Psa 119:51, 69, 122 | TDavid | STEP | EXPOSITION Verse 51 . The proud have had me greatly in derision. Proud men never love gracious men, and as they fear them they veil their fear under a pretended contempt. In this case their hatred revealed itself in ridicule, and that ridicule was loud and long. When they wanted sport they made sport of David because he was God's servant. Men must have strange eyes to be able to see a farce in faith, and a comedy in holiness; yet it is sadly the case that men who are short of wit can generally provoke a broad grin by jesting at a saint. Conceited sinners make footballs of godly men. They call it roaring fun to caricature a faithful member of "The Holy Club"; his methods of careful living are the material for their jokes about "the Methodist"; and his hatred of sin sets their tongues wagging at long faced Puritanism, and straitlaced hypocrisy. If David was greatly derided, we may not expect to escape the scorn of the ungodly. There are hosts of proud men still upon the lace of the earth, and if they find a believer in affliction they will be mean enough and cruel enough to make jests at his expense. It is the nature of the son of the bondwoman to mock the child of the promise. Yet have I not declined from thy law. Thus the deriders missed their aim: they laughed, but they did not win. The godly man, so far from turning aside from the right way, did not even slacken his pace, or in any sense fall off from his holy habits. Many would have declined, many have declined, but David did not do so. It is paying too much honour to fools to yield half a point to them. Their unhallowed mirth will not harm us if dogs pay no attention to it, even as the moon suffers nothing from the dogs that bay at her. God's law is our highway of peace and safety, and those who would laugh us out of it wish us no good. From we note that David was not overcome by the spoiling of his goods any more than by these cruel mockings. See also , where the multitude of persecutors and enemies were baffled in their attempts to make him decline from God's ways. EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS Verse 51 . -- The proud have had me greatly in derision . The saints of God have complained of this in all ages: David of his busy mockers; the abjects jeered him. Job was disdained of those children whose fathers he would have scorned to set with the dogs of his flock, . Joseph was nicknamed a dreamer, Paul a babbler, Christ himself a Samaritan, and with intent of disgrace a carpenter...Michal was barren, yet she hath too many children, that scorn the habit and exercises of holiness. There cannot be a greater argument of a foul soul, than the deriding of religious services. Worldly hearts can see nothing in those actions, but folly and madness; piety hath no relish, but is distasteful to their palates. --Thomas Adams. Verse 51 . -- The proud , etc. Scoffing proceedeth from pride. . --John Trapp. Verse 51 . -- Greatly . The word notes "continually," the Septuagint translates it by afczra, the vulgar Latin by "usque valde", and "usque longe". They derided him with all possible bitterness; and day by day they had their scoffs for him, so that it was both a grievous and a perpetual temptation. --Thomas Manton. Verse 51 . -- Derision . David tells that he had been jeered for his religion, but yet he had not been jeered out of his religion. They laughed at him for his praying and called it cant, for his seriousness and called it mopishness, for his strictness and called it needless preciseness. --Matthew Henry. Verse 51 . -- It is a great thing in a soldier to behave well under fire; but it is a greater thing for a soldier of the cross to be unflinching in the day of his trial . It does not hurt the Christian to have the dogs bark at him. --William S. Plumer. Verse 50-51 . -- The life and rigour infused into me by the promise which "quickened me ," caused me "not to decline from thy law," even though "the proud did iniquitously altogether"; doing all in their power, through their jeering at me, to deter me from its observance. --Robert Bellarmine. HINTS FOR PASTORS AND LAYPERSONS Verse 51 . -- The proud man's contumely, and the gracious man's constancy. Verse 51 . -- Fidelity in the face of contempt. The proud deride the believer's subjection to God's law. They ridicule the believer's delight, in God's service. They are met by the believer's resolution to cleave to God. . -- C.A.D.

Psalms 119:51

EXPOSITION

Verse 51. The proud have had me greatly in derision. Proud men never love gracious men, and as they fear them they veil their fear under a pretended contempt. In this case their hatred revealed itself in ridicule, and that ridicule was loud and long. When they wanted sport they made sport of David because he was God's servant. Men must have strange eyes to be able to see a farce in faith, and a comedy in holiness; yet it is sadly the case that men who are short of wit can generally provoke a broad grin by jesting at a saint. Conceited sinners make footballs of godly men. They call it roaring fun to caricature a faithful member of "The Holy Club"; his methods of careful living are the material for their jokes about "the Methodist"; and his hatred of sin sets their tongues wagging at long faced Puritanism, and straitlaced hypocrisy. If David was greatly derided, we may not expect to escape the scorn of the ungodly. There are hosts of proud men still upon the lace of the earth, and if they find a believer in affliction they will be mean enough and cruel enough to make jests at his expense. It is the nature of the son of the bondwoman to mock the child of the promise.

Yet have I not declined from thy law. Thus the deriders missed their aim: they laughed, but they did not win. The godly man, so far from turning aside from the right way, did not even slacken his pace, or in any sense fall off from his holy habits. Many would have declined, many have declined, but David did not do so. It is paying too much honour to fools to yield half a point to them. Their unhallowed mirth will not harm us if dogs pay no attention to it, even as the moon suffers nothing from the dogs that bay at her. God's law is our highway of peace and safety, and those who would laugh us out of it wish us no good.

From Psalms 119:61 we note that David was not overcome by the spoiling of his goods any more than by these cruel mockings. See also Psalms 119:157, where the multitude of persecutors and enemies were baffled in their attempts to make him decline from God's ways.

EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS

Verse 51. -- The proud have had me greatly in derision. The saints of God have complained of this in all ages: David of his busy mockers; the abjects jeered him. Job was disdained of those children whose fathers he would have scorned to set with the dogs of his flock, Job 30:1. Joseph was nicknamed a dreamer, Paul a babbler, Christ himself a Samaritan, and with intent of disgrace a carpenter...Michal was barren, yet she hath too many children, that scorn the habit and exercises of holiness. There cannot be a greater argument of a foul soul, than the deriding of religious services. Worldly hearts can see nothing in those actions, but folly and madness; piety hath no relish, but is distasteful to their palates. --Thomas Adams.

Verse 51. -- The proud, etc. Scoffing proceedeth from pride. Proverbs 3:34 1 Peter 5:5. --John Trapp.

Verse 51. -- Greatly. The word notes "continually," the Septuagint translates it by afczra, the vulgar Latin by "usque valde", and "usque longe". They derided him with all possible bitterness; and day by day they had their scoffs for him, so that it was both a grievous and a perpetual temptation. --Thomas Manton.

Verse 51. -- Derision. David tells that he had been jeered for his religion, but yet he had not been jeered out of his religion. They laughed at him for his praying and called it cant, for his seriousness and called it mopishness, for his strictness and called it needless preciseness. --Matthew Henry.

Verse 51. -- It is a great thing in a soldier to behave well under fire; but it is a greater thing for a soldier of the cross to be unflinching in the day of his trial. It does not hurt the Christian to have the dogs bark at him. --William S. Plumer.

Verse 50-51. -- The life and rigour infused into me by the promise which "quickened me," caused me "not to decline from thy law," even though "the proud did iniquitously altogether"; doing all in their power, through their jeering at me, to deter me from its observance. --Robert Bellarmine.

HINTS FOR PASTORS AND LAYPERSONS

Verse 51. -- The proud man's contumely, and the gracious man's constancy.

Verse 51. -- Fidelity in the face of contempt.

Psalms 119:69

EXPOSITION

Verse 69. The proud have forged a lie against me. They first derided him (Psalms 119:51), then defrauded him (Psalms 119:61), and now they have defamed him. To injure his character they resorted to falsehood, for they could find nothing against him if they spoke the truth. They forged a lie as a blacksmith beats out a weapon of iron, or they counterfeited the truth as men forge false coin. The original may suggest a common expression -- "They have patched up a lie against me." They were not too proud to lie. Pride is a lie, and when a proud man utters lies "he speaketh of his own." Proud men are usually the bitterest opponents of the righteous: they are envious of their good fame and are eager to ruin it. Slander is a cheap and handy weapon if the object is the destruction of a gracious reputation; and when many proud ones conspire to concoct, exaggerate, and spread abroad a malicious falsehood, they generally succeed in wounding their victim, and it is no fault of theirs if they do not kill him outright. O the venom which lies under the tongue of a liar! Many a happy life has been embittered by it, and many a good repute has been poisoned as with the deadliest drug. It is painful to the last degree to hear unscrupulous men hammering away at the devil's anvil forging a new calumny; the only help against it is the sweet promise, "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper, and every tongue that riseth against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn."

But I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart. My one anxiety shall be to mind my own business and stick to the commandments of the Lord. If the mud which is thrown at us does not blind our eyes or bruise our integrity it will do us little harm. If we keep the precepts, the precepts will keep us in the day of contumely and slander. David renews his resolve -- "I will keep"; he takes a new look at the commands, and sees them to be really the Lord's -- "thy precepts"; and he arouses his entire nature to the work -- "with my whole heart." When slanders drive us to more resolute and careful obedience they work our lasting good; falsehood hurled against us may be made to promote our fidelity to the truth, and the malice of men may increase our love to God. If we try to answer lies by our words we may be beaten in the battle; but a holy life is an unanswerable refutation of all calumnies. Spite is balked if we persevere in holiness despite all opposition.

EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS

Verse 69. -- The proud have forged a lie against me. If in the present day the enemies of the truth in their lying writings rail against the orthodox teachers in the Church, that is a very old artifice of the Devil, since David complains that in his day it happened unto him. --Solomon Gesner.

Verse 69. -- The proud have forged a lie. They trim up lies with shadows of truth and neat language; they have mints to frame their lies curiously in, and presses to print their lies withal. --William Greenhill, 1591-1677.

Verse 69. -- The proud. Faith humbleth, and infidelity maketh proud. Faith humbleth, because it letteth us see our sins, and the punishments thereof, and that we have no dealing with God but through the mediation of Christ; and that we can do no good, nor avoid evil, but by grace. But when men know not this, then they think much of themselves, and therefore are proud. Therefore all ignorant men, all heretics, and worldlings are proud. They that are humbled under God's hands, are humble to men; but they that despise God do also persecute his servants. --Richard Greenham.

Verse 69. -- Forged a lie. Vatablus translates it, "coneinnarunt mendacta". So Tremellius: they have trimmed up lies. As Satan can transform himself into an angel of light, so he can trim up his lies under coverings of truth, to make them the more plausible unto men. And indeed this is no small temptation, when lies made against the godly are trimmed up with the shadows of truth, and wicked men cover their unrighteous dealings with appearances of righteousness. Thus, not only are the godly unjustly persecuted, but simple ones are made to believe that they have most justly deserved it. In this case the godly are to sustain themselves by the testimony of a good conscience. --William Cowper.

Verse 69. -- Forged. expresses the essential meaning of the Hebrew word, but not its figurative form which seems to be that of sewing, analogous to that of weaving, as applied to the same thing, both in Hebrew and in other languages. We may also compare our figurative phrase, to patch up, which, however, is not so much suggestive of artifice or skill as of the want of it. The connection of the clauses is, that all the craft and malice of his enemies should only lead him to obey God, with a more undivided heart than ever. -- Joseph Addison Alexander.

Verse 69. -- Forged. The metaphor may be like the Greek (raptein doloul), from sewing or patching up: or, from smearing, or daubing (Delitzsch, Moll, etc.), a wall, so as to hide the real substance. The Psalmist remains true to God despite the falsehoods with which the proud smear and hide his true fidelity. --The Speaker's Commentary.

Verse 69. -- A lie. Satan's two arms by which he wrestles against the godly are violence and lies: where he cannot, or dare not, use violence, there be sure he will not fail to fight with lies. And herein doth the Lord greatly show his careful providence, in fencing his children against Satan's malice and the proud brags of his instruments, in such sort, that their proudest hearts are forced to forge lies; their malice being so great that they must do evil; and yet their power so bridled that they cannot do what they would. -- William Cowper.

Verse 69. -- I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart. Let the word of the Lord come, let it come; and if we had six hundred necks, we would submit them all to his dictates. -- Augustine.

HINTS FOR PASTORS AND LAYPERSONS

Verse 69. -- Wholehearted obedience the best solace under slander; the best answer to it; and the best way of converting the slanderers.

Psalms 119:122

Verse 122. Be surety for thy servant for good. Answer for me. Do not leave thy poor servant to die by the hand of his enemy and thine. Take up my interests and weave them with thine own, and stand for me. As my Master, undertake thy servants' cause, and represent me before the faces of haughty men till they see what an august ally I have in the Lord my God. Let not the proud oppress me. Thine interposition will answer the purpose of my rescue: when the proud see that thou art my advocate they will hide their heads. We should have been crushed beneath our proud adversary the devil if our Lord Jesus had not stood between us and the accuser, and become a surety for us. It is by his suretyship that we escape like a bird from the snare of the fowler. What a blessing to be able to leave our matters in our Surety's hands, knowing that all will be well, since he has an answer for every accuser, a rebuke for every reviler. Good men dread oppression, for it makes even a wise man mad, and they send up their cries to heaven for deliverance; nor shall they cry in vain, for the Lord will undertake the cause of his servants, and fight their battles against the proud. The word "servant" is wisely used ,as a plea for favour for himself, and the word "proud" as an argument against his enemies. It seems to be inevitable that proud men should become oppressors, and that they should take most delight in oppressing really gracious men. EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS Verse 122 . -- Be surety for thy servant for good . What David prays to God to be for him, that Christ is for all his people: Hebrews 7:22 . He drew nigh to God, struck hands with him, gave his word and bond to pay the debts of his people; put himself in their law place and stead, and became responsible to law and justice for them; engaged to make satisfaction for their sins, to bring in everlasting righteousness for their justification, and to preserve and keep them, and bring them safe to eternal glory and happiness; and this was being a surety for them for good. --John Gill. Verse 122 . -- Be surety for thy servant for good . There are three expositions of this clause, as noting the end, the cause, the event. Undertake for me, ut sire bonus et justus, so Rabbi Arama on the place; surety for me that I may be good. Theodoret expounds it, "Undertake that I shall make good my resolution of keeping thy law." He that joins, undertakes; though we have precepts and without God's undertaking we shall never be able to perform our duty. Undertake for me to help me in doing good; so some read it: would not take his part in an evil cause. To commend a wrong to God's protection, is to provoke him to hasten our punishment, to us serve under our oppressors; but, when we have a good cause, and good conscience, he will own us. We cannot expect he should maintain us and bear us out in the Devil's service, wherein we have entangled selves by our own sin. Be with me for good: so it is often rendered: "Shew me a token for good" ( Psalms 86:17 ); "Pray not for this people for good" ( Jeremiah 11:14 ); so, "Remember me, O my God, for good" ( Nehemiah 13:31 ). So here "Be surety for thy servant for good." --Thomas Manton. Verse 122 . -- Be surety for thy servant for good . It is the prayer Hezekiah in his trouble, "O Lord, I am oppressed," undertake for, ( Isaiah 38:14 ); it is the prayer of Job for a "daysman" to between him and God ( Job 9:33 ); it is the cry of the church before Incarnation for the appearance of a Divine Mediator; it is the confidence of every faithful soul since that blessed time in the perpetual of our Great High Priest in heaven, which is to us the pledge of blessedness. --Agellius and Cocceius, in Neale and Littledale. Verse 122 . -- Be surety for thy servant for good . His meaning is, thou knowest how unjustly I am calumniated and evil spoken of in parts: where I am not present or where I may not answer for myself, answer thou for me. --William Cowper. Verse 122 . -- Be surety for thy servant for good . The keen eye of world may possibly not be able to affix any blot upon my outward confession; but, "if thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities; O Lord, who shall stand?" The debt is continually accumulating, and the prospect of payment as distant as ever. I might well expect to be "left to my oppressors," I should pay all that was due unto my Lord. But behold! "Where is the fury of the oppressor?" Isaiah 51:13 . The surety is found -- the debt is paid -- the ransom is accepted -- the sinner is free. There was a voice heard heaven -- "Deliver him from going down to the pit: I have found a ransom", Job 33:24 . The Son of God himself became Surety for a stranger, and "smarted for it," Proverbs 11:15 . At an infinite cost -- the cost of his precious blood -- he delivered me from "mine oppressors" -- sin -- Satan world -- death -- hell. -- Charles Bridges. Verse 122 . -- Some observe that this is the only verse throughout the whole psalm wherein the Word is not mentioned under the name of "law "judgments ," "statutes," or the like terms, and they make this note it, -- "Where the Law faileth, there Christ is a surety of a better testament. There are those that render the words thus, -- "Dulcify, or, delight thy servant good," that is, make him joyful and comfortable in the pursuit and of that which is good. --John Trapp. HINTS FOR PASTORS AND LAYPERSONS Verse 122 . -- Suretyship entreated. Good expected. Obligation acknowledged: "thy servant." Verse 122 . (first clause). -- After explaining the Psalmist's meaning as shown in the preceding verse, this sentence may be used for a sermon upon the Suretyship of Christ, by a reference to Hebrews 7:22 . A Surety for good wanted -- the deeply felt, though, perhaps, undefined want of a sin burdened soul. The mere statement of a gratuitous pardon on the part of God is not thoroughly believable to such a soul, nor, if it could be believed in, would it give peace to the conscience. For, on the one hand, the pardon could not be perceived as just, nor as consistent with God's necessary hatred of sin, yet the conscience demands this perception; on the other hand, mere pardon does not show how the obligation to a perfect fulfilment of God's law, as righteousness, can be met, yet the conscience demands to see this before it can be satisfied to realize peace Luther's experience. (b) Now the Scriptures tell us that God "justifies the ungodly," and that his "righteousness" is declared in his justifying sinners: Romans 3:25 . He can forgive sins with justice. He can treat sinners as righteous persons, and yet bo righteous in doing so. How? By a Surety. Therefore, a Surety is the real want. A Surety existent. Jesus is the Surety. (a) He undertook to bear our obligation to the law's penalty, and fulfilled it in death. Thus pardon, though mercy to us, is an act of justice to Christ. (b) He undertook our obligation to a perfect obedience, and satisfied for that in his fulfilment of the law; thus for God to treat us as righteous is only just to Christ. (c) God has shown his satisfaction with the office of Christ, and with his work, by the resurrection and glorification of Christ. Hence a well accredited and efficient Surety exists. A Surety nigh at hand. (a) In the gospel, Christ as Surety comes to the sinner as truly as though he himself left his throne and came in his own person. (b) Thus, he is so close that a sinner has but to receive the gospel into his heart and he receives Christ. (c) Christ received as a Surety is the Surety for whosoever receives him. --J.F.