Psalms 148:14

He also exalteth the horn of his people,.... Which is done when he increases their strength, their spiritual strength especially; makes them strong in the Lord, in his grace, and in the power of his

He also exalteth the horn of his people, the praise of all his saints; even of the children of Israel, a people near unto him. Praise ye the LORD.

Exalteth the horn of his people, to wit, above the horns of all the people in the world, in respect of their spiritual and eternal privileges, as it here follows. The horn in Scripture doth commonly note strength, victory, glory, and felicity, as , and everywhere. The praise; either, 1. He is the praise, as God is called, , to wit, the God of their praise, as , the chiefest object and matter of it: or, 2. Which is the praise; which work of God in exalting their horn is their glory, and maketh them praiseworthy, or obligeth and provoketh them in a singular manner to perform this great duty of praising God, which is so generally neglected by others. Near unto him, by special relation, and friendship, and covenant, and by familiar intercourses; God manifesting his face and favour to them, and they frequently and solemnly approaching into his presence, and worshipping him at his footstool.

Psalms 148:14 He also exalteth the horn of his people, the praise of all his saints; [even] of the children of Israel, a people near unto him. Praise ye the LORD.Ver. 14. He also exalteth the horn] i.e. He graceth them singularly. A people near unto him] And in that respect happy above all people on the earth, Deuteronomy 4:7; Deuteronomy 33:29, because in covenant with him and near allied to him, as the word here importeth.

(14) He hath . . .—Render, and he hath raised a horn for his people. Praise is for all His saints, for the sons of Israel, a people near Him.The raising of the horn evidently implies some victory, or assurance of victory, which, no doubt, gave the first impulse for this song of praise. (See Introduction). For the figure see Note, Psalms 75:4-5. The verse is a repetition of a frequent statement of the Psalms. While poetically all the universe, inanimate as well as animate, all men, heathen as well as Hebrews, can be called to sing “hallelujah,” it remains as it has ever been, the covenant privilege of Israel. This explanation disposes at once of the charge which has been brought against this verse of narrowing a grand universal anthem, and ending the psalm with an anti-climax.

Verse 14. He also exalteth the horn] Raises to power and authority his people. The praise] Jehovah is the subject of the praise of all his saints. A people near unto him.] The only people who know him, and make their approaches unto him with the sacrifices and offerings which he has himself prescribed. Praise ye the Lord! O what a hymn of praise is here! It is a universal chorus! All created nature have a share, and all perform their respective parts. All intelligent beings are especially called to praise him who made them in his love, and sustains them by his beneficence. Man particularly, in all the stages of his being - infancy, youth, manhood, and old age: all human beings have their peculiar interest in the great Father of the spirits of all flesh. He loves man, wheresoever found, of whatsoever colour, in whatever circumstances, and in all the stages of his pilgrimage from his cradle to his grave. Let the lisp of the infant, the shout of the adult, and the sigh of the aged, ascend to the universal parent, as a gratitude-offering. He guards those who hang upon the breast; controls and directs the headstrong and giddy, and sustains old age in its infirmities; and sanctifies to it the sufferings that bring on the termination of life. Reader, this is thy God! How great, how good, holy merciful, how compassionate! Breathe thy soul up to him; breathe it into him; and let it be preserved in his bosom till mortality be swallowed up of life, and all that is imperfect be done away. Jesus is thy sacrificial offering; Jesus is thy Mediator. He has taken thy humanity, and placed it on the throne! He creates all things new; and faith in his blood will bring thee to his glory! Amen! hallelujah! The beautiful morning hymn of Adam and Eve, (Paradise Lost, book v., line 153, c.,) - "These are thy glorious works, Parent of good Almighty, thine this universal frame," c. has been universally admired. How many have spoken loud in its praises, who have never attempted to express their feelings in a stanza of the hundred and forty-eighth Psalm! But to the rapturous adorers of Milton's poetry what is the song of David, or this grand music of the spheres! Know this, O forgetful man, that Milton's morning hymn is a paraphrase of this Psalm, and is indebted to it for every excellency it possesses. It is little else that the psalmist speaking in English instead of Hebrew verse. ANALYSIS OF THE HUNDRED AND FORTY-EIGHTH PSALM The psalmist calls upon the whole creation to he instrumental in praising God. By which he shows, - I. His ardent desire that God be praised. As if creatures, endowed with reason, were too few, therefore he calls on inanimate things to join and be heralds of his wondrous works. II. His intention what he would and could have done. III. That what could be done should be done. IV.

14. Israel’s special ground for praise. And he nath lifted up a horn for his people] He has once more given to Israel dignity and power. For the metaphor cp. Psalms 75:4; Psalms 89:17; Psalms 89:24; Psalms 92:10, note. The rendering of P.B.V., he shall exalt, is that of the LXX, ὑ ?øþóåé, and is adopted by some critics. But the tense expresses accomplished fact more naturally than confident anticipation. the praise of all his saints] Lit. a praise for all his beloved; best taken in apposition to the preceding clause to mean that this national restoration is a theme of praise for all the members of the covenant people. The words may however be in apposition to the subject of the verb, and refer to Jehovah: He … who is the praise &c.: cp. Deuteronomy 10:21, “He is thy praise.” So the LXX, paraphrased in P.B.V., “all his saints shall praise him.” a people near unto him] Jehovah was ‘near’ to Israel (Deuteronomy 4:7; Psalms 145:18); and Israel, as “a kingdom of priests” (Exodus 19:6), stood in a unique relation of nearness to Jehovah. Cp. Psalms 65:4, note; Numbers 16:5; Jeremiah 30:21. That relation, which seemed to have been interrupted by the Exile, has now been restored: Jehovah once more dwells in the midst of His people in the city of His choice. This verse is quoted verbatim in the Hebrew text of Sir 51:12 (15). See p. 777.

He also exalteth the horn of his people - He gives them power and prosperity. See the notes at Psalms 89:17 : “And in thy favor our horn shall be exalted.” Compare Psalms 92:10; Psalms 112:9.

14. He also exalteth the horn of his people… a people near unto him— The climax of Jehovah’s works, and of the praise due, is at length reached.