1.
I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
Title. A Psalm. Hebrew. mizmor. See App-65 .
Song. Hebrew. Shir. The only Shir in the first book. See App-65 .
dedication. Hebrew. hanak. Used of houses in Deuteronomy 20:5 .
of the house of David. Compare 2 Samuel 7:1 , 2 Samuel 7:2 . Not the temple.
lifted me up = as out of a pit.
2.
O LORD my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.
3.
O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
soul. Hebrew. nephesh. App-13 .
the grave. Hebrew Sheol. See App-35 .
that I should not go down. So in some codices and one early printed edition; but other codices read "from among" [those who were going down], with Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate.
the pit = a sepulchre. Hebrew. bor. See note on "well" (Genesis 21:19 ).
4.
Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
Sing = Sing praises.
saints = favoured ones: literally men endued with grace. The natural man cannot do this (1 Corinthians 2:14 ).
5.
For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.
endureth, &c. Render "For a moment [is] His anger; for a lifetime [is] His favour".
endure = lodge
6.
And in my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved.
I shall, &c. Compare Psalms 62:6 .
7.
LORD, by thy favour thou hast made my mountain to stand strong: thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled.
my mountain: i.e. Zion, which David had but recently taken (2 Samuel 5:7-10 ).
hide Thy face. Probably refers to a sickness which followed.
face. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6 .
8.
I cried to thee, O LORD; and unto the LORD I made supplication.
the LORD*. One of the 134 places where "Jehovah" (in the primitive text) was altered to "Adonai". See App-32 . Some codices, with one early printed edition, read "Jehovah". App-4 .
9.
What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? shall it declare thy truth?
What profit . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 .
is there. Supply "[will there be]".
blood = soul. Compare Leviticus 17:11 .
the pit. Hebrew. Shachath = destruction (Psalms 55:23 ; Psalms 103:4 ), or corruption (Psalms 16:10 ; Psalms 49:9 . Jeremiah 2:6 ).
Shall . . . ? Figure of speech Erotesis. App-6 . Compare Psalms 6:5 ; Psalms 88:11 ; Psalms 115:17 ; Psalms 118:17 . Isaiah 38:18 .
10.
Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.
11.
Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;
turned: denoting the act. See "girded", below.
put off = torn open, or off.
sackcloth. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Adjunct), App-6 , for the sadness of which it was the sign.
girded: denoting the fact. See "turned", above.
12.
To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
my glory. Put by Figure of speech Metonymy (of Effect), App-6 , for "myself", referring either to the tongue (Psalms 108:1 or powers of mind which give the praise. To the chief Musician. See App-64 . Though written for a special occasion, Psalms 30 was handed over to the chief Musician for public use, and in connection with any other dedication.