The Prophet Exhorteth All by His Example, to Follow Mercy and Justice
Explanation of the Psalm
1 This is a sort of preface to the Psalm, in which David gives us to understand that he is about to sing of the mercy and judgment of God, for which he has many reasons; first, that all may understand that his own good works proceed from the mercy of God, and will be crowned hereafter by the judgment of God. Secondly, to admonish princes that nothing pleases God so much as mercy and judgment; and, therefore, that it behoved them to be merciful without being unjust, to be just without being cruel. Thirdly, that all men should hope in God’s mercy, while they dread his judgment; but to hope, without presuming, and to fear, without despairing. He names mercy first, for the present life is that of mercy, the future that of judgment; so that no one need be surprised if, for the present, “he makes his sun to rise upon the good and the bad, and raineth upon the just and the unjust.”
2 I will consider on, reflect, and think upon the perfect and unspotted way, that consists in mercy and judgment; for “all the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth.” A similar expression occurs in Psalm 40, Blessed is he that understandeth concerning the needy and the poor;” which means, he considers the misery of the poor with a view of relieving them; thus also, “I will understand in the unspotted way” means, I will consider it attentively, with the view of walking in it. That I never will be able to do of myself, by my own strength, but by the help of your grace, “when you shall come to me,” to enlighten, teach, inflame, and move me. “I walked in the innocence of my heart, in the midst of my house.” He now commences relating his mode of life, as worthy of imitation both by his successors and by his subjects; for it is for this purpose that the king sits on an elevated seat, “that, like a candle placed on a candlestick, he may shine unto all.” He first explains his position with himself and with God; next, with others, and in the eyes of his people. “I walked in the innocence of my heart;” I led or walked the life of this world, preserving my innocence most completely; thinking of nothing, seeking nothing, delighting in nothing but what was good; most careful in keeping my heart from being polluted by sinful thoughts or desires; for I knew the heart to be the source of life and of death. Hence his son Solomon, educated by such a father, afterwards wrote, “With all watchfulness keep thy heart, because life issueth out from it.”—”In the midst of my house.” Where there was no one to censure me; for many will conduct themselves with great gravity and decorum in the streets or market place, while they revel in all manner of licentiousness in their houses or their chambers, especially in the chambers of their hearts; while David kept his innocence unstained, not only in his house, but also in his heart.
3 What he said of the innocence of his heart he now says of his eyes and of his hands. “I did not set before my eyes any unjust thing;” I turned away the eyes of my mind as well as of my body from all injustice, whether in deciding between my subjects or in the distribution of honors and promotions, or in bargains and contracts; and furthermore, from all sinful objects, illicit sports, impure revels, and from all manner of objects that could possibly defile the soul. “I hated the workers of iniquity.” I not only turned away my eyes from forbidden objects, and did no manner of iniquity, but I even hated all those guilty of it; and thus, got a thorough detestation of iniquity itself.
4 After telling his position in regard of himself, he now tells us how he stood in regard of others; and such was his position that the wicked would not even dare to approach him. Great must be the virtue of anyone, when others have such an opinion of his sanctity, that the wicked shrink from even appearing in his presence. Such should all princes and prelates be, who are set up by God to give good example to others. “The perverse heart did not cleave to me.” The ill disposed avoided me, “and the malignant, that hath turned aside from me, I would not know.” When the wicked would cut and fly from me, I took no trouble about them and sought not their acquaintance.
5 Another royal virtue, in which mercy and judgment are most conspicuous, is now touched upon. For kings have power to punish the wicked; and many, more through hatred of their neighbor than from a love of justice, bring charges against those they wish to injure and seek to oppress them by falsehood and calumny; and King David, in his wisdom and justice, most severely punished such unjust complainants, and thus exercised his mercy on the unjustly accused and his justice on the false accusers. “The man that in private detracted his neighbor,” when anyone falsely accused his innocent neighbor, and in private would take from him his character with me, I not only gave no ear to him but I punished him severely. “Him did I persecute.”—”With him that had a proud eye and unsatiable heart I would not eat.” David had a thorough hatred not only of detractors, but of the proud and the avaricious, and justly. For no greater misfortune can befall a people than to have the king’s ministers proud or avaricious. They abuse their power in satisfying their avarice, to the great injury of those under them. The meaning, then, is, I never admitted to my table, or used the slightest familiarity with him “that had a proud eye,” one who by his looks and his bearing betrayed his pride: “and an unsatiable heart,” to whose avarice and cupidity there were no bounds. That the king’s principal ministers were accustomed to sit at the same table with him may be seen in 1 Kings 20, where David, who was then general, and even Abner, who was a subaltern officer, sat at table with Saul the king.
6 Having shut out detractors, the proud, and the avaricious from his friendship and from his service, David now adds that he was wont to relent the faithful and the upright, two qualities absolutely necessary in good ministers, to be faithful to their master, and upright in everything that regarded their own and their neighbor’s salvation. It often happens that ministers are kept in the employment of their sovereigns, and are much regarded by them by reason of their being so faithful to them, no matter how depraved and abandoned they may be in other respects, or how much harm they may be doing to themselves and to others through their bad example: but holy David’s ministers should be not only faithful to him, but unstained and unblemished, and like himself in every respect. He, therefore, says, “My eyes were upon the faithful of the earth.” I looked about and sought for the faithful; or I looked with an eye of favor on those whom I knew to be faithful, and selected them; “to sit with me,” at my table, as so many friends and companions. “The man that walked with me in the perfect way, he served me.” And furthermore, if there was any other subject or citizen however unknown to or unacquainted with me, provided he bore a good character, and led an irreproachable life, he was adopted as my prime minister.
7 Having expressed his horror of those who displayed their arrogance by the pride of their eyes, he now declares his disgust with those whose actions savored of pride; that is, with those who proudly oppressed their neighbor. And as he previously reprehended those who secretly detracted their neighbor, he now censures and excludes from his company all those who have recourse to lies, in order to deceive any manner of people. “He that worketh pride,” whose actions savor of pride, who proudly insults or oppresses others, “shall not dwell in the midst of my house,” shall not be reckoned among my friends or domestics. “He that speaketh unjust things,” lies, by which he deceives others in business transactions, or in anything else, “did not prosper before my eyes;” did not please me, and therefore, got no grace from me to make him prosper.
8 He concludes the Psalm by showing the amount of his zeal in purging the city of the Lord, therein dealing mercifully with the good, who had been hitherto crushed and oppressed by the wicked, and inflicting condign punishment from the latter for their oppressions. “In the mornings” speedily, quickly, before vice could have taken root; “I put to death all the wicked in the land,” all those who deserved death, and whose life could not be spared without danger to the innocent. And that was done by me in order “that I might cut off all the workers of iniquity,” to restore peace and tranquillity to the inhabitants of God’s holy city, by weeding out all the disturbers therein. All the Psalm, though spoken by David in his own person, is more applicable to Christ, especially this last verse; for David did all in him lay to banish all bad members from the city of the Lord, but he did not succeed, and never could succeed therein; but Christ, in the morning of the world to come, will really and truly cut off and scatter all the workers of iniquity, and thenceforward the holy city of the heavenly Jerusalem will be what its name implies, a vision of peace.