Psalms 31:1

Bow down thine ear - Listen to my complaint. Put thy ear to my lips, that thou mayest hear all that my feebleness is capable of uttering. We generally put our ear near to the lips of the sick and dying, that we may hear what they say. To this the text appears to allude. Strong rock - Rocks, rocky places, or caves in the rocks, were often strong places in the land of Judea. To such natural fortifications allusions are repeatedly made by the Hebrew poetic writers. Verse 4 Pull me out of the net - They have hemmed me in on every side, and I cannot escape but by miracle. Verse 5 Into thine hand I commit my spirit - These words, as they stand in the Vulgate, were in the highest credit among our ancestors; by whom they were used in all dangers, difficulties, and in the article of death. In manus tuas, Domine, commendo spiritum meum, was used by the sick when about to expire, if they were sensible; and if not, the priest said it in their behalf. In forms of prayer for sick and dying persons, these words were frequently inserted in Latin, though all the rest of the prayer was English; for it was supposed there was something sovereign in the language itself. But let not the abuse of such words hinder their usefullness. For an ejaculation nothing can be better; and when the pious or the tempted with confidence use them, nothing can exceed their effect. "Into thy hands I commend my spirit; for thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth." I give my soul to thee, for it is thine: thou hast redeemed it by thy blood; it is safe nowhere but in thy hand. Thou hast promised to save them that trust in thee; thou art the God of truth, and canst not deny thyself. But these words are particularly sanctified, or set apart for this purpose, by the use made of them by our blessed Lord just before he expired on the cross. "And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Πατερ, εις χειρας σου παρατιθεμαι το πνευμα μου· 'Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit,'" Luk 23:46. The rest of the verse was not suitable to the Savior of the world, and therefore he omits it; but it is suitable to us who have been redeemed by that sacrificial death. St. Stephen uses nearly the same words, and they were the last that he uttered. Act 7:59. Verse 6 I have hated them - That is, I have abominated their ways. Idolaters are the persons of whom David speaks. I trust in the Lord - While they trust in vanities vain things; (for an idol is nothing in the worid); and in lying vanities; (for much is promised and nothing given); I trust in Jehovah, who is God all-sufficient, and is my Shepherd, and therefore I shall lack no good thing. Verse 7 Thou hast known my soul in adversities - When all forsook me; when none could help me; when I could not save my own life; when my enemies were sure that I could not escape; then I found thee to be my Friend and Supporter. When friend, so called, finds it convenient not to know his friend in affliction and poverty, then thou didst acknowledge me as thine own, all worthless as I was. Human friendships may fail; but the Friend of sinners never fails. Cicero defines a real friend, Amicus certus in re incerta cernitor: "A friend in need is a friend indeed." Reader, such a Friend is the Lord. Verse 8 Thou hast set my foot in a large room - Many hair-breadth escapes David had for his life; at that time especially when, playing before Saul, the furious king took a spear and endeavored to pierce him through the body, but he escaped and got to the deserts. Here God, who had saved his life, set his feet in a large room. The seventh and eighth verses speak of what God had done previously for him. Verse 9 Mine eye is consumed - He now returns, and speaks of his present situation. Grief had brought many tears from his eyes, many agonies into his soul, and many distressful feelings into his whole frame. My soul and my belly - The belly is often taken for the whole body. But the term belly or bowels, in such as case as this, may be the most proper; for in distress and misery, the bowels being the most tender part, and in fact the very seat of compassion, they are often most affected. In Greek the word σπλαγχνον signifies a bowel, and σπλαγχνιζομαι signifies to be moved with compassion; to feel misery in the bowels at the sight of a person in pain and distress. Verse 10 My life is spent with grief - My life is a life of suffering and distress, and by grief my days are shortened. Grief disturbs the functions of life, prevents the due concoction of food, injures the digestive organs, destroys appetite, impairs the nervous system, relaxes the muscles, induces morbid action in the animal economy, and hastens death. These effects are well expressed in the verse itself. My years with sighing - אנחה anachah. This is a mere natural expression of grief; the very sounds which proceed from a distressed mind; an-ach-ah! common, with little variation, to all nations, and nearly the same in all languages. The och-och-on of the Irish is precisely the same sound, and the same sense. Thousands of beauties or this kind are to be found in the sacred language. Verse 11 I was a reproach - When proscribed at the court of Saul, my enemies triumphed, and loaded me with execrations; my neighbors considered me as a dangerous man, now deservedlJr driven from society; my acquaintance, who knew me best, were afraid to hold any communication with me; and they who saw me in my exile avoided me as if affected with a contagious disorder, Verse 12 I am forgotten as a dead man - I am considered as a person adjudged to death. I am like a broken vessel-like a thing totally useless. Verse 13 I have heard the slander of many - To this and the two foregoing verses the reader may find several parallels; Jer 18:18 to the end of Jer 19:1-15., and ten first verses of chapter 20: This has caused several to suppose that Jeremiah was the author of this Psalm. Verse 14 But I trusted in thee - Hitherto thou hast been my Helper, and thou art my God; I have taken thee for my eternal portion. Verse 15 My times are in thy hand - The events of my life are under thy control. No danger can happen to me without thy foresight; thou seest what is prepared for or meditated against me; thou canst therefore deliver me from mine enemies. Verse 16 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant - Only let me know that thou art reconciled to and pleased with me, and then, come what will, all must be well. Save me for thy mercies' sake - Literally, Save me in thy mercy. Verse 17 Let the wicked be ashamed - Those who traduce my character and lay snares for my life; let them be confounded. Verse 18 Let the lying lips be put to silence - As to my enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, abate their pride, assuage their malice, and confound their devices. See Jer 18:18. Verse 19 O how great is thy goodness - God's goodness is infinite; there is enough for all. enough for each, enough for evermore. It is laid up where neither devils nor men can reach it, and it is laid up for them that fear the Lord; therefore every one who trembles at his word, may expect all he needs from this Fountain that can never be dried ufp. Which thou hast wrought - Thou hast already prepared it; it is the work of thy own hands; thou hast provided it and proportioned it to the necessities of men, and all who trust in thee shall have it. And for them especially it is prepared who trust in thee before men - who boldly confess thee amidst a crooked and perverse generation. Verse 20 Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence - בסתר פניך besether paneycha, "With the covering of thy countenance." Their life shall be so hidden with Christ in God, that their enemies shall not be able to find them out. To such a hiding-place Satan himself dare not approach. There the pride of man cannot come. Thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion - Thou shalt put them in the innermost part of thy tent. This implies that they shall have much communion and union with God; that they shall be transformed into his likeness, and have his highest approbation. Verse 21 In a strong city - If this Psalm was written by David, this must refer to his taking refuge with achish, king of Gath, who gave him Ziklag, a fortified city, to secure himself and followers in. See 1Sam 27:6. This is more likely than that it was Keilah, where he only had intimation of the traitorous design of the inhabitants to deliver him up to Saul; so that the place was no refuge to him, howsoever fortified. Perhaps the passage may mean that, under the protection of God, he was as safe as if he had been in a fortified city. Verse 22 I said in my haste - Not duly adverting to the promise of God, I was led to conclude that my enemies were so strong, so numerous, and had so many advantages against me, that I must necessarily fall into and by their hands; however, I continued to pray, and thou didst hear the voice of my supplication. Verse 23 O love the Lord, all ye his saints - It is only the saints that can love God, as they only are made partakers of the Divine nature. Holy spirits can love God, who is the fountain of their holiness; and the saints should love him. Preserveth the faithful - Those who, being filled with the love of God, bring forth the fruits of that love - universal obedience to the will of God; for to such persons his commands are not grievous, their duty is their delight; while a man is faithful to the grace he has received, that is, uses and improves the talents with which God has intrusted him, God's service is perfect freedom. The proud doer - The man of the proud heart, haughty and supercilious carriage, and insulting and outrageous conduct. A proud man is peculiarly odious in the sight of God; and in the sight of reason how absurd! A sinner, a fallen spirit, an heir of wretchedness and corruption-proud! Proud of what? Of an indwelling devil! Well; such persons shall be plentifully rewarded. They shall get their due, their whole due, and nothing but their due. Verse 24 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart - In 1Cor 16:13, St. Paul says, "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith; quit you like men; be strong:" Γρηγορειτε, στηκετε εν τῃ πιστει, ανδριζεσθε, κραταιουσθε. The latter words he seems to have borrowed from the Septuagint, who translate, "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart," by Ανδριζεσθε και κραταιουσθω ἡ καρδια ὑμων "Act like men, and your hearts shall be strengthened." They that hope in God, and are endeavoring to walk carefully before him, may take courage at all times, and expect the fullness of the blessing of the Gospel of peace. Introduction True blessedness consists in remission of sin, and purification of the heart, Psa 32:1, Psa 32:2. What the psalmist felt in seeking these blessings, Psa 32:3-5. How they should be sought, Psa 32:6, Psa 32:7. The necessity of humility and teachableness, Psa 32:8, Psa 32:9. The misery of the wicked, Psa 32:10. The blessedness of the righteous, Psa 32:11. The title of this Psalm is significant, לדוד משכיל ledavid maskil, A Psalm of David, giving instruction, an instructive Psalm; so called by way of eminence, because it is calculated to give the highest instruction relative to the guilt of sin, and the blessedness of pardon and holiness or justification and sanctification. It is supposed to have been composed after David's transgression with Bath-sheba, and subsequently to his obtaining pardon. The Syriac entitles it, "A Psalm of David concerning the sin of Adam, who dared and transgressed; and a prophecy concerning Christ, because through him we are to be delivered from hell." The Arabic says, "David spoke this Psalm prophetically concerning the redemption." The Vulgate, Septuagint, and Ethiopic, are the same in meaning as the Hebrew. Verse 1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven - In this and the following verse four evils are mentioned: 1. Transgression, פשע peshwa. 2. Sin, חטאה chataah. 3. Iniquity, עון avon. 4. Guile, רמיה remiyah.

Ashamed - Of my confidence in thy promise. Deliver me - According to thy faithfulness and goodness.

Prayer for Deliverance; Profession of Confidence in God. 1 In thee, O Lord , do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. 2 Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for a house of defence to save me. 3 For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me. 4 Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength. 5 Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. 6 I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the Lord . 7 I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities; 8 And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room. Faith and prayer must go together. He that believes, let him pray— I believe, therefore I have spoken: and he that prays, let him believe, for the prayer of faith is the prevailing prayer. We have both here. I. David, in distress, is very earnest with God in prayer for succour and relief. This eases a burdened spirit, fetches in promised mercies, and wonderfully supports and comforts the soul in the expectation of them. He prays, 1. That God would deliver him ( v. 1 ), that his life might be preserved from the malice of his enemies, and that an end might be put to their persecutions of him, that God, not only in his mercy, but in righteousness, would deliver him, as a righteous Judge betwixt him and his unrighteous persecutors, that he would bow down his ear to his petitions, to his appeals, and deliver him, v. 2 . It is condescension in God to take cognizance of the case of the greatest and best of men; he humbles himself to do it. The psalmist prays also that he would deliver him speedily, lest, if the deliverance were long deferred, his faith should fail. 2. That if he did not immediately deliver him out of his troubles, yet he would protect and shelter him in his troubles; " Be thou my strong rock, immovable, impregnable, as a fastness framed by nature, and my house of defence, a fortress framed by art, and all to save me. " Thus we may pray that God's providence would secure to us our lives and comforts, and that by his grace we may be enabled to think ourselves safe in him, Prov. xviii. 10 . 3. That his case having much in it of difficulty, both in respect of duty and in respect of prudence, he might be under the divine guidance: " Lord, lead me and guide me ( v. 3 ), so order my steps, so order my spirit, that I may never do any thing unlawful and unjustifiable—against my conscience, nor unwise and indiscreet—against my interest." Those that resolve to follow God's direction may in faith pray for it. 4. That his enemies being very crafty, as well as very spiteful, God would frustrate and baffle their designs against him ( v. 4 ): " Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me, and keep me from the sin, the trouble, the death, they aim to entrap me in." II. In this prayer he gives glory to God by a repeated profession of his confidence in him and dependence on him. This encouraged his prayers and qualified him for the mercies he prayed for ( v. 1 ): " In thee, O Lord! do I put my trust, and not in myself, or any sufficiency of my own, or in any creature; let me never be ashamed, let me not be disappointed of any of that good which thou hast promised me and which therefore I have promised myself in thee." 1. He had chosen God for his protector, and God had, by his promise, undertaken to be so ( v. 3 ): " Thou art my rock and my fortress, by thy covenant with me and my believing consent to that covenant; therefore be my strong rock, " v. 2 . Those that have in sincerity avouched the Lord for theirs may expect the benefit of his being so; for God's relations to us carry with them both name and thing. Thou art my strength, v. 4 . If God be our strength, we may hope that he will both put his strength in us and put forth his strength for us. 2. He gave up his soul in a special manner to him ( v. 5 ): Into thy hands I commit my spirit. (1.) If David here looks upon himself as a dying man, by these words he resigns his departing soul to God who gave it, and to whom, at death, the spirit returns. "Men can but kill the body, but I trust in God to redeem my soul from the power of the grave, " Ps. xlix. 15 . He is willing to die if God will have it so; but let my soul fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercies are great. With these words our Lord Jesus yielded up the ghost upon the cross, and made his soul an offering, a free-will offering for sin, voluntarily laying down his life a ransom. By Stephen's example we are taught in, our dying moment, to eye Christ at God's right hand, and to commit our spirits to him: Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. But, 2. David is here to be looked upon as a man in distress and trouble. And, [1.] His great care is about his soul, his spirit, his better part. Note, Our outward afflictions should increase our concern for our souls. Many think that while they are perplexed about their worldly affairs, and Providence multiplies their cares about them, they may be excused if they neglect their souls; whereas the greater hazard our lives and secular interests lie at the more we are concerned to look to our souls, that, though the outward man perish, the inward man may suffer no damage ( 2 Cor. iv. 16 ), and that we may keep possession of our souls when we can keep possession of nothing else, Luke xxi. 19 . [2.] He thinks the best he can do for the soul is to commit it into the hand of God, and lodge that great trust with him. He had prayed ( v. 4 ) to be plucked out of the net of outward trouble, but, as not insisting upon that (God's will be done), he immediately lets fall that petition, and commits the spirit, the inward man, into God's hand. "Lord, however it goes with me, as to my body, let it go well with my soul." Note, It is the wisdom and duty of every one of us solemnly to commit our spirits into the hands of God, to be sanctified by his grace, devoted to his honour, employed in his service, and fitted for his kingdom. That which encourages us to commit our spirits into the hand of God is that he has not only created, but redeemed, them; the particular redemptions of the Old-Testament church and the Old-Testament saints were typical of our redemption by Jesus Christ, Gen. xlviii. 16 . The redemption of the soul is so precious that it must have ceased for ever if Christ had not undertaken it; but, by redeeming our souls, he has not only acquired an additional right and title to them, which obliges us to commit them to him as his own, but has shown the extraordinary kindness and concern he has for them, which encourages us to commit them to him, to be preserved to his heavenly kingdom ( 2 Tim. i. 12 ): " Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord God of truth! redeem me according to a promise which thou wilt be true to." III. He disclaimed all confederacy with those that made an arm of flesh their confidence ( v. 6 ): I have hated those that regard lying vanities —idolaters (to some), who expect aid from false gods, which are vanity and a lie—astrologers, and those that give heed to them, so others. David abhorred the use of enchantments and divinations; he consulted not, nor even took notice of, the flight of birds or entrails of beasts, good omens or bad omens; they are lying vanities, and he not only did not regard them himself, but hated the wickedness of those that did. He trusted in God only, and not in any creature. His interest in the court or country, his retreats or strongholds, even Goliath's sword itself—these were lying vanities, which he could not depend upon, but trusted in the Lord only. See Ps. xl. 4 ; Jer. xvii. 5 . IV. He comforted himself with his hope in God, and made himself, not only easy, but cheerful, with it, v. 7 . Having relied on God's mercy, he will be glad and rejoice in it; and those know not how to value their hope in God who cannot find joy enough in that hope to counterbalance their grievances and silence their griefs. V. He encouraged himself in this hope with the experiences he had had of late, and formerly, of God's goodness to him, which he mentions to the glory of God; he that has delivered doth and will. 1. God had taken notice of his afflictions and all the circumstances of them: " Thou hast considered my trouble, with wisdom to suit relief to it, with condescension and compassion regarding the low estate of they servant." 2. He had observed the temper of his spirit and the workings of his heart under his afflictions: " Thou hast known my soul in adversities, with a tender concern and care for it." God's eye is upon our souls when we are in trouble, to see whether they be humbled for sin, submissive to the will of God, and bettered by the affliction. If the soul, when cast down under affliction, has been lifted up to him in true devotion, he knows it. 3. He had rescued him out of the hands of Saul when he had him safe enough in Keilah ( 1 Sam. xxiii. 7 ): " Thou hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy, but set me at liberty, in a large room, where I may shift for my own safety," v. 8 . Christ's using those words ( v. 5 ) upon the cross may warrant us to apply all this to Christ, who trusted in his Father and was supported and delivered by him, and (because he humbled himself) highly exalted, which it is proper to think of when we sing these verses , as also therein to acknowledge the experience we have had of God's gracious presence with us in our troubles and to encourage ourselves to trust in him for the future.