--- title: "Psalms 16 - Study King James Bible with clarkes commentary" description: "Read Psalms 16 with clarkes commentary commentary. 1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. 2 O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; 3 But" image: "/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg" url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16" --- [ Read](/kjv/psalms/16)[ Commentary](/study/psalms/16)[ Interlinear](/interlinear/psalms/16) Audio 1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.* 2 *O my soul*, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou *art* my Lord: my goodness *extendeth* not to thee; 3 *But* to the saints that *are* in the earth, and *to* the excellent, in whom *is* all my delight. 4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied *that* hasten *after* another *god:* their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips.* 5 The LORD *is* the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.* 6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant *places;* yea, I have a goodly heritage. 7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. 8 I have set the LORD always before me: because *he is* at my right hand, I shall not be moved. 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.* 10 For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. 11 Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence *is* fulness of joy; at thy right hand *there are* pleasures for evermore. [Psalms 15](/study/psalms/15) [Psalms 17](/study/psalms/17) ## Commentary To verse 1 The title of this Psalm in the Hebrew is מכתם לדוד *michtam* *ledavid*, which the *Chaldee* translates, "A straight sculpture of David." The *Septuagint*, Στηλογραφια τῳ Δαυιδ, "The inscription on a pillar to David;" as if the Psalm had been inscribed on a pillar, to keep it in remembrance. As כתם *catham* signifies to *engrave* or *stamp*, this has given rise to the above inscription. מכתם *michtam* also means *pure* or *stamped gold*; and hence it has been supposed that this title was given to it on account of its *excellence*: a *golden Psalm*, or a Psalm worthy to be *written in* *letters of gold*; as some of the verses of *Pythagoras* were called *the golden verses*, because of their *excellence*. Gold being the most *excellent* and *precious* of all metals, it has been used to express metaphorically *excellence* and *perfection* of *every kind*. Thus a *golden tongue* or *mouth*, the most *excellent eloquence*; so *Chrysostom* means, this eminent man having had his name from his eloquence; - a *golden book*, one of the *choicest* and *most valuable* of its kind, c. But I have already sufficiently expressed my doubts concerning the meanings given to these titles. See the note on the title of Psalm lx. [Psalms 60:1](/kjv/psalms/60/1) That David was the author there can be no doubt. It is most pointedly attributed to him by St. Peter, [Acts 2:25-31](/kjv/acts/2/25-31). That its principal parts might have some relation to his circumstances is also probable but that Jesus Christ is its main scope, not only appears from quotations made by the apostle as above, but from the circumstance that some parts of it never did and never could apply to David. From the most serious and attentive consideration of the whole Psalm, I am convinced that every verse of it belongs to Jesus Christ, and none other: and this, on reference, I find to be the view taken of it by my ancient Psalter. But as he is referred to here as the Redeemer of the world, consequently, as God manifested in the flesh, there are several portions of the Psalm, as well as in the New Testament, where the *Divine* and *human* natures are spoken of *separately*: and if this *distinction* be properly regarded, we shall find, not only no inconsistency, but a beautiful harmony through the whole. Verse [Psalms 16:1](/kjv/psalms/16/1). ***Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.*** — On the mode of interpretation which I have hinted at above, I consider this a prayer of the *man* Christ Jesus on his entering on his great atoning work, particularly his *passion* in the garden of Gethsemane. In that passion, Jesus Christ most evidently speaks as *man*; and with the strictest propriety, as it was the *manhood*, not the *Godhead*, that was engaged in the *suffering*. שמרני shomreni, keep me - preserve, sustain, this feeble *humanity*, now about to bear the load of that punishment due to the whole of the human race. *For in thee*, חסיתי chasithi, have I hoped. No *human* fortitude, or animal courage, can avail in my circumstances. These are no *common* sufferings; they are not of a *natural* kind; they are not *proportioned* to the strength of a *human* body, or the *energy* of a human spirit; and my *immaculate* *humanity*, which is subjected to these sufferings, must be dissolved by them, if not upheld by thee, the strong God. It is worthy of remark, that our Lord here uses the term, אל *El*, which signifies the *strong God*, an expression remarkably suited to the *frailty* of that *human nature*, which was now entering upon its vicarious sufferings. It will be seen with what admirable propriety the *Messiah varies the appellations* of the Divine Being in this address; a circumstance which no translation without paraphrase can express. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com","name":"Real Bible Believers","description":"RBB","publisher":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/search?q={search_term_string}","query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","width":672,"height":448,"caption":"Real Bible Believers"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16#webpage","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16","name":"Psalms 16 - Study King James Bible with clarkes commentary","isPartOf":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16#primaryimage"},"author":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"description":"Read Psalms 16 with clarkes commentary commentary. 1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust. 2 O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee; 3 But","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/","name":"Home"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study","name":"Study Bible"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary","name":"clarkes commentary"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms","name":"Psalms"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":5,"item":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/clarkes-commentary/psalms/16","name":"16"}}]},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/android-chrome-512x512.png","width":512,"height":512},"logo":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#personlogo"},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/RBiblebeliever","https://www.facebook.com/RBibleBelievers"]}]} ```