AFTER the title containing the historical occasion, ver. 1, the Psalmist expresses his determination to praise God for his goodness as experienced already, ver. 2, 3, (1, 2), and invites others to unite with him in so doing, ver. 4 (3). He then briefly states his own experience, ver. 5–7 (4–6), and founds upon it the general doctrine of God’s care for his own people, ver. 8–11 (7–10). Assuming then the tone of an instructor, he lays down rules for the securing of this great advantage, ver. 12–15 (11–14), and contrasts, in the remainder of the psalm, the safety of the righteous, even when afflicted, with the certain ruin of the wicked, ver. 16–23 (15–22).
The psalm is so evidently a didactic one, or maschil, that an express designation of this character was not required. See above, on Ps. 32:1.
As to its form, this is the second instance of an alphabetical psalm, approaching very nearly to perfect regularity, the only letter omitted being ו. It is very remarkable that here, as in Ps. 25, the last verse begins with ף, like ver. 16, and seems to be added to the alphabetic series.
1. By David, in (the time of) his changing (disguising) his reason before Abimelech, and he drove him away, and he went. The incident referred to is recorded in 1 Sam. 21. David, having fled from Saul into the land of the Philistines, was brought into the presence of Achish king of Gath, from whom he had reason to expect retaliation for injuries formerly received, and therefore pretended to be mad, an expedient which, in spite of its dubious morality, it pleased God to allow to be successful. In grateful recollection of this undeserved deliverance, not without some compunction with respect to the means by which he had secured it, David seems, at a later period of his life, to have composed this psalm for popular instruction, to which it is peculiarly adapted by its clearness and simplicity, as well as by its alphabetic form, which is a valuable aid to the memory.—In his changing does not necessarily designate the date of composition, but only that of the event which gave occasion to it. The common version, behaviour, is inconsistent with the usage of the Hebrew word, which means taste, judgment, understanding, reason.—Abimelech, king’s father, hereditary sovereign, was the traditional title of the king. See Gen. 20:2, 26:1. His personal name was Achish, 1 Sam. 21:10, 11, 12, 14.
2 (1). I will bless Jehovah at every time: always his praise (shall be) in my mouth. The promise of unceasing praise suggests the idea of extraordinary benefits to call it forth.—In all time, in every variety of situation, even the most discouraging, he is resolved to bear in mind what God has done for him in times past.
3 (2). In Jehovah shall glory my soul; the humble shall hear and rejoice. The first verb is strictly a reflective form, and means to praise one’s self, i.e. to boast, or, as denoting a more permanent affection of the mind, to glory, i.e. to exult in the possession and enjoyment of some admired and beloved object. The act of glorying is ascribed to the soul, in order to describe it as done cordially, ex animo.—The humble, as opposed to the proud and the presumptuous, is a general description of God’s people, who are naturally interested in the good experienced by the Psalmist, both for his sake and their own. See above, on Ps. 22:27 (26), 25:9.
4 (3). Magnify (praise) to Jehovah with me, and let us exalt his name together. In Ps. 69:31 (30), the verb to magnify is construed directly with its object, but in this case with a dative, to Jehovah, which may either be regarded as a poetical equivalent to the accusative, or connected with the noun praise understood, or with name, supplied from the other clause.
5 (4). I sought Jehovah, and he answered me, and from all my fears delivered me. He here begins to assign a reason why he and others should praise God. He had delivered him from all his fears by removing the occasions of them. The same plural form occurs Isa. 66:4.
6 (5). They looked unto him and brightened, and let not their faces blush. The plural they refers to the whole class of which the Psalmist was the representative.—Brightened, or as we say in English, brightened up, is a natural expression of relief and renewed cheerfulness. In the last clause the optative form is substituted for that of simple affirmation, so as to increase the emphasis. The wish, let not their faces blush, implies that there is danger of their doing so, and need of divine grace to prevent it.
7 (6). This sufferer called, and Jehovah heard, and from all his distresses saved him. From the general expressions of the preceding verse, he now recurs to his own case in particular. This sufferer, or afflicted one, meaning himself, as we say in modern phrase, the speaker or the writer, as a periphrasis for the personal pronoun.
8 (7). Encamping (is) the angel of Jehovah round about his fearers—and (now) he has rescued them. The angel, not only in the collective sense of angels, but in its specific sense, as denoting the Angel of the Lord by way of eminence, the angel of the covenant and of the divine presence (Isa. 63:9), in whom the manifestation of the Godhead took place under the Old Testament. As this angel was the captain of the Lord’s host (Josh. 5:14, 1 Kings 22:19), his presence implies that of many others, and the word encamp is therefore perfectly appropriate. The conversive future represents the act denoted by the last verb as consequent upon the other. This grammatical relation can only be imperfectly expressed in a translation, though the general idea is sufficiently clear.
9 (8). Taste ye and see that Jehovah is good; happy the man who will trust in him. The only proof is furnished by experience. The exhortation seems to imply that the provision is already made and only waiting for the guests. Compare Luke 14:17, and see above, on Ps. 2:12.
10 (9). Fear Jehovah, ye his saints, for there is no want to his fearers. The fear of God is here put, as in several other places, for the whole of piety or genuine religion, which must ever rest upon the basis of profound awe and veneration. See Ps. 2:11, Prov. 1:7, 9:10. His saints, those set apart and consecrated to his service, and as such bound to be holy in the strict sense. See above, on Ps. 16:3. The last clause represents this as no less the interest than the duty of God’s people. They are called upon to fear him, not only because fear is due to him, but because it is the surest method of securing their own safety and supplying their own wants.
11 (10). Young lions have lacked and hungered, and the seekers of Jehovah shall not want all (or any) good. The first verb properly means grown poor or become impoverished, and is therefore strictly applicable only to a human subject, a sufficient proof that such a subject is really referred to here under the figure of a lion, which is frequently used elsewhere to denote men of strength and violence. See Job 4:10, 11, and compare Ps. 57:5 (4), Nahum 2:12–14 (11–13), Ezek. 19:2, 3, 38:13. The sentiment then is, that while the most powerful and least scrupulous of men may be reduced to want, the people of God shall be abundantly and constantly provided for. The contrast is analogous to that presented in Isa. 40:30, 31.
12 (11). Come, sons, hearken to me; the fear of Jehovah I will teach you. As one experienced in the ways of God, he now addresses those less enlightened, and invites them to avail themselves of his instructions. Sons or children is a natural and common designation of the pupil as related to the teacher. Compare Prov. 1:8, 10, 15. To teach men the fear of the Lord is to teach them how and why they should fear him. And accordingly we find in the ensuing verses a practical argument in favor of true piety derived from its beneficent effects on those who cherish it and practice it.
13 (12). Who (is) the man, the (one) desiring life, loving days (in which) to see good? The interrogation is equivalent to saying, whosoever desires life, i.e. desires to live, not in the sense of mere existence but of genuine enjoyment, which is distinctly expressed in the last clause by the words loving days, i.e. desiring many days or long life, not for its own sake, but as a time of happiness. Whoever does desire this—and the wish must of course be universal—let him observe the following precepts. To see good is to know it by experience, to possess it and enjoy it. See above, on Ps. 4:7 (6).
14 (13). Keep thy tongue from evil and thy lips from speaking guile. The man who was inquired for in ver. 13 (12), is here directly addressed. Whoever thou art, if thou desire thus to live, keep, watch, guard, thy tongue from speaking evil, a comprehensive phrase, for which the last clause substitutes one more specific, namely, speaking guile, uttering deceit, or lying. The stress here laid upon this sin is so remarkable, when viewed in connection with the means by which David escaped from Achish, as suggested in the title, that it can only be explained by supposing that he looked on the success of his deception as a most unmerited forbearance upon God’s part, which, far from recommending the same course in other cases, made it incumbent on the Psalmist to dissuade others from it.
15 (14). Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. Not only in relation to this one sin, but to all, if thou desire to enjoy life, depart from evil, break off the practice and abjure the love of it; and since this is neither practicable nor sufficient as a mere negation, effect it by a positive performance of its opposite, do good. Compare the exhortation in Isa. 1:16, 17, Cease to do evil, learn to do good. The last clause may be explained as a return from generals to particulars, hostility and hatred being singled out as falsehood and deceit were in the preceding verse. Compare Rom. 12:18, 2 Cor. 13:11. Or peace may be understood as comprehending peace with God and the enjoyment of his favour.—In either of these senses, or in both, if thou desire to enjoy life, seek peace, not in an indolent and listless manner, but pursue it, chase it, hunt for it, and eagerly endeavour to attain it. The command implies that the object is both worthy of pursuit and liable to be lost.
16 (15). The eyes of Jehovah (are) towards the righteous, and his ears towards their cry. The inducement to comply with the foregoing precepts is that God will protect his servants from those dangers against which neither violence nor craft can secure them. They have no need neither to speak guile or break the peace, in order to be safe from injury. Another watches over them, whose vigilance cannot be eluded or exhausted. The eyes of the Lord are to the righteous, i.e. open to them, or turned towards them, so that he continually sees their true condition, and his ears are directed to their cry, or open to receive it. This, without a figure, means, that he is constantly apprised of their necessities and ready to receive their prayers, in which assurance that of safety and abundance is fully comprehended.
17 (16). The face of Jehovah (is) with evil-doers, to destroy from the earth their memory. The same unsleeping vigilance is exercised towards others also, but for a very different purpose. The face of the Lord is with evil-doers, i.e. visible or present to them, no less than to good men. The preposition before evil-doers is not the same that occurs twice in the verse preceding, and which properly denotes direction, but another meaning in or with. The unfavourable sense, against, which it may seem to have both here and elsewhere (e.g. Jer. 21:10, 44:11), is suggested by the context. In all these cases some interpreters suppose the sense to be that the eyes or face of God penetrate, as it were, and rest in the object.—The design with which Jehovah watches evil-doers is not to interpose for their deliverance or relief, but to destroy from the earth their very memory, a strong expression for entire extirpation. Compare Exod. 17:14, Deut. 25:19, Isa. 26:14, and see above, on Ps. 9:6, 7 (5, 6).
18 (17). They cried and Jehovah heard, and from all their distresses delivered them. This may at first sight seem to have respect to the evil-doers of the preceding verse, who are then represented as obtaining relief from deserved judgments by humble prayer to God. But as the wicked are, in this whole passage, mentioned only incidentally, and as a kind of foil or contrast to the righteous, it seems better on the whole, to make the first verb here indefinite, men cry for help, but with special reference to the righteous of ver. 16 (15). God watches over the righteous to protect them—as he does over the wicked to destroy them—and whenever they cry to him for help, he saves them. This parenthetical construction of ver. 17 (16) is the more admissible because it contains no finite verb, whereas ver. 18 (17) contains three.
19 (18). Near (is) Jehovah to the broken in heart, and the crushed in spirit he will save. These figurative terms are always used in a good sense and applied to humble penitents. See Ps. 51:19 (17), Isa. 57:15, 61:1, 66:2. They are descriptive of the contrition wrought by divine grace in the hearts of sinners. To such the Lord is always near, i.e. ready to deliver and protect. See above, on Ps. 22:12 (11).
20 (19). Many evils (befall) the righteous, and from them all will Jehovah deliver him. The preceding promise might have seemed to imply exemption from all suffering; but this can only be enjoyed in connection with exemption from all sin. While sin continues to exist, sorrow must coexist with it, even in the case of true believers or the righteous, who are never described in this book as absolutely sinless. See above, Ps. 19:13 (12), 25:7. While the sufferings of the righteous shew them to be sinners, their deliverance illustrates the divine compassion. The relation of the clauses would in our idiom require a but instead of the simple copulative, which the Hebrew writers commonly employ in such connection.
21 (20). Keeping all his bones—not one of them is broken. The sentence may be completed by supplying the substantive verb: (he is) keeping, i.e. habitually keeps; but it is simpler and better to regard this and the verse before it as one sentence, and the participle as agreeing regularly with Jehovah.—Keeping, in the pregnant sense of watching and preserving.—His bones, his frame, his body. See above, Ps. 32:3, and below, Ps. 35:10.—The literal translation of the last clause, one of them is not broken, would be equivocal in English. The original expression occurs also in Isa. 34:16. The doctrine or promise of this verse is analogous to that in Mat. 10:30.
22 (21.) Evil shall slay the wicked, and the haters of the righteous shall be guilty. While the sufferings of which the righteous man is a partaker are but temporary, those of the wicked shall be ultimately fatal. See above, on Ps. 32:10. Evil must have the same sense in both cases, namely, that of physical evil, suffering or misfortune. The result here described is not fortuitous, but brought about by moral causes. They must be destroyed because they are found guilty, i.e. of rebellion against God, one conclusive proof of which is afforded by their hatred of his people. They shall be guilty, i.e. recognized and known as such and treated accordingly. “The sufferings of the wicked man, unlike those of the righteous, tend to death, because the hatred of the former to the latter proves himself to be worthy of destruction.”
23 (22.) Jehovah redeems the soul of his servants, and guilty shall none be (of) those trusting in him. The precise form of the first clause in Hebrew is, Jehovah redeeming the soul of his servants, which seems to mean that he is doing so now, and that he habitually does so. The soul or vital principle is named because the case was one of life and death. None of those trusting in him shall be recognised and treated as guilty, the opposite of that which had been just asserted of the wicked. The condition and ground of this immunity is faith or trust in God, without which, according to the doctrine of both testaments, there can be no escape from guilt or punishment.
Alexander, J. A. (1864). The Psalms Translated and Explained (pp. 144–149). Andrew Elliot; James Thin. (Public Domain)
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