Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 145:18
The LORD [is] nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
18. nigh unto all them that call upon him ] To answer and help. Cp. Deu 4:7; Psa 34:18; Psa 119:151.
in truth ] The hypocrite finds no favour with Him. Cp. Isa 10:20; Joh 4:23-24.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him – There is a sense in which he is nigh to all, for he is everywhere present; but there is a special sense in which he seems to be near to us; in which he manifests himself to us; in which he gives us evidence of his presence. It is in prayer, in praise, in his ordinances – in his gracious interpositions in our behalf – in the peace and joy which we have in communion with him. Compare the notes at Psa 34:18 : The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart.
To all that call upon him in truth – In sincerity; not hypocritically; worshipping him as the true God, and with a sincere desire to obtain his favor. Compare the notes at Joh 4:24. We can have no hope that God will hear us unless we are sincere in our worship. He sees the heart, and he will act toward us as we are, and not as we profess to be.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 145:18-21
The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon Him.
God and His people
I. The persons who are favoured with the Divine presence.
1. They call upon God.
2. They call upon Him in truth.
3. They desire Him.
4. They fear Him.
5. They cry unto Him.
6. They love Him.
7. They praise Him.
II. The favours which the Lord manifests to His people.
1. He is near them.
2. He will grant their desires.
3. He will save them.
4. He will preserve them.
5. They shall be with Him for ever.
III. The destruction of the wicked. He will destroy–
1. Their expectation (Pro 10:28-29).
2. Their souls and bodies in hell (Mat 10:28).
IV. Improvement.
1. See what great encouragement there is for prayer.
2. What incitements to filial confidence in God.
3. What reasons for gratitude and praise.
4. And what terror to the unbelieving. (T. B. Baker.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 18. The Lord is nigh] Whoever calls upon God in truth, with a sincere and upright heart, one that truly desires his salvation, to that person God is nigh. The following verse shows he is not only near to praying people, but
1. He will hear their cry.
2. Fulfil their desires.
3. Save them.
Reader, lift up thy soul in prayer to this merciful God.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Is nigh unto all them, to answer their prayers for relief,
that call upon him in truth; sincerely, or with an upright heart, trusting to him, and waiting upon him in his way.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
18, 19. (Compare Psa 34:7;Psa 34:10).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The Lord [is] nigh unto all them that call upon him,…. He is not only nigh unto them in relation, being their near kinsman, brother, father, husband, and head, but with respect to place and presence; not in a general way, as he is the omnipresent God, and so nigh to all, and from whose presence there is no fleeing; but in a special way, he is so nigh to them as he is not unto others, De 4:7. He is in their hearts, and dwells there by faith, and they dwell in him; his blood is sprinkled in their consciences, and his righteousness is unto them and upon them; his salvation is brought near to them, to their very hearts, and they are nearer that than when they first believed; he is nigh to them that call upon him, for Christ is equally called upon as the Father; see 1Co 1:2; so as to give them what they ask of him, and to help them in all their times of need;
to all that call upon him in truth; in faith and with fervency, constantly and importunely, and in the sincerity and uprightness of their hearts; with true hearts, cordially and affectionately; their hearts and mouths agreeing together, as Kimchi observes.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
18. Jehovah is near to all that call upon him. This truth is principally applicable to believers, whom God in the way of singular privilege invites to draw near him, promising that he will be favorable to their prayers. Faith, there is no doubt, lies idle and even dead without prayer, in which the spirit of adoption shows and exercises itself, and by which we evidence that all his promises are considered by us as stable and sure. The inestimable grace of God, in short, towards believers, appears in this, that he exhibits himself to them as a Father. As many doubts steal upon us when we pray to God, and we either approach him with trembling, or fail by becoming discouraged and lifeless, David declares it to be true without exception, that God hears all who call upon him. At the same time, as most men pervert and profane the method of calling upon God through inventions of their own, the right manner of praying is laid down in the next part of the verse, which is, that we should pray in truth. Although men resort to God in a cold manner, or even in their prayers expostulate with him, while their hearts are swelling with pride or with anger, they yet complain that they are not heard; just as if there were no difference between praying and quarreling, or the exercise of faith and hypocrisy. The greater part of men, involved in infidelity, scarcely believe that there is a God in heaven at all; others would banish him from it if they could; others would tie him down to their views and, wishes, while some seek slight and insufficient ways of reconciling him, so that the common way of praying is but an idle and empty ceremony. (283) And although nearly all men without exception have recourse to God in the time of their need, they are few indeed who bring the smallest measure of faith or repentance. It were better that the name of God should be buried in oblivion than exposed to such insults. There is good reason, therefore, why truth should be said to be necessary in our prayers — that they come from a sincere heart. The falsehood, which is the opposite of this sincerity, is of various kinds; indeed it were difficult to enumerate them — infidelity, wavering, impatience, murmuring, pretended humility, in short there are as many sorts of it as there are sinful dispositions. The truth being one of no small importance, David again confirms and enlarges upon it in the next verse. The repetition is worthy of our particular notice, for such is our tendency to unbelief, that there are few who in calling upon God do not look upon their prayers as fruitless. Hence the perverse manner in which the wandering minds of men are tossed hither and thither, as in the Papacy they invented patrons without number, holding it of no importance almost to embrace with an unwavering faith the promises by which God invites us to himself.
(283) “ Les autres voudroyent qu’il fust sujet a eux: les autres comme par maniere d’acquit cerchent cluelque moyen de l’appaiser,” etc. — Fr.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(18) The Lord is nigh . . .
Closer is He than breathing, and nearer than hands and feet.
TENNYSON: Higher Pantheism.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
18. The Lord is nigh It is here shown that while God sends his rain and sunshine and harvest upon all his creatures, he gives special hearing and special mercy to the true hearted, to them that fear him.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Psa 145:18. In truth Or, in fidelity, or constancy. This fidelity or constancy may be applied either to the person praying, or to the prayer itself. If to the person, it then signifies his firm adherence to God, and constancy in serving him, without applying himself to any indirect means to obtain what he prays for; but waiting only on God to receive it from him in his good time. If to the prayer itself, it signifies the constancy of his address, in not giving over his petitions when they are not immediately granted, but enforcing them with importunity; and it is to the union of these two conditions that the promise is here made, that the prayer so qualified shall certainly, in God’s due time, be answered by him.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
DISCOURSE: 743
GODS READINESS TO ANSWER PRAYER
Psa 145:18-19. The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them.
ONE of the most endearing qualities of a monarch is, a readiness to listen to the petitions of his subjects, and to relieve, to the utmost of his power, their necessities. But no earthly potentate can be accessible to all; nor, if he were, could he supply their wants. God alone is competent to this great task. With him there is no weariness, nor any defect either of inclination or of power. To him all may go, at all times, and under all circumstances: and, if they go to him, they shall find, by sweet experience, that he is able to do for them exceeding abundantly above all that they can ask or think. Hence the name given to Jehovah by the Psalmist, is this, O thou that hearest prayer. In the passage before us we are particularly led to contemplate God in this view. It is here said,
I.
That he will hear the supplications of his praying people
The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him
[Never will he turn a deaf ear to a humble suppliant. We read not of so much as one whom the Lord Jesus turned away in the days of his flesh, provided only that he came under a deep sense of his own necessities, and a humble expectation of relief from him. So at this time there is no difference with respect to persons; God is ready to hear all without exception, whether those who have long approved themselves to him as faithful servants, or those who come to him for the first time in their whole lives He will be nigh unto them, the very instant they call upon him. But who can declare all that is contained in this expression? As to his actual presence, God is nigh unto all, whether they call upon him or not. It is of the manifestations of his presence that the Psalmist speaks: and those will God vouchsafe to the souls of his faithful worshippers in a variety of ways. He will lift up the light of his countenance upon them: he will shed abroad his love in their hearts by the Holy Ghost: he will give them the spirit of adoption, yea, and the witness of his Spirit, whereby they shall know that their prayers are both heard and answered. We do not now speak of such testimonies as were vouchsafed to Daniel, or Cornelius, but such as are promised in the prophecies of Isaiah to the Church at large: Then thou shalt call, and the Lord shall answer; thou shalt cry, and he shall say, Here I am [Note: Isa 58:9.]. To judge of these assurances of our acceptance, we must have experienced them in our own souls. To those who have not known them they must of necessity appear little better than the dreams of a heated imagination. But whatever the ignorant may say, if we draw nigh to God, he will draw nigh to us [Note: Jam 4:8.], and will manifest himself unto us, as he does not unto the world [Note: Joh 14:21-22.].]
It is here however supposed, that we call upon him in truth
[Prayer must be sincere, in order to find acceptance with God. We cannot hope that it shall prevail, if it proceed from feigned lips. Of what value in the sight of God can a mere formal recital of words be? It is in vain that we draw nigh to him with our lips, if our hearts be far from him. Or, supposing that we be earnest in our petitions, how can we hope that God will hear them, if we are hypocritically indulging any secret sins? David justly says, If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. By the prophet Isaiah, God speaks yet more strongly; When ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you; yea, when ye make many prayers I will not hear: your hands are full of blood [Note: Isa 1:15 and Pro 21:27.]. God is a Spirit, and must be worshipped in spirit and in truth [Note: Joh 4:24.]: and to those who so worship him, is his promise of acceptance confined: Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart [Note: Jer 29:12-13.].]
To this general promise of hearing his peoples prayers, is added an assurance,
II.
That he will hear them even under circumstances that may be supposed most unfavourable to their acceptance with him
Where there have been much previous meditation, and subsequent fluency of expression, we are inclined to hope, that our prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of Hosts: but where these have been wanting, we are ready to doubt whether God will regard us at all.
But we are assured in our text that he will hear,
1.
Our cries unpremeditated
[There are many occasions that arise so suddenly as to preclude a possibility of previous meditation. Such was the danger to which Jehoshaphat was exposed in the very heat of battle, when the Syrians mistook him for King Ahab, whom they were especially commanded to search out and to destroy: they had actually compassed him round about; and Jehoshaphat had only time to cry out to God: yet behold, so instantaneously did God hear and answer, that in a moment he was helped, and his enemies were moved to depart from him [Note: 2Ch 18:30-31.]. Thus by ten thousand accidents may we be brought in danger of our lives, or by the devices of Satan be exposed to temptations that threaten to overwhelm and destroy our souls: but prayer will in an instant bring omnipotence to our aid. Look at Peter sinking in the waves: he cries, Save, Lord; or I perish! and, behold, the Saviour instantly stretched out his hand, and saved him: and so will that Almighty Friend do to us also, whatever our difficulties or dangers be, according to that blessed promise; It shall come to pass, that, before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear [Note: Isa 65:24.].]
2.
Our desires unexpressed
[It is but little than any man knows of his own necessities: and even those who know most of them, are often greatly at a loss to express their wants in prayer. There are times when the best of men feel their spirit straitened, and can utter their desires only in sighs and groans. This, I say, is the case with those whose knowledge is most enlarged, and whose abilities are most eminent. How then must it be with those whose intellectual powers are small, and who have never enjoyed the advantages of a liberal education? Will God confine his answer to their immediate requests? No. He knows the meaning of a sigh or groan, as well as if it were expressed in the most fluent language. He knows that at the very time when his people can say little else, than, Lord, help me; God be merciful to me a sinner, they would, if they could, expatiate upon all their wants, and pour out their souls before him in the most enlarged petitions. Hence, in his answers, he regards, not so much their words, as their wants; and enlarges the measure of his gifts in proportion to the extent of their desires. Whatever can tend to the peace of their minds or the perfection of their souls, that he imparts in rich abundance, communicating infinitely more than they can ask or think [Note: Pro 15:8 and Eph 3:20.].
But, as in the former case it was supposed that the person calling upon him was sincere, so here it is supposed that the person, whose unpremeditated cries he hears, and whose unexpressed desires he fulfils, does really fear him; for it is that principle alone that can render their desires proper to be fulfilled, or their cries to be answered. Where the fear of God really is, there Gods will, and Gods glory, will alone be desired [Note: Pro 11:23.]; and where they are the objects of our desire, however wide our mouth be opened, God will fill it [Note: Psa 81:10.].]
See from hence,
1.
How wonderful is the condescension of God to his believing people!
[What would a person, who feels his own incapacity to spread his wants before God, wish for? If God should say to him, Tell me what I shall say for your encouragement, what could the drooping sinner dictate more consoling to himself than what is spoken in our text? Examine well in this view what God has spoken in another place; how strongly he depicts the hopeless state of the suppliant, and what effectual aid he promises to impart [Note: Isa 41:17-18.] and you will be prepared to estimate aright the promise in our text, Let none then give way to unbelieving fears, or be dejected because they find not in themselves all the liberty and fluency they could wish: but let the habitual desire of the soul be after God, and the bent of it be towards him on every emergency: then shall not one jot or tittle of this word fail of its full accomplishment [Note: Psa 34:18.].
Let me very especially direct your attention to the climax which God is pleased to use in this place, for the purpose of encouraging his tempted people, and of magnifying his mercy towards them. In every member of the sentence he enlarges his promise; and, at the same time, lowers, as it were, the qualifications necessary for those to whom the promises are made: To them that call upon him in truth, he will be nigh. To those who only fear him, and cherish, as it were, a feeble desire towards him, he will be so gracious as to fulfil their desire. And lastly, if any, through the greatness of their necessities, or an overwhelming sense of their unworthiness, are unable to do more than utter a cry, he will listen to them, yea, and save them with an everlasting salvation. The sigh, the groan, the tear shed in secret, shall come up with acceptance before him; even as Jeremiahs supplication did from the low dungeon, when he said, Hide not thine ear at my breathing and my cry [Note: Lam 3:56.]!]
2.
What bitter self-reproach will they feel, who live and die without prayer!
[One of the most bitter ingredients in that cup of Gods wrath which will be put into the hands of those who perish, will be the reflection, that they might have had all the glory of heaven, if only they would have sought it in earnest prayer. When, they once experience the torments of hell, they may cry ever so long for a drop of water to cool their tongue, but they will not be able to obtain it. How will they then curse their folly, that they neglected to cry, when they might have obtained all that they could possibly desire! The recollection of that word, Ask, and ye shall have, will be a dagger to their souls. Dear Brethren, do but think of this in time. Think on what easy terms, if we may so speak, heaven may be now obtained. If only you truly fear God, and call upon him in truth, you may be perfectly assured that you shall never be cast out. If God, unsolicited, gave you his only-begotten Son to die for you, what will he refuse you when you call upon him? He may delay indeed for a time to answer you; but not beyond the fittest time. Continue instant in prayer, then, yea, pray and faint not: for God cannot resist the importunity of prayer. The unjust judge complied with the widows request at last: and will not God avenge his own elect, who cry day and night unto him? I tell you, that he will avenge them speedily.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
Psa 145:18 The LORD [is] nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.
Ver. 18. The Lord is nigh unto all those, &c. ] He is ever at hand, to hear and help his faithful suitors and suppliants; these have the royalty of his ear, free access, sure success.
To all that call upon him in truth
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
nigh: i.e. nigh to help. Compare Psa 34:18; Psa 119:151. Deu 4:7.
unto all. Note the Figure of speech Anadiplosis (App-6) in the repetition, “to all that call” (for emphasis).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
nigh unto: Psa 34:18, Psa 46:1, Psa 46:5, Deu 4:7, 1Ki 18:27, 1Ki 18:28, Isa 58:9, Joh 14:23, Jam 4:8
call upon: Psa 17:1, Psa 119:2, Pro 15:8, Isa 1:15, Isa 1:16, Jer 29:12, Jer 29:13, Hos 7:14, Mat 6:5-8, Mat 23:14, Joh 4:24, 1Jo 3:20-22
Reciprocal: Gen 13:4 – called Gen 24:15 – before 1Ki 8:52 – in all that 2Ki 20:3 – in truth Psa 6:8 – for Psa 34:17 – cry Psa 65:2 – thou Psa 79:6 – not called Psa 86:5 – unto all Psa 116:2 – therefore Psa 119:151 – near Pro 15:29 – he heareth Pro 19:23 – fear Isa 55:6 – while he is near Jer 33:3 – Call Lam 3:57 – drewest Dan 4:37 – all Dan 9:20 – whiles Mat 7:7 – and it Rom 10:12 – call upon him Jam 5:16 – The effectual 1Jo 3:22 – whatsoever
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Psa 145:18-19. The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon him To answer their prayers, supposing they call upon him; in truth Or, with an upright heart, asking those things only which are according to his will, sincerely desiring what they ask, trusting in him that he will give it, and waiting upon him in the way he hath appointed for that purpose. Observe, reader, our King is not like earthly princes, difficult of access, but one of whom the meanest subject may at any time obtain an audience, and be certain of having his request granted, if it be made in truth, without wavering and without hypocrisy, with humble confidence and unwearied constancy, he being found walking in the way of duty and obedience. He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him So far as their desire is agreeable to his will, and it would be for their good to have it fulfilled.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
145:18 The LORD [is] nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in {l} truth.
(l) Which only belongs to the faithful: and this virtue is contrary to infidelity, doubting, impatience and murmuring.