Ps. cv. p. 45. Apsalm of thanksgiving.

A hymn for the festival of the Passover. Horsley. v. 1. An exhortation to praise Jehovah for his works of mercy and power wrought in favour of Israel. Horne.

A duty now incumbent on us Christians, upon far greater and more considerable obligations, that especially of our redemption by Christ from the power, as well as the guilt, of sin. Hammond. (v. 45.)

Ps. cxviii. p. 45. An exhortation to praise God for his mercy.

from death.

p. 46. Danger and deliverance from it. v. 19. Public praise for deliverance

v. 1. The Christian church is now "the Israel of God;" her ministers constitute the true" house of Aaron," being the spiritual progeny of our great High Priest; and the Gentiles, not the Jews, are they who know and "fear Jehovah." Let these all celebrate, for these all have experienced, the benefits and blessings of "eternal mercy," by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Horne.

v. 14. Risen with Christ from the grave we proceed to praise Jehovah, in the words which Moses and Israel first used, when they had ascended from the depths of the sea, and beheld their enemies. destroyed for ever; "Jehovah is my strength, and my song, and is become my salvation." Exod. xv. 2. v. 15. And never doth that sacred day

come round, on which the resurrection of Jesus is celebrated, but “the voice of rejoicing is in the tabernacles of the righteous;" there is a noise of them that sing for joy, in the camp of the saints; the church militant resoundeth with thanksgiving and the voice of melody: paradise is restored below, and earth beareth some resemblance of heaven, while these transporting hymns are sung in honour of our great Redeemer. He is that "arm and right hand of Jehovah," which hath "done valiantly," which hath crushed our strongest enemy, and is very high" exalted" over all. "Thy right hand, O Lord, hath become glorious in power; thy right hand, O Lord, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.” Exod. xv. 6.

v. 18. As Christ is risen, "we shall not die, but live:" we shall not die eternally, but we shall live, in this world, the life of grace, in the world to come, the life of glory; that we may in both, declare the "works," and chant the praises, of God our Saviour.

v. 19. “Open ye," may believers exclaim in triumph to those celestial spirits, who delight to minister to the heirs of salvation, "Open ye the gates of righteousness," those gates, through which nothing unclean can pass, "that the righteous nation, which “that keepeth the truth, may enter in," Is. xxvi. 2, and sing, with your harmonious choirs, the praises of him, who sitteth upon the throne; for he hath overcome the sharpness of death, he hath opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers.

F

Ps. iii. p. 47.

v. 5.

Doubts and fears supprest.
The security of God's protection.
David is astonished to find, that "the

v. 1.

hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom," 2 Sam. xv. 13; that his counsellors are revolted, and his friends falling off continually; and that the king of Israel is forced to leave his capital, mourning and weeping. Thus led forth out of Jerusalem by his own children in arms against him, the holy Jesus went, forsaken and sorrowing, to the cross, in the day of trouble.

v. 3. The same Jehovah is "the lifter up of our heads," by the gift of holy confidence, and the hope of a resurrection, through that of Jesus Christ, prefigured by the triumphant and happy return of David to Jerusalem.

v. 5. Behold David, in the midst of danger, sleeping without fear; secure, through the divine protection, of awaking to engage and vanquish his enemies. Behold the Son of David composing himself to rest upon the cross, that bed of sorrows; and commending his spirit into the Father's hands, in full confidence of a joyful resurrection, according to the promise at the time appointed. Behold this, O Christians, and let faith teach thee how to sleep, and how to die; while it assures thee, that as sleep is a short death, so death is only a longer sleep; and that the same God watches over thee, in thy bed, and in thy grave.

v. 8.

"Salvation" is not to be had from

man, from the kings of the earth, or the gods of the heathen, from saints or angels, but from Jehovah alone; to whom alone, therefore, the glory should be ascribed. If He will save, none can destroy; if He will destroy, none can save. Let Balak, then, curse Israel, or hire Balaam to curse them for him ; be but "thy blessing," O Lord, upon thy people, and it sufficeth.

Ps. cvi. p. 48. Praise to God.

V. 47. Prayer and praise.

v. 2. But who is sufficient for a work, which demandeth the tongues and harps of angels ? "When you glorify the Lord," saith the son of Sirach, exalt him as much as you can; for even yet will he far exceed: and when you exalt him, put forth all your strength, and be not weary; for you can never go far enough." Ecclus. xliii. 30.

v. 47. It appears from this verse, that the Psalm was written at a time when Israel was in captivity "among the heathen." Such will be the petition of the Jews hereafter to him whom they crucified: and such is now the petition of the Christian church, that the elect may be finally gathered together, and united in one congregation, "to give thanks unto the name, and triumph for ever in the praises, of Jesus.”

only with the voice, and the understanding, but with the "heart," with the "whole" heart, and all its affections, tuned like the chords of the son of Jesse's harp, to a song of gratitude and love. Solitary devotion hath, doubtless, its beauties and excellencies; but how glorious is it to hear the voices of a whole Christian "congregation" break forth into hallelujahs!

v. 3. The "work" of all others, in which the "honour and glorious majesty" of Jehovah appeared, and which the Christian church celebrates with this Psalm, is the salvation and exaltation of our nature, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; an event, which contained in it the accomplishment of the ancient promises, and thereby demonstrated to all the world the everlasting truth, fidelity, and "righteousness" of him who made them,

v. 9. He who "sent redemption” to Israel by the hand of Moses, hath now" sent redemption," by the power of Jesus, to all the world; he who, at Mount Sinai, established his "covenant" with his people, and gave them a law, hath now established his "covenant" with the Gentiles, and published to them his Gospel from Sion. "Holy is his name," and therefore "terrible" to those who, under all the means of grace, continue unholy.

v. 10. The "fear of God" is the first step to salvation, as it exciteth a sinner to depart from evil, and to do good; to implore pardon, and to sue for grace; to apply to a Saviour for the one, and to a