Ps. 73:0 THE ARGUMENT The subject of this Psalm is the same with Ps. 77:0, concerning the promiscuous carriage of God’s providence towards good and bad men Or, for Asaph, the famous musician, to whom divers of David’s Psalms were committed, as Ps. 1:0, &c.

Truly; or, nevertheless. The beginning is abrupt and sufficiently intimates that he had a great conflict within himself about this matter, and that many doubts and objections were raised in his mind concerning it.

Yet I must acknowledge this with grief and shame concerning myself; notwithstanding all my knowledge of this truth, and my own experience and observation of God’s gracious dealings with me, and other good men, my feet were almost gone; my faith in God’s promises and providence was almost overthrown…

I grudged and murmured at it, and had a secret desire to partake of their delicates.

There are no bands in their death; they are not dragged to death, neither by the hand and sentence of the magistrate, which yet they deserve; nor by any lingering and grievous torments of mind or body, which is the case of many good men; but they enjoy a sweet and quiet death, dropping into the…

Either, 1. As good men frequently are. Or 2. As men generally are. They do by a secret and favourable providence of God escape even common calamities.

Pride compasseth them about as a chain: this phrase notes both the extent of their pride, which appears on every side of them, in their countenances, discourses, gestures, &c, and their glorying in it. The like may be said of the next phrase.

Their eyes stand out with fatness; as they do in some fat persons, though not in others. The meaning is, they live in great plenty and prosperity, as the next clause explains it.

They are corrupt; or, dissolved in pleasure. Or, they corrupt themselves. Speak wickedly concerning oppression; wickedly boasting of their oppressions; either of what they have done, or of what they intend to do, in that kind.

Against the heavens, i.e. against God, blaspheming his name, denying or deriding his providence, reviling his saints and servants. Walketh through the earth; using all manner of liberty, introducing and reproaching all sorts of persons, not caring whom they displease or hurt by it.

His people; either, 1. The people of those wicked blasphemers; all their children, and servants, and friends, encouraged by their example. Or rather, 2. The people of God, who is oft understood under the pronoun relative he or his, though he be not expressed, as Ps. 105:19, Isa. 30:23.

They; either, 1. The godly. Or rather, 2. Those wicked ones, whose words and actions he hath been hitherto describing, or the people confederate with them. For these and such-like opinions are oft ascribed to the wicked in Scripture, but never, as far as I know; to any good man.

These are the ungodly; this is their condition and carriage in it. These seem to be the words of the psalmist, summing up the matter, and preparing his passage to the other part of the Psalm.

Hence I was sometimes tempted to think that religion was a vain and unprofitable thing, at least as to the happiness of this life, which yet God had promised as a reward to piety.

Whilst their ungodliness hath been attended with constant prosperity, my piety hath been exercised with continual afflictions.

I will speak thus; I will give sentence for the ungodly in this manner. I should offend against the generation of thy children, by grieving, and discouraging, and condemning them, and by tempting them to revolt from God and godliness.

To know this; to find out the reason of this mysterious course of thy providence. It was too painful for me; I was gravelled with the difficulty.

Till I consulted with the oracle, or word of God. He alludes to the practice of those times, which was, in dark and difficult cases, to resort to God’s sanctuary, and the oracle in it, for satisfaction.

Their happiness hath no firm foundation; it was very unstable, like a man’s standing in very slippery ground. The same hand which raised them will cast them down into the pit of utter destruction.

Their fall is wonderful, both for its soreness and for its suddenness. Consumed with terrors; either, with the horrors of their own minds; or rather, with God’s dreadful judgments unexpectedly seizing upon them.

Their happiness is like that in a dream, wherein a man seems to be highly pleased and transported with ravishing delights, but when he awakes he finds himself deceived and unsatisfied. Awakest, i.e. stirrest up thyself to punish them.

Thus; so as I have above expressed; for this particle so taken, doth not belong to what he had now wisely and piously said in the next foregoing verses, but to what he had unadvisedly spoken in the former verses, as is evident from the following verse.

As a beast. Heb. beasts, which may signify a great beast; a most stupid and sottish creature, like one not only void of grace, but of reason too; for reason itself, especially assisted by the Holy Scriptures, did sufficiently discover that, all things considered, I had no sufficient cause to envy…

Nevertheless; notwithstanding all my temptations, and my gross folly in yielding to them. I am continually with thee; either, 1. In a way of duty. Yet I did not depart from thee, nor from thy ways; but did at last conquer them, and firmly cleave unto thee by faith. Or rather, 2.

Thou shalt guide me: as thou hast kept me hitherto in all my trials, so I am assured thou wilt lead me still into right paths, and keep me from wandering or straying from thee, or falling into mischief.

Whom have I in heaven, or in earth? as it follows. There is no other person nor thing in the world from which I can seek or hope for happiness, or which I am willing to accept as my portion. Let sinners have an earthly prosperity, I am satisfied with thee, and with thy favour.

In myself, I confess I am a poor weak creature, and my body and spirit may fail and be ready to faint under such temptations and tribulations as these, and I know I shall shortly return to the dust, out of which I was taken.

They that are far from thee; they that forsake thee and thy ways, preferring the prosperity of this present evil world before thy love, and favour, and service; they who estrange themselves from the love, and life, and acquaintance of God; that say to God, Depart from us, for we desire not the…

But whatsoever they do, I am abundantly satisfied that it is, as my duty, so my interest and happiness, to cleave unto thee, by faith, and love, and obedience, and diligent attendance upon all thine ordinances.