BOOK OF PSALMS;Z
T'RANSLATED FROM1 THE IIEBREW;
WITH
NOTES,
EXPLANATORY AND CRITICAL.
VOL, il








THE
BOOK OF PSAL-MS;
TRANSLATED FROBI THE HEBREW.
NOTES,
EXPLANATORY AND) CRITICAL,
Bly SAMUEL HORSLEY, L L. D. F R.S. F. Ao S.
LATE LORD BISHOP OF ST. ASAPI-,
VOL. I.
LONDON:
SOLD BY F. C. & J. rIuVINGTONT, ST. PAUL S CHUiRCHYARDD
AND LONGMAN, HURST) REES, ORME, & BROWN, PATEINOSTER-LRO1y
1815.




C. Stewartt printero, Adinburghk




TO HIS GRACE
THE LORD ARCHBISHOP -OF
CANTERBURY.
MY LORD,
If of the various labours of
~my Father's pen, which, since his death I have carried
through the press, I have, as yet, placed none under
your Grace's immediate protection, it has been, because I wished to reservefor that honour these volumes,
conceiving them to be the most profound and the most
-important of all the learned works of their great Author.  If I am right in this opinion, and their execu.
tion be in any degree answerable to the dignity and
importance of their subject, the present may seem not
unworthry  f being brought bifore the Primate of the
Church of England; and may be received by your




DEDICATION-.
Grace as a small testimony of the feeling rwith which
I bear in mind the numerous acts of kindness you have
been pleased to confer upon me.
That your Grace may long be preserved to employ
ihe advantages of your high station and office to the
glory of God and the good of that Alpostolical branch
of Christ's Church, Iwhich his Providence hath placed
zunder your especial jurisdiction, is the sincere and
earnest prayer of
You R GRA4cEs
Mluch obliged and most devoted humble Servant,
tHENEAGE HORSLEEY.
Dundee, Ma/rch Ist 1815.




PREFACE.
THREE years having elapsed since the following
Translation was announced as in the preess, the
Editor feels himself called upon to account for the
extraordinary delay which has taken place in regard
to the publication. For the greater facility of core
recting the proof sheets, he was at the first desirous
of printing the work in the town where he resides;
but, after much time being wasted in fruitless endeavours to accomplish this object, he was compelled
to carry the manuscript to Edinburgh. On consulting with a respectable printer there, he found that,
the distance at which he resided from Edinburgh
being too great to admit of his seeing the proofs
more than once, it would be necessary to have an
assistant on the spot, whom the printer might cone
sult, if any difficulties occurred, and who might re.
vise the sheets as they were thrown off, after their
VOL. Ie,.




VI-                 PREFACEO
first correction. For this purpose, he applied to
Dr. Moodie, at that time Professor of Hebrew and
Oriental Languages in the University, who readily
undertook the office. The press was then set to:
Work,  But before the second sheet came from it,
Dr. Moodie was suddenly seized with illness, and
died. Some months elapsed before the vacant Pros
fessorship was filled up. But, upon the late learned
Dr. Murray's appointment, the Editor wrote to that
gentleman on the subject of the following work,
who. also consented, upon his taking up his residence in Edinburgh, to assist in the task of correction. But to the great loss of oriental literature,
Dr. Murray just lived to enter on the duties of his
office as Professor,. and no more,
Two years had now worn away without any progress having been made, when the Rev. D. Dickson,
one of the ministers of St. Cuthbert's, Edinburgh, and
an accomplished Hebrew scholar, offered his assistance, and, to save the time that would have been expended by transmitting the proofs to and from Dundee, kindly undertook the sole correction of them.,
Under his single revision, therefore, the two volumes
have been printed; and the Editor's gratitude is due
to Mr, Dickson, not only for the unremitting care




PREFACE.                 7vii
and attention with which he has executed his laborious office, but also for several useful hints suggested by him during their progress through the press,
and particularly for the proper indexes which have
been furnished by him, and render the work more
complete.
The causes of delay having been stated, the Editor begs leave to say, with respect to the Work itself,
that he does not conceive it to have been his Father-'s intention to furnish a translation to supersede
the use of the public one in the service of the Church.
Indeed, the reader will, in the following pages, find
several of the Psalms, on which the Bishop has written either critical or explanatory notes, (sometimes
both), but of which he has given no translation; in
which instances, it seems reasonable to conclude that
he approved of the one in use. The Work seems to
have been intended for the edification of the Christy
ian reader in his closet; the Translation being such,
as, with the Notes, may forin a perpetual comment
on the text.
The Psalms, being all poems, and the original
composition of them in the metrical form, the Bishop
hath adhered to the hemistichal division; and the
Translation, in most parts, is so close, as to exhibit




Viil               PREFAC]E
to the English reader the structure of the Origin al
The Translation is accompanied with Notes explant
atory and critical. The Explanatory Notes accomnt
pany the Text, being given at the bottom of the
page, and the reference to these is by the usual typographical marks. The Critical Notes are placed at
the end of the respective volumes, and the reference
to these is by the capitals of the Roman alphabet.
It is much to be lamented that the Author left bec
hind him no introductory chapter or prefatory essay
to the Translation, explanatory of his scheme of e-x
position, and furnishing a general commentary upon
the whole book. This deficiency, however, the Editor
thinks he can in part supply, by subjoining an ex.
tract fiom a sermon of the Bishop's, on the 1st verse
of the second Psalm, which appears to have been
first written and preached in the winter of 179S.
The chief purport of this discourse is to expound
the prophetical passages of the Psalm  from which
the text is taken, and to apply them to the transactions of the times. But it is opened with some
observations on the nature and design of the Book
of Psalms in general, and these observations, the
Editor thinks, will not be out of their place hereo
To the extract is added a classification of the Psalms,




PREFACE.                  ix
according to their subjects, and tile occasions on
which the Translator conceived themr to hlave been
sung or recited. This will be found strongly to illustrate the observations contained in the extract;
and both together may afford to the reader a pretty
accurate idea as to what must have been Bishop
HORSLEY'S particular view of the Book of Psalms,
and of the grounds on which he founded his application of so many of them to the Messiah, and the
state of the Church in the later ages.
--  Of all the books of the Old Testament, the' Book of Psalms is the most universally read, but,
I fear, as little as any understood. This cannot be
ascribed to any extraordinary obscurity of these
" Sacred Songs, for of all the prophetic parts of' the
Scriptures they are certainly the most perspicuous.
But it is owing partly, I fear, to some dullness of: the faculties of the natural man upon spiritual sub-'jects, and partly to the misapplied labours of modern expositors, who have employed much ingenuity and learning to find the immediate sub-'ject of every Psalm, either in the history of the
Jewish nation, or in the occurrences of the life of
Davidil




PAREACE,
6It is true, that many of the Psalms are comme.s
6 morative of the miraculous interpositions of God' in behalf of the chosen people; for, indeed, the
history of the Jews is a fundamental part of reveal6ed religion.  Many were probably composed upon' the occasion of remarkable passages in David's life,
6 his dangers, his afflictions, his deliverances.  But
6 of those which relate to the public history of the
natural Israel, there are few in which the fortunes' of the mystical Israel, the Christian Churebh, are' not adunlibrated; and of those which allude to the
- life of David, there are none in which the Son of
D avid is not the principal and immediate subject.
David's complaints against his enemies are Mes.
siah's complaints, first, of the unbelieving Jews,
then of the heathen persecutors, and the apos;ate
faction in later ages. David's afflictions are the' Messiah's sufferings. David's penitential supplications are the supplications of Messiah in agony,
under the burden of the imputed guLilt of man.
David's songs of triumph and thanksgiving are
M Messiah's songs of triumph and thanksgiving, for
"his victory over sin, and death, and hell. In a
word, there is not a page of this Book of Psalms
in which the pious reader will not find his Salvi1ouri




PREFACE.                      xi
if he reads with a view of finding him; and it was' but a just encomium of it that came from  fithe pen'of one of the early Fathers, that it is a complete'system  of divinity for the use and edification of' the common people of the Christian Church.  In'deriving this edification from it, which it is calcu-'lated to convey, they may receive much assistance
from a work, which the ignorance of modern re-' finement would take out of their hands.'  I speak' of the old singing Psalms, the metrical version of
Sternhold and Hopkins. This is not, what I believe
i it is now  generally supposed to be, nothing better
than an awkward versification of a former English
translation:  it was an original translation from the
H Hebrew  text, earlier, by many years, than the
prose translation in the Bible; and of all that are
in any degree paraphrastic, as all in verse in some
degree must be, it is the best and most exact we
have, to put into the hands of the common people.
* The Bishop's observations on the preference due to the version
of Sternhold and Hopkins, over the versions of a later date, may seem
to have little connection with the present work; but as they contain his opinion on an important point, the Editor deemed it adn
visable to insert them.




xgi                  PREFACEo
The authors of this version considered the verse
merely as a contrivance to assist the memory.
They were little studious of the harmony of their
numbers, or the elegance of their diction: But they
Cwere solicitous to give the full and precise sense of'the sacred text, according to the best of their'judgment;  and their judgment, with the excep-' tion of some few passages, was very good; and, at' the same time that they adhered scrupulously to
the letter, they contrived to express it in such
* terms as, like the original, might point clearly to
6the spiritual meaning.  It was a change much for
the worse, when the pedantry of pretenders to
i taste in literary composition thrust out this excellent translation from  many of our churches, to
m ake room for what still goes by the name of the' New Version, that of Tate and Brady, which, in' many places where the Old Version is just, accu-' rate, and dignified by its simplicity, is careless' and inadequate, and, in the poverty and littleness
of its style, contemptible, The innovation, when
it was first attempted, was opposed, though, in the' end, unsuccessfully, by the soundest divines, the
most accomplished scholars, and the men of the
truest taste, at that time, in the seat of authority'




PREFACE.o                Xii
in the Church of England. It will be an alteration' still more for the worse, if both these versions
6 should be made to give place to another of later
6date, departing still farther fiom the strict letter of' the text, and compensating its want of accuracy by
nothing better than the meretricious ornaments of
mnodern poetry.
These Psalms go, in general, under the name of
the Psalms of David. King David gave a regular
and noble form to the musical part of the Jewish
service. He was himself a great composer, bofh in'poetry and music, and a munificent Patron, no
doubt, of arts in which he himself so much delighted and excelled. The Psalms, however, appear to
be compositions of various authors, in various ages;'some much more antient than the times of Kinlg
6David, some of a much later age. Of many, David'himself was undoubtedly the Author; and that
those of his composition were prophetic, we have
David's own authority, which may be allowed to
overpower a host of modern expositors. For thus,
King David, at the close of his life, describes hinml
self and his sacred songs:-" David, the son of
6Jesse, said, and the man who was raised up on
"~ high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the




Mxi                 PREFAC.,
"sweet Psalmist of Israel, said, the Spirit of Jehovah
s66 pake by me, and his word was in my tongue."' It was the word, therefore, of Jehovah's Spirit' which was uttered by David's tongue. But it should
seem the Spirit of Jehovah would not be wanting' to enable a mere man to make complaint of his
own enemies, to describe his own szierings just as
he felt them, and his own escapes just as thety 1iapy'pened.  But the Spirit of Jehovah, described by
David's utterance what was known to that Spirit
only, and that Spirit only could describe. So that,
if David be allowed to have had any knowledge of
the true subject of his own compositions, it was
nothing in his own life, but something put into his' mind by the H-oly Spirit of God; and the misapplication of the Psalms to the literal David has
done more mischief than the misapplication of any
~ other parts of the Scriptures, among those who.
profbss the belief of the Christian religion.
The Psalms are all poems of the lyric kind; that
- is, adapted to music, but with great variety in the
style of composition.  Some are simply Odes. An
Ode is a dignified sort of song, narrative of the facts,
- either of public history or private life, in a highly
adorned and figured style. But the figure in thel




PREFACEs                  XV
Psalms is that which is peculiar to tile Hebrew
language, in which the figure gives its meaning with
as much perspicuity as the plainest speech.  Some'are of the sort called Elegiac, which are pathetic'compositions upon mournful subjects. Some are' Ethic, delivering grave maxims of' life, or the pre.' cepts of religion in solemn, but for the most part' simple, strains. Some are Enigmatic, delivering' the doctrines of religion in ZEnigmata, contrived to
strike the imagination forcibly, and yet easy to be
understood. In all these, the Author delivers the
whole matter in his own person.  But a very great,' I believe the far greater part are a sort of Dramatic
"' Ode, consisting of dialogues between persons susraining certain characters. In these Dialogue-psalms
the persons are frequently the Psalmist himself, or' the chorus of Priests and Levites, or the leader of
the Levitical band, opening the ode with a proem
4 declarative of the sulbject, and very often closing'the whole with a solemn admonition drawn from' what the other persons say. The other persons are
Jehovah, sometimes as one, sometimes as another
6 of the three Persons; Christ in his incarnate state,
sometimes before, sometimes after, his resurrection;
" the human soul of Christ as distinguished from the




XVI                 PrREFACE.
divine essence.. Christ, in his incarnate state, is
personated sometimes as a Priest, sometimnes as a
King, sometimes as a Conqueror; -and in' those
Psalms,, in which he is introduced as a Conqueror,
athe resemblance is very remarkable between this
Conqueeror in the book of Psalms and the Warrior
on the white horse in the book of Rlevelations,
6who goes forth with a crown on his head, and a
bo w in his hand, conquering and to conquer. And
the conquest in the Psalrs is followed, like the
conquest in the Revelations,. by the marriage of
6 the Conqueror. These are circumnstances of simili* tude which, to any one versed in the prophetic
6 style, prove beyond a doubt that the Mystical Conqueror is the sanme personage in both. It is no' objection to this notion of Psalms in dialogue, that' none of them are distinguished into the parts of. the different speakers.  In the works of any profane vriter, the parts that belong to different persons in a scene are usually distinguished by prefixing, to the beginning of each speech, the initials
of the name of the person to which the speech be-' longs; but this is a modern practice.  In the
oldest MSS. of' the ancient Greek plays, the persons of the drama are not so distinguished any




PREVACE.                XVII'
" more than the persons in the Psalms; but these'distinctions have been supplied by Editors. But
in publishing the sacred text it was justly thoughts' that it would be too great a liberty if the Editor' were to insert marks of his own, which the Holy
6 Penmen had not thought necessary. It would be'useful, however, if a paraphrase were given with
these distinctions in the proper places, and yet the
want of them is not very great; for' I will venture
" to say that a reader of ordinary penetration, who' has once had the hint that he is reading a dialogue,
will easily perceive to what speakers the different
parts of' the dialogue belong. The part of Jeho-'vah is sometimes indeed supplied (but this will
never make difficulties) by an Oracular Voice, sud.
" denly breaking out from the Sanctuary.' It is not a bad general notion of the book of
Psalms, which is given by a considerable though' neglected critic; it is a notion which, if kept in
view, would conduce much to the right understand.' ing of theim, that the whole collection forms a sort' of Heroic Tragedy. The redemption of man, and' the destruction of Satan is the plot. The persons' of the drama are the Persons of the Godhead, —
i Christ united to one of them,-Satan, Judas, the




X VIII               PREFACE,' apostate Jews, the heathen persecutors, the apostates of latter times;-the attendants, believers,
unbelievers, angels;-the scenes, heaven, earth' hell;-the time of the action, from  the fall to the
final overthrow of the apostate faction, and the general judgment.'
H~. HORSLEYF
Duntdee, Feb. 1 3t/1 1 81,5,,




PSALMS
CLASSED ACCORDING TO TIlE SUBJECTSSERnVICES of the Festivals of the Jewish Church.
Ps. xix, civ, cxlviii, Sabbath.
txxviii, cv, cxiv, Passover.
cxi, cxxxv, cxxxvi, Pentecosto
lxxxi5 Feast of Trumpets.
]xv, lxviij -Feast of Tabernacles,
A War Song, cxlix.
Thanksgiving for National Deliverance, or successful War,
xlviii, lxvi, lxxvi, cxv, cxxiv, cxxv, cxlivw
Thanksgiving after a Storm, Hurricane, or Earthquake
xxix, xlvi.
Upon placing the Ark in Solomon's Temple, cxxxii.
Prayers in seasons of National Calamity, ]xxxix.
_ —---- for help in War, xliv, lx, lxi.
Thanksgivings for Hezekiah's Recovery, xxx, cxvi.
Prayers in the time of Manassah's Captivity, lxxix, lxxy.
Thanksgiving for Manassah's Return, lxxxv.




CLASSIFICATION OF THE PSALMS.
Prayers, Lamentations, and Confessions, of the Captives,
lxxiv, lxxvii, cii, cvi, cxxxvii.
Songs of Triumph and Thanksgivings of the returned Captives, cvii, cxxvi, cxlvi, cxlvii.
A King of Judah's Inauguration Vow, ci.
Grand Chorus, for all the Voices, and all the Instruments, cl.
The Blessedness of the Righteous, and final Perdition of the
opposite Faction, i, xxxvi, xxxvii, cxii.
The Extermination of the Irreligious Faction, xiv, liii.
True Godliness described as distinct fiom the Ritual, xv, 1.
The Believer's Scruples, arising from  the Prosperity of the
Wicked, removed by Revealed Religion and the Consideration of their latter end, lxxiii.
The Pleasures of Devotion, lxxxiv.
Divine 2Enigmatao  The subject, The Redeemer's Divinity,
the Immortality of the Soul, a future Retribution, xlix.
Ai Iystical Prayer of David, in the character of the Higlh
Priest, xvi.
Prayers of Believers for Protection against the Atheistical
Conspiracy, iii, iv, x, xii,  iii, xvii, xii, xliii, liv, cxx,
cxxiii, cxl.
The Believer's Penitential Confessions and Deprecations,
vi, xxxii, Xxxviii, xxxix, li.
Believer's Prayer for the promised Redemption, cxxx, cxliiiL.Believers lament their afflicted State in this short and evil
Life, and pray for the Resurrection, Xc.
PrayersVs for Grace and Mercy, v, xxv, xxvis, cxxi,




CLASSIFICATION OF THE PSALMS,              XIX
Songs of Triumph in prospect of the establishment of God's
universal Kingdom, xlvii, lxvii, xciii.
A  Believer's general Praises and Thanksgivings viii, xix,
xxiii, ciii, cxix.
A Believer's Thanksgiving for the final extirpation of Iniquity and the idolatrous religions, and persecuting power,
ix, xi, lii, lxvi.
The Church prays for preservation from Corruptions, Xxviii9
cxli........-9        ib —for Deliverance firom the Persecutiorn o[
her Enemies, vii; latter paxt of xxvii from 7th verse to
the end, xxxi, lix.
-   for Messiah's Deliverance and Success,
XXo
The Church gives thanks for Messiah's Victory, xxi...... ~  ~ —  -- ----- for her own final Deliverance, xviii...... _I~ —BP~Usl —~ ss~  for the final extirpation of Iniquity
and Idolatry, xcii.
Messiah's Prayers,'xii, xxxv, xli, lvi, lvii, lxi, lxii, lXii,
lxxxvi, lxxxviii, in Agony; cxlii, Taken and Deserted.. —.    Thanksgivings, xl; cxvii, and cxviii, one Psalm;
-~ —---— ~Accusation of the impenitent Jews, his Enlemies,
Iv, lxiv, lxix.
prophetic Malediction of the Jewish Nation, cix.
Exaltation, ii,.xxiv,  xv, xcv, xcvi, xcvii, xcviii,:xcix, c,.ex,
gOrrss   s                      FfZ




XXii       CLASSIFICATION OF THE PSALMSe
Messiah comforts the afflicted Israelites with the promise of
the final excision of the Idolatrous Faction, xciv.
-- exhorts to holiness and trust in God by the example
of his own Deliverance, xxxiv.
predicts the final Judgment, lxxv.
God promises the Messiah Protection, and Glory, xci.
God's just Judgment foretold upon the unjust Judges of our
Lord, lviii, lxxxii.
The Reign of the King's Son, lxxii.
Salvation is of the Jews, lxxxviii
Of these Psalms six are Alphabetical, xxv, xxxiv, xxxvii,
cxi, cxii, cxlv.
Forty-five of the Psalms are called by the Masoreths, Mismor, iii, iv, v, vi, viii, ix, xii, xiii, xv, xix, xx, xxi, xxii,
xxiii, xxiv, xxix, xxxi, xxxviii, xxxix, xl, xli, xlvii, xlix, 1,
Ii, lxii, lxiii, lxiv, lxxiii, lxxv, lxxvii, lxxix, lxxx, lxxxii,
lxxxiv, lxxxv, xcviii, c, ci, cix, CX, CXXxix, cxl, cxli, cxliii.
Six are called Michtam, xvi, lvi,: lvii, lviii, lix, lx.
Thirteen are called Maschil, xxxii, xlii, xliv, xlv, lii, liii, liv,
lv, lxxiv, lxxviii, lxxxviii, Ixxxix, cxlii.
Seven are called Mismor Shir, xxxi, lxv, lxvii, lxviii, lxxv,
lxxvii, xcii.
Five are called Shir Mismor, xlviii, lxvi, lxxxiii, lxxxviii,
evin.11




CLASSIFICATION OF THE PSALMS.          xxiii
One is called Shir, xlvi.
Four are called Thephilah, xvii, lxxxvi, xc, cii.
One is called Tehillah, cxlv.
One, Shiggaion, vii. One, Lehazchir, lxx. And Fifteen are
called Shir Hammachaloth or Songs of the Steps, cxx,
cxxi, cxxii, cxxiii, cxxiv, cxxv, cxxvi, cxxvii, cxxviii, CxxixN
cxxx, cxxxi, cxxxii, cxxxiii, cxxxiv.








PSALM I.
[See Notes.]
PSALM  I.
PROPHETIC OF MESSIAH'S EXALTATION.
THE mention of Sion, as God's HIoly Hill, in thle
6th verse of this psalm, proves that Sion had that
name before the Temple was built upon it. For this
psalm is so expressly ascribed to David in the thanksgiving of the Christian congregation, Acts IV, 25.
that I think no doubt can be entertained that he was
the author of it.  Sion therefore had, in David's
time, the name of God's Holy Hill, either by designation, as the intended seat of the Temple, or as
the place of the temporary tent in which the Ark
was deposited by David.




~~2             PSALMS.                     ~t.
The Song consists of three parts - the first spoken
in the person of the psalmist, the second of Messiah,
and the third again by the psalmist.  But the division will be different according to the reading that
may be adopted of the 6th verse.  As that verse
stands in the Masoretic text, it contains the word
which God, according to the 5th verse, " spake in
in his wrath," and is therefore a part of the psalmist's narration. The first part, therefore, spoken by
the psalmist, consists of the first six verses. The
7th,  8tL and 9th, are spoken by the Messiah, and
make the second part.  But if we adopt that read.
ing of the 6th verse, which is expressed in the version of the LXX, then the 6th verse is spoken by
the Messiah of himself.  And? in this case, the first
part spoken by the psalmist ends with the sd verse;
Messiah speaks the 4th, 5th, 6th,  7th, 8th and 9th
verses; and the psalmist, again, the three following.
PART I. —PSALM3IST.
I To what purpose do the heathen confederate,
And the nations meditate * a vain thing?
g Or threaten. Or if'p' may be taken adverbially, "C And the
nations mutter angrily in vain."




U1s,     ~       S ePSALMS. 
2 The Kings of the earth set themselves in array,
And the Statesmen sit in council together,
Against Jehovah, and against his Anointed One.
3   Let us break off their fetters,
"And cast away from us their-twisted-cords."
4 He that sitteth in heaven shall laugh, [A]
The Lord shall make scorn at them.
5 Then shall he speak against them in his wrath, [B]
And in-his-burning-anger he shall strikel-themwith-dismay;
6 [C] Yet will I anoint my King'
Upon my holy hill of Sion.
PART II.-MESSIAH.
7 ED] I will publish the decree of God: Jehovah
saith unto me,
My Son art Thou; I, this day, have begotten
thee.
A2




P S      A L M SO.            In.
8  Demand of me; for I appoint the Heathen
thine inheritance,
And thlie extremities of the Earth tby-fast-possession.
9  Thou shalt rule them with a sceptre of iron,
Thou shalt break [1E] them to pieces like a pot.
ter's vessel.
PART III.-PSALMIST.
10  Now therefore, O ye kings, grow wise,
Be taught, 0 ye judges of the earth.
II'Serve the Jehovah
With fear, and rejoice with diffidence.~
12  Kiss the Son
Lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way; [F]
For, within a little, shall his wrath blaze forth —Blessed is every one who taketh shelter under
him.' Literally "' with trembling';" but the thing meant is that sort
of fear which arises from a man's diffidence of his own strength and




Ill. Iv. VP             S A L ISe A.
PSALM IlL
[See Notes.]
PSALM IV.
[See Notes.'
PSALM V.
-[TITLE-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY.  UPON THE FLUTES,
A PSALM OF DAvID.]
THE general subject of this psalm  is the same as of
the two preceding. It is a prayer for grace and
power: —a notion which the word " trembling" not at all conveys
in our language.  Serve the Lord, says the Psalmist, with fear,
and rejoice; take satisfaction, joy and glory to yourselves in becoming his servants.  But let it be a holy temperate joy, fearful of
offence, not heedless and presumptuols, verging on the licentious
kind,




C                  PSALMS.                        v.
mercy, and for God's protection against the atheistical faction. But it is distinguished from many of
the like general argument, that it is a prayer offered
in a particular place, at a particular time, in a particular character. The place, the inner-court of the
temple [see verse 4. & 7.]-the time, the hour of
morning-sacrifice, [verse 3.]-the character, that of
a Priest or Levite, as may be inferred from the sacritical terms 1V9N  and,2sN in the od verse.
This psalm, therefore, is the private prayer of a
Priest or Levite, at the foot of the altar of burntoffering, when he comes to set things in order for
the morning-sacrifice.  But in the character of this
priest is typified, that of a true member of the Christian church, one taught in the mysteries of the gospel, and admitted to the privileges of the faithful, in
opposition to idolaters and infidels.
A PRAYER OF T.HE MESSIAH, IN THM-CHARACTER OF A PRIEST%
COMING AT AN EARLY HOUR TO PREPARE THE ALTAR OF
BURNT-OFFERING FOR THE MORNING SACRIFICE.
i GIVE ear, 0 Jehovah, to my words,
Consider my sighing. [A]




,.                  PSALMS.                          7
2 Hearken to the sound of my cry, my King,
And my God, for unto thee I pray.
3  0 Jehovah, in the morning thou shalt hear my
voice,,
In the morning I set every-thing-in-order before
thee, and watch for thee. [B]
4  Truly not a God that delighteth in a-wickedperson art Thou,
An-evil-person shall not be-thy-guest. [C]
5  The foolish shall not present themselves in thy
sight;
Thou hatest all workers of vanity: 
6  Thou wilt destroy all speakers of untruth  t
The man of' blood and guile T Jehovah holds-inabomination.
* Vanity, i. e. the rites of the idolatrous religion.
t Propagators of the idolatrous religion, and opposers of the
true..
" 6 The man of blood and guile,"-the persecutor of the truth,
A. 4




PSALMS.                          v.
7  But I, in the abundance of thy mercy, come in.
to thy house;
In fear of thee, I worship [D] at thy holy temple.
8  0 Jehovah, lead me in thy righteousness
Because of them-that-watch-me, make thy way
straight before my face. ~
9  For no constancy [E] is in their mouth;
Within them is extreme-depravity:
Their throat is an open sepulchre,
They set-a-polish with their tongue. [F]
I10  Convict t them, 0 God;
Let them fall by their own counsels.
Cast them  down in the abundance of their trans.
gressions, 
For they-are-rebels-against thee.
4 Or, according to the LXX,-my way-before thy face.
f- The word may signify either to convict, or to condemn. I
prefer the former sense, "make their guilt evident."
4 "Transgressions" is a weak word to express the original, which
signifies overt-acts of positive wilful disloyalty to the rightful sove.
reign.




v.VI.                 PSALMS. -
11. But let every one rejoice that seeketh-shelter
under thee;
Let them be joyful evermore, and cover thou
them over;X
Let them  triumph in thee who love thy name.
12. Yes; Thou wilt bless the Just One, — 0 Jehovah,
As a Shield of Good-will thou wilt guard around
him. [G]
PSALM VI.
[See Notes.]
# Or, "be thou a covering over them."
t The psalmist, speaking with the highest assurance of the final
deliverance and happy condition of the good, is driven, as it were,
by the Spirit that insp;- Ad him, to a choice of words, fixing the
Blessing to a single person; to him who is Blessed above all, and!he cause of Blessing.




0o                P s A   L PSALMp.
PSALM VILe
[TrrLE-SHIGGAION OF DAVID, (OR THE BELOVED,) Wi-tICIHE SANG UNTO JEHOVAH CONCERNING THE WORDS, (OR
THE BUSINESS,) OF CUSH THE BENJAMINITE.]
SHIGGAION, is a wanderinog Ode, in different parts
taking up different subjects, in different stiles of'
composition.  The first part of this Ode is Comrn
plaint;-the 2d, Supplication and Prediction mixed;-the 3d, Commination;-the 4th, Crimination,
Comminiation, and Thanksgiving mixed.  I have
sometimes thought Shiggaion might be an unpreme.
ditated Song, an Improvisoe
AN INNOCENT PERSON (PROBABLY 1NO OTHER TH-NXV CHRIST
HIMSELF,) UNDER INJURIOUS REPORTS, APPEA LS TO THnE
TRIBUNAL OF GOD.
IT is difficult, if not impossible, to ascertain any par.
ticular occasion of this psalm, in the life of' David,
or of any other character in the Jewish history. It
should seem, indeed, from what David says to Saul,




wVI'               P S A L M S.                 1 
after sparing his life in the cave at En-gedi, that
Saul's courtiers hlad filled him with suspicions of Da.
vid, as forming designs against his life, (1 Sam.
XXIV, 9.)  But this psalm seems to refer to something more precise, and more injurious to a character, than the vague reports raised by a party against
the leader of the opposite interest.  As for Cush,
the Benjaminite, mentioned in the title of the psalm,
he is a personage unknown to the Jewish history.
But whatever might be the occasion of the psalm,
the real subject seems to be, the Messiah's appeal to
God against the false accusations of his enemies; and
the predictions which it contains, of the final conversion of the whole world, and of the future judgement, are clear and explicit.
PARlT I
i Jehovah, my God, with thee have-1-taken-shel.
ter,
Save me from all them that persecute me, and
deliver meo
2 Lest he tear my soul like a lion;
Rescue; for there is no deliverer. rFA




1Z2                 P SA LMS,.    w.
3 Jehovah, my God, if I have done, this,
If there be wrong-dealing in my hand;
4  If I have made an ill return to him that was at
peace with me;
Or, without provocation, have plunder'd [B]
my-greatest-enemy- 
5 Let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
Let him trample my life upon the earth, and lay
mine honour [C] in the dust.
PART TI.
i Arise, 0 Jehovah, in thy wrath;
Lift up thyself against the fury of my bitterenemy,
And raise up for me the judgement, which thou
hast * appointed.
* That just judgement, in which the innocent shall be absolved
of all injurious imputation, and vice stript of all its disguises,




Wvx'                   P S A L  M &A.
7  Let the congregation of the nations surround
thee,
And over it return thou to supremacy.*T
8  Jehovah will judge the peoples:
Give-serntence-concerning-me, O Jehovah, according to my righteousness, t
- The psalmist continues his prayer. The prayer in this verse
is, that God would bring on the last age; that he would bring the
Gentiles to the knowledge of himself, and re-assume the immediate
anrd declared governmuelt of all nations, which he had so visibly
exercised in the first ages, before the Heathen were cast off for
their idolatry..-.. over it return thou to supremacy."  Literally, "' return
thou to exaltation."  Be again the acknowledged Lord and God of
all mankind, as thou wast in ancient times, before the general defec.
tion to idolatry, and the selection of the Jewish people.
It is not of the genius of prophecy to distinguish times. Our
Lord's first and second advent are often mentioned together in the
prophets, without any distinction as events separate in time. The
prophetic stile may, consistently with itself, date the commencement of the day of judgement from the conversion of the Gentiles;
and consistently, indeed, with the truth of things; since the conversion of the Gentiles, by the arrangements of Providence, must
terminate in the final judgement. In this and the preceding verse
taken together, these two events are alluded to as one; because
they are, indeed, indissolubly connected.
i This confident assertion of his own righteousness and integri.




14                    P S ALMS.                        VIT.
And according to my integrity [D] render unto
me.
9 Surely, the wickedness of the impious shall be
brought to mind,
And the righteousness of the Just One shall be
established,
And God shall explore the hearts and reins. [E]
PART III.
10  The defence of me is upon God,y  who saveth
the upright in heart;
i1  God is a righteous Judge, although he is not
angry every day. [F]
12  If the man will not turn, [GI he will whet his
sword,
ty, can belong to no character but Jesus Christ hirrself.-David
had no such innocence to boast; he was, like other men, a pardoned sinner; polluted with adultery, and stained with murder.
X It is a business that rests upon God, and is to be left to him.
lie only, as the searcher of the thoughts of men, is competent to
be my judge.




Avir.             PSALMS.                     15
He hath levelled [H] his bow, and made it ready.
13 He hath prepared for himself the weapons of
death;
He putteth his arrows in action, against those
who are ready for burning. [I]
14 Behold he is pregnant with vanity; [K-]
And he hath conceived mischief, and brought
forth delusion.
15 H-e is digging a pit and making-(it)-deep,
But he shall fall into the ditch upon which he-is.
at-work.
16 His mischief shall return upon his own head,
And his violence shall come down upon his own
pate.)
17 I will praise Jehovah for his righteousness,
And sing the name of Jehovah most High.
* The crown of the head.




16                P P SALMS.            Vill. Ix
PSALM VIII.
[See Notes.]
PSALM IX.
TrHANKSCGIVINOG ro THE EXTIRPATION OF THE ATHEISTICAL
FACTION, PROMISED IN PSALM X. [A]
SOME expressions in this ninth psalm may be thought
to indicate that it was composed during the captivity, upon some great blow sustained by the enemies
of the Jews, from which the captives conceived
sanguine hopes of a speedy restoration. What the
particular occasion of the composition might be, in
this view of its subject, it will not be found easy to
determine. I have myself sometimes thought of the
overthrow of the Babylonian empire by Cyrus;
sometimes of the defeat of Haman's plot. But upon
comparing this psalm with the 1 oth, so great a similitude appears between the two, both in the sentiments and the expressions, that it seems reasonable




xx.'PS A LM'S.                 17
to conclude that the subject of this, as well as of the
loth is general: and that this is indeed an appendage
of the loth, and is preposterously placed before it;
being the believer's thanksgiving for that excision of
iniquity, which is promised to him in the loth.
The argument of this psalm is thus stated in the
Syriac: -
"' Of Christ assuming his throne and kingdom, and
vanquishing his enemy."
I I will praise [thee] 0 Jehovah with my whole
heart,
I will recount all. thy marvellous works.
2   will rejoice, and exult in thee,
I will chaunt thy name, O Most High.
Because mine enemies are turned back; 
They fall; they perish from thy presence.
4 Thou hast past sentencee for me and done ime
right, [B]
IThou hast-taken-thy seat upon the throne of
righteous judgement.




18                   PSALMS.e                       Ix
5  Thou hast rebuked the heathen, thou hast de,
stroyed the impious one;
Their name thou hast blotted out for ever and
ever.
6  Desolations a have  consumed  the enemy for
ever; [C]
The cities which thou hast demolished, t their
very-memory is perished with them.
7  But Jehovah shall keep his seat for ever 
He hath established his throne upon judgement,,
$ And he will sentence the world with justice;
He will try the nations with perfect-equity.
9 And Jehovah will be a high-fortress for the a~f
flicted one,
A high-fortress in critical'times, in [the season
of] distress. t
Or, as the word might I think be rendered, the Instruments of
Destruction.
" Demolished."' The Hebrew verb expresses the tearing uan
of the foundations of the buildings.
$ See Psalm X.




Ix.                  PSALMS.                         19
10 And they that know thy name shall trust in thee;
For never hast thou forsaken them that seek after
thee, O Jehovah.
I1  Sing unto Jehovah who dwelleth in Zion,
Declare his doings among the peoples.
12  When he maketh inquisition for blood, [DJ he re.
membereth them,
lIe forgetteth not the cry of the helpless. *
13  Take pity-upon-me, [E] O Jehovah,
See the oppression of me by-him-that-hateth-me;O thou that raisest-mine-up from the gates of
death;
14  That I may recount all thy praise
In the gates of the daughter of Zion. eF]
X "The cry of the helpless" is the earnest incessant prayer of
believers for the accomplishment of the Universal Redemption.
this cry shall not be disregardedlthe universal redemption lshall
be accomplished.
2




20               P S                        X. L  S eX,
15 I will exult in thy salvation;
The heathen are sunk in the pitwhich they made;
In the net which they hid, their own foot is taken.
16 Jehovah is manifested! lIe is executing judgement!
In the work of his own hands the impious one is
ensnar'd,
III.-EPODE 
17 The Impious shall be turned into Hell 
All the heathen forgetful of God.
18 Truly'not for ever shall the poor man be forgotten,
The expectation of the helpless [not] for ever
perish. EG]
19 Arise, O Jehovah, let not man prevail,
Let the heathen be sentenced in thy presence,
20 O Jehovah appoint-thou a teacher for them; 
Let the heathen know, that themselves are men0




x.9                PSALMS,                       21
PSALM X.
COMPLAINT TO GOD AGAINST THE ATHEISTICAL FACTION9
WITH PRAYER FOR DELIVERANCE.
THIS tenth psalm is a supplication in behalf of cerS
tain helpless people cruelly persecuted by a powerful enemy; who, renouncing all fear of God and regard of men, uses both force and deceit as means of
oppression.  The supplication, mixed with complaint, is continued from the beginning of the psalm
to the middle of the 15th verse; where a sudden
voice from heaven, or firorn the sanctuary, in one
awful line, promises the utter extirpation of the
wicked oppressor. The Psalmist, receiving this promise with an entire faith in its completion, changes
his melancholy strain to notes of the highest exultation, celebrating Jehovah's sovereignty, describing
him as executing juldgement, and putting an entire
end to all usurped dominion.
Expositors have, to little purpose, racked their invention to discover some particular occasion, and
literal sense, of this admirable hymn.  I am per.
suaded that its sole subject is the general oppression
w33




29                PSALMS              x.
of the righteous by the wicked faction, that is, by
the conspiracy of apostate spirits, atheists, and idolaters, rather than any particular calamity of the
Jewish nation, or of any individual.
The argument in the Syriac is this: —" Of the
enemy's attack upon Adam and his race, and how
Christ will quell his arrogance."
I Wherefore, O Jehovah, standest thou afar off,
[Wherefore] hidest-thou-thyself in critical times
[A] in Ethe season of] distress?
2 In the exaltation of the impious one the helpless
is consumed;
Let them be caught in the subtleties EB] which
they have invented.
s Truly the impious is mad upon his own heart's
desire;
He blesseth gain, despising Jehovahl. C].
4 The impious, in the swelling of his wrath, will
not enquire;
No God, is the whole of his philosophy. 
~ Mudge renders it, " all his wicked politics.'"




.o                       PSALMS.                           2e
5  His ways [D] are at all seasons confident;
The height of thy judgements isbeyond his sight.
For all his greatest-enemies he puffeth at them.*
6  He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved
From generation to generation; inasmuch as I
am  not appointed for calamity. t
7  His' mouth  is full of cursing, and deceit, and
fraud;
Under his tongue is mischiefand vanity.T
8  He sitteth in ambush ~ in the villages [E] in sex
cret places; 1
lIe murdereth  the innocent; his eyes are-everwatching for the helpless.
~ The Psalmist describes the atheistical character as equally
void of religion and discretion.  He goes confidently on towards
his own ends, rega rdless of God's judgements, and making light of
all human opposition.
t Literally, c "I am not for evil."  He maketh himself sure of
the permanent prosperity of his family.
$ "Mischief and vanity."-For the specific sense of these two
words, especially the last, see Ps. VII. 14. Note. [K]
~ Or, "6 he sitteth prowling about the farn-yard."'-See Note [E]
11 He has his emissaries of delusion among the simplest of the
people,




24~               PPSALMS.                      X.
9 He lieth in wait in a secret place, like a lion in
his lair,
He lieth in wait to seize the helpless;
He seizeth the helpless when he hath drawn  him
into his net.
10 And the over-powered-man submits, t
And by his strength the bulwark of the oppress.
ed falleth. [F]
1 1 He hath said in his. heart, God is fbrgetful;
He hideth his'ace, he will never see it.
12 Arise, 0 Jehovah; 0 God, lift up thy hand,
Be not forgetful of the helpless.
3  Wherefore shall the impious one despise God?
ile hath said in his heart, thou wilt not make enC
quiry.
14 Thou hast seen —fbr thou beholdest
Mischief and spite, to take [the matter] into thine
own hand., Or  by drawing him."
t Literally 4' boweth down."




xo                PSALMS.                    25
Unto thee the helpless resigneth himself,
Of the orphan thou art the Helper.
15 Break thou the arm of the impious and the evil.
ORACULAIR VOICE.
Thou shalt seek the impious and find him not. [GJ
THANKSGIVINGo
16 Jehov-ah is King for ever and ever,
The heathen are perished out of his land. [H]
17 The desire of the helpless thou hast heard, O
Jehovah,
Thou will establishl their lheart, and make thine
ear hearken 
18 To judge the orphan and the oppressed,
That the man of' the earth never more play the
tyrant.




26                     PSALMS.                           XI.
PSALM XI.
TITLE-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. A BELIEVER UNDER
PERSECUTION PROFESSES HIS TRUST IN GOD.
l  WITH Jehovah I have taken shelter; how say ye
to my soul, —
"Flee, sparrows, to your hill?" * [A]
2  Behold indeed the impious level t the bow,
They have fixt their arrow upon the string,
To shoot privily at the upright in heart.
3  Truly the foundations they are demolishing, $
What doeth the Just One? ~, " Your hill," that hill from which you say your help cometh:
A sneer. Repair to that'boasted hill, which may indeed give you
the help which it gives the sparrow-a shelter against the incle.
mnencies of a stormy sky, no defence against our power.'- See VII, 2. The Psalmist describes his danger. Thus the
wicked taunt me; for indeed their bow is bent, and I seem the devoted helpless victim.
$ Another proverbial expression, denoting danger of utter ruin,
See Note [A]
~ In this question, the Psalmist means to express either the doubt




PSALMS.                          ~7
4  Jehovahl   * in the temple is his sanctuary!
Jehovah! in Heaven is his throne! 
His eyes behold [the afflicted one], t
His eyelids try the children of men.
5  Jehovah trieth the Just One,
But the impious one, and him that loveth violence,
his soul abhorreth.
6  Upon the impious lie shall rain glowing embers,
Fire and brimstone, and a tempestuous blast, is
the portion of tlheir cup.
7  Truly a Just One is Jehovah: he loveth righteous
deeds,
His countenance beholds the upright-man.
of a weak unripened faith, or the taunt of an adversary, occasioned
by the apparent superiority, at particular times, of the irreligious
faction. 6" Truly they are demolishing the f'oundations." Appearances, it must be confessed, threaten the extirpation of religion and
its professors. You will say then, what is He about on whose pro.
tection we rely?
* "Jehovah, &c."  The Psalmist's answero
- LXX and Bp. Lowth.




28                    P S A  PALMS.xI
PSALM XII.
TITLE.-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY, UPON THE SUJPERABUNDANCES; AN ODE OF (OR FOR) DAVID.
OF FREETHINKERS; THEIR CUNNING, AUDACITY, AND
FINAL EXCISION.
PART I.-COMPLAINT.
i  SAVE, O Jehovah, for the godly-sort [A] is-cometo-an end,
The race-of-the-faithful is extinct among the sons
of men.
2  They talk vanity,* each one with his neighbour;
Smoooth liips! t  They talk with double heart.
i.. Impious discourse.
t Not smooth wth flattery, but with " glosing lies," with in.
snaring eloquence and specious argument, in support of the wretched cause which they espouse, See V, 9. and XXXVI, 1. —" They
talk with double heart;" themselves secretly mistrusting their own
principles, at least not completely satisfied, whatever security and
confidence they may affect.
5




:XI,                   PSALMS.                            2
PART II.-PROMISE.
s Jehovah shall cut off all smooth lips,
[Every] [B] tongue speaking proud-things.
4  [Those] t who say, with our tongue will-we-be.
valiant,
Our lips are our ownu; who is Lord over us?
5  Because of the cruel-treatment of the helpless,
because of the out-cry of the poor,
I will now arise, saith Jehovah,
I will put [every one] in safety [from] him-thatpuffeth-at him. [C]
* "Those who say," i. e. Jehovah will cut off those who say, i. e.
those who set a resolution to talk without restraint, upon the most
abstruse subjects, and openly profess to do so. "4 With our tongue
will we prevail," rather-with our tongue will we be'" valiant." In~
fidels profess to set all authority of public opinion and antient tra.
dition at defiance, as the prejudice of education. They follow no




P'S A L      M  S.                  Ie
PART III.. —-TRUST.
6  The words of' Jehovah are pure * words,
Silver assayed in a crucible of earth,
Gold purified seven times.
7  Thou wilt keep them, t 0  Jehovah;
Thou shalt preserve us for ever from  this generation.
8  The impious shall be getting themn t M[D] out-of.
the-way,
When the scorn of the sons of men is exalted. ~ fE]
teacher human or divine.  They form their own opinions from their
own reflections, and they claim a right to speak as freely as they
think- to propagate and maintain their own notions, however opt
posite to the general belief, and even to revile the established re. -
ligion.
cs' Pu ure words," free of all untruth, deceit or insincerity.
t " Keep th/.m," that is keep thy words, thy promises.. — " —   Slhall-be-getting-them out of the way."  They will en.
deavour to escape and secrete themselves, but will not be able to
effect it.
~ "When the scorn of the sons of men is exalted." —" The scorn
of the sons of men," that is he whom the sons of men despised,
Compare Symnachu~.




xII. xiv.         P SA L M S4                  SL
PSALM  XIII,
[See Notes.]
PSALM XIV.
PROPHETIC OF THE EXTIRPATION OF THE IRRELIGIOUS
FACTION.
PSALMIST.
I The fool hath said in his heart, " there is no
God,"
They are corrupted, they are abominable in their
frolics, * [A]
No one doeth good.
2 Jehovah t looked down from Heaven upon the
sons of men
To see if any one were growing-wise, seeking the
Elohim.
In their profligacyo'     1 God.




,~               P ~ ~S A L M So             xiv
3 They are all [B] gone astray together; they are
rotten;
NTo one doeth good; no not one.
[C] [An open sepulchre is their throat,
They set-a-polish * with their tongues,
The poison of asps is under their lips.
Their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness,
Their feet are swift to shed blood.
Destruction and misery is in their ways,
And the way of peace they have not known,
The fear of God is not before their eyes.]
(GOD SPEAKS.)
H Have they no consideration, all the dealers in
vanity,
Devourers of my people? [D]
PSA LMTST
They eat bread,
They call not upon Jci.;vi. tI 
Psahln V, 90                 j God.




xi. xv.              PS ALM S.                       33
5  There they are thrown into terror [E], where
no terror is! *
Truly God is with the generation of the just
orne!
6  The counsel of the helpless man shall put them
to shame, FFj
For Jehovah is his refiuge.
7  0 that the deliverance of Israel were sent forth
from Zion.
When Jehovah t restoreth the captives of his$
people,
Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
PSALM XV.
[See Notes.]
* No cause of terror, according to appearances and human pro.
babilities.: God.




S+      ~    PSALMS,                    Vxv.
PSALM XVa1
A MYSTICAL PRAYER OF DAVID IN THE CHARACTER O]t
HIGH PRIEST.
This sixteenth Psalm is not only cited as David's
by two of the Apostles, St Peter and St Paul, but in
applying it to Christ, both argue from the supposition, that David was its author.  Admitting that
David was the author, of which, after the decision of
the Apostles, a Christian may hardly be at liberty to
doubt; it is evident from the structure of the Psalm
itself, that it is, what the same authority hath pro.
nounced it, prophetic. For the whole is uttered in
the character of the High Priest. But with what
propriety could David speak in that character, other.
wise than prophetically; in the hope of that priesthood which was to come into his family, in the per.
son of his descendant.




xv.                   PSALM   S.$
(DAVID PERSONATES THE MESSIAH IN HIS PRIESTLY OFFICE.o)
I  Guard * me, O God, for with thee have I taken
shelter;
2  I have said unto Jehovah; 0 Lord,
Thou art my good,-not besides thee.
s  For the saints, which are in the land,
And my glorified ones, all my delight is in them.[A]
4  They shall multiply their sorrows [who] betroththemselves to another; [B]
I will not offer their libations of blood,
Neither will I take their names within my lips,
5  Jehovah, my measured portion [C], and Imy cup,
Art thou: Thy Thummim  is my lot. t
~ The Hebrew verb expresses the action of those who watch
over another's safety; as of guards attending their king, or a shepherd keeping his flock.
t " Thy Thummnim is my lot."  That eternal perfect priesthood
is allotted unto me, of which the Levitical is the general type; of
the glory of which the brilliant gems on the High Priest's breast,
plate are the particular symbols. See Deuter. XXXIII, 8.
(r 2




P S AL M S.                   xVI.
6 My territory is fallen in pleasant-spots,
A fair heritage is [allotted] to me.
7 I will bless the Jehovah who hath been-my-counsellor,
Even in the night-seasons my-secret-thoughlts [D]
instruct me.
8  I have set Jehovah always before me;
Because he is at my right hand I shall not slip.
9  Therefbre my heart is glad, my tongue [El rejoiceth;
My flesh also shall rest in security.
o  For thou wilt not relinquish my soul to hell,
Thou wilt not suffer thy HOLY ONE to see corruption.
11  Thou wilt shew me the path of immortalityv
Fulness of joy, * in thy presence;
Mlleasures at thy right hand fobr ever more.
" C( Fulness of joy," that is,,, thou wilt shew- re fulness of'.oy, &c. and pleasures.




VAiS. —IXI.        P S A L M S.                 37
PSALM  XVII,  XVII, XIXI AND XX.
[See Notes.]
PSALM XXI.
THANKSGIVING OF THE CHURCH FOR IrESSIAH'S VICTOR.'.
THIS Psalm  consists of two parts, and a general
close. The first part, consisting of' the first seven
verses, is a thanksgiving to God for his protection of
a certain king.  The second part, beginning with
the eighth and ending with the twelfth verse, is addressed to that king, assuring him of success and
triumph over his enemies, as the reward of his trust
in God. The thirteenth verse closes the whole song,
with a prayer to God to exert his power for the
speedy destruction of his enemies.  I cannot find
that any interpreter has attended to this circumstance,that "C Thou" inthe first sevenverses is "Thou,
O Jehovah," in the five following, " Thou, 0 King."




3P SALMS.                xxI.
PART I.
I Jehovah, in thy strength shall the King rejoice,
How greatly shall he exult in thy salvation!
2 Thou hast given him the desire of his heart,
And the request of his lips thou hast not withholden.
5 Truly thou Tpreventest him. with transcendant
blessings.
Thou settest upon his head a crown of purest
gold.
4    immortality he asked of thee;
Thou hast given him a length of days [A]
For ever and. ever,
S Great is his glory through thy salvation;
Honour and majesty thou hast laid upon him.
6 For thou hast appointed him blessings for ever;
Thou hast gladdened him with the joy, which is
in thine own presence. [B]




xxI.              PSALMS.                    39
7 Truly the King relieth on Jehovah,
And through the mercy of the Highest, he shall
not slide.
PART I1.
8 Thine hand shall-be-successful against all thine
enemies,
Thy right-hand shall-be-successful against all that
hate thee. [C]
9 Thou shalt make them like a furnace of fire in
the season of thy manifestation. [D]
Jehovah, in his wrath, shall swallow them up, and
fire shall devour them.
io Their progeny thou shalt destroy from off the
earth,
And their seed from among the sons of men.
I 1 Truly they have aimed mischief at thee,
They meditated a trick [in which] they cannot
[succeed;]




40                   PSALMS. 8xi.
12  Truly thou shalt make them  a butt fobr thine arlI'OWS, "
Thou shalt take a steady aim against them. [El
Is  Exalt thyself, 0 Jehovah, in thy strength.
We will sing, and chaunt thy might. t
PSALM XXII.
THE SUFFERING MESSIAH PRAYS ~o
TITLE-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY9 CONCERNING THE INTERPOSITION OF THE DARKNESS. AN ODE OF DAVID.
PART I,
1  "eMy God, my God, why hast thou fborsaken me,
"Withdrawing [thyselfj from  my deliverance" Il
is the burthen of nay loud complaint. [A]
* Literally,'thy bow-strings."
- This verse seems still addressed to the King, who is here styled
Jehovah. In the 7th verse the king is spoken of, and in 9th verse
spoken to, as another from Jehovah.
$ N. B. This Psalm is referred to the Messiah in the Mischna
Tchillim, and the Talmud of the Sanhedrim. See Huet. Dem.
Evangel. Prop. VII.
j1 It seems to be the best account that can be given of this Psalmr,




XSx.                  PSALMS.                          41
2  O my God, I cry in the day-time, and thou answerest not;
And in the night, but no relief is given me; * lB]
3  Yet Thou, inhabiting holiness, art [the theme of]
Israel's praise. LC]
4  Our fathers placed-their-trust in thee;
They placed-their-trust, and  thou  deliveredst
them.
5 They cried unto thee, and were rescued;
They.placed-their-;:rust in thee, and were not
brought-to-shame.
6  But I am a worm, and no man;
The disgrace of humanity, and the scorn of the
people.
to say that the Psalmist personates the Messiah in the garden: first,
oppressed with the foresiglht of the circun:stances of his sufferings;
then, comforted with the assurance of exaltation.
---— He began to be sorrowful and very heavy, —___. _-        and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possiQ
"6 ble let this cup pass from xne, &c."  Matth. XXVI, 37-390




42                 PSALMS.                   XXIII
7 All who see me insult-[me] with-gestures-of-derision, *
They draw aside the lip and shake the head.
8 "He boasted-confidently of Jehovah; Let him
i' deliver him,
"s Let him save him. Surely he delighteth in
&' him!'"
9 Yes: Thou hast been my bringer-up from the
womb,
My confidence, upon my mother's breasts.
10 I was-cast-upon-thy-lap from the birth,
From the womb of my mother thou hast been
my God.
I 1 Withdraw-not-thyself from me 
Distress is indeed approaching - there is indeed
no helper.
12 Huge bulls surround me,
Strong [bullsJ of Bashan form-a-ring about me.
* I can no otherwise render the verb ~75 than by this periphrasis.




sXx",            PSALMS.                   43
13 They-open-wide at me their mouths,
Like the ravening, roaring lion. [D]
14 Like water I have-lost-all-firmness, [E]
And all my bones are starting asunder.
My heart is become like wax,
It is dissolved in the midst of my bowels.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And my tongue cleaveth unto my jaws 
Thou hast appointed me to the dust of death.
16 Truly many dogs surround me, [F]
The assembly of the wicked besets me;
They pierce my hands and feet.
17 I may tell [G] all my bones;
They gaze and stare upon me.
18 They are parting my garments among them,
And for my vesture they are casting lots.
19 But thou, 0 Jehovah, withdraw not from me my
aid,
Hasten to my succour.




I4                 PSAL M S.                  xx.
20 Deliver my soul from the sword,
My UNITED ONE [H] from the powver of the dog.
21  Save me from the mouth of the lion5
And from the horns of the unicorns —------
IPART II.
_ -"* Thou hast answered me. [I]
22 I will declare thy name unltto my brethren;
In the midst of the congregation, Iwill praise thee.
23 Ye that fear Jehovah praise him;
Glorify him all the seed of Jacob,
And stand in awe before him LK all the seed of
Israel.
24 For he hath not scorned, nor held in aversion, the
afflicted-state of the oppressed one,
And he hath not hidden his face from him,
But he heard when he cried unto him.
k'6 And there appeared an Angel unto him from heaven strengthening him." Luke XXII, 43.




xxir.              P S A L M Se                4~5
25 Of thee shall be my praise in the great congregation;
I will pay my vows in presence of them that fear
thee. [L]
26 The meek shall eat, and be full fed:
They shall praise Jehovah who seek after him. —
Your heart [M] shall live for ever!
27 All the ends of the earth shall recollect, and return unto Jehovah,
And all families of the Gentiles shall bow them.
selves down before him; [Nj
28 For the kingdom is Jehovah's,
And he is governor LO] among the Gentiles.
29 All whom earth sustains [P] eat, and bow theme
selves down;
Before him shall kneel all that sink into dust.
30 Both my soul shall live to him,
And my seed ~ shall serve him,
It shall be counted to the Lord for a generation.
* Christians are sons of God,




46                 P S A L M S.         XXIII. xxSI.
s3  They shall come and declare his righteousness,
Unto a people to be begotten; for [He] hath
done it.
PSALM XXIIL
[See Notes.l
PSALM XXIV.
TO THE BELOVED. AN ODE.
THIS 24th Psalm opens with a Chorus, proclaiming
the divinity of Jehovah, the Creator and Lord of the
universe.  It then describes, in questions and answers sung by different voices, the sort of righteousness whicll recommends to Jehovah's favour, which
consists not in any ceremonial observances, but in
clean hands and a pure heart. And the song con.
cludes with a prediction of the exaltation of Messiah' Boirn again of water and the spirit. Begotten by the word.,




xxTv,               PSALMS.                      47
(for he is certainly the Jehovah of this psalm) under
the image of an entry of Jehovah into his temple.
CHORUS.
1 To Jehovah belongeth the earth, and its whole
furniture, *
The world, and its inhabitants.
2 For he hath founded it upon the seas,
And upon the floods he hath established it.
FIRST VOICE.
5 Who shall ascend the mountain of Jehovah,
And who shall stand within-the-precincts of his
sanctuary?
SECOND VOICE.
4 The clean in hand, and pure in heart,
a Of animals, plants, stones, minerals, &c. literally its fulness,
all that it contains.




48                 %P  SA  L M SP SSxi'
Who hath not carried his soul to vanity, "
And hath not sworn to the deceiving of his neigh.
bour: [A]
5  This man shall obtain blessing from  Jehovah,
And justification from the God of his salvation.
CHORUSb
6  This is the generation of them that seek after him,
Of them  that seek thy presence t, 0  God of
Jacob.
PART I, —SEMICHEORnS
7  ye gates lift up your heads,
And be ye lifted up ye everlasting doors,
And let the King of Glory enter.
- i. e. Who hath not placed his trust in false gods. See Bp.
Lowth in Merrick's Annotations.
+ Or, "( thy manifestation." Vid. XXI, 7.




xx:~t                P S A L  M                       9
A SINGLE VOICE.
8  Who is He, this King of G-lory?
ANOTHER VOICE.
Jehovah strong and mighty,
Jehovah mighty in battle.
SEMICHORUS.
9 0 ye gates lift up your heads,
And be ye lifted up ye everlasting doors,
And let the King of Glory enter.
A SINGLE VOICE.
10  Who is He, this King of Glory?
GRAND CHORUS.
Jehovah of Hosts. * He is the King of Glory.
* "The Lord of Hosts," literally c" Jehovah of Hosts," i. e. He
who is the principle and foundation of existehce to the whole as.
semblage of created being. The same expression occurs in other
places.




3                           P              S ~PSALMS.  xxv.
PSALM  XXV. [A]
1 Unto thee, O Jehovah, I lift up my soul,
Thee I have anxiously-looked-for all the day.
2 In thee, O my God, I have-placed-my-trust,
let-me not be-brought-to-shame,
Let not mine enemies triumph over me.
3 Yea, let none be-brought-to-shame, who anxiously-look-for thee;
Let the revolters to vanity * be-brought-toshame,
4 Shew me thy ways, 0 Jehovah,
Teach me thy paths.
5 Guide me according to thy truth, and teach
me;
For thou art the God of my salvation.''e Idolaters and infidels.




xiv.                 PSALMS.                        51
8   6 And pardon thou my iniquity, because of thy
goodness,
0 Jehovah: Truly tlhat: is great!?   7 Remember thy tender-mercies, 0  Jehovah,
and thy loving-kindnesses,
Truly they are of old.
r   8 The trespasses of my youth and my disobediences remember not;
RPemember thou me according to thy mercy.
t   9 Good and upright is Jehovah,
Therefore he will instruct sinners in the way.
10 He will guide the meek according-to-the-planof-judgement, t
And he will teach the meek his way.
* "That," namely, "c thy goodness."
t I think the word otwvz here, and in some other places, signi.
ties the settled plan by which God will finally judge the world,-the
Constitution of his Moral Kingdom.
rb 2




52                  PSALMS.                      XXVo
1 11 All the paths of Jehovah are mercy and truth,
To such as observe his covenant and his re.
velations.
12 For the sake of thy name, O Jehovah,
Redeem Israel out of all his distresses.
~i 1 3 What man is this that feareth Jehovah?
Him-he-shall-instruct in tlhe way which he
chooseth.! 1~I,  His soul shall rest in bliss, [B]
And his seed shall inherit the earthL
A15 The secret of Jehovah is with them that fear
him,
And his covenant is to give-them-knowledge.[C]
P  16 Mine eyes are ever towards Jehovah,
For he shall bring my fbet out of the net.
4 17 Turn thee toward me, and take-pity-upon me.
For I am deserted and afflicted, [D]
* Rather, constancy or immutability. Mercy, or kindness, and
immutability, i. e. constant, never failing kindness.




xXVI. xXVII.      PSALMS.                   53
3 18 Set-at-large the sorrowful-contractions of my
heart,
And bring me out of my difficulties. [E]
1 9 Cut short my affliction and vexation,
And pardon all my trespasses.
n 20 Behold mine enemies, for they are mighty  9
And with a cruel hatred they hate me.
C 21 Guard my soul, and deliver me;
Let-me not be-brought-to-shame, for-that It
have-taken-shelter with thee.
n 22 Let loyalty and integrity preserve me:
Truly, anxiously-I-have-looked-for thee. Thou
art my God.
PSALMS XXVI. AND XXVIIo
DR KENNTCOTT divides the 27th psalm into two,
- Or numerous.
DS




54                PSALM S A L M S          xxv
considering the first six verses and the last eight, as
two different songs. I join the first six verses of the
27th to the preceding psalm, and agree with Dr
Kennicott, that the last eight make of themselves an
entire song.
PSALM  XXVI.
THE author of this psalm prays for God's protection against enemies, who had set a price upon his
life. [v. 10.] He pleads his attachment to God's
service, and his abhorrence of idolaters and their
practices,  In the 12th verse, he promises himself
the protection which he had asked, and triumphs in
the certainty of this hope through the remainder of'
the song, which consists of six verses very improperly divided from this, and made the first six of the
next, psalm9
1 Give-sentence-for-me, O Jehovah, fbr I-have-per.
severed in my loyalty,
And upon Jehovah I have-placed-my trust.-Let
me not slide.




SxVI.                PSALMS.                          a5
2 Examine me, 0 Jehovah, and try me;
Bring-to-the-test my most secret thoughts. e
s Truly thy loving-kindness is before mine-eyes,
And I-have-ever-conducted-myself according to
thy truth.
4 I never associate with the wretched-sons t of vanity,
I go not in with those-who-seek-concealment. I5 I abhor the assembly of the wicked,
And with the impious I associate not.
6 I wash my hands in innocency,
And ever am about thy altar, 0 Jehovah,
7 To listen to the sound of thanksgiving,
And to recite all thy wondrous deeds.
d Literally, "my reins and my heart."
t Literally,  mortals.": i. e. With'" those who hide themselves," who shun the light
and seek privacy, to practice the abominable rites of sorcery and
magic, 6 I go not in," i. e. I never enter their secret haunts.
D 4




56                 PSALMS.                     xxvxw
8 0 Jehovah, [ever] have I loved the lodging of
thy house,
And the precincts of the dwelling of thy glory.:
9 Shut-not-up-my soul with transgressors,
Nor my life with murderers.
10 [With those] who ever bave some plot in their
hands,
And their right hand is full of bribes.
I I But I will persevere in my loyalty,
Redeem me, and have-mercy-upon mee. —
PART 11,
12 My foot standeth upon-even-ground,
In the congregations, I will bless Jehovah.
1s Jehovah is my light and my salvation, of whom
shall I be afraid?
Jehovah is the strength of my life, of whom shall
I be in dread?
A Verses 6, 7, 8. These three verses, taken literally, Mre re.
markably descriptive of our Lord's life on earth.




xxvI.            P SA LM S.                57
14 When the wicked advanced against me to devour
my flesh,
Those mine enemies and my foes, they stumbled
and are fallen.
15 Although an army should encamp against me,
my heart shall not fear;
Although war should rise against me, still I will
be secure.:16 One thing I have requested of Jehovah; that I
will require:
That I may dwell in the house of Jehovah all the
days of my life,
To have-in-sight the beauty of Jehovah, and to
contemplate his temple.
i7 Truly he will hide me in his pavilion in the evil
day;
He will keep-me-hid in the recess of his tabernacle; he will set-me-high upon a rock.
18 And now he will exalt mine head above mine ene:
mies around me,




58                P S A L M S.      xxVII. xxVwIi,
That I may sacrifice in his tabernacle sacrifices
of triumph:
Unto Jehovah I will sing and chaunt the lay.
PSALM  XXVIIL
[See Notes.]
PSALM  XXVIII.
THE CHURCH PRAYS TO BE PRESERVED FROM CORRUPTIONS.'PRAYER.
I Unto thee, 0 Jehovah, I call; my Rock, be not
averse to hear me;
Lest, if thou seem averse to answer me, I be likened unto them that descend into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my entreaty, when I cry unto
thee,
When I lift up my hands, towards the oracle of
thy sanctity.
1




XXvI,.       P PS A L M S.             s5
o Let me not be drawn away [A] with the impious,
and with the dealers in vanity,
With those who speak kindly * with their neighbours, while mischief is in their hearts.
4 Render unto them according to their deeds, and
according to the wickedness of their practices;
Render unto them according to the works of their
hands,
Requite unto them their desert.
5 Truly they take no consideration of the works
of Jehovah,
And of the operation of his hands. —
ORACULAR VOICE.
-He shalldemolish them andbuild themnot.[Bj
THANKSGIVING.
6 Blessed be Jehovah,
For he hath heard the voice of my entreaty.
t Courteously, peaceably.




60                P S A LMS.               XXIXE
7 Jehovah is my strength and my shield;
On himn my heart hath-placed-trust, and I am
helped;
My flesh hath-resumed-its-bloom [C], and from
my heart I will praise him.
8 Jehovah is the strength of his people,
And the strengthener of the salvations of his
Anointed One is He. ED]
9 Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance;
Govern them, and exalt them for ever.
PSALM  XXIX.
AN ODE OF DAVID.
TuPis 29th Psalm, taken literally, seems to describe
the effect of a great storm, from which, however,
the people of Israel were providentially protected.
But I have no doubt that the storm is mystical, describing the violent conflict between the Gospel and
its opponents in the latter ages. This is evident, I
think, froln tbe 1ast verse, and from the end of the




xxIX.             PSALMS.                   61
psalm: —from the first verse, in which the sons of
the mighty, the great potentates of the earth, are
called upon to submit to Jehovah, and to worship
him; and-from the conclusion of the psalm, which
describes the final submission of the whole world,
God's controul and direction of the whole tumult,
his final victory, and his promise that he will give his
people, that is, the spiritual Israel, the blessings of
peace. The voice of Jehovah is the preaching of
the gospel, more particularly the renewed preaching in the latter ages. See Bishop Horne's most;
excellent comment upon this psalm.
1 Ascribe unto Jehovah, 0 ye sons of IdolatryAscribe unto Jehovah glory and might.
2 Ascribe unto Jehovah the glory of his name,
Prostrate yourselves before Jehovah in the pomp
of holiness.-,$ The voice of Jehovah over the waters!; See Ps. XXVI. 9, & CX. 3.




62                 P S A L M S.             xxix~
The God of glory gives [his] thunder,
Jehovah, over mighty waters!
4 The voice of Jehovah in all its force!
The voice of Jehovah in all its majesty!
5 The voice of Jehovah shivers the cedars,
Even Jehovah shivers the cedars of Lebanon;
6 Even like a calf he maketh them to skip,
Lebanon and Sirion like the calf of' the buffalo.
7 The voice of Jehovah striketh out the forked
flame of fire.*
S The voice of Jehovah terrifies the wildernesse
Jehovah terrifies the wilderness of Cades.
9 The voice of Jehovah makes havoc of the oaks,
And strippeth bare the forests.  And in his temple
All this proclaims his glory.
~ - Hewed out pointed flames of fire." Mudge.




XXX..            P S A L M S.               63
10 Jehovah is seated high over the raging flood;
Yes: Jehovah is seated King for ever.
11 Jehovah shall give strength unto his people,
Jehovah shall give his people the blessing of
peace.
PSALM XXX.
[See Notes.]
PSALM  XXXI.
MESSIAH PRAYS FOR DELIVERANCE FROM THE PERSECUT'IONK
OF HIS ENEMIES.
01   Jehovah, with thee I have-taken-shelter,
Let me not be-brought-to-shame for ever;
Deliver me in thy righteousness.
2 Incline thine ear unto me speedily;
Deliver me; be thou my rock of strength,
My castle of defence [ A] to save me.




6~1~s $sP S PSALMS.                             XXxI.
$ Truly thou art my rock and my castle,
And for thy name's sake lead me and guide me.
4, Extricate me from the net which they have spread
fbr me unseen,
For thou art the source-of-my-strength.*
5 Into thy hand I give-in-charge my spirit,
Thou hast t delivered me, O Jehovah, God of
truth!
f6 Thou hatest [B] them that wait upon the vanities
of delusion. T
But I upon Jehovah have placed-my-trust.
7 I shall exult [C] and rejoice in thy tender love,
When thou shalt have regarded my affliction,
[And] accepted my person in adversities;
X Literally, "my strengthener."
~ Thou hast, i. e. " Thou most surely wilt. —The thing is as certain as if it were done."
t See Jonah, Ii, 8.




xxx                  P S A L M  S.                   65
8 When not delivering-me-up-bound  into the hand
of the enemy,
Thou shalt have set my feet in an ample space.
9 Pity me, O Jehovah, for trouble-besets me,
My eye is wasted with fretting,
My soul pines, and my person is emaciated. [D]
10 Truly my life is consumed in sorrow,
And my years in groaning;
My strength is exhausted by my punishmentt,
And my bones are-mouldering-away. [E]
1l I am become a reproach among all mine enemies,
And a nuisance [F] to my neighbours, and a
fright to all who know me.
Any-who-see-me abroad, flee from me.
i2 I am forgotten like one dead,
I am out-of-mind like a broken vessel.
- To express clearly what I take to be the sense, I have taken
the liberty to render a verb by a participle.  For the sake of perspicuity, a translator must sometimes abandon the idioms of syn.
tax in the original language.
t LXX. Vulg. and Syr. seem to have read, ~ta~, for they tranrg
late "' my poverty."




66               PSALMS.                xxxI.
13 Truly I have heard the angry muttering of the
mighty,
Of them that are the general dread, [G]
While they Sit-in-council together against me;
They have laid-a-plot to take my life.
14 But I have-placed-my-trust in thee, O Jehovah,
I have said, Thou art my God.
15 My fortunes are in thy hand;
D)eliver me from the hand of my enemy, and
from my persecutor.
16 Let thy countenance shine upon thy servant,
Save me in thy tender-mercy.
17 0 Jehovah, let me not be-brought-to-shame, that
I have called upon thee.
Let the impious be-brought-to-shame. [H]
ORACULAR VOICE.
They shall be motionless in
hell;




xxxI.              PSALMS.
18 The lying lips shall be struck dumb,
Which speak hard things against the JusT ONE,
In pride and scorn.
THANKSGIVING.
19 How great is thy goodness, which thou hast in
store for them that fear thee,
Which thou hast wrought for them, that take
shelter with thee, in the sight of the sons
of men.
20 Thou shalt hide them, in the secret-place of thy
presence, from the conspiracies of men.
Thou shalt screen them in thy pavilion fiom the
abuse of tongues.
21 Blessed be Jehovah!
For he hath set apart his saints for himself, in a
city [Ij of defence.
22 I indeed said in my consternation,
I am exiled from thy presence'
* Literally, 1 - am cut off from before thine eyes."




68                 P S A L M S.               XXII
But thou hast heard the voice of my entreaty,
Upon my crying unto thee.
23 Love ye the Jehovah, all his saints:
Jehovah preserveth the faithful,
And requiteth unto him that is foremost* in the
deeds of arrogance.
24 Take courage, and let your heart be firm+t,
All ye who have hope in Jehovah.
PSALM XXXII.
THE BELIEVER's PENITENTIAL CONFESSION?
1 BLESSED is he who is eased-of-the-burden of his
wilful-crimes,
Whose trespasses are covered,
- Or" that excelleth," or Cs is abundant."
- See XXVII. 14.




XXXII.              P S A LMS.                    69
2 Blessed is the man to w hom  Jehovah imputeth
not perverseness,
In whose spirit is no guile.
s While I was silent *, my bones decayed,
By my loud-lamentation all the day.
4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me,
My moisture was changed into the summer's
drought.
5 I will acknowledge my trespasses unto thee,
My perverseness I will not conceal; [A]
I said I will-make-confession of my wilful-crimes
unto Jehovah,
And thou forgavest the perversity of my sin.
6 For this cause, shall every saint
Make-prayer unto thee in a season of accept.
ance.
* 6" While I was silent," i. e. with respect to confession. Before
I made confession I was in constant agony of mind; now, by confessing my sins, I have obtained ease.




70                  PS A LMS.                 xxxIX.
Even when great waters overflow,
Unto him they shall not come near*.
7 Thou art my place-of-concealment from distress,
Thou shalt preserve me, and deliver me [BJ from
them that beset me.
ORACLE.
8 1: will instruct thee, and teach thee, I will cou.n.
sel thee what way thou shalt go;
Mine eye Eis fixed] upon thee.
THE PSALMIST Td THE BY-STANDERS SUPPOSED TO HEAR,
THE ORACULAR VOICE.
9 Be ye not like a horse or a mule,
Which no man can govern with a bridle;
But the muzzle must compress his jaws,
That he fall not upon thee.
"They," i. e. the waterfloods shall not come -nigh him~, i ee
the godly one.




XXXXII. XXXIV.    P S A L M S.              71
10 Great torments for the impious,
But for him who placeth-trust in Jehovah, tender
love embraceth him.
11 Rejoice in Jehovah, and exult, ye righteous;
Shout for joy, all ye upright in heart.
PSALM XXXIII,
[See Notes.]
PSALM  XXXIV,
(ALPHABETICAL4) MESSIAH EXHORTS TO HOLINESS AND TRUST'
IN GOD, BY THE EXAMPLE OF HIS OWN DELIVERANCE.
THE matter of this Psalm has not the least connection with the subject to which the Hebrew title refers it, viz. "David's change of his behaviour before
" Abimelech, who drove him away and he departa" ed," 1 Sam. XXI. The Syriac inscribes it, " a
" Psalm of David when he went to the house of' the
A.




72                PSALMS.                   xxxive
Lord, and gave first fruits to the Priest."  But it
is an excellent remark of Mr Hutchinson's, though
some caution and judgement may be requisite in the
application of it, that, " Though many of the ideas
" [in the Psalms] be conveyed under types or bor" rowed names, yet any one sentence which is ap" plicable to the true David [i. e. to Messiah] and
" to none else, determines the Psalm to that David."
The 20th verse of this Psalm, as Mr Hutchinson observes, taken literally, is applicable to the true Da.
vid, and to none else.
Z  I will bless the Jehovah in every season -,
Continually shall his praise be in my mouth,
I fn Jehovah my'soul shall make her boast;
The meek shall hear, and shall rejoice.,
M Magnify Jehovah with me,
Let us extol his Name together.
- i. e. In all circumstances; in every posture of my affairs.




xxxiv.             PSALM S.                      73
s  I sought the Jehovah; and he hath heard me,
And delivered me from all my fears.
M, Look towards him, and you shall be enlightens
ed; * [A]
And your faces shall never be ashamed 
5 [B] ForJehovah redeemeth the soul of his servant,
And none who-seek-shelter with him shall-fallinto-con demnation.
I  This POORp man [C] called, and Jehovah heard;
And hath delivered him from all his straits.
1 The Angel of Jehovah pitched his camp
Around them that fear him, and delivers them.
t  Taste and see! Truly Jehovah is good,
Blessed is the man who taketh-shelter with-him.
4 Fear the Jehovah, O ye-his-saints;
For nothing shall be wanting unto them-that-fearhi-m.
X That is, as the image is generally understood, "gladdened" or
"filled with joy."




7P SA  LMS.                xxxIv.
b  The rich [D] are impoverished and famished, *
But the seekers of Jehovah shall-be-in-want-of no
good thing.
b  Come, my children, hearken unto me,
I will teach you the fear of Jehovah.
WD ho is the man that hath-set-hlis-heart-upon inm
mortality,
Who is fond-of-life, to see prosperity?
$  Keep thy tongue from evil t,
And thy lips that they utter not deceit.
t Turn away from evil, and do good;
Seek peace, and pursue it.
y  The eyes of Jehovah are upon the righteous,
And his ears [turned] toward their cry.
* Or, "' are brought to poverty and hunger."
t " Evil" —impious, blasphemous speech. "Deceit," argument,
in favour of idolatry, or false doctrines.




XxTIV.             P S A L M SS                 7X.
t  The face of Jehovah is against evil doers,
To extirpate the memory of them from the earth.
V The just cry, and Jehovah heareth them, [E]
And delivereth them out of all their straits.
7  Jehovah draweth near unto the broken-hearted,
And the contrite in spirit he saveth.
1 Innumerable are the afflictions of the JUST ONE,
But Jehovah shall deliver him from them all.
tV He guardeth all his bones;
Not one of them is broken.
1  Evil shall-utterly-slay the impious;
And the haters of the JUST ONE shall-come-intocondemnation.
* This is the prophecy to which St John alludes,




76                  P S A L M S                xxxvE
PSALM XXXV.
A PRAYER OF THE MESSIAH':*
I Contend thou, O Jehovah, with them that con'
tend with me,
Make-war against them that make-war against me.
2 Grasp the shield also and target,
And rise-up for my defence.
3 Present the javelin and dirk [A] against my per~
secutors,
Say untQ my soul, 5" I am thy salvation."
4 Let them be brought-to-shame and-confusion that
seek my life,
Let.them be abashed that meditate my hurt.
- Verses 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16, apply more literally and
exactly to Christ, than to any other whomsoever.




xxxv.             PSALMS.                   77
5 Let them be as the thistle-down before the wind,
And let the angel of Jehovah chase them. [B]
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
And let the angel of Jehovah pursue them,
7 For without a cause they spread for me their sea
cret net, [C]
Without a cause they have digged a pit for my
life.
S Let the storm-of-destruction come upon him urn
forseen,
Let the net, which he hath spread secretly, catch
himself;
Into his own pit let him fall. [D]
9 So shall my soul exult in Jehovah,
It shall rejoice in his salvation.
10 All my bones shall say,
Jehovah, who may-compare with thee,
Delivering the helpless from him that is too strong
for him,
Even the helpless and the poor from his devouw
rer. LEI]




78                    P S PSA L M MS.              Xxxv,
11 Witnesses of violence [F] rise up,
For the thing which I know not they call me to
account.
12 They requite me evil for good,
LEven] the extermination * of me and my race. [G]
1.3 But for me, when they were sick, sackcloth was
my clothing;
I mortified my soul with fasting;
Although my prayer returned into my bosom t.
14 I behaved myself like a friend or a brother, [H]
In-sable-garb, as one in mourning for his mother,
I was bowed down [with grief.]
15 But in my adversity they rejoiced, and were ga.
thered together;
-*, Even the extermination, &c." This is expositive of the evil
mentioned in the preceding hemistich. This is the evil, the exter.
mination.
t They were incorrigible, therefore my prayer for them was ineffectual. Still I persevered to fast and pray, though discouraged
by ill success.




xxxv.              P SA L M S.                 79
Smiters [I] were gathered together against me,
And theywhom Iknew notlaid-on-heavy-blows [K],
and rested not.
16 While-I was-[thus]-contumeliously-treated,
They jeered me with their jeers, [CL gnashing
their teeth at me.
17 0 Lord, how long wilt thou look on?
Restore my soul from their violence,
My united one * from the lions.
18 I will give-thee-thanks in the great congregation,
f Among a mighty people [M] I will praise thee.
19 Let not them, that without-provocation are my
enemies, rejoice over me,
Nor them that hate me without a cause wink the
eye.
20 Truly they speak to me fiiendly-language,
* "My united one," compare Ps. XXII, 20.
t Or, c in the numerous people."




80               PSALMS.                xxxv.
While, against them that would give quiet [N] to
the earth,
They meditate schemes of treachery.
21 And they widen their mouth at me; they say,
Aha! aha! Our eye hath seen it.
22 Jehovah, Thou hast seen it; Be not aversetohear;
0 Lord withdraw not far from me.
23 Stir-thyself-up to my trial, awake
To my cause, my God and my Lord.
24, Give-sentence-for-me according to thy justice,
O Jehovah my God;
And let them not rejoice over me.
25 Let them not say in their hearts! aha, we haveour-wish; [N]
Let them not say, we have devoured him.
26 Let them be brought.to-shame and blush all together that rejoice in my hurt,
Let them be clothed with shame that magnify
themselves against me.
I




xxxvie             PS ALMS.                     s
27 Let them sing and rejoice that take-delight in my
righteousness; *
And let them say continually, Magnified be Jehovah,
He-who-taketh-delight in the retribution t of his
servant.
28 And my tongue shall talk of thy righteousness,
Of thy praise, all the day.
PSALM XXXVI.
[TITLE-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. TO THE SERVANT OF
JEHOVAH. TO THE BELOVED.3 THE OBDURACY AND FINAL
EXCISION OF THE PROFANE.
PART T.
1 The impious haththe maximsof the Apostate S [A]
deeply rooted in his heart,
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
-  My righteousness," or, " my justification."'
t  Retribution," or, "prosperity," or, " integrity."
i. e. The Devilo
lF




-s$2                  PSA LM  Se. xxAVSM:2 For he giveth-things-a-fair-appearance [B] to himself,
In his own eyes, so that he discovers not his own
iniquity, to hate it.
3 The words of his mouth are vanity and delusion,;
He ceaseth to understand to do well. "
4 He meditateth vanity upon his bed;
5 He hath settled himself in a way not good;
He abhorreth, not evil. t
PART HE.
6 0 Jehovah, thy-tender-love is in the heavens,
Thy truth above the highest-clouds. T
",, Vanity and delusion."  Sophistical arguments in support
of infidelity, or idolatry, or false doctrines.-II He ceaseth," &c.
He has lost the natural: understanding of the distinctions of right
and wrong.
J He sees nothing amiss in it.: Notwithstanding this stupidity of the unbeliever, the divine
benevolence and immutable wisdom are the principles which go.
vern the whole world.




xxxwVI            P S A L M S.               83
7 Thy justice is like the strong mountains,
Thy judgements are a vast abyss;
Thou, 0 Jehovah, preservest man and beast.
8 How precious, 0 Jehovah, is thy-tender-love,
And under the shadow of thy wings must the sons
of men find shelter.
9 They shall be full-fed with the fatness of thy
house,
And thou shalt make them drink the river of thine
own delights.
io For with thee is the spring of immortality,
In thy light we shall see light.
1 Extend thy-tender-love to them that know thee,
And thy righteousness * to the upright of heart.
12 Let not the foot of pride come against me,
Nor let the hand of the impious drive-me-about.
o* Or,  thy justification."
F2




84                P SALM S                xxxrTo
13 See there' [C]! they are fallen, the dealers in
vanity!
They are cast down, and are not able to rise!
PSALM XXXVILe
(ALPHABETICAL) THE GODLY COMFORTED WITH THE PiROMIS
OF THEIR FUTURE HAPPINESS.  IN THIS PSALM THE BLESSINGS ARE PROMISED TO THE GODLY THROUGH CHRIST, THe
JUST ONE. [A]
I Fret not thyself because of the wicked,
Envy not the workers of iniquity;
2 For suddenly, like hay, they shall be mown down,
And like the verdure of the grass they shall
wither.,
3 Trust in Jehovah, and do good,
Dwell in the land, and feed in security;  [B]




sxxxvI.e          P S A L M S.               85
4 And place thy delight in Jehovah,
And he shall give thee the desires of thy heart.
5 Commit thy way unto Jehovah,
And trust in him, and he shall-bring-to-pass.
6 He shall display thy righteousness as the light,
And thy good-conduct* as the noon-day.
7 Repose in Jehovah, and place thy expectation
upon him,
Fret not thyself because of him who hath prospered in his course,
Because of the man who bringeth his devices to
effect.. Literally, " thy judgemento."




86                   P S A L M  S.              xxxvII
8 Reumit anger, and relinquish wrath,
Fret not thyself so far as to do evil.*
9 For evil —doers t shall be extirpated,
But such as patiently-wait.for Jehovah, they shall
inherit a land.
1o For yet a little while, and the impious is not;
Thou shalt make-much-enquiry-after his place, 1
but it is not [to be fobund].
1I But the meek shall inherit a land,
And delight themselves in the greatness of their
recompense.' Or, "fret not so far as to be made evil," i. e. to become malignant.
t Or, "' the malignant.":t " Literally, c' take-much-thought-about."




xxxvIe           P S A L M S.              8 
12 The impious plots against the JUST ONE,
And gnashes his teeth at him.
13 The Lord shall laugh at him,
For he seeth that his day approacheth.
14 The impious have drawn their sword,
And levelled their bow,
To cut down the helpless and poor,
To butcher the upright in conduct.
15 Their sword shall enter their own heart,
And their bows shall be broken.
i6 Better is the little of the JUST ONE,
Than the abundance of the thriving impious.




88                  P S A L MS.                XxXVII.
17 For the arms of the impious shall be broken,
But Jehovah supporteth the Just.
18 Jehovah noticeth the days of the perfect,*
And their inheritance shall be for ever.
19 They shall not be-put-to-shame in the season of
adversity;
And in the days of famine they shall be fullfdd,
20 Truly9 the impious shall perish;
And the enemies of Jehovah, so soon-as-they-are.
exalted to honour,
Vanish.-They vanish like smoke. [C]
* The perfect are those who are perfect in their loyalty to Jeg
hovalh. I often render this word by "loyal."




ixwXVIS.       A    PSALMS.
e1 The impious borroweth, and repayeth not*;
But the JUST ONE is compassionate and liberal;
22 [D] He is ever compassionate, ever lending 
And his seed is [appointed] to a blessing.
23 When a man's steps are ordered by Jehovah, [E]
Then he delighteth in that man's course.
24 If he fall, shall he not be raised up? [F]
For Jehovah supporteth his hand.,  Borroweth and repayeth not," a proverbial expression. The
impious receive good things at the hand of Providence, to which
they have no claim, and are not careful to make a due return of
obedience and devotion.  They claim much from the mercy of
God, without any care to pay the debt of gratitude for that mercy
which they hope to find. Thus they are borrowers who never pay.
Christ is a charitable man, who gives without any prospect of re.
ceiving again.




90                P S A L M S.           XXXVII.
25 I have been young, I am also grown old,
But never have I seen the JUST ONE deserted,
Or his seed begging bread.
26 Truly, such-as-obtain-his-blessing shall inherit the
earth, [D]
And such as incur his malediction shall be extir.
pated.
27 Turn away from evil, and do good,
And dwell for evermore.
28 For Jehovah loveth judgement,
And never will desert his saints -
They shall be preserved for ever.
29 The foolish shall perish for ever,
And the seed of the impious shall be extirpated,




XXXVIIr            P SALMS $.
The just shall inherit the earth,
And they shall dwell upon it for ever.
So The mouth of the JUST ONE discourseth of wisdoml,
And his tongue uttereth just-maxims. *
31 The law of his God in his heart,
His steps shall never slide.
32 The: impious is-upon-the-watch for the JusT ONE,
And is seeking to put him to death.
33 Jehovah will not leave him in his power,
Nor find-him-guilty when-he-is tried.
X i. e. Just maxims of human conduct.




92                PS ALMS.                xxxvI.
34 Wait for Jehovah, and keep his way;
And he shall exalt thee to the inheritance of the
earth;
When the impious are extirpated thou shalt see it.
35 I have seen the impious playing the tyrant;
And spreading himself abroad like a tree-flourish.
ing in-its native soil. [H]
36 But I passed by [I], and behold he was not;
And I sought him, but he was not to be found.
37 Keep Ethy] loyalty, and look-well to [thy] inte.
grity;
For a posterity is Eappointed] for the perfect
man. [K]
8S But apostates shall be destroyed altogether,
The posterity of the impious shall be extirpated.




SXXY1.m           P S A L M S.                 9s
39 The [L] salvation of the just is from Jehovah,
Who.giveth-them-strength in the season of dis.
tress;
40 And Jehovah shall help them and deliver them,
He shall deliver them from the impious, and shall
save them,
Because they have taken shelter with him.
PSALM XXXVIII.
-THE BELIEVER' S SOUL, UNDER THE IMAGE OF A LEPER, BE-,
WAILS HER CORRUPTION, AND THE MISERY OF HER PRESENT
CONDITION.
THE situation of the suppliant, in this Psalm, with,respect to his enemies, is exactly what is described in
my notes upon the VIth Psalm. He is visited too
with a disease painful and debilitating in the extreme,




go.                P PS A L M S. 4xxxw.mI:
accompanied with putrid ulcers, and loathsome in
such a degree, as to drive away his friends and nearest
relations. The weak state to which the disorder has
reduced him, encourages his enemies to plot against
his life. Two things are very remarkable in the case:
that the debility, occasioned by the distemper, seems
to have been the circumstance on which they build.
their hopes of success; and yet, that they expect not
his dissolution from the natural course of the disorder,
without stratagems of their own.  The sick man considers his deplorable state, as the effect of' God's imp
mediate visitation.  And, upon this account, he is
desirous to submit to it without complaint, He takes
no measures to defend himself against his enemies;
he would seem to them  not to overhear their discourse, and to be-ignorant of their malicious intentions, relying entirely upon God for his deliverance.
At the same time,he is overwhelmed with such a sense
and dread of guilt and wrath, that he seems to have
a fearful mistrust of his own fortitude.  But under
all this alarming sense of sin, he asserts that " good
is his pursuit."
From this state of the sick man's case, the nature
of his disorder, the state of his mind, and his situation in other respects, there can be little doubt that




-XXVIII,          P S A L MS.                 95
the whole is mystic. Some have thought, and among
these the excellent Bishop Horne, that the sick person is the believer's soul: The disease, —Adam's sin,
and the consequent corruption of our nature, and the
misery of our condition:  The enemies,-Satan and
his friends, and the atheistical faction.  Many parts
of the psalm, however, have so striking a reference
to the case of our Lord in the days of his flesh, that
I cannot but think the whole belongs to him, and
that he (the humanity of Christ) is the sick persecu.
ted suppliant.  If the sickness may typify generally
his humiliation, as I think it may, and tlle.heat which
rages in the sick man's loins, the fiery trial of wrath
which he endured in the garden of Gethsemane,
when his distress, though principally mental, discovered itself in dreadful symptoms in his body; if this;
interpretation of the sickness be admitted, there is
not a- sentence nor a word in the whole of this extraordinary composition which is not applicable to our"
Lord as man, with more strictness and propriety
than to any other person.
I OJehovah, rebuke me not in-the-effervescence-of.;
thine-anger,
Chastise me not in the heat-of-thy-displeasure.




S0                 P S A L M S.           xxxvxIwe
2 Truly thine arrows are sunk-deep into me,
And thy hand is laid-hard upon me,
s There is no soundness in my flesh because of
thine indignation;
No quiet in my bones, by reason of my * sin.
4 Truly my * iniquities mount above my head,
Like a heavy burthen, they are too heavy for mea
5 The wounds, t which I suffer by reason of my ~
folly,
Stink; they run with corruption. [A]
6 I am distorted t; I am bowed down exceedingly
I go melancholy [B] all the day.
-7 For my loins are filled with a parching heat,
And there is no soundness in my flesh.
"My sin.-My iniquities, —Aly folly." His because he hadmade himself answerable.
t Is. LIII, 6.
4 Writhed with pain.




xXXVII.           P S A L M S.                97
8 I am enfeebled and worn-down to-the-extreme,
I howl for the anguish of' my heart.
9 0 Lord, all my desire is before thee,
And my groaning from thee is not concealed.
10 My heart palpitates; my strength forsakes me;
And the light of mine eyes; Nay, they themselves
are lost to me. [C]
1 1 My friends and my companions
Come into my presence, and stop short, [D]
And the-nearest-of-my-kindred stand aloof.
122 And they that seek my life are laying snares;
And they that seek my hurt threaten mischiefs,
And discourse of stratagems the whole day.
13 But I, like a deaf man, hear not; [E]
[I am] as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.
14  I am become as one that heareth not,
In whose mouth are no reproofs. *
* "No reproofs"' rather, with Bishop Horne, " no alterca



98                     P S A L M  S.                 xXXVII,.
15 For upon thee, O  Jehovalh, I rest-my-hope,
Thou shalt answer *, 0  Lord my God.
16 For I said t, lest they rejoice over me;
When  mly foot slips, they magnify  themselves
against me.
17 Truly I am-ready to make a false-step, I
Anid my torment ever is before me.
a" tions."  Our Lord made no defence when he was accused before Pilate, —no apology-no answer to the false witnesses.
i. e. Thou shalt answer the threats and reproaches of my ene.
rmies. Trusting to this, I make no answer for myself.
+ He assigns the reason of his silence, and his appearing to take
no notice of the threats of his enemies.  In this manner Abp.
Secker understood the text.
T This is part of what he said, that is, of his reason with him.
self for making no reply, and taking no measures of his own against
his enemies.  The humanity of Christ (if Christ is the speaker in
this Psalm) utters this; "4 when his soul was exceeding sorrowful
6" unto death;" when he prayed s" that the cup might pass from, him," Matth. XXVI, 38-42. Mark, XIV. 33-36; when his
agony was so intense, that c" an angel appeared to him strengthen"' ing him," Luke, XXII, 40 —46. At this season, he says, "C I am
"ready to make a false step," under an apprehension, as it should




xxxvIII.             P S A LMS.                        99
18 Truly, I set my iniquity in open view, "
I am in consternation for my sin.
19 And mine enemies are in vigour. They are strong,
And increased in numbert, who hate me wrongs
fully.
20 They who requite evil for good
Are-set-against-me, because good is my pursuit.
21 Desert me not, 0 Jehovah,
My God, withdraw not far fiom  me;
Hasten to my help, 0 Lord, my Salvation.
seem, that his fortitude might fail. His repeated and anxious ex.
hortation to the apostles, at that particular time, to "watch and
"a pray lest they should enter into temptation," may seem to indicate that he felt the power of temptation strongly at that time in
himself. And the temptation of that season was presented to his
fear.
e i. e. I set in my own view the weight of guilt imputed to me,
of which I am to bear the punishment.
t See Abp. Seeker in Merrick's Annotations.
G 2




100              PSALMS.                  xxxsx.
PSALM  XXXIX.
THIS PSALM IS A PENITENTIAL MEDITATION ON THE VANITY
OF THE PRESENT LIFE. IT DOES NOT SEEM TO BE APPROPRIATED TO ANY PARTICULAR PERSON.
I said, I will take heed to my ways, not to sin;
To my tongue I will take heed; a muzzle on my
mnouthl
So long as the impious is before me.
2 I was mute and still; I-made-myself-silent
Of good; but my grief rankled.
3 My heart grew hot within me.
By my earnest meditation the fire kindled.
I spake with my tongue.
4 Shew me, O Jehovah, my end,
And the measure of my days; let me know what
it is,
How brief I am.




xxxIx.               PSALMS.                       101
5 Behold, thou hast appointed my days a handbreadth,
Mine age is nothing before thee;
Truly every thing is vanity,
[Even] every man, with all his pride. [A]
6 Surely man's whole life is a mere shew *;
Surely they turmoil in vain;
His-accumulated-riches, —he knoweth not who
shall gather -them. [B]
7 And now, what is my expectation!
0 Lord, what I look for from thee is this;
8 Deliver me from  all my disobedient deeds,
Make me not the reproach of the foolish.
9 I have been mute, I open not my mouth,
Because thou hast brought-to-pass.
- Literally,'" man walketh in an image."'c Life is a mere
C" shew, "4 the baseless fabric of a vision."  Vid. Ps. LXXIII, 20.
e His accumulated riches," literally, "6-his heaps."




102                 P S A LMS.                 xxxIx.
10 Remove thy plague fiolm me,
I am-worn-away under the keen-strokes * of thy
hand.
11 With rebukes for perverseness thou chastisest
every one;
And, like a moth, thou makest his bounty gradually to waste away;
Surely the whole of man t is vanity.
12 Hear my prayer, 0 Jehovah,
And turn thine ear to my cry;
Be not regardless of mny tears
For I, like all my fathers, am
A stranger and a sojourner with thee.
13 Spare me, that I may taste of comfort,
Before I go away, and be no more.
* " Keen-strokes." I refer the word to the root,:n
f-  The whole of man," or,' all mankind."




XL                  PSALMS.                     103
PSALM XL.
MESSIAHI RISEN FROM THE DEAD, RETURNS THANKS FOR THE
ACCOMPLISHMIENT OF HIS WORK, AND PRAYS FOR ITS FINAL
EFFECT.
I With steady hope I waited' for Jehovah,
And he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
2 Hle hath even raised me up from the void pit,
From the mire and mud,
And he hath placed my feet upon a rock,
And given mne firm footing. t
3 Thus he hath put a new song in my mouth,
A-song-of-praise unto our God.
4 Many shall consider, $
And they shall fear, and trust in Jehovah.
# Literally,'. waiting, I waited."
t Literally, "c established," or, (" set firm my steps," or" goings."
" Shall look to it."
G 4




104'PSALMS.                    xL.
5 Blessed is the man whose confidence is the name
of Jehovah,
And turneth-him not to pride, and the wanderings of falsehood. [A]
6 nMany are thy wonders which thou hast performed, 0 Jehovah my God;
And thy schemes fbr us none can in order recite
unto thee.
I would declare them, and discourse of them,they are too many to be enumerated.
7 In sacrifice and offering thou delightest not,
But mine ears hast thou opened [Bj;
Burnt-offering and sin-offeiring thou demandest
not;
8 Then said I, lo! I come.
In the roll of the book is written concerning me,
I have delighted, O my God, to execute thy
gracious-will, [C]
And thy decree t [I have had] within my heart.' LXX. Vulg. and Syr.
t " Thy decree," the same decree mentioned, Ps. II, 7.




XL.                  PSALMS.                        10s
9 I have preached righteousness in the great congregation; *
Behold thou knowest, 0 Jehovah,
I have laid-no-restraint-upon my lips.
10 I have not kept thy righteousness hidden in my
heart,
Thy faithfulness and thy salvation I have proclaimed;
I have not concealed thy tender love,
And thy truth, in the great congregation.
11 Lay thou no restraint, 0 Jehovah, upon thy tenderness to me;
Let thy tender-love and thy truth ever preserve
me.
12 Truly, evils crowded upon me, till they were beyond number;
My iniquities [D] overtook me, till I could not
endure the sight;
e The congregation of the universal church, collected from the
general mass of the whole human race, in opposition to the particular congregation of the Jewish people.




106                  PSALMS.                         xL.
They were more than the hairs of my head, and
my heart failed me.
13 Jehovah was pleased to deliver me; *
Jehovah hastens to my help.
14 They who seek my life to destroy it
Shall be  brought-to-shame, and covered-withblushes all-together;
They who delight in my hurt,
Shall be driven-back, and put to confusion.
15 They shall immediately go off with their-due-disgrace t [E]
Who say to me, aha! aha!
g This Psalm is no prayer for deliverance from dangers threat.
ened, but a song of thanksgiving for dangers past, or at least prophetically described as past.
t "c Their-due-disgrace." Due,-this I take to be the force of
the pronoun suffixed to the noun "disgrace.'"




x.Is               PSALMS.                      107
ORACULAR VOICE.
16 All who seek thee, shall rejoice and be glad in
thee;
The lovers of thy salvation shall ever say, Magnified be Jehovah.
MESSIAH.
17 Although I am helples and poor, [ IF]
Jehovah [G] thinketh of me;
AMy helper and my deliverer art thou,
O my God, make no delay.
PSALM XLI.,& PRAYER OF THE MESSIAH IN HIS HUMILIATION.
1 Blessed is he who giveth attention t to him that
is reduced to poverty; [A]
In the evil day Jehovah shall deliver him.
F 187 MSS. and 8 printed editions of Kennicott's collation.
t  Blessed is he who is not offended in me."




10o8                P S AL M  S.                 xlI.
2 May Jehovah guard him, and keep him alive,
Let him be blessed in the land,
And give him not up [B] to the will of his enemies.
3 May Jehovah give him  strength upon the couch
of languor; [C]
Thou hast made all his bed in his sickness.
4 For me, I have said, O Jehovah, have pity upon
me,
0 heal my soul.  Surely I bear blame before
thee. [D]
5 My enemies wish me evil;
" When will he die and his name perish?"
6 If any one come to see me, he talks deceitfully; 
His heart of itself conceiveth some-base-surmise; t
He goeth abroad and uttereth it.
* Many of the Jews who visited our Lord, came to him with in.
sidious designs.
t Literally, "his heart gathereth iniquity ('rI) to itself." The
iniquity which the heart of the deceitful visitor gathereth, I take to
be base suspicions engendered in it, of its own malignity.




XLy;               PSALMS.                      109
7 All they that hate me whisper all-together against
me,
To myself they impute my calamity. 
8$   Some cursed thing t presseth heavily upon
chim,
" And when he is once down, he will rise no
more."
9 Even my own familiar firiend, in whom I put confidence,
Eating of my bread, has practised the greatest
treachery against me. [FJ
10 But thou, 0 Jehovah, have pity upon me,
And raise me up, that I may requite them.
I 1 By this I know that thou takest-delight in me,
Because my enemy will not triumph over me.
* They consider my afflicted state as a judgement upon me for
my own sins.
"t t Some cursed thing," i. e. the crime which they supposed to
be the cause of the divine judgement upon him.




o11                P S A L M S.          XLII. XLIII.
12 As for me, in my integrity, thou wilt support me,
And fix-my-station in thy presence for ever. [G]
PSALMS XLII.  & XLIII. As ONE.
[See Notes.]
I As the hart crieth after the flowing streams,
So my soul crieth after thee, 0 God.
2 Athirst is my soul for God, for the living Protector,
When shall I come, and see the face of [A] God.
$ To me my tears have been meat day and night,
While it is continually said unto mne, where is
thy God? *
4 These things I rememberl, [B] and to my-self I
pour out my soul;-; Compare 2 Pet. III, 3, 4.




XLI XLII.          P S A L M S.                 111
That I am to pass over to the tabernacle, —that I
shall escape from thee to the house of God, #
Amid the sound of exultation and thanksgiving,
The multitude rejoicing.
5 Why wilt thou bow thyself down, 0 my soul, and
disquiet thyself within me?
Wait-patiently for God; for I shall yet give him
thanks,
The preserver of my person, and my God. [C]
II.
6 Within me my soul is bowed down; therefore I
will remember thee,
Concerning the land of Jordan, and the Hermons;
concerning the little Hill.
7 Wave calleth unto wave, in addition to the noise
of thy water-spouts:
Over me are gone all thy breakers and thy billows.
* Or, according to another reading,'" That I am to pass over
6" to the tabernacle of the glorious ones, to the house of God."




112               P S A L M S.        XLIIi XLITIe
8 In the day-time Jehovah will appoint his abundantegoodness,
And in the night his song [E] shall be with me;prayer unto the protector of my life.'
9 I say unto God; my Rock, why hast thou fbrgotten me!
Why'go I mourning, while the enemy oppresseth?
I0 While the sword is in my bones IF], my enemies
insult me,
While they say unto me continually, where is
thy God?
i  1 Why wilt thou bow thyself down, 0 my soul,
and disquiet thyself within me?
Wait patiently for God, for I shall yet give him
thanks,
The preserver of my person, and my God.
Or, "' And in the night my constant song is prayer, &c.'" See
Notes.




X4IAIL       PSALMS.                  Ila
[XLJII]-IIIL
1 Give sentence for me, 0 God, and take up my
cause 
From a nation of no pity [G], from a man of
deceit and iniquity, deliver me;
2 For thou art my God, my strengthener; why hast
thou cast me off?
Why go I mourning while the enemy oppresseth?
s Send forth thy light and thy truth,
Let them lead me;
4 Let them bring me to thy holy hill, and to thy
dwellings;
So shall I come to the altar of God,
To God, in whom is all my joy,
And I shall praise thee upon the harp, O God
my God. [HII
s Why wilt thou bow thyself down, 0 my soul, and
disquiet thyself within me?




114              P S A LM S           XLIV* XLV.
Wait patiently for God; for I shall yet give him
thanks,
The preserver of my person, and my God.
PSALM  XLIV.
[See Notes.]
PSALM XLV.
EPITHALAMIUM. A MYSTIC SONG UPON A KING'S MARRIAGE.
MESSIAH? THE BRIDEGROOM; THE CHURCH~ HIS BRIDE. [A]
THIS Psalm relates to the second advent. The
Bridegroom is the conquering, not the suffering,
Messiah; the marriage is celebrated after his victories; and the Bride is the Church Catholic, rescued
from the persecutions of the antichristian faction,
and composed of the two great branches of the church,




XLV,                 PSALMS.                         115
that of the restored Jews, and that of the ingrafted
Gentiles.  Or rather, perhaps, the Bride or Consort
(Ivw) is the church: of' the converted Jews, become
the metropolitical church of all Christendom, and
the Virgin's companions are the other churches.
1 RMy heart labours* with a goodly theme,
I address my performance to the king;
Mly tongue is the pen of a well-instructed writer,t
2 Thou art adorned-with-beauty beyond-the sons
of men;
Grace is poured upon thy lips 
Therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.
3 Warrior! gird thy sword upon thy thigh;
Buckle on thy refulgent dazzling armour; EB]
4 And take thou aim; be prosperous, pursue, [C]
* Literally, " boileth, or bubbleth up."
- "Well-instructed,"' the word ~" ready,"' which is used in the
public translation, iightly understood, -enders the original proper~
ly; but then it must be understood, not for nimbleness of hand in
writing, but readiness of mind in the subject treated.
__ 2




116                   P S'A L MS                     XLV.
In the cause of truth, humility, and righteousness;
For thy own right hand shall shew thee wonders.
5 Thine arrows are sharpened, [D]
(Peoples shall lfal beneath thee)
In the heart of' the king's enemies.
6 Thy name, O God, is for ever and ever;
A straight sceptre is the sceptre of thy royalty.*
7 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated impiety;
Therefore God hath anointed thee,
Thy own God, with the oil of' gladness above thy
fellows. t
8 Thy garments are all myrrh,aloes, and cassia;[E]
Excelling ivory palaces, [F]
Excelling those which  delight thee.
* It is very evident that this verse is applicable to no throne and
to no sceptre, but the throne and sceptre of Messiah; nor can any
other king be addressed by the title of God.  Therefore, by Mr 
Hutchinson's rule, the whole Psalmhn belongs to him.
t Those whom thou art 1" not ashamed to call thy brethren."




XLTV.                 PS A L M S.                     117
9 King's daughters are among thy bright beau.
ties, [G]
On thy right hand the Consort[H]has-her-station,
In standard gold of Ophir.
10 Hearken,:O  daughter! and consider;
Incline thine ear, and forget
Thine own people, and thy father's house;
I1 So shall the king set-his-heart-upon thy beauty.
Truly he is thy Lord; therefore worship thou
him.
12 See the daughter of Tyre, with a gift! [I]
The wealthiest of the people shall entreat thy
favour.
13 She is all-glorious,-daughter of a king!t
Her inner garment is studded with gold;:
- See Bishop Horne's Note.
+ This "k ing's daughter," and the " consort" are evidently the
same person. "The connection between Christ and his churchl'
says Bishop Horne,' uniting in itself every relation, and every affbection."
t Literally, "with studs of gold."
H3m:




118                   P SALMS.                        XLV.
Her  upper garment is embroidered.with  the
needle,
14 She is-conducted-in-procession to the King;
The virgins follow her*, her companions;
They are coming unto thee,
15 They are conductedin-procession, with festivity
and rejoicing;
They enter the palace of the King.
16 Thy children  shall be in the place of thy fa.
therst;
Thlou shalt appoint them  for princes over all the
earth.
- If the consort be the church of the restored Jews, these virgins, her companions, are the other churches of Christendom. See
my Sermons, Vol. I.
t " Thy children shall be what thy fathers were," God's chosen
and peculiar people.  Or, " Thy sons shall eclipse the glory of
thy fathers, born to the inheritance of a better kingdom."




XLVI.-XLIX.       P S A L M S.               119
17 I shall propagate-the-remembrance of thy name
to all generations, [K]
Insomuch that the peoples shall praise thee for
ever,
PSALMS XLVI. XLVII. XLVIII
[See Nbtes.]
PSALM  XLIX.
U/PON DEATH. TO THE PRJECENTOR, A SONG FOR THE SONS
OF KORAH. [A]
1 Hear this, all ye peoples,
Give ear all ye inhabitants of the world;
2 Both the sons of the low, and the sons of the
great, [B]
The rich man and the poor, one with another.
s My mouth uttereth maxims-of-wisdom,
And the meditations of my heart are xmatters of~
understanding.
114




120               P S A L                    X S.  LIX,
4 I incline [C] mine ear to the parable,
I propound my mysterious doctrine [D] upon
the harp.
5 Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil,
When the iniquity of-those-who-plot-against-me
environs mne, [E]
6 Of those who trust in their own wealth,
And boast themselves in the multitude of their
riches? [F]
7 No man can by anymeans redeem his brother,[G]
He cannot give unto God an atonement for himself'; [HI]
8 For costly is the ransom of their soul;
And he that ceaseth fbr ever, yet shall live. [I]
9 [K] To all eternity he shall not see corruption,
Allhough he see it. —Wise men die
Io Equally with the foolish and stupid;
They perish, and leave their wealth to strangers.




XLX.                  P SALMS.                          121
11 Their inward thought [L] is, that their houses 
are for ever;
Their dwellings from  generation to generation;
They call countries after their own names.
12 For man, when he is in honour, will not understand, [M]
He is like the beasts which sink into nothing. t
13 This way T of theirs is their folly,
Yet those-who-coime-after-them  delight.in theirmaxims.
14 Like-a-flock-of sheep  they  are appointed unto
hell;
Death is their shepherd. EN]
The just shall.ha-ve-dominion over them  in the
msorning; [O]
z i. e. "' Their families."
t Inasmuch as he gives himself up, like a mere animal, to his
appetites, as if he had neither hope nor fear beyond the present
life.
j i. e. This way of using no discretion, (of not understanding)
and of giving themselves up, like the brutes, to their appetites.




122                   P S A L M S.                  XLIX.
And their beauty [P] is [appointed] to decay,hell is the dwelling for them.
15 But God shall redeem  my soul
From the power of hell, for he shall receive me.*
16 Fear thou not, when any one becometh rich,
When the glory of his house is advanced.
17 Truly, when he dieth he shall carry nought away;
His glory shall not follow him.
18 For while he lived, he received his gratificationst,
And he shall praise thee because thou doest well
for thyself.
19 He shall go[Q] to the generation of his fathers;
To all eternity they shall not see light. [R]'
c " He," i. e. God shall take me to himself.
t Literally, " he blessed his soul," i. e. he received his gratifications; but hereafter he shall praise thee, who, by a more pru.
dent conduct, providest for thy future happiness.  " Son, remems
ber, thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and, likewise,
Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted, and thou art torment,
ed." Luke, XVI, 25.




x;,                PSALMS.                      12A
20 When man is in honour he will not understand;
lie is like the beasts which sink into nothing.
PSALM L.
THE PROPAGATION OF THE GOSPEL, AND THE ABOLITION OF
THE. MOSAIC RITUAL.
PART I.-PSALMIST.
I The Omnipotent God, Jehovah hath spoken,
And hath summoned the earth, frorn the rising
of the sun to its going down.*
2 The perfection of beauty from Zion
Hiath God displayed.
3 Our God shall come and shall not be silent,
A fire devoureth before him,,
And around him the whirlwind rageth.
This summoning of the earth from east to west can be nothing
but the general promulgation of the gospel.




12'iJ              PSALMS..
4  He shall summon the heavens from above,
And the earth, to the judgement of his people.
5 "* Assemble. unto me, my saints,
" Those who have struck the covenant with me
over the sacrifice."
6 A.nd the heavens shall declare his righteousness,
For God himself is judge.
PART I.-GOD EXPOSTU-LATES.
7 Hear, 0 my people, for I will speak,
O Israel, for I bear-witness against thee,
I am God, thine own God.
S On account of thy sacrifices I will not reprove
thee,
Or thy burnt-offerings;-they are continually
before me.*
9 I will not take a bullock out of thine house,
Or he-goat out of thy folds.
"I have no complaint against thee on that account." Dr Durell.




P S AL MS.                 125
10 For to me belong all the beasts of the forest,
The cattle upon the hills of oxen. *
11 I know every fowl of the mountains,
And every reptile of the field is by my side. [ A]
12 If I were hungered, I would not tell thee;
For to me belongs the world and all-its-store,
13 Shall I eat the flesh of bulls,
And drink the blood of goats?
14 The sacrifice for God is thanksgiving,
And the offering for the Highest, thy vows.
15 And call upon me in the day of distress;
Then I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify
me.
16 But to the impious God saith,
What concerns it thee, to recite my statutes,
And why takest thou my covenant in thy moutlh 
zi e. Where oxen range.




126               PSALMS L.
17 Whereas thou hatest instruction,
And castest my words behind thee,
18 If thou didst spy a thief, instantly thou-becalmest.
his accomplice, [C]
And thou hast-taken-thy-share with-the~adulterers.
19 Thy mouth hath-been-fruitful in mischief, [C]
And thy tongue frameth deceit.
20 Thou sittest [D], and speakest against thy brother,
Against the son of thy mother thou pourest.out
abuse.
21 These things thou hast done, and I was still;
Thou hast thoulght that I AM is such an one as
thyself. [E]
I will-call-thee-to account, and I will be thy adversary to thy face. [FJ
22 Now consider this, ye that forget God,
Lest I [G] tear in pieces, and there be no deli.
verer.




xU. —Lv.         P S A L M S.                127
23 He who sacrificeth praise, shallbe-deemed-to-honour me,
And him that sets-in-order [H] his courlse, I will
visit with the salvation of God.
PSALMS LI. LII. LIII. LIV.
(See Notes.]
PSALM LV.
THAT Absalom's rebellion gave occasion to the
LVth psalm may seem not improbable, when we recollect the particulars of that story, as it is related in
the XVth chapter of' the 2d book of Samuel. The
consternation and distress expressed in verses 4, 5, 6,
7, 8, describe the king's state of mind when he fled
from Jerusalem, and marched weeping up the mount
of Olives.  " The iniquity cast upon the Psalmist
" answers to the complaints, artfully raised against




I 2&            iPSALMS.                     LVo
"the king by his son, of a negligent administration
"of justice, and to the reproach of cruelty cast
"upon him by Shimei," 2 Sam. XV, 2. 4. & XVI, 7.
8. The equal, the guide, and the familiar friend,
we find in Achitophel, the confidential counsellor,
first of David, afterwards of Absalom.  The'" butb
"' tery mouth and oily words" describe the insidious
character of Absalom, as it is delineated by the historian, 2 Sam. XV, 5. 9. Still, the believer, accustomed to the double edge of the prophetic style, in
reading this Psalm, notwithstanding its agreement
with the occurrences of David's life, will be led to
think of David's great descendant, who endured a
bitterer agony, and was the victim of a baser treachl-9
ery, in the same spot where David is supposed to
have uttered these complaints.
PART I. —SUPPLICATION.
1 Give ear, 0 God, unto my prayer,
And hide not thyselffirom my supplication.
2 Hearken unto me, and ansXwer me;
I am brought low with my anxietyL[A], and am
distracted,




Lv.                   P S AL M S.                     129
3 With the cry of the enemy, with the oppression
of the impious;
Who cast iniquity upon me,* and [as] in wrath
wreck their spite upon me.
4 My heart is sore within me,
The terrors of death are fallen upon me.
5 Fear and dismay are come upon me,
Convulsive tremblings come over me.
6 And I say, Oh, that I had the pinion of the dove,
That I might flee away, and be at rest.
7 Lo, I would get far away,
I would lodge a wanderer in the wilderness.
c  Cast iniquity upon me," literally, " slide iniquity upon me,".e. by oblique and artful insinuations they asperse my character.
The sentiment of the whole line I take to be this, that the enemies of the Psalmist, by sly insinuations, brought him under the
suspicion of the worst enemies, and then wrecked their malice
upon him, under the colour of a just resentment.




130                 P S A L M S. 
8 Soon would I provide me a shelter ",
From the driving storm and whirlwind.
PART II. —ACCUSATION.
9 Confound, 0 Lord, divide their tongues  [B]
Truly, I have seen violence and strife in the city.
io Day and night, upon her walls, it surrounds her;
Misery and distress is in the midst of her;
11 Profligacy is in the midst of her;
Deceit and guile depart not from her streets.
12 Truly no enemy reviled me, or I would have
borne it 
Not one that bore me open hatred magnified him.
self against me;
For from such a one I would have hidden myself
* The sentiment is, that he should with more ease provide a shel.
ter against the storms in the wilderness, than against the'malice of
man in the city.




LV.                PSA L M S.                 13
13 But thou, a iIan, put upon-a-level with myself,
My confident, and my familiar fiiend.
14 We took delight to converse of our secrets together,
In the house of God we walked together in the
crowd.
PART IIL,
15 Let death exalt his claim [C] upon them,
Let them go down alive into hell;
For wickedness is in their dwellings, in the very
midst of them. ~
1 6 As for me, I call upon God,
And Jehovah shall save me.
17 Evening, and morning, and noon-day,
I pine inwardly t, and am distracted: But he will
hear my voice;'  i. e.'" In the inmnost recesses of their dwelling-houses~
j. See verse 2.
I 2




132                PS ALMS.                   Lv.
18 Securing my person * from  the battle that is
against me,
For they who stood on my side told for many. [D]
19 The Omnipresent One will hear,
And he that abideth of old [Ej will give them their
due;
Inasmuch as they are incapable of change,
And will not fear GOd.
0o I-le hath put forth his hand against those with
whom he was at peace,
IlHe hath violated his own covenant.
21 Smooth is his buttered speech, [F]
When war is in his heart;
His words are softer than oil,
When they are drawn swords.
ORACULAR VOICE&
22 Cast thy care upon Jehovah, for he will sustain
thee;
- Literally, "redeeming my person in peace."




LvIo                  P SALM  S.                       13~
-lHe will not suffer the JUST ONE to be tossed about
for ever.
PSALMIST.
23 Thou, then, 0  God, wilt bring them  down into
the pit of destruction;
The men of blood and deceit shall not finish half
their days:
But I will put-trust in thee.
PSALM LVI.
A PRAYER OF THE MESSIAH. [A]
T  Take pity upon me, O God, for men [B] tramplemae-under-foot; *
Every day the foe [C] harasseth me.
a " Trample-me-under-foot." The original has an allusion to
the curse upon the serpent, which cannot be preserved in a trans.
lation, fbr want of a word, which, like the Hebrew verb used here,
according to the reading of the old copies, and in Gen. III, 15.
may signify either to trample, or to bruise.'3




134  PSALMS.                                              LVI.
2 My eneimies trample-me-under-foot * [D] every
day,
For many they be who fight against me from  on
high. [EJ
3 What tine [F] I am  afraid,
I will put-trust lin thee.
4 God shall be the themie of my praise t: He-hathpassed-his-word, [G]
Therefore in God I   ha7e-placed-my-trust: I will
not fear
WAhat flesh can do, unto mre.
5 Continually they wrest  3['H] my words against me;
All their study is for mnischief:
6 They make a stir; [I]             they-are-ever-uponthe-watch; [Kl]
See" Note, preceding page.'+ " God shall be the therne of my praise," literally, "I will praise
GCod;" but the original word signifies, not devotional praise addressed to God hi mself, but the public praise of God addressed to
men; —tl-e ceh:.:bration of him as the Psalmist's deliverer, and the
avenger y o  hiof; bwrvo3ngs, This fbrce of the original word I cannot
e aess but by?,i:phrtasis.




E,~.                 P S A INPSALMSo                135
They observe my steps, because they.are-impatient-for my life.
7 In vanity is the hope-of-deliverance for them;[L]
In anger, O God, bring thou down the peoples.
8 Thou takest account of my persecutions;
Put my tears in thy bottle, [M]
Are not these things in thy book?
9 Then * shall mine enemies retreat,t
When I cry unto thee [N].  This I know,
For to me thou art God. T
10 God shall be the theme of my praise; he.hathl
passed-his-word, ~
* At that moment.
t Matt. XXVI, 53.
$ This is opposed to what was said (v. 7.) of the Psalmist's enes
mies, that their whole hope of deliverance is in vanity,-a false re.
ligion.
~ The word spoken by God, in which the person uttering this
Psalm takes so much comfort, is the promise, that the woan'.s
seed should be victorious.




136S                 P I S A_ L M S.                LVI.
Jehovah shall be the theme of my praise; he-hathpassed-his-word.
11 In God I have-placed-my-trust; I will not fear
What man can do unto me.
12 Unto me, O God, are thy vows, ~
I will repay thee praises.
S1  For thou hast delivered [0] my soul from death,
And what is more, my feet from falling;
That I may walk before God,
In the light of the living.
PSALM LVII..A PRAYER OF THE MESSIAH.
THE composition of this Psalm is remarkably elergant.  It begins in a plaintive strain, imploring aid,
X By a bold figure, the promise of the Messiah's victory is mentioned as a vow, by which'the Father had bound himself to the Son.
The Messiah is the speaker throughout this Psalm.




LwV. I             P S A L M Sa S.             37
and expressing deep distress, and extreme danger.
When suddenly, in the 7th verse, in the sure prospect of the divine assistance, the strain is changed
to notes of praise and triumph, as over an enemy alb
ready fallen.
l Take-pity-upon me, O God, take-pit-y-upon-me,
For with thee my soul hath-taken-shelter;
Even under the shadow of thy wing I-seek-shelter,
Till calamity be overpast, [A]
2 I will call upon God most High,
Upon God who will bring things to a conclu*
sion rB] for me.
3 He shall send from I-eaven and save me;
He shall give to reproach them that trample
on [C] my soul;*
God shall send forth his kindness and truth.
4 I have-my-lodging amidst lions; [D]
The sons of men are fiery [with rage];
* Literally, "c the bruisers of my soul."




Is8      ~~P S A L M S,.'vw'
Their teeth are spears and arrows,
And their tongue a sharpened Sword.
5 Exalt thyself, above the heavens, O God,
Thy glory above all the earth.
6 They have prepared a net for the steps
Of me, humbled * [E] in my soul;
They have digged a pit before me:They are fallen into the middle of it.
7 My heart is ready, 0 God, my heart is ready; 
I will sing, and chaunt-the-holy-lay.
8 Awake my glory t, awake psaltery and harp,
Myself-I-will-awaken early. I
9 I will praise thee among the peoples, O Lord;
To thee I will chaunt among the nations.
* Literally,'6 bowed down."
f i. e. My tongue, my voice.
$ Or, perhaps with Bp. Horne, "J will awaken the morning.'"




LVIII.            PSALMS.                    1~9
10 For thy mercy towereth unto the heavens,
And thy truth unto the fleecy-clouds.
I 1 Exalt thyself, O God, above the heavens,
Thy glory above all the earth.
PSAL   LVIII.
GOD' S JUST JUDGEMENT FORETOLD AGAINST THE UNJUST
JUDGES OF OUR LORD. (SEE PSALM LXXXII.)
THIS Psalm has no obvious connection with any
particular occurrence in the life of David; but it is
connected remarkably with the history of Christ. It
reproaches some tribunal with unjust decisions; taxes
the rulers of the world, or mankind in general, with
selfish schemes of wickedness. threatens them with
destruction, and promises the institution of an up.
right judicature; with some allusion in the end to
some one Just Person, and soame one wicked person
opposed to him.




140                   P S A L M  S.                  LVIIy.
I Are ye in earnest*, 0 faction, when ye talk of
righteousness,
Do ye  give-sentence uprightly, O  ye sons of
men?
2 Nay, but in your heart you work wickedness upon
the earth,
You concert your schemes of violence. t [A]
s The impious are alienated, from  the womb;
From the very-birth, they go astray t, speakers of
falsehood.
4 Their malignant temper EB] is like the serpent;
Like the deaf adder that stoppeth his ear,
e The insinuation of a hypocritical pretence to righteousness,
strongly points at the Scribes and Pharisees of our Lord's times.
-- c' Schemes of violence," literally, "' the violence of your
6i hands." i. e. You lay out, in your imaginations, the schemes which
your hands are to execute.
$ "They wander," i. e. they are unprincipled;-they wander
over the field of life, not determined to any certain path.




LVI [e             P S A L M S.               1 4_1
5 Which will not hearken to the sound of muttered
charms,
ETo the voice] of the skilful enchanter. [C]
6 God is breaking their teeth in their mouths;
The grinders of the young-lions Jehovah is breaking out. [D]
7 They shall [E-I melt away like water which is in
continual flow,
He shall level his arrows against them,
And like i**** they shall split in pieces. EF]
s Thou shalt dissolve them like wax,
Like as a woman's untimely birth is gone, [G]
Never seen of the sun i.
9 Before your pots feel the bramble,
In whirlwind and hurricane he shall sweep them
away. [H]
^ Or, C'  not having seen the sun,"




142:              PSAL MS.                 zv~.!0 The JUST ONE shall rejoice when he seeth the
vengeance,
He shall wash his feet in the blood of the impious
one:
it So that mankind' shall say, Truly there is a reward for the JUST ONE;
Truly there is a God who executeth-judgement
in the earth.
- Literally, "6 a man."




CRITICAL NOTES
UPON THE
PSALMS.r








CRITICAL NOTES
UPON THEI
PSALMS.L
ap s ~~a.~e. s -._
PSALM  It
Vera is -;in the counsel,," Rather, - "-4-6 after the coutVer. 4. —  "like the chaff which the wind driveth away:,"
This allusion describes the instability of the principles of the
inmgodly, rather than of their fortunes,  Their want of principle is opposed to the good nman's steady meditation of Jeg
hovah's law, which is the foundation of his prosperity.  On
the other hand, because the ungodly want this principle,,
therefore they shall not stand in the judgnment.
Ver.. --— in the judgment."  The judgment here in.,
tended is evidently the last Judgment, and the congregation
of the righteous is their assembly at the tribunal of Christ atthe last day. ~ The ungodly shall not stand," i. e. they shall
not be establisbled in this judgement, n1or have a place assign



$11,6'   ~~CRITICAL NOTES                     PSALM I. It.
ed them  among the just.  And to this effect Bishop IHare,
ln ~2p;  videtur sensu forensi sumendum, ut Latinis stare
et causa cadere."
Ver. 6.'" For the Lord knoweth the way —" rather, " For
Jehovah attendeth to the way," i. e. to the fortunes.']11 is used
variously, either for thle course of a man's fortunes, or the
course of his morals.  The former, I think, is the sense here.
PSALM I.
CA] Ver. 4 — d shall laugh." Houbigant to the verb 1p3~
would add the pronominal suffix =. But this alteration, however it may seem to be countenanced by the version of tle
LXX. is unnecessary; as nt5 at the end of the sentence may
serve for both the verbs p3In  and and.  VWe find.the same
construction in the Targum.
lHe that sitteth upon the heavens shall laugl,
The Lord shall make scorn at them;
i. e. laugh at them,-malke scorn at them.
[B] Ver. 5. —  speak against them." The verb speak bhas
no nominative expressed in the Hebrew text.  Our translators, tlerefore, properly supply the pronoun of the third




.PSAL.I l.     CRITICAL NOTES.                       14a,
person, rehearsing t/e Lord, the subject of the verb in the
last line of the preceding distich: and this nominative understood is rehearsed by the suffixes of thle nouns, r'attA  and
displeaszure.  For Yi?5  the Syriac has E:-;   a word so
near the Hebrew ]]~Sy that one is almost tempted to coljecture that the Syriac interpreter found this word instead of
Inr5-% in the MSS. which he used, and preserved it in his
translation as a proper name.
6 Then shal1 the Hichest speak in his wrath."
[C] Ver. 6. Yet will I anoint my king, &c."'Eyv N\ X'aCTT0
OeO5 TO 06710Y 0VTOV2 m&Omyv(AAa i f
KvlOv, LXX.  Ego autem  constitutus sum rex ab eo super
Sion montem  sanctum ejus, praedicans praeceptum ejus. Vulg.
For ~9D5, therefore, and V13p, the copies used by the LXX,
had S15n and )WVp.
[D] Ver. 7. _-   the decree."  For ji~5~ read 1P 47, and
understand -Rs as the accusative after the verb p5.  The
literal rendering will be, 6" I will declare what God has decreed."
[E] Ver. 9. --- break." 7roCvats;,     LXX.  Iteges, Vulg.
Pasces, Hieron.  All these interpreters referred the verb to
the root fY1, not yY1.2s 




4 +8            CRITICAL NOTES.    PSALM Irl. IV.
[F] Ver. I 2. — from the way." Bishop Hare would read
Inn -"- instantly," or —" upon the spot;" e vestigio, illico,
subito.  If this sense of the word can be proved, the emendlation mcay then seem highly probable,
PSALM  HIr.
PRAYER OF A BELIEVER FOR DELIVERANCE FROM THE ATIiER
ISTICAL CONSPIRACY.~
In this, as ini all the psalms of the like argument, the come
plaint and petitions for relief and helpes are intermixed with
expressions of praise and thanksgivinig for former mercies,
professions of secure reliance on God's protection, and of joy
hi the expectation of a final deliverance.
P S A LM M   IV.
TIE SAME SUBJECT.
[TITLE' —-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. UPON THE STRINGED)
INSTRUMENTS. A- PSALM OF DAVID.]
Ver. 2. --  how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how
long will ye love-" Rather,
This is the first of the Psalms that has a title. The title is, c "A
psalm of David when he fled from Absalom his son." But nothing
in the psalm has any particular reference to that event.




PSALM~ Iv.      CRITICAL NOTES.                      m49
44 How long shall my glory be my reproach? ye love," &c.
This seems to be the language of a pious man, whose piety
was the jest of his profane contemporaries; or, more particularly, of a believer reproached and ridiculed ioi his belief.and trust in his crucified Saviour.  But the LXX. seem to
lhave followed a very different reading; for  nD5Di their copies
had MDA 25a, which two words are to be understood to be separated by a note of interrogation, that the preceding clause
may end with Z5, and the word,M25 may begin a new question.
Ye sons of men, why are ye slow of understanding? "
Why love ye vanity.
Bishop Lowth esteems this the true reading; but I am inclined.
to prefer the text as it now stands.
--— seek after leasing," rather     seek after untruth."
These reproachful questions are addressed either to the votaries
of idolatry, or, which comes nearly to the same thing, to those
who were scandalised at the meanness of our Lord's appearance.  They are said to be stupid, not to have a right judges
ment of the real worth of things, or to distinguish what is
really valuable in the sight of God, from the delusive, outside
show of worldly grandeur.' Lit erally,   heavy of heart."




ft 5               C, IT K 1. AL  NOTES.           PSALA. IV,,
Ver, 3,   --- hath set apart him that is godly for himselfP"
~him-, that is godyq, rather, a godly oze.
— for himsey: Bishop Hare for 15 reads 45; and renders the
passage thus —-" mirificavit Jah misericordlica-   suam mihi."
Bishop Lowth thinks the emendation probable.  It seems to
me, however, that no emendation is necessary, and that Bishop
IHare's is for the worse, according to the present reading of the
preceding verse, which Bishop Hare retains; but if the Septuagint-reading of that verse, which Bishop Lowth approves,
be adopted, then the pronoun of the third person is preferable
here.  Bishop Hare's alteration is justified by none of the
ancielnt versions. The two verses, according to the Septuagint
reading, are to this effect
Ye sons of men, why are ye slow of understanding?
Why love ye vanity, and seek-after untruth?
But know, that Jehovah hath set-apart for hiamself a-godly-oue.-.
dehova h will hear me when I call unto himl
Vwhich is very good sense, buit certainly not pretirable to thIat
wvhich the Hebrew te-t gives as it stands.,_ctehoval hath set apart for li mself a godly one," &c. Know,
there is a certain godly person who lias a particular interest:
with Jehovah, and through this interest I an heard.-" Settapart."  The Hebrew verb,I!D signifies to distinguish manld(
mark one or more out of a mrnlltitt-ide, by particular p.arivleges
Ism( prel ro'atives.




PSALM I V.        CRITICAL NOTES.                     151
Ver. 4. *" Stand in awe," rather, "* Be ye angry;" or, if a
low word might be used9 G grumnble."  The Hebrew verb expresses the angry murmurings of the factious and discontented.
This and the following verse are addressed to the idolatrous
faction, supposed to be vexed and enraged at the prerogatives of thile Godly One, and to murmur at the interest of his
prayers to the exclusion of all others.  However you may
dislike this arrangement, says the Psalmist, it is my advice to
you to smother your resentment, and if secretly you murmurl
sin not; let not your dissatisfaction carry you to pany acts of
open rebellion. Consider the mnatter coolly in youi-r own mlinds,
in private, and be still. And when, by sober reflection, you
have brought yourselves to this temper of submission, then
come and offer the sacrifices of righteousness, unite with the
righteous in that worship which God requires, and refractory
a-nd impious as hitherto you have been, yet thus chang'ed,
put your trust in Jehovawh.
Ver. 6. and 7. --— lift up the light." —— Thou hast put glad:
ness." I, from a. firm trust in the final deliverance, feel a secret
joy, beyond any satisfaction that the worldly-mlinded canl receive,
from the amnual increase of his perishable store. O Jehovah,
show some public signal of thy favour, that the adverse faction
may no longer insult our depressed condition, as though we
were abandoned of thee, and given up without help or hope
to their persecution.  Compare Ps. III, 2, 3.




15S              CRITICAL NOTES.               PSALIM V
Ver. 8. I will both" —- rather,   at once." I am asleep
the moment I am laid down.  Bp. Lowth.
PSALM V.
[:TITLE —— O THlE GIVER OF VICTORY. UPON TIHE FLUTES.
A PSALM Or DAVID.]
[A] Ver. 1. --- my sighing."  I am in doubt whether the
Hebrew word %8., be used, in this place, to denote the internal desire of the mind, in opposition to s')S, the words
uttered in the former branch of the verse, or for a prayer, uttered sotto voce, like the private prayer usually said by every person before he take his seat in church, or for the internal mo-;ion of the mind toward God, uttered only in sighs and groans
sE~,y,   &hxa!,01, Rom. VIII, 26.  Jerome renders it by the
Latin word murmur, the LXX. by the Greek word x.vy;
but the root MiNi describes indeed a rumination of the mind,
but properly as accompanied with some external sound.  It
rather, I think, denotes the signification of some strong afftec.
ltioon of the mind, in inarticulate sounds, than in words. Peraj)Ys therefore, the best rendering of this line would be thlSim:
G:ive ear, 0 Jehovah, to my words,
UJyderstand amy sighiig.




PSALM V.        CRITICAL NOTES.                      Add
EB] Ver. 3. --  direct my prayer unto thee," Eng. Transs
rather, --  set-every-thing-in-order before thee," i. e. upon
the altar, as was the duty of his office. See MUDGE.
and will look up," E. T. rather, --  and will look out
for thee," or "watch for thee," i. e. watch for some usual signal
of God's favour; some appearance in the flame of the sacrifice,
or a ray of the Sheckinah issuing from tile sanctuary.  I apprehend that theldative'5 serves for both the verbs 17117 and;5X2.9  Nothing is more frequent in the Psalms, than that
twoiverbs should have a commlnon casual noun.  The passage
cannot be rendered intelligibly in our language without a repetition of the pronoun, because the preposition before will
not give the true sense after the verb watch, nor the prepositionfor after the verb set-in-order.
[C] Ver. 4. --  wickedness --  evil-" E. T. I think
the nouns YVW  and VI in this place rather render, "'a wicked
person," (and an "C evil person," than wickedness and evil.
Truly thou art not a God that delighteth in a wicked person,
An evil person shall not be thy guest.
The priest admitted to lodge within the precincts of the temple,
was, as it were, God's guest, entertained in God's own house.
From this privilege of being lodged in God's true house, typified by the Mosaic temple, every evil person is excluded.




15b                 CRI]TICAL NOTES.                PSALM V.
r[D3 Ver. 7. — come --- worship."  The verbs in the
orilginal are in the future form.  But I think a translator's
Yule should be to express the Hebrew future, by the future or
the present, as may best suit the sense. The force of the
future here is to express, not the man's design but his privilege,
and his constant practice. —     I shall come," that is, I may
come, or am  permitted to come.-I enjoy the privilege firon
which the persons described in the two preceding verses are
excluded.
E] Ver. 9. -  no constancy." —-- no faithfulness." E. 7.
Bishop Hare iimhagines that the word l;N has been lost between
"11,2I and i~m   taking i1l= for a passive verb, which, as the
text stands, hath no subject. But why may not M,,13  be a nolun
substantive signifying sincerity, uprightness, veracity, and the
verb substantive be understood?  It is thus that Cocceius
explains the passage, and the version, of the LXX. seeim  to
countenance his exposition..  
The English word conzstancy, which was used in the old;translation, is far preferable tofaitid jtness..[Fl     they flatter with their tongue." E. T. The word to
snoot/h, is used in our language, in a mlanner exactly expressive
of the Hebrew metalhor, as our translators, at least, understood it.`We  say, to smooth a man over with the tongue.
This is, indeed, the -ITebrew phrase in Egiish w'ords. Blt




SALM. V            CELLTICAL  NOTES,                        55
vith us it is altogether vernacular. I have my doubts, indeed,
whether flattery be the thing meant by the Hebrew  words.
Is it not rather that the persons in question, by plausible arguments, and an ensnaring eloquence, contrived to set a fair
appearance upon mischievous maxims and pernicious practices.
Libertines, in all ages, have not wanted excuses for their riot
and debauchleries. The idolaters of antiquity, contrived to give
an air of my sterious sanctity to the idlest fazbles, and the flulest
rites; and the philosophical atheists of modern times, throw
an air of wisdomllover the most absurd doctrines, and the mlost
wicked principles,   Thus, the words of the wicked are fair,
while their practices are -abominable, and they promise well.
wvith the worst intentions.   The passage, therefore, may be
Apot ill rendered:.An open sepulchre is their throat,
They set-a-polish withl their tongue..?
[G  Ver. 12. -- with f1vour wilt thou. compass him as
with a shield." E.:  FThe original hath nothing rendering the
English preposition wit/l, before either of the nouns/arTvozu or
shield.  The preposition, therefore, in both places is supplied.
by the translators.  The original, rendered word by word,.
runs thus:
" Compai Esire Xsah Il, 2, & NA,,Vi~, 2i,




X1  (            CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALN V. 
-a. Like a shield, good-will, thlou-wilt-stand-guard-aroundhlim."  The easiest exposition wlich the passage, as it stands,
may admit, is to understanld the noun good-will as having that
relation to the noun shield, which, in the Latin or Greek languages, would be expressed by putting good-will in the ge-.
uitive case.
—' Like a shield of good-will."-The chief objection -to this
exposition of the words will be, that'slt: ought to be /M.oe
But the use of the absolute state for the constructed is so frequent, that this seems no difficulty.  Mr Mudge thinks that
MrrW is a spear rather than a shield.  But, in either sense of
this word, the grammatical exposition of the words, as well as
the general sentiment contained in them, will be the same.
stand-guard-around-him"' The verb'LOV which liter
rally signifies h"to crown, to surround," or compass, is, I think
t military term, denoting the posture of guards standing round
a king for the defence of his person.  The general sentiment,
therefore, is this, that God's good will towards the JUST ONE
is to him, instead of the shields or spears of an armed band,
surrounding his person to keep off the eneny.




PSALMIVe         CR I TICAL NOTES                     5
PSALM VI.
A PENITENTIAL PRAYER IN THE CHARACTER OF A SICK
PERSONo
[TITLE —TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. UPON THE STRINGED IISet
STRUMNENT, CONCERNING THE SUPERABUNDANCE.  A PSALM
OF DAVID.]
The supplicatory Psalms may be generally divided into two
classes according to the prayer; which, in soime, regards the
public, and in others, the individual. In those of the latter class,
which is the most numerous, the supplicant is always in distress.  His distress arises chiefly firom the persecution of his
enemies.  His enemies are always the enemies of God and
goodness. Their enmity to the suppliant is unprovoked. If
it has any cause, it is only that he is the faithful servant of Jehovah, whose worship they oppose. They are numerous and
powerful, and use all means, both of force and stratagem, for;
the suppliant's destruction; —an object, in the pursuit of which
they are incessantly employed.  The suppliant is alone, without friends, poor, and destitute of all support but God's providential protection.  When the great inequality between the
suppliant and his enemies is considered, with respect to their
different rank and fortunes in the world, it seems strange thait




31 i5 8           CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALIM Vi,.
one, so inconsiderable as he is described to be, should at all
attract the notice of persons so greatly his superiors, or that
having once incurred their displeasure, he should not be imrmediately cut off.  But, although their malice is perpetually
at work, their point is never carried.  They keep him indeed
inl perpetual alarm and vexation, but they seem  never to advance a single step nearer to the end of their wishes, viz. his
destruction. The suppliant, on the other hand, often miracuiously relieved, is yet never out of danger, though he looks
forward with confidence to a period of final deliverance.  If
at any time he is under apprehension of death, it is by the
visitation of God in sickness.  And at those seasons, the persecution of his enemies always makes a considerable part of
the affliction.  They exult in the prospect of his dissolution;
upbraid him as deserted by his God; and, in the end, feel the
highest disappointment and vexation at his recovery.
From these circumstanyes, which in the aggregate will not
apply to any character {n the Jewish history, there is good
reason to conclude that the suppliant is a mystical personage; sometimes the Messiah, sometimes the Church, sometimes an individual of the faithful.  The enemies, too, are
mystical; —the devil, and the evil spirits his confederates, and
atheists and idolaters, considered as associated with the rebellious angels. The sickness, too, is mystical: When the Messiah himself is the sick person, the sickness is his humiliation,
and the wrath which he endured for the sins of mten: TWhen
the church is personated, her sickness is the frailty of her




PSALM VI.         CRITICAL  NOTES'.                       IM5
mnembers.  But in some Psalms, the sick suppliant is the be,.
liever's soul, labouring under a sense of its infirmities, and
anxiously expecting the promised redemption; the sickness
is the depravity and disorder occasioned by the fall of man.
Ver. 5. 6. For in death, &c."  The langtuiage, as it may
seem, of despair; but not so when the expressions are critically analyzed.  " Death" is an affection of the body, and of
that only.  IWO? is the mansion of departed souls, where thev
wait the general resurrection. The verb ill properly relates
to acts'of public'worship.  The assertion therefore is, that
the dead body has no remembrance of God at all, nor are
there any public acts of worship in Sheol.
Ver. 7. Mine eye consumed;" rather, 6 is grown stiff.
Ver. 8e --— workers of iniquity;" rather, — dealers hi
vanity."  The idolaters, who take occasion of the sick man's
danger and alarm, to entice him  over to their party, by the
offer of relief through their arts of incantation. Their insidious
attempts to seduce hlim, rouse his mind, and revive his trust inr
God.  This is the only reason that appears for the sudden
transition, from the langt'agee of despair to that of confidence
and joy.
- hath heard;" rather, " he ars," ot' " is h earinga"




160              CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALM VIwf
Ver. 9. — hath heard," as before, 1" hears," or c" is hear —
ing."
Ver. 10; Let all mine enemies;" rather, "C All mine enemnies shall be."
--— let them return and be ashamed suddenly;" rather,
— they shall again suddenly be-brought-to-shame."
PSALM VII.
[A] Ver. 1. --— renting it in pieces while there; is none to de,
liver." E. T. The verb pi'  signifies not only to rend, or break,
but also to rescue byforce; (see Ps. CXXXVI. 24. and Lam. V.
8.) And in this sense the particle was understood in this
place by all the antient interpreters, unless Apollinarius be
considered as an exception.  M''11o; Axv1ov'Fo':v xcz0a' ac ov-o~, -
LXX. Dum non est qui redimat, neque qui salvum faciat. Vulg.
The Syriac is to the same effect. It should seem that, in the
copies used by these translators, the whole line stood thus,
As the line now stands in the Masoretic text, psD should be
ta.ken as the verb in the imperative:
Rescue, for there is no deliveerere




PSALM VII.        CRITICAL  NOTES.                       161
Having no helper among men, he prays that God would
rescue him.
Apollinarius seems to have taken the word as a passive participle, rendering it viribus cofir'actus, and descriptive  of
tihe suppliant's own condition:
MWwoze nPagsr,~Es X'SVw y OS ors "Oa ro,
nr~(cw  a*iMvocAXovT os>9 can 6',IvTogos ovL sgaEOT65.
Perhaps, if we had the particulars of the depositions of the'hlse witnesses against our Lord, we might find an appropriate application of these protestations to our Lord himself.
njjt may refer to some particular crime laid to his charge.
But is it not possible, that our Lord may take to himself the
false accusations of his servants, when things of which they
are innocent are laid to their charge as Christians, as crimes
to which their religion is supposed to lead them;-as, at this
very day, violences of which they are innocent are hourly
laid to the charge of the emigre clergy of France, as Christians, by the atheistical government of that country, merely as
a pretence for persecuting the Christian name? Messiah takes
to himself these false accusations of his religion, and, in the
shape of protestations of his own innocence, gives the lie to
these accusers of the brethren, and threatens them  with the
Divine vengeance.
Bishop Horne's notion of this Psalms was not different
from this, for lhe says   it may be considered as the appeal
VOL. I,                                L




162                CRITICAL NOTES.               PSALM  VI:
of the true David and his disciples, against the grand Accuser
and his associates."
[B] Ver. 4. ---- Yea I have delivered him, &c." E. T. This
parenthesis not only intervenes aukwardly, but the characteristic
parallelism of the Hlebrew distich is altogether missing in this
place.  The substantive,~5t is twice usecld  for spoils stript.froeZ the carcase of a slain enemvy.  Hence it should seem that
the verb ~iT may signify not only to deliver, but to strip,
spoil, or phlnder.  Indeed its primary sense is extrahere, or
defrahere.  If the sense of plundering may be admitted, tlle
proper parallelism will appear in tho distich'
If I have made an ill return to him that was at peace with me,
Or, without provocation, have plundered my greatest enemy.
The verb ~yn in the Chaldee dialect confessedly bears this
sense, to spoil.  Houbigant's emendation, therefore, is unnecessary, though it consists only in a single transposition;
SnxN5  for 1l2nx.e
Dr Durell thinlks the passage may be thus rendered:' If I have taken up arms without cause against my enemy."9
He says the verb ~5rM is so used Nurm. XXXI, 3. XXXII,
iz. Judges XIV. 19. & 29 Samn IL2,I




PSALM VIIa       CRITICAL NOTES.                      63
17. 20. and 1 Chron. XII, 23, 24. But these places justify
no such interpretation of the verb. It signifies, indeed, to be
armed, or accoutredfor war, but not, that -1 can find, to arm.
against.
him that was at peace with me." Two texts, Gen.
XXXIV, 21. and 2 Sam. XX, 19. justify the sense in which
the,word SKEW is taken here, and refute the criticism  of
Bishop IHare.
[C] Ver. 5. -     lay mine honour."  For IW, HIoubigant would read 1~P.
ED] Ver. 8. --— and according to mine integrity that is in
me." E. T. " And according to mine integrity render unto men."
Chald.  Hence it should seem that a word is wanting in the
Hebrew to answer to the Chaldee 9Vl.  Houbigant accordingly supplies fb. Or, perhaps, no word may be wanting,
but the author of the Targumn may have considered the imperative   W as understood again after OJDI.
Give sentence for me, 0 Jehovah, according to my righteous.
ness,
And according to my integrity [give sentence] upon me.
[E] Ver. 9. O let the wickedness of the wicked come to
Ian end, but establish the just." &c. E. T.
In the first clause, the Psalmist desires, or affirms, the abot
2




7 16               CPRITICAL  NOTES,                PSALM vIL,
lition of the wickedness of the impious.  The paralellisms, inl
which the Hebrew poetry so much delights, require that, in
the second clause, he should desire, or affirm, the establishment of the righteousness of the just. I suspect that a nounsubstantive hath been lost out of this second clause, and I
think the lost noun is to be found in the form  of an useless
epithet in the next. I would, therefore, read the whole tristich
thus,
pi2 np-!:x pam 
And I would render the whole to this effect
Surely, the wvickedness of the impious shall be brought to an
end,
And the righteousness of the Just One shall be established,
And God shall explore the hearts and reins.
EF] Ver. 11.-    and God is angry;" E. T. rather, with
the ancient version,         although he is not angry every
day;" i. e. his anger is not breaking forth upon every occasion, yet the season of judgement will surely come.  eo eogos
ip~. LXX. Deus judex justus, fortis et patiens;  numquid
irascitur per singulas dies? [Vuig. ou %egm;' Tg0eX,4(V S"' &,fo0~T'6iY1iV <vgu6ye.,A  olnZMar,




Sf:LM' Vit.,      CRITICAL NOTES.                      I 65
[ GI Ver. 12. -.If he turn not." E. T. The subject of the
verb turn, is the enemy mentioned in the singular number
above in ver. 5. The same person who, in the same manner
not expressed, is the subject of the verbs-travaileth-hath
conceived —brought forth, in ver. 14. For the perspicuity of
the sentence, it were best in English to supply the indefinite
nominative, the man.
[H   ----' levelled."  The verb'fl3  expresses the action of taking aim: And the following verb;132'tl, the keeping of the weapon in the position of the aim taken.  See Ps.
XI, 2.
[I] Ver. 13. — he ordaineth his arrows;". 77. ratherl
"he will put his arrows in action."
-  against the persecutors." os;, ol0lS5.  LXX: which
St Basil expounds of those who are inflamed with evil passions and unbridled lusts, and are therefore fit for the fire of
eternal punishment.
[K] Ver. 14. Behold he travaileth." &c. E. 71 What follows
is an isl,:uovy uttered by the Psalmist in the prospect of the
last end of the wicked.
--—.he travaileth with iniquity;" rather, --— he is pregnant with vanity;" i. e. he is a zealous defender of the idolatrous
religion, or at least an opposer of the true. The idolatry of
the vulgar, and the infidelity of pretenders to philosophy, and




.1 66           CRITICAL NOTES.   PSALM VII. VIII.
the impiety of Antichrist, every thing that is opposite in principle to the true religion, comes under the general. name of
vanity.
— lhe hath conceived mischief."   He hath formed designs of persecuting and extirpating the true religion, and'amuses himself with sanguine hopes of success.
--  and brought forth falsehood:" or, perhaps, -— but
he shall bring forth delusion;" all his schemes shall end in
disappointment of the hopes which he had formed of success
and impunity.  But all tlhe ancient versions give the verb in
the preterite,-1 li e hath brought forth falsehood,"-he has succeeded in spreading wide the falsehoods of atheistical philosophy.
PSALM  VIII.
THANKSGIVING FOR GOD'S GENERAL MERCIES, IN WHICH THE
PSALMIST, (AS i-E IS INTERPRETED BY THE APOSTLE9) LOOKS
FORWARD TO THE EXALTATION OF HUMAN NATURE BY THE
INCARNATION OF OUR BLESSED LORD.
FTITLE..... —-j fI ~ n='. TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY, COXCERNING THE WINE-PRESS.]
Ver. 2. See Joseph Mede's Discourse upon this second
verse.
and the avenger," OP:Jl)M. -the self-tormnenter/''
i. e. Satan.  See Parkhurst under p3[.




SALMI VIIT.      CRITICAL NOTES.                        1 67
Ver. S. --  thy heavens."  For   =t. Kennicott would
read VZ3'  "a the Sun."  It is certainly strange, that the sun
should be omitted, when the moon and the stars are so particularly mentioned: and yet there is an elegance in the
mention-of the heavens generally, before the enumeration of
the several bodies.  Were I to venture upon any alteration,
the word 17"    should keep its place, and the word,t~ should
be inserted between T.YM22  and rlT'.
When I consider thy heavens,
The works of thy fingers,
The sun, the moon, and the stars;:
Which thou hast formed.
TVer. 5. For thou hast -made him a little lower thanl- the
angels;  Rather,
Thou hast some lwhat abased him in comparison of angels,
But," &c.
somewhat abased him,"  Some little matter made hin
deficient.  The word: LP0  may render either, 6" some troat" or
"a little w]zile."  See the Margin, Heb. II, 6.
* Bp. Horne accounts for the absence of the sun, by supposing
the Psalmist, when he endited this Psalm, t9 have had before his
eyes the heavens as they appear by night.
Tf,




.: 68            C RITICAL NOTES.              PSALMi IX.
Vet. 7. All sheep and oxen, &c."  See Bp. Florne's excellent paraphrase of this verse.
PSALM  IX.
FA] Houbigant reads the Title of the Psalm thus'
mj-7D "1nnO l:z  nln~v: Mn=5'To the precentor.  The mysteries of the Son. A Psalm
of David.  And so the LXX.  mre-v Tev xpcw e & vs';. The
reading of SDV5y in one word is confirmed by many MSS.
[B] Ver. 4. Thou hast past sentence for me and done me
right."  I cannot render the original verbatim, because I
cannot find one verb in the English language to govern both
the nouns, 6' sentence," and' right.'"
EC] Ver. 6. Desolations have consumed," &c.  The verb
It/1 is active; its subject, %:1lfr; and 2:011, its object.  See
Abp. Seeker and Bishop Lowth, upon this passage, in Mer —
rick's Annotations.
ED] Ver. 12. When he imaketh inquisition for blood, &co"
i. e. When God requireth the innocent blood of Jesus at thle
hand of the Jews, his murderers, he will not forget the peoples,




PSALM IX.        CRITICAL NOTES.                     169
but will manifest himself to them, mindful of the original promises.  When the Jews are cast off, the Gentiles shall be
grafted in.  Observe the difference between Wy1n  and   12.
[E] Ver. 13. Take pity upon me," &c. The transitions
from triumph, as a person delivered, to prayer and complaint,
as a person in distress, and the contrary, are very remarkable
here, and throughout the sequel of the Psalm; and may seem,
to an inattentive reader, to give an-air of inconsistency to the
whole composition. But in truth, they are natural and neces-,
sary to the Psalmist's situation, whose actual condition
was that of the deepest distress, while he looked forward with
the utmost confidence of hope to a distant period of ease, enjoyment, and glory.  A person so situated, could not but
talk this mixed language of dejection and triumph, as his mind
transferred its thoughts from the sense of present distress to
the contemplation of future happiness.
In the 12th verse, the Psalmist, having mentioned it as a
part of the divine character, that God forgetteth not the cry
of the helpless, naturally thinks upon his own helpless state,
and in the 13th and 14th verses, cries for deliverance. The:
promise of the overthrow of the faction, which were the prink
cipal instruments of his affliction, recurring to his thoughts,
he breaks out again in the 15th verse in strains of exuatationm
[F] Ver. 1. --  in the gates of the daughter of Zion'm".This mention of Jerusalem. shews, that this Psalm was Wcom




170             CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALM IX.
posed after that Jerusalem was become the metropolis of Judea and the seat of her kings; which entirely refutes the
opinlion, that it was written upon occasion of David's victory
over Goliah; an opinion which, perhaps, needs no other
confutation, than the evident want of any clear allusion to
that transaction in the whole Psalm.
[G] Ver. 18. — not perish for ever." The negative,W
which occurs in the first branch of the distich, influences the
verb in this.
This whole Psalm seelns naturally to divide into three
parts.  The first ten verses make the first part; the six
following, the second; and the remaining four, the third.
The first part is prophetic of the utter extermination of
the irreligious persecuting faction.  The prophecy is delivered in the form of an ilrivov,  or song of victory, occasioned
by the promise given in the 15th verse of the 10 oth Psalm;
and, through the whole of this song, the Psalmist, in the height
of a prophetic enthusiasm, speaks of the threatened vengeance
as accomplished.
The second part opens with an exhortation to the people
of God to praise him, as the avenger of their wrongs, and the
watchful guardian of the helpless; and as if the flame of pro



PSALM IX. X.     CRITICAL NOTES.                       171
phetic joy, -which the oracular voice had lighted in the Psaluist's mind, was beginning to die away, the strain is gradually lowered, and the notes of triumph are mixed with supplication and complaint; as if the mind of the Psalmist were
fluttering, as it weie, between things present and to come, and
made itself alternately present to his actual condition and his
future hope.
In the third part, the Psalmist seems quite returned, from
the prophetic enthusiasm, to his natural state; and closes the
whole song with explicit but cool assertions of the future
destruction of the wicked, and deliverance of the persecuted
saints, and prays for the events
PSALM XJ
[A] Ver. 1. --  in critical times," 1J11b1;  "6in time of
trouble  12a,3.,Mg. is the substantive;f112 under its own.
preposition A, and is not well rendered as a genitive follow.ing 1PY1t. yw-eiocZ5 EVho      Zlc Y 5v OrgAs4& LXX.
[B] Ver. 2.  -subtleties."   I choose this ambiguous
word; being in doubt whether the petition against lthe wicked
be, that they may be ruined by their own stratagems against
the righteous, or that they may be the dupes of their- own
atheistical speculations   upon moral and religious subjects.




i 7                 ~ -CRITICAL  NOTES.             PSALIM X,
It seems to rie that the word 1n11Ul t may signify either "1 crafty
tricks" or "1 refined theories;" and in this latter sense it is
used in the fourth verse.
[C] Ver. 3. Truly the imp11ious is mad, &c."  Archbishop
Seeker places a full stop at 1T2. Hle takes ~YN  for a verb (not
a participle), making VytW  in the next line, its nominative. J-fe
renders this and the ~following verse to this effect:
The wicked is mad upon his own heart's desire,
Blessing his gains.
The wicked in the pride of his countenance despiseth Je.~
hovah,
No enquirywill be made; there is no God, is all his thoughts.
[D] Ver. 5. His ways;" for IVII read with Houbigant
[E] Ver. 8. The Psahnmist passes to another part of the atheistical oppressor's character, viz. that he will descend to the
meanest arts and stratagems against the most helpless objects.
----  in the villages."  It should seem, that for MNXrt2 the
LXX. read'=~1WY.    c "He sitteth in the ambush of the
rich:" i. e. H[e always takes part with the great in the oppression of the helpless.   But Houbigant would read =2MR I inz
foreis. But what authority he has for this sense of the word t




SAJW. rt -:X    CRITICAL NO TES.:! 7:
I know not. Symmiachus and St Jerolme ceritainly read thus,
3       ", t213 X"1  U21t, and they both render 2'i)N2 as a participle.  " He sitteth prowling about the farm-houses."  This
I take to be the true reading, and the true rendering.  The
image is that of a beast of prey of the lesser order, a fox or a
wolf, lying upon the watch about the farm-yard in the evening.
----- his eyes are privily set," E. T. or;6 hide themselves."
F or 122' from the root I9- "5 to hide," I would read 11559 fromthe root aMX " to look out."   His eyes are always upon the
watch for the poor."  See Psalm  LVI, 6.  Bishop Hare
thought of this emendation, but judged it unnecessary.  The
LXX. and St Jerome both had some word which they referred to the root MD1. not to P3.
[F] Ver. 10.      the bulwark of the oppressed."  For
OC;Wr,9 Houbigant would read aN2~.  And he renders
the whole verse thus, "' And the helpless man [,~MD1] is cast;
down, and falls, 9!D;y2 with all his substance, Eaft    into
the snares."  The emendation is ingenious and might be admitted, if this sense of the word =11CM could be justified.
Doubtful of this, I write =14'fSl   with the Masora as two
words   K:);y% which I translate'" the bulwark of the oppressed."
[G] Ver. 15.      seek the impious and find him not."
These are the oracular words, corruptly writtena in the ori,




174              CRITICAL NOTES.               P'SALM XI.
ginal, and for that reason ill translated. For i: W"YVV2, read
t21 y;2).  In three MSS. of Kennicott's the 1 is omitted.
Bishop Hare, I find, proposed to join the 1 to tn, and Archbishop Secker approved the emendation.
[H] Ver. 1:6. --— out of his land."'Upon this expres'
sion Mudge, as it should seem, builds his opinion, that the
oppressors, described in this Psalm, were some public enemies of the Jewish nation; conceiving that God's land must
be the land of Judea.
PSALM XIo
EA] Ver. 1. _-" flee sparrows to your hill."  Sparrows
113,M. This word, like most names of animals in the Hebrew
language, signifies either the individual or the species. And
as the name of the species, it may be used in the singular
number for many individuals; and thus -used, it may be constructed with plural verbs, adjectives, and pronouns, as here.
The expression, I take to be proverbial, denoting a situation of
helplessness and danger, in which there was no hope of safety
but in flight. It is in this place, the insolent taunt of the persecutor over the defenceless saint.




i'SAL:i xtI.      CRITICAL  NOTES.:PSALMI XII.
This Psalma consists of three parts.  The first two verses
1lmake the first parit: the three following, the second; and the
three remaining, the third.  The first part is complaint; the
second, recollection of God's promise; the third, trust in the
promiise.
[CA   Ver. 1.      godly sort."'Dfl is here used, though
in the singular numlber, as a collective noun, the namle of a
whole species.  I render it,.therefore,' the godly-sort," not
as I usually render this singular noun1,'  the godly-man," or.
64 the godly-one."
[B] Ver. 3, (Every) tongue."  I insert the word 6 every,"
because I conceive the adjective 5> to belong asmuch to l]tI
as to 13TMZ.
--— speaking proud things," i. e. talking big.
[C] Ver. 5.-  I will put (every one) in safety, &c," Per-.
haps this line mnight be rendered thus:
I u will put in safety him for whom the snare is laid,"'




CRI{TICAL NOTES,           PSALMI XII.
The pronoun VM. being understood after V1t:, and the verb
VE3> taken impersonally.
[D] Ver. 8.     getting them out of the way."  I think?Wzt1 may signify on one side, out of the way.
E]-   are exalted."  For  11D~ the copies followed by
the LXX. seem to have given 7M11.
PSALM  XIII.
A PRAYER OF THE CHURCHT OR OF A BELIEVER, FOvOR DELIVERANCE FROM THE ATHEISTICAL FACTION.
TITLE-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY AN ODE, OF [OR FOR] DAVID.
Ver. 2. -— take counsel in my soul."  For IlI=  Bishop
Hare would read nj'ty. "Flow long shall I have vexation
in my soul."  The emendation is probable.
--- daily," after E~2~V the Alex. LXX. supplies,i" —day and night."
Ver. 4.  ~ prevailed against him, and those." &c. For
"'8  rnL~:, Dr Dtlrell reads,':t) A/*V.  The emendation is
unnlecessary.




PSALM XIV. LIII. CRITICAL NOTES0                    1V77
PSALM  XIV. AND LIII.
TITLE OF PSALM XIV. —'1V5 rnY:g.  TO THE GIVER OF VICK
TORY. OF [OR FOR] DAVID.
TITLE OF PSALM LIII.-11915 i)tWn nmne y nYr S  TO THE
GIVER OF VICTORY. UPON THE DISEASES [i. e. THE rMORAL
DISEASES OF THE WORLD.j  A LESSON OF EOR FOR] DAVID.
These two Psalms appear to be but different copies of the
same song. Whatever might be the special occasion of the
composition, the general subject of the Psalm is the extermination of the irreligious faction. The fourth verse manifestly
alludes to the tyranny of some atheistical idolatrous power in
the world'; and the last verse, referring to the restoration of
the Jewish people in both branches, and to the going forth
of the salvation from Zion, points, without ambiguity, to the
last ages.
In the Hebrew they are as follow,
VOL. Le                            7_




C4 WWI Q     L UceOLc&
9 a'EL 4c  Ui 
AM CaQULL CiUWL
N L;4    Nc C~~i lL m
1U.. 4La CS  S6Q
>> 14C4 t i44L cq44sl~
47L4UCCLtL C L. WLL N t L
4;L.VT Uka CAC^4 LLA NU N;W4Mi
%QLJ 4QU      LLL..  1  NL'AIX  LXVITVSEI  saiox  AIM9ILLD f=  l
NQWL M~L  "C~ItL N4  $;W='AIX NrIVSJl
511X ~91tSd  e"SaLTION: avo3lIIaD         84 T




Car: N6 L'um awrv 4m
A   $. LT) cQ4 i4=tL iR~s;
C4 NLQL's Cu:QIL  mr lC
9 ~'4cT2~
M   Ca L GL GQUL XN LWIU GUL
NXLIk iN dL.N:
LqA 4wa 134T4 Na
4;C4e ~~ C~ 4L 4U~ 8~L
6 ecl XXUQi:8X cs 8uNC~? 144t 4ULlA        L 
G-C4L I= ~4WL~L C4I~t
4LNLt U4 QLaCe  LLA NLr 4L'4Q
Nu cL wctvl xsl EXL!Q OL
NQ4U;Lfk  L TtZL C4 l  ALIL Q
6III'a L WIJVSJ1
(itt           " eS'ON'3IVLL  D




180             CRITICAL NOTES.  PSALMI xIV, IILSL
[A] Ver. 1.     they are abominable in their frolics,"
Mudge. But, in the LIII Psalm, the noun 2"s would be
better rendered by "profligacy" than by " frolics."
[B] Ver. 3. They all." Ps. LIII. "Every one of them." The
true reading, in both places, I should guess to be  IZ. —" no
not one." Here the LXX add all that we read, Rom. III
13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. But in the parallel place of Ps. LIII
we find no such addition.
ECC  Nothing of this in the LIII Psalm, either in LXX or
Vulgate.
[Dl Ver. 4. -    devourers of my people.  They eat
bread."  MUDGE.
EE] Ver. 5. There they are thrown into terror." The
LXX add here in the XIV as in the LIII Psalmhn,'" where
no fear was."
The Psalmist, passing from the delineation of the atheistical oppressor's character to the prediction of his future punishment,' speaks of the consternation that shall seize him,
when he shall perceive the deliverance of the righteous by
the helpless one, the instrument of God, approaching, in the
usual language of prophecy, as a thing that hath already
taken place. The reason of this use of the perfect tense, in




PSALM XIV. LIII. CRITICAL NOTES.                     181
speaking of future things, in prophetic poetry, seems to be
this:  That a scene, typical of futurity, is presented to the
prophet's imagination, and what he sees in that scene he speaks
of as done. Thus, in the present instance, while the Psalmist,
in the latter part of the fourth verse, describes the oppressive
character of the infidel or idolater, when in power; a scene suddenly breaks upon his fancy, signifying the reverse of fortune
between the oppressor and the oppressed. I-e sees perhaps a
numerous army, led on by a great conqueroor, seized with a
sudden panic, upon the point of an elgagement with a far
inferior force. The panic has taken place.  The prophet
perceives that God has sent it upon them.  Ie concludes,
that the well-concerted schemes of the weaker force cannot
but prove successful.  Hie speaks of the panic which he sees,
in the perfect time;-of the victory which he expects, in time
ilture.  "' They are dismay.ed.-The stratagems of that weak
band will take effect, and put them to shame."
The particle  9s2 is used demonstratively, in reference to the
sene which lies before the inspired poet's fancy.  See there!
F] Vetr.. 6.  You have shamned the counsel of the poor."
Ii'or IVlIn of which no sense can be mnade, read  P2DWL,
"6 the counsel of the helpless man shall put them to shame."
The parallel passage in Psalmn LIII, in which the verb sW~2f,
in the second person, is evidently addressed to the righteous
party, or their leader, in some measure justifies the alterati on.
M~ 3




182               CRITICAL NOTES.  PSALM XIV. LITT.
LIII, 5.       of him  that encampeth  against thee."
e.3'e,  a 0rco, LXX.  Houbigant upon this authority would
read cMan.  If I were to propose any alteration, it should be
to read T]Jn instead of'li, and to divide the lines thus:
Truly God hath dissipated strength.
Thou hast put to shame a-trained-army,'~
Because God with-scorn-hath rejected them.
T'rhou."- The leader of the righteous band is addressed.
The obscurity, which arises from addressing the discourse to
a person not described or mentioned in the preceding part of
the song, is not unsuitable to the prophetic stile.
a-trained-army."   The adversaries of Christianity,
upon its first appearance, were, like disciplined troops, furnished with all the regular instruments for their own defence
and the annoyance of the enemy.  They had power, authority, friends, credit.  They were accomplished in the Hebrew
theology, and in Greek philosophy and eloquence. And in
the latter ages, the irreligious will probably be well provided
with all the worldly means of strength; —Numerous armies of
the best troops, able generals, and ministers of consummate
skill in the lists of wicked unprinci-:6led policy.
X Compare Gen. XIV, 1.




FSALM xv. xvr.   CRITICAL NOTES.                  l 8
PSALM XV.
A-N', ODE OF DAVID. TRUE GODLINESS DESCRIBED AS DISTINCT
FRIOM THE RITUAL.
This Psalm, in its general subject, bears some resemblance
to the Vth; the doctrine of both -being this, that righteousness is the qualification which alone may fit any one to be a
guest in God's tabernacle.  They differ, however, in this,
that the XVth Psalm has no allusions to any particular offices
of the Levitical priesthood.
Ver. 4.    a vile person is contemned;" rather,' the reprobate is vile."
PSALM XVI.
[A] Ver. 2, S. I have said unto Jehovah," &c. For InI=
read with the LXX. Bishop Hare and many MSS. ~q1't9,.
"c I have said."
---- my goodness extendeth not to thee." E. T.  This
passage is obscure, and may be suspected of corruption.
Bishop Hare would omit 12, which would make the sense,
6  y goodness is [due] to thee." Houbigant, not expunging




X8-{     -       CRITICAL NOTES.            PSAL1M XV.i.
52, would change t5;V into''T5.   6 "My goodness is nothing
without thee." Bishop Lowth seems to approve Houbigant's
emendation which he says is supported by Chald. Syr. Symmachus, and Jerome. The version of the LXX  leads, I
think, to an easier emendation, which will give as good a
sense. For 1SYi 51 read  S'1y:1.  C' My goodness is of no
profit to thee," i. e. I am an unprofitable servant; thy kindness to me is gratuitous.
The chief objection to be made to this emendation of the:
text, I take to be this; that the noun Ml7), being feminine,
(for I take it for the nominative singular in regimen of the
suffix) requires.the feminine form of the verb. And to put
the verb in the feminine form, would be a consideable devia-.
tion from the present text. But the discord of the verb and
the noun is so frequent, when the noun is any thing which
belongs not naturally to either sex, that this objection is in
truth of little weight.  However, if it might be supposed
that the original reading was this, which indeed would be the
best of all,'1W1;/ 5:1 V1.DLO, it were easy to trace the progressive errors by which the text would be brought to its
present form.
1. n5z' ann'n1Mo    No space being left between words
2. ]t Y'35:JR91'ZL    in the old MSS., the first error was
S. 1']5 in'lno    nothing more than a mistake of a 1 for
a'. The second was only the transposition of a'; which
might be intentional, to produce a significant word; a word
in itself significant, though not obviously connecting with any
_ 4




rSALM XVI.       CRITICAL NOTES.                     185
thing that precedes or follows.  The third error was only
the omission of In, considered as a prolongation of the negative?1: not affecting the sense.
Ver. 3. But to the saints," &c.  Read with LXX, or.ather with the Vullgate,
For the saints that are in his land,
Jehovah hath gloriously-accomplished all my good-wishestowards-them.
David, personating the Messiah in his sacerdotal character,
says, although my goodness is of no profit unto thee, yet thou
hast granted, in the most ample manner, all that I can ask
or wish, for the saints in thy land, the true members of the
Christian Church, the heirs of the spiritual Canaan. Even
of the perfect righteousness of the man Christ Jesus; of his
righteousness as a man, it may be said with truth, it ought to
be said, that it was of no profit unto God.  Nothing was
added-to the Divine Nature by the virtue of the Man to whom
the Word became united; nothing was added to its glory by
his virtue; nothing was added to its happiness by his enjoyments in his exalted state.  His righteousness and his exal.
tation are a display of the divine goodness and power, in that




186              CRITICAL NOTES.               P'SAN1\ Xwr.
wonderful instance; no acquisition of goodness and power
not enjoyed before.
Although these alterations of the text, and -the rendering
founded upon them, are not without the authority of the ancient versions, especially of the LXX and the Vulgate, I am,
after all, disposed to think, that the text, as it stands, admits
a very good meaning.
funs. tense 4J14dS 2,:?Sj:  Em n,- ina
0 I have said unto Jehovah:- 0 Lord,
Thou art my Good;-not besides thee, i. e. I have no other
good besides thee.
3 For the saints, which are in the land,
And my glorified ones, all my delight is in them.
In the second verse, the final word of the first clause /aZ~o
is understood to be repeated as the first of the following clause.
If it were actually repeated thus,
the sense would be clearly what I offer.
the sense would-be clearly what I ofer.




PSALM XVi.       CRITICAL NOTES.                     187
In the third verse, the 5 prefixed to DOWSI is carried over to
=1qn'  by the force of the copulative 1. I am inclined to rest
in this as the true exposition of the passage. Though I confess it is an objection of some weight, that it is strange, if this
be the true construction, it should be missed by the LXX
and Vulg. and not fully comprehended, as it should seem, by
the Syriac interpreter or the Chaldaic.
[B] Ver. 4. 1" They shall multiply their sorrows, who betroth themselves to another," i. e. who go a whoring after
other gods. See Cocceius in voce C'D.
The Messiah is no priest to intercede for them who revolt
from God to idols,
[C] Ver. 5. --- my nmeasured portion;" literally, "c the
part of ray cup."  But M1Y. denotes, I think, a part in the
sense of quantity defined by measure, weight, or count.  The
sentiment is, that Jehovah is in such sort the Messiah's alloted portion, that Messiah refuses all connection and intercourse with those who engage their fealty to any other god.
[D] Ver. 7. --  my secret thoughts."  KENNICOTT.
LE] - my tongue;" literally, C my glory." LXX. and Vulg.
Compare Psalm XXX, 1. See Merrick's Annotations.




I$8              CRITICAL NOTES.           PSALM XVII
PSALM XVII.
-.& PRAYER OF A BELIEVER, OR, PERHAPS, OF THE CHURCH IN1
THE CHARACTER OF AN INDIVIDUAL, FOR DELIVERANCE.
FROM THE ATHEISTICAL CONSPIRACY.
T'15,'t5D   A PRAYER OF DAVID.
Ver. 1.. Hear the right, O Lord." Jerome has Audi Deus
justnum, as if his copies gave'1['  instead of U:,t   I am
much inclined to adopt this. reading, which Aquila too seems
to have followed, it being -clear that the Messiah himself is the
speaker in this Psalm, Bishop Horne, in his commentaries,
having put this out of doubt.
Ver. 2. Let my sentence come forth from thy presence;"'
i. e.  be thou, 0 Jehovah, my judge in thine own person.'
--  let thine eyes behold."  The LXX render the pronoun of the first person, oi;o:,aso4 US:;a-,zy E8Vo.vrtc. Aquila,
Symmachus, and Theodotion, concur in this rendering. The
sentiment, according to this reading, is, that there was no
hope of seeing any justice done in the world, till God should
do it himself.
Ver. 3. --- find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth




PSALM XVII,     CRITICAL NOTES.                       fs
shall not transgress."  KY',?;,Ye   ot',t c,%,.. —LXX.
Bishop FHare would read %Ni3T AZ Nt3Pn  521.  But the words
perhaps may bear the same sense without the insertion of:I,
if 1nrt be taken as a noun substantive, with the suffix of the
first person, and that suffix be rendered c" of mine."," Thou hast tried me. Thou shalt find no wicked deeds of mine.
My mouth shall not transgress."
Ver. 4.     concerning the works of men, by the word."
-Rather,
"My mouth shall not transgress on account of the works of men,
By the word."
Ver. 6. --  for thou wilt hear me;" rather, " for thou
art used to hear me."- MUDGE.
Ver. 7. Shew thy nlarvellous loving kindness." oav14,%cO~
LXX; from the root N5:. And 14D-I is the reading of many
MSS. But without any alteration of the verb, I would rather
read 7']ntr il7, " distinguish," i. e. separate or glorify " thy
Holy One."  Perhaps the plural ~'tDrt might be still- preferable; that the petition may be for the saints in general,
for their final separation from the ungodly, and their glorification.  The singulars V'T  and IVV7t in the books of the
Psalms, have a constant reference to our Lord individually.




190             CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALM SVIIe
-- O     thou that savest by thy right hand," &c. The order of construction I take to be this, =01Mt1 Mt=1pinn n tU".
3'2~ —'6 0 thou that savest from conspiring-foes them that
seek shelter under thy right hand."
Ver. 10. They are inclosed in their own fat."  Read with
Houbigant and Kennicott, (posth.) 1.1D  1nY:1r7 Al —4" They
have closed their net upon me."
Ver. 11. They have now compassed us in our steps."Kennicott found in some MSS. VI'MVl   Ofelices nos. For
2:1:2a the Keri gives V=1021. If the true reading be Vl211,
the first person plural with the suffix of the third, this whole
line is the exulting speech of the Psalmist's enemies.
0 O lucky we! at last we have encompassed him; " namely, in the toils. Or, reading Ir21D, "they have encompassed
him," i. e. the huntsmen; and this is the speech of the great
men, the masters of the huntsmen.
---- they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth."
This is the attitude of huntsmen taking aim at an animal upon the ground.  The whole imagery, in this and the two
preceding verses, is taken, as Mudge and Kennicott well -observe, from hunting. In the 9th verse, the sportsmen beat
the field, and spread their nets. In the 10th, they draw the
nets. In the 1 1th, they exult in their success, and take aim
at the prey. But these last words may be rendered, with




'SALM XVII.      CRITICAL NOTES.                    191
Bishop Horne, "they have fixed their eyes [upon me] to lay
[me] prostrate on the earth."
Ver. 12. Like as a lion," &c. The margin gives the literal
translation of the Hebrew words, viz.'6 the likeness of him is
as a lion that desireth to ravin."
Ver. 13. Cast him down."  The LXX have happily expressed the exact import of the Hebrew word,  r09:,o2oYv c.jas-: " make him sink upon his knees."
--  deliver my soul from the wicked which is thy sword,
from men which are thy hand." Or, deliver my soul from the
impious one, by thy sword,-from mortals, by thy hand."
However, the common version is not indefensible.- See
Merrick's Allotations.
-Their portion is in this life,"   an=: BiC.  The plural
noun =7iT is frequently used to denote life in the highest
sense, i. e. immortality.  It is also used for the whole extent
of a man's natural life; as the life of Abraham, the life of
Sarah, &c. But it appears very improbable that this word,
which seems most properly to signify life inl the highest sense,
(as in Psalm XVI, 11.) should also be used to denote the
present life, as distinguished from the future; in which sense
it is generally understood here. In the word Fut3, in Gen,
XXVII, 36, the second ) is certainly the suffixed pronoun of
the first person singular.  In this passage, the LXX either
took the final -   for the suffix o-f the thi.rkd pers on phtuab, or




192             CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALMT XVIII.
they read Et11:z.  With this reading I think the passage
may be rendered,
" All goes smoothly with them in their lives."
-All goes smoothly with them;"-either p59M is the verb
used impersonally, or a noun denoting a life of worldly happiness and pleasure, under the image of smoothness.
Ver. 15. -- when I awake with thy likeness," literally,'6 when thy likeness is awakened," SI TO 0PhGJ~, T'Yv Sot  m.i.See Numbers xii, 8.
PSALM  XVIII.
TrlHE title of this eighteenth Psalm might be thus rendered,
~ To the giver of victory."  " [A Psalm] of the servant of
Jehovah, the beloved, who spake unto Jehovah the words of
this song,in the day that Jehovah delivered him from the hand
of all his enemies, and from the power of hell."
The Syriac intitles it, "A thanksgiving upon the ascension
of Christ."
The whole Psalm may be divided into five parts.




SSALM XVIII.     CRITICAL NOTES.                      193
Part I. Consisting of the first three verses, is the proem of
the song.
Part II. Celebrates miraculous deliverances from  a state
of affliction and distress. This part consists of sixteen verses,
extending from the 4th to the 19th inclusive.
Part II,. Thanksgiving; five verses.  20  24.
Part IV. Celebrates success in war; eighteen verses. 25-42.
Part V. The establishment of tile Messiah's kingdom;
eight verses. 43-50.
Ver. 4. The sorrows of death."  According to the reading
in 2 Samuel XXII, 5. "6 the breakers of death."'  The metaphor is taken from those dangerous waves which our mariners
call white-breakers.
compassed me," rather s" came fast upon mne."
Ver. 11. --  dark waters;" rather, according to the reading in the parallel place in Samuel, "' a mass of waters."
Ver. 13. -    hail-stones and coals of fire."  I see no reason to think with Houbigant and Kennicott, that these words
are a repetition from the former verse; I rather think that
this is their true place, and that they have crept into the
former verse from this.  Hail and lightning are the proper
concomitants of the thunder mentioned in the former part of
this verse.  Nor can I agree with Kennicott that I'11  is a
corruption of 911 Z.
vOL. I,                                 N




494             CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALM XSVII
Ver. 15. -     the channels of waters;" rather 6 the channels of the sea," as in the parallel place in Samuel.
Ver. 23. 1 was also upright before him;" rather a I was
also loyal to him," literally, "perfect with him;" i. e. perfectly attached to him against idolatry and atheism; wholly
devoted to God, without any mixture of idolatry or wilful
disobedience.-See MIUDGE.
Ver. 34. -    so that a bow of steel is broken by my arms;"
rather " thou hast made my arms like a brazen bow." LXX.
Vnlg. Jerom. Kennicott in one MS. found ilJD).
Ver. 35. -     thy gentleness,"'n;i..   Houbigant observes, that this word never signifies the divine mercy, but
the meekness of a good man in enduring sufferings.  He
therefore proposes AJM1D, or 7i=2r, as the true reading. But
as'ne1 occurs both here and in the parallel place in Samuel,
a change is not easily to be admitted. Why may not 17111
signify 1" thy humiliation," i. e. the humiliation laid upon
me by thy providence. So the LXX seem to have understood the word. They render;       0-trE6O.j in this place, and
in Samuel; Vfowal As; and in this sense Kennicott took it.See KENN. posth.
From the Version of the LXX, it should seem that a word.
and a whole line is lost in the Hebrew text.




PSALM xIx.       CRITICAL NOTES.                      195
0K; z  wziaSIz Cse zLTr4 JAE Ma~iEI]
Et disciplina tua correxit me [in finem;
Et disciplina tua ipsa me docebit.]    VIlg.
Ver. 40. --  that I might destroy."  The LXX  render
the verb in the second person.-See HOUBJGANT.
Ver. 42. --  cast them out," zA~sa. LXX. ='TRh parallel
place in Samuel.
Ver. 45.     fade away." Houbigant's emendation ]1:~
for 15)  is very plausible.
Ver.. 8. --- the violent man."  No particular person is
meant, but the cruelty of persecutors in general.
PSALM XIX.
A SONG OF PRAISE.-THE TOPICS, CREATION AND REVELATION,
Ver. 3, 4.
There is no speech, no words,
No voice of them is heard:
[Yet] their sound goes throughout the earth.
N 2




1%96             CRITICAL NOTES.               PSALM xIx.
Ver. 4.   -- their line." tMlp, "1 their sound."  oofvro,,
LXX. sonus, Jerom. and Vulg.  And to the same effect all
the ancients, except Aquila, from the Arabic sense of the'word.  Or, with the English Geneva,' "Their line is gone
forth through all the earth, and their words into the ends of
the; world."
Upon this the marginal note is, " The heavens are as a
line of great capital letters, to shew unto us God's glory."
But the Apostle's citation seems rather to support the Arabic
sense of  pj: in this place.  And it is to be remarked, that
~:~t"  are " words spoken," not 6" written words."  But,
perhaps, the true rendering is,
Their extension goeth forth over the whole earth,
And their terminations [are] at the end of the world.
Ver. 5.  -  out of his chanmber," or, "f from under his
veil."-See the marginal notes of Queen Elizabeth's Bible.
Ver. 7, 8, 9. The law-the testimony-the statutes-the
commandments-the fear-the judgments."
Of all the interpreters, Castalio has, I think, the best expressed the distinct import of each of these Hebrew words. —
P3n~,  lex; the preceptive part of revelation.   ITY,, oraculuam, the doctrinal part.  111iD, mandata; things given in
charge to particular persons upon  particular occasions.
na, disciplina; the general body of the divine law and




PSALIM XIX.       CRITICAL  NOTES,                      19A'
doctrine.  PmV,  metus; religious fear.  1t0t,, sewtentiae;
the civil statutes of the Mosaic Law, more particularly the
penal sanctions, and the rules for deciding questions of property, and suits for damages'and trespasses.
Ver. 12.  -   secret faults;" or, s" from  disguises, concealments, or dissimulations," i. e. from hypocrisy.
Ver. 13. Keep back thy servant also from  presumptuous sins;" rather,  6 Preserve thy servant also from  the
proud," i. e. from  tyrannical governors, i. e. from  evil
spirits.
----  the great transgression," rather, "the great apo.
stacy."
Ver. 14. Let the words, &c. be," rather "s The words,
&c. shall be."-Keep  me from  hypocrisy and from  the
suggestions and enticements of evil spirits; let them  not
get dominion over me: then I shall be upright, &c. and
then my words and my thoughts will be acceptable isl thy
sight, &c"d




J9$              CRITICAL  NOTES.               PSAL M Ym.0
PSALM XXB
_1' 11t'   rTg~.-TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY,
AN ODE OF DAVID.
TIZE CHURCH'S TRUST IS GOD'S PROTECTION OF THE MESSIAIL
Ver. 5. We will rejoice in thy salvation;" rather, "6 Let us
rejoice," or, "' We shall rejoice for the deliverance of thee."
-  set up our banners."  ~xyyav0,o-oe.0sd.-LXX.   It should
seem  that, for 537], they read Ant; which Houbigant and
Bishop Lowth approve. But I see no sufficient reason for
altering the text.  The sense is, " we will take the field
against our enemies, in full reliance upon God's assistance."
Ver. 6. -    with the saving strength of his right hand;"
literally, " In powers [or in strengths], salvation of his right
hand."  Sv v-aVcFs; s-o,~i, Tzs  5,'   ar, —that is, " In all.
situations of power and strength, whatever a man's natural
means of deliverance may be, his preservation must be the
work of God's right hand."  This seems to be the best exposition of this line, which is a clause by itself, not a part of
the preceding sentence.  AWN is a noun substantive, the subject of the verb substantive understood. The chariots and
horses mentioned in the next verse are expositive of J1I'fl1




PSALM xxfi       CRITICAL NOTES.                     79
in this line; and all that follows of the Psalm is an amplification of this general sentiments
Ver. 8. -     remember the name."  But " we, in the
name of Jehovah, of our God, will acquire reputation;'" or,
" make ourselves remembered."  If the verb f'lDt  may bear
this sense, as it should seem it naturally may, there is no
necessity to change it for -1U:, which Bishop Lowth proposes upon the authority of the LXX.
Ver. 9. Save Lord, let the king," &c.; rather, "Jehovah
Ihath saved the king, and will," &c.
PSALM XXI.
[A] Ver. 4. Or, " the extent of days."  I suspect that
bIr' T]R is a phrase for the whole extent of infinite duration.
[B] Vern 6. "< Thou hast gladdened him  with the joy
[that is] with thy presence;" i. e. "C with thyself," according
to the frequent import of'd. —See Exodus xxxiii, 14, 15.
[C] Ver. 8. e    thy right hand," &c,   Dr Kennicott




200              CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALM XXIo
found in one MS. which he esteemed of high authority,'14tW- 5D    R:~D I2fl.  This reading makes a similarity of
construction in the two parallel lines.
[D] Ver. 9. Thou shalt make them like a furnace of fire,"
&c. Dr Kennicott, in three MSS. if not in four, for 1'311,
found T)IDJM. But the common reading seems preferable.
It describes the smoke of the Messiah's enemies perishing by
fire, ascending like the smoke of a furnace.  "The smoke of
their torment shall ascend for ever and ever."
----- in the time of thine anger;" E. T. more literally,'s in
the time of thine appearance;" that is, referring the promise to
the Messiah, c" in the time of thy manifestation."  The pros
mise is, that, when the Messiah, after his humiliation, should
be exalted, and his glory displayed to the world, then his
enemies should be destroyed.
[E] Ver. 12. Therefore thou shalt make them turn their
backs," &c. In defence of this sense of MZV, see MaERrIcK's
Annotations.
a steady aim."  I take ]1]) to be a technical term of
archery, to express the act of taking aim at a particular object. See Psalm vii, 1.




Ts~ALM- xxI.      CRITICAL NOTES.                      gO
PSALM XXII.
[A] Ver. 1. --  burden of my- loud complaint;9 —the
words of my roaring, E. T.  From the version of the LXX,
it should seem, that bfor VVNV their copies had T"heN.1. The
text, as it now stands, mnay be thus rendered as in my translation: 
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
Withdrawing thyself from helping me, is the burtilen of my
loud complainto
io e. This expostulation is my constant complaint;  8fl1
~n~I.  So  V'2"1   the burthen of the song, i. e. the universal cry. Judges V, 12.
[B] Ver. 2.      no relief is given me;" —" and am not
silent,"-E. T. Rather, " and am not silenced;" literally, 6 there
is no silencing for me;" nothing is done to give me easeo  Sensus est, nilil solatii eum sentire, quod qjus animum tran quillet.
Coccalus.
[C] Ver...,  "  But thou, inhabiting boliness, the praise of




~b20~           gCRITICAL NOTES.              PSALM XXITI
Israel."-" Inhabitest holiness," a phrase not unlike that of the
Platonists, by which they describe the immutability of the
Father, 0o fs  iy &v:,vxg "u0.
the praise of Israel;" i. e. the theme of Israel's
praise. Ev 3~'Y a')v    x, o~ vi0x; 6 grOS, 0'TriTz4. LXX.
[D]  Ver. 13.   like the ravening, roaring lion," Bishop
Hare's emendation, ~Nb1: for,7"P'  is confirmed by the LXX.
Jerom. Vulg. and the MS. 530, collated by Bruns at Bononia.
IE] Ver. 14. The verb, J7EW, I apprehend, describes the
state of fluidity, which is an image for that state of extreme
lebility, in which the frame has no power to support itself.
[F] Ver. 16. "Truly many dogs surround me." (o, y.X%,X
(z-Cav  tYv "yEz.    LXX. Bishop Hare would read, =Z8lD
[GI Ver. 17. " I may tell;"  -e?,-a,+C,,,. LXX. —,, and
Stare', x, a, i'ruov. LXX. they read therefore, IN'"11
[H] Ver. 20.. My UNITED ONE;" —-nWrT'.  This seems to
denote the humanity of Christ in union with the divinity.
"' Quod animam unicam pro chara et pretios~a quidam  accipiunt, non convenit: quia potius significat inter tot mortes
ioihil sibi opis in toto mtindo offerri.  Sicut codern sensu,




rsALM xxi I      CRITICAL NOTES.                      3 2'
(Psalm  XXXV, 17.) unica anima ponitur pro solitaria.
Vide etiam XXV, 16." CALVIN ad locum. But see Park.hurst's Lexicon under the word %nd.
If the word has no relation to this mystery, I would render
it " helpless," "' friendless."  See Psalm XXV, 17.  But
observe, that in that place the gender is different, being masculine, whereas here it is feminine, as in Psalm XXXV, 17,
In Gen. XXII, 16. F7T4M seems to signify " thy only son,"
but the LXX render it xv/rSS.
[I] Ver. 21, 22. "Thou hast answered me."  I would
divide the text thus:
1K5 Vet.  5. ~nd 1nda
K]1 Ver. 24. -    and stand inr awe before him."' The
LXX omit the conjunction. For which reason Bishop Harts
for 1T1.) would read Nl.a
[L] Ver, 25.     fear thee."  HOUBIGANT.
EM] Ver. 26.     your heart."'A, G)am p, ro'   LXX,
Kennicott in one MSS. found  n22g5.




-20t4            CRITICAL NOTES.              PSALM XXII.
N] Ver. 27. -— before  imz,"   LXX. Vulg. Syr. Jerom.
and a MS.
[0] Ver. 28.      and he is governor."  For 5=ir1 read
with LXX and Bishop Hare?5V)  N1MI.
[P] Ver. 29. "c All whom earth sustains;" or, " all they
that be fattened (i. e. sustained and fed) upon or from the
earth."  A periphrasis for all men. cao 0zsge " xgIov, iovow.
~;S;,V;.0, zgrov.vets1oe, zoovoS. See Bishop Lowth, in MERItiCK'S Annotations.
none can keep alive his own soul," E. T. The copies
of the LXX for V:D had I;   for N5 they had i5, and for
V'I they had TIM9.
And my soul shall live unto him,
And my seed shall serve him.
That is, both I myself and my posterity will serve the Lord.
These emendations are severally confirmed by different MSS,
of Kennicott's collation.




PS. XXIII. xXIV.  CRITICAL NOTES.                   205
PSALM  XXIII.
A BELIEVER'S THANKSGIVING IN THE CHARACTER OF A PRIEST.
(SEE THE LAST VERSE.)
AN ODE OF DAVID.
Ver. 5, 6. - my cup runneth over. Surely goodness," &c.
In the copies of the LXX it should seem that the passage
stood thus:
a How good is thy overflowing cup!
And thy mercy shall follow me."
But the received reading seems the better of the two.
Ver. 6. -— for ever;" =1 W'l.   See Psalm XXI, ~4
PSALM XXIV.
[A] Ver. 4s 50  nor sworn deceitfully.  He shall re-,




206               CRITICAL NOTES.              PSALM XXV.
ceive- — "  It should seem, from the version of the LXXs
that, in their copies, the passage stood thus:
&c. NV) 1~1
PSALM XXV.
[EA   That this Psalm  was originally alphabetical, is evia
dent in its present state.  It consists of just as many stanzas
as the Hebrew alphabet hath letters, namely, twenty-two.
The stanzas are, for the most part, distichs; and the first line
of each begins with that letter, whose numerical place in the
Hebrew alphabet, corresponds with the numerical place of
the stanza in the Psalm.  But the regularity of the composition is disturbed in the present state of the text in these inu
stances: ist, The first stanza consists of only a single line.
2d, The second stanza begins with X, not with 2, as it ought to
do. 3d, The fifth stanza, beginning with the letter', is a distich, and yet the sentiment is complete without the third line.
4tli, The Vau stanza is wanting; for the fifth begins, as it
ought to do, with M, but the sixth irregulary with C.  5th,
Again, the 77 stanza is a tristich, and the sense is complpte




PSALM XXV.      CRITICAL NOTES.                     207
without the third line. 6th, The second line of the Lamed
stanza begins with a Vau, which seems purely redundant. 7thz,
Two successive stanzas begin with the letter A, and the Ip stanza
seems wanting.  81t, The Tn stanza is not the conclusion of
the Psalm. The whole is closed with a long line beginning
with a D.
With these exceptions, the law of the composition seems to
be, that the stanzas should be distichs, beginning with the
letters of the alphabet in regular succession.  There is little
room to doubt, that the violations of this law, which appear
in the eight instances alleged, have arisen from corruptions of the text; and the poem may be restored to its original regularity by these easy emendations.
1st, Remove the third line of the fifth stanza to the first
stanza, of which it is certainly the second line misplaced, for
it connects well with the first, and the two make an elegant
distich. Thus,
2d/y, Transpose the two first words of the second stanza;
that is, for 121'IM5Z read 1D5R:1.  Thus, the second stanza
will begin with 2, as it ought to do.
3dly, Between the m stanza, and the I stanza, insert what
now stands as the second line-of the 5 stanza, which is evidently the Vau stanza mnisplaced.  And to complete the dis.




,- oS            CRITICAL NOTES.             PsALM XXVo
tich, blend, with the words of this line, what now stands as a
third line of the n stanza, thus:
thi, The second line of the Lamed stanza is to be found
in the line irregularly annexed to the Thau stanza.  For,
that line, as it now stands, I take to be the second line of the
Lamed stanza misplaced, and mixed with some words which
belong to the last line of the Thau stanza..  The Lamed stanza,
therefore, will stand thus:
5thz, For?M19' at the beginning of the former of the two
stanzas, beginning with the word M141, read, with Houbigant
and Kennicott,'yp, " cut short." Thus the p stanza will be
restored.
6th, To the Thau starnza, add the two words MIN j75,N ~
of which the words.MR  =3t)8 in the line, which in the present state of the text follows the Thau stanza, seem to be a,
corruption.  The Thau stanza, with this emendation, will
stand thus:




sy;AXrsi XXV.    CRITICAL NOTES.                       209
1B3  ietr.  14. His soul shall rest in bliss."  l~j1, pcn'zoctabit. The words seem to allude to the happy state of the
good mnan's departed soul, while his posterity prosper in the
present world; unless, indeed, the earth or the land be put
mystically for the true land of promise,-the Canaan of the
fiuture life; in -,which case the sense will be, that both the
good man himself shall rest in bliss, and his seed also,-his
mystical seed, those whom he shall instruct in the way of the
Lord, and bring to be his children in goodness, shall inherit
the promised land of everlasting happiness.
Upon mature consideration, however, I am  persuaded
that this verse is spoken of Messiah. I take the whole plan
of the Psaln to be thus:
In the first twelve verses, the man Christ Jesus, (or, in
the Flutchinsonian phrase, the humanity of Christ), prays
to the Triniity.  In the first three, to the Word to which
the  ulllmanity was united for support.  In the 4th and
5th to the Holy Spirit to instruct and guide him.  In the
6th, 7tlh, and 8th, to God the Father, to spare him. *
The imputed guilt of man, in verse 7th, he speaks of
as his own, because it was imputed to him.  But what, it
may be asked, were the trespasses and disobediences of Mesiah's youth, which lie requests may not be remembered?
I agree with Mr Hutchinson, that the sins of'11y, may be
X" C If it be possible let this cup pass from me."
VOL. I,                                0




'21W0             CRITICAL  NOTES.                PSALzM Xxv.
the sins, Juniorum, of his younger brethren, i. e. of Christians.
In the 9th, 10th, and 11th verses, Messiah celebrates the mercy
of Jehovah to the faithful.  In the 12th, he prays for the deliverance of the true Israel from its afflicted state.
In the 13th verse, a voice of one of the angelic choir, who
has observed the extraordinary piety and devotion of the
man Christ Jesus, asks with admiration, what man is this
who so perfectly feareth God?  and prophesies, in the last
line of this and in the following verse, of the bliss that awaits
him; and that his seed shall inherit the earth, which will be
literally fulfilled in the millenary period.  In the 15th verse,
the same voice declares, that the true knowledge' of God is
with them that fear him, who are taught by divine revelation.
In the 16th verse, the humanity of Christ takes up his prayer
again to the Divine Word, or perhaps to the Godhead generally, for support and deliverance, and this prayer is continued
to the end of the Psalmn.
[EC   Vern. 15. The secret of Jehovah," &c.  iCK-,;S,. as.
gclo1 TJI> Zqc J V          O?1'gfl- C,2OV too zc'o-4 LA'6d4.  LXIX
"6 The Lord is the-principle-of-strength to them  that fear
him, and his covenant is to reveal unto them."  The latter
clause seems properly rendered.  But I cannot find that'TD
is in any other passage used for oxr i,,'    and the structure
of the poem admits not'11D.
[D] Ver. 16. --    deserted and afflicted.")  Ma.,,,45, s.:




PSALM XXVII.    CRITICAL NOTES.                      211,    -,r~  LXX. Solus e0t clulper, Jerom.  See XXII, 20. and
XXXV, 17.
[E] Ver. 17. Set at large."  I read with Bishop Lowth,
6' Set at large the [sorrowful] contractions of my heart,
And bring me out of my difficulties.-"
PSALM XXVII.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH,' FOR DELIVERANCE FROM THE PEPRSECUTION OF HER ElNEMIES, AND FOR THE GUIDANCE OF
GOD'S HOLY SPIRIT.
Ver. 7. Hear O Lord."  These words are the beginning
of this elegant supplicatory ode. The six former verses be~long to the preceding Psalm,
Ver. 8. When thou saidst," &c,  I can make nothing of'
this verse as the text stands.  For 9WpI the LXX and Vulg.
seem to have read'j[~2. W~ith this reading the sense would
be,
Unto thee my heart hath said, my face hath sought thee;
Thy face, O Jehoval, I will seek.
o2




21.               CRITICAL  NOTES.    P:SALM XXVII.
Archbishop Secker renders, without altering the text,
To thee, my heart, he hath said, seek ye my face.
Seek ye, i. c. thou, and all men, says the Archbishop. But if
the Church is the speaker in this Psalm, the collective body
is properly addressed in the plural imperative. I believe this
rendering of Archbishop Secker's is best of all.
Ver. 9. -  put not thy servant away in anger;" rather9
"turn not away in anger from thy servant."  So LXX  and
Vulg.
-  leave me not;;" rather, " dismiss me not;" —6" let not
go thy hold of me."  This is the proper sense of the Hebrew
verb VtiO, to set a thing loose  to let it go-to abandon it,
Ver. 1i. -     such as breathe out cruelty;" rather, I a
proclaimer of violence."  That is, one who loudly taxes me
with acts of violence. See 2 Sam. xvi, 5-8. Matt. xxVI, 61.
Luke XXIII, 2.  Compare Psalm xxxv, 11. and LV, S3
Ver. 14. Wait on tile Lord," &c;
Expect Jehovah;
Take courage, and let thy heart be firm *p
And expect Jehovah.
These seem to be the words of an oracular voice.:xj)ept'e
i. e. wait in hopeful expectation for.
e See Psalm  XXXI, 24.




PSALM XXVIl.'  CRITICAL NOTES.                        o12
PSALM XXVI!1.
[A] Vert. Let me'not be drawn a-way." The verb 3tI=nDA
I should render in the Hiphil forn; thus, 66 Suffer me
not to be drawn away," i. e. to be seduced by their enticements&
LB] Ver. 5.
Truly they take no consideration of the works of Jehovah,
And of the operation of his hands. —--
ORACULAR VOICE.
He shall demolish them and build them not.
A verb seems wanting in the second line, to answer, according
to the laws of parallelism, to the verb "' regard" in the first:
But I am persuaded the omission is from the author.  It is,
indeed, very beautiful, marking the suddenness with which
the oracular voice interrupts the Psalmist's prayer.
[C] Ver. 7. --   my flesh hath resumed its bloom, and
from. my heart I will praise him."  Ka,: it,0~xaA  ~ ant'?.v, 2,X; ~.%x.ato6T5    o'OSoxoY*OotC, MT,, LXX, and to the same effect
the Vulgate.  Therefore, for Own.:al,   their copies must
0 3




-241             CRITICAL NOTES.    PSALM XXVIx,
have had ~1n2i   AAY. Bishop Lowth approves this reading.
The transposition of the two words, and the reading of 1t/2
are confirmed by the Syriac.
[D] Ver. 8. c" The strengthener of the salvation of his
anointed one is He."  For Tn5 read Dy>5, with many MSS.
of Kennicott's and De Rossi's; with the LXX, Vzs7srw5 TY
aew),sw s x-giST ~JVV  and the Vulgate, protector salvationunt
Cliristi sui.  Mudge thinks IM2, or 15 the true reading.
Hiis notion is, that the Sth and 9th' verses make a chorus,
sung by priests and people, rejoicing at the gracious acceptance of the Psalmist's prayer.  I should readily adopt this
interpretation, if in the former part of the Psalm the Messiah might be supposed to be the speaker. But the matter
of the prayer suits not his character. The particular boon
asked is grace, to withstand the enticements of idolaters;
under which name all corrupters of worship may be understood.  Now to the temptation of their enticements, the
Church, in a greater or a less degree, hath been frequently
exposed; the Messiah, in his own person, never, except when
he was tempted by the devil in the wilderness.  But he
tempters in this Psalm are spoken of as men.  The prayer,
therefore, is rather adapted to the person of the Church: and
V15 is so near in sound to VtZ9), that the emendation, supported as it is by six MSS. and the version of the LXX,
Vulg. Syr. and Arab., seems unquestionable.




PSALM XXX.       CRITICAL NOTES.                     21 5
PSALM XXX.
This thirtieth Psalm is evidently a thanksgiving for a recovery from  a fit of sickness.  And this I take to be the
meaning of the Hebrew title.,TXT is properly the festive
ceremony, by which a new or restored building is appropriated to its future use.  Hence, it may figuratively denote
thanksgiving for the recovery of the body from the debility
of sickness. The sickness, however, and the recovery, if I
mistake not, are both mystical; the sickness, that of the soul,
in consequence of the fall; the recovery, that of the soul, by
redemption.  Unless, indeed, the Psalm is spoken, as some
have imagined, in the person of Messiah; and be his thanksgiving for his deliverance from the grave, and for his exaltation from his state of humiliation. In this case the "healing,"
mentioned verse 2, is the healing of Messiah from those sicknesses of men which he was made to bear. Isaiah LIII, 4.
Ver. 1.     thou hast lifted me up,"  nqh. How the
verb,iM5 should signify to lift up, I cannot imagine. Its
sense is certainly the reverse. I would render the verse thus,
I will extol thee, 0 Jehovah! Verily thou hast brought me
very low;
But thou hast not given my foes cause to rejoice over me,
o 4




216               CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALMs xxx,
Ver, 3.. thou hast kept me alive that I should not go
down to the pit."
I take ~"1113 to be the participle Blenoni, plur. with t prefixed in regimine before'~12. And I would render the clause thus,
Thou hast brought me to life, from among those who are
going down to the pit.
IThe Psalmist describes himself as one of those that were
sinking into the grave, and raised from that desperate state
by the special mercy of God.  I reject the Keri TI3UD9 notwithstanding it has the suffrage of many MSS.  The ancient
versions all support my construction, and rendering. E;lod-e5 (/,aro,.~          gigO;YO'.. s;a Uxxo LXX. Salvasti nme a descendentibus in lacum, Vulg.   Sc.,,B _  - Aa.o Syr.  The
Chaldee alone is with the Keri.  Bishop Horne mentions
this rendering as what the words will bear, and gives it the
preference.
Ver. 5. For his anger endureth;" literally, G Truly a moment in his anger! Life (or imm-iortality) in his reconciliation."
That is to say, his anger is instant death.  It is evident that
the "1 morent in his anger" is opposed to the continuance of
ife in his favour; and the Author's meaning is to affirm the
contrary effects of God's anger, and God's forgiveness.
Vets, 7.    by thy favour thou hast nmade may mountain




PsALM xxxb      CRITICAL NOTES.                   217
to stand strong."  Bishop Hare would add 15.: after 1=1:1.
4 Jehovah, in thy favour thou hast set my feet upon a strong
mountain."  Houbigant observes, that "'a mountain" has no
connection with the subject of this Psalm, which is health restored by God.  For tTV'5, therefore, he would read ~qW~.
4' Jehovah, in thy favour thou hast established strength for
my beauty;" i. e. thou hast given me that lasting comeliness
of person which arises from a sound constitution. "' Thou
hast given a settled firmness to my bloom," as Mudge expresses it. This emendation has the authority of the LXX,
Vulg. and Syr., and is therefore to be preferred to Bishop
Hare's, which is a mere conjecture.  Otherwise, I cannot
see, but that strength of constitution, as well as any other
means of durable happiness, might be expressed under the
image of a station on a strong mountain. Dr Kennicott in
many of his best MSS. found Mn1YM without the paragogic,M.
In MS. 73 he found''TT9" 5; and in MS. 4, 111'15, which is evidently a corruption of ~1'~) by the error of the scribe.
Bishop Lowth approves the change of "1Mi into ~'TiTN.
Ver. 9.    to the pit," or, " to corruption."  So the
LXX, Vulg. and Syr. and Symmach.
Ver. 1 1. —  into dancing;" rather, " into merry piping."
Ver. 12.     my glory;" read with the LXX, Vulg. and
Bishop Hare )11".




21.8            CRITICAL NOTES.              PSALM XXX.
Mr Hutchinson conceives, that this whole Psalm is uttered
in the person of the Messiah, and is his thanksgiving for his
exemption from corruption, and early deliverance from the
grave. And in this view of the Psalm, he finds a very pecu.
liar force in the 9th verse —" What profit in my blood, if I
be pressed down to corruption, and held under its power?
My blood will be shed in vain-the redemption of man will
not be accomplished.  Shall the dust, the dissolved body,
praise thee? Shall it declare thy truth?  Far from it: the
promise, that I should not see corruption, will be broken."
This certainly deserves great attention.  But it seems to
me, that the 6th verse is utterly inapplicable to the Messiah, who, in the days of his flesh, had no prosperity, and
certainly never deceived himself with the false hope, that he
never should be moved.  In one way, indeed, the 6th verse
may be made to suit the character of Messiah, namely, if it
may be rendered, not "' And in mny prosperity I said," &c.;
but thlus,
6 And I said, in my prosperity, I shall never be moved."
That is, " when once the season of my bliss shall come, I shall
enjoy it for ever without interruption.".  This seems indeed
the rendering most consistent with the order of the Hebrew
words.  He goes on,'" Jehovah, in thy favour, thou hast
established strength for my comeliness."
This is still a continuance of what he said,-"' Jehovah
thou hast established," i. e. thou hast irreversibly decreed that




rSALM x9XI.      CRITICAL NOTES.                    219
so it shall be: the preterite, in the usual style of prophecy,
being used to express the certainty of what is to come.
[But notwithstanding this consoling hope] "' thou didst
hide thy face, and I was in the deepest anxiety and dejection."
All this is eminently true of the Messiah. And if the 6th
verse may be thus rendered, as I think it may; there is not
an expression in the whole Psalm that suits not the character
of Messiah more completely and exactly than any other.
And Mr Hutchinson's admirable exposition of the 9th verse
will take place. Upon the whole, I incline to this application
and interpretation of the Psalm.
The Chaldee paraphrase seems to take the 6th verse in the
sense proposed; though this appears not in the Latin translation of that paraphrase in the Polyglott. n/ns' WR9
btZY$ ~Vtl RD'-,        1V1=M T n_  2.  ", And I said, when I
am seated in security I shall not be moved to all eternity."
PSALM XXXI.
[A] Ver. 2. Castle of defence." PIT=  na2.  I iajke 4t)j:
to be a house with battlements upon the roof. Such battlements, in some sort, resemble a network inclosing the platform of the roof; and from that resemblance, I imagine, get
the name of I,112n.




_*20             I;ffo ~, CRITICAL NOTES.    PSALM XXXa
[B] Ver. 6. Thou hatest;" —-JDN3 instead of )Wr].  LXX.
Vulg. Syr. and one MSS. of Kennicott's.:]W, beginning
the next hemistich, says Bishop Lowth, in Merrick, implies
an opposition or change of person.
EC] Ver. 7. " I will exult," i. e. at some future season6" This shall be the subject of my joy and exultation, that thout
hast regarded my trouble; that thou hast accepted my person
in adversities, and not delivered me up bound into the hand
of the enemy; that thou hast set my feet in an ample space."
Kennicott says, "NW- is used here for quando.  I think that
qZl is used in the sense of that, because, or in as mutch as;
but that the preterperfects subjoined to the futures have the
force of the subjunctive future of the Latin language.
[D] Ver. 9. -- wasted,-pines, —-is emaciated."  In tihe
original, the same verb VWt  serves for the three subjects,
eye, soul, and person (or belly.)  But ibr want of a verb of
the like latitude of signification in our language, I have been
under the necessity of expressing the sense of VtVY  as connected with these different nominatives, by the three different
verbs, is wasted,-pines,-is emaciated.
[E] Ver. 10. -  are mouldering away."  Again the same
verb 1tVtVy.
EF] Ver. 11. -  a nuisance."  I venture to read'}NO for




PSALM XXX\.I       CRITICAL  NOTES.                      221.
yNn.  1l2 is to rankle like an angry sore.  Or, may not'11R  be a corruption of ilNn, from the root  iR9? or, perhaps of'11, fi:om the root "'V?
CG] Vet. 1'3. "' Truly I have- heard the angry muttering
of the mighty, of them  that are the general dread." =) 3~:1l232.  I take this to be a. phrase describing the mighty,
whose malignant threats against hinm he overheard, as persons universally dreaded for their power and their cruelty.
It seenms to have been a phrase nearly equivalent to our vernacu!ar phrases of rae-h ead and bloody bones, scare-crozvu
ibg,,aboo.  It was a naime given by the prophet Jeremiah, in
atbhorrence and contempt, to his persecutor Pashur, as an
object of general dread and aversion.  See Jeremiah xx, 3.
[H] Ver. 17.        let the impious be brought to shame."
Here ends the prayer. ~What follows, to the end of the 18th
Verse, is the answer of thu oracular voice.  The sequel of the
Psalmi is thanksgiving for that gracious answer.
[I] Ver. 21. 1      he hath set apart his saints for himself
in: a city of defence." LHoubigant would make an enmendatioit
here.  The subject of the Psalmn being, as lhe conceived,
David's escape in the wilderness of Maon; the kindness
which the Psalmist colnmemorates was not shewn him  in a
strong city.  But his escape from the city of Keilah into the
wilderness, was no less providential than his deliveiaunce from




22 921           CRITICAL NOTES.    PSALM xXXXI 
Saul's pursuit in the wilderness.  Marvellous kindness was
shewn him in a strong city, when he had warning to escapefrom a place, where Saul thought to find him shut in with
gates and bars.-See 1 Sam. xxiii. In the application of the
Psalm, therefore, to David, no emendation of this passage
seems necessary.  But the version of the Syriac deserves attention, which presents a remarkable variety of the text.
15i AMn,75Vn must have been the reading of that interpreter.   i He hath set apart his saints for himself in a city
of defence."-See Psalm IV, 3. XVIL 7.
PSALM XXXII.
[A] Ver. 5. 1 acknowledged —have I not hid-I said I
will confess."-E. T.  In the Hebrew, " I acknowledged" ii
future, as is 6 I will confess."      I have not hid" is perfect.
I will acknowledge my trespasses unto thee,
My perverseness I will not conceal;
I said I will make confession of my wilful crimes unto Jet
hovah,
And thou, &c.
The sentiment is, "6 I have felt the misery of the attempt to
another the sense of my sin within myself.  I will do so no




PSALM XXXII.    CRITICAL NOTES& 2d2
more. I will always be ready to make confession: for of this
too I have felt the benefit. No sooner did I resolve to confess
than thou forgavest."
[B] Ver. 7. Thou shalt preserve me, and deliver me fromn
them that beset me." Thou shalt compass me about with songs
of deliverance." —E. T.  Houbigant observes, that 1Y9, as a
noun substantive, is no where found but in this place.  He
thinks it is here a corrupt repetition of the last syllable of
the preceding verse.  He would therefore expunge it, and
read.:n9,, ~/~D3, " And thou shalt deliver me from
those who beset me."  The alteration is in some measure
supported by the version of the LXX, and Vulgate, and still
nmore by the Syriac, which entirely omits TI; and the prefixing of. to the following verb, and the omission of V1 is
sufficient; for without any further change, =:122)D   may
render" G deliver me from themn that sirrou-tnd me."  Or, without omitting? -4-'6  0 thou, the subject of my song, deliver
me," &c.  See LXX.
O my joy, deliver me from them that compass me.
K. H.'s Primer,
C] Ver. 9. -  bit and bridle." E.T. ]~.D n n. The LX X
render the first of these two words by Xa, AJ, the second by x~?~
The word z%.<xYos~ signifies the iron of the common bridle,
which is put into the horse's mouth,-~the bit, or curb.  But




f2'2  CRITICAL NOTES.   PSALM XX.XIIx:
But z7po, was something like a muzzle, which was put upon.
mischievous horses or mules to hinder them from biting.
Xenophon says, that it allowed them to breathe, but kept the
imouth shut, so that they coul.d not bite. Not knowing the term.
of art for this contrivance, I call it a muzzle. The verb ~:31
is a military term, and signifies to advance, as an enemy, to
attack. The'" coming, near," therefore, intended here, is a
coming near to do mischief.  The admonition given by the
Psalmnist to his companions, is to submit to the instruction
and guidance graciously promised fiom heaven, and not to
resemble, in a refractory disposition, those ill-conditioned
colts, which are not to be governed by a simple bridle, but,
unless their jaws are confined by a muzzle, will attack the
rider as he attempts to mount, or the groom as he leads
them to the pasture and the stall.
PSALM XXXIIL
A TqHANKSGIVING OF THE CHURCH TRIUMPHIANT  IN THEJ
LAT TER AGES, FOR HER FINAL DELIVERANCE, BY THE OVERTHROW or ANTICHRIST AND HIS ARMIES.
Ver. 1, 2, S. These three verses should be thus rendered:
1 Sing, 0 ye just, unto Jehovah,
Praise beseemeth-well the uprightJ




PSALM  xxxII.   CRITICAL NOTES.                        2 25
2 Praise Jehovah upon the harp,
Upon the ten-stringed psaltery chaunt unto himn
3 Sing unto him a new song,
With joyful notes play skilfully upon the tabor.
The first verse, calling upon the justified and fle upright
in particular, to sing unto Jehovah, shews that they are exclusively interested in the subject of this Psalm.  The deliverance, therefore, which it celebrates, is a deliverance of
them monly.
Ver. 4. The word of the Lord is right," &c.  The event
brought about by God's special interposition, his work, in
conformity to the word of his promise, confirmls the truth of
his promises.
Ver. 7.      as an heap;" rather,'s as a bottle."  LXX. 
Vulg. Syr. Chald. Bishop Hare, Bishop Lowth, Archbishop
Secker, &c. for lf, reading "q].
Ver. 15. He found the heart of them  all alike," i. e. one
as well as another.  But rather with the LXX, Vulgate, and
Syriac, "' He who found,-he who considereth," &c.
Ver. 16, 17. These verses allude to the discomfiture of the
Antichristian armies, by divine interposition.
VO7L. I,'dP




226             CRITICAL NOTES.    PSALM XXXIVm
Ver. 19. -- in famine;" alluding to the famine of God's
word, which may prevail in the height of Antichrist's persecutions.
PSALM XXXIV.
[A] Ver. 5o. Look towards him and you shall be enlightened." -"-  They looked unto him, and were lightened, and
their faces," &c.-E. T. Read with the LXX, Vulgate, and
Kennicott, ~?]~, C" your faces."
Vitringa, upon Isaiah LX, 5, contends that the verb JTM
signifies "' gaudio effluere," without any metaphor taken from
liglzt. But the judgment of the LXX, the Vulgate, and Chaldee, in this place, is clearly against him. Bishop Horne understands tiZe illumination here, of the information of the understanding in religious knowledge; that is, of the illumination of the soul by the light of divine truth. I am much inclined to think this the true interpretation.
[B] Dr. Kennicott supplies the I stanza from the 22d
verse, thus;
Vl abl;Sv  VM~   IZ




PSA.LM XXXV.     CRITICAL NOTES.                      227
"e For Jehovah redeemeth the soul of his servants,
And none shall be condemned that take shelter with him."
C] Ver. 6. This poor man."'Ot,e9,Xr Ic, as Kennicott
rightly observes; and so the LXX,;Y0r.
ED] Ver. 10. The rich,"-the young lions," E. T. The
LXX, Vulgate, and Syriac, read MST'2D, the rich, or, the
powerful.
[E] Ver. 17. The just cry." Read with the LXX, Vulgate,
Syriac, Chaldee, and Bishop Lowth,
(Ver. 22. The Psalm should end with the former Versre'
the Van stanza being misplaced.)
PSALM XXXV.
[A] Ver. S. Present the javelin and dirk. —stop the way."
E. T. T1 -'1D. Sunt qui velint segor nomen esse bellici cujusdam instrumenti, idem scilicet quod Persicum  sagaris, ensiculi genus; quod huic loco optime convenit; ci'm praecesserunt clypeus et scutun, commode sequuntur lancea et gladiua.
w-HIAR;E in locO
ip 2




228               CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALMr XXXV.
[B] Ver.e 5. -- chase them."'E1,xcrv Ccv.,-LXX.
Read therefore MIM with the suffix M.
[C] Ver. 7. There can be no doubt that the text is to be
set right by Bishop Hare's transposition of the words:
1Houbigant proposes the sLame emnendation, arnd confirms it
by the authority of the Syriac.
[DI    Ver. 8.    destruction." M;R1.  Procella cum fr'agore erumpens. —See MRItRICK's Ainnotations.
into that very destruction."  For,'~V29 I would read
with the LXX and Vulgate, YW~r —'   aind into the pit, intto
it let him fall."
[E ] Ver. 1o. 1 n, ct dh'irzyientle cure.
IF1 Ver. 11. Withesses of violence." —False witnesses. E. "' 
r 4~y —; witnesses of wrong, or violence;" i. e. witnesses
deposing to acts of violence, as committed by the person ac.
cused. —See Ps. xxvii, 12.
[G] Ver, 12. -  the extermlination,"  &c.  This I take to
eC the meaning of the phrase Wt75.P.




:sALM X XXV.      CRITICAL  NOTES.                        229
[IH] Ver. 14. It is difficult to make sense of the passage as
it stands.   If for tN'I  we might read ~l3~, there might be
-two ways of explaining it.
lst, Taking the words, with this emendation, in the order
in whichl they stand, 7Y1, MND, and  11p, may all be taken
for participles, and the verse thus rendered, —
I went-about, with-sinking-knees, and heavy-hearted,
I bowed-down, clad-in-mourning, as one that mourneth for
his mother.
2d, Taking the further liberty to transpose the words.
i%,3 and y13), thuss, 4) Y'3,, the words nM3 and T}Pd
may still be taken -as participles, and the word YID for the
noun V1, with 3 prefixed, the preposition of similitude; and
the whole verse may be thus rendered,"( I went about heavy-hearted (~}), as though misfortune
()5 3yD) had happened to myself;
I bowed down," &c.
I give the preference to this latter exposition.  But the
Syriac version deaserves great attention. It suggests perhaps a
better enendi, ation, and gives the true sense. This interpreter
omits t2, and renders
"I behaved myself like a fri'iend or a brother."'




~2s             &:e~'llPCRITICAL NOTES.    XSALM XXXVo
This rendering I would, after all, adopt; for an emendation
suggested by the authority of this very antient version, is
certainly to be preferred to any that is merely conjectural.
[I j Ver, 15. - smiters.-the abjects." —E, T. If M13
may be taken actively, as rendering smiters, this passage will
be a clear allusion to the insults which were offered to our
Lord before his crucifixion. If ='= render albjects, I know
not the sense of the next words, "6 and I knew not."  Our
Lord was blindfolded, and knew not, otherwise than preterilaturally, those who smote him. The LXX  and Vulgate
both confirm the sense of smiters,
[K] -laid on heavy blows." WY1p1  Ii Arabic 3j) signifies pulsare, percutere.
[L] Ver. 16. See LXX, Vulgate, and Parkhtlrst, under
the word Y3tY. -     6nt.    "Venerandam faciem Dei Hominis,"
says Houbigant, " Judaei sputis contaminarunt."
E[M] Ver. 18. -Among a mighty people."- So the Chalt
dee. And =YV seems more properly to express strength or
power than number.-Is not this an indirect prediction of the
establishment of Christianity  "among the mighty people,"
i. e. in the Roman empire?
[N] Ver. 20. For they speak to me friendly lanUguage" &c.




PSALiM XXVI.    CRITICAL NOTES.                   231
For N;), read with the LXX, the Vulgate, Houbigant, and
Bishop Lowth, i. " For they speak to me friendly language."
----  them that are quiet ill the land." E. T. If, for I.Yak
we had authority to read J1)8n, the sense would be —4 him
that would give quiet to the land, or to the earth." Christ is
the restorer of peace and quiet to the earth, disturbed with
sin and with the fear of judgment. But taking the text as it
stands, ~'~R A:' may be rendered "' the tranquillizers of the
earth," i. e. Christ, and the first preachers of Christianity,
preaching a doctrine of love and peace.
[0] Ver. 25. — aha! we have-our-wish; so would we
have it."  Bishop Lowth approves Houbigant's conjecture,
who, for 12]9, of which it is hard, says Bishop Lowth, to
make sense, would readlPltX, 6 we have caught him;;"
which would be parallel to nli]73    in the subsequent line.
But I cannot think  nWMD] hard to be understood.
PSALM XXXVIL
[A] Ver. 1. The transgression of the wicked saith within
my heart, there is no fear of God before his eyes."-E. T.
For':15, "' amy heart," the copies used by the LXX, and
Vulgate, as it should, and certainly those of the Syriac interpreter, had ~21;, "( his heart."  And this is the reading of one




2332              CRITICAL  NOTES.             PSALM XXXVI.
MS. of Kennicott's, and1l two of De Rossi's.  But the passage, without further emendation, seems to me inexplicable.
Archbishop Secker's conjecture, that lqN, in the second line,.should be repeated, is plausible~
Or, the repetition of'1t'  may be saved, if; for.'15), we may
read I3M lRb.  According to either emendation the passage
will, I think, bear this ren.dering,-yW9,     6 the Apostate,' or,
the rebel,' (i. e. the Devil) YVOb5 1Mb  solemnly affirms to
the  impious man, c within his heart,' (i. e. tLe devil assures hiqm  by sectet suggestions), that there is,no fear, i. e.
no cause of fear.  God (after these suggestions) is not at all
before his eyes.
The verb MW3 is properly a promantic term.  Its sole use
in the Prophets is, to introduce whatever they would seem
to deliver as a message from God, in the words of God himself, in such forms as t'hese,   Iam against the Prophlets, saith
Jehovah;" " They shall not profit this people, saitl Jehovah;"
66I  will even forsake you, saith Jehovah."  And I know no
example of its use withlout an enuncfa tion of the special matlter of the oracle~ But if  2R.]  might be t-aken here as a noun,
denoting oracular advice in general, or advice pretending to
oracular authority, without reference to any particular oracle
giiven upon any particullar occasion, and so it is taken'by




PSALMA XXXVI.    CRITICAL  NOTES.                      2:3
Arias Montanus, the passage will admit an easy interpret;
ation, without any other emendation- than the change of:25 into 1:g, which has the authority of the LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and three MSS.  Thus, 6G The oracular advice
of the Apostate is to the impious in the innermost of hig
heart;" i. e. the maxims of the Apostate are deeply rooted
in the heart of the impious.  " There is no fear of God
before his eyes."  The verb substantive is understood in this
first line, =1N] being the nominative case.
[]3B  Ver. 2. He giveth things afair appearance."-So T par.a
phrase the verb p~t;~.  See PsaIm v, 9. and xii, 2.  Thihs
vei-se is well explained by Merrick; and his interpretation
met with the approbation of Bishop Lowth.  "He flattereth
himself (or dealeth deceitfully with himself) as to the finding
out," &c. i. e. so as not to finad out.  The same sense is expressed in the version of the LXX, notwithstanding the ignorant criticism: of Le Cletr (well answered by Merrick),
and in the literal translation of Arias Montanus. " Quoniamn
lenivit ad se in oculis ipsius, ad inveniendum  iniquitateme
suami ad odiendam." "  i'0r he has smoothed over, (or set a
polish to himself), in his own eyes, with respect to the finding out of his own iniquity to lhate it."  Ile sets such a false
gloss, in his own eyes, upon his worst actions, that he never
finds out the blackness  of his inlquity, wvhicbh, were it perceived by him, would be hatelfi1 even to hirmselfo  The preifix ~ may ce]rtainy, sg'nii  " wit h respect to," and the verb




CRITICAL NOTES.   PSALm XxsxvIl
NRi   somfretimes signifies cc to find  out," "' to discover,"
t" to discern," what was unknown or unperceived.  See Ecet,
Yvii, 29.
-C1 Ver. 13. See there!"  Cg         -,s~,jd~
PSALM XXXVII3.
cA; The Messiah, if not exclusively, is principally the
Subject of this Psalm.  The stanzas 1' i, b,  i, D, X, are hardly applicable to any other.  The admonitions of the Psalm
seem chiefly addressed to him. Many parts of it, indeed, predict the final prosperity of the Church, but these predictions
are, I think, in the shape of promises to the Messiah. The
comminatory parts seem to respect the nation of the Jews
immediately, and the antichristian faction of the latter times
ultimately.
EB] Ver. 3.   - and feed in security;" —-" and verily
thou shalt be fed."-E. T.  Bishop Hare, Houbigant, and
Bishop Lowth, for -7M=l  would read o'C1lW,  upon the authority, as they think, of the LXX. But Archbishop Seeker
thinks that,:31N  may signify plenty, as the root X12 signifies'to nurse, or nourish."-See MERRicK's Annotations.
IBut the Archbishop proposes another interpretation, which




PSALM XXXV1.  CRITICAL NOTESr.E                     2 s5
Mr Parkhurst adopts, aid is, I believe, the true one; in'" security;":1 being understood before i~LM.     See PAEKHURST';S
Lexicon ]1W9 InI; and SECKER, as before, in Merriclk.
[C] Ver. 20. —  and the enemies of the Lord shall be a~
the fat of lands, they shall consume; into smoke shall they
consume away.-E. T.  Houbigant, guided in great me~a
sure by the version of the LXX, corrects the passage thus.: And the enemies of Jehovah shall wither as soon as thea
are in honour;
As soon as they are exalted>, like smoke they shall vanish
away."
Bishop Lowth thinks these alterations great.  They are
however, in great part at least, countenanced by the versions:
of the LXX and Vulg.  The change indeed of the first ]55
into S'2 is unnecessary, and in no degree warranted eitherby the LXX or Vulg.  I would give the passage thus-.15D tlYev   15D
According to the LXX and the Vulg. only one of the
vtwo words, 1p and'1, shoultd have the pronoun suftixed




CRI  ICA.,  NOTES.    PSALM XXXVIL 
The change o`f 9'p  into'p1j 1 is supported by three MSS. of
enniico3tt's.  That of ='1  into  1Y1fD by the LXX  and
7'ul'ate.  That of I~Y:I into IT.  by 33 Codd. of Kennicott's
and. 22 of De Rossi's, in addition to the authority of the
Li,:,, Vulgate, and Syriac. NWVith these alterations the text.would give this sense:
And the enemies of Jehovah so soon as they are exalted
to honour
Vanish. Like smoke they vanish,"
LD] Ver. 22. 1 suspect that the 22d and 26th verses hlave
ch-anged places.
[El Ver. 23. The steps of a good man."-E,  T. Literally9
6S.The steps of a nman are directed by Jehovah, and he will
take pleasure in irs way;" i. e. when a mran's steps are directed by Jehovali, [Ewhen a man submits himself to the direction of God's word] then Jehovah takes pleasure in that
man's way. Or perhaps the words may be thus rendered,
with reference to Christ in particular,
6 The steps of the mighty mnan are ordered by Jehovah,
And in his way he delightethl.":g.~1. The mighty man.:' Heroe," is one of the titles of the
Messiah.  Isaiah Ix, 6.




-'SALM XXXVII.      IT TICAL NOTES.       2'7
[F] Ver. 24. Shall. he not be raised -up?"-,'1 _ 5. I take
N5 interrogatively, and L')MI fronm the root %I)M  in the Chaldee
sense.
[GC] Ver. 28, 29. It is certain that the latter part of the
28th verse with the 29th, belongs to the stanza which began
with the letterZV; but the beginliing is lost.  The restoration
of it has been attempted in diiffrent ways by Bishop iFare,
and Houbigant.  Bishop Hare makes the 0 stanza end wilth
the word 1~"1D'l f"iis saints."  ie throws the two next words
into the first line of the stanza in question, prefixing, for the
nominative of the -verb, the  nou[Ln M]t', " the mleek."
Thus,
1n132 - 3n'. 510    =v713,
Tihe meek are preserved fo:r ever."
Houbigantl connects 2this clause "6they are preserved for
ever," with the 0 stanza, of which he makes it the close. Andl
he supplies the first line of thle y stanza, thus,
"' The unjust shall be punished, and the seed,'" &c.
Either of these emendations makes very good sense; but zI,t'




238             OCRITICAL NOTES.   PSALM XXXvir
tlhe two I prefer Houbigant's, for these reasons: The line,
which he supplies, appears in the version of the LXX (accordiLg to the reading of the Alexandrine), and in the Vulgate.  In the D stanza, the first branch consists of three
clauses:    Depart,-do good, —dwell."   The parallelism,
therefreore, in which the Hebrew poetry delights, requires that
the second branch of the same stanza should likewise consist
of three clauses; which will not be the case unless the clause,
C preserved for ever," be taken into this stanza. The beginning, therefore, of the subsequent stanza cannot be properly restored by thrusting these words into its first line,
and supplying a nominative, beginning with the letter V,
for the verb c" preserved," thus detached from its proper
context.
Bishop Lowtl closing the D stanza with the word n'PnVR
supplies the beginning of the next, thus,
And I anm much inclined to think that the wholeof the lost
line might consist of these three words. But still, with Houbigant, I would suffer 1YnYU  051,  to remain as the close of
the D stanza.
[HE  Ver. 35. -e     spreading himself like a green baytree."-E. T. Houbigant, upon the authority of the LXX,
reads o'WTIN.   Bishop Hare and Bishop Lowth, upon the




'PSALvM XXXVI.   CRITICAL NOTES.                  9.39
same authority, as they imagine, read MynD'* "lifting himself aloft," —" towering."  Houbigant's emendation seems
quite unnecessary.  And equally so, I believe, are Hare's
and Lowth's. See PARKHURST NP.V, III.
a tree flourishing in its native soil."  So the Chald.
and Bishop Horne.
[I] Ver. 36. Yet he passed away."-E. T. Read with
LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and Houbigant'12yNW, "But I
passed by."
[K] Ver. 37. Mark the perfect, &c.".E. T. Rather, c" Keep
in innocency and regard uprightness; for theperfect man hath
a posterity; but the rebellious shall be destroyed together;
the posterity of the wicked shall be cut off."  To this effect
the LXX, Vulgate, Chaldee, Syriac, and Houbigant.
[L] Ver. 39. The salvation.-" Read with Bishop Hare,
Houbigant, and Bishop Lowth, LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, two
MSS. of Kennicott's and De Rossi's, I21tVIJ without the I
prefixed, that the stanza may begin regularly with the letter 2.




24 0             CRITICALI  N  TEIS.   PSALM XXXVIIt.:PSALM XXXV1I 1.
EA3  Ver. 5. -— stink; they run -with corruption." —
ftink and are corrupt"' —.E'. T.   Ioubigant, upon the authority of the LXX, prefixes the coniljunction   to o the verb
Op-. Bishop Hare's transposition of the verbs may seem
a more elegant correction.  But neither is to be admitted 
for the very next verse affords another instance of that particuliar construction, which those critics would condemn ---
two verbs, having a commoin subject, come togethler without
the conjunction copulative.
[B] Ver. 6. -- melancholy." 1j)~ is literally, G dressed in
mnourning;" hence it may, by.an easy figure, denote the nelancholy looks of a mourner.  And so the LXX take it here,
rendering it Zvo;~.7vi,
[C] E[D  Ver. 1O, 11. --   it also is gone from me. My
lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore."  "J It also."
Bishop Hare, conceiving that the plural =; cannot rehearse
the singular antecedent S11, expunges these words =9  t,1
from the last line of the tenth verse, and dividing tbe first of




7ttALr~ xxxwVIIw.   CRITICAL NOTES.                      41
the eleventh inlto tNro, finds a place for them in the seco6nd
Thus,
And the light of mine eyes is gone frols me 
My friends and mny companions 
Even they stand-stiff-with-horror, at the sight of my wound.
The phrase ( the light of the eye's," occurs only in this piacee
We find it indeed in another in our English bible; namely,
Prov. xv, 30.  But in that place, the word in the original is
different, though friom  the same root; not TNR, but 9],
which properly signifies that which causes the light of the
eyes.  I apprehend it denotes the whole assemblage of prosperous circumstances in a man's external condition, which
makes the eyes sparkle with delight.  But in this text of the
Psalmist, the light of the eyes, of which the absence is connected with the loss of strength, must be taken literally for
the natural lustre of the eye of a person in health and good
spirits, which is extinguished or dimmed by disease. The noun
11N, therefore, seems to be singular in sense as well as form,
and cannot regularly be rehearsed by the plural pronoun
M1. BDut why should we not adopt the version of the Chat-b
5roQLe J




2142`t'CRITICAL  NOTES.  PSALM XXXVII1x
dee, according to which,'i rehearses not )qN, but the plural
My heart palpitates, my strength forsakes me,
And the light of mine eyes; nay they themselves are lost to me.i
He complains that he had even lost his sight through the
violence of the disease. Adeo ut ne oculos quidem, nedtim lucem,
habeam.-CASTALIo.     In the 11th verse, the version of the
LXX deserves great attention. oi (PAo, (tov XCat oi 5-rA440Y )&Vo iEt
]YON  et ~Iy$0Y CES-c~v ion*,Y.  The passage in their copies mushave stood thus,
"'My friends and my companions
Came into my presence, and stopped short,"'
not bearing the sight or stench of the filthy sore.  And to
the same effect the Vulgate.
[E] Ver. 13. -     as a deaf man, 1~eard not;" rather, "hear
not.'"  For =yVN? in the first person, nine MSS. of Kennicott's, and one of De Rossi's have =Yt? in the third; but
against the authority of all the ancient versions.
e Literally, "not with mei'"




r-SALTM3 XXXIX.  CRITICAL NOTES.                     24
PSALM XXXIX.
The 39th Psalm is a penitential meditation on the vanity
of the present life. It seems not to be appropriated to any
particular person.
[A] Ver. 5.     with all his pride;"_  at his best state.*'
EB. T.  The word 2:1] has much distressed interpreters.
What if we take it for the participle Niphal of the verb ZlV,
which signifies to swell, either literally or figuratively.  The
sense of the passage then will be:
Also every thing is vanity,
Even man swoln (as he may be with pride).
[ B] Ver. 6.     he heapeth up riches and knoweth not
who shall gather them."-E. T.
The pronoun A, suffixed to the verb ]DR, has no antecedent. For ZN' b2l' read R  V1'12t.' As for his heaps, [the
riches which he amassed] he knoweth not who shall gather
them."




:24~[,.'CRITICAL NOTtES.             PSALt X,,
PSALM  XL.[A] Ver. 4. -t'rneth him not to pride, and thie wandjer5i
in(gs of al-sehood;" —'; respeteth not the proud nor such as go
about with les.". T.'rY;    o,,TY/5 v.
LXX, Vu1g. Syr. to the same effect.' Nee declin'avit ad superbiam et aberrationes mendacii," HOUBIGANT.     Pride,",atheisnm. —6    Errors of falsehood," idolatry.  See MUDGEo
[B1] Ver. 7. ---  mine ears hast thou opened."  zTrzI wi.rTrgrlf0,6),og LXX -a body hast thou prepa red for me. Mr
Pierce of Exon conjectures that the copies of the LXX gave
the text thus,
Sinn RS5  iln   ns zi
t.s id, tlat the two wor
It is obvious, indeed, that the two words lU1Z ti uigh
easily be changed into  E2 S.  And the interpretation of'
the LXX may seem, in some degree, confirmed by St Paul's
quotatioln. Pierce's conjecture is approved by Bishop Lowtp h




s'5AL.A xL i A    CRITICAL NOTES.                       24..5
Bishop Horme, however, very justly remarks, that "4 if the
apostle's argument turned on the word.       such an emen.
dation might seem  necessary.  But that word is not essenr,
tial to the argumnent, which seems to stand clear and fillI
ryhlatever be the meaning of 04a,       1.i-~~'e lF;,).   He might
hlave added, that the apostle's argument. would be complete,
if these words were expunged, or if they had been om-itted in
the citation.  Archbishop Scker was clearly of the same
opinion.  "' It is not certain, says the Archbishop, that the
apostle argues from  the word,-;;  at all.  I-e  quotes the
translation of' the LXX as he found it in his copy; lays a
stress on what is in the IHebrew, but n-one on the rest; either
knowiing it not to be there, or being restrained, by the Spirit
of God, friom  makling use of it"."  See SEC;KE  in Merrick's
Appendlix.
[C] Veer. 8.      to execute thy gracious will;" literally,
as THoubgiffant th'tinks, 11  to make an appeasement of thee," i. e.
to appease thecc, or to make the expiation in which thou delightest.  St Paul may seem  to have perceived a particular
altlusion to the reconciliation made by Christ's sacrifice in the
word i 12,5 although the LXX  perceived it not.  At the
same time, as 1H-oubigant well observes, th-e particular interpretation of 91'3 is not necessary to the apostle's argument;
and the expression occurs in other places, where its sense i,:
simply, " to do tfhly will.".S




246             CRITICAL NOTES.              rSALM XL,
LDj Ver. 12. ----- mine iniquities." Aerumnae meae, says
HToubigant; piously thinking that the person who speaks
throughout this Psalm had no sins with which to charge himself. But since "C God laid upon him the iniquities of us
all," therefore the Messiah, when he is personated in the
Psalms, perpetually calls those iniquities his own, of which
he bore the punishment.  The word ]ly, however, in the
singular is used, as is observed by Pierce, for punishment.
Gen. Iv, 13, and xIx, 15, and 2 Kings vII, 9.
[E] Ver. 15. They shall go off immediately with their due
disgrace."-'" Let them be desolate, for a reward of their
shame." E. T.
By comparing this with the parallel place in Psalm LXX,
and considering the version of the LXX, in both places, I
have little doubt that the true reading for lInW is 1fVt, and
that the phrase 2p2y 4Y, signifies, immnediately. Statin reportabunt dedecus suum, "6 they shall immediately go off with
shame;" or more literally, " carry off their shame." Bishop
Lowth thinks the copies of the LXX gave IN, which would
render the same sense. Archbishop Secker is unwilling to
admit that the phrase lpVt? T may signify statim.  But upon
that point the LXX, in my opinion, may be allowed to decide.
In this, and the preceding verse, the shame, confusion, and
desolation to be brought upon the Jewish nation, in the first




PSALM XL.       CRITICAL NOTES,                    2-7
instance, and ultimately upon the antichristian faction in the
latter ages, is foretold. See BisHoP HOrNE upon this Verse.
[F] Ver. 17. But I am poor," &c.-" Truly I am poor."E.'I'.
The humanity of the Messiah speaks. And yet it seems
hardly to suit the character of the Messiah, raised from the
dead, (and in that character he appears in this Psalm), to say
of himself that he was then " helpless and poor."  We may
apply, therefore, to this verse the remark which Bishop Horne,
with less propriety, makes upon the 12th.  " These words
are uttered by our Lord, considering himself (for the primitive writers suppose him, in the Psalms, frequently to consider
himself) as still suffering in his body mystical, the Church.
After his ascension, when the members of that body were
persecuted on earth, the head complained from Heaven, as
sensible of the pain: Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou mE?'?
Under the sense of these sufferings, he comforts himself with
the reflection that Jehovah is not unmindful of him, and
prays that he would not delay to complete the deliverance
and triumph of the Church.
[G] This reading is found in eighteen MSS. and eight'lrinted editions of Kennicott's Collation.




24I8,    $ 4    CRITICAL NOTES"              PSALM t Sxo
PSALM XLI.
[A] Ver. 1. - the poor.'-E. T.; rather, "him that is rew
duced to poverty." The Hebrew'5 is literally,'' one exhaust,
ed" ofall he had, and so made poor.  Compare Phil. ii, 7,
[B3  Ver. 2. --- thou wilt not deliver him." —E, Ti
The LXX have the third person, /,h Grzate.  Their copies,
therefore, gave ~1  %I1.  But the present reading is as
good, if the passage is to be taken, as the LXX  render it,
namely, as a prayer on behalf of the lowly one's friend.
EC] Ver. 3, --  the couch of langour."  The LXX
have;~yVyi ~,~. Their copies, therefore, gave 1Tf~ with the
suffix 1.
ED] Ver. 4. 4-for I have sinned against thee."-E. T. Iin
this Psalm, the Messiah is the speaker, who, in his own person,
was sinless.  But the words may be rendered, S Surely I
bear blame before thee."  Personam peccatoris ap2ud tec gero.
So the word Zltrn is used, Gen. XLIII, 9. Kennicott renders
the sentence as a question: "1 Have I sinned against thee."
But I nmuch doubt the use of the particle 1 as an interro,
gative.




.PSALM XLI4       CRITICAL NOTES.'49
[E] Ver. 8. Some cursed thing," &c.  The copies of the.LXX  certainly gave ipD' for p2:'9 and 12 for'2.  But the
reading of the modern text gives a goodl sense, so that any
alteration of it seems amecessary.
[F] Vert. 9.    has practised the greatest treachery against
me." -hath lifted up his heel against me." E. T. -Ecs"yXu-.Y~ [vr' ~.~ ~~E~~T?>YO.'LXX. " Magnificavit super me supplantationem." Vulg. And to the same effect, Chaldee and Syriac.
" Levavit contra ine plantain." Hieronym.   But I do not
believe that the Hebrew verb ~II.S  ever signifies " to lift up."
The quotation of the text in St John, in these words,, ~JY
PST7 s"o aSTv'%4-O iC-SV iCE' ggs,% 7Y 9TEgX  uTrg, (John xIii 18.) is
ino confirmation of St Jerom's rendering. For the Greek noun
s,7e.~, like the Hebrew:pY, though literally it signifies the
L' heel," signifies also, by a figure taken from racers or wrestlers, " a tripping up,"  OA, ~;~oq ~. See STEPHAN.  This,
and St John's words, should be rendered,'" He that eateth
bread with me hath raised up a great plot against me." The
verb       app-ng, applied to  -s~v v in this figurative sense, expresses
the raising of the plot to size and magnitude, numbers being
engaged, and these, persons of power.
[G] Ver. 13. This thirteenth verse, having no particular
connection with the subject of this Psalm, is thought, by
Bishop IHare and Bishop Lowth, to have been added to it,
at the time when the Psalter was divided into books, by hinm




50o             CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALM XLITo
who made the division; for no other reason but because this
Psalm happened to be the last of a book. It is tacked, for
the same reason, to the last Psalm of every one of the three
following books.
PSALM  XLII.
TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. A LESSON FOR THE SONS OF
CORAH.
This 42d Psalm, and the following, certainly make one en-l
tire piece.
The suppliant, in this sacred song, is a person under persecution. (v. 3, 9, 10.-XLIII, 1, 2.)  The persecution is
carried on by an "ungodly nation," and an individual, de —
scribed as "6 a man of deceit and fraud;"-expressions easily
applicable to the atheistical confederacy in the latter ages,
under Antichrist as the leader. By the strong attachment
which the suppliant discovers to the Holy Land, it appears,
that he is of the race of Israel. But he is at a distance fiorm
the Holy Land, which he laments, at the same time that he
expresses the most coxfident hope of being conducted tbither




PSALi XLII.      CRITICAL NOTES.                     251
in triumph by the special providence of God; (verse 4, and
XLIII, 4).  This expectation is derided by his persecutors,
and his distress is greatly aggravated by their insults.
From all this it should seem, that the suppliant is of the
natural Israel; a convert to the faith of Christ in the latter
ages, suffering under the persecution of Antichrist; but under
that distress looking forward to the restoration of the Jewish
nation, as a thing at hand, and deriving comfort and joy from
that expectation. The Psalm is the suppliant's earnest prayer,
for the accomplishment of God's promises to the natural
Israel.  Whether the suppliant be an individual of the Hebrew race, or a Church of the circumcision, is doubtful.
That God will gather to himself such a church in the times
of Antichrist, previously to the restoration of the Jewish
people, many passages in the ancient prophets and in the
Apocalypse seem to intimate.
[A] Ver. 2. -  and appear before God."-E. T.; rather,
" and behold the face of God."  "Contemplabor faciem Dei."
HOUBIGANT.
[B] Ver. 4. " WVhen I remember these things."-E-. T:;
rather, " while I bear these things in mind," [i. e. these taunts
of infidels] I pour out my soul upon myself," that is, I indulge
my own thoughts in secret, and comfort myself with these reflections~, "rf  Ads,'6 that I am to pass over," &c.




252              CRITICAL NOTES.:              PSALM XLIfI
Interpreters have been mruch perplexed with the remainder
of the verse.  The difficulty lies chiefly in the verb =77N.
which occurs but in one other text, namely, Isaiah xxxvIII, 15,
where, however, it occurs without the suffix, if the verb be really
the same, as is generally supposed. The verb,'n7N, in Isaiah,
may be referred to the root M"71, if indeed such a root ezists
in the Hebrew language, -which is very doubtful; and those
who suppose it to exist are but ill agreed about the sense of
it.  Some say that it signifies, to walk with a slow gentle
pace; sensin incedere, or pedetentirn am7ulare.  6 Molliorem
gressum notatr' says Bythner.  But St. Jerome, in his trans.,
lation of the text of Isaiah, gives it the sense of recollecting,
meditatin g upon,'' rezutare.' And this sense is adopted by
Bishop Lowth, though the other, I think, is more generally
received.  In the passage under consideration, =t319  has
been generally referred to the same root; and some of the
most ]earned critics would resolve it into  M2~n fT11N'~, (see
Geierus and Piscator in Poole's Synopsis, and Bythner's Lyra,)
aileging that 1, formative of I;ithpael, is often omitted when
the first radical is 7,   %n, or D, being absorbed, as they express it, in the Dagesh of such first radical; and that the
finlal M of the verb, and the word =M?3J?7 consisting of the
preposition =V, and the prononilnal su ffx  3, are somehow
or other compressed into the single letter M, annexed to the
verb. For this syncopation, as they call it, I cannot find that
they pretend to give any general rule.  And of the supposed
absorp-tion of the 21 of Hithpael, by Dagesh following, it is




SALM XLII.        CRITICAL NOTES, "25
perhaps difficult to find an unexceptionable instance in tile
whole Bible.-  Strange'to tell! this unnatural resolution of
the word has tlle approbation of the learned Vitringa.  The
sense of the word, according to this resolution of it, is suppcsed to be,' I did go,' or' I have gone,' or 4 I will go,'
(for different interpreters take the tense differently), in procession with them1'' With them'-with whom?' Vel cuni
miseriarunLi mearuml comitibus; vel quibuscum olim proficiscebar,' says Dni MuIS. Others expound the pronoun, of the
rejoicing multitutde, mentioned at the end of the verse, which
is more toerMable.
Bishop Hare, Father Hloubigant, Dr. Durell, and Bishop
Lowth, justly dissatisfied with this exposition, somewhat too
hastily, perhaps, suspect the text of corruption.  Why may
not  T"T~ be the first person future, Kal from the verb'T'%
(-defective Phe %), with the prononuinal suffix of the third
person plural masculine?  The verb 7'3l signifies, 6 to flee,
to flee away, to move in a hurry from place to place, to'move
very quickly.' And why should not  bTT~ render' effagiam
eos,' or' eos evasuruts sum?' I shall flee away froml themn;'
I shall escape thenm.' The suffix ~  (them) being understood of these scoffers, who were continually saying to the
suppliant, I where is thy God?' It may be observed, by the
way, that'1-Ns, in Isaiah xxxvIII, 15, may be referred to? See Maselef Granm. Heb. cap. vii, sect, 3,




;25              CRITICAL NOTES.               PSALM XLII.
the same root 1TT1. For, in the future tense, those persons
that have no increment often assume a paragogic A; and the
true rendering of that verse will be this —' What shall I say?
He hath given me a promise, and he hath performed it.
After the bitterness of my soul, I shall go along briskly (i. e.
chearfully) all my years.''
Be that as it may, if this sense of  1'1', in this passage of
the Psalmist, be admitted, the entire verse mnay be thus rendered;
These things I remember, and to myself I pour out my soul,
That I am to pass over to the tabernacle. I am to flee away
from them to the house of God,
Amidst the sound of exultation and thanksgiving; the multitude rejoicing.
These things I remember,"- i. e. these taunts of the
profane sink deep, and are never absent from my mind.
----  and to myself I pour out my soul."  This seems to
me to be a proverbial expression, denoting the mind's silent
brooding over its own thoughts, of whatever sort they may
be, when a man states, as it were,'to himself in minute
detail, what arises, upon any interesting occasion, in his
thoughts, without any communication with others. It is
perhaps most frequently applied to thoughts tinctured at, See Parkhurst under 712. Jo




rSALMXLIL       CRITICAL NOTES.~                     255
least with melancholy.  But, in the present instance, the
thoughts are consolatory.  For under a keen sense of the
scoffs of his enemies, triumphing over him as a person totally
disappointed in his hopes, he comforts himself with the recollection, that his return to the Holy Land is a thing fixed in
the schemes of Providence; and that, notwithstanding his
present oppressed state, his hope of returning in triumph will
at last be realised.
"C That I am to pass over. —I am to flee"- The verbs in
the original have the form of futures, and I have the authority of all the antient versions, the LXX, Vulgate; St. Jerome,
Chaldee, Syriac, Aquila, and Symmachus, for rendering
them as futures.  These futures express, that he looks to thia
return, as what is promised to him and prepared for him.
-the multitude rejoicing."  XT1 ]lad.   I take these
words absolutely, and would render them  in Latin by the
ablative absolute, I turba tripudiante.'
Thus the text, without any emendation, and without any
forced interpretation of the words, gives a sense perfectly
consistent with what seems to be the general subject of the
Psalm.  Bishop Hare's suspicion, that the words DUTm  IDn
are a corruption of the name of some place, through which
the passage lay to the temple, vanishes. And Houbigant's
proposed alteration of n-m  into l17T1r4, evidently appears to
be for the worse.
It must be confessed, however, that all the antients, except
Aquila, Symmachus, and St.'Jerome,::render this verse as if




,;56            fCRITICAL NOT'ESL             PSALM xitrIf
instead of MDTR, their copies of the original had some word
which they referred to the root'INR; which may seem to
give some plausible colour to the change, proposed by Bishop
Lowth, of =TMN  into MI9~N.  But a note of Dr. Kennicott's,
upon this text, which occurs in Merrick's Annotations, deserves great attention.  He observes, "'that the word =n1'pS
(the plural of'T'7) appears in Walton's Polyglott without
the first', in Jeremiah xiv, 2, without the second', in Zechariah xi, 2; and without either, in Ezekiel xxxII, 18."'
And by his collations it appears that these omissions are all
authorised by many of his best MSS. Now, in this text,.
='1N  appears, instead of t1T1S, in three MSS. of Dr. Kennicott's, and two of De Rossi's.  ='N2, therefore, it should
seem, would be a better reading than  )'7N,  which is destitute of all authority of MSS.  If Z1114 be the true reading,
it is to be taken as t'3 % the plural of }']N,  and the true
rendering will be,,
", That I am to pass over to the tabernacle of the Glorious Ones,
to the house of God..":_~5~,  or  the Glorlous Onees,' I shlould understand here asa title of the Mniho, the persons of the Godhead.
EC] Ver. 5, 6e For the help of his countenance.-O my
God."  E. T.
Read with the LXX  (A4ex.), Vulgate, Syriac, and one.




PSALM XLIL.       CRITICAL NOTES.                    257
MS. of Kennicott's, TN-N,9 as in the last verse of this
Psalm, and again of the 43d, and begin the next verse with
I will yet praise him,
Who is the Saviour of my person and my God.
Ver. 6. Within me, &c-I will yet praise him;" E. T. rathekg
" I shall yet give him thanks;" i. e. notwithstanding my present
afflicted state, I shall yet again have cause to give him tn anks
for my complete deliverance, and for being still my God.
- therefore I will remember thee from," &c. E. T.; rather,
therefore I will remember thee, concerning the land of
Jordan and the Hermons, and concerning the little hill;'
i. e. to raise my dejected spirits, I will recollect the comforts
of thy presence in the land of Jordan and the Hermons, and
on the little hill of Sion.
6" The Hermons" —  ="]Vr;1, plural, because Hermonr was
a double ridge, joining in an angle, and rising in many summits.-See D'Anville's Map of Palestine.  The river Jordan
and the mountains of Hermon, were the most striking features of the Holy Land. Sion was a hill of moderate height;
therefore little in comparison of the Hermons.
[D] Ver. 7. Deep-deep"- E. T.; rather, " wave-wave."
— See the plural, iniDnD, used in the sense of wcaves, lExodJ.s
xv, 5 and 80
VoI,. I, 




25g             CRITICAL NOTES,             PSALM XMLII,
--- at thle noise;' rather, 1" ill addition to the noise."
The tumult and noise of the raging sea is poetically described, under the image of one rolling wave calling to anra
other. And the tumult of the sea is in addition to the dreadful sound of water-spouts from the sky, which are indeed a
principal cause of the disturbance in the oceah. But this
raging of the elements, is to be understood as an image of the
anarchy and turbulence of the world politic, in the latter ages,
when the madness of the people (figured by the boisterous
seas, its appropriate image in the prophetic language) will be
excited and inflamed by the phrenzy of those prodigies of
governments, which will be found in those wretched times.
water-spouts from the sky." — 6 tzy water-spouts; " be.cause all this disorder is under the controul of providence,
and these water-spouts are the instruments of his vengeance
on the guilty world, and formed for that purpose.
"; These ideas," says the learned Bishop Horne, " seem to
be borrowed from the general deluge, or from a storm at sea,
when, at the sound of descending water-spouts, or torrents of
rain, the depths are stirred up, and put into horrible commotion."
- all thy waves," &c. The rage of this dreadful storm of
anarchy, and misrule, will fall principally on the Church, and
particularly on the new Church of the Circumcision.
[E] Ver. 8. -- in the day-time-in the,night." " The
day-time," the appointed season of the final deliverance of




PSALM XLIT.      CRITICAL NOTES.                     259
tile Church.  "' The night," the previous season of redemption.
---  his song."  For;qIT,  read with six MSS. of Kennicott's, and with all the antient versions, and our English
Bible, I'tV7. But the alteration is not necessary. Dr. Durell
well renders the textual reading, " A song shall be with me,
a prayer unto," &c.; and the sense of the passage, so rendered, will be, "My constant night-song is prayer," &c.
IF] Ver. 10. While the sword in my bones," &ce
NIo emendation is necessary here.
While the sword is in my bones my enemies reproach me;"
z. e. my murderers insult over me, as deserted of my God,
and left by him the victim of their cruelty, while they inflict
the fatal blow. This is the highest aggravation of cruelty,
*hen it is accompanied with insult.
This rendering may seem liable to two objections.
1st, That: never renders wien or while, except it be prefixed to an infinitive mood.  Whereas, in this passage, according to this rendering, it is prefixed to a noun.
2d, That the noun t7T1 is not used in any other passage
for a sword.
To the first, it may be answered, that it is not true. Nolb
dius observes, that the prefix 1, though but seldom, is so
used before nouns and adverbs. He supposes, indeed, that,
in such cases, the verb substantive, in the infinitive, (,]n1),




260              CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALI XMLIX
may be understood.?  And this rendering supposes it to be
understood here.
The second objection, though much relied on by Mr Mertick, appears to me of little weight. Since the verb rnon signifies, to slay, to murder, the noun nr1, which, in prose, is
perpetually used for an homicide or murderer, may very navturally, in poetry, be applied to the instrument of slaughter,
the sword. Just as Sophocles's Ajax calls his sword, upon
which he is about to fall,'o zCpa/5..     I know not that a similar application of the word cyasvbS (which literally renders
the Hebrew MtYn, murderer) is to be found in the Greek lane
guage. And yet no one can doubt that, in this passage of
the tragedian,t it is applied to the inanimate steel.
From this verse, as well as from the general structure of
the Psalm, but from this verse in particular, it may be probably inferred that the suppliant is the Hebrew Church, of
the Antichristian age, rather than an individual of the Hebrew
nation. For an individual could not with any consistency
profess a hope of returning in high triumph to the Holy
Land, at the same time that he complains of the cruelty of
his murderers in a foreign country. But a church, collectively,
may be supposed to express a hope of ultimate peace and
prosperity, at the same time that she is suffering in her
Vide Nold. not. 722.
1-' Ajax. Mast. lin. 826G




PSALM XLIT.     CRITICAL NOTES.                    eft
members. In the Apocalypse, it seems to be predicted, that,
in the times of Antichrist, numbers of converted Jews will
receive the crown of martyrdom.
The application, which many learned expositors would
make of this Psalm, to David, driven from Jerusalem by
Absalom's rebellion, seems liable to many insuperable objections. Even in the very height of that rebellion, David was
never in the extreme danger and in the defenceless conditioa
in which the suppliant in this Psalm is placed. David thought
it prudent, indeed, to retire from Jerusalem; because Absalom
had alienated the affections of so'many of the people, that it
was necessary in order to avoid the danger of a surprise of the
city by the disaffected party, that the king should put himself at
the head of his army. But his departure was not the flight of a
person fallen from his power, without means of defence, and
abandoned of his friends, but the march of a great monarch,
tading the field with a numerous army, (2 Sam. xv, 13 —18),
and attended by generals of such high renown as Joab,
Abishai, and Ittai (xviii, 2). It is true, he ascended Mount
Olivet in the guise of a mourner (xv, 30). But his dejection
arose not from any apprehension of the superior strength of
his enemy, but from the reflection that "6 his son, who camne
out of his bowels, sought his life." (xvi, 11). And it was
from affection and attachment to his person, that his loyal
adherents wept with their sovereign, and, after his example,' covered every man his head."  He had his spies at Jeru-:alem, who gave him early information of all Absalom' s mo.
3J 




262              CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALM XLE.
tions and designs; and when he had crossed the Jordan into
the land of Gilead, so little did his situation resemble that of
tthe suppliant in this Psalm, that he met with friendship and
assistance even from the Ammonites. (xviI, 27 —29).  It is
true, that one man of the family of Saul ventured to insult
the king most grossly, upon his first departure from the city;
but had it not been for the king's politic lenity, the audacious
blasphemer of afflicted majesty would have met the fate he
merited from the just indignation of Abishai. (xvI, 5-14).
The Suppliant in this Psalm, holds the language of one
who had long been in exile in a distant country, and is made
to dwell upon the recollection of the principal features of his
country, Jordan, the Hennons, and the little hill, as what
he wished earnestly to see again after long absence.  But
David's absence from Jerusalem, upon the occasion of Absalom's rebellion, was certainly of no long duration. It should
seem from the particulars of the history, that the whole interval, from the king's departure from Jerusalem to his triumphant return, could not be of many weeks.  There seems no
reason to suppose that the celebration of any one of the
festivals of that year was obstructed. David, in what is called
his flight, which, in truth, was only a retreat to a spot where
he could give the enemy battle with advantage, was never
beyond the limits of his own kingdom. As for Jordan and
Hermnon, which the suppliant in this Psalm  so mournfully
recollects, David was never out of sight of them.  And from
fhe 6" little hill," if this little hill be Zion, his greatest distance




PSALM XLYI      CRITICAL NOTES.                   263
was Mlahanaim.  The town of Mahanaim was in the tribe of
Gad, on the northern side of the brook Jabbok; and the
utmost distance of this place, from Jerusalem, could not be
more than seventy-two Roman miles, which is not quite sixty
English.  For, by Reland's map of distances, the whole distance from Jerusalem to Scythopolis was sixty-one Roman
miles; namelyg
FrQm Jerusalem to Bethel,............. 12
From Bethel to Neapolis,............. 28
From Neapolis to Aser,..... 15
From Aser to Scythopolis,............  6
From Jerusalem to Scythopolis,....... 61
Mt/C.hanaim is not laid down in Reland's map. But by
D'Anville's map of Palestine, tthe distance of Mahanailm
firom Scythopolis appears to be more than two-thirds, but
imuch less than three-fourths, of the distance of Gadara. And
6again, by Reland's map of distance, Gadara was sixteen Roman miles from Scythopolis. Take eleven Roman miles, then;
as the distance of Mahanaim from Scythopolis, which cannot
be far from the truth, and add this to sixty-one, and you
have seventy-two Romnan miles (i. e. as was said before, sixty
English very nearly) for the whole distance of Mahanaim
fr'om Jerusalem. And that it could hardly be so much, may
appear from another argument, Ishbosheth, the son of Saul,
was murdered in his house, at Mahanaim, about noon. (2
Samuel iv, 5, 6. Compare with this, II, 8.) The two assassins
_ 4




264              CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALM XLI1?
" gat them away through the plain all night," (Iv, 7); and the
next day arrived with the murdered Prince's head at Hebron,
where David then resided.  The distance, therefore, of Hebron from Mahanaim was not more, than men, fleeing for
their lives, could traverse in twenty-four hours. And yet this
distance must have been greater than the distance between:Mahanaim and Jerusalem.  For Mahanaim lay NE. or perhaps NNE. of Jerusalem.  Hebron lay south of Jerusalem,
a little declining to the west, at the distance of twenty-two
IRoman miles.
From all these circumstances, it appears, that David, at
Mahanaim, is not the person represented by the suppliant in
this Psalm.
The Arabic interpreter seems to have better divined the
true subject, who gives both this 42d and the following Psalm
the title of 6C A prayer for the Jews who had fallen."
[G] (PSALM XLIII.) ---- from a nation of no pity."  1n:?~RT qS;.   "t9I  is, properly, " abundant goodness," or,
"6 abundant in goodness."  The privation of this describes a
characters destitute of the feelings of humanity, void of the
milk of human kindness.
[H] The $d and 4th verses might, perhaps, be better divided, thus;
3 Lead forth thy light and thy truth; let them lead me;
Let them bring me to thy holy hill, and to thy 4wellingg.




PSALM XLIV.       CRITICAL NOTES.o.6
4. So shall I come to the altar of God,
To God in whom is all my joy,*
And I shall praise thee upon the harp?
O God, my God.
Thus the Sd versp is still a distich, and the 4th a tetrastich; but the last line of the tetrastich is a short one, as it is
in the two preceding stanzas.
PSALM XLIV.
i4D Vn nrrip ln5 Mr=i
It is difficult to find any times in the Jewish history, which
this Psalm may suit.'When could the Jewish people say,
with truth, " All this is come upon us, yet have we not folrgotten thee, neither have we been false to thy covenant."
This Psalm, therefore, like the former, I take to be a prayer
of the new Hebrew Church, in the latter times, suffering under Antichrist's persecutions,
Ver. 2.      and cast them out;" rather, 6 and madest
them to flourish," namely, our fathers. " Germinare fecisti
*,iterally, 9" the gladness of my joy."




266              CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALM XL1V.
eos. — IIOUBIGANT. And to the same effect exactly the Syriac. For the Syriac verb i. renders literally the Hebrew
Ver. 4. —   command;" rather, " commanding," or,
" that hast commlianded."'
The LXX certainly read,N12D ~,N]t — " Thou art my
King and God commanding."  And not one of the antient
versions, except the Chaldee, Jerome, and Symmachus, render #'}t as an imperative.
Thou thyself art m.'y King, 0 God,:
That hast commanded' deliverances for Jacob.
Ver. 7. But"-; rather, For"-. " This has been our case,
that whenever we have been saved, whenever our enemies
have been put to shame, it has been thy doing, and this is
the reason, that I trust not in my bow."
Ver. 12. ---  and dost not increase thy wealth by their
price."' Auctionem non fecisti in venditionibus eorum."HOUBIGANT.  " Ad literam," he says in his notes,'6 in pretiis, sine mercaturis; i. e. sic fecisti, ut domini qui servos
viii vendunt, non tarn spe lucri, quam ut liberentur ab inutiIibus mancipiis.  Ita docet et explanat Hugo Grotius."
Ordainedo




PSALM XLIV.        CRITICAL  NOTES,                       267
Sym.machus, perhaps, had the same notion of the passage;
VOX SAT0/A G-Yfs,5 7T, v144,Y a9Tki^
Ver. 13.        to our neighbours."  =1532t).  Literally,
perhaps, "G to those who give us a lodging, -a reproach to
the inhabitants of the countries who permit us to dwell among
them.  It might be renderecl,
-a reproach to those who afford us a dwelling."
Ver. I 9.       in the place of dragons.'"  " Locis desertis,
inter feras et serpentes." —HARE.  —, 9Cg4z'X;5 7XOnY~.~uz'SY, x0Gi
g:, O.;   zr'z I o,  1 a  d0;1 T-;5  75.  Hebrews xi 38.
Ver. 24. ---- cast us not off;" rather, C be not far off."
This whole Psalm might be divided into parts, for different voices, thus;
Ver. 1-3. Full chorus.
4. The leader of the band.
5. Full chorus.
6. The leader of the band.
7, 8. Full chorus.
9 —1. Air for a single voice, one of the Priests.
15, 16. The leader of the band.
17-22. Air for a single voice, one of the Priests.
23-26o  Full chors,.




268               CRITICAL  NOTES.             PSALM  X LV
But the division is by no means necessary.  A Church, as a
collective body, may speak in the singular or plural number,
I, or we, indifferently.
PSALM XLV.
[A] TITLE,
11tU>S1 g1W  5%trVD  np      =Po e ry 5v 1p U2=
TO THE GIVER OF VICTORY.  UPON THE LILIES.  A LESSOFOR THE SONS OF KORAH.  A SONG OF LOVES.
~o~J. —SYMM.
Ei; Ta TEAO5, V7rSC T&V CosAO6W04Od6EVWYc T0r5 V1i01 Ko RE5 0aJYSTO 6oij
Eiq T'6 VyX, W' Toi4  /7rntiyo15, T05N VIO'  KOO VVScr95) c,7GcM 9;s
TO.c^9TVo*-THEODOT.
[B] Ver. 3. 0 thou that excellest in."-E. T.; literally,
" thou that art mighty in," &c.
It is remarkable, however, that not one of the ancient vetr




PSALM XLV.        CRITICAL NOTES.,                      269
sions adopts this construction.  They seem all to have made
a full pause at'12L.1; and 1n:) is certainly one of the titles of
Christ; —Hero, Warrior, Mighty Man.  The version of the
Syriac is very remarkable, and may create a surmise that a
verb is lost in the text, of which  fiVI and'11i were the sub,
jects. The Syriac is to this effect:
Warrior, place the sword upon thy loins,
Thy beauty and thy glory is imrnaculate.
So, I think, the verb ~X} should be rendered, not vincit. After
a11, I am persuaded that Luther gives the true exposition of
this passage, viz. that the nouns'1t  and 9'Ti are accusatives,
under the government of the verb.n1, and signify the ornamental robes of majesty, which the Hero ('~2l2) is exhorted
to put on, together with his sword.' Ebraica Vox Hod et
Hadar valde est frequens," says Luther, 1" et sumpta est ex
Mose.  Significat autem ornatum vestimentorumn."
[C] Ver. 4. And in thy majesty ride prosperously." —E. T,::: ntrg rq1gim.  These three words the LXX  render as
three imperatives.  K g; mrisoov, Xmi AVObOO (or yXcTvodoo), YX"O  Gu',evo.  It should seem that their copies gave the two last, as
well as the first, with the conjunction.  But it is of more imx
portance to remark, that they took 1'1IN fomi the verb I'll in
Hiphil, and thought that the verb, in that formn  without any
mnoun after it, denoting bow or arrows, might sig.tify to "take




Q) 70             CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALM XLY,
-ailm."  Relying, for this sense of the word, on their authority,
I render the passage thus:
Take aim, be prosperous, pursue, x
In the cause of truth, humility, and righteousness;
For thy right hand, &c.
That is, take aim at the enemy; be prosperous or successful
in the aim taken; ride in pursuit of the vanquished foe.
N. BR  Sooim-ion was no warrior; therefore, this and the
next verse can have no reference to him.
[D] Ver. 5. Thine arrows are hJqirpened." S' lA` Bx,)    X
p, Yvvzr ie>.*  L;XX.  They read, ulalerefLore, as Bishop  Hare
conjectures,'3T:glZ     1 2.o
[E] Ver. 8. All thy garments."-,E. 7I'  The LXX and
tVulgate render, as if their copies had given W2 instead of i:
before  J311132.  But there seems no necessity for a change.
C[ I —excelling ivory palaces.""6 out of the ivory pa.
laces whereby they made thee glad."-E. T.; rather, 1" from
cabinets of Armenian ivory they have pleasured thee."  From
cabinzets or wardrobes, in which the perfumes, or the gar" Literally, c- ride."




PSALM XLVL      CRITICAL NOTES.o                   27
ments, were kept.  Either the word ~52v  must bear this
sense, or Houbigant's change of ~D~"; into 2,~ must be admitted.
AJrnenian ivory.  So the Chaldee interpreter renders lV
=2~.-See Archbishop  SECER  in' Merrick's Annotations,
But see my Sermons on this Psalm.
[G] Ver. 9. -- thy bright beauties" —-" thy honourable
women."'-E. T.
The primary notion ofr 1Ot is brightness."  Hence /3]ips
"' bright sparks," scintiliaei  Hence beautiful women.
"Kings' daughters were among thy bright beauties."' The
beauty certainly is mystic. The beauty of evangelical sanctity and innocence.
But who and what are these King's daughters, the lustre of
whose beauty adorns the great Monarch's court? Kings'
daughters, in the language of holy writ, are the kingdoms
and people which they govern, and of which, in common
speech, they are called Fathers. The expression may be so
taken here, and then the sense will be, that the greatest kingdoms and empires of the world, converted to the faith of
Christ, and shining in the beauty of the good works of true
righteousness, are united to Messiah's kingdom.  But if the
5a1, the ~r, gzX64vs, the partner of the royal bed, be peculiarly (as
I am sometimes inclined to think) the Church of the restored
&and converted Jews, become the mother Clurch of Christen



272              CRITICAL NOTES.             rSALM XLV.
dom; then these daughters of Kings may be the various
national Churches, fostered for many ages by the piety of
Christian princes (Is. xLIx, 23), and now brought to the
perfection of beauty, by the judgments which shall have purged every one of them of all things that offend.
[H]       the queen." —E. T. 5=. i. e. literally, " the
bed-fellow." Cvy50,,b A2. Conjunx. HIERON.
lI] Ver. 12. See the daughter of Tyre with a gift!"
I see no necessity for the alterations proposed by Bishop
HLare and Houbigant, notwithstanding that they are appraved by Bishop Lowth. The inspired poet, describing the
court of the Monarch, who is the subject of his song, mentions,
in the 9th verse, the Consort, in rich apparel, at his right;
hand. In the 10th,  11th, and l2th verses, he addresses an
admonition to this Consort, which stands, as it were, in a parenthesis, in his description.  In the 12th verse, he tells the
Consort, how she will advance her own importance by a dutiful submission to the great King, her Lord.  Then, in the
13th verse, he returns to the description of the court, enlarging upon the beauty of the Consort's person, the richness
of her dress, and the magnificence of her entry.  In the
clause, about the daughter of Tyre, either the verb subtstantive only is understood, or the conjunction I is equivalent to Ecce, a sense which I think it sometimes bears,




PSALM XLVW       CRITICAL NOTES.                        73
T would  divide and punctuate, the 14th9 15th, and 16th
verses, thuls,
niii nz innn9D.5D  14
nnfp5 mSn 5
Ver. 13. This king's daughter and the Consort are evi.
dently the same person.   " The connection between Christ
and his Church, says Bishop Horne, uniting in itself every
relation, and every affection."
eK] Ver. 17. I will make thy name to be remembered." —
E. T.
MYyO4vy,~,I  LXX.  Their copies, therefore, gave 1t~lP
the third person plural; so had the copies of Vulgate, Chal
dee, and Syriac.  " They (i. e. thy sons), in continual succession, shall make thy name to be remembered."l Houbigant prefers this reading, for reasons which seem to me unanswerable: but see Bishop Horne's excellent paraphrase
of the common reading.
VOL. I.                                 g




~2~i74   ~~ CRITICAL NOTES.                 PSALM XLVI.
These last two verses are addressed to the Consort.  The
order of the whole Psalm is this, verse 1st, the proem; verses
2-9, addressed to the King; verses 10-12, to the Consort:
verses 13-15, description; verses 16, 17, addressed again tC
the Consort.
PSALM XLVL
now nn:5y by 111*v  mp =b rl5'
iTO THE GIVER OF VICTORY. FOR THE SONS OF KORAR AT
SONG CONCERNING MYSTERIES.
ey7ssg Gs AsWYil Y.-_Sy'tYNCg God xgg/9yv.-LXXo
This 46th Psalm seems to allude to earthquakes and inundationsg which had made great havoc in other places; but, in1
stead of doing damage to the Jews, had been the means of
delivering them from a calamitous war.  The chief subject of
the song, is thanksgiving for these peculiar mercies.  Houbigant thinks that the particular subject might be an earth~
quake, at the time when the angel smote Sennacherib's army.
But, I am persuaded, these commotions in the elements are
mystic, as the title of the Psalm imports, and typify the wars
end insurrections in the latter ages, and the final victory ovev.
the apostate faction.




PSALM XLVI.      CRITICAL NOTES.                     275
Ver. 2. -— though the earth be removed;" rather, 1 demxolished,-made a ruin."  See MiM in PARiKHURST.
--— of the sea."   i   1. Hlare would change this plural
into the singular to; because the suffixed pronoun, in the
next verse, is singular. But Houbigant's remark is,'"nempe
mutatur numerus de nzore' mutando versu."  This demolition
of the earth, and tumblinog of mountains into the seas, is the
breaking to pieces of civil government, and the dissolution of
monarchies in democracy.
Ver. 4. There is a river, the streams whereof make glad
the city of God;" rather, 6' the River,-its streams make glad
the city of God."  The sense is, that during all this commotion of the waters, and tottering of the hills, the streams near
the city of God, will run smooth and gentle in their channels
for the refreshment of the inhabitants.  The rivers and its
streams are mystic. Compare Zech. xIIi. But, perhaps, the
river and its streams may symbolize a regular government
established among the restored Jews, in opposition to the anarchy prevailing in the world at large.
the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.'9
For =]WD, in the plural, read with LXX, Vulgate, Syriac,
and Houbigant, 1X3-V7; and render, "the most High hath
sanctified his tabernacle."'Hy6I~E O  C,   e T-,;,/I,Sa0. LXX.
Houbigant observes, that the word, for the temple or the tabernacle, is either the singular l]t~D   or the plural feminine
s 2




l  CRITICAL NOT~ES.  "SALM XLVII.
]13D); and that the plural mlasculine M=DV  is never used
in that sense.
Ver5. --— right early," rather, with the margina,; when
the:morning appeareth."  The restoration of the Jews will
be one of the first things at the season of the second advent.
It will be accomplished in the very dawning of that day,
"; when the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing on
his wings."
Ver. 6. The heathen raged, the kingdomls were moved;"
rather, "6 The nations were in consternation, the kingdoms
were in commnotion," (with alarm.)
the earth melted;" rather, 66 fainted."
Ver. lo. Be still      in the earth,"  An oracular voice
utters this verse.
PSALM XLVII.
A SONG OF TRIUIJMPH IN PROSPECT OF THE ESTABLISHMEN T
OF GOD'S UNIVERSAL KINGDOM.
Ver. 1.       l 11 ye people;" Heb. —"; all ye peoples."




SALM X.LVII.    CR1TICAL NOTES.                       277
Ver, 2. For the Lord  mrost High," &c.; rather9, " For
Jehovah, the High, the Terrible, is the great King' over all.
the earth."
Ver. 3, 4. I-e shall subdue,-he shall choose."
The LXX render these verbs by preterite Aorists,.,-~:,
--— the people," HFeb.-" the peoples,"
--- the excellency;" or, " the pride."  The inheritance,
chosen for him by God, is called his pride, says Archbishop
Secker.  See MERRICK's   Annotations.  The excellency of
Jacob is the Temple.
Ver. 5. God is gone up," &c.-gone up the hill of Siono
God is described as returning to his ancient seat among the
chosen people.  1" He is gone up, i'yV1T21 with loud shout-3
ing," as from a, conquest.
Ver. 6. Sing," &c.  It was customary to go out to meet
kings and conquerors with songs and dances.  So Mirian
met Moses; the Jewish women  Saul and David.
Ver. 7, 8. God is king," &c.  The contest will be sharp
and long, but it will end in the prevalence of Christianity
over Atheism anLd Idolatry, in the victory of God over the
apostate fiaction.-See HUTCHHINNSON




278              CRITICAL  NOTES.    P1SALM XLVII.
Ver. 9. Thle princes of the peoples." ~1:'7  is here rendered by  g'OVgmT5 in the LXX, and ~.~ by g,,r~ac.  The whole
verse may be rendered thus,
Tihe p!rinzces of the peoples * are gathered together,
A people of the God of Abraham; f
For the mighty ones of the earth are [become] godsHTe is exceedingly exalted.
Bishop I-Tare's alteration of thle latter part of this verse is not
to be borne.  A prophecy of the final gathering together of
all nations under the true God, is discernible through all the
obscurity of the text as it stands; but with this subject the
last distich, as amended by Bishop Hare, would have no con.
nection.
I have sometimes thought,. =n::P'T2, mlight be rendered,
the volunta?:y ones of the peoples, expressing the voluntary submission of tile well disposed among the heathen to the obedience of the Gospel; or, more simply, "1 the ingenuous of
the peoples." —It is remarkable that the LXX render ):PW.
by;gzXovS here, and n11:19,  in the 110th Psalm  by kcr.
But the LXX might easily mistake in the interpretation of
these prophetical texts, and, between the various senses of the
same word, choose amiss.
* Or rather,,c the voluntary ones of'the people'"
-- See Deut. xxx IT, o.




YSA.LM X'VlII.    CRITICAL NOTES,                    t91
PSALM  XLVIII
From the 12th and 13th verses of this Psalm it may mae
guessed, that it was composed in the reign of Uzziah. The
fortifications of Jerusalem  received great additions and imn
provement from that warlike prince, who seems to have been
the inventor of balistic engines.-See 2 Chron. xxvr. Of
the particular event, indeed, which gave occasion'!to the Psalm,
— the providential deliverance of Jerusalem from a threatened
siege,'by a panic which seized the army of certain confedek
rate princes when they came within sight of the town,-we
find no mention, in the sacred history, in the reign of Uzziah:
but we equally find no mention of any such event in any
other reign.
In the reign of Asa, Palestine was invaded by a confederate army of Ethiopians and Lybians.-2 Chron. xvi, 8.
But;-this army never came within sight of Jerusalem.  Asa
went out to meet the enemy, he gave them battle, in the valley
of Zeplatlah, at Aareshah, and he drove them before him to
the extremity of his country; and from that overthrow we
are told they never recovered.-2 Chron. xiv.
In the reign of Jehoshaphat, the country was invaded by a




280             (2CRITICAL NOTES.o   PSALM XLVIII.
confederate army of Ammonites, loabites, and Idumnians;
which seems, indeed, to have advanced within a day's march
of Jerusalem.  But this expedition imiscarried by a quarrel
between the troops of the three different nations, of which the
army was composed, not in consequence of any panic with
which the whole was seized.-2 Chron. xxo
_Uzziah had frequent wars with the P3hilistines, Arabs,
and Ammonites, in which he was generally successfule
Ver. 2. Beautiful for situation" ——; rather, "1 Beautiful
in extension," i. e. in the prospect which it extends to the
eye.-BATE and PARKIHURST.
6 Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great
K;ing;) lather, 6G Zion.  In the northern quarters are the
buildings of the great King," i. e. of the great King J ehovah;
46 his buildings," the buildings dedicated to bim,-the temple
with its ample precincts.
Ver.. ---- and hasted away;" rather, "6 they were seized
vith panic."
Ver. 7. Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with an eas-t
wind." A land ar my diverted from their purpose by a panic!
A fleet destroyed by a storm! Wvho could these confederate
princes be, who meditated an attack upon the Israelites both.
by sea and land.?




PSALM XLVIII     CRITrICAL NOTES.                       2,
Ver. 8. As we have heard, so have we seen." As we have
heard of the miracles wrought for the deliverance of our
fathers in former times, so we have seen and experienced the
like in our own.
Ver. 9. W~e have thought of thy loving kindness;" ra tiher
6  We waited in tranquillity for, or, we sat in tranquil expectation of thy mercy."  We repaired to the temple, and trusted to that merciful aid from thee, which our prayers should
implore.
Ver. 10. According to thy name, 0 GCod, so is thy praise."
The event answered our highest wishes.  The meircies which
we have experienced, justify what is said in our holy books
of the power and goodness of our God.
Ver. 1 S. --— consider;"- perhaps, "stake a plan of —"
Ver. 14. ---— even unto death." 11]D )fY.  These words;
undoubtedly belong to the title of the following Psalm. This
verse, therefore, should be rendered thus,
cc Truly this God is our God,
For ever and ever he will be oaur guide,




08-',     O1B4UTICAL NO 23              P SALMs    X 1X%
PSALIM XLIXi
LAl  A] mong various atteimpts to illustrate t1his obscure
poem, the two different interpretations of Dr. Kennicott and.
Father Houbigant principally deserve attention.  Dr. Ken
nicott's is published in Mr. Merrick's Appendix to his An
notations on the Psalms.  It is chiefly recommended by the
very clear sense, which it seems to give to some very obscure
ex'pressions, without any other alterations of the text, than
what the antient versions warrant, and the most judicious
critics hlave admitted.  But besides many particular exceptions to the senses which he puts upon particular words and
phrases, his notion of the subject of the Psalm  is liable to
this general objection, that the Psalm, as understood by him,
contains nothing answerable to its animated proem; in which
the author bespeaks the attention of nmen of all countries, and
of all ranks, to lessons of high importance and universal concern.  After this opening, alnost the Nwvhole of the Psalm, in
Dr. Kennicott's notion of the subject, is taken up in propounding the erroneou s inaximns o the infidels of the Psalmist's time; and the doctrine of general importance, opposed
to these irreligious maxims, —4the doctrine of a future life, in
which the good shall be exalted, and the wicked humbled, — is
mentioned only in a slight and transient manner.  "This
Psal m,_" says Dr. Kennicott, " gives us the faith of the




PSALM XLIX.       CRITICAL NOTES. e                     8s
Psalmist, in opposition to the maxims of atheists and deists
in his days, on the awful subject of death, and its consequences."  But in Dr. Kennicott's translation, we find, indeed, the maxims of atheists and deists very particularly stated, but we find very little of the Psalmist's own faith.
Were this objection removed, it would, perhaps, be no
great difficulty that nothing enigmatical is to be found in the
whole Psalm, according to Dr. Kenn icott's interpretation;
notwithstanding that the Psalrmist, in the proem of the s6ng,
talks of an -enigmza, that he is to open upon his hzarp. It is well
observed by Bishop H4are, that the word iM74, ver. 4. though,
taken strictly, it signifies an eenigma, is nevertheless applied.
to poetical compositions, in a highly adorned and finished
style, in which nothing enigmatical appears.  From  the etymology of the word, it should seem  that it may signify any
discourse apt to penetrate the mind; to strike, as we say in
English, and make a deep impression."  Nevertheless) since
the Hebrew word ~jTrT properly renders an enigma, if anr
interpretation can be -found, which, without unwarrantable
alterations of the text, and without any unnatural and forced
interpretations of the words and phrases of the text as it
stands, shall bring out anigmata of tle highest and most
general importance, such an initerpretation -will deserve to be
received in preference to any other, as making the body of
the poem most consistent with its opening. Upon this ground,
~ See Parkhurst's Lexicons, 1t@




11!18zC CRITI CAL  NOTER.                   I IurX LaM X LI.,,>ioubigas, t's interpretation is greatly  to be preferred  to
Kenniicott's, with respect to tile general subject of the Psalhm
The liberties taken with particular passages, by the learnecl
French3 critic, are more than may be allowed; but they a're
also unnecessary to his general interpretLation.
The Psallm, according' to Houbigant's conception of the
sLubject, is a mysterious song, in which the doctrines of a..Redeemner more than npman, the immortality of the soul, and a
future retribution, are delivered in  enigmzata.
rB] Ver. 2. Both the sons of the low and the sons of thle
See Archbishop SEcK.ER's dissertation upon the force of the
Hebrew  phrases, ini Merrick's Appendix.
[C] Ver. 4. I inclin'e-I propound."
I think thlee verbs, though in the future form  in the original, express rather the Psalmist's usual practice of giving
reverent attention to the revelations addressed to himself by
the inspiring Spirit, and publishing what he had been taught,
in compositions for the harp, than his particular intention
upon the present occasion. They are more properly rendered,
therefore, by verbs of the present tense in our language.
[DD]       my dark saying;"' literally, 6 my'onigma." r"
~s~eho~x,s. LXX. i. e. a riddle propounded for solution.'.ty -/nigima-not a1n anigma of my makilng, but the tnigmna




PSALM XLIX.       CRITICAL NIOTES.,                  285
in my possession, which has been delivered to me. This verse
is well paraphrased by Mr. Merrick. The sense is, "1 I will
myself give attention to the instructive parables of revelation,,
and I will propound them in this ode to others.
[El EVer. 5.   - the iniquity of my heels."  See Bishop
HIArE and Dr. KENNICOTT.
EF] Ver. 6. The proem  of the Song evidently ends'with
the fourth verse. The question contained in the 5th and 6th
verses might be expected to introduce the principal subject,
and the reader naturally looks for an answer to it, containing
lthe dark speecth which was to be opened upon the harp. But,
according to Dr. Kennicott's exposition, the Psalmist, forgetting the czise mazaains which his own mouth was to utter,
and the deep matters which were tile subject of his own meditations, in what immediately follows the question, introduces
infidels, propounding their own maxims in their own words;
and this is done, without any thing in the structure of the
poem that might give a suspicion of this abrupt translation
of the discourse from the Psalmist's own person to the person
of the atheist. But, in what immediately follows the question,
according to Houbigant's interpretation, tenigmata are contained of the highest importance, which, affording a solid
answer to the question, or rather assigning the most satisfactory reasons for that fearlessness of man, which the put



286              CRITICAL NOTES.              PSALM XLIX.
ting of the question seems to recommend, are properly introduced by it.
LG] Ver. 7, 8e These two verses contain the mnigma of
redemption.  The power of the Redeemer, who hath the
cause of his servants in his hand, hath been to the faithful in
all ages, in proportion as it hath been understood by them,
a solid ground for that fearlessness of man's tyranny, with
which the Psalmist, by his question, would fortify his own
breast;
[IH] See the LXX. The 7th verse, and the first line of'
the 8th, are rendered to the same effect by the Syriac and
the Chaldee.
El] KV~, fik-~o~0 EiS TOY aYNlwy  YXON T SS5fUC e! Ti>03og'5;   WS bT'17X ej 
xamq0oc1    LXX.
AK] Ver. 9.  This  vearse,  wit h the beginning of the  oth,
{K] Ver. 9. This verse, with the beginning of the lothl,
contains the aenigma of the soul's immortality, and the future
life.  The connection (expressed by the conjunction and)
between this and the preceding aenigma, concerning the superiority of the Redeemer's nature, though very obvious now,
when the whole mystery is laid open, must have been very
enigmatical at the time when this Psalm was written.  The




P SAL M XLIX.     CRITICAL NOT  S.                    287
continued life of the deceased believer is an effect of the Redeemeres power.  This doctrine, therefore, of the believer's
immortality is, in the nature of the thing, connected with
that of the Redeemer's divinity.  Our Lord himself hath
propounded the very same doctrine in very similar terms:
" He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he
live; and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never
die." John xi, 25, 26.
Dr. Kennicott's interpretation is liable, in this part, to
this particular objection, that it supposes nJ;]5 may render,
fironm all eternity, as well as, to all eternity. But the use of the
prefix 4, for the preposition of the timefrom whicz, is muclh
to be questioned.
[L] Ver. I 1. -    their inward thoughts."
For =_1P4 thle LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and Chaldee, had;~'jgp which Houbigant and Kennicott approve.  But the
text as it stands admits a good sense.
[M] Ver. 12. ----  abideth not."
For l9P, read with the LXX, Vulgate, and Syriac, Houbiganlt, and Kennicott,'12.   Compare verse 20.
[N] Ver. 14.o woaYay ~,T  LXX.
[0] ---- in the morning;" that morning of the future
life, which shall succeed the night of death, I questiou whe



s88                CLI   CAL   NOTES.            PSALM XLIX.
ther IXpI in the sense of a herd, be ever -used otherwise than
literally for a herd of cattle.  Dr. Kennicott's translation of
this line supposes a figurative use of it, equivalent to the
English word herd, used figuratively as a term of contempt.
[P] ---   and their beauty."  For 1', at the end of the
verse, read. ~.
Their beautVy, is to be taken, figuratively, fori the elegance
and splendour of their appearance in the present life.
Dr. KennicotIt's notion, that =2 m.may signify thzeir soul,
seems quite visionary.
Dr. Sturges's interpretation of this 14th verse is founded
on more than one unauthorised emendation, and an unexampled sense, I fear, of the word   lip.    It deserves attention however.-See MEnRIcK's Annotations.
[Q] Ver. 19. He shall go." Either read with the LXX, (anld
Houbigant,'1)'T, or, for ThD"29N, read "']D bL.   According
to the first reading, this verse is the Psalmist's judgment
concerning the future doom of the atheist. According to the
second, it is the atheist's impious decision concerning the
vanity of our future hopes. But the first emendation is to be
preferred, because it has the authority of the LXX.
[R] ---- light."  Although the Atheist shall rise, yet he
shall never see that light which emphatically deserves the




PSALM Lo         CRITICAL NOTES.                    289
name;-that light, of which created light is but a faint image;
the light of God's glory. He shall have no share in the
beatific vision.,
PSALM L.
EA] Ver. 11. -     is by my side "'tD3z, juxza me, stands
by me.
[BJ Ver. 18. -— thou becamest his accomplice." z'vr
reE%5 zc~,. LXX; i. e. you helped him to carry off his
booty, and to make his escape.
[C] Ver. 19. Thy mouth hath been fruitful in mischief."
-Thou givest thy mouth to evil." E. T.
The LXX, for 1proe, had probably in their copies M5tV/ e
for they render EfD as the nominative to the verb.  "Thy
mouth hath abounded in iniquity," i. e. hath abundantly brought
it forth. In this way, the parallelism between this and the next
line is more exact.
[D] Ver. 20. Thou sittest," &c.
6 Semel et iterum,!' says Houbigant; conceiving the verb
wVJ)n to be derived from the root dlV, and remarking, very
justly, that the force of the verb 2119 followed by another
verb, is to signify the repetition of that which the other verb
VoL. x:                              T




290               CRITICAL NOTES.                    PSALPMT L.
predicates.  But the LXX, and Jerome, with our English
translators, formed 29Vn from  the root %Ite   Kc0zoncvo5 xab
0S)~0p,~ TV XZr,AmS. LXX. "5 Sedens adversus fratrem tuum
loqluebaris." JEROME. And this is very good sense. "  When
you are sitting still, and have nothing else to do, you are
ever injuring your neighbour with your slanderous speech.
Your table-talk is abuse of your nearest fiiends."  Bishop
Hare very properly refers to Psalm cxIx, 23, for an instance
of a similar use of the verb:I'.  And, 1" to sit in the seat of
the scorner," in Psalm I, is to join in the profane jokes and
ribaldry of idle circles.
[E] Ver. 21. Thbou thoughtest that I was altogether such:uln one as thyself." E. T.
": Existimasti futurum  esse similem  me tibi," is Houbigant's version, without any remark upon the singularity of
the construction'MIR 11iN  if the one be the infinitive,
and tuhe other the first person future, of the verb substantive, as must have been supposed by Houbigant,  Bishop
Hare, and our English translators.  But the' LXX, and
the Vulgate, were strangers to any such construction.   For
the LXX render M'1l as a noun substantive, and the author
of thle Vulgate must have taken. it for a noun substantive
used adverbially.'Yr     r;.~o;.s,,' O'`ouu ~ zX;;0ot.'LXX.
4" Existimasti inique quod ero tibi similis." VULG. All interpreters seem to have forgotten, that MP;)'  is the name which
God takes to himself in the tlird chlapter of Exodus.  It is




'SALM nL          CRITICAL NOTES,                      291,
with particular propriety, that God, in a personal expostulation with his people, about their infringement of their covenant with him in its most essential parts, calls himself by the
name, by which he was pleased to describe himself to that
same people, when he first called them by his servant Moses.
The passage, therefore, should be rendered as in my traiislation.
F] --- I will be thy adversary to thy face." -set thzem
in order before thine eyes." E. T.
Set what in order?  nzvrci           7r~,M  7ogowr,. OU   LXX.
" Statutam  contra faciem tuam." VUIG.  "Adversabor in
oculis tuis."  HARE.  ". will be thy adversary to thy face."
Thy adversary, in a forensic sense. I will set myself to a regular pleading with thee upon the merits.
[G] Ver. 22. -e, instead of 1, is found in most of the
versions; but Jerome and the Targum have I.
E-] Ver. 239. -     to him that ordereth his conversation
aright." E. T.  Bishop Hare's conjecture, =]I for rV, is
ingenious; but the alteration is unnecessary.  The antient
versions support the received reading.  The LXX, indeed,
and Vulgate, render 1']7 =3  as an adverb; "' in that way."
"And in that way will I shew him the salvation of God."
And this interpretation Dr. Durell adopts, and Bishop Lowth
in Merrick.




292             CRIITICAL NOTES.              PSALM LI
PSALM  LI.
THE PEiNITENTIAL CONFESSION OF THE CONVERTED JEWS.
TITLE.
-II-15 ninm M25tO
tivity whe               n   1Jerusalem lay in ruis.
Ves. 2. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,  and L 70
VXIONnyT4, HY;!M ~.SSA9~   zBeS CUC. LX:X.,
WS ~VI U~~s9O4  @ IJO;~ ~S YR.That this Psalm was not written up'on the occasion tO
which the title'refers, is evident from the 4th and 18th verses,
The 4th verse ill suits the case of Davic, whlo laid a successful plot against Uriah's life, after he had defiled his bed,
and the 18th verse refers the Psalm to the times of the captivity, when Jerusalem lay in ruins.
Ver. 2. Washr  me tnhoroughly foom  mnine -iniquity, and
deanse me froom my sin."
Houbigant would join to this verse the latter part of the
4th; --  that thou mayest be justified in what thou hast
spoken, and clear when thou art judged." -- in that which




PSALM LIT.       CRITICAL NOTES.                     293
thou hast spoken concerning the prosperity of me and my
kingdom; that the purpose of God may not seem to be put
by, through the crime of man. But the connection is clear
as the passage stands. " Against thee only have I sinned,"
&c. so that thou mightest be justified in pronouncing sentence,
and clear in giving judgments.
Ver. 12. -— free spirit." niYvvtr,;79,t0YW%. LXX. Spiritu potenti. JEROM. Spiritu principali. VULG. Spiritus alacer. Bishop HARE.  Spiritus magnaninmitatis. HOUBIGANT.
A plentiful effusion of spirit. MUDGE.
PSALM  LII.
A BELIEVER'S THANKSGIVING FOR THE FINAL EXTIRPATION
orF PERSECUTING POWER.
Ver. 2. -----      mighty man, the goodness of God endureth continually."
The LXX had nothing in their copies about the goodness of God, or its continuance.  Their version is in these
words: T. 9yxzvy04 vY xccy 4 0 o'YO-TO5; Avoaac-y 4Xv rzy 4-scgvly
AXvs ixoysuc.o; yoc~ os, which Jerome seems to have
pointed after this manner; T. iyvXoV Yv xa;xw o 4vyas05 &~o/veY;
dxnv r;iY w4gaY QmmYvsiY ialoays-co 4 AC)aoo  Age  It is evident, that
for 1T7V, they had some word which they thought might be
T3




'2v'-:i' t4CRITICAL NOTES.                      PSALM LII'
rendered by v     OL~I.  But of' all the words, which are rendercd by the LDX.X by the word,oJy,  in places where neither
dle Hebrew nor the Greek text may be suspected of corruption, that which most resembles TDI   is D:Ur. What if we
read thle  ebrew thus'
vnm    n m fn mr~ 5~
Why exultest thou in wickedness,
O thou that art mighty in injustice?
Continually thou art plotting mischief;
Thy tongue is like a sharpened razor,
An engine of treachery.
ThLis is very good sense, if the construction  TO, 5N It1.9,
"T mighty in," or for the purpose of, "injustice," may be
alloweds
TVer. 4,    all-devoutriong wordsl'   nuS.~ ~ig,Ta, S Q',roVPISALM LIII:




PSALM L~VW       CRITICAL NOTES.                      295
PSALM LIV.
A PRAYER FOR PROTECTION AGAINST TI'E ATHEISTICAL
CONSPIRACY.
Ver. 5.?-enemies." A full stop; for here is the end of'
the stanza, which is a triplet, like the preceding and the folb
lowing.
Ver. 7. For he hath delivered" —
The LXX have the verb in the second person. Their copies probably had  ~SX;.
and mine eye hath seen his desire;" literally, G and
mine eye hath looked upon mine enemies;" i. e. I have been
able to look my enemies in the face.
The preterite tense is used in this distich, as expressive of
confidence in future mercies.  In the preceding triplet, the
Psalmist prays for the excision of his enemies, as a thing for
wvhich the divine promise stood engaged; and vows grateful
returns of sacrifice and praise.  In this distich, he returns, as
it; were, an answer to his own petition.  6 Truly thou hast
delivered," &c.  Thus, in the prophetic language, the preterite tense often expresses the certainty of things future.




296              CRITICAL NOTES.                PSALM LV&.
PSALM LV.
[A] Ver,. I am brought low with my anxiety."  --  I
mourn in my complaint." E. T.  snow  V'1N, I render,
4" I am brought low with my anxiety."  Symmachus's ren-dering is to the same effect; xsvinL~09v s0cAgAc~Y E,,IXVT1
[B] Ver. 9. Or thus,
The torrent (variance) of their tongues makes total clet
struction, 0 Lords
Or thus,
Sink, 0 Lord, the torrent of their tongues.
i: e. e Make it sink into the earth, and disappear.
Bishop Hare observes, that YV:1 is a strange word here.
I have offered four interpretations, of which it seems capable;
but I prefer that in which it is taken as an imperative, in its
proper sense, of causing to disappear suddenly and totally,
like a thing swallowed or sunk in the earth.  But see PARKHIURST'S Lexicon, under.15D.
[C] Ver. 15. Let death exalt his claim upon them. — seeize
upon them,"  E. To




PSALi LV.        CRITICAL NOTES.                     297
The image is not sufficiently expressed by the English word
seize i though it is not impossible that our translators might
intend to allude to the seizure of a debtor. But this is rather
a kindred image than the same. For the precise image in the
original is- the exaction of payment, not the seizure of the
person.
ED] Ver. 18. ---   for there were many with me." E. T.
Bp. Hare, for NTU, would read Anon; and he translates the line
thus altered,'" Quoniam contra multosfuit meculm." Bishop
Lowth thinks this emendation probable. But if 1 may be equi.
valent to instar, it is unnecessary.  " Instar multorum erant
[qui] mecum  stabant.'1V2 1W;l,)1:1 )D, for =1'2:1 1:1
7t~  [[3I  9)R I [ill].  Nothing is more frequent than this
double ellipsis of the pronouns. "1 They who stood on my side;"
i. e. the Divine assistance described under the image of numer.ous auxiliaries.  See 2 Kings, vi, 16; 1 John, Iv, 4.
[E] Ver. 19.       even he that abideth of old."  Fors:V), all the versions seem to have had Z1?]; which receives
much confirmation from  the great number of M:SS. and
printed editions, which give t1l7'1.
F[F] Literally, " butyrina oris ejus."  See MIcUAELWsT -




298                 CRITICAL  NOTES.                PSALM  LIT.
PSALM LVI.
[A] TITLE,
N t        orIN   nEJl ag"ie  =,p, 4 vsN     iv  p-SnYMni
The rue translation  of the Hebrew title I t     )ake to be this a:
~ To the giver of Victory.  Concerning the Doves.  The
Band of thyg  adose who are in a far country   A  mytical [or figr.-LXX
faithful in a state of persecution aonl  the hels   -AeUILA.
7E4rvYOPXO;YV0 g x U5  0"9 0fTEg -X6 (ZVTOV 6fj TY  OpVxta,JC 01S eV t'J; TF T7c; =
VS IIX6irolp)'T7#Sg  11;TF0 4;"   T45 5b67AAXz,  TaJ W   nI
&s5 clhdAtgc~CL~'C, oV 1~ ixg~aCsY 0,vo  6; W- 0r  us C elV rVr 0.he e traslationlude tof the ebreweding Psalm vers I take t6thbe and his:7th.
annTo the giver of Victory.  Conc reig the  ioves.  The
Band of those who are in a far country.  A mystical [or figurative] Psalm of David," &c.
~Doves"'-"; those  who are i- a farz country."'   Thie
faithful in a state of persecution  anmong the heathen.  The
expressions allude to the preceding Psalm, verses 6th and 7th.
I caxinot; find that i'V)" is ever used as a noutn in the sense




P'SALM LVI       CRITICAL NOTES.'299
of "' oppression.".  If it might be taken in that sense, the
title might certainly be rendered: " Concerning the oppression of the confederacy of the distant ones," i. e. distant from
God; the apostate faction.  To this faction the word =52I is
applied,-LvIII, 1.
LB] Ver. 1. ---— for man would swallow me tip." E. 7:
Man, VIl, genus lizmzanuzm.  This is the complaint of a person who was exposed to the general persecution of mankind.
This was not the case of David, who was at all times high in
the public esteem. The language is remarkably adapted.
to the condition of our Lord on earth, and of his Church
after his ascension.
[C] [D] Ver. 1. and'2.     swallow me up;" for this ext
pression the LXX  have',-a7;u Es in the first place, and a-,~.~~,,   in the second.  Jerome, as well as the Vulgate, hath
"; conculcavit" and;; conculcaverunt."  Symmachus, in the
second place, had,i~egi0o. See also Syriac.  Hence, I should
conjecture, that for 42MVg and  ttt the old copies had ~7l.v
and 1n2", or rather   ~t.  This is the more probable, because the LXX  have rendered this word bV by the Greek
Xcr.6GT,g~,s~ in another place, where it really bears another meaning.-See Psalm cxxxix, 11.  If 9DtV and ~2]DIV be the true
reading here, the allusion to the words of the curse upon the
serpent is so striking, as to leave no doubt of the relation of
this Psalm to the great object of the serpent's hate.




S00              CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALM s VI i
EE] Ver.o. -from on high. -O  thou most High." B. T.
Houbigant observes, that the word OTDn is in no other place
used as equivalent to'111, in which sense Aquila understood
it here. He would read, therefore, E'DY; that the sense may be,
" Many they be that fight against me from on high."  This
might be literally true in David's case, and was figuratively
true in our Lord's, whose enemies were those who were in the
heights of worldly rank and power. Bishop Lowth seems to
approve this emendation.  In the application of tle Psalm to
the Messiah, there may be an allusion here " to the spiritual
wickedness in high places." The LXX have mo 41bovs. But
a defect of the prefix D, especially before a noun beginning
with 17, is not unexampled.
[F1 Ver. 3. What time." —  For Aft, read with Syriac,
Symmachus, Houbigant, and Bishop Lowth, g=It.
[GI Ver. 4. In God I will praise his word." E. L. For
11'T:, Houbigant would read'n'n. ", I will rejoice in God for
his promise." Bishop Lowth thinks the passage may bear this
sense, without Houbigant's emendation. But, in the parallel
place verse 10th, FLU twice occurs without any suffix, and in
this place the LXX have the suffix of the first person. Houbigant would correct the I 0th verse by adding the suffix 1, as
in this place. But since the suffix occurs but once, for twice
that it is omitted; since we have the authority of the LXX
for the two omissions, and have not their authority for the




PSALMI LVI.       CRITICAL NOTES.                      so:!
suffix of the third person in this place, I am for taking 1:,
without the suffix, in all the three places, and would unders
stand  l'7T, without the suffix, as a verb.  In this place, however, I expunge not the 1, but detach it from  1:11, and prefix it as the copula, in the sense of therefore, to the next word.
See my Translation.
[H] Ver. 5. ---- they wrest," ~l~tt.  The LXX  have'~3~.vo,To. It should seem that they read 3YJ'"1.  But there
is no reason to disturb the printed text. C" To do a thing with
great labour, to take pains about it," is perhaps the primary
meaning of the word. If, indeed, its primary meaning be not
"1 to distort," whence the sense of the noun, as an idol, may
come. For idols were grotesque monstrous figures, and literally distortions of the patriarchal emblems.  Hence, it may
signify to affect the mind with ally unpleasing passion or sensation, grief, vexation, anger; for every perturbation is a sort
of distortion of the mind. "f5,V I1?  121't — " torquent contra me verba mea." — " torquent, i. e. laboriose fingunt in
mentem alienam, et sensumr alienuim."-PAGNvNus after Aben
Ezra, and R. D.
EI] Ver. 6. Or, "' they stir up disturbances, or, they are
stirred up," concitati suznt.
K] ---  they hide themselves." E. T.  V19.         The
Masora remarks the irregularity of the verb.  What, if by a




.,03,O            CRITICAL NOTES:               PSALM LVL,
single transposition, we make it t111E, "c they keep constant
watch," from the root,302 not BJE.   As IJ~31 (Is. xxxIII, 7)
from  3:1.  The irregularity vanishes, and the sentiment is
irmproved.  Compare Ps. x, 8.
E[L  Ver. 7. Shall they escape by iniquity?" E. T. This is
improperly made a question.  The literal rendering is thise
~ In vanity, or in iniquity, is the escape for them," i. e. they
place their security in a false religion; which was the case of
the hypocritical pharisees of our Saviour's day, although they
were not idolaters. It should seem, that Jeromle for pRN read
IpN.  For his translation is in these words, quida nullts est
salus in eis.  But the received reading is preferable.
EM] Ver. 8.       in thy bottle." For']2~,]  LXX, Syr.
2nd Symm. all had 7'U..
EN] Ver. 9. ---  cry,-for me." E. T. It should seem
tlhat the LXX read']NpS and  7119  15. —See Bishop HARE.
[0] Ver. 13. --  thou hast delivered. —-    ilt not thou
deliver?" E. T.  Archbishop Secker judged the negation
here to be a corruption.  We have no trace of it either in
the LXX or Syriac.  But perhaps rMl renders here, s; et
ultra," cc and beyond that."




PSATLM LIL       CRITICAL NOTES,                    s;W
PSALM  LVTI.
=Inn-r Ta~Y  TEAo.. - T        vocp vo4,d J  Y Xo   5
The composition of this Psalm is remarkably elegant.  It;
begins in a plaintive strain, imploring aid, and expressing
deep distress, and extreme danger. IWhen suddenly, in the
7th verse, in the sure prospect of the divine assistance, the
stanza is changed to notes of praise and triumph, as over an
enemy already fallen.
[A] Ver.  --- until these calamities be over past." E. 7T
For')1Y Vt read q212  tY, making the Jod merely paragogic.
[B] Vetr 2. ----  who performeth all things for me." E.;(
The copies used by the LXX and Jerome, instead of'~23 un.u
doubtedly had L5.  But the Masoretic reading seems fall a;
good, if not the better of the two.  Compare cxxxxvII, S.
[C] Ver. 3. He shall send from heaven, and save me from
the reproach of then that would swallow me up," E,. T,




$S 0 4          CRITICAL NOTES.             PSALM LVIL
For "I them. that would swallow me up," the LXX have,s'h.P,7~,-~1%  E,: TheVulgate hath " conculcantis me:" Jerome's
Veritas Hebraica, "' conculcantibus me."  The copies, therefore, used by the LXX and by Jerome, here, as in the preceding Psalm, for -BNV had )2;1V, unless an intercornmmunity of
significationl be supposed between the verbs BOW  and  nt.t,
which would be nothing singular. Adld is rendered, both by,
Jerome and the LXX, and by the Syriac, as a verb;'E;WSY a;s
0;.,g5,2 LXX; exprobrabit, JEROmE; as if his copies had given
the verb in the future form B~n1M. But no alteration is necessary. "1' may be the participle Benoni in Kal, in apposition
with the pronoun understood, rehearsing t,'NIl, as the nominative case of the verb mR     which will bring the passage to
the same sense. For the change of4 ~D.  into 4SCO, or, which
comes to the same thing, for taking.~dtV if that be the reading, in the sense of  Vt we have the joint authority of Jerome, and the LXX, and Syriac. But another emendation
would give great perspicuity both to this and the following
vrerse.'1tV, which Jerome and the LXX render as the participle, with the pronoun of the first person suffixed, if any
noun followed it, with which it might naturally connect,
might be the participle plural in reginzine.  What if we remove W    from the beginning of the following verse, where
it connects with nothing, as the text stands, to the end of this
line?  Thus,




I'SALM LVIII.    CRITICAL NOTES.e                   30
the elegance of this line will be improved, and the whole perplexity of the syntax, in the 4th verse, will disappear.
[D] Ver. 4. My soul is among lions," &c. E. T. The syntax is so perplexed, and the ancient versions so imperfectly represent the modern text, that there can be no doubt that
some corruption has taken place. The LXX  have;gpvo-:,o
An 4w xy (r" bV Us  X,&'C-vJn'. Whence it should seem, that
YSwi, or some equivalent verb, has been lost at the beginning
of the verse. Bishop Hare would change,:l2:W  into Mz.13V,
the third person preterite feminine, of which he makes Its: the
subject. But the easiest emendation of all, is that which I
have proposed, to remove SVWA  from the beginning of this to
the end of the second line of the preceding verse.
[E] Ver. 6. — my soul is bowed down." E. T. The
LXX express the plural verb  f), Jerome the gerund -13DIe.
PSALM  LVIII.
Ei'5  nnT'On T,0  nx645 VnIE
Elf 7\a 2shos FLe avccO0slwS,  KS AUV5 ~{5 f"A07fOC@{Ys
[A] Ver. 2. Nay but in your heart you work, —you concert,
&cO
VOL, IO 




306              CRITICAL NOTES.            PSALM LVIIIz
Bishop Hare's emendation, by transposing the two verbs
in this distich, which he thinks have changed places, seems
unnecessary.  "Even in your heart you work wickedness
upon the earth;" i. e. your imaginations are occupied with
projects of iniquity; "- you weigh [in your heart you weigh]
the violence of your hands."  You form an estimate of the
advantage that may accrue to you from different schemes,
which your hands are indifferently prepared to perpetrate,
as interest shall determine you to one or another.  I am not
certain that: the verb VD~, properly signifies to weigh.  It is
rather to adjust, or lay out by the level. Figuratively, theres
fore, it may be applied to schemes and designs, to concert~
[B] Ver. 4. Their poison." -like the poison."  o. T.
Rather, " their malignant temper; their spite." o~v0 5, LXX;
furor, VULG. and JEROME.  The LXX  and the Vulgate
omit the second InI.   OVa  t;5 XT,,. V dauOyGro Tx,  ~-n  
Furor istis secundlum  similitudinem serpentis.  They read,
therefore,.
%on: nvtn: in$ Add
The repetition of nnR seems necessary if the word is to be
interpretated by poison, but otherwise superfluous.  It is
probable that this interpretation occasioned the repetition.
C] Ver. 5. -to the voice of charmers, charming never so




PSALM LYVIi.     CRITICAL NOTES.,07
wisely;" E. T. literally, "to the sound of muttered charms,
[of one] combining combinations with skill," or, "G combining
the combinations from the wise one," i. e. according to
the rules of the adept. For I think =t3  may perchance
allude to some great inchater, whose precepts were in esteem
and use.
[D] Ver. 6. Break —-break"-. E. T., The words
DIM' and ~111 I should rather understand as participles, expressing a work which God hath in hand, than imperatives
containing a prayer. " God is breaking —-— Jehovah is
breaking out." —.  It is true ~ln is properly the participle
Paoul. But the use of Paoul for Benoni is not unexampled.
See MASCLEF. C. V, ~ 4, and cap. 26, ~ viii, 13.
[El Ver. 7. Let them," &c. E. T. The optatives, in this
and the following verse, should all be imperatives.
[F] — when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let,them be as cut in pieces." E. T.
I= is properly the preposition of likeness.  I am persuaded that some word, the name of something with which
the wicked, perishing under the divine vengeance, were come
pared, is lost in the Hebrew text between I= and the verb
65~m~~~~~~~~~~~U2




308              CRITICAL NOTE.S.             PSALM LVII.
He shall level his arrows against them,
And like *,* they shall split in pieces.
[G] Ver. 8. -like the untimely birth."  E. T.  Read
$D]= and,Tntr  And the change of 15'M  into the plural I577',
seems to be authorised by the LXX.
No alteration, however, is necessary.  12n is to be understood as repeated before 15).  And Utn is the participle Paoul,
in apposition with the noun E5D, for 1IM, like WVVT'i for Mt7?Y9.
Job XLI, 24.
Thou shalt dissolve them like wax, —
[Like] as the abortion of a woman is gone,
Not having seen the sun. *
tH] Ver. 9. Before your pots," &c.
At the end of this verse, for ~lytV read with the Vulgate and
Jerome ]T'IYM, or IDVyVD. (See the MSS.)  This correction
being made, if 11fl may signify any thing dry, the sense may
be: " Before your pots feel the bramble he shall sweep them
away in the storm, [t~tiVY] both the green and the dry;
* Or,  enever seen of the sun."




PSALMI LVIII.   CRITICAL NOTES.                     309
both the old hardened sinner and the young."  But as this
interpretation supposes much inconsistent metaphor, and the
authority is wanting for the sense imposed on ]]'n, little connected with the word's primary meaning, I am inclined to
guess, that fi and ]'ra may be terms of meteorology, and
signify tempestuous blasting winds, like the words %-rg    and
TvcWo in Greek.
Before your pots feel the bramble.  By this proverbial expression, the Psalmist describes the sudden eruption of the
Divine wrath;-sudden and violent as the accension of the
dry bramble underneath the housewife's pot. The brightness of the flame which this material furnishes, the height to
which it mounts in an instant, the fury with which it seems
to rage on all sides of the vessel, give force, and even sublimity to the image, though taken from one of the commonest
occurrences of the lowest life, —a cottager's wife boiling her
pot! The sense then will be: " Before your pots feel the
bramble, he shall sweep them away in whirlwind and hurricane.
END OF VOLUME FIRST.
C. Stewart, prlinterl Edinbrurgh.