Notes on the Book of Psalms, Psalm 80
The lxxx. PSALM.
The Psalmist, upon the captivitie of Judah, and those of the rest of the tribes that adhered to her, and were led captive with her, indites this prayer, wherein he minds God of his tender care of his people when they were in Egypt, and praies for the like now, that he will appear for a few in which his Church is as much concerned as in those many, which are in great calamitie, this prayer he enforceth with an elegant Metaphor of their being as a choice vine to him, and the enemie as a wild boar to them. Promiseth, if this single tribe so many wayes considerable may be re-instated and revived; that they will live to him and to his praise.
Psalm lxxx. To the chief musician, upon Shoshannim-Edush. A psalm of (or, for) Asaph.A Psalm either prophetically made by Asaph himself, or some other man of God upon the captivitie, and committed to Asaphs successours, principally to him that is most skilful upon the sweet instrument of six strings Shoshannim whereunto it is set, for his ordering of it.
1GIve ear, O shepheard of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock, thou that dwellest between the Che…bims shine forth.1 O God of our fathers that leddest the posteritie of Jacob and Joseph out of their Egyptian bondage through the Red sea and wilderness, as a shepheard leads his flock, yielding them powerful protection and gracious provision; give ear to us now in our Babylonish captivitie, pitie us, and do for us now as then, who are the remainder, all that is left of those progenitors. And thou that wast wont also to be intreated by thy people in thy sanctuarie, and to evidence thy presence there, in thy merciemercy-seat between the wings of the Cherubims, vouchsafing them many a gracious answer and deliverance, when they prayed for it in their extremitie, thou that art the same God now as then, hear us the same people though not in the same place, in Babylon appear for us calling on thee in this our banishment and captivation.
2 At the apostacie of the ten tribes,2Before Ephraim and Benjamin, and Manasseh, stir up thy strength, and come and save us. thou knowest how that many well-affected of the tribe of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh forsook their habitations, and transplanted themselves into Judea to be partakers of thy worship; and now the posteritie of these that did cleave so close to thee then at the defection of their brethren, are held captive here in Babylon: Lord remember it unto them for good, and now stick close to them, as then they did to thee, and powerfully transplant them back again into their own countrey, and deliver them out of this captivitie whereinto thou hast brought them, that when time was were voluntarie exiles for thy sake.
3 Lord how ever our condition is very desperate and miserable,3Turn us again, O God: and cause thy face to shine…, and we shall be saved. yet art thou able to change it to what it was, and to carrie us into our own land, and give us the enjoyment and practice of thy worship again, if thou wilt but turn thy frowns into favour, and thy face upon us in stead of thy back-parts, pardoning our sins and receiving us again into grace, we shall be a happie people, and see good days for all this.
4 O Lord God of alsufficient and Almigtie power,4O Lord God of hosts, how long wilt thou be angrie against the prayer of thy people? how long wilt thou that hast the command of all, and art able to help us, suffer us to remain helpless and be angrie at us now in our miserie, for sins committed in our prosperitie? so that our prayers are of no power, but thou rejected them and us that are thy people, and suffer as well for thee as for our sins.
5 Thou makest us altogether miserable,5Thou feedest them with the bread of tears: and givest them tears to drink in great measure. our sighs and tears are the best repast we have, the uttering of our grief is the sustaining of our nature, which we are forced to do with bitter lamentation.
6Thou makest us a strife unto our neighbours: and our enemies laugh among themselves.6 Thou hast made us an absolute prey to our neighbour nations that have long looked for this day, insomuch that they are ready to fall out among themselves for the dividing the spoil of us and our countrey, the whilest we are here captives in a strange nation, amongst our mortal enemies, that have no better pastime than to deride our miserable condition.
7Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved.7 See the third verse of this Psalm, which is the same with this.
8Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt: thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it.8 With no small cost and care didst thou, when time was, transplant Israel as a vine of great account, out of Egypt where it was stocked and thrive not, unto a land where thou undertookest it should take root and grow, even Canaan which thou emptiedst of its heathenish inhabitants, to make way for thy people, where thou didst implant, & whereof thou didst possess them.
9Thou preparedst room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land.9 Thou miraculously madest way for their implantation by destroying and expulsing the natives thereof, and making thy people victors still as they went on from one end of the land to the other, insomuch as that they were settled in it by thy special gift and grace, and enjoyed it both by right of conquest, and long prescription of peaceable possession, and peopled it from corner to corner successively, one generation after another for many ages.
10The hills were covered with the shadow of it: and the boughs thereof were like the goodly Cedars.10 They multiplied by thy blessing in such sort, as that the hills and valleys were all full of them, both best and worst of the countrey was inhabited and improved; so mightily did they encrease, and not onelyonly in number but in stature also, they were tall and goodly people, such as hewed down Giants before them.
11 So far as ever thou didst ordain the limits of that land to stretch,11She sent out her boughs unto the sea: and her branches unto the river. even from the Mediterranean sea to the river Euphrates, of old appointed by thee to be her boundaries, did thy people inhabit her in a flourishing condition both of Church and State.
12 Lord,12Why hast thou then broken down her hedges: so that all they which pass by the way, do pluck her? since thou wast pleased to do so much for a people, and to husband and bless this vine of thine in this sort, why hast thou thus utterly withdrawn thy protection from them, as if they had never belonged unto thee, nor had been cared for by thee, exposing them and their land to all the outrages and obloquies that any that have a mind will inflict upon them, and make bootie both of their persons and estates which at pleasure they share amongst them?
13 Look as a savage boar breaking into a well formed garden would demean himself by turning all things upside down,13The boar out of the wood doth wast it: and the wild beast of the field doth devour it. so hath this Heathenish Babylonish tyrant the land we possessed and the people in it, making havock and destruction of all, old and young, root and branch, in so ruinous a manner, as if his armie had been so many wild beasts in stead of men.
14 O Lord,14Return, we beseech thee, O God of hosts; look down from heaven and behold, and vi…it t…is vine think it long enough to have estranged thy self thus from thy people, resume thy grace of old towards us, we humbly pray thee, thou that hast command over all things, whose dominion is in heaven far above all earthly powers, look propitiously from thence upon us, and own this vine of thine once again to replant it.
15 Both vine and vineyard,15And the vineyard which thy right hand hath planted: and the branch which thou madest strong for thy self. people & countrey, Lord look graciously upon them to reunite them, & repossess them of that which once, by a strong hand & outstretched arm, thou gavest them; the tribe of Judah, O Lord, remēber in which as it were alone thou didst uphold & maintain the Church and Kingdom of Christ, when all besides fell from thee.
16It is burnt with fire, it is cut down: they perish at the rebuke of thy countenance.16 This single branch, all thats left of the florishing vine, the onelyonly Tribe in effect of all the twelve, even it is destroied, Judea the place where it grew is miserably wasted with fire, and the people with the sword, in thy wrathfull displeasure hast thou blasted this tender branch, which is the more dejected at thy frowns, because thy former favours were so resplendent upon it.
17L…t thy hand be upon the man o… thy right hand: upon the son of man whom … madest strong for thy self.17 Let thy power and grace appear in protecting, and delivering this single Tribe of Judah's posterity, the sole remainder of Jacobs sons, who hath ever hitherto been mightily favoured and prospered by thee, even for Davids sake that man after thine own heart, who sprung out thence, and whom thou madest a mighty King ruling Jews and Gentiles, and endowing him with singular gifts and graces, fit for that place and imploiment thou conferest upon him, out of whose loins must also come the Messiah whom he tipified: for as he is thy Son, so shall he be Davids and Judah's whom thou hast set apart for that high office and glorious work of mediation, placed him at thy right hand in power, and furnished him with graces fit for this imploiment, to rule, sanctifie and save thy people, his Church; even the man that is thy fellow, God and man, the Almighty Mediatour and Sovereign King, for his sake therefore put forth thy power in poor Judah's behalf for to restore her.
18So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, & we will call upon thy name.18 Lord, if thou wilt do thus for us, thou wilt bind us to thee everlastingly, we will then renew our covenant and keep it, which by our back-sliding we have broken, the cause of all our misery. Let us but live again, and we will not live to our selves but to thee, thou shalt have the praise of our restauration, and the obedience of our lives and conversation
19 Lord,19Turn us again, O Lord God of hosts, cause thy face to shine, and we shall be saved. how ever our condition is very forlorne and miserably, yet art thou, that commandest the whole creation, able to change it to what it was, and to carry us into our own land, and give us the use and enjoyment of thy worship again, if thou wilt but turn thy frowns into favours, and thy face upon us instead of thy back parts, pardoning our sins, and receiving us again into grace, we shall be a happy people, and see good dayes for all this.