A Brief Explication of the First Fifty Psalms, Psalm 9
PSAL. IX. To the chiefe Musician upon Muth-Labben. A Psalme of David.
Here is Davids song of praise to God, first, for his own exeperience of Gods goodnesse towards himselfe, and Gods righteous Judgment against his enemies, ver. 1, 2, 3, 4. Secondly, for the Lords readiness to do the like worke▪ in favours of all the godly, ver. 5▪ 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Thirdly, hee exhorteth the godly to praise God with him, ver. 11, 12. Fourthly, he prayeth for his owne deliverie out of his present distress, ver. 13, 14. Fifthly, he hath assurance of the overthrow of all his enemies, ver. 15, 16, 17, 18. And last of all, for the execution of this overthrow, hee heartily prayeth, ver. 19, 20.
Ver. 1. I Will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart, I wil shew forth all thy marvellous works.
2. I wil be glad and rejoyce in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most high.
3. When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fal and perish at thy presence.
4. For thou hast maintained my right and my cause, thou satest in thy throne judging right.
FRom the first part of this song of praise, Learne, 1. The exercise of the Saints in variety of troubles doth occasion the setting forth of the glory of God in all his attributes, as in this Psalme is shewne▪ 2. When the heart is enlarged with the sense of Gods goodnesse, the work of praising God will …e more heartily undertaken, and a large heart will make a loosed tongue and an open mouth, to set forth his glory. David will now praise the Lord with his whole heart. 3. One worke of Gods wonderful goodnesse useth to call for another▪ that they may goe forth together in each others hands to set forth his excellency; as here David wil shew forth all his wonderfull works. 4. A lover of the glory of God, cannot rest til he communicate with others what he knoweth of the Lords wonders: he wil shew forth (for others upstirring) all the Lords marvellous works. 5. Not any benefit or gift received of God, but God himselfe, and his free favour is the matter of the believers joy: David will be glad and rejoyce in God himselfe. 6. It is not enough to have joy in our heart in the Lord, but it is his glory, that the joy which we have in him, be openly known as occasion offereth: therefore will David sing praises to the name of the Lord most high. 7. The way of giving God the glory in every action, and in special of our victories over our enemies, is to acknowledge him to bee the chief worker thereof, and the creatures to be but instruments by whom hee turneth the enemie back: for the enemie falleth and perisheth at his presence. 8. As for time by-gone God should have the glory of what is done▪ so must wee consecrate the glory of what shal bee done, and of what we would have done altogether to the Lord; therefore also for time to come David speaketh, When mine enemies are turned back, (to wit, by thy power) they shal fall at thy presence. 9. Were a cause never so right and just, it requireth Gods power for keeping it on foot: the justnesse of the cause must not be relyed on, but God must have the trust of the cause, and the glory of maintaining of it: David acknowledgeth God the maintainer of his right and cause. 10. What Judge soever shal condemne us unrighteously, there is a higher Judge to judge the cause over againe, and the parties also: who when he sheweth himself, should be glorified in his justice by us; Thou …test in the throne judging right, saith David, after he was condemned of the Judges of the Land.
Ver. 5. Thou hast rebuked the Heathen, thou hast destroyed the wicked; thou hast put out their name for ever and ever.
6. O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetuall end: and thou hast destroyed Cities, their memorial is perished with them.
7 But the Lord shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment.
8 And hee shall judge the world in righteousnesse, hee shall minister judgement to the people in uprightnesse.
9 The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
10 And they that know thy Name will put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
In the second place, hee foreseeth in the spirit what shall become of all Gods enemies, and adversaries of his people, and prophesieth concerning them, to the praise of God, and comfort of the godly, who were to live after his time: Whence learne, 1. Although the conscience of the persecuters of Gods people be silent in their securi…y, yet shall Gods judgement against them … their conscience …e last, whether they be enemies without the Church, or … the Lord shall destroy them: For thou, O Lords, hast … ▪ the heathen▪ thou hast destroyed the wicked … Although the enemies have a great name in the … their glory be blasted, and their … never been heard of … name for ever and ever. 3. The … people, and of their dwellings … bee charged upon their enemies … executed and brought their … enemies themselves know and think they … purpose: their intended …. 4. The time shall come, when … godly … over all their oppressours▪ yea, in the midst of the enimie… insolencies, the godly, by faith may … say as here, O thou enemy, destructions are come to a … end. 5. As the enemies of Gods Church have destroyed the earthly dwellings of the Lords people; … hath destroyed, and will destroy their cities and their dwellings, and make their memorial cease with them. 6. The reigne of the wicked adversaries of Gods p…ople is very short, and in a few daies they are cut off, but the Lord shall endure for ever, to defend his people from age to age. 7. Courts of Justice among men are not alwaies ready to hear plaintiffs; but the Lord holdeth Court continually, the taking in of no mans complaint is delayed so much as one houre, though thousands should come at once, all of them with sundry Petitions: Hee hath prepared his throne for Iudgment. 8. Albeit in the Courts of men justice be not alwaies found, and very rarely in any matter concerning Christ; yet the Lord shall judge the world in righteousnesse, and minister judgment to the people in uprightnesse: the injuries done to his people shal be all of them righted by him. 9. Although the Lords children have no residence, but be chased from place to place, and know not whither to goe in the earth, yet there is an open City of refuge unto them, where they shal find shelter: For the Lord also will be a refuge to the oppressed. 10. The Lords relief which hee giveth to his people, is reserved, til other inferiour reliefs doe fa…l, til the godly man bee humbled and emptied, and then will he helpe: Unto the oppressed he will be a refuge in time of trouble. 11. The way of the Lords helping and comforting his owne people, is by lifting up the believer above any thing which can overtake him; above the reach of all creatures; The Lord will be an high tower, an high place, as the word importeth, whence the believer may look down and despise wha… flesh can do unto him. 12. The ignorance of the Lords goodness, mercy, truth, and other his attributes, is the cause of making so little use of God in prosperity, and so little believing in him in the time of trouble. For, they who know his name, will trust in him. 13. They to whom the spiritual knowledg of God is revealed, wil certainly trust in him: and they that trust in him will seek him: and they that seek him, wil find him to be what he is called: for the man knowing God, trusting in God, and seeking God, is the same here. 14. The Lord may for a time hide himselfe, or delay to manifest himselfe to a believer that seeketh him (which he doth sometimes for the believers tryall, exercise, and profiting) yet no age can give an instance of his rejecting such a supplicant: for thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seeke thee. 15. As many experiences as are past of Gods grace to beleeving supplicants before this day, as many confirmations of Faith are given, and as many encouragemints to all believers to seeke his face in Christ: For hee never forsooke them that sought him.
Ver. 11. Sing praise to the Lord, which dwelleth in Zion: declare among the people his doings.
12. When hee maketh inquisition for blood, hee remembreth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble.
In the third place, he exhorteth the rest of the godly to praise God with him. Whence learn, 1. It is the duty of all believers to joyn themselves chearfully in the setting forth the Lords care over them, and whatsoever may make his lovely Majestie known to the world: for so requireth the present precept and example, Sing praises to the Lord. 2. The only true God, and the right object of our joy and praises, is he who did manifest himself to the Church of the Jewes of old; who gave his Scriptures and his Ordinances to them; and among whom hee took up his residence in Jerusalem, in Sion, in the Temple, in the Mercy seat, betwixt the Cherubims, (which was a figure of the Incarnation of the Son of God; in whom, as the only Mediatour, is the trysting place betweene God and Believers, for accepting their persons and worship) for so doth the description of the true God here teach us: Sing praises to the Lord, who dwelleth in Sion. 3. The acts of the Lord for his people are so stamped with the impression of his divinity, that they are able to purchase glory to God even among the Nations that are without the Church, and to draw them to him: and so it is not a needlesse, fruitlesse or hopelesse worke, to declare his doings among the Nations. 4. If the Lord be pleased to honour himselfe with the martyrdome of any of his servants, it is not for disrespect to their persons, for they remaine, even when dead, honourable in his estimation, and high in his affection; for he remembereth them in a special manner. 5. There is a time appointed of God for bringing to judgment every sinne, and especially murther; and of all murthers, to avenge most severely the slaughter of his servants, concerning whom it is here said, When he maketh inquisition for blood, hee remembreth them: Precious in his eyes is the death of his Saints: 6. There is not a lost word in the earnest prayers of the humble believer, poured forth in the day of his necessity: every petition shal have a ful answer, partly in this life, and partly in the life to come: For God forgetteth not the cry of the humble.
Ver. 13. Have mercy upon me, O Lord, consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, thou that liftest me up from the gates of death.
14 That I may shew forth all thy praise in the gates of the daughter of Sion: I wil rejoyce in thy salvation.
In the fourth place, hee cometh to his owne particular and present case, and prayeth for a new experience of the truth formerly set downe, believed and sealed by him. Whence learn, 1. When new troubles befal experienced believers, they must betake them to their old refuge, and to the formerly blessed means of prayer; as here David doth: Have mercy, O Lord, upon me. 2. Never a word of merit should be in the mouth of a true believer; For, Have mercy on mee, O Lord, is Davids onelyonly plea; any good in us, is but a sandy ground to build on. 3. It sufficeth a believer acquainted with God, to present before God the trouble hee suffereth unjustly from his enemies, and to expect deliverance from the Lords grace towards himselfe, and from his justice in relation to the adversary: for this is the argument here used, Consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me. 4. Extreme danger of present death, should not dash nor discourage the believer to pray for deliverance, because experience hath proven, that the Lord can lift a believer up from the gates of death. 5. Life should not be loved so much for it selfe, as that wee may glorifie God in our life; and edifie others in the knowledge of God; For deliverance from death is here asked of God, that hee may set forth all the praises of God in the gates and most open places of the daughter of Sion: that is, in the audience of the people of God. 6. He gets a satisfactory Answer: which teacheth us, That in a moment the Lord can perswade the supplicant of the grant of his prayer, and fill him with joy; as here in one breath, ere the prophet could close his prayer, he is made to joy in the salvation or deliverance which he was perswaded God was to give to him: I will rejoyce in thy salvation.
Ver. 15. The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid, is their owne foot taken.
16 The Lord is known by the judgments which hee executeth: the wicked is snared in the worke of his own hands. Higgaion, Selah.
17 The wicked shal be turned into hell, and all the Nations that forget God.
18 For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shal not perish for ever.
In the fifth place is set downe, how with confidence of his own delivery, he is made sure of the overthrow of the enemie: Whence learne, 1. Ordinarily, the delivery of the persecuted people of God is joyned with the overthrow of their oppressors: And ceatainly, the wicked cannot take a readier way to ruine themselves, then to seek the overthrow of the Lords Church and people: For here, The heathen are sunke down in the pit that they made; and their crafty counsel against the godly, is the trap to take themselves into: In the net which they hid, their own feet are taken. 2. None of Gods judgments, and specially none of those Judgments whereby he pleads the cause of his Church against her enemies, should be lightly looked upon: For the Lord is known by the judgments which hee executeth: His judgements bear the impression of his wisdome and justice; so as the sinne may be read written on the rod. 3. Amongst other manifestations of Gods wisdome and justice in punishing his adversaries, this is one. The Lord makes the workes of the wicked, and specially what they doe against his people, to be the very means to undoe them: The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. 4. As the devices of the wicked do come from hel, so do they return thither, and draw the devisers with them: Though they cry, Peace, peace, and put the fear of hell farre from them, yet all the wicked shal be turned into hell. 5. As they who give themselves to sinne, and specially enemies to peace, doe cast away the knowledge of God out of their mind and affections; so shall God cast them away far from his presence: All the nations that forget God, shall be turned into hell. 6. Albeit the Lord doe not presently execute judgment on the godlesse oppressors of his people, yet for respect the Lord doth beare to his people, their destruction shal certainly come: They shall goe down to bell; for the needy shall not alwayes bee forgotten. The cry of the needy and oppressed shall bring judgement upon the oppressors. 7. The Lords people are an humbled people, afflicted, emptied, sensible of their need, driven to a daily attendance on God, daily begging of him, and living only upon the hope of what is promised: for so are they here described needy, poor, supplicants, and expectants of the performance of what is promised. 8. Albeit the Lord seeme to lay aside the prayers of the oppressed godly, and forget them: and albeit the godly mans hope doth seem for a time vaine, yet shal he not alwaies be forgotten, nor his expectation perish for ever, and specially the expectation he hath of things everlasting, shal not be disappointed, but shal be satisfied for ever.
Ver. 19. Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in thy sight.
20 Put them in fear, O Lord: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah.
In the last place he followeth his condemnatory sentence of the wicked with prayer, that the Lord would put it in execution, even in his owne time. Whence learn, 1. The Lord doth not so delay to execute judgement on the oppressors of his people, but he may be intreated to make speedy dispatch, and as need requireth to arise and fall to worke. 2. The time of Gods arising is, when the cause of God which the godly do maitaine is like to be lost. Arise, O Lord, let not man prevail. There is his reason, why he would have God to arise. 3. When God ariseth for the godly, he maketh it appear, that they are his people, and that their adversaries are in effect before him but heathen and strangers from the inward covenant, and commonwealth of his people, whether they be within the visible Church or not; for he prayeth, Let the heathen be judged in thy sight. 4. So long as the Lord …oth spare his adversaries, they do mis-know themselves, and God also. Sin doth so besot ignorant and gracelesse people, that they forget that they are mortal, and that God is their judge. Therefore David desireth, that the nations may know themselves to be but men. 5. Where there is any hope or possibility of the salvation of enemies, the godly mans desire is they should be brought in subjection to God▪ and humbled before him; and that judgments might be so tempered as the enemie might profit thereby, and God be glorified: Put them in fear, that they may know themselves to be …ut men.