TITLE. To the Chief Musician. He who could sing other
Psalms so well was fitly entrusted with this noble ode. Trifles
may be left to commoner songsters, but the most skilful musician
in Israel must be charged with the due performance of this song,
with the most harmonious voices and choicest music. For the Sons
of Korah. One alone cannot fulfil the praise, there must be
picked choristers under him, whose joyful privilege it shall be
to celebrate the service of song in the house of the Lord. As to
why the sons of Korah were selected, see our remarks at the head
of Psalm 42. It may be well to add that they were a division of
the Levites who took their turn in serving at the temple. All
the works of holy service ought not to be monopolised by one
order of talent, each company of believers should in due course
enjoy the privilege. None ought to be without a share in the
service of God.
A Song upon Alamoth. Which may denote that
the music was to be pitched high for the treble or soprano
voices of the Hebrew virgins. They went forth in their dances to
sing the praises of David when he smote the Philistine, it was
meet that they should make merry and be glad when the victories
of Jehovah became their theme. We need to praise God upon virgin
hearts, with souls chaste towards his fear, with lively and
exalted expressions, and happy strains. Or the word Alamoth may
refer to shrill sounding instruments, as in 1Ch 15:20, where we
read that Zechariah, and Eliab, and Benaiah were to praise the
Lord "with psalteries on Alamoth." We are not always,
in a slovenly manner, to fall into one key, but with
intelligence are to modulate our praises and make them fittingly
expressive of the occasion and the joy it creates in our souls.
These old musical terms cannot be interpreted with certainty,
but they are still useful because they show that care and skill
should be used in our sacred music.
SUBJECT. Happen what may, the Lord's
people are happy and secure, this is the doctrine of the Psalm,
and it might, to help our memories, be called THE SONG OF HOLY
CONFIDENCE, were it not that from the great reformer's love to
this soul-stirring hymn it will probably be best remembered as
LUTHER'S PSALM.
DIVISION. It is divided by inspired
authority into three parts, each of which ends with Selah.
EXPOSITION
Verse 1. God is our refuge and strength. Not
our armies, or our fortresses. Israel's boast is in Jehovah, the
only living and true God. Others vaunt their impregnable
castles, placed on inaccessible rocks, and secured with gates of
iron, but God is a far better refuge from distress than all
these: and when the time comes to carry the war into the enemy's
territories, the Lord stands his people in better stead than all
the valour of legions or the boasted strength of chariot and
horse. Soldiers of the cross, remember this, and count
yourselves safe, and make yourselves strong in God. Forget not
the personal possessive word our; make sure each one of
your portion in God, that you may say, "He is my
refuge and strength." Neither forget the fact that God is
our refuge just now, in the immediate present, as truly as when
David penned the word. God alone is our all in all. All other
refuges are refuges of lies, all other strength is weakness, for
power belongeth unto God: but as God is all sufficient, our
defence and might are equal to all emergencies. A very
present help in trouble, or in distress he has so been
found, he has been tried and proved by his people. He never
withdraws himself from his afflicted. He is their help, truly,
effectually, constantly; he is present or near them, close at
their side and ready for their succour, and this is emphasized
by the word very in our version, he is more present than
friend or relative can be, yea, more nearly present than even
the trouble itself. To all this comfortable truth is added the
consideration that his assistance comes at the needed time. He
is not as the swallows that leave us in the winter; he is a
friend in need and a friend indeed. When it is very dark with
us, let brave spirits say, "Come, let us sing the
forty-sixth Psalm."
"A fortress firm, and steadfast rock,
Is God in time of danger;
A shield and sword in every shock,
From foe well known or stranger."
Verse 2. Therefore. How fond the psalmist is of
therefores! his poetry is no poetic rapture without reason, it
is as logical as a mathematical demonstration. The next words
are a necessary inference from these. Will not we fear.
With God on our side, how irrational would fear be! Where he is
all power is, and all love, why therefore should we quail? Though
the earth be removed, though the basis of all visible things
should be so convulsed as to be entirely changed. And though
the mountains be carried into the middle of the sea; though
the firmest of created objects should fall to headlong ruin, and
be submerged in utter destruction. The two phrases set forth the
most terrible commotions within the range of imagination, and
include the overthrow of dynasties, the destruction of nations,
the ruin of families, the persecutions of the church, the reign
of heresy, and whatever else may at any time try the faith of
believers. Let the worst come to the worst, the child of God
should never give way to mistrust; since God remaineth faithful
there can be no danger to his cause or people. When the elements
shall melt with fervent heat, and the heavens and the earth
shall pass away in the last general conflagration, we shall
serenely behold "the wreck of matter, and the crash of
worlds, "for even then our refuge shall preserve us from
all evil, our strength shall prepare us for all good.
Verse 3. Though the waters thereof roar and be
troubled. When all things are excited to fury, and reveal
their utmost power to disturb, faith smiles serenely. She is not
afraid of noise, nor even of real force, she knows that the Lord
stilleth the raging of the sea, and holdeth the waves in the
hollow of his hand. Though the mountains shake with the
swelling thereof. Alps and Andes may tremble, but faith
rests on a firmer basis, and is not to be moved by swelling
seas. Evil may ferment, wrath may boil, and pride may foam, but
the brave heart of holy confidence trembles not. Great men who
are like mountains may quake for fear in times of great
calamity, but the man whose trust is in God needs never to be
dismayed. Selah. In the midst of such a hurly burly the music
may well come to a pause, both to give the singers breath, and
ourselves time for meditation. We are in no hurry, but can sit
us down and wait while earth dissolves, and mountains rock, and
oceans roar. Ours is not the headlong rashness which passes for
courage, we can calmly confront the danger, and meditate upon
terror, dwelling on its separate items and united forces. The
pause is not an exclamation of dismay, but merely a rest in
music; we do not suspend our song in alarm, but tune our harps
again with deliberation amidst the tumult of the storm. It were
well if all of us could say, Selah, under tempestuous
trials, but alas! too often we speak in our haste, lay our
trembling hands bewildered among the strings, strike the lyre
with a rude crash, and mar the melody of our life song.
Verse 4. There is a river. Divine grace like a
smoothly flowing, fertilising, full, and never failing river,
yields refreshment and consolation to believers. This is the
river of the water of life, of which the church above as well as
the church below partakes evermore. It is no boisterous ocean,
but a placid stream, it is not stayed in its course by
earthquakes or crumbling mountains, it follows its serene course
without disturbance. Happy are they who know from their own
experience that there is such a river of God. The streams
whereof in their various influences, for they are many, shall
make glad the city of God, by assuring the citizens that
Zion's Lord will unfailingly supply all their needs. The streams
are not transient like Cherith, nor muddy like the Nile, nor
furious like Kishon, nor treacherous like Job's deceitful
brooks, neither are their waters "naught" like those
of Jericho, they are clear, cool, fresh, abundant, and
gladdening. The great fear of an Eastern city in time of war was
lest the water supply should be cut off during a siege; if that
were secured the city could hold out against attacks for an
indefinite period. In this verse, Jerusalem, which represents
the church of God, is described as well supplied with water, to
set forth the fact that in seasons of trial all sufficient grace
will be given to enable us to endure unto the end. The church is
like a well ordered city, surrounded with mighty walls of truth
and justice, garrisoned by omnipotence, fairly built and adorned
by infinite wisdom: its burgesses the saints enjoy high
privileges; they trade with far off lands, they live in the
smile of the King; and as a great river is the very making and
mainstay of a town, so is the broad river of everlasting love,
and grace their joy and bliss. The church is peculiarly the City
of God, of his designing, building, election, purchasing and
indwelling. It is dedicated to his praise, and glorified by his
presence. The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.
This was the peculiar glory of Jerusalem, that the Lord within
her walls had a place where he peculiarly revealed himself, and
this is the choice privilege of the saints, concerning which we
may cry with wonder, "Lord, how is it that thou wilt
manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world?" To be a
temple for the Holy Ghost is the delightful portion of each
saint, to be the living temple for the Lord our God is also the
high honour of the church in her corporate capacity. Our God is
here called by a worthy title, indicating his power, majesty,
sublimity, and excellency; and it is worthy of note that under
this character he dwells in the church. We have not a great God
in nature, and a little God in grace; no, the church contains as
clear and convincing a revelation of God as the works of nature,
and even more amazing in the excellent glory which shines
between the cherubim overshadowing that mercy seat which is the
centre and gathering place of the people of the living God. To
have the Most High dwelling within her members, is to make the
church on earth like the church in heaven.
Verse 5. God is in the midst of her. His help
is therefore sure and near. Is she besieged, then he is himself
besieged within her, and we may be certain that he will break
forth upon his adversaries. How near is the Lord to the
distresses of his saints, since he sojourns in their midst! Let
us take heed that we do not grieve him; let us have such respect
to him as Moses had when he felt the sand of Horeb's desert to
be holy, and put off his shoes from off his feet when the Lord
spake from the burning bush. She shall not be moved. How
can she be moved unless her enemies move her Lord also? His
presence renders all hope of capturing and demolishing the city
utterly ridiculous. The Lord is in the vessel, and she cannot,
therefore, be wrecked. God shall help her. Within her he
will furnish rich supplies, and outside her walls he will lay
her foes in heaps like the armies of Sennacherib, when the angel
went forth and smote them. And that right early. As soon
as the first ray of light proclaims the coming day, at the
turning of the morning God's right arm shall be outstretched for
his people. The Lord is up betimes. We are slow to meet him, but
he is never tardy in helping us. Impatience complains of divine
delays, but in very deed the Lord is not slack concerning his
promise. Man's haste is often folly, but God's apparent delays
are ever wise; and when rightly viewed, are no delays at all.
Today the bands of evil may environ the church of God, and
threaten her with destruction; but ere long they shall pass away
like the foam on the waters, and the noise of their tumult shall
be silent in the grave. The darkest hour of the night is just
before the turning of the morning; and then, even then, shall
the Lord appear as the great ally of his church.
Verse 6. The heathen raged. The nations were in
a furious uproar, they gathered against the city of the Lord
like wolves ravenous for their prey; they foamed, and roared,
and swelled like a tempestuous sea. The kingdoms were moved.
A general confusion seized upon society; the fierce invaders
convulsed their own dominions by draining the population to urge
on the war, and they desolated other territories by their
devastating march to Jerusalem. Crowns fell from royal heads,
ancient thrones rocked like trees driven of the tempest,
powerful empires fell like pines uprooted by the blast:
everything was in disorder, and dismay seized on all who knew
not the Lord. He uttered his voice, the earth melted.
With no other instrumentality than a word the Lord ruled the
storm. He gave forth a voice and stout hearts were dissolved,
proud armies were annihilated, conquering powers were enfeebled.
At first the confusion appeared to be worse confounded, when the
element of divine power came into view; the very earth seemed
turned to wax, the most solid and substantial of human things
melted like the fat of rams upon the altar; but anon peace
followed, the rage of man subsided, hearts capable of repentance
relented, and the implacable were silenced. How mighty is a word
from God! How mighty the Incarnate Word. O that such a word
would come from the excellent glory even now to melt all hearts
in love to Jesus, and to end for ever all the persecutions,
wars, and rebellions of men!
Verse 7. The Lord of hosts is with us. This is
the reason for all Zion's security, and for the overthrow of her
foes. The Lord rules the angels, the stars, the elements, and
all the hosts of heaven; and the heaven of heavens are under his
sway. The armies of men though they know it not are made to
subserve his will. This Generalissimo of the forces of the land,
and the Lord High Admiral of the seas, is on our side—our
august ally; woe unto those who fight against him, for they
shall fly like smoke before the wind when he gives the word to
scatter them. The God of Jacob is our refuge, Immanuel is
Jehovah of Hosts, and Jacob's God is our high place of defence.
When this glad verse is sung to music worthy of such a jubilate,
well may the singers pause and the players wait awhile to tune
their instruments again; here, therefore, fitly stands that
solemn, stately, peaceful note of rest, SELAH.
Verse 8. Come, behold the works of the Lord.
The joyful citizens of Jerusalem are invited to go forth and
view the remains of their enemies, that they may mark the
prowess of Jehovah and the spoil which his right hand hath won
for his people. It were well if we also carefully noted the
providential dealings of our covenant God, and were quick to
perceive his hand in the battles of his church. Whenever we read
history is should be with this verse sounding in our ears. We
should read the newspaper in the same spirit, to see how the
Head of the Church rules the nations for his people's good, as
Joseph governed Egypt for the sake of Israel. What
desolations he hath made in the earth. The destroyers he
destroys, the desolators he desolates. How forcible is the verse
at this date! The ruined cities of Assyria, Babylon, Petra,
Bashan, Canaan, are our instructors, and in tables of stone
record the doings of the Lord. In every place where his cause
and crown have been disregarded ruin has surely followed: sin
has been a blight on nations, and left their palaces to lie in
heaps. In the days of the writer of this Psalm, there had
probably occurred some memorable interpositions of God against
his Israel's foes; and as he saw their overthrow, he called on
his fellow citizens to come forth and attentively consider the
terrible things in righteousness which had been wrought on their
behalf. Dismantled castles and ruined abbeys in our own land
stand as memorials of the Lord's victories over oppression and
superstition. May there soon be more of such desolations.
"Ye gloomy piles, ye tombs of living men,
Ye sepulchres of womanhood, or worse;
Ye refuges of lies, soon may ye fall,
And amid your ruins may the owl, and bat,
And dragon find congenial resting place."
Verse 9. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of
the earth. His voice quiets the tumult of war, and calls for
the silence of peace. However remote and barbarous the tribe, he
awes the people into rest. He crushes the great powers till they
cannot provoke strife again; he gives his people profound
repose. He breaketh the bow, the sender of swift winged
death he renders useless. And cutteth the spear in sunder—the
lance of the mighty man he shivers. He burneth the chariot in
the fire—the proud war chariot with its death dealing
scythes he commits to the flames. All sorts of weapons he piles
heaps on heaps, and utterly destroys them. So was it in Judea in
the days of yore, so shall it be in all lands in eras yet to
come. Blessed deed of the Prince of Peace! when shall it be
literally performed? Already the spiritual foes of his people
are despoiled of their power to destroy; but when shall the
universal victory of peace be celebrated, and instruments of
wholesale murder be consigned to ignominious destruction? How
glorious will the ultimate victory of Jesus be in the day of his
appearing, when every enemy shall lick the dust!
Verse 10. Be still, and know that I am God.
Hold off your hands, ye enemies! Sit down and wait in patience,
ye believers! Acknowledge that Jehovah is God, ye who feel the
terrors of his wrath! Adore him, and him only, ye who partake in
the protection of his grace. Since none can worthily proclaim
his nature, let "expressive silence muse his praise."
The boasts of the ungodly and the timorous forebodings of the
saints should certainly be hushed by a sight of what the Lord
has done in past ages. I will be exalted among the heathen.
They forget God, they worship idols, but Jehovah will yet be
honoured by them. Reader, the prospects of missions are bright,
bright as the promises of God. Let no man's heart fail him; the
solemn declarations of this verse must be fulfilled. I will
be exalted in the earth, among all people, whatever may have
been their wickedness or their degradation. Either by terror or
love God will subdue all hearts to himself. The whole round
earth shall yet reflect the light of his majesty. All the more
because of the sin, and obstinacy, and pride of man shall God be
glorified when grace reigns unto eternal life in all corners of
the world.
Verse 11. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of
Jacob is our refuge. It was meet to sing this twice over. It
is a truth of which no believer wearies, it is a fact too often
forgotten, it is a precious privilege which cannot be too often
considered. Reader, is the Lord on thy side? Is Emmanuel, God
with us, thy Redeemer? Is there a covenant between thee and God
as between God and Jacob? If so, thrice happy art thou. Show thy
joy in holy song, and in times of trouble play the man by still
making music for thy God. SELAH. Here as before, lift up the
heart. Rest in contemplation after praise. Still keep the soul
in tune. It is easier to sing a hymn of praise than to continue
in the spirit of praise, but let it be our aim to maintain the
uprising devotion of our grateful hearts, and so end our song as
if we intended it to be continued.
SELAH bids the music rest.
Pause in silence soft and blest;
SELAH bids uplift the strain,
Harps and voices tune again;
SELAH ends the vocal praise,
Still your hearts to God upraise.
EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS
TITLE. The LXX referring to the notion of the theme (Mlu),
occultavit, render it uper twn krufiwn, for the
hidden; and the Latin, pro arcanis; and the rest of
the ancient interpreters take the same course; the Chaldee
referring it to Coreh, and those that were hidden,
i.e., swallowed up, by the earth with him, whilst these sons
of Coreh escaped; as if the mention of the sons of Coreh
in the title, by whom this song was to be sung, referred the
whole Psalm to that story. Accordingly, verse 2, when the Hebrew
reads, "Though the earth be removed, "the
paraphrase is, "When our fathers were changed from the
earth." Henry Hammond.
Title. The title is peculiar, "Upon Alamoth,
"suggesting "a choir of virgins, "as
if this virgin choir were selected to sing a Psalm that tells of
perils and fears and alarms abounding, in order to show that
even the feeble virgins may in that day sing without dread,
because of "The Mighty One" on their side. Andrew
A. Bonar.
Title.—"Upon Alamoth." (To be sung)
en soprano. Armand de Mestral, quoted by Perowne.
Whole Psalm. We sing this Psalm to the praise of God,
because God is with us, and powerfully and miraculously
preserves and defends his church and his word, against all
fanatical spirits, against the gates of hell, against the
implacable hatred of the devil, and against all the assaults of
the world, the flesh and sin. Martin Luther.
Whole Psalm. Luther and his companions, with all their
bold readiness for danger and death in the cause of truth, had
times when their feelings were akin to those of a divine singer,
who said, "Why art thou cast down, O my soul?" But in
such hours the unflinching Reformer would cheerily say to his
friend Melancthon, "Come, Philip, let us sing the
forty-sixth Psalm; and they could sing it in Luther's own
characteristic version":—
A sure stronghold our God is He,
A timely shield and weapon;
Our help he will be, and set us free
From every ill can happen.
And were the world with devils filled,
All eager to devour us,
Our souls to fear shall little yield,
They cannot overpower us.
—S. W. Christophers, in "Hymn Writers and their
Hymns," 1866
Verse 1. God is our refuge and strength, etc.
It begins abruptly, but nobly; ye may trust in whom and in what
ye please; but GOD (ELOHIM) is our refuge and strength. A
very present help. A help found to be very powerful and
effectual in straits and difficulties. The words are very
emphatic: (dam aumn twrub hrze), ezrah betsaroth nimtsa meod,
"He is found an exceeding, or superlative, help in
difficulties." Such we have found him, and therefore
celebrate his praise. Adam Clarke.
Verse 2. Though the earth be removed. John
Wesley preached in Hyde park, on the occasion of the earthquake
felt in London, March 8, 1750, and repeated these words. Charles
Wesley composed Hymn 67, Wesley's Collection, the following
lines of which illustrate this verse:
How happy then are we,
Who build, O Lord, on thee!
What can our foundation shock?
Though the shattered earth remove,
Stands our city on a rock,
On the rock of heavenly love.
Verses 2-3. The earth thrown into a state of wild
confusion, the mountains hurled into the mighty deep, the sea
tossed into a tempest, and the everlasting hills drifting on its
foaming billows, are the vivid images by which the divine
judgments on wicked and persecuting nations are described in the
language of the prophets. John Morison.
Verses 2-3, 5. Palestine was frequently subject to
earthquakes, as might have been expected from its physical
character and situation; and it is a remarkable circumstance,
that although all other parts of the land seem to have been
occasionally the scene of those terrible convulsions, the
capital was almost wholly free from them. Mount Moriah, or the
hill of vision, was so called from its towering height, which
made it a conspicuous object in the distance. It stands in the
centre of a group of hills, which surround it in the form of an
amphitheatre, and it was chiefly to this position, under the
special blessing of God, that it stood firm and immoveable amid
the frequent earthquakes that agitated and ravaged the Holy
Land. Paxton's Illustrations of Scripture.
Verse 4. There is a river, the streams whereof
shall make glad the city of God. What is the river
that makes glad the city of God? I answer, God himself is the
river, as in the following verse, "God is in the midst
of her." 1. God the Father is the river:
"For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken
me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns,
broken cisterns, that can hold no water." Jer 2:13. 2. God
the Son is the river, the fountain of salvation: "In
that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David,
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for
uncleanness." Zec 13:1. 3. God the Spirit is the
river: "He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath
said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."
"Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him
shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be
a well of water springing up into everlasting life." Joh
7:38 4:14. What are the streams of this river?
Answer—the perfections of God, the fulness of
Christ, the operations of the Spirit, and these running
in the channel of the covenant of promise. Ralph
Erskine.
Verse 4. There is a river, etc. This is that
flood which Ezekiel beheld in vision, the waters that came down
from the right side of the house, and rising first to the
ankles—then as the prophet passed onward, to the knees—then
to the loins—became afterwards a river that he could not pass
over; for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that
could not be passed over. Shall we see in this, with the angelic
doctor, the river of grace which burst forth from Mount Calvary?
streams branching off hither and thither, the pelagim of
the Hebrew—"to satisfy the desolate and waste ground, and
to cause the bud of the tender herb to spring forth." Job
38:1-41. O "fountain of gardens, ""well of living
waters, " "streams from Lebanon, "how do you, the
"nether springs" of this world, bring to us something
of the everlasting loveliness and peace of those "upper
springs, "by which the beautiful flock now feed and lie
down, none making them afraid! Or with S. Ambrose and S.
Bernard, understand the verse of the "river of water of
life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of
the Lamb." And then the rivers of that flood shall indeed make
glad the city of God, the house not made with hands, eternal
in the heavens, where is the tree of life, that beareth twelve
manner of fruits, and yieldeth her fruit every month; that
country and that river of which the old liturgies say,
"They who rest in the bosom of Abraham are in the
tabernacle of joy and rest, in the dwellings of light, in the
world of pleasure, in the church of the true Jerusalem, where
there is no place for affliction, nor way of sadness, where
there are no wars with the flesh, and no resistance to
temptation, where sin is forgotten, and past danger is only
remembered as a present pleasure." Thomas Aquinas,
Ambrose, and Bernard, in Neale's Commentary.
Verse 4. There is a river. The river of God
that flows from his throne. No enemy can cut off this stream
from the church of Christ. Observe the reference to Isa 36:2
37:25, compared with 2Ch 32:2-4. These gently flowing, but full
streams, are contrasted with the roaring waves of the sea. T.
C. Barth.
Verse 4. There is a river, etc. The allusion is
either to the river Kidron, which ran by Jerusalem, or to the
waters of Shiloah, which by different courses and branches ran
through the city of Jerusalem, and supplied the several parts of
it with water, to the joy and comfort of its inhabitants. But
the words are to be understood in a figurative sense, as
applicable to gospel times; and this river either designs the
gospel, the streams of which are its doctrines, which are living
waters, that went out from Jerusalem, and which publish glad
tidings of great joy to all sensible sinners; or the Spirit and
his graces, which are compared to a well and rivers of living
water, in the exercises of which the saints have much joy and
peace; or else the Lord himself, who is the place of broad
rivers and streams to his people, and is both their refreshment
and protection; or rather his everlasting love to them is here
intended. John Gill.
Verse 4. Compared with the waterless deserts around,
Judaea and Jerusalem were well watered, and drought pressed more
severely on the besiegers than the besieged. The allusion here
is to the well known rill and pool of Siloam. So in Isa 8:6, the
blessing of God's protection is represented by the waters of
Shiloah, which go softly. From "The psalms
Chronologically arranged. By Four Friends," 1867.
Verse 4. The city. The church of God is like a
city, 1. Because a city is a place of security. 2. A
place of society: what one wants another supplies; they
have mutual fellowship. 3. A place of unity, that people
may therein live in peace and concord. 4. A place of trade
and traffic. Here is the market of free grace: "Ho,
every one that thirsteth, "etc. Here is the pearl of
great price exposed for sale. 5. A place of freedom
and liberty, freedom from the guilt of sin, wrath of God,
curse of the law, present evil world, bondage to Satan, etc.,
etc. 6. A place of order and regularity; it hath
its constitutions and ordinances. 7. A place of rest, and
commodious to live in, and thus it is opposed to the wilderness.
8. A place of privileges. 9. A place of pomp and splendour;
there is the king, the court, the throne. 10. A place of pleasure
and beauty; Ps 48:2.—Ralph Erskine.
Verse 5. God is in the midst of her. It is the
real presence of Christ, and the supernatural power of his
Spirit, which makes the church mighty to the conquest of souls.
The church spreads because her God is in the midst of her.
When at any time she has forgotten her dependence on the
invisible intercession of her Head, and the gracious energy of
his Spirit, she has found herself shorn of the locks of her
great strength, and has become the laughing stock of the
Philistines. William Binnie, D.D.
Verse 5. God is in the midst of her, etc. The
enemies of the church may toss her as waves, but they shall not
split her as rocks. She may be dipped in water as a feather,
but shall not sink therein as lead. He that is a well of
water within her to keep her from fainting, will also prove a
wall of fire about her to preserve her from falling. Tried
she may be, but destroyed she cannot be. Her foundation
is the Rock of Ages, and her defence the everlasting Arms. It is
only such fabrics as are bottomed upon the sand, that are
overthrown by the wind. The adversaries of God's people
will push at them as far as their horns will go, but when they
have scoured them by persecution, as tarnished vessels, then God
will throw such wisps into the fire. William Secker.
Verse 5. When the Papists were in their ruff, and
Melancthon began sometimes to fear lest the infant Reformation
should be stifled in the birth, Luther was wont to comfort him
with these words: "Si nos ruemus, ruet Christus und,
scilicet ille regnator mundi, esto ruat, malo ego cum Christo
rures, quam cum Caesare stare; "that is, If we perish,
Christ must fall too (he is in the midst of us), and if it must
be so, be it so; I had rather perish with Christ, that great
Ruler of the world, than prosper with Caesar. John Collings.
Verse 5. And that right early. Therefore,
notice that all the great deliverances wrought in Holy
Scripture, were wrought so early, as to have been brought
to pass in the middle of the night. So Gideon, with his pitchers
and lamps against the Midianites; so Saul, when he went forth
against Nahash, the Ammonite; so Joshua, when he went up to
succour Gibeon; so Samson, when he carried off in triumph the
gates of Gaza; so also the associate kings, under the guidance
of Elisha, in their expedition against the Moabites, when they,
according to God's command, filled the wilderness with ditches,
and then beheld their enemies drawn to their destruction, by the
reflection of the rising sun upon the water. Michael Ayguan.
Verse 5. Right early. Rather, with the margin, when
the morning appeareth. The restoration of the Jews will be
one of the first things at the season of the second advent. It
will be accomplished in the very dawning of that day, "when
the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing on his
wings." Samuel Horsley.
Verse 7. The Lord of hosts is with us. There be
three sorts of God's special presence, all which may be justly
accounted the church's privilege. First, his glorious
presence, or his presence testified by eminent glory, and the
residence thereof. Thus God is said to be in heaven
differentially, so as he is not anywhere else; and heaven is
therefore called his throne or dwelling place 1Ki 8:39; as a
king is nowhere so majestically as upon his throne, or in his
chair of state; and this is so great a privilege of the church
as that she comes not to enjoy it, unless she be triumphant in
heaven, and therefore is not the presence here intended.
Secondly, his gracious presence, or his presence
testified by tokens of his grace and favour toward a people,
whether visible as in the temple where he chose to place his
name, and wherein above all places he would be worshipped, in
which respect he is said to dwell between the cherubim 2Sa 6:2;
or spiritual tokens of his grace, as assistance and acceptance
in the duties of his worship, together with enjoyment and
benefit of his ordinances. Thus he is present with his church
and people in times of the gospel: "Where two or three are
gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of
them." Mt 18:20. This kind of presence is a privilege of
the church militant, that he will be with her in holy and
spiritual administrations and ordinances; yet this is not the
presence principally intended here. Thirdly, the providential
presence, or his presence testified by acts of special
providence, wherein the power, wisdom or any other of God's
attributes are eminently put forth, either by way of assistance
or defence fro a people. Thus the Lord was present with Israel
in the wilderness by the pillar of fore and of a cloud Ex 13:21;
"And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud,
to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give
them light." And as this presence was intended for a guide,
so was it also for a defence to his people against their
enemies, and at which their enemies the Egyptians were troubled.
Ex 15:20. By this kind of presence the Lord is with his church
militant, in reference to her external regiment, and more
especially in her warfare, standing up for her and with her
against her enemies; and this is the church's privilege in these
words, The Lord of hosts is with us. John Strickland, B.D.
(1601-1670), in a Sermon, entitled, "Immanuel, "1644.
Verse 7. The God of Jacob. If any shall ask me,
Why then the God of Jacob more than the God of Isaac? Though it
might suffice that the Spirit of God is pleased so to speak, yet
Mr. Calvin gives this reason, the covenant of grace was more
solemnly made and publicly ratified with Abraham and Jacob, than
it was with Isaac, and therefore when he will be looked upon as
a God in covenant with his people, he holds forth himself more
frequently by the name of the God of Abraham, and the God of
Jacob, than of the God of Isaac; albeit sometimes he is pleased
to take upon him that style also. John Strickland.
Verse 7. Our refuge. Our refuge, or stronghold,
where the church, as a ship in quiet haven, amy anchor and ride
safe; or it may be a metaphor from the dens or burrows, where
weaponless creatures find shelter, when they are hunted and
pursued by their enemies, as Pr 30:26, "The conies are
but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the
rocks." They are safe in the rock if they can get
thither, though never so weak in themselves. So the church,
though pursued by bloody enemies, and though weak in herself, if
yet she get under the wing of the God of Jacob, she may be
fearless, for she is safe there. He is our refuge. It
were to undervalue God, if we should fear the creatures, when he
is with us. Antigonus, when he overheard his soldiers reckoning
how many their enemies were, he steps in unto them suddenly,
demanding, "And how many do you reckon me for?" John
Strickland.
Verse 8. Come, behold the works of the Lord. Venito,
videto. God looks that his works should be well observed,
and especially when he hath wrought any great deliverance for
his people. Of all things, he cannot abide to be forgotten. John
Trapp.
Verse 8. What desolations he hath made in the
earth. We are here first invited to a tragical sight. We are
carried into the camera di morte, to see the ghastly
visage of deaths and desolations all the world over; than which
nothing can be more horrible and dreadful. You are called out to
see piles of dead carcasses; to see whole basketfuls of heads,
as was presented to Jehu: a woeful spectacle, but a necessary
one. See, therefore, what desolation the Lord hath
wrought in all the earth. Desolations by wars: how many
fields have been drenched with blood, and composted with
carcasses; how many millions of men have been cut off in all
ages by the edge of the sword! Desolations by famine; wherein
men have been forced to make their bodies one another's
sepulchres, and mothers to devour their children of a span long.
Desolations by plagues and pestilence; which have swept away, as
our story tells us, eight hundred thousand in one city.
Desolations by inundations of waters; which have covered the
faces of many regions, and rinsed the earth of her unclean
inhabitants. Desolations by earthquakes, which have swallowed up
whole cities; and those great and populous. Desolations wrought
by the hand of his angels; as in Egypt; in the tents of the
Assyrians, one hundred and eighty five thousand in one night; in
the camp of Israel, in David's pestilence. Desolations wrought
by the hand of men, in battles and massacres. Desolations by
wild beasts; as in the colonies of Ashur planted in Samaria.
Desolations by the swarms of obnoxious and noisome creatures; as
in Egypt, and since in Africa: "He spoke the word, and the
grasshoppers came, and caterpillars innumerable, "Ps
105:34. In so much as, in the consulship of M. Fulvius Flaccus,
after the bloody wars of Africa, followed infinite numbers of
locusts; which, after devouring of all herbs and fruit, were, by
a sudden wind, hoised into the African sea: infection followed
upon their putrefaction, and thereupon a general mortality: in
number, four score thousand died: upon the sea coast betwixt
Carthage and Utica, above two hundred thousand. Desolations
every way, and by what variety of means soever; yet all wrought
by the divine hand; What desolations he hath wrought.
Whoever be the instrument, he is the Author. Joseph Hall
(Bishop.)
Verse 8. Doth not God make great desolations, when he
makes that man that counted himself a most religious man, to
confess himself not sufficient for one good thought? As it was
with Paul, does he not make wars to cease when he turns the
heart of a persecutor, earnestly to seek peace with God and man,
yea, with his very enemies? Doth he not break the bow and all
weapons of war asunder, and that in all the earth, when he
proclaims peace to all that are far off and near, professor and
profane, Jews and Gentiles? Richard Coore.
Verses 8-10. Come, behold the works of the Lord. What
works? ruining works. What desolations he hath made in the
earth. God made strange work in the world at that time.
Those countries which before were as the garden of God, became
like a desolate wilderness: who was able to bear this with
patience? Yet the Spirit of God saith in the next words, it must
be patiently borne. When God lets men strive and war with one
another to a common confusion, yet no man may strive with God
about it: and the reason given why no man may, is only this
(which is indeed all the reason in the world), He is God.
So it follows in the Psalm; Be still, and know that I am God;
as if the Lord had said, Not a word, do not strive nor reply;
whatever you see, hold your peace; know that I, being God, give
no account of any of my matters. Joseph Caryl.
Verses 8-10. Come, behold the works of the Lord.
Verse 10. Be still, and know that I am God. The
great works of God, wherein his sovereignty appeared, had been
described in the foregoing verses. In the awful desolations that
he made, and by delivering his people by terrible things, he
showed his greatness and dominion. Herein he manifested his
power and sovereignty, and so commands all to be still, and
know that he is God. For says he, I will be exalted among
the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. In the words
may be observed, 1. A duty described, to be still before God,
and under the dispensations of his providence; which implies
that we must be still as to words; not speaking against
the sovereign dispensations of Providence, or complaining of
them; not darkening counsel by words without knowledge, or
justifying ourselves and speaking great swelling words of
vanity. We must be still as to actions and outward
behaviour, so as not to oppose God in his dispensations; and as to
the inward frame of our hearts, cultivating a calm and quiet
submission of soul to the sovereign pleasure of God, whatever it
may be. 2. We may observe the ground of this duty, namely, the
divinity of God. His being God is a sufficient reason why we
should be still before him, in no wise murmuring, or
objecting, or opposing, but calmly and humbly submitting to him.
3. How we must fulfil this duty of being still before God,
namely, with a sense of his divinity, as seeing the ground of
this duty, in that we know him to be God. Our submission
is to be such as becomes rational creatures. God doth not
require us to submit contrary to reason, but to submit as seeing
the reason and ground of submission. Hence, the bare
consideration that God is God may well be sufficient to
still all objections and oppositions against the divine
sovereign dispensations. Jonathan Edwards.
Verse 10. Be still, and know that I am God.
This text of Scripture forbids quarrelling and murmuring against
God. Now let me apply as I go along. There are very few, and
these very well circumstanced, that find themselves in no hazard
of quarrelling with God. I think almost that if angels were on
earth, they would be in hazard of it. I will assure you, there
are none that have corruption, but they have need to be afraid
of this. But many give way to this quarrelling, and consider not
the hazard thereof. Beware of it, for it is a dreadful thing to
quarrel with God: who may say unto him, "What doest
thou?" It is a good account of Aaron, that when God made
fire to destroy his sons, he held his peace. Let us then, while
we bear the yoke, "sit alone and keep silence, and put our
mouths in the dust, if so be there may be hope." La
3:28-29. Ye know, the murmuring of the children of Israel cost
them very dear. Be still, that is, beware of murmuring
against me, saith the Lord. God gives not an account of his
matters to any; because there may be many things ye cannot see
through; and therefore ye may think it better to have wanted
them, and much more, for the credit of God and the church. I
say, God gives not an account of his matters to any. Beware,
then, of drawing rash conclusions. Richard Cameron's Sermon,
preached July 18th, 1680, three days before he was killed at
Airsmoss.
Verse 10. Be still and know that I am God.
Faith gives the soul a view of the Great God. It teacheth the
soul to set his almightiness against sin's magnitude, and his
infinitude against sin's multitude; and so quenches the
temptation. The reason why the presumptuous sinner fears so
little, and the despairing soul so much, is for want of knowing
God as great; therefore, to cure them both, the serious
consideration of God, under this notion, is propounded: Be
still, and know that I am God; as if he had said, Know, O ye
wicked, that I am God, who can avenge myself when I please upon
you, and cease to provoke me by your sins to your own confusion;
and again, know, ye trembling souls, that I am God; and
therefore able to pardon the greatest sins, and cease to
dishonour me by your unbelieving thoughts of me. William
Gurnall.
Verse 10. Be still, and know that I am the Lord.
Not everyone is a fit scholar for God's school, but such as are
purified according to the purification of the sanctuary. Carnal
men are drowned in fleshly and worldly cares, and neither purged
nor lifted up to receive the light of God, or else indisposed by
prejudice or passion, that they cannot learn at all. We will
never savingly know him, till our souls be free of these
indispositions. Among all the elements the earth is fitted to
receive seed of the sower; if he cast it into the fire, it
burneth; if in the air, it withereth; if in the waters, it rots,
the instability of that body is for producing monsters, because
it closes not straitly the seeds of fishes. Spirits of a fiery
temper, or light in inconstancy, or moving as waters, are not
for God's lessons, but such as in stayed humility do rest
under his hand. If waters be mixed with clay in their substance,
or their surface be troubled with wind, they can neither receive
nor render any image; such unstable spirits in the school of God
lose their time and endanger themselves. William Struther.
Verse 10. Be still, and know, etc. As you must
come and see Ps 46:8, so come and hear what the
Lord saith to those enemies of yours. John Trapp.
Verse 11. The Lord of hosts is with us. On
Tuesday Mr. Wesley could with difficulty be understood, though
he often attempted to speak. At last, with all the strength he
had, he cried out, "The best of all is, God is with
us." Again, raising his hand, and waving it in triumph, he
exclaimed with thrilling effect, "The best of all is, God
is with us." These words seem to express the leading
feature of his whole life, God had been with him from early
childhood; his providence had guided him through all the devious
wanderings of human life; and now, when he was entering the
"valley of the shadow of death, "the same hand
sustained him. From "Wesley and his Coadjutors. By Rev.
W. C. Larrabee, A.M. Edited by Rev. B. F. Tefft, D.D.
Cincinnati. 1851."
HINTS TO THE VILLAGE PREACHER
Verse 1. The song of faith in troublous times.
1. Our refuge. Our only, impregnable, accessible,
delightful place of retreat is our God.
2. Our strength. Our all sufficient, unconquerable,
honourable, and emboldening strength is our God.
3. Our help. Ever near, sympathising, faithful, real,
and potent is our God.
Verse 1. A very present help in trouble.
Religion never so valuable as in seasons of trouble, sickness,
and death. God is present helping us to bear trouble, to improve
it, and to survive it. Present by gracious communications and
sweet manifestations; present most when he seems absent,
restraining, overruling, and sanctifying trouble. Trust and
wait. James Smith.
Verse 2. The reasons, advantages, and glory of holy
courage.
Verses 2-3.
1. The great and many causes for fear.
(a) What might come—mountains, waters, etc., persecution,
pestilence, etc.
(b) What must come—afflictions, death, judgment.
2. The great and one cause for not fearing. Fearlessness
under such circumstances should be well grounded. God himself is
our refuge, and we confiding in him are fearless. G. Rogers.
Verse 4. Glad tidings in sad times; or, the city of
God in the times of trouble and confusion, watered with the
river of consolation. Ralph Erskine.
Verse 4. What can this river be but that
blessed covenant to which David himself repaired in the time of
trouble? ...And what are the streams of this river, but
the outgoings and effects of this divine constitution?
1. The blood of Jesus.
2. The influences of the Holy Spirit.
3. The doctrines and promises of the gospel.
4. The ordinances of religion.
5. All the means of grace. W. Jay.
Verse 4. Make glad the city of God. There are
four ways in which the streams of a river would gladden the
citizens.
1. The first regards prospect.
2. The second regards traffic.
3. The third regards fertility.
4. The fourth regards supply. W. Jay.
Verse 4. City of God. The church may be called
"the city of God" because, 1. He dwells in it
(see Ps 44:5). 2. He founded it and built it. 3.
It derives all privileges and immunities from him.
4. He is the chief Ruler or Governor there. 5. It is his
property. 6. He draws the rent of it. Ralph Erskine.
Verses 4-5. To the church, Joy, Establishment,
Deliverance.
Verse 6. What man did and what God did.
Verse 8. Behold the works of the Lord.
1. They are worth beholding, for they are like himself; well
becoming his infinite power, wisdom, justice,
2. Our eyes were given us for this very purpose—not for the
beholding of vanity, not for the ensnaring or wounding of the
soul; but for the use and honour of the Creator.
3. The Lord delights to have his works beheld; he knows their
excellency and perfection, and that the more they are seen and
noted the more honour will accrue to the Maker of them.
4. None but we can do it; there is great reason then that we
should carefully behold, etc.
5. This shall be of great benefit to ourselves. Bishop
Hall.
Verse 8. The desolations of the Lord, the consolation
of his saints.
1. A declaration of what has happened.
2. A promise of what shall be achieved. Spurgeon's
Sermons, No. 190.
Verse 9. The Great Peacemaker, or the principle of the
gospel our only hope, for the total abolition of war.
Verse 10. Be still, and know that I am God. The
sole consideration that God is God, sufficient to still all
objections to his sovereignty. Jonathan Edwards.
Verse 10. I am God. 1. In that he is God, he is
an absolutely and infinitely perfect being. 2. As he is
God, he is so great, that he is infinitely above all
comprehension. 3. As he is God, all things are his own.
4. In that he is God, he is worthy to be sovereign over
all things. 5. In that he is God, he will be sovereign,
and will act as such. 6. In that he is God, he is able to
avenge himself on those who oppose his sovereignty. Jonathan
Edwards.