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Psalm Fifty
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 50
A Psalm of Asaph. This psalm is called a psalm of Asaph;
either because it was composed by him under divine inspiration, since he was a
prophet and a seer, 1 Chronicles 25:2;
or because it was delivered to him to be sung in public service, he being a
chief musician; see 1 Chronicles 16:7;
and so it may be rendered, "a psalm for Asaph"; or "unto
Asaph"F15לאסף "ipsi Asaph",
Tigurine version, Vatablus; "Asapho", Junius & Tremellius,
Piscator; so Ainsworth. ; which was directed, sent, and delivered to him, and
might be written by David; and, as Junius thinks, after the angel had appeared
to him, and he was directed where he should build an altar to the Lord, 1 Chronicles 21:18.
The Targum, Kimchi, and R. Obadiah Gaon, interpret this psalm of the day of
judgment; and Jarchi takes it to be a prophecy of the future redemption by
their expected Messiah; and indeed it does refer to the times of the Gospel
dispensation; for it treats of the calling of the Gentiles, of the abrogation
of legal sacrifices, and of the controversy the Lord would have with the Jews
for retaining them, and rejecting pure, spiritual, and evangelical worship.
Psalm 50:1 The
Mighty One, God the Lord,
Has spoken and called the earth From the rising of the sun to its going down.
YLT
1A Psalm of Asaph. The God
of gods -- Jehovah -- hath spoken, And He calleth to the earth From the rising
of the sun unto its going in.
The mighty God,.... In the Hebrew text it is
"El", "Elohim", which Jarchi renders the "God of
gods"; that is, of angels, who are so called, Psalm 8:5; so
Christ, who is God over all, is over them; he is their Creator, and the object
of their worship, Hebrews 1:6; or of
kings, princes, judges, and all civil magistrates, called gods, Psalm 82:1; and so
Kimchi interprets the phrase here "Judge of judges". Christ is King
of kings, and Lord of lords, by whom they reign and judge, and to whom they are
accountable. The Targum renders it "the mighty God"; as we do; which
is the title and name of Christ in Isaiah 9:6; and
well agrees with him, as appears by his works of creation, providence, and
redemption, and by his government of his church and people; by all the grace,
strength, assistance, and preservation they have from him now, and by all that
glory and happiness they will be brought unto by him hereafter, when raised
from the dead, according to his mighty power. It is added,
even the Lord, hath
spoken: or "Jehovah", Some have observed, that these three
names, El, Elohim, Jehovah, here mentioned, have three very distinctive accents
set to them, and which being joined to a verb singular, דבר,
"hath spoken", contains the mystery of the trinity of Persons in the
unity of the divine Essence; see Joshua 22:22;
though rather all the names belong to Christ the Son of God, and who is Jehovah
our righteousness, and to whom, he being the eternal Logos, speech is very
properly ascribed. He hath spoken for the elect in the council and covenant of
grace and peace, that they might be given to him; and on their behalf, that
they might have grace and glory, and he might be their Surety, Saviour, and
Redeemer. He hath spoken all things out of nothing in creation: he spoke with.
Moses at the giving of the law on Mount Sinai: he, the Angel of God's presence,
spoke for the Old Testament saints, and spoke good and comfortable words unto
them: he hath spoken in his own person here on earth, and such words and with
such authority as never man did; and he has spoken in his judgments and
providences against the Jews; and he now speaks in his Gospel by his ministers:
wherefore it follows,
and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going
down thereof; which may be considered as a preface, exciting attention to what
is after spoken, as being of moment and importance; see Deuteronomy 32:1;
or as calling the earth, and so the heavens, Psalm 50:4, to be
witnesses of the justness and equity of his dealings with the Jews, for their
rejection of him and his Gospel; see Deuteronomy 4:26;
or rather as a call to the inhabitants of the earth to hear the Gospel; which
had its accomplishment in the times of the apostles; when Christ having a
people, not in Judea only, but in the several parts of the world from east to
west, sent them into all the world with his Gospel, and by it effectually
called them through his grace; and churches were planted everywhere to the
honour of his name; compare with this Malachi 1:11.
Psalm 50:2 2 Out of Zion, the
perfection of beauty, God will shine forth.
YLT
2From Zion, the perfection
of beauty, God shone.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Or "shall
shine"F16הומיע "emicabit",
Tigurine version; "vel effulgebit", Vatablus; "illucescet",
Amama, Grotius. ; the past for the future, as Kimchi observes; or "the
perfection of the beauty of God hath shined out of Zion"F17So
De Dieu. ; that is, Christ; he is the perfection of beauty; he is fairer than
the children of men; he is more glorious than the angels in heaven: as
Mediator, he is full of grace and truth, which makes him very lovely and
amiable to his people: he is the express image of his Father's person; and the
glory of all the divine perfections is conspicuous in his work of salvation, as
well as in himself: now as he was to come out of Zion, Psalm 14:7; that
is, not from the fort of Zion, or city of Jerusalem; for he was to be born at
Bethlehem; only he was to be of the Jews, and spring from them; so he shone
out, or his appearance and manifestation in Israel was like the rising sun; see
Malachi 4:2; and
the love and kindness of God in the mission and gift of him appeared and shone
out in like manner, Titus 3:4; or else the
Gospel may be meant, which has a beauty in it: it is a glorious Gospel, and
holds forth the beauty and glory of Christ. All truth is lovely and amiable,
especially evangelical truth: it has a divine beauty on it; it comes from God,
and bears his impress; yea, it is a perfection of beauty: it contains a perfect
plan of truth, and is able to make the man of God perfect; and this was to come
out of Zion, Isaiah 2:3; and
which great light first arose in Judea, and from thence shone out in the
Gentile world, like the sun in all its lustre and glory, Titus 2:11; or,
according to our version, "God hath shined out of Zion"; which, as
Ben Melech on the text observes, is the perfection of beauty; see Lamentations 2:15;
by which is meant the church under the Gospel dispensation, Hebrews 12:22;
which, as in Gospel order, is exceeding beautiful; and as its members are
adorned with the graces of the Spirit, by which they are all glorious within;
and especially as they are clothed with the righteousness of Christ, and so are
perfectly comely through the comeliness he hath put upon them and here it is
that Christ, who is the great God, and our Saviour, shines forth upon his
people, grants his gracious presence, and manifests himself in his ordinances,
to their great joy and pleasure.
Psalm 50:3 3 Our God shall come, and
shall not keep silent; A fire shall devour before Him, And it shall be very tempestuous
all around Him.
YLT
3Our God cometh, and is not
silent, Fire before Him doth devour, And round about him it hath been very
tempestuous.
Our God shall come,.... That is, Christ, who is truly and
properly God, and who was promised and expected as a divine Person; and which
was necessary on account of the work he came about; and believers claim an
interest in him as their God; and he is their God, in whom they trust, and whom
they worship: and this coming of his is to be understood, not of his coming in
the flesh; for though that was promised, believed, and prayed for, as these
words are by some rendered, "may our God come"F18יבא "veniat", Junius & Tremellius; so
Ainsworth. ; yet at his first coming he was silent, his voice was not heard in
the streets, Matthew 12:19; nor
did any fire or tempest attend that: nor is it to be interpreted of his second
coming, or coming to judgment; for though that also is promised, believed, and
prayed for; and when he will not be silent, but by his voice will raise the
dead, summon all before him, and pronounce the sentence on all; and the world,
and all that is therein, will be burnt with fire, and a horrible tempest rained
upon the wicked; yet it is better to understand it of his coming to set up his
kingdom in the world, and to punish his professing people for their disbelief
and rejection of him; see Matthew 16:28;
and shall not keep silence; contain himself, bear
with the Jews any longer, but come forth in his wrath against them; see Psalm 50:21; and it
may also denote the great sound of the Gospel, and the very public ministration
of it in the Gentile world, at or before this time, for the enlargement of
Christ's kingdom in it;
a fire shall devour before him; meaning either the fire
of the divine word making its way among the Gentiles, consuming their idolatry,
superstition, &c. or rather the fire of divine wrath coming upon the Jews
to the uttermost and even it may be literally understood of the fire that
consumed their city and temple, as was predicted, Zechariah 11:1;
and it shall be very tempestuous round about him; the time of
Jerusalem's destruction being such a time of trouble as has not been since the
world began, Matthew 24:21.
Psalm 50:4 4 He shall call to the
heavens from above, And to the earth, that He may judge His people:
YLT 4He doth call unto the
heavens from above, And unto the earth, to judge His people.
He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth,.... To hear
what he shall say, when he will no longer keep silence; and to be witnesses of
the justice of his proceedings; see Isaiah 1:2. The
Targum interprets this of the angels above on high, and of the righteous on the
earth below; and so Aben Ezra, Kimchi, and Ben Melech, explain it of the angels
of heaven, and of the inhabitants of the earth;
that he may judge his people; not that they, the
heavens and the earth, the inhabitants of either, may judge his people; but the
Lord himself, as in Psalm 50:6; and
this designs not the judgment of the whole world, nor that of his own covenant
people, whom he judges when he corrects them in love, that they might not be
condemned with the world; when he vindicates them, and avenges them on their
enemies, and when he protects and saves them; but the judgment of the Jewish
nation, his professing people, the same that Peter speaks of, 1 Peter 4:17.
Psalm 50:5 5 “Gather My saints together
to Me, Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”
YLT
5Gather ye to Me My saints,
Making covenant with Me over a sacrifice.
Gather my saints together unto me,.... These words are
spoken by Christ to the heavens and the earth; that is, to the angels, the
ministers of the Gospel, to gather in, by the ministry of the word, his elect
ones among the Gentiles; see Matthew 24:30;
called his "saints", who had an interest in his favour and
lovingkindness, and were sanctified or set apart for his service and glory;
those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice; or, "who
have made my covenant by, or on sacrifice"F19So Pagninus. ; the
covenant of grace, which was made with Christ from everlasting, and which was
confirmed by his blood and sacrifice; this his people may be said to make with
God in him, he being their head, surety, and representative: now these covenant
ones he will have gathered in to himself by the effectual calling, which is
usually done by the ministry of the word; for this is not to be understood of
the gathering of all nations to him, before him as a Judge; but of his special
people to him as a Saviour, the "Shiloh", to whom the gathering of
the people was to be, Genesis 49:10.
Psalm 50:6 6 Let the heavens declare
His righteousness, For God Himself is Judge. Selah
YLT
6And the heavens declare His
righteousness, For God Himself [is] judge. Selah.
And the heavens shall declare his righteousness,.... That is,
either the heavens shall bear witness to his justice and equity in judging his
people; or the angels, the ministers of the Gospel, shall declare his
justifying righteousness, which is revealed in it, to the saints and covenant
ones they shall be a means of gathering in: or rather the justice of Christ in
the destruction of the Jews shall be attested and applauded by angels and men,
just as the righteousness of God in the destruction of the antichristian powers
is celebrated by the angel of the waters, Revelation 16:5;
for God is Judge himself. And not another, or by
another; and therefore his judgments must be just and righteous, seeing he is
just and true, loves righteousness, and is righteous in all his ways and works.
Selah; on this word; see Gill on Psalm 3:2.
Psalm 50:7 7 “Hear, O My people, and I
will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you; I am God, your
God!
YLT
7Hear, O My people, and I
speak, O Israel, and I testify against thee, God, thy God [am] I.
Hear, O my people,.... This is an address to the people of the
Jews, whom God had chosen to be his people above all others, and who professed themselves
to be his people; but now a "loammi", Hosea 1:9, was
about to be written upon them, being a people uncircumcised in heart and ears,
refusing to hear the great Prophet of the church, him that spake from heaven;
and I will speak: by way of accusation and charge, and in
judgment against them for their sins and transgressions;
O Israel, and I will testify against thee; or "to
thee"F20בך "tibi", V. L.
Vatablus; so Ainsworth. ; to thy face produce witnesses, and bring sufficient
evidence to prove the things laid to thy charge,
I am God, even thy God; which is an
aggravation of their sin against him, and is the reason why they should hearken
to him; see Psalm 81:10.
Psalm 50:8 8 I will not rebuke you for
your sacrifices Or your burnt offerings, Which are continually before
Me.
YLT
8Not for thy sacrifices do I
reprove thee, Yea, thy burnt-offerings [Are] before Me continually.
I will not reprove thee for thy sacrifices,.... For the
neglect of them; this they were not chargeable with; and had they omitted them,
a charge would not have been brought against them on that account, since these
were not what God commanded when he brought them out of Egypt, Jeremiah 7:22; and
were now abrogated; and when they were in force, acts of mercy, kindness, and
beneficence, were preferred unto them, Hosea 6:6;
or thy burnt offerings, to have been continually before me; or, "for
thy burnt offerings are continually before me"F21So
Tigurine version, Vatablus, Piscator, Cocceius, and Ainsworth. ; so far were
they from being reprovable for not bringing their sacrifices, that they were
continually offering up before the Lord even multitudes of them, though to no
purpose, being offered up without faith, and in hypocrisy; and could not take
away sin, and make atonement for it; and besides, ought now to have ceased to
be offered, Christ the great sacrifice being now offered up, as he was in the
times to which this psalm belongs; see Isaiah 1:14;
wherefore it follows:
Psalm 50:9 9 I will not take a bull
from your house, Nor goats out of your folds.
YLT
9I take not from thy house a
bullock, From thy folds he goats.
I will take no bullock out of thy house,.... That is,
will accept of none; such sacrifices being no more agreeable to the will of
God, Hebrews 10:5; the
"bullock" is mentioned, that being a principal creature used in
sacrifice; as also the following,
nor he goats out of thy folds; the reasons
follow.
Psalm 50:10 10 For every beast of the
forest is Mine, And the cattle on a thousand hills.
YLT
10For Mine [is] every beast
of the forest, The cattle on the hills of oxen.
For every beast of the forest is mine,.... By
creation and preservation; and therefore he stood in no need of their bullocks
and he goats;
and the cattle upon a thousand hills; meaning all the cattle in the whole world.
Psalm 50:11 11 I know all the birds of
the mountains, And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
YLT
11I have known every fowl of
the mountains, And the wild beast of the field
Verse 11
I know all the fowls of the mountains,.... God not
only knows them, but takes care of them; not a sparrow fails to the ground
without his knowledge, and all the fowls of the air are fed by him, Matthew 10:29; and
therefore needed not their turtledoves and young pigeons, which were the only
fowls used in sacrifice;
and the wild beasts of the field are mine; which are
mentioned in opposition to domestic ones, such as they had in their houses or
folds, Psalm 50:9.
Psalm 50:12 12 “If I were hungry, I would
not tell you; For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.
YLT
12If I am hungry I tell not
to thee, For Mine [is] the world and its fulness.
If I were hungry, I would not tell thee,.... Or
"say to thee"F23לא אמר לך "non dicam
tibi", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Musculus; "non dicerem tibi",
Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius, Michaelis. ; ask for anything
for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof; with which,
was the former his case, he could satisfy himself; see Psalm 24:1.
Psalm 50:13 13 Will I eat the flesh of
bulls, Or drink the blood of goats?
YLT
13Do I eat the flesh of
bulls, And drink the blood of he-goats?
Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? That is,
express a pleasure, take delight and satisfaction, in such kind of sacrifices,
which can never take away sin: no, I will not; wherefore other sacrifices, more
agreeable to his nature, mind, and will, and to the Gospel dispensation, are
next mentioned.
Psalm 50:14 14 Offer to God thanksgiving,
And pay your vows to the Most High.
YLT
14Sacrifice to God
confession, And complete to the Most High thy vows.
Offer unto God thanksgiving,.... Which is a
sacrifice, Psalm 50:23; and
the Jews sayF24Vajikra Rabba, fol. 153. 1. & 168. 4. , that all
sacrifices will cease in future time, the times of the Messiah, but the
sacrifice of praise; and this should be offered up for all mercies, temporal
and spiritual; and unto God, because they all come from him; and because such
sacrifices are well pleasing to him, and are no other than our reasonable service,
and agreeably to his will; and then are they offered up aright when they are
offered up through Christ, the great High Priest, by whom they are acceptable
unto God, and upon him the altar, which sanctifies every gift, and by faith in
him, without which it is impossible to please God. Some render the word
"confession"F25תודה
"confessionem", Montanus, Cocceius, Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth.
; and in all thanksgivings it is necessary that men should confess their sins
and unworthiness, and acknowledge the goodness of God, and ascribe all the
glory to him; for to him, and him only, is this sacrifice to be offered: not to
man; for that would be to sacrifice to his own net, and burn incense to his
drag;
and pay thy vows unto the most High: meaning not ceremonial
ones, as the vow of the Nazarite; nor to offer such and such a sacrifice, since
these are distinguished from and opposed unto the sacrifices of the ceremonial
law before mentioned; and much less monastic ones, as the vow of celibacy, and
abstinence from certain meats at certain times; but moral, or spiritual and
evangelical ones; such as devoting one's self to the Lord and to his service
and worship, under the influence and in the strength of grace; signified by
saying, I am the Lord's, and the giving up ourselves to him and to his
churches, to walk with them in all his commands and ordinances, to which his
love and grace constrain and oblige; see Isaiah 44:5; and
particularly by them may be meant giving God the glory and praise of every
mercy and deliverance, as was promised previous to it; hence those are put
together, Psalm 65:1. This
Scripture does not oblige to the making of vows, but to the payment of them
when made; see Ecclesiastes 5:4;
and may refer to everything a man lays himself in a solemn manner under
obligation to perform, especially in religious affairs.
Psalm 50:15 15 Call upon Me in the day of
trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”
YLT
15And call Me in a day of
adversity, I deliver thee, and thou honourest Me.
And call upon me in the day of trouble,.... This is
another part of spiritual sacrifice or worship, which is much more acceptable
to God than legal sacrifices. Invocation of God includes all parts of religious
worship, and particularly designs prayer, as it does here, of which God, and he
only, is the object; and which should be performed in faith, in sincerity, and
with fervency; and though it should be made at all times, in private and in
public, yet more especially should be attended to in a time of affliction,
whether of soul or body, whether of a personal, family, or public kind, James 5:13; and the
encouragement to it is,
I will deliver thee: that is, out of trouble:
as he is able, so faithful is he that hath promised, and will do it. The
obligation follows,
and thou shall glorify me; by offering praise, Psalm 50:23;
ascribing the glory of the deliverance to God, and serving him in righteousness
and true holiness continually.
Psalm 50:16 16 But to the wicked God
says: “What right have you to declare My statutes, Or take My covenant
in your mouth,
YLT
16And to the wicked hath God
said: What to thee -- to recount My statutes? That thou liftest up My covenant
on thy mouth?
But unto the wicked God saith,.... By whom are meant,
not openly profane sinners; but men under a profession of religion, and indeed
who were teachers of others, as appears from the following expostulation with
them: the Scribes, Pharisees, and doctors among the Jews, are designed; and so
Kimchi interprets it of their wise men, who learnt and taught the law, but did
not act according to it. It seems as if the preceding verses respected the
truly godly among the Jews, who believed in Christ, and yet were zealous of the
law; and retained legal sacrifices; as such there were, Acts 21:20; and
that these words, and what follow, are spoken to hypocrites among them, who sat
in Moses's chair, and said, and did not; were outwardly righteous before men,
but inwardly full of wickedness, destitute of the grace of God and
righteousness of Christ;
what hast thou to do to declare my statutes; the laws of
God, which were given to the people of Israel; some of which were of a moral,
others of a ceremonial, and others of a judicial nature; and there were persons
appointed to teach and explain these to the people, as the priests and Levites:
now some of these were abrogated, and not to be declared at all in the times
this psalm refers to; and as for others, those persons were very improper to
teach and urge the observance of them, when they themselves did not keep them;
and especially it was wrong in them to declare them to the people, for such
purposes as they did, namely, to obtain life and righteousness by them;
or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth? which is to
be understood, not of the covenant of works made with Adam, and now broke; nor
of the pure covenant of grace, as administered under the Gospel dispensation,
of which Christ is the Mediator, and the Gospel a transcript, since both were
rejected by these persons; but the covenant at Mount Sinai, which was a typical
one; and being in some sense faulty, was now antiquated, and ought to have
ceased; and therefore these men are blamed for taking it in their mouths, and
urging it on the people: and besides, they had no true sight of and faith in
the thing exhibited by it; and moreover were not steadfast, nor did they
continue in it, like their fathers before them, Psalm 78:37, Hebrews 8:7.
Psalm 50:17 17 Seeing you hate
instruction And cast My words behind you?
YLT
17Yea, thou hast hated
instruction, And dost cast My words behind thee.
Seeing thou hatest instruction,.... Or
"correction"F26מוסד
"correctionem", Vatablus; "correptionem", Gejerus. ; to be
reproved or reformed by the statutes and covenant they declared to others; they
taught others, but not themselves, Romans 2:21; or
evangelical instruction, the doctrines of grace, and of Christ; for, as
concerning the Gospel, they were enemies, Romans 11:28; and
since they were haters of that, they ought not to have been teachers of others;
and castest my words behind thee; the doctrines of the
Gospel, which they despised and rejected with the utmost abhorrence, as
loathsome, and not fit to be looked upon and into; and also the ordinances of
it, the counsel of God, which they rejected against themselves, Acts 13:45.
Psalm 50:18 18 When you saw a thief, you
consented[a] with him, And
have been a partaker with adulterers.
YLT
18If thou hast seen a thief,
Then thou art pleased with him, And with adulterers [is] thy portion.
When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him,.... Or
"didst run with him"F1תרץ עמו συνετρεχες
αυτω, Sept. "currebas cum eo", V. L. sic Eth. Syr. Targum,
so Vatablus, Musculus, Piscator, Ainsworth. ; joined and agreed with him in the
commission of the same things; which was literally true of the Scribes and
Pharisees: they devoured widows' houses, and robbed them of their substance,
under a pretence of long prayers; they consented to the deeds of Barabbas, a
robber, when they preferred him to Jesus Christ; and they joined with the
thieves on the cross in reviling him: and, in a spiritual sense, they stole
away the word of the Lord, every man from his neighbour; took away the key of
knowledge from the people, and put false glosses upon the sacred writings;
and hast been a partaker with adulterers; these
teachers of the law were guilty both of theft and adultery, Romans 2:21; they
are called by our Lord an adulterous generation, Matthew 12:39; and
they were so in a literal sense; see John 8:4; and in a
figurative one, adulterating the word of God, and handling it deceitfully.
Psalm 50:19 19 You give your mouth to
evil, And your tongue frames deceit.
YLT
19Thy mouth thou hast sent
forth with evil, And thy tongue joineth deceit together,
Thou givest thy mouth to evil,.... To speak evil things
against Christ, his doctrines, ordinances, ministers and people; and to deliver
out evil doctrines, pernicious to the souls of men;
and thy tongue frameth deceit; puts and joins together
deceitful words in a very artful manner, by which simple and unstable minds are
beguiled.
Psalm 50:20 20 You sit and speak
against your brother; You slander your own mother’s son.
YLT
20Thou sittest, against thy
brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.
Thou sittest,.... Either in the chair of Moses, or on the
seat of judgment, in the great sanhedrim of the nation; or, as Aben Ezra
paraphrases it, "in the seat of the scornful";
and speakest against thy
brother; even to pass sentence upon him, to put him to death for
professing faith in Christ, Matthew 10:21;
thou slanderest thine own mother's son; the apostles
and disciples of Christ, who were their brethren and kinsmen according to the
flesh; and even our Lord Jesus Christ himself, who was bone of their bone, and
flesh of their flesh.
Psalm 50:21 21 These things you
have done, and I kept silent; You thought that I was altogether like you; But
I will rebuke you, And set them in order before your eyes.
YLT
21These thou didst, and I
kept silent, Thou hast thought that I am like thee, I reprove thee, and set in
array before thine eyes.
These things hast thou done,.... "These evil
works", as the Targum; which they had done over and over again without
remorse, with the greatest pleasure, and with promises of impunity to
themselves. This is a confirmation of the charge made by the omniscient God,
who saw and knew all their actions;
and I kept silence; spoke not by terrible things in
righteousness, deferred the execution of judgment, exercised forbearance and
patience, and gave space to repent; which being despised, they were hardened
yet more and more in sin; see Ecclesiastes 8:11.
This refers to the space of time between the crucifixion of Christ and the
destruction of Jerusalem;
thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself; either that
he did not see the things committed by them in secret, as the things before
mentioned, theft, adultery, slander, and detraction, commonly are; because they
could not see such actions done by others: or that he took pleasure in them, as
they did, and that he approved of their crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth, and
of their contempt of his Gospel, and of the persecution of his followers;
but I will reprove thee: not verbally
by the ministry of the word, much less effectually and savingly by his Spirit;
nor in a way of fatherly correction and chastisement; but by sore judgments; by
sending the Roman armies to burn their city and temple, and carry them captive;
and set them in order before thine eyes; that is, their
sins, and thereby fully confute their vain imagination, that either he did not
take notice of them, or else approved of them. This signifies a formal process
against them, as in a court of judicature; bringing in a regular charge and
accusation against them, and an orderly disposition of their sins, as to time,
place, and circumstances, committed by them, and a strong evidence or thorough
conviction of them, so as not to be denied and gainsaid by them: or a setting
them in battle array, as in Job 6:4; in rank
and file; sins being what war against men, and bring upon them utter ruin and
destruction; as the sins of the Jews fought against them, and destroyed them;
see Jeremiah 2:19.
Psalm 50:22 22 “Now consider this, you
who forget God, Lest I tear you in pieces, And there be none to
deliver:
YLT
22Understand this, I pray
you, Ye who are forgetting God, Lest I tear, and there is no deliverer.
Now consider this,.... The evils that had been committed, and
repent of them; for repentance is an after thought and reconsideration of sin,
and humiliation for it; that the Lord, was not like them, not an approver of
sin, but a reprover for it; and what would be their latter end, what all this
would issue in, in case of impenitence;
ye that forget God; that there is a God, his being,
perfections, word, works, and benefits;
lest I tear you in pieces; as a lion, leopard, or
bear; see Hosea 13:7; which
was accomplished in the destruction of Jerusalem; when both their civil and
ecclesiastical state were torn in pieces; their city and temple levelled with
the ground, and not one stone left upon another; and they scattered about in
the earth;
and there be none to deliver; which denotes their
utter and irreparable ruin, till the time comes they shall turn to the Lord;
see Isaiah 42:22.
Psalm 50:23 23 Whoever offers praise glorifies
Me; And to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the
salvation of God.”
YLT
23He who is sacrificing
praise honoureth Me, As to him who maketh a way, I cause him to look on the
salvation of God!
Whoso offereth praise,...., Which is exhorted to;
See Gill on Psalm 50:14;
glorifieth me; celebrates the divine perfections, gives
God the glory of all mercies; which honours him, and is more grateful and well
pleasing to him than all burnt offerings and sacrifices;
and to him that ordereth his conversation aright; according to
the rule of God's word, and as becomes the Gospel of Christ; who walks
inoffensively to all, circumspectly and wisely in the world, and in love to the
saints; in wisdom towards them that are without, and in peace with them that
are within; who is a follower of God, of Christ, and of his people; and who
lives so as to glorify God, and cause others to glorify him likewise: or that
chooses for himself the right way, as Aben Ezra, the right way to eternal life;
and the sense is, he that puts or sets his heart upon it, and is in pursuit
after the evangelical way of life. To him
will I show the salvation of God; or, "cause to
see" or "enjoy it"F2אדאנו
"videre faciam eum", Montanus; "faciam ut is fruatur",
Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. ; not only temporal salvation from time to
time, but spiritual and eternal salvation; to see interest in it, and to
possess it; and particularly Christ, the author of it, who is the salvation of
God's providing, appointing, and sending, and whose glory is greatly concerned
therein; see Isaiah 52:10.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)