Psalms 75

Psalms 75:9

9. We see not &c.] We see not any token of thy Divine presence with us, nor is there so much as a Proplet to give us advice or comfort, or to tell us when these calamities will have an end. Travell.

Psalms 75:11

11. — pluck it out of thy bosom.] That is, Exert thy power again for the destruction of thy enemies. Travell. The hand, when unemployed, was usually inserted in the folds of the garment on the bosom. See note at Ps. lxxix. 12.

Psalms 75:13

13. — thou brakest &c.] Thou didst confound the great and mighty enemies of Israel, in the Red sea. Bp. Hall. — dragons] See the note on Ps. xliv. 19.

Psalms 75:14

14. Thou brakest the heads &c.] “Leviathan” stands for Pharaoh, or the Egyptian power, represented by the Egyptian animal, the crocodile. The “heads” of leviathan are the princes of Egypt, the leaders of the Egyptian armies. And the “people inhabiting the wikderness,” to whom they were given for a prey, are the wild beasts haunting the deserts. Bp. Horne.

Psalms 75:17

17. — borders of the earth:] The boundaries of the earth, so that the sea cannot overwhelm them. See Jer. v. 22; Job xxxviii. s. 11. Rosenmuller.

Psalms 75:19

19. — thy turtledove] Thy church, which like a turtledove, simple, defenceless, solitary, meek, timid,

Psalms 75:20

20. Have respect unto &c.] Have regard unto the promises into which Thou didst enter with thy people: for now the land is full of rapine and cruelty, and every dark corner of it is a den of thieves and murderers. Bp. Patrick. This Psalm engages us to make these four principal reflections: 1. That the Church has been in all ages exposed to persecution; and therefore we ought not to wonder, if the Christian Church has been, and still is, sometimes persecuted. 2. That as God, to punish the Jews for their abuse of his service, suffered them to be led into captivity; for the same reasons He has often delivered his church into the hands of persecutors, with a design to try it, and to purify it. 3. When God appears the most provoked with his people, He does not quite forsake them, but always remembers his covenant, and delivers them at last. 4. As the Prophet was grieved for the calamities of the Jews, and prayed for their restoration, so Christians ought to be sensibly affected with the misfortunes of the church, and to pray continually for its deliverance and prosperity. Ostervald. Psalm LXXV. It is not improbable that this Psalm was composed by Asaph on the destruction of the Assyrian army under Sennacherib. Travell.