4. works of men--sinful practices.
by the word of thy lips--as a guide ([Psa 119:9], 11, 95).
destroyer--violent man.
5. May be read as an assertion "my steps or goings have held on to Thy paths."
6. wilt hear me--that is, graciously ([Psa 3:4]).
7. Show--set apart as special and eminent ([Ex 8:18]; [Psa 4:3]).
thy right hand--for Thy power.
8. Similar figures, denoting the preciousness of God's people in His sight, in [De 32:10], ; [Mt 23:37].
9. compass me--(compare [Psa 118:10-12]).
10. enclosed ... fat--are become proud in prosperity, and insolent to God ([De 32:15]; [Psa 73:7]).
11. They pursue us as beasts tracking their prey.
12. The figure made more special by that of a lion lurking.
13-15. disappoint--literally, "come before," or, "encounter him." Supply "with" before "sword" ([Psa 17:13]), and "hand" ([Psa 17:14]). These denote God's power.
Psalm 18
Psa 18:1-50. "The servant of the Lord," which in the Hebrew precedes "David," is a significant part of the title (and not a mere epithet of David), denoting the inspired character of the song, as the production of one entrusted with the execution of God's will. He was not favored by God because he served Him, but served Him because selected and appointed by God in His sovereign mercy. After a general expression of praise and confidence in God for the future, David gives a sublimely poetical description of God's deliverance, which he characterizes as an illustration of God's justice to the innocent and His righteous government. His own prowess and success are celebrated as the results of divine aid, and, confident of its continuance, he closes in terms of triumphant praise. 2Sa 22:1-51 is a copy of this Psalm, with a few unimportant variations recorded there as a part of the history, and repeated here as part of a collection designed for permanent use
1. I will love thee--with most tender affection.
2-3. The various terms used describe God as an object of the most implicit and reliable trust.
rock--literally, "a cleft rock," for concealment.
strength--a firm, immovable rock.
horn of my salvation--The horn, as the means of attack or defense of some of the strongest animals, is a frequent emblem of power or strength efficiently exercised (compare [De 33:17]; [Lu 1:69]).
tower--literally, "high place," beyond reach of danger.
4. sorrows--literally, "bands as of a net" ([Psa 116:3]).
floods--denotes "multitude."
5. death--and hell (compare [Psa 16:10]) are personified as man's great enemies (compare [Re 20:13], ).
prevented--encountered me, crossed my path, and endangered my safety. He does not mean he was in their power.
6. He relates his methods to procure relief when distressed, and his success.
temple--(Compare [Psa 11:4]).
7-8. God's coming described in figures drawn from His appearance on Sinai (compare [De 32:22]).
9. darkness--or, a dense cloud ([Ex 19:16]; [De 5:22]).
10. cherub--angelic agents (compare [Ge 3:24]), the figures of which were placed over the ark ([1Sa 4:4]), representing God's dwelling; used here to enhance the majesty of the divine advent. Angels and winds may represent all rational and irrational agencies of God's providence (compare [Psa 104:3], ).
did fly--Rapidity of motion adds to the grandeur of the scene.
11. dark waters--or, clouds heavy with vapor.
12. Out of this obscurity, which impresses the beholder with awe and dread, He reveals Himself by sudden light and the means of His terrible wrath ([Jos 10:11]; [Psa 78:47]).
13. The storm breaks forth--thunder follows lightning, and hail with repeated lightning, as often seen, like balls or coals of fire, succeed ([Ex 9:23]).
14. The fiery brightness of lightning, in shape like burning arrows rapidly shot through the air, well represents the most terrible part of an awful storm. Before the terrors of such a scene the enemies are confounded and overthrown in dismay.
15. The tempest of the air is attended by appropriate results on earth. The language, though not expressive of any special physical changes, represents the utter subversion of the order of nature. Before such a God none can stand.
16-19. from above--As seated on a throne, directing these terrible scenes, God--
sent--His hand ([Psa 144:7]), reached down to His humble worshipper, and delivered him.
many waters--calamities ([Job 30:14]; [Psa 124:4], ).
20-24. The statements of innocence, righteousness, &c., refer, doubtless, to his personal and official conduct and his purposes, during all the trials to which he was subjected in Saul's persecutions and Absalom's rebellions, as well as the various wars in which he had been engaged as the head and defender of God's Church and people.
25-27. God renders to men according to their deeds in a penal, not vindictive, sense ([Le 26:23], ).
merciful--or, "kind" ([Psa 4:3]).
28. To give one light is to make prosperous ([Job 18:5], ; ).
thou--is emphatic, as if to say, I can fully confide in Thee for help.
29. And this on past experience in his military life, set forth by these figures.