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Psalm Sixty
New King James Version (NKJV)
YLT To the Overseer. -- `Concerning the Lily of
Testimony,' a secret treasure of David, to teach, in his striving with
Aram-Naharaim, and with Aram-Zobah, and Joab turneth back and smiteth Edom in
the valley of Salt -- twelve thousand.
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 60
To the chief Musician upon Shushaneduth, Michtam of David, to
teach; when he
strove with Aramnaharaim, and with Aramzobah, when Joab returned, and smote of
Edom in the valley of Salt twelve thousand. The words
"shushaneduth" are thought, by Aben Ezra, to be the beginning of a
song, to the tune of which this psalm was set; though others, as he observes,
take them to be the name of a musical instrument, on which it was sung. Some
take "shushan" to be an instrument of six chords, an hexachord; and
"eduth", which signifies a "testimony", to be the title of
the psalm, it being a testimony, or lasting memorial, of the victory obtained
over the Syrians and Edomites; though rather they may be considered as
expressing the subject matter of the psalm; and so the Targum interprets them,
"concerning
the ancient testimony of the sons of Jacob and Laban;'
referring
to Genesis 31:47; they
may be rendered, as they are by some, "concerning the lily of the
testimony"F1"Super rosa testimonii", Tigurine
version; "super flore testimonii", Musculus. ; and be applied to the
Gospel, the testimony of our Lord Jesus, the pure, lily white, and unblemished
testimony it bears to him, his person, office, and grace; and particularly to
salvation as alone in him, and to which witness is borne in this psalm, Psalm 60:11. This
psalm is a "michtam", or golden psalm of David, and its use is
"to teach". It is of the instructive kind, and teaches where help and
salvation are to be expected; see Colossians 3:16; it
was written when David "strove", or fought, with Aramnaharaim, the
Syrians of Mesopotamia, which lay between the two rivers, Tigris and Euphrates,
from whence is the name; hence the Septuagint render it Mesopotamia of Syria;
and the Targum is,
"he
made war with Aram, which is by Euphrates;'
and
at the same time David also fought with Aramzobah, or the Syrians of Zobah, as
they are called in 2 Samuel 10:6; with
JosephusF2Antiqu. l. 7. c. 5. s. 1. and l. 8. c. 7. s. 6. , Zobah is
the same with Sophene; but wrongly, as is thought by learned menF3Vid.
Hudson. Not in ibid. : for though this is a name which some part of Syria goes
by in MelaF4De Orbis Situ, l. 1. c. 6. ; and PtolemyF5Geograph.
l. 5. c. 13. makes mention of a place of this name; yet that was beyond
Euphrates, and in Armenia; whereas this must be nearer the land of Israel; for
it is saidF6Gloss. in T. Bab. Cetubot, fol. 25. 1. that Aramzobah is
the country of Syria, which David subdued, and joined to the land of Israel;
concerning which the Jews so often say, that in some things it was the same
with it: according to HillerusF7Onomast. Sacr. p. 586. , it is the
same country which the Arabians call Kinnosrina, the chief city of which is
Haleb, or Aleppo; and R. Benjamin TudelensisF8Itimerar. p. 59.
making mention of Haleb, says, this is Aramzobah. Moreover, this psalm was
written "when Joab returned, and smote of Edom in the valley of salt
twelve thousand"; the "valley of salt" was near the Dead Sea,
and upon the borders of Idumea; the battle fought here by Joab was either the
same with the former, or different from it, at or about the same time; and
accounts seemingly different from this are given in 2 Samuel 8:13; in
the first of these the number is said to be eighteen thousand Syrians, and the
victory is ascribed to David; and in the latter the same number as there, but
said to be Edomites, as here, and the slaughter ascribed to Abishai. The note
of R. AbendanaF9In Miclol Yophi in loc. , for the reconciling of
this, is worth transcribing: Our Rabbins of blessed memory say there were two
battles; that Abishai, the son of Zeruiah, slew eighteen thousand, and after
that Joab came and smote of them twelve thousand; and this is what is said; and
"Joab returned", &c. the sense is, he returned after Abishai: and
in the book of Samuel the battle is ascribed to David, because he was the root
or chief (that is, under whom Joab and Abishai fought); but R. David Kimchi
writes, that there were between them all eighteen thousand only; that Abishai
began the battle, and smote of them six thousand, and after that Joab returned,
and smote of them twelve thousand; but of a truth the wise R. Joel Ben Sueb
gives the right sense of this affair, which is this; when David was fighting
with the Syrians of Naharaim and Zobah, it was told him that Edom was come out
to meet him, and help the Syrians; and then he veiled himself in prayer, and
said this psalm; and Joab returned from the army, and went to meet the
Edomites, that they might not pass over to help the Syrians, and join them, and
he smote of them twelve thousand; and David was left fighting with the Syrians
of Naharaim and Zobah, and subdued them under him, and he turned to help Joab;
and Abishai, the son of Zeruiah was over the army, and he smote of them eighteen
thousand, and they were in all thirty thousand, according to our Rabbins of
blessed memory; and the text in 2 Samuel 8:13;
should be inverted and explained thus;
"when
he returned from smiting the Syrians, he got him in the valley of salt a name;
for his fame went abroad, because he smote there eighteen thousand, and this
was in Edom.'
The
Targum very wrongly renders it,
"and
there fell of the armies of David and Joab twelve thousand.'
The
title of this psalm, in the Syriac version, is,
"which
David gave out, saying, if I should come into the hands of Saul, I shall
perish; and he fled, and those that were with him: but to us it declares the
conversion of the Gentiles, and the rejection of the Jews.'
The
former part of which is quite foreign; but the latter seems to be right; for
reference is had to both in this psalm, and to Christ, the banner displayed, or
ensign lifted up, and to his dominion over Jews and Gentiles in the latter day,
and to that salvation which is alone in him.
Psalm 60:1 O
God, You have cast us off; You have broken us down; You have been displeased; Oh,
restore us again!
YLT
1O God, Thou hadst cast us
off, Thou hadst broken us -- hadst been angry! -- Thou dost turn back to us.
O God, thou hast cast us off,.... What is said in this
verse, and Psalm 60:2, are by
some applied to times past; to the distress of the people Israel by their
neighbours in the times of the judges; to their being smitten by the
Philistines, in the times of Eli and Samuel; and to the victory they obtained
over them, when Saul and his sons were slain; and to the civil wars between the
house of Saul and David; but rather the whole belongs to future times, which
David, by a prophetic spirit, was led to on the occasion of the victory
obtained, when before this the nation had been in bad circumstances. This
refers to the casting off of the Jews as a church and nation, when they had
rejected the Messiah and killed him, persecuted his apostles, and despised his
Gospel; of which see Romans 11:15;
thou hast scattered us; as they were by the
Romans among the various nations of the world, and among whom they are
dispersed to this day; or "thou hast broken us"F11פרצתנו "rupisti nos", Montanus, Michaelis;
"disrupisti", Gejerus; so Ainsworth. , as in Psalm 80:12; not
only the walls of their city were broken by the battering rams of the Romans,
but their commonwealth, their civil state, were broke to pieces by them. Jarchi
applies this to the Romans; his note is this;
"when
Edom fell by his hand (David's), he foresaw, by the Holy Ghost, that the Romans
would rule over Israel, and decree hard decrees concerning them;'
thou hast been displeased; not only with their
immorality and profaneness, with their hypocrisy and insincerity, with their
will worship and superstition, and the observance of the traditions of their
elders; but also with their rejection of the Messiah, and contempt of his
Gospel and ordinances;
O turn thyself to us again; which prayer will be
made by them, when they shall become sensible of their sins, and of their state
and condition, and shall turn unto the Lord; and when he will turn himself to
them, and turn away iniquity from them, and all Israel shall be saved, Romans 11:25; or
"thou wilt return unto us"F12תשובב
לנו "reverteris ad nos", Pagninus,
Montanus; "reduces ad nos", Gussetius, p. 836. ; who before were cast
off, broken, and he was displeased with; or others to us.
Psalm 60:2 2 You have made the earth
tremble; You have broken it; Heal its breaches, for it is shaking.
YLT
2Thou hast caused the land
to tremble, Thou hast broken it, Heal its breaches, for it hath moved.
Thou hast made the earth to tremble; thou hast broken it,.... As is
frequently done by an earthquake; which, whatever natural causes there may be
of it, is always to be ascribed to God. The ancient HeathensF13A.
Gell. Noct. Attic. l. 2. c. 28. were of opinion that all earthquakes were of
God. This respects not the whole earth, but the land of Israel only; and so the
Targum,
"thou
hast moved the land of Israel, thou hast shaken and rent it;'
and
it does not design a natural earthquake in it, but a figurative one; a shaking
and rending of their civil and church state; see Hebrews 12:26;
heal the breaches thereof; for it shaketh; which will be
done in the latter day, when they shall return into their own land, and be
restored as at the beginning, Isaiah 30:30.
Psalm 60:3 3 You have shown Your people
hard things; You have made us drink the wine of confusion.
YLT
3Thou hast shewn Thy people
a hard thing, Thou hast caused us to drink wine of trembling.
Thou hast showed thy people hard things,.... As to
have their city and temple burial, multitudes of them slain, and the rest
carried captive, and put into the hands of cruel lords and hard masters, and
made a proverb, a taunt, and a curse, in all places; and all this done to a
people that were the Lord's by profession, who called themselves so, though now
a "loammi", Hosea 1:9; and
these were hard things to flesh and blood, yet no other than what they
deserved;
thou hast made us to drink the wine of astonishment; or "of
trembling"F14תרעלה
"tremoris", Musculus, Vatablus, Amama; "trepidationis",
Michaelis; "horroris", Gejerus. , Isaiah 51:17; that
is, to endure such troubles as made them tremble, and astonished and stupefied
them; took away their senses, and made them unfit for anything, being smitten
with madness, blindness, and astonishment of heart, as is threatened them, Deuteronomy 28:28;
see Romans 11:7.
Psalm 60:4 4 You have given a banner to
those who fear You, That it may be displayed because of the truth. Selah
YLT
4Thou hast given to those
fearing thee an ensign. To be lifted up as an ensign Because of truth. Selah.
Thou hast given a banner,.... The word נס is, by Jarchi, taken to signify "temptation"
or "trial"F15So Yalkut Simconi in loc. par. 2. fol. 103.
1. ; and he interprets it of many troubles which they had, that they might be
tried by them, whether they would stand in the fear of God, and so considers
these words as a continuation of the account of the distresses of the people of
Israel; but they are rather to be considered as declaring a peculiar blessing
and favour bestowed upon some among them, who are here described, when the rest
were involved in the greatest calamities, signified by a "banner" or
"ensign" given them; by which is meant, not so much David literally,
and the victory he obtained over the Syrians and Edomites, of which the banner
displayed might be a token; but the Messiah, who is said to be given for a
banner, or set up as an ensign for the people, Isaiah 11:10; for
the gathering of them to him, to prepare them for war, and animate them to
fight the good fight of faith, and oppose every enemy; to direct where they
should stand to be on duty, where they should go, and whom they should follow;
and is expressive of the victory over sin, Satan, and the world, they have
through him: and this is given
to them that fear thee; who have the grace of
fear put into their hearts; who fear the Lord and his goodness, and serve him
with reverence and godly fear; who worship him both inwardly and outwardly, in
spirit and in truth, whether among Jews or Gentiles, though the former may be
chiefly intended; such as old Simeon, Anna the prophetess, and others, to whom
Christ was made known; and especially the apostles of Christ, and those to whom
their ministry became useful; whose business it was to display this banner, set
up this ensign, and hold out this flag; as it follows:
that it may be displayed because of the truth; not because
of the truth of Abraham, as the Targum; nor because of the truth, sincerity,
and uprightness, of those that fear the Lord; but because of his own truth and
faithfulness in the performance of his promises made concerning the displaying
of this banner; or the sending of his son into the world, and the preaching of
his Gospel in it; see Romans 15:8.
Selah; on this word; see Gill on Psalm 3:2.
Psalm 60:5 5 That Your beloved may be
delivered, Save with Your right hand, and hear me.
YLT
5That Thy beloved ones may
be drawn out, Save [with] Thy right hand, and answer us.
That thy beloved may be delivered,.... Some think that
these words express the effect or end of the banner being displayed; but
because of the word "Selah" at the end of Psalm 60:4, which
makes so full a stop; rather they are to be considered in construction with the
following clause. By the Lord's "beloved" ones are meant, not so much
the people of Israel, who were loved and chosen by the Lord above all people on
the face of the earth, as the elect of God, both among Jews and Gentiles, who
are the chosen of God, and precious, and are loved of him with a free,
sovereign, everlasting, and unchangeable love: these are the beloved of Father,
Son, and Spirit; who, falling into a state of condemnation and death in Adam,
and being under the power of sin, and involved in the guilt and faith of it;
and being fallen into the hands of many enemies, sin, Satan, and the world;
stood in need of deliverance out of all this, which they could not work out of
themselves, nor any creature for them; wherefore, that they might be delivered,
the following request is made;
save with thy right hand; from sin, the cause of
damnation; from the law, which threatens with condemnation and death; from
Satan, that would devour and destroy; and from all their enemies; from wrath to
come, from hell and the second death; or from going down to the pit of
corruption. The persons for whom this petition is put up are not only David
himself, but all the beloved ones; and these God has appointed unto salvation;
Christ is the Saviour of them, and to them salvation is applied in due time by
the Spirit, and in a little while they will be in the full possession of it:
and this is wrought out by the "right hand" of the Lord; either by
his mighty power, the saving strength of his right hand, who is mighty to save;
or by his Son, the man of his right hand, made strong for himself, who able to
save to the uttermost; and by whom God has determined to save, and does save
all his people; or the words may be rendered, "save thy right hand, thy
Benjamins"F16הושיעה ימינך. who are as near and dear to thee as thy right hand,
being his mystical self, to whom salvation is brought by him, Isaiah 63:1;
and hear me; in so doing, he suggests he would hear and answer him his
prayers would be ended and accomplished; this being the sum of them, his own
salvation, and the salvation of the Lord's beloved ones. The "Cetib",
or writing of this clause, is, "hear us"; the "Keri", or
reading of it, "hear me".
Psalm 60:6 6 God has spoken in His
holiness: “I will rejoice; I will divide Shechem And measure out the Valley of
Succoth.
YLT
6God hath spoken in His
holiness: I exult -- I apportion Shechem, And the valley of Succoth I measure,
God hath spoken in his holiness,.... Or "in his holy
place"F17בקדשו "in sanctuario
suo", Tigurine version, Vatablus; "in sancto suo", V. L.
Musculus, Cocceius. ; in heaven, the habitation of his holiness and of his
glory; or "in the house of the sanctuary", as the Targum: in the
tabernacle, in the holy place by Urim and Thummim; and in the most holy place
by his sacred oracle, from between the mercy seat: or "by his Holy
Ones", as the Arabic version; by his holy prophets, Samuel and Nathan, by
whom he spoke to David concerning the kingdom; and by his Holy Spirit dictating
this psalm, and the rest unto him; and by his Son, his Holy One, by whom he has
spoken in these last times unto his people, to which this psalm has reference:
or it may be understood of the perfection of his holiness in which he has
spoken, and by which he has swore; not only to David literally, concerning the
extent of his dominion, the perpetuity and stability of it; but to David's son
and antitype, the Messiah, concerning his seed, possession, and inheritance, Psalm 89:19;
I will rejoice; at the holiness of the Lord, which is
matter of joy to the saints, especially as the is displayed and glorified in
salvation by Christ, Psalm 97:12; and at
what he said in his holiness to David, concerning his temporal kingdom, and the
duration of it; because he knew that what he said he would perform; and at what
was spoken to him by the Messiah, in council and covenant, concerning his
seeing his seed, and prolonging his days; which was the joy set before him,
which carried him through his sorrows and sufferings, Hebrews 12:2;
wherefore he believed his kingdom should be enlarged, both among Jews and
Gentiles, as follows;
I will divide Shechem; a city in Mount Ephraim,
Joshua 20:7; and so
was in the hands of Ishbosheth the son of Saul; as the valley of Succoth,
Gilead, Ephraim, and Manasseh, after mentioned, and all the tribes of Israel,
were, but Judah, 2 Samuel 2:4; but,
because of God's promise, David believed that they would be all in his
possession; signified by dividing, as a land is divided for an inheritance when
conquered, Joshua 13:7; or
this is said in allusion to the dividing of spoils in a conquered place; and so
the Targum,
"I
will divide the prey with the children of Joseph, that dwell in Shechem;'
and
as Shechem was the same with Sychar, near to which our Lord met with the
Samaritan woman, and converted her, and many others of that place, then might
he be said to divide the spoils there, John 4:5;
and mete out the valley of Succoth; with a measuring line,
so taking possession of it, 2 Samuel 8:2;
Succoth was near to Shechem, Genesis 33:17; and
was in the tribe of Gad, and in a valley, Joshua 13:27; there
was a Succoth in the plain of Jordan, 1 Kings 7:46; it
signifies booths, tents, or tabernacles, and may mystically signify the
churches of Christ, wherein he dwells and exercises his dominion.
Psalm 60:7 7 Gilead is Mine, and
Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is the helmet for My head; Judah is
My lawgiver.
YLT
7Mine [is] Gilead, and mine
[is] Manasseh, And Ephraim [is] the strength of my head, Judah [is] my
lawgiver,
Gilead is mine,.... This is particularly
mentioned, because over this Abner made Ishbosheth king, 2 Samuel 2:9; and
is the place to which the Jews shall be brought in the latter day, when
converted, Zechariah 10:10; It
was a country that abounded with pastures fit for feeding cattle, Numbers 32:1, and
may point out those green pastures where Christ makes his flocks to lie down
and rest;
and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim also is the strength
of mine head: these two were also under Saul's son when David first came to
the throne, but afterwards became his, as was promised him, and he believed, 2 Samuel 2:9. And
the concord and harmony of the people of God among themselves, and under David
their Prince, the King Messiah, are signified and Ephraim being one in the hand
of the by the ceasing of the envy of the one, and of the vexation of the other,
Ezekiel 37:19;
Ephraim was more numerous and populous than Manasseh, and abounded with mighty
men, which are the strength of a prince, and therefore called here the strength
of his head;
Judah is my lawgiver; manifestly referring to Genesis 49:10;
which furnished out persons fit to be counsellors in enacting laws, and proper
to be employed in the execution of them. The great Lawgiver is Christ himself,
who came of this tribe, Isaiah 33:22; All
this is expressive of dominion over the whole land of Judea, Ephraim, and
Manasseh, with the places mentioned with them; the house of Joseph being, as
Aben Ezra observes, in the north part of it, and Judah in the south. Next
mention is made of the subjection of the Gentiles, and dominion over them.
Psalm 60:8 8 Moab is My washpot;
Over Edom I will cast My shoe; Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.”
YLT
8Moab [is] my pot for
washing, over Edom I cast my shoe, Shout, concerning me, O Philistia.
Moab is my washpot,.... To wash hands and
feet in: and so the Syriac version, "and Moab the washing of my
feet"; a vessel for low and mean service, and so denotes the servile
subjection of the Moabites to David; see 2 Samuel 8:2; and
as the words may be rendered, "the pot of my washing"F18סיר רחצי "olla lotionis
meae", Pagninus, Montanus, Michaelis, Gejerus; so Tigurine version,
Musculus, Vatablus. . Great numbers of the Moabites might be at this time
servants to the Israelites, and to David and his court particularly; and might
be employed, as the Gibeonites were, to be drawers of water, to fill their
pots, in which they washed their hands and feet, and their bathing vessels, in
which they bathed themselves: Aben Ezra explains it,
"I
wilt wash their land as a pot;'
and
so may not only signify the very great subjection of the Gentiles, even the
chief among them, to Christ and his church, Isaiah 49:23; but
as Moab was begotten and born in uncleanness, and his posterity an unclean
generation, it may design the washing, cleansing, sanctifying, and justifying
of the Gentiles in the name of Christ, and by his Spirit, 1 Corinthians 6:11;
over Edom will I cast out my shoe; as a token of possessing
their land, 4:7; so some; or of subduing them;
putting the feet on which the shoe is upon the necks of them, Joshua 10:24. So
Kimchi interprets it,
"the
treading of my foot;'
to
which the Targum agrees, paraphrasing it thus;
"upon
the joint of the neck of the mighty men of Edom I have cast my shoe.'
It
may allude to a customF19Elias in Tishbi, fol. 267. in confirming a
bargain, or taking possession, to pluck off the shoe in token of it, נעלי may be rendered "my glove"; as it is by the
Targum on 4:7; for, as the shoe encloses and binds
the foot, so the glove the hand: and the allusion may be thought to be to a
custom used by kings, when they sat down before any strong city to besiege it,
to throw in a glove into the city; signifying they would never depart from the
city until they had took it. Hence the custom, which still continues, of
sending a glove to a person challenged to fight. And indeed the custom of
casting a shoe was used by the emperor of the Abyssines, as a sign of dominionF20R.
Immanuel apud Castell. Lex. Polygott. col. 2342. . Take the phrase in every
light, it signifies victory and power; that he should be in Edom as at home,
and there pluck off his shoe, and cast it upon him; either to carry it after
him, as some think, which was the work of a servant, to which the Baptist
alludes, Matthew 3:11; or
rather to clean it for him; for as Moab was his washpot, to wash his hands and
feet, in Edom was his shoe cleaner, to wipe off and remove the dirt and dust
that was upon themF21Vid. Bynaeum de Calceis Heb. l. 2. c. 8.
Gusset. Ebr. Comment p. 520. ; all which denotes great subjection: and this was
fulfilled in David, 2 Samuel 8:14; and
may refer to the spread of the Gospel in the Gentile world, and the power
accompanying that to the subduing of many sinners in it, carried thither by
those whose feet were shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace;
Philistia, triumph thou because of me: some take
this to be an ironic expression, like that in Ecclesiastes 11:9;
so R. Moses in Aben Ezra, and also Kimchi. Triumph now as thou usedst to do, or
if thou canst: but rather they are seriously spoken, seeing they had reason to
rejoice and be glad, because they had changed hands and masters for the better,
being subject to David, 2 Samuel 8:1, with
this compare Psalm 108:9, and
may very well be applied to the Gentiles, subdued and conquered by Christ, who
triumph in him; and because delivered out of the hands of sin, Satan, and the
world, through his victorious arms.
Psalm 60:9 9 Who will bring me to
the strong city? Who will lead me to Edom?
YLT
9Who doth bring me [to] a
city of bulwarks? Who hath led me unto Edom?
Who will bring me into the strong city?.... Which
some understand of Rabbah of the Ammonites, which Joab besieged, and sent to
David to come and take it in person, 2 Samuel 12:26. The
Targum interprets it of Tyre, which was a strong fortified city, Ezekiel 26:4. It
rather seems to be the same with Edom, or the metropolis of the Edomites; since
it follows:
who will lead me into Edom? which was situated in
the clefts of the rock, and on the height of the hill, Jeremiah 49:16; but
is mystically to be understood of the city of Rome, the great and mighty city,
as it is often called in the book of the Revelation, Revelation 11:8;
whose destruction is certain, being predicted; and after which there have been
desires raised in the hearts of God's people in all ages; and particularly just
before the time God will put it into the hearts of the kings of the earth to
burn it with fire; who are here represented by David, as desirous of entering
into it in triumph to destroy it, Revelation 17:16.
Psalm 60:10 10 Is it
not You, O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go
out with our armies?
YLT
10Is it not Thou, O God? hast
Thou cast us off? And dost Thou not go forth, O God, with our hosts!
Wilt not thou, O
God?.... This is an answer to the question, and is made by putting
another, which tacitly contains in it an affirmation that God would do it. He
has foretold the destruction of the Romish antichrist; he has said it shall be:
he is faithful to his purposes, predictions, and promises; he is able to effect
it; strong is the Lord that judgeth Babylon, Revelation 18:10;
He will put it into the hearts of the kings of the earth to hate her; he will
encourage them to reward her double; he will give her blood to drink, because
she is worthy; her destruction will be according to his righteous judgment, and
will be irretrievable; he will call upon all his people to rejoice at it, whose
shoutings on this occasion will be like those of persons that enter into a
conquered city in triumph;
which hadst cast us
off; who seemed in former times to have cast off his people, when
they were killed all the day long; accounted as sheep for the slaughter; were
slain in great numbers in the Low Countries; burnt here in England; massacred
in France and Ireland: especially God seemed to have cast off his people, and
to have had no regard to his interest, when antichrist so prevailed, that all
the world wondered after the beast;
and thou, O God, which didst not go forth with our
armies: but suffered the antichristian beast to make war with the
saints, and to overcome and kill them; and which was the case in many pitched
battles with the Waldenses and Albigenses before the Reformation, and with the
Protestants in Germany since. But this will not be always the case; he whose
name is the Word of God, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, will fight with
the antichristian powers, and overcome them, and make his people more than
conquerors over them; and his having formerly seemed to have cast them off, and
not going forth with their armies, will serve as a foil to set off the glorious
and complete victory that will at last be obtained.
Psalm 60:11 11 Give us help from trouble,
For the help of man is useless.
YLT
11Give to us help from
adversity, And vain [is] the deliverance of man.
Give us help from trouble,.... To have trouble is
the common lot of all men, but especially of the people of God. They have some
troubles which others have not, arising from indwelling sin, Satan's
temptations, and the hidings of God's face; and as for outward troubles, they
have generally the greatest share of them, which are certain to them by the
appointment of God, and the legacy of Christ; though they are needful and for
their good, and lie in their way to heaven. But perhaps here is particularly
meant the time of trouble, which will be a little before the destruction of
antichrist; which will be great, and none like it; will be the time of Jacob's
trouble, though he shall be saved out of it, Jeremiah 30:7. This
will be the time of the slaying of the witnesses, the hour of temptation, that
will try the inhabitants of the Christian world; and when the saints, as they
do in all their times of trouble, will seek to the Lord for help, in whom it
is, and who has promised it, and gives it seasonably, and which is owing wholly
to his own grace and goodness; and therefore it is asked that he would
"give" it;
for vain is the help of man: or "the salvation
of man"F23תשועת אדם
"salus hominis", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, &c. ; man himself is a
vain thing; vanity itself, yea, lighter than vanity; even man at his best
state, and the greatest among men; and therefore it is a vain thing to expect
help and salvation from men, for indeed there is none in them; only in the Lord
God is the salvation of his people, both temporal and spiritual.
Psalm 60:12 12 Through God we will do
valiantly, For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.[b]
YLT
12In God we do mightily, And
He treadeth down our adversaries!
Through God we shall do valiantly,.... Or, "through
the Word of the Lord", as the Targum; Christ, whose name is the Word of
God, appearing at the head of his armies, in a vesture dipped in blood, and
with a sharp sword proceeding out of his mouth, will inspire his people to
fight valiantly under him; and who, in his name and strength, will get the
victory over all their enemies, the beast, false prophets, and kings of the
earth, and all under them; see Revelation 19:11;
for he it is that shall tread down our enemies; as mire in
the street, or as grapes in a winepress; even kings, captains, mighty men, and
all the antichristian nations and states; the beast, false prophet, and Satan
himself, Revelation 19:15;
and so there will be an end of all the enemies of Christ and his people; after
which they will spend an endless eternity together, in joy, peace, and
pleasure. The victory is wholly ascribed to God the Word; it is not they that
shall do valiantly, that shall tread down their enemies; but he by whom they
shall do valiantly shall do it; even the mighty הוא,
"He", to whom was promised, in Eden's garden, the bruising the head
of the serpent, and all enemies, Genesis 3:15; and
who has the same name here as there.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)