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Be merciful unto me, O God. Psalm 57 Spiritual experimentalism Homilist. I. A BLESSED RELIGIOUS EXERCISE. 1. Praying. "Be merciful unto me," etc. An epitome of all true prayer. Mercy is what we need; to remove our sense of guilt, to break our moral chains, to clear our spiritual vision, to quicken and harmoniously develop all the powers of our higher nature. 2. Trusting. "My soul trusteth in Thee." This implies — (1) A knowledge of the trustworthiness of God. (2) A supreme love for the excellency of God. 3. Resolving. "Yea, in the shadow," etc. God is the natural Protector of souls. 4. Hoping (ver. 3). All godly souls are in a waiting attitude. II. A WRETCHED SOCIAL CONDITION. Among savage, crafty and deadly enemies (vers. 4, 6). That men should feel thus to their fellow-men argues two things. 1. That morally they are in an abnormal condition. 2. That sin is essentially malignant. Sin, when it enters the soul, scorches all benevolent sympathy. Sin never fails to make its subject a tormenting devil. III. A HAPPY MORAL STATE. Moral fixation, or godly decision of soul, "My heart is fixed." In our unregenerate state the heart is unsettled, divided, distracted, and herein is its misery. This fixation originates — 1. High happiness. "I will sing and give praise. Awake, psaltery and harp," etc. 2. High worship. "I will praise Thee, O Lord," etc. ( Homilist. ) Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing J. Stalker, D. D. The writer begins in deep distress; but he prays himself out of the pit; and in the end he rises to a sunny height of security and faith, where he praises the God who has delivered him. I. THE ART OF PRAYER (vers. 1-6). Here he, first, clearly and fully describes his trouble. This is part of the art of prayer. It is often because we have nothing definite to pray about that our devotions are unsatisfactory. God is as interested in the trials of His people to-day as He was in those of David. Next, he argues his ease. And this also is part of the art of prayer. God likes us to put our intellect as well as our feeling into our prayers. His first argument is that he is trusting in God (ver. 1): he is trusting, he says, as the fledgeling cowers beneath the wing of the mother bird. Can God leave in the lurch any one who is thus depending on Him? But in verse 2 he uses a still stronger argument: he appeals to God's character, calling Him "God that performeth" — or rather perfecteth — "all things for me." God the Perfecter, who, when He has begun a good work, must finish it — how can He leave the career of His servant in its broken and incomplete condition? This is an argument we can all use, and it is one which cannot fail with God. He has now raised himself to complete confidence that God will deliver him; and to this he gives exquisite expression in the third verse, describing Mercy and Truth as two angels, whom God will send forth to rescue him from his necessities. In the same way in the 23rd psalm Goodness and Mercy are represented as attendants, following a good man all the days of his life, watching over his footsteps and always at his service. II. THE ART OF PRAISE (vers. 7-11). First, praise begins with the fixing of the heart — "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed." The flutter of excitement is over, and he is able to collect his powers in perfect repose. But, secondly, they are not to go to sleep, though they are in repose; for he says, "Awake up, my glory; awake psaltery and harp; I myself will awake early." "My glory" is a name in Scripture for the soul, and surely a very fine one; the soul is the glory of man. But it needs to be awaked to engage in God's praise. There is music in it, as there is in a piano when it is shut; but the instrument must be opened and the keys touched. The music in our souls is allowed to slumber too much. The words, "I myself will awake early," ought rather to read, "I will awake the dawn." David was to be so early astir at his devotions that, instead of the dawn awaking him, he would awake it: he would summon it to arise out of the east and help him to praise his Maker. But it is not Nature alone he would inspire with his enthusiasm: so full is he of joy in God that he wishes to communicate his emotions to all his fellow-creatures (ver. 9). How marelously has this wish been fulfilled! The Psalter has been translated into scores of languages, and wherever it has been known it has been loved. Finally he gives the reasons for praise (ver. 10), "For Thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and Thy truth unto the clouds." These will always be the reasons for praise that is truly hearty — to know the mercy that is as far above our sins as the dome of heaven is above the earth, and to know the faithfulness which, having begun a good work in us, will complete it unto the day of Christ. ( J. Stalker, D. D. ) In the shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge Christ our refuge L. Shorey. What a beautiful illustration is the city of refuge of olden time of Christ as our Refuge! We have heard the solemn words, "The soul that sinneth it shall die." How can we escape from death? There is a Refuge, even Jesus; and we can hide in Him and be safe. 1. The cities of refuge were so scattered over the country that one of them could be easily reached from any part. "Kedesh" in the north, and "Hebron" in the south, while "Shechem" lay midway. "Bezer" was situated in the flat country, while "Ramoth" and "Golan" were on elevated ground. So our Refuge is easily reached by any one, it is "whosoever believeth in Him," and " him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out." It is the simple coming to Him and the taking Him at His word. 2. The gates of the cities of refuge were open day and night, that the man-slayer might enter at any time. And we, too, may go to our Refuge at any time. He is ever ready to hear our cry and to rescue us, and to save us; but let us not delay. 3. Any one might flee thither, the stranger as well as the Israelite. So it is with Christ: all may come to Him, of whatever nationality ( Galatians 3:28 ). 4. When the man-slayer reached the city of refuge, he had to plead his cause to the elders of that city, and then, if necessary, before the congregation of the children of Israel; and it was only when his innocence of the crime of murder had been proved that he was allowed to take refuge there; otherwise he was delivered up to the avenger of blood to be slain. But in Christ the murderer may take refuge, and find pardon and peace; the worst of sinners have found refuge there. 5. Then we read that the man-slayer who had fled for refuge should stay in that city, for if he went out of the gate at any time the avenger of blood might slay him, and his blood would be upon his own head. He should have remained in the city whither he had fled. So with us; if we are not in Christ the Refuge, we are out at our own risk. ( L. Shorey. ) My soul is among lions. Psalm 57:4 Among lions Some of you cannot say this, and you ought to be very thankful that you cannot. You live under very favourable circumstances. But there are many that are far less happily placed, and we are bound to remember them, and to sympathize with them. Now, when may a Christian man truly say, "My soul is among lions"? lie may say this when he is surrounded by those, whether in his home or place of business, who reproach and rebuke, jest and jeer at him, for Jesus Christ's sake. Many are so placed. Now, I would speak to such as are amongst these lions — dogs would be almost a better name for them. I. BY WAY OF COMFORT. 1. You will have fellowship with your Lord and His Church. He and they had to bear what you have, and far worse. 2. You should thereby be driven nearer to God. Be sure that you live near to God. 3. Endeavour to be very calm and happy. Take as little notice of the scoff as ever you can. Very seldom defend yourselves. The hammer strikes hard upon the anvil, but the anvil wears out many hammers. 4. Remember that the lions are chained. See the history of Daniel. 5. If your soul is among lions, there is another lion there — the lion of the tribe of Judah. The Covenanters have said that they never had such Sabbaths in Scotland as when they were hunted amongst the crags and glens by Claverhouse's dragoons. Great power, then, attended the Word. 6. You will come out of the lions' den unharmed. 7, And soon you shall be among the angels. II. BY WAY OF ADVICE. 1. If you dwell among lions do not irritate them. Some Christians do, and so have made matters bad for themselves. You cannot ram religion down people's throats, or scold people into it. 2. Do not roar yourself. Do not meet railing with railing, hard words with hard words. Do not get soured in spirits. Overcome evil with good. 3. But do not be cowardly. A lion is afraid of a man if he looks him steadily in the face. Courage is what is wanted. 4. Do not go out alone among them — take your Lord with you. 5. If you feel very weak about it you may pray the Lord in His providence to move you to quieter quarters. But, better still — 6. Ask for grace to stop with the lions and tame them. Sometimes the Christian should say, "God has made me strong, I will stop here and fight it out. My Master would have me go where I am most wanted, and so I will stay here." Do not be afraid of sinners, but seek to save them. ( C. H. Spurgeon . ) Be Thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let Thy glory be above all the earth. Psalm 57:5 The Lord alone exalted Joseph Irons. I. AS THE ABSOLUTE DECREE OF HEAVEN. For — 1. His own glory is the first principle with God. 2. The ordination of Christ to His official work put Him under responsibility to effect this. 3. The principle is essential to the nature and existence of God. II. THE LAW OF THY COVENANT OF GRACE. All the leading truths of the Bible contribute to the glory of God — election, regeneration. The union between Christ and His Church. Redemption. III. THE LANGUAGE OF EVERY BELIEVING HEART. For it is his desire, purpose and endeavour that God may be exalted. ( Joseph Irons. ) My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed. Psalm 57:7, 8 The heart fixed Capel Molyneux. He summons his powers at once for the execution of his purpose No sooner is the resolve taken, than at once to the practice of the same. How striking and beautiful it is! Oh! it is well when the practice thus follows the principle, when the execution is contemporaneous with the purpose. "I will awake early," the psalmist says. The figure there is exceedingly beautiful. It is in the original, "I will awake the early dawn"; not "I will awake when the morning breaks," but "I will awaken up the morning." "I will be beforehand with it; I will challenge the day." Now, this purpose and determination results from a peculiar state of heart — My heart is fixed. Therefore let us consider — I. THIS STATE OF HEART. "O God, my heart is fixed" — all is suspended upon that. When that is the case, there is salvation; till then, nothing is done. When that is done, all is done. The angels rejoice in heaven, and God Almighty, the Father of our Lord, is glorified. The heart, as we all know, is the man; all else of the man is governed by the heart. The physical and intellectual powers, what are they? The whole complex machinery of our constitution, what is it? Simply the servant of the heart. "Aye," but some one will perhaps say, "the question is, upon what is the heart fixed?" Now, really, that is not the question. It is a question according to man's mode of thinking, and according to man's mode of acting, perhaps. II. I grant you, there are ten thousand things that solicit the heart, and after which the heart of man runs; but THERE IS BUT ONE THING IN THE UNIVERSE UPON WHICH THE HEART CAN BE "FIXED." Why, unless the object is fixed itself, how is it possible for the heart to be fixed? It may be directed towards, but how can it be fixed? If the thing is not fixed, what is fixed? One thing — God is fixed, and it is a simple truth that man is never fixed until he is fixed upon God. Surely a house, as to its fixedness, depends upon the foundation. Build a house on the sand, and is it fixed? You may fix it there as you think, but is it fixed? The foundation shifts, and what becomes of the house? Oh! the heart can only be fixed according to the fixedness of that on which it rests. ( Capel Molyneux. ) Religious decision Evangelist. I. ON WHAT WAS DAVID'S HEART FIXED? 1. On God and His service. 2. On the diligent study of the lively oracles of God. 3. On the duty of prayer. 4. On the grand purpose of furthering the interests of Zion. II. WHY SHOULD WE DO LIKEWISE? 1. Because indecision degrades the character of man. 2. There is no solid and substantial reason why the heart should not be fixed on God. 3. The nature of spiritual religion as developed in the Gospel, requires and supposes this fixedness of heart. 4. If we are not thus decided, we shall never accomplish anything truly good and great in the service of God. It is the man of settled views and fixed purposes before whom obstacles, that would be unconquerable to others, give way. ( Evangelist. ) Decision Homilist. There are many temptations to a man to wander in doubt and uncertainty. He is driven hither and thither by doubts of self, of God, of revelation, of the past, and of the future. But there is no rest for that man until he is able to exclaim, "My heart is fixed." I. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY OF POSITIVE RELIGION. 1. The word "positive" is a species of cant phrase much used by doubters and Agnostics. But in this case we may strictly apply it to the state of a true believer. The inquirer has reached a state of satisfaction. He has found what he needed. There is for him now no further tossing about on the tempest of fear or anxiety. 2. There is something very blessed in this state of satisfaction. It is that of a mariner having arrived in port, of a student having attained the goal he coveted, the architect having seen the realization of his plans. 3. This state, too, is essentially a religious one. Nothing earthly can afford positiveness. There can be no certainty in any human act or any human hope; but in the search after God there can be, and is, perfect finality. II. THIS STATE OF SATISFACTION IS A STATE OF PRAISE. 1. The key to open the door of heaven is praise. The solution of all doubts is praise. The end of all difficulties is praise. 2. The state, then, of our own miserable darkness and unrest rests upon the fact that we are always looking on ourselves, not on God. If we look on ourselves, we shall naturally see our own defects, sorrows. But if we look to His brightness we shall lose sight of all that is dark, and in His certainty we shall find an eternal stand and an unchanging hope. ( Homilist. ) The fixed heart A. Maclaren, D. D. I. THE FIXED HEART. For a fixed heart I must have a fixed determination, and not a mere fluctuating and soon broken intention. I must have a steadfast affection, and not merely a fluttering love, that, like some butterfly, lights now on this, now on that, sweet flower, but which has a flight straight as a carrier-pigeon to its cot, which shall bear me direct to God. And I must have a continuous realization of my dependence upon God, and of God's sweet sufficiency, going with me all through the dusty day. Is our average Christianity fairly represented by such words as these of my text? Do they not rather make us burn with shame when we think that a man who lived in the twilight of God's revelation, and was weighed upon by distresses such as wrung this psalm out of him, should have poured out this resolve which we, who live in the sunlight and are flooded with blessings, find it hard to echo, with sincerity and truth? Fixed hearts are rare amongst the Christians of this day. II. THE MANIFOLD HINDRANCES THAT WE MEET TO SUCH A UNIFORMITY OF OUR RELIGIOUS LIFE. There is, for example, the tendency to fluctuation which besets all our feelings, and especially our religious emotions. What would happen to a steam-engine if the stoker now piled on coals and then fell asleep by the furnace door? One moment the boiler would be ready to burst; at another moment there would be no steam to drive anything. That is the sort of alternation that goes on amongst hosts of Christians to-day. Their springtime and summer are followed certainly by an autumn and a bitter winter. Every moment of elevation has a corresponding moment of depression. But is there any necessity for such alternations? Some degree of fluctuation there will always be. The very exercise of emotion tends to its extinction. Varying conditions of health and other externals will affect the buoyancy and clear-sightedness and vivacity of the spiritual life. Only a barometer that is out of order will always stand at set fair. The vane which never points but to south is rusty and means nothing. But while there cannot be absolute uniformity, there might and should be a far nearer approach to an equable temperature of a much higher range than the readings of most professing Christians give. There is, indeed, a dismally uniform arctic temperature in many of them. Their hearts are fixed, truly, but fixed on earth. Their frost, is broken by no thaw, their tepid formalism interrupted by no disturbing enthusiasm. We do not speak now of these, but of those who have moments of illumination, of communion, of submission of will, which fade all too soon. To such we would earnestly say that these moments may be prolonged and made more continuous. We need not be at the mercy of our own unregulated feelings. We can control our hearts, and keep them fixed, even if they should wish to wander. III. THE MEANS BY WHICH SUCH A UNIFORM CHARACTER MAY BE IMPRESSED UPON OUR RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE. A man climbing a hill, though he has to look to his feet, when in the slippery places, and all his energies are expended in hoisting himself upwards by every projection and crag, will do all the better if he lifts his eye to the summit that gleams above him. So we, in our upward course, shall make the best progress when we consciously and honestly try to look beyond the things seen and temporal, even whilst we are working in the midst, of them, and keep clear before us the summit to which our faith tends. If we lived in the endeavour to realize that great white throne, and Him that sits upon it, we should find it easier to say, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed." But be sure of this, there will be no such uniformity of religious experience throughout our lives unless there be frequent times in them in which we go into our chambers and shut our doors about us, and hold communion with our Father in secret. ( A. Maclaren, D. D. ) The fixed heart Robert Tuck, B. A. Speak to those who have decided, but, who may be loosening their hold on God under the strain of life. No better description can be given of the influence of life on the Christian than this — it tends to loosen the bonds. They need to be constantly refixed. 1. Some disciples went back under the strain of Christ's higher teachings. 2. Some forsook under the strain of Christ's sufferings. 3. Some were hindered in running — "Ye did run well, who hath hindered you?" 4. Some were enticed by false doctrine. 5. Some were borne away by the love of the world. 6. Some are reproached for being neither cold nor hot.These old readings of Christian living suit us now. Then times of refixing ourselves are needed. What fixity should we try to reach? I. FIXITY MAY CONCERN THE INTELLECT. Show the importance of firm and ever-growing mental hold of truth and of God. Fixity for the intellect can only come with growth. II. FIXITY MAY CONCERN THE WILL. A power of resolve may shape a life. Illustrate by familiar tale in John Foster's "Essays," showing the power of decision. III. FIXITY SHOULD CONCERN THE HEART. "My heart is fixed, O God." The true life-force is from the heart,. Heart things are the lasting things. To the heart God appeals. The heart God wants. Intellectual fixity may not be possible. Will-fixity may depend very much on disposition. Heart-fixity tuiumphs over all externality. It concerns the principle and spirit of the life. Fixed everywhere and in everything for ,God. How broad, comprehensive, practical! ( Robert Tuck, B. A. ) The prepared heart Marvin R. Vincent, D. D This psalm is very strangely compounded. It is described in the title as the utterance of David when he fled from Saul and hid himself in the cave. It is the cry of a man beset with trouble and danger; yet all through it, we are startled by sudden transitions from cries for help and stories of wrong to cheerful expressions of hope and outbursts of praise. This condition of hopefulness and of cheerful steadfastness in the midst of trouble is one of those things which always puzzle a mere man of the world, but which present no mystery to a soul which walks with God. But the fact goes much farther than cheerfulness in trouble. The word "fixed" literally means "prepared," "fit," "ready." "O God, my heart is prepared." It is about this habitual preparation of heart that I wish to speak. The ideal perfect Christian life would be a life in contact with God along its whole line. It would be everywhere and always in communion with God. God's will and God's love would fill and move in every inlet and curve of the life, as the ocean in its gulfs and creeks and round its promontories; and upon this high plane the general tenor of the life would be more even. It hardly needs to be said that we do not live in this condition, and that we do need certain special influences to recall our minds to heavenly things, to lift them into the atmosphere of rest and of devotion, and to keep them from drifting away into worldliness and sensuality. God has recognized the need and has met it. He has given the Sabbath with its rest from labour, He has given the sanctuary with its quickening influences, He has commended the season of special prayer. We are led up to these Pisgahs and Hermons of spiritual vision, to the end that we may carry the power of these visions into life's common routine, to sanctify and to elevate that. These things are not an end unto themselves. The disciples were not permitted to stay on the Transfiguration Mount, but that glorious vision strengthened and kindled their hearts for the hard mission for which they were chosen. These exceptional experiences in our lives are intended to foster in us that constantly prepared, fixed heart of which David here sings: the heart that shall be prepared for praise, and for trust, and for worship, not only while sitting in heavenly places, but also among lions, among them that are set on fire, when the net has been prepared for the steps and the soul is bowed down, amid the fret and worry of life, and on the dead level of daily duty and care. ( Marvin R. Vincent, D. D ) A fixed heart John Tunis, B. A. There are many who doubt whether it is possible for a man to-day to say, "My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed." There are so many ideas that have changed in only a generation, there are so many views that have broadened, and there are so many beliefs that have been entirely given up, that it seems impossible any more for a man's heart to be fixed. It seems like deliberately shutting the eyes and stopping the ears to hope that the change is all over. A Christian's heart is fixed on that which is almost as old as the hills. The essence of your faith, the solid core of it, Abraham had almost four thousand years ago. Our faith in God is Abraham's faith, only fuller and lighted up with all the glory that shone from the face of Jesus Christ. It is stronger and surer for every heart that has been fixed by it since Abraham. Has it not worn well, this faith of ours? It has lived on through the downfall of five great universal kingdoms, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. It went down to Egypt with Jacob; it went forth to Canaan with Moses. It battled with the heathen. It rose in triumph under David; it sank back under defeat and destruction. It rebuilt its Holy City. It waited for Christ; it founded the Church and charged the apostles. It worked in the mines; it died at the stake; it endured persecution and loss. It fought the barbarians and converted them. It saved Europe. It kept strong when men were ignorant and debased. It quickened with the Renaissance; it purified itself in the Reformation. It fainted during the eighteenth century; it rallied again and rode the storm of the French Revolution. It burst out again in the nineteenth century in splendid missionary zeal. It is to-day stronger, broader, surer than ever it was before. The greatest thing about a man is the fixedness of his heart. When men say they cannot be sure of believing to-morrow what they believe to-day, they do not know of what kind of eternal stuff a man's soul is made. The very essence of belief is that it is something never to be changed, fixed and eternal. If there is no eternal belief there is no belief at all. Belief means that, no matter what may happen, it will stand fast; belief is the insight of an eternal soul looking beyond time and chance. The man who has not come to believe in something that will last on to all eternity has not yet found out what there is down deep in his soul. The best thing there is about us men and women is our loyalty, our power of standing fast, of pledging our souls for time and eternity. Because we are eternal souls, we cannot help believing eternally. We want loyalty and the willingness to wait. When we meet with a doubt or a difficulty we ought to wait until Christ speaks. Shame on us if the reading of a single book, or a single argument of an unbeliever, can divert the stream of the faith of four thousand years from flowing through us and refreshing us. There are men and women to-day doubting God because of their misfortunes or their sufferings, although from the dawn of history men have transformed their lives and glorified humanity through their trust. Read all the bucks you like, but remember that Christian faith is not an argument, but it is an affair of loyalty. Your mind ought to receive new impressions, but your heart ought to be fixed. ( John Tunis, B. A. ) The advantages of a fixed heart H. G. Salter. A garden that is watered by sudden showers is more uncertain in its fruits than when it is refreshed by a constant stream; so when our thoughts are sometimes upon good things and then run off, when they do but take a glance, as it were, upon holy objects, and then run away, there is not such fruit brought into the soul as when our minds by meditation do dwell upon them. The rays of the sun may warm us, but they do not inflame unless they are contracted in a burning-glass; so some slight thoughts of heavenly things may warm us a little, but will never inflame the soul till they be fixed by close meditation. Therefore David tells us his "heart was fixed," and saith the same concerning the frame of a good man. ( H. G. Salter. ) I will sing and give praise. — The true source of spiritual song W. Stevenson. The text affirms a fact, and declares a resolution. "My heart is fixed;" this is the fact; and hence, apparently, the resolution, "I will sing and give praise. I. THE MEANING OF THE WORDS. "My heart is fixed." 1. On what the psalmist had fixed his heart. On God. Everywhere else there might be darkness and despair, but here there were light, consolation and security. As he recalls to remembrance all that God had already done for him, and all that he had promised yet farther to do, his spirit enters a serener world, and he refrains from his complaint against his inveterate enemies. And observe, that in fixing his heart on God, the psalmist more especially contemplates those gentler features of the Divine character, on which the regards of the guilty and dependent creature must ever most complacently rest (vers. 2, 3). 2. How, or with what sentiments, it was so fixed. The expressions of confiding regard which occur throughout the psalm indicate that the heart of the writer was fixed on God by faith. In faith it is that he exclaims, "My soul trusteth in Thee," etc.; and it is in the same faith, too, that he purposes to pray, when he says, "I will cry unto God most high, unto God that performeth for me." Nor could his heart have been otherwise fixed on God, than by the virtue of that all-important principle which lies at the very source of practical godliness, admitting the light by which Divine truth irradiates the soul, and constituting the assimilating power, by whose energy the things believed are converted into the bread of life. II. If the heart be thus fixed on God, PRAISE AND DEVOUT SONG WILL BE THE UNFAILING RESULT; for fixedness of heart, or steadfastness of faith, is the only proper condition of the soul for these sacred exercises. We may use vain repetitions without a fixed heart. But if we would pour out our whole souls before God in those fervid and earnest supplications which, and which alone, we know to be acceptable; and if we would attain a humble assurance that we have been heard in heaven, we must go to the altar with fixed hearts. When, again, with the psalmist, we would "sing and give praise," the mercy of God will be brought home in clearest and most lively apprehensions to our hearts, and then, instead of finding it difficult to pour forth the melody of joy and salvation, that will become the only possible mode of giving form and voice to the sentiments that swell and glow within us. ( W. Stevenson. ) Awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. Psalm 57:8 Art and worship J. B. Heard, M. A. Art and Worship — these stand in our day like two rival spirits, contending for the mastery in the religious life of this country. In all our churches, alike in country parishes as in our great cities, where popular concerts and music for the million has done so much to raise the standard of taste, there is everywhere the same sense of unquiet. To some, music is the heavenly maid, and the more elaborate and artistic the more their soul is dissolved, as Milton describes his in ecstasies under Church music — "There let the pealing organ blow To the full-voiced choir below, In service high, and anthems clear, So may with sweetness through mine ear Dissolve me into ecstasies, And bring all heaven before mine eyes."But all men have not this sensibility to sound. The inner spirit is not reached in this way by concord of sweet sounds. There are some to whom music is only the least disagreeable of noises. But putting aside the two extremes of the highly-trained ear, delicately strung to vibrate within at the least note of music, and the ear dull, if not deaf, to its sweet influences, the vast majority of mankind are in the middle state on the subject. They think of music very much as the lady who, when asked how she liked the art, made answer that music was good when it was good. Now, though that sounds very much like a truism, it conveys an important thought, which is this — that music only answers the end it was intended for when it stirs the soul by quickening the sensibilities. What I mean is, that through the sense of hearing a quiver of emotion is borne in on the soul, nameless and undefined, and that this taken up into the soul is there translated into thought and clothed in some intelligible form. I pity the car which is unable to be the channel through which impressions of this kind pass which enter the soul as sound, and are there transmuted into spiritual impressions. But I know that many are not impressionable enough to be set thinking in this way on high and heavenly themes. On the contrary, elaborate music acts on them almost as a disturbing element in devotion, and they are set thinking not so much of the words of the Te Deum , as of the execution of the choir. To the choir let me say that the higher the class of the music the more carefully it should be executed. It is an infliction to a trained ear to hear high symphonies and sonatas where tune is secondary, and the stress depends on time and tone, rendered amiss by a careless and half-trained choir. Now let me say a word to the congregation, and particularly to the least musical portion, as I assume the majority to be. Ought there not, in the first place, to be some give and take on your part? A service has three parts — the prayers, which are for all, without exception; the praise, which is also for all who can follow to take part in; and the sermon, in which the preacher alone speaks, and all listen with as much attention and interest as he can draw out. "Awake up, lute and harp; I myself will awake right early." The psalmist first calls up sounds of praise from wood an

Benson Commentary Psalm 57:1 To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. Psalm 57:1 . Be merciful unto me, O God — Thus the psalmist prays, and looks to God for help, when surrounded with enemies: and he repeats his petition because of the greatness of his danger, and through the fervency of his spirit in his request, withal implying that his whole hope and trust was in God’s mercy. Yea, in the shadow of thy wings — In thy almighty protection; will I make my refuge — Will I still depend, as I have hitherto done, for defence and preservation; until these calamities be overpast — Or the time of these calamities, which I know will soon have an end: or till this danger be past, which is now impending over me, and threatens to destroy me. Psalm 57:2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me. Psalm 57:2 . I will cry unto God — For succour and relief; most high — To whom there is none superior or equal; and unto whom, therefore, I will continually commend myself; unto God that performeth all things for me — Hebrew, ??? ??? , gomer gnali, that perfecteth, or finisheth, as this word properly signifies; that is, will certainly perform or finish, for, or, toward, or, concerning me. He does not express what God performed or perfected, (the words all things not being in the Hebrew,) but leaves it to be understood by the reader. He performeth, or perfecteth, all that he hath promised; he engages himself to finish what he hath begun, or what is yet to be completed. His words imply, that God is not like men, who make large promises, but, either through inability, or carelessness, or unfaithfulness, do not perform them; but that he will certainly be as good as his word. Psalm 57:3 He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth. Psalm 57:3 . He shall send from heaven — Either his angels, as Daniel 3:28 , or his power and help in some less extraordinary way. As if he had said, There are greater armies in heaven than those that here surround me; and rather than I should perish, he will send them for my deliverance; and save me from the reproach of him, &c. — From that shameful destruction which Saul designs to bring upon me. The Hebrew, however, ?? Š ????? , cheereeph shoapi, may be properly rendered, as in the margin, he reproacheth, or hath reproached, that is, he will certainly put to shame, or reproach him that would swallow me up, by disappointing his expectation, and delivering me from his rage. God shall send forth his mercy and truth — Shall discover them by their proper fruits, namely, by affording his gracious help in pursuance of his promises. “The reader will observe, that mercy and truth are here poetically represented as ministers of God, standing in his presence, ready to execute his pleasure, and employed by him in the salvation of his people.” — Dodd. Psalm 57:4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword. Psalm 57:4 . My soul is among lions — I live in the midst of a generation of fierce and bloody men; I lie — That is, I have my abode; among them that are set on fire — Namely, of, or from hell, James 3:6 , who are mere firebrands and incendiaries, that are continually breathing out their wrath and threatenings. Even the sons of men — Whereby he explains what he meant by lions, and tells us that they were beasts in the shape of men; whose teeth — With which they gnash upon me, and with which they would, as it were, tear me to pieces, or eat me up; are spears and arrows — Fitted for mischiefs and murders; and their tongue — With which they wound my reputation, and load me with their curses, is a sharp sword — To cut and give deadly wounds. Psalm 57:5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth. Psalm 57:5 . Be thou exalted above the heavens — That is, higher than the heavens, or to the highest degree possible. Glorify thy power and goodness, thy justice and faithfulness, by my deliverance; all which attributes are exposed to censure and reproach while thou sufferest the ungodly to oppress and triumph over the righteous, who put their trust in thee. Let thy glory be above all the earth — Above all men upon earth, some of whom do now audaciously lift up themselves against thee, and act as if they thought themselves above thee, and able to counteract thy designs. Or, through all the earth, as the Hebrew may be rendered. Spread the fame of thy glorious perfections through all nations. Display thy glory, not only among thy own people, but in such a manner that even the heathen may be forced to acknowledge and admire it. Psalm 57:6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves . Selah. Psalm 57:6 . They have prepared a net for my steps — In which to take me, that I might not again escape out of their hands. My soul is bowed down — Hebrew, ?? Š ????? , he hath bowed down my soul; referring to Saul at the head of his troops, pursuing David to his ruin. They have digged a pit before me — Hebrew, before my face: not in my sight, for that would have been in vain, Proverbs 1:17 , but in my way, where they thought I would go; into the midst whereof they are fallen — This was fulfilled in Saul, who, by pursuing David, fell into his hands, 1 Samuel 24:3 . Psalm 57:7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise. Psalm 57:7-11 . My heart is fixed — Hebrew, ???? , nachon, prepared, or, established; namely, in a full assurance of obtaining thy merciful help. It was ready to sink with fear, but now I have, through thy grace, conquered my fears, and am fixed in a steadfast belief of, and confidence in thy promises. Or, my heart is prepared to sing and give praise, as it follows. Awake up, my glory, &c. — My tongue, wherewith I ought to glorify thee, shall be no longer silent; nor shall any instrument of music be wanting to accompany my hymns. I myself will awake right early — I will rouse up, and employ all the powers of my soul and body to set forth thy praises. And I will do it so early, that I will prevent the rising sun. I will praise thee among the people — In the great congregations, among the Israelites of all tribes, who are called by thy name, ( Deuteronomy 33:19 ,) and among the heathen, as I shall have occasion. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens — Is most evident, and greatly exalted. Psalm 57:8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. Psalm 57:9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. Psalm 57:10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. Psalm 57:11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth. Benson Commentary on the Old and New Testaments Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.

Expositor's Bible Commentary Psalm 57:1 To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. Psalm 57:1-11 THIS psalm resembles the preceding in the singer’s circumstances of peril and in his bold faith. It has also points of contact in the cry, "Be gracious," and in the remarkable expression for enemies, "Those that would swallow me up." It has also several features in common with the other psalms ascribed by the superscriptions to the time of the Sauline persecution. Like Psalm 7:1-17 are the metaphor of lions for enemies, that of digging a pit for their plots, the use of glory as a synonym for soul. The difficult word rendered "destructions" in Psalm 57:1 connects this psalm with Psalm 55:11 , dated as belonging to the time of Saul’s hostility, and with Psalm 5:9 ; Psalm 38:12 , both traditionally Davidic. There is nothing in the psalm against the attribution of it to David in the cave, whether of Adullam or Engedi, and the allusions to lying down among lions may possibly have been suggested by the wild beasts prowling round the psalmist’s shelter. The use in Psalm 57:1 of the picturesque word for taking refuge derives special appropriateness from the circumstances of the fugitive, over whose else defenceless head the sides of his cave arched themselves like great wings, beneath which he lay safe, though the growls of beasts of prey echoed round. But there is no need to seek for further certainty as to the occasion of the psalm. Baethgen thinks that it can only have been composed after "the annihilation of the independence of the Israelite state," because the vow in Psalm 57:9 to make God’s name known among the nations can only be the utterance of the oppressed congregation, which is sure of deliverance, because it is conscious of its Divine call to sing God’s praise to heathens. But that vow is equally explicable on the assumption that the individual singer was conscious of such a call. There is no very sharp division of parts in the psalm. A grand refrain separates it into two portions, in the former of which prayer for deliverance and contemplation of dangers prevail, while in the latter the foe is beheld as already baffled, and exuberant praise is poured forth and vowed. As in Psalm 54:1-7 and often, the first part begins with an act of faith reaching out to God, and strengthening itself by the contemplation of His character and acts. That energy of confidence wins assurance of help, and only after that calming certitude has filled the soul does the psalmist turn his eye directly on his enemies. His faith does not make him oblivious of his danger, but it minimises his dread. An eye that has seen God sees little terror in the most terrible things. The psalmist knows that a soul which trusts has a right to God’s gracious dealings, and he is not afraid to urge his confidence as a plea with God. The boldness of the plea is not less indicative of the depth and purity of his religious experience than are the tender metaphors in which it is expressed. What truer or richer description of trust could be given than that which likens it to the act of a fugitive betaking himself to the shelter of some mountain fastness, impregnable and inaccessible? What lovelier thought of the safe, warm hiding place which God affords was ever spoken than that of "the shadow of Thy wings"? Very significant is the recurrence of the same verb in two different tenses in two successive clauses ( Psalm 57:1 b, c). The psalmist heartens himself for present and future trust by remembrance of past days, when he exercised it and was not put to shame. That faith is blessed, and cannot but be strong, which is nurtured by the remembrance of past acts of rewarded faith, as the leaves of bygone summers make rich mould for a new generation of flowers. When kites are in the sky, young birds seek protection from the mother’s wing as well as warmth from her breast. So the singer betakes himself to his shelter till "destructions are gone by." Possibly these are likened to a wild storm which sweeps across the land, but is not felt in the stillness of the cave fortress. Hidden in God, a man "heareth not the loud winds when they call," and may solace himself in the midst of their roar by the thought that they will soon blow over. He will not cease to take refuge in God when the stress is past, nor throw off his cloak when the rain ceases; but he will nestle close while it lasts, and have as his reward the clear certainty of its transiency. The faith which clings to God after the tempest is no less close than that which screened itself in Him while it raged. Hidden in his shelter, the psalmist, in Psalm 57:2 tells himself the grounds on which he may be sure that his cry to God will not be in vain. His name is "Most High," and His elevation is the pledge of His irresistible might. He is the "God" (the Strong) who accomplishes all for the psalmist which he needs, and His past manifestations in that character make His future interventions certain. Therefore the singer is sure of what will happen. Two bright angels-Lovingkindness and Troth or Faithfulness their names-will be despatched from heaven for the rescue of the man who has trusted. That is certain, because of what God is and has done. It is no less certain, because of what the psalmist is and has done; for a soul that gazes on God as its sole Helper, and has pressed, in its feebleness, close beneath these mighty pinions, cannot but bring down angel helpers, the executants of God’s love. The confidence expressed in Psalm 57:2 is interrupted by an abrupt glance at the enemy. "He that would swallow me up blasphemes" is the most probable rendering of a difficult phrase, the meaning and connection of which are both dubious. If it is so rendered, the connection is probably that Which we have expressed in the translation by inserting "For." The wish to destroy the psalmist is itself blasphemy, or is accompanied with blasphemy; and therefore God will surely send down what will bring it to nought. The same identification of his own cause with God’s, which marks many of the psalms ascribed to the persecuted David, underlies this sudden reference to the enemy, and warrants the conclusion drawn, that help will come. The Selah at the end of the clause is unusual in the middle of a verse; but it may be intended to underscore, as it were, the impiety of the enemy, and so corresponds with the other Selah in Psalm 57:6 , which is also in an unusual place, and points attention to the enemy’s ruin, as this does to his wickedness. The description of the psalmist’s circumstances in Psalm 57:4 presents considerable difficulty. The division of clauses, the force of the form of the verb rendered I must lie down , and the meaning and construction of the word rendered "those who breathe out fire," are all questionable. If the accents are adhered to, the first clause of the verse is "My soul is among lions." That is by some- e.g., Delitzsch-regarded as literal description of the psalmist’s environment, but it is more natural to suppose that he is applying a familiar metaphor to his enemies. In Psalm 57:4 b the verb rendered above "I must lie down" is in a form which has usually a cohortative or optative force, and is by some supposed to have that meaning here, and to express trust which is willing to lie down even in a lion’s den. It seems, however, here to denote objective necessity rather than subjective willingness. Hupfeld would read lies down (third person), thus making "My soul" the subject of the verb, and getting rid of the difficult optative form. Cheyne suggests a further slight alteration in the word, so as to read, "My soul hath dwelt"-a phrase found in Psalm 120:6 ; and this emendation is tempting. The word rendered "those who breathe out fire" is by some taken to mean "those who devour," and is variously construed, as referring to the lions in a, taken literally, or as describing the sons of men in c. The general drift of the verse is clear. The psalmist is surrounded by enemies, whom he compares, as the Davidic psalms habitually do, to wild beasts. They are ready to rend. Open mouthed they seem to breathe out flames, and their slanders cut like swords. The psalmist’s contemplation of his forlorn lair among men worse than beasts of prey drives him back to realise again his refuge in God. He, as it were, wrenches his mind round to look at God rather than at the enemies. Clear perception of peril and weakness does its best work, when it drives to as clear recognition of God’s help, and wings faithful prayer. The psalmist, in his noble refrain, has passed beyond the purely personal aspect of the desired deliverance, and wishes not only that he may be shielded from his foes, but that God would, in that deliverance, manifest Himself in His elevation above and power over all created things. To conceive of his experience as thus contributing to God’s world wide glory seems presumptuous; but even apart from the consideration that the psalmist was conscious of a world wide mission, the lowliest suppliant has a right to feel that his deliverance will enhance the lustre of that Glory; and the lowlier he feels himself, the more wonderful is its manifestations in his well-being. But if there is a strange note in the apparent audacity of this identification, there is a deep one of self-suppression in the fading from the psalmist’s prayer of all mention of himself, and the exclusive contemplation of the effects on the manifestation of God’s character, which may follow his deliverance. It is a rare and lofty attainment to regard one’s own well-being mainly in its connection with God’s "Glory," and to desire the latter more consciously and deeply than the former. It has been proposed by Hupfeld to transpose Psalm 57:5-6 , on the ground that a recurrence to the description of dangers is out of place after the refrain, and incongruous with the tone of the second part of the psalm. But do the psalmists observe such accuracy in the flow of their emotions? and is it not natural for a highly emotional lyric like this to allow some surge of feeling to run over its barriers? The reference to the enemies in Psalm 57:6 is of a triumphant sort, which naturally prepares for the burst of praise following, and worthily follows even the lyrical elevation of the refrain. The perfects seem at first sight to refer to past deliverances, which the psalmist recalls in order to assure himself of future ones. But this retrospective reference is not necessary, and the whole description in Psalm 57:6 is rather to be taken as that of approaching retribution on the foes, which is so certain to come that the singer celebrates it as already as good as done. The familiar figures of the net and pit by both of which wild animals are caught, and the as familiar picture of the hunter trapped in his own pitfall, need no elucidation. There is a grim irony of events, which often seems to delight in showing "the engineer hoised with his own petard"; and whether that spectacle is forthcoming or not the automatic effects of wrongdoing" always follow, and no man digs pits for others but somehow and somewhen he finds himself at the bottom of them, and his net wrapped round his own limbs. The Selah at the end of Psalm 57:6 calls spectators to gather, as it were, round the sight of the ensnared plotter, lying helpless down there. A slight correction of the text does away with a difficulty in Psalm 57:6 b. The verb there is transitive, and in the existing text is in the singular, but "He has bowed down my soul" would be awkward, though not impossible, when coming between two clauses in which the enemies are spoken of in the plural. The emendation of the verb to the third person plural by the addition of a letter brings the clauses into line, and retains the usual force of the verb. The psalmist has done with the enemies; they are at the bottom of the pit. In full confidence of triumph and deliverance, he breaks out into a grand burst of praise. "My heart is fixed," or "steadfast." Twice the psalmist repeats this, as he does other emphatic thoughts in this psalm. (cp. Psalm 57:2 , Psalm 57:4 , Psalm 57:8-9 ). What power can steady that fluttering, wayward, agitated thing, a human heart? The way to keep light articles fixed on deck amidst rolling seas and howling winds; is to lash them to something fixed; and the way to steady a heart is to bind it to God. Built into the Rock, the building partakes of the steadfastness of its foundation. Knit to God, a heart is firm. The psalmist’s was steadfast because it had taken refuge in God; and so, even before his rescue from his enemies came to pass, he was emancipated from the fear of them, and could lift this song of praise. He had said that he must lie down among lions. But wherever his bed may be he is sure that he will rise from it; and however dark the night, he is sure that a morning will Come. In a bold and beautiful figure he says that he will "wake the dawn" with his song. The world wide destination of his praise is clear to him. It is plain that such anticipations as those of Psalm 57:9 surpass the ordinary poetic consciousness, and must be accounted for on some special ground. The favourite explanation at present is that the singer is Israel, conscious of its mission. The old explanation that the singer is a king, conscious of his inspiration and divinely given office, equally meets the case. The psalmist had declared his trust that God would send out His angels of Lovingkindness and Troth. He ends his song with the conviction, which has become to him matter of experience, that these Divine "attributes" tower to heaven, and in their height symbolise their own infinitude. Nor is the other truth suggested by Psalm 57:10 to be passed over, that the manifestation of these attributes on earth leads to their being more gloriously visible in heaven. These two angels, who come forth from on high to do God’s errands for His poor, trusting servant go back, their work done, and are hailed as victors by the celestial inhabitants. By God’s manifestation of these attributes to a man, His glory is exalted above the heavens and all the earth. The same thought is more definitely expressed in Paul’s declaration that "to the principalities and powers in heavenly places is known by the Church the manifold wisdom of God." The Expositor's Bible Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.