Psalms 73:1

PSALM LXXIII

The psalmist speaks of God's goodness to his people, 1;

shows how much he was stumbled at the prosperity of the wicked,

and describes their state, 2-12;

details the process of the temptation, and the pain he suffered

in consequence, 13-16;

shows how he was delivered, and the dismal reverse of the state

of the once prosperous ungodly man, by which his own false

views were corrected, 17-22;

his great confidence in God, and the good consequences of it,

23-28.

NOTES ON PSALM LXXIII

THIS is the commencement of the THIRD BOOK of the Psalter; and the Psalm before us has for title, A Psalm of Asaph; or, as the margin has it, A Psalm for Asaph. The title in the Hebrew is מזמור לאסף mizmor leasaph; "A Psalm of Asaph:" and it is likely that this Asaph was the composer of it; that he lived under the Babylonish captivity; and that he published this Psalm to console the Israelites under bondage, who were greatly tried to find themselves in such outward distress and misery, while a people much more wicked and corrupt than they, were in great prosperity, and held them in bondage.

Verse Psalms 73:1. Truly God is good to Israel] Captives as they were, they still had many blessings from God; and they had promises of deliverance, which must be fulfilled in due time.

Such as are of a clean heart.] Those who have a clean heart must have inward happiness: and, because they resemble God, they can never be forsaken by him.