Sidor som bilder
PDF
ePub

a Ps. 148. 13. ¿Ps. 113. 4.

e Ps. 111. 2.

Heb. flocks & oxen all of them.

iver 1.

5. Ascension Day.

Mattins, Psalms viii., xv., xxi.

PSALM VIII.

God's glory is magnified by his works, and by his love

[ocr errors]
[blocks in formation]

LORD our Lord, how a excellent is thy name in all the earth who hast set thy glory above the heavens.

2 c Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings haste thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

4 What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

5 For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

6 Thou madeet him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

7 2 All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;

8 The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.

9 O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

1

* Ps. 81, & 84, title.

See Matt. 11. 25. & 21. 16.

1 Cor. 1. 27.

Heb. founded..

d Ps. 44. 16.

g

Job 7. 17.
Ps. 144. 3.
Heb. 2. 6.

Gen. 1. 26, 28. h1 Cor. 15. 27. Heb. 2. 8.

TITLE. For the Precentor, upon Gittith. A Psalm of David.

The general opinion is, that this Psalm was one of the first written by King David. It is attributed to the time when he spent his lonely nights feeding his father's sheep on the hills round Bethlehem. "The solitude of David's early life brought him face to face with God in two distinct ways. He realised God's omnipotence in creation with the imagination of a poet; he realised no less fully in the depths of his consciousness the living connection of man with God. This living connection with God is the source of human dignity; hence David, though a sense of the physical impotence of man was daily forced upon him by the stupendous phenomena which environed him, yet felt in the presence of God within his own soul, a source of spiritual power, which raised him above all material creation, and affiliated him to

The word "Gittith" means either an instrument of music, or a tune brought from the city of Gath. (I. Sam. xxvii.)

the Divine." The subject of the Psalm is Jehovah's glory as shewn forth in nature, and especially in the powers and dignity bestowed upon man.. Man is here looked upon as he was before the fall, and as he will be when restored by Christ to his first estate, of which the Ascension of our Lord in the glorified body of his humanity is the sure pledge. The Ascended Christ is the only perfect human representative of our nature, and therefore the Psalm is especially applicable to Him (Heb. ii. 6-10).

We can scarcely call this a Messianic Psalm. But it "affords the first example of a Psalm written originally, it may be, without any direct reference to Christ and His day, but admitting such an easy and natural application to them, and illustrating the circumstances of them even to the unknown future so pointedly, that it is scarcely possible to suppose that the Divine Spirit, who spake by the lips of David (II. Sam. xxiii. 2), did not intend such application, and adapt the portraiture of man to its future divine realization." [Speaker's Commentary.]

V. 1. "O LORD our Lord."="O Jehovah our Lord." Prayer Book, "O LORD our Governor."

"Thy name." i.e. The name and fame which God had obtained by His mighty works.

66

'Above the heavens," or 66 upon the heavens." i.e. God's glory is seen impressed upon the heavens by His creation of them and all that is in them. We may also see in these words an unconscious prophecy of the Ascension (Eph. iv. 10).

Un

V. 2. "Out of the mouth, etc." See marginal references. educated fishermen (S. Matt. xvi. 16, 17), and children crying in the Temple, and saying Hosanna, put to shame the Scribes and Pharisees, who saw Christ's wonderful miracles, and heard His soul inspiring words, unmoved.

"Babes and Sucklings." By "babes" are meant children rather older than "sucklings," who are infants yet unweaned. Jewish mothers suckled their children until their third year.

"Ordained strength." Heb. "Hast thou laid the foundation of power."

"Because of thine enemies," or "In consequence of thine enemies," i.e. of their threats. It therefore really means to prove thine enemies in

error."

"Still." i.e. "Silence."

[ocr errors]

66

"The avenger." Vengeance is mine, I will repay saith the LORD (Rom. xii. 19). An avenger is one, who thirsting for revenge, does not wait for God's vengeance, but revenges himself.

V. 3. "When I consider," or "As often as I consider." Prayer Book, I will consider.

[ocr errors]

"Fingers." The finger of God wrought the Egyptian plagues (Ex. viii. 19); the finger of God wrote the Tables of the Law (Ex. xxxi. 18); the finger of God cast out devils (S. Luke xi. 20); the finger of God created the heavens (Gen. i. 1; 16-18).

"Ordained." Heb. "Founded" (See v. 2).

V. 4. "What is man, etc. ?" Man is so little, so insignificant in the midst of all this grandeur. Yet, spite of this, he was made a little lower than God (in His image); was appointed lord of the earth, to have dominion over the lower orders of creation (Gen. i. 26—28).

66

V. 5. "A little lower than the angels." Lit. "a little lower than God.' The Hebrew word is "Elohim." The translation 'Angels" comes from the Septuagint, from which the writer of the Hebrews (II. 6, 7, 8) evidently quotes. We may fairly apply these verses to Christ's temporary humiliation and subsequent exaltation to glory, as the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews does.

V. 6. "All things under his feet." See Eph. i. 20-23; I. Cor. XV. 27. This is most true of Christ, the first fruits of the dead, Who, Ascended, and at God's Right Hand, reigns till all His enemies are destroyed.

V. 7. "Beasts of the field." i.e. "Wild beasts."

V. 8. "Whatsoever passeth, etc." i.e. Every creature which passeth, &c. "Fish" and "fowl" are plural, whereas " 'passeth" is singular. and requires therefore a subject to be supplied. God created out of the waters great whales and every living creature that moveth," abundantly, after their kind (Gen. i. 21).

66

"Paths of the sea. i.e. The surface of the ocean, not its depths. V. 9. "O LORD our Lord." The Psalm ends as it began, shewing that the praise of Jehovah's Name is the real object of the writer (Cf. Pss. civ.; cxviii.).

[blocks in formation]

By almost universal assent this Psalm is assigned to the occasion of David's great Festival when the Ark was brought

up to Jerusalem from the house of Obededom the Gittite (II. Sam. vi. 12-19).

By the presence of the Ark, Zion became Jehovah's "Holy Hill" (Ps. ii. 6; iii. 4, &c.); and Jerusalem His "Holy City." The lawful reverence connected with this fact, was always liable, as David felt, to degenerate into fanaticism, as in after days actually happened (see Jer. vii. 3-11). In all ages there has been a danger of the externals of public worship being substituted for that inward holiness of the heart and righteousness of life which God requires. The wise are aware that both ceremonial observances and sanctity of life are necessary, the former in due subordination to the latter. To check any danger of this sort which might arise, David asks the question, "LORD, who shall dwell in Thy tabernacle, &c.?"; and the rest of the Psalm answers it. He mentions no less than eleven requisites. (i.) To walk uprightly. (ii.) To work righteousness. (iii.) To speak the truth. (iv.) Not to backbite. (v.) Not to do evil to one's neighbour. (vi.) Not to slander one's neighbour. (vii.) To contemn a vile person, or (as the Prayer Book Version is) not to set by oneself, but to be lowly in one's own eyes. (viii.) To honour or make much of the God fearing. (ix.) To swear to a neighbour and keep the promise were it to one's own hurt. (x.) Not to be a usurer. (xi.) Not to take reward against the innocent.

We have to remember, nevertheless, that a higher standard is required from us than from the ancient Jews. We may attain, by the help of the Holy Spirit, Whom Jesus went back to Heaven on Ascension Day to send to us, far loftier heights of excellence than they.

Compare Ps. xxiv. (especially vv. 3, 4.) with this Psalm.

V. 1.

"Who shall abide "="Who shall sojourn."

"Who shall dwell="Who shall take up his abode." The former phrase implies temporary dwelling; the latter permanent abode.

"Tabernacle." i.e. The new tabernacle or tent which David had pitched for the Ark (I1. Sam. vi. 17).

"Holy Hill." Zion was called by this name because of the sign of God's Presence there, the Shekinah or sacred light on the Mercy Seat above the Ark. So, Horeb was called the Mount of God, because God appeared to Moses there (See Ex. iii. 1, 2).

V. 2. "Walketh uprightly." .e. "Conducts himself perfectly"

(See Gen. xvii. 1).

We may compare with this verse the two first verses of Col. iii., and thus shew a connection between this Psalm and the Ascension of our Lord.

V. 3. "Backbiteth not." "With his tongue."

[ocr errors]

Prayer Book, "Hath used no deceit." Lit. "On his tongue." The simile is taken from the venom of the serpent (Pss. cxl. 3; lviii. 4; x. 7). Cf. S. James iii. 5, 6, 8, 9.

"Nor doeth evil." Cf. Prov. iii. 29.

"Practise no evil against

thy neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee."

"Nor taketh up a reproach." Prayer Book, "Hath not slandered." The meaning is "taketh up and spreadeth."

V. 4. "In whose eyes, etc." The Authorised Version and the Prayer Book greatly differ in their translations of this verse. The former follows the Septuagint and *Vulgate, the latter the ancient Jewish interpretation. The Prayer Book version reads thus "He that setteth not by himself, but is lowly in his own eyes: and maketh much of them that fear the LORD."

"To his own hurt." By the Law of Moses an oath must be kept even if to the disadvantage of him who made it. (Lev. xxvii. 2, 10.) But if the performance of the oath involved hurt to others, then a trespass offering might be offered (Lev. v. 4—6).

66

'Changeth not "="Does not go back from his oath." Cf. The Prayer Book Version of this verse.

V. 5. "Usury." The Law of Moses forbade usury among the Israelites (see marginal references). They might lend upon usury to strangers, but, no doubt, even with them, the enforcement of excessive interest is here condemned.

66

Taketh reward, etc." See II. Chron. xix. 6, 7.

"Be moved." The reference here is to v. 1, "Who shall abide, &c." Those who do the things which the Psalmist mentions shall never fall nor be removed; they shall abide: they shall dwell permanently in God's holy hill.

[blocks in formation]

* The Vulgate is the name given to the Latin Version of the Bible. It is so called from a corruption of "Vulgata Editio" (the current text). The earliest Vulgate Version (like the Septuagint) was made in Africa, somewhere about the Second Century A.D. being probably a translation from the Greek of the Septuagint. The Vulgate Version has left its mark very decidedly upon the language and idioms of our Authorized Version; the Reformers, &c., being more familiar with the Latin Version than with any other.

« FöregåendeFortsätt »