Psalms 89

Psalms 891. Maschil. By Ethan the Ezrahite. From the fact that Ethan and Jeduthun are both named with Asaph and Heman, but never named together, it has been inferred that they are two names of the same person, or rather that Ethan is the personal name, and Jeduthun (derived from a verb which means to praise) the official title. Heman and Ethan are both described as Ezrahites, i.e. adopted sons of Zerah, 1 Chronicles 6:5, but by birth were no doubt both Sons of Korah, 1 Chronicles 6:18-37. To the lamenta tions and complaints of Heman in the first part of this double psalm (Psalms 88) is now added an appeal to the divine promise by Ethan in the psalm before us.

The particular promise here insisted on is that in 2 Samuel 7, which constitutes the basis of all the Messianic psalms. The hypothesis of Hengstenberg and others, that the psalm was composed in the interval between the death of Josiah and the Babylonish exile, by the Korhites of that period, who merely assumed the name and breathed the spirit of their great progenitors, could be justified only by extreme exegetical necessity, which does not here exist, since nothing is more natural than to assume, that these psalms were nearly contemporaneous with the promise itself, and intended to anticipate misgivings and repinings, which, although they existed even then in germ, were not developed till the period of decline began, or rather till it was approaching its catastrophe. By far the larger part of this psalm is occupied in amplifying and expounding the great Messianic promise, Psalms 89:1-37, while the remainder, like Psalms 88, teaches the chosen people how to apply it, in their times of suffering and despondency, Psalms 89:38-52, a feature of the composition which fully warrants its description in the title as a maschil or didactic psalm.

2. (Psalms 89:1) The mercies of Jehovah for ever will I sing; to generation and generation will I make known thy faithfulness with my mouth. The mercies particularly meant are the favours promised to David as the progenitor and type of the Messiah. The faithfulness mentioned in the other clause is that of God in the fulfilment of these promises. Compare my note on Isaiah 55:3, where the same idea is expressed by the sure mercies of David. For ever, literally eternity, the noun being used adverbially, as its plural is in Psalms 61:4. The promise of perpetual commemoration shews that the Psalmist speaks not only for himself, but for the church of which he is the mouth or spokesman.

3. (Psalms 89:2) For I have said, For ever shall mercy be built up. The heavens– thou wilt fix thy faithfulness in them. The church will celebrate God’s mercy and faithfulness for ever, because they will endure for ever. I have said, i.e. this is the view of the matter I have taken and expressed already. The scheme of God’s gracious dispensations is conceived of as a building, already founded and hereafter to be carried up to its completion. The emphatic construction of the heavens as an absolute nominative (as to the heavens, thou wilt fix, &c.) is inadequately represented in the common version (shalt thou establish in the very heavens).

For the proverbial use of the heavens and the heavenly bodies as a standard of permanence and immutability, see above, on Psalms 72:5. The idea here is, thou shalt make thy faithfulness as fixed and stable as the frame of nature.

4. (Psalms 89:3) I have ratified a covenant with my chosen (one); I have sworn unto David my servant. These are the words of God himself, though not ex-pressly so described, as in Psalms 89:19 below. We have here a summary statement of the substance of the promise in 2 Samuel 7, upon which this and the other Messianic psalms are founded. Ratified a covenant, see above, on Psalms 50:5. With my chosen, literally to my chosen, as in the parallel expression, because what is here called a covenant was really a conditional promise or engagement upon God’s part. My servant, i.e. my chosen and appointed instrument in executing my designs. See above, on Psalms 18:1, and compare Psalms 86:16.

5. (Psalms 89:4) Unto eternity will I confirm thy seed, and build, to generation and generation, thy throne. Selah. Confirm thy seed, establish thy descendants in the permanent possession of the royal dignity. The same two verbs which, in the foregoing verse, are applied to the divine grace and fidelity, are here applied directly to their objects, the throne and family of David.

6. (Psalms 89:5) And the heavens acknowledge thy wonders, Jehovah, likewise thy faithfulness (is acknowledged) in the assembly of holy (ones). The promise just cited is entitled to men’s confidence, because the omnipotence and faithfulness of Him who uttered it are thankfully acknowledged by superior beings. The parallelism of heavens and holy ones shews that the former are here put for their inhabitants. For the true meaning of the first verb, see above, on Psalms 6:5, and for that of the following noun, on Psalms 77:11; Psalms 88:10. Wonders or miracles are here referred to, as proofs of a mighty power. The and, also, at the beginning of the clauses, have the force of even, yea, in our idiom.

The word translated holy ones is entirely different from that usually rendered saints. The latter is always applied to men, the former usually to superior beings, i.e. angels. See Deuteronomy 33:2-3, Daniel 8:13, Zechariah 14:5, Job 4:18; Job 15:15.

7. (Psalms 89:6) For who, in the sky, can compare to Jehovah? (Who) is like and Jehovah among the Sons of the Mighty? The question involves a strong negation, or an affirmation that there is none like him, even in the orders of existence superior to man. This is given as a reason for the adoring recognition of his power and veracity in Psalms 89:5). The word translated sky is elsewhere used in the plural to denote the clouds collectively. See above, on Psalms 68:34; Psalms 77:17; Psalms 78:23. The singular form, in this sense, is peculiar to the psalm before us.

See below, Psalms 89:37). The twofold usage of the English verb compare, as active and neuter, corresponds exactly to that of the original expression, for the primary and proper sense of which, see above on Psalms 5:3; Psalms 40:5; Psalms 50:21. The Sons of the Mighty or Almighty are the angels. As to the peculiar form of the description, see above, on Psalms 29:1, from which it seems to be directly borrowed in the case before us.

8. (Psalms 89:7) A God to be dreaded in the secret council of (his) holy (ones) greatly, and to be feared above all (those) about him. This is not a distinct proposition, but a further description of the Being pronounced in the fore-going verse to be incomparable. The divine name (lxe) here used implies that what makes him so terrible is his infinite power. The angels are again called holy ones, but furthermore described as the privy council, the confidential intimates, of God himself. See above, on Psalms 25:14; Psalms 55:14; Psalms 83:3. Yet even to these, as being endlessly superior, he is and ought to be an object of adoring fear.

The intensive adverb greatly is the same with that in Psalms 62:3, and like it is placed emphatically at the end of the clause. Compare Psalms 48:1; Psalms 65:9. Above may either mean more than, or by, with an implication of his vast superiority as the cause or reason. Those about him, i. e. those immediately surrounding him, his heavenly attendants, the angels. See the same expression, in a somewhat different application, Psalms 76:11.

9. (Psalms 89:8) Jehovah, God of Hosts, who (is) like thee, mighty, Jah, and thy faithfulness (is) round about thee. The infinite superiority of God to men and angels is here expressed, or rather indicated, by an accumulation of descriptive titles. We have here the full phrase, Jehovah God of Hosts, which occurs so frequently in an abbreviated form. See above, on Psalms 24:10. The word translated mighty is used only here; but its sense is clear from the analogy of cognate forms, confirmed by the testimony of the ancient versions. As to Jah, the pregnant abbreviation or concentration of Jehovah, see above, on Psalms 68:4.

It may here be in apposition either with Jehovah, as a vocative, or with Jah, as a descriptive title. " Who is like thee, a mighty one, O Jah?" Or, “who like thee is mighty, who like thee is Jah?” Faithfulness, as elsewhere, is veracity or truth in the fulfilment of a promise. The word translated round about is the feminine or neuter form of that used in the preceding verse, and there applied to persons. The meaning of the whole clause is that God’s fidelity is never absent from him, but appears wherever he does, the proofs of its existence being visible on all hands. The English Bible supplies a preposition and assumes a second question, “who is like thy faithfulness round about thee?” But the other construction, which is that adopted in the ancient versions, is much simpler and more natural, the ellipsis of the preposition in such cases being rare, whereas that of the substantive verb is the general rule of Hebrew syntax, to which its insertion is a mere exception.

10. (Psalms 89:9) Thou rulest the swell of the sea; in the rise of its waves thou stillest them. The general declaration of God’s power is now rendered more distinct by specifying one of the most striking forms in which it manifests itself. At the same time, there is no doubt an allusion to the scriptural usage of the sea as an emblem of the world and its conflicting powers. See above, on Psalms 46:2-3; Psalms 65:7. The appropriateness of the words both to physical and moral changes affords an easy and beautiful transition to the latter in the next verse. The verbal form at the beginning is a participle, thou (art) ruling, i. e. habitually, constantly.

The connective particle may be retained by rendering it rulest over. The first noun is applied elsewhere (Ps. xvii. 10) to the swelling or elation of the heart with pride; but that this is only a derived and secondary meaning may be gathered from the use of the same word to denote the loftiness or majesty of God (Psalms 93:1), and also from the application of the verbal root to the rise of water in an inundation (Ezekiel 47:5). The parallel term is an abbreviated infinitive used as a noun, and therefore well represented by the English rise, which is also both noun and verb.

11. (Psalms 89:10) Thou didst crush, like the slain, Rahab; with thine arm of strength thou didst scatter thy foes. This relates wholly to the sea of nations, in which Egypt stands first, as the earliest national enemy of Israel, and also perhaps because the power of Pharaoh, at the exodus, was literally broken in the sea. The first verb means to shatter, crush, or break in pieces. See above, Psalms 72:4. The pronoun is emphatic; (it was) thou (and none other that) didst crush, etc. The significant name Rahab, meaning pride or insolence, corresponds to the swelling of the sea, in the foregoing verse.

See above, on Psalms 87:4. Like the slain, like one mortally wounded, especially in battle. See above, on Psalms 88:5. The point of comparison is the sudden change from overbearing arrogance to helplessness and weakness. Thine arm of strength, or strong arm, the active exertion of thy power. See above, on Psalms 10:15; Psalms 37:17; Psalms 44:3; Psalms 83:8.

The last verb belongs to the dialect of poetry, and occurs above, in Psalms 53:5. See below, Psalms 112:9, all 7. This verse relates only indirectly to the enemies of God in general. Even the last clause has specific reference to the enemies who perished in the Red Sea.

12. (Psalms 89:11) To thee (belongs) heaven, also to thee earth, the world and its fulness, thou didst found them. The power of God is now described as universal and creative. Heaven and earth is the usual comprehensive phrase for the whole frame of nature or material universe. The last clause is evidently borrowed from Ps. xxiv. 1. Its fulness, that which occupies and fills it, its contents and its inhabitants. The verb to found suggests the two ideas of creation and sustentation.

He not only called them into being, but made them permanent or lasting. See below, on Psalms 104:5. The world, the cultivated and productive earth, as opposed to the desolate and barren sea. The English Bible, following the masoretic accents, construes the world and its fulness as absolute nominatives. A simpler construction is to put them in apposition with heaven and earth, and refer the pronoun at the end to all these antecedents.

13. (Psalms 89:12) North, and south, thou didst create them; Tabor and Hermon in thy name rejoice. The pronoun at the end of the first clause is superfluous in English; the original construction requires north and south to be taken absolutely, (as for) the north and south, thou bast created them. The word for north originally means concealment; that for south the right hand. The east and west are represented by two mountains on either side of Jordan. As to Hermon, see above, on Psalms 42:6. The points of the compass are here put, like heaven and earth in the preceding context, for the whole world, and described as rejoicing in God’s name, i. e. praising his perfections by their very existence.

14. (Psalms 89:13) To thee (is) an arm with strength; strong is thy hand, high is thy right hand. This is simply another declaration of the divine omnipotence, under the usual emblems, arms, hand, and right hand. See above, on Psalms 89:10.

15. (Psalms 89:14) Justice and judgment (are) the place of thy throne; mercy and truth shall go before thy face. The word translated place may also have the more specific sense of dwelling-place. The meaning is that God reigns in the midst of perfect righteousness. See above, on Psalms 89:8. The verb in the last clause always means to go or come before, sometimes in the sense of coming into one’s presence, sometimes in that of meeting or encountering, sometimes (as here) in that of being a forerunner. See above, on Psalms 85:13.

16. (Psalms 89:15) Happy the people knowing joyful noise; Jehovah, in the light of thy face they shall walk. The unusual expression in the first clause seems to mean those who know how and have occasion to rejoice in the experience of God’s favour. The last noun in Hebrew denotes any loud expression ofexultation, either by voice or instrument. See above, on Psalms 27:6. The light of God’s face is the cheering expression of his countenance as indicating favour or benignity. See above, on Psalms 4:6; Psalms 43:3; Psalms 44:3. To walk in this light is to live in the habitual enjoyment of it. This last clause gives the reason for their being pronounced happy in the first.

17. (Psalms 89:16). In thy name they shall rejoice all the day, and in thy righteousness shall be exalted. In thy name, in the display of thy perfections. In thy righteousness, i.e. in the exercise of that essential rectitude which secures the performance of God’s promise and thereby the salvation of his people.

18. (Psalms 89:17) For the beauty of their strength (art) thou, and in thy favour thou wilt lift up our horn. God is at once their mighty ornament and their glorious protection. See above, on Psalms 78:61. In thy favour, at the time, and by the means, of thy experienced favour. Lift our horn, enable us to triumph in security. See above, on Psalms 75:10, and below, on Psalms 92:10.

19. (Psalms 89:18) For unto Jehovah (belongs) our shield, and to the Holy One of Israel our king. Our protectors are themselves protected by Jehovah. This construction is much simpler and more natural than that adopted in the English versions, which entirely overlooks the preposition in both clauses, or arbitrarily regards it as a sign of the nominative case. A better construction, although not precisely the true sense, is given in the margin of the English Bible.

20. (Psalms 89:19). Then thou spakest in vision to thy gracious one and saidst, I have laid help on a Mighty (Man); I have raised one chosen from (among) the people. The Psalmist here returns to the vocation by David and the promise made to him. See 2 Samuel 7:17 (compare 1 Chronicles 17:9), where the divine communication made through Nathan to David is called a vision. Thy saint or gracious one may signify either of these persons. The ancient versions, followed by the Prayer-Book and some eminent interpreters, have the plural form instead of the singular, thy saints, meaning Israel at large, to whom the promise was truly addressed.

See 2 Sam. vii. 10, 1 Chronicles 17:9. To lay help upon one is to impart it to him, with a strong implication of descent from above. See above, on Psalms 21:5. The gift in this case was not merely for himself, but for others through his agency. God helped him to help the people. Chosen has here its strict sense, but not without allusion to its specific use as signifying a young warrior.

See above, on Psalms 78:31; Psalms 78:63.

21. (Psalms 89:20) I have found David my servant; with my holy oil have I anointed him. This verse removes all doubt as to the person primarily intended in the following verse, but without excluding his successors, and especially the last and greatest of them, to whom the royal dignity was given in the unction of David. See 1 Samuel 16:13. This act denoted not only consecration to the divine service, but the spiritual gifts required in order to its right performance. See above, on Psalms 2:2.

22. (Psalms 89:21) With whom my hand shall be ever present; also my arm shall strengthen him. Ever present, literally established, permanently fixed. See below, Psalms 89:37, and above, Psalms 78:37. The hand and arm, as usual, are emblems of strength. See above, on Psalms 89:10; Psalms 89:13.

23. (Psalms 89:22) The enemy shall not vex him, and the son of iniquity shall not afflict him. The verb in the first clause means specifically to annoy or persecute as a creditor his debtor. The second clause is copied almost word for word, from 2 Samuel 7:10. Compare 1 Chronicles 17:9.

24. (Psalms 89:23) And I will crush before him his foes, and his haters I will smite. The last verb is especially applied to strokes inflicted by the hand of God.

25. (Psalms 89:24) And my faithfulness and my mercy (shall be) with him, and in my name shall his horn be high. See above, on Psalms 89:16-17. Faithfulness and mercy are combined, as in Psalms 88:11.

26. (Psalms 89:25) And I will set in the sea his hand, and in the floods his right hand. I will cause him to lay hands upon them, and exercise authority over them, as his own possession and domain. Hand and right hand, as in Psalms 89:13. Sea and floods, streams, or rivers, as in Psalms 24:2. The watery parts of the earth are here put for the whole. Compare 1 Chronicles 14:17.

27. (Psalms 89:26) He shall call me (or cry unto me), Thou art my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. The emphatic pronouns in the original bring out more clearly the mutual relation and reciprocal action of the parties. With the first clause compare 2 Samuel 7:14, 1 Chronicles 22:10, Job 17:14. With the second compare Psalms 18:2; Psalms 31:2. The rock of my salvation, the rock that saves me, the hiding-place and stronghold where my safety lies.

28. (Psalms 89:27) Also I (as my) first-born will give him, higher than kings of the earth. He shall be treated not only as the son but as the eldest son of God himself. The same description is applied elsewhere to Israel (Exodus 4:22), to Ephraim (Jeremiah 31:9), and to Christ (Hebrews 1:6). The last clause is borrowed, both in form and substance, from Deuteronomy 28:1 (compare Deuteronomy 29:16); but instead of high above, we have here high as to, in reference to (or in comparison with) the kings of the earth.

29. (Psalms 89:28) For ever will I keep for him my mercy, and my covenant is sure to him. For ever, literally to eternity. Keep, i.e. keep it in reserve for him. My covenant, or conditional promise. See above, on Psalms 89:3. Sure, or more exactly, made sure, ratified, confirmed. Compare Isaiah 55:3.

30. (Psalms 89:29) And I will establish for ever his seed, and his throne as the days of heaven. See 2 Samuel 7:12. The promise is now extended from David to his posterity. Establish, literally set or place. The pronoun in the second clause may refer either to David or his seed. In the latter case, it might be rendered its or their throne. The question, however, is purely grammatical, since the throne of David and the throne of his descendants are identical. In the last clause the idea of duration is again expressed by a reference to the stability of nature. See above, on Psalms 72:5; Psalms 72:7; Psalms 72:17, and compare Deuteronomy 11:21.

31-33. (Psalms 89:30-32) If his sons forsake my law, and in my judgments will not walk; if my statutes they profane, and my commandments will not keep; then will I visit with a rod their transgressions, and with stripes their guilt. The promise of perpetual favour to the house of David was not intended to insure impunity to its unfaithful members. To profane God’s statutes is to deny in theory or practice their sacred obligation and divine authority. The and at the commencement of the last verse is equivalent to then in English after a conditional clause. The whole passage is an amplification of 2 Samuel 7:14.

34. (Psalms 89:33) And my mercy I will not withdraw from him, and will not prove false (or deal falsely) in my faith. Our idiom requires a but to render clear the relation of this sentence to the foregoing context. The verb in the first clause means to break or violate, but construed, as it here is, with the preposition from, suggests the idea of breaking an engagement by with-drawing what was stipulated to be given and secured. Faith in the last clause means fidelity or truth, as in the phrases, good faith, keep faith, etc. See above, on Psalms 44:17. The promise in this verse is not to them but him, not to the sinning individuals mentioned just before, but to the family or race as such, to David as still living in his natural descendants. Compare 1 Kings 11:36, 2 Kings 8:19, 2 Chronicles 6:42, Isaiah 37:35.

35. (Psalms 89:34) I will not profane my covenant, and the utterance of my lips I will not change. In the first clause there is obvious allusion to Psalms 89:31. What God requires of them he renders to them. The engagement is reciprocal. As they are not to profane his covenant by breaking it, neither will He. The obligation is a sacred one on both sides.

See below, on the next verse, and above, on Psalms 55:20. The utterance or outgoing of the lips is a technical expression of the Law, in reference to oral vows and other engagements. See Numbers 30:12, Deuteronomy 23:23. It is a. stronger expression than that which I have said or promised, although this is really the meaning here. I will not change, evade the execution of my promise by altering its terms or its conditions. Compare the form of expression in Psalms 15:4.

36. (Psalms 89:35) One (thing) have I sworn in my holiness, I will not lie unto David. The first word in Hebrew is not an adverb of time, but a numeral adjective in the feminine form, used as the neuter is in Greek and Latin. See above, on Psalms 27:4. “Whatever else may fail, there is one thing that cannot, for I have sworn that it shall come to pass.” In my holiness, as a holy God, including all divine perfection, but with special reference to moral rectitude. See above, on Psalms 60:6. The last verb might be rendered, I cannot lie. See Numbers 23:19, 1 Samuel 15:29, and compare Hebrews 6:18; Hebrews 7:20-21. The form of the original is highly idiomatic, if I lie unto David. Compare the Hebrew of 1 Samuel 24:6, 2 Samuel 3:35.

37. (Psalms 89:36) His seed to eternity shall be; and his throne as the sun before me. See above, on Psalms 89:29, and compare Psalms 45:6. Shall be, shall continue to exist. Or the whole phrase may mean, shall be eternal. As the sun, see above, on Psalms 72:5; Psalms 72:17. Before me, in my sight and under my protection.

38. (Psalms 89:37) As the moon is fixed eternally, and the witness in the sky is sure. The verse thus translated, does not repeat the promise in the one before it, but merely confirms it by a further reference to the course of nature, as the customary standard of duration. It is equally grammatical, however, to translate, as the moon it (the throne) shall be fixed for ever, and (as) the witness in heaven is sure. In either case the witness is the moon. See above, on Psalms 89:6; Psalms 89:28, and compare Psalms 72:5.

39. (Psalms 89:38) And (yet) thou hast cast off and rejected; thou art wroth with thine Anointed. Having fully recited and expounded the great promise to the house of David, the psalm now contrasts it with the present reality, and seems to complain that it had not been verified. For a similar transition, see above, Psalms 44:9. There is no need of confining this description to the last days of the kingdom of Judah, or to any other period of its history exclusively. If the psalm was really composed by Ethan, as we have no sufficient ground for doubting that it was, he may have designedly so framed it as to suit any season of distress and danger, in which the theocratic sovereign seemed to be forsaken of Jehovah. Both verbs in the first clause signify abhorrent and contemptuous rejection. See above, on Psalms 15:4; Psalms 43:2; Psalms 44:9; Psalms 78:59; Psalms 78:67; Psalms 88:14.

40. (Psalms 89:39) Thou hast broken the covenant of thy servant; thou hast profaned to the earth his crown. The first verb in Hebrew occurs only here and Lamentations 2:7. The usual explanation is conjectural, or founded on the ancient versions. A cognate verb in Arabic means to abhor, which would be appropriate in this place. The covenant of thy servant, i.e. thy covenant with thy servant. See above, on Psalms 89:28; Psalms 89:34. The pregnant construction, profaned to the ground, i.e. profaned by casting to the ground, occurs above, Psalms 74:7. The theocratical crown was a sacred or religious dignity, any contempt of which might therefore well be called a pro-fanation. Compare what is said of the priestly diadem. Exodus 28:36; Exodus 29:6.

41. (Psalms 89:40) Thou hast broken down all his walls; thou hast wide his defences a ruin. As the word translated walls is commonly used to denote the enclosures of vineyards, whether walls or hedges, this may be the figure here intended, which is then exchanged, in the last clause, for that of a walled town, with its defences or defensive works, its fortifications. See above, on Psalms 80:12. Some interpreters allege that the last word always has the sense of terror; but it may be doubted whether it ever has, whereas that of ruin often occurs, particularly in the Book of Proverbs.

42. (Psalms 89:41) All spoil him that pass by the way; he has become a contempt to his neighbours. With the first clause compare Psalms 80:12); with the last, Psalms 80:6. These resemblances prove nothing as to the relative antiquity of the two psalms, or the date of either. The figure is more fully carried out in Psalms 80, but this no more proves that to be the original than it proves it to be the copy. If any such conclusion were legitimate, it would. be easier to account for the amplification of the hint here thrown out by a later writer, than for the omission, in the case before us, of so many fine strokes in that admirable apologue. A contempt, an object of supercilious pity and disdainful wonder.

43. (Psalms 89:42) Thou hast lifted the right hand of his foes, hast caused to triumph all his enemies. As the hand, and especially the right hand, is the symbol of exerted strength, and a high hand that of triumphant superiority, especially in war, so to raise the right hand in the first clause of the verse before us, really means nothing more than the literal expression (caused to triumph) in the other. This seemed to be in direct contradiction to the promise in Psalms 89:22-23, as well as to the prayer in Psalms 25:2.

44. (Psalms 89:43) Also thou turnest the edge of his sword, and dost not allow him to stand in the battle. The particle (Jx) at the beginning indicates a climax. Not only was his enemy superior, but himself delinquent and disgraced. Edge, literally rock, of his sword. The idea suggested may be that of hardness, as a hard edge is essential to a serviceable weapon. See my note on Isaiah 27:1.

Some interpreters, however, think it best to adhere to the ordinary usage of rock in Hebrew as an emblem of strength, and to understand the whole phrase as meaning the strength of his sword, either in the strict sense or in that of strong sword, both of which are here appropriate. See above, on Psalms 89:26. The construction in the last clause is ambiguous, as the pronoun may refer to sword or rock, no less grammatically than to its possessor. The general sense remains the same, however, as in the similar case above, Psalms 89:29.

45. (Psalms 89:44) Thou hast made (him) to cease from his brightness, and his throne to the earth cast down. Brightness is in various languages a figure for distinction, eminence, celebrity, or glory. Compare with the last clause what is said of the crown in Psalms 89:39, and of the throne itself in Psalms 89:4.

46. (Psalms 89:45) Thou hast shortened the days of his youth; thou hast covered him with shame. Selah. His youth, his youthful energy and vigour. See Job 33:25. Thou hast made him an object of contempt by cutting short his vigorous career and rendering him prematurely old. This may be said of certain individual kings, as well as of the kingdom when approaching its catastrophe. Covered him with shame, literally covered shame upon him, i.e. heaped it on him so as to cover him.

47. (Psalms 89:46) How long, Jehovah, wilt thou hide thyself for ever? (How long) shall burn, like fire, thy wrath? On the doubtful construction of the first clause, and the meaning of the combination, how long for ever, see above, on Psalms 13:1; Psalms 79:5. How long, literally until what, i.e. until what point (how far), or until what time (how long)"?

48. (Psalms 89:47) Remember what duration I have; why (for) nought hast thou created all the sons of Man (or Adam)? The construction in the first clause is obscure and broken, as if it consisted of incoherent exclamations. O remember— I— what—duration. For the meaning of the last word, see above, on Psalms 17:14; Psalms 39:5, and with the whole clause compare Psalms 78:39; Psalms 119:84, Job 7:6; Job 14:1. The last clause is to be hypothetically understood. “Why hast thou made all men in vain, as must be the case if their short life is entirely filled with suffering?” Or, “why dost thou give colour and occasion to the charge of having made men to no purpose? Why, literally on what (account) or for what reason? The next word in Hebrew is a noun meaning vanity, nonentity, or nothing, here, and in Psalms 127:1-2, used adverbially in the sense of vainly, to no purpose, or for nought.

49. (Psalms 89:48) What man shall live and not see death (but) rescue his soul from the hand of Sheol? Selah. An indirect assertion of the melancholy fact that all must die, rendered still more pointed by the use of a word for man implying strength. See above, on Psalms 88:4. As if he had said, what man is so strong as to live for ever and escape the common destiny of mortals? This allusion cannot be preserved in any mere translation. Rescue, literally cause to escape. His soul, considered as his life or vital principle. Hand may be here, as often elsewhere, a figure for power; or it may have its proper sense and denote the hand of Sheol, the Grave, Mortality or Death, as an ideal person. The Selah has the same force as in Psalms 39:5; Psalms 39:11.

50. (Psalms 89:49) Where are thy former mercies, Lord, thou didst swear unto David in thy truth or (faithfulness). The first or former mercies of the Lord are those which he promised of old, especially to David, as expressly mentioned in the other clause. See above, on Psalms 89:3; Psalms 89:35). The inquiry where they are implies that they have vanished, or that the fulfilment has not become visible. The last clause may be closely united with the first by supplying a relative between them, as in the common version, which thou swearest unto David. A simpler and more emphatic syntax is to make it a distinct proposition: thou didst swear unto David, and thy oath cannot be broken.

See above, on Psalms 89:35. This last idea is involved in the concluding words, in thy veracity or faithfulness. What God, as a God of truth, has sworn, not only will but must be executed

51. (Psalms 89:50) Remember, Lord, the reproach of thy servants, my bearing in my bosom all the many nations. The form of address is the same as in Psalms 89:47. The reproach of thy servants, the contempt and disgrace to which they are subjected. Thy servants, of whom I am one. Or the sudden transition to the first person singular may shew that the petitioner, in this whole context, is not an individual believer, but the Church at large. In my bosom may denote good measure or abundance.

See above, on Psalms 79:12. Or bearing in my bosom may mean feeling in my heart, i.e. intensely, exquisitely, in which case nations must be put for the contempt of nations. More probable than either is the figure of gestation, according to which Zion, although now despised or hated by the nations, is one day to be their spiritual mother or their spiritual birth-place. See above, on Psalms 87:4; Psalms 87:6. The Hebrew adjective may mean either great or many; but the latter sense is more agreeable to usage and the collocation of the words in this case. The idiomatic phrase, all many nations, is equivalent to saying, all the nations who are many in number.

The word all might be used, however small the number of the nations. To express the whole idea, therefore, both words were required.

52. (Psalms 89:51) Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, Jehovah, wherewith they have reproached the footsteps of thine Anointed. The connection indicated by the relative at the beginning is by no means clear. The common version, above given, makes reproach in Psalms 89:50 the antecedent. Some interpreters connect the relative with the verb at the beginning of that verse, and give it the force of a conjunction, “remember that (or how) thine enemies have reproached.” Its proper meaning as a relative pronoun may be retained by referring it to different antecedents. “(I) whom thine enemies have reproached, (thine enemies) who have reproached the steps of thine Anointed.” This last expression seems to mean that they had tracked or followed him, wherever he went, with calumny and insult.

53. (Psalms 89:52) Blessed (be) Jehovah to eternity. Amen, and Amen. This is commonly regarded as no part of the psalm, but a doxology, marking the conclusion of the third book. See above, on Psalms 41:13; Psalms 72:18-20, and compare the Preface, p. 5.