Paraphrase Upon the Books of the Psalms, Book 2 · Psalm 55
The Fifty Fifth Psalm.
TO the chief Musitian on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David.
Paraphrase. The fifty fifth is a mournful Psalm of Davids, recounting his own distresses in the time of Absaloms rebellion, and the perfidiousness of those his own principal servants and Counsellers, (such was Achitophel 2 Sam. xvi. 23.) which were the chief authors of it, yet confidently resorting to God for his aid, and chearfully depending on it. He set it to the tune of Maschil, and committed it to the Praefect of his Musick, to be sung to the harp, &c.
1. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not thy selfe from my supplication.
O thou which art my only refuge in all distresses, be thou now pleased to hearken favourably to my requests.
2. A…tend unto me, and hear me: I‖cry foreign mourn in my prayer, and make a noise.
My condition makes me very†foreign I am unquiet and clamorous, Chald. querulous and importunate: O be thou pleased to consider my distresse:
3. Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked; for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they†set themselves against me foreign hate me.
My son Absalom hath depraved my Government, and those that are associated with him have driven me from my throne: the one accuseth me as guilty of great misgovernments, the other pursue me with all the malice and rancour imaginable.
4. My heart*tremble… isa. sore pained within me; and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.
And the danger is so great and pressing, that I may be allowed to tremble and quake at the appearance of it.
5. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me.
6. And I said,‖who will give me the wing as a dove? I will fly and dwell or rest. O that I had wings like a dove, for then wouldb. I flee away and be at rest.
7. †Lo I willLoe then would I wander farre off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah.
8. *I willI would hasten my escape from the‖stormy wind, or wind that is raised from the whirlwind. windy storme and tempest.
And accordingly I am now forced, as in a state of horror and confusion to forsake my place, to fly from Jerusalem with all possible speed, to escape out of his hands, and to this end to wander upon the mountains, to goe whither I may, 2 Sam. xv. 20. to avoid this calamity, so suddenly raised by mine own rebellious sonne and subjects.
9. †Overwhelm th… foreignDestroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues; for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
Lord, be thou pleased to confound and dissipate their‖so the Chald. counsels (see 2 Sam. xv. 31.) by causing some disagreement and division among them; for all that they design and consult about is rebellion and rapine.
10. Day and nightc. they goe about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and‖injury foreign sorrow are in the midst of it.
These two are the continuall guard of their city, the arts to which they are content to owe their safety: And that which is within, and is to be preserved by these means, is it selfe of the same making, violation of my just rights established on me by God. All that they have to doe is, to defend one wickedness and violence with the addition of many more.
11. Wickedness is in the midst thereof; deceit and guile depart not from their streets.
And so their whole conspiracy what is it but a continued complication and conjunction of all kinde of iniquity and injustice?
12. For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have born it: neither was it he that hated me, that did magnifie himself against me; then I would have hid my selfe from him.
One thing that extremely heightens my trouble, is, that the most pernicious counsel that hath been given in all this business was not the counsel of any known enemy, whom I might have foreseen, and prevented;
13. But it was thou,†one whom I esteemed as my self. a man, mined. equal, my guide, and my acquaintance.
14. Wee. *joyned our selves to the assembly.took sweet counsel together, and walked to the house of God in company.
But of‖see the Chald. Achitophel, one whom I loved as my own soul or life, one whose advise I took above all other mens, 2 Sam. xvi. 23. one that I had a particular friendship with, and communicated my secrets to him, and above all, one whom I had reason to look on as a pious man, he was so ready alwayes to accompany me to the service of God.
15. ‖Death shall deceive or forget them, they shall goe—Let deathf. seise upon them, and let them goe down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings and among them.
But God will not suffer this perfidiousness of his to goe unpunished, he shall not live to perfect his designe, a death as unnatural, unexpected, and remarkable as that which fell on Corah, Dathan and Abiram (th…se rebels against Moses and Aaron) shall certainly befall him: for it is a most horrible wickedness that he is guilty of. (This is also a visible prediction of what should befall Judas, who was parallel to Achitophel, both in sin and punishments, Act. 1.)
16. As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me.
17. Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice.
But as for my selfe, I have nothing to doe but to pray constantly and importunely to God, thrice a day solemnly to reinforce my impression on him; and no doubt he will be gratiously pleased to deliver me out of this distress, (as formerly he hath done out of all others) and
18. He†will deliver foreign hath delivered my soul in peace from the battel that*is was against me; for there‖are foreign were many with me.
Restore me to peace and safety from the imminent danger of this rebellion, which be it never so strongly and invincibly contrived and managed against me, cannot outvie the strength of heaven, which is certainly on my side. God taking my part, as he doth, I can want no other supply of auxiliaries.
19. God shall hear and afflict them, even he that abideth of old, Selah.†they are not changed, and they Because they haveg. no changes, therefore they fear not God.
Without such aids, God will himself be sure to maintain my cause; he is eternal, omnipotent, and unchangeable, and shall therefore, according to his promise made to me, protect and secure me, and withall sharply punish these obstinate obdurate persons, which for fear of men were corrupted from their obedience by Absalom, and being now out in rebellion; and going on prosperously and undisturbedly in it, cannot by a farre juster fear, the fear of God, be …educed.
20. He hath put forth his hand against such as be at peace with them, he hath broken his Covenant.
They have broken all laws of fidelity and allegiance, being obliged by oaths, have had no regard thereto.
21. ‖They are divided, their mouth butter, their he… warre—Theh. words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but warre was in his heart: his words were softer than oyle, yet were they drawn swords.
Their tongues and hearts were at a great distance; their smoothest and fairest and most flattering speeches, were but designed to conceal and disguise under them their bloody and rebellious contrivances, which under these pretences were most securely carried on, till at last it was seasonable for them to break out into open warre.
22. †or cast thy affair… on the Lord, wh… gave thee.Casti. thy burthen upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall*not suffer the righteous to be forever … ved. never suffer the righteous to be moved.
But let their practises and designes be what they will, I am resolved to make no other applications, but those in my prayers to God. All my wants and desires, I will make known to him (who is the Author of all good things, even of my very being it selfe) and in him repose my trust for the supplying of them. He will, I doubt not, come seasonably to my relief; and although he have now for a while permitted me to be driven from my place, he will in his good time return me to it, and not suffer this rebellion to prosper, or me his anointed vicegerent to be cast down for ever.
23. But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloody and deceitfull men shall not live outk. halfe their dayes: but I will trust in thee.
But on the contrary, God shall assuredly bring these down to an untimely ruine or excision. And the same is the portion which all other like them are to expect; Rebels and perjured and bloody men shall generally meet with disappointments in this life, gain little but the shortning of their ow… dayes, seldome live halfe so long as other men that are more dutifull and peaceably disposed. And in this contemplation of Gods just vengeance on them, and care and watchfull providence over me, I cheerfully rest, wholly referring the event to him, and confidently assuring my self, that it will be such as I may comfortably depend on, and expect to finde all joy in the i…sue of it.
Annotations on Psalm LV.
V. 4. Sore pained] foreign to grieve or be pained, is frequently by the Targum rendred trembling. And thus it must signifie Psal. xcvi. 9. foreign foreignthe Targum foreign contremiscite, we render it fear before him; 'twere better, tremble before him, for so it would better connect with the earth, which is there spoken to. So Psal. cxiv. 7. foreign, we render it tremble thou earth— So 1 Chron. x. 3. speaking of the archers which pressed upon Saul, foreign and he was greatly afraid. So the Chaldee read it, 1 Sam. 31.3. foreign he feared: and so here, foreign my heart trembleth within me; foreign contremiscit, saith the Chaldee; and the Syriack more clearly foreign trembling, (from foreign to fear) fell upon me; and the Arabick in like manner, my heart within me was afraid; and the Jewish Arab Interpreter, foreign trembleth. And thus the learned Castellio, Cor meum in pectore trepidat, my heart in my brest trembleth: and so it best accords to foreign the terrors of death (from foreign terror) that follows in this verse, and the fearfulness, and trembling and horror in the next.
V. 6. Flee away] The phrase foreign,foreign which literally sounds I will fly and dwell, seems to be an foreign two words to express one thing, viz. fly to a place of repose and safety: where that place was, could not be specified, for as he saith 2 Sam. xv. 20. I goe whither I may, as if he had said, I know not whither; and v. 17. the King went forth and all the people after him, and tarried in a place that was farre off, as here v. 7. I will wander afarre off. And indeed this is the summe of these three verses, 6, 7, 8. I said, foreign who will give me the wings foreign as a dove? i. e. I resolved to fly immediately. So 'tis affirmed in the History 2 Sam. xv. 14. And David said unto all his servants that were with him at Jerusalem, Arise, and let us flee, for we shall not else escape from Absalom, make speed to depart, lest he overtake us suddenly: which is but the plain prose of what is here put in the metrical style, as the description of his sudden and confused flight, he knew not whither; I will flee, and rest, I will wander afarre, I will hasten my escape foreign from the stormy wind, or wind which is raised, foreign from the whirlwinde (such as carried Elias to heaven 2 King. ii. 2.) Instead of foreign I will hasten my escape foreign from the wind that is raised, or stormy wind, the LXXII. read in somewhat a distant manner, foreign, I expected him that would save me from pusillanimity; perhaps understanding foreign wind in the notion of spirit, and then the concitation of that might pass for foreign pusillanimity. The Latine follow them, and read pusillanimitate spiritus; but the Syriack forsake them, and read foreign a tempestuous wind, or a wind that is raised (so the foreign and foreign which the Chaldee useth in this place, is deduced from foreign ascendit.) As for the former part, it cannot well be deemed a version of the words, but may possibly be a paraphrase; for so he that flyes from an imminent danger, though (as David here) he knows not whether, doth expect some means of deliverance, for which he thus reserves himself by flight.
V. 10. Go about] That which removes all difficulty in this verse is, the observing who they are that are here said to incompass, or goe about the city, viz. violence and strife, or rebellion, which are in the words immediately foregoing (v. 9.) said to be espyed by him in the city. For these then to goe abou… the city (foreign)foreign and that foreign upon the walls of it, is to doe as Souldiers that guard a city doe, and signifies these to be their only means of preserving themselves; and then for foreign and foreign mischief and injury to be foreign in the inmost part of that city, what is it, but to denote these vices to be the possessions that that other guard is set to defend? and so, in short, their securing one wickedness with another, is the clear meaning of this verse.
V. 13. Aequal] From foreign collatus, aestimatus est, is the phrase foreign foreignaccording to the esteeming of my selfe, or according to my proportion, i. e. one whom I esteemed in the same proportion and degree that I did my self. The Targum read foreign who art like me, but the Lxxii. most exactly, foreign, but thou a man whom I love and esteem as I doe my own soule; for so that word foreign signifies foreign equal …o my soule or life, as in Homer, foreign equal to my head, i. e. my life; and so the word is used by Saint Paul Phil. ii. 20. see note on that place.
V. 14. Took sweet counsel] From foreign to be sweet, and the ordinary notion of foreign for secret, the phrase foreign foreignwill literally be read, we made our secret sweet. And so it may be an elegance, to signifie the pleasure of his friendship, or of communicating secrets to him. But the Jewish Arab renders it foreign we cleaved, or joyned our selves to the company or assembly, interpreting foreign to that sense of cleaving or joyning to; Job xxi. 33. the clods of the valley shall cleave (not as we read, shall be sweet) unto him, to express the certainty of death (as v. 32. he shall be brought to the grave, and remain in the tombes) and not the pleasantness of it: and then taking foreign foreignto signify company, as Abu Walid also doth, and puts foreign company or coetus assembly, for a different signification of it from secret. And so it certainly signifies a congregation, and is by the Lxxii. rendered foreign assembly Jer. vi. 11. foreign, we render it, the assembly of young men; and so Jer. xv. 17. the assembly of the mockers, where the LXXII. hath foreign, the councel, as that signifies the place where they meet to consult. And then the plain meaning of the phrase foreign foreignwill be this, we joyned our selves together to the assembly; and that well agrees with what here follows, we walked to the house of God in company. The Lxxii. for foreign seem to have read foreign which we finde 1 Sam. ix. 12. and which the Targum uses frequently for a feast; for as they here read foreign meats, so the Syriack have foreign the same word. And even thus the sense is but little varied; for eating or sweetning a sacrifical meal together, is no more then going together to the feasts, i. e. to the publick assemblies at the festival times. In the end of the verse foreign foreignmay be rendred with a noise,] and so the Chaldee seems to have taken it, which reads foreign with hast; and to that agree the Jewish Doctors, who tell us men are to goe in haste and with speed to the Synagogue, but return thence very leisurely. But the word signifies also in company, from foreign to assemble, and in Hiphil to consent, and so it best accords with foreign together] in the former part of the verse, and accordingly is rendred by the LXXII. foreign in consent, or one minde, and the Syriack foreign in concord.
V. 15. Seise] From foreign deceptus est, is foreign foreignhere in the future of Hiphil, and being applyed to foreign death (Death shall deceive them) it may possibly signifie, that they shall not live to doe what they designe, but death shall come and frustrate and evacuate all their contrivances, and so deceive and cheat them. And thus it were but a Poetical phrase to denote what David is said to have whether wisht, or foretold against Achitophel, 2 Sam. xv. 31. O Lord, I pray thee turn the counsell of Achitophel into foolishness; for so to deceive him, is to turne his wise counsel into folly: and this God did by sending that horrid melancholy and anguish of conscience, which was the death of him. But the Jewish Arab suggests another sense of the phrase, rendring it, Let death forget them, viz. natural death, that so it may signifie, let them not die a natural death, but, as he explains it, as Corah and his company did, and as it here follows, Let them goe quick into Hades. And thus for death to deceive them] is to come to their end before they think, and by means which they can neither foresee nor prevent. And that will be the most probable meaning of the phrase.
V. 19. No changes] The phrase here foreign foreignis thus literally rendred, to whom no changes to them, i. e. (according to the vulgar style among the Hebrews) they are not changed; foreign foreignbeing no more than quibus, to whom, and to whom no changes, no more than they are in no wise changed: and so with this coheres what follows foreign— and they fear not, or have not feared God. (In both parts visibly the character of those, whom in the beginning of the verse he saith God will afflict) either they are uninterrupted in their course, and so fear not; or they continue unchanged in their rebellion, and so fear not God: therefore God will certainly bring them down, and afflict them sore. The Chaldee here read it in the latter sense, foreign — wicked men, which change not their very evil course, and fear not the sight of God, shall perish. The rendring of the LXXII. will bear either, foreign, for there is no change to them (taking foreign for no more than foreign, a change simply:) but the Hebrew foreign are such al…erations as tend to corruption; So Job x. 17. where changes are joyned with warre, and both said to be against him; and so most probably it is here taken.
V. 21. Words] The Hebrew foreign foreigndivisit] signifies also to smooth, and from thence to flatter, see Psal. v. 9. Prov. ii. 16. Psal. xxxvi. 3. The Lxxii. here read it in the primitive notion, foreign they were divided, and for foreign foreignbutter (reading foreign by anger, or perhaps in the plural foreign to the same sense) they have foreign from anger. To our vulgar reading of smoother then butter] the Chaldee exactly accords, foreign— softer than the fat of cheese are the words of his mouth, and his heart like weapons of warr. (So they render foreign foreignwarre, which the Lxxii. again from foreign to draw neer, render foreign, his heart drew neer, but therein (though the Latine and Arabick agree) the Syriack depart from them.) But the noune foreign his mouth is in the singular, and foreign in the plural, and there is no mention of words in the Hebrew, and foreign is a noune, for the praefix foreign requires another punctation. And to avoide all difficulties, the readiest expedient is, to receive the Lxxii. their rendring of foreign, they were, or are devided, viz. the members of the wicked man there spoken of, they are at great distance one from the other; foreign butter their mouth, or their mouth is butter, foreign and warre their heart, or their heart is warre— And this seems to be the fairest rendring of it.
V. 22. Thy burthen] foreign foreignfrom foreign dedit, if it be a noune, literally signifies thy gift, by that meaning the thing which thou desirest to have given thee; and therefore the Chaldee render it foreign thy hope, or that which thou hopest to receive. The Lxxii. have foreign thy sollicitude, and the Apostle S. Peter follows their reading, 1 Pet. v. 5. and this very agreeably to the original. For the Hebrews generally render it by foreign thy burthen; and David Kimchi in his rootes gives this account of it, that the Jewish Doctors learnt the exposition of this word from an Arabian, or, as other copies of Kimchi read, foreign a Syrian merchant, who bidding his chapman weigh out his parcel, used this phrase, foreign weigh out your burthen, or lading. Here 'tis evident by the whether Syriack, or Arabick use of it, that the Hebrew word antiently signified a burthen, and not onelyonly a gift: And then the burthen here spoken of, that which was to be cast on God, being the burthen of the minde only, that is most fitly rendred foreign care or sollicitude. But some of the Jews incline to take foreign here for a verb; and then it must be foreign cast or commit thy self, or thy affairs, foreign upon the Lord, foreign who ha h given to thee: and foreign in the Jewish Arab Interpreter is capable of this sense, being the same with the Hebrew, onelyonly foreign changed into foreign.
V. 23. Half their dayes] In the Jewish account threescore years was the age of a man, and death at any time before that was lookt upon as untimely, and deemed and styled foreign excision, of which they made 36 degrees. So that not to live out half ones dayes (foreign)foreign is in their style to die before thirty years old.