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Psalm Twenty-seven
New King James Version (NKJV)
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 27
cf15I
A Psalm of David. The Septuagint interpreters add to this title
"before
he was anointed". David was anointed three times
first when a youth in
his father's house; but this psalm could not be written before that time
because he had not had then any experience of war
nor could be in any
immediate apprehension of it
as here suggested; he was anointed a second time
after the death of Saul at Hebron
by the men of Judah; before that time indeed
he had been harassed by Saul
and distressed by the Amalekites
and was driven
from the public worship of God
to which he has a respect
Psalm 27:4; and he
was a third time anointed
by the elders of Israel
king over all Israel; and
between the death of Saul and this unction there was a war between the house of
David and the house of Saul; but what is referred to is not certain
nor is it
of moment
since these words are neither in the Hebrew text
nor in the Chaldee
paraphrase. Theodoret is of opinion this psalm was written by David when he
fled from Saul
and came to Ahimelech the priest.
Psalm 27:1 The
Lord is my
light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the
strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?
YLT
1By David. Jehovah [is] my
light and my salvation
Whom do I fear? Jehovah [is] the strength of my life
Of whom am I afraid?
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?.... The
Targum in the king of Spain's Bible explains it
"the Word of the Lord is
my light"; and so Ainsworth cites it; that is
Christ the eternal Word
in
whom "was life
and that life was the light of men"
John 1:4; and the
psalmist is not to be understood of the light of nature and reason
with which
the Logos
or Word
enlightens every man that comes into the world; nor merely
in a temporal sense
of giving him the light of prosperity
and delivering him
from the darkness of adversity; but of the light of grace communicated to him
by him who is the sun of righteousness
and the light of the world; and by whom
such who are darkness itself
while in an unregenerate state
are made light
and see light; all the light which is given to men at first conversion is from
Christ; and all the after communications and increase of it are from him; as
well as all that spiritual joy
peace
and comfort they partake of
which light
sometimes signifies
Psalm 97:11; and
which the psalmist now had an experience of; enjoying the light of God's
countenance
and having discoveries of his love
which made him fearless of
danger and enemies: and such who are made light in the Lord have no reason to
be afraid of the prince of darkness; nor of the rulers of the darkness of this
world; nor of all the darkness
distress
and persecutions they are the authors
of; nor of the blackness of darkness reserved for ungodly men; for their light
is an everlasting one
and they are made meet to be partakers of the
inheritance with the saints in light: and the more light they have
the less
fear; and what made the psalmist still more fearless was
that Christ was his
"salvation"; by the light which the Lord was to him
he saw his need
of salvation
he knew that his own righteousness would not save him; he was
made acquainted with the design and appointment of the Lord
that Christ should
be salvation to the ends of the earth; he had knowledge of the covenant of
grace
and faith in it
which was all his salvation
2 Samuel 23:5.
Salvation was revealed to the Old Testament saints
in the promises
sacrifices
types
and figures of that dispensation; and they looked through
them to him for it
and were saved by him
as New Testament believers are; and
they had faith of interest in Christ
and knew him to be their Saviour and
Redeemer
as did Job
and here the psalmist David: and such who know Christ to
be their salvation need not be afraid of any person or thing; not of sin
for
though they fear
and should fear to commit it
they need not fear the damning
power of it
for they are saved from it; nor of Satan
out of whose hands they
are ransomed; nor of the world
which is overcome by Christ; nor of the last
enemy
death
which is abolished by him; nor of hell
and wrath to come
for he
has delivered them from it;
the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be
afraid? meaning not of his natural life
though he was the God of his
life
who had given it to him
and had preserved it
and upheld his soul in it;
but of his spiritual life: Christ is the author of spiritual life
he implants
the principle of it in the hearts of his people
yea
he himself is that life;
he lives in them
and is the support of their life; he is the tree of life
and
the bread of life
by which it is maintained; and he is the security of it
it
is bound up in the bundle of life with him
it is hid with Christ in God; and
because he lives they live also; and he gives unto them eternal life
so that
they have no reason to be afraid that they shall come short of heaven and
happiness; nor need they fear them that kill the body and can do no more; nor
any enemy whatever
who cannot reach their spiritual life
nor hurt that
nor
hinder them of the enjoyment of eternal life.
Psalm 27:2 2 When the wicked came
against me To eat up my flesh
My enemies and foes
They stumbled and fell.
YLT
2When evil doers come near
to me to eat my flesh
My adversaries and mine enemies to me
They have
stumbled and fallen.
When the wicked
even mine enemies and my foes
came upon
me
.... They are wicked men
men of malignant spirits
and
evildoers
who are the enemies and foes of the people of God
and who hate them
with an implacable hatred
and do everything they can to distress and afflict
them; and such enemies David had
who were many and mighty; and these
"came upon" him
or "approached against" himF3בקרב עלי "cum
appropinquaverint adversum me"
Pagninus; so Gejerus.
they drew near to
him to make war with him
as the word signifiesF4"Belligerantibus
contra me"
Junius & Tremellius; so Piscator & Ainsworth. ; they
attacked him in an hostile manner; and their view was
as he says
to eat up my flesh
as they eat bread
Psalm 14:4; to
devour him at once
to make but one morsel of him
to destroy his life
to strip
him of his substance
to take away his wives and children
as the Amalekites at
Ziklag
1 Samuel 30:1;
they stumbled and fell; the Lord put stumbling
blocks in their way
and retarded their march
and hindered them from executing
their designs; and they fell into the hands of David
and were subdued under
him
or fell by death; and these past instances of divine goodness the psalmist
calls to mind
to keep up his heart and courage
and animate and strengthen him
against the fears of men
of death and hell.
Psalm 27:3 3 Though an army may encamp
against me
My heart shall not fear; Though war may rise against me
In this I will
be confident.
YLT
3Though a host doth encamp
against me
My heart doth not fear
Though war riseth up against me
In this I
[am] confident.
Though an host should encamp against me
.... An host
of the ungodly
as the Targum; though ever so many of them
even ten thousands
of them
as in Psalm 3:6; should
beset him on every side;
my heart shall not fear; for not only the angels
of the Lord encamped about him
as they do about all that fear the Lord; but
salvation was appointed for walls and bulwarks about him; yea
the Lord himself
was a wall of fire around him
and he was kept as in a garrison by the power of
God;
though war should rise against me: in all its terrible
shapes:
in this will I be confident; either in
this war
in the midst of it; or in this that he had expressed
Psalm 27:1; that
the Lord was his light
his salvation
and the strength of his life; so the
Jewish writersF5Jarchi
Kimchi
& Aben Ezra in loc. : or as
othersF6Some in Aben Ezra in loc.
in this one thing
desired in Psalm 27:4; but either
of the former senses is best
especially the latter of them. Saints need not be
afraid
though there is a war within them between the flesh and spirit; and
though without are fightings with Satan and his principalities and powers;
since they may be confident of victory
and that they are more than conquerors
through Christ that has loved them.
Psalm 27:4 4 One thing I have
desired of the Lord
That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord All the days of
my life
To behold the beauty of the Lord
And to inquire in His
temple.
YLT
4One [thing] I asked of
Jehovah -- it I seek. My dwelling in the house of Jehovah
All the days of my
life
To look on the pleasantness of Jehovah
And to inquire in His temple.
One thing have I desired of the Lord
.... Not to be
returned to Saul's court; nor to his own house and family; nor to have an
affluence of worldly riches and honours; but to have constant abode it
the
house of the Lord; an opportunity of attending continually on the public
worship of God; which is excused and neglected by many
and is a weariness to
others
but was by the psalmist preferred to everything else; he being now
deprived of it
as it seems;
that will I seek after; by incessant prayer
until obtained; importunity and perseverance in prayer are the way to succeed
as appears from the parable of the widow and unjust judge;
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life: not in
heaven
Christ's Father's house
where he dwells
and where the saints
will
dwell to all eternity; though to be clothed upon with the house from heaven is
very desirable; rather
in the church of the living God
which is the house of
God
and pillar of truth
where true believers in Christ have a place and a
name
and are pillars that will never go out; but here the place of divine
worship seems to be meant
where the Lord granted his presence
and where to
dwell the psalmist counted the greatest happiness on earth; he envied the very
sparrows and swallows
that built their nests on the altars in it; and reckoned
a day in it better than a thousand elsewhere; and to have the privilege of
attending all opportunities in it
as long as he lived
is the singular request
he here makes: the ends he had in view follow;
to behold the beauty of the Lord
or "the delight and
pleasantness of the Lord"F7בנעם יהוה "amaemotate
Jehovae"
Junius &
Tremellius
Piscator
Gejerus; so Ainsworth; "suavitatem Jehovae"
Cocceius
Michaelis. ; to see the priests in their robes
and doing their
office
as typical of Christ the great High Priest; and the Levites and singers
performing their work in melodious strains
prefiguring the churches in Gospel
times
singing to the Lord with grace in their hearts
and the four and twenty
elders
and one hundred and forty four thousand
with the Lamb on Mount Zion
singing the song of redeeming love; and all the tribes and people of Israel
assembled together to worship God
representing the church of Christ as a
perfection of beauty
having the beauty of the Lord upon her
and made
perfectly comely through his comeliness; as it is a most delightful sight to
see a company of saints attending Gospel worship
meeting together to sing
and
pray
and hear the word
and wait upon the Lord in all his appointments; to see
them walking in the faith and fellowship of the Gospel
and according to the
order of it; this is next to the desirable sight of the bride
the Lamb's wife
in the New Jerusalem state
having the glory of God upon her: moreover
it was
a pleasant sight to a believer in those times to behold the sacrifices of slain
beasts
which were figures of the better sacrifice of Christ
the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world; to which may be added other things that were
to be seen by priests; as the ark of the Lord
which had the two tables in it
typical of Christ
the fulfilling end of the law for righteousness; and the
table of shewbread
which pointed out Christ the bread of life
and his
perpetual intercession for his people; and the golden candlestick
a type of the
church
holding forth the word of life to others; with many other things
which
with an eye of faith
the saints of those times could look upon with
delight and pleasure: also the presence of the Lord may be intended by his
beauty
than which nothing is more desirable to the people of God
even to
behold his smiling countenance
to see his face
and enjoy his favour
and to
have fellowship with him
and with one another; and particularly the beauty and
glory of the Lord Jesus Christ may be designed
represented by the Shechinah
or glory
which filled both the tabernacle and the temple; who being the
brightness of his Father's glory
and fairer than the children of men
and
altogether lovely and full of grace
is a very desirable object to be beheld by
faith;
and to inquire in his temple; to seek the face of the
Lord
to consult him in matters of difficulty and moment; to search after the
knowledge of divine things
and to ask for blessings of grace
for which he
will be inquired of by his people
to bestow them on them.
Psalm 27:5 5 For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He
shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.
YLT
5For He hideth me in a
tabernacle in the day of evil
He hideth me in a secret place of His tent
On a
rock he raiseth me up.
For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion
.... This
with what follows
is given as a reason why the psalmist desired to dwell in
the house of the Lord; because he considered it as a pavilion or booth
as the
wordF8בסכה "in tugurio suo"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator
Cocceius
Michaelis. signifies in which he
should be hid by the Lord
in times of trouble and distress
either through the
heat of persecution
or of inward anxiety of mind
caused by the working of a
fiery law; the allusion being
as some think
to the shepherd's tent or booth
into which he sometimes takes a poor sheep
and protects it from the scorching
heat of the sun at noon: and of such use is the tabernacle of the Lord; see Isaiah 4:6;
in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; alluding
either to the tents of generals of armies
who receive into them those whom they
would protect from the insults and injuries of others; or rather to the most
holy place in the tabernacle
called the secret place
Ezekiel 7:22;
typical of Christ
the hiding place of his
people
in whom their life is hid
and where it is safe and secure;
he shall set me up upon a rock; where he would be above
and out of the reach of his enemies; meaning Christ
comparable to a rock for
its height
he being higher than the kings of the earth
than the angels in
heaven
than the heavens themselves
and much more than the sons of men; see Psalm 61:2; and for
shelter and safety
he being a munition of rocks
a strong tower
a place of
defence
and rock of refuge; and for firmness
solidity
and strength
he being
able to bear the whole weight of the building of the church
and every believer
laid upon him; and for duration
he being more immovable than rocks and
mountains; so that such who are set up upon him are in the most safe and secure
state imaginable.
Psalm 27:6 6 And now my head shall be
lifted up above my enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of
joy in His tabernacle; I will sing
yes
I will sing praises to the Lord.
YLT
6And now
lifted up is my
head
Above my enemies -- my surrounders
And I sacrifice in His tent
sacrifices of shouting
I sing
yea
I sing praise to Jehovah.
And now shall mine head be lifted up
.... That is
when brought into the house of the Lord
hid in the secret of his tabernacle
and set upon the rock Christ; by this phrase he means
either that he should be
then restored to his former happy and comfortable condition
as it is used in Genesis 40:13; or
that he should overcome all his enemies
and triumph over them
being exalted
as he adds
above mine enemies round about me; so that not only they
should not be able to come at him
but should be subdued under him;
therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy: attended with
shouting and sounding of trumpets: in allusion to the blowing of trumpets at
the time of sacrifice
Numbers 10:10;
Sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving
with a joyful heart
for mercies
received
offered up publicly in the house of the Lord
are here intended;
I will sing
yea
I will sing praises unto the Lord; for whom
praise waits in Zion
to whom it is due; he being the Father of mercies
the
God of all comfort
and the author and giver of all blessings
temporal and
spiritual.
Psalm 27:7 7 Hear
O Lord
when I
cry with my voice! Have mercy also upon me
and answer me.
YLT
7Hear
O Jehovah
my voice
-- I call
And favour me
and answer me.
Hear
O Lord
when I cry with my voice
.... Which is
to be understood of prayer
and that in the time of distress; and of vocal
prayer
as distinguished from mental prayer; and the phrase denotes the
vehemency and intenseness of it: and the request is
that the Lord would hear
it; not only as he is omniscient and omnipresent
and so hears the prayers of all
good and bad; but as a God gracious and merciful
who sometimes very quickly
hears
and answers in a gracious way
and sometimes seems to turn a deaf car
to shut out the prayers of his people
and cover himself with a cloud
that
they should not pass through
or
however
defers an answer to it for a little
while; yet
sooner or later
he always shows himself a God hearing prayer;
have mercy also upon me; by delivering him out of
his temporal distresses
and by forgiving his iniquities;
and answer me; by speaking a word in season; commanding
off the affliction he lay under
and by saying to him that his sins were
forgiven him.
Psalm 27:8 8 When You said
“Seek My face
” My heart said to You
“Your face
Lord
I will seek.”
YLT
8To Thee said my heart `They
sought my face
Thy face
O Jehovah
I seek.'
When thou saidst
seek ye my
face
.... To seek the face of the Lord is to attend his house and
ordinances
where he grants his presence; and with this view to enjoy his
gracious presence
and the light of his countenance
not being content with
bare attendance without it; it is to seek the Lord himself
and communion with
him through Christ
the brightness of his glory
and the Angel of his presence;
for the right way of seeking the Lord is in Christ
who is the way of access to
him
and of acceptance and fellowship with him; and that by prayer and
supplication for his sake
and with all the heart and soul; and this the Lord
calls upon his people to do
in his word
in his providences
and by his Spirit
moving upon their hearts
and inclining them to it
as follows;
my heart said unto thee
thy face
Lord
will I seek: it is an
encouragement to believers to seek the Lord when he calls them to it; for it is
a command with promise
that they shall find him
see his face
and enjoy his
favour; and he never says to any
"seek ye my face
in vain"; and
they always find it good for them to draw nigh to him: and as it is the best
way of seeking God
when the heart is engaged in it
so it is a token for good;
and it looks as though the Lord had a mind to manifest himself
and grant the
favour sought for
when he inclines the hearts of his people to pray unto him
for it; and this the psalmist makes mention of as taking encouragement from it
to hope and believe that the Lord would hear and answer him
and have mercy on
him; because he had bid him seek his face
and he found his heart ready to do
it.
Psalm 27:9 9 Do not hide Your face from
me; Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not leave
me nor forsake me
O God of my salvation.
YLT
9Hide not Thy face from me
Turn not aside in anger Thy servant
My help Thou hast been. Leave me not
nor
forsake me
O God of my salvation.
Hide not thy face far from me
.... Yea
not
at all from him; for the word "far" is not in the text: this is
sometimes the case of the best of men
and was of the psalmist at times
and
might be now
notwithstanding his strong expressions of faith and joy in the
preceding verses; for frames are very changeable things; and this case is
consistent with the everlasting and unchangeable love of God to his people;
though they are ready to impute it to wrath and anger
and is what is very
cutting and grievous to them; and therefore deprecate it as the psalmist does
here
put not thy servant away in anger; either cast him not away
from thy presence
as being angry with him
though there is just reason for it;
or suffer him not to go away angry
fretting and murmuring: he makes mention of
his relation to God as a servant
as he was; not only by creation as a man
and
by his office as a king
but by efficacious grace as a converted man; and this
only as descriptive of himself
and as acknowledging his dependence on the
Lord
and his obligation to him; but not as a reason why he should be regarded
by him
for he knew he was but an unprofitable servant;
thou hast been my help; leave me not
neither forsake me: which
request
as the rest
he might put up in faith; for God will not leave his
people destitute of his presence finally and totally; nor to themselves and the
corruptions of their hearts
nor to the temptations of Satan; nor will he
forsake the work of his hands
the work of grace upon their hearts; or so
forsake them as that they shall perish: and that the Lord would not leave nor
forsake him in such sense
the psalmist had reason to conclude; since he had
been his help in times past
a present help in time of trouble; and his arm was
not shortened
his power was the same to help as ever
and so were his
inclination and will; since he could also call unto him
and upon him
as
follows:
O God of my salvation; the author both of his
temporal
spiritual
and eternal salvation; and what might he not hope for from
him? salvation includes all blessings
both for soul and body
for time and
eternity.
Psalm 27:10 10 When my father and my
mother forsake me
Then the Lord will take care of me.
YLT
10When my father and my
mother Have forsaken me
then doth Jehovah gather me.
When my father and my mother forsake me
.... Which is
not to be understood strictly and literally of his parents
that were in that
near relation to him according to the flesh
nor of anything that had past; not
of his parents leaving him to shift for himself
after having brought him up;
nor of his father being unmindful of him
when Samuel came to anoint one of his
sons to be king; nor of any slight and neglect of him by them when persecuted
by Saul; nor of their inability to help him then; see 1 Samuel 22:3; but
this is to be understood of something supposed yet to come; and it seems best
to interpret it of his nearest and dearest friends
his closest adherents
best
counsellors
and most firm allies; that when they should fail and drop him
his
God would not leave him: the design of it is to set forth the love and care of
God
as superior to that of the most affectionate friends; see Isaiah 49:14;
then the Lord will take me up; like a foundling in the
street
and such are called
in the Talmudic language
"persons gathered
up"F9T. Bab. Kiddushin
fol. 69. 1. ; and so the words may be
rendered here
"then the Lord will gather me"F11יאספני "colliget me"
Pagninus
Montanus;
"collegit me"
Musculus
Vatablus
Gejerus; so Ainsworth. ; into his
arms and bosom
and under the wings of his protection
and at last to himself
in glory.
Psalm 27:11 11 Teach me Your way
O Lord
And lead me
in a smooth path
because of my enemies.
YLT
11Shew me
O Jehovah
Thy
way
And lead me in a path of uprightness
For the sake of my beholders.
Teach me thy way
O Lord
.... Of providence
grace
and duty; See Gill on Psalm 25:4;
and lead me in a plain path: as the path of truth is
to those that understand and find knowledge; and as the way of holiness is
even to such who in other things are fools
but shall not err therein
Proverbs 8:9
Isaiah 35:8; or the
path of righteousness
in which Christ
the wisdom of God
and shepherd of his
people
leads them
Psalm 23:3;
because of mine enemies
or "those that
observe me"; who eyed him as Saul did
1 Samuel 18:9; and
waited for his halting
as Jeremiah's familiars did for him; and lay in wait to
deceive him
and lead him out of the way
as false teachers do; and come upon
him at an unawares
and take every advantage against him
as Satan does.
Psalm 27:12 12 Do not deliver me to the
will of my adversaries; For false witnesses have risen against me
And such as
breathe out violence.
YLT
12Give me not to the will of
my adversaries
For risen against me have false witnesses
And they breathe out
violence to me.
Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies
.... It is a
dreadful thing for a man to be given up to his own heart's lusts
and to be
delivered up into the hands of Satan; who would fain have even the people of
God themselves in his hands
that he might distress them at pleasure
if not
destroy them; and also to be suffered to fall into the hands of wicked men
whose tender mercies are cruel;
for false witnesses are risen up against me; laying to his
charge
that he sought to take away from Saul his crown and kingdom
and even
his life
1 Samuel 24:9;
and such as breathe out cruelty; as Doeg the Edomite
whose tongue was as a sharp razor
and by whose hands four score and five
priests were slain
on account of David's being supplied with bread by
Ahimelech; the word is in the singular number; see Psalm 52:1; compare
with this clause Acts 9:1; and
Horace's phrase
"Spirabat amores"F12Carmin. l. 4. Ode.
13. v. 19. .
Psalm 27:13 13 I would have lost heart
unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of
the living.
YLT
13I had not believed to look
on the goodness of Jehovah In the land of the living!
I had fainted
.... When
false witnesses rose up against him
and threatened to take away his life
and
the life of his friends
in the most barbarous and cruel manner: the people of
God are subject to faintings
in the present state of things; by reason of
afflictions; because of the nature
number
and continuance of them; and
especially when they apprehend them to be in wrath and sore displeasure: and on
account of their sins
and the corruptions of their hearts; fearing lest there
should be no pardon for them; or that the true work of grace is not in them; or
that they shall fall
to the dishonour of the name of God
and to the reproach
of his
cause and interest; or that they shall perish eternally: likewise
by
reason of Satan's temptations
which are sometimes so grievous
that if Christ
did not pray for them
their faith would fail; and also on account of the
hidings of God's face
which they cannot bear: they are sometimes ready to
faint in the way of their duty
in the course of their profession
because of
the difficulties and discouragements
reproaches and persecutions
they meet
with; and sometimes in the expectation of blessings; and of the fulfilment of
promises
and of answers of prayer
which have been long deferred. This clause
is not in the original text
but is a supplement of our translators; and it is
generally agreed there is a defect of expression
which must be supplied in
some way or other: the Jewish interpreters generally refer it to the preceding
words; one supplies thusF13Jarchi.
"those false witnesses
would have rose up against me
and consumed me"; anotherF14Aben
Ezra. after this manner
"mine enemies had almost got the dominion over
me"; a thirdF15Kimchi.
"I had almost perished at their sayings":
and a fourthF16Abendana
Not. in Miclol Yophi in loc.
"and
they would have destroyed me". Perhaps it may be as well supplied from Psalm 119:92;
"I should then have perished in mine affliction"; it follows
unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land
of the living: both the providential goodness of the Lord
in supplying him
with the
necessaries of life
and in delivering him out of the hands of his
enemies; and his special goodness
which he has laid up in his covenant
and in
his son; even all spiritual blessings in Christ
in whom he causes all his
goodness to pass before his people. The psalmist believed that he should "see";
that is
enjoy all these
or whatever was needful for him; all the good things
of life
all special favours; as supports under afflictions
views of pardoning
grace under a sense of sin
strength against Satan's temptations
and
deliverance out of them; the discoveries of the love of God
and the light of
his countenance
after desertions
and divine refreshments in his house
from
his word and ordinances; and at last all the glories of the other world; and
faith in these things is the best antidote against faintings. By "the land
of the living" may be meant either the land of Canaan
where the living
God was worshipped
and living saints dwelt
in opposition to other lands
the
habitations of men dead in sins; and at a distance from which David now might
be; or else the world in general
in opposition to the place and state of the
dead; or
as some think
heaven
or he life of the world to come
as Kimchi
expresses it; and so Apollinarius paraphrases it
"I
shall see the blessed God with my eyes in the land of the blessed.'
The
word לולא
rendered "unless"
is one of the
fifteen words which are extraordinarily pointed in the Hebrew Bible.
Psalm 27:14 14 Wait on the Lord; Be of good
courage
And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait
I say
on the Lord!
YLT
14Look unto Jehovah -- be
strong
And He doth strengthen thy heart
Yea
look unto Jehovah!
Wait on the Lord
.... This
with what follows
is spoken by the psalmist either to himself or to others
or
it may be to both
upon the rich experience he declares in Psalm 27:13
it
becomes believers to wait on the Lord for the common blessings of life
for
even the eyes of all wait upon him for their daily food; and for the light of
his countenance
when it is withdrawn from them
for he will return again at
the set time; and for answers of prayer
which will be given sooner or later;
and for the performance of his promises
which are yea and amen in Christ: they
should wait upon him in his house and ordinances constantly
with reverence and
godly fear; they should wait upon him as servants on their masters
observe his
orders
and diligently execute them; and
as beggars for their alms
they
should knock and wait at Wisdom's gates
tell their case and wait
take
repulses and wait
and
when they succeed
give thanks. It is good to wait upon
the Lord; many are the favours and blessings such receive now
and eye has not
seen what God has prepared for them that wait for him;
be of good courage; the saints have need of courage
considering the enemies they have to grapple with; the corruptions of their own
hearts
the enemies of a man's own house; the worst of all
Satan
and his
principalities and powers; and men of the world
and a world of them: and they
have great reason
notwithstanding
be of good courage
since God is for them;
Christ is the Captain of their salvation; the Holy Spirit
that is in them
is
greater than he that is in the world; angels encamp around them; they are
provided with the whole armour of God; they are engaged in a good cause
are
sure of victory
and shall wear the crown of righteousness; and it follows
and he shall strengthen thine heart; that is
the Lord will
do it
as he has promised to them that wait on him
Isaiah 40:31; or
"let thine heart be strengthened": as the Septuagint render it; and
so the Chaldee paraphrase
"strengthen thine heart"; taking it for an
exhortation; as indeed it seems to be by what goes before and follows; see Joshua 1:6;
wait
I say
on the Lord; this is repeated
to
express the importance of this duty
and to encourage to it.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》