Whereby thou didst strengthen thine inheritance,

when it was weary.

10 Thy people established themselves in the land; Thou, O God, in thy goodness, didst provide for the needy.

11 The Lord gave the song of victory;

Great was the company of those that published it. 12" Kings with their armies did flee apace;

And she that tarried at home divided the spoil.

13 Ye may repose yourselves in the folds,

And ye shall be as the wings of a dove, covered with silver,

And her feathers with yellow gold."

14 When the Almighty scattered the kings in the land, It was white as snow in Salmon.

15 Ye lofty hills, ye hills of Bashan!

Ye many-topped hills, ye hills of Bashan!

16 Why frown ye, ye many-topped hills,
At the hill in which God is pleased to dwell,

In which the Lord will dwell for ever!

17 The chariots of God are numberless, even thousands of thousands;

The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the sanctuary.

Ver. 13. "Ye may repose yourselves in the folds," &c. The meaning is, that those who had been engaged in war might now enjoy peaceful repose, among their flocks and herds, having enriched themselves with spoils of gold and silver. Comp. Judges N.

v. 16.

Ver. 14. "It was white," &c., i. e. with the bones of the slain. Ver. 16. "Why frown ye," &c., i. e. through envy of Mount Zion. Ver. 17. "The chariots of God," &c. A figurative description of the majesty and power of God. The same mode of represen→ tation occurs in the history of Elisha, 2 Kings vi. 17.

18 Thou hast ascended on high,

Thou hast led captive the vanquished;

Thou hast received gifts among men ;

Yea, among the rebellious also the Lord God will dwell.

19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with

benefits,

Even the God of our salvation.

20 Our God is a God of salvation;

And from God the Lord cometh deliverance from

death.

21 But God shall wound the head of his enemies; And the hairy crown of such a one as goeth on still in his trespasses.

22 The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan,

I will bring my people again from the depths of the

sea;

23 That thy foot may be dipped in the blood of thine enemies,

And the tongue of thy dogs in the same.

24 We have seen thy procession, O God,

Even the procession of my God, my King, to his sanctuary.

Ver. 18. "Thou hast ascended on high," &c. The procession bearing the ark now ascends Mount Zion, and God, whose presence was always supposed to accompany the ark, is here addressed, in language similar to that used in Ps. xlvii. 5: "God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet." The other expressions are used poetically, not literally, and are meant to represent the triumph of Jehovah, by images drawn from those of earthly kings." Will dwell among them," i. e. among his people, though so often rebellious.

25 The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after;

Amongst them were the damsels playing on timbrels. 26" Bless ye God, in the congregations;

Even the Lord, all ye from the fountain of Israel." 27 Here is Benjamin, the youngest, and his leaders; The princes of Judah and their band;

The princes of Zebulun, and the princes of Naphtali.

28 Thy God hath ordained thy strength, O Israel! Show forth thy might, O God, who hast wrought

for us.

29 Because of thy temple at Jerusalem

Shall kings bring presents unto thee. 30 Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds;

The multitude of the bulls, with the calves of the nations,

Till every one submit himself with masses of silver; Scatter thou the nations that delight in war.

31 Princes shall come out of Egypt;

Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God.

Ver. 29. "Because of thy temple," &c. The history informs us that David devoted the spoils of his conquered enemies to the service of the sanctuary, and in preparations for building the temple. 2 Sam. viii. 6-11.

Ver. 30. "Rebuke," &c. These expressions denote the various hostile nations, from which David had wrested such ample spoils, to adorn Jerusalem. The "wild beast of the reeds" is probably the crocodile, the emblem of Egypt, or the lion, the emblem of Syria. The "bulls " and the "calves," commanders and soldiers.

Ver. 31. "Princes shall come," &c. Either in supplication, or with presents to the temple.

32

Sing unto God, ye kingdoms of the earth! O, sing praises unto the Lord;

33 To him that rideth upon the heaven of heavens, which were of old:

Lo, he doth utter his voice, and that a mighty voice. 34 Ascribe ye strength unto God;

His excellency is over Israel, and his strength is in the clouds.

35 O God, thou art terrible from thy sanctuary;

The God of Israel giveth strength and power unto his people;

Blessed be God.

PSALMS XV. AND XXIV.

THE QUALIFICATIONS OF AN ACCEPTABLE WORSHIPPER.

"THEY brought in the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place, in the midst of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it." 2 Sam. vi. 17. The tabernacle was a slight structure, capable of being taken down and reerected at pleasure, its sides composed of boards stand. ing upright, held in their places by bars of wood, which were passed horizontally through rings fastened to the boards. The roof was formed by curtains of linen, which hung down over the sides. Over the linen was a covering of goat's-hair cloth, which was protected

Ver. 33 and 34. "He doth utter his voice," "his strength is in the clouds." These are allusions to thunder.

from the weather by another covering of skins of animals. The entrance was closed by curtains.

PSALM XV.

THIS psalm shows that, even under the Jewish dispensation, where so much stress was laid upon mere ritual observances, the essential characteristics of the true servant of Jehovah were felt to be uprightness of heart and life.

1

LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle ?

Who shall dwell in thy holy hill?

2 He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, And speaketh the truth from his heart;

3 He that backbiteth not with his tongue,

Nor doeth evil to his neighbor,

Nor uttereth a reproach against his neighbor;

4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned,

But he honoreth them that fear the Lord;

He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not; 5 He that putteth not out his money to usury,

Nor taketh reward against the innocent:

He that doeth these things shall never be moved.

PSALM XXIV.

In this psalm it is set forth that Jehovah, the maker of heaven and earth, has yet a chosen dwelling-place

Ver. 4. "A vile person," i. e. the unworthy, the morally vile. Ver. 5. The lending of money to the poor, on interest, is alluded to; not the lending for commercial purposes, a practice then unknown.