Second, Psalm 34 is an alphabetic acrostic. Each verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Acrostic poems were the works of highly skilled literary artists and functioned in ancient Israelite literature in a number of ways.
Acrostics were most likely memory devices to aid in private and public—that is, individual and corporate—recitation; in addition, literarily, they summarized all that could be said or that needed to be said about a particular subject, summing it up from alif to tav , from A to Z. One cannot actually use all of the words in a language, but by using the alphabet one uses all potential words.
Readers and hearers, then, should heed the words of Psalm 34, a song of thanksgiving for deliverance and find in them hope for deliverance from various oppressive situations. In the focus text, Psalm , the psalmist first offers praise to God:.
I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. No doubt there are difficulties in the way. The Hebrew alphabet differs widely from any of those now employed in Europe. Besides differences of a more fundamental kind, the Hebrew has only twenty-two letters, for our twenty-six; and of the twenty-two, a considerable number have no fellows in ours. An exact reproduction of a Hebrew acrostic in English version is therefore impossible.
William Binnie, D. Hapstone has endeavoured to imitate the alphabetical character of this Psalm in his metrical version. The letter answering to F is wanting, and the last stanza begins with the letter answering to R. One verse of his translation may suffice -- Verse 1. Bradford, martyr, speaking of Queen Mary, at whose cruel mercy he then lay, said, If the queen be pleased to release me, I will thank her; if she will imprison me, I will thank her; if she will burn me, I will thank her, etc.
So saith a believing soul: Let God do with me what he will, I will be thankful. Samuel Clarks's "Mirror. Should the whole frame of nature be unhinged , and all outward friends and supporters prove false and deceitful, our worldly hopes and schemes be disappointed, and possessions torn from us, and the floods of sickness, poverty, and disgrace overwhelm our soul with an impetuous tide of trouble; the sincere lover of God, finding that none of these affects his portion and the object of his panting desires, retires from them all to God his refuge and hiding place, and there feels his Saviour incomparably better, and more than equivalent to what the whole of the universe can ever offer, or rob him of; and his tender mercies, unexhausted fulness, and great faithfulness, yield him consolation and rest; and enable him, what time he is afraid, to put his trust in him.
Thus we find the holy psalmist expressing himself: I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. William Dunlop. Verse 1. Basil tells us that the praise of God, once rightly impressed as a seal on the mind, though it may not always be carried out into action, yet in real truth causes us perpetually to praise God. Neal's Commentary. Firm resolution, serious difficulties in carrying it out, helps for its performance, excellent consequences of so doing.
He could not see the angelic presence around him, but it was real. Both are true. Psalm is one passage that gives support to the thought of a guardian angel for everyone, or perhaps at least for believers.
There is no want to those who fear Him. It could only come through a personal encounter, in some ways similar to a taste or to see. Taste and sight are physical senses, ways in which we interact with the material world. In some ways, faith is like a spiritual sense, and with it we interact with the spiritual world. To taste and to see are like trusting God, loving Him, seeking Him, looking unto Him. This is opposed by those slight and vanishing thoughts which men have of it.
Blessed is the man who trusts in Him : David was sure that the one who did taste and see — or, who trusted in God — would not be forsaken. God would make him blessed. This fear is the proper reverence and respect that man has for Deity. David experienced a good thing from God in his deliverance among the Philistines. He knew that the good thing was not due to his own strength or might; it was the goodness of God extended to those who seek the LORD.
Who is the man who desires life, And loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.
Peace with God and among men should be sought. The rewards of virtue are the baits with which the young are to be drawn to morality. While we teach piety to God we should also dwell much upon morality towards man. The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous : David continued to instruct his men, teaching them about the watchful eye and attentive ear of God upon His people. This was another aspect of the reward for those who lived the obedience described in Psalm Those stuck in their evil and rebellion could find their remembrance gone from the earth.
They — being in debt, distressed, and discontent — were likely those with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Those whose hearts or spirits are truly and deeply humbled under the hand of God. They go apart to suffer and droop. The busy rush of life goes on without them. But God draws nigh. Indeed, he is with them, and in them, but they know it not.
He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned. The word "boast" usually means "tell people how great you are ". Here, though, it means "tell everyone how great God is". We cannot make God bigger but we can bring him near to people. We do this by always obeying him. In this way we magnify him. Verses 4 — 6: David was afraid. This was probably when he was with the Philistine king.
He asked God for help as well. God gave David help. David had a safe journey to Adullam. This made the humble people that came to him very happy. They were so happy that their faces shone! Some Christians think that it was the angel Michael. He was the special angel of Israel. Jesus said that we all have an angel when we are children. Our angel may give us help. Many Christians believe that our angel stays with us all our life. They used it because this verse says, "taste and see that the LORD is good".
We eat bread to remember his broken body. We drink red wine to remember his blood that he gave for us. People that obey him will not need anything". The last bit means we will have what is necessary, not what we like! Verse Perhaps there were lions near the camp that David made for his men.
Sometimes the lions were hungry. God will give his people all that they need. We show God that we fear him by obeying him. We also show him that we love him by obeying him!
We call this strange mixing of fear and love by the word "worship". Look again at the note on verse 9. He is looking at people that are his enemies. Verse 15 means that he can see and hear the righteous also. People are righteous not because they do good, but because God forgives them. Verse "A broken heart" means that we are "hurting in our minds, and very very sad".
We must remember that God is near us when this happens to us. He wants to share our broken heart. He gives us help when we hurt inside. God does not make life easy for them. He does give them help, though. This is what "saves" in verse 19 means. The promise in verse 20 came true for Jesus when he died. The story is in John It is at the end of this psalm. The soldiers broke the body of Jesus, but not his bones. God kept the body of Jesus safe. God raised him from the dead 3 days later.
For us, "all their bones" means "all their bodies". This is how the Jews said it. God will keep us safe until it is time to go to heaven.
0コメント