Psalms 109:15
Ver. 15. Let them be before the Lord continually,.... And not cast behind his back, or into the depths of the sea, never to be seen more, as sins are when forgiven; but be always in sight, as loathsome and abominable, and causing those that committed them to be abhorred for them; and be before him, as a Judge, to examine them, the nature and kind of them, and to condemn and punish for them; see Ex 20:5. The Targum is,"let them be before the Word of the Lord always;''see Heb 4:13.That he may cut off the memory of them from the earth; so that they may not be remembered with any applause, or their name spoken of with any commendation; see Job 18:17. Psalms 109:16Ver. 16. Because that he remembered not to show mercy,.... As Judas did not; neither to the poor, whom he cared not for, Joh 12:6 nor to Christ, whom he betrayed with a kiss to his enemies: nor had these words of Christ any effect upon him, to move his pity and compassion, "Friend, wherefore art thou come?" Mt 26:49 nor did the Jews show mercy to him: they were a merciless and hardhearted people; though mercy was one of the weightier matters of the law, this they omitted, Mt 23:23, their want of compassion may be observed in the priest and Levite passing by the man wounded by thieves, Lu 10:30. Nor did they show any mercy to Christ, when they smote and buffeted him; nor did it move their pity when Pilate brought him forth with a crown of thorns on his head, and in a miserable condition, saying, "Behold the man"; but they cried out, "Crucify him, crucify him"; and gave him gall for his meat, and vinegar to drink; and mocked him when in all his miseries and agonies.But persecuted the poor and needy man; Christ, who became poor for our sakes, and stood in need of the ministration of others to him, 2Co 8:9 and was poor in spirit, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with griefs; him Judas and the Jews persecuted to death, as follows:that he might even slay the broken in heart; Christ, whose heart was broken with the reproach and cruel usage of men, Ps 69:20, whose life the Jews sought to take away, and by means of Judas did. Psalms 109:17Ver. 17. As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him,.... Judas loved that which brought a curse upon him, sin; and so he may be said to love the curse; just as sinners are said to love death, Pr 8:36. He was desirous of and sought after it, to bring Christ to an accursed death; and which he accomplished and pleased himself with; and therefore it was a just retaliation upon him that the curse should light on him, and he himself come to a shameful and ignominious death. The Jews loved the cursing law, the flying roll, called the curse in Zec 5:2, which curses every transgressor of it: they boasted of it, rested in it, and sought for righteousness by it; and submitted not unto, but despised, the righteousness of Christ; and therefore it was but just they should come under the curse of the law: they imprecated the curse on them and their children, saying, "His blood be upon us and them", Mt 27:25 and which accordingly came upon them, and remains to this day.As he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him; Judas delighted not in the good will and good wishes of any to Christ, as appears from his dislike of the ointment being poured on his head by the poor woman, in Joh 12:4, and so the Jews were displeased at the children, and at the disciples in the temple, blessing Christ, pronouncing him blessed, and wishing blessings to him, Mt 21:15, yea, they delighted not in their own blessedness, or in that which only could give it to them; they delighted not in Christ, who was sent to bless them, but despised and rejected him; nor in the Gospel, which is full of blessings; and particularly not in the doctrine of justification by Christ's righteousness, which commonly makes a man blessed: yea, in a sense, they judged themselves unworthy of everlasting life; and therefore it was but a righteous thing that blessing should be far from Judas and the Jews, as it was; even temporal, spiritual, and eternal blessings: yet there have been a sort of heretics {e}, that have highly praised and commended Judas, as doing a brave and noble action in betraying Christ, whereby the work of salvation was hastened.{e} Epiphan. contra Haeres. l. 1. Haer. 38. Psalms 109:18Ver. 18. As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment,.... He was full of it; his mouth was full of cursing and bitterness; it was visible in him, easy to be discerned; he took pride as well as pleasure in it, it was in his esteem an ornament to him, as his clothes were. The Syriac version renders it, "as armour"; as if it was a protection to him, or he thought it to be so.So let it come into his bowels like water; the meaning is, let the wrath of God and the curse of the law come into his conscience, and make sad work there, and fill him with dread and terror, and that in great abundance, and with great force; like a flood of waters that carry all before it; or like the waters of jealousy which made the belly to swell and the thigh to rot; or the flying roll of the curse, which entering into the house of the sinner destroyed it, and all in it, Nu 5:22.And like oil into his bones; which is more piercing and penetrating than water; and signifies the inward and quick sense he should have of his sins, and of the wrath of God for them; see Job 20:11. Psalms 109:19Ver. 19. Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him,.... Let him be surrounded on all sides with the wrath of God; and let it be visible to all, as a man's garment on him is: see Isa 66:24.And for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually; let him be in the utmost straits and distress, being encompassed about with the curse and wrath of God; and let that stick close unto him as a man's belt does; and let him not be able to get clear of it, or extricate himself out of it, as no man can on whom it is. Psalms 109:20Ver. 20. Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the Lord,.... Who were so many Satans, as the word used signifies; and Judas particularly is called a devil; and of the same malevolent and diabolical disposition were the Jews in general, Joh 6:70 and what is before imprecated upon them is the just recompence of reward for their hatred to Christ and ill usage of him.And of them that speak evil against my soul; or "life" {f}; in order to take it away, as did the false witnesses that rose up against him, and the Jews who charged him with sedition and blasphemy.{f} yvpn le "contra vitam meam", Gejerus. Psalms 109:21Ver. 21. But do thou for me, O God the Lord, for thy name's sake,.... The sense of the petition is, and which is a prayer of Christ as man, that the Lord God would take his part, be on his side, be present with him, work with him, help and assist him, and that for his own honour and glory, for his truth and faithfulness sake, who had promised him help and assistance, Ps 89:21.Because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me; or "thy kindness" {g}; meaning the lovingkindness of God to Christ, which he always bore to him, and was eminently and superlatively good; which he makes use of as an argument for his deliverance out of all his troubles, and from death itself; see Ps 69:14.{g} Kdox "benignitas tua", Musculus, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator. Psalms 109:22Ver. 22. For I am poor and needy,.... As he was in human nature, being born of poor parents, brought up in a mean manner, had not where to lay his head, and was ministered to by others; though he was Lord of all, and immensely rich in the perfections of his nature, and in his vast empire and dominion, and the revenues arising from thence; see 2Co 8:9. It may here chiefly respect his helpless and forlorn estate as man, at the time of his sufferings and death; see Ps 40:17.And my heart is wounded within me; with the sins of his people on him, with a sense of divine wrath, and when under divine desertions, especially when his soul was exceeding sorrowful, even unto death, Mt 26:38. Psalms 109:23Ver. 23. I am gone like the shadow when it declineth,.... When the sun is setting, and the shadow is going off; man's life is often compared to a shadow, because fleeting, momentary, and soon gone, 1Ch 29:15 and death is expressed by going the way of all flesh; and by going to the grave, the house for all living, a man's long home, Jos 23:14 and so is the death of Christ, Lu 22:22, it may be rendered, "I am made to go" {h}, denoting the violent death of Christ, who was cut off out of the land of the living, and whose life was taken away from the earth, Isa 53:8.I am tossed up and down as the locust; or "shaken out" {i} by the wind, as the locust is by the east wind, and carried from place to place, Ex 10:13, or when a swarm of them by a strong wind are crowded together and thrown upon one another; or like the grasshopper, which leaps from hedge to hedge, and has no certain abode: and such was the case of Christ here on earth; and especially it may have respect not only to his being sometimes in Judea and sometimes in Galilee, sometimes in the temple and sometimes in the mount of Olives; but to his being tossed about after his apprehension, when he was led to Annas, and then to Caiaphas, then to Pilate, then to Herod, then delivered to the soldiers, and by them led to Calvary, and crucified.{h} ytklhn "cogor abire", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius; "abire factus sum", Gejerus, Michaelis. {i} ytren "excussus sum", Montanus, Vatablus Gejerus, Michaelis; "excutior", Tigurine version, Musculus, Cocceius. Psalms 109:24Ver. 24. My knees are weak through fasting,..... Either voluntary or forced, through want of food or refreshment; this was verified in Christ, when he kneeled and prayed, and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground; see Ps 69:10.And my flesh faileth of fatness; or "for want of oil" {k}; the radical moisture of his flesh being dried up like a potsherd, Ps 22:15.{k} Nmvm di' elaion, Sept. "propter oleum", V. L. "propter defectum olei", Eth. Arab. Psalms 109:25Ver. 25. I became also a reproach unto them,.... Or they reproached him; not only in life, traducing his conversation, blaspheming his miracles, calling him a Samaritan, saying he had a devil, and charging him with sedition; but at the time of his death they reviled him, and treated him in the most opprobrious manner.When they looked upon me, they shaked their heads; which was verified in the Jews as they passed by the cross of Christ, whither they came to stare upon him and scoff at him, Mt 27:39. Psalms 109:26Ver. 26. Help me, O Lord my God,.... Jehovah the Father is here addressed, who is the God of Christ, as Christ is man; who formed him, supported him, and glorified him; and whom Christ loved, believed in, obeyed and prayed unto; nor did he pray to a God that could not hear, but to one that was able to save him from death: as a divine Person he needed no help, being the mighty God, the most Mighty, the Almighty: but as man he did, being encompassed about with infirmities; and as Mediator help was promised him, he expected it, and he had it, Ps 89:21.O save me according to thy mercy; or "kindness"; as before in Ps 109:21 from sufferings, and out of them; from death and the grave, as he was; or his people by him, who are saved not by works of righteousness, but according to the mercy of God, Tit 3:5. Psalms 109:27Ver. 27. That they may know that this is thy hand,.... Which inflicted vengeance, and executed judgments on Judas and the Jews, as before imprecated: so the Targum,"that they may know that this is thy stroke;''or which was concerned in all the sorrows and sufferings of the Messiah, which could never have come upon him had it not been the will of God; it was his hand and council that determined it, or men could never have effected it; see Ac 4:28, or which wrought deliverance and salvation as before prayed for; see Ps 118:21.That thou, Lord, hast done it: one or other, or all the above things; the finger of God was to be seen in them; particularly in the sufferings of Christ, and in his exaltation; see Ac 2:23. Psalms 109:28Ver. 28. Let them curse, but bless thou,.... Let them curse me, as Shimei did David, the type of Christ; let them curse themselves, as they did; or my people: or "let them be cursed", as the Syriac version; cursed in life and at death, and to all eternity: but "bless thou [me]", the Messiah; as he did, when he raised him front the dead, set him at his right hand, and gave him a name above everyone, and made him most blessed for evermore; and bless my people with all spiritual blessings of grace, and with eternal glory and happiness. Or "be thou blessed"; let honour, blessing, and praise, be continually ascribed to thee; if God does but bless, it is no matter if wicked men curse, so Aben Ezra and Kimchi interpret it; see 2Sa 16:11.When they arise, let them be ashamed; be suffered to do those things which may bring shame and disgrace upon them; or let them be disappointed and so confounded, as the Jews were; who though they so far gained their point as to bring Christ to the dust of death and the grave, yet to their great confusion he arose again from the dead; or let them be ashamed at the last day, as they will be when Christ shall come in the clouds of heaven and be their Judge, who will then be glad to shelter themselves in rocks and caves. This is imprecated to be donewhen they shall arise: rise up against Christ to take away his life; rise up against his disciples to persecute them, against his Gospel to contradict and blaspheme it, and against his cause and interest to crush it; or against the Romans, to shake off their yoke, when they were brought to great shame and confusion; or when they shall arise at the resurrection of the dead, which will be to shame and everlasting contempt, Da 12:2.But let thy servant rejoice; the Messiah, who appeared in the form of a servant; came not as a temporal lord and prince, to be ministered unto, but as a servant, to minister to others; and who is a servant of God's choosing, calling, and sending, and whom he faithfully served; and who, as prayed for, did rejoice in the strength of the Lord, given him as man; and in the salvation wrought for and by him, Ps 21:1, in the work of the Lord prospering in his hand; in his victory over sin, Satan, the world, and death; in the presence of God he was made glad with, and in the glory promised him, which he had with his Father before the world was, Ps 16:11. Psalms 109:29Ver. 29. Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame,.... This is only explanative of what is said before,And let them cover themselves with their own confusion as with a mantle: the Arabic version is, "as with a breastplate." Some understand it as a petition of Christ, that they might be brought to repentance for their sins, and so to shame for them; which is an instance of his wondrous grace and goodness; and it is certain he prayed for the forgiveness of his enemies when on the cross, Lu 23:34. Psalms 109:30Ver. 30. I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth,.... Vocally, and in the highest strains.Yea, I will praise him among the multitude: of converted persons, both Jews and Gentiles, and by them: or, "among the mighty" {l}; or great ones; the great congregation, as in Ps 22:25 among the innumerable and mighty angels in heaven; or, as the Targum,"among the wise men;''his own disciples, made wise unto salvation, and to win souls; being filled with the gifts of wisdom and knowledge; among and with whom Christ sung an hymn of praise after the celebration of the supper, Mt 26:30.{l} Mybr Kwtb "in magno coetu", Tigurine version. Psalms 109:31Ver. 31. For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor,.... Of the Messiah, as in Ps 109:22 at whose right hand the Lord was, to guide and direct, help and assist, protect and defend, Ps 16:8, or of his people, who are poor in every sense; but the Lord is on their side, and is a present help in time of trouble, Ps 46:1.To save him from those that condemn his soul: the Messiah: from his judges, the high priest and Jewish sanhedrim, and Pilate the Roman governor, who condemned him to death; but he committed his spirit, or soul, to God, who received it, and raised his body from the dead; and would not suffer it to see corruption, as a testimony of his innocence: or the soul of the poor saints, which the Lord saves from the condemnation of sin, Satan, the law, and their own consciences, Ro 8:1.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.