Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Psalms
Book: Psalms
Chapter: 16
Overview:
This psalm begins with expressions of devotion, which may be
applied to
Christ; but ends with such confidence of a
resurrection, as must be applied to
Christ, and to him only.
-
David flees to
God's protection, with cheerful, believing
confidence. Those who have avowed that the
Lord is their
Lord,
should often
Put themselves in mind of what they have done, take
the comfort of it, and live up to it. He devotes himself to the
honour of
God, in the service of the saints. Saints
On Earth we
must be, or we shall never be saints in
Heaven. Those renewed
By
the
Grace of
God, and devoted to the
Glory of
God, are saints
On
Earth. The saints in the
Earth are excellent ones, yet some of
them
So Poor, that they needed to have
David's
Goodness extended
to them.
David declares his resolution to have
No Fellowship
with the
Works of
Darkness; he repeats the solemn choice he had
made of
God for his portion and happiness, takes to himself the
comfort of the choice, and gives
God the
Glory of it. This is
the language of a devout and pious soul. Most take the world for
their chief good, and place their happiness in the enjoyments of
it; but how
Poor soever my condition is in this world, let me
have the
Love and favour of
God, and be accepted of him; let me
have a title
By promise to
Life and happiness in the future
state; and I have enough.
Heaven is an inheritance; we must take
that for our home, our
Rest, our
Everlasting good, and look upon
this world to be
No more ours, than the country through which is
our
Road to our
Father's
House. Those that have
God for their
portion, have a goodly heritage. Return unto thy
Rest, O my
soul, and look
No further. Gracious persons, though they still
covet more of
God, never covet more than
God; but, being
satisfied of his loving-kindness, are abundantly satisfied with
it: they envy not any their
Carnal mirth and delights. But
So
ignorant and foolish are we, that if left to ourselves, we shall
forsake our own mercies for lying vanities.
God having given
David counsel
By his
Word and
Spirit, his own thoughts taught
him in the night season, and engaged him
By Faith to live to
God.
Verses 8-11, are quoted
By St.
Peter in his first sermon,
after the pouring out of the
Spirit On the
Day of
Pentecost, Ac
2:25-31; he declared that
David in them speaks concerning
Christ, and particularly of his resurrection. And
Christ being
the Head of the body, the
Church, these verses may be applied to
all Christians, guided and animated
By the
Spirit of
Christ; and
we may hence learn, that it is our
Wisdom and duty to set the
Lord always before us. And if our eyes are ever toward
God, our
hearts and
Tongues may ever rejoice in him.
Death destroys the
Hope of
Man, but not the
Hope of a real
Christian.
Christ's
resurrection is an
Earnest of the believer's resurrection. In
this world sorrow is our
Lot, but in
Heaven there is joy, a
Fulness of joy; our pleasures here are for a moment, but those
at
God's right
Hand are pleasures for evermore. Through this thy
beloved Son, and our dear
Saviour, thou wilt show us, O
Lord,
the path of
Life; thou wilt justify our souls now, and raise our
bodies
By thy power at the last
Day; when earthly sorrow shall
End in heavenly joy, pain in
Everlasting happiness.