Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts; if thou seek him, he will be found of thee, but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. Take heed now, for the Lord hath chosen thee to build a house for the sanctuary; be strong, and do it." These words illustrate the first verse of the psalm, "He that dwelleth," &c. The expression "to dwell in the house of the Lord" has occurred repeatedly in the preceding psalms, (see Psalm xxvii. 4, p. 80,) and in all cases seems to imply the habitual and constant fulfilment of the services of religion.* The verse, then, may be understood as a maxim, that "he who renders due service to God shall be sustained by him," which is the purport of the first of the two verses quoted above from Chronicles. In the second verse of the psalm, David acknowledges God as his own refuge and support, in all his trials. In the third and following verses, he assures Solomon of the same protection, if he will, in like manner, make Jehovah his reliance. In the ninth verse, "because" implies that Solomon has followed the advice of the first verse, and the example set him; and made his father's "refuge" his own. The word "shelter" is translated indifferently by the words "refuge," "habitation," and "house of defence"; it may be taken as synonymous with "refuge " in the first clause of the verse. In the fourteenth and following verses, Jehovah speaks.

* Those who were actually engaged in sacred duties dwelt in the capital, in chambers connected with the temple. 1 Maccab. iv. 38. Milman.

Herder says of this psalm, "Can the providence of God be taught with a sense of more cordial trust, or with more tenderness of feeling? It is a fatherly lesson, advancing and rising higher to the end, where the Supreme Father speaks and confirms its truth."

PSALM XCI.

1 HE that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge, and my fortress;

My God, in him will I trust."

3 Surely he will deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,

And from the noisome pestilence.

4 He will cover thee with his feathers, And under his wings shalt thou trust;

His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; Nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; Nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. 7 A thousand shall fall at thy side,

And ten thousand at thy right hand;

But it shall not come nigh thee.

8 Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold,

And see the reward of the wicked.

Ver. 1. For the meaning of "secret place" see Psalm xxxi. 20 (page 19).

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my

refuge,

Even the Most High, thy shelter,

10 There shall no evil befall thee,

Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 11 For he will give his angels charge over thee, To keep thee in all thy ways.

12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, Lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder;

14

The young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

"Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him;

I will set him on high, because he hath known my

name.

15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him, and honor him.

16 With long life will I satisfy him,

[blocks in formation]

Ver. 9. David had stated in ver. that the Lord was his refuge. He here repeats the appellation.

PSALM LXXII.

THE INAUGURATION OF SOLOMON.

[ocr errors]

BISHOP LOWTH compares this psalm with Psalm ii. which we have supposed to relate to the establishment of David's kingdom in Jerusalem (page 31). "This,” he says, "may not improperly be called the Inauguration of Solomon.' The style is somewhat different from the former, on account of the disparity of the subject. In the one, the pomp and splendor of victory are displayed, in the other, the placid image of peace and felicity. The style of the latter is therefore more calm and temperate, more ornamented, more figurative; not abounding in the same boldness of personification as the former, but rather touched with the gay and cheerful coloring of nature, in its most flourishing and delightful state."

Herder says of it, "With this the first Psalms of David close, and they could close with none better. In it the blessings of Abraham, Judah, and David are brought together, and the ideal conceptions of the Prophets respecting a future reign like that of Solomon proceeded from this as their model."

1

PSALM LXXII.

GIVE the king thy justice, O God!

And thy righteousness unto the king's son.
Then he shall judge thy people with righteousness,
And thy poor with justice.

3 The mountains shall bring forth peace to the people,

And the little hills, through righteousness.

4 He shall defend the poor of the people,

He shall save the needy,

And shall break in pieces the oppressor.

5 They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure,

Throughout all generations.

6 He shall be like rain coming down upon the mown

grass;

As showers that water the earth.

7 In his days shall the righteous flourish;

And abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth.

He shall have dominion from sea to sea,

And from the river unto the ends of the earth.

9 They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before

him,

And his enemies shall lick the dust.

10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents;

The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.

Ver. 8. "From sea to sea," i. e. from the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean." The river," i. e. the Euphrates.—“The ends of the earth," the sea-coast.

Ver. 9. 66

They that dwell in the wilderness." This refers to the wandering tribes of the Arabian desert.

Ver. 10. Tarshish in Spain is probably mentioned as the most distant place in the West, and Sheba in Arabia and Seba in Ethiopia as the most distant places in the East and South. "The

« ZurückWeiter »