Davids Harp Strung and Tuned, Book 1 · Psalm 39
PSAL. XXXIX.
THIS Pſalm is conceived to be penned upon the ſame occaſion with the former, in ſome grievous diſtreſs he was, that's certain; whether by Abſolom, or Shimei, or ſome great ſickneſs, uncertain: However, as he profeſſed before, at his ſufferings and in juries, he was patient and ſilent. I was as as a deaf man, that heard not; and as a dumb man, &c. Pſal. 38.13, 14. Yet here he confeſſeth, that the tentation was ſo ſharp, and the provocation was ſo great, that he could not chooſe but ſpeak, he could hold no longer, but muſt needs burſt out; yet as there, ſo here, his complaint and petition is to his God: There be three parts of the Pſalm.
1. A Manifeſt of his reſolution and full purpoſe of heart for ſilence, ver. 1. and the conſequence upon it, ver. 2, 3.
2. His Expoſtulation with God about the ſhortneſs and variable condition of life, ver. 4, 5, 6.
3. His Petition for remiſſion from ſin, ver. 8. from puniſhment, ver. 10. for a farther reſpite and grace, ver. 12, 13.
Firſt, David acquaints us here with his reſolution; Dixi, I ſaid, I decreed, The firſt part. Davids reſolution to be ſilent.I fully purpoſed; and it was filent and dumb in the preſence of his enemies.
1. I ſaid I will take heed to my wayes that I ſin not with my tongue; and again, I will keep my mouth, as with a bridle, while the wicked is before me. Ver. 1
2. And this reſolution for a while he kept; I was dumb with ſilence, Ver. 2 I held my peace, even from good, even from a juſt defence.But his heart boyled within him; ſain he would ſpeak.
3. But I found in this very great difficulty; nay, impoſſiblity.
1. For all this while, my ſorrow was stirred, it was pain to me to be ſilent.
2. My heart was hot within me; I was in flame to utter my mind. Ver. 3
3. And while I was thus muſing, the fire burſt out; what was within, And at laſt he burſt out, and ſpake in a querulous manner. The ſecond part.I ſaw could not be concealed, no more than fire, for a while raked up in embers; and at laſt, I ſpake with my tongue.
Secondly, But better it had been, he had been ſilent ſtill, ſince in a querulous manner he begins to expoſtulate with God; Lord, let me know mine end, and the meaſure of my dayes, what it is: As if he had ſaid, Ver. 4 Better it were my dayes were ended, and I in my Grave, than to be thus vexed in body and mind, without, by enemies and perfidious friends; and if yet it muſt be ſo, it were well I knew the end of it, and how long I muſt be under this Croſs; and were my life, what others is, The condition of mans life.yet it hath many properties to alleviate the comforts of it.
1. It is very brittle and frail: Make me know how frail I am. Ver. 41Frail.
2. It is very ſhort, it may be meaſured out by a hand-breadth, 2Short.which is no long meaſure, nor a yard that is made of it: Behold, thou haſt made my dayes as a hand-breadth. Ver. 5
3. Nay, which is yet of leſs reckoning: 'Tis as nothing before thee, a nihil.3A Nihil.
4. 'Tis full of vanity: Ʋerily, every man at his beſt state, in his ſtrength, 4Vain.riches, power, is altogether vanity; his labours promiſe much, ſatisfie little.
5. 'Tis unſtable and uncertain; as a ſhadow, the image of a ſhadow; 5Uncertain.Surely every man walketh in a vain ſhadow. Ver. 6
6. 'Tis full of trouble and diſquiet; Surely they are diſquieted in vain.6Troubleſome
7. His labours are for he knows not whom: He heapeth up riches, 7Laborious.and knows not who ſhall gather them.
Thus David querulouſly expoſtulates, but preſently recollecting himſelf, 2He checks himſelf.he ſtops and checks, as it were, his immodeſty; nor the brevity, nor the vanity, nor the uncertainty, nor the anxiety of his life ſhall hereafter much trouble him, he had a ſurer Rock than any worldly thing whereon to rely, which was his God: And now Lord, 3And ſhewes God to be his ſtay.what wait I for? my hope is in thee. Let others toyle for riches, admire dignities, empires, pleaſures; let them be proud of theſe, and complain that their life is too ſhort to enjoy theſe: But I have far a ſtronger hold to truſt to, even thee O Lord, who I am perſwaded wilt be propitious to me, and be my ſtay among all the variety and inſtability of humane things; this was his comfort.
Thirdly, The third part. He prayes.Then upon this confidence he falls to prayer.
1. For remiſſion of ſin: Deliver me from all my tranſgreſſions.
2. 1For remiſſion.For defence againſt ill tongues: Make me not a reproach to the fooliſh.
3. Pardon for his immodeſt expoſtulation, upon promiſe not to do the like: I was dumb, 2For defence.I opened not my mouth; hereafter I will humble my ſelf under thy hand, 3Pardon for his impatience.and be ſilent; for thou haſt done it, my affliction is from thee.
4. 4A remove of puniſhment, and pleads for it.A remove of his puniſhment: Take away thy plague away from me.
1. And he adds the cauſe; either remove thy hand, or I muſt needs yield and periſh: I am even conſumed by the means, or by the blow of thy hand.
2. And this he amplifies by a ſimilitude of a Moth, and adds a ſecond Reaſon: When thou with rebukes doſt correct man for iniquity, thou makeſt his beauty conſume away as a Moth; which is bred in the Garment, and inſenſibly corrodes, Upon divers Reaſons.frets, eats it; as doth ſome diſeaſe our body, that bred in it, conſumes it: And for confirmation, he repeats his former words, ver. 5. delivering it here in a foreign, Surely every man is vanity, Selah; mark that.
3. To which may be added a third, The conſideration of our preſent condition in this life; we, and all our fathers, are but pilgrims and ſtrangers in this life: I am a stranger with thee, and a ſojourner, as all my fathers were; therefore parce.
Faith is alwayes ſtrugling with tentations; before, ver. 7. he is confident, God is his hope; but yet his calamities, his ſickneſs, his enemies, the brevity, fugacity, troubles of his life, ever and anon come into his memory, and therefore he prayes again for mitigation of theſe; and his prayer ariſeth by a gradation.
1. He prayes for Audience: Hear my prayer, O Lord.
2. He inforceth his prayer.Then that his cry, for ſuch it was, be heard: Give ear unto my cry.
3. For admiſſion of his tears: Hold not thy peace at my tears; the Reaſon is, a ſtranger, thy grace, thy favour.
4. For ſome relaxation and eaſe: O ſpare me, that I may recover my ſtrength; which he quickens with this motive; before I go hence, and be no more ſeen. Reſtore me to thy favour in this life, hereafter it will be too late to expect it. Ne moriar desperans.
The Prayer collected out of the thirty ninth Pſalm.
O Lord, when I beheld the flouriſhing eſtate and ſucceſſes of the wicked, and the life of the godly worn out with ſorrow and afflictions, I being not able to comprehend the ſecret wayes of thy Providence, was reſolved to lay my hand upon my mouth, and acquieſce in thy will and wiſdom: Even ſo Lord it pleaſed thée, ſo thou wiſely diſpoſeſt, and brings to paſs all things; and though I were able to put in a juſt Apology for this thy doing, yet I ſaid weithin my ſelf, Ver. 1 I will take heed to my wayes, that I ſin not with my tongue; I will keep my mouth with a bridle, eſpecially while the wicked is before me; that I ſay nothing againſt thée my God, nothing unworthy my ſelf.
But while I was dumb with ſilence, while I held my peace, and refrained even from good words, Ver. 2 that which my heart gave me, I muſt juſtly ſpeak; the grief within me was ſo vehement, and my ſorrow was ſo ſtirred (Lord, I confeſs my own weakneſs and infirmity) that my heart was like fire within me, and in that intemperate heat, zeal and indignation at the wickeds proſperity, I ſpake thus unadviſedly and immodeſtly with my tongue; being tyred and wearied out of my life, I deſired to dye.
O Lord, make me know, when this my miſerable and calamitous life ſhall end, in which I ſuffer ſuch heavy things, and of which I am over-weary; make me know the period and meaſure of my dayes, that I may be certain what, and how long I am to ſuffer, and what the delay is, that I muſt be under this Croſs: Short I know my time is, and eaſily meaſured, as eaſie as a hand-breadth; 'tis a moment, 'tis as nothing in compariſon of thée and eternity, and wilt thou not then ſuffer me to ſwallow my ſpettle? Behold all things that are in the World, are vanity of vanities, and man among the reſt, his labour, his power, his ſtrength, his favour promiſe much, and little ſatisfie, and wilt thou then contend with ſuch an one, and perſecute him as the dry ſtubble? O Lord, man is but the ſhadow of a ſhadow, which is the image of a thing, and yet is truly nothing; ſo he paſſeth away, being onward his journey toward death, never continuing his condition in one and the ſame ſtate, and wilt thou then add ſo his affliction?
This, O Lord, néeds not, for he is apt to afflict himſelf; that little time which thou haſt given him, which he ought to endeavour that he might enjoy in a quiet and peaceable manner, is diſquieted with the perturbations of the mind; for he diſquiets himſelf in vain with fear, and joy, and hope, and a covetous deſire eſpecially, he heapeth up riches, and cannot tell who ſhall gather them. The Prodigal, and unthrifty here, diſſipates what he had with ſo much care, and perhaps ſin heaped together, or elſe Thieves or enemies violently plunder, and carry them away.
Theſe conſiderations, O Lord, I muſt confeſs pierced my ſoul, and theſe thoughts wounded my heart, and made me a little impatient; till by thy mercy I recollected my ſelf, and retired my heart from all things below, and fixed upon thée: For now, Lord, what wait I for? what is my erpectation? what my confidence? what, my wealth, my power, my command, my ſtrength, my life? No, no, Lord, I renounce my truſt in all or any of theſe, Thou Lord only, art my hope, my rock, my ſtrong Caſtle, my defence, my help, my ſubſiſtence.
Thou, O Lord, which ſaveſt all thoſe who hope in thy mercy, deliver me from all my tranſgreſſions, and make me not a reproach to fooliſh men, to whoſe hands thou haſt now juſtly delivered me for my iniquities; againſt this thy juſt procéeding I will not open my mouth, becauſe I know that thou, who wilt, and doſt all things uprightly, haſt cauſed me thus to be troubled, to correct my enormities, and exerciſe my patience.
But yet, O Lord, I beſéech thée make an end of beating me, and remove thy ſtroak, that ſenſe of thy wrath, thoſe terrours of conſcience, and pains of body under which I groan; for I am even conſumed, and am ready to faint by the blow of thy heavy hand: Thou haſt made me an example, that when thou correcteſt and rebukeſt man for his iniquity, Thou makeſt his beauty to conſume away inſenſibly, as the fair gloſs doth from the garment that the Moth frets, ſo vain a thing is man: As therefore thou haſt made me an example of thy juſtice, ſo ſet me forth as a Monument of thy mercy, in hearing my prayers and cries, and conſidering my tears which I poure out before thée.
Lord, hear my prayer, and give ear to my cry, and hold not thy peace at my tears; for I am as all my fathers were, a man in this World of a ſhort continuance, the City I ſéek is above, my way thither through this vally of tears, in which for a time I muſt ſojourn, a Citizen I am of that City, a pilgrim, and a ſtranger here, and the time I am to abide in it, is but a little while; O ſpare me then, and deal more remiſsly and kindly with me, forbear theſe ſevere ſtroaks, that I may a little recover my ſtrength, by an aſſurance of thy grace and favour unto me, before I go hence, and be no more ſéen among men.
Ceaſe good Lord, to ſmite and afflict me in this grievous manner, give me ſome eaſe and relaxation of my pain; lay no more upon me, than thou wilt make me able to bear: O let me recover my ſtrength of faith and hope in thée in this my pilgrimage; it is not long, but I muſt depart from hence, and not be ſéen any more in this land of the living: Grant therefore good Lord, that I leave not this World with a conſcience oppreſſed, and affrighted with the grief and burden of my ſin; but that being diſcharged of that guilt; I may quietly and peaceably reſign my ſoul into thy hands, being cloathed and beautified by the merits of thy only Son, my Lord and only Saviour, Ieſus Chriſt. Amen.