Annotations Upon the Books of Poetry, Psalms · Psalm 131
PSALM CXXXI.
Verſ. 1. LOrd, my heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty, &c.] It is in the Hebrew, my heart is not lifted up, &c. which was according to that law which God gave for the king of Iſrael, that his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, Deut. 17.20. But for the better underſtanding of theſe words, we muſt know, that David might ſpeak them, either with reſpect to the time before he was ſettled in the throne of Iſrael, profeſſing hereby, that however Sauls flattering Courtiers had continually reported of him, that he ſought Sauls ruine, and out of pride & ambition ſought to ſtep into his throne, yet the Lord the ſearcher of all hearts knew, that he did never of himſelf aſpire to, nor look after any ſuch worldly greatneſſe, but did ſtill refer himſelf to the will of God, being content to be in whatever condition God was pleaſed to diſpoſe of him: or elſe with reſpect to the times when he ſat in the throne of Iſrael; & that accordingly he proteſts in theſe words, that though God had exalted him to the higheſt pitch of honour that man upon earth can be capable of, in that he had made him both a prophet and a king, & had ſet him in the throne promiſed to the Meſſiah, the only-begotten Son of God, & had furniſhed him with excellent gifts ſuitable to this dignity, yet his heart was not exalted hereby to think highly of himſelf, neither did he carry himſelf in his place proudly & arrogantly, his utmoſt ambition being ſtill only this, that he might be ſerviceable to God and his people: neither (ſaith he) do I exerciſe my ſelf in great matters, or in things too high for me; that is, I have kept my ſelf within the bounds of my calling, & have not, in the confidence of mine own wiſedome & power, undertaken things that were above my reach; neither did I of my ſelf undertake to be a prophet or king, nor have I ſought to enlarge my dominions, or attempted any thing of the like nature, but as I was called thereto of God, to whoſe will in all things I ſubmitted my ſelf.
Verſ. 2. Surely, I have behaved & quieted my ſelf as a child that is weaned of his mother, &c.] By quieting himſelf he means, that he had bridled himſelf from, & ſuppreſſed in himſelf, all thoſe inordinate motions & deſires, wherewith ambitious men, that would be over-wiſe & provident for themſelves, do uſually diſquiet both themſelves & others, & whereunto himſelf was naturally enclined as well as others. And he compares himſelf to a child that is weaned of his mother, which he repeats again in the laſt clauſe of the verſe, my ſoul is even as a weaned child, not to imply, that he was as free from all pride, & ambitious deſires after great things, and revengefull thoughts, as ſuch infants are (for to imply this it had been enough to have ſaid, that he was as a child, without adding that of a child weaned of his mother, as we ſee in the like expreſſion of our Saviours, Matth. 18.3. Except ye become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdome of heaven;) but rather to imply his quiet recumbency upon God in any eſtate & condition whatſoever: that as a child that is weaned from the breaſts of the mother, is notwithſtanding no way ſollicitous for it ſelf how it ſhall be fed, but ſtill hangs upon the mother, and reſts upon her for every thing whatſoever, & though it have not what it naturally moſt deſires, the milk of the breaſt, yet it is contented to be fed with what the mother gives it; ſo did he wholly caſt his care upon God, as one that could doe nothing for himſelf, and even when the Lord was pleaſed to withhold from him what he expected, & to keep him in a low & afflicted condition, yet he patiently ſtill ſubmitted himſelf to Gods good will & pleaſure, & was contented to be what God would have him.
Verſ. 3. Let Iſrael hope in the Lord from henceforth and for ever.] As if he ſhould have ſaid, Let all the Iſrael of God therefore learn by mine example to have mean thoughts of themſelves, that ſo accordingly they may not truſt in themſelves, but in God alone. And indeed becauſe the performance of Gods promiſes made to David concerning his being ſettled in the throne, tended ſo much to the common good of the whole Iſrael of God, well might his confidence, that God would perform his promiſes made to him, encourage them alſo to hope in the Lord.