PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible — Psalms
Gill, John, 1697-1771 · 746,590 words · 1615 reading sections
Psalms 50:13
Psalms 50:13 Ver. 13. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?] That is, express a pleasure, take delight and satisfaction, in such kind of sacrifices, which can never take away sin: no, I will not; wherefore other sacrifices, more agreeable to his nature, mind, and will, and to the Gospel dispensat…
61 wordsSECTION 542Psalms 50:14
Psalms 50:14 Ver. 14. Offer unto God thanksgiving,.... Which is a sacrifice, Ps 50:23; and the Jews say {x}, that all sacrifices will cease in future time, the times of the Messiah, but the sacrifice of praise; and this should be offered up for all mercies, temporal and spiritual; and unto God, because they all come f…
2,291 wordsSECTION 543Psalms 51:1
Psalms 51:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 51 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. The occasion of this psalm was the sin of David with Bathsheba, signified by "going in to her"; an euphemism for "lying with her"; which sin was a very aggravated one…
712 wordsSECTION 544Psalms 51:2
Psalms 51:2 Ver. 2. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,.... Which supposes defilement by sin, and that very great, and such as none can remove but the Lord himself; who, when he takes it in hand, does it effectually and thoroughly; see Eze 36:25. David's sin had long lain upon him, the faith of it had as it were ea…
229 wordsSECTION 545Psalms 51:3
Psalms 51:3 Ver. 3. For I acknowledge my transgressions,.... Before God and man. Acknowledgment of sin is what the Lord requires, and promises forgiveness upon, and therefore is used here as a plea for it; and moreover the psalmist had done so before, and had succeeded in this way, which must encourage him to take the…
142 wordsSECTION 546Psalms 51:4
Psalms 51:4 Ver. 4. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,.... All sin, though committed against a fellow creature, being a transgression of the law, is against the lawgiver; and, indeed, begins at the neglect or contempt of his commandment, as David's sin did, 2Sa 12:9; and being committed against God, that had best…
322 wordsSECTION 547Psalms 51:5
Psalms 51:5 Ver. 5. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity,.... This cannot be understood of any personal iniquity of his immediate parents; since this respects his wonderful formation in the womb, in which both he and they were wholly passive, as the word here used is of that form; and is the amazing work of God himself, s…
758 wordsSECTION 548Psalms 51:6
Psalms 51:6 Ver. 6. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts,.... With delight and pleasure, as the word {d} signifies: meaning either Christ, the truth and the life, formed and dwelling in the hearts of his people; or the Gospel, the word of truth, which has a place there; and particularly that branch of it wh…
395 wordsSECTION 549Psalms 51:7
Psalms 51:7 Ver. 7. Purge me with hyssop,.... Or "thou shalt purge me with hyssop" {f}; or "expiate me"; which was used in sprinkling the blood of the paschal lamb on the door posts of the Israelites in Egypt, that the destroying angel might pass over them, Ex 12:22; and in the cleansing of the leper, Le 14:4; and in …
425 wordsSECTION 550Psalms 51:8
Psalms 51:8 Ver. 8. Make me to hear joy and gladness,.... Which he had not heard for some time; sin had sadly broke in upon and interrupted his spiritual peace and joy; for though the love and favour of God cannot be lost, yet his sensible presence, which puts joy and gladness into the heart, may; and though an intere…
492 wordsSECTION 551Psalms 51:9
Psalms 51:9 Ver. 9. Hide thy face from my sins,.... In whose sight they were committed, being now ashamed of them himself, and ashamed that any should see them, and especially his God; and being filthy and nauseous, he knew they must be abominable to him, who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity; and being breache…
214 wordsSECTION 552Psalms 51:10
Psalms 51:10 Ver. 10. Create in me a clean heart, O God,.... Which was now defiled with sin, and of which being convinced, he was led more and more to see the impurity of his heart and nature, from which all his evil actions flowed; and being sensible that he could not make his heart clean himself, and that this was t…
327 wordsSECTION 553Psalms 51:11
Psalms 51:11 Ver. 11. Cast me not away from thy presence,.... As abominable; as a vessel in which he had no pleasure; with indignation and wrath; as one that is angry with another, cannot bear him in his sight, but bids him be gone from him. Nothing is more desirable to a child of God than the presence of God; and not…
494 wordsSECTION 554Psalms 51:12
Psalms 51:12 Ver. 12. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation,.... Not temporal, but spiritual and eternal; and designs either Christ himself, who is God's salvation, of his appointing and providing, in the view of whom, as such, David had much spiritual joy; or the salvation he was to work out, which God the Father …
2,468 wordsSECTION 555Psalms 52:1
Psalms 52:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 52 To the chief Musician, Maschil, [A Psalm] of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Ahimelech. Of the title "Maschil", See Gill on "Ps 32:1", title. The occasion of this psalm is here related, the history of which is in 1S…
1,291 wordsSECTION 556Psalms 52:2
Psalms 52:2 Ver. 2. Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs,.... Abundance of mischiefs, in a variety of ways, against many persons, even all good men. What properly belongs to the heart is here ascribed to the tongue; because, as Aben Ezra observes, it is the interpreter and discoverer of the thoughts of the heart: out of the …
250 wordsSECTION 557Psalms 52:3
Psalms 52:3 Ver. 3. Thou lovest evil more than good,.... Indeed not good at all; such comparatives being strong negatives; see Ps 118:8; a wicked man loves evil, and nothing else; his carnal mind being enmity to all that is good [and] lying rather than to speak righteousness; as appears by his affirming that Ahimelec…
128 wordsSECTION 558Psalms 52:4
Psalms 52:4 Ver. 4. Thou lovest all devouring words,.... Or "words of swallowing up" {y}; such as lies, calumnies, and detractions are, which devour the characters and reputations of men, and are the cause sometimes of their utter ruin and destruction; of the devouring and blasphemous words of antichrist see Re 13:5; …
72 wordsSECTION 559Psalms 52:5
Psalms 52:5 Ver. 5. God shall likewise destroy thee for ever,.... As a just retaliation for the mischief done to others; or, "therefore God shall destroy" {z}, &c. even body and soul in hell, with an everlasting destruction, which will be the case of every wicked man, and particularly of the antichristian party, Re 14…
369 wordsSECTION 560Psalms 52:6
Psalms 52:6 Ver. 6. The righteous also shall see,.... The Targum adds, "the punishment of the wicked"; particularly what is before predicted of Doeg. The judgments of God upon the ungodly, as they are certain, so they will be visible, either in this world, or in that to come, Re 15:4; and fear; the Targum adds, "from…
261 wordsSECTION 561Psalms 52:7
Psalms 52:7 Ver. 7. Lo, [this is] the man [that] made not God his strength,.... The Targum renders it, "that made not the Word of the Lord his strength". These are the words the righteous would say, when they should see the destruction of Doeg: see the man, the mighty man, and his end; what all his ill gotten honour a…
1,034 wordsSECTION 562Psalms 53:1
Psalms 53:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 53 To the chief Musician upon Mahalath, Maschil, [A Psalm] of David. The word "mahalath" is only used here and in Ps 88:1. Some, with Aben Ezra, take it to be the first word of a song, to the tune of which this psalm was set; others, with Jarchi, that it is the name of a musical inst…
591 wordsSECTION 563Psalms 53:2
Psalms 53:2 Ver. 2. God looked down from heaven upon the children of men,.... In Ps 14:2, it is read, "the Lord" or "Jehovah"; in everything else there is an agreement in this verse; See Gill on "Ps 14:2"; to see if there were [any] that did understand; the Targum is, "that were understanding" in the law; it doubtles…
83 wordsSECTION 564Psalms 53:3
Psalms 53:3 Ver. 3. Every one of them is gone back,.... From God, and the way of his commandments. In Ps 14:3, it is, "they are all gone aside"; See Gill on "Ps 14:3"; they are altogether become filthy; [there is] none that doeth good, no, not one. What follows in this verse is the same as Ps 14:3.…
63 wordsSECTION 565Psalms 53:4
Psalms 53:4 Ver. 4. Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge?.... In Ps 14:4, it is, "have all the workers", &c. There are none of them but what have, unless given up to judicial blindness, and hardness of heart, to believe a lie, as antichrist and his followers, 2Th 2:10; See Gill on "Ps 14:4"; who eat up my people…
106 wordsSECTION 566Psalms 53:5
Psalms 53:5 Ver. 5. There were they in great, fear, [where] no fear was,.... Before; neither of God nor man, nor any dread of punishment, but the utmost security, Re 18:7; also See Gill on "Ps 14:5"; for God hath scattered the bones of [him] that encampeth [against] thee; either against Christ, or against his church …
325 wordsSECTION 567Psalms 53:6
Psalms 53:6 Ver. 6. O that the salvation of Israel [were come] out of Zion!.... Or, "who will give {f} out of Zion the salvation of Israel?" The Targum adds, "except the Lord"; and this is a request to him for it: and, as in Ps 14:7, it may be a wish for the first coming of Christ, to work out salvation for his people…
296 wordsSECTION 568Psalms 54:1
Psalms 54:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 54 To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil, [A Psalm] of David, when the Ziphims came and said to Saul, Doth not David hide himself with us? Of the word "neginoth", See Gill on "Ps 4:1", title; and of "maschil", See Gill on "Ps 32:1", title. The occasion of writing this psalm were…
624 wordsSECTION 569Psalms 54:2
Psalms 54:2 Ver. 2. Hear my prayer, O God,.... The psalmist first puts up his petitions, and then desires to be heard; his distress, and the fervency of his spirit, not suffering him to observe order; give ear to the words of my mouth; for the prayer which was conceived in his mind, and inwrought there by the Spirit …
65 wordsSECTION 570Psalms 54:3
Psalms 54:3 Ver. 3. For strangers are risen up against me,.... Meaning such as Doeg the Edomite, or Heathen soldiers, that Saul had hired and took into his army, who were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel; and such as these rose up against David's antitype, the Messiah, Ps 2:1 Ac 4:27. Or rather the Ziphims, who …
366 wordsSECTION 571Psalms 54:4
Psalms 54:4 Ver. 4. Behold, God [is] mine helper,.... This being a matter of wonder to be helped in so extraordinary a manner, and a sure and certain case, and what was deserving the attention of others; for the encouragement of their faith and hope in like cases, a "behold" is prefixed unto it: and what is here said …
473 wordsSECTION 572Psalms 54:5
Psalms 54:5 Ver. 5. He shall reward evil unto mine enemies,.... That eyed him as Saul did; that observed his haunts, where he resorted, and who were with him, as the Ziphites did under Saul's direction; as the Word {m} here used for "enemies" signifies: the mischief they had devised for him, he believed, would be retu…
150 wordsSECTION 573Psalms 54:6
Psalms 54:6 Ver. 6. I will freely sacrifice unto thee,.... Not legal sacrifices; no, nor freewill offerings the law gives directions about, though the allusion is to them; but the freewill offerings of his mouth, Ps 119:108; the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving, on account of help, salvation, and deliverance, as …
251 wordsSECTION 574Psalms 54:7
Psalms 54:7 Ver. 7. For he hath delivered me out of all trouble,.... As he desired, 1Sa 26:24; that is, out of all his present trouble; not that he had no more afterwards; for as soon as one trouble is gone, generally speaking, another comes; but as God delivered him out of his present distress, so he believed he woul…
131 wordsSECTION 575Psalms 55:1
Psalms 55:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 55 To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil [A Psalm] of David. The occasion of this psalm was either the persecution of Saul, or the conspiracy of Absalom. Some think it was written when David understood that the inhabitants of Keilah would deliver him into the hands of Saul, 1Sa …
353 wordsSECTION 576Psalms 55:2
Psalms 55:2 Ver. 2. Attend unto me, and hear me,.... So as to answer, and that immediately and directly, his case requiring present help; I mourn in my complaint; or "in my meditation" {p}; solitary thoughts, and melancholy views of things. Saints have their complaints, on account of their sins and corruptions, their…
231 wordsSECTION 577Psalms 55:3
Psalms 55:3 Ver. 3. Because of the voice of the enemy,.... Of Absalom, as Arama; or of Ahithophel, who gave out he would smite the king only, 2Sa 17:2; and so of any spiritual enemy, as sin, Satan, and the world, when they threaten dominion and tyranny; and of the Scribes and Pharisees reproaching Christ, as being a S…
224 wordsSECTION 578Psalms 55:4
Psalms 55:4 Ver. 4. My heart is sore pained within me,.... At the civil war in his kingdom; at the battle likely to ensue between his forces and Absalom's, and at the issue of it; see Jer 4:19; this was true of Christ in the garden, when his soul was exceeding sorrowful unto death, and he was in pain, as a woman in tr…
139 wordsSECTION 579Psalms 55:5
Psalms 55:5 Ver. 5. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me,.... Fear and dread of mind, and trembling of body; and horror hath overwhelmed me; or "covered me"; he was in the utmost consternation and surprise at what he apprehended would be the issue of things; so Christ in the garden is said to be "sore amazed", …
208 wordsSECTION 580Psalms 55:6
Psalms 55:6 Ver. 6. And I said, oh that I had wings like a dove,.... The psalmist pitches upon this creature, partly to suggest that his enemies pursuing him were like the ravenous hawk, and he like the harmless, innocent, and trembling dove; and partly because of its swiftness in flying. Aben Ezra thinks the dove is …
444 wordsSECTION 581Psalms 55:7
Psalms 55:7 Ver. 7. Lo, [then] would I wander far off, [and] remain in the wilderness,.... So David did when he fled from Absalom, 2Sa 15:23; so gracious souls desire to be; not in the wilderness of the people; but to be solitary as in a wilderness, clear of the company of wicked men, as Jeremiah wished for, Jer 9:2; …
222 wordsSECTION 582Psalms 55:8
Psalms 55:8 Ver. 8. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm [and] tempest. Of an army of rebellious subjects, bearing down all before them, and threatening with utter ruin and destruction; so a powerful army of enemies invading a country is signified by a storm and tempest, Isa 28:2; and may be expressive of the…
146 wordsSECTION 583Psalms 55:9
Psalms 55:9 Ver. 9. Destroy, O Lord,.... Or "swallow up" {s}, as Pharaoh and his host were swallowed up in the Red sea; or as Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, were swallowed up in the earth; so all the enemies of Christ and his church will be destroyed; and death, the last of them, will be swallowed up in victory, Isa 25:8.…
252 wordsSECTION 584Psalms 55:10
Psalms 55:10 Ver. 10. Day and night they go about it, upon the walls thereof,.... That is, "violence" and "strife" go about the walls of it continually; men of violence and contention are the only watchmen of it: a city must be sadly guarded that has no better watch than this; mischief also and sorrow [are] in the mi…
109 wordsSECTION 585Psalms 55:11
Psalms 55:11 Ver. 11. Wickedness [is] in the midst thereof,.... All manner of wickedness; abominable wickedness; wickedness as arrived to its highest pitch, and as having filled up its measure; see Eze 9:4; deceit and guile depart not from her streets; where truth was fallen, and equity could not enter, Isa 59:14; fo…
109 wordsSECTION 586Psalms 55:12
Psalms 55:12 Ver. 12. For [it was] not an enemy [that] reproached me,.... An open and avowed one; a Moabite or a Philistine; such an one as Goliath, who cursed him by his gods; but one of his own country, city, court, and family, who pretended to be a friend; his son Absalom, according to Arama: so it was not one of t…
358 wordsSECTION 587Psalms 55:13
Psalms 55:13 Ver. 13. But [it was] thou,.... The Targum is, "but thou Ahithophel"; of whom the words are literally to be understood, and so they are in the Talmud {u}; and mystically and typically of Judas; a man mine equal; "a man", and not a beast, nor a devil; but a man, from whom humanity, kindness, and tendernes…
3,783 wordsSECTION 588Psalms 56:1
Psalms 56:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 56 To the chief Musician upon Jonathelemrechokim, Michtam of David when the Philistines took him in Gath. The words "jonathelemrechokim" are by our translators left untranslated. Aben Ezra takes them to be the beginning of a song; and others think they are the name of a musical instr…
866 wordsSECTION 589Psalms 56:2
Psalms 56:2 Ver. 2. Mine enemies would daily swallow [me] up,.... For not one man only, but many, were his enemies; who observed and watched him, and were eagerly desirous of his ruin. The believer has many enemies, sin, Satan, and the world, seeking to devour and destroy him, though they cannot; for [they be] many t…
221 wordsSECTION 590Psalms 56:3
Psalms 56:3 Ver. 3. What time I am afraid,.... It was a time of fear with him now; he was afraid of Achish king of Gath, 1Sa 21:12; so believers have their times of fear; about their interest in the love, and grace, and covenant of God; about their sins and corruptions, and the prevalence of them, fearing they shall p…
128 wordsSECTION 591Psalms 56:4
Psalms 56:4 Ver. 4. In God I will praise his word,.... Or praise him for his words for the whole Scripture that was then in being; for those testimonies which were David's counsellors in times of difficulty and distress; and particularly for some word of promise made unto him, he was persuaded would be fulfilled, and …
252 wordsSECTION 592Psalms 56:5
Psalms 56:5 Ver. 5. Every day they wrest my words,.... Form, fashion, and shape them at their pleasure; construe them, and put what sense upon them they think fit. The word {u} is used of the formation of the human body, in Job 10:8; They put his words upon the rack, and made them speak what he never intended; as some…
248 wordsSECTION 593Psalms 56:6
Psalms 56:6 Ver. 6. They gather themselves together,.... And meet in some one place, to contrive ways and means to do hurt, and then assemble together again to put them in execution; as did the Jews with respect to Christ, Mt 26:3. Aben Ezra supposes a various reading without any reason; and that, instead of wrwgy whi…
269 wordsSECTION 594Psalms 56:7
Psalms 56:7 Ver. 7. Shall they escape by iniquity?.... Shall such iniquity as this, or persons guilty of it, go unpunished, or escape righteous judgment, and the vengeance of God? No; and much less shall they escape by means of their iniquity; by their wicked subtlety, or by any evil arts and methods made use of, by m…
321 wordsSECTION 595Psalms 56:8
Psalms 56:8 Ver. 8. Thou tellest my wanderings,.... Not his sins; though these are aberrations or wanderings from the ways of God's commandments; yet these are not told by the Lord: he takes no account of them; the number of them is not kept by him; they are blotted out, cast behind his back, and into the depths of th…
635 wordsSECTION 596Psalms 56:9
Psalms 56:9 Ver. 9. When I cry [unto thee],.... In prayer; then shall mine enemies turn back; great is the strength of prayer; the effectual fervent prayer of the righteous avails much against their enemies: when Moses lifted up his hands, Israel prevailed: the cases of Asa, Jehoshaphat, and Hezekiah, prove it; this …
163 wordsSECTION 597Psalms 56:10
Psalms 56:10 Ver. 10. In God will I praise [his] word,.... These words are repeated from Ps 56:4; and for the greater certainty of the thing, and to show his fixed resolution to do it, and his strong affection for the Lord and his word, they are doubled; in the Lord will I praise [his] word: in the former clause the …
319 wordsSECTION 598Psalms 56:11
Psalms 56:11 Ver. 11. In God have I put my trust,.... See Gill on "Ps 56:4"; I will not be afraid what man can do unto me; the same with flesh in Ps 56:4, and is opposed to God, in whom he trusted; and it suggests that he was not, and would not, be afraid of the greatest of men, as well as of the meanest; See Gill on…
95 wordsSECTION 599Psalms 56:12
Psalms 56:12 Ver. 12. Thy vows [are] upon me, O God,.... Which he had made to him in the time of his distress and trouble, and which he looked upon himself under obligation to perform; they were debts upon him he ought to pay off; they were with him; they were fresh in his mind and memory; he had not forgot them, whic…
143 wordsSECTION 600Psalms 56:13
Psalms 56:13 Ver. 13. For thou hast delivered my soul from death,.... From imminent danger of death, when in the hands of the Philistines; not that the soul can die; that is immortal; but he means his person, on which account he determines to render praise to God: moreover, this may include the deliverance of his soul…
638 wordsSource & rights
Public domain; John Gill (1697–1771). Source item is marked Public Domain on Internet Archive.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.