I dwell among them that breathe out fire;

Men whose teeth are spears and arrows,
And their tongue a sharp sword.

5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens;
Let thy glory be above all the earth.

6 They have prepared a net for my steps; My soul is bowed down;

They have digged a pit before me,

Into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. 7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed;

I will sing and give praise.

8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp; I myself will awake early.

9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people;

I will sing unto thee among the nations.

Ver. 6. "My soul is bowed down." Allusion is here made to an animal caught in a trap, whose head is held fast to the ground.

'They have digged a pit," &c. This allusion to one of the ancient methods of hunting occurs so frequently in the Psalms, that we may consider it almost in the light of a proverb. See vii. 15 and ix. 15. The process is thus described by Dr. A. Clarke: "They dig a pit, and cover it over with weak sticks and turf. The beasts, not suspecting danger where none appears, in attempting to walk over it, fall through and are taken." So Saul and his people had fallen unawares into the power of one whom they were plotting to destroy.

Ver. 8. "I myself will awake early." It is literally, "I will awaken the morning." This is a highly poetical expression, which Milton and others have borrowed:

"Cheerly rouse the slumbering morn.” — L' Allegro.

-H.

10 For thy mercy reacheth unto the heavens, And thy truth unto the clouds.

11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let thy glory be above all the earth.

PSALM CXLI.

WHEN HE WAS ABOUT RETIRING TO THE PHILISTINES AT GATH.

DAVID alludes in the second verse to "incense" and the "evening sacrifice," as to things which he was about to be deprived of in his voluntary exile among the Philistines. In the third verse he prays for caution in speech, a thing most necessary for one dwelling as a fugitive and dependent among the enemies of his country and his religion. In the fourth, he prays that he may be saved from idolatrous compliances and eating forbidden meats, a point of much importance under the Jewish system. In the fifth, he intimates his willingness to bear reproof when deserved, but appeals to God against the false accusations of his enemies. In the sixth, he alludes to his magnanimous treatment of Saul and his followers, when they were in his power, in the stony places," that is, in the rocky defiles, in the caves of which he was securely posted, when Saul came unawares into his power. In the seventh, he resents the opposite conduct of Saul to Ahimelech, the priest, and his family, whom Saul had caused to be put

rep

to death, to punish them for an act of kindness rendered to David. 1 Sam. xxii. 17.

1

PSALM CXLI.

LORD, I cry unto thee; make haste unto me; Give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee.

2 Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense, And the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.

3 Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth;

Keep the door of my lips.

4 Incline not my heart to any evil thing,

To practise wicked works with men that work iniquity;

And let me not eat of their dainties.

5 Let the righteous smite me, it shall be a kindness; And let him reprove me, it shall be an excellent oil, Which my head shall not refuse.

But now I appeal to thee

Against their unjust charges.

6 When their judges were dismissed in the rocky places,

They heard my words, that they were sweet.

Ver. 4.

"Incline not my heart to any evil thing," &c. In 1 Sam. xxvi. 10, David complains that his enemies have "driven him out from abiding in the inheritance of the Lord, saying, 'Go, serve other gods.""

Ver. 6. 66 Rocky places." In 1 Sam. xxiv. 2 we are told, "Then Saul took three thousand chosen men . . . . . and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats."

7 Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, As when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the

earth.

8 But mine eyes look unto thee, O God the Lord! In thee is my trust; let not my life be poured out. Keep me from the snare which they have laid for

me,

And the gins of the workers of iniquity. 10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, And let me still escape them.

PSALM CXXXVIII.

ESTABLISHMENT OF HIS KINGDOM IN JERUSALEM.

An interval of about eight years elapsed between the date of the last psalm (cxli.) and this. In that time Saul and his sons had fallen in battle with the Philistines; David had been crowned king of Judah, at Hebron; and Ish bosheth, Saul's son, made king over Israel. Wars ensued between the two sections of the Israelitish people; till, by the defection of Abner, Ishbosheth's general, and principal supporter, the sovereignty

Ver. 7. "Our bones are scattered," &c. ; i. e. the bones of our friends and followers, viz. the priest Ahimelech and his family. An ingenious suggestion with respect to this verse is the following: "The Hebrew letters for Sheol,' the grave, and 'Saul,' are the same, and therefore we may read, 'at the command of Saul,' instead of at the grave's mouth,' without any alteration of the text." - H.

was transferred to David, and he was acknowledged king over the whole country. David soon after wrested Jerusalem from the hands of the Jebusites, and made it the capital of his kingdom.

In this psalm David renders thanks to God for having rescued him from all perils, and finally raised him to the station to which, by the agency of Samuel, he had distinctly appointed him, and authorized him to aspire.

PSALM CXXXVIII.

1 I WILL praise thee with my whole heart; Before the gods will I sing praise unto thee;

2 I will worship towards thy holy temple,

And praise thy name for thy loving-kindness and for thy truth;

For thou hast magnified thy promise above all thy praise.

3 In the day when I cried, thou answeredst me;

And strengthenedst me with strength in my soul. 4 All the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O Lord,

Ver. 1. "Before the gods"; i. e. before the kings of the earth. See ver. 4.

Ver. 2. "Thy holy temple." This term was applied to the tabernacle as well as to the true temple. See 1 Sam. i. 9; also iii. 3. "Towards," because the worshippers did not go into the sanctuary, but worshipped in the court, looking towards the place of God's manifested presence. A. Thy promise above all thy praise"; i. e. thou hast fulfilled thy promise, and more than fulfilled it, and hast done more than has ever been said or conceived of thee. N.