Psalm 113:1-9

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Psalms 113:1-9

In this psalm, I. We are extorted to give glory to God, to give him the glory due to his name. 1. The invitation is very pressing: praise you the Lord, and again and again, Praise him, praise him; blessed be his name, for it is to be praised, Ps. 113:1-3. This intimates, (1.) That it is a necessary and most excellent duty, greatly pleasing to God, and has a large room in religion. (2.) That it is a duty we should much abound in, in which we should be frequently employed and greatly enlarged.... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:1

Praise ye the Lord ,.... Or, "hallelujah". This is the title of the psalm, as in the two preceding, and directs to the principal matter of it. Praise, O ye servants of the Lord ; meaning not the angels, nor all men, nor the priests and Levites only; but all the saints, who are a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices to God; who are servants, not of sin, nor of Satan, nor of men, but of God and Christ; and who serve the Lord willingly and cheerfully, with much pleasure and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:2

Blessed be the name of the Lord ,.... Some prefix the word "saying", as directing to the matter and manner of praising the Lord, and to express themselves thus; "let the name of the Lord be blessed"; honoured, glorified, spoken well of. From this time forth and for evermore ; from the beginning of time, or as soon as time began, the Lord's name was to be praised, and was praised by the holy angels, who were present at laying the foundation of the earth, Job 38:4 , and all the works of... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:3

From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same ,.... Meaning not from morning tonight; for it designs not time, but place, even all the space from east to west, or that lies between the rising and setting sun; even all nations, and the inhabitants of them; and who ought to praise the Lord for the rising sun, and the benefit and advantages of it; and yet many of them have worshipped the sun, and served the creature more than and besides the Creator. All within this compass are the... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:4

The Lord is high above all nations ,.... He is the most High in all the earth; he is higher than the highest; he is King of kings and Lord of lords: all nations are made by him, and are under his government and dominion; he is the Governor among the nations; they are in comparison of him as the drop of a bucket, as the small dust of the balance; as nothing, yea, less than nothing, and vanity. Here it seems to respect the time when the Lord shall be more visibly King over all the earth, and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:5

Who is like unto the Lord our God ,.... Among the gods of the nations, as Kimchi; or among the angels of heaven, or among any of the mighty monarchs on earth; there is none like him for the perfections of his nature, for his wisdom, power, truth, and faithfulness; for his holiness, justice, goodness, grace, and mercy; who is eternal, unchangeable, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent; nor for the works of his hands, his works of creation, providence, and grace; none ever did the like: and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:6

Who humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven, and in the earth. The persons the highest heavens, the angels whom he upholds in their beings, and admits into his presence; who always behold his face, and he beholds them, delights in their persons, and accepts their services; which, though pure and perfect, it is a condescension in him to do, since they are but creature services, and chargeable with folly and weakness; and who themselves are as nothing in comparison of him, and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:7

He raiseth up the poor out of the dust ,.... Persons of mean extraction and in low life are sometimes raised by him to great honour and dignity, as Saul, David, and others; and is true of many who are spiritually poor and needy, as all men are, but all are not sensible of it; some are, and these are called poor "in spirit", and are pronounced "blessed", for "theirs is the kingdom of heaven": they are raised out of a low and mean estate, out of the dust of sin, and self-abhorrence for it, in... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:8

That he may set him with princes ,.... As all the saints are by birth, being the sons of God, the King of kings; born of him, and not of the will of man; and are of a princely spirit, have a free spirit, and offer themselves and services willingly to the Lord; have the spirit of adoption, in opposition to a spirit of bondage; and, as princes, have power with God and prevail; and are also heirs of God, heirs of salvation, heirs of a kingdom, as princes be; now such as are raised by Christ... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 113:9

He maketh the barren woman to keep house ,.... Or "to dwell in the house", as the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and other versions; or rather "to cause the house to be inhabited"; to fill the house with inhabitants, to build up the house, as the barren woman, when made fruitful, does, as Rachel and Leah built up the house of Israel, 4:11 . This may be applied to the church of God, as it is to the congregation of Israel by the Targum, "who makes the congregation of Israel, which is like to a... read more

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