This Psalm consists of two parts, differing widely in tone and character. In the first part (Psalms 40:1) thanksgiving for deliverance and its true expression in the devotion of obedience to God's will are the prominent ideas: in the second part (Psalms 40:12) the Psalmist is still the victim of a c... [ Continue Reading ]
_I waited patiently_ Such renderings as _I waited, yea I waited_, or, _I waited waitingly_(Vulg. _expectans expectavi_) are closer to the original. Cp. Psalms 38:15; Psalms 39:7: and the confession of the Church in the day of Redemption, Isaiah 25:9. _he inclined unto me_ As it were, -bent down tow... [ Continue Reading ]
The reward of patient waiting upon God.... [ Continue Reading ]
And brought me up out of a pit of destruction, out of the miry slough: And set my feet upon a rock, made firm my steps. A literal reference to Jeremiah's imprisonment in the dungeon can hardly be intended. The second line, _set_… _rock_, makes it plain that the whole verse is to be understood figu... [ Continue Reading ]
Such deliverance is a fresh theme of praise. Cp. Psalms 33:3. The plural pronoun, - _our God_," implies that others were interested in the Psalmist and his fortunes. _many shall see_it] Omit _it_, which only weakens the expression. The contemplation of God's mercy in the deliverance of His servant,... [ Continue Reading ]
Happy is the man that hath mada Jehovah his trust, And hath not turned unto the arrogant, and false apostates. The word for _man_is that used in Psalms 34:8, where see note. For the opposite to -making Jehovah the object of trust" see Psalms 52:7. _respecteth not_ Rather, as above, hath not turne... [ Continue Reading ]
The blessedness of such a trust.... [ Continue Reading ]
Abundantly hast Thou wrought, even Thou, O Jehovah my God, Thy marvellous works and Thy thoughts to us-ward: There is none to be compared unto Thee. _Multa fecisti tu Domine Deus meus mirabilia tua et cogitationes tuas pro nobis_. Jerome. _Thou_is emphatic. Jehovah is contrasted with all such obje... [ Continue Reading ]
The various kinds of offerings are described according to their material, as _sacrifice_of slain animals, and _offering_(-meal-offering") of the fruits of the earth (Leviticus 2:1 ff.); and according to their purpose, as _burnt-offering_; symbolising the dedication of the worshipper to God, and _sin... [ Continue Reading ]
True service consists not in material sacrifices but in obedience to the will of God. The stanza is an answer to the implied question, How should man express his gratitude? It affirms the common prophetic doctrine that sacrifice was in itself of no value apart from the dispositions of heart which it... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then said I_ This was his answer when he became aware of God's requirements. _Lo, I come_ Rather as R.V., Lo, I am come: (LXX. ἰδοὺ ἥκω) the servant's response to his master's summons (Numbers 22:38; 2 Samuel 19:20): like -Behold me," or, -Here I am" (Isaiah 6:9). The object of the coming is not e... [ Continue Reading ]
_I delight_ Cp. Psalms 40:6. What is God's delight is his delight. Contrast the delight of the wicked in evil, Psalms 40:14. _thy will_ Thy good pleasure: what Thou approvest (Proverbs 15:8; Psalms 19:14). _thy law is within my heart_ Lit. _in the midst of my body_, as though God's law were itself... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have preached righteousness_ R.V. I have published: better, as R.V. marg., I have proclaimed glad tidings of, εὐηγγελισάμην δικαιοσύνην (LXX). His theme was -righteousness;" all the facts which are the concrete manifestation and evidence of God's righteousness (Psalms 40:10). The good news which... [ Continue Reading ]
Beside the sacrifice of himself, he has not failed to render the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, by the fullest public proclamation of Jehovah's goodness, which he trusts he will still continue to experience.... [ Continue Reading ]
Neither indolence nor ingratitude nor fear of man has deterred him from openly celebrating those fundamental attributes of the divine character which have been once more manifested in his deliverance. For _thy righteousness_, see Psalms 5:8, note; for _lovingkindness, faithfulness, righteousness_, c... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou, O Jehovah, wilt not restrain Thy tender mercies from me, Thy lovingkindness and thy truth shall continually guard me. The words are not a prayer but an expression of confidence in the certainty of God's response (Matthew 10:32). Thou is emphatic. God on His part will not fail. The double cor... [ Continue Reading ]
This verse is somewhat loosely attached to Psalms 40:11 by _for_. The rendering of Psalms 40:11 as a prayer makes the connexion appear closer and more natural than it is. _evils_ Afflictions (Psalms 34:19), which are trials of faith or chastisements for sin. _have compassed me about_ The use of th... [ Continue Reading ]
The scene is changed. The sky is overclouded. Supplication for speedy help in time of danger takes the place of joyous thanksgiving.... [ Continue Reading ]
Psalms 40:13 recur as Psalms 70, with some verbal variations. _Be pleased_ An echo of -thy good pleasure" (-thy will") in Psalms 40:8. The word is omitted in Psalms 70, and in the first line, though not in the second, _God_is substituted for _Lord_, according to the usual rule in Book II See Introd... [ Continue Reading ]
The whole verse is a repetition, with variations, of Psalms 35:4; Psalms 35:26 (cp. Psalms 38:12); and _v. 5-17_recall _v._ 21, 25, 27, 10 of the same Psalm. _Together_and _to destroy it_are omitted in Psalms 70:2. _let them be driven backward_&c. Render, as in Psalms 35; Let them be turned back a... [ Continue Reading ]
R.V., Let them be desolate (Lamentations 1:16) by reason of their shame, the defeat of their malicious plans: or, less probably, _let them be astonished_(Leviticus 26:32) _for a reward of their shame_, at the shame which is their recompense. Psalms 70:4 reads _let them turn back_, as in Psalms 6:10.... [ Continue Reading ]
Cp. Psalms 35:27. The discomfiture of the wicked gives occasion for the righteous to rejoice in God, not merely because they are set free from persecution, but because they see in it the proof of God's righteous sovereignty and the unfolding of His purposes of salvation. _such as love thy salvation... [ Continue Reading ]
The Psalmist reverts to his own need, but in calm assurance that he is not forgotten. But I, who am afflicted and needy: The Lord will take thought for me. For _afflicted and needy_, see Psalms 9:18; Psalms 35:10; Psalms 37:14; Psalms 86:1; Psalms 109:22. With _will take thought for me_, cp. Psal... [ Continue Reading ]