Bible Commentaries

Job 27:19 — The rich man shall lie down, but he shall not be gathered: he openeth his eyes, and he [is] not. The rich man shall lie down — That is, the wicked rich man, as James 5:1 . Magna cognatio ut rei sic nominis, divitiis, et vitiis. He shall lie down, viz. in the streets, as being left homeless. But he shall not be gathered — i.e. Taken into house or harbour by any man; but abhorred by all for his former cruelty. He

Job 31:4 — Yea, sure he doth so; and the conscience of God’s omniscience, who would soon take him tripping, kept him from this great wickedness. So it did Joseph, but so it did not David; who is, therefore, said to despise God and his commandment, 2 Samuel 12:9-10 to do evil in his sight; and this was no small aggravation of his offence. Ne pecces, Deus ipse videt. "I have seen the lewdness of thy whoredom," Jeremiah 13:27 . "Even I know, and am a witness, saith the Lord," Jeremiah 29:23

Job 31:8 — κακα τευχει ανηρ, αλλω κακα τευχων . Those who spoil houses which they builded not, Job 20:19 , shall, when they cease to spoil, be made a spoil; and when they have made an end of dealing treacherously, be treacherously dealt with themselves, Isaiah 13:1 .

Job 36:5 — whose wisdom is his justice, whose justice is his power, whose power is his mercy, and all himself. He is mighty in strength and wisdom — Or, He is mighty, the strength of the heart, Validus est, virtus animi (Tram.). He was so to David: Psalms 138:3 , "In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenest me with strength in my soul." At the sack of Ziklag, in the fail of all outward comforts, David encouraged himself in the Lord his God, 1 Samuel 30:6 . A Christian is never

Job 41:10 — Et est qui coram me stet? No more surely than a man before a whale, or a glass bottle before a cannon shot. Here then we have the accommodation and application of the former discourse, which we must not look upon as cunningly devised fables, 2 Peter 1:6 , or read as we do the old stories of foreign businesses, but as that wherein ourselves are nearly interested and concerned, that we may give God the glory of his power (as here, far beyond that of the whale or any other creature) and of his justice,

Job 42:1 — Then Job answered the LORD, and said, Then Job answered the Lord, and said — After that he had been so plainly and plentifully convinced by Almighty God, 1. That he was far short of him in eternity, wisdom, power, providence, …; 2. That he could not stand before behemoth and leviathan, the works of his hands; Job yieldeth, submitting to God’s justice, and imploring his mercy: so effectual

Psalms 103:20 — concludeth as he began, with a saying to himself. That excel in strength — Heb. Giants for strength, such as can prevail, and do great exploits, yet is all their strength derivative, they have it from God (who is Hagibbor, the mighty one, Deuteronomy 10:17 ), and hence the angel Gabriel hath his name, God is my strength. Labour we to be like unto the angels, strengthened with all might, …, Colossians 1:11 , walking about the world as conquerors, able to do all things through Christ, who strengtheneth

Psalms 13:3 — distress, pouring out their souls into his blessed bosom. This they must do most earnestly, when under a cloud of desertion; as our Saviour, being in an agony, prayed more fervently, Luke 22:44 ; and as Micah, having lost his gods, set up his note, Judges 18:24 . Lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep death — i.e. Comfort my conscience, clear up my condition, and cheer up my drooping spirit, lest I faint away as a dying man, whose eyes through weakness wax dim, lest I fall into that somnus ferreus, as the

Psalms 16:11 — pleasures for evermore. Thou wilt show me the path of life — This being applied to Christ, seemeth to show that as man he did not yet fully understand that inexplicable glory wherewith the Father would glorify him after death with himself, John 17:5 . Sure it is, that David did not, nor can any man living, 1 Corinthians 2:9: here is as much said as can be said (but words are too weak to utter it). For quality, there is in heaven joy and pleasures. For quantity, a fulness, a torrent, whereat

Psalms 16:9 — mine unthankfulness and unworthiness of so great glory (as that martyr, Mr Philpot, said). In all the days of my life I was never so merry as now I am in this dark dungeon, … Wicked men rejoice in appearance, and not in heart, 2 Corinthians 5:12 ; their joy is but skin deep, their mirth frothy and flashy, such as wetteth the mouth, but warmeth not the heart. But David is totus totus, quantus quantus exultabundus, his heart, glory, flesh (answerable, as some think, to that of the apostle, 1

Psalms 45:3 — thy majesty. Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty (O Heros). — This is one of Christ’s titles, Isaiah 9:6 , the giant, or the mighty strong God, the valiant champion of his Church. And his sword is the word of his mouth, Revelation 1:16 Hebrews 4:12 Isaiah 49:2 . All the wars in the conquest of Canaan were types of the spiritual wars under the gospel, whereby the nations were subdued to the obedience of the faith, 2 Corinthians 10:4 Ephesians 6:11 . Christ hath his sword then, a

Psalms 47:7 — princes, as Sesostris, king of Egypt, who would needs be called κοσμοκρατωρ , Lord of the whole world. So a decree went out from Augustus Caesar, that all the world should be taxed, Luke 2:1 . The Great Turk, Amurath III, styled himself, God of the earth, governor of the whole world, …; but these were but bubbles of words, as St Peter hath it, God is the sole monarch of the whole world, παμβασιλευς

Psalms 56:5 — table with water to wash their hands. of her eyes and a towel of her hair, Luke 7:34 . Men should interpret everything the best way, and not as logicians do, Sequi partem deteriorem. All their thoughts, … — See Trapp on " Psalms 56:1 "

Psalms 57:4 — pingitur. And I lie even among them that are set on fire — sc. With rage and hellish hatred. Others expound it actively, of those Ardeliones aulici, those court incendiaries, who enraged Saul and the nobles against David, as a traitor and pest. See 1 Samuel 24:10 . Even the sons of men — i.e. Carnal men, that, being in their pure naturals, have no goodness at all in them. Whose teeth are spears and arrows — Such was Doeg, that dead dog, and others void of the Spirit, which is neque mendax,

Psalms 65:2 — O thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. O thou that hearest prayer — And art thereby known to be the true God, 1 Kings 18:38-39 , and no such dull deity as the heathens worshipped, Isaiah 45:16 ; Isaiah 45:19 Micah 7:17-18 . O happy we that have to deal with such a prayer hearing, sin pardoning God! Psalms 65:3 . Basil compareth prayer to a chain, the one end

Psalms 68:11 — one’s mouth, like the word in an army, with joyful acclamations and outcries, Deus obtulit occasionem laetandi, ovandi et triumphandi. Great was the company (Heb. army) of those that published it — Such are the preachers of the gospel, Romans 10:15 , an office taken now from the angels, and given to the ministers; whence that angel turned over Cornelius to Peter for further information, Acts 10:1-6 The Hebrew word for publishers or preachers here is feminine, not to countenance our praedicantissae

Psalms 72:17 — begotten of another. Heb. his name shall be childed; that is, so continued as families are continued; there shall be a constant succession of Christ’s name to the end of the world; there will still be Christians who are his children, Hebrews 2:13-14 . The old Hebrews tell us, that Jinnon (the Hebrew word here used) is one of Christ’s names. And men shall be blessed in him — Or, they shall bless themselves in him, viz. in Solomon, but especially in Christ, of whom Solomon was but

Psalms 74:12 — country, therefore, God seemeth purposely to have espied out, as himself speaketh, that therehence he might send abroad salvation into all parts. And hereabout some gather from Joel 3:2 . Christ will sit to judge the world at the last day, Psalms 50:1-2 .

Psalms 75:1 — David himself (and by him committed to Asaph), at such time as the difference depending between him and Ishbosheth, many were slain on both sides. This drew from David an Al-taschith, not long before he was anointed king over all Israel. 2 Samuel 5:1-5 Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks — Heb. We celebrate thee, O God, we celebrate thee; viz. both for mercies and crosses sanctified; for these also are to be reckoned upon the score of God’s favours. For that thy name is near —

Psalms 79:1 — « A Psalm of Asaph. » O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps. A Psalm — Of like subject with Psalms 74:1-23 , bewailing the same calamity of the Jews, whether under Nebuchadnezzar or Antiochus is uncertain; but foreseen by Asaph, or described by some other prophet, and committed to some of Asaph’s successors to be sung. Cantant iusti etiam in adversis;