Matthew Henry Commentary Psalms 38
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 38
Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalms 38
"O Jehovah, rebuke me not in thy wrath; Neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. For thine arrows stick fast in me, And thy hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine indignation; Neither is there any health in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over my head: As a heavy burden they are too heavy for me. My wounds are loathsome and corrupt, Because of my foolishness. I am pained and bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with burning; And there is no soundness in my flesh. I am faint and sore bruised: I have groaned by reason of the disquietness of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before thee; And my groaning is not hid from thee. My heart throbbeth, my strength faileth me: As for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me. My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my plague; And my kinsmen stand afar off." — Psalms 38:1-11 (ASV)
Nothing will trouble the heart of a good person as much as the sense of God's anger. The way to keep the heart quiet is to keep ourselves in the love of God. But a sense of guilt is too heavy to bear and would sink people into despair and ruin unless removed by the pardoning mercy of God.
If there were no sin in our souls, there would be no pain in our bones, no illness in our bodies. The guilt of sin is a burden to the whole creation, which groans under it. It will be a burden to sinners themselves when they are heavy-laden under it, or a burden of ruin when it sinks them to hell.
When we perceive our true condition, the Good Physician will be valued, sought, and obeyed. Yet many let their wounds rankle because they delay going to their merciful Friend. When, at any time, we are unwell in our bodies, we should remember how God has been dishonoured in and by our bodies. The groanings which cannot be uttered are not hidden from Him who searches the heart and knows the mind of the Spirit.
David, in his troubles, was a type of Christ in his agonies, of Christ on his cross, suffering and deserted.
"They also that seek after my life lay snares [for me]; And they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, And meditate deceits all the day long. But I, as a deaf man, hear not; And I am as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. Yea, I am as a man that heareth not, And in whose mouth are no reproofs. For in thee, O Jehovah, do I hope: Thou wilt answer, O Lord my God. For I said, Lest they rejoice over me: When my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me. For I am ready to fall, And my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin. But mine enemies are lively, [and] are strong; And they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied. They also that render evil for good Are adversaries unto me, because I follow the thing that is good. Forsake me not, O Jehovah: O my God, be not far from me. Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation. " — Psalms 38:12-22 (ASV)
Wicked men hate goodness, even when they benefit by it. David, in the complaints he makes of his enemies, seems to refer to Christ. But our enemies do us real mischief only when they drive us from God and our duty. The true believer's trouble will be made useful; he will learn to wait for his God, and will not seek relief from the world or himself.
The less we notice the unkindness and injuries that are done to us, the more we attend to the quiet of our own minds. David's troubles were the chastisement and the consequence of his transgressions, while Christ suffered for our sins and ours only. What right can a sinner have to yield to impatience or anger, when mercifully corrected for his sins?
David was very aware of the present workings of corruption in him. Good men, by setting their sorrow continually before them, have been ready to fall; but by setting God always before them, they have kept their standing. If we are truly penitent for sin, that will make us patient under affliction. Nothing goes nearer to the heart of a believer when in affliction, than to be under the fear of God deserting him; nor does anything come more feelingly from his heart than this prayer, Be not far from me. The Lord will hasten to help those who trust in him as their salvation.
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