The author of this psalm, as of those which immediately precede it, is unknown. It is very general in its character, and has no allusion to any circumstances by which one could determine the name of the author, or the occasion on which it was written. In connection with the five following psalms, it... [ Continue Reading ]
PRAISE YE THE LORD - Margin, as in Hebrew, “Hallelujah.” See the notes at Psalms 106:1. PRAISE, O YE SERVANTS OF THE LORD - You who profess to serve and obey him; who acknowledge him as your God. In the original this is also the word “Hallelu,” הללוּ _hal__e__lû_. PRAISE THE NAME OF THE LORD - St... [ Continue Reading ]
BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD - Blessed be the Lord; or; Let the name of the Lord be blessed. FROM THIS TIME FORTH AND FOR EVERMORE - Now and forever. He is worthy of praise now, and he ever will be. What he is now, he will always continue to be; and as praise is proper now, it will be forever an... [ Continue Reading ]
FROM THE RISING OF THE SUN ... - From the farthest east to the farthest west - the sun in its rising and setting being the remotest object that we see in the horizon. THE LORD’S NAME IS TO BE PRAISED - This does not mean that it “will” be - though that is true; but that it “ought” to be - that it i... [ Continue Reading ]
THE LORD IS HIGH ABOVE ALL NATIONS - Hebrew, Exalted above all nations is Yahweh. That is, he rules over all nations; he directs their affairs; he is their sovereign king. As a matter of fact, and from the necessity of the case, he is on a throne which is elevated above all the kings and kingdoms of... [ Continue Reading ]
WHO IS LIKE UNTO THE LORD OUR GOD? - Who can be compared with Yahweh our God? See the notes at Isaiah 40:17. The meaning is, that no creature - no idol - can be compared with Yahweh. The remark here has special reference to his attributes as immediately specified - his humbling himself to behold the... [ Continue Reading ]
WHO HUMBLETH HIMSELF ... - So high that it is necessary he should stoop even to behold the things which seem most lofty to us; and who actually does stoop thus to regard the things which he has made in heaven and on earth. TO BEHOLD THE THINGS THAT ARE IN HEAVEN, AND IN THE EARTH! - More literally,... [ Continue Reading ]
HE RAISETH UP THE POOR OUT OF THE DUST - From the most humble condition in life. He exalts them to conditions of wealth, rank, honor. He has power to do this; he actually does it. This is not intended to be affirmed as a universal truth, or to assert that it is always done, but that it is among the... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT HE MAY SET HIM WITH PRINCES - May give him a rank - a position - with nobles and great people upon the earth. Many instances of this nature have occurred in the history of the world. Not a few of the nobles of England, including several of its lord chancellors, have been raised thus from very h... [ Continue Reading ]
HE MAKETH THE BARREN WOMAN TO KEEP HOUSE ... - Margin, as in Hebrew, “to dwell in a house.” That is, to be at the head of a family. See the notes at Psalms 68:6. Compare 1 Samuel 2:5. This, too, is suggested as a reason why God should be praised and adored. In instances where all hope of posterity i... [ Continue Reading ]