Psalm 15
Exposition
Explanatory Notes and Quaint Sayings
Hints to the Village Preacher
Other Works
SUBJECT, &c. This Psalm of David bears no dedicatory title at all
indicative of the occasion upon which it was written, but it is
exceedingly probable that, together with the twenty-fourth Psalm, to
which it bears a striking resemblance, its composition was in some
way connected with the removal of the ark to the holy hill of Zion.
Who should attend upon the ark was a matter of no small consequence,
for because unauthorized persons had intruded into the office, David
was unable on the first occasion to complete his purpose of bringing
the ark to Zion. On the second attempt he is more careful, not only
to allot the work of carrying the ark to the divinely appointed
Levites (1 Chronicles 15:2), but also to leave it in charge of the
man whose house the Lord had blessed, even Obed-edom, who, with his
many sons, ministered in the house of the Lord. (1 Chronicles 26:8,
12.) Spiritually we have here a description of the man who is a child
at home in the Church of God on earth, and who will dwell in the
house of the Lord for ever above. He is primarily Jesus, the perfect
man, and in him all who through grace are conformed to his
image.
DIVISION. The first verse asks the question; the rest of the
verses answer it. We will call the Psalm THE QUESTION AND
ANSWER.
EXPOSITION
Verse 1. THE QUESTION. Jehovah. Thou high and holy One, who
shall be permitted to have fellowship with thee? The heavens are not
pure in thy sight, and thou chargest thine angels with folly, who
then of mortal mould shall dwell with thee, thou dread consuming
fire? A sense of the glory of the Lord and of the holiness which
becomes his house, his service, and his attendants, excites the
humble mind to ask the solemn question before us. Where angels bow
with veiled faces, how shall man be able to worship at all? The
unthinking many imagine it to be a very easy matter to approach the
Most High, and when professedly engaged in his worship they have no
questionings of heart as to their fitness for it; but truly humbled
souls often shrink under a sense of utter unworthiness, and would not
dare to approach the throne of the God of holiness if it were not for
him, our Lord, our Advocate, who can abide in the heavenly temple,
because his righteousness endureth for ever. "Who shall abide in
thy tabernacle?" Who shall be admitted to be one of the household
of God, to sojourn under his roof and enjoy communion with himself?
"Who shall dwell in thy holy hill?" Who shall be a citizen of
Zion, and an inhabitant of the heavenly Jerusalem? The question is
raised, because it is a question. All men have not this privilege,
nay, even among professors there are aliens from the commonwealth,
who have no secret intercourse with God. On the grounds of law no
mere man can dwell with God, for there is not one upon earth who
answers to the just requirements mentioned in the succeeding verses.
The questions in the text are asked of the Lord, as if none
but the Infinite Mind could answer them so as to satisfy the unquiet
conscience. We must know from the Lord of the tabernacle what are the
qualifications for his service, and when we have been taught of him,
we shall clearly see that only our spotless Lord Jesus, and those who
are conformed unto his image, can ever stand with acceptance before
the Majesty on high.
Impertinent curiosity frequently desires
to know who and how many shall be saved; if those who thus ask the
question, "Who shall dwell in thy holy hill?" would make it a
soul-searching enquiry in reference to themselves they would act much
more wisely. Members of the visible church, which is God's tabernacle
of worship, and hill of eminence, should diligently see to it, that
they have the preparation of heart which fits them to be inmates of
the house of God. Without the wedding-dress of righteousness in
Christ Jesus, we have no right to sit at the banquet of communion.
Without uprightness of walk we are not fit for the imperfect church
on earth, and certainly we must not hope to enter the perfect church
above.
Verse 2. THE ANSWER. The Lord in answer to the question informs us by
his Holy Spirit of the character of the man who alone can dwell in
his holy hill. In perfection this holiness is found only in the Man
of Sorrows, but in a measure it is wrought in all his people by the
Holy Ghost. Faith and the graces of the Spirit are not mentioned,
because this is a description of outward character, and where fruits
are found the root may not be seen, but it is surely there. Observe
the accepted man's walk, work, and word. "He that walketh
uprightly," he keeps himself erect as those do who traverse high
ropes; if they lean on one side over they must go, or as those who
carry precious but fragile ware in baskets on their heads, who lose
all if they lose their perpendicular. True believers do not cringe as
flatterers, wriggle as serpents, bend double as earth-grubbers, or
crook on one side as those who have sinister aims; they have the
strong backbone of the vital principle of grace within, and being
themselves upright, they are able to walk uprightly. Walking is of
far more importance than talking. He only is right who is
up right in walk and down right in honesty. "And
worketh righteousness." His faith shows itself by good works, and
therefore is no dead faith. God's house is a hive for workers, not a
nest for drones. Those who rejoice that everything is done for them
by another, even the Lord Jesus, and therefore hate legality, are the
best doers in the world upon gospel principles. If we are not
positively serving the Lord, and doing his holy will to the best of
our power, we may seriously debate our interest in divine things, for
trees which bear no fruit must be hewn down and cast into the fire.
"And speaketh the truth in his heart." The fool in the last
psalm spoke falsely in his heart; observe both here and elsewhere in
the two psalms, the striking contrast. Saints not only desire to love
and speak truth with their lips, but they seek to be true within;
they will not lie even in the closet of their hearts, for God is
there to listen; they scorn double meanings, evasions, equivocations,
white lies, flatteries, and deceptions. Though truths, like roses,
have thorns about them, good men wear them in their bosoms. Our heart
must be the sanctuary and refuge of truth, should it be banished from
all the world beside, and hunted from among men; at all risk we must
entertain the angel of truth, for truth is God's daughter. We must be
careful that the heart is really fixed and settled in principle, for
tenderness of conscience toward truthfulness, like the bloom on a
peach, needs gentle handling, and once lost it were hard to regain
it. Jesus was the mirror of sincerity and holiness. Oh, to be more
and more fashioned after his similitude!
Verse 3. After the positive comes the negative. "He that
backbiteth not with his tongue." There is a sinful way of
backbiting with the heart when we think too hardly of a neighbour,
but it is the tongue which does the mischief. Some men's tongues bite
more than their teeth. The tongue is not steel, but it cuts, and it's
wounds are very hard to heal; its worst wounds are not with its edge
to our face, but with its back when our head is turned. Under the
law, a night hawk was an unclean bird, and its human image is
abominable everywhere. All slanderers are the devil's bellows to blow
up contention, but those are the worst which blow at the back of the
fire. "Nor doeth evil to his neighbour." He who bridles his
tongue will not give a licence to his hand. Loving our neighbour as
ourselves will make us jealous of his good name, careful not to
injure his estate, or by ill example to corrupt his character.
"Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour." He is a fool
if not a knave who picks up stolen goods and harbours them; in
slander as well as robbery, the receiver is as bad as the thief. If
there were not gratified hearers of ill reports, there would be an
end of the trade of spreading them. Trapp says, that "the tale-bearer
carrieth the devil in his tongue, and the tale-hearer carries the
devil in his ear." The original may be translated, "endureth;"
implying that it is a sin to endure or tolerate tale-bearers. "Show
that man out!" we should say of a drunkard, yet it is very
questionable if his unmanly behaviour will do us so much mischief as
the tale-bearers insinuating story. "Call for a policeman!" we say if
we see a thief at his business; ought we to feel no indignation when
we hear a gossip at her work? Mad dog! Mad dog!! is a terrible hue
and cry, but there are few curs whose bite is so dangerous as a
busybody's tongue. Fire! fire!! is an alarming note, but the
tale-bearer's tongue is set on fire of hell, and those who indulge it
had better mend their manners, or they may find that there is fire in
hell for unbridled tongues. Our Lord spake evil of no man, but
breathed a prayer for his foes; we must be like him, or we shall
never be with him.
Verse 4. "In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he
honoureth them that fear the Lord." We must be as honest in
paying respect as in paying our bills. Honour to whom honour is due.
To all good men we owe a debt of honour, and we have no right to hand
over what is their due to vile persons who happen to be in high
places. When base men are in office, it is our duty to respect the
office; but we cannot so violate our consciences as to do otherwise
than contemn the men; and on the other hand, when true saints are in
poverty and distress, we must sympathize with their afflictions and
honour the men none the less. We may honour the roughest cabinet for
the sake of the jewels, but we must not prize false gems because of
their setting. A sinner in a gold chain and silken robes is no more
to be compared with a saint in rags than a rushlight in a silver
candlestick with the sun behind a cloud. The proverb says, that "ugly
women, finely dressed, are the uglier for it," and so mean men in
high estate are the more mean because of it. "He that sweareth to
his own hurt, and changeth not." Scriptural saints under the New
Testament rule "swear not at all," but their word is as good as an
oath: those men of God who think it right to swear, are careful and
prayerful lest they should even seem to overshoot the mark. When
engagements have been entered into which turn out to be unprofitable,
"the saints are men of honour still." Our blessed Surety swore to his
own hurt, but how gloriously he stood to his suretyship! what a
comfort to us that he changeth not, and what an example to us to be
scrupulously and precisely exact in fulfilling our covenants with
others! The most far-seeing trader may enter into engagements which
turn out to be serious losses, but whatsoever else he loses, if he
keeps his honour, his losses will be bearable; if that be lost all is
lost.
Verse 5. "He that putteth not out his money to usury."
Usury was and is hateful both to God and man. That a lender
should share with the borrower in gains made by his money is most
fitting and proper; but that the man of property should eat up the
poor wretch who unfortunately obtained a loan of him is abominable.