3 Let the house of Aaron now confess, that | Rev. 1.6: his mercy endureth for ever. 4 Yea, let them now, that fear the Lord, confess, that his mercy endureth for ever. 5 I called upon the Lord in trouble; and the Lord heard me at large [answered me, and set me in a large place]. 6 The Lord is on my side: I will not fear what man doeth [can do] unto me. 7 The Lord taketh my part with them, that help me; therefore shall I see my desire upon mine enemies. 5. 8, &c. Ps. 22. 23. Eccles. 5. 19. Isai. 51. 12. Rom. 8. 31. Deut. 33. 26. 8 It is better to trust in the Lord, than to Isai. 2. 22. put any confidence in man. 9 It is better to trust in the Lord, than to put any confidence in princes. 10 All nations compassed me round about; but, in the name of the Lord, will I destroy them. Jer. 17. 5, &c. Isai. 31. 1, &c. Ezek. 29.7. Zech. 12. 3: 14. 1, &c. 11 They kept me in on every side, they kept 1 Sam. 23.26, &c. me in, I say, on every side; but, in the name of the Lord, will I destroy them. 12 They came about me like bees, and are Nah. 1.7, 8. extinct, even as the fire among the [the fire of] thorns; for, in the name of the Lord, I will destroy them. 13 Thou hast thrust sore at me, that I might Matt. 4. 1, &c. fall; but the Lord was my help. 3 The house of Aaron. For remarks concerning this and the following verse, see on Psalm cxv. 10, 11. 5 At large. See on Psalm iv. 1. 7 My desire, &c. See on Psalm Liv. 7. 10 All nations, &c. These words, of course, so far as they regard David himself, are spoken solely of the nations bordering on the land of Israel.- -Will I destroy them. See on Psalm cxvi. 10. The future tense, in this and the two next verses, appears not to accord with the tenor of the Psalm, which is a thanksgiving for a deliverance already experienced. If, however, that tense is preferred, the sense of the passage will be,-I not only have destroyed them now, but shall again, by divine aid, be victorious over them. Ver. 17. 12 They came about me, &c. His enemies then assaulted him in a numerous body, with unrestrained impetuosity, and with the strongest indications of malevolence. Deut. i. 44. But their rage terminated, like a fire kindled among thorns, which burns vehemently, making a great blaze and noise, yet is soon extinguished, without having produced much effect. Psalm Lviii. 8. 13 Thou. We have here, perhaps, a sudden apostrophe to all his Isai. 12. 2. Acts 2. 46, 47: 16. 34. Heb. 2. 14. 1 Thess. 4.13, &c. 2 Cor. 6.9. Heb. 12. 7. Isai. 26. 2. Isai. 35. 8. Isai. 49. 8. Ephes. 1. 19, &c. 14 The Lord is my strength, and my song, and is become my salvation. 15 The voice of joy and health [salvation] is in the dwellings of the righteous: the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. 16 The right hand of the Lord hath the preeminence: the right hand of the Lord bringeth mighty things to pass. 17 I shall not die; but live, and declare the works of the Lord. 18 The Lord hath chastened and corrected me; but he hath not given me over unto death. 19 Open me the gates of righteousness, that I may go into them, and give thanks unto the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter into it. 21 I will thank thee; for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation. 22 The same stone, which the builders refused, is become the head-stone in the corner. enemies, who are addressed as a collective body. But some particular person may be meant, some individual, that had put David in great danger. 15 Health. See on Psalm iii. 3. 16 Hath the pre-eminence. Is endowed with more power, than are "all the nations upon earth." Psalm XLVI. 10. 17 I shall not die, &c. David, who had been delivered by the divine mercy from his great peril, here exults in the consciousness of that deliverance, resolving to omit no opportunity, during the additional years which have just been granted him, of proclaiming the power and faithfulness of Jehovah, nor of inciting others to join with him in his grateful songs of praise. 19 Open me, &c. David, having been recently preserved from destruction, and, accompanied by the thousands of Israel, approaching the tabernacle, to pay unto God his thank-offerings, thus summons the Levites to open the gates of the sanctuary for his admission. These are styled "the gates of righteousness," because of the character of such persons as entered within them, and offered an acceptable worship; because also of the nature of the services, which were there performed. 22 The same stone, &c. The present verse, with the three which come after it, are conjectured to have been sung by the crowds attendant upon David. He, whom Saul persecuted, whom the princes of the kingdom, at first, would not have to reign over them, and whom the neighboring tribes had so lately endeavored to overthrow, was now, by the divine mercy, exalted, as a type of the Mes 23 This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvel lous in our eyes. 24 This is the day, which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. 25 Help me [Save] now, O Lord: O Lord, send us now prosperity. Acts. 4. 27, 28. Neh. 8. 9, 10. John 8. 56. Ps. 20. 9: 69. 13. 23.39. 26 Blessed be he, that cometh in the name of Matt. 21. 9: the Lord: we have wished you good luck, ye that are of the house of the Lord. 27 God is the Lord, who hath shewed us 1 Pet. 2. 9. siah, to the station of the greatest dignity and importance. It is doubtful in what way the stone here mentioned was employed; whether the other parts of the building rested on it, as a kind of foundation-stone (Ephes. ii. 21), or whether it was placed on the top (Jer. Li. 26), that it might bind two sides together at the corner, like a coping-stone. From being a clear prediction of our Saviour, the verse occurs in the New Testament no fewer than six times, Matt. xxi. 42: Mark xii. 10: Luke xx. 17: Acts iv. 11: Ephes. ii. 20: 1 Pet. ii. 4. 24 This is the day, &c. This day the Lord has rendered, in a peculiar manner, illustrious and remarkable, by permitting us to celebrate on it the accomplishment of his gracious purposes towards us. 25 Help me now, &c. The form of words used by the people is to be looked upon as constituting a thanksgiving for the past, equally with a petition for the future. It is evident, that the Jews had this passage in their mind, when they publicly welcomed Jesus Christ at his last entrance into Jerusalem. Mark xi. 9. The change of number, as exhibited in the old translation, is curious, though not uncommon. The word "now" has no reference to time, any more than it has in the beginning of the Psalm. Here, however, it signifies, I beseech you; because it necessarily becomes a particle of entreaty, when joined to the second person of the imperative mood. Psalm cxxxiv. 1. 26 Blessed be he, &c. Most persons assign this verse to the priests, who, advancing from the house of God to meet the procession, in turn address, first, the king, then the train which accompanies him. Blessed be the prince, whom Jehovah has been pleased to set over us, and who comes hither expressly under the divine auspices: we have implored a blessing also upon you, who belong to the house or family of Jehovah, that is, who form a part of his peculiar people. If "house" has any reference to the tabernacle, the meaning must be, ye that, by your presence here to day, are manifestly to be included among the Lord's devout worshippers. 27 God is the Lord, &c. The people now joyfully commemorate the deliverance and prosperity, the safety and comfort, which Jehovah had granted them. See on Psalm xcvii. 11.-The horns, &c. The horns of the altar of burnt-offerings were eminences or spires placed at its four corners, and formed of the same material as itself. Exod. xxvii. 2. An assertion has been made, that it was not customary 1 Chron. 29. 21,22. light: bind the sacrifice with cords, yea, even unto the horns of the altar. Isai. 25. 1. Ezra 3. 11. Isai. 63. 7, &c. 28 Thou art my God, and I will thank thee: thou art my God, and I will praise thee. 29 O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is gracious, and his mercy endureth for ever. Evening Prayer. PSALM CXIX. THE persons, who assign the authorship of this Psalm to David, imagine him to have written it before he came to the throne, and whilst suffering from the persecutions of Saul, perhaps, even when living, as an exile, among the Philistines. 1 Sam. xxvii. 1. But, since there appears to be no particular period in David's life, which can be positively fixed upon, as likely to lead to such a composition, the probability is, that it came from Ezra, the only other person, whose name has been mentioned in conjunction with it. For, each division of it expressing the surpassing worth of the divine law, and containing resolutions to continue therein, under every circumstance of life, it would seem to have been drawn up chiefly, with the view of urging on the minds of the Jewish youth the obligation and advantage of devoting themselves to the study of the revealed word. Moreover, at the time of collecting the scriptures together, and of publicly reading them to the people, (which occurred nearly a century after the first return from the Babylonish captivity,) it must have formed a principal object with Ezra to endeavor to exhort all his countrymen, from the consciousness of their supreme importance and absolute necessity, to the careful preservation of that benefit, which he had himself conferred, by his labors, on the nation. The Psalm is divided (most probably, for the advantage of the memory,) into twenty-two portions of eight verses each, according to the number of letters, which compose the Hebrew alphabet; and not only every portion, but every verse of that portion, begins with the letter appropriated to it. Between the verses of each portion a connexion is frequently to be traced, though it appears rarely to extend from one portion to another. It is remarkable, that the inspired writings are here designated by a variety of names, which, though usually considered synonymous, in reality, are not so. By this copiousness of expression, the author is thought to have been desirous of accurately declar among the Israelites to bind the victims appointed for sacrifice to the altar; but this is directly contrary to the meaning of the Psalmist's words, at least, as they are rendered by all our translators. 28 Thou art my God, &c. David, having uttered this pious exclamation, ends the Psalm, as he began it, with exhorting all his fellowcountrymen to exalt and glorify that God, who had so mercifully protected him. B ing the hidden and distinguishing properties of revelation, its nature, its perfection, its excellencies, its several parts and uses. The scriptures seem, indeed, to be called God's ceremonies, as comprising a number of rites and sacrificial institutions; his commandments, as enforced upon our observance under pain of his heavy displeasure; his judgments, as emanating from the mighty Lord of the universe, and being the decisions of his infinite wisdom and justice, to which all men must submit ; enforced, too, as they are, by a number of examples and warnings entered upon record for our admonition; his law, as depending solely on his will, and binding us to implicit obedience; his righteousness, as correctly representing his own attributes, and the purity to which we, his creatures, should strive to attain ; his statutes, as indicating his authority and power to regulate our lives; his testimonies, as being constituted the solemn witness of all his designs and intentions respecting us; his way, as pointing out the path prescribed by him for us diligently to walk in; and, lastly, his word, as proceeding from his mouth, and communicated by him to mankind, with a particular reference, however, to the gracious promises therein made to us. No verse occurs, in which God is not alluded to, either directly or indirectly'; nor scarcely any, in which the scriptures are not mentioned under some one of the titles, which have just been explained. FIRST PORTION. LESSED are those, that are undefiled in the | Ezek. 28. 12, &c. way, and walk in the law of the Lord. 2 Blessed are they, that keep his testimonies, and seek him with their whole heart. 3 For they, who do no wickedness, walk in his ways. 4 Thou hast charged, that we shall diligently keep thy commandments. 5 O that my ways were made so direct, that I might keep thy statutes! 6 So shall I not be confounded, while I have respect unto all thy commandments. 1 Jam. 1. 25. Jer. 29. 10, &c. 2 John 3. 9: 5. 18. Deut. 6. 17, 18. Cor. 3. 5. Job 22. 26. 1 John 2. 28. 1 That are undefiled, &c. Who, being neither corrupted nor polluted by sinful habits, go on steadily and perseveringly in that path, which God has both pointed out, and commanded all men to pursue. 3 For they, &c. It is deducible, therefore, from this verse, that only they, who do not give themselves to commit iniquity, walk according to the scriptures and can be numbered among the "blessed." 5 My ways. See on Psalm i. 1. The Psalmist here applies to himself the general precept of the preceding verse.- -That I might, &c. That I might be enabled to proceed uninterruptedly, as thou hast enjoined us to do, without turning aside, either to the right hand or to the left, out of the direct or straight path of thy statutes. Ver. 128. 6 Confounded. Ver. 31, 78. See on Psalm xxii. 5. But the allu |