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PSALM CXXXIX.

THE UNIVERSAL PRESENCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD.

Of all the psalms, this, by common consent, is the most admirable. It is attributed to David in the inscription, but certain Chaldee words which occur in it seem to show a later date; for it was not till more than three hundred years after David, that the intercourse of the Jewish people with the Chaldeans, or people of Babylon, began. Yet we would fain believe this psalm. to be David's, and its style affords strong grounds to sustain the opinion. If his, it may be attributed to that period of his life when he was yet unspoiled by prosperity, and, in the peaceful and contemplative life of a shepherd, often turned his thoughts inward upon his own being, and outward, upon the works of nature, and upward, to God. The concluding verses, from the nineteenth, are so without visible connection with the rest, that Dr. A. Clarke thinks they are a part of some other psalm, wrongly annexed to this. Yet the same course of thought is found in the psalm most worthy of comparison with this, the hundred and fourth (p. 229), where the concluding verse leaves the contemplation of God and his works, to animadvert with severity on the wicked. In other respects, the two psalms have a degree of resemblance, and seem like sister compositions. The hundred and fourth contemplates the attributes of God as displayed in the outward world; this, the same, as shown in our relations to God, and his to us. The hundred and fourth seems to have

been composed in the midst of a blooming sylvan scene, alive with sights and sounds, indicative of the happiness of every living thing; this, in the silence and solitude of night, when no outward object drew off the thoughts of its author from the mystery of his own nature, and the awful majesty of God.

If it should be thought, as seems to be the general opinion of critics, that the psalm is the production of a later age than David's, the following coincidences of expression seem to point to Jeremiah as the author. Compare ver. 1 and 23 with Jer. xii. 3; ver. 7 with Jer. xxiii. 24; ver. 24 with Jer, vi. 16.

PSALM CXXXIX.

1 O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me. 2 Thou knowest my down-sitting, and mine uprising; Thou understandest my thought afar off.

3 Thou compassest my path, and my lying down,
And art acquainted with all my ways.

4 For there is not a word in my tongue,
But lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether.
5 Thou besettest me behind and before,
And layest thine hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain unto it.

7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit?

Or whither shall I fly from thy presence?

8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there;

If I make my bed in the grave, behold, thou art there.

Ver. 8.

"Make my bed in the grave." Professor Alexander sanctions this interpretation.

9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 Even there shall thy hand lead me,

And thy right hand shall hold me.

11 If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me;
Even the night shall be light about me.
12 Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee,
But the night shineth as the day;

The darkness and the light are both alike to thee. 13 For thou didst form my reins;

Thou didst weave me in my mother's womb.

14 I will praise thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

Marvellous are thy works,

And that my soul knoweth right well.

15 My substance was not hid from thee, When I was made in secret,

And curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Ver. 9. "The wings of the morning." This expression is variously interpreted: by Noyes, to allude to the swiftness of the rays of the sun, which, in an instant, go from one end of heaven to the other; by Lowth, as used to designate the East, as the next clause, "the uttermost parts of the sea," means the extreme West. Professor Alexander inclines to the former opinion.

Ver. 15. "Curiously wrought," &c. This expression is thought by Lowth to refer to the curious needle-work, which, among the Jews, was wholly dedicated to the work of the sanctuary. Thus the poet compares the work of the Divine Artificer with the art which was held in such high esteem as to be consecrated altogether to the use of religion. "The lowest parts of the earth." This expression is considered as equivalent to that in ver. 13, or the words "in secret" in the clause immediately preceding.

16 Thine eyes did see my substance yet being unperfect, And in thy book all my members were written, Which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

17 How precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them!

18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand;

19

When I awake, I am still with thee.

Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me, therefore, ye bloody men. 20 For they speak against thee wickedly,

And thine enemies take thy name in vain.

21 Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee?

And am not I grieved with those that rise up against

thee?

22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

I count them mine enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my thoughts;

24 And see if there be any wicked way in And lead me in the way everlasting.

me,

Ver. 24. "The way everlasting." Professor Noyes renders it "the ancient way," i. e. the good old way of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

PSALM CXLV.

PRAISE TO GOD FOR HIS GREATNESS, MERCY, AND PROVIDENCE.

THE psalmist celebrates the glory and power of God, which shine forth in all his works; but above all, his goodness, which he shows to the whole human race, and especially to those who fear him and call upon his name; these he sustains, feeds, hears, and preserves.

"It is," says Dr. Adam Clarke, "an incomparable psalm of praise; and the Rabbins have it in such high estimation, that they assert, if a man will, with sincerity of heart, repeat it three times a day, he shall infallibly enjoy the blessings of the world to come."

PSALM CXLV.

1 I WILL extol thee, my God, my King! And I will bless thy name for ever and ever. 2 Every day will I bless thee;

And I will praise thy name for ever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; And his greatness is unsearchable.

4 One generation shall praise thy works to another, And shall declare thy mighty acts.

5 I will speak of the glorious honor of thy majesty, And of thy wondrous works.

6 And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible

acts,

And I will declare thy greatness.

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