| Back to Home Page | Back to Book Index
|
Psalm Sixty-nine
New King James Version (NKJV)
YLT
To
the Overseer. -- `On the Lilies,' by David.
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 69
To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, cf15I A Psalm of David. Of
the word "shoshannim", See Gill on Psalm 45:1, title.
The Targum renders it,
"concerning
the removal of the sanhedrim;'
which
was about the time of Christ's death. The TalmudistsF20T. Bab. Avoda
Zara, fol. 8. 2. & Roshhashanah, fol. 31. 1, 2. say, that forty years
before the destruction of the temple, the sanhedrim removed, they removed from
the paved chamber, &c. But it can hardly be thought that David prophesied
of this affair; nor of the captivity of the people of Israel, as the Targum,
Aben Ezra, Kimchi, Arama, and R. Obadiah interpret it: and so Jarchi takes the
word "shoshannim" to signify lilies, and applies it to the
Israelites, who are as a lily among thorns. But not a body of people, but a
single person, is spoken of, and in sorrowful and suffering circumstances; and,
if the Jews were not blind, they might see that they are the enemies of the
person designed, and the evil men from whom he suffered so much. And indeed
what is said of him cannot be said of them, nor of any other person whatever
but the Messiah: and that the psalm belongs to Christ, and to the times of the
Gospel, is abundantly evident from the citations out of it in the New
Testament; as
Psalm 69:4 in John 15:25; Psalm 69:9 in John 2:17; Psalm 69:21 in Matthew 27:34; Psalm 69:22 in Romans 11:9; Psalm 69:25 in Acts 1:16.
The
inscription of the psalm in the Syriac version is,
""a
psalm" of David, according to the letter, when Shemuah (Sheba), the son of
Bichri, blew a trumpet, and the people ceased from following after him (David);
but the prophecy is said concerning those things which the Messiah suffered,
and concerning the rejection of the Jews.'
And
Aben Ezra interprets Psalm 69:36 of the
days of David, or of the days of the Messiah.
Psalm 69:1 Save
me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck.
YLT
1 Save me, O God, for come
have waters unto the soul.
Save me, O God,.... The petitioner is Christ; not as a
divine Person, as such he is blessed for ever, and stands in no need of help
and assistance; but as man, and in distressed and suffering circumstances. As a
priest, it was part of his work to intercede, as well as to offer sacrifice;
and though he did not offer a sin offering for himself, yet he offered up
supplications, with strong cryings and tears; and, as the surety of his people,
he prayed, in point of right and justice, both for himself and them; see John 17:4. The
person petitioned is God the Father, who was able to save him, and always heard
him; and did in this petition, Hebrews 5:7; which
perfectly agrees with some petitions of Christ, recorded in the New Testament, John 12:27. These
show the weakness of the human nature, the weight of sin upon him, and his
sense of the wrath of God; and which, notwithstanding, were made with
limitations and restrictions, and even with a correction. Moreover, this may
also design help and assistance from his divine Father, which was promised him,
and he expected and had, in the acceptable time, in the day of salvation: and
he was so saved in death, as that he abolished that, and destroyed him that had
the power of it; and was quickly raised from the grave, and thereby saved out
of it. And this he could have done himself, but he would be saved in a legal
way, in a way of justice; and as a point of honour, when he had done the work,
he, as a surety, engaged to do. The reasons enforcing this petition follow:
for the waters are come in unto my soul: the Messiah
represents his case, in these words, and in Psalm 69:2, as like
to that of a man standing up to his chin in water, and the waters running into
his mouth, just suffocating him; and that in a miry place, where he could not
set his feet firm, nor get himself out; and even overflowed with the floods,
and immersed in the deep waters, and so in the most imminent danger. These overwhelming
waters may signify the floods of ungodly men that encompassed him, the assembly
of the wicked that enclosed him; and the proud waters that went over his soul,
the Gentiles and people of Israel, that were gathered against him to destroy
him; and so the Targum interprets it of the camp of sinners, that pressed him
on every side, as water: the whole posse of devils may also be designed, for
now was the hour and power of darkness; Satan, and his principalities and
powers, came in like a flood upon him, to swallow him up; innumerable evils,
the sins of his people, came upon him from every quarter, and pressed him sore;
the curses of the law fell upon him, which may be compared to the bitter water
of jealousy that caused the curse. These entered into him, when he was made a
curse for his people; and the wrath of God went over him, and lay hard upon
him, and came about him like water, into his very soul, which made him
exceeding sorrowful, even unto death.
Psalm 69:2 2 I sink in deep mire, Where
there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods
overflow me.
YLT
2I have sunk in deep mire,
And there is no standing, I have come into the depths of the waters, And a
flood hath overflown me.
I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing,.... Which
signifies not despair of mind, but difficult and distressed circumstances; the
Messiah now bearing the filthy sins of his people, and the punishment of them,
and so was got into the horrible pit, the mire and clay; See Gill on Psalm 40:2;
I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me: as
afflictions are often compared to waters in Scripture, Christ's sorrows and
sufferings are very aptly signified by deep waters and overflowing floods; and
therefore rightly called a baptism, as by himself, Luke 12:50, when he
was as one immersed in and overwhelmed with water.
Psalm 69:3 3 I am weary with my crying;
My throat is dry; My eyes fail while I wait for my God.
YLT
3I have been wearied with my
calling, Burnt hath been my throat, Consumed have been mine eyes, waiting for
my God.
I am weary of my crying,.... In his distress;
when, bearing the punishment both of loss and sense, he cried unto God; he
prayed earnestly, with great intenseness and fervency of spirit; he offered
supplications, with strong cryings and tears, insomuch that he calls it a
roaring: and whereas there was a seeming delay of answer to his cries, he cried
till he was weary of crying; and yet it is remarkable that his last cry was
with a loud voice, which surprised the centurion; see Psalm 22:1;
my throat is dried; with crying, so that he was hoarse; or
"burnt"F21נחר
"adustum", Montanus, Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth. ; with inward
heat of a fever, which usually attended persons crucified; see Psalm 22:15;
mine eyes fail while I wait for my God; God the
Father was the God of Christ, as he was man; he prepared a body for him, and
anointed his human nature with the Holy Spirit; he supported and upheld him:
and as such Christ loved him, believed in him, prayed to him, and waited and
looked for help and salvation from him; this being delayed, his eyes failed
with intense looking about for it, as well as with grief and tears. Ainsworth
observes, that failing of the eyes is one of the curses of the law, Leviticus 26:16,
and it shows how in every thing Christ was made a curse for his people.
Psalm 69:4 4 Those who hate me without
a cause Are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy
me, Being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still
must restore it.
YLT
4Those hating me without
cause Have been more than the hairs of my head, Mighty have been my destroyers,
My lying enemies, That which I took not away -- I bring back.
They that hate me without a cause,.... As the Jews did; see
John 15:18; for he
did no injury to the persons or properties of men; but went about continually
doing good, both to their souls and bodies; so that he merited their highest
esteem and love, and not their hatred; and yet they were his implacable
enemies; see Luke 19:14;
are more than the hairs of mine head; they were a
multitude that came to take him in the garden; and it was the multitude that
the priests and Pharisees instigated to ask for the release of Barabbas, and
the crucifixion of Jesus; and a vast number of people followed him to the
cross, and insulted him on it; the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered
together against him;
they that would destroy me; as the Jews sought to do
often before his time was come;
being mine enemies
wrongfully; without cause, as before; or through lies and falsehoods told of
him, and spread about concerning him:
are mighty; lively and strong, as David's enemies were, Psalm 38:19. The
great men of the earth, kings and princes, as Herod and Pontius Pilate, and
also the infernal principalities and powers, who were concerned in contriving
those lies, and putting them into the minds of men; for Satan is the father of
lies and falsehood;
then I restored that which I took not away; by rapine,
force, and violence, as the wordF23גזלתי
"rapui", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, &c. signifies; and which was
done by others. Thus, for instance, Christ restored the glory of God, of which
he was robbed, and which was taken away by the sin of man; by veiling his own
glory, not seeking that, but his Father's; and by working out the salvation of
his people, in such a manner as that all the divine perfections were glorified
by it; hence, "glory to God in the highest", Luke 2:14. He
satisfied justice he had never injured, though others had; he fulfilled a law,
and bore the penalty of it, which he never broke; and made satisfaction for
sins he never committed; and brought in a righteousness he had not taken away;
and provided a better inheritance than what was lost by Adam: and all this was
done at the time of his sufferings and death, and by the means of them.
Psalm 69:5 5 O God, You know my
foolishness; And my sins are not hidden from You.
YLT
5O God, Thou -- Thou hast
known Concerning my overturn, And my desolations from Thee have not been hid.
O God, thou knowest my foolishness,.... Not that there was
real foolishness in him, who, as man, from his infancy was filled with wisdom,
and increased in it; and, as Mediator, had the spirit of wisdom on him, and the
treasures of wisdom in him; and, as a divine Person, he is the Wisdom of God,
and the only wise God; and, as in our nature, there was no foolishness in his
heart, nor in his words, nor in his actions: but this is to be understood
either of what was accounted so by others; he and his followers were reckoned
foolish and illiterate men, and the Gospel preached by him and his apostles was
foolishness to them that perished; or of what he was charged with by his enemies;
even with immorality, heresy, blasphemy, and sedition; of all which he was
innocent, and therefore could appeal to his divine Father, who knows all
things, that he was clear of all such folly; for it may be rendered, "thou
knowest as to my foolishness"F24לאולתי
"tu nosti ut res se habeat quoad stultitiam meam", Gussetius, p. 312.
, with respect to what he was charged with, that there was none in him; or else
it regards the foolishness of his people imputed to him, the sin that folly of
follies, together with all the foolishness in the heart, lip, and lives of his
people, before and after conversion; these were all reckoned to him, and
reckoned by him, as his own in some sense; and which is confirmed by what
follows:
and my sins are not hid from thee; meaning not any
committed by him; for then he could not have said what he does in Psalm 69:4; but the
sins of his people imputed to him, which be calls his own; see Gill on Psalm 40:12, these
must be known to his divine Father, since he is God omniscient, and since he
laid them upon him, and he made satisfaction for them to him; and which he
observes to enforce his petition, Psalm 69:1; with
this compare Isaiah 53:11.
Psalm 69:6 6 Let not those who wait for
You, O Lord GOD
of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded
because of me, O God of Israel.
YLT
6Let not those waiting on
Thee be ashamed because of me, O Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, Let not those seeking
Thee Blush because of me, O God of Israel.
Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed
for my sake,.... Of their expectation of redemption and salvation by the
Messiah, they have been waiting upon the Lord for; when they shall see him in
suffering circumstances, and even dead and laid in the grave, without any hope
of his rising again; which was the case of the two disciples travelling to
Emmaus, Luke 24:19; whose
trust in him, and expectation of him, as the Redeemer of Israel, were almost
gone. The people of God, and believers in Christ, are described by such that
"wait on the Lord"; for the coming of Christ, and salvation by him;
who would be in danger of being put to shame and in confusion, when they should
see him under the power of death and the grave; wherefore in this petition
Christ addresses his divine Father as "the Lord God of hosts", of armies
above and below, as God omnipotent; partly to encourage their trust and
confidence in him, and partly to encourage his own faith as man, that this
petition would be answered;
let not those that seek thee: in the word and
ordinances, by prayer and supplication, with all their hearts, in Christ, in
whom the Lord is only to be found, and for life and happiness:
be confounded for my sake; that is, through his
sufferings and death, as before:
O God of Israel; the covenant God of the spiritual Israel, whom
he has chosen, the Messiah redeems, and the Spirit makes Israelites indeed.
Psalm 69:7 7 Because for Your sake I
have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face.
YLT
7For because of Thee I have
borne reproach, Shame hath covered my face.
Because for thy sake I have borne reproach,.... Being
reckoned a sinner, called a deceiver, said to be a Samaritan, and to have a
devil; with many other reproaches, which he bore patiently for the sake of the
word and worship of God, and for the sake of the glory of God, which he all
along sought; and to repair the loss of it, which was sustained through the sin
of man;
shame hath covered my face; when he was spit upon by
some, and smote by others with a rod upon his cheek; and when he was
blindfolded, and bid to prophesy who smote him; see Isaiah 50:6.
Psalm 69:8 8 I have become a stranger
to my brothers, And an alien to my mother’s children;
YLT
8A stranger I have been to
my brother, And a foreigner to sons of my mother.
I am become a stranger unto my brethren,.... Not only
to the Jews in general, who were his own people and nation, to whom he came,
and of whom he came; who received him not, hid as it were their faces from him,
and rejected him as the Messiah; but also to such who were still nearer akin to
him, according to the flesh, who did not believe in him, John 7:5; and even
in some sense to his disciples and followers; some of which having heard some
doctrines delivered by him not agreeable to them, withdrew from him, and walked
no more with him, John 6:60; yea, to
his apostles, whom he often called his brethren: one of these betrayed him,
another denied him with oaths and cursing, and all of them forsook him and
fled, when he was taken by his enemies, and about to suffer death;
and an alien unto my mother's children; which is the
same as before, in other words. The Targum is,
"as
the son of the Gentiles to my mother's children;'
that
is, as an Heathen to them; see Matthew 18:17.
Psalm 69:9 9 Because zeal for Your
house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen
on me.
YLT
9For zeal for Thy house hath
consumed me, And the reproaches of Thy reproachers Have fallen upon me.
For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up,.... Of the
house of the sanctuary, as the Targum; that is, the temple, which was Christ's
Father's house, where he was worshipped and dwelt; and zeal for his Father, and
his glory in it, and indignation against those that made it an house of
merchandise, inflamed him; put him upon driving out the buyers and sellers in
it, whereby this passage had its accomplishment, John 2:14; and this
may be applied to the church of God which is the house of God, of his building,
and where he dwells; and zeal may design the fervent affection of Christ for
it, for the doctrine, discipline, and salvation of it. His zeal for the Gospel
appeared in his warm and lively preaching it, in his assiduity and constancy in
it; in the wearisome journeys he took to spread it, in the risks he run, and
dangers he exposed himself to, for the sake of it; in the miracles he wrought
to confirm it, and in the care he took to free it from calumny and reproach:
his zeal for the worship and discipline of God's house was shown by his
asserting the purity of worship in spirit and truth; by his severe inveighing
against the traditions, superstition, and will worship of men, and against the
vices and corruptions of professors of religion, the Scribes and Pharisees: his
zeal for the salvation of his people is easily seen in his suretyship
engagements for them; in coming into this world to do the will of him that sent
him; in his early regards unto it, and vehement desire, even of suffering
death, in order to accomplish it, and in his voluntary and cheerful submission
and obedience, even to the death of the cross: this zeal of his was according
to knowledge, and was cordial, hearty, and unfeigned; and this "eat him
up": inflamed like fire his spirit and affections; consumed his time and
strength, and even life itself;
and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me: the same
persons that reproached the one reproached the other; and the reproaches of his
divine Father were as cutting to him as if cast on himself; it went to his
heart that his Father's house should be made an house of merchandise; that his
doctrine should be despised, his worship neglected, and his glory lessened; to
have the name of God, his ways and truth, evil spoken of, were not pleasing to
him; he took all reproach of this kind to himself, and bore it becomingly; and
yet showed zeal for his Father's glory, and indignation against those that
reproached him; see Romans 15:1.
Psalm 69:10 10 When I wept and
chastened my soul with fasting, That became my reproach.
YLT
10And I weep in the fasting
of my soul, And it is for a reproach to me.
When I wept,.... Because of the sins of his people imputed to him; the
hardness and unbelief of the Jews that rejected him; their impiety and
profaneness in polluting the temple with their merchandise: he wept at the
grave of Lazarus, and over the city of Jerusalem, on account of the blindness
of its inhabitants, and the ruin coming upon them; and in his prayers at
different times, especially in the garden and on the cross, which were offered
up with strong crying and tears; see John 11:35;
and chastened my soul with
fasting; or "my soul being in fasting"F25בצום נפשי "cum esset in
jejunio anima mea", Musculus, Cocceius, Gejerus, De Dieu. . The Targum
renders it, "in the fasting of my soul"; the word
"chastened" is supplied from Psalm 35:13; and
"soul" is put for the body, or for the whole person. Christ fasted
forty days and nights in the wilderness; and often, through neglect of himself,
and multiplicity of business, in preaching, and in healing diseases, was
without food for some time: he seems to have been fasting the day that he
suffered, when he made atonement for sin; and so answered the type on the day
of atonement, when every man was to afflict his soul with fasting, Leviticus 16:29;
hence the Jews taunting at him gave him gall for his meat, and vinegar for his
drink, Psalm 69:21; and it
follows,
that was to my reproach; if he ate and drank, he
was charged with being a glutton and a winebibber; and if he wept and fasted,
as John his forerunner did, they reproached him with madness, and having a
devil, Matthew 11:18; and,
as may be reasonably supposed, after this manner;
"can
this poor creature, that weeps, and mourns, and fasts, be thought to be the Son
of God, a divine Person, as he makes himself to be, and his followers believe
he is?'
and
so the blind Jews reason to this day.
Psalm 69:11 11 I also made sackcloth my
garment; I became a byword to them.
YLT
11And I make my clothing
sackcloth, And I am to them for a simile.
I made sackcloth also my garment,.... Though we nowhere
read that Jesus put on sackcloth upon any occasion, yet it is not improbable
that he did; besides, the phrase may only intend that he mourned and sorrowed
at certain times, as persons do when they put on sackcloth: moreover, as the
common garb of his forerunner was raiment of camels' hair, with a leathern
girdle; so it is very likely his own was very mean, suitable to his condition;
who, though he was rich, for our sakes became poor;
and I became a proverb to them; a byword; so that when
they saw any person in sackcloth, or in vile raiment, behold such an one looks
like Jesus of Nazareth.
Psalm 69:12 12 Those who sit in the gate
speak against me, And I am the song of the drunkards.
YLT
12Those sitting at the gate
meditate concerning me, And those drinking strong drink, Play on instruments.
They that sit in the gate speak against me,.... The
princes, magistrates, and judges, who sat in the gates of cities, heard and
tried causes, and executed judgment there; the elders of the city; see 4:1; the civil rulers among the Jews are meant; and also
their ecclesiastical ones, the Scribes and Pharisees that sat in Moses's seat;
though some think men of lower characters are designed, idle persons that
saunter about, and sit in gateways, and corners of streets, and in
marketplaces; spending their time, like the Athenians, in hearing and telling
of news, and prating about this and the other person, and their affairs; but
the former sense seems best, since these are rather intended in the next
clause: now such men of rank and figure spoke against Christ; against his
person as the Son of God, against his office as the Messiah, against his
doctrines and ordinances, and against his people and followers: or they spake
together "of him"F26בי "de
me", Tigurine version, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius,
Gejerus, Michaelis. ; they confabulated and consulted together how to seize
him, and take away his life, as the chief priests and elders frequently did;
and when they had taken him they gave their voice against him, and unanimously
condemned him, when they sat in judgment upon him;
and I was the song of the drunkards; or "of
them that drink strong drink"F1שחר
"sechar", Montanus; siceram, Tigurine version, Cocceius; "potum
inebriantem", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Michaelis. ; be it made
of what it will; that is, to excess: these, while they played on their
instruments of music, as the wordF2נגינות
"cantiones ad instrumenta musica", Vatablus; "pulsationes",
Gejerus. here used signifies, sung songs, and Christ was the subject of them;
as Job complains was his case, Job 30:8; very
probably the common people that were employed in taking of Jesus might have
plenty of liquor given them by the priests and elders, to encourage them; and
this being a festival time too, might come at it more easily than usual, and
drink more freely; and this might be the case of the Roman soldiers, when they
made Christ the subject of their mirth and diversion in Pilate's hall.
Psalm 69:13 13 But as for me, my prayer is
to You, O Lord,
in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, Hear me
in the truth of Your salvation.
YLT
13And I -- my prayer [is] to Thee,
O Jehovah, A time of good pleasure, O God, In the abundance of Thy kindness,
Answer me in the truth of Thy salvation.
But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Lord,.... Christ
betook himself to prayer in these circumstances, and not to railing and reviling
again: he applied to his divine Father, and committed himself to him that
judgeth righteously, and prayed both for himself and for his enemies too: and
this he did
in an acceptable time; or "a
time of good will"F3עת רצון "tempus beneplaciti", V. L. Pagninus,
Montanus, &c. ; which was the time of his sufferings and death; so called,
because the good will and pleasure of God was seen therein; in not sparing his
Son, his own and only begotten Son, his beloved Son, and delivering him up to
justice and death for the worst of sinners; and because at this time the good
will of God was done: Christ laid down his life by the commandment of his
Father, offered himself a sacrifice by the will of God, and hereby the law of
God was fulfilled, justice satisfied, and the work of man's redemption
finished; which was the pleasure of the Lord, that prospered in his hands; and
therefore this must be an acceptable time to God. The sufferings of Christ were
well pleasing to him; the sacrifice of Christ was for a sweet smelling savour;
the righteousness of Christ was acceptable to him, the law being magnified and
made honourable by it: peace was now made by the blood of his cross; the
perfections of God were glorified, his purposes executed, his promises
fulfilled, his covenant confirmed, and his people saved; and so a proper time
for the Mediator to offer up his supplications and prayers, in which he was
heard, as appears from Isaiah 49:8;
O God, in the multitude of thy mercy; these words,
according to the accents in the Hebrew text, should be rendered in connection
with the preceding words, thus: "in the time of good will, O God"; or
"in the time of the good will of God, through the multitude of thy
mercy"; and then the sense is, that the acceptable time was owing to the
greatness of divine mercy; it was from hence that the dayspring from on high
visited men; or Christ came in the flesh, and suffered in the room and stead of
sinners; in which there was a wonderful display of the abundant mercy of God to
men; for otherwise there was none shown to the surety and Saviour; he was not
spared, but delivered up; and then it follows,
hear me, in the truth of thy salvation; or
"because of", or "by thy true salvation"F4באמת ישעך "per salutem tuam
veram", Gejerus. ; that which God contrived in council, and secured in
covenant, and sent his Son to effect, and which he is become the author of, is
a true and real salvation; not figurative and shadowy, as the salvation of
Israel out of Egypt and Babylon were: or because of the truth and faithfulness
of God, who had promised salvation to the Messiah, that he should be carried
through his sufferings, be raised from the dead, and be crowned with glory and
honour; and therefore he prays he might be heard on this account, and his
prayer follows, and the several petitions in it.
Psalm 69:14 14 Deliver me out of the
mire, And let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, And out
of the deep waters.
YLT
14Deliver me from the mire,
and let me not sink, Let me be delivered from those hating me, And from deep
places of waters.
Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink,.... In which
he was sinking, Psalm 69:2; and
accordingly he was delivered out of it, Psalm 11:2; even
out of all the mire of sin, the sins of his people that were upon him, from
which he was justified when raised from the dead; and so will appear without
sin, when he comes a second time:
let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep
waters; these phrases design the same, even the enemies of Christ; such
that hated him, compared to deep waters: these are the floods of the ungodly,
and the many waters out of which he was drawn and delivered, Psalm 18:4.
Psalm 69:15 15 Let not the floodwater
overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth
on me.
YLT
15Let not a flood of waters
overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up, Nor let the pit shut her mouth
upon me.
Let not the water flood overflow me,.... The enemy, Satan,
that came in like a flood upon him, with his whole posse of devils; or the
wrath of God, which came upon him like a flood overwhelming him:
neither let the deep swallow me up: as Jonah by the whale,
and Dathan and Abiram in the earth:
and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me; either the
pit of hell; so the Targum interprets it: for Christ, when he endured the
curses of the law, and the wrath of God, suffered the same for kind as the damned
in hell; only the mouth of this pit could not be shut upon him, or he be
continued under such wrath and curse: or else the pit of the grave, where his
divine Father left him not, or suffered him to be so long in it as to see
corruption; this pit was not shut upon him, but he was delivered out of it, and
will die no more.
Psalm 69:16 16 Hear me, O Lord, for Your
lovingkindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of Your
tender mercies.
YLT
16Answer me, O Jehovah, for
good [is] Thy kindness, According to the abundance Of Thy mercies turn Thou
unto me,
Hear me, O Lord; for thy lovingkindness is good,.... His
lovingkindness to him, not only as his Son, but as Mediator; and which is a
love of complacency and delight, and was from eternity, and will be to
eternity: and this is "good", as appears by the effects and evidences
of it; such as putting all things into his hands, showing him all that he does,
concealing and keeping nothing from him, appointing him to be the Saviour of his
people, the Head of the church, and the Judge of the world; and this
lovingkindness shown to him is a reason why he might expect to be heard by his
God and Father; see John 17:24; and the
loving kindness of God to his people, and the members of Christ, is also good:
it arises from the good will and pleasure of God; it is pleasantly and
delightfully good to the saints, who have tasted that the Lord is gracious, and
have had his love shed abroad in their hearts; it is profitably good unto them;
it has prepared and laid up good things for them, both for time and eternity,
even all the blessings of grace and goodness: it has promised good things unto
them in covenant, and it gives Christ, and all good things along with him; it
has a good influence on the graces of the Spirit, faith, hope, and love, to
encourage them; and engages believers to a cheerful obedience to all the divine
commands; to which may be added the duration of it, it lasts for ever: and it
is so good, that it is better than any temporal good thing without it; it is
better than life, and all the comforts of it, Psalm 63:3;
turn unto me, according to the multitude of thy tender mercies; his divine
Father had turned away his face from him, and turned his fury upon him; he had
awoke his sword of justice against him, pointed it at him, and thrust it into
him; and now, satisfaction being made, he desires he would turn unto him in a
way of grace and favour; that he would have respect unto him, and look upon him
with his paternal countenance, and in a kind and tender manner, as well pleased
with him, and with his righteousness and sacrifice. Of the phrase,
"according to the multitude of that tender mercies"; see Gill on Psalm 51:1.
Psalm 69:17 17 And do not hide Your face
from Your servant, For I am in trouble; Hear me speedily.
YLT
17And hide not Thy face from
Thy servant, For I am in distress -- haste, answer me.
And hide not thy face from thy servant,.... This is a
character that is frequently given to Christ as Mediator; he is a servant of
God's choosing, calling, and appointing; of his sending, bringing forth, and
supporting; who is an obedient, diligent, righteous, and prudent one; who
always reverenced and honoured him whose servant he was, Isaiah 42:1; now,
when he was on the cross, suffering in the room and stead of his people, his
Father hid his face from him; which he here deprecates, and desires he would
not continue to do, seeing he was his servant, now doing his service, and about
to finish it, even the great work of man's redemption; and for a reason
following;
for I am in trouble; in straits and
difficulties; pressed on every side, enclosed with the assembly of the wicked,
who were mocking of him, and with the whole posse of devils, who were throwing
their fiery darts at him; having the sins of his people and the curses of a
righteous law on him, and the wrath of God in him; and what increased his
trouble was, he was forsaken by him;
hear me speedily; or "make haste to hear"F5מהר ענני "festina exaudire
me", Vatablus. ; and answer me; his case required haste; see Psalm 22:19.
Psalm 69:18 18 Draw near to my soul, and
redeem it; Deliver me because of my enemies.
YLT
18Be near unto my soul --
redeem it, Because of mine enemies ransom me.
Draw nigh unto my soul,.... God his father,
while he was suffering, stood afar off from him; wherefore he desires that he
would draw nigh to him in the manifestations of his love and favour to him;
which he did, when he made known to him the way of life, and made him full of
joy with his countenance;
and redeem it: that is, from
the power of the grave; not leave it there, but raise him from the dead, and
give him glory, as he did;
deliver me, because of mine enemies; that they might not
triumph over him, as if, being dead, he should rise no more; and so the Targum,
"that
mine enemies might not lift up themselves against me.'
Or
the meaning is, deliver me from the grave, raise me from the dead, that I may
requite mine enemies, and take vengeance on them; see Psalm 41:8.
Psalm 69:19 19 You know my reproach, my
shame, and my dishonor; My adversaries are all before You.
YLT
19Thou -- Thou hast known my
reproach, And my shame, and my blushing, Before Thee [are] all mine
adversaries.
Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour,.... A heap of
words to express the greatness of the contempt that was cast upon him, and the
injury that was done to his person and character; which was all known to God:
as how he was vilified by wicked words and blasphemous speeches; how he was
exposed to shame and dishonour by deeds; by spitting upon him, buffeting him,
veiling his face, stripping him of his garments, and scourging and crucifying
him naked;
mine adversaries are all before thee; in his sight:
he knew their persons, the malice and wickedness that were in their hearts; and
all the evil words that were spoken, and the evil actions that were done by
them. Or, "are all against thee"F6נגרך
"coram te, vel contra te", Cocceius. ; for they that were against
Christ were against his Father.
Psalm 69:20 20 Reproach has broken my
heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity,
but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none.
YLT
20Reproach hath broken my
heart, and I am sick, And I look for a bemoaner, and there is none, And for
comforters, and I have found none.
Reproach hath broken my heart,.... This was his case
when his soul was exceeding sorrowful unto death, and his heart like wax melted
in the midst of his bows is, Matthew 26:38;
and I am full of heaviness; as he was in the garden,
Mark 14:33; or,
"very sick, yea, incurably sick", as the wordF7ואנושה "adeo ut afficiar aegritudine", Junius
& Tremellius, Piscator; "dolui vel aegritudine affectus sum",
Gejerus. signifies; see 2 Samuel 12:15. For
what cure is there for a broken heart?
and I looked for some to take pity, but there was
none; and for comforters, but I found none: his disciples forsook
him and fled; the priests, scribes, and common people, that attended him at the
cross, mocking him; the thieves that were crucified with him reviled him; and
his Father hid his face from him; only a few women stood afar off and lamented.
Psalm 69:21 21 They also gave me gall for
my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
YLT
21And they give for my food
gall, And for my thirst cause me to drink vinegar.
They gave me also gall for my meat,.... Either some bitter
herb mentioned with wormwood and hemlock, Deuteronomy 29:18;
or the gall of some animal The Targum renders it,
"the
gall of the heads of serpents:'
the
poison of some serpents is in their heads, and the word that is here used
signifies the head; see Deuteronomy 32:33.
This was literally fulfilled in Christ, Matthew 27:34; and
showed that he bore the curse of the law; that being given to him for food,
which was not fit to be eaten; thereby intimating, that he deserved not to have
the common food and necessaries of life; which is the case of those in whose
place and stead he suffered: and this may be a rebuke to such who, through
fulness and affluence, are apt to slight and contemn some of the good creatures
of God, which ought to be received with thanksgiving; let them remember the
gall that was given Christ for meat. And this may serve to reconcile poor
Christians to that mean fare and low way of living they are obliged to; though
they, have but a dinner of herbs, or bread and water, it is better fare than
their Lord's; it is not gall;
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink; Christ, when
on the cross, was athirst, which was occasioned by a fever that usually
attended persons in his circumstances; see Psalm 22:15; and,
that this Scripture might be fulfilled, he signified it, saying, "I
thirst"; upon which vinegar was given to him, as all the evangelists
relate; Matthew 27:48. This
shows the truth of Christ's human nature; that it was a true and real body that
he assumed, which was subject to hunger and thirst, and was supported by food
and drink, as our bodies are; also the truth of divine revelation; since such a
minute circumstance as this, predicted so many hundred years ago, should, after
so long a time, be exactly fulfilled; and likewise the truth of the Messiahship
of Jesus, in whom this, and every thing else said Messiah, in the Law, the
Prophets, and the book of Psalms, were fully accomplished; and therefore it may
be strongly concluded that this is he of whom they spoke. Moreover, this
expresses the inhumanity of the enemies of Christ, to use him in this manner,
when he was suffering and dying; see Proverbs 31:6.
Psalm 69:22 22 Let their table become a
snare before them, And their well-being a trap.
YLT
22Their table before them is
for a snare, And for a recompence -- for a trap.
Let their table become a snare before them,.... This and
the following imprecations were not the effects of a spirit of private revenge;
of which there was no appearance in Christ, but all the reverse who prayed for
his enemies, while they were using him as above related: but they are
prophecies of what should be, being delivered out under the inspiration of the
Spirit of God, Acts 1:16.
Wherefore some versions render the words, "their table shall become a
snare"F8יהו "erit",
Pagninus, Montanus; "fiet vel fiat", Gejerus. ; and therefore are not
to be drawn into an example by us, to favour and encourage a revengeful spirit:
and they are very just and righteous, according to "lex talionis",
the law of retaliation; since, inasmuch as they gave Christ gall for his meat,
and vinegar for his drink, it was but right that the same measure should be
meted out to them again; and their table mercies and blessings be cursed; that
they should have them not in love, but in bitter wrath. Or that they should be
left to be overcharged with them, and surfeit upon them; and so the day of
their destruction come upon them as a snare: or that they should want the
common necessaries of life, and be tempted to eat what was not lawful; and even
their own children, as some did; see Malachi 2:2, Lamentations 4:10.
The Targum gives the sense of the words thus;
"let
their table, which they prepared before me, that I might eat before them, be
for a snare;'
meaning
a table spread with vinegar and gall. Of the figurative sense of these words;
see Gill on Romans 11:9; where
apostle cites this passage, and applies it to the enemies of Christ;
and that which should have been for their welfare, let
it become a trap; the word translated, "for their welfare", comes
from שלמ, which signifies both "to be at
peace", and "to recompense"; and so is differently interpreted.
Some think the "shelamim", or peace offerings, are meant; see Exodus 24:5; and so
the Targum,
"let
their sacrifices be for a trap, or stumbling block;'
as
they were, they trusting in them for the atonement of sin: and so neglected the
atoning sacrifice of Christ, and his righteousness; which was the stumbling
block at which they stumbled, and the trap into which they fell, and was their
ruin. And it is observable, that while they were eating the sacrifice of the
passover, they were surrounded by the Roman army, and taken as birds in a net,
and as beasts in a trap. Others render the words, "to them that are at
peace"F9לשלומים
"tranquilli", Gejerus; so some in Michaelis. , let their table be
"for a trap"; while they are living in security, and crying, Peace,
peace, let sudden, destruction come upon them; as it did. But the apostle has
taught us how to render the word "for a recompence", Romans 11:9; as the
word, differently pointed, is in Isaiah 34:8. The
true rendering and meaning of the whole seem to be this, "let their table
become a snare before them"; and let their table be "for
recompences" unto them, or in just retaliation; let the same food, or the
like unto it, be set upon their tables, they gave to Christ, and let their
table "become a trap"; for all relate to their table.
Psalm 69:23 23 Let their eyes be
darkened, so that they do not see; And make their loins shake continually.
YLT
23Darkened are their eyes
from seeing, And their loins continually shake Thou.
Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not,.... Not
literally, the eyes of their bodies; but figuratively, the eyes of their
understanding; which were so darkened, and they given up to such judicial
blindness, that they could not discern the signs of the times that the Messiah
must be come, Daniel's weeks being up; could not see any glory, excellency, and
comeliness in Christ; could not see the evidence of the Messiahship of Jesus in
the miracles he wrought; nor in the prophecies of the Old Testament fulfilled
in him: that book was a sealed book unto them; the Gospel, and the doctrines of
it, were hid from them, even from the wise and prudent among them; yea, also those
things which belonged to their temporal peace; they were so blinded and
infatuated, they could not see what was for their outward good and happiness:
and, in proof of this their blindness, the words are cited by the apostle in Romans 11:7; see Matthew 16:3;
and make their loins continually to shake; weaken their
loins, in which a man's strength lies, that they may not be able to rise up
against their enemies; and that they might not be able to flee and escape from
them; see Deuteronomy 33:11;
or fill them with horror, dread, and trembling, as they will be when Christ
shall come in the clouds of heaven; and they shall see him whom they have
pierced, Revelation 1:7. The
apostle renders the words "bow down their back alway"; See Gill on Romans 11:10.
Psalm 69:24 24 Pour out Your indignation
upon them, And let Your wrathful anger take hold of them.
YLT
24Pour upon them Thine
indignation, And the fierceness of Thine anger doth seize them.
Pour out thine indignation upon them,.... Not a few
drops of it only, but a flood of it, sweeping away and bearing down all before
it; which was done when wrath came upon them to the uttermost, in the
destruction of their city, temple, and nation, 1 Thessalonians 2:16;
let thy wrathful anger take hold of them; follow after
them, overtake them, seize upon them, and hold them fast, that they may not
escape. It denotes the severity of God towards them; the fierceness and fury of
his wrath upon them; and that their destruction would be inevitable, and an
entire and utter one.
Psalm 69:25 25 Let their dwelling place
be desolate; Let no one live in their tents.
YLT
25Their tower is desolated,
In their tents there is no dweller.
Let their habitation be desolate,.... Which is applied to
Judas, Acts 1:20; but not
to the exclusion of others; for it must be understood of the habitations of
others; even of their princes and nobles, their chief magistrates, high priest
and other priests, scribes, and doctors of the law: for the word may be
rendered, "their palace" or "castle"F11טיר־תאם "palatium eorum", Pagninus, Montanus,
Tigurine version, Cocceius, Michaelis; "castella eorum", Junius &
Tremellius, Piscator; "palatium vel casteilum eorum", Gejerus; so
Ainsworth. , as it is by some; and so may denote the houses of their principal
men, the members of their sanhedrim; their houses great and fair, of which
there were many in Jerusalem when it was destroyed; see Isaiah 5:9; as well
as the habitations of the meaner sort of people, which all became desolate at
that time; and particularly their house, the temple, which was like a palace or
castle, built upon a mountain. This was left desolate, as our Lord foretold it
would, Matthew 23:38;
and let none dwell in their
tents; the city of Jerusalem was wholly destroyed and not a house left
standing in it, nor an inhabitant of it; it was laid even with the ground,
ploughed up, and not one stone left upon another, Luke 19:44.
Psalm 69:26 26 For they persecute the ones
You have struck, And talk of the grief of those You have wounded.
YLT
26For they have pursued him
Thou hast smitten, And recount of the pain of Thy pierced ones.
For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten,.... Meaning
the Messiah, who was not only smitten and scourged by men, but was stricken and
smitten of God; according to his determinate counsel and foreknowledge, and
agreeably to his will and plea sure; with the rod of his justice for the
satisfaction of it; for the sins of his people, whose surety he was. Him the
Jews followed with reproaches and calumnies; pursued after his life, and
persecuted him unto death; and which was the cause of their ruin and
destruction; see 1 Thessalonians 2:15;
and they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded; or, "of
thy wounded ones"F12חלליך
"vulneratorum tuorum", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version,
Musculus; so Ainsworth. ; not wounded by him, but wounded for his sake, on his
account, and for their profession of faith in his son Jesus Christ. These, as
they were led to the slaughter, had trial of cruel mockings, which aggravated
their sufferings, and were very grieving to them; especially such talk as
reflected upon their dear Redeemer, for whose sake they were put to death.
Psalm 69:27 27 Add iniquity to their
iniquity, And let them not come into Your righteousness.
YLT
27Give punishment for their
iniquity, And they enter not into Thy righteousness.
Add iniquity to their iniquity,.... Let them alone in
sin; suffer them to go on in it; lay no restraints upon them; put no stop in providence
in their way; let them proceed from one evil to another, till they fall into
ruin: to their natural and acquired hardness of heart, give them up to a
judicial hardness; that they may do things that are not convenient, and be
damned. Suffer them not to stop at the crucifixion of the Messiah; let them go
on to persecute his apostles and followers; to show the utmost spite and malice
against the Christian religion; to embrace false Christs, and blaspheme the
true one; to believe the greatest lies and absurdities, and commit the foulest
of actions; as seditions, rapines, murders, &c. as they did while Jerusalem
was besieged; that they may fill up the measure of their sins, and wrath may
come upon them to the uttermost, 1 Thessalonians 2:15.
The word עון, rendered "iniquity",
sometimes signifies "punishment", as in Genesis 4:13; and,
according to this sense of it, the words may be differently rendered, and admit
a different meaning; either, "give punishment for their iniquity"F13תנה עון על
עונם "da punitionem iniquitatis", Pagninus;
"appone illis poenam pro iniquitate", Muis. ; so Kimchi; that is,
punish them according to their deserts, as their sins and iniquities require:
or, "add punishment to their punishment"F14So Junius &
Tremellius. ; to their present temporal punishment before imprecated, relating
to their table mercies, their persons, and their habitations, add future and
everlasting punishment; let them be punished with everlasting destruction, soul
and body, in hell;
and let them not come into thy righteousness; meaning, not
his strict justice or righteous judgment; into that they would certainly come;
nor was it the will of the Messiah they should escape it: but either the
goodness, grace, and mercy of God, which is sometimes desired by righteousness,
as in Psalm 31:1; and the
sense is, let them have no share in pardoning grace now, nor obtain mercy in
the last day; but be condemned when they are judged, Psalm 109:7. Or
rather, the righteousness of Christ, which is called the righteousness of God,
that is, the Father; because he approves and accepts of it, and imputes it to
his people without works: and seeing the Jews sought for justification by their
own works, and went about to establish their own righteousness, and submitted
not to Christ's, but despised and rejected it; it was but just that they should
be excluded from all benefit and advantage by it, as is here imprecated. The
Targum is,
"and
let them not be worthy to come into the congregation of shy righteous ones;'
neither
here, nor at the last judgment; see Psalm 1:5.
Psalm 69:28 28 Let them be blotted out of
the book of the living, And not be written with the righteous.
YLT
28They are blotted out of the
book of life, And with the righteous are not written.
Let them be blotted out of the book of life,.... Which
some understand of this animal life, or of the catalogue of living saints; of
their being not written among the living in Jerusalem, or in the writing of the
house of Israel, Isaiah 4:3. The
Targum is,
"let
them he blotted out of the book of the memory of the living.'
Let
their names rot and perish, being buried in everlasting oblivion. Aben Ezra
interprets this book of the heavens; where, he says, all things that should
come to pass were written, at the time they were created; see Luke 10:20. But
this is the book of divine predestination or election, often in the New
Testament called the book of life; in which the names of some persons are
written, and others not, Philemon 4:3; so
called, not with respect to the present life, and the affairs of it, which
belong to the book of Providence; but with respect to the life of the world to
come, or eternal life, as Kimchi explains it. It is no other than God's
ordination or foreappointment of men to eternal life; which being called a
book, and names written in it, show that election is personal or particular;
the exact knowledge God has of his chosen ones; his great care of them, and
value for them; his constant remembrance of them, and the certainty of their
salvation; for such whose names are written here in reality can never be
blotted out: this would be contrary to the unchangeableness of God, the
firmness of his purposes, and the safety of his people. Wherefore the design of
this imprecation is, that those persons who had, in their own conceits, and in
the apprehensions of others, a name in this book; that it might appear, both to
themselves and others, they had none, by the awful ruin and destruction that
should be brought upon them;
and not be written with the righteous; neither in
the book of life with them; by which it appears, that to be blotted out, and
not be written, are the same: nor in a Gospel church state; so they were the
branches broken off: nor be among them at the resurrection of the just, and in
the judgment day. Kimchi observes, that it is the same thing in different
words; to be blotted out is the same as not to be written.
Psalm 69:29 29 But I am poor and
sorrowful; Let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high.
YLT
29And I [am] afflicted and
pained, Thy salvation, O God, doth set me on high.
But I am poor and sorrowful,.... The Messiah was poor
in a literal sense, as it was foretold he should, Zechariah 9:9; so
he was in his private life; born of poor parents, and brought up in a mean way:
and in his public life, having no certain dwelling place, and ministered to by
others; and when on the cross, being stripped of his garments; and nothing to
eat and drink but gall and vinegar; and nothing to leave to his mother, but
commits her to the care of his beloved disciple. Though this phrase in general
may denote the low estate of Christ in his humiliation, being in the form of a
servant, humbled and obedient to death; and the character of
"sorrowful" well agrees with him, who was a man of sorrows all his
days; and in the garden his soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto death; and
when on the cross he had sorrow enough; what with the sins of his people on
him, the flouts and jeers of his enemies at him; the pains of body he endured,
the wrath of God, the hidings of his face, and the curses of his righteous law.
After this declaration of his low and distressed state, a petition follows:
let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high: meaning
either the salvation of the Lord's people, so called, because concerted and
appointed of God, and is what he sent his Son to effect, and he approves of;
this being wrought out was the way and, means of the exaltation of Christ; both
by his divine Father, who on this account exalted him at his right hand; and by
his people, who exalt him in their hearts, and with their tongues, and give him
all the glory of their salvation. Or else this means the salvation of Christ
out of the hands of all his enemies, whom he conquered on the cross; and
particularly death, from which he was saved by his resurrection, and was the
first step to his exaltation and glory; after which he ascended on high, and
sat down at the right hand of God; where no mere creature, angels or men, were
ever admitted; and where angels, principalities, and powers, are subject to
him. The whole may be rendered thus; "though I am poor and sorrowful, thy
salvation, O God, will set me up on high"F15תשגבני
"elevabit me", Pagninus, Montanus; so Gejerus, Michaelis. ; and so is
expressive of the Messiah's faith in his resurrection and exaltation, notwithstanding
his sorrows and sufferings; on account of which he determines to praise the
Lord, as follows.
Psalm 69:30 30 I will praise the name of
God with a song, And will magnify Him with thanksgiving.
YLT
30I praise the name of God
with a song, And I magnify Him with thanksgiving,
I will praise the name of God with a song,.... The
"name" of God is himself, his perfections and attributes; which are
to be "praised" by all his creatures, and especially his saints; and
here by the Messiah, who sung the praise of God with his disciples at the
supper, a little before his death; and in the great congregation in heaven,
upon his ascension thither, having finished the great work of man's redemption.
For as it was no lessening of his glory, as Mediator, to pray to God when on
earth, it is no diminution of it to praise him in our nature in heaven; see Psalm 22:22. This
being said to be done with a song agrees with Hebrews 2:12; and
is an instance of praising God this way, and which could not be prayer wise; as
well as is a confirmation of the practice of New Testament churches, singing
psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, by the example of our Lord;
and will magnify him with thanksgiving: to
"magnify" is to make great; but God cannot be greater than he is. He
is great above all gods; he is greater than all. But he is magnified when his
greatness is owned and declared, and that is ascribed unto him; and
particularly when "thanks" are given to him for favours; for then is
he acknowledged by men to be the Father of mercies, the author and giver of
them; and that they are unworthy of them, and that all the glory belongs to
him. Christ, as man, not only prayed, but gave thanks to his Father when on
earth, Matthew 11:25; nor
is it unsuitable to him, as such now in heaven, to give thanks and praise for
being heard and helped in a day of salvation; or at the time when he wrought
out the salvation of his people, and glorified all the divine perfections.
Psalm 69:31 31 This
also shall please the Lord
better than an ox or bull, Which has horns and hooves.
YLT
31And it is better to Jehovah
than an ox, A bullock -- horned -- hoofed.
This also shall
please the Lord,.... That is, this song of praise and thanksgiving. The Targum
has it,
"my
prayers;'
as
if it retorted to Psalm 69:29; but
what is expressed in Psalm 69:30 seems
to be the proper antecedent to this, and which is a sacrifice; see Psalm 50:14; and
more acceptable to God than any of the legal sacrifices, even when they were in
force; and much more, now they are abrogated; and especially as offered up by
the Messiah himself, all whose offerings are well pleasing to God; particularly
the offering up of himself, which was for a sweet smelling savour to him, and in
virtue of which all spiritual sacrifices of prayer and praise become acceptable
unto God;
better than an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs; that is, than
the best of legal sacrifices; as an ox or bullock was, whose horns and hoofs
were grown; one of three years old, as Jarchi and Kimchi observe: the words may
be literally rendered, "than an ox, than a bullock, than horns, than
hoofs"; not only better than an ox or a bullock, but than any creature
that has horns and hoofs; that is, than the lawful sacrifice of any animal
whatever, as Junius renders and explains it.
Psalm 69:32 32 The humble shall see this
and be glad; And you who seek God, your hearts shall live.
YLT
32The humble have seen --
they rejoice, Ye who seek God -- and your heart liveth.
The humble shall see this, and be glad,.... The
resurrection and exaltation of Christ, Psalm 69:29; the
meek and humble followers of Christ, as his disciples were, saw him risen from
the dead, saw him alive, to whom he showed himself forty days after his
resurrection; they saw his hands, and feet, and side, and the prints of the
nails and spear in them; they saw him go up to heaven, to be set on high at the
right hand of God; and humble believers now see him by faith, crowned with
glory and honour; and as the disciples were glad, and rejoiced when they saw
him again, and when he was parted from them, and went up to heaven, John 20:20; so true
believers in Christ, who have a spiritual sight of a risen, ascended, and
exalted Saviour, are glad, and rejoice in him with joy unspeakable, and full of
glory, 1 Peter 1:8; they
rejoice in the righteousness he has brought in, in the atonement that he has
made, and in the salvation he has wrought out, which is so suitable for them;
and because they do or will share in all the blessings of his resurrection,
ascension, and exaltation; such as regeneration, justification, every supply of
grace, and perseverance in it, the resurrection of their bodies, and eternal
glorification: and "humble" ones are such as are humbled under a
sense of sin, and the exceeding sinfulness of it, in a view of their own
righteousness, and its insufficiency to justify them before God: they ascribe
all they have and are to the free grace of God; and all boasting is excluded
from them, save in Christ; they are such that learn of him, who is meek and
lowly; and behave humbly before men, esteem others better than themselves; and
are in their own account the chief of sinners, and the least of saints: and as
they are, for the most part, "afflicted", and so some render the wordF16ענוים "afflicti", Vatablus, Musculus;
"miseri", Gejerus; "mansueti ac miseri", Michaelis. here;
they are humble under the mighty hand of God, and patiently bear it;
and your heart shall live that seek God; that seek his
face and favour, his gracious presence, and communion with him; that seek, by
prayer and supplications, blessings from him; that seek him in Christ, where he
is to be found; that seek Christ, and righteousness and salvation by him, and
that early, earnestly, and diligently; that seek the things of Christ, the
honour of his name, and the good of his interest; and who, in a word, are the
true and spiritual worshippers of God; these seek him, and he seeks them. The
Targum is,
"that
seek doctrine from before God;'
and
the hearts of those revived, who were as dead men before, as were the two
disciples travelling to Emmaus, when they found that Christ was risen, Luke 24:17; just as
the spirit of old Jacob revived, when he understood that his son Joseph was
alive, Genesis 45:27; see Psalm 22:26.
Psalm 69:33 33 For the Lord hears the
poor, And does not despise His prisoners.
YLT
33For Jehovah hearkeneth unto
the needy, And His bound ones He hath not despised.
For the Lord heareth the poor,.... The prayer of the
poor, as the Targum; of the poor disciples of Christ, who were together
mourning, weeping, and praying, when their Lord was dead, and laid in the
sepulchre, Mark 16:10; this
epithet agrees with all the followers of Christ, who for the most part are
literally poor, and are all of them so in a spiritual sense; they are poor in
spirit, and are sensible of it; they are full of wants, and these daily return
upon them; wherefore they constantly apply to the throne of grace for help in
time of need; and the Lord regards them, his eye is upon them, his heart is
towards them, his thoughts are about them, his ears are open to their cries,
and his hand is ready to supply their wants;
and despiseth not his prisoners; the same disciples of
Christ; who being assembled together, the doors were shut for fear of the Jews,
John 20:19; it may
be applied to such who are the Lord's prisoners; that is, for his sake, in a
literal sense, as the Apostle Paul is called the prisoner of the Lord, Ephesians 3:1; and
there were many, both under the Old and under the New Testament, that suffered
imprisonment for their profession of religion; and these the Lord despises not,
though men may, but highly esteems and honours; and it may be understood
mystically and spiritually of such as are, in their nature state, prisoner of
sin and Satan, and the law, and, when called, are prisoners of hope; these the
Lord has a regard unto, and opens the prison doors and sets them at and directs
them to the strong hold, Isaiah 49:9.
Psalm 69:34 34 Let heaven and earth
praise Him, The seas and everything that moves in them.
YLT
34The heavens and earth do
praise Him, Seas, and every moving thing in them.
Let the heaven and earth praise him,.... As those, by a
prosopopoeia, are often called upon to do, to express the greatness of the
favour enjoyed, and to excite those that are possessed of it to greater joy and
thankfulness; see Psalm 96:11; or the
inhabitants of the heavens and earth may be meant, as the angels of heaven; and
so the Targum interprets it; who, as they praised the Lord at the incarnation
of Christ, Luke 2:14; so
doubtless they did at his ascension, when he was seen and accompanied by them, 1 Timothy 3:16, Psalm 68:17; and
also the spirits of just men made perfect in heaven, who were there when Christ
was received into it; and the inhabitants of the earth, as the Targum also
paraphrases it; of the continent, particularly the Roman empire, when the
Gospel was sent thither, which brought the good news of an incarnate,
suffering, risen, ascended, and exalted Saviour;
the seas, and everything that moveth therein; the
inhabitants of the isles in the seas, such as ours of Great Britain and
Ireland, who waited for the doctrine of the Messiah, and to whom he calls to
listen to what he says; and which is a sufficient reason for praise and
thanksgiving in them; even in as many as have spiritual life and motion, who
are quickened, influenced, and moved by the Spirit of God; see Isaiah 42:4.
Psalm 69:35 35 For God will save Zion And
build the cities of Judah, That they may dwell there and possess it.
YLT
35For God doth save Zion, And
doth build the cities of Judah, And they have dwelt there, and possess it.
For God will save Zion,.... The church of
Christ, as it is often called; See Gill on Psalm 2:6; this is
to be understood not so much of the salvation of the people of God, by Christ,
from sin and Satan, and the world, law, hell, and death, as of the preservation
and continuance of the Gospel church state, notwithstanding all the opposition
and persecution of the Jews and Gentiles; and especially of the deliverance of
the Lord's people, in the latter day, from the cruelty, captivity, and bondage
of antichrist, by the destruction of him; which will occasion joy and praise, Revelation 18:4;
and will build the cities of Judah: erect Gospel churches in
the Roman empire, and in the several parts of the world; as were in the first
times of the Gospel, and will be in the latter day, when the cities of God
shall be yet spread abroad through prosperity, Zechariah 1:17; of
which the saints are citizens, and enjoy in them many privileges and
immunities: these may be said to be "built", when they are built upon
Christ, and on their most holy faith; when the members of them are edified and
multiplied; when purity of faith, discipline, and worship, prevails among them;
and though this is usually by the ministers of the Gospel, as instruments, yet
the Lord is the chief builder; for, unless he builds, in vain do the builders
build, Psalm 127:1;
that they may dwell there, and have it in possession; the men of
Judah, such as confess the name of Christ, as the word "Judah"
signifies; who profess to believe in him with their hearts; these have a name
and a place, and an inheritance in the churches, and an abiding one; they shall
never go out, but dwell in the house of God for ever; Gospel churches being
erected and built up for their sakes, and for such ends and purposes.
Psalm 69:36 36 Also, the descendants of
His servants shall inherit it, And those who love His name shall dwell in it.
YLT
36And the seed of His
servants inherit it, And those loving His name dwell in it!
The seed also of his
servants shall inherit it,.... Not their natural, but spiritual seed,
or a succession of converts in the churches; see Psalm 45:16; who
are born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man,
but of God; not of corruptible, but incorruptible seed, by the word of God, which
lives and abides for ever, John 1:13; these
are the proper and rightful inheritors of the Gospel church state, and all its
privileges, in all successive generations, quite down to the New Jerusalem
church state, wherein will dwell only righteous persons, and whose names are in
the Lamb's book of life. Aben Ezra's note upon it is,
"they
shall inherit it, they and their children, in the days of David, or in the days
of the Messiah;'
and they that love his name shall dwell therein; that love the
person, Gospel, truths and ordinances of Christ; see Song of Solomon 1:3;
these shall have an abiding place in Zion, the church of God; in the cities of
Judah, particular congregational churches; and in the city of the New
Jerusalem, where will be the tabernacle of God among men, and he shall dwell
among them, and they with him.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)