This psalm is a collection of David's precious thoughts, sorrowful complaints, humble petitions, and holy resolutions, which, it seems he had written down as they occurred, and which, in the end of his life, he digested into the form in which they now stand, consisting of as many parts as there are letters in the Hebrew alphabet, the eight verses of each always beginning with the same letter in the original. The general scope of it is to magnify God's word, and make it honourable. To intimate that it informs us of whatever we ought to expect from God in the way of gracious donation, and of whatever he may expect from us in the way of grateful returns of duty, it is represented under ten different characters, one or other of which is to be found in every verse, except the 122nd and 132nd: As God's Law, because framed and published by him as our Sovereign His Commandments, because given with authority, and lodged with us as a trust His Precepts, because peremptorily prescribed, and not left as a thing indifferent His Statutes, because fixed and determined, and of perpetual obligation His Word, because it is the declaration of his mind, and Christ, his essential Word, is all and in all therein His Way, because it represents Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and is the rule of our faith and obedience His Testimonies, because therein God, upon his word, his oath, and writ, declares to men the truths necessary to be known, in order to his honour and their salvation, as ratified in the death of his Son His Judgments, because it is framed in infinite wisdom, and by it we must both judge and be judged (but in verses 75, 84, 121, judgment denotes righteous conduct) His Righteousness, because it is holy, just, and good, and is the perfect standard of righteousness And his Truth, or Faithfulness, because its leading truths are eternal, and the faithfulness of God is pledged in every point thereof.
While I sing, let me all along enter into the spirit of the psalm. Let my delight be in God's testimonies; my desires after God's presence; and my endeavours to have God honoured. Let God's word be my rule, my food, my armour, my wealth, my comfort; and God himself, as therein revealed and bestowed, be my everlasting and infinite all.
Aleph, The 1st Part.
Here, (1.) David marks out holy men as the only blessed men, ver. 1-3. (2.) Begs that, to his own honour and satisfaction, he may be helped of God to an upright observance of his laws, ver. 4-6. (3.) In the faith of God's direction and assistance, he resolves to praise and obey him, ver. 7-8.
1 ALEPH. Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD.
2 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.
3 They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.
4 Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.
5 O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes!
6 Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments.
7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.
8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.
1 Blessed are they that undefil'd,
and straight are in the way;
Who in the Lord's most holy law
do walk, and do not stray.
2 Blessed are they who to observe
his statutes are inclin'd;
And who do seek the living God
with their whole heart and mind.
3 Such in his ways do walk, and they
do no iniquity.
4 Thou hast commanded us to keep
thy precepts carefully.
5 O that thy statutes to observe
thou would'st my ways direct!
6 Then shall I not be sham'd, when I
thy precepts all respect.
7 Then with integrity of heart
thee will I praise and bless,
When I the judgments all have learn'd
of thy pure righteousness.
8 That I will keep thy statutes all
firmly resolv'd have I:
O do not then, most gracious God,
forsake me utterly.
Most merciful God, author of all good things, that hast given thy holy commandments unto us, whereby we should direct our life: imprint in our hearts, thy Holy Spirit, and grant, that we may so renounce all our fleshly desires: and all the vanities of this world, that our whole pleasure and delight may be in thy law: that we being always governed by thy holy word, may in the end attain to that eternal salvation, which thou hast promised through Christ Jesus, thy Son.