Notes on the Book of Psalms, Psalm 71
The lxxi. PSALM.
David being in great straits by Absoloms conspiracie flies to God for refuge, which he prays for, and presseth hard by many arguments taken from Gods purpose, his enemies wickedness, his own hope, trust, and long experience; the strangeness of his condition, his declining age, and constitution, his enemies insultation; upon which last he re-inforceth his prayer for himself, and against them; declares the stedfastness of his hope, notwithstanding strengthned by former experiences. And praies, that his latter end, as well as his beginning, may glorifie and demonstrate the power, and faithfulness of God, and particularly▪ in this deliverance; for which he promises to praise and magnifie the Lord,Psalm lxxi. all the waies in the world.
1 O Lord,1IN thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion. thou knowest that what ever be my dangers, yet my faith still sticks close to thee, and thy promises of deliverance, let me therefore alwaies be preserved accordingly, and now amongst the rest, let no power, or malice of mine enenemies, ever be able to prevail against me, to frustrate my hope, or thy faithfulness.
2Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me.2 But alwaies remember thy gracious ingagements, which though made to me of free-grace, yet art thou bound in justice now to make them good; therefore deliver me according to them, and by thy wisdom and power, bring to pass mine escape out of this perillous condition that I am in, favour me with thine audience of this my request, and let it be effectual, and prevalent with thee, to the preserving of my life.
3Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me, for thou art my rock and my fortress.3 Let me find some securitie, and certaintie of protection from thee, stil upon the making out of my faith, and prayer unto thee in every strait, as that I may thereby be invited, and encouraged to come as oft as I have need, and never to fail thee, because thou never failest me. I know thy promise, and purpose is to save me, and so long I cannot perish, for nothing can contradict thy will, no earthly power can hurt me, seeing thou hast undertaken to preserve me, whom every thing must, and shall obey.
4Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked: out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.4 O God, in whom I trust, and whom I serve, let me not fall into the hands of such wicked wretches, that traiterously seek my life, and have not the fear of God before their eyes; deliver me from the power, and from the purposes of this mine unnatural son, and his complices, that rebelliously seek to murther me, to get the Kingdom.
5For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.5 For though I seem helpless, yet I am not hopeless; O Lord my God, I must do as I have done, trust in thee still; thou knowest I ever had a propensitie in all my necessitie to creep under thy wings, as well young, as old.
6 I am not ignorant,6By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mothers bowels, my praise shall be continually of thee. nor never was since thou gavest me understanding to consider it (though it be a thing little thought of by most men) how wonderfully I was conceived, and preserved both in the womb, and ever since by thy power and providence, more than by any secondarie causes, otherwaies all humane helps could never have brought me alive into this world; it was, and is, thou, O Lord, that from first to last, hast evermore upheld me, else I had either never been, or long before this, had miscarried in so many dangers as I have gone through; no part of my life but hath liberally tasted of thy praise-worthy mercies and benefits, which I hope, and purpose, gratefully to remember, and praisefully retaliate to my death.
7 My condition is wonderfull strange,7I am as a wonder unto many: but thou art my strong refuge. and hopeless in most mens judgements, who in diffidence of my success, and in amazement at this prodigie of my sons rebellion against me, and seeking my life, they flie from me as if I were some monster, few, or none taking my part, or ever thinking to see me prosper; but what ever I am to them, I know what thou art to me, even an all-sufficient God, able to protect me in, and bring me out of this very distress, and strange trial.
8 Let me have still more and more experience of thy power and goodness,8Let my mouth be filled with thy praise: and with thy honour all the day. fresh matter for my spirit to work upon; all along my life, furnish me with opportunities of praising, and magnifying thee, for I love to be so imployed, and now especially is the time, by delivering me.
9Cast me not off in the time of old age: forsake me not when my strength faileth.9 Leave me not voide of thy merciemercy, and goodness now, that by it hast carried me on thus far of my life, be not less good when I have more need, but as thou hast been my God the two foregoing parts of my life, youth and middle-age, so continue to be in this third and last, wherein I have as much need, if not more, than ever.
10For mine enemies speak against me: and they that lay wait for my soul, take counsel together.10 For all the waies in the world, I am laboured to be depressed, I am traduced, and slandered to my people, and rendered as an evil doer by mine enemies, to cloak their wicked, and unnatural rebellion; and all the plots, and waies that can be devised, are set on foot, and complotted by Achitophel, and the rest, to mischieve me, that rather than their lives, would bereave me of mine.
11Saying, God hath forsaken him: persecute and take him, for there is none to deliver him.11 Giving out, that however God hath taken my part heretofore; yet now for my prodigious sins, God hath in his just judgement brought upon me, these prodigious punishments, that shall certainly bring me to ruine; and therefore they assure themselves they need not fear the issue, but that if they pursue me, (a proscribed person) they are confident to overtake, and defeat me, my partie being so small, and God mine enemie.
12O God, be not far from me: O my God, make hast for my help.12 But, Lord, let it appear that thou art not so much mine enemie, as they think for, nay, that thou art still my gracious God, and mighty deliverer, by stepping in betwixt me and ruin, so contrarie to their epexctations, and wonderfull rescuing of me out of their power.
13Let them be confounded, and consumed, that are adversaries to my soul: let them be covered with reproach and dishonour that seek my hurt.13 Let me be preserved whom causelessly they seek to destroy, and dethrone, and let them that do so, taste the bitter fruits of their own evil waies, let destruction and confusion be their portion, that would make it mine, and let them to their shame be found themselves to be the evil doers, and reap the disgrace they have sowed for me,
14 And however the clouds gather over my head,14But I will hope continually: and will yet praise thee more and more. yet my hope shall bear up, I will not despaire to the last, but be confident that this storm will blow over, and that I shall yet have this deliverance added to, and above all the rest to praise thee for.
15 I shall have cause to glorifie and praise thee for thy faithfulness all my life long,15My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness, and thy salvation all the day: for I know not the numbers thereof. thou wilt never fail me of thy promise touching deliverance and preservation, but the same thou hast been, thou wilt be so to me still in such like marvellous mercies, which however my desire and purpose is to praise thee in some proportion, to them which deserve so infinitely, yet must I needs confess I am short of them, they being so surpassing great and many, and rather the object of mine admiration, than thanks-giving, which yet shall not be idle, but alwais acting to my power.
16 I will bear up and hold out stedfast in believing,16I will go in the strength of the Lord God: I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine onelyonly. my faith shall not now no more than at other times flie back from God, either by despair, or taking to, and relying on other helps and refuges, his power shall supply my weakness. It is his promise, and faithfulness thereunto, that I trust in, and doubt not to praise him for, by effectual experience, now, as ever heretofore I have done, yea, upon it, and it onelyonly do I depend, and ever did so, in all my difficulties.
17 O God,17O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works. I have been trained up in the frequent experiences of thy never failing faithfulness, and goodness to me all my life long; alwaies heretofore hast thou done me good, and never but given me cause of praise and thanks-giving by mercifull and powerfull deliverances, which I have celebrated accordingly.
18Now also when I am old and gray-headed, O God forsake me not: until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to every one that is to come.18 And now, Lord, approve thine unchangeableness, make out thy goodness to the uttermost period of my life, when I have most need stick closest to me, now in my declining old age, O God, withdraw not thine assistance, but still be helpfull to me, and magnifie thy power in my weakness, that I may have cause to declare thy stedfastness and al-sufficiencie to preserve and deliver out and out, and may be a pattern to the faithfull throughout the whole series of my life, not onelyonly to the past, but present, and all succeeding ages and generations, of thy power to protect by thy wonderfull deliverances vouchsafed me in all of them.
19Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high, who hast done great things: O God, who is like unto thee.19 And thy faithfulness is no less to be extolled, than thy power, and will be by this merciemercy magnified in the same degree; equally sharing in the glorie of all the wonderous deliverances thou hast, and shalt vouchsafe me; O God, how wilt thou alone be exalted, and thy peoples faith strengthened, when they shall consider what thou hast done for me from one end of my life to the other? it will cause astonishment and admiration, and make thee to rule alone in all thy peoples hearts.
20Thou which hast shewed me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again: and shalt bring me again from the depths of the earth.20 For my sake they shall never have cause to despare, when they consider how often I was plunged into most intricate perplexities, and yet by thine almighty hand, hath been extricated out of them, as I shall be out of this, as well as all the rest, and shall have a resurrection out of this state of death and miserie, wherein I seem to be swallowed up as of the grave
21 Yea,21Thou shalt increase my greatness: and comfort me on every side. thou shalt make this humbling, a step to my further exaltation, and as a foil to my future glorie which shall shine the brighter for it, and my present sorrows shall bring me an increase of comforts, favour and peace, with God and man shall succeed them.
22 And as thou shalt exalt my glorie,22I will also praise thee with the Psalterie, even thy truth, O my God: unto thee will I sing with the harp, O thou holy one of Israel. and increase my comforts, so will I magnifie thee in thanks-giving and praises, which with mine uttermost power and skill I will give thee, and particularly for thy truths sake, which hath so firmly stuck to me, and never deceived me whensoever I relied upon thee for it who hast ever been a faithfull God unto me, therefore will I all the waies I can devise, celebrate thy praises in the most solemn and affectionate manner that may be: O thou God of truth, and never failing faithfulness to thine ellect and chosen people, that put their trust in thee, worship and serve thee in holiness and righteousness.
23 Lord,23My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee: and my soul which thou hast redeemed. I will every way that instrument and voice, art and nature, inward and outward man can act and perform, celebrate thy praises, and that with energie of spirit, in the joyfull impressions, and apprehensions of the things I utter, will I express my mind, and not with bare lip labour, my mouth shall speak my heart, and both shall greatly rejoice in thy salvation.
24 Nor shalt thou be the onelyonly subject of my song,24My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long: for they are confounded, for they are brought unto shame that seek my hurt. or solemn worship, but also of my discourse, and common converse; thy faithfulness, and just performance of thy promises, shall never be out of my mouth; I will make it even my table-talk for all to take notice of, when as thou shalt, as I know thou wilt, with shame and destruction disapoint, and defeat mine enemies that conspire against me, to take away my life and Kingdom.