TITLE. A Song and Psalm for the Sons of
Korah. A song for joyfulness and a Psalm for reverence. Alas!
every song is not a Psalm, for poets are not all heaven born,
and every Psalm is not a song, for in coming before God we have
to utter mournful confessions as well as exulting praises. The
Sons of Korah were happy in having so large a selection of song;
the worship where such a variety of music was used could not
become monotonous, but must have given widest scope for all the
sacred passions of gracious souls.
SUBJECT AND DIVISION. It would be idle
dogmatically to attribute this song to any one event of Jewish
history. Its author and date are unknown. It records the
withdrawal of certain confederate kings from Jerusalem, their
courage failing them before striking a blow. The mention of the
ships of Tarshish may allow us to conjecture that the Psalm was
written in connection with the overthrow of Ammon, Moab, and
Edom in the reign of Jehoshaphat; and if the reader will turn to
2 Chronicles 20, and note especially 2Ch 20:19,25,36, he will
probably accept the suggestion. Ps 48:1-3, are in honour of the
Lord and the city dedicated to his worship. From Ps 48:4-8 the
song records the confusion of Zion's foes, ascribing all the
praise to God; Ps 48:9-11 extolling Zion, and avowing Jehovah to
be her God for evermore.
EXPOSITION
Verse 1. Great is the Lord. How great Jehovah
is essentially none can conceive; but we can all see that he is
great in the deliverance of his people, great in their esteem
who are delivered, and great in the hearts of those enemies whom
he scatters by their own fears. Instead of the mad cry of
Ephesus, "Great is Diana, "we bear the reasonable,
demonstrable, self evident testimony, "Great is
Jehovah." There is none great in the church but the Lord.
Jesus is "the great Shepherd, "he is "a
Saviour, and a great one, "our great God and Saviour, our
great High Priest; his Father has divided him a portion with the
great, and his name shall be great unto the ends of the earth. And
greatly to be praised. According to his nature should his
worship be; it cannot be too constant, too laudatory, too
earnest, too reverential, too sublime. In the city of our
God. He is great there, and should be greatly praised there.
If all the world beside renounced Jehovah's worship, the chosen
people in his favoured city should continue to adore him, for in
their midst and on their behalf his glorious power has been so
manifestly revealed. In the church the Lord is to be extolled
though all the nations rage against him. Jerusalem was the
peculiar abode of the God of Israel, the seat of the theocratic
government, and the centre of prescribed worship, and even thus
is the church the place of divine manifestation. In the
mountain of his holiness. Where his holy temple, his holy
priests, and his holy sacrifices might continually be seen. Zion
was a mount, and as it was the most renowned part of the city,
it is mentioned as a synonym for the city itself. The church of
God is a mount for elevation and for conspicuousness, and it
should be adorned with holiness, her sons being partakers of the
holiness of God. Only by holy men can the Lord be fittingly
praised, and they should be incessantly occupied with his
worship.
Verse 2. Beautiful for situation. Jerusalem was
so naturally, she was styled the Queen of the East; the church
is so spiritually, being placed near God's heart, within the
mountain of his power, upon the hills of his faithfulness, in
the centre of providential operations. The elevation of the
church is her beauty. The more she is above the world the fairer
she is. The joy of the whole earth is Mount Zion.
Jerusalem was the world's star; whatever light lingered on earth
was borrowed from the oracles preserved by Israel. An ardent
Israelite would esteem the holy city as the eye of the nations,
the most precious pearl of all lands. Certainly the church of
God, though despised of men, is the true joy and hope of the
world. On the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
Either meaning that Jerusalem was in the northern extremity of
Judah, or it may denote that part of the city that lay to the
north of Mount Zion. It was the glory of Jerusalem to be God's
city, the place of his regal dwelling, and it is the joy of the
church that God is in her midst. The great God is the great King
of the church, and for her sake he rules all the nations. The
people among whom the Lord deigns to dwell are privileged above
all others; the lines have fallen unto them in pleasant places,
and they have a goodly heritage. We who dwell in Great Britain
in the sides of the north, have this for our chief glory, that
the Lord is known in our land, and the abode of his love is
among us.
Verse 3. God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
We worship no unknown God. We know him as our refuge in
distress, we delight in him as such, and run to him in every
time of need. We know nothing else as our refuge. Though we are
made kings, and our houses are palaces, yet we have no
confidence in ourselves, but trust in the Lord Protector, whose
well known power is our bulwark.
Verse 4. The kings were assembled, they passed by
together. They came and they went. No sooner together than
scattered. They came one way and fled twenty ways. Boastful the
gathering hosts with their royal leaders, despairing the
fugitive bands with their astonished captains. They came like
foam on the angry sea, like foam they melted away. This was so
remarkable that the psalmist puts in a note of exclamation, Lo!
What! have they so suddenly fled! Even thus shall the haters of
the church vanish from the field. Papists, Ritualists, Arians,
Sceptics, they shall each have their day, and shall pass on to
the limbo of forgetfulness.
Verse 5. They saw it, and so they marvelled.
They came, they saw, but they did not conquer. There was no veni,
vidi, vici for them. No sooner did they perceive that the
Lord was in the Holy City, than they took to their heels. Before
the Lord came to blows with them, they were faint hearted, and
beat a retreat. They were troubled and hasted away. The
troublers were troubled. Their haste in coming was nothing to
their hurry in going. Panic seized them, horses were not fleet
enough; they would have borrowed the wings of the wind. They
fled ignominiously, like children in a fright. Glory be to God,
it shall be even thus with the foes of his church; when the Lord
cometh to our help, our enemies shall be as nothing. Could they
foresee their ignominious defeat, they would not advance to the
attack.
Verse 6. Fear took hold upon them there. They
were in Giant Despair's grip. Where they hoped to triumph, there
they quivered with dismay. They did not take the city, but fear
took hold on them. And pain, as of a woman in travail.
They were as much overcome as a woman whose fright causes
premature delivery; or, as full of pain as a poor mother in her
pangs—a strong expression, commonly employed by Orientals to
set forth the extremity of anguish. When the Lord arises for the
help of his church, the proudest of his foes shall be as
trembling women, and their dismay shall be but the beginning of
eternal defeat.
Verse 7. Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with
an east wind. As easily as vessels are driven to shipwreck,
dost thou overturn the most powerful adversaries; or it may mean
the strength of some nations lies in their ships, whose wooden
walls are soon broken; but our strength is in our God, and
therefore, it fails not; or there may be another meaning, though
thou art our defence, yet thou takest vengeance on our
inventions, and while thou dost preserve us, yet our ships, our
comforts, our earthly ambitions, are taken from us that we may
look alone to thee. God is seen at sea, but he is equally
present on land. Speculative heresies, pretending to bring us
wealth from afar, are constantly assailing the church, but the
breath of the Lord soon drives them to destruction. The church
too often relies on the wisdom of men, and these human helps are
soon shipwrecked; yet the church itself is safe beneath the care
of her God and King.
Verse 8. As we have heard, so have we seen in the
city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God. Our
father's stories are reproduced before our very eyes. We heard
the promise, and we have seen the fulfilment. The records of
Zion, wonderful as they are, are proved to be truthful, because
present facts are in perfect harmony therewith. Note how the
Lord is first spoken of as Lord of hosts, a name of power
and sovereignty, and then as our God, a name of covenant
relation and condescension. No wonder that since the Lord bears
both titles, we find him dealing with us after the precedents of
his lovingkindness, and the faithfulness of his promises. God
will establish it for ever. The true church can never be
disestablished. That which kings establish can last for time
only, that which God establishes endures to all eternity. Selah.
Here is a fit place to pause, viewing the past with admiration,
and the future with confidence.
Verse 9. We have thought. Holy men are
thoughtful men; they do not suffer God's wonders to pass before
their eyes and melt into forgetfulness, but they meditate deeply
upon them. Of thy lovingkindness, O God. What a
delightful subject! Devout minds never tire of so divine a
theme. It is well to think of past lovingkindness in times of
trial, and equally profitable to remember it in seasons of
prosperity. Grateful memories sweeten sorrows and sober joys. In
the midst of thy temple. Fit place for so devout a
meditation. Where God is most seen he is best loved. The
assembled saints constitute a living temple, and our deepest
musings when so gathered together should have regard to the
lovingkindness of the Lord, exhibited in the varied experiences
of each of the living stones. Memories of mercy should be
associated with continuance of praise. Hard by the table of show
bread commemorating his bounty, should stand the altar of
incense denoting our praise.
Verse 10. According to thy name, O God, so is thy
praise unto the ends of the earth. Great fame is due to his
great name. The glory of Jehovah's exploits overleaps the
boundaries of earth; angels behold with wonder, and from every
star delighted intelligences proclaim his fame beyond the ends
of the earth. What if men are silent, yet the woods, and seas,
and mountains, with all their countless tribes, and all the
unseen spirits that walk them, are full of the divine praise. As
in a shell we listen to the murmurs of the sea, so in the
convolutions of creation we hear the praises of God. Thy
right hand is full of righteousness. Thy sceptre and thy
sword, thy government and thy vengeance, are altogether just.
Thy hand is never empty, but full of energy, of bounty, and of
equity. Neither saint nor sinner shall find the Lord to be an
empty handed God; he will in both cases deal out righteousness
to the full: to the one, through Jesus, he will be just to
forgive, to the other just to condemn.
Verse 11. Let mount Zion rejoice. As the first
of the cities of Judah, and the main object of the enemies'
attack, let her lead the song. Let the daughters of Judah be
glad, let the smaller towns join the chorus, for they join
in the common victory. Let the women, who fare worst in the
havoc of war, be among the gladdest of the glad, now that the
spoilers have fled. All the church, and each individual member,
should rejoice in the Lord, and magnify his name. Because of
thy judgments. The righteous acts of the Lord are legitimate
subjects for joyful praise. However it may appear on earth, yet
in heaven the eternal ruin of the wicked will be the theme of
adoring song. Re 19:1,3: "Alleluia; salvation, and glory,
and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God. For true and
righteous are his judgments; for he hath judged the great whore
which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath
avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. And again they
said, Alleluia, and her smoke rose up for ever and ever."
Justice which to our poor optics now seems severe, will then be
perceived to be perfectly consistent with God's name of love,
and to be one of the brightest jewels of his crown.
Verse 12. Walk about Zion; often beat her
bounds, even as Israel marched around Jericho. With leisurely
and careful inspection survey her. And go round about her.
Encircle her again and again with loving perambulations. We
cannot too frequently or too deeply consider the origin,
privileges, history, security, and glory of the church. Some
subjects deserve but a passing thought; this is worthy of the
most patient consideration. Tell the towers thereof. See
if any of them have crumbled, or have been demolished. Is the
church of God what she was in doctrine, in strength and in
beauty? Her foes counted her towers in envy first, and then in
terror, let us count them with sacred exultation. The city of
Lucerne, encircled by its ancient walls, adorned with a
succession of towers, is a visible illustration of this figure;
and as we have gone around it, and paused at each picturesque
tower, we have realised the loving lingering inspection which
the metaphor implies.
Verse 13. Mark ye well her bulwarks. Consider
most attentively how strong are her ramparts, how safely her
inhabitants are entrenched behind successive lines of defence.
The security of the people of God is not a doctrine to be kept
in the background, it may be safely taught, and frequently
pondered; only to base hearts will that glorious truth prove
harmful; the sons of perdition make a stumbling stone even of
the Lord Jesus himself, it is little wonder that they pervert
the truth of God concerning the final perseverance of the
saints. We are not to turn away from inspecting Zion's ramparts,
because idlers skulk behind them. Consider her palaces.
Examine with care the fair dwellings of the city. Let the royal
promises which afford quiet resting places for believers be
attentively inspected. See how sound are the defences, and how
fair are the pleasaunces of "that ancient citie, "of
which you are citizens. A man should be best acquainted with his
own home; and the church is our dear and blest abode. Would to
God professors were more considerate of the condition of the
church; so far from telling the towers, some of them scarcely
know what or where they are; they are too busy counting their
money, and considering their ledgers. Freehold and copyhold, and
leasehold, men measure to an inch, but heaven hold and grace
hold are too often taken at peradventure, and neglected in sheer
heedlessness. That ye may tell it to the generation
following. An excellent reason for studious observation. We
have received and we must transmit. We must be students that we
may be teachers. The debt we owe to the past we must endeavour
to repay by handing down the truth to the future.
Verse 14. For this God is our God for ever and
ever. A good reason for preserving a record of all that he
has wrought. Israel will not change her God so as to wish to
forget, nor will the Lord change so as to make the past mere
history. He will be the covenant God of his people world without
end. There is no other God, we wish for no other, we would have
no other even if there were. There are some who are so ready to
comfort the wicked, that for the sake of ending their punishment
they weaken the force of language, and make for ever and ever
mean but a time; nevertheless, despite their interpretations we
exult in the hope of an eternity of bliss, and to us
"everlasting, " and "for ever and ever" mean
what they say. He will be our guide even unto death.
Throughout life, and to our dying couch, he will graciously
conduct us, and even after death he will lead us to the living
fountains of waters. We look to him for resurrection and eternal
life. This consolation is clearly derivable from what has gone
before; hitherto our foes have been scattered, and our bulwarks
have defied attack, for God has been in our midst, therefore all
possible assaults in the future shall be equally futile.
"The church has all her foes defied
And laughed to scorn their rage;
Even thus for aye she shall abide
Secure from age to age."
Farewell, fear. Come hither, gratitude and faith, and sing
right joyously.
EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS
TITLE. A Song and Psalm. Wherein both voice and
instrument were used; the voice began first and the instrument
after: and where the inscription is a Psalm and Song, there
likely the instrument began and the voice followed. John
Richardson.
Whole Psalm. According to Dr. Lightfoot, the constant
and ordinary Psalm for the second day of the week was the
forty-eighth.
Verse 1. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be
praised in the city of our God, etc. The prophet, being
about to praise a certain edifice, commences by praising the
architect, and says that in the holy city the wonderful skill
and wisdom of God, who built it, is truly displayed. Great is
the Lord and greatly to be praised; and so he is, whether we
look at his essence, his power, his wisdom, his justice, or his
mercy, for all are infinite, everlasting, and incomprehensible;
and thus, so much is God greatly to be praised, that all
the angels, all men, even all his own works would not suffice
thereto; but of all things revealed, there is no one thing can
give us a greater idea of his greatness, or for which were
should praise and thank him more, than the establishment of his
church; and therefore, the prophet adds, in the city of our
God, in the mountain of his holiness; that is to say, the
greatness of God, and for which he deserves so much praise, is
conspicuous in the foundation and construction of his church. Robert
Bellarmine (Cardinal).
Verse 1. Great is the Lord. Greater, Job 33:12.
Greatest of all, Ps 95:3. Greatness itself, Ps 145:3. A degree
he is above the superlative. John Trapp.
Verse 1. Mountain of his holiness. The religion
in it holy, the people in it a holy people. William
Nicholson.
Verse 2. Beautiful for situation, the joy of the
whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city
of the great King. What is there, or was there, about Zion
to justify the high eulogium of David? The situation is indeed
eminently adapted to be the platform of a magnificent citadel.
Rising high above the deep valley of Gihon and Hinnom, on the
west and south, and the scarcely less deep one of the
Cheesemongers on the east, it could only be assailed from the
northwest; and then on the sides of the north it was
magnificently beautiful, and fortified by walls, towers, and
bulwarks, the wonder and terror of the nations: "For the
kings were assembled, they passed by together. They saw it, and
so they marvelled; they were troubled, and hasted away."
At the thought of it the royal psalmist again bursts forth in
triumph: "Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell
the towers thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her
palaces; that ye may tell it to the generation following."
Alas! her towers have long since fallen to the ground, her
bulwarks have been overthrown, her palaces have crumbled to
dust, and we who now walk about Zion can tell no other story
than this to the generation following. There is another Zion,
however, whose towers are still more glorious, and shall never
be overthrown. "God is known in her palaces for a
refuge." And "this God is our God for ever and
ever." How often is this name synonymous with the
church of the living God! and no other spot but one can divide
with it the affection of his people—no other name but one can
awaken such joyful hopes in the Christian's heart. The temporal
Zion is now in the dust, but the true Zion is rising and shaking
herself from it, and putting on her beautiful garments to
welcome her King when he comes to reign over the whole earth. W.
M. Thompson, D.D.
Verse 2. When I stood that morning on the brow of
Olivet, and looked down on the city, crowning those battlemented
heights, encircled by those deep and dark ravines, I
involuntarily exclaimed, Beautiful for situation, the joy of
the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the
city of the great King. And as I gazed, the red rays of the
rising sun shed a halo round the top of the castle of David;
then they tipped with gold each tapering minaret, and gilded
each dome of mosque and church, and at length, bathed in one
flood of ruddy light the terraced roofs of the city, and the
grass and foliage, the cupolas, pavements, and colossal walls of
the Haram. No human being could be disappointed who first saw
Jerusalem from Olivet. J. L. Porter.
Verse 2. (first clause). Beautiful in
climate, that is, Mount Zion is situated in a fair and
lovely climate. This is the view taken by Montanus and
Ainsworth. Bate and Parkhurst read, "Beautiful in
extension, i.e., in the prospect which it extends to the
eye." Editorial Note to Calvin in loc.
Verse 2. Beautiful for situation. This earth
is, by sin, covered with deformity, and therefore justly might
that spot of ground, which was thus beautified with holiness, be
called the joy of the whole earth, i.e., what the whole
earth had reason to rejoice in, because God would thus in very
deed dwell with man upon the earth. Matthew Henry.
Verse 2. Beautiful for situation.
—Fair Jerusalem
The holy city, lifted high her towers,
And higher yet the glorious temple reared
Her pile, far off appearing like a mount
Of alabaster, topped with golden spires.
—John Milton in "Paradise Regained."
Verse 2. On the sides of the north. Jerusalem,
that is the upper and best part of it, was built on the north
side of Mount Zion. Hadrian Reland, 1676-1718.
Verse 2. Jerusalem lay to the north of Sion, and this
circumstance is mentioned as a proof of Mount Zion's greatest
security, for it was almost inaccessible on any other side
except the north, and there is was defended by Jerusalem, which
was very strong. Samuel Burder.
Verse 2. The great King. God is named the great
King in opposition to the kings in Ps 48:4. E. W.
Hengstenberg.
Verse 4. They were many and powerful: kings and a
plurality of them. They were confederate kings. The kings
were assembled. Forces united are the more powerful. But all
the endeavours of these confederate kings came to nothing. They
passed by together—together they came, and together they
vanished. William Nicholson.
Verses 5-6. The potentates of the world saw the
miracles of the apostles, the courage and constancy of the
martyrs, and the daily increase of the church, notwithstanding
all their persecutions; they beheld with astonishment the rapid
progress of the faith through the Roman empire; they called upon
their gods, but their gods could not help themselves; idolatry
expired at the foot of the victorious cross. George Horne.
Verse 6. Fear took hold upon them there, and pain,
as of a woman in travail. Nothing is more unaccountable than
panic. No man, no body of men can adequately guard against such
terror. He who made the ears can easily make them to tingle. He
who holds the winds in his fist, can easily make them whisper
alarm, or roar dismay. This is specially to be expected when men
so act as to have their own conscience against them. Job 15:21.
But God can at any time so forsake men as that they shall be
unmanned, and play the fool exceedingly. Le 26:36. Men have
fought bravely several battles, and then played the coward. William
S. Plumer.
Verse 7. Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with
an east wind. It is only by her Lord that the church gained
"the true riches; "when she enters into traffick with
the world, she takes the means of the world for her resources;
and when she trusts in her wealth, in her political power, in
earthly cunning, to make merchandise, the instruments she adopts
come to nothing in her hands, and leave her helpless and poor. From
"A Plain Commentary on the Book of Psalms (The Prayer Book
Version), chiefly founded on the Fathers, "1859.
Verse 7. With an east wind, which, in Judea, is
a very violent and destructive wind. Kennicot renders the verse
thus, As the east wind dasheth in pieces the ships of
Tarshish; founding his conjecture upon the similarity in
form of two Hebrew letters, signifying the one in, and
the other as. Daniel Cresswell.
Verse 9. We have thought. The Hebrew (Mwd) and
(Mmd) and (hmd) belong all to the same signification, of quiet,
rest, silence, patient expecting, thinking, considering, and
must be determined to any of these senses by the context. And
here that of expecting or patient waiting, with affiance
in him, and without all distrust or repining at
his delays, seems to be most proper for it. For coming to
the sanctuary to pray for mercy, it is most agreeable to say we
wait for it there, as in the place where he hath promised to
afford it, in return to prayers. Henry Hammond.
Verses 12-13. In a spiritual sense the towers
and bulwarks of Sion are those doctrines of the true
faith, which are the strength and glory of the church, which are
to be maintained in their soundness and stability against the
assaults of heretical teachers, so that they may be transmitted
unimpaired to following generations. Origen and Theodoret,
quoted by Wordsworth.
Verse 13. Mark ye well her bulwarks. Margin as
in the Hebrew, "Set your heart to her bulwarks."
That is, pay close attention to them; make the investigation
with care, not as one does whose heart is not in the thing, and
who does it negligently. The word rendered bulwarks, (lyx),
khail—means properly, a host or army, and then a
fortification or entrenchment, especially the ditch or trench,
with the low wall or breastwork which surrounds it. 2Sa 20:15
Isa 26:1. (Gesenius, Lex.)—Albert Barnes.
Verse 13. Mark ye well: set your heart,
mind earnestly, set your affections on. Henry Ainsworth.
Verse 13. Her bulwarks.
1. The designation and constitution of Jesus Christ to be
King of the church, King of Zion, is the great bulwark of Zion.
2. The second bulwark of Zion is the promises of God, which
are innumerable.
3. The watchful providence of God over the church.
4. Another bulwark is God's special presence. God is in a
special manner present in his church.
5. The last bulwark unto which all others may be reduced, is
the covenant of God: "For this God is our God." John
Owen.
Verse 14. This God is our God for ever and ever.
What a portion then is that of the believer! The landlord cannot
say of his fields, these are mine for ever and ever. The king
cannot say of his crown, this is mine for ever and ever. These
possessions shall soon change masters; these possessors shall
soon mingle with the dust, and even the graves they shall occupy
may not long be theirs; but it is the singular, the supreme
happiness of every Christian to say, or have a right to say,
"This glorious God with all his divine perfections is my
God, for ever and ever, and even death itself shall not separate
me from his love." George Burder.
Verse 14. This God is our God. The people of
God are sometime represented as so taken with this apprehension
of their peculiar relation to God, that they cannot be content
to know, but they proclaim it; nor was it enough the present age
should know, but they must have it told the following
generation: "Let Mount Zion rejoice, " etc. Mark,
"That ye may tell the generation following, "For
this is our God. See their ostentation of him! This God; q.d.,
Behold what a God have we! view him well, and take notice how
glorious a God he is. And as they glory in the greatness of the
God to whom they were related, so they do in the eternity of the
relation. "This God is our God for ever and ever."
John Howe.
Verse 14. God is not only a satisfying portion,
filling every crevice of thy soul with the light of joy and
comfort; and a sanctifying portion, elevating thy soul to its
primitive and original perfection; and a universal portion; not
health, or wealth, or friends, or honours, or liberty, or life,
or house, or wife, or child, or pardon, or peace, or grace, or
glory, or earth, or heaven, but all these, and infinitely more,
but also he is an eternal portion. This God would be thy God for
ever and ever. Oh, sweet word ever! thou art the
crown of the saints' crown, and the glory of their glory. Their
portion is so full that they desire no more; they enjoy variety
and plenty of delights above what they are able to ask or think,
and want nothing but to have it fixed. May they but possess it
in peace without interruption or cessation, they will trample
all kingdoms of the earth as dirt under their feet; and lo! thou
art the welcome dove to bring this olive branch in thy mouth. This
God is our God for ever and ever. All the arithmetical
figures of days, and months, and years, and ages, are nothing to
this infinite cipher ever, which, though it stand for
nothing in the vulgar account, yet contains all our millions;
yea, our millions and millions of millions are less than drops
in this ocean ever. George Swinnock.
Verse 14. Some expositors have strangely found a
difficulty in the last verse, deeming such a profession of
personal faith as inappropriate termination for a national song.
Even Dr. Delitzch, a wise and devout interpreter, shares in this
notion; going, indeed, so far as to throw out the surmise, that
some word must have been lost from the Hebrew text. To me it
seems that the verse, as it stands, is admirably in harmony with
the song, and is its crowning beauty. When the Lord does great
things for church or nation, he means that all the faithful,
however humble their station, should take courage from it,
should repose in him fresh confidence, and cling to him with a
firmer hope, and say, This God shall be our God for ever; he
will guide us even unto death. William Binnie.
Verse 14. Unto death, or as some explain it, at
death, i.e., he will save us from it; others, over death,
beyond it. But the most obvious explanation, and the one most
agreeable to usage, is that which makes the phrase mean even to
the end of life, or as long as we live. The idea of a future
state, though not expressed, is not excluded. J. A.
Alexander.
Verse 14. (last clause). The last clause is
much misunderstood. It is not, "Our guide unto
death, "for the words are, (twm-le wnghny), "shall
lead us over death." Surely it means, "It is he
who leads over death to resurrection"—over Jordan
to Canaan. The (Heb.) is used in Le 15:25, for "beyond,
"in regard to time, and is not this the sense here?
"Beyond the time of death"? Till death is to us
over? Till we have stood upon the grace of death? Yes; he
it is who leads us on to this last victory; he swallows up death
in victory, and leads us to trample on death. And so
viewed, we easily discern the beautiful link of thought that
joins this Psalm to that which follows. Such is the celebration
of The Mighty One become the glory of Jerusalem. Andrew A.
Bonar.
HINTS TO THE VILLAGE PREACHER
All the suggestions under this Psalm except those otherwise
designated, are by our beloved friend, Rev. George Rogers, Tutor
of the Pastor's College.
Verse 1.
1. What the church is to God.
(a) His "city:" not a lawless rabble, but a
well organised community.
(b) A mountain of holiness, for the display of justifying
righteousness, of sanctifying grace.
2. What God is to the church.
(a) Its inhabitant. It is his city, his mountain.
There he is great. There was no room for the whole of God in
Paradise, there is no room for him in his law, no room for him
in the heaven of angels: in the church only is there room for
all his perfections, for a triune Jehovah. Great everywhere, he
is peculiarly great here.
(b) The object of its praises. As he is greatest here, so are
his praises, and through the universe on this account.
Verse 2.
1. Was the ancient Zion beautiful for situation? So is
the New Testament church founded upon a rock, upon eternal
purpose and grace.
2. Was it the joy of the whole earth? So the New
Testament church will become.
3. Was it the special joy of the tribes of Israel that
were almost entirely to the north of Jerusalem? So the church is
to the saints.
4. Was it a royal as well as a holy city? So is the
church. "Yet I have set, "etc.
Verse 3.
1. God is a refuge in his church. The church is a city of
refuge, but the refuge is not in its church, but its God.
(a) For sinners from wrath.
(b) For saints from trials and fears.
(c) God is there known as such, known to thousands, not known
as such elsewhere. "They that know thy name, "etc.
Verses 4-7.
1. The opposition of worldly powers to the church. "The
kings, "etc.
2. The manner in which they are subdued—by their own fears;
conscience has persecuted those who have persecuted the church
of God. They who have seized the ark of God have been glad to
return it with an offering.
3. The completeness of their overthrow, As a fleet of ships
of Tarshish, dispersed, broken, and engulfed by the east wind.
Verse 8.
1. God has ever been to his people what he now is; the same heard
as seen.
2. He is now what he ever has been: the same seen as heard.
3. He will ever be what he now is. "Will establish it
for ever."
Verse 9.
1. What are the lovingkindnesses of God? Pity to the
wretched, pardon to the penitent, help to the prayerful, comfort
to the afflicted, etc.
2. Where are they to be found? "In the midst of,
"etc.
(a) Here they are revealed.
(b) Here they are dispensed.
(c) Here they are sought.
(d) Here they are enjoyed.
Verse 10. As the name of God, so his praises are—
1. Supreme.
2. Unqualified.
3. Universal.
4. Everlasting.
Verse 10. Thy right hand, etc.
1. The justice of omnipotence.
2. Omnipotence controlled by justice.
3. The omnipotence of justice.
Verse 11.
1. The subjects of his peoples' joy. Not mercies merely, but
judgments
2. Reasons: (a) Because they are holy—needful to the purity
of moral government; (b) Just—needful to vindicate law; (c)
Good—needful for the greatest amount of good.
Verse 12.
1. What is to be understood by the preservation and
protection of the church?
2. What is meant by searching into, and considering of, these
causes and means of the church's preservation?
3. What are those causes and means of the church's
preservation, those towers and bulwarks which will not fail?
4. What reason is there why we should thus search into and
consider these causes of the church's preservation and
protection?
5. What is the testimony which we have to give concerning
this matter to the ensuing generation? John Owen's Sermon.
Verse 14. (first clause). This is the language
of a proprietary in God: 1. Of an assured
proprietary—"This God is our God." 2. Of a permanent
proprietary—for ever and ever. 3. Of an exulting
proprietary. W. Jay.
Verse 14.
1. The language of discrimination. This God. This
God in Christ, in the church.
2. The language of Faith—our God.
3. Of Hope—For ever and ever.
4. Of Resignation—He will be our guide, etc.