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Psalm Thirty-seven
Psalm 37
Chapter Contents
David persuades to patience and confidence in God
by the
state of the godly and of the wicked.
Commentary on Psalm 37:1-6
(Read Psalm 37:1-6)
When we look abroad we see the world full of evil-doers
that flourish and live in ease. So it was seen of old
therefore let us not
marvel at the matter. We are tempted to fret at this
to think them the only
happy people
and so we are prone to do like them: but this we are warned
against. Outward prosperity is fading. When we look forward
with an eye of
faith
we shall see no reason to envy the wicked. Their weeping and wailing
will be everlasting. The life of religion is a believing trust in the Lord
and
diligent care to serve him according to his will. It is not trusting God
but
tempting him
if we do not make conscience of our duty to him. A man's life
consists not in abundance
but
Thou shalt have food convenient for thee. This
is more than we deserve
and it is enough for one that is going to heaven. To
delight in God is as much a privilege as a duty. He has not promised to gratify
the appetites of the body
and the humours of the fancy
but the desires of the
renewed
sanctified soul. What is the desire of the heart of a good man? It is
this
to know
and love
and serve God. Commit thy way unto the Lord; roll thy
way upon the Lord
so the margin reads it. Cast thy burden upon the Lord
the
burden of thy care. We must roll it off ourselves
not afflict and perplex
ourselves with thoughts about future events
but refer them to God. By prayer
spread thy case and all thy cares before the Lord
and trust in him. We must do
our duty
and then leave the event with God. The promise is very sweet: He
shall bring that to pass
whatever it is
which thou has committed to him.
Commentary on Psalm 37:7-20
(Read Psalm 37:7-20)
Let us be satisfied that God will make all to work for
good to us. Let us not discompose ourselves at what we see in this world. A
fretful
discontented spirit is open to many temptations. For
in all respects
the little which is allotted to the righteous
is more comfortable and more
profitable than the ill-gotten and abused riches of ungodly men. It comes from
a hand of special love. God provides plentifully and well
not only for his
working servants
but for his waiting servants. They have that which is better
than wealth
peace of mind
peace with God
and then peace in God; that peace
which the world cannot give
and which the world cannot have. God knows the
believer's days. Not one day's work shall go unrewarded. Their time on earth is
reckoned by days
which will soon be numbered; but heavenly happiness shall be
for ever. This will be a real support to believers in evil times. Those that
rest on the Rock of ages
have no reason to envy the wicked the support of
their broken reeds.
Commentary on Psalm 37:21-33
(Read Psalm 37:21-33)
The Lord our God requires that we do justly
and render
to all their due. It is a great sin for those that are able
to deny the
payment of just debts; it is a great misery not to be able to pay them. He that
is truly merciful
will be ever merciful. We must leave our sins; learn to do
well
and cleave to it. This is true religion. The blessing of God is the
spring
sweetness
and security of all earthly enjoyments. And if we are sure
of this
we are sure not to want any thing good for us in this world. By his
grace and Holy Spirit
he directs the thoughts
affections
and designs of good
men. By his providence he overrules events
so as to make their way plain. He
does not always show them his way for a distance
but leads them step by step
as children are led. God will keep them from being ruined by their falls
either into sin or into trouble
though such as fall into sin will be sorely
hurt. Few
if any
have known the consistent believer
or his children
reduced
to abject
friendless want. God forsakes not his saints in affliction; and in
heaven only the righteous shall dwell for ever; that will be their everlasting
habitation. A good man may fall into the hands of a messenger of Satan
and be
sorely buffeted
but God will not leave him in his enemy's hands.
Commentary on Psalm 37:34-40
(Read Psalm 37:34-40)
Duty is ours
and we must mind it; but events are God's
we must refer the disposal of them to him. What a striking picture is in verses 35
36
of many a prosperous enemy of God!
But God remarkably blights the projects of the prosperous wicked
especially
persecutors. None are perfect in themselves
but believers are so in Christ
Jesus. If all the saint's days continue dark and cloudy
his dying day may
prove comfortable
and his sun set bright; or
if it should set under a cloud
yet his future state will be everlasting peace. The salvation of the righteous
will be the Lord's doing. He will help them to do their duties
to bear their
burdens; help them to bear their troubles well
and get good by them
and
in
due time
will deliver them out of their troubles. Let sinners then depart from
evil
and do good; repent of and forsake sin
and trust in the mercy of God
through Jesus Christ. Let them take his yoke upon them
and learn of him
that
they may dwell for evermore in heaven. Let us mark the closing scenes of
different characters
and always depend on God's mercy.
── Matthew Henry《Concise Commentary on Psalms》
Psalm 37
Verse 1
[1] Fret not thyself because of evildoers
neither be thou
envious against the workers of iniquity.
Fret not — Because they prosper in their wicked enterprizes.
Verse 5
[5] Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he
shall bring it to pass.
Commit — All thy cares and business
and necessities
commend
to God by fervent prayer.
Verse 6
[6] And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light
and thy judgment as the noonday.
Judgment — It shall be as visible to men
as the light of the
sun
at noon-day.
Verse 7
[7] Rest in the LORD
and wait patiently for him: fret not
thyself because of him who prospereth in his way
because of the man who
bringeth wicked devices to pass.
Rest — Do not repine at his dealings
but quietly submit to
his will
and wait for his help.
Verse 8
[8] Cease from anger
and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in
any wise to do evil.
Fret not — Either against the sinner for his success; or against
God.
Do evil — If grief arise in thee
take care that it do not
transport thee to sin.
Verse 9
[9] For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon
the LORD
they shall inherit the earth.
The earth — This for the most part was
literally fulfilled in that state of the church.
Verse 10
[10] For yet a little while
and the wicked shall not be: yea
thou shalt diligently consider his place
and it shall not be.
Not be — He shall be dead and gone.
Diligently — Industriously seeking him.
His place — His place and estate
and glory.
Verse 11
[11] But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves
in the abundance of peace.
But — Those who patiently bear God's afflicting hand
and
meekly pass by injuries.
Peace — Partly of outward peace and prosperity
which God in
his due time will give them: but principally of inward peace
in the sense of
God's favour and the assurance of endless happiness.
Verse 13
[13] The Lord shall laugh at him: for he seeth that his day
is coming.
His day — The day appointed by God for his punishment or
destruction.
Verse 18
[18] The LORD knoweth the days of the upright: and their
inheritance shall be for ever.
Knoweth — Observes with care and affection.
The days — All things which befal them
their dangers and fears
and suffering.
For ever — To them and their seed for ever: and when they die
their inheritance is not lost
but exchanged for one infinitely better.
Verse 20
[20] But the wicked shall perish
and the enemies of the LORD
shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume
away.
Fat — Which in an instant melts before the fire.
Verse 23
[23] The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he
delighteth in his way.
Established — So that he shall not fall into
mischief.
Verse 24
[24] Though he fall
he shall not be utterly cast down: for
the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.
Fall — Into trouble.
Verse 25
[25] I have been young
and now am old; yet have I not seen
the righteous forsaken
nor his seed begging bread.
Forsaken — These temporal promises
were more express to the Jews
in the times of the Old Testament
than to Christians.
Verse 26
[26] He is ever merciful
and lendeth; and his seed is
blessed.
Blessed — Not only with spiritual
but with temporal blessings.
Verse 27
[27] Depart from evil
and do good; and dwell for evermore.
Dwell — Thou shalt dwell in the land
and afterwards in
heaven.
Verse 30
[30] The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom
and his
tongue talketh of judgment.
The mouth — Having shewed
God's singular
care over the righteous
he proceeds to give a character of them.
Judgment — Of God's judgment
word or law.
Verse 31
[31] The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps
shall slide.
Heart — His thoughts
meditations and affections are fixed
upon it.
Slide — Slide
or swerve
from the rule
from God's law.
Verse 35
[35] I have seen the wicked in great power
and spreading
himself like a green bay tree.
Bay-tree — Which is continually green and flourishing even in
winter.
Verse 36
[36] Yet he passed away
and
lo
he was not: yea
I sought
him
but he could not be found.
Yet — He was gone in an instant.
But — There was no monument or remainder of him left.
Verse 37
[37] Mark the perfect man
and behold the upright: for the
end of that man is peace.
Peace — Though he may meet with troubles in his way
yet all
shall end well.
Verse 38
[38] But the transgressors shall be destroyed together: the
end of the wicked shall be cut off.
Together — All without exception.
── John Wesley《Explanatory Notes on Psalms》
Psalm 37 - The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth
OBJECTIVES IN STUDYING THIS PSALM
1) To learn why we should not fret
become angry
or be envious of the
wicked when they prosper
2) To see the importance of trusting in the Lord and committing our ways
to Him
3) To note the context from which came the beatitude "Blessed are the
meek
for they shall inherit the earth."
SUMMARY
This psalm of David is didactic in nature
filled with instruction for
God's people. It was evidently written late in life
in which David
shares his observations (25). A recurring theme is who will inherit the
earth (9
11
22
29
34)
and the answer of the psalmist is one of the
beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount (cf. Mt 5:5). From the context of
the psalm
we might understand the beatitude to refer to blessings in
this life for those who trust in God (cf. Mt 6:33; Mk 10:29-30). Not
that they may literally possess more of this earth's riches
but their
ability to enjoy it is blessed by God (16; cf. Ecc 5:19-6:2).
Acrostic in the original Hebrew
the psalm is somewhat difficult to
outline. It begins with a series of exhortations directed to the
righteous
to trust in the Lord and not fret or be angry when the wicked
prosper (1-8). It continues with an exposition contrasting the wicked
and the righteous
illustrating the futility of the wicked and the
steadfastness of the righteous (9-26). It ends with counsel for one to
do good and depart from evil
to wait on the Lord and keep His way
and
to take careful note of the future of the righteous as opposed to the
end of the wicked (27-40).
OUTLINE
I. EXHORTATION FOR THE RIGHTEOUS (37:1-8)
A. DO NOT ENVY EVILDOERS (1-2)
1. Do not fret nor be envious of the workers of iniquity
2. They shall soon wither and be cut away
B. PUT YOUR FAITH IN THE LORD (3-8)
1. Trust in the Lord and do good
a. Dwell in the land
feeding on His faithfulness
b. Delight in the Lord
who will give you the desires of your
heart
2. Commit your way to the Lord
trusting in Him
a. He shall bring your plans to pass
b. He shall bring forth your righteousness and justice
3. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him
a. Do not fret because of the prosperous or wicked
b. Cease from anger
wrath and worry
it only causes harm
II. EXPOSITION ON THE WICKED AND RIGHTEOUS (37:9-26)
A. THE FUTILITY OF THE WICKED (9-17)
1. The wicked shall be cut off and be no more
a. While those who wait on the Lord shall inherit the earth
b. While the meek shall inherit the earth and enjoy an
abundance of peace
2. The wicked shall be defeated
a. Despite their plots against the just and gnashing of teeth
1) The Lord laughs
2) He sees their day coming
b. Despite their weapons against the poor and righteous
1) Which they have drawn to cast down and slay
2) Which shall enter their own hearts and be broken
3. Better than the riches of the wicked is the poverty of the
righteous
a. The arms of the wicked shall be broken
b. The Lord will uphold the righteous
B. THE STEADFASTNESS OF THE RIGHTEOUS (18-26)
1. The LORD knows the days of the righteous
a. Their inheritance shall be forever
b. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time
c. They shall be satisfied in the days of famine
2. The wicked and enemies of the LORD shall perish
a. They shall vanish like the splendor of the meadows
b. They shall vanish away like smoke
3. The righteous shows mercy and gives
the wicked who borrows and
does not repay
a. For those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the earth
b. While those cursed by Him shall be cut off
4. The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD
a. The Lord delights in his way
b. Even though he falls
he is not utterly cast down
c. For the Lord upholds him with His hand
III. COUNSEL FOR THE RIGHTEOUS (37:27-40)
A. DEPART FROM EVIL
DO GOOD
AND DWELL IN THE LAND (27-33)
1. For the LORD loves justice and does not forsake His saints
a. They are preserved
while the wicked shall be cut off
b. The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell in it forever
2. The virtues of the righteous
a. His mouth speaks wisdom
his tongue talks of justice
b. The law of his God is in his heart
none of his steps shall
slide
3. The protection of the LORD
a. Despite the attempts of the wicked to slay the righteous
b. The LORD will not leave him in his hand
nor condemn him
when he is judged
B. WAIT ON THE LORD AND KEEP HIS WAY (34-36)
1. He shall exalt you to inherit the land
2. You shall see it when the wicked are cut off
a. Even as the wicked once grew like a tree in great power
b. But later could not be found for he was no more
C. NOTE THE BLAMELESS AND UPRIGHT (37-40)
1. Mark the blameless
observe the upright
in contrast to the
wicked
a. The future of that man is peace
b. The future of wicked shall be destroyed and cut off
2. The salvation of the righteous is from the LORD
a. He is their strength in times of trouble
b. He shall help and deliver them from the wicked
because they
trust in Him
REVIEW QUESTIONS FOR THE PSALM
1) What are the main points of this psalm?
- Exhortation for the righteous (1-8)
- Exposition on the wicked and the righteous (9-26)
- Counsel for the righteous (27-33)
2) What does David tell us not to do when others are wicked and
prosperous? Why? (1 7 8)
- Do not fret
be envious
or angry; it only causes one harm
3) Why should we not be bothered about the prosperity of the wicked?
(2 9 10)
- They shall soon be cut off; they shall soon be no more
4) What are we encouraged to do? (3-7)
- Trust in the Lord
do good
- Dwell in the land and feed on His faithfulness
- Delight in the Lord
- Commit your way to the Lord
- Trust in Him
- Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him
5) Who is said to inherit the earth? (9 11 22 29 34)
- Those who wait on the LORD
- The meek
- Those blessed by the LORD
- The righteous
- Those who wait on the LORD and keep His Way
6) What will happen to the efforts of the wicked against the just?
(12-15)
- Their efforts will turn on to themselves
7) What is better than the riches of many wicked? Why? (16-17)
- A little that a righteous man has; because the LORD upholds the
righteous
8) What is said concerning the upright? (18-19)
- The LORD knows their days
- Their inheritance shall be forever
- They shall not be ashamed in the evil time
- They shall be satisfied in the days of famine
9) What will happen to the wicked and the enemies of the LORD? (20)
- They shall perish and vanish away
10) What difference is noted between the wicked and righteous
concerning money? (21)
- The wicked borrows and does not repay; the righteous shows mercy
and gives
11) What is said about the steps of a good man? (23-24)
- They are ordered by the LORD
He delights in his way
- If he falls
he will not be utterly cast down
for the LORD upholds
him
12) What observation has the psalmist made in life? (25-26)
- He has never seen the righteous forsaken
nor his descendants
begging bread
- The righteous is ever merciful and lends
his descendants are
blessed
13) Why should we depart from evil and do good? (27-29)
- For the LORD loves justice and does not forsake His saints
- They are preserved
and the righteous shall inherit the land
14) What is noted about the mouth and heart of the righteous? (30-31)
- The mouth speaks wisdom and tongue talks of justice; the law of his
God is in heart
15) Who protects the righteous from the wicked? (32-33)
- The LORD
16) What is one exhorted to do in verse 34? Why?
- Wait on the LORD and keep his way; He shall exalt you to inherit
the land
17) What has the psalmist seen? (35-36)
- The wicked in great power
spreading like a tree; yet he passed
away and could not be found
18) What are we told to notice about the blameless and upright man? The
wicked? (37-38)
- His future is peace; their future shall be cut off
19) What is said about the righteous in the last two verses? (39-40)
- Their salvation is from the LORD
- He is their strength in time of trouble
- They LORD shall help them and deliver them from the wicked
20) Why will the LORD save the righteous? (40)
- Because they trust in Him
--《Executable
Outlines》
Exposition
Explanatory Notes and
Quaint Sayings
Hints to the Village
Preacher
TITLE. Of David.
There is but this word to denote the authorship; whether it was a song or a
meditation we are not told. It was written by David in his old age Ps 37:25
and is the more valuable as the record of so varied an experience.
SUBJECT. The great
riddle of the prosperity of the wicked and the affliction of the righteous
which has perplexed so many
is here dealt with in the light of the future; and
fretfulness and repining are most impressively forbidden. It is a Psalm in
which the Lord hushes most sweetly the too common repinings of his people
and
calms their minds as to his present dealings with his own chosen flock
and the
wolves by whom they are surrounded. It contains eight great precepts
is twice
illustrated by autobiographical statements
and abounds in remarkable
contrasts.
DIVISION. The Psalm can
scarcely be divided into considerable sections. It resembles a chapter of the
book of Proverbs
most of the verses being complete in themselves. It is an
alphabetical Psalm: in somewhat broken order
the first letters of the verses
follow the Hebrew alphabet. This may have been not only a poetical invention
but a help to memory. The reader is requested to read the Psalm through without
comment before he turns to our exposition.
EXPOSITION
Verse
1. The Psalm opens with the first precept. It is alas! too common
for believers in their hours of adversity to think themselves harshly dealt
with when they see persons utterly destitute of religion and honesty
rejoicing
in abundant prosperity. Much needed is the command
Fret not thyself because
of evildoers. To fret is to worry
to have the heartburn
to fume
to
become vexed. Nature is very apt to kindle a fire of jealousy when it sees
lawbreakers riding on horses
and obedient subjects walking in the mire: it is
a lesson learned only in the school of grace
when one comes to view the most
paradoxical providences with the devout complacency of one who is sure that the
Lord is righteous in all his acts. It seems hard to carnal judgments that the
best meat should go to the dogs
while loving children pine for want of it. Neither
be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. The same advice under
another shape. When one is poor
despised
and in deep trial
our old Adam
naturally becomes envious of the rich and great; and when we are conscious that
we have been more righteous than they
the devil is sure to be at hand with
blasphemous reasonings. Stormy weather may curdle even the cream of humanity.
Evil men instead of being envied
are to be viewed with horror and aversion;
yet their loaded tables
and gilded trappings
are too apt to fascinate our
poor half opened eyes. Who envies the fat bullock the ribbons and garlands
which decorate him as he is led to the shambles? Yet the case is a parallel
one; for ungodly rich men are but as beasts fattened for the slaughter.
Verse
2. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass. The scythe
of death is sharpening. Green grows the grass
but quick comes the scythe. The
destruction of the ungodly will be speedy
sudden
sure
overwhelming
irretrievable. The grass cannot resist or escape the mower. And wither as
the green herb. The beauty of the herb dries up at once in the heat of the
sun
and so all the glory of the wicked shall disappear at the hour of death.
Death kills the ungodly man like grass
and wrath withers him like hay; he
dies
and his name rots. How complete an end is made of the man whose boasts
had no end! Is it worth while to waste ourselves in fretting about the insect
of an hour
an ephemeral which in the same day is born and dies? Within
believers there is a living and incorruptible seed which liveth and abideth for
ever; why should they envy mere flesh
and the glory of it
which are but as
grass
and the flower thereof?
Verse
3. Trust in the Lord. Here is the second precept
and one
appropriate to the occasion. Faith cures fretting. Sight is cross-eyed
and
views things only as they seem
hence her envy: faith has clearer optics to
behold things as they really are
hence her peace. And do good. True
faith is actively obedient. Doing good is a fine remedy for fretting. There is
a joy in holy activity which drives away the rust of discontent. So shalt
thou dwell in the land. In "the land" which floweth with milk and
honey; the Canaan of the covenant. Thou shalt not wander in the wilderness of
murmuring
but abide in the promised land of content and rest. "We which
have believed do enter into rest." Very much of our outward depends upon
the inward: where there is heaven in the heart there will be heaven in the
house. And verily thou shalt be fed
or shepherded. To integrity
and faith necessaries are guaranteed. The good shepherd will exercise his
pastoral care over all believers. In truth they shall be fed
and fed on truth.
The promise of God shall be their perpetual banquet; they shall neither lack in
spirituals nor in temporals. Some read this as an exhortation
"Feed on
truth; " certainly this is good cheer
and banishes for ever the
hungry heart burnings of envy.
Verse
4. There is an ascent in this third precept. He who was first bidden
not to fret
was then commanded actively to trust
and now is told with holy
desire to delight in God. Delight thyself also in the Lord. Make Jehovah
the joy and rejoicing of thy spirit. Bad men delight in carnal objects; do not
envy them if they are allowed to take their fill in such vain idols; look thou
to thy better delight
and fill thyself to the full with thy more sublime
portion. In a certain sense imitate the wicked; they delight in their
portion—take care to delight in yours
and so far from envying you will pity
them. There is no room for fretting if we remember that God is ours
but there
is every incentive to sacred enjoyment of the most elevated and ecstatic kind.
Every name
attribute
word
or deed of Jehovah
should be delightful to us
and in meditating thereon our soul should be as glad as is the epicure who
feeds delicately with a profound relish for his dainties. And he shall give
thee the desires of thine heart. A pleasant duty is here rewarded with
another pleasure. Men who delight in God desire or ask for nothing but what
will please God; hence it is safe to give them carte blanche. Their will
is subdued to God's will
and now they may have what they will. Our innermost
desires are here meant
not our casual wishes; there are many things which
nature might desire which grace would never permit us to ask for; these deep
prayerful
asking desires are those to which the promise is made.
Verse
5. Commit thy way unto the Lord. Roll the whole burden of
life upon the Lord. Leave with Jehovah not thy present fretfulness merely
but
all thy cares; in fact
submit the whole tenor of thy way to him. Cast away
anxiety
resign thy will
submit thy judgment
leave all with the God of all.
What a medicine is this for expelling envy! What a high attainment does this
fourth precept indicate! How blessed must he be who lives every day in
obedience to it! Trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. Our
destiny shall be joyfully accomplished if we confidently entrust all to our
Lord. We may serenely sing—
"Thy
way
not mine
O Lord
However dark it be;
O lead me by thine own right hand
Choose out the path for me."
"Smooth
let it be or rough
It will be still the best;
Winding or straight
it matters not
It leads me to thy rest."
"I
dare not choose my lot
I would not if I might;
But choose Thou for me
O my God
So shall I walk aright."
"Take
thou my cup
and it
With joy or sorrow fill;
As ever best to thee may seem
Choose thou my good and ill."
The
ploughman sows and harrows
and then leaves the harvest to God. What can he do
else? He cannot cover the heavens with clouds
or command the rain
or bring
forth the sun or create the dew. He does well to leave the whole matter with
God; and so to all of us it is truest wisdom
having obediently trusted in God
to leave results in his hands
and expect a blessed issue.
Verse
6. And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light.
In the matter of personal reputation we may especially be content to be quiet
and leave our vindication with the Judge of all the earth. The more we fret in
this case the worse for us. Our strength is to sit still. The Lord will clear
the slandered. If we look to his honour
he will see to ours. It is wonderful
how
when faith learns to endure calumny with composure
the filth does not
defile her
but falls off like snowballs from a wall of granite. Even in the
worst cases
where a good name is for awhile darkened
Providence will send a
clearing like the dawning light
which shall increase until the man once
censured shall be universally admired. And thy judgment as the noonday.
No shade of reproach shall remain. The man shall be in his meridian of
splendour. The darkness of his sorrow and his ill repute shall both flee away.
Verse
7. Rest in the Lord. This fifth is a most divine precept
and
requires much grace to carry it out. To hush the spirit
to be silent before
the Lord
to wait in holy patience the time for clearing up the difficulties of
Providence—that is what every gracious heart should aim at. "Aaron held
his peace:" "I opened not my mouth
because thou didst it." A
silent tongue in many cases not only shows a wise head
but a holy heart. And
wait patiently for him. Time is nothing to him; let it be nothing to thee.
God is worth waiting for. "He never is before his time
he never is too
late." In a story we wait for the end to clear up the plot; we ought not
to prejudge the great drama of life
but stay till the closing scene
and see
to what a finis the whole arrives. Fret not thyself because of him who
prospereth in his way
because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.
There is no good
but much evil
in worrying your heart about the present
success of graceless plotters: be not enticed into premature judgments—they
dishonour God
they weary yourself. Determine
let the wicked succeed as they
may
that you will treat the matter with indifference
and never allow a
question to be raised as to the righteousness and goodness of the Lord. What if
wicked devices succeed and your own plans are defeated! there is more of the
love of God in your defeats than in the successes of the wicked.
Verse
8. Cease from anger and forsake wrath. Especially anger
against the arrangements of Providence
and jealousies of the temporary
pleasures of those who are so soon to be banished from all comfort. Anger
anywhere is madness
here it is aggravate insanity. Yet since anger will try to
keep us company
we must resolvedly forsake it. Fret not thyself in any wise
to do evil. By no reasonings and under no circumstances be led into such a
course. Fretfulness lies upon the verge of great sin. Many who have indulged a
murmuring disposition have at last come to sin
in order to gain their fancied
rights. Beware of carping at others
study to be yourself found in the right
way; and as you would dread outward sin
tremble at inward repining.
Verse
9. For evil doers shall be cut off. Their death shall be a
penal judgment; not a gentle removal to a better state
but an execution in
which the axe of justice will be used. But those that wait upon the Lord—those
who in patient faith expect their portion in another life—they shall inherit
the earth. Even in this life they have the most of real enjoyment
and in
the ages to come theirs shall be the glory and the triumph. Passion
according
to Bunyan's parable
has his good things first
and they are soon over;
Patience has his good things last
and they last for ever.
Verse
10. For yet a little while
and the wicked shall not be. When
bad men reach to greatness
the judgments of God frequently sweep them away;
their riches melt
their power decays
their happiness turns to wretchedness;
they themselves cease any longer to be numbered with the living. The shortness
of life makes us see that the glitter of the wicked great is not true gold. O
wherefore
tried believer
dost thou envy one who in a little while will lie
lower than the dust? Yea
thou shalt diligently consider his place
and it
shall not be. His house shall be empty
his chair of office vacant
his
estate without an owner; he shall be utterly blotted out
perhaps cut off by
his own debauchery
or brought to a deathbed of penury by his own extravagance.
Gone like a passing cloud—forgotten as a dream—where are his boastings and
hectorings
and where the pomp which made poor mortals think the sinner blest?
Verse
11. But the meek shall inherit the earth. Above all others
they shall enjoy life. Even if they suffer
their consolations shall overtop
their tribulations. By inheriting the land is meant obtaining covenant
privileges and the salvation of God. Such as are truly humble shall take their
lot with the rest of the heirs of grace
to whom all good things come by a
sacred birthright. And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
Peace they love and peace they shall have. If they find not abundance of gold
abundance of peace will serve their turn far better. Others find joy in strife
and thence arises their misery in due time
but peace leads on to peace
and
the more a man loves it the more shall it come to him. In the halcyon period of
the latter days
when universal peace shall make glad the earth
the full
prophetic meaning of words like these will be made plain.
Verses
12-15. Here is the portrait of a proud oppressor armed to the teeth.
Verse
12. The wicked plotteth against the just. Why can he not let
the good man alone? Because there is enmity between the serpent's seed and the
seed of the woman. Why not attack him fairly? Why plot and scheme? Because it
is according to the serpent's nature to be very subtle. Plain sailing does not
suit those who are on board of "The Apollyon." And gnashed upon
him with his teeth. The wicked show by their gestures what they would do if
they could; if they cannot gnaw they will gnash; if they may not bite they will
at least bark. This is precisely what the graceless world did with "that
just One
"the Prince of Peace. Yet he took no vengeance upon them
but
like a silent lamb received injuries in patience.
Verse
13. The Lord shall laugh at him. The godly man needs not
trouble himself
but leave well deserved vengeance to be dealt out by the Lord
who will utterly deride the malice of the good man's enemies. Let the proud
scorner gnash his teeth and foam at the mouth; he has one to deal with who will
look down upon him and his ravings with serene contempt. For he seeth that
his day is coming. The evil man does not see how close his destruction is
upon his heels; he boasts of crushing others when the foot of justice is
already uplifted to trample him as the mire of the streets. Sinners
in the
hand of an angry God
and yet plotting against his children! Poor souls
thus
to run upon the point of Jehovahs's spear.
Verse
14. The wicked have drawn out the sword. They hold their
weapon out of its sheath
and watch for a time to use it. And have bent
their bow. One weapon is not enough
they carry another ready for action.
They carry so strong a bow that they have trodden upon it to bend it—they will
lose nothing for want of force or readiness. To cast down the poor and
needy. These are their game
the objects of their accursed malice. These
cowards attack not their equals
but seek out those excellent ones who
from
the gentleness of their spirits and the poverty of their estates
are not able
to defend themselves. Note how our meek and lowly Lord was beset by cruel foes
armed with all manner of weapons to slay him. And to slay such as be of
upright conversation. Nothing short of the overthrow and death of the just
will content the wicked. The sincere and straightforward are hated by the
crafty schemers who delight in unrighteousness. See
then
the enemies of the
godly doubly armed
and learn how true were our Lord's words
"If ye were
of the world
the world would love its own: but because ye are not of this
world
but I have chosen you our of the world
therefore the world hateth
you."
Verse
15. Their sword shall enter into their own heart. Like Haman
they shall be hanged upon the gallows built by themselves for Mordecai.
Hundreds of times has this been the case. Saul
who sought to slay David
fell
on his own sword; and the bow
his favourite weapon
the use of which he taught
the children of Israel
was not able to deliver him on Gilboa. And their
bows shall be broken. Their inventions of evil shall be rendered useless.
Malice outwits itself. It drinks the poisoned cup which it mixed for another
and burns itself in the fire which it kindled for its neighbour. Why need we
fret at the prosperity of the wicked when they are so industriously ruining
themselves while they fancy they are injuring the saints? The next nine verses
mainly describe the character and blessedness of the godly
and the light is
brought out with a few black touches descriptive of the wicked and their doom.
Verse
16. A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches
of many wicked. This is a fine proverb. The little of one good man is
contrasted with the riches of many wicked
and so the expression is rendered
the more forcible. There is more happiness in the godly dinner of herbs than in
the stalled ox of profane rioters. In the original there is an allusion to the
noise of a multitude
as if to hint at the turmoil and hurly burly of riotous
wealth
and to contrast it with the quiet of the humbler portion of the godly.
We would sooner hunger with John than feast with Herod; better feed on scant
fare with the prophets in Obadiah's cave than riot with the priests of Baal. A
man's happiness consists not in the heaps of gold which he has in store.
Content finds multum in parvo
while for a wicked heart the whole world
is too little.
Verse
17. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken. Their power to
do mischief shall be effectually taken away
for the arms which they lifted up
against God shall be crushed even to the bone. God often makes implacable men
incapable men. What is a more contemptible sight than toothless malice
armless
malevolence! But the Lord upholdeth the righteous. Their cause and
course shall be safe
for they are in good keeping. The sword of two edges
smites the wicked and defends the just.
Verse
18. The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. His
foreknowledge made him laugh at the proud
but in the case of the upright he
sees a brighter future
and treats them as heirs of salvation. Ever is this our
comfort
that all events are known to our God
and that nothing in our future
can take him at unawares. No arrow can pierce us by accident
no danger smite
us by stealth; neither in time nor eternity can any unforeseen ill occur to us.
Futurity shall be but a continual development of the good things which the Lord
has laid up in store for us. And their inheritance shall be for ever.
Their inheritance fades not away. It is entailed
so that none cam deprive them
of it
and preserved
so that none shall destroy it. Eternity is the peculiar
attribute of the believer's portion: what they have on earth is safe enough
but what they shall have in heaven is theirs without end.
Verse
19. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time. Calamities
will come
but deliverances will come also. As the righteous never reckoned
upon immunity from trouble
they will not be disappointed when they are called
to take their share of it
but the rather they will cast themselves anew upon
their God
and prove again his faithfulness and love. God is not a friend in
the sunshine only
he is a friend indeed and a friend in need. And in the
days of famine they shall be satisfied. Their barrel of meal and cruse of
oil shall last out the day of distress
and if ravens do not bring them bread
and meat
the supply of their needs shall come in some other way
for their
bread shall be given them. Our Lord stayed himself upon this when he hungered
in the wilderness
and by faith he repelled the tempter; we too may be enabled
not to fret ourselves in any wise to do evil by the same consideration. If
God's providence is our inheritance
we need not worry about the price of
wheat. Mildew
and smut
and bent
are all in the Lord's hands. Unbelief cannot
save a single ear from being blasted
but faith
if it do not preserve the
crop
can do what is better
namely
preserve our joy in the Lord.
Verse
20. But the wicked shall perish. Whatever phantom light may
mock their present
their future is black with dark
substantial night.
Judgment has been given against them
they are but reserved for execution. Let
them flaunt their scarlet and fine linen
and fare sumptuously every day; the
sword of Damocles is above their heads
and if their wits were a little more
awake
their mirth would turn to misery. The enemies of the Lord shall be as
the fat of lambs. As the sacrificial fat was all consumed upon the altar
so shall the ungodly utterly vanish from the place of their honour and pride.
How can it be otherwise? If the stubble dares to contend with the flame
to
what end can it hope to come? They shall consume. As dry wood
as heaps
of leaves
as burning coals
they shall soon be gone
and gone altogether
for into
smoke shall they consume away. Sic transit gloria mundi. A puff is the end
of all their puffing. Their fuming ends in smoke. They made themselves fat
and
perished in their own grease. Consumers of the good they tried to be
and
consumed they shall be.
Verse
21. The wicked borroweth
and payeth not again. Partly because
he will not
but mainly because he cannot. Want follows upon waste
and debt
remains undischarged. Often are the wicked thus impoverished in this life.
Their wanton extravagance brings them down to the usurer's door and to the bankrupt's
suit. But the righteous sheweth mercy
and giveth
Mercy has given to
him
and therefore he gives in mercy. He is generous and prosperous. He is not
a borrower
but a giver. So far as the good man can do it
he lends an ear to
the requests of need
and instead of being impoverished by what he imparts
he
grows richer
and is able to do more. He does not give to encourage idleness
but in real mercy
which supposes real need. The text suggests to us how much
better it generally is to give than to lend. Generally
lending comes to giving
in the end
and it is as well to anticipate the fact
and by a little
liberality forestall the inevitable. If these two sentences describe the wicked
and the righteous
the writer of these lines has reason to know that in and
about the city of London the wicked are very numerous.
Verse
22. For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth.
God's benediction is true wealth after all. True happiness
such as the
covenant secures to all the chosen of heaven
lies wrapped up in the divine
favour. And they that be cursed of him shall be cut off. His frown is
death; nay
more
It is hell.
Verse
23. The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. All his
course of life is graciously ordained
and in lovingkindness all is fixed
settled
and maintained. No reckless fate
no fickle chance rules us; our every
step is the subject of divine decree. He delighteth in his way. As
parents are pleased with the tottering footsteps of their babes. All that
concerns a saint is interesting to his heavenly Father. God loves to view the
holy strivings of a soul pressing forward to the skies. In the trials and the
joys of the faithful
Jesus has fellowship with them
and delights to be their
sympathising companion.
Verse
24. Though he fall. Disasters and reverses may lay him low; he
may
like Job
be stripped of everything; like Joseph
be put in prison; like
Jonah
be cast into the deep. He shall not be utterly cast down. He
shall not be altogether prostrate. He shall be brought on his knees
but not on
his face; or
if laid prone for a moment
he shall be up again ere long. No
saint shall fall finally or fatally. Sorrow may bring us to the earth
and
death may bring us to the grave
but lower we cannot sink
and out of the
lowest of all we shall arise to the highest of all. For the Lord upholdeth
him with his hand. Condescendingly
with his own hand
God upholds his
saints; he does not leave them to mere delegated agency
he affords personal
assistance. Even in our falls the Lord gives a measure of sustaining. Where
grace does not keep from going down
it shall save from keeping down. Job had
double wealth at last
Joseph reigned over Egypt
Jonah was safely landed. It
is not that the saints are strong
or wise
or meritorious
that therefore they
rise after every fall
but because God is their helper
and therefore none can
prevail against them.
Verse
25. This was David's observation
I have been young
and now am
old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken
nor his seed begging bread.
It is not my observation just as it stands
for I have relieved the
children of undoubtedly good men
who have appealed to me as common mendicants.
But this does not cast a doubt upon the observation of David. He lived under a
dispensation more outward
and more of this world than the present rule of
personal faith. Never are the righteous forsaken; that is a rule without
exception. Seldom indeed do their seed beg bread; and although it does
occasionally occur
through dissipation
idleness
or some other causes on the
part of their sons
yet doubtless it is so rare a thing that there are many
alive who never saw it. Go into the union house and see how few are the
children of godly parents; enter the gaol and see how much rarer still is the
case. Poor minster's sons often become rich. I am not old
but I have seen
families of the poor godly become rich
and have seen the Lord reward the
faithfulness of the father in the success of the son
so that I have often
thought that the best way to endow one's seed with wealth is to become poor for
Christ's sake. In the Indian mission of the "Baptist Missionary Society
"this is abundantly illustrated.
Verse
26. He is ever merciful
and lendeth. The righteous are
constantly under generous impulses; they do not prosper through parsimony
but
through bounty. Like the bounteous giver of all good
of whom they are the
beloved sons
they delight in doing good. How stingy covetous professors can
hope for salvation is a marvel to those who read such verses as this in the Bible.
And his seed is blessed. God pays back with interest in the next
generation. Where the children of the righteous are not godly
there must be
some reason for it in parental neglect
or some other guilty cause. The
friend of the father is the friend of the family. The God of Abraham is the God
of Isaac and of Jacob.
Verses
27-29. Here we have the seventh precept
which takes a negative and
positive form
and is the quintessence of the entire Psalm
Verse
27. Depart from evil
and do good. We must not envy the doers
of evil
but depart altogether from their spirit and example. As Lot left Sodom
without casting a look behind
so must we leave sin. No truce or parley is to
be held with sin
we must turn away from it without hesitation
and set
ourselves practically to work in the opposite direction. He who neglects to do
good will soon fall into evil. And dwell for evermore. Obtain an abiding
and quiet inheritance. Short lived are the gains and pleasures of evil
but
eternal are the rewards of grace.
Verse
28. For the Lord loveth judgment. The awarding of honour to
whom honour is due is God's delight
especially when the upright man has been
traduced by his fellow men. It must be a divine pleasure to right wrongs
and
to defeat the machinations of the unjust. The great Arbiter of human destinies
is sure to deal out righteous measure both to rich and poor
to good and evil
for such judgment is his delight. And forsaketh not his saints. This
would not be right
and
therefore
shall never be done. God is as faithful to
the objects of his love as he is just towards all mankind. They are
preserved for ever. By covenant engagements their security is fixed
and by
suretyship fulfilments that safety is accomplished; come what may
the saints
are preserved in Christ Jesus
and because he lives
they shall live also. A
king will not lose his jewels
nor will Jehovah lose his people. As the manna
in the golden pot
which else had melted
was preserved in the ark of the
covenant beneath the mercyseat
so shall the faithful be preserved in the
covenant by the power of Jesus their propitiation. But the seed of the
wicked shall be cut off. Like the house of Jeroboam and Ahab
of which not
a dog was left. Honour and wealth ill gotten seldom reach the third generation;
the curse grows ripe before many years have passed
and falls upon the evil
house. Among the legacies of wicked men the surest entail is a judgment on
their family.
Verse
29. The righteous shall inherit the land. As heirs with Jesus
Christ
the Canaan above
which is the antitype of "the land
" shall
be theirs with all covenant blessing. And dwell therein for ever.
Tenures differ
but none can match the holding which believers have of heaven.
Paradise is theirs for ever by inheritance
and they shall live for ever to
enjoy it. Who would not be a saint on such terms? Who would fret concerning the
fleeting treasures of the godless?
Verse
30. The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom. Where the
whole Psalm is dedicated to a description of the different fates of the just
and the wicked
it was meet to give a test by which they could be known. A
man's tongue is no ill index of his character. The mouth betrays the heart.
Good men
as a rule
speak that which is to edifying
sound speech
religious
conversation
consistent with the divine illumination which they have received.
Righteousness is wisdom in action
hence all good men are practically wise men
and well may the speech be wise. His tongue talketh of judgment. He
advocates justice
gives an honest verdict on things and men
and he foretells
that God's judgments will come upon the wicked
as in the former days. His talk
is neither foolish nor ribald
neither vapid nor profane. Our conversation is
of far more consequence than some men imagine.
Verse
31. The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall
slide. The best thing in the best place
producing the best results. Well
might the man's talk be so admirable when his heart was so well stored. To love
holiness
to have the motives and desires sanctified
to be in one's inmost
nature obedient to the Lord—this is the surest method of making the whole run
of our life efficient for its great ends
and even for securing the details of
it
our steps from any serious mistake. To keep the even tenor of one's way
in such times as these
is given only to those whose hearts are sound towards
God
who can
as in the text
call God their God. Policy slips and trips
it
twists and tacks
and after all is worsted in the long run
but sincerity plods
on its plain pathway and reaches the goal.
Verse
32. The wicked watcheth the righteous
and seeketh to slay him.
If it were not for the laws of the land
we should soon see a massacre of the
righteous. Jesus was watched by his enemies
who were thirsting for his blood:
his disciples must not look for favour where their Master found hatred and
death.
Verse
33. The Lord will not leave him in his hand. God often appears
to deliver his servants
and when he does not do so in this life as to their
bodies
he gives their souls such joy and peace that they triumphantly rise
beyond their tormentors' power. We may be in the enemy's hand for awhile
as
Job was
but we cannot be left there. Nor condemn him when he is judged.
Time shall reverse the verdict of haste
or else eternity shall clear away the
condemnation of time. In due season just men will be justified. Temporary
injustices are tolerated
in the order of Providence
for purposes most wise;
but the bitter shall not always be called sweet
nor light for ever be traduced
as darkness; the right shall appear in due season; the fictitious and
pretentious shall be unmasked
and the real and true shall be revealed. If we
have done faithfully
we may appeal from the petty sessions of society to the
solemn assize of the great day.
Verse
34. Wait on the Lord. We have here the eighth precept
and it
is a lofty eminence to attain to. Tarry the Lord's leisure. Wait in obedience
as a servant
in hope as an heir
in expectation as a believer. This little
word "wait" is easy to say
but hard to carry out
yet faith must do
it. And keep his way. Continue in the narrow path; let no haste for
riches or ease cause unholy action. Let your motto be
"On
on
on."
Never flag
or dream of turning aside. "He that endureth to the end
the
same shall be saved." And he shall exalt thee to inherit the land.
Thou shalt have all of earthly good which is really good
and of heavenly good
there shall be no stint. Exaltation shall be the lot of the excellent. When
the wicked are cut off
thou shalt see it. A sight how terrible and how
instructive! What a rebuke for fretfulness! what an incentive to gratitude! My
soul
be still
as you foresee the end
the awful end of the Lord's enemies.
Verse
35. A second time David turns to his diary
and this time in poetic
imagery tells us of what he had observed. It were well if we too took notes of
divine providences. I have seen the wicked in great power. The man was
terrible to others
ruling with much authority
and carrying things with a high
hand
a Caesar in might
a Croesus in wealth. And spreading himself like a
green bay tree. Adding house to house and field to field
rising higher and
higher in the state. He seemed to be ever verdant like a laurel
he grew as a
tree in its own native soil
from which it had never been transplanted. No
particular tree is here meant
a spreading beech or a wide expanding oak may
serve us to realize the picture; it is a thing of earth
whose roots are in the
clay; its honours are fading leaves; and though its shadow dwarfs the plants
which are condemned to pine beneath it
yet it is itself a dying things as the
feller's axe shall prove. In the noble tree
which claims to be king of the
forest
behold the grandeur of the ungodly today; wait awhile and wonder at the
change
as the timber is carried away
and the very root torn from the ground.
Verse
36. Yet he passed away. Tree and man both gone
the son of man
as surely as the child of the forest. What clean sweeps death makes! And
lo
he was not. To the surprise of all men the great man was gone
his
estates sold
his business bankrupt
his house alienated
his name forgotten
and all in a few months. Yea
I sought him
but he could not be found.
Moved by curiosity
if we enquire for the ungodly
they have left no trace;
like birds of ill omen none desire to remember them. Some of the humblest of
the godly are immortalized
their names are imperishably fragrant in the
church
while of the ablest of infidels and blasphemers hardly their names are
remembered beyond a few years. Men who were in everybody's mouths but yesterday
are forgotten tomorrow
for only virtue is immortal.
Verse
37. Mark the perfect man
and behold the upright. After having
watched with surprise the downfall of the wicked
give your attention to the
sincerely godly man
and observe the blessed contrast. Good men are men of
mark
and are worth our study. Upright men are marvels of grace
and worth
beholding. For the end of that man is peace. The man of peace has an end
of peace. Peace without end comes in the end to the man of God. His way may be
rough
but it leads home. With believers it may rain in the morning
thunder at
midday
and pour in torrents in the afternoon
but it must clear up ere the sun
goes down. War may last till our last hour
but then we shall hear the last of
it.
Verse
38. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together. A
common ruin awaits those who are joined in common rebellion. The end of the
wicked shall be cut off. Their time shall be shortened
their happiness
shall be ended
their hopes for ever blasted
their execution hastened on.
Their present is shortened by their sins; they shall not live out half their
days. They have no future worth having
while the righteous count their future
as their true heritage.
Verse
39. But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord. Sound
doctrine this. The very marrow of the gospel of free grace. By salvation is
meant deliverance of every kind; not only the salvation which finally
lands us in glory
but all the minor rescues of the way; these are all to be
ascribed unto the Lord
and to him alone. Let him have glory from those to whom
he grants salvation. He is their strength in the time of trouble. While
trouble overthrows the wicked
it only drives the righteous to their strong
Helper
who rejoices to uphold them.
Verse
40. And the Lord shall help them. In all future time Jehovah
will stand up for his chosen. Our Great Ally will bring up his forces in the
heat of the battle. He shall deliver them from the wicked. As he rescued
Daniel from the lions
so will he preserve his beloved from their enemies; they
need not therefore fret
nor be discouraged. And save them
because they
trust in him. Faith shall ensure they safety of the elect. It is the mark
of the sheep by which they shall be separated from the goats. Not their merit
but their believing
shall distinguish them. Who would not try the walk of
faith? Whoever truly believes in God will be no longer fretful against the
apparent irregularities of this present life
but will rest assured that what
is mysterious is nevertheless just
and what seems hard
is
beyond a doubt
ordered in mercy. So the Psalm ends with a note which is the death knell of the
unhallowed disquietude with which the Psalm commenced. Happy they who can thus
sing themselves out of ill frames into gracious conditions.
EXPLANATORY
NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS
Whole
Psalm. The righteous are preserved in Christ with a special
preservation
and in a peculiar safety. In the thirty-seventh Psalm this point
is excellently and largely handled
both by direct proof
and by answer to all
the usual objections against their safety. That they shall be preserved is
affirmed
Ps 37:3
17
23
25
32. The objections answered are many.
Objection
1. Wicked men flourish. Solution. A righteous man should never grieve at
that
for "they shall soon be cut down like the grass
and wither as the
green herb." Ps 37:2.
Objection
2. Righteous men are in distress. Solution—Ps 37:6. The night of their
adversity will be turned into the light of prosperity; and as surely as they
can believe when it is night that it shall be day
so surely may they be
persuaded when crosses are upon them
that comfort and deliverance shall come.
Objection
3. But there are great plots laid against the righteous
and they are pursued with
great malice
and their intended ruin is come almost to the very issue. Solution—Ps
37:12-15. The Lord sees all the plots of wicked men
and laughs at their
spiteful and foolish malice; while they are busy to destroy the righteous
and
hope to have a day against them
"The Lord seeth that their own day is
coming upon them
even a day of destruction
a day of great judgment and
eternal misery; "their bow shall be broken
and the sword that they have
drawn shall enter into their own heart.
Objection
4. But the just have but small means. Solution—Ps 37:16-17. "A
little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked. For
the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the Lord upholdeth the
righteous."
Objection
5. Heavy times are like to befall them. Solution—Ps 37:19. "They
shall not be ashamed in the evil time
and in the days of famine they shall
have enough."
Objection
6. But the wicked wax fatter and fatter
and they prevail in vexing the
righteous. Solution—Ps 37:20. Indeed the wicked are fat
but it is but
"the fat of lambs
"their prosperity shall soon melt; and as they be
like smoke in vexing the godly
so shall they be like smoke in vanishing away.
Objection
7. But the righteous do fall. Solution—Ps 37:24. Though he do fall
yet
he falls not finally
nor totally
for he "is not utterly cast down;
"and besides
there is an upholding providence of God in all the falls of
the righteous.
Objection
8. We see some wicked men that do not so fall into adversity
but rather are in
prosperity to their dying days. Solution—Ps 37:28. Though they do
yet
"their seed shall be cut off."
Objection
9. But some wicked men are strong yet
and in their seed spread also. Solution—Ps
37:35-36. Note also that these "spreading bay trees" many times
"soon pass away; "and they and their houses are sometimes
"utterly cut off."
Objection
10. But upright men are under many and long crosses. Solution—Ps 37:37.
Yet "his end is peace."
Objection
11. But nobody stands for the godly when they come into question. Solution—Ps
37:39-40. "Their salvation is of the Lord; "he is their strength
he
will help them and deliver them
etc.
But
if we would be thus delivered
observe: 1. That we must not unthankfully fret
at God's providence Ps 37:1. 2. We must "trust in the Lord and do
good" Ps 37:3. 3. We must "delight ourselves in the Lord
"and
not place our contentment on earthly things Ps 37:4. 4. We must "commit
our ways to God" Ps 37:5. 5. We must get patience and humble affections Ps
37:7-11. 6. We must be of upright conversation Ps 37:14. 7. We must be merciful
Ps 37:25-26. 8. We must "speak righteous things
"and get "the
law into our hearts" Ps 37:30-31. 9. We must "keep our way
"and
"wait on God" and not use ill means. Nicolas Byfield.
Whole
Psalm. This Psalm may well be styled
The good man's cordial in bad
times; a sovereign plaister for the plague of discontent; or
a choice antidote
against the poison of impatience. Nathaniel Hardy
in a Funeral Sermon
1649.
Whole
Psalm. This Psalm very much reminds one in its construction of the
sententious and pithy conciseness of the Book of Proverbs. It does not contain
any prayer
nor any direct allusion to David's own circumstances of persecution
or distress. It is rather the utterance of sound practical wisdom and godliness
from the lips of experience and age
such as we might suppose an elder of the
church
or a father of a family
to let fall as he sat with his household
gathered around him
and listening to his earnest and affectionate admonitions.
Barton Bouchier.
Whole
Psalm. The present Psalm is one of the alphabetical Psalms
it is called
"Providentiae speculum
"by Tertullian; "Potio contra
murmur
"by Isidore; "Vestis piorum
"by Luther. Christopher
Wordsworth.
Verse
1. Fret
or
inflame not
burn not thyself with anger or
grief. John Diodati.
Verse
1. Neither be thou envious
etc. Queen Elizabeth envied the
milkmaid when she was in prison; but if she had known what a glorious reign she
should have had afterwards for forty-four years
she would not have envied her.
And as little needeth a godly man
though in misery
to envy a wicked man in
the ruff of all his prosperity and jollity
considering what he hath in hand
much more what he hath in hope. John Trapp.
Verse
1. Would it not be accounted folly in a man that is heir to many
thousands per annum that he should envy a stage player
clothed in the habit of
a king
and yet not heir to one foot of land? who
though he have the form
respect
and apparel of a king or nobleman
yet he is
at the same time
a very
beggar
and worth nothing? Thus
wicked men
though they are arrayed
gorgeously
and fare deliciously
wanting nothing
and having more that heart
can wish
yet they are but only possessors: the godly Christian is the heir.
What good doth all their prosperity do them? It does but hasten their ruin
not
their reward. The ox that is the labouring ox is the longer lived than the ox
that is in the pasture; the very putting of him there doth but hasten his
slaughter; and when God puts the wicked men into fat pastures
into places of
honour and power
it is but to hasten their ruin. Let no man
therefore
fret
himself because of evil doers
nor be envious at the prosperity of the wicked;
for the candle of the wicked shall be put into everlasting darkness; they shall
soon be cut off
and wither as a green herb. Ludovic de Carbone
quoted by
John Spencer.
Verse
2. Cut down like the grass
with a scythe
and even at one
blow. Thomas Wilcocks.
Verse
2. Wither. O bitter word
which will make the ears of them
that hear it to tingle! O sentence intolerable
which deprives sinners of all
good things
and bringeth them to all woe! The Lord sometime accursed the fig
tree
and immediately
not only the leaves
but also the body and root were
wholly withered: even so
that fearful curse of the last day shall be no less
effectual; for on whomsoever it falleth is shall so scorch them
and shall so
make them destitute of God's grace
that they shall never more be able to do
to speak
think
or to hope for any good thing. Thomas Tymme.
Verse
2. Green herb. We cannot gather riper fruit of patience from
any tree than is found upon the low shrubs of man's short life; for if that
fretting canker of envy at the prosperity of the wicked have overrun thy
mind
a malady from which the saints have no shelter to be freed
out of this
apothecary's shop take antidote; either thy time is short to behold it
or
theirs shorter to enjoy is; "they are set in slippery places
and are
suddenly destroyed
"Ps 73:18; "They spend their days in wealth
and
in a moment go down to the grave
" Job 21:13; They shall soon be cut
down like the grass
and wither as the green herb. Edmund Layfield's Sermon
entitled "The Mappe of Man's Mortality and Vanity"
1630.
Verse
2. Sometimes the wicked
like the green herb
wither in their
spring
they fall in their rise
they perish in the beginnings of their
mischievous designs; but if they do come to a full growth
they grow but to
harvest
the fit season of their cutting off. Robert Mossom.
Verse
3. Note well the double precept trust and do. This is
the true order
the two must go together
the one produces
the other proves;
the promise is to both. C. H. S.
Verse
3. So shall thou dwell in the land
etc. Thou shalt have a
settlement
a quiet settlement
and a maintenance
a comfortable maintenance: Verily
thou shalt be fed; some read it
Thou shalt be fed by faith
as the just
are said to live by faith
and it is good living
good feeding upon the
promises. Verily thou shalt be fed
as Elijah in the famine
with what
is needful for thee. God himself is a shepherd
a feeder to all those that
trust in him
Ps 23:1. Matthew Henry.
Verse
3. So shalt thou dwell in the land
etc. The land of Canaan
was considered as the sum of earthly
and the type of heavenly felicity: to be
provided for in the Lord's land
and there to dwell under his protection
near
his ordinances
and among his people
was all that the genuine Israelite could
desire. Thomas Scott (1744-1821) in loc.
Verse
3. Thou shalt be fed. A manner of speech taken from cattle
feeding securely
under the conduct and keeping of a good shepherd. Henry
Ainsworth.
Verse
3. Thou shalt be fed. Fed in plenty. Thomas Secker
(Archbishop)
1768.
Verse
3. Fed in security. John Parkhurst.
Verse
4. Note thy part and God's part. Do thou delight
and he will
give. C. H. S.
Verse
4. How much grace and love breathes in these words
Delight
thyself also in the Lord! Trust in him was recommended before
and now
this being added also
how plain is it that your ease and rest is the thing
designed! Is it fit to receive so much kindness with neglect? Again
he
delights in you; I speak to such of whom this may be supposed. And it is
indefinitely said
"His delights were with the sons of men
"Pr 8:31.
Think what he is
and what you are; and at once
both wonder and yield. And
what else have you to delight in? what thing will you name that shall supply
the place of GOD
or be to you in the stead of him? Moreover
who should
delight in him but you—his friends
his sons
those of his own house? Think
what life and vigour it will infuse into you
and that "the joy of the
Lord will be your strength
"Ne 8:10. How pleasantly will you hold on your
course
and discharge all the other duties of this your present state? You must
serve him. Dare you think of throwing off his yoke? How desirable is it then to
take delight in him whom I must serve; which only makes that service acceptable
to him
and easy to myself! Further
this is a pleasure none can rob you of; a
joy that cannot be taken from you. Other objects of your delight are vanishing
daily. Neither men nor devils can ever hinder you delighting in God
if your
hearts be so inclined. And were you never brought to take pleasure in any
person or thing to which you had a former aversion? One that had wronged you
might yet possibly win you by after kindness. Give a reason why you should be
more difficult towards the blessed God that never wronged you
and whose way
towards you hath constantly imported so much good will! And consider that your condition
on earth is such as exposes you to many sufferings and hardships
which
by
your not delighting in him
you can never be sure to avoid (for they are things
common to men)
but which
by your delighting in him
you may be easily able to
endure. Besides all this
seriously consider that you must die. You can make no
shift to avoid that. How easily tolerable and pleasant will it be to think
then
of going to him with whom you have lived in a delightful communion
before! And how dreadful to appear before him to whom your own heart shall
accuse you to have been (against all his importunities and allurements) a
disaffected stranger! John Howe's "Treatise of Delight in God."
Verse
4. We have in the former part extended the meaning of the words Delight
thyself in the Lord
beyond what they seem at first sight literally to
signify; so as not to understand them merely as requiring that very single act
of delight to be immediately and directly terminated on God himself; but
to take them as comprehending all the sum of all holy and religious converse
with God
i.e.
as it is delightful
or as it is seasoned (intermingled
and as it were besprinkled) with delight; and upon the same account
of all out
other converse
so far as it is influenced by religion. And I doubt not
to
such as shall attentively have considered what hath been said
it will be
thought very reasonable to take them in that latitude; whereof the very letter
of the text (as may be alleged for further justification hereof) is most fitly
capable. For the particle which we read in the Lord
hath not that
signification alone
but signifies also with
or by
or besides
or before
or in presence of
as if it had been said
"Come
and sit down with God
retire thyself to him
and solace thyself in the delights
which are to be found in his presence and converse
in walking with him
and
transacting thy course as before him
and in his sight." As a man may be
said to delight himself with a friend that puts himself under his roof
and
besides personal converse with himself
freely enjoys the pleasure of all the
entertainments
accommodations
and provisions which he is freely willing to
communicate with him
and hath the satisfaction which a sober person would take
in observing the rules and order of a well governed house. John Howe.
Verse
4. He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. It shall be
unto thee even as thou wilt. It is said of Luther that he could have what he
would of Almighty God. What may not a favourite
who hath the royalty of his
prince's care
obtain of him? John Trapp.
Verse
4. The desires of thine heart. All the desires of this
spiritual seed are of the nature of this seed
namely
substantial
and shall
meet with substance. All the desires of natural man
even after God
after
Christ
after righteousness
shall burn and perish with him (for they are not
the truth
nor do they come from the truth
nor can they reach to the
truth;)but all the desires of this spirit shall live with the Spirit of God
in
rest and satisfaction for ever. John Pennington
1656.
Verse
4. The desires of God
and the desires of the
righteous
agree in one; they are of one mind in their desires. John Bunyan.
Verse
5. Commit thy way unto the Lord
etc. When we bear the burden
of our own affairs ourselves
and are chastised with anxiety and want of
success
and with envying the ungodly who prosper better than we do
the best
remedy is first to do our duty
as we are enabled in the use of the means
then
cast the care of the success over on God
as the ploughman doth when he hath
harrowed his land; and let the burden of it rest on God
and let us not take it
off him again
but put our mind to rest
resolved to take the harvest in good
part
as he shall send it. David Dickson.
Verse
5. Commit thy way unto the Lord
is rendered by the Vulgate
Revela
viam Domino
reveal thy way; and by St. Ambrose
understood of revealing
our sins to God. Indeed
since it is impossible to cover
why should we not
discover our sins? Conceal not that which God knoweth already
and would have
thee to make known. It is a very ill office to be the devil's secretary. Oh
break thy league with Satan be revealing his secrets
thy sins
to God. Nathaniel
Hardy.
Verse
5. Commit thy way unto. Margin and Hebrew
Roll thy way
upon—as one who lays upon the shoulder of one stronger than himself a
burden which he is not able to bear. William De Burgh
D.D.
in "A
Commentary on the Book of Psalms. Dublin:" 1860.
Verse
5. Note the double again
Commit and trust. C. H.
S.
Verse
5. He shall bring it to pass. When a hard piece of work is
put into the hand of an apprentice for the first assay of his skill
the
beholders are justly afraid of a miscarriage in his young and inexperienced
hand; but when the worker is an old master of craft
none are afraid but his
cunning hand can act again what so oft it hath wrought to the contentment of
all the beholders. Were our God a novice in the great art of governing the
world
and of the church in the bosom thereof; had he to this day never given
any proof of his infinite wisdom
power
and goodness
in turning about the
most terrible accidents to the welfare and joy of his saints; we might indeed
be amazed whenever we feel ourselves sinking in the dangers wherein the
practices of our enemies oft do plunge us over head and ears; but the Lord
having given in times past so many documents of his uncontroverted skill and
most certain will to bring about all human affairs
as to his own glory
so to
the real good of all that love him
it would be in us an impious and unexcusable
uncharitableness to suspect the end of any work which he hath begun. Robert
Baylie's Sermon before the House of Commons
1643.
Verses
5
7.
To
God thy way commending
Trust him whose arm of might
The heavenly circles bending
Guides every star aright:
The winds
and clouds
and lightning
By his sure hand are led;
And he will dark shades brightening.
Show
thee what path to tread.
Although to make God falter
The powers of hell combine
One jot they cannot alter
Of his all wise design:
All projects and volition
Of his eternal mind
Despite all opposition
Their due fulfilment find.
No
more
then
droop and languish
Thou sorrow stricken soul;
Even from the depths of anguish
Whose billows over thee roll
Thy Father's hand shall draw thee:
In hope and patience stay
And joy will soon shed over thee
An ever brightening ray.
All
faithless murmurs leaving
Bid them a last good night
No more thy vexed soul grieving
Because things seem not right;
Wisely his sceptre wielding
God sits in regal state
No power to mortals yielding
Events to regulate.
Trust
with a faith untiring
In thine Omniscient King
And thou shalt see admiring
What he to light will bring.
Of all thy griefs
the reason
Shall at the last appear:
Why now denied a season
Will shine in letters clear.
Then
raise thine eyes to heaven
Thou who canst trust his frown;
Thence shall thy meed be given
The chaplet and the crown:
Thy God the palm victorious
In thy right hand shall plant
Whilst thou
in accents glorious
Melodious hymns shall chant.
—Paul
Gerhard (1606-1676)
translated by Frances Elizabeth Cox
in "Hymns
from the German
"1864.
Verse
6. He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light
etc.
If thou shouldest be accused as a man of evil designs
let not that trouble
thee neither: for though thy fame may be obscured for a time by calumnies and
slanders
as the sun is by mists and clouds
yet as that scatters them all at
last
so shall thy integrity appear
and shine as bright as the sun at noonday.
Symon Patrick.
Verse
7. Rest in the Lord
and wait patiently for him. There are
two words in the original
which express the privilege and the duty of resting
on Christ: one implies such a state of acquiescence
as silences the clamours
of conscience
and composes the perturbation of the spirit; the other signifies
the refreshment and repose of a weary pilgrim
when he arrives at the end of
his journey
and is settled for life in a secure
commodious
plentiful
habitation. James Hervey.
Verse
7. Rest in the Lord
and wait patiently for him. Take the
case of one who
with a load above his strength
has been toiling some steep
and broken path
when suddenly he finds it lifted off and transferred to
another whose strength he knows to be more than equal to the task
and in whose
sympathy he can securely trust. What would his feeling be but one of perfect
rest
and calm reliance
and joyous freedom
as they went on their way
together? And such is the blessedness of rolling our care upon the Lord—in
weakness we are resting on superior strength
in perplexity and doubt we are
resting on superior wisdom
in all times of trial and hard service we can stay
ourselves on the assurance of his perfect sympathy. The literal meaning of the
word rest
is be silent towards the Lord. With the eye fixed on
him let all unbelieving thoughts be stilled
such thoughts as rise and rankle
in the querulous spirit when it sees only its troubles
and not God in them
when the mists of earth hide from its sight the eternal stars of heaven. Then
like Jacob
it may say morosely
"All these things are against me;
"or
like Elijah
despondently
"It is enough now
O Lord
take away
my life; "or
like Jonah
fretfully
"I do well to be angry." In
regard to all such dark and unbelieving suggestions
the heart is to keep silence
to be still and know that he is God; silent as to murmuring
but not silent as
to prayer
for in that holy meditative stillness the heart turns to commune
with him. What is "resting in God
"but the instinctive movement and
upward glance of the spirit to him; the confiding all one's griefs and fears to
him
and feeling strengthened
patient
hopeful in the act of doing so! It
implies a willingness that he should choose for us
a conviction that the
ordering of all that concerns us is safer in his hands than in our own.
A
few practical remarks: 1. Our "resting patiently" in the Lord
applies only to the trials which he sends
not to the troubles which even
Christians often make for themselves. There is a difference in the burdens that
come in the way of duty
and those that come through our wandering into other
ways. We can roll the one upon the Lord
but with the other our punishment may
be to be left to bear them long
and to be bruised in bearing them. 2. The duty
here enjoined is to be carried through all our life. We all admit that patient
waiting is needed for the great trials of life
but may not acknowledge so
readily that it is needed as much for little
daily
commonplace vexations. But
these are as much a test of Christian principle as the other. 3. This resting
in God is a criterion of a man's spiritual state. It needs a special faculty of
discernment
a new sense to be opened in the soul
before our fallen nature can
understand or desire it. James D. Burns
M.A.
Verse
7. (first clause). Hold thee still (so it may be
translated). And this is the hardest precept that is given to man; insomuch
that the most difficult precept of action sinks into nothing when compared with
this command to inaction. Jerome.
Verse
7. (first clause). The Hebrew word rendered silent is
(owr)
dom
from which the English word dumb appears to be
derived. The silence here enjoined is opposed to murmuring or complaining. James
Anderson
in Calvin's Commentary.
Verse
7. Note again the twin duties
rest and wait.
Verse
7. Bringeth wicked devices to pass. Observe the opposition
between this and God's bringing to pass
in verse five. The ground for
grief is that the ungodly appear to achieve their end
the reason for comfort
is that our end shall be achieved also
and that in the best manner by God
himself. C. H. S.
Verse
8. Forsake wrath; which is anger wrought up to a greater
degree; and the rather to be shunned and avoided
as being very disagreeable to
the character of a good man. Fret not thyself in any wise to do evil;
evil may be done by fretting at the prosperity of wicked men
or by imitating
them
doing as they do
in hope of being prosperous as they are. John Gill.
Verse
9. They shall inherit the earth. He means that they shall
live in such a manner as that the blessing of God shall follow them
even to
the grave. John Calvin.
Verse
10. Thou shalt diligently consider his place
and it shall not be.
To wit
because he shall be grubbed up by the roots. Arthur Jackson.
Verse
10. His place...shall not be. The very land he occupied as a
home
and the title to which was unimpeachable
is no longer his place.
It has passed into other hands. Nothing of all he had on earth is his. He is as
poor as the most miserable object that subsisted on alms. William S. Plumer.
Verse
10. The peacock
a glorious fowl
when he beholds that comely fan and
circle which he maketh of the beautiful feathers of his tail
he rejoiceth
he
setteth
and beholdeth every part thereof: but when he looketh on his feet
which he perceiveth to be black and foul
he by and by
with great misliking
vails his top gallant
and seemeth to sorrow. In like manner
a great many know
by experience
that when they see themselves to abound in riches and honours
they glory and are deeply conceited of themselves; they praise their fortune
and admire themselves; they make plots
and appoint much for themselves to
perform in many years to come. This year
they say
we will bear this office
and the next year that; afterward we shall have the rule of such a province;
then we will build a palace in such a city
whereunto we will adjoin such
gardens of pleasure
and such vineyards: and thus they make a very large
reckoning aforehand
who if they did but once behold their feet
if they did
but think upon the shortness of their life
so transitory and inconstant; how
soon would they let fall their proud feathers
forsake their arrogancy
and
change their purpose
their minds
their lives
and their manners. Thomas
Tymme.
Verse
11. The meek shall inherit the earth. In the meantime
they
and they only
possess the present earth
as they go toward the kingdom of
heaven
by being humble
and cheerful
and content with what their good God has
allotted them. They have no turbulent
repining
vexatious thoughts that they
deserve better; nor are vexed when they see others possessed of more honour
or
more riches
than their wise God has allotted for their share. But they possess
what they have with a meek and contented quietness; such a quietness as makes
their very dreams pleasing
both to God and themselves. Isaak Walton
(1593-1683)
in "The Complete Angler."
Verse
11. The meek. What is thy Beloved more than any other beloved?
It is spoken to the spouse. So what is meekness more than any other virtues? We
may say
here is synecdoche speciei
one particular taken for the
general
one virtue for all the rest. Or the effect is put for the cause;
because meekness is one of the principal and chiefest parts of holiness. But if
you will give me leave to conjecture
the Holy Ghost may seem in this promise
at once to show the condition of the church
and to comfort her; and because
being laid hard at on every side
she stands in need of this virtue more than
any other
to fit and fashion the reward to the virtue
to cherish and exalt it
in us with the promise of something beyond our expectation
even the inheritance
of the earth. And indeed what fitter reward can there be of meekness? What
more fit and just than that they who have been made the anvil for injuries to
beat on
who have been viri perpessitii
as Seneca speaks of Socrates
men of great sufferance
who have suffered not only their goods to be torn from
them by oppression and wrong
but their reputations to be wounded with the
sharp razor of detraction
and have withstood the shock of all spectantibus
similes
with the patience of a looker on
should be raised and comforted
with a promise of that which their meekness gave up to the spoil; and that by
the providence of God which loves to thwart the practice of the world
they
should be made heirs even of those possessions which the hand of violence hath
snatched from them. Anthony Farindon
B.D.
1596-1658.
Verse
11. Not the hot stirring spirits who bustle for the world shall have
it
but the meek
who are thrust up and down from corner to corner
and hardly
suffered to remain anywhere quietly in it. This earth
which they seem most
deprived of
they only shall have and enjoy. When the Lord hath made it worth
the having
then none shall have it but they. They shall inherit the earth.
The earth is the Lord's; these are the children of the Lord
and they shall
inherit this earth. When the Lord taketh it into his own possession and
enjoyment
they shall succeed him in the possession and enjoyment of it. It is
their right
and shall descend unto them by right
by inheritance. It is the
Lord's right
and by the Lord shall descend to them as their right. They cannot
yet have it
for the Lord hath it not yet; but when the Lord hath it
it shall
fairly descend to them. This accursed earth they shall never have
but when it
is taken into the hands of the Lord
and blessed by the Lord
then it shall be
theirs
then it shall be inherited by the children of blessing. John
Pennington.
Verse
11. And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
Surely when the glory of the Lord covers the earth
and all the kingdoms of
this world become the kingdoms of the Prince of Peace
and the wicked one is
rooted out
we may well expect peace in rich abundance. W. Wilson.
Verses
12-13. Note how the gesture of the wicked in gnashing their teeth
is returned to them in the Lord's scornful laughter at their devices.
Their plotting
too
is countermined by that winding up of all plots
which the
Lord knoweth
though they are wilfully ignorant of it. C. H. S.
Verse
13. The Lord shall laugh at him
etc. He seems to provide very
coldly for our consolation under sorrow
for he represents God as merely laughing.
But if God values highly our salvation
why does he not set himself to resist
the fury of our enemies
and vigorously oppose them? We know that this
as has
been said in Ps 2:4
is a proper trial of our patience when God does not come
forth at once
armed for the discomfiture of the ungodly
but connives for a
time
and withholds his hand. Lest the flesh should still murmur and complain
demanding why God should only laugh at the wicked
and not rather take
vengeance upon them
the reason is added
that he sees the day of their
destruction at hand. For he seeth that his day is coming. John Calvin.
Verse
13. For he seeth that his day is coming. He laughs at such
poor worms
who make themselves so great upon the earth
and act so loftily in
their impotence
seeing it must so soon be over with them. Berleb. Bible
quoted by E. W. Hengstenberg.
Verse
13. For he seeth that his day is coming. His dismal day
his
death's day
which will also be his doom's day. John Trapp.
Verses
14-15. The tongue is a sword and a bow
which shooteth its
arrows
even bitter words
against the humble and upright
Jesus and his disciples.
But these are not the only weapons that have been drawn against them. How the
malice of the Jews returned upon their own heads no one is ignorant
though few
lay it to heart
and consider them as set forth for an example. George
Horne.
Verses
14-15. When the wicked are most near to do a mischief to the Lord's
people
then is a mischief most near unto them. David Dickson.
Verse
16. A little that a righteous man hath
etc. To wit
1.
Because the wicked do often enrich themselves by unjust means
and so have much
vexation and trouble with them
and likewise thereby do treasure up wrath
against the day of wrath; whereas the righteous with a little
well gotten
have much peace of conscience
with hope of heaven hereafter. 2. Because the
righteous use theirs well
and are the better for them; whereas the wicked
abuse theirs many ways
and are in many respects the worse for them. 3. Because
the righteous enjoy what they have from hand to mouth as the gifts of God
and
the pledges of his fatherly love and care over them
and so it is to them as
manna from heaven
and hereby they enjoy much sweet comfort
and are fully
satisfied with what they have; whereas the wicked have none of this joy nor
satisfaction by their wealth. 4. Because God by his blessing doth usually make
that the righteous enjoy to be more effectual for their good than is the
abundance of the wicked. A little coarse fare makes them more healthful and
strong than the wicked are with all their plenty. And
5. Because the wicked
enjoys not his wealth long
as the righteous man doth; and this indeed agrees
best with the following words. Arthur Jackson.
Verse
16. Strangers to Christ have the use of outward mercies
but cannot
be properly said to have the enjoyment; they seem to be masters of them
but
indeed they are servants to them; possessors as to outward use
but slaves as
to their inward affections; they serve them while they seem to dispose of them;
they do not dominari
but servire—have not the command of
but
are enslaved. Nor is their use truly comfortable; they may fancy comfort
but
their comfort is but a fancy; it flows from another fountain tan can be digged
in earth; true
solid comfort is the portion of those only who have the
righteousness of Christ for their portion. These may look upon every temporal
enjoyment as a token of everlasting love
as a pledge and earnest of eternal
glory; and both these
because they may receive them as the purchase of the
blood and righteousness of Christ; aye
here is the well spring of comfort
the
fountain of that comfort which is better than life. Oh
what comfort is it to
taste the sweetness of Christ's love in every enjoyment! When we can say
"Christ loved me
and gave himself for me
that I might enjoy these
blessings
"oh
how will this raise the value of every common mercy!
Christ's righteousness which was performed
the highest expression of his love
purchased this for me! Upon this account is that of the psalmist true
A
little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked. He
that hath but food and raiment hath in this respect more than he that hath the
Turkish empire
or the gold of the Indies. He hath more ground of comfort in
his little than they in all. David Clarkson.
Verse
16. If thine estate were but little
yet it would be perfumed with
love
and that lump of sugar in thy cup would make the liquor sweet
be it
never so small. As the waters which flow from the hills of some of the islands
of Molucca taste of the cinnamon and cloves which grow there
so should thy gift
though it were but water
taste of the goodwill and special grace of the Giver.
Thy little
with the fear of the Lord
would be better than the
riches of many wicked men. As a little ring with a very costly diamond in
it is far more worth than many great ones without it
so thy estate
though it
were but a penny
should be joined with the precious jewel of that love which
is better than life
and enjoyed by special promise
and thereby be infinitely
more worth than the thousands and millions of others bestowed merely from
common bounty
and enjoyed only by a general providence. George Swinnock.
Verse
16. It is as possible for a wicked man to fill his body with air and
his chest with grace
as his mind with wealth. It is with them as with a ship;
it may be overladen with silver and gold
even unto sinking
and yet have
compass and sides to hold ten times more. So here
a covetous wretch
though he
have enough to sink him
yet he shall never have enough to satisfy him. So that
the conclusion which the psalmist delivers is most worthy to be observed: A
little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked;
he doth not say of how many
because let us think of never so many
yea
all of
them
the righteous man's little is better in very many respects than all their
greatest treasures heaped together. The King of Spain although the greatest
prince in Christendom by far
having his empire so far extended
that he may
truly say
that the sun ever shines upon his dominions
yet gives this for his motto
Totus non sufficit orbis
The whole world is not sufficient. God by
Solomon tells us that "In the house of the righteous is much
treasure" Pr 15:6
although many times there is scarce a good bed to lie
or a seat to sit on. The time will certainly come
when the richest wicked men
that ever lived will see clearly that their account would have been much
narrower
and consequently their condition to all eternity less miserable
if
they had been so poor as to have begged their bread from door to door all their
lives long. It is with the blessings of this life as it is with perfumed
gloves; when they are richly perfumed their perfume is much more valuable than
the leather of which they are made: so
not so much earthly blessings
considered in themselves
as their being perfumed with the sweet love of God in
Christ
is that which maketh them blessings indeed
truly deserving the name
they bear. Now all the blessings of those who have made Mary's choice are all
thus perfumed; all the barley bread they eat
be it never so coarse; all the
clothes they wear
be they never so mean; with all their other temporal
blessings
they proceed from the same sweet love of God
wherewith he was moved
to bestow Jesus Christ upon them for salvation. Ro 8:32. John Glascock's Sermon
entitled "Mary's Choice
"1659.
Verses
16-17. A little blest is better than a great deal curst; a little blest
is better than a world enjoyed; a pound blest is better than a thousand curst;
a black crust blest is better than a feast curst; the gleanings blest are
better than the whole harvest curst; a drop of mercy blest is better than a sea
of mercy curst; Lazarus crumbs blest was better than Dives' delicates curst;
Jacob's little blest unto him was better than Esau's great estate that was
curst unto him. It is always better to have scraps with a blessing
than to
have manna and quails with a curse; a thin table with a blessing is better than
a full table with a snare; a threadbare coat with a blessing is better than a
purple robe curst; a hole
a cave
a den
a barn
a chimney corner with a
blessing
is better than stately palaces with a curse; a woollen cap blest is
better than a golden crown curst; and it may be that emperor understood as
much
that said of his crown
when he looked on it with tears: "If you
knew the cares that are under this crown you would never stoop to take it
up." And therefore
why should not a Christian be contented with a little
seeing his little shall be blest unto him? Isaac tills the ground and sows his
seed
and God blesses him with an hundredfold; and Cain tills the ground and
sows his seed
but the earth is cursed to him and commanded not to yield to him
his strength. Oh
therefore never let a Christian murmur because he hath but
little
but rather let him be still blessing of that God that hath blest his
little
and doth bless his little
and that will bless his little to him. Thomas
Brooks.
Verse
17. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but he upholdeth
(or underprops) the righteous. By the arms of the wicked
you are
to understand their strength
their valour
their power
their wit
their
wealth
their abundance
which is all the arms they have to support and bear up
themselves in the world with. Now
these arms shall be broken
and when they
are broken
then
even then
will God uphold the righteous
that is
God will
be a continual overflowing fountain of good to his righteous ones; so that they
shall never want
though all the springs of the wicked are dried up round about
them. Thomas Brooks.
Verse
18. The Lord knoweth the days of the upright. Deposits their
days
lays them up in safety for them: for such is the original idea of (edy). John
Fry.
Verse
18. The Lord knoweth the days of the upright
and they cannot
be cut short by the malice of man. W. Wilson.
Verse
20. As the fat of lambs. As the glory of fat sheep
which are
at length slain. Targum.
Verse
20. Fat of lambs. As the fat of the sacrifices was consumed on
the altar by the fire (which was a type of God's righteous vengeance upon
sinners)
till it vanished into smoke; so the wicked will be the sacrifices to
God's justice
and be destroyed by the fire of his indignation. Thomas
Scott.
Verse
20. Into smoke shall they consume. "What hath pride
profited us? or what hath our boasting of riches given us?" Such are the
things
they shall speak who are in hell and who have sinned. For
the hope of
the ungodly is like a dry thistle down
by the wind carried away
or the thin
foam spread upon the billows
or as a smoke floated hither and thither by the
wind
or as the remembrance of a wayfaring man for a day. Wouter of Stoelwyk
1541.
Verse
21. Payeth not again; i.e.
has it not in his power
from his
straitened circumstances
to repay what he has borrowed: compare De 28:12. A
Jew thus circumstanced became the bond slave of his creditors: compare 2Ki 4:1.
Daniel Cresswell.
Verse
22. God promises that the seed of his people shall inherit the earth.
The child of such a tenant as paid his rent well
shall not be put out of his
farm. John Glascock.
Verse
23. The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. When this
Pilot undertakes to steer their course
their vessel shall never split upon the
rock
run upon the sands
or spring a leak
so as to sink in the seas. To be
sure he will see them safe in their harbour. He was no Christian
yet I suppose
none will deny but he spake good divinity
who said
"If a man will choose
God for his Friend
he shall travel securely through a wilderness that hath
many beasts of prey in it; he shall pass safely through this world; for he only
is safe that hath God for his guide." (Ar. Epist. 27) Doth he not speak a
little like David himself Ps 37:23
who never expected to come to glory except
he were guided by his counsel? Now
if a poor heathen could say thus
and see
good reason to trust God
and admire his faithfulness as he doth frequently
(and so doth Seneca
justifying God's faithfulness in all his dealings with the
best men in all their sufferings
and the prosperity of the wicked); what then
shall the heavenly Christian say
who hath experienced so much of God's
faithfulness in answering his prayers
in fulfilling his promises
and
supplying all his exigencies? James Janeway.
Verse
23. He delighteth in his way. Note that in verse four
we are
bidden to delight in the Lord
and here he delights in us
and as here our way
is his delight
so in verse thirty-four we are to "keep his
way." These antitheses are instructive. C. H. S.
Verses
23-24. Strange words to us! the very steps all ordered
and that by an Almighty One
who "delights" in the goodness of the
good man's way. And yet the inference so distinctly to be drawn is that the
good man may fall
and that his God and Guide may stand by and behold
and permit! Let us add to the suggestion of these verses
one or two references
which may help us to establish the principle in our hearts
that the child of
God may fall and still remain the child of God; and also to explain somewhat of
the reason why this is part of their lot
whether ordered
or only permitted
at all events
a step of the "right way
"by which God leads them to
a "city of habitation." Ps 107:7. It is observed near the close of
Hezekiah's good and prosperous life that
"in the business of the
ambassadors of the princes of Babylon...God left him to try him
that he
might know all that was in his heart
" 2Ch 32:31. And again
in Daniel's
prophecy regarding the latter days
we find Da 11:35
"And some of them of
understanding shall fall
to try them
and to purge
and make
them white." In the two preceding verses
we have also some valuable
details regarding such falls
such as the help with which God will uphold them
the flatteries with which the world will still beset
and hinder them from
rising again; the outward troubles into which their fall shall lead them
as
through a furnace; the high position (instructors of many) which yet shall not
save them from their needed ordeal—the time appointed—and the end in view. So
here. The acknowledgment of the possibility of the good man's fall is
accompanied with the precious assurance that he shall not be utterly cast
down. Mary B. M. Duncan
in "Under the Shadow
1867."
Verse
24. Though he fall
he shall not be utterly cast down
etc.
Thus the Spirit comforts and answers the secret thoughts which everyone might
have
saying with himself
I have
however
seen it happen
that the righteous
is oppressed
and his cause is trodden in the dust by the wicked. Nay
he
replies
dear child
let it be so
that he falls; he still cannot remain lying
thus and be cast away; he must be up again
although all the world doubts of
it. For God catches him by the hand
and raises him again. Martin Luther.
Verse
24. Though he fall
namely
as one that were faint hearted
he
shall not be cast off
namely
utterly
or for ever from God 2Co 4:9; "for
the Lord putteth under his hand
"i.e.
his power and might
namely
to uphold him from utter falling away
which we should quickly do if God were
not with us. Thomas Wilcocks.
Verse
24. A man pardoned
and justified by faith in Christ
though he may
and sometimes doth
fall into foul sins
yet they never prevail so far as to
reverse pardon
and reduce to a state of non-justification. Though he fall
he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand!
He speaks of a good man pardoned
justified; he may fall; but how far? from
pardon
from justification? No
then he should utterly fall
be cast down
beneath God's hand; but the text saith
he shall not be utterly cast down; for
the Lord upholdeth him with his hand; or
as Montanus renders the words
the
Lord upholdeth his hands
and he will not let him sink into such a condition.
If it were so
then sin should have dominion over him
but
Ro 6:14. "Sin
shall not have dominion over you; "and Ro 8:2
justified ones are freed
from the law of sin and death; and Ro 8:30
the predestinated
called
justified
and glorified ones
are so linked together
that there is no
breaking their chain; if they do sin
they have an "Advocate with the
Father
Jesus Christ the righteous
and he is the propitiation for our
sins." 1Jo 2:1-2. William Greenhill.
Verse
25. I have been young
and now am old
yet have I not seen the
righteous forsaken (he doth not say
In my experience I never saw the
righteous afflicted
but
I never saw him left or forsaken in his affliction)
and
I never saw his seed begging their bread: he puts in that
because begging
of bread
especially in the commonwealth of Israel
and in the state of the
Jews
was a note of utter dereliction! for though God had told them that they
should have the poor always with them
yet he had given an express law that
there should be no beggar among them; therefore
saith he
I have not seen the
righteous so forsaken
that they should be forced to live by begging. If any
say
that David himself begged
he asked bread of Abimelech and of Nabal; I
answer
it is a good rule
and it resolves the case; transitory cases
and
sudden accidents
make no beggars: we must not say
David was a beggar
or
begged his bread
because once he was in a strait and asked bread of Abimelech;
and in a second strait sent to Nabal: in such sudden cases
the richest man in
the world may be put to ask a piece of bread. A good man may fall into such
wants
but good men are rarely
if ever or at all
left in them. Joseph Caryl.
Verse
25. Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken
nor his seed
begging bread. Perhaps it will be objected that their have been many
righteous men poor: but the place speaketh of a righteous charitable man
for
so the following verse showeth
which saith
"He is ever merciful
and
lendeth; and his seed is blessed." And who hath seen such a one or his
seed to be brought to such poverty as to beg his bread? When our Saviour Christ
had fed four thousand with seven loaves and a few fishes
all being filled
seven baskets full of fragments were gathered up: and it is Saint Austin's note
upon it
crescit dum impenditur victus
sic eleemosyna si indigentibus
erogetur
the victuals in expending were augmented
and so is the alms
which is given to the poor. Michael Jermin.
Verse
25. Yet have I not seen
etc. I believe this to be literally
true in all cases. I am now grey headed myself; I have travelled in different
countries
and have had many opportunities of seeing and conversing with
religious people in all situations in life; and I have not
to my knowledge
seen one instance to the contrary. I have seen no righteous man forsaken
nor any children of the righteous begging their bread. God puts
honour upon all that fear him; and thus careful is he of them
and of
their posterity. Adam Clarke.
Verse
25. Begging bread. This is not meant of an occasional seeking
relief in want (for so David himself desired bread of Abimelech
1Sa 21:3
and
he and his soldiers desired some supply of victuals from Nabal
1Sa 25:8); but
of living in a continual way of begging from door to door
which is denounced
as a curse against the wicked Ps 109:10
"Let his children be continually
vagabonds
and beg." Nor doth it hence follow
that neither the righteous
man
not his seed
are ever brought to this sad degree of misery; but only that
it doth so rarely happen
that David in all his time had never seen it. Arthur
Jackson.
Verse
25. This observation of the psalmist will be found generally
verified. We find indeed exceptions
as in the case of Eli's family. But this
was the result of his defect of character as a righteous man. And we know that
the promises must fail
if they neglect the means necessary to their
accomplishment (see Ge 18:19). But some think that this verse admits of an
explanatory supplement; and render the last clause thus
"Nor his seed
(forsaken
though) begging bread." David Davidson
in "The Pocket
Commentary
1836."
Verse
25. These words must be taken as a general observation
not
absolutely verified in every case; yet the strict fact is
I apprehend
that
the immediate descendants of truly pious persons are very seldom
if ever
reduced to such extremities
unless by their own great imprudence
or their
abandoned practices. William Walford.
Verse
25. Here he records an experiment of his (such as whereof Psalm 119
is mostly made up)
and if other men's experiences agree not altogether with
his
it is no wonder: kings use not to mind beggars. John Trapp.
Verses
25-26. Many persons are solicitously perplexed how their children shall
do when they are dead; yet they consider not
how God provided for them when
they were children. Is the Lord's arm shortened? Did he take thee from thy
mothers breasts; and when thy parents forsook thee (as the psalmist saith)
became thy Father? And cannot this experienced mercy to thee
persuade thee
that he will not forsake thine? Is not "Jesus Christ the same yesterday
and today
and for ever?" "I have been young
"saith David
"and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken
"that is
granted
nay
"not his seed begging bread."
Many
distrustful fathers are so carking for their posterity
that while they live
they starve their bodies
and hazard their souls
to leave them rich. To such a
father it is said justly
Dives es haeredi
pauper inopsque tibi. Like
an over kind hen
he feeds his chickens
and famishes himself. If usury
circumvention
oppression
extortion
can make them rich
they shall not be
poor. Their folly is ridiculous; they fear lest their children should be
miserable
yet take the only course to make them miserable; for they leave them
not so much heirs to their goods as to their evils. They do as certainly
inherit their fathers' sins as their lands: "God layeth his iniquity for
his children: and his offspring shall want a morsel of bread." Job 21:19.
On
the contrary
the good man is merciful
and lendeth; and his seed is
blessed. What the worldling thinks shall make his posterity poor
God saith
shall make the good man's rich. The precept gives a promise of mercy to
obedience
not confined to the obedient man's self
but extended to his seed
and that even to a thousand generations
Ex 20:6. Trust
then
Christ with thy
children; when thy friends shall fail
usury bear no date
oppression be
condemned to hell
thyself rotten to the dust
the world itself turned and
burned into cinders
still "Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday
today
and forever." Thomas Adams.
Verse
26. He is ever merciful
and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.
He
the good man
is merciful to himself
for mercy
like
charity
begins at home; he is not afraid to eat a good meal because he hath
children. And he is merciful to others too; for he will lend and do good
to whom he can
and then his seed fares the better for it. Mark
that the more
he gives and lends in doing works of mercy
the better it is for his children;
for those children are ever best provided for whose parents bear this mind—they
had rather trust God with their children
than their children with riches; and
have made this their hope
that though they die
yet God lives. Did but one of
those rich and wretched parents (who pinched and pined himself to make his son
a gentleman
forsooth)
rise from the dead
and see that proverb of Solomon
fulfilled in himself
"He begetteth a son
and in his hand is nothing;
"I persuade myself
the rumination of this would afflict him in his soul
as much as any one pain of sense
even in hell itself. O consider this
you
that now live and see it in others; and remember withal
that if your goods be
either ill gotten
or worse kept
it may be your children's case when you are
departed
and feel it
though you see it not. Matthew Griffith.
Verse
28. For the Lord...forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved
for ever. How? since they die as others do. Mark the antithesis
and
that will explain it. They are preserved for ever: but the seed of the
wicked shall be cut off. They are preserved in their posterity: children
are but the parents multiplied
and the parents continued; it is nodosa aeternitas;
when the father's life is run out to the last
there is a knot tied
and the
line is still continued by the child. I confess temporal blessings
such as
long life
and the promise of an happy posterity
are more visible in the eye
of that dispensation of the covenant; but yet God still taketh care for the
children of his people
and many promises run that way that belong to the
gospel administration
and still God's service is the surest way to establish a
family
as sin is the ready way to root it out. And if it doth not always fall
out accordingly
yet for the most part it doth; and we are no competent judges
of God's dispensations in this kind
because we see providence by pieces
and
have not the skill to set them together; but at the day of judgment
when the
whole contexture of God's dealings is laid before us
we shall clearly
understand how the children of his servants continue
and their seed is
established. Ps 102:28. Thomas Manton.
Verse
29. The righteous shall inherit the land
or the earth. There
is clearly an emphasis in the repetition of the same promise in the same terms
which ought to have been uniformly rendered throughout Ps 37:9
11
22
29
34. And
it cannot be doubted
that there is a reference to the new heavens and the new
earth of Isa 56:17 2Pe 3:13. W. Wilson.
Verse
29. The righteous shall inherit the land
etc. Compare Mt 5:5.
Consider well this Bible truth
of the future exclusive possession of the earth
by the righteous. The millennial kingdom furnishes a fuller explanation. T.
C. Barth.
Verse
31. The law of his God is in his heart
etc. The flock of
sheep that's indisposed and unwilling to drive
start out of the way into every
lane's end
one this way and another that; and just so is it with an unwilling
heart; one thought starts this way
and another that
and it's a piece of skill
to drive them through. But a willing heart
a heart prepared and ready to every
good work
it flies quite up an end
and delights itself in the Lord. Richard
Steele.
Verse
31. (first clause). He hath a Bible in his head
and another
in his heart; he hath a good treasure within
and there hence bringeth good
things. John Trapp.
Verses
32-33. The Jews watched that Just One daily and hourly; they sought
to slay him
and did so; but Jehovah left him not in their hands
but vindicated his innocence by raising him from the dead. George Horne.
Verse
34. Wait on the Lord
etc. He that truly trusts in God will
stay God's time
and use God's means
and walk in God's way
though it seem
round about; they will not neglect their souls for haste; they know this would
be to make more haste than good speed. Nor would they step out of the way
the
way that is holy and righteous
though they may escape a loss
an affliction by
it
though they might gain some desirable advantage by it. True faith goes
leaning upon God
and therefore will keep his way. He that will not be
liberal for the promoting and honouring of the gospel; he that fears poverty or
affliction more than he fears sin; he that is more careful for the things of
the world than for his soul; he that takes indirect or suspected courses
to
get
or increase
or secure his estate; he that is not jealous or watchful
lest his cares for the world (when he is much engaged therein) should be
immoderate—it is plain he doth not trust God with his estate; and that he does
not trust God for his estate
whatever he thinks or pretend
he does not trust
God for his soul
for his salvation; his hopes of heaven and salvation are but
presumption. David Clarkson.
Verse
34. Wait on the Lord. Bind him not to a day
wake not the
Beloved till he please. John Trapp.
Verse
34. Wait...keep. While we are waiting let us take heed of
wavering. Go not a step out of God's way
though a lion be in the way; avoid
not duty to meet with safety; keep God's highway
the good old way Jer 6:16
the way which is paved with holiness. "And an highway shall be there
and
a way
and it shall be called the way of holiness." Isa 35:8. Avoid
crooked paths
take heed of turning to the left hand
lest you be set on the
left hand. Sin doth cross our hopes
it barricades up our way; a man may as
well expect to find heaven in hell
as in a sinful way. Thomas Watson.
Verse
35. Green bay tree. The LXX translate (Nner xrzak) as if it
were (Nnbl xrzak)
"Like the cedar of Lebanon; "but (Nner xrza)
according to Delitzsch
means a noble timber tree
one that in the course of
centuries of growth has acquired a gigantic trunk
and an umbrageous
dome like
crown.
Verse
35. Green bay tree. The marginal rendering—"a tree that
groweth in his own soil"—is
no doubt
the true one. The idea generally
formed of this passage by the reader of the English Bible is that the tree
referred to was the bay laurel (Prunus laurocerasus)
or cherry laurel
of our gardens. But this plant belongs to an entirely different family. The bay
and the Portugal laurels
whose forms of growth and evergreen leaves make them
highly ornamental in shrubberies
belong to a subfamily (Drupaceae
Lind.) of the rose tribe (Rosaceae)
but the bay tree proper
which
flourisheth luxuriantly in Southern Europe
is the type of the laurel family (Lauraceae).
Several circumstances make it unlikely that the true bay tree represents the
Hebrew esrach. There is no evidence that it was ever so plentiful in
Palestine as to be chosen by the psalmist in an illustration in a poem for
popular use. It is indeed to be met with
but that chiefly in localities on the
borders of the eastern shore of the Great Sea. The chief objection to the
supposition that the bay tree was referred to by the royal poet is to be found
in the Psalm itself. Having mentioned it in the lines quoted above
he adds
"Yet he passed away
and
lo
he was not: yea
I sought him
but he could
not be found." The idea here is not one which could be represented and
illustrated by an evergreen plant
slow of growth
and yet reaching in maturity
a height of above thirty feet. The words demand a quick growing tree
in a soil
more than usually favourable to its growth. Thus planted
and shooting up in
calm and sunshine
it would attract every eye; but when the storm broke over
it
when the strong wind swept imperiously through its branches
it would not
stand. Torn up by the root
and its timber comparatively useless
like
Abraham's dead
it would be buried out of sight. And thus with the wicked. He
was sought and could not be found. John Duns
D.D.
F.R.S.E.
in
"Biblical Natural Science."
Verse
35. We see no force in the observation of Dr. Duns; in fact
if there
were not other reasons for preferring the translation given in the following
note by Wilson
we should see all the more reason to keep to the bay tree. It
was a tree of permanence and of long continued verdure
and so the prosperous
wicked seem to be. They look as if their happiness would be eternal; yet
for
all that
those who carefully note the dealings of providence
observe with
holy wonder that divine justice cuts short their glory
and they perish
utterly. C. H. S.
Verse
35. I have seen the wicked in great power (terrible
fierce
violent)
and spreading himself like a green bay tree (a tree in its
native soil
vigorous
and luxuriant
that had never been transplanted). A
striking figure of the ungodly man of the world
firmly rooted in earthly
things—his native soil
grown proud and wanton in his prosperity
without fear
or apprehension of any reverse. William Wilson.
Verse
35. Like a green bay tree
which produces all leaves and no
fruit. Matthew Henry.
Verse
35. I have seen the wicked
saith David
in great power
and spreading himself like a green bay tree. And why like a green bay tree?
Because in the winter
when all other trees—as the vine tree
fig tree
apple
tree
etc.
which are more profitable trees—are withered and naked
yet the bay
tree continueth as green in the winter as the summer. So fares it with wicked
men when the children of God
in the storms of persecutions
and afflictions
and miseries
seem withered
and
as it were
dead
yet the wicked all that
time flourish
and do appear green in the eyes of the world: they wallow in
worldly wealth
but it is for their destruction; they wax fat
but it is for
the day of slaughter. It was the case of Hophni and Phinehas: the Lord gave
them enough and suffered them to go on and prosper in their wickedness; but
what was the reason? Because he would destroy them. J. Gore's Sermon at St.
Paul's
1633.
Verses
35-36.
—Today
he puts forth
The tender leaves of hopes
tomorrow blossoms
And bears his blushing honours upon him:
Third day comes a frost
a killing frost;
And—when he thinks
good easy man
full surely
His greatness is a ripening—nips his root
And then he falls
as I do.
—William Shakespeare
in Henry VIII.
Verses
36-37. The hawk flies high
and is as highly prized
being set upon a
perch
vervelled with the jingling bells of encouragement
and carried on his
master's fist; but being once dead and picked over the perch
is cast upon the
dunghill as good for nothing. The hen scrapes in the dust
not anything
rewarded when she is alive
but being dead
is brought as a choice dish to her
master's table. Thus wicked men are commonly set in high places
and prosper in
this life; and good men lie grovelling with their mouths in the dust
as the
very underlings of the world; but being once dead
the one is cast into the
dungeon of hell
the other advanced to the kingdom of heaven: the one is into
Abraham's bosom
whilst the other is tormented with the devil and his angels. Thomas
Westfield
D.D.
1644.
Verse
37. Mark...and behold. Herodotus maketh mention of a custom
among the Ethiopians to set the dead bodies of their friends in glazed
sepulchres
that their proportions might be obvious to the passengers. How
needless soever that custom was
it is doubtless no more than just that the
pious lineaments of their minds who die in the Lord should be presented to the
living in the mirror of art. Indeed
commendation after death is the tribute of
a religious life. Good works are jewels not to be locked up in a cabinet
but
to be set forth to public view. If Christ would have Mary's name remembered in
the gospel until the world's end for one box of ointment poured on his head
we
cannot imagine that he would have the many pious and charitable deeds of his
servants to be buried in oblivion. Consult the Scriptures and you shall scarce
find any godly man laid in his grave without an epitaph of honour. View the
fathers
and you shall observe it their practice to honour the death of the
good by giving them their deserved praises. Nathaniel Hardy.
Verse
37. The perfect man
etc.—Divines well distinguish of a double
perfection
it is absoluta or comparata. That is absolutely perfect
to which nothing (that it may be accounted truly good) is wanting; and thus He
only is perfectus who is infactus; God
who made all things
and
himself is not made
only enjoying an all sufficient perfection
in and of
himself. That is comparatively perfect
in which
notwithstanding some
wants there is a fulness compared with others. Thus every saint is perfect
in comparison of the wicked among whom he liveth. In this respect it is said of
Noah
That he was a perfect man in his generations; his grace compared
with the wickedness of the old world well deserving the name of perfection;
indeed every upright man is perfect in comparison of them who are openly
bad
or but openly good; stained with wickedness
or but painted with holiness.
Thus one saint may be perfect if compared with another
the strong
Christian in respect of the weak
whom he outstrips in grace and piety: such
saints Paul means when he saith
"We speak wisdom among them that are
perfect; " that is
such as have attained to greater measures of grace
than others. It was said of Benaiah
"He was more honourable than thirty
but he attained not to the first three; "and though no saint can ever
attain to the perfections of the first three
the blessed Trinity
yet
many saints may be honourable amongst thirty perfect in comparison of
those among whom they live.
We
must further distinguish of a double perfection
it is extrinseca and intrinseca.
Extrinsic perfection so called
because by imputation
is that which every
believer is partaker of through the perfect righteousness of Christ
whereby
all his imperfections are covered; in this respect the author to the Hebrews
tells us
"That by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are
sanctified; "and S. Paul tells the Colossians that they were
"complete in him
"meaning Christ. Indeed omnia Dei mandata tune
facta deptutantua
quando id quod non fit ignoscitur: divine commands are
then in God's account fulfilled when our defects for Christ's sake are
pardoned; and the evangelical perfection of a Christian consists not in
perfectione virtutum
sed remissions vitiorum
in the completion of our
graces
but remission of our sins.
Intrinsical
perfection
so called because by inhesion
is no less rationally than usually
thus distinguished
there is perfectio partium et graduum. He is said to
be perfect
cui nihil deest eorum quae ad statum salutis necessaria
who
wants no graces that accompany salvation; or he is perfect
cui nihil deest
in gradibus gratiarum et virtutum; who is not defective in the measures of
those graces; both these are frequently and fitly illustrated by the
resemblance of a child
and a grown man; the one whereof hath all the essential
and integral parts of a man
the other a complete use and measure of those
parts. Nathaniel Hardy.
Verse
37. The end. All wise men affect the conclusion to be best: to
ride two or three miles of fair way
and to have a hundred deep and foul ones
to pass afterward is uncomfortable; especially when the end is worse than the
way. But let the beginning be troublesome
the progress somewhat more easy
and
the journey's end happy
and there is fair amends. Mark the perfect man
and
behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace. Mark him in the
setting out
he hath many oppositions; mark him in the journey
he is full of
tribulations; but mark in the conclusion
and the end of that man is peace. Thomas
Adams.
Verse
37. The end of that man is peace. Give me leave to determine
what it is to end or die in peace. To end in peace with Euthymius
is to
end in pace cogitationis
in peace of mind as it is opposed to doubting.
To end in peace with Cyprian
is to end in pace securitatis
in
peace of security
as it is opposed to final falling. To end in peace with Origen
is to end in pace conscientiae
in peace of conscience as it is opposed
to despairing. To end in peace with old Irenaeus
is to end in pace
mortis
in the peace of death as it is opposed to labouring. Again
to end
in peace
is to end in pace Dei
in the peace of God which passeth all
understanding
i.e.
far beyond men's apprehensions. To end in peace
is
to end in pace proximi
in peace with our neighbours
i.e.
when
no outcries or exclamations follow us. And lastly
to end in peace
is to end
in pace sui
in peace with ourselves
i.e.
when no distractions
or perturbations of mind molest us. Richard Parre.
Verse
37. The text may be divided into these two parts. Here is 1. The
godly man's property; and 2. The godly man's privilege. His
property is perfection; his privilege is peace. Here is the saint's character
and the saint's crown: he is characterised by uprightness or sincerity
and crowned with peace. Here is the Christian's way and his end
his motion
and his rest. His way is holiness
his end happiness;
his motion is towards perfection and in uprightness; his rest is peace at his
journey's end. John Whitlock
in a Funeral Sermon entitled
"The
Upright Man and his Happy End
"1658.
Verse
37. Time would fail me to tell how Christians die
nor can anything
save the pen of the recording angel who has stood by their bed of death and
borne them to Abraham's bosom narrate the unnumbered instances of their
delightful departure from the present world
which verify the truth of the
Bible. "I could never have believed
"said a dying saint
"that
it was so delightful a thing to die
or that it was possible to have such views
of the heavenly world as I now enjoy." The memorable Melancthon just
before he died
chanted in his sleep the words
"I will not any more eat
thereof until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God." He seemed restless
and on being asked by one near him
"Whether there was anything more that
he desired?" replied
Aliud nihil nisi coelum—nothing more
unless
it be heaven. Gardiner Spring.
Verse
37. To die well be sure to live well; we must not think to have
Lazarus's death
and Dive's life; like him in Plutarch that would live with
Craesus
as he said
but he would die with Socrates. No
Balaam's wishes are
foolish and fruitless: If you would die well
Christians
you must have a care
to live well: qualis vita
finis ita
if you would die quietly
you must
live strictly; if you would die comfortably
you must live conformably; if you
would die happily
you must live holily. Mark the perfect man
and behold
the upright
for the end of that man is peace. John Kitchin
M.A.
1660.
Verse
38. The end of the wicked shall be cut off. The wicked in this
world do easily run up without rub or interruption
many times with
acclamations and applause
all the golden steps of honours and preferments; but
upon the highest stair they find the most slippery standing
and the top of
their earthly felicity is the most immediate and certain descent unto the
greatest downfall. They are royally mounted here upon earth
and gallop swiftly
over the fair and green plains of plenty and pleasures; but at the end of their
race they are overturned horse and man
and tumbled headlong into the pit of
destruction. They fairly glide over the sea of this world with full sail
with
much calmness and serenity
and richly laden; but in the brightest sunshine
and when they least suspect it
they suddenly and without recovery
sink into
the gulf of darkness and desolation. Robert Bolton.
Verse
40. And the Lord shall help them. He shall
he shall
he shall. Oh
the rhetoric of God! the safety of the saints! the
certainty of the promises! John Trapp.
Luther
closes his Exposition of the Psalm with the words
Oh
shame on our
faithlessness
mistrust
and vile unbelief
that we do not believe such rich
powerful
consolatory
declarations of God
and take up so readily with little
grounds of offence
whenever we but hear the wicked speeches of the ungodly.
Help. O God
that we may once attain to right faith. Amen.
HINTS TO THE
VILLAGE PREACHER
Verse
1. The art of tranquillity. W. Jones.
Verses
1-2. A frequent temptation
and a double corrective—a sight of sinners
in death and hell.
Verses
1
2. A frequent temptation
and a double corrective—a sight of sinners
in death and hell.
Verse
2. How and when the wicked perish.
Verse
3.
1.
A combination descriptive of holy living.
2.
A combination descriptive of happy living.
Verse
3. The believer portrayed.
1.
His object of trust.
2.
His mode of life.
3.
His place of abode.
4.
His certainty of provision.
Verse
3. (last clause). Read it in four ways.
1.
"Certainly fed
"or the certainty of supply.
2.
"Fed in verity
"or the sufficiency of the provision for soul and
body.
3.
"Fed on truth
"or the spirituality of the provision.
4.
"Feed on truth
"or the duty of choosing such provision.
Verse
4. Explain the delight and the desire of the believer
and show the
connection between them.
Verses
5-6. The higher life.
1.
Based on hearty resignation.
2.
Sustained by faith.
3.
Constantly unfolded by the Lord.
4.
Consummated in meridian splendour.
Verses
5-6. The higher life.
1.
Based on hearty resignation.
2.
Sustained by faith.
3.
Constantly unfolded by the Lord.
4.
Consummated in meridian splendour.
Verse
6. Sweet comfort for slandered saints. Where their character now is.
Who shall reveal it. The gradual yet sure manner of the revelation
and the
glorious conclusion.
Verse
7. Rest in the Lord. What? Where? When? Why? How?
Verse
7. Peace
patience
self possession.
Verse
7. Stillness in God. Bishop Wilberforce.
Verse
7. Rest in the Lord.
1.
Rest in the will of God
for whatever he wills is for your good
your
highest good.
2.
Rest in the love of God
and often meditate on the words of Jesus on
this point
"Thou hast loved them as thou hast loved me."
3.
Rest in the mercy of God.
4.
Rest in the word of God.
5.
Rest in the relation thy God fills to thee; he is the Father.
6.
Rest in the Lord as he is manifested in Jesus
thy God in covenant.
James
Smith.
Verse
8. A SERMON FOR THE FRETFUL.
1. Cease
from present anger. It is madness
it is sin; it shuts out our prayers; it will
grow into malice; it may lead to worse.
2. Forsake
it for the future. Repent of it
watch temper
discipline thy passions
etc.
3. Avoid
all kindred feelings of fretfulness
impatience
envy
etc.
for they lead to
evil.
Verse
9. How the humble are the true lords of the land.
Verse
10.
1.
Consider what the departed sinner has left. Possessions
joys
honours
aims
hopes
etc.
2.
Consider where he has gone.
3.
Consider whether you will share the same lot.
Verses
10-11. Terror to the wicked: comfort for believers. A. Farindon.
Verse
11. The meek man's delight
or "the harvest of a quiet
eye."
Verse
14. Upright conversation.
1.
What it excludes. The horizontal or earthly
the crooked or crafty
the
slanting or sinister.
2.
What it includes. Motive
object
language
action.
3.
What it achieves. It stands like a pillar; it supports like a column; it
ascends like a tower; it adorns like a monument; it illuminates like a Pharos.
Verse
15. The self destructive nature of evil.
Verse
16. How to make much of a little.
Verses
16-17.
1.
The owners contrasted.
2.
The possessions compared.
3.
The preference given.
4.
The reasons declared.
Verse
17. (last clause).
1.
The favoured persons.
2.
Their evident need
"upholding."
3.
Their singular blessedness
"upheld
"above trial
under trial
after
trial.
4.
Their august Patron.
Verse
18. The comforts derivable from a consideration of the divine
knowledge. The eternity of the righteous man's possessions.
Verse
18.
1.
The persons
"the upright."
2.
The period
"their days." These are known to God. (1) He knows
them kindly and graciously; (2) He knows their number; (3)
He knows the nature of them.
3.
The portion
"their inheritance shall be for ever."
—William
Jay.
Verse
18 (last clause). What it is. How they come by it. How long
they hold it.
Verse
19. Good words for hard times.
Verse
21. Monetary transactions tests of character.
Verse
22. The divine blessing the secret of happiness. The divine
displeasure the essence of misery.
Verses
23-24.
1.
The divine predestination.
2. The divine delight.
3. The divine support.
Verse
24. Temporary trials.
1.
To be expected.
2. Have their limit.
3. Have their results.
4. Our secret comfort under them.
What
may be. What cannot be. What shall be.
Verse
25. Memorandum of an aged observer.
Verse
26. The righteous man's merciful disposition
generous action
and
rich reward.
Verse
26. The benediction of the good man's family: what it is
and what it
is not.
Verse
27. Negative
positive
remunerative.
Verse
28.
1.
The Lord's love of right.
2.
His faithfulness to the righteous.
3.
Their sure preservation thus doubly guaranteed.
4.
The doom of the wicked thus certified.
Verse
29. Canaan as a type of the righteous man's inheritance.
Verse
30. Our speech as a test of godliness.
Verse
31.
1.
The best thing.
2. In the best place.
3. With the best of results.
Verses
32-33. Our enemies; their inveterate malice; our safeguard and
justification.
Verse
34.
1.
A twofold admonition: (a) Wait on the Lord. (b) And keep his way;
wait and work
wait and walk
get grace and exercise it.
2.
A twofold promise: (a) He shall exalt thee to inherit the land; God is
the source of all elevation and honour. (b) When the wicked are cur off
thou shalt see it; and they will be cut off. William Jay.
Verse
34. Patient faith
persevering holiness
and promised exaltation.
Verse
34 (last clause). Emotions caused in the godly by a sight of
the sinner's doom.
Verse
34. (last clause). The wicked are often cut off 1. Even in
life
from their places
and riches
and prospects. 2. At death they
are cut off from all their possessions and comforts. 3. In the last day
they will be cut off from "the resurrection of life." William Jay.
Verses
35-37. Three memorable scenes.
1.
The imposing spectacle.
2. The astounding disappearance.
3. The delightful exit.
Verses
35-37. Three memorable scenes.
1.
The imposing spectacle.
2. The astounding disappearance.
3. The delightful exit.
Verses
39-40.
1.
The doctrines of grace condensed.
2.
The experience of the gracious epitomised.
3.
The promises of grace summarised.
4.
The grandest evidence of grace declared: because they trust in him.
── C.H. Spurgeon《The Treasury of David》