Psalms 121:8

121:1-8 The safety of the godly. - We must not rely upon men and means, instruments and second causes. Shall I depend upon the strength of the hills? upon princes and great men? No; my confidence is in God only. Or, we must lift up our eyes above the hills; we must look to God who makes all earthly things to us what they are. We must see all our help in God; from him we must expect it, in his own way and time. This psalm teaches us to comfort ourselves in the Lord, when difficulties and dangers are greatest. It is almighty wisdom that contrives, and almighty power that works the safety of those that put themselves under God's protection. He is a wakeful, watchful Keeper; he is never weary; he not only does not sleep, but he does not so much as slumber. Under this shade they may sit with delight and assurance. He is always near his people for their protection and refreshment. The right hand is the working hand; let them but turn to their duty, and they shall find God ready to give them success. He will take care that his people shall not fall. Thou shalt not be hurt, neither by the open assaults, nor by the secret attempts of thine enemies. The Lord shall prevent the evil thou fearest, and sanctify, remove, or lighten the evil thou feelest. He will preserve the soul, that it be not defiled by sin, and disturbed by affliction; he will preserve it from perishing eternally.

He will keep thee in life and death; going out to thy labour in the morning of thy days, and coming home to thy rest when the evening of old age calls thee in. It is a protection for life. The Spirit, who is their Preserver and Comforter, shall abide with them for ever. Let us be found in our work, assured that the blessings promised in this psalm are ours.

The Lord shall preserve thy going out, and thy coming in,.... In transacting all the business of life, in going in and out about it; in all ways, works, and conversation; in journeying and travelling; in all affairs, civil and religious; and not only preserve, but prosper in all, Psalm 1:3 ; the Lord blessing him, coming in and going out, Deuteronomy 28:6 ; and such, with the poet (x), are said to go with a good or prosperous foot. And such persons, in the Punic language, are called Namphanians, as Austin observes (y); who says the word signifies a man of a good foot: and the word seems to be the contraction of , which signifies "his good" or "pleasant foot" (z); and so one that, wherever he comes and goes, things prosper with him, and with those that are in connection with him: such an one was Jacob in the house of Laban, whom the Lord blessed, as he says, "since my coming", or at "my foot"; see Gill on Genesis 30:30 ; and such a foot Joseph had wherever he went, Genesis 39:5 . Arama interprets it of a man's going out into the air of this world, and of his entrance into the world to come.

The Targum is, "the Lord will keep thy going out to business, and thy coming in to study in the law.'' from this time forth, and even for evermore; for the Lord not only preserves his people in life and at death, but in heaven, to all eternity; in the utmost safety and peace from all molestations by men or devils, and from their wrath and malice: not only his purpose and decree, but his power and providence, are the vast gulf between the one and the other; by means of which the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest, Luke 16:26. (x) Virgil. Aeneid. l. 8. "Adi pede sacra secundo"; & l. 10. "adsis pede diva secundo." (y) Epist. 44. (z) Vid. Sterringae Philol. Sacr. p. 169. Reinesium de Lingua Punica, c. 8. s. 10.

Verse 8. - The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in (comp. Deuteronomy 28:6 ; 1 Samuel 29:6 ; 2 Samuel 3:25 ; 1 Kings 3:7 ; 2 Kings 19:27 ). The phrase is an equivalent of "The Lord shall preserve thee in all thy ways" ( Psalm 91:11 ). From this time forth, and even forevermore ; i . e . so long as thou hast "goings out" and "comings in." But the phrase used rather implies that these will never cease. Psalm 121:8

8 . thy going out and thy coming in ] All thy undertakings and occupations. Cp. Deuteronomy 28:6 ; &c. Perhaps too a special allusion to the pilgrims’ journey to Jerusalem is intended. from this time forth, and [omit even ] for evermore ] Personal hopes here lose themselves in national hopes: but in the light of the Gospel the individual can appropriate these words to himself. Cp. Psalm 115:18 . Every pious Jew, as he leaves or enters the house, touches the Mezuza , i.e. the small metal cylinder affixed to the right-hand door-post, containing a piece of parchment inscribed with Deuteronomy 6:4-9 ; Deuteronomy 11:13-21 , and recites this verse. Kitto’s Biblical Cyclopaedia , s.v. Mezuza .

The Lord shall preserve thou going out and thy coming in - Preserve thee in going out and coming in; in going from thy dwelling, and returning to it; in going from home and coming back; that is, everywhere, and at all times. Compare Deuteronomy 28:6 . See the notes also at Job 5:24 . "From this time forth, and even forevermore." Through this life and for ever. This is the gracious assurance which is made to all who put their trust in God. At home and abroad; in the house, in the field, and by the way; on the land and on the ocean; in their native country and in climes remote; on earth, in the grave, and in the eternal world, they are always safe. No evil that will endanger their salvation can befal them; nothing can happen to them here but what God shall see to be conducive to their ultimate good; and in the heavenly world they shall be safe forever from every kind of evil, for in that world there will be no sin, and consequently no need of discipline to prepare them for the future. "In foreign realms, and lands remote, Supported by thy care, Through burning climes they pass unhurt, And breathe in tainted air. When by the dreadful tempest borne, High on the broken wave, They know thou art not slow to hear, Nor impotent to save. The storm is laid - the winds retire, Obedient to thy will; The sea that roars at thy command, At thy command is still. In midst of dangers, fears, and death, continued...

That which holds good of "the Keeper of Israel" the poet applies believingly to himself, the individual among God's people, in Psalm 121:5 after Genesis 28:15 . Jahve is his Keeper, He is his shade upon his right hand (היּמין as in Judges 20:16 ; 2 Samuel 20:9 , and frequently; the construct state instead of an apposition, cf. e.g., Arab. jânbu 'l-grbı̂yi, the side of the western equals the western side), which protecting him and keeping him fresh and cool, covers him from the sun's burning heat. על, as in Psalm 109:6 ; Psalm 110:5 , with the idea of an overshadowing that screens and spreads itself out over anything (cf. Numbers 14:9 ). To the figure of the shadow is appended the consolation in Psalm 121:6 . הכּה of the sun signifies to smite injuriously ( Isaiah 49:10 ), plants, so that they wither ( Psalm 102:5 ), and the head ( Jonah 4:8 ), so that symptoms of sun-stroke ( 2 Kings 4:19 , Judith 8:2f.) appears. The transferring of the word of the moon is not zeugmatic. Even the moon's rays may become insupportable, may affect the eyes injuriously, and (more particularly in the equatorial regions) produce fatal inflammation of the brain. (Note: Many expositors, nevertheless, understand the destructive influence of the moon meant here of the nightly cold, which is mentioned elsewhere in the same antithesis. Genesis 31:40; Jeremiah 36:30. De Sacy observes also: On dit quelquefois d'un grand froid, comme d'un grand chaud, qu'il est brulant.