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Psalm Sixty-three
New King James Version (NKJV)
YLT
A Psalm of David, in his being in the wilderness of Judah.
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 63
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. This psalm
was composed by David, either when he was persecuted by Saul, and obliged to
hide himself in desert places, as in the forest of Hareth, the wildernesses of
Ziph, Maon, and Engedi, 1 Samuel 22:5; all
which were in the tribe of Judah, Joshua 15:55; or
when his son Absalom rebelled against him, which obliged him to flee from
Jerusalem, and go the way of the wilderness, where Ziba and Barzillai sent him
food, lest his young men that were with him should faint there, 2 Samuel 15:23. The
Septuagint version, and those that follow that, call it the wilderness of
Idumea, or Edom, as the Arabic version; and so the Chaldee paraphrase,
"in
the wilderness which was on the border of the tribe of Judah;'
as
Edom was, Joshua 15:21; so
the Messiah, David's son, was in a wilderness, where he was tempted by the
devil, and where he was hungry and thirsty in a literal sense, as David was
here in a spiritual sense, as the psalm shows, Matthew 4:1; and
the church of God, whom David sometimes represents, is said to be in a
wilderness, where she is fed for a time, and times, and half a time, even
during the whole reign of the antichristian beast, Revelation 12:14;
and, indeed, all the saints are, at one time or another, in a desert condition,
and while they are here are in the wilderness of the people, Hosea 2:14.
Psalm 63:1 O God, You are
my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In
a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water.
YLT
1O God, Thou [art] my God,
earnestly do I seek Thee, Thirsted for Thee hath my soul, Longed for Thee hath
my flesh, In a land dry and weary, without waters.
O God, thou art my God,.... Not by nature only,
or by birth; not merely as an Israelite and son of Abraham; but by grace
through Christ, and in virtue of an everlasting covenant, the blessings and
promises of which were applied unto him; and he, by faith, could now claim his
interest in them, and in his God as his covenant God; who is a God at hand and
afar off, was his God in the wilderness of Judea, as in his palace at
Jerusalem. The Targum is,
"thou
art my strength;'
early
will I seek thee; or "I will morning thee"F15אשחרך "sub auroram quaero te", Piscator. ; I will
seek thee as soon as the morning appears; and so the Targum,
"I
will arise in the morning before thee;'
it
has respect to prayer in the morning, and to seeking God early, and in the
first place; see Psalm 5:3; or
"diligently"F16"Studiosissime", Gejerus,
Michaelis. ; as a merchant seeks for goodly pearls, or other commodities
suitable for him; so Aben Ezra suggests, as if the word was to be derived, not
from שחר, "the morning", but from סחר, "merchandise"; and those who seek the Lord
both early and diligently shall find him, and not lose their labour, Proverbs 2:4;
my soul thirsteth for thee; after his word, worship,
and ordinances; after greater knowledge of him, communion with him, and more
grace from him; particularly after pardoning grace and justifying
righteousness; see Psalm 42:1; My
flesh longeth for thee; which is expressive of the same thing in different
words; and denotes, that he most earnestly desired, with his whole self, his
heart, soul, and strength, that he might enjoy the presence of God;
in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; such was the
wilderness of Judea, where he now was, and where he was destitute of the means
of grace, of the ordinances of God's house, and wanted comfort and refreshment
for his soul, which he thirsted and longed after, as a thirsty man after water
in a desert place.
Psalm 63:2 2 So I have looked for You
in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory.
YLT
2So in the sanctuary I have
seen Thee, To behold Thy strength and Thine honour.
To see thy power and thy glory,.... Either the ark, as
the Jewish writers generally interpret it; the symbol of God's presence and
glory, and which is called his strength and his glory; see Psalm 78:61; or
rather the Lord Christ, who is the power of God, as well as the wisdom of God;
by whom he made the world, and upholds it; by whom he has redeemed his people,
and keeps and preserves them; and whose power is seen in the efficacy of the
word and ordinances: and who is also the glory of God; he is the brightness of
his Father's glory; his glory is the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father; he has the same glorious nature, perfections, names, homage, and
worship; and the glory of all the divine attributes is displayed in the work of
salvation and redemption he has wrought out; and this glory is to be seen,
through the glass of the word and ordinances, in the house of God. Hence it
follows;
so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary; where he
comes and blesses his people, and manifests himself unto them, as he does not
unto the world; where his goings are seen, and his footsteps traced, Psalm 68:24. The
psalmist calls to mind former experiences in the sanctuary; and these stimulate
him to an eager desire of fresh tastes of the grace of God, and clearer views
of his power and glory. Or, as in a dry and thirsty land my soul longed and
thirsted for time, so have I desired to see thee in the sanctuary; or so I see
thee there as if in the sanctuary.
Psalm 63:3 3 Because Your
lovingkindness is better than life, My lips shall praise You.
YLT
3Because better [is] Thy
kindness than life, My lips do praise Thee.
Because thy lovingkindness is better than life,.... For life
without the love of God is nothing else than death: a man that has no share in
the love of God is dead while he lives; all the enjoyments of life, health,
riches, honour, friends, &c. are nothing without the love of God; the
meanest temporal blessings with it are preferable to the greatest without it, Proverbs 15:17; it
lasts longer than life, and therefore must be better than that; death cannot
separate from it; it continues to all eternity. And that the saints prefer it
to this natural life appears by their readiness to lay it down for the sake of
Christ and his Gospel, in which the lovingkindness of God is so richly
manifested unto them; to which may be added, that it is the love of God which
gives to his people spiritual life, and which issues in eternal life, and
therefore must be better than a temporal one. The Targum is,
"for
better is thy kindness, which thou wilt do for the righteous in the world to
come, than the life which thou givest the wicked in this world;'
my lips shall praise thee; that is, for thy
lovingkindness, and because it is better than life, and any enjoyment of it.
Psalm 63:4 4 Thus I will bless You
while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.
YLT
4So I bless Thee in my life,
in Thy name I lift up my hands.
Thus will I bless thee while I live,.... With his whole heart
and soul, as he had sought after him, and as under a sense of his
lovingkindness; and as he now praised him with his lips, so he determined to do
as long as he had life and being; by proclaiming his blessedness, by ascribing
blessing and honour to him, and by giving him the glory of all mercies temporal
and spiritual;
I will lift up my hands in thy name; not against his enemies,
against those that fought against him, as Kimchi and Ben Melech interpret it,
but unto God in heaven; and that not as a gesture used in swearing, but either
in blessing, as Aben Ezra observes; so the high priest lifted up his hands when
he blessed the people; or in prayer, or in both, so Jarchi's note is, to pray
and to praise; See Gill on Psalm 28:2. The
Targum is,
"in
the name of thy Word I will spread out my hands in prayer for the world to
come;'
that
is, in the name of the Messiah, the essential Word, in whose name prayer is to
be made, and whereby it becomes prevalent and successful; see John 14:13. This is
a prayer gesture; See Gill on Psalm 28:2.
Psalm 63:5 5 My soul shall be satisfied
as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth shall praise You with joyful
lips.
YLT
5As [with] milk and fatness
is my soul satisfied, And [with] singing lips doth my mouth praise.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,.... When he
should return to the house of the Lord, and partake of the provisions of it,
called the fatness of his house; see Gill on Psalm 36:8. The
phrase denotes the abundance of spiritual refreshment and delight in the word
and ordinances, and the great satisfaction had in them; and may have some
regard to benefits arising from prayer, as well as other ordinances. Fat was
not to be eaten under the legal dispensation, and therefore not to be literally
taken; but in the typical and spiritual sense which David understood, and
therefore respects that, or otherwise he would speak contrary to the law of God:
he refers to those spiritual good things which they typified, and give
spiritual pleasure and satisfaction;
and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips; such a full
meal, such a rich entertainment, calls for abundant thankfulness; which is here
signified by the mouth praising the Lord, and doing this with lips of shouting,
expressions of joy, songs of praise, jubilee songs. The allusion is to the use
of music and singing at festivals; see Isaiah 5:12.
Psalm 63:6 6 When I remember You on my
bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.
YLT
6If I have remembered Thee
on my couch, In the watches -- I meditate on Thee.
When I remember thee upon my bed,.... Or "beds"F17יצועי "stratis meis", Pagninus, Montanus,
Piscator, Cocceius; so Junius & Tremellius, Ainsworth. ; seeing he lay in
many, as Kimchi observes, being obliged to flee from place to place. The sense
is, that when he was on his bed in the night season, when alone, and free from
worldly cares and fatigues, and called to mind the love of God to him, the past
experience of his kindness, his promises to hits, and the fulfilment of them:
that he should then be delightfully entertained, abundantly satisfied, slid his
mouth be filled with songs of praise;
and meditate on thee in the night
watches; which the Jewish writers on the text say were three, as they
were with the Jews, but with the Romans four; See Gill on Matthew 14:25; and
the night, in the times of HomerF18Iliad. 10. v. 252, 253. , was
divided into three parts: the night season is a very proper one for meditation
on the perfections, providences, promises, word and works of God; and which is
very delightful and profitable, when attended with the presence, Spirit, and
grace of God. The Targum is,
"in
the watches I will meditate on thy word.'
Psalm 63:7 7 Because You have been my
help, Therefore in the shadow of Your wings I will rejoice.
YLT
7For Thou hast been a help
to me, And in the shadow of Thy wings I sing.
Because thou hast been my help,.... Or, "that thou
hast been my help"F19כי
"quod", Musculus, Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth. ; and so the
words may be considered as the subject of his meditation in the night watches,
at least as a part of it; and as what gave him a great deal of pleasure to
reflect upon, how the Lord had been in times past a present help to him in time
of trouble;
therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice; meaning under
the protecting power of God, where he knew he was safe, and therefore had
reason to rejoice. The allusion is to the chirping of chickens under the wing
of the hen; see Psalm 57:1. The
Targum is,
"in
the shadow of thy Shechinah will I rejoice;'
referring
it may be to the Shechinah, or presence of God, between the cherubim, whose
wings overshadowed the mercy seat.
Psalm 63:8 8 My soul follows close
behind You; Your right hand upholds me.
YLT
8Cleaved hath my soul after
Thee, On me hath Thy right hand taken hold.
My soul followeth hard after thee,.... In a way of duty,
and in the use of means; as prayer, meditation, &c. though at a distance
from the house of God, and worship of it; that he might not lose sight of him;
that he might know more of him, and have more communion with him; being drawn
after him with the cords of love, and strongly affected to him. Or, "my
soul cleaveth after thee", or "to thee"F20דבקה אחריך "adhaesit post
te", Montanus, Gejerus; "tibi adhaesit", Tigurine version; so
Piscator, Michaelis. ; not to the world, and the things of it; not to that
which is evil, but to that which is good, even the "summum bonum";
not to the creature, but to the Lord; which is expressive of union to him, even
such an one as is between man and wife, who cleave to each other, and are one
flesh, Genesis 2:24; and
as is between head and members, vine and branches; see 1 Corinthians 6:17;
and of communion in the exercise of grace, and discharge of duty. To cleave to
the Lord into hold to him, the head; to exercise the graces of faith, hope, and
love upon him; and to follow him in his ways and worship; to abide by his
truths; to attend his ordinances; to keep close to his people, and to adhere
firmly to his cause and interest; see Acts 11:23. The
Targum is,
"my
soul cleaveth after thy law;'
thy right hand upholdeth me; that he fell not through
the snares laid for him, and the stumbling blocks thrown in his way; that he
stood and bore up under all his afflictions, temptations, and difficulties;
that he was enabled to follow hard after the Lord, and cleave unto him; this
supported, supplied, and protected him, even the mighty power and grace of God.
In what a happy, comfortable, and safe condition must the psalmist be! his soul
following hard after the Lord; and the Lord holding and sustaining him with his
right hand! and how vain must be the attempts of his enemies against him! whose
destruction is next predicted.
Psalm 63:9 9 But those who seek
my life, to destroy it, Shall go into the lower parts of the earth.
YLT
9And they who for desolation
seek my soul, Go in to the lower parts of the earth.
But those that seek my soul to destroy it,.... Meaning
his life; for as for his soul, that was immaterial and immortal, and could
never be destroyed by man: but as for his natural life, his enemies laid snares
for that, and sought to take it away, and nothing less would satisfy them;
shall go into the lower parts of the earth; not the
grave, whither the righteous go as well as the wicked; besides, by their being
the portion of foxes, as follows, it seems that they should have no burial; but
hell is meant, the bottomless pit. Some take it to be a prayer, as Kimchi and
Ben Melech; "may they go", or "let them go", &c. see Psalm 55:15. The
allusion may be thought to be to the death of Korah and his company.
Psalm 63:10 10 They shall fall by the
sword; They shall be a portion for jackals.
YLT
10They cause him to run on
the edge of the sword, A portion for foxes they are.
They shall fall by the sword,.... As Saul, his sons,
and mighty men, did, 1 Samuel 31:4; or,
"they shall make him pour out"F21יגירהו
"fundere facient eum", Montanus; so Junius & Tremellius,
Piscator, Schmidt. ; that is, his blood, "by the hands" or "means
of the sword"; meaning either some principal enemy, as Saul in particular,
or everyone of his enemies; who should be thrust with the sword, their blood
let out, and they slain: so antichrist, the enemy of David's son, will be put
to death in this manner, Revelation 13:10;
they shall be a portion for foxes; falling in desolate
places where foxes run, and so become the food of them, and have no other
burial. The foxes hunt after dead carcasses, and will find them out where they
are, in holes and ditches; as appears from the case of Aristomenes, related by
PausaniasF23Messenica, sive l. 4. p. 251. : so the followers of
antichrist, their flesh will be eaten by the fowls of heaven, Revelation 19:17.
Psalm 63:11 11 But the king shall rejoice
in God; Everyone who swears by Him shall glory; But the mouth of those who
speak lies shall be stopped.
YLT
11And the king doth rejoice
in God, Boast himself doth every one swearing by Him, But stopped is the mouth
of those speaking lies!
But the king shall rejoice in God,.... Not Saul, as R.
Obadiah; as if David wished him well, and that he might have reason to rejoice
in God, though he sought his hurt; which sense is rejected by Abea Ezra: but
either David, who speaks of himself as king, being anointed by Samuel, and who,
upon the death of Saul, was so in fact; and who rejoiced, not merely at the
destruction of his enemies, for he lamented the death of Saul, 2 Samuel 1:17; but
in God, in his grace and goodness to him, and in his power and justice shown in
the vengeance taken on them. Or rather, the King Messiah, who rejoiced in God
because of the good of his people, their conversion and salvation, and their
deliverance from their enemies, Psalm 21:1;
everyone that sweareth by him shall glory; not by David,
though such a form of swearing was used; see 2 Samuel 15:21; or,
"to him": and so describes his faithful subjects swearing allegiance
to him: but rather by the Lord, in whom the king should rejoice; and designs
the worshippers of him; swearing by him being sometimes put for the whole
worship and service of God, Deuteronomy 6:13.
The Heathens used to swear by their deities, and their chief was called Jupiter
Horcius, because he presided over oathsF24Euripidis Medea, v. 170.
Vid. Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 5. c. 10. . Or else that the King Christ
should rejoice in God; and intends such as believe in him and confess him; see Isaiah 45:23,
compared with Romans 14:11. And
every such an one will glory, not in themselves, nor in anything of theirs, but
in Christ, in his grace and righteousness, and in what he is unto them;
but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped; such as
Saul's courtiers, who invented and spread lies of David; but now upon the death
of Saul, and David's advancement to the throne, would be silent; their mouths
being stopped either by death, or through fear: and so all the followers of antichrist,
that make and believe a lie, will have their mouths stopped, when cast into the
lake of fire, Revelation 21:8.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》