Psalm 27:1

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Psalms 27:1

(1) The Lord is my light.—This noble thought appears nowhere else so grandly, though we may compare Isaiah 60:1. The Latin of the Vulgate, “Dominus illuminatio mea,” is the motto of the University of Oxford, and expands in a new but true direction the thought of the ancient bard. To him, Jehovah was the guiding and cheering beacon-fire, proclaiming his victory and pointing him the happy homeward way. From this to the belief in God as the source both of moral and intellectual light, is a long... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Dictionary of Texts - Psalms 27:1-14

Psalms 27:0 India was still heaving with the ground-swell of the terrible Mutiny of 1857, when the wife of Sir John Lawrence was called home to her children in England, and had to leave her husband, who could not quit his post, surrounded by the smouldering embers which might, at any moment, rekindle into flame, and worn to exhaustion with the anxiety and labour which did so much for the preservation of the Indian Empire. She thus writes: 'When the last morning of separation, Jan. 6, 1858,... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Psalms 27:1-14

Psalms 27:1-14THE hypothesis that two originally distinct psalms or fragments are here blended has much in its favour. The rhythm and style of the latter half (Psalms 27:7-14) are strikingly unlike those of the former part, and the contrast of feeling is equally marked, and is in the opposite direction from that which is usual, since it drops from exultant faith to at least plaintive, if not anxious petition. But while the phenomena are plain and remarkable, they do not seem to demand the... read more

Arno Clemens Gaebelein

Arno Gaebelein's Annotated Bible - Psalms 27:1-14

Psalms 27:0 Holy Longings and Anticipations 1. Confidence in the Lord (Psalms 27:1-3 ) 2. Longings and anticipations (Psalms 27:4-6 ) 3. Earnest prayer in trial and trust in the Lord (Psalms 27:7-14 ) Psalms 27:1-3 . This Psalm leads us deeper. We repeat that primarily it is a rehearsal of David’s experience, perhaps at the time of Absalom’s rebellion. Here faith breaks through in triumph, with deep longings for the house of the Lord and for His presence, which is followed by a... read more

John Calvin

Geneva Study Bible - Psalms 27:1

27:1 [[A Psalm] of David.] The LORD [is] my {a} light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD [is] the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?(a) Because he was assured of good success in all his dangers and that his salvation was surely laid up in God, he did not fear the tyranny of his enemies. read more

James Gray

James Gray's Concise Bible Commentary - Psalms 27:1-14

Psalms 25:0 In the Hebrew this prayer is arranged as an acrostic, i.e., the first word of each verse begins with a letter in alphabetical order from A-to-Z. Hereafter we shall not give as much attention to every psalm as we have thus far, but trust the reader to do the analyzing after the examples given. The purpose of this book is not so much textual explanation as a stimulus to Bible study in a broader sense, and it is assumed that the reader has been studying the Bible side by side with the... read more

Robert Hawker

Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary - Psalms 27:1

CONTENTS We have in this Psalm the blessed effects most fully described of strong confidence and faith in God. The happiness of communion with God is also very beautifully set forth, and the certainty of God answering prayer. A Psalm of David. read more

Robert Hawker

Hawker's Poor Man's Commentary - Psalms 27:1-3

We shall enter into the spirit of this most lovely Psalm with double delight, if, as it refers so highly to Christ, we keep him in view through the whole of it. And that it is Jesus who is principally intended by what is here said, is most evident from this very passage at the opening of it; for we never read in the life of David of the stumbling of his enemies before his face. But we see this most strikingly displayed in the life of Christ. To stumble and fall at the sight of another, is a... read more

George Haydock

George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary - Psalms 27:1

Himself. The Hebrew and Septuagint (Roman and Alexandrian) have simply "of David." --- Ledavid. (Haydock) --- The psalm appears to be a sequel of the preceding, and we may adopt the rule of the Jews, who refer the psalms which have no title, to the same author and events as those which go before. It may relate to the captives, (Calmet) or to David under persecution, though the Fathers explain it of Christ suffering, &c., and rising again. --- My God. Hebrew, "rock." This term is so often... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 27:1-6

1-6 The Lord, who is the believer's light, is the strength of his life; not only by whom, but in whom he lives and moves. In God let us strengthen ourselves. The gracious presence of God, his power, his promise, his readiness to hear prayer, the witness of his Spirit in the hearts of his people; these are the secret of his tabernacle, and in these the saints find cause for that holy security and peace of mind in which they dwell at ease. The psalmist prays for constant communion with God in... read more

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