Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 48:12
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Walk about Zion – This is a call on all persons to go round the city; to take a survey of it; to see how beautiful and how strong it was – how it had escaped all danger, and was uninjured by the attempt to destroy it – how capable it was of resisting an attack. The word walk here means simply to go around or surround. The other word used has a more direct reference to a solemn procession.
And go round about her – The word used here – from naqaph – to fasten together, to join together, means to move round in a circle, as if persons joined together (see the notes at Job 1:5), and would refer here properly to a solemn procession moving round the city, and taking a deliberate survey of its entire circuit.
Tell the towers thereof – That is, Take the number of the towers. See how numerous they are; how firm they remain; what a defense and protection they constitute. Cities, surrounded by walls, had always towers or elevated portions as posts of observation, or as places from which missiles might be discharged with advantage on those who should attempt to scale the walls. Compare Gen 11:4-5; 2Ch 26:9-10; Isa 2:15.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 48:12-14
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
The love of Zion
So they revered the city on the hill. Their affections clustered round about its sacred courts. They loved the very tracks which led to it. Blessed is the man in whose heart are the highways to Zion. The beaten roads were trodden deep in their affections. The stones of the building were clothed in rich and mystic meaning. Thy servants take pleasure in her stones. A radiant history made worship eager, grateful and assured. We have heard with our ear, O God; our fathers have told us what work Thou didst in their days, in the times of old. The hoary pile was beautified with the association of the spiritual splendours of other days. They gloried in their heritage. Such was the sentiment of the olden days. The nation found its unity in its common love of Zion. There are now many Zions. The exaltation of one particular mountain has ceased. Spiritual affections no longer find their points of convergence in a lonely and isolated temple. To-day religion has many homes, but because of the many abiding-places the strength of the general fellowship need not be impoverished. The zealous reverence for particular faiths creates the religious atmosphere of a people. Here, then, is our own Zion. What is the significance of this building to the family which gathers within its walls? To an uncounted host the plain old pile is a dear and honoured home. The very stones are revered. They are the shrine of a sacred sentiment. Here our fathers met and prayed. Hero they had such visions of the Master as made them bold to confront the world. But it is not only that these stones are the shrine of a sacred sentiment; they are to many of you the house of a sacred experience. It was here you first saw the face of your Lord. It was here you were born again. I do not wonder that you love the old Zion. Every other place is a strange and unsuggesgive lodging: this house is your birthplace and your home. Tell the towers thereof! What are the towers of our faith? Here is the primary stronghold: Christ is the alone-exalted head of the Christian Church. No one shares His headship or pre-eminence. No one can claim a deputed sovereignty. There is only one throne, and to that throne we may all come boldly, and find grace and mercy in every time of need. Christ is the alone-exalted head of the Christian Church. That is one of the strong towers of our faith. Tell the towers thereof. Here is another of our strongholds: The Christian Church is constituted of Christian believers. The confines of a country do not mark the boundaries of a Church. Geographical measurements cannot delimit the magnitude of a Church. The Christian Church begins where Christian believers begin; it ends where they end. Tell the towers thereof. Here is a third of our strongholds: Every body of Christian believers enjoys the guiding presence of the Holy Ghost. He has called Himself the Spirit of Counsel and of Might, and as such will He stand revealed. Mark ye well her bulwarks! Yes, what are the bulwarks of our faith? What is the character of its walls? What is the nature of its defence? The defences of our faith are the resistance of its own redemptive grace. Spirituality is to be safeguarded by the spiritual. The bulwarks of a saving grace are to be found in the powers of its own salvation. Consider her palaces! Yes, we are not afraid to consider the home-life created and sustained by the forces of our faith. Consider her palaces, her dwellings, the family life which is nourished behind the ramparts of our faith. Can you conceive of any surer and firmer cement for the solidarity of a home than the immediate fellowship of each member with the Christ, in the common bond of the Holy Ghost? The palaces created by our faith, its family and its social life, are the abiding-places of the Eternal God. Walk about Zion, go round about her: tell the towers thereof, mark ye well her bulwarks: consider her palaces, that ye may tell it to the generations following. Is it worth the telling? Or shall we close the book and shelve the story? Can the twentieth century do without our faith? Is there no need for our towers, and our bulwarks, and our palaces? Have we a gospel which will redeem the coming man? Have we a faith which will sanctify the coming home? Have we a hope which will be directive and preservative of the purest elements in the State? Then let us proclaim it, and let us make provision for its proclamation. (J. H. Jowett, M. A.)
The unity of the Church
The walk about Zion is an examination of her position and extent; going round about her implies a complete view of the entire circumference of the holy city. Filling her towers is an examination of her resources; marking the strength of her bulwarks is to admire her stability; considering her palaces is to exalt and glorify the majesty of her internal state. The study of the external and internal condition of the Church fills the heart with rapture and the lips with praise. In figurative martial terms the psalmist celebrates the position, strength, glory and perpetuity of the Church. Based upon the eternal rock, it will stand until the long-groaning creation awakes to hear the Easter hymn that is to be sung in the Jubilee of the final Sabbath. The uppermost questions that now challenge the attention of the chief nations of the world are of and concerning the Church. Much is being said about organic unity, which is another thing than ecclesiastical unity. A forest may be a unit–that is, one forest, all its parts nursed on the same soil and under the same conditions of climate, but it is not an organic unit, for it contains twenty species of trees, all trees, indeed, but not the same in trunk, fibre or branches. They grow together, but they have each their own special development. When, therefore, we talk of organic unity among Protestants, let us remember that the unity of a common life does not imply the necessity of ecclesiastical consolidation. Still, various branches of the Evangelical Catholic Church are every day coming nearer toward one another. And they are coming in virtue of the assimilating force that is deeper than creeds, and deeper far than preferences for mere forms, whether of worship or of government. That force is defined in Holy Scripture as the Unity of the Spirit. And this is the only unity for which we need to pray or labour. To understand this unity, consider the meaning of three words.
I. Christianity. The Rationalist regards it as a system more or less divine which must needs be measured by human reason before it can bind the consciences of men. This low and inadequate view may be Protestant as against the superstitions of the Papacy, but it is not evangelical, inasmuch as it denies the infallibility of Scripture, the vicarious atonement of our Lord and its related doctrines. But Christianity is the complete revelation of the Divine will in the Scriptures. It is Christ revealing Himself to the human consciousness.
II. The church is one in historical transmission; and it is catholic, including all who fear God. Ecclesiastical arrangements are not of its essence, and do not interfere with its real unity, which is that of the Spirit. Rome has been fighting on a thousand battlefields to compel an external unity, but human nature will never submit to it. Such unity is but a dream, an ecclesiastical device.
III. Religion. This is to some–
1. An intellectual conception only. To others–
2. Feeling, rapture. To others–
3. A devout performance on the Lords day. But–
4. To the evangelist it is faith and holiness. (Elbert S. Porter, D. D.)
The beauty and strength of Zion
A diligent search into, and consideration of, the means and causes of the preservation and protection of the Church in the greatest dangers and difficulties, is a duty incumbent on us for our own support against sinful fears, and to enable us to that testimony which is required for future generations, to encourage them to trust in the Lord.
1. What is to be understood by the preservation and protection of the Church, so as we may look neither for less nor more than what we are like to meet with?
2. What is meant by searching into, and considering of, these causes and means of the Churchs preservation? Walk about Zion, tell her towers, set your heart to her bulwarks, consider her palaces, etc.
3. What are those causes and means of the Churchs preservation, those towers and bulwarks which will not fail, whenever Zerah or Sennacherib comes, or whatever attempts are made upon Zion?
4. What reason is there why we should thus search into and consider these causes of the Churchs preservation and protection?
5. What is the testimony which we have to give concerning this matter to the ensuing generation? That ye may declare it to the generation to come. (J. Owen, D. D.)
A view of national felicity, the cause of gratitude to God
I. The natural advantages of our situation.
1. Our soil is fertile, liberally rewarding the husbandman with grass for cattle, and herb for the use of man; with all the necessaries and many of the luxuries of life.
2. No country in the world is more sufficient for itself, or more independent of every other; while from innumerable ports we disperse our superfluities and the fruits of our industry to every nation under heaven.
3. Our climate is mild, temperate and salubrious. We are neither scorched by excess of heat, nor made torpid by intense cold.
4. Our people are hardy and vigorous; patient of toil; docile, generous and open; attached to their country; intrepid in war, industrious at home.
II. The excellence of our government.
1. Ye have personal liberty, which, as it cannot be taken from you without a crime, so neither can ye alienate it of yourselves but for a time, and upon such terms as still keep you under the protection of the laws, to guard you from abuse, and to secure your hire.
2. Ye have political liberty. Every man is allowed to declare his sentiments concerning the measures of government, and to animadvert on them in the most public manner.
3. Ye have religious liberty in a very eminent degree. Every man is allowed to hold his own creed, and to worship God in his own way.
III. The favour of providence. (J. Adamson, D. D.)
The Church of God
I. The church of God is our birthplace. Angels said, This man was born there.
II. The centre of our chief social attractions. Are not our grandest associations connected with the house of God? These are the men that are to stand by us in times of trouble. These are they who are to counsel us when we go astray. These are the men who are to carry us out to our last slumber when we have done with our earthly toil. Oh! I want to be surrounded by church friends, some to counsel me, some to encourage me, some to cheer me and strengthen me. I want to sit with them, and sing with them, and pray with them, and die with them.
III. The home of our children.
IV. A refuge. Seafaring men do not always expect smooth sailing. Neither ought we on the sea of life always expect to have smooth sailing. You have not always had it the way you wanted it in the past. You will not always have it the way you want it in the future. But when trouble came you went into the house of God and found it a refuge. You had your troubles explained to you.
V. Our monument. It seems a very silly thing to expend one or two or three thousand dollars on a tombstone. But that which you do for the Church of God is your eternal monument. It is a living memento.
VI. The gate of heaven. (T. De Witt Talmage.)
The threefold glory of the Chureh
I. Her towers. These naturally represent the great truths that are lifted into prominence. There are some ten great truths curiously related and parts of one system. Five of them are like corner towers–the Being of God is central to all–then the doctrine of the Son, the Spirit, Man, and the Word of God. The intermediate connecting truths are the Mediation of Christ in Atonement, the Mediation of the Spirit in Regeneration, Justification by Faith, the Inspiration of the sacred writers, and the right of private study of Scripture. No one of these truths can be sacrificed without weakening the whole structure.
II. Her bulwarks. These as naturally represent the great barriers or defences of the Church, which act as restraints against wickedness and worldliness, serving both to keep in disciples and keep out evildoers. The Church has certain separating barriers which define her province and life, and restraining barriers which repel and restrain evil. No small part of the service of the Church in the world is found in the resistance to evil. What the dykes are to Holland the Church is to the community: it keeps out the flood of evil.
III. Her palaces. These suggest beauty, honour, delight, privilege, and may stand for all the privileges of the children of God.
1. Worship, with all the ordinances, sacraments, prayer, praise, etc.
2. Fellowship, both with God and saints.
3. Holy living and growing both in knowledge and grace.
4. Service to God and man. (Homiletic Review.)
The great city
Cities are prominent waymarks in human history. With them began the distribution of rights from the few to the many. Cincinnatus at his plough had his patriotism fed by voices from the city. Cities show us the most of man; they exhibit what life can be made; they fortify genius so that its power runs not to waste; and out of the struggles of commerce, the breadth of view concerning human relations to which commerce leads, has sprung the best thought of what is duo from man to man. When Henry the First–called The City Builder, gave to cities peculiar privileges to induce his people to congregate, unwittingly he laid the grand basis of opposition to the Feudal system, and the legal foundation of popular rights. The people united to ward off the attacks of the lords or barons; union gave strength; the limit of locality made them develop their resources; commerce, art and wealth increased within their walls; energy grew and multiplied; the people became wealthy, respectable, educated and refined; better laws and institutions were desired; and thus the principle of human rights, leading to political equality, was gradually developed. Towers and bulwarks, high walls and fortified castles, were the defences of old; to walk about an ancient city was to mark these things; and the great story that was carried down from one generation to another was of hugs walls and mighty gates–stories which we can hardly believe as we see the variety of these defences in the presence of modern arts of destruction. Then cities had to be set upon a hill, that no mountain might give the archers of the enemy a position of assault; or they must be reared, like Babylon and Palmyra, in the midst of a vast plain. But not so now. He who now walks about a great city to note its strength, its defences, its promises of superior greatness, does not mark down upon his map of survey walls, towers, bulwarks, palaces; for he looks into the character of homes, the intelligence and virtue of families, and he counts up schools and institutions of learning, benevolence, religion. Undazzled by all the glitter and show of wealth, unimpressed by the stately palaces, unmoved by the boasts of trade and commerce, and disregarding the growth of material prosperity that makes the grand exhibition of thronged streets and crowded marts–the river dotted with the white sails, amid which the floating vapour from the steam craft rises as incense, sending the thoughts out to sea and to the infinite, unimpressed, in his deepest nature, by all this, his great question is, How true is it that God and the Lamb have their thrones and servants here? How much is God the light of this city? How much of all this glory is as the costume of this oriental bride adorned for her husband, as we think of the city wedded to Christ? No interest of the city can be secured by deserting the Church or profaning the Sabbath. Religion is the patron of all good. She consecrates the child to God, that daily duty towards it may be more and better felt. She invokes a blessing in the school, and sanctifies education as the process of unfolding the mind, as the sun opens the flower, ripens the fruit, gives the seasons of the year. She comes to the workshop and to the lad at his apprenticeship everywhere, telling him labour is a great ordinance of God, and bids him aim to do well his task as a part of religious duty, assuring him that all effort or improvement has its relation to the moral culture and condition and prospects of the soul. Join the elements of duty thus presented, and we may be able to speak in Scripture language, with more than its original meaning, of the crowning City, whose merchants are princes, and whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth. The city will be great. To walk round about her will be to walk about Zion, and to find something worthy of telling to the generations springing up around us. God will be known in her palaces for a refuge. (H. Bacon.)
A walk about Zion
As the Jews were very proud of their temple, and greatly inclined to magnify themselves on account of it, we feel as if we could sympathize with them in their joy and admiration when we picture them walking about Zion literally, and marking the towers thereof; but it may not occur to us, when under this feeling, that we ourselves, as a nation, have a far more magnificent temple than even the Jews had, for we have part and portion in the great Christian temple of which Solomons was after all but the appointed type or symbol. The foundation of our Zion is not concealed. It is all before us in explict revelation, and the great master builder Himself thus brings it fully into view, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation. And, alluding to it still further, in telling believers on whom they rest, it is said of them that they are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone. So close is the spiritual connection between Christ and believers. But we wish to show now that it is for the sake of the Church the world itself exists.
I. The importance to be attached to the towers and bulwarks of Zion, and the duty of all to help in maintaining them. The world is spared for the sake of the Church to be redeemed out of it, and the Church is to aid in gathering together the souls that shall be saved. How much, then, does the world owe to the Church, for it is only for her sake that it is preserved. As the Canaanites were for Israel, who should inherit their land.
II. All people in a Christian land, whatever their position, are under strict obligation to aid in tee building of Zion, Now, this duty is binding, not on private individuals only, but on men in their official capacities as kings, rulers and having authority. It would be strange if those who, by their position, could do most for this work, were free from obligation to do anything. All past history, as given in Scripture, contradicts those who would have no connection between the Church and the State. For kings and governments have helped the Church, have been commanded to do so, and been blessed for that which they have done. Then, my soul, come not thou into their secret. Who would separate what God has joined? (J. Allen.)
Mark well her bulwarks; consider ye her palaces.
Bulwarks and palaces
The psalm speaks of Jerusalem, the pride of the Jewish heart, and the boast of the Jewish glory. It is described from two points: from that of admiring friendship, and from continuous enmity. In this symbolical poem the kings are represented as enemies.
I. Bulwarks symbolize power and strength. I fail to discern any of the marks of decay and weakness with which the Church of God in our day is charged. Her towers are growing stronger, her glory more resplendent, her foes decrease, and her friends become more numerous. Some of the manifest emblems of power are–
1. Christian civilization. The very air men breathe is charged through and through with Christian thought.
2. The Bible, for it is a great source of power. One of the surest proofs of its power is the virulence of its enemies. Men would not attack a book which is a dead letter.
3. The vast accumulation of wealth, and the number of churches. These are signs of power. The value of Church property in our land is unparalleled, and increases greatly every year. There is not a single heathen temple in process of erection in the world. The Church gives hundreds of thousands a year for mission world. Her light flashes away up in frozen Greenland, in Central Africa and in Polynesia. Christ will be universal King.
II. Riches and glory are indicated by the palaces of Zion.
1. There is the palace of assurance–the doctrine of the witness of the Spirit. These need no witness of guilt–of that men are conscious. When pardon comes we have the witness of the Spirit that we are taken into the family of God.
2. The palace of Christian fellowship.
3. That of Divine communion. Zion with her towers, her bulwarks, her palaces, is the joy of the whole earth. Now she is the Church militant, but shall be soon the Church triumphant. (J. H. Bayliss, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 12. Walk about Zion] Consider the beauty and magnificence of the temple, count the towers by which it is fortified.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
He speaketh, either,
1. To the enemies, as triumphing over them. Or rather,
2. To the people of that city and kingdom, who had been eye-witnesses of this glorious work of God, as appears from the following verses. He bids them mark well her towers, bulwarks, and palaces, here, and Psa 48:13, not with vain ostentation, or carnal confidence, for he had said that God only was their refuge, Psa 48:3; but with thankfulness to God, when they should find upon inquiry, that not one of them was demolished or any way defaced by so potent an enemy.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
12-14. The call to survey Zion,or the Church, as a fortified city, is designed to suggest “howwell our God secures His fold.” This security is perpetual, andits pledge is His guidance through this life.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Walk about Zion, and go round about her,…. These words are either an address to the enemies of the church, sarcastically delivered; calling upon them to come, and surround, and besiege Zion, and see what the issue and consequence of it will he, even the same as that of the kings, Ps 48:4; or to the builders of Zion, as Jarchi observes, to come and take a survey of it, and see what repairs were necessary; or rather to the saints, to the daughters of Judah before mentioned, to take a view of the strength and defence of the church, for their own comfort and encouragement, and to report the same to others for theirs also; for by walking around it may be observed the foundation, the rock and eminence on which it is built, Christ Jesus; the wall of it, the Lord himself, a wall of fire; the entrance into it, Christ the gate of righteousness; the fortress and strong hold of it the same; and the guards about it, the watch men on its walls, the ministers of the Gospel, and an innumerable company of angels, that in a circle surround both ministers and people; see Re 7:11;
tell the towers thereof; see 2Ch 26:9; the Lord himself is the tower of his people, high and strong, which secures and defends them from all their enemies, Ps 18:2; the ministers of the Gospel, who are immovable, and are set for the defence of it, Jer 6:27; the Scriptures of truth, which are like a tower built for an armoury, out of which the saints are furnished and provided with proper armour, whereby they are able to engage with false teachers, and to overcome the evil one, So 4:4; and the ordinances of the Gospel, the church’s two breasts, said to be as towers, So 8:10; some render the words, “tell in the towers” i; publish on the house tops, declare in the high places of the city, in the most public manner, the great things of the Gospel, which relate to the glory of Christ and his church.
i , Sept. “in turribus ejus”, V. L.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(Heb.: 48:13-15) The call is addressed not to the enemies of Jerusalem – for it would be absurd to invite such to look round about upon Jerusalem with joy and gladness – but to the people of Jerusalem itself. From the time of the going forth of the army to the arrival of the news of victory, they have remained behind the walls of the city in anxious expectation. Now they are to make the circuit of the city ( , still more definite than , Jos 6:3) outside the walls, and examine them and see that its towers are all standing, its bulwark is intact, its palaces are resplendent as formerly. , “upon its bulwark,” = (Zec 9:4), with softened suffix as in Isa 23:17; Psa 45:6, and frequently; Ew. 247, d. (according to another reading, ) signifies, in B. Baba kamma 81 b, to cut through (a vineyard in a part where there is no way leading through it); the signification “to take to pieces and examine, to contemplate piece by piece,” has no support in the usage of the language, and the signification “to extol” ( erhhen, Luther following Jewish tradition) rests upon a false deduction from the name . Louis de Dieu correctly renders it: Dividite palatia, h. e. obambulate inter palatia ejus, secando omnes palatiorum vias, quo omnia possitis commode intueri . They are to convince themselves by all possible means of the uninjured state of the Holy City, in order that they may be able to tell to posterity, that , such an one, such a marvellous helper as is now manifest to them, is Elohim our God. He will also in the future guide us…. Here the Psalm closes; for, although is wont to be construed with in the signification (Psa 23:2; Isa 49:10), still “at death” [ lit. dying], i.e., when it comes to dying (Hengstenberg), or “even unto ( as in Psa 48:11, Psa 19:7) death” [ lit. dying] (Hupfeld), forms no suitable close to this thoroughly national song, having reference to a people of whom the son of Sirach says (Psa 37:25): . The rendering of Mendelssohn, Stier, and others, “over death” i.e., beyond death (Syriac), would be better; more accurately: beyond dying = destruction (Bunsen, Bibelwerk, Th. i. S. clxi.). but the expression does not admit of this extension, and the thought comes upon one unexpectedly and as a surprise in this Psalm belonging to the time before the Exile. The Jerusalem Talmud, Megilla, ch. ii. (fol. 73, col. b, ed. Venet.), present a choice of the following interpretations: (1) = , in youthfulness, adopting which, but somewhat differently applied, the Targum renders, “in the days of youth;” (2) , like virgins, with which Luther’s rendering coincides: like youth ( wie die Jugent); (3) according to the reading , which the lxx also reproduces: in this and the future world, noting at the same time that Akilas (Aquila) translates the word by : “in a world where there is no death.” But in connection with this last rendering one would rather expect to find (Pro 12:28) instead of . , however, as equivalent to is Mishnic, not Biblical; and a Hebrew word ( ) in the sense of the Aramaic cannot be justified elsewhere. We see from the wavering of the MSS, some of which give , and others , and from the wavering of expositors, what little success is likely to follow any attempt to gain for , as a substantial part of the Psalm, any sense that is secure and in accordance both with the genius of the language and with the context. Probably it is a marginal note of the melody, an abbreviation for , Psa 9:1. And either this note, as in Hab 3:19 , stands in an exceptional manner at the end instead of the beginning (Hitzig, Reggio), or it belongs to the of the following Psalm, and is to be inserted there (Bttcher, De inferis, 371). If, however, does not belong to the Psalm itself, then it must be assumed that the proper closing words are lost. The original close was probably more full-toned, and somewhat like Isa 33:22.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
12 and 13 Encompass Zion, etc. Here the prophet again commends the situation and beauty of Jerusalem, intimating that the city was strongly fortified and impregnable; and he does this, because in these external things the blessing of God in some respect shone forth. We must always bear in mind what he stated in a preceding verse, that “God in her palaces is known for a fortress.” In making mention here of her towers and walls, we are not to suppose that he would have the minds of the faithful to rest in these things. He rather sets them before us as a mirror in which the character of God may be seen. He therefore says, Encompass Zion that is, look upon it carefully and attentively on every side; — number her towers, and apply your mind to consider her walls; that is, estimate her palaces as they deserve, and thus it will be manifest beyond all doubt that this is a city chosen of God, seeing it far surpasses all other cities. In insisting upon these points, his whole drift is to make manifest the character with which the Lord had invested Jerusalem in making it a sacred place, in which he himself might take up his abode, and in erecting it as a dwelling-place for his people. It seems, moreover, that the prophet, in stating that the object of his exhortation was, that the beauty and magnificence of the holy city might be reported to the succeeding generation, tacitly gives us to understand, that the time would at length come when that city would be no longer seen. What need would there be for making this report if it could be seen and were always before the eyes of the world? Although, then, he has said a little before that Jerusalem is established for ever, yet he now teaches us, by way of correction, what kind of perpetuity it will be — that it will endure only till the time of the renovation of the Church. We belong to that generation to come, to whom it is said these things will be reported; for we are sharers in all the benefits which God, in the days of old, bestowed upon his ancient people. The outward splendor for which Jerusalem was admired does not, indeed, stand forth conspicuous amongst us at the present day; but since the coming of Christ into our world, the Church has been no less richly and magnificently adorned with spiritual gifts than Jerusalem, under the shadows of the Law, was in old time surrounded and fortified with strong walls and towers. I have translated the word פסגו, pasgu, exalt, referring it to the value which ought to be put upon the towers of the city because of their excellence. To explain it, as is done by some, fortify or strengthen, seems to be less suitable. If any are inclined rather to follow the interpretation of those who render it look upon or behold, I have no great objection to it.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(12) Walk about Zion.Notice here the strong patriotic feeling of Hebrew song. The inhabitants of the city are invited to make a tour of inspection of the defences which, under Gods providence, have protected them from their foes. We are reminded of the fine passage in Shakespeares Cymbeline, which gratefully recalls the natural bravery of our own island home, or of the national songs about our wooden walls. Comparison has also been drawn between this passage and a similar burst of patriotic sentiment from the lips of a Grecian orator (Thuc. Ii. 53); but while the Greek thinks only of the men who made Athens strong, the Hebrew traces all back to God.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
(12) Telli.e., count. So in Milton, Every shepherd tells his tale, i.e., counts his sheep.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12, 13. Walk about Zion The call is not in the spirit of boasting or self confidence, but of gratitude, that they may witness for themselves the unharmed condition of the city, despite the proud threats and malicious plans of the enemy.
Tell the towers mark her bulwarks Count the towers, set your heart to the strongholds. The fortifications of Jerusalem were a marvel to the heathen, as the remains of them are to modern archaeologists. Ruins as old as the days of Solomon and of the first Herod are still traceable. They are seen in the foundations on the south and southwest of the temple, and in the “citadel” on the northwest corner of Zion, just south of the modern Jaffa gate. In this latter place the first forty feet of elevation of the principal tower is allowed to date as far back as Herod the Great, and was, probably, built upon foundations as old as David or Solomon. Rabbi Schwarz, ( Pales., p. 273,) supposes this may be the “house of the heroes,” or the “corner of the armory house,” Neh 3:16-17. Tradition has given it the name of “tower, or fort, of David,” but without authority. See note on Psa 45:8. Various are the traces of massive, ancient fortifications in Ophel, Moriah, Zion, and the western and northern city walls, which modern discoveries have brought to light. Extensive excavations will do vastly more. But it is not to these physical strongholds, the terror of Zion’s enemies, to which the prophet would confine attention. These, to his eye, bore a higher significance as types and symbols of the surer defences of the living Church of God, in which sense the language of Psa 48:12-13, finds its true fulfilment. See the notes on Psa 48:14
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The Triumphant Inspection ( Psa 48:12-14 ).
This may well originally have indicated a celebratory inspection of the walls carried out in triumphal procession in order to give thanksgiving to God, and it may even have been one that continued to be celebrated annually.
Psa 48:12
‘Walk about Zion,
And go round about her,
Number her towers,
Mark well her bulwarks,
Consider her palaces,
That you may tell it to the generation following.
For this God is our God for ever and ever,
He will be our guide even to death.
We must not misunderstand the Psalmist here. He is not boasting about the strength of Jerusalem He is rather praising God for the fact that it is all still there. He is basically saying, ‘look, because of what God has done you are now free to walk around the outside of the city. And as you do so you will note that nothing is missing. Her towers are still intact, her bulwarks (defensive walls) are in place, her palaces are still unmarked. And this in spite of the threats of the King of Assyria.’ This then was final evidence of how fully God has delivered them, and they will therefore be able to tell ensuing generations, how God preserved it for them, and delivered them without any real harm coming to Jerusalem. And this, he reminds them, is due solely to their God, the God Who is theirs for ever and ever, and will be the guide of each one of them until death.
Note the contrast between their counting the towers, and the fact that the Assyrians had previously counted the towers with very different intent (Isa 33:18). The Assyrians had intended to destroy them. Thus God has by His deliverance altered the whole situation.
‘He will be our guide even to death.’ Some suggest that this fits oddly in the context because it is too personally applied in a national Psalm, but it is not really so. It can rather be seen as a practical final comment applying the situation of the whole to each individual. Having sung generally of the greatness of God, they are being brought to recognise that for each one of them that greatness is applicable throughout their lives.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
DISCOURSE: 581
THE CHURCHS SECURITY IN GOD
Psa 48:12-14. Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof: mark ye well her bulwarks; consider her palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following. For this God is our God for ever and ever: He will be our guide even unto death.
MEN read the Bible in order that they may know what they are to do; and this is well: but they should read the Bible also in order that they may know what they are to expect: for that blessed book is no less a record of their privileges, than of their duties. It is of privileges that our text speaks. The psalm evidently celebrates some triumph over confederate kings [Note: ver. 4.]: and it was probably written on the occasion of Jehoshaphats deliverance from the confederate armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir; who, through the special providence of God, turned their arms against each other, and left Jehoshaphat nothing to do but to collect the spoil [Note: 2Ch 20:22-25.]. That, as might be expected, was a season of very exalted joy to all Judah: and the circumstances altogether correspond very exactly with the intimations given in this psalm. The security of Zion under Divine protection is that which is particularly specified in the text: and we are called to notice it for the benefit of future generations.
Let us consider,
I.
The survey proposed
Whatever strength might be in the fortifications of Jerusalem, the writer of this psalm evidently looked beyond them to God, who alone is the security of his people. Moreover, Zion was a type of the Church of God, which is indeed the mountain of his holiness, beautiful for situation, and the joy of the whole earth; and in whose palaces he is well known for a refuge [Note: ver. 13.]. Let us then walk about her, and tell her towers, and mark well her bulwarks. Let us mark the bulwarks,
1.
Of the Jewish Church
[This was founded on the purposes, the perfections, and the promises of God; and from them were derived her strength and her security.
In a season of great alarm and terror, the prophet being asked, What shall we answer the messengers of the nation, who come to apprise us of the approach of the Philistine armies? His answer was, Tell them that the Lord hath founded Zion, and that the poor of his people shall trust in it [Note: Isa 14:32.]. To this St. Paul adds, The foundation of the Lord standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his [Note: 2Ti 2:19.]. God had determined from all eternity that he would have a Church and people in the world: and hence it was that neither Pharaoh in Egypt could prevent, nor all the nations of Canaan could obstruct, the establishment of Mount Zion: for Gods counsel must stand; and he will do all his will [Note: Isa 46:10.].
For the preservation of his Church, every perfection of the Deity was pledged. Whilst his wisdom was engaged to disconcert, and his power to defeat, all her enemies, his truth and faithfulness formed a barrier that could not be broken through: so that, till by the iniquities of his people he was constrained to depart from them, he was a wall of fire round about them, and the glory in the midst of them [Note: Zec 2:5.]: and every attribute of his was a chamber in which they might lie down in perfect peace [Note: Isa 26:20.].
Often it appeared as if his promise in relation to them would fail: but not a jot or tittle of his word ever did fail: for he was not a man that he could lie, or the son of man that he could repent. And, after the people had been forty years established in the land of Canaan, Joshua appealed to them, that not one good thing had failed of all that God had spoken concerning them, but that every thing had come to pass according to his promise [Note: Jos 23:14.].]
2.
Of the Christian Church
[Our Zion also has her towers and her bulwarks, even the finished work of Christ, and the office of the Holy Spirit, and the economy of Redemption from first to last.
The Lord Jesus undertook to purchase unto himself a peculiar people, even with the inestimable price of his own blood: and never did he cease from his work, till he could say, It is finished [Note: Joh 19:30.]. Every thing that was necessary to expiate our guilt, every thing that was necessary to work out a righteousness for his redeemed people, every thing that was necessary to satisfy the demanda of law and justice, all he completed perfectly: and having fulfilled his covenant-engagements with the Father, it cannot be but that he should see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied, even in the promised seed, who should prolong their days, whilst the pleasure of the Lord should prosper in his hands [Note: Isa 53:10-11.].
True it is, that in vain would Christ have died for his Church and people, if the Holy Spirit had not undertaken to apply to their souls the redemption which he has wrought out for them. But from the day of Pentecost to this very hour, he has not failed to glorify Christ, by taking of the things that are his, and shewing them unto men [Note: Joh 16:14.]. He finds men dead indeed; but he quickens them to a new and heavenly life: he gives them eyes, to see; and ears, to hear; and hearts to feel the truths which he has revealed to them: and where he has begun a work of grace, he fails not to carry it on, and to perfect it until the day of Christ [Note: Php 1:6]. And hence it is that all the powers of hell have never been able to prevail against them.
Were the Church to be destroyed, the whole plan of Redemption, as devised by the Father, executed by the Son, and applied by the Spirit, would fail; and the Lord Jesus Christ himself would be robbed of all his recompence and all his glory. But, whoever surveys these towers, will know assuredly, that Mount Zion cannot be moved, but abideth for ever [Note: Psa 125:1.]. Yes, Gods righteousness shall be for ever, and his salvation from generation to generation [Note: Isa 51:8.].]
3.
Of the Church of which we are members
[As against the world, the Church of England has no other security than what is common to every true Church of Christ: but as against her professed members, who would despoil her of her glory and her excellency, and would sap her very foundations by the introduction of false doctrines into her community. we have towers, and bulwarks, in which we glory, and which we desire you all attentively to survey. Come, and let us walk round our Zion, and mark well her defences! See there her Articles; how plain, how strong, how scriptural! there is no truth that is not there established: and though she has many false sons who would surrender them up to the enemy, there is not one which they have ever been able to impair, nor one in which her faithful people do not feel complete security.
Next, behold her Homilies, formed by men of God who knew what assaults would be made against her. There are not wanting men who complain, that these are antiquated, and need repair. But they are as firm and immovable as at the first hour they were constructed: and they defy all the assaults, whether of traitorous friends, or open foes.
Then view her Liturgy.Next to the Bible, it stands the wonder of the world. Never was there such a composition for the use of those who would worship God in spirit and in truth: and, whilst piety shall continue to characterize the Children of Zion, this will be their joy, their glory, their defence. They may be derided, as too holy, and too precise: but, whilst they can point to her expressions both of prayer and praise, they will feel that they are vindicated against the whole world, and are in a bulwark that is absolutely impregnable.]
The end of this survey is, that we may tell it to the generation following: which shews, that, both for their sakes and our own, we should contemplate,
II.
The consolation arising from it
What was written so many centuries ago, belongs no less to us than it did to those for whose instruction it was originally composed. It calls our attention to the God of Zion, and reminds us of,
1.
Our interest in him
[This God is our God for ever and ever. He is the same in himself; and bears the same relation to us; and feels the same concern for us as he did for his Church of old.
He changeth not: he is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. With him is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. And is he not our Father, our Friend, our Redeemer, our God? When did he cease to sustain these relations to his Church and people? Or when did he cease to be mindful of the offices which these relations imply? If it be said, He has ceased to work miracles; we grant it: but has he therefore withdrawn himself from the Church and from the world, so as to shut up his loving-kindness from us, and to be gracious to us no more? Were we indeed to believe the infidel and ungodly world, we should say with them, that God has forsaken the earth: but we know the contrary: we know, that if Gods presence and agency be less visible than formerly, they are not a whit less real; and that he feels for his people at this hour, as much as ever he did at any period of the world. He knows their sorrows [Note: Exo 3:7], and in all their afflictions is afflicted [Note: Isa 63:9.]: nor can an enemy touch so much as one of them, without touching the apple of his eye [Note: Zec 2:8.].
Take this then into your consideration, in connexion with the foregoing survey. The same God as watched so tenderly over his people of old, is your God; and watches over you, with the same care as he did over them. His purposes have as much respect to you as to them: his perfections are all engaged as much for you, as for them: his promises are made no less to you, than to them. For you the work of Christ, the office of the Spirit, and the whole economy of Redemption, have secured blessings, as well as for them. And the same Spirit who was poured forth in such abundant measure upon our Reformers, and endued them with such consummate wisdom and grace, is ready to work upon your hearts, and to fulfil in you also all the good pleasure of Gods goodness, and the work of faith with power; so that the name of the Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ [Note: 2Th 1:11-12.]. I say then, Know from the records of the Church of old what a God you have to go to, and that this God is your God for ever and ever.]
2.
Our expectations from him
[He will be our guide even unto death. See how remarkably he guided Jehoshaphat on the occasion which we suppose to be more particularly referred to: he told Jehoshaphat where his enemies were, at what precise spot he should find them, and when he should go against them: twice was it repeated, To-morrow go out against them [Note: 2Ch 20:16.]. So he knows exactly where our enemies are, and what they design against us, and how they are to be met: and though he will not vanquish them without our fighting, yet, if we go forth against them in dependence on him, he will be with us, and will subdue them before us. Suppose our most formidable enemies now in array against us; and see in what way he will interpose in our behalf: Like as a lion, says he, and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them: so shall the Lord of Hosts come down to fight for Mount Zion, and for the hill thereof. As birds flying, so will the Lord of Hosts defend Jerusalem: defending also, he will deliver it: and passing over, he will preserve it [Note: Isa 31:4-5.]. Here are no less than three figures, rising in a climax one above the other, to illustrate the zeal and efficacy with which he will interpose for us. The first is that of a lion, who, when devouring his prey, will not be intimidated by the noise of shepherds, how numerous soever they may be: (This marks the determination with which Jehovah will prosecute our caused.) The next is that of a parent bird, who, when she sees a bird of prey hovering over her young, and ready to dart upon them, will fly with the utmost rapidity to intercept the devourers assault, even at the peril of her own life: (This shews the tender interest which Jehovah will take in our welfare, and the efforts he will make in our behalf.) The last is that of the attendant Angel (the Angel of the Covenant), who accompanied the destroying angel through the whole land of Egypt, and stepped forward, wherever he saw a blood-besprinkled door, to prevent him from executing his commission there: and so effectually constrained him to pass over the houses of the Israelites, that, whilst in every house in Egypt the first-born of man and beast was slain, not one of either was slain in any house belonging to the Children of Israel: (This shews the efficacy with which Jehovah will espouse our cause.) Now then what have we to fear with such a Protector? Let men or devils combine against us, we need not give ourselves one moments concern. Under all such circumstances, the Psalmists language should be ours: God is our refuge and strength; a very present help in trouble: therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God; the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High: God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early [Note: Psa 46:1-5.]. In a word, we may cast all our care on Him who careth for us [Note: 1Pe 5:7.]; assured, that, if we only make God our refuge and habitation, no evil shall befall us [Note: Psa 91:9-10.].]
Application
1.
Search then into your privileges, that you may have the true enjoyment of them
[Think of people in a besieged city: with what delight would they view the towers and bulwarks which they had reason to believe no enemy could destroy! And will not you, who have the Lord himself for your defence? Consider the representation which he gives of himself, as a broad river, so broad that it cannot be passed but in boats; yet so tempestuous, that no small vessel can live upon it; and so full of rocks and shoals, that no large vessel can navigate it [Note: Isa 33:20-22.]; which consequently, being impassable, secures to you, under all circumstances, the most perfect tranquillity, consider this, I say, and tell me, whether you ought not to be ever rejoicing in your God? I would that all of you should be fully acquainted with your privileges; and that you should be frequently walking about Zion, and telling her towers, and marking well her bulwarks, and considering attentively her palaces in which you are lodged and feasted from day to day; that so you may be happy in your own souls, and God may dwell in you, whilst you thus dwell in him! For, if you thus know in Whom you have believed, and that He is able to keep that which you have committed to him [Note: 2Ti 1:12.], you cannot but be happy: since he has expressly said, I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is staid on me, because he trusteth in me [Note: Isa 26:3.].]
2.
Search into them, that you may make them known to the rising generation
[We should not be contented to be happy alone, but should desire as far as possible to diffuse happiness all around us. To the rising generation in particular we are bound to transmit the benefits which we have received. The knowledge of salvation is a sacred deposit committed to us for that very end [Note: Psa 78:5-7.] It is scarcely to be conceived how much more profitable to young people the preached Gospel would be, if they were well instructed at home. We teach our children what shall conduce to the advancement of their worldly interests; and shall we neglect the welfare of their souls [Note: If this were the subject of a Sermon for a Charity School, or Sunday School, this idea should be considerably enlarged.]? In particular, let us endeavour to impress their minds with the knowledge of God, and his perfections; of Christ, and his offices; of the Holy Spirit, and his operations; that so they also may have God for their God, and their guide, and their portion, for ever and ever.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
Strangers are challenged to see if they can discover any tokens like ruin, or want, or misery. No! Zion still flourisheth, and must flourish, and be a perfection of beauty. Her ordinances, her courts, her palaces; these are her bulwarks and ramparts; and above all Jesus her king is in her.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Psa 48:12 Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Ver. 12. Walk about Sion, and tell the towers thereof ] q.d. Are they not still the same and as many as they were before the approach of the enemy? is anything diminished or defaced by the late stage or assault? “Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there,” &c., Isa 37:33 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Walk about. They were now free to do this.
towers. Many discovered on the east side of Ophel in recent excavations.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Psa 48:12-14
Psa 48:12-14
GOD’S GLORY TO BE MADE KNOWN TO POSTERITY
“Walk about Zion, and go round about her;
Number the towers thereof;
Mark ye well her bulwarks;
Consider her palaces:
That ye may tell it to the generation following.
For this God is our God forever and ever:
He will be our guide even unto death.”
“Number the towers … mark her bulwarks” (Psa 48:12-13). The pride of the psalmist in the strength of Jerusalem was fully justified. When Vespasian and Titus finally destroyed the city, Titus stated that “Only God had enabled him to conquer it.” In fact it was the moral collapse of the city within itself that activated their final overthrow.
“He will be our guide even unto death” (Psa 48:14). The RSV is superior here, rendering the last words as, “He will be our guide for ever.” Of course the passage is disputed; and there are charges that the “text is damaged here, that “the words should be omitted, or that “the true ending has been lost. However, we believe that the correct rendition of this place is that in the LXX, which has, “For this is our God forever and ever; he will be our guide forevermore.
Our preference for the Septuagint (LXX) here is founded upon the evident fact that the New Testament here sheds light upon the Old Testament. The Old Israel is a type of the New; and when Christ said to the New Israel, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world, Amen!” he gave us the true meaning of this place. It is not that God will be with his people only until they die, but eternally, even unto the end of the world.
Leupold rendered this disputed phrase, “in spite of death,” declaring that this meaning, “deserves to be retained. Dummelow rendered the passage: “For such is Jehovah our God; He it is that shall guide us forever and ever.
Ash stated that, “Many manuscripts support the emendation that gives us `forever’ in the RSV. The RSV is indeed superior to some other versions; but there is even a better one, namely, the LXX. This is proved by McCaw’s statement below.
McCaw stated that, “Our guide `forever’ (as in ASV) arises from one emendation in the Hebrew text; but a much lesser change gives us `unto, against, or beyond death’ and that is preferable even to the RSV. This, of course, also supports the LXX rendition.
E.M. Zerr:
Psa 48:12-13. This paragraph is a challenge to the world to inspect the institutions of the Lord. The people are invited to take notice of all the strong points and then report it to their generations after them. The implication is that when the world realizes the perfection of God’s great works it will make them have deep respect.
Psa 48:14. The name God is from an original form that especially means supreme ruler. A Being who could provide such a bulwark as that described in the preceding paragraph is worthy to rule. Such ruling would be a safe guidance throughout life.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Walk: Neh 12:31-40, Mat 24:1, Mat 24:2
tell: Isa 33:18-20
Reciprocal: 2Sa 5:7 – Zion 1Ch 11:5 – the castle Isa 26:1 – salvation Isa 33:20 – Look Eze 21:20 – the defenced Mic 4:8 – O tower Zep 1:16 – and against Zec 2:5 – a wall
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Psa 48:12-13. Walk about Zion, &c. He speaks probably to the people of the city and kingdom, who had been eye-witnesses of the glorious work God had wrought for their deliverance. Bishop Patrick thus paraphrases the words: Make a solemn procession, and go round about the city, blessing and praising God, with thankful hearts, who hath preserved you from being begirt by the enemy. Tell all the towers as you go along, and see if there be so much as one wanting, or the least hurt done to any of them. Some commentators, however, think that he speaks to the hostile kings and their armies, who had come up against Jerusalem, and had gone round her to reconnoitre her strength, in order to take her, but who were now fled away; and that he calls upon them to return, and go round her again, and see how entire her fortifications were; and bids them tell the next generation, that it would be in vain to attempt any thing against her while she had Jehovah for her protector.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
48:12 {l} Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
(l) For in this outward defence and strength God’s blessings also appeared, but the chief is to be referred to God’s favour and secret defence, who never leaves his.