Notes on the Old and New Testaments

(rt) As adapted to the worship of God. For this many of them were originally designed in their very composition; to this the entire book seems to have been intentionally adapted by those who made the collection. It is not necessary to suppose that these sacred songs comprise the whole of the Hebrew lyrical poetry, for as we know that some of the books mentioned in the Old Testament, though inspired, accomplished their XDurpose and have been lost, so it may have been in regard to a portion of the lyrical poetry of the Hebrews. Many of the words of the Saviour, though all that he sj)oke was pure truth — truth such as no other man ever spoke — truth such as the Spirit of God imparts — were lost from not having been recorded (John xxi. 25), and in like manner it may have been that truths which were written may have accomplished their purpose, and have passed away. But, if there were such productions which have not come down to us, we hav% no reason to doubt that they were of the same general character as those which have survived, and which now constitute the Book of Psalms. * Now, it is remarkable that the poetry of the Hebrews is so adapted to public worship above all other poetry, and that the poetic genius of the nation took so exclusively a religious turn. In this respect the Hebrew lyric poetry stands by itself, and is unlike that of every other nation. Among the Greeks there are, indeed, hymns to the gods — hymns designed to be used in the worship of the gods; but this is by no means the general character of their lyric poetry. Among the Persians, the Arabs, the Romans, the Babylonians, there were doubtless such hymns; but this is not tlie prevailing character of their lyric poetry. In the early Scotch, French, Spanish, Italian, and EngUsh poetry there are such hymns, but this is by no means the exclusive or the predominant character of the early lyric poetry of those nations. Few of all their lyric compositions can be used in the worship of the true God; nor is that which can be thus used always of the most exalted character as poetry. The composition of psalms and hymns is a separate x)oetic art; and though there are specimens, in the hymns in these languages, of the highest kind of lyric excellence, yet it is to be admitted that a large portion of that species of literature would scarcely be regarded as even respectable, if it related to other subjects than religion. Of the Hebrews, however, this is their all. They have no other poetry whatever. They have none merely amatory or pastoral which will compare with the Bucolics of Yirgil, or with much of the poetry of Burns. Their poetry of the religious kind, also, is all of a high order. There is none that can be placed on the same low level with much that is found in the hymn books of most denominations of Christians — very good; very pious; very sentimental; very much adapted, as is supposed, to excite the feelings of devotion — but withal so flat, so weak, so unpoetic, that it would not, in a volume of mere poetry, be admitted to a third or fourth rank, if, indeed, it would find a place at all. It is for him who rejects the idea of inspiration, as applied to the Book of Psalms, to account for this fact.

(&) The Book of Psalms is a record of deep religious experience. It is this which, in the estimation of religious persons in general, gives it its chief value. It is the guide of young believers; and it becomes more and more the companion, the comforter, and the counsellor, as the believer moves along through the varied scenes of life, and as grey hairs come upon him, and as the infirmities, which pre-intimate the approaching "close of all things, press him down. A religious man is rarely, if ever, placed in circumstances where he will not find something in the Psalms appropriate to his circumstances; where he will not find that the Hebrew sacred bard has not gone before him in the depths of religious experience. Hence, in sickness, in bereavement, in persecution, in old age, on the bed of death, the Book of Psalms becomes so invariable and so valuable a companion; and hence, not as a matter of convenience, but as supplying a ivant in the minds of men, and as significant of their value, the Psalms and the New Testament are so often bound together in a single volume. Hence, also, for the aged, for the sick, for those whose powers of vision fail by disease or by years, the Psalms and the New Testament are printed in large type, and bound in convenient forms, tliat tlie truths contained in these volumes may be still accessible to the saint ripening for heaven, as the light fails, and as life ebbs away. To the end of the world the Psalms in religious experience will occupy the same place which they now occupy; to the end of the world they will impart comfort to the troubled, and peace to the dying, as they have done in the ages that are past.

§ 8. The qualifications for preparing a Commentary on the Psalms.

It is an undoubted fact that there have been more failures in the Commentaries on the Book of Psalms than on any other of the books of the Bible. As yet there has been no Commentary that has met the wants of the Christian world; there are none, whatever anticipations may have been raised, which can be read without feelings of disappointment. For this fact there must be a cause; and that cause is probably to be found in the very peculiar qualifications needed to produce a Commentary on the Psalms: — qualifications which are rarely to be found united in the same person.

A few remarks on the qualifications necessary for preparing such a Commentary may explain the cause of the failures which have occurred; and may, perhaps, also explain the reason why the one now submitted to the public may be found to be an addition to the failures already existing. Every man who prepares a Commentary on the Psalms will probably, at the close of his work, be sensible of a feeling of disappointment in what he had hoped, perhaps what he had expected to do, and will share fully in the feelings of his readers that what is thus submitted to the world is very far from being what a Commentary on this portion of tbe sacred Scriptures ought to be.

The peculiar qualifications for preparing a Commentary on the Psalms are such as the following: —

(1.) A knovdedge of the Hebrew language, particularly as it is affected by the laws of poetry which prevailed among the Hebrews. In all languages there are peculiar rules of poetry; rules by which the sense of the words used is affected, and by which peculiar shades of thought are expressed. In most languages, words have a 2^oetic and a prosaic sense; and the application of the meaning of a word as used in prose to a passage in poetry might by no means express the idea which was in the mind of the poet. We learn almost insensibly, in reading a language familiar to us, to make this distinction accurately, even when we could not explain it; and we read a psalm, a hymn, a lyric song, without mistaking the meaning. But it is another thing when one imdertakes to read a book of poetry in a language different from his native tongue. What is obvious to an Italian, a Frenchman, or a German, in reading poetry in his native language, becomes a matter of difficult acquisition when an Englishman attempts to read the poem. The same thing is true in studying a dead language. It need not be said that there is a peculiar literature in respect to the Greek and Latin poets; and he v/ho can read Herodotus or Livy cannot assume that he has such a full knowledge of the Greek and Latin languages as to qualify him to understand the poetry in those languages. So much depends often on rhythm, on the poetic forms of words, or on the images peculiar to poetry, that a classical education is not complete, nor is the student qualified to apprehend the meaning of the language of a poem, or to appreciate the beauties of its thought and imagery until he has mastered this most difficult part of the rules of language. That the Hebrews, like other people, had such rules and usages, there can be no doubt; for they are to be found in all languages, and there is abundant evidence in the Hebrew poetry itself that they existed among the Jewish people. Yet it may be doubted whether it is possible now so fully to recover the knowledge of those rules and usages as to apply them perfectly in the explanation of the poetic portions of the sacred writings. Much pertaining to the rhythm of the language, much relating to the accents, much connected with the peculiar use of words, it may be impossible now to recover. To show the difficulty of this subject in its bearing on the interpretation of the Psalms, as well as to illustrate the subject of Hebrew poetry, I may refer to the remarks of De Wette, Einleitung, vii. pp. 37 — 76. An elegant translation of this may be found in the Biblical Repository, vol. iii., pp. 478—514.

(2.) True piety is essential to qualify one to be an interpreter of the Psalms. This is true, in fact, in regard to the interpretation of any portion of the Sacred Yolume. As the Bible is a book of religion, employed in describing the nature, the power, and the influence of religion, it is obvious that correct religious feeling, or a practical acquaintance with religion, is necessary in an interpreter. The principle is substantially the same which is required in the interpretation of books on any subject. In a treatise on painting, poetry, sculpture, architecture, there will be things which could not be so well explained as by one who had a practical knowledge of these arts; and in order to the possession of a complete qualification for the interpretation of such a book, an ability to appreciate what is said on those arts must be regarded as indispensable. It is obvious that the mere knowledge of words — of philology — would not be all that would be demanded; nor would any power of explaining local allusions, laws, customs, manners, or geographical or historical references, be all that would be required. Beyond all this, there was in the mind of the writer or author that which he intended to express, and wliieh no mere knowledge of language or of customs would be sufficient to explain. To show what the writer meant it would be obviously necessary to be able to understand him, — to appreciate what he intended to say; to bring out what was in his mind; what he thought of — what he felt — what he designed to express. Hence, however valuable a work may be on the Psalms as a philological work, or as illustrating the authorship of a psalm, and the circumstances of the author in its composition, it is plain that we have not reached the main thing unless we have entered into the spirit of the author, and are qualified to understand and appreciate his own feelings in the composition.

(3.) For the reason above stated, there should be in an exposition of the Psalms more than the mere possession of piety. There slioidd he deep religious experienoe. There should be an acquaintance with piety in its highest forms of rapture, and in the lowest depths of despondency, darkness, and sorrow. There is no book in the world in which there are such varied expressions of piety, in which there are such diversified forms of religious experience, as in the Book of Psalms. As the Psalms were designed for every age of the world; for persons found in every rank and condition of life; for seasons of joy and of sorrow; for childhood, youth, middle age, old age; for the ignorant and the learned; for times of sickness and of health; for private, social, domestic, and public life; for magistrates and private citizens; for war and peace; for acts of business and acts o£ charity; for the living and for the dying, and for those that mourn, — so they were designed to form a manned that would illustrate religion in all these forms and relations; to be a book in which any one, in all the varied conditions of human existence, might be sure that he would find something that would be applicable to himself. If this is so, then it is clear that in order to a good Commentary on the Psalms, — in order that the expositor may be able to enter into the real spirit of the work which he undertakes to explain, — piety of no common order is demanded; a rich and varied religious experience is required that falls to the lot of very few of mankind. Looking simply at this qualification of a commentator on the Psalms, we may cease to be surprised that no such Commentary has ever appeared as to leave nothing yet to be desired.

(4.) Poetic taste is an important requisite in a commentator on the Psalms. The Psalms are poetry, and poetry of the most delicate kind. Much of the beauty of the Psalms, and much of their adaptedness to the wants of man, depends on the fact that they are poetry. This was a reason why the Spirit of God, in breathing his influence on the men who composed the Psalms, preferred that the sentiments found in them slioidd he expressed in poetry rather than in prose, and hence this medium was selected. Among the original endowments of the human mind, that which contemplates poetrij as among the means of happiness; as adapted to impress truth on the mind; as fitted to arouse the soul to great efforts; as designed to fill the mind with calm, peaceful, pure, patriotic, pious emotions, is one. Possessed by men, indeed (either in the power of producing poetry or of appreciating it) in very different degrees, yet it is an endowment of man; and, being such, religion makes use of it to promote its own ends. There are those who will be moved by little besides calm argument, stern logic, severe demonstration; there are those who will be aroused only by the lofty appeals of eloquence; there are those who will be most influenced by the voice of persuasion; there are those who will be awakened from dangerous slumbers only by the denunciations of wrath; there are those in whose minds pure and joyful and holy emotions will be best excited by poetry. It is the province of song, as such, to awaken many of the most pure and devoted feelings of piety in the human soul; and the Book of Psalms is the portion of the Sacred Volume by which it is designed and expected that this object will be accomplished as a permanent arrangement.

It is clear, therefore, that he cannot be completely qualified to be a commentator on the Psalms who has not himself such endowments as to appreciate the beauties of poetry; who cannot, in this respect, enter into the feelings of the sacred writer on the one hand, and into the hearts of those who are so made as to be affected by poetry on the other. One of the causes of the failure to produce a good Commentary on the Psalms may be traced to this source. A mere philologist; a man who regards nothing as valuable but exact demonstration; a man of prosaic temperament, though he may have piety that is exalted and pure, may lack still an important qualification for entering into the true spirit of the Psalms, and for meeting the wants of those who seek for edification and comfort in this x^ortion of the Bible.

(5.) A knowledge of the human heart — of human nature— is an indispensable condition for a good commentator on the Psalms. The Psalms comprise, more than any other book in the Bible, a record of the workings of the heart. Indeed, they pertain mostly to the heart. They are not addressed, as the Epistle to the Homans is, to the loftier powers of the understanding, nor do they make such appeals to the imagination as the visions of Isaiah, or the visions of John in Patmos. It is the heart which, in the Psalms, is eminently the medium of communication between the Divine Spirit and the soul.

Of all parts of the Bible there is most to illustrate the human heart in the Psalms. All that there is in the heart of man is there in one way or another illustrated, and in an almost endless variety of circumstances. Joy, sorrow, penitence, gratitude, praise, despondency, sadness; love — love to God — love to man;— the feelings experienced in sickness, and on a recovery from sickness;— the anguish, the bitterness of soul, arising from the ingratitude of others; terror at the wrath of God; the dread of death; the j)eace which religion gives in the prospect of death; the joy of prayer; the light which comes into the soul in answer to earnest supplication; the calmness which springs from devout meditation on the character of God and his law; the light which beams upon the soul after long darkness; the effects of remembered guilt (as in Ps. li.); the feeling of despair when God seems to have forsaken us; the feelings which spring up in the heart on the reception of injuries; — these are a few among the many topics which are found illustrated in the Psalms in the personal experience of the writers, and it is obvious that no one is qualified to comment on these subjects unless he has himself a knowledge of the workings of the human heart. To be able to explain the words used; to state the origin and authorship of the Psalms, and the occasion on which they were composed; to investigate the genuineness and accuracy of the text, and to determine the value of the varied readings; to understand and explain the parallelisms, the rhythm, and the accents employed in the Psalms; to comprehend and appreciate the poetry of the Psalms; or to gather together what Jewish Rabbles and the Christian Fathers have written, or to transplant from Germany what has been produced under Rationalistic views of the Bible, or even what the German mind in its best workings and under the influence of true religion has produced, is not all or mainly what is demanded in a Commentary on the Psalms that will meet the wants of those in our own land, or that will illustrate the Psalms in the manner that will be of most value to the great masses of the young, the sick, the bereaved, the tempted, the aged, and the desponding. A man who cannot in this varied manner enter into sympathy with the writers of the Psalms in the workings of the human heart as there illustrated, is not a man who is fully qualified to prepare a Commentary on this book. For some purposes he mmj, indeed, make a book that will be valuable, but not a book that will be valuable in relation to the real purpose designed to be accomplished by the Psalms — to be a guide and a comfort to believers of every station and condition, in all the varied circumstances of human life, and in all the varied and complicated Avorkings of the human heart.

(6) It may be added tliat tlie Book of Psalms, in tlie maiu, is so plain, so easy to be understood by the great mass of readers; so expressive of tbe internal feelings and emotions, as to increase the difficulty in the preparation of a Commentary. The Psalms are so rich; so full of meaning; so adapted to the wants of believers; — they so meet the varied experiences of the people of God, and are so replete with the illustrations of piety; they so touch the deepest fountains of emotion in the soul, that, so far as most of these points are concerned, a Commentary, considered as an additional source of light, does not differ materially from a candle considered as affording additional splendour to the sun. What a man finds in the ordinary perusal of the Psalms as a book of devotion, on the subject of deep experimental piety, is so much in advance of what he will usually find in the Commentary, that he turns from the attempt to explain them with a feeling of deep disappointment, and comes back to the Book itself as better expressing his emotions, meeting his necessities, and imparting consolation in trial, than anything which the commentator can add. He welcomes the Book of Psalms itself as a comforter and a guide; and in the little volume sold now at so cheap a rate, or appended to his pocket Testament, the common reader of the Bible finds more that is suited to his need than he would in the voluminous commentary of Yenema; in all the collections in the Critici Sacri; in the Synopsis of Poole; in the Annotations of Grotius; or in the learned expositions of De Wette — elegant as the work of De Wette is, — or of Tholuck, or Hengstenberg.

When these difficulties in composing a Commentary on the Psalms are considered; — when a man Avho sits down to write one reflects on the qualifications necessary for the task; — and when under the influence of these thoughts, constantly increasing in magnitude, and pressing upon him more and more as he labours for a dozen years, though at intervals, as I have done, in preparing a Commentary on this portion of Scripture, — whatever ardour of desire or confidence of success he may have had at the commencement of his enterprise, he will cease to wonder, as he progresses in his work, that the efforts of others to prepare a Commentary heretofore have been a failure, and he will not be surprised, should his life be lengthened out to see the result of his own labours, if he finds that the world regards that at which he has toiled so long, and which he hoped might be, in some measure, worthy of the Volume he has undertaken to explain, as but adding another to the long list of unsuccessful attempts to prepare a proper exposition of the Book of Psalms.

The first psalm has no title prefixed to it, which is the case, also, with many others, Ps. x., cxvi., cxvii., etc. It is now in vain to attempt to search for the cause of this omission. On the origin' and authority of the titles prefixed to the Psalms, see Introduct., ^S 4. Some have supposed that the reason why no title wvas affixed to this psalm was that the general title, "The Psalms of David," Avas prefixed to the whole book, and that that was a sufficient indication of the author of this the first in the series. But this is mere conjecture, and this reason would no more make proper the omission of the title to the first psalm than of any other that came under that general title. In some manuscripts (2 Codd.DeRossi) this psalm is not numbered; in some others (4 Codd. Xennic, and 3 De Rossi) it is united A\ith the second psalm, and the two are reckoned as one. It is, however, manifestly a distinct composition from the second psalm. It has a unity of its own, as the second has also; and there are almost no two psalms in the whole collection which might not be United with as much propriety as these. It is impossible now to ascertain the authorship of the psalm, though the comhion opinion is probably the coiTCct one, that it was composed by David. But on wdiat occasion it was written it is now equally impossible to discover. There ai*c no historical allusions in it which would enable us to determine the occasion on which it was written, as there is nothing in it which certainly determines its authorship. The terms employed are of the most general character, and the sentiments are applicable to all times and all lands. It has all the mai'ks of being a general introduction to the Book of Psa^;, and of having been designed to express in a few sentences the substance of the entire collection, or to state the great principle which would be found to run through the whole of it — that a righteous life tvill bo attended with prosperity and happiness, and that the life of the wicked will be followed by VOL, I.

sorrow and ruin. This was the great principle of the Jewish Theocracy; and was of sufficient importance to be stated clearly in the commencement of a book that was designed to illustrate so fully the nature and the value of true religion. Comp. Deut. xxvii., xxviii.

The psalm is designed to describe the blessedness or the happiness of the righteous man. This is done "literally and figurativel)', positively and negatively, directly and by contrast, with respect both to his character and his condition here and hereafter." — Professor Alexander. It is not, however, as Professor Alexander supposes, a " picture of the truly hap2yy man;" it is a description of the blessedness of the righteous man, in contrast with the condition of the unrighteous. The righteous man is indeed prosperous and happy; and it is one design of the psalm to show this. But it is not the happy man, as such, that is in the e)'e of the psalmist; it is the righteous man, and the blessedness of being righteous.

The psalm is properly made up of two parts— the blessedness of the righteous man, and the unblessedness, JJnglilck {Be IFette), of the wicked or ungodly man.

I. The blessedness of the righteous man, vers. 1—3. This consists also of two minor parts: —

(1.) His character (vers. 1, 2), and this is described also in two forms— negatively and positively.

(ffl) Negatively. — He 'does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the way of sinners, nor sit in the seat of the scornful, ver. 1. (b) Positively.— He delights in the law of the Lord, and he has pleasure in meditating continually on his truth, ver. 2. (2) His prosperity, as the result of being righteous, ver. 3. His condition is compared with that of a tree planted in a well-Avatered place, Avhose leaves are always green, and whose fruit never fails; so' whatever he does shall prosper.

II. The condition of tlie unrighteous, or the strong contrast between the un-

■RLESSED is the man righteous and the righteous, vers. 4—6. Their condition and destiny are expressed in thi-ee foi-ms: —

(1) They are like chaff which the wind drives away, ver. 4.

(2) They shall not be acquitted in the judgment, nor have a place among the righteous, ver. 5.

(3) They shall not be approved by God, but siiall perish, ver. 6.

1. Blessed is the man. That is, his condition is a happy or a desirable one. The word here used,")^'K, aishair, means properly happiness or blessedness. It is found, however, only in the plural form and in the construct state, and takes the nature and force of an interjection — " O the happiness of the man!" or " 0 happy man!" Deut. xxxiii. 29: ''Happi/ art thou,0 Israel!" 1 Kings X. 8: *' Sappy are thy men, happy are these thy servants 1" Job V. 17: " Sappy is the man whom Godcorrecteth!" Ps. ii. 12: "Blessed are all they that put their trust in him!" See also Ps. xxxii. 1, 2; xxxiii. 12; xxxiv. 8; xL 4; xli. 1; Ixv. 4; Ixxxiv. 4, 5, 12, et at, where it is rendered Messed. The word is of the most general character, and, in itself, would embrace all that is supposed to constitute real happiness. The particular kind of blessedness referred to here, as explained in the subsequent part of the psalm, consists in the fact that he avoids the companionship of the Avicked; that he has pleasure in the law of the Lord; that he will be prospered in this world; and that he will not perish at last. The word '*man" here, also, is of the most general cbaracter, and is designed to include all men, of all times and of all conditions, who possess the character referred to. The term is applicable to the poor as well as to the rich; to the low as well as to the exalted; to the servant as well as to the master; alike to the aged, the middle-aged, and the young. All who have the character here described come under walketh not « in the counsel of the

^ ungodly, nor standeth in the way the general description of the hop)py man — the man whose condition is a happy and a desirable one. \ That tvalketh not. Whose character is that he does not walk in the manner specified. Professor Alexander renders this, " Who has not walked." But it implies more than this; it refers to more than the past. It is the characteristic of the man, always and habitually, that he does not thus walk; it has not only been true in the past, but it is true in the present, and will be true in the future. It is that which distinguishes the man. The woi'd loalk is often used in the Scriptures to denote a way of life or conduct— since life is represented as a journey, and man as a traveller. Ps. XV. 2: " Who walketh uprightly." Compare 1 Kings ix. 4; Deut. xix. 9; xxvlii. 9; Ps. Ixxxi. 12, 13; Isa. xxxiii. 15. % In the counsel. After the manner, the pri nciplesjthe plan s of this class of men. He does not take counsel of them as to the way in which he should live, but from the law of the Lord, ver. 2. This would include such things as these: — he does not follow the advice of sinners, 2 Sam. xvi. 20; 1 Kings i. 12; he does not execute the purposes or plans of sinners, Isa. xix. 3; he does not frame his life according to their vieAvs and suggestions. In his plans and purposes of life he is independent of them, and looks to some other source for the rules to guide him. ^ Of the ungodly. The wicked. The word here used is general, and would embrace all kinds and degrees of the unrighteous. It is not so specific, and Avould, in itself, not indicate as definite, or as aggravated Hepravity, as the terms which follow. The general sentiment here is, that the man referred to is not the companion of wicked men. % INor standeth. This indicates more deliberation; a character more fixed and decided. ^ In the ivay. The path where they are of sinners, nor sitteth h in the seat I of the scornful:

found, or whei'e they visually go. His standiug- tliore would be as if he waited for them, or as if he desired to be associated with them. Instead of passing along in his own regular and proper employment, he stations himself in the path where sinners usually go, and lingers and loiters there. Thus he indicates a desire to be with them. This is often, in fact, illustrated by men who place themselves, as if they had nothing to do, in the usual situation where the wicked pass along, or where they may be met with at the corners of the streets in a great city. % Of sinnerCf'^'^'i^l^T^, hattayim. This word means literally, those tvho miss tlie mark; then, those who err from the path of duty or rectitude. It is often used to denote any kind or degree of sin. It is more specific than the former word rendered ungodly, as denoting those who depart from the path of duty; who fail in regard to the great end of life; who violate positive and known obligations. *f[ Nor sitteth. This implies still greater deliberation and determination of character than either of the other words employed. The man here referred to does not casually and accidentally walk along with them, nor put himself in their way by standing where they are ordinarily to be found; but he has become one of them by occupying a seat with them; thus deliberately associating with them. He has an established residence among the wicked; he is permanently one of their immber. ^ In the seat. The seat which the scornful usually occupy; the place where such men converse and sit together— as in a ball-room, or in a " club," where wicked men hold their meetings, or where infidels and scoffers are accustomed to assemble. ^ Of the scornful, tD*"^?, laitzim. This word properly means those who mock, deride, scoft^- those who treat virtue and religion with contempt and scorn. Prov. i. 22; ili. 34; ix. 7, 8; xiii.

1; XV. 12, et scppe. It denotes a higher and more determined grade of wickedness than eitlier of the other words employed, and refers to the consummation of a depraved character, the last stage of wickedness, when God and sacred things are treated with contempt and derision. There is hope of a man as long as he will treat virtue and religion with some degree of respect; there is little or none when he has reached the point in his own character in which virtue and piety are regarded only as fit subjects for ridicule and scorn. We have here, then, a beautiful double gradation or climax, in the nouns and verbs of this verse, indicating successive stages of character. There is, first, casual loalJcirig with the wicked, or accidentally falling into their company; there is then a more deliberate inclination for their society, indicated by a voluntary putting of oneself in places where they usually congregate, and standing to wait for them; and then there is a deliberate and settled purpose of associating with them, or of becoming permanently one of them, by regularly sitting among them. So also it is in regard to the persons with whom they associate. They are, first, irreligious men in general; then, those who have so far advanced in depravity as to disregard known duty, and to violate known obligations; and then, those who become confirmed in infidelity, and who openly mock at virtue, and scoft" at the claims of religion. It is unnecessary to say that, in both these respects, this is an accurate description of what actually occurs in the world. He who casually and accidentally walks with the wicked, listening to their counsel, will soon learn to place himself in their way, and to wait for them, desiring their society, and will ultimately be likely to be found identified with open scofiers; and he who indulges in one form of depravity, or

2 But his delight *" is in the law of the Lord; and in his law '' doth

he meditate day and night.

in the neglect of religion in any way, will, unless restrained and converted, be likely to run through every grade of wickedness, until he becomes a confirmed scoffer at all religion. The sentiment in this verse is, that the man who is truly blessed is a man who does none of these things. His associations and preferences are found elsewhere, as is stated in the next verse.

2. ^ut his delight. His pleasure; his happiness. Instead of finding his happiness in the society and the occupations of the wicked, he finds it in the truth of God. The law or truth of God is not distasteful to him, but he so delights in it as to desire to become more and more acquainted with it, and to have its truths im- ])ressed more and more on his heart. ^ In the law of the Lord. The law of Jehovah — the small capitals in the translation indicating here as elsewhere that the original word is Jehovah. The word law in the Scriptures is used in a considerable variety of significations. The Hebrew word min, torah, propei'ly means instruction, precept; and then, an injunction, command, law, in the usual sense of the word. It -was applied particularly to the Pentateuch, or law of Moses (comp. Kotes on Luke xxiv. 44), as containing the first written and recorded laws of God; and then the word came, in a more general sense, to be applied to all the books of the Old Testament, as being an exposition and application of the law. Here the word undoubtedly refers to the written revelation of the will of God as far as it was then made known. On the same principle, however, the declaration here made would apply to any part of a Divine revelation; and hence the sentiment is, that a truly pious man finds his highest delight in the revealed truths of God. This is often referred to as characteristic of true piety. Comp. Ps.

xix. 10; cxix. 97, 99. % And in his laiv. On his law, or his truth. ^ He doth meditate. The word here used, n^rTj hagah, means properly to murmur, to mutter; then, to speak; then, to utter in a low murmuring voice, as is often done by a person in deep meditation; hence, in the usual sense, to meditate on anything; to think of it. So Joshua i. 8: " Thou shalt meditate therein [the law] day and night," Ps. Ixxvii. 12: "1 meditate on all thy work." Prov. xv. 28: "The heart of the righteous meditateth what to answer." The meaning here is, he thinks of it; he endeavours to understand its meaning; he has pleasure in reflecting on it. It is not a subject which he puts away from him, or in respect to which he is indiflereut, but he keeps it before his mind, and has satisfaction in doing it. % Day and night. That is, continually — as day and night constitute the whole of time. The meaning is — (a) he does this habitually, or he intentionally forms the hahit of meditating on Divine truth, by disciplining his mind in order that he may do it; {h) he taTccs time to do it — designedly setting apart suitable portions of each day, that, withdrawn from the cares of life, he may refresh his spii'it by contemplating Divine truth, or maybecomebetter acquainted with God, and with his duty to him, and may bring to bear upon his own soul more directly the truths pertaining to eternal realities; (c) he does this in the intervals of business, the moments of leisure which he may have during the day — having thus an unfailing subject of reflection to which his mind readily reverts, and in which, amid the cares and toils of life, he finds relaxation and comfort; and {d) he does it in the wakeful hours of night, when sick and tossed upon his bed, or when, for any other reason, his " eyes are held waking." Ps. Ixiii. 5, 6: "My soul shall be

3 And lie shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,

that bringctli forth his fruit in his season: his leaf also shall

satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips; when I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night-watches." Ps. cxix. 54: " Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage." Comp. vers. 23, 48; Ps. cxliii. 5. It is probable that the psalmist had the injunction in his mind which is contained in Josh. i. 8.

3. And lie shall he liJce a tree. A description of the happiness or prosperity of the man who thus avoids the way of shiners, and who delights in the law of God, now follows. This is presented in the form of a very beautiful image — a tree planted where its roots would have abundance of water. ^ Planted by the rivers of loater. It is not a tree that springs up spontaneously, but one that is set out in a favorable place, and that is cultivated with care. The word " rivers" does not here quite express the sense of the original. The Hebrew word ( j^D peleg, from y^^palag, to cleave, to spht, to divide), properly means divisions; and then, channels, canals, trenches, branching-cuts, brooks. The allusion is to the Oriental method of irrigating their lands by making artificial rivulets to convey the water from a larger stream, or from a. lake. In this w^ay the water was distributed in all directions. The whole land of Egypt was anciently sluiced in this manner, and it was in this way that its extraordinary fertility was secured. An illustration of the passage may be derived from the account by Maundrell of tlie method of watering the gardens and orchards in the vicinity of Damascus. " The gardens are thick set with fruit trees of all kinds, kept fresh and verdant by the waters of the Barady.... This river, as soon ns it issues out of the cleft of the mountain before mentioned, into the plain, is immediately divided into three streams, of which the middlemost and largest runs directly to Damascus, and is distributed to all the cisterns and fountains of the city. The other two, which I take to be the work ot art, are drawn round, the one to the right, and the other to the left, on the borders of the gardens, into which they ai-e let out, as they pass, by little rivulets, and so dispersed over all the vast wood, insomuch that there is not a garden but has a fine, quick stream running through it." Trav., p. 122. A striking allusion to trees cultivated in this manner occurs in Ezek. xxxi. 3, 4: "Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon, with fair branches, and wath a shadowing shroud, and of a high stature, and his top was among the thick boughs. The waters made him great, the deep set him up on high, with his rivers running round about his plants, and sent out his little rivers unto all the trees of the field." So Eccles. ii. 4: "I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees," No particular kind of tree is referred to in the passage before us, but there are abundant Illustrations of the passage in the rows of willow, oranges, &c., that stand on the banks of these artificial streams in the East. The image is that of a tree abundantly watered, and that was flourishing. ^ That hringeth forth his fruit in his season. ^V'hose fruit does not fall by the want of nutriment. The idea is that of a tree which, at the proper season of the year, is loaded with fruit. Comp. Ps. xcii. 14. The image is one ot great beauty. The fruit is not untimely. It does not ripen and fall too soon, or fall before it is mature; and the crop is abundant. ^ His leaj also shall not tvither. By drought and heat. Comp. Notes on Job viil. IG; XV. 32. It is green and flourishing— a striking image of a happy and a prosperous man. ^ And whatsoever he doeili shall prosper. This is a literal statement of what had not * wither; and whatsoever lie doetli shall prosper.

4i The ungodly are not so: hut are like the chaff /which the wind driveth away.

just been put in a figurative or poetic form. It contains a general truth, or contains an affirmation as to the natural and proper effect of religion, or of a life of piety, and is similar to that which occurs in 1 Tim. iv. 8: " Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come." This idea of the eff"ect of a life of piety is one that is common in the Scriptures, and is sustained by the regular course of events. If a man desires permanent prosperity and happiness, it is to be found only in the ways of virtue and religion. The word " whatsoever" here is to be taken in a general sense, and the proper laws of interpretation do not require that we should explain it as universally true. It is conceivable that a righteous man — a man profoundly and sincerely fearing God — may sometimes form plans that will not be wise; it is conceivable that he may lose his wealth, or that he may be involved in the calamities that come upon a people in times of commercial distress, in seasons of war, of famine, and pestilence; it is conceivable that he may be made to sufier loss by the fraud and dishonesty of other men; but still as a general and as a most important truth, a life of piety will be followed by prosperity, and will constantly impart happiness. It is this great and important truth which it is the main design of the Book of Psalms to illustrate.

4. The ungodly are not so. Literally, "Not thus the wicked." For the word ungodly, see Notes on ver. 1. The statement that the " wicked are not so," is a general statement applicable alike to their character and destiny, though the mind of the author of the psalm is fixed immediately and particularly on the difference in thew destiny, without specifying anything particularly respecting their character. It is as true, however, that the ungodly do walk in the counsel of the wicked, and stand in the way of sinners, and sit in the seat of the scornful, as it is that the righteous do not; as true that they do not delight in the law of the Lord, as it is that the righteous do; as true that the wicked are not like a tree planted by the channels of water, as it is that the righteous are. This passage, therefore, may be employed to show what is the character of the ungodly, and in so applying it, what was before negative in regard to the righteous, becomes positive in regard to the wicked; what was positive, becomes negative. Thus it is true (a) that the wicked do walk in the counsel of the ungodly; do stand in the way of sinners; do sit in the seat of the scornful; {h) that they do not delight in the law of the Lord, or meditate on his word; and (c) that they are not like a tree planted by the waters, that is green and beautiful and fruitful. Both in character and in destiny the ungodly differ from the righteous. The subsequent part of the verse shows that, while the general truth was in the mind of the waiter, the particular thing on which his attention was fixed was, his condition in life — his destiny — as that which could not be compared with a green and fruitful tree, but Avhich suggested quite another image. ^ But ave like the chaff" lohich the toind driveth away. When the wheat was winnowed. This, in Oriental countries, was commonly performed in the open field, and usually on an eminence, and where there was a strong wind. The operation was performed, as it is now in our country, when a fan or fanning-mill cannot be procured, by throwing up the grain as it is threshed with a shovel, and the wind scatters the chaff, while the grain falls to the ground. See Notes on Matt. iii. 12. The following cut will furnish an

6 Therefore tlie ungodly shall sinners in tlie congi'egation of not standi in the judgment, nor the righteous.

illustration of this as practised in Oriental countries:

This very naturally and appropriately furnished an illustration of the destiny of the wicked. Compared with the righteous, they were like the worthless chaff driven away by the wind. The image is often found in the Scriptures. See Notes on Job xxi. 18; Isa. xvii. 13. Comp. also Ps. XXXV. 5; Isa. xxix. 5; xli. 15; Dan. ii. 35; Hos. xiii. 3. The idea here is, that the wicked are in no respect like the green and fruitful tree referred to in ver. 3. They are not like a tree in any respect. They are not even like a decaying tree, a barren tree, a dead tree, for either of these would suggest some idea of stability or permanency. They are like dry and worthless chaff driven off by the wind, as of no value to the farmer — a substance which he is anxious only to separate wholly from his grain, and to get out of his waj'. The idea thus suggested, therefore, is that of intrinsic worthlessness. It will be, among other things, on this account that the wicked will be driven away — that they are worthless in the universe of God — worthless to all the purposes for which man was made.

At the same time, however, there may be an implied contrast between that chaff and the useful grain which it is the object of the farmer to secure.

5. Therefore. Because they are thus worthless. II The ungodly. See Notes on ver. 1. The wicked in general; the wicked of any kind or degree. ^ Shall not stand. Comp. Notes on ver. 1. The idea is, that they will not be found among those who are acquitted by the Judge, and approved by him. The idea seems to be derived from the act of standing up to be tried, or to receive a sentence. ^ In thejudgment. The Chaldee Paraphrase renders this, " in the great day" — understanding it of the day of judgment. The Septuagint and Vulgate render it, " the wicked shall not rise — dvaar - (yovrai — resurgent — in judgment." Most of the Jewish interpreters, following the Chaldee Paraphrase, understand this as referring to the last judgment. Itosenmuller, in loc. The truth stated, however, seems to be more general than that, though that is probably included. The meaning is, that they would not share the lot of the righteous: in all places, and at all times, where character is determined, and where the Divine estimate of human character is manifested, it would be found that they could not stand the trial, or abide the result, so as to have a place with the righteous. Their true character would in all such cases be shown, and they would be treated like the (rhaff that is driven away. This would be true alike in those situations of trial in the present life when character is determined, and at the last judgment, when the sentence will be pronounced which will determine the final doom of mankind. % Nor sinners. See Notes on ver. 1. ^ In the congregation of the righteous. I3e reckoned or regarded as belonging to the righteous. That is,in all theplaccswhere the righteous.

6 For the Loed knoweth ^ the

as sucli, are assembled, they will have no place: where they assemble to worship God; where they meet as his friends; where they unitedly participate in his favour; when, iu the last day, they shall be gathered together to receive their reward, and when they shall be assembled together in heaven. The sinner has no place in the congregations of the people of

6. For the Lord TcnoivetTi the %i'ay of the righteous. This is given as a reason why the wicked would not stand in the judgment with the righteous. The reason is, that the Lord, the great Judge, fully understands the character of those who are his friends, and can discriminate between them and all others, whatever pretences others may make to that character. Only those whom God approves, and loves, as his friends, will be able to stand in the day when the great decision shall be made. Ko one can impose on him by any mere pretensions to piety; no one can force his way to his favour, or to the rewards of the just, by povver; no one can claim this in virtue of rank and station. No one can be admitted to the favour of God, and to the rewards of heaven, whose character is not such that it will bear the scrutiny of the Omniscient eye. Comp. Notes on 2 Tim, ii. 19. Man may be deceived in judging character, but God is not. When it is said that " the Lord knoweth the tvay of the righteous," the word loay seems to be used to denote the whole of life — the manner of living (Notes, ver. 1), and hence the whole character. Perhaps there is included also the idea that the Lord knows the result of their manner of life — the issue to which it leads — and that, therefore, he can properly judge the righteous and assign them to that place in the future world, to wit, heaven, to which their actions tend. ^ But the way of the ungodly shall

way of the righteous: but the way ' of the ungodly shall perish.

perish. The way or manner in whic^h the ungodly live shall tend to ruin; their plans, and purposes, and hopes, shall come to nought. Their course, in fact, tends to destruction. None of their plans shall prosper in regard to religion; none of their hopes shall be fulfilled.' In this, as in all other respects, they stand in strong contrast with the righteous, alike in this world and the world to come.

§ 1. The author. — This psalm, like the one preceding, is without any title prefixed to it, and, like that, is without anything in the psalm itself to mdicate its authorship. Its authorship must be learned, therefore, elsewhere, if it can be ascertahied at all. There is, however, every reason to suppose that David Avas the author; and by those Avho admit the authorit}^ of the New Testament this will not be doubted. The reasons for supposing that its authorship is to be traced to David are the folloAvmg: — {a) It is expressly ascribed to him in Acts iv. 25, 26: " 'Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things.^" etc. There can be no doubt that this psalm is here referred to, and the quotation in this manner proves that this was the common understanding among the Jews. It may be presumed that in a matter of this kind the general tradition would be likely to be con-ect; and to those who admit the inspiration of the apostles as bearing on points like this, the fact of its being quoted as the production of David is decisive, {b) This is the common opinion respecting its origin among Hebrew Avriters. Ivimchi and Aben Ezra expressly ascribe it to David, and they are supposed in this to express the prevailing opinion of the Hebrew people, {c) Its place among the Psalms of David may, perhaps, be regarded as a circumstance indicating the same thing. Thus, to the seventysecond psalm there are none which are ascribed expressly to any other author than David (except the fiftieth psalm, Avhich is ascribed to Asaph, or '/or Asaph,' as it is in the margin), though there are several whose authors arc not mentioned; and the coninion impression has been that this portion of the Book of Psalms was arranged in this manner becanse they Avere luiderstood by the collector of the Psalms to have been composed by him. {ci) The character of the composition accords well with this supposition. It is true, indeed, that nothing can be certainly inferr(>d from this consideration respecting its authorship; and that it must be admitted that there are no such peculiarities in the style as to prove that David is the author. But the remark now made is, that there is nothing inconsistent with this supposition, and that there is notliing in the sentiment, the style, or the allusions, wliich might not have flowed from his pen, or which Avould not be appropriate on the supposition that he was the author. The only objection that could be urged to this would be derived from ver. 6, " I have set my King upon my holy hill of Zion." But this will be considered in another place.

^'i 2. The time when tcntten. — As we cannot with absolute certaint)' determine Avho was the author, it is, of course, not possible to ascertain the exact time when it was composed; nor, if it be admitted that David was the author, can we now ascertain what was the occasion on which it was written. There are no names of the kings and people who are represented as conspiring against the Anointed One Avho is the chief subject of the psalm; and there is no local allusion whatever except in the single phrase the "hill of Zion," in ver. 6. The probability would seem to be that the psalm was not designed to refer to anything which had occurred in the time of the author himself, but, as will be seen in another part of these introductory remarks (^S 4), that the writer intended to refer mainly to the ]\Iessiah, Avho was to come in a distant age, although this may have been sugfjcstcd hy something which took place in the time of the wi'iter. The opposition made to David himself by surrounding nations, their attempts to overwhelm the Hebrew people and himself as their king, the fact that God gave him the victory over his foes, and establislu^d him as the king of his people, and the prosperity and triumph which he had experienced, may have given rise to the ideas and imagery of the psalm, and may have led him to compose it with retbrence to the ^[essiali, between whose treatment and his own there would be so | strong a resemblance, that the one might suggest the other. If conjecture may be allowed where it is impossible to be "certain, it may be supposed that the psalm was composed by David after the termination of the wars in Avhich he had been, engaged with surrounding nations, and in which h -; had struggled for the establishment of his throne and kingdom; and after lie had been peacefully and triumphantly established as ruler over the people of God. Then it would be natural to compare his own fortunes with those of the Son of God, the future JNIessiah, who Avas to be, in his hitman nature, his descendant; against whom the rulers of the earth avouUI also " rage,' ' as they had against liimself; whom it was the purpose of God to establish on a permanent throne in spite of all opposition, as he had established him on his throne; and who was to sway a sceptre over the nations of the earth, of which the sceptre that he swayed might be regarded as an emblem. 'Thus understood, it had, iir its original composition, no particular reference to David himself, or to Solomon, as Paulus supposed, or to any other of the kings of Israel; but it is to be regarded as having sole reference to the INlessiah, in language suggested by events which had occurred in the history of David, the author. It is made up of the peaceful and happy reflections of one who had been engaged, in the face of much opposition, in establishing Ms own throne, now looking forward to the similar scenes of conflict and of triumph through wliich the Anointed One would pass.

^ 3. The structure and contents of the psalm. — The psalm is exceeding!}- regular in its composition, and has in its structure much of a dramatic character. It naturally falls into four parts, of tlu-ee verses each.

I. In the first (vers. 1 — 3) the conduct and purposes of the raging nations are described. They are in the deepest agitation, forming jilans against Jehovah and his Anointed One, and uniting their counsels to break their bands asunder, and to cast off their authorit}-, that is, as ver. 6 shows, to prevent the establishment of the Anointed One as King on the holy hill of Zion. The opening of the psalm is bold and abrupt. The psalmist looks out suddenly on the nations, and sees them in violent commotion.

II. In the second part (vers. 4— G) the feelings and purposes of God are described. It is implied that he had formed the purpose, by a fixed decree (comp. ver. 7), to establish his Anointed One as king, and he now calmly sits in the heavens and looks with derision on the vain designs of those Avho are opposed to it. He smiles upon theu' impotent rage, and goes steadily forward to the accomplishment of his plan. He solemnly declares that he had established his King on his holy hill of Zion, and consequently, that all theu* efibrts must be vain.

III. In the thhd part (vers. 7—9) the King himself, the Anointed One, speaks, and states the decree which had been formed in reference to liimself, and the promise which had been made to him. That decree was, that he should be declared to be the Son. of Jehovah liimself; the promise was that he should, at his own request, have the nations of the earth for a possession, and rule over them with an absolute sceptre.

IV. In the fourth part (vers. 10—12) the psalmist exhorts the rulers of the nations to }ield to the claims of the Anointed One, threatening Divme wrath on those who should reject hun, and promismg a blessing on those who should put their trust in him.

The psalm is, therefore, regularly constructed, and the main thought is pursued through the whole of it— the exalted claims and ultimate triumph of him who is here called " the Anointed;" the vanity of opposition to his decrees; and the duty and advantage of yielding to his authority. "The several sentences are also very regular in form, exhibiting parallelisms of great uniformity." — Professor Alexander. The psalm, in its construction, is one of the most perfect in Ihe book, according to the pecuUar ideal of Hebrew poetry.

^^ 4. The question to tchom the psalm refers. — There can be but three opinions as to the question to whom the psalm Avas designed to refer: («) That in wliich it is supposed that it refers exclusively to David, or to some other one of the anointed kings of Israel; {b) that in Avhich it is supposed that it had this original reference, but has also a secondary reference to the ^Messiah; and (c) that in which it is supposed that it has exclusive and sole refei-ence to the Messiah.

There are few Avho maintain the first of these opinions. Even Grotius, in respect to whom it Avas said, in comparison with Cocceius, that " Cocceius found Christ everywhere, and Grotius nowhere," admits that while, in his view, the psalm had a primaiy reference to David, and to the Philistines, Moabites, Ammonites, Idumeans, &:c., as his enemies, yet, in a more "mystical and abstruse sense, it pertained to the ilessiah." The reasons Avhy the psalm should not be regarded as refening exclusively to any Hebrew king are conclusive. They are summed up in this one: that the expressions in the psalm are such as cannot be applied exclusively to anj/ Hebrew monarch. This Avill appear in the exposition of this psalm. For like reasons, the psalm cannot be regarded as designed to refer primarily to David, and in a secondary and higher sense to the IMessiah. There are no indications in the psalm of any such double sense; and if it cannot be applied exclusively to David, cannot be applied to him at all.

The psalm, I suppose, like Isa. liii., had an original and exclusive reference to the jMessiah. This may be shown by the following considerations: —

(1) It is so applied in the Ncav Testament, and is referred to in no other way. Thus, in Acts iv. 24 — 27, the Avhole company of the apostles is represented as quoting the first verses of the psalm, and referring them to Chiist: " They lifted up their voice to God Avith one accord, and said. Lord, thou art God... Avho b}' the mouth of th}- servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine A'ain things? The kmgs of the earth stood up, and the rulers Avere gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, Avhom thou hast anomted, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, Avith the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, Avere gathered together." If the authority of the apostles, therefore, is to be admitted in the case, there can be no doubt that the psalm Avas intended to refer to the Messiah. This statement of the apostles may also be adduced as proof that this was, probablj-, the prevailing mode of interpretation in their age. Again, the psalm is quoted by Paul (Acts xiii. 32, 33) as apphcable to Christ, and Avith reference to the fact that it Avas a doctrine of the Old Testament that the Messiah was to rise from the dead: " And Ave declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise Avliicli Avas made imto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also Avritten in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee." And again, in Heb. i. 0, the same passage is quoted by Paul to establish the exalted rank of the ]\Iessiah as being above the angels: " For unto Avhicli of the angels said he at any time. Thou art my Son, this day have 1 begotten thee?" These quotations prove that in the estimation of the writers of the New Testament the psalm had an original reference to the Messiah; and the manner in Avhich they make the quotation proA'es that this Avas the current belief of the Jews in their day, as they appear to have been under no apprehension that the propriety of the application which they made Avould be called in question.

(2) But, besides this, there is other evidence that such was the prevailing interpretation among the ancient Hebrews: " In the older Jewish writings, as the Sohar, the Talmud, Sec, there is a variety of passages in which the Messianic interpretation is given to the psalm. See the collections by Raym. Martini, Pug. Fid. ed. Carpzov., in several places, and by Schottgen, de Messia, pp. 227 seq. Even Kimchi and Jarchi confess that it was the prevailing interpretation among their forefathers; and the latter very honestly gives his reasons for departing from it, when he says he prefers to explain it of Da^id, for the refutation of the heretics; that is, in order to destroy the force of the arguments drawn from it by the Christians." (Hengsteiiberg, Christ., i. 77.)

(3) That it refers to the Messiah is manifest from the psalm itself. This will be apparent from a few subordinate considerations, (a) It cannot be applied to David, or to any other earthly king; that is, there are expressions in it which cannot be applied with any degree of propriety to any earthly monarch whatever. This remark is founded particularly on the remarkable use of the word ^'■Son" in the psalm, and the promise that "the uttermost parts of the earth" should be placed under the control of him to whom that word is applied. The word S071 is, indeed, of large signification, and is, in a certain sense, applied to the righteous in the plural number, as being the sons or the children of God b}' adoption; but it is not so applied in the singular number, and there is a peculiarity in its use here which shows that it was not intended to be applied to an earthly monarch, or to any pif)us man considered as a child of God. That ap- pellation—<7ie Son of God — pi-operly denotes a nearer relation to God than can be applied to a mere mortal of any rank (comp. Notes on John v. 18), and was so understood by the Jews themselves. It is not used in the Old Testament, as applied to an earthly monarch, in the manner in which it is employed here. The remark here made is entirely irrespective of the doctrine which is sometimes supposed to be taught in this passage, of " the eternal generation" of the Son of God, since what is here said is equally true, whether that doctrine is well-founded or not. {b) There is an extent of dominion and a perpetuity of empire promised here which could not be applied to David or to any other earthly monarch, but which is entirely applicable to the Messiah (see vers. 8, lU). ((?) Such^-too, is the nature of the promise to those who put theu- trust in him, and the threatening on those who do not obey him (ver, 12). Tliis is language which will be seen at once to be entirely applicable to the Messiah, but Avhich cannot be so regarded in respect of any earthly monarch, {d) There is a strong probability that the psalm is designed to refer to the Messiah, from the fact that they who deny this have not been able to propose any other plausible interpretation, or to show with any degree of probability to Avhom it does refer. There were no Israelitish kings or princes to whom it could be regarded with any show of probability as applicable, unless it were David or Solomon; and yet there are no recorded circumstances in their lives to which it can be regarded as adapted, and there is no substantial agreement among those who maintain that it does refer to either of them. It is maintained by both Rosenmiiller and De Wette that it cannot relate to David or Solomon. Some of the modem Jews maintain that it was composed by David respecting himself when the Philistines came up against him (2 Sam. v. 17); but this is manifestly an erroneous opinion, for not only was there nothing in tne occurrence there to coiTespond with the language of the psalm, but there was at that time no particular consecration of the hill of Zion (ver. 6), nor was that mount regarded as holy or sacred until after the tabernacle was erected on it, which Avas after the Philistine Avar. The same remark may be made substantially of the supposition that it refers to the rebellion of Absalom, or to aiii/ of the ch— cumstances in Avhich David Avas -placed.

And there is still less reason for supposing that it refers to Solomon, for there is no mention of any rebellion against him; of any general attempt to throw off his yoke; of any solemn consecration of him as king in consequence of, or in spite of such an attempt, {e) The psalm agrees with the account of the jNIessiah, or is in its general structure and details applicable to him. Tliis will be shown in the exposition, and indeed is manifest on the face of it. The only plausible objection to this view is, as stated by De Wette, "According to the doctrine of Christianity, the Messiah is no conqueror of nations, bearmg an iron sceptre; his kingdom is not of tliis world." But to this it may be replied, that all tliat is meant in ver. 9 may be, that he will set up a kingdom over the nations of the earth; that all his enemies will be subdued under him; and that the sceptre which he "will sway will be firm and in-esistible. See, for the applicability of tliis to the Messiah, the Notes on ver. 9. (4) It may be added that the psalm is such as one might expect to find in the poetic writings of the Hebrews, with the views which they entertained of the Messiah. The promised ]Messiah was the object of deepest interest to their minds. All their hopes centered in him. To him they looked forward as the Great Deliverer; and all their anticipations of what the people of God were to be clustered around him. He was to be a Prince, a Conqueror, a Dehverer, a Saviour. To him the eyes of the nation were directed; he was shadowed forth by their pompous religious rites, and their sacred bards sang his advent. That we should find an entire psalm composed with reference to him, designed to set forth his character and the glory of his reign, is no more than what we should expect to find among a people where poetry is cultivated at all, and where these high hopes were cherished in reference to his advent; and especially if to this view of their national poetry, in itself considered, there be added the idea that the sacred bards wrote under the influence of inspiration, nothing is more natural than that we should expect to find a poetic composition having such a sole and exclusive reference. Nothu:g would have been more tmnatural than that, with these prevailing views and hopes, and with the fact before us that so much of the Old Testament is sacred poetry, Ave should have found no such production as the second psalm, on the supposition that it had an original- and exclusive reference to the Messiah.

1. Why do the heathen rage. "Why do nations make a noise?" Prof. Alexaiider. The word 7^ea^7^e» here— tD"*.! 3 ffowi — means properly nations, without respect, so far as the tnord is concerned, to the character of the nations. It was applied hy the Hehrews to the surrouuclin* nations, or to all other people than their own; and as those nations were in fact heathens, or idolators, the word came to have this signification. Neh. v. 8; Jer. xxxi. 10; E-zek. xxiii. 30; xxx. 11; compare D^K, Jer. xxxii. 20. The word Gentile among the Hebi-ews (Gr., iOvoq) expressed the same thing. Matt. iv. 15; vi. 32; x. 5, 18; xii. 21, et scepe. The word rendered rage — ^T) — rag ash — means to make a noise or tumult, and would be expressive of violent commotion or agitation. It occurs in the Hebrew Scriptures only in this place, though the corresponding Chaldee word — 125;n — regash — is found in Daniel vi, 6, 11, 15 — rendered in ver. 6, " assembled together," in the margin " cametumultuously," — and in ver. 11, 15, rendered assembled. The psalmist here sees the nations in violent agitation or commotion, as if under high excitement, engaged in accomplishing some purpose — rushing on to secure something, or to prevent something. The image of a mob, or of a tumultuous unregulated assemblage, would probably convey the idea of the psalmist. The word itself does not enable us to determine how extensive this agitation would be, but it is evidently implied that it would be a somewhat ^eweraZ movement; a move-

2 Tlie kings of the eai-th set I tliemselves, and the rulers take

ment in which more than one nation i or people wouki participate- The | matter in hand was something that tiffectecl the nations generally, and whii'h would produce violent agitation among them. ^ And the people. t3"'72N!? Leummlm. A word expressing substantially the same idea, that of people, or nations, and referring here to the same thing as the word rendered heathen — according to the hiws of Hebrew pai-allelism in poetry. It is the people here that are seen in violent agitation: the conduct of the rulers, as associated with them, is referred to in the next verse. ^ Imagine. Our word imagine does not precisely express the idea here. We mean by it, " to form a notion or idea in the mind; to fancy." Webster. The Hebrew word — '^'^T^ — Hagah, is the same, which in Ps. i. 2, is rendered meditate. See Notes on that verse. It means here that the mind is engaged in deliberating on it; that it plans, devises, or forms a purpose; — in other words, the persons referred to are thinking about some purpose which is here called a vain purpose; they are meditating some project which excites deep thought, but which cannot be etiectual. ^ A vain thing. That is, which will prove to be a vain thing, or a thing which they cannot accomplish. It cannot mean that they were engaged in forming plans which they su]'.posed would be vain — for no persons would form such plans; but that they were engaged in designs which the resvlt would show to be unsuccessful. The reference here is to the agitation among the nations in respect to the Divine purpose to set up the Messiah as liing over the world, and to the opposition which this would create among the nations of the earth. See Notes on ver. 2. An ample fulfilment of this occurred in the opposition to him when he came in the llesh, and in the resistance everywhere made since his death to his reign upon the earth. Nothing has produced more agitation in the world (comp. Acts xvii. 6), and nothing still excites more determined resistance. The truths taught in this vei-se are(l) that sinners are opposed — even so much as to produce violent agitation of mind, and a fixed and determined purpose — to the plans and decrees of God, especially with respect to the reign of the Messiah; and (2) that their plans to resist this will be vain and ineflectual; wisely as their schemes may seem to be laid, and determined as they themselves are in regard to their execution, yet they must find them vain. What is implied here of the particular plans against the Messiah, is true of all the purposes of sinners, when they array themselves against the government of God.

2. The kings of the earth. This verse is designed to give a more specific form to the general statement in ver. 1. In the first verse the psalmist sees a general commotion among the nations as engaged in some plan that he sees must be a vain one; here he describes more particularly the cause of the excitement, and gives a nearer view of what is occurring. He now sees kings and rulers engaged in a specific and definite plot against Jehovah and against his Anointed. The word kings here is a general term, which would be applicable to all rulers, — as the kingly government was the only one then known, and the nations were under the control of absolute monarchs. A sufficient fulfilment would be found, however, if any rulers were engaged in doing what is here described. ^ Set themselves. Or, take their stand. The latter expression would perhaps better convey the sense of the original. It is the idea of taking a stand, or of setting themselves in array, wliich is denoted by the expression; — they combine; they resolve; they are fixed in their purpose. Comp. Exod. ii. 4; xix. 17; xxxiv. 5. The attitude here is that of firm or determined resistance. ^ And the rulers. A slight addition to the word kings. The sense is, that there was a general combination

3 "Let ns break tlieir bands

among all classes of rulei-s to accom- plied — whether to a king, to a priest, plish what is here specified. It was or to the Messiah properly so called, not confined to any one class. ^ Take The reference is to be determined by counsel iogeilier. Consult together, something in the connexion. All that Comp. Ps. xxxi. 13, " While they took \ the word here necessarily implies is, counsel together against me." The j that there was some one whom Jehovah word here used— ID!;,?/ff.?«c?— means | regarded as his Anointed one, whether king or priest, against whom the rulers of the earth had arrayed themselves. The subsequent part of the psalm (vers. 6, 7) enables us to ascertain that the reference here is to one who was a King, and that he sustained to Jehovah the relation of! a Son. The New Testament, and the properly to found, to lay the foundation of, to establish; then, to be founded (Niph.); to support one's self; to lean upon — as, for example, to lean upon the elbow. Thus used, it is employed with reference to persons reclining or leaning upon a couch or cushion, especially as deliberating together, as the Orientals do in the \ considerations suggested in the introdivan or council. Comp. Notes on I duction to the psalm (§ 4), enable us Ps. Ixxxiii. 3. The idea here is that { to understand that the reference is to of persons assembled to deliberate on I the Messiah properly so called— Jesus an important matter. ^ Against the \ of Nazareth. This is expressly de- LoED. Against JeJiovah— the small i dared (Acts iv. 25-27) to have had its capitals in our common version indi- I fulfilment in the purposes of Herod, eating that the original word is! Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and the Jehovah. The meaning is, that thev People of Israel, in rejecting the were engaged in deliberating against Saviour and putting him to death. Jehovah in respect to the matter here ^"^o one can doubt that all that is here referred to— to wit, his purpose to, stated in the psalm had a complete place the "Anointed One," his King | fulfilment in theircombining to reject (ver. 6), on the hill of Zion. It is not \ liim J^^d to put him to death; and we the design that they were in other ' are, therefore, to regard the psalm as respects arrayed against him, though \ particularly referring to this transacit is true in fact that opposition to tion. Their conduct was, however, God in one respect may imply that an illustration of the common feelings there is an aversion to him in all re- \ of rulers and people concerning him spects, and that the same spirit which would lead men tcJ oppose him in any one of his purposes would, if carried out, lead them to oppose him in all things. *[ And against 7iis Anointed — in^"ll}70 — his Messiah: hence our word Messiah, or Christ. The word means Anointed, and the allusion is to the custom of anointing kings and priests with holy oil when setting them apart to office, or consecrating them to their work. Comp. Notes on Matt. i. 1; Dan. ix. 26. The word Messiah, or Anointed, is therefore of so general a character in its significntion that its mere use would not delLrmine to whom it was to be ap- and it was proper to represent the nations in general as in commotion in regard to him.

3. Let us hreah their hands asunder. The bands of Jehovah and of his Anointed. They who are engaged in this combination or conspiracy regard Jehovah and his Anointed as one, and as having one object — to set up a dominion over the world. Hence tliey take counsel against both; and, with the same purpose and design, endeavour to cast oflT the authority of each. • The word hands here refers to the restraints imposed by their authority. The figure is probably taken from fastening a yoke on oxen, or the plou2:hing — the bands of the yoke being significant of tlieir subjection to the authoi'ity or will of another. The same figure is used by th^ Saviour in Matt. xi. 29: "Take mj i/oJie upon you." The idea here is, that it was the purpose of Jehovah and his Anointed to establish a dominion over men, and that it was equally the pur- ])ose of the kings and rulers here referred to that it should not be done. ^ And cast aicay their cords from us. The same idea under another form — the cords referring not to that which would bind them as prisoners, but to the ropes or thongs which bound oxen to the plough; and, hence, to tiiat which would bind men to the service of God. The word translated cords is a stronger word than that which is rendered bands. It means properly what is twisted or interlaced, and refers to the usual manner in which ropes are made. Perhaps, also, in the words " let us cast away " there is the expression of an idea that it could be easily done: that they had only to tcill it, and it would be done. Together, the expressions refer to the purpose among men to cast off the government of God, and especially that part of his administration which refers to his purpose to establish a kingdom under the Messiah. It thus indicates a prevalent state of the human mind as being impatient of the restraints and authority of God, and especially of the dominion of his Son, anointed as King.

The passage (vers. 1 — 3) proves — (1) that the government of Jehovah, the true God, and the Messiah or Christ, is the same; (3) that opposition to the Messialj, or to Christ, is in fact opposition to the purposes of the true God; (3) that it may be expected that men will oppose that government, i and there will be agitation and com- j motion in endeavouring to throw it off. The passage, considered as re-, ferring to the Messiah, had an ample 1 fulfilment (a) in the purposes of the high priests, of Herod, and of Pilate, to put him to death, and in the general rejection of him by his own countrymen; {b) in the general conduct of mankind — in their impatience of the restraints of the law of God, and especially of that law as promulgated. by the Saviour, demanding submission and obedience to him; and (c) in the conduct of individual sinners — in the opposition of the human heart to the authority of the Lord Jesus. The passage before us is just as applicable to the world now as it was to the time when the Saviour personally appeared on the earth.

4. He that sitteth in the heavens. God, represented as having his home, his seat, his throne in heaven, and thence administering the affairs of the world. This verse commences the second strophe or stanza of the psalm; and this strophe (vers. 4 — 6) corresponds with the first (vers. 1—3) in its structure. The former describes the feelings and purposes of those who would cast oft' the government of God; this describes the feelings and purposes of God in the same order, for in each case the psalmist describes what is done, and then what is said: the nations rage tumultuously (vers. 1, 2), and then say (ver. 3), " Let us break their bauds.'" God sits calmly in the heavens, smiling on their vain attempts (ver. 4), and then solemnly declares (vers. 5, 6) that, in spite of all their opposition, he " has set his King upon his holy hill of Zion." There is much sublimity in this description. While men rage and are tumultuous in opposing his plans, he sits calm and undisturbed in his own heaven. Compare the Notes on the similar place in Isa. xviii. 4. % Shall laugh. Will smile at their vain attempts; will not be disturbed or agitated by their efforts; will go calmly on in the execution of his purposes. Comp. as above Isa. xviii. 4. See also Prov. i. 2G; Ps. xxxvii. 13; lix. 8. This is,

vens sliall laugli: the LoRD shall have them in o derision.

5 Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and i vex them in his sore displeasure.

of course, to be regarded as spoken after the manner of men, and it means that God will go steadily forward in the accomplishment of his purposes. There is included also the idea that he will look with contempt on their vaiu and futile efforts. ^ The Lord shall have them in derision. The same idea is expressed here in a varied form, as is the custom in parallelism in Hebrew poetry. The Hebrew^ word 2!!^5, laag, means properly to stammer; then to speak in a barbarous or foreign tongue; then to mock or deride, by imitating the stammering voice of any one. Gosenius, Lex. Here it is spoken of God, and, of course, is not to be understood literally, any more than when eyes, and hands, and feet are spoken of as appertaining to him. The meaning is, that there is a result in the case, in the Divine mind, as if he mocked or derided the vain attempts of men; that is, he goes calmly forward in the execution of his own purposes, and he looks upon and regards their efforts as vain, as tve do the efforts of others when we mock or dei-ide them. The truth taught in this verse is, that God will carry forward his own plans in spite of all the attempts of men to thw-art them. This general truth may be stated in two forms: (1) He sits undisturbed and unmoved in heaven while men rage against him, and while they combine to cast off his authority. (2) He carries forward his own plans in spite of them. This he does (a) directly, accomplishing his schemes without regard to their attempts; and {h) by making their purposes tributary to his own, so making them the instruments in carrying out his own plans, Comp. Acts iv. 28. 5. Then shall he speak unto them. That is, this seeming indifference and unconcern will not last for ever. He will not always look calmly on, nor will he suffer them to accomplish their purposes without interposing. When he has shown how he regards their schemes — how impotent they are — how much they are really the objects of derision, considered as an attempt to cast ofl' his authority — he will interpose and declare his own purposes — his determination to establish his king on the hill of Zion. This is implied in the word " then." ^ In his lorath. In auger. His contempt for their plans will be followed by indignation against themselves for forming such plans, and for their efforts to execute them. One of these things is not inconsistent with the other; for the purpose of the rebels may be very weak and futile, and yet their wickedness in forming the plan may be very great. The weakness of the scheme, and the fact that it will be vain, does not change the character of him who has made it; the fact that he is foolish does not j^rove that he is not luicJced. God will treat the scheme and those who form it as they deserve— the one with contempt, the other with his wrath. The word ivrath here, it is hardly necessary to say, should be interpreted in the same manner as the word " laugh" in ver. 4, not as denoting a feeling precisely like that which exists in the human mind, subject as man is to unreasonable passion, but as it is proper to apply it to God — the strong conviction (without passion or personal feeling) of the evil of sin, and the expression of his purpose in a manner adapted to show that evil, and to restrain others from its commission. It means that he will speak to them as if he were angry; or that his treatment of them will be such as men experience from others when they are angry. ^ And vex them. The word here rendered vex — "H?, Lahal — means in the original or Kal form, to tremble; and then, in the form here used, the Piel, to cause to tremble, to terrify, to strike with consternation. This might be done either by a threat

6 Yet have I ' set my king ^' I upon - my holy hill of Zion.

or by some judgment indicative of displeasure or anger. Ps. Ixxxiii. 15; Dan. xi. 44; Job xxii. 10. Tlie idea - here is that he would alarm them, or make them quake with fear, by what is specified of his purpose; to wit, by l)is determination to set his King on his holy hill, and by placing the sceptre of the earth in his hands. Their designs, therefore, would be frustrated, and if they did not submit to him they must perish (see vers. 9 — 12). ^ 1)1 his sore displeasure. Literally, in his heat or hiirning, that is, in his anger; as we speak of one that is inflamed with anger, or that burns with indignation; or, as we speak of the passions, kindling into aflame. The meaning here is, that God would be displeased with their purposes, and that the expression of his design would be adapted to fill them with the deepest alarm. Of course, all such words are to be interpreted in accordance with what we know to be the nature of God, and not in accordance with the same passions in men. God is opposed to sin, and will express his opposition as if he felt angry, but it will be in the most calm manner, and not as the result of passion. It will be simply because it ought to be so.

6. Yet have I set my Tcing. The word get is merely the translation of the conjunction and. It is rendered in the Vulgate hut — autem; and so in the LXX., U. It would be better rendered perhaps by the usual word and: "And I have set or constituted my king," &c. This is properly to be regarded as the expression of God himself; as what he says in reply to their declared purposes (ver. 3), and as what is referred to in ver. 5. The meaning is, he would speak to them in his anger, and say, " In spite of all your purposes and all your opposition, I have set my king on the hill of Zion." That is, they had their plans and God had his; they meant to cast ofl' his authority, and to pi-event his purpose to set up the Messiah as king; he resolved, on the contrary, to carry out his purposes, and he would do it. The word rendered set — '^'^^ nasach — means, literally, to pour, to pour out, as in making a libation to the Deity, Ex. xxx. JJ; Hos. ix. 4; Isa. xxx. 1; then, to pour out oil in anointing a king or priest, and hence to consecrate, to inaugurate, &c. See Josh. xiii. 21; Ps. Ixxxiii. 11; Mic. V. 5. The idea here is, that he had solemnly inaugurated or constituted the Messiah as king; that is, that he had formed the purpose to do it, and he therefore speaks as if it were already done. The words my King refer, of course, to the anointed One, the Messiah, ver. 2. It is not simply a king, or the king, but "my king," meaning that he derived his appointment from God, and that he was placed there to execute his purposes. This indicates the very near relation which the anointed One sustains to him who had appointed him, anct prepares us for what is said in the subsequent verse, where he is called his Son. ^ Upoji my holy hill ofl Zion. Zion was the southern hill in the city of Jerusalem, See Notes on Isa. i. 8. It was the highest of the hills on which the city was built. It was made by David the capital of his kingdom, and was hence called the city ofl David, 2 Chron. v. 2. By the poets and prophets it is often put for Jerusalem itself, Isa. ii. 3; viii. 18; X. 24; xxxiii. 14, et al. It did not obtain this distinction until it was taken by David from the Jebusites, 2 Sam. V. 5—9; 1 Chron. xi. 4—8. To that place David removed the ark of the covenant, and there he built an altar to the Lord in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite, 2 Sam. xxiv. 15 — 25. Zion became thenceforward the metropolis of the kingdom, and the name was transferred to the entire city. It is to this that the passage here refers; and the meaning is, that in that metropolis or capital God had constituted his Messiah king.

7 I will declare ^ the decree: the LoKD hath said unto me,

Thou « art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.

or had appointed him to reign over his people. This caunot refer to David himself, for in no proper sense was he constituted or inaugurated king in Jerusalem; that is, there was no such ceremony of inauguration as is referred to here. Zion was called the " ho/i/ hill," or " the hill of my holiness" (Heb.), because it was set apart • as the seat of the Theocracy, or the residence of God, from the time that David removed the ark there. That became the place where God reigned, and where his worship was celebrated. This must refer to the Messiah, and to the fact that God had set him apart to reign over his people, and thence over all the earth. The truth taught in this passage is, that God will carry forward his own pnrposes in spite of all the opposition which men can make, and that it is his deliberate design to make his anointed One — the Messiah — King over all.

7. I toill declare the decree. "We have here another change in the speaker. The Anointed One is himself introduced as declaring the great purpose which was formed in regard to him, and referring to the promise which was made to him, as the foundation of the purpose of Jehovah (ver. 6) to set him on the hill of Zion. The first strophe or stanza (vers. 1-3) is closed with a statement made by the rebels of their intention or design; the second (vers. 4-6) with a statement of the purpose of Jehovah; the third is introduced by this declaration of the Messiah himself. The change of the persons speaking gives a dramatic interest to the whole psalm. There can be no doubt that the word "J" here refers to the Messiah. The word decree — pH hhohJc — means properly something decreed, prescribed, appointed. See Job xxiii. 14. Comp. Gen. xlvii. 26; Exod. xii. 24. Thus it is equivalent to law, statute, ordinance. Here it re- j fers not to a law which he was to | obey, but to an ordinance or statute respecting his reign: the solemn purpose of Jehovah in regard to the kingdom which the Messiah was to set up; the constitution of his kingdom. This, a*s the explanation shows, implied two things — (a) that he was to be regarded and acknowledged as his Son, or to have that rank and dignity (ver. 7); and {h) that the heathen and the uttermost parts of the earth were to be given him for a possession, or that his reign was to extend over all the world (ver. 8). The word " declare ^^ here means that he would give utterance to, or that he would now himself make a statement in explanation of the reason why Jehovah had determined to establish him as King on his holy hill of Zion. There is great beauty in thus introducing the Messiah himself as making this declaration, presenting it now in the form of a solemn covenant or pledge. The determination of Jehovah (ver. 6) to establish him as King on his holy hill is thus seen not to be arbitrary, but to be in fulfilment of a solemn promise made long before, and is therefore an illustration of his covenant faithfulness and truth. \ The LoED hath said unto me. Jehovah hath said. See vers. 2, 4. He does not intimate tvhen it was that he had said this, but the fair interpretation is, that it was before the purpose was to be carried into execution to place him as King in Zion; that is, as applicable to the Messiah, before he became incarnate or was manifested to execute his purpose on earth. It is implied, therefore, that it was in some previous state, and that he had come forth in virtue of the.pledge that he would be recognised as the Son of God. The passage cannot be understood as referring to Christ without admitting his existence previous to the incarnation, for all that follows is manifestly the result of the exalted rank which God purposed to give him as his Son,, or as the result of the promise made to him then. % Thou art my Son. That is, Jehovah had dedared him to be his Son; he had conferred on him the rank and dignity fairly involved in the title THE Sox OF God. In regard to the general meaning of this, and what is implied in it, see notes on Matt. i. 1; Heb. i. 2, 5; Kom. i. 4; and John V. 18. The phrase "sons of God" is elsewhere used frequently to denote the saints, the children of God, or men eminent for rank and power (comp. Gen. vi. 2, 4; Job i. 6; Hos. i. 10; John i. 12; Rom. viii. 14, 19; Phil. ii. 15; 1 John iii. 1); and once to denote angels (Job xxxviii. 7); but the appellation " the Son of God" is not appropriated in the Scriptures to any one but the Messiah. It does not occur before this in the Old Testament, and it occurs but once after this, Dan. iii. 25. See Notes on that passage. This makes its use in the case before us the more remarkable, and justifies the i-easoning of the author of the epistle to the Hebrews (i. 5) as to its meaning. The true sense, therefore, according to the Hebrew usage, and according to the proper meaning of the term, is, that he sustained a relation to God which could be compared only with that which a son among men sustains to his father; and that the term, as thus used, fairly implies an equality in nature with God himself. It is such a term as would not be applied to a mere man; it is such as is not applied to the angels (Heb. i. 5); and therefore it must imply a nature superior to either. ^ TMs cloy. On the application of this in the New Testament, see Notes on Acts xiii. 33 and Heb. i. 5. The whole passage has been often appealed to in support of the doctrine of the " eternal generation" of Christ, meaning that he was "begotten" from eternity; that is, that his Divine nature was in some sense an emanation from the Father, and that this is from eternity. Whatever may be thought of that doctrine, however, either as to its intelhgibility or its truth, there is nothing in the use of the phrase " this day," or in the application of the passage in the New Testament (Acts Jciii. 33; Heb. i. 5), to sustain it. The language, indeed, in the connexion in which it is found, does, as remarked above, demonstrate that he had a pre- existence, since it is addressed to him as the result of a decree or covenant made with him by Jehovah, and as the foundation of the purpose to set him as King on the hill of Zion. The words " this day " w^ould naturally refer to that time when this "decree " was made, or this covenant formed; and as that was before the creation of the world, it must imply that he had an existence then. The time referred to by the meaning of the word is, that when it was determined to crown hnn as the Messiah. This is founded on the relation subsisting between him and Jehovah, and implied when in that relation he is called his " Son;" but it determines nothing as to the time lohen this relation commenced. Jehovah, in the passage, is regarded as declaring his purpose to make him King in Zion, and the language is that of a solemn consecration to the kingly office. He is speaking of this as a purpose before he came into the world; it was executed, or carried into etFect, by his resurrection from the dead, and by the exaltation consequent on that. Comp. Acts xiii. 33 and Eph. i. 20—22. Considered, then, as a promise or purpose, this refers to the period before the incarnation; considered as pertaining to the execution of that purpose, it refers to the time when he was raised from the dead and exalted over all things as King in Zion. In neither case can the words "this day" be construed as meaning the same as eternity, or from eternity; and therefore they can determine nothing respecting the doctrine of "eternal generation." T[ Have I heyotten thee. That is, in the matter referred to, so that it would be proper to apply to him the phrase "my /S'o«," and to constitute him " King " in Zion. The meaning is, that he had so constituted the relationship of Father and Son i}i the case, that it was proper that the appellation Son should he given him, and that he should be regarded and addressed as such. So Prof. Alexander: " The essential meaning of the phrase I have begotten thee is simply this, I am thy Father" This is, of course, to be understood in accordance with the nature of God, and we are not to bring to the interpretation the ideas which enter into that human relationship. It means that in some proper sense — some sense appropriate to the Deity — such a relation was constituted as would justify this reference to the most tender and important of all human relationships. In what sense that is, is a fair subject of inquiry, but it is not proper to assume that it is in anything like a literal sense, or that there can be no other sense of the passage than that which is implied in the above-named doctrine; for it cannot be literal, and there are other ideas that may be conveyed by the phrase than that of "eternal generatioii." The word rendered "Je^o^^era" (ip"* — Yalad) determines nothing certainly as to W\q mode in which this relationship was formed. It means properly — (1) to bear, to bring forth as a mother. Gen. iv. 1; (2) to beget, as a father. Gen. iv. 18; and then (3) as applied to God it is used in the sense of creating — or of so creating or forming as that the result would be that a relation would exist which might be compared with that of a father and a son. Deut. xxxii. 18: " Of the Eock that hegat thee thou art unmindful." Comp. Jcr. ii. 27: "Saying to a block [idol]. Thou art my father, thou hast begotten me." So Paul says, 1 Cor. iv. 15: " In Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the Gospel." The full meaning, therefore, of this word would be met if it be supposed that Jehovah had given the Messiah this place and rank in such a sense that it was proper to speak of himself as the Father and the Anointed One as the Son. And was there not enough in designating him to this high office j in sending him into the world; in raising him from the dead; in placing hiin at his own right hand— appointing him as King and Lord — to justify this language? Is not this the very thing under consideration? Is it proper, then, in connexion with this passage, to start the question about his eternal generation? Comp. Notes on Rom. i. 4. On this passage Calvin says (in loc), " I know that this passage is explained by many as referring to the eternal generation of Christ, who maintain that in the adverb today there is, as it were, a perpetual act beyond the limits of time, denoted. But the Apostle Paul is a more faithful and competent interpreter of this prophecy, who in Acts xiii. 33 recalls us to that which I have called a glorious demonstration of Christ. He was said to be begotten, tTierefore, not that he might be the Son of God, by which he might begin to be such, but that he might be manifested to the world as such. Finally, this begetting ought to be understood not of the mutual relation of the Father and the Son, but it signifies merely that he who was from the beginning hidden in the bosom of the Father, and who was obscurely shadowed forth under the law, from the time when he was manifested with clear intimation of his rank, was acknowledged as the Son of God, as it is said in John i. 14." So Prof. Alexander, though supposing that this is founded on an eternal relation between the Father and the Son, says, " This day have I begotten thee may be considered as referring only to the coronation of Messiah, which is an ideal one," vol. i., p. 15. The result of the exposition of this passage may therefore be thus stated: {a) The term Son, as here used, is a peculiar appellation of the Messiah — a term applicable to him in a sense in which it can be given to no other being. (J) As here used, and as elsewhere used, it supposes his existence before the incarnation. (<?) Its use here, and the purpose formed, imply that he had an existence before