John Calvin Commentary Psalms 44:19

"That thou hast sore broken us in the place of jackals, And covered us with the shadow of death." — Psalms 44:19 (ASV)

Although thou hast broken us in the place of dragons. In the Hebrew it is, For thou hast broken us, etc.; but the causal particle, כי, ki, according to the idiom of the Hebrew language, is often taken in the sense of although or when. And certainly, it must be rendered so in this place, for these three verses are connected, and the sentence is incomplete until the end of the words, For he knoweth the secrets of the heart. The faithful repeat more extensively what we have already seen: namely, that although plunged into the greatest depth of miseries, they still continued steadfast in their resolution and in the right way.

If we consider the distressing circumstances in which they were placed, it will not appear to us as a hyperbolical mode of speech when they say that they were broken even within the depths of the sea. For by the place of dragons, I understand not the deserts and solitary places, but the deepest gulfs of the sea.

Accordingly, the word תנים, tannim, which others translate as dragons, I would rather render as whales, as it is also understood in many other places. This interpretation is obviously confirmed by the following clause, in which they complain that they had been covered with the shadow of death, which implies that they were swallowed up by death itself.

Let us, however, remember that in these words the Holy Spirit dictates to us a form of prayer. Therefore, we are enjoined to cultivate a spirit of invincible fortitude and courage, which may serve to sustain us under the weight of all the calamities we may be called to endure.

This is so that we may be able to testify truthfully that even when reduced to the extremity of despair, we have never ceased to trust in God; that no temptations, however unexpected, could expel His fear from our hearts; and finally, that we were never so overwhelmed by the burden of our afflictions, however great, as not to have our eyes always directed to Him.

But it is proper for us to notice still more particularly the style of speaking employed here by the faithful. To show that they still continued steadfastly in the pure service of God, they affirm that they have not lifted up their hearts or their hands to anyone but to the God of Israel alone.

It would not have been enough for them to have cherished some confused notion of the Deity; it was necessary that they should receive the true religion in its purity. Even those who murmur against God may be constrained to acknowledge some Divinity, but they frame for themselves a god according to their own pleasure.

And this is an artifice of the devil, who, because he cannot at once eradicate all sense of religion from our hearts, endeavors to overthrow our faith by suggesting these devices to our minds: that we must seek another God; or that the God whom we have until now served must be appeased in another manner; or else that the assurance of His favor must be sought elsewhere than in the Law and the Gospel.

Since, then, it is a much more difficult matter for people, amidst the tossings and waves of adversity, to continue steadfast and tranquil in the true faith, we must carefully observe the protestation which the Holy Fathers make here: that even when reduced to the lowest extremity of distress by calamities of every kind, they nevertheless did not cease to trust in the true God.

This they express still more clearly in the following clause, in which they say, We have not stretched out our hands to a strange god. By these words they intimate that, contented with God alone, they did not allow their hopes to be divided among different objects, nor did they gaze around them in search of other means of assistance.

Hence we learn that those whose hearts are thus divided and distracted by various expectations are forgetful of the true God, to whom we fail to yield the honor which is due to Him if we do not repose with confidence in Him alone. And certainly, in the true and rightful service of God, faith and the supplication which proceeds from it hold the first place, for we are guilty of depriving Him of the chief part of His glory when we seek our own welfare apart from Him in the least degree.

Let us then bear in mind that it is a true test of our piety when, being plunged into the lowest depths of disasters, we lift up our eyes, our hopes, and our prayers to God alone. And it only serves to demonstrate more convincingly and clearly the impiety of Popery when, after having confessed their faith in the one true God with their mouth, its votaries the next moment degrade His glory by ascribing it to created objects.

They indeed excuse themselves by alleging that, in having recourse to Saint Christopher and other saints of their own making, they do not claim for them the rank of Deity but only employ them as intercessors with God to obtain His favor. It is, however, well known to everyone that the form of the prayers which they address to the saints is in no respect different from those prayers which they present to God.

Besides, although we should yield this point to them, it will still be a frivolous excuse to pretend that they are seeking advocates or intercessors for themselves. This is as much as to say that Christ is not sufficient for them, or rather, that His office is wholly lost sight of among them.

Moreover, we should carefully observe the scope of this passage. The faithful declare that they did not stretch forth their hands to other gods, because it is an error too common among people to forsake God and to seek other means of relief when they find that their afflictions continue to oppress them.

So long as we are gently and affectionately treated by God, we resort to Him; but as soon as any adversity befalls us, we begin to doubt. And if we are pressed still further, or if there is no end to our afflictions, their very continuance tempts us to despair, and despair generates various kinds of false confidence.

Hence arises a multitude of new gods framed according to the fancy of people. Of the lifting up of the hands we have spoken elsewhere.