สดุดี 35:8 วิจารณ์

David, in this psalm, appeals to the righteous Judge of heaven and earth against his enemies that hated and persecuted him. It is supposed that Saul and his party are the persons he means, for with them he had the greatest struggles. I. He complains to God of the injuries they did him; they strove with him, fought against him (Psa 35:1), persecuted him (Psa 35:3), sought his ruin (Psa 35:4, Psa 35:7), accused him falsely (Psa 35:11), abused him basely (Psa 35:15, Psa 35:16), and all his friends (Psa 35:20), and triumphed over him, (Psa 35:21, Psa 35:25, Psa 35:26). II. He pleads his own innocency, that he never gave them any provocation (Psa 35:7, Psa 35:19), but, on the contrary, had studied to oblige them (Psa 35:12-14). III. He prays to God to protect and deliver him, and appear for him (Psa 35:1, Psa 35:2), to comfort him (Psa 35:3), to be nigh to him and rescue him (Psa 35:17, Psa 35:22), to plead his cause (Psa 35:23, Psa 35:24), to defeat all the designs of his enemies against him (Psa 35:3, Psa 35:4), to disappoint their expectations of his fall (Psa 35:19, Psa 35:25, Psa 35:26), and, lastly, to countenance all his friends, and encourage them (Psa 35:27), IV. He prophesies the destruction of his persecutors (Psa 35:4-6, Psa 35:8). V. He promises himself that he shall yet see better days (Psa 35:9, Psa 35:10), and promises God that he will then attend him with his praises (Psa 35:18, Psa 35:28). In singing this psalm, and praying over it, we must take heed of applying it to any little peevish quarrels and enmities of our own, and of expressing by it any uncharitable revengeful resentments of injuries done to us; for Christ has taught us to forgive our enemies and not to pray against them, but to pray for them, as he did; but, 1. We may comfort ourselves with the testimony of our consciences concerning our innocency, with reference to those that are any way injurious to us, and with hopes that God will, in his own way and time, right us, and, in the mean time, support us. 2. We ought to apply it to the public enemies of Christ and his kingdom, typified by David and his kingdom, to resent the indignities done to Christ's honour, to pray to God to plead the just and injured cause of Christianity and serious godliness, and to believe that God will, in due time, glorify his own name in the ruin of all the irreconcilable enemies of his church, that will not repent to give him glory. A psalm of David.

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 35 A Psalm of David. This psalm seems to have been written by David, when he was persecuted by Saul; and when many false charges were brought against him by his courtiers; and when he was the scorn and derision of the people; the subject of it is pretty much of the same kind with the seventh psalm, and might be written about the same time that was, and on the same occasion; and it may be applied to the church and people of God in like cases. There is a passage in it, Psa 35:19, which our Lord seems to refer to and apply to himself, Joh 15:25; and some interpret the whole of it concerning him. The Arabic version calls it a prophecy of the incarnation; though there does not appear any thing in it applicable to that.

Let destruction come upon him at unawares,.... Or a "storm" (r), such as is caused in the eastern countries by a south wind, very sudden, violent, and destructive (s): the singular number being here used, some Jewish commentators, as Kimchi, have thought Saul is particularly meant; and some Christian interpreters have been of opinion that Judas is intended: the imprecations here may be compared with those which respect him, Psa 109:6. Though this may regard every one of the enemies of David, or of Christ and his people, whose ruin and destruction will come upon them unawares; see Th1 5:3; and let his net that he hath laid catch himself; a figurative expression, agreeable to the allusion before made, and which is explained in the next clause; into that very destruction let him fall, which he had designed and contrived for others; so Haman was hanged on the same gallows he had prepared for Mordecai; and so it often is in the course of Providence, that the wicked fall into the same calamity they have intended and endeavoured to bring others into; see Psa 7:15. (r) "tumultuosa calamitas", Cocceius; so Ainsworth; "tumultus", Vatablus. (s) See Thevenot, Tavernier, &c.

But yet what is to be done? "Without a cause have they hid for me the corruption of their trap." What means, "Without a cause"? I have done them no evil, I have hurt them not at all. "Vainly have they reviled my soul." What is, "Vainly"? Speaking falsely, proving nothing. "Let a trap come upon them which they know not of" [Psalm 35:8]. A magnificent retribution, nothing more just! They have hidden a trap that I might know not: let a trap come upon them which they know not of. For I know of their trap. But what trap is coming upon them? That which they know not of. Let us hear, lest haply he speak of that. "Let a trap come upon them, which they know not of." Perhaps that is one which they hid for him, that another which shall come upon themselves. Not so: but what? "The wicked shall be holden with the cords of his own sins." [Proverbs 5:22] Thereby are they deceived, whereby they would deceive. Thence shall come mischief to them, whence they endeavoured mischief. For it follows, "And let the net which they have hidden catch themselves, and let them fall into their own trap." As if any one should prepare a cup of poison for another, and forgetting should drink it up himself: or as if one should dig a pit, that his enemy might fall thereinto in the darkness and himself forgetting what he had dug, should first walk that way, and fall into it....

I think this speaks about the cross on which the devil falls unknowingly. For if he had known never would he have affixed the Lord of glory to the cross.

Consequently, when he says, "let the snare come upon him," etc., the punishment fitting the guilt is set forth; and this, because they are judged by the same judgment by which they wished to judge: Mt. 7: "With what judgment you judge, you shall be judged." They fraudulently intended his death; therefore the Psalmist asks against them, either conforming his will to the divine will, or foretelling. And he asks three things: namely, that a snare be prepared for them, that they be caught, and that they not escape. As to the first, he says, "let the snare come upon him," namely upon the people, or upon the one who is chief among them. This snare can be understood in three ways. Either as the snare of punishment, because on account of the death of Christ they were ensnared: Is. 8: "Many of them shall stumble and fall and be crushed and ensnared and caught"; because they are captives among all nations. "Which they did not know," he says, because they could not even suspect such a punishment: Lk. 21: "For there shall be great distress upon the land, and wrath upon this people; and they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations." Mt. 24: "For there shall be then great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall be." Or, of the snare of guilt: 1 Tim. 6: "Those who wish to become rich fall into temptation and into the snare of the Devil." As if to say: let the snare of guilt come upon him which he cannot foresee; because the sinner does not see that he is bound, but thinks he is doing his own will; but in truth he is ensnared, because Prov. 5: "He is bound by the cords of his own sins." Or, of the snare of justice; as if to say: let the snare come upon him, binding him to good. "Which they did not know," because 1 Cor. 2: "The natural man does not perceive the things that are of the Spirit." As to the second, he says, "and the trap which he hid, let it seize him," that is, let him be captured, just as he wished to capture me in secret. Prov. 5: "His own iniquities catch the wicked." As to the third, he says, "let him fall into the snare," that is, let him be cast down by the snare so that he cannot extricate himself from it, "into that very thing," that is, into the snare which he prepared for others. Ps. 9: "In his snare he will humble him; he will bow down and fall," etc. Thus it happened to the Jews, because they themselves delivered Christ to the Gentiles, and afterward they were delivered to the Gentiles.

The Psalmist invokes God's aid, contrasting the hypocrisy, cunning, and malice of his enemies with his integrity and generosity. The imprecations of the first part including a brief notice of their conduct, the fuller exposition of their hypocrisy and malice in the second, and the earnest prayer for deliverance from their scornful triumph in the last, are each closed (Psa 35:9-10, Psa 35:18, Psa 35:27-28) with promises of praise for the desired relief, in which his friends will unite. The historical occasion is probably 1Sa. 24:1-22. (Psa. 35:1-28) God is invoked in the character of a warrior (Exo 15:3; Deu 32:41).