lieveth the fatherless and widow; but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down.] The friendless strangers are preserved by the Lord from those injuries which men are apt to do them, when they commit themselves to his protection; and so do the disconsolate widows and fatherless children find support and relief from him, against the injustice and violence of their wicked oppressors, whose designs and practices he utterly confoundeth. Ver. 10. The LORD shall reign for ever; even thy God, O Sion, unto all generations. Praise ye the LORD.] Be of good comfort, then, O ye inhabitants of Sion, who sincerely worship this great Lord, that doth all these wondrous things; for his power and authority never fails, but from age to age will ever succour those pious souls who are destitute of human help. Therefore praise perpetually this everlasting King. PSALM CXLVII. Hallelujah. See cxlvi. THE ARGUMENT.-Saint Chrysostom and Theodoret think this psalm hath respect to the return of the Jewish nation from the captivity of Babylon; and the instauration of Jerusalem, which followed upon it. And the second and thirteenth verses may well incline us to be of the opinion, that it was made by some holy man at that time, (Haggai or Zachariah, some ancient interpreters imagine, or rather Nehemiah, who built the walls and set up the gates); especially if we observe, that there are some phrases in it which savour of the Chaldæan language. And though this can be no more than a conjecture, yet it is very certain and evident, that in that deliverance God gave such illustrious proofs of his power, wisdom, mercy, and justice, as the psalmist here exhorts the people to celebrate with their thankful praises. I shall follow it therefore in my paraphrase; it being reasonable to suppose, that devout persons would be as forward to acknowledge the wonderful providence of God in their restoration, as they were to bewail (which they do, Psal. cxxxvii.) the ruin of their country; and that posterity would be no less careful to preserve what was composed in memory of the one, than they had been to continue the memory of the other: And there is no hymn we can find so suitable to that occasion as this. Ver. 1. PRAISE ye the LORD; for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant, and praise is comely.] Let all the nations praise the Lord, who will send us new benefits when we are truly thankful to him, our great benefactor, for the old; for it is a thing highly acceptable to him, as well as delightful to those who are employed therein; and best becomes us of all other things, there being nothing so decent as to see men grateful to him that hath obliged them; we stand bound above all other men; for the Lord hath not only delivered us out of a sad captivity, but, in spite of all the opposition our enemies have made to it, (Ezra, iv. 12.), hath raised Jerusalem out of its ruins; whereby he invites the rest of our brethren, who remained behind, to return to their own country, from whence they are expelled. Ver. 3. He bealeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.] He comforts us after our long sorrows, which had in a manner broken our heart with grief and sadness; and hath in some measure repaired our breaches, which, like a festering wound, endangered the life of our nation. Ver. 4. He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.] Whom he knows how to gather out of all their dispersions, and to find every one of them, wheresoever they are, though as numerous as the stars of heaven, (Gen. xv. 5.), which he as directly and exactly understands, (how confusedly soever they seem to us to be scattered in the sky), as we do those things which we call by their proper names. Ver. 5. Great is our LORD, and of great power; bis understanding is infinite.] Let us not despair of it, for nothing is impossible with our Lord and Governor ; who is not like earthly kings, that rule over a few petty provinces, but the great Sovereign of the whole world; whose power and wisdom are so unlimited, that he is able to do whatsoever he pleases, and knows how to compass whatsoever he designs; Ver. 6. The LORD lifteth up the meek; he casteth the wicked down to the ground.] And doth not, because he is so great, despise the afflicted; but, if they meekly commit themselves to his care, will raise them up to a better condition, and throw down the mightiest princes that proudly oppress them, as low as the very ground. Ver. 7. Sing unto the LORD with thanksgiving; sing praise upon the harp unto our God.] Celebrate, therefore, with your thankful songs, (you cannot make a less return unto him), this infinite power, and wisdom, and goodness; begin now, with the usual instruments of music, to sing hymns of praise unto our God, for all his benefits; Ver. 8. Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh to grass grow upon the mountains.] Particularly for the great plenty he hath given us by his almighty goodness, (Haggai, ii. 1.), which shews itself, first in raising vapours from the earth, and then turning them into clouds, wherewith he covers the face of heaven, and then bringing forth rain out of those clouds, which he sends back to the earth again; and makes not only the green pastures, but the parched mountains and desart places, become fruitful. Ver. 9. He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.] By which wonderful providence he provides food even for the wild goats, and such like beasts, that live upon the top of craggy rocks; for he neglects not the vilest creatures, but satisfies the hunger of the young ravens; though they be so ravenous, that they are continually crying for new supplies. M m Ver. 2. The LORD doth build up Jerusalem; be gathereth together the outcasts of Israel.] To which VOL. III. Ver. 10. He delighteth not in the strength of the horse; he taketh not pleasure in the legs of man.] Let us not doubt, then, but he that takes care of crows, will much more take care of us; and not be afraid though we are of little force, (Nehem. iv. 3. 4. vii. 4.), and have no armies of horse and foot to defend us; for the Lord (who fights for us, Nehem. iv. 20.) hath no need of these; and will not take part wit our enemies, because they are superior to us in the strength of their horses, and the nimbleness of their soldiers. Ver. 11. The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in bis mercy.] But delights to give those his assistance and protection, who, worshipping him devoutly, fear to offend him; and having no help in themselves, nor any earthly refuge to fly unto, depend notwithstanding with a stedfast faith on his infinite mercy. Ver. 12. Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Sion] Praise the Lord, O ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; sing joyful hymns unto your God, O ye people of Sion, (Nehem. xii. 27. 31. 40. 43.), who have seen this truth abundantly demonstrated in your days. Ver. 13. For be bath strengthened the bars of thy gates; he hath blessed thy children within thee.] For he hath made this city, which was lately without walls and gates, so strong a place, that no enemy dare assault it, (Nehem. vi. 15. 16.), and hath increased the number of thy citizens, which were but few, (Nehem. vii. 4. xi. 1. 2.), by the manifold blessings he hath pour ed on them. Ver. 14. He maketh peace in thy borders, and filleth thee with the finest of the wheat.] Which are not confined within the walls of that city, but he hath settled. all the country in peace; no enemy appearing to infest thy borders, and to disturb the husbandmen in their labours, which have produced so rich a crop, that plentiful provision is made for all our satisfac tion. Ver. 15. He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth; his word runneth very swiftly.] This we ought to ascribe to his merciful providence, who shews, by the fruitful seasons he sends, after all things seem to be killed by a hard winter, that he doth not intend by our affliction to destroy us, and that he can easily bring all our brethren hither, who remain still in captivity; for when he would have any alteration. made in the earth, it is done as speedily as we can speak. Ver. 16. He giveth snow like wool; he scattereth the boar-frost like ashes.] He sends, for instance, a sudden cold, which sometimes turns the moist vapours in the air into flakes of snow, to cover the earth as with a fleece of wool, and defend the corn from the biting winds; and sometimes into hoary frost, which he gently scatters and strews like ashes upon the earth. Ver. 17. He casteth forth his ice like morsels: who can stand before his cold?] And sometimes congeals them into ice, which he breaks into bits, and throws down in violent hail, accompanied with such extremity of cold, that neither man nor beast, nor the fishes in the ponds and rivers, are able long to endure it. Ver. 18. He sendeth out his word, and melteth them; be causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.] But then, to prevent the hurt that might ensue by its continuance, he issues forth another command, which as suddenly (ver. 15.) makes a thaw, and, by the warm breath of softer winds, loosens the waters which were bound up, and causes them to flow again. Ver. 19. He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgements unto Israel.] In such things as these the whole world see how powerful and how good he is; but we have more peculiar reasons to depend upon him for a happy return of our nation, whom he doth not teach merely by the snow, the hoar frost, and the ice, but by another sort of word than that which sends them upon the earth, (ver. 15.); even by his ten commandments delivered from heaven, (Exod. xx. 1.), in a most glorious and astonishing manner, (ver. 18.), and by laws of all sorts, which he hath given us for the government of our life. Ver. 20. He hath not dealt so with any nation; and as for his judgements, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD.] This is a privilege which no other nation in the world enjoys, (Deut. iv. 32. 33.) For though they all receive the showers and snow of the clouds, yet laws from thence they have no acquaintance withal. Therefore let us not dishonour him so much as to distrust his providence, but continually praise the Lord, and acknowledge his bounty to us. THE ARGUMENT.-It doth not appear who was the author of this hymn, nor upon what occasion it was composed. But the last verse sufficiently shews the nation was then in a very flourishing condition, and therefore probably it was made by David, when God had given him rest from all his enemies; which filled his heart with such love to God, that it transported him into this rapture. Wherein, finding how short his own praises were, he wishes all creatures in heaven and earth would conspire in a sweet symphony, as Theodoret speaks, of singing praise unto him. And first he calls upon the world above, and all that is therein, from the first verse to the seventh, where he descends to the world here below, and calls upon all things on the earth to praise the Lord; concluding, (ver. 13.), that as there is one Maker of both, so all that they can say of him, when they have joined all their powers together in one choir, falls infinitely short of his most excellent majesty; who hath set forth his most transcendent wisdom, power, and munificence, in such variety of stupendous works, that there is not the smallest of them, but ministers such matter of praise, nay admiration, to those that attentively consider them, that they cannot but wish, with the psalmist here, that every one of them were able to tell us, how much skill and kindness he hath shewn in their contrivance, or that we were able to find it out, and comprehend it. Thus he is to be understood, when he calls upon all creatures to praise the Lord; or it is as if he had said, The Lord is to be praised by, or in, all these things, as long as the world lasts. This I take to be the true account of this psalm, which I refer to the times of David, because the two following seem to have been then made; and there is no other we can so well fix upon, unless we will conceive that it was a meditation, when they were perfectly settled in a peaceable enjoyment of their religion, after the captivity; of which there is not the least intimation in this psalm. Ver. 1. PRAISE ye the LORD; praise ye the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights.] Let all creatures praise the Lord. First let the celestial choir begin, and sing their thankful hymns to him, who hath raised them so high above us in power and might, as well as in dignity and place. Ver. 2. Praise him, all his angels: praise ye him, all his hosts.] Praise him, all ye angels, who have the honour to be the prime ministers of his excellent majesty. O let their several hosts and companies, in whatsoever rank or order they stand, praise him whose sovereign authority commands them all. Ver. 3. Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light.] Praise him, ye sun and moon, who are his greatest visible ministers, and unwearied in his service; praise him, all the rest of the shining stars, and declare to all future generations, as ye have done for so many ages past, how glorious he is. Ver. 4. Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens.] Let all the heavenly regions praise him; particularly the clouds, which hang in the air, and distil in fruitful showers to inrich the earth. Ver. 5. Let them praise the name of the LORD: for he commanded, and they were created.] Let all these set forth the adorable wisdom, and power, and goodness of the Lord; for by his omnipotent word, these, whom the mistaken world calls gods, were created, not to be worshipped, but perpetually to proclaim his praise. Ver. 6. He hath also established them for ever and ever: he hath made a decree which shall not pass.] Who hath made them not only illustrious, but everlasting monuments of his splendour and glory; having fixed and settled them in an admirable order, which they constantly observe, and prescribed them laws, which they never transgress. wind, fulfilling his word.] Let the lightnings, thunder, and hail; the snow, hoary frost, and ice; the winds, storms, and tempests; all make a part of this song, for they constantly execute his sovereign will, and serve his wise designs. Ver. 9. Mountains, and all hills, fruitful trees, and all cedars.] The fofty mountains also, and the lesser hills, the fruit-bearing trees, with the stately cedars; the pines, the firs, and all the rest, (which he hath created for several ends and uses); let them all be called upon to tell how great and how bountiful he is. Ver. 10. Beasts, and all cattle, creeping things, and flying fowl.] The wild beasts also of the forest, and all the cattle that feed in the fields, whatsoever creeps upon the earth, or swims in the sea, or flies in the air, let it join in this hymn of praise to him, who hath shewn his manifold wisdom and diffusive goodness in them all. Ver. 11. Kings of the earth, and all people; princes, and all judges of the earth.] But especially let mankind praise him, who (after he had made these things) brought them into the world last of all, to contemplate his wonderful works: and first let kings (who here on earth resemble the angels or the sun in heaven), and then let their ministers of state, and lieutenants in their several provinces, and next, all the judges of the earth, (who are like the moon and stars), give a good example unto all the subjects, and stir them up to meditate his praise. Ver. 12. Both young men and maidens, old men and children.] Let no sex, no age, think themselves exempted from this heavenly employment; but let the young men praise him for their strength, and the virgins for their beauty; they that are going out of the world, for all that they have seen and heard of him; and they that are newly come into it, for all the goodly spectacles that are before them. Ver. 13. Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent, and his glory is above the earth and beaven.] Let them praise the incomparable wisdom, goodness, and power of the Lord: for how great soever any other beings are, there is no other God but he, whose most excellent majesty infinitely surpasses all that the earth or the heavens can tell us of him. Ver. 14. He also exalted the horn of his people, the praise of all his saints, even of the children of Israel, a people near unto him. Praise ye the LORD.] And yet, so great is his condescension unto us, (who are bound, therefore, more particularly to praise him), he takes a peculiar care of us, and hath set over us a powerful prince, for the defence and safety of his people, (Psal. lxxxix. 19.); whose fame he hath thereby raised to the highest pitch of honour, having obliged the children of Israel by many peculiar benefits, especially this, that they are a people more nearly related to him than any other whatsoever; for he dwells among them in his holy place, where they approach to him. O praise him there for this singular favour. Ver. 7. Praise the LORD from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps.] O let all creatures here below accompany those celestial hosts in their praises of the Lord, whose power the vast whales, in their several kinds, and all that move in the profound depth of the sea, abundantly declare. Ver. 8. Fire and hail, snow and vapour, stormy PSALM CXLIX. Hallelujah. See cxlvi. THE ARGUMENT.-Theodoret thinks this psalm was made for them that, after their return from captivity, had many opposers, but by the divine assistance overcame them; and that it is a prediction of those great things which were done by the Maccabees. Certain it is, that some signal victory was the occasion of it; and thence Saint Chrysostom hath here given us a full account, I think, of the meaning of a new song; which, according to the use of the word new in other places, (when they would express a thing very wonderful, snch as hath not been seen nor heard of before, Numb. xvi. 30. Jer. xxxi. 22.), he takes to denote" an illustrious and famous hymn, made for victories, for great atchievements and trophies." Which were never more remarkable in this nation, than in the days of David; and therefore this psalm may very well relate to his reign, who subdued several kingdoms, which had stood out, and would not submit to Israel till his time, though God had promised to give their countries to them, Gen. xv. 18. Exod. xxiii. 31. 2 Sam. viii. 1 2. &c. x. 19. The interpretation which I have given of the sixth verse, need not seem strange to any one who considers that it hath been and is the custom of all nations, to stir up themselves to fight by the sound of some musical instrument or other. "The ancient inhabitants of Etruria," saith Clemens Alexandrinus, (in the second book of his Pædagogus, chap. 4.), "used the trumpet for this purpose; the Arcadians the whistle; the Sicilians an instrument called Pectids; the Cretians the harp; the Lacedæmonians the pipe; the Thracians the cornet; the Egyptians the drum; the Arabians the cymbal:" but it was proper to the Israelites to go forth against their enemies, singing psalms of praise to God, (as we read, 2 Chron. xx. 21. 22.), who had given great victories to their ancestors, and had promised never to forsake their posterity, while they served him only, and piously confided in him. Ver. 1. PRAISE ye the LORD. Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints.] Sing a new hymn unto the Lord, for the fresh and singular benefits he hath be. stowed upon us; let him be praised not only in private, but in the public assemblies of those who have received special marks of his favour to them. Ver. 2. Let Israel rejoice in him that made him; let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.] Let all the Israelites rejoice in him that made them his pecu-. liar people, and hath now raised them to great splendour among the nations of the world; let the inhabitants of Sion, more particularly, be exceeding glad, f that the Lord, who is our King, hath there settled his royal throne, 2 Sam. v. 9. vi. 12. Ver. 3. Let them praise his name in the dance; let them sing praises unto him with the timbrel and barp.] Let them leap for joy, and unanimously praise his excellent majesty, in their dances to the flute, (2 Sam. vi. 16.); let them testify their gratitude to him, by singing psalms, with the timbrel and the harp. Ver. 4. For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people; be will beautify the meek with salvation.] For the Lord taketh pleasure in doing good unto his people; and will not only deliver them after they have been oppressed many years, but, if they meekly depend upon him, make them as great and illustrious, as they have been contemptible and mean, i Chron. xiv. 2. Ver. 5. Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud upon their beds.] Which shall fill the hearts of good men (who are dear to him) with the highest triumph, in the honour that he hath done them; and make them shout for joy, in the security and peace he shall bestow upon them.. Ver. 6. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their kard; Which they shall not doubt to maintain against all opposers ; for in assured hope of victory they shall go to war, with psalms and hymns in their mouths, concerning the great acts of the Lord; which they shall courageously sing with a loud voice, when they shall fall upon their enemies, and prefer to the two-edged sword which they carry in their hand. Ver. 7. To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people ;] Wherewith they shall take a just revenge upon the heathen, for all the injuries they have done us; and so chastise the insolence of the people, that they shall fear again to molest us, 1 Chron. xiv. 17. Ver. 8. To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;] For their victories shall be so complete, that they shall not only rout their enemies and put them to flight, but lead away their kings captive in chains; and take their great captains and commanders prisoners, and keep them fast in fetters of iron This is Ver. 9. To execute upon them the judgement written : this honour have all bis saints. Praise ye the LORD] In order to the executing upon them the judgement which God hath long ago decreed, and is recorded in his law, (Deut. vii. 24. xxxii. 41. 42. 43.) the honour which all Israel shall have, when they are in favour with God; and such shall be their glorious victories, and such hymns and melodious songs shall they sing, saying, Hallelujah, praise the Lord, by whose power and might we have done all this. PSALM CL. Hallelujah. See cxlvi. THE ARGUMENT.-Theodoret takes this also to be "Tμr 'ExivixiC, a song of triumph after some victory; and the mention of the mighty acts of the Lord, ver. 2. seems to countenance this conjecture; which consists well enough with what others conceive, that it was at first particularly directed to the Levites, (by David I suppose), whose office it was to praise the Lord with musical instruments, (1 Chron. xvi. 4. 5.), and excite others to his praises, not only for victory, but for all other his benefits. For if the tradition of the Jews be true, which we read at large in Maimonides, (in a treatise on that subject), when the people of any place brought up their first fruits to present them to the Lord at Jerusalem, (according to the law, Deut. xxvi.), with a pipe going before them, as soon as they came to the mountain of the temple, every one took his basket into his hand, and sung this whole psalm; till they came to the courts of the Lord's house, where the Levites met them singing the 30th psalm. And, indeed, it might well be used upon occasion of any exceeding great joy; for it seems to be intended (by the repetition of these words, "praise the Lord," or "praise him," thirteen times; and by the calling for no less than ten instruments of music); to express the height and fulness of their joy, and thankfulness to God for his benefits; nor can music be so well employed to any other use, as this divine and heavenly exercise of praising God, by hymns, and psalms, and spiritual songs: to which the psalmist seems to me to excite all creatures, in heaven and in earth, from the highest to the lowest. And with this the collector of these five books of psalms thought good to conclude the whole and not unfitly; for in whatsoever condition we be, (as there are psalms adapted to several purposes), we should never forget to praise the Lord; but after we have prayed, or complained, &c. still end with thankful acknowledgements to God for his good ness to us. Here are several sorts of musical instruments mentioned, which I have not adventured to explain; because the Hebrews themselves acknowledge they do not understand them. "We have no way (saith Aben Ezra upon these words, ver. 5. which we translate loud cymbals), to know what these musical instruments were; there being many found in the country of the Ishmaelites (i. e. Mahometans) which are not among the men of Edom, (i. e. Christians), and others among them, which the wise men of Ishmael never heard of." Ver. 1. PRAISE ye the LORD. Praise God in bis sanctuary; praise him in the firmament of his power.] Praise the mighty God, ye angelical ministers that attend upon him in his celestial sanctuary; praise him, all ye inhabitants of heaven, where you see the brightest demonstrations (and most lasting monuments) of his power. Ver. 2. Praise him for his mighly acts; praise him according to his excellent greatness.] Praise him, all ye ministers of his upon earth, for the miraculous things which he hath done for our deliverance and exaltation; let your praises bear some proportion to the excellence of his majesty, and the multitude of those great and magnificent acts of mercy towards us. Ver. 3. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet; praise him with the psaltery and harp.] Let the priests of the Lord (Numb. x. 8.) praise him with the sound of the trumpet; and let the Levites (1 Chron. xxv, 6.) praise him with psalteries and harps. Ver. 4. Praise him with the timbrel and dance; praise him with stringed instruments and organs.] Let some praise him with the timbrel and the flute, and others praise him with the stringed instruments and organs. Ver. 5. Praise him upon the loud cymbals; praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.] Let all sorts of cymbals accompany their psalms and hymns in his praise; both those of daily use, and those that are wont to be employed in times of the highest joy and triumph. Ver. 6. Let every thing that hath breath, praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.] Finally, Let every man living join himself to this sacred choir; and at every breath praise the Lord, the giver of life and of all good things. To him let all the world, with one consent, give perpetual praise. THE END OF THE PSALMS. |