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Commentary on Psalms 71 verses 14–24
David is here in a holy transport of joy and praise, arising from his faith and hope in God; we have both together Psa 71:14, where there is a sudden and remarkable change of his voice; his fears are all silenced, his hopes raised, and his prayers turned into thanksgivings. "Let my enemies say what they will, to drive me to despair, I will hope continually, hope in all conditions, in the most cloudy and dark day; I will live upon hope and will hope to the end." Since we hope in one that will never fail us, let not our hope in him fail us, and then we shall praise him yet more and more. "The more they reproach me the more closely will I cleave to thee; I will praise thee more and better than ever I have done yet." The longer we live the more expert we should grow in praising God and the more we should abound in it. I will add over and above all thy praise, all the praise I have hitherto offered, for it is all too little. When we have said all we can, to the glory of God's grace, there is still more to be said; it is a subject that can never be exhausted, and therefore we should never grow weary of it. Now observe, in these verses,
I. How his heart is established in faith and hope; and it is a good thing that the heart be so established. Observe,
1.What he hopes in, Psa 71:16. (1.) In the power of God: "I will go in the strength of the Lord God, not sit down in despair, but stir up myself to and exert myself in my work and warfare, will go forth and go on, not in any strength of my own, but in God's strength - disclaiming my own sufficiency and depending on him only as all-sufficient - in the strength of his providence and in the strength of his grace." We must always go about God's work in his strength, having our eyes up unto him to work in us both to will and to do. (2.) In the promise of God: "I will make mention of thy righteousness, that is, thy faithfulness to every word which thou hast spoken, the equity of thy disposals, and thy kindness to thy people that trust in thee. This I will make mention of as my plea in prayer for thy mercy." We may very fitly apply it to the righteousness of Christ, which is called the righteousness of God by faith, and which is witnessed by the law and the prophets; we must depend upon God's strength for assistance and upon Christ's righteousness for acceptance. In the Lord have I righteousness and strength, Isa 45:24.
2.What he hopes for.
(1.)He hopes that God will not leave him in his old age, but will be the same to him to the end that he had been all along, Psa 71:17, Psa 71:18. Observe here, [1.] What God had done for him when he was young: Thou hast taught me from my youth. The good education and good instructions which his parents gave him when he was young he owns himself obliged to give God thanks for as a great favour. It is a blessed thing to be taught of God from our youth, from our childhood to know the holy scriptures, and it is what we have reason to bless God for. [2.] What he had done for God when he was middle-aged: He had declared all God's wondrous works. Those that have not good when they are young must be doing good when they are grown up, and must continue to communicate what they have received. We must own that all the works of God's goodness to us are wondrous works, admiring he should do so much for us who are so undeserving, and we must make it our business to declare them, to the glory of God and the good of others. [3.] What he desired of God now that he was old: Now that I am old and gray-headed, dying to this world and hastening to another, O God! forsake me not. This is what he earnestly desires and confidently hopes for. Those that have been taught of God from their youth, and have made it the business of their lives to honour him, may be sure that he will not leave them when they are old and gray-headed, will not leave them helpless and comfortless, but will make the evil days of old age their best days, and such as they shall have occasion to say they have pleasure in. [4.] What he designed to do for God in his old age: "I will not only show thy strength, by my own experience of it, to this generation, but I will leave my observations upon record for the benefit of posterity, and so who it to every one that is to come." As long as we live we should be endeavouring to glorify God and edify one another; and those that have had the largest and longest experience of the goodness of God to them should improve their experiences for the good of their friends. It is a debt which the old disciples of Christ owe to the succeeding generations to leave behind them a solemn testimony to the power, pleasure, and advantage of religion, and the truth of God's promises.
(2.)He hopes that God would revive him and raise him up out of his present low and disconsolate condition (Psa 71:20): Thou who hast made me to see and feel great and sore troubles, above most men, shalt quicken me again. Note, [1.] The best of God's saints and servants are sometimes exercised with great and sore troubles in this world. [2.] God's hand is to be eyed in all the troubles of the saints, and that will help to extenuate them and make them seem light. He does not say, "Thou hast burdened me with those troubles," but "shown them to me," as the tender father shows the child the rod to keep him in awe. [3.] Though God's people be brought ever so low he can revive them and raise them up. Are they dead? he can quicken them again. See Co2 1:9. Are they buried, as dead men out of mind? he can bring them up again from the depths of the earth, can cheer the most drooping spirit and raise the most sinking interest. [4.] If we have a due regard to the hand of God in our troubles, we may promise ourselves, in due time, a deliverance out of them. Our present troubles, though great and sore, shall be no hindrance to our joyful resurrection from the depths of the earth, witness our great Master, to whom this may have some reference; his Father showed him great and sore troubles, but quickened him and brought him up from the grave.
(3.)He hopes that God would not only deliver him out of his troubles, but would advance his honour and joy more than ever (Psa 71:21): "Thou shalt not only restore me to my greatness again, but shalt increase it, and give me a better interest, after this shock, than before; thou shalt not only comfort me, but comfort me on every side, so that I shall see nothing black or threatening on any side." Note, Sometimes God makes his people's troubles contribute to the increase of their greatness, and their sun shines the brighter for having been under a cloud. If he make them contribute to the increase of their goodness, that will prove in the end the increase of their greatness, their glory; and if he comfort them on every side, according to the time and degree wherein he has afflicted them on every side, they will have no reason to complain. When our Lord Jesus was quickened again, and brought back from the depths of the earth, his greatness was increased, and he entered on the joy set before him.
(4.)He hopes that all his enemies would be put to confusion, Psa 71:24. He speaks of it with the greatest assurance as a thing done, and triumphs in it accordingly: They are confounded, they are brought to shame, that seek my hurt. His honour would be their disgrace and his comfort their vexation.
II. Let us now see how his heart is enlarged in joy and praises, how he rejoices in hope, and sings in hope for we are saved by hope.
1.He will speak of God's righteousness and his salvation, as great things, things which he was well acquainted with, and much affected with, which he desired God might have the glory of and others might have the comfortable knowledge of (Psa 71:15): My mouth shall show forth thy righteousness and thy salvation; and again (Psa 71:24), My tongue shall talk of thy righteousness, and this all the day. God's righteousness, which David seems here to be in a particular manner affected with, includes a great deal: the rectitude of his nature, the equity of his providential disposals, the righteous laws he has given us to be ruled by, the righteous promises he has given us to depend upon, and the everlasting righteousness which his Son has brought in for our justification. God's righteousness and his salvation are here joined together; let no man think to put them asunder, nor expect salvation without righteousness, Psa 50:23. If these two are made the objects of our desire, let them be made the subjects of our discourse all the day, for they are subjects that can never be exhausted.
2.He will speak of them with wonder and admiration, as one astonished at the dimensions of divine love and grace, the height and depth, the length and breadth, of it: "I know not the numbers thereof, Psa 71:15. Though I cannot give a particular account of thy favours to me, they are so many, so great (if I would count them, they are more in number than the sand, Psa 40:5), yet, knowing them to be numberless, I will be still speaking of them, for in them I shall find new matter," Psa 71:19. The righteousness that is in God is very high; that which is done by him for his people is very great: put both together, and we shall say, O God! who is like unto thee? This is praising God, acknowledging his perfections and performances to be, (1.) Above our conception; they are very high and great, so high that we cannot apprehend them, so great that we cannot comprehend them. (2.) Without any parallel; no being like him, no works like his: O God! who is like unto thee? None in heaven, none on earth, no angel, no king. God is a non-such; we do not rightly praise him if we do not own him to be so.
3.He will speak of them with all the expressions of joy and exultation, Psa 71:22, Psa 71:23. Observe,
(1.)How he would eye God in praising him. [1.] As a faithful God: I will praise thee, even thy truth. God is made known by his word; if we praise that, and the truth of that, we praise him. By faith we set to our seal that God is true; and so we praise his truth. [2.] As a God in covenant with him: "O my God! whom I have consented to and avouched for mine." As in our prayers, so in our praises, we must look up to God as our God, and give him the glory of our interest in him and relation to him. [3.] As the Holy One of Israel, Israel's God in a peculiar manner, glorious in his holiness among that people and faithful to his covenant with them. It is God's honour that he is a Holy One; it is his people's honour that he is the Holy One of Israel.
(2.)How he will express his joy and exultation. [1.] With his hand, in sacred music - with the psaltery, with the harp; at these David excelled, and the best of his skill shall be employed in setting forth God's praises to such advantage as might affect others. [2.] With his lips, in sacred songs: "Unto thee will I sing, to thy honour, and with a desire to be accepted of thee. My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee, knowing they cannot be better employed." [3.] In both with his heart: "My soul shall rejoice which thou hast redeemed." Note, First, Holy joy is the very heart and life of thankful praise. Secondly, We do not make melody to the Lord, in singing his praises, if we do not do it with our hearts. My lips shall rejoice, but that is nothing; lip-labour, though ever so well laboured, if that be all, is but lost labour in serving God; the soul must be at work, and with all that is within us we must bless his holy name, else all about us is worth little. Thirdly, Redeemed souls ought to be joyful thankful souls. The work of redemption ought, above all God's works, to be celebrated by us in our praises. The Lamb that was slain, and has redeemed us to God, must therefore be counted worthy of all blessing and praise.
"For I will confess to You in the vessels of a Psalm Your truth" [Psalm 71:22]. The vessels of a Psalm are a Psaltery. But what is a Psaltery? An instrument of wood and strings. What does it signify? There is some difference between it and a harp:...there seems to be signified by the Psaltery the Spirit, by the harp the flesh. And because he had spoken of two bringings back of ours from the bottomless places of the earth, one after the Spirit in hope, the other after the body in substance; hear thou of these two: "For I will confess to You in the vessels of a Psalm Your truth." This after the Spirit: concerning the body what? "I will psalm to You on a harp, Holy One of Israel."
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SUMMARY
Psalms 71:22 is a profound declaration of unwavering praise from a psalmist, likely an aging individual, who commits to worshipping God with musical instruments—the psaltery and the harp. This verse encapsulates a deep, personal devotion, celebrating God's steadfast truth and acknowledging His unique, set-apart holiness as the "Holy One of Israel." It stands as a testament to enduring faith, expressing a resolve to glorify God publicly and personally, regardless of life's circumstances or advancing age, rooted in a lifelong experience of divine faithfulness.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalms 71:22 employs several potent literary devices that enrich its meaning and impact. The most prominent is Parallelism, specifically Synonymous Parallelism, where the second half of the verse largely repeats and reinforces the sentiment of the first half using different but equivalent terms. "I will also praise thee with the psaltery" is paralleled by "unto thee will I sing with the harp," and "thy truth, O my God" is paralleled by "O thou Holy One of Israel." This repetition emphasizes the psalmist's unwavering commitment to worship and the multifaceted nature of God's character being praised. The use of "psaltery" and "harp" can also be seen as a form of Metonymy or Synecdoche, where the instruments stand in for the act of musical worship itself, representing the full expression of heartfelt praise. Furthermore, the direct address "O my God" and "O thou Holy One of Israel" exemplifies Apostrophe, a rhetorical device where the speaker directly addresses an absent person or a personified object, in this case, God, making the declaration of praise deeply personal and immediate. The instruments themselves carry Symbolism, representing joy, celebration, and dedicated devotion in ancient Israelite culture.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalms 71:22 offers a profound theological statement on the nature of enduring worship. It teaches that praise is not merely a response to favorable circumstances but a resolute commitment rooted in God's unchanging character. The psalmist's focus on God's "truth" (faithfulness) and His identity as the "Holy One of Israel" highlights that genuine worship is fundamentally about acknowledging who God is—His integrity, reliability, and absolute purity—rather than solely what He does. This commitment to praise with instruments, even in old age and amidst trials, underscores the idea that worship is a lifelong, active, and holistic response to a God who remains faithful and holy through all seasons of life. It calls believers to a deep, personal, and public expression of adoration, recognizing God's transcendent majesty and His intimate covenantal relationship with His people.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 71:22 serves as a powerful encouragement for believers today to cultivate a lifestyle of unwavering worship, regardless of age, circumstance, or personal trials. The psalmist's commitment to praise God with instruments, acknowledging His truth and holiness, challenges us to engage our whole being—our skills, our voices, our very lives—in acts of devotion. It reminds us that our praise should be grounded not in fleeting emotions or temporary blessings, but in the immutable character of God: His faithfulness, His integrity, and His absolute holiness. This verse calls us to move beyond superficial gratitude to a deeper, more profound adoration for who God is, fostering a resilient faith that finds expression in praise even when life is difficult. It inspires us to make worship a lifelong journey, a consistent declaration of God's worthiness, and a public testimony to His enduring truth and sanctity in a world that desperately needs to see and hear His praise.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why are musical instruments specifically mentioned in this verse, and what is their significance in worship?
Answer: The mention of the psaltery (nevel) and harp (kinnor) in Psalms 71:22 is highly significant, reflecting the rich tradition of musical worship in ancient Israel. These instruments were not merely for entertainment but were integral to both communal temple worship and private devotion, symbolizing a joyful, intentional, and skilled offering of praise. Their inclusion underscores that worship is a holistic activity, engaging not only the spirit and mind but also physical actions and artistic expression. The psalmist's commitment to use these instruments, even in old age, signifies a desire to offer the best and most vibrant praise possible. It highlights that worship can be a dynamic, expressive act, using all available means to glorify God. This aligns with the broader biblical call to praise God with various instruments, as seen throughout the Psalter, culminating in the grand symphony of praise envisioned in Psalm 150, where every instrument and breath is called to praise the Lord.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 71:22, with its focus on praising God for His truth and holiness, finds its ultimate fulfillment and deepest resonance in Jesus Christ. He is the very embodiment of God's truth, declaring Himself to be "the way, and the truth, and the life" in John 14:6. In Christ, God's faithfulness and reliability are perfectly revealed and eternally secured, as all God's promises find their "Yes" in Him (2 Corinthians 1:20). Furthermore, Jesus is recognized throughout the New Testament as the "Holy One of God" (Mark 1:24), the perfectly pure and set-apart Son, whose resurrection was a testament to His incorruptible holiness (Acts 2:27). Our praise, therefore, is not merely directed to a distant deity but is offered through and to the One who perfectly reveals God's character. In Christ, our worship transcends the physical instruments of old, becoming a "sacrifice of praise" offered continually through Him (Hebrews 13:15), expressed in "psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs" (Ephesians 5:19). The psalmist's resolve to praise God for His truth and holiness foreshadows the new song of redemption sung by the redeemed, who worship the Lamb for His ultimate act of truth and holiness in saving humanity (Revelation 5:9).