Paraphrase Upon the Books of the Psalms, Book 1 · Psalm 15
The Fifteenth Psalm.
A Psalme of David.
Paraphrase. The fifteenth Psalm is a description of a pious man, such as shall be admitted into Gods presence, to serve him here in the place assigned for his worship, and to be rewarded with heaven hereafter; and seems to have been composed by David in reflection on the time of his restitution, or coming back to the Ark, and the Tabernacle, from which he had been driven for some space, as at other times, so on occasion of Absaloms rebellion. See 2 Sam. xv. 27.
1. Lord, who shall abide in thy Tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?
Let me take boldnesse to interrogate and demand of the Lord of heaven and earth, what kinde of person it is, that may have assurance and confidence of his favour, so as to be accepted in the number of those that performe his solemn worship here, and rewarded with eternal blisse in heaven hereafter. And the answer will, I suppose, certainly be this,
2. He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousnesse, and speaketh the truth from his heart:
He, and none but he, that is just and blamelesse in all his actions, that lives and goes on in a course of righteousnesse, steddy and constant, neither offending against the rules of justice, nor mercy, but on all occasions and opportunities that offer themselves, abounding in the exercises of both, and withall hath care that his tongue should not offend in delivering any thing, which he is not sincerely perswaded to have perfect truth in it.
3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doth evi…l to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour:
He that makes strict conscience of detracting or calumniating, of doing any kind of wrong, that carefully abstains from speaking or acting any reproachfull word or deed against any.
4. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned, but he honoureth them that fear the Lord: he that swearetha. to his own hurt, and changeth no…:
He that indeavours to defame and discountenance all sorts of wickednesse, that instead of complying with the disallowable practises of the world, represents them in their own ugly colours, and deterres all men from imitating such examples; and on the other side, desires to bring virtue, and piety, and conscience of all kinde of duty, into a creditable esteem and reputation, and payes an hearty honour and respect, and gives all manner of incouragements to every good and godly man, and attracts all to the imitating such, and that he may do so, demonstrates by his own actions, how dear a price he sets upon it; and consequently, if by any promissory oath he have bound himself to the performance of any thing, that comes to cost him never so deare (proves unexpectedly most mischievous, or dangerous to his estate, or even his life it selfe,) he doth yet most strictly oblige himselfe to the discharge of it, knowing there is no ill so great, as that by which his soul is wounded, as it is sure to be most dangerously by any breach of oath.
5. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doth these things shall never fall.
He that hath not admitted any covetous desires into his breast, that will not for the inriching himselfe lessen any other mans possessions; as doth the Usurer, and taker of bribes in judicature, the one grinding the face of the poor borrower, the other selling the right, the estate, perhaps the life of an helplesse, but innocent person: but on the contrary, lends freely to him that wants that charity, and so is as helpful to him as he may, (free loanes being oft the most advantageous charities, assisting mens wants, and obliging their diligence, that they may be able to repay) and to him that is unjustly assaulted or impleaded, gives all timely succour that justice can afford, which justice in that case is an eminent charity also. These few things though they be not an enumeration of all the duties of a man, are yet so comprehensive and significative, contain so many branches, especially of our duty to our neighbour, and that uniformly performed, is so sure a signe of faith, and love, and fear of God, and all other duties of piety, that I may conclude this mans title very good both to the priviledges and dignity of Gods servants here, and to the eternal reward of such hereafter.
Annotations on Psal. XV.
V. 4. To his own hurt] foreign foreigndoth certainly signifie to doe hurt, from foreign which in Kal signifies to be evil, but in Hiphil, to doe evil. To whom this evil is done, is thought fit to be exprest by the Chaldee, he swears, saith the Targum, foreign to the afflicting or hurting himself. But the LXXII. instead of foreign to hurt, seem to have read foreign to his fellow, for they render it foreign to his neighbour; and so the Syriack and Latine and Arabick and Aethiopick: which yet, supposing the oath to be a promissory oath, made to some other, (as the context inclines it, the whole Psalm from v. 3. referring to works of justice toward other men,) is no considerable change of the sense: for if he do not foreign (as it follows) cassate his oath made to his neighbour, (the word which conteins all other men (see Psal. xii. 2.) to whom we have any relation, Superiors as well as equals) then is he this just man that is here spoken of. Only the Hebrew reading sets off his justice with some advantage, by mentioning the greatest temptation to breach of oaths and promises to others, viz. when the performance brings mischief on our selves; for then is the tryall of the mans virtue, and not when either he designes to gain, or not to lose any thing by it. The particular occasion of Davids specifying in this, may, I suppose, deserve here to be considered. The Psalm was most probably penn'd after the quieting the rebellion of Absalom, in relation to his return to the Arke and Tabernacle, from which he had been for some time separated. Now in that rebellion he had taken notice of the fear of worldly sufferings, that had ingaged many in that Apostasy, (see Psal. xiv. 5. note b:) and in reference to them, that for fear of men made no conscience of their allegiance to David, their lawful, but persecuted soveraign, he thus most fitly specifies and sets it down, as a principal part of the character of a truly pious man, that whatsoever his sufferings by that meanes are likely to be, he makes conscience of performing all oaths that ly upon him, and so in the first place that of allegeance to his Sovereign, (which that subjects took in those dayes, appears by Solomons words Eccles. viii. 2. Keep the Kings commandment, in regard of the oath of God) as that which is most strictly incumbent on him, how dear soever it be likely to cost him. Aben Ezra and Jarchi have another glosse, that foreign here signifies to afflict the soul, (which the LXXII. render foreign, to hurt the soul, to use it ill) as that belongs to some vow of self-denial, or poenance Num. xxx. 13. But this is not so probable in this place, the antecedents and consequents belonging to acts of justice and charity to other men.