John Calvin Commentary Psalms 132:15

"I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread." — Psalms 132:15 (ASV)

Blessing I will bless, etc. God’s dwelling in the midst of the people was the great source of their blessedness. Now, some of the proofs He would give of His fatherly regard are mentioned: preparing and administering their ordinary food, relieving their wants, clothing their priests with salvation, and filling all His people with joy and gladness.

It was necessary to add this, because unless we have visible proof of God’s goodness, we are not spiritual enough to rise to its apprehension. We have a twofold demonstration of it in the matter of our daily food: first, in the earth’s being enriched so as to furnish us with corn, and wine, and oil; and again, in the earth’s produce being multiplied through a secret power, so as to provide us with sufficient nourishment.

Here there is a promise that God would exercise special care over His own people to supply them with food, and that though they might not have a great abundance, the poor would still be satisfied. We must also mention the remarkable and ludicrous mistake that Roman Catholics have made concerning this passage. This mistake reveals the judicial stupidity under which they labor, to such an extent that there is nothing too absurd for them to accept.

By confusing two letters into one, for victus they read vidus, and then conjectured that this must be a corruption of viduas — Blessing I will bless her widows! Thus they made “widows” out of “food”—an extraordinary blunder, which we would scarcely believe if it were not a fact that they sing this out in their temples to this very day.

But God, who blesses the food of His own people, has deluded their minds and left them to confuse everything in their absurd daydreams and trivialities.

The inspired writer goes on to repeat what he had already said about other blessings; only the term salvation is used instead of righteousness, but in the same sense I previously mentioned. Some understand it to refer to purity of doctrine and holiness of life. However, this seems a forced interpretation, and he simply means that they would be safe and happy under divine protection.