1._God shall arise: his enemies shall be scattered _In this verse the Psalmist intimates, as it were by way of preface, the subject which he proposed to treat in the psalm, and which related to the truth that God, however long he may seem to connive at the audacity and cruelty of the enemies of his... [ Continue Reading ]
3_But the righteous shall be glad _It is here intimated by David, that when God shows himself formidable to the wicked, this is with the design of securing the deliverance of his Church. He would seem indirectly to contrast the joy of which he now speaks with the depression and grief felt by well af... [ Continue Reading ]
4_Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: exalt him _(12) _that rideth, etc. _He now proceeds to call upon the Lord’s people to praise God. And he begins by pointing out the grounds in general, as I have already hinted, which they have for this exercise, because he comprehends the whole world under... [ Continue Reading ]
7_O God! when thou wentest forth before thy people, etc. _The Psalmist now proceeds to show that the Divine goodness is principally displayed in the Church, which God has selected as the great theater where his fatherly care may be manifested. What follows is evidently added with the view of leading... [ Continue Reading ]
9._Thou, O God! shalt make a liberal rain to fall _(19) _upon thine inheritance _Mention is made here of the continued course of favor which had been extended to the people from the time when they first entered the promised land. It is called _the inheritance of God, _as having been assigned over to... [ Continue Reading ]
11._The Lord shall give the word, etc. _David now adverts to the victories by which God had signally displayed his power in behalf of his people. He had himself been the instrument of restoring peace to the country, by putting down its foes, and he had extended the boundaries of the kingdom; but he... [ Continue Reading ]
13._Though ye should lie among the pots _(25) Having spoken of God as fighting the battles of his people, he adds, by way of qualification, that they may lie for a time under darkness, though eventually God will appear for their deliverance; There can be little doubt that he hints at the state of wr... [ Continue Reading ]
14._When the Almighty scattered kings in it _We might read _extended, _or _divided kings, etc., _and then the allusion would be to his leading them in triumph. But the other reading is preferable, and corresponds better with what was said above of their being put to flight. There is more difficulty... [ Continue Reading ]
15._The hill of God, the hill of Bashan _Here he adverts to the spring and source of all the kindness which God had shown, this being the circumstance that he had chosen mount Zion as the place of his palace and temple, whence all blessings should go out to the nation. A Divine declaration to that e... [ Continue Reading ]
16._Why leap ye, _(32) _ye high hills? _In this verse there is no obscurity or ambiguity. David having said that there was only one mountain in all the world which God had chosen, calls upon the highest hills to yield it the pre-eminency. As he repeats in the plural number what had been said immedia... [ Continue Reading ]
17._The chariots of God are twenty thousand thousands of angels. _(34) For the most part, we are apt to undervalue the Divine presence, and therefore David presents us with a description fitted to exalt our thoughts of it. Owing to our unbelieving hearts, the least danger which occurs in the world w... [ Continue Reading ]
18._Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive _There can be little doubt that these words are intended to magnify the proofs of Divine favor granted upon the elevation of David to the throne, by contrasting the state of matters with that under Saul. The _ascending on high _implies... [ Continue Reading ]
19._Blessed be the Lord, etc. _David would have us to understand, that in recounting the more particular deliverances which God had wrought, he did not mean to draw our minds away from the fact, that the Church is constantly and at all times indebted for its safety to the Divine care and protection.... [ Continue Reading ]
21._Surely God shall wound, etc. _The enemies of the Church are fierce and formidable, and it is impossible that she can be preserved from their continued assaults, without a vigorous protection being extended. To persuade us that she enjoys such a defense, David represents God as armed with dreadfu... [ Continue Reading ]
22._The Lord said, I will bring back from Bashan. _That the Israelites might not be led to take an irreligious and self-glorious view of their victories; that they might look to God as the author of them; and rest assured of his protection in time to come, David sends them back to the first periods... [ Continue Reading ]
24._They have seen thy goings, O God! _This verse may refer to processions of a warlike kind, or to such as are made in times of peace by those who give thanks for victory. It is customary for the people of God, on occasions of the latter description, to go forth and present peace-offerings in the t... [ Continue Reading ]
25._The singers went before _It is evident that he does not now speak of an army in battle array, but of a solemn assembly held for offering up thanksgivings to God for victory. God had openly shown that he was their leader in war, and to him the song of triumph is with propriety addressed. Mention... [ Continue Reading ]
28._Thy God hath commanded thy strength _Men are always disposed to arrogate to themselves the glory of what they may have done instead of tracing their success to God, and David reminds the people once more that they had not triumphed by their own strength, but by power communicated from above. If... [ Continue Reading ]
30._Destroy the company of spearmen _Some read _rebuke, _but I approve of the distinction which has been noticed by those who are most skilled in the Hebrew language, that while the verb גער, _gear, _has this meaning when the letter ב _beth, _is interposed, it signifies without it _to destroy. _The... [ Continue Reading ]
31._Princes shall come out of Egypt. _He resumes the strain of thanksgiving, and confirms what he had previously asserted, that kings would come and pay tribute unto God. The examples which he brings forward are those of the Egyptians and Ethiopians. This sufficiently proves that the prediction must... [ Continue Reading ]
In the next verse he goes farther than before, and calls upon _the kingdoms of the earth to praise God, _language which implies that those who had once been distinguished by their hostility to him would be ranked amongst his willing worshippers. There must be the knowledge of God, as I have remarked... [ Continue Reading ]
34._Give strength unto God over Israel _The expression is in allusion to the sentence which went before, and in which God was said to send forth a strong or mighty voice. Not that, properly speaking, we can give anything to Him, but, disposed as we are to withhold that honor which is his due, David... [ Continue Reading ]