XXXVII. This psalm is mainly composed of quotations and adaptations from older writings, especially the Book of Proverbs (see notes _passim_)_,_ which are strung together with no other art than that suggested by the alphabetical arrangement, all having one end, to comfort the pious Israelite under t... [ Continue Reading ]
FRET... — This verb, repeated in Psalms 37:7, is found besides only in Proverbs 24:19. Its meaning is _to heat or inflame oneself._ NEITHER BE THOU ENVIOUS... — This has a similar root-meaning (comp. our “burn with jealousy”), and so is in close parallelism with “fret.” This verse occurs almost wor... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THEY... — This inevitable metaphor for the brevity of human life, made still more forcible in an Eastern clime where vegetation is so rapid both in growth and decay, and generally in the Bible applied, without distinction of good or bad, with a mournful sigh over human weakness, becomes here a s... [ Continue Reading ]
The alphabetic structure helps the poet to make an emphatic threefold exhortation to piety. _Trust in Jehovah; commit thy way to Jehovah; rest in Jehovah._ SO SHALT THOU DWELL... — The Authorised Version is quite right in taking the verbs in this clause as futures. (Comp. Psalms 37:11; Psalms 37:18... [ Continue Reading ]
COMMIT... — See margin, and Psalms 22:8. (Comp. Proverbs 16:3.) In Psalms 55:22 the word is different.... [ Continue Reading ]
THE LIGHT. — The image is from an Eastern dawn and the progress of the sun to its meridian glory. (Comp. Job 11:17; Isaiah 58:10.)... [ Continue Reading ]
REST... — Better, _Hush! Be still!_ See margin. The good man, seeing merit unrewarded and wickedness, on the other hand, constantly successful, is tempted to repine. For a later echo of the poet’s thought, irradiated by Christian hope, we may recur to Coleridge’s well-known “Complaint” and its “repr... [ Continue Reading ]
IN ANY WISE TO DO EVIL... — Better, _only to do evil, i.e.,_ only evil can come of it. Comp. Proverbs 14:23, “tendeth only to penury.”... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR YET A LITTLE... — Better, For yet a little while, and the wicked is not; Thou lookest at his place, and he is not; _i.e.,_ he has dropped out of his place in society, his tribe knows him no more.... [ Continue Reading ]
SHALL INHERIT. — A repetition of Psalms 37:3. — Better, _are heirs of the land, i.e.,_ Canaan. Christ’s Beatitude (see Matthew 5:3, _N. Test. Commentary_) widens the promise and lifts it to a higher level. The quiet, unpretending, contented servant of God gets more true blessedness out of the earth,... [ Continue Reading ]
SHALL LAUGH. — Comp. Psalms 2:4, Note; his day, _i.e.,_ the day of trouble or retribution for the wicked, as we see from Psalms 137:7; Job 18:20, etc.... [ Continue Reading ]
THEIR SWORD. — The _lex talionis._ (Comp. Psalms 7:15.)... [ Continue Reading ]
A LITTLE. — A natural reflection, when it is remembered that great riches bring corresponding cares (Proverbs 15:16), and often lead to ruinous indulgence and luxury (Proverbs 13:25; Job 20:12.) Besides, the contentment which is often enjoyed in virtuous poverty seldom dwells with the mammon of unri... [ Continue Reading ]
THE ARMS — _i.e.,_ of the body, not the sword and bow mentioned above. In contrast, the arms of Jehovah are under the righteous, and uphold him.... [ Continue Reading ]
KNOWETH. — See Psalms 1:6, Note.... [ Continue Reading ]
AS THE FAT OF LAMBS. — It is now generally allowed that this should be rendered _as the glory of the meadows,_ recurring to the image of Psalms 37:2. The next clause may then be either, _they are consumed, with smoke they are consumed;_ or, _they pass away, like smoke they pass away. _... [ Continue Reading ]
THE STEPS. — Comp. Proverbs 20:24; Proverbs 16:9, passages which are in favour of a general interpretation here, not confined to the good man. Render, _man’s steps are established by Jehovah, i.e.,_ all the stability in human conduct comes from His guidance.... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE LORD. — In the Hebrew the stanza that should begin with the letter _ayin_ is wanting, but may be restored by a very slight change, to agree with the Codex Alex., of the LXX., the Vulg. and Symmachus. “The unjust shall be punished.” Probably the transcriber was misled by the _tsaddê_ of the... [ Continue Reading ]
IN GREAT POWER. — Terrible, like a tyrant. GREEN BAY TREE. — The Hebrew word elsewhere implies a “native” as opposed to “a foreigner.” So here _an indigenous tree._ “It may be questioned whether any particular tree is intended by the psalmist; but if so, it must have been an evergreen, and may poss... [ Continue Reading ]
YET HE PASSED AWAY. — This should be, _And there went one by,_ &c. LXX. and Vulg. have, “And I passed by.” (Comp. Prayer Book version.)... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE END OF THAT MAN IS PEACE. — This is quite wrongly translated, since _acharîth_ must here mean, as in Psalms 109:13; Amos 4:2; Amos 9:1, “posterity.” The parallelism decides in favour of this. Mark the honest man, and behold the upright; For a posterity (shall be) to the man of peace: But tr... [ Continue Reading ]