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Psalm Twenty-five
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 25
cf15I A Psalm of David. This is the first of the psalms
which is written in an alphabetical order, or in which the first word of every
verse begins with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order, though it is not
strictly and regularly observed; the reason of this manner of writing is not
very obvious; theF18Kimchi in loc. Jews confess their ignorance of
it; it may be to engage the attention to what is said, or to assist the memory
in laying it up, and retaining it there. The occasion of the psalm seems to be
the troubles David was in on account of an unnatural rebellion raised against
him by some of his subjects, at the head of which was his own son Absalom; he
speaks of himself as in a net, and in great affliction, distress, and trouble,
by reason of his enemies, Psalm 25:15; and as being brought to a
sense of his former sins, for which he desires pardon, Psalm 25:7.
Psalm 25:1 To
You, O Lord,
I lift up my soul.
YLT
1By David. Unto Thee, O
Jehovah, my soul I lift up.
Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. Either
"in prayer", as the Chaldee paraphrase addsF19So Kimchi
& Ben Melech. ; and denotes sincere, affectionate, hearty prayer to God, a
drawing nigh to him with a true heart: for unless the heart is lifted up, the
lifting up of the eyes or hands in prayer is of no avail; see Lamentations 3:41; or by way of offering to
the Lord, as some Jewish writersF20R. Moseh in Aben Ezra in loc.
interpret it; David not only presented his body in public worship, but his soul
also as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which was his
reasonable service; or else as a "depositum", which he committed into
the hands of God, to be under his care and protection; and then the sense is
the same with Psalm 31:5 F21Midrash Tillim. ;
the phrase is sometimes used to express earnest and vehement desire after
anything; See Gill on Psalm 24:4; and may here intend the very
great desire of the psalmist after communion with God; which is elsewhere by
him expressed by panting after him, and by thirsting for him in a dry and
thirsty land, Psalm 42:1; the desires of his soul were
not to vain things, the vanities and idols of the Gentiles, but to God only,
and to the remembrance of his name.
Psalm 25:2 2 O my God, I trust in You; Let
me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.
YLT
2My God, in Thee I have
trusted, Let me not be ashamed, Let not mine enemies exult over me.
O my God, I trust in thee,.... He claims his
interest in God, and expresses his faith and confidence in him, in the midst of
all his troubles; See Gill on Psalm 7:1;
let me not be ashamed; meaning of his trust in
God, by being disappointed of the help, deliverance, and salvation from him,
which he trusted in him for; and the believer, as he has no reason to be
ashamed of God, the object of his trust; so neither of the act of his hope or
trust in him; nor shall he; for hope makes not ashamed; see Psalm 119:116, Romans 5:5;
let not mine enemies triumph over me; either his
temporal enemies, his subjects that were risen up against him; or his spiritual
enemies, Satan, and the men of the world, who rejoice and triumph when the
saints are forsaken by God; and they are ready to say, as David's enemies did
of him, there is no help or salvation for him in God, Psalm 3:2; and when they fall into their
hands, or fall by them.
Psalm 25:3 3 Indeed, let no one who
waits on You be ashamed; Let those be ashamed who deal treacherously without
cause.
YLT
3Also let none waiting on
Thee be ashamed, Let the treacherous dealers without cause be ashamed.
Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed,.... David not
only prays for himself, but for other saints, as it becomes the people of God
to do; for them they waited on the Lord in public worship, attended his house
and ordinances, and waited on him for the discoveries of his love, the
enjoyment of his voracious presence, and were looking for his salvation, for
the Messiah; for those the psalmist prays, that they might not be ashamed of
their expectation and hope, by the delay of those things, or the denial them;
let them be ashamed which transgress without cause; or "act
treacherously without cause"F23הבוגדים
"qui perfide agunt", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius,
Michaelis; so Amama & Ainsworth. ; as David's subjects did, who were risen
up in rebellion against him, and acted the perfidious part, contrary to their
allegiance, and without any just reason, they not being ruled with rigour, and
oppressed; but were guided and governed by him according to the laws of God, in
the integrity of his heart, and by the skilfulness of his hands; he being a
king that reigned in righteousness, and a prince that decreed judgment: and
such are those who are now risen up against our rightful sovereign King GeorgeF24This
was written December 2, 1745. , a parcel of perfidious treacherous wretches;
some of them who were in the last rebellion, and obtained his father's pardon;
others that have partook yearly of his royal bounty, for the instruction of
their children; and all have enjoyed the blessings of his mild and gentle
government; and therefore are without cause his enemies: and for such we should
pray, as David did for his enemies, that they might be ashamed; that they may
fail in their attempts and designs, and be brought to deserved punishment; see Psalm 7:4; or "let transgressors be
ashamed", and be emptyF25ריקם
"in statu vacuitatis ac egestatis", Gussetius, p. 790. ; in a state
of emptiness and want; lose their wealth, honour, and credit.
Psalm 25:4 4 Show me Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your
paths.
YLT
4Thy ways, O Jehovah, cause
me to know, Thy paths teach Thou me.
Show me thy ways, O Lord,.... Either those which
the Lord himself took and walked in; as those of creation and providence, in
which he has displayed his power, wisdom, and goodness; and which are desirable
to be known by his people, and require divine instruction and direction; and
particularly his ways of grace, mercy, and truth, and the methods he has taken
for the salvation of his people, both in eternity and in time; or those ways
which he orders and directs his people to walk in; namely, the paths of duty,
the ways of his worship and ordinances; a greater knowledge of which good men
desire to have, as well as more grace to enable them to walk more closely and
constantly in them;
teach me thy paths; a petition the same with the other, in
different words.
Psalm 25:5 5 Lead me in Your truth and
teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the
day.
YLT
5Cause me to tread in Thy
truth, and teach me, For Thou [art] the God of my salvation, Near Thee I have
waited all the day.
Lead me in thy truth, and teach me,.... Meaning the word of
God, the Scriptures of truth; and the Gospel, which is the word of truth, and
truth itself, John 17:17; and the sense is, either that
God would lead him by his Spirit more and more into all truth, as contained in
his word; or that he would lead him by it and according to it, that he might
form his principles and his conduct more agreeably to it, which is the standard
and rule of faith and practice: which leading is by teaching; and reasons urged
for granting all the above petitions follow,
for thou art the God of my salvation; who, in
infinite wisdom, contrived scheme and method of it in his Son, and by him
effected it, and by his Spirit had made application of it to him: and since the
Lord had done such great things for him, he hoped the requests he had made
would be granted: he adds,
on thee do I wait all the day; or continually, in
public and in private, attending to all the duties of religion, yet not
trusting in them, but in the Lord; and therefore he entreated he might not be
ashamed of his hope and expectation for deliverance and salvation.
Psalm 25:6 6 Remember,
O Lord,
Your tender mercies and Your lovingkindnesses, For they are from of old.
YLT
6Remember Thy mercies, O
Jehovah, And Thy kindnesses, for from the age [are] they.
Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies and thy loving kindnesses,.... Not the
providential mercy and kindness of God, in the care of him in his mother's
womb, at the time of his birth, in his nurture and education, and in the
preservation of him to the present time; but the special mercy, grace, and love
of God in Christ: the sense of the petition is the same with that of Psalm 106:4; which are expressed in the
plural number, because of the largeness and abundance of it, and because of the
various acts and instances of it; the Lord is rich and plenteous in mercy,
abundant in goodness; his love is exceeding great, and numerous are the ways
and methods in which it is declared, both in eternity and in time; and though
he can never forget his love, nor the people whom he loves, for they are
engraven on his hand, and set as a seal on his heart; yet he sometimes seems,
by the conduct of his providence, as if he did not remember it, and had no
tender affection for them; and their unbelief is ready to say, the Lord has
forgotten to be gracious; and the design of such a petition as this is to
entreat a fresh discovery and application of the grace, mercy, and loving
kindness of God, and which he allows his people to put him in remembrance of;
for they have been ever of old: meaning not
only from the time of his birth, and in after appearances of God for him, nor
the favours shown to the people of Israel in former times at the Red sea, and
in the wilderness and elsewhere, and to the patriarchs from the beginning of
the world; but the love of God from everlasting, which appears in the choice of
his people in Christ, before the foundation of the world, in the everlasting
covenant of grace made with him, and in the setting of him up as the Mediator
of it, and in putting his people into his hands, with all grace and spiritual
blessings for them before the world began; and which love as it is from
everlasting it is to everlasting, and remains invariably the same.
Psalm 25:7 7 Do not remember the sins
of my youth, nor my transgressions; According to Your mercy remember me, For
Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.
YLT
7Sins of my youth, and my
transgressions, Do not Thou remember. According to Thy kindness be mindful of
me, For Thy goodness' sake, O Jehovah.
Remember not the sins of my youth,.... Original sin, in
which he was born, and the breakings forth of corrupt nature in infancy, he
brought into the world with him, together with all the youthful lusts and
vanities to which that age is addicted; and sometimes the sins of youth are in
some persons remembered by God, and punished in old age; and if not, they are
brought to remembrance through the dispensations of Providence: and the people
of God are chastised for them then, and are ready to fear it is in a way of
wrath; see Job 13:26; which the psalmist here
deprecates; for this is not said in order to extenuate his sins, they being but
youthful follies, imprudencies, and inadvertencies, sins committed through
ignorance, when he had not the knowledge of things he now had; nor as if he had
lived so holy a life, that there were no sins of his to be taken notice of but
what he had committed in his younger days; but rather this is to be considered
as a confession of his having sinned from his youth upwards unto that time, as
in Jeremiah 3:25; and therefore entreat, that
God would not remember his sins, so as to correct him for them in wrath and hot
displeasure; neither the sins he had formerly been guilty of, nor those of a
later date; which he next mentions;
nor my transgressions; his more notorious and
glaring ones; such as murder and adultery, in the case of Uriah and Bathsheba,
and which now stared him in the face; and on account of these, and as a
chastening for them, this unnatural rebellion of his son's, which was now
raised against him, was suffered to befall him, as had been foretold to him, 2 Samuel 12:11;
according to thy mercy remember thou me, for thy goodness' sake, O
Lord; he pleads no merit nor goodness of his own, but casts himself
upon the mercy, grace, and goodness of God; in which he was certainly right;
and on that account prayed and hoped for deliverance from his present troubles,
and for discoveries of the pardon of his sins unto him, which is what he means
by remembering him.
Psalm 25:8 8 Good and upright is
the Lord;
Therefore He teaches sinners in the way.
YLT
8Good and upright [is]
Jehovah, Therefore He directeth sinners in the way.
Good and upright is the Lord,.... He is essentially,
originally, and independently good of himself in his own nature, and he is
providentially good to all his creatures; and he is in a way of special grace
and mercy good to his own people: and he is "upright", just in
himself, righteous in all his ways and works, and faithful in all his promises;
and the consideration of these excellent perfections of his encouraged the
psalmist to entertain an holy confidence, that his petitions, respecting
instruction and guidance in the ways of the Lord, Psalm 25:4; would be heard and answered,
notwithstanding his sins and transgressions;
therefore will he teach sinners in the way; such who are
in sinful ways, he will teach them by his word and Spirit the evil of their
ways, and bring them out of them, and to repentance for them; and he will teach
them his own ways, both the ways and methods of his grace, in saving sinners by
Christ, and the paths of faith and duty in which he would have them walk; see Psalm 51:13.
Psalm 25:9 9 The humble He guides in
justice, And the humble He teaches His way.
YLT
9He causeth the humble to
tread in judgment, And teacheth the humble His way.
The meek will he guide in judgment,.... Or "the
miserable"F26ענוים
"miseros", Gejerus, Michaelis. and afflicted; such as see themselves
to be wretched and miserable, lost and undone; and cry out, What shall we do to
be saved? and who are meek and lowly, are humbled under a sense of their sins,
are poor in spirit, and of broken and contrite hearts; these the Lord will
guide by his Spirit into the truth, as it is in Jesus; even the great truth of
salvation by him; and in the way of his judgments, statutes, and ordinances;
and will give them a true judgment and a right discerning of things that
differ; and he will lead them on in judgment, or gently; see Jeremiah 10:24; into every truth of the
Gospel by degrees, and as they are able to bear them;
and the meek will he teach his way; of justifying sinners by
the righteousness of his son; for such who are humble and confess their sins
and unworthiness, and throw themselves on the mercy of God in Christ, are
declaratively justified by the Lord, when the proud boasting Pharisee is an
abomination to him.
Psalm 25:10 10 All the paths of the Lord are
mercy and truth, To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.
YLT
10All the paths of Jehovah
[are] kindness and truth, To those keeping His covenant, And His testimonies.
All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth,.... By which
are meant, not the paths in which the Lord would have his people walk; though
these are good and gracious, right and true; his commandments are not grievous,
his yoke is easy, and burden light; his ways are ways of pleasantness, and his
paths, paths of peace: but rather the paths in which the Lord himself walks;
not his paths of providence, though these are mercy and truth to his own
people; every step he takes is in a way of goodness and kindness to them, and
in truth and faithfulness to his promises; but the ways and methods he has
taken towards the spiritual and eternal salvation of his people; as in his
counsels and purposes, in which there is a large display of his grace and
mercy; in the choice of them in Christ, as vessels of mercy, and which is of
grace, and not of works; in determining to send his Son to die for them, which
springs from the tender mercy of our God; in resolving to call them by his
grace, and to adopt them into his family, and at last to glorify them; all
which proceed from his merciful lovingkindness; and all these, his counsels of
old, are faithfulness and truth, since they can never be frustrated, but are
always accomplished; as also in his covenant, which springs from grace, is
built upon mercy, and contains the sure mercies of David, and is ever
fulfilled; the faithfulness of God is engaged to keep it, and its promises are
yea and amen in Christ: and likewise the steps he has taken in Christ, the
Mediator of the covenant, who is full of grace and truth; "mercy"
appears in the mission of him, and redemption by him; and "truth", in
fulfilling the promise of him; and both mercy and truth meet together in him:
and so they do in the various blessings of grace which come by him; as
particularly justification and pardon of sin, in both which there is a display
of grace and mercy; and also of the truth of holiness and justice: and the
mercy and truth of God appear in these paths of his,
unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies; by which are
designed, not the covenant of works, and the precepts of the law, which are
sometimes called the testimonies of God, because they testify what is his will
that should be done: but these are broke, and not kept perfectly by any; nor is
it any favour or high privilege to be shown this covenant and the duties of it,
as is suggested of the covenant here meant, as appears from Psalm 25:14; wherefore the covenant of
grace must be intended, which is made with Christ, and his people in him; and
the "testimonies" are the promises of it, which testify of the grace,
mercy, truth, and faithfulness of Gods; and the keeping of these is done by
faith: faith lays hold on the covenant, its blessings and promises, and claims
an interest in them, as David did, 2 Samuel 23:5; see Isaiah 56:4; and it keeps or retains its
hold; it will not let go its hold of the covenant and its testimonies, but
asserts its interest, even when things are at the worst with it; and it holds
fast the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end; and to such all the steps the
Lord takes appear to be in mercy and truth.
Psalm 25:11 11 For Your name’s sake, O Lord, Pardon my
iniquity, for it is great.
YLT
11For Thy name's sake, O
Jehovah, Thou hast pardoned mine iniquity, for it [is] great.
For thy name's sake, O Lord, pardon mine iniquity,.... Which to
do is one of the promises and blessings of the covenant. The psalmist may have
reference to his sin with Bathsheba, as Kimchi observes; since it was foretold
to him, that, on account of that sin, evil should arise to him out of his own
house, 2 Samuel 12:11; meaning that his son should
rise up in rebellion against him; which was now the case, and which, no doubt,
brought afresh this sin to his mind; and the guilt of it lay heavy upon his
conscience; and therefore he prays for an application of pardoning grace and
mercy; or he may have respect to original sin, the sin of his nature, which so
easily beset him; the loathsome disease his loins were filled with; the law in
his members warring against the law of his mind; and which a view of every
actual sin led him to the consideration and acknowledgment of, as did that now
mentioned, Psalm 51:4; or, "iniquity" may be
put for "iniquities", and the sense be, that he desired a
manifestation of the pardon of all his sins; for when God forgives sin, he
forgives all iniquities: and David here prays for pardon in a way of mercy, and
upon the foot of satisfaction; for he prays that God would "mercifully
pardon"F1סלחת "mercifully
pardon"; so Ainsworth. , as the word signifies; or, according to his
tender mercies, blot out his transgressions, and cleanse him from his sins; or
that he would be "propitious"F2
ιλαση Sept. "propitiaberis", V. L. "propitius
esto", Musculus. to him; or forgive him in a propitiatory way, or through
the propitiation of Christ, whom God had set forth in his purposes and promises
to be the propitiation for the remission of sins; and therefore he entreats this
favour "for his name's sake"; not for his own merits and good
works, but for the Lord's sake, for his mercy's sake, or for his Son's sake;
see Isaiah 43:25; compared with Ephesians 5:32. The argument or reason he
urges is,
for it is great; being committed against
the great God, against great light and knowledge, and attended with very
aggravating circumstances; or "much"F3רב
"multum", V. L. "multa", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine
version. , he being guilty of many sins; his sins were great, both as to
quality and quantity: this seems to be rather a reason against than a reason
for the pardon of sin; it denotes the sense the psalmist had of his iniquity,
and his importunity for the pardon of it; just as a person, sensible of the
violence and malignity of his disease, entreats the physician with the greater
eagerness and importunity to do his utmost for him; see Psalm 41:4; or the words may be rendered,
"though it is great"F4כי
"quamvis", Gejerus, Schmidt, ; so Aben Ezra understands them;
"though
it is so very heinous and provoking, yet since forgiveness is with thee, and
thou hast promised it in covenant, and hast proclaimed thy name, a God gracious
and merciful, pardon it;'
unless
the words are to be connected, as they are by some JewishF5Vide
Abendanae Not. in Miclol Yophi in loc. interpreters, with the phrase "thy
name's sake, for it is great"; that is, thy name is great, and that
it may appear to be so, as it is proclaimed, forgive mine iniquity.
Psalm 25:12 12 Who is the man that
fears the Lord?
Him shall He[a] teach in
the way He[b] chooses.
YLT
12Who [is] this -- the man
fearing Jehovah? He directeth him in the way He doth choose.
What man is he that feareth the Lord? That is, how
happy a man is he! and one that fears the Lord is one that has the fear of God
put into his heart, as a blessing of the covenant of grace before spoken of;
who fears the Lord, not on account of the punishment of sin, but under the
influence of the pardon of it, and for his goodness's sake; who loves the Lord,
trusts in him, is careful not to offend him, hates sin, and avoids it, and has
a strict regard to the worship of God in all its parts and branches, and
performs it in fear; or who serves the Lord with reverence and godly fear. The
description of this man's happiness follows in this verse and Psalm 25:12,
him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose; either which
the man that fears God shall choose, which is the way of truth and duty, Psalm 119:30; or the way which God
prescribes to him, and is well pleasing in his sight, who teaches to profit,
and leads in the way his people should go; and a great happiness it is for a
man to have his steps ordered by the Lord and his goings directed by him.
Psalm 25:13 13 He himself shall dwell in
prosperity, And his descendants shall inherit the earth.
YLT
13His soul in good doth
remain, And his seed doth possess the land.
His soul shall dwell at ease,.... Or in
"goodness"F6בטוב "in
bono", Pagninus, Montanus, Musculus, Junius & Tremellius, &c. so
Ainsworth. , enjoying an affluence of good things, of spiritual blessings in
Christ, in whom he dwells by faith; and where he has peace and safety, amidst
all the troubles, afflictions, and exercises, he meets with; and where with
godliness he has contentment, which is great gain indeed; for, though he may
seem to have nothing, he possesses all things; and has all things given him
richly to enjoy, even all things pertaining to life and godliness; and at
death, when his soul is separated from his body, it shall enter into rest, and
be in perfect peace; it shall lie in Abraham's bosom, and in the arms of Jesus,
during the night of the grave, until the resurrection morn, when the body will
be raised and united to it, and both will dwell in perfect happiness to all
eternity;
and his seed shall inherit the earth; that is,
those who tread in the same steps, and fear the Lord as he does; these shall
possess the good things of this world, which is theirs, in a comfortable way,
as their Father's gift, as covenant mercies, and in love; though it may be but
a small portion that they have of them; or rather they shall inherit the new
heavens and earth, wherein will dwell only righteous persons, meek ones, and
such as fear the Lord, Matthew 5:5; and this they shall inherit
for a thousand years, and afterwards the land afar off, the better country, the
ultimate glory to all eternity.
Psalm 25:14 14 The secret of the Lord is with
those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.
YLT
14The secret of Jehovah [is]
for those fearing Him, And His covenant -- to cause them to know.
The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him,.... The
secret of his purposes with them; as his purpose according to election; his
resolution to redeem his chosen ones by his Son; his design to call them by his
grace; his predestination of them to the adoption of children, and eternal
life; which are the deep things of God the Spirit of God reveals; and all which
are made manifest to them in effectual calling; and the secret of his
providences is with them; some are made known to them that fear the Lord before
they come to pass; as the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah to Abraham, with
many other instances in the Old Testament; see Amos 3:7; and what is the book of the
Revelation but a revelation of the secrets of Providence, from the time of
Christ and his apostles, to the end of the world? some they observe and take
notice of while they are performing, and see the gracious designs of God in
them, for their good and his glory; and though some of his ways of Providence
are past finding out, and his footsteps are not known as yet; hereafter his
judgments will be made manifest, and the whole scene will be opened to the
saints, and be clear to their view: the secret of his love, free grace, and
favour, is with them, which was in his heart from everlasting, and lay hid in
his thoughts, which are as much higher than ours as the heavens are higher than
the earth; and which is made manifest in regeneration, and then shed abroad in
the hearts of his people: secret communion with God is enjoyed by those that
fear him, which is what the world knows nothing of, and the joy that results
from it is what a stranger intermeddles not with; the Lord has his chambers and
secret places, into which he brings them, and where they dwell. The secret of
his Gospel is with them; and the mysteries of it, which were kept secret since
the world began; as the mystery of a trinity of Persons in the Godhead; the
union of the two natures in Christ; the regeneration of the Spirit; the union
of the saints to Christ, and their communion with him; the calling of the Gentiles;
the resurrection of the dead; and the change of living saints;
and he will show them his covenant: the covenant of grace,
which was made with Christ for them from eternity, is made known to them in
time, when they are called by the grace of God, and made partakers of the grace
of the covenant, then the Lord reveals himself as their covenant God and
Father; shows them that his Son is their surety, Mediator, Redeemer, and
Saviour; puts his Spirit into them to implant covenant grace in them, to seal up
the blessings of it to them, and bear witness to their interest in them, as
pardon, justification, and adoption; and to apply the exceeding great and
precious promises of it to them.
Psalm 25:15 15 My eyes are ever
toward the Lord,
For He shall pluck my feet out of the net.
YLT
15Mine eyes [are] continually
unto Jehovah, For He bringeth out from a net my feet.
Mine eyes are ever towards the Lord,.... Not only
as the God of nature and providence, for his daily support and supply, in which
sense the eyes of all creatures wait upon him; but as his covenant God and
Father, having the eyes of his understanding opened to see and know him as
such, and the eye of his faith directed to him, to believe in him, and make him
his hope and trust; and his eye was single to him; it was to him, and him only,
that he looked; and it was constant, it was ever to him, he set the Lord always
before him; and such a look was well pleasing to God: it may also respect the
lifting up of his eyes to God in prayer for all mercies temporal and spiritual,
and his prayer was the prayer of faith; as follows:
for he shall pluck my feet out of the net; of the
corruption of nature, and the lusts of it, as Aben Ezra interprets it; by which
the saints are sometimes ensnared and taken captive, and out of which they
cannot make their escape of themselves; but there is a deliverance from it by
Jesus Christ their Lord: or out of the temptations of Satan, called his
devices, and wiles, and the snares of the devil; and as the Lord knows how to deliver
his out of temptations, he does deliver them in his own time; or rather out of
the nets and snares laid for him by wicked men; as by his son Absalom,
Ahithophel, and others, in which his feet were as a bird in the snare of the
fowler; but he believed the net, or snare, would be broken, and he should
escape, as he did.
Psalm 25:16 16 Turn Yourself to me, and
have mercy on me, For I am desolate and afflicted.
YLT
16Turn Thou unto me, and
favour me, For lonely and afflicted [am] I.
Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me,.... Or
"look unto me", or "upon me"F6פנה אלי "respice ad
me", Montanus, Musculus, Junius & Tremellius, &c. ; which suggests
that the Lord had turned himself, and hid his face from him; and expresses a
desire that he would look upon him with a look of love and mercy, and arise to help
and deliver him out of the hands of his enemies; he pleads no merits nor works
of righteousness of his, but casts himself upon the mercy of God;
for I am desolate and afflicted; or
"alone and poor"F7יהיד ועני "solitarius et pauper", Junius &
Tremellius; "et miser", Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth. ; not that
he was quite alone, and had none with him; for though he was obliged to quit
his palace, and the city of Jerusalem, yet he was accompanied by his servants,
and a large number of his people; and could not be poor, in a literal sense,
being king of Israel; yet he put no trust in men, nor in riches, but wholly
depended on the Lord, as if he had none with him, nor anything to subsist with:
and his case was indeed very deplorable, and called for pity and assistance;
his own son was risen up against him, and the hearts of the men of Israel went
after him; and he was obliged to flee from the city, and leave his house and
family.
Psalm 25:17 17 The troubles of my heart
have enlarged; Bring me out of my distresses!
YLT
17The distresses of my heart
have enlarged themselves, From my distresses bring me out.
The troubles of my heart are enlarged,.... His
enemies being increased, which troubled him; the floods of ungodly men made him
afraid; the waters of affliction were come into his soul, and spread
themselves, and threatened to overwhelm him: or it may be rendered, as by some,
"troubles have enlarged my heart"F8הרחיבו
"dilataverunt cor meum", Vatablus; "reddiderunt cor meum
latius", Gussetius, p. 786. ; made him wiser, increased his knowledge and
experience; see Psalm 119:67; but the former seems better
to agree with what follows;
O bring thou me out of my
distresses; or "straits"F9ממצוקותי
"ab angustiis meis", Pagninus, Junius & Tremellius; so Musculus,
Piscator, Michaelis. ; for the enlargement of his troubles was the straitening
of his heart; and therefore he applies to the Lord to bring him out of his
afflicted circumstances, in which he was penned up, as in a strait place, on
every side, and which were such that he could not free himself from; but he
knew that God could deliver him.
Psalm 25:18 18 Look on my affliction and
my pain, And forgive all my sins.
YLT
18See mine affliction and my
misery, And bear with all my sins.
Look upon mine affliction and my pain,.... The
"affliction" was the rebellion of his subjects against him, at the
head of which was his own son; and the "pain" was the uneasiness of
mind it gave him; or the "labour"F11עמלי
"laborem meum", Pagninus, Mortanus, Junius & Tremellius, &c.
, as the word may be rendered; the toil and fatigue of body he was exercised
with, he flying from place to place; and he desires that God would look upon
all this with an eye of pity and compassion to him, and arise to his help and
deliverance; as he looked upon the affliction of the children of Israel in
Egypt, and delivered them, Exodus 3:7;
and forgive all my sins; or "lift up",
"bear", or "take away"F12ושא
Heb. "tolle", Piscator; "aufer", Michaelis. , as the word
signifies; sins are burdens, and they lay heavy at this time on David's
conscience, being brought to mind by the affliction he laboured under, not only
his sin with Bathsheba, but all others; and these were on him as a heavy
burden, too heavy to bear; wherefore he entreats that the Lord would lift them
off, and take them away from him, by the fresh discoveries of pardoning grace
to him. The sins of God's people are removed from them to Christ, by his
Father, on whom they have been laid by his act of imputation; and he has bore
them, and all the punishment due unto them, and, has taken them away, and made
an end of them; and through the application of his blood, righteousness, and
sacrifice, they are caused to pass from the consciences of the saints, and are
removed as far from them as the east is from the west; and this is what the
psalmist here desires, and this he requests with respect to all his sins,
knowing well that, if one was left upon him, it would be an insupportable
burden to him.
Psalm 25:19 19 Consider my enemies, for
they are many; And they hate me with cruel hatred.
YLT
19See my enemies, for they
have been many, And with violent hatred they have hated me.
Consider mine enemies,.... Or "look"F13ראה "vide", Pagninus, Montanus, Musculus,
Cocceius, Michaelis "aspice", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator;
"intuere", Gejerus. upon them; but with another kind of look; so as
he looked through the pillar of fire upon the Egyptians, and troubled them, Exodus 14:24; with a look of wrath and
vengeance. The arguments he uses are taken both from the quantity and quality
of his enemies, their number and their nature;
for they are many; the hearts of the people of Israel, in
general, being after Absalom, 2 Samuel 15:12; and so the spiritual
enemies of the Lord's people are many; their sins and corruptions, Satan, and
his principalities and powers, and the men of this world;
and they hate me with cruel hatred; like that of Simeon and
Levi, Genesis 49:7; their hatred broke out in a
cruel manner, in acts of force and cruelty; and it was the more cruel, inasmuch
as it was without cause: and such is the hatred of Satan and his emissaries
against the faithful followers of Christ; who breathe out cruelty, thirst after
their blood, and make themselves drunk with it; even their tender mercies are
cruel, and much more their hatred.
Psalm 25:20 20 Keep my soul, and deliver
me; Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.
YLT
20Keep my soul, and deliver
me, Let me not be ashamed, for I trusted in Thee.
O keep my soul,.... Or "life"F14נפשי "animam meam", i.e. "vitam meam",
Gejerus. , which was in danger, his enemies seeking for it; wherefore he
applies to God that gave it, and who had hitherto held him in it, to preserve
it. God is the keeper of has people in a spiritual sense; they cannot keep
themselves from sin, Satan, and the world; but he is able to keep them from
falling, and therefore they pray to him that he would keep them; and they have
reason to believe they shall be kept by his power, through faith, unto
salvation;
and deliver me; as out of the hands of his present enemies,
so from all evil, from the evils of the world, from the evil one, Satan, from
the evil of sin, and out of all affliction and troubles;
let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee; See Gill on Psalm 25:2.
Psalm 25:21 21 Let integrity and
uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You.
YLT
21Integrity and uprightness
do keep me, For I have waited [on] Thee.
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,.... Meaning
either his own, as in Psalm 7:8; and then the sense is, either
that God would preserve him, seeing he had acted the faithful and upright part
in the government of the people of Israel, and they had rebelled against him
without a cause; see Psalm 78:72; or that those might be
continued with him, that he might not be led aside by the corruptions of his
heart, and the temptations of Satan, and by the provocations of his rebellious
subjects, to act a part disagreeable to his character, as a man of integrity
and uprightness; but that these remaining with him, might be a means of keeping
him in the ways of God, Proverbs 13:6; or else the integrity and
uprightness of God are designed, which are no other than his goodness and grace
to his people, and his faithfulness in his covenant and promises, or his
lovingkindness and his truth; see Psalm 40:11;
for I wait on thee: in the use of means for deliverance and
safety; the Targum is, "for I trust in thy word".
Psalm 25:22 22 Redeem Israel, O God, Out
of all their troubles!
YLT
22Redeem Israel, O God, from
all his distresses!
Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. David was not
only concerned for himself, but for the whole nation of Israel, which was
involved in trouble through this unnatural rebellion of his son, and many of
his subjects; and no doubt he may have a further view to the redemption of the
church of God, the spiritual Israel, by the Messiah; and his sense may be, that
God would send the promised Redeemer and Saviour, to redeem his people from all
their iniquities; from the law, its curses and condemnation; to ransom them out
of the hands of Satan, that is stronger than they; and to deliver them from all
their enemies, and from death itself, the last enemy, which will put an end to
all their troubles, Isaiah 35:10.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)