Forsake not the works of thine own hands. DIVISION. Why has he wrought so much in us if he means to give us up? 7. Ver. Read Psalm 138:8 commentary using The Treasury of David. 6. He has so magnified his faithfulness, that his love, his mercy, his grace, would all sooner fail than his faithfulness—the word of his mouth and what he has revealed in the Scripture. He was now in a strait, and God comes in haste to him. God's work is perfect, man's is clumsy and incomplete. 7. Ver. In the day when I cried thou answerest me. 2. Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. Meaning that his Word or promise shall have, as it were, and exercise a kind of sovereignty over all his prerogatives and attributes, wisdom, justice, power, etc. Look over the face of the globe, and see how many, who were once under the unrestrained dominion of sin, are now transformed into the image of their God. 2. Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the LORD. They are low in their own esteem, and he makes them high in his esteem. 7. He will see to it that none of their precious things shall fail of completion; their life, their strength, their hopes, their graces, their pilgrimage, shall each and all be perfected. The way of conversion for kings is the same as for ourselves: faith to them also cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. LET US LOOK AT THE SPEAKER. Psalms 138:8. They know whence they came out. He sees God with his mind's eye, and simply addresses him with the pronoun "thee." In the third part (Psalms 138:7-8), the psalmist comes back to his own needs, and takes to his heart the calming assurance born of his experience, that he bears a charmed life. As a mirror, to reflect his glory. So as to the three youths in the fiery furnace, their persecutor, Nebuchadnezzar, said, "Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God." 1. And then ascend to heaven, and behold the myriads of the redeemed around the throne of God, uniting their hallelujahs to God and to the Lamb: to this state were they all brought by that blessed word, which alone could ever prevail for so great a work. Study the bible online using commentary on Psalm 138:8 and more! “No,” says David, “I will worship thee, and I will praise thee, whoever may oppose me.”. The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: “All that has to do with me — my business, my family, my work, my temporal and my eternal interests,— ‘that which concerneth me,’ and that which troubles me, moves my heart with the deepest concern, Jehovah will perfect.”. These eight Psalms are the devout Israelite's Manual of private prayer and praise. There is no acceptable worship except through him; but we can offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. So be it. David was a king, and he danced before the ark, and he anticipated the time when other kings should not be ashamed of exuberant rejoicing in the King of kings. Happy are those who can cause the word of the Lord to penetrate palaces; for the occupants of thrones are usually the last to know the joyful sounds of the gospel. In short our immediate concern is with, not what apostles conceive inwardly, but what they bring forth outwardly—not with the schemes or the systems which they have been made to apprehend, but with the books which they have written; and had the whole force and effect of this observation been sufficiently pondered, we feel persuaded that the advocates of a mitigated inspiration would not have dissevered, as they have done, the inspiration of sentiment from the inspiration of language. Psalms 138:4. 1. We are told that Christ was "meek and lowly"; "he did not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the streets"; though he was "the brightness of his Father's glory", yet he was content to appear "in the form of a servant"; though he was rich, yet he was content to become poor, that we through his poverty might be rich. I believe David referred to the false gods of the neighbouring nations, and the deities of the surviving Canaanites. God granted him a speedy answer; for it was in the very day that he cried that he was heard: and it was a spiritual answer; he was strengthened with strength in his soul. If, however, we translate this word by "mansion", which is the proper rendering of the original—the mansion of thy sanctity, —this objection to its composition by David falls to the ground. A Psalm of David.Some believe that the Chief Musician is the Lord GOD Himself, and others suppose him to be a leader of choirs or musicians in David’s time, such as Heman the singer or Asaph (1 Chronicles 6:33, 16:5-7, and 25:6). In the day when I cried, etc. Verses 1-8. The statement of this sentence is one which all believers can make, and as they can substantiate it with many facts, they ought boldly to publish it, for it is greatly to God's glory. Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. A pure influx into the mind of an apostle is no sufficient guarantee for the instruction of the world, unless there be a pure afflux also; for not the doctrine that has flowed in, but the doctrine that has flowed out, is truly all that we have to do with. 4. So looking to Jesus, he is our temple. Ver. interpret these words of the angels, and compare Psalms 29:1; but it is doubtful if the Hebrew word Elohim, used nakedly and without any explanation, can have this meaning: it is also, as it would seem, in this connection, pointless: others (Rabbins, Flamin., Delitzsch, etc.) Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the Lord: for great is the glory of the Lord. Our soul shall become Christly. Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the LORD. And he will not do it; he will carry on unto completion the work which he has begun, blessed be his holy name! Where humility is the corner stone, there glory shall be the top stone. The word is the glass in which we see God, and seeing him are changed into his likeness by his Spirit. "Call upon me", saith God, "in the day of trouble." c) It would declare his joyful zeal for God. Therefore we find Daniel opening his windows toward the temple, where he prayed three times a day; and we find Jonah saying, "Yet will I look again toward thy holy temple." It was a bitter, earnest, eager prayer, as natural and as plaintive as the cry of a babe. There was some special day in which David cried more vehemently than usual; he was weak, wounded, worried, and his heart was wearied; then like a child he "cried", —cried unto his Father. He is resolved to praise the Lord, and to do it with the whole force of his life, even with his whole heart. They reverence him, and he respects them. Ver. Exquisite lawyers love to wrestle with niceties and difficulties in the law, to show their skill the more. His loving kindness. 3. 2. --Christopher Wordsworth. Speedy answers should have special praise: "In the when I cried, thou", etc. But, in the sacred volume, all is written as with a sunbeam. There is nothing left to conjecture. Correctness of prophecies. A Psalm of David. Ver. Grace and truth Jesus Christ. Our heavenly Father is able to interpret tears, and cries, and he replies to their inner sense in such a way as fully meets the case. Answers to prayer. God's wisdom is never at a loss; but when providences are darkest, then the morning star of deliverance appears. By David. Yet hath he respect unto the lowly. There is in Divine truth, when applied by the Holy Spirit, a power to wound, to sanctify, to save: Psalms 19:7-11. That part of an army which is upon action in the field is sure to have their pay, if their masters have any money in their purse, or care of them; yea, sometimes when their fellows left in their quarters are made to wait. 2. Forsake not the works of thine own hands. 7. —James Nalton, 1664. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus": Ephesians 2:8-10. —Augustine. Ver. Ver. 3. He does not want them to come near to him. This was a true answer to his prayer. The worshipper's contemplation. Bibliography InformationSpurgeon, Charles H. "Commentary on Psalms 138:4". —Andrew Robert Fausset. Forsake not the works of thine own hands. Had half the time spent in councils and controversies been given to praising the Lord, the church would have been far sounder and stronger than she is at this day. 8. 8. But in the sacred volume all the glory of the Godhead shines: there we are admitted, so to speak, even to the council chamber of the Most High; to hear the covenant entered into between the Father and the Son; the Father engaging to give to him a seed, whom he should have for his inheritance, if he, on his part, would "make his soul an offering for their sins", and, in their nature, expiate the guilt of their iniquities. Ver. Sweet are the uses of adversity, and our prudent Father in heaven will not deprive us of those benefits. These are both included in "loving kindness." Psalm 138 is classified as an Individual Hymn of Thanksgiving, a psalm in which a single voice praises God for goodness to or on behalf of that individual, usually for deliverance from some trying situation. 1. Yes; but he would have us most bold with him in the day of trouble. They know where they are going. : For Jahve is exalted and he seeth the lowly, and the proud he knoweth from afar. Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. The LORD is gracious and full of compassion: David echoed the self-description of Yahweh to Moses: The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth (Exodus 34:6). 4. Thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. Psalms 138 Commentary, One of over 110 Bible commentaries freely available, this seven volume magnum opus was first published in weekly installments in The Sword and the Trowel Hi, Sign out. O that the blind eyes of men could once behold it, then their hearts would be subdued to joyful reverence. By his word and Spirit the Lord can make the trembler brave, the sick whole, the weary bright. He has no fellowship with them, but views them from a distance; he is not deceived, but knows the truth about them, despite their blustering; he has no respect unto them, but utterly abhors them. Ver. He that meets a spectacle or person which he cannot endure to look upon, avoids it, or turns from it while he is yet afar off; whereas, if the object be delightful, he draweth near and comes as close as he can. Of this great mystery we find not a trace in the whole creation besides; but in the word it is reflected, as in a mirror (2 Corinthians 3:18); and it shines so brightly, that the very angels around the throne are made wiser by the revelation of it to the Church: Ephesians 3:10. Then thus it will run; I will worship, etc., "and praise thy name above thy lovingkindness and above thy truth"; i.e., it will be too low, too short a compilation, to call thee merciful or veracious, or style thee after any other of thy attributes; thou art all these, and more than so, "thou hast magnified thy word", given and performed most glorious promises, "above all thy name", above all that men have apprehended or spoken of thee. Gathered to hear the words of Jehovah's mouth. Psalms 138:6. “Hands have they,” but they cannot deliver those who cry to them. Pride passed by to its eternal mortification. In many other psalms David declared his innocence, especially in comparison to his enemies – but not in this psalm. The Vulgate hath, in conspectu angelorum, "before the angels"; their presence should awe men and women, and keep them from all dishonesty, evil words, acts, gestures, secret grudging, all discontents and distempers. "Commentary on Psalms 138:4". Lowliness honoured to its great surprise. I am sure there is more gold and silver (spiritual joy, I mean, and comfort) to be found in Christ's camp, among his suffering ones, than their brethren at home in peace and prosperity ordinarily can show. (Inspiration and some material taken from Charles Spurgeon’s sermon on Psalm 138:8) Sermon for 3/25/2007 In God’s Book We Are Going to Be Winners Psalm 138:8 Introduction: There was a perfect man who met a perfect woman. 1. Psalms 138 Commentary, One of over 110 Bible commentaries freely available, this commentary is from the most widely read and often quoted preacher in history, Charles Haddon Spurgeon I. 3. Ver. I suppose that if the medieval dream had ever come true, and an alchemist had ever turned a grain of lead into gold, he could have turned all the lead in the world, in time, and with crucibles and furnaces enough. Well might he glory before the idols and their worshippers when he had answers to prayer to look back upon. Ver. Especially do we delight in God's great love to his own elect, such as he showed to Israel as a race, and more especially to David and his seed when he entered into covenant with him. His utmost dexterity shall be displayed. Ver. Ver. To the Chief Musician. I will worship toward thy holy temple. What a preacher! David, the king, cared for kings' souls, and it will be wise for each man to look first after those who are of his own order. Go to, To report dead links, typos, or html errors or suggestions about making these resources more useful use our convenient, Spurgeon's Verse Expositions of the Bible, Commentary Critical and Explanatory - Unabridged, Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible, Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures. Right hand salvation. He will be interested about her babe; if she commit it to him, he who made the universe will, with his infinite mind, think upon her cradle and the helpless creature that is rocked to sleep therein. 5. It is righteous, and may be relied upon for the present; it is faithful, and may be trusted in for the future. Ver. —William Greenhill. The Lord doth not only fit work for us, but fits us for our work; with his command he gives power. And may we not do so in the day of peace? —Thomas Watson. Ver. What think you, sirs, was God's design in election, in redemption, in the whole of the gospel dispensation, and in all the ordinances thereof? Ver. Thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me. Yea, they shall sing in the ways of the Lord: for great is the glory of the LORD. But not only do men attack the lovingkindness of God, but the truth of God is at this time assailed on all sides; some doubt the truth of the inspired record as to its histories, others challenge the doctrines, many sneer at the prophecies; in fact, the infallible word of the Lord is at this time treated as if it were the writing of impostors, and only worthy to be carped at. Many modern critics are to the word of God what blowflies are to the food of men: they cannot do any good, and unless relentlessly driven away they do great harm. But the proud he knoweth afar off. 1. 2. Ver. For great is the glory of the LORD. 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