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Psalm Seventy-six
New King James Version (NKJV)
YLT
To the Overseer with stringed instruments. -- A Psalm of Asaph. --
A Song.
INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 76
To the chief Musician on Neginoth
A Psalm cf15I or Song of Asaph.
The Targum is
"by
the hand of Asaph:'
concerning
"neginoth"
see the title of Psalm 4:1
this psalm is generally thought
to be written on account of some great appearance of God for the Jews
or
victory obtained by them over their enemies
either the Ammonites in the times
of David; so the first part of the Syriac inscription is
"when
Rabbah of the children of Ammon was destroyed;'
see
2 Samuel 12:26 or in the time of
Jehoshaphat
when they came up against him
and were in a wonderful manner
defeated
which occasioned great joy and thankfulness
2 Chronicles 20:1. The Septuagint version
entitles the psalm "an ode against the Assyrian"
in which it is
followed by the Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions: and it is the opinion of
many that it was written on account of the defeat of Sennacherib
and his army
which came up against Jerusalem in the times of Hezekiah
and was destroyed by
an angel in one night
and so slept their sleep
and a dead one
with which
agree Psalm 76:5
so Arama and Theodoret; Jarchi
gives this reason for such an interpretation
because we do not find that any
enemy fell at or near Jerusalem but he
as is said Psalm 76:3
"there brake he the arrows
of the bow"
&c. nor was one arrow suffered to be thrown into the
city
2 Kings 19:32. Kimchi and Ben Melech
interpret it of the war of Gog and Magog
yet to come; and the latter part of
the Syriac inscription is
"moreover
it shows the vengeance of the judgment of Christ against the ungodly;'
and
indeed it seems to point out the latter day
when Christ shalt destroy the
antichristian kings and states
and save his own people
and shall be feared
and praised; as the former part of it may respect his incarnation
appearance
and dwelling in the land of Judea
and so the whole is of the same argument
with the preceding psalm.
Psalm 76:1 In
Judah God is known; His name is great in Israel.
YLT
1 In Judah [is] God known
in Israel His name [is] great.
In Judah is God known
.... God is to
be known
and is made known
by his works of creation
and by his providences
and particularly by his judgments in the whole world
even among the Gentiles;
and he was made known by his word and ordinances
his statutes and his
judgments
among the Jews
to whom these were specially given; and he is made
known by his Spirit
and in his Son in a spiritual and saving manner to such
who are Jews inwardly
or the true circumcision: moreover this may be
understood of Christ
God manifest in the flesh
and regard his appearance in
human nature in the land of Judea; he was
according to prophecy
of the tribe
of Judah as man
and was born in Bethlehem
a city in that tribe
where David
was
and of the family of David
that formerly lived there: and he was made
known by John the Baptist
who came preaching in the wilderness of Judea
and
by his being baptized of him in Jordan; by his own ministry and miracles in
that land
and by the preaching of his apostles in the several cities of it
he
was known in person to many; and by the fame of his doctrine and miracles to
more
though seemingly but to few:
his name is great in Israel; he himself is great
for
his name is himself
being the great God
and possessed of all divine
perfections; his offices and titles are great
he is a great Saviour
a great
High Priest
a great Prophet risen up in Israel
a great King
add the great
Shepherd of the sheep; his works which make him known are great
his works of
creation and providence
in which he is jointly concerned with his Father; the
mighty works he did on earth
and especially the great work of our redemption;
and his Gospel
which is called his name
Acts 9:15
brings glad tidings of great and
good things; by means of which
and the wonderful things he did in the land of
Israel
his fame was spread about in it
for he was sent only to the lost sheep
of the house of Israel; here his marvellous works were done
and his Gospel
first preached
which afterwards went into all the earth.
Psalm 76:2 2 In Salem[b] also is
His tabernacle
And His dwelling place in Zion.
YLT
2And His tabernacle is in
Salem
And His habitation in Zion.
In Salem also is his
tabernacle
.... That is
in Jerusalem
as the Targum expresses it
where the
tabernacle of Moses and the ark of the covenant were
and afterwards the temple
of Solomon
which the Targum here calls the house of the sanctuary; and may be
interpreted of the human nature of Christ
the true tabernacle which God
pitched
and not man
in which the divine word when he was made flesh dwelt or
tabernacled among the Jews at Jerusalem
and in other parts of Judea
Hebrews 8:2. Salem or Jerusalem often
signifies the church of God in Gospel times
in the midst of which Christ
resides
and where he grants his gracious presence
Hebrews 12:22 and in the New Jerusalem the
tabernacle of God will be with men
and he will dwell among them
Revelation 21:2. The Septuagint translate
the word
and render it
"in peace"
as in Hebrews 7:2
the God of peace dwells among
those that live in peace
2 Corinthians 13:11
and his dwelling place in Zion; where the ark was
brought by David
and the temple was built by Solomon
into which
as rebuilt
by Zerubbabel
Christ came
and here he preached; a figure of the church
which
is his habitation.
Psalm 76:3 3 There He broke the arrows
of the bow
The shield and sword of battle. Selah
YLT
3There he hath shivered
arrows of a bow
Shield
and sword
and battle. Selah.
There brake he the arrows
of the bow.... The Targum is
"there
brake he the arrows and the bows of the people that make war;'
the
word רשפי
translated "arrows"
signifies
"sparks or coals of fire"; see Job 5:7 and is used of arrows
because they
fly swiftly
as sparks do
or because of their brightness
or because fiery; so
we read of "the fiery darts of Satan"
Ephesians 6:16
and perhaps they may be
meant here: when Christ our Lord suffered near Jerusalem
he spoiled
principalities and powers
and broke their strength and might
and made peace
by the blood of his cross
in which he triumphed over them; for the destroying
of these instruments of war with what follow:
the shield
and the sword
and the battle
is expressive
of making wars to cease
and causing peace; and may include the peace which was
all the world over at the birth of Christ
and was foretold and expressed in
much such language as here
Zechariah 9:9
and also that which was made
by his sufferings and death
and which was published in his Gospel by his
apostles
whom he sent forth unarmed
whose weapons were not carnal
but
spiritual; and likewise the spiritual peace he gives to his people
quenching
the fiery darts of Satan
and delivering them from the archers that shoot at
them
and sorely grieve them; as well as that peace which shall be in the world
and churches in the latter day; see Psalm 46:11
Selah. See Gill on Psalm 3:2.
Psalm 76:4 4 You are more glorious
and excellent Than the mountains of prey.
YLT
4Bright [art] Thou
honourable above hills of prey.
Thou art more glorious and
excellent than the mountains of prey. Which is to be understood
not of Zion
as some interpret it; though it is true that the mountain of Zion
or the church of Christ
his kingdom and interest
shall in the latter day be
more glorious and excellent than all other mountains
kingdoms
and interests;
see Isaiah 2:2
but of God or Christ before
spoken of; and so the Targum
"bright
to be feared
art thou
O God
to be praised from the house of thy sanctuary.'
Christ
who is God over all
is "bright"F26נאור
"illustris"
Pagninus
Montanus
Musculus
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator; "illustrior"
Tigurine
version; "splendidus"
Vatablus
Gejerus
Michaelis; "bright"
Ainsworth.
splendid
and
glorious
in his divine nature
being the brightness of his Father's glory
and
the express image of his person: and "excellent" in his office as
Mediator
and in all his works as such; and in human nature
at he is exalted
at his Father's right hand
far above all principality
power
might
and
dominion
signified here by "mountains of prey": the kingdoms of this
world
because of their eminence and strength
are compared to mountains: see Isaiah 41:15 and may be called
"mountains of prey"
in allusion to mountains inhabited by beasts of
prey
as lions and leopards; see Song of Solomon 4:8 because obtained and
possessed by tyranny and oppression. Christ is more glorious and excellent than
the kings of the earth; he is higher than they
and is King of kings; he is
richer than they
the earth is the Lord's
and the fulness thereof
the world
and they that dwell therein; he is wiser than they
by him kings reign
and
princes decree justice; he is more powerful than they
and all must submit to
him
and all will serve him hereafter; and his kingdom will be greater than
theirs
more large and more lasting; it will be an everlasting one
and reach
from sea to sea
and even to the ends of the earth.
Psalm 76:5 5 The stouthearted were
plundered; They have sunk into their sleep; And none of the mighty men have
found the use of their hands.
YLT
5Spoiled themselves have the
mighty of heart
They have slept their sleep
And none of the men of might
found their hands.
The stout hearted are
spoiled
.... The Assyrian army
its officers and generals
that came up
against Jerusalem
with great resolution and courage
and with daring impiety
and blasphemy against the God of heaven
as Rabshakeh and others; these were
spoiled
and their armour and riches became a prey to those they thought to
have made a prey of. So principalities and powers were spoiled by Christ upon
the cross
and Satan
the strong man armed
has in the conversion of a sinner
his armour taken from him
and his spoils divided by him that is stronger than
he; and such as are stouthearted
and far from true righteousness
are stripped
of their own
and made willing
in the day of Christ's power upon them
to
submit to his; and as for antichrist
whose look is more stout than his
fellows
that exalts himself above all that is called God
and opens his mouth
in blasphemy against him and his followers
he shall be destroyed with the
breath of Christ's mouth
and the brightness of his coming: or "the stout
hearted have spoiled themselves"F1אשתוללו
"praedae se exposnerunt"
Tigurine version
Gejerus; "dediderunt
se in praedam"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator. ; as the Midianites
did
or gave themselves for a prey; so the Targum
"the
stouthearted have cast off from them the weapons of war;'
threw
away their armour
and ran away
such of them as were not destroyed by the
angel. It is observable
that the Hebrew word
translated "spoiled"
is in the Syriac form:
they have slept their sleep: the sleep of death
as
did the Assyrians when smitten by the angel
which was done in the night
when
probably they were fast asleep
and so never awoke more
as the Babylonians
Jeremiah 51:57. So Jezebel
or the Romish
antichrist
shall be cast into a bed
and her children killed with death
Revelation 2:22. Death is often in
Scripture signified by a sleep
both the death of the righteous and of the
wicked; but there is a difference between the one and the other; wherefore the
death of the wicked here is called "their sleep"; the one sleep in
Jesus
in his arms
and under his guardianship
the other not; to the one death
is a true and proper rest from toil and labour
to the other only a cessation
from doing mischief
Job 3:17
the one rests in hopes of a
glorious resurrection
the other not; the one will awake in Christ's likeness
and to everlasting life; the other in the image of Satan
and to everlasting
shame and contempt:
and none of the men of might have found their hands; none of the
valiant soldiers in the Assyrian army could find their hands to fight their
enemies
or defend themselves; as men in a deep sleep cannot find their hands
to do anything
and are as if they had none
and still less in a dead sleep.
The Targum is
"they
were not able to lay hold on their armour with their hands.'
This
was the case of them that were killed; and as for those that remained alive
they were struck with such a panic
that their hearts could not endure
nor
their hands be strong when God thus dealt with them; and so it will be with the
antichristian army at the battle of Armageddon; and so it is with the wicked at
death
they cannot find their hands so as to prevent it; and when it has seized
upon them
they cannot find their hands to do any more mischief.
Psalm 76:6 6 At Your rebuke
O God of
Jacob
Both the chariot and horse were cast into a dead sleep.
YLT
6From Thy rebuke
O God of
Jacob
Both rider and horse have been fast asleep.
At thy rebuke
O God of
Jacob
.... The God of Jacob personally
and of his posterity
the children
of Israel
and of the church
often so called who rebukes his people in love
but his enemies with furious rebukes
with rebukes in flames of fire; with such
he rebukes the Heathen
destroys the wicked
and puts out their name for ever:
both the chariot and horse are cast into a dead sleep; that is
the
riders in chariots and on horses; such there were doubtless in the Assyrian
army
it being usual to have such in great armies. Kimchi observes
that the
word נרדם
translated "cast into a dead
sleep"
is in the singular number
and interprets it of the king
the head
of the men of might: but Sennacherib
king of Assyria
was not slain
he
departed to his own country; wherefore he applies it to Gog and Magog
the
chief prince of Meshech and Tubal
Ezekiel 39:1 and may very well be
understood of the head of the apostasy
the king of the bottomless pit
the
beast or false prophet
who being destroyed
the flesh of his captains and
horsemen shall be the food of the fowls of the air
at the supper of the great
God
Revelation 19:17.
Psalm 76:7 7 You
Yourself
are
to be feared; And who may stand in Your presence When once You are angry?
YLT
7Thou
fearful [art] Thou
And who doth stand before Thee
Since Thou hast been angry!
Thou
even thou
art to be
feared
.... By his own people with reverence and godly fear
because of
his greatness and goodness; and to be dreaded by his enemies; which seems to be
the sense here
as appears by what follows:
and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry? or "from
the moment thou art angry"F2מאז אפך "ex quo irasceris"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator; "a momento
vel tempore irae tuae"
Michaelis. ; so the
Targum
from the "time"
and Jarchi
from the "hour": that
is
as soon as ever his anger begins
when it is kindled but a little
and how
much less when it burns in its full strength? there is no standing before his
justice
and at his judgment seat
with boldness and confidence
and so as to
succeed
or come off acquitted
without having on his righteousness; and much
less is there any standing before his wrath and fury
when his hand takes hold
on judgment to execute it; see Nahum 1:6.
Psalm 76:8 8 You caused judgment to be
heard from heaven; The earth feared and was still
YLT
8From heaven Thou hast
sounded judgment
Earth hath feared
and hath been still
Thou didst cause judgment
to be heard from heaven
.... When an angel was sent down from heaven
and destroyed the
Assyrian army
a judgment of God upon them; at which time some think there was
a violent clap of thunder
which is the voice of God: and it may refer to the
judgments which God has decreed to execute on the antichristian states
the
seven vials of his wrath he will pour upon them; for all decrees
as Aben Ezra
on the place observes
come from heaven; or to the last judgment
when Christ
the Judge shall descend from heaven
the voice of the archangel shall be heard
the last trumpet shall sound
the dead in their graves shall hear it
and rise
and stand before the judgment seat
and hear the sentence pronounced:
the earth feared
and was still: or "trembled
and
was quiet"F3ארץ ידאה
ושקטה "terra tremuit
et quievit"
V. L. ;
that is
again: some think there was an earthquake when the angel smote the
Assyrian camp
but was quickly over. It may regard the panic the other nations
were in when they heard of it
and therefore were still and quiet
and never
offered to give the Israelites any disturbance. Some understand this of the
remainder of the army that escaped with Sennacherib; these were seized with
fear
and quickly withdrew
and silently departed into their own land. Aben Ezra
observes it as the sense of some
"the earth feared"
these are the
wicked; "and was still"
they are the righteous; so the Targum
"the
land of the people feared
the land of Israel was still;'
reference
may be had to the consternation
fear
and dread
that will fall on them that
escape the judgments inflicted on the antichristian party
Revelation 11:13 and the fear and silence
that will attend the last and awful judgment; see Zechariah 2:13.
Psalm 76:9 9 When God arose to
judgment
To deliver all the oppressed of the earth. Selah
YLT
9In the rising of God to
judgment
To save all the humble of earth. Selah.
When God arose to judgment
.... He may
sometimes seem to be asleep
and to defer judgment
but he will arise and
hasten it in his own time
and will take vengeance on all his and his people's
enemies
as he did upon the army of the Assyrians
and will upon the
antichristian powers
and upon all the wicked
and at the same time will save
his own people
as follows:
to save all the meek of the earth; the quiet in the land
who are afflicted in this world
despised by the men of it
are lowly and
humble
and mean in their own eyes; these the Lord takes notice of and cares
for them
he will beautify them with salvation; these
all of them
even
everyone of them
shall be saved in him with an everlasting salvation; this
verse is by some connected with the preceding; so Kimchi
"the earth
feared
and was still
when God arose to judgment"
&c. and by others
as R. Moses and Aben Ezra
with the following.
Selah. See Gill on Psalm 3:2.
Psalm 76:10 10 Surely the wrath of man
shall praise You; With the remainder of wrath You shall gird Yourself.
YLT
10For the fierceness of man
praiseth Thee
The remnant of fierceness Thou girdest on.
Surely the wrath of man
shall praise thee
.... Either the wrath which comes from God
and has man for its
object; and that either as it regards the people of God; so the Targum
"when
thou art angry with thy people
thou hast mercy on them
and they shall confess
unto thy name;'
or
praise thee; see Isaiah 12:1
they are deserving of the
wrath of God
but are not appointed to it
and are delivered from it by Christ
who bore it for them as their representative; by which as the justice of God is
glorified
it is matter of praise to them; when the law enters into their
consciences
it works wrath there
which being removed by the application of pardoning
grace
is an occasion of praise to God; and whereas
under afflictive
dispensations
they apprehend and deprecate the wrath of God
when they are
delivered from them their mouths are filled with songs of praise: or
as it
regards wicked men
so it came forth upon the old world
and drowned it; upon
Sodom and Gomorrah
and reduced them to ashes; upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians
in the plagues inflicted on them; all which turned to the praise and glory of
God; of the last instance
see Romans 9:17
it came upon the wicked Jews
to the uttermost in the destruction of their nation
city
and temple; and upon
Rome Pagan
in the entire demolition of it as such; and so it will come upon
Rome Papal
which will be attended with great joy
praise
and thanksgiving in
the saints; see Revelation 11:17 or else this is to be understood
of the wrath which is in man
and comes forth from him
and has him for its
subject; which though it does not work the righteousness of God
yet the
righteousness of God is glorified both in checking and punishing it; and the
more it rages and burns against the people of God
the greater reason have they
to praise the Lord when delivered from it; see Psalm 124:1
so the wrath of the Assyrian
monarch
and of railing and blaspheming Rabshakeh
gave the people of the Jews
a greater occasion to praise the Lord for their wonderful deliverance; so the
wrath of men against Christ
his church and people
his ministers
Gospel
and
ordinances
will all turn to the glory of his name
when in the issue it will
be seen that these are established
overcoming all the rage and malice of men:
the remainder of wrath shall thou restrain: that which
remains in a man's breast
he has not yet vented
God can and does keep in
that
it may not break forth; this very likely was verified in Sennacherib
who might
breathe revenge
and threaten the Jews with a second visit; but was prevented
by a sudden and violent death. Some read the words
"the remainder of
wraths thou wilt gird"F4שארית חמת תחגר "res duum irarum
accinges"
Pagninus
Montanus
Vatablus
Piscator
Gejerus. ; that is
those that remain
and are not destroyed through the rage and fury of men
God
will gird with strength to defend themselves
and resist their enemies that may
rise up against them
or with gladness
because of deliverance from them; see Psalm 18:32. Some understand this of the
wrath of God
which he has in reserve and store for wicked men
and render the
words thus
with the remainder of wrath wilt thou gird thyselfF5"Reliquo
indignationum accinges te"
so some in Vatablus; "residuo irarum
accinges te"
Michaelis. ; and so come forth like an armed man
clad with
zeal
and arrayed with the garments of wrath and vengeance; see Isaiah 49:17.
Psalm 76:11 11 Make vows to the Lord your God
and
pay them; Let all who are around Him bring presents to Him who ought to
be feared.
YLT
11Vow and complete to Jehovah
your God
All ye surrounding him. They bring presents to the Fearful One.
Vow
and pay unto the Lord
your God
.... Not monastic vows
which the Papists would infer from these
and such like words; nor ceremonial ones
but spiritual sacrifices of praise
and thanksgiving
such as men sometimes make in times of distress
or when
delivered
Psalm 66:13 and which when vowed ought to
be paid
Ecclesiastes 5:4
not to creatures
angels
or saints
but to God
from whom the mercy desired must be expected
and from
whence it comes
Psalm 50:14
these words are an address to
such who were delivered from wrath
either of God or man:
let all that be round about him; who surround the throne
of his grace
gather together in his house to attend his word and ordinances
who are his servants
and constantly and faithfully adhere to him; among whom
he grants his presence
they are near to him
and he to them. It is a
periphrasis of the assembly of the saints; see Psalm 89:7. The Targum is
"all
ye that dwell round about his sanctuary;'
the
allusion is to the situation of the camp of Israel
and the tabernacle in the
wilderness
Numbers 2:1 compare with this Revelation 4:4
bring presents unto him that ought to be feared
or "to
the fear"F6למורא "ad verb
terrori
timori"
Vatsblus; "numini"
De Dieu
"venerando
et timendo huic numini"
Michaelis; so Ainsworth.
which is one of the names
of God; see Genesis 31:42 and who is and ought to be
the object of the fear and reverence of men; the "presents"
to be
brought to him are the sacrifices of prayer and praise
yea
the whole persons
the souls and bodies
of men; see Psalm 72:10
compare with this 2 Chronicles 32:22. The Targum is
"let
them bring offerings into the house of the sanctuary of the terrible One;'
of
him that is to be feared
with a godly fear by good men
and to be dreaded by
evil men
as follows.
Psalm 76:12 12 He shall cut off the
spirit of princes; He is awesome to the kings of the earth.
YLT
12He doth gather the spirit
of leaders
Fearful to the kings of earth!
He shall cut off the
spirit of princes
.... The pride of their spirits
as the Targum
humble their
proud spirits
and bring them down; or dispirit them
take away their courage
from them
upon which they flee apace to rocks and mountains to cover them; or
confound them
blast their schemes
and carry their counsel headlong
and even
take away their breath
or life; which he can as easily do as a man can cut off
a bunch of grapes from the vine
as the wordF7יבצר
"qui vindemiat"
Junius & Tremellius
Piscator; "succidet
nempe
ut vindemiator racemos"
Vatablus
so Ainsworth. here used
signifies; the destruction of the wicked is expressed by cutting down the vine
of the earth
and casting it into the winepress of God's wrath
Revelation 14:17
he is terrible to the kings of the earth; as he was to
the king of Assyria
when he sent his angel
and destroyed his army; and as he
has been to others in all ages; so he will be to the kings of the earth that
have committed fornication with the whore of Rome
who will be in the utmost
panic at the time of her destruction
Revelation 18:9
and who will themselves be
overcome by the Lamb
Revelation 16:14. The Targum is
he is to
be feared above all the kings of the earth.
──《John Gill’s
Exposition of the Bible》
New King James
Version (NKJV)