Notes on the Old and New Testaments

I. An exhortation, addressed to all the earth, to praise God, as a matter pertaining to all lands, A'ers. 1, 2.

II. A reference to the mighty acts of God, as a reason for Avorshipping him, A'crs. 3-7.

III. A refci'ence to his gracious interposition in time of national danger and trouble, and to the fact that he had rescued the nation in a marvellous manner, A'ers. 8-12.

IV. A reference to the vows which had been made in that time of trouble, and the purpose now to execute those vows, by going to the house of God, and sacrificing on his altars, vers. 13-15.

V. A call on all people to hear what God had done for the Avorshippers: viz., That he had heard prayer; that he had interposed for their deliverance; that he had attended to the voice of supplication; that he had not turned aAvay his mercy, vers. IG 20.

2 Sing forth the honour of his name; make his praise glorious.

1. Make a joyful noise unto God, Literally, Shout. It is a call for exultation and praise. % All ye lands. Marg., as in Heb., all the earth. The occasion was one that made universal exultation and praise proper. They who had been so deeply affected by the gracious interposition of God, could not but call on all the nations of the earth to unite with them in the expression of joy. The deliverance was so great that they wished all to rejoice with them (comp. Luke xv. 6, 9); and the intervention of God in the case of his people, furnished lessons about his character which gave occasion to all men to rejoice.

2. Sing forth the honour of his name. That is, Celebrate in appropriate praise the honour due to his name. Make that honour known in connexion with songs. ^ Make his praise glorious. Literally, " Place honour, his praise;" that is, Give him honour; give him praise. The meaning is, Set forth his praise with songs — with music — with shouts; — that will be the appropriate expression of the praise which is due to him.

3. Say unto God. In your songs of praise. Let your songs be directly addressed to him, setting forth the grounds of that praise, or the reasons why it is due to him. ^ Sow terrible art thou in thy ivorks! How fearful! how much to be reverenced! The meaning is, that the manifestations of his power and greatness, in the events which occur under his government, are fitted to impress the mind with awe and reverence. ^ Through the greatness of thy poiver. By the putting ft)rth of thy power. Or, Thou hast such power over thine enemies as to be able to compel them to submit to thee. ^ Shall thine enemies sub-

3 Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies^ submit themselves unto thee.

4 All the earth shall worship

mit themselves unto thee. Margin, Lie, or yield feigned obedience. The Hebrew word means to lie, to speak lies; then, to feign, to flatter, to play the hypocrite. It is thus applied to the vanquished, who make a hollow profession of submission and love to their victors. See the word explained in the Notes en Ps. xviii. 44; comp. Ps. Ixxxi. 15; Deut. xxxiii. 29; Job xxxi. 28. The meaning here is, that he had power to subdue them, and to compel them to acknowledge his right to reign. It is the putting forth of mere poiver which is here referred to; and all that such poioer can do, is to secure outward and feigned submission. It cannot of itself secure the submission of the heart, the will, and the affections. That is to be secured by love, not by power; and the difference between the submission of the true people of God and that of all others is that the former are subdued by love, the latter by poiver; the submission of the former is genuine, that of the latter is forced. The inhabitants of heaven will be submissive to God because they love him; the dwellers in hell will be restrained by power, because they cannot deliver themselves. So now, the submission of a true child of God is that of love, or is a willing submission; the submission of a hypocrite is that of fear, when he feigns obedience because he cannot help it, or because he simply dreads the wrath of God. The object here is to celebrate the poiver of God, and it was sufficient, in order to set that forth, to say that it awed, and outwardly subdued the enemies of

4. All the earth shall tvorship thee. That is, all the inhabitants of the world will bow down before thee, or

5 Come and see the works of God: he is terrible in his doing toward the children of men.

6 He s turned the sea into

render thee homage. The time will come when thy right to reign will be universally acknowledged, or when thou wilt everywhere be adored as the true God. This is in accordance with all the statements in the Bible. See Notes on Ps. xxii. 27; Comp. Notes on Isa. xlv. 23; Rom. xiv. 11. % And shall sing unto thee. Shall celebrate thy praises. ^ To thy name. To thee.

5. Come and see the tvorJcs of God. See Notes on Ps. xlvi. 8, where substantially the same expression occurs. The idea is, " Come and see what God has done and is doing; come and learu from this what he is; and let your hearts in view of all this, be excited to gratitude and praise." The particular reference here is to what God had done in delivering his people from their former bondage in Egypt (ver. 6); but there is, connected with this, the idea that he actually rules si among the nations, and that in his po providence he has shown his power to by govern and subdue them. ^ He is df terrible in his doing, etc. That is, ^ His acts are fitted to inspii-e awe and veneration. See Notes on ver. 3.

6. Me turned the sea into dry land. The Red Sea, when he brought his people out of Egypt, Exod. xiv. 21. This was an illustration of his power, and of his ability to defend and deliver his people. The t£rror in that case, or that which w^as ^'terrible," was the overthrow of their enemies — the destruction of the Egyptians in the Red Sea — thus showing that he had power to destroy all the enemies of his people. T[ They went through thejlood on foot. Literally, through the river. It is probable that the reference here is to the passage of the river Jordan, when the Israelites were

dry land: they went through the flood on foot: there did we re» joice in him.

7 He ruleth by his power for ever; his eyes behold the nations: let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah.

about to pass into the promised land (Joshua iii. 14-17); — thus combining the two great acts of Divine interposition in favour of his people, and showing his power over streams and floods. ^ There did tve rejoice in him. We, as a nation — our fathers — thus rejoiced in God. See Exod. xv.

7. He ruleth bg his poiverfor ever. Literally, " Ruling by his power for ever." The idea is, that he does this constantly; in each age and generation. He never has ceased to rule; he never will. His dominion extends from age to age, and will stretch forward for ever. The power which he evinced in delivering his people he retains now, and will retain for ever. In that unchanging power, his people may confide; that unchanging power, the wicked should fear. ^ His eges behold the nations. All nations; all people. He sees all their conduct. They can conceal nothing from him. They should, therefore, stand in awe. The wicked have much to fear from One who sees all that they do, and who has power to crush and destroy them. Comp. Notes on Ps. xi. 4. ^ Let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Be lifted up with pride, or feel secure. They cannot overcome an Almighty God; they cannot escape from his power. The word rebellious here has reference to those who arc impatient under the restraints of the law of God, and w-ho are disposed to cast off" his authority. The admonition is one that may be addressed to all who thus rebel against God, whether they are nations or individuals. Alike they must feel the vengeance of his arm, and fall beneath his power.

9 Whicli ^ lioldetli our soul in life, and sufFeretli not our feet to be moved.

nation; the Hebrew people. The call here to praise or bless God is on account of some special benefit which had been conferred o\x them, and which is referred to more particularly iu the following verses. It was his gracious interposition ia the time of danger, by which they were delivered from their foes, vers. 11, 12. ^ And make the voice of his praise to he heard. Let it be sounded out afar, that it may be heard abroad.

0. Which holdeth our soul in life. Marg., as in Heb., putteth. That is. He has put (or placed) us iu a state of safety. The word rendered "in life" means literally among the living. The word soul here is equivalent to V.S, -^ ourselves; and the idea is, that he keeps us among the living. What is here said of this special deliverance is true of all men at all times, that they owe the fact that they are among the living to the care of God; or, it is because he puts them among the living, or keeps them alive. % And suffereth net our feet to he moved. That is, from their firm position of safety. The idea is taken from one who is walking, and who is kept from slipping or falling.

10. For thou, O God, hast proved t(s. That is. Thou hast tried us; thou liast tested the reality of our attachment to thee, as silver is tried by the application of fire. God had proved or tried them by bringing calamity upon them to test the reality of their allegiance to him. The nature of the proof or trial is referred to in the following verses. ^ Thou hast tried -us, as silver is tried. That is, by being subjected to appropriate tests to ascertain its real nature, and to remove from it imperfections. Comp.

11 Thou broughtest us into the " net; thou laidst affliction upon our loins.

12 Thou hast caused men to ride over our head's: Ave went through

11. Thou broughtest us into the net. That is. Thou hast suftered or permitted us to be brought into the net j thou hast suffered us to be taken captive, as beasts are caught in a snare. See Notes on Ps. ix. 15. The allusion here is to the efforts made by their enemies to take them, as hunters lay gins, or spread nets, to capture wild beasts. The idea here is, that those enemies had been successful; God had suflered them to fall into their hands. If we suppose this psalm to have been composed on the return from the Babylonish captivity, the propriety of this language will be apparent, for it well describes the fact that the nation had been subdued by the Babylonians, and had been led captive into a distant land. Comp. Lam. i. 13. %Thou laidst affliction upon our loins. The loins are mentioned as the seat of strength (comp. Deut. xxxiii. 11; 1 Kings xii. 10; Job xl. 16); and the idea here is, that he had put their strength to the test; he had tried them to see how much they could bear; he had made the test effectual by applying it to the part which was able to bear most. The idea is, that he liad called them to endure as much as they were able to endure. He had tried them to the utmost.

12. Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads. This refers evidently to some national subjection or conquest— most probably to their having been subdued by the Babylonians. Professor Alexander renders this, " Thou hast caused men to ride at our head," as if leading them forth as captives in war. The most probable meaning, however, is that they had K

fire and tlirongli -water; but thou broughtest us out into a ^ wealthy ^lace.

13 I will go into thy house with burnt- otferings; I will pay

been subdued, as if on a field of battle, and as if their conquerors had ridden over them when prostrate on the ground. Comp. Notes on Ps. xliv. 5, and Isa. li. 23. ^ We tvent through fire and through tvater. This is designed to represent the nature of their trials. It was as if they had been made to pass through bm-ning flames and raging floods. Comp. Notes on Isa. xliii. 2. Instead of passing through the seas and rivers when the waters had been turned back, and when a dry and safe path was made for them, as was the case w^ith their fathers (ver. 6), they had been compelled to breast the flood itself; and yet, notwithstanding this, God had brought them into a place of safety. In either way, by parting the floods, or by conducting his people through them, as shall seem best pleasing to him, God can conduct his people safely, and deliver them from danger. The power, the protecting care, the love, and the faithfulness of God are shown with equal clearness whether he divides the flood and causes his people to march through as on dry land, or whether he suffers the flood to rage and heave around them while he conducts his chosen people safely through. ^ But thou hroughtest tis out into a ivealthi/ place. Marg., moist. Professor Alexander, overjloiv, abundance. Vulgate, into a place of refreshment — refrigerium. The LXX., dg dvarpv)(r]v. Luther, Thoii hast led us forth and quickened us, De Wette, zum Ueberfusse — to overjlotving, or abundance. The Hebrew word — n^lT, revayah — means properly abundant drinTc, abundance. It occurs only here and in Ps. xxiii. 5, where it is rendered runneth over. See Notes on that place. The proper idea hero is, that he had brought thee my vows,

14 Which my lips have 2 uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.

thetn into a land where there was plenty of water — as emblematic of abundance in general. He had led them to a place where there were ample rivers, springs, and streams, producing fertility and abundance. This would be the language of the people after their return from exile, and when they were permitted again to re-visit their native land — a land always characterized as a land of plenty. See Deut. viii. 7; comp. Exod. iii. 8; Lev. xx. 24; Num. xiii. 27.

13. I will go info thy house with burnt-offerings. To thy temple — the place of worship. This is language designed to represent the feelings and the purpose of the people. If the psalm was composed on occasion of the return from the Babylonish captivity, it means that, as their first act, the people would go to the house of God, and acknowledge his goodness to them, and render him praise. On the word burnt-offerings, see Notes on Isa. i. 11. ^ I will pay thee my vows. I will keep the solemn promises which I had made; that is, the promises which the people had made in the long period of their captivity. On the word vows, see Notes on Ps. xxii. 25.

14. Which my lips have uttered, etc. Marg., opened. The Hebrew word, however, — TViB, paizah — means properly to tear apart; to rend; and then, to open wide, as the mouth, for example, — or the throat, — as wild beasts do, Ps. xxii. 13. Then it means to open the mouth in scorn (Lam. ii. 16; iii. 46); and then, to utter hasty words. Job xxxv. 16. The idea would be expressed by us by the phrases to bolt or blurt out; to utter hastily; or, to utter from a heart full and overflowing; to utter with very

15 I will offer unto thee burntsacrifices of ^ fatlings, with the incense of rams: I will offer bullocks with goats. Selah.

little care as to the language employed. It is the fulness of the heart which would be suggested by the word, and not a nice choice of expressions. The idea is, that the heart was full; and that the vows were made under the influence of deep emotion, when the heart was so full that it could not hut speak, and when there was very little attention to the language. It was not a calm and studied selection of words. Such vows are not less acceptable to God than those which ai'e made in the best-selected language. Not a little of the most popular sacred poetry in all tongues is of this nature; and when refined down to the nicest rules of art it ceases to be popular, or to meet the wants of the soul, and is laid aside. The psalmist here means to say, that though these vows were the result of deep feeling — of warm, gushing emotion — rather than of calm and thoughtful reflection, yet there was no disposition to disown or repudiate them now. They were made in the depth of feeling — in real sincerity — and there was a purpose fairly to carry them out. ^ WJien I tvas in trouble. When the people were in captivity, languishing in a foreign land. Vows made in trouble — in sickness, in bereavement, in times of public calamity — should be faithfully performed when health and prosperity visit us again; but, alas, how often are they forgotten!

15. I tvill offer unto thee hurntsacrifices of failings. Marg., marroio. On the word rendered burnt-offerings see Notes on Isa. i. 11. The word rendered fatlings is rendered in Isa. V. 17, lambs. It may be applied to any animal considered as fat — a qualification required in sacrifices to be made on the altar, Isa. i. 11. ^ With the incense of rams. The word here I'cndered incense is commonly applied

16 Come *' and hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.

to aromatics which were burned in the tabernacle or temple, producing a grateful odour (see Notes on Isa. i. 13); but it seems here to be used with reference to the smoke ascending from burning rams offered in sacrifice — ascending as the smoke of incense did. The smoke thus ascending would be as grateful and acceptable as incense. ^ I uill offer bullocks with goats. Bullocks and goats. That is, I will present sacrifices in all the forms required in worship; in all the forms that will express gratitude to God, or that will be an acknowledgment of dependence and guilt; in all that would properly express homage to the Deity. Bullocks and goats were both required in the ancient worship.

16. Co7ne and hear, all ye that fear God. All who are true worshippers of God, — the idea of /ear or reverence being put for worship in general. The call is on all who truly loved God to hear what he had done, in order that he might be suitably honoured, and that due praise might be given him. ^ And I tvill declare tchat he hath done for my soul. This is probably the personification of an individual to represent the people, considered as delivered from oppression and bondage. The words "/or my soul" are equivalent to for me. Literally, for my life. The phrase would embrace all that God had done by his gracious intervention in delivering the people from bondage. The language here is such as may be used by any one who is converted to God, in reference (a) to all that God has done to redeem the soul; {b) to all that he has done to pardon its guilt; (c) to all that he has done to give it peace and joy; {d) to all that he has done to enable it to overcome sin; (e) to all that he has done to give it comfort in the prospect of death; (/) to all that he has done to impart the hope of heaven.

17 I cried unto liini with my mouth, and he was extolled with my tongue.

18 If ««' I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me;

The principle here is one which it is right to apply to all such cases. It is I'ight and proper for a converted sinner to call on others to hear what God has done for him; (a) because it is due to God thus to honour him; (5) because the converted heart naturally gives- utterance to expressions of gratitude and praise, or wishes to make known the joy derived from pardoned sin; (o) because there is in such a soul a strong desire that others may partake of the same blessedness, and find the same satisfaction and peace in the service of God. It is the duti/ of those who are pardoned and converted thus to call on others to hear what God has done for them; — {a) because others have the same need of religion v/hich they have; (b) because the same salvation is provided for them which has been provided for those who have found peace; (c) because all are under obligation to make known as far as possible the fact tliat God Jias provided salvation for sinners, and that all mai/ be saved. He who has no such sense of the mercy of God, manifested towards himself, as to desire that others may be saved, — who sees no such value in the religion which he professes as to have an earnest wish that others maj' partake of it also, — can have no real evidence that his own heart has ever been converted to God. Comp. Notes on Rom. ix. 1-3; x. 1.

17. I cried tinto him ivith my mouth. That is, in my trouble; when distress came upon me. This, according to the explanation of the design of the psalm given above, is one individual speaking on behalf of the nation, or uttering the sentiment of the people. At the same time, however, all this is language appropriate to an individual when recording his own experience. ^ And he zvas extolled with my tongue. 1 praised him; I acknowledged his supremacy. I recognised my dependence on him, and looked to him as that God who had all things under his control, and who could grant me the deliverance which I desired.

18. If I regard iniquity in my heart. Literally, " If I have seen iniquity in my heart." That is, If I have indulged in a purpose of iniquity; if I have had a wicked end in view; if I have not been willing to forsake all sin; if I have cherished a purpose of pollution or Avrong. The meaning is not literally. If I have " seen " any iniquity in my heart — for no one can look into his own heart, and not see that it is defiled by sin; but. If I have cherished it in my soul; if I have gloated over past sins; if I am purposing to commit sin again; if I am not willing to abandon all sin, and to be holy. ^ The Lord will not hear me. That is. He will not regard and answer my prayer. The idea is, that in order that prayer may be heard, there must be a purpose to forsake all forms of sin. This is a great and most important principle in regard to prayer. The same pi'inciple is aflSrmed or implied in Ps. xviii. 41; xxxiv. 15; Prov. 1. 28; xv. 29; xxviii. 9; Isa. i. 15; Jer. xi. 11; xiv, 12; Zech. vii. 13; John ix. 31. It is also especially stated in Isa. Iviii. 3-7. The principle is applicable (a) to secret purposes of sin; to sinful desires, corrupt passions, and evil propensities; (b) to acts of sin in individuals, as when a man is pursuing a business founded on fraud, dishonesty, oppression, and wrong; (c) to public acts of sin, as when a people fast and pray (Isa. Iviii.), and yet hold their fellow-men in bondage; or enact and maintain unjust and unrighteous laws; or uphold the acts of wicked rulers; or countenance and support by law that which is contrary to the law of God; and (rf) to the feelings of an awakened and trembling

19 But verily God hath heard me; he hath attended to the voice of my prayei-.

sinner when he is professedly seeking salvation. If there is still the love of evil in his heart; if he has some cherished purpose of iniquity which he is not willing to abandon; if there is any one sin, however small or unimportant ib may seem to be, which he is not willing to forsake, he cannot hope that God will hear his prayer J he may be assured that he ■will not. All prayer, to be acceptable to God, MUST be connected with a purpose to forsake all sin.

19. But verily God hath heard me, etc. That is, He has given me evidence that he has heard my prayer; and, in doing this, he has thus given me the assurance also that I do not regard iniquity in my heart. The evidence that he has heard me is at the same time proof to my mind that 1 do not love sin. As it is a settled and universal principle that God does not hear praj'er when there is in the heart a cherished love and purpose of iniquity, so it follows that, if there is evidence that he has heard our prayers, it is proof that he has seen that our hearts are sincere, and that we truly desire to forsake all forms of sin.

20. Blessed be God, ivhich hath not turned away my prayer. That is, It is fit that I should praise and adore God for the fact that he has graciously condescended to listen to the voice of my supplications. ^ Nor his mercy from me. There is no more proper ground of praise than the fact that God hears prayer — the prayer of poor, ignorant, sinful, dying men. When we consider how great is his condescension in doing this; — when we think of his greatness and immensity; — when we reflect that the whole universe is dependent on him, and that the farthest worlds need his care and attention; — when we bear in mind that we are creatures of a day and "know nothing;" — and especially

20 Blessed he God, which hath not turned away my prayer, nor his mercy from me.

when we remember how we have violated his laws, how sensual, corrupt, and vile our lives have been, how low and grovelling have been our aims and purposes, how we have provoked him by our unbelief, our ingratitude, and our hardness of heart — we can never express, in appropriate words, the extent of his goodness in hearing our prayers, nor can we find language which will properly give utterance to the praises due to his name for having condescended to listen to our cries for mercy.

On the phrases in the title, "To the chief ^lusician" and "on Negmoth," see Notes on the Introd. to Ps. iv. On the words "psalm" and "song," see Notes on the title to Ps. xlviii.

Four of the psalms (iv., vi., liv., Iv.), where the phrase "on Neginoth" occurs, are ascribed to David; one (Ps. Ixxvii.) is ascribed to Asaph; but there is no intimation in the title of tliis psalm (or in the psalm itself), which would enable us to determine by whom it was composed. It cannot be demonstrated that it was not written by David, but there is no certain evidence that it was. Nor is it possible to ascertain the occasion on which it was composed. Venema supposes that it was written in the time of Hezekiah, after the land was delivered from the AssjTian invasion, and was at peace; and, especially, in reference to the prediction in Isa. xxxvii. 30, "Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself; and the second year such as groweth of the same: and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vuaeyards, and eat the fruit thereof." This was to be a "sign" to the people of Israel that the land would rot be subjugated to the foreigners (see my Notes on that passage); and the psalm, according to this supposition, was Avritten in view of the fact that God had, at the time of its composition, mercifully interposed in the destruction of the Assyrian army. The psalm contains, according to tliis idea, an expression of praise for the merciful interposition

To the cliief Musician on Neginoth. A Psalm or Song.

Hl OD a: be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause v his face to sbine ^ upon us; Selab.

2 That thy way may be known

which God had thus vouchsafed, and a prayer that the promise miglit be fully accompHshed; that the land might be free from any future invasion; and that, according to the prediction, it might produce abundantly, or that it might be cultivated in peace, and with no fear of foreign conquest. Thus, (ver. 6): " Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us." There is much plausibility in this supposition, though it is not possible with certainty to determme its correctness.

Thus understood, the psalm is designed to express the feelings — the desires— the hopes of the Hebrew people in those circumstances. It contains,

I. A prayer that God Avould still be merciful to them and bless them, as if there Avere still some danger to be apprehended, ver. 1.

II. A desire that his ways — the principles of his administration — might be made known to all people, ver. 2.

III. A call on the people to praise God for what he had done, with the expression of a wish that all nations might be glad and rejoice; that they might put their trust in God as a righteous God; that they might understand the great principles on which he governs the world, vers. 3-5.

IV. A statement of the fact that then — in connexion with this universal recognition of God — the prophecy Avould be fulfilled in its most complete sense; that the earth would yield her increase as it was made to do; that there would be universal prosperity: in other words, that the proper acknowledgment of God, and the prevalence of true religion, Avould be an incalculable benefit to man's temporal interests; or, that under such a state of things, the true fertility and productiveness of the earth would be developed, vers. 6, 7. The psalm thus illustrates the influence of true religion in securing the proper cultivation of the earth {accomplishing so far the purpose for which man was made, Gen. i. 28; ii. 15), and consequently in ])romoting the happiness of mankind.

hless us. There is, perhaps (as Prof. Alexander suggests), an allusion, in the language used here, to the sacerdotal benediction in Numb. vi. 24-26: " The Lord bless thee, and keep thee; the Lord make his face shine upon Vaee, and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace." The prayer is that God would bestow upon his people the blessing implied in the form of benediction which he had directed the ministers of his religion to use. The first cry is, of course, for mercy or favour. The beginning of all blessings to mankind is the favour or mercy of God. There is no higher blessing than his favour; there is none that comes from him which should not be regarded as mercy. ^ And cause his face to shine upon us. Marg., With us. That is, among us. It is an invocation of his presence and favour. On the phrase " cause his face to shine," see Notes on Ps. iv. 6.

2. That thy ivay may he Jcnown upon earth. The law of God; the principles and methods of the Divine administration; the way in which God rules mankind, and in which he bestows his blessings on men. The prayer is, that all the earth might be made acquainted with the methods in which God deals with his people, or confers favours on men. The happiness of man depends on a knowledge of the principles on which God bestows his favours; for all men are, in all things, dependent on him. The success of a farmer depends on his understanding, and complying with, the laws and principles on which God bestoAvs a harvest; the preservation of health, Uie restoration of health when we are sick, depends on a knowledge of the great laws which God has ordained for the continuance of the healthy functions of our bodies.

upon earth, thy saving health among all - nations.

3 Lot the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise

4 O let the nations be glad, and sing for joy; for thou shalt

and on the use of the means which he has provided for restoring health when those functions are disordered;. and, in like manner, the salvation of the soul depends on the right understanding of the method which God has appointed to secure his favour. In neither of these cases — in no case — is it the business of men to originate laws of their own; — laws for the cultivation of the earth, or for the preservation of health, or for the saving of the soul. The business of man is to find out the rules in accordance with which God bestows his favours, and then to act in obedience to them. The psalmist here supposes that there are certain rules or principles, in accordance with which God bestows blessings on mankind; and he pra^'s that those rules and principles may be everywhere made known upon the earth. ^ Thy saving health among all nations. The original word here rendered saving health, is salvation. It is with great uniformity so rendered. It is indeed translated xvelfare, in Job xxx. 15; help, in Ps. iii. 2; xlii. 5; deliverance, in Ps. xviii. 50; xliv. 4; Isa. xxvi. 18; helping, Ps. xxii. 1; and health, in Ps. xlii. 11; but elsewhere it is in all cases rendered salvation. The words saving health were adopted from an older version, but no argument should be founded on them. The word salvation expresses all that there is in the original; and the prayer is, that the method by which God confers salvation on men may be made known throughout all lands. Assuredly no more appropriate prayer could be offered than that all the race may be made acquainted with the way in which God saves sinnei's.

judge the people righteously, and ^ govern the nations upon earth.

5 Let the people praise thee, O God; let all the people praise

God. Do thou incline them to praise thee: — a prayer that all peojjle might so understand the character and ways of God, and might have such a sense of his claims upon them, as to lead them to praise him. % Let all the people praise thee. The people of all lands. See Notes on Ps. xxii. 27. Comp. Ps. Ixvi. 4.

4. O let the nations he glad, and sing for joy. All the nations of the earth. Let them all be made acquainted with thee; with thy character; with the principles of thy government; with the methods by which thou dost bestow thy favours, that they all may be made glad. These things pertain to them all. The knowledge of these things would convey inestimable blessings to them all, and fill all their hearts with joy. Nothing would, in fact, diffuse so much happiness over a miserable and guilty world — nothing would furnish such an occasion for universal joy, gratitude, and praise — as the possession of the knowledge of the great principles on which God rules the world, and on which he blesses men. ^ For thou, shall judge the people righteously. That is. The great principles of thy administration are right, or righteous, and the nations will have occasion to rejoice in them. ^ And govern the nations ttpon earth. Mixr g., lead. So the Hebrew. That is, God would instruct them what to do; he would guide them in paths of prosperity, happiness, salvation. Individuals and nations, as they follow the counsels of God, are safe and happy; and in no other way.

5. Let the people jiraise thee, etc. See ver. 5. The repetition shows that this was the principal thought in the mind of the author of the psalm. It

6 Then " shall the earth yield

expresses an earnest — an mteuse — desire, that all nations should acknowledge God as the true God, and praise him for his mercies.

6. Then shall the earth yield her increase. The word rendered increase — '^^'2'^,y6^ul — means properly ijroduce, or that which the earth produces when properly cultivated. It is rendered increase, as here, in Lev. xxvi. 4, 20; Deut. xxxii. 22; Judges vi. 4; Job XX. 28; Ps. Ixxviii. 46; Ixxxv. 12; Ezek. xxxiv. 27; Zech. viii. 12; and fruit, in Deut. xi. 17; Hab. iii. 17; Hag. i. 10. It does not elsewhere occur. The Hebrew verb here is in • the past tense — " has yielded her increase," but tire connexion seems to demand that it shall be rendered in the future, as the entire psalm pertains to the future, — to the diffusion of the knowledge of the way of God, ver. 2; to the desire that the nations might praise him, vers. 3-5; and to the fact that God would bless the people, vers. 6, 7. Thus understood, the idea is, that the prevalence of true religion in the world would be connected with prosperity, or that it Avould tend greatly to increase the productions of the earth. This it would do, (a) as such an acknowledgment of God would tend to secure the Divine fiivour and blessing on those who cultivate the earth, preventing the necessity, by way of judgment, of cutting off its harvests by blight, and drought, and mildewy by frost, and storm, and destructive insects, caterpillars, and locusts; (J) as it would lead to a inuch more extensive and general cultivation of the soil, bringing into the field multitudes, as labourers, to occupy its waste places, who are now idle, or intemperate, or who are cut down by vice and consigned to an early grave. If all who are now idle were made industrious — as they would be by the influence of true religion; if all who by 'intem- perance are rendered worthless, improvident, and wasteful, were made sober and working men; if all who are withdrawn from cultivating the earth by wars — who are kept in standing armies, consumers and not •producers, — or who are cut down in battle, should be occupied in tilling the soil, or should become producers in any way; and if all who are now slaves, and whose labour is not worth half as much as that of freemen, should be restored to their equal rights, — the productions of the earth would at once be increased many times beyond the present amount. The prevalence of true religion in the world, arresting the cause of idleness and improvidence, and keeping alive those who are now cut off by vice, by crime, and by the ravages of war, would soon make the wdiole world assume a different aspect, and would accomplish the prediction of the prophet (Isa. xxxv. 1) that the " wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad, and that the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." The earth has never yet been half culti- A'ated. Vast tracts of land are still wholly unsubdued and uninhabited. No part of the earth has yet been made to produce all that it could be made to yield; and no one can estimate tchat the teeming earth might be made to produce if it were brought under the influence of proper cultivation. As far as the true religion spreads, it icill be cultivated; and in the days of the millenium, when the true religion shall be diffused over all continents and islands, the earth will be avast fruitful field, and much of the beauty and the fertility of Eden be reproduced in every land. ^ And God, even our oivn God, shall bless ns. The true God; the God whom we adore. That is, He will bless us with this abundant fertility; he will bless us with every needed favour.

7. God shall bless us. That is, with prosperity, peace, salvation. The making of his name known abroad Avill be the means of blessing the world; will be the highest favour that can be conferred on mankind. *^ And all the ends of the earth shall fear him. All parts of the earth. See Notes on Ps. xxii. 27. The time, therefore, looked for is that when the knowledge of the Lord shall pervade all lands; — the time to which the ancient prophets were constantly looking forward as the sum of all their wishes, and the burden of all their communications; — that time, for the coming of which all who love their fellow-men, -and who earnestly desire the welfare of the world, should most earnestly pray. The hope that this may occur, is the only bright thing in the future respecting this world; and he lives most in accordance with the high ends for which man was made who most earnestly desires this, and who, by his prayers and efforts, contributes most to this glorious consummation.

This psalm purports to be a psalm of David. It is dedicated to " the chief ^Musician." See Notes on the Introd. to Ps. iv. There is no reason to doubt the correctness of the title, as there is nothing in the psalm which conflicts with the supposition that David was the author, and as it accords so much, in its scope and language, with his undoubted compositions. On the phrase in the title "^ Psnlm or Song" see Notes on the title to Ps. Ixv.

It is not certainly kno^\^l on what occasion the song was composed. It is evidently, like the eighteenth psalm, a triumpbal song designed to celebrate victories which had been achieved; but whether composed to celebrate some particular victory, or in view of all that had been done in subduing the enemies of the people of God, it is impossible now to determine. Prof. Alexander supposes that it was in reference to the victory recorded in 2 Sam. xii. 26-31, the last important victory of David's reign. Yenema supposes that it was composed on the occasion of removing the ark to Mount Zion, to the place which David had prepared for it. This also is the opinion of Kosenmiiller. De AVette inclines to the opinion that it Avas written in view of the victory over the Ammonites and others, as recorded in 2 Sam. viii.-xii. There are some things, however, in regard to the time and occasion on which the psalm was composed, which can be determined from the psalm itself.

(1) It is clear that it was not composed before the time of David, because before his time Jerusalem or Zion was not the seat of the royal authority, nor the place of Divine worship, Avhich it is evidently supposed to be in the psalm,

(2) It was composed when the Hebrew nation was one, or before the separation of the ten tribes and the formation of the kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam; for Benjamin, Judah, Zehulon and Noph' tali are especially mentioned as talcing part in the solemnities refen-ed to in the psalm, ver. 27.

(4) It was composed on some occasion of bringing up the ark, and putting it in the place which had been prepared for it, vers. 16, 24, 25. These verses can be best explained on the supposition that the psalm Avas written on that occasion. Indeed they cannot well be explained on any other supposition.

(o) It was in view of past triumphs; of victories secm-ed in former times; of what God had then done for his people, and especially of what he had dene Avhen the ark of the covenant had been placed at the head of the armies of Israel, ver. 14. Comp. vers. 7, 8, 12,

(6) It was in anticipation of future triumphs- -the triumphs of the true rehgion; under the feeling and belief that Jerusalem Avould be the centre from which wholesome influences would go out over the world; and that through the influences which would go out from Jerusalem the world would be subdued to God, vers. 20-23; 29-31. Comp. Isa. ii. 3.

To the chief Musician. A Psalm or Song of David.

The psalm was composed, therefore, I apprehend, when the ark was brought up from the house of Obed-edom, and placed hi the city of David, in the tent or tabernacle Avhich he had erected for it there: 2 Sam. vi. 12; 1 Chron. xv. It is not impi-obable that other psalms, also, were composed for this occasion, as it was one of great solemnity.

The contents of the psalm accord entu*ely with this supposition. They are as follows: —

I. A prayer that God would arise and scatter all his enemies, vers. 1, 2.

II. A call on the people to praise God, \vith reference to liis greatness, and to his paternal character, vers. 3-6.

III. A reference to what he had done in former times for his people in conducting them from bondage to the promised land, vers. 7-14.

IV. A particular reference to the ark, vers. 15-18. After it had been lying neglected, God had gone forth Avith it, and Zion had become distinguished above the hills; the chariots of God had been poured forth; victory had attended its movements; and God had gone up leading captiA^ty captive.

V. The anticipation of future triumphs, — the confident expectation of future interposition, — as derived from the histoiy of the past, vers. 19-23.

VII. The anticipation of future triumphs expressed in another form, not that of subjugation by mere j!?/z^er, but of a voluntarxi submission of kings and nations to God, vers. 28-31. "Kings would come with presents (ver. 29); nations — Egypt and Ethiopia— would stretch out their hands to God, ver. 31.

VIII. A call on all the nations, in view of these things, to ascribe praise to God, vers. 32-35.

1. Let God arise. Sec Notes on Ps. iii. 7. There is an obvious reference here to the words used by Moses on the removal of the ark in Num. X. 35. The same language was also employed by Solomon when the

2 As '^ smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax

ark was removed to the temple, and deposited in the most holy place (2 Chron. vi. 41): " Now therefore arise, O Lord God, into thy resting place, thou, and the ark of thy strength." It would seem probable, therefore, that this psalm was composed on some such occasion. ^ Let his enemies he scattered. So in Num. X. 35: " Rise up. Lord, and let thine enemies be scattered j and let them that hate thee flee before thee." The ark was the symbol of the Divine presence, and the idea is, that whereever that was, the enemies of God would be subdued, or that it was only by the power of Him who was supposed to reside there that his enemies could be overcome. IF Let them also that hate him flee before him. Almost the exact language used by Moses in Num. X. 35. It is possible that this may have been used on some occasion when the Hebrews were croing out to war; but the more probable supposition is that it is general language designed to illustrate the power of God, or to state that his rising up, at any time, would be followed by the discomfiture of his enemies. The placing of the ark where it was designed to remain permanently would be a proper occasion for suggesting this general truth, that all the enemies of God must be scattered when he rose up in his majesty and power.

2. As smoTce is driven away. To wit, by the wind. Smoke — vapour — easily disturbed and moved by the slightest breath of air — represents an object of no stability, or having no power of resistance, and would thus represent the real weakness of the most mighty armies of men as opposed to God. \ So drive them aioay. With the same ease with which smoke is driven by the slightest breeze, so

3 But let the righteous be glad: let them rejoice / before

do the enemies of God disappear before his power. Conip. Notes on Ps. i. 4. ^ As wax melteth before the fire. Comp. Ps. xxii. 14. The meaning here is plain. As wax is melted down by fire — losing all its hardness, its firmness, its power of resistance, so must the most mighty armies melt away before God. ^ So let the ivicked perish at the presence of God. That is, those who rise up against him; his enemies. It will be as easy for God to destroy wicked men as it is for fire to melt down wax.

3. IBut let the righteous he glad. That is. Let them be prosperous and happy; let them be under thy protecting care, and partake of thy favour. While the wicked are driven away like smoke, let the righteous live, and flourish, and be safe. Comp. Ps. xxxii. 11. ^ Let them rejoice hefore God. In the presence of God; or as admitted to his presence. The wicked will be driven far off; the righteous will be admitted to his presence, and will rejoice before him. ^ Yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. Marg., as in Heb., rejoice tvith gladness. The expi'ession is designed to express great joy; joy that is multiplied and prolonged. It is joy of heart accompanied with all the outward expressions of joy.

4. Sing nnto God, sing praises to Ms name. That is, to him; the name being often put for the person himself. The repetition denotes intensity of desire; a wish that God might be praised with the highest praises. ^ Extol him. The word here rendered extol — hhOi salal — means to lift up, to raise, to raise up, as into a heap or mound; and especially to cast up and prepare a way, or to make a way level before an army by casting up earth;

4 Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name J AH, and rejoice before him.

that is, to prepare a way for an army. See Notes on Isa. xl. 3. Comp. also Isa. Ivii. 14; Ixii, 10; Job xix. 12; xxx. 12; Prov. XV. 19 {marg.); Jer. xviii. 15. This is evidently the idea here. It is not to " extol " God in the sense of praising him; it is to prepare the way before him, as of one marching at the head of his armies, or as a leader of his hosts. The allusion is to God as passing before his people in the march to the promised land; and the call is to make ready the waybefore him, — that is, to remove all obstructions out of his path, and to make the road smooth and level. ^ That rideth. Rather, " that marc^- eth." There is, indeed, the idea of riding, yet it is not that of " riding njjon the heavens," which is the meaning, but of riding at the head of his hosts on their march. ^ Upon the heavens. The word here used — n;3"lV, ardbah — never means either heaven, or the clouds. It properly denotes an arid tract, a sterile region, a desert; and then, a plain. It is rendered desert in Isa. xxxv. 1, 6; xl. 3; xli.l9; li. 3; Jer. ii. 6; xvii. 6; 1. 12; Ezek. xlvii. 8; and should have been so rendered here. So it is translated by De Wette, Prof. Alexander, and others. The LXX. render it, " Make way for him who is riding westward." So the Latin Vulgate. The Chaldee renders it, " Extol him who is seated upon the throne of his glory in the north heaven." The reference, doubtless, is to the passage through the desert over which the Hebrews wandered for forty years. The Hebrew word which is employed here is still applied by the Arabs to that region. The idea is that of Jehovah marching over those deserts at^ the head of his armies, and the call is to

5 A father of fhe fatherless, s and a judge of the widows, is

prepare a way for him on his march, comp. vers. 7, 8. ^ By his name JAR. This refers to his riding or marching at the head of his forces through the desert, in the character described bi/ that name — or, ccs Jah; that is, Jehovah. Jah is an abhreviation of the word Jehovah, which was assumed by God as liis peculiar name, Ex. vi. 3. The word Jehovah is usually rendered, in our version. Lord, printed in small capitals to denote that the original is Jehovah; the word itself is retained, however, in Ex. vi. 3; Ps. Ixxxiii. 18; Isa. xii. 2 (see Notes); and Isa. xxvi. 4. The word Jah occurs in this place only, in our translation. It is found in combination, or in certain formulas — as in the phrase Hallelujah, Ps. civ. 35; cv. 45; cvi. 1. The meaning here is, that Gad went thus before his people in the character of the true God, or as Jehovah. ^ And rejoice before him. Or, in his presence. Let there be joy when he thus manifests himself as the true God. The presence of God is fitted to give joy to all the worlds that he has made, or wherever he manifests himself to his creatures.

5. A father of the fatherless. Or, of orphans. Comp. Ps. x. 14, 18. That is, God takes the place of the parent. See Jer. xlix. 11; "Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in me." This is one of the most tender appellations that could be given to God, and conveys one of the most striking descriptions that can be given of his character. We see his greatness, his majesty, his power, in the worlds that he has made, — in the storm, the tempest, the rolling ocean; but it is in such expressions as this that we learn, what we most desire to know, and what we cannot elsewhere learn, that he is a Father; that he is to be loved as well as feared. Nothing suggests more strikingly a state of helplessness and dg^Dendence than the condition of orphan children and widows; nothing, therefore, conveys a more atfecting description of the character of God — of his condescension and kindness — than to say that he will take the place of the parent in the one case, and be a protector in the other. ^ And a judge of the tvidotvs. That is. He will see justice done them; he will save them from oppression and wrong. No persons are more liable to be oppressed and wronged than widows. They are regarded as incapable of defending or vindicating their own rights, and are likely to be deceived and betrayed by those to whom their property and rights may be entrusted. Hence the care which God manifests for them; hence his solemn charges, so often made to those who are in authority, and who are entrusted with power, to respect their rights; hence his frequent and solemn rebukes to those who violate their rights. See Notes on Isa. i. 17. Comp. Deut. x. 18; xiv. 29; xxiv. 17; Ex. xxii. 22; Job xxiv. 3, 21; Jer. vii. 6; Mai. iii. 5; James i. 27. 1[ Is God in his holy habitation. "Where he dwells; to wit, in heaven. The design of the psalmist seems to be to take us at once up to God; to let us see what he is in his holy home; to conduct xis into his very presence, that we may see him as he is. What a man is we see in his own home, — M'hen we get near to him; when we look upon him, not on great or state occasions, when he is abroad, and assumes appearances befitting his rank and office, but in his own house; as he is constantly. This is the idea here, that if we approach God most nearly, if we look upon him, not merely in the splendour and magnificence in which he appears in governing the worlds, in his judgments, in storm and tempest, riding on the clouds and controlling the ocean, but, as it were, in his own dwelling, his quiet heavens, — if we look most

6 God settetL tlie solitary in ^ families: he '' bringetli out those which are bound with chains;

closely at his character, we shall find that character hest represented by the kind and benignant traits of a father, — in his care for widows and orphans. In other words, the more we see of God, — the more we become intimately acquainted with his real nature, — the more evidence w^e shall find that he is benevolent and kind.

6. God setteth the solitary in families. Marg., as in Heb., in a house. The wprd rendered solitary means properly one alone, as an only child; Gen. xxii. 2, 12, 16; and then it means alone, solitary, wretched, forsaken. See Notes on Ps. xxii. 20. The word veu^evedi families would be more literally and better translated as in the margin, houses. The idea then i?, not that he constitutes families of those who were solitary and alone, hut that to those who are alone in the world — who seem to have no friends — who are destitute, wretched, forsaken, he gives comfortable dwellings. Thus the idea is carried out which is expressed in the previous verse. God is the friend of the orphan and the widow; and, in like manner, he is the friend of the cast out — the w^andering — the homeless; — he provides for them a home. The meaning is, that he is benevolent and kind, and that they who have no other friend may find a friend in God. At the same time it is true, however, that the family organization is to be traced to God. It is his original appointment; and all that there is in the family that contributes to the happiness of mankind — all that there is of comfort in the world that depends on the family organization — is to be traced to the goodness of God. Nothing more clearly marks the benignity and the wisdom of God tiian the arrangement by which men, instead of being solitary wanderers on the face of the earth, with nothing but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.

7 O God, when thou wentest forth before thy people, when

to bind them in sympathy, in love, and in interest to each other, are grouped together in families. % He bringeth out those lohich are hound ioith chains. He releases the prisoners. That is, He delivers those who are unjustly confined in prison, a7id held in bondage. The principles of his administration are opposed to oppression and wrong, and in favour of the rights of man. The meaning is not that he always does this by his direct power, but that his law, his government, his requirements are all against oppression and wrong, and in favour of liberty. So Ps. cxlvi. 7, "The Lord looseth the prisoners." Comp. Notes on Isa. Ixi. 1. ^ But the rebellious dwell in a dry land. The rebels; all who rebel against him. The word rendered dry land means a dry or arid place; a desert. The idea is, that the condition of the rebellious as contrasted with that of those whom God has under his protection would be as a fertile and wellwatered field compared with a desert. For the one class he would provide a comfortable home; the other, the wicked, would be left as if to dwell in deserts and solitudes. In other words, the difference in condition between those who are the objects of his favour, and those who are found in proud rebellion against him, would be as great as that between such as have comfortable abodes in a land producing abundance, and such as are wretched and homeless wanderers in regions of arid sand. While God befriends the poor and the needy, while he cares for the widow and the orphan, he leaves the rebel to misery and want. The allusion here probably is to his conducting his people through the des'ert to the land of promise and of plenty; but still the passage contains a general truth in regard to the principles of his administration.

8 The earth * shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai k itself ivas moved at the presence of God,

7. O God, ivJien thou loentest forth lefore thy people, etc. That is, in conducting them through the desert to the promised land. The statement in regard to the paternal character of God in the previous verses is here iUustrated by his guiding his own people, when fleeing from a land of oppression, through the barren desert, — and his interpositions there in their behalf. All that had been said of him in the previous verses is here conflrmvd by the provision which he made for their wants in their perilous journey through the wilderness.

8. The earth shook. See Ex. xix. 16-18. 1[ The heavens also dropped at the presence of God. That is, dropped down rain and food. The idea is that the very heavens seemed to be shaken or convulsed, so that rain and food were shalcen down, — as ripe fruit falls from a tree that is shaken. Comp. Notes on Isa. xxxiv. 4. So also, Isa. Ixiv. 1-3. The meaning is not that the heavens themselves dropped down, but that they dropped or distilled rain and food. ^ Even Sinai itself was moved. This was true; but this does not seem to be the idea intended here, for the words " even " and " was moved " are not in the original. The Hebrew is, literally, " This Sinai;" meaning probably " this was at Sinai," — or, " this took place at Sinai." The correct translation perhaps would be, " The heavens distilled rain at the presence of God, this at Sinai, at the presence of God." % At the presence of God, the God of Israel. The whole region seemed to be moved and awed at the presence of God, or when he came down to visit his people. The earth and the heavens, all seemed to be in commotiou.

9 Thou, O God, didst ^ send a plentiful rain, i whereby thou didst confirm - thine inheritance, when it was weary.

10 Thy congregation hath

li. 12, where it is rendered />'(?e); then it means that which is given freely; and hence, abundantly. It means, therefore, in this place, plentiful, abundant. The refei'ence, however, is to the manna, with which the people were supplied from day to day, and which seemed to be shoivered upon them in abundance. The word rendered "didst send" means properly to shake out, as if God shook the clouds or the heavens, and the abundant supplies for their wants were thus shaken out. ^ Whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was iveary. Thou didst strengthen thy people when they were exhausted, or were in danger of fainting. In other words, God sent a supply of food — manna, quails, etc. — when they were in the pathless wilderness, and when they were ready to perish.

10. Thif congregation hath dioelt therein. In the land of promise; for the connexion requires us to understand it in this manner. The idea of the writer all along pertains to that land, and to the mercy which God had shown to it. After showing by an historical reference what God had done for the people in the wilderness, he returns here, though without expressly mentioning it, to the land of promise, and to what God had done there for his people. The word ren-

dwelt tlierein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the "* poor.

11 The Lord gave the word; great ivas the ^ company of those

dered congregation — nTT* lihaiyah — means properly a beast, an animal. Gen i. 30; ii. 19; vhi. 19; xxxvii. 20. Then it comes to be used as a collective noun, meaning a herd or fiock; thus, a troop of men, an army or host, 2 Sam. xxiii. 11, 13; and it is applied here to the people, under the idea so common in the Scriptures that God is a Shepherd. ^ Thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor. For thy flock considered as poor or wretched. That is, Thou hast provided for them when they had no resources of their o^vn, — when they were a poor, oppressed, and afflicted people, — wanderers wholly dependent on thee.

11. The Lord gave the ivord. The command, or the order. It is not certain to what the psalmist here refers; whether to some particular occasion then fresh in the recollection of the people, when a great victory had been gained, which it was the design of the psalm to celebrate; or whether it is a general statement in regard to the doings of God, having reference to all his victories and triumphs, and meaning that in all cases the command came from him. The subsequent verses make it evident that there is an allusion here to the ark of the covenant, and to the victories which had been achieved under that as a guide or protector. The entire psalm refers to the ark, and its triumphs; and the idea here seems to be, that in all the victories which had been achieved the " word " or the command came from God, and that its promulgation was immediately made by a "great company" who stood ready to communicate it or to " publish " it. ^ Great was the company of those that published it. Marg., army. More literally, "The

12 Kings of armies 2 (Jid flee apace; and she that tan-ied at home divided the spoil.

women publishing it were a great host." The word used is in the feminine gender, and refers to the Oriental custom whereby females celebrated victories in songs and dances. See Ex. xv. 20, 21; Judges xi. 34; xxi. 21; 1 Sam. xviii. 6, 7. The idea here is, that when there was a proclamation of war, — when God commanded his people to go out to battle, and to take with them the ark, the females of the laud — the singers — were ready to make known the proclamation; to celebrate the will of the Lord by songs and dances; to cheer and encourage their husbands, brothers, and fathers, as they went out to the conflict. The result is stated in the following verse.

12. Kings of armies did fee apace. Marg., as in Heb., did flee, did flee. This is the Hebrew mode of expressing that which is emphatic or superlative. It is by simply repeating the word. The idea is, that they fled speedily j they fled at once, and in alarm. The 12th and 13th verses are marked by De Wette as a quotation, and the language is supposed by him to be the substance of the song that was sung by the women as referred to in ver. 11. This supposition is not improbable. The reference is, undoubtedly, to the former victories achieved by the people of God when they went out to war; and the idea is, that when the command came, when God gave the word (ver. 11), their foes fled in consternation. ^ And she that tarried at home divided the spoil. The women remaining in their homes, while the men went out to war. On them devolved the office of dividing the plunder, and of giving the proper portions to each of the victors. They would take an interest in the battle, and receive the booty, and assign the portion due to each of the brave soldiers, — the more acceptable as given to them by female hands. Possibly, however, tbe meaning mai/ be, that the victors would bring the plunder home, and lay it at the feet of their wives and daughters to be divided among the women themselves. The dividing of the spoils of battle after a victory was always an important act. Comp. Judges v. 30; Josh. vii. 21; 1 Chron. xxvi. 27; Heb. vii. 4.

13. Though i/e have lien among the pots. There are few passages in the Bible more difficult of interpretation than this verse and the following. Our translators seem to have supposed that the whole refers to the ark, considered as having been neglected, or as having been suffered to remain among the common vessels of the tabernacle, until it became like those vessels in appearance, — that is, until its brilliancy had become tarnished by neglect, or by want of being cleaned and furbished, — yet that it would be again like the wings of a dove covered with silver, as it bad been formerly, and pure like the whitest snow. But it is not certain, if it is probable, that this is the meaning. Prof. Alexander renders it, " When ye lie down between the borders (ye shall be like) the wings of a dove covered with silver;" that is, " when the land had rest," or was restored to a state of tranquillity. De Wette renders it, " When ye rest between the cattlestalls:" expressing the same idea, that of quiet repose as among the herds of cattle lying calmly down to rest. The Septuagint renders it, " Though you may have slept in kitchens." The words rendered " Though ye have lien" mean literally, "If you have lain," alluding to some act or state of lying down quietly or calmly. The vei'b is in the plural number, but it is not quite clear what it refers to.

•wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold.

There is ajyparentli/ much confusion of number in the passage. The word rendered 'Spots'' — QTlD-.i^, shephat' taim — in the dual form, occurs only in this place and in Ezek. xl. 43, where it is translated hooks (marg., end-irons, or the two hearth-stones). Gesenius renders it here stalls, that is, folds for cattle, and supposes that in Ezekiel it denotes places in the temple-court, where the victims for sacrifice were fastened. Tholuck renders it, " When you shall again rest within your stone-borders [that is, within the limits of your own country, or within your own borders], ye shall be like the wings of a dove." For other interpretations of the passage, see llosenmiiller in loc. I confess that none of these explanations of the passage seem to me to be satisfactory, and that I cannot understand it. The wonder is not, however, that, in a book so large as the Bible, and written in a remote age, and in a language which has long ceased to be a spoken language, there should be here and there a passage which cannot now be made clear, but that there should be so few of that description. There is no ancient book that has not more difficulties of this kind than the Hebrew Scriptures. ^ Yet shall ye be as the icings of a dove covered tvith silver, etc. The phrase "yet shall ye be " is not in the original. The image here is simply one of heaiity. The allusion is to the changeable colours of the plumage of a dove, now seeming to be bright silver, and then, as the rays of light fall on it in another direction, to be yellow as gold. If the allusion is to the ark, considered as having been laid aside among the ordinary vessels of the tabernacle, and having become dark and dingy by neglect, then the meaning would be, that, when restored to its proper place, and with the proper degi'ee of attention and care bestowed upon it.

it would become a most beautiful object. If the allusion is to the people of the land considered either as lying down in dishonour, as //among filth, or as lying down calmly and quietly as the beasts do in their stalls, or as peacefully reposing within their natural limits or borders, the7i the meaning would be, that the spectacle would be most beautiful. The varied tints of loveliness in the land — the gardens, the farms, the flowers, the fruits, the vineyards, the orchards, the villages, the towns, the cheerful homes — would be like the dove — the emblem of calmness — so beautiful in the variety and the changeableness of its plumage. The comparison of a beautiful and variegated country with a dove is not a ver^ obvious one, and yet, in this view, it would not be wholly unnatural. It is not easy always to vindicate philosophically the images used in poetry; nor is it always easy for a Western mind to see the reasons of the images employed by an Oriental poet. It seems probable that the comparison of the land (considered as thus variegated in its beauty) with the changing beauties of the plumage of the dove is the idea intended to be conveyed by this verse; but it is not easy to make it out on strictly exegetical or philological principles.

1-i. When the Almighty scattered kings in it. The Hebrew here is, " In the scattering of [/.e. by] the Almighty of kings." The reference is to the act of God in causing kings to abandon their purposes of invasion, or to flee when their own countries were invaded. Comp. Ps. xlvlii. 5, G. The language here is so general that it might be applied to any such acts in the history of the Hebrew people; to any wars of defence or offence which they waged. It may have reference to the scattering of kings and people when Joshua invaded the land of Canaan, and when he discomfited

tered kings ^ in it, it was white as snow in Salmon.

the numerous forces, led by different kings, as the Israelites took possession of the country. The close connexion of the passage with the reference to the journey through the wilderness (vers. 7-9) would make it probable that this is the allusion. The phrase " in it," (marg., for her), refers doubtless to the land of Canaan, and to the victories achieved there. ^ It teas white as snow in Salmon. Marg., She teas. The allusion is to the land of Canaan. But about the meaning of the phrase " white as snow in Salmon," there has been great diversity of opinion. The word rendered " was white as snow " is correctly rendered. It means to be snowy; then, to be white like snow. The verb occurs nowhere else. The noun is of frequent occurrence, and is always rendered snoiv. Ex. iv. 6; Num. xii. 10; 2 Sam. xxiii. 20; 2 Kings v. 27; et al. The word Salmon properly means shady, and was applied to the mountain here referred to, probably on account of the dark forests which covered it. That mountain was in Samaria, near Shechem. Judges ix. 48. It is not known v/hy the snow of that mountain is particularly alluded to here, as if there was auy special whiteness or purity in it. It is probably specified by name only to give more vivacity to the description. There is much difference of opinion as to what is the meaning of the expression, or in what respects the land was thus tvhite. The most common opinion has been that it was from the bones of the slain which were left to bleach unburied, and which covered the land so that it seemed to be white. Comp. Virg. M\\. v. 865; xii. 36. Ovid uses similar language. Fast, i: " Humauis ossibus albet humus." So also Horace, Serm. 1, 8: " Albis informem spectabant ossibus agrum." This interpretation of the passage is adopted by Rosenmiiller, Gesenius, and De Wette.

15 TLe liill of God is as tlie hill of Baslian; an high hill, as

Others suppose it to mean that the land was like the dazzling whiteness of snow in the midst of blackness or darkness. This was the opinion of Kimchi, and this interpretation is adopted by Prof. Alexander. Tholuck supposes it to mean that, when war was waged on the kings and people, they fell as fast as snow-flakes on Mount Salmon; and that the idea is not so much the tvhiteness of the land, as the fact that they fell in great numbers, covering the land as the

' snow-flakes do. It is perhaps not possible to determine which of the^e explanations is correct. Either of them would accord with the meaning of the words and the general sense of the psalm. That of Tholuck is the most poetical, but it is less obvious from the He-brew words used.

15. The hill of God. The phrase " the hill of God," or the mountain of God, is elsewhere applied in the Scriptures only to Mount Horeb or Sinai (Ex. iii. 1; xviii. 5; xxiv. 13; 1 Kings xix. 8), and to Mount Zion, Ps. xxiv. 3; Isa. xxx. 29. There is no reason for supposing that there is a reference here to Mount Horeb or Sinai, as the psalm does not particularly relate to that mountain, and as there is nothing in the psalm to bring that mountain into comparison with other mountains. The allusion is, I think, clearly to Mount Zion; and

. the idea is, that that mountain, though it was not distinguished for its elevation or grandeur, — thongh it had nothing in itself to claim attention, or to excite wonder, — yet, from the fact that it had been selected as the place where God was to be worshipped, had an honour not less than that of the loftiest mountain, or than those which showed forth the Divine perfections by their loftiness and sublimity. There is connected with this, also, the idea that, although it might be less defensible by its natural position, yet, because God resided there, the hill of Bashan.

it was defended by his presence more certainly than loftier mountains were by their natural strength. It should be remarked, however, that many other interpretations have been given of the passage, but this seems to me to be its natural meaning. % Is as the hill of Bashan. Luther renders this, "The mount of God is a fruitbearing hill; a great and fruitbearing mountain." On the word Bashan, see Notes on Isa. ii. 13; xxxiii. 9; Ps. xxii. 12. Bashan was properly the region beyond Jordan, bounded on the north by Mount Hermon or the Anti-Libanus, and extending south as far as the stream Jabbok, and the mountains of Gilead. The "hill" of Bashan, or the " mountain of Bashan," was properly Mount Hermon — the principal mountain pertaining to Bashan. The name Bashan was properly given to the country, and not to the mountain. The mountain referred to — Hermon — is that lofty range which lies on the east of the Jordan, and in the northern part of the country — a range some twelve thousand feet in height. See Notes on Ps. xlii. 6. It is the most lofty and distinguished mountain in Palestine, and the idea here, as above expressed, is, that Mount Zion, though not so lofty, or not having so much in itself to attract attention, was not less honoured, and not less safe, as being the peculiar dwelling-place of God. ^ An high hill, etc. Or rather, a mount of peaks or ridges as Bashan. Mount Hermon was not a single hill, or a detached mountain, but a chain of mountains, — a range of lofty peaks or summits. So of Zion. It was by the presence and protection of God what Bashan was by its natural strength and grandeur. Comparatively low and unimportant as Zion was, it had in fact more in it to show Avhat God is, and to constitute safety, than there was in the loftiness and grandeur of Bashan. The latter.

16 Why leap ye, ye liigli hills? tliis i" is the hill which God desireth to dwell in; yea, the Lord will dwell in it for ever.

17 The chariots of God are

tlioiigb thus lofty and grand, bad no advantage over Zion, but Zion might in every way be compared with that lofty range of bills wbicb, by tbeir natural position, tbeir strengtb, and tbeir grandeur, showed forth so much the greatness and glory of God. The teaching would be, as applied to Zion, or the Church, that there is as much there to show the Divine perfections, to illustrate the greatness and the power of God, as there is in the most subhme works of nature; or that they who look upon the works of God in nature to learn his perfections, have no advantage over those who seek to learn what he is in his cbuixb.

16. Whi/ leap t/e, ye high hills 1 That is, with exultation;.with pride; with conscious superiority. Why do you seem to regard yourselves as so superior to Mount Zion, in strength, in beauty, in grandeur? The Hebrew, however, — l^Jl, ratzad — rather means, " Why do ye watch insidiously? why do ye look askance at V The word occurs only in this place. In Arabic it means to watch closely; to lie in wait for. This is the idea here. The mountains around Palestine — the mountains of the heathen world — the lofty hills — as if conscious of their grandeur, are represented as looking askance, in their pride, at Mount Zion; as eyeing it with silent contempt, as if it were not worthy of notice; as if it were so insigniticant that it had no claim to attention. The idea is not that of " leaping" as in our English Bible, or of " hopping," as in the version of the Episcopal Prayer Book, but that of a look of silent disdain, as if, by their side, Zion, so insignificant, was not worthy of regard. Perhaps, by the high hills here, however, are disguisedly also represented the mighty

twenty thousand, even i thousands '^ of angels: the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the holy lilace.

powers of the heathen world, as if looking with contempt on the people of the land where Zion was the place of worship. ^ This is the hill which God desireth to dwell in. The hill which he has selected as his abode, and which he has honoured above all the mountains of the earth, by his permanent residence there. As such, Zion has an honour above the loftiest hills and ranges of mountains in the earth. % Yea, the Lord tvill divell in it for ever. Permanently; he will make it his fixed habitation on earth. Notwithstanding the envy or the contempt of surrounding hills, ho will make this bis settled abode. He has chosen it; he delights in it; he will not forsake it for the mountains and hills that are in themselves more grand and lofty.

17. The chariots of God. The meaning of this verse is, that God is abundantly able to maintain his position on Mount Zion; to defend the place which he had selected as his abode. Though it has less natural strength than many other places have, — though other hills and mountains, on account of their natural grandeur, may be represented as looking on this with contempt, as incapable of defence, yet he who has selected it is fully able to defend it. He is himself encompassed with armies and chariots of war; thousands of angels guard the place which he has chosen as the place of his abode. Chariots, usually two-wheeled vehicles, often armed with scythes attached to their axles, were among the most powerful means of attack or defence in ancient warfu'e. See Notes on Ps. xx. 7; xlvi. 9; Isa. xxxi. 1; xxxvii. 24-; Comp. Ex. xiv. 7; Josh. xvii. 16; Judges iv. 15. ^ Are twenty thousand. A closer

18 Thou '■ liast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou s liast received gifts

version is iivo myriads, or twice ten thousand. The original word is in the dual form. The language is designed to denote a very great number. A myriad was a great number; the idea here is that even that great number was doubled. ^ Even thousands of angels. Marg., many thousands. The Hebrew is, thousands repeated, or multiplied. There is in the Hebrew no mention of angels. The Septuagint and the Vulgate render it, " thousands of the rejoicing;" that is, thousands of happy attendants. The original, however, would most naturally refer to the chariots, as being multiplied by thousands. ^ The Lord is among them. The real strength, after all, is not in Zion itself, or in the chariots of the Lord surrounding it, but in the Lord himself. He is there as the Head of the host; He, as the Protector of his chosen dwelling-place. ^ As in Sinai, in the holy place. Literally, " The Lord is among them; Sinai, in the sanctuary.'' The idea seems to be, that even Sinai with all its splendour and glory — the Lord himself with all the attending hosts that came down on Sinai — seemed to be in the sanctuary', the holy place on Mount Zion. All that there was of pomp and grandeur on Mount Sinai when God came down with the attending thousands of angels, was really around Mount Zion for its protection and defence.

18. Thou hast ascended on high. That is, Thou hast gone up to the high place; to thy thi'one; to thine abode. The idea is, that God had descended or come down from his dwelling-place in the case referred to in the psalm, and that having now secured a victory by vanquishing his foes, and having given deliverance to his people, he had now returned, or

^ for men; yea, for the rebellious ' also, that the Lord God might " dwell among them.

reascended to his seat. This may either mean his throne on earth, or his abode in heaven. It would seem most probable that the latter is the idea. ^ Thou hast led captivity captive. " Thou hast made captivity captive," or " Thou hast captured a captivity.'' The main idea is, that he had achieved a complete victory; he had led all his foes captive. The language tvoidd also express the idea that he had made captives for himself of those who were captives to others, or who were in subjection to another. As applied in the Christian sense, this would refer to those who were captives to Satan, and who were held in bondage by him, but who had been rescued by the Redeemer, and brought under another captivity ^ — the yielding of voluntary service to himself. Those once captives to sin were now led by him, captives in a higher sense. See Notes on Eph. iv. 8. % Thou hast received gifts for men. Marg., in the man. That is. Among men, or while among them as a conqueror. The idea here most naturally conveyed would be, that he had obtained "gifts," privileges, advantages, in man; that is, that men, considered as captives, constituted the victory which he had achieved — the advantage which he had acquired. It was not so much jTor them as in them, and hy them, to wit, by possessing them as captives or subjects to him. With this victory achieved, he had now ascended on high. ^ Yea, for the rebellious also. Or, more properly, even the rebellious. That is. Those who had been in a state of rebellion he had subdued to himself, and had thus led captivity captive. It was a triumph by which they had become subdued to him. *[[ That the Loed God might divell among them.

19 Blessed be the Lord, ivho daily loadetli us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.

"20 He that is our God is the

Literally, For the dwelling of Jah, Ood. The idea is, that he had achieved such a triumph; he had so brought the rebellious under subjection to himselt", that he could take up his abode witk them, or dwell with them as his people. His rule could be extended over them, and they would acknowledge him as their sovereign. This would be applicable to a people in ancient times that had been subdued by the people of God. It might now be properly applied, also, to sinners who by tlie power of truth' have been so subdued as to submit to God. It is applicable to all who have been conquered by the Gospel — whose enmity has been slain —who have been changed from enemies to friends — so that the Lord may dwell in their hearts, or rule over them. This passage is applied by the apostle Paul (Eph, iv. 8) to the Messiah, not as having original reference to him, but as suggesting language which would appropriately express the nature of his work, and the glory of his triumph. See Notes on that place.

19. Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, etc. Literally, day, day; that is, day by day; or, constantly. The words " with benefits " are not in the original, and they do not convey the true idea of the passage. The word rendered loadeth means to take up; to lift, as a stone, Zech. xii. 3; to bear, to carry, Isa. xlvi. 3. Then it means " to take up and place upon a beast of burden;" to load, Isa. xlvi. 1; Gen. xliv. 13. Hence it means to impose or lay a burden or a load on one; and the idea here is, " Blessed be the Lord God even if he lays a burden on us, and if he does this daily; for he is the God of our salvation." He enables us to bear it; he gives us strength; and finally he deli-

God of salvation; and " unto God the Lord belong the issues from death.

vers us from it. Though, therefore, he constantly lays on us a burden, he as constantly aids us to bear it. He does not leave us. He enables us to triumph in him, and through him; and we have occasion constantly to honour and to praise his name. This accords with the experience of all his people, tliat however heavy may be the burden laid on them, and however constant their trials, they find him as constant a helper, and they daily have occasion to praise and bless him,

20. He that is our God is the Ood of salvation. Literally, " God is for us a God of salvation." That is, The God whom we worship is the God from whom salvation comes, and who brings salvation to us. It is not a vain thing that we serve him, for he is the only being who can save us, and he will save us. ^ And unto God the Lord belong the issues from death. The outgoings or escapes from death. That is. He only can save from death. The Hebrew word means, properly, a going forth, a deliverance; then, a place of going forth, as a gate, Ezek. xlviii. 30; a fountain, Prov.iv. 23. Probably the only idea intended here by the psalmist was, that safety or deliverance from death proceeds solely from God. The sentiment, however, is true in a larger sense. All that pertains to deliverance from death, all that prepares for it, all that makes it easy to be borne, all that constitutes a rescue from its pains and horrors, all that follows death in a higher and more blessed ^vorld, all that makes death final, and places us in a condition where death is no more to be dreaded, — all this belongs to God. All this is under his control. He only can enable us to bear death; he only can conduct us from a bed of death to a world where we shall never die.

21 But God shall wound '" the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses,

22 The Lord said, I will bring again ^ from Bashan; I will

21. £ut God shall toomid the head of his enemies. More properly, " God shall crush the head," etc. The idea is that of complete destruction, — as, if the head is crushed, life becomes extinct. See Gen. iii. 15; comp. Ps. ex. 6. % And the hairy scalp. More literally, the top of the hair. The Hebrew word used here for scalp means the vertex, the top, the crown, as of the head, where the hair divides itself; and the idea is properly, the dividing of the hair. Gesenius, Lex. The allusion is to the top of the head; that is, the blow would descend on the top of the head, producing death. ^ Of such an one as goeth on still in Ms trespasses. Of the man who perseveres in a course of wickedness. If he repents, God will be merciful to him; if he persists in sin, he will be punished. The literal rendering would be, " the hairy scalp going on, or going [sc. ahouf] in his trespasses." The reference is to a wicked man continuing in his transgressions.

22. The Lord said, L toil I bring again from Bashan. On the situation of Bashan, see Notes on ver. 15. There may be an allusion here to the victory achieved over Og, king of Bashan, in the time of Moses, Num. xxi. 33-35. The idea may be that as, at that time, a victory was achieved over a formidable enemy, so in times of similar peril, God would deliver his people, and save them from danger. Or, as Bashan was the remote frontier of the Holy Laud, the meaning may be, that God would bring his people from the remotest borders where they should be scattered. Another meaning is suggested by Professor Alexander, viz., that as the subject referred to iu the subsequent verses is bring my people v again from the depths of the sea:

23 That thy foot may be ^ dipped in the blood = of thine eneniies, and the tongue of thy dogs in the same.

24 They have seen thy goings,

the enemy of God, the meaning may be that God would bring back his enemies for punishment, even from the remotest borders, when they were endeavouring to escape, and even v;hen they supposed they were safe. The first of these opinions is probably the true one. God would rescue his people, as he had done from the attacks of the mighty king of Bashan; he would deliver them, as he had brbught their fathers from the depths of the sea. ^ L ivill bring my people again from the depths of the sea. The words my people are not in the Hebrew, but they seem to be not improperly supplied by the translators. If so, the allusion is to the interposition of God in conducting his people through the Red Sea (Exod. xiv. 22); and the idea is, that God would at all times interpose in their behalf, and deliver them from similar dangers.

23. That thy foot may be dipped in the blood ofthine enemies, etc. Marg., red. A more literal rendering would be, " That thou mayest crush — thy foot in blood — the tongue of thy dogs from the enemies, fro4n him." The idea o? dipping the foot in blood is not in the passage directly; but the leading thought is that of crushing the enemy. It is then added that the foot would be in blood. So of the tongue of the dogs. The meaning is, that the tongues of dogs would be employed in licking up the blood of the enemies, though that is not expressed in so many words. The sense of the whole is, that the foes of the people would be slain.

24. They have seen thy goings, O God. That is, the lookers on in the solemn procession referred to in ver. 25; or, in other words. Thy goings

O God; even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary. 25 The singers " -went before, the players on instiiiments followed after; among them were the

have been attended by pomp and magnificence, and have been witnessed by multitudes. The word " goings " here refers to the solemn triumphal processions which celebrated the victories achieved by God. % Even the goings of my God, my King. The psalmist here speaks of God as his God and his King. The idea seems to have suddenly crossed his mind that this great God, so glorious, '\?,his God. He exults aiid rejoices that He ■whom he adores is such a God; that a God so great and glorious is his. So the believer now, when he looks upon the works of God, when he contemplates their vastness, their beauty, and their grarfdeur, is permitted to feel that the God who made them is his God; to find consolation in the thought that his " Father made them all."

'■' He looks abroad into the varied field Of jS'ature, and, though poor, perhaps, compared With those whose mansions glitter in his sight, Calls tlie dehglitful scenery all liis own. His are the mountains, and the valleys his. And the resplendent rivers; — his to enjoy "With a propriety that none can feel But who, with filial confidence inspired. Can lift to heaven an unpresumptuous eye, And smiling say, 'My iather made them aUI' Are they not his by a peculiar right. And by an emphasis of interest his, "Whose eye they fill with tears of holy joy, Whose heart with praise, and whose exalted mind With worthy thoughts of that unwearied love That plann'd, and biult, and still upholds a world So clothed with beauty for rebellious man?" Task, Book v.

^ In the sanctuary. Or, to the sanctuary; in other words, as the ark was borne to the sanctuary, the place appointed for its rest; for, as above remarked, the psalm seems to have been composed on such an occasion.

damsels playing with timbrels.

26 Bless ye God in the congregations; even the Lord, ^ from the fountain of Israel.

25. The singers tvent hefore. That is, in the removal of the ark; in the solemn procession referred to in the previous verse. In that procession those who sang preceded those who performed on instruments of music. Comp. 1 Chron. xiii. 8; xv. 16. ^ The players on instruments ibllowed after. The different classes of performers would naturally be ranged together, lu 1 Chron. xiii. 8, the following instruments of music are mentioned as having been employed on a similar occasion, if not on this very occasion; — harps, psalteries, timbrels, cymbals, and trumpets. ^ Among them were the damsels playing with timbrels. The true construction of the passage is, " Behind were the players in the midst of damsels playing." The singers and the players were surrounded by these women playing on timbrels. The word rendered " playing with timbrels " — f]Dn, taphaph — means to strike, to beat; and hence to strike or beat upon a timbrel. A timbrel is a kind of drum, a tabret, or tambourine, usually beaten with the fingers. See a description of it in the Notes on Isa. v. 12, under the word tabret. It is an instrument which has been in use from the remotest antiquity.

26. Bless ye God in the congregations. In the assemblages of the people; not only as individuals, but in solemn processions; in triumphal marches; when the people are assembled together. In this pubhc manner acknowledge God as the true God, and render him praise. ^ Even the lord, from the fountain of Israel. Marg., " Ye that are of;" that is, of the fountain of Israel. The margin has undoubtedly expressed the correct idea. The appeal is to the Hebrew people represented as descending from

27 There is little Benjamin with their ruler, the princes of Judah ^ and their council, the princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.

a common stock or ancestor — Jacob 01' Israel, — as a stream or river flows from a fountain. Comp. Notes on Isa. xlviii. 1; see also Isa. li. 1; Dent, xxxiii. 28. All the descendants of Jacob or Israel are thus called on to unite in solemnly praising the Lord their God.

27. There is little Benjamin. In tbat solemn procession. That is, the tribe of Benjamin is represented there; or, there are in the procession those who are connected with that tribe. The name " little " is given to the tribe either because Benjamin was the youngest of the sons of Jacob, or, more probably, because that tribe was among the smallest of the tribes of Israel. In fact, the tribe was so small, as compared with that of Judah, for instance, that, after the revolt of the ten tribes, the name of Benjamin was lost, and the whole nation was called, after the tribe of Judah, Jeios. ^ With their ruler. The word unih is not in the original. The Hebrew is literally ruling them. This would seem to mean that, on the occasion referred to, Benjamin, or those who were connected with that tribe, had the oversight, or the direction of those who were engaged in this solemn procession. Though small, it had the preeminence on this occasion. To it was committed the important duty of presiding over these solemnities; that is, those who were prominent in the arrangements for the occasion were of the tribe of Benjamin. This seems to me to be a better explanation than to suppose, as Professor Alexander does, that it has reference to the enemies of the people of God, and that Benjamin had conquered or subdued them. ^ The princes of Judah. The principal men of the tribe of Judah. % And their council. Marg., wit/i their company. Tlie Hebrew word

28 Thy God hath commanded thy strength: ^ strengthen, O God, that which thou hast wrought for us.

here — n?0!i."1. rigmah — means crowd, throng, band. It never means com72c?7. The idea is, evidently, that large numbers of the tribe of Judah attended,— that the " princes" or leaders were accompanied by throngs of their own people; — in allusion to the fact that Judah was one of the largest of the tribes of Israel, — and in contrast with Benjamin, which was few in number, and yet thus occupied the most honourable place as having charge of the arrangements. ^ The princes of Zebulun, and the j^fi^ices of Naphtali. These were remote or border tribes, and they seem to be mentioned here to show that all the tribes were represented; that is, that this was a national celebration. The fact that these tribes are mentioned as being represented on the occasion, proves that this psalm was composed before the revolt of the ten tribes, and the formation of the kingdom of Israel; that is, as earlg as the time of Solomon. This increases the probability that the psalm was written by David.

28. Thg God hath commanded thy strength. Has ordered thy strength to appear, or to be manifested. This is addressed, evidently, to the people of the land; and the idea is, that, on this occasion, God had called forth a full representation of the strength of the nation; or, as we should say, there had been a full " turn out." It was an impressive sight, showing the real strength of the people. ^ Strengthen, O God, that ivhich thou hast tvroiight for us. Increase the strength thus manifested. Let it be still greater. The scene is now impressive and grand; make it still more so, by adding to the number and the prosperity of thy people. This is an illustration of the desii-e in the heart of every pious man that, whatever pros-

29 Because of tliy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto thee.

30 Rebuke * the company of spearmen, the multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the people, till evet-y otie submit himself with pieces of silver: ^ scatter perity God may have given to his people, he would give a still larger measure, — that however greatly he may have increased their numbers, he would add to them many more. This desire of the heart of piety will not be satisfied until the whole world shall be converted to God.

29. Because of thy temple at Jerusalem. The word rendered temple here pi'operly means a palace; then, • the abode of God considered as a king, or his residence as a king. It might, therefore, be applied either to the tabernacle or to the temple, erected as the peculiar dwelling-place of God. As the word has so general a meaning, the passage here does not prove that the psaim was composed after Solomon's temple was reared, for it may refer to the tabernacle that David set up for the ark on Mount Zion. See Notes on Ps. v. 7; Ixv. 4. ^ At Jerusalem. Literally, upon, or above Jerusalem. Perhaps the idea is, that as the place of worship was built on Mount Zion, it was above, or seemed to overhang the city. The city was built mostly in the valleys that lay between the different hills or eminences—Mount Zion, Mount Moriah, Mount OpheL ^ Shall kings bring presents unto thee. In honour of God and his religion. Comp. Ps. Ixxii. 10. See also Notes on Isa. xlix. 7, 23; ix. 5, 16.

30. RebiiJce tlie company of spearmen. Marg., the beasts of the reeds. This is in the form of a prayer — *' Rebuke;^' but the idea is, that this would occur; and the meaning of the whole verse, though there is much difficulty in interpreting the particular expressions, is, that the most formidable enemies of the people of God, represented here by wild beasts, would be subdued, and would be made to show their submission by bringing presents, — by " pieces of silver," — or, with tribute. Thus the idea corresponds with that in the previous verse, that "kings would bring presents." The rendering in the margin here expresses the meaning of the Hebrew. It might perhaps be possible to make out from the Hebrew the sense in our common ti-anslation, but it is not the obvious meaning, and would not accord so well with the scope of the passage. On the word rendered company, which primarily means an animal, see Notes on ver. 10 of this psalm. It is applied to an army as being formidable, or terrible, like a wild beast. The word rendered spearmen— njpj Jcaneh — means a reed or cane; calamus. Comp. Notes on Isa. xlii. 3; xxxvi. 6. This phrase, " the beast of the reeds," would properly denote a wild beast, as living among the reeds or canes that sprang up on the banks of a river, and having his home there. It would thus, perhaps, most naturally suggest the crocodile, but it might also be applicable to a lion or other wild beast that had its dwelling in the jungles or bushes on the banks of a river. Comp. Jer. xlix. 19; 1. 44. The comparison here would, therefore, denote any powerful and fierce monarch or people that might be compared with such a fierce beast. There is no particular allusion to Egypt, as being the abode of the crocodile, but the reference is more general, and the language would imply that fierce and savage people — kings who might be compared with wild beasts that had their homes in the deep and inaccessible thickets — would come bending with the tribute money, with pieces of silver, in token of their subjection to God. ^ The multitude of the bulls. Fierce and warlike kings, who might be compared with bulls. See Notes on Ps.

thou the people that delight in war.

31 Princes shall come out of xxii. 12. % With the calves of the people. That is, the nations that might be compared with the calves of such wild herds, — fierce, savage, powerful. Their leadei-s might be compared with the bulls; the people — the multitudes — were like the wild and lawless herd of young ones that accompanied them. The general idea is, that the most wild and savage nations would come and acknowledge their subjection to God, and would expi-ess that subjection by an appropriate offering. ^ Till every one submit himself with pieces of silver. The word here rendered submit means properly to tread with the feet, to trample upon; and then, in the form here used, to let oneself be trampled under feet, to prostrate oneself; to humble oneself. Here it means that they would come and submissively offer silver as a tribute. That is, they would acknowledge the authority of God, aud become subject to him. Tf Scatter thou the people that delight in tear. Marg., He scattereth. The margin expresses the sense most accurately. The reference is to God. The psalmist sees the work already accomplished. In anticipation of the victory of God over his foes, he sees them already discomfited and put to flight. The mighty hosts which had been arrayed against the people of God are dissipated and driven asunder; or, in other words, a complete victory is obtained. The people that *' delighted in war" were those that had a pleasure in arraying themselves against the people of God, — the enemies that had sought their overthrow. 31. Princes shall come out of Egypt. That is. Shall come and acknowledge the true God. Egypt is referred to here as one of the most prominent of the foreign nations then known; and the idea is, that the distinguished men of foreign nations — the rulers and princes of the world — would come