John Calvin Commentary Psalms 27:13

"[I had fainted], unless I had believed to see the goodness of Jehovah In the land of the living." — Psalms 27:13 (ASV)

Unless I had believed to see the goodness of Jehovah. It is generally agreed among interpreters that this sentence is incomplete. Some, however, are of the opinion that the Hebrew particle לולא lulë, is used for the purpose of affirmation, as if it were a kind of oath. The Hebrews were accustomed to swear elliptically; for, by breaking off in the middle of their discourse and leaving it incomplete, they supplied an imprecation—namely, that God would punish them if they perjured themselves.

But the majority give a different interpretation: namely, that David intimates he was supported solely by faith; otherwise, he would have perished a hundred times. The meaning they elicit, accordingly, is: If I had not relied on the promise of God, and been firmly convinced that He would preserve me safely, and if I had not continued firm in this conviction, I would have utterly perished; there was no other remedy.

Some understand the land of the living to mean the heavenly inheritance, but this interpretation is forced and disagrees with the usual style of Scripture. When Hezekiah laments in his song recorded in Isaiah 38:11, that he had no hope of seeing God in the land of the living, he means, without any doubt, the present life, as he immediately adds, I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world. A similar form of speech also occurs in another place (Jeremiah 11:19). David then believed that he would still enjoy the goodness of God in this world, although he was now deprived of any experience of His favor and could see no spark of light.

From the darkness of death, therefore, he promised himself a view of the divine favor, and by this conviction his life was sustained, although, according to the judgment of carnal reason, it was past recovery and lost. However, it should be noted that David did not rashly go beyond the divine promise.

It is true that godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:8); but he would never have dared to entertain this conviction if he had not been informed by a special revelation, and assuredly been promised a successor who would always sit upon his throne (Psalms 132:11, 12). He was, therefore, justly convinced that he would not die until this promise was fulfilled.

Therefore, so that no one, by an unwarranted imitation of his example, should overstep the boundaries of faith, it is necessary to understand what was peculiar to him and does not apply to us. In general, however, we should all hope that, although God may not openly work deliverance for us, or show us His favor visibly, He will, nevertheless, always be merciful to us, even in the present life.