acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer.”_ Fast
and pray; Lord, I do fast, and I would pray; for to what end do I
withhold sustenance from my body if it be not the more to cheer up my
soul? my hungry, my thirsty soul? But the bread, the water of life, both
which I find nowhere but in thy word, I partake not but by exercising my
soul therein. This I begin to do, and fain would do it well, but in vain
shall I attempt except thou do bless: bless me then, O Lord; bless
either part of me, both are thine, and I would withhold neither part
from thee. Not my body; I would set my tongue on work to speak of thee;
not my soul, I would exercise my heart in thinking on thee; I would join
them in devotion which thou hast joined in creation. Yea, Lord, as they
have conspired to sin against thee, so do they now consort to do their
duty to thee; my tongue is ready, my heart is ready; I would think, I
would speak; think upon thee, speak to thee. But, Lord, what are my
_words_? what are my _thoughts_? Thou knowest the thoughts of men, that
they are altogether vanity, and our words are but the blast of such
thoughts; both are vile. It were well it were no more; both are wicked,
my heart a corrupt fountain, and my tongue an unclean stream; and shall
I bring such a sacrifice to God? The halt, the lame, the blind, though
otherwise the beasts be clean, yet are they sacrifices abominable to
God: how much more if we offer those beasts which are unclean? And yet,
Lord, my sacrifice is no better, faltering words, wandering thoughts,
are neither of them presentable to thee; how much less evil thoughts and
idle words? Yet such are the best of mine. What remedy? If any, it is in
thee, O Lord, that I must find it, and for it now do I seek unto thee.
Thou only, O Lord, canst hallow my tongue, and hallow my heart that my
tongue may speak, and my heart think that which may “_be acceptable unto
thee_,” yea, that which may be thy delight. Do not I lavish? Were it not
enough that God should bear with, that he should not punish, the defects
of my words, of my thoughts? May I presume that God shall accept of me?
nay, delight in me? Forget I who the Lord is? Of what majesty? Of what
felicity? Can it stand with his Majesty to vouchsafe acceptance? with
his felicity to take content in the words of a worm? in the thoughts of
a wretch? And, Lord, I am too proud that vilify myself so little, and
magnify thee no more. But see whither the desire of thy servant doth
carry him; how, willing to please, I consider not how hard it is for
dust and ashes to please God, to do that wherein God should take
content. But Lord, here is my comfort, that I may set God to give
content unto God; God is _mine_, and I cannot want access unto God, if
God may approach himself. Let me be weak, yet God is strong; O Lord,
thou are “_my strength_.” Let me be a slave to sin, God is a _Saviour_;
O Lord, thou art _my Saviour_; thou hast _redeemed_ me from all that
woful state whereunto Adam cast me, yea, thou hast built me upon a rock,
strong and sure, that the gates of hell might never prevail against me.
These two things hast thou done for me, O Lord, and what may not he
presume of for whom thou hast done these things! I fear not to come
before thee. I presume my devotion shall content thee; be thine eyes
never such all-seeing eyes, I will be bold to present my inward, my
outward man before thee; be thy eyes never so holy eyes, I will not fly
with Adam to hide my nakedness from thee, for I am able to keep my
ground; seeing I am supported by _my Lord_, I doubt not but to prove a
true Israelite, and to prevail with God. For all my woe, for all my sin,
I will not shrink, nay, I will approach, approach to thee, for thou art
“_My Redeemer_.” The nearer I come to thee, the freer shall I be both
from sin and woe. Oh, blessed state of man who is so weak, so strong; so
wretched, and so happy; weak in himself, strong in God; most happy in
God, though in himself a sinful wretch. And now, my soul, thou wouldst
be devout; thou mayst be what thou wouldst: sacrifice to God thy words,
sacrifice to God thy thoughts, make thyself a holocaust, doubt not but
thou shalt be accepted, thou shalt content even the most glorious the
most holy eyes of God. Only presume not of thyself, presume on him;
build thy words, build thy thoughts upon thy _Rock_, they shall not be
shaken; free thy words, free thy thoughts (thoughts and words enthralled
to sin), by thy Saviour, and thy sacrifice shall be accepted. So let me
build on thee, so let me be enlarged by thee, in soul, in body, that
“_The words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable
in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer._”—_Arthur Lake
(Bishop), in “Divine Meditations,” 1629._
HINTS TO PREACHERS.
_Verse 1._—“Chalmers’ Astronomical Discourses” will suggest to the
preacher many ways of handling this theme. The power, wisdom, goodness,
punctuality, faithfulness, greatness, and glory of God are very visible
in the heavens.
_Verses 1-5._—Parallel between the heavens and the revelation of
Scripture, dwelling upon Christ as the central Sun of Scripture.
_Verse 1.—“The heavens declare the glory of God.”_ Work in which we may
unite, the nobility, pleasure, usefulness, and duty of such service.
_Verse 2._—Voices of the day and of the night. Day and night thoughts.
_Verse 3._—The marginal reading, coupled with verse four, suggests the
eloquence of an unobtrusive life—silent yet heard.
_Verse 4._—In what sense God is revealed to all men.
_Verses 4, 5, 6._—The Sun of righteousness. I. His tabernacle. II. His
appearance as a Bridegroom. III. His joy as a champion. IV. His circuit
and his influence.
_Verse 5.—“Rejoiceth as a strong man,”_ etc. The joy of strength, the
joy of holy labour, the joy of the anticipated reward.
_Verse 6._—The permeating power of the gospel.
_Verse 7 (first clause)._—Holy Scripture. I. What it is—“law.” II. Whose
it is—“of the Lord.” III. What is its character—“perfect.” IV. What its
result—“converting the soul.”
_Verse 7 (second clause)._—I. Scholars. II. Class-book. III. Teacher.
IV. Progress.
_Verses 7, 8, 9._—The Hexapla. _See Notes._
_Verse 7 (last clause)._—The wisdom of a simple faith.
_Verse 8 (first clause)._—The heart-cheering power of the Word. I.
Founded in its righteousness. II. Real in its quality. III. Constant in
its operation.
_Verse 8 (second clause)._—Golden ointment for the eyes.
_Verse 9._—The purity and permanence of true religion, and the truth and
justice of the principles upon which it is founded.
_Verse 10._—Two arguments for loving God’s statutes—Profit and Pleasure.
_Verse 10._—The inexpressible delights of meditation on Scripture.
_Verse 11 (first clause)._—I. What? “Warned.” II. How? “By them.” III.
Who? “Thy servant.” IV. When? “Is”—present.
_Verse 11 (second clause)._—Evangelical rewards—“_In_,” not _for_
keeping.
_Verse 12._—See “Spurgeon’s Sermons,” No. 116. “Secret Sins.”
_Verses 12, 13._—The three grades of sin—secret, presumptuous,
unpardonable.
_Verse 13._—See “Spurgeon’s Sermons,” No. 135. “Presumptuous Sins.”
_Verse 13 (last clause).—“The great transgression.”_ What it is not, may
be, involves, and suggests.
_Verse 14._—A prayer concerning our holy things.
_Verse 14._—All wish to please. Some please _themselves_. Some please
_men_. Some seek to please _God_. Such was David. I. The prayer shows
his _humility_. II. The prayer shows his _affection_. III. The prayer
shows a _consciousness of duty_. IV. The prayer shows a _regard to
self-interest_.—_William Jay._
_Verse 14._—The harmony of heart and lips needful for acceptance.
Footnote 8:
The pictures or illustrations of a book.
Footnote 9:
The Nineteenth Psalm is one “appointed to be read” on _Christmas Day_.
Footnote 10:
Gratuities, presents.
Footnote 11:
Hesitating.
PSALM XX.
SUBJECT.—_We have before us a_ National Anthem, _fitted to be sung at
the outbreak of war, when the monarch was girding on his sword for the
fight. If David had not been vexed with wars, we might never have been
favoured with such Psalms as this. There is a needs be for the trials of
one saint, that he may yield consolation to others. A happy people here
plead for a beloved sovereign, and with loving hearts cry to Jehovah,
“God save the King.” We gather that this song was intended to be sung in
public, not only from the matter of the song, but also from its
dedication_ “To the Chief Musician.” _We know its author to have been
Israel’s sweet singer, from the short title_, “A Psalm of David.” _The
particular occasion which suggested it, it would be mere folly to
conjecture, for Israel was almost always at war in David’s day. His
sword may have been hacked, but it was never rusted. Kimchi reads the
title_, concerning David, _or_, for David, _and it is clear that the
King is the subject as well as the composer of the song. It needs but a
moment’s reflection to perceive that this hymn of prayer is prophetical
of our Lord Jesus, and is the cry of the ancient church on behalf of her
Lord, as she sees him in vision enduring a great fight of afflictions on
her behalf. The militant people of God, with the great Captain of
salvation at their head, may still in earnest plead that the pleasure of
the Lord may prosper in his hand. We shall endeavour to keep to this
view of the subject in our brief exposition, but we cannot entirely
restrict our remarks to it._
DIVISION.—_The first four verses are a prayer for the success of the
king. Verses 5, 6, and 7 express unwavering confidence in God and his
Anointed; verse 8 declares the defeat of the foe, and verse 9 is a
concluding appeal to Jehovah._
EXPOSITION.
The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of
Jacob defend thee;
2 Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of
Zion;
3 Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.
4 Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy
counsel.
1. “_The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble._” All loyal subjects pray
for their king, and most certainly citizens of Zion have good cause to
pray for the Prince of Peace. In times of conflict loving subjects
redouble their pleas, and surely in the sorrows of our Lord his church
could not but be in earnest. All the Saviour’s days were days of
trouble, and he also made them days of prayer; the church joins her
intercession with her Lord’s, and pleads that he may be heard in his
cries and tears. The agony in the garden was especially a gloomy hour,
but he was heard in that he feared. He knew that his Father heard him
always, yet in that troublous hour no reply came until thrice he had
fallen on his face in the garden; then sufficient strength was given in
answer to prayer, and he rose a victor from the conflict. On the cross
also his prayer was not unheard, for in the twenty-second Psalm he tells
us, “thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns.” The church in
this verse implies that her Lord would be himself much given to prayer;
in this he is our example, teaching us that if we are to receive any
advantage from the prayers of others, we must first pray for ourselves.
What a mercy that we _may_ pray in the day of trouble, and what a still
more blessed privilege that no trouble can prevent the Lord from hearing
us! Troubles roar like thunder, but the believer’s voice will be heard
above the storm. O Jesus, when thou pleadest for us in our hour of
trouble, the Lord Jehovah will hear thee. This is a most refreshing
confidence, and it may be indulged in without fear.
“_The name of the God of Jacob defend thee_;” or, as some read it, “set
thee in a high place.” By “_the name_” is meant the revealed character
and Word of God; we are not to worship “the unknown God,” but we should
seek to know the covenant God of Jacob, who has been pleased to reveal
his name and attributes to his people. There may be much in a royal
name, or a learned name, or a venerable name, but it will be a theme for
heavenly scholarship to discover all that is contained in the divine
name. The glorious power of God defended and preserved the Lord Jesus
through the battle of his life and death, and exalted him above all his
enemies. His warfare is now accomplished in his own proper person, but
in his mystical body, the church, he is still beset with dangers, and
only the eternal arm of our God in covenant can defend the soldiers of
the cross, and set them on high out of the reach of their foes. The day
of trouble is not over, the pleading Saviour is not silent, and the name
of the God of Israel is still the defence of the faithful. The name,
“_God of Jacob_,” is suggestive; Jacob had his day of trouble, he
wrestled, was heard, was defended, and in due time was set on high, and
his God is our God still, the same God to all his wrestling Jacobs. The
whole verse is a very fitting benediction to be pronounced by a gracious
heart over a child, a friend, or a minister, in prospect of trial; it
includes both temporal and spiritual protection, and directs the mind to
the great Source of all good. How delightful to believe that our
heavenly Father has pronounced it upon our favoured heads!
2. “_Send thee help from the sanctuary._” Out of heaven’s sanctuary came
the angel to strengthen our Lord, and from the precious remembrance of
God’s doings in his sanctuary our Lord refreshed himself when on the
tree. There is no help like that which is of God’s sending, and no
deliverance like that which comes out of his sanctuary. The sanctuary to
us is the person of our blessed Lord, who was typified by the temple,
and is the true sanctuary which God has pitched, and not man: let us fly
to the cross for shelter in all times of need, and help will be sent to
us. Men of the world despise sanctuary help, but our hearts have learned
to prize it beyond all material aid. They seek help out of the armoury,
or the treasury, or the buttery, but we turn to the sanctuary. “_And
strengthen thee out of Zion._” Out of the assemblies of the pleading
saints who had for ages prayed for their Lord, help might well result to
the despised sufferer, for praying breath is never spent in vain. To the
Lord’s mystical body the richest good comes in answer to the pleadings
of his saints assembled for holy worship as his Zion. Certain
advertisers recommend a strengthening plaster, but nothing can give such
strength to the loins of a saint as waiting upon God in the assemblies
of his people. This verse is a benediction befitting a Sabbath morning,
and may be the salutation either of a pastor to his people, or of a
church to its minister. God in the sanctuary of his dear Son’s person,
and in the city of his chosen church is the proper object of his
people’s prayers, and under such a character may they confidently look
to him for his promised aid.
3. “_Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice.
Selah._” Before war kings offered sacrifice, upon the acceptance of
which they depended for success; our blessed Lord presented himself as a
victim, and was a sweet savour unto the Most High, and then he met and
routed the embattled legions of hell. Still does his burnt sacrifice
perfume the courts of heaven, and through him the offerings of his
people are received as _his_ sacrifices and oblations. We ought in our
spiritual conflicts to have an eye to the sacrifice of Jesus, and never
venture to war until first the Lord has given us a token for good at the
altar of the cross, where faith beholds her bleeding Lord. “_Selah._” It
is well to pause at the cross before we march onward to battle, and with
the Psalmist cry “Selah.” We are too much in a hurry to make good haste.
A little pausing might greatly help our speed. Stay, good man, there is
a haste which hinders; rest awhile, meditate on the burnt sacrifice, and
put thy heart right for the stern work which lieth before thee.
4. “_Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy
counsel._” Christ’s desire and counsel were both set upon the salvation
of his people; the church of old desired for him good speed in his
design, and the church in these latter days, with all her heart desires
the complete fulfilment of his purpose. In Christ Jesus sanctified souls
may appropriate this verse as a promise; they shall have their desire,
and their plans to glorify their Master shall succeed. We may have our
own will when our will is God’s will. This was always the case with our
Lord, and yet he said, “not as I will, but as thou wilt.” What need for
submission in our case; if it was necessary to him, how much more for
us!
5 We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we
will set up _our_ banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions.
6 Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he will hear him
from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.
7 Some _trust_ in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember
the name of the LORD our God.
5. “_We will rejoice in thy salvation._” In Jesus there is salvation; it
is his own, and hence it is called thy _salvation_; but it is ours to
receive and ours to rejoice in. We should fixedly resolve that come what
may, we will rejoice in the saving arm of the Lord Jesus. The people in
this Psalm, before their king went to battle, felt sure of victory, and
therefore began to rejoice beforehand; how much more ought we to do this
who have seen the victory completely won! Unbelief begins weeping for
the funeral before the man is dead; why should not faith commence piping
before the dance of victory begins? Buds are beautiful, and promises not
yet fulfilled are worthy to be admired. If joy were more general among
the Lord’s people, God would be more glorified among men; the happiness
of the subjects is the honour of the sovereign. “_And in the name of our
God we will set up our banners._” We lift the standard of defiance in
the face of the foe, and wave the flag of victory over the fallen
adversary. Some proclaim war in the name of one king and some of another
but the faithful go to war in Jesu’s name, the name of the incarnate
God, Immanuel, God with us. The times are evil at present, but so long
as Jesus lives and reigns in his church we need not furl our banners in
fear, but advance them with sacred courage.
“Jesu’s tremendous name
Puts all our foes to flight;
Jesus, the meek, the angry Lamb
A lion is in fight.”
The church cannot forget that Jesus is her advocate before the throne,
and therefore she sums up the desires already expressed in the short
sentence, “_The Lord fulfil all thy petitions._” Be it never forgotten
that among those petitions is that choice one, “Father, I will that they
also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am.”
6. “_Now know I that the Lord saveth his anointed._” We live and learn,
and what we learn we are not ashamed to acknowledge. He who thinks he
knows everything will miss the joy of finding out new truth; he will
never be able to cry, “now know I,” for he is so wise in his own conceit
that he knows all that can be revealed and more. Souls conscious of
ignorance shall be taught of the Lord, and rejoice as they learn.
Earnest prayer frequently leads to assured confidence. The church
pleaded that the Lord Jesus might win the victory in his great struggle,
and now by faith she sees him saved by the omnipotent arm. She evidently
finds a sweet relish in the fragrant title of “anointed;” she thinks of
him as ordained before all worlds to his great work, and then endowed
with the needful qualifications by being anointed of the Spirit of the
Lord; and this is evermore the choicest solace of the believer, that
Jehovah himself hath anointed Jesus to be a Prince and a Saviour, and
that our shield is thus the Lord’s own anointed. “_He will hear him from
his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand._” It is here
asserted confidently that God’s holiness and power would both come to
the rescue of the Saviour in his conflict, and surely these two glorious
attributes found congenial work in answering the sufferer’s cries. Since
Jesus was heard, we shall be; God is in heaven, but our prayers can
scale those glorious heights; those heavens are holy, but Jesus purifies
our prayers, and so they gain admittance; our need is great, but the
divine arm is strong, and all its strength is “saving strength;” that
strength, moreover, is in the hand which is most used and which is used
most readily—the right hand. What encouragements are these for pleading
saints!
7. Contrasts frequently bring out the truth vividly, and here the church
sets forth the creature-confidences of carnal men in contrast with her
reliance upon the Prince Immanuel and the invisible Jehovah. “_Some
trust in chariots, and some in horses._” Chariots and horses make an
imposing show, and with their rattling, and dust, and fine caparisons,
make so great a figure that vain man is much taken with them; yet the
discerning eye of faith sees more in an invisible God than in all these.
The most dreaded war-engine of David’s day was the war-chariot, armed
with scythes, which mowed down men like grass: this was the boast and
glory of the neighbouring nations; but the saints considered the name of
Jehovah to be a far better defence. As the Israelites might not keep
horses, it was natural for them to regard the enemy’s cavalry with more
than usual dread. It is, therefore, all the greater evidence of faith
that the bold songster can here disdain even the horse of Egypt in
comparison with the Lord of hosts. Alas, how many in our day who profess
to be the Lord’s are as abjectly dependent upon their fellow-men or upon
an arm of flesh in some shape or other, as if they had never known the
name of Jehovah at all. Jesus, be thou alone our rock and refuge, and
never may we mar the simplicity of our faith. “_We will remember the
name of the Lord our God._” “Our God” in covenant, who has chosen us and
whom we have chosen; this God is our God. The name of our God is
JEHOVAH, and this should never be forgotten; the self-existent,
independent, immutable, ever-present, all-filling I AM. Let us adore
that matchless name, and never dishonour it by distrust or
creature-confidence. Reader, you must _know_ it before you can
_remember_ it. May the blessed Spirit reveal it graciously to your soul!
8 They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand
upright.
9 Save, LORD: let the king hear us when we call.
8. How different the end of those whose trusts are different! The
enemies of God are uppermost at first, but they ere long are brought
down by force, or else fall of their own accord. Their foundation is
rotten, and therefore when the time comes it gives way under them; their
chariots are burned in the fire, and their horses die of pestilence, and
where is their boasted strength? As for those who rest on Jehovah, they
are often cast down at the first onset, but an Almighty arm uplifts
them, and they joyfully stand upright. The victory of Jesus is the
inheritance of his people. The world, death, Satan and sin, shall all be
trampled beneath the feet of the champions of faith; while those who
rely upon an arm of flesh shall be ashamed and confounded for ever.
9. The Psalm is here recapitulated. That Jesus might himself be
delivered, and might then, as our King, hear us, is the two-fold desire
of the Psalm. The first request is granted, and the second is sure to
all the seed; and therefore we may close the Psalm with the hearty shout
“God save the King.” “God save King Jesus, and may he soon come to
reign.”
EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS.
_Whole Psalm._—This Psalm is the prayer which the church might be
supposed offering up, had all the redeemed stood by the cross, or in
Gethsemane, in full consciousness of what was doing there. Messiah, in
reading these words, would know that he had elsewhere the sympathy he
longed for, when he said to the three disciples, “Tarry ye here, and
watch with me.” Matt. xxvi. 38. It is thus a pleasant song, of the
sacred singer of Israel, to set forth the feelings of the redeemed in
their Head, whether in his sufferings or in the glory that was to
follow.—_Andrew A. Bonar._
_Whole Psalm._—There are traces of liturgical arrangement in many of the
Psalms. There is frequently an adaptation to the circumstances of public
worship. Thus, when the Jewish church wished to celebrate the great act
of Messiah the High Priest making a sacrifice for the people on the day
of atonement, as represented in the twenty-second Psalm, a subject so
solemn, grand, and affecting, was not commenced suddenly and
unpreparedly, but first a suitable occasion was sought, proper
characters were introduced, and a scene in some degree appropriate to
the great event was fitted for its reception. The priests and Levites
endeavour to excite in the minds of the worshippers an exalted tone of
reverential faith. The majesty and power of God, all the attributes
which elevate the thoughts, are called in to fill the souls of the
worshippers with the most intense emotion; and when the feelings are
strung to the highest pitch, an awful, astounding impression succeeds,
when the words are slowly chanted, “My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me?” We are to suppose, then, that the series of Psalms, from
the twentieth to the twenty-fourth inclusive, was used as a service or
office in the public worship of the Jewish church.[12]—_R. H. Ryland,
M.A., in “The Psalms Restored to Messiah,” 1853._
_Whole Psalm._—Really good wishes are good things, and should be
expressed in words and deeds. The whole Psalm thus teaches. Christian
sympathy is a great branch of Christian duty. There may be a great deal
of obliging kindness in that which costs us little.—_William S. Plumer._