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*H Of understanding, for Ethan the Ezrahite.
Ver. 1. Ezrahite. Sept. &c. "Israelite," as in the former psalm. The Jews think that Ethan or Eman lived during the Egyptian bondage. But this psalm was rather composed by one of the captives at Babylon who bewails the destruction of the kingdom of Juda, under Sedecias. After he had detailed the promises of God, (v. 39. C.) David might write it in the person (H.) of Ethan, or Idithun. 1 Par. xxv. and 3 Kings. iv. 31. W. — Most of the Fathers explain it of Christ's kingdom. See Ps. cxxxi. 11. Jer. xxxiii. 17. C. — The sceptre or administration of affairs was to continue in the tribe of Juda till his coming, as it really did, though kings were not always at the head of the people. Bert.
*H The mercies of the Lord I will sing for ever. I will shew forth thy truth with my mouth to generation and generation.
Ver. 2. The. Sept. and Houbig. "Thy mercies, Lord." — Truth. Notwithstanding our distress, I know thou wilt perform thy promises. C.
*H For thou hast said: Mercy shall be built up for ever in the heavens: thy truth shall be prepared in them.
Ver. 3. For thou. Heb. "I." Yet S. Jerom agrees with the Sept. (Bert.) though he is quoted by Calmet as conformable with Aquila, &c. Dixi. — Heaven and earth shall pass away sooner than God's word. H. — If we do not see how his promises are accompanied we must confess our ignorance, or throw the blame on the sins of the nation: but never call in question the divine mercy. C. — Truth. I will perform what I have promised to thee. M. — The apostles, represented by the heavens, have, by their preaching, established by the Church for ever. W. — In them, is not in the Sept. S. Aug. &c. C. — Houbigant would remove Dixisti, "for thou," &c. to v. 4. H.
* Footnotes
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2_Kings
7:12
And when thy days shall be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of the bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
*H I have made a covenant with my elect: I have sworn to David my servant:
Ver. 4. Elect. Abraham, and the whole body of the people to whom the Messias had been promised. David was assured that he should spring from his family, v. 52. C.
*H Thy seed will I settle for ever. And I will build up thy throne unto generation and generation.
Ver. 5. Generation. David's posterity occupied the throne for a long time, (H.) and subsisted till the coming of Christ; so that if any conqueror of that family had then appeared, the Jews would not have hesitated to admit, that this prediction was fulfilled. It is there misfortune to understand the text in this sense, whereas God spoke of the spiritual kingdom of his Son, which is to be perpetual. They can never answer the argument which the Fathers urged in the 4th century, and which has attained fresh strength from the longer duration of misery under which the royal family of David has been depressed. It is plain, that it has enjoyed no power from many ages, and as God's word is invariable, He could not have promised an everlasting earthly dominion. Bert. — The temporal kingdom of David decayed at the captivity, and is now wholly destroyed. But Christ was of this family, and established the Church, his spiritual kingdom, which shall continue unto the end. W. — His ministers exercise a power, which is founded on truth and justice. See 2 K. vii. 9. C.
*H The heavens shall confess thy wonders, O Lord: and thy truth in the church of the saints.
Ver. 6. Saints. These alone, (H.) the heavens or angels, worthily proclaim thy praises. H. — Preachers announce the same in the Church, (S. Aug.) "the communion of saints," as none are found out of her society. H.
*H For who in the clouds can be compared to the Lord: or who among the sons of God shall be like to God?
Ver. 7. Sons. Angels (C.) to God the Son. None is like him. S. Jer. — Lucifer fell by aiming at it. I will be like to the Most High. Is. xiv. 14.
*H God, who is glorified in the assembly of the saints: great and terrible above all them that are about him.
Ver. 8. About. God eclipses every created beauty. H. — The angels themselves tremble before him. C.
*H O Lord God of hosts, who is like to thee? thou art mighty, O Lord, and thy truth is round about thee.
Ver. 9. Truth. He often praises this attribute, as if to excuse himself for asking, why God had debased the throne of David? C. — God cannot be divested of this perfection. D.
* Summa
*S Part 1, Ques 25, Article 1
[I, Q. 25, Art. 1]
Whether There Is Power in God?
Objection 1: It seems that power is not in God. For as primary matter is to power, so God, who is the first agent, is to act. But primary matter, considered in itself, is devoid of all act. Therefore, the first agent--namely, God--is devoid of power.
Obj. 2: Further, according to the Philosopher (Metaph. vi, 19), better than every power is its act. For form is better than matter; and action than active power, since it is its end. But nothing is better than what is in God; because whatsoever is in God, is God, as was shown above (Q. 3, A. 3). Therefore, there is no power in God.
Obj. 3: Further, Power is the principle of operation. But the divine power is God's essence, since there is nothing accidental in God: and of the essence of God there is no principle. Therefore there is no power in God.
Obj. 4: Further, it was shown above (Q. 14, A. 8; Q. 19, A. 4) that God's knowledge and will are the cause of things. But the cause and principle of a thing are identical. We ought not, therefore, to assign power to God; but only knowledge and will.
_On the contrary,_ It is said: "Thou art mighty, O Lord, and Thy truth is round about Thee" (Ps. 88:9).
_I answer that,_ Power is twofold--namely, passive, which exists not at all in God; and active, which we must assign to Him in the highest degree. For it is manifest that everything, according as it is in act and is perfect, is the active principle of something: whereas everything is passive according as it is deficient and imperfect. Now it was shown above (Q. 3, A. 2; Q. 4, AA. 1, 2), that God is pure act, simply and in all ways perfect, nor in Him does any imperfection find place. Whence it most fittingly belongs to Him to be an active principle, and in no way whatsoever to be passive. On the other hand, the notion of active principle is consistent with active power. For active power is the principle of acting upon something else; whereas passive power is the principle of being acted upon by something else, as the Philosopher says (Metaph. v, 17). It remains, therefore, that in God there is active power in the highest degree.
Reply Obj. 1: Active power is not contrary to act, but is founded upon it, for everything acts according as it is actual: but passive power is contrary to act; for a thing is passive according as it is potential. Whence this potentiality is not in God, but only active power.
Reply Obj. 2: Whenever act is distinct from power, act must be nobler than power. But God's action is not distinct from His power, for both are His divine essence; neither is His existence distinct from His essence. Hence it does not follow that there should be anything in God nobler than His power.
Reply Obj. 3: In creatures, power is the principle not only of action, but likewise of effect. Thus in God the idea of power is retained, inasmuch as it is the principle of an effect; not, however, as it is a principle of action, for this is the divine essence itself; except, perchance, after our manner of understanding, inasmuch as the divine essence, which pre-contains in itself all perfection that exists in created things, can be understood either under the notion of action, or under that of power; as also it is understood under the notion of _suppositum_ possessing nature, and under that of nature. Accordingly the notion of power is retained in God in so far as it is the principle of an effect.
Reply Obj. 4: Power is predicated of God not as something really distinct from His knowledge and will, but as differing from them logically; inasmuch as power implies a notion of a principle putting into execution what the will commands, and what knowledge directs, which three things in God are identified. Or we may say, that the knowledge or will of God, according as it is the effective principle, has the notion of power contained in it. Hence the consideration of the knowledge and will of God precedes the consideration of His power, as the cause precedes the operation and effect. _______________________
SECOND
*H Thou rulest the power of the sea: and appeasest the motion of the waves thereof.
Ver. 10. Power. Heb. "pride." Thou canst raise a storm, or restore a calm. C.
*H Thou hast humbled the proud one, as one that is slain: with the arm of thy strength thou hast scattered thy enemies.
Ver. 11. Proud one. Heb. Rahab, Egypt or Pharao, Ps. lxxxvi. 4. Is. li. 9. C. He alludes to the plagues inflicted on the Egyptians, &c. W.
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Genesis
1:2
And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters.
*H The north and the sea thou hast created. Thabor and Hermon shall rejoice in thy name:
Ver. 13. Sea. Heb. "the right," (C). which here denotes the south, (Ps. cvi. 3. M.) as Hermon may do the east, (D.) with reference to Thabor, which lies to the west, though this seems unusual. C. Bert. — The north, &c. more probably refers to the limits of the promised land, from Libanus to the Indian or Mediterranean sea; and from Hermon, on the north-eastern part, to Thabor, on the west. H. — These two mountains were particularly fertile, and seemed to rejoice. Bert. — They "shall praise thy name," ευφημησουσι. Sym. H.
*H Thy arm is with might. Let thy hand be strengthened, and thy right hand exalted:
Ver. 14. Might. Others can make no resistance with all their armies.
*H Justice and judgment are the preparation of thy throne. Mercy and truth shall go before thy face:
Ver. 15. Preparation. Heb. "basis." — Face. Like guards. M. — He extols the mercy, and still more the fidelity of God. C. — Whether he punished, or reward, all tends to promote his glory, and is perfectly just. W.
*H Blessed is the people that knoweth jubilation. They shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance:
Ver. 16. Jubilation. Heb. "how to sound the trumpet," which was the office of priests. They marched near the ark, as it were under the eyes of God. C. — Those who consider, and adore the ways of Providence, are blessed, (W.) and secure. M.
*H For thou art the glory of their strength: and in thy good pleasure shall our horn be exalted.
Ver. 18. Horn. Power and kingdom. W. — He speaks like a virtuous Levite, who acknowledges that all good came from the Lord. H. — He cannot speak of temporal blessings alone. Bert.
*H For our protection is of the Lord, and of our king the holy one of Israel.
Ver. 19. Israel. The Lord our king, (1 K. viii. 7.) will protect us, (H.) or He will defend our King David, and his posterity, as he then promised to him, v. 5. 20. These verses may be thus connected, as the psalmist had been led to praise the wonderful works of God, and now returns to his promises. Bert.
*H Then thou spokest in a vision to thy saints, and saidst: I have laid help upon one that is mighty, and have exalted one chosen out of my people.
Ver. 20. Then, may relate to a distant time, when God chose Israel. M. — Saints. Heb. "merciful ones." Samuel, or Nathan, Sept. Arab. &c. have "sons." The rest read "saints." S. Jer. — People. As Moses had written. Deut. xvii. 15. C. — This regards David, as a figure of the Messias, (Lu. i. 32. Ezec. xxxiv. 23. Bert.) in whom it was more fully verified, 2 K. v. Acts xiii. 22. W.
* Footnotes
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1_Kings
16:1
And the Lord said to Samuel: How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and come, that I may send thee to Isai, the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons.
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1_Kings
16:12
He sent therefore and brought him. Now he was ruddy and beautiful to behold, and of a comely face. And the Lord said: Arise, and anoint him, for this is he.
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Acts
13:22
And when he had removed him, he raised them up David to be king: to whom giving testimony, he said: I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man according to my own heart, who shall do all my wills.
*H I have found David my servant: with my holy oil I have anointed him.
Ver. 21. Oil. Sept. Vat. has, "mercy," and is followed by S. Jerom in Ezec. lv. 3. C. — But is a mistake, ελεει βεινγ πυτ φορ ελαιω. Bert.
*H The enemy shall have no advantage over him: nor the son of iniquity have power to hurt him.
Ver. 23. Him. The Jews contributed to the glory of Christ, and the redemption of mankind. The enemies of David fell before his feet. C.
*H And I will set his hand in the sea; and his right hand in the rivers.
Ver. 26. Rivers. Of his kingdom there shall be no end. Lu. i. 33. Zac. ix. 10. H. — Every nation shall adore him. David extended his conquests over all Arabia, and from the Pelusium to the Euphrates. C. — In this sense, the text may be applied to him, though it belongs more to Christ. M.
*H He shall cry out to me: Thou art my father: my God, and the support of my salvation.
Ver. 27. Father. We never find that David used this title; (D.) but Christ did frequently, insomuch that the Jews were convinced, that he claimed the divine nature: though, as man, he called God his support. Bert. Is. lxiii. 16.
* Summa
*S Part 1, Ques 33, Article 2
[I, Q. 33, Art. 2]
Whether This Name "Father" Is Properly the Name of a Divine Person?
Objection 1: It would seem that this name "Father" is not properly the name of a divine person. For the name "Father" signifies relation. Moreover "person" is an individual substance. Therefore this name "Father" is not properly a name signifying a Person.
Obj. 2: Further, a begetter is more common than father; for every father begets; but it is not so conversely. But a more common term is more properly applied to God, as stated above (Q. 13, A. 11). Therefore the more proper name of the divine person is begetter and genitor than Father.
Obj. 3: Further, a metaphorical term cannot be the proper name of anyone. But the word is by us metaphorically called begotten, or offspring; and consequently, he of whom is the word, is metaphorically called father. Therefore the principle of the Word in God is not properly called Father.
Obj. 4: Further, everything which is said properly of God, is said of God first before creatures. But generation appears to apply to creatures before God; because generation seems to be truer when the one who proceeds is distinct from the one whence it proceeds, not only by relation but also by essence. Therefore the name "Father" taken from generation does not seem to be the proper name of any divine person.
_On the contrary,_ It is said (Ps. 88:27): "He shall cry out to me: Thou art my Father."
_I answer that,_ The proper name of any person signifies that whereby the person is distinguished from all other persons. For as body and soul belong to the nature of man, so to the concept of this particular man belong this particular soul and this particular body; and by these is this particular man distinguished from all other men. Now it is paternity which distinguishes the person of the Father from all other persons. Hence this name "Father," whereby paternity is signified, is the proper name of the person of the Father.
Reply Obj. 1: Among us relation is not a subsisting person. So this name "father" among us does not signify a person, but the relation of a person. In God, however, it is not so, as some wrongly thought; for in God the relation signified by the name "Father" is a subsisting person. Hence, as above explained (Q. 29, A. 4), this name "person" in God signifies a relation subsisting in the divine nature.
Reply Obj. 2: According to the Philosopher (De Anima ii, text 49), a thing is denominated chiefly by its perfection, and by its end. Now generation signifies something in process of being made, whereas paternity signifies the complement of generation; and therefore the name "Father" is more expressive as regards the divine person than genitor or begettor.
Reply Obj. 3: In human nature the word is not a subsistence, and hence is not properly called begotten or son. But the divine Word is something subsistent in the divine nature; and hence He is properly and not metaphorically called Son, and His principle is called Father.
Reply Obj. 4: The terms "generation" and "paternity" like the other terms properly applied to God, are said of God before creatures as regards the thing signified, but not as regards the mode of signification. Hence also the Apostle says, "I bend my knee to the Father of my Lord Jesus Christ, from whom all paternity in heaven and on earth is named" (Eph. 3:14). This is explained thus. It is manifest that generation receives its species from the term which is the form of the thing generated; and the nearer it is to the form of the generator, the truer and more perfect is the generation; as univocal generation is more perfect than non-univocal, for it belongs to the essence of a generator to generate what is like itself in form. Hence the very fact that in the divine generation the form of the Begetter and Begotten is numerically the same, whereas in creatures it is not numerically, but only specifically, the same, shows that generation, and consequently paternity, is applied to God before creatures. Hence the very fact that in God a distinction exists of the Begotten from the Begetter as regards relation only, belongs to the truth of the divine generation and paternity. _______________________
THIRD
*H And I will make him my firstborn, high above the kings of the earth.
Ver. 28. First-born. Or favourite. Ex. iv. 22. and Jer. xxxi. 9. What king could be preferred to David for piety, riches, &c.? Yet he was only a feeble type of our Saviour, who surpasses all kings, as much as the reality does a shadow. C. Col. i. 15. Rom. viii. 29. Apoc. i. 5. Bert. — High. Heb. helyon, which is one of the titles of God, and belongs to Christ, (H.) who is King of kings, and heir of all. Heb. i. M.
*H And I will make his seed to endure for evermore: and his throne as the days of heaven.
Ver. 30. Heaven. This can only be verified in Christ, who rules over all, and gives power to his Church unto the end. The family of David has been confounded with the rest of the nation for nearly 2,000 years. C. — The temporal dominion of those princes has ceased in Jechonias, (D.) like that of other monarchs; so that God had in view a different throne, (Bert. v. 5.) and the Messias, who would render the kingdom of David perpetual, (M.) in a spiritual sense. H.
*H And if his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments:
Ver. 31. And if. God foresaw the prevarications of the Israelites and Christians: But he speaks this to shew their free-will, and that he would treat them as children, (Bert.) and not with the utmost severity, (C.) unless they proved obstinate. 2 K. vii. 14. H. — Some shall always continue faithful, and shall be glorified, while the bad shall be cast away. S. Aug. — Christ will never lose his Church. W.
*H But my mercy I will not take away from him: nor will I suffer my truth to fail.
Ver. 34. From him. David. Many ancient psalters read, "from them." C. — God, by degrees, punished the Jews, by depriving them of their kings; though the family of David was preserved, and some share of power remained till Christ's coming. Bert.
*H Once have I sworn by my holiness: I will not lie unto David:
Ver. 36. Holiness. Or by myself , having nothing greater. Heb. vi. 13. C. — I will not. Lit. "if I lie," which is a Heb. idiom, (Bert.) implying as much. W. — I have sworn irrecoverably, once for all. M.
* Footnotes
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2_Kings
7:16
And thy house shall be faithful, and thy kingdom for ever before thy face, and thy throne shall be firm for ever.
*H And his throne as the sun before me: and as the moon perfect for ever, and a faithful witness in heaven.
Ver. 38. Witness. Which may refer to the throne, or to the sun, (C.) or to the rainbow. Bert. D. — As long as the stars subsist, so long shall his throne be established. C. — The Church shines like the sun, and is easily known. Bert. — God, (Euseb.) or Christ, attests the promises. S. Jer. Is. lv. 4. Apoc. i. 5. — The rainbow was assigned as a memorial, that the world should no more be drowned. Gen. ix. The other covenants made by God have no less stability. H. — Christian souls may shine in virtue, like the sun, or full moon, (W.) particularly (H.) after the resurrection, when they will be perfect, and not liable to change. S. Aug.
*H But thou hast rejected and despised: thou hast been angry with my anointed.
Ver. 39. Rejected. In all kingdoms, there are some interruptions, and God did not fail in his promises. He still maintained the sceptre in Juda, though not with the same splendour at all times. Bert. — Angry. Or Lit. "hast deferred." Distulisti. H. — The Israelites ardently wished for the coming of the Messias. The psalmist here contrasts the present forlorn condition of the people with the preceding promises; and bewails the fate of Sedecias, who was slain at a distance from home. Distulisti. See Ps. lxxvii. 21. and lxii. C. — Thou hast been angry with thy Christ, (king Sedecias) and even with our Redeemer, in some sense, (C.) as He was treated thus, in consequence of the sins of mankind. Euseb. &c. — The promises were not fulfilled in David, that we may look farther. Solomon seemed to answer all his expectations. But he fell, and God had not him but Christ in view. The kingdom and sacrifices of the Jews are no more. Christ was not taken from them, but deferred. Some Jews and many Gentiles believed in him, v. 47. &c. S. Aug. W. — Anointed. Thou hast despised us, and delayed the coming of the Messias. We cannot accuse the psalmist of impatience, as a late commentator has done, his words being dictated by the Holy Ghost. He expostulates with love and confidence, (Bert.) and comforts himself with the thought, that the coming of the Messias is only delayed. W.
*H Thou hast overthrown the covenant of thy servant: thou hast profaned his sanctuary on the earth.
Ver. 40. Overthrown the covenant, &c. All this seems to relate to the time of the captivity of Babylon, in which, for the sins of the people and their princes, God seemed to have set aside for a while the covenant he had made with David. Ch. — Yet he did not in effect, v. 39. H. — Sanctuary. The temple, (Theod.) or according to the Heb. "the diadem," by which the king was "set apart" from the common people, and rendered sacred. Ps. cxxxi. 18. Bert. — The psalmist speaks in the person of the weak, who complained, (W.) that the kingdom was a prey to invaders, and the Church oppressed by infidels. W. T.
*H Thou hast broken down all his hedges: thou hast made his strength fear.
Ver. 41. Fear. All his forts can afford no refuge. The country is like an abandoned vineyard. The Assyrians and Chaldees have ruined it, and the neighbouring nations of Samaria and Edom take possession of it. C. — Thou leadest on their armies, and renderest our efforts useless. M. — This conduct of God proceeded from mercy. This severe chastisement awakened his people, who after the captivity were more tractable. Chal. Bert. C.
*H Thou hast made his purification to cease: and thou hast cast his throne down to the ground.
Ver. 45. Cease. The priests are absent; and he cannot be purified in the temple. — Purification may here denote the royal ornaments. Pagn. C. M.
*H Thou hast shortened the days of his time: thou hast covered him with confusion.
Ver. 46. Time. Heb. &c. "youth." S. Jer. H. — Joachim was only seventeen years old when he came to the throne, which he occupied three months. Amama. — The four last kings of Juda reigned but a short while, and most of them came to an untimely end. Instead of χρονου, the Rom. Sept. S. Aug. &c. read θρονου, "of his throne," or reign. C. — The Vulg. seems more natural, as the throne of David had subsisted above 400 years, so that it was not overturned in "its youth," or commencement, though the number of ages, promised to it, seemed now to be abridged. Bert.
*H How long, O Lord, turnest thou away unto the end? shall thy anger burn like fire?
Ver. 47. How long. Here the third part, or the prayer of the psalmist, begins. C. — Away. Another interrogation might then commence, "shall it be unto the end?" H. — In this prayer he foretells that God will regard our weakness, and preserve his Church. W.
*H Remember what my substance is: for hast thou made all the children of men in vain?
Ver. 48. Remember what. Heb. ani, "I." As this seems odd, Houbigant substitutes, adni, "Lord." Bert. — Substance is. That Christ will assume our nature, (S. Aug. de Civ. Dei. xvii. 9. 11.) or "how long I shall live." Mont. — Even the world "passes" like a shadow. 1 Cor. vii. Amama. — "Be mindful of me from the depth: else why hast thou in vain created the sons of men?" S. Jer. H. — In vain. To spend their days in misery? or rather, "are not all created subject to vanity?" If thou do not succour us, we shall presently perish, and who will glorify thy name on earth? Ps. cxliii. 4. C. — Will thy providence take no care of us? Bert. — If the Messias come not, we cannot be saved, and we shall appear to have been created in vain. M.
* Footnotes
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2_Kings
7:11
From the day that I appointed judges over my people Israel: and I will give thee rest from all thy enemies. And the Lord foretelleth to thee, that the Lord will make thee a house.
*H Lord, where are thy ancient mercies, according to what thou didst swear to David in thy truth?
Ver. 50. David. He was a man according to thy own heart, and thy promises to him were absolute. Ethan speaks not of the other kings, or of the people, who might have justly irritated the Lord. He excuses their failings, by the consideration or their mortal and frail nature, v. 49. C.
*H Be mindful, O Lord, of the reproach of thy servants (which I have held in my bosom) of many nations:
Ver. 51. Nations. Who continually insult us, and blaspheme thy name. H. — This fills me with the most poignant grief. C. — Which, &c. Aquila and S. Jer. "For I have carried in my bosom all the iniquities of peoples." If we should read kul, "voice," for col, "all," which seems useless before rabim, "many," (H.) we might translate, "I bore in my bosom the discourse of many peoples." C.
*H Wherewith thy enemies have reproached, O Lord; wherewith they have reproached the change of thy anointed.
Ver. 52. Wherewith. Or "because," quod. H. — Change. Heb. also, "the supplanting or retardment." Why does not your Messias come? How are your kings fallen! though God had promised them an eternal kingdom! Boast no more of his power or veracity. This impious language disturbs me. C. — They deride the ignominious life of the Messias. Euseb. — Sedecias had "exchanged" the promised crown for irons, which was a cutting reproach. Bert. — Christ appeared to have left his people. W. — Infidels objected, that David's piety was ill requited by God, and that the anointed had made a bad exchange; ανταλλαγμα. Matt. xvi. 26. M.
*H Blessed be the Lord for evermore. So be it. So be it.
Ver. 53. So be it. Some suppose, that these words were added by the collector of the psalms into five books. C. — Here the third ends. H. — The psalmist loses not hope, under adversity. Bert. — He begins and finishes with God's praises. C. — We beg that all may praise thee, O Lord. W. — This is the only reply which he makes to the sarcasms of infidels, being convinced of God's providence. C.