Charles Spurgeon

O LORD, I love the house where You dwell, the place where Your glory resides.

“Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house. Into the abodes of sin he would not enter, but the house of God he had long loved, and loved it still. We were sad children if we did not love our Father's dwelling place.”

Do not take my soul away with sinners, or my life with men of bloodshed,

“Gather not my soul with sinners. Lord, when, like fruit, I must be gathered, put me not in the same basket with the best of sinners, much less with the worst of them.”

in whose hands are wicked schemes, whose right hands are full of bribes.

“In whose hands is mischief. They have both hands full of it, plotting it and carrying it out. And their right hand, with which they are most dexterous, is full of bribes; like thieves who would steal with impunity, they carry a sop for the…”

But I will walk with integrity; redeem me and be merciful to me.

“Here is the lover of godliness entering his personal protest against unrighteous gain. He is a Nonconformist, and is ready to stand alone in his Nonconformity. Like a live fish, he swims against the stream.”

My feet stand on level ground; in the congregations I will bless the LORD.

“The song began in the minor, but it has now reached the major key. Saints often sing themselves into happiness.”

The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— whom shall I dread?

“The Lord is my light and my salvation. Here is personal interest, "my light, ""my salvation; " the soul is assured of it, and therefore, declaring it boldly.”

When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell.

“This verse records a past deliverance, and is an instance of the way in which experience should be employed to reassure our faith in times of trial. Each word is instructive. When the wicked.”

Though an army encamps around me, my heart will not fear; though a war breaks out against me, I will keep my trust.

“Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear. Before the actual conflict, while as yet the battle is untried, the warrior's heart, being held in suspense, is very liable to become fluttered.”

One thing I have asked of the LORD; this is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on…

“One thing. Divided aims tend to distraction, weakness, disappointment. The man of one book is eminent, the man of one pursuit is successful. Let all our affections be bound up in one affection, and that affection set upon heavenly things.”

For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high upon a…

“This verse gives an excellent reason for the psalmist's desire after communion with God, namely, that he was thus secured in the hour of peril.”

Then my head will be held high above my enemies around me. At His tabernacle I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to…

“And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me. He is quite sure of it. Godly men of old prayed in faith, nothing wavering, and spoke of their answer to their prayers as a certainty.”

Hear, O LORD, my voice when I call; be merciful and answer me.

“Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice. The pendulum of spirituality swings from prayer to praise. The voice which in the last verse was tuned to music is here turned to crying.”

My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek.

“In this verse we are taught that if we would have the Lord hear our voice, we must be careful to respond to his voice.”

Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation.

“IN times of distress it is somewhat a difficulty to have a choice of helpers, because while we are making our selection, the danger may have overtaken us. While the fox was considering which way to run, the hounds had seized him.”

Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation.

“Hide not thy face far from me. The word "far" is not in the original, and is a very superfluous addition of the translators, since even the least hiding of the Lord's face is a great affliction to a believer.”

Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.

“When my father and my mother forsake me. These dear relations will be the last to desert me, but if the milk of human kindness should dry up even from their breasts, there is a Father who never forgets.”

Teach me Your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path, because of my oppressors.

“Teach me thy way, O Lord. He does not pray to be indulged with his own way, but to be informed as to the path in which the righteous Jehovah would have him walk.”

Do not hand me over to the will of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence.

“Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies; or I should be like a victim cast to the lions, to be rent in pieces and utterly devoured.”

Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

“Faintness of heart is a common infirmity; even he who slew Goliath was subject to its attacks. Faith puts its bottle of cordial to the lip of the soul, and so prevents fainting. Hope is heaven's balm for present sorrow.”

Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the LORD!

“Wait on the Lord. Wait at his door with prayer; wait at his foot with humility; wait at his table with service; wait at his window with expectancy.”

To You, O LORD, I call; be not deaf to me, O my Rock. For if You remain silent, I will be like those descending to the Pit.

“Unto thee will I cry, O Lord, my rock. A cry is the natural expression of sorrow, and is a suitable utterance when all other modes of appeal fail us; but the cry must be alone directed to the Lord, for to cry to man…”

Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts.

“Draw me not away with the wicked. They shall be dragged off to hell like felons of old drawn on a hurdle to Tyburn, like logs drawn to the fire, like fagots to the oven.”

Repay them according to their deeds and for their works of evil. Repay them for what their hands have done; bring back on them what they deserve.

“When we view the wicked simply as such, and not as our fellow men, our indignation against sin leads us entirely to coincide with the acts of divine justice which punish evil, and to wish that justice might use her power to restrain by her…”

Since they show no regard for the works of the LORD or what His hands have done, He will tear them down and never rebuild them.

“Because they regard not the works of the Lord, nor the operation of his hands. God works in creation—nature teems with proofs of his wisdom and goodness, yet purblind atheists refuse to see him: he works in providence, ruling and overruling, and his hand is…”

Blessed be the LORD, for He has heard my cry for mercy.

“Blessed be the Lord. Saints are full of benedictions; they are a blessed people, and a blessing people; but they give their best blessings, the fat of their sacrifices, to their glorious Lord.”