Psalm 57:
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Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 Job Proverbs
Psalm 57
Complete Concise
This psalm is very much like that which goes next before it; it
was penned upon a like occasion, when David was both in danger of trouble and in
temptation to sin; it begins as that did, "Be merciful to me;" the
method also is the same. I. He begins with prayer and complaint, yet not without
some assurance of speeding in his request (v. 1-6). II. He concludes with joy
and praise (v. 7-11). So that hence we may take direction and encouragement,
both in our supplications and in our thanksgivings, and may offer both to God,
in singing this psalm.
To the chief musician, Al-taschith, Michtam of David, when he
fled from Saul in the cave.
Verses 1-6
The title of this psalm has one word new in it,
Al-taschith—Destroy
not. Some make it to be only some known tune to which this psalm was set;
others apply it to the occasion and matter of the psalm.
Destroy not;
that is, David would not let Saul be destroyed, when now in the cave there was a
fair opportunity of killing him, and his servants would fain have done so. No,
says David,
destroy him not, 1 Sa. 24:4, 6. Or, rather, God would not let
David be destroyed by Saul; he suffered him to persecute David, but still under
this limitation,
Destroy him hot; as he permitted Satan to afflict Job,
Only
save his life. David must not be destroyed, for
a blessing is in him
(Isa. 65:8), even Christ, the best of blessings. When David was in the cave, in
imminent peril, he here tells us what were the workings of his heart towards
God; and happy are those that have such good thoughts as these in their minds
when they are in danger!
I. He supports himself with faith and hope in God, and prayer to
him, v. 1, 2. Seeing himself surrounded with enemies, he looks up to God with
that suitable prayer:
Be merciful to me, O Lord! which he again repeats,
and it is no vain repetition:
Be merciful unto me. It was the publican's
prayer, Lu. 18:13. It is a pity that any should use it slightly and profanely,
should cry,
God be merciful to us, or,
Lord, have mercy upon us,
when they mean only to express their wonder, or surprise, or vexation, but God
and his mercy are not in all their thoughts. It is with much devout affection
that David here prays,
"Be merciful unto me, O Lord! look with
compassion upon me, and in thy love and pity redeem me." To recommend
himself to God's mercy, he here professes,
1. That all his dependence is upon God:
My soul trusteth in
thee, v. 1. He did not only profess to trust in God, but his soul did indeed
rely on God only, with a sincere devotion and self-dedication, and an entire
complacency and satisfaction. He goes to God, and, at the footstool of the
throne of his grace, humbly professes his confidence in him:
In the shadow of
thy wings will I make my refuge, as the chickens take shelter under the
wings of the hen when the birds of prey are ready to strike at them,
until
these calamities be over-past. (1.) He was confident his troubles would end
well, in due time;
these calamities will be over-past; the storm will
blow over.
Non si male nunc et olim sic erit—Though now distressed, I shall
not always be so. Our Lord Jesus comforted himself with this in his
sufferings, Lu. 22:37.
The things concerning me have an end. (2.) He was
very easy under the divine protection in the mean time. [1.] He comforted
himself in the goodness of God's nature, by which he is inclined to succour
and protect his people, as the hen is by instinct to shelter her young ones. God
comes upon the wing to the help of his people, which denotes a speedy
deliverance (Ps. 18:10); and he takes them under his wing, which denotes warmth
and refreshment, even when the calamities are upon them; see Mt. 23:37. [2.] In
the promise of his word and the covenant of his grace; for it may refer to the
out-stretched
wings of the cherubim, between which God is said to dwell
(Ps. 80:1) and whence he gave his oracles. "To God, as the God of grace,
will I fly, and his promise shall be my refuge, and a sure passport it will be
through all these danger." God, by his promise, offers himself to us, to be
trusted; we by our faith must accept of him, and put our trust in him.
2. That all his desire is towards God (v. 2):
"I will
cry unto God most high, for succour and relief; to him that is most high
will I lift up my soul, and pray earnestly, even
unto God that performs all
things for me." Note, (1.) In every thing that befalls us we ought to
see and own the hand of God; whatever is done is of his performing; in it his
counsel is accomplished and the scripture is fulfilled. (2.) Whatever God
performs concerning his people, it will appear, in the issue, to have been
performed for them and for their benefit. Though God be high,
most high,
yet he condescends so low as to take care that all things be made to work for
good to them. (3.) This is a good reason why we should, in all our straits and
difficulties, cry unto him, not only pray, but pray earnestly.
3. That all his expectation is from God (v. 3):
He shall send
from heaven, and save me. Those that make God their only refuge, and fly to
him by faith and prayer, may be sure of salvation, in his way and time. Observe
here, (1.) Whence he expects the salvation—from heaven. Look which way he
will, in this earth, refuge fails, no help appears; but he looks for it from
heaven. Those that lift up their hearts to things above may thence expect all
good. (2.) What the salvation is that he expects. He trusts that God will save
him
from the reproach of those that would swallow him up, that aimed to
ruin him, and, in the mean time, did all they could to vex him. Some read it,
He
shall send from heaven and save me, for he has put to shame him that would
swallow me up; he has disappointed their designs against me hitherto, and
therefore he will perfect my deliverance. (3.) What he will ascribe his
salvation to:
God shall send forth his mercy and truth. God is good in
himself and faithful to every word that he has spoken, and so he makes it appear
when he works deliverance for his people. We need no more to make us happy than
to have the benefit of the mercy and truth of God, Ps. 25:10.
II. He represents the power and malice of his enemies (v. 4):
My
soul is among lions. So fierce and furious was Saul, and those about him,
against David, that he might have been as safe in a den of lions as among such
men, who were continually roaring against him and ready to make a prey of him.
They are set on fire, and breathe nothing but flame; they set on fire the course
of nature, inflaming one another against David, and
they were themselves set
on fire of hell, Jam. 3:6. They were sons of men, from whom one might have
expected something of the reason and compassion of a man; but they were beasts
of prey in the shape of men; their
teeth, which they gnashed upon him,
and with which they hoped to tear him to pieces and to eat him up,
were
spears and arrows fitted for mischiefs and murders; and their
tongue,
with which they cursed him and wounded his reputation, was
as a sharp sword
to cut and kill; see Ps. 42:10. A spiteful tongue is a dangerous weapon,
wherewith Satan's instruments fight against God's people. He describes their
malicious projects against him (v. 6) and shows the issue of them:
"They
have prepared a net for my steps, in which to take me, that I might not
again escape out of their hands;
they have digged a pit before me, that I
might, ere I was aware, run headlong into it." See the policies of the
church's enemies; see the pains they take to do mischief. But let us see what
comes of it. 1. It is indeed some disturbance to David:
My soul is bowed
down. It made him droop, and hang the head, to think that there should be
those that bore him so much ill-will. But, 2. It was destruction to themselves;
they dug a pit for David,
into the midst whereof they have fallen. The
mischief they designed against David returned upon themselves, and they were
embarrassed in their counsels; then when Saul was pursuing David the Philistines
were invading
him; nay, in the cave, when Saul thought David should fall
into his hands, he fell into the hands of David, and lay at his mercy.
III. He prays to God to glorify himself and his own great name
(v. 5): "Whatever becomes of me and my interest,
be thou exalted, O God!
above the heavens, be thou praised by the holy angels, those glorious
inhabitants of the upper world;
and let thy glory be above or over
all
the earth; let all the inhabitants of this earth be brought to know and
praise thee." Thus God's glory should lie hearer our hearts, and we
should be more concerned for it, than for any particular interests of our own.
When David was in the greatest distress and disgrace he did not pray,
Lord,
exalt me, but,
Lord, exalt thy own name. Thus the Son of David, when
his soul was troubled, and he prayed,
Father, save me from this hour,
immediately withdrew that petition, and presented this in the room of it,
For
this cause came I to this hour; Father, glorify thy name, Jn. 12:27, 28. Or
it may be taken as a plea to enforce his petition for deliverance: "Lord,
send
from heaven to save me, and thereby thou wilt glorify thyself as the God
both of heaven and earth." Our best encouragement in prayer is taken from
the glory of God, and to that therefore, more than our own comfort, we should
have an eye in all our petitions for particular mercies; for this is made the
first petition in the Lord's prayer, as that which regulates and directs all
the rest,
Father in heaven, hallowed by thy name.
Verses 7-11
How strangely is the tune altered here! David's prayers and
complaints, by the lively actings of faith, are here, all of a sudden, turned
into praises and thanksgivings; his sackcloth is loosed, he is girded with
gladness, and his hallelujahs are as fervent as his hosannas. This should make
us in love with prayer, that, sooner or later, it will be swallowed up in
praise. Observe,
I. How he prepares himself for the duty of praise (v. 7):
My
heart is fixed, O God! my heart is fixed. My heart is
erect, or
lifted
up (so some), which was bowed down, v. 6.
My heart is fixed, 1. With
reference to God's providences; it is prepared for every event, being
stayed
upon God, Ps. 112:7; Isa. 26:3.
My heart is fixed, and then
none
of these things move me, Acts 20:24. If by the grace of God we be brought
into this even composed frame of spirit, we have great reason to be thankful. 2.
With reference to the worship of God:
My heart is fixed to
sing and
give praise. It is implied that the heart is the main thing required in all
acts of devotion; nothing is done to purpose, in religion, further than it is
done with the heart. The heart must be fixed, fixed for the duty, fitted and put
in frame for it, fixed in the duty by a close application,
attending on the
Lord without distraction.
II. How he excites himself to the duty of praise (v. 8):
Awake
up my glory, that is, my tongue (our tongue is our glory, and never more so
than when it is employed in praising God), or my soul, that must be first
awakened; dull and sleepy devotions will never be acceptable to God. We must
stir up ourselves, and all that is within us, to praise God; with a holy fire
must that sacrifice be kindled, and ascend in a holy flame. David's tongue
will lead, and his psaltery and harp will follow, in these hymns of praise.
I
myself will awake, not only, "I will not be dead, and drowsy, and
careless, in this work," but, "I will be in the most lively frame, as
one newly awakened out of a refreshing sleep." He will awake
early
to this work, early in the morning, to begin the day with God, early in the
beginnings of a mercy. When God is coming towards us with his favours we must go
forth to meet him with our praises.
III. How he pleases himself, and (as I may say) even prides
himself, in the work of praise; so far is he from being ashamed to own his
obligations to God, and dependence upon him, that he resolves to
praise him
among the people and to
sing unto him among the nations, v. 9. This
intimates, 1. That his own heart was much affected and enlarged in praising God;
he would even make the earth ring with his sacred songs, that all might take
notice how much he thought himself indebted to the goodness of God. 2. That he
desired to bring others in to join with him in praising God. He will publish God's
praises
among the people, that the knowledge, and fear, and love of God
might be propagated, and the ends of the earth might see his salvation. When
David was driven out into heathen lands he would not only not worship their
gods, but he would openly avow his veneration for the God of Israel, would take
his religion along with him wherever he went, would endeavour to bring others in
love with it, and leave the sweet savour of it behind him. David, in his psalms,
which fill the universal church, and will to the end of time, may be said to be
still
praising God among the people and
singing to him among the
nations; for all good people make use of his words in praising God. Thus St.
John, in his writings, is said to
prophesy again before many peoples and
nations, Rev. 10:11.
IV. How he furnishes himself with matter for praise, v. 10. That
which was the matter of his hope and comfort (
God shall send forth his mercy
and his truth, v. 3) is here the matter of his thanksgiving:
Thy mercy is
great unto the heavens, great beyond conception and expression; and
thy
truth unto the clouds, great beyond discovery, for what eye can reach that
which is wrapped up in the clouds? God's mercy and truth reach to the heavens,
for they will bring all such to heaven as lay up their treasure in them and
build their hopes upon them. God's mercy and truth are praised even to the
heavens, that is, by all the bright and blessed inhabitants of the upper world,
who are continually exalting God's praises to the highest, while David, on
earth, is endeavouring to spread his praises to the furthest, v. 9.
V. How he leaves it at last to God to glorify his own name (v.
11):
Be thou exalted, O God! The same words which he had used (v. 5) to
sum up his prayers in he here uses again (and no vain repetition) to sum up his
praises in: "Lord, I desire to exalt thy name, and that all the creatures
may exalt it; but what can the best of us do towards it? Lord, take the work
into thy own hands; do it thyself:
Be thou exalted, O God! In the praises
of the church triumphant thou art exalted to the heavens, and in the praises of
the church militant thy glory is throughout all the earth; but thou art above
all the blessing and praise of both (Neh. 9:5), and therefore, Lord, exalt
thyself
above the heavens and
above all the earth. Father, glorify thy
own name. Thou hast glorified it, glorify it yet again."
Psalm 57:
| Darby
| Geneva
| Gill
| Jamieson Faussett Brown
| Matthew Henry
| Matthew Henry Concise
| Spurgeon
| Wesley
| Index
| Bible Gateway |
Introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 Job Proverbs
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