King James Version
Psalms 115
18 verses with commentary
Not to Us, but to Your Name Give Glory
Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.</strong> This verse opens with passionate self-denial—emphatic repetition rejecting human glory to ascribe all glory to God. The doubled "not unto us" intensifies the renunciation of self-glory, human credit, and pride.<br><br>"Not unto us" (לֹא לָנוּ/<em>lo lanu</em>) repeats twice for...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **Not unto us . . .**—This rejection of all self-praise is implied in all Hebrew poetry.
**Mercy . . . truth . . .**—Both a distinct reference to the covenant. Both these covenanted blessings were assailed by the heathen taunt, “Where is now their God?”
It is difficult for us to reproduce in imagination the apparent triumph, which the idolater, who could point to *his *deity, felt he had over ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6-8. tabernacles--**for people (Psa 78:67).
**they--**all these united with the children of Lot, or Ammonites and Moabites (compare 2Ch 20:1).
Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?</strong> This verse voices the taunt Israel faced during exile, military defeat, or national crisis. The Hebrew <em>goyim</em> (גּוֹיִם, nations/gentiles) mocked Israel's faith when circumstances suggested divine absence or impotence. The question 'Where is their God?' (<em>ayeh na Eloheihem</em>, אַיֵּה־נָא אֱלֹהֵיהֶם) implies that...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
9-11. Compare the similar fate of these (2Ch 20:23) with that of the foes mentioned in Jud 7:22, here referred to. They destroyed one another (Jud 4:6-24; 7:25). Human remains form manure (compare 2Ki 9:37; Jr 9:22).
But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.</strong> This verse responds to pagan mockery ("Where is now their God?" v.2) with confident assertion of God's sovereignty. While idols are confined to temples, Yahweh dwells in heavens, ruling over all creation with absolute authority.<br><br>"But our God" (וֵאלֹהֵינוּ/<em>ve'Eloheinu</em>) contrasts Israel's God wit...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
9-11. Compare the similar fate of these (2Ch 20:23) with that of the foes mentioned in Jud 7:22, here referred to. They destroyed one another (Jud 4:6-24; 7:25). Human remains form manure (compare 2Ki 9:37; Jr 9:22).
Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.</strong> The psalm pivots from defending Israel's invisible God to exposing pagan idolatry's absurdity. The Hebrew <em>atsabehem</em> (עֲצַבֵּיהֶם) means their 'idols' or 'images'—literally 'shaped things' or even 'sorrows' (the word can denote both idol and grief). Made of precious <em>kesef</em> (כֶּסֶף, silver) and <em>zahav</em>...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4-8) This passage cannot compare with the magnificent irony of Isaiah 44:9-20, but there is still a noticeable vein of sarcasm running through it, visible even more in the original than in the English. (Comp. Psalm 135:15-18.)
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
9-11. Compare the similar fate of these (2Ch 20:23) with that of the foes mentioned in Jud 7:22, here referred to. They destroyed one another (Jud 4:6-24; 7:25). Human remains form manure (compare 2Ki 9:37; Jr 9:22).
They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not.</strong> The satire begins a devastating anatomical inventory of idol impotence. Each body part mentioned—mouth (<em>peh</em>, פֶּה), eyes (<em>einayim</em>, עֵינַיִם)—possesses form without function, appearance without ability. The repetitive structure ('they have X, but they X not') hammers home the absurdity through...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
12. The language of the invaders.
**houses--**literally, "residences," enclosures, as for flocks (Psa 65:12).
**of God--**as the proprietors of the land (2Ch 20:11; Is 14:25).
They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not.</strong> The anatomical inventory continues with ears (<em>oznayim</em>, אָזְנַיִם) and noses (<em>af</em>, אַף). Deaf idols cannot hear prayers, vows, or cries for help. This contrasts sharply with Israel's God, whose ears are open to righteous prayers (Psalm 34:15; 1 Peter 3:12) and who hears the groaning of the oppr...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. like a wheel--**or, whirling of any light thing (Is 17:13), as stubble or chaff (Psa 1:4).
They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.</strong> The catalog concludes with hands (<em>yedehem</em>, יְדֵיהֶם), feet (<em>ragleihem</em>, רַגְלֵיהֶם), and throats (<em>geronekhem</em>, גְּרוֹנָם). Hands that cannot handle anything mock the idol's impotence—unable to bless, heal, deliver, or work. Isaiah ridicules the...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Neither speak they.**—The Hebrew implies not only the want of articulate speech, but of utterance at all.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
14-15. Pursue them to an utter destruction.
They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.</strong> This is the devastating conclusion: idol makers become like their idols. The Hebrew <em>damah</em> (דָּמָה, to be like, resemble) indicates not just similarity but transformation into likeness. Those who craft and trust in lifeless, senseless objects become spiritually lifeless and senseless themselves....
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Every one that trusteth . . .**—
“Who moulds in gold or stone a sacred face
Makes not the god; but he who asks his grace.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
14-15. Pursue them to an utter destruction.
O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>O Israel, trust thou in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.</strong> After contrasting living God with dead idols (v.3-8), the psalm issues three parallel calls to trust (v.9-11), first addressing Israel collectively. This verse establishes the appropriate response to God's sovereignty and faithfulness: complete, confident trust.<br><br>"O Israel" (יִשְׂרָאֵל/<em>Yisrael</em>) add...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **O Israel.**—There is consummate art in this sudden change of address. It is like the pointed application of some general truth in a sermon. It is possible that in the liturgic use a change in the music was made here, the Levites and choir turning to the people with a loud burst of song.
**He is their help and their shield.**—The original form of this motto of trust appears in Psalm 33:20. He...
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**16. that they may seek--**or as Psa 83:18, supply "men," since Psa 83:17, 18 amplify the sentiment of Psa 83:16, expressing more fully the measure of destruction, and the lesson of God's being and perfections (compare 2Ch 20:29) taught to all men.
O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>O house of Aaron, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.</strong> After demolishing idolatry (vv. 4-8), the psalmist issues threefold call to trust, addressing different groups within Israel. Verse 9 called 'Israel' (the nation), this verse addresses the <em>house of Aaron</em> (בֵּית אַהֲרֹן/<em>beit Aharon</em>), the priestly line descended from Moses' brother Aaron.<br><b...
Read full commentary →Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD: he is their help and their shield.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Ye that fear the LORD, trust in the LORD</strong> (יִרְאֵי יְהוָה בִּטְחוּ בַּיהוָה)—The psalmist moves from calling on the house of Aaron to address all God-fearers. The Hebrew <em>yir'ei YHWH</em> (those who fear the LORD) became a technical term for Gentile converts and sympathizers in Second Temple Judaism (Acts 10:2, 13:16). The imperative <em>bitchu</em> (trust!) intensifies the call...
Read full commentary →The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The LORD hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.</strong> This verse transitions from exhortation (trust!) to assurance (He blesses!). The Hebrew <em>zakar</em> (זָכַר, to remember, be mindful) doesn't imply God forgot but rather that He acts on behalf of those He remembers. God 'remembered' Noah (Genesis 8:1), Hannah ...
Read full commentary →He will bless them that fear the LORD, both small and great. and: Heb. with
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>He will bless them that fear him, both small and great.</strong> This verse promises divine blessing to all who fear God, transcending social distinctions. The psalm has called Israel (v.9), Aaron's house (v.10), and God-fearers (v.11) to trust; now it assures all receive blessing regardless of status.<br><br>"He will bless" (יְבָרֵךְ/<em>yevarekh</em>) uses imperfect tense indicating futu...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **Them that fear the Lord**—*i.e.*, all Israel.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
PSALM 84 Psa 84:1-12. (See on Psa 8:1, title, and Psa 42:1, title). The writer describes the desirableness of God's worship and prays for a restoration to its privileges.
**1. amiable--**not lovely, but beloved.
**tabernacles--**(Psa 43:3).
The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The LORD shall increase you more and more, you and your children.</strong> This blessing looks to generational continuity and growth. The Hebrew <em>yasaf</em> (יָסַף, to add, increase) emphasizes progressive multiplication. God's blessing isn't static maintenance but dynamic expansion. The phrase <strong>more and more</strong> (<em>al-atem ve'al-beneikhem</em>, עֲלֵיכֶם וְעַל־בְּנֵיכֶם, l...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **The Lord shall increase.**—More literally,
“Jehovah shall heap blessings on you,
On you and on your children.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. longeth--**most intensely (Ge 31:30; Psa 17:12).
**fainteth--**exhausted with desire.
**courts--**as tabernacles (Psa 84:1)--the whole building.
**crieth out--**literally, "sings for joy"; but here, and La 2:19, expresses an act of sorrow as the corresponding noun (Psa 17:1; 61:2).
**heart and ... flesh--**as in Psa 63:1.
Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Ye are blessed of the LORD which made heaven and earth.</strong> The blessing concludes by grounding divine favor in divine identity. <strong>Blessed of the LORD</strong> (<em>berukhim atem l'Yahweh</em>, בְּרוּכִים אַתֶּם לַיהוָה) uses the passive participle, indicating a settled state: you ARE blessed, not merely you will receive blessing. It's identity before activity, being before doin...
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**3. thine altars--**that is, of burnt offering and incense, used for the whole tabernacle. Its structure afforded facilities for sparrows and swallows to indulge their known predilections for such places. Some understand the statement as to the birds as a comparison: "as they find homes, so do I desire thine altars," &c.
The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.</strong> This verse articulates the biblical doctrine of delegated dominion. The dual reference to <strong>heaven, even the heavens</strong> (<em>hashamayim shamayim l'Yahweh</em>, הַשָּׁמַיִם שָׁמַיִם לַיהוָה) uses repetition for emphasis—all heavenly realms belong exclusively to God. This in...
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4. This view is favored by the language here, which, as in Psa 15:1; 23:6, recognizes the blessing of membership in God's family by terms denoting a dwelling in His house.
The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence.</strong> This sobering verse emphasizes the urgency of worship during earthly life. <strong>The dead</strong> (<em>hametim</em>, הַמֵּתִים) refers to those in Sheol, the shadowy realm of departed spirits. Old Testament understanding of afterlife was limited (fuller revelation awaited Christ who 'brought life and immortali...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17, 18) The connection of these verses with the rest of the psalm is far from plain. Why the psalmist should suddenly be struck with the dreadful thought that death broke the covenant relationship, and silenced prayer and praise, is not easy to see. Was the psalm first chanted after some victory? and was this suggested by the sight of the slain, who, though they had helped to win the triumph, cou...
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5. (Compare Psa 68:28).
**in whose heart ... the ways--**that is, who knows and loves the way to God's favor (Pr 16:17; Is 40:3, 4).
But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But we will bless the LORD from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the LORD.</strong> The psalm concludes with solemn vow of perpetual praise. After contrasting dead idols with living God, calling for trust, and promising blessing, the psalmist commits to eternal worship regardless of circumstances.<br><br>"But we will bless" (וַאֲנַחְנוּ נְבָרֵךְ/<em>va'anachnu nevarekh</em>) contra...
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**6. valley of Baca--**or, "weeping." Through such, by reason of their dry and barren condition, the worshippers often had to pass to Jerusalem. As they might become wells, or fountains, or pools, supplied by refreshing rain, so the grace of God, by the exercises of His worship, refreshes and revives the hearts of His people, so that for sorrows they have "rivers of delight" (Psa 36:8; 46:4).