TITLE. Maschil of David. This Maschil is
written for our instruction. It teaches us principally by
example how to order our prayer in times of distress. Such
instruction is among the most needful, practical, and effectual
parts of our spiritual education. He who has learned how to pray
has been taught the most useful of the arts and sciences. The
disciples said unto the Son of David, "Lord, teach, us to
pray"; and here David gives us a valuable lesson by
recording his own experience as to supplication from beneath a
cloud.
A Prayer when he was in the cave. He was in
one of his many lurking places, either Engedi, Adullam, or some
other lone cavern wherein he could conceal himself from Saul and
his blood hounds. Caves make good closets for prayer; their
gloom and solitude are helpful to the exercise of devotion. Had
David prayed as much in his palace as he did in his cave, he
might never have fallen into the act which brought such misery
upon his later days. SUBJECT. There can be little doubt
that this song dates from the days when Saul was sorely
persecuting David, and David himself was in soul trouble,
probably produced by that weakness of faith which led him to
associate with heathen princes. His fortunes were evidently at
their lowest, and, what was worse, his repute had fearfully
fallen; yet he displayed a true faith in God, to whom he made
known his pressing sorrows. The gloom of the cave is over the
psalm, and yet as if standing at the mouth of it the prophet
poet sees a bright light a little beyond.
EXPOSITION
Verse 1. I cried unto the LORD with my voice.
It was a cry of such anguish that he remembers it long after,
and makes a record of it. In the loneliness of the cave he could
use his voice as much as he pleased; and therefore he made its
gloomy vaults echo with his appeals to heaven. When there was no
soul in the cavern seeking his blood, David with all his soul
was engaged in seeking his God. He felt it a relief to his heart
to use his voice in his pleadings with Jehovah. There was a
voice in his prayer when he used his voice for prayer: it was
not vox et praeterea nihil. It was a prayer vivo corde
as well as vivâ voce. With my voice unto the Lord did I
make my supplication. He dwells upon the fact that he spoke
aloud in prayer; it was evidently well impressed upon his
memory, hence he doubles the word and says, "with my voice;
with my voice." It is well when our supplications are such
that we find pleasure in looking back upon them. He that is
cheered by the memory of his prayers will pray again. See how
the good man's appeal was to Jehovah only: he did not go round
about to men, but he ran straight forward to Jehovah, his God.
What true wisdom is here! Consider how the Psalmist's prayer
grew into shape as he proceeded with it. Its first poured out
his natural longings,—"I cried"; and then he
gathered up all his wits and arranged his thoughts,—"I
made supplication." True prayers may differ in their
diction, but not in their direction: an impromptu cry and a
preconceived supplication must alike ascend towards the one
prayer hearing God, and he will accept each of them with equal
readiness. The intense personality of the prayer is noteworthy:
no doubt the Psalmist was glad of the prayers of others, but he
was not content to be silent himself. See how everything is in
the first person,—"I cried with my voice;
with my voice did I make my
supplication." It is good to pray in the plural—"Our
Father", but in times of trouble we shall feel forced to
change our note into "Let this cup pass from me."
Verse 2. I poured out my complaint before him.
His inward meditation filled his soul: the bitter water rose up
to the brim; what was to be done? He must pour out the wormwood
and the gall, he could not keep it in; he lets it run away as
best it can, that so his heart may be emptied of the fermenting
mixture. But he took care where he outpoured his
complaint, lest he should do mischief, or receive an ill return.
If he poured it out before man he might only receive contempt
from the proud, hardheartedness from the careless, or pretended
sympathy from the false; and therefore he resolved upon an
outpouring before God alone, since he would pity and
relieve. The word is Scarcely "complaint"; but even if
it be so we may learn from this text that our complaint must
never be of a kind that we dare not bring before God. We may
complain to God, but not of God. When we complain
it should not be before men, but before God alone. I shewed
before him my trouble. He exhibited his griefs to one who could
assuage them: he did not fall into the mistaken plan of so many
who publish their sorrows to those who cannot help them. This
verse is parallel with the first; David first pours out his
complaint, letting it flow forth in a natural, spontaneous
manner, and then afterwards he makes a more elaborate show of
his affliction; just as in the former verse (Ps 141:1-10) he
began with crying, and went on to "make supplication."
Praying men pray better as they proceed. Note that we do not
show our trouble before the Lord that he may see it,
but that we may see him. It is for our
relief, and not for his information that we make plain
statements concerning our woes: it does us much good to set out
our sorrow in order, for much of it vanishes in the process,
like a ghost which will not abide the light of day; and the rest
loses much of its terror, because the veil of mystery is removed
by a clear and deliberate stating of the trying facts. Pour out
your thoughts and you will see what they are; show your trouble
and the extent of it will be known to you: let all be done
before the Lord, for in comparison with his great majesty of
love the trouble will seem to be as nothing.
Verse 3. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me,
then thou knewest my path. The bravest spirit is sometimes
sorely put to it. A heavy fog settles down upon the mind, and
the man seems drowned and smothered in it; covered with a cloud,
crushed with a load, confused with difficulties, conquered by
impossibilities. David was a hero, and yet his spirit sank: he
could smite a giant down, but he could not keep himself up. He
did not know his own path, nor feel able to bear his own burden.
Observe his comfort: he looked away from his own condition to
the ever observant, all knowing God: and solaced himself with
the fact that all was known to his heavenly Friend. Truly it is
well for us to know that God knows what we do not know. We lose
our heads, but God never closes his eyes: our judgments lose
their balance, but the eternal mind is always clear. In the way
wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.
This the Lord knew at the time, and gave his servant warning of
it. Looking back, the sweet singer is rejoiced that he had so
gracious a Guardian, who kept him from unseen dangers. Nothing
is hidden from God; no secret snare can hurt the man who dwells
in the secret place of the Most High, for he shall abide under
the shadow of the Almighty. The use of concealed traps is
disgraceful to our enemies, but they care little to what tricks
they resort for their evil purposes. Wicked men must find some
exercise for their malice, and therefore when they dare not
openly assail they will privately ensnare. They watch the
gracious man to see where his haunt is, and there they set their
trap; but they do it with great caution, avoiding all
observation, lest their victim being forewarned should escape
their toils. This is a great trial, but the Lord is greater
still, and makes us to walk safely in the midst of danger, for
he knows us and our enemies, our way and the snare which is laid
in it. Blessed be his name.
Verse 4. I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but
there was no man that would know me. He did not miss a
friend for want of looking for him, nor for want of looking in a
likely place. Surely some helper would be found in the place of
honour; some one would stand at his right hand to undertake his
defence. He looked steadily, and saw all that could be seen, for
he "beheld"; but his anxious gaze was not met by an
answering smile. Strange to say, all were strange to David. He
had known many, but none would know him. When a person is in ill
odour it is wonderful how weak the memories of his former
friends become: they quite forget, they refuse to know. This is
a dire calamity. It is better to be opposed by foes than to be
forsaken by friends, When friends look for us they affect to
have known us from our birth, but when we look for friends it is
wonderful how little we can make them remember: the fact is that
in times of desertion it is not true that no man did know us,
but no man would know us. Their ignorance is wilful.
Refuge failed me. Where in happier days I found a ready harbour
I now discovered none at all. My place of flight had taken to
flight. My refuge gave me a refusal. No man cared for my soul.
Whether I lived or died was no concern of anybody's. I was cast
out as an outcast. No soul cared for my soul. I dwelt in No
man's land, where none cared to have me, and none cared about
me. This is an ill plight—no place where to lay our head, and
no head willing to find us a place. How pleased were his enemies
to see the friend of God without a friend! How sad was he to be
utterly deserted in his utmost need! Can we not picture David in
the cave, complaining that even the cave was not a refuge for
him, for Saul had come even there? Hopeless was his looking out,
we shall soon see him looking up.
Verse 5. I cried unto thee, O Lord. As man
would not regard him, David was driven to Jehovah, his God. Was
not this a gain made out of a loss? Wealth gained by a failure?
Anything which leads us to cry unto God is a blessing to us.
This is the second time that in this short psalm we find the
same record, "I cried unto thee, O LORD": the saintly
man is evidently glad to remember his cry and its results. We
hear often of the bitter cry of outcast London, here is another
bitter cry, and it comes from an outcast, in wretched lodgings,
forgotten by those who should have helped him. I said, Thou art
my refuge and my portion in the land of the living. There
is a sort of progressive repetition all through this sacred
song; he cried first, but he said afterwards: his
cry was bitter, but his saying was sweet; his cry was sharp and
short, but his saying was fresh and full. It gives a believer
great pleasure to remember his own believing speeches: he may
well desire to bury his unbelieving murmurings in oblivion, but
the triumphs of grace in working in him a living faith, he will
not dream of forgetting. What a grand confession of faith was
this! David spoke to God, and of God "Thou art my
refuge." Not thou hast provided me a refuge, but thou,
thyself, art my refuge. He fled to God alone; he hid himself
beneath the wings of the Eternal. He not only believed this, but
said it, and practised it. Nor was this all; for David, when
banished from his portion in the promised land, and cut off from
the portion of goods which he by right inherited, found his
portion in God, yea, God was his portion. This was so not
only in reference to a future state, but here among living men.
It is sometimes easier to believe in a portion in heaven than in
a portion upon earth: we could die more easily than live, at
least we think so. But there is no living in the land of the
living like living upon the living God. For the man of God to
say these precious things in the hour of his dire distress was a
grand attainment. It is easy to prate bravely when we dwell at
ease, but to speak confidently in affliction is quite another
matter. Even in this one sentence we have two parts, the second
rising far above the first. It is something to have Jehovah for
our refuge, but it is everything to have him for our portion. If
David had not cried he would not have said; and if
the Lord had not been his refuge he would never have been
his portion. The lower step is as needful as the higher;
but it is not necessary always to stop on the first round of the
ladder.
Verse 6. Attend unto my cry. Men of God look
upon prayer as a reality, and they are not content without
having an audience with God; moreover, they have such confidence
in the Lord's condescending grace, that they hope he will even
attend to that poor broken prayer which can only be described as
a cry. For I am brought very low, and therefore all the prayer I
can raise is a mournful cry. This is his argument with God: he
is reduced to such a sad condition that if he be not rescued he
will be ruined. Gracious men may not only be low, but very low;
and this should not be a reason for their doubting the efficacy
of their prayers, but rather a plea with the Lord why they
should have special attention.
Deliver me from my persecutors. If he did not get out of
their hands, they would soon kill him out of hand, and as he
could not himself effect an escape, he cried to God,
"deliver me." For they are stronger than I. As he
before found a plea in his sadness, so now in his feebleness:
Saul and his courtiers were in power, and could command the aid
of all who sought royal favour; but poor David was in the cave,
and every Nabal girded at him. Saul was a monarch, and David a
fugitive; Saul had all the forms of law on his side, while David
was an outlaw: so that the prayer before us comes from the weak,
who proverbially go to the wall,—a good place to go to if they
turn their faces to it in prayer, as Hezekiah did in his
sickness. The Lord is wont to take the side of the oppressed,
and to show his power by baffling tyrants; David's supplication
was therefore sure to speed. In these sentences we see how
explicitly the man of God described his case in his private
communings with his Lord: in real earnest he poured out his
complaint before him and showed before him his trouble.
Verse 7. Bring my soul out of prison, that I may
praise thy name. That God may be glorified is another
notable plea for a suppliant. Escaped prisoners are sure to
speak well of those who give them liberty; Soul emancipation is
the noblest form of liberation, and calls for the loudest
praise: he who is delivered from the dungeons of despair is sure
to magnify the name of the Lord. We are in such a prison that
only God himself can bring us out of it, and when he does so he
will put a new song into our mouths. The cave was not half such
a dungeon to David's body as persecution and temptation made for
his soul. To be exiled from the godly is worse than
imprisonment, hence David makes it one point of his release that
he would be restored to church fellowship—The righteous shall
compass me about. Saints gather around a child of God when his
Father smiles upon him; they come to hear his joyful testimony,
to rejoice with him, and to have their own faith encouraged. All
the true believers in the twelve tribes were glad to rally to
David's banner when the Lord enlarged his spirit; they glorified
God for him and with him and through him. They congratulated
him, consorted with him, crowned him, and championed him. This
was a sweet experience for righteous David, who had for awhile
come under the censure of the upright. He bore their smiting
with patience, and now he welcomes their sanction with
gratitude. For thou shalt deal bountifully with me. God's
bountiful dealing is sure to bring with it the sympathy and
alliance of all the favourites of the Great King. What a change
from looking for a friend and finding none to this enthusiastic
concourse of allies around the man after God's own heart! When
we can begin a psalm with crying, we may hope to close it with
singing. The voice of prayer soon awakens the voice of praise.
EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS
TITLE. He calls this prayer Maschil, "a
psalm of instruction", because of the good lessons he had
himself learned in the cave, learned on his knees, and so
learned that he desired to teach others.—Matthew Henry.
Title. A prayer when he was in the cave. Every part of
this psalm shows the propriety of its inscription or title. He
expressly mentions his being in a place where he was entirely
shut up, where he saw no possible method of escaping, as having
no friends that dared to own him and appear for his deliverance,
and when every one seemed to desert him, and to have abandoned
all care of his safety and life. This he pathetically describes,
and in such terms as cannot fail to move the tender affections
of every one who considers them. On the first sense of his
danger, shut up in a cave, surrounded by three thousand chosen
soldiers, closely observed by a watchful enemy who would spare
no art or pains to apprehend him, he seems almost to have
despaired of himself, and declares that his spirit is quite
overwhelmed with the greatness of his distress. At length,
recollecting his principles, and the promises that God had made
him, he earnestly supplicates the protection of God, and assures
himself that he should yet praise God for his deliverance, and
that good men should share his joy, and encompass the altar of
God with thanksgiving for the mercy that he had shown him.—Samuel
Chandler.
Title. "The cave." Leaving our horses
in charge of some Arabs, and taking one for our guide, we
started for the cave now known as Mughâret Khureitűn, which is
believed to be the cave Adullam, having a fearful gorge below,
gigantic cliffs above, and the path winding along a narrow shelf
of the rock. At length, from a great rock hanging on the edge of
the shelf, we entered by a long leap a low window which opened
into the perpendicular face of the cliff. We were then within
the traditional hold of David, and, creeping half doubled
through a narrow crevice for a few rods, we stood beneath the
dark vault of the first grand chamber of this mysterious and
oppressive cavern, 1Sa 22:1-2 2Sa 23:13-17. Our whole collection
of lights did little more than make the damp darkness visible.
After groping about as long as we had time to spare, we returned
to the light of day, fully convinced that, with David and his
lion hearted followers inside, all the strength of Israel under
Saul could not have forced an entrance—would not have even
attempted it.—William M. Thompson.
Verse 1. I cried unto the LORD. Thou hast
posted me over to no deputy for the hearing of my prayer,
neither dost thou require that I should bring a spokesman for
the presenting of it; but thou hast commanded me to come myself,
and to come to thee thyself.—Sir Richard Baker on the
Lord's Prayer.
Verse 1. With my voice. The Lord needs not the
tongue to be an interpreter between him and the hearts of his
children. He that hears without ears can interpret prayers
though not uttered by the tongue. Our desires are cries in the
ears of the Lord of hosts. The vehemency of the affections may
sometimes cause the outcrying of the voice; but alas! Without
this it is but a tinkling cymbal...There is a use of words in
prayer, to excite, and convey, and give vent to, affection: Ho
14:2, "Take with you words, and turn to the Lord: say unto
him, Take away all iniquity, and receive us graciously."
The prophet doth not only prescribe that they should take
affections, but take with them words.—Thomas Manton.
Verse 2. I poured out my complaint before him.
Literally, my meditation; that is—what so much occupied my
thoughts at the time I expressed aloud. The word "complaint"
does not express the idea. The meaning is, not that he
complained of God or of man; but that his mind meditated on his
condition.—Albert Barnes.
Verse 2. I poured out, etc. I did it fully, and
fervently, and confidently.—Matthew Henry.
Verse 2. Poured out...before him. Those words
teach us that in prayer we should not try to keep anything back
from God, but should show him all that is in our hearts, and
that in his presence in our closet, with the door shut, but not
before men. The Carmelite adds that there is much force in the
words with my voice, twice repeated (as in Heb., A.V.
Vulgate, etc.) to show us that we ought to pray to God directly
for ourselves, and in person, and not be contented with an Ora
pro me addressed to some one else.—Cassiodorus and
Ayguan, in Neale and Littledale.
Verse 2. I shewed before him my trouble. Be
very particular in secret prayer, both as to sins, wants, and
mercies...Be not ashamed to open out all thy necessities. David
argues because he is "poor and needy"; four several
times he presses his wants and exigencies before God, like an
earnest but holy beggar (Ps 40:17 70:5 86:1 109:22). He "shewed
before him" his trouble. He presents "before"
God his ragged condition, and spreads open his secret wounds; as
Job said, he "would order" his "cause before
him": Job 23:4 ...Before God we may speak out our minds
fully, and name the persons that afflict, affront, and trouble
us; and woe to them that a child of God upon a mature judgment
names in prayer! I find not that such a prayer in Scripture ever
returned empty...A great reason why we reap so little benefit in
prayer is, because we rest too much in generals; and if we have
success, it is but dark, so that often we cannot tell what to
make of the issues of prayer. Besides, to be particular in our
petitions would keep the spirit much from wandering when we are
intent upon a weighty case, and the progress of the soul in
grace would manifest its gradual success in prayer.—Samuel
Lee (1625-1691), in "The Morning Exercises."
Verse 2. The committing of our cause to God is at once
our duty, our safety, and our ease.—Abraham Wright.
Verse 3. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me.
"When even my spirit (the higher faculty) is wrapped
in darkness upon me" that is, when even my spirit (ruach),
which ought to elevate my soul (nephesh) falls heavily
upon me, as in a swoon.
"When heavy, like a veil of woe,
My spirit on me lay."
What is here said of the spirit, is oftener predicted
of the soul, the seat of the passions. See Ps 42:6 43:5
131:2. The dejection of the spirit represents a still
more sorrowful and downcast condition, than the fainting of the soul.
See Ps 143:3-4, and compare our Lord's words, "My soul
is troubled" (Joh 12:27) with the Evangelist's statement,
"Jesus was troubled in spirit" (Joh 13:21 11:33).—Christopher
Wordsworth.
Verse 3. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me.
Literally, in the muffling upon me of my spirit. When my
spirit was so wrapped in trouble and gloom, so "muffled
round with woe", that I could not see the path before me,
was distracted and unable to choose a line of conduct, Thou
(emphatic) knewest my path.—A.S. Aglen, in "An
Old Testament Commentary for English" Readers, 1884.
Verse 3. I wish you much comfort from David's thought:
When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest
my path. The Lord is not withdrawn to a great distance, but
his eye is upon you. He sees you not with the indifference of a
mere spectator; but he observes with attention, he knows, he
consider's your path: yea, he appoints it, and every
circumstance about it is under his direction. Your trouble began
at the hour he saw best, it could not come before; and he has
marked the degree of it to a hair's breadth, and its duration to
a minute. He knows likewise how your spirit is affected; and
such supplies of grace and strength, and in such seasons as he
sees needful, he will afford in due season. So that when things
appear darkest, you shall still be able to say, Though
chastened, not killed. Therefore hope in God, for you shall yet
praise him.—John Newton (1725-1807), in "Cardiphonia."
Verse 3. Thou knewest.
From human eyes 'tis better to conceal
Much that I suffer, much I hourly feel;
But, oh, this thought can tranquillize and heal,
All, all is known to thee.
Nay, all by thee is ordered, chosen, planned,
Each drop that fills my daily cup, thy hand
Prescribes for ills, none else can understand,
All, all is known to thee.—Charlotte Elliott.
Verse 3. Although we as Christians possess the full
solution of the problem of suffering, yet we frequently find
ourselves in the position of Job, in regard to this or that
particular affliction. There are sorrows so far reaching, so
universal; there are losses so absolute, and blows so terrible
and inexplicable, that it seems for a time as if we were wrapped
in thickest gloom, and as if the secret of the Lord had not been
revealed. Why was this man stricken, and that man spared? Why
was such and such a being, in whom so many hopes centred, or who
had already realised so many pleasant expectations, why was he
withdrawn? Why was that other person left, a useless encumbrance
to earth? Why was that voice, which found echo in so many
hearts, suddenly silenced? Why have I been smitten? Why have I
lost that which rendered my moral life beautiful and useful?
Oftentimes the soul seems lost for awhile in thoughts which
overwhelm it, it loses its foothold, it tumbles about helplessly
amid the deep waters of affliction. It seems as if all were
over. Do not believe it. Remember Job; you cannot go to greater
lengths of despair than he, and yet God had pity on him. There
is much comfort for you in this example of indescribable
suffering, exasperated to the highest degree, and yet pardoned
and consoled. Cling to the memory of this blessed fact as to a
cable of deliverance, a board or a plank amidst the shipwreck.
And then remember that affliction forms part of God's plan, and
that he also asks you to manifest ready and absolute confidence
in him.—E. De Pressense, D.D., in "The Mystery of
Suffering," 1869.
Verse 3. They have privily laid a snare for me.
Snares on the right hand, and snares on the left: snares on the
right hand, worldly prosperity; snares on the left hand, worldly
adversity; snares on the right hand, flattery; snares on the
left hand, alarm. Do thou walk in the midst of the snares:
depart not from the way: let neither flattery ensnare thee, nor
alarm drive thee off it.—Augustine.
Verse 4. I looked on my right hand, and beheld.
The first two verbs must be translated as imperatives, as in the
margin of the English Bible. ("Look on the right hand, and
see.") The right hand is mentioned as the post of a
protector.—Joseph Addison Alexander.
Verse 4. Looked on my right hand. The allusion
here, it is supposed, is to the observance of the ancient Jewish
courts of judicature, in which the advocate, as well as the
accuser, stood on the right hand of the accused (Ps
110:5). The Psalmist felt himself in the condition of one who
had nobody to plead his cause, and to protect him in the
dangerous circumstances in which he was placed.—James
Anderson's Note to Calvin in loc.
Verse 4. There was no man that would know me.
The fact that David, although surrounded by a band of loyal
subjects, confesses to having no true friend, is to be
understood similarly to the language of Paul when he says in Php
2:20: "I have no man like minded." All human love,
since sin has taken possession of humanity, is more or less
selfish, and all fellowship of faith and of love imperfect; and
there are circumstances in life in which these dark sides make
themselves felt overpoweringly, so that a man seems to himself
to be perfectly isolated, and turns all the more urgently to
God, who alone is able to supply the soul's want of some object
to love, whose love is absolutely unselfish, and unchangeable,
and unclouded, to whom the soul can confide without reserve
whatever burdens it, and who not only honestly desires its good,
but is able also to compass it in spite of every obstacle.
Surrounded by bloodthirsty enemies, and misunderstood, or at
least not thoroughly understood by his friends, David feels
himself broken off from all created beings.—Franz Delitzsch.
Verse 4. There was no man that would know me.
Teacheth us of what little estimation God's children be, with
the world and worldly men.—Thomas Wilcocks.
Verse 4. There was no man that would know me.
Persecution from the side of our enemies presses sorely, but
abandonment by our friends, who should have stood by one's side
as helpers and defenders, presses more sorely still.—Taube,
in Lange's Commentary.
Verse 4. Observe the beautiful opposition between
"Thou knewest" (Ps 142:3) and "no man would know
me." Refuge failed me,—literally "perished"
from me (Jer 25:35 Am 2:14). But "thou hast been my refuge
in the day of my trouble"; Ps 59:16.—Andrew Robert
Fausset.
Verses 4-5. Refuge failed me...Thou art my refuge.
Travellers tell us that they who are at the top of the Alps can
see great showers of rain fall under them, but not one drop of
it falls on them. They who have God for their portion are in a
high tower, and thereby safe from all troubles and showers. A
drift rain of evil will beat in at the creature's windows, be
they never so well pointed; all the garments this world can make
up cannot keep them that travel in such weather from being wet
to the skin. No creature is able to bear the weight of its
fellow creature; but as reeds, they break under the pressure,
and as thorns, they run into the sides of those who lean on
them. The bow drawn beyond its compass breaks in sunder, and the
string wound above its strength snaps in pieces. Such are
outward helps to all that trust to them in hardships.—George
Swinnock.
Verses 4-5. Refuge failed me. . . . Thou art my
refuge. Are there any among us to whom the world's face is quite
changed, and the brooks of comfort in it are dried up, and they
are so tossed, chased, and harassed in it that they have
forgotten their resting place? Are any of you "become a
stranger unto your brethren and an alien unto your mother's
children"? Ps 69:8. Is it grown such a strange world, that
even "your own familiar friend, in whom you trusted, which
did eat of your bread, hath lifted up his heel against
you"? (Ps 41:9); and that wherever you turn yourselves in
it, to find rest and refuge, the door is shut in your face? Here
is a refuge for you; here is one open door; come in, thou
blessed of the Lord: "the Lord gathereth the outcasts of
Israel" Ps 147:2. It seems the Lord minds to have you in:
he is doing with you as a father with a stubborn son who ran
away from his father's house, thinking to shift for himself
among his friends, and not come back: the father sends
peremptory word through them all, saying, "In whoever's
house my son is skulking, presently turn him out of doors, and
let none of you take him in; and if he come to you give him not
one night's lodging, nay, let him not eat in your house."
Wherefore is all this but just to get him back again to his
father's house?—Thomas Boston, 1676-1732.
Verses 4-5. When all slighted him, when none took care
of him; what doth David in this case? The words in Ps 142:5 tell
us what. I cried unto thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my
refuge and my portion in the land of the living. As if he
had said, Upon these unkindnesses, disrespects, and slightings
which I found in the world, I took occasion, yea, I was stirred
in my spirit to cry unto thee, O Lord, and to say, "Thou
art my refuge", that is, then I made thee my refuge
more than ever. Having made thee my choice in my best times,
when men honoured and embraced me, I am much encouraged in these
evil times when men regard me not to shelter my weather beaten
self in thy name and power. When we have most friends in the
world, then God is our best friend, but when the world hates us,
and frowns upon us, especially when (as the prophet speaks of
some, Isa 66:5) "our brethren hate us, and cast us out for
the name's sake of God himself", saying, "Let the Lord
be glorified", when 'tis thus with us (I say) our souls are
even forced into the presence of God, to renew our interests in
his love, and to assure our souls that we are accepted with
him.—Joseph Caryl.
Verse 5. I have cried unto thee, Jehovah, I have
said, etc. I have cried and still cry; I have said and still
say.—Joseph Addison Alexander.
Verse 5. I said. This imports,
1. A remembrance of the solemn transaction, Ps 103:18.
This is a deed never to be forgotten, but always to be kept in
remembrance. But, O ye who have said this, remember, a) What
you said. You said that God in Christ should be your refuge,
that under the shade of his wings you hid yourselves, and that,
renouncing all other refuges, as refuges of lies, you did betake
yourselves to the covert of Christ's righteousness, and that
there ye would abide for your portion; which was a formal
acceptance of and laying hold on the covenant. b) To whom
you said it. To God in Christ speaking to you in the gospel
offer, and inviting you into the refuge. What men say to their
superiors, they think themselves specially concerned to mind.
And surely what ye have said to God, ye ought in a peculiar
manner to remember, and awe your hearts with the consideration
of the majesty of the party to whom ye said it, Ps 16:2: "O
my soul, thou hast said unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord";
for he is not one with whom we may deal falsely. c) How
ye said it. Did ye not say it in your hearts, while God in
Christ was held out as a refuge for you? And the language of the
heart is plain language with a heart searching God. Did not some
of you say it with your mouths? And did not all communicants say
it solemnly before the world, angels, and men, by their
receiving the elements of bread and wine? d) Upon what
grounds you said it. Did you not see a necessity of a refuge
for you, and a necessity of taking God in Christ for your
refuge? Ye had rational grounds for it, and lasting grounds that
can never fail; so that ye can never have ground to retract nor
shift about for another refuge. Jer 2:31. e) Where ye
said it. Remember the spot of ground where ye said it in prayer,
where ye said it at the communion table. Ps 42:6. The stones of
the place will be witnesses of your saying it. Jos 24:27.
2. A standing to it, without regretting that we said
it, remembering what is said, Joh 6:66-69: "From that time
many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then
Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast
the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou
art that Christ, the Son of the living God." Men often
repent what they have said, and therefore will not own that they
have said it. But gracious souls will not repent their saying
this, but will abide by it. If they were to make their choice a
thousand times, having chosen God in Christ for their refuge and
portion, they would not alter; Jer 3:19: "I said, Thou
shalt call me, My Father; and shalt not turn away from me."
Many alterations may be in men's circumstances in the world, but
there can never be one that will afford ground for retracting
this saying.
3. An owning of the obligation of it: I said, and am
obliged thereby to stand to it, "For I have opened my mouth
unto the Lord and I cannot go back", Jud 11:35. God in
Christ is yours, and ye are his by his own consent; ye are no
more your own; ye have said the word, and must own that it is
binding on you; and ye must beware that after vows ye make not
enquiry. Whoever may pretend they have their choice yet to make
of a refuge and portion to themselves, ye cannot: ye are engaged
already, and ye are not at liberty to hearken to any other
proposals, any more than a woman who has already signed her
contract with one man.
4. A professing of it confidently without being
ashamed of it; as though you should say, "I own it before
all men, and am not ashamed of my choice." Antichrist
allows some of his vassals to carry his mark in their right
hand. Re 13:16. But all the followers of the Lamb have their
mark on their foreheads, where it will not hide, Re 14:1. The
world would put the people of God to shame on the head of their
refuge and portion, as if they had made a foolish bargain of it,
Ps 14:6: "Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because
the LORD is his refuge." But sincerity will make men
despise that shame, as David said, "And I will yet be more
vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight."
5. A satisfaction of heart in it: as though you should
say, I said it", and, Oh, but I am well pleased that ever I
said it; it was the best saying I could ever say. Ps 16:2, 5-7.
And this is in effect to say it over again. And good reason
there is for them who have sincerely said it to be well
satisfied in their refuge, and to rejoice in their portion. The
reflecting upon it may afford solid delight and content of
heart. Ye who have taken the Lord for your refuge may with much
satisfaction reflect upon what you have done.—Thomas
Boston.
Verse 6. Attend unto my cry.
Can I see another's woe,
And not be ill sorrow too?
Can I see another's grief,
And not seek for kind relief?
Can I see a falling tear,
And not feel my sorrow's share?
Can a father see his child
Weep, nor be with sorrow filled?
Can a mother sit and hear
An infant groan, an infant fear?
No, no; never can it be!
Never, never can it be!
And can he, who smiles on all,
Hear the wren, with sorrows small—
Hear the small bird's grief and care,
Hear the woes that infants bear,
And not sit beside the nest,
Pouring pity in its breast?
And not sit the cradle near,
Weeping tear on infant's tear?
And not sit both night and day
Wiping all our tears away?
Oh, no! never can it be!
Never, never can it be!
He doth give his joy to all;
He becomes an infant small;
He becomes a man of woe;
He doth feel the sorrow too.
Think not thou canst sigh a sigh,
And thy Maker is not by;
Think not thou canst weep a tear,
And thy Maker is not near.
Oh! he gives to us his joy,
That our grief he may destroy:
Till our grief is fled and gone,
He doth sit by us and moan.
—William Blake (1757-1828), in "Songs of
Innocence," 1789.
Verse 6. I am brought very low, etc. However
true this may have been of David lurking in a cave, while his
enemy, Saul, was at the head of a powerful army, it is more
literally true of Christ, who could truly say, "I am
brought very low", because "he himself became
obedient unto death, even to the death of the cross." He
was also "brought very low", when he, that had
the right of sitting on the cherubim, hung between two robbers.
Truly also were his enemies "stronger than he"
when "their hour came", and "power was given to
darkness", so as to appear, for awhile, to eclipse the sun
of justice itself.—Robert Bellarmine.
Verse 6. For they are stronger than I. But they
are not stronger than Thou. Thou canst make us "stronger
than our enemies": Ps 105:24. He who is stronger than
the strong man armed (Lu 11:22), Israel's oppressor, and whose
very "weakness is stronger than men" (1Co 1:25), shall
"ransom" her "from him that was stronger
than" she: Jer 31:11 Ps 18:17.—Andrew Robert Fausset.
Verse 7. Bring my soul out of prison, etc. As
if he should say, O Lord, I confess I am a poor prisoner to sin
and Satan, I would fain be set at liberty to believe thy word,
and to do thy will; but, alas, I cannot. I find many a door fast
shut upon me in this prison, and many a lock upon the doors,
many lets and impediments which I am never able to remove; and
therefore, gracious Lord, do that for me, which neither I myself
nor all the friends I can make are ever able to do for me; pay
the debts of thy poor prisoner in my blessed Surety, and set
open the prison doors: "Bring my soul out of prison, O
Lord, that I may praise thy name!"—Matthew
Lawrence, in "The Use and Practice of Faith,"
1657.
Verse 7. The righteous shall compass me about.
In a circle, like a crown, as the word signifies; when delivered
they should flock to him and come about him to see him and look
at him, as a miracle of mercy, whose deliverance was marvellous;
and to congratulate him upon it, and to join with him in praise
unto God for it. The Targum is, "For my sake the righteous
will make to thee a crown of praise."—John Gill.
Verse 7. For thou shalt deal bountifully with me.
Others' mercies ought to be the matter of our praises to God;
and others' praises to God on our behalf ought to be both
desired and rejoiced in by us.—Matthew Henry.
HINTS TO THE VILLAGE PREACHER
Verse 1.
1. A vivid memory—of what he did, and how, and when.
2. A public declaration; from which we infer that his prayer
cheered him, brought him succour in trouble, and deliverance out
of it.
3. A reasonable inference: he prays again.
Verses 1-2.
1. Special seasons for prayer: times of complaint and
trouble.
2. Special prayer on such occasions; "I cried",
"I make my supplication", "I poured out my
complaint", "I showed before him my trouble."
Spread the whole case before God, as Hezekiah did the letter
from Sennacherib.—G.R.
Verse 2.
1. The true place for prayer—"before him."
2. The freedom of prayer—"poured out."
3. The unveiling of the heart in prayer—"shewed before
him my trouble."
Verse 3. (first clause).
1. When.
2. Then.
Verse 3. (latter clause). Temptations.
1. What form they take?—"snares."
2. Who lay them?—"they."
3. How do they lay them? Secretly, craftily "in the
way", frequently.
4. What becomes of the tempted believer? He lives to tell the
tale, to warn others, to glorify God.
Verse 4. (last clause). The soul considered of
no value.
1. Consider the worth of the soul.
a) The soul will continue for ever.
b) The righteous will grow more happy, and the wicked more
miserable.
c) A great price has been paid for it.
2. Contrast the care we take of our souls, and our anxiety
about worldly objects.
a) The solicitude we manifest for riches.
b) Our care in educating the intellects of our children.
c) Eagerness in pursuit of business, honour—even trifles.
d) How anxious about a human life! Describe the search for a
lost child.
e) Contrast our care for souls and our Saviour's care for them:
Paul's, Luther's, Whitefield's.
3. Remember some things which show that this care does not
exist.
a) If you do not statedly observe secret prayer.
b) If your soul is not burdened with the souls of others.
c) If you neglect family prayer, or observe it as a mere form.
d) If you do not regularly go to prayer meetings.
Remark: The great responsibility resting upon every
Christian.
—Jacob Knapp, in "The Homiletic Monthly",
1882.
Verse 4. (last clause). The burden of souls.
1. What is meant by care for souls?
a) To have a firm conviction of their value.
b) To cherish tender solicitude for their welfare.
c) To feel alarming apprehensions of their danger.
d) To make zealous exertions for their salvation.
2. Who ought specially to exercise this care?
a) Parents.
b) Teachers.
c) Ministers.
d) Members.
3. The criminality of neglect.
a) It is ungrateful.
b) It is cruel.
c) It is fatal.
—W.W. Wythe, in "The Pulpit Analyst",
1870.
Verses 4-5.
1. A terrible plight; no friend, no helper, no pitying heart.
2. A touching prayer. A cry and a saying.
Verses 4-5.
1. Human help fails most when most needed.
a) In outward troubles: "I looked", etc.
b) In soul troubles: "No man cared for my soul."
2. Divine help is most given when most needed. A refuge and a
portion when all others fail. Man has many friends in
prosperity, one only in adversity.—G.R.
Verses 4-5.
1. Why the saints make God their refuge, and the object of
their faith and hope in their greatest afflictions.
a) God has given himself to the saints, in the covenant of
grace, to be their God, and has promised that they shall be his
people.
b) God stands in a most near relation to the saints, and
condescends to sustain many endearing characters of love, which
he fulfils to their advantage.
c) The saints, through the power of God's grace upon their
souls, have chosen him for their portion, and their highest
felicity.
2. What perfections there are in God that render him a safe
refuge for the saints, and a proper object of their confidence.
a) God is infinite in mercy.
b) God is infallible in wisdom.
c) God is boundless in power.
d) God is omniscient and omnipresent.
d) God is a Being whose love never changes.
e) God is an independent Being, and the Governor and Director
of all things.
3. The many sweet advantages, arising to the saints, from
this practice of making God their refuge, in their greatest
troubles.
a) They have been preserved from fainting under their heavy
burdens.
b) They have derived from God new and seasonable supplies of
divine grace and strength for service.
c) God has refreshed his saints with divine consolations for
the future.—John Farmer, 1744.
Verse 5. The soul choosing God.
1. Deliberately: "I cried unto thee, I said."
2. For all in all: "refuge", "portion."
3. Before every other "in the land of the
living."—W.B.H.
Verse 5. "How we may bring our Hearts to bear
Reproofs." See John Owen's Sermon in "The Morning
Exercises", vol. 2, page 600, etc.; and in his
"Works", vol. 16, p. 23, etc.
Verse 6. Two petitions and two arguments.
Verses 6-7.
1. The language of Despondency. "I am brought very
low." "My enemies are stronger than I." "My
soul is in prison."
2. Of Prayer. "Attend unto me." "Deliver
me." "Bring me out of prison."
3. Of Praise.
a) For the congratulation of others.
b) For his own deliverance and prosperity.—G.R.
Verse 6. Low and Lowly. Here is David,
1. In a low place; the depths of a cave.
2. In a low way: "very low"; "stronger than
I."
3. But see, "with the lowly is wisdom" (Pr 11:2);
he prays.
4. The Lord "hath respect to the lowly", Ps 138:6.
He will not pray in vain.—W.B.H.
Verse 7. A prisoner. A freedman. A singer. A centre. A
wonder.
Verse 7. Prison Dreams.
1. What we image in our fetters.
a) Christ's brow girt about with rare praise.
b) Christ's people compassing and accompanying us in
costliest service.
c) A new life of bounty and blessing—when we get out.
2. How far do our dreamings come true? Before peril and
after; under conviction, and after conversion; sick room, and
active service.
3. The duty of fidelity to prison vows and lessons.—W.B.H.
Verse 7. (middle clause). A Queen Bee. An under
shepherd. A warm hearth. A Museum of wonders. Or, they shall
surround me, interested in my story—"out of prison";
drawn by my song—"praise thy name"; attracted by
likeness of character, and admiring the goodness of the Lord.
Verse 7. (last clause). Take this with Ps
116:7. "The Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee."
Infer the future from the past.
WORK UPON THE HUNDRED AND FORTY-SECOND PSALM
In Chandler's "Life of David," vol.
1, pp. 157-160, there is an Exposition of this Psalm.