Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/3_600_e.lzh/3_630.TXT

Text File | 1995-01-31 | 6KB | 110 lines

\*Ver. 4. \\He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart\\,
&c.] Though %clean hands% are mentioned first, as being
more obvious to view, and better known, and more
subject to the cognizance and observation of others;
yet a %pure heart% is first in being and in order; from
whence cleanness of hands, when right and real,
springs: no man has a pure heart naturally and of himself:
the heart is desperately wicked; the imagination
of the thoughts of it is evil continually; the mind and
conscience are defiled with sin; nor can any man make
his heart clean, or say he is pure from sin; but it is
God that creates a clean heart, and renews a right
spirit within men, and purifies the heart by faith,
which is led to the blood of sprinkling, which purges
the conscience, and cleanseth it from all sin; and
from this purity of heart flows purity of life and conversation,
signified by %clean hands%; the hand being
the instrument of action, holy actions, or good works,
performed from a principle of grace, are meant; the
phrase is expressive of a holy, harmless, and innocent
conversation, washing the hands being used to denote
innocence, \\#Mt 27:24 Ps 26:6 73:13\\;
not a conversation entirely free from sin, nor by
which a man is justified before God; for though he
wash his hands ever so clean, they will not be pure in
his sight, and will need washing in the blood of the
Lamb; but it denotes a conversation upright in general,
and declares a man righteous in the sight of men,
and distinguishes him from one of a dissolute life,
whose hands are full of blood, and defiled with sin;
\*\\who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity\\; or %set his
heart upon% {g}, and desired vain things, as the phrase is
sometimes used, \\#De 24:15 Jer 22:27\\; that is, the
vain things of this world; as the riches, honours, pleasures,
and profits of it; or has not served other gods,
the idols of the Gentiles, which are lying vanities, but
has lifted up his soul to God, and served him only: or
%who hath not received his soul in vain% {h}; from the hands
of God, but loves him with all his soul, believes with
the heart in Christ for righteousness, being sanctified
by the spirit of God; and so the desire of his soul is
to his name, and the remembrance of him. The %Keri%,
or marginal reading, according to the points, is, %who
hath not lifted up my soul to vanity% {i}; that is, has not
taken the name of God in vain, or swore falsely by his
name; his soul being put for his name or himself; and
by which he is said sometimes to swear, \\#Jer 51:14
Am 6:8\\; and this sense the Jewish interpreters {k}
generally give into. The Targum seems to take in
both the writing of the text and the marginal reading,
as it often does, and renders the words, %who hath not
sworn in vain, to the condemnation of his soul%; though
sometimes to his own disadvantage, yet not to the hurt
of others; see \\#Ps 15:4\\; it follows,
\*\\nor sworn deceitfully\\;
by bearing false witness against any man; or
by cheating him out of his substance through a false
oath.

\*Ver. 5. \\He shall receive the blessing from the Lord\\,
&c.] Or %who receives% {l}; the future for the present;
and so is a continuation of the description of a person
proper to enter and abide in the church of God, as
\\#Ps 24:6\\ seems to require; even one who has
received every spiritual blessing in Christ in general,
special grace out of his fulness; particularly the blessing
of pardon, as also adoption, and a right to eternal
life; though it may be that the following clause is
explanative of this;
\*\\and righteousness from the God
of his salvation\\; from Christ, who is God his Saviour,
the author of salvation; and who has brought in an
everlasting righteousness, which is in him, and is a
gift of his grace, and is received from him by faith,
and is a great blessing indeed; it secures from condemnation
and death, and entitles to eternal life.

\*Ver. 6. \\This [is] the generation of them that seek him\\,
&c.] The persons above described are such, who in
every age are the generation of the children of God,
and are accounted by him for a generation; they are
such that seek him, in the first place, with their whole
hearts, and in Christ, where they find him;
\*\\that seek
thy face, O Jacob\\. By the %face% of God is meant
the favour of God, the discoveries of his love, the
light of his countenance, than which nothing is more
desirable to gracious souls, or more sought after by
them; and by Jacob is meant the God of Jacob; and
so Apollinarius has it in his metaphrase; see \\#Ps 10:1\\;
unless Christ should be intended, one of whose
names is Israel, \\#Isa 49:3\\; or the words may be supplied,
as they are by some Jewish writers {m}, %this is
Jacob%; or the persons before described are the seed of
Jacob, and who are called by his name: and it may
be observed, that the church of God often bears the
same name, \\#Isa 43:1 44:1,5\\; and then the
sense is, the persons whose characters are given above
are fit to ascend, and stand in the holy hill of God,
are Israelites indeed, in whom there is no guile.

\*\\Selah\\; on this word, \\see Gill on "Ps 3:2"\\.

{g} \^wvpn avn al\^ %non inhiat, aut intentus est%, Vatablus, Amama; so
Gejerus, Michaelis.
{h} So Pagninus.
{i} %Animam meam%, Montanus, Vatablus, Hillerus.
{k} Jarchi, Aben Ezra, Kimchi, & Ben Melech in loc.
{l} \^avy\^ %qui accipit%, Cocceius.
{m} Aben Ezra, Kimchi, & Ben Melech in loc.