Ver. 9. hath heard," as before, "hears," or "is hear ing." Ver. 10. Let all mine enemies;" rather, "All mine enemies shall be." -let them return and be ashamed suddenly;" rather, -they shall again suddenly be-brought-to-shame." PSALM VII. [A] Ver. 1. renting it in pieces while there is none to deliver." E. T. The verb p signifies not only to rend, or break, but also to rescue by force; (see Ps. CXXXVI. 24. and Lam. V. 8.) And in this sense the particle was understood in this place by all the antient interpreters, unless Apollinarius be considered as an exception. Μὴ ὄντος λυτρουμένου μηδὲ σώζοντος. LXX. Dum non est qui redimat, neque qui salvum faciat. Vulg. The Syriac is to the same effect. It should seem that, in the copies used by these translators, the whole line stood thus, ואין פרק ואין מציל As the line now stands in the Masoretic text, p should be taken as the verb in the imperative : Rescue, for there is no deliverer. Having no helper among men, he prays that God would rescue him. Apollinarius seems to have taken the word as a passive participle, rendering it viribus confractus, and descriptive of the suppliant's own condition: Μήποτ' ἐφαρπάξεις λέων ἐμον οἷα τις ὗτος, Πάμπαν ἀνάλκοντος, καὶ ἀμύντορος οὐ παρεόντος. Perhaps, if we had the particulars of the depositions of the false witnesses against our Lord, we might find an appropriate application of these protestations to our Lord himself. זאת I may refer to some particular crime laid to his charge. But is it not possible, that our Lord may take to himself the false accusations of his servants, when things of which they are innocent are laid to their charge as Christians, as crimes to which their religion is supposed to lead them ;-as, at this very day, violences of which they are innocent are hourly laid to the charge of the emigrè clergy of France, as Christians, by the atheistical government of that country, merely as a pretence for persecuting the Christian name? Messiah takes to himself these false accusations of his religion, and, in the shape of protestations of his own innocence, gives the lie to these accusers of the brethren, and threatens them with the Divine vengeance. Bishop Horne's notion of this Psalm was not different from this, for he says "it may be considered as the appeal VOL. I. L of the true David and his disciples, against the grand Accuser and his associates." [B] Ver. 4. Yea I have delivered him, &c." E. T. This parenthesis not only intervenes aukwardly, but the characteristic parallelism of the Hebrew distich is altogether missing in this place. The substantive is twice used for spoils stript from the carcase of a slain enemy. Hence it should seem that the verb may signify not only to deliver, but to strip, spoil, or plunder. Indeed its primary sense is extrahere, or detrahere. If the sense of plundering may be admitted, the proper parallelism will appear in the distich: with me, If I have made an ill return to him that was at peace The verb in the Chaldee dialect confessedly bears this sense, to spoil. Houbigant's emendation, therefore, is unnecessary, though it consists only in a single transposition; אחלצה for אלחצה Dr Durell thinks the passage may be thus rendered: "If I have taken up arms without cause against my enemy." He says the verb yn is so used Num. XXXI, 3. XXXII, * viz. Judges XIV. 19. & 2 Sam. II. 21. 17. 20. and 1 Chron. XII, 23, 24. But these places justify no such interpretation of the verb. It signifies, indeed, to be armed, or accoutred for war, but not, that I can find, to arm against. him that was at peace with me." Two texts, Gen. XXXIV, 21. and 2 Sam. XX, 19. justify the sense in which the word is taken here, and refute the criticism of Bishop Hare. [C] Ver. 5. -lay mine honour." For D, Hou ישפך bigant would read [D] Ver. 8.—and according to mine integrity that is in me.” E. T. “And according to mine integrity render unto me.” Chald. Hence it should seem that a word is wanting in the Hebrew to answer to the Chaldee y. Houbigant accordingly supplies. Or, perhaps, no word may be wanting, but the author of the Targum may have considered the im .וכתמי as understood again after שפט perative Give sentence for me, O Jehovah, according to my righteous ness, And according to my integrity [give sentence] upon me. [E] Ver. 9. O let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the just." &c. E. T. In the first clause, the Psalmist desires, or affirms, the abo lition of the wickedness of the impious. The paralellisms, in which the Hebrew poetry so much delights, require that, in the second clause, he should desire, or affirm, the establishment of the righteousness of the just. I suspect that a nounsubstantive hath been lost out of this second clause, and I think the lost noun is to be found in the form of an useless epithet in the next. I would, therefore, read the whole tristich thus, יגמר נא רע רשעים ותכונן צדקת צדיק ובחן לבות וכליות אלהים And I would render the whole to this effect: Surely, the wickedness of the impious shall be brought to an And the righteousness of the Just One shall be established, [F] Ver. 11. — and God is angry;" E. T. rather, with the ancient version, although he is not angry every day;" i. e. his anger is not breaking forth upon every occasion, yet the season of judgement will surely come. Ο Θεος κριτὴς δίκαιος [καὶ ἴσχυρὸς καὶ μακρόθυμος] μὴ ὀργὴν ἐπάγων καθ' έκασην ¿μégav. LXX. Deus judex justus, fortis et patiens; numquid irascitur per singulas dies ? Vulg. Οὐ δεδιὼς τραχεῖαν ἑκάστοτε μηνῖν ἐγείρειν. Apollinar. |