Answer me when I call, God of my righteousness. Give me relief from my distress. Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
Parallel Translations
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Answer me when I call, God of my righteousness. Give me relief from my distress. Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
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Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
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(4-1) For the Leader; with string-music. A Psalm of David. (4-2) Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness, Thou who didst set me free when I was in distress; be gracious unto me, and hear my prayer.
Cross-references (35)
Passages linked to Psalms 4:1 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Corinthians 1:10 who delivered us out of so great a death, and does deliver; on whom we have set our hope that he will also still deliver us;
- Exodus 34:6-7 Yahweh passed by before him, and proclaimed, “Yahweh! Yahweh, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth, keeping loving kindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity and disobedience and sin; and who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the children’s children, on the third and on the fourth generation.”
- Psalms 40:1-3 I waited patiently for Yahweh. He turned to me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay. He set my feet on a rock, and gave me a firm place to stand. He has put a new song in my mouth, even praise to our God. Many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in Yahweh.
- Psalms 18:18-19 They came on me in the day of my calamity, but Yahweh was my support. He brought me out also into a large place. He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
- Psalms 119:132 Turn to me, and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.
- Psalms 25:16 Turn to me, and have mercy on me, for I am desolate and afflicted.
- Psalms 17:6 I have called on you, for you will answer me, God. Turn your ear to me. Hear my speech.
- 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
- Jeremiah 23:6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely. This is his name by which he will be called: Yahweh our righteousness.
- Habakkuk 3:19 Yahweh, the Lord, is my strength. He makes my feet like deer’s feet, and enables me to go in high places. For the music director, on my stringed instruments.
- Isaiah 45:24 They will say of me, ‘There is righteousness and strength only in Yahweh.’ ” Even to him will men come. All those who raged against him will be disappointed.
- Psalms 86:3-5 Be merciful to me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. Bring joy to the soul of your servant, for to you, Lord, do I lift up my soul. For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you.
- 1 Samuel 17:37 David said, “Yahweh who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go! Yahweh will be with you.”
- Psalms 22:1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?
- Psalms 45:1 My heart overflows with a noble theme. I recite my verses for the king. My tongue is like the pen of a skillful writer.
- Psalms 57:1 Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me, for my soul takes refuge in you. Yes, in the shadow of your wings, I will take refuge, until disaster has passed.
- Psalms 143:2 Don’t enter into judgment with your servant, for in your sight no man living is righteous.
- Psalms 31:8 You have not shut me up into the hand of the enemy. You have set my feet in a large place.
- Psalms 42:1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants after you, God.
- Psalms 67:1 May God be merciful to us, bless us, and cause his face to shine on us.
- Psalms 76:1 In Judah, God is known. His name is great in Israel.
- 1 Corinthians 1:30 Because of him, you are in Christ Jesus, who was made to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption:
- 2 Corinthians 1:8 For we don’t desire to have you uninformed, brothers, concerning our affliction which happened to us in Asia, that we were weighed down exceedingly, beyond our power, so much that we despaired even of life.
- Psalms 11:7 For Yahweh is righteous. He loves righteousness. The upright shall see his face.
- Psalms 24:5 He shall receive a blessing from Yahweh, righteousness from the God of his salvation.
- 1 Samuel 19:11-12 Saul sent messengers to David’s house, to watch him, and to kill him in the morning. Michal, David’s wife, told him, saying, “If you don’t save your life tonight, tomorrow you will be killed.” So Michal let David down through the window. He went away, fled, and escaped.
- 1 Chronicles 25:1-6 Moreover, David and the captains of the army set apart for the service certain of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who were to prophesy with harps, with stringed instruments, and with cymbals. The number of those who did the work according to their service was: of the sons of Asaph: Zaccur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asharelah. The sons of Asaph were under the hand of Asaph, who prophesied at the order of the king. Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied in giving thanks and praising Yahweh with the harp. Of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel, Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti, Romamti-Ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, and Mahazioth. All these were the sons of Heman the king’s seer in the words of God, to lift up the horn. God gave to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. All these were under the hands of their father for song in Yahweh’s house, with cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps, for the service of God’s house: Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman being under the order of the king.
- Psalms 41:12 As for me, you uphold me in my integrity, and set me in your presence forever.
- Psalms 56:1 Be merciful to me, God, for man wants to swallow me up. All day long, he attacks and oppresses me.
- Psalms 116:6 Yahweh preserves the simple. I was brought low, and he saved me.
- Psalms 116:16 Yahweh, truly I am your servant. I am your servant, the son of your servant girl. You have freed me from my chains.
- Psalms 119:75-77 Yahweh, I know that your judgments are righteous, that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Please let your loving kindness be for my comfort, according to your word to your servant. Let your tender mercies come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight.
- 1 Samuel 23:26-28 Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain; and David hurried to get away for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men surrounded David and his men to take them. But a messenger came to Saul, saying, “Hurry and come; for the Philistines have made a raid on the land!” So Saul returned from pursuing David, and went against the Philistines. Therefore they called that place Sela Hammahlekoth.
- Job 36:16 Yes, he would have allured you out of distress, into a wide place, where there is no restriction. That which is set on your table would be full of fatness.
- Psalms 6:1 Yahweh, don’t rebuke me in your anger, neither discipline me in your wrath.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (27 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain In these words there is shown the faith of…
In these words there is shown the faith of David, who, although brought to the uttermost distress, and indeed almost consumed by a long series of calamities, did not sink under his sorrow; nor was he so broken in heart as to be prevented from betaking himself to God his deliverer. By his praying, he testified, that when utterly deprived of all earthly succor, there yet remained for him hope in God. Moreover, he calls him the God of his righteousness, which is the same thing as if he had called him the vindicator of his right; “Mon protecteur, celuy qui maintient mon droit.” — Fr. My protector, he who maintains my right.
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress. Some think that David here promises himself what he had not yet experienced; and in the exercise of hope anticipates the manifestations of God’s grace with which he should afterwards be favored. But, in my opinion, he rather mentions the benefits which he formerly received from God, and by these strengthens himself against the time to come. Thus the faithful are accustomed to call to their remembrance those things which tend to strengthen their faith. We shall, hereafter meet with many passages similar to this, where David, in order to give energy to his faith against terrors and dangers, “Contre les effrois et dangers qui se presentoyent.” — Fr. Against the terrors and dangers which presented themselves.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Thou that art the defender of my just cause.
Thou that art the defender of my just cause.
Among them that were appointed to sing the Psalms, and to play on the instruments, one was appointed chief to set the tune, and to begin: who had the charge, because he was most excellent, and he began this Psalm on the instrument calleth Neginoth, or in a tune so called.
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Both of mind and body.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Psa 4:1 « To the chief Musician on Neginoth,…
Psa 4:1 « To the chief Musician on Neginoth, A Psalm of David. » Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me [when I was] in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
To the chief Musician] Or, To the most excellent music master, 1Ch 25:1-2, to the chief chanter, Asaph, was this, and some other psalms, committed, that they might be sung in the best manner, and with greatest care. So Alexander, on his death bed, left his kingdom τω Kρατιστω, Optimatum optimo, to him that should be the best of the best. Aιεν αριστευειν was Cicero’s motto, that is, strive to excel others, to crop off the very top of all virtues, δρεπειν υρετων κορυφας απα πασων, as Scipio is said to have done; to be best at anything, to be careful to excel in good works, Tit 3:8, and to bear away the bell, as we say, in whatsoever a man undertaketh, Hoc iamdiu consecutus est Roscius, ut in quo quisque artificio excelleret in suo genere Roscius diceretur (Cic. de Orat.).
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On Neginoth] i.e. Instruments pulsatilia, stringed instruments, such as are to be touched, or played upon with the hand. Lord, saith Nazianzen, I am an instrument for thee to touch. Let us lay ourselves open to the Spirit’s touch; and so make music.
Ver. 1. Hear me when I call, O God of my riqhteousness] That is, O thou righteous Judge of my righteous cause, and of my good conscience. David speaketh first to God, and then to men. This is the right method. We therefore speak no better to men, because no more to God. It is said of Charles V, that he spent more words with God than with men. When we are vilified, and derogated by others, as David here was, let us make God acquainted with our condition, by his example. But why doth David beg audience and mercy in general only, and not lay open to God his particular grievances? Surely because he looked upon the favour of God as a complexive blessing, that perfectly comprehendeth all the rest; as manna is said to have had all good tastes in it. For particulars, David was content to be at God’s disposal. "I humbly beseech thee, that I may find grace in thy sight, my lord, O king," said that false Ziba to David, 2Sa 16:4; q.d. I had rather have the king’s favour than Mephibosheth’s land. David really had rather have God’s love and favour than all this world’s good; and therefore so heartily beggeth it above anything.
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress] Heb. Thou hast made room for me. Hoc autem in prophetia dictum est, saith R. David. This was prophetically spoken. Thou hast, that is, thou wilt enlarge me who am now in distress. God will surely be nearest unto his in their greatest straits; and because they have made him the God of their mountains, he will be the God of their valleys also.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On Neginoth; or, on stringed instruments, as this word…
On Neginoth; or, on stringed instruments, as this word is translated, Hab 3:19; for the Hebrew verb niggen, whence this is derived, signifies to play with the hand upon an instrument, 1Sa 16:23; 18:10. This Psalm is, for the matter or substance of it, much like the former, and seems to have been made upon the same or some other like occasion, when he was distressed either by Absalom, or by Saul, or by some other great and powerful enemies.
David prayeth for audience, Psa 4:1. He reproves the wicked, Psa 4:2. The privilege of the godly, and his faith in God, Psa 4:3. An exhortation to duty, Psa 4:4,5. The ungodly satisfied with earthly blessings, but the godly cannot be at rest without the favour of God, Psa 4:6-8.
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O God of my righteousness; either the witness and defender of my righteous cause; or from whom I expect that righteous judgment and decision of my cause which I cannot obtain from mine enemies, who load me and my cause with manifold injuries and calumnies. Or, O my righteous God. Or, O God of my mercy; which title is given to God elsewhere, as Psa 59:10,17; whereas this title, O God of my righteousness, is not given to God in any other place of Scripture. O God, to whose mercy I owe all that I have or hope for: which was a very fit and powerful argument in prayer, and very agreeable to the following words, in which there is an acknowledgment of God’s former mercies, and a petition for mercy. And so this and other words in Hebrew and Greek, which properly signify righteousness, are oft used for mercy or kindness, as Isa 58:8; Psa 31:1; 36:10; 2Co 9:9, and in many other places.
Thou hast enlarged me, i.e. freed me from my former straits and troubles. So he urgeth God and strengtheneth his own faith with his former experiences.
Have mercy upon me; thou mayst justly destroy me for my many and great sins, and therefore I flee from thy justice to thy mercy, on which all my hopes are grounded.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain The title of the psalm acquaints us that David,…
The title of the psalm acquaints us that David, having penned it by divine inspiration for the use of the church, delivered it to the chief musician, or master of the song, who (according to the divine appointment of psalmody made in his time, which he was chiefly instrumental in the establishment of) presided in that service. We have a particular account of the constitution, the modelling of the several classes of singers, each with a chief, and the share each bore in the work, 1 Chr. 25. Some prophesied according to the order of the king, Psa 4:2. Others prophesied with a harp, to give thanks, and to praise the Lord, Psa 4:3. Of others it is said that they were to lift up the horn, Psa 4:5. But of them all, that they were for song in the house of the Lord (Psa 4:6) and were instructed in the songs of the Lord, Psa 4:7. This psalm was committed to one of the chiefs, to be sung on neginoth - stringed instruments (Hab 3:19), which were played on with the hand; with music of that kind the choristers were to sing this psalm: and it should seem that then they only sung, not the people; but the New Testament appoints all Christians to sing (Eph 5:19; Col 3:16), from whom it is expected that they do it decently, not artfully; and therefore there is not now so much occasion for musical instruments as there was then: the melody is to be made in the heart. In these verses,
I. David addresses himself to God, Psa 4:1. Whether the sons of men, to whom he is about to speak, will hear, or whether they will forbear, he hopes and prays that God will give him a generous audience, and an answer of peace: "Hear me when I call, and accept my adorations, grant my petitions, and judge upon my appeals; have mercy upon me, and hear me." All the notice God is pleased to take of our prayers, and all the returns he is pleased to make to them, must be ascribed, not to our merit, but purely to his mercy. "Hear me for thy mercy-sake" is our best plea. Two things David here pleads further: - 1. "Thou art the God of my righteousness; not only a righteous God thyself, but the author of my righteous dispositions, who hast by the grace wrought that good that is in me, hast made me a righteous man; therefore hear men, and so attest thy own work in me; thou art also the patron of my righteous cause, the protector of my wronged innocency, to whom I commit my way, and whom I trust to bring forth my righteousness as the light." When men condemn us unjustly, this is our comfort, It is God that justifies; he is the God of a believer's righteousness. 2. "Thou has formerly enlarged me when I was in distress, enlarged my heart in holy joy and comfort under my distresses, enlarged my condition by bringing me out of my distresses; therefore now, Lord, have mercy upon me, and hear me." The experience we have had of God's goodness to us in enlarging us when we have been in distress is not only a great encouragement to our faith and hope for the future, but a good plea with God in prayer. "Thou hast; wilt thou not? For thou art God, and changest not; thy work is perfect."
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II. He addresses himself to the children of men, for the conviction and conversion of those that are yet strangers to God, and that will not have the Messiah, the Son of David, to reign over them.
1. He endeavours to convince them of the folly of their impiety (Psa 4:2). "O you sons of Men" (of great men, so some, men of high degree, understanding it of the partisans of Saul or Absalom), "how long will you oppose me and my government, and continue disaffected to it, under the influence of the false and groundless suggestions of those that wish evil to me?" Or it may be taken more generally. God, by the psalmist, here reasons with sinners to bring them to repentance. "You that go on in the neglect of God and his worship, and in contempt of the kingdom of Christ and his government, consider what you do." (1.) "You debase yourselves, for you are sons of men" (the word signifies man as a noble creature); "consider the dignity of your nature, and the excellency of those powers of reason with which you are endued, and do not act thus irrationally and unbecoming yourselves." Let the sons of men consider and show themselves men. (2.) "You dishonour your Maker, and turn his glory into shame." They may well be taken as God's own words, charging sinners with the wrong they do him in his honour: or, if David's words, the term glory may be understood of God, whom he called his glory, Psa 3:3. Idolaters are charged with changing the glory of God into shame, Rom 1:23. All wilful sinners do so by disobeying the commands of his law, despising the offers of his grace, and giving the affection and service to the creature which are due to God only. Those that profane God's holy name, that ridicule his word and ordinances, and, while they profess to know him, in works deny him, do what in them lies to turn his glory into shame. (3.) "You put a cheat upon yourselves: You love vanity, and seek after leasing, or lying, or that which is a lie. You are yourselves vain and lying, and you love to be so." Or, "You set your hearts upon that which will prove, at last, but vanity and a lie." Those that love the world, and seek the things that are beneath, love vanity, and seek lies; as those also do that please themselves with the delights of sense, and portion themselves with the wealth of this world; for these will deceive them, and so ruin them. "How long will you do this? Will you never be wise for yourselves, never consider your duty and interest? When shall it once be?" Jer 13:27. The God of heaven thinks the time long that sinners persist in dishonouring him and in deceiving and ruining themselves.
2. He shows them the peculiar favour which God has for good people, the special protection they are under, and the singular privileges to which they are entitled, Psa 4:3. This comes in here, (1.) As a reason why they should not oppose or persecute him that is godly, nor think to run him down. It is at their peril if they offend one of these little ones, whom God has set apart for himself, Mat 18:6. God reckons that those who touch them touch the apple of his eye; and he will make their persecutors to know it, sooner or later. They have an interest in heaven, God will hear them, and therefore let none dare to do them any injury, for God will hear their cry and plead their cause, Exo 22:23. It is generally supposed that David speaks of his own designation to the throne; he is the godly man whom the Lord has set apart for that honour, and who does not usurp it or assume it to himself: "The opposition therefore which you give to him and to his advancement is very criminal, for therein you fight against God, and it will be vain and ineffectual." God has, in like manner, set apart the Lord Jesus for himself, that merciful One; and those that attempt to hinder his advancement will certainly be baffled, for the Father hears him always. Or, (2.) As a reason why they should themselves be good, and walk no longer in the counsel of the ungodly: "You have hitherto sought vanity; be truly religious, and you will be truly happy here and for ever; for," [1.] "God will secure to himself his interest in you." The Lord has set apart him that is godly, every particular godly man, for himself, in his eternal choice, in his effectual calling, in the special disposals of his providence and operations of his grace; his people are purified unto him a peculiar people. Godly men are God's separated, sealed, ones; he knows those that are his, and has set his image and superscription upon them; he distinguishes them with uncommon favours: They shall be mine, saith the Lord, in that day when I make up my jewels. Know this; let godly people know it, and let them never alienate themselves from him to whom they are thus appropriated; let wicked people know it, and take heed how they hurt those whom God protects. [2.] "God will secure to you an interest in himself." This David speaks with application: The Lord will hear when I call unto him. We should think ourselves happy if we had the ear of an earthly prince; and is it not worth while upon any terms, especially such easy ones, to gain the ear of the King of kings? Let us know this, and forsake lying vanities for our own mercies.
3. He warns them against sin, and exhorts them both to frighten and to reason themselves out of it (Psa 4:4): "Stand in awe and sin not" (be angry and sin not, so the Septuagint, and some think the apostle takes that exhortation from him, Eph 4:26); "commune with your own hearts; be converted, and, in order thereunto, consider and fear." Note, (1.) We must not sin, must not miss our way and so miss our aim. (2.) One good remedy against sin is to stand in awe. Be moved (so some), in opposition to carelessness and carnal security. "Always keep up a holy reverence of the glory and majesty of God, and a holy dread of his wrath and curse, and dare not to provoke him." (3.) One good means of preventing sin, and preserving a holy awe, is to be frequent and serious in communing with our own hearts: "Talk with your hearts; you have a great deal to say to them; they may be spoken with at any time; let it not be unsaid." A thinking man is in a fair way to be a wise and a good man. "Commune with your hearts; examine them by serious self-reflection, that you may acquaint yourselves with them and amend what is amiss in them; employ them in solemn pious meditations; let your thoughts fasten upon that which is good and keep closely to it. Consider your ways, and observe the directions here given in order to the doing of this work well and to good purpose." [1.] "Choose a solitary time; do it when you lie awake upon your beds. Before you turn yourself to go to sleep at night" (as some of the heathen moralists have directed) "examine your consciences with respect to what you have done that day, particularly what you have done amiss, that you may repent of it. When you awake in the night meditate upon God, and the things that belong to your peace." David himself practised what he here counsels others to do (Psa 63:6), I remember thee on my bed. Upon a sick-bed, particularly, we should consider our ways and commune with our own hearts about them. [2.] "Compose yourselves into a serious frame: Be still. When you have asked conscience a question be silent, and wait for an answer; even in unquiet times keep you spirits calm and quiet."
4. He counsels them to make conscience of their duty (Psa 4:5): Offer to God the sacrifice of righteousness. We must not only cease to do evil, but learn to do well. Those that were disaffected to David and his government would soon come to a better temper, and return to their allegiance, if they would but worship God aright; and those that know the concerns that lie between them and God will be glad of the Mediator, the Son of David. It is required here from every one of us, (1.) That we serve him: "Offer sacrifices to him, your own selves first, and your best sacrifices." But they must be sacrifices of righteousness, that is, good works, all the fruits of the reigning love of God and our neighbour, and all the instances of a religious conversation, which are better than all burnt-offerings and sacrifices. "Let all your devotions come from an upright heart; let all your alms be sacrifices of righteousness." The sacrifices of the unrighteous God will not accept; they are an abomination, Isa 1:11, etc. (2.) That we confide in him. "First make conscience of offering the sacrifices of righteousness and then you are welcome to put your trust in the Lord. Serve God without any diffidence of him, or any fear of losing by him. Honour him, by trusting in him only, and not in your wealth nor in an arm of flesh; trust in his providence, and lean not to your own understanding; trust in his grace, and go not about to establish your own righteousness or sufficiency."
In singing these verses we must preach to ourselves the doctrine of the provoking nature of sin, the lying vanity of the world, and the unspeakable happiness of God's people; and we must press upon ourselves the duties of fearing God, conversing with our own hearts, and offering spiritual sacrifices; and in praying over these verses we must beg of God grace thus to think and thus to do.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Hear me when I call, O God of my…
Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness,.... Or, "my righteous God" (h), who is righteous in his nature, ways, and works, the just Judge of the whole earth, who will do right; or "the vindicator of my righteousness", as the Syriac version renders it; that is, of his innocence and uprightness, which the Lord knew and was a witness of: and since he was his covenant God, he doubted not but he would bring it forth as the light, and favour his righteous cause, and do him justice upon his enemies: or the psalmist addresses God in this manner, because he was the author of his righteousness, and was the justifier of him, by imputing the righteousness of his Son unto him. So Christ addresses his Father, Joh 17:26; who he knew would justify him, and by whom he was justified as the surety of his people, when he, rose from the dead: and so the saints can draw nigh to God the Judge of all, through the righteousness of Christ; knowing that he is just, and the justifier of him that believes in Jesus; and that he is just and faithful to forgive their sins, and cleanse them from all unrighteousness, on account of his blood. The petition put up by the psalmist is, to be heard when he called, that is, to hear his prayer, as it is explained in the latter part of the verse: and God is a God hearing prayer; and so David, Christ, and all the saints, have found him to be: and the encouragement to pray to the Lord, in hope of being heard, arose from past experience of divine goodness;
thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; when he had like to have been killed by Saul casting a javelin at him; and when his house was watched by men that Saul set there, and he was let down through a window and escaped; and when he was shut in at Keilah, where Saul thought he had him safe; and at other times, to which he may here refer, as in Psa 18:19; and this may be applied to the Messiah, when in the garden, beset with sorrows, and an angel strengthened him; and when on the cross, surrounded by various enemies, whom he conquered; and when in death and the grave, from the pains and cords of which he was loosed, and set in a large place. And this agrees also with the experience of the saints; who, when in distress through sin, Satan, and the law, have been set free, through the Gospel proclaiming liberty to the captives to such enemies; and the opening of the prison to them that have been bound by them: and when they have been so shut up and straitened in themselves, that they could not come forth in the discharge of duty, and in the exercise of grace; through the Spirit of the Lord, who is a spirit of liberty, they have been enlarged in the duty of prayer and of praise, and in the exercise of faith and love; and their hearts have been enlarged through the discoveries of the love of God towards them, so that they have run cheerfully in the ways of his commandments; who also gives them largeness of heart, an increase of the knowledge of Christ, and of the love of God, and tills them with joy and peace in believing, and draws out the desires of their souls to his name, and the remembrance of him;
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have mercy upon me: the psalmist pleads no merit nor worthiness of his own, but applies to the grace and mercy of God; and sensible of his sin, both original and actual, he entreats a discovery of pardoning grace and mercy. The words may be rendered, "be gracious unto me" (i), or "show me favour"; bestow the blessings of grace, grant larger measures of grace, and fresh supplies of it: and so all sensible sinners apply to God for mercy; and all the saints have recourse to him as the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, for every mercy, both temporal and spiritual. Nor is this unsuitable to the Messiah, as man and Mediator; with whom, God keeps his mercy for evermore, as the head and surety of his people, and upon whom, as man, the grace of God was; and who increased, as in stature, so in favour with God and man; and which, no doubt, was desirable by him;
and hear my prayer: the same petition with that in the beginning of the verse; invocation and prayer being the same thing.
(h) . (i) "gratiosus esto mihi", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain David prays, reproves the wicked, and testifies the happiness…
David prays, reproves the wicked, and testifies the happiness of the righteous, ver. 1-3. Exhorts them to consider and serve God, ver. 4-5. Declares his own experience of the grace of God, ver. 6-8. To the chief musician on Neginoth, A psalm of David. Title of the psalm. Chief musician - The director of the musick of the temple. Neginoth - Or, on stringed instruments, as this word is translated, Hab. iii, 19.
O God - The witness and defender of my righteous cause.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain David prays to be heard, 1;
PSALM IV
David prays to be heard, 1;
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expostulates with the ungodly, 2;
exhorts them to turn to God, and make their peace with him, 3-5;
shows the vain pursuits of men in search of happiness, which he
asserts exists only in the approbation of God, 6, 7;
commends himself to the Lord, and then quietly takes his repose,
8.
NOTES ON PSALM IV
This Psalm seems to have been composed on the same occasion with the preceding, viz., Absalom's rebellion. It appears to have been an evening hymn, sung by David and his company previously to their going to rest. It is inscribed to the chief Musician upon Neginoth, למנצח בנגינות lamnatstseach binginoth. Probably the first word comes from נצח natsach, to be over, or preside; and may refer to the precentor in the choir. Some suppose that it refers to the Lord Jesus, who is the Supreme Governor, or victorious Person; the Giver of victory. Neginoth seems to come from נגן nagan, to strike; and probably may signify some such instruments as the cymbal, drum, c., and stringed instruments in general. But there is no certainty in these things. What they mean, or what they were, is known to no man.
Verse 1. Hear me when I call] No man has a right to expect God to hear him if he do not call. Indeed, how shall he be heard if he speak not? There are multitudes who expect the blessings of God as confidently as if they had prayed for them most fervently and yet such people pray not at all!
God of my righteousness] Whatever pardon, peace, holiness, or truth I possess, has come entirely from thyself. Thou art the God of my salvation, as thou art the God of my life.
Thou hast enlarged me] I was in prison; and thou hast brought me forth abroad. Have mercy on me-continue to act in the same way. I shall always need thy help; I shall never deserve to have it; let me have it in the way of mere mercy, as thou hast hitherto done.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Psa 4:1. O God of my righteousness — Or,…
Psa 4:1. O God of my righteousness — Or, my righteous God, the witness and defender of my righteous cause, and the person from whom I expect that righteous judgment and decision of it which I cannot obtain from mine enemies, who load me with manifold injuries and calumnies. Or the expression may mean, The foundation, source, and author of my righteousness. Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress — Delivered me from my former straits and troubles, temporal and spiritual, which makes me hope thou wilt still take pity upon me, and grant the humble petition which I present unto thee. “The church, like David,” says Dr. Horne, and, we may add, every true member thereof, “calls aloud for God’s assistance; addresses him as the God of her righteousness, as the fountain of pardon and grace; reminds him of that spiritual liberty, and enlargement from bondage, which he hath purchased for her, and oftentimes wrought in her; and conscious of her demerit, makes her prayer for mercy.”
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Hear me when I call - When I pray.…
Hear me when I call - When I pray. The word “hear” in such cases is always used in the sense of “listen to,” “hear favorably,” or “attend to;” hence, in the literal sense it is always true that God “hears” all that is said. The meaning is, “hear and answer me,” or grant me what I ask.
O God of my righteousness - That is, O my righteous God. This is a common mode of expression in Hebrew. Thus, in Psa 2:6, “hill of my holiness,” meaning “my holy hill;” Psa 3:4, “his hill of holiness,” meaning “his holy hill.” The psalmist here appeals to God as “his” God - the God in whom he trusted; and as a “righteous” God - a God who would do that which was right, and on whom, therefore, he might rely as one who would protect his own people. The appeal to God as a righteous God implies a conviction in the mind of the psalmist of the justice of his cause; and he asks God merely to do “right” in the case. It is not on the ground of his own claim as a righteous man, but it is that, in this particular case, he was wrongfully persecuted; and he asks God to interpose, and to cause justice to be done. This is always a proper ground of appeal to God. A man may be sensible that in a particular case he has justice on his side, though he has a general conviction that he himself is a sinner; and he may pray to God to cause his enemies to do right, or to lead those whose office it is to decide the case, to do what ought to be done to vindicate his name, or to save him from wrong.
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Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress - That is, on some former occasion. When he was “pressed” or “confined,” and knew not how to escape, God had interposed and had given him room, so that he felt free. He now implores the same mercy again. He feels that the God who had done it in former troubles could do it again; and he asks him to repeat his mercy. The prayer indicates confidence in the power and the unchangeableness of God, and proves that it is right in our prayers to recall the former instances of the divine interposition, as an argument, or as a ground of hope that God would again interpose.
Have mercy upon me - In my present troubles. That is, Pity me, and have compassion on me, as thou hast done in former times. Who that has felt the assurance that God has heard his prayer in former times, and has delivered him from trouble, will not go to him with the more confident assurance that he will hear him again?
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain Psalms 4
Psalms 4
To the Chief Musician on Neginoth—A Psalm of David
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1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness:
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress;
Have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame?
How long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.
3 But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself:
The Lord will hear when I call unto him.
4 Stand in awe, and sin not:
Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,
And put your trust in the Lord.
6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good?
Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart,
More than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.
8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep:
For thou, Lord, only
Makest me dwell in safety.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Title and Division.—This Psalm, assigned to the chief musician (vid. Introduct.), was not to be accompanied with wind instruments, or instruments of alarm, but only with string instruments [Neginoth vid. Introduct.]. This agrees with the character of the Psalm as an evening Psalm (Psa_4:8), and with the soothing rhythm especially of the last strophe. This last strophe, which brings the Psalm as well as the Psalmist to repose, is of three members, as the first strophe, which contains a cry to God for help; whilst the three intermediate strophes are of lour members. Of these, moreover, the first two are divided by Selah into a warning and an exhortation; the third, which contrasts the courageous faith and joy in God of the pious Psalmist, with discouraged and earthly-minded men, has not the musical interlude. Whilst Seb. Schmidt, Claus, De Wette, Hupf., et al., deny the marks of David, and regard the individual features at once as general, Olshausen at least has recognized their individual character, and Ewald has beautifully explained the Davidic features of the Psalm. With the most of the interpreters he puts this Psalm side by side with the previous one in the dangerous times of the rebellion of Absalom. Even Hitzig recognizes the connection between these two Psalms, but he assigns it as previously Venema, to the situation of David, according to 1 Samuel 30. Lightfoot and J. H. Michaelis suppose it refers to the rebellion of Sheba, 2 Samuel 20. [Delitzsch: “A Davidic evening Psalm follows a Davidic morning Psalm. The connection is clear from the mutual reference of 4:6 to 3:2, and 3:5 to 4:8. These two are the only Psalms in which the language of others is cited with ‘many that say.’ The one is explained historically from the title of the other. It follows from 4:2, ‘how long,’ and the words of the fainthearted, 4:6, that Psalms 4 is the later one.” Perowne: “The thoughts and turns of expression in the one are not unlike those in the other. As in the former he heard many saying to his soul, ‘There is no help for him in God’ (Psa_4:2), so in this he hears many saying, ‘Who will show us any good?’ (Psa_4:6). As in that he knew that though at a distance from the Tabernacle, he was not at a distance from God, but would receive an answer to his prayer from the ‘holy mountain’ (Psa_4:4), so in this, though the priests have returned with the Ark to Jerusalem, he can look for the ‘light of Jehovah’s countenance,’ which is better than the Urim and Thummim of the priestly ephod.”—C. A. B.]
Str. I. Psa_4:1. My God of righteousness [O God of my righteousness—A. V.].—This translation embraces very well the various references of the Hebrew expression. “Jehovah is the possessor of righteousness, the author of righteousness, the Judge of righteousness, and He justifies righteousness when it is misunderstood and persecuted” (Delitzsch). The following translations are likewise grammatically indisputable: God of my right (De Wette), comp. Psa_17:1; God of my righteousness (Hupfeld [Wordsworth, Perowne]); my righteous God (Hengst. [Barnes]).
The following perfect is limited by Hitzig to the deliverance from the calamity which he has just experienced and lamented in Psalms 3. Hengst., Delitzsch, et al., on the other hand, refer it to a series of previous experiences, and therefore translate it as present. [Delitzsch: “Many times he had been in straits, and God made room for him. The idea is of the expansion of the breathing and of space. It means—space for the anxious heart, Psa_25:17; Isa_60:5; space for the straitened situation, Psa_18:19; Psa_118:5.”—C. A. B.] Ewald and Hupf. regard it as a relative clause, on account of its position between two imperatives. [Perowne: “Thou (that) in straitness hast made room for me.” This seems to be the best rendering. It makes the strophe more harmonious. It then refers to the deliverance from that critical situation in which he was placed before he received intelligence from Jerusalem, and crossed the Jordan into a wider and safer region. Here he could breathe more freely and make preparations to meet his foes.—C. A. B.] De Wette, in spite of the failure of the vav consec., views it as imperative, and supports this view by citing parallel passages, which he falsely explains.
Str. II. Psa_4:2. Sons of men.—According to Hitzig, denotes men in contrast to women, and refers to those which accompany David. According to Hupfeld, it refers to the human weakness and carnal mind of the many (Psa_4:6), who might be addressed emphatically as: ye children of men. [Barnes: “As having human feelings, passions, and purposes, in strong distinction from that righteous God to whom he had just made his solemn appeal.”—C. A. B.] According to most interpreters, the reference is to the prominent men among the crowd, among whom, then, here, the few unsatisfied and perplexed companions of David, the heroes (Tholuck), beloved men (Luther), or since Kimchi, the aristocracy, whose instrument Absalom was, the “great fellows” in Luther’s margin, who dishonored the royal dignity at the same time that they violated David’s personal honor. [It does not seem necessary to give to ’ish an emphatic signification. There is no contrast here with ’adam. The contrast is with God, as Hupfeld and Barnes show. Yet the reference is not so much to human weakness and a carnal mind, as to the fact that whilst men dishonor him, God has honored him, and will honor him again by hearing his prayer. And then when man is contrasted with God, even though a vir or an ’ish there is necessarily implied in this contrast human weakness and littleness.—C. A. B.]
Vanity.—This hardly means: worldly vanity (De Wette), but either the vanity of their designs (Kimchi), or, still better, the vanity of their reasons, to which they appeal in their rebellion, which conceal from themselves and others its true character. It is not necessary, therefore, to regard the rebellion itself as marked with the name Lie [Leasing—A. V. Old English word for lying and falsehood.—C. A. B.] (Calv.). Lying and deceit have been the means of their demands. Comp. 2Sa_15:7 sq. (Hengst.). The Septuagint follows a different reading: ὑιοὶ ἁνθρὡπων ἕως πότε βαρυκάρδιοι; so also the Vulgate, many ancient Fathers, and Augustine. The graves corde are then supposed by the interpreters to be: people either of idle and cowardly or of hard, obstinate and unfeeling hearts.
Psa_4:3. Wonderfully selected [set apart—A. V.].—The verb contains the idea of discrimination (Exo_8:18), more closely, the meaning of extraordinary distinction in the Divine government (Exo_33:16; Psa_139:14). The comparison of Psa_31:21 with Psa_17:7 only shows that there is no essential difference between הפלה and הפלא (as 37 Codd. Kennic, and 28 De Rossi read here הפליא, Deu_28:59; Isa_28:29). It cannot be decided from the word itself, whether we are to suppose here Divine distinction = wonderful guidance in general (Luther and most interp., Sept., ἐθαυμάστωσε, Vulg., mirificavit, for which, in many Psalters. admirabilem fecit or magnificavit, which already inclines to the other explanation), or whether there is meant here special selection = elevation to the royal dignity. With this last interpretation Calvin, partially following the example of the Syriac with Rabb. Isaki and Kimchi, unites directly to the verb the לוֹ which follows somewhat later in the passage; whilst Hengstenberg unites it closely with the noun which immediately precedes it, as those do also who advocate the first mentioned explanation. These, then, translate, mostly, “his holy one” (the plural of the Vulg. is against the text), and take it in the ethical sense = his pious one, following the Sept.: τὸν ὅσιον αὐτόυ. The grammatical connection is then usually more correctly explained after the analogy of Psa_17:7 (Rosenm.), at the same time, with a different meaning of the word. Thus Ewald, Maurer, Olsh, De Wette translate: he that is faithful to him; Camphausen: he that is devoted to him; Hitzig: his friend; J. H. Michaelis: gratiosum sibi. Hupfeld endeavors to show that the parallel passage, Psa_31:21, favors the connection of לוֹ with the verb, and that חָסִיד, a denominative of חֶסֶד, must derive its meaning from the specific idea and terminus of the grace and mercy of God, first of all towards Israel, then towards the individually pious; and that the passive form of the verb also, according to the passive meaning = favored, standing in a condition of grace, in a covenant of grace with Jehovah in the Old Covenant, is almost the only prevailing meaning; whilst the meaning accepted here by Calvin (benignum), and by him and Hengstenberg (one who has and exercises love), as the original and justifiable usage, seldom occurs (e. g., of God’s grace towards men, Psa_145:17; Jer_3:12; of the kindness of men towards one another, Psa_12:1; Psa_18:25; Psa_43:1; Mic_7:2; as a religious practice well pleasing to God, Hos_6:6, according to its nature and derivation as חָסִיד of Elohim or Jehovah, 1Sa_10:14; 2Sa_9:13), and originated from transfer, which goes to the farthest extent, Jer_2:2. Delitzsch hesitates respecting the derivation and meaning of this word upon which he erroneously lays the chief emphasis. But the emphasis, according to position and sense, belongs partly to the verb which, according to him, means not only mere selection, but wonderful selection, partly to the pronoun, whose position also at the end of the sentence, according to the grammatical connection which he approves, in any case attracts attention, and according to my view expresses this thought: that he who is distinguished by God is, in his position of grace and honor, not only of some importance for men, but also for God, and is designed, and stands ready for the Divine service and glory. This suits the situation better, and means more than if the Psalmist merely said that to which the grammatical separation of לוֹ from the verb would lead: he has not been brought into his high position by men but by God, or also he has already experienced previously many wondrous guidances. But the analogy of Scripture is against the view that he sought the reason of his election, elevation, and support, in his subjective piety, goodness, or any other moral excellence, or that he would base on these the assurance that his present prayer would be heard. But it is frequently to be seen in sacred history that Jehovah has selected from the crowd of those whom He has favored, some one for His special use, who also is conscious of this relation, and may appeal to it for comfort.
Str. II. Psa_4:4. Tremble.—[“Stand in awe,” A. V.], viz.: before the wrath of God. The translation of the Septuagint ὀργίζεσθε, as Eph_4:6 [Be ye angry and sin not] is grammatically possible, for the Hebrew verb denotes in general, to be shaken, to be unquiet; and indicates as well, trembling on account of wrath as of fear (Augustine, Luther, Hitzig). But in no case can the negative be drawn to the verb, (as Dathe, and even Hengstenberg). The context favors the view that here also, as in most cases, the trembling of the creature before the appearance of God (Hupf.) is used as the motive of warning. [Delitzsch: “He warns His adversaries of blind passion, and advises them to quiet meditation and solitary consideration that they may not ruin their own salvation.” Riehm: “You may continue to be angry (until by Divine help your anger is shown to be unreasonable), but at least do not sin by abusing the man who is favored by Jehovah, but instead of giving vent to your anger in abusive words, speak in your heart upon your bed, and be silent. This suits the context, and since ragaz can scarcely mean holy fear of God without מפּני this explanation is preferable.” Wordsworth supposes that “David now turns from his enemies to his friends, and checks their wrath. David may be supposed to be addressing such zealous partisans as Abishai his nephew, who, when David was flying from Absalom, was transported with indignation against his persecutors, and craved leave to take off the head of Shimei, who cursed David, and was restrained by him in the spirit of this Psalm. See also David’s merciful charge with regard to the life of Absalom himself, 2Sa_18:5.” The historical allusion of Wordsworth seems to be the most correct, the grammatical explanation of Riehm the most proper. It seems more harmonious with Wordsworth (vid. further below) to make the change from enemies to worldly-minded friends here, Psa_4:4 instead of Psa_4:6, as is generally done.—C. A. B.]
The addition of in your heart [“with your heart,” A. V.] indicates the speaking [“commune,” A. V.] as an internal one, which every one does within himself, and indeed as spiritual consideration and deliberation; for the heart, according to Hebrew ideas, is not so much the pathological seat of the feelings, as the sphere of ethical, rational consideration in order to form determinations of the will. The quiet of evening, and the silence of the night which works mightily upon the inner life of man, is especially suited to such consideration and reflection as involves moral resolutions. The couches are therefore to be regarded as beds (Aben Ezra) and not as divans in the assemblies (Mich. Or. Bibl. X. 126).
Be still, could mean the silence from calumniation (Aben Ezra, Ewald, Köster, Olsh.) or even the keeping quiet, as well in the sense of quiet submission to the Divine will in contrast to murmuring and contradicting, as in that of discontinuing his movements (Hupf.) It is not correct to suppose that it is the discontinuance of the raging of the rebels in consequence of reflection (Hengst., Delitzsch). The explanation of Hitzig: those who are excited to anger might occasionally be angry, but not lend any words to their ill-humor towards God lest they sin, leaves entirely out of consideration the fact that even the language of anger kept close in the heart is a sin, and that Jehovah is a discerner of the heart. [However they might quiet their anger by meditation in the still hours of the night. And if this is addressed to his own followers, Joab and Abishai, etc., they had reason for righteous indignation, to be angry in the sense of the Apostle, but not to sin. They were to restrain their wrath by meditation, and be still, lest it should burst forth beyond its just limits and become sin. Perowne: “Let the still hours of the night bring calmer and wiser thoughts with them.”—C. A. B.]
Psa_4:5. Offer sacrifices of righteousness.—The difficulty of finding the true connection vanishes with the consideration that already in the previous verse the rebels received a Summons in the form of a warning to act righteously, and indeed essentially with reference to religion, and that this demand already passed over into direct exhortation; furthermore, that the rebels who were in possession of Jerusalem performed the sacrifices, but lacked the proper disposition which was likewise demanded by the law; finally that there is expressed not so much a contrast to a mean and vain trust in their own prudence, power, and earthly possessions, (De Wette), which their opponents were, it is true, in possession of (Psa_4:7 b.), and still less an encouragement to his timid companions to trust in God, but rather the contrast between those who depend on Jehovah, and those who depend on the ceremonies and lip service which they practice; for the rebellion against the Anointed of Jehovah can be consistent only with the latter and not with the former.—Sacrifices of righteousness are not only those which are performed correctly according to the ritual; not only the sacrifices due on account of sins that have been committed, after the presentation of which they are to turn with hope to Jehovah (Ewald, Olshausen); so also not righteous works and moral actions in a symbolical sense (with which interpretation Hitzig regards as most correct, righteousness itself as the sacrifice which is to be brought, and indeed perhaps not righteousness towards the Psalmist, but proper behaviour towards Jehovah, whilst the glory due to Him is given, and the obligated trust is bestowed upon Him); but true sacrifices performed with a disposition in accordance with the will of God, and the meaning of the law.13
Str. IV. Psa_4:6. Many.—These are no longer those previously addressed (the most interpreters, even Hitzig); but also not the people in general (Calv.); nor men of the world, who long after earthly blessings (Hupf. [Barnes]); nor companions in suffering in general, especially among the fellow-countrymen of the Psalmist (De Wette);14 nor unsatisfied complainers (Sachs); but those constantly increasing in number in David’s little band who were discouraged. The words are not an ordinary proverb of the carnal disposition of the multitude (Venema), nor a question of impatience or of reproach (Hupf.), but a doubting question of despondency in view of the future (Delitzsch). It is better to take it as a question than as an optative, (De Wette) although the latter is possible.
Lift upon us the light of thy countenance. These words are treated by Hupfeld and Camphausen as still the words of the many, but it is more suitable to ascribe them to the author, in whose intercession the two solemn expressions of priestly blessing, Num_6:25-26, “make shine,” “lift up” melt pregnantly together. It is doubtful whether there is not still a third reference entwined with the others by an allusion of the form נְסַה (for the pointing compare Sommer’s Bibl. Abhandl. I. 110) to נֵם = banner, standard (Sachs: let stream; Delitzsch, better: let wave). But since Delitzsch himself grants that the derivation (Isaki, Rosenm.) from נסם is not allowable, and the reference is only to be recognized by the eye, and not by the ear, it is advisable, with Aben Ezra, Luther, et al., to hold fast to this; that נְסָה is like נְשָׂא (which is indeed the reading of 1 Codd. Kenn.), especially as the last mentioned form of the imperative is used also in Psa_10:12 instead of the usual form, שָׂא. E. von Ortenberg (Zur Textkritik der Psalmen, 1861, p. 2) wishes also to make the alteration even there. The Vulgate has signatum est, according to the Sept.: ἐσημειώθη = made known by a sign, which is explained by most interpreters: it beams so that it may be known. [Riehm: “instead of despairing, he believes; instead of complaining, he prays. He opposes his own prayer to the unbelieving question of the many.”—Upon us. Alexander: “indicates the expansive, comprehensive spirit of true piety, extends the prayer to his companions in misfortune.”—C. A. B.]
Psa_4:7. Greater than [More than—A. V.].—This sentence is very much contracted, and contains really three ellipses: (1) of an adjective, greater or better; (2) of the idea compared, joy; (3) of the relative either after time (Gesenius), or after new wine (J. H. Mich.), especially if we would translate according to the accents: than at the time of their corn and new wine, when they are abundant; and if we would not take the following רבּוּ as an independent clause: they are many. For the particulars comp. Hupfeld. Aben Ezra, Kimchi, Flaminus, Sachs, avoid the ellipses with the exception of that of the relative by the translation: since that their corn, etc. This translation is, however, connected with historical explanations which are entirely untenable The translation of the Vulg. follows the reading of the Sept.: of the fruit of their corn and wine and oil they had abundance. But instead of a fructu, many ancient Psalteries read (vid. Schegg) a tempore, which leads to the reading ἀπὸ καιροῦ instead of ἀπὸ καρποῦ. Ewald, Olsh., Camph. explain the suffix as impersonal. Hupfeld refers it to the many (Psa_4:6); most others, correctly, to the enemies of the poet, and indeed most properly thus: that the quiet joy of the royal Psalmist, who rejoices in God, whilst he is suffering want in a time when food can only occasionally be brought to him, owing to the hostility excited against him in almost the entire land (2Sa_16:1; 2Sa_17:26 sq.), is set far above the loud raging of his enemies, who revel in the abundance of harvest; consequently the historical reference is maintained even here against the supposition that the poet merely uses a proverbial expression (Hupf., Hitzig, Camphausen, et al.) in order to put his religious joy higher than the highest worldly joy.
[Delitzsch: “David had come to Mahanaim, whilst the rebels were encamped in Gilead. The land round about him was hostile, so that he had received provisions as stolen for his support, 2Sa_17:26-29. Perhaps it was about the time of the feast of the Tabernacles. The harvest of grain and wine was past. A rich harvest of corn and new wine had been brought into the barns. Absalom’s collectors of revenue had a strong support in these rich provisions of which they had the disposal. David and his little band had the appearance of a band of beggars and freebooters. But the king, who has been brought from the sceptre to the beggar’s staff, is even more joyous than the rebels. What he has in his heart is a better treasure than they have in their barns and cellars.” Wordsworth: “Many among you (David is speaking to his followers, who accompanied him in his flight from Jerusalem over the Mount of Olives, and look wistfully and despondingly on the city from which they were driven), many among you are saying, Where is any hope left? Who will show us any good? And he turns from them and raises his eyes to God: ‘Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. ’We cannot now, it is true, offer the sacrifices of victims before the Ark at Jerusalem, but we may offer the sacrifices of the spirit. We have not access to the Urim and Thummim on the High Priest’s breast-plate in the sanctuary; but God will lift up the light of His countenance upon us. We cannot now receive the benediction of the Priests: ‘The Lord bless thee and keep thee: the Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: the Lord lift up His countenance upon thee, and give thee peace’ (Num_6:24-26); but the Lord Himself is ever present with us to bless us, and He lifts up the light of His countenance upon us. There is our true good. There is our genuine gladness,—a gladness of heart,—greater than any which our enemies can feel on account of the increase of their material blessings of corn and wine (Psa_4:7).”—C. A. B.]
Str. V. Psa_4:8. The rapid change of experience which is admitted to prevail is so inconceivable to some interpreters, that they do not even regard the assurance of the praying Psalmist that he has received joy from the Lord, as a principle derived from experience (with Hupfeld), to which the praying man can refer in joyful remembrance, with a glance towards the gracious light of the Divine countenance; still less, with Hengstenberg, do they allow without question that it is an expression of the comfort of faith received into the heart in consequence of the prayer just uttered, and of the assurance of faith in its being heard; so also they do not put a pause somewhere between Psa_4:6-7 as indispensable, that the agitated breast of the poet may have time to breathe, in order that his feelings may become composed; but they suppose a longer space, and postulate for it a joyful heart, which then Hitzig has spun to the conjecture that Psa_4:7-8 might have been subsequently added by the poet.
If a particular event is insisted on between Psa_4:6-7, then it is easier, instead of conjecturing any unknown good fortune, to suppose the fact well known to all experienced believers, that in ardent prayers made in times of severe calamity, they receive a Divine promise of certainly being heard, and are transported with a bound from sickness to joy by the gracious countenance of God shining upon them personally in the most fearful night of calamity. But even this spiritual explanation is entirely unnecessary here, for the supposition of a change of sentiment is simply forced into the text. Already in Psa_4:3 the Psalmist has expressed the confidence that his prayers would be heard, in the assurance of his peculiar relation to God, and from this position called upon his enemies to repent. From the same situation and confidence he continues to speak when he draws forth from their sighs and murmurs, the question circulating among his followers which had remained true to him, though discouraged. This question must be answered, and he answers it at once, but not theoretically or didactically, but practically, religiously and ethically, so that the hearers who are spiritually wretched may be drawn into his comforting exercise, viz., to prepare themselves a peaceful and quiet sleep in the midst of their enemies by invoking Divine grace, by thankful confession of blessings already experienced, and by resignation to the protection of the Almighty.
Directly will I lay me down and sleep.—The adverb, according to Hupfeld, is without emphasis and merely serves to unite two synonymous verbs. But it is this very coincidence of that which the two verbs thus combined express, that is here undeniably expressed by the adverb, Psa_141:10; Jer_42:14 (Ewald, Delitzsch, Camph., Hitzig), which, after Aben Ezra, is explained by some: at the same time with my enemies; by others: together with my enemies. [Perowne: At once will I lay me down and sleep—as soon as I lie down, I sleep, not harassed by disturbing and anxious thoughts.—C. A. B.]—Alone in safety.—It is doubtful whether the adverb is to be connected with Jehovah according to the authority of the Punctators, for which, among recent interpreters, Ewald, Olsh., Camph. decide, and Hupfeld also at least inclines to this, because the reference to Jehovah as the only ground of his safety corresponds with the previous contrast (Calvin: the alone sufficient One, who recompenses the whole world); or whether it belongs to the speaker in the signification “alone,” “separate,” with which the idea of safety and intimacy is
connected (especially clear in Jer_49:31). I decide for this last interpretation, which is found in Sept., Vulg., and all ancient translations, and Sachs, De Wette, Von Lengerke, Delitz., Hitzig, among recent interpreters, because this not only gives a good sense, but because only Deu_32:12 can be adduced in the language for the possibility of the first signification, whilst all other passages are in favor of the latter, especially Deu_33:28 is analogous, and perhaps typical, just as for the last words of the Psalm, Lev_25:18-19. Hengstenberg, who makes this prominent, would unite both references and adduces as a real parallel, Deu_33:12. [Riehm: “The thought that Jehovah is the only protection, is without motive in the context, as it is not said that he lacked other protection, nor of the many that they sought other protection anywhere else. The לבדד and לבטח are parallel, and express a common idea as the two verbs in the first member.” So Alexander: “Alone in safety thou wilt make me dwell.” These remarks of Riehm are convincing. Delitzsch: “The iambics with which the Psalm closes, are as the last sounds of a cradle song, which dies away softly, and as it were, falling to sleep itself. Dante is right; the sweetness of the music, and harmony of the Hebrew Psalter, has been lost in the Greek and Latin translations.”—C. A. B.]
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. He who knows the moral nature of God, stands in a gracious personal relation to Him, and experiences Divine assistance; has, even in severe times, joyfulness in prayer, courage for the struggle ordained for him, confidence in the help of God, and comfort with reference to the issue of his affliction.
2. Righteousness and Grace are not opposed to one another in God, but man must not forget that he must enter into positive and active relations with reference to both of these attributes of God, if he would obtain and retain righteousness, peace, and joy. “He who is perplexed with Divine government amidst the confusion in the world’s movements, and asks: where then is Providence? demands that he should be directed to the sun in clear noonday” (Chrysostom).
3. He who is assured of his election, and his favor with God, loses all fear of man. But he must value the position given him, and should not only defend himself therein against calumniation, and stand out against assaults, but should strengthen himself in it by submission to God, and remind others, even his adversaries, of their duty, and stimulate them by warning, admonition, and summons, to perform their obligations.
4. Where God causes His face to shine, there man is enabled to behold what he desires to see for his comfort and consolation in hours of gloom, which either he could not perceive in the hour of affliction, or could not profit by it, owing to the care, and fear, and unbelief, and doubt, which darkened his soul. The hope of faith is opposed to the doubt of unbelief, and the protection of God is better than many thousands of guards, and warlike companions.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
We do well, first of all, to speak with God, and then to transact business with our neighbors.—When the world is at enmity with us the friendship of God is: 1) The best consolation; 2) the surest help.—There is no night too dark to be illuminated when God shows us the light of His countenance—The best care for our welfare is: 1) The thankful acknowledgment of God’s mercy; 2) the consideration of God’s justice; 3) the fervent supplication for confirmation of God’s faithfulness and omnipotence.—All the ways of the pious begin and end with trust in the faithful God.—He who appeals to his state of grace must see to it: 1) That he makes his own calling and election sure; 2) that he helps others to be saved.—The pious have these constant gains: 1) Righteousness, from faith in the grace of God; 2) joy in God, raised above all anxiety and desire for the world; 3) the peace of God which passeth all understanding.—A pious man may be sorely afflicted in the world, yet he will never feel that he is forsaken by God.—The righteous have always joy and peace.—The worst darkness is that of the soul which believes it can see no future good.—He who lives in the favor of God, serves the Master by day, commits himself to God’s protection by night, and so has joy and peace.—Our happiness does not consist in eating and drinking, but in having a gracious God and a good conscience.
Starke: Prayer is the comfort of a sorrowful heart; for we know that God hears our prayers.—When we pray to God we should, as it were, support the prayer with the previous mercies of God; for experience worketh hope, which maketh not ashamed, Rom_5:14.—Whoever would be great with God must be unimportant in the eyes of the world.—All that worldlings esteem to be great is only vanity, nothingness, and perishable; when they regard it as in the highest degree necessary, yet it does not last, or stand the test.—God’s ways, in dealing with His own, are not crooked ways, which lead to hell with lies and deceit of a corrupt nature, but He leads them secretly, in holy truth and wisdom.—All disorderly affections are sinful; learn, Christian, to be still, and to judge with composure that which would move you to anger.—The sacred fire of indignation for the honor of God and against evil, must on no account be confounded with the strange fire of carnal anger.—He, who is honored with the favor of God, can easily overcome the contempt of the world.—That security which is to be condemned, comes from the flesh, but that which is blessed comes from faith, and produces true peace.—There is no true rest or safety to be found without communion with God; no hurtful disquiet or danger need be feared when under the gracious protection of the Master.—Luther: What can goodness have, which God has not?—Bugenhagen: No one can truly hope in God, and trust in Him alone, without offering to Him the sacrifices of righteousness.—Osiander: When we suffer similar need, we may yet be cheerful, if only we have a gracious God.—He who trusts in God is safe from all danger, or is sure, in the midst of danger, of having by His action a safe issue.—Selnekker: Do what is commanded thee,—do not mind the cunning and artfulness of others,—commit all that to the righteous God,—He will smooth all difficulties.—Moller: Many who seek rest, sin through impatience, because they do not console themselves with the mercy of God.—Arndt: The joy of the believer should not come from the flesh, but from God alone.—Bake: I have prayed, and pray still, and will pray all my life; I will die a suppliant.—Frisch: The movements of the heart cannot be prevented so far as their first impulses are concerned; yet a believer may refrain from giving his approbation, and prevent an outbreak in gesture, word, or deed.—Taube: The blessed relation of a child of God to the world: 1) He is alone in the world, but depends entirely upon his God; 2) he testifies before the world of their evil life and ways, as well as of his God and his religious life, and both in the spirit of truth and love; (3) he rests in God, with a joy and peace, which the world does not possess or know.
[Matt. Henry: Godly men are God’s separated, sealed ones; He knows them that are His, hath set His image and superscription upon them.—Spurgeon: Observe that David speaks first to God, and then to man. Surely we should all speak the more boldly to men, if we had more constant converse with God. He who dares to face his Maker will not tremble before the sons of men.—Election is the guarantee of complete salvation, and an argument for success at the throne of grace. He who chose us for Himself, will surely hear our prayers. The Lord’s elect shall not be condemned, nor shall their cry be unheard. David was king by Divine decree, and we are the Lord’s people in the same manner; let us tell our enemies to their faces that they fight against God and destiny, when they strive to overthrow our souls.—Stay, rash sinner, stay, ere thou take the last leap. Go to thy bed and think upon thy ways. Ask counsel of thy pillow, and let the quietude of the night instruct thee! Throw not away thy soul for naught! Let reason speak ! Let the clamorous world be still awhile, and let thy poor soul plead with thee to bethink thyself before thou seal its fate and ruin it forever.—Corn and wine are but fruits of the world, but the light of God’s countenance is the ripe fruit of heaven. “Thou art with me,” is a far more blessed cry than “Harvest home.” Let my granary be empty, I am yet full of blessing, if Jesus Christ smiles upon me; but if I have all the world, I am poor without Him.—Sweet Evening Hymn! I shall not sit up to watch, through fear, but I will lie down; and then I will not lie awake, listening to every rustling sound, but I will lie down in peace, and sleep, for I have naught to fear. Better than bolts or bars is the protection of the Lord.—A quiet conscience is a good bed-fellow. How many of our sleepless hours might be traced to our untrusting and disordered minds. They slumber sweetly whom faith rocks to sleep. No pillow so soft as a promise; no coverlet so warm as an assured interest in Christ.—Spurgeon’s Treasury of David.—Thomas Watson: We set apart things that are precious; the godly are set apart as God’s peculiar treasure (Psa_135:4); as His garden of delight (Song Son_4:12); as His royal diadem, (Isa_43:3); the godly are the excellent of the earth, (Psa_16:3); comparable to fine gold, (Lam_4:2); double refined, (Zec_13:9). They are the glory of creation, (Isa_46:13). Origen compares the saints to sapphires and crystals; God calls them jewels (Mal_3:17).—C. A. B.]
Footnotes:
[13][Wordsworth, in accordance with this view, which seems to be more correct, speaking to his followers: “Ye are now excluded from the privilege of access to God’s altar on Mount Zion: but still you may offer sacrifices of righteousness, the sacrifice of the heart. Offer sacrifices of righteousness in mercy and meekness, not with hands stained with blood.”—C. A. B.]
[14][De Wette supposes that the Psalmist reflects upon the many who suffer with him, and includes them in his prayer. The prayer is the optative expressing the longings of their soul and his own. “O that we might see prosperity.”—C. A. B.]
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 1. O God of my righteousness—The author and judge…
1. O God of my righteousness—The author and judge of my righteousness. He appeals his righteous cause to God for judgment jointly with his prayer for help.
Thou hast enlarged me… in distress—Thou hast brought me into a roomy place when straitened. An experienced warrior and conqueror, David had been familiar with dangers and deliverances, and his faith is now encouraged from the past. See on Psalms 3
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 1. Hear me &c.] When I call, answer me.…
1. Hear me &c.] When I call, answer me. Cp. Psa_4:3 and Psa_3:4. The LXX and Vulg. represent a different vocalisation and render, “when I called, the God of my righteousness answered me.” This reading agrees well with the second clause of the verse, but on the whole the rhythm of the sentence is in favour of the Massoretic text.
O God of my righteousness] David is confident of the integrity of his heart and the justice of his cause. To God alone he looks to help him to his right, and vindicate his righteousness openly in the sight of men by making that cause triumphant. Cp. Psa_7:8 ff.; 1Ki_8:32.
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thou hast enlarged me] R.V., Thou hast set me at large. But the words are perhaps best taken as a relative clause, thou who hast set me at large; giving a second reason for his appeal to God in the experience of past deliverances, possibly with particular reference to the events of the last few days. This natural figure for liberation from distress may be derived from the idea of an army which has been hemmed in by enemies in some narrow pass escaping into the open plain, Cp. 1Sa_23:16 for an illustration.
Have mercy upon me] Rather, as marg., be gracious unto me. The word suggests the free bestowal of favour rather than the exercise of forgiving clemency. It is connected with the word rendered ‘gracious’ in the fundamental passage Exo_34:6. Cp. Psa_86:15.
1, 2. An appeal to God, and an expostulation with men.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (1) Hear me.—Better, In my crying hear me, God…
(1) Hear me.—Better, In my crying hear me, God of my righteousness.
The conception of God as supremely just, and the assertor of justice, is one of the noblest legacies from the Hebrew faith to the world. It is summed up in the question, “Shall not the judge of all the earth do right?” The strength of the innocent in the face of calumny or oppression lies in the appeal to the eternal source of righteousness.
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Thou hast enlarged.—Better, in my straitness Thou (or, Thou who) hast made room for me. This is a thought very common in the Psalter, and apparently was a favourite phrase of David’s, occurring in Psa_18:19 (comp. Psa. 4:36), and in other psalms attributed to him.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain AGAIN the psalm has a title, "To the chief…
AGAIN the psalm has a title, "To the chief Musician on Neginoth. A Psalm of David;" literally, "to the superintendent or foreman," which, in this instance, would be the choir-leader, or "precentor" (Kay). "On Neginoth" is supposed to mean "for stringed instruments" (Hengstenberg, Kay, "Speaker"s Commentary," Revised Version, etc.); comp. Isa_38:20. The authorship of David is generally allowed; but there is nothing to mark the exact circumstances under which the psalm was written. In its metrical structure it very much resembles Psalm 3, being composed, like that, of a short strophe (vers. 1, 2), a short anti-strophe (vers. 3, 4), and a longer epode (vers. 5-8). The divisions arc marked, as in Psalm 3, by the introduction of the word selah, perhaps meaning "pause," or "rest.
Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness. Not "the God who imputes to me righteousness," as some render, but "the God who sees that I and my cause are righteous," and who wilt therefore certainly lend me aid. Thou hast enlarged me; or, made room for me me at ease" In the language of the Old Testament, "straits" and "narrowness" mean trouble and affliction; "room," "space," "enlargement," mean prosperity. David has experienced God"s mercies in the past, and therefore looks for them in the future. (comp. Psa_3:7) When I woe in distress; literally, in my distress. Have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer. This is David"s usual cry, repeated in a hundred varied forms throughout the Psalms. (see Psa_5:2 Psa_6:2 Psa_9:13 Psa_27:7 Psa_30:10, etc.)
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HOMILIES BY C. CLEMANCE Vers. 1-8. An evening song in perilous times, showing us the secret of happiness.
It is not difficult to be cheerful when we have everything we desire. But when life seems to be a series of catastrophes, disappointments, and vexations, buoyancy of spirit is not so easily attained. If our lives were in peril every moment through rebellion at home and plots and snares around, few of us would be found capable, under such circumstances, of writing morning and evening hymns. Yet such were the circumstances under which David wrote this psalm and the one which precedes it. Both of them belong, in all probability, to the time of Ahithophel"s conspiracy, of Absalom"s rebellion, when the king was a fugitive, camping out with a few of his followers. Such reverses, moreover, were none the easier to bear, when he had the reflection that because of his own sin the sword was in his house, and was piercing his own soul Yet even thus, as he had "a heart at leisure from itself to write his song of morning praise, so does he also pen his evening prayer. We picture him thus: Any moment a fatal stroke may fall on him. His adversaries prowl around. They have rich stores of provisions and of gold, while he himself has to depend for the means of subsistence on supplies brought to his camp from without. Unscrupulous rebels were in power, while David and his host were like a band of men who are dependent on begging or on plunder. But it was precisely this combination of ills that brought out some of the finest traits in his character. Even then he can take up his pen and write, "Thou hast put gladness," etc.; "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety." Here, then, we have one of God"s people, who has seen calmer days, writing in his tent and telling of a secret of peace and joy which nothing can disturb. It is a secret worth knowing. Let us ascertain what it is.
I HERE IS AN INQUIRY PUT. "Who will show us good?" By which is meant, not so much What is good in itself? as What will make us happy, and bring us a sense of satisfaction? Over and above our intellectual, we have emotional faculties. The emotions are to the spiritual part of us what the sensations are to the bodily part. Among the various fallacies of some wise men of this world, one of the wildest is that emotion has no place in the search after, and in the ascertainment of, truth. It would be quite safe to reverse that, and to say that unless the emotions have their rightful play, few truths can be rightly sought or found. An equilibrium of absolute indifference concerning truth or error would be a guilty carelessness. Our craving after happiness is God"s lesson to us through the emotions, that we are dependent for satisfaction on something outside us; and when such satisfaction is actually reached, it is so far the sign that the higher life is being healthfully sustained. Our nature is too complex to be satisfied with supply in any one department. Our intellectual nature craves the true. Our moral nature craves the right. Our sympathetic nature calls for love. Our conscious weakness and dependence call for strength from another. Our powers of action demand a sphere of service which shall neither corrupt nor exhaust. Our spiritual nature cries out for God, life, and immortality. Who can show us "good" that will meet all these wants? Such is the inquiry.
II THERE ARE THOSE WHO KNOW HOW TO ANSWER THE INQUIRY. (Ver. 7, "Thou hast put gladness in my heart," etc.) The psalmist shows us:
1. The source of his joy. God God himself. How often do the psalmists luxuriate in telling what God was to them Rock, Shield, Sun, High Tower, Fortress, Refuge, Strength, Salvation, their Exceeding Joy! Much more is this the case now we know God in Christ. In him we have revealed to us through the Spirit nobler heights, deeper depths, larger embraces, and mightier triumphs of divinely revealed love than Old Testament saints could possibly conceive.
2. One excellent feature of this joy is the sense of security it brings with it in the most perilous surroundings (see last verse). (Let the Hebrew student closely examine this verse. He will gain thereby precious glimpses of a meaning deeper than any bare translation can give). The psalmist discloses and suggests further:
3. The quality and degree of the joy. " More than... when their corn and their wine increaseth.
(1) The gladness is of a far higher quality. A filial son"s joy in the best of fathers is vastly superior to the delight a child has in his toys. So joy in God himself for what he is, is infinitely higher than delight in what he gives.
(2) It is a gladness of greater zest. No joy in worldly things that a carnal man ever reached can approximate to the believer"s joy in God. It is a joy "unspeakable, and full of glory.
(3) It is a gladness remarkable for its persistency. The worldling"s joy is for the bright days of life. Joy in God is for every day, and comes out most strikingly in the darkest ones David, Daniel; Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; Peter, John, Stephen, Paul and Silas, etc. We never know all that God is to us until he takes away all our earthly props, and makes us lean with all our weight on him.
(4) The believer"s joy in God surpasses the worldling"s gladness in the effects of it. It not only satisfies, but sanctifies the mind.
(5) This joy never palls upon the taste. "The world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
III THE PSALMIST SHOWS US HOW THIS JOY IN GOD WAS ATTAINED. After his delights the worldling has many a weary chase. To ensure his, the psalmist sends up a prayer, "Lord, lift thou up," etc. This prayer had been taught him of old. It was a part of the priestly benediction. (Num_6:22, ad fin.) Its meaning is, "Give us the sign and seal of thy favour, and it is enough." Truly in this all else is ensured. Forgiveness from God and peace with him prepare the way for the fulness of joy. Nothing is right with a sinful man till there is peace between him and God. If our view of the chronology of the Psalms be correct, Psalm 51 and Ps 32, preceded this. If it be true that the believer attains the highest heights of joy, it is also true that he has first gone down into the deep vale of penitential sorrow. As in Christian toil, so in personal religion, "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy." Let the sinner "behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world," and then his hope, his joy, will begin. C.
HOMILIES BY W. FORSYTH Vers. 1-8. Quieting thoughts for a time of trouble.
It is a mark of man"s greatness that he can go out of himself. Some commune with nature, some with the great minds of the past, some with prophets and teachers of their own time. But the grandest thing is to commune with God. The evening is a fit time. Then we have rest; then we can retire from the stress and turmoil of the world, and in the secrecy of our hearts hold converse with God. Here we have some quieting thoughts for a time of trouble.
I THAT GOD RULES OVER ALL. God is love. His Law is holy and just and good. Then it must be well with all those who do his will. There may be clouds and darkness, there may be grievous trouble; but God reigneth, and his truth and mercy are spread out as wings, under which we can always find refuge.
II THAT IN FORMER STRAITS GOD HAS BROUGHT DELIVERANCE. (Ver. 1) We can look back. It is sweet to remember God"s loving-kindness. What he has done for us is not only a cause of thankfulness, but a ground of hope. His acts bind God as well as his promises. He does not change. Nothing can elude his eye; nothing can surprise his wisdom or baffle his power. He will bring enlargement in distress, room, breathing space, ampler freedom, and a diviner air.
III THAT GOD IS AS ENTREATABLE AS EVER BY HIS PEOPLE. (Vers. 3, 4) God does not tie his presence to place or ordinance. He regards character. There are times when he seems not to hear; but this is our infirmity. The throne of grace stands ever accessible. If we ask, we shall receive. We may be cast off and dishonoured by men; but God will never forsake those who trust in him.
IV THAT TRUST IN GOD WILL SURELY BRING PEACE. (Vers. 5, 6) Things may grow worse. Afflictions may come, not as single spies, but in battalions. For a time the machinations of the wicked may seem to prevail. But we know what the end must be. What can come from opposition to God but ruin? Reflection not only confirms our faith, but strengthens our attachment to God. The future of the wicked is dark; but the future of the righteous is bright as the heavens shining with countless stars. Whatever happens, therefore, let us hold fast to God. The priestly benediction (Num_6:20) finds an echo in the trusting heart. "Peace.
V THAT IN THE END GOD"S PEOPLE SHALL SURELY HAVE JOY IN GOD. (Vers. 6-8) He is the supreme good, true, satisfying, inalienable, the everlasting Portion of the soul. "O thou bounteous Giver of all good, Thou art of all thy gifts thyself the crown! Give what thou canst, without thee we are poor, And with thee rich, take what thou wilt away.
This psalm, as many others, ends with praise. Like the last strain of a cradle-song, its accents fall gently, lulling the child of God to rest, Luther, it is said, often sang himself to sleep with this psalm. W.F.
HOMILIES BY C. SHORT Vers. 1-5. A cry for deliverance.
This psalm refers (according to some) to the same event as the previous psalm that composed probably in the morning, and this in the evening, of the same day. We have in it
I A CRY FOR DELIVERANCE FROM THE UPRIGHTEOUS PLOTS OF HIS ENEMIES. The appeal is based upon two facts.
1. His relation and fellowship with the righteous God. Thou art my God, and the God of my righteous cause, and therefore thou wilt not leave me to the wicked designs of my enemies.
2. His experience in former straits and troubles. "Thou didst set me at liberty when I was in trouble." What thou hast done once thou wilt do again, because thou art unchangeable.
II THE SIN OF HIS ENEMIES.
1. They attempt to injure his personal and kingly honour (his glory). By false and evil reports, so as to promote his overthrow and downfall. Character and office are the two most precious things that a man has to lose.
2. They had set their hearts upon an enterprise destined to fail. In love with vanity, they were in love with a vain, hollow appearance, such as this rebellious world turns out to be. Such is the nature of all unjust and sinful undertakings.
3. It was an attempt to overthrow one of Gods appointments. (Ver. 3) An attempt to set aside one of the Divine decrees; therefore like trying to upset a Divine law utterly vain and futile.
III AN ADMONITION TO REPENTANCE. Not a cry for vengeance. The way of repentance is here pointed out.
1. The thought of God was to fill them with an awe of their sin. If they blasphemed God"s anointed, they were to stand in awe of God.
2. They were to examine the thoughts of their hearts in solitude. On their bed, in the darkness of the night, and in the privacy of their chamber. "Shut to thy door," etc.
3. They were to offer sincere and truthful "sacrifice," or service to God. Like Zacchaeus, "The half of my goods," etc. Good works are the best evidence of repentance.
4. They were to trust in the righteous God, and not in their unrighteous aims and objects. We become like the persons or things we trust in. S.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain This Psalm is apparently intended to accompany the third,…
This Psalm is apparently intended to accompany the third, and make a pair with it. If the last may be entitled THE MORNING PSALM, this from its matter is equally deserving of the title of THE EVENING HYMN. May the choice words Ps 4:8 be our sweet song of rest as we retire to our repose!
"Thus with my thoughts composed to peace,
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I'll give mine eyes to sleep; Thy hand in safety keeps my days,
And will my slumbers keep."
The Inspired title runs thus: "To the chief Musician on Neginoth, a Psalm of David." The chief musician was the master or director of the sacred music of the sanctuary. Concerning this person carefully read 1Ch 6:31, 32; 15:16-22; 25:1, 7. In these passages will be found much that is interesting to the lover of sacred song, and very much that will throw a light upon the mode of praising God in the temple. Some of the titles of the Psalms are, we doubt not, derived from the names of certain renowned singers, who composed the music to which they were set.
On Neginoth, that is, on stringed instruments, or hand instruments, which were played on with the hand alone, as harps and cymbals. The joy of the Jewish church was so great that they needed music to set forth the delightful feelings of their souls. Our holy mirth is none the less overflowing because we prefer to express it in a more spiritual manner, as becometh a more spiritual dispensation. In allusion to these instruments to be played on with the hand, Nazianzen says, "Lord, I am an instrument for thee to touch." Let us lay ourselves open to the Spirit's touch, so shall we make melody. May we be full of faith and love, and we shall be living instruments of music. Hawker says: "The Septuagint read the word which we have rendered in our translation chief musician Lamenetz, instead of Lamenetzoth, the meaning of which is unto the end. From whence the Greek and Latin fathers imagined, that all psalms which bear this inscription refer to the Messiah, the great end. If so, this Psalm is addressed to Christ; and well it may, for it is all of Christ, and spoken by Christ, and hath respect only to his people as being one with Christ. The Lord the Spirit give the reader to see this, and he will find it most blessed.
In Ps 4:1 David pleads with God for help. In Ps 4:2 he expostulates with his enemies, and continues to address them to the end of Ps 4:5. Then from Ps 4:6 to the close he delightfully contrasts his own satisfaction and safety with the disquietude of the ungodly in their best estate. The Psalm was most probably written upon the same occasion as the preceeding, and is another choice flower from the garden of affliction. Happy is it for us that David was tried, or probably we should never have heard these sweet sonnets of faith.
Ver. 1. This is another instance of David's common habit of pleading past mercies as a ground for present favour. Here he reviews his Ebenezers and takes comfort from them. It is not to be imagined that he who has helped us in six troubles will leave us in the seventh. God does nothing by halves, and he will never cease to help us until we cease to need. The manna shall fall every morning until we cross the Jordan.
Observe, that David speaks first to God and then to men. Surely we should all speak the more boldly to men if we had more constant converse with God. He who dares to face his Maker will not tremble before the sons of men.
The name by which the Lord is here addressed,
God of my righteousness, deserves notice, since it is not used in any other part of Scripture. It means, Thou art the author, the witness, the maintainer, the judge, and the rewarder of my righteousness; to thee I appeal from the calumnies and harsh judgments of men. Herein is wisdom, let us imitate it and always take our suit, not to the petty courts of human opinion, but into the superior court, the King's Bench of heaven.
Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress. A figure taken from an army enclosed in a defile, and hardly pressed by the surrounding enemy. God hath dashed down the rocks and given me room; he hath broken the barriers and set me in a large place. Or, we may understand it thus:"God hath enlarged my heart with joy and comfort, when I was like a man imprisoned by grief and sorrow." God is a never-failing comforter.
Have mercy upon me. Though thou mayest justly permit my enemies to destroy me, on account of my many and great sins, yet I flee to thy mercy, and I beseech thee hear my prayer, and bring thy servant out of his troubles. The best of men need mercy as truly as the worst of men. All the deliverances of saints, as well as the pardons of sinners, are the free gifts of heavenly grace.
Ver. 1. Hear me when I call, etc. Faith is a good orator and a noble disputer in a strait; it can reason from God's readiness to hear: "Hear me when I call, O God." And from the everlasting righteousness given to the man in the justification of his person: O God of my righteousness. And from God's constant justice in defending the righteousness of his servant's cause: "O God of my righteousness." And from both present distresses and those that are by-past, wherein he hath been, and from by-gone mercies received: Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress. And from God's grace, which is able to answer all objections from the man's unworthiness or ill-deserving: Have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer. David Dickson, 1653.
Ver. 1. Hear me. The great Author of nature and of all things does nothing in vain. He instituted not this law, and, if I may so express it, art of praying, as a vain and insufficient thing, but endows it with wonderful efficacy for producing the greatest and happiest consequences. He would have it to be the key by which all the treasures of heaven should be opened. He has constructed it as a powerful machine, by which we may, with easy and pleasant labour, remove from us the most dire and unhappy machinations of our enemy, and may with equal ease draw to ourselves what is most propitious and advantageous. Heaven and earth, and all the elements, obey and minister to the hands which are often lifted up to heaven in earnest prayer. Yea, all works, and, which is yet more and greater, all the words of God obey it. Well known in the sacred Scriptures are the examples of Moses and Joshua, and that which (Jas 5:17) particularly mentions of Elijah, whom he expressly calls keraunoboloz, a man subject to like infirmities with ourselves, that he might illustrate the admirable force of prayer, by the common and human weakness of the person by whom it was offered. And that Christian legion under Antonius is well known and justly celebrated, which for the singular ardour and efficacy of its prayers, obtained the name of keraunoboloz, the thundering legion. Robert Leighton, D.D., Archbishop of Glasgow, 1611-1684.
Ver. 1. Is full of matter for a sermon upon, past mercies a plea for present help. The first sentence shows that believers desire, expect, and believe in a God that heareth prayer. The titleGod of my righteousness, may furnish a text (see exposition), and the last sentence may suggest a sermon upon, "The best of saints must still appeal to God's mercy and sovereign grace."
Choice and Practical Expositions on four select Psalms: namely, the Fourth Psalm, in eight Sermons, etc. By THOMAS HORTON, D.D. 1675
Meditations, Critical and Practical, on Psalm IV., in Archbishop Leighton's Works.
Ver. 2. In this second division of the Psalm, we are led from the closet of prayer into the field of conflict. Remark the undaunted courage of the man of God. He allows that his enemies are great men (for such is the import of the Hebrew words translated sons of men), but still he believes them to be foolish men, and therefore chides them, as though they were but children. He tells them that they love vanity, and seek after leasing, that is, lying, empty fancies, vain conceits, wicked fabrications. He asks them how long they mean to make his honour a jest, and his fame a mockery? A little of such mirth is too much, why need they continue to indulge in it? Had they not been long enough upon the watch for his halting? Had not repeated disappointments convinced them that the Lord's anointed was not to be overcome by all their calumnies? Did they mean to jest their souls into hell, and go on with their laughter until swift vengeance should turn their merriment into howling? In the contemplation of their perverse continuance in their vain and lying pursuits, the Psalmist solemnly pauses and inserts a Selah. Surely we too may stop awhile, and meditate upon the deep-seated folly of the wicked, their continuance in evil, and their sure destruction; and we may learn to admire that grace which has made us to differ, and taught us to love truth, and seek after righteousness.
Ver. 2. O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah. Prayer soars above the violence and impiety of men, and with a swift wing commits itself to heaven, with happy omen, if I may allude to what the learned tell us of the augury of the ancients, which I shall not minutely discuss. Fervent prayers stretch forth a strong, wide-extended wing, and while the birds of night hover beneath, they mount aloft, and point out, as it were, the proper seats to which we should aspire. For certainly there is nothing that cuts the air so swiftly, nothing that takes so sublime, so happy, so auspicious a flight as prayer, which bears the soul on its pinions, and leaves far behind all the dangers, and even the delights of this low world of ours. Behold this holy man, who just before was crying to God in the midst of distress, and with urgent importunity entreating that he might be heard, now, as if he were already possessed of all he had asked, taking upon him boldly to rebuke his enemies, how highly soever they were exalted, and how potent soever they might be even in the royal palace. Robert Leighton, D.D.
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Hear me when I call, O God of my…
Psa_4:1-8
Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness.
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A gentle remonstrance
This Psalm is mainly a gentle, earnest remonstrance with antagonists, seeking to win them to a better mind. The cry for an answer by deed is based on the name and on the past acts of God. The pronoun my is best attached to righteousness, as the consideration that God is righteous is less relevant than that He is the source of the Psalmists righteousness. Since He is so, He may be expected to vindicate it by answering prayer with deliverance. He who feels that all good in himself comes from God may be quite sure that, sooner or later, and by some means or other, God will witness to His own work. The strophe division keeps together the prayer and the beginning of the remonstrance to opponents, and does so in order to emphasise the eloquent, sharp juxtaposition of God and the sons of men. Verse 6 may be the continuance of the address to the enemies, carrying on the exhortation to trust. Verses 7 and 8 are separated from Psa_4:6 by their purely personal reference. The Psalmist returns to the tone of his prayer in Psa_4:1; only, that petition has given place, as it should do, to possession and confident thankfulness. The Psalmist here touches the bottom, the foundation fact on which every life that is not vanity must be based, and which verifies itself in every life that is so based. The glad heart possessing Jehovah can lay itself down and sleep, though foes stand round. The last words of the Psalm flow restfully like a lullaby. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
The great trials of life
I. Praying.
1. A recognition of Gods righteousness. He might have thought upon God now as the author of his righteousness, and felt that all that was righteous in his own heart and life came from God; or as the vindicator of his righteousness who alone was able to defend his righteous cause; or as the administrator of righteousness, conducting His government upon righteous principles and bringing even upon him only the sufferings he justly deserved. There is something deep in the soul of man which leads him to appeal to the righteous God when he feels himself to be the victim of fraud or violence. Even Christ Himself did so.
2. A remembrance of Gods goodness. Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress. The reference is to some deliverance which he had experienced. He remembered, perhaps, the goodness of God to him when, ill the field guarding his fathers flocks, he was delivered out of the paw of the lion and out of the paw of the bear; or His goodness to him in delivering him from the giant of Philistia. The memory of Gods past mercies to him gave courage to his heart and an argument in his prayer now. Because God has helped us we expect Him to help us again, and thus we plead. Not so with man. The more our fellow being has helped us the less reason we have to expect His aid. Mans capacity for help is limited. The capability of God is unbounded.
3. An invocation of Gods favour. . . .Have mercy upon me and hear my prayer. Mercy is what we want. Mercy to forgive, to renovate, to strengthen the soul, to labour and to wait.
II. Rebuking. David having addressed the righteous God in prayer, hurls his rebuke at his enemies. His rebuke is marked--
1. By boldness. . . .O ye sons of men--ye great men of the land--. . .O how long will ye turn my glory into shame, how long will ye love vanity and seek after leasing. In this appeal the speakers sense of honour, justice, truth seems to have run into a passion that fired and flooded his whole being.
2. By alarm. . . .Know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for Himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto Him, which means, Know this, the Lord will take care of me whom He has elected King to serve Himself, and He will hear when I call upon Him. Your opposition is futile. Beware, you are rebelling not merely against me, but against Omnipotence itself. It is a terrible thing to oppress or injure Gods elected ones.
3. By authority. . . .Stand in awe, and sin not, commune with your own heart on your bed, and be still. Selah.--Mind this. This command includes three things.
(1) Cease from your rage. Let your insurrectionary passion be hushed. The soul under wrong passions is like a rudderless bark driven by the tempest; shipwreck is all but inevitable.
(2) Retire to thoughtfulness. Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. It is in mans own soul that God meets with him, and communes with him as He did of old before the mercy seat.
(3) Practise religion. . . .Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord. What is righteous sacrifice? The consecration of our energies, our self, our all, to the service of justice, truth, and God. . . .The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart Thou wilt not despise.
III. Teaching. There be many that say, who will show us any good? Lord lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us.
1. The universal craving of humanity There are many that say unto us, etc. Men are everywhere craving for happiness. From shops and sanctuaries, from the peasants cot and the princes castle, from the bush of savages and the bench of senators, from all lands and lips the cry is heard,. Who will show us any good? We are children walking m the dark, who will show us the way; we are dying with thirst, who will moisten our fevered lips; we are starving with hunger, who will give us any bread? Man, the world over, feels that he has not what he wants.
2. The only satisfaction of humanity. What is it? Fame, wealth, sensual pleasure, superstitious observances? No, these have been tried a thousand times, and failed. Here it is: Lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance, which means the conscious presence and favour of God.
IV. Exulting. . . .Thou hast put gladness in my heart more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. Some render this from the time in which their corn and wine increased, supposing David to refer to the hour when abundant supplies began to come into him, an exile at Mahanaim (2Sa_16:1; 2Sa_17:28). This may be the correct version. The language in either version expresses the feelings of a soul happy in God.
1. God made him inwardly happy, even in his poverty. He had lost for a time his palace and his kingdom, and was dependent upon the supplies of friends. Yet he was happy, and who made him happy? . . .Thou hast put gladness in my heart. God alone can make us happy anywhere and anywhen. . . .Although the fig tree shall not blossom, etc. (Hab_3:17). What does Paul say? . . .I glory in tribulation. Martyrs have sung in dungeons, and triumphed in flames.
2. God made him consciously secure. His enemies counted their millions. His death they desired. Yet what does he say?--. . .I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep. God was his refuge and strength, etc. . . .If God be for us, who can be against us? Learn from this poem where happiness alone can be found. It is in God. An ancient Italian author, in one of his romantic legends, tells us of a tree, many branched, and covered apparently with delectable bunches of fruit; but whoso shook that tree in order to possess the fruit, found, too late, that not fruit, but stones of crushing weight came down upon his head. An emblem this of the tree of unholy pleasure. It is many-branched, it is attractive in aspect, its boughs bend with rich clusters of what seems to be delicious fruit, the millions of the world gather round it, and, with eager hands, shake it in order if possible to taste the luscious fruit. But what is the result of their efforts? Stones come tumbling down that paralyse the soul. What fruit had ye in those things whereof ye are now ashamed; for the end of those things is death. (Homilist.)
An appeal for mercy to the God of righteousness
I. The Psalmists appeal. This book is full of such appeals. It is remarkable that there has come down to us a book full of the most confidingly, reverent, pleading utterances, addressed to the unseen and eternal God. There are not many petitions in this Psalm. Hear me when I call--only hear me, that is enough. Is there no heart to respond to us? Yes, He is hearing, that is enough.
II. The grounds of the appeal. Two considerations on which the appeal is founded.
1. The character of God. Not simply my righteous God, but God, the author of my righteousness, from Whom all that is true and right in me has come.
2. And the goodness already experienced. Thou hast enlarged me. It was not untried mercy. No one looks to history for a message of despair--at any rate, no good man--for he always finds that the storm ends in calm, that the darkest hour precedes the dawn, that the struggles result in progress. Let us also appeal for mercy to the God of righteousness, and take the past as an argument. There has been care in the past; there has been goodness in the past: Gethsemane is in the past; Calvary is in the past. Plead the past. (James Owen.)
Thou hast enlarged me.--
Prayer and answer to prayer
I. Davids prayer for mercy desired.
1. The tide which David here puts upon God. God of my righteousness. That is, the God who makes me to be righteous: the Author of it. Better here, the God that shows me to be righteous, that maintains my righteous cause. Look at this--
(1) Directly in itself. God does own the righteousness of those who are His servants. This is grounded on His nature. His affection and His relation carries Him to it likewise. He is my God, and therefore the God of my righteousness. There is also His covenant and interest. In two ways God owns our righteousness. In clearing it and in avenging it.
(2) Reflexively, as coming from David; who, having righteousness and equity on his side, does now with a great deal of boldness and confidence take himself to God for redress. Whence we see what is to be practised by everyone else.
2. The request itself. Hear me when I call has respect to Davids complaint in case of injury. Hear my prayer, that is, grant me that particular request which I desire of Thee. See his desire of being heard in his performance, when I call. Attention must be given to the matter of prayer, that it be such as is according to Gods will; the manner of prayer, that it be with zeal, fervency, and intention; the principle of prayer, that it be done in faith. There should also be the ordering of ourselves in other things suitable hereunto, as their hearing of God Himself. Hearing of others in their necessities: abstaining from all kinds of sin whatsoever.
3. The terms whereupon he deals with Him. On account of mercy, grace, and favour. We must have recourse to His mercy, and urge upon Him this consideration above all others. Let us make much of this attribute of mercy, and improve it to our own comfort and advantage.
II. Davids acknowledgment of mercy received. God loves to manifest His power in deliverance. He brings into distress, and so from thence takes occasion to enlarge. There is a double enlargement, one of state and condition; the other of heart and affection. There is a double enlargement of spirit, the one is in order to duty, the other in order to comfort. (Thomas Horton, D. D.)
Spiritual enlargement
This enlargement is the great thing to be desired and sought after in all our histories. Sin dwarfs us--it lowers us alike in the scale of creation and in the scope of our immortal being. So possible is it for all true spiritual life to be crushed, all inward growth and spiritual development to be repressed, by worldliness of heart and aim. The contrast therefore is a study; enlargement of estate, or enlargement of soul. Thou hast enlarged me. Here is a beautiful consciousness.
I. The cause revealed. When I was in distress. Distress had driven me to Him Who revealed me to myself. He diminished my estate and my health; but He enlarged me.
II. The question suggested. Why? Because I am a man capable of enlargement. You cannot enlarge the merely finite like this. Every spiritual advance is only a step upward and onward in the immortal ascent, every enlargement is only a prophecy of yet wider range. Not one word can be said too much of the majesty of the soul. Standing on the verge of eternity after long years of life, the soul is yet young, and feels the immortal pulses. It is just beginning to know. Unless we grow in grace we may question if we are Christians at all, for life means growth, and the knowledge of God is the infinite study of eternity.
III. The influence created. An enlarged man has a glorious might of personal influence; such a man elevates social intercourse as he moves among his fellows, and treats their interests in the light of their larger being. The enlarged man seeks to have part in the kingdom which brings life and peace to all his brethren in Christ.
IV. The expectation enjoyed. For what is all this enlargement given? Surely the Divine ministries have a worthy end and aim, or else we have a mystery in man which we have in no other sphere of use or adaptation. The soul implies Divine training and immortal rest. Heaven is the corollary of soul life. Faint not under the good hand of God, for He will exalt you in good time. The enlarged life will have a sphere, where it can enjoy and serve God, forever and for evermore. Thus, too, may we bear distress aright. (W. M. Statham.)
Enlargement in distress
This Psalm and the previous one are Psalms of distress, utterances of a soul that is crying to God out of the depths; yet, none the less, they are songs of faith, hope, rest in God. In the text we see that gladness comes out of the sorrow, and light shines out of the darkness.
I. Through distress there comes an enlargement of personal character.
1. Suffering strengthens character; brings to light the hidden qualities of a man, and teaches him courage, endurance, and self-reliance. I have read of a great botanist who was exiled from his native land, and had obtained employment as an undergardener in a noblemans service, that while in this situation his master received the present of a valuable plant, the nature and habits of which were quite unknown to him. It was given to the care of the head gardener, and he, supposing it to be of tropical growth, put it into a hothouse, and treated it like other hothouse plants. Under this treatment the plant began to wither and die. One day the undergardener asked permission to examine it, and as soon as he had done so he said, This is an Arctic plant, and you are killing it with this hothouse treatment. So he took it out to the open air, and heaped ice round it, to the great astonishment of the head gardener. The result justified his wisdom; for the plant was soon perfectly healthy and strong. This story is a parable of human character. It is ease, not difficulty, that is dangerous. Put a man under hothouse treatment, surround him with luxury, hedge him in from opposition; and you take the surest means of sapping him of life and power. Teach him to suffer; and you teach him to be strong.
2. But in a large character, sympathy must be present as well as strength. Without sympathy no character can possess that breadth which is so essential to its perfecting; and there is no such teacher of sympathy as suffering.
II. Think of the larger and surer place which suffering gives us in the world of men. There is something in the experience of suffering which enhances a mans social influence. In every walk of life the men of sorrows are the men of power. We may not be able fully to explain why this is so; but we know quite well that the very fact of suffering gives a man a claim upon us, and a hold over us, which nothing else can give. Under our present conditions, says one, there is something in the very expansiveness of joy which dissociates, while sorrow seems to weld us together, like hammer strokes on steel. Do we not find that the influence which Jesus exerts is an emanation from His Cross? He was made perfect through sufferings--not perfect in His own nature, for that was perfect already, but perfect in His power to touch and save and bless; and so His dominion was enlarged through His distress.
III. No doubt David was thinking most of all of a religious enlargement--an enlargement of his heart towards God, and an enlargement of Gods mercy towards him.
1. Men are enlarged through their distress. Their horizon grows wider and deeper. The sunlight fades, the night falls; but in the darkness a greater and more glorious world appears; for the stars shine out from the immeasurable depths--those street lamps of the City of God.
2. Our enlargement in distress does not lie only in our new thoughts about God, but in Gods new mercies towards us. The Lord has special mercies for His children in distress, as a mother has kisses and fond soothing words for her little child who has hurt himself by a fall. Did you ever consider this, that there are stores of blessing held in reserve within the eternal treasuries, the fulness of which you can only know in the day of trial?
3. In one of two ways distress works--it makes a man either better or worse. We have seen it making people narrower and more selfish and more sullen. We have also seen it making them broader and more sympathetic, more considerate and more gracious. All depends upon their way of meeting it. Meet it in the Psalmists faith, hope, and patience. (J. G. Lambert, B. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain Psalms 4
Psalms 4
Psalms 3 and 4 are a pair. They are similar in expression (my glory, there be many which say, I laid me down and slept) in the psalmists situation, and in structure (as indicated by the Selahs). But they need not be contemporaneous, nor need the superscription of Psalms 3 be extended to Psalms 4. Their tone is different, the fourth having little reference to the personal danger so acutely felt in Psalms 3 and being mainly a gentle, earnest remonstrance with antagonists, seeking to win them to a better mind. The strophical division into four parts of two verses each, as marked by the Selahs, is imperfectly carried out, as in Psalms 3, and does not correspond with the logical division-a phenomenon which occurs not infrequently in the Psalter, as in all poetry, where the surging thought or emotion overleaps its bounds. Dividing according to the form, we have four strophes, of which the first two are marked by Selah; dividing by the flow of thought, we have three parts of unequal length-prayer (Psa_4:1), remonstrance (Psa_4:2-5), communion and prayer (Psa_4:6-8).
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The cry for an answer by deed is based on the name, and on the past acts of God. Grammatically, it would be possible and regular to render "my God of righteousness," i.e., "my righteous God"; but the pronoun is best attached to "righteousness" only, as the consideration that God is righteous is less relevant than that He is the source of the psalmists righteousness. Since He is so, He may be expected to vindicate it by answering prayer by deliverance. He who feels that all good in himself comes from God may be quite sure that, sooner or later, and by some means or other, God will witness to His own work. To the psalmist nothing was so incredible as that God should not take care of what He had planted, or let the springing crop be trodden down or rooted up. The Old Testament takes prosperity as the Divine attestation of righteousness; and though they who worship the Man of. Sorrows have new light thrown on the meaning of that conception, the substance of it remains true forever: The compellation "God of my righteousness" is still mighty with God. The second ground of the prayer is laid in the past deeds of God. Whether the clause "Thou hast in straits made space for me" be taken relatively or not, it appeals to former deliverances as reasons for mans prayer and for Gods act. In many languages trouble and deliverance are symbolised by narrowness and breadth. Compression is oppression. Closely hemmed in by crowds or by frowning rocks, freedom of movement is impossible and breathing is difficult. But out in the open, one expatiates, and a clear horizon means an ample sky.
The strophe division keeps together the prayer and the beginning of the remonstrance to opponents, and does so in order to emphasise the eloquent, sharp juxtaposition of God and the "sons of men." The phrase is usually employed to mean persons of position, but here the contrast between the varying height of mens molehills is not so much in view as that between them all and the loftiness of God. The lips which by prayer have been purged and cured of quivering can speak to foes without being much abashed by their dignity or their hatred. But the very slight reference to the psalmists own share in the hostility of these "sons of men" is noticeable. It is their false relation to God which is prominent throughout the remonstrance; and that being so, "my glory," in Psa_4:2, is probably to be taken, as in Psa_3:3, as a designation of God. It is usually understood to mean either personal or official dignity, but the suggested interpretation is more in keeping with the tone of the psalm. The enemies were really flouting God and turning that great name in which the singer gloried into a jest. They were not therefore idolaters, but practical heathen in Israel, and their "vanity" and "lies" were their schemes doomed to fail and their blasphemies. These two verses bring most vividly into view the contrast between the psalmist clinging to his helping God and the knot of opponents hatching their plans which are sure to fail.
The Selah indicates a pause in the song, as if to underscore the question "How long?" and let it soak into the hearts of the foes, and then, in Psa_4:3-4, the remonstrating voice presses on them the great truth which has sprung anew in the singers soul in answer to his prayer, and beseeches them to let it stay their course and still their tumult. By "the godly" is meant, of course, the psalmist. He is sure that he belongs to God and is set apart, so that no real evil can touch him; but does he build this confidence on his own character or on Jehovahs grace? The answer depends on the meaning of the pregnant word rendered "godly," which here occurs for the first time in the Psalter. So far as its form is concerned, it may be either active, one who shows chesed (lovingkindness or favour), or passive, one to whom it is shown. But the usage in the Psalter seems to decide in favour of the passive meaning, which is also more in accordance with the general biblical view, which traces all mans hopes and blessings, not to his attitude to God, but to Gods to him, and regards mans love to God as a derivative, "Amati amamus, amantes amplius meremur amari" (Bern). Out of His own deep heart of love Jehovah has poured His lovingkindness on the psalmist, as he thrillingly feels, and He will take care that His treasure is not lost; therefore this conviction, which has flamed up anew since the moment before when he prayed, brings with it the assurance that He "hears when I cry," as he had just asked Him to do. The slight emendation, adopted by Cheyne from Gratz and others, is tempting, but unnecessary. He would read, with a small change which would bring this verse into parallelism with Psa_31:22, See how passing great lovingkindness Jehovah hath shown me; but the present text is preferable, inasmuch as what we should expect to be urged upon the enemies is not outward facts, but some truth of faith neglected by them. On such a truth the singer rests his own confidence; such a truth he lays, like a cold hand, on the hot brows of the plotters, and bids them pause and ponder. Believed, it would fill them with awe, and set in a lurid light the sinfulness of their assault on him. Clearly the rendering "Be ye angry" instead of "Stand in awe" gives a less worthy meaning, and mars the picture of the progressive conversion of the enemy into a devout worshipper, of which the first stage is the recognition of the truth in Psa_4:3; the second is the awestruck dropping of the weapons, and the third is the silent reflection in the calm and solitude of night. The psalm being an evening song, the reference to "your bed" is the more natural; but "speak in your hearts"-what? The new fact which you have learned from my lips. Say it quietly to yourselves then, when forgotten truths blaze on the waking eye, like phosphorescent writing in the dark, and the nobler self makes its voice heard. "Speak and be silent," says the psalmist, for such meditation will end the busy plots against him, and in a wider application "that dread voice," heard in the awed spirit, "shrinks the streams" of passion and earthly desires, which otherwise brawl and roar there. Another strain of the "stringed instruments" makes that silence, as it were, audible, and then the remonstrance goes on once more.
It rises higher now, exhorting to positive godliness, and that in the two forms of offering "sacrifices of righteousness," which here simply means those which are prescribed or which are offered with right dispositions, and of trusting in Jehovah-the two aspects of true religion, which outwardly is worship and inwardly is trust. The poet who could meet hate with no weapon but these earnest pleadings had learned a better lesson than "the hate of hate, the scorn of scorn, the love of love," and anticipated "bless them which curse you." The teacher who thus outlined the stages of the way back to God as recognition of His relation to the godly, solitary meditation thereon, forsaking of sin and hushing of the Spirit thereby, and finally worship and trust, knew the discipline for rebellious souls.
Psa_4:6 seems at first sight to belong more closely to what follows than to what precedes, and is taken by those who hold the Davidic authorship as addressed to his followers beginning to despond. But it may be the continuance of the address to the enemies, carrying on the exhortation to trust. The sudden appearance of the plural "us" suggests that the psalmist associates himself with the persons whom he has been addressing, and, while he glances at the vain cries of the "many" would make himself the mouthpiece of the nascent faith which he hopes may follow his beseechings. The cry of the many would, in that case, have a general reference to the universal desire for "good," and would pathetically echo the hopelessness which must needs mingle with it, so long as the heart does not know who is the only good. The passionate weariness of the question, holding a negation in itself, is wonderfully contrasted with the calm prayer. The eyes fail for want of seeing the yearned for blessing; but if Jehovah lifts the light of His face upon us. as He will certainly do in answer to prayer, "in His light we shall see light." Every good, however various, is sphered in Him. All colours are smelted into the perfect white and glory of His face.
There is no Selah after Psa_4:6, but, as in Psa_3:6, one is due, though omitted.
Psa_4:7-8 are separated from Psa_4:6 by their purely personal reference. The psalmist returns to the tone of his prayer in Psa_4:1, only that petition has given place, as it should do, to possession and confident thankfulness. The many ask, Who? he prays, "Lord." They have vague desires after God; he knows what he needs and wants. Therefore in the brightness of that Face shining on him his heart is glad. The mirth of harvest and vintage is exuberant, but it is poor beside the deep, still blessedness which trickles round the heart that craves most the light of Jehovahs countenance. That craving is joy and the fruition is bliss. The psalmist here touches the bottom, the foundation fact on which every life that is not vanity must be based, and which verifies itself in every life that is so based. Strange and tragic that men should forget it and love vanity which mocks them, and, though won. still leaves them looking wearily round the horizon for any glimmer of good! The glad heart possessing Jehovah can, on the other hand. lay itself down in peace and sleep, though foes stand round. The last words of the psalm flow restfully like a lullaby. The expression of confidence gains much if "alone" be taken as referring to the psalmist. Solitary as he is, ringed round by hostility as he may be, Jehovahs presence makes him safe, and being thus safe, he is secure and confident. So he shuts his eyes in peace, though he may be lying in the open, beneath the stars, without defences or sentries. The Face brings light in darkness, gladness in want, enlargement in straits, safety in peril, and any and every good that any and every man needs.
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain “The Psalmist prays God to deliver him from present…
NIGHT THOUGHTS
Introduction
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“The Psalmist prays God to deliver him from present as from past distresses (Psa_4:2).
1. He assures the haters of his regal dignity that God bestowed it, and will certainly protect it (Psa_4:3-4). 2,
3. He exhorts them to quiet submission, righteousness, and trust in God (Psa_4:5-6). 4,
5. He contrasts his own satisfaction, springing from such trust, with the hopeless disquietude of others, even in the midst of their enjoyments (Psa_4:7-8). 6,
7. He closes with an exquisite proof of his tranquillity by falling asleep, as it were, before us, under the Divine protection (Psa_4:8).
8. The third psalm may be described as a morning and this fourth as an evening psalm.”—Alexander.
MAN APPEALING TO GOD
(Psa_4:1.)
In the midst of trials and perils the Psalmist seeketh audience with God.
Observe:
He first appeals to God. He does not go to God when all human inventions have been tried and failed, but his first cry is to Heaven. It is a good thing to take life’s questions to Him “straightway.” Before you go to the doctor, go to God; before you go to the lawyer, go to God; before you go to your friend, to your minister, go to God. Go directly from your trouble, with your trouble, to God. We often suffer loss by keeping back our burdens. Consult Heaven at first, and you will feel after that that you have little to ask from human counsellors and comforters.
I. He appeals to the Divine righteousness.
“O God of my righteousness.” He recognises the fact of God’s righteousness. Man is unjust, the world often seems to be full of injustice; but David recognises the justice of the Divine character and government. And not only so, but he recognises his personal relation to the righteous God. “O God of my righteousness.” “O God! who art righteous Thyself, and art the patron of my righteousness, of my righteous cause, and of my righteous life.”—Leighton. The Psalmist claims to be righteous, but acknowledges God as the author of his righteousness. “A celebrated heathen said, ‘I wrap myself up in my own virtue.’ A true believer has something infinitely better to wrap himself in. When Satan says, Thou hast yielded to my suggestions; when Conscience says, Thou hast turned a deaf ear to my admonitions; when the Law of God says, Thou has broken me; when the Gospel says, Thou hast neglected me; when Justice says, Thou hast insulted me; when Mercy says, Thou hast slighted me; Faith can say, All this is too true! but I wrap myself up in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.”—Toplady. God cannot hear our appeal except we recognise His righteousness, and except through His grace we are righteous ourselves.
II. He appeals to the Divine faithfulness.
“Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress.” The Psalmist had truly a good memory. He did not forget God’s help and mercies in days past; his memory was full of sun-pictures; and with faultless logic he inferred that still God would deliver him. Our memory is often bad, and we forget God’s mercies; our reasoning is often bad, and we argue from past deliverances to future desertions and disasters. May God mend our memories and our logic! In the day of trouble and persecution, remember how God has ever stood by His people, and remember that His faithfulness faileth not.
III. He appeals to the Divine mercy.
“Have mercy upon me.” However just we way feel our cause to be, we have always need to feel how much there is about us which needs to be forgiven, and that we must crave help on the ground of mercy, not demand it in the name of justice.
Observe:
1. The blessedness of appealing to God. How grand it is thus to open the heart to God in dark and trying days! “The life of man upon earth is a war fare; and it is much better, in the midst of enemies and dangers, to be acquainted with one fortress than with many inns. He that knows how to pray may be pressed, but cannot be overwhelmed.”—Leighton. “Hear me when I call.” In the very hour and article of trouble. The other day there was a great storm, and the electric wires were all broken, and messages could not be transmitted; but the direst storms interrupt not our intercourse with Heaven; nay, then the lines of communication act best, and we no sooner cry than He answers.
Observe:
2. The conditions of appealing to God. It is the prerogative only of the just and believing man. We must remember the rectitude of God’s nature and rule. “David asks nothing inconsistent with God’s holiness, and the same rule should govern all our prayers.”—Alexander. And we must live in a right relation to the just and gracious God. “Righteousness and grace are not opposed to one another in God, but man must not forget that he must enter into positive and active relations with reference to both of these attributes of God, if he would obtain and retain righteousness, peace, and joy.”—Moll.
EXPOSTULATION
(Psa_4:2-6.)
The Psalmist here addresses his enemies.
I. He reminds them of the vanity of their opposition to himself.
Psa_4:2. “How long will ye turn my glory into shame?”—i.e., my personal and official honour and character. “How long will ye utter slanders against me, and trail my honour in the dust?”—Delitzsch. The Psalmist declares their conduct to be vain, their hostility to be fruitless.
(1.) Because he was Divinely elected. Psa_4:3. “How long will ye deem lightly of my Divine election, which is the sole cause of my occupying so high a dignity.”—Kay. He felt that God had chosen him, and had not rejected him.
(2.) Because he was Divinely protected. “The Lord will hear when I call unto Him” (Psa_4:3). He is still my glory and refuge.
1. There is warning here for the enemies of Christ. David was a type of the Messiah; and Horne well observes: “If the Israelitish monarch conceived he had just cause to expostulate with his enemies for despising the royal majesty with which Jehovah had invested His anointed, of how much severer reproof shall they be thought worthy who blaspheme the essential ‘glory’ of King Messiah, which shines forth by his Gospel in the Church? Thou, O Christ, art everlasting truth; all is ‘vanity and falsehood,’ transient and fallacious, but the love of Thee!” God hath set forth Jesus Christ; He hears Him always; and he who contends against the Lord Jesus fights against God. How vain such a rebellion!
2. There is comfort here for the disciples of Christ. The “word here used, ‘godly,’ commonly denotes one who loves God.”—Kay. And there is great comfort here for the lovers of God. “The Lord hath set apart him that is godly for Himself.” God knows those who fear Him; He prizes them; He watches over them with loving jealousy. “What rare persons the godly are! ‘The righteous is more excellent than his neighbour’ (Pro_12:26). As the flower of the sun, as the wine of Lebanon, as the sparkling upon Aaron’s breastplate, such is the orient splendour of a person embellished with godliness.… The godly are precious, therefore they are set apart for God. We set apart things that are precious; the godly are set apart as God’s peculiar treasure (Psa_135:4); as His garden of delight (Son_4:12); as His royal diadem (Isa_43:3); the godly are the excellent of the earth (Psa_16:3); comparable to fine gold (Lam_4:2); double refined (Zec_13:9). They are the glory of the creation (Isa_46:13). Origen compares the saints to sapphires and crystals. God calls them jewels (Mal_3:17).”—Thomas Watson, quoted by Spurgeon. And God will preserve His jewels. We often read now-a-days of great ‘jewel-robberies;’ but if we will be faithful to God, “none shall pluck us out of His hand.” In the second place the Psalmist.
II. Exhorts his enemies to repentance and amity.
Psa_4:4-5. Here the Psalmist rises to a great height. He has forgotten himself and his apparent peril, and is solicitous only about his enemies. He is anxious, but it is on their account; they are in the greatest danger who are found fighting against God. Sublimely self-forgetful, he admonishes his adversaries. “He passes on to wise and loving counsels.”—Perowne.
1. He exhorts them to solemn reflection. Psa_4:4. “In your secret chambers.” “Let the still hours of the night bring calmer and wiser thoughts with them.”—Perowne. It is a good thing to talk with ourselves in the silence of the soul, in the secrecy of our chambers. “Unless a man takes himself sometimes out of the world by retirement and self-reflection, he will be in danger of losing himself in the world.”—Whichcote. And as Trapp quaintly says: “As it is a sign that there are great distempers in that family where husband and wife go divers days together and speak not the one to the other, so in that soul that flieth from itself, and can go long without self-examination.”
2. He exhorts them to practical piety. Psa_4:5. “Sacrifices accompanied by uprightness of intention and innocency of life.”—Kay. “Fruits meet for repentance.” All sacrifices wanting in sincerity and righteousness are but provocations of God.
It is the duty of all Christian people thus to expostulate earnestly and affectionately with the enemies of Christ. Oh! that the enemies of the Church of God would listen to His heralds, improve the truce of God, and lay down the weapons of rebellion.
THE CHIEF GOOD
(Psa_4:6-8.)
I. The grand question.
“Who shall show us any good?” (Psa_4:6).
1. It is the universal question. “There be many that say,” &c. Men of all ranks, gifts, ages, are thus crying. There is within them a strange void, a great discontent; they want something which they have not.
2. It is a passionate, imperative question. “Who shall?” Who can? With what restless avidity men seek to find the grand remedy for their profound discontent!
3. Is it not a despairing question? “Who shall?” as if in mockery. There is no such thing, seems to be implied.
“Arts, superstition, arms, philosophy.
Have each in turn possessed, betrayed, and mocked us;”
and men lose faith in the chief good, and cynically ask, Who shall declare it? As in Noel Paton’s great picture, the vast multitude is pursuing a shadowy shape, which seems to promise them ineffable satisfaction, but which ever eludes their eager grasp.
II. The true answer.
“Lord, lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us” (Psa_4:6).
There is a true answer to this question, and here we have it. The smile of God is the essential good. Mark:
1. The spirituality of the supreme blessing.
Here the world errs in imagining the chief good to be natural, sensible. “Who shall show us any good?” “Through all their life, with an unstable pace, they catch at flying forms of good; and after all their falls and their bruises, they cry out again and again, Who will show us any good? And when they behold any new species or shadow of it, they immediately run to it.”—Leighton. In opposition to this, the Psalmist avers that the supreme blessing is the light of God’s countenance. Observe:
(1.) Natural things will not atone for the absence of God. Nothing will take the place of God. Chemistry alleges that it has discovered a means of producing artificial sunlight. From natural elements a flame is to be evolved which shall equal in quality and intensity the light emitted from the sun. Wonderful things, no doubt, have come from the brains of chemists, but it will be a long time, nevertheless, before they make us independent of the sun. It will be a long time before “artificial sunshine” melts the snows of winter, paints the flowers of summer, ripens the fruits of autumn, shoots life through the swelling year. So we may try to find in natural things substitutes for the light of God’s face, but they must all prove in vain. Oh! cease your vain attempts to create light and joy out of merely worldly elements; look up, and in the light of God’s countenance find the vital sunshine of the soul.
“Mark what is good in the creatures you behold, in the song of birds, in the beauty of flowers, in the wealth of metals, in the sweetness of meats; these are but rills proceeding from God, the abounding Fount; all these utter the things which are in God; for all creatures are but voices manifesting Him. Yet we must not rest in them. It has happened that painters have pictured fruit with such accuracy, that birds have come out of the sky, thinking them real, in order to feed upon them; but finding them to be painted, and that there is no food in them, they fly away to seek their true sustenance. The Divine painter has traced with His brush in His creatures the beauties which live in Himself, and in them they seem to live. Yet are they but figures, not verities, for the fashion of this world passeth away. Would you know how to act, knowing that these are but pictures and not realities? Act as the bird, which, finding no food in the painting, seeks its real meat elsewhere. Mark this, you will find in creation no true food, no satiety, no repose; mark this and fly away to your God. He is very good, He is true food, in Him alone is repose.”—John Osorius, 1558.
(2.) The blessing of God is the sweetness of all natural things. So far from natural things atoning for the absence of God, they have no power to satisfy except by virtue of the Divine blessing. “As with manna there fell a dew, so to a good soul, together with corn and wine there is a secret influence of God, which the carnal heart is not acquainted with.”—Trapp.
(3.) The blessing of God is enough in the absence of all natural gifts and ecclesiastical privileges. Without natural gifts. He can satisfy the soul directly without the corn and wine at all. “He is enough without the creature, but the creature is not anything without Him. It is, therefore, better to enjoy Him without anything else, than to enjoy everything else without Him. It is better to be a wooden vessel filled with wine than a golden one filled with water.”—Secker, quoted by Spurgeon. Without ecclesiastical agencies. David was at a distance from the tabernacle, and he had sent back the ark to Jerusalem, but he felt that God put joy into his heart all the same. He and his friends rejoice, although cut off from the Tabernacle, to feel God near and precious. “We cannot now, it is true, offer the sacrifices of victims before the ark at Jerusalem, but we may offer the sacrifice of the spirit. We have not access to the Urim and Thummim, on the high priest’s breastplate in the sanctuary; but God will lift up the light of His countenance upon us. That is the true Urim and Thummim. We cannot now receive the benediction of the priests, ‘The Lord bless thee, and keep thee;’ but the Lord Himself is ever present with us to bless us, and He lifts up the light of His countenance upon us. There is our true good. There is our genuine gladness.”—Wordsworth. So, if God take away from us material good and deprive us, or permit us to be deprived, of ecclesiastical ceremonies and services, He can come into our soul and fill it with sublime delights. Ah! God sometimes takes away proprieties and ceremonies that we may realise more richly and fully the spiritual blessedness which those agents sometimes veil and limit.
2. The sufficiency of the supreme blessing. “More than in the time,” &c. (Psa_4:7). “David’s enemies have at their command all earthly means of support and enjoyment. He finds it difficult to collect supplies for himself and his army, yet God has given him a better joy than that of harvest or vintage.”—Perowne. “The joy of godliness is infinitely greater than that of worldliness. There is as much difference between heavenly comforts and earthly, as between a banquet that is eaten and one that is painted on the wall.”—Watson, quoted by Spurgeon. The delight of the saint is—
“What nothing earthly gives or can destroy,
The soul’s calm sunshine and the heart-felt joy.”—POPE.
3. The fruits of this blessing:
(1.) The consciousness of peace. “I will both lay me down and sleep” (Psa_4:8). “At once, as soon as I lie down, I sleep, not harassed by disturbing and anxious thoughts.”—Phillips. In the drama the sleepless king wonders that sleep—
“Upon the high and giddy mast
Seals up the ship-boy’s eyes, and rocks his brains
In cradle of the rude imperious surge;
And in the visitation of the winds,
Who take the ruffian billows by the top,
Curling their monstrous heads, and hanging them
With deaf’ning clamours in the slippery clouds,
That, with the hurly, death itself awakes.
Canst thou, O partial sleep! give thy repose
To the wet sea-boy in an hour so rude?”
But in those storms of life which are stronger, wilder than fiercest sea-storm, “God giveth His beloved sleep.”
(2.) The consciousness of safety. To “dwell in safety.” “He needs no guards, for he is guarded round about by Jehovah, and kept in safety.”—Delitzsch.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain (with Psa 24:3-4)
Psa 4:4
(with Psa 24:3-4)
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This text addresses itself to every single, solitary person, in the most solitary, silent time, when his day’s work is ended and he is going to sleep. David could not have said a better word to any of us than this: "Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still."
I. It is not bodily stillness alone; that is compelled. If it were not for sleep—that is, the bodily silence—we should all go mad. There comes a silence every now and then, and God makes it just to give Himself a chance of speaking.
II. If we do not do the will of God in the day, it is not likely that we will be still upon our beds that He may come and visit us. The true temple and the true worship is an every-day-of-the-week worship. That is what our Lord would have. We were not meant to be creatures of feeling; we were meant to be creatures of conscience first of all, and then of conscience towards God, a sense of His presence; and if we go on, our feelings will blossom as a rose from the very necessity of things. The one eternal, original, infinite blessing of the human soul is when in stillness the Father comes and says, "My child, I am here."
G. Macdonald, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxii., p. 257.
I. Consider, first, the nature of godly meditation, regarded as a distinct exercise of our practical Christianity. We must not identify the exercise with religious contemplation, that higher form of intellectual homage which the mind, when elevated above the level of earthly things, pays to the wisdom of God; neither is meditation to be confounded with the exercise of reading, even though it be thoughtful, prayerful, scriptural reading. We must also distinguish it from the ordinary act of prayer. Godly meditation is the soul’s soliloquy; it is the heart rehearsing to itself what shall be the manner of its appearing before God, and what it shall say. It is not so much a religious act in itself as a preparation for all other religious acts. It prepares for holy communion by accustoming the mind to the deeper and calmer forms of fellowship with God.
II. Notice some practical directions in relation to this holy exercise. It is clear that meditation is not an act to be learned, but a habit to be formed. We must attain to expertness in it, not by the observance of artificial rules so much as by diligent and persevering practice. (1) David intimates to us the desirableness of securing an outward solemnity and seriousness in this exercise, entire seclusion from all human friendships, the hushing of all voices, both from within and from without, that we may be quite alone with God. (2) A close self-scrutiny is also enjoined in the text: "Commune with your own heart." We have much to speak to our hearts about: our mercies, our sins, our work. These thoughts demand retirement, a coming by ourselves apart, a calm trial of our own spirits in the presence of the Father of spirits; in a word, they demand a set and deliberate compliance with the exhortation of the Psalmist, "Commune with your own heart, and in your chamber, and be still."
D. Moore, Penny Pulpit, No. 3,171.
John Baptist was almost as unlike a Jew of his own day as he is unlike us. Though not unexampled, his hermit life, his dress, his food, his abode, were of course utterly discrepant from city life or village life in any age. His position as a boy and a young man was utterly lonely; he is not merely a prophet of God, marked as that position would have been: John is always called a messenger, one who has more to do with Him from whom he comes.
I. In this country and in this age of the world, circumstances seem to force every single person into conditions to which John’s life has no kind of relation, and to except none. It is the very idea of modern life that every one is to influence and be influenced by every one. Our very intellectual education has taken the turn of excluding originality, but far more so our social and moral education. And here we approach the great difficulty, that in all this education we tend to reduce principles, religious and moral principles, to the level and standard of the mass.
II. What then is the remedy? How shall we at once gain the great good of public life for the many and yet not make all life a mere sacrifice to the third-rate? The lessons of the life of John Baptist seem to have some bearing on this question. He was indeed original and independent, and dwelt "communing with the skies." Yet he loved the people well, and the people loved him. The contentment of private soldiers, and the honesty of tax-gatherers, and quiet consciences for ordinary people, and liberality towards each other—these were the things in which he took an interest. So in all places and times ought higher minds and souls to care for the simple duties and happinesses of those who surround them, while for themselves they eschew the world and live to God.
III. St. John gained his power in the use which he made of lonely hours. In retirement he gained clear views and he gained courage. It might be absurd for any one nowadays to go to a mountain or to a river to seek or to teach wisdom; but it is not absurd to make retirement, and real thought, and prayer a steady part of our life. Our Lord did not contemplate wildernesses for people of the towns, but He did often speak to them about praying in their own little rooms with closed doors. Original thought is the only power which rules others. Use yourselves therefore not to live always in a din, not always in a turmoil; let not your character be made up of endless patchwork fragments of the thoughts, the opinions, the feelings, which you have caught from others.
Archbishop Benson, Boy Life: Sundays in Wellington College, p. 60.
References: Psa 4:4.—E. Garbett, The Soul’s Life, p. 1; W. M. Statham, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xix., p. 377.
Psa 4:4-5
To persons who are cast down and doubtful what their hope is of pardon, and sanctification, and final acceptance the Divine answer is nothing mystical and perplexing, nothing implying that our condition is not one of danger and difficulty, nor, again, anything that shall give excuse for feelings of despair, as if there were no hope, or of presumptuous indolence, as if God would bring men to heaven whether they try to serve Him or no; nothing of all this is to be found in these oracles of God, but an admonition at once plain, solemn, encouraging, warning: "Stand in awe, and sin not; commune with your own heart upon your bed and be still," to which the Holy Spirit immediately rejoins, "Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord."
I. You cannot but observe how plain, and simple, and unimpassioned, how far from all perplexing notions and from all rapturous heights and flights of feeling, is the description here given of the repenting convert, the accepted child of God. The temper and disposition of mind suitable for him is far from all confidence and presumption, ever standing in awe lest he should again return to sin and folly, studying more than any other books the book of his own heart and conscience, understood by the light of Scripture. While he offers the sacrifices of righteousness, he puts his trust, not in them, but in the Lord, even the Lord Jesus Christ, his Redeemer.
II. Note in what a solemn tone of warning the passage is delivered. The words of the text clearly imply the greatness of our danger, the danger of forgetting in whose presence we are, and of again drawing back to sin and to perdition. It is good for us to have our confidence and high spirit brought down, and to be made to know and feel what we are and whom we have to depend on.
III. Observe how soothing is the view here presented to us of our religious state and duties. We are not taught to harass ourselves with doubts as to our final acceptance, to seek after any special inward convictions of feeling; it is necessary that we stand in awe, and sin not, and offer the sacrifices of righteousness.
IV. We are here stimulated and encouraged to active exertion, cautioned against trusting to a sluggish, inactive profession, and urged and warned to be fruitful in all good works.
Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times" vol. i., p. 19.
References: Psa 4:4, Psa 4:5.—G. Matheson, Moments on the Mount, p. 213. Psa 4:5.—G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 134.
Psa 4:6
I. Consider, first, the question: "There be many that say, Who will show us any good?" Now, whoever these persons may be, it is plain from the language here attributed to them that they are not happy. They speak as men who have been spending their money, and have found that what they have received back in exchange is not bread, and that all the fruit of their labour does not satisfy; hence they do not say, "Who will show us the true good?" but "Who will show us any good?" practically admitting that all which they have been pursuing hitherto has not furnished them with that which they desire. The world has been ever wandering in search of the chief good, and the history of its mistakes is the history of its miseries. The true good is found in the other part of the text: "Lord, lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us."
II. Looking at the question and answer as both expressive of the heart’s desire, we see in them some very striking characteristic differences in reference to the persons whose consciences are plainly described. Thus one only asks that he may have any good, without limit as to amount, or stipulation as to lawfulness, or care about the supplying sources. But the good man will not be satisfied with any good, nor even with good from any hand. He must have the chief good, the best good, that which he is panting after as a portion for his soul—living water, and not water from the cistern. He needs not to run hither and thither, saying, "Who will show us any good?" He knows that God only can show it, because it is in a sense of reconciliation with Him, of a granted pardon from Him, that the only good he cares for must consist.
III. How may this chief good be most certainly obtained? Here we have only to let Scripture be its own interpreter: "He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"
D. Moore, Penny Pulpit, No. 3409.
References: Psa 4:6.—H. Griffith, Christian World Pulpit, vol. x., p. 259; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 232.
Psa 4:6-7
I. Look, first, at that which the Psalmist seeks: the light of God’s countenance. (1) The first thing which this implies is that we are noticed by the Divine Being. God’s countenance at least means this, that He takes cognizance of our affairs. (2) It means that He is interested in us. The very notice which He takes of us is occasioned by His interest. (3) It means that we are the objects and the recipients of His favour. To give us the light of His countenance is but another word for extending to us His friendship. (4) The light of God’s countenance means that He approves of our acts. To enjoy God’s countenance is to enjoy the consciousness of His approval. (5) "Countenance" means help and benediction. It is a blessing which maketh rich and addeth no sorrow.
II. Notice, next, how it is that God’s countenance gladdens. "Thou hast made me," says another psalm, "exceeding glad with Thy countenance;" and the language shows that when the light of God’s countenance shines, and men walk in it, there is no stint, no limit, no measure, to the full heart’s joy. Exceeding gladness is not gladness which can be measured, as if there were just enough of it, and nothing more, enough to satisfy the desire, and nothing more. It is gladness which capacity does not equal and even desire cannot surpass, gladness beyond our utmost wish, in excess of our largest conception. Long as our capacity for enjoyment lasts, God’s countenance makes the heart glad. If we are Christians, let us study to live in the enjoyment of our privileges. If God has lifted upon us the light of His countenance, let us try constantly to realise what that means and be of good cheer.
W. Landels, Penny Pulpit, No. 997.
Reference: Psa 4:6, Psa 4:7.—J. B. French, Christian World Pulpit, vol. iii., p. 30.
Psa 4:8
The entire rest and tranquillity of God’s faithful servants, when they lay them down on their bed at night, is beautifully expressed in the words of the text. "I will lay me down," says David, "all together" all my powers of mind and body agreeing, as it were, one with another, not torn by violent passions, by desire on the one hand and remorse on the other. But as sleep is the image of death, and as the slumber of every night, rightly understood, is to a Christian a kind of sacramental token of that last long sleep, so these words may well be used by, and always have been understood by devout persons as most proper for, a dying Christian also. As Christ said on the Cross, "Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit," so may Christians every night of their lives, and still more when the night of death draws on, gather and compose all their thoughts and affections into that one most exalting and soothing thought of all that they are about to fall asleep in His arms who long ago, when they were little children, took them up, marked them for His own, and blessed them. How is it that in sleep, and still more in death, Christian men may humbly depend on a peculiar presence of our Lord Jesus Christ to guard them?
I. Because He is that King who has promised to His people Israel, "He will not suffer thy foot to be moved, and He that keepeth thee will not sleep." We are the Israel to whom the promise is made.
II. In this, as in every other part of our life, comes in the remembrance and power of our Lord’s sacrifice. That deep sleep of His has sanctified and blessed the sleep of all penitent Christians for all time to come.
III. We are taught in Scripture to regard the holy Sacrament of the body and blood of Christ as one very especial safeguard for the sleeping until they wake, and for the dead until they rise again.
Plain Sermons by Contributors to "Tracts for the Times" vol. vi., p. 84 (see also J. Keble, Sermons for Holy Week, p. 230).
References: Psa 4:8.—Expositor, 3rd series, vol. v., p. 306; C. J. Vaughan, Voices of the Prophets, p. 75. Psa 4:1.—Sermons for Boys and Girls, p. 69.
Psalm 4
I. Everywhere, in the history of the human heart, these two things are found in the hours of our bitter pain: unfathomable desire and want of something more than earth or its love can give, and the consciousness of some one capable of filling the want. Out of these two things, consciousness of an infinite want and an infinite fulness and of the relation of one to the other, springs prayer, the paradox; and whatever some may say, it is undeniable that men, and these not the worst, but the best, of the race, have received—or, if you like, imagined they received—an answer.
II. Passion, faith, and will are the wings of prayer, as they are the wings of all the words and deeds which bring forth fruit upon earth. Be therefore in earnest with God; be importunate; let no silence, no apparent cruelty, send you back.
III. But sometimes neither faith, passion, nor will arise, and we cannot pray at all. (1) The heart often gets hard in bitter sorrow; neither words nor thoughts will come. (2) At other times prayer is made impossible by a deep depression, the essential difference of which is that it seems without cause. (3) Sometimes it is the seeming failure of life that hinders prayer. I cannot but think that we arrive at that stage when hardness of heart or failure comes because before they come we have made God a stranger by neglecting prayer.
IV. In this Psalm we have the true amalgam of prayer: trust which boldly claims God; humility that owns the weakness of self. The answer comes at once to such a prayer as it came to David, not as yet in restoration to the kingdom, but in that which made restoration or not indifferent—in gladness of heart, in peace of heart.
S. A. Brooke, The Spirit of the Christian Life, p. 277.
This is a fair-weather psalm. David has been in distress, and now the clouds have been blown away, and the blue sky has returned, so he does what many seldom think of doing: he thanks God for deliverance and enlargement, and takes no credit to himself. People who had seen his distress had questioned his religion, and in so doing had sought to turn his glory into shame, and had exclaimed that vanity was better than prayer, and that leasing was better than sacrifice. Now David’s turn has come, and the facts are all on his side.
I. Look at David in his enlargement and thankfulness. You must not look at a man’s distress alone, and build an argument upon his sorrow. You must take into view the whole compass of his life.
II. David continues, You have been judging by unusual circumstances and special providences of trial, but you should rest on great principles, and especially on the principle that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for Himself.
III. If you believe this, you will stand in awe and sin not; that is, you will pray even in the storm, and you will bow down in homage when the Lord passeth by in judgment.
IV. David tells us what to do in loss, and pain, and sorrow: Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord; continue in the way of duty; go to the sanctuary even when you have to grope for the sacred door in darkness; seek the altar, and say concerning God, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him."
V. The idea of ver. 7 is that in loss, and poverty, and apparent desolation there may actually be more gladness, more real and lasting spiritual delight, than in times of prosperity.
Parker, The Ark of God, p. 125.
References: Psalm 4—A. Maclaren, Life of David, p. 246; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iii., p. 356; I. Williams, The Psalms Interpreted of Christ, p. 111; S. Cox, Expositor, 2nd series, vol. iii., p. 178. Psa 5:3.—W. Lindsay Alexander, Christian Thought and Work, p. 17.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
F. W. Grant 1903 · Public Domain Confidence in Jehovah’s distinguishing care.
Confidence in Jehovah’s distinguishing care.
For the chief musician; on stringed instruments. A psalm of David.
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We have for the first time here a musical inscription, "To the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments," as psaltery and harp. A gentler, quieter strain is indicated than in the psalm that follows, with its accompaniment of flutes. The themes certainly correspond to this difference, though we may not be able to define it more closely. And who is meant by "the chief musician"? Is it indeed a note of relation to Him who has led in these experiences, "the Leader and Finisher of faith," as Scripture declares Him, and who at the end, "in the midst of the congregation," leads the praises of His people with the gladdest heart among them all? It is surely natural to think so, even though we can give no account why this is found in some of these psalms and not in others. The spiritual sense has had perhaps too little training with us for this.
The psalm corresponds perfectly with its place as second in this series, being so far like the second psalm itself, a contrasted picture of the righteous and the wicked. God has set apart the godly for Himself, and the effects of this are seen, not in outward deliverances, but in the joy of an inward experience beyond telling: the first pleads with the sons of men to make proof of it for themselves. This is an advance evidently upon the last psalm, while it leads on to new ground which by and by may give room for question and experiences of another kind. At present all is confidence.
1. The psalm has two main divisions; the first giving the theme, the second the confirmation of the doctrine of the first. The first declares the righteous One to be for the righteous. The key-note here is righteousness. The "God of my righteousness" is the God to whom all my righteousness has respect, as it must have, to be righteousness. God apprehended by the soul is alone the basis of all right, and ensures it. Apart from this, all virtues are but ciphers, which with a preceding figure only become valuable. Men are themselves, apart from God, such ciphers, and what is duty to them, if He is not regarded in it?
This God of righteousness is a living God, actively interposing in behalf of His own, the godly ones, whom He distinguishes as such. When they call, He hears. Faith is exercised, but answered, and strengthened by the exercise. In the consciousness of this experience of the divine favor, the psalmist turns to plead with the sons of men, who, while ignorant of this, are yet not ignorant of an opposite experience in the paths that they have chosen. He can appeal to them as even consciously loving vanity, and seeking after a lie, -after that which never fulfills the promise that it gives. Surely this is knowledge enough to prevent men mocking at and insulting the believer’s glory, which is founded upon experiences of which they can know nothing.
2. The second part of the psalm confirms this on both sides with facts of experience. He bids them only to shut out the vain thoughts that allure them, to retire into themselves, and consult only their own hearts upon their bed in the night. Pursuit of pleasure only manifests that there is not the enjoyment of happiness. It may kill time and keep from reflection; whereas, did they reflect, they would find that the weariness and emptiness experienced were but the necessary fruit of departing from God, of sin which had ruined all. This secret their own hearts held, and would reveal, if they would only take them for their counsellors. Conscience would then convince them of the reality of sin which no forms of ritual service could ever meet: they must offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put their trust in Jehovah, -two things which are very much the lesson of the first two psalms.
The language seems to intimate that while practical ungodliness abounds in Israel, and the righteous are the subjects of reproach and persecution, the apostasy of the mass is not yet consummated, -the "sinners" are not yet full-length "scoffers." The forms of Judaism are yet going on; there are sacrifices, but not "sacrifices of righteousness," nor conjoined with any practical faith in Jehovah. The next step may be into open apostasy; but it is not yet taken.
Thus there is still room for the appeal in the psalm. There is hope that they may be yet touched with the need of a condition in which the wearying question of good that is not found ends surely in the discovery of the vanity of what they have set their hearts upon, -a need which no increase of corn and wine can meet. On the other hand, God is the satisfying portion of His people; not merely a "shield about" one, but a "light," a glory within the soul, true gladness, not the product of the soul itself, nor of man’s labor. Yet this gladness how impossible for a soul out of God’s presence to imagine! Men have dropped so far away from God as to have lost even the sense of good in Him to be sought after or enjoyed. God’s salvation is only for them the sad alternative of hell; God’s presence, alas, almost hell itself! So the appeal to the sons of men turns perforce into a prayer: "Lord, lift up the light of Thy countenance upon us" the light in which alone we see light. "Thou hast put gladness into my heart more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased."
For us, blessed with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, accepted in the Beloved, known to and knowing God in Him, that light has indeed fully shone. Children of the day, no more of night, nor of darkness, "God has shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." We are His living witnesses that in His presence is fullness of joy. And this joy is power for walk, for holiness, for service, as nought else is. The joy of the Lord is your strength. How well may we enjoy a possession secured to us as is ours, without one disturbing care! "I will both lay me down in peace and sleep."
This psalm, then, is in evident advance of the previous one, as has been said. There it is God a shield; here it is God a portion. There what He does for me; here what He is to me. Yet we may easily perceive how the ground taken here may permit an after-question in the soul. "Jehovah has set apart the godly for Himself." If that be the root of confidence, will it always be held so certain that "Jehovah will hear when I call upon Him"? At present there may be no doubt, and rightly none; yet will it be as plain through the cloudy and dark day as in the sunshine now? Who that has known what it is to be upon this ground but has felt its instability? When the storm brings up the depths of the heart, will all that is brought up be "godliness"?
Yet the principle is true, quite true. Grace does not set aside righteousness, but confirms and reigns through it. But for this grace must be known as that which secures all; and ere this be apprehended some bitter experience may yet be gone through. Bitter assuredly will theirs be whom these psalms prophetically contemplate; yet shall they return, after all the questioning is over, with only fuller assurance to the blessed reality that the light of His countenance, with all the gladness that it pours into the soul, is theirs forever.
F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain This is an evening hymn, and though no occasion…
This is an evening hymn, and though no occasion is mentioned it may perhaps be referred, like Psalms 3 (its natural companion), to the time of Absalom's revolt, but to a somewhat later stage in the course of events, when the peril had largely passed away. It contains David's appeal to God (Psa_4:1), his appeal to his enemies (Psa_4:2-5), and his own resolve (Psa_4:6-8).
Title.—(RV) 'For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments (Neginoth).'
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1. God of my righteousness] The God who is on the side of the Psalmist's righteous cause.
Enlarged me] RV 'set me at large.'
2. Sons of men] in contrast with God, who is addressed in v.
1. How long will ye turn, etc.] RV 'how long shall my glory be turned,' etc. Leasing] RV 'falsehood.'
3. Butknow] introduces the truth which the Psalmist's enemies ignored.
4. Stand in awe] LXX renders, 'Be ye angry,' and is followed by St. Paul in Eph_4:26. Be still] cease your striving after vanity. Selah] see on Psa_3:4.
5. Sacrifices of righteousness] sacrifices accompanied by right conduct, offered in a right spirit, and so acceptable to God. Perhaps there may be a reference to the insincere sacrifices of 2Sa_15:12.
6. There be many] possibly in allusion to the discontented people whom Absalom sought to win by fair promises (2Sa_15:4). Lord, lift thou up] a striking transition from the vain quests of men to the one source of the chief good. The light of thy countenance] favour, such as earthly kings express by a smiling face: see Num_6:26; Psa_80:3, Psa_80:7, Psa_80:19.
7. More than in the time] RV 'more than they have when,' etc. 'They' seems to refer to the enemies of the writer. He in his hardships is happier than they in their plenty: the peace of God is better than the mirth of harvest.
8. The note of evensong. Read, 'In peace will I both lay me down and sleep.' The whole night's rest is peaceful, because God, the only source of protection, is on the Psalmist's side.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain Neginoth: stringed instruments mentioned in connection with Psalms 3;…
Neginoth
Neginoth: stringed instruments mentioned in connection with Psalms 3; Psalms 5; Psalms 43; Psalms 54; Psalms 60; Psalms 66; Psalms 75, where it seems clear that the musical directions now appearing as titles of Psalms 4; Psalms 6; Psalms 54; Psalms 55; Psalms 61; Psalms 67; Psalms , 76, were anciently appended to the preceding Psalms.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain Psalm 4
Psalm 4
1. The cry to Jehovah (Psa 4:1-3)
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2. The warning to the enemies (Psa 4:4-5)
3. The assurance of faith (Psa 4:6-8)
Psa 4:1-3. The fourth Psalm is closely connected with the third; the third is “a Morning Psalm” and the fourth “an Evening Hymn.” He calls God “God of my righteousness” and He knows that He will act in righteousness toward him, be gracious and hear prayer. Then the appeal to the sons of men, who love emptiness and seek after a lie. They should know that the Lord hath set apart the godly for Himself and therefore He will hear.
Psa 4:4-5. This expresseth the concern of the godly for those who reject the Lord, it is a warning appeal to turn from their evil ways, to offer the sacrifices of righteousness and to trust Jehovah.
Psa 4:6-8. The mocking words “who will show us any good?” the challenge of unbelief, is met by prayer and the assurance of faith. “Lift upon us the light of Thy countenance, Jehovah.” This we shall find later is a choice prayer of the Jewish saints in the tribulation. (See Psa 80:1-19.) His heart is filled with joy; he knows he is safe. “For Thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety.” Such is the experience of the godly, who trust the Lord. Their hearts are filled with gladness; their safety is the Lord.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Evening Prayer of a Christian in Every Kind of…
Evening Prayer of a Christian in Every Kind of Trouble.
David, in his flight before Absalom, had come to Mahanaim, on the east side of Jordan, 2Sa 17:24-26. He had a number of faithful men with him, but the army of Absalom, recruited from all Israel, was much larger. In order, therefore, to stimulate his own courage and to revive the drooping spirits of his men. David wrote this hymn, which, on account of its divine inspiration, has become a song of consolation for all those who are in trouble. To the chief musician, the man in charge of the liturgical music in the Temple-services, on Neginoth, the stringed instruments of the Temple-orchestra, a psalm of David.
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v. 1. Hear me when I call, offering ears favorable to his cause, O God of my righteousness, literally, "my God of righteousness," since Jehovah is the Vindicator of righteousness when it is falsely represented and persecuted. Thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress, making room, space, for his anxious heart when he was in straits. Have mercy upon me, the idea of unmerited favor coming to the front here, and hear my prayer. David urges his fellowship with Jehovah and the fact of his recent deliverance as reasons why God should show him further favors. He now, in a rhetorical manner, turns to the followers of Absalom, the proud and rebellious company.
v. 2. O ye sons of men, men of prominence as many of them were, how long will ye turn my glory, the kingly dignity and authority given to him by God, into shame? How long will ye love vanity, the deceitful character of their rebellious plans, and seek after leasing, the lying and falsehood with which they tried to bolster up their schemes to dethrone David? Selah.
v. 3. But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself; He had, in a wonderful manner, selected David, and elevated him to the royal dignity. The Lord will hear when I call unto Him; this was the confidence of his pious heart.
v. 4. Stand in awe, trembling before the wrath of God, and sin not, considering carefully lest they definitely endanger their own salvation; commune with your own heart upon your bed, deliberating when the silence of night was suited for such reflections, and be still, ceasing from their rebellious activities. Selah.
v. 5. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, showing the soundness of their penitence, the real character of their conversion, by sacrifices of atonement, and put your trust in the Lord, who would abundantly pardon after such an evidence of true godly sorrow.
v. 6. There be many that say, even in the little band of his faithful followers, Who will show us any good? Would it be possible for them to experience deliverance in this time of great trouble? It is the cry which is apt to come to the lips of the truest children of God when all hope seems to be cut off. Therefore David’s urgent prayer now rises to the throne of Jehovah. Lord, lift Thou up the light of Thy countenance upon us, in the blessing of God’s kindness and mercy which He Himself had laid upon His children in the Aaronic benediction, Num 6:26. And so the pleading of David changes into a confident assertion.
v. 7. Thou hast put gladness in my heart, causing him to rejoice in the midst of his outward affliction and to await the deliverance of Jehovah with calm trust, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. In spite of the fact that the party of Absalom had rich provisions at their disposal, the joyful confidence of David was a richer treasure than all the abundance of their barns and cellars. The conclusion of the prayer, therefore, is in line with David’s trust in Jehovah and in the certainty of his salvation.
v. 8. I will both lay me down in peace, without further thought of worry, and sleep, immediately drop off-into a refreshing sleep, undisturbed by anxious thoughts; for Thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety, under the shelter of God’s protecting hand the believer is always safe. For a Christian to spend the night in restless worry and forego the pleasure of a refreshing sleep is not only foolish, but may also verge on the sinful, namely, if it is equivalent to forsaking his trust in Jehovah.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Parallelism is common in Hebrew poetry. (See: Poetry and Parallelism)
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For the chief musician
"This is for the director of music to use in worship"
on stringed instruments
"people should play stringed instruments with this song"
A psalm of David
Possible meanings are 1) David wrote the psalm or 2) the psalm is about David or 3) the psalm is in the style of David's psalms.
Answer me when I call
"Respond to me when I call" or "Help me when I call"
God of my righteousness
"God, who shows that I am righteous"
give me room when I am hemmed in
Being in danger is spoken of as being in a narrow space. AT: "rescue me when I am in danger" (See: Metaphor)
translationWords
chief
David
call
God
righteous
mercy
pray
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Ps 4 This individual lament includes a prayer for…
Ps 4 This individual lament includes a prayer for rescue (4:1), a rebuke of the adversary (4:2-3), an exhortation to the godly (4:4-5), and an expression of confidence (4:6-8).
4:1 Waiting for the Lord’s answer allows for growth in patience and for the refinement of living faith (38:15).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.