加尔文 / John Calvin
This psalm is divided into three principal parts. In the beginning of it the faithful record the infinite mercy of God towards his people, and the many tokens by which he had testified his fatherly love towards them. Then they complain that they do not now find that God is favorable towards them, as he had formerly been towards their fathers. In the third place, they refer to the covenant which God had made with Abraham, and declare that they have kept it with all faithfulness, notwithstanding the sore afflictions to which they had been subjected. At the same time, they complain that they are cruelly persecuted for no other cause but for having continued steadfastly in the pure worship of God. In the end, a prayer is added, that God would not forget the wrongful oppression of his servants, which especially tends to bring dishonor and reproach upon religion.
这首诗篇分为三个主要部分。在开头，信徒记念上帝对他子民无限的怜悯，以及他用以见证父爱的许多印记。然后他们诉说，如今已找不到上帝如同从前对待列祖那般的恩宠。第三部分，他们援引上帝与亚伯拉罕所立的圣约，宣告他们以忠信遵守，尽管经历极大的苦难。与此同时，他们抱怨自己受到残忍的逼迫，唯一的缘故不过是他们坚守纯正的敬拜。末了加上祷告，求上帝不要忘记仆人所受的冤屈——这冤屈尤其使宗教蒙羞受辱。
To the chief musician of the sons of Korah, giving instruction.
献给可拉子孙的乐队长。训诲诗。
It is uncertain who was the author of this psalm; but it is clearly manifest that it was composed rather by any other person than by David. The complaints and lamentations which it contains may be appropriately referred to that miserable and calamitous period in which the outrageous tyranny of Antiochus destroyed and wasted every thing. 129 Some, indeed, may be disposed to apply it more generally; for after the return of the Jews from the captivity of Babylon, they were scarcely ever free from severe afflictions. Such a view, doubtless, would not be applicable to the time of David, under whose reign the Church enjoyed prosperity, It may be, too, that during the time of their captivity in Babylon, some one of the prophets composed this complaint in name of all the people. It is, however, at the same time to be observed, that the state of the Church, such as it was to be after the appearance of Christ, is here described. Paul, in Romans 8:36, as we shall afterwards see in its proper place, did not understand this psalm as a description of the state of the Church in one age only, but he warns us, that Christians are appointed to the same afflictions, and should not expect that their condition on earth, even to the end of the world, will be different from what God has made known to us, as it were by way of example, in the case of the Jews after their return from captivity. Christ, it is true, afterwards appeared as the Redeemer of the Church. He did not however appear, that the flesh should luxuriate in ease upon the earth, but rather that we should wage war under the banner of the cross, until we are received into the rest of the heavenly kingdom. As to the meaning of the word , maskil, it has been already elsewhere explained. It is sometimes found in the inscription of psalms whose subject is cheerful; but it is more commonly used when the subject treated of is distressing; for it is a singular means of leading us to profit by the instruction of the Lord, when, by subduing the obduracy of our hearts, he brings us under his yoke.
这首诗篇的作者不得而知，但可以清楚看出，它绝不是出自大卫之手，而是另有其人。其中的诉苦哀叹，最恰切地对应安提阿古暴虐横行、荼毒一切的那段悲惨灾难时期。诚然，有人宁可作更宽泛的理解；因为犹太人自巴比伦被掳归来后，几乎从未摆脱严苛的苦难。这样的观点自然不适用于大卫时代，因为那时教会享有繁荣。也有可能，在巴比伦被掳期间，某位先知代表全体百姓写下了这篇哀叹。然而，同时也须注意：这里所描述的，是基督显现之后教会的状态。保罗在罗马书8:36——我们随后将在适当之处见到——并未将这首诗篇仅理解为对某一特定时代教会状况的描述，而是警告我们：基督徒注定要承受同样的苦难，不应期望在地上的处境直到世界末了，会与上帝藉犹太人被掳归来的事例所启示的有所不同。诚然，基督此后以教会救赎主的身份显现，然而他显现，不是为了让肉体在世上安逸享乐，而是为了让我们在十字架旗帜下争战，直到被接入天国的安息。关于”马斯基尔”这个词的含义，已在他处解释过。这个词有时出现在主题欢喜的诗篇题记中，但更常用于主题沉痛之处；因为当主以顺服的力量制伏我们心中的刚硬，将我们置于他的轭下时，这是引我们从他的训诲中获益的奇妙方法。
44:1-3
1. O God! we have heard with our ears, our fathers have declared to us, the work which thou hast done in their days, even in the days of old. 2. Thou hast expelled the heathen [or nations 130 ] with thy hand, and planted them 131 thou hast wasted the peoples 132 and multiplied them, [or made them 133 to spread.] 3. For they got not possession of the land by their own sword, and their own arm did not save them, but thy right hand, and thy arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor for them.
1. 上帝啊，我们亲耳听见，我们的列祖也告诉我们，你在他们年间、在古时所行的事。2. 你曾用手驱逐外邦人，把我们的列祖栽植进去；你曾苦害万民，把我们的列祖发旺开展。3. 因为他们不是靠自己的刀剑得地土，也不是靠自己的膀臂得胜；乃是靠你的右手、你的膀臂，并你面上的光，因为你喜悦他们。
O God! we have heard with our ears. The people of God here recount the goodness which he had formerly manifested towards their fathers, that, by showing the great dissimilarity of their own condition, they may induce God to alleviate their miseries. They begin by declaring that they speak not of things unknown or doubtful, but that they related events, the truth of which was authenticated by unexceptionable witnesses. The expression, We have heard with our ears, is not to be considered as a redundant form of speech, but one of great weight. It is designed to point out that the grace of God towards their fathers was so renowned, that no doubt could be entertained respecting it. They add, that their knowledge of these things was handed down from age to age by those who witnessed them. It is not meant that their fathers, who had been brought up out of Egypt, had, a thousand and five hundred years after, declared to their posterity the benefits God had conferred upon them. The import of the language is, that not only the first deliverance, but that also the various other works which God had wrought from time to time in behalf of his people, had come down, as it were, from hand to hand, in an uninterrupted series, even to the latest age. As, therefore, those who, after the lapse of many ages, became witnesses and heralds of the grace which God had exercised towards this people, spake upon the report of the first generation, the faithful are warranted in saying, as they here do, that their fathers have declared to them that which they certainly knew, because the knowledge of it had not been lost by reason of its antiquity, but was continually preserved by the remembrance of it from the fathers to the children. The sum of the whole is, that God had manifested his goodness towards the children of Abraham, not only for ten or twenty years, but that ever since he had received them into his favor, he had never ceased to bestow upon them continued tokens of his grace. 2. Thou hast expelled the heathen with thy hand. This is an illustration of the preceding verse: for the inspired writer had not yet expressly referred to that work of God, the fame of which had been preserved by their fathers. He therefore now adds, that God with his own hand expelled the heathen, in order to plant in their room the children of Abraham: and that he wasted and destroyed them, that he might increase and multiply the seed of Abraham. He compares the ancient inhabitants of the land of Canaan to trees; for, from long continued possession of the country, they had, as it were, taken root in it. The sudden change, therefore, which had happened to them, was as if a man plucked up trees by the roots to plant others in their stead. But as it would not have been enough for God’s ancient people to have been planted at first in the country, another metaphor is here added, by which the faithful testify that the blessing of God had caused this chosen people to increase and multiply, even as a tree, extending it roots and its branches far and wide, gains still greater strength in the place where it has been planted. Besides, it is necessary to observe for what purpose it is that the faithful here magnify this manifestation of the grace of God. It often happens that our own hearts suggest to us grounds of despair, when we begin to conclude that God has rejected us, because he does not continue to bestow upon us the same benefits which in his goodness he vouchsafed to our fathers. But it were altogether inconsistent, that the faithful here disposing their hearts for prayer, should allow such an obstacle to prevent them from exercising the confidence which is proper in prayer. I freely admit, that the more we think of the benefits which God has bestowed upon others, the greater is the grief which we experience when he does not relieve us in our adversities. But faith directs us to another conclusion, namely, that we should assuredly believe that we shall also in due time experience some relief, since God continues unchangeably the same. There can be no reason to doubt, that the faithful now call to remembrance the things which God had formerly done for the welfare of his Church, with the view of inspiring their minds with stronger hope, as we have seen them acting in a similar manner in the beginning of the twenty-second psalm. They do not simply state the comparison, which would tend to draw a line of separation between those who have in former times been preserved by the power of God, and those who now labored and groaned under afflictions; but they rather set forth the covenant of God as the bond of holy alliance between them and their fathers, that they might conclude from this, that whatever amount of goodness the Church had at any time experienced in God pertained also to them. At first, indeed, they use the language of complaint, asking why it is that the course of God’s fatherly favor towards his people is, as it were, interrupted; but straightway they correct their mistake, and take courage from a new consideration — the consideration that God, who had adopted them as well as their fathers, is faithful and immutable. It is, however, no great wonder if the faithful, even in prayer, have in their hearts divers and conflicting affections. But the Holy Spirit, who dwells in them, by assuaging the violence of their sorrow, pacifies all their complaints and leads them patiently and cordially to obey. Moreover, when they here say that their fathers have declared to them the deliverances which God had accomplished in behalf of his Church, what the fathers did in this respect corresponds with the precept of the law, by which the fathers were commanded to teach their children. And all the faithful ought to reflect that the same charge is enjoined upon them by God even to this day. He communicates to them the doctrine of salvation, and commits it to their charge for this purpose — that they may transmit it to their posterity, and, as much as in them lies, endeavor to extend its authority, that his worship may be preserved from age to age. 3 For they got not possession of the land by their own sword. Here the sacred writer confirms by contrast what he has just said; for if they obtained not possession of the land by their own power and skill, it follows that they were planted in it by the hand of another. The multitude of men who went out of Egypt was very great; but not being trained to the art of war, and accustomed only to servile works, they would soon have been defeated by their enemies, who far excelled them in numbers and strength. In short, there were not wanting evident signs by which the people were made to know as well their own weakness as the power of God; so that it was their bounden duty to confess that the land was not conquered by their own sword, and also, that it was the hand of God which had preserved them. The Psalmist, not content with mentioning thy right hand, adds, thy arm, to amplify the matter, and give greater weight to his discourse, that we may know that they were preserved in a wonderful manner, and not by any ordinary means. The light of thy countenance is here taken, as in other places, for the manifestation of the divine favor. As, on the one hand, when God is afflicting us severely, he seems to frown upon us, and to overshadow his face with thick clouds; so, on the other, when the Israelites, sustained by his power, overthrew their enemies without any great difficulty, and pursued them in every direction far and near, it is said, that then they beheld the face of God serene and placid, just as if he had manifested himself in a visible manner near them. Here it is necessary to observe the mode of reasoning which the prophet employs, when he argues that it is by the free gift of God that the people obtained the land in heritage, seeing they had not acquired it by their own power. We then truly begin to yield to God what belongs to him, when we consider how worthless our own strength is. And certainly, the reason why men, as it were through disdain, conceal and forget the benefits which God has conferred on them, must be owing to a delusive imagination, which leads them to arrogate somewhat to themselves as properly their own. The best means, therefore, of cherishing in us habitually a spirit of gratitude towards God, is to expel from our minds this foolish opinion of our own ability. There is still in the concluding part of the verse another expression, which contains a more illustrious testimony to the grace of God, when the Psalmist resolves the whole into the good pleasure of God: Thou hadst a favor for them. The prophet does not suppose any worthiness in the person of Abraham, nor imagine any desert in his posterity, on account of which God dealt so bountifully with them, but ascribes the whole to the good pleasure of God. His words seem to be taken from the solemn declaration of Moses, “The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; (for ye were the fewest of all people;) but because the Lord loved you,” (Deuteronomy 7:7, 8.) Special mention is here made of the land of Canaan; but the prophet has stated the general principle why it was that God vouchsafed to reckon that people for his flock and peculiar heritage. And certainly, the source and origin of the Church is the free love of God; and whatever benefits he bestows upon his Church, they all proceed from the same source. The reason, therefore, why we are gathered into the Church, and are nourished and defended by the hand of God, is only to be sought in God. Nor does the Psalmist here treat of the general benevolence of God, which extends to the whole human race; but he discourses of the difference which exists between the elect and the rest of the world; and the cause of this difference is here referred to the mere good pleasure of God.
上帝啊，我们亲耳听见。 上帝的子民在此历数他从前对列祖所彰显的恩善，借着指出现今处境与昔日的巨大对比，来促使上帝减轻他们的苦难。他们首先宣告，所说的并非不确实的事，乃是由无可置疑的见证人所证实的事。”我们亲耳听见”并非冗余的表达，而是大有分量的。这是要表明上帝对列祖的恩典如此昭著，以至无可置疑。他们又补充说，这些知识是由亲眼目睹的人一代一代传递下来的。这里并非指从埃及出来的列祖在一千五百年后向后代述说上帝的恩惠。其含义是：不只是第一次的拯救，乃是上帝从古至今不断为子民所行的各样作为，仿佛从手到手，在连续不断的传承中直到最后的世代。因此，那些在经历许多世代之后，成为见证人和传颂上帝对这民恩典的人，是依据第一代人的报告说话的；信徒有理由像此处所说的，宣称列祖告诉了他们确实知道的事——因为这知识并未因年代久远而消失，而是不断从父到子地保存在记念中。总而言之：上帝对亚伯拉罕子孙的恩善，不只持续了十年或二十年，乃是自从他们蒙上帝收纳之时起，他便从未停止赐给他们持续的恩典印记。2. 你曾用手驱逐外邦人。 这是对上节的阐发；因为受感动的作者尚未明确提到列祖所传扬的那件上帝的作为。于是他现在补充说：上帝亲手驱逐了外邦人，为的是在他们的地方栽种亚伯拉罕的子孙；他摧毁并消灭了那些人，为要使亚伯拉罕的后裔增多繁盛。他将迦南地的原住民比作树木；因为他们在那地居住多年，仿佛已在其中扎根。因此，临到他们身上的骤变，好像一人拔起树木，以便另栽他树。但仅仅在起初将上帝的古代子民栽植于那地，尚嫌不足，故加入另一比喻：信徒藉此见证说，上帝的祝福使这被拣选的民增多繁衍，如同一棵树广展根枝，在所植之处愈发壮大。此外，信徒在此如此颂扬上帝恩典的彰显，其用意是值得我们注意的。我们自己的心常常向我们暗示绝望的理由，当我们开始断定上帝已弃绝我们——因为他不继续给我们与列祖所蒙的相同恩惠——之时。然而，信徒在此预备心灵祷告，若容许这种障碍妨碍他们以祷告所应有的信心行事，那就实在说不通了。我坦然承认，我们越思念上帝赐给别人的恩惠，当他不援助我们于患难中时，我们所感受的悲苦就越深。但信心引我们走向另一个结论，就是：我们必当坚信，自己也将在适当的时候蒙怜悯，因为上帝永远不变。毫无疑问，信徒在此追念上帝从前为教会的益处所行的事，是为了激励自己怀有更强的盼望，正如我们在第二十二篇开头所见他们同样的做法。他们并不只是简单地陈述一个对比——那对比将从前蒙上帝能力保守的人，与如今在苦难中挣扎哀叹的人截然分开——而是将上帝的圣约作为他们与列祖圣洁联合的纽带，好由此推断：教会在任何时代从上帝所经历的一切恩善，也同样属于他们。起初，他们确实用怨诉的语气说话，问上帝的父慈恩眷为何仿佛中断；但随即纠正了这个错误，从一个新的考量中鼓起勇气——就是那收纳他们如同收纳列祖的上帝是信实不变的。信徒即使在祷告中，心中有各种相互矛盾的情感，也不足为奇。然而居住在他们里面的圣灵，通过缓和忧伤的猛烈，平息了一切的抱怨，引领他们耐心诚恳地顺服。此外，当信徒在此说列祖告诉他们上帝为教会所行的拯救时，列祖所做的，正与律法的命令相符——律法命令父亲教导儿女。所有信徒都当反思，直到今日，同样的任务是上帝所加于他们的。他将救恩的教义传授给他们，并委托他们保守，为要使他们传递给后代，尽力扩大其权威，使他的敬拜从世代到世代得以保全。3. 因为他们不是靠自己的刀剑得地土。 圣经的作者在此以对比手法确认他刚才所说的；因为若非靠自己的能力和智慧得地，必然是靠他人之手被栽植于其中。从埃及出来的人数极多，但他们未受过战争的操练，只惯于做苦工，在数目和力量上远胜于他们的仇敌面前，早就应当败下阵来。简言之，有充分明显的迹象使这民既知道自己的软弱，也知道上帝的能力；以至他们有义务承认，那地不是靠他们自己的刀剑夺取的，保守他们的也是上帝的手。诗人不满足于提到”你的右手”，还加上”你的膀臂”，以放大此事，给论述加添分量，好让我们知道他们是以奇妙而非寻常的方式得到保守。”你面上的光”在此与其他处一样，指上帝恩宠的彰显。一方面，当上帝严厉管教我们时，他仿佛皱眉看我们，以厚云遮蔽他的面；另一方面，当以色列人靠他的能力毫不费力地击溃仇敌、四面追赶他们时，就说他们得见上帝的面，安详而平静，仿佛他以可见的方式临近了他们。此处须注意先知的推理方式：他从这民没有靠自己的力量得地为业，论证他们是靠上帝的自由赐予而得地的。当我们认识到自己的力量是何等微小，离开上帝是何等无用，才真正开始将属乎上帝的归给上帝。诚然，人们仿佛藐视地遮掩并忘记上帝赐给他们的恩惠，原因必是那虚假的想象，使他们将某些事归功于自己。因此，在我们心中持续培养对上帝感恩之灵的最佳方法，是将这种愚蠢的自信驱出内心。本节末尾还有另一句话，它包含着对上帝恩典更荣耀的见证，诗人在其中将一切归结为上帝的美意：”因为你喜悦他们。”先知既不假设亚伯拉罕有何功德，也不想象他的后裔有何应得之处，只将一切归于上帝的美意。他的话似乎取自摩西庄严的宣告：”耶和华专爱你们，拣选你们，并非因你们的人数多于别民，原来你们的人数在万民中是最少的。只因耶和华爱你们……”（申命记7:7-8）。此处特别提到迦南地，但先知已陈明了上帝为何乐意将那民列为他的羊群和特别产业的普遍原则。教会的根源确实是上帝的自由之爱；上帝赐给教会的一切恩惠，都从同一源头而来。因此，我们被聚集进入教会，并被上帝的手所养育保护，唯一的缘故只能在上帝自己里面寻求。诗人此处论述的不是延及全人类的上帝普遍的慈爱，而是论述被拣选者与其余世人之间的差别；这差别的原因在此归于上帝纯粹的美意。
44:4-8
4. Thou, even thou, art my King, 134 O God! command [or ordain] deliverances for Jacob. 5. Through thee we have pushed [or smitten] with the horn our adversaries: in thy name we have trampled under foot those that rose u, against us. 6. For I will not trust in my bow, and my sword will not save me. 7. Surely thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put to shame those that hated us. 8. In God we will boast all the day, and confess thy name for ever. Selah.
4. 上帝啊，你是我的王；求你命令雅各得胜利。5. 我们靠你必推倒我们的敌人；我们奉你的名必践踏那些起来攻击我们的人。6. 我不倚靠我的弓，也不靠我的刀救我。7. 是你拯救我们脱离我们的敌人，使恨我们的人蒙羞。8. 我们终日靠上帝夸口，直到永远感谢你的名。（细拉）
Thou, even thou, art my King, O God! In this verse the faithful express still more plainly what I have already alluded to a little before, namely, that the goodness of God was not only apparent in the deliverance of his people, but also flowed upon them in continued succession from age to age; and therefore it is said, Thou, even thou, art my King In my judgment, the demonstrative pronoun , hu, imports as much as if the prophet had put together a long series of the benefits of God after the first deliverance; so that it might appear, that God, who had once been the deliverer of his people, did not show himself otherwise towards their posterity: unless, perhaps, it might be considered as emphatic, and employed for the purpose of asserting the thing stated the more strongly, namely, that the faithful praise God alone as the guardian of their welfare to the exclusion of all others, and the renunciation of aid from any other quarter. Hence they also present the prayer, that God would ordain and send forth new deliverances to his people; for, as he has in his power innumerable means of preservation and deliverance, he is said to appoint and send forth deliverances as his messengers wherever it seems good to him. 5. Through thee we have pushed, or smitten, with the horn our adversaries. 135 The prophet here declares in what respect God had manifested himself to be the King of this people. He did so by investing them with such strength and power, that all their enemies stood in fear of them. The similitude, taken from bulls, which he here uses, tends to show, that they had been endued with more than human strength, by which they were enabled to assail, overturn, and trample under foot, every thing which opposed them. In God, and in the name of God, are of the same import, only the latter expression denotes, that the people had been victorious, because they fought under the authority and direction of God. It ought to be observed, that what they had spoken before concerning their fathers, they now apply to themselves, because they still formed a part of the same body of the Church. And they do this expressly to inspire themselves with confidence and courage, for had they separated themselves from their fathers, this distinction would, in a certain sense, have interrupted the course of God’s grace, so that it would have ceased to flow down upon them. But now, since they confess that whatever God had conferred upon their fathers he had bestowed upon them, they may boldly desire him to continue his work. At the same time, it ought to be observed again in this place, that, as I have stated a little before, the reason why they ascribe their victories wholly to God is, that they were unable to arrive at such a consummation by their own sword or their own bow. When we are led to consider how great is our own weakness, and how worthless we are without God, this contrast much more clearly illustrates the grace of God. They again declare, (verse 7,) that they were saved by the power of God, and that he also had chased away and put to shame their enemies. 8. In God we will boast 136 all the day This is the conclusion of the first part of the psalm. To express the meaning in a few words, they acknowledge, that in all ages the goodness of God had been so great towards the children of Abraham, that it furnished them with continual matter of thanksgiving. As if the thing were still present to their view, they acknowledge that, without ceasing, they ought to give praise to God, because they had flourished and triumphed, not merely for one age, or a short period of time, but because they had continued to do so successively from age to age, 137 for whatever prosperity had befallen them, they ascribe it to the grace of God. And, certainly, it is then that men experience from the prosperity which befalls them, a holy and a well-regulated joy, when it bursts forth in the praises of God. 138 Let us then, in the first place, bear in mind that this verse relates to the time of joy and prosperity in which God manifested his favor towards his people; secondly, that the faithful here manifest that they are not ungrateful, inasmuch as, having laid aside all vain boasting, they confess that all the victories by which they had become great and renowned proceeded from God, and that it was by his power alone that they had hitherto continued to exist, and had been preserved in safety; and, thirdly, that it was not only once or twice that matter of joy had been afforded them, but that this existed for a long time, inasmuch as God had manifested towards them, during a long and uninterrupted period, divers proofs and tokens of his paternal favor, so that the continuance, and, so to speak, the long experience they had had of it, ought to have been the means of confirming their hope.
上帝啊，你是我的王。 信徒在这节话中更清楚地表达了我刚才略微提及的：上帝的恩善不仅彰显于他对子民的一次拯救，更从世代到世代持续不断地倾泻于他们；因此说”你是我的王”。在我看来，指示代词”胡”所包含的意思，好像先知在第一次拯救之后将上帝的恩惠列出了一段漫长的序列；由此显出，那曾一度作子民救赎者的上帝，对待他们的后裔也并无二致——除非也许认为这是强调的用法，其目的是更有力地肯定这件事，就是信徒单单称颂上帝为他们福祉的守护者，排除一切其他，拒绝任何来自他处的帮助。因此，他们也献上祷告，求上帝为他的子民设立并差遣新的拯救；因为他手中有无数保存和拯救的方法，故说他随自己喜悦差派拯救为他的使者。5. 我们靠你必推倒我们的敌人。 先知在此宣告上帝在哪方面显明自己是这民之王：他赐给他们能力和权势，使所有仇敌都畏惧他们。他所用的取自公牛的比喻，表明他们被赋予超乎人的力量，得以借此冲击、推翻、践踏一切阻挡他们的事物。”靠上帝”和”奉上帝的名”含义相同，只是后者表明这民得胜，是因他们在上帝的权柄和引导下争战。须注意，他们将前面论列祖所说的，如今应用在自己身上，因为他们仍是同一教会身体的一部分。他们这样做，是为了激励自己充满信心和勇气；因为若他们将自己与列祖分离，这种区分在某种意义上将中断上帝恩典的流传，使它不再流到他们身上。然而，既然他们承认凡上帝赐给列祖的，也赐给了他们，便可大胆地求他继续他的工作。与此同时，此处又须注意：如我稍前所述，他们之所以将一切胜利完全归于上帝，是因为若不倚靠他，单凭自己的刀剑或弓箭，便无法达成这样的目的。当我们被引领去思量自己是何等软弱、离开上帝是何等无用时，这种对比就更清楚地彰显上帝的恩典。他们再次宣告（第7节），他们是被上帝的能力拯救，他也驱散并羞辱了他们的仇敌。8. 我们终日靠上帝夸口。 这是诗篇第一部分的结语。简而言之，他们承认上帝世世代代对亚伯拉罕子孙的恩善是如此之大，以至给了他们持续的感恩题材。仿佛这事仍在眼前，他们承认应当不住地赞美上帝，因为他们的繁盛和得胜，不仅是在某一世代或某段短暂的时期，而是世代相继，因为凡临到他们的一切繁荣，都归之于上帝的恩典。诚然，只有当繁荣在上帝的赞美中迸发出来时，人才能从它那里经历圣洁而有规律的喜乐。所以，让我们首先记住：本节与上帝彰显恩宠的喜乐繁荣时期有关；其次，信徒在此表明自己并非忘恩负义——放下一切虚荣的夸口，承认使他们显赫得名的一切胜利都出于上帝，是借他的能力他们才得以存续并蒙保全；第三，使他们喜乐的，不止一两次，而是持续了很长的时间——上帝在绵长不间断的岁月里向他们彰显了各种父慈厚爱的证据，那延续、那所谓漫长的经历，本当成为坚固他们盼望的手段。
44:9-14
9. Nevertheless thou hast abhorred us, 139 and put us to shame: and thou goest not forth with our armies. 10. Thou hast made us to turn back from the enemy: and they that hate us have made of us a spoil for themselves. 11. Thou hast given us as sheep for food: and thou hast scattered us among the heathen. 12. Thou hast sold thy people, and not become rich, 140 and thou hast not increased the price of them. 13. Thou hast made us a reproach to our neighbors, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us. 14. Thou hast made us a byword among the heathen, and a nodding of the head among the people.
9. 你竟丢弃我们，使我们受羞辱，不与我们的军队同去。10. 你使我们向敌人转背逃跑，那些恨我们的人任意抢夺。11. 你使我们像待宰的羊，把我们分散在列国中。12. 你卖了你的子民，并不多得什么财物，也不增加他们的价值。13. 你使我们受邻国的羞辱，被四围的人嗤笑和讥诮。14. 你使我们在列邦中成为笑谈，成为万族中摇头的对象。
Nevertheless thou hast abhorred us Here follows a complaint, in which they bewail their present miseries and extreme calamity. There is here described such a change as showed not only that God had ceased to exercise towards them his accustomed favor, but also, that he was openly adverse and hostile to his people. First, they complain that they have been rejected as through hatred, for such is the proper import of the word , zanachta, which, along with others, I have translated abhorred If, however, any would rather translate it to forget, or to be cast off, I have no great objection to it. They next add, that they had been put to shame, namely, because it must necessarily follow that every thing should go ill with them when deprived of the protection of God. This they declare immediately after, when they say, that God no longer goes forth with their armies — goes forth as their leader or standard-bearer when they go forth to war.
你竟丢弃我们。 以下是一段诉苦，他们在其中哀叹目前的苦难和极度的患难。所描述的变故表明：上帝不仅停止了向他们施以惯常的恩宠，而且似乎公然对他的子民怀敌意、持对立态度。首先，他们抱怨自己被弃绝，仿佛出于憎恶——”撒纳哈塔”（zanachta）这个词的确切含义正是如此，我与他人一同译作”丢弃”。若有人宁可译作”忘记”或”被弃置”，我也无大异议。他们接着补充说，他们蒙羞受辱，因为失去上帝的保护，事事必然不顺，这是必然的结果。他们随即宣告，上帝不再与他们同行出征——不再如他们出战时的领袖或旗手那样前行。
Thou hast made us to turn back from the enemy. Here the people of God still further complain, that he had made them to flee before their enemies, and had given them up as a prey to be devoured by them. As the saints firmly believe that men are strong and valiant only in so far as God upholds them by his secret power, they also conclude, that when men flee, and are seized with trembling, it is God who strikes them with terror, so that the poor wretched creatures are deprived of reason, and both their skill and courage fail them. The expression here used is taken from the Law, Deuteronomy 32:30, where Moses says, “How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had shut them up?” The faithful, fully persuaded of this truth, do not ascribe to fortune the change which had passed over them, that those who were wont vigorously and fearlessly to assail their enemies, were now terrified by their very appearance; but they feel assured that it was by the appointment of heaven that they were thus discomfited, and made to flee before their enemies. And as they formerly confessed that the strength which they had hitherto possessed was the gift of God, so, on the other hand, they also acknowledge that the fear by which they are now actuated was inflicted upon them as a punishment by God. And when God thus deprived them of courage, they say that they are exposed to the will of their enemies; for in this sense I interpret the word , lamo, which I have rendered, for themselves, namely, that their enemies destroyed them at their pleasure and without any resistance, as their prey. To the same purpose is that other comparison, (verse 11) in which they say that they were given as sheep for food 141 By this the prophet intimates, that being already vanquished previous to the battle, they fell down, as it were, upon the earth before their enemies, ready to be devoured by them, 142 and not fit for any thing else than to gratify their insatiable cruelty. It ought to be observed, that when the faithful represent God as the author of their calamities, it is not in the way of murmuring against him, but that they may with greater confidence seek relief, as it were, from the same hand which smote and wounded them. It is certainly impossible that those who impute their miseries to fortune can sincerely have recourse to God, or look for help and salvation from him. If, therefore, we would expect a remedy from God for our miseries, we must believe that they befall us not by fortune or mere chance, but that they are inflicted upon us properly by his hand. Having stated that they were thus abandoned to the will of their enemies, they add, at the same time, that they were scattered among the heathen: a dispersion which was a hundred times more grievous to them than death. The whole glory and felicity of that people consisted in this, that, being united under one God and one King, they formed one body; and that such being the case, it was a sign that the curse of God lay heavy upon them to be mingled among the heathen, and scattered hither and thither like broken members. 12 Thou hast sold thy people, and not become rich. In saying that they were sold without any gain, it is meant that they were exposed to sale as slaves that are contemptible, and of no value. In the second clause, too, And hast not increased the price of them, there seems to be an allusion to the custom of exposing things to auction, and selling them to the highest bidder. We know that those slaves who were sold were not delivered to the buyers till the price of them had been increased by bidding. Thus the faithful mean, that they were cast out as being altogether worthless, so that their condition had been worse than that of any bond-slave. 143 And as they rather appeal to God than turn to their enemies, of whose pride and cruelty they had just cause to complain, let us learn from this, that there is nothing better, or more advantageous for us in our adversity, than to give ourselves to meditation upon the providence and judgment of God. When men trouble us, it is no doubt the devil who drives them to it, and it is with him we have to do; but we must, notwithstanding, raise our thoughts to God himself, that we may know that we are proved and tried by him, either to chastise us, or to exercise our patience, or to subdue the sinful desires of our flesh, or to humble us and train us to the practice of self-denial. And when we hear that the Fathers who lived under the Law were treated so ignominiously, there is no reason why we should lose courage by any outrage or ill treatment, if God should at any time see meet to subject us to it. It is not here said simply that God sold some people, but that he sold his own people, as if his own inheritance were of no estimation in his sight. Even at this day, we may in our prayers still make the same complaint, provided we, at the same time, make use of this example, for the purpose of supporting and establishing our faith, so that, however much afflicted we may be, our hearts may not fail us. In Isaiah 52:3, God, using the same form of speech, says that he sold his people without price; but there it is to be understood in a different sense, namely, to show that he will have no difficulty in redeeming them, because he is under no obligation to those that bought them, and had received nothing from them in return. 13 Thou hast made us a reproach to our neighbors Here the Psalmist speaks of their neighbors, who were all actuated either by some secret ill-will, or avowed enmity to the people of God. And certainly it often happens, that neighborhood, which ought to be the means of preserving mutual friendship, engenders all discord and strife. But there was a special reason in respect of the Jews; for they had taken possession of the country in spite of all men, and their religion being hateful to others, so to speak, served as a trumpet to stir up war, and inflamed their neighbors with rage against them. Many, too, cherished towards them a feeling of jealousy, such as the Idumeans, who were inflated on the ground of their circumcision, and imagined that they also worshipped the God of Abraham as well as the Jews. But what proved the greatest calamity to them was, that they were exposed to the reproach and derision of those who hated them on the ground of their worship of the true God. The faithful illustrate still farther the greatness of their calamity by another circumstance, telling us, in the last clause of the verse, that they were met by reproaches on all sides; for they were beset round about by their enemies, so that they would never have enjoyed one moment of peace unless God had miraculously preserved them. Nay, they add still farther, (verse 14,) that they were a proverb, a byword, or jest, even among the nations that were far off. The word , mashal, which is translated proverb, might be taken in the sense of a heavy imprecation or curse, as well as of a byword or jest; but the sense will be substantially the same, namely, that there were no people under heaven held in greater detestation, insomuch that their very name was bandied about every where in proverbial allusions, as a term of reproach. To the same purpose also is the wagging, or shaking of the head, which occurs in Psalm 22, of which we have already spoken. There can be no doubt that the faithful recognised this as inflicted upon them by the vengeance of God, of which mention was made in the Law. In order to arouse themselves to the consideration of the judgments of God, they carefully compared with the threatenings of God all the punishments which he inflicted upon them. But the Law had declared beforehand, in express terms, this derision of the Gentiles, which they now relate as a thing that had come to pass, (Deuteronomy 28:3.) Moreover, when it is said, among the heathen, and among the people, the repetition is very emphatic and expressive; for it was a thing quite unseemly and intolerable, that the heathen nations should presume to torment with their scoffings the chosen people of God, and revile them by their blasphemies at their pleasure. That the godly complained not of these things without cause is abundantly obvious from a passage in Cicero, in his oration in defense of Flaccus, in which that heathen orator, with his accustomed pride, scoffs no less against God than against the Jews, asserting that it was perfectly clear that they were a nation hated of the gods, inasmuch as they had often, and, as it were, from age to age, been wasted with so many misfortunes, and in the end subjected to a most miserable bondage, and kept, as it were, under the feet of the Romans. 144
你使我们向敌人转背逃跑。 上帝的子民在此进一步诉说，上帝使他们在仇敌面前溃逃，将他们作为猎物交给仇敌吞食。圣徒坚信，人的刚强勇敢，不过是上帝以他秘密能力所扶持的；他们也因此断定，当人逃跑战兢时，是上帝使他们恐惧，使可怜的人失去理智，智慧和勇气俱失。此处的表达取自律法，申命记32:30：”若非他们的磐石卖了他们，若非耶和华交出他们，焉能一人追赶一千人，两人使一万人逃跑呢？”信徒深信这真理，不将临到他们身上的变故归于时运——从前奋勇无畏地冲击仇敌，如今却被他们的影子吓破胆——而是确信这是天意的安排，使他们在仇敌面前败北逃跑。正如他们从前承认所拥有的力量是上帝的恩赐，同样，他们也承认现今驱使他们的恐惧是上帝以惩罚加诸他们的。当上帝如此夺去他们的勇气时，他们说自己被暴露在仇敌的任意摆布之下；因为我将”拉摩”（lamo）理解为”为了他们自己”，意即仇敌毫无阻碍、随意地将他们消灭，视之为猎物。另一个比喻（第11节）也同样表达这个意思——他们被给为食物的羊。先知借此表明：他们已在战事开始之前就已溃败，仿佛俯伏在仇敌面前，随时可被吞食，除了满足仇敌贪得无厌的残忍之外，别无他用。须注意，信徒将上帝描述为他们苦难的作者，不是出于抱怨，而是为了能更满有信心地向那打伤了他们的同一只手寻求安慰。那些将苦难归于时运的人，必然无法真诚地诉诸上帝或从他那里寻求帮助与救恩。若我们要从上帝那里期待苦难的解除，就必须相信苦难临到我们并非出于时运，乃是确实出于他的手。他们宣告自己被这样交在仇敌手中，同时补充他们被分散在列国中——这种离散比死亡要苦一百倍。那民的一切荣耀和幸福，在于他们在一位上帝和一位王之下合为一体；既是如此，与外邦人混杂，像散落的肢体四处飘零，就是上帝咒诅沉重压在他们身上的印记。12. 你卖了你的子民，并不多得什么财物。 说他们被出卖而未带来任何利益，意即他们被当作卑贱、毫无价值的奴隶出售。第二句”也不增加他们的价值”，似乎在暗指公开拍卖的习惯，将货物卖给出价最高者。我们知道，被出售的奴隶只有在出价不断抬高之后才会被交给买主。因此，信徒的意思是：他们被当作毫无价值之物抛弃，以至他们的处境甚至不如任何一个奴隶。他们诉诸上帝而非转向仇敌——他们对仇敌的骄傲和残暴有充分的控诉——由此让我们学习：在逆境中，没有什么比默想上帝的护理和审判更好、更有益于我们。人们扰乱我们，无疑是魔鬼驱使他们，我们所争战的是魔鬼；然而，尽管如此，我们还是必须将思想提升到上帝本身，知道他在试炼我们，或是为了惩戒，或是为了操练我们的忍耐，或是为了制伏肉体的情欲，或是为了谦卑我们、训练我们操练舍己。当我们听说律法时代的先祖受到如此凌辱的对待时，就没有理由因任何凌辱或虐待而丧失勇气，即便上帝有时乐意让我们受到同样的苦难。这里说的不只是上帝卖了某个民族，而是说他卖了他自己的子民，仿佛他的产业在他眼中毫无价值。就是在今日，我们仍可在祷告中提出同样的诉苦，只要同时以这例子来支撑坚固我们的信心，使我们无论多受苦难，心都不至灰心丧胆。以赛亚书52:3，上帝使用同样的措辞，说他无偿地卖了他的子民；但那里应从不同的意义来理解，即要表明他救赎他们毫无困难，因为他对那些买了他们的人毫无亏欠，也没有从他们那里收受任何代价。13. 你使我们受邻国的羞辱。 诗人在此谈到邻国，他们都对上帝的子民怀有某种隐秘的恶意或公开的仇恨。近邻本应成为守望互助的手段，却常常引发各种纷争，这是屡见不鲜的。然而就犹太人而言，还有特别的缘故；因为他们夺取了那地，不顾众人的反对，而他人所憎恶的他们的宗教，可以说成了吹响战争号角、激起邻邦愤怒的缘由。许多人对他们怀有嫉妒，如以东人，他们因自己受过割礼而自高，以为自己也如同犹太人一样敬拜亚伯拉罕的上帝。但最大的祸患是，他们被那些因他们敬拜真神而憎恶他们的人所嘲弄和藐视。信徒还用另一事进一步阐明苦难之深：在本节末尾，他们告诉我们四面都有羞辱临到他们；因为仇敌将他们团团围困，若非上帝奇妙保守，他们片刻也无法安宁。他们还进一步补充（第14节），甚至在远邦之间，他们也成了谚语、笑柄或笑料。”玛沙尔”（mashal）这个词，既可理解为谚语，也可理解为重咒或笑料；但实质意义是一样的，即：在天下所有民族中，没有哪个民族受到更大的憎恶，以至他们的名字到处被用于谚语来作为羞辱。摇头这个动作，已在第二十二篇论及，含义与此相同。信徒无疑将这视为律法所提及的上帝报应临到他们。为了激发自己思考上帝的审判，他们仔细将上帝对他们的一切惩罚与上帝的警告相对照。律法已预先明确宣告了外邦人的嘲笑，他们现在将已发生的事如实述说（申命记28:3）。此外，”在列邦中”和”在万族中”的重复非常有力而表达丰富；因为外邦人竟敢用嘲笑折磨上帝的选民、肆意以亵渎侮辱他们，是极不相称、令人无法忍受之事。虔诚之人的这些控诉并非无凭无据，从西塞罗在为弗拉卡斯辩护的演说中所说的话可以明显看出：那位外邦雄辩家以惯常的傲慢，不亚于嘲弄犹太人那样嘲弄上帝，断言神明憎恨那个民族是显而易见的——因为他们屡次、仿佛从世代到世代遭受如此多的灾难，最终陷入最悲惨的奴役，被置于罗马人的脚下。
44:15-21
15. My reproach is daily 145 before me, and the shame of my face hath quite covered me, 16. Because of the voice of him who reproached me; because of the face of the enemy and the avenger. 17. All this has come upon us, and we have not forgotten thee, nor dealt falsely in thy covenant: 18. Our heart has not turned back, nor have our steps declined from thy path. 19. Although thou hast wasted us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death: 20. If we have forgotten the name of our God, and have stretched out our hands to a strange god: 21. Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.
15. 我的羞辱终日在我面前，脸上的惭愧把我遮满了，16. 因为有人羞辱我，讥诮我；因为有仇敌有报仇的人。17. 这一切临到我们身上，我们却没有忘记你，也没有干犯你的约。18. 我们的心没有退后，我们的脚也没有偏离你的路。19. 你用豺狼出没的地方打破了我们，又用死荫遮蔽我们。20. 我们若忘了我们上帝的名，或向别神举手，21. 上帝岂不鉴察呢？因为他知道人心里的隐秘。
15 My reproach is daily before me. The Hebrew words , col-hayom, mean all the day, and denote long continuance: but they may be understood in two ways, either for the whole or entire day, from morning to evening, or for continued succession of days. According to either of these interpretations, the meaning is, that there is no end to their misfortunes. As to the change of the number from the plural to the singular, it is not at all inconsistent that what is spoken in the name of the Church should be uttered, as it were, in the person of one man. The reason is added why they were so overwhelmed with shame, that they dared not to lift up their eyes and their face, namely, because they had no respite, but were incessantly subjected to the insolence and reproach of their enemies. Had they been allowed to hide themselves in some corner, they might have endured, as well as they were able, their calamities in secret; but when their enemies openly derided them with the greatest insolence, it served to redouble the wound inflicted upon them. They, therefore, complain that their calamities had accumulated to such an extent, that they were forced unceasingly to hear blasphemies and bitter reproaches. They describe their enemies by the epithet avengers, a term which, among the Hebrews, denotes barbarity and cruelty, accompanied with pride, as we have remarked on the 8th Psalm
17 All this has come upon us, etc. As they have already attributed to God all the afflictions which they endured, if they should now say that they were undeservedly afflicted, it would be the same thing as to accuse God of injustice; and thus what is here spoken would no longer be a holy prayer, but rather an impious blasphemy. It is, however, to be observed, that the faithful, although in their adversities they do not perceive any obvious reason for being so dealt with, yet they rest assured of this, and regard it as a fixed principle, that God has some good reasons for treating them so severely. At the same time, it is proper to observe, that the godly do not speak in this place of the time past, but rather allege their patient endurance, which was no small token of their piety, since, in the most humble manner, they thus bowed their neck to the yoke of God. We see how the great majority of men murmur and obstinately fret against God, like refractory horses which rage furiously against their masters, and strike them with their feet. And, therefore, we know that the man who, in affliction, imposes a holy restraint upon himself, that he may not by any impatience be carried away from the path of duty, has made no inconsiderable attainments in the fear of God. It is an easy matter even for hypocrites to bless God in the time of their prosperity; but as soon as he begins to deal hardly with them, they break forth into a rage against him. Accordingly, the faithful declare that, although so many afflictions as they endured tended to turn them aside from the right path, they did not forget God, but always served him, even when he did not show himself favorable and merciful towards them. They do not, therefore, proclaim their virtues in a former and distant period of their history, but only allege, that even in the midst of afflictions they steadfastly kept the covenant of God It is well known, that long before the persecution of Antiochus, there were many abuses and corruptions which provoked the vengeance of God against them, so that, in respect of that period, they had no ground to boast of such integrity as is here described. True it is that, as we shall very soon see, God spared them, thus showing that they had been afflicted more for his name’s sake than for their own sins; but the forbearance which God exercised towards them in this respect was not sufficient to warrant them to plead exemption from guilt. We must, therefore, consider that in this place they do nothing more than allege their own patience, in that, amidst such grievous and hard temptations, they had not turned aside from the service of God. In the first place, they affirm, We have not forgotten thee: for, indeed, afflictions are, as it were, like so many clouds which conceal heaven from our view, so that God might then readily slip from our remembrance, as if we were far removed from him. They add, secondly, We have not dealt falsely in thy covenant: for, as I have said, the wickedness of men discovers itself more especially when they are tried more severely than they had anticipated. Thirdly, they declare that their heart had not turned back And, lastly, that their footsteps declined not from the paths of God. As God is daily inviting us, so our hearts must be always ready to proceed in the paths into which he calls us. Hence follows the direction of our ways; for by our outward works, and by our whole life, we testify that our heart is unfeignedly devoted to God. Instead of the translation, Nor have our steps declined, which I have given, some suggest another reading, which is not without some degree of plausibility, namely, Thou hast made our steps to decline; for, in the first place, the term , tet, may be so rendered; and, secondly, according to the arrangement of the words, there is no negative in this clause. As to the meaning, however, I am not at all of their opinion; for they connect this passage with that in Isaiah 63:17, “O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways?” The complaint which is here made amounts rather to this, That the faithful are like poor wretched creatures wandering in desert places, seeing God had withdrawn his hand from them. The expression, The paths of God, does not always refer to doctrine, but sometimes to prosperous and desirable events. 19 Although thou hast broken us in the place of dragons. In the Hebrew it is, For thou hast broken us, etc.; but the causal particle, , ki, according to the idiom of the Hebrew language, is often taken in the sense of although or when. 146 And certainly it must be so rendered in this place, for these three verses are connected, and the sentence is incomplete till the end of the words, For he knoweth the secrets of the heart. The faithful repeat more largely what we have already seen, namely, that although plunged into the greatest depth of miseries, yet they continued steadfast in their resolution, and in the right way. If we consider the distressing circumstances in which they were placed, it will not appear to us a hyperbolical mode of speech, when they say that they were broken even within the depths of the sea; for by the place of dragons I understand not the deserts and solitary places, but the deepest gulfs of the sea. Accordingly, the word , tannim, which others translate dragons, 147 I would rather render whales, 148 as it is also understood in many other places. This interpretation is obviously confirmed by the following clause, in which they complain that they had been covered with the shadow of death, which implies that they were swallowed up of death itself. Let us, however, remember, that in these words the Holy Ghost dictates to us a form of prayer; and that, therefore, we are enjoined to cultivate a spirit of invincible fortitude and courage, which may serve to sustain us under the weight of all the calamities we may be called to endure, so that we may be able to testify of a truth, that even when reduced to the extremity of despair, we have never ceased to trust in God; that no temptations, however unexpected, could expel his fear from our hearts; and, in fine, that we were never so overwhelmed by the burden of our afflictions, however great, as not to have our eyes always directed to him. But it is proper for us to notice still more particularly the style of speaking here employed by the faithful. In order to show that they still continued steadfastly in the pure service of God, they affirm that they have not lifted up their hearts or their hands to any but to the God of Israel alone. It would not have been enough for them to have cherished some confused notion of the Deity: it was necessary that they should receive in its purity the true religion. Even those who murmur against God may be constrained to acknowledge some Divinity; but they frame for themselves a god after their own pleasure. And this is an artifice of the devil, who, because he cannot at once eradicate from our hearts all sense of religion, endeavors to overthrow our faith, by suggesting to our minds these devices — that we must seek another God; or that the God whom we have hitherto served must be appeased after another manner; or else that the assurance of his favor must be sought elsewhere than in the Law and the Gospel. Since, then, it is a much more difficult matter for men, amidst the tossings and waves of adversity, to continue steadfast and tranquil in the true faith, we must carefully observe the protestation which the Holy Fathers here make, that even when reduced to the lowest extremity of distress by calamities of every kind, they nevertheless did not cease to trust in the true God. This they express still more clearly in the following clause, in which they say, We have not stretched out our hands 149 to a strange god. By these words they intimate, that, contented with God alone, they did not suffer their hopes to be divided on different objects, nor gazed around them in search of other means of assistance. Hence we learn, that those whose hearts are thus divided and distracted by various expectations are forgetful of the true God, to whom we fail to yield the honor which is due to him, if we do not repose with confidence in him alone. And certainly, in the true and rightful service of God, faith and supplication which proceeds from it hold the first place: for we are guilty of depriving him of the chief part of his glory, when we seek apart from him in the least degree our own welfare. Let us then bear in mind, that it is a true test of our piety, when, being plunged into the lowest depths of disasters, we lift up our eyes, our hopes, and our prayers, to God alone. And it only serves to demonstrate more convincingly and clearly the impiety of Popery, when, after having confessed their faith in the one true God with the mouth, its rotaries the next moment degrade his glory by ascribing it to created objects. They indeed excuse themselves by alleging, that in having recourse to Saint Christopher and other saints of their own making, they do not claim for them the rank of Deity, but only employ them as intercessors with God to obtain his favor. It is, however, well known to every one, that the form of the prayers which they address to the saints, 150 is in no respects different from those prayers which they present to God. Besides, although we should yield this point to them, it will still be a frivolous excuse to pretend that they are seeking advocates or intercessors for themselves. This is as much as to say, that Christ is not sufficient for them, or rather, that his office is wholly lost sight of among them. Moreover, we should carefully observe the scope of this passage. The faithful declare, that they did not stretch forth their hands to other gods, because it is an error too common among men to forsake God, and to seek for other means of relief when they find that their afflictions continue to oppress them. So long as we are gently and affectionately treated of God we resort to him, but as soon as any adversity befalls us we begin to doubt. And if we are pressed still further, or if there be no end to our afflictions, the very continuance of them tempts us to despair; and despair generates various kinds of false confidence. Hence arises a multitude of new gods framed after the fancy of men. Of the lifting up of the hands we have spoken elsewhere. 21 Shall not God search this out? We have here a solemn and emphatic protestation, in which the people of God dare to appeal to him as the judge of their integrity and uprightness. From this it appears, that they did not plead their cause openly before men, but communed with themselves as if they had been before the judgment-seat of God; and moreover, as a token of still greater confidence, they add, that nothing is hidden from God. Why is it that hypocrites often call God to witness, if it is not because they imagine that, by concealing their wickedness under some specious disguise, they have escaped the judgment of God? and thus they would represent the character of God to be different from what it is, as if by their deceptions they could dazzle his eyes. Whenever, therefore, we come before God, let us at the same time remember, that there is nothing to be gained by any vain pretense in his presence, inasmuch as he knows the heart.
44:22-26
22. Surely for thy sake we are killed all the day; we are accounted as sheep for slaughter. 23. Arise, O Lord! why sleepest thou? awake, do not forget us or ever. 151 24. Why hidest thou thy face? wilt thou forget our misery and our affliction 152 25. For our soul is humbled to the dust: our belly cleaveth to the earth. 26. Arise for our help, and redeem us, for thy goodness’ sake.
22. 我们为你的缘故终日被杀，人看我们如将宰的羊。23. 主啊，求你睡醒，为何尽睡呢？求你兴起，不要永远丢弃我们。24. 你为何掩面、忘记我们的苦难和所受的欺压呢？25. 我们的性命伏在尘埃里，我们的肚腹紧贴地面。26. 求你起来帮助我们，凭你的慈爱救赎我们。
22 Surely for thy sake we are killed all the day. Here the faithful urge another reason why God should show mercy to them, namely, that they are subjected to sufferings not on account of crimes committed by themselves, but simply because the ungodly, from hatred to the name of God, are opposed to them. “This,” it may be said, “seems at first sight a foolish complaint, for the answer which Socrates gave to his wife was apparently more to the purpose, when, upon her lamenting that he was about to die wrongfully, 153 he reproved her saying, That it was better for him to die innocently than from any fault of his own. And even the consolation which Christ sets forth ‘Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,’ Matthew 5:10, seems to differ widely from the language here expressed by the people of God. It seems also opposed to what Peter says, ‘Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.’ —1 Peter 4:16, “To this I answer, That although it is the greatest alleviation of our sorrow that the cause for which we suffer is common to us with Christ himself, yet it is neither in vain nor out of place that the faithful here plead with God that they suffer wrongfully for his sake, in order that he may the more vigorously set himself for their defense. It is right that he should have respect to the maintenance of his glory, which the wicked endeavor to overthrow, when they insolently persecute those who serve him. And from this it appears the more clearly that this psalm was composed when the people languished in captivity, or else when Antiochus laid waste the Church, because religion was at that time the cause of suffering. The Babylonians were enraged by the constancy of the people, when they perceived that the whole body of the Jews, vanquished and routed as they were, ceased not on that account to condemn the superstitions of the country; and the rage of Antiochus was wholly bent upon extinguishing entirely the name of God. Moreover, what made the thing appear more strange and difficult to bear was, that God, so far from repressing the insolence and the wrongs inflicted by the wicked, left them, on the contrary, to continue in their cruelty, and gave them, as it were, loose reins. Accordingly, the godly declare that they are killed all the day long, and that they are counted of no more value than sheep for slaughter It is, however, proper always to bear in mind, what I have already remarked, that they were not so free from all blame as that God, in afflicting them, might not justly chastise them for their sins. But whilst in his incomparable goodness he fully pardons all our sins, he yet allows us to be exposed to unmerited persecutions, that we may with greater alacrity glory in bearing the cross with Christ, and thereby become partakers with him in his blessed resurrection. We have already said, that there was no other reason why the rage of the enemy was so inflamed against them, but that the people would not revolt from the law, and renounce the worship of the true God. It now remains for us to apply this doctrine to our own circumstances; and, first, let us consider that it becomes us, after the example of the fathers, patiently to submit to the afflictions by which it is necessary to seal the confession of our faith; and, secondly, that even in the deepest afflictions we must continue to call upon the name of God and abide in his fear. Paul, however, in his Epistle to the Romans, chapter 8:36, proceeds still farther; for he quotes this not only by way of example, but also affirms that the condition of the Church in all ages is here portrayed. Thus, then, we ought to regard it as a settled point, that a state of continual warfare in bearing the cross is enjoined upon us by divine appointment. Sometimes, it is true, a truce or respite may be granted us; for God, has compassion upon our infirmity: but although the sword of persecution is not always unsheathed against us, yet, as we are the members of Christ, it behoves us always to be ready to bear the cross with him. Lest, therefore, the severity of the cross should dismay us, let us always have present to our view this condition of the Church, that as we are adopted in Christ, we are appointed to the slaughter. If we neglect to do this, the same thing will befall us which happens to many apostates; for as it is in their judgment too severe and wretched a state, even while they live, to be continually dying, to be exposed to the mockery of others, and not to have one moment free from fear, — to rid themselves of that necessity they shamefully forsake and deny Christ. In order, therefore, that weariness, or dread of the cross, may not root up from our hearts true godliness, let us continually reflect upon this, that it behoves us to drink the cup which God puts into our hands, and that no one can be a Christian who does not dedicate himself to God. 23 Arise, O Lord! why sleepest thou? Here the saints desire that God, having pity upon them, would at length send them help and deliverance. Although God allows the saints to plead with him in this babbling manner, when in their prayers they desire him to rise up or awake; yet it is necessary that they should be fully persuaded that he keeps watch for their safety and defense. We must guard against the notion of Epicurus, who framed to himself a god who, having his abode in heaven, 154 delighted only in idleness and pleasure. But as the insensibility of our nature is so great, that we do not at once comprehend the care which God has of us, the godly here request that he would be pleased to give some evidence that he was neither forgetful of them nor slow to help them. We must, indeed, firmly believe that God ceases not to regard us, although he appears not to do so; yet as such an assurance is of faith, and not of the flesh, that is to say, is not natural to us, 155 the faithful familiarly give utterance before God to this contrary sentiment, which they conceive from the state of things as it is presented to their view; and in doing so, they discharge from their breasts those morbid affections which belong to the corruption of our nature, in consequence of which faith then shines forth in its pure and native character. If it is objected, that prayer, than which nothing is more holy, is defiled, when some froward imagination of the flesh is mingled with it, I confess that this is true; but in using this freedom, which the Lord vouchsafes to us, let us consider that, in his goodness and mercy, by which he sustains us, he wipes away this fault, that our prayers may not be defiled by it.
25 For our soul is humbled to the dust The people of God again deplore the greatness of their calamities, and in order that God may be the more disposed to help them, they declare to him that they are afflicted in no ordinary manner. By the metaphors which they here employ, they mean not only that they are cast down, but also that they are crushed and laid upon the earth, so that they are not able to rise again. Some take the word soul for the body, so that there would be in this verse a repetition of the same sentiment; but I would rather take it for the part in which the life of man consists; as if they had said, We are cast down to the earth, and lie prostrate upon our belly, without any hope of getting up again. After this complaint they subjoin a prayer, (verse 26,) that God would arise for their help By the word redeem they mean not ordinary kind of help, for there was no other means of securing their preservation but by redeeming them. And yet there can be no doubt, that they were diligently employed in meditating upon the great redemption from which all the deliverances which God is daily effecting in our behalf, when he defends us from dangers by various means, flow as streams from their source. In a previous part of the psalm, they had boasted of the steadfastness of their faith; but to show us that, in using this language, they boasted not in their own merits, they do not claim here some recompense for what they had done and suffered for God. They are contented to ascribe their salvation to the unmerited goodness of God as the alone cause of it.
发布于 2026年4月28日 00:00
