Thanksgiving for Deliverancebiblestudyworkshop.com/download/old/psalms/Psalm116.pdf · 2011. 6. 25. · Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell II. Out of gratitude

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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell

Thanksgiving for Deliverance

Psalm 116:1-19

Landmark Publications, Inc., 1045 Maynor Street, Nashville, TN 37216, U.S.A., John C. Sewell, Ph.D., Editor



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Thanksgiving for Deliverance

Commentary

by

Clyde M. Miller

Text: Psalm 116:1-19, 1. I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. 2. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. 3. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. 4. Then I called on the name of the LORD: "O LORD, save me!" 5. The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. 6. The LORD protects the simple hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. 7. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. 8. For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, 9. that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living 10. I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted." 11. And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." 12. How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me?




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell 13. I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. 14. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. 15. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. 16. O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maid servant; you have freed me from my chains. 17. I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD. 18. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, 19. in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD. NIV Introduction: I. The psalmist has been delivered from what appeared to be a fatal illness (Psalm 116:2 and 116:8) or from false accusers (Psalm 116:10-11) who plotted his death.

A. Psalm 116:2 and 8, Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. NIV B. Psalm 116:10-11, I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted." And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." NIV




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell II. Out of gratitude for his deliverance, he thanks God publicly so that others may share in his joy and faith. Commentary:

Past Anguish

Psalm 116:1-4, I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. The cords of death entan-gled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was over-come by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the LORD: "O LORD, save me!" NIV Note: Remembering where we have been helps us to be grateful for present blessings (2 Peter 1:9-11).

A. 2 Peter 1:9-11, But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and elec-tion sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abun-dantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (KJV)

Psalm 116:1, I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. NIV I. The Hebrew imperfect for “he heard” should be taken as a frequentative indicating action in the past, not the present.




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell A. Or the particle, ki, could be translated “that” and the verb rendered as introducing a conditional clause, “he should hear”. B. It is better to consider that we have here a case of dit-tography whereby the letter yodh on the end of the preced-ing word has been mistakenly repeated at the beginning of the following word.

1. Without that letter, the word would be a perfect indicating completed action, as most English transla-tions render it.

a. The perfect tense of “turned” in Ps. 116:2 points in that direction.

i. Psalm 116:2, Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. NIV

2. God's answering his prayer causes the psalmist to love God.

II. His cry for mercy implies that he is asking for forgiveness as well as deliverance from the fear of death. Psalm 116:2, Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. NIV I. Psalm 116:2a repeats in other words the thought of verse 1.




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A. God’s answer to his plea for mercy causes him to vow to call on God all his life.

Psalm 116:3, The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. NIV I. This verse employs a climactic triplet, the first two lines em-ploying similar figures to describe death, and the third line states the anguish that resulted from the contemplation of imminent death. Psalm 116:4, Then I called on the name of the LORD: "O LORD, save me!" NIV I. Faith prompted him to beg God to save his life, which petition was answered affirmatively (Psalm 116:1-2 and 8).

A. Psalm 116:1-2 and verse 8, I love the LORD, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. NIV

The Lord's Mercy

Psalm 116:5-11, The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The LORD protects the simple hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk be-fore the LORD in the land of the living. I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted." And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." NIV Psalm 116:5-7, LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The LORD protects the simple hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. NIV I. Israel customarily delineated the attributes of God by observ-ing His actions. Psalm 116:5, The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. NIV I. God's saving acts reveal that he is “gracious”, “righteous” and “full of compassion”.

A. “Righteous”, in this context, describes one who acts out of a sense of what is right to do under a given set of cir-cumstances. B. In this case, it is God's grace and mercy, not any legal right possessed by the psalmist, which causes God to act. C. God is acting in faithfulness to His own character (Ho-sea 2:19-20).

1. Hosea 2:19-20, The LORD is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. NIV




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Psalm 116:6, The LORD protects the simple hearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. NIV I. The simple person is here the inexperienced who feels a sense of helplessness (Psalm 19:7; 119:130; Proverbs 19:25) rather than the usual sense in Proverbs of the foolish moral simpleton who can be led astray into every sin (Proverbs 1:22,32; 7:7; 8:5; 9:4,13-16, 18; 22:3; 27:12).

A. Psalm 19:7, The law of the LORD is perfect, reviv-ing the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. NIV

B. Psalm 119:130, The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. NIV C. Proverbs 19:25, Flog a mocker, and the simple will learn prudence; rebuke a discerning man, and he will gain knowledge. NIV D. Proverbs 1:22 and 32, "How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers de-light in mockery and fools hate knowledge? For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the com-placency of fools will destroy them; NIV E. Proverbs 7:7, I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who lacked judgment. NIV F. Proverbs 8:5, You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, gain understanding. NIV




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell G. Proverbs 9:4, 13 and 16, "Let all who are simple come in here!" she says to those who lack judgment. The woman Folly is loud; she is undisciplined and without knowledge"Let all who are simple come in here!" she says to those who lack judgment. NIV H. Proverbs 14:15 and 18, A simple man believes any-thing, but a prudent man gives thought to his steps. The simple inherit folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. NIV I. Proverbs 22:3, A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. NIV J. Proverbs 27:12, The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. NIV K. The use made of the word in our psalm is positive in that it describes one who leans on the Lord for knowledge and strength (Proverbs 3:5).

1. Proverbs 3:5, Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; NIV

Psalm 116:7, Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. NIV I. The psalmist exhorts himself to return to his former state of tranquility, as indicated by the word, menuchah, “rest”, which suggests a permanent state of wellness.




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell A. The reason is that God has been good to him.

Psalm 116:8-11, For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted." And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." NIV I. These verses extend the thought of Psalm 116:7b.

A. Psalm 116:7, Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you. NIV B. Here is an explication of God's bountiful dealing with him.

Psalm 116:8, For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. NIV I. In progressive parallelism, the psalmist declares that the Lord has preserved him “from death” and the “tears” prompted by his contemplation of death, and he has prevented him “from stum-bling” or falling.

A. The last phrase refers to his endangered faith (Psalm 116:10-11), which was preserved by the power of God.

1. Psalm 116:10-11, I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted." And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." NIV

Psalm 116:9, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. NIV




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell I. Life is now seen as a precious gift from God.

A. Psalm 116:8-9 are almost identical with Psalm 56:13 with slight variations, the present passage adding the phrase, “my eyes from tears”.

1. Psalm 116:8-9, For you, O LORD, have deliv-ered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. NIV 2. Psalm 56:13, For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life. NIV

Psalm 116:10, I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly af-flicted." NIV I. In spite of his harrowing experience, his endangered faith (Psalm 116:8c) was preserved.

A. Psalm 116:8, For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. NIV B. “Therefore” is better rendered “even when”.

1. He is declaring his faith under duress. Psalm 116:11, And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars." NIV I. However, in his “dismay”, he lost faith in men.




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell A. “Vain hope”, RSV, reads more literally “liars” (KJV, NASB, NIV).

A Response in Gratitude Psalm 116:12-19, How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains. I will sacrifice a thank offer-ing to you and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusa-lem. Praise the LORD. NIV Psalm 116:12, How can I repay the LORD for all his good-ness to me? NIV I. The psalmist confesses his inadequacy in repaying or return-ing to the Lord the service which he so richly deserves. Psalm 116:13, I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. NIV I. “Lift up” is more literally to bear, carry away.

A. Here it has the connotation of taking something in hand (KJV, NEB).

II. “Cup of salvation” could refer to the drink offering offered up with an animal sacrifice (Numbers 15:10), but it more likely re




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell fers to a kind of religious toast offered freely to God in connec-tion with the payment of a vow (Psalm 116:14).

A. Numbers 15:10, Also bring half a hin of wine as a drink offering. It will be an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the LORD. NIV B. Psalm 116:14, I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. NIV C. Psalm 116:12b may indicate that the cup of salvation was nothing more than thanksgiving and praise offered to God (Psalm 116:17).

1. Psalm 116:12 and 17, How can I repay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD. NIV

Psalm 116:14, I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the pres-ence of all his people. NIV I. Vows were voluntary, but once made must be kept (Deuteron-omy 23:21-23 and Ecclesiastes 5:1-6).

A. Deuteronomy 23:21-23, If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin. But if you refrain from mak-ing a vow, you will not be guilty. Whatever your lips ut-ter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the LORD your God with your own mouth. NIV




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell B. Ecclesiastes 5:1-6, Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words. When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, "My vow was a mistake." Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? NIV

I. The psalmist will gladly “complete” (literal meaning of the Hebrew word shalam) his vow in the presence of the congrega-tion so that they may share his joy and his faith (Psalm 116:18-19).

A. Psalm 116:18-19, I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the LORD—in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD. NIV

Psalm 116:15, Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. NIV I. “Precious” here means costly (Psalm 72:14, 1 Kings 5:17, and 1 Kings 7:9-11, where the same Hebrew word is used).




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell A. Psalm 72:14, He will rescue them from oppression and violence, for precious is their blood in his sight. NIV

B. 1 Kings 5:17, At the king's command they removed from the quarry large blocks of quality stone to provide a foundation of dressed stone for the temple. NIV C. 1 Kings 7:9-11, All these structures, from the outside to the great courtyard and from foundation to eaves, were made of blocks of high-grade stone cut to size and trimmed with a saw on their inner and outer faces. The foundations were laid with large stones of good quality, some measuring ten cubits and some eight. Above were high-grade stones, cut to size, and cedar beams. NIV

Psalm 116:16, O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maid servant; you have freed me from my chains. NIV I. Here is the picture of a manumitted slave who volunteers to serve his master as a freedman.

A. This figure magnifies the psalmist's gratitude and in-structs us in regard to the proper response to God's grace.

Psalm 116:17-19, I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the LORD— in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD. NIV




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell I. The fulfillment of vows often involved the offering of a “thank offering”.

A. The psalmist intends to fulfill his vows publicly at the temple so that others could benefit from his gratitude.

II. The psalm ends the same way as Psalm 115, with the excla-mation, “Praise the LORD”.

A. This may be an encouragement for others to join him in thanking God for His goodness.

Application: I. The faithful can see more through his tears than the faithless can see in his frivolous merrymaking.

A. The psalmist reveals a faith like that.

II. Even in the presence of death, the Christian does not “grieve like the rest of men who have no hope” at the death of a faithful person (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

A. 1 Thessalonians 4:13, But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. KJV B. Though we sorrow at our loss, we rejoice in the spiritual life of the one who enters into his or her eternal rest.




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Questions

Psalm 116:1-19

(Questions based on NIV text).

1. “I _____________ the __________, for he _____________ my _____________________; he ______________________my ___________________ for ________________. Because her ______________ his __________________ to ______________ I will ______________on _________________ as ___________ as I __________________.”

2. “The __________ of ______________ _____________ me, the _______________ of the _________________ came upon me; I was _____________________ by __________________ and __________________. Then I ______________________ on the _________________ of the _________________: ‘O ____________ ______________ me!’”

3. “The __________ is _______________ and___________; our ______________ is _____________ of ________________. The _______________ _______________ the _____________; when I was in _________________, he ________________ me.”

4. “Be at ______________ once more, O my __________,for the ______________ has been _____________________ to you.”




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell 5. “For you, O _______________, have ______________ my ____________________ from ____________________ my ________________ from __________________, that I may __________________ before the _________________ in the ____________________ of the ___________________. I ________________; therefore I said, ‘I am ________________ _____________________.’ And in my ___________________I said, ‘All ________________ are _______________.’” 6. “How can I ________________ the _____________for all his ________________ to me? I will ____________ up the _______________ of _______________ and ______________ on the ____________ of the ___________. I will ___________ my ____________________ to the _______________ in the _____________ of all his __________________.”

7. “______________________ in the ________________ of the ___________________ is the __________________ of his __________________ O _________________, truly, I am your __________________ I am your ___________________, the __________________ of your __________________; you have _______________ me from my _______________.”

8. “I will ___________ a ____________ _____________ to you and ____________________ on the _______________ of the ___________________. I will ___________________ my ____________________ to the ___________________ in the __________________ of all his ____________________, in the ______________________ of the _______________ of the ____________________ - in your _________________, O _____________________.”

9. “________________________ the ___________________.”




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell 10. What problem did the psalmist face? __________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

11. What did the psalmist do to seek the resolution of his prob-lems? ______________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

12. What was God’s response to the psalmist’s problem? _____ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13. Are all men (humans) liars? What caused the psalmist to believe all men are liars? _______________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14. How can we repay the Lord for all his goodness to us? ____ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell ________________________________________________________________________________________________________

15. How, in what way is the death of his saints precious in the sight of the Lord? _____________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

16. The _______________ has been _____________ from what _______________ to be a ______________ _____________or from _____________ _____________ who ________________ his _______________________.

17. Define: dittography, cup of salvation, climactic triplet, pro-gressive parallel manumitted. ____________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

18. By what methods did Israel ordinarily identify the attributes of God? _____________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

19. The ________________ ___________________ is here the ___________________ who feels a ______________ of ________________ rather than the usual sense in _____________ of the __________________ ______________




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell __________________ who can be___________________ into ___________________ ______________________.

20. The use of the word simplehearted in Psalm 116:6 is ___________________ in that it _________________ one who _____________________ on the ___________________ for ___________________ and __________________.

21. The psalmist wished to return to a permanent state of well-ness. What do you invision as a permanent state of illness? ____________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

22. What vows did the psalmist plan to make? What does the Bible say about vows? _________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 23. The ____________________ can see more through his ________________ than the ________________ can see in his ___________________ ___________________.

24. Even in the ________________ of _______________ the ____________________ does not “_________________ like the ____________________ of __________________ who have no ____________________” at the __________________ of a _____________________ ____________________.




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Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell 25. Though we ________________ at our ____________, we ________________ in the _______________ ______________ of the _______________________ who __________________ into his or her ________________ ____________________.



Documents

Thanksgiving for Deliverancebiblestudyworkshop.com/download/old/psalms/Psalm116.pdf · 2011. 6. 25. · Commentary by Clyde M. Miller Questions by John C. Sewell II. Out of gratitude