Psalms 89:17

THE Psalmist Ethan is here speaking of the Covenant people—the people of God, the people who know the joyful sound of the Covenant of Grace and who, therefore, walk in the Light of God's Countenance. It is said of these persons that God is the glory of their strength. All strength of every sort comes from God. Since He is the Author of all being, it is He who gives strength to every form of existence.

For thou art the glory of their strength. Surely in the Lord Jehovah have we both righteousness and strength. He is our beauty and glory when we are strong in him, as well as our comfort and sustenance when we tremble because of conscious weakness in ourselves. No man whom the Lord makes strong may dare to glory in himself, he must ascribe all honour to the Lord alone; we have neither strength nor beauty apart from him. And in thy favour our horn shall be exalted. By the use of the word our the Psalmist identifies himself with the blessed people, and this indicates how much sweeter it is to sing in the first person than concerning others. May we have grace to claim a place among those in covenant with God, in Christ Jesus, for then a sense of divine favour will make us also bold and joyous. A creature full of strength and courage lifts up its horn, and so also does a believer become potent, valiant, and daring. The horn was an eastern ornament, worn by men and women, or at least is so at this day, and by the uplifting of this the wearer showed himself to be in good spirits, and in a confident frame of mind: we wear no such outward vanities, but our inward soul is adorned and made bravely triumphant when the favour of God is felt by us. Worldly men need outward prosperity to make them lift up their heads, but the saints find more than enough encouragement in the secret love of God.

THE Psalmist Ethan is here speaking of the Covenant people—the people of God, the people who know the joyful sound of the Covenant of Grace and who, therefore, walk in the Light of God's Countenance. It is said of these persons that God is the glory of their strength. All strength of every sort comes from God. Since He is the Author of all being, it is He who gives strength to every form of existence. Read the remarkable chapters which close the Book of Job and see how God there claims to have given strength to the eagle in her lofty flight and to the horse when he paws in the valley— and leviathan and behemoth, those mighty creatures of the sea and the land! God claims to have given all the strength that there is in any of these members of the inferior creation and we are certain that He also lays an equally just claim to all the strength that there is in man. The power of the arms, the swiftness of the feet, the keenness of intellect—all these come from the Most High who has worked such wonders in the formation of the human frame! Whatever of vigor and capacity there may be in it, all must be traced to the almighty hand of God! Even the glory of man's physical strength, whether he knows it or not, belongs to God. He makes the young man vigorous and the full-grown man mature in strength, so He ought to have the service of the strength which He has, Himself, created! Equally is this true of all mental power. The craftsmen learn their art from God. Bezaleel and Aholiab were instructed of the Most High, "to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass," as truly as Moses was taught of God in the writing of the Law.

For thou art the glory of their strength - They are strong in faith, and give glory to thee, because they know that their strength cometh from the Lord of hosts. And in thy favor our horn shall be exalted - Instead of תרום tarum, “shall be exalted,” תרים tarim, “thou shalt exalt,” is the reading of several MSS.: but תרום tarum, “shall be exalted,” is supported by forty-four of Kennicott’s MSS., and sixty of De Rossi’s, as well as by several ancient editions, with the Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, and Arabic Versions. In the enjoyment of the Divine favor they shall grow more wise, more holy, more powerful, and, consequently, more happy.

For thou art the glory of their strength - The ornament; the beauty; the honor; that is, Their strength derives its beauty and honor, not from anything in themselves, but from the fact that it is derived from thee. The strength thus imparted is an honor or ornament in itself; it is an honor and glory to them that it is imparted to them. And in thy favor - Or, by thy favor, or good pleasure. Our horn shall be exalted - The horn is a symbol of power. Compare Psa 22:21, note; Psa 75:4; Dan 7:8, note; Job 16:15, note. The meaning here is, that their power had been derived from God; or that all which contributed to their exaltation and honor in the world, had been derived from him.