Thy arrows and confound them. - 7 Stretch Thy hands from on high, - Pluck me [out] and deliver me from many waters, - From the hands of the sons of the alien, - 8 Whose mouth speaks falsehood, - And whose right hand is a right hand of lies. - - 9 O God, a new song will I sing to Thee, - On a ten-stringed harp will I harp to Thee, - 10 Who giveth salvation to kings, - Who snatches David His servant from the evil sword. - 11 Pluck me [out] and deliver me from the hand of the sons of the - alien, - Whose mouth speaks falsehood, - And whose right hand is a right hand of lies. - - 12 So that (? or Because) our sons [may be] as plants, - Grown tall in their youth; - Our daughters like corner-pillars, - Carved after the fashion of a palace; - 13 Our granaries full, giving forth kind after kind [of supply]; - Our flocks producing thousands, - Producing tens of thousands in our fields; - 14 Our kine heavy with young; - No breach and no sally, - And no [battle-] cry in our open spaces. - 15 Happy the people that is in such a case! - Happy the people whose God is Jehovah! - - -The force of compilation could no further go than in this psalm, -which is, in the first eleven verses, simply a _rechauffe_ of known -psalms, and in vv. 12-15 is most probably an extract from an unknown -one of later date. The junctions are not effected with much skill, -and the last is tacked on very awkwardly (ver. 12). It is completely -unlike the former part, inasmuch as there the speaker is a warlike -king praying for victory, while in the latter the nation sings of the -tranquil blessings of peaceful expansion. The language of the later -portion is full of late forms and obscurities. But the compiler's -course of thought is traceable. He begins by praising Jehovah, who -has taught him warlike skill; then adoringly thinks of his own -weakness, made strong by God's condescending regard; next prays for -complete victory, and vows fresh praises for new mercies; and closes -with a picture of the prosperity which follows conquest, and is -secured to Israel because Jehovah is its God. - -Vv. 1, 2, are echoes of Psalm xviii. 2, 34, 46, with slight -variations. The remarkable epithet "My loving-kindness" offends -some critics, who emend so as to read "My stronghold"; but it has a -parallel in Jonah ii. 9, and is forcible as an emotional abbreviation -of the fuller "God of my loving-kindness" (Psalm lix. 10). The -original passage reads "people," which is the only appropriate word -in this connection, and should probably be read in ver. 2_c_. - -Psalm viii. supplies the original of vv. 3, 4, with a reminiscence -of Psalm xxxix. 5, and of Psalm cii. 11, from which comes the -pathetic image of the fleeting shadow. The link between this and the -former extract seems to be the recognition of God's condescension -in strengthening so weak and transient a creature for conflict and -conquest. - -The following prayer for further Divine help in further struggles -is largely borrowed from the magnificent picture of a theophany -in Psalm xviii. 9, 14-16. The energetic "Lighten lightning" is -peculiar to this psalm, as is the use of the word for "Pluck out." -The description of the enemies as "sons of the alien" is like Psalm -xviii. 44, 45. As in many other psalms, the treachery of the foe -is signalised. They break their oaths. The right hand which they -had lifted in swearing is a lying hand. The vow of new praise -recalls Psalms xxxiii. 2, 3, and xcvi. 1, xcviii. 1. Ver. 10 is a -reproduction of Psalm xviii. 50. The mention of David's deliverance -from the "evil sword" has apparently been the reason for the LXX. -referring the psalm to the victory over Goliath--an impossible view. -The new song is not here sung; but the psalm drops from the level -of praise to renew the petition for deliverance, in the manner -of a refrain caught up in ver. 11 from ver. 7. This might make a -well-rounded close, and may have originally been the end of the psalm. - -The appended fragment (vv. 12-15) is attached to the preceding in -a most embarrassing fashion. The first word of ver. 12 is the sign -of the relative. The LXX. accordingly translates "Whose sons are," -etc., and understands the whole as a description of the prosperity of -the enemies, which view necessarily involves the alteration of "our" -into "their" in the following clauses. Others supply an antecedent -to the relative by inserting _save us_ or the like expression at -the beginning of the verse. Others, again--_e.g._, Ewald, followed -by Perowne--connect the relative with ver. 15: "We whose sons are," -etc.... "Happy is the people," etc. Delitzsch takes the relative to -signify here "because," and compares Judg. ix. 17; Jer. xvi. 13. The -prosperity subsequently described would then be alleged as the occasion -of the enemies' envy. Others would slightly emend the text so as to -read, "I pronounce happy," or "Happy are we." The latter, which makes -all smooth, and corresponds with ver. 15, is Graetz's proposal. The -rendering of the A.V., "that" or "in order that," has much in its -favour. The word which is the sign of the relative is a component of -the full expression usually so rendered, and stands alone as equivalent -to it in Deut. iv. 40, Gen. xi. 7. It is true, as Delitzsch objects to -this rendering, that the following verbs are usually finite, while here -they are participles; but that is not a fatal objection. The whole that -follows would then be dependent on the petition of ver. 11, and would -describe the purpose of the desired deliverance. "This is, in fact, -the poet's meaning. He prays for deliverance from enemies, in order -that the happy condition pictured in ver. 12 _sqq._ may come to pass" -(Baethgen). On the whole, that rendering presents least difficulty, but -in any case the seam is clumsy. - -The substance of the description includes three things--a vigorous, -growing population, agricultural prosperity, and freedom from -invasion. The language is obscure, especially in ver. 14, but the -general drift is plain. The characteristic Jewish blessing of -numerous offspring is first touched on in two figures, of which -the former is forcible and obvious, and the latter obscure. The -comparison of the virgin daughters of Israel to "corners" is -best understood by taking the word to mean "corner-pillars," not -necessarily caryatides, as is usually supposed--an architectural -decoration unknown in the East. The points of comparison would then -be slender uprightness and firm grace. Delitzsch prefers to take the -word as meaning _cornices_, such as, to the present day, are found -in the angles of Eastern rooms, and are elaborately carved in mazy -patterns and brightly coloured. He would also render "variegated" -instead of "carved." But such a comparison puts too much stress on -gay dresses, and too little on qualities corresponding to those of -the "well-grown" youths in the former clause. - -The description of a flourishing rural community is full of difficult -words. "Granaries" is found only here, and "kind" is a late word. -"Fields" is the same word as is usually rendered "streets"; it -literally means "places outside," and here obviously must refer to -the open pastures without the city, in contrast to the "open spaces" -within it, mentioned in the next verse. In that verse almost every -word is doubtful. That rendered "kine" is masculine in form, but is -generally taken as being applicable to both sexes, and here used for -the milky mothers of the herd. The word translated above "heavy with -young" means _laden_, and if the accompanying noun is masculine, -must mean laden with the harvest sheaves; but the parallel of the -increasing flocks suggests the other rendering. The remainder of -ver. 14 would in form make a complete verse, and it is possible -that something has fallen out between the first clause and the two -latter. These paint tranquil city life when enemies are far away. -"No breach"--_i.e._, in the defences, by which besiegers could -enter; "No going forth"--_i.e._, sally of the besieged, as seems -most probable, though _going forth as captured_ or _surrendering_ -has been suggested; "No cry"--_i.e._, of assailants who have forced -an entrance, and of defenders who make their last stand in the open -places of the city. - -The last verse sums up all the preceding picture of growth, -prosperity, and tranquillity, and traces it to the guardian care and -blessing of Jehovah. The psalmist may seem to have been setting too -much store by outward prosperity. His last word not only points to -the one Source of it, but sets high above the material consequences -of God's favour, joyous as these are, that favour itself, as the -climax of human blessedness. - - - - - PSALM CXLV. - - 1 [H] I will exalt Thee, my God, O King, - And I will bless Thy name for ever and aye. - 2 [H] Every day will I bless Thee, - And I will praise Thy name for ever and aye. - 3 [H] Great is Jehovah and much to be praised, - And of His greatness there is no searching. - 4 [H] Generation to generation shall loudly praise Thy works - And Thy mighty acts shall they declare. - 5 [H] The splendour of the glory of Thy majesty, - And the records of Thy wonders will I meditate. - 6 [H] And the might of Thy dread acts shall they speak, - And Thy greatness will I tell over. - - 7 [H] The memory of Thy abundant goodness shall they well - forth, - And Thy righteousness shall they shout aloud. - 8 [H] Gracious and full of compassion is Jehovah, - Slow to anger and great in loving-kindness. - 9 [H] Good is Jehovah to all, - And His compassions are upon all His works. - 10 [H] All Thy works thank Thee, Jehovah, - And Thy favoured ones shall bless Thee. - - 11 [H] The glory of Thy kingdom shall they speak, - And talk of Thy might; - 12 [H] To make known to the sons of men His mighty deeds - And the glory of the splendour of His kingdom. - 13 [H] Thy kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, - And Thy dominion [endures] through every generation - after generation. - - 14 [H] Jehovah upholds all the falling, - And raises all the bowed down. - 15 [H] The eyes of all look expectantly to Thee, - And Thou givest them their food in its season. - 16 [H] Thou openest Thy hand, - And satisfiest every living thing [with] its desire. - 17 [H] Jehovah is righteous in all His ways, - And loving in all His works. - 18 [H] Jehovah is near to all who call on Him, - To all who call on Him in truth. - 19 [H] The desire of them that fear Him He will fulfil, - And their cry He will hear and will save them. - 20 [H] Jehovah keeps all who love Him, - And all the wicked will He destroy. - - 21 [H] The praise of Jehovah my mouth shall speak, - And let all flesh bless His holy name for ever and aye. - - -This is an acrostic psalm. Like several others of that kind, it is -slightly irregular, one letter (Nun) being omitted. The omission is -supplied in the LXX. by an obviously spurious verse inserted in the -right place between vv. 13 and 14. Though the psalm has no strophical -divisions, it has distinct sequence of thought, and celebrates the -glories of Jehovah's character and deeds from a fourfold point of view. -It sings of His greatness (vv. 1-6), goodness (vv. 7-10), His kingdom -(vv. 11-13), and the universality of His beneficence (vv. 14-21). It is -largely coloured by other psalms, and is unmistakably of late origin. - -The first group of verses has two salient characteristics--the -accumulation of epithets expressive of the more majestic aspects of -Jehovah's self-revelation, and the remarkable alternation of the -psalmist's solo of song and the mighty chorus, which takes up the -theme and sends a shout of praise echoing down the generations. - -The psalmist begins with his own tribute of praise, which he vows -shall be perpetual. Ver. 1 recalls Psalms xxx. 1 and xxxiv. 1. We -"exalt" God, when we recognise that He is King, and worthily adore -Him as such. A heart suffused with joy in the thought of God would -fain have no other occupation than the loved one of ringing out His -name. The singer sets "for ever and aye" at the end of both ver. 1 -and ver. 2, and while it is possible to give the expression a worthy -meaning as simply equivalent to _continually_, it is more in harmony -with the exalted strain of the psalm and the emphatic position of -the words to hear in them an expression of the assurance which such -delight in God and in the contemplation of Him naturally brings with -it, that over communion so deep and blessed, Death has no power. -"Every day will I bless Thee"--that is the happy vow of the devout -heart. "And I will praise Thy name for ever and ever"--that is the -triumphant confidence that springs from the vow. The experiences of -fellowship with God are prophets of their own immortality. - -Ver. 3_a_ is from Psalm xlviii. 1, and _b_ is tinged by Isaiah xl., -but substitutes "greatness," the key-note of the first part of this -psalm, for "understanding." That note having been thus struck, -is taken up in vv. 4-6, which set forth various aspects of that -greatness, as manifested in works which are successively described as -"mighty"--_i.e._, instinct with conquering power such as a valiant -hero wields; as, taken together, constituting the "splendour of the -glory of Thy majesty," the flashing brightness with which, when -gathered, as it were, in a radiant mass, they shine out, like a -great globe of fire; as "wonders," not merely in the narrower sense -of miracles, but as being productive of lowly astonishment in the -thoughtful spectator; and as being "dread acts"--_i.e._, such as fill -the beholder with holy awe. In ver. 5_b_ the phrase rendered above -"records of His wonders" is literally "words of His wonders," which -some regard as being like the similar phrase in Psalm lxv. 3 (words -or matters of iniquities), a pleonasm, and others would take as they -do the like expression in Psalm cv. 27, as equivalent to "_deeds_ -of the Divine wonders" (Delitzsch). But "words" may very well -here retain its ordinary sense, and the poet represent himself as -meditating on the records of God's acts in the past as well as gazing -on those spread before his eyes in the present. - -His passing and repassing from his own praise in vv. 1, 2, to that of -successive generations in ver. 4, and once more to his own in ver. -5, and to that of others in ver. 6, is remarkable. Does he conceive -of himself as the chorus leader, teaching the ages his song? Or does -he simply rejoice in the less lofty consciousness that his voice is -not solitary? It is difficult to say, but this is clear, that the -Messianic hope of the world's being one day filled with the praises -which were occasioned by God's manifestation in Israel burned in this -singer's heart. He could not bear to sing alone, and his hymn would -lack its highest note, if he did not believe that the world was to -catch up the song. - -But greatness, majesty, splendour, are not the Divinest parts of -the Divine nature, as this singer had learned. These are but the -fringes of the central glory. Therefore the song rises from greatness -to celebrate better things, the moral attributes of Jehovah (vv. -7-10). The psalmist has no more to say of himself, till the end of -his psalm. He gladly listens rather to the chorus of many voices -which proclaims Jehovah's widespread goodness. In ver. 7 the two -attributes which the whole Old Testament regards as inseparable are -the themes of the praise of men. Goodness and righteousness are -not antithetic, but complementary, as green and red rays blend in -white light. The exuberance of praise evoked by these attributes -is strikingly represented by the two strong words describing it; -of which the former, "well forth," compares its gush to the clear -waters of a spring bursting up into sunlight, dancing and flashing, -musical and living, and the other describes it as like the shrill -cries of joy raised by a crowd on some festival, or such as the women -trilled out when a bride was brought home. Ver. 8 rests upon Exod. -xxxiv. 6 (compare Psalm ciii. 8). It is difficult to de-synonymise -"gracious" and "full of compassion." Possibly the former is the -wider, and expresses love in exercise towards the lowly in its most -general aspect, while the latter specialises graciousness as it -reveals itself to those afflicted with any evil. As "slow to anger," -Jehovah keeps back the wrath which is part of His perfection, and -only gives it free course after long waiting and wooing. The contrast -in ver. 8_b_ is not so much between anger and loving-kindness, which -to the psalmist are not opposed, as between the slowness with which -the one is launched against a few offenders and the plenitude of the -other. That thought of abundant loving-kindness is still further -widened, in ver. 9, to universality. God's goodness embraces all, -and His compassions hover over all His works, as the broad wing and -warm breast of the mother eagle protect her brood. Therefore the -psalmist hears a yet more multitudinous voice of praise from all -creatures; since their very existence, and still more their various -blessednesses, give witness to the all-gladdening Mercy which -encompasses them. But Creation's anthem is a song without words, and -needs to be made articulate by the conscious thanksgivings of those -who, being blessed by possession of Jehovah's loving-kindness, render -blessing to Him with heart and lip. - -The Kingship of God was lightly touched in ver. 1. It now becomes -the psalmist's theme in vv. 11-13. It is for God's favoured ones to -_speak_, while Creation can but _be_. It is for men who can recognise -God's sovereign Will as their law, and know Him as Ruler, not only by -power, but by goodness, to proclaim that kingdom which psalmists knew -to be "righteousness, peace, and joy." The purpose for which God has -lavished His favour on Israel is that they might be the heralds of -His royalty to "the sons of men." The recipients of His grace should -be the messengers of His grace. The aspects of that kingdom which -fill the psalmist's thoughts in this part of his hymn, correspond -with that side of the Divine nature celebrated in vv. 1-6--namely, -the more majestic--while the graciousness magnified in vv. 7-10 is -again the theme in the last portion (vv. 14-20). An intentional -parallelism between the first and third parts is suggested by the -recurrence in ver. 12 of part of the same heaped-together phrase -which occurs in ver. 5. There we read of "the splendour of the -glory of Thy majesty"; here of "the glory of the splendour of Thy -kingdom,"--expressions substantially identical in meaning. The very -glory of the kingdom of Jehovah is a pledge that it is eternal. What -corruption or decay could touch so radiant and mighty a throne? -Israel's monarchy was a thing of the past; but as, "in the year that -King Uzziah died," Isaiah saw the true King of Israel throned in -the Temple, so the vanishing of the earthly head of the theocracy -seems to have revealed with new clearness to devout men in Israel -the perpetuity of the reign of Jehovah. Hence the psalms of the King -are mostly post-exilic. It is blessed when the shattering of earthly -goods or the withdrawal of human helpers and lovers makes more plain -the Unchanging Friend and His abiding power to succour and suffice. - -The last portion of the psalm is marked by a frequent repetition of -"all," which occurs eleven times in these verses. The singer seems -to delight in the very sound of the word, which suggests to him -boundless visions of the wide sweep of God's universal mercy, and of -the numberless crowd of dependents who wait on and are satisfied by -Him. He passes far beyond national bounds. - -Ver. 14 begins the grand catalogue of universal blessings by an -aspect of God's goodness which, at first sight, seems restricted, -but is only too wide, since there is no man who is not often ready -to fall and needing a strong hand to uphold him. The universality of -man's weakness is pathetically testified by this verse. Those who are -in the act of falling are upheld by Him; those who have fallen are -helped to regain their footing. Universal sustaining and restoring -grace are His. The psalmist says nothing of the conditions on which -that grace in its highest forms is exercised; but these are inherent -in the nature of the case, for, if the falling man will not lay -hold of the outstretched hand, down he must go. There would be no -place for restoring help, if sustaining aid worked as universally -as it is proffered. The word for "raises" in ver. 14_b_ occurs only -here and in Psalm cxlvi. 8. Probably the author of both Psalms is -one. In vv. 15, 16, the universality of Providence is set forth -in language partly taken from Psalm civ. 27, 28. The petitioners -are all creatures. They mutely appeal to God, with expectant eyes -fixed on Him, like a dog looking for a crust from its master. He -has but to "open His hand" and they are satisfied. The process -is represented as easy and effortless. Ver. 16_b_ has received -different explanations. The word rendered "desire" is often used for -"favour"--_i.e._, God's--and is by some taken in that meaning here. -So Cheyne translates "fillest everything that lives with goodwill." -But seeing that the same word recurs in ver. 19, in an obvious -parallel with this verse, and has there necessarily the meaning of -_desire_, it is more natural to give it the same signification here. -The clause then means that the opening of God's hand satisfies every -creature, by giving it that which it desires in full enjoyment. - -These common blessings of Providence avail to interpret deeper -mysteries. Since the world is full of happy creatures nourished -by Him, it is a reasonable faith that His work is all of a piece, -and that in all His dealings the twin attributes of righteousness -and loving-kindness rule. There are enough plain tokens of God's -character in plain things to make us sure that mysterious and -apparently anomalous things have the same character regulating them. -In ver. 17_b_ the word rendered _loving_ is that usually employed -of the objects of loving-kindness, God's "favoured ones." It is -used of God only here and in Jer. iii. 12, and must be taken in an -active sense, as _One who exercises loving-kindness_. The underlying -principle of all His acts is Love, says the psalmist, and there is no -antagonism between that deepest motive and Righteousness. The singer -has indeed climbed to a sun-lit height, from which he sees far and -can look down into the deep of the Divine judgments and discern that -they are a clear-obscure. - -He does not restrict this universal beneficence when he goes on to lay -down conditions on which the reception of its highest forms depend. -These conditions are not arbitrary; and within their limits, the same -universality is displayed. The lower creation makes its mute appeal to -God, but men have the prerogative and obligation of calling upon Him -with real desire and trust. Such suppliants will universally be blessed -with a nearness of God to them, better than His proximity through -power, knowledge, or the lower manifestations of His loving-kindness, -to inferior creatures. Just as the fact of life brought with it certain -wants, which God is bound to supply, since He gives it, so the fear and -love of Him bring deeper needs, which He is still more (if that were -possible) under pledge to satisfy. The creatures have their desires -met. Those who fear Him will certainly have theirs; and that, not only -in so far as they share physical life with worm and bee, whom their -heavenly Father feeds, but in so far as their devotion sets in motion -a new series of aspirations, longings, and needs, which will certainly -not be left unfulfilled. "Food" is all the boon that the creatures -crave, and they get it by an easy process. But man, especially man who -fears and loves God, has deeper needs, sadder in one aspect, since -they come from perils and ills from which he has to be saved, but more -blessed in another, since every need is a door by which God can enter -a soul. These sacreder necessities and more wistful longings are not -to be satisfied by simply opening God's hand. More has to be done -than that. For they can only be satisfied by the gift of Himself, and -men need much disciplining before they will to receive Him into their -hearts. They who love and fear Him will desire Him chiefly, and that -desire can never be balked. There is a region, and only one, in which -it is safe to set our hearts on unattained good. They who long for God -will always have as much of God as they long for and are capable of -receiving. - -But notwithstanding the universality of the Divine loving-kindness, -mankind still parts into two sections, one capable of receiving the -highest gifts, one incapable, because not desiring them. And therefore -the One Light, in its universal shining, works two effects, being -lustre and life to such as welcome it, but darkness and death to those -who turn from it. It is man's awful prerogative that he can distil -poison out of the water of life, and can make it impossible for himself -to receive from tender, universal Goodness anything but destruction. - -The singer closes his song with the reiterated vow that his songs -shall never close, and, as in the earlier part of the psalm, rejoices -in the confidence that his single voice shall, like that of the -herald angel at Bethlehem, be merged in the notes of "a multitude -praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest." - - - - - PSALM CXLVI. - - 1 Hallelujah! - Praise Jehovah, my soul. - 2 I will praise Jehovah while I live, - I will harp to Jehovah as long as I exist. - - 3 Trust not in nobles, - In a son of Adam, who has no deliverance [to give]. - 4 His spirit goes forth, he returns to his earth, - In that same day his schemes perish. - - 5 Blessed he who has the God of Jacob for his help, - Whose hope is on Jehovah his God! - 6 Who made heaven and earth, - The sea--and all that is in them; - Who keeps troth for ever; - 7 Who executes judgment for the oppressed; - Who gives bread to the hungry. - Jehovah looses captives; - 8 Jehovah opens the eyes of the blind; - Jehovah raises the bowed down; - Jehovah loves the righteous; - 9 Jehovah preserves the strangers; - Orphans and widows He sets up; - But the way of the wicked He thwarts. - 10 Jehovah shall be King for ever, - Thy God, O Zion, to generation after generation. - Hallelujah! - - -The long-drawn music of the Psalter closes with five Hallelujah -psalms, in which, with constantly swelling diapason, all themes of -praise are pealed forth, until the melodious thunder of the final -psalm, which calls on everything that has breath to praise Jehovah. -Possibly the number of these psalms may have reference to the five -books into which the Psalter is divided. - -This is the first of the five. It is largely coloured by earlier songs, -but still throbs with fresh emotion. Its theme is the blessedness of -trust in Jehovah, as shown by His character and works. It deals less -with Israel's special prerogatives than its companions do, while yet it -claims the universally beneficent Ruler as Israel's God. - -The singer's full heart of thanksgiving must first pour itself out -in vows of perpetual praise, before he begins to woo others to the -trust which blesses him. Exhortations are impotent unless enforced by -example. Ver. 2 is borrowed with slight variation from Psalm civ. 33. - -The negative side of the psalmist's exhortation follows in vv. 3, -4, which warn against wasting trust on powerless men. The same -antithesis between men and God as objects of confidence occurs in -many places of Scripture, and here is probably borrowed from Psalm -cxviii. 8. The reason assigned for the dehortation is mainly man's -mortality. However high his state, he is but a "son of Adam" (the -earth-born), and inherits the feebleness and fleetingness which -deprive him of ability to help. "He has no salvation" is the literal -rendering of the last words of ver. 3_b_. Psalm lx. 11 gives the same -thought, and almost in the same words. Ver. 4 sets forth more fully -man's mortality, as demonstrating the folly of trusting in him. His -breath or spirit escapes; he goes back to "his earth," from which he -was created; and what becomes of all his busy schemes? They "perish" -as he does. The psalmist has a profound sense of the phantasmal -character of the solid-seeming realities of human glory and power. -But it wakes no bitterness in him, nor does it breathe any sadness -into his song. It only teaches him to cling the more closely to the -permanent and real. His negative teaching, if it stood alone, would -be a gospel of despair, the reduction of life to a torturing cheat; -but taken as the prelude to the revelation of One whom it is safe to -trust, there is nothing sad in it. So the psalm springs up at once -from these thoughts of the helplessness of mortal man, to hymn the -blessedness of trust set upon the undying God, like a song-bird from -its lair in a grave-yard, which pours its glad notes above the grassy -mounds, as it rises in spirals towards the blue, and at each gives -forth a more exultant burst of music. - -The exclamation in ver. 5 is the last of the twenty-five "Blesseds" -in the Psalter. Taken together, as any concordance will show, -beginning with Psalm i., they present a beautiful and comprehensive -ideal of the devout life. The felicity of such a life is here -gathered up into two comprehensive considerations, which supplement -each other. It is blessed to have the God of Jacob on our side; but -it is not enough for the heart to know that He bore a relation to -another in the far-off past or to a community in the present. There -must be an individualising bond between the soul and God, whereby -the "God of Jacob" becomes the God who belongs to the single devout -man, and all the facts of whose protection in the past are renewed in -the prosaic present. It is blessed to have Jehovah for one's "help," -but that is only secured when, by the effort of one's own will, He -is clasped as one's "hope." Such hope is blessed, for it will never -be put to shame, nor need to shift its anchorage. It brings into any -life the all-sufficient help which is the ultimate source of all -felicity, and makes the hope that grasps it blessed, as the hand that -holds some fragrant gum is perfumed by the touch. - -But the psalmist passes swiftly from celebrating trust to magnify -its object, and sets forth in an impressive series the manifold -perfections and acts which witness that Jehovah is worthy to be the -sole Confidence of men. - -The nine Divine acts, which invite to trust in Him, are divided into -two parts, by a change in construction. There is, first, a series -of participles (vv. 6-7_b_), and then a string of brief sentences -enumerating Divine deeds (vv. 7_c_-9). No very clear difference in -thought can be established as corresponding to this difference in -form. The psalmist begins with God's omnipotence as manifested in -creation. The first requisite for trust is assurance of power in the -person trusted. The psalmist calls heaven and earth and sea, with all -their inhabitants, as witnesses that Jehovah is not like the son of -man, in whom there is no power to help. - -But power may be whimsical, changeable, or may shroud its designs in -mystery; therefore, if it is to be trusted, its purposes and methods -must be so far known that a man may be able to reckon on it. Therefore -the psalm adds unchangeable faithfulness to His power. But Power, -however faithful, is not yet worthy of trust, unless it works according -to righteousness, and has an arm that wars against wrong; therefore -to creative might and plighted troth the psalmist adds the exercise -of judgment. Nor are these enough, for the conception which they -embody may be that of a somewhat stern and repellent Being, who may be -reverenced, but not approached with the warm heart of trust; therefore -the psalmist adds beneficence, which ministers their appropriate food -to all desires, not only of the flesh, but of the spirit. The hungry -hearts of men, who are all full of needs and longings, may turn to this -mighty, faithful, righteous Jehovah, and be sure that He never sends -mouths but He sends meat to fill them. All our various kinds of hunger -are doors for God to come into our spirits. - -The second series of sentences deals mainly with the Divine -beneficence in regard to man's miseries. The psalmist does not feel -that the existence of these sad varieties of sorrow clouds his -assurance in God's goodness. To him, they are occasions for the most -heart-touching display of God's pitying, healing hand. If there is -any difference between the two sets of clauses descriptive of God's -acts, the latter bring into clearer light His personal agency in -each case of suffering. This mighty, faithful, righteous, beneficent -Jehovah, in all the majesty which that name suggests, comes down to -the multitude of burdened ones and graciously deals with each, having -in His heart the knowledge of, and in His hand the remedy for, all -their ills. The greatness of His nature expressed by His name is -vividly contrasted with the tenderness and lowliness of His working. -Captives, blind persons, and those bowed down by sorrows or otherwise -appeal to Him by their helplessness, and His strong hand breaks the -fetters, and His gentle touch opens without pain the closed eyes -and quickens the paralysed nerve to respond to the light, and His -firm, loving hold lifts to their feet and establishes the prostrate. -All these classes of afflicted persons are meant to be regarded -literally, but all may have a wider meaning, and be intended to hint -at spiritual bondage, blindness, and abjectness. - -The next clause (ver. 8_c_) seems to interrupt the representation of -forms of affliction, but it comes in with great significance in the -centre of that sad catalogue; for its presence here teaches that -not merely affliction, whether physical or other, secures Jehovah's -gracious help, but that there must be the yielding of heart to Him, -and the effort at conformity of life with His precepts and pattern, -if His aid is to be reckoned on in men's sorrows. The prisoners will -still languish in chains, the blind will grope in darkness, the bowed -down will lie prone in the dust, unless they are righteous. - -The series of afflictions which God alleviates is resumed in ver. 9 -with a pathetic triad--strangers, widows, and fatherless. These are -forlorn indeed, and the depth of their desolation is the measure of the -Divine compassion. The enumeration of Jehovah's acts, which make trust -in God blessed in itself, and the sure way of securing help which is -not vain, needs but one more touch for completion, and that is added -in the solemn thought that He, by His providences and in the long run, -turns aside (_i.e._ from its aim) the way of the wicked. That aspect -of God's government is lightly handled in one clause, as befits the -purpose of the psalm. But it could not be left out. A true likeness -must have shadows. God were not a God for men to rely on, unless the -trend of His reign was to crush evil and thwart the designs of sinners. - -The blessedness of trust in Jehovah is gathered up into one great -thought in the last verse of the psalm. The sovereignty of God to -all generations suggests the swift disappearance of earthly princes, -referred to in ver. 4. To trust in fleeting power is madness; to -trust in the Eternal King is wisdom and blessedness, and in some -sense makes him who trusts a sharer in the eternity of the God in -whom is his hope, and from whom is his help. - - - - - PSALM CXLVII. - - 1 Hallelujah! - For it is good to harp unto our God, - For it is pleasant: praise is comely. - 2 Jehovah is the builder up of Jerusalem, - The outcasts of Israel He gathers together; - 3 The healer of the broken-hearted, - And He binds their wounds; - 4 Counting a number for the stars, - He calls them all by names. - 5 Great is our Lord and of vast might, - To His understanding there is no number. - 6 Jehovah helps up the afflicted, - Laying low the wicked to the ground. - - 7 Sing to Jehovah with thanksgiving, - Harp to our God on the lyre, - 8 Covering heaven with clouds, - Preparing rain for the earth; - Making the mountains shoot forth grass, - 9 Giving to the beast its food, - To the brood of the raven which croak. - 10 Not in the strength of the horse does He delight, - Not in the legs of a man does He take pleasure. - 11 Jehovah takes pleasure in them that fear Him, - Them that wait for His loving-kindness. - - 12 Extol Jehovah, O Jerusalem, - Praise thy God, O Zion. - 13 For He has strengthened the bars of thy gates, - He has blessed thy children in thy midst. - 14 Setting thy borders in peace, - With the fat of wheat He satisfies thee; - 15 Sending forth His commandment on the earth, - Swiftly runs His word; - 16 Giving snow like wool, - Hoar frost He scatters like ashes; - 17 Flinging forth His ice like morsels, - Before His cold who can stand? - 18 He sends forth His word and melts them, - He causes His wind to blow--the waters flow; - 19 Declaring His word to Jacob, - His statutes and judgments to Israel. - 20 He has not dealt thus to any nation; - And His judgments--they have not known them. - - -The threefold calls to praise Jehovah (vv. 1, 7, 12) divide this -psalm into three parts, the two former of which are closely -connected, inasmuch as the first part is mainly occupied with -celebrating God's mercy to the restored Israel, and the second takes -a wider outlook, embracing His beneficence to all living things. Both -these points of view are repeated in the same order in the third part -(vv. 12-20), which the LXX. makes a separate psalm. The allusions to -Jerusalem as rebuilt, to the gathering of the scattered Israelites, -and to the fortifications of the city naturally point to the epoch -of the Restoration, whether or not, with Delitzsch and others, we -suppose that the psalm was sung at the feast of the dedication of the -new walls. In any case, it is a hymn of the restored people, which -starts from the special mercy shown to them, and rejoices in the -thought that "Our God" fills the earth with good and reigns to bless, -in the realm of Nature as in that of special Revelation. The emphasis -placed on God's working in nature, in this and others of these -closing psalms, is probably in part a polemic against the idolatry -which Israel had learned to abhor, by being brought face to face with -it in Babylon, and in part a result of the widening of conceptions as -to His relation to the world outside Israel which the Exile had also -effected. The two truths of His special relation to His people and of -His universal loving-kindness have often been divorced, both by His -people and by their enemies. This psalm teaches a more excellent way. - -The main theme of vv. 1-6 is God's manifestation of transcendent -power and incalculable wisdom, as well as infinite kindness, in -building up the ruined Jerusalem and collecting into a happy band -of citizens the lonely wanderers of Israel. For such blessings -praise is due, and the psalm summons all who share them to swell the -song. Ver. 1 is somewhat differently construed by some, as Hupfeld, -who would change one letter in the word rendered above "to harp," -and, making it an imperative, would refer "good" and "pleasant" -to God, thus making the whole to read, "Praise Jehovah, for He is -good; harp to our God, for He is pleasant: praise is comely." This -change simplifies some points of construction, but labours under -the objection that it is contrary to usage to apply the adjective -"pleasant" to God; and the usual rendering is quite intelligible and -appropriate. The reason for the fittingness and delightsomeness of -praise is the great mercy shown to Israel in the Restoration, which -mercy is in the psalmist's thoughts throughout this part. He has the -same fondness for using participles as the author of the previous -psalm, and begins vv. 2, 3, 4, and 6 with them. Possibly their use -is intended to imply that the acts described by them are regarded as -continuous, not merely done once for all. Jehovah is ever building -up Jerusalem, and, in like manner, uninterruptedly energising in -providence and nature. The collocation of Divine acts in ver. 2 -bears upon the great theme that fills the singer's heart and lips. -It is the outcasts of Israel of whom he thinks, while he sings of -binding up the broken-hearted. It is they who are the "afflicted," -helped up by that strong, gentle clasp; while their oppressors are -the wicked, flung prone by the very wind of God's hand. The beautiful -and profound juxtaposition of gentle healing and omnipotence in vv. -3, 4, is meant to signalise the work of restoring Israel as no less -wondrous than that of marshalling the stars, and to hearten faith by -pledging that incalculable Power to perfect its restoring work. He -who stands beside the sick-bed of the broken-hearted, like a gentle -physician, with balm and bandage, and lays a tender hand on their -wounds, is He who sets the stars in their places and tells them as a -shepherd his flock or a commander his army. The psalmist borrows from -Isa. xl. 26-29, where several of his expressions occur. "Counting a -number for the stars" is scarcely equivalent to numbering them as -they shine. It rather means determining how many of them there shall -be. Calling them all by names (lit., He calls names to them all) is -not giving them designations, but summoning them as a captain reading -the muster-roll of his band. It may also imply full knowledge of -each individual in their countless hosts. Ver. 5 is taken from the -passage in Isaiah already referred to, with the change of "no number" -for "no searching," a change which is suggested by the preceding -reference to the number of the stars. These have a number, though it -surpasses human arithmetic; but His wisdom is measureless. And all -this magnificence of power, this minute particularising knowledge, -this abyss of wisdom, are guarantees for the healing of the -broken-hearted. The thought goes further than Israel's deliverance -from bondage. It has a strong voice of cheer for all sad hearts, who -will let Him probe their wounds that He may bind them up. The mighty -God of Creation is the tender God of Providence and of Redemption. -Therefore "praise is comely," and fear and faltering are unbefitting. - -The second part of the psalm (ver. 7-11) passes out from the special -field of mercy to Israel, and comes down from the glories of the -heavens, to magnify God's universal goodness manifested in physical -changes, by which lowly creatures are provided for. The point of time -selected is that of the November rains. The verbs in vv. 8, 9, 11, -are again participles, expressive of continuous action. The yearly -miracle which brings from some invisible storehouse the clouds to -fill the sky and drop down fatness, the answer of the brown earth -which mysteriously shoots forth the tender green spikelets away up on -the mountain flanks, where no man has sown and no man will reap, the -loving care which thereby provides food for the wild creatures, owned -by no one, and answers the hoarse croak of the callow fledgelings -in the ravens' nests--these are manifestations of God's power and -revelations of His character worthy to be woven into a hymn which -celebrates His restoring grace, and to be set beside the apocalypse -of His greatness in the nightly heavens. But what has ver. 10 to do -here? The connection of it is difficult to trace. Apparently, the -psalmist would draw from the previous verses, which exhibit God's -universal goodness and the creatures' dependence on Him, the lesson -that reliance on one's own resources or might is sure to be smitten -with confusion, while humble trust in God, which man alone of earth's -creatures can exercise, is for him the condition of his receiving -needed gifts. The beast gets its food, and it is enough that the -young ravens should croak, but man has to "fear Him" and to wait on -His "loving-kindness." Ver. 10 is a reminiscence of Psalm xxxiii. 16, -17, and ver. 11 of the next verse of the same psalm. - -The third part (vv. 12-20) travels over substantially the same ground -as the two former, beginning with the mercy shown to the restored -Israel, and passing on to wider manifestations of God's goodness. But -there is a difference in this repeated setting forth of both these -themes. The fortifications of Jerusalem are now complete, and their -strength gives security to the people gathered into the city. Over -all the land once devastated by war peace broods, and the fields that -lay desolate now have yielded harvest. The ancient promise (Psalm -lxxxi. 16) has been fulfilled, its condition having been complied -with, and Israel having hearkened to Jehovah. Protection, blessing, -tranquillity, abundance, are the results of obedience, God's gifts -to them that fear Him. So it was in the psalmist's experience; so, -in higher form, it is still. These Divine acts are continuous, and -as long as there are men who trust, there will be a God who builds -defences around them, and satisfies them with good. - -Again the psalmist turns to the realm of nature; but it is nature -at a different season which now yields witness to God's universal -power and care. The phenomena of a sharp winter were more striking -to the psalmist than to us. But his poet's eye and his devout heart -recognise even in the cold, before which his Eastern constitution -cowered shivering, the working of God's Will. His "commandment" or -Word is personified, and compared to a swift-footed messenger. As -ever, power over material things is attributed to the Divine word, -and as ever, in the Biblical view of nature, all intermediate links -are neglected, and the Almighty cause at one end of the chain and the -physical effect at the other are brought together. There is between -these two clauses room enough for all that meteorology has to say. - -The winter-piece in vv. 16, 17, dashes off the dreary scene with a few -bold strokes. The air is full of flakes like floating wool, or the -white mantle covers the ground like a cloth; rime lies everywhere, as -if ashes were powdered over trees and stones. Hail-stones fall, as if -He flung them down from above. They are like "morsels" of bread, a -comparison which strikes us as violent, but which may possibly describe -the more severe storms, in which flat pieces of ice fall. As by magic, -all is changed when He again sends forth His word. It but needs that He -should let a warm wind steal gently across the desolation, and every -sealed and silent brook begins to tinkle along its course. And will not -He who thus changes the face of the earth in like manner breathe upon -frost-bound lives and hearts, - - "And every winter merge in spring"? - -But the psalm cannot end with contemplation of God's universal -beneficence, however gracious that is. There is a higher mode of -activity for His word than that exercised on material things. God -sends His commandment forth and earth unconsciously obeys, and -all creatures, men included, are fed and blessed. But the noblest -utterance of His word is in the shape of statutes and judgments, -and these are Israel's prerogative. The psalmist is not rejoicing -that other nations have not received these, but that Israel has. -Its privilege is its responsibility. It has received them that it -may obey them, and then that it may make them known. If the God -who scatters lower blessings broad-cast, not forgetting beasts -and ravens, has restricted His highest gift to His people, the -restriction is a clear call to them to spread the knowledge of the -treasure entrusted to them. To glory in privilege is sin; to learn -that it means responsibility is wisdom. The lesson is needed by -those who to-day have been served as heirs to Israel's prerogative, -forfeited by it because it clutched it for itself, and forgot its -obligation to carry it as widely as God had diffused His lower gifts. - - - - - PSALM CXLVIII. - - 1 Hallelujah! - Praise Jehovah from the heavens, - Praise Him in the heights. - 2 Praise Him, all His angels, - Praise Him, all His host. - 3 Praise Him, sun and moon, - Praise Him, all stars of light. - 4 Praise Him, heavens of heavens, - And waters that are above the heavens-- - 5 Let them praise the name of Jehovah, - For He, He commanded and they were created. - 6 And He established them for ever and aye, - A law gave He [them] and none transgresses. - - 7 Praise Jehovah from the earth, - Sea-monsters, and all ocean-depths; - 8 Fire and hail, snow and smoke, - Storm-wind doing His behest; - 9 Mountains and all hills, - Fruit trees and all cedars; - 10 Wild beast and all cattle, - Creeping thing and winged fowl; - 11 Kings of the earth and all peoples, - Princes and all judges of the earth; - 12 Young men and also maidens, - Old men with children-- - 13 Let them praise the name of Jehovah, - For His name alone is exalted, - His majesty above earth and heaven. - 14 And He has lifted up a horn for His people, - A praise for all His beloved, - [Even] for the children of Israel, the people near to Him. - Hallelujah! - - -The mercy granted to Israel (ver. 14) is, in the psalmist's -estimation, worthy to call forth strains of praise from all -creatures. It is the same conception as is found in several of -the psalms of the King (xciii.-c.), but is here expressed with -unparalleled magnificence and fervour. The same idea attains the -climax of its representation in the mighty anthem from "every -creature which is in heaven and on the earth, and under the earth, -and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them," whom John -heard saying, "Blessing and honour and glory and power unto Him -that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever." -It may be maintained that this psalm is only a highly emotional -and imaginative rendering of the truth that all God's works praise -Him, whether consciously or not, but its correspondence with a -line of thought which runs through Scripture from its first page -to its last--namely, that, as man's sin subjected the creatures to -"vanity," so his redemption shall be their glorifying--leads us to -see prophetic anticipation, and not mere poetic rapture, in this -summons pealed out to heights and depths, and all that lies between, -to rejoice in what Jehovah has done for Israel. - -The psalm falls into two broad divisions, in the former of which -heaven, and in the latter earth, are invoked to praise Jehovah. -Ver. 1 addresses generally the subsequently particularised heavenly -beings. "From the heavens" and "in the heights" praise is to -sound: the former phrase marks the place of origin, and may imply -the floating down to a listening earth of that ethereal music; -the latter thinks of all the dim distances as filled with it. The -angels, as conscious beings, are the chorus-leaders, and even to -"principalities and powers in heavenly places" Israel's restoration -reveals new phases of the "manifold wisdom of God." The "host" (or -_hosts_, according to the amended reading of the Hebrew margin) are -here obviously angels, as required by the parallelism with _a_. The -sun, moon, and stars, of which the psalmist knows nothing but that -they burn with light and roll in silence through the dark expanse, -are bid to break the solemn stillness that fills the daily and -nightly sky. Finally, the singer passes in thought through the lower -heavens, and would fain send his voice whither his eye cannot pierce, -up into that mysterious watery abyss, which, according to ancient -cosmographry, had the firmament for its floor. It is absurd to look -for astronomical accuracy in such poetry as this; but a singer who -knew no more about sun, moon, and stars, and depths of space, than -that they were all God's creatures and in their silence praised Him, -knew and felt more of their true nature and charm than does he who -knows everything about them except these facts. - -Vv. 5, 6, assign the reason for the praise of the heavens--Jehovah's -creative act, His sustaining power and His "law," the utterance of -His will to which they conform. Ver. 6_a_ emphatically asserts, by -expressing the "He," which is in Hebrew usually included in the -verb, that it is Jehovah and none other who "preserves the stars -from wrong." "Preservation is continuous creation." The meaning of -the close of ver. 6_b_ is doubtful, if the existing text is adhered -to. It reads literally "and [it?] shall not pass." The unexpressed -nominative is by some taken to be the before-mentioned "law," and -"pass" to mean _cease to be in force_ or _be transgressed_. Others -take the singular verb as being used distributively, and so render -"None of them transgresses." But a very slight alteration gives the -plural verb, which makes all plain. - -In these starry depths obedience reigns; it is only on earth that a -being lives who can and will break the merciful barriers of Jehovah's -law. Therefore, from that untroubled region of perfect service -comes a purer song of praise, though it can never have the pathetic -harmonies of that which issues from rebels brought back to allegiance. - -The summons to the earth begins with the lowest places, as that to -the heavens did with the highest. The psalmist knows little of the -uncouth forms that may wallow in ocean depths, but he is sure that -they too, in their sunless abodes, can praise Jehovah. From the ocean -the psalm rises to the air, before it, as it were, settles down on -earth. Ver. 8 may refer to contemporaneous phenomena, and, if so, -describes a wild storm hurtling through the lower atmosphere. The -verbal arrangement in ver. 8_a_ is that of inverted parallelism, in -which "fire" corresponds to "smoke" and "hail" to "snow." Lightning -and hail, which often occur together, are similarly connected in -Psalm xviii. 12. But it is difficult to explain "snow and smoke," -if regarded as accompaniments of the former pair--fire and hail. -Rather they seem to describe another set of meteorological phenomena, -a winter storm, in which the air is thick with flakes as if -charged with smoke, while the preceding words refer to a summer's -thunderstorm. The resemblance to the two pictures in the preceding -psalm, one of the time of the latter rains and one of bitter winter -weather, is noticeable. The storm-wind, which drives all these -formidable agents through the air, in its utmost fury is a servant. -As in Psalm cvii. 25, it obeys God's command. - -The solid earth itself, as represented by its loftiest summits which -pierce the air; vegetable life, as represented by the two classes -of fruit-bearing and forest trees; animals in their orders, wild -and domestic; the lowest worm that crawls and the light-winged bird -that soars,--these all have voices to praise God. The song has been -steadily rising in the scale of being from inanimate to animated -creatures, and last it summons man, in whom creation's praise becomes -vocal and conscious. - -All men, without distinction of rank, age, or sex, have the same -obligation and privilege of praise. Kings are most kingly when they -cast their crowns before Him. Judges are wise when they sit as His -vicegerents. The buoyant vigour of youth is purest when used with -remembrance of the Creator; the maiden's voice is never so sweet as -in hymns to Jehovah. The memories and feebleness of age are hallowed -and strengthened by recognition of the God who can renew failing -energy and soothe sad remembrances; and the child's opening powers -are preserved from stain and distortion, by drawing near to Him in -whose praise the extremes of life find common ground. The young man's -strong bass, the maiden's clear alto, the old man's quavering notes, -the child's fresh treble, should blend in the song. - -Ver. 13 gives the reason for the praise of earth, but especially of -man, with very significant difference from that assigned in vv. 5, -6. "His name is exalted." He has manifested Himself to eyes that can -see, and has shown forth His transcendent majesty. Man's praise is -to be based not only on the Revelation of God in Nature, but on that -higher one in His dealings with men, and especially with Israel. -This chief reason for praise is assigned in ver. 14, and indeed -underlies the whole psalm. "He has lifted up a horn for His people," -delivering them from their humiliation and captivity, and setting -them again in their land. Thereby He has provided all His favoured -ones with occasion for praise. The condensed language of ver. 14_b_ -is susceptible of different constructions and meanings. Some would -understand the verb from _a_ as repeated before "praise," and take -the meaning to be "He exalts the praise [_i.e._, the glory] of His -beloved," but it is improbable that praise here should mean anything -but that rendered to God. The simplest explanation of the words is -that they are in apposition to the preceding clause, and declare -that Jehovah, by "exalting a horn to His people," has given them -especially occasion to praise Him. Israel is further designated as "a -people near to Him." It is a nation of priests, having the privilege -of access to His presence; and, in the consciousness of this dignity, -"comes forward in this psalm as the leader of all the creatures in -their praise of God, and strikes up a hallelujah that is to be joined -in by heaven and earth" (Delitzsch). - - - - - PSALM CXLIX. - - 1 Sing to Jehovah a new song, - His praise in the congregation of His favoured ones. - 2 Let Israel rejoice in his Maker, - Let the children of Zion be glad in their King. - 3 Let them praise His name in [the] dance, - With timbrel and lyre let them play to Him. - 4 For Jehovah takes pleasure in His people, - He adorns the meek with salvation. - 5 Let His favoured ones exult in glory, - Let them shout aloud on their beds-- - 6 The high praises of God in their throat, - And a two-edged sword in their hand; - 7 To execute vengeance on the nations, - Chastisements on the peoples; - 8 To bind their kings in chains - And their nobles in bonds of iron; - 9 To execute on them the sentence written-- - An honour is this to all His favoured ones. - Hallelujah! - - -In the preceding psalm Israel's restoration was connected with the -recognition by all creatures, and especially by the kings of the -earth and their people, of Jehovah's glory. This psalm presents the -converse thought, that the restored Israel becomes the executor of -judgments on those who will not join in the praise which rings from -Israel that it may be caught up by all. The two psalms are thus -closely connected. The circumstances of the Restoration accord with -the tone of both, as of the other members of this closing group. - -The happy recipients of new mercy are, as in Psalms xcvi. and -xcviii., summoned to break into new songs. Winter silences the birds; -but spring, the new "life re-orient out of dust," is welcomed with -music from every budding tree. - -Chiefly should God's praise sound out from "the congregation of His -favoured ones," the long-scattered captives who owe it to His favour -that they _are_ a congregation once more. The jubilant psalmist -delights in that name for Israel, and uses it thrice in his song. -He loves to set forth the various names, which each suggest some -sweet strong thought of what God is to the nation and the nation to -God--His favoured ones, Israel, the children of Zion, His people, -the afflicted. He heaps together synonyms expressive of rapturous -joy--rejoice, be glad, exult. He calls for expressions of triumphant -mirth in which limbs, instruments, and voices unite. He would have -the exuberant gladness well over into the hours of repose, and the -night be made musical with ringing shouts of joy. "Praise is better -than sleep," and the beds which had often been privy to silent tears -may well be witnesses of exultation that cannot be dumb. - -The psalmist touches very lightly on the reason for this outburst of -praise, because he takes it for granted that so great and recent mercy -needed little mention. One verse (ver. 4) suffices to recall it. The -very absorption of the heart in its bliss may make it silent about the -bliss. The bride needs not to tell what makes her glad. Restored Israel -requires little reminder of its occasion for joy. But the brief mention -of it is very beautiful. It makes prominent, not so much the outward -fact, as the Divine pleasure in His people, of which the fact was -effect and indication. Their affliction had been the token that God's -complacency did not rest on them; their deliverance is the proof that -the sunlight of His face shines on them once more. His chastisements -rightly borne are ever precursors of deliverance, which adorns the meek -afflicted, giving "beauty for ashes." The qualification for receiving -Jehovah's help is meekness, and the effect of that help on the lowly -soul is to deck it with strange loveliness. Therefore God's favoured -ones may well exult in glory--_i.e._, on account of the glory with -which they are invested by His salvation. - -The stern close of the psalm strikes a note which many ears feel -to be discordant, and which must be freely acknowledged to stand -on the same lower level as the imprecatory psalms, while, even -more distinctly than these, it is entirely free from any sentiment -of personal vengeance. The picture of God's people going forth to -battle, chanting His praises and swinging two-edged swords, shocks -Christian sentiment. It is not to be explained away as meaning the -spiritual conquest of the world with spiritual weapons. The psalmist -meant actual warfare and real iron fetters. But, while the form of -his anticipations belongs to the past and is entirely set aside -by the better light of Christianity, their substance is true for -ever. Those who have been adorned with Jehovah's salvation have -the subjugation of the world to God's rule committed to them. "The -weapons of our warfare are not carnal." There are stronger fetters -than those of iron, even "the cords of love" and "the bands of a man." - -"The judgment written," which is to be executed by the militant -Israel on the nations, does not seem to have reference either to -the commandment to exterminate the Canaanites or to the punishments -threatened in many places of Scripture. It is better to take it as -denoting a judgment "fixed, settled, ... written thus by God Himself" -(Perowne). Ver. 9_b_ may be rendered (as Hupfeld does) "Honour [or, -majesty] is He to all His favoured ones," in the sense that God -manifests His majesty to them, or that He is the object of their -honouring; but the usual rendering is more in accordance with the -context and its high-strung martial ardour. "This"--namely, the whole -of the crusade just described--is laid upon all Jehovah's favoured -ones, by the fact of their participation in His salvation. They are -redeemed from bondage that they may be God's warriors. The honour and -obligation are universal. - - - - - PSALM CL. - - 1 Hallelujah! - Praise God in His sanctuary, - Praise Him in the firmament of His strength. - 2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds, - Praise Him according to the abundance of His greatness. - 3 Praise Him with blast of horn, - Praise Him with psaltery and harp, - 4 Praise Him with timbrel and dance, - Praise Him with strings and pipe. - 5 Praise Him with clear-sounding cymbals, - Praise Him with deep-toned cymbals. - 6 Let everything that has breath praise Jah. - Hallelujah! - - -This noble close of the Psalter rings out one clear note of praise, -as the end of all the many moods and experiences recorded in -its wonderful sighs and songs. Tears, groans, wailings for sin, -meditations on the dark depths of Providence, fainting faith and -foiled aspirations, all lead up to this. The psalm is more than an -artistic close of the Psalter; it is a prophecy of the last result -of the devout life, and, in its unclouded sunniness, as well as in -its universality, it proclaims the certain end of the weary years -for the individual and for the world. "Everything that hath breath" -shall yet praise Jehovah. The psalm is evidently meant for liturgic -use, and one may imagine that each instrument began to take part in -the concert as it was named, till at last all blended in a mighty -torrent of praiseful sound, to which the whirling dancers kept time. -A strange contrast to modern notions of sobriety in worship! - -The tenfold "Praise Him" has been often noticed as symbolic of -completeness, but has probably no special significance. - -In ver. 1 the psalmist calls on earth and heaven to praise. The -"sanctuary" may, indeed, be either the Temple or the heavenly palace -of Jehovah, but it is more probable that the invocation, like so many -others of a similar kind, is addressed to men and angels, than that -the latter only are meant. They who stand in the earthly courts and -they who circle the throne that is reared above the visible firmament -are parts of a great whole, an antiphonal chorus. It becomes them to -praise, for they each dwell in God's sanctuary. - -The theme of praise is next touched in ver. 2. "His mighty deeds" -might be rendered "His heroic [or, valiant] acts." The reference is -to His deliverance of His people as a signal manifestation of prowess -or conquering might. The tenderness which moved the power is not here -in question, but the power cannot be worthily praised or understood, -unless that Divine pity and graciousness of which it is the -instrument are apprehended. Mighty acts, unsoftened by loving impulse -and gracious purpose, would evoke awe, but not thanks. No praise is -adequate to the abundance of His greatness, but yet He accepts such -adoration as men can render. - -The instruments named in vv. 3-5 were not all used, so far as we know, -in the Temple service. There is possibly an intention to go beyond -those recognised as sacred, in order to emphasise the universality of -praise. The horn was the curved "Shophar," blown by the priests; "harp -and psaltery were played by the Levites, timbrels were struck by women; -and dancing, playing on stringed instruments and pipes and cymbals, -were not reserved for the Levites. Consequently the summons to praise -God is addressed to priests, Levites, and people" (Baethgen). In ver. -4_b_ "strings" means stringed instruments, and "pipe" is probably that -used by shepherds, neither of which kinds of instrument elsewhere -appears as employed in worship. - -Too little is known of Jewish music to enable us to determine whether -the epithets applied to cymbals refer to two different kinds. Probably -they do; the first being small and high-pitched, the second larger, -like the similar instrument used in military music, and of a deep tone. - -But the singer would fain hear a volume of sound which should -drown all that sweet tumult which he has evoked; and therefore he -calls on "everything that has breath" to use it in sending forth -a thunder-chorus of praise to Jehovah. The invocation bears the -prophecy of its own fulfilment. These last strains of the long series -of psalmists are as if that band of singers of Israel turned to the -listening world, and gave into its keeping the harps which, under -their own hands, had yielded such immortal music. - -Few voices have obeyed the summons, and the vision of a world melodious -with the praise of Jehovah and of Him alone appears to us, in our -despondent moments, almost as far off as it was when the last psalmist -ceased to sing. But his call is our confidence; and we know that the -end of history shall be that to Him whose work is mightier than all the -other mighty acts of Jehovah, "Every knee shall bow, and every tongue -confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." - - THE END. - - - - - -Transcriber's Note: - - -Obvious punctuation and spelling errors have been fixed throughout. - -Non-Latin characters have been replaced with the nearest Latin -equivalent for example [oe] (the oe ligature), was replaced with oe. - -Single Hebrew characters have been replaced with [H] in the verses. - -Inconsistent hyphenation is as in the original. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Expositor's Bible: The Psalms, -Volume III, by Alexander Maclaren - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK EXPOSITOR'S BIBLE: PSALMS VOL III *** - -***** This file should be named 44027.txt or 44027.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/4/0/2/44027/ - -Produced by Douglas L. 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