Psalms 25:18

Do I lift up my soul - His soul was cast down, and by prayer and faith he endeavours to lift it up to God. Verse 2 I trust in thee - I depend upon thy infinite goodness and mercy for my support and salvation. Let me not be ashamed - Hide my iniquity, and forgive my guilt. Verse 3 Let none that wait on thee be ashamed - Though he had burden enough of his own, he felt for others in similar circumstances, and became an intercessor in their behalf. Transgress without cause - Perhaps בוגדים bogedim may here mean idolatrous persons. "Let not them that wait upon and worship thee be ashamed: but they shall be ashamed who vainly worship, or trust in false gods." See Mal 2:11-16. The Chaldeans have evil entreated us, and oppressed us: they trust in their idols, let them see the vanity of their idolatry. Verse 4 Show me thy ways - The psalmist wishes to know God's way, to be taught his path, and to be led into his truth. He cannot discern this way unless God show it; he cannot learn the path unless God teach it; and he cannot walk in God's truth unless God lead him: and even then, unless God continue to teach, he shall never fully learn the lessons of his salvation; therefore he adds, "Lead me in thy truth, and teach me;" Psa 25:5. That he may get this showing, teaching, and leading, he comes to God, as the "God of his salvation;" and that he may not lose his labor, he "waits on him all the day." Many lose the benefit of their earnest prayers, because they do not persevere in them. They pray for a time; get remiss or discouraged; restrain prayer; and thus lose all that was already wrought for and in them. Verse 5 On thee do I wait - This is the line in which ו vau, the sixth letter in the order of the alphabet, is lost; for the line begins with א aleph, אותך othecha, "on thee." But four of Kennicott's and De Rossi's MSS. have ואותך veothecha, "And upon thee." This restores the lost ו vau, which signifies "and." The Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Arabic, Ethiopic, and Anglo-Saxon, preserve it. Verse 6 Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies, and thy loving-kindness - The word רחמים rachamim, means the commiseration that a man feels in his bowels at the sight of distress. The second word, חסדים chasadim, signifies those kindnesses which are the offspring of a profusion of benevolence. They have been ever of old - Thou wert ever wont to display thyself as a ceaseless fountain of good to all thy creatures. Verse 7 Remember not the sins of my youth - Those which I have committed through inconsiderateness, and heat of passion. According to thy mercy - As it is worthy of thy mercy to act according to the measure, the greatness, and general practice of thy mercy; so give me an abundant pardon, a plentiful salvation. For thy goodness' sake - Goodness is the nature of God; mercy flows from that goodness. Verse 8 Good and upright is the Lord - He is good in his nature, and righteous in his conduct. Therefore will he teach sinners - Because he is good, he will teach sinners, though they deserve nothing but destruction: and because he is right, he will teach them the true way. Verse 9 The meek will he guide - ענוים anavim, the poor, the distressed; he will lead in judgment - he will direct them in their cause, and bring it to a happy issue, for he will show them the way in which they should go. Verse 10 All the paths of the Lord - ארחות orchoth signifies the tracks or ruts made by the wheels of wagons by often passing over the same ground. Mercy and truth are the paths in which God constantly walks in reference to the children of men; and so frequently does he show them mercy, and so frequently does he fulfill his truth that his paths are earnestly discerned. How frequent, how deeply indented, and how multiplied are those tracks to every family and individual! Wherever we go, we see that God's mercy and truth have been there by the deep tracks they have left behind them. But he is more abundantly merciful to those who keep his covenant and his testimonies; i.e. those who are conformed, not only to the letter, but to the spirit of his pure religion. Verse 11 For thy name's sake, O Lord, pardon - I have sinned; I need mercy; there is no reason why thou shouldst show it, but what thou drawest from the goodness of thy own nature. Verse 12 That feareth the Lord - Who has a proper apprehension of his holiness, justice, and truth; and who, at the same time, sees himself a fallen spirit, and a transgressor of God's holy law, and consequently under the curse. That is the person that truly and reverently fears God. Him shall he teach - Such a person has a teachable spirit. The way that he shall choose - The way that in the course of Providence he has chosen, as the way in which he is to gain things honest in the sight of all men; God will bless him in it, and give him as much earthly prosperity as may be useful to his soul in his secular vocation. Verse 13 His soul shall dwell at ease - בטוב תלין betob talin, "shall lodge in goodness;" this is the marginal reading in our version; and is preferable to that in the text. His seed shall inherit - His posterity shall be blessed. For them many prayers have been sent up to God by their pious fathers; and God has registered these prayers in their behalf. Verse 14 The secret of the Lord is with them - טוד sod, the secret assembly of the Lord is with them that fear him; many of them have a Church in their own house. He will show them his covenant - He will let them see how great blessings he has provided for them that love him. Some refer this to the covenant of redemption by Christ Jesus. Verse 15 Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord - All my expectation is from him alone. If I get at any time entangled, he will pluck my feet out of the net. Verse 16 Turn thee unto me - Probably the prayer of the poor captives in Bablyon, which is continued through this and the remaining verses. Verse 17 The troubles of may heart are enlarged - The evils of our captive state, instead of lessening, seem to multiply, and each to be extended. Verse 18 Look upon mine affliction - See my distressed condition, and thy eye will affect thy heart. Forgive all my sins - My sins are the cause of all my sufferings; forgive these. This is the verse which should begin with the letter ק koph; but, instead of it, we have ר resh both here, where it should not be, and in the next verse where it should be. Dr. Kennicott reads קומה kumah, "arise," and Houbigant, קצר ketsar, "cut short." The word which began with ק koph has been long lost out of the verse, as every version seems to have read that which now stands in the Hebrew text. Verse 19 Consider mine enemies - Look upon them, and thou wilt see how impossible it is that I should be able to resist and overcome them. They are many, they hate me, and their hatred drives them to acts of cruelty against me. Verse 20 O keep my soul - Save me from sin, and keep me alive. Let me not be ashamed - He ends as he began; see Psa 25:2: "Let me not be confounded, for I put my trust in thee." Verse 21 Let integrity and uprightness - I wish to have a perfect heart, and an upright life. This seems to be the meaning of these two words. Verse 22 Redeems Israel, O God - The people are prayed for in the preceding verses as if one person; now he includes the whole, lest his own personal necessities should narrow his heart. and cause him to forget his fellow sufferers. This verse stands out of the order of the Psalm; and does not appear to have formed a part of the alphabetical arrangement. It is a general prayer for the redemption of Israel from captivity; and may well be applied to those of the true Israel who are seeking for complete redemption from the power, the guilt, and the pollution of sin; and from all the troubles that spring from it. And let it be ever known, that God alone can redeem Israel. Introduction The psalmist appeals to God for his integrity, and desires to be brought to the Divine test in order to have his innocence proved, Psa 26:1-3; shows that he had avoided all fellowship with the wicked, and associated unth the upright, Psa 26:4-8; prays that he may not have his final lot with the workers of iniquity, Psa 26:9, Psa 26:10; purposes to walk uprightly before God, Psa 26:11, Psa 26:12. This Psalm, and the two following, are supposed by Calmet to be all parts of one ode, and to relate to the time of the captivity, containing the prayers, supplications, complaints, and resolutions of the Israelites in Babylon. This is probable; but we have not evidence enough to authorize us to be nice on such points. See on Psa 26:1 (note). Verse 1 Judge me, O Lord - There are so many strong assertions in this Psalm concerning the innocence and uprightness of its author that many suppose he wrote it to vindicate himself from some severe reflections on his conduct or accusations relative to plots, conspiracies, etc. This seems to render the opinion probable that attributes it to David during his exile, when all manner of false accusations were brought against him at the court of Saul.

Precious Promises; Petitions. 15 Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord ; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net. 16 Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. 17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses. 18 Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins. 19 Consider mine enemies; for they are many; and they hate me with cruel hatred. 20 O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee. 21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee. 22 Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. David, encouraged by the promises he had been meditating upon, here renews his addresses to God, and concludes the psalm, as he began, with professions of dependence upon God and desire towards him. I. He lays open before God the calamitous condition he was in. His feet were in the net, held fast and entangled, so that he could not extricate himself out of his difficulties, v. 15 . He was desolate and afflicted, v. 16 . It is common for those that are afflicted to be desolate; their friends desert them then, and they are themselves disposed to sit alone and keep silence, Lam. iii. 28 . David calls himself desolate and solitary because he depended not upon his servants and soldiers, but relied as entirely upon God as if he had no prospect at all of help and succour from any creature. Being in distress, in many distresses, the troubles of his heart were enlarged ( v. 17 ), he grew more and more melancholy and troubled in mind. Sense of sin afflicted him more than any thing else: this it was that broke and wounded his spirit, and made his outward troubles lie heavily upon him. He was in affliction and pain, v. 18 . His enemies that persecuted him were many and malicious (they hated him), and very barbarous; it was with a cruel hatred that they hated him, v. 19 . Such were Christ's enemies and the persecutors of his church. II. He expresses the dependence he had upon God in these distresses ( v. 15 ): My eyes are ever towards the Lord. Idolaters were for gods that they could see with their bodily eyes, and they had their eyes ever towards their idols, Isa. xvii. 7, 8 . But it is an eye of faith that we must have towards God, who is a Spirit, Zech. ix. 1 . Our meditation of him must be sweet, and we must always set him before us: in all our ways we must acknowledge him and do all to his glory. Thus we must live a life of communion with God, not only in ordinances, but in providences, not only in acts of devotion, but in the whole course of our conversation. David had the comfort of this in his affliction; for, because his eyes were ever towards the Lord, he doubted not but he would pluck his feet out of the net, that he would deliver him from the corruptions of his own heart (so some), from the designs of his enemies against him, so others. Those that have their eye ever towards God shall not have their feet long in the net. He repeats his profession of dependence upon God ( v. 20 )— Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in thee; and of expectation from him— I wait on thee, v. 21 . It is good thus to hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord. III. He prays earnestly to God for relief and succour, 1. For himself. (1.) See how he begs, [1.] For the remission of sin ( v. 18 ): Forgive all my sins. Those were his heaviest burdens, and which brought upon him all other burdens. He had begged ( v. 7 ) for the pardon of the sins of his youth, and ( v. 11 ) for the pardon of some one particular iniquity that was remarkably great, which some think, was his sin in the matter of Uriah. But here he prays, Lord, forgive all, take away all iniquity. It is observable that, as to his affliction, he asks for no more than God's regard to it: " Look upon my affliction and my pain, and do with it as thou pleasest." But, as to his sin, he asks for no less than a full pardon: Forgive all my sins. When at any time we are in trouble we should be more concerned about our sins, to get them pardoned, than about our afflictions, to get them removed. Yet he prays, [2.] For the redress of his grievances. His mind was troubled for God's withdrawings from him and under the sense he had of his displeasure against him for his sins; and therefore he prays ( v. 16 ), Turn thou unto me. And, if God turn to us, no matter who turns from us. His condition was troubled, and, in reference to that, he prays, " O bring thou me out of my distresses. I see no way of deliverance open; but thou canst either find one or make one." His enemies were spiteful; and in reference to that, he prays, " O keep my soul from falling into their hands, or else deliver me out of their hands." (2.) Four things he mentions by way of plea to enforce these petitions, and refers himself and them to God's consideration:—[1.] He pleads God's mercy: Have mercy upon me. Men of the greatest merits would be undone if they had not to do with a God of infinite mercies. [2.] He pleads his own misery, the distress he was in, his affliction and pain, especially the troubles of his heart, all which made him the proper object of divine mercy. [3.] He pleads the iniquity of his enemies: "Lord, consider them, how cruel they are, and deliver me out of their hands." [4.] He pleads his own integrity, v. 12 . Though he had owned himself guilty before God, and had confessed his sins against him, yet, as to his enemies, he had the testimony of his conscience that he had done them no wrong, which was his comfort when they hated him with cruel hatred; and he prays that this might preserve him, This intimates that he did not expect to be safe any longer than he continued in his integrity and uprightness, and that, while he did continue in it, he did not doubt of being safe. Sincerity will be our best security in the worst of times. Integrity and uprightness will be a man's preservation more than the wealth and honour of the world can be. These will preserve us to the heavenly kingdom. We should therefore pray to God to preserve us in our integrity and then be assured that that will preserve us. 2. For the church of God ( v. 22 ): Redeem Israel, O God! out of all his troubles. David was now in trouble himself, but he thinks it not strange, since trouble is the lot of all God's Israel. Why should any one member fare better than the whole body? David's troubles were enlarged, and very earnest he was with God to deliver him, yet he forgets not the distresses of God's church; for, when we have ever so much business of our own at the throne of grace, we must still remember to pray for the public. Good men have little comfort in their own safety while the church is in distress and danger. This prayer is a prophecy that God would, at length, give David rest, and therewith give Israel rest from all their enemies round about. It is a prophecy of the sending of the Messiah in due time to redeem Israel from his iniquities ( Ps. cxxx. 8 ) and so to redeem them from their troubles. It refers also to the happiness of the future state. In heaven, and in heaven only, will God's Israel be perfectly redeemed from all troubles.