Psalms 9:1 «To the chief Musician upon Muthlabben, A Psalm of David. » I will praise [thee], O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works. _Upon Muth-labben_] This was the name of a certain instrument, say some; the beginning of a song, say others, to the tune whereof thi... [ Continue Reading ]
I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High. Ver. 2. _I will be glad and rejoice in thee_] Spiritual cheerfulness is the mother of thankfulness, James 5:13. Birds, when got in the air, or on the top of trees, and have taken up a stand to their mind, sing mos... [ Continue Reading ]
When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence. Ver. 3. _When mine enemies_] This, Tremellius maketh to be the form of praise which the psalmist professeth that he will sing to God, and rendereth it thus, That mine enemies returning back are fallen, &c. _ And perish... [ Continue Reading ]
_For thou hast maintained my right and my cause; thou satest in the throne judging right._ Ver. 4. _For thou hast maintained my right_] Heb. Thou hast done me judgment. _Locus hic insignis est,_ saith Polanus. This is an excellent place, and maketh much to the comfort of God's poor people that are... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked, thou hast put out their name for ever and ever. Ver. 5. _Thou hast rebuked the heathen, &c._] God first chideth the Church's enemies by lighter judgments; if these be not improved, he destroyeth them, Psalms 119:21; and, because they so... [ Continue Reading ]
O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end: and thou hast destroyed cities; their memorial is perished with them. Ver. 6. _O thou enemy_] The same whom he called wicked one in the former verse; where the word wicked is of the singular number: _q.d._ O thou implacable wretch, that woulds... [ Continue Reading ]
But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. Ver. 7. _But the Lord shall endure for ever_] _Vivit Christus regnatque; alioqui lotus desperassem,_ said that good Dutch divine, upon the view of the Church's enemies; _i.e._ Christ liveth and reigneth for ever, setting... [ Continue Reading ]
And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. Ver. 8. _And he shall judge the world, &c._] See on Psalms 9:4 .... [ Continue Reading ]
The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. Ver. 9. _The Lord also will be a refuge, &c._] Heb. a high tower, _edita, arx,_ wherein men are secured, and escape the impressions of an enemy. The very lame and blind, those most shiftless creatures, when they had got... [ Continue Reading ]
And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee. Ver. 10. _And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee_] They can do no otherwise that savingly know God's sweet attributes and noble acts for his people. We never trust a ma... [ Continue Reading ]
Sing praises to the LORD, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings. Ver. 11. _Sing praises to the Lord, &c._] This is the guise of godly people, to provoke others to praise God, as being unsatisfiable in their desires of doing him that service, and as deeming that others see him... [ Continue Reading ]
When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble. Ver. 12. _When he maketh inquisition for blood_] For innocent blood unjustly spilled; as he did for the blood of Abel, Genesis 4:10, of Naboth, (2 Kings 9:26, "Surely I have seen yesterday the blood... [ Continue Reading ]
Have mercy upon me, O LORD; consider my trouble [which I suffer] of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death: Ver. 13. _Have mercy upon me, O Lord, &c._] These are the words (say some) of those humble ones whom God forgetteth not; they were God's remembrancers, see Isaiah... [ Continue Reading ]
That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in thy salvation. Ver. 14. _That I may show forth all thy praise_] _i.e._ All that I can compass or attain unto. _Aliter omnes laudes Dei diei non possunt, quia plures ignorat homo quam novit,_ saith R. David... [ Continue Reading ]
The heathen are sunk down in the pit [that] they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken. Ver. 15. _The heathen are sunk down, &c._] _Hoc est initium cantici Sanctorum,_ Thi is the beginning of the sacred songs, saith AbenEzra. This is the beginning of the saints' song, knit to the... [ Continue Reading ]
The LORD is known [by] the judgment [which] he executeth: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah. Ver. 16. _The Lord is known by the judgment, &c._] The heathen historian Herodotus oberved, that the ruin of Troy served to teach men that God punisheth great sinners with h... [ Continue Reading ]
The wicked shall be turned into hell, [and] all the nations that forget God. Ver. 17. _The wicked shall be turned into hell_] Heb. into into hell (twice), that is, into the nethermost hell, the lowest dungeon of hell. The word lesheolah hath a vehement inforcement from ח local, as grammarians call... [ Continue Reading ]
For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall [not] perish for ever. Ver. 18. _For the needy shall not always be forgotten_] Because he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. The Lord is at hand to help those that are forsaken in their hopes. Julian Lining wa... [ Continue Reading ]
Arise, O LORD; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight. Ver. 19. _Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail_] Prayers are the Church's weapons, her _bombardae et instrumenta bellica_ (Luther), whereby she is terrible as an army with banners; she prays down her enemies.... [ Continue Reading ]
Put them in fear, O LORD: [that] the nations may know themselves [to be but] men. Selah. Ver. 20. _Put them in fear, O Lord_] Strike them with a panic terror, as once the Canaanites, Philistines, 1 Samuel 5:1,12; Syrians, 2 Kings 7:6,7; Germans, in the war against the Hussites, &c. Some read it, Pu... [ Continue Reading ]