the usual reference to Pharaoh's daughter. The author is, of course, not David, but some pious writer of the time. The king spoken of throughout is David himself, whose glory, and greatness, and goodness, and personal excellencies, the strength and justice of his reign, and the splendour of his royal apparel, are eulogised in v.1-8. If it be thought that the language in v.2, 'Thou art fairer than the children of men, grace is poured into thy lips,' is rather extravagant, when applied, even by an Oriental, to one of David's age at this time, yet it must be remembered that David in his youth is expressly described as being ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to,' 18.xvi.12; and he very probably may have retained, even in old age, the traces of this his youthful beauty. We have a parallel instance of such language being used, by a courtly writer, of one even older than David, in the following lines from the dedication to Queen Elizabeth, then nearly seventy years old, of his poem On the Immortality of the Soul, by Sir John Davies :

Fair soul, since to the fairest body joined,

You give such lively life, such quickening power,
And influence of such celestial kind,

As keeps it still in youth's immortal flower, &c.

378. The expression in v.11, in the Prayer-Book Version, 'for he is thy Lord God, and worship thou Him,' is only found in the Latin Vulgate, from which the P. B. Version is derived. In the Heb., Chald., Sept., Æthiop., Syr., and Arab., it is simply, for he is thy Lord (Adonai).' His court is described in v.9; the 'queen in gold of Ophir' would then be Bathsheba, who stood on the king's right hand' to receive the bride; and so we read of her, that, when she came to speak with her son, as king, at the request of his brother Adonijah, 'the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a seat to be set for the king's mother, and she sat on his right hand.' 1K,ii.19. Doubtless, among her honourable women' were 'daughters of kings,' the tributary kings, who owned the sway of David; and Naamah herself may have been numbered for a time with these; though, perhaps, the phrase in v.13, the king's daughter,' may be used tenderly for 'the king's daughter-in-law.'

The word is here used for 'queen,' which only occurs elsewhere, in Neh.ii.6, And the king said unto me, the queen also sitting by him,' and Dan.v.2,3,23, 'his (thy) wives and his (thy) concubines.' In these passages it plainly implies a wife par excellence, as distinguished from a concubine; and, when used in the singular, as in Neh.ii.6, it seems to denote the chief wife, such as Bathsheba. From this word occurring only in these later books, some critics have been led to assign this Psalm to a later age. But, as HUPFELD suggests, ii.p.367, 'it may have been used in poetry in earlier times,' though is employed in 1K.xi.19, Jer.xiii. 18, xxix.2.

In v.13, ‘the king's daughter is all glorious within,' where it seems to be meant that she has not yet been led forth from the private chamber, in which she had been attired by her companions. This may have been in some part of the royal

buildings, 'the ivory palaces,' but not the palace properly so called, 'the king's palace,' v.15, into which she is to be brought, there to be presented to the king and queen.

379. In v.7,-'Thy throne, Elohim, is for ever and ever,'-the word 'Elohim' would, in that case, be addressed to David himself, being used reverentially for the sovereign power, the supreme authority, considered as the representative of God. So the word is used in E.xxi.6, xxii.7,8, where it is translated 'judges,' and in E.xxii. 28, where it is rendered 'gods,' in each of which cases the best rendering would be, as above, the authorities.' So also Ps.lxxxii.1, God standeth in the congregation of the mighty (, P.B.V. 'princes'); He judgeth among the authorities' (E.V. 'gods'). This may also explain the expression in Zech.xiii.7, 'Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man, my fellow, saith Jehovah of Hosts.' He has already been speaking of the kings of Israel as shepherds': 'three shepherds also I cut off in one month,' xi.8; and he seems here to be threatening the reigning king, the representative, as it were, of the Divine honour and authority, with Divine vengeance.

HUPFELD, ii.p.362, translates the passage thus,- Thy God's-throne (= God. given or God-sustained, compare 1Ch.xxix.23, 'Then Solomon sat on Jehovah s throne as king, instead of David,') is for ever and ever;' and he compares the

my refuge of' מַחְסִי עthy throne of God, with t כִּסְאֶךָ אֱלֹהִים expression

strength,' Ps.lxxi.7, by my fortress of strength,' 28.xxii.33, 77 172, 'his garment of linen,' Lev.vi.10(3), 277, thy way of lewdness,' Ez.xvi. 27, &c.

v.7(8), D', 'fellows,' 'companions,' or, more properly, 'confederates,' as in Ju.xx.11, may refer to the friendly kings, allied or tributary to David.

v.8. We are not told that David had an 'ivory palace;' nor are we told that Solomon had one, but he 'made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the best gold,' 1K.x.18. Hence it is very possible that he had such a house, more especially as Ahab had one, 1K.xxii.39, and Amos, in Uzziah's days, speaks of 'ivory houses,' iii.15, and ivory beds,' vi.4. But, if Solomon had such a house, it is quite possible that David had, since each of these kings is said to have built himself a house of cedar,' 2S.v.11,vii.2, 1K.vii.2,3, which may have been decorated with ivory. In fact, the martial tone of the Psalm in v.3,4,5, will hardly apply to Solomon.

380. In v.10-12 the song passes off into an address to the young bride. She is advised to forget her old connections, and attach herself to her new home: then 'shall the king,' her father-in-law, 'greatly desire her beauty; for he is her Lord, and she must pay him due reverence.' And 'the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; in other words, David's friend, Hiram, the king of Tyre, shall send his marriage presents of purple; and high and low among the people shall pay their court to her.

Then in v.13-15 is described the bridal procession, the dress of the bride, 'the king's daughter,' and the troop of maidens, who conduct her 'with gladness and rejoicing' to the king's palace.'

Lastly, in v.16-17, the song returns to the praise of David. Though he is the first of his line, and has no royal ancestors to boast of, yet instead of his fathers he shall have children, whom he may make princes in all the earth: his name shall be remembered for ever, in the praises of the people.'

381. The only difficulty in the above explanation may be raised by the question, whether the verb used in v.11, and translated ‘greatly desire,' can be used of such delight as a fond father might take in his daughter's beauty. Now the fact is that the Hebrew verb, here used, as well as the noun, is never employed in the Bible of passionate feeling towards a woman. When it is said in E.xx.17, 'Thou shalt not desire thy neighbour's wife,' another word, p, is used; and, in the kindred passage in D.v.21, the verb I, which is actually used of desiring house, and field, &c., is changed for the other, when reference is made to a wife. So in G.iii.16, Thy desire shall be to thy husband,' and in Sol. Song, vii.10, I am my beloved's, and his desire is toward me,' a very different word is used for desire (p). On the other hand, both the verb and the noun are used of such desire as may be well expressed by delight. Thus Ps.cxxxii. 13,14, 'for Jehovah hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it (P.B.V. longed for it') for his habitation. This is my rest for ever; here will I dwell; for I have desired it' (P.B.V. ‘I have a delight therein '). So, G.iii.6, 'And when the woman saw that it was pleasant (a desire) to the eyes,' &c.

882. Ps xlvi (E.7,J.3), Ps.xlvii (E.8,J.2). Ps.xlviii (E.8,J.2), appear to have been written upon days of rejoicing for some great victory, such as those gained by Joab and David himself over the very formidable confederacy of Syria and Ammon, of which we read in 28.x. On these occasions, probably, the king went in procession to the Tabernacle on Mount Zion, to return thanks to God. The 'kings assembled,' Ps.xlviii.4, may have been those mentioned in 28.x.6,15,16,19. On Joab's return from the first, and David's from the second, of these victories, when all the kings, that were servants to Hadarezer, saw that they were smitten before Israel, and made peace with Israel, and served them,' - David may have written these Psalms, just before his sin with Bathsheba.

Some have considered that the expression in the refrain of Ps.xlvi, ‘Jehovah of hosts is with us, py nin',' v.7(8),11(12), is an allusion to the name 'Immanuel,' God is with us, py, Is.vii.14,viii.8; and this is assigned as a reason, and it seems to be the only reason, for ascribing this Psalm to the days of Hezekiah. But if there be any imitation in the case if the phrase be not (as seems most likely) a kind of watchword in Israel—the Prophet may just as well have adopted it from the Psalmist. In v.7(8) many MSS. (32Ken. 46 de R.), the Syr. Chald. and Rabb. e. g. KIMCHI, have for in, which would reduce the Psalm to (E.8.,J.2).

In Ps.xlvii.9, the people of the God of Abraham,' we have the only instance, where Abraham is mentioned in the whole book of Psalms, except in the postCaptivity Psalm, cv.6,9,42. It is remarkable also that he is so rarely named by the Prophets-only twice by the earlier Prophets, Is.xxix. 22, Mic.vii,20, once by

Jeremiah, xxxiii.26, once by Ezekiel, xxxiii.24, and thrice by the later Isaiah, xl.1,8, li.2, lxiii.16.

383. Ps.xlix (E.2,J.0) contains nothing which points to the age of the writer. Ps.l (E.10,J.1) is inscribed a Psalm of Asaph.' Asaph, according to 1Ch.xxv. 1-6, was one of the three leaders of choirs, Heman, Asaph, Ethan or Jeduthun, whom 'David set over the service of song in the House of Jehovah, after that the Ark had rest,' 1Ch.vi.31. And in 2Ch.xxix.30, we read that Hezekiah commanded the Levites to sing praise unto Jehovah with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer.' Whether written by or for Asaph, this Psalm may, very possibly, have been composed in the age of David, since it contains in v.2 a reference either to the Tabernacle or the Temple on Mount Zion, - 'Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.'

285

CHAPTER XIV.

THE PSALMS OF THE SECOND BOOK (CONTINUED).

384. THE next fifteen Psalms are described by their titles as 'Psalms of David;' and there is nothing in any one of them which indicates that they are not rightly assigned to him as author, while in some cases the internal evidence of his authorship seems to be convincing.

Thus Ps.li.(E.6,J.0) is, we can scarely doubt, the genuine utterance of David's 'broken spirit,' when he came to repentance after his grievous sin. In this Psalm he does not once use the name Jehovah. It would seem as if, in the anguish of his soul, real name, a name dear to him from old associations, one which he had used all along in his childhood and youth, and in the better days of his ripened manhood, rather than to the more modern name, Jehovah, of new creation.

385. Dr. DAVIDSON, however, observes on this Psalm as follows, ii. 253:

The fifty-first psalm is post-Davidic, as the two last verses prove,- 'Do good in Thy good pleasure unto Zion: build Thou the walls of Jerusalem. Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt-offering and whole burnt-offering; then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine altar.' It is true that they are but loosely appended to the preceding context, and are therefore considered, by many, a later addition. That hypothesis is probably groundless. The psalm was written at a time when the City and Temple of Jerusalem were thrown down. Both Zion and the walls of the capital are expressly mentioned. Hence the attempts, that have been made to force the meaning into union with David's crime in relation to Bathsheba, are unworthy of notice. The psalm shows a right sense of sin as com