_The ornaments and privileges of the church._
A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah.
Great _is_ the LORD and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God,
_in_ the mountain of his holiness.
Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, _is_ mount Zion;
_on_ the sides of the north the city of the great king.
God is known in her palaces for a refuge.
For, lo, the kings were assembled, they passed by together.
They saw _it_, _and_ so they marvelled; they were troubled, _and_
hasted away.
Fear took hold upon them there, _and_ pain, as of a woman in travail.
Thou breakest the ships of Tarshish with an east wind.
As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in
the city of our God: God will establish it for ever. Selah.
We have thought of thy loving-kindness, O God, in the midst of thy
temple.
According to thy name, O God, so _is_ thy praise unto the ends of the
earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness.
Let mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad, because of
thy judgments.
Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces; that ye may tell _it_
to the generation following.
For this God _is_ our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide
_even_ unto death.
This is a thanksgiving almost like Psalm xlvi. For the Psalmist
praises God, and magnifies and extols his works, because he had so
marvellously defended the city of Jerusalem against the neighbouring
nations, and against kings and tyrants; and because he had often
delivered it when besieged by the most bitter and the most powerful
enemies; while those enemies themselves were driven back in a
wonderful manner, and put to open shame; and because he had saved it
from infinite perils and destructions, in defiance of the very gates
of hell; and had preserved the city, the temple, the word, and the
worship of God.
But, more especially, David is here celebrating the truth of God;—that
God faithfully fulfils his promise; ‘According to thy name, (saith he)
so is thy glory, and so are thy works unto the ends of the earth:’
that is, according as thou hast promised us, “I will be your God,” and
accordingly as we have believed that word, so hast thou given us to
experience the fulfilment of it;—thou hast been with us, and delivered
and defended us; our city and our temple stand in the midst of
enemies, as if in the midst of flames, preserved and unhurt.
_We_ sing this Psalm, because God is pleased to preserve his church
and gospel against the roaring and hatred of kings and princes; who
cease not from attacking them by violence and craft with all their
might: and yet, they shall perish and be confounded, and covered with
shame, while the gospel shall remain as it was before, unhurt and
unhindered.