On thee do I wait - This is the line in which ו vau , the sixth letter in the order of the alphabet, is lost; for the line begins with א aleph , אותך othecha , "on thee." But four of Kennicott's and De Rossi's MSS. have ואותך veothecha , "And upon thee." This restores the lost ו vau , which signifies "and." The Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Arabic, Ethiopic, and Anglo-Saxon, preserve it. read more
Remember, O Lord, thy tender mercies, and thy loving-kindness - The word רחמים rachamim , means the commiseration that a man feels in his bowels at the sight of distress. The second word, חסדים chasadim , signifies those kindnesses which are the offspring of a profusion of benevolence. They have been ever of old - Thou wert ever wont to display thyself as a ceaseless fountain of good to all thy creatures. read more
Verse 1 1.Unto thee, O Jehovah! etc The Psalmist declares at the very outset, that he is not driven hither and thither, after the manner of the ungodly, but that he directs all his desires and prayers to God alone. Nothing is more inconsistent with true and sincere prayer to God, than to waver and gaze about as the heathen do, for some help from the world; and at the same time to forsake God, or not to betake ourselves directly to his guardianship and protection. Those who imagine that David... read more
Verse 2 2.O my God! I have put my trust in thee. By this verse we learn, (what will appear more clearly afterwards,) that David had to do with men; but as he was persuaded that his enemies were, as it were, the scourges of God, he with good reason asks that God would restrain them by his power, lest they should become more insolent, and continue, to exceed all bounds. By the word trust he confirms what he had just said of the lifting up of his soul to God; for the term is employed either as... read more
Verse 3 3.Yea, none of those, etc. If these words should be explained in the form of a desire, as if David had said, Let none who wait on thee be put to shame, (553) then, in this verse, he continues his prayer, and extends to all the faithful in common what he had spoken of himself alone. But I am rather inclined to understand the words in a different sense, and to view them as meaning that David shows the fruit of divine grace which should proceed from his deliverance. And there is peculiar... read more
Verse 4 4.O Jehovah! make me to know thy ways. By the ways of the Lord, David sometimes means, as we have seen in another place, the happy and prosperous issue of affairs, but more frequently he uses this expression to denote the rule of a holy and righteous life. As the term truth occurs in the immediately following verse, the prayer which he offers up in this place is, in my opinion, to this effect: Lord, keep thy servant in the firm persuasion of thy promises, and do not suffer him to turn... read more
Verse 5 At the same time, we ought to observe the argument which David here employs to enforce his prayer. By calling God the God of his salvation, he does so in order to strengthen his hope in God for the future, from a consideration of the benefits which he had already received from him; and then he repeats the testimony of his confidence towards God. Thus the first part of the argument is taken from the nature of God himself, and the duty which, as it were, belongs to him; that is to say,... read more
Verse 6 6.Remember, O Jehovah; From this it appears, in the first place, that David was grievously afflicted and tried, so much so that he had lost all sense of God’s mercy: for he calls upon God to remember for him his favor, in such a manner as if he had altogether forgotten it. This, therefore, is the complaint of a man suffering extreme anguish, and overwhelmed with grief. We may learn from this, that although God, for a time, may withdraw from us every token of his goodness, and,... read more
Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift; up my soul (comp. Psalms 86:4 ; Psalms 143:8 ). The Hebrew phrase does not mean a temporary raising of the heart to God, but a permanent setting of the affections on him (see Deuteronomy 24:15 ; and comp. Psalms 24:4 ). Psalms 25:2 . O my God, I trust in thee (comp. Psalms 7:1 ; Psalms 11:1 ; Psalms 31:1-24 . I, 6, etc.). Let me not be ashamed ; i.e. do not disappoint my trust, and thereby bring me to shame (comp. Job 6:20 ). Let... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 25:4
Show me thy ways - The psalmist wishes to know God's way, to be taught his path, and to be led into his truth. He cannot discern this way unless God show it; he cannot learn the path unless God teach it; and he cannot walk in God's truth unless God lead him: and even then, unless God continue to teach, he shall never fully learn the lessons of his salvation; therefore he adds, "Lead me in thy truth, and teach me;" Psalm 25:5 . That he may get this showing, teaching, and leading, he comes... read more