Matthew Henry Commentary Psalms 3
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 3
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 3
"Jehovah, how are mine adversaries increased! Many are they that rise up against me. Many there are that say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah But thou, O Jehovah, art a shield about me; My glory and the lifter up of my head." — Psalms 3:1-3 (ASV)
An active believer, the more he is driven away from God, either by the rebukes of providence or the reproaches of enemies, the firmer hold he will take, and the closer he will cling to him. A child of God startles at the very thought of despairing of help in God. See what God is to his people, what he will be, what they have found him, and what David found in him:
- Safety; a shield for me; which denotes the advantage of that protection.
- Honour; those whom God claims as his have true honour bestowed upon them.
- Joy and deliverance. If, in the worst of times, God's people can lift up their heads with joy, knowing that all shall work for good to them, they will acknowledge God as giving them both cause and hearts to rejoice.
"I cry unto Jehovah with my voice, And he answereth me out of his holy hill. Selah I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for Jehovah sustaineth me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of the people That have set themselves against me round about. Arise, O Jehovah; save me, O my God: For thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone; Thou hast broken the teeth of the wicked. Salvation belongeth unto Jehovah: Thy blessing be upon thy people. Selah " — Psalms 3:4-8 (ASV)
Care and grief do us good when they lead us to pray to God earnestly. David had always found God ready to answer his prayers. Nothing can create a separation between the expressions of God's grace toward us and the working of His grace in us, or between His favor and our faith. He had always been very safe under divine protection. This is applicable to the common mercies of every night, for which we should give thanks every morning.
Many lie down and cannot sleep, due to pain of body, anguish of mind, or the continual alarms of fear in the night. But it seems here to refer instead to the calmness of David's spirit in the midst of his dangers. The Lord, by His grace and the consolations of His Spirit, gave him peace. It is a great mercy, when we are in trouble, to have our minds fixed on God.
Behold the Son of David composing Himself to His rest upon the cross, that bed of sorrows, commending His Spirit into the Father's hands in full confidence of a joyful resurrection. Behold this, O Christian: let faith teach you how to sleep and how to die, while it assures you that as sleep is a short death, so death is only a longer sleep; the same God watches over you in your bed and in your grave. David's faith became triumphant.
He began the psalm with complaints of the strength and malice of his enemies, but concludes with rejoicing in the power and grace of his God, and now sees more with him than against him. Salvation belongs to the Lord; He has power to save, however great the danger. All who have the Lord for their God are sure of salvation, for He who is their God is the God of Salvation.
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