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Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 89:1

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Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite. I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

1. God’s lovingkindnesses and faithfulness are an unfailing theme for grateful song. The past lovingkindnesses of God are unalterable facts; His faithfulness to His promises is beyond question: thus in these opening verses the poet’s faith rises triumphantly over the circumstances in which he is situated.

the mercies ] Better, the lovingkindnesses, and so throughout the Psalm. ‘Lovingkindness’ and ‘faithfulness’ are its key-words, each occurring seven times. Cp. Isa 55:3, “the sure” (or “faithful”) “loving-kindnesses shewn to David.”

with my mouth ] Aloud and openly.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

1 4. The Psalmist states his theme: the lovingkindness and faithfulness of Jehovah, which he is persuaded can never fail; and the promise of eternal dominion to the house of David.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever – Particularly how the mercy was manifested in the promise made to David; the solemn covenant made with him in respect to the perpetuity of his throne. The appointment of David to the throne was an act of mere mercy or favor, since he was not in the royal line, and had no claim to the crown. It will be seen, also, that if it be supposed that the covenant with David, and the promise therein made to him, was intended to include the Messiah as descending from him, there was a still higher reason for celebrating the mercies of God, inasmuch as all mercy to our world comes through him.

With my mouth – Not merely in my heart, but with words. The meaning here is that he would make a record which might be used evermore as the language of praise.

Will I make known thy faithfulness – In the fulfillment of these promises. He felt assured that they would be fulfilled. Whatever appearances there might be to the contrary, the psalmist had no doubt that God would prove himself to be faithful and true. See the notes at Isa 55:3, on the expression, the sure mercies of David.

To all generations – Margin, as in Hebrew, generation and generation. He would make a record which would carry down the remembrance of this faithfulness to all future ages.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Psa 89:1-52

I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever.

A majestic song

This psalm is one of the very choicest songs in the night. Midst a stream of troubled thoughts there stands a fair island of rescue and redemption, which supplies standing-room for wonder and worship; while the music of the words, like the murmuring of a river, sounds sweetly in our ears. The writer was bearing bitter reproach, and was almost broken-hearted by the grievous calamities of his nation. Yet his faith was strong in the faithfulness of God, and so he sang of the stability of the Divine covenant when the outlook of circumstances was dark and cheerless. Nor did he ever sing more sweetly than he sang in that night of his sorrow.

I. The eternal builder, and His wonderful work (Psa 89:2). I can see a vast mass of ruins. Heaps upon heaps they lie around me. A stately edifice has tottered to the ground. Some terrible disaster has occurred. There it lies–cornice, pillar, pinnacle, everything of ornament and of utility, broken, scattered, dislocated. The world is strewn with the debris. Journey where you will the desolation is before your eyes. Who has done this? Who has cast down this temple? What hand has ruined this magnificent structure? Manhood, manhood it is which has been destroyed, and sin was the agent that effected the fall. Alas for manhood that it should be thus fallen and destroyed! But what else do I see? I behold the great original Builder coming forth from the ivory palaces to undo this mischief; and He cometh not with implements of destruction, that He may cast down and destroy every vestige, but I see Him advancing with plummet and line, that He may rear, set up, and establish on a sure foundation a noble pile that shall not crumble with time, but endure throughout all ages. He cometh forth with mercy. So I said as I saw the vision, Mercy shall be built up for ever. The psalmist has the idea of Gods mercy being manifest in building, because a great breach has to be repaired, and the ruins of mankind are to be restored. As for building, it is a very substantial operation. A building is something which is palpable and tangible to our senses. We may have plans and schemes which are only visionary, but when it comes to building there is something real being done, something more than surveying the ground and drawing the model. And oh, what real work God has done for men! What real work in the gift of His dear Son! The product of His infinite purpose now becomes evident. He is working out His great designs after the counsel of His own will. A building is an orderly thing as well as a fixed thing. There is a scheme and design about it. Mercy shall be built. I see that it shall. This is no load of bricks shot out. It is polished stones builded one upon another. Gods grace and goodness toward me have not come to me by chance, or as the blind distribution of a God who cared for all alike, and for none with any special purpose. No, but there has been as much a specialty of purpose to me as if I were the only one He loved, though, praised be His name, He has blessed and is blessing multitudes of others beside me. Now, think upon these words–built up. It is not merely a long, low wall of mercy that is formed, to make an inclosure or to define a boundary, but it is a magnificent pile of mercy, whose lofty heights shall draw admiring gaze, that is being built up. God puts mercy on the top of mercy, and He gives us one favour that we may be ready to receive another. Once again would I read this verse with very great emphasis, and ask you to notice how it rebukes the proud and the haughty, and how it encourages the meek and lowly in spirit. I have said mercy shall be built up for ever. In the edification of the saints there is nothing else but mercy. I wish I had an imagination bold and clear, uncramped by all ideas of the masonry of men, free to expand, and still to cry, Excelsior. Palaces, methinks, are paltry, and castles and cathedrals are only grand in comparison with the little cots that nestle on the plain. Even mountains, high as the Himalaya range or broad as the Andes, though their peaks be so lofty to our reckoning, are mere specks on the surface of the great globe itself, and our earth is small among the celestial orbs, a little sister of the larger planets. Figures fail me quite: my description must take another turn. I try, and try again, to realize the gradual rising of this temple of mercy which shall be built up for ever. Within the bounds of my feeble vision I can discern that it has risen above death, above sin, above fear, above all danger; it has risen above the terrors of the judgment day; it has outsoared the wreck of matter and the crash of worlds; it towers above all our thoughts. Our bliss ascends above an angels enjoyments, and he has pleasures that were never checked by a pang; but he does not know the ineffable delight of free grace and dying love. The building-up will go on throughout eternity.

II. An everlasting singer (Psa 89:1). Here is a good and godly resolution: I will sing. The singing of the heart is intended, and the singing of the voice is expressed, for he mentions his mouth; and equally true is it that the singing of his pen is implied, since the psalms that he wrote were for others to sing in generations that should follow. I will sing. We cannot impart anything to the great temple which He is building; yet we can sit down and sing. This singing praise to God is a spiritual passion. The saved soul delights itself in the Lord, and sings on, and on, and on unwearily. I will sing for ever, saith he. Not, I will get others to perform, and then I will retire from the service; but rather, I will myself sing: my own tongue shall take the solo, whoever may refuse to join in the chorus. I will sing, and with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness. Now, note his subject. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord. What, not of anything else? Are the mercies of the Lord his exclusive theme? Arma virumque cano–Arms and the man, I sing, says the Latin poet. Mercies and my God, I sing, says the Hebrew seer. I will sing of mercies, says the devout Christian. This is the fount of mercy, whereof if a man doth drink he shall sing far better than he that drinketh of the Castalian fount, and on Parnassus begins to tune his harp. This singing of Ethan was intended to be instructive. How large a class did he want to teach? He intended to make known Gods mercy to all generations. Modern thought does not adventure beyond the tithe of a century, and it gets tame and tasteless before half that tiny span of sensationalism has given it time to evaporate. But the echoes of truth are not so transient; they endure, and by means of the printing press we can teach generation after generation, leaving books behind us as this good man has bequeathed this psalm, which is teaching us to-night, perhaps more largely than it taught any generation nearer to him. Will you transmit blessed testimonies to your childrens children? It should be your desire to do something in the present life that will live after you are gone. We instinctively long for a sort of immortality here. Let us strive to get it, not by carving our names on some stone, or writing our epitaphs upon a pillar, as Absalom did when he had nothing else by which to commemorate himself; but get to work to do something which shall be a testimony to the mercy of God, that others shall see when you are gone. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

The uncovenanted mercies of God

Ethan was the author of this psalm. It belongs to the early reign of Rehoboam, and to the invasion of Shishak. As Ethan recalled and weighed the clauses of the covenant, and compared them with the political facts of this distressful year, his mind was tossed into an agitation and distress from which he could find no relief, save in the large adventure and conclusion of faith, that the calamities which had fallen on Davids kingdom and seed were, after all, only the loving corrections by which God was chastening them for their transgressions; and that, therefore, so far from breaking, God was fulfilling His covenant with them. Even Gods covenants with men are but particular instances of His general ways, of His dealings with humanity at large; so that, in the very fullest sense which the words can be made to bear, it is true that His mercy endures for ever, that His faithfulness extends to all generations. There is a general impression abroad that a radical and vast difference obtains between what are called the covenanted and the un-covenanted mercies of God; that but for certain promises which He has made, and certain engagements into which He has entered, we should have little to hope for from Him. The doctrine of covenants plays, and must play, a large part in every system of theology. But every Divine promise is but a limited expression of a general principle. Every Divine covenant, even if it be made with a few, is nevertheless made for the benefit of the many, and can only be an instance of His ways, an illustration of a mercy as wide as the heavens, and of a faithfulness which extends to all generations of mankind. God can make no promise inconsistent with His character. Any momentary glimpse we can catch of Gods attitude towards men reveals His constant and unchanging attitude. To every man who loves and trusts and serves Him He will be all that He was to David . . . Who can deny the mercy of that high Will which made the law of retribution the law–or rather, one of the laws–of human life? As for the inexorable severity with which this law of retribution is administered, how can we but acknowledge that it needs to be administered with an invariable and constant severity? Take all the facts of human experience, then, and you will feel that there is mercy even in that law of retribution which seems most opposed to the rule of an Infinite Compassion and Love. If you believe in a work of redemption as well as in a law of retribution, there is absolutely no reason why you should not sing, with Ethan, of a mercy which is being built up for ever, and of a faithfulness which is establishing itself in the all-embracing heavens. (Samuel Cox, D.D.)

Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell

PSALM LXXXIX

The psalmist shows God’s great mercy to the house of David,

and the promises which he had given to it of support and

perpetuity, 1-37;

complains that, notwithstanding these promises, the kingdom of

Judah is overthrown, and the royal family nearly ruined, 38-45;

and earnestly prays for their restoration, 46-52.

NOTES ON PSALM LXXXIX

It is most probable that this Psalm was composed during the captivity. Of Ethan and Heman we have already seen something in the introduction to the preceding Psalm; Ps 88:1 see also the parallel places in the margin. The title should probably be translated, – To give instruction to Ethan the Ezrahite. The Chaldee has, “A good instruction, delivered by Abraham, who came from the east country.” The Septuagint and AEthiopic have Nathan the Israelite; the Arabic has Nathan the Israelite.

The Psalm divides itself into two grand parts; the first extends, Ps 89:1-37, in which the psalmist shows God’s mercy to the house of David, and the promises which he has given to it of support and perpetuity. The second part begins with verse 38, and ends with the Psalm; Ps 89:38-52 and in it the author complains that notwithstanding these promises, the kingdom of Judah is overthrown and the royal family ruined; and he entreats the Lord to remember his covenant made with that family, and restore them from their captivity.

Verse 1. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord] I will celebrate the mercy of God to the house of Jacob; the mercy that has been shown to our fathers from time immemorial.

To all generations] What I say concerning thy mercy and goodness, being inspired by thy Spirit, is not only true, but shall be preserved by the Divine providence for ever.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Intending to discourse of the doleful estate of Davids family and of his kingdom, he prefaceth this, partly lest the following complaints of present miseries should argue ingratitude for former mercies.

Thy faithfulness: whatsoever hath befallen or shall befall Davids house, or any other, it proceeded not from thy unfaithfulness, but from some other causes.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

1. merciesthose promised(Isa 55:3; Act 13:34),and

faithfulnessthat is,in fulfilling them.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever,…. Both temporal and spiritual, especially the latter, in which there is a large display of the rich and abundant mercy of God, from whence they are so called; as in the choice of men to everlasting life, who are said to be vessels of mercy; in the covenant of grace made with them, the blessings of which are the sure mercies of David; in the mission of Christ, whose coming, as the dayspring from on high, is owing to the tender mercy of our God; in redemption by him, in which mercy and truth have met together; in regeneration, which is according to abundant mercy; in the forgiveness of sins, which is according to the multitude of his tender mercies; and in the whole of salvation, which is not by works of righteousness, but by the mercy of God through Christ: the word may be rendered “graces, kindnesses, goodnesses” l, and designs the abundance of grace; as in the heart of God, in the covenant, in the hands of Christ, as displayed through him, and in the several parts of salvation, and the whole of it: and these are a proper subject for a song; and a truly gracious soul, sensible of these things, thankful for them, cheerful on account of them, and seeing his interest in them, cannot but “sing” of them; and will determine to do it “for ever”, every day, and all the day long, as long as he lives, and while he has any being, and which he will do to all eternity:

with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations; God is faithful to himself, to all the perfections of his nature, to his truth, holiness, and justice, he cannot deny himself; he is so to his Son, and to all engagements with him, and promises to him; to all his counsels, purposes, and decrees; all which are faithfulness and truth, or faithfully and truly performed; and to his covenant and promises made to his people in Christ, in whom they are all yea and amen: and that this glorious perfection of God might be made known to the saints in all successive generations, and be taken notice of by them, the psalmist spoke and sung this psalm with his mouth, and penned it with his hand; in which there is more mention made of the faithfulness of God than perhaps in any other passage of Scripture besides; see Ps 89:2.

k Works, vol. i. p. 699, 700. l “bonitates”, Tigurine version; “benignitates”, Junius Tremellius “beneficia”, Piscator; “gratias”, Cocceius.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

The poet, who, as one soon observes, is a (for the very beginning of the Psalm is remarkable and ingenious), begins with the confession of the inviolability of the mercies promised to the house of David, i.e., of the , Isa 55:3.

(Note: The Vulgate renders: Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo . The second Sunday after Easter takes its name from this rendering.)

God’s faithful love towards the house of David, a love faithful to His promises, will he sing without ceasing, and make it known with his mouth, i.e., audibly and publicly (cf. Job 19:16), to the distant posterity. Instead of , we find here, and also in Lam 3:22, with a not merely slightly closed syllable. The Lamed of is, according to Psa 103:7; Psa 145:12, the datival Lamed. With (lxx, Jerome, contrary to Psa 89:3, ) the poet bases his resolve upon his conviction. means not so much to be upheld in building, as to be in the course of continuous building (e.g., Job 22:23; Mal 3:15, of an increasingly prosperous condition). Loving-kindness is for ever (accusative of duration) in the course of continuous building, viz., upon the unshakeable foundation of the promise of grace, inasmuch as it is fulfilled in accordance therewith. It is a building with a most solid foundation, which will not only not fall into ruins, but, adding one stone of fulfilment upon another, will rise ever higher and higher. then stands first as casus absol., and is, as in Psa 19:5, a pronoun having a backward reference to it. In the heavens, which are exalted above the rise and fall of things here below, God establishes His faithfulness, so that it stands fast as the sun above the earth, although the condition of things here below seems sometimes to contradict it (cf. Psa 119:89). Now follow in Psa 89:4-5 the direct words of God, the sum of the promises given to David and to his seed in 2 Sam. 7, at which the poet arrives more naturally in Psa 89:20. Here they are strikingly devoid of connection. It is the special substance of the promises that is associated in thought with the “loving-kindness” and “truth” of Psa 89:3, which is expanded as it were appositionally therein. Hence also and , and correspond to one another. David’s seed, by virtue of divine faithfulness, has an eternally sure existence; Jahve builds up David’s throne “into generation and generation,” inasmuch as He causes it to rise ever fresh and vigorous, never as that which is growing old and feeble.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

The Divine Mercy and Faithfulness.

Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.

1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. 2 For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. 3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, 4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.

The psalmist has a very sad complaint to make of the deplorable condition of the family of David at this time, and yet he begins the psalm with songs of praise; for we must, in every thing, in every state, give thanks; thus we must glorify the Lord in the fire. We think, when we are in trouble, that we get ease by complaining; but we do more–we get joy, by praising. Let our complaints therefore be turned into thanksgivings; and in these verses we find that which will be matter of praise and thanksgiving for us in the worst of times, whether upon a personal or a public account, 1. However it be, the everlasting God is good and true, v. 1. Though we may find it hard to reconcile present dark providences with the goodness and truth of God, yet we must abide by this principle, That God’s mercies are inexhaustible and his truth is inviolable; and these must be the matter of our joy and praise: “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever, sing a praising song to God’s honour, a pleasant song for my own solace, and Maschil, an instructive song, for the edification of others.” We may be for ever singing God’s mercies, and yet the subject will not be drawn dry. We must sing of God’s mercies as long as we live, train up others to sing of them when we are gone, and hope to be singing them in heaven world without end; and this is singing of the mercies of the Lord for ever. With my mouth, and with my pen (for by that also do we speak), will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations, assuring posterity, from my own observation and experience, that God is true to every word that he has spoken, that they may learn to put their trust in God, Ps. lxxviii. 6. 2. However it be, the everlasting covenant is firm and sure, v. 2-4. Here we have, (1.) The psalmist’s faith and hope: “Things now look black, and threaten the utter extirpation of the house of David; but I have said, and I have warrant from the word of God to say it, that mercy shall be built up for ever.” As the goodness of God’s nature is to be the matter of our song (v. 1), so much more the mercy that is built for us in the covenant; it is still increasing, like a house in the building up, and shall still continue our rest for ever, like a house built up. It shall be built up for ever; for the everlasting habitations we hope for in the new Jerusalem are of this building. If mercy shall be built for ever, then the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, shall be raised out of its ruins, and built up as in the days of old, Amos ix. 11. Therefore mercy shall be built up for ever, because thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. Though our expectations are in some particular instances disappointed, yet God’s promises are not disannulled; they are established in the very heavens (that is, in his eternal counsels); they are above the changes of this lower region and out of the reach of the opposition of hell and earth. The stability of the material heavens is an emblem of the truth of God’s word; the heavens may be clouded by vapours arising out of the earth, but they cannot be touched, they cannot be changed. (2.) An abstract of the covenant upon which this faith and hope are built: I have said it, says the psalmist, for God hath sworn it, that the heirs of promise might be entirely satisfied of the immutability of his counsel. He brings in God speaking (v. 3), owning, to the comfort of his people, “I have made a covenant, and therefore will make it good.” The covenant is made with David; the covenant of royalty is made with him, as the father of his family, and with his seed through him and for his sake, representing the covenant of grace made with Christ as head of the church and with all believers as his spiritual seed. David is here called God’s chosen and his servant; and, as God is not changeable to recede from his own choice, so he is not unrighteous to cast off one that served him. Two things encourage the psalmist to build his faith on this covenant:– [1.] The ratification of it; it was confirmed with an oath: The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent. [2.] The perpetuity of it; the blessings of the covenant were not only secured to David himself, but were entailed on his family; it was promised that his family should continue–Thy seed will I establish for ever, so that David shall not want a son to reign (Jer 33:20; Jer 33:21); and that it should continue a royal family–I will build up thy throne to all generations, to all the generations of time. This has its accomplishment only in Christ, of the seed of David, who lives for ever, to whom God has given the throne of his father David, and of the increase of whose government and peace there shall be no end. Of this covenant the psalmist will return to speak more largely, v. 19, &c.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

Psalms 89

The Covenant Psalm

This 89th Psalm is the last of the third book of Psalms, corresponding with Leviticus of the Pentateuch. It reviews, reassures, that the covenant God will restore and use His fallen, backslidden people, when they seek cleansing from defilement and a separated walk with Him in spiritual service. There is a place for daily cleansing, Luk 18:1.

The Covenant of God Described

Scripture v. 1-18:

Verse 1 expressed Israel’s resolve, “to sing of the mercies of the Lord forever,” as expressed v. 49; Isa 55:3; and to “make known with her mouth his faithfulness to all generations,” because she is convinced they will stand the test, as further expressed v. 2, 5, 8, 24, 33.

Verse 2 adds “for I have said mercy shall be built up for ever; Thy faithfulness shaft thou establish in the very heavens,” like a building built up to completion, in contrast to one unfinished and decaying in the ravages of the weather. Such mercy and faithfulness would cause Israel, like the heavens, to be eternal. v. 36, 37; Psa 72:5; Psa 119:89.

Verse 3 relates God’s covenant, “I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,” as declared 2Sa 7:12-16; 2Sa 7:19; 2Sa 7:24-25; 2Sa 7:29; It is the central axis on which this Psalm turns, Psa 132:11; Eze 34:23; Hos 3:5.

Verse 4 continues “thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up my throne to all generations. Selah,” meditate and digest and draw spiritual strength from this, 2 Samuel 7; 2 Samuel 13; Isa 44:5; Luk 1:32; Heb 2:13.

Verse 5 declares that the heavens should praise the wonders of the Lord and His faithfulness (in keeping His covenant), even “the congregation of the saints” of Israel’s organized public worship, and the unfallen angels, Psa 29:1-2; Deu 33:2; Act 7:53; Joh 4:24.

Verse 6 Inquires “for who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto (or compared with) the Lord?” Can any unfallen angel or any among the redeemed? The inferred conclusion is “none,” as too related, Rev 5:2-10; See also Psa 40:5; Psa 71:19; Psa 86:8; Psa 113:5.

Verse 7 asserts that God (El of mighty power) is “greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him,” of all unfallen angels who serve Him, and the redeemed in an orderly, organized manner, Heb 1:14; Psa 34:7; See Eph 3:10; 1Pe 1:12; Psa 76:11.

Verse 8 asks, just who is (exists) so strong as or to be compared with the Lord God of hosts (marshaled hosts of angels)? Or who is to be compared with His fidelity in promise keeping? round about? like a tight-fitting girdle, v. 6, 7; Psa 65:7.

Verse 9 declares “thou rulest (control continually) the raging of the sea; (the gentile masses) when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest (quietest) them, Job 38:11; Psa 93:3; Psa 107:25; Nah 1:4; Mat 8:26; Mat 14:32; Mar 4:39; Dan 7:2-3; Isa 14:19.

Verse 10 adds “thou hast broken Rahab (Egypt) in pieces, as one that is slain; Thou hast scattered (dispersed) thine enemies with thy strong arm,” as repeatedly certified, Psa 87:4; Isa 30:7; Isa 51:9; Psa 88:5.

Verses 11, 12 certify that the heavens and the earth and the fullness of the world belong to the mighty covenant-keeping God; Verse 12 explains that the same Lord created the north and the south; Tabor and Hermon also would and should rejoice, in the name and honor of Israel’s God, from east to west of the Jordan, Psa 42:6; See also Jos 19:22; Jdg 4:6; Jos 13:1.

Verses 13, 14 assert that God has a strong, high, and mighty right hand and arm; and justice and judgment are the established principles of His throne rule. For mercy and truth shall always go before, be held up before His face, for His approval, Psa 85:13; See also Deu 32:4; Psa 97:2; Jer 12:1.

Verses 15, 16 declare that spiritually prosperous (blessed) are the people who recognize the “joyful sound,” for they shall walk in the light or good pleasure of the countenance of the Lord, as expressed Num 10:10; Num 23:21. They were those who attended Israel’s feast days and the annual atonement, at the call of the trumpet, Lev 23:24; Lev 25:8-10; 2Sa 6:15; Psa 98:6; Psa 27:6. In the name of the Lord exalted on His right hand, resting in his favor and righteousness, one is to rejoice all the day long, Psa 27:6; Php_4:4.

Verses 17, 18 conclude that the covenant-keeping God is one’s only source of glory and strength and in his favor only may one be exalted, Jer 9:23-24; 1Co 1:31; Gal 6:14.
Verse 18 affirms “the Lord is (exists as) our defense, and the Holy one of Israel is our king,: He is our Supreme ruler, before whom we His servants obediently bow down, Luk 18:14. See also Psa 75:10; Psa 92:10; Psa 132:17; Isa 1:4; Isa 12:6; Isa 29:19; Hos 1:10.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

1 I will sing of the mercies of Jehovah for ever. It must be borne in mind, as I have just now observed, that the Psalmist opens with the praises of God, and with calling to mind the Divine covenant, to encourage the faithful to strengthen their faith against the formidable assaults of temptation. If when we set about the duty of prayer some despairing thought, at the very outset, presents itself to us, we must forcibly and resolutely break through it, lest our hearts faint and utterly fail. The design of the prophet, therefore, was to fortify the minds of the godly at the very commencement, with stable and substantial supports, that, relying on the Divine promise, which, to outward appearance, had almost fallen to the ground, and repelling all the assaults of temptation with which their faith was severely shaken, they might with confidence hope for the re-establishment of the kingdom, and continue perseveringly to pray for this blessing. From the sad spectacle of begun decay, (522) which Ethan beheld, listening to the dictates of carnal reason, he might have thought that both himself and the rest of God’s believing people were deceived; but he expresses his determination to celebrate the mercies of God which at that time were hidden from his view. And as it was no easy matter for him to apprehend and acknowledge the merciful character of God, of whose severity he had actual experience, he uses the plural number, the Mercies of God, that by reflecting on the abundance and variety of the blessings of Divine grace he might overcome this temptation.

(522) Ainsworth’s translation of this last clause is both literal and elegant. “The heavens, thou wilt establish thy faithfulness in them.” Dr Kennicott, in his Remarks on Select Passages of the Old Testament, here refers to verses 37, 38, “where,” says he, “it appears that the sun, the moon, and the bow in the sky, were the tokens of confirmation given by God to the covenant made with David.” “The meaning of this passage,” says Warner, “appears to be, that the constancy of the celestial motions, the regular vicissitudes of day and night, and alternations of the seasons, were emblems of God’s own immutability.”

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

INTRODUCTION

Superscription.Maschil, an instruction, a didactic poem. Of Ethan the Ezrahite, one of the four sons of Mahol, whose wisdom was excelled by Solomon (1Ki. 4:31). There is little doubt that this is the same person who, in 1Ch. 2:6, is mentionedwith the same brothers as beforeas a son of Zerah, the son of Judah. See on Heman the Ezrahite in the Introduction to Psalms 88. There can be little doubt, says Perowne, that this Psalm was written in the latter days of the Jewish monarchy, when the throne of David had fallen or was already tottering to its fall, and when the prospect for the future was so dark that it seemed as if God had forgotten His covenant and His promise. The Psalm opens by a reference to the Promise given to David (2Sa. 7:8, &c). This Promise, and the attributes of God on which the Promise rests, and which are the great pledge of its fulfilment, form the subject of the Poets grateful acknowledgment, before he passes to the mournful contrast presented by the ruin of the house of David, and the blighting of his peoples hopes. He turns to the glorious past, that by its aid he may rise out of the grief and discouragement of the present. He takes the Promise, and turns it into a song. He dwells upon it, and lingers over it. He dwells on that which is the ground and pillar of the Promisethe faithfulness of Godand then he first lifts his loud lament over the disasters which have befallen his king and people, speaking out his disappointment, till his words sound like a reproach; and next pleads earnestly with God that He would not suffer his enemies to triumph.

A NOBLE CELEBRATION OF THE FAITHFULNESS AND MERCY OF THE LORD

(Psa. 89:1-4)

In this paragraph the Psalmist announces his determination to praise God eternally because of His mercy and faithfulness, which were promised to David and to his seed for ever. Looking at this announcement as indicating, in brief, the praise itself, we take as our subject, A noble celebration of the faithfulness and mercy of the Lord. The nobility of this celebration appears,

I. In the view of these attributes which is presented. Two prominent features are set forth by the Poet.

1. Perpetuity. Mercy shall be built up for ever: Thy faithfulness shalt Thou establish in the very heavens. The mercy and faithfulness of God are thus presented to us as abiding things. Look at the heavens and the heavenly bodies,how stable and enduring, how orderly and regular they are! The sun with unvarying regularity and absolutely perfect punctuality sets forth on his course and runs his race; from the creation to the present hour the moon has held on her appointed way and performed her appointed rounds without a shadow of turning, and with the most perfect accuracy; the stars pursue their appointed orbits with undeviating precision, and with the utmost exactness keep their appointed seasons. The heavens and the heavenly hosts appear now as they did in the beginning of the world; they present no signs of weariness or decay or change; they are a fit emblem of the eternal and unchangeable. The Psalmist pictures the faithfulness of God as a part of the very heavens in order graphically to set forth its perpetuity and perfection. But Gods faithfulness shall outlast the heavens themselves Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away. God is not a man, that He should lie, &c. (Num. 23:19). In reference to His covenant with David, the Lord said, by Jeremiah, If ye can break My covenant of the day, &c. (Jer. 33:20-21). Gods faithfulness is perfect and eternal. With Him is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. The word of our God shall stand for ever. His mercy also is perpetual. The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting, &c.

2. Increase, or growth. Mercy shall be built up for ever. Mercy appears here, says Hengstenberg, under the figure of a building in continual progression, in opposition to one which, when still unfinished, falls into ruins. And John Howe well says: Former mercies are fundamental to later ones. The mercies that we enjoy this day are founded on the mercies of former days, such as we ought joyfully and thankfully to recount with delight and praise; remembering the years of the right hand of the Most High. And we may carry the idea further. The mercies that we enjoy this day will become the foundation for the mercies of future days, and so onward in endless progression. The purposes of God concerning our race are advancing to perfect and splendid completion. The edifice which was founded in mercy shall in mercy be gloriously finished. Thus the multitude of His mercies is ever growing more multitudinous. Every hour, ay, every minute, new mercies are being added to the unspeakable and countless mercies of former days.

II. In the way in which they are celebrated.

1. Confidently. I have said. By these words he indicates that the statement he is about to make is his clear and fixed opinion. He believes; and therefore speaks. There is the unmistakable accent of conviction in his utterance.

2. Publicly. Not in his heart merely does he celebrate the mercy and faithfulness of God, but with his mouth he sings them. He will sing to others and for others; in words which others may use as their own. He cannot speak their praise; for prose is all too hard and cold for such a theme. He will sing them; and even poetry and music seem poor for this rich and glorious theme.

3. Perpetually. To all generations. When his voice was silent in death he would still celebrate the Divine mercy and faithfulness. He would make a record of his praise; he would write his Psalm, so that the Church should continue the strain through all ages. Surely this is a worthy spirit in which to celebrate the Divine praises. There is a heartiness, a confidence, and an enthusiasm in the utterance of the Psalmist which are well worthy of admiration and imitation.

III. In the basis on which the celebration rests. The praise of the Psalmist springs from his faith in the covenant of God. The faithfulness of God is both the ground and the object of his praise. His faith is rooted in that faithfulness, and his praise celebrates it. His praise rests on the word of God as its basis. The Lord is the speaker in Psa. 89:3-4. Consider:

1. The covenant itself. I have made a covenant, &c. This covenant is recorded in 2Sa. 7:10-17. Its grand feature was the perpetuation of Davids family and kingdom. Thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. The family, the kingdom, the throne should be established eternally. The throne would be built up, i.e., the sovereignty would be stable and increasing to all generations. We know that this covenant did not receive a material and temporal fulfilment. The material crown has long passed from the house of David; the temporal kingdom has long ceased to be. Yet the covenant abides, and is being splendidly fulfilled. Jesus Christ, our Lord, was made of the seed of David, according to the flesh. Of this mans seed hath God, according to promise, raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus. He is at once the Root and the Offspring of David; Davids Son, and Davids Lord. In Him and in His kingdom the promise is being accomplished, the covenant is being fulfilled. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end. His kingdom is ever extending and increasing. His spiritual seed ever grows more numerous.

2. The origin of the covenant. It originated in the sovereign favour of God. David was His chosen. How completely was Davids elevation to the throne a thing of Divine sovereignty! David was the youngest son of Jesse; and Jesses was not the senior house of the tribe of Judah (Rth. 4:18-22; 1Ch. 2:5-12), and Judah was not the eldest son of Jacob; yet God chose the king from the tribe of Judah, from the house of Jesse, and the youngest son of that house. He chose David also His servant, and took him from the sheepfolds, &c. (Psa. 78:70-71). In like manner our Lord is spoken of as the chosen Servant of God. Behold, my Servant, whom I uphold; Mine Elect, in whom My soul delighteth. The gift of Christ to our race was entirely of the sovereign mercy of God. We may well praise God for His spiritual covenant, for the gift of His Son Jesus Christ to save and reign over men, for the promise to Him of universal dominion, and for the way in which that promise is being fulfilled.

IV. In the circumstances under which the celebration is made. When the poet chanted this Psalm one might have thought, judging from its first and greater portion, that the kingdom was prosperous, the throne firm and unmenaced, the royal house numerous and united, the future bright and full of promise. But widely different was the case, as we may see by reading Psa. 89:38-45. The covenant seemed to be on the very verge of failure; the country was invaded, their armies were beaten in battle, the crown was profaned, the throne was cast down to the ground, ruin was imminent. Yet at such a time the Poet sang this bright, confident, triumphant celebration of the faithfulness and mercy of the Lord. Brave, trustful Poet! Let us catch his spirit, and imitate his example. When sense is silent in consternation, let faith be songful in the Lord. To the believing soul, God gives songs in the night. Even the mourners heart when turned to Him He tunes to music. When all things appear to deny the faithfulness and mercy of God, let us still believe them, and, believing them, let us sing them. Let us walk by faith, and we shall find matter for praise, and a heart to praise even in the midst of outward trouble. As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.

Conclusion. Let the character and covenant of God inspire us with confidence, even in the most trying circumstances. Believe in Him, praise Him. Trust and sing.

THE INCOMPARABLENESS OF GOD

(Psa. 89:5-7)

Hengstenberg heads these verses thus: The omnipotence and faithfulness of God are devoutly praised even by the angels, His heavenly congregation. The incomparableness of God manifested by the relation of the heavenly hosts to Him. We shall endeavour to set forth the ideas of the Poet on this subject in the following manner:

I. Heavenly beings are mighty. The sons of the mighty. In another Psalm we read, Bless the Lord, ye His angels, that excel in strength. The angels are always represented in the Scriptures as far superior to us, as possessing powers to which, as it regards their extent, we can make no pretensions, and as able to perform operations which may well fill us with astonishment, and which are far above the reach of our ability. For illustrations of the great power of angelic beings, see Exo. 33:2, where God promises to send an angel before the Israelites to drive out the seven nations of Canaan; 2 Samuel 24 and 1 Chronicles 21, where an angel is represented as smiting to death by means of pestilence seventy thousand men, and as having power to destroy Jerusalem; 2Ki. 19:35, where an angel is said to have destroyed an hundred and eighty-five thousand Assyrians in one night. (See also Psa. 34:7; Dan. 6:22; Act. 5:19; Act. 12:7-10; Rev. 18:1; and Rev. 22:8.) They are said to excel in strength; and it is evident that the Psalmist has in view chiefly intellectual and moral strength, which qualifies them for the service of God; for they do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His Word; though it does not exclude what is equivalent to physical energy, or power over matter, to mould, and influence, and render it subservient to their will. They are also denominated mighty angels, 2Th. 1:7, where the Apostle has in view an occasion on which their might will be put in requisition and manifested in the most striking manner; for the great probability is, that they will be employed to effect many of the changes that will take place, and to exhibit many of the wonderful scenes that will be manifested at the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ; and we are assured that, at the end of the world, The reapers are the angels, and that, the angels shall come forth, and shall sever the wicked from among the just (Mat. 13:39; Mat. 13:49). And it is evident from all the accounts which are given us of them in the Bible, that they excel in wisdom as much as in strength; or, rather that their strength is principally the power of wisdom and knowledge; and that in these they are far superior to men is plainly implied in the language of the Saviour (Mat. 24:36). The same fact is evident from Psa. 104:4, and Heb. 1:7.Walter Scott.

II. Heavenly beings are holy. They are here spoken of as saints. They are designated by way of eminence holy angels (Mat. 25:31). They are entirely free from sin, have never known sin. All their thoughts are true, all their sympathies are pure, all their principles are righteous, all their activities are blessed, all their services are sacred, all their being is Gods. We are sure that their moral purity must be complete, without the least imperfection or stain, for they dwell in the immediate blissful presence of God, they are the constant inhabitants of those glorious regions into which nothing that defileth can possibly enter. Some of them may have been for millions of ages employed in contemplating the glories of God, and in realising intellectual improvement; and still eternity is before them. The dignity, the powers, of these celestial beings are also plainly implied in the names and epithets which are given to them in the Scriptures. They are denominated not only angels, or messengers, by way of eminence, but also cherubim and seraphim, thrones, authorities, dominions, principalities, and powers. Yet great and glorious, mighty and holy as they are, these

III. Heavenly beings worship God. The heavens shall praise Thy wonders, O Lord, &c. These holy angels

1. Stand in awe of God God is greatly feared by them. Hengstenberg: God is very terrible in the confidence of the holy ones. And he gives, what we regard as the true explanation of the clause: The confidence of the holy ones denotes the confidential community to whom God vouchsafes to entrust His secrets (Job. 1:6; Job. 2:1); though not His deepest ones (1Pe. 1:12). Notwith standing this, there always remains an infinite distance between Him and them (comp. Job. 4:18; Job. 15:15). God does not cease to be even to His holy ones the object of fear. Any one who approaches God thoughtfully must be awed in so doing. We cannot rightly contemplate Him without very solemn thought. The expressions of familiarity and endearment which some men use in their approaches to God in worship stand condemned by the reverence of the Holy angels. The seraphim worship with veiled faces, crying, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory. God is very terrible in the confidence of the holy ones, and dreadful for all who are round about Him. If such are the regards which are paid to Him by these high and holy beings, surely unholy men should regard Him with humble awe and solemn reverence! These holy angels

2. Praise God. The heavens praise Thy wonders, O Lord; Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.

(1) They praise Him for the wonders of His power. They are deeply interested in His mighty works. They sang the anthem which celebrated the creation of the world. When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy. They are represented in Scripture as being deeply interested in Gods work in Providence, and as taking part in carrying out its great scheme. They are devoutly and admiringly interested in Gods great work in human redemption. At the time of the Saviours advent, there appeared a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, &c. After the conflict between the Saviour and the seducer of men in the wilderness, angels ministered to the triumphant Saviour. During the agony in Gethsemane, there appeared an angel unto Him from heaven, strengthening Him. Angels are represented as taking part in the resurrection of our Lord. They are represented by St. Peter as desiring to look into the things of human salvation. Our Lord Himself says, There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth. Yes, angels praise God for His wondrous works. They are acquainted with His mighty and glorious deeds, they admire them, they celebrate them in the worship which they pay to Him.

(2) They praise Him for the truth of His Word. Thy faithfulness also, &c. The idea of the Psalmist is that the angels would praise God for the fulfilment of His promises made unto David. Doubtless, by the heavenly host God is constantly and heartily praised for His truth and faithfulness. There are times when it seems to us as though Gods faithfulness were about to fail; but even at its best our vision is dim, while the angels see clearly; our range of vision is extremely small, while that of the angels is so vast as to admit of no comparison with ours; and they, with their clear vision and wide range, praise God for His faithfulness. He keepeth covenant and mercy with His servants. He keepeth truth for ever.

CONCLUSION.

1. How great is God! The most ancient and most mighty of angels cannot be brought into comparison with Him. Angels are great, holy, glorious, yet the first-born sons of light pay to Him profoundest homage, worship Him with deepest humility.

2. How reverently should we regard Him. All our thought of Him should be humble and reverent. We should never speak of Him except with profound veneration. We should worship Him with holy awe.

The more THY glories strike mine eyes
The humbler I shall lie.

GOD INCOMPARABLE

(Psa. 89:6)

Who in heaven can be compared unto the Lord? Mark

I. The doctrine to which these words point. God incomparable; and He is so

1. In the glory He possesses. There is in Him a glory of wisdom (Eph. 3:10), power (Gen. 17:1), love (Rom. 5:8), majesty (Psa. 104:1), and grace (2Co. 9:8; 2Co. 9:11), before which every created glory sinks into obscurity.

2. In the dominion He exercises. Created beings have only a limited and confined sway, but Gods kingdom ruleth over all, and extends itself over the most distant places as well as the most exalted personages.

3. In the blessings He bestows. The obedient believer has a peace that passeth all understanding (Php. 4:7), his faith is accompanied with joy unspeakable (1Pe. 1:8), he abounds in hope (Rom. 15:13), and the glory reserved for him is unrevealed (1Jn. 3:2).

II. The sentiments it should excite in us. If God be incomparable, so that none is like Him, a holy reverential fear becomes us in His presence (Psa. 89:7). With this reverential fear we should also feel in our hearts, and express in every possible way, a fervent attachment to Him (Psa. 18:1). Trust, too, must be confidently reposed in Him, whatever difficulties we have to encounter, and though the dangers which encompass us are great and imminent (Psa. 46:1-7).W. Sleigh.

THE HIGHEST WORSHIP

(Psa. 89:7)

God is greatly to be feared in the assembly, &c.

I. The highest worship is offered to God. Not unto saints, or angels, or the Virgin Mary, but unto God. He is Supreme. There is one God.

II. The highest worship is offered by saints. Angels are called saints in the text. The redeemed in heaven are also called saints (1Th. 3:13). The term is frequently applied to the people of God upon earth. When so applied it indicates those who are,

1. Spiritually regenerated.

2. Consecrated to God.

3. Imitators of Christ.

III. The highest worship is reverent in spirit. God is greatly to be feared, and to be had in reverence. This reverence is opposed,

1. To all thoughtlessness in worship (Ecc. 5:1-2).

2. To all formality in worship (Joh. 4:23-24).

3. To all unbecoming familiarity in worship. In the prayers and praises which are recorded in the Holy Book we find no trace of that irreverent and gushing manner of addressing God, which is so prevalent with some sentimental religionists of to-day.

IV. In the highest worship the presence of God is consciously realised. The worshippers feel that they are about Him. They realise the fact that God is present to accept the worship and bless the worshippers who worship Him in spirit and in truth.

1. God is present everywhere.

2. His presense is realised only by those who are spiritual and reverent.

3. He is specially present, and His presence is specially realised in the gatherings of saints for worship (Exo. 20:24; Mat. 18:20).

THE STRENGTH OF GOD AN ENCOURAGEMENT TO HIS PEOPLE TO TRUST IN HIM

(Psa. 89:8-14)

The Psalmist does not in these verses lose sight of the faithfulness or truth of God in respect to His covenant; but he gives the greater prominence to the might of God. He is not only a God of truth, but also a God of power. He is able as well as willing to keep His covenant. The text teaches us that,

I. The Strength of God is manifested in His complete control over nature. Thou rules the raging, &c.

1. God rules over the sea. There are times when the sea seems utterly beyond control. Yet when it foams and thunders in anger, when its waves, mountains high, chase each other with awful rapidity and fury, and destroy everything that is at their mercy, when it breaks with terrific violence upon the shore, and when it seems to mock at and spurn all control; God can subdue its angry ragings into calmness and repose at once. Our Lord when He stilled the tempest gave to us an illustration of the Divine sovereignty over the sea. He arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. The Psalmist seems to have regarded the tempestuous sea as a symbol of the powerful foes who were arrayed against them. David in one of his Psalms speaks of the floods of ungodly men. God has complete control over the most proud and angry people. He maketh the wrath of man to praise Him, and the remainder of wrath He restrains. To the mightiest and most furious of peoples or nations God can impose limits, saying, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further: and here shall thy proud waves be stayed.

2. God rules over the heavens and the earth. The heavens are Thine, the earth also is Thine, &c. God is here set forth as the Creator and Sustainer of the heavens and the earth. All things were made by Him. By Him all things subsist. Therefore the heavens and the earth are His. Creatorship gives the most indefeasible right to possession. If any person can create anything, it is of all things preeminently his own property. The highest conception of property is that which is derived from creation. The idea in the mind of the Psalmist seems to be that as the Creator, Sustainer, and Proprietor of all things, God has the power and the right to control all things. He doeth according to His will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth: and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What doest Thou? And therefore He was able to keep His covenant which He made with David and his seed. Notice the completeness of Gods rule over nature. The Psalmist mentions the sea, the heavens, the earth, the world. Then he mentions the north and the south, Tabor and Hermon. Tabor lying on the western side of Jordan, and Hermon on the eastern, are representative of east and west. God rules over all nature in heaven above and on the earth beneath, from east to west, and from north to south. There is no province of nature which is not under His control. Gods sovereignty over nature is frequently asserted in the Bible. He is at work in all its departments. He is the Force of all its forces. (See Psa. 65:8-11; Psa. 104:1-30; Isa. 40:26.) The doctrine of Gods sovereignty over and agency in nature is philosophic. It is unsatisfactory to explain the changes in the phenomena of nature by laws of nature, natures forces, attraction, gravitation. Such explanations do not satisfy my reason. A law of nature is simply a generalisation of phenomena. When such a generalisation has been made and named we have frequently gained little more than a resting-place for ignorance rather than a large increase of knowledge. What are natures forces? What is the secret of her forces? By naming a process or a phenomenon you do not remove the mystery of the thing, even though the name applied be ever so polysyllabic and obscure. But when I am told that the changing phenomena of nature are the result of the agency of the omnipotent Creator and Sustainer of nature, working through the wondrous arrangements and means which He has ordained, my reason accepts the statement as intelligent and satisfactory. Moreover, this recognition of Gods agency in and sovereignty over nature is religious. The intelligent and devout man sees the signs of the Divine presence and working in every department and object of nature. The heavens declare the glory of God, &c.

II. The strength of God is manifested in His subjugation of His foes. Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces as one that is slain; Thou hast scattered Thine enemies with Thy strong arm. The name Rahab is used to set forth Egypt the ancient foe of Israel. The reference is to the emancipation of Israel from bondage, and the plaguing and destruction of their oppressors. On that occasion, Gods sovereignty of the sea was employed to secure the safety of His people and the destruction of their foes. When God makes bare His arm, the proudest and mightiest nations fall before Him. The remembrance of what He had done to Egypt on behalf of His people would be especially encouraging to the poet and the people at this time. His arm had lost none of its ancient might. He was able at this time to break their enemies in pieces as one that is slain, or to scatter them, and so destroy their power. God is supreme over the proudest and mightiest nations. His kingdom ruleth over all.

III. The strength of God is ever exercised in harmony with righteousness, mercy, and truth. Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before Thy face. Justice and judgment are the ground on which the throne of God stands. The Divine government is founded on righteousness. As its basis, it rests neither on force nor on fraud, but on truth and on right. Even omnipotent power could not maintain permanently a throne founded on injustice and wrong. Such an administration would sooner or later make its own destruction sure. But Gods power is never employed for unrighteous ends. His justice is as great as His strength. The exercise of Gods great power is also in keeping with His mercy. Even when it is employed in destroying violent oppressors such as Rahab, it is employed in mercy. Such destructions are a kindness not simply to the oppressed who are set free, but to mankind at large, who are thereby delivered from a tyrant and a curse. Gods great power is acting beneficially, mercifully. It is also exercised in harmony with His truth. What His Word promises His power performs. He is strong to execute His threatenings, and to make good His promises. Gods power and righteousness, mercy and faithfulness, are all exercised in beautiful harmony and beneficence, so that an afflicted people looking to Him for help may take encouragement from them.

IV. The strength of God thus exercised is an encouragement to trust Him. So the Psalmist evidently thought as he celebrated its praise in connection with the faithfulness of God. We cannot intelligently trust in God without including His power as a concurrent foundation with His truth. It is the mainground of trust, and so set forth in the prophet (Isa. 26:4): Trust ye in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength. How could His mercy succour us without His arm, or His wisdom guide us without His hand, or His truth perform promises to us without His strength? Though we value the kindness men may express to us in our distresses, yet we make them not the objects of our confidence, unless they have an ability to act what they express. There can be no trust in God without an eye to His power. So said Charnock in one of his great discourses; and so the Psalmist seems to have thought as he penned this portion of the Psalm; and as he called to mind Gods great power in ruling the raging of the sea and subduing the foes of His people, he must have felt confident that He had power to keep His covenant with His people.

CONCLUSION.

1. Let the ungodly take warning. You may resist His grace and the order of His laws; but when He makes bare His arm for judgment, you will find that you cannot resist His power. Acquaint now thyself with Him and be at peace: thereby good shall come unto thee.

2. Let the anxious Christian be encouraged. Our evils can never be so great to distress us, as His power is great to deliver us. He is able to perform all the great and gracious things which He has promised.

3. Let all men fear God. As Charnock says: How should we adore that power which can preserve us, when devils and men conspire to destroy us! How should we stand in awe of that power which can destroy us, though angels and men should combine to preserve us!

THE BLESSEDNESS OF THE PEOPLE OF GOD

(Psa. 89:15-18)

In the preceding portion of the Psalm the Poet has celebrated the faithfulness, almightiness, and righteousness of the Lord. And now he celebrates the blessedness of the people who had such a God; for He would surely deliver and save them. He sets forth the blessedness of the people of God as found in their relations to Him, and mentions several of these relations. He speaks of them

I. As worshippers of God. Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound. We believe that by the joyful sound we are to understand the call to the religious festivals. In celebrating the great festivals trumpets were joyously blown, and there was great rejoicing (Lev. 23:24; Num. 10:10; Num. 29:1). To know the joyful sound is to know and esteem the worship of God. So the meaning of this clause appears to us to beHappy is that people whose God is the Lord. They who are the worshippers of the only living and true God are indeed blessed.

1. Their confidence in Him shall be honoured and rewarded. A mans god is that in which his supreme affection and trust are reposed. Idolatry is really rife amongst us to-day. Men worship possessions and property, position and power, honour and fame, relatives and friends. Now any of these or all of them must inevitably fail those who trust in them. They are insecure and transient: they are inadequate to meet the needs of the soul. There is but one Being in whom we may safely place unbounded confidence. He that believeth in Him shall not be confounded. O Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee. He will make good His every promise. He is sufficient to help us in all the needs of life. In Him the soul may find satisfaction for its deepest longings and its highest aspirations. Trust in Him will be amply rewarded.

2. Their worship of Him is in itself blessed. Much of the worship of heathen deities was debasing and corrupting. Many of the idolatries of our own age are degrading the noblest powers of our nature, dwarfing our manhood, ruining souls. But the worship of God is the worship of supreme and infinite Perfection. His worship is joyous. We do not approach Him with terror, but with humble confidence; not with mourning and dirges, but with gladness and psalms. Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving, &c. His worship is transforming. As we worship Him in spirit and in truth we become like Him, we are changed into the same image from glory to glory as by the Lord the Spirit. Blessed indeed are they whose God is the Lord.

II. As conscious of His favour. They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance. They possess the favour of God, and they know it, and rejoice in it. The lovingkindness of God they realise as their portion. The figure is a beautiful one. Who does not know the joy of looking into the face of one whom we love when no cloud of anxiety or sorrow or anger darkens it, but when it beams with affection for us? So the people of God live in His smile. In His favour is life. His lovingkindness is better than life. They who walk in the light of His countenance enjoy His favour; their life is crowned with His lovingkindness. Their life is marked by activity and progress. The consciousness of His favour does not produce indolence, but it leads to exertion; it does not lull the soul into slothful security, but stimulates it to diligent activity. They shall walk, O Lord, &c. Walking is progressive motion from place to place. So the godly soul advances in the Divine life. They go from strength to strength, from conquest to conquest, from grace to grace, from glory to glory. They press toward the mark, &c.

III. As rejoicing in Him. In Thy name shall they rejoice all the day.

1. Their joy is religious. They rejoice in Gods name, i.e., in Himself as made known to them. The good man has ample reason for joy in the being and perfections of God and His relation to him. When we reflect upon His wisdom, and goodness, and power, and holiness, and truth, and love, and upon the fact that they are all engaged to make us blessed,have we not reason for joy? When we call to mind our privileges in the present, and our prospects for the future, have we not cause for rejoicing? Now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, &c. Let no one regard a godly life as gloomy and sad. Men may be gloomy for want of religion, but not because of it. A truly godly life is a bright and joyous thing.

2. Their joy is constant. All the day. There is no reason why the people of God may not rejoice continually in God. Circumstances may be changeful, trial may overtake us, sorrow may be our portion, and happiness may abandon us; but even then we may have a deep and holy joy in God. He is unchangeable. His promises cannot fail. Having Him for our portion it is both our privilege and our duty to rejoice in Him always. Rejoice in the Lord alway again I say, Rejoice.

IV. As exalted by Him. In Thy righteousness shall they be exalted. The righteousness of God, says Hengstenberg, is here that property by which He gives to every one his own, salvation to His people. We regard the clause as intended by the Poet to set forth the idea that under the righteous government of God they would find salvation and honour. He would deliver them from their enemies and their dangers. He would exalt them to honour. It certainly is true that the people of God are exalted by Him. They are exalted now in their character and relations. Now are we the sons of God. They are like God in character. They will be exalted hereafter to heavenly glory and dignity. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, &c. Before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. Kings and priests unto God.

V. As strengthened by Him. Thou art the glory of their strength: and in Thy favour our horn shall be exalted. The glory of the strength of the people of God is here set forth as consisting in the fact that it is derived from God. The horn is a symbol of power. To exalt the horn is to display the power. The meaning of the verse is, that they derived all their strength from God.

1. The strength of God is all-sufficient. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. It is sufficient to support us under the heaviest trial; and to empower us for the most arduous duty.

2. The strength of God is always available. Whenever we ask for it sincerely and believingly it will be given to us.

3. The strength of God is our only sufficient support. No one else is adequate to sustain us in lifes trials, and strengthen us for lifes duties. The wise, the great, the powerful, the loving amongst men are not sufficient to our need. Apart from me, said Christ, ye can do nothing. If we draw our strength from Him, we shall not fail in lifes duties, or faint beneath its burdens. As thy days so shall thy strength be.

VI. As governed and protected by God. For the Lord is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our King. The marginal reading is, For our shield is of the Lord, and our King is of the Holy One of Israel. The true construction of this verse, says Barnes, is, For to Jehovah (belongs) our shield, and to the Holy One of Israel our King. That is, all that they had, and all that they relied on as a defence, belonged to God, or was of God; in other words, their very protectors were themselves protected by Jehovah. Undoubtedly, the main idea of the verse is, that they were protected by God. He was their shield and defender. He was their sovereign, and would therefore guard their interests. We have three ideas involved here

1. The people of God are exposed to danger. Their adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. They are also in danger from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul. And by reason of temptation from the world.

2. The people of God are not able to protect themselves from danger. They are not, of themselves, wise enough to baffle the deep designs of their enemies; neither are they strong enough to successfully resist their power.

3. The people of God are securely protected by Him from all danger. (See Psalms 91; Psalms 121; Psa. 125:1-2; 1Pe. 1:5.) They are inviolably and eternally secure.

CONCLUSION.

1. How great, then, is the blessedness of the people of God! There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, &c. (Deu. 33:26-29).

2. How important that we should be found among them! Are we of the people of God? If so, let us rejoice in our privileges. If not, in the strength of Divine grace first give your own selves to the Lord, and thus seek union with His people.

BLESSEDNESS OF KNOWING THE JOYFUL SOUND

(Psa. 89:15-16)

Blessed are the people, &c.
Whatever these words in their literal sense refer to, they have undoubtedly an ultimate reference to the gospel; and there are three particulars for our consideration respecting it.

I. What it is. It is a joyful sound. And why is it so? Because it proclaims

1. Pardon to the condemned. And this pardon is complete, reaching to all past offences, however aggravated or multiplied they may be. It is freefree of all obligation to and of all price from the creature.

2. Freedom to the enslaved. Man by nature is in a state of vassalage; he is far removed from his original condition; bound with the chains of his sins, and yields to the requirements of Satan (2Ti. 2:26). In this state he was born; but the sound of liberty has not ceased to be heard since it first saluted the ears of Adam and Eve.

3. Victory to the oppressed. The sorrows of man are many; but the gospel offers to rescue him, bringing to him a full and sufficient remedy for them, so that he may have peace within; the reality, and not the shadow merely.

II. What it demands. We must know the joyful sound. What is implied in this? It includes three things

1. A proper apprehension of it. Many content themselves with hearing it; but its import must be understood.

2. A sense of being personally interested in it. We know it not aright, if we do not know it experimentally and savingly.

3. A life and conversation suited to it. Before we conclude too confidently that we know the joyful sound, we should ask ourselves: how our knowledge operates? To possess knowledge will be of little avail unless it produce a practical effect (1Jn. 1:6-7).

III. What it ensures. Blessedness. The Psalmists testimony respecting this is delightful, and shows how peculiar and distinguished the felicity of such people as know the gospel is.

1. They possess tranquillity of mind. In their journey heavenward, they have the light of Gods countenance to encourage them in their distresses and difficulties.

2. They have continual joy. In Thy name shall they rejoice all the day. His name comprehends those infinite perfections by which He has revealed Himself to us in His works, and in His Word. These being all theirs, on their side, united for their advantages, cannot but afford them unspeakable enjoyment.

3. They are greatly dignified. In Thy righteousness shall they be exalted. By relying on the atonement, made by the death of Gods only Son, they are arrayed in His righteousness, and are consequently justified and accepted.

Have we a saving knowledge of the Gospel? If so, how exalted is our privilege. But those who are strangers to the heavenly message, whether they be more or less wicked in respect of gross sins, are in a truly awful state.W. Sleigh.

GODS COVENANT WITH DAVID

(Psa. 89:19-28)

There follows, says Hengstenberg, in prosecution of the subject entered on in Psa. 89:3-4, a more full development in two sections, of the glorious promise made to the anointed, and in him to the people (Psa. 89:19-38).

First (in Psa. 89:19-28), it is represented that God had promised perpetual deliverance to the people in him, perpetual victory over its enemies, and perpetual dominion. The covenant undoubtedly looks beyond David to the Anointed Saviour and King of men, as will be seen as we proceed with our exposition. The leading teachings of the paragraph may be indicated under two main heads.

I. The Election of David. The word then with which the paragraph begins connects it with Psa. 89:3-4. In those verses the covenant is mentioned; in this paragraph it is more fully stated. We prefer the reading, Thy holy ones in Psa. 89:19 to Thy holy one. All the old translators, many MSS. and editions, have thy holy ones. The singular, says Hengstenberg, owes its existence, as in Psa. 16:10, to an exegetical incapacity. It was felt to be impossible to reconcile the plural with the application to David or Nathan; and to one or other of these, all interpreters, without exception, down even to modern times, have applied the expression, without observing that in the following part of the Psalm it is the people that complain that God does not appear to be keeping His promise, and that it is the people that pray that He would fulfil His promise. The address cannot be made to David, for he is never addressed throughout the remaining portion of the Psalm. And it is incorrect to say that Nathan is referred to as the holy one, for historically the address was not directed to him, but to David through him. The promises, though originally directed to David, are intended for all the people of Israel. They are the holy ones.

But respecting the election of David we are taught

1. That he was elected from the people. Chosen out of the people. David had not descended from great kings or heroic warriors; he was not of exalted rank; he had grown up in humble life among the people, and had lived in lowliness and obscurity. Our Lord Jesus Christ also was chosen out of the people. He was in all things made like unto His brethren. He, too, was born into humble circumstances, and so far as this world is concerned He lived a lowly life of labour. He was bone of our bone, and flesh of our flesh. He had true human sympathies. He endured most really severe human sufferings. He was and is a true man.

2. That he was elected to sovereignty. I have exalted one chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant, &c. David was thrice anointed king. Once by Samuel in his fathers house at Bethlehem; once at Hebron as king over Judah; and once again, after seven years, as king over all Israel. God called him from the sheepfolds to the throne. Our Lord is called to universal sovereignty. He is King of kings, and Lord of lords. On His head are many crowns. He made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, &c. (Php. 2:7-11).

3. That he was elected to service. I have laid help upon one that is mighty. David was chosen by God for a great work. God had invested him with power that he might deliver Israel out of the hand of her enemies. Hengstenberg translates, I have laid help upon a man of war. And Alexander says that the word chosen has allusion to its specific use as signifying a young warrior. David was elected of God as the champion of Israel to lead her armies to battle and to victory. We know how successful he was in this respect. At the beginning of his career the people cried, Saul hath slain his thousands, but David his tens of thousands. And at the close of his career Israel was victorious over all her enemies, and was at peace. So Jesus Christ was elected by God to save mankind. He is the mighty One upon whom our help is laid. He is mighty to save. He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him.

4. That he was elected by God. I have laid help, I have exalted, I have found, I have anointed. In the fullest and strictest sense David was chosen by God for his high position and his great work. This accounts for his pre-eminent fitness for his place and mission. God knew his great qualifications, his courage, strength, wisdom, faith, piety; and chose him to fill the throne and subdue the foes of Israel. David was indeed king by the grace of God. Our Lord was chosen by God for His great work. Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. He is the Anointed, the Christ of God.

II. The promises made to David. Here is a promise of

1. Constant support. With whom My hand shall be established: Mine arm also shall strengthen him. De Wette translates the first clause, With him My hand shall be continually. The idea of the verse is that God would grant unto David constant support. His hand would be ever present to aid him, and His strong arm would be ever outstretched to strengthen him. This promise was remarkably fulfilled in the case of David. Many were the trials of his life, yet in all of them he was supported by God. Many and arduous were his undertakings, yet he was enabled to bring them to a successful issue. The people now plead this promise for themselves. In their prostrate and perilous condition they plead for a fulfilment of this promise of the covenant. The promise was also fulfilled in the Saviour. He was ever upheld by God. The Father was ever with Him in fellowship, and ever with Him to aid Him. He overcame all His difficulties, He meekly and triumphantly bore all His trials, because God was ever present with Him. The great want of the Christian Church to-day is spiritual power. Here we have the covenant promise of the constant help of God. Let us plead it in faith, and the life and power that we need shall be given unto us.

2. Victory over His foes. This promise is twofold.

(1) His foes should be restrained. The enemy shall not exact upon him, nor the son of wickedness afflict him. The allusion, in the first clause, is to a harsh and unjust creditor, who, regardless of the ability of his debtor, exacts not only the just debt, but an exaggerated demand. The second clause is taken literally from the words of the covenant as recorded in 2Sa. 7:10. For some time David suffered much from the persecutions of Saul. Notwithstanding his oftrepeated manifestations of affection and loyalty, Saul was never satisfied. But those persecutions came to an end, those exactions all ceased. For many years after the making of the covenant, the enemies of Israel did not dare attempt to oppress or exact upon them in any way.

(2) His foes should be vanquished. I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him. Here is complete victory from the hand of God promised to David and to the people. We know how it was fulfilled. The reign of David closed in peace, and that of Solomon was peaceful. These promises were fulfilled in our Lord. The malice and power of men and devils against Him were curbed by God. Satan could only bruise the heel of the Saviour, while his head was bruised by the Saviour. What Christ said to Pilate was true of all His enemies, Thou couldest have no power against me, except it were given thee from above. All the enemies of our Lord shall be destroyed. Ignorance, sin, suffering, death, and the grave, shall all be destroyed. His victory will be complete and glorious. Every child of God may claim these promises as his own. Our foes are restrained. God ever imposes upon Satan His, Thus far shalt thou go, but no further. (See Job. 1:12; Job. 2:6.) And He will vanquish all our foes for us. Through faith in Him we shall come out of lifes battle more than conquerors. Here is a promise of

3. Conspicuous power through the faithfulness and mercy of God. My faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him, and in My name shall his horn be exalted. In the commencement of the Psalm the poet celebrated the mercy and faithfulness of God, and here he recurs again to them. They were clearly displayed in the covenant, and now that the covenant seems about to fail, the hope of the Psalmist and the people is in them. Mercy and faithfulness were granted to David, and to his seed; and though, by reason of their sin, the temporal sovereignty passed away and the kingdom was destroyed, yet the line of David continued in un-broken succession until Christ came, and the spiritual and eternal kingdom was established in Him. Through Gods blessing the power of the kingdom was conspicuous in the time of David, and it was especially so in the time of Solomon. But the power of the kingdom of our Lord is growing more and more conspicuous daily. The stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands is fast filling the whole earth. Here is a promise of

4. Enlarged dominion. I will set His hand also in the sea, and His right hand in the rivers. The sea which is here mentioned is the Mediterranean, and the rivers are the Tigris and the Euphrates. These were the boundaries of the promised land as stated to Abram (Gen. 15:18). The kingdom of David was of this extent. The promise made to Abram was fulfilled in his time and in the time of Solomon. But Davids greater Son shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. His kingdom is ever increasing, and ever shall increase, until the whole world bows to His sway. Here is a promise of

5. Intimate and exalted relationship. He shall cry unto Me, Thou art my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make Him My firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth. David looked to God as the rock of his salvation, but we have no evidence to show that he regarded God as a Father. Mr. Molyneux justly inquires, When did David call God his Father? It is striking that we do not find anywhere in the Old Testament that the patriarchs or prophets called God their Father. They did not know Him as such. This verse is unintelligible in reference to David, but in regard to the True David it is exactly what He did sayMy Father, and your Father; my God, and your God. Never until Christ uttered these words, never until He appeared on earth in humanity as the Son of God, did any man or any child of humanity address God in this endearing character. The 27th verse was partly fulfilled in David, but only in a very small degree. It is true that he is pre-eminent among kings alike in his own personal character and his reign; in his relation to God; and in the fact that he was the ancestor of the Messiah. Yet it was only a feeble type of the fulfilment of this promise that was witnessed in David. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the firstborn of every creature. He is appointed heir of all things. All kings shall fall down before Him: all nations shall serve Him. He is on the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto Him. But it is the privilege of every member of the seed of Christ to address God as My Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. If by faith we are made partakers of Christ, then is God our Father, and we may with confidence draw near to Him, and rest in Him.

6. Perpetual establishment of the covenant. My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and My covenant shall stand fast with him. This promise also looks onward to the Christ. In Him the covenant is sure and lasting. But in what way can God be said to keep His mercy for Christ for evermore? Excellently Matthew Henry elucidates the point. My mercy will I keep for Him, to be disposed of by Him, for evermore; in the channel of Christs mediation all the streams of Divine goodness will for ever run. Therefore it is the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ which we look for unto eternal life. And as the mercy of God flows to us through Him, so the promise of God is, through Him, firm to us: My covenant shall stand fast with Him, both the covenant of redemption made with Him, and the covenant of grace made with us in Him. His covenant made with Christ and His seed cannot fail. His word abideth for ever. The treasures of His grace are inexhaustible. He will fulfil His promises to Christ. And His mercy and grace toward us shall be more richly imparted and more conspicuously displayed to all eternity.

CONCLUSION.

1. Let all who by faith in Christ are interested in this covenant rejoice in the rich blessings it secures unto them. All things are ours, and we are Christs, and Christ is Gods.

2. Let all who are not by faith savingly interested in this covenant believe in Christ, and so share its blessings. Incline your ear, and come unto Me, saith the Lord; hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

THE MIGHTY HELPER OF MAN

(Psa. 89:19)

This assurance points first to David, afterwards to Jesus Christ. In Him on whom God hath laid help for the restoration of humanity it receives its complete fulfilment. The text expresses this truth, that mans great need as a sinner is met by Christs great power as a Saviour. Consider,

I. Mans Great Need as a Sinner. The text teaches by implication that none but a mighty Saviour was equal to the work of human redemption; that man had fallen so low and sunk so deeply in sin and misery that no arm but that of the mighty One was able to raise him. That we may obtain a clear and correct impression of the greatness of mans necessity as a fallen being, let us consider

1. The greatness of the being that fell. Much has been written and spoken of the physical majesty of man when contrasted with other animals. There is much of both truth and beauty in the well-known words of our greatest dramatist: What a piece of work is man! how noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in form and moving, how express and admirable! in action, how like an angel! in apprehension, how like a god! the beauty of the world! the paragon of animals! And a more ancient poet exclaimed, I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. But the physical is not the man, it is but the earthly house, the costume of the spiritual. There is a spirit in man, and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding. This spirit is the man; and as the inhabitant is greater than the house, as the jewel is more precious than the casket, so the soul is incomparably greater and more precious than the body. Think of the greatness of mans mind, as seen in its astonishing achievements. Mention briefly the wondrous triumphs of the human mind. Now if man has done all this, and much more than this, in his fallen degenerate state, what could he not have done had he not fallen? What could he not have done had his arm never been paralysed by sin, his mental vision never been beclouded, and his constant access to the Great Source of wisdom and power never been interrupted? Moreover, if man has done all this when he is but in his infancy, in the mere bud of being, what will he not be capable of accomplishing when he is freed entirely from the impediments of sin and in the unfolding of powers much more mature? The exceeding majesty of the human mind in heaven far surpasses our conceptions. It doth not yet appear what we shall be. When we think of man as an immortal intelligence, we are struck into amazement at his greatness. He is capable of companionship with angels and communion with the Father of spirits, and is destined for perpetual growth in all that is true, holy, and beautiful.

2. The greatness of the Fall. Mans greatness made his fall the more disastrous and terrible. The fall of man was not as the wreck of some small boat which is quickly destroyed and lost sight of, but as the wreck of a great and majestic vessel,so great that even now the vast ocean is strewed with its shattered fragments. A once glorious angel fell from his high position, and with him multitudes of high and holy ones rebelled, and lost their purity, their happiness, their God; and now the world is led captive at his will. Man, who was made only a little lower than the angels, fell from his God-given sphere, and with him fell all the race, and the power which should have been exercised for the true and good is arrayed in antagonism against them. And, when all the powers of mans being are thus exercised for evil, who can measure the extent and enormity of their evildoing? St. Paul has graphically depicted the enormities wrought by the mighty but sadly perverted powers of man (Rom. 3:13-18). Mans greatness has aggravated the terrible character of his fall. His mind is mighty to devise evil, and his arm to execute it. And this state of things is not partial but race-wide (Rom. 3:10-12). Wherever upon earth you find man you find sin, and wherever you find sin you find misery and death (Rom. 5:12). We may picture man as a once splendid temple now lying in ruins. Who shall restore him? shall education? shall science? shall schemes of social re-organisation? shall systems of political economy? These have been tried and found lamentably deficient. None but God can restore man. Rejoice, for God hath laid help upon One that is mighty, &c.

II. Christs great power as a Saviour. I have laid help upon One that is mighty, &c. Notice

1. Christs identification with humanity. Chosen out of the peopleone of ourselves. Christ was a true man, although not a mere man. God manifest in the flesh. God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. While bowing reverently before His Godhood, we remember gratefully His manhood. As a man we see in Him our Example. Learn of Me, He saith to us. (1Pe. 2:21). Our sympathetic Friend and Brother. (Heb. 2:11; Heb. 2:14-18; Heb. 4:15-16).

2. Christs exaltation above humanity. I have exalted One. Mention the spiritual exaltation of the whole earthly life of Christ. Even while His feet trod this earth He was the Son of man which is in heaven. There was the sublime exaltation of the cross. In that voluntary self-sacrifice we have the most glorious manifestation of the Godlike in human life that the world has ever seen. But the exaltation referred to in the Messianic application of the text is probably that of His resurrection, and His ascension to heaven. In His resurrection we have Divine honour conferred upon Him, and the attestation of His Messianic claims. In His ascension He resumed the glory which He had with the Father before the world was, and also entered upon the glories of Mediator. For the joy that was set before Him, &c. (Heb. 12:2; Php. 2:8-12).

3. Christs power to save humanity. I have laid help upon One that is mighty. Because Jesus was chosen out of the people He possesses that sympathy with us which is requisite to render His help efficient, and to assure us that it will be imparted. And the exaltation of His miracles, resurrection, and ascension declare Him to be the Son of God with power to save man. His manhood is evidence of His willingness to save man; His Godhood is evidence of His power to save man. The Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins. He is mighty to save. He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, &c.

CONCLUSION.

1. If you have availed yourself of the help of the Mighty One, cleave to Him until you are entirely freed from sin, and all your being is holy to the Lord.
2. If you have not availed yourself of the help of the great Redeemer, do so at once. He waits to save you. Trust His almighty power and infinite love, and so rise to holiness and God.

THE COVENANT OF GOD AND THE SINS OF MEN

(Psa. 89:29-37)

May the covenant of God be made of none effect by the sin of man? Shall Gods covenant with David and his seed be nullified by reason of their transgression? May man frustrate the purpose of God? This question is answered in the paragraph before us.

I. The sins of men are opposed to the covenant of God. All the arrangements of God are utterly opposed to sin.

1. His laws are against it. The laws of the material universe are against it. Whoso breaketh an hedge a serpent shall bite him. God has annexed inevitable and stern penalties to every breach of His laws in the material realm. The laws of the moral universe are all against sin. On all the dreary region of evil the Divine Thou shalt not is inscribed in letters of flame. And on all the sunny realm of righteousness the Divine Thou shalt is clearly written.

2. His judgments are against it. Think of the stern judgments recorded in the Bible which were inflicted by reason of sin: the expulsion of our first parents from Eden, the deluge in the days of Noah, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah by fire, the plague of the fiery flying serpents in the wilderness, the terrible overthrow of Jerusalem.

3. His redemption is against it. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil. He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. His great mission is to save sinners. The covenant of God has no complicity with evil. The goodness and mercy of God are an encouragement to penitence, but they are hostile to sin. God regards sin with unutterable abhorrence. Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate. His ideas, His feelings, His purposes, His arrangements, His operations, are all against it.

II. Yet men who in the covenant of God are richly blessed may sin grievously against Him. If his children forsake My law, and walk not in My judgments; if they break My statutes, and keep not My commandments. Here are sins of commission. If his children forsake My law, if they break, or profane, My statutes. Here are sins of omission. Walk not in My judgments, keep not My commandments. These sins may be committed by men who are enjoying many blessings of the Divine covenant.

1. Such was the case with the Jews. Ancient Israel sadly forsook God and wickedly rebelled against Him. Some members even of the seed of David sinned grievously against Him.

2. Such is the case with many who are in the enjoyment of Gospel privileges. What multitudes in this land of religious light and liberty and abounding spiritual privileges, are living in utter disregard of the Will of God!

3. Such is the case even with true Christians. Even after we have tasted that God is gracious, we may sadly sin against Him. Nay, who is there of us that is not sensible of frequent sins both of omission and commission, and especially of the former? Sins of commission may not, perhaps, shock the retrospect of conscience. Large and obtrusive to view, we have confessed, mourned, repented of them. Sins of omission, so veiled amidst our hourly emotionsblent, confused, unseen in the conventional routine of existence;alas! could these suddenly emerge from their shadow, group together in serried mass and accusing order, would not the best of us then start in dismay, and would not the proudest humble himself at the throne of mercy? The fact that even good men may and do thus sin against God

(1.) Reveals mans moral freedom. Saint and sinner are alike morally free. God will not compel any one to obey Him.

(2.) The importance of watchfulness. Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation.

(3.) The necessity of trust in God. Hold up my goings in Thy paths, that my footsteps slip not. Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe.

III. The sins of men will be punished by God. I will visit their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. If the people of God sin against Him, they will be most surely punished by Him.

1. The rod is used for their correction, not for their destruction. God sometimes inflicts upon His people pain of body, or losses in business, or family afflictions, or distressing bereavements, as a chastisement for their sins. He would thereby impress them with the heinousness of evil, that they may fear to sin. The Divine hatred of evil is too intense for sin to go unpunished. Gods love of His people is too great for Him to allow them to sin and not chastise them for it. He visits them with the rod of correction that He may reclaim them from their evil ways, and establish their goings in holiness.

2. The correction is administered by God. I will visit their transgressions, &c. Visitation implies oversight and paternal care. The metaphor is taken from those who undertake to watch over the sick, or train up children, or tend sheep. God, who is wise and gracious, bears the rod and inflicts the chastisement; we may, therefore, rest assured that He will inflict that only which is for our good.

IV. The sins of men cannot frustrate the covenant of God. Nevertheless My lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, &c., Psa. 89:33-37. Human sin cannot defeat the Divine purposes. This is evident, for

1. They are the purposes of an omniscient Being. No circumstance can arise to disarrange them which has not been foreseen and provided for by Him. His plans are formed with a perfect knowledge of all events in all worlds and in all ages.

2. They are the purposes of an omnipotent Being. Mans purposes may be defeated, or he may fail to carry them out for want of power, but God is almighty. He can subdue all opposition. He can accomplish all that He may please. With God all things are possible.

3. They are the purposes of an immutable Being. In Himself He is unchangeable. Man varies, as life advances, and he grows in knowledge and wisdom and holiness; his views of things often change, and he may alter his plans or his methods of action. But it is not so with God. His purposes are eternal and immutable, and He, being immutable, omnipotent, and omniscient, we may justly conclude that His covenant arrangements cannot be made void by mans sin. But let us ascertain the teaching of the text on this point. Hengstenbergs note on the 37th verse appears to us excellent. The alleviating limitation is here first given in Psa. 89:33, as it is in the fundamental passage in Psa. 89:15. The alleviation, however, is not to be misunderstood, as if it referred to individuals contrary to the nature of the thing, and contrary to the history, according to which annihilating judgments did descend upon the rebellious members of the family of David; but the opposition is of the punishment of sin in the individual, and of grace continually remaining to the family. We must not fail to notice that in Psa. 89:33 it is not said: I will not withdraw My mercy from them, the sinners, but from him, the family as such. Now that the kingdom has passed from the sinful to the holy seed of David, the direct application of this paragraph has ceased. The case provided for in the promise cannot again occur. Still there exists between Christ and His Church a case analogous to that between David and his seed. As Davids family was chosen in him (Comp. 1Ki. 11:36; 2Ki. 8:19; Isa. 37:35), so that it always remained in possession of the favour of God, notwithstanding the fall and rejection of many of its individual members, in like manner the Church is chosen in Christ, and the sins of its members may hurt themselves but cannot injure it. Notwithstanding the fall of a whole generation, it always flourishes again; and under the most inexorable judgments which are not removed by the appearance of Christ, but rendered more severe, compassionate grace is always concealed. Individual members of Davids family transgressed, and were visited with the rod, but the mercy was not removed from the family. Individual Christians may fall into sin and forsake God and be visited with stripes, but the new covenant shall not fail; the kingdom of Christ shall flourish and increase. Mans sin shall not frustrate Gods purposes. If, saith the Lord, they profane My statutes, nevertheless My covenant will I not profane. Two things more remain to be noticed.

1. God is again represented as declaring the stability and perpetuity of the covenant. The sun and moon are stable, orderly. Generations of men come and go, but they remain. Incessant and sometimes great changes take place upon earth, but the ordinances of heaven remain unchanged, the sun and moon are the same. So they are used as symbols of the unchangeable and permanent. And so the covenant of God is immutable and eternal. (See remarks on Psa. 89:1-4.)

2. The solemn declaration of the perpetuity of the covenant. One thing have I sworn by My holiness, that I will not lie unto David. God, as it were, pledges His own holiness for the fulfilment of the word which He spake unto David. That attribute which seems most precious to Him He here stakes on the fulfilment of His promise to them. This one thing, that He will keep His word to His servant David, He thus solemnly asseverates. He abideth faithful: He cannot deny Himself.

CONCLUSION.Our subject urges,

1. Confidence as to Gods covenant. Neither the unfaithfulness and sin of man, nor the malice and rage of hell, can frustrate the glorious purposes of God.

2. Caution as to our conduct. If his children forsake My law, &c. Though you cannot break Gods covenant you may violate your own interest therein. Take heed lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

LAMENTATION AND EXPOSTULATION BY REASON OF THE APPARENT FAILURE OF THE COVENANT OF GOD

(Psa. 89:38-51)

Confident proclamation or the firmness of the covenant is here succeeded by bitter lamentation of its seeming failure, and upon the lamentation an earnest expostulation with God is founded. Consider,

I. The lamentation. The general complaint of the Psalmist is that the covenant has failed. Thou hast made void the covenant of Thy servant. In his complaint the Psalmist mentions several particulars in which it seemed to be failing, or to have already failed. Let us briefly glance at them:

1. The king was dethroned. Thou hast profaned his crown to the ground; and cast his throne down to the ground. Complaints like these show that, if the king was not actually dethroned, his sovereignty was mutilated, his throne tottering to its fall. The crown, which had always been regarded as sacred, the poet represents as having been treated as though it were an unclean or despised thing to be contemptuously cast to the ground. And the kingdom had come, or was speedily and painfully coming, to a ruinous end.

2. Their defences were destroyed. Thou hast broken down all his hedges; Thou hast brought his strongholds to ruin. In the former clause the king and people are compared to a vineyard, the fences of which were thrown down, and which was open to the ravages of wild beasts and to the depredations of every intrusive passer-by. In the latter clause, they are compared to a city whose fortifications were destroyed. The idea is, that they were left defenceless and helpless, and were completely powerless before their enemies.

3. They were made the prey and reproach of their neighbours. All that pass by the way spoil him; he is a reproach to his neighbours. By the passers-by, the Psalmist probably meant the nations of the Asiatic kings who visited Judah in marching through against the king of Egypt; and by the neighbours, the surrounding nations who, on a former occasion, approached David and Solomon with reverence and paid tribute (comp. 2Sa. 8:2; 1Ki. 5:1). Now they despise the anointed of the Lord in his disgracefully degraded condition (comp. Psa. 80:6; Psa. 88:8).

4. They were defeated in battle and their enemies exulted over them. Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries, &c. (Psa. 89:42-43.) Their sword seemed to have lost its ancient sharpness, as though its edge were turned. Their weapons failed them in the day of battle. And, which was much worse, their spirit failed them in the day of battle. They did not stand in the battle. A courageous spirit will achieve victories even with a blunt sword; but a coward spirit will not stand in the battle even though his weapons be of the finest. They had been driven before their enemies like craven-hearted weaklings; while those enemies had by their victories over them increased and made firmer their own power, and exulted proudly in their triumphs. O Lord, what shall I say, when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies?

5. Their vigour and glory had ceased. The days of his youth hast Thou shortened. Youth is the season of strength. Old age is marked by feebleness and decay. So the period of their prosperity and power had been brought to an unexpected and early close. Premature old age had come upon them. Troubles, calamities, reverses, and, above all, their sins, had cut off their youthful successes and triumphs, and left them weak and decrepit. Their glory had ceased; they were covered with shame. The glory of their sovereign was gone; their splendour and might as a nation had passed away; their circumstances and condition were such as put them to shame. If the Poet and the people contrasted their present state with their state under David, and yet more under Solomon, they must have bitterly felt the change, and may well have bitterly bewailed it. What a difference there was between the then and the now! and all to the disadvantage of the now.

6. They attributed their sad condition entirely to their angry rejection by God. Thou hast cast off and abhorred, Thou hast been wroth with Thine anointed. They attribute all their calamities to Him. He had wrought all their evils. In His anger He had rejected both the king and the people, as if they had been regarded by Him with contempt or loathing. Now, is this feature of the lamentation true and right? It is true that their calamities came not without the permission of God. He had withdrawn His protection from them, or their enemies would have been powerless against them, and their own power and glory would have remained unimpaired. So far, at least, the Psalmist is right. But why did God withdraw His protection from them! Was it not because they had forsaken His law and walked not in His judgments, had profaned His statutes, and kept not His commandments? Their calamities were the natural result of their crimes. They had sown the seed of sin, and were reaping a harvest of shame and suffering. Yet in their complaint there is no confession. They bewail their sufferings, not their sins. Herein they were wrong. Their sins had landed them in their present miseries. And, in complaining to God, they should have humbly confessed and repented of their sins. As it is, there is too much reason for the remark: The complainings of the saints are so exaggerated, that carnal feeling makes itself more apparent in them than faith. Is there not a lesson here for Christian believers and churches? Are there not churches today in a reduced, feeble, inglorious condition, which are bewailing their depressed state, as though it were entirely of the Lords doing? Let such churches search for the sins, of omission or commission, which is the root of their failure and misery. Let them put forth every accursed thing from amongst them, and God will invigorate them with power, enrich them with success, and crown them with honour; and if any Christian finds feebleness and failure coming upon him as an individual, let him not blame God, but examine his own life, and renounce the secret sin or the questionable practice, or take up the neglected duty, which has caused the spiritual loss and decline.

II. The Expostulation. How long, Lord? wilt Thou hide Thyself for ever? shall Thy wrath burn like fire? &c. In his expostulation with God the Psalmist takes up several things and turns them into effective pleas.

1. The duration of their distresses. How long, Lord? This verse teaches

(1) That their distresses were very great. The gracious presence of God was quite hidden from them. All was darkness; and His wrath seemed to be consuming them.

(2) Their distresses had long continued. So long had Gods countenance been hidden from them, that the Poet inquires if it is always to be so. It seemed as though their night would never be succeeded by morning; their winter never pass into spring.

(3) Their distresses threatened their utter extinction. It seemed to them as though Gods wrath, like fire, would burn on until they were utterly consumed; that their miseries would continue until their national existence was clean gone. But the main thought in the mind of the Poet in this verse seems to be the long duration of their distresses. For some time they had pressed heavily upon them. No sign of relief for them could they discover anywhere.

2. The brevity of their life. Remember how short my time is. The brevity of life is frequently stated in the Sacred Scriptures. Human life upon earth is compared to a flower, to grass, to a shadow, to a vapour which appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away. The Psalmist here brings in the brevity of life as an argument for the speedy interposition of God. If the distresses were not speedily removed life itself would be gone. If the Divine mercy were to be manifested, it must be manifested speedily, or it would be too late for them. Must their brief life be all spent in misery? We may surely derive a hint from the Psalmist here. If life be so brief, let us seek the favour of God at once. If life be so brief, let us discharge its duties as they arise. If life be so brief, let us improve its opportunities and privileges as they arise.

3. The vanity of their life. Wherefore hast Thou made all men in vain? The idea in the mind of the Psalmist seems to be, that if their distresses were continued their life itself would be vain. He seems to have had no clear idea of a blessed life beyond death. That was not clearly revealed until our Lord Jesus Christ poured a flood of light upon it. And, in his present troubled mood, the Psalmist was not able to make the most of the light which he possessed upon the subject, and so the future appears dark and cheerless to him. In fact, he writes as if he knew no future; as if all his hopes were bounded by the grave. So man seems to him to have been made in vain. Life seemed altogether shadowy, unreal, worthless. He urges this characteristic of life as a reason why God should grant them speedy relief. His plea seems to amount to this: Consider how worthless the life of man is, and relieve its darkness and vanity by sending us prosperity, and by sending it quickly.

4. The certainty of death. What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death; and there is no discharge in that war. Death is no respecter of persons or of characters. The rich and the poor, the distinguished and the unknown, the strong and the weak, the beautiful and the deformed, the wise and the foolish, the holy and the sinful, the useful and the baneful are alike swept away by death. The argument of the Psalmist seems to be this: As all men, even the strongest, even the king himself, must die, deliver us speedily from the miseries which now oppress us, and grant us prosperity before we pass into dark Sheol.

5. The lovingkindness promised by God. Lord, where are Thy former lovingkindnesses which Thou swarest unto David in Thy truth? The former lovingkindnesses are those which God had granted in earlier and prosperous times, and which were regarded as pledges of future mercies. And God had promised to David a continuance of these mercies to his seed. The Psalmist asks God: Where are Thy promises? Art Thou not the Unchangeable? Wilt Thou not make good that which Thou hast spoken? Thus may we in our distresses plead the former mercies and the promises of God, and we shall never plead them in vain. What God has done, He will do again. What He has promised, He will perform.

6. The reproaches which fell upon them. Remember, Lord, the reproach of Thy servants, &c. (Psa. 89:50-51). Their enemies mocked them because of their sore distresses; and they pray God to end their distresses, and so remove their reproach. The Psalmist pleads powerfully in these two verses. They were His servants who were reproached, and they were reproached for trusting and serving Him; and would He not roll back the reproach from them? This reproach was a great sorrow to the Psalmist, and to all who were concerned for the welfare of the people and the honour of God. The reproach of all the people, their troubles, their complaints, the scoffs of their enemies, all pressed upon the heart of the Psalmist as a burden of deep grief. Should he feel these things so deeply, and would God be unmindful of them? Would not God remove the reproaches, and so relieve the heart of His servant? The reproaches came from the enemies of God. They were not only foes and mockers of the covenant people, they were enemies of the covenant God, would He not remember and silence them? They reproached the anointed of God. They have reproached the footsteps of Thine anointed. They, as it were, followed the king, and wherever he went and whatever he did they reproached him. Would the Most High allow His enemies thus to deride the anointed king of His own people? Thus the Psalmist amidst the national distresses, when the covenant seemed on the very eve of utter failure, pleads with God for His saving interposition. His pleading is not perfect. As we have already indicated, there is no recognition of the fact that their distresses arose from their sins; there is no confession of the gross violation of the covenant on the part of the people. It was their sufferings and not their sins that they bewailed before God. Yet we may learn some useful lessons from the pleadings of the Psalmist. In present distresses we shall do well to plead

(1) Our weakness and the shortness of our life. God is strong and merciful, and will help and pity us.

(2) We should take encouragement from and plead Gods former mercies. He is unchangeable. Past deliverances are reasons for hope and confidence in present distresses.

(3) We should plead His faithfulness. By relying upon His word we honour Him.

(4) We should plead our relation to Him. We are His servants. His enemies are also ours. Will He not protect and save His own?

CONCLUSION.

1. Learn the exceeding sinfulness of sin. It was sin that had profaned the crown to the ground, &c. Let suffering deter from sin.

2. Learn not to judge by appearances. Things are not what they seem. The covenant seemed to be utterly failing, yet God was all the time fulfilling it, carrying it forward to deeper, diviner, more glorious issues than the people imagined when this Psalm was written. Gods word cannot fail. His promises cannot be broken. He may fulfil them in ways unexpected by and strange to us; but He will fulfil them gloriously. Christ and His seed shall be eternally blessed. His seed shall endure for ever, and His throne as the sun before Me.

THE VANITY OF MAN APART FROM HIS IMMORTALITY

(Psa. 89:47)

I purpose to show that, considered merely in this present state, apart from any reference to eternity and the prospect disclosed by revelation, man is made in vain.

I. The first thing that strikes us in such a survey of our being is the shortness of its duration. Remember how short my time is. The transient nature of his existence stamps an inexpressible meanness on man, if we confine our view to the present life; and forces us to confess that, laying aside the hope of immortality, Every man at his best estate is altogether vanity.

II. The same reflection must have occurred to most persons of a thoughtful character, when they have contemplated the general state of that world in which we are placed: the mischief and misery that pervade it; the disorder and desolation which the unruly passions of men perpetually introduce; the wantonness with which they rush to deeds of violence and injustice; the almost incessant national contentions, in which the destruction of one part of the human race seems to become the business and sport of the other. Viewed, therefore, merely as they are here, and excluding the supposition of a future state, all men will appear to be made in vain.

III. When we recollect how many thousands of our species are born the subjects of some inherent, incurable disease, or imperfection of body, such as may be said to render their life a protracted malady,when we call to mind how many are constitutionally the victims of dejected spirits and a morbid melancholy, such as cast a gloom over every surrounding object, and dim their perceptions to the fairest scenes of life and nature, we are compelled to acknowledge, of the multitude so circumstanced, thatif we consider them merely as existing in that hypothetical state which terminates with deaththey also are made in vain.

IV. When we take into the account those millions of mankind who are condemned, through the whole of life, to manual and mechanical labours; whose day after day is consumed in a constant round of the same unvaried employment, who that limits his view of man to this sublunary scene can forbear to sympathise with the desponding Psalmist in the text? In labours like these millions of beings are employed, who are created with a mind capable of looking backward and forward with endless activity of thought, capable of comprehending truth and advancing in knowledge, capable of enjoying a happiness commensurate with its own vast desires. The inheritors of such faculties are employed in labours in which the mind is altogether passive and dormant, nor is any exercise afforded to the reason or the affections. Without blaming the existing organization of society, I ask whether, if men are condemned to terminate their existence in these pursuits, and are not reserved for another and higher state of being, the great majority of mankind are not made in vain?

V. But there are those, it may be said, who do not fall under this melancholy representation; men of wealth, whose circumstances seem to be formed by their will, and who appropriate whatever they desire. Surely, you will say, such men of this world, have their portion in this life; surely an existence like theirs, even if we suppose it confined to earth, apart from any ulterior consideration, has a sufficient end in itself; and, though their existence is short, they are exempt from a charge of having been made in vain. Now there is a delusion in this view; and if we examine the advantages which men of wealth possess over others, we shall find that nearly all the pleasures peculiar to superfluous opulence are reducible to two classes; the class of sensual gratifications and that of ambitious distinctions.

1. How little the gratifications of sense which the rich have at their command, can be said to redeem their possessors from the lot of a vain existence, will appear by the following considerations

(1) The pleasures of sense can never be proposed as an adequate end of our creation; because, in pursuing them, we always regard them as subordinate to something of superior importance, our regard to which is allowed to be the just rule of sensual indulgence. A wise man advises a proper abstinence from such pleasures for the sake of health; a good man for the sake of virtue; either of which is justly regarded as an object superior to that which it ought to regulate. But the true end of existence must be something beyond which nothing can be proposed of superior magnitude, &c.

(2) The pleasures of sense pursued beyond a certain limit, so far from tending to create happiness, tend to destroy it, by the very construction of those organs which are the instruments of sensual enjoyment. That craving after happiness which every bosom feels, and the satisfaction of which involves the perfection of our existence, cannot be supposed to attain its proper object in any of those animal pleasures, of which the pursuit (unless kept in continual check) leads to the extinction of happiness and existence itself.
(3) The enjoyment of the senses cannot present to human beings the appropriate and distinguishing end of their extinction, because they are only enjoyed by man in common with the lower animals. That, whatever it be, which forms the true end of human existence, must be something which is adapted to the great peculiarities of our nature as rational and moral beings; but sensual fruition is received in an equal, perhaps a greater, degree, by the brutes. He who should abandon himself, in the gratification of animal propensities, to the neglect of every higher aim, would be universally allowed to have lived in vain.

2. But there is another class of pleasures with the command of which wealth supplies usthe pleasures of ambitionthe respect and homage which are paid to high station and splendid circumstances. Now, in an examination of these pleasures, it will be found that they are unreal and imaginary; that they consist of nothing more than a fiction of the imagination by which we may be said to identify ourselves, or to be identified by others, with all those varied instrument of pleasure which affluence commands, by which we diffuse ourselves as it were over the whole sphere in which we preside. Men of wealth are not, more than others, exempt from the mournful charge of the Psalmist.

VI. Neither can we exempt from the same condition men of knowledge, who pass life in the cultivation of intellect and the pursuit of truth, an object better suited to the nature, and better proportioned to the dignity of man as a rational being than those before-mentioned. That the pleasures of knowledge and intellect are noble in their nature, exquisite in their degree, and permanent in their continuance, will not be denied by those who are competent to estimate them.

1. But to how few are these pleasures confined? Not one person in a thousand has either the abilities or the opportunities requisite to their high enjoyment; while to the rest, to the great bulk of mankind, they are the hidden treasures of a sealed book. And can that be supposed the final object of our being, which can be enjoyed but by a small proportion of those who inherit that being?

2. Of the few who make knowledge the aim of their engagements, none can secure himself from the intrusion of disturbing passions or distressing accidents. The lights of philosophy are liable to be broken by the waves of adversity and darkened by the clouds of grief, &c.
3. We have it, on the testimony of one of the greatest proficients in knowledge that ever appeared among men, that increase of knowledge, far from being increase of happiness, is increase of sorrow. Certain is it that the mere knowledge of things is something extremely different from the enjoyment of things. Knowledge has its abode in the understanding, while happiness is seated in the heart. Knowledge cannot be supposed to constitute that proper happiness of man without which he is made in vain.

VII. There yet remains another and a yet more elevated order of men, who place the grand object of their being in religion; who think of God, trust in God, and, on all occasions, devote themselves to do the will of God, &c. What shall we say of such men? If this were the only state of being ordained for man, they, like others, would be made in vain. Verily, they have cleansed their hearts in vain, &c. If in this life only they have hope, they are of all men most miserable, most worthy to be commiserated. For, according to this supposition, they are the only persons who are utterly disappointed in their object; the only persons who (by a fatal and irreparable mistake), expecting an imaginary happiness in an imaginary world, lose their only opportunity of enjoying those present pleasures of which others avail themselves.

But that supposition is not, for a moment, to be believed: these men are not thus deluded; they are not thus to be disappointed; it is impossible to conceive that they are. The perplexity, the inconsistency, the palpable absurdity into which those are driven who argue upon the non-existence of immortality, the falsehood of revelation, proves, as far as proof can be expected, that theirs is a false hypothesis! Upon their hypothesis, man is the greatest enigma in the universe; that universe itself is a problem not to be solved: all is mystery, confusion, and despair. Bring in the light of revelation and immortality, the clouds and thick darkness in which the scene was enveloped disperse, and all is clear and harmonious. We learn at once the cause and the cure of that vanity, in subjection to which the whole creation groans, together with man. The origin of our misery and death, the recovery of life and immortality, are alike brought to light.

To attain a share in this salvation, to recover the true end and perfection of our existence, in the resemblance and the favour of the only happy God; this is the great object of desire and pursuit to those whose eyes are opened to their real situation, and whose hearts are awakened to a sense of their real want. And remembering how short their time is, they are the more in earnest that, by a glorious reverse of their naturally ruined state, they may prove at last to have not been made in vain.

I infer the extreme folly and misery of those who persist in the neglect of this salvation, this immortality. What must be our emotion should we discover, at the last judgment, that we have lived in vain; that, so far as our own interest is concerned, we have been made in vain; that we have received the grace of God in vain; that, having neglected the one salvation, we are lost, lost in the scale of being; immortal creatures, lost to the great purpose for which our Maker gave us existence; lost to happiness; irrecoverably and for ever lost! Now is the accepted time, &c.Robert Hall. Abridged.

DOXOLOGY

(Psa. 89:52)

This verse, says Hengstenberg, does not at all belong to the Psalm, but contains the doxology which concludes the third book.

I. God is blessed in Himself. All distracting and distressing elements are entirely absent from His nature. Man suffers much from guilt, from uncontrolled passions, and from dark forebodings. Conscience accuses and condemns him, evil passions lash his soul into fury, the dread of suffering, and death, and hell afflicts him. All these things are utterly alien from the Divine nature; while all those things which contribute to the blessedness of spiritual being are found in Him in infinite perfection. Truth, holiness, and love essentially inhere in Him in full perfection and infinite degree. In terms such as these He is represented to us in the Scriptures:God is light, God is good, God is love, A God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He, the God of peace, the God of hope, &c. Such a Being must be blessed by virtue of His own character. God is an infinite ocean of life, love, and blessedness. God blessed for ever. The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is blessed for evermore.

II. God is blessed by His creatures. God blesses man by the impartation of benefits; man blesses God by the ascription of praise.

1. God is praised by His works. All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord. Nature in her beauty and bounty praises Him. The birds and beasts also, when unoppressed by man, seem in many ways to praise God. Moreover, as Gods works answer the beneficent ends for which they were created, they speak forth the praise of His wisdom, power, and goodness.

2. God is praised by His people upon earth. They praise Him for what He is in Himself; for His truth, purity, power, mercy, love, spiritual beauty. They praise Him for what He has done, and is ever doing for them (Psa. 103:1-12). But we must remember that this doxology belongs to every Psalm of this third book. And in this book there are Psalms of the doubting and of the distressed as well as of the believing and rejoicing; there are cries of misery and complaints of suffering as well as songs of gladness and hymns of praise. Thus the people of God would praise Him in the varying scenes and circumstances of life. In all circumstances He is good. Even in times of darkness and distress faith will enable the godly man to say, Blessed be the Lord for evermore. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. The godly soul is earnestly resolved thus to bless God. The seal of faith is added twice to this doxology, Amen and Amen. Here is a double Amen, says Matthew Henry, according to the double signification. Amenso it is, God is blessed for ever. Amenbe it so, let God be blessed for ever.

3. God is praised by redeemed men and angels in heaven. By angels (Isa. 6:1-3; Rev. 7:11-12). By the redeemed in heaven (Rev. 5:9-10; Rev. 7:9-10; et al.)

4. God is praised by all His creatures everywhere (Rev. 5:9-14).

III. God is blessed for ever. For evermore. His worship will occupy His creatures through all eternity. In heaven all our work will be worship, and all our life praise, and all will be perpetual.

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

Psalms 89

DESCRIPTIVE TITLE

The Covenant with David Contrasted with the Present Dishonour of Davids Heir.

ANALYSIS

Stanza I., Psa. 89:1-2, The Keynotes of the psalmJehovahs Kindness and Faithfulness. Stanza II., Psa. 89:3-4, Brief Summary of Jehovahs Covenant with David. Stanzas III.-VII., Psa. 89:5-14, The Character, Court Works and Dominion of the Covenant God. Stanza VIII., IX., Psa. 89:15-18, The Happy Estate of the Covenant People. Stanzas X.-XIX., Psa. 89:19-37, The Provisions of the Covenant, Poetically and Prophetically Amplified. Stanzas XX.-XXIII, Psa. 89:38-45, The Dishonour Permitted to Davids Heir Pathetically Described. Stanzas XXIV., XXV., Psa. 89:46-51, Remonstrance against the Continuance of this Dishonour, urged by the Shortness and Vanity of Life, the Certainty of Death, the Memory of Former Kindnesses, and the Unanswerable Insults heaped on Davids HeirJehovahs Anointed.

(Lm.) An Instructive PsalmBy Ethan the Ezrahite.

The kindness of Jehovah to the ages let me sing,

to generation after generation let me make known thy faithfulness with my mouth.

For I have said[235] To the ages shall kindness be built up,

[235] Some cod. (w. Sep., Vul.): thou saidstGn. Following this reading, some begin the Divine speech here, with the necessary changes.

the heavensthou wilt establish thy faithfulness therein.

I have solemnised a covenant for my chosen one,

I have sworn to David my servant:

Unto the ages will I establish thy seed,

and will build up to generation after generation thy throne.

And the heavens will confess[236] thy wonder O Jehovah,

[236] Or: celebrate (so Dr.).

yea thy faithfulness in the assembly of thy holy ones.

For whom in the skies can one compare to Jehovah?

can liken to Jehovah among the sons of the mighty?[237]

[237] Or: God. Heb.: elim.

A GOD inspiring awe[238] in the great circle of the holy ones,

[238] Or: fear-inspiring.

and to be feared above all who are round about him.

Jehovah God of hosts! who like thee is potent O Yah?

with thy tokens of faithfulness surrounding thee?

Thou rulest the proud swelling of the sea,[239]

[239] It is Thou that tamest the insolence of the seaDel.

when its waves rise high thou stillest them.

Thou didst crushas one deadly woundedRahab,

with thy strong arm thou didst scatter thy foes.

Thine are the heavens yea thine the earth,

the world and its fulness thou didst found them:

North and south thou didst create them,

Tabor and Hermon in[240] thy name ring out their joy.

[240] AtDr., Del.

Thine is an arm [endued] with might,

thou strengthenest thy hand exaltest thy right hand:

Righteousness and justice are the foundation of thy throne,

kindness and truth come to meet thy face.

How happy the people who know the sacred shout!

Jehovah! in the light of thy face they firmly march along,[241]

[241] Said of walking along in a self-assured, solemn mannerDel.

In thy name they exult all the day,

and in thy righteousness are they exalted.[242]

[242] Gt.: they ring out their joy.

For the beauty of their strength[243] art thou,

[243] Their strength, which turns out, proves, to be their ornamentDel.

and by thy favour thou exaltest our horns;[244]

[244] So (pl.) in many MSS., and in 4 ear. pr. edns.; but horn (sing.) in 7 ear. pr. edns.Gn.

For to Jehovah belongeth our shield,

and to the Holy One of Israel our king.

Then spakest thou in vision to thy men[245] of kindness and didst say:

[245] So (pl.) in many MSS., 3 ear. pr. edns., Aram., Vul.; but man (sing.) in some cod., w. 7 ear. pr edns.Gn.

I have laid help[246] on a hero,

[246] Gt.: a crown (cp. Psa. 132:18); or strengthGn.

I have exalted one chosen from the people.

I have found David my servant,

with my holy oil have I anointed him:

With whom my hand shall be established,

yea mine own arm shall strengthen him.

An enemy shall not make exactions of him,

nor a son of perversity humiliate him:

But I will shatter from before him his adversaries,

and them who hate him will I smite.

And my faithfulness and my kindness shall be with him,

and through my name shall his horn be exalted;

And I will set on the sea his hand,

and on the rivers[247] his right-hand.

[247] A poetic generalisation of the River (i.e., the Euphrates); cp. Exo. 33:31 and Psa. 72:8Dr.

He shall cry out to meMy father art thou,

my GOD and my rock of salvation,

I also will grant him to be first-born,

most high[248] to the kings of the earth.

[248] Cp. Psa. 87:5.

To the ages will I keep for him my kindness,

and my covenant is made sure to him;

And I will appoint to futurity his seed,

and his throne as the days of the heavens.

If his sons forsake my law,

and in my regulations do not walk:

If my statutes they profane,

and my commandments do not keep

Then will I visit with a rod their transgression,

and with strokes[249] their iniquity;

[249] ScourgesDel. N.B., the word associated with leprosy: Leviticus 13, 14; 2Sa. 7:14, Psa. 38:11 (note), Psa. 39:10.

But my kindness will I not break off[250] from him,

[250] Some cod. (w. Aram., Syr.): take away. Cp. 2Sa. 7:15Gn.

nor falsify my faithfulness.

I will not violate my covenant,

nor that which hath issued out of my lips will I change.

One thing have I sworn by my holiness,

surely unto David will I not be false:

His seed to the ages shall remain,

and his throne be as the sun before me:

As the moon be established to the ages,

and the witness in the skies is faithful.

Yet thou thyself hast cast off and rejected,

thou has been indignant with thine Anointed:

Thou hast spurned the covenant of thy servant,

thou hast profaned to the ground his crown.

Thou hast broken down all his fences,

thou hast laid all his fortresses in ruins:

All the passers by the way have plundered him,

he hath become a reproach to his neighbours.

Thou hast exalted the right hand of his adversaries,

hast gladdened all his enemies:

Yea thou turnest back the edge of his sword,

and hast not made him stand in the battle.

Thou hast made him lose his lustre,[251]

[251] By emendation: Thou hast taken away the sceptre of majestyBr.

and his throne to the ground hast thou hurled:

Thou hast shortened the days of his youth,

thou hast wrapped him about with shame.

How long Jehovah wilt thou hide thyself utterly?

[how long] shall thy wrath burn like fire?

Remember Sovereign Lord[252] what duration is,

[252] So several critics, by supplying a letter. O remember how short my time isDr. Remember Ihow short my time is!Del. Of what duration I amO.G.

for what unreality hast thou created all the sons of men![253]

[253] Or: Adam.

Who is the man that shall live and not see death,

that shall deliver his soul from the hand of hades?

Where are thy former kindnesses Sovereign Lord,

which thou didst swear to David in thy faithfulness?

Remember Sovereign Lord the reproach of thy servants,[254]

[254] Some cod. (w. Syr.): servant (sing.)Gn.

I have put in my bosom the insult[255] of the peoples:

[255] So it shd. be (w. Aram.). Cp. Eze. 36:15Gn.

Wherewith thine enemies have reproached O Jehovah,

wherewith they have reproached the footsteps[256] of thine Anointed!

[256] Pursue and persecute him, wherever he goes and whatever he doesDel.

Blessed be Jehovah to the ages![257]

[257] Ml.: to concealed duration.

Amen and Amen!

(Nm.)

PARAPHRASE

Psalms 89

Forever and ever I will sing about the tender kindness of the Lord! Young and old shall hear about Your blessings.
2 Your love and kindness are forever; Your truth is as enduring as the heavens.
3, 4 The Lord God says,[258] I have made a solemn agreement with My chosen servant David. I have taken an oath to establish his descendants as kings forever on his throne, from now until eternity!

[258] Implied.

5 All heavens shall praise Your miracles, O Lord; myriads of angels[259] will praise You for Your faithfulness.

[259] Literally, the assembly of the holy ones.

6 For who in all of heaven can be compared with God? What mightiest angel[260] is anything like Him?

[260] Literally, the sons of the mighty.

7 The highest of angelic powers[259] stand in dread and awe of Him. Who is as revered as He by those surrounding Him?

8 O Jehovah, commander of the heavenly armies, where is there any other Mighty One like You? Faithfulness is Your very character.
9 You rule the oceans when their waves arise in fearful storms; You speak, and they lie still.
10 You have cut haughty Egypt[261] to pieces. Your enemies are scattered by Your awesome power.

[261] Literally, Rahab.

11 The heavens are Yours, the world, everythingfor You created them all.
12 You created north and south! Mount Tabor and Mount Hermon rejoice to be signed by Your name as their maker!
13 Strong is Your arm! Strong is Your hand! Your right hand is lifted high in glorious strength.
14, 15 Your throne is founded on two strong pillarsthe one is Justice and the other Righteousness. Mercy and Truth walk before You as Your attendants. Blessed are those who hear the joyful blast of the trumpet, for they shall walk in the light of Your presence.
16 They rejoice all day long in Your wonderful reputation and in Your perfect righteousness.
17 You are their strength! What glory! Our power is based on Your favor!
18 Yes, our protection is from the Lord Himself and He, the Holy One of Israel has given us our king.
19 In a vision You spoke to Your prophet[262] and said, I have chosen a splendid young man from the common people to be the king

[262] Literally, Your saint; apparently a reference to Samuel, who was sent to anoint David as king.

20 He is My servant David! I have anointed him with My holy oil.
21 I will steady him and make him strong.
22 His enemies shall not outwit him, nor shall the wicked overpower him.
23 I will beat down his adversaries before him, and destroy those who hate him.
24 I will protect and bless him constantly and surround him with my love; he will be great because of Me.
25 He will hold sway from the Euphrates River to the Mediterranean Sea.
26 And he will cry to Me, You are my Father, my God, and my Rock of Salvation.
27 I will treat him as My firstborn son, and make him the mightiest king in all the earth.
28 I will love him forever, and be kind to him always; My covenant with him will never end.
29 He will always have an heir; his throne will be as endless as the days of heaven.
30, 31, 32 If his children forsake My laws and dont obey them, then I will punish them.
33 But I will never completely take away My lovingkindness from them, nor let My promise fail.
34 No, I will not break My covenant; I will not take back one word of what I said.
35, 36 For I have sworn to David, (and a holy God can never lie), that his dynasty will go on forever, and his throne will continue to the end of time.[263]

[263] Literally, his throne as the sun before me.

37 It shall be eternal as the moon, My faithful witness in the sky!

38 Then why cast me off, rejected? Why be so angry with the one You chose as king?
39 Have You renounced Your covenant with him? For You have thrown his crown in the dust.
40 You have broken down the walls protecting him and laid to ruins every fort defending him.
41 Everyone who comes along has robbed him while his neighbors mock.
42 You have strengthened his enemies against him and made them rejoice.
43 You have struck down his sword and refused to help him in battle.
44 You have ended his splendor and overturned his throne.
45 You have made him old before his time and publicly disgraced him.

46 O Jehovah, how long will this go on? Will You hide Yourself from me forever? How long will Your wrath burn like fire?
47 Oh, remember how short You have made mans lifespan. Is it an empty, futile life You give the sons of men?
48 No man can live forever. All will die. Who can rescue his life from the power of the grave?
49 Lord, where is the love You used to have for me? Where is Your kindness that You promised to David with a faithful pledge?
50 Lord, see how all the people are despising me.
51 Your enemies joke about me, the one You anointed as their king.
52 And yetblessed be the Lord forever! Amen and Amen!

EXPOSITION

It is not difficult for the patient and thorough reader to grasp the scope of this psalm; but very easy for anyone perusing it in haste to miss its great argument, owing to the length of the psalm, and to the extraordinary development given to the Covenant made with Davida development so enthusiastic and long sustained as scarcely to suggest that a companion picture is to follow towards the close of the psalm, one of deep gloom, to which all the previous dazzling brightness is intended to serve as a mere foil. At the lowest estimate, this long delay to reveal the true object of the poem, springs from the consummate art of the poet: at the higher estimate of Divine intention, it suggests that there is more of the Plan of Redemption wrapped up in the Davidic Covenant than Gentile Christians are apt to suppose. Be that as it may, under patient observation this psalm discloses not only its high poetic merit, but the power of its pleading viewed as an Intercession, in behalf of the now Dishonored Heir of Davids Throne.

After striking the Keynotes of the psalmJehovahs Kindness and Faithfulness (Psa. 89:1-2)around which all the psalmists pleadings revolve, and to the express mention of which a return is made as far on as Psa. 89:49; and after, in Psa. 89:3-4, briefly summing up the Davidic covenant as made known through Nathan the prophet (2 Samuel 7),the psalmist then (Psa. 89:5-14) eloquently enlarges on the incomparable excellences of the Covenant God, as known in heaven and on earth, as shewn in Israels history and displayed in Palestine, bringing this description to a climax by presenting as a bright constellation the four fundamental Divine attributes of righteousness, justice, kindness and faithfulness. He then (Psa. 89:15-18) by a natural transition passes to the enviable happiness of a people having such a God as their God; inferring their joy in worship, the strength of their national movements, and their sense of security under their king, who is to them Jehovahs shield. From this second climax, the poet moves forward into an elaborate amplification of the Davidic Covenant (Psa. 89:19-37), taking especial care to emphasise its perpetual and unalterable character, by detailing the Divine provision made for punishing unworthy heirs to the Davidic Throne without abrogating the Covenant which secures it to Davids seed in perpetuity. From the past and the normal, the psalmist now (Psa. 89:38-45) passes to the abnormal and perplexing present. It is true he does not charge God with folly, nor at any point assert that Jehovah was shewing himself unfaithful to his covenant; but he goes as far in this direction as reverence permitted leaving no feature of the pitiable condition of Davids present son unnamed. Indeed the picture given of the existing heir is very pathetic: especially if, with many, we think of him as being the young king Jehoiakim, who, after reigning only three months in Jerusalem, was carried away to Babylon. And if, in addition to his youth, he was apparently virtuous and promising, and had already drawn forth the affections of his people, the pathos of this description becomes unspeakably touching.

It is natural enough that such a description of present calamity should issue in expostulation and entreaty that such an anomalous state of things should be ended; but we are scarcely prepared to find the shortness and vanity of life and the inevitableness of death brought into the pleading. In truth, there seems something flickering and uncertain in many O.T. references to this subject, as we realised when studying Psalms 39, 49, and others; and we can never be thankful enough for the clearer light which we now enjoy. We have forgotten, or have never realised, what it is to be shut up, as these ancient saints seem to have been, to the apprehension that now or never must the great promises of God be fulfilled.

A final word as to the extraordinary importance which this psalm attaches to the Covenant made with David. How best can we bring ourselves into sympathy with the undeniable fact, that such importance is attached to it? Is it enough to say that Jesus of Nazareth, whom we recognize as Son and Heir of David, has redeemed these lapsed promises? Or must we not go a step further, and discover in the Davidic Covenant provisions which, though now in abeyance, are awaiting a plenary fulfilment in the very region to which they appear to belong;in a kingdom not of this world but nevertheless in it and for it, in which the Messiah shall in undeniable fact be Most High to the kings of the earth?

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

What is the predominate purpose of this psalm?

What is meant by Rotherhams statement: . . . there is more of the Plan of Redemption wrapped up in the Davidic Covenant than Gentile Christians are apt to suppose. Discuss.

We have a great deal in this psalm of the following attributes of God: (1) Kindness; (2) Faithfulness; (3) Righteousness; (4) Justice;To what purpose?

Gods agreement with David is here plainly said to be eternalwhat shall we say to its present fulfillment?

The psalmist goes as near to charging God with folly as he can gowhy? Was it true?

To whom does this psalm specifically apply?

The brevity of life and the certainty of death are here used, The psalmist would make good present-day humanists. Discuss.

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(1) I will sing.This lyric purpose soon loses itself in a dirge.

For ever.The Hebrew (lam) has properly neither the abstract idea of negation of time, nor the concrete (Christian) idea of eternity, but implies indefiniteness, and looks either backwards or forwards.

With my mouthi.e., aloud, or loudly.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

1. Mercies faithfulness The two pillars of the psalmist’s hope. On these the covenant with David (Psa 89:3) rested, and in them it originated. These shall be the theme of his song for ever. Though now the covenant seems forgotten, faith steadily looks to the promise.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Psalms 89

Psa 89:1 (Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.) I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.

Psa 89:1 “Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite” – Word Study on “Maschil” Gesenius says the Hebrew word “Maschil” ( ) (H4905) is a participle meaning, “a didactic poem.” Strong it means, “instructive,” thus “a didactic poem,” being derived from ( ) (H7919), which literally means, “to be circumspect, and hence intelligent.” The Enhanced Strong says it is found 13 times in the Old Testament being translated in the KJV all 13 times as “Maschil.” It is used as a title for thirteen of the 150 psalms (Psalms 32; Psalms 42, 44, 45, 52 through 55; 74; 78; 88; 89; 142).

Most modern translations do as the KJV and transliterate this Hebrew word as “maschil,” thus avoiding the possibility of a mistranslation. The LXX reads “for instruction.” YLT reads “An Instruction.” Although some of these psalms are didactic in nature, scholars do not feel that all fit this category. The ISBE says, “Briggs suggests ‘a meditation,’ Thirtle and others ‘a psalm of instruction,’ Kirkpatrick ‘a cunning psalm.’” [97]

[97] John Richard Sampey, “Psalms,” in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, ed. James Orr (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., c1915, 1939), in The Sword Project, v. 1.5.11 [CD-ROM] (Temple, AZ: CrossWire Bible Society, 1990-2008).

Scripture Reference – Note:

1Ki 4:31, “For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman , and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about.”

Psa 89:17 For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.

Psa 89:17 Comments – Psa 89:17 seems to show that the word “horn” is synonymous with the word “strength.” The word “horn” may carry the idea of authority or a position of power (Zec 1:21, Luk 1:69, Rev 17:12).

Zec 1:21, “Then said I, What come these to do? And he spake, saying, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head: but these are come to fray them, to cast out the horns of the Gentiles, which lifted up their horn over the land of Judah to scatter it .”

Luk 1:69, “And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;”

Rev 17:12, “And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings , which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.”

Psa 89:20 I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him:

Psa 89:20 Scripture References – Note:

Act 13:22-23, “And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse , a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. Of this man’s seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus:”

Psa 89:52 Blessed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and Amen.

Psa 89:52 Comments – Psa 89:52 serves as the doxology that closes Book Three.

BOOK FOUR

Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures

Of the Messiah and His Kingdom.
Maschil, a didactic poem, of Ethan, the Ezrahite, a descendant of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, 1Ch 2:6; 1Ki 4:31. He belonged to a great family, or guild, of singers, some of whom, at least, seem to have been trained in the schools of prophets. The psalm clearly substantiates the Messianic character of 2Sa 7:12-29.
The Promise Made to David
v. 1. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever, the poet immediately launching forth into his subject, the theme of his song, the merciful kindnesses of Jehovah; with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations, since it is this attribute, this manifestation of the divine essence, which causes Him to abide by the promises once made to those who believe in Him. The theme is now set forth somewhat more at length.
v. 2. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up forever, firmly founded and erected in a structure which would never be overthrown; Thy faithfulness shalt Thou establish in the very heavens, never to be moved, these two manifestations of the Lord, merciful kindness and faithfulness, grace and truth, being the foundation upon which our salvation rests secure, Joh 1:14. The psalmist now quotes the words of the Lord from 2 Samuel 1, or Jehovah Himself answers in an antiphonal strophe.
v. 3. I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn unto David, My servant, the Lord Himself assuring Him with a solemn oath,
v. 4. Thy Seed will I establish forever, namely, in his dynasty, in the rulers out of his line, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah. If this had been spoken of an earthly, temporal rule only, then this prophecy would have fallen to the ground, for in no kingdom of this world is there at the present time any ruler of the house of David. But Christ, who is truly a King, although His kingdom is not of this world, is the Seed of David whose rule will last throughout eternity. It is with reference to this promise that the praise of the psalmist sounds forth again.
v. 5. And the heavens shall praise Thy wonders, O Lord, the miracles of love which he performed for the salvation of mankind; Thy faithfulness also, by which He would fulfill, and has fulfilled, His promises, in the congregation of the saints, all the angels rejoicing over the fact that God, in His infinite mercy and kindness, had found a way of delivering fallen mankind from the curse of damnation. Compare the song of the angels, Luk 2:14.
v. 6. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord, in the immeasurable greatness of this miracle of His grace in providing a Savior for mankind? Who among the sons of the mighty, the greatest of His creatures, the mightiest rulers of the earth, can be likened unto the Lord? They cannot stand as His equals, there cannot even be a remote comparison.
v. 7. God is greatly to be feared, very awesome, in the assembly of the saints, in the midst of His congregation, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him, the very angels trembling with awe in His presence. All believers regard Him, not with the fear of slaves, but with the trusting reverence due Him for the continual revelation of His greatness.
v. 8. O Lord God of hosts, the mighty Ruler of the armies of heaven, who is a strong Lord like unto Thee, He alone possessing and wielding omnipotent power, or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee? For it is by virtue of this manifestation of His essence that the believers rely upon His Word with absolute confidence; it surrounds Him on all sides, it is like the rays of the sun shedding their brilliance in all directions. The majesty of God’s omnipotence is now described.
v. 9. Thou rulest the raging of the sea, when it tries to rise against His laws in insolent defiance; when the waves thereof arise, Thou stillest them, causing them to sink back in powerless rage. Before this almighty power, moreover, the proud arrogance of men is equally helpless.
v. 10. Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, crushed and wounded mighty Egypt at the time of Israel’s deliverance from its slavery, as one that is slain; Thou hast scattered Thine enemies with Thy strong arm. All the enemies of the Lord and of His Church are mortally wounded and overthrown by the strength of His almighty arm.
v. 11. The heavens are Thine, under His absolute power and control, the earth also is Thine; as for the world and the fullness thereof, all the creatures which it contains, Thou hast founded them, establishing and maintaining them by the Word of His power.
v. 12. The north and the south, the entire expanse of the earth, Thou hast created them; Tabor, on the west side of Jordan, between the Sea of Galilee and the plain of Jezreel, and Hermon, in the extreme northeastern part of Palestine, shall rejoice in Thy name, even the inanimate creation showing its dependence upon Him by shouting for joy in His honor.
v. 13. Thou hast a mighty arm, the singer here summarizing his description of God’s majestic power; strong is Thy hand, and high is Thy right hand, the emblem of His irresistible power is exalted. The poet now turns to the manifestation of God’s attributes as they chiefly appear in the work of redemption and in the relation of God to His children on earth.
v. 14. Justice, that is, righteousness, and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne, the attributes upon which His kingdom is established; mercy and truth shall go before Thy face. The work of the redemption of the world is a revelation of God’s righteousness and judgment. Because He cannot ignore and condone the sin of mankind, He caused the Messiah to take the burden of all men’s iniquity upon Himself, and not only to bear it, but to take it away by a full vicarious expiation. Thus was His righteousness, the foundation of His throne, established. But at the same time the Lord keeps before His face, and manifests continually, His merciful kindness, in giving His only-begotten Son for the salvation of the world, and His faithfulness or truth, in fulfilling the promises made to the patriarchs and all the believers of the Old Testament.
v. 15. Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound, all men who receive the Gospel-news of their salvation with a joyful sound of acceptance are truly blessed; they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance, as His grace shines forth upon them and warms them with the blessed assurance of their redemption in the Messiah.
v. 16. In Thy name shall they rejoice all the day, they have no righteousness and merit of their own to boast of, but they glory in the manifestation of God’s love and mercy, and in Thy righteousness shall they be exalted, that is, by virtue of the righteousness imputed to them by Jehovah, by means of faith kindled in their hearts.
v. 17. For Thou art the glory of their strength, that alone being the basis of their boasting before men, 2Co 12:9-10; and in Thy favor, by the good pleasure of Jehovah shown them in the Messiah, our horn shall be exalted, they would receive the strength needed for the battle of life, against the forces of Satan and his allies.
v. 18. For the Lord is our Defense, and the Holy One of Israel is our King. The confidence of the believers in the ultimate victory of their cause is so great because the Lord is on their side, both as their Shield in warding off the attacks of the enemies and as their peerless, undefiled Leader going on before them to victory.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

EXPOSITION
At first sight, a psalm of praise; but, in reality, one of expostulation and complaint. The praises of God are sung in the opening section (Psa 89:1-37); they culminated in the Davidical covenant. But this covenant has been “made void,” annulled. The existing state of things is directly contrary to all its promises (Psa 89:38-45). How long is this to continue? Does not God’s faithfulness require the deliverance of Israel and of the Davidical house from their calamities, and their speedy restoration to his favour (Psa 89:46-51)?
Psa 89:52 is no part of the psalm, but the doxology which concludes the Book.
Psa 89:1-4
are introductory to the first section (Psa 89:1-37). They strike the keynote, which is, first, praise of God’s faithfulness generally (Psa 89:1, Psa 89:2), and secondly, praise of him in respect of the Davidical covenant (Psa 89:3, Psa 89:4).
Psa 89:1
I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever. “Forever” is the emphatic phrase. The psalmist will commemorate God’s mercies, not only when they are continuing, but always. With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations; literally, to generation and generation.
Psa 89:2
For I have said, Mercy shall be built up forever. A time shall come when, out of whatever ruins, mercy shall be “built up”raised from the ground like a solid edifice, and, when once raised up, shall stand firm forever. Thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. At the same time, God’s faithfulness to his promises will be established “in the very heavens,” i.e. conspicuously (see Psa 89:37).
Psa 89:3
I have made a covenant with my chosen. There is an ellipse of “for thou hast said,” which Professor Cheyne supplies. God’s promise to David is the entire foundation of the psalmist’s hope and confidence. He therefore places it briefly in the very forefrontafterwards expanding it into the beautiful passage, which forms more than one-third of the entire composition (Psa 89:19-37). I have sworn unto David my servant.
Psa 89:4
Thy seed will I establish forever (see 2Sa 7:12, 2Sa 7:13; Psa 130:1-8 :12). And build up thy throne to all generations. The promises to David were not fulfilled in the letter. After Zerubbabel, no prince of the Davidic house sat on the throne of David, or had temporal sway over Israel. The descendants of David sank into obscurity, and so remained for five centuries. Still, however, God’s faithfulness was sure. In Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, the true King of the everlasting kingdom was raised upevery pledge made to David was fulfilled. “Messiah the Prince,” eternal King of an eternal kingdom, appeared as the true “Seed’ intended, and began his spiritual reign over the spiritual Israel, which still continues, and will continue forever.
Psa 89:5-37
The psalmist carries out the intention proclaimed in Psa 89:1, and proceeds to “sing of the mercies of the Lord” at great length. His song of praise divides into two portions. From Psa 89:5 to Psa 89:18 it is a general laudation of the Almighty for his greatness in heaven (Psa 89:5-7), in nature (Psa 89:9, Psa 89:11, Psa 89:12), and in the course of his rule on earth (Psa 89:10, Psa 89:13-18), after which it passes into a laudation of him in respect of what he had done, and what he had promised, to David (Psa 89:19-37).
Psa 89:5
And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord. “The heavens” here are not the material heavens, as in Psa 19:1-14. l, but the company of the dwellers in heaven. God’s praise fittingly begins with them. Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. The “congregation of the saints” is the company of angels (comp. Job 5:1; Job 15:15). Not on earth only (Psa 19:1, Psa 19:2), but in heaven also God’s “faithfulness” is the theme of song.
Psa 89:6
For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord? God’s angels praise him, and only him; since there is none in heaven or earth to be compared to him. Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord? “The sons of the mighty” are the angels (comp. Psa 29:1).
Psa 89:7
God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints; rather, in the council of the holy ones (see the Revised Version). And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him; or, above all them, etc.
Psa 89:8
O Lord God of hosts; i.e. God of the angelic hosts just spoken of. Who is a strong Lord like unto thee? rather, Who is strong like unto thee, O Jah? (comp. Exo 15:11). Or to thy faithfulness round about thee! rather, as in the Revised Version, and thy faithfulness is round about thee. It has been said that “the two words ‘mercies’ and ‘faithfulness’ are the refrain of the psalm.” The latter occurs six times (Psa 89:1, Psa 89:2, Psa 89:5, Psa 89:8, Psa 89:24, Psa 89:33), and “faithful” in Psa 89:37.
Psa 89:9
Thou rulest the raging of the sea. There is no reason why this should not be understood literally. God’s power over the sea is constantly put forward by the sacred writers as very specially indicative of his might and greatness (comp. Job 38:8-11; Psa 107:29; Pro 8:29; Jer 5:22, etc.). When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them (comp. Psa 65:7; Psa 107:23-30; Mat 8:26, Mat 8:27).
Psa 89:10
Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces; or, “thou didst break” once upon a time, i.e. at the Exodus. (For the designation of Egypt under the term “Rahab,” i.e. “arrogant,” see Job 9:13; Job 26:12; Psa 87:4; Isa 51:9.) As one that is slain; i.e. completely, utterly. Thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm (see Exo 14:27-31; Exo 15:6).
Psa 89:11
The heavens are thine (comp. Psa 8:3; Psa 33:6; Psa 115:16). The earth also is thine (see Psa 24:1). As for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them (see Psa 50:12).
Psa 89:12
The north and the south then hast created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy Name. As in Psa 89:11 “heaven and earth” stand for all creation, the whole of the material universe, so here the four points of the compass designate the same. Tabor and Herman undoubtedly represent the west and the east. They present themselves to the poet’s mind as standing over against each other, one on this side, and the other on that side, of Jordan.
Psa 89:13
Thou hast a mighty arm; literally, an arm with might. Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. These anthropomorphisms will disturb no one; they pervade the whole of Scripture.
Psa 89:14
Justice and judgment; or, righteousness and justice (Cheyne). The psalmist here rises to a higher levelfrom that of might to that of right. God is not merely strong to do whatever he wills; but all that he wills is consonant with right and justice. Are the habitation of thy throne; rather, the basis, or “foundation.” (So Kay, Cheyne, and the Revised Version.) Mercy and truth shall go before thy face; i.e. shall stand ever in front of thee; be thy inseparable companions. Whatever thou doest shall be done “in truth and equity.”
Psa 89:15
Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound. The sound of devotional joy appears to be intendedthe sound which went up from the sanctuary in the great festival times (see Num 10:1, Num 10:9; Le Num 25:9; Psa 27:6; Psa 81:1, etc.). They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance. Herein consists especially their blessedness (comp. Psa 4:6).
Psa 89:16
In thy Name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. The “Name” and the “righteousness” of God form the glory of the Church, and are a perpetual source of rejoicing to her.
Psa 89:17
For thou art the Glory of their strength; or, “the Ornament“that in which their strength and might as a people culminate. And in thy favour our horn shall be exalted. Thy favour towards us exalts us among the nations.
Psa 89:18
For the Lord is our Defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our King; literally, for to Jehovah belongs our shield, and to the Holy One of Israel belongs our king. The meaning seems to be that he who is Israel’s king and shieldi.e; the Davidical monarch at the timebeing under the constant protection of the Almighty, all must necessarily go well with the people at last.
Psa 89:19
Then thou spakest; rather, once, or “once upon a time,” as Professor Cheyne suggests. The allusion is to the occurrence related in 2Sa 7:4-17. In vision (see 2Sa 7:7). To thy holy one; i.e. to Nathan the prophet. And saidst. The psalmist reports the words of the vision very freely, interweaving with them thoughts drawn from various psalms; expanding them, and sometimes heightening the colours. I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people. David was “mighty” from his youthown before he slew Goliath, as appears from his slaughter of the lion and the bear (1Sa 17:34-36).
Psa 89:20
I have found David my servant. With my holy oil have I anointed him (see 1Sa 16:13)
Psa 89:21
With whom my hand shall be established; i.e. “to whom I will give continual support” (see 1Sa 18:12, 1Sa 18:14; 2Sa 5:1-25.]0; 2Sa 7:9). Mine arm also shall strengthen him (comp. Psa 89:13).
Psa 89:22
The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him (see 2Sa 7:10, which has supplied the very words of the second clause).
Psa 89:23
And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him.
Psa 89:24
But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him (comp. Psa 61:7). And in my Name shall his horn be exalted (see 2Sa 7:9).
Psa 89:25
I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers (comp. Psa 72:8). “The sea” is probably the Mediterranean, and “the rivers” the Euphrates, with its canals and affluents (see 1Ki 4:21, 1Ki 4:24; Psa 137:1). The promise of an extended dominion is implied in 2Sa 7:9.
Psa 89:26
He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father. My God, and the Rock of my salvation (see 2Sa 22:2, 2Sa 22:3, 2Sa 22:47).
Psa 89:27
Also I will make him my firstborn. There is but one true “Firstborn””the Only Begotten of the Father.” All other so called “firstborns”as Israel (Exo 4:22), Ephraim (Jer 31:9), Davidare reflections or representatives, in some way or other, of the real and only true “Firstborn.” Higher than the kings of the earth; literally, the most high above the kings of the earth; i.e. standing to the other “kings of the earth” as “the Most High” to his angelic ministers.
Psa 89:28
My mercy will I keep for him for evermore. And my covenant shall stand fast with him (see 2Sa 7:16; 2Sa 23:5).
Psa 89:29
His seed also will I make to endure forever. And his throne as the days of heaven. “Thy throne shall be established forever;” “I will establish his kingdom” (2Sa 7:12, 2Sa 7:16)
Psa 89:30
If his children forsake my Law, and walk not in my judgments. Solomon himself began the falling away (1Ki 11:1-8). He was followed by Rehoboam (2Ch 12:1), Ahaziah (2Ki 8:27), Joash (2Ch 24:17-24), Uzziah (2Ch 26:16-20), Ahaz (2Ki 16:2-18), Manasseh (2Ki 21:2-16), Amon (2Ki 21:20-22), Jehoahaz (2Ki 23:32), Jehoiakim (2Ki 23:37), Jehoiachin (2Ki 24:9), and Zedekiah (2Ki 24:19), all of whom “did evil in the sight of the Lord”forsook his Law, and walked not in has judgments.
Psa 89:31
If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; rather, if they profane my statutes; i.e. make light of them, either in their words or in their lives.
Psa 89:32
Then will I visit their transgressions with the rod. “The rod” was used upon Solomon (1Ki 11:14-40), Rehoboam (1Ki 12:16-20), Ahaziah (2Ki 9:27), Joash (2Ki 12:17-20), and all the wicked descendants of David, as sufficiently appears from the history of the divided kingdom in Kings and Chronicles. God visited their iniquity with stripes time after time, and generation after generation.
Psa 89:33
Nevertheless my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. Compare the original promise (2Sa 7:15); and see also 1Ki 11:12, 1Ki 11:13, 1Ki 11:34-39; 1Ki 15:4, 1Ki 15:5, etc. The seed of David was not allowed to fail, but was continued on, until, in the fulness of time, there was born into the world, of David’s seed and in David’s city, One in whom all the promises made to David could be, and were, accomplished in their utmost fulness.
Psa 89:34
My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips (comp. Psa 89:28, and the comment ad loc.). With God is “no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (Jas 1:17).
Psa 89:35
Ones have I sworn by my holiness; rather, one thing have I sworn. (On God’s oath to David, see Psa 89:3, Psa 89:49, and Psa 132:11.) The present passage shows that it was sworn “by his holiness”i.e. by his absolute moral perfection. That I will not lie unto David; i.e. that I will keep all my promises to him. God, no doubt, always and in every case “keepeth his promise forever” (Psa 146:6); but in his mercy and loving kindness he condescended to give David a special guarantee of his faithfulness in respect of the promises made to him.
Psa 89:36
His seed shall endure forever (comp. Psa 89:29). And his throne as the sun before me; i.e. shall endure as the sun (comp. Psa 72:5 and 2Sa 7:13).
Psa 89:37
It shall be established forever as the moon (comp. Psa 72:7). And as a faithful witness in heaven. Some understand this expression of the moon; but, as Professor Cheyne comments, “Who could witness that such great things were true but Jehovah?” (So too Delitzsch, Kay, and Canon Cook.) If this be regarded as the true meaning, it will be better to translate, “the true witness.” Job’s citation of God as his witness (Job 16:19) is scarcely parallel.
Psa 89:38-45
A sudden and complete change here sets in. Rejoicing is turned into mourning, eulogy into complaint. Notwithstanding all the promises of God, notwithstanding his inherent and essential “faithfulness,” the Davidical king and his kingdom are at the last gasp. Seemingly, every promise made has been broken, every hope held out of good turned into an actuality of evil. God is wroth with his anointed, has made void the covenant with him, profaned his crown and cast it to the ground, turned the edge of his sword, and made him not to stand in the battle; he has laid his land open to the enemy, broken down its defenses, brought its strongholds to ruin, given it as a spoil to all who pass by; he has set up the right hand of Israel’s adversaries, caused them to rejoice and triumph in Israel’s disgrace and suffering; he has covered the king with shame, and cut short the days of his youth. How is this? And what is to be the end of it?
Psa 89:38
But thou hast cast off and abhorred, thou hast been wroth with thine anointed. The first “thou” is emphatic, THOU, “the faithful Witness;” THOU, who hast made all these promises, art the very One who has falsified them allwho hast “been wroth with thine anointed,” abhorred (or rejected) him, and cast him off:
Psa 89:39
Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant; or, “abhorred” (Cheyne, Revised Version). The verb is a very unusual one, occurring only here and in Lam 2:7. Thou hast profaned his crown by casting it to the ground (comp. Psa 74:7). The theocratic crown was so holy a thing, that any degradation of it might be regarded as a “profanation.”
Psa 89:40
Thou hast broken down all his hedges; i.e. “all his defences”the strongholds, that guarded the frontiers of the land, were brought to ruin.
Psa 89:41
All that pass by the way spoil him. This feature of the situation recalls 2Ki 24:2, but might, no doubt, suit also other times of distress. He is a reproach to his neighbours; or, “he is become a reproach” (comp. Neh 1:3; Neh 2:17; Psa 44:13; Psa 79:4, etc.).
Psa 89:42
Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries; i.e.” thou hast increased their power and strength, exalted them, and depressed him.” Thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice (comp. Psa 35:15, “In mine adversity they rejoiced;” and see also Mic 7:8; Oba 1:10-12). Every depression of Israel caused the neighbouring nations, who alike feared them and detested them, to rejoice.
Psa 89:43
Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword; literally, the rock of his sword. It is not quite clear whether a “blunting of the sword,” or a “turning to flight of those who drew the sword,” is intended. In either ease the phrase implies military disaster. And hast not made him to stand in the battle; i.e. ‘” hast caused him to give way before his enemies.” The words imply defeat in the open field.
Psa 89:44
Thou hast made his glory to cease; literally, thou hast put an end to his brightness; but the meaning is that given in the text. And cast his throne down to the ground (comp. Psa 89:39).
Psa 89:45
The days of his youth hast thou shortened. This does not seem to mean an actual cutting short by death (since the Davidical king has been spoken of as alive in Psa 89:38, Psa 89:41, Psa 89:43), but rather a cutting short of youthful energy and vigour, a premature senescence, such as may well have fallen upon Jehoiachin or Zedekiah. Thou hast covered him with shame; or, “heaped shame upon him””covered him up with shame.” The phrase would suit Jehoiachin, who was kept in prison by Nebuchadnezzar, and in “prison garments” (2Ki 25:29), for the space of thirty-five years.
Psa 89:46-51
The psalm ends with an appeal to God”How long” is the present state of things to continue? How long is God’s wrath to endure? Will he not remember how weak and futile, how short-lived and fleeting, the whole race of man is? Well he not bethink him of his old loving kindnesses to David, and of the promises made to him, and confirmed by oath? Will he not therefore remove their reproach from Israel, and especially from his anointed, on whom the disgrace chiefly falls? To these questions there can be but one answer. God will assuredly make his faithfulness known (see Psa 89:1).
Psa 89:46
How long, Lord? wilt thou hide thyself forever; (comp. Psa 13:1; Psa 74:10; Psa 79:5). Shall thy wrath burn like fire? i.e. furiously, without cessation, till all be consumed.
Psa 89:47
Remember how short my time is. Consider how short-lived is the whole race of men. Come, therefore, to our deliverance quickly. Wherefore hast thou made all men in vain? literally, for what vanity thou hast made all the sons of men. Another point suggested for God’s consideration, as fitted to call forth his compassion.
Psa 89:48
What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death? Shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? An expansion of the first clause of Psa 89:47. Man’s littleness, feebleness, and fleetingness should draw forth the pity and loving kindness of God.
Psa 89:49
Lord, where are thy former loving kindnesses? or, “thy ancient mercies,” those “sure mercies of David,” whereof Isaiah spoke (ch. Iv. 3). Which thou swarest unto David in thy truth.
Psa 89:50
Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants; i.e. the reproach under which all thy people lie so long as their enemies are allowed to plunder and oppress them at their pleasure (see Psa 89:40-44). Remember also how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people. The reproach under which his countrymen liea reproach laid on them by “all the mighty people among whom they dwellfalls on the psalmist’s heart with especial weight through his deep sympathy with all of them.
Psa 89:51
Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O Lord; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed. The reproach which rests upon the people rests no less upon their kingupon his “footsteps,” his movements, all that he does, “every step he takes” (Bishop Perowne). This is an additional affliction to the psalmist, and emphasizes his last cry to God for mercy.
Psa 89:52
Blessed be the Lord forevermore. Amen, and Amen. This detached verse, not necessarily from the same hand as the rest of the psalm, winds up, with the usual refrain, the Third Book.
HOMILETICS
Psa 89:7
The fear of God.
“God is greatly to be feared,” etc. True religion contains three indispensable elementsright beliefs concerning God; right feelings; right conduct. If either be deficient, our religion will be proportionately injured or worthless. Religion without faith is impossible. Religion without morality is a mockery. Religion without feeling is lifeless and powerless. Preaching commonly deals more with faith and duty than with feelingi.e; affection, desire, emotionfor two reasons:
(1) Faith and duty supply the motives to feeling; faith works by love.
(2) If we concentrate too much attention on our feelings, and cultivate them for their own sake, they grow morbid or exaggerated.
Yet this vast region of Christian experience is far too important to be left unexplored, uncultivated. The affection referred to here is often spoken of in Scripture as synonymous with true religionthe fear of God. Consider
(1) its nature;
(2) its motives.
I. ITS NATURE.
1. It is not terror; the fear which “hath torment,” which “perfect love casteth out” (1Jn 4:18). Terror would drive us from God; the fear the Bible teaches begets trust, and draws us near to him (Psa 115:11; Psa 22:23; Psa 25:14, etc.). Ungodly men, in the presence of sudden danger or impending death, often pass in a moment from impious carelessness or defiant blasphemy to abject terror; but there is no more religion in the latter than in the former.
2. It is not a passing feeling, but a permanent habit of mind. It is central and fundamental; for without it love, trust, gratitude, hope, obedience, would lack their truly religious character. Yet we cannot sum it up in any single, simple phrase. It is the temper which prompts and inspires worship (Psa 95:6). It is awe of God’s greatness, reverence of his majesty. It is reverence for his authority, prompting obedience to his Law, submission to his will. It is sensitiveness to his praise and blame, making the thought of displeasing him intolerable. There is in it ever some mingling of that sort of terror with which we contemplate tremendous power or awful danger, though in safety; the precipice over which we nearly fell; the avalanche that swept by without touching us; the storm in which our frail boat would have been wrecked had we not come ashore in time (Luk 12:5).
II. ITS MOTIVES.
1. The revelation of God’s omnipotence, omnipresence, infinite wisdom, eternal being in the vastness, order, variety, unity, of the universe (Psa 8:3, Psa 8:4).
2. Our personal relation as creatures to our Creator (Act 17:28). By “saints” (“holy ones”)angels may here be meant; they share with us this awful, incomprehensible, ineffably intimate relation to God.
3. God’s holiness, in itself and in contrast with our selfishness (comp. Exo 3:5).
4. God’s goodness and mercy (see Hos 3:5, where Revised Version is a paraphrase, Authorized Version more literal; Jer 33:9). Our Saviour’s presence, gracious as it was, inspired intense awe (Luk 5:8).
In former times, harsh and terrible views of God were often preached, out of all harmony with not only New Testament, but Old Testament teaching (1Jn 4:8; Exo 34:6). At present an exaggerated reaction tends to thrust out of view the awe-inspiring teaching of both Law and gospel as to the evil of sin and its penalties, and to lose sight, in curious speculation about the nature and duration of future punishment, of the two most important factsits certainty, and its righteous severity (Rom 1:18; Rom 2:4 12).
HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY
Psa 89:1, Psa 89:2, Psa 89:5, Psa 89:8, etc.
God’s faithfulness.
This is the keynote of the psalm, the beautiful strain which is heard over and over again in varied forms throughout. There are pieces of music in which some one sweet air recurs repeatedly, now as if amid the rush and roar of a tempest, anon, when the music has sunk down into quietness; you hear it now loud, now soft, now stirring in sonorous strains, now soothing in plaintive gentle tones; but it is the same air still. And the blessed thought of the faithfulness of God thus recurs throughout this psalm. In Psa 89:1 praise celebrates it. “With my mouth will I make known,” etc. Does it not deserve this? Who is there can deny the faithfulness of God? He is ever true to his word. Let us, then, openly confess it, and in the very confession the conviction of it in our own souls shall be deepened. In Psa 89:2 faith stays itself upon it. The verse seems to be a sort of soliloquy. The speaker is encouraging his own trust by asserting his belief that mercy shall be built up forever; it shall not crumble away and come to nought, but, like some glorious fabric that may take a long time for its completion, it shall, nevertheless, be built up, and so built that it shall eternally abide. And as to God’s faithfulness, it shall be as are the heavens themselvesthe very type of all that is abiding, unchangeable, and the reverse of “the restless vicissitudes, the ever-shifting shores, of earth.” So did the soul of the psalmist speak to itself of God’s faithfulness, and thereby encourage itself to trust in him. Well will it be for us to talk to ourselves in a similar way. In Psa 89:5 the angels of God praise it. “Thy faithfulness also is praised in the assembly of the holy ones” (Perowne). That is, in the midst of the angels of heaven, in that Church of the Firstborn, God’s faithfulness is the theme of their song. Compare the songs of the redeemed as given in the Apocalypse. Let us get ready to join in that blessed choir by our now beginning a like song. In Psa 89:8 no human faithfulness can be compared with it. “What faithfulness is like unto thy faithfulness?”so a great scholar renders the last half of Psa 89:8. And may we not all of us ask the like question? Not but what human faithfulness is a blessed fact; there have been those who have been faithful unto death to God and to their fellow men. Paul, when ready to be offered up, could declare, “I have kept the faith.” And there have been many such. But what is the fidelity even of the best of men, much more of the mass of men, as compared to that of God. Hence are we bidden, Put not your trust in princes, nor in the son of man, in whom there is no help.” Would that we trusted God as we do men! In Psa 89:24 it is promised to his people. “My faithfulness shall be with him.” What a rebuke is this to our wretched yet ever recurring misgivings and fears! It is one of the gifts of God that are “without repentance” (cf. Rom 3:3). In Psa 89:33 the sins of God’s people do but change its form, not its substance. God was equally faithful in the sore distresses which he sent to Israel, as in the great benefits and blessings which, when they were obedient, he bestowed upon them. He will have all men to be saved (1Ti 2:4). Therefore, if gentle means will not serve, stern ones shall. In Psa 89:38-51 believing prayer pleads it as an all-prevailing plea.S.C.
Psa 89:2
Mercy built up forever.
The psalmist seems to have before his mind the picture of some glorious palace, whose foundation, laid broad and deep and strong, was now uprising in majesty and beauty before him. He seems to see it rising tier on tier, and course on course, and as he beholds it being gradually and gloriously up built, his adoration and Praise burst forth, and he exclaims, “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever.” What did he mean? Probably the remembrance of God’s mercy to Israel was present to his thoughthow that had been “built up;” more and more added; new favours, new enlargements, new communications of the Divine bounty continually given, until Israel had risen to the height of her national glory;so had God’s mercy gone on, building up their state and filling them with good. In their own history the text had been shown to be true. But it has other illustrations. Take
I. THE SALVATION OF THE HUMAN RACE. It is the supreme instance of mercy being built up forever.
1. It began in the nature of God. For God is love, and love longs for objects on which to lavish itself. Hence came creation, and then redemption in all its successive stages of mercy.
2. The first promise after man had fallen.
3. The preservation of a righteous seed in such as Seth, Enoch, and those who, called on the Name of the Lord.”
4. The call of Abraham, the father of the faithful, in whose seed all the families of the earth should be blessed.
5. The multiplication and redemption of his seed.
6. The giving of the Law. This was to be for the nations as “a child leader to lead us to Christ.” And in spite of all corruptions, this knowledge of God was preserved, and by the providence of God spread abroad widely.
7. Then the coming of Christ, of whom all the Law and the prophets did testify.
8. The baptism of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and the creation of the Christian Church. Thus step by step the glorious fabric of redeemed humanity has been thus far built up; and the building is still going on, and will go on
“Till the whole ransomed Church of God
Be saved, to sin no more.”
II. THE PERFECTING OF THE INDIVIDUAL SOUL. Trace the history of any one of those whom God has redeemed, and in that individual’s experience of the ways of God there will be found further illustration of how “mercy is built up forever.”
1. In the circumstances, whatever they were, which led the soul to realize its deep need. The Holy Spirit uses all manner of means to bring this about.
2. In the surrender of the will to Christ. Faith, believing, coming to Christ, are all, with other such expressions, only different forms of stating that the soul has given up its will to God.
3. Then the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. From this results that sanctification which is the “being changed into Christ’s image, from glory to glory,”
4. The disciplines of God’s providence. All these are parts of the building process, unsightly, unlovely, repellant, having no form nor comeliness in them, and yet in and through them mercy is being built up, the work of God in the soul is advanced.
5. The means of graceprayers, sacraments, Scriptures, work for God, to which he calls usall are for our perfecting.
III. THE RECOMPENSES OF MERCY. “Blessed are the merciful,” said our Lord, and it is so. Take as an historic illustration the founding of Pennsylvania, and the way in which the Quakers dealt with the Indians. Other methods are but demonstrations of the truth that they that take the sword perish by the sword. And it is so with individuals. God loves mercy, and recompenses it; he will build it up forever.
CONCLUSION.
1. Render praise to the Lord. For mercy is ever needed by us all.
2. Hope continually. For mercy is to be built up forever: it wearies not; it will, it must, have its way at length. Hope, then, for the myriads yet unsaved; God knows how to build them in. And never despair of yourselves.
3. Get employed in this blessed building work. There is room for us all.
4. Weary not in showing mercy. It is to go on forever. If we meet with rude rebuff, still go on with the sacred toil. God’s mercy is built up forever: be ours likewise!S.C.
Psa 89:15, Psa 89:16
The joyful sound.
We do not know the circumstances which occasioned this psalm, but we may fitly apply the words of our text to the revelation of God in Christ. Now
I. THE GOSPEL IS A JOYFUL SOUND. For:
1. It tells of forgiveness. This is the need of all, the indispensable need, and is met only in Christ. Therefore the gospel, which tells of Christ, and his atonement, and the full free forgiveness granted in him to every penitent, believing soul, is a joyful sound.
2. Of a new nature. Forgiveness apart from this would be of little avail. but Christ is “made unto us sanctification” (see Eze 36:25-31).
3. Of peace of soulthat inward calm and rest of faith which, combined with the consciousness of pardon and purity in Christ, constitute here and now a real heaven in the soul.
4. Of eternal life. Our joy abides. For all these reasons the gospel is a joyful sound.
II. THE PEOPLE ARE BLESSED WHO KNOW THIS JOYFUL SOUND.
1. In what they possess. A new and happy relationship with God.
2. In what they are.
3. In the influence they exert.
III. THE EFFECTS THAT FOLLOW FROM SUCH KNOWLEDGE ARE VERY PRECIOUS. They concern:
1. A man’s life. “They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance,” etc. A man must get through life some way: the question isHow? But here is a way told of which is, indeed, a good way. To walk in the light of God’s countenance is to have the consciousness of God’s love resting on one. To know you have the love of a valued friend is good: how much more that of God! It gives serenity of heart, freedom from fear, confidence of deliverance from all evil.
2. A man’s spirit. “In thy Name shall they rejoice,” etc. Joy is essential to the healthy life of the soul, as light is to that of the body. Now that in which they who are spoken of here rejoice is the Name of God: “thy Name.” But by the Name of God is meant all that which we find in God. “He hath done all things well” is the verdict which their souls promptly and steadily pronounce. The man is born again, renewed in the spirit of his mind, and hence God is no longer a terror or a dislike to him, hut “his exceeding Joy.”
3. A man’s condition. “In thy righteousness shall they be exalted.” Before their own conscience; for it is kept pure and void of offence. Before their fellow men. Is not that so? “Them that honour me I will honour,” saith God. We see this every day. And in the presence of God at last. “They shall be mine in the day when I make up my jewels” (Mal 3:17).
IV. BUT IN ORDER TO ALL THIS WE MUST KNOW, REALLY AND INWARDLY, THIS JOYFUL SOUND.
1. For many professed Christians do not; and hence they show a sad and unhappy contrast to what has been said. They do not seem blessed any waynot in their daily life, nor in the spirit of their mind, nor are they “exalted” at all as is here said.
2. The reason is that, though they may be familiar with the letter of the gospel, they yet do not really know it. For to know the joyful sound is to realize and to appropriate it, to heartily believe and obey it.
3. The conditions of such knowledge are: We must greatly desire it; we must prepare for it, for however large our heart may be, the Lord’s grace will want all the room; therefore if it be cumbered with other and evil things, there will not be room for him. The Israelites at the Passover were to put away the leaven. So must we put away all known sin. And then believe, trust, and for yourself, the glad gospel message. So shall you come to really know it, and our text shall be fulfilled for you.S.C.
Psa 89:17
The exalted horn; or, the secret of strength.
The horn is a constant symbol of strength; the exalted horn, therefore, of strength triumphant. Now, we observe
I. STRENGTH IS THE GREAT NEED OF THE SOUL OF MAN. Not physical strength, nor intellectual, nor social, but spiritual. There may be knowledge, and good desire, and religious emotions, and holy resolve; but all these things leave a man weak unless they be rendered effectual by a fervent will.
II. ITS SECRET IS THE FAVOUR OF GOD. For that favour:
1. Restores it.
2. Sustains it.
3. Inspires it.
4. The loss of God’s favour paralyzes it.
We know how the favour of men, their applause and encouragement, puts strength into us: how much more the conscious favour of God! With that there is nothing a man will not do and dare and be.
III. THOSE WHO ARE IN THAT FAVOUR ALONE POSSESS THIS SECRET. We may know of it, speak of it, extol it, commend it, and yet not be “in” it. We enter into it:
1. By coming away from whatever cannot dwell with it; from all known sin especially.
2. By surrender of our willour heart, that isto God.
3. By keeping touch with God, in habitual prayer, praise, and obedience. So we enter this favour, and abide there.S.C.
Psa 89:19
Chosen out of the people.
This declaration, besides its main theme, teaches us much concerning God’s exaltations of men. As:
1. Wherefore God exalts men. It certainly is not to gratify mere selfish ambition. Those who climb up to high places from such motives are certainly not set there by God, and will soon have to climb down again. All history teaches the short-lived power of mere selfish ambition. But one motive we may regard as moving the Divine mind would be his love for the exalted one. Now, there is no greater joy that ever comes to a good man than that of being the means of great good. to others. It is a pure delight, and of intense kind. The love of God would, therefore, bestow such delight on his chosen ones. His chief motive, however, is the good of others. What would have become of Israel but for David? Saul’s rule was but another name for shipwreck of the state. David saved it from such ruin. And the good of others, the people at large, is the motive of all God’s exaltations; other ends may be proposed and secured, but this is assuredly the chief. The possession of power is, therefore, a tremendous responsibility, and happy are the peoples whose rulers ever remember and practically recognize this. And it is true of all power whatsoever, whether little or great. “No man liveth to himself.”
2. Such exaltation generally means great suffering. He who is the supreme illustration of the truth of our text was “made perfect through suffering.” And it is ever so. What a terrible discipline David went through ere he attained the throne! Moses too, and Paul, and God’s heroes generally. Let us, then, remember wherefore suffering is sent to any of usthat it is for our uplifting; let us take care not to hinder this purpose.
3. How God exaltsby choosing those whom he exalts not by, but out of, the people. The people can rarely be trusted. Go over the list of mankind’s greatest helpers and saviours, right up to our Saviour himself. Would the people have chosen them? They would far more likely have crucified them, as they did the greatest of them all. The vox populi is the vox Dei only when it endorses the previous choice of God. For men have seen that God has chosen for them, and they willingly accept his choice. But the main theme of our text concerns:
4. Whom God choosesfrom “out of the people.” Now, consider in this statement
I. ITS TRUTH. See this:
1. In the history of David. (Psa 78:70, Psa 78:71.)
2. In well nigh all deliverers of the people, from Moses downwards, from Gideon to Garibaldithey have been ever “chosen out of the people.”
3. In Christ our Lord. He was indeed thus chosen. His royal descent from David availed him not, for the glory of that race had utterly disappeared. Hence he was altogether of the peopleby birth; associates; social rank; habits; education; by his teaching, which was not at all “as the scribes,” but understood and welcomed by “the common people;” by his life of poverty; by his death; all the way along, from “the bare manger to the bitter cross,” he was one of the people. It was a slave’s death that he died. “He was rich, yet for our sakes,” etc.
II. THE REASONS OF THIS CHOICE.
1. “The people” were the mass of mankind, who needed to be saved.
2. One from themselves would better understand them.
3. More readily sympathize.
4. God is wont to choose the foolish things of this world (1Co 1:27).
5. Christ’s sharing the people’s lot assured them of the love of God, and so led them to turn to him, which is salvation. They learned so that “God is love.”
III. ITS LESSONS. They are such as these:
1. The approachableness of God. Christ has shown us that he keeps no state to frighten us from his presence. Everybody came to him, and may come to God.
2. The indispensable condition of rendering real help. We must go down among those whom we would bless.
3. How little worth are the great things of the world! Power, wealth, rankGod chose none of them.
4. Christ knows all about me; for he, too, was one of the people. I need not keep away.
5. Adore him. Does he not deserve it? O thou ever-blessed Lord!
6. Help in the exaltation. For his throne, the throne of his exaltation and which he delights in, is made of human hearts. Enthrone him, then, in your heart.
“Take my heart, it is thine own;
It shall be thy royal throne.”
S.C.
Psa 89:20
David my servant.
The text reads on, “With my holy oil have I anointed him,” and right down to Psa 89:37 we have the repeated declarations of God’s favour towards him. Now, this has seemed to many a choice most strange, and sorely needing vindication. The statement concerning Davidthat he was “a man after God’s own heart” (1Sa 13:14; Act 13:22)has perplexed not a few. And we unreservedly admit that
I. GOD‘S CHOICE OF DAVID DOES APPEAR STRANGE. For what a category of crimes his career as recorded in the Scriptures declares! In cold blood he slays two hundred Philistines (1Sa 18:20-27). He leaves his wife Michal to face her father’s rage, when she had risked her own life to save his (1Sa 19:11-17). He bids Jonathan lie to his father (1Sa 20:5, 1Sa 20:6). He lies cruelly to Abimelech and the priests at Nob, and then left them to Saul’s vengeance (1Sa 21:1, 1Sa 21:2; 1Sa 22:9-19). He deceives Achish (1Sa 21:10-15). He would, in revenge, have slain Nabal and all his house (1Sa 25:2-38). He lies to King Achish, who had given him Ziklag, by pretending that he had fought against Judah; and, to conceal his lie, he cruelly slaughters the Geshurites and others (1Sa 27:1-12.). He takes terrible revenge on Amalek (1Sa 30:1-17). Instead of punishing Joab, as he ought to have done, he utters terrible imprecations against him (2Sa 3:28, 2Sa 3:29). He tortures the Ammonites (2Sa 12:27-31). He deals cruelly with Mephibosheth, stripping him of all his property, and giving it to Ziba (2Sa 16:1-4; 2Sa 19:24-30). He violates his oath to Saul, that he would not slay his children; nevertheless, he afterwards gave them up to the Gibeonites, who hanged them (1Sa 24:21; 2Sa 21:1-9). And then his great sin in the matter of Uriaha sin in which no element of baseness, treachery, cruelty, and lust was wanting; and yet all the while he was a great psalm singer (2Sa 11:2-17). He piously exhorts Solomon to walk in the ways of the Lord; and yet he himself kept his harem crowded with ever more women (2Sa 5:13; 1Ki 2:3). His terrible death bed charge to Solomon to slay Joab and Shimei. His imprecatory psalms (see Psa 109:1-31.). And we have no record of any great good deeds to set off against these other terrible ones. Yes; it must be admitted that the choice of David needs vindication. A loud professor of religion, and yet, etc.
II. BUT IT CAN BE VINDICATED.
1. Because the expression so much complained ofDavid’s being “a man offer God’s own heart“refers, not to his personal character, but to his official conduct. “He was called of God to restore the kingdom which Saul had destroyed, to subdue the Philistines, etc. These purposes he accomplished. So far he was a man after God’s own heart. His moral delinquencies are recorded that we may know where the Divine approbation stops short” (F.D. Maurice). But we confess we do not lay much stress upon this. 1Ki 15:1-5 does not bear it out. We prefer to vindicate the Divine choice of David in another manner.
2. He was worthy when the words were spoken of him, and for a long while after. Had he been always what he afterwards became, such high commendation would not have been given. Then:
3. He knew no better than to do as did all others. As to his life as an outlaw, a kind of Oriental Robin Hood, he was driven to it by the jealousy and hate of Saul; and as to his lies and stratagems, his ferocities and tortures, all such things were held lawful in his day; and, though they shock us as we read of them, they were held as altogether right by his contemporaries. We must distinguish between the vitia temporis and the vitia hominis (Farrar), and not condemn the man for not tieing altogether different from and beyond the public sentiment of his age.
4. What he did know of right he mainly did. See his patriotism, his courage, his military ability, the salvation of his country from ruin. See his delight and his trust in God, and his deep penitence for his sin. And see the unbounded honour and love of his people which he won and kept. Is all this to go for nothing?
5. And remember how he was punished for his sins. In his family. His sons had seen their father indulge himself: why shouldn’t they? (Kingsley). And in his nature he was punished; Its bent and bias became horribly sensual. Indulgence increased the evil, and so came about the shameful tragedy of his adultery and Uriah’s murder. It was not a sudden fall, he had long been tending that way. And in his character. He never really recovered. He shuffles shamefully to his grave; his courage, his self-control, his nobleness, well nigh all gone. One is reminded of King Lear
Vex not his ghost; oh, let him pass;
He hates him,
That would upon the rack of this rough world
Stretch him out longer.”
He dies a miserable and pitiful man, his last words being his charge to Solomon about Shimei: “His hoary head bring thou down to the grave with blood.” Think of that as the last words of the David of the twenty-third psalm! What a melancholy failing away! There is no favouritism in God. If his children sin, they suffer, and that supremely. God loves them too much to let it be otherwise.
III. AND IS FULL OF INSTRUCTION FOR OURSELVES. We learn:
1. Thankfulness that we are born in a more enlightened age; that there would be shame now where there was then no shame.
2. Strong religious feeling and profession are no certain safeguards against sin, but only heighten its guilt.
3. Repentance may be real, yet the results of sin not be recalled.
4. We dare never remit even for one day the waiting of our soul upon God in watchfulness and prayer.
5. The judgments of God against our sin are his mercy to our soul.
6. He who forgave the contrite David forgives still.S.C.
HOMILIES BY R. TUCK
Psa 89:1
A singer in the dark.
The previous psalm was written by a man in the dark, who could pray, but could not sing. The writer of this psalm can both pray and sing, But there is an important difference between the “darknesses” of the two psalmists. Heman suffered from severe bodily afflictions, such as are often attended by severe mental depressions. Ethan was distressed by anxious public or national conditions, which concerned him in an official rather than in a personal way. His hope in God was not clouded by bodily weakness. In him faith could triumph over fear.
I. ETHAN‘S TIME OF DARKNESS. “Ethan was born in the time of David, but moulded chiefly by the influences, literary and religious, which characterized the age of Solomon.” There is no reason for rejecting the ancient reference of this psalm to the reign of Rehoboam; to the breaking up of the Davidic kingdom; and to the humiliating invasion of Shishak, the Pharaoh of Egypt. Exactly what would then come to the mind of the pious man was that the Davidic covenant seemed to have failed; God was not fulflling the promise to establish David’s seed forever. “It was in the reigns of Rehoboam, when ten tribes had forsaken their allegiance to the Davidic dynasty, and the promise of the steadfastness of David’s throne seemed suddenly revoked, that the faithful worshippers would most readily recall the vision of Nathan, with its attendant promises, and wonder where were the former loving kindnesses which God sware unto David in his truth. Appropriate to this period is the apparent allusion to the raids of a foreign army.” Distress that comes from public circumstances is rather intellectual than emotional, and the struggle cannot be so severe as when there is introduced the element of personal suffering. But they do invaluable service who can inspire the hope of a nation in its dark hours; for nations, too, “are saved by hope.”
II. ETHAN‘S SONG IN THE TIME OF DARKNESS. A song of faith in a time of fear. A song of thankful memories in a time of present calamities. A song of joy in God himself, when God’s ways seemed “past finding out.” A man can sing in the dark, however dark it may be, and whatever form the darkness may take, only if he has right thoughts of God, and can keep firm hold on God. Things may be perplexing; but if we know the doer of the things, and have full confidence in him, we can quietly wait until his issues can be unfolded. Our song stops when we lose the sense of God’s relation to our circumstances. Keep the relation, and we can always sing of God, and then we soon come to sing also of God’s ways.R.T.
Psa 89:2-4
The security of God’s pledged word.
“Thy seed will I establish forever.” The keynote of the psalm is the “faithfulness” of God to his word. “God had entered into ‘an everlasting covenant’ with David, and had confirmed that covenant with an oath. In the most absolute and unconditional form, God had pledged himself to establish the kingdom of David and his seed forever, to beat down all their adversaries under their feet, and to maintain their throne as long as the sun and moon should endure” (see 2Sa 7:8-16; Isa 55:3). The psalmist lived when men were tempted to think God was forgetting his word, or failing to fulfil it. But he persisted in it that, whatever appearances might suggest, God never forgot his word, never failed to fulfil his word, and the covenant with David was being kept, in the fullest and best sense, though it might prove to be a spiritual rather than a material sense.
I. GOD‘S WORD MUST ALWAYS BE TAKEN WITH GOD‘S MEANING. So often men fix their own meanings to what God says or promises, and then they are surprised and disheartened because that does not happen which they expect. Take two illustrations. Men said that God’s covenant with David meant that there should always be a Davidic kingdom, and always a member of David’s house on its throne. That was man’s meaning put on God’s words; that was not God’s meaning put into his own words. So the Jews read into the prophecies their expectations of a temporal, delivering Messiah, and the Messiah who came was no fulfilment of their dreams. We need to learn that, whatever God says, using material terms and figures, is but illustrative of spiritual fact or truth. David’s perpetual kingdom is Messiah’s spiritual kingdom. Head with God’s meaning, God’s word stands eternally true. And if spiritual sensibilities are duly awakened and cultured, the spiritual meanings and spiritual fulfilments come to be regarded as really the only important ones.
II. GOD‘S WORD TO SOME MUST BE TAKEN TO REPRESENT GOD‘S PURPOSE FOR ALL. Much mistake has been made by regarding God’s covenants with individuals as mere privileges of the individual. God puts his covenant into a form for some, that all men may be helped to understand what his covenant with all men is. The illustrative character of all local covenants needs to be more fully apprehended, and more clearly pointed out. “Every Divine promise is but a limited expression of a general principle; every Divine covenant, even if it be made with a few, is nevertheless made for the benefit of the many, and can only be an instance of his ways, an illustration of a mercy as wide as the heavens, and of a faithfulness which extends to all generations of man kind.”R.T.
Psa 89:5
The Lord’s saints.
The Bible writers seem to think that the angels must be referred to by this term. But God’s people are certainly called “saints” in the Psalms, as in Psa 116:15. There may be intended a contrast between heaven and earth in this verse. Heaven above and the earth below unite to praise the faithfulness of God. The term “saints” is one that we find difficult to apply, in a general way, to God’s people, because it seems to assume an actual and perfect holiness, which we can neither find in ourselves nor ascribe to others. And, on the other hand, the term “saints” has been deteriorated by its application to the hermit class, who, by bodily austerities, have endeavoured to cleanse away sin and master passion. We have but little admiration for “saints” after that pattern. The Old Testament term has a clear, well defined meaning. Its idea is “separated ones.” It stands for all the people of Israel regarded as separated unto Godhis peculiar people. Then as “holiness” is specially associated with God, and is his supreme requirement of those who belong to him, God’s saints, or separated ones, come to be thought of as “holy ones,” and so we get our modern idea of the saint. Giving the widest, and yet most searching, application of the term, we may say
I. THE LORD‘S SAINTS ARE THOSE WHO ARE SEPARATED FROM SELF. Illustrate this by the contrast of the Israelite nation with the Gentile nations. God left the Gentiles to a free experiment. By self-effort and self-service they were to win the highest possibilities of humanity, if they could. Israel was taken out of this self-experiment, separated from the nations and from the self-service. So now the Christian is the man who, in the world of self-interests, is separated from the self-seeking principle. The Christian’s Lord “pleased not himself.” Christians do not “seek their own.” Their saintliness ties in this: “By love they serve one another.”
II. THE LORD‘S SAINTS ARE THOSE WHO ARE SEPARATED UNTO GOD.
(1) That they may praise his Name;
(2) carry out his mission;
(3) witness for his truth;
(4) obey his will;
(5) catch and reflect his Spirit.
So their saintliness comes to be godliness, God-likeness, and this really is Christliness, Christ-likeness. The Christian saint is the man in Christ.R.T.
Psa 89:6
Comparisons with Jehovah.
“Who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord?” It does not come to our minds to attempt any comparisons of God with any one, because, according to our associations, there is no one on the same plane with him, and so no comparisons are suggested. But in ancient times every nation had its separate deity; these deities were thought, by their worshippers, to be real and supreme, and so comparisons with Jehovah could be made. They were made, by outsiders, to his disadvantage; and they might well be made, by psalmist and prophet, to his honour (see the eloquent comparisons in Isa 40:1-31.). Here the psalmist is but assuring himself by thinking high things of God, because the actual present dealings of God suggested doubting thoughts. What God is always steadies our thinking when we are perplexed by what God does. The comparison need not be fully elaborated; the following points may be illustrated.
I. GOD IS INCOMPARABLE IN POWER. If God does a thing, we may first of all say he was under no compulsion to do it. He could have done otherwise. If he has put forth his power in this particular way, we may be sure he willed to act this way, and his will is based on perfect knowledge and absolute wisdom. Of no created being, of no so called deity, can it be declared that he has uncontrolled power, and yet the power is in no way to be teared, because it is in the control of perfect intelligence, absolute wisdom, and infinite love.
II. GOD IS INCOMPARABLE IN PURITY. Here the one idea on which we may dwell is God’s truthfulness, faithfulness, to his word. Scripture constantly asserts that God never disappoints men. He is true to his word. This cannot be asserted of any created being, or of any so called deity, whose word can only be the word of some created being representing him. “Hath he said, and shall he not do it? hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” “God is not a man, that he should lie.”
III. GOD IS INCOMPARABLE IN PITY. It seems to the psalmist of Rehoboam’s distressed age as if God “had forgotten to be gracious.” But he may rest his soul in the confidence that none can pity like God; and if Divine action should ever seem strange, it can only be said that God’s pity is checking the action of what, in God, men may think to be severity.R.T.
Psa 89:9
Ancient sentiments concerning the sea.
Throughout the Scriptures the sea is regarded as an object of fear; its majesty, greatness, masterfulness, seem mostly to have impressed men. It had not then been tamed by human skill; the compass was not known; the few vessels were inefficiently constructed for ocean sailing, and they seldom ventured out of sight of land. Scripture speaks of “the raging of the sea,” of “the raging waves of the sea,” of its voice “roaring,” of the “floods lifting up their voice,” of the “wicked being like the troubled sea,” of “those that go down to the sea” seeing “the wonders of the Lord, and his judgments in the deep,” of the “great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable.” And even when it seems to have a gentler thought, and says, “There go the ships,” immediately it adds a note of power and fear, “There is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein.”
I. THE SEA WAS A SYMBOL OF SEPARATION, AND SO OF THE EARTHLY TROUBLES THAT COME OUT OF SEPARATIONS. When friends in those days were carried away over the sea, they seemed to be utterly, hopelessly lost. We may have to some extent mastered this feeling by making of the ocean a highway, and yet still our friends are more truly lost to us when the sea divides us than when the land does. And yet, in family life, there are worse dividers than the sea.
II. THE SEA BROUGHT THE SUPREME SENSE OF DANGER, AND SO SYMBOLIZED THE PERILS TO WHICH DAILY LIFE IS EXPOSED. The sea is ever raging as if it would devour. The waters sink as if they would swallow us up, or rise as if they would cast us out. In our boats there is but an inch of wood between us and death. Yet our real perils are those which come to our soul’s life. “Fear not them who can but kill the body.” What the sea may typify is far more important than what the sea can do.
III. THE SEA SEEMED TO EMBODY THE IDEA OF MYSTERY. We can never seem to understand the sea; never account for the sea; never feel sure what it is going to do; never read the secrets it holds in its bosom. It is the symbol for us of the mysteries, often so distressing, so agonizing, with which we are surroundedmysteries of life, of truth, of duty, of ourselves, of God, of eternity, which compel our life on earth to be a “life of faith.”
IV. THE SEA WAS AN EMBLEM OF THE CHANGEABLENESS THAT CHARACTERIZES ALL EARTHLY THINGS. It is well called the troubled, restless sea; and this we feel quite as truly in summer calm, when only gentle winds blow across it, as in winter conflicts, when wild winds raise high the tides. It ever reminds us that “the fashion of this world passeth away.” Yet the psalmist could see God restraining and using even the sea, and with this thought encourages our fullest confidence in him.R.T.
Psa 89:14
Equity and righteousness.
Prayer book Version, “Righteousness and equity are the habitation of thy seat;” Revised Version, “Justice and judgment are the foundation of thy throne.” The terms “justice,” “righteousness.” stand for the abstract virtue; the terms “judgment,” “equity,” stand for the applications and adaptations of justice to times, circumstances, and men. Equity is the law of right applied to particular circumstances. The double assertion made concerning God is that what he does is always right judged by the standards of righteousness, and always right judged by the frailties and infirmities of men. Both these considerations help to bring men full confidence in him, and assurance concerning his ways with them.
I. GOD‘S WAYS ARE ALWAYS RIGHT TO THE STANDARD. “Righteousness is the basis of his throne;” the distinguishing feature of his rule. “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” If it be askedWhere is the standard of righteousness? we may replyIn man’s own moral sense. If he knows right from wrong, he must know right. The appraisement man can make of his own acts involves his power to appraise acts which are said to be acts of God. But this caution needs to be fully presented and illustratedthat the standard of right is not the sentiment of any single individual, but the harmouious sentiment of all the race in all the ages. It is a human standard, not an individual standard. There has grown up in the world a standard of righteousness, which is now well established; by it the acts declared as God’s may be judged; and it will always be found that inspired descriptions of righteousness are, in effect, descriptions of the established human standard; and that all acts of God commended in the inspired record will stand the test of that established human standard. It should be carefully shown that there is not one standard for man, and a differing standard for God. Right for God is right for man. Cases that seem doubtful are simply cases misapprehended. Poets may say, “Whatever is is right.” Pious men say, “Whatever God does is right.”
II. GOD‘S WAYS ARE ALWAYS RIGHT TO THE CIRCUMSTANCE. There is a temporary right as well as an eternal right. There is an uneducated right, and a cultured right, dependent on conditions of conscience. There is a right at the moment, and a right forever. There is a right absolute, and a right in adaptation. Illustrate from the mother’s idea of right in relation to her child. She has to fit her right to the capacity and condition of her child. There is a right form and setting and clothing of the eternal right. So the psalmist may find God’s right in the adjustment of his dealings with the wilful and wayward Davidic king, Rehoboam.R.T.
Psa 89:38
Perplexities of present appearances.
“But thou hast cast off, and abhorred, thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.” The psalmist may have been reminded of the first king, Saul, from whom the favour of God was wholly removed, and he may have feared that the same sad fate was reserved for David’s grandson, Rehoboam, in spite of the very remarkable and apparently ever-enduring promises made to David. Certainly, when he composed this psalm, everything did look very black. Rehoboam was acting very foolishly and very wilfully, and bringing himself and the nation into what seemed overwhelming judgments. The king was humiliated, the kingdom was prostrated, the people were perplexed; all the world seemed out of joint. All depended on the point of view from which the psalmist regarded these “present appearances.” He might stand beside his fellow countrymen, and see them as they saw them, in a strictly human light. Or he might try to rise up to a place beside God, and see them as God saw themsee them in the Divine light. Then he would know that “things are not what they seem.”
I. PERPLEXITIES OF PRESENT APPEARANCES PARTLY ARISE FROM MAN‘S IMPERFECT VISION. He never sees more than parts of a thing at a time; even as, with his bodily vision, he can only see a front, a little of two sides, and nothing at all of the back. What man cannot see often holds the key to the meaning of what he sees. Man’s mistakes are imperfect apprehensions. Concerning God, man may search all ways, and yet be compelled at last to look on all the product of his toil, and say, “These are parts of his ways.” We never really know a thing until we know it all round, and all through; and we mistake when we attempt to judge appearances. If it seems that God has forsaken David, and forgotten his covenant, we may confidently say,” Since God is what he is, that cannot be which seems.” Appearances here are deceitful.
II. PERPLEXITIES OF PRESENT APPEARANCES ARE RELIEVED AS WE CAN ENTER INTO GOD‘S PURPOSES. Once apprehend that God is the Lord of discipline; the eternal Father who chastises and corrects and trains his children, and then strangest appearances begin to gain their meanings. They are seen to be as temporary as a boy’s flogging, and as truly the sign of a Father’s anxious love. They are proofs that God has not “forgotten to be gracious.” “How did Ethan, in this psalm, find ground for faith, for trust and hope? Simply in the conviction that God had sent these calamities in mercy, for correction, for discipline, and not for destruction.” We can never read appearances aright until we read them in the light of what we do know, or may know, of God.R.T.
Psa 89:47
The argument from the brevity of life. “Remember how short my time is.” This is the argument of an old man, who knows there can be but a “little while” before his passing time, and is supremely anxious to see the ways of the Lord justified while he is “in the land of the living” Compare Hezekiah’s exclamation, when told that he must die. As Ethan was born in the reign of David, and lived through the forty years of Solomon’s reign, he must have been an old man in the later time of Rehoboam. In this psalm he gives us the last results of a long life of observation and experience. Trusting fully in God’s faithfulness, Ethan could grasp the idea that the present depression of the nation was a temporary discipline; but this only made him the more earnestly plead with God that the discipline might be completed, and the restoration might be granted, before he passed away.
I. First argument: BECAUSE LIFE IS SO FRAIL, DO NOT OVER TRY IT WITH PERPLEXING DEALINGS. The psalmist says, “How fleeting and frail life is!” It is a poor thing, very weak; it cannot stand over-much strain. He deprecates too severe trial in the Divine discipline; afraid of himself, lest faith should fail. The calamities falling upon David’s nation seemed more than he could bear. He thought about them day and night; they suggested painful doubts. So he pleads his frailty before God, begging that the calamities may not be carried to extremes, and the faith in God, which he longs to keep, be quite overwhelmed. We can sympathize with Ethan. The strain of modern conflict often seems as if it would overwhelm us. We are too weak, we think, to bear any more. Learn of Ethan that we may plead our frailty with God, and ask for gracious limitations of the strain under which we are put.
II. Second argument: BECAUSE LIFE IS SO SHORT, FINISH THE COURSE OF DISCIPLINE SPEEDILY, SO THAT I MAY UNDERSTAND THY DEALINGS, AND REJOICE IN THE ISSUES. It is the argument of one who intensely longs for the honour of God to be manifested, and for the highest well being of God’s people to be secured. Indeed, his very intensity puts his faith in peril; for he wants to see for himself, while he lives, God’s honour vindicated, and God’s word fulfilled; he cannot be quite content with the assurance that God is jealous of his own honour, and supremely concerned in his people’s well being. It is impatience, but it is the impatience of a thoroughly earnest soul. God’s work will go on, God’s glory will be advanced, whether we die or live.R.T.
HOMILIES BY C. SHORT
Psa 89:1-52
The general subject
God’s promise to David and his seed
but the present state of things is a bitter contrast to the promise, and a prayer that God would remove the contrast. Suggests
I. THAT GOD HAS ENTERED INTO A GRAND COVENANT WITH MANKIND. Given us the greatest and most precious promises.
1. Promises that relate to our highest nature. “I will be a Father to them, and ye shall be my sons and daughters.”
2. That relate to our greatest calamity. Redemption from sin and pardon to the penitent.
3. That relate to our endless being. The completeness and glory of the Divine work begun in us here.
II. THAT GOD FULFILS HIS PART OF HIS COVENANT COMPLETELY AND PERFECTLY.
1. Because the covenant was made out of his love, voluntarily.
2. Because God is true and faithful, and cannot deceive.
3. Because God has the power and ability to do all that he promises. Not like men.
III. IT IS WE WHO DEFEAT THE PURPOSE OF GOD‘S COVENANT.
1. We transgress, and bring upon ourselves punishment. The consequences which God has attached to transgression.
2. Our unrepented sins take from us the power to receive the Divine promises. “As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God.”
IV. BUT OUR SIN CANNOT ALIENATE GOD‘S LOVING KINDNESS FROM US. (Psa 89:33.)
1. He has sent Christ as the proof of this to a sinful world.
2. He sends his Spirit into the heart to plead with us.
3. He is infinitely patient, waiting for our penitent return.S.
Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary

Psalms 89.
The Psalmist praiseth God for his covenant, for his wonderful power, for his care of his church, for his favour to the kingdom of David: then, complaining of contrary events, he expostulateth, prayeth, and blesseth God.
Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
Title. maskiil leeithan haezrachii. The author of this psalm lived either in the time of Jehoiachin or Zedekiah, whose misfortunes he laments very pathetically. It appears, says Mudge, by the conclusion from Psa 89:38, to be written in some great distress of one of the kings of the line of David; in which the author reminds God of his gracious promises to David and his posterity. It is conducted with great skill. The Jewish interpreters themselves apply several passages of it to the Messiah.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Psalms 89
Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite
2I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever:
With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
3For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever:
Thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.
4I have made a covenant with my chosen,
I have sworn unto David my servant,
5Thy seed will I establish for ever,
And build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.
6And the heavens shall praise thy wonders, O Lord:
Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.
7For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord?
Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?
8God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
9O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto thee?
Or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
10Thou rulest the raging of the sea:
When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
11Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain;
Thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
12The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine:
As for the world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them
13The north and the south thou hast created them:
Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name.
14Thou hast a mighty arm:
Strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
15Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne:
Mercy and truth shall go before thy face.
16Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound:
They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance.
17In thy name shall they rejoice all the day:
And in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
18For thou art the glory of their strength:
And in thy favour our horn shall be exalted.
19For the Lord is our defence:
And the Holy One of Israel is our King.
20Then thou spakest in vision to thy Holy One,
And saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty;
I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
21I have found David my servant;
With my holy oil have I anointed him:
22With whom my hand shall be established:
Mine arm also shall strengthen him.
23The enemy shall not exact upon him;
Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.
24And I will beat down his foes before his face,
And plague them that hate him.
25But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him:
And in my name shall his horn be exalted.
26I will set his hand also in the sea,
And his right hand in the rivers.
27He shall cry unto me, Thou art my Father,
My God, and the Rock of my salvation.
28Also I will make him my firstborn,
Higher than the kings of the earth.
29My mercy will I keep for him for evermore,
And my covenant shall stand fast with him.
30His seed also will I make to endure for ever,
And his throne as the days of heaven.
31If his children forsake my law,
And walk not in my judgments;
32If they break my statutes,
And keep not my commandments;
33Then will I visit their transgression with the rod,
And their iniquity with stripes.
34Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him,
Nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
35My covenant will I not break,
Nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
36Once have I sworn by my holiness
That I will not lie unto David.
37His seed shall endure for ever,
And his throne as the sun before me.
38It shall be established for ever as the moon,
And as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.
39But thou hast cast off and abhorred,
Thou hast been wroth with thine anointed.
40Thou hast made void the covenant of thy servant:
Thou hast profaned his crown by casting it to the ground.
41Thou hast broken down all his hedges;
Thou hast brought his strong holds to ruin.
42All that pass by the way spoil him:
He is a reproach to his neighbours.
43Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries,
Thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice.
44Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword,
And hast not made him to stand in the battle.
45Thou hast made his glory to cease,
And cast his throne down to the ground.
46The days of his youth hast thou shortened:
Thou hast covered him with shame. Selah.
47How long, Lord? wilt thou hide thyself for ever?
Shall thy wrath burn like fire?
48Remember how short my time is:
Wherefore hast thou made all men m vain?
49What man is he that liveth, and shall not see death?
Shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Selah.
50Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses,
Which thou swarest unto David in thy truth?
51Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants;
How I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people;
52Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O Lord;
Wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed.
53Blessed be the Lord for evermore.
Amen, and Amen.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Contents and Composition. On the superscription see Introd. 8, No. 3 and No. 2. The Psalmist begins (Psa 89:2-3) with the assurance that he will never cease to praise the mercy of Jehovah which had been promised inviolably to David and his house, (Isa 55:3),and at the same time (Psa 89:4-5) gives the essential contents of the promise after 2Sa 7:8 ff. He then shows the ground of his assurance and purpose (Psa 89:6-19) in a description of the exaltation of this God of promise, who is praised in heaven and on earth for the manifestations of His power and goodness, righteousness and faithfulness, by which He has glorified Himself as the God and Protector of the people and of their king. This is followed by a lyrical unfolding of the fulfilment of the promise (Psa 89:20-38). The situation of the reigning king, standing in such contrast to the promise, is next depicted (Psa 89:38-46) by the Psalmist. He then asks (Psa 89:47-49), how long this outpouring of Gods wrath, which none could escape by their own strength, was to continue; and finally (Psa 89:50-52) he offers the prayer that this contrast between the promise and the actual condition of affairs would cease to exist. In Psalm 89:53 is sung the closing doxology of the Third Book.
The speaker is not David (Clauss), but one who lived later and who here treats Messianically the promise given to David (comp. on Psalms 2) He writes at a time when the position of Davids descendants corresponded but little to that promise, but when the reigning monarch was still of that house, and for him he prays that he may be raised up from his prostration. For the anointed (Psa 89:39) is not the people, but the king, and he is dependent upon God as the Holy One of Israel, and belongs to Him (Psa 89:19). The interpretation which assumes that the king is this holy one of Israel, and that the people bear the name of anointed, is a consequence of the assumption that the Psalm belongs to the Maccabean period. (Hitzig). For this there is no ground. Nor is there any indication given which would lead us to connect it with the closing years of the Persian rule (Ewald). The same is true of the defeat of Josiah, 2Ch 35:20 (Venema): for the death of the king is not mentioned here. We have no occasion to adopt in general (Hupfeld) the times shortly preceding the Babylonian Exile (De Wette, Hengst.) or during it (Syr., Grotius). The occasion of the composition was most probably the defeat of Rehoboam 1Ki 14:25 ff. 2Ch 12:1 ff. (Calvin, Delitzsch) by Shishak, that is, Sheshonk I, (comp. Zeitschrift der deutschen morgenlnd. Gessellschaft, Vol. Psalms 15 : p. 233 ff.). From this is perhaps to be explained the prominence given here to Egypt under the name Rahab (see on Psalms 87) in allusion to the former overthrow of this presumptuous and defiant enemy by the judgment of God. At that time the Ezrahite Ethan could have been still living. [The view of those who suppose that this Psalm forms with the preceding a double-psalm has been given in the introduction to the latter. Perowne, following a conjecture of Tholuck, thinks it not improbable that the king of whom the Psalm speaks was Jehoiachin, who after a reign of three months was deposed by Nebuchadnezzar, and of whom it was said that no king should prosper, sitting on the throne of David. He thinks at all events that there is little doubt that it was written in the latter days of the Jewish monarchy. Of course the superscription is completely ignored, as that commentator does not even think with Hengstenberg that the name was attached for the sake of giving greater authority and weight to the composition. Alexander, while adhering to Hengstenbergs hypothesis of a double psalm, differs from him entirely as to the time of composition and thinks it most probable that both parts were composed almost contemporaneously with the promise recorded in the latter oneand were intended to anticipate misgivings and repinings, which, though they existed even then in the germ, were not developed until the period of decline approached its catastrophe. The opinion favored by Dr. Moll above is also that of Wordsworth. It was, as he remarks, defended by Dr. Water-land (see his Scripture Vindicated, p. 204). It is in every way the most probable view. To it we are led by the superscription, from which there is no reason to depart. Only it is not necessary to assume that the Ethan here (1Ki 5:11; 1Ch 11:6) is the same as the Ethan or Jeduthun (1Ch 15:17), who was of the tribe of Levi and a Merarite. That his name heads a Korahite psalm need occasion no difficulty. See the addition to the introduction to Psalms 88.The remark of Wordsworth is hardly just that this psalm is the Allegro to the Penseroso of the preceding, for here also the tone of melancholy, though not unmixed, still predominates.J. F. M.]
This psalm, which may be applied to the history of the afflicted servants of God in different ages of the Church, is often transferred from this use to an interpretation with special reference prophetically to the suffering Messiah (the ancients), or to the miseries of the Jews since the prevalence of Christianity (the Rabbins) or to the afflictia ecclesia (Calvin) the mystical Christ, inasmuch as He lives and suffers in His followers (Stier). [Alexander: The particular promise insisted on here, is that in 2 Samuel 7, which constitutes the basis of all the Messianic Psalms. The application to the life of Christ has been carried to extreme lengths, not only by older English commentators, but by Wordsworth and others among the more recent. Connecting with the last verse of Psalms 87 Wordsworth says: All the springs of life, hope and joy to the Church are in the incarnation of Christ, of the seed of David and in the Divine promise of a perpetual and universal dominion to Him. The psalm has a Messianic application, only in so far as it was intended to set forth the necessary conflict which was to be waged before the great fundamental promise could be realized. The struggle was most intense when Christ Himself was the King of the promise.J. F. M.].
Psa 89:2-4. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever. According to the accentuation, is to be construed with the verb. It is therefore not said that the mercies of Jehovah are eternal, but the Psalmist announces his determination never to cease praising them. The meaning of lam is, at all events, not the modern abstract idea of the negation of time, nor the concrete Christian idea of eternity, but that of a period of time unknown and therefore indefinite, and of the course of human affairs within that period. This idea has been transferred by the Rabbins to the idea of the world itself, but in Biblical Hebrew it occurs only in the original sense. [From this use many false translations have occurred in the Septuagint, some of which have found their way into modern versions. The only passage on which there can be any doubt is Ecc 3:11, where E.V. renders world. But there, also, there is no necessity of departing from the Old Testament meaning. On this word see the note of Dr. Lewis in Zcklers Commentary in the Bible-Work.J. F. M.]. It is to be decided by the connection whether the view is directed backwards into primitive or older times, or forwards into the future, whose end cannot be seen, and which runs out into eternity. The Psalmist, however, does not say that he will sing praises for all coming time or for eternity, but only, always. The assertion, therefore, that this expression is not suitable in the mouth of an individual, except as speaking for the Church in the assurance of her endless duration (Hengstenberg) is utterly groundless. It is only in the following stich that the singer says he will make known with his mouth, loudly and publicly, for coming generations, the faithfulness of God. By comparing Psa 89:3 with Psa 89:5 it is plain that need not be supplied with lam in the previous stich. For the former verse does not mean that mercy is established forever (most of the ancients), as an indestructible building, but that it is ever being built up, (J. H. Michaelis and most of the recent expositors), that it does not stand still, nor come to a stop, nor fall in ruins, but rather continues, upon a foundation which is not laid upon anything earthly, temporal, or transitory, but in heaven, that is, upon the foundation of the promises of mercy which have their support in the credibility, the truth and faithfulness of God (Psa 119:89).The declaration of God, introduced unexpectedly in Psa 89:4, is taken not merely in substance, but also literally in many expressions, from the prophecy in 2Sa 7:5 f. The words covenant and swear, however, which so frequently recur in the psalm in connection with the faithfulness of God, are not found in that passage, but are justified by the theocratic relation of God to His people. (Hupfeld). So Ps. 54:9 views the promise of God (Gen 8:21) as an oath. (Del.).
Psa 89:6-19. Thy wonder [E. V. wonders] does not here denote a work or a deed, but the nature of God (Geier, J. H. Michaelis, Del.) as distinct from that of all created beings, or separated from their sphere of action (Hupfeld) Jdg 13:18; Isa 9:5; Psa 4:4; Psa 22:4. The assembly of the holy ones [Psa 89:6, E. V. saints] is here not the people (most) but the angels as in Job 5:1; Job 15:15; Pro 9:10; Pro 30:3, the sons of God, Psa 29:1 [In Psa 89:7 where E. V. has sons of the mighty, the literal rendering is: sons of God; that is, the angels. See Delitzsch on Job 15:15. It is parallel to the expression considered in the last verse.J. F. M.]
Psa 89:13. Since the north (Job 26:7,) denotes the northern heavens and as Tabor and Hermon, being well known mountains on each side of Jordan, are employed to represent the land of Canaan (Venema) or the earth (Geier), especially in joyful passages (Isa 55:12; Psa 98:8) and when national blessings are recounted (Psa 72:3), the south might seem to denote the southern heaven, and, as in the foregoing verse, the earth to be placed in opposition to heaven (Hupfeld). But the term: right hand, used to designate the south, is in favor of the usual reference to the four quarters of the earth.In Psa 89:16, is not specially the blowing of the trumpets, which were sounded in the worship of God (Isaaki, Rudinger, Rosenmller, De Wette, Hitzig). Nor is it to be taken as alluding to the giving of the law at Sinai (Flaminius), or to the battle cry of God as the Lord of hosts (Kimchi, Venema, Muntinghe) or to shouts in honor of the king (Aben Ezra), but to the rejoicing generally at sacred seasons. In Psa 89:19, is not=as for, and therefore is not a sign of the nominative (Syr., Luther, Ewald, Hitzig), but, as the context determines, it denotes possession or source. It is the relation of the king, who is called our shield [E. V. our defence] as in Ps. 47:10, to Jehovah, that is here dwelt upon.
Psa 89:20-30. Help. It is unnecessary, instead of to read : crown (Venema, Olshausen, Hupfeld), or majesty (Hupfeld). The subject is not the choice of David as king, but the assistance rendered him by God against the Philistines. It is he himself, however, who is called the hero [E. V. one that is mighty] as in 2Sa 17:10, and not Goliath, as in 1Sa 17:51, in which case we would have to render: I have raised up help against the mighty (Hitzig). For the best authorities read in the foregoing stich . This does not refer to the people of God in general but to Samuel and Nathan, for Gods declaration made to them follows. If the singular is preferred the interpretation which understands David to be meant by the saint (Hupfeld), is little in accordance with the language employed. [Alexander thinks that if the singular be preferred either Nathan or David may be meant. If the plural is to be taken in the most natural way, as referring to Samuel and Nathan, the singular ought, I think, to relate to the latter, especially as the vision was made directly to Nathan. In Psa 89:23, rendered in our version, shall not exact upon him is probably to be taken from to deceive, here entrap, ensnare. Perowne wrongly attributes the different meanings to different species of the same verb.J. F. M.]. The first-born is not the only (Hengst.), but the favorite son, raised above the others to the highest place, transferred from the Israelitish people (Deu 26:19; Deu 28:1), the first-born Son of God (Exo 4:22, comp. Jer 31:9), to David, the latest-born son of Jesse, and having reference to his seed for evermore. The expression, days of heaven (Psa 89:30) which is taken from Deu 11:21, has a similar significance. It is repeated, as a current saying in Sir 45:18, Bar 1:11.
Psa 89:31-38. The words, once have I sworn (Psa 89:36) show the unalterable validity of the oath for all time (Sept. and most). To explain it as meaning one as opposed to several (Hengst., Del.), is not opposed to the contents of the oath, but to the context. [According to this view the rendering would be: One thing have I sworn, etc., that is, with regard to the eternity of His throne.J. F. M.]. Psa 89:31 ff. prove the priority of 2Sa 7:14 as compared with 1Ch 17:13God has sworn by His holiness (Amo 4:2) as, in other passages by His soul (Amo 6:8; Jer 51:14, [In E. V. rendered by Himself.J. F. M.]), by His right hand (Isa 62:8) or by His name (Jer 44:26) or by Himself) Gen 22:16; Jer. 45:23). By referring to 1Sa 7:16, it seems natural to render Psa 89:38 b: and as the witness in heaven (the rainbow) shall it (Davids throne) endure for ever, (Luther, Geier, and others). But the particle of comparison is absent. We cannot regard the witness in heaven, whose continuance is thus emphasized, as the moon, employed to set forth the perpetuation of Davids race in the same way as the rainbow was a testimony to the continuance of the earth (Aben Ezra, Kimchi and others, Hengst). There is no example of such a conception or usage. We may interpret according to Jer 31:35; Jer 33:20 ff., where God is said to have fixed the laws of the sun, the moon, and the stars, as also the laws of the heavens and earth, as pledges of the fulfilment of His covenant with Israel and His servant David, with direct reference to the duration of his throne (Isaaki, Calvin, Rudinger, Hupfeld). Or we may follow Job 16:19, where God Himself is designated the Witness in heaven and the Surety in its heights (Symmachus, Cocceius, Maurer, Hitzig, Delitzsch). The latter interpretation is favored by the consideration that God, as the only true One, is not only the best surety for the words of His servants, but also for all that He Himself has ordained and promised, and that He Himself testifies to their validity (Deu 7:9; Isa 65:16; Jer 42:5). witnessing here, therefore, has not merely the sense of a solemn promise (Hitzig) as in Mic 1:2; Isa 55:4 [The true rendering accordingly is: And the Witness in heaven is true.1J. F. M.].
Psa 89:39-44. Thou hast cast off,etc. The assumption that these words are put in the mouth of the enemy (Aben Ezra) proceeds from the unwillingness, felt by many, to believe that God could have been reproached by the psalmist for breach of His oath and covenant. But it is just the thought of the contradiction between the actual condition of things and the glorious destiny promised the king by God, and the consciousness of the reliability of the promise, which makes the tempted poet sensible of the impossibility of the ruin of the kingdom. And it is this which causes the transition from complaint and despondency to hope and prayer, while he looks forward to the sure fulfilment of the Divine counsels and promises, which no worldly power could prevent. The expressions used in Psa 89:41-42 were evidently written with Psa 80:13 in view. Yet it does not follow from this, either that the king is compared to a vineyard and fortress (Hengst.). or that the people are to be understood as the anointed and the servant, but only that the king and the nation are considered as one, in suffering from the desolations of war. The term applied to the crown, signifying consecration, is used in contrast to the dishonor inflicted upon the king.In Psa 89:44, we are not to render: the rock of his sword (Hengst.), or: O rock! (Olshausen). For, according to the kindred Arabic, is to be understood as denoting the edge or blade of the sword (Fleischer in Delitzsch), as already the Rabbins had conjectured from the context.
Psa 89:48. Remember,etc. The sentence consists of abrupt but highly significant expressions, so that it is not necessary, by slight alterations in the text, where the manuscripts differ so much, to extract the rendering: I have remembered, or: remember, O Lord! or, following Psa 31:5, to change into . The translation: mote (Bttcher) has etymological support: the usual one=term of life, is disputed [Dr. Moll therefore renders. RememberIwhat a mote! Delitzsch: Remember; Ihow quickly passing! and so most expositors substantially. Our version conveys the right idea, but in an order of the words, which, though the most intelligible, does not follow the original faithfully.J. F. M.]. According to the present punctuation it is incorrect to render the following stich: wherefore shouldest thou have made all men in vain? (Hengst. and most of the ancients). For cannot be construed with = but is closely connected with the following word by Daghesh, (Kimchi and most of the recent expositors). [The former sense as given in our version should be retained. The Daghesh and the Makkeph do not affect the sense of this passage. in the sense of why is common. Hengstenberg says that we are to understand after these words the following, As would be the case, if these should perish for ever. The hypothetical sense (shouldst Thou have made) ought to be preserved.J. F. M.].
Bear in my bosom (Psa 89:51), cannot here as in Deu 11:12; Isa 40:11, refer to the tender, cherishing care of love, since the passage does not allude to the sufferings of the Messiah for all peoples (many of the old expositors,) but to hostile nations. Yet it is not these (De Wette) who are said to be borne, for cannot mean: the whole of many nations, and it is only the reproach and grief caused by them (Jer 15:15) and poured into the bosom (Psa 79:12) which can be said to be carried in it. The context also alludes distinctly to this. The only doubtful question is, how the three words just cited, which also create the impression that the text has been mutilated, are to be translated. They can hardly be considered as the genitive (Ewald) after , following as they do at such a distance from the latter. Are we then to insert herpah, as though it had fallen out, between the words and , which cannot be tolerated in their present position (Hupfeld)? Comp. the correct arrangement in Eze 31:6. Or are we to strike out as superfluous (Septuag.)? or regard it as a mutilation for =contempt, following the very similar passage Eze 36:15 (Bttcher)? Or is it a mistaken enlargement of =by many nations (Hitzig)? The position of before the principal word may be explained in two ways. It is either due to the conception of the adjective as an indefinite numeral (Psa 32:10. Pro 31:29; 1Ch 28:5; Nahum 9:28). Or it is to be regarded as a substantive and explained, according to Jer 16:16, as many, that is, people.2
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. Whatever in the world is to endure, must not only be built upon an immovable foundation, but must have also in itself a living principle of progress; to the one as well as to the other, supernatural strength and Divine control are necessary. This is true in a special sense of all that concerns the establishment, preservation, and extension of the kingdom of God on earth. The person, reign, offspring, and history of David are types of that kingdom. In these everything was placed upon the foundation of Gods promises, whose inviolability is attested by His truth and faithfulness, and whose fulfilment is secured by the uninterrupted workings of His mercy. The Church has here a subject of never-ending praise, and is ever stirred up to utter it by the grateful confession of what His servants experience.
2. But the praise of God resounds not only in His Church upon earth, but also among His saints in heaven. It has as its ground His glory, as that wondrous Being, infinitely exalted above all others in that majesty which is awful even to the holy ones, and yet is revealed for the consolation of believers in the displays of His incomparable might, unwearied help-bringing goodness, and unswerving faithfulness to His covenant, which is confirmed by an oath.
3. Blessed are the people who know this God, trust His promises, and walk in His light! They cannot perish, even though trials rise and overwhelm them like the waves of the sea. The conviction that God is able and willing to help His own, and that He will do it, saves them from despair, even though all visible support totters and falls, and, as far as man can judge, ruin is at hand, and utter destruction certain. Gods promises are to believers more certain still. But as faith is needed to grasp these promises in the hour of distress, and faithfulness, to hold fast to them amidst the trials of life, so proof of loyalty to His service among the temptations of the world, and a holy life, are necessary to secure the continual fulfilment of those promises in personal experience. For he who will entrust himself to the protection which God affords to His chosen inheritance, must prove himself to belong to it, and must not forget that the God whom he trusts and serves, is the Holy One of Israel, whose throne has righteousness and justice for its foundation, (Pro 16:12; Pro 25:5), and mercy and truth for its ministers.
4. The service of God involves sometimes trial of our fidelity to our vows, sometimes temptation in the life of faith, sometimes chastening in the way of righteousness, but it has always for its object the strengthening of those bonds which unite the children of God, and their education in the Christian life. For in the holy love of God, righteousness is so united to mercy that He visits even His children with chastisement for their sins; and yet this is the chastening of a Father. Nor does the unfaithfulness of men interfere with the exercise of the faithfulness of God, as His covenant ever stands, no matter how often they break it.
5. God cannot be charged with the responsibility of the temporary contradiction between the present condition and the assured future of the Church and its several members. God alters not His will. He takes not back His promises. He neglects not the exercise of His care and power. He rather prepares, in the very midst of the generation which He will deliver, His instruments for the accomplishment of His purposes. He Himself chooses the suitable persons; calls the men of His choice; furnishes them with the necessary powers and gifts; consecrates them to His service; blesses them for His work; affords them help for toil and conflict; raises them on high from their prostration, and saves them from destruction at the hands of their enemies, or, if they personally succumb, causes their fall to tend to the preservation of the Church.
6. Accordingly, Gods faithfulness to His covenant not only assures for all time His covenant-people of the inviolability of His promises of mercy; it affords to them also at all times an experience of their truth. For by means of the contradiction just mentioned, it makes them sensible of the stringency of the conditions of deliverance, awakens a consciousness of guilt, and directs the glances of the members and leaders of the Church from the troubled present, with its joyless features, to the divinely appointed means of safety. For God does not punish His people by annulling His covenant with them, but rather gives them repeated confirmations of its truth, and, just at the time of the deepest decline of Davids house, and the greatest destruction of the members of the Church, attests the eternal duration of His throne, upon which that Seed of David shall sit, declared His own son by God Himself, the chief in authority among the sons of the Highest (Psa 82:6) and supreme over the kings of the earth. It is thus that He fixes the Church upon that firm foundation of His promises, from which has arisen the Messianic hope.
7. But there are dark seasons when this expectation is not clearly displayed, and troubled hours when the soul finds it hard to seize the word of promise, so surely attested, and only by a great effort can cling to the word of the oath of the true Witness. Then there is danger, lest the praise of God, whose strength is still the ornament and glory of His people, should be hushed, or changed into vain complaining; lest by so long enduring of evil the hope of amelioration should sink into the fear of greater evil. But the thought that it is still the hand of God which is bestowing a Fathers correction, and that He does not consume the whole of the fleeting period of life with suffering, forms a foundation for hope and a motive for prayer. There are prayers that are timid, lukewarm or presumptuous; there are also those which are humble, ardent, and confident. The timid prayer does not pass from him who offers it, for it is choked in the thorns of doubt, and cannot rise on the wings of trust. The lukewarm prayer stops when half said, for it has not earnestness and perseverance. The presumptuous prayer may reach even the gates of heaven; but they are barred against it, for humility is absent. If then the way to the throne of God is to be free and open to our prayers, and they are to find willing acceptance and audience there, they must come from a humble, earnest, and trusting heart. Humility teaches us the necessity of prayer; ardor of soul gives it wings and endurance; trust affords it an immovable foundation. (Bernard of Clairvaux).
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
The sure mercies of God: (1) as the subject of our grateful praise; (2) as the foundation of our assured hope; (3) as the object of our anxious prayers.Our reliance upon Gods help in severe distresses, whence it has (1) its firmness, (2) its joyfulness, (3) its liveliness.The kingdom of God is built upon earth: (1) upon what foundations? (2) by what strength? (3) by what means?When men complain to God over their distress, they need not cease to praise Him, and they must not cease to trust Him.We must acknowledge and praise the majesty of God, not less in its awful exaltation, than in its loving condescension.-When God receives the praises of the holy ones in heaven, He at the same time listens to the prayers, praises, and thanksgiving of believers on earth.The fatherly guidance of God in the education of His children for the heavenly kingdom.The unfaithfulness of men brings down the punishments of God; but it does not prevent the exercise of His faithfulness, or cast dishonor upon His promises.All Gods revelations and all His dealings must incite and assist us to fear, love, and trust Him above all else.Gods special government of His people; (1) in its holy requirements; (2) in its gracious dealings; (3) in its blessed effects.Only through the Son of God can we become and remain children of the Highest, citizens of His kingdom, and heirs of His blessings.While we remain in the kingdom of God, we fear neither the certain prospect of death, the evanescence of life, nor the darkness of the grave; we walk in the light of Gods countenance.
Luther: Psalms 89. is a prophecy of Christ and His Churchthat it should never cease or stand still on account of any sin, so that our blessedness does not depend upon our perfect observance of Gods law, unlike the kingdom promised to the Jews, and the kingdom of the whole world, which last no longer or further than they are righteous.This has all been promised of old for our consolation in these last times, so that we need not despond, even if it seems to us that Christianity exists no longer on earth.
Calvin: For the afflicted Church; for God did not arrange the terms of the covenant of grace with David alone, but had in mind the body of the whole Church for all time.
Starke: The mercy of God makes all His works a source of consolation to His people, and all the objects of nature a source of profit, lightens their afflictions, and makes them joyful in God.The All-sufficient God could do very well without mankind, or He could bind them to the performance of all duties, so that they would be bound to fulfil His will in the strictest manner, even without the promise of a gracious reward. Is it not then a most wonderful fact that it has pleased God to make covenant with us men?In the eyes of an unbeliever God is so small that he neither knows nor regards Him at all; in the eyes of a believer He is so great that he will neither see nor know anything but Him, in heaven or in earth.Joy in God is a sure token that those who manifest it are His children; for when they rejoice in Him they walk in His light, and are enlightened by His favor. None of the ungodly experience this.Christs kingdom is the true universal monarchy.If all the kings of the earth must bow before Jehovah, why do the most insignificant in the land refuse to know and receive him?A rod, even though it be painful, is better than a sword; better to be chastened by the Father than to be punished by the Judge. This is the difference between the sufferings of the righteous and the punishment of the wicked.-The Church of Christ is derided by all who are not true believers; and yet it is its greatest glory to endure the dishonor cast upon its Head.Such an end as this will all believers have; the sorrowful complaint will be changed into a song of joy, and the Kyrie eleison into a joyful hallelujah.Tertullian: O blessed people, in whose behalf God swears! O unhappy people, who will not believe God even though Ho swears.Menzel: We learn here upon what the consolation and blessedness of poor sinners depend, not upon the conversion and repentance which God requires, but upon His mere mercy and goodness, which leads them to conversion and repentance.-Rigger: We may learn from this Psalm what others before us have experienced, how they have patiently borne a part in the conflict ordained them by God, and have maintained their grasp upon the mercy and truth of God held out before them.Tholuck: The hearts of those that fear God are not so rigid and unfeeling that the strokes from the hand of God, when He proves them, leave no trace behind; nor are they so weak and languid that all confidence at once fails them.Guenther; All affliction arising from sin is only the chastening of a Fathers love for our salvation. His covenant is not broken. He has only veiled His mercy.Diedrich: He who lives to praise God, will never live in vain; he will have what he desires to have.In the concluding words the collectors of the Psalms testify that they could still rejoice in God, and praise Him in spite of all temporal distress, and hope from the rich blessings of the future to receive an answer to the anxious cries of this and of all the Psalms.Taube: Eternity swallows up time, but the temporal cannot absorb the eternal.The wonderful and incomparable, the dreadful and awe-inspiring, the exalted and majestic Creator and Sovereign of the worldthis is Israels God; His all-powerful majesty, His mighty arm, His strong hand, His high right hand, serve to fulfil His eternal purposes of mercy and peace, which centre in Christ Jesusthis is Israels consolation.The true members of the covenant walk according to the commands of God, nor seek their safety elsewhere than in free grace.
[Matth. Henry: Among men it is too often found that those who are most able to break their word are less careful to keep it; but God is both strong and faithful; He can do everything, and yet will never do an unjust thing.The stability of the material heavens is an emblem of the truth of Gods word: the heavens may be clouded by the vapors arising out of the earth, but they cannot be touched, they cannot be changed.(Psa 89:14). Mercy in promising; truth in performing. Truth, in being as good as thy word; mercy, in being better.
Scott: Our filial confidence in Gods love should not abate our veneration of His majesty; for then our worship on earth would bear no resemblance to that of the angels in heaven, (Isa 6:1-5). Surely then our external posture and our serious attention should indicate the reverence of our hearts, when we assemble to worship this glorious God.
Barnes: It is proper to pray that God would bless us soon; that He would not withhold His grace; that He would remember that our life is very brief, and if that grace is to be bestowed upon us to save us or make us useful, it must be bestowed soon. A young man may properly employ this prayer; how much more so one in the decline of life!J. F. M.]
Footnotes:
[1][For the use of in asseverations, corresponding to that in Arabic, and that of our word by, see Ewald, Heb. Gr., 340 c. The force of the verse is: It shall be established for ever as the moon, and (as surely as) there is a faithful witness in heaven.J. F. M.].
[2][The adjective is probably here placed before the noun, which rarely happens, on account of the emphasis laid upon it, as in Psa 32:10. See Green Heb. Gr. 249. 1a. The reproach is not merely the strongest which can be inflicted () it is also accumulated as coming from so many sources (). The rendering: mighty given to the latter word in E. V. is incorrect.J. F. M.].
Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

CONTENTS
This is a glorious Song indeed, in celebration of the blessings of redemption. God the Father’s covenant-mercy in Christ is most devoutly acknowledged, and his faithfulness and truth dwelt upon, with a joy unspeakable and full of glory.
Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
Psa 89:1
Ethan, as the mouth of the church, here sets forth a noble example to the people. He determines to celebrate the praises of Jehovah, and particularly as set forth and displayed in his covenant-love, in the sure mercies of David, even redemption by Christ. Isa 55:3 ; Act 13:34 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Psa 89:15
In these words David speaks of the blessedness of the people that know the joyful sound. Although year by year the sound of the trumpet brightened the hearts of God’s chosen people, yet there was one year in which that sound brought them exceeding joy. It was the year of jubilee when on the day of atonement, when all the solemn services of that day were over, there was brought to the suffering and to the poor great joy. At the sound of that trumpet every slave was set free. Yet the words had a deeper meaning even for David; for all through the teaching of that olden time there was an under-current heard by those who had ears to hear, which told them of exceeding joy. It was the hope which was the centre of their life, the great object of their longing, the hope of one who would deliver them from worse than earthly bondage, and restore them to a possession which they had forfeited by their sin.
I. But to us have not these words a deeper meaning still? The joyful sounds that stir our hearts tell us not of a coming salvation but of a Saviour who has come. It speaks to us who through our sins had forfeited the kingdom of our God, and tells us that He, our Saviour, has opened that kingdom of heaven again to all believers.
II. But how many there are to whom this is but an idle tale an empty, not a joyful sound. They shut out all these thoughts with the absorbing cares and the fleeting pleasures of a perishing world, content to live in a fool’s paradise, to dream away the few short years of life, and then wake up to the awful realities of eternity. A thousandfold more blessed than that careless, godless, reckless worldliness in which so many thousands live and die, is the fiercest agony of a sin-burdened soul, because it opens the heart to hear the joyful sound the joyful sound which tells that, sinners though we be, and crushed beneath a load of guilt which is insupportable to us, there is one who has died to take away our sins, ‘And the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all’.
III. But again there are souls that have been roused to seek after God, who have long since begun the awful struggle against still unconquered sin, who are striving against the principalities and powers that surround them as they seek to fight their way to the open gates of the heavenly city, and whose hearts almost sink and fail within them as temptation comes back again and again, and as through their weakness they fall under temptation’s power. Are there any who have known such a blessed unrest as this such a glorious state of conflict as this the conflict of an awakened soul against the powers of evil. Is it not a joyful sound that speaks to you from the lips of Jesus? ‘My grace is sufficient for thee, my strength is made perfect in weakness. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.’
IV. But again there are souls that are weary with the long labour and toil and trial of the heavenward road. They are weary of the conflict, long that it were over, yet wondering how or when it shall be. Oh, with all the power of joy comes to such hearts the blessed promise of our Lord and Saviour to all weary souls ‘Come unto Me, and I will give you rest’.
References. LXXXIX. 16. J. Cumming, Penny Pulpit, No. 1576, p. 231. Spurgeon, Old Testament Outlines, p. 126. LXXXIX. 19. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. i. No. 11. LXXXIX. 19, 20. G. Trevor, Types and the Antitype, p. 126. LXXXIX 37, 38. E. H. Gifford, Voices of the Prophets, p. 216.
Man’s Need of Immortality
Psa 89:47

I. I would describe this as the earliest Bible cry for immortality. It is a very peculiar cry. It is grounded not upon instinct, but upon reason. It is not a longing founded upon the mere love of life It is not a desire based upon the mere dread of death. It is not a wish rising from the mere search of new surroundings. It is a cry originating in the spirit of economy the resistance to waste. The Psalmist is impressed with the inadequacy of the term of human life. He does not mean that it is too short for enjoyment; enjoyment is always taken at a quick draught. But he thinks it too short for the work assigned to it. He sees the labourer hired into the vineyard with orders to perform a certain task. But he finds that the task given to the labourer is one which he could not possibly perform within the limits of the working day. He says, ‘What does the Lord of the vineyard mean by this disproportion between work and time, surely He must intend the labour to be continued into another day!’
II. You will find that the deepest cry of all ages has been the Psalmist’s cry. What makes us crave a future is not a sense of this world’s misery, but a sense of this world’s vanity. We say with the Psalmist, ‘Wherefore hast Thou made all men in vain why hast Thou given them working orders which are quite incommensurate with the brief time they have to live on earth?’ We feel that there is more furniture to be put into the house than the house will hold. We are prompted to boundless aspirations, and we live on earth for but an hour. We are inspired to endless love, and it never reaches summer. We are bidden by conscience to work for all ages, and we have only three score years and ten. Life’s day is too short for us. It is not too short for the bee, which completes its destined palace. It is not too short for the lark, which completes its destined song. But it is too short for man whose ideal is unrealized, whose song is unfinished, whose labour in the field is scarce begun.
III. Therefore, O Lord, I know that this is not my goal. Thou hast furnished me with powers which here can have no adequate exercise. I speak of the ephemeral insect; yet if this life were my all, the insect would not be so ephemeral as I…. The insect finishes the work which Thou gavest it to do; I leave my studies incomplete, my book unwritten, my picture without its closing touch, my house without its topmost story. But it is just my incompleteness that makes my hope. I know Thou wouldst not give me power to be squandered; I know Thou hast appointed for me another day. It is not my fear that cries to Thee; it is my sense of justice and my wish to indicate Thy justice. If earth met all my needs, I would accept the day of death. But earth has not fully responded to any one cry of my spirit as I claim response from Thee. Surely there are answers waiting somewhere to the myriad epistles written by my heart! Forbid that I should think Thou hast made my life in vain.
G. Matheson, Messages of Hope, p. 97.
References. LXXXIX. 47. G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 21. J. Martineau, Hours of Thought, vol. i. p. 203. LXXXIX. International Critical Commentary, vol. ii. p. 250. XC. 1. C. F. Aked, Christian World Pulpit, 1891. p. 10. Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. i. No. 46.
Fuente: Expositor’s Dictionary of Text by Robertson

XVI
THE MESSIANIC PSALMS AND OTHERS

We commence this chapter by giving a classified list of the Messianic Psalms, as follows:
The Royal Psalms are:
Psa 110 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 72 ; Psa 45 ; Psa 89 ;
The Passion Psalms are:
Psa 22 ; Psa 41 ; Psa 69 ;
The Psalms of the Ideal Man are Psa 8 ; Psa 16 ; Psa 40 ;
The Missionary Psalms are:
Psa 47 ; Psa 65 ; Psa 68 ; Psa 96 ; Psa 100 ; Psa 117 .
The predictions before David of the coming Messiah are, (1) the seed of the woman; (2) the seed of Abraham; (3) the seed of Judah; (4) the seed of David.
The prophecies of history concerning the Messiah are, (1) a prophet like unto Moses; (2) a priest after the order of Melchizedek; (3) a sacrifice which embraces all the sacrificial offerings of the Old Testament; (4) direct references to him as King, as in 2Sa 7:8 ff.
The messianic offices as taught in the psalms are four, viz: (1) The Messiah is presented as Prophet, or Teacher (Psa 40:8 ); (2) as Sacrifice, or an Offering for sin (Psa 40:6 ff.; Heb 10:5 ff.) ; (3) he is presented as Priest (Psa 110:4 ); (4) he is presented as King (Psa 45 ).
The psalms most clearly presenting the Messiah in his various phases and functions are as follows: (1) as the ideal man, or Second Adam (8); (2) as Prophet (Psa 40 ); (3) as Sacrifice (Psa 22 ) ; (4) as King (Psa 45 ) ; (5) as Priest (Psa 110 ) ; (6) in his universal reign (Psa 72 ).
It will be noted that other psalms teach these facts also, but these most clearly set forth the offices as they relate to the Messiah.
The Messiah as a sacrifice is presented in general in Psa 40:6 . His sufferings as such are given in a specific and general way in Psa 22 ; Psa 41 ; Psa 69 . The events of his sufferings in particular are described, beginning with the betrayal of Judas, as follows:
1. Judas betrayed him (Mat 26:14 ) in fulfilment of Psa 41:9 .
2. At the Supper (Mat 26:24 ) Christ said, “The Son of man goeth as it is written of him,” referring to Psa 22 .
3. They sang after the Supper in fulfilment of Psa 22:22 .
4. Piercing his hands and feet, Psa 22:16 .
5. They cast lots for his vesture in fulfilment of Psa 22:18 .
6. Just before the ninth hour the chief priests reviled him (Mat 27:43 ) in fulfilment of Psa 22:8 .
7. At the ninth hour (Mat 27:46 ) he quoted Psa 22:1 .
8. Near his death (Joh 19:28 ) he said, in fulfilment of Psa 69:21 , “I thirst.”
9. At that time they gave him vinegar (Mat 27:48 ) in fulfilment of Psa 69:21 .
10. When he was found dead they did not break his bones (Joh 19:36 ) in fulfilment of Psa 34:20 .
11. He is represented as dead, buried, and raised in Psa 16:10 .
12. His suffering as a substitute is described in Psa 69:9 .
13. The result of his crucifixion to them who crucified him is given in Psa 69:22-23 . Compare Rom 11:9-10 .
The Penitential Psalms are Psa 6 ; Psa 32 ; Psa 38 ; Psa 51 ; Psa 102 ; Psa 130 ; Psa 143 . The occasion of Psa 6 was the grief and penitence of David over Absalom; of Psa 32 was the blessedness of forgiveness after his sin with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah; Psa 38 , David’s reference to his sin with Bathsheba; Psa 51 , David’s penitence and prayer for forgiveness for this sin; Psa 102 , the penitence of the children of Israel on the eve of their return from captivity; Psalm 130, a general penitential psalm; Psa 143 , David’s penitence and prayer when pursued by Absalom.
The Pilgrim Psalms are Psalms 120-134. This section of the psalter is called the “Little Psalter.” These Psalms were collected in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, in troublous times. The author of the central psalm of this collection is Solomon, and he wrote it when he built his Temple. The Davidic Psalms in this collection are Psa 120 ; Psa 122 ; Psa 124 ; Psa 131 ; Psa 132 ; Psa 133 . The others were written during the building of the second Temple. They are called in the Septuagint “Songs of the Steps.”
There are four theories as to the meaning of the titles, “Songs of the Steps,” “Songs of Degrees,” or “Songs of Ascents,” viz:
1. The first theory is that the “Songs of the Steps” means the songs of the fifteen steps from the court of the women to the court of Israel, there being a song for each step.
2. The second theory is that advanced by Luther, which says that they were songs of a higher choir, elevated above, or in an elevated voice.
3. The third theory is that the thought in these psalms advances by degrees.
4. The fourth theory is that they are Pilgrim Psalms, or the songs that they sang while going up to the great feasts.
Certain scriptures give the true idea of these titles, viz: Exo 23:14-17 ; Exo 34:23-24 ; 1Sa 1:3 ; 1Ki 12:27-28 : Psa 122:1-4 ; and the proof of their singing as they went is found in Psa_42:4; 100; and Isa 30:29 . They went, singing these psalms, to the Feasts of the Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. Psa 121 was sung when just in sight of Jerusalem and Psa 122 was sung at the gate. Psa 128 is the description of a good man’s home and a parallel to this psalm in modern literature is Burns’s “Cotter’s Saturday Night.” The pious home makes the nation great.
Psa 133 is a psalm of fellowship. It is one of the finest expressions of the blessings that issue when God’s people dwell together in unity. The reference here is to the anointing of Aaron as high priest and the fragrance of the anointing oil which was used in these anointings. The dew of Hermon represents the blessing of God upon his people when they dwell together in such unity.
Now let us look at the Alphabetical Psalms. An alphabetical psalm is one in which the letters of the Hebrew alphabet are used alphabetically to commence each division. In Psalms 111-112, each clause so begins; in Psa 25 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 145 ; each verse so begins; in Psa 37 each stanza of two verses so begins; in 119 each stanza of eight verses so begins, and each of the eight lines begins with the same letter. In Psa 25 ; 34 37 the order is not so strict; in Psa 9 and Psa 10 there are some traces of this alphabetical order.
David originated these alphabetical psalms and the most complete specimen is Psa 119 , which is an expansion of the latter part of Psa 19 .
A certain group of psalms is called the Hallelujah Psalms. They are so called because the word “Hallelujah” is used at the beginning, or at the ending, and sometimes at both the beginning and the ending. The Hallelujah Psalms are Psalm 111-113; 115-117; 146-150. Psa 117 is a doxology; and Psalms 146-150 were used as anthems. Psa 148 calls on all creation to praise God. Francis of Assisi wrote a hymn based on this psalm in which he called the sun his honorable brother and the cricket his sister. Psa 150 calls for all varieties of instruments. Psalms 113-118 are called the Egyptian Hallel. They were used at the Passover (Psalm 113-114), before the Supper and Psalm 115-118 were sung after the Supper. According to this, Jesus and his disciples sang Psalms 115-118 at the last Passover Supper. These psalms were sung also at the Feasts of Pentecost, Tabernacles, Dedication, and New Moon.
The name of God is delayed long in Psa 114 . Addison said, “That the surprise might be complete.” Then there are some special characteristics of Psa 115 , viz: (1) It was written against idols. Cf. Isa 44:9-20 ; (2) It is antiphonal, the congregation singing Psa 115:1-8 , the choir Psa 115:9-12 , the priests Psa 115:13-15 and the congregation again Psa 115:16-18 . The theme of Psa 116 is love, based on gratitude for a great deliverance, expressed in service. It is appropriate to read at the celebration of the Lord’s Supper and Psa 116:15 is especially appropriate for funeral services.
On some special historical occasions certain psalms were sung. Psa 46 was sung by the army of Gustavus Adolphus before the decisive battle of Leipzig, on September 17, 1631.Psa 68 was sung by Cromwell’s army on the occasion of the battle of Dunbar in Scotland.
Certain passages in the Psalms show that the psalm writers approved the offering of Mosaic animal sacrifices. For instance, Psa 118:27 ; Psa 141:2 seem to teach very clearly that they approved the Mosaic sacrifice. But other passages show that these inspired writers estimated spiritual sacrifices as more important and foresaw the abolition of the animal sacrifices. Such passages are Psa 50:7-15 ; Psa 4:5 ; Psa 27:6 ; Psa 40:6 ; Psa 51:16-17 . These scriptures show conclusively that the writers estimated spiritual sacrifices as more important than the Mosaic sacrifices.
QUESTIONS

1. What are the Royal Psalms?
2. What are the Passion Psalms?
3. What are the Psalms of the Ideal Man?
4. What are the Missionary Psalms?
5. What are the predictions before David of the coming Messiah?
6. What are the prophecies of history concerning the Messiah?
7. Give a regular order of thought concerning the messianic offices as taught in the psalms.
8. Which psalms most clearly present the Messiah as (1) the ideal man, or Second Adam, (2) which as Prophet, or Teacher, (3) which as the Sacrifice, (4) which as King, (5) which as Priest, (6) which his universal reign?
9. Concerning the suffering Messiah, or the Messiah as a sacrifice, state the words or facts, verified in the New Testament as fulfilment of prophecy in the psalms. Let the order of the citations follow the order of facts in Christ’s life.
10. Name the Penitential Psalms and show their occasion.
11. What are the Pilgrim Psalms?
12. What is this section of the Psalter called?
13. When and under what conditions were these psalms collected?
14. Who is the author of the central psalm of this collection?
15. What Davidic Psalms are in this collection?
16. When were the others written?
17. What are they called in the Septuagint?
18. What four theories as to the meaning of the titles, “Songs of the Steps,” “Songs of Degrees,” or “Songs of Ascents”?
19. What scriptures give the true idea of these titles?
20. Give proof of their singing as they went.
21. To what feasts did they go singing these Psalms?
22. What was the special use made of Psa 121 and Psa 122 ?
23. Which of these psalms is the description of a good man’s home and what parallel in modern literature?
24. Expound Psa 133 .
25. What is an alphabetical psalm, and what are the several kinds?
26. Who originated these Alphabetical Psalms?
27. What are the most complete specimen?
28. Of what is it an expansion?
29. Why is a certain group of psalms called the Hallelujah Psalms?
30. What are the Hallelujah Psalms?
31. Which of the Hallelujah Psalms was a doxology?
32. Which of these were used as anthems?
33. Which psalm calls on all creation to praise God?
34. Who wrote a hymn based on Psa 148 in which he called the sun his honorable brother and the cricket his sister?
35. Which of these psalms calls for all varieties of instruments?
36. What is the Egyptian Hallel?
37. What is their special use and how were they sung?
38. Then what hymns did Jesus and his disciples sing?
39. At what other feasts was this sung?
40. Why was the name of God delayed so long in Psa 114 ?
41. What are the characteristics of Psa 115 ?
42. What is the theme and special use of Psa 116 ?
43. State some special historical occasions on which certain psalms were sung. Give the psalm for each occasion.
44. Cite passages in the psalms showing that the psalm writers approved the offering of Mosaic animal sacrifices.
45. Cite other passages showing that these inspired writers estimated spiritual sacrifices as more important than the Mosaic sacrifices.
Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

PSALMS

XI
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF PSALMS

According to my usual custom, when taking up the study of a book of the Bible I give at the beginning a list of books as helps to the study of that book. The following books I heartily commend on the Psalms:
1. Sampey’s Syllabus for Old Testament Study . This is especially good on the grouping and outlining of some selected psalms. There are also some valuable suggestions on other features of the book.
2. Kirkpatrick’g commentary, in “Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges,” is an excellent aid in the study of the Psalter.
3. Perowne’s Book of Psalms is a good, scholarly treatise on the Psalms. A special feature of this commentary is the author’s “New Translation” and his notes are very helpful.
4. Spurgeon’s Treasury of David. This is just what the title implies. It is a voluminous, devotional interpretation of the Psalms and helpful to those who have the time for such extensive study of the Psalter.
5. Hengstenburg on the Psalms. This is a fine, scholarly work by one of the greatest of the conservative German scholars.
6. Maclaren on the Psalms, in “The Expositor’s Bible,” is the work of the world’s safest, sanest, and best of all works that have ever been written on the Psalms.
7. Thirtle on the Titles of the Psalms. This is the best on the subject and well worth a careful study.
At this point some definitions are in order. The Hebrew word for psalm means praise. The word in English comes from psalmos , a song of lyrical character, or a song to be sung and accompanied with a lyre. The Psalter is a collection of sacred and inspired songs, composed at different times and by different authors.
The range of time in composition was more than 1,000 years, or from the time of Moses to the time of Ezra. The collection in its present form was arranged probably by Ezra in the fifth century, B.C.
The Jewish classification of Old Testament books was The Law, the Prophets, and the Holy Writings. The Psalms was given the first place in the last group.
They had several names, or titles, of the Psalms. In Hebrew they are called “The Book of Prayers,” or “The Book of Praises.” The Hebrew word thus used means praises. The title of the first two books is found in Psa 72:20 : “The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.” The title of the whole collection of Psalms in the Septuagint is Biblos Psalman which means the “Book of Psalms.” The title in the Alexandrian Codex is Psalterion which is the name of a stringed instrument, and means “The Psalter.”
The derivation of our English words, “psalms,” “psalter,” and “psaltery,” respectively, is as follows:
1. “Psalms” comes from the Greek word, psalmoi, which is also from psallein , which means to play upon a stringed instrument. Therefore the Psalms are songs played upon stringed instruments, and the word here is used to apply to the whole collection.
2. “Psalter” is of the same origin and means the Book of Psalms and refers also to the whole collection.
3. “Psaltery” is from the word psalterion, which means “a harp,” an instrument, supposed to be in the shape of a triangle or like the delta of the Greek alphabet. See Psa 33:2 ; Psa 71:22 ; Psa 81:2 ; Psa 144:9 .
In our collection there are 150 psalms. In the Septuagint there is one extra. It is regarded as being outside the sacred collection and not inspired. The subject of this extra psalm is “David’s victory over Goliath.” The following is a copy of it: I was small among my brethren, And youngest in my father’s house, I used to feed my father’s sheep. My hands made a harp, My fingers fashioned a Psaltery. And who will declare unto my Lord? He is Lord, he it is who heareth. He it was who sent his angel And took me from my father’s sheep, And anointed me with the oil of his anointing. My brethren were goodly and tall, But the Lord took no pleasure in them. I went forth to meet the Philistine. And he cursed me by his idols But I drew the sword from beside him; I beheaded him and removed reproach from the children of Israel.
It will be noted that this psalm does not have the earmarks of an inspired production. There is not found in it the modesty so characteristic of David, but there is here an evident spirit of boasting and self-praise which is foreign to the Spirit of inspiration.
There is a difference in the numbering of the psalms in our version which follows the Hebrew, and the numbering in the Septuagint. Omitting the extra one in the Septuagint, there is no difference as to the total number. Both have 150 and the same subject matter, but they are not divided alike.
The following scheme shows the division according to our version and also the Septuagint: Psalms 1-8 in the Hebrew equal 1-8 in the Septuagint; 9-10 in the Hebrew combine into 9 in the Septuagint; 11-113 in the Hebrew equal 10-112 in the Septuagint; 114-115 in the Hebrew combine into 113 in the Septuagint; 116 in the Hebrew divides into 114-115 in the Septuagint; 117-146 in the Hebrew equal 116-145 in the Septuagint; 147 in the Hebrew divides into 146-147 in the Septuagint; 148-150 in the Hebrew equal 148-150 in the Septuagint.
The arrangement in the Vulgate is the same as the Septuagint. Also some of the older English versions have this arangement. Another difficulty in numbering perplexes an inexperienced student in turning from one version to another, viz: In the Hebrew often the title is verse I, and sometimes the title embraces verses 1-2.
The book divisions of the Psalter are five books, as follows:
Book I, Psalms 1-41 (41 chapters)
Book II, Psalms 42-72 (31 chapters)
Book III, Psalms 73-89 (17 chapters)
Book IV, Psalms 90-106 (17 chapters)
Book V, Psalms 107-150 (44 chapters)
They are marked by an introduction and a doxology. Psalm I forms an introduction to the whole book; Psa 150 is the doxology for the whole book. The introduction and doxology of each book are the first and last psalms of each division, respectively.
There were smaller collections before the final one, as follows:
Books I and II were by David; Book III, by Hezekiah, and Books IV and V, by Ezra.
Certain principles determined the arrangement of the several psalms in the present collection:
1. David is honored with first place, Book I and II, including Psalms 1-72.
2. They are grouped according to the use of the name of God:
(1) Psalms 1-41 are Jehovah psalms;
(2) Psalms 42-83 are Elohim-psalms;
(3) Psalms 84-150 are Jehovah psalms.
3. Book IV is introduced by the psalm of Moses, which is the first psalm written.
4. Some are arranged as companion psalms, for instance, sometimes two, sometimes three, and sometimes more. Examples: Psa 2 and 3; 22, 23, and 24; 113-118.
5. They were arranged for liturgical purposes, which furnished the psalms for special occasions, such as feasts, etc. We may be sure this arrangement was not accidental. An intelligent study of each case is convincing that it was determined upon rational grounds.
All the psalms have titles but thirty-three, as follows:
In Book I, Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 10 ; Psa 33 , (4 are without titles).
In Book II, Psa 43 ; Psa 71 , (2 are without titles).
In Book IV, Psa 91 ; Psa 93 ; Psa 94 ; Psa 95 ; Psa 96 ; Psa 97 ; Psa 104 ; Psa 105 ; Psa 106 , (9 are without titles).
In Book V, Psa 107 ; III; 112; 113; 114; 115; 116; 117; 118; 119; 135; 136; 137; 146; 147; 148; 149; 150, (18 are without titles).
The Talmud calls these psalms that have no title, “Orphan Psalms.” The later Jews supply these titles by taking the nearest preceding author. The lack of titles in Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; and 10 may be accounted for as follows: Psa 1 is a general introduction to the whole collection and Psa 2 was, perhaps, a part of Psa 1 . Psalms 9-10 were formerly combined into one, therefore Psa 10 has the same title as Psa 9 .
QUESTIONS

1. What books are commended on the Psalms?
2. What is a psalm?
3. What is the Psalter?
4. What is the range of time in composition?
5. When and by whom was the collection in its present form arranged?
6. What the Jewish classification of Old Testament books, and what the position of the Psalter in this classification?
7. What is the Hebrew title of the Psalms?
8. Find the title of the first two books from the books themselves.
9. What is the title of the whole collection of psalms in the Septuagint?
10. What is the title in the Alexandrian Codex?
11. What is the derivation of our English word, “Psalms”, “Psalter”, and “Psaltery,” respectively?
12. How many psalms in our collection?
13. How many psalms in the Septuagint?
14. What about the extra one in the Septuagint?
15. What is the subject of this extra psalm?
16. How does it compare with the Canonical Psalms?
17. What is the difference in the numbering of the psalms in our version which follows the Hebrew, and the numbering in the Septuagint?
18. What is the arrangement in the Vulgate?
19. What other difficulty in numbering which perplexes an inexperienced student in turning from one version to another?
20. What are the book divisions of the Psalter and how are these divisions marked?
21. Were there smaller collections before the final one? If so, what were they?
22. What principles determined the arrangement of the several psalms in the present collection?
23. In what conclusion may we rest concerning this arrangement?
24. How many of the psalms have no titles?
25. What does the Talmud call these psalms that have no titles?
26. How do later Jews supply these titles?
27. How do you account for the lack of titles in Psa 1 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 10 ?
XII
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF PSALMS (CONTINUED)

The following is a list of the items of information gathered from the titles of the psalms:
1. The author: “A Psalm of David” (Psa 37 ).
2. The occasion: “When he fled from Absalom, his son” (Psa 3 ).
3. The nature, or character, of the poem:
(1) Maschil, meaning “instruction,” a didactic poem (Psa 42 ).
(2) Michtam, meaning “gold,” “A Golden Psalm”; this means excellence or mystery (Psa 16 ; 56-60).
4. The occasion of its use: “A Psalm of David for the dedication of the house” (Psa 30 ).
5. Its purpose: “A Psalm of David to bring remembrance” (Psa 38 ; Psa 70 ).
6. Direction for its use: “A Psalm of David for the chief musician” (Psa 4 ).
7. The kind of musical instrument:
(1) Neginoth, meaning to strike a chord, as on stringed instruments (Psa 4 ; Psa 61 ).
(2) Nehiloth, meaning to perforate, as a pipe or flute (Psa 5 ).
(3) Shoshannim, Lilies, which refers probably to cymbals (Psa 45 ; Psa 69 ).
8. A special choir:
(1) Sheminith, the “eighth,” or octave below, as a male choir (Psa 6 ; Psa 12 ).
(2) Alamoth, female choir (Psa 46 ).
(3) Muth-labben, music with virgin voice, to be sung by a choir of boys in the treble (Psa 9 ).
9. The keynote, or tune:
(1) Aijeleth-sharar, “Hind of the morning,” a song to the melody of which this is sung (Psa 22 ).
(2) Al-tashheth, “Destroy thou not,” the beginning of a song the tune of which is sung (Psa 57 ; Psa 58 ; Psa 59 ; Psa 75 ).
(3) Gittith, set to the tune of Gath, perhaps a tune which David brought from Gath (Psa 8 ; Psa 81 ; Psa 84 ).
(4) Jonath-elim-rehokim, “The dove of the distant terebinths,” the commencement of an ode to the air of which this song was to be sung (Psa 56 ).
(5) Leannoth, the name of a tune (Psa 88 ).
(6) Mahalath, an instrument (Psa 53 ); Leonnoth-Mahaloth, to chant to a tune called Mahaloth.
(7) Shiggaion, a song or a hymn.
(8) Shushan-Eduth, “Lily of testimony,” a tune (Psa 60 ). Note some examples: (1) “America,” “Shiloh,” “Auld Lang Syne.” These are the names of songs such as we are familiar with; (2) “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood,” are examples of sacred hymns.
10. The liturgical use, those noted for the feasts, e.g., the Hallels and Hallelujah Psalms (Psalms 146-150).
11. The destination, as “Song of Ascents” (Psalms 120-134)
12. The direction for the music, such as Selah, which means “Singers, pause”; Higgaion-Selah, to strike a symphony with selah, which means an instrumental interlude (Psa 9:16 ).
The longest and fullest title to any of the psalms is the title to Psa 60 . The items of information from this title are as follows: (1) the author; (2) the chief musician; (3) the historical occasion; (4) the use, or design; (5) the style of poetry; (6) the instrument or style of music.
The parts of these superscriptions which most concern us now are those indicating author, occasion, and date. As to the historic value or trustworthiness of these titles most modern scholars deny that they are a part of the Hebrew text, but the oldest Hebrew text of which we know anything had all of them. This is the text from which the Septuagint was translated. It is much more probable that the author affixed them than later writers. There is no internal evidence in any of the psalms that disproves the correctness of them, but much to confirm. The critics disagree among themselves altogether as to these titles. Hence their testimony cannot consistently be received. Nor can it ever be received until they have at least agreed upon a common ground of opposition.
David is the author of more than half the entire collection, the arrangement of which is as follows:
1. Seventy-three are ascribed to him in the superscriptions.
2. Some of these are but continuations of the preceding ones of a pair, trio, or larger group.
3. Some of the Korahite Psalms are manifestly Davidic.
4. Some not ascribed to him in the titles are attributed to him expressly by New Testament writers.
5. It is not possible to account for some parts of the Psalter without David. The history of his early life as found in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1and 2 Chronicles, not only shows his remarkable genius for patriotic and sacred songs and music, but also shows his cultivation of that gift in the schools of the prophets. Some of these psalms of the history appear in the Psalter itself. It is plain to all who read these that they are founded on experience, and the experience of no other Hebrew fits the case. These experiences are found in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.
As to the attempt of the destructive critics to rob David of his glory in relation to the Psalter by assigning the Maccabean era as the date of composition, I have this to say:
1. This theory has no historical support whatever, and therefore is not to be accepted at all.
2. It has no support in tradition, which weakens the contention of the critics greatly.
3. It has no support from finding any one with the necessary experience for their basis.
4. They can give no reasonable account as to how the titles ever got there.
5. It is psychologically impossible for anyone to have written these 150 psalms in the Maccabean times.
6. Their position is expressly contrary to the testimony of Christ and the apostles. Some of the psalms which they ascribe to the Maccabean Age are attributed to David by Christ himself, who said that David wrote them in the Spirit.
The obvious aim of this criticism and the necessary result if it be Just, is a positive denial of the inspiration of both Testaments.
Other authors are named in the titles, as follows: (1) Asaph, to whom twelve psalms have been assigned: (2) Mosee, Psa 90 ; (3) Solomon, Psa 72 ; Psa 127 ; (4) Heman, Psa 80 ; (5) Ethem, Psa 89 ; (6) A number of the psalms are ascribed to the sons of Korah.
Not all the psalms ascribed to Asaph were composed by one person. History indicates that Asaph’s family presided over the song service for several generations. Some of them were composed by his descendants by the game name. The five general outlines of the whole collection are as follows:
I. By books

1. Psalms 1-41 (41)
2. Psalms 42-72 (31)
3. Psalms 73-89 (17)
4. Psalms 90-106 (17)
5. Psalms 107-150 (44)
II. According to date and authorship

1. The psalm of Moses (Psa 90 )
2. Psalms of David:
(1) The shepherd boy (Psa 8 ; Psa 19 ; Psa 29 ; Psa 23 ).
(2) David when persecuted by Saul (Psa 59 ; Psa 56 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 52 ; Psa 54 ; Psa 57 ; Psa 142 ).
(3) David the King (Psa 101 ; Psa 18 ; Psa 24 ; Psa 2 ; Psa 110 ; Psa 20 ; Psa 20 ; Psa 21 ; Psa 60 ; Psa 51 ; Psa 32 ; Psa 41 ; Psa 55 ; Psa 3:4 ; Psa 64 ; Psa 62 ; Psa 61 ; Psa 27 ).
3. The Asaph Psalms (Psa 50 ; Psa 73 ; Psa 83 ).
4. The Korahite Psalms (Psa 42 ; Psa 43 ; Psa 84 ).
5. The psalms of Solomon (Psa 72 ; Psa 127 ).
6. The psalms of the era of Hezekiah and Isaiah (Psa 46 ; Psa 47 ; Psa 48 )
7. The psalms of the Exile (Psa 74 ; Psa 79 ; Psa 137 ; Psa 102 )
8. The psalms of the Restoration (Psa 85 ; Psa 126 ; Psa 118 ; 146-150)
III. By groups

1. The Jehovistic and Elohistic Psalms:
(1) Psalms 1-41 are Jehovistic;
(2) Psalms 42-83 are Elohistic Psalms;
(3) Psalms 84-150 are Jehovistic.
2. The Penitential Psalms (Psa 6 ; Psa 32 ; Psa 38 ; Psa 51 ; Psa 102 ; Psa 130 ; Psa 143 )
3. The Pilgrim Psalms (Psalms 120-134)
4. The Alphabetical Psalms (Psa 9 ; Psa 10 ; Psa 25 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 37 ; 111:112; Psa 119 ; Psa 145 )
5. The Hallelujah Psalms (Psalms 11-113; 115-117; 146-150; to which may be added Psa 135 ) Psalms 113-118 are called “the Egyptian Hallel”
IV. Doctrines of the Psalms

1. The throne of grace and how to approach it by sacrifice, prayer, and praise.
2. The covenant, the basis of worship.
3. The paradoxical assertions of both innocence & guilt.
4. The pardon of sin and justification.
5. The Messiah.
6. The future life, pro and con.
7. The imprecations.
8. Other doctrines.
V. The New Testament use of the Psalms

1. Direct references and quotations in the New Testament.
2. The allusions to the psalms in the New Testament. Certain experiences of David’s life made very deep impressions on his heart, such as: (1) his peaceful early life; (2) his persecution by Saul; (3) his being crowned king of the people; (4) the bringing up of the ark; (5) his first great sin; (6) Absalom’s rebellion; (7) his second great sin; (8) the great promise made to him in 2Sa 7 ; (9) the feelings of his old age.
We may classify the Davidic Psalms according to these experiences following the order of time, thus:
1. His peaceful early life (Psa 8 ; Psa 19 ; Psa 29 ; Psa 23 )
2. His persecution by Saul (Psa 59 ; Psa 56 ; Psa 34 ; Psa 7 ; Psa 52 ; Psa 120 ; Psa 140 ; Psa 54 ; Psa 57 ; Psa 142 ; Psa 17 ; Psa 18 )
3. Making David King (Psa 27 ; Psa 133 ; Psa 101 )
4. Bringing up the ark (Psa 68 ; Psa 24 ; Psa 132 ; Psa 15 ; Psa 78 ; Psa 96 )
5. His first great sin (Psa 51 ; Psa 32 )
6. Absalom’s rebellion (Psa 41 ; Psa 6 ; Psa 55 ; Psa 109 ; Psa 38 ; Psa 39 ; Psa 3 ; Psa 4 ; Psa 63 ; Psa 42 ; Psa 43 ; Psa 5 ; Psa 62 ; Psa 61 ; Psa 27 )
7. His second great sin (Psa 69 ; Psa 71 ; Psa 102 ; Psa 103 )
8. The great promise made to him in 2Sa 7 (Psa 2 )
9. Feelings of old age (Psa 37 )
The great doctrines of the psalms may be noted as follows: (1) the being and attributes of God; (3) sin, both original and individual; (3) both covenants; (4) the doctrine of justification; (5) concerning the Messiah.
There is a striking analogy between the Pentateuch and the Psalms. The Pentateuch contains five books of law; the Psalms contain five books of heart responses to the law.
It is interesting to note the historic controversies concerning the singing of psalms. These were controversies about singing uninspired songs, in the Middle Ages. The church would not allow anything to be used but psalms.
The history in Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles, and in Ezra and Nehemiah is very valuable toward a proper interpretation of the psalms. These books furnish the historical setting for a great many of the psalms which is very indispensable to their proper interpretation.
Professor James Robertson, in the Poetry and Religion of the Psalms constructs a broad and strong argument in favor of the Davidic Psalms, as follows:
1. The age of David furnished promising soil for the growth of poetry.
2. David’s qualifications for composing the psalms make it highly probable that David is the author of the psalms ascribed to him.
3. The arguments against the possibility of ascribing to David any of the hymns in the Hebrew Psalter rests upon assumptions that are thoroughly antibiblical.
The New Testament makes large use of the psalms and we learn much as to their importance in teaching. There are seventy direct quotations in the New Testament from this book, from which we learn that the Scriptures were used extensively in accord with 2Ti 3:16-17 . There are also eleven references to the psalms in the New Testament from which we learn that the New Testament writers were thoroughly imbued with the spirit and teaching of the psalms. Then there are eight allusions ‘to this book in the New Testament from which we gather that the Psalms was one of the divisions of the Old Testament and that they were used in the early church.
QUESTIONS

1. Give a list of the items of information gathered from the titles of the psalms.
2. What is the longest title to any of the psalms and what the items of this title?
3. What parts of these superscriptions most concern us now?
4. What is the historic value, or trustworthiness of these titles?
5. State the argument showing David’s relation to the psalms.
6. What have you to say of the attempt of the destructive critics to rob David of his glory in relation to the Psalter by assigning the Maccabean era as the date of composition?
7. What the obvious aim of this criticism and the necessary result, if it be just?
8. What other authors are named in the titles?
9. Were all the psalms ascribed to Asaph composed by one person?
10. Give the five general outlines of the whole collection, as follows: I. The outline by books II. The outline according to date and authorship III. The outline by groups IV. The outline of doctrines V. The outline by New Testament quotations or allusions.
11. What experiences of David’s life made very deep impressions on his heart?
12. Classify the Davidic Psalms according to these experiences following the order of time.
13. What the great doctrines of the psalms?
14. What analogy between the Pentateuch and the Psalms?
15. What historic controversies concerning the singing of psalms?
16. Of what value is the history in Samuel, 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles, and in Ezra and Nehemiah toward a proper interpretation of the psalms?
17. Give Professor James Robertson’s argument in favor of the Davidic authorship of the psalms.
18. What can you say of the New Testament use of the psalms and what do we learn as to their importance in teaching?
19. What can you say of the New Testament references to the psalms, and from the New Testament references what the impression on the New Testament writers?
20. What can you say of the allusions to the psalms in the New Testament?
XVII
THE MESSIAH IN THE PSALMS

A fine text for this chapter is as follows: “All things must be fulfilled which were written in the Psalms concerning me,” Luk 24:44 . I know of no better way to close my brief treatise on the Psalms than to discuss the subject of the Messiah as revealed in this book.
Attention has been called to the threefold division of the Old Testament cited by our Lord, namely, the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luk 24:44 ), in all of which were the prophecies relating to himself that “must be fulfilled.” It has been shown just what Old Testament books belong to each of these several divisions. The division called the Psalms included many books, styled Holy Writings, and because the Psalms proper was the first book of the division it gave the name to the whole division.
The object of this discussion is to sketch the psalmist’s outline of the Messiah, or rather, to show how nearly a complete picture of our Lord is foredrawn in this one book. Let us understand however with Paul, that all prophecy is but in part (1Co 13:9 ), and that when we fill in on one canvas all the prophecies concerning the Messiah of all the Old Testament divisions, we are far from having a perfect portrait of our Lord. The present purpose is limited to three things:
1. What the book of the Psalms teaches concerning the Messiah.
2. That the New Testament shall authoritatively specify and expound this teaching.
3. That the many messianic predictions scattered over the book and the specifications thereof over the New Testament may be grouped into an orderly analysis, so that by the adjustment of the scattered parts we may have before us a picture of our Lord as foreseen by the psalmists.
In allowing the New Testament to authoritatively specify and expound the predictive features of the book, I am not unmindful of what the so-called “higher critics” urge against the New Testament quotations from the Old Testament and the use made of them. In this discussion, however, these objections are not considered, for sufficient reasons. There is not space for it. Even at the risk of being misjudged I must just now summarily pass all these objections, dismissing them with a single statement upon which the reader may place his own estimate of value. That statement is that in the days of my own infidelity, before this old method of criticism had its new name, I was quite familiar with the most and certainly the strongest of the objections now classified as higher criticism, and have since patiently re-examined them in their widely conflicting restatements under their modern name, and find my faith in the New Testament method of dealing with the Old Testament in no way shattered, but in every way confirmed. God is his own interpreter. The Old Testament as we now have it was in the hands of our Lord. I understand his apostle to declare, substantially, that “every one of these sacred scriptures is God-inspired and is profitable for teaching us what is right to believe and to do, for convincing us what is wrong in faith or practice, for rectifying the wrong when done, that we may be ready at every point, furnished completely, to do every good work, at the right time, in the right manner, and from the proper motive” (2Ti 3:16-17 ).
This New Testament declares that David was a prophet (Act 2:30 ), that he spake by the Holy Spirit (Act 1:16 ), that when the book speaks the Holy Spirit speaks (Heb 3:7 ), and that all its predictive utterances, as sacred Scripture, “must be fulfilled” (Joh 13:18 ; Act 1:16 ). It is not claimed that David wrote all the psalms, but that all are inspired, and that as he was the chief author, the book goes by his name.
It would be a fine thing to make out two lists, as follows:
1. All of the 150 psalms in order from which the New Testament quotes with messianic application.
2. The New Testament quotations, book by book, i.e., Matthew so many, and then the other books in their order.
We would find in neither of these any order as to time, that is, Psa 1 which forecasts an incident in the coming Messiah’s life does not forecast the first incident of his life. And even the New Testament citations are not in exact order as to time and incident of his life. To get the messianic picture before us, therefore, we must put the scattered parts together in their due relation and order, and so construct our own analysis. That is the prime object of this discussion. It is not claimed that the analysis now presented is perfect. It is too much the result of hasty, offhand work by an exceedingly busy man. It will serve, however, as a temporary working model, which any one may subsequently improve. We come at once to the psalmist’s outline of the Messiah.
1. The necessity for a Saviour. This foreseen necessity is a background of the psalmists’ portrait of the Messiah. The necessity consists in (1) man’s sinfulness; (2) his sin; (3) his inability of wisdom and power to recover himself; (4) the insufficiency of legal, typical sacrifices in securing atonement.
The predicate of Paul’s great argument on justification by faith is the universal depravity and guilt of man. He is everywhere corrupt in nature; everywhere an actual transgressor; everywhere under condemnation. But the scriptural proofs of this depravity and sin the apostle draws mainly from the book of the Psalms. In one paragraph of the letter to the Romans (Rom 3:4-18 ), he cites and groups six passages from six divisions of the Psalms (Psa 5:9 ; Psa 10:7 ; Psa 14:1-3 ; Psa 36:1 ; Psa 51:4-6 ; Psa 140:3 ). These passages abundantly prove man’s sinfulness, or natural depravity, and his universal practice of sin.
The predicate also of the same apostle’s great argument for revelation and salvation by a Redeemer is man’s inability of wisdom and power to re-establish communion with God. In one of his letters to the Corinthians he thus commences his argument: “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? -For after that in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preach-ing to save them that believe.” He closes this discussion with the broad proposition: “The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God,” and proves it by a citation from Psa 94:11 : “The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.”
In like manner our Lord himself pours scorn on human wisdom and strength by twice citing Psa 8 : “At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight” (Mat 11:25-26 ). “And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children that were crying in the temple and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” (Mat 21:15-16 ).
But the necessity for a Saviour as foreseen by the psalmist did not stop at man’s depravity, sin, and helplessness. The Jews were trusting in the sacrifices of their law offered on the smoking altar. The inherent weakness of these offerings, their lack of intrinsic merit, their ultimate abolition, their complete fulfilment and supercession by a glorious antitype were foreseen and foreshown in this wonderful prophetic book: I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices; And thy burnt offerings are continually before me. I will take no bullock out of thy house, Nor he-goat out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, And the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all of the birds of the mountains; And the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee; For the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, Or drink the blood of goats? Psa 50:8-13 .
Yet again it speaks in that more striking passage cited in the letter to the Hebrews: “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshipers, once purged should have no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance made of sins year by year. For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not, But a body didst thou prepare for me; In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hadst no pleasure: Then said I, Lo, I am come (In the roll of the book it is written of me) To do thy will, O God. Saying above, Sacrifice and offering and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou wouldst not, neither hadst pleasure therein, (the which are offered according to the law), then hath he said, Lo, I am come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second” (Heb 10:1-9 ).
This keen foresight of the temporary character and intrinsic worthlessness of animal sacrifices anticipated similar utterances by the later prophets (Isa 1:10-17 ; Jer 6:20 ; Jer 7:21-23 ; Hos 6:6 ; Amo 5:21 ; Mic 6:6-8 ). Indeed, I may as well state in passing that when the apostle declares, “It is impossible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins,” he lays down a broad principle, just as applicable to baptism and the Lord’s Supper. With reverence I state the principle: Not even God himself by mere appointment can vest in any ordinance, itself lacking intrinsic merit, the power to take away sin. There can be, therefore, in the nature of the case, no sacramental salvation. This would destroy the justice of God in order to exalt his mercy. Clearly the psalmist foresaw that “truth and mercy must meet together” before “righteousness and peace could kiss each other” (Psa 85:10 ). Thus we find as the dark background of the psalmists’ luminous portrait of the Messiah, the necessity for a Saviour.
2. The nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation to be wrought by the coming Messiah. In no other prophetic book are the nature, fullness, and blessedness of salvation so clearly seen and so vividly portrayed. Besides others not now enumerated, certainly the psalmists clearly forecast four great elements of salvation:
(1) An atoning sacrifice of intrinsic merit offered once for all (Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:4-10 ).
(2) Regeneration itself consisting of cleansing, renewal, and justification. We hear his impassioned statement of the necessity of regeneration: “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts,” followed by his earnest prayer: “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me,” and his equally fervent petition: “Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow” (Psa 51 ). And we hear him again as Paul describes the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputes righteousness without works, saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, And whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not reckon sin Psa 32:1 ; Rom 4:6-8 .
(3) Introduction into the heavenly rest (Psa 95:7-11 ; Heb 3:7-19 ; Heb 4:1-11 ). Here is the antitypical Joshua leading spiritual Israel across the Jordan of death into the heavenly Canaan, the eternal rest that remaineth for the people of God. Here we find creation’s original sabbath eclipsed by redemption’s greater sabbath when the Redeemer “entered his rest, ceasing from his own works as God did from his.”
(4) The recovery of all the universal dominion lost by the first Adam and the securement of all possible dominion which the first Adam never attained (Psa 8:5-6 ; Eph 1:20-22 ; Heb 2:7-9 ; 1Co 15:24-28 ).
What vast extent then and what blessedness in the salvation foreseen by the psalmists, and to be wrought by the Messiah. Atoning sacrifice of intrinsic merit; regeneration by the Holy Spirit; heavenly rest as an eternal inheritance; and universal dominion shared with Christ!
3. The wondrous person of the Messiah in his dual nature, divine and human.
(1) His divinity,

(a) as God: “Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Psa 45:6 and Heb 1:8 ) ;

(b) as creator of the heavens and earth, immutable and eternal: Of old didst thou lay the foundation of the earth; And the heavens are the work of thy hands. They shall perish, but thou shalt endure; Yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; As a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed. But thou art the same, And thy years shall have no end Psa 102:25-27 quoted with slight changes in Heb 1:10-12 .
(c) As owner of the earth: The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof; The world, and they that dwell therein, Psa 24:1 quoted in 1Co 10:26 .
(d) As the Son of God: “Thou art my Son; This day have I begotten thee” Psa 2:7 ; Heb 1:5 .
(e) As David’s Lord: The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool, Psa 110:1 ; Mat 22:41-46 .
(f) As the object of angelic worship: “And let all the angels of God worship him” Psa 97:7 ; Heb 1:6 .
(g) As the Bread of life: And he rained down manna upon them to eat, And gave them food from heaven Psa 78:24 ; interpreted in Joh 6:31-58 . These are but samples which ascribe deity to the Messiah of the psalmists.
(2) His humanity, (a) As the Son of man, or Son of Adam: Psa 8:4-6 , cited in 1Co 15:24-28 ; Eph 1:20-22 ; Heb 2:7-9 . Compare Luke’s genealogy, Luk 3:23-38 . This is the ideal man, or Second Adam, who regains Paradise Lost, who recovers race dominion, in whose image all his spiritual lineage is begotten. 1Co 15:45-49 . (b) As the Son of David: Psa 18:50 ; Psa 89:4 ; Psa 89:29 ; Psa 89:36 ; Psa 132:11 , cited in Luk 1:32 ; Act 13:22-23 ; Rom 1:3 ; 2Ti 2:8 . Perhaps a better statement of the psalmists’ vision of the wonderful person of the Messiah would be: He saw the uncreated Son, the second person of the trinity, in counsel and compact with the Father, arranging in eternity for the salvation of men: Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:5-7 . Then he saw this Holy One stoop to be the Son of man: Psa 8:4-6 ; Heb 2:7-9 . Then he was the son of David, and then he saw him rise again to be the Son of God: Psa 2:7 ; Rom 1:3-4 .
4. His offices.
(1) As the one atoning sacrifice (Psa 40:6-8 ; Heb 10:5-7 ).
(2) As the great Prophet, or Preacher (Psa 40:9-10 ; Psa 22:22 ; Heb 2:12 ). Even the method of his teaching by parable was foreseen (Psa 78:2 ; Mat 13:35 ). Equally also the grace, wisdom, and power of his teaching. When the psalmist declares that “Grace is poured into thy lips” (Psa 45:2 ), we need not be startled when we read that all the doctors in the Temple who heard him when only a boy “were astonished at his understanding and answers” (Luk 2:47 ); nor that his home people at Nazareth “all bear him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth” (Luk 4:22 ); nor that those of his own country were astonished, and said, “Whence hath this man this wisdom?” (Mat 13:54 ); nor that the Jews in the Temple marveled, saying, “How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?” (Joh 7:15 ) ; nor that the stern officers of the law found their justification in failure to arrest him in the declaration, “Never man spake like this man” (Joh 7:46 ).
(3) As the king (Psa 2:6 ; Psa 24:7-10 ; Psa 45:1-17 ; Psa 110:1 ; Mat 22:42-46 ; Act 2:33-36 ; 1Co 15:25 ; Eph 1:20 ; Heb 1:13 ).
(4) As the priest (Psa 110:4 ; Heb 5:5-10 ; Heb 7:1-21 ; Heb 10:12-14 ).
(5) As the final judge. The very sentence of expulsion pronounced upon the finally impenitent by the great judge (Mat 25:41 ) is borrowed from the psalmist’s prophetic words (Psa 6:8 ).
5. Incidents of life. The psalmists not only foresaw the necessity for a Saviour; the nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation; the wonderful human-divine person of the Saviour; the offices to be filled by him in the work of salvation, but also many thrilling details of his work in life, death, resurrection, and exaltation. It is not assumed to cite all these details, but some of the most important are enumerated in order, thus:
(1) The visit, adoration, and gifts of the Magi recorded in Mat 2 are but partial fulfilment of Psa 72:9-10 .
(2) The scripture employed by Satan in the temptation of our Lord (Luk 4:10-11 ) was cited from Psa 91:11-12 and its pertinency not denied.
(3) In accounting for his intense earnestness and the apparently extreme measures adopted by our Lord in his first purification of the Temple (Joh 2:17 ), he cites the messianic zeal predicted in Psa 69:9 .
(4) Alienation from his own family was one of the saddest trials of our Lord’s earthly life. They are slow to understand his mission and to enter into sympathy with him. His self-abnegation and exhaustive toil were regarded by them as evidences of mental aberration, and it seems at one time they were ready to resort to forcible restraint of his freedom) virtually what in our time would be called arrest under a writ of lunacy. While at the last his half-brothers became distinguished preachers of his gospel, for a long while they do not believe on him. And the evidence forces us to the conclusion that his own mother shared with her other sons, in kind though not in degree, the misunderstanding of the supremacy of his mission over family relations. The New Testament record speaks for itself:
Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them. How is it that ye sought me? Knew ye not that I must be in my Father’s house? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them Luk 2:48-51 (R.V.).
And when the wine failed, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. And Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come. Joh 2:3-5 (R.V.).
And there come his mother and his brethren; and standing without; they sent unto him, calling him. And a multitude was sitting about him; and they say unto him. Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee. And he answereth them, and saith, Who is my mother and my brethren? And looking round on them that sat round about him, he saith, Behold, my mother and my brethren) For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother Mar 3:31-35 (R.V.).
Now the feast of the Jews, the feast of tabernacles, was at hand. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples also may behold thy works which thou doest. For no man doeth anything in secret, and himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou doest these things, manifest thyself to the world. For even his brethren did not believe on him. Jesus therefore saith unto them, My time is not yet come; but your time is always ready. The world cannot hate you; but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that its works are evil. Go ye up unto the feast: I go not up yet unto this feast; because my time is not fulfilled. Joh 7:2-9 (R.V.).
These citations from the Revised Version tell their own story. But all that sad story is foreshown in the prophetic psalms. For example: I am become a stranger unto my brethren, And an alien unto my mother’s children. Psa 69:8 .
(5) The triumphal entry into Jerusalem was welcomed by a joyous people shouting a benediction from Psa 118:26 : “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Mat 21:9 ); and the Lord’s lamentation over Jerusalem predicts continued desolation and banishment from his sight until the Jews are ready to repeat that benediction (Mat 23:39 ).
(6) The children’s hosanna in the Temple after its second purgation is declared by our Lord to be a fulfilment of that perfect praise forecast in Psa 8:2 .
(7) The final rejection of our Lord by his own people was also clear in the psalmist’s vision (Psa 118:22 ; Mat 21:42-44 ).
(8) Gethsemane’s baptism of suffering, with its strong crying and tears and prayers was as clear to the psalmist’s prophetic vision as to the evangelist and apostle after it became history (Psa 69:1-4 ; Psa 69:13-20 ; and Mat 26:36-44 ; Heb 5:7 ).
(9) In life-size also before the psalmist was the betrayer of Christ and his doom (Psa 41:9 ; Psa 69:25 ; Psa 109:6-8 ; Joh 13:18 ; Act 1:20 ).
(10) The rage of the people, Jew and Gentile, and the conspiracy of Pilate and Herod are clearly outlined (Psa 2:1-3 ; Act 4:25-27 ).
(11) All the farce of his trial the false accusation, his own marvelous silence; and the inhuman maltreatment to which he was subjected, is foreshown in the prophecy as dramatically as in the history (Mat 26:57-68 ; Mat 27:26-31 ; Psa 27:12 ; Psa 35:15-16 ; Psa 38:3 ; Psa 69:19 ).
The circumstances of his death, many and clear, are distinctly foreseen. He died in the prime of life (Psa 89:45 ; Psa 102:23-24 ). He died by crucifixion (Psa 22:14-17 ; Luk 23 ; 33; Joh 19:23-37 ; Joh 20:27 ). But yet not a bone of his body was broken (Psa 34:20 ; Joh 19:36 ).
The persecution, hatred without a cause, the mockery and insults, are all vividly and dramatically foretold (Psa 22:6-13 ; Psa 35:7 ; Psa 35:12 ; Psa 35:15 ; Psa 35:21 ; Psa 109:25 ).
The parting of his garments and the gambling for his vesture (Psa 22:18 ; Mat 27:35 ).
His intense thirst and the gall and vinegar offered for his drink (Psa 69:21 ; Mat 27:34 ).
In the psalms, too, we hear his prayers for his enemies so remarkably fulfilled in fact (Psa 109:4 ; Luk 23:34 ).
His spiritual death was also before the eye of the psalmist, and the very words which expressed it the psalmist heard. Separation from the Father is spiritual death. The sinner’s substitute must die the sinner’s death, death physical, i.e., separation of soul from body; death spiritual, i.e., separation of the soul from God. The latter is the real death and must precede the former. This death the substitute died when he cried out: “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me.” (Psa 22:1 ; Mat 27:46 ).
Emerging from the darkness of that death, which was the hour of the prince of darkness, the psalmist heard him commend his spirit to the Father (Psa_31:35; Luk 23:46 ) showing that while he died the spiritual death, his soul was not permanently abandoned unto hell (Psa 16:8-10 ; Act 2:25 ) so that while he “tasted death” for every man it was not permanent death (Heb 2:9 ).
With equal clearness the psalmist foresaw his resurrection, his triumph over death and hell, his glorious ascension into heaven, and his exaltation at the right hand of God as King of kings and Lord of lords, as a high Driest forever, as invested with universal sovereignty (Psa 16:8-11 ; Psa 24:7-10 ; Psa 68:18 ; Psa 2:6 ; Psa 111:1-4 ; Psa 8:4-6 ; Act 2:25-36 ; Eph 1:19-23 ; Eph 4:8-10 ).
We see, therefore, brethren, when the scattered parts are put together and adjusted, how nearly complete a portrait of our Lord is put upon the prophetic canvas by this inspired limner, the sweet singer of Israel.
QUESTIONS

1. What is a good text for this chapter?
2. What is the threefold division of the Old Testament as cited by our Lord?
3. What is the last division called and why?
4. What is the object of the discussion in this chapter?
5. To what three things is the purpose limited?
6. What especially qualifies the author to meet the objections of the higher critics to allowing the New Testament usage of the Old Testament to determine its meaning and application?
7. What is the author’s conviction relative to the Scriptures?
8. What is the New Testament testimony on the question of inspiration?
9. What is the author’s suggested plan of approach to the study of the Messiah in the Psalms?
10. What the background of the Psalmist’s portrait of the Messiah and of what does it consist?
11. Give the substance of Paul’s discussion of man’s sinfulness.
12. What is the teaching of Jesus on this point?
13. What is the teaching relative to sacrifices?
14. What the nature, extent, and blessedness of the salvation to be wrought by the coming Messiah and what the four great elements of it as forecast by the psalmist?
15. What is the teaching of the psalms relative to the wondrous person of the Messiah? Discuss.
16. What are the offices of the Messiah according to psalms? Discuss each.
17. Cite the more important events of the Messiah’s life according to the vision of the psalmist.
18. What the circumstances of the Messiah’s death and resurrection as foreseen by the psalmist?
Fuente: B.H. Carroll’s An Interpretation of the English Bible

Psa 89:1 Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite. I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite ] Who having out lived Solomon, and seen both the defection of the ten tribes from the house of David, and the woeful work made by Shishak, king of Egypt, in the kingdom of Judah, 2Ch 12:1-9 composed this psalm (as it may seem), and left it for an eruditive or instruction to all succeeding ages what to do in such dismal changes and concussions. That Jewish doctor mentioned by Aben Ezra was more ignorent than wise, who would neither read nor hear this psalm, Quia videtur dura de Deo proferre, because it seemeth to speak harshly of God, Psa 89:39 .

Ver. 1. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord ] God’s mercies moved him to promise, his faithfulness bindeth him to perform; Ethan promiseth to celebrate both, were the times never so bad, their case never so calamitous.

I will make known thy faithfulness ] Which yet I am sometimes moved to make question of. Thus the psalmist insinuateth before he complaineth, Ut faciendum docent rhetores in causis invidiosis; wherein he showeth himself a right rhetorician.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

This is “An instruction of Ethan the Ezrahite.”
In striking contrast, but morally connected closely with the preceding tone of depression and wrath under law, is the last psalm of this book. It is truly the expression of mercy and faithfulness in Christ, the object and securer of divine promises and especially of those to David. Then was the dark night; soon comes the dawn of the day when the Sun of righteousness arises with healing in His wings for the afflicted righteous, and He shall tread down the wicked as ashes. For it is in no way the gospel of grace, but the kingdom displayed in power and justice by Jehovah Messiah on the earth. This closes Book III.
Fuente: William Kelly Major Works (New Testament)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psa 89:1-4
1I will sing of the lovingkindness of the Lord forever;
To all generations I will make known Your faithfulness with my mouth.
2For I have said, Lovingkindness will be built up forever;
In the heavens You will establish Your faithfulness.
3I have made a covenant with My chosen;
I have sworn to David My servant,
4I will establish your seed forever
And build up your throne to all generations. Selah.
Psa 89:1-4 This strophe in NASB is divided into two strophes (Psa 89:1-4) by NKJV, NRSV, NJB because there are two speakers.
1. the psalmist in Psa 89:1-2
a. I will sing – BDB 1010, KB 1479, Qal cohortative
b. I will make known – BDB 393, KB 390, Hiphil imperfect used in a cohortative sense
c. I have said. . . – BDB 55, KB 65, Qal perfect
2. YHWH Himself in Psa 89:3-4
a. I have made a covenant – BDB 503, KB 500, Qal perfect
b. I have sworn – BDB 989, KB 1396, Niphal perfect
c. I will establish – BDB 465, KB 464, Hiphil imperfect
d. I will build up – BDB 124, KB 139, Qal perfect with waw (links to perfects in a and b)
Psa 89:1 There are three words that occur several times in this Psalm.
1. lovingkindness, Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:14; Psa 89:24; Psa 89:28; Psa 89:33; Psa 89:49 – see SPECIAL TOPIC: LOVINGKINDNESS (HESED)
2. forever, Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:4; Psa 89:28; Psa 89:37; Psa 89:52 – see Special Topic: Forever (‘olam)
3. faithfulness, Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:5; Psa 89:8; Psa 89:24; Psa 89:33; Psa 89:49 – see Special Topic: Believe, Trust, Faith and Faithfulness in the OT
They establish the hope of Israel in God’s call, grace, protection, and provision forever.
The term forever is parallel to all generations (Psa 89:1 b, 4b).
Psa 89:3 covenant See Special Topic: Covenant .
My chosen. . .David This probably refers to
1. the choice of David as king over Saul, 1 Samuel 16; 2Sa 7:8
2. the promise to David about his descendants, 2Sa 7:12-17
My Servant This becomes an honorific title (some examples).
1. Moses – Num 12:7; Jos 1:2
2. Joshua – Jdg 2:8
3. David – 1Ki 8:24-26; Psa 89:20
4. Solomon – 1Ki 8:28
5. Messiah – Isa 42:1; Isa 52:13 to Isa 53:12
6. Israel – Isa 41:8; Isa 42:19; Isa 43:10; Isa 44:1; Isa 44:21
Psa 89:4 This is an allusion to 2 Samuel 7. This Psalm has several allusions to YHWH’s promise to David and his descendants.
1. Psa 89:4 – 2Sa 7:13; 2Sa 7:16
2. Psa 89:22 – 2Sa 7:10
3. Psa 89:23 – 2Sa 7:9
4. Psa 89:29 – 2Sa 7:13; 2Sa 7:16
5. Psa 89:33 – 2Sa 7:15
6. Psa 89:35 – 2Sa 7:8-17
your throne to all generations This same promise is made in Isa 9:7; Dan 2:44; Dan 7:14; Dan 7:18; Dan 7:27; Luk 1:33. YHWH has an eternal redemptive plan for all humans. See Special Topic: YHWH’s Eternal Redemptive Plan .
The term generations is used of
1. promise to Noah – Gen 9:12
2. promise to Abram – Gen 17:7; Gen 17:9
3. promise to Israel – Deu 7:9
4. promise to David – Psa 89:4 (reflecting 2Sa 7:13; 2Sa 7:16)
Selah This occurs at the end of Psa 89:4; Psa 89:37; Psa 89:45; Psa 89:48. It often serves to close a strophe. On the meaning of the word (BDB 699) see note online at Psa 3:2.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

Title. Maschil = Instruction. The twelfth of thirteen so named (the thirteenth being Psalm 142). See note on Psalm 32, and App-65.
Ethan. Mentioned with Heman (Psalm 88). A Merarite (1Ch 6:44; 1Ch 15:17). He seems to have another name, “Jeduthun” (1Ch 25:1, 1Ch 25:3, 1Ch 25:6; 1Ch 16:41, 1Ch 16:42). The only Psalm ascribed to Ethan. See note on Psa 89:30. Ezrahite. See note on Psalm 88, Title. Compre the case of Elkanah 1Sa 1:1).
mercies = lovingkindnesses. Plural of majesty = the great lovingkindness.
the LORD. Hebrew. Jehovah. App-4.
faithfulness = truth. Hebrew. ’emunah. Seven times reiterated in this Psalm: verses: Psa 89:1, Psa 89:2, Psa 89:5, Psa 1:8, Psa 1:24, Psa 1:33, Psa 1:49 (“in thy truth”).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Psa 89:1-52
I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations ( Psa 89:1-4 ).
Now in verse Psa 89:3 , actually, the psalm begins with the psalmist declaring, “I will sing praises to the Lord; sing of His mercies. My mouth will make known His faithfulness.” Now God responds to that. And verse Psa 89:3 is God’s response. And God’s response goes actually clear on down to verse Psa 89:37 . So God is speaking now. It’s a prophecy as the psalmist now is speaking forth for God. “I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to David my servant.” What did He swear to David? “Thy seed will I establish forever, and build up thy throne to all generations.”
And the heavens shall praise thy wonders ( Psa 89:5 ),
And now the psalmist comes back. Selah ends God’s voice there. God will begin speaking again down a little ways further. So now the psalmist takes it up again. “And the heavens shall praise Thy wonders,”
O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints. For who in heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto Jehovah? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints ( Psa 89:5-7 ),
Or reverenced, actually, in the assembly of the saints.
and to be had in reverence of all of them that are about him ( Psa 89:7 ).
I think that we can learn quite a bit from the Jewish people concerning the reverence of God. I think that there is a tendency sometimes within the church circles of really not having the proper reverential attitude towards God. Sometimes we begin to get a little flippant about God. And we talk about the man upstairs and we begin to speak of God in irreverent kind of terms even. And I think that we need to be careful about this. We need to become aware and conscious of the greatness of God, the vastness of God. And to be always really just sort of in awe before Him.
There are some people that just by their very position command respect. Because Ronald Reagan has been elected as the next President of the United States, you wouldn’t go up, you know, if you were at the airport and you saw him getting off the plane, you wouldn’t go running up and say, “Well, Ronnie, all right man. Glad to see you made it, you know.” Because of the position as President of the United States you would treat him with respect. You would have respect for the position that the man now has.
We have… living in a society that seems to try to break down this respect for authority. And it is a common thing among our society now of not really showing proper respect for authority. But that is a whole social breakdown. Not showing respect to police officers. Not showing respect to those that are in authority. It just shows a part of the whole social breakdown that is taking place. But it is tragic, because sometimes people also carry that disrespectful attitude over to God. And we should always, actually, hold God in the very highest of respect and reverence.
Now the Jews had such reverence for God that when the scribes would copy the scriptures, every time they came to the name Eloihim, God, in their text, they would take their pen and they would wash it. And then they would dip it in fresh ink to write the letters for God. If they came to the Adonai, the Lord, then they would take and get a fresh pen to write Adonai in the text. If they came to the consonants that stood for that holy name of God, the Y-H-V-H, they would go in and take a bath, change and put on fresh clothes and get a total fresh pen and dip it in ink and write the consonants. But they wouldn’t put in the vowels because they felt that the name of God was so holy that they shouldn’t even pronounce it in their minds and it should never be uttered from the lips of a person. They wouldn’t dare even utter the name.
Now that I think is carrying it perhaps further than God intended, and yet, it does show a degree of reverence towards God that I think that somewhere in the middle of the pendulum we’ll find the truth. They may be a little extreme on the one end of legalism, but I think that we tend towards an extreme on the other end, and that in the middle here we need ourselves to come more to the middle of a greater reverence and respect for God. That we don’t just speak lightly of God, but we hold Him in highest esteem and respect. God is greatly to be reverenced in the assembly of the saints and to be had in reverence of all of them that are about Him.
O Jehovah God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee? For you rule the raging of the sea: when the waves arise, you still them. You have broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; you have scattered your enemies with your strong arm. The heavens are yours, and the earth also is yours: as for the world and the fulness thereof, you have founded them. The north, the south you’ve created them: Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name. You have a mighty arm: strong is your hand, and high is your right hand. Justice and judgment are your habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance. And in thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted. For you are the glory of their strength: and in thy favor our horn shall be exalted. For the LORD is our defense; and the Holy One of Israel is our King ( Psa 89:8-18 ).
Now God responds to this. The psalmist declares of the greatness of God, declaring why He should be reverenced because of the fact that He rules over the earth, over the heavens, created the earth.
Then you spake in vision to the holy one, and said, I have laid up help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one that is chosen out of the people. I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him: With whom my hand shall be established: my arm shall also strengthen him. The enemy shall not exact upon him ( Psa 89:19-22 );
That is, will not collect a tribute. He will not be paying tribute to the enemies. He will not be defeated and have to pay tribute to the enemies.
nor the son of wickedness afflict him. And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him. But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted ( Psa 89:22-24 ).
The horn is a symbol of strength, and so the name of the Lord will be his strength.
I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the eaRuth ( Psa 89:25-27 ).
This, no doubt, has a double fulfillment not only in David, but also in that Seed that should come from David that will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords, even a prophecy of Jesus Christ.
My mercy will I keep for him for ever, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor allow my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once I have sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me ( Psa 89:28-36 ).
Which, of course, goes on to the prophecy of Christ, “Who will sit upon the throne of David to order it and to establish it in righteousness and in judgment from henceforth, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” ( Isa 9:7 ). So God has sworn that Christ will sit upon the throne of David forever and ever.
It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as the faithful witness in heaven ( Psa 89:37 ).
And the Selah brings us to the end of God’s response to the psalmist. Now the psalmist declares:
But you have cast off and abhorred, you have been angry with your anointed. You have made void the covenant of your servant: you have profaned his crown by casting it to the ground. You have broken down all of his hedges; you have brought his strongholds to ruin. All that pass by the way spoil him: he is a reproach to his neighbors. Thou hast set up the right hand of his adversaries; thou hast made all his enemies to rejoice. Thou hast also turned the edge of his sword, and hast not made him to stand in the battle. You have made his glory to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground. The days of his youth have you shortened: and you’ve covered him with shame. How long, LORD? will you hide yourself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire? Remember how short my time is: wherefore hast thou made all men in vain? What man is he that lives, and shall not see death? shall he deliver his soul from the hand of the grave? Lord, where are thy former lovingkindnesses, which you swore to David in thy truth? Remember, Lord, the reproach of your servants; how I do bear in my bosom the reproach of all the mighty people; Wherewith your enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine anointed ( Psa 89:38-51 ).
And then the close of the third book of the psalms.
Blessed be Jehovah for evermore. Amen, and Amen ( Psa 89:52 ).
I have mentioned before that each of the books of the psalms closes with a benediction, with the Amen, and Amen. That brings us to the end of the third book. And Psa 90:1-17 begins the fourth book of the psalms. “
Fuente: Through the Bible Commentary

Psalms 89. Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite. That is to say, an instructive Psalm, written by or for one Ethan, one of the great singers of Davids day. He sings of the covenant, the covenant with David, ordered in all things and sure. There is no higher theme for song than the covenant of Gods grace, one marvels that it has not oftener been sung by those who are the gifted children of poetry.
Psa 89:1. I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever:
Another subject might wear out, but this glorious topic will never be exhausted, Here is a theme which we can sing of in eternity as well as in time. Let others choose what subject they may, I will sing of the mercies of Jehovah for ever.
Psa 89:1. With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
Gods faithfulness is the mercy of his mercy. It is the center-point of his goodness that his goodness endureth for ever. We are not only to sing; we are to teach. The Psalmist says, With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations. In telling his own experience, narrating what he had observed, as well as what he had proved of Gods faithfulness to his promise and his covenant, he would do this so that following generations should know about it. We are the schoolmasters of the ages to come; I mean, saints who have experienced the mercy and the faithfulness of God. We ought to make known Jehovahs faithfulness to all generations that are yet to come.
Psa 89:2. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever:
What a building, Mercy! Gods mercy is to be built up for ever.
Psa 89:2. Thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens.
Like the great arch you see in the firmament on high, unbuttressed and unpillared, yet it stands fast. So shall Gods faithfulness be built up, settled, and established in the very heavens. And now God speaks:
Psa 89:3. I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,
Well might the psalmist say, in the second verse, I have said, when God in the third verse says, I have sworn. It is ours to say, it is Gods to say with such tremendous solemnity that doubt cannot be tolerated. I have made a covenant with my chosen: King David, who is, however, but the type of his greater Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the heir of the dynasty of David. With him is this covenant made for ever.
Psa 89:4. Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.
Whatever may happen in the world, Davids Seed is always reigning; whatever kings may lose their crowns, King Jesus will never lose the many crowns that are on his head. God has sworn it: Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Then comes the word, Selah. Rest; meditate; and truly, here is enough to rest and meditate upon for many a day, if we went no farther into the Psalm.
Psa 89:5. And the heavens shall praise thy wonder, O LORD: thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints.
The psalmist meant to praise God at such a rate that the sun, and moon, and stars, should hear his song, while angels and the host redeemed by blood should learn to praise God better than ever. Thy faithfulness also in the congregation of the saints: one saint begins to sing of Gods faithfulness, and the others take it up, for God is not faithful to one only, but to all his people. This is a subject which, when once started, will produce an echo in every believers heart.
Psa 89:6-7. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints,
The holiest are always the most reverent. There is no fear of God in the assembly of the sinners; but he is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints.
Psa 89:7. And to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
The nearer they came to him, the more is their awe of him; the greater their love, the deeper is their humility. God will not have those about him who are flippant and irreverent; he is to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
Psa 89:8. O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee?
Note how the psalmist harps upon that one string, faithfulness. Ah, dear friends, there are times when this is the sweetest note in the whole scale! Thy faithfulness: we have a God who never forgets his promises, but keeps them to the moment; a God who never changes; a God who never turns away from his word. Thy faithfulness. Oh, what a blessed virtue is this in God! Let us praise him for it for ever. Try faithfulness round about thee: as if the Lord never went outside the ring of faithfulness, never did anything that broke his promises, or that made any of his children to doubt; and it is even so.
Psa 89:9. Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
Are you now in a storm, my brother? My sister, are you now tempest-tossed? Listen to this word, and remember the Lord High Admiral of the fleet on the Lake of Galilee, and how, after he had been asleep for awhile, he arose, and rebuked the winds and the waves: Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
Psa 89:10. Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
Rahab was Egypt. The word means strong, mighty, proud, all of which were the characteristics of Egypt, which God brake in pieces at the Red Sea. Pharaoh was the greatest of monarchs at the time, but, oh, how soon he had to yield when Gods right arm was bared for war!
Psa 89:11. The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fullness thereof, thou hast founded them.
Sometimes we are tempted to think that the earth cannot be Gods, all over the globe man is the master, he claims everything; if men could map out the heavens, we should have owners for every single twinkling star and, if they could have their way, we should have to buy our light by measure, and our sunshine by-weight. But the earth is the Lords, and the fullness thereof; and the heavens also are his.
Psa 89:12. The north and the south thou hast created them: Tabor and Hermon
East and West, as well as North and South,
Psa 89:12. Shall rejoice in thy name.
There is not a place where God is not to be found. All the points of the compass are compassed by God. You cannot go where the Lords love reigns not, nor where Providence will not follow you.
Psa 89:13-15. Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound:
There are some who hear it, and yet are not blessed. Blessed are they who know it, know its peculiar accent, know its inward power, know its omnipotence, know its unchangeableness, know it by having tried it and proved it, and rested in it: Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound.
Psa 89:15. They shall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.
It is all the light they want. Let God but smile, it makes their day. If every candle were blown out, yet the favor of God would make life bright enough for them.
Psa 89:16. In thy name shall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteousness shall they be exalted.
Even in Gods righteousness. Until we know the Lord, we are afraid of his righteousness, but when we come to know him, his righteousness, which once frowned upon us, becomes our heaven. God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love. God is not unrighteous to cast away a soul that puts its trust in Christ. God is one with his people. When we rejoice all the day in his name, we are exalted in his righteousness.
Psa 89:17-19. For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy favour our horn shall be exalted. For the LORD is our defence; and the Holy One of Israel is our king. Then thou spakest in vision to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
This is David first, but it is Christ high above David. One of ourselves, the carpenters Son, yet has God made him to be the Head over all things for his Church: I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Psa 89:20-21. I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him: with whom my hand shall be established: mine arm also shall strengthen him.
The full power of God is with Christ. That same arm, that bears the earths huge pillars up, and spreads the heavens abroad, is engaged on behalf of the cause and kingdom of the Son of David.
Psa 89:22. The enemy shall not exact upon him; nor the son of wickedness afflict him,
He had enough of that when he was upon the earth; but it is all over now. He has gone into his glory, and the enemy cannot touch him now.
Psa 89:23. And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him,
There is the portion of all haters of Christ. God will, somehow or other, in the order of his providence bring the evil home to them. If they will not have Gods Son, they shall not have his mercy; they shall, sooner or later, be beaten down before his face.
Psa 89:24-25. But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him: and in my name shall his horn be exalted. I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers.
He shall reign from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. We may go on to fight for him, for his triumph is sure.
Psa 89:26-27. He shall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.
So he is. Firstborn among men, firstborn of kings, his throne is loftier than the most imperial power on the earth. Blessed be his name! Let us adore him tonight; and here, in the midst of his people, let us crown him Lord of all.
Psa 89:28-36. My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.
The Son of David is still King in the midst of the true Israel. Still Jesus reigns; and on and on, for ever and for ever, great Davids greater Son shall be King of kings, and Lord of lords.
Psa 89:37. It shall be established for ever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.
Now let us read a passage from the New Testament, showing how the Lord Jesus dealt with the crowds that came to him.
This exposition consisted of readings from Psa 89:1-37, And Joh 6:22-40.
Fuente: Spurgeon’s Verse Expositions of the Bible

Psa 89:1-4
THE END OF THE DAVIDIC DYNASTY WAS NOT UNDERSTOOD BY ISRAEL
The occasion for this psalm was the conquest of Jerusalem, the capture of king Jehoiachin, his deportation to Babylon along with Daniel and many other able Hebrews, and the enthronement of the puppet king Zedekiah, a vassal of Nebuchadnezzar. A number of able scholars agree on this.
The statement in Psa 89:45 that God had shortened the days of the youth of the king and covered him with shame may refer to Jehoiachin who was only 18 years old when carried away captive, – The whole tone of the psalm suggests that it was written when the kingdom was toppling to ruin, or perhaps even after its fall. – The days of … Zedekiah, just before the fall of Jerusalem seem to fit the situation. – The humiliation Of a king was probably that of Jehoiachin. – The occasion is the defeat and deposition of a Judean king … many think Jehoiachin, probably in the early sixth century B.C.
The psalm starts off like a song of praise to God (Psa 89:1-18), after which there follows a rehearsal of God’s marvelous promises to David regarding the kingdom to be established “forever” (Psa 89:19-37); but quite abruptly in Psa 89:38 the psalm changes into a lament, in terminology that borders on the nature of a reproach against God and a charge that he has failed to keep his promises to Israel. That attitude of vigorous complaint prevails throughout Psa 89:38-45. Then there comes an urgent plea for God to intervene and restore to Israel the glories to which they believed themselves entitled by the ancient promises of God.
Psa 89:52 is no part of this psalm but forms the doxology concluding Book III of the Psalter.
By far, the most important verse in the whole psalm is Psa 89:37 which indicates that the everlasting “throne of David” is not an earthly throne at all. The promises to the Davidic dynasty upon which Israel had so enthusiastically rested their expectations were never to be fulfilled in the literal earthly dynasty of David, the whole institution of the Davidic kingdom being merely typical in a very feeble way of the glorious kingdom of the Messiah, even Jesus Christ, who today is sitting upon the “spiritual throne of David” in heaven itself. See full discussion of all this under Psa 89:37.
Psa 89:1-4
INTRODUCTION
“I will sing of the lovingkindness of Jehovah forever:
With my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
For I have said, Mercy shall be built up forever;
Thy faithfulness wilt thou establish in the very heavens.
I have made a covenant with my chosen,
I have sworn unto David my servant:
Thy seed will I establish forever,
And build up thy throne to all generations.”
The first two verses here are the pledge of the psalmist to sing the praises of God forever; and Psa 89:2-4 are a summary of 2 Samuel 7, the key passage of the Scriptures in which God through the prophet Nathan made the glorying promises presented here. The entire psalm is related to God’s promise of an everlasting kingdom, through the posterity of David.
Apparently, the thought never entered either the mind of David himself, or that of any other Israelite, that the kingdom God promised was not a kingdom of this world, but a SPIRITUAL kingdom. The entire conception of an earthly kingdom of Israel was sinful in its inception, absolutely contrary to God’s will, and constituting, through Israel’s demand that they should have such a kingdom, Israel’s rejection of God Himself (1Sa 8:7).
In this light it appears to us as wholly the fault of Israel that they should have believed that “the everlasting kingdom” which God promised them would be any kind of a literal earthly monarchy. God told them at the very beginning of that earthly kingdom they so much desired just exactly what such a kingdom would be like. See 1Sa 8:10-18.
The tragic blindness of the chosen people to this one great epic truth is one of the most incredible mistakes any people ever made. Their refusal to believe God’s Word about this was the root cause of their rejection of the true Messiah when he finally appeared.
E.M. Zerr:
Psa 89:1. The wording of many of the psalms of David was based on his condition of mind. The condition of his mind was caused largely by whatever experiences he was having or considering. The preceding chapter was based on his experiences of distress. The present one is devoted to the pleasant experiences of the Psalmist, and to consideration of the goodness and greatness of God.
Psa 89:2. Faithfulness when applied to God means he is true to his promises. Established . . . heavens means the Lord carries out his word to the highest extent.
Psa 89:3. David speaks for the Lord by using the first personal pronoun I. He had chosen David for a special purpose and had made him a sworn covenant.
Psa 89:4. This verse promised a fleshly favor that would have been fulfilled had the seed of David been faithful. The throne in Jerusalem would have been maintained until the end of the Jewish age, since “age-lasting” is the meaning of for ever. It was fulfilled spiritually because Christ was the seed of David and his kingdom is to be everlasting according to the prophecy in Dan 2:44.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

Taken as a whole, this song is one of the finest in the collection as a revelation of how the man of faith is compelled to view circumstances of calamity. In a poem of great beauty he first sets forth the praises of God (vv. Psa 89:1-37). Then he surveys the present condition of His people, and so creates a contrast (vv. Psa 89:38-52). No present defeat can dim the glory of past history as it reveals the facts of Divine majesty. Yet these past facts and confidences may be the reason of present enquiry and approach to God.
In the first part, which is a song of praise, the singer tells of the covenant made with David, and then breaks out into adoration. The heavens and the angels witness to His greatness (vv. Psa 89:5-7). The earth and men also. All nature, the sea and the mountains, the north and the south, are conscious of His power. In His government the foundations are unshakeable, and the method full of tenderness (vv. Psa 89:8-14).
It follows naturally that the people who are peculiarly His own are indeed blessed (vv. Psa 89:15-18). This is not theory only; it is experience. For them Jehovah had found a king, and had made him and the people under him invincible in the days of their obedience. Such facts issue in confidence that the future must be one of victory and blessing.
But, and the word suggests a change, and a great change it is. Instead of the glowing picture of the former verses is a dark one of present experience. The people are scattered, their defences broken down, their enemies triumphant, and their king is robbed of glory, and covered with shame (vv. Psa 89:38-45).
Yet most carefully notice that all this is spoken of as the work of Jehovah. The key phrase to this portion is Thou hast. The mighty One Who had found the king and blessed the nation is the One Who has broken the nation and cast out the king. Upon the basis of that conviction the final prayer rises, How long, Jehovah. This is the true attitude of the interceding soul in the day of calamity. First, a sense of the greatness and goodness of God, as revealed in the first part of the song. Then the conviction that this same One is visiting the people in discipline. To know the faithfulness of god is to know that when He afflicts there is meaning of mercy in it. When that is recognised, prayer for deliverance is proper, for it must inevitably be accompanied by a turning back of Jehovah from those things which have been the reason of His punishments.
The psalm ends with the doxology which closes the book, and expresses the worship of Jehovah as the essential Helper of His people.
Fuente: An Exposition on the Whole Bible

No God like Our God
Psa 89:1-18
To understand this psalm we must turn to 2Sa 7:1-29, where God guaranteed that Davids kingdom should be continued to his descendants. Nathans words are quoted in Psa 89:3-4. But in contrast with these promises, which were conditional upon the faithful obedience of Davids descendants, the psalmist sorrowfully recites the disobedience of the Chosen People. There could be no doubt as to the divine faithfulness to Covenant engagements. See Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:5; Psa 89:8; Psa 89:14. And the object of this psalm is to inquire whether that faithfulness does not include the recall and restoration of a sinful nation, as it most certainly does include the continued blessing of an obedient one.
In the first division, Psa 89:1-18, the singer enumerates the divine attributes. Gods mercy is conceived as a stately mansion, which is being reared, story by story, throughout the centuries. The enduring heavens, the mightiest natural forces, such as the tides, the glorious mountains, are emblems of qualities in Gods nature. He is described as going forth in a triumphal procession, preceded by Mercy and Truth; and we are invited to accompany Him, and to walk in the light of His countenance.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary

Psa 89:15
The blessing is not in the sound, but in the soul. It is the soul that knows the sound. Eloquence, that moves all hearts, is utterly unimpressive if the soul, capable of thinking and feeling, is not there. The same evangelisation spoke to the Hebrews in the tones of the silver trumpets as in our Christian service; it spoke to them of a family relationship with God, of a Mediator, of a Sacrifice, of worship of Him, the one only true God. It was joyful. It said, “Ye are God’s husbandry; ye are God’s building.”
I. It was a joyful sound. It proclaimed Divine ordinances; it said, “Sin and tyranny have not all dominion over you.”
II. It was a joyful sound. It proclaimed the possibility of a deeper union with God. It is this joyful sound which thrills the spirit as with the trumpet-call to victory. This sound becomes a strong compulsion in the being, till the free nature exclaims, “The love of Christ constraineth us.”
III. “They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance.” They shall be blessed in the present enjoyment, knowing whom they have believed, doing all for the glory of God. And how blessed is the anticipation, stirring the heart with even a deeper tide of joy, for the light of God’s countenance shall not only be a present blessedness, but the source of yet brighter expectations.
E. Paxton Hood, Sermons, p. 264.
References: Psa 89:15.-Spurgeon, Old Testament Outlines, p. 126; A. Maclaren, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 252; Outline Sermons to Children, p. 61; A. Watson, Sermons for Sundays, Festivals, and Fasts, 2nd series, vol. i., p. 76. Psa 89:16.-Ibid., 1st series, p. 92. Psa 89:19.-Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. i., No. 11; Ibid., Morning by Morning, p. 23. Psa 89:37, Psa 89:38.-E. H. Gifford, Voices of the Prophets, p. 215.
Psa 89:47
I. The temptation to believe that man is made in vain. Everything rebukes vanity in man, since he himself, as well as the world, is vain. The idea that man is made in vain is made common property, not at all by sameness of experience, but by the universal feeling that, whatever the experience may be, it leaves man infinitely remote from his desires. This thought is painfully impressed upon us when we survey that large range of characters to which we may give the denomination of wasted lives.
II. Notice the structure of the question, “Wherefore hast Thou made all men in vain?” Is it possible to reconcile the vanity of man with the greatness of God? (1) I believe that Thou hast not a chief regard to Thine own power. Power is but one of Thine attributes. Canst Thou sport with Thy power? Canst Thou create beauty merely to mar it? (2) I believe Thou art not inattentive to Thy creatures’ desires, though they seem to be mocked. It is an everlasting chase; we never realise. “Why hast Thou made all men in vain?” (3) I believe Thou art Thyself a pure Being. Thus Thou canst not be pleased only to contemplate evanescence and decay. “Wherefore hast Thou made all men in vain?” These are the soliloquies and cries of our nature; and the appropriate answer to all is, Man is not made in vain. There is something in him which God does not regard as vanity. The whole of our education here is to raise us to the assurance that “He who made us with such large discourse, looking before and after,” could not have made us in vain.
III. “My times are in Thy hand.” God’s real way is made up of all the ways of our life. The hand of Jesus is the hand which rules our times. He regulates our life-clock. Christ is for and Christ in us. My life can be no more in vain than was my Saviour’s life in vain.
IV. This truth rightly grasped and held, we shall never think it possible that any life can be unfulfilled which does not, by its own voluntary perversity, fling itself away.
E. Paxton Hood, Dark Sayings on a Harp, p. 21.
References: Psa 89:47.-Homiletic Magazine, vol. ix, p. 321; J. Martineau, Hours of Thought, vol. i., p. 203; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 21.
Psa 89:49
It was on the morrow of the profound humiliation of Jerusalem by Shishak, and amidst the political and religious ruins which it had brought with it, that the eighty-ninth Psalm was written. The writer was an old servant and friend of the royal house: Ethan the Ezrahite. He was one of those wise men whose names are recorded as having been exceeded in wisdom by King Solomon, and had long taken part with Heman and Asaph in the Temple’s services; and thus at this sad crisis of his history he pours out his soul in the pathetic and majestic Psalm before us, and of this psalm the keynote is to be found in the words, “Lord, where are Thy former lovingkindnesses, which Thou swarest unto David in Thy truth?”
I. “Where are Thy former lovingkindnesses?” As he sings Ethan looks around him, and his eye rests on a scene of degradation and ruin. He suffers as a patriot; he suffers as a religious man; he suffers as the descendants of the old Roman families suffered when they beheld Alaric and his hosts sacking the Eternal City. What had become of the lovingkindness of God, what of His faithfulness, what of His power? Ethan, in his report of the promise, answered his own difficulty. The covenant with David was not an absolute covenant. It depended upon conditions. There is a difference between the gifts of the Creator in the region of unconscious nature and His gifts in the region of free, self-determining will. The former are absolute gifts; the latter depend for their value and their virtue on the use that is made of them. The race of David was raised from among the shepherds of Bethlehem to reign over a great people upon conditions-conditions which were summed up in fidelity to Him who had done so much for it. Ethan himself states this supreme condition in the words of the Divine Author of the covenant: “If David’s children forsake My law, and walk not in My judgments, …then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their sin with scourges.”
II. Ethan’s cry has often been raised by pious men in the bad days of Christendom: “Lord, where are Thy former lovingkindnesses?” And the answer is, “They are where they were.” “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance.” Now, as always, the promises of God to His people are largely conditioned. If the gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church, much short of this may happen as a consequence of the unfaithfulness of her members or her ministers. Of this let us be sure, that if God’s promises seem to any to have failed, the fault lies not with Him, but with ourselves; it is we who have changed, not He. The cloud which issues from our furnaces of passion and self-will has overclouded for the moment the face of the sun; but beyond the cloud of smoke the sun still shines.
H. P. Liddon, Contemporary Pulpit, vol. ii., p. 257 (see also Christian World, Pulpit, vol. xxvi., p. 120).
Reference: Psa 89:49.-S. Cox, Expositions, 3rd series, p. 138.
Fuente: The Sermon Bible

Psalm 89
Gods Faithfulness: His Oath-bound Covenant with David
1. Jehovahs faithfulness (Psa 89:1-18)
2. His covenant with David (Psa 89:19-37)
3. The ruin and desolation (Psa 89:38-45)
4. How long, Lord? Remember! (Psa 89:46-52)
A Maschil of Ethan, a Merarite (1Ch 6:44; 1Ch 15:17). The greater part of this Psalm extols Jehovahs lovingkindness and faithfulness and makes prominent the covenant with David. We must of course look beyond David and behold Him, the Son of David in whom this covenant will be ratified. Viewed prophetically this Psalm becomes intensely interesting. Psa 89:4-37 tell us of all the blessings which will be on earth when our Lord, the Son of David, is King. He is the Firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth (Psa 89:27). All His enemies will be beaten down, they are scattered (Psa 89:10; Psa 89:22). Justice and judgment will be the foundations of His throne, mercy and truth will go before His face (Psa 89:14). His people will be blessed and walk in the light of His countenance; He will be the glory of their strength, their defense and their King (Psa 89:15-18). His seed (including the heavenly people, the Church, and the earthly people) shall endure forever, and His throne as the days of heaven (Psa 89:29; Psa 89:36). The past ruin of the house of David and the people Israel, the result of unbelief and disobedience, covered with shame instead of glory, is described in Psa 89:38-45 and the prayer follows that the Lord may remember what He has sworn to David.
Fuente: Gaebelein’s Annotated Bible (Commentary)

Maschil
Maschil, instruction.
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes

Ethan: 1Ki 4:31, 1Ch 2:6
I will: Psa 86:12, Psa 86:13, Psa 101:1, Psa 106:1, Psa 136:1-26
with: Psa 40:9, Psa 40:10, Psa 71:8, Psa 71:15-19
thy faithfulness: Psa 89:5, Psa 89:8, Psa 89:33, Psa 89:49, Psa 36:5, Psa 92:2, Isa 25:1, Lam 3:23, Mic 7:20, Tit 1:2
all generations: Heb. generation and generation, Psa 89:4, Psa 119:90, *marg.
Reciprocal: Gen 49:24 – his bow 1Ch 6:44 – Ethan Psa 48:1 – greatly Psa 57:10 – For Psa 59:16 – sing aloud Psa 71:22 – even Psa 90:1 – all generations Psa 100:5 – and his truth Psa 103:17 – the mercy Psa 105:1 – make known Psa 115:1 – for thy mercy Psa 117:2 – General Psa 119:54 – General Psa 135:13 – throughout all generations Psa 138:2 – and praise Psa 145:21 – My mouth Isa 16:5 – in mercy Joh 1:17 – grace 1Jo 3:1 – what
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

The Psalm of Worshipful Praise
Psa 89:1-37
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
By way of introduction we shall take the first two verses of our study and see what God will give us. Let us quote to you these verses in full. “I will sing of the mercies of the Lord for ever: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, Mercy shall be built up for ever: Thy faithfulness shalt Thou establish in the very Heavens.” With these words before us, let us notice the unique place which praise holds among the children of God.
1. The first praise mentioned in the Bible; that is, the praise which was first. In the Book of Job God is talking unto Job and He says, “Where wast thou when * * the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” Here was praise away back when God first created the earth. It was then that the morning stars sang. It was then that the sons of God shouted for joy.
2. The praise of deliverance. This was the praise of Moses and Israel when the Children of Israel came through the Red Sea as by dry land. How their shouts of joy and victory must have rung out. Moses and the Children of Israel sang, saying, “I will sing unto the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea. The Lord is my Strength and song and He is become my Salvation.” Read in the 15th of Exodus the words of the complete song which they sang.
When they had finished, Miriam, Moses’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances and Miriam answered them, “Sing ye to the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea.” Thus she picked up the very words which Moses and the men had sung.
3. The song at the building of the Temple. After Solomon had finished the work, and the time of the dedication of God’s House had come, “It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord, saying, For He is good; for His mercy endureth for ever: that then the House was filled with the cloud, even the House of the Lord.”
That was, indeed, a glorious day, and how they must have sung with their cymbals and psalteries and their harps.
4. Praises at the rebuilding of the walls. Israel had been in great stress. The enemy had overthrown their city, but in the days of Nehemiah under the patronage of the king, the walls had been repaired. Then it was that all Israel broke forth into singing and in praise. “For Judah rejoiced for the priests and for the Levites that waited. And both the singers and the porters * * were chief of the singers and songs of praises.” It was so also in the days of Ezra. It was also the same in the days of their captivity, when the Lord had given deliverance. By the rivers of Babylon, in the days of their captivity, they sat down and wept. They hung their harps upon the willows, and they said, “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land.” When, however, the Lord brings them back from the North and from the South and from the East and the West and puts them once more in their own land, they will indeed shout for joy, and their praise will fill the whole earth.
5. The songs of the Church. From Pentecost the Church has always been filled with the joy of the Lord. Heathendom of today knows nothing of the songs which thrill the saints of God. A life that is filled with the Holy Spirit is a life that is filled with song, even as God hath said, “Be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,”
6. Singing in the days to come. In the air there will be great convocations of praise, in which both angels and the redeemed of the earth will join together in praising God and the Lamb. With what majestic power and glory will they say, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.” We all shall join in those days in the song of Moses and the Lamb.
I. THE CERTAINTY OF GOD’S COVENANT (Psa 89:3-4)
Here is God’s Covenant with David: “I have made a Covenant with My chosen, I have sworn unto David My servant, Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations.” There is no doubt at all that Jesus Christ was crucified according to the counsel and foreknowledge of God; but He was also raised from the dead and loosed from the pains of death, because it was impossible that He should be holden of it.
David knew that God had sworn unto him with an oath that He would raise up Christ to sit upon his throne. David believed that what God had promised, He would do. The Covenants of God are unchangeable.
In Act 17:1-34 are these remarkable words: “He (God) hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead.”
These words mean nothing if they do not mean that God will fulfill His Covenant to David because He hath raised up Christ. The One whom He has raised from the dead He will bring again to the earth to sit on David’s throne. Thus will David’s throne be established through all generations.
Did not the Lord say, “Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder.” Then He added, “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David,”
Did not the angel Gabriel say to Mary, concerning her Son and Babe, “The Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: * * and of His kingdom there shall be no end”?
This was God’s Covenant which He made with David; David knowing it, came and sat before the Lord and said, “This was yet a small thing in Thy sight, O Lord God.” What was a small thing? That the Lord had brought David out of the sheepcote, as a shepherd of his father’s sheep, and had made him shepherd-king over Israel. He had brought him hitherto-thus far, then David said, “This is a small thing; here then is the big thing.” “For Thou hast also spoken of Thy servant’s house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O Lord God.”
The Man of High Degree is none other than Christ who came from on high, even as it is written, that David, “being a Prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that * * He would raise up Christ to sit on his throne.” This is the Covenant of our Psa 89:3 and Psa 89:4.
II. HEAVEN AND EARTH VIE IN PRAISE (Psa 89:5-6)
1. The Heavens shall praise Thy wonders, O Lord. This may mean the people in the Heavens, the great host of angels and archangels; the ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousand; the four living ones; the four and twenty elders, the innumerable hosts of the redeemed; all in Heaven shall praise Thee.
For our part, we believe that the very movement of the stars in their orbits praise God, even as the aeolion harp sounds forth the sweetest praise through the vibration caused by the winds.
2. The earth shall praise Him. The congregation of the saints will acclaim His faithfulness. They will say, “Who in the Heaven can be compared unto the Lord? who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord?” God is, and always has been, greatly to be feared and greatly to be praised in the assembly of His saints. He is to be had in reverence of all them that love Him.
Let all the earth praise the Lord, the Heavens and the things that are therein, the earth and they that dwell therein. The works of the Lord are honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endureth forever. So we say, “Praise the Lord all ye nations, praise Him all ye people.” Praise is comely and whosoever praiseth the Lord glorifies Him.
III. GOD IS GREATLY TO BE FEARED AND REVERED (Psa 89:7-9)
1. The supreme God. Psa 89:8 says, “O Lord God of hosts, who is a strong Lord like unto Thee? or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee?” Psa 89:9 says, “Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, Thou stillest them.” There is, indeed, no God like unto our God. He is great and greatly to be praised. His power leaches from one end of Heaven to the other.
We love to think of God in His authority in nature. We love to watch His power in the dashing of the waves, in the motion of the winds. We cannot help but think of Christ as He has exerted all authority over those things which have to do with nature. God could cause the moon to stand still in the Valley of Ajalon, or He could cause the waves and the winds to be still on the sea of Galilee. God could cause the waters of the Red Sea to divide, or the waters of the Jordan to stand back in a heap. He could send the ravens to feed Elijah, or cause the pot of oil, and the barrel of meal never to fail. Our God has all authority in nature.
We love to see the power of God in the realm of the spiritual, even as Paul said, that ye may know the “exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward, * * when He raised Him (Christ) from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand * * far above all principality and power.” We love to consider the power of God as He raised the physically dead, but even more the power of God as He raises those who are dead in trespasses and sins.
Once have I heard this, yea, twice, that power belongs unto God.
2. The call to worship and revere Him. If God is great He is greatly to be feared, and He is to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him. The people of today need to know more of what it is to take off the shoes off their feet. They need to know how to bend their knees in adoration and prayer at His throne. Let all the earth keep silence before Him. At His Name let every knee bow in reverence, and every tongue confess that He is the Christ of God.
IV. THE ALL-RULING GOD (Psa 89:10-13)
1. The power of God to undo and scatter His enemies. No arm which is lifted up against the Lord can prosper. God is able to bring down every high look, and everything that lifts up itself, and exalts itself above Him. The second chapter of Isaiah says, “The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down.” The same chapter says, “For the Day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low.”
The same chapter also says, “The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”
2. The strong and mighty arm of God. “The heavens are Thine, the earth also is Thine: as for the world and the fulness thereof, Thou hast founded them. The north and the south Thou hast created them: * * Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is Thy hand, and high is Thy right hand.” We wonder to whom the arm of the Lord has been revealed.
His arm is mighty to save. We remember how Peter was sinking in the waves, and Christ stretched forth His hand and rescued him. We remember how He saved us with His mighty arm, and broke the powers that held us bound. Yes, we thank Him for the arm of His salvation.
His arm is mighty to keep. He has said, “Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.” He hath said, “But God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” Where is he who can lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? Where is he who can condemn one of God’s redeemed? “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” How marvelous it all is. “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” His arm is mighty to keep.
V. ATTRIBUTES OF GOD (Psa 89:14-17)
1. “Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne.” Our God is a just God and cannot excuse the guilty. If He is to save the lost, He must save them without defeating His justice and judgment. He must save them without laying low the majesty and honor of His Law. God will not, and cannot, forgive the guilty,
2. “Mercy and truth shall go before Thy face.” If God is just, how can He be merciful? How can He save the sinner, the guilty? There is only one basis upon which He can be merciful, and that is upon the basis of the Cross. Jesus Christ must take the stripes due to us. He must bear the sin of many. He who knew no sin, must be made sin for us.
3. “In Thy righteousness shall they be exalted.” Our God is a righteous God. Abraham said, “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” And God does do right, because righteousness is His raiment.
We stand amazed now because after we read “Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne,” we read again, “Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance.”
4. In Thy righteousness we rejoice. We are amazed, for as soon as we have considered the righteousness of God, and His glory, we also read, “In Thy Name shall they rejoice all the day.” In the light of justice and judgment for sin, in the light of the wrath of God against all unrighteousness, wherein cometh the joyful sound? It is none other than the joyful sound of salvation, born of mercy and of truth.
VI. THE GOD OF ALL BENEFIT (Psa 89:18-26)
1. “The Lord is our Defence.” Our enemies are swift against us. Satan goeth about seeking whom he may devour. Our Lord, however, is our Place of refuge. He is also our Defense. He undertakes for us. He is our Shield and our Buckler. He is our Rock, the Rock of our salvation. We have nothing to fear, because we are hiding in Him.
2. “The Holy One of Israel is our King.” We are the children of His pasture. He is our Ruler, our Lord. We wear His yoke; however, His yoke is easy. We bear His burdens, yet His burdens are light,
3. God is our Benefactor. He anoints us with holy oil; that is, He gives unto us the Spirit-the Spirit of love, joy, and peace. He sets us aside for Himself.
God establishes us. It is He who makes our message and service authoritative. It is He who keeps us from wandering.
The Lord strengthens us. He strengthens us with His mighty arm. He clothes us with His power. Be we ever so weak, He says, “I will be with thee.”
God is with us in faithfulness. He says, “Great is My faithfulness, it is fresh every morning; it is renewed every evening.” God is not only faithful in character, but is faithful to us in all His actions. He is faithful to all His promises.
Psa 89:25 and Psa 89:26 say, “I will set his hand also in the sea, and His right hand in the rivers. He shall cry unto Me, Thou art my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.” When God speaks unto us He calls us like as a father. We, therefore, may say unto Him, “My Father.” We may also call Him, “My God,” because there is none other God than He; and we may call Him the Rock of our salvation, because there is no other rock. Thank God for what He is to us, and for all His benefactions.
VII. AN EVERLASTING, UNBREAKABLE, AND UNCONDITIONAL COVENANT (Psa 89:27-36)
1. Special promises to David. God is saying something to David His servant, which He will fulfill until the end. When God has spoken, who can draw it back? When God has made a Covenant, who can disannul it? Let us tabulate some of the things pledged to David:
(1) I will make him my firstborn.
(2) I will make him higher than the kings of the earth.
(3) My mercy will I keep for him forevermore.
(4) My Covenant shall stand fast with him.
(5) His seed also shall I make to endure forever.
(6) I will make his throne as the days of Heaven.
“If his children forsake My Law, and walk not in My judgments; if they break My Statutes, and keep not My Commandments; then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.”
(7) My lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him.
(8) I will not suffer My faithfulness to fail.
(9) My Covenant I will not break.
(10) I will not alter the thing that has gone out of My mouth.
(11) I have sworn by My holiness that I will not lie unto David.
(12) His seed shall endure forever.
(13) His throne shall endure as the sun before Me.
(14) It shall be established forever as the moon, and as a faithful witness in Heaven.
Let us consider these wonderful Covenant pledges and their certainties in the light of other Scriptures. God was not slow in promising David to establish himself and his seed and his throne. When God sent Nathan to David, Nathan gave this covenant unto him, “And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go to be with thy father, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.” Then God said, “I will settle him in Mine House and in My Kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be established for evermore.”
AN ILLUSTRATION
Surely we have many things for which to praise God, for we were blind and dumb and dead, all three.
Dr. Goodsell, in one of his meetings in New York, speaking to some reporters over in the corner who were sharpening their pencils and trying to get some news for the next morning’s papers, said, “Gentlemen, I have got something that will give you a big headline for tomorrow. The other night three blind men came in here, and their eyes were opened. The other night five deaf men came in here, and their ears were unstopped. The other night four dead men were brought in here, and were raised to life.” The reporters stopped sharpening their pencils, and opened their eyes and looked. Then Dr. Goodsell said, “Will those three blind men who had their eyes opened stand up?” And three men stood up. “Will those five deaf men who came in here the other night, and have been hearing ever since, stand up?” And five more men stood up. “Will those four men who were brought in here dead, and were made alive, please stand up?” And they also stood. “Now,” said Dr. Goodsell, “we will excuse you reporters while you run out and telephone to your offices that three blind men have received their sight, five deaf men have had their ears unstopped, and four dead men have been made alive again.” These up-to-date miracles are being wrought all over the world, demonstrating Rom 1:16 : “The power * * to every one.”
Fuente: Neighbour’s Wells of Living Water

Help in Another.
Maskil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
We have now, however, in the last psalm of the book, what is in entire contrast with the previous one, the grace of God as revealed in His covenant with David, upon which the blessing to Israel as a nation rests. These “sure mercies of David” to which the apostle at Antioch refers, quoting Isaiah, (Isa 55:3) are fulfilled, as he declares, in Christ, and in Christ raised from the dead, His work accomplished, which is what makes them “sure.” That Christ is the true David, he, with Peter at Jerusalem, proves from the sixteenth psalm. If David had there said, “Thou wilt not suffer Thy Pious One to see corruption,” he had himself yet surely seen corruption. Only Christ, the antitypical David, had not seen it. Here, then, is the “Pious One” of the nineteenth verse. God is speaking in the typical language so constantly used in the Old Testament, and thus the glorious assurances given in His Name are fully justified.
The psalm is another Maskil, and no wonder; and it is the maskil of another Ezrahite, Ethan; whose name means, in full accordance with his subject, “constant, durable.” And here too we find what is “proper to the soil” it springs from, the covenant of promise rooting itself in what God is; “durable,” because Jehovah endures, the same yesterday, today, and for ever.”
1. The two main divisions are strongly contrasted in their character. The first enlarges on the covenant of promise itself, and its inviolable nature is strongly insisted on. The second shows us how, nevertheless, the promise might seem to have failed; and this, which is brought forward in solemn appeal to God, goes on to what may be considered the end of the psalm; the closing verse being the usual ascription of praise to Jehovah, with which the third book ends. It is, however, plainly suited as this to be the third division of the psalm, and can scarcely be anything else than this; while its energetic brevity, coming after the long plaint of sorrow, seems even to give it emphasis as the resurrection of faith, which needs no argument, and precedes the answer on God’s part: an answer that is fully given in the fourth book.
(1) The first division has also two subdivisions: the first of which dwells upon Jehovah as being the Maker of the covenant; necessarily (inasmuch as it is a covenant of promise) the only party to it. Thus, if He be faithful, and at the same time all-powerful, all is secure. The argument is so simple and complete, that nothing can be simpler.
(a) Accordingly the first section declares the inviolability of the promise, founded on Jehovah’s righteousness. “I will sing for ever,” says the psalmist, “of Jehovah’s loving-kindness: with my mouth will I make known Thy faithfulness to all generations. For I have said, Loving-kindness shall be built up for ever: in the very heavens shall Thy righteousness be exalted.” This is what he says in view of the covenant which the next verse declares. Upon earth, indeed, things may seem for the present to be in conflict with this; and from the Jewish stand-point the testimony of many generations now might seem to be against it. The tree of David’s house is leveled to the ground and Israel are wanderers among the nations. But the heavens have for faith another story to tell, since the Crucified has become the Glorified; and they will have a marvelous witness to give when the fruits of the cross shall be seen in the multitude of the redeemed in heaven; soon to be seen in His train as He comes forth from thence, not merely King of Israel, but King of kings.
(b) The covenant is now affirmed as from Jehovah’s lips: it is said and sworn. The wondrous tenderness of God’s oath for such as we are, the apostle bids us consider, in his epistle to the Hebrews (Heb 6:16-18). In fact, the whole idea of “covenant” is one which speaks of gracious adaptation to our infirmity. The covenant with David here -while a greater than David is surely to be seen in it -has its reason in this, that it is to David himself that it is given; and for the assurance of others with him. We must not go back of this, and argue, as so many have, a covenant in eternity between the Father and the Son, as if such could be needed between the Persons of the Godhead, one in eternal counsel. Surely, spite of its large adoption by theologians, this is only the introduction of human thoughts into a sphere to which they cannot belong. A contract of such sort would naturally imply some diversity of thought where none is possible, and help to foster the unworthy notion of the cross being the reconciliation of the Father to us, instead of God’s love to the world being declared in the gift of His beloved Son. Of such a use of covenant Scripture knows nothing -can know nothing. Covenant with David we can understand well enough, and bless God for His tenderness to men in such a pledge. A pledge to Him Christ could not need. Yet that in no way hinders our seeing in David the One who is the Centre of the eternal purposes, the One expression and justification of Divine grace.
David was indeed the chosen of God, as the seventy-eighth psalm has emphasized; and this, not without a certain character in him which is pointed out there also, spite of his dreadful failure. He is in this only the mere shadow of the King that was to come, but still the shadow. In Christ “David” is indeed, in fulfillment of that name, the “Beloved” and “My Servant” was all through, the character in which He acted, who exchanged the “form of God” for this “form” (Php 2:1-30). It is in this way that God Himself announces Him in the fullest prophecy of Him that can be found in the Old Testament (Isa 52:13-15). And it is in that prophecy as here that His “seed” is spoken of: “He shall see a seed; He shall prolong His days; and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.” Here, His seed also is to be “established for ever, and His throne be built up from generation to generation.” But we shall have more of this later in the psalm.
Again the heavens come in with their witnessing praise, and the “congregation of the holy ones” would at first thought be, for a Jew inevitably, the angelic host. When we take into consideration the deeper meaning here, they may be in this application the “seed” that has been spoken of, royal and heavenly, who will, as that, proclaim His faithfulness and the wonder of His grace.
(c) From this the psalmist turns to consider the glory of God. To put the question is to answer it -where is one like Him far as infinite space extends? and the sons of the mighty -perhaps rather of might (a “plural of majesty”) -who among them can be compared to Jehovah? Think of Him in connection with the assembled wisdom of the holy ones, He is an object only of reverent fear to and above them all. Nay, he is the Immutable God of hosts, whom they all serve: where then can there be might like that of Jah? using the strong, decisive word: and His faithfulness -here is the comfort of it all -is all about Him; commensurate with the outgoing of His glorious power.
(d) From thence the psalmist looks round upon nature, to claim it all for Him. The sea is the very type of unruled strength and pride; but He stills the tossing of its angry waves. Rahab, that name of pride, Egypt -and here history furnishes him with the experience, -lay before His might crushed and as if slain: enemies to Him, He scattered them. The heavens too are His, -the earth yea, the inhabited world with all that men count to be their treasures: the north with its darkness, and frost; the south with its teeming plenty: they are His as Creator of them. And they exult -Tabor and Hermon, the visible types before the eyes of Israel -sing for joy in His Name.
(e) Thus having seen all nature prostrate at His feet, the psalmist turns once more to consider the character of the divine government upon earth. This power of which he has been speaking is its first essential: absolute power is a necessity for perfect and universal government. “An arm with might” is therefore here put foremost.
But right rule is service, and love is the spirit of service which to be effectual must be discriminative -must have respect to all differences, all relationships. And such is the character of divine rule which is now announced: righteousness and judgment -not a sentiment of right merely, but maintained executively are the basis of this government; while loving-kindness and truth, in corresponding activity, go before the face of the glorious King. As the type and expression of this the perfect Servant will be upon the throne in the days to which all these psalms look forward: all judgment His because He is the Son of man (Joh 5:22; Joh 5:27).
And in this, too, the third feature is anticipated: it is a government in which the divine Ruler does not withdraw Himself from His people, but on the contrary seeks to be known and manifest Himself to them: the people who know the signal-sound -the trumpet-call by which as in the wilderness Israel was summoned to attention -shall walk in the light of His countenance. Blessed indeed are such: “in Thy Name shall they exult all the day and in Thy righteousness shall they be exalted.”
The issue of their being thus with God is stated in the last verse in this section, and applied to Israel: “For Thou art the glory of their strength” -the One through whom it becomes so great, and so real a cause of rejoicing “and by Thy favor shall our horn be exalted.” Israel, conformed to the divine conditions of blessing, shall find this fulfilled to them.
(2) We now come to look at the terms of the covenant which Jehovah, the True and Faithful and Almighty, has made and sworn. And these are declared with a fullness and earnestness of detail which show how much the heart of the divine Speaker is in His words.
(a) First, the Mighty One on whom Jehovah has laid help is brought before us, and His might is seen to be God-given might. He is true man and dependent, -a thing which, as to David himself, needs no argument, but which is true also of Him who has taken the place of Man upon earth, to hold it not in mere semblance, but reality. In Him the higher and lower kingdoms, of which the books of Samuel and Kings so preach to us, come together, and the King sits (as is said of Solomon) “on the throne of Jehovah,” but here as the true Image as well as Representative, of Jehovah Himself. This is as far as the psalm before us goes, but still it permits us to see a Figure greater than that of David, One whom David in Spirit owns to be his Lord, even though after the flesh He is his Son.
But the first verse here shows us, in connection with what follows, the action of the higher kingdom, of which the last section has spoken. “For Jehovah is our Shield; and the Holy One of Israel is our King.” The David upon whom help is laid takes not away -as many an Israelitish king did -from the simplicity of this. The man after God’s own heart was this, in that with all his failure, he never swerved from the confession of God. His psalms tell us what God was to him. And He whom he represents in this picture is the One who in His blessed work has given God such a throne as alone He could delight in on the earth. “Jehovah our Shield -the Holy One”: never could such things have been joined together, had not He, the Mediator, joined them. Thus the ark of the covenant, with its double material, holding and enshrining Jehovah’s law, declares Him, as well as the golden mercy-seat, which was His throne in the midst of the people.
And may not this be the reason for the “then” of the next verse, which otherwise seems without sufficient connection with what goes before it, -“then spakest Thou in vision of Thy Pious One”? that is, as being Israel’s Shield and King, then; when the need discovered itself, Thou showedst Thou hadst provided for it? This was, of course, true of David, while faith with its longer sight can see much more. This title -“pious one” -which we have often met before, speaks directly of heart for God, the character needed by one who steps forth for Him. And thus was David in his time the “mighty one,” and in this way alone can any find true might. He, too, was “one chosen from the people” that is, from the mass undistinguished in men’s eyes. Among these in grace, our blessed Lord was found.
Next we see Him as the Anointed One -the Christ: the Spirit of God being the Unction in His case. As “servant” He is marked again; for this is how the Spirit of God comes upon Him, rising up from those Jordan-waters, in which John’s hearers had taken their place, “confessing their sins” and death the due of them. Into death, then; He (to fulfill all righteousness) must come for them; and thus He must now be anointed for His work. The Father’s voice declares His delight in Him; and John then proclaims as the Lamb of God, the unblemished Sacrifice. How perfectly all this unites together to proclaim what He has done!
But what follows carries us on into what is future yet -His manifest kingly glory. Jehovah’s hand is firm with Him, His arm strengthens Him; no enemy exacts upon Him, no son of perversity afflicts Him: His adversaries are beaten down before His face. Yet “David and his afflictions” were as true a type of Him as was David in his glory; and what seems but in contrast with His glory here is in fact but the manifestation of His fullest glory.
(b) We have now the establishment of His power, first defining it as representative authority: His horn being exalted in Jehovah’s Name, He is the true King of Israel, acting for and glorifying God in all things; so that His faithfulness and loving-kindness are ever with Him. Then His kingdom fills the full limits of God’s gift to Abraham, as far as the Sea (the Mediterranean) and the rivers (the Euphrates and the Nile). His relation to God is that of Son pith a Father, in whom is His sanctuary of strength, His might and His salvation. Yea, He is first-born Son; and thus His kingdom swells into universal empire: He becomes supreme over the kings of the earth. With Him God’s covenant stands fast forever, His love being unchangeably with Him. David is evidently here only a faint, though true, type of wider glory.
(c) When His seed are contemplated, and not as to Himself, as if there could be doubt as to Him, -the necessary conditions of divine holiness appear. Yet His seed too shall be established for ever, even as His throne unchangeable. But here failure is foreseen as possible, and such an event provided for. In this case, holiness must be manifested in chastening: the character of God must be maintained. Christ is not contemplated here, but David’s posterity in general, spite of whose unfaithfulness, the throne will be preserved. In fact in millennial days there will be a “prince” in Israel, of whom Ezekiel speaks, who will doubtless be of David’s seed; for the house of David is distinctly mentioned for blessing at that time (Zec 12:7-8; Zec 12:10; Zec 12:12). That he is prince only is of course due to the fact that he is but the vice-gerent of the real and glorious King.
(d) But with Christ, the true David, there can be no failure -no breach therefore of covenant in His case. Here holiness itself is pledged on His behalf, for by it God has sworn to Him; and cannot recall it.
(e) The promise to the seed is therefore reiterated, and the stability of His throne again positively assured; the comparisons made naturally carrying up our thoughts as Christians to the heavens to which that throne belongs, and where also a glorious fulfillment of this seed shall be found in the days to which all this points forward, when the thrones around the Throne shall be filled with a company which John in Spirit foresees and pictures for us; -a company that shall cast their crowns at the feet of the Lamb and cry: “Thou art worthy, for Thou hast redeemed us to God out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation, and hast made us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign over the earth.”
Does there not even seem to be contained in the symbols that are used a reference to the kingdom of Christ in its full sun-like glory, as He represents it, and then in those lesser planetary thrones around the throne, where the light is but reflected, like the moon’s, and yet where stability is assured also? as it is said of Israel’s blessing in that day, “Thy sun shall no more go down; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself; for Jehovah shall be thine everlasting Light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended” (Isa 60:20).
Here, plainly, the sun being stable establishes the moon; which as it cannot shine without him; with him cannot but shine.
2. We are now suddenly, however, plunged in darkness so extreme, that the very brightness before seems to add intensity to it. Of course it is unbelief: for there is no darkness like this, but through unbelief. Of course, the world is always a dark place, which the One Light itself shines on without illuminating, as it is said, “the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not.” But that too is the darkness of unbelief, and it is only too easily thus accounted for.
But here we have to see, not the darkness of the world, but of those who are not of the world, not of darkness, -the unbelief of believers, than which nothing else can be so distressing, -so humiliating to realize. Not that it had not plenty of arguments, no doubt: arguments that contradict what are first principles, -for him who believes in God at all, not to be argued about, but to be received as self-evident. It was but a question about God, entertained as a question, which darkened paradise itself to our first parents; and then they too in paradise even had arguments. Why a forbidden tree at all? why the knowledge of good and evil forbidden? why forbidden to be as God in knowing this? So the devil became man’s trusted teacher, and has been such ever since.
Arguments! that begin in a suspicion; which “makes the meat it feeds on”! arguments drawn from a world that is out of course, forgetting what has put it out of course! and that are meant at best honestly to prove whether men it is that are fallen or God is! Ah, how the eyes are cleared by the simple apprehension of what is so obvious, that “God is not a man that He should lie, nor the son of man; that He should repent”; and that “clouds and darkness are round about Him” is not the first step in disproof that “God is light.”
How strange, perhaps, to find arguments of this kind in an inspired psalm! but how good that God has permitted thus all the conflict and contradiction that can be in the hearts of His people to come out, as it were with a strange, unconscious simplicity, and to be poured out to Him; who in the serene glory of His presence, not so much meets the arguments, as shines forth in His own blessedness, and they are gone, as a dream on waking. Job-like, our eyes see Him the Unrepenting, and we it is who abhor ourselves, and repent in dust and ashes. So it is here: the unbelief is poured out here, -seems to find no answer, passes and is gone, and in one single, joyous, outburst at the end we learn that it is gone. No argument is there at all, but the sweet adoring rapture which says all -“Blessed be Jehovah for ever! Amen and Amen.”
But we must go through the strange dark road that leads us thither.
(a, b) “And Thou hast rejected and cast off: Thou hast overflowed with wrath against Thine anointed. Thou hast made void the covenant of Thy servant: Thou hast profaned his crown to the ground.” Absalom’s rebellion might furnish the occasion for such complaint; but for the full meaning we must go beyond this. David’s seed has long apparently been set aside, and the earthly throne has had no tenant: it might seem as if it would never have again. So have argued Christians themselves who should know better, appealing to Christ being upon the throne of heaven as if that were the fulfillment of the covenant here. But David’s throne is not the throne of heaven; and the greater glory yet cannot, as that, include the less. Man’s sin has here come in to interrupt and delay a blessing which, through the changeless grace of God, it cannot set aside and the divine declaration has already provided for the understanding of the present suspension of the promise, though the delay be long. Meanwhile the utter collapse of the nation has caused the gap in the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy which God has filled in with New Testament blessing and much wider and fuller grace.
(c) What follows here is the picture of a ruin familiar to us all. Only instead of being an argument against God’s faithfulness, it is an illustration of it. In the end that is approaching the remnant of the Jewish people will undoubtedly take up and plead with God the words which the Spirit of God has prepared for them in this psalm. Their fleeting generations passing away into Sheol without power of recovery from it, and under the wrath of God against sin; are put before Him, to plead in their need and hopelessness, save through Him; the renewal of those loving-kindnesses sworn to David in His truth. They too, His servants, though under the reproach of all the nations round, shall they not be remembered by that holy but merciful government -the reproach under which they now are being also the reproach of Christ Himself? So it will be necessarily when antichrist is carrying away the multitudes with the “strong delusion” in which apostate Christendom and apostate Israel will come to a common end. Here the limit of God’s patience will in fact be reached, and in their extremity the true Joseph, the rejected of His brethren; will be made known to them as their Deliverer.
3. But nothing of this is here. Only the pleading of the covenant, David’s covenant, those sure mercies,” whose fulfillment to them has been so long delayed. Here in place of that fulfillment is, as already said, the outburst of joy and praise with which now the book ends. Jehovah! Blessed be He for ever! Even though as yet upon earth all seems to be contradiction to the promise and faithfulness of God, -Jehovah He is, the covenant-God, -the Unchangeable. Not merely when we see, but when we see not, let us bless His Name. Faith is where we see not: here is its glory to God and its victory; for victorious it is and must be: shout it in the face of all His foes,
“Blessed be Jehovah for ever! Amen; and Amen.”
Fuente: Grant’s Numerical Bible Notes and Commentary

Psa 89:1-2. I will sing of the mercies of the Lord He speaks this by way of preface, lest the following complaints of present miseries should argue ingratitude for former mercies. I will make known thy faithfulness Assuring posterity, from my own observation and experience, that thou art true to every word that thou hast spoken, and that whatsoever hath befallen us, it proceeded not from thy unfaithfulness. For I have said That is, within myself. I have been assured in my own mind; Mercy shall be built up for ever As thou hast laid a sure foundation of mercy to Davids family, by that everlasting covenant which thou hast made with it; so I concluded that thou wouldest carry on the same project of mercy toward it; that thou wouldest build it up, and not destroy it. Thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens That is, in thy eternal counsels, which are above the changes of this lower region, and out of the reach of the opposition of earth and hell. Or, as the Hebrew may be rendered, with the very heavens; that is, as firmly and durably as the heavens themselves, as with the sun, in the Hebrew text, Psa 72:5, is by most interpreters rendered, As long as the sun endureth, as it is in our translation. And so this phrase, in this last branch of the verse, answers to for ever in the former.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

The time of this ode is gathered from the text; it was written after Rahab, the proud Egyptian kingdom, Psa 87:4, was broken to pieces, Psa 89:10; and after the hedge, the wall of Jerusalem, was taken away; and after the crown of Davids house was cast down to the ground: Psa 89:38-45. Therefore it is a pensive ode, sung in Babylon when all the Hebrew hopes rested on the Messiah, the true David, and shepherd of Israel, as in Ezekiel 34. The Chaldee paraphrase, like the doctors of the christian church, refers all those expressions to the Messiah.
Psa 89:27. I will make himhigher than the kings of the earth. David, the youngest son of Jesse, was by adoption Gods firstborn as king of Israel; but the view of faith, over the tops of the mountains, regards Christ, who is King of kings and Lord of lords.
Psa 89:35. Once have I sworn by my holiness, that I will not lie to David. Here are first to be understood, the temporal covenant given to David; and secondly, the spiritual covenant in Christ. The first waxed old like the tabernacle, the second shone like the sun; and the church, like the full orbed moon, reflected the glory. All covenants therefore are frail in man, but sure in Christ. Thus the church in time of trouble hung all her hopes on Christ, who is called The sure mercies of David. Isa 55:4. God has said of Zion, here is my rest for ever and ever.
REFLECTIONS.
This psalm, after a fine versification of the promises God had made to David by Nathan the prophet, 2 Samuel 7., fervently looks to the Messiah, and pleads for restoration.
We have first, the covenant itself; and the grace of this covenant made the church sing of mercies in the time of sorrow and distress. God by an oath promised David that he would not take the throne from him, as he had done from the house of Saul: and then in the most delightful language of faith, he celebrates the perfections of God who had promised. Who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to him? He stilleth the raging of the sea. Judgment and justice are the habitation of his throne. Blessed then are the people who know the joyful sound. When the silver trumpet sounded in the camp, the courts and the people crowded to hear the law, and listen to its gracious promises. Num 10:9-10. Vowing obedience, they walked in the light of truth and love, were exalted to national glory and personal purity, not by their own, but by the Lords righteousness; for enthroned among them, he fulfilled all his gracious words. He exalted their horn by his favour, and the Holy One was their defence.
In David we have an illustrious type of Christ. He spoke in vision to Samuel, the holy one, saying, I have laid help on one that is mighty. When the nine nations conspired against Zion, David vanquished them all; and when the kings of the earth took counsel against the Lord Christ, he that sits in the heavens laughed them to scorn. God has laid help on one that is mighty, whose own arm brought salvation; and he is still able to save to the uttermost all that come to God by him. He broke the Jewish and the Roman power in pieces, and he will soon include all seas and rivers in the bounds of his empire; for he sits upon the throne of his father David for ever.
The end of Gods covenant is connected with means. To introduce the Messiah, and effectuate the redemption of man, God promised that if Davids children should sin, he would visit their iniquities with stripes, but not eject his family from the throne. This for a long time the Lord did, and by singular interpositions of providence. After the Babylonian captivity, the Asmonean family were mostly governors in Judea, and were regarded as the lawful heirs of the crown, though sometimes the highpriest, and others, swayed the sceptre as viceroys.
The rod and the stripes here claim serious attention, and providence must give its own comment. Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah came to a tragic end. Ahaziah king of Judah, and forty two of his brethren, perished by their connection with Ahabs house. Athaliah, on the death of her husband, slew all the rest in Jerusalem, except Joash an infant. And Nebuchadnezzar slew all the princes of Judah before the eyes of Zedekiah; the very men who had used all their influence with the king, that Jeremiah might be put to death. If this then is the rod, and these the stripes, there is danger lest backsliders and apostates should wrest the scriptures to their own destruction; and while they expect but a few crosses and afflictions, they may, like Absalom and others, die in the grossest sins. David, who best understood the conditions of his own covenant, after charging Solomon to serve his fathers God, closed with this sanctifying caution: But if thou forsake him, and rebel, he will cast thee off for ever.
From the Selah, Psa 89:4, we have Israels and the churchs prayer for healing and restoration. Hence at the worst of times, the promises can yield us comfort and support. Hope, rounded on the promise, is our anchor-hold which bears up the ship in the tempest, as in the calm. Blessed then be the name of the Lord for ever.
Fuente: Sutcliffe’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

LXXXIX. The Covenant with David.The Ps. may be divided thus: Psa 89:1-18. The promise made to David (2 Samuel 7). Yahweh is all-powerful, so that He can, faithful so that He will, fulfil His word. Psa 89:19-37. The promise considered at greater length. Observe the sobriety of tone. It is Davids dynasty, not David himself, which is to endure for ever, and the kingdom promised is not world-wide but limited to the old boundaries, viz. the Euphrates and the Egyptian frontier. Psa 89:38-51. In spite of this great promise Israel is in abject misery, and the time is short, for human life is soon over. The Ps. is generally admitted to be post-exilic. The sceptre had already (Psa 89:39; Psa 89:44 f.) fallen from the hands of the Jewish monarch. The Ps. must have been composed long after the Exile, since there is no prayer for restoration to Palestine, no confession of sin. But it is impossible to determine the date more precisely. It has been suggested that the poet does not look for any one man as the anointed (Psa 89:38; Psa 89:51), in whom the covenant is to be fulfilled; but transfers the Davidic promises to the idealised and personified Israel, the true anointed of Yahweh. On the other hand the Ps. has been referred to late Maccabean times, and in particular to the defeat of Alexander Jannus (p. 608) in 88 B.C. by Ptolemy Eukairos (Josephus, Anl., xiii. 14, 1f.). Possibly the Maccabean princes claimed to be Davids heirs, though they had no Davidic blood. But Alexander was a brutal and sanguinary leader, so that some Jews preferred Eukairos to him, and in any case the conjectural reference has little or nothing to support it.
Psa 89:2. Read with LXX, thou didst say, and shall be established.
Psa 89:7. Read with LXX, Great is he and to be feared above, etc.
Psa 89:8. Jah: a contracted form of Yahweh.
Psa 89:10. Rahab: the mythical sea-monster (cf. Psa 87:4*, Job 9:13* Isa 51:9*, Psa 8:3*).
Psa 89:19. saints: read, saint, and refer to Nathan.laid help: read, I have set a diadem on.
Psa 89:27. my first-born: used of Israel (Exo 4:22) as dearest to the heart of Yahweh his Father.
Psa 89:51. reproached the footsteps:either because his advent is so long deferred or because he is fleeing before his foes.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

PSALM 89
The mercies of Jehovah, secured by Israel by the faithfulness of God.
In Psalm 88 the godly man, representing the nation of Israel, learns in the presence of Jehovah that sin and a broken law bring the soul under the judgment of Jehovah, from which there is no salvation apart from Jehovah to whom faith looks.
In Psalm 89, the godly remnant look for salvation in the mercy of God, and the faithfulness of God to His covenant with David, by which blessing is secured, even though for a time the nation is cast off.
(vv. 1-2) The opening verses present the great theme of the psalm – the mercies and faithfulness of God, instead of the sin and failure of the nation, as in Psalm 88, moreover the psalm presents the great fact that, not only are there mercies and faithfulness with God, but, these blessed qualities cannot be affected by anything that man can do. They are beyond the reach of man’s corrupting hand. Mercy is built up for ever; and faithfulness is established in the very heavens.
(vv. 3-4) The two verses that follow recite the covenant of mercy with David, which is made sure by the faithfulness of Jehovah (2Sa 23:5; Act 13:34).
(vv. 5-8) The psalmist then celebrates the glory of Jehovah – the One who has made the covenant with David. The heavens declare His wonders; the saints His faithfulness. No creature can be compared with Jehovah. In His supreme glory as God there can be none likened to Him. In the assembly of His saints He is the object of reverent fear. Supreme in strength, as the Lord God of hosts, He acts in faithfulness on every side.
(vv. 9-10) The godly recall the exercise of Jehovah’s power, when at the Red Sea He broke the power of Egypt (Rahab), and scattered His enemies with His strong arm.
(vv. 11-14) Moreover, Jehovah is the possessor of heaven and earth by His rights as Creator, and, if He overthrows the power of the world, as represented by Egypt, it is that He, by His mighty arm, may establish His own throne, marked by justice and judgment, mercy and truth.
(vv. 15-18) Furthermore, His throne is established in order that He may dwell in the midst of a praising people, who rejoice in His favour, and are exalted in righteousness. A people of whom Jehovah is their glory, their strength, their defence, and their King.
(vv. 19-28) The verses that follow present in detail the covenant made with David, and the assurance of God’s faithfulness to His covenant. God had spoken in vision to Nathan (2Sa 7:4-17) of David, the one who is chosen from the people and exalted; anointed as the servant of the Lord (v. 20); triumphant over all his enemies (vv. 21-23); established by God’s faithfulness and mercy, to reign over the full extent of the land as given to Abraham, from the sea (the Mediterranean) to the rivers (the Euphrates and the Nile). The one appointed to rule in dependence upon God as his might and his salvation (v. 26); and thus pre-eminent over the kings of the earth (v. 27). For him God’s mercy will be kept for evermore; and with him God’s covenant will stand fast (v. 28).
In this fine description of the glories of David we are surely intended to see Christ the true Anointed King of Israel, of whom David was but a type.
(vv. 29-37) The following verses present the seed of David. With the seed there is the possibility of failure and the governmental consequences that follow (vv. 30-32). Nevertheless, God will not utterly take from them His loving-kindness, nor suffer His faithfulness to fail. God will not break His covenant, nor alter the word that has gone out of His lips (vv. 33-34). The holiness of God is a witness that God cannot alter His word by which blessing is secured to David and his seed.
(vv. 38-45) Alas! the seed of David entirely broke down. They forsook the law, and walked not in God’s judgments; they broke His statutes and kept not His commandments (vv. 30-31). Thus the threatened rod (v. 32) has fallen upon the nation. They are cast off and, apparently, the covenant is made void. Their land is ruined, they themselves in reproach; their enemies exalted over them; their glory passed away; their throne brought down; they are covered with shame.
(vv. 46-52) Nevertheless, in the midst of their shame the faith of the remnant shines forth. They realize that there will be a limit to the chastening of the Lord. Hence they ask, How long, Jehovah? They ask God to remember the frailty of man (vv. 47-48). They plead the former lovingkindnesses which God had shown unto David. They plead the reproach of their enemies. However great their failure, they say, we are thy servants, and their enemies are thine enemies, and they have put to shame thine Anointed.
They wait for an answer, but, knowing it must come, for God’s faithfulness cannot fail, they say Blessed be the Lord for evermore. Amen, and Amen.
Fuente: Smith’s Writings on 24 Books of the Bible

89:1 [Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.] I will {a} sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulness to all generations.
(a) Though the horrible confusion of things might cause them to despair of God’s favour, yet the manifold examples of his mercies cause them to trust in God though to man’s judgment they saw no reason to.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

Psalms 89
The writer of this royal psalm was Ethan, another wise Levitical musician in David’s service (1Ki 4:31; 1Ch 15:17-18). The occasion of writing is unclear. Judging from the content of the psalm it appears to have been a time after David had suffered defeat and some severe affliction.
Ethan interceded for the king, claiming the Davidic Covenant promises (cf. 2Sa 7:5-16; 1 Chronicles 17). Why was God afflicting David so severely since He had promised to bless him so greatly? Ethan called on God to honor the Davidic Covenant and send the king relief.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

1. God’s character and covenant with David 89:1-4
Ethan announced two major themes of this psalm in Psa 89:1-2. These are the loyal love (Heb. hesed) and faithfulness of Yahweh. References to God’s loyal love occur in Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:14; Psa 89:24; Psa 89:28; Psa 89:33; Psa 89:49. He referred to God’s faithfulness in Psa 89:1-2; Psa 89:5; Psa 89:8; Psa 89:24; Psa 89:33; Psa 89:49. He proceeded to appeal to God to honor His promises to David on the basis of these qualities.
The psalmist restated the Davidic Covenant promises in Psa 89:3-4. Interestingly the word "covenant" does not occur in either 2 Samuel 7 or 1 Chronicles 17, the two places in the Old Testament where God recorded the giving of that covenant. Three key terms used in these two verses also recur throughout this psalm. These are "covenant" (Psa 89:3; Psa 89:28; Psa 89:34; Psa 89:39), "David My servant" (Psa 89:3; Psa 89:20; Psa 89:50 where it is just "My servant"), and "throne" (Psa 89:4; Psa 89:14; Psa 89:29; Psa 89:36; Psa 89:44). Obviously the Davidic Covenant was central in the writer’s thinking in this psalm.
"The background for the Davidic Covenant and the sonship imagery associated with it is the ancient Near Eastern covenant of grant, whereby a king would reward a faithful servant by elevating him to the position of ’sonship’ and granting him special gifts, usually related to land and dynasty. Unlike the conditional suzerain-vassal treaty, after which the Mosaic Covenant was patterned, the covenant of grant was an unconditional, promissory grant which could not be taken away from the recipient. [Note: Footnote 18: "See [Moshe] Weinfeld, ’The Covenant of Grant in the Old Testament and in the Ancient Near East,’ [Journal of the American Oriental Society 90 (1970):] pp. 184-203, for a thorough study of this type of covenant and its biblical parallels, including the Davidic Covenant. . . ."] Consequently God’s covenantal promises to David were guaranteed by an irrevocable divine oath (Psa 89:3; Psa 89:28-37; Psa 132:11)." [Note: Chisholm, "A Theology . . .," p. 267.]
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Psa 89:1-52
THE foundation of this psalm is the promise in 2Sa 7:1-29 which guaranteed the perpetuity of the Davidic kingdom. Many of the characteristic phrases of the prophecy recur here-e.g., the promises that the children of wickedness shall not afflict, and that the transgressions of Davids descendants should be followed by chastisement only, not by rejection. The contents of Nathans oracle are first given in brief in Psa 89:3-4 -” like a text,” as Hupfeld says-and again in detail and with poetic embellishments in Psa 89:19-37. But these glorious promises are set in sharpest contrast with a doleful present, which seems to contradict them. They not only embitter it, but they bewilder faith, and the psalmists lament is made almost a reproach of God, whose faithfulness seems imperilled by the disasters which had fallen on the monarchy and on Israel. The complaint and petitions of the latter part are the true burden of the psalm, to which the celebration of Divine attributes in Psa 89:1-18, and the expansion of the fundamental promise in Psa 89:19-37, are meant to lead up. The attributes specified are those of Faithfulness (Psa 89:1, Psa 89:2, Psa 89:5, Psa 89:8, Psa 89:14) and of Power, which render the fulfilment of Gods promises certain. By such contemplations the psalmist would fortify himself against the whispers of doubt, which were beginning to make themselves heard in his mind, and would find in the character of God both assurance that His promise shall not fail, and a powerful plea for his prayer that it may not fail.
The whole tone of the psalm suggests that it was written when the kingdom was toppling to ruin, or perhaps even after its fall. Delitzsch improbably supposes that the young king, whom loss and shame make an old man (Psa 89:45), is Rehoboam, and that the disasters which gave occasion to the psalm were those inflicted by the Egyptian king Shishak. Others see in that youthful prince Jehoiachin, who reigned for three months, and was then deposed by Nebuchadnezzar, and whom Jeremiah has bewailed. {Jer 22:24-29} But all such conjectures are precarious.
The structure of the psalm can scarcely be called strophical. There are three well-marked turns in the flow of thought, -first, the hymn to the Divine attributes (Psa 89:1-18); second, the expansion of the promise, which is the basis of the monarchy (Psa 89:19-37); and, finally, the lament and prayer, in view of present afflictions, that God would be true to His attributes and promises (Psa 89:38-51). For the most part the verses are grouped in pairs, which are occasionally lengthened into triplets.
The psalmist begins with announcing the theme of his song-the Lovingkindness and Faithfulness of God. Surrounded by disasters, which seem in violent contradiction to Gods promise to David, he falls back on thoughts of the Mercy which gave it and the Faithfulness which will surely accomplish it. The resolve to celebrate these in such circumstances argues a faith victorious over doubts, and putting forth energetic efforts to maintain itself. This bird can sing in midwinter. True, the song has other notes than joyous ones, but they, too, extol Gods Lovingkindness and Faithfulness, even while they seem to question them. Self-command, which insists on a mans averting his thoughts from a gloomy outward present to gaze on Gods loving purpose and unalterable veracity, is no small part of practical religion. The psalmist will sing, because he said that these two attributes were ever in operation, and lasting as the heavens. “Lovingkindness shall be built up forever,” its various manifestations being conceived as each being a stone in the stately building which is in continual course of progress through all ages, and can never be completed, since fresh stones will continually be laid as long as God lives and pours forth His blessings. Much less can it ever fall into ruin, as impatient sense would persuade the psalmist that it is doing in his day. The parallel declaration as to Gods Faithfulness takes the heavens as the type of duration and immobility, and conceives that attribute to be eternal and fixed, as they are. These convictions could not burn in the psalmists heart without forcing him to speak. Lover, poet, and devout man, in their several ways, feel the same necessity of utterance. Not every Christian can “sing,” but all can and should speak. They will, if their faith is strong.
The Divine promise, on which the Davidic throne rests, is summed up in the abruptly introduced pair of verses (Psa 89:3-4). That promise is the second theme of the psalm; and just as, in some great musical composition, the overture sounds for the first time phrases which are to be recurrent and elaborated in the sequel, so, in the four first verses of the psalm, its ruling thoughts are briefly put. Psa 89:1-2, stand first, but are second in time to Psa 89:3-4. Gods oracle preceded the singers praise. The language of these two verses echoes the original passage in 2Sa 7:1-29, as in “David My servant, establish, forever, build, ” the last three of which expressions were used in Psa 89:2, with a view to their recurrence in Psa 89:4. The music keeps before the mind the perpetual duration of Davids throne.
In Psa 89:6-18 the psalmist sets forth the Power and Faithfulness of God, which insure the fulfilment of His promises. He is the incomparably great and terrible God, who subdues the mightiest forces of nature and tames the proudest nations (Psa 89:9-10), who is Maker and Lord of the world (Psa 89:11-12), who rules with power, but also with righteousness, faithfulness, and grace (Psa 89:13-14), and who, therefore, makes His people blessed and safe (Psa 89:15-18). Since God is such a God, His promise cannot remain unfulfilled. Power and willingness to execute it to the last tittle are witnessed by heaven and earth, by history and experience. Dark as the present may be, it would, therefore, be folly to doubt for a moment.
The psalmist begins his contemplations of the glory of the Divine nature with figuring the very heavens as vocal with His praise. Not only the object but the givers of that praise are noteworthy. The heavens are personified, as in Psa 19:1-14; and from their silent depths comes music. There is One higher, mightier, older, more unperturbed, pure, and enduring than they, whom they extol by their lustre which they owe to Him. They praise Gods “wonder” (which here means, not so much His marvellous acts, as the wonderfulness of His Being, His incomparable greatness and power), and His Faithfulness, the two guarantees of the fulfilment of His promises. Nor are the visible heavens His only praisers. The holy ones, sons of the mighty-i.e., the angels-bow before Him who is high above their holiness and might, and own Him for God alone.
With Psa 89:9 the hymn descends to earth, and magnifies Gods Power and Faithfulness as manifested there. The sea is, as always, the emblem of rebellious tumult. Its insolence is calmed by Him. And the proudest of the nations, such as Rahab (“Pride,” a current name for Egypt), had cause to own His power, when He brought the waves of the sea over her hosts, thus in one act exemplifying His sovereign sway over both nature and nations. He is Maker, and therefore Lord, of heaven and earth. In all quarters of the world His creative hand is manifest, and His praise sounds. Tabor and Hermon may stand, as the parallelism requires, for west and east, though some suppose that they are simply named as conspicuous summits. They “shout for joy at Thy Name,” an expression like that used in Psa 89:16, in reference to Israel. The poet thinks of the softly swelling Tabor with its verdure, and of the lofty Hermon with its snows, as sharing in that gladness, and praising Him to whom they owe their beauty and majesty. Creation vibrates with the same emotions which thrill the poet. The sum of all the preceding is gathered up in Psa 89:13, which magnifies the might of Gods arm.
But more blessed still for the psalmist, in the midst of national gloom, is the other thought of the moral character of Gods rule. His throne is broad based upon the sure foundation of righteousness and justice. The pair of attributes always closely connected-namely, Lovingkindness and Troth or Faithfulness-are here, as frequently, personified. They “go to meet Thy face”-that is, in order to present themselves before Him. “The two genii of the history of redemption {Psa 43:3} stand before His countenance, like attendant maidens, waiting the slightest indication of His will” (Delitzsch).
Since God is such a God, His Israel is blessed, whatever its present plight. So the psalmist closes the first part of his song, with rapturous celebration of the favoured nations prerogatives. “The festal shout” or “the trumpet blast” is probably the music at the festivals (Num 23:21; Num 31:6), and “those who know” it means “those who are familiar with the worship of this great God.” The elements of their blessedness are then unfolded. “They walk in the light of Thy face.” Their outward life is passed in continual happy consciousness of the Divine presence, which becomes to them a source of gladness and guidance. “In Thy Name do they exult all the day.” Gods self-manifestation, and the knowledge of Him which arises therefrom, become the occasion of a calm, perpetual joy, which is secure from change, because its roots go deeper than the region where change works. “In Thy righteousness shall they be exalted.” Through Gods strict adherence to His covenant, not by any power of their own, shall they be lifted above foes and fears. “The glory of their strength art Thou.” In themselves they are weak, but Thou, not any arm of flesh, art their strength, and by possession of Thee they are not only clothed with might, but resplendent with beauty. Human power is often unlovely; God-given strength is, like armour inlaid with gold ornament as well as defence. “In Thy favour our horn shall be exalted.” The psalmist identifies himself at last with the people, whose blessedness he has so glowingly celebrated. He could keep up the appearance of distinction no longer. “They” gives place to “we” unconsciously, as his heart swells with the joy which he paints. Depressed as he and his people are for the moment, he is sure that there is lifting up. The emblem of the lifted horn is common, as expressive of victory. The psalmist is confident of Israels triumph, because he is certain that the nation, as represented by and, as it were, concentrated in its king, belongs to God, who will not lose what is His. The rendering of Psa 89:18 in the A.V. cannot be sustained. “Our shield” in the first clause is parallel with “our king” in the second, and the meaning of both clauses is that the king of Israel is Gods, and therefore secure. That ownership rests on the promise to David, and on it in turn is rested the psalmists confidence that Israel and its king are possessed of a charmed life, and shall be exalted, however now abject and despondent.
The second part (Psa 89:19-37) draws out in detail, and at some points with heightened colouring, the fundamental prophecy by Nathan. It falls into two parts, of which the former (Psa 89:19-27) refers more especially to the promises given to David, and the second (Psa 89:28-37) to those relating to his descendants. In Psa 89:19 “vision” is quoted from 2Sa 7:17; “then” points back to the period of giving the promise; “Thy favoured one” is possibly Nathan, but more probably David. The Masoretic reading, however, which is followed by many ancient versions, has the plural “favoured ones.” which Delitzsch takes to mean Samuel and Nathan. “Help” means the help which, through the king, comes to his people, and especially, as appears from the use of the word “hero,” aid in battle. But since the selection of David for the throne is the subject in hand, the emendation which reads for “help” crown recommends itself as probable. Davids prowess, his humble origin, and his devotion to Gods service are brought into view in Psa 89:19-20, as explaining and magnifying the Divine choice. His dignity is all from God. Consequently, as the next pair of verses goes on to say, Gods protecting hand will ever be with him, since He cannot set a man in any position and fall to supply the gifts needed for it. Whom He chooses He will protect. Sheltered behind that strong hand, the king will be safe from all assaults. The word rendered “steal upon” in Psa 89:22 is doubtful, and by some is taken to mean to exact, as a creditor does, but that gives a flat and incongruous turn to the promise. For Psa 89:22 b compare 2Sa 7:10. Victory over all enemies is next promised in Psa 89:23-25, and is traced to the perpetual presence with the king of Gods Faithfulness and Lovingkindness, the two attributes of which so much has been sung in the former part. The manifestation of Gods character (i.e., His Name) will secure the exaltation of Davids horn-i.e., the victorious exercise of his God-given strength. Therefore a wide extension of his kingdom is promised in Psa 89:25, from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates and its canals, on which God will lay the kings hand-i.e., will put them in his possession.
The next pair of verses (Psa 89:26-27) deals with the inward side of the relations of God and the king. On Davids part there will be child-like love, with all the lowliness of trust and obedience which lies in the recognition of Gods fatherhood, and on Gods part there will be the acknowledgment of the relation, and the adoption of the king as His “firstborn,” and therefore, in a special sense, beloved and exalted. Israel is called by the same name in other places, in reference to its special prerogative amongst the nations. The national dignity is concentrated in the king, who stands to other monarchs as Israel to other nations, and is to them “Most High,” the august Divine title, which here may possibly mean that David is to the rulers of the earth an image of God. The reciprocal relation of Father and Son is not here conceived in its full inwardness and depth as Christianity knows it, for it has reference to office rather than to the person sustaining the office, but it is approximating thereto. There is an echo of the fundamental passage in Psa 89:26. {Compare 2Sa 7:14}
From Psa 89:28 onwards the psalmist turns to expand the promises to Davids line. His words are mainly a poetical paraphrase of 2Sa 7:14. Transgression shall indeed be visited with chastisement, which the fatherly relation requires, as the original passage indicates by the juxtaposition of the promise “I will be his Father,” and the declaration “I will chasten him.” But it will be chastisement only, and not rejection. The unchangeableness of Gods loving purpose is very strongly and beautifully put in Psa 89:33, in which the twin attributes of Lovingkindness and Faithfulness are again blended as the ground of sinful mens hope. The word rendered above “break off” occasions a difficulty, both in regard to its form and its appropriateness in this connection. The clause is a quotation from 2Sa 7:15, and the emendation which substitutes for break off the more natural word used there namely, withdraw-is to be preferred. In Psa 89:33 b the paradoxical expression of being false to My faithfulness suggests the contradiction inherent in the very thought that He can break His plighted word. The same idea is again put in striking form in Psa 89:34 : “I will not profane My covenant,” even though degenerate sons of David “profane” Gods statute. His word, once spoken, is inviolable. He is bound by His oath. He has given His holiness as the pledge of His word, and, till that holiness wanes, those utterances which He has sealed with it cannot be recalled. The certainty that sin does not alter Gods promise is not traced here to His placableness, but to His immutable nature, and to the obligations under which He is laid by His own word and acts. That unchangeableness is a rock foundation, on which sinful men may build their certitude. It is much to know that they cannot sin away Gods mercy nor exhaust His gentle long suffering. It is even more to know that His holiness guarantees that they cannot sin away His promises, nor by any breach of His commandments provoke Him to break His covenant.
The allusions to the ancient promise are completed in Psa 89:36-37, with the thought of the perpetual continuance of the Davidic line and kingdom, expressed by the familiar comparison of its duration to that of the sun and moon. Psa 89:37 b is best understood as above. Some take the faithful witness to be the moon; others the rainbow, and render, as in the A.V. and R.V., “and as the faithful witness.” But the designation of the moon as a witness is unexampled and almost unintelligible. It is better to take the clause as independent, and to suppose that Jehovah is His own witness, and that the psalmist here speaks in his own person, the quotation of the promises being ended. Cheyne encloses the clause in a parenthesis and compares Rev 3:14.
The third part begins with Psa 89:38, and consists of two portions, in the first of which the psalmist complains with extraordinary boldness of remonstrance, and describes the contrast between these lofty promises and the sad reality (Psa 89:38-45), and, in the second prays for the removal of the contradiction of Gods promise by Israels affliction, and bases this petition on the double ground of the shortness of life, and the dishonour done to His own Name thereby.
The expostulation very nearly crosses the boundary of reverent remonstrance, when it charges God with having Himself “abhorred” or, according to another rendering, “made void” His covenant, and cast the kings crown to the ground. The devastation of the kingdom is described, in Psa 89:40-41, in language borrowed from Psa 80:12. The pronouns grammatically refer to the king, but the ideas of the land and the monarch are blended. The next pair of verses (Psa 89:42-43) ventures still further in remonstrance, by charging God with taking the side of Israels enemies and actively intervening to procure its defeat. The last verse pair of this part (Psa 89:44-45) speaks more exclusively of the king, or perhaps of the monarchy. The language, especially in Psa 89:45 a, seems most naturally understood of an individual. Delitzsch takes such to be its application, and supposes it to describe the king as having been prematurely aged by calamity; while Hupfeld, with Hengstenberg and others, prefer to regard the expression as lamenting that the early days of the monarchys vigour had so soon been succeeded by decrepitude like that of age. That family, which had been promised perpetual duration and dominion, has lost its lustre, and is like a dying lamp. That throne has fallen to the ground, which God had promised should stand forever. Senile weakness has stricken the monarchy and disaster, which makes it an object of contempt, wraps it like a garment, instead of the royal robe. A long, sad wail of the music fixes the picture on the mind of the hearer.
Then follows prayer, which shows how consistent with true reverence and humble dependence is the outspoken vigour of the preceding remonstrance. The boldest thoughts about the apparent contradiction of Gods words and deeds are not too bold, if spoken straight to Him, and not muttered against Him, and if they lead the speaker to prayer for the removal of the anomaly. In Psa 89:46 there is a quotation from Psa 79:5. The question “How long” is the more imploring because life is so short. There is but a little while during which it is possible for God to manifest Himself as full of Lovingkindness and Faithfulness. The psalmist lets his feelings of longing to see for himself the manifestation of these attributes peep forth for a moment, in that pathetic sudden emergence of “I” instead of “we” or “men,” in Psa 89:47 a. His language is somewhat obscure, but the sense is clear. Literally; the words read “Remember-I, what a transitoriness.” The meaning is plain enough, when it is observed that, as Perowne rightly says, “I” is placed first for the sake of emphasis. It is a tender thought that God may be moved to show forth His Lovingkindness by remembrance of the brief period within which a mans opportunity of beholding it is restricted, and by the consideration that so soon he will have to look on a grimmer sight, and “see death.” The music again comes in with a melancholy cadence, emphasising the sadness which enwraps mans short life, if no gleams of Gods lovingkindness fall on its fleeting days.
The last three verses (Psa 89:49-51) urge yet another plea-that of the dishonour accruing to God from the continuance of Israels disasters. A second “Remember” presents that plea, which is preceded by the wistful question “Where are Thy former lovingkindnesses?” The psalmist looks back on the glories of early days, and the retrospect is bitter and bewildering. That these were sworn to David in Gods faithfulness staggers him, but he makes the fact a plea with God. Then in Psa 89:50-51, he urges the insults and reproaches which enemies hurled against him and against “Thy servants,” and therefore against God.
Psa 89:50 b is obscure. To “bear in the bosom” usually implies tender care, but here can only mean sympathetic participation. The psalmist again lets his own personality appear for a moment, while he identifies himself as a member of the nation with “Thy servants” and “Thine anointed.” The last words of the clause are so obscure that there must apparently have been textual corruption. If the existing text is retained, the object of the verb I bear must be supplied from a, -and this clause will run, “I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples.” But the collocation of all and many is harsh, and the position of many is anomalous. An ingenious conjecture, adopted by Cheyne from Bottcher and Bickell, and accepted, by Baethgen, reads for “all, many peoples, the shame of the peoples, which gives a good meaning, and may be received as at all events probable, and expressing the intent of the psalmist. Insolent conquerors and their armies triumph over the fallen Israel, and “reproach the footsteps” of the dethroned king or royal line-i.e., they pursue him with their taunts, wherever he goes. These reproaches cut deep into the singers heart; but they glance off from the earthly objects and strike the majesty of Heaven. Gods people cannot be flouted without His honour being touched. Therefore the prayer goes up, that the Lord would remember these jeers which mocked Him as well as His afflicted people, and would arise to action on behalf of His own Name. His Lovingkindness and Faithfulness, which the psalmist has magnified, and on which he rests his hopes, are darkened in the eyes of men and even of His own nation by the calamities, which give point to the rude gibes of the enemy. Therefore the closing petitions beseech God to think on these reproaches, and to bring into act once more His Lovingkindness, and to vindicate His Faithfulness, which He had sealed to David by His oath.
Psa 89:52 is no part of the original psalm, but is the closing doxology of Book III.
Fuente: Expositors Bible Commentary

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