Psalms 30:1

I will extol thee, O Lord,.... Or "lift thee up on high" (k).

I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me. The dedication of the house of David - namely, the site of the future temple which Solomon built.

Psalms 30 A Psalm and Song; or, A Psalm of Song; i.e. either, 1. A Psalm to be sung with the voice to an instrument. Or, 2. A Psalm of joy and praise; for so this is. And this Hebrew word schir may be here taken not simply for a song, but for a joyful song, as it Isaiah 42:8 ,10. At the dedication of the house of David; either, 1. At the dedication of the temple, called the house, or that house, eminently and emphatically. So the Chaldee paraphrast and the Hebrew doctors understand it. And then the last words, of David, are to be joined with the first, a Psalm and Song. But this seems not probable, because the temple was not built by David, nor in his days, although he might prescribe a Psalm to be used afterwards upon that occasion. Or, 2. At the dedication of David’ s house, which was built, , and doubtless was dedicated, as God had commanded. See . Or, 3. At the second dedication of David’ s house, after it had been polluted by Absalom and his concubines. But there is no law of God for any re-dedication of houses in such cases, nor any evidence that David did so. And indeed it seems strange, if this Psalm was made upon this occasion, or upon any of these dedications here mentioned, that there should not be one line in it suitable to that occasion. Others therefore make these words, the dedication of the house, not to note the matter of this Psalm or Song; but either, 1. The name of the tune to which this song was sung, which was the same that David used at the dedication of his house; and so this gives us a reason why the word Song is added to that of Psalm, and why this Psalm was called the Song of the dedication. Or, 2. The time when it was sung; which was at the dedication of David’ s house. For such dedications were performed in a very solemn manner, with divers rites and prayers, and praises to God, as the nature of that business required. And it seems probable from the matter of this Psalm, compared with the title, that David had about this time been delivered from some eminent distresses, and particularly from some dangerous sickness; for which he here gives thanks to God, taking advantage of this public and solemn occasion. The psalmist praiseth God for deliverance out of great danger, ; and exhorteth others to do the same, ,5. He acknowledgeth to God that his prayer was heard, and him-self girded with gladness, . He will give thanks to God for ever, . Lifted me up; or, drawn up, to wit, out of the deep pit, or waters; to which great dangers and afflictions are frequently compared. To rejoice over me; which they both desired and confidently expected an occasion to do.

Psalms 30:1 « A Psalm [and] Song [at] the dedication of the house of David. » I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.A Psalm and Song] i.e. A holy hymn, first framed in metre, then sung with men’ s voices. At the dedication of the house of David] Either when it was newly built, 2 Samuel 5:11, confer Deuteronomy 20:5 Nehemiah 12:27, saying, as he once, Iamque, meos dedo tibi, Princeps, iure Penates, Tu mihi ius dederas, posse vocare meos. God so loveth his people that their walls are ever in his sight, Isaiah 49:16; they should therefore have holiness to the Lord written upon them, Zechariah 14:20, sanctified they should be by the word and prayer, 1 Timothy 4:5. Or else, after he had defiled it by his adultery with Bathsheba, and Absalom had much more defiled it by his abominable incest and other villanies, See 2 Samuel 20:3. Ver. 1. I will extol thee, O Lord; for thou hast lifted me up] De puteo peccati caenoso, saith Kimchi, out of the miry pit of sin; or out of the ditch of deadly danger, say others. Therefore I will extol thee, that is, I will have high and honourable conceptions of thee. I will also do mine utmost, both by words and deeds, that thou mayest be acknowledged by others to be as thou art, the great and mighty monarch of the whole world. And hast not made my foes to rejoice over me] Beside all former victories, Absalom and Sheba were lately slain.

(1) Thou hast lifted me up.—The Hebrew word seems to mean to dangle, and therefore may be used either of letting down or drawing up. The cognate noun means bucket It is used in Exodus 2:19, literally of drawing water from a well; in Proverbs 20:5, metaphorically of counsel. Here it is clearly metaphorical of restoration from sickness, and does not refer to the incident in Jeremiah’s life (Jeremiah 38:13), where quite a different word is used.

PSALM XXX The psalmist returns thanks to God for deliverance from great danger, 1-3. He calls upon the saints to give thanks to God at the remembrance of his holiness, because of his readiness to save, 4, 5. He relates how his mind stood affected before this great trial and how soon an unexpected change took place, 6, 7; mentions how, and in what terms, he prayed for mercy, 8-10; shows how God heard and delivered him and the effect it had upon his mind, 11, 12. NOTES ON PSALM XXX This Psalm or song is said to have been made or used at the dedication of the house of David, or rather the dedication of a house or temple; for the word David refers not to הבית habbayith, the house, but to מזמור mizmor, a Psalm. But what temple or house could this be? Some say, the temple built by Solomon; others refer it to the dedication of the second temple under Zerubbabel, and some think it intended for the dedication of a third temple, which is to be built in the days of the Messiah. There are others who confine it to the dedication of the house which David built for himself on Mount Sion, after he had taken Jerusalem from the Jebusites; or to the purgation and re-dedication of his own house, that had been defiled by the wicked conduct of his own son Absalom. Calmet supposes it to have been made by David on the dedication of the place which he built on the threshing floor of Araunah, after the grievous plague which had so nearly desolated the kingdom, 2 Samuel 24:25; 1 Chronicles 21:26. All the parts of the Psalm agree to this: and they agree to this so well, and to no other hypothesis, that I feel myself justified in modelling the comment on this principle alone. Verse 1. I will extol thee - for thou hast lifted me up] I will lift thee up, for thou hast lifted me up. Thou hast made me blessed, and I will make thee glorious. Thou hast magnified me in thy mercy; and I will show forth thy praise, and speak good of thy name. I have made some remarks on this Psalm in the Introduction. In this Psalm we find seven different states of mind distinctly marked: - 1. It is implied, in the first verse, that David had been in great distress, and nearly overwhelmed by his enemies. 2. He extols God for having lifted him up, and having preserved him from the cruelty of his adversaries, Psalms 30:1-3. 3. He is brought into great prosperity, trusts in what he had received, and forgets to depend wholly on the Lord, Psalms 30:4-6. 4. The Lord hides his face from him, and he is brought into great distress, Psalms 30:7. 5. He feels his loss, and makes earnest prayer and supplication, Psalms 30:8-10. 6. He is restored to the Divine favour, and filled with joy, Psalms 30:11. 7.

1–3. Thanksgiving for deliverance from death in answer to prayer.

I will extol thee - literally, “I will exalt thee;” that is, he would make God first and supreme in his thoughts and affections; he would do what he could to make Him known; he would elevate Him high in his praises.

1. Lifted me up—The word signifies to draw up, as water from a well, or a man out of a deep pit, and is used to denote any extrication from perilous conditions. See Psalms 30:3.