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most miserably destroy me. Here there is need of great and diligent guard: here we have to be kept as the apple of the eye: for whereas, in the former case, I conquered the tyrants and destroyed the whole world, in the latter case, I am conquered and destroyed by my own domes

tic enemies.

"My enemies have compassed about my soul." The Hebrew has no pronoun "my" before "soul;" but runs thus, 'My enemies in soul have set themselves against me round about.' "Soul" seems to refer to the "enemies;" because he adds at the end "have set themselves against me." Here he shews the panting violence of the wicked, against the disciples in the faith, wherein they are mad after the defence of their own righteousnesses. For we have said, Psalm x. that to the soul are ascribed the feelings of desire and loathing, lusting and hating: as we have it, Gen. xxxiv. 8, "The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your daughter." And, on the contrary, Levit. xxvi. 30, " And my soul shall abhor you." And Numb. xxi. 5, "Our soul loatheth this light bread."

Therefore, the sense of this part, is, "the enemies in soul;" that is, they have most eagerly and longingly surrounded my soul: as we have it, Ezekiel xxv. 15, 16, "Thus saith the Lord God; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy it for the old hatred; therefore thus saith the Lord," &c.

Ver. 10.-They have enclosed their own fat, their mouth has spoken pride.

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Hieronymus translates this a little differently from the Hebrew, They have spoken proudly with their mouth,' but the sense is the same. But, I pray, what can this 'enclosing their own fat' mean? We cannot understand it literally, and must therefore have recourse to allegory. We have it said, then, Psalm lxxix. 31, "And slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.". And he had said before this, Deut. xxxii. 15, " But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked:"

whence it is manifest that fat signifies rich, great, and powerful, and excelling above others. And hence, Levit. iii. it is written, that all the fat should be the Lord's by a perpetual rite, and that the Jews should not eat either the fat, or the blood: whereby, perhaps, the Spirit signified, that we should neither be elated with prosperity nor cast down by adversity, nor become easy and secure by the former, nor grow angry and sorrowful by the latter, nor look up to the high ones who flatter, nor dread their terrors.

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By" fat," therefore, we are to understand impious teachers, and the rich and powerful of this world. For so it is with the doctrine of ungodliness, all the greater ones of this world cleave unto it: as we have it, Habak. i. 16, The food of behemoth is plenteous.' Whereas, the poor and the humble cleave to the word of godliness only. And this "fat" of the ungodly, according to my judgment, may be said to be "enclosed" when the rich and the powerful conspire together, hold by each other, think the same things, and act in conjunction; just as a circle or ring is enclosed and collected into itself. This was prefigured, 1 Sam. xxxiv. where Saul and his men. surrounded David about, that they might take him. And in this sense it is said, Psalm cxix. 23, "Princes also did sit and speak against me." And again, "Princes persecuted me without a cause." "And Psalm liv. 3, "Oppressors seek after my soul." Of all this there are manifest examples in the church.

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"They spoke pride (or proudly) with their mouth: concerning this we have spoken, Psalm x. These characters, trusting in their fat, not only do not hear the counsel of the poor (as it is called, Psalm xiv.) but with confidence confound them, and command them to suffer a repetition of their miseries, or bid them be silent. We (say they) are the teachers of the people, we are they that teach the right things, and all others are in duty bound to obey us.

But why does David say "with their mouth;" because no one ever heard of speaking with the nose. This is to make a distinction between their mouth, and the

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mouth of God. For he that speaks the truth, speaks with the mouth of God; and he that speaks with his own mouth, speaks lies: as Christ saith, John viii. 44, "When he speaketh a lie he speaketh his own."

Ver. 11.-Casting me down they have now surrounded me: they have set their eyes to bow down to the earth.

Hieronymus renders it, 'Coming against me they have now surrounded me: they have set their eyes to bow down to the earth.'-For my part, I am utterly at a loss to know what the meaning of this is: in the Hebrew there is neither against me,' nor " casting me down." I should render it in this manner, 'They have walked; now they have surrounded me: they have set their eyes to declinings on the earth.' And here, setting aside all the opinions of others, I will endeavour to say what I think of the passage.

After he had said that the ungodly with a burning mind laid all their plots against the people of God, and then strengthened and fortified themselves by the multitude of the great ones of this world, and spoke proudly and contemptuously of him and against the people of God, he now shews the impious security and presumption at which they arrive after all this; saying, "They have walked :" that is, they are hardened by their confidence in their own fat, and walk proudly, and securely. So that the verb " they have walked," or have moved along,' stands alone and is absolute; signifying, they are walking,' they remain securely and quietly in these their ways and counsels. Because, whatever they do themselves they consider to be right, and whatever they do not, is ungodly and hence, they always sing their triumphal song before they have gained the victory.

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"And now they have surrounded me.” That is, and now they think that I am taken and conquered, even before they have taken me, so secure and certain are they. For thus, it appears to me, that the adverb "now," is put to signify the certainty and presumption of these characters, who think always that all is over with the people of God, and that they are in despair.

For such are always the language, and thoughts, and confidence, of the wicked, when they see themselves surrounded by the multitude of the great against the few, the poor, and the humble.

"They have set their eyes to bow down to the earth." This I would understand as spoken with reference to the respect of persons always had by these characters. So that is a complaint of the godly people against the ungodly, who so pertinaciously cleave to persons and distinctions, being high in their knowledge, and despising the humble; contrary to the command of God, Exod. xxiii. 2, "Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil: neither shalt thou speak in a cause, to decline after many, to wrest judgment." These, therefore, do not direct their "eyes" to the simple cause of truth, but make them declinable and turnable just according to the will of the great and the high who rule in the earth. The sense is, therefore, They imagine that I am now conquered, and, despising my cause, they turn themselves and direct their eyes there, where their fat is enclosed. Whatever they themselves do, that turns and carries their eyes away; this they consent to, and this they favour. And in this their way they are pertinaciously obstinate: for they are determined thus to incline and hold fast that which they themselves have fixed and resolved upon, being wholly turned away from the cause of the truth of God; and they imagine that they hereby do God service.

But David adds " to the earth:" which is not to be referred to the "eyes," but to the cause. Hence I have rendered it, to declinings on the earth; that is, to earthly declinings; that is, they follow the nod of the great ones on the earth; and wherever they turn and decline, there these decline and turn also to follow them; forgetting utterly the commands of God, and looking only at declinings on the earth, and following only those that follow earthly things. Therefore (says David) all advice to them is vain; it is in vain that I reason with them, it is in vain that I entreat them; they are more moved by their own fat than by my words. Wherefore,

(says he) there is nothing left me but that I flee unto thee, O Lord, who judgest rightly.

Ver. 12.-They have surrounded me as a lion greedy of his prey; and as it were a young lion lurking in secret places.

This is a manifest error in our translator: because the Hebrew has it not "And they have surrounded me," but his likeness is.' For in this Psalm, David is not speaking of the ungodly taking him, but of their attempt to make the godly utterly extinct. Hence Hieronymus has it, His likeness is that of a lion greedy of his prey, and as young lions lurking in secret places.' And the sense is very clear; for we have it, Psalm x. 9, "He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den." Where, as here also, David is exposing the snares and secret and cruel traps of the ungodly: for those things (as we have said above) by which the ungodly endeavour to catch the simple and the godly, are hidden under art and deceit. And this is a very apt and beautiful similitude for as a lion sits watching that he may spring upon corporal animals and slay them: so does every false teacher, try every means, that he may entrap and destroy souls. And this verse is thus explained by Christ himself, Matt. vii. 15, " Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves."

Hence we see that this Psalm does not speak of externally persecuting tyranny; but of the persecution of the ungodly, whereby they lead aside many unto perdition. And yet, if these be resisted, they threaten, and, if they can, they murder the saints of God. But the pride and boasting of Moab are greater than his power and strength, and he attempts more than he can perform; as it is said in the scripture.

Ver. 13.-Arise, O Lord, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, thy sword: from the enemies of thy hand.

In my opinion there is scarcely one passage in the

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