Annotations Upon the Books of Poetry, Psalms · Psalm 59
PSALM LIX.
Verſ. 4. THey run and prepare themſelves without my fault, &c.] That is, With all eagerneſſe they proſecute the buſineſſe, making all the haſt and all the preparations they can, that they may apprehend and ſlay me cauſeleſly: awake to help me, and behold; that is, do not ſeem to diſregard me any longer, but take notice of the violent proceedings of mine enemies, and likewiſe of mine innocency and danger.
Verſ. 5. Awake to viſit all the heathen.] and conſequently all ſuch brutiſh people, enemies of God and all goodneſſe, as the heathens are. For either by the heathens here he doth particularly mean Saul, and his crew that ſided with him, for which ſee the Note Pſal. 10.16; or at leaſt by deſiring God to viſit the heathen, he doth covertly alſo deſire the like againſt them; becauſe if the heathens were …it to be deſtroyed, much more they that profeſſed themſelves Gods people, and yet were as bad as the heathens: which is more clearly expreſſed in the following words, be not mercifull to any wicked tranſgreſſours; that is, any that are obſtinately wicked, and that will not be reclaimed; ſee the Note Pſal. 28.4.
Verſ. 6. They return at evening, &c.] As if he had ſaid, Having come and gone all the day long, ſeeking to apprehend me, they return again in the evening, being never weary of proſecuting their curſed deſign. It is an expreſſion of the diligence of Sauls officers in purſuing the life of David. They make a noiſe like a dog, that is, as a dog grinns and ſnarles and barks, ſo do they, with threatning words and furious geſtures, expreſſe their rage and madneſſe againſt me; or, they follow me with open mouth, as hounds purſue their game, barking and yelping as they goe: and goe round about the city; that is, whilſt ſome beſet my houſe, others goe up and down the city, to ſearch me out, or to lye in wait for me in every place. Thus theſe words are commonly expounded. Yet becauſe when Sauls officers carried him word that David was ſick, being deluded by Michals device, he ſent them back again, ſome hold that the firſt words, they return at evening, are meant of that return of Sauls meſſengers; and accordingly that the following words are meant of the madneſſe of Sauls officers, and their eager ſearching for David, when they ſaw how they had been deluded; they make a noiſe like a dog, and goe round about the city.
Verſ. 7. They belch out with their mouth, &c.] That is, They pour out, as in a way of boaſting, many vile and wicked ſpeeches, ſlanderous & furious threatning words: ſwords are in their lips; that is, they talk of nothing but ſlaughter and bloud, murthering and throat-cutting; every word they ſpeak is as a ſword, ſee the Note Pſal. 57.4. For who, ſay they, doth hear? the meaning whereof is, that they encouraged themſelves in theſe ſpeeches, 1. becauſe no man heard their threatnings, that would give David notice of it; and 2. becauſe they minded not Gods all-hearing ear, yea and perhaps thought that God minded not what is done here amongſt men: ſee Pſal. 10.11.
Verſ. 9. Becauſe of his ſtrength will I wait upon thee.] That is, Becauſe of Sauls ſtrength, I will reſt with patience upon thee, without whom by his ſtrength I know he can doe nothing.
Verſ. 10. The God of my mercy shall prevent me.] That is, The God that is and alwaies hath been mercifull to me, ſhall help me, either before I come to be in any great danger, or at leaſt before Saul ſhall do me the miſchief he intends: ſee alſo the Note Pſal. 21.3.
Verſ. 11. Slay them not, &c.] That is, Cut them not all off on a ſudden; leſt my people forget, that is, leſt my followers, or my countreymen, or the people over whom thou haſt appointed me to reign, forget thy mercy to me, and thy juſt wrath upon mine enemies, and the ſins whereby they provoked thee to puniſh them; or, leſt being freed by this means from the afflictions which they formerly endured from them, they ſhould grow forgetfull of ſerving thee. Becauſe judgements ſuddenly executed are uſually as ſuddenly forgotten, therefore David prayeth that God would rather deſtroy them by degrees, that his people might for their ſpirituall advantage have them the longer in their eye, as ſpectacles of Gods vengeance. Yea and herein withall too 1. he bridles himſelf from that which is naturall to men, an over-eager deſire of the preſent deſtruction of his enemies; and 2. he covertly taxeth the people for being ſo ready to forget the great works of God. Scatter them by thy power; that is, by thine almighty power (which is here oppoſed to Sauls great ſtrength mentioned before verſ. 9:) break them in pieces, and bring them to ſuch miſery, that they may wander up and down, ſome one way and ſome another, not knowing where to find any relief or refuge: and bring them down, to wit, from that lofty condition wherein now they live. All which he begges, for the good and in the name of all Gods people: and therefore he addes thoſe laſt words, O Lord our shield. Many expoſitours take this to be ſpoken by David, as a type of Chriſt, concerning the diſperſion of the Jewes; whom God hath not utterly deſtroyed, but ſcattered through the world, that his people (Jewes or Chriſtians) might not forget their ſin, nor the wrath that is fallen upon them for their deſpiſing and crucifying the Lord of glory.
Verſ. 12. For the ſin of their mouth and the words of their lips, &c.] See the Note above verſ. 7: let them even be taken in their pride; that is, when they are in the height of their proſperity and pride; or, let them be puniſhed for their pride, which is indeed the ground of all their curſed ſpeeches; or let them be inſnared in their own pride, let that which they have in their pride attempted againſt me prove their own ruine: and for curſing and lying which they ſpeak, that is, their execrations and ſlanders. And this too ſome apply to the blaſphemous ſpeeches of the Jewes againſt Chriſt.
Verſ. 13. Conſume them in wrath, conſume them, that they may not be, &c.] That is, let their wealth and worldly greatneſſe waſt by little and little, till they come to nothing, and farre from being what they now are: or thus, When thou haſt kept them long enough in an accurſed waſting condition, as ſpectacles of thy wrath for the inſtruction of others, then deſtroy them utterly from the land of the living: and let them know that God ruleth in Iacob, unto the ends of the earth; that is, let theſe men know, when they come to be deſtroyed, that God ruleth in his church whereever it is ſpread unto the ends of the earth; or, let men know, even the heathens unto the end of the earth, by hearing of ſo famous a judgement upon the wicked adverſaries of the godly, that God ruleth in Jacob.
Verſ. 14. And at evening let them return, &c.] This is added in reference to that which was ſaid before ver. 6. as if he had ſaid, Let their judegment be anſwerable to their ſin: as now they run up and down to take me, returning in the evening, and make a noiſe like a dog, and goe round about the city; ſo at evening let them return, to wit, when they have all day run up and down for meat, and let them make a noiſe like a dog, howling for hunger, and goe round about the city, to begge their bread, and no where find it, as is more fully expreſſed in the next verſe.
Verſ. 15. Let them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they be not ſatiſfied.] Or, If they be not ſatisfied then they will ſtay all night, and ſo lye pinched with hunger all the night long: ſee the note Job 15.23.
Verſ. 16. But I will ſing of thy power, &c.] Thus he aſcribes his eſcape to God, though it were by the device of his wife Michal: yea I will ſing aloud of thy mercy in the morning; that is, ſay ſome, when they thought to have had me in their power, alluding to Sauls commiſſion to his officers, 1 Sam. 19.11. to watch him, and to ſlay him in the morning.
Verſ. 17. VntoUnto thee, O my ſtrength, will I ſing, &c.] He tearms God his ſtrength, in oppoſition to what he had ſaid verſ. 9. of Sauls ſtrength.