Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 119:175
Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.
175. and it shall praise thee ] Or, that it may praise thee. The object of the life for which he has prayed so often life prolonged, revived, invigorated, freed from the persecutions and trials which impede and prevent the exercise of its full activities is just this, that his whole self may praise God (Psa 146:2).
and let thy judgments help me ] Either the ordinances which are the rule of his life (102, 106), or acts of judgement, by which his enemies are punished.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee – I desire life that I may praise thee; if I do live, I will praise thee. My life is consecrated to thy service; if lengthened out, and as far as it shall be lengthened out, it shall be devoted to thee.
And let thy judgments help me – The dealings of thy hand; the interpositions of thy providence. Let them all be such as will be favorable to the great purpose of my soul – the service of my God.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 119:175
Let my soul live, and it shall praise Thee.
The love of life vindicated
Setting aside those who love life only for reasons which ought not to have such weight with them, and who would prolong it only to abuse it, I shall show you some better reasons for this attachment; derived from nature, from society, and from religion.
I. We naturally love life; and this argument alone is sufficient to prove the innocence of that love.
II. We love life for the sake of society, and the connections we have contracted in it. A husband and a wife,–living in the happiest union, and looking forward to a great length of days, and to many comforts,–are threatened with sudden separation by death. Can any one blame the tender and lively regrets which both of them experience at this unlooked-for parting? And again; a man whose high station enables him to render important services to society may, without presumption, wish on this account for a lengthening of his days.
III. We may love life from a principle of piety and religion.
1. Since life is a gift from Gods bounty, a favour which He grants to us, why should we not love it in this point of view? Why, when it pleases the great Disposer of our days to prolong the course of them, should we not testify our joy by the sincerest thanksgivings?
2. Religion attaches us to life by another consideration, in which all of us are greatly concerned: and that is, the imperfection of the great work of our salvation; the just awe and fear of appearing at Gods judgment-seat before we have set our accounts in order, and made our preparations for eternity.
3. One more consideration, very consistent with such true humility, is–that of our good example; the light of which we may innocently, and even holily, wish to shine still longer, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. (S. Partridge.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 175. Let my soul live] Let my life be preserved, and my soul quickened!
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Either,
1. Thy providential dispensation, whereby thou judgest and rulest the world, punishing the wicked, and protecting and delivering the godly. Or,
2. Thy word or testimonies, as this word most commonly signifies in this Psalm, which are the only ground of my hope in thy help.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
175. Save me that I may praiseThee.
thy judgmentsas inPsa 119:149; Psa 119:156.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee,…. The psalmist desires the continuance of his natural life, not for his own personal advantage, nor for the sake of his family, nor with any worldly, sinister, and selfish views; but for the glory of God, and for the sake of praising him: or his desire is, that his soul might be lively and comfortable; or that he might be in a lively and cheerful frame of spirit, and so be in fit and proper circumstances to praise the Lord; for it is the living man in both senses, natural and spiritual, that is capable of praising the Lord, Isa 38:19;
and let thy judgments help me; that is, to praise him: meaning either judgments on his enemies, as Aben Ezra; which furnish out matter and occasion of praise and thanksgiving; see Re 15:3; or the word of God, the doctrines and precepts of it; see Ps 119:164.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.
David’s heart is still upon praising God; and therefore, 1. He prays that God would give him time to praise him: “Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee, that is, let my life be prolonged, that I may live to thy glory.” The reason why a good man desires to live is that he may praise God in the land of the living, and do something to his honour. Not, “Let me live and serve my country, live and provide for my family;” but, “Let me live that, in doing this, I may praise God here in this world of conflict and opposition.” When we die we hope to go to a better world to praise him, and that is more agreeable for us, though here there is more need of us. And therefore one would not desire to live any longer than we may do God some service here. Let my soul live, that is, let me be sanctified and comforted, for sanctification and comfort are the life of the soul, and then it shall praise thee. Our souls must be employed in praising God, and we must pray for grace and peace that we may be fitted to praise God. 2. He prays that God would give him strength to praise him: “Let thy judgments help me; let all ordinances and all providences” (both are God’s judgments) “further me in glorifying God; let them be the matter of my praise and let them help to fit me for that work.”
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
175. Let my soul live and let it praise thee. As the verbs are in the future tense, shall live, shall praise, this sentence may be expounded thus: Lord, when thou shalt have bestowed life upon me, I will endeavor, by celebrating thy praises, to show that I am not ungrateful. If this sense is approved, the sentence will be a kind of rejoicing, in which the Prophet, depending upon the divine promises, confidently proclaims, that his life will continue in safety. And, certainly, although our life is hidden under the shadow of death, we may, nevertheless, boast that it is safe, because God is its faithful guardian; and this assured confidence proceeds from his quickening grace, which is offered to us in his word. Yet, as the majority of Commentators translate these words in the optative mood, let us follow the more generally received interpretation, which is, that David in asking to have his life prolonged, shows, at the same time, that the end for which he desired to live was, that he might exercise himself in singing the praises of God, even as it is said in Psa 115:18, “We who shall remain in life shall praise Jehovah.” In the second clause it would be harsh to understand the word judgments of the commandments, to which it does not properly belong to give help. It seems then, that the Prophet, perceiving himself liable to numberless calamities — even as the faithful, by reason of the unbridled license of the wicked, dwell in this world as sheep among wolves, — calls upon God to protect him in the way of restraining, by his secret providence, the wicked from doing him harm. It is a very profitable doctrine, when things in the world are in a state of great confusion, and when our safety is in danger amidst so many and varied storms, to lift up our eyes to the judgments of God, and to seek a remedy in them. As, however, in this Psalm the word judgments is commonly referred to God’s commandments, we may also fitly interpret it of them in this place, so that the Prophet attributes to the word of God the office and charge of giving succor; for God does not feed us with delusive promises, but, whenever an emergency arises, confirms and ratifies his word by giving some palpable manifestation of the operation of his hand. Thus, when the Prophet calls the divine law to his help, he pronounces a singular encomium upon the efficacy of the divine word. If any would prefer expounding the sentence of the keeping of the law, I offer no objections. In this sense it is as if the Prophet had said, — O Lord, let the uprightness which I have practiced, and the zeal with which I have employed myself in keeping thy commandments, be a defense to me.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
Psa 119:175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.
Ver. 175. Let thy judgments help me ] sc. To heaven: together with God’s word, there goeth forth a power.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
it shall praise Thee. Refers to Isa 38:20.
help me. Refers to Isa 37:33-36.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Let my: Psa 9:13, Psa 9:14, Psa 30:9, Psa 51:14, Psa 51:15, Psa 118:18, Psa 118:19, Isa 38:19
and let thy: Psa 119:75, Isa 26:8, Isa 26:9, Rom 8:28, 1Co 11:31, 1Co 11:32, 2Co 4:17
Reciprocal: Gen 19:20 – and my Lev 20:22 – judgments Psa 21:4 – asked Psa 67:3 – General Psa 119:43 – for I have
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
119:175 Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy {d} judgments help me.
(d) That is, your provident care over me, and with which you will judge my enemies.