Psalms · Chapter 113

Verse 1. Praise, O ye servants] Probably an address to the Levites. The Anglo-Saxon has [A.S.], praise the Lord, ye knaves. Knapa or knave signified among our ancestors a servant; sometimes a male, a young man.

Verses 1-3. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord — Ye Levites, who are peculiarly devoted to this solemn work, and sometimes termed God’s servants, in a special sense, and all you faithful souls. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time, &c. — Let not the work of praising God die with us, but let those that come after us praise him; yea, let him be praised through all the generations of time, and let us and all his saints praise him in eternity. From the rising of the sun, &c. — Throughout the habitable world, from one end of it to the other; the Lord’s name is to be praised — That is, it ought to be praised in all nations, because all nations enjoy the benefit of his glorious works of creation and providence: and in all nations there are most manifest proofs of his infinite wisdom, power, and goodness. All nations, also, were to be redeemed by the Messiah, and it is his gracious purpose and promise to bring all nations to the knowledge of his truth.

Verse 1. Praise ye the Lord, This phrase is the literal rendering of Hallelujah.

1. Servants of the Lord—The call is upon Israel, the professed servants of Jehovah, wherever residing. Those only who know God are prepared for this act of praise, and the whole psalm indicates that the most marked condescension of Jehovah toward his people, even the poorest and vilest, had been recently and freshly experienced. The verse is similar to Psalm 135:1, except a slight transposition of words, and is more emphatic.

Verses 1-3. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord — Ye Levites, who are peculiarly devoted to this solemn work, and sometimes termed God’s servants, in a special sense, and all you faithful souls. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time, &c. — Let not the work of praising God die with us, but let those that come after us praise him; yea, let him be praised through all the generations of time, and let us and all his saints praise him in eternity. From the rising of the sun, &c. — Throughout the habitable world, from one end of it to the other; the Lord’s name is to be praised — That is, it ought to be praised in all nations, because all nations enjoy the benefit of his glorious works of creation and providence: and in all nations there are most manifest proofs of his infinite wisdom, power, and goodness. All nations, also, were to be redeemed by the Messiah, and it is his gracious purpose and promise to bring all nations to the knowledge of his truth.

2. From this time forth—From now unto eternity. The from now supposes an urgent cause for a new form and measure of praise, as if it should mark a new date of national piety and experience, and well accords with the state of the newly returned exiles. See Psalm 115:18; 121:8; 131:3.

Verse 3. From the rising of the sun] From morning to evening be always employed in the work. Or it may be a call on all mankind to praise God for his innumerable mercies to the human race. Praise him from one end of the world unto the other. And therefore the psalmist adds,

Verses 1-3. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord — Ye Levites, who are peculiarly devoted to this solemn work, and sometimes termed God’s servants, in a special sense, and all you faithful souls. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time, &c. — Let not the work of praising God die with us, but let those that come after us praise him; yea, let him be praised through all the generations of time, and let us and all his saints praise him in eternity. From the rising of the sun, &c. — Throughout the habitable world, from one end of it to the other; the Lord’s name is to be praised — That is, it ought to be praised in all nations, because all nations enjoy the benefit of his glorious works of creation and providence: and in all nations there are most manifest proofs of his infinite wisdom, power, and goodness. All nations, also, were to be redeemed by the Messiah, and it is his gracious purpose and promise to bring all nations to the knowledge of his truth.

3. From the rising of the sun—The rising and going down of the sun are not here simple notations of time, as if he would say, All the day long, but are to be taken geographically for extreme east and west, or the world over. See Psalm 103:12; Malachi 1:11. The Lord’s name is to be praised—Or, Let the name of Jehovah be praised.

Verse 4. The Lord is high above all nations] He governs all, he provides for all; therefore let all give him praise.

Verses 4-6. The Lord is high above all nations — Superior to all princes and bodies of people in the world; and his glory above the heavens — Whereas the glory of earthly monarchs is confined to this lower world, and to small pittances of it, the glory of God doth not only fill the earth, but heaven too, where it is celebrated by thousands and myriads of blessed angels; yea, it is far higher than heaven, being infinite and incomprehensible, Who is like unto the Lord? — Hebrew, Jehovah, who dwelleth on high — Namely, far above all heavens, and is exalted, as in place, so in power and dignity, above all persons and things, visible and invisible. Who humbleth himself, &c. — Who is so high, that it is a wonderful condescension in him to take any notice of his holy and heavenly hosts, and much more of sinful and miserable men upon earth.

Ver. 4. The Lord is high above all nations. He is never compared to creatures, but to show that he is incomparable. Exodus 15:11. Micah 7:18.

4. The Lord is high—God is not only above the nations, but above the heavens; that is, above every thing that exists. This statement stands alike against polytheism and pantheism. He is a personal God—over all, and ruling all.

Verse 5. Who is like unto the Lord] Those who are highly exalted are generally unapproachable; they are proud and overbearing; or so surrounded with magnificence and flatterers, that to them the poor have no access; but God, though infinitely exalted, humbleth himself to behold even heaven itself, and much more does he humble himself when he condescends to behold earth and her inhabitants; (Psalm 113:6.) But so does he love his creatures that he rejoices over even the meanest of them to do them good.

Verses 4-6. The Lord is high above all nations — Superior to all princes and bodies of people in the world; and his glory above the heavens — Whereas the glory of earthly monarchs is confined to this lower world, and to small pittances of it, the glory of God doth not only fill the earth, but heaven too, where it is celebrated by thousands and myriads of blessed angels; yea, it is far higher than heaven, being infinite and incomprehensible, Who is like unto the Lord? — Hebrew, Jehovah, who dwelleth on high — Namely, far above all heavens, and is exalted, as in place, so in power and dignity, above all persons and things, visible and invisible. Who humbleth himself, &c. — Who is so high, that it is a wonderful condescension in him to take any notice of his holy and heavenly hosts, and much more of sinful and miserable men upon earth.

5. Who dwelleth on high—Literally, who maketh high to sit; that is, who exalteth his throne, for the sitting is that of a king for judgment.

V. 6. Humbleth-Who is so high, that it is a wonderful condescention in him to take any notice of his heavenly host, and much more of sinful and miserable men upon earth.

Verses 4-6. The Lord is high above all nations — Superior to all princes and bodies of people in the world; and his glory above the heavens — Whereas the glory of earthly monarchs is confined to this lower world, and to small pittances of it, the glory of God doth not only fill the earth, but heaven too, where it is celebrated by thousands and myriads of blessed angels; yea, it is far higher than heaven, being infinite and incomprehensible, Who is like unto the Lord? — Hebrew, Jehovah, who dwelleth on high — Namely, far above all heavens, and is exalted, as in place, so in power and dignity, above all persons and things, visible and invisible. Who humbleth himself, &c. — Who is so high, that it is a wonderful condescension in him to take any notice of his holy and heavenly hosts, and much more of sinful and miserable men upon earth.

6. Who humbleth himself to behold—Better, who maketh low to see. He maketh himself low (condescends) to see the things which are in heaven and earth. Here is the distinguishing glory of God. He that is above all creatures, all finite existence, takes personal notice of all things, however minute, in heaven and earth. This is the central thought of the psalm.

Verse 7. He raiseth up the poor] The poorest man, in the meanest and most abject circumstances, is an object of his merciful regards. He may here allude to the wretched state of the captives in Babylon, whom God raised up out of that dust and dunghill. Others apply it to the resurrection of the dead.

Verses 7, 8. He raiseth up the poor — Yet, great and glorious as he is, he stoops so low as to regard and advance those whom all men, even their own brethren, slight and despise; out of the dust, &c. — From a most contemptible and miserable condition; that he may set him with princes — In equal honour and power with them, as he did Joseph, David, and others; even with the princes of his people, who, in God’s account, and in truth, are far more honourable and happy than the princes of heathen nations, and their subjects more noble; for they have God’s special presence among them, and his special providence watching over them. One of the Jewish rabbins applies this passage to the resurrection of the dead, and some Christian commentators have applied it to the work of redemption by Jesus Christ, and not improperly, for through him poor, fallen men are raised out of the dust, nay, out of the dunghill of sin, and set among patriarchs and prophets, yea, among angels and archangels, those princes of God’s people, those leaders of the armies of Jehovah. And, as Dr. Horne observes, “What is the exaltation of the meanest beggar from a dunghill to an earthly diadem, when compared with that of human nature from the grave to the throne of God! Here is honour worthy of our ambition; honour after which all are alike invited to aspire; which all may obtain who strive worthily and lawfully; and of which, when once obtained, nothing can ever deprive the possessors.”

7. He raiseth up the poor—In verse 6 God’s universal notice of all things in heaven and earth is extolled; here the moral and beneficent character of this omniscient scanning of the universe is brought out. His eye is upon the poor, but it is the humble poor that is specially denoted here. See Psalm 138:6; Isaiah 57:15. Verses 7 and 8 are quoted from the words of Hannah, (1 Samuel 2:8,) and employed by Mary in her Magnificat, (Luke 1:52,) and imply not only that Jehovah is a God of condescending pity and love, but of judgment also. He putteth down as well as lifteth up. Dunghill—The word denotes a receptacle for all sorts of dirt, offal, and rubbish. It is here figuratively used for a state of abject humiliation. “In Syria and Palestine the man who is shut out from society lies upon the dunghill, or heap of ashes, by day, calling upon the passers by for alms; and by night hides himself in the ashes that have been warmed by the sun.”—Delitzsch.

V. 8. Princes-As he did Joseph, David, and others. His people-Who in God’s account are far more honourable than the princes of Heathen nations.

Verse 8. With the princes] נדיבים nedebim, very properly translated by the Anglo-Saxon [A.S.], the aldermen, the most respectable of his people.

Verses 7, 8. He raiseth up the poor — Yet, great and glorious as he is, he stoops so low as to regard and advance those whom all men, even their own brethren, slight and despise; out of the dust, &c. — From a most contemptible and miserable condition; that he may set him with princes — In equal honour and power with them, as he did Joseph, David, and others; even with the princes of his people, who, in God’s account, and in truth, are far more honourable and happy than the princes of heathen nations, and their subjects more noble; for they have God’s special presence among them, and his special providence watching over them. One of the Jewish rabbins applies this passage to the resurrection of the dead, and some Christian commentators have applied it to the work of redemption by Jesus Christ, and not improperly, for through him poor, fallen men are raised out of the dust, nay, out of the dunghill of sin, and set among patriarchs and prophets, yea, among angels and archangels, those princes of God’s people, those leaders of the armies of Jehovah. And, as Dr. Horne observes, “What is the exaltation of the meanest beggar from a dunghill to an earthly diadem, when compared with that of human nature from the grave to the throne of God! Here is honour worthy of our ambition; honour after which all are alike invited to aspire; which all may obtain who strive worthily and lawfully; and of which, when once obtained, nothing can ever deprive the possessors.”

Verse 9. He maketh the barren woman to keep house] This is a figure to point out the desolate, decreasing state of the captives in Babylon, and the happy change which took place on their return to their own land. These are nearly the words of Hannah, 1 Samuel 2:5.

Verse 9. He maketh the barren woman to keep house — Hebrew, tybh ybyvwm, moshibi habaith, to dwell in a house, or family, or among children, namely, born of her. In the sacred history of the Old Testament, we find many instances of barren women, who were miraculously made to bear children. Isaac, Joseph, Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist were thus born of mothers who had been barren. “These examples,” says Dr. Horne, “may be considered as preludes to that marvellous exertion of divine power, whereby the Gentile Church, after so many years of barrenness, became, in her old age, a fruitful parent of children, and the mother of us all. Wherefore it is written, Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear, &c., Isaiah 54:1.”

Ver. 9. He makes the barren woman to keep house. The critics have noticed five of the scripture characters, descended from mothers who had been barren for many years, namely, Isaac, Joseph, Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist.

9. Barren woman to keep house—Properly, to dwell, or abide, in the house. The allusion is to the uncertain continuance of the barren wife in the family, owing to the capricious tyranny of the husband, under the wretched system of domestic life in Asia. Children are a natural bond of sympathy between husband and wife, and the language is expressive of a happy and prosperous condition of domestic and social life. The same figure occurs Psalm 68:6. The text is to be taken figuratively to signify, that as the barren wife is restored to favour, and the family life made happy, when the reproach of barrenness is removed, so God had now restored and established his people in joy and prosperity. See the figure applied to the Church, Isaiah 54:1. Verses 7-9 seem to have a historic pointing. Had not God recently raised Israel from the “dunghill” to honour? Had not the families and family life of the nation been recently restored? The infinite condescension of God in thus remembering their low estate is the theme of the psalm. It is a companion piece to Psalm 114, and savors of the fresh joy of the returned exiles from Babylon.