1An exhortation to praise God for his mercy. 5The Psalmist by his own experience sheweth how good it is to trust in God. 19Under the type of the Psalmist the coming of Christ in his kingdom is expressed.
1O GIVE thanks unto the LORD; 1for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever.
1 David exhorts all men to laud and praise the Lord for this reason: for he is good. The words of this verse are also present in Psalm 106:1; 107:1, and in every verse of Psalm 136.
2Let 2Israel now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
2 Not only the earthly Israel, but also the Israel of God, Gal. 6:16, that is, all the faithful, who are truly the people of God, whether Jews or Gentiles. So also verse 4.
3Let 3the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
3 That is, the priests of Aaron’s posterity. See Psalm 115 on verse 10.
4Let them now that fear the LORD say, that his mercy endureth for ever.
5I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me 4in a large place.
4 Or, putting me at large, namely, bringing me out of distress into liberty, honor and glory, as Psalm 18:19.
6The LORDais 5on my side; 6I will not fear: what can 7man do unto me?
a Rom. 8:31.
5 Or, by or with me, that is, as the apostle declares it in Heb. 13:6: The Lord is my helper. So likewise in verse 7 and Psalm 56:4, 11.
6 Namely, of mine enemies.
7 Namely, such a weak and feeble creature, not to be compared with God.
7The LORD taketh 8my part 9with them that help me: therefore 10shall I see 11my desire upon them that hate me.
8 As verse 6.
9 Compare Psalm 54 on verse 4.
10 See similar shortened expressions Psalm 35:21; 92:11. See also Psalm 22:17 and the annotation there.
11 Namely, my, rejoicing in God about the destruction of His and my hardened and impenitent enemies.
8Itb is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.
b Psalm 62:8, 9; 146:3; Jer. 17:5, 7.
9It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.
1012All nations compassed me about: but 13in the name of the LORD will I destroy them.
12 That is, all sorts of them, or, so many that it seemed they were all combined against me. And are especially here to be understood: all the neighbor nations round about, as the Philistines, who hated him, and the Amalekites, who had burnt his city of Ziklag, 1 Samuel 30. Yea, many also of the Israelites themselves, who assisted Saul in persecuting David.
13 That is, trusting and relying on the Lord, My Helper in distress, as Psalm 20:5. See 2 Kings 2 on verse 24.
11They compassed me about; yea, 14they compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
14 Namely, with increased power and force than at the first.
12They compassed me about 15like bees; they are quenched 16as the fire of thorns: for in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
15 See the annotation on Deut. 1 on verse 44. Compare Isa. 7:18.
16 Which comes to flames hastily, and burns hot, and raises must smoke and with a great deal of crackling, and yet is soon spent. See Eccl. 7:6; Nahum 1:10.
1317Thou hast thrust sore at me that I might fall: but the LORD helped me.
17 Hebr. Thrusting thou hadst thrusted me. Here the psalmist speaks to his enemies, who had handled him very rudely. See Psalm 9:6.
14The LORD is my 18strength and 19song, and is become my salvation.
18 That is, He Who gives me strength, so that I am able to withstand and hold out against mine enemy, Isa. 12:2.
19 That is, the matter and subject of my song. See Exod. 15:2.
15The 20voice of rejoicing and 21salvation is in 22the tabernacles of the righteous: the 23right hand of the LORD doeth 24valiantly.
20 Namely, for the deliverance which He has given unto His people.
21 That is, victory, as Psalm 98:1.
22 That is, in the houses.
23 That is, the Lord God.
24 Or, powerfully, courageously, bravely, as Psalm 108:13.
16The right hand of the LORD 25is exalted: thec right hand of the LORD doeth valiantly.
25 That is, God causes His power to appear gloriously and manifestly, so that every one must praise and magnify the same.
cLuke 1:51.
1726I shall not die, but live, and 27declare the works of the LORD.
26 Namely, by the sword or the hand of mine enemy.
27 Namely, how wonderfully and frequently He has delivered me and protected me and other godly ones.
18The LORD 28hath chastened me sore: but he hath not given me over unto death.
28 Hebr. chastising chastised me.
1929Open to me 30the gates of righteousness: I will go into them, and I will praise the LORD:
29 He addresses his speech to the priests and Levites.
30 That is, the gates of the tabernacle and the holy place, called therefore the gates of righteousness, because none were to enter therein but the pure and godly, as appears in verse 20. David was debarred for a great while from the tabernacle, not daring to come near or into it, whilst Saul pursued him. Now he could freely repair again unto it, and present himself in the congregation of the godly.
20This 31gate of the LORD, into which the righteous shall enter.
31 Or, This gate is the LORD’s. Understand the gate of the tabernacle sanctified unto the Lord. A type of the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is the Gate of righteousness and of heaven, into which He is entered.
21I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.
22Thed32stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.
dIsa. 8:14; 28:16; Mat. 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; Rom. 9:33; Eph. 2:20; 1 Peter 2:4, 7.
32 By this stone is first understood David, who for a good while was despised and rejected by the princes in Israel and the leading persons of the kingdom, and yet the Lord did exalt and settle him at length in it to govern the same, and to be as the chief cornerstone thereof. But then in the next place, it must be principally understood of Christ, typified by David, Whom the high priests, the scribes and rulers of the people, who were set over the church of God as master builders, rejected, persecuted and put to death; yet God ordained, appointed and settled Him to be the Head and Foundation of His church, uniting and establishing the whole structure of the house firmly together.
2333This is the LORD’S doing; 34it is marvellous in our eyes.
33 Namely, that the rejected stone is become the principal cornerstone of the house of the Lord.
34 Namely, that such a despised and rejected stone is now so highly esteemed and advanced.
2435This is the day 36which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.
35 Namely, in which day David was made king, and Christ was made known by the preaching of the Holy Gospel.
36 That is, which the Lord has singled out and exalted above other days. Thus the verb to make is taken likewise for exalting or magnifying, 1 Sam. 12:6. See the annotation there.
2537Save now, I beseech thee, O LORD: O LORD, I beseech thee, 38send now prosperity.
37 The evangelists retain the Hebrew words hosia-na, Mat. 21:9, 15; Mark 11:9, 10.
38 Namely, unto king David, and the Lord Christ, typified by David.
2639Blessed be he that cometh 40in the name of the LORD: 41we have blessed you 42out of the house of the LORD.
39 That is, we wish him the blessing of God; it is probable that the priests and the people of God made this congratulation or acclamation unto David at his entrance into the kingly government. Afterwards the people applied them in a shouting manner to Christ when He made His entrance into Jerusalem, Mat. 21:9.
40 That is, with power and authority from the Lord, Luke 19:38.
41 These seem to be words of the priests, whose office it was to bless the people in the house of the Lord, Num. 6:23; Deut. 10:8; 1 Chron. 23:13. As if they said: We of the house of the Lord, that is, we priests, who are ordained and appointed overseers in the house of the Lord and to whom appertains to bless the Lord’s people, we do bless thee, O king David, and the people that is with thee. See Psalm 72 on verse 15.
42 That is, out of the tabernacle in David’s time; yet out of the temple in the time of the Lord Christ.
27God is the LORD, which hath shewed us 43light: 44bind the 45sacrifice with cords, even 46unto 47the horns of the altar.
43 That is, prosperity, joy, comfort and rejoicing instead of sorrow, trouble and affliction, as Esther 8:16.
44 That is, prepare yourselves to celebrate the feast and to sacrifice unto the Lord.
45 Hebr. the feast, but it signifies here the animal, or the offering, sacrifice, which was to be offered upon that feast day.
46 That is, one must bring so many of them for the sacrifice unto the altar, and tie them to the horns thereof.
47 See the annotation, Exod. 27:2.
28Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, I will exalt thee.
29 O 48give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
48 See verse 1.