Psalm 92 commentary

PSALM 92 COMME TARY
EDITED BY GLE PEASE
A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day.
I TRODUCTIO
SPURGEO , "TITLE â€”A Psalm or Song for the Sabbath day. This admirable
composition is both a Psalm and a Song, full of equal measures of solemnity and joy;
and it was intended to be sung upon the day of rest. The subject is the praise of
God; praise is Sabbatic work, the joyful occupation of resting hearts. Since a true
Sabbath can only be found in God, it is wise to meditate upon him on the Sabbath
day. The style is worthy of the theme and of the day, its inspiration is from the
"fount of every blessing"; David spake as the Spirit gave him utterance. In the
church of Christ, at this hour, no Psalm is more frequently sung upon the Lord's
day than the present. The delightful version of Dr. Watts is familiar to us allâ€”
"Sweet is the work, my God, my King,
To praise thy name, give thanks, and sing;
To shew thy love by morning light,
And talk of all thy truth at night."
The Sabbath was set apart for adoring the Lord in his finished work of creation,
hence the suitableness of this Psalm; Christians may take even a higher flight, for
they celebrate complete redemption. o one acquainted with David's style will
hesitate to ascribe to him the authorship of this divine hymn; the ravings of the
Rabbis who speak of its being composed by Adam, only need to be mentioned to be
dismissed. Adam in Paradise had neither harps to play upon, nor wicked men to
contend with.
ELLICOTT, "In this psalm we seem to have the Sabbath musings (see ote to Title)
of one who had met the doubt born of the sight of successful wickedness, and
struggled through it to a firm faith in “the Rock in whom is no unrighteousness,”
though sometimes on earth iniquity seems to flourish and prevail. It is difficult to
determine whether the psalm simply expresses the religious feelings of Israel
generally after the restoration, or whether it owes its origin to any special event. In 1
Maccabees 9:23 there is an evident echo of, or quotation from, the Greek version of
Psalms 92:7. The versification is regular.
Title.—A psalm or song; more properly, a lyric psalm, i.e., one specially intended
for singing.

For the sabbath day.—The Talmud confirms this, saying that this psalm was sung
on the morning of the Sabbath at the drink offering which followed the sacrifice of
the first lamb ( umbers 28:9).
COKE, "Title. ‫מזמרו‬ ‫שׁיר‬ ‫ליום‬ ‫השׁבת‬ mizmor shiir leiom hash-shabbath.— This psalm
was used by the Jews in their public services on the Sabbath-day. The rabbis
pretend that it was written by Adam. But as the instruments of music here
mentioned were not used in the worship of God till David's time, it is most probable
that it was composed by him; and that not so much to commemorate the creation;
and the Sabbath which followed it, as to foretel that rest from persecution which
God had promised to give his church under the Messiah. See Dr. Hammond. Dr.
Delaney is of opinion, that this psalm was written in the interval between the first
Philistine defeat, and their second invasion, (see book 2: chap. 9.) upon their
confederating anew, and gathering together to a second attempt against him. "To
this, (says he,) I apprehend, refer those words in the 7th verse, When the wicked
spring up as grass. He had just mowed down his enemies, and they were now
springing up again, like a new crop of grass from a rich field; but, how flourishing
soever these workers of iniquity were, David fully confided that they should soon be
destroyed for ever. The glory of sinners is, at best, but the flower of a withering
grass: But the righteous (Psalms 92:12.) shall flourish like a palm-tree; he shall grow
like a cedar in Lebanon; which, at the same time that it enlarges upon earth, rises
towards heaven."
1 It is good to praise the Lord
and make music to your name, O Most High,
BAR ES, "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord - literally, “Good is it
to give thanks unto Jehovah.” That is, the act is appropriate; the effect is good.
(1) The thing itself is appropriate, for there is much, under all circumstances, to be
thankful for: life, health, food, raiment, air, water, friends, recollections, hopes - and,
above all, the blessings of redemption, and the assurance that we may be happy forever.
Many of these things may be found in the condition of all; but if all else fail, the hope of
heaven - the assurance that the Redeemer died - the offer of salvation - cannot fail. That
is ours, and cannot be taken away.
(2) The effect is good. It is a desirable state of mind. It tends to happiness,

contentment, peace. A gloomy mind makes all things around more gloomy; an
unthankful mind is an unhappy mind; a murmuring, complaining, dissatisfied mind
makes its possessor wretched, and all around him miserable.
(3) It is good as it is due to God. For all his favor we should be thankful - and all that
we enjoy is his gift.
(4) It tends much to lessen the real troubles and afflictions of life to dwell on those
things for which we should be thankful.
And to sing praises unto thy name - Unto thee. As this psalm was designed for
the “Sabbath day,” this proves that one of the appropriate services of the Sabbath is
“praise.” It is a day when it is fit to recall the mercies of God to our recollection; and the
remembrance of those mercies, and their celebration by appropriate songs, tend to
diffuse joy over all the coming days of the week.
O Most High - God exalted over all. The fact that “he” is exalted over all - over us -
over our friends - over all worlds - is an appropriate thought when we come before him
to praise him; appropriate at all times, and in all circumstances of life.
CLARKE, "It is a good thing to give thanks - This Psalm begins very abruptly.
Good to confess unto the Lord. He had been acknowledging God’s goodness, and
praising him for his mercy; and now he breaks out and tells how good he felt this
employment to be.
GILL, "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,.... For all mercies,
temporal and spiritual; for Christ, and salvation by him; for the Gospel, and for Gospel
opportunities and ordinances; for, such days and seasons this psalm was composed for.
It is "good" so to do, for it is the will of God that we should in and for every thing give
thanks; it is due unto him, and is our reasonable service; it is well pleasing unto God
through Christ; it is pleasant work for the saints themselves, and is profitable unto them;
to be thankful for what they have is the way to have more. Kimchi connects this with the
title; the sabbath day is good to give thanks unto the Lord; it is a very fit opportunity for
such service; when a man is at leisure from worldly business, and his heart is engaged in
spiritual exercises, and especially when it is warmed with the love of God:
and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High; a name and epithet of God,
suitable to his majesty and glory, to his supereminence over all his creatures, and the
place where he dwells, and to whom the highest praises are due; these two phrases,
giving thanks, and singing praise, are much the same; only with this difference, the
former may be done in prayer, and without the modulation of the voice, as well as with
it; the latter only with it; hence these two are mentioned as distinct things in Eph_5:19.
HE RY 1-3, "This psalm was appointed to be sung, at least it usually was sung, in
the house of the sanctuary on the sabbath day, that day of rest, which was an instituted
memorial of the work of creation, of God's rest from that work, and the continuance of it
in his providence; for the Father worketh hitherto. Note, 1. The sabbath day must be a
day, not only of holy rest, but of holy work, and the rest is in order to the work. 2. The
proper work of the sabbath is praising God; every sabbath day must be a thanksgiving-
day; and the other services of the day must be in order to this, and therefore must by no

means thrust this into a corner. One of the Jewish writers refers it to the kingdom of the
Messiah, and calls it, A psalm or song for the age to come, which shall be all sabbath.
Believers, through Christ, enjoy that sabbatism which remains for the people of God
(Heb_4:9), the beginning of the everlasting sabbath. In these verses,
I. We are called upon and encouraged to praise God (Psa_92:1-3): It is a good thing to
give thanks unto the Lord. Praising God is good work: it is good in itself and good for us.
It is our duty, the rent, the tribute, we are to pay to our great Lord; we are unjust if we
withhold it. It is our privilege that we are admitted to praise God, and have hope to be
accepted in it. It is good, for it is pleasant and profitable, work that is its own wages; it is
the work of angels, the work of heaven. It is good to give thanks for the mercies we have
received, for that is the way of fetching in further mercy: it is fit to sing to his name who
is Most High, exalted above all blessing and praise. Now observe here, 1. How we must
praise God. We must do it by showing forth his lovingkindness and his faithfulness.
Being convinced of his glorious attributes and perfections, we must show them forth, as
those that are greatly affected with them ourselves and desire to affect others with them
likewise. We must show forth, not only his greatness and majesty, his holiness and
justice, which magnify him and strike an awe upon us, but his lovingkindness and his
faithfulness; for his goodness is his glory (Exo_33:18, Exo_33:19), and by these he
proclaims his name. His mercy and truth are the great supports of our faith and hope,
and the great encouragements of our love and obedience; these therefore we must show
forth as our pleas in prayer and the matter of our joy. This was then done, not only by
singing, but by music joined with it, upon an instrument of ten strings (Psa_92:3); but
then it was to be with a solemn sound, not that which was gay, and apt to dissipate the
spirits, but that which was grave, and apt to fix them. 2. When we must praise God - in
the morning and every night, not only on sabbath days, but every day; it is that which
the duty of every day requires. We must praise God, not only in public assemblies, but in
secret, and in our families, showing forth, to ourselves and those about us, his
lovingkindness and faithfulness. We must begin and end every day with praising God,
must give him thanks every morning, when we are fresh and before the business of the
day comes in upon us, and every night, when we are again composed and retired, and are
recollecting ourselves; we must give him thanks every morning for the mercies of the
night and every night for the mercies of the day; going out and coming in we must bless
God.
JAMISO , "Psa_92:1-15. A Psalm-song - (see on Psa_30:1, title). The theme: God
should be praised for His righteous judgments on the wicked and His care and defense
of His people. Such a topic, at all times proper, is specially so for the reflections of the
Sabbath day.
sing ... name — celebrate Thy perfections.
K&D 1-3, "The Sabbath is the day that God has hallowed, and that is to be
consecrated to God by our turning away from the business pursuits of the working days
(Isa_58:13.) and applying ourselves to the praise and adoration of God, which is the
most proper, blessed Sabbath employment. It is good, i.e., not merely good in the eyes of
God, but also good for man, beneficial to the heart, pleasant and blessed. Loving-
kindness is designedly connected with the dawn of the morning, for it is morning light
itself, which breaks through the night (Psa_30:6; Psa_59:17), and faithfulness with the
nights, for in the perils of the loneliness of the night it is the best companion, and nights
of affliction are the “foil of its verification.” ‫ּור‬‫שׂ‬ ָ‫ע‬ beside ‫ל‬ ֶ‫ב‬ֶ‫נ‬ (‫ל‬ ֶ‫ב‬ֵ‫)נ‬ is equivalent to ‫ּור‬‫שׂ‬ ָ‫ע‬ ‫ל‬ ֶ‫ב‬ֵ‫נ‬ in

Psa_33:2; Psa_144:9 : the ten-stringed harp or lyre. ‫ּון‬‫י‬ָ ִ‫ה‬ is the music of stringed
instruments (vid., on Psa_9:17), and that, since ‫הגה‬ in itself is not a suitable word for the
rustling (strepitus) of the strings, the impromptu or phantasia playing (in Amo_6:5,
scornfully, ‫ט‬ ַ‫ר‬ ָ ), which suits both Psa_9:17 (where it is appended to the forte of the
interlude) and the construction with Beth instrumenti.
CALVI , "1It is good to give thanks unto Jehovah. There is no reason to doubt that
the Jews were in the habit of singing this psalm, as the inscription bears, upon the
Sabbath-day, and it is apparent, from different passages, that other psalms were
applied to this use. As the words may be read literally in the Hebrew, it is good for
giving thanks unto the Lord, some interpreters, founding upon the letter ‫,ל‬ lamed,
prefixed to the verb, understand the Psalmist to mean that it was good to have a
certain day set apart for singing the praises of God — that it was a useful
arrangement by which one day had been chosen to be occupied by the Lord’s people
in celebrating his works. But it is well known that this letter, when prefixed, is
merely the ordinary mark of the infinitive mood — and I have given what is
obviously the simple meaning. The reason why the Psalmist appropriated this psalm
to the Sabbath is sufficiently obvious. That day is not to be holy, in the sense of
being devoted to idleness, as if this could be an acceptable worship to God, but in
the sense of our separating ourselves from all other occupations, to engage in
meditating upon the Divine works. As our minds are inconstant, we are apt, when
exposed to various distractions, to wander from God. (585) We need to be
disentangled from all cares if we would seriously apply ourselves to the praises of
God. The Psalmist then would teach us that the right observance of the Sabbath
does not consist in idleness, as some absurdly imagine, but in the celebration of the
Divine name. The argument which he adduces is drawn from the profitableness of
the service, for nothing is more encouraging than to know that our labor is not in
vain, and that what we engage in meets with the Divine approbation. In the
succeeding verse, he adverts to the grounds which we have for praising God, that we
may not imagine that God calls upon us to engage in this service without reason, or
simply in consideration of his greatness and power, but in remembrance of his
goodness and faithfulness, which should inflame our hearts to such exercise, if we
had any proper sense and experience of them. He would have us consider, in
mentioning these, that not only is God worthy of praise, but that we ourselves are
chargeable with ingratitude and perversity should we refuse it. We are the proper
objects of his faithfulness and goodness, and it would argue inexcusable indifference
if they did not elicit our cordial praises. It might seem a strange distinction which
the Psalmist observes when he speaks of our announcing God’s goodness in the
morning, and his faithfulness at night. His goodness is constant, and not peculiar to
any one season, why then devote but a small part of the day to the celebration of it?
And the same may be said of the other Divine perfection mentioned, for it is not
merely in the night that his faithfulness is shown. But this is not what the Psalmist
intends. He means that beginning to praise the Lord from earliest dawn, we should
continue his praises to the latest hour of the night, this being no more than his
goodness and faithfulness deserve. (586) If we begin by celebrating his goodness, we
must next take up the subject of his faithfulness. Both will occupy our continued

praises, for they stand mutually and inseparably connected. The Psalmist is not
therefore to be supposed as wishing us to separate the one from the other, for they
are intimately allied; he would only suggest that we can never want matter for
praising God unless indolence prevail over us, and that if we would rightly
discharge the office of gratitude, we must be assiduous in it, since his goodness and
his faithfulness are incessant.
In the fourth verse, he more immediately addresses the Levites, who were appointed
to the office of singers, and calls upon them to employ their instruments of music —
not as if this were in itself necessary, only it was useful as an elementary aid to the
people of God in these ancient times. (587) We are not to conceive that God enjoined
the harp as feeling a delight like ourselves in mere melody of sounds; but the Jews,
who were yet under age, were astricted to the use of such childish elements. The
intention of them was to stimulate the worshippers, and stir them up more actively
to the celebration of the praise of God with the heart. We are to remember that the
worship of God was never understood to consist in such outward services, which
were only necessary to help forward a people, as yet weak and rude in knowledge, in
the spiritual worship of God. A difference is to be observed in this respect between
his people under the Old and under the ew Testament; for now that Christ has
appeared, and the Church has reached full age, it were only to bury the light of the
Gospel, should we introduce the shadows of a departed dispensation. From this, it
appears that the Papists, as I shall have occasion to show elsewhere, in employing
instrumental music, cannot be said so much to imitate the practice of God’s ancient
people, as to ape it in a senseless and absurd manner, exhibiting a silly delight in
that worship of the Old Testament which was figurative, and terminated with the
Gospel. (588)
SPURGEO , "Ver. 1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, or
JEHOVAH. It is good ethically, for it is the Lord's right; it is good emotionally, for
it is pleasant to the heart; it is good practically, for it leads others to render the same
homage. When duty and pleasure combine, who will be backward? To give thanks
to God is but a small return for the great benefits wherewith he daily loadeth us; yet
as he by his Spirit calls it a good thing we must not despise it, or neglect it. We thank
men when they oblige us, how much more ought we to bless the Lord when he
benefits us. Devout praise is always good, it is never out of season, never
superfluous, but it is especially suitable to the Sabbath; a Sabbath without
thanksgiving is a Sabbath profaned.
And to sing praises unto thy name, O most High. It is good to give thanks in the
form of vocal song. ature itself teaches us thus to express our gratitude to God; do
not the birds sing, and the brooks warble as they flow? To give his gratitude a
tongue is wise in man. Silent worship is sweet, but vocal worship is sweeter. To deny
the tongue the privilege of uttering the praises of God involves an unnatural strain
upon the most commendable prompting of our renewed manhood, and it is a
problem to us how the members of the Society of Friends can deprive themselves of
so noble, so natural, so inspiring a part of sacred worship. Good as they are, they
miss one good thing when they decline to sing praises unto the name of the Lord.
Our personal experience has confirmed us in the belief that it is good to sing unto

the Lord; we have often felt like Luther when he said, "Come, let us sing a psalm,
and drive away the devil."
EXPLA ATORY OTES A D QUAI T SAYI GS.
Title. This is entitled A Psalm to be sung on the day of the Sabbath. It is known that
the Jews appropriated certain Psalms to particular days. R. Selomo thinks that it
refers to the future state of the blessed, which is a perpetual sabbath. Others
pretend that it was composed by Adam, on the seventh day of the creation. It might,
with more probability, have been supposed to be put, by a poetic fiction, into the
mouth of Adam, beholding, with wonder and gratitude, the recent creation. But
Psalms 92:2 seems to refer to the morning and evening sacrifice, which the psalmist
considers as most proper for prayer and praise. â€”D. Cresswell.
Title. For the Sabbath day. Perchance, as Lud. de Dieu remarks on this place, every
day of the week had its allotted psalms, according to what is said in the Talmud, lib.
Myvdq. The songs which the Levites formerly sang in the sanctuary are these: on
the first day, Psalms 24:1-10; on the second, Psalms 48:1-14; on the third, Psalms
82:1-8; on the fourth, Psalms 104:1-35; on the fifth, Psalms 81:1-16; on the sixth,
Psalms 93:1-5; on the seventh, the Psalms 92:1-15, the beginning of which is, a psalm
or a canticle for the Sabbath day, that is to say, for the future age, which will be
altogether a sabbath. â€”Martin Geier.
Title. For the Sabbath. It is observable that the name JEHOVAH occurs in the
Psalms seven timesâ€”the sabbatical number (1,4,5,8,9,
13,15). â€”C. Wordsworth.
Ver. 1. It is a good thing. It is bonum, honestum, jucundum, utile; an honest,
pleasant, and profitable good. The altar of incense was to be overlaid with pure
gold, and to have a crown of gold round about it. Which (if we may allegorically
apply it) intimates unto us, that the spiritual incense of prayers and praises is rich
and precious, a golden and a royal thing. â€”Henry Jeanes, in "The Works of
Heaven upon Earth", 1649.
Ver. 1. It is a good thing to give thanks, etc. Giving of thanks is more noble and
perfect in itself than petition; because in petition often our own good is eyed and
regarded, but in giving of thanks only God's honour. The Lord Jesus said, "It is
more blessed to give than to receive." ow, a subordinate end of petition is to
receive some good from God, but the sole end of thanks is to give glory unto God. â
€”William Ames (1576-1633), in "Medulla Theologica."
Ver. 1. "Give thanks; ""praises." We thank God for his benefits, and praise him for
his perfections. â€”Filliucius, out of Aquinas.
Ver. 1. To sing praises.
1. Singing is the music of nature. The Scriptures tell us, the mountains sing (Is
41:23); the valleys sing (Psalms 65:13); the trees of the wood sing (1 Chronicles
16:33). ay, the air is the birds' music room, where they chant their musical notes.
2. Singing is the music of ordinances. Augustine reports of himself, that when he
came to Milan and heard the people sing, he wept for joy in the church to hear that
pleasing melody. And Beza confesses, that at his first entrance into the congregation,
and hearing them sing Psalms 91:1-16 he felt himself exceedingly comforted, and did
retain the sound of it afterwards upon his heart. The Rabbis tell us, that the Jews,
after the feast of the Passover was celebrated, sang Psalms 91:1-16, and the five
following psalms; and our Saviour and his apostles "sang an hymn" immediately

after the blessed supper, (Matthew 26:30).
3. Singing is the music of saints. (1) They have performed this duty in their greatest
numbers, (Psalms 149:1). (2) In their greatest straits, (Is 26:19). (3) In their greatest
flight, (Is 42:10-11). (4) In their greatest deliverances, (Is 65:14). (5) In their greatest
plenties. In all these changes singing hath been their stated duty and delight. And
indeed it is meet that the saints and servants of God should sing forth their joys and
praises to the Lord Almighty; every attribute of him can
set both their song and their tune.
4. Singing is the music of angels. Job tells us, "The morning stars sang together",
(Job 38:7). ow these morning stars, as Pineda tells us, are the angels; to which the
Chaldee paraphrase accords, naming these morning stars, aciem angelorum, "a host
of angels." ay, when this heavenly host was sent to proclaim the birth of our
dearest Jesus, they delivered their message in this raised way of duty, (Lu 2:13).
They were ainountwn, delivering their messages in a "laudatory singing", the whole
company of angels making a musical choir. ay, in heaven, there is the angels'
joyous music, they there sing hallelujahs to the Most High, and to the Lamb who sits
upon the throne, (Revelation 5:11-12).
5. Singing is the music of heaven. The glorious saints and angels accent their praises
this way, and make one harmony in their state of blessedness; and this is the music
of the bride chamber, (Revelation 15:3). The saints who were tuning here their
psalms, are now singing hallelujahs in a louder strain, and articulating their joys,
which here they could not express to their perfect satisfaction. Here they laboured
with drowsy hearts, and faltering tongues; but in glory these impediments are
removed, and nothing is left to jar their joyous celebrations.
â€”John Wells(-1676), in "The Morning Exercises."
COFFMA , "Verse 1
PSALM 92
PRAISI G THE GREAT ESS OF GOD
The superscription refers to this psalm as, "A song for the sabbath day," meaning,
no doubt, that it was used by the Jews as part of their worship on each sabbath day.
In this connection, we were intrigued by a comment of Albert Barnes. "The Chaldee
Paraphrase has this for the title, `A song which the first man spoke for the sabbath
day.'... We have no proof of what would be so interesting a fact of our having a
genuine poetic composition of Adam."[1] Such a thing is an absolute impossibility,
because God did not reveal the sabbath day to Adam, there being no evidence
whatever that Adam ever heard of it. God revealed the sabbath day to Moses, not
Adam. Furthermore, it was never given to "all mankind" but only to the Jews. (For
further information on this subject see our extended comments on this matter in
Vol. 2, of our Series on the Pentateuch (Exodus), pp. 223-226,277-279.) The first
mention of a sabbath day is not in Genesis, but in Exodus 16:23; and the words,
`Remember the sabbath day' in the Decalogue are not a reference to Genesis, but to
Exodus 16:23.

Regarding the paragraphing of Psalms 92, there are nearly as many opinions as
there are scholars. The psalm has 15 verses, and a convenient way of dividing is the
method adopted by Delitzsch and Maclaren, in five divisions of three verses each.[2]
The Rabbinical tradition that Moses wrote the psalm is declared to be "untenable"
by most modern writers, despite the fact of there being absolutely nothing in the
psalm that supports such a dogmatic view. Of course, we cannot know who wrote it,
or upon what occasion he did so. An exception is the mention of instruments of
music, which, if authentic, would mean that Moses did not write this, but the
liturgical use of the psalm during the period of later Judaism might well have led to
the addition of this feature.
The same human conceit that added mechanical musical instruments to the temple
services would not have hesitated to add them to a psalm. See comment on Psalms
92:3, below.
Psalms 92:1-3
I TRODUCTIO
"It is a good thing to give thanks unto Jehovah,
And to sing praises unto thy name, O Most High;
To show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning,
And thy faithfulness every night.
With an instrument of ten strings, and with the psaltery;
With a solemn sound upon the harp."
These three verses are generally recognized as an introduction to the whole psalm.
It is of interest that "Most High" is here used as a synonym for Jehovah. The
extensive use of this title in Psalms has not received the attention from scholars that
it deserves. The Hebrew people never allowed this title to any pagan deity, although
it was sometimes so applied by pagans.
"In the morning ... every night" (Psalms 92:2). The most appropriate times for
worshipping God are morning and evening. Every morning, when men arise from
sleep, refreshed and strengthened from a night of rest, the blessing of God in the gift
of a new day and a new beginning for human activity should inspire every man to
`thank God' and worship the Most High. Likewise in the evenings, as one
remembers the achievements of the day and God's protection from danger and
failure, it is also appropriate to worship God.

Under the Law of Moses, the principle of morning and evening worship were
established in the institution of "the morning and evening sacrifices" (Exodus
29:38-42). In the Christian faith, through the tradition of offering thanks for meals,
the Lord is actually worshipped "three times daily."
"Instrument of ten strings ... solemn sound upon the harp" (Psalms 92:3). If this is
an authentic rendition of the sacred text, it is impossible to suppose that Moses is the
author, because such instruments of music were never used in God's worship till the
times of David and subsequently. We are not sure, however that the translation here
is accurate. Adam Clarke, a very able scholar, objected to it strenuously, declaring
that it should be translated: "`Upon the [~'asur], upon the [~nebel], upon the
[~higgayon],' with the [~kinnor]. Thus it stands in the Hebrew."[3] one of these
words is a reference to any kind of a musical instrument. They appear to be
instructions to the singers. Of course, there is no doubt that David did indeed
introduce the extensive use of mechanical instruments of music into God's worship;
and the only question here is whether or not this psalm mentions it.
BE SO , "Verse 1-2
Psalms 92:1-2. It is a good thing to give thanks, &c. — It is a good work, and a just
debt, which is due from us to God; to show forth thy lovingkindness, &c. — To
adore and celebrate thy goodness and truth continually, and especially at those two
solemn times of morning and evening, which, on every day, and particularly upon
the sabbath day, were devoted to the worship and service of God
CO STABLE, "In this Psalm , the unknown writer praised God for the goodness of
His acts and the righteousness of His character.
" Psalm 90-92are united by the development of concepts and the repetition of
vocabulary. These psalms lead the worshiper from a meditation on the transiency of
life ( Psalm 90), a call for wisdom ( Psalm 91), to a climactic celebration of divine
deliverance and protection ( Psalm 92)." [ ote: Ibid, p602.]
EBC, "AUTHORITIES differ in their arrangement of this psalm. Clearly, the first
three verses are a prelude; and if these are left out of account, the remainder of the
psalm consists of twelve verses, which fall into two groups of six each, the former of
which mainly deals with the brief prosperity and final overthrow of the wicked,
while the latter paints the converse truth of the security and blessedness of the
righteous. Both illustrate the depth of God’s works and purposes, which is the
psalmist’s theme. A further division of each of these six verses into groups of three is
adopted by Delitzsch, and may be accepted. There will then be five strophes of three
verses each, of which the first is introductory; the second and third, a pair setting
forth the aspect of Providence towards the wicked; and the fourth and fifth, another
pair. magnifying its dealings with the righteous. Perowne takes the eighth verse,
which is distinguished by containing only one clause. as the kernel of the psalm,
which is preceded by seven verses, constituting the first division, and followed by
seven, making the second. But this arrangement, though tempting, wrenches Psalms

92:9 from its kindred Psalms 92:7.
Psalms 92:1-3 are in any case introductory. In form they are addressed to Jehovah,
in thankful acknowledgment of the privilege and joy of praise. In reality they are a
summons to men to taste its gladness, and to fill each day and brighten every night
by music of thanksgiving. The devout heart feels that worship is "good," not only as
being acceptable to God and conformable to man’s highest duty, but as being the
source of delight to the worshipper. othing is more characteristic of the Psalter
than the joy which often dances and sings through its strains. othing affords a
surer test of the reality of worship than the worshipper’s joy in it. With much
significance and beauty, "Thy lovingkindness" is to be the theme of each morning,
as we rise to a new day and find His mercy, radiant as the fresh sunshine, waiting to
bless our eyes, and "Thy faithfulness" is to he sung in the night seasons, as we part
from another day which has witnessed to His fulfilment of all His promises.
The second strophe contains the reason for praise-namely, the greatness and depth
of the Divine works and purposes. The works meant are as is obvious from the
whole strain of the psalm, those of God’s government of the world. The theme which
exercised earlier psalmists reappears here, but the struggles of faith with unbelief,
which are so profoundly and pathetically recorded in Psalms 73:1-28, are ended for
this singer. He bows in trustful adoration before the greatness of the works and the
unsearchable depth of the purpose of God which directs the works. The sequence of
Psalms 92:4-6 is noteworthy. The central place is occupied by Psalms 92:5 -a
wondering and reverent exclamation, evoked by the very mysteries of Providence.
On either side of it stand verses describing the contrasted impression made by these
on devout and on gross minds. The psalmist and his fellows are "gladdened,"
though he cannot see to the utmost verge or deepest abyss of Works or Plans. What
he does see is good; and if sight does not go down to the depths, it is because eyes are
weak, not because these are less pellucid than the sunlit shallows. What gladdens the
trustful soul, which is in sympathy with God, only bewilders the "brutish man"-i.e.,
the man who by immersing his faculties in sense, has descended to the animal level;
and it is too grave and weighty for the "fool," the man of incurable levity and self-
conceit, to trouble himself to ponder. The eye sees what it is capable of seeing. A
man’s judgment of God’s dealings depends on his relation to God and on the
dispositions of his soul
PULPIT,"THIS psalm is entitled, "a Psalm or Song for the sabbath day," and was
therefore, we may conclude, intended for liturgical use in the temple on that weekly
festival. Jewish tradition says that it was sung in the morning at the time of the
drink offering of the first lamb. It was also, we are told, recited on the second day of
the Feast of Tabernacles ('Middoth,' Psalms 2:5). The psalm is altogether one of
praise and thanksgiving. It is optimistic, looking forward to the complete
destruction of all God's enemies (Psalms 92:7-9), and the complete triumph and
happiness of his faithful ones (Psalms 92:10-14). Some Jewish commentators viewed
it as descriptive of the final sabbath of the world's rest; and so Athanasius, who says
of the author, αἰνεῖ ἐκείνην τὴν γενησοµένην ἀνάπαυσιν.

Metrically, the psalm seems to divide into three portions, the first and second of four
verses each (Psalms 92:1-4, Psalms 92:5-8), the third of seven verses (Psalms 92:9-
15).
Psalms 92:1
It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord (comp. Psalms 147:1). By "a good
thing" is meant that which is at ones right and pleasant. And to sing praises unto
thy ame, O Most High. Israel's Lord, Jehovah, is also "the Most High over all the
earth" (Psalms 83:18), and should at all times be thought of as both.
BI 1-3, "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord.
Good to be thankful
1. Had we no other motive but our own personal happiness, we should find it “a good
thing to be thankful.” When we have reviewed the mercies of past years, traced the
hand of Providence in all our course from infancy onwards, and seen goodness
following us all the way, and then have fallen down before our God, with melting
hearts and tender eyes, or have poured forth our feelings in some sacred hymn of
praise, have we not at such times known the highest luxury this earth can afford? A
friend of mine in travelling, happened to lodge in one of the hotels of a
neighbourhood city, and in the middle of the night he heard some one in an
adjoining room singing in a low but earnest tone of voice, Addison’s hymn, “When all
Thy mercies, O my God,” etc., the whole of which he went through, evidently
supposing that none heard him but his God. He proved to be a governor of one of our
Western States, suffering under an incurable disease, of which he soon after died.
But what a frame of mind must that have been which poured forth the gushings of a
full heart at the midnight hour, and with a consciousness of approaching death, in
such a hymn as that. And as there is no grace which so immediately fills the heart
with pleasure, so again it would seem as if none might be more easily cherished than
thankfulness. We have so much to make us thankful, that it would appear as if none
could resist the impulse. And then, in addition to this, the natural heart is apparently
more susceptible of this Christian grace than of any other, so that they who show
right feeling in nothing else have seemed moved at times to gratitude to God. And
though earth has many trials, yet God has given to us, as well as to everything else in
nature, a wonderful restoring power, which makes it easy for us to recover a cheerful
and thankful spirit.
3. Again, it is a good thing to be thankful, because such a spirit exhibits religion in a
beautiful form to others. We have read of instances of great thankfulness in the
midst of great privations, and we may have seen them. We may have gone to some
wretched abode of poverty, where it seems, that had it been our lot to dwell there, we
could discover nothing but occasion to murmur at our hard fate, and we may have
heard there expressions of gratitude and acknowledgments of God’s goodness that
have perfectly amazed us. Have we not gone away in love with such a spirit, and
ashamed that we possessed no more of it?
4. “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,” because it is pleasing to Him. It
is true that our returns of praise can add nothing to God’s glory or happiness, and yet
He has declared that “whoso offereth Him thanks and praise, he glorifieth Him.”
When we confer a favour on a fellow-man we say that we want no thanks for it,

meaning thereby that we did not do it for the sake of the thanks; we want not the
thanks for our own sake, but as evidence of a right state of heart in him. And for the
same reason God loves the returns of gratitude. (W. H. Lewis, D.D.)
Thankfulness
After the return of the Jews from captivity the liturgy of the temple service was
rearranged, and this psalm was selected as the Sabbath psalm, and appointed to be sung
in the morning service when, on the offering of the first lamb, the wine was poured out
as a drink-offering unto the Lord. We must all feel the appropriateness of the selection.
What more proper and profitable Sabbath employment than to sing praises unto the
name of the Most High? This Sabbath, then, let us raise this Sabbath psalm. By our
thanksgiving we shall worship God; through our thanksgiving God will bless us, and we
shall prove, in our own experience, “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord.”
I. Thankfulness is the best antidote to the evils of life and lightens life’s burdens. The
burdens of life are not equally distributed; but no life is without them. “Man is born to
trouble as the sparks fly upwards.” The chief difference between us lies here—while one
man gets him to his burden and carries it, another frets and murmurs and magnifies it.
Now, thankfulness, perhaps more than anything else, helps us to keep our eye fixed upon
the brighter side of life. If every night as we retired to rest we added up and recorded the
mercies of the day, and started each following morning with the record in our hands,
what a transfiguration of our life there soon would be! The gloom around us would be
scattered, the trees would seem to clap their hands, the mountains and the hills to
rejoice together, and the meadows to break out into song.
II. Thankfulness quickens spiritual perception and enlarges spiritual capacity. Take a
son who accepts every attention and provision of his mother as a matter of course,
regards all that she has done for him as her duty and his due, looks upon all her service
as simply fulfilling her obligation to him—what will that son know of his mother’s heart?
She may make some great sacrifice for him, and he will greedily accept the gift without
appreciating the cost at which it is given. But take a child whose tender heart is touched
with every token of the mother’s thoughtfulness and love, that child will understand
something of the mother’s heart; as it leaves the gift to fly into its mother’s arms, it will
feel something of the joy the mother feels in giving, and the mother’s love will be more to
it than the gift itself. It is precisely so with us in our relation to God—the thankful heart
discerns and realizes God. The more we are thankful the more we know God as our
Friend and our Father. Our thoughts will be nearer the truth and our hearts will be
nearer to God because we accept His blessings with gratitude. And thankfulness enlarges
spiritual capacity. There are some attitudes of mind and heart in which God cannot bless
us. The thirsty man might as well lower a sealed bottle into the well as a man seek
blessing from God with a sealed heart. Let us remember this when we think of
unanswered prayers. Now, thankfulness opens the heart to God, and God’s blessing fills
the open heart as the fresh air rushes through the open window, and the light of heaven
fills the unshuttered room. When the heart is thankful for past mercies, new mercies are
not far away.
III. Thankfulness fosters confidence and love. The heart that registers mercy received
knows there is mercy to follow. The milestones we reach on the King’s highway become
guide posts to the Royal City. The ungrateful heart keeps no record of the past, its
memory furnishes no evidence of the eternal faithfulness, and every step in life is an
untrodden path; but the thankful heart treasures up the record of the past, and travels

along as though it had been that way before. That record becomes a guide. With that in
our hand we feel no fear, shrink before no difficulty, cringe before no spectre, bow
beneath no burden, but trudge along in the confident possession of a strength greater
than our own. Soldiers march best to music. They go to face the fatal fire of the
musketry, and encounter the keen edge of the sword, but the cheerful and triumphant
strain of music quickens their spirit, strengthens their resolve, whets their energy,
dissipates their fear, and inspires their courage. Christians live best to praise. It lifts
their thoughts from the possibilities of the “awful unknown” and centres them in the
faithfulness of their Father. (F. Wells.)
Thanksgiving—a good thing
I. The spirit of thankfulness, and the audible acknowledgment of mercies received, are
good on the part of the individual recipient thereof.
II. It is a good thing for the Church of God to give thanks unto the Lord, in open and
special acts of acknowledgment.
III. It is a good thing for a nation to give thanks unto the Lord, and especially when
distinguished national mercies are vouchsafed. (T. W. Aveling.)
To sing praises unto Thy name, O Most High.—
Praise
I. The reasonableness of praising God. It is His due; and we defraud Him of that which
He has a just claim to, at our hand, if we hold it back. To have minds furnished with
scientific acquirements, or stored with historical information, or replenished with
theological doctrine, and yet to fail to confess with adoring praise that God, with whose
wonders, whether of science or of providence or of redemption, we are daily
conversant—this is to be as like Satan as we well can be. While, on the other hand,
devoutly to acknowledge God in His great works, to laud and magnify His holy name
more and more, in proportion as our knowledge is enlarged—this is to be like the holy
angels, who live in the continual contemplation of His excellencies, and in the adoring
acknowledgment of them.
II. The advantages which accompany the right discharge of this duty.
1. It is a most cheering and enlivening occupation. It is impossible for any one to
enter into it with all his heart, without having his spirit refreshed and invigorated by
the exercise. One cannot imagine a person to be habitually dejected who spends
much of his time in it.
2. It is an antidote to our natural selfishness. In many of our duties we have an eye to
ourselves, even while our thoughts are directed to God or to our neighbour. In
prayer, for instance, this is the case, and even in thanksgiving. But praise, as distinct
from thanksgiving, is eminently unselfish: it draws away our thoughts from
ourselves, and fixes them exclusively upon God. We adore and praise Him not merely
for those of His perfections, of the advantage of which to ourselves we are directly
conscious, but for others also—such as His majesty and greatness, His justice, His
wisdom, His power, the advantage of which to ourselves is less immediate and less
obvious. (C. A. Heurtley, D.D.)

2 proclaiming your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night,
BAR ES, "To show forth thy loving-kindness - To celebrate thy mercy; thy
goodness; thy love.
In the morning - That is, there is a fitness in doing this in the morning; or, there are
special reasons why we should do this at that time.
(a) We have been preserved through the dangers of the night; dangers when we were
asleep, unconscious, and defenseless.
(b) Life is then, as it were, a new gift - for we are raised from “the image of death” -
sleep - and we should regard life then “as if” we had been raised from the dead.
(c) To praise God in the morning will have a good influence on us, in promoting
cheerfulness; in making us benignant and kind; in preparing us for the toils and trials of
the day.
There is no better preparation for a day, in view of its burdens, cares, toils, and trials,
than a thankful, cheerful mind in the morning. He who begins a day with a sour, a
morose, a complaining, an irritable spirit - who has been preserved through the night,
and sees nothing to be thankful for in the morning - will be a miserable man through the
day, and will make all miserable around him. He who sees nothing to be thankful for in
the morning will see nothing to hope for in the day; he who has no gratitude for the past,
will have no bright anticipations of the future.
And thy faithfulness - Faithfulness in the laws of nature; in thy promises; in thy
character: in thy providential dealings with people.
Every night - Margin, in the nights.” The reference is to the return of evening; and
the meaning is, that it is a good thing, or that it is appropriate to contemplate the
faithfulness of God at the close of every day.
(a) The mind is then calm, after the toils of the day are over.
(b) The time - evening - its stillness - its twilight - its approaching darkness - all is
favorable for reflection.
(c) There is much in every day to be thankful for, and it is well to recall it at night.
(d) It has a happy effect on the mind when we are about to lie down to rest, to recall
the mercies of God; to reflect on what he has done for us; to gather, from his kindness in
the past, lessons of confidence and hope for the times to come.
We lie down at night more calmly in proportion as we are disposed at the close of a
day to think of the mercies which we have received at the hand of God; and the recalling

of those mercies to remembrance with the voice, and with instruments of praise, is
always an appropriate mode of closing a day.
CLARKE, "To show forth thy loving-kindness - ‫חסדך‬ chasdecha, thy abundant
mercy, in the morning - that has preserved me throughout the night, and brought me to
the beginning of a new day: and thy faithfulness in the night, that has so amply fulfilled
the promise of preservation during the course of the day. This verse contains a general
plan for morning and evening prayer.
GILL, "To show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning,.... God has shown
forth his lovingkindness in Christ, and Christ has shown it in a ministerial way; and
saints should show it forth also with their lips, to warm the hearts of one another, and
encourage distressed minds; this should be a part, and a considerable one, of their
thanksgiving and praise; as it will appear to be, when the objects of it are considered, not
angels, but men, and these the worst and vilest; the instances of it in election,
redemption, calling, adoption, and eternal life; and the freeness, earliness, and
immovableness of it; and this is to be done in the "morning", not of the sabbath day only,
but every other day, giving praise and thanks for the mercies of the night. Jarchi
interprets it of the time of salvation:
and thy faithfulness every night: or "in the nights" (b); not the night and goings out
of the sabbath only, so Arama; but every other night, observing and declaring the
faithfulness and truth of God in his counsels and covenant, in his word and promises,
and in the preservation of his people, and the continuance of favours to them;
particularly praising his name, and giving thanks unto him openly for the mercies of the
day past: morning and night being mentioned may have some respect to the morning
and evening sacrifices; and may signify that our sacrifices of praise should be offered up
to God continually, Heb_13:15.
JAMISO , "in the morning, ... every night — diligently and constantly (Psa_
42:8).
loving kindness — literally, “mercy.”
faithfulness — in fulfilling promises (Psa_89:14).
SPURGEO , "Ver. 2. To shew forth thy loving kindness in the morning. The day
should begin with praise: no hour is too early for holy song. Loving kindness is a
most appropriate theme for those dewy hours when morn is sowing all the earth
with orient pearl. Eagerly and promptly should we magnify the Lord; we leave
unpleasant tasks as long as we can, but our hearts are so engrossed with the
adoration of God that we would rise betimes to attend to it. There is a peculiar
freshness and charm about early morning praises; the day is loveliest when it first
opens its eyelids, and God himself seems then to make distribution of the day's
manna, which tastes most sweetly if gathered ere the sun is hot. It seems most meet
that if our hearts and harps have been silent through the shades of night we should
be eager again to take our place among the chosen choir who ceaselessly hymn the
Eternal One.
And thy faithfulness every night. o hour is too late for praise, the end of the day

must not be the end of gratitude. When nature seems in silent contemplation to
adore its Maker, it ill becomes the children of God to refrain their thanksgiving.
Evening is the time for retrospect, memory is busy with the experience of the day,
hence the appropriate theme for song is the divine faithfulness, of which another
day has furnished fresh evidences. When darkness has settled down over all things,
"a shade immense", then there comes over wise men a congenial, meditative spirit,
and it is most fitting that they should take an expanded view of the truth and
goodness of Jehovahâ€”
"This sacred shade and solitude, what is it?
It is the felt presence of the Deity."
"Every night, "clouded or clear, moonlit or dark, calm or tempestuous, is alike
suitable for a song upon the faithfulness of God, since in all seasons, and under all
circumstances, it abides the same, and is the mainstay of the believer's consolation.
Shame on us that we are so backward in magnifying the Lord, who in the daytime
scatters bounteous love, and in the night season walks his rounds of watching care.
Ver. 2. In the morning. When indeed the mind after the rest of the night is more
active, devoted and constant. In other parts of the day, as at noon, or in the
afternoon, many sounds of business disturb, and greater lassitude oppresses.
Compare Ps 5:4 59:17 58:2 88:14 Psalms 119:147-148, where this same part of the
day is celebrated as the fittest for sacred meditations. However, this ought not to be
taken exclusively, as if, in the morning alone, and not also at noon or in the evening,
it was suitable to celebrate divine grace. â€”Martin Geier.
Ver. 2. In the morning. The Brahmins rise three hours before the sun, to pray. The
Indians would esteem it a great sin to eat in the morning before praying to their
gods. The ancient Romans considered it impious if they had not a little chamber, in
their house, appropriated to prayer. Let us take a lesson from these Turks and
heathen; their zealous ardour ought to shame us. Because we possess the true light,
should their zeal surpass ours? â€”Frederic Arndt, in "Lights of the Morning",
1861.
Ver. 2. To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning. Our praise ought to be
suitably arranged. In the time of prosperity or the morning we should declare thy
lovingkindness, because whatever of prosperity we have proceeds from the mercy
and grace of God; and in the time of adversity or night, we should declare thy
justice or faithfulness, because whatever adversity happens to us is ordained by the
just judgment of God. â€”J. Turrecremata.
Ver. 2. God's mercy is itself the morning ray, which scatters away darkness (Ps 3:5
59:16); his faithfulness the guardian, that assures us against night peril. â€”F.
Delitzsch.
Ver. 2. In the morning, and...every night. God is Alpha and Omega. It is fit we
should begin and end the day with his praise, who begins and ends it for us with
mercy. Well, thou seest thy duty plainly laid before thee. As thou wouldst have God
prosper thy labour in the day, and sweeten thy rest in the night, clasp them both
together with thy morning and evening devotions. He that takes no care to set forth
God's portion of time in the morning, doth not only rob God of his due, but is a thief
to himself all the day after, by losing the blessing which a faithful prayer might
bring from heaven on his undertakings. And he that closes his eyes at night without

prayer, lies down before his bed is made. â€”William Gurnall.
Ver. 2. Thy faithfulness (Vulg. `veritas, ')every night. Truth can be taken in its
proper signification. Thus St. Jerome on our Psalm takes it, and says: "The truth of
the Lord is announced in the night, as if it were wrapped up in some verbal
obscurities. In an enigma it is spoken, and in parables; that seeing, they should not
see, and hearing, they should not understand. Moses ascended Mount Sinai, Exodus
24:9, and passed into the tempest and into the blackness and darkness, and there
spake with the Lord." Thus Jerome. Christ brings back the light to us, as Lactantius
teaches. Shall we wait, says he, till Socrates shall know something? Or Anaxagoras
find light in the darkness? Or Democritus draw forth the truth from a well? Or till
Empedocles expands the paths of his soul? Or Ascesilas and Carneades see, feel, and
perceive? Behold a voice from heaven teaches us the truth, and reveals it more
clearly to us than the sun himself ...In the night truth is to be shown forth, that the
night may be turned into day. â€”Le Blanc.
PULPIT, "To show forth thy loving kindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness
every night. The suitableness of worship every morning and evening has been
almost universally felt. The Mosaic Law provided for it by the establishment of the
morning and evening sacrifice (Exodus 29:38, Exodus 29:39), with the
accompanying ritual. Jewish piety added a noonday prayer (Psalms 55:17; Daniel
6:10), and Christian zeal established the "seven hours of prayer." Morning and
evening still, however, remain, by common acknowledgment, the most appropriate
times for worship.
3 to the music of the ten-stringed lyre
and the melody of the harp.
BAR ES, "Upon an instrument of ten strings - The general idea in this verse is,
that instruments “of all kinds” are to be employed in celebrating the praises of God. On
the instrument here referred to, see the notes at Psa_33:2.
And upon the psaltery - Or “lyre.” See the notes at Isa_5:12. The word is there
translated viol.
Upon the harp with a solemn sound - Margin, upon the solemn sound with the
harp.” Prof. Alexander renders this, “On meditation with a harp.” On the word rendered
“harp,” see the notes at Isa_5:12. The Hebrew word rendered “solemn sound” is ‫הגיון‬
higgâyôn which means properly “murmur;” then, the sound of a harp; and then,
meditation. See the notes at Psa_9:16. Here the meaning seems to be, “with murmurs

upon the harp;” that is, with the sound of the harp - its murmuring tones. It does not
denote here a distinct instrument of music, but it refers to the tones of the harp: not to
the meditations of the mind - of the worshipper - but to the low and gentle sounds of the
instrument itself.
CLARKE, "Upon an instrument of ten strings - Eusebius, in his comment on
this Psalm, says: Ψαλτηριον δε δεκαχορδον, ᅧ του ᅓγιου Πνευµατος δια των αισθητηριων
πεντε µεν του σωµατος, ισαριθµων δε της ψυχης δυναµεων, επιτελουµενη λατρεια· “The
Psaltery of ten strings is the worship of the Holy Spirit, performed by means of the five
senses of the body, and by the five powers of the soul.” And, to confirm this
interpretation, he quotes the apostle, 1Co_14:15 : “I will pray with the spirit, and with
the understanding also; I will sing with the spirit, and with the understanding also.” “As
the mind has its influence by which it moves the body, so the spirit has its own influence
by which it moves the soul.” Whatever may be thought of this gloss, one thing is pretty
evident from it, that instrumental music was not in use in the Church of Christ in the
time of Eusebius. which was near the middle of the fourth century. Had any such thing
then existed in the Christian Church, he would have doubtless alluded to or spiritualized
it; or, as he quoted the words of the apostle above, would have shown that carnal usages
were substituted for spiritual exercises. I believe the whole verse should be translated
thus: Upon the asur, upon the nebel, upon the higgayon, with the kinnor. Thus it stands
in the Hebrew.
GILL, "Upon an instrument of ten strings,.... An harp of ten strings, as the
Targum. The harp invented by Terpander had only seven strings (c); according to Pliny
(d); Simonides added the eighth, and Timotheus the ninth; but this of David was of ten
strings:
and upon the psaltery; of which See Gill on Psa_33:2, "upon the harp with a solemn
sound"; or "upon higgaon with the harp"; which "higgaon", Aben Ezra says, was either
the tune of a song, or an instrument of music; all these instruments of music were typical
of the spiritual joy and melody which the saints have in their hearts when they praise the
Lord; hence mention is made of harps in particular in this spiritual sense, under the
Gospel dispensation, Rev_5:8.
JAMISO , "In such a work all proper aid must be used.
with a ... sound — or, on Higgaion (see on Psa_9:16), perhaps an instrument of that
name, from its sound resembling the muttered sound of meditation, as expressed also by
the word. This is joined with the harp.
SPURGEO , "Ver. 3. Upon an instrument of ten strings; with the fullest range of
music, uttering before God with the full compass of melody the richest emotions of
his soul.
And upon the psaltery; thus giving variety to praise: the Psalmist felt that every
sweet-sounding instrument should be consecrated to God. George Herbert and
Martin Luther aided their private devotions by instrumental music; and whatever

may have been the differences of opinion in the Christian church, as to the
performance of instrumental music in public, we have met with no objection to its
personal and private use.
Upon the harp with a solemn sound, or upon meditation with a harp; as much as to
say, my meditative soul is, after all, the best instrument, and the harp's dulcet tones
comes in to aid my thoughts. It is blessed work when hand and tongue work
together in the heavenly occupation of praise.
"Strings and voices, hands and hearts,
In the concert bear your parts:
All that breathe, your God adore,
Praise him, praise him, evermore."
It is, however, much to be feared that attention to the mere mechanism of music,
noting keys and strings, bars and crotchets, has carried many away from the
spiritual harmony which is the soul and essence of praise. Fine music without
devotion is but a splendid garment upon a corpse.
Ver. 3. Upon an instrument of ten strings. Eusebius, in his comment on this psalm,
says: "The psaltery of ten strings is the worship of the Holy Spirit performed by
means of the five senses of the body, and by the five powers of the soul." And to
confirm this interpretation, he quotes the apostle, 1 Corinthians 14:15 : "I will pray
with the spirit, and with the understanding also; I will sing with the spirit, and with
the understanding also." "As the mind has its influence by which it moves the body,
so the spirit has its own influence by which it moves the soul." Whatever may be
thought of this gloss, one thing is pretty evident from it, that instrumental music was
not in use in the church of Christ in the time of Eusebius, which was near the middle
of the fourth century. Had any such thing then existed in the Christian Church, he
would have doubtless alluded to or spiritualized it; or, as he quoted the words of the
apostle above, would have shown that carnal usages were substituted for spiritual
exercises. â€”Adam Clarke.
Ver. 3. In Augustine to Ambrose there is the following passage bearing on this same
subject: â€”"Sometimes, from over jealousy, I would entirely put from me and from
the church the melodies of the sweet chants that we use in the Psalter, lest our ears
seduce us; and the way of Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, seems the safe one,
who, as I have often heard, made the reader chant with so slight a change of voice,
that it was more like speaking than singing. And yet, when I call to mind the tears I
shed when I heard the chants of thy church in the infancy of my recovered faith,
and reflect that I was affected, not by the mere music, but by the subject, brought
out as it were by clear voices and appropriate tune, then, in turn, I confess how
useful is the practice."
Ver. 3. We are not to conceive that God enjoyed the harp as feeling a delight like
ourselves in mere melody of sounds; but the Jews, who were yet under age, were
restricted to the use of such childish elements. The intention of them was to
stimulate the worshippers, and stir them up more actively to the celebration of the
praise of God with the heart. We are to remember that the worship of God was
never understood to consist in such outward services, which were only necessary to
help forward a people, as yet weak and rude in knowledge, in the spiritual worship
of God. A difference is to be observed in this respect between his people under the

Old and under the ew Testament; for now that Christ has appeared, and the
church has reached full age, it were only to bury the light of the Gospel, should we
introduce the shadows of a departed dispensation. From this, it appears that the
Papists, in employing instrumental music, cannot be said so much to imitate the
practice of God's ancient people, as to ape it in a senseless and absurd manner,
exhibiting a silly delight in that worship of the Old Testament which was figurative,
and terminated with the gospel. â€”John Calvin.
Ver. 3. Chrysostom says, "Instrumental music was only permitted to the Jews, as
sacrifice was, for the heaviness and grossness of their souls. God condescended to
their weakness, because they were lately drawn off from idols; but now instead of
organs, we may use our own bodies to praise him withal." Theodoret has many like
expressions in his comments upon the Psalms and other places. But the author
under the name of Justin Martyr is more express in his determination, as to matter
of fact, telling us plainly, "that the use of singing with instrumental music was not
received in the Christian churches as it was among the Jews in their infant state, but
only the use of plain song." â€”Joseph Bingham.
Ver. 3. Instrumental music, the more I think of it, appears with increasing evidence
to be utterly unsuited to the genius of the gospel dispensation. There was a glare, if I
may so express it, which characterized even the divine appointments of Judaism. An
august temple, ornamented with gold and silver, and precious stones, golden
candlesticks, golden altars, priests in rich attire, trumpets, cymbals, harps; all of
which were adapted to an age and dispensation when the church was in a state of
infancy. But when the substance is come, it is time that the shadows flee away. The
best exposition of harps in singing is given by Dr. Wattsâ€”
"Oh may my heart in tune be found,
Like David's harp of solemn sound."
â€”Andrew Fuller.
Ver. 3. (last clause). On meditation with a harp. ( ew translation.) By a bold but
intelligible figure, meditation is referred to as an instrument, precisely as the lyre
and harp are, the latter being joined with it as a mere accompaniment. â€”J.A.
Alexander.
Ver. 3. With a solemn sound. Let Christians abound as much as they will in the
holy, heavenly exercise of singing in God's house and in their own houses; but let it
be performed as a holy act, wherein they have immediately and visibly to do with
God. When any social open act of devotion or solemn worship of God is performed,
God should be reverenced as present. As we would not have the ark of God depart
from us, her provoke God to make a breach upon us, we should take heed that we
handle the ark with reverence. â€”Jonathan Edwards, in "Errors connected with
singing praises to God."
PULPIT, "Upon an instrument of ten strings, and upon the psaltery. Some think
that only one instrument is intended here, and translate, "Upon an instrument of
ten strings, even upon the psaltery" (or, "the lute"). (On the character of the
psaltery, see the comment on Psalms 33:2.) Upon the harp with a solemn sound. The
reference is clearly to the public service of the temple, since in the private devotions
of the faithful instruments were not likely to be used.

4 For you make me glad by your deeds, Lord;
I sing for joy at what your hands have done.
BAR ES, "For thou, Lord, hast made me glad - Thou hast made me happy;
thou hast given me such a state of feeling as finds an appropriate expression in “praise.”
Through thy work - Either the work of creation, the finishing of which the Sabbath
was designed particularly to commemorate; or the works of God in general - the
universe; or the general dealings of his providence; or some particular interpositions of
Providence in his behalf that called for special praise. All these are appropriately
combined in the celebrations - the praises - of the Sabbath; to these should be added, as
among the most marvelous of his works, and that which furnishes special occasion for
praise on the Christian Sabbath, the wonderful work of redemption - that which of all
the “works” of God makes a heart rightly affected most “glad.”
I will triumph - I will exult or rejoice.
In the works of thy hands - In all thy works; in all that thou hast done.
CLARKE, "For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work - I am
delighted with thy conduct towards me; with the work of thy providence, the works of
thy grace, and thy works of creation.
GILL, "For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work,.... Either of
creation, which work is mentioned in the precept of the sabbath, as an argument for it;
and therefore a very proper work to be remembered and observed on that day; or of
providence, which in general extends to all men, but especially to them that believe; or of
the work of redemption wrought out by Christ, which is cause of great joy and gladness;
or of the work of grace upon the soul, which when a man is satisfied of, gives him infinite
pleasure, as knowing it will be performed until the day of Christ; and when a man is in
such a joyful frame of spirit, he is in a very suitable one to sing the praises of God, Jam_
5:13,
I will triumph in the works of thine hands; those before mentioned; or shout
aloud for joy, on account of them; and also triumph over all enemies, as being out of the
reach of them, so as to be hurt and ruined by them.
HE RY, " We have an example set before us in the psalmist himself, both to move us to

and to direct us in this work (Psa_92:4): Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy
work. Note, 1. Those can best recommend to others the duty of praise who have
themselves experienced the pleasantness of it. “God's works are to be praised, for they
have many a time rejoiced my heart; and therefore, whatever others may think of them, I
must think well and speak well of them.” 2. If God has given us the joy of his works,
there is all the reason in the world why we should give him the honour of them. Has he
made our hearts glad? Let us then make his praises glorious. Has God made us glad
through the works of his providence for us, and of his grace in us, and both through the
great work of redemption?
JAMISO , "thy work — that is, of providence (Psa_90:16, Psa_90:17).
K&D 4-6, "Statement of the ground of this commendation of the praise of God.
Whilst ‫ל‬ ַ‫ּע‬ is the usual word for God's historical rule (Psa_44:2; Psa_64:10; Psa_90:16,
etc.), ָ‫יך‬ ֶ‫ד‬ָ‫י‬ ‫י‬ ֵ‫שׂ‬ ֲ‫ע‬ ַ‫מ‬ denotes the works of the Creator of the world, although not to the
exclusion of those of the Ruler of the world (Psa_143:5). To be able to rejoice over the
revelation of God in creation and the revelation of God in general is a gift from above,
which the poet thankfully confesses that he has received. The Vulgate begins Psa_92:5
Quia delectasti me, and Dante in his Purgatorio, xxviii. 80, accordingly calls the Psalm il
Salmo Delectasti; a smiling female form, which represents the life of Paradise, says, as
she gathers flowers, she is so happy because, with the Psalm Delectasti, she takes a
delight in the glory of God's works. The works of God are transcendently great; very deep
are His thoughts, which mould human history and themselves gain from in it (cf. Psa_
40:6; Psa_139:17., where infinite fulness is ascribed to them, and Isa_55:8, where
infinite height is ascribed to them). Man can neither measure the greatness of the divine
works nor fathom the depth of the divine thoughts; he who is enlightened, however,
perceives the immeasurableness of the one and the unfathomableness of the other,
whilst a ‫ר‬ ַ‫ע‬ ַ ‫ישׁ־‬ ִ‫,א‬ a man of animal nature, homo brutus (vid., Psa_73:22), does not come
to the knowledge (‫ידע‬ ‫,לא‬ used absolutely as in Psa_14:4), and ‫יל‬ ִ‫ס‬ ְⅴ, a blockhead, or one
dull in mind, whose carnal nature outweighs his intellectual and spiritual nature, does
not discern ‫ּאת‬‫ז‬‫ת־‬ ֶ‫א‬ (cf. 2Sa_13:17), id ipsum, viz., how unsearchable are God's judgments
and untrackable His ways (Rom_11:33).
CALVI , "4Because thou, Jehovah, hast made me glad. The Psalmist repeats the
truth that the Sabbath was not prescribed as a day of idleness, but a season when we
should collect our whole energies for meditation upon the works of God. He
intimates, at the same time, that those are best qualified for celebrating the praises
of God who recognize and feel his fatherly goodness, and can undertake this service
with willing and joyful minds. His language implies that the goodness and
faithfulness of God, which he had already mentioned, are apparent in his works
upon a due examination of them. What produces joy in our hearts is the exhibition
which God gives of himself as a Father, and of his deep and watchful anxiety for our
welfare; as, on the other hand, the cause of our brutish indifference is our inability
to savor or relish the end designed in the works of God. (589) As the universe
proclaims throughout that God is faithful and good, it becomes us to be diligently

observant of these tokens, and to be excited by a holy joy to the celebration of his
praise.
SPURGEO , "Ver. 4. For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work. It was
natural for the psalmist to sing, because he was glad, and to sing unto the Lord,
because his gladness was caused by a contemplation of the divine work. If we
consider either creation or providence, we shall find overflowing reasons for joy;
but when we come to review the work of redemption, gladness knows no bounds,
but feels that she must praise the Lord with all her might. There are times when in
the contemplation of redeeming love we feel that if we did not sing we must die;
silence would be as horrible to us as if we were gagged by inquisitors, or stifled by
murderers.
I will triumph in the works of thy hands. I cannot help it, I must and I will rejoice in
the Lord, even as one who has won the victory and has divided great spoil. In the
first sentence of this verse he expresses the unity of God's work, and in the second
the variety of his works; in both there is reason for gladness and triumph. When
God reveals his work to a man, and performs a work in his soul, he makes his heart
glad most effectually, and then the natural consequence is continual praise.
Ver. 4. Thou LORD hast made me glad through thy work. One of the parts of the
well spending of the Sabbath, is the looking upon, and consideration of the works of
creation. The consideration of the Lord's works will afford us much sweet
refreshment and joy when God blesses the meditation; and when it is so we ought to
acknowledge our gladness most thankfully and lift up our heart in his ways. â€”
David Dickson.
Ver. 4. Thy work. The "work of God" here is one no less marvellous than that of
creation, which was the original ground of hallowing the Sabbath (see title of this
Psalm) â€”namely, the final redemption of his people. â€”A.R. Fausset.
Ver. 4. Made me glad through thy work, etc. Surely there is nothing in the world,
short of the most undivided reciprocal attachment, that has such power over the
workings of the human heart as the mild sweetness of ature. The most ruffled
temper, when emerging from the town, will subside into a calm at the sight of an
extended landscape reposing in the twilight of a fine evening. It is then that the
spirit of peace settles upon the heart, unfetters the thoughts, and elevates the soul to
the Creator. It is then that we behold the Parent of the universe in his works; we see
his grandeur in earth, sea, sky; we feel his affection in the emotions which they
raise, and half mortal, half etherealized, forgot where we are in the anticipation of
what that world must be, of which this lovely earth is merely the shadow. â€”Miss
Porter.
Ver. 4. I will triumph in the works of thy hands. Here it will be most fitting to
remind the reader of those three great bursts of adoring song, which in different
centuries have gushed forth from souls enraptured with the sight of nature. They
are each of them clear instances of triumphing in the works of God's hands. How
majestically Milton sang when he said of our unfallen parents, â€”
" or holy rapture wanted they to praise
Their Maker, in fit strains pronounced or sung

Unmeditated; such prompt eloquence
Flowed from their lips in prose or numerous verse,
More tunable than needed lute or harp
To add more sweetness."
Then he gives us that noble hymn, too well known for us to quote, the reader will
find it in the fifth book of the Paradise Lost, commencingâ€”
"These are thy glorious works, Parent of good, Almighty!"
Thomson also, in his Seasons, rises to a wonderful height, as he closes his poem with
a hymnâ€”
"These as they change, Almighty Father, these
Are but the varied God."
Coleridge in his "Hymn before Sunrise, in the Vale of Chamouni", equally well
treads the high places of triumphant devotion, as he criesâ€”
"Awake my soul! not only passive praise
Thou owest! not alone these swelling tears,
Mute thanks and secret ecstasy! Awake,
Voice of sweet song! Awake, my heart, awake!
Green vales and icy cliffs, all join my hymn."
ELLICOTT, "(4) The Vulgate rendering of this verse is quoted by Dante in a
beautiful passage descriptive of the happiness which flows from delight in the
beauty of the works of God in nature. But the reference is to the works in history,
not in nature. The psalmist is really expressing his gladness at God’s wonders
wrought for Israel. (Comp. Psalms 90:15-16,” Make us glad . . . let thy work appear
unto thy servants.)
PULPIT, "For thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work. It is difficult to say
what "work" is intended. Some have supposed "the work of creation," as the psalm
is one "for the sabbath" (see title); but perhaps the general "working" of God's
providence in the world is more probable. (So Hengstenberg, Kay, and Cheyne.) I
will triumph in the works of thy hands. A repetition for the sake of emphasis.
COFFMA , "Verse 4
THE GREAT WORKS OF GOD
"For thou, Jehovah, hast made me glad through thy work:
I will triumph in the works of thy hands.
How great are thy works, O Jehovah!
Thy thoughts are very deep.
A brutish man knoweth not;
either doth a fool understand this!"

"Made me glad through thy work" (Psalms 92:4). It is not clear just which works of
God gladdened the heart of the psalmist; perhaps the gladness was from "all" of the
works of God. Rawlinson supposed that it was probably, "God's work of providence
in the world."[4] The starry heavens alone are enough to inspire any thoughtful
person with gladness and praise of God.
"Thy thoughts are very deep" (Psalms 92:5). The thoughts of God are beyond the
comprehension of any man, regardless of how learned and intelligent he may be.
The universe in which we live with its thousands of galaxies arranged according to a
pattern in outer space, deployed in an astounding arrangement featuring millions of
light years between them, the quasars, the black holes, the jets of astounding
energies, the speed of light, the particular attention of God to the tiny speck of
matter called `earth,' and a million other things stagger the imagination of the most
intelligent man who ever lived.
Of course, it is also true in this connection, as stated by Addis, that, "God's counsels
are too deep for the stupid man."[5]
"The evidence for the exalted nature of God's works and thoughts is so great that a
man who falls to acknowledge them, must be classified as a brute and a fool."[6] We
like Delitzsch's word for such a man, "Homo brutus."[7]
"Man can neither measure the greatness of God's works nor fathom the depths of
divine thought. The enlightened man, however, perceives the immeasurableness of
the one and the unfathomableness of the other; but a man of animal nature, `homo
brutus,' a blockhead, or one dull in mind, whose carnal nature outweighs his
intellectual and spiritual nature, cannot discern how unsearchable are God's
judgments and how untrackable are his ways."[8]
BE SO , "Verse 4-5
Psalms 92:4-5. For thou hast made me glad through thy work, &c. — Which thou
didst create by thine almighty power, and dost still govern with infinite wisdom. “A
prospect of creation, in the vernal season,” says Dr. Horne, “fallen as it is, inspires
the mind with joy, which no words can express. But how doth the regenerate soul
exult and triumph at beholding that work of God’s hands whereby he creates all
things anew in Christ Jesus! If we can be pleased with such a world as this, where
sin and death have fixed their habitation; shall we not much rather admire those
other heavens and that other earth wherein dwell righteousness and life? What are
we to think of the palace, since even the prison is not without its charms!” O Lord,
how great are thy works! — Great beyond expression, beyond conception! The
products of boundless power and unsearchable wisdom; men’s works are nothing to
them. We cannot comprehend the greatness of God’s works, and therefore must
reverently and awfully wonder, and even stand amazed at the magnificence of them.
Thy thoughts are very deep — Here he assigns the reason of the inconceivable
greatness and grandeur of God’s works. Mens’ works are little and trifling, for their
thoughts are shallow: but God’s works are very great, and such as cannot be

measured, because his thoughts are very deep, and such as cannot be fathomed. Or,
he speaks of God’s counsels and methods in the government of the world and of his
church. All his counsels, whether in creation or providence, as much exceed the
contrivances of human wisdom as his works do the efforts of human power!
CO STABLE, "Verses 4-7
The psalmist gloried in the Lord"s goodness to him, which was evident in His acts
for him. God"s thoughts, as He revealed them to His prophets and in His Word, also
drew the writer"s praise. These revelations helped him understand what God was
doing. He understood, as those who do not benefit from God"s revelation cannot,
that the prosperity of the wicked is only temporary.
SIMEO , "GOD ADMIRED I HIS WORKS
Psalms 92:4-5. Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through thy work: I will triumph in
the works of thy hands. O Lord, how great are thy works! and thy thoughts are very
deep.
TO man, in this vale of tears, God has opened many sources of happiness; many in
his intercourse with his fellow-man, but more and greater in communion with his
God. In truth, if it be not his own fault, he may have in a measure the felicity of the
Paradisiacal state restored to him: for though, through the weakness of the flesh,
“he is in heaviness through manifold temptations,” he has a God to go unto, a God
ever at hand, in whom it is his privilege always to rejoice: “Rejoice in the Lord
alway,” says the Apostle; and “again,” he adds, “Rejoice.”
The frame of David’s mind, in the psalm before us, (for we can scarcely doubt but
that the composition was his,) being that which we should cultivate, we will
consider,
I. The works which he contemplated—
It is probable that the writer of this psalm had primarily in his view the wonders of
creation; because the psalm was written for the Sabbath-day [ ote: See the title to
the Psalm.], which was instituted to commemorate God’s rest from his creating
work. Yet, in the body of the psalm, much is spoken respecting the dispensations of
God in his providence: and David, whom I consider as the author of it, had
experienced the most wonderful interpositions in his behalf; so that, amongst all the
children of men, there was not one who had more cause than he to sing of “the
loving-kindness and the faithfulness of Jehovah;” of his “loving-kindness,” in
selecting him to such high destinies; and his “faithfulness,” in accomplishing to him
his promises in their full extent. But the language of my text necessarily leads our
minds to that greatest and most stupendous of all God’s works, the work of
Redemption—
[This may be treated either in reference to Redemption generally, as wrought out
for us by the incarnation, and death, and resurrection, and ascension of the Lord

Jesus Christ; or with a special reference to any one of these topics which may be
suited to a particular season. But, in whatever way it be treated, the greatness of the
work must be the point chiefly insisted on.]
II. His experience in the contemplation of them—
He was filled,
1. With triumphant joy—
[It is not possible to view these wonders of Redeeming Love, and not feel the
reasonableness of that command: “Rejoice in the Lord alway; and again I say,
Rejoice [ ote: Philippians 4:4.].” Well does the Psalmist say, “It is a good thing to
give thanks unto the Lord.” It is indeed good, at all times [ ote: ver. 2.], and in
every possible way [ ote: ver. 3.]. In this holy exercise should every faculty of our
souls be engaged [ ote: Psalms 103:1.].]
2. With adoring gratitude—
[This, after all, is the fittest expression of our joy. The wonders of God’s love are so
stupendous, that all attempts to celebrate them aright must fail; and silence, the
profoundest silence, on such a subject, if proceeding from an overwhelming sense of
it, may justly be accounted the sublimest eloquence. The Psalmist’s experience was
of this kind [ ote: ver. 5,]; as were St. Paul’s also, when he exclaimed, “O the depth
[ ote: Romans 11:33.]!”]
Address—
1. Those who are strangers to this frame—
[Alas! how little is this state of mind experienced by the generality of Christians!
and in what humiliating terms is their insensibility described in the words following
my text! I would not speak offensively, or wound the feelings of any: but I would ask
you, whether David speaks too strongly, when he characterizes such persons as
“brutish and fools [ ote: ver. 6.]? You well know that the prophets often speak the
same language [ ote: Isaiah 1:3 and Jeremiah 8:7.]; and I pray you to repent of
your insensibility, that these characters may no longer attach to you.]
2. Those who aspire after it—
[Let your thoughts soar to high and heavenly things; and especially let them be
occupied on the works of God, and on his perfections as displayed in the great
mystery of Redemption. Surely you shall not long meditate on these things in vain.
Your God will cause you to “triumph in Christ Jesus.” But never rest, till you have
those overwhelming views of Christ which characterize the worship of heaven. The
glorified saints and angels all fall upon their faces before the throne: seek ye the
same frame of mind with them; and soon you shall join with them in everlasting

hallelujahs to God and to the Lamb.]
5 How great are your works, Lord,
how profound your thoughts!
BAR ES, "O Lord, how great are thy works! - Compare Psa_8:3; Psa_40:5. See
also the notes at Job_11:7. The meaning here is this: The psalmist, on the Sabbath, in
giving himself to meditation on the works of God, is overwhelmed with a sense of their
vastness, their incomprehensible nature, and the depth of wisdom evinced, far beyond
the grasp of man, in what God had done. How soon is man lost; how soon does he get
beyond his depth; how soon does he feel that here is greatness which he cannot
comprehend, and wisdom which he cannot fathom, and goodness which he cannot
appreciate, when he sits down to meditate on the works of God!
And thy thoughts are very deep - Compare Isa_28:29; Rom_11:33-34. The
meaning is, that the plans or the purposes of God, as evinced in the works of creation
and providence, are too profound for man to understand them. Who but God himself
can comprehend them?
CLARKE, "Hour great are thy works! - They are multitudinous, stupendous, and
splendid: and thy thoughts - thy designs and counsels, from which, by which, and in
reference to which, they have been formed; are very deep - so profound as not to be
fathomed by the comprehension of man.
GILL, "O Lord, how great are thy works!.... Of nature, providence, and grace, both
for quantity and for quality, for number, excellency, and glory, as they are a display of
God's wisdom, power, and goodness; see Psa_104:24,
and thy thoughts are very deep; his counsels, purposes, and designs, they are
unfathomable and unsearchable; see 1Co_2:10.
HE RY, " Let us thence fetch matter for holy adorings and admirings of God (Psa_
92:5): O Lord! how great are thy works - great beyond conception, beyond expression,
the products of great power and wisdom, of great consequence and importance! men's
works are nothing to them. We cannot comprehend the greatness of God's works, and
therefore must reverently and awfully wonder at them, and even stand amazed at the

magnificence of them. “Men's works are little and trifling, for their thoughts are shallow;
but, Lord, thy works are great and such as cannot be measured; for thy thoughts are
very deep and such as cannot be fathomed.” God's counsels as much exceed the
contrivances of our wisdom as his works do the efforts of our power. His thoughts are
above our thoughts, as his ways are above our ways, Isa_55:9. O the depth of God's
designs! Rom_11:33. The greatness of God's works should lead us to consider the depth
of his thoughts, that counsel of his own will according to which he does all things - what
a compass his thoughts fetch and to what a length they reach!
JAMISO , "great ... works — correspond to deep or vast thoughts (Psa_40:5;
Rom_11:23).
CALVI , "5O Jehovah! how highly exalted are thy works! The Psalmist, having
spoken of the works of God in general, proceeds to speak more particularly of his
justice in the government of the world. Though God may postpone the punishment
of the wicked, he shows, in due time, that in conniving at their sins, he did not
overlook or fail to perceive them; and though he exercises his own children with the
cross, he proves in the issue, that he was not indifferent to their welfare. His reason
for touching upon this particular point seems to be, that much darkness is thrown
upon the scheme of Divine Providence by the inequality and disorder which prevail
in human affairs. (590) We see the wicked triumphing, and applauding their own
good fortune, as if there was no judge above, and taking occasion from the Divine
forbearance to run into additional excesses, under the impression that they have
escaped his hand. The temptation is aggravated by that stupidity and blindness of
heart which lead us to imagine that God exerts no superintendence over the world,
and sits idle in heaven. It is known, too, how soon we are ready to sink under the
troubles of the flesh. The Psalmist, therefore, intentionally selects this as a case in
which he may show the watchful care exerted by God over the human family. He
begins, by using the language of exclamation, for such is the dreadful distemper and
disorder by which our understandings are confounded, that we cannot comprehend
the method of God’s works, even when it is most apparent. We are to notice, that the
inspired penman is not speaking here of the work of God in the creation of the
heavens and earth, nor of his providential government of the world in general, but
only of the judgments which he executes amongst men. He calls the works of God
great, and his thoughts deep, because he governs the world in quite another manner
than we are able to comprehend. Were things under our own management, we
would entirely invert the order which God observes; and, such not being the case,
we perversely expostulate with God for not hastening sooner to the help of the
righteous, and to the punishment of the wicked. It strikes us as in the highest degree
inconsistent with the perfections of God, that he should bear with the wicked when
they rage against him, when they rush without restraint into the most daring acts of
iniquity, and when they persecute at will the good and the innocent; — it seems, I
say, in our eyes to be intolerable, that God should subject his own people to the
injustice and violence of the wicked, while he puts no check upon abounding
falsehood, deceit, rapine, bloodshed, and every species of enormity. Why does he
suffer his truth to be obscured, and his holy name to be trampled under foot? This is

that greatness of the Divine operation, that depth of the Divine counsel, into the
admiration of which the Psalmist breaks forth. It is no doubt true, that there is an
incomprehensible depth of power and wisdom which God has displayed in the
fabric of the universe; but what the Psalmist has specially in view is, to administer a
check to that disposition which leads us to murmur against God, when he does not
pursue our plan in his providential managements. When anything in these may not
agree with the general ideas of men, we ought to contemplate it with reverence, and
remember that God, for the better trial of our obedience, has lifted his deep and
mysterious judgments far above our conceptions.
SPURGEO , "Ver. 5. O Lord, how great are thy works! He is lost in wonder. He
utters an exclamation of amazement. How vast! How stupendous are the doings of
Jehovah! Great for number, extent, and glory and design are all the creations of the
Infinite One.
And thy thoughts are very deep. The Lord's plans are as marvellous as his acts; his
designs are as profound as his doings are vast. Creation is immeasurable, and the
wisdom displayed in it unsearchable. Some men think but cannot work, and others
are mere drudges working without thought; in the Eternal the conception and the
execution go together. Providence is inexhaustible, and the divine decrees which
originate it are inscrutable. Redemption is grand beyond conception, and the
thoughts of love which planned it are infinite. Man is superficial, God is inscrutable;
man is shallow, God is deep. Dive as we may we shall never fathom the mysterious
plan, or exhaust the boundless wisdom of the all comprehending mind of the Lord.
We stand by the fathomless sea of divine wisdom, and exclaim with holy awe, "O the
depth!"
Ver. 5. Thy thoughts. The plural of tbvrm, from the verb bvr, to meditate, to count,
to weave; and this last word gives a good idea of what is here made the subject of
admiration and praise, the wonderful intricacy and contrivance with which the
Divine Mind designs and executes his plans, till at length the result is seen in a
beautifully woven tissue of many delicately mingled and coloured threads. â€”
Christopher Wordsworth.
Ver. 5. Thy thoughts are very deep. Verily, my brethren, there is no sea so deep as
these thoughts of God, who maketh the wicked flourish, and the good suffer:
nothing so profound, nothing so deep; therein every unbelieving soul is wrecked, in
that depth, in that profundity. Dost thou wish to cross this depth? Remove not from
the wood of Christ's cross; and thou shalt not sink: hold thyself fast to Christ. â€”
Augustine.
6 Senseless people do not know,
fools do not understand,

BAR ES, "A brutish man knoweth not - A man who is stupid, and who is like
the beasts or brutes; that is, a man whose tastes and propensities are like the brutes, or
who does not seem to act as if endowed with a rational nature. The idea evidently is, that
there are many such people, and that it is not to be wondered at that they have no
exalted idea of the greatness of God. As a matter of fact there are many in human form -
many made in the image of God - who seem to have no more notion of God, and who see
no more wisdom and goodness in his works, than the horse or the ox. Compare Isa_1:3.
Neither doth a fool understand this - A fool, in the sense that he has been made
foolish and stupid by sin; that he does not worship and honor God. He has no right
understanding in regard to the Maker and the Governor of the universe.
CLARKE, "A brutish man knoweth not - ‫בער‬ ‫איש‬ ish baar, the human hog - the
stupid bear - the boor; the man who is all flesh; in whom spirit or intellect neither seems
to work nor exist. The brutish man, who never attempts to see God in his works.
Neither doth a fool understand this - ‫כסיל‬ kesil, the fool, is different from ‫בער‬
baar, the brutish man; the latter has mind, but it is buried in flesh; the former has no
mind, and his stupidity is unavoidable.
GILL, "A brutish man knoweth not,.... The lovingkindness of the Lord, and his
faithfulness, nor how to show them forth, nor his great works and deep thoughts; man
was made originally far above the brute creatures, and had them all under his dominion;
but, sinning, became like the beasts that perish; and is in Scripture often compared to
one or other of them, as the horse, ass, &c. a brutish man is one that only knows things
naturally, as brute beasts do, and in which also he corrupts himself; he is governed by
sense, and not by reason, and much less by faith, which he has not; one that indulges his
sensual appetite, whose god is his belly, and minds nothing but earth and earthly things;
and, though he has an immortal soul, has no more care of it, and concern about it, than a
beast that has none; he lives like one, without fear or shame; and in some things acts
below them, and at last dies, as they do, without any thought of, or regard unto, a future
state:
neither doth a fool understand this; what is before said, or else what follows in the
next verse, as Jarchi and others interpret it, concerning the end and event of the
prosperity of the wicked; Arama interprets it of the Gentiles not knowing this law of the
land, the sabbath, and so rejected it: a "fool" is the same with the "brutish" man, one that
is so, not in things natural and civil, but in things moral, spiritual, and religious.
HE RY, " We are admonished not to neglect the works of God, by the character of
those who do so, Psa_92:6. Those are fools, they are brutish, who do not know, who do
not understand, how great God's works are, who will not acquaint themselves with them,

Psalm 92 commentary

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