Psalm 21 commentary

PSALM 21 COMMENTARY
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1
The king rejoices in your strength, LORD.
How great is his joy in the victories you give!
1.BARNES, “The king shall joy in thy strength - King David, who had achieved the
victory which he had desired and prayed for, Psa_20:1-9. This is in the third person, but the
reference is doubtless to David himself, and is to be understood as his own language. If it be
understood, however, as the language of “the people,” it is still an ascription of praise to God for
his favor to their king. It seems better, however, to regard it as the language of David himself.
The word ““strength”” here implies that all the success referred to was to be traced to God. It
was not by the prowess of a human arm; it was not by the valor or skill of the king himself; it was
by the power of God alone.
And in thy salvation - In the salvation or deliverance from foes which thou hast granted,
and in all that thou doest to save. The language would embrace all that God does to save his
people.
How greatly shall he rejoice! - Not only does he rejoice now, but he ever will rejoice. It
will be to him a constant joy. Salvation, now to us a source of comfort, will always be such; and
when we once have evidence that God has interposed to save us, it is accompanied with the
confident anticipation that this will continue to be the source of our highest joy forever.
2. CLARKE, “The king shall joy - ‫מלך‬‫משיחא‬ melech Meshicha, “the King Messiah.” -
Targum. What a difference between ancient and modern heroes! The former acknowledged all
to be of God, because they took care to have their quarrel rightly founded; the latter sing a Te
Deum, pro forma, because they well know that their battle is not of the Lord. Their own vicious
conduct sufficiently proves that they looked no higher than the arm of human strength. God
suffers such for a time, but in the end he confounds and brings them to naught.
3, GILL, “The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord,.... Either in that strength which is in
Jehovah himself, in whom is everlasting strength; and which is seen in the works of creation and

providence, and is the same in Christ himself, as he is the mighty God; or else in the strength
which Jehovah communicated to Christ as man, whereby he was strengthened in his human
nature to go through and complete the work of man's redemption; or in the strength which the
Lord puts forth, and the power which he exerts towards and upon his people, in conversion;
which is the produce of the exceeding greatness of his power; and in strengthening them, from
time to time, to exercise grace, discharge duty, and withstand temptations and sin; and in
keeping them safe to the end; in supporting them under all their trials, and in carrying on and
finishing the work of faith upon their souls; all which is matter of joy to Christ;
and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice? meaning either his own salvation by
the Lord, from all his sorrows and troubles, and out of the hands of all enemies, being in the
presence of God, where is fulness of joy, Psa_16:9; or else the salvation of his people by him,
which Jehovah appointed them to, secured for them in the covenant of grace, sent Christ to
work out for them, applies by his Spirit, and at last puts into the full possession of: Christ
rejoices at the effectual calling and conversion of his people, when salvation is brought near unto
them; and especially at their glorification, when they shall be in the full enjoyment of it; then
will they be his joy, and crown of rejoicing: this is the joy that was set before him, which made
him go so cheerfully through his sufferings and death for them, Heb_12:2; the reasons of this joy
are, because of the great love he bears to them; the interest and property he has in them; his
undertakings for them, as their surety, to bring them safe to glory; his purchase of them by his
blood; his intercession for them, that they might be with him to behold his glory; and, last of all,
because of his Father's glory, his own glory, and the glory of the blessed Spirit, which are
concerned in the salvation of these persons.
4. HENRY, “David here speaks for himself in the first place, professing that his joy was in God's
strength and in his salvation, and not in the strength or success of his armies. He also directs his
subjects herein to rejoice with him, and to give God all the glory of the victories he had obtained;
and all with an eye to Christ, of whose triumphs over the powers of darkness David's victories
were but shadows. 1. They here congratulate the king on his joys and concur with him in them
(Psa_21:1): “The king rejoices, he uses to rejoice in thy strength, and so do we; what pleases the
king pleases us,” 2Sa_3:36. Happy the people the character of whose king it is that he makes
God's strength his confidence and God's salvation his joy, that is pleased with all the
advancements of God's kingdom and trusts God to bear him out in all he does for the service of
it. Our Lord Jesus, in his great undertaking, relied upon help from heaven, and pleased himself
with the prospect of that great salvation which he was thereby to work out. 2. They gave God all
the praise of those things which were the matter of their king's rejoicing.
5. CALVIN, “1.The king will rejoice in thy strength, O Jehovah! David could have given thanks to God
in private for the victories and other signal favors which he had received from him; but it was his intention
to testify not only that it was God who elevated him to the throne, but also that whatever blessings God
had conferred upon him redounded to the public good, and the advantage of all the faithful. In the
beginning of the psalm the believing Israelites express their firm persuasion that God, who had created

David to be king, had undertaken to defend and maintain him. It therefore appears that this psalm, as well
as the preceding, was composed for the purpose of assuring the faithful that the goodness of God in this
respect towards David would be of long duration, and permanent; and it was necessary, in order to their
being established in a well-grounded confidence of their safety; to hope well of their king, whose
countenance was as it were a mirror of the merciful and reconciled countenance of God. The sense of the
words is: Lord, in putting forth thy power to sustain and protect the king, thou wilt preserve him safe; and,
ascribing his safety to thy power, he will greatly rejoice in thee. The Psalmist has doubtless
put strength and salvation for strong and powerful succor; intimating, that the power of God in defending
the king would be such as would preserve and protect him against all dangers.
In the second verse there is pointed out the cause of this joy. The cause was this: that God had heard the
prayers of the king, and had liberally granted him whatever he desired. It was important to be known, and
that the faithful should have it deeply impressed on their minds, that all David’ successes were so many
benefits conferred upon him by God, and at the same time testimonies of his lawful calling. And David,
there is no doubt, in speaking thus, testifies that he did not give loose reins to the desires of the flesh, and
follow the mere impulse of his appetites like worldly men, who set their minds at one time upon this thing,
and at another time upon that, without any consideration, and just as they are led by their sensual lusts;
but that he had so bridled his affections as to desire nothing save what was good and lawful. According to
the infirmity which is natural to men, he was, it is true, chargeable with some vices, and even fell
shamefully on two occasions; but the habitual administration of his kingdom was such that it was easy to
see that the Holy Spirit presided over it. But as by the Spirit of prophecy the Psalmist had principally an
eye to Christ, who does not reign for his own advantage, but for ours, and whose desire is directed only to
our salvation, we may gather hence the very profitable doctrine, that we need entertain no apprehension
that God will reject our prayers in behalf of the church, since our heavenly King has gone before us in
making intercession for her, so that in praying for her we are only endeavoring to follow his example.
5B. JAMISON, “Psa_21:1-13. The pious are led by the Psalmist to celebrate God’s favor to
the king in the already conferred and in prospective victories. The doxology added may relate to
both Psalms; the preceding of petition, chiefly this of thanksgiving, ascribing honor to God for
His display of grace and power to His Church in all ages, not only under David, but also under
his last greatest successor, “the King of the Jews.”
thy strength ... thy salvation — as supplied by Thee.

6. PULPIT, “Psa_21:1-13 is generally regarded as a companion composition to Psa_20:1-9, being the
thanksgiving after the victory for which the preceding psalm was the supplication. It consists of three
parts:
(1) a direct thanksgiving to God, offered by the people on behalf of the king (Psa_20:1-7);
(2) an address to the king, auguring for him future successes on the ground of his recent victory
(Psa_20:8 -12); and
(3) a brief return to direct praise of God in two short ejaculatory sentences. Part 1 is interrupted by a
pause ("Selah" ) at the end of Psa_20:2, when thank-offerings may have been made. The Davidical
authorship, asserted in the title, is not seriously disputed.
Psa_21:1
The king shall joy. The future is used to give the idea of continuance, "The king rejoices, and will go on
rejoicing." In thy strength, O Lord; i.e. in the strength that thou puttest forth to help and protect him
(comp. Psa_20:6). And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice: God' s "salvation" had been
confidently anticipated (Psa_20:5, Psa_20:6, Psa_20:9), and has now been experienced.
7. PULPIT, “The triumph of victory.
"Thou hast given him his heart' s desire." We seem to hear in this psalm the trumpets and harps and
shawms of the temple, and jubilant voices of Levites praising God for some great victory. Joy-bells are
rung and Te Deum laudamuschanted because the king has come home in triumph. The psalm is closely
connected with the preceding one. There we see the king going forth to war, consecrating his banner and
trusting his cause to God. The Church prays, "The Lord hear thee grant thee according to thine own
heart" (Psa_20:1-4). Here it triumphs in victory, and praises God as the Hearer of prayer. Whether the
psalm refers to some special victory of David or any of his successors; or whether it be applied to Christ
and his kingdom, the practical spiritual lessons we may draw from it are the same. One of the greatest
Jewish commentators says, "Our ancient doctors interpreted this psalm of King Messiah; but against the
heretics (Christians) it is better to understand it of David" (Rashi, quoted by Perowne). Take up briefly the
leading thoughts which the text naturally suggests.
I. DESIRE IS THE MAINSPRING OF LIFE. Could the infinite multitude of desires, good or bad, transient

or constant, noble or base, loving or selfish, which at this moment agitate human hearts, all cease, and be
replaced by dull apathy, hope and effort would die. The whole busy drama of life would come to a dead
stand, like an engine stopping when the fire is burnt out. Because so many of these desires are either
wrong or ill-regulated, the word "lust"—often used in our English Bible, originally meaning simply
"pleasure" or "desire "—has come to have an ill meaning. St. James puts his finger on these ungoverned
discordant desires as the source of all the strife that disturbs the world (Jas_4:1, Jas_4:2). If all hearts
submitted their desires to reason and God' s law, the world would be one vast peace society. Vexatious
litigation and unfair competition would be unknown.
II. Therefore OUR HEART' S DESIRE IS THE TEST OF OUR CHARACTER. Not what a man says and
does, but what he would like to say and do, if he could and dared, decide his character. "As he thinketh in
his heart, so is he." From the momentary wish, too unreasonable or too languid to stir us to action, to the
deep steadfast purpose which rules a life, our desires mark us for what we are, and mould us to what we
shall be. Find what it is you deeply and habitually desire, and you have the key to your characters
(Pro_19:22).
III. DESIRE IS THE SOUL OF PRAYER. If we do not present to God our heart' s desire, we do not pray.
Words without desire are not living prayer, only a dead form. Desire without words may be the truest,
highest kind of prayer (Rom_8:26). Here is the peril of even the best forms of prayer. Their benefit is that
they help to put our best desires into better words than we could find for ourselves; and by the power of
association, as well as aptness, quicken our desires and instruct us what we ought to desire. Their
danger is that we may mistake form and habit for life and spirit—a danger not confined to set
forms. Extempore prayer may be as heartless and lifeless as a Tartar prayer-mill. Our own private prayers
may degenerate into dead forms. Every earnest Christian (I suppose) is aware of this danger. When men
came to our Saviour, his question was not "What have you to say?" but "What wilt thou that I should do
unto thee?" What is thy heart's desire?
IV. The whole world of human desire is OPEN TO GOD' S EYE. Heart-secrets are no secrets to him
(Jer_17:9, Jer_17:10). The silent wish that flashed to the surface of consciousness, soaring up into light,
or plunging, like a guilty thing, into darkness—God saw it; sees it still. The passionate longing, so timid
yet so strong that the heart would die sooner than betray it, is to him as though proclaimed with sound of
trumpet. No wish so sudden, strange, ambitious, as to take him by surprise. No lawful desire but he has
provided for its satisfaction, either in creatures or in his own uncreated fulness. And unlawful desires are
so, not because he forbids anything really good for us, but because they mean our harm, not happiness.
This perfect Divine knowledge of all our desires, and of the wisdom or unwisdom of granting them, is not
confined, remember, to the moment when we become conscious of them, or present them in prayer. They

are foreseen. For the most part—perhaps, if we knew all, in every case—an answer to prayer
implies preparation. Our prayer for daily bread is answered out of the fulness of last year' s harvest—the
fruit of all harvests since corn was first reaped and sown. This abyss of Divine foreknowledge utterly
confounds our intellect; yet to doubt it would be to doubt if God is God. Why then, with this boundless
knowledge—foreknowledge—of all our desires and the conditions of their fulfilment, has God appointed
prayer? Why does his Word show it to us as the very heart of religion? Partly, we may venture to say,
because God delights to answer prayer. If not, it would scarcely be true—at least intelligible—that "God is
love." Partly because blessings are doubly, nay, tenfold, precious when they come in answer to prayer; a
strong help to faith, a spur to hope, an assurance of God' s love, and powerful motive to love (Pro_13:19).
But supremely (I venture to think) in order that what is deepest, innermost, strongest, in our nature—our
"heart' s desire"—should bring us closest to God; make us intensely feel our dependence on him; be
consecrated, being offered to him in prayer.
V. Thank God, OUR HEART' S DESIRES—how large, lofty, pure, reasonable, soever—
ARE NOT THE MEASURE OF GOD' S GIVING; do not circumscribe his willingness, any more than his
power. He is "able to do exceeding abundantly," etc. (Eph_3:20). If men' s desires are like the sea, his
mercy is the shore. His chiefest, "his unspeakable Gift" came in answer to no desire of human hearts or
prayer from human lips. "God so loved" a prayerless, thankless, godless "world, that he gave his only
begotten Son." This Gift has given us a new measure of expectation (Rom_8:32). What is more vital, it
has opened a new fountain of desire in our hearts, and thereby enlarged, deepened, exalted, the whole
scope of our life. Desire to be like Christ, to glorify Christ, to be with Christ,—these three give to life a new
meaning, purpose, hope. If these be our heart' s desires, they are secure of fulfilment, because they are
in agreement with God' s most glorious Gift, his most merciful purpose, his most precious promises. Here,
as everywhere, our Saviour has left us an example, that we should follow his steps. We know what the
supreme consuming desire of his heart was Joh_4:34. In the midst of life and usefulness, he longed for
death; not as an escape from this world, but as the accomplishment of his destined work
(Luk_12:50; Joh_10:17, Joh_10:18). "For the joy," etc. (Heb_12:2). In your salvation and mine he sees "of
the travail of his soul" (Isa_53:1-12 :24).
CONCLUSION. We are furnished with a practical test—first, of our desires; secondly, of our prayers. Our
desires (we said) are the index to our character. Will they fit into our prayers? Are they such that we can
come with boldness to the throne of grace through the blood of Jesus, and say, "Lord, all my desire is
before thee" (Psa_38:9; Isa_26:8)? Prayer (we said) is living, real, worth offering, only as it is the
utterance of our desires, the pouring out of our heart. Are our prayers such a true outbreathing of our
"heart' s desire" ? Suppose, when you have joined in some high-toned hymn, or prayed in the earnest

words of some ancient saint, a voice from heaven were to ask, "Do you mean what you say?" would it be
for good or ill, here and hereafter, if God indeed granted your heart' s desire?
8. PULPIT, “A royal thanksgiving for answers to prayer. (For a day of national thanksgiving.)
We fail to see, in the structure of this psalm, sufficient indications of its being the counterpart of the
preceding one, to lead us to call it a Te Deum, to be sung on returning from battle as victor. It would
equally well suit other occasions on which the grateful hearts of king and people desired to render praises
in the house of God for mercies received; e.g. Psa_21:4 : would be equally adapted to the recovery of the
king from sickness. Its precise historic reference it is, however, now impossible to ascertain; but this is of
comparatively small importance. That the psalm is meant for a public thanksgiving is clear; and thus, with
differences of detail in application thereof according to circumstances, it may furnish a basis for helpful
teaching on days of national rejoicing over the mercies of God. We must, however, carefully avoid two
errors in opening up the hid treasure of this psalm. We must not interpret it as if its references were only
temporal, nor as if we lost sight of the supernatural revelation and of the Messianic prophecies which lie
in the background thereof; nor yet, on the other hand, may we interpret its meaning as if the religious
knowledge or conceptions of Israel' s king were as advanced as the thoughts of Paul or John. E.g. "His
glory is great in thy salvation." If we were to interpret this word "salvation" as meaning, primarily, the
redemption which is in Christ Jesus, we should be guilty of an anachronism. Its first meaning is, rescue
from impending trouble or danger. This, however, may be regarded as prophetic of the triumph awaiting
the Church' s King; but our exposition will be sure and clear only as we begin with the historic meaning,
an& then move carefully forward. The prayers and thanksgivings of a people cannot rise above the level
of inspiration and revelation which marked the age in which they lived. We, indeed, may now set our
devotions into another form than that which is represented by verses 8-12; and, indeed, we are bound so
to do. For since revelation is progressive, devotion should be correspondingly progressive too. So that if
the remarks we make on the psalm are in advance of the thinkings of believers in David' s time, let us
remember that this is because we now look at all events and read all truth in the light of the cross, and not
because we pretend to regard such fulness of meaning as belonging to the original intention of the psalm.
There are here six lines of exposition before us.
I. HERE IS THE RECALL OF A TIME OF TROUBLE-
OF TROUBLE WHICH GATHERED, ROUND THE PERSON OF THE KING. (Verse 1.) We cannot
decide (nor is it important that we should) what was the precise kind of anxiety which had been felt. The
word "life" in the fourth verse may indicate that some sickness had threatened the life of the king. The
word "deliverance" and the allusions to "enemies' rather point to peril from hostile forces. Either way,

when a monarch' s life is threatened, either through sickness or war, the burden is very heavy on the
people' s heart. The first cause of anxiety was felt in Hezekiah' s time; the second, often and notably in
the days of Jehoshaphat.
II. THE TROUBLE LED TO PRAYER. We gather from the contents of the psalm that the specific prayer
was for the king' s life, either by way of recovery from sickness or of victory in war. Note: Whatever is a
burden on the hearts of God' s people may be laid before God in prayer. Prayer may and should be
specific; and even though our thought, desires, and petitions in prayer may be very defective, still we may
tell to God all we feel, knowing that we shall never be misunderstood, and that the answer will come
according to the Father' s infinite wisdom, and not according to our defects; yea, our God will do
abundantly for us above all that we can ask or think. Hence we have to note—
III. THE PRAYER BROUGHT AN ANSWER. The trust of the praying ones was not disappointed (cf.
verses 2-7). The jubilant tone of the words indicates that the prayer had not been barely, but overflowingly
answered. God' s good things had gone far ahead of the petitions, and had even anticipated the king' s
wishes and wants (verse 3). "Life" had been asked; and God had granted "length of days for ever and
ever." This cannot refer to the personal earthly life of any human king; the meaning is that in the
deliverance vouchsafed there had been a new confirmation of that "everlasting covenant, ordered in all
things and sure," wherein God had promised to establish David' s throne for ever(Psa_61:6; Psa_132:11-
14). Dr. Moll says, £
"I find here the strongest expression of the assurance of faith in the personal
continuance of the life of those who hold fast to the covenant of grace in living communion with Jehovah."
Yea, the old Abrahamic covenant has been again confirmed. "Thou hast made him to be blessings for
ever". So that this deliverance thus celebrated in Hebrew song is at once a development of God' s
gracious plan, and the answer to a king' s and a people' s prayer! "Thou settest a crown of pure gold upon
his head" (verse 3; cf 2Sa_12:30).
IV. NEW ANSWERS TO PRAYER INSPIRED NEW HOPE (Verse 7.) "Through the loving-kindness of the
Most High he shall not be moved" (cf. Psa_23:6; Psa_63:7). He who proves himself to be our Refuge to-
day, thereby proves himself our Refuge for every day.
V. THE PROVIDENTIAL INTERPOSITIONS IN ANSWER TO PRAYER AFFORDED NEW ILLUSTRATIO
NS OF GOD' S WORKS AND WAYS. (Verses 8-13.) God is what he is. He remains "the same, yesterday,
and to-day, and for ever." But he cannot seem the same to his enemies as to his friends; the same
events which fulfil the hopes of his friends are the terror and dread of his foes. This general principle is
always true: it must be (verse 10); and side by side with the Divine provision for the continuance of good,
there is the Divine provision for shortening the entail of evil. But we are not bound in our devotions to

single out others as the enemies in whose overthrow and destruction we could rejoice. At the same time,
it is but just to the Hebrews to remember that they were the chosen people of God, and from their point of
view, and with their measure of light, they regarded their enemies as God' s enemies (seePsa_139:22).
The way David sometimes treated his foes can by no means be justified. £
The views of truth which God'
s people hold are often sadly discoloured by the conventionalisms of their time; and David was no
exception thereto. We may pray for the time when Zion' s King "shall have put all enemies under his feet,"
and even praise him for telling us that it will be so. But we may surely leave all details absolutely with
]aim.
VI. THE EVER-
UNFOLDING DISCLOSURES OF WHAT GOD IS MAY WELL CALL FORTH SHOUTS OF JOYOUS SONG
. (Verse 13.) When we have such repeated illustrations of God' s loving-kindness, mercy, and grace, we
can feel unfeigned delight in singing of his power. What rapturous delight may we have in the thought that-
"The voice which rolls the stars along
Speaks all the promises;"
that the same Being who is most terrible to sin, is infinitely gracious to the sinner, and. that to all who trust
him he is their "exceeding Joy"!—C.
9. CHARLES SIMEON, “THE KINGDOM OF DAVID AND OF CHRIST
Psa_21:1-7. The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
Thou hast given him his heart’s desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips. For thou
preventest him with the blessings of goodness; thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head. He asked
life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever. His glory is great in thy
salvation: honour and majesty hast thou laid upon him. For thou hast made him most blessed for ever:
thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance. For the king trusteth in the Lord; and, through
the mercy of the Most High, he shall not be moved.
THIS psalm is appointed by the Church to be read on the day of our Lord’s Ascension: and on a close
examination, it will appear to be well suited to that occasion. We will,
I. Explain it—

In its primary and literal sense, it expresses David’s gratitude on his advancement to the throne of
Israel—
[After acknowledging, in general terms, God’s goodness towards him in this dispensation, he speaks of
his elevation as an answer to his prayers, though in its origin it was altogether unsolicited and unsought
for [Note: ver. 1–4.] Impressed with the greatness of the honour conferred upon him, he exults in it,
especially as affording him an opportunity of benefiting others [Note: ver. 5, 6.]; and declares his
confidence, that his enemies, so far from ever being able to subvert his government, shall all be crushed
before him [Note: ver. 7–12.]—
Passing over this view of the psalm, we proceed to observe, that]
It is yet more applicable to Christ, as expressing his feelings on his ascension to the throne of glory—
[David was a type of Christ, as David’s kingdom was of Christ’s kingdom: and Christ, on his ascension to
heaven, may be considered as addressing his Father in the words of this psalm.
He declares his joy and gratitude on account of the blessedness vouchsafed to him, and on account of
the blessedness which he was now empowered to bestow on others. With respect to his own
blessedness we observe, that his conflicts were now terminated. These had been numerous and severe.
From his first entrance into the world to the instant of his departure from it, he “was a man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief.” View him especially during the three years of his Ministry, what “contradiction of
sinners against himself did he endure!”— — — View more particularly the four last days of his life, what
grievous and accumulated wrongs did he sustain! — — — Consider his conflicts also with the powers of
darkness, and the terrors of his Father’s wrath — — — O what reason had he to rejoice in the termination
of such sufferings, and to magnify his Father who had brought him in safety through them! For this he had
prayed; and God had given him the fullest answer to his prayers [Note: Heb_5:7. with ver. 2, 4.]. Now
also he was restored to glory. He had “a glory with the Father before the worlds were made
[Note: Joh_1:1; Joh_1:18;Joh_17:5.]:” and of that glory he had divested himself when he assumed our
nature [Note: Php_2:6-8.]. But now he was restored to it: and what a contrast did it form with that state,
from which he had been delivered! A few days ago he had not where to lay his head: now he is received
into his Father’s house, his Father’s bosom. Lately he was derided, mocked, insulted, spit upon, buffeted,
and scourged by the vilest of the human race; and now he is seated on his throne of glory, and
worshipped and adored by all the hosts of heaven — — — Great indeed was the glory that now accrued
to him, and great “the majesty that was now laid upon him [Note: ver. 5.]”— — — and, as it had
proceeded from his Father [Note: Php_2:9-11.], so he justly acknowledges it as his Father’s gift.
But it was not to himself only that Jesus had respect: he blesses his Father also for the blessedness
which he was empowered to bestow on others. The words, “Thou hast made him most blessed for ever,”

are translated in the margin of our Bibles, “Thou hast set him to be blessings for ever.” This version opens
a new and important view of the subject, a view which particularly accords with all the prophecies
respecting Christ. It is said again and again concerning him, that “in him shall all the nations of the earth
be blessed;” and we are well assured, that to communicate blessings to a ruined world is a source of
inconceivable happiness to himself. We apprehend that to have been a very principal idea in the mind of
the Apostle, when, speaking of Christ, he said, “Who for the joy that was set before him endured the
cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God [Note:Heb_12:2.].”
With what joy must he behold the myriads who had been exalted to glory through the virtue of his
sacrifice, whilst yet it remained to be offered! It was through “his obedience unto death” that all the
antediluvian and patriarchal saints were saved. Our First Parents looked to him as “the Seed of the
woman that should bruise the serpent’s head.” To him righteous Abel had respect, in the offering which
was honoured with visible tokens of God’s acceptance. To him Noah looked, when he offered the burnt-
offerings, from which “God smelled a sweet savour [Note: Gen_8:20-21.].” In a word, it is through his
righteousness that forbearance and forgiveness were exercised from the beginning, just as they will be
exercised even to the end: and all who were saved before his advent are in that respect on the same
level with those who have been saved since: there is but one song amongst all the glorified saints in
heaven; they are all harmonious in singing “to Him that loved them and washed them from their sins in his
own blood, &c.” What a joy must it be to Christ to see in so many myriads the travail of his soul, who
“were brought forth, as it were, to God, even before he travailed!” With what joy, too, did he then take
upon him to dispense his blessings to the myriads yet unborn! He is “Head over all things,” not for his own
sake merely, but “for the Church’s sake.” Knowing then how many of his most cruel enemies were given
to him by the Father, with what pleasure would he look down upon them, (even while their hands were yet
reeking with his blood,) and anticipate their conversion to God by the influence of his Spirit on the day of
Pentecost! Every child of man that shall at any period of the world participate his grace, was at that
moment before his eyes: and with what delight would he view them, as drawn by his word, as nourished
by his grace, as comforted by his Spirit, as made more than conquerors over all their enemies
[Note: Zep_3:17.] — — — At that moment he saw, as it were, the whole company of the redeemed, the
multitudes which no man can number, all enthroned around him, the monuments of his love, the heirs of
his glory, the partners of his throne — — — He saw that the kingdom which he had now established upon
earth “should never be moved;” that “the gates of hell should never prevail against it;” and that it should
stand for ever and ever [Note: ver. 7.]. Well therefore might he say, “The King shall joy in thy strength, O
Lord; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!”]
Having thus explained the psalm, we proceed to,
II. Shew what improvement we should make of it—
From its literal sense we learn, how thankful we should be for any blessings vouchsafed unto us—

[In many respects God has “prevented us with the blessings of goodness;” and in many he has given
them in answer to our prayers. We may “account even his long-suffering towards us to be salvation,” and
much more the gift of his grace, and the knowledge of his dear Son. Can we reflect on “the salvation to
which he has called us,” even “the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory,” and not be thankful
for it? Can we reflect on the exaltation which we ourselves have received, from death to life, from slaves
to free-men, from children of the devil to sons of God, and not rejoice in it? Can we think of our having
been made “kings and priests unto God,” “heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ,” yea, partners of his
throne, and partakers of his glory for evermore; can we contemplate all this, and not say, “In thy salvation
how greatly shall I rejoice?” — — — Verily, if we do not rejoice and shout for joy, “the very stones will cry
out against us” — — —]
From its mystical or prophetical sense we learn what should be our disposition and conduct towards the
Lord Jesus—
[Methinks, we should rejoice in his joy. If it were but a common friend that was released from heavy
sufferings and exalted to glory, we should rejoice with him in the blessed change: how much more then
should we participate in our minds the joy and glory of our adorable Redeemer! — — — But more
particularly we should submit to his government. This is strongly and awfully suggested in all the latter
part of the psalm before us. “God has highly exalted Jesus, that at his name every knee should bow:”
yea, he has sworn, that every knee shall bow to him: and that all who will not bow to the sceptre of his
grace, shall be broken in pieces with a rod of iron. Read from the text to the end of the psalm; and
endeavour to realize every expression in it — — — O that we may be wise ere it be too late! Let us “kiss
the Son, lest he be angry, and we perish:” for though now he condescends to follow us with entreaties to
be reconciled towards him, the time is quickly coming, when he will say, “Bring hither those that were
mine enemies, who would not that I should reign over them, and slay them before me.”
A further improvement we should make of this subject is, to confide in his care. “He is set to be blessings”
to a ruined world. He has “ascended up on high that he might fill all things:” “he has received gifts, even
for the rebellious;” and “has all fulness treasured up in him,” on purpose that we may “receive out of his
fulness grace for grace.” There is nothing that we can want, but it may be found in him; nor any thing
which he is not willing to bestow on the very chief of sinners. Let us then look to him, and trust in him; and
assure ourselves, that, as “he lost none that had been given him” in the days of his flesh, so now will he
suffer “none to be plucked out of his hands.” We cannot expect too much from such a King: however
“wide we open our mouths, he will fill them.”
To seek the enlargement of his kingdom is the last duty we shall mention as suggested by the subject
before us. In the prayer that he has taught us, we say, “Thy kingdom come;” and we close that prayer
with ascribing to him “the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever: and it is with similar

sentiments that the psalm before us concludes. Let us enter into the spirit of them, saying, “Be thou
exalted, Lord, in thine own strength; so will we sing and praise thy power.” Nothing should be so dear to
us as the advancement of his glory. Let us reflect, how we may best promote it; and let the extension of
his kingdom be our chief joy [Note: Psa_72:18-19.] — — —]
10. WILLIAM KELLY, “Here we have the answer to their desires, perhaps we may add to His also, as far
as they could enter in. It too is "To the chief musician, a psalm of David."
As it was into their trouble the remnant saw the Messiah enter, and therefore prayed that He might be
heard of Jehovah, so now in the Spirit of prophecy they behold in His deliverance and exaltation the
answer to their petitions as to His. Indeed they see more - that Jehovah had not only heard and given,
but gone beyond, and of Himself anticipated with the blessings of goodness, and, if He with death
before Him asked life, gave length of days for ever and ever. We may observe how completely Messianic
all is, and bounded by Jewish hopes: not at all the far deeper truth of His eternal glory that dawned
through the clouds of His rejection on those who so feebly followed to the cross and learnt all better in
the light of His heavenly place and of His person. This is our portion, and therefore should we be the last
to slight and the first to understand the very distinct relations of the godly remnant of Jews, who are to
succeed us and take up His testimony for the earth when we shall have passed to heaven. It is the
confusion of the earthly and the heavenly, of Jewish expectation in the Christian, that hinders our
intelligence of either. Thus the enemy wrought from the beginning, first to hinder, then to darken and
corrupt, the church; as all recovery, for such as by grace discern God's mind to do His will, is by seeing in
Christ the key to all; for He is the Head of the church in the heavenly places, as surely as He is Messiah of
Israel and Son of man to rule all nations. Distinguishing things that differ (and the difference is immense)
is the secret of learning by the word and Spirit of God.
So we see that the second part of the psalm anticipates Messiah's proper action on His earthly foes.
Thus the opposition and enmity of those who would not have Him to reign over them are met by their
overthrow and destruction before all; and Jehovah and His Anointed are identified, not more in public
exaltation, than in the fire that devours their enemies. Messiah's sufferings at the hands of men bring
sure and unsparing judgments on them, as surely as His glories follow His sufferings, though none of
Israel understood but the godly, who merged in the church and rose to higher hopes and better
blessings by the power of the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven. So there will be godly ones to
understand in the latter day after those who now compose the church are translated to meet the Lord.
For when the heavenly counsels are fulfilled, at least virtually, the question of a godly people for the
earth has to be solved; and these are the souls who will take up and make good the Jewish aspirations in

that day, that the Lord may have not only His blessed associates on high, but hearts to welcome Him on
earth for long eclipsed Zion.
11. PULPIT, ” Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.
This psalm concerns the king. But the question is which king? It may have been David. There is much
that might apply to him. Perhaps on his recovery from some sickness, or on his return from some signal
victory over his enemies, or on the occasion of his birthday or some great anniversary, David and his
people may have rejoiced before the Lord with the voice of joy and praise. But a greater than David is
here. If the psalm in part is true of David, it finds its highest and most complete fulfilment in David' s Sou
and Lord, and in the glorious salvation which he has accomplished for his people. We know that Jesus is
a King. As a King he was announced by Gabriel (Luk_1:32); as a King he was worshipped in his cradle by
the Wise Men (Mat_2:11); as a King he was rejected by the Jews, persecuted by the chief priests, and
crucified by Pilate (Joh_19:19). And as a King he rose from the dead, was received up into glory, and now
rules in power in heaven and upon earth (1Ti_6:15). To this day and everywhere Jesus receives royal
honours—his people say as with one voice and one heart, in the words of the ancient hymn, "Thou art the
King of glory, O Christ!" The burden of this psalm may be said to be, "Let the children of Zion be joyful in
their King."
I. BECAUSE OF HIS FAVOUR WITH GOD. (Psa_21:1-3.) Other kings have been honoured of God, but
none like Jesus. From the cradle to the cross we find continual proof and token of the favour of God
towards him (Luk_2:52;Luk_9:35; Joh_3:35; Joh_8:29). The secret was in the perfect accord between the
Father and the Son, and the absolute and complete surrender of the Son to do his Father' s will. What
was said of the land of Israel, and still more tenderly of the house of the Lord, is true in the higher sense
of God' s dear Son, "Mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually" (Deu_11:12; 1Ki_9:3).
II. BECAUSE OF THE GREAT SALVATION WHICH HE HAS ACCOMPLISHED. (Psa_21:1, Psa_21:5.)
1. This salvation was very dear to him. It was "his heart' s desire."
2. This salvation was obtained by a stupendous sacrifice. "Life" (Psa_21:4). We may take the scene in the
Garden of Gethsemane as the true interpretation of this passage (Mat_27:38 44). There we see Jesus in
an agony. There we see him "asking life," thrice, with strong crying and tears. And there we see him
submitting, with the truest faith and love, to the holy will of God, which decreed that he should die that
sinners might be saved (Mat_27:53, Mat_27:54;Joh_10:17, Joh_10:18; Heb_2:14, Heb_2:15).

3. This salvation has secured inestimable benefits to
mankind. (Psa_21:6; 2Co_5:14, 2Co_5:15; Eph_1:7; Eph_2:4-6.)
III. BECAUSE OF THE SURE TRIUMPH OF HIS CAUSE AND KINGDOM. (Psa_21:7-13.)
1. Certain. (Psa_21:8.) Might here is right. God' s word is pledged, and what he has promised he is able
to perform. The King' s strength is still in God, and through him all opposition shall be overthrown.
2. Complete. (Psa_21:9-12.) The same power that is able to crush and confound the foe is arrayed in
defence of God' s people. The end is as the beginning—praise. It is like an anticipation of the song of
Moses and the Lamb of the Apocalypse (Rev_15:3).—WF.
12. SPURGEON, “The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord. Jesus is a Royal Personage. The question,
Art thou a King then? received a full answer from the Savior's lips: Thou sayest that I am a King. To this
end was I born, and for this purpose came I into this world, that I might bear witness unto the truth. He is
not merely a King, but the King; King over minds and hearts, reigning with a dominion of love, before
which all other rule is but mere brute force. He was proclaimed King even on the cross, for there, indeed,
to the eye of faith, he reigned as on a throne, blessing with more than imperial munificence the needy
sons of earth. Jesus has wrought out the salvation of his people, but as a man he found his strength in
Jehovah his God, to whom he addressed himself in prayer upon the lonely mountain's side, and in the
garden's solitary gloom. That strength so abundantly given is here gratefully acknowledged, and made
the subject of joy. The Man of Sorrows is now anointed with the oil of gladness above his fellows.
Returned in triumph from the overthrow of all his foes, he offers his own rapturous Te Deum in the temple
above, and joys in the power of the Lord. Herein let every subject of King Jesus imitate the King; let us
lean upon Jehovah's strength, let us joy in it by unstaggering faith, let us exult in it in our thankful songs.
Jesus not only has thus rejoiced, but he shall do so as he sees the power of divine grace bringing out
from their sinful hiding-places the purchase of his soul's travail; we also shall rejoice more and more as
we learn by experience more and more fully the strength of the arm of our covenant God our weakness
unstrings our harps, but his strength tunes them anew. If we cannot sing a note in honour of our own
strength, we can at any rate rejoice in our omnipotent God.
And in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice! everything is ascribed to God; the source is thy
strength and the stream is thy salvation. Jehovah planned and ordained it, works it and crowns it, and

therefore it is his salvation. The joy here spoken of is described by a note of exclamation and a word of
wonder: how greatly! The rejoicing of our risen Lord must, like his agony, be unutterable. If the
mountains of his joy rise in proportion to the depth of the valleys of his grief, then his sacred bliss is high
as the seventh heaven. For the joy which was set before him he endured the cross, despising the shame,
and now that joy daily grows, for he rests in his love and rejoices over his redeemed with singing, as in
due order they are brought to find their salvation in his blood. Let us with our Lord rejoice in salvation, as
coming from God, as coming to us, as extending itself to others, and as soon to encompass all lands. We
need not be afraid of too much rejoicing in this respect; this solid foundation will well sustain the loftiest
edifice of joy. The shoutings of the early Methodists in the excitement of the joy were far more pardonable
than our own lukewarmness. Our joy should have some sort of inexpressibleness in it.
13. MEYER, “REJOICING IN THE STRENGTH OF JEHOVAH
Psa_21:1-13
This is a companion to the psalm preceding. The blessings there asked for are here gladly
acknowledged to have been granted; and bright anticipations are entertained for the future.
How much of this psalm is true only of the ideal King-our Lord! Let us read it with special
reference to Him as He rides forth on His white horse, Rev_19:11-16.
That which the heart desires, the lips at times find difficulty in expressing. God’s help always
prevents us, that is, “goes before” us, anticipates our needs. The only life that can satisfy is the
eternal, but that is ours already if we only knew it. Our beloved dead are more blessed forever,
because they see Him “face to face;” but we also may share their joy. Trust in Christ is the secret
of immovability. God has exalted Christ to be a Prince and a Savior, and we shall never be at
peace until we have done the same, Act_5:31.
2
You have granted him his heart’s desire
and have not withheld the request of his lips.[b]

1.BARNES, “Thou hast given him his heart’s desire - See the notes at Psa_20:4. This
had been the prayer of the people that God would “grant him according to his own heart, and
fulfil all his counsel,” and this desire had now been granted. All that had been wished; all that
had been prayed for by himself or by the people, had been granted.
And hast not withholden - Hast not denied or refused.
The request of his lips - The request, or the desire which his lips had uttered. The meaning
is, that his petitions had been filly granted.
Selah - See the notes at Psa_3:2.
2. CLARKE, “Thou hast given him his heart’s desire - This seems to refer to the
prayers offered in the preceding Psalm; see especially Psa_21:1-4.
3, GILL, “Thou hast given him his heart's desire,.... Which the church had prayed for in
Psa_20:4; whatever Christ's heart desired, or his lips requested, has been given him;
and hast not withholden the request of his lips. Whatever he asked in the council and
covenant of peace was granted; he asked for all the elect, as his spouse and bride; these were the
desire of his heart and eyes, and they were given him; he asked for all the blessings of grace for
them, and all grace was given to them in him; he asked for glory, for eternal life, and it was
promised him; and not only the promise of it was put into his hand, but the thing itself; see
Psa_2:8, 1Jo_5:11; and Psa_20:4; whatever he requested of his Father, when here on earth, was
granted; he always heard him; that memorable prayer of his in Joh_17:1 is heard and answered,
both in what respects himself, his own glorification, and the conversion, sanctification, union,
preservation, and glorification of his people; whatever he now desires and requests in heaven, as
the advocate and intercessor for his saints, is ever fulfilled; which is an instance of the great
regard Jehovah has unto him, and may be considered as a reason of his joy in him.
4. HENRY, “They gave God all the praise of those things which were the matter of their king's
rejoicing. (1.) That God had heard his prayers (Psa_21:2): Thou hast given him his heart's desire
(and there is no prayer accepted but what is the heart's desire), the very thing they begged of
God for him, Psa_20:4. Note, God's gracious returns of prayer do, in a special manner, require
our humble returns of praise. When God gives to Christ the heathen for his inheritance, gives
him to see his seed, and accepts his intercession for all believers, he give him his heart's desire.
5. JAMISON, “The sentiment affirmed in the first clause is reaffirmed by the negation of its
opposite in the second.

6. PULPIT, “Thou hast given him his heart' s desire (comp. Psa_20:4, "Grant thee according to thine
own heart"). And hast not withholden the request of his lips. "Out of the abundance of the heart the
mouth speaketh." The deliverance from his enemies, which David had earnestly desired in his heart, he
had also devoutly requested with his lips (Psa_20:1, Psa_20:5). Selah. The pause here may have been
for the presentation of a thank-offering.
7. SPURGEON, “Thou hast given him his heart's desire.â€ That desire he ardently pursued when he
was on earth, both by his prayer, his actions, and his suffering; he manifested that his heart longed to
redeem his people, and now in heaven he has his desire granted him, for he sees his beloved coming to
be with him where he is. The desires of the Lord Jesus were from his heart, and the Lord heard them; if
our hearts are right with God, he will in our case also â€œfulfil the desire of them that fear him.â€
And hast not withholden the request of his lips.â€ What is in the well of the heart is sure to come up in
the bucket of the lips, and those are the only true prayers where the heart's desire is first, and the lip's
request follows after. Jesus prayed vocally as well as mentally; speech is a great assistance to thought.
Some of us feel that even when alone we find it easier to collect our thoughts when we can pray aloud.
The requests of the Saviour were not withheld. He was and still is a prevailing Pleader. Our Advocate on
high returns not empty from the throne of grace. He asked for his elect in the eternal council-chamber, he
asked for blessings for them here, he asked for glory for them hereafter, and his requests have speeded.
He is ready to ask for us at the mercy-seat. Have we not at this hour some desire to send up to his Father
by him? Let us not be slack to use our willing, loving, all-prevailing Intercessor.
Here a pause is very properly inserted, that we may admire the blessed success of the king's prayers,
and that we may prepare our own requests which may be presented through him. If we had a few more
quiet rests, a few more Selahs in our public worship, it might be profitable.
8. EBC, “This psalm is a pendant to the preceding. There the people prayed for the king; here
they give thanks for him: there they asked that his desires might be fulfilled; here they bless
Jehovah, who has fulfilled them: there the battle was impending; here it has been won, though
foes are still in the field: there the victory was prayed for; here it is prophesied. Who is the
"king"? The superscription points to David. Conjecture has referred to Hezekiah, principally
because of his miraculous recovery, which is supposed to be intended in Psa_21:4. Cheyne
thinks of Simon Maccabaeus, and sees his priestly crown in Psa_21:3. But there are no
individualising features in the royal portrait, and it is so idealised or rather spiritualised, that it
is hard to suppose that any single monarch was before the singer’s mind. The remarkable
greatness and majesty of the figure will appear as we read. The whole may be cast into two parts,
with a closing strain of prayer. In the first part (Psa_21:1-7), the people praise Jehovah for His

gifts to the king; in the second (Psa_21:8-12) they prophesy to the king complete victory; in
Psa_21:13 they end, as in Psa_20:1-9, with a short petition, which, however, here is in
accordance with the tone of the whole, more jubilant than the former and less shrill.
The former psalm had asked for strength to be given to the king; this begins with thanks for the
strength in which the king rejoices. In the former the people had anticipated triumph in the
king’s salvation or victory; here they celebrate his exceeding exultation in it. It was his, since he
was victor, but it was Jehovah’s, since He was Giver of victory. Loyal subjects share in the king’s
triumph, and connect it with him; but he himself traces it to God. The extraordinarily lofty
language in which Jehovah’s gifts are described in the subsequent verses has, no doubt.
analogies in the Assyrian hymns to which Cheyne refers; but the abject reverence and partial
deification which these breathe were foreign to the relations of Israel to its kings, who were not
separated from their subjects by such a gulf as divided the great sovereigns of the East from
theirs. The mysterious Divinity which hedges "the king" in the royal psalms is in sharp contrast
with the democratic familiarity between prince and people exhibited in the history. The
phenomena common to these psalms naturally suggest that "the king" whom they celebrate is
rather the ideal than the real monarch. The office rather than the individual who partially fulfils
its demands and possesses its endowments seems to fill the singer’s canvas. But the ideal of the
office is destined to be realised in the Messiah, and the psalm is in a true sense Messianic,
inasmuch as, with whatever mixture of conceptions proper to the then stage of revelation, it still
ascribes to the ideal king attributes which no king of Judah exhibited. The transcendant
character of the gifts of Jehovah enumerated here is obvious, however the language may be
pared down. First, we have the striking picture of Jehovah coming forth to meet the conqueror
with "blessings of goodness," as Melchizedek met Abraham with refreshments in his hand; and
benedictions on his lips. Victory is naturally followed by repose and enjoyment, and all are
Jehovah’s gift. The subsequent endowments may possibly be regarded as the details of these
blessings, the fruits of the victory. Of these the first is the coronation of the conqueror, not as if
he had not been king before, but as now more fully recognised as such. The supporters of the
Davidic authorship refer to the crown of gold won at the capture of Rabbath of Ammon, but
there is no need to seek historical basis for the representation. Then comes a signal instance of
the king’s closeness of intercourse with Jehovah and of his receiving his heart’s desire in that he
asked for "life" and received "length of days forever and ever." No doubt the strong expression
for perpetuity may be paralleled in such phrases as "O king, live forever." and others which are
obviously hyperbolical and mean not perpetual, but indefinitely protracted, duration; but the
great emphasis of expression here and its repetition in Psa_21:6 can scarcely be disposed of as
mere hyperbole. If it is the ideal king who is meant, his undying life is substantially synonomous
with the continuance of the dynasty which 2Sa_7:1-29 represents as the promise underlying the
Davidic throne. The figure of the king is then brought still nearer to the light of Jehovah, and
words which are consecrated to express Divine attributes are applied to him in Psa_21:5.
"Glory," "honour and majesty," are predicated of him, not as if there were an apotheosis, as
would have been possible in Assyrian or Roman flattery, but the royal recipient and the Divine
Giver are clearly separated, even while the lustre raying from Jehovah is conceived of as falling
in brightness upon the king. These flashing emanations of the Divine glory make their recipient
"blessings forever," which seems to include both the possession and the communication of good.
An eternal fountain of blessing and himself blessed, he is cheered with joy which comes from
Jehovah’s face, so close is his approach and so gracious to him is that countenance. Nothing
higher could be thought of than such intimacy and friendliness of access. To dwell in the blaze of
that face and to find only joy therein is the crown of human blessedness. (Psa_16:11) Finally the
double foundation of all the king’s gifts is laid in Psa_21:7 : he trusts and Jehovah’s
lovingkindness gives, and therefore he stands firm, and his throne endures, whatever may dash
against it. These daring anticipations are too exuberant to be realised in any but One, whose
victory was achieved in the hour of apparent defeat; whose conquest was both His salvation and

God’s; who prays knowing that He is always heard; who is King of men because He endured the
cross, -and wears the crown of pure gold because He did not refuse the crown of thorns; who
liveth for evermore, having been given by the Father to have life in Himself; who is the
outshining of the Father’s glory, and has all power granted unto Him: who is the source of all
blessing to all, who dwells in the joy to which He will welcome His servants; and who Himself
lived and conquered by the life of faith, and so became the first Leader of the long line of those
who have trusted and therefore have stood fast. Whomsoever the psalmist saw in his vision, he
has gathered into one many traits which are realised only in Jesus Christ.
The second part (Psa_21:8-12) is, by Hupfeld and others, taken as addressed to Jehovah; and
that idea has much to recommend it, but it seems to go to wreck on the separate reference to
Jehovah in Psa_21:9, on the harshness of applying "evil against thee" and "a mischievous
device" (Psa_21:11) to Him, and on the absence of a sufficient link of connection between the
parts if it is adopted. If, on the other hand, we suppose that the king is addressed in these verses,
there is the same dramatic structure as in Psa_20:1-9; and the victory which has been won is
now taken as a pledge of future ones. The expectation is couched in terms adapted to the horizon
of the singer, and on his lips probably meant stern extermination of hostile nations. The picture
is that of a fierce conqueror, and we must not seek to soften the features, nor, on the other hand,
to deny the prophetic inspiration of the psalmist. The task of the ideal king was to crush and root
out opposition to his monarchy, which was Jehovah’s. Very terrible are the judgments of his
hand, which sound liker those of Jehovah than those inflicted by a man, as Hupfeld and others
have felt. In Psa_21:8 the construction is slightly varied in the two clauses, the verb "reach"
having a preposition attached in the former, and not in the latter, which difference may be
reproduced by the distinction between "reach towards" and "reach." The seeking hand is
stretched out after, and then it grasps, its victims. The comparison of the "fiery oven" is inexact
in form, but the very negligence helps the impression of agitation and terribleness. The enemy
are not likened to a furnace, but to the fuel cast into it. But the phrase rendered in A.V. "in the
time of thine anger" is very remarkable, being literally "in the time of thy face." The destructive
effect of Jehovah’s countenance (Psa_34:17) is here transferred to His king’s, into whose face
has passed, as he gazed, in joy on the face of Jehovah, some of the lustre which kills where it
does not gladden. Compare "everlasting destruction from the face of the Lord." (2Th_1:9) The
king is so completely representative of Jehovah that the destruction of the enemy is the work of
the one fire of wrath common to both. The destruction extends to the whole generation of
enemies, as in the ferocious warfare of old days, when a nation was wiped off the earth. The
psalmist sees in the extremest vengeance the righteous and inevitable consequence of hostility
condemned by the nature of the case to be futile, and yet criminal: "They cause evil to hang over
thee: they meditate mischief; they will achieve nothing." Then, in Psa_21:12, the dread scene is
completed by the picture of the flying foe and the overtaking pursuer, who first puts them to
flight, and then, getting in front of them, sends his arrows full in their faces. The ideal of the
king has a side of terror; and while his chosen weapon is patient love, he has other arrows in his
quiver. The pictures of the destroying conqueror are taken up and surpassed in the New
Testament. They do not see the whole Christ who do not see the Warrior Christ, nor have they
realised all His work who slur over the solemn expectation that one day ‘men’ shall call on rocks
and hills to cover them from "the steady whole of the Judge’s face."
As in Psa_20:1-9, the close is a brief petition, which asks the fulfilment of the anticipations in
Psa_21:8-12, and traces, as in Psa_21:1, the king’s triumph to Jehovah’s strength. The loyal love
of the nation will take its monarch’s victory as its own joy and be glad in the manifestation
thereby of Jehovah’s power. That is the true voice of devotion which recognises God, not man, in
all victories, and answers the forth flashing of His delivering: power by the thunder of praise.

3
You came to greet him with rich blessings
and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.
1.BARNES, “For thou preventest him - Thou goest before him; thou dost anticipate him.
See Psa_17:13, margin. Our word “prevent” is now most commonly used in the sense of “hinder,
stop, or intercept.” This is not the original meaning of the English word; and the word is never
used in this sense in the Bible. The English word, when our translation was made, meant to “go
before,” to “anticipate,” and this is the uniform meaning of it in our English version, as it is the
meaning of the original. See the notes at Job_3:12. Compare Psa_59:10; Psa_79:8; Psa_88:13;
Psa_95:2; Psa_119:147-148; Amo_9:10; see the notes at 1Th_4:15. The meaning here is, that
God had “anticipated” him, or his desires. He had gone before him. He had designed the
blessing even before it was asked.
With the blessings of goodness - Blessings “indicating” goodness on his part; blessings
adapted to promote the “good” or the welfare of him on whom they were bestowed. Perhaps the
meaning here is, not only that they were “good,” but they “seemed” to be good; they were not
“blessings in disguise,” or blessings as the result of previous calamity and trial, but blessings
where there was no trial - no shadow - no appearance of disappointment.
Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head - This does not refer to the time of his
coronation, or the period when he was crowned a king, but it refers to the victory which he had
achieved, and by which he had been made truly a king. He was crowned with triumph; he was
shown to be a king; the victory was like making him a king, or setting a crown of pure gold upon
his head. He was now a conqueror, and was indeed a king.
2. CLARKE, “Thou preventest him - To prevent, from prcevenio, literally signifies to go
before. Hence that prayer in the communion service of our public Liturgy, “Prevent us, O Lord,
in all our doings, with thy most gracious favor!” That is, “Go before us in thy mercy, make our
way plain, and enable us to perform what is right in thy sight!” And this sense of prevent is a
literal version of the original word ‫תקדמנו‬ tekademennu. “For thou shalt go before him with the
blessings of goodness.”
Our ancestors used God before in this sense. So in Henry V.’s speech to the French herald
previously to the battle of Agincourt: -
“Go therefore; tell thy master, here I am.
My ransom is this frail and worthless trunk;
My army, but a weak and sickly guard:
Yet, God before, tell him we will come on,
Though France himself, and such another neighbor,
Stand in our way.”
A crown of pure gold - Probably alluding to the crown of the king of Rabbah, which, on the
taking of the city, David took and put on his own head. See the history, 2Sa_12:26-30 (note).

3, GILL, “For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness,.... Not temporal,
but spiritual blessings, which spring from the grace and goodness of God, and consist of it; and
relate to the spiritual and eternal welfare of those for whose sake he receives them, and who are
blessed with them in him: his being "prevented" with them denotes the freeness of the donation
of them; that before he could well ask for them, or before he had done requesting them, they
were given him; and also the earliness of the gift of them, they were put into his hands before his
incarnation, before he was manifest in the flesh, even from the foundation of the world, and
before the world began, Eph_1:3, 2Ti_1:9, and likewise the order in which they were given; first
to Christ, and then to his people in him, as the passages referred to show;
thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head; which is expressive of his victory over all
enemies, sin, Satan, and the world, death and hell; and of his being possessed of his throne and
kingdom; and has respect to his exaltation at the right hand of God, where he is crowned with
glory and honour: and this crown being of "pure gold" denotes the purity, glory, solidity, and
perpetuity of his kingdom; this is a crown, not which believers put upon him by believing in him,
and ascribing the glory of their salvation to him, or what the church, called his mother, has
crowned him with, Son_3:11, but which his father put upon him, who has set him King over his
holy hill of Zion, Psa_2:6; compare with this Rev_14:14. The Septuagint and Vulgate Latin
versions read "a crown of a precious stone"; and so Apollinarius; and seem to refer to the crown
set on David's head, which had precious stones in it, 2Sa_12:30; Josephus (x) says it had a
sardonyx. Fortunatus Scacchus (y) fancies the topaz is meant, and that the Hebrew text should
be read "a crown of topaz"; mistaking the sense of the word "phaz", which never signifies a
topaz, but the best gold, pure solid gold.
4. HENRY, “That God had surprised him with favours, and much outdone his expectations
(Psa_21:3): Thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness. All our blessings are blessings
of goodness, and are owing, not at all to any merit of ours, but purely and only to God's
goodness. But the psalmist here reckons it in a special manner obliging that these blessings were
given in a preventing way; this fixed his eye, enlarged his soul, and endeared his God, as one
expresses it. When God's blessings come sooner and prove richer than we imagine, when they
are given before we prayed for them, before we were ready for them, nay, when we feared the
contrary, then it may be truly said that he prevented us with them. Nothing indeed prevented
Christ, but to mankind never was any favour more preventing than our redemption by Christ
and all the blessed fruits of his mediation. (3.) That God had advanced him to the highest
honour and the most extensive power: “Thou hast set a crown of pure gold upon his head and
kept it there, when his enemies attempted to throw it off.” Note, Crowns are at God's disposal;
no head wears them but God sets them there, whether in judgment to his land or for mercy the
event will show. On the head of Christ God never set a crown of gold, but of thorns first, and
then of glory.

5. CALVIN, “3.For thou wilt prevent him. The change of the tense in the verbs does not break the
connection of the discourse; and, therefore, I have, without hesitation, translated this sentence into the
future tense, as we know that the changing of one tense into another is quite common in Hebrew. Those
who limit this psalm to the last victory which David gained over foreign nations, and who suppose that the
crown of which mention is here made was the crown of the king of the Ammonites, of which we have an
account in sacred history, give, in my judgment, too low a view of what the Holy Spirit has here dictated
concerning the perpetual prosperity of this kingdom. David, I have no doubt, comprehended his
successors even to Christ, and intended to celebrate the continual course of the grace of God in
maintaining his kingdom through successive ages. It was not of one man that it had been said,
“ will be his father, and he shall be my son,”
(2Sa_7:14;)
but this was a prophecy which ought to be extended from Solomon to Christ, as is fully established by the
testimony of Isaiah, (Isa_9:6,) who informs us that it was fulfilled when the Son was given or manifested.
When it is said, Thou wilt prevent him, the meaning is, that such will be the liberality and promptitude of
God, in spontaneously bestowing blessings, that he will not only grant what is asked from him, but,
anticipating the requests of the king, will load him with every kind of good things far beyond what he had
ever expected. By blessings we are to understand abundance or plenteousness. Some translate the
Hebrew word ‫,טוב‬ tob, goodness; (481) but with this I cannot agree. It is to be taken rather for the
beneficence orthe free gifts of God. Thus the meaning will be, The king shall want nothing which is
requisite to make his life in every respect happy, since God of his own good pleasure will anticipate his
wishes, and enrich him with an abundance of all good things. The Psalmist makes express mention of the
crown, because it was the emblem and ensign of royalty; and he intimates by this that God would be the
guardian of the king, whom he himself had created. But as the prophet testifies, that the royal diadem,
after lying long dishonored in the dust, shall again be put upon the head of Christ, we come to the
conclusion, that by this song the minds of the godly were elevated to the hope of the eternal kingdom, of
which a shadow only, or an obscure image, was set forth in the person of the successors of David. The
doctrine of the everlasting duration of the kingdom of Christ is, therefore, here established, seeing he was
not placed upon the throne by the favor or suffrages of men, but by God, who, from heaven, set the royal
crown upon his head with his own hand.
(481) Reading “ of goodness;” that is, the best or most excellent blessings.

5B. JAMISON, “preventest — literally, “to meet here in good sense,” or “friendship”
(Psa_59:10; compare opposite, Psa_17:13).
blessings of goodness — which confer happiness.
crown of pure gold — a figure for the highest royal prosperity.
6. PULPIT, “For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness; i.e. thou givest him blessings
before he asks, and more than he asks.. "The blessings of goodness" is pleonastic, since a blessing
cannot be otherwise than a good. Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head. It is remarked that
David, as the result of one of his wars, did actually take the crown of the conquered king, which was a
crown of gold, from off the king' s head, and place it upon his own head (2Sa_12:30); but this is scarcely
what is intended here. As Hengstenberg observes, "The setting on of the crown marks the bestowment of
dominion," not in one petty ease only, but generally, and is scarcely to be altogether separated from the
promises recorded in 2Sa_7:12-16.
7. SPURGEON, “For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness.â€ The word prevent formerly
signified to precede or go before, and assuredly Jehovah preceded his Son with blessings. Before he
died saints were saved by the anticipated merit of his death, before he came believers saw his day and
were glad, and he himself had his delights with the sons of men. The Father is so willing to give blessings
through his Son, that instead of his being constrained to bestow his grace, he outstrips the Mediatorial
march of mercy. â€œI say not that I will pray the Father for you, for the Father himself loveth you.â€
Before Jesus calls the Father answers, and while he is yet speaking he hears. Mercies may be bought
with blood, but they are also freely given. The love of Jehovah is not caused by the Redeemer's sacrifice,
but that love, with its blessings of goodness, preceded the great atonement, and provided it for our
salvation. Reader, it will be a happy thing for thee if, like thy Lord, thou canst see both providence and
grace preceding thee, forestalling thy needs, and preparing thy path. Mercy, in the case of many of us,
ran before our desires and prayers, and it ever outruns our endeavours and expectancies, and even our
hopes are left to lag behind. Prevenient grace deserves a song; we may make one out of this sentence,
let us try. All our mercies are to be viewed as â€œblessings;â€ gifts of a blessed God, meant to make
us blessed; they are â€œblessings of goodness,â€ not of merit, but of free favour; and they come to us
in a preventing way, a way of prudent foresight, such as only preventing love could have arranged. In this
light the verse is itself a sonnet!
Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head.â€ Jesus wore the thorn-crown, but now wears the glory-
crown, It is a â€œcrown,â€ indicating royal nature, imperial power, deserved honour, glorious conquest,
and divine government. The crown is of the richest, rarest, most resplendent, and most lasting order -

â€œgold,â€ and that gold of the most refined and valuable sort, â€œpure gold,â€ to indicate the
excellence of his dominion. This crown is set upon his head most firmly, and whereas other monarchs
find their diadems fitting loosely, his is fixed so that no power can move it, for Jehovah himself has set it
upon his brow. Napoleon crowned himself, but Jehovah crowned the Lord Jesus; the empire of the one
melted in an hour, but the other has an abiding dominion. Some versions read, â€œa crown of precious
stones;â€ this may remind us of those beloved ones who shall be as jewels in his crown, of whom he
has said, â€œThey shall be mine in the day when I make up my jewels.â€ May we be set in the golden
circlet of the Redeemer's glory, and adorn his head for ever!
8. K&D, “(Heb.: 21:4-5) “Blessings of good” (Pro_24:25) are those which consist of good, i.e.,
true good fortune. The verb ‫ם‬ ֵ ִ‫,ק‬ because used of the favour which meets and presents one with
some blessing, is construed with a double accusative, after the manner of verbs of putting on
and bestowing (Ges. §139). Since Psa_21:4 cannot be intended to refer to David's first
coronation, but to the preservation and increase of the honour of his kingship, this
particularisation of Psa_21:4 sounds like a prediction of what is recorded in 2Sa_22:30 : after
the conquest of the Ammonitish royal city Rabbah David set the Ammonitish crown (‫ת‬ ֶ‫ר‬ ֶ‫ט‬ ֲ‫,)ע‬
which is renowned for the weight of its gold and its ornamentation with precious stones, upon
his head. David was then advanced in years, and in consequence of heavy guilt, which, however,
he had overcome by penitence and laying hold on the mercy of God, was come to the brink of the
grave. He, worthy of death, still lived; and the victory over the Syro-Ammonitish power was a
pledge to him of God's faithfulness in fulfilling his promises. It is contrary to the tenour of the
words to say that Psa_21:5 does not refer to length of life, but to hereditary succession to the
throne. To wish any one that he may live ‫ם‬ ָ‫ּול‬‫ע‬ ְ‫,ל‬ and especially a king, is a usual thing, 1Ki_1:31,
and frequently. The meaning is, may the life of the king be prolonged to an indefinitely distant
day. What the people have desired elsewhere, they here acknowledge as bestowed upon the king.
9. GREAT TEXTS, “The Ministry of Surprise
Thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness.—Psa_21:3.
1. This is a companion Psalm to the one that goes before it. They both deal with the same general
situation, the outbreak of national war, but differ in this respect, that while the first is a Psalm of prayer
before the people go forth to the battle, the second is a Psalm of thanksgiving after they have returned
victorious. In the former we are to conceive them gathered in the Temple, the king at their head, to
entreat the aid of their fathers’ God, that in the hour of danger He may send them help out of the
sanctuary and strength from His holy hill. But in the latter the danger is past. The king’s arms have been
successful. His enemies have been scattered. He has re-entered the city gates with his exultant army,
and made his triumphal way through the streets, and now once more, as is most meet, stands before the
Lord, who has given him the victory, while priests and people make the sacred courts ring again with their
shouts of thanksgiving and joy. “The king shall joy in thy strength, O Lord; and in thy salvation how greatly
shall he rejoice! Thou hast given him his heart’s desire, and hast not withholden the request of his lips.
For the king trusteth in the Lord, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved. Be thou
exalted, Lord, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power.”

2. The gist of the text is that God’s wise grace can outstrip the present stage of our experience, can pass
on into the future, and be busy on our behalf before we arrive there. He not only attends us with the
blessings of His goodness, He “prevents” us with them as well—goes on before and sows the days to
come with mercy, so that we find it waiting us when we arrive, and reap—or may reap—nothing but
goodness as we go. It is a profound, most comfortable truth for us to rest our minds on.
There is in theology a term, still used, “prevenient grace,” meaning the grace which acts on a
sinner before repentance inducing him to repent, the grace by which he attains faith and receives power
to will the good. Milton, when describing the repentance of Adam and Eve in Paradise Lost, when they
confessed their sin and prayed for forgiveness, puts it:
Thus they in lowliest plight repentant stood
Praying, for from the Mercy-seat above
Prevenient Grace descending had remov’d
The stony from their hearts, and made new flesh
Regenerate grow instead.
But we must not limit God’s prevenient grace to the act of repentance, to the steps which lead up to the
consciousness of sonship with God.
1 [Note: H. Black, Christ’s Service of Love, 210.]
I.
A Prepared World
1. When we come upon the stage of existence we find that the world has been prepared for us. “Thou
hast formed the world to be inhabited” is one of the deep sayings of the prophets. For whatever ends the
world has been created, it has been fashioned upon the lines of man. It has been decked in beauty for the
human eye; covered with sustenance for the human frame; stored with energies that would have slept
unused but for the large intelligence of man. Does the newborn child need to be clothed? Sheep have
been pasturing upon the hills. Does the newborn child need to be fed? Mysterious changes have been
preparing food. And does the newborn child need to be warmed? Why then, unnumbered centuries ago,
the leaves were falling with the sunshine in them, that to-day we might have summer on the hearth. Not
into an unprepared world is the little infant flung. Nature never calls, “I am not ready, nor can I support this
gift of a new life.” Nature has been getting ready for millenniums, since she awoke from the primeval
chaos; and in her depths, and on her hills of pasturage, has been preparing for this very hour.
We are rising to the conviction that we are a part of nature, and so a part of God; that the whole
creation—the One and the Many and All-One—is travailing together toward some great end; and that
now, after ages of development, we have at length become conscious portions of the great scheme, and
can co-operate in it with knowledge and with joy. We are no aliens in a stranger universe governed by an
outside God; we are parts of a developing whole, all enfolded in an embracing and interpenetrating love,
of which we too, each to other, sometimes experience the joy too deep for words.
1 [Note: Sir Oliver Lodge.]
There are inhospitable regions, in which the oak cannot flourish, in which the hardy pine cannot live, and
in which the mountain heather finds no place, but yet some variety of corn can be made to grow, if man
can live there at all. If you were to ascend from the sea-level to the sides of the high mountains, or to
proceed from the swamps of China to the prairies of America, or from the burning plains of India to the
Arctic regions, you would find at the different levels, or in the different latitudes, entirely different kinds of

plants, with one exception; the corn plant you would find everywhere. In the tropical regions you would
find rice; in the bleak north, oats and rye; in parts of the western world not congenial to wheat, you would
find maize, while similar parts of Europe produce barley. So carefully has God provided for the needs of
man.
2. These bounties of God come to us at a great cost. Take a single grain of corn, and remember that it
cost the Creator thousands of years of forethought and labour. We know how useless it is to sow wheat
on hard clay or solid rock. Soil needs first to be made, so God sets in motion the forces of rain, frost, and
rivers. He sets the great glaciers grinding over the granite, sandstone, and limestone. And that took
thousands of years. If God had not laboured for ages, not even the tiniest grain of corn could have existed
to-day. But, further, the God who made the soil sends thousands of rays of sunshine to ripen the corn.
And for every ray that we see, there are ten invisible heat rays. Now before these rays can begin their
work, they have a journey to make of more than ninety millions of miles. And God keeps these
messengers continually flying through the sky. He spares no labour and counts no cost to provide royally
for His children.
II.
A Prepared Home
1. Home is the child’s whole world. Within the family circle lie his earth and heaven, and through the
medium of its life and fortunes the larger provision accumulated out of doors is gradually interpreted and
conveyed to him. To have first drawn breath, then, in a truly Christian home is to have been born to an
inheritance which not all the world’s wealth could buy. To have been received into this world by one
whose first feeling was that of trembling thankfulness to God, mingled with fear lest she should be
unworthy of the trust of bringing up a child for Him; to have grown up within walls where He from whom
every fatherhood in heaven and earth is named, was ever acknowledged supreme and reverently loved
and served; to have been led to His footstool early, and to have had His word printed on the mind; to
have been taught to rest on the day of rest, and to “love the habitation of God’s house”; to have been
trained in early impressionable years, for the most part unconsciously, under the influence of those
around, as well as of the men and women that come about a good man’s fireside and the books that lie
on a good man’s table,—in all this what splendid provision for all who are fortunate enough to fall heirs to
it. Truly God “prevented us with blessings of goodness.” Our lot was stored with them beforehand. We
were cradled in spiritual profusion which a Loving Care had been long preparing, as a mother’s choicest
appointments will be ready for her babe long before it is put into her hands.
Sometimes there comes a visitor to see us of whose coming we had no anticipation. He has been long
abroad, and for years we have not seen him, until one day he is standing at our door. But it is not thus
that into Christian homes there come the joy and mystery of childhood. The child is born in a prepared
place, and love has been very busy with its welcome. And prayers go heavenward with a new intensity,
and some now pray who never prayed before; and fountains of tenderness are opened up, and feelings
that were scarce suspected once; and God is nearer and His hand is more wonderful, and all the future
has a different music, and that is why home is as a type of heaven; it is a prepared place for a prepared
people. Thou goest before us with the blessings of goodness.
1 [Note: G. H. Morrison, The Return of the Angels,
146.]
O’er a new joy this day we bend,
Soft power from heaven our souls to lift;
A wondering wonder Thou dost lend
With loan outpassing gift—

A little child. She sees the sun—
Once more incarnates thy old law:
One born of two, two born in one,
Shall into one three draw.
But is there no day creeping on
Which I should tremble to renew?
I thank Thee, Lord, for what is gone—
Thine is the future too!
And are we not at home in Thee,
And all this world a visioned show,
That, knowing what Abroad is, we
What Home is too may know?
2 [Note: George MacDonald, Organ Songs.]
Mr. Moody could never speak of those early days of want and adversity without the most tender
references to that brave mother whose self-sacrifice and devotion had sacredly guarded the home
entrusted to her care. When, at the age of ninety, her life-voyage ended, she entered the Haven of Rest,
her children, her children’s children, and an entire community rose up to call her blessed. And well she
deserved the praise they gave her, for she had wisely and discreetly discharged the duties God had
placed upon her, and, entering the presence of her Master, could render a faithful account of the
stewardship of motherhood. To rule a household of seven sturdy boys and two girls, the eldest twelve
years old, required no ordinary tact and sound judgment, but so discreet was this loyal mother that to the
very end she made “home” the most loved place on earth to her family, and so trained her children as to
make them a blessing to society.
“For nearly fifty years I have been coming back to Northfield,” said Mr. Moody, long after that little circle
had been broken up, “and I have always been glad to get back. When I get within fifty miles of home I
grow restless and walk up and down the car. It seems as if the train will never get to Northfield. When I
come back after dark I always look to see the light in mother’s window.”
1 [Note: W. R. Moody, Life of Dwight L.
Moody, 26.]
The purest-minded of all pagans and all Emperors devotes the whole of the first book of
his Meditations to a grateful consideration of all that he owed to others in his youth. Such humble
gratitude is the mark of a great soul. He goes over the list of all who helped him by counsel or example.
“The example of my grandfather, Verus, gave me a good disposition, not prone to anger. By the
recollection of my father’s character, I learned to be both modest and manly. My mother taught me to
have regard for religion, to be generous and open-handed. The philosopher Sextus recommended good-
humour to me. Alexander the Grammarian taught me not to be finically critical about words. I learned from

Catulus not to slight a friend for making a remonstrance.” And so on through a long list of benefits which
his sweet humble mind acknowledged, finishing up with: “I have to thank the gods that my grandfathers,
parents, sister, preceptors, relations, friends, and domestics were almost all of them persons of
probity.”
2 [Note: H. Black, Christ’s Service of Love, 213.]
2. We are ushered also into a society that was prepared. A child’s education is a great deal more than a
matter of lesson books and a few years’ schooling. The use he is able to make of books and schooling
depends on the nature he brings to them and on the surroundings among which he is born; and these
again depend largely on what manner of persons those were who went before him. Education is the
development of manhood, and this is determined always, on the one hand, by the stock the man springs
from, and, on the other, by the intellectual and moral atmosphere he grows up in. So that in literal truth it
may be said about each of us that Providence began our education not one but many hundreds of years
since. All down the generations the lot we should in due time stand in has been growing more goodly and
favourable, until at this particular stage in the history of the race and in our own greatly privileged land,
what amelioration of manners, what elevation of morals, what enrichment of social relationships, what
increase of knowledge, in a word, what multiplied spiritual wealth, opportunity, and stimulus, do we not
inherit! We are the heirs of the ages, and are born rich indeed. We reap where we had not strawed. Why,
the very language in which we speak to one another—the medium of communion between man and
man—is a legacy of the past to us, and in our earliest broken syllables we unconsciously acknowledge
our indebtedness to it.
The holy Andrewes before he comes to give thanks for salvation begins with what is more fundamental
still. “I thank Thee,” he writes, “that I was born a living soul, and not senseless matter; a man and not a
brute; civilized not savage; free not a slave; liberally educated, and endowed with gifts of nature and
worldly good.”
1 [Note: A. Martin, Winning the Soul, 204.]
3. It cannot be that God is absent from the most untoward environment. There are children born into the
world for whom you would say little preparation had been made by any one. Nobody seems to want them
here. It is scanty care they receive from any one. They are left to grow as they may; and live, one hardly
knows how; and are reared with squalor before their eyes, and coarseness in their ears, and evil
everywhere. Is God beforehand with them with the blessings of goodness? Surely He is; for, after all, the
world is His, nor can man’s uttermost labour in evil altogether obliterate or quench His everywhere
present and active loving-kindness. One thing is certain; that He has the strangest ways of blending His
mercy even with the most untoward environment.
I have seen little children exposed to early influences which you would have thought must inevitably have
proved fatal to any seeds of goodness they brought with them into the world; and these things—
drunkenness, vileness, murderous brutality, and all the unspeakable horrors that make up the daily round
in a drunkard’s home—were only blessed to them. There is no limit to the power of Him who overrules all
things, and whose face the angels of little children do always behold, out of evil to bring good. “In him the
fatherless find mercy.” Let us admit that He deals with many—or allows them to be dealt with by
circumstances—very strangely, very sorely. Nevertheless, these circumstances too are under His Hand.
Who shall say that they are ever sufficient to blind any soul born into God’s world outright to its
inheritance or quite to put it beyond His reach?
2 [Note: lbid. 202.]
In his ballad “The Three Graves” Coleridge puts this story into the mouth of an old sexton. A young
farmer, paying his addresses to the daughter of a widow, finds that the widow herself desires to marry
him. When he asks in due time that the day of the marriage may be fixed, the mother maliciously
depreciates the character of her daughter, and confesses her own passion. Finding herself thrust aside,
she kneels down and solemnly prays for a curse upon her daughter and the lover she had accepted. A
cloud hangs over the wedding, and bride and bridegroom find themselves strangely chilled and
depressed. On Ash-Wednesday the widow goes to church, and takes her place by the side of her
daughter’s friend, who has helped forward the marriage, and curses her together with the others. Under
the haunting influence of that curse the three people fade away, and, within a few short months, fill graves
side by side in the country churchyard. The essence of the ballad story is expressed in the lines:

Beneath the foulest mother’s curse
No child could ever thrive.
That conception fits a pagan condition of society in which, for both temporal and spiritual things, the
power of the parent is absolute. But it makes into an almighty fiat the cry of the blood of Abel, and is
untrue to the spirit of the gospel. None can curse child or neighbour into hopeless distress in either this or
the coming life. He who opens and shuts the gates of blessedness has not surrendered the key into
unworthy hands.
1 [Note: T. G. Selby, The Divine Craftsman, 90.]
III.
A Prepared Inheritance
1. What have we that we have not received? Behind us lie the labours and sufferings and sacrifices of the
noblest, and we have entered into their labours. We have a rich inheritance, which can be described only
as the blessings of goodness. The tree of our life has its roots deep in the soil and the subsoil of history.
We are not only the heirs of all the ages, but the heirs of God’s grace through all the ages. God’s
providence is only another name for God’s grace, and His providence did not begin to us merely at the
hour of birth. Every prophet, and every man of faith, has felt in some degree at some time of intense
insight that he has been under a foreordaining, a loving purpose before birth, before history, from the very
foundation of the world. God’s grace began with him long before he was born, and prepared his place for
him, and went before him with the blessings of goodness. Time would fail for any of us to tell all that we
owe to the past, all the debt in which we stand to preceding generations, not only for temporal mercies,
but even for the very intellectual and spiritual atmosphere into which we have been born, and in which we
have been reared. We have a spiritual climate, as well as a geographical; and in it we have had our place
prepared for us. The blessings of God’s goodness have gone before us, and can in many lines be clearly
seen by every enlightened mind and conscience and heart. The liberty we enjoy politically and religiously
has been bought and paid for by others. The knowledge which we hold so cheap was dearly acquired by
the race. Every advance in social organization which is to us now as our birthright was attained at great
cost.
As a man deepens so his longings deepen, till they reach to the Infinite and the Eternal. And the strange
thing is, that as these cravings alter, and rise from the transient to the enduring, so God is ever there
before us, with His prepared answer to our quest. We crave for light, and the sun and moon are there,
and they have been shining for unnumbered ages. We crave for love, and love is not of yesterday. It is as
ancient as the heart-beat of humanity. We come to crave for pardon and for peace and for unbroken
fellowship with God; and all that, in Jesus Christ our Lord, has been made ready for us long ago.
2. God’s prevenient goodness is very conspicuous in the privileges of the Gospel. Our spiritual needs are
all anticipated by an ample provision. And that is signified by our baptism. God’s goodness came to a
point there, so to speak, and was set forth with gracious impressiveness. For baptism is the seal of our
lineage and signifies that we come of the elect stock. It is the Christian circumcision, and denotes that we
belong to the community of the faithful, whose life is sustained by the living Lord, and have our right and
portion among them in all the goodness He has introduced into human life.
To me one of the surest proofs that the Bible is indeed the Word of God is the way in which it goes before
us through all the changing experience of life. Other books we leave behind. They were before us once;
they are behind us now. We have outgrown them. We have reached an hour when they were powerless
to cheer and guide. But always as we battle through the years, and break through the thicket into another
glade, a little ahead of us, with eyes of love, we descry the figure of the Word of God. It is before us in the
day of triumph. It is before us in the hour of fall. In every new temptation it is there; in every joy, in every

bitterness. We move into the shadow and the heartbreak, or into the sunshine with the play of waters, and
yet the Bible understands it all, and is there to meet us when we come. We are not above it when we
scale the heavens, nor beneath it when we make our bed in hell. It is always a little higher than our
highest. It is always a little deeper than our deepest. And that to me is an argument unanswerable that
God is in Scripture as in no other book. It is not so much that I find Him there. It is rather that
there He finds me.
1[Note: G. H. Morrison, The Return of the Angels, 150.]
Geologists find the presence of tropical species in latitudes now subjected to the rigours of a cold climate,
and arctic forms in regions at present belonging to the temperate zone. In endeavouring to explain these
anomalies of climate, scientists in past days went in search of vast cosmic changes, such as an alteration
in the position of the terrestrial axis, a diminution in the amount of solar heat, or a gradual cooling of the
earth’s crust; but modern scientists are satisfied to explain these climatic conditions as the result of a
familiar agency close at hand, of which we have daily experience. A genial current of water or air
deflected toward our coast is, in their opinion, sufficiently powerful to create the difference of temperature
which rescues us from the rigours of Lapland and fills our island with summer’s pageantry and autumn’s
pride. So to give the nations of the earth a sweet summer for the long dark winter of their discontent God
makes the stream of His grace to flow through our sanctuaries, schools, and homes, silently blessing and
enriching human life.
2 [Note: W. L. Watkinson, The Fatal Barter, 37.]
IV.
A God who is always Beforehand
1. God is before at every stage of this life. Whatever good we have gained to ourselves, there is a better
still before us. The best is always in store. We go from strength to strength. And if we have an eye for the
working of His Hand at all, we need never fail to find the traces of God’s power marking out before-hand
the path in which we go.
(1) God is before us to enrich and to purify our joys.—Indeed those joys are of God’s own making. They
arrive we know not whence or how. They come as a surprise. We had not looked for them, or learned
perhaps to desire them. And then they befell us, and woke our nature into music, and made all life new. Is
it not so for the most part that our great joys have come to us? the choice gifts of Providence? the signal
blessings of grace? And what does this mean but just that the Divine loving-kindness had prepared for us
such mercy, and then at the fitting moment laid it bare? He who has planned our path is in ambush for us,
and oftenest it is at some unexpected turn of the way that His goodness stands disclosed. We stumble
upon His bounty ere we know, and find to our surprise how long it had been stored for us. Does not the
greatest of all gifts, the Gift Unspeakable, at times arrive upon us in this way, hiding Himself in some
unlooked-for experience, then striding into our life suddenly? And of other gifts also, the arrival is, as a
rule, as unexpected, and betokens a preparation we had not thought of. Our path has been sown with
goodness beforehand, and we reap the harvest of it as we go.
I am filled with shame and confusion when I reflect, on one hand, upon the great favours which God has

Psalm 21 commentary

Empfohlen

Empfohlen

Weitere ähnliche Inhalte

Was ist angesagt?

Was ist angesagt? (20)

Andere mochten auch

Andere mochten auch (16)

Ähnlich wie Psalm 21 commentary

Ähnlich wie Psalm 21 commentary (20)

Mehr von GLENN PEASE

Mehr von GLENN PEASE (20)

Kürzlich hochgeladen

Kürzlich hochgeladen (20)

Psalm 21 commentary