1._Unto thee, O Jehovah! etc _The Psalmist declares at the very outset, that he is not driven hither and thither, after the manner of the ungodly, but that he directs all his desires and prayers to God alone. Nothing is more inconsistent with true and sincere prayer to God, than to waver and gaze ab... [ Continue Reading ]
2._O my God! I have put my trust in thee. _By this verse we learn, (what will appear more clearly afterwards,) that David had to do with men; but as he was persuaded that his enemies were, as it were, the scourges of God, he with good reason asks that God would restrain them by his power, lest they... [ Continue Reading ]
3._Yea, none of those, etc. _If these words should be explained in the form of a desire, as if David had said, Let none who wait on thee be put to shame, (553) then, in this verse, he continues his prayer, and extends to all the faithful in common what he had spoken of himself alone. But I am rather... [ Continue Reading ]
4._O Jehovah! make me to know thy ways. _By _the ways of the Lord, _David sometimes means, as we have seen in another place, the happy and prosperous issue of affairs, but more frequently he uses this expression to denote the rule of a holy and righteous life. As the term _truth _occurs in the immed... [ Continue Reading ]
At the same time, we ought to observe the argument which David here employs to enforce his prayer. By calling God _the God of his salvation, _he does so in order to strengthen his hope in God for the future, from a consideration of the benefits which he had already received from him; and then he rep... [ Continue Reading ]
6._Remember, O Jehovah; _From this it appears, in the first place, that David was grievously afflicted and tried, so much so that he had lost all sense of God’s mercy: for he calls upon God to remember for him his favor, in such a manner as if he had altogether forgotten it. This, therefore, is the... [ Continue Reading ]
7._Remember not the sins of my youth. _As our sins are like a wall between us and God, which prevents him from hearing our prayers, or stretching forth his hand to help us, David now removes this obstruction. It is indeed true, in general, that men pray in a wrong way, and in vain, unless they begin... [ Continue Reading ]
8._Good and upright is Jehovah. _Pausing for a little as it were in the prosecution of his prayer, he exercises his thoughts in meditation upon the goodness of God, that he may return with renewed ardor to prayer. The faithful feel that their hearts soon languish in prayer, unless they are constantl... [ Continue Reading ]
9._He will guide the poor in judgment. _The Psalmist here specifies the second manifestation of his grace which God makes towards those who, being subdued by his power, and brought under his yoke, bear it willingly, and submit themselves to his government. But never will this docility be found in an... [ Continue Reading ]
10._All the ways of Jehovah. _This verse is erroneously interpreted by those who think that the doctrine of the law is here described as true and sweet, and that those who keep it feel it indeed to be so, as if this passage were of the same import as that which was spoken by Jesus Christ, “My yoke... [ Continue Reading ]
11._For thy name’s sake, O Jehovah! _As in the original text the copulative _and _is inserted between the two clauses of this verse, some think that the first clause is incomplete, and that some word ought to be supplied; and then they read these words, _Be thou merciful to mine iniquity, etc., _as... [ Continue Reading ]
12._Who is the man. _By again recalling to his mind the character in which God manifests himself towards his servants, he derives new strength and courage. For we have said, that nothing more readily occurs than a relaxation in earnest and attentive prayer, unless it be sustained by the recollection... [ Continue Reading ]
13._His soul shall dwell in good. _If the supreme felicity of man consists in undertaking or attempting nothing except by the warrant of God, it follows that it is also a high and incomparable benefit to have him for our conductor and guide through life, that we may never go astray. But, in addition... [ Continue Reading ]
14._The counsel of Jehovah. _The Psalmist here confirms what he had just said in a preceding verse, namely, that God will faithfully discharge the office of a teacher and master to all the godly; and, after his usual manner, he repeats the same sentiment twice in the same verse for the _covenant of... [ Continue Reading ]
15._Mine eyes are continually towards Jehovah. _David here speaks of his own faith, and of its perseverance, not in the way of boasting, but to encourage himself in the hope of obtaining his requests, so that he might give himself the more readily and cheerfully to prayer. As the promise is made to... [ Continue Reading ]
16._Have respect unto me. _As the flesh is ever ready to suggest to our minds that God has forgotten us, when he ceases to manifest his power in aiding us, David here follows the order which nature dictates, in asking God to have respect unto him, as if he had altogether neglected him before. Now, i... [ Continue Reading ]
17._The troubles of my heart are enlarged. _In this verse he acknowledges not only that he had to contend outwardly with his enemies and the troubles which they occasioned him, but that he was also afflicted inwardly with sorrow and anguish of heart. It is also necessary to observe the manner of exp... [ Continue Reading ]
18._Look upon mine affliction. _By repeating these complaints so frequently, he plainly shows that the calamities with which he was assailed were not some slight and trivial evils. And this ought to be carefully marked by us, so that when trials and afflictions shall have been measured out to us aft... [ Continue Reading ]
19._Behold mine enemies. _In this verse David complains of the number and cruelty of his enemies, because the more the people of God are oppressed, the more is he inclined to aid them; and in proportion to the magnitude of the danger by which they are surrounded, he assists them the more powerfully.... [ Continue Reading ]
21._Let integrity and uprightness preserve me. _Some are of opinion, that in these words David simply prays that he may be preserved from all mischief, on the ground that he had conducted himself inoffensively towards others, and had abstained from all deceit and violence. Others make the words to c... [ Continue Reading ]
22._Do thou, O God! redeem Israel. _By this conclusion David shows of what character the enemies were of whom he complained. From this it would appear that they were domestic enemies, who, like some disease raging within the bowels, were now the cause of trouble and vexation to the people of God. By... [ Continue Reading ]