The Book of Psalms Paraphrased, Book 3 · Psalm 89
PSALM LXXXIX.
Maſchil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
ARGUMENT.
The Authour of this Pſalm was near of kin to him that made the former (ſee the Argument there) and they lived I ſuppoſe in the ſame time. OnelyOnly Heman bewailed ſome private affliction, which was befallen himſelf; whereas Ethan (after a thankfull acknowledgment of the benefits God had beſtowed upon them, and eſpecially of his promiſe made to David by Samuel, and Nathan, of ſettling the Kingdom upon him and his poſterity for ever) laments moſt ſadly the publick calamity; by the ſubverſion of the Royal Family and Government, in the days of Jehojachin or of Zedekiah Whoſe miſerable fate ſeems in the concluſion of this Pſalm, to be bewailed with the greater paſſion; becauſe it looked like a breach of God's promiſe to David: and gave the Babylonians and other Nations, who aſſiſted in their deſtruction, occaſion to ſay; that notwithſtanding all the promiſes they boaſted of, and the fidelity of their God in the performance, there was now a period put to David's Family and Kingdom.
That's the cleareſt account I can give of the meaning of the laſt clauſe of the laſt verſe but one: where we reade that they reproached the foot-ſteps of his Anointed. The word we render foot-ſteps, ſignifies properly the heel of a mans foot: and from thence is tranſlated to ſignifie the end of any thing, as in Pſal. CXIX. 33. Which notion of it, in my judgment, beſt ſuits with all that goes before in this Pſalm; concerning the ſtability of David's Kingdom: which their enemies now boaſted (as we would expreſs it in our preſent language) they ſaw upon its laſt legs. And the truth is, it was never reſtored to that Family, till Chriſt the great Son of David came: to whom ſome paſſages in this Pſalm are applied by the Jews themſelves; in both the Bereſiths, and in other Books; to which Abenezra and R. Solomon conſent.
Why this Pſalm is called Maſchil ſee Pſal. XXXII. But why any ſhould fancy, as ſome have done, that it was made by Jehojachin after he came out of Priſon (2 King. XXV. 27, 28.) I cannot conceive: unleſs the firſt words moved them to think that he, who in the foregoing Pſalm ſpeaks of himſelf as in a Dungeon, gives God thanks here for his deliverance.
1. I Will ſing of the mercies of the LORD for ever: with my mouth will I make known thy faithfulneſs to all generations.
1. THE innumerable calamities that are befaln us ſhall not blot out the memory of the innumerable benefits, which the Lord hath formerly beſtowed on us: but I will ſing of them without ceaſing; and indeavour to make all poſterity believe, notwithſtanding our preſent deſolation, that Thou art faithfull and conſtant to thy word.
2. For I have ſaid, Mercy ſhall be built up for ever: thy faithfulneſs ſhalt thou eſtabliſh in the very heavens.
2. For I am confident thy Mercy, which is immovable and indures for ever, will raiſe us out of theſe ruines: thy promiſes being as firm and ſtedfaſt as the heavens; in which we ſee an image of the unchangeableneſs of thy Nature, and of thy will.
3. I have made a convenant with my choſen, I have ſworn unto David my ſervant.
3. Which Thou didſt declare by thy Prophet, ſaying, (1 Sam. XVI. 13. 2 Sam. III. 9, 10. V. 2. VII. 15, 16, 28.) I have choſen David my faithfull Servant, to be the Governour of my people; and have made a Covenant with him, confirmed by an Oath:
4. Thy ſeed will I eſtabliſh for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.
4. That not onelyonly he, but his Children after him ſhall be ſettled in the Throne: which, though it totter ſometime, or be thrown down, ſhall be raiſed again; and continued throughout all ſucceeding generations.
5. And the heavens ſhall praiſe thy wonders, O LORD: thy faithfulneſs alſo in the congregation of the ſaints.
5. For which ſtupendious kindneſs, if we ſhould forget to praiſe Thee, or in this our calamitous condition diſtruſt thy power and fidelity to make it good; the heavenly inhabitants will not fail to doe it: but in their holy Aſſemblies confeſs them both, with their ſolemn praiſes.
6. For who in the heaven can be compared unto the LORD? who among the ſons of the mighty can be likened unto the LORD?
6. For there are none of the powers of the air they know (much leſs any upon earth) that can reſiſt the Lord, and hinder the fulfilling of his will: The mightieſt among themſelves, they are ſenſible, are not to be compared with his Majeſty, to whom they are but Miniſters.
7. God is greatly to be feared in the aſſembly of the ſaints: and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him.
7. And when they aſſemble, in the greateſt numbers, and make the moſt glorious Court, ſtand in great fear and dread of Him: attending, with awfull reverence, what commands He will be pleaſed to lay upon them.
8. O LORD God of hoſts, who is a ſtrong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulneſs round about thee?
8. With whom I will join, O Lord the Commander of all theſe heavenly Hoſts; and celebrate thy Name on earth, as they do in heaven, ſaying: Where is he among them all, that can equal Thee, O moſt powerfull Lord; whoſe Faithfulneſs is as ready to fulfill thy Promiſes, as the Angels are to execute thy Commands.
9. Thou ruleſt the raging of the Sea: when the waves thereof ariſe, thou ſtilleſt them.
9. The Sea it ſelf, which ſubmits to no body elſe, is under thy Government: who, when it is a calm, makeſt it ſwell, as if it would overflow the earth; and reduceſt it, when it is in its greateſt rage, to a perfect ſtilneſs again.
10. Thou haſt broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is ſlain: thou haſt ſcattered thine enemies with thy ſtrong arm.
10. There the Egyptians, who had been wounded before with many other grievous plagues, were utterly overthrown: and with the like irreſiſtible power the Canaanites were ſcattered; at the entrance of thy people, into the promiſed Land.
11. The heavens are thine, the earth alſo is thine: as for the world, and the fulneſs thereof, thou haſt founded them.
11. For Thou art the owner of things, both in heaven and earth, and haſt the juſteſt right to diſpoſe of them, to whom Thou pleaſeſt: becauſe the world, and all the inhabitants of it, are thy Creatures.
12. The north and the ſouth thou haſt created them: Tabor and Hermon ſhall rejoice in thy name.
12. Whether we caſt our eyes to the Southern or Northern parts of the earth; to the Weſt, towards Tabor, or Eaſtwards towards Hermon: they all acknowledge Thee their Creatour; and rejoice in thy bountifull Providence, which inriches them with all things needfull for them.
13. Thou haſt a mighty arm: ſtrong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand.
13. And thy power extending it ſelf throughout the whole, always effects in every place, whatſoever Thou deſigneſt: whether it be to puniſh evil-doers, or to preſerve and exalt them that doe well.
14. Juſtice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth ſhall go before thy face.
14. But none ſhall be able to ſay Thou doeſt them any wrong: Becauſe Thou doſt not rule the world merely by thy abſolute power; but haſt placed thy principal glory in juſtice and equity, mercy and fidelity; from which Thou never ſwerveſt.
15. Bleſſed is the people that know the joyfull ſound: they ſhall walk, O LORD, in the light of thy countenance.
15. Happy then are the people who live under thy righteous and mercifull Government; and hear the Trumpet ſound, which ſignifies the royal preſence of thy Majeſty among them, and calls them to attend upon Thee (X. Numb. 10.) They ſhall ſpend their days moſt chearfully, O Lord; being ſecure of thy favour, which will let them want nothing that is good for them.
16. In thy name ſhall they rejoice all the day: and in thy righteouſneſs ſhall they be exalted.
16. They ſhall not barely rejoice, but triumph, and that continually; in thy love to them, and thy power to defend them: and, walking in thy holy Laws, ſhall by thy goodneſs be highly exalted, and made ſuperiour to all their enemies.
17. For thou art the glory of their ſtrength: and in thy favour our horn ſhall be exalted.
17. For they owe not their conqueſts to their own valour, or forces, though never ſo great; but it is Thou who giveſt illuſtrious Victories, to the ſmalleſt Armies: And therefore by thy favour we hope that our Empire, which is now broken, ſhall be raiſed again to its former ſplendour.
18. For the LORD is our defence: and the holy One of Iſrael is our King.
18. For the Lord is ſtill our Protectour, though our Prince be taken, and made unable to defend us: He whom Iſrael adores, and acknowledges infinitely to tranſcend all other Beings, is our King and Governour.
19. Then thou ſpakeſt in viſion to the holy One, and ſaideſt, I have laid help upon one that is mighty: I have exalted one choſen out of the people.
19. Who then didſt reveal thy mind, in a Viſion, to the holy Prophet Samuel, (1 Sam. XVI. 1.) when the Philiſtines defied Iſrael, and grew terrible to them, (XVII. 10, 11, 24.) ſaying; I have provided myſelf a valiant Champion, (1 Sam. XVI. 18.) to be your deliverer, (2 Sam. III. 18.) I have deſigned a perſon of ſingular worth, from among the common people, (1 Sam. XVI. 11.) to be promoted to the Kingdom.
20. I have found David my ſervant: with my holy oil have I anointed him.
20. I have obſerved David (1 Sam. XVI. 1.) and find him a man that will faithfully ſerve me: Go, and anoint him with the holy Oil; for I intend him for the Governour of my people.
21. With whom my hand ſhall be eſtabliſhed: mine arm alſo ſhall ſtrengthen him.
21. With whom I will always be powerfully preſent, for his aſſiſtance (1 Sam. XVII. 45, &c.) and never deſert him, as I did Saul: (XVIII. 12, 24, 28.) But my mighty power ſhall extraordinarily ſtrengthen him, in all his enterpriſes, 1 Sam. XXX. 6. 2 Sam. VIII. 6, 14.
22. The enemy ſhall not exact upon him: nor the ſon of wickedneſs afflict him.
22. The ſubtileſt of his enemies, ſhall not be able to circumvent him; nor the moſt malicious, how powerfull ſoever, oppreſs him.
23. And I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague them that hate him.
23. But after all their vain attempts I will not onelyonly protect him, from their crafty violence; but ſubdue all his adverſaries under him, and deſtroy thoſe that hate him, 2 Sam. VII. 9.
24. But my faithfulneſs and my mercy ſhall be with him: and in my name ſhall his born be exalted.
24. He ſhall ever find me, not onelyonly faithfull in my promiſe to him but, kind above his expectation: and, by my powerfull aſſiſtance, and his confidence in it, his authority ſhall be highly exalted, 1 Chron. XIV. 17. 2 Sam. VII. 9. VIII. 13.
25. I will ſet his hand alſo in the ſea, and his right hand in the rivers.
25. On one hand he ſhall conquer the Philiſtines, and thoſe that live upon the coaſt of the Sea, (2 Sam. VIII. 1.) and on the other hand the Syrians, as far as Tigris and Euphrates, (2 Sam. VIII. 9, &c. X. 16, 19.)
26. He ſhall cry unto me, Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my ſalvation.
26. For he ſhall intirely depend on me in all his diſtreſſes, and fly to me for ſuccour, as a Child to his Parent; ſaying, with more then uſual love and confidence, Thou art my Father, as well as my omnipotent God, from whom alone I expect protection and deliverance.
27. Alſo I will make him my firſt-born, higher then the kings of the earth.
27. Which I will never fail to afford him, till I raiſe him to the prime dignity, among all thoſe whom I call my Sons; and ſet him ſo high above all other Kings in the world, that he ſhall be a moſt eminent Type of my Son Chriſt, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords.
28. My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant ſhall ſtand faſt with him.
28. Nothing ſhall alter theſe kind intentions toward him; but I will always have a love for him, and faithfully perform my Covenant with him.
29. His ſeed alſo will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.
29. Which is, that his Family ſhall never be extinct; but, notwithſtanding the changes which all things are ſubject unto here below, have the royal power continued in it, as long as the heavens endure, 2 Sam. VII. 16, 28, 29. I. Luke 32, 33.
30. If his children forſake my law, and walk not in my judgments;
30. If his Succeſſours indeed ſhall depart from the Law, which I have given you by my Servant Moſes, and not judge my people righteouſly;
31. If they break my ſtatutes, and keep not my commandments:
31. If they prophanely neglect, or corrupt my Religion, and obſerve not the reſt of the Rules of life, which I have enjoined them:
32. Then will I viſit their tranſgreſſion with the rod, and their iniquity with ſtripes.
32. Then will I execute the threatnings which are in my Law, (XXVI. Levit.) upon them; and puniſh their tranſgreſſions with ſore diſeaſes, and their Idolatries with ſeveral plagues, (2 Sam. VII. 14.)
33. Nevertheleſs, my loving-kindneſs will I not utterly take from him, nor ſuffer my faithfulneſs to fail.
33. But I will not ſo chaſtiſe them, as never more to doe good to his Family; (2 Sam. VII. 25.) but will ſtill have a kindneſs for it, and faithfully keep my promiſe with it, 1 King. XI. 34, 36. XV. 4. 2 King. VIII. 19, &c.
34. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
34. I will not violate the Covenant I have made with David (2 Chron. XXI. 7.) nor retract the promiſe, which I have ſolemnly paſſed to his Family.
35. Once have I ſworn by my holineſs, that I will not lie unto David.
35. For I have unalterably ſworn by my own incommunicable excellencies, that I will as ſoon ceaſe to be what I am, as deceive him.
36. His ſeed ſhall endure for ever, and his throne as the ſun before me.
36. His Family (as I ſaid Verſe 29.) ſhall never be quite extinct; but always remain in my favour, and hold the royal dignity, as long as the Sun ſhineth.
37. It ſhall be eſtabliſhed for ever as the moon, and as a faithfull witneſs in heaven. Selah.
37. The Moon may as well fall from her Orb, as his Authority fall to the ground and riſe no more: Let that be a witneſs of my fidelity, when you look upon it; (XXXIII. Jer. 20, 21.) and conclude, that after all the changes and eclipſes his Kingdom may ſuffer, it ſhall ſtand as faſt, as that and all the reſt of the heavenly bodies.
38. But thou haſt caſt off and abhorred, thou haſt been wroth with thine anointed.
38. But all theſe promiſes, alas! ſo ſacredly confirmed, and oft repeated, have not ſecured it from a diſmal ſubverſion: For Thou haſt rejected, with the greateſt contempt and indignation, our Sovereign; one of the poſterity of David, and his lawfull ſucceſſour in the Kingdom, 2 King. XXIV. 20. XXV. 6, 7. IV. Lam. 20.
39. Thou haſt made void the covenant of thy ſervant: thou haſt prophaned his crown, by caſting it to the ground.
39. Thou ſeemeſt not to regard the Covenant made with that thy faithfull Servant (which Thou promiſedſt not to break, Ver. 34.) and inſtead of raiſing his Family higher then all other Kings (Ver. 27.) haſt ſuffered it to loſe all its Authority; which, together with the royal Diadem, is vilely trodden under foot.
40. Thou haſt broken down all his hedges, thou haſt brought his ſtrong holds to ruine.
40. Thou haſt broken down all the walls of Jeruſalem, (2 King. XXV. 10.) and made all his fortified places a mere deſolation.
41. All that paſs by the way ſpoil him: he is a reproach to his neighbours.
41. So that he hath no defence againſt thoſe who have a mind to make a prey of him, (2 King. XXIV. 2.) and is now ſcorned and derided by thoſe, who formerly dreaded him.
42. Thou haſt ſet up the right hand of his adverſaries: thou haſt made all his enemies to rejoice.
42. Thou haſt made his adverſaries (whom Thou promiſedſt to depreſs, Ver. 23.) far ſtronger then himſelf: they have executed all that they deſigned, and now triumph in his ruin.
43. Thou haſt alſo turned the edge of his ſword, and haſt not made him to ſtand in the battel.
43. His forces have done him no ſervice; but, being ſhamefully routed, durſt never rally again, to make any oppoſition to their enemies.
44. Thou haſt made his glory to ceaſe, and caſt his throne down to the ground.
44. Thou haſt put out that ſplendour, which we thought ſhould have been perpetual; (Ver. 37, 38.) and haſt utterly overturned his Kingdom.
45. The days of his youth haſt thou ſhortned: thou haſt covered him with ſhame. Selah.
45. Thou haſt made a ſpeedy end of the reign of Jehojachin, who in his youth is made a ſlave: (2 King. XXIV. 8, &c.) and ſuffered Zedekiah to be moſt diſgracefully condemned as a rebel, to loſe his eyes, and remain a priſoner all the days of his life, 2 King. XXV. 6, 7.
46. How long, LORD, wilt thou hide thy ſelf for ever? ſhall thy wrath burn like fire?
46. O what a ſad condition is this, in which Thou ſeemeſt wholly to neglect us! But, O Lord, wilt Thou never appear for us again, and put a period to our miſeries? wilt Thou let thy anger burn, till we be utterly conſumed?
47. Remember how ſhort my time is: wherefore haſt thou made all men in vain?
47. Our natural weakneſs pleads for ſome mercy; and imboldens us to beſeech Thee, that, ſince we muſt not onelyonly die unavoidably, but a ſhort time will bring us to our graves, Thou wilt be pleaſed to let us ſpend that little time in duplicate page duplicate page more eaſe; and not live, as if we were made for nothing elſe, but onelyonly to be miſerable and to die.
48. What man is he that liveth, and ſhall not ſee death? ſhall he deliver his ſoul from the hand of the grave? Selah.
48. For where is the man, whoſe conſtitution is ſo firm, that he ſhall not yield to death? For what ability have we, though our enemies ſhould not thus deſtroy us, to defend our ſelves from the power of the grave?
49. LORD, where are thy former loving-kindneſſes, which thou ſwareſt unto David in thy truth?
49. Lord! what a difference is there between our times, and thoſe, when Thou waſt ſo exceeding good to David? And ſwareſt, moſt faithfully to continue to him for ever thy loving-kindneſs? which we beſeech Thee now reſtore unto us.
50. Remember, LORD, the reproach of thy ſervants; how I do bear in my boſom the reproach of all the mighty people;
50. Shew, O Lord, that Thou doſt not forget the ſcoffs and jeers; whereby our enemies augment the ſufferings of thy ſervants: there is nothing I lay to heart ſo much, as all the reproaches of many and mighty Nations.
51. Wherewith thine enemies have reproached, O LORD; wherewith they have reproached the footſteps of thine anointed.
51. Who are thy enemies as well as ours; and have blaſphemed Thee, O Lord, and mockt at Thee: as if our ſlavery were the effect of thy inability to protect us; and as if there were an end of the Family and Kingdom of David, thine anointed, which Thou ſaideſt ſhould laſt for ever.
52. Bleſſed be the LORD for evermore. Amen, and amen.
52. But let them laugh on; neither their ſcoffs, nor our calamity, ſhall hinder us from praiſing the Lord, and ſpeaking good of Him continually; in aſſured hope that He will at laſt deliver us. Let it be ſo, we beſeech Thee; Let it be ſo, as we deſire and hope: that we may ever praiſe Thee for our happy reſtauration.
The End of the THIRD Book of Pſalms.