Works Volume 4, Book 5 · Psalm 122
The Hundred and Twenty Second PSALM.
A Song of ‖aſcents. ſee note on Pſal. 120. a.degrees of David.
The hundred twenty ſecond is an expreſſion of great joy for a return to the benefits of God's publick ſervice, together with a prayer for continuance of thoſe peaceable opportunities. It was firſt compoſed by David, probably after his return from his flight from Abſolom, and ſolemnly ſung by the Levites upon the return from the Captivity, (ſee note on Pſal. 120. a.)
1. I Was glad when they ſaid unto me, Let us go into the houſe of the Lord.
2. Our feet †have ſtood foreignſhall ſtand in thy gates, O Jeruſalem.
Paraphrase. 1, 2. Bleſſed be God for the joyfull news which he hath now afforded us, the liberty to go to Jeruſalem, and to the Ark of God's preſence which is placed there, the moſt bliſsfull prerogative of peaceable publick aſſemblies, from which we have been debarred ſo long.
3. Jeruſalem is builded as a city that is *joyned to it ſelf togethercompact together.
Paraphrase. 3. Jeruſalem is a lovely place, the very buildings, being ſo uniform, are very beautifull (and an emblem of that union of minds, both in charity and united interceſſions, which is the moſt amiable gracefull thing in the Church of God.)
4. Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, ‖by, or according to the commandment, or teſtimony to Iſrael.unto the teſtimony of Iſrael, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord.
Paraphrase. 4. And nothing more lovely in it, than that it is the place to which all the inhabitants of the land are thrice every year obliged to go up to commemorate the mercies of God afforded to his people.
5. For there †ſ…tare ſet thrones of judgment, the thrones of the houſe of David.
Paraphrase. 5. Yet beſide this of the houſe and ſervice of God, there alſo the Sanhedrim, or ſupreme judicature of the nation ſitteth, that great court where the higheſt matters are decided; And there alſo is the palace where David, and the Kings of Judah deſcending lineally from David, do and ſhall conſtantly reſide.
6. Pray for the peace of Jeruſalem; they ſhall proſper that love thee.
Paraphrase. 6. From all theſe both civil and eccleſiaſtical conſiderations, it is the duty of all good men to pray for this place, and to love it moſt affectionately, to beſeech God to beſtow a quiet injoyment of all theſe advantages, and therein all manner of proſperity upon it. And they that thus love, and pray, and contribute their utmoſt to it, ſhall certainly gain to themſelves proſperity and temporal felicity by this means.
7. Peace be within thy walls, and proſperity within thy palaces.
Paraphrase. 7. Let this therefore be our united prayer that God will pour down all his bleſſings upon this place.
8. For my brethren and companions ſakes I will now *ſpeak peace of, or on,ſay, Peace be within thee.
9. Becauſe of the houſe of the Lord our God, I will ſeek thy good.
Paraphrase. 8, 9. And as our prayers, ſo let our moſt earneſt indeavours be bent this way, to advance the proſperity and tranquility of it, and ſo both of Church and ſtate, which are equally concerned in it. And to this all obligations, both humane and divine, charity to our brethren, and piety to that God who is adored and glorified there, moſt ſtrictly engage us.
Annotations on Pſal. CXXII.
foreignV. 3. Compact] This phraſe of foreign aſſociated (from foreign to joyn or aſſociate) or joyned to it ſelf together, refers critically to that which the ſacred ſtory gives us of that city. The ſite of it was upon a very unequal ground; the low town was mean and diſmantled; the caſtle on the hill was fortified, and held as a place of ſtrength; which being taken by Joab, David built up the whole, and ſo made it one city, aſſociated and joyned together. 1 Chron. 11.7, 8. David dwelt in the caſtle, and built the city round about, and Joab repaired the reſt of the city.
foreignV. 4. Ʋnto the teſtimony of Iſrael] foreign doth literally ſignifie, the teſtimonies (as that imports commands given) to Iſrael. So foreign the verb, as it ſignifies to teſtifie, is alſo to admoniſh; and ſo teſtimonies and ſtatutes and judgments, Deut. 4.45. are all uſed in the ſame ſenſe, for the commands delivered by Moſes from God; and ſo ch. 6.20. What mean the teſtimonies — and frequently in this book of Pſalms, God's teſtimonies, being that which he hath revealed, and thereby teſtified of his will. So when we reade of the Ark of the teſtimony, 'tis in relation to the Decalogue which was kept in the Ark, Exod. 25.16. thou ſhalt put into the Ark the teſtimony which I ſhall give thee. And ſo here the teſtimony to Iſrael is the command given to that people of going up from all parts of the land to Jeruſalem three times a year, to the Feaſts. That is meant in the beginning of the verſe, Thither the tribes go up, not to, but by, or according to the teſtimony to Iſrael, the law given to that purpoſe. The prepoſition indeed is wanting, and ſo muſt of neceſſity be ſupplied (rather than to make the teſtimony the notation of the place, viz. the Ark) the ſenſe being thus moſt current, Whither, i. e. to Jeruſalem, the tribes go up, i. e. all the Jews whereſoever inhabiting, according to the teſtimony, or law given to Iſrael (ſo ל imports) to give thanks unto the name of the Lord, which was the end of their going up, and of the command which required it at the feſtivals, the ſolemn times of thankſgiving. The Chaldee have another notion of it, and render it God's teſtifying to Iſrael foreign &c. that his majeſtatick preſence ſhall abide among them when they come to confeſs unto the name of the Lord. But the former rendring is more proper and agreeable. And accordingly the learned Caſtellio reads it, ex edito Iſraelitis oraculo, from, or by the oracle delivered to the Iſraelites. The Jewiſh Arab reads foreign and it is the place of convention to, or for Iſrael, taking it in the notion that the words derived from foreign have.
V. 5. foreignThrones of judgment] That the foreign ſeats for judgment here ſignifie the Sanhedrim, or higheſt Court of Judicature, there can be no queſtion. Theſe are ſaid to ſit (ſo foreign literally imports) at Jeruſalem, as being the Metropolis of Judea, and ſo the ſeat of that greateſt Council, as leſſer cities are of the conſiſtories or leſſer conſeſſus, called foreign judgments Matt. 5.22. The onelyonly difficulty is, whether foreign the thrones for the houſe of David, be but another phraſe to expreſs the ſame thing. If it be, then the expreſſion is poetical, to ſet down the grandeur of that ſupreme Sanhedrim, that it is a royal judicature, and ſo as it were the ſeat of the King himſelf; as among us the King's Bench is the title of our great court of judicature, where in the King's name judgment is given to the people. But 'tis more probable, that it is added as a third argument of the glory of Jeruſalem, that there is the regal throne, where now David, as after him his ſucceſſours ſhould reſide. The Chaldee reade it to this ſenſe, for interpreting the latter part of the houſe of the ſanctuary, they ſay, that there are ſeats prepared foreign &c. for the Kings of the houſe of David.
V. 8. Within thee] The ſuffix ב is beſt rendred with, or of, or concerning. The Chaldee retein foreign, foreignbut the Syriack reade foreign of thee, or on thee, the LXXII. foreign of, or concerning thee; all of them joyning it with foreign I will ſpeak peace on thee, or of thee, i. e. bleſs thee, and pray for all God's bleſſings and felicities upon thee. The Jewiſh Arab, I will ſpeak of thy peace or ſafety.