Psalms 18:35

Thou hast given me the shield of thy salvation,....

"Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation." Above all we must take the shield of faith, for nothing else can quench Satan's fiery darts; this shield is of celestial workmanship, and is in all cases a direct gift from God himself; it is the channel, the sign, the guarantee, and the earnest of perfect salvation. "Thy right hand hath holden me up." Secret support is administered to us by the preserving grace of God, and at the same time Providence kindly yields us manifest aid. We are such babes that we cannot stand alone; but when the Lord's right hand upholds us, we are like brazen pillars which cannot be moved. "Thy gentleness hath made me great." There are several readings of this sentence. The word is capable of being translated, "thy goodness hath made me great." David saw much of benevolence in God's action towards him, and he gratefully ascribed all his greatness not to his own goodness, but to the goodness of God. "Thy providence " is another reading, which is indeed nothing more than goodness in action. Goodness is the bud of which providence is the flower; or goodness is the seed of which providence is the harvest. Some render it, "thy help , " which is but another word for providence; providence being the firm ally of the saints, aiding them in the service of their Lord. Certain learned annotators tell us that the text means, "thy humility hath made me great." "Thy condescension " may, perhaps, serve as a comprehensive reading, combining the ideas which we have already mentioned, as well as that of humility. It is God's making himself little which is the cause of our being made great. We are so little that If God should manifest his greatness without condescension, we should be trampled under his feet; but God, who must stoop to view the skies and bow to see what angels do, looks to the lowly and contrite, and makes them great.

THERE are several interpretations of this text. A moment will suffice to give them to you. The word is capable of being translated, "Your goodness has made me great." David saw much of benevolence in God's action towards him and he gratefully ascribed all his greatness not to his own goodness, but to the goodness of God. "Your Providence" is another reading, which is, indeed, nothing more than goodness in action. Goodness is Providence in embryo— Providence is goodness fully developed.

THERE are several interpretations of this text. A moment will suffice to give them to you. The word is capable of being translated, "Your goodness has made me great." David saw much of benevolence in God's action towards him and he gratefully ascribed all his greatness not to his own goodness, but to the goodness of God. "Your Providence" is another reading, which is, indeed, nothing more than goodness in action. Goodness is Providence in embryo— Providence is goodness fully developed. Goodness is the bud of which Providence is the flower—or goodness is the seed of which Providence is the harvest. Some render it, "Your help," which is but another word for Providence. Providence is the firm ally of the saints, aiding them in the service of their Lord. Some learned annotators tell us that the text means, "Your humility has made me great." "Your condescension" may, perhaps, serve as a comprehensive reading, combining the ideas which we have already mentioned, as well as that of humility. It is God's making Himself little, which is the cause of our being made great. We are so little that if God should manifest His greatness without condescension, we should be trampled under His feet. But God, who must stoop to view the skies and bow to see what angels do, bends His eyes yet lower and looks to the lowly and contrite, and makes them great. While these are the translations which have been given to the adopted text of the original, we find that there are other readings. For instance, the Septuagint, which reads, "Your discipline"—Your fatherly correction—"has made me great." The Chaldee paraphrase reads, "Your word has increased me." Still the idea is the same. David ascribes all his own greatness to the condescending goodness and graciousness of his Father in Heaven.

Some repetitions are not vain repetitions. Second thoughts upon God's mercy should be and often are the best. Like wines on the lees our gratitude grows stronger and sweeter as we meditate upon divine goodness. The verses which we have now to consider are the ripe fruit of a thankful spirit; they are apples of gold as to matter, and they are placed in baskets of silver as to their language. They describe the believer's victorious career and his enemies' confusion.

The shield of thy salvation - In all battles and dangers God defended him. He was constantly safe because he possessed the salvation of God. Everywhere God protected him. Thy gentleness, ענותך anvathecha, thy meekness or humility. Thou hast enabled me to bear and forbear; to behave with courage in adversity, and with humility in prosperity; and thus I am become great. By these means thou hast multiplied me. The Vulgate reads, Disciplina tua ipsa me docebit; “And thy discipline itself shall teach me.” In this sense it was understood by most of the versions. The old Psalter paraphrases thus: Thi chastying suffers me noght to erre fra the end to com.

Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvations - Thou hast saved me as with a shield; thou hast thrown thy shield before me in times of danger. See the note at Psa 5:12. And thy right hand hath holden me up - Thou hast sustained me when in danger of failing, as if thou hadst upheld me with thine own hand. And thy gentleness hath made me great - Margin, “or, with thy meekness thou hast multiplied me.” The word here rendered gentleness, evidently means here favor, goodness, kindness. It commonly means humility, modesty, as applied to men; as applied to God, it means mildness, clemency, favor. The idea is, that God had dealt with him in gentleness, kindness, clemency, and that to this fact alone he owed all his prosperity and success in life. It was not by any claim which he had on God; it was by no worth of his own; it was by no native strength or valor that he had been thus exalted, but it was wholly because God had dealt kindly with him, or had showed him favor. So all our success in life is to be traced to the favor - the kindness - of God.