§ ו
41 And let Thy lovingkindnesses come to me, Jehovah, Thy salvation according to Thy promise. 42 And I shall have a word to answer him that reproaches me, For I trust in Thy word. 43 And pluck not the word of truth out of my mouth utterly, For I have waited for Thy judgments. 44 And I would observe Thy law continually, For ever and aye. 45 And I would walk at liberty, For I have sought Thy precepts. 46 And I would speak of Thy testimonies before kings, And not be ashamed. 47 And I will delight myself in Thy judgments, Which I love. 48 And I will lift up my palms to Thy commandments [which I love], And meditate on Thy statutes.
There are practically no Hebrew words beginning with the letter required as the initial in this section, except the copula "and." Each verse begins with it, and it is best to retain it in translation, so as to reproduce in some measure the original impression of uniformity. The verses are aggregated rather than linked. "And" sometimes introduces a consequence, as probably in ver. 42, and sometimes is superfluous in regard to the sense. A predominant reference to the duty of bearing witness to the Truth runs through the section. The prayer in ver. 41 for the visits of God's lovingkindnesses which, in their sum, make salvation, and are guaranteed by His word of promise, is urged on the ground that, by experience of these, the psalmist will have his answer ready for all carpers who scoff at him and his patient faith. Such a prayer is entirely accordant with the hypothesis that the speaker is the collective Israel, but not less so with the supposition that he is an individual. "Whereas I was blind, now I see" is an argument that silences sarcasm. Ver. 43 carries on the thought of witnessing and asks that "the word of truth"--_i.e._, the Law considered as disclosure of truth rather than of duty--may not be snatched from the witness's mouth, as it would be if God's promised lovingkindnesses failed him. The condition of free utterance is rich experience. If prayers had gone up in vain from the psalmist's lips, no glad proclamation could come from them.
The verbs at the beginnings of vv. 44-46 are best taken as optatives, expressing what the psalmist would fain do, and, to some extent, has done. There is no true religion without that longing for unbroken conformity with the manifest will of God. Whoever makes that his deepest desire, and seeks after God's precepts, will "walk at liberty," or _at large_, for restraints that are loved are not bonds, and freedom consists not in doing as I would, but in willing to do as I ought. Strong in such emancipation from the hindrances of one's own passions, and triumphant over external circumstances which may mould, but not dominate, a God-obeying life, the psalmist would fain open his mouth unabashed before rulers. The "kings" spoken of in ver. 46 may be foreign rulers, possibly the representatives of the Persian monarch, or later alien sovereigns, or the expression may be quite general, and the speaker be a private person, who feels his courage rising as he enters into the liberty of perfect submission.
Vv. 47, 48, are general expressions of delight in the Law. Lifting the hands towards the commandments seems to be a figure for reverent regard, or longing, as one wistfully stretches them out towards some dear person or thing that one would fain draw closer. The phrase "which I love" in ver. 48 overweights the clause, and is probably a scribe's erroneous repetition of 47_b_.
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49 Remember the word to Thy servant, On which Thou hast caused me to hope. 50 This is my comfort in my affliction, That Thy promise has given me life. 51 The proud have derided me exceedingly, From Thy law I have not declined. 52 I have remembered Thy judgments [which are] from of old, Jehovah, And I have comforted myself. 53 Fiery anger has seized me because of the wicked, Who forsake Thy law. 54 Thy statutes have been songs for me, In my house of sojourning. 55 I remembered Thy name in the night, Jehovah, And observed Thy law. 56 This good has been mine, That I have kept Thy precepts.