A hymn of praise, intended probably to be sung at the presentation of the firstfruits at the Passover (Leviticus 23:10-14) in a year of exceptional promise. It is clear from the allusions to the gathering of the people to the Temple (Psalms 65:2_; Psalms 65:4_) that it was composed for use at one of... [ Continue Reading ]
_Praise waiteth for thee_ The phrase beautifully suggests the idea of a grateful people, assembled to render thanks to God, and only waiting for the festival to begin. But this can hardly be the meaning of the original. The renderings, _For thee praise is silent_, or, _silence is praise_, give no ap... [ Continue Reading ]
It is the duty of a grateful people to render thanks to God in the Temple, assembling to pay its vows to the universal Hearer of prayer. The consciousness of manifold sins might deter them from approaching a holy God, were not He Himself graciously ready to purge their guilt away. In the blessings,... [ Continue Reading ]
_O thou that hearest prayer_ God is thus addressed, because He has given His people cause for the present thanksgiving by hearing their prayers. But the words are more than a reference to a particular answer to prayer. They proclaim that it is His inalienable attribute, His -nature and property," to... [ Continue Reading ]
_Iniquities_ Lit., _words_, or, _matters of iniquities:_many various items of iniquity. Cp. for the same idiom Psalms 105:27; Psalms 145:5. Virtually the clause is a protasis to the second line: Though manifold iniquities are too strong for me, As for our transgressions, Thou wilt purge them away.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Blessed_&c. Or, Happy is he whom thou choosest, as in Psalms 1:1; &c. The language is that which is used of the priests who were -chosen," and -brought near" to God (Numbers 16:5; cp. Jeremiah 30:21; Zechariah 3:7). Here however it is not limited to the sons of Aaron, but applied to all the nation... [ Continue Reading ]
By _terrible_things &c. The R.V. gives a better order: By terrible things thou wilt answer us in righteousness. As God Himself is -a terrible God" (Psalms 47:2; Psalms 76:7 ff), so His acts are -terrible," inspiring His enemies with dread, and His people with reverent awe. The epithet is often appli... [ Continue Reading ]
In the future, as in the past, God will prove His righteousness by awe-inspiring acts on behalf of His people in answer to their prayers, for He has created and sustains the universe, and controls the forces alike of nature and of the nations.... [ Continue Reading ]
_setteth fast the mountains_ The mountains poetically represent the strongest and most solid parts of the earth (Psalms 18:7; Psalms 46:2 f). These He has created and sustains. Comp. the appeals of Amos to the phenomena of nature as the evidence of God's power, Amos 4:13; Amos 5:8; Amos 9:5-6. bein... [ Continue Reading ]
Who stilleth the roaring of the seas, The roaring of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples. He controls alike the turbulent elements of nature (Jeremiah 5:22), and the tumultuous hosts of the nations which they symbolise. Cp. Psalms 46:2 f, Psalms 46:6; Isaiah 17:12-14.... [ Continue Reading ]
_They also_&c. Better, So that they who dwell in the ends of the earth are afraid at thy signs. These mighty works impress them with awe, as -signs" of the irresistible power of God. _the outgoings of the morning and evening_ The term _outgoings_which strictly speaking is appropriate to the east onl... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou hast visited the land, and made it plentiful, greatly enriching it: The stream of God is full of water; Thou preparest their corn, for so thou preparest it. The A.V. _visitest_turns the special thanksgiving into a general statement. The rendering _waterest_follows the Ancient Versions, which... [ Continue Reading ]
The special object of the Psalm thanksgiving for the plenty of the year. First, grateful acknowledgment that the rains which have fertilised the soil were God's gift; then a charming picture of a joyous landscape rich with promise.... [ Continue Reading ]
Saturating its furrows, levelling its ridges: Thou softenest it with showers, thou blessest its springing growth. The poet looks back upon the -early rain" of autumn and winter (Nov. Feb.), which had prepared the ground for the seed and fostered its growth. It had been abundant, and now (Psalms 65... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou crownest_&c. Thou hast crowned the year of thy goodness, added fresh beauty and perfection to a year already marked by special bounty, _and thy paths drop fatness_, rich blessings fall as Thou traversest the land, an allusion probably to an unusually copious fall of the -latter rain," which wa... [ Continue Reading ]
_the pastures of the wilderness_ Jeremiah 9:10; Jeremiah 23:10; Joel 1:19-20; Joel 2:22. -Wilderness" denotes the open uncultivated country used for pasturage, in contrast to the cultivated land or -field." _and the little hills_&c. R.V., And the hills are girded with joy. For the personification o... [ Continue Reading ]
The meadows are clothed with sheep; And the vales are decked with wheat; They shout for joy, yea sing. With the last line cp. Isaiah 55:12. _The vales_(Heb. _-çmek_) denote "the long broad sweeps sometimes found between parallel ranges of hills" (_Sinai and Pal_., p. 481) which were the natural c... [ Continue Reading ]