INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 59 TO THE CHIEF MUSICIAN, ALTASCHITH, MICHTAM OF DAVID; WHEN SAUL SENT, AND THEY WATCHED THE HOUSE TO KILL HIM. The history of Saul's sending messengers to watch the house of David, and to kill him when he rose in the morning, is in 1 Samuel 19:11; which was the occasion of h... [ Continue Reading ]
DELIVER ME FROM MINE ENEMIES, O MY GOD,.... David had his enemies in his youth, notwithstanding the amiableness of his person, the endowments of his mind, his martial achievements, his wise behaviour and conduct, and the presence of God with him; yea, it were some of these things that made Saul his... [ Continue Reading ]
DELIVER ME FROM THE WORKERS OF INIQUITY,.... Psalms 6:8; AND SAVE ME FROM BLOODY MEN; such as Saul sent to kill David, as appears from the title of the psalm; and such as were concerned in the death of Christ; and such, are the enemies of God's people, the followers of the man of sin. The heap of... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR, LO, THEY LIE IN WAIT FOR MY SOUL,.... As the men did that watched his house, when Saul sent to kill him; so the Jews sought and lay in wait to take away the life of Christ; and very often was it the case of the Apostle Paul, that he was in danger of his life, through the lying in wait of the Je... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY RUN AND PREPARE THEMSELVES WITHOUT [MY] FAULT,.... Or, "without sin [in me]"; or "without punishment [in them]"; so the same word is rendered, 1 Samuel 28:10. "They run", in an hostile manner, "against me", as the Syriac version adds; or like dogs up and down, about the city, to find him and ki... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU THEREFORE, O LORD GOD OF HOSTS,.... Of the armies in heaven, the angels, and of all the inhabitants of the earth; who are all under him, and at his dispose, and can do among them and with them whatsoever he pleases; THE GOD OF ISRAEL; of the people of Israel, literally understood; and mystical... [ Continue Reading ]
THEY RETURN AT EVENING,.... It was at evening Saul sent messengers to watch David's house, that they might take him in the morning; but missing him, perhaps after a fruitless search for him all the day, returned at evening to watch his house again; or they might come, and go and return the first eve... [ Continue Reading ]
BEHOLD, THEY BELCH OUT WITH THEIR MOUTH,.... Bark like dogs, so Aben Ezra; or "bubble out" u, as a fountain bubbles out with water; so they cast out their wickedness in great abundance; see Jeremiah 6:7; the phrase denotes the abundance of evil things and wicked speeches that came out of their mouth... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT THOU, O LORD, SHALL LAUGH AT THEM,.... Disappoint their counsels, hinder them from performing their enterprise; send them back with shame and confusion, and expose them to the laughter and derision of others; as Saul's messengers were, when instead of David they found an image in the bed, with a... [ Continue Reading ]
[BECAUSE OF] HIS STRENGTH WILL I WAIT UPON THEE,.... Either because of the strength of Saul, who was stronger than David, he determined to wait upon the Lord for salvation and deliverance from him; or because of the strength of the Lord, which he expected from him, and therefore would wait upon him... [ Continue Reading ]
THE GOD OF MY MERCY SHALL PREVENT ME,.... Or "of my grace", or "goodness", as the Targum; see 1 Peter 5:10. God is gracious in himself, and he has treasured up a fulness of grace in Christ: he is the donor of all the blessings of grace in the covenant; and the author of all internal grace in the hea... [ Continue Reading ]
SLAY THOU NOT,.... Though they deserved to be slain, and the Lord seemed as if he was about to slay them, who was able to do it; he seemed to be whetting his glittering sword, and his hand to take hold of vengeance ready to execute it; wherefore intercession is made to spare them, which agrees with... [ Continue Reading ]
[FOR] THE SIN OF THEIR MOUTH, [AND] THE WORDS OF THEIR LIPS,.... The words may be read as one proposition, "the words of their lips [are] the sin of their mouth" y; they speak nothing but evil; whatever they say is sin; out of the abundance of their evil hearts their mouths speak: or "for the sin of... [ Continue Reading ]
CONSUME [THEM] IN WRATH, CONSUME [THEM],.... The repetition of the request shows the ardour and vehemency of the mind of the petitioner, and the importunity in which he put up the petition; and suggests that the persons designed were guilty of very great sins, deserving of the wrath of God, and whic... [ Continue Reading ]
AND AT EVENING LET THEM RETURN; [AND] LET THEM MAKE A NOISE LIKE A DOG, AND GO ROUND ABOUT THE CITY. What in Psalms 59:6 is related as matter of fact, is here expressed by way of imprecation; and what is there taken notice of as their sin, is here wished for at their punishment; unless it can be tho... [ Continue Reading ]
LET THEM WANDER UP AND DOWN FOR MEAT,.... Like hungry dogs; AND GRUDGE IF THEY BE NOT SATISFIED; or murmur and howl as dogs when hungry, and can find nothing to eat; or "when they shall not be satisfied, and shall lodge" z; when they shall get nothing to satisfy their hungry appetite, and shall go... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT I WILL SING OF THY POWER,.... In creating all things out of nothing; in upholding all things in being; in the redemption of his people; in their conversion and calling; in the preservation of them to eternal happiness; in the performance of his promises to them; in the destruction of their enemi... [ Continue Reading ]
UNTO THEE, O MY STRENGTH, WILL I SING,.... That is, to God, whom he made his strength, and put his trust in for strength, and from whom he received it; and he therefore determined to sing praise to him for it, and give him the glory of it; FOR GOD [IS] MY DEFENCE: as before in Psalms 59:9; [AND] T... [ Continue Reading ]