John Calvin Commentary Psalms 9:16

"Jehovah hath made himself known, he hath executed judgment: The wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah" — Psalms 9:16 (ASV)

The Lord is known in executing judgment. The literal reading of the words is this: The known Lord has done judgment. This manner of speech is abrupt, and its very brevity renders it obscure. It is therefore explained in two ways. Some explain it this way: God then begins to be known when He punishes the wicked.

But the other sense suits the passage better: namely, that it is obvious and manifest to all that God executes the office of judge as often as He ensnares the wicked in their own maliciousness. In short, whenever God turns back upon them whatever schemes of mischief they devise, David declares that in this case the divine judgment is so evident that what happens can be ascribed neither to nature nor to fortune.

If God, therefore, in this way manifestly displays, at any time, the power of His hand, let us learn to open our eyes, so that from the judgments He executes upon the enemies of His Church our faith may be confirmed more and more.

Regarding the word Higgaion, which properly signifies meditation, I cannot at present offer a better reason why it has been inserted than this: that David intended to fix the minds of the godly in meditation upon the judgments of God. The word Selah was intended to serve the same purpose and, as I have said before, regulated the singing in such a manner as to make the music correspond to the words and the sentiment.