3 For not by their own swords did they gain possession of the land, Nor did their own arms give them victory; But thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance; For thou didst favor them! 4 Thou also art my king, O God! O send deliverance to Jacob! 5 Through thee may we cast down our enemies; Through thy name we may trample upon our adversaries ! 6 I trust not in my bow, Nor can my sword save me. 7 But it is thou only, who savest us from our enemies, And puttest to shame those, who hate us! 8 In God will we glory continually; Yea, we will praise thy name for ever! 9 Yet now thou hast cast us off, and put us to shame ; Thou goest not forth with our armies. 10 Thou makest us turn back from the enemy, And they, who hate us, make our goods their prey. 11 Thou makest us like sheep, destined for food; And scatterest us amongst the nations. 12 Thou sellest thy people for nought, And increasest not thy wealth by their price. 13 Thou makest us the reproach of our neighbours ; The scorn and derision of those who are around us. 14 Thou makest us a byword among the nations, And causest the people to shake their heads at us. 15 My ignominy is continually before me, And shame covereth my face; 16 On account of the scoffer and reviler, And on account of the enemy and avenger. 17 All this hath come upon us; Yet have we not forgotten thee, Nor have we been false to thy covenant. 18 Our hearts have not wandered from thee, Nor have our feet gone out of thy path; 19 Though thou hast crushed us in a land of jackals, And covered us with thick darkness. 20 If we had forgotten the name of our God, 21 Surely God would search it out, For he knoweth the secrets of the heart. 22 But for thy sake we are killed all the day ; We are counted as sheep for the slaughter. 23 Awake! why sleepest thou, O Lord! 24 Wherefore dost thou hide thy face, And forget our affliction, and oppression? 25 Our soul is bowed down to the dust; Our body cleaveth to the earth. 26 Arise, O thou, our strength, And deliver us, for thy mercy's sake! V. 12. i. e. Thou causest us to be sold in vast numbers, like the meanest slaves. V. 22. But for thy sake, i. e. for the sake of thy religion. PSALM XLV. This psalm is regarded by many, following the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, as prophetic of Jesus the Messiah, and as setting forth the glories of his kingdom in language borrowed from the style of Eastern royalty. Some of the German critics, as Rosenmüller, suppose the subject of the psalm to be the Messiah according to the gross Jewish conceptions, but to have no reference to Jesus. Others, with Grotius, suppose it to be an ode composed in honor of king Solomon by some courtly bard; and that the special occasion of it was his marriage with an Egyptian princess. Another supposition is, that it is an inauguration or coronation ode. For the leader of the music. To be accompanied with the Shoshannim. A song of loveliness, or a lovely song, of the sons of Korah. 1 My mind is full of a pleasant theme; I will address my song to the king; May my tongue be like the pen of a ready writer! 2 Thou art the fairest of the sons of men; Grace is poured upon thy lips; For God hath blessed thee for ever! 3 Gird on thy sword, O hero, Thy glory and ornament! 4 In thy glorious array ride forth prosperously On account of thy truth, and mildness, and justice; And thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things! 5 Thine arrows are sharp; 6 Nations shall fall before thee; They shall pierce the hearts of the king's enemies. Thy throne, O God, shall stand for ever; The sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of equity! 7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest iniquity; Therefore, O God, thy God hath anointed thee With the oil of gladness above thy fellows! 8 All thy garments are myrrh, aloes, and cassia; From ivory palaces stringed instruments delight thee. 9 Daughters of kings are amongst thy chosen women; On the right hand stands the queen In gold of ophir. 10 Listen, O daughter; consider, and incline thine ear; Forget thy people and thy father's house! 11 For the king is captivated with thy beauty; He is now thy lord; honor thou him! 12 So shall the daughter of Tyre seek thy favor with gifts; The rich among the people. 13 All glorious is the king's daughter in her apartment; Her robe is embroidered with gold. 14 In variegated garments shall she be led to the king; The virgin companions, that follow her, shall be brought unto thee. 15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought ; They shall enter the king's palace. 16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, 17 Whom thou shalt make princes through all the land. I will make thy name memorable throughout all generations; So shall the people praise thee for ever and ever! A musical instrument; perhaps so called from having the form of a lily. V. 6. O God, i. e. O king! A well known usage. See Ps. lxxxii. 6. This psalm may be otherwise rendered: Thy divine throne shall stand for ever, i. e. Thy throne, given to thee by God, &c. - V. 7. Therefore, O God: Or, Therefore, God. Thy fellows, i. e. other kings.-V. 12. Daughter of Tyre, i. e. the city of Tyre, or the Tyrians. PSALM XLVI. Thanksgiving for victory over enemies, and trust in God as a national refuge and defence. Some refer the composition of this Psalm to the days of Hezekiah, when Jerusalem was threatened by the Assyrians. See Is. xxxvi. xxxvii. Others to the victory gained by Jehoshaphat over the Ammonites and Moabites. See 2 Chron. xx. 28. But each opinion is mere conjecture. It is most probable, however, that the psalm was occasional. For the leader of the music. Of, or for, the sons of Korah. To be sung in the manner, or with the voice, of virgins. 1 GOD is our refuge and strength; An ever present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be chang ed; Though the mountains tremble in the midst of the sea; 3 Though its waters roar and be troubled, And the mountains shake with its swell; 4 Her river with its streams shall make glad the city of our God, The holy dwelling-place of the most high. 5 God is the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her, and that full early. 6 The nations raged; kingdoms were moved; He uttered his voice the earth melted. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us: The God of Jacob is our refuge. 8 Come, see the doings of Jehovah! What desolations he hath made in the earth! 9 He causeth wars to cease to the end of the earth; He hath broken the bow, and snapped the spear asunder, And burned the chariots in fire. |