Ver. 11.-Blay them not, lest my people present condition, e.nd repeats ver. 711erbatim. forget; l.e. my true people-faithful Isro.ol. He thus reminds himself of bis exiatinno The pso.lmist'e "firat thou"ht is, tho.t by de.nger; he is still being sought-they a.r; lingering on in life for a. while the wioked still in quest of their prey, and will con- mn.y be more edifying monuments of the Divine o.ngor" (Cheyne). (For a. po.ro.llel, tinae so till morning comes (ver. 15). Ilut see Exod. ix. 16.) Boo.tter them by thy in the morning he will be gone-he will power; or, make them wanderers (comp. have e8caped them. Upon this thought Gen. iv. 12, 14). It hns been often noted occurring, he raises e. renewed the.nksgiving thnt Do.vid'e curse seems to ha.ve pa.seed on to God (vers. 16, 17). to the entire nation of the Jews. And bring them down, 0 Lord our Shield ; i.e. "cast them down from thoir honouro.ble position- Ver. 14.-And at evening let them return ; bring them into misery nnd disgrace-O re.ther, they return, as in ver. 6. And let Lord, who a.rt onr Defence and Shield" them me.ke e. noise like a dog; rather, they (comp. Pea. iii. 3; xviiL 2; xxviii. 7). make a noise. And go round a.bout the city. Ver. 12.-For the sin of their mouth and Keeping their we.tch upon me. the words of their lips; rather, the sin of Ver. 15.-Let them wander up e.nd down their mouth is each word of their lips (Hup- !or meat; rather, they wande:r up and down felrl, Cheyne); or, 0 the sin of their mou,tk I for meat. David himself was the prey which Othe word of their lips! (Ewald, Kay, Ca.non they desired. They kept guard a.round his Cook). Let them even be to.ken in their house, wandering, no doubt, up and down. pride. Saul's special emissaries (1 Sam. And grudge i! they be not satisfied; rather, xix. 11) would, of course, be proud of their as in the margin and in the Revised Ver- mission. And for cursing and lying which sion, and if they be not satisfied, they wiU they speak (comp. Pa. x. 7; e.nd, for an stay all night. This they appear to he.ve example, see 2 Sam. ui. 5-8). done from 1 Sam. xu. 11-15. Ver. 13.-Coneume them in wrath, oon- Ver. 16.-But I will sing of thy power; au.me them; or, "make o.n end of them"- re.ther, of thy strength-the same word as " bring them to naught." That they mny the.t used in vers. 9 e.nd 17. Yee., I will not be; or, "the.t they be no more." And ei.ng a.loud of thy meroy in the morning. let them know that Goi ruleth in Jacob When the morning ea.me, David had escaped unto the ends of the earth. The frustration (1 Se.m. xix. 12), and could" sing of God's of their plans, and their signal punishment, mercy" securely at Re.mah, where he had will ea.use the God of Isre.el to be recog- joined Samuel. For thou hast been my nized widely as the King of the whole Defence e.nd Refuge in the day of my earth. Compare the words of De.vid to trouble ; or, my High Tower, e.s in vers. 9 Golio.th, "I will give the carcases of the e.nd 17. host of the Philistines this day unto the Ver. 17.-Unto thee, 0 my Strength, will fowls of the air, e.nd to the wild bee.sts of I sing: for God is my Defence; or, Strong the ee.rth ; that all the earth may know that Tower (comp. ver. 9, which, if we read '-Iii tllere i8 a God in Israel" (1 Se.m. xvii. 46). for i-TJ), is so far, excepting in the verb, identical). And the God of my mercy; i.e. Vere. 14-17.-De.vid here turns back "the God who showeth mercy upon me" from the futUie fe.te of his enemies to their (comp. ver. 10).
HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1-11.-Waiting upon God. There are expressions in this psalm which sound harsh and_ cruel, and which Christians would shrink from using. But, on the other hand, there 1s much here that comes home to our experience, and that is helpful e.nd comforting in the great trials of life. It is something to know that good men have suffered affliction before us-that they have been falsely accused and foully wronge<l, that they have felt the pangs of grief and the bitterness of disappointment, and that they he.ve he.d to bear much and we.it long before deliverance came. The lesson is clear. It is- Wait upon God. 'l'his is the refrain, which comes so sweetly at the middle (ver. 10), e.nd then with increased force and emphasis e.t the end (ver. 17). The figure seems that of e. sentinel on his tower. He is set there to watch. He must be vigilant and pe.tient. There is much to try him, but not till morning breaks will he find relee.se. w I. AITING UPON GOD ASSURES DELIVERANCE. Waiting implies faith and hope. "The huebandman waiteth_for the harvest." The physician waits for the effect of hi1 THE BOOK OF PSALMS. (PS. LX. 1-12.
remedies. The father waits for the time when his son is educati!d, and fit to take his place in the world. So we are to he.ve faith, to hold oursel vcs still, in paticn t expect- ancy, till God's will is made known. ,vaiting does not preclude personal effort, On the contrary, it implies it. God will not do for us what he has mnde ue able to dt for ourselves. Our duty is to work, and wait upon God for his blessing. Wo must do our part, if we expect God to do his part. Dnt there arc times when wo have, so far as we know, done nll in our power, when we have exhausted nil lawful efforts, and yet our condition is not bettered, but rather grown worse. Our straits are grrat. Our needs are urgent. Our enemies press us on every side, and shout as if sure of their prey. What comfort it is, at such a time, to commit ourselves to God, and to wait patiently for him from whom our salvation cometh! Remember what God is, and what he has done. He is our " Strength" and our "Defence." God in us is our Strength-onr strength made perfect in weakness. We in God is our "Defence" -our Strong Tower to which we run nnd are safe. II. WAITING UPON Goo AW.\K.ENS PRAISE. (Vers. 14-17.) Here is a sweot strain of thanksgiving. The rage nnd malice of the enemy still continue, but it is malice that is defeated, and rage that is baulked of its prey. The" morning" brings deliver- ance, and, instead of the sbrieks of the victim, there are the songs of the victor. God has saved bis servant who trusted in him. How often has the same thing come true! God's people, waiting upon him in the day of their trouble, have found "defence'' and " refuge." God's power bas delivered them from their enemies; God's "mercy " has hrought joy and peace to their hearts. Therefore they, with renewed ardour; say, "Unto thee, 0 my Strength, will I sing; for God is my D!lfence, and the God of my mercy."-W. F.