John Calvin Commentary Psalms 118:25

"Save now, we beseech thee, O Jehovah: O Jehovah, we beseech thee, send now prosperity." — Psalms 118:25 (ASV)

I beseech thee, O Jehovah! save me. As the term נא, na, in Hebrew is frequently used as an adverb of time, many render it in this place as now: Save, I beseech thee, now. It is also often used in the form of asking, and this is the meaning I attach to it, which fits very well with this passage. I am persuaded that the Holy Spirit, in repeating the same phrase, designed, by the mouth of the prophet, to stir up and stimulate the faithful to great earnestness and ardor in prayer. If any prefer a different interpretation, it will not be difficult to prevail on me to agree to it.

One thing is plain: a form of prayer is prescribed here to the chosen people, to seek prosperity for the kingdom of David, upon which the common safety of all depended. In these words, too, he protested that he held his kingdom by divine legation; therefore, those who would not agree to wish prosperity to his reign were unworthy of occupying a place in the Church.

In the following verse, a particular request is added, which the faithful must make: namely, that as God had thus appointed David to be the minister of his grace, so he would also bless him. Those are said to come in the name of the Lord, whom God employs for the welfare of his Church—such as prophets and teachers, whom he raises up to gather his Church, and generals and governors, whom he instructs by his Spirit. But as David was a type of Christ, his case was peculiar, as it was the will of God that his people should dwell under him and his successors until the advent of Christ.

The clause blessed is he that cometh, may be viewed as a form of congratulation. However, seeing that the benediction of the priests is immediately added, I am more inclined to believe that the people wished God’s grace and favor for David. To induce them to present this petition with more eagerness, and thus be encouraged to receive the king whom God appointed them, this promise is added, spoken by the priests: We bless you out of the house of the Lord.

They speak in this manner consistent with the nature of their office, which required them to bless the people, as appears from several passages in the books of Moses, and particularly from Numbers 6:23. It is not without reason that they connect the welfare of the Church with the prosperity of the kingdom, as they desired to suggest and represent that the safety of the people would continue as long as that kingdom flourished, and that they would all share in the blessings conferred on their king, because of the indissoluble connection that exists between the head and members.

Since we now know that when David was made king, the foundation of that everlasting kingdom (which was eventually manifested in the advent of Christ) was then laid, and that the temporal throne upon which the descendants of David were placed was a type of the eternal kingdom given to Christ by God his Father—as a result of which he obtained all power, both in heaven and on earth—there can be no doubt that the prophet calls upon the faithful to pray fervently and constantly for the prosperity and progress of this spiritual kingdom.

For it was the duty of those who lived during the shadowy dispensation to pray for David and his successors. But after all the grandeur of that kingdom was overthrown, they needed to entreat more ardently that God, in fulfillment of his promise, would re-establish it.

In short, all that is stated here properly relates to the person of Christ; and that which was dimly foreshadowed in David was brightly represented and fulfilled in Christ. David's election was secret; and after he was anointed by Samuel to be king, he was rejected by Saul and by all the leaders of the people, and all abhorred him as if he were a person deserving of a hundred deaths.

Thus disfigured and dishonored, he did not appear to be a fit stone for occupying a place in the building. Similar to this was the beginning of the kingdom of Christ, who, being sent by his Father for the redemption of the Church, was not only despised by the world but also hated and execrated, both by the common people and the dignitaries of the Church.

But it may be asked, how can the prophet designate as master-builders those who, far from wishing to protect the Church, aim at nothing less than the demolition of the entire structure? We know, for instance, with what vehemence the scribes and priests in Christ’s time labored to subvert all true piety. The reply is not difficult. David refers solely to the office they held, and not to the inclinations by which they were motivated. Saul and all his counselors were subverters of the Church, and yet, in relation to their office, they were chief-builders.

The Holy Ghost usually concedes to the ungodly the honorable titles belonging to their office, until God removes them from it. How abandoned, often, were the priests among the ancient people of God, and yet they retained the dignity and honor belonging to their office until they were stripped of it! Hence the words of Isaiah:

Who is blind, but my servant; and who is foolish, but he whom I have sent? (Isaiah 42:19)

Now, though their intention was to undermine the whole constitution of the Church, yet, as they were divinely called for a different object, he calls them the servants and the sent of God. In our day, also, the Pope and his filthy clergy, who usurp the title of the priesthood, nevertheless continue as the professed enemies of Christ. From this it follows that they are anything but God’s legitimate servants; and occupying the position of pastors—while they scatter the flock—their condemnation will be the greater.

Between them and the Levitical priests there is certainly a wide difference. However, as they are invested with the usual authority, there can be no harm in conceding the title to them, provided they do not use it as a cloak to conceal their vile tyranny. For if the mere title were sufficient to gain them personal reverence, then Christ must necessarily have been silenced, seeing that the priests rejected his doctrine.

This passage rather informs us that those who are entrusted with the office of ruling the Church sometimes prove to be the worst workmen. David, speaking by the Spirit, designates as chief-builders those who attempted to destroy the Son of God and the salvation of mankind, and by whom the worship of God was adulterated, religion wholly corrupted, and the temple of God profaned.

If, therefore, all who are clothed with the ordinary authority must be listened to without exception as legally appointed pastors, then Christ must not speak, because it very frequently happens that his bitterest enemies are concealed under the garb of pastors.

Here we see with what a strong and impregnable shield the Holy Ghost furnishes us against the empty boastings of the Papal clergy. Suppose they possess the name “chief-builders”; but if they disown Christ, does it necessarily follow that we must disown him also? Let us rather despise and trample under our feet all their decrees, and let us reverence this precious stone upon which our salvation rests.

By the expression is become the head of the corner, we are to understand the real foundation of the Church, which sustains the whole weight of the edifice, as it is necessary that the corners should form the main strength of buildings. I do not approve of the ingenious opinion of Augustine, who makes Christ the cornerstone because he united both Jews and Gentiles, thus making the corner the middle stone between the two different walls.

David then proceeds to repeat, at some length, as I have observed, that it is erroneous to estimate the kingdom of Christ by the sentiments and opinions of men, because, in spite of the world's opposition, it is erected in an astonishing manner by the invisible power of God.

In the meantime, we ought to remember that all that was accomplished in the person of Christ extends to the gradual development of his kingdom, even until the end of the world. When Christ lived on the earth, he was despised by the chief priests; and now, those who call themselves the successors of Peter and Paul, but who are truly Ananiases and Caiaphases, wage war like giants against the Gospel and the Holy Ghost.

Not that this furious rebellion should trouble us; let us rather humbly adore that wonderful power of God which reverses the perverse decisions of the world. If our limited understandings could comprehend the course God follows for the protection and preservation of his Church, there would be no mention of a miracle. From this we conclude that his mode of working is incomprehensible, baffling the understandings of men.

Was it necessary, it may be asked, that Christ should be reproached by the master-builders? It would certainly indicate a sad state of the Church if it never had any pastors except those who were deadly enemies to its welfare. When Paul styles himself “a master-builder,” he informs us that this office was common to all the apostles (1 Corinthians 3:10).

My answer therefore is that all who bear rule in the Church are not charged with perpetual blindness, but that the Holy Spirit addresses this stumblingblock, which, in other respects, often proves a hindrance to many when they witness the name of Christ surrounded by worldly splendor.

When God, for the purpose of making his glory shine forth more brightly, loosens Satan’s rein, so that those who are invested with power and authority reject Christ, then it is that the Holy Spirit tells us to be of good courage and, disregarding all these perverse decisions, receive with all respect the King whom God has placed over us.

From the first, we know that the master-builders have attempted to subvert the kingdom of Christ. The same thing is happening in our times, as those entrusted with the oversight of the Church make every attempt to overturn that kingdom, directing against it all the machinery they can devise.

But if we remember this prophecy, our faith will not fail but will be more and more confirmed, because from these things it will be more apparent that the kingdom of Christ does not depend on the favor of men, and that it does not derive its strength from earthly supports, just as he has not attained it by the approval of men.

If, however, the master-builders build well, the perverseness of those who will not permit themselves to be incorporated into the sacred edifice will be all the less excusable. Moreover, as often as we are put to the trial by this kind of temptation, let us not forget that it is unreasonable to expect the Church to be governed according to our own understanding, but that we are ignorant of its government, since that which is miraculous surpasses our comprehension.

The next clause, this is the day that God hath made, reminds us that there will be nothing but the reign of moral darkness until Christ the Sun of Righteousness illuminates us by his gospel. We are also reminded that this work is to be ascribed to God, and that mankind must not claim any merit for themselves on account of their own endeavors.

The call to gratitude, which immediately follows, is intended to warn us against yielding to the madness of our enemies, however furiously they rage against us, in order to deprive us of the joy Christ has brought to us. From him all our happiness is derived; consequently, there is no cause for surprise that all the ungodly fume with vexation and feel indignant that we should be elevated to such a pitch of joy as to suppress all the sorrows and soothe all the harshness of the trials we have to endure.

Prior to the advent of Christ, the prayer that follows was familiar to the people, and even to the children, for the Evangelists declare that Christ was received with this form of salutation. And certainly it was God’s will to confirm at that time the prediction he had spoken by the mouth of David. Or rather, that exclamation clearly demonstrates that the interpretation against which the Jews now protest loudly was unanimously admitted; and this makes their obstinacy and malice all the more inexcusable.

I do not blame them for their stupidity, since they purposely spread around them the mists of ignorance to blind themselves and others. And as the Jews never ceased to offer this prayer during that sad desolation and those hideous devastations, their perseverance should inspire us with new vigor in these days.

At that time they had not the honor of a kingdom, no royal throne, no standing except with God; and yet amid this deplorable and ruinous state of affairs, they adhered to the form of prayer formerly prescribed to them by the Holy Spirit. Instructed by their example, let us not fail to pray ardently for the restoration of the Church, which in our day is involved in sad desolation.

Besides, in these words, we are also informed that Christ’s kingdom is not upheld and advanced by human policy, but that this is the work of God alone, for the faithful are taught to confide solely in his blessing. Moreover, the very repetition of the words which, as we have observed, makes them more forceful, should arouse us from our lethargy and make us more intensely ardent in breathing forth this prayer.

God can, indeed, by himself, and independently of anyone's prayer, erect and protect the kingdom of his Son. But it is not without good cause that he has laid this obligation on us, as there is no duty more fitting for the faithful than that of earnestly seeking the advancement of his glory.