These verses are as a clue enabling us to apply the whole to Christ. In proof, read Psalms 8:4 , explained by Hebrews 2:6 , to the end. To add any other comment would be to hold a lighted taper before the sun. Blessed Spirit! help us to praise thee, that in thy glorifying of Jesus, thou hast thus, unfolded to thy church this precious scripture. read more
And. Hebrew, "to generation." The vocation of the Gentiles is insinuated. (Calmet) read more
1-8 When men become eminent for things as to which they have had few advantages, they should be more deeply sensible that God has been their Teacher. Happy those to whom the Lord gives that noblest victory, conquest and dominion over their own spirits. A prayer for further mercy is fitly begun with a thanksgiving for former mercy. There was a special power of God, inclining the people of Israel to be subject to David; it was typical of the bringing souls into subjection to the Lord Jesus. Man's... read more
Thanksgiving and Prayer for Deliverance. A psalm of David, in which he praises God for help experienced in the past and confidently implores His assistance against the enemies of the nation, as well as His blessing for continued prosperity. v. 1. Blessed be the Lord, my Strength, his Rock or Refuge, with whom he is safe, which teacheth my hands to war and my fingers to fight, giving the king instruction and assistance in waging a just war; v. 2. my Goodness, rather, my Mercy, since it was... read more
Psalms 144:0A Psalm of David Blessed be the Lord my strength,Which teacheth my hands to war,And my fingers to fight:2 My goodness, and my fortress;My high tower, and my deliverer;My shield, and he in whom I trust;Who subdueth my people under me.3 Lord, what is man, that thou takest knowledge of him!Or the son of man, that thou makest account of him!4 Man is like to vanity:His days are as a shadow that passeth away.5 Bow thy heavens, O Lord, and come down:Touch the... read more
God’s People Are Happy Psalms 144:1-15 This psalm savors of the rocky caverns from which David and his men emerged to fight. Each day the chieftain asked God to teach him to fight, and realized that all his need would be met. The names he gives to God indicate that all-sidedness which becomes the complement of every conceivable necessity on our part. What a striking conception opens in Psalms 144:4 ! Saul was but a “breath”! r.v., margin. The persecuting bands were as the shadows that pass... read more
This is a song of triumphant assurance. Its placing at this point in the book suggests the invincible experience of trusting souls. In order to appreciate all its value, the nine psalms immediately preceding must be borne in mind. Five of them celebrate the sufficiency of God. These are followed by four which declare the utter helplessness of man. The present one immediately follows, and in it the two facts are present; but the Divine sufficiency is seen encompassing the human helplessness... read more
CXLIV. Ascribed by LXX and also by T. “ to David against Goliath,” but without any shadow of reason. Psalms 144:1-1 Kings : is really a mosaic chiefly taken from Psalms 18, but also from Psalms 8, 33, 104. It is a song of anticipated triumph. The Psalmist is in conflict with foreign enemies (“ strangers” ( Psalms 144:7) can only mean foreigners). God teaches his fingers to fight, for it is the fingers which grasp the bow and subdue “ peoples” (not “ my people” ) under him. He prays that a... read more
Man is like, in his nature and continuance in the world, to vanity, or to a vapour or a breath, as Isaiah 57:13, which is gone in an instant. That passeth away; or, that declineth, as Psalms 102:11; Psalms 109:23; that groweth less and less, till it be quite out of sight, and lost. read more
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James Gray's Concise Bible Commentary - Psalms 144:1-15
Psalms 135:0 Praises God for choosing Jacob (Psalms 135:1-4 ), extols His power in the natural world (Psalms 135:5-7 ), and in the deliverance of His people from Egypt (Psalms 135:8-9 ) and bringing them into the promised land (Psalms 135:10-12 ). All this is in contrast to the vanity of idols (Psalms 135:13-18 ). Psalms 136:0 Is of the same character as the preceding, but is notable for the chorus attached to each verse a chorus with which we have become familiar in other psalms (Psalms 106:1... read more