Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 31:2
Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for a house of defense to save me.
2. Bow down ] Or, incline, as in Psa 17:6; &c.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
2, 3. Be thou &c.] Lit. Become (LXX ) to me a stronghold-rock, a fortress-house to save me: for (he goes on to give the ground of his prayer) thou art my cliff and my fortress: i.e. prove Thyself to be what I know Thou art. “It is the logic of every believing prayer.” Delitzsch. For the figures see note on Psa 18:2.
therefore &c.] And for thy name’s sake thou wilt lead me and guide me. A further expression of trust rather than a petition. By gentle and unerring guidance God will shew Himself all that He has declared Himself to be. Cp. the same words in Psa 23:2; Psalms 3, and see notes there.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Bow down thine ear to me – As He does who inclines His ear toward one whom He is willing to hear, or whom He is desirous of hearing. See the notes at Psa 17:6.
Deliver me speedily – Without delay. Or, hasten to deliver me. It is right to pray to be delivered from all evil; equally right to pray to be delivered immediately.
Be thou my strong rock – Margin: to me for a rock of strength. See Psa 18:1-2, note; Psa 18:46, note.
For an house of defense to save me – A fortified house; a house made safe and strong. It is equivalent to praying that he might have a secure abode or dwelling-place.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 31:2-8
Be Thou my strong rook,. . . for Thou art my rock,
Be . . . for Thou art
It sounds strange logic, Be . . . for Thou art, and yet it is the logic of prayer, and goes very deep, pointing out both its limits and its encouragements.
If we were to read thus: Be Thou a strong Rock to me, for a house, a fortress, for Thou art my Rock and my Fortress, we should get the whole force of the parallelism. Of course the main idea is that of the Rock, and Fortress is only an exposition of one phase of the meaning of that metaphor.
I. what God is. A rock, a fortress-house. What is the force of that metaphor?
1. Stable being is the first thought in it, for there is nothing that is more absolutely the type of unchangeableness and steadfast continuance. God the Unchangeable rises, like some majestic cliff, round the foot of which rolls for ever the tide of human life, and round which is littered the successive layers of the leaves of many summers.
2. Then besides this stable being, and the consequences of it, is the other thought which is attached to the emblem in Scripture, and that is defence. His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks. When the floods are out, and all the plain is being dissolved into mud, the dwellers on it fly to the cliffs. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
3. But the Rock is a defence in another way. If a hard-pressed fugitive is brought to a stand and can set his back against a rock, he can front his assailants, secure that no unseen foe shall creep up behind and deal a stealthy stab and that he will not be surrounded unawares.
II. our plea with God, from what he is. Be Thou to me a Rock . . . for Thou art a Rock. Is that not illogical? No, for notice that little word to me–be Thou to me what Thou art in Thyself, and hast been to all generations. That makes all the difference. It is not merely Be what Thou art, although that would be much, but it is be it to me, and let me have all which is meant in that great Name. But then, beyond that, let me point out to you how this prayer suggests to us that all true prayer will keep itself within Gods Revelation of what He is.
III. the plea with God drawn from what we have taken him to be to us. Be Thou to me a strong Rock, for Thou art my Rock and my Fortress. What does that mean? It means that the suppliant has, by his own act of faith, taken God for his; that he has appropriated the great Divine revelation, and made it his own. Now a man by faith encloses a bit of the common for his very own. When God says that He so loved the world that He gave His . . . Son, I should say, He loved me, and gave Himself for me. When the great revelation is made that HE is the Rock of Ages, my faith says: My Rock and my Fortress. Having said that, and claimed Him for mine, I can then turn round to Him and say, Be to me what I have taken Thee to be. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
For Thy names sake lead me and guide me.—
Divine guidance and leading
What a helpless, hopeless thing would a ship be, launched forth upon the deep without a helm, and without a pilot; how it would be drifted about by every current, and tossed to and fro by every wind and wave; how speedily it must be driven amid the shoals, or dashed upon the rocks. No better is man, launched forth on the waves of this troublesome world. Without a Divine helmsman, how must he inevitably be drifted into danger, and betrayed into ruin, if he follows his own wit, and will, and wisdom! The very essence of all Christian life is to walk by faith and not by sight, and the very essence of Divine wisdom in heaven-taught man is to trust in the Lord with all his might, and not to trust in himself, not to trust in his own understanding. How appropriate, then, is this prayer for us all.
I. the petition. Lead me and guide me. It implies–
1. That a man feels that he cannot guide himself.
2. That he believes God does interpose in the affairs of men, and that He condescends to guide and lead all who trust in Him.
3. Expectation that God will direct us. Some pray but never wait for the answer.
4. And there must be leading as well as guiding.
II. the plea. Some plead that they do their best: but they do not. This is the true plea–Thy names sake, Gods gracious character. It is a believers prayer. Gods providence, word, and spirit will make plain to us our way. Let us each adopt this prayer. (Hugh Stowell.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 2. Bow down thine ear] Listen to my complaint. Put thy ear to my lips, that thou mayest hear all that my feebleness is capable of uttering. We generally put our ear near to the lips of the sick and dying, that we may hear what they say. To this the text appears to allude.
Strong rock] Rocks, rocky places, or caves in the rocks, were often strong places in the land of Judea. To such natural fortifications allusions are repeatedly made by the Hebrew poetic writers.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Deliver me speedily, because of the greatness and urgency of my danger, which is even ready to swallow me up.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2-4. He seeks help in God’srighteous government (Ps 5:8),and begs for an attentive hearing, and speedy and effectual aid. Withno other help and no claim of merit, he relies solely on God’s regardto His own perfections for a safe guidance and release from thesnares of his enemies. On the terms “rock,” c., (comparePsa 17:2 Psa 18:2;Psa 18:50; Psa 20:6;Psa 23:3; Psa 25:21).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Bow down thine ear to me,…. Which is said after the manner of men, who, when they give attention, and listen to anything, stoop, and incline the ear; and this for God to do, as he sometimes does, is wonderful condescending grace!
deliver me speedily; which shows that he was in great danger, and his case required haste: the Lord does help right early, and is sometimes a present help in time of need, and delivers at once, as soon as the mercy is asked for;
be thou my strong rock: for shelter and security from enemies, as well as to build his everlasting salvation on, and to stand firmly upon, and out of danger;
for an house of defence to save me; both for an house to dwell in, Lord being the dwelling place of his people in all generations, and a strong habitation to which they may continually resort; and for protection and safety, their place of defence in him being the munition of rocks, a strong hold, and a strong tower from the enemy.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
2. incline thine ear unto me. These words express with how much ardor David’s soul was stimulated to pray. He affects no splendid or ornate language, as rhetoricians are wont to do; but only describes in suitable figures the vehemence of his desire. In praying that he may be delivered speedily there is shown the greatness of his danger, as if he had said, All will soon be over with my life, unless God make haste to help me. By the words, house of defense, fortress, and rock, he intimates, that, being unable to resist his enemies, his hope rests only on the protection of God.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(2) My strong rock.Literally,
Thou art to me for a rock of a stronghold,
For a house of fortresses to save me.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2. Bow down thine ear Literally, Stretch forward thine ear, as if to obtain a more accurate hearing. The phrase is anthropomorphic for giving close attention. The anthropomorphisms of belief are idolatrous, forbidden, (Exo 20:4😉 but those of the feelings are a necessity arising from the poverty of language.
Deliver me speedily No time is to be lost. Delay is ruin. See on Psa 31:1.
My strong rock An impregnable defence. A military term, same as “house of defence;” literally, house of fortresses. 1Sa 24:22
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Bow down your ear to me’
Deliver me speedily.
Be you to me a strong rock,
A house of defence to save me.
For you are my rock and my fortress,
Therefore for your name’s sake lead me and guide me.
Pluck me out of the net that they have laid privily for me,
For you are my stronghold.
He now calls on God to ‘bow down His ear to him’ and deliver him speedily, and because He is his rock and fortress, He asks Him to excel Himself by being to him a strong Rock, and a mighty Stronghold (a house of defence). He is fully confident in God’s protection. And then, because He is such a stronghold, he wants Him to lead him and guide him for His Name’s sake. Indeed he asks that YHWH will pluck him out of the net laid secretly for him by his enemies. His full confidence is put in the protective power of God.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Psa 31:2 Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me.
Ver. 2. Bow down thine ear to me, deliver me ] This repetition of his petition is no vain babbling, as Mat 6:9 , but an effect and an evidence of greatest earnestness, as Mat 26:44 .
For an house of defence
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Psalms
‘BE . . . FOR THOU ART’
Psa 31:2 – Psa 31:3
It sounds strange logic, ‘Be . . . for Thou art,’ and yet it is the logic of prayer, and goes very deep, pointing out both its limits and its encouragements. The parallelism between these two clauses is even stronger in the original than in our Version, for whilst the two words which designate the ‘Rock’ are not identical, their meaning is identical, and the difference between them is insignificant; one being a rock of any shape or size, the other being a perpendicular cliff or elevated promontory. And in the other clause, ‘for a house of defence to save me,’ the word rendered ‘defence’ is the same as that which is translated in the next clause ‘fortress.’ So that if we were to read thus: ‘Be Thou a strong Rock to me, for a house, a fortress, for Thou art my Rock and my Fortress,’ we should get the whole force of the parallelism. Of course the main idea in that of the ‘Rock,’ and ‘Fortress’ is only an exposition of one phase of the meaning of that metaphor.
I. So let us look first at what God is.
Then besides this stable being, and the consequences of it, is the other thought which is attached to the emblem in a hundred places in Scripture, and that is defence. ‘His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks.’ When the floods are out, and all the plain is being dissolved into mud, the dwellers on it fly to the cliffs. When the enemy’s banners appear on the horizon, and the open country is being harried and burned, the peasants hurry to the defence of the hills, and, sheltered there, are safe. And so for us this Name assures us that in Him, whatever floods may sweep across the low levels, and whatever foes may storm over the open land and the unwalled villages, there is always the fortress up in the hills, and thither no flood can rise, and there no enemy can come. A defence and a sure abode is his who dwells in God, and thus folds over himself the warm wings that stretch on either side, and shelter him from all assault. ‘Lead me to the Rock that is higher than I.’
But the Rock is a defence in another way. If a hard-pressed fugitive is brought to a stand and can set his back against a rock, he can front his assailants, secure that no unseen foe shall creep up behind and deal a stealthy stab and that he will not be surrounded unawares. ‘The God of Israel shall be your rearward,’ and he who has ‘made the Most High his habitation’ is sheltered from ‘the pestilence that walketh in darkness,’ as well as from ‘the destruction that wasteth at noon-day,’ and will be cleansed from ‘secret faults’ if he keeps up unbroken his union with God, for the ‘faults’ which are not recognised as faults by his partially illuminated conscience are known to God. But the Rock is a defence in yet another way, for it is a sure foundation for our lives. Whoso builds on God need fear no change. When the floods rise, and the winds blow, and the rain storms down, the house that is on the Rock will stand.
And, then, in the Rock there is a spring, and round the spring there is ‘the light of laughing flowers,’ amidst the stern majesty of the cliff. Just as the Law-giver of old smote the rock, and there gushed out the stream that satisfied the thirst of the whole travelling nation, so Paul would have us Christians repeat the miracle by our faith. Of us, too, it may be said, they drank ‘of that Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.’ Stable being, secure defence, a fountain of refreshment and satisfaction: all these blessings lie in that great metaphor.
II. Now, note our plea with God, from what He is.
But then, beyond that, let me point out to you how this prayer suggests to us that all true prayer will keep itself within God’s revelation of what He is. We take His promises, and all the elements which make up His name or manifestation of His character to the world, whether by His acts or by the utterances of this Book, or by the inferences to be drawn from the life of Jesus Christ, the great Revealer, or by what we ourselves have experienced of Him. The ways by which God has revealed Himself to the world define the legitimate subjects, and lay down the firm foundation, of our petitions. In all His acts God reveals Himself, and if I may so say, when we truly pray, we catch these up, and send them back again to heaven, like arrows from a bow. It is only when our desires and prayers foot themselves upon God’s revelation of Himself, and in essence are, in various fashions, the repetition of this prayer of my text: ‘Be . . . for Thou art,’ that we can expect to have them answered. Much else may call itself prayer, but it is often but petulant and self-willed endeavour to force our wishes upon Him, and no answer will come to that. We are to pray about everything; but we are to pray about nothing, except within the lines which are marked out for us by what God has told us, in His words and acts, that He Himself is. Catch these up and fling them back to Him, and for every utterance that He has made of Himself, ‘I am’ so-and-so, let us go to Him and say ‘Be Thou that to me,’ and then we may be sure of an answer.
So then two things follow. If we pray after the pattern of this prayer, ‘Be Thou to me what Thou art,’ then a great many foolish and presumptuous wishes will be stifled in the birth, and, on the other hand, a great many feeble desires will be strengthened and made confident, and we shall be encouraged to expect great things of God. Have you widened your prayers, dear friend!-and I do not mean by that only your outward ones, but the habitual aspiration and expectation of your minds-have you widened these to be as wide as what God has shown us that He is? Have you taken all God’s revelation of Himself, and translated it into petition? And do you expect Him to be to you all that He has ever been to any soul of man upon earth? Oh! how such a prayer as this, if we rightly understand it and feel it, puts to shame the narrowness and the poverty of our prayers, the falterings of our faith, and the absence of expectation in ourselves that we shall receive the fulness of God.
God owns that plea: ‘Be . . . what Thou art.’ He cannot resist that. That is what the Apostle meant when he said, ‘He abideth faithful, He cannot deny Himself.’ He must be true to His character. He can never be other than He always has been. And that is what the Psalmist meant when he goes on, after the words that I have taken for my text, and says, ‘For Thy Name’s sake lead me and guide me,’ What is God’s Name? The collocation of letters by which we designate Him? Certainly not. The Name of God is the sum total of what God has revealed Himself as being. And ‘for the sake of the Name,’ that He may be true to that which He has shown Himself to be, He will always endorse this bill that you draw upon Him when you present Him with His own character, and say ‘Be to me what Thou art.’
III. Lastly, we have here the plea with God drawn from what we have taken Him to be to us.
And that faith is expressed very beautifully and strikingly in one of the Old Testament metaphors, which frequently goes along with this one of the Rock. For instance, in a great chapter in Isaiah we find the original of that phrase ‘the Rock of Ages.’ It runs thus, ‘Trust ye in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord JEHOVAH is the Rock of Ages .’ Now the word for trust there literally means, to flee into a refuge, and so the true idea of faith is ‘to fly for refuge,’ as the Epistle to the Hebrews has it, ‘to the Hope set before us,’-that is keeping to the metaphor, to the cleft in the Rock.
That act of trust or flight will make it certain that God will be to us for a house of defence, a fortress to save us. Other rock-shelters may crumble. They may be carried by assault; they may be riven by earthquakes. ‘The mountains shall depart, and the hills shall be removed,’ but this Rock is impregnable, and all who take refuge in it are safe for ever.
And so the upshot of the whole matter is that God will be to us what we have faith to believe that He is, and our faith will be the measure of our possession of the fulness of God. If we can only say in the fulness of our hearts-and keep to the saying: ‘Be Thou to me a Rock, for Thou art my Rock,’ then nothing shall ever hurt us; and ‘dwelling in the secret place of the Most High’ we shall be kept in safety; our ‘abode shall be the munitions of rocks, our bread shall be given us, and our water shall be made sure.’
Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren
ear. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6.
deliver = rescue.
rock. Hebrew. zur. See note on Psa 18:1, Psa 18:2.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Bow: Psa 71:2, Psa 86:1, Psa 130:2, Pro 22:17
deliver: Psa 40:17, Psa 69:17, Psa 79:1, Psa 102:2, Psa 143:7, Job 7:21, Luk 18:8
my strong rock: Heb. to me for a rock of strength, Psa 18:1, Psa 18:2, Psa 62:7, Psa 94:22, Deu 32:31, 2Sa 22:3
an house: Psa 71:3, Psa 90:1, Psa 91:9, Isa 33:16, Joh 6:56, 1Jo 4:12, 1Jo 4:15, 1Jo 4:16
Reciprocal: Gen 32:11 – Deliver 2Ki 19:16 – bow down 2Ch 6:40 – thine ears Isa 17:10 – the rock Isa 32:2 – rock