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Psalm Thirteen
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO Psalm 13
To the chief Musician
a Psalm of David. According to
Theodoret this psalm was written by David
not when he fled from Saul
but from
Absalom; and gives this reason for it
what happened to him from Saul was
before his sin
and therefore he could speak with great boldness; but what
befell him from Absalom was after it
and therefore mourning and groans were
mixed with his words.
Psalm 13:1 How
long
O Lord?
Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?
YLT
1To the Overseer. -- A Psalm
of David. Till when
O Jehovah
Dost Thou forget me? -- for ever? Till when
dost Thou hide Thy face from me?
How long wilt thou forget me
O Lord? for ever?.... When God
does not immediately deliver his people from their enemies
or help them out of
an affliction; when he does not discover his love
communicate his grace
apply
the blessings and promises of his covenant as usual; and when he does not visit
them in his usual manner
and so frequently as he has formerly done
they are
ready to conclude he has forgotten them; and sometimes this continues long
and
then they fear they are forgotten for ever; and this they cannot bear
and
therefore expostulate with God in a querulous manner
as the psalmist does here;
but this is to be understood not in reality
but in their own apprehension
and
in the opinion of their enemies; God never does nor can forget his people;
oblivion does not fall upon him with respect to common persons and things; and
much less with respect to his own dear children
for whom a special book of
remembrance is written; See Gill on Psalm 9:18;
how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? his love
and
the manifestation of it
from his person; his gracious presence
the light of
his smiling countenance
which sometimes God hides or withdraws from his people
by way of resentment of their unbecoming carriage to him; and which is very
distressing to them
for they are apt to imagine it is in wrath and hot
displeasure
when he still loves them
and will with everlasting kindness have
mercy on them; see Isaiah 8:17. The Targum renders it
"the glory of thy face".
Psalm 13:2 2 How long shall I take
counsel in my soul
Having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my
enemy be exalted over me?
YLT
2Till when do I set counsels
in my soul? Sorrow inn my heart daily? Till when is mine enemy exalted over me?
How long shall I take counsel in my soul
.... Or
"put it"F19אשית
"ponam"
Pagninus
Montanus
Munster
Vatablus. ; to take counsel of
good men and faithful friends
in matters of moment and difficulty
is safe and
right; and it is best of all to take counsel of God
who is wonderful in it
and guides his people with it; but nothing is worse than for a man to take
counsel of his own heart
or only to consult himself; for such counsel often
casts a man down
and he is ashamed of it sooner or later: but this seems not
to be the sense here; the phrase denotes the distressing circumstances and
anxiety of mind the psalmist was in; he was at his wits' end
and cast about in
his mind
and had various devises and counsels formed there; and yet knew not
what way to take
what course to steer;
having sorrow in my
heart daily; by reason of God's hiding his face from him; on account of sin
that dwelt in him
or was committed by him; because of his distance from the
house of God
and the worship and ordinances of it; and by reason of his many
enemies that surrounded him on every side: this sorrow was an heart sorrow
and
what continually attended him day by day; or was in the daytime
when men are
generally amused with business or diversions
as well as in the night
as
Kimchi observes;
how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? even the
vilest of men
Psalm 12:8; this may be understood either
of temporal enemies
and was true of David when he was obliged not only to
leave his own house and family
but the land of Judea
and flee to the
Philistines; and when he fled from Absalom his son
lest he should be taken and
slain by him; or of spiritual enemies
and is true of saints when sin prevails
and leads captive
and when the temptations of Satan succeed; as when he
prevailed upon David to number the people
Peter to deny his master
&c.
The Jewish writersF20Jarchi
Midrash in Kimchi
& Abendana in
Miclol Yophi in loc. observe that here are four "how longs"
answerable to the four monarchies
Babylonian
Persian
Grecian
and Roman
and
their captivities under them.
Psalm 13:3 3 Consider and hear
me
O Lord
my God; Enlighten my eyes
Lest I sleep the sleep of death;
YLT
3Look attentively; Answer
me
O Jehovah
my God
Enlighten mine eyes
lest I sleep in death
Consider and hear me
O Lord my God
.... The
psalmist amidst all his distresses rightly applies to God by prayer
claims his
interest in him as his covenant God
which still continued notwithstanding all
his darkness
desertions
and afflictions; and entreats him to
"consider" his affliction and trouble
and deliver him out of it; to
consider his enemies
how many and mighty they were; and his own weakness his
frame
that he was but dust
and unable to stand against them: or to "look"F21הביטה "intuere"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator; "aspice"
Pagninus
Montanus
Cocceius. upon his
affliction
and upon him under it
with an eye of pity and compassion; to have
respect to him and to his prayers
and to turn unto him
and lift up the light
of his countenance upon him: and so this petition is opposed to the complaint
in Psalm 13:1; and he further requests that he
would "hear" him; that is
so as to answer him
and that immediately
and thereby show that he had not forgotten him
but was mindful of him
of his
love to him
and covenant with him;
lighten mine eyes: meaning either the eyes of his body
which
might be dim and dull through a failure of the animal spirits
by reason of
inward grief
outward afflictions
or for want of bodily food; which when
obtained refreshes nature
cheers the animal spirits
enlightens or gives a
briskness to the eyes; see 1 Samuel 14:27; or else the eyes of his
understanding
Ephesians 1:18; that he might behold
wondrous things in the law of God
know the things which were freely given to
him of God
see more clearly his interest in him
and in the covenant of his
grace
and have his soul refreshed and comforted with the light of God's
countenance; and he be better able to discern his enemies
and guard against
them; and be directed to take the best method to be delivered and secured from
them. The people of God are sometimes in the dark
and see no light; especially
when benighted
and in sleepy frames; and it is God's work to enlighten and
quicken them;
lest I sleep the sleep of death; a natural deathF23 χαλκεον υπνον
Homer. Iliad.
11. v. 241. "ferreus somnus"
Virgil. Aeneid. 10. v. 745
& 12.
v. 309.
which is comparable to sleep
and often expressed by it; and which
sense agrees with lightening the eyes of his body
as before explained; or
rather the sense is
lift up the light of thy countenance
revive thy work in
the midst of the years; let me see thy goodness in the land of the living
that
I may not faint and sink and die away. Or it may be an eternal death is
designed; for though true believers shall never die this death
yet they may be
in such circumstances
as through unbelief to fear they shall. The Targum
paraphrases the word thus;
"enlighten
mine eyes in thy law
lest I sin
and sleep with those who are guilty of
death.'
Psalm 13:4 4 Lest my enemy say
“I have
prevailed against him”; Lest those who trouble me rejoice when I am
moved.
YLT
4Lest mine enemy say
`I
overcame him
' Mine adversaries joy when I am moved.
Lest mine enemy say
I have prevailed against him
.... Which is
an argument God takes notice of; and for which reason he does not give up his
people into the hands of their enemies; see Deuteronomy 32:27. The Chaldee paraphrase
interprets this of the evil imagination or corruption of nature
and represents
it as a person
as the Apostle Paul does in Romans 7:15; and which may be said to
prevail
when it pushes on to sin
and hinders doing good
and carries captive;
and it may be applied to Satan
the great enemy of God's people
who triumphs
over them
when he succeeds in his temptations;
and those that trouble me
rejoice when I am moved; meaning from his house and family
from his country and kingdom
from a prosperous state and condition to a distressed one; at which the
troublers of David's peace would rejoice. They that trouble the saints are sin
Satan
and the world; and the two last rejoice when they are in an
uncomfortable and afflicted condition; and especially Satan rejoices when he
gains his point
if it is but to move them from any degree of steadfastness
of
faith and hope
or from the ways of God in any respect: the Targum adds
"from thy ways"; for to be moved so as to perish eternally they
cannot
being built upon the Rock of ages
and surrounded by the power and
grace of God.
Psalm 13: 5 5 But I have trusted in Your
mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.
YLT
5And I
in Thy kindness I
have trusted
Rejoice doth my heart in Thy salvation.
But I have trusted in thy mercy
.... The faith
hope
and
comfort of the psalmist grew and increased by prayer; from complaining he goes
to praying
from praying to believing; he trusted not in himself
not in his
own heart
nor in his own righteousness and merits
but in the mercy of God;
and not in the bare absolute mercy of God
but in the grace and goodness of
God
as the wordF24בחסדך "in bonitate
tua"
Vatablus; "in benignitate tua"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator; "in benignissima voluntate tua"
Gejerus. here used
signifies
as it is displayed in the plenteous redemption which is by Christ;
which is a sufficient ground of faith and hope; see Psalm 130:7;
my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation; which God is
the contriver
author
and giver of
and in which the glory of his perfections
is so greatly displayed: and a true believer rejoices more on account that God
is glorified by it than because of his own interest in it; and this joy is an
inward one
it is joy in the heart
and is real and unfeigned
and is what
continues
and will be felt and expressed both here and hereafter.
Psalm 13:6 6 I will sing to the Lord
Because He
has dealt bountifully with me.
YLT
6I do sing to Jehovah
For
He hath conferred benefits upon me!
I will sing unto the Lord
.... In prayer faith is
encouraged
through believing the heart is filled with joy; and this joy is
expressed by the lips
in songs of praise to the Lord
ascribing the glory of
salvation to him
and giving him thanks for every mercy and blessing of life;
because he hath dealt bountifully with me; both in a way
of providence and grace
granting life and preserving it
and supporting with
the comforts of it; blessing with spiritual blessings
and crowning with loving
kindness and tender mercies; all which is generous and bountiful dealing
and
affords a just occasion of praise and thanksgiving; see Psalm 116:7.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》