PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible — Psalms
Gill, John, 1697-1771 · 746,590 words · 1615 reading sections
Psalms 101:1
Psalms 101:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 101 A Psalm of David. The title of this psalm, in the Syriac version, is, "for Asaph, an exhortation of David, concerning those things which are required in the ministry of the house of the Lord; and a prophecy of the praise of the conqueror, and of the perfect man in God.'' Theod…
745 wordsSECTION 1082Psalms 101:2
Psalms 101:2 Ver. 2. I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way, &e.] So David did before he came to the throne, which made Saul fear him, and the people love him, 1Sa 18:14 and so he resolved to do, and did afterwards; and thus it becomes all good men, in every station of life, to do: and then do they behave wisely…
578 wordsSECTION 1083Psalms 101:3
Psalms 101:3 Ver. 3. I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes, Either the eyes of the body, which are the inlets of lust and are easily caught with objects that inflame the heart, and should be turned aside from beholding vanity; or the eyes of the mind; so the Targum, "I will not propose to my heart;'' or, as Ki…
284 wordsSECTION 1084Psalms 101:4
Psalms 101:4 Ver. 4. A froward heart shall depart from me,.... A man of a froward heart, that devises frowardness in his heart, and speaks it out with his mouth; that which is perverse, and contrary to the law of God and Gospel of Christ, to the light of nature and the word of God; contrary to the sentiments of all go…
445 wordsSECTION 1085Psalms 101:5
Psalms 101:5 Ver. 5. Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off,.... That raises and spreads a false report of him; that insinuates evil things of him; that brings false charges and accusations against him, in a private manner, when he has no opportunity to defend himself: such an one David threatens t…
379 wordsSECTION 1086Psalms 101:6
Psalms 101:6 Ver. 6. Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land,.... To look them out, bring them to court, and promote them to places of honour and trust; such an one was David himself, and such there were in the land of Israel, though but few, and of which he complains, Ps 12:1. Christ's eyes are upon faithful…
426 wordsSECTION 1087Psalms 101:7
Psalms 101:7 Ver. 7. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house,.... Flatterers, sycophants, tricking and fraudulent persons, who seek to supplant others, and get into their places; these should lose the favour they had, when detected. So hypocritical persons, that have only a form of godliness, a mask of …
233 wordsSECTION 1088Psalms 101:8
Psalms 101:8 Ver. 8. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land, &e.] Of the land of Israel, signifying that he would make a general reformation throughout the kingdom; that as soon as wicked men were discovered in any part of the land, he would cut them off, would take the first opportunity of punishing them as …
102 wordsSECTION 1089Psalms 102:1
Psalms 102:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 102 A prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the Lord; Whether this psalm was written by David, under a prophetic spirit, concerning future times; or whether by one of the Babylonish captivity, as Daniel, Nehemiah, Ezra, or any other; e…
790 wordsSECTION 1090Psalms 102:2
Psalms 102:2 Ver. 2. Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble,.... Thy Shechinah, as the Targum: when God hides his face at any time from his people, it is a trouble to them, and very grievous; but especially when they are in any other trouble besides; it is very afflicting, indeed, when to their outw…
163 wordsSECTION 1091Psalms 102:3
Psalms 102:3 Ver. 3. For my days are consumed like smoke,.... Which suddenly rises up, is easily dissipated, and quickly disappears; so sudden, short, and transient, are the days of man's life; see Jas 4:14 or "in smoke" {c}, as the Syriac version; his days were spent in great obscurity, in the darkness of affliction,…
177 wordsSECTION 1092Psalms 102:4
Psalms 102:4 Ver. 4. My heart is smitten, and withered like grass,.... Like grass in the summer solstice {d}, which being smitten with the heat of the sun, or by some blast of thunder and lightning, is dried up, and withers away; so his heart was smitten with a sense of sin, and of God's wrath and displeasure at him, …
181 wordsSECTION 1093Psalms 102:5
Psalms 102:5 Ver. 5. By reason of the voice of my groaning,.... Under the burden of sin, and pressure of afflictions: my bones cleave to my skin; was quite emaciated, reduced to a skeleton, became nothing but skin and bone {e}; which sometimes is occasioned, as by outward afflictions, so by soul troubles: or "to my f…
95 wordsSECTION 1094Psalms 102:6
Psalms 102:6 Ver. 6. I am like a pelican of the wilderness,.... It may be so called, to distinguish it from another of the same name that lives upon the waters; which has the name of "pelican" in the Greek tongue, as is said, from its smiting and piercing its breast, and letting out blood for the reviving of its young…
415 wordsSECTION 1095Psalms 102:7
Psalms 102:7 Ver. 7. I watch,.... Night after night, and take no sleep; cannot get any by reason of thoughtfulness, care, and trouble: and am as a sparrow alone upon the housetop; or, "as a bird" {o}; for there is no necessity of limiting it to a sparrow, to which the account does not seem so well to agree; for sparr…
234 wordsSECTION 1096Psalms 102:8
Psalms 102:8 Ver. 8. Mine enemies reproach me all the day,.... For his principles and practices, being different from theirs; for his religion, and preciseness in it; for his faith and profession of it, and for his holy walk and conversation. Good men have their enemies, and always had; but then they are such who are …
302 wordsSECTION 1097Psalms 102:9
Psalms 102:9 Ver. 9. For I have eaten ashes like bread,.... He sitting in ashes, as Job did, and rolling himself in them in the manner of mourners; and, having no other table than the ground to eat his food upon, he might eat ashes along with it; and by an hypallage of the words, the sense may be, that he ate bread li…
168 wordsSECTION 1098Psalms 102:10
Psalms 102:10 Ver. 10. Because of thine indignation and thy wrath,.... This was the burden of his complaint, what gave him the greatest uneasiness; not so much the reproach of his enemies, and his other outward afflictions, as the sense he had of God's wrath and indignation. The people of God are as deserving of his w…
464 wordsSECTION 1099Psalms 102:11
Psalms 102:11 Ver. 11. My days are like a shadow that declineth,.... Or, "that is stretched out" {s}, which, though it may appear long, is soon at an end; as it does appear longer when the sun sets {t}, and departs from the earth: he reckons his life not by months and years, but by days; and these he compares to a "sh…
210 wordsSECTION 1100Psalms 102:12
Psalms 102:12 Ver. 12. But thou, O Lord, shalt endure for ever,.... This address is made to Christ, as is clear from Ps 102:25, compared with Heb 1:10, who is a divine Person, endures for ever, is from everlasting to everlasting, unchangeably the same in his love, power, wisdom, faithfulness, &c. and though he died as…
329 wordsSECTION 1101Psalms 102:13
Psalms 102:13 Ver. 13. Thou shalt arise, and have mercy on Zion,.... Exert his power, and display the riches of his grace and mercy; not by delivering the Jews from the Babylonish captivity, to which some restrain it; but by redeeming his church and people by power and price; or rather by raising up and restoring them…
183 wordsSECTION 1102Psalms 102:14
Psalms 102:14 Ver. 14. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones,.... Meaning not Cyrus and Darius, who gave leave and orders for the rebuilding of the city and temple of Jerusalem, as some; nor Nehemiah, and Ezra, and others, who took more pleasure in the stones and rubbish of the temple, as it lay in ruins, than …
351 wordsSECTION 1103Psalms 102:15
Psalms 102:15 Ver. 15. So the Heathen shall fear the name of the Lord,.... Whose name is reverend, and to be feared; especially the glorious and fearful name "Jehovah", expressive of the divine existence, of his eternity and immutability; though the name of the Lord frequently signifies himself, and here particularly …
319 wordsSECTION 1104Psalms 102:16
Psalms 102:16 Ver. 16. When the Lord shall build up Zion,.... The church of God, fallen down, and in a ruinous condition, as it may be said to be when the doctrines of the Gospel are departed from; the ordinances of it are corrupted and altered, or not attended to; the worship and discipline of the Lord's house are ne…
3,221 wordsSECTION 1105Psalms 103:1
Psalms 103:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 103 A Psalm of David. The Targum adds, "spoken in prophecy,'' as doubtless it was, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Some think it was written by David, after a fit of illness, and his recovery from it, since he speaks of his diseases being healed, and his youth renewed; f…
533 wordsSECTION 1106Psalms 103:2
Psalms 103:2 Ver. 2. Bless the Lord, O my soul,.... Which is repeated to show the importance of the service, and the vehement desire of the psalmist, that his soul should be engaged in it: and forget not all his benefits; not any of them; the least of them are not to be forgotten, being such as men are altogether unw…
228 wordsSECTION 1107Psalms 103:3
Psalms 103:3 Ver. 3. Who forgiveth all thine iniquities,.... The psalmist explains here what he means by benefits, and gives a particular enumeration of them; and begins with the blessing of pardon, which is a special and peculiar benefit; it is according to the riches of divine grace, and the multitude of tender merc…
573 wordsSECTION 1108Psalms 103:4
Psalms 103:4 Ver. 4. Who redeemeth thy life from destruction,.... Not from temporal destruction, to which the natural life is subject, through diseases, dangerous occurrences, and the malice of enemies; to be delivered from which is a blessing, and for which God is to be praised; but from eternal destruction, the dest…
353 wordsSECTION 1109Psalms 103:5
Psalms 103:5 Ver. 5. Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things,.... With the good things in the heart of God, with his favour and lovingkindness, as with marrow and fatness; with the good things in the hands of Christ, with the fulness of grace in him, with pardon, righteousness, and salvation by him; with the good th…
493 wordsSECTION 1110Psalms 103:6
Psalms 103:6 Ver. 6. The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed. Not only for the Israelites oppressed by the Egyptians, though the psalmist might have them in his view, by what follows; for whom the Lord did justice, by delivering them out of the hands of their oppressors, and by punishi…
220 wordsSECTION 1111Psalms 103:7
Psalms 103:7 Ver. 7. He made known his ways unto Moses,.... The ways in which he himself walks, the steps and methods which he has taken to show forth his glory; his way in creation, and the order of it, as in Ge 1:1, for though, by the light of nature, it might be known that God created all things; yet, without a rev…
412 wordsSECTION 1112Psalms 103:8
Psalms 103:8 Ver. 8. The Lord is merciful and gracious,.... So he made himself known to Moses, Ex 34:6, and so David found him to be, and therefore calls upon his soul to bless his name. God is "merciful" in the most tender and affectionate manner; he has bowels of mercy, which yearn towards his people, as those of a …
353 wordsSECTION 1113Psalms 103:9
Psalms 103:9 Ver. 9. He will not always chide,.... He sometimes does chide his children, though never but when they have done a fault; always for their sins, in order to bring them to a sense and acknowledgment of them, and to depart from them; not for chiding sake, as some parents, to gratify their passion and ill hu…
219 wordsSECTION 1114Psalms 103:10
Psalms 103:10 Ver. 10. He hath not dealt with us after our sins,.... God deals with his people, and deals with them roundly, for their sins, reproving them by his Spirit, and by his ministers, and by his chastising rod; but not after or according to them, or as they deserve; in this David acknowledges himself and othe…
191 wordsSECTION 1115Psalms 103:11
Psalms 103:11 Ver. 11. For as the heaven is high above the earth,.... Which is the greatest distance known, or can be conceived of; the space between the heaven and the earth is seemingly almost infinite; and nothing can more illustrate the mercy of God, which reaches to the heavens, and is in heaven; though this is b…
196 wordsSECTION 1116Psalms 103:12
Psalms 103:12 Ver. 12. As far as the east is from the west,.... Which Kimchi thinks is mentioned because it contains the length of the habitable world; and therefore it is not said as far as the north is from the south; since a man can go from east to west, but not from north to south, because of the extreme heat and …
451 wordsSECTION 1117Psalms 103:13
Psalms 103:13 Ver. 13. Like as a father pitieth his children,.... When in any affliction, disorder, or distress: the Lord stands in the relation of a Father to his people; they are his children by adopting grace, through the covenant of grace with them; by a sovereign act of his own will he puts them among the childre…
283 wordsSECTION 1118Psalms 103:14
Psalms 103:14 Ver. 14. For he knoweth our frame,.... The outward frame of their bodies, what brittle ware, what earthen vessels, they be; he being the potter, they the clay, he knows what they are able to bear, and what not; that if he lays his hand too heavy, or strikes too hard, or repeats his strokes too often, the…
296 wordsSECTION 1119Psalms 103:15
Psalms 103:15 Ver. 15. As for man, his days are as grass,.... He himself is like the grass which springs out of the earth; continues on it for a time, and then drops into it; the continuance of the grass is very short, it flourishes in the morning, is cut down at evening, and withers; see Ps 90:5. As a flower of the f…
150 wordsSECTION 1120Psalms 103:16
Psalms 103:16 Ver. 16. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone,.... A stormy wind, as the Targum, which tears it up by its roots, or blows off the flower, and it is seen no more; or a blighting easterly wind, which, blowing on it, shrivels it up, and it dies at once; such an one as blasted the seven ears of corn …
211 wordsSECTION 1121Psalms 103:17
Psalms 103:17 Ver. 17. But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him,.... In opposition to the frailty of man, the stability and duration of the mercy of God is observed. This reaches from one eternity to another; it is from everlasting in the heart of God: it appeared in the cho…
482 wordsSECTION 1122Psalms 103:18
Psalms 103:18 Ver. 18. To such as keep his covenant,.... The covenant of grace, which is peculiarly the Lord's covenant, as distinct from man's; and which he keeps himself, and is ever mindful of it. This he makes known to his people at conversion; his secret is with them, and he shows them his covenant; the blessings…
244 wordsSECTION 1123Psalms 103:19
Psalms 103:19 Ver. 19. The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens,.... The heaven is his throne; here he sits enthroned in all the glory of his majesty, with all his attendants upon him, and courtiers about him. The Lord Christ is now in heaven; and where he will continue to the restitution of all things, and fr…
201 wordsSECTION 1124Psalms 103:20
Psalms 103:20 Ver. 20. Bless the Lord, ye his angels,.... For their creation, being made by him; for their preservation, living, moving, and having their being in him; and for their happiness, in which they are continued, owing to their being chosen of God in Christ, and to their confirmation by Christ. These are alwa…
860 wordsSECTION 1125Psalms 104:1
Psalms 104:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 104 This psalm, though without a title, was probably written by David, since it begins and ends as the former does, as Aben Ezra observes; and to him the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and all the Oriental versions, ascribe it. The inscription of the Syriac version is, "a psalm of Davi…
482 wordsSECTION 1126Psalms 104:2
Psalms 104:2 Ver. 2. Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment,.... Referring, as Aben Ezra and Kimchi think, to the light, which was first created; and indeed this was commanded out of darkness by God the Word, or by the essential Word of God. Light is expressive of the nature of God himself, who is light, an…
341 wordsSECTION 1127Psalms 104:3
Psalms 104:3 Ver. 3. Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters,.... Or "his upper rooms" {i}; one story over another being built by him in the heavens, Am 9:6, the chambers where he resides; his courts, as the Targum; his palace and apartments, his presence chamber particularly, the floor and beams of them ar…
331 wordsSECTION 1128Psalms 104:4
Psalms 104:4 Ver. 4. Who maketh his angels spirits,.... The angels are spirits, or spiritual substances, yet created ones; and so differ from God, who is a spirit, and from the Holy Spirit of God, who are Creators and not creatures; angels are spirits without bodies, and so differ from the souls or spirits of men, and…
543 wordsSECTION 1129Psalms 104:5
Psalms 104:5 Ver. 5. Who laid the foundations of the earth,.... Or "founded the earth upon its bases" {l}; which some take to be the waters, according to Ps 24:2, others the centre of gravity in it; others the mountains; others the circumambient air, by which it is poised; rather the almighty power of God, by which it…
139 wordsSECTION 1130Psalms 104:6
Psalms 104:6 Ver. 6. Thou coverest it with the deep as with a garment,.... This refers not to the waters of the flood, when the earth was covered with them, even the tops of the highest mountains; but to the huge mass of waters, the abyss and depth of them, which lay upon the earth and covered it as a garment, at its …
298 wordsSECTION 1131Psalms 104:7
Psalms 104:7 Ver. 7. At thy rebuke they fled,.... The depths of water that covered the earth fled, went off apace, when Christ, the essential Word, gave the word of command that they should; saying, "Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear, and it was so", Ge 1:…
272 wordsSECTION 1132Psalms 104:8
Psalms 104:8 Ver. 8. They go up by the mountains, they go down by the valleys,.... The Targum is, "they ascend out of the deep to the mountains;'' that is, the waters, when they went off the earth at the divine orders, steered their course up the mountains, and then went down by the valleys to the place appointed fo…
384 wordsSECTION 1133Psalms 104:9
Psalms 104:9 Ver. 9. Thou hast set a bound, that they may not pass over,.... The Targum adds, "to the rolling waves of the sea.'' Set doors with bolts and bars, cliffs, rocks, and shores: and, what is more surprising, sand, which is penetrable, flexible, and moveable, is set as a perpetual bound to the raging ocean …
225 wordsSECTION 1134Psalms 104:10
Psalms 104:10 Ver. 10. He sendeth the springs into the valleys,.... The Targum is, "who sendeth fountains into the rivers.'' Either from the waters of the sea, which being drained through the sand, become sweet and drinkable; or from the hills and mountains. This is an instance of divine goodness, that having remove…
243 wordsSECTION 1135Psalms 104:11
Psalms 104:11 Ver. 11. They give drink to every beast of the field,.... These fountains, springs, and rivers, afford water for all the beasts of the field; who are therefore said to honour and praise the Lord on account of it, Isa 43:19. The wild asses quench their thirst; or "break" {n} it. Those creatures that live…
179 wordsSECTION 1136Psalms 104:12
Psalms 104:12 Ver. 12. By them shall the fowls of the heaven have their habitation,.... Another use of the springs, fountains, and rivers of water; by the sides and on the shores of these, some birds delight to be, and on trees that grow here do they build their nests; and here, having wetted their throats, they sit, …
181 wordsSECTION 1137Psalms 104:13
Psalms 104:13 Ver. 13. He watereth the hills from his chambers,.... The house of his superior treasures, as the Targum. The airy regions, Ps 104:3 with the clouds of heaven, by the rain which they drop down upon them; the usefulness of which blessings of nature is largely described in this and some following verses. "…
412 wordsSECTION 1138Psalms 104:14
Psalms 104:14 Ver. 14. He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle,.... By means of rain falling upon the tender herb, and upon the mown grass, whereby provision of food is made for those creatures that live upon grass. And herb for the service of man: some herbs being for physic for him, and others for food, and all…
236 wordsSECTION 1139Psalms 104:15
Psalms 104:15 Ver. 15. And wine that maketh glad the heart of man,.... That is, by means of rain watering the earth, vines are caused to grow out of it; which produce wine, that has such a virtue in it, as to cheer the heart of man, even of a miserable, distressed, and afflicted man, as the word {p} is supposed to sig…
7,405 wordsSECTION 1140Psalms 105:1
Psalms 105:1 INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 105 This psalm was penned by David, and sung at the time when the ark was brought from the house of Obededom to the place which David had prepared for it; at least the first fifteen verses of it, the other part being probably added afterwards by the same inspired penman, as appears …
477 wordsSource & rights
Public domain; John Gill (1697–1771). Source item is marked Public Domain on Internet Archive.
Project Gutenberg source record →
Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.