A Brief Explication of the First Fifty Psalms, Psalm 42
PSAL. XLII. To the chief Musician, Maschil, for the sons of Korah.
In this Psalm David sheweth what was his longing after the fellowship of the Saints in their publick worship and service of God, in the time of his banishment, by the persecution of Saul, ver. 1, 2, 3, 4. and how he wrastled with discouragements, by checking himself for it, and by praying to God, whereby he was erected unto hope and confidence to be answered, ver. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11.
Vers. 1. AS the Hart panteth after the water-brooks: so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
2. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God?
3. My tears have been my meat day and night: while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
4. When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me; for I had gone with the multitude, I went with them to the house of God, with the voyce of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holy day.
HE setteth down his sad condition in his banishment, especially when he remembred the solemn assembly of Gods people at the Temple, and saw himself either in the wilderness, or among the heathen, deprived of the use of publick ordinances. Whence learn, 1. It is not a bare formal use of the ordinances, but communion with God himself, which the lively believer doth seek after in the use of the publick ordinances, My soul painteth after thee, O God. 2. Spiritual affections when they are raised, and by delay, or by outward restraint are kept off from satisfaction, are comparable in measure or in the point of sincerity to the kindly appetite of natural food, As the heart panteth after the water-brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. 4. Worshippers of the true God do find, and more and more may find lively refreshments to their souls in him, the experience whereof doth kindle their desire of the renewing thereof by such means, as they have found refreshments by before, My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God. 5. Because the assemblies of the Church, for the exercise of Religion, are the trysting places, where God useth to shew himself to his people; therefore lovers of God are hearty lovers of the publick ordinances, and most desirous to frequent them for that cause; When shall I come and appear before God? 6. It is not enough for the wicked to see the godly in affliction, except they impute the misery of the godly unto their Religion, and insult over them, either as Atheists, or as false worshippers, or as hypocritical people forsaken of God; They say continually unto me, Where is thy God? 7. To find Satan and wicked men, and Gods sad dispensations seeming to speak rejection from God, & to see the glory of the true Religion, and a mans own interest in God called in question, and thrust through with fiery darts of insulting enemies, is a matter indeed of great grief, and able to render all the comforts of the earthly creatures tastless to a godly soul, My tears have been my meat day and night, while they say unto me, Where is thy God? 8. As they who have had most plenty of the means of grace, may have scarcity of them ere all be done; so no one will take the inlack of them more heavily, then they who have reaped most spiritual benefit by them; When I remember these things, I pour out my soul in me. 9. The Saints should be so far from separation from the fellowship of the visible Church in the publick exercise of holy ordinances, albeit they know certainly that all are not sound professors who are to joyn with them, that it should be their joy to have multitudes partaking in the use, (at least of some) of the publick means, and such as were not publickly scandalous joyning in all the ordinances, whereby God might be openly honoured, and his elect among them might in Gods own time be converted; for David went with the multitude, and that to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, and with a multitude that kept holy day. And this was at the time when King Saul and his Courtiers were joyned in the publick ordinances with him, and with Ionathan, and other such godly persons: Now what the constitution of the Church visible was in Sauls days, in regard of the hypocrisie of professors known to David, sundry of Davids Psalmes do make evident, and yet for all that he wisheth to have the like occasion of worshipping God again, and doth account highly of what he sometimes did enjoy.
Ver. 5. Why art thou cast down, O my soul; and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.
In the second part of the Psalme, he wrestleth with discouragements, and the conflicts are four. In the first he laboureth to comfort himself three wayes; first by checking himself for his dejection of spirit, and for disquietness; next, by stirring up the grace of God in himself, namely faith and hope; thirdly by application of the word of promise made unto him for strengthening of both to bear him o…t, till the Lord should manifest his promised kindness. Whence learn, 2. When sore troubles in stead of humbling a man, do press him down unto dejection and discouragement of minde; it is a gracious mans part to check himself for this reasonless fit of unbelief▪ and to put his conscience to answer for yeilding so far to the tentation; Why art thou cast down, O my soul? 2. Mis-belief in a child of God is followed with restlesness of spirit, as a chastisement drawn on by that sin, for which disquieting of himself the man may justly be challenged also, and will not be able to give a reason for it, Why art thou disquieted within me? 3. The only means of remedying discouragements and unquietness of minde, is to set faith on work to go to God, and take hold on him, and to cast anchor within the vail, hoping for and expecting relief from him, Hope thou in God. 4. The believer in the midst of trouble, may promise to himself new experience of Gods kindness and consolation by delivery out of it, and to God he may promise praises: I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.
Ver. 6. O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Iordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Missar.
In the second conflict he turneth him to God, and layeth the case of his discouraged heart before him, labouring to make use of old experience. Whence learn, 1. Albeit a dejected and disconsolate soul may and should deal with it self rationally, to recover it self, yet can it not do it effectually; but as a man sick and weak and faln from his bed calleth for help, so must it call to God and lay out its case before him, that he may recover it: O my God, my soul is cast down within me. 2. Albeit the power of making the means effectual, be not in us, but in the Lords hands, yet must we not cease to use the means rationally still, whereby the Lord useth to convey his efficacious power, and to call to minde experiences, as a good means for recovering of our selves; My soul is cast down, O God, therefore will I remember thee from the Land of Iordan. That is, I will aime at comforting my self, by remembring what I have found by experience in several places of Iudea of thy goodness to me: and I will look to the holy land, and to the Temple, the place where thy gracious presence is offered, and where thy honour dwelleth.
Ver. 7. Deep calleth unto deep, at the noise of thy water-spouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
In the third conflict, wherein the very remembrance of by-gone experience, which even now was made use of to comfort him, doth kindle a fresh again his grief. Learn, 1. Though the using of the right and appointed means to comfort us, should seem to us to have a contrary effect to what we intended, and to encrease our grief by our using them, yet still must we wrastle on, using still one means after another, mixing prayer with all other means, as David doth here, saying, Deep calleth to deep, at the noise of thy water-spouts. 2. As the noise of rain from the clouds raiseth a noise of the inferiour waters and floods; as the raising of brooks doth raise the rivers, and all do shut themselves into a sea; and as the waves of the sea do call one upon another to follow the former at the back: so one grief doth waken another, one tentation doth strengthen another, one affliction augmenteth another, till a sea of troubles raised by a storm be like to overwhelm the man, All thy waves and thy billows are gone over me.
Verse 8. Yet the LORD will command his loving kindness in the day time, and in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life.
9. I will say unto God, My rock, why hast thou fore gotten me? why go I mourning, because of the oppression of the enemy?
To oppose this new assult, faith puts forth it self the third time, promising to the wrastler what God hath promised to the believer; whereupon he resolveth to plead his cause more hardly, and ply God yet again with prayer more earnestly, that he may prevaile: Whence learn, 1. Faith seeth in Gods Word and in by-gone evidence of his truth manifested in his word, as it were a written order and commission ready to be given forth in acts of providence for satisfying the believer with so much fresh experience, as may fill him day and night with sense of Gods love and songs of praise, Yet the Lord will command his loving kindness in the daytime, and in the night his song shall be with me. 2. The care of our life bodily, spiritual, and everlasting, lieth upon God, by vertue of his Covenant with us to keep it, to feed it and renew it in all the decays thereof, till it be possessed of unchangeable blessedness, the belief whereof is a ground of perseverance in prayer, My prayer shall be unto the God of my life. 3. Faith may improve its right before God, and plead that the believer be not rejected, and may regrate any appearance (which is offered to sense) of rejection, I will say unto God, Why hast thou forgotten me? 4. The believer in his complaints must not weaken his own faith, but weaken his unbelief rather, and to this end should fasten his faith ere he complain, I will say unto God, My rock, there faith is fastened, then followeth the complaint, why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
Ver. 10. As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me: while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?
11. Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and w…y art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God; for I shall yet praise him, who is the help of my countenance, and my God▪
In the fourth conflict which he hath chiefly with the mockers of his Religion, and of his cause, and of his trust in God; Learn, 1. The sharpest part of a believers trial and affliction is, when in his person Religion and Gods glory is mocked; this cruel sort of persecution pierceth deepest in his heart, because it tends to drive the man to desperation, and to make Religion and faith in God out of request, As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me. 2. Continuance of the reproach of godliness, and of the insolency of mockers scorning Religion in the afflicted mans face, in the time when it seemeth that his affliction speaketh desperation of relief, doth greatly encrease the power of the tentation, and the godly mans grief: A sword in my bones, while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God? 3. As the battel against discouragements and unbelief useth to be oftner renewed even after the believer hath gotten the victory once and again, and as the wrastlers weakness useth oftner to be made evident: so the same means and weapons must be oftner used, and we must not be weary to fight on; for, Why art thou cast down, O my soul, is now repeated as before; the mis-beleif and disquietness drawn on by mis-belief, must be yet again rebuked, Why art thou disquieted within me? Faith and hope must be set on work against all the disappearances of help, Hope thou in God; we must (as it were) be surety to our selves for Gods promises made to us, that they shall be performed; I shall yet praise him. 4. As when the Lord doth withdraw both the outward tokens of his favour, and also his inward consolation for a time, the countenance of the godly cannot chuse but be heavy, cast down, and look sad like a man that is sick; so when God returneth to comfort, and to owne his own either both inwardly and outwardly, or inwardly only; the mans face looketh cheerful, He is the health of my countenance. 5. Although the Lord for a time shall nether remove the outward affliction, nor yet inwardly give comfort, yet faith will sustain it self upon the Covenant, and lay its whole weight upon it, and may do it confidently; for it will not sink under the man, nor under his burden, He is my God.