INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 89 MASCHIL OF ETHAN THE EZRAHITE. Who this Ethan was is not certain. Kimchi takes him to be the same with Ethan the wise man, a grandson of Judah, 1 Kings 4:31. But seeing he lived some hundreds of years before the times of David, it is not likely that he should be the writer... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL SING OF THE MERCIES OF THE LORD FOR EVER,.... Both temporal and spiritual, especially the latter, in which there is a large display of the rich and abundant mercy of God, from whence they are so called; as in the choice of men to everlasting life, who are said to be vessels of mercy; in the c... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR I HAVE SAID,.... That is, in his heart he had said, he had thought of it, was assured of it, strongly concluded it, from the Spirit and word of God; he believed it, and therefore he spoke it; having it from the Lord, it was all one as if he had spoke it:... [ Continue Reading ]
I HAVE MADE A COVENANT WITH MY CHOSEN,.... Not with Abraham, as the Targum expresses it: but with David, as in the following clause; not David, literally understood, though he was chosen of the Lord to be his servant, and a covenant was made with him, and a promise made to him of the perpetuity of h... [ Continue Reading ]
THY SEED WILL I ESTABLISH FOR EVER,.... Meaning not the natural seed of David, at least not only them; whose family was indeed preserved, though in very low circumstances, until the Messiah came, who sprung from thence, Luke 1:27, but the spiritual seed of Christ, to whom it was promised that he sho... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE HEAVENS SHALL PRAISE THY WONDERS, O LORD,.... Which, by a prosopopceia, may be understood of the heavens literally, in the same sense as other inanimate creatures praise the Lord, Psalms 148:3, or mystically of the church, consisting of heaven born souls, and whose doctrines and ordinances a... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR WHO IN THE HEAVEN CAN BE COMPARED UNTO THE LORD?.... Or "ranked" n, or put upon a par, with him; none of the angels in heaven; for though they are holy, wise, knowing, powerful, faithful, kind, and merciful creatures, yet not to be compared with the Lord for holiness, wisdom, knowledge, strength... [ Continue Reading ]
GOD IS GREATLY TO BE FEARED IN THE ASSEMBLY OF THE SAINTS,.... Which Jarchi and Kimchi understand of angels again, and render it "God is to be feared in the great assembly of them"; for they are a very large number, even an innumerable company, in and by whom the Lord is feared and worshipped, Hebre... [ Continue Reading ]
O LORD GOD OF HOSTS,.... Of all the hosts of heaven, the sun, moon, and stars, and of all the heavenly hosts of angels, of all the armies in heaven, and the inhabitants of the earth: WHO IS A STRONG LORD LIKE UNTO THEE? he is Jah, or Jehovah, and he alone is so, and is the most High in all the eart... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU RULEST THE RAGING OF THE SEA,.... The power, pride, and elation of it, when it swells, and foams, and rages, and becomes boisterous, and threatens vessels upon it with utter ruin and destruction; but the Lord, who has it under his dominion and government, restrains it; he has made and can manag... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST BROKEN RAHAB IN PIECES, AS ONE THAT IS SLAIN,.... Or Egypt, as in Psalms 87:4 or the Egyptians, and particularly Pharaoh their king; so the Targum explains it, "Rahab or the proud one, this is Pharaoh the wicked;'' who and his people were broken to pieces by the plagues that were brought... [ Continue Reading ]
THE HEAVENS ARE THINE,.... They are made and inhabited by him, they are the work of his hands, and the seat of his majesty, and the throne of his glory; the angels of heaven are his, his creatures and servants; the several heavens are his, the airy, starry, and third heavens; the place and state of... [ Continue Reading ]
Ver. 12 THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH, THOU HAST CREATED THEM,.... The two extreme parts of the world, the northern and southern poles, whether inhabited or uninhabited, are created by the Lord, to answer some purpose or another; see Job 26:7. TABOR AND HERMON SHALL REJOICE IN THY NAME; Tabor was a mount... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST A MIGHTY ARM,.... Christ is the arm of the Lord, and a mighty one he is, and so is the Gospel, which is the power of God unto salvation; here it seems to design the almighty power of God, displayed in the works of creation and providence; see Isaiah 51:9 STRONG IS THY HAND; thy "left hand... [ Continue Reading ]
JUSTICE AND JUDGMENT ARE THE HABITATION OF THY THRONE,.... The seat and throne on which he sits; all the administrations of his kingly power in the government of the world, in the salvation of his people, and in the punishment of his enemies, being according to the strict rules of justice and judgme... [ Continue Reading ]
BLESSED IS THE PEOPLE THAT KNOW THE JOYFUL SOUND,.... Of the love, grace, and mercy of God displayed in Christ, of peace and pardon by his blood, of justification by his righteousness, of atonement by his sacrifice, and of complete salvation by his obedience, sufferings, and death; this is the sound... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THY NAME SHALL THEY REJOICE ALL THE DAY,.... That know the joyful sound, and walk in the light of God's countenance, as they have reason to do; these will "rejoice" in the Lord himself, for his "name" is himself; in the perfections of his nature, as displayed in redemption and salvation by Christ... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THOU ART THE GLORY OF THEIR STRENGTH,.... By which they walk, and do all they do, exercise every grace, and discharge their duty; they have their strength from Christ, as well as their righteousness, without whom they can do nothing, but all things through him strengthening them; and as his righ... [ Continue Reading ]
FOR THE LORD IS OUR DEFENCE,.... From all their enemies, being all around them, as a wall of fire to protect them, and as the mountains were round about Jerusalem, and being kept by his power as in a fortress, strong hold, or garrison, unto salvation; or our shield f; see Psalms 84:9 as are his favo... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN THOU SPAKEST IN VISION TO THY HOLY ONE,.... Samuel the prophet, that holy man of God, to whom the Lord spoke in vision, or by a spirit of prophecy, concerning David, the choice and exaltation of him to the kingdom, and his unction for it, 1 Samuel 16:1. The Vulgate Latin version reads it "to th... [ Continue Reading ]
I HAVE FOUND DAVID MY SERVANT,.... Not David literally; but his Son and antitype, the Messiah, who is sometimes called by his name; Psalms 89:3, and his "finding" him does not suppose any ignorance of him, nor anxious solicitude in seeking him, nor any fortuitous event; but is attributed to God by... [ Continue Reading ]
WITH WHOM MY HAND SHALL BE ESTABLISHED,.... A promise of God's gracious presence with Christ, as man and Mediator, which is his work; of a communication of grace and strength from him, to carry him through it; and of his supporting and upholding him under it; which hand of his power and grace would... [ Continue Reading ]
THE ENEMY SHALL NOT EXACT UPON HIM,.... The enemy is the devil, as in the interpretation of the parable of the tares, Matthew 13:39, the implacable enemy of Christ and his church; and yet, notwithstanding all his enmity and malice, he could not "exact", or get more inflicted on him, than the law and... [ Continue Reading ]
AND I WILL BEAT DOWN HIS FOES BEFORE HIS FACE,.... In Judea, and in the Gentile world; more especially in Rome Pagan, and Rome Papal; in the most public manner, before his Gospel, and the ministry of it by his servants; and they shall either submit unto it, or be broken to pieces as a potter's vesse... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT MY FAITHFULNESS AND MY MERCY SHALL BE WITH HIM,.... The "faithfulness" of God was and is with Christ, in performing promises made to him respecting his work, and strength to do it, as man, and the glory that should follow; and also those made to his people in him, relating to grace here, and hap... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL SET HIS HAND ALSO IN THE SEA,.... Which is expressive not of his dominion over the sea, and of his power and authority over all things in it, which: he has by right of creation, and as Mediator, Psalms 8:5, of which there were instances in the days of his flesh, Matthew 8:26, but of his kingd... [ Continue Reading ]
HE SHALL CRY UNTO ME, THOU ART MY FATHER,.... Not by creation, as he is the Father of angels and men; nor by adoption, as he is the Father of saints; but by generation, being the begotter of him, Psalms 2:7 so that he is Christ's own and proper Father, and Christ is his own and proper Son, John 5:18... [ Continue Reading ]
ALSO I WILL MAKE HIM MY FIRSTBORN,.... Or, "make him the firstborn"; make him great, as Jarchi interprets it; give him the blessing, the double portion of inheritance: so Christ is made most blessed for ever, and has all spiritual blessings in his hands; and is heir of all things, and his people joi... [ Continue Reading ]
MY MERCY WILL I KEEP FOR HIM FOR EVERMORE,.... That is, for his mystical body, his church and people; for whom stores of mercy are kept with him, to be laid out in their regeneration, pardon, salvation, and eternal life; for to them the mercy of God is from everlasting to everlasting, Psalms 103:17,... [ Continue Reading ]
HIS SEED ALSO WILL I MAKE TO ENDURE FOR EVER,.... Not a race of kings from David, which ended at the Babylonish captivity; not the natural seed of David, not the Messiah himself, who sprung from him, but the Messiah's spiritual seed, which were given him by the Father, adopted through him, regenerat... [ Continue Reading ]
IF HIS CHILDREN FORSAKE MY LAW,.... The same with the seed before mentioned, the children of the Messiah: it is not said "if he forsakes", which cannot be supposed of Christ, because he knew no sin, nor did any; which yet might be supposed of David, had he been literally meant; but not he, nor his n... [ Continue Reading ]
IF THEY BREAK MY STATUTES,.... Fixed, settled, appointed ordinances; such as are baptism and the Lord's supper, under the New Testament dispensation; which are the things that are unshaken, and will remain until the second coming of Christ: these are to be kept as they were first delivered; no chang... [ Continue Reading ]
THEN WILL I VISIT THEIR TRANSGRESSION WITH THE ROD,.... That is, of men; as in 2 Samuel 7:14, the Lord making use of men to chastise his people by, as he did of the neighbouring nations of the Jews, when they sinned against him; and so the Targum interprets it here, "I will visit their transgressio... [ Continue Reading ]
NEVERTHELESS, MY LOVINGKINDNESS WILL I NOT UTTERLY TAKE FROM HIM,.... Or "make it void" k, not from Christ, who always was, and ever will be, the dear Son of his love, even while he was obeying, suffering, and dying; nor from all those that are in him, loved and chosen in him, from everyone of his s... [ Continue Reading ]
MY COVENANT WILL I NOT BREAK,.... Not the covenant at Sinai, as Aben Ezra, but the covenant of grace made with Christ, and which stands fast with him, Psalms 89:3, which is firm, sure, and stable, and as immovable as mountains and hills, and more so, 2 Samuel 23:5 or "profane" m it, though his peopl... [ Continue Reading ]
ONCE HAVE I SWORN BY MY HOLINESS,.... Swearing is ascribed to God after the manner of men, and is done in condescension to the weakness of his people, and to remove doubts and hesitations from them, relating to things spiritual and eternal; as to his everlasting love to them, his covenant with them... [ Continue Reading ]
HIS SEED SHALL ENDURE FOR EVER,.... This is a confirmation by his oath of what he had before said, Psalms 89:29 which may be understood either of the perseverance of particular believers, of everyone of the spiritual seed of Christ; or of the duration of the church in general, throughout all ages, a... [ Continue Reading ]
IT SHALL BE ESTABLISHED FOR EVER AS THE MOON,.... Either Christ's seed, or throne, which comes to much the same sense; for by both are meant his church and people, his kingdom and interest in the world; the moon is as perpetual as the sun, and is used as elsewhere to signify the continuance of the p... [ Continue Reading ]
BUT THOU HAST CAST OFF,.... Here begin objections to what is before said, and swore to; even to the everlasting love of God, to Christ, and to his seed, to the unchangeableness and unalterableness of the covenant, and to the continuance and perpetuity of the kingdom and church of Christ, taken from... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST MADE VOID THE COVENANT OF THY SERVANT,.... His servant David the Messiah, Psalms 89:3, meaning not the covenant of circumcision, nor the covenant at Sinai, which were really made void at the death of Christ; but the covenant of grace and redemption made with Christ, which it was promised s... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST BROKEN DOWN ALL HIS HEDGES,.... Round about his vine, the church; see Psalms 80:12. A famous church was raised at Jerusalem, quickly after the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, which seemed to be well filled, fenced, and protected; but on a sudden a violent persecution arose, a... [ Continue Reading ]
ALL THAT PASS BY THE WAY SPOIL HIM,.... His church, his members, which are himself, when made havoc of by their persecutors, and they took joyfully the spoiling of their goods, Hebrews 10:34, so the church of Christ may be spoiled, however, attempted to be spoiled, by false teachers, who are the fox... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST SET UP THE RIGHT HAND OF HIS ADVERSARIES,.... Suffered them to become powerful, and to prevail against him; as the wicked Jews, and Satan, and his principalities and powers, at the time of Christ's apprehension, crucifixion, and death; for then were their hour, and the power of darkness, L... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST ALSO TURNED THE EDGE OF HIS SWORD,.... Or the "sharpness" a of it blunted it, so that it could do no execution: the disciples of Christ were not allowed the use of the temporal sword to defend their master; and his house, his kingdom, not being of this world, Matthew 26:51, other weapons w... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU HAST MADE HIS GLORY TO CEASE,.... The glory of his deity, though it did not properly cease, yet it seemed to do so, being covered, and out of sight, and seen but by a very few, while he appeared in the likeness of sinful flesh; and the glory of his humanity was made to cease, in which he was fa... [ Continue Reading ]
THE DAYS OF HIS YOUTH HAST THOU SHORTENED,.... His days of joy and pleasure; such as days of youth are, in opposition to the days of old age, which are evil, Ecclesiastes 11:9, these were shortened when his sorrows and sufferings came on, and God hid his face from him; and indeed he was a man of sor... [ Continue Reading ]
HOW LONG, LORD, WILT THOU HIDE THYSELF? FOR EVER?.... When God hides his face front his people, though it is but for a little while, it seems long, and a kind of an eternity to them; and so it seemed to the man Christ Jesus; and indeed what he endured, when his Father hid his face from him, was of t... [ Continue Reading ]
REMEMBER HOW SHORT MY TIME IS,.... In this world man's time here is fixed, and it is but a short time; his life is but a vapour, which appeareth for a little while; his days are as an hand's breadth; they pass away like a tale that is told; the common term of life is but threescore years and ten, an... [ Continue Reading ]
WHAT MAN IS HE THAT LIVETH, AND SHALL NOT SEE DEATH?.... Every living man must die; as sure as a man lives, so sure he shall die: be he strong and mighty, as the word signifies, or weak and sickly; be he high or low, rich or poor, prince or peasant, righteous or wicked; persons of all ranks, states,... [ Continue Reading ]
LORD, WHERE ARE THY FORMER LOVINGKINDNESSES,.... The spiritual blessings said to be in Christ; the grace said to be given to us in him; the sure mercies of David, such as redemption, justification, remission of sins, and eternal life; so called because they flow from the free favour and love of God,... [ Continue Reading ]
REMEMBER, LORD, THE REPROACH OF THY SERVANTS,.... The apostles of Christ, his servants, and the servants of the living God, that showed unto men the way of salvation, and other saints with them that believed in Christ, and were made willing to serve and follow him; these were now reproached by the S... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEREWITH THINE ENEMIES HAVE REPROACHED, O LORD,.... Which carries in it another argument why the Lord should take notice of these reproaches; because they come not only from their enemies, but from his also, and the enemies of his Son, who would not have him, the King Messiah, to reign over them, a... [ Continue Reading ]
BLESSED BE THE LORD FOR EVERMORE,.... In this world, and in the world to come, as the Targum; for reproaches and afflictions for Christ's sake, since they work together for good; as Job blessed the Lord in the midst of his troubles, Job 1:21, or rather the psalmist, viewing, by a spirit of prophecy,... [ Continue Reading ]