A Study by Scott Sperling Psalm 71 (pt. 2) - Hope for Deliverance   14 But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise You more and more. 15 My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, of Your salvation all day long, though I know not its measure. 16 I will come and proclaim Your mighty acts, O Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim Your righteousness, Yours alone.   17 Since my youth, O God, You have taught me, and to this day I declare Your marvelous deeds. 18 Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, Till I declare Your power to the next generation, Your might to all who are to come.   19 Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, You who have done great things. Who, O God, is like You? 20 Though You have made me see troubles, many and bitter, You will restore my life again; From the depths of the earth You will again bring me up. 21 You will increase my honor and comfort me once again. 22 I will praise You with the harp for Your faithfulness, O my God; I will sing praise to You with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel. 23 My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to You— I, whom You have redeemed. 24 My tongue will tell of Your righteous acts all day long, for those who wanted to harm me have been put to shame and confusion.   As we saw in the previous issue, this psalm was written by a believer (quite possibly David) who, in his old age, was being persecuted by enemies.  In the first half of the psalm, the Psalmist prayed for deliverance.  Here, he begins to show confidence that he will be delivered:  “But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise You more and more” (vs. 14).  The Psalmist, in the “hope” that comes from faith in His loving God, looks forward to his deliverance, and predicts that he will praise God for it.  In fact, God’s deliverance in this situation will cause the Psalmist (he predicts) to praise Him “more and more”.  The Psalmist redoubles his commitment to praise God and proclaim the greatness of God to others:  “My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, of Your salvation all day long, though I know not its measure.  I will come and proclaim Your mighty acts, O Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim Your righteousness, Yours alone” (vss. 15–16).  The trials we experience, and the subsequent deliverances by God, provide us with testimony about God, that we should share with others.  Everyone experiences affliction.  So our testimony about how God brought us through our affliction will encourage others to call on the name of God in difficult times.  “We are to bear testimony as experience enables us, and not withhold from others that which we have tasted and handled.  The faithfulness of God in saving us, in delivering us out of the hand of our enemies, and in fulfilling His promises, is to be everywhere proclaimed by those who have proved it in their own history” [Spurgeon]. The Psalmist looks back on his whole life—a life he spent continuously walking with God:  “Since my youth, O God, You have taught me, and to this day I declare Your marvelous deeds” (vs. 17).  The Psalmist uses this as a reason God should take his part:  “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare Your power to the next generation, Your might to all who are to come” (vss. 18).  “Consistent piety, exhibited through youth and manhood may be pleaded in the day of darkness and sorrow, as a reason why God should not forsake us; because it is most agreeable to His nature to remember old friendships” [Plumer, 699].  “Nothing shall make God forsake those who have not forsaken Him” [Spurgeon]. Note the reason the Psalmist wants God to take his part:  “…till I declare Your power to the next generation, Your might to all who are to come.”  The Psalmist, even in his old age, desires to declare the greatness of God, this time to the “next generation”.  “Are there better preachers of the works of God to be found than hoary parents in the circle of their children, or grand-parents in that of their grand-children?” [Tholuck, in Plumer, 699]. The Psalmist remembers God’s righteous character, and this gives him confidence that God will deliver him:  “Your righteousness reaches to the skies, O God, You who have done great things.  Who, O God, is like You?  Though You have made me see troubles, many and bitter, You will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth You will again bring me up.  You will increase my honor and comfort me once again” (vss. 19-21).  In his life, the Psalmist had experienced the chastening of God.  The Psalmist understood that God Himself allowed him to face afflictions, even “many and bitter” afflictions.  Yet, the Psalmist, through experience, had faith that God would “restore his life again.”  “Here is faith’s inference from the infinite greatness of the Lord.  He has been strong to smite; He will also be strong to save.  He has shown me many heavy and severe trials, and He will also show me many and precious mercies.  He has almost killed me, He will speedily revive me; and though I have been almost dead and buried, He will give me a resurrection ‘bring me up again from the depths of the earth.’  However low the Lord may permit us to sink, He will fix a limit to the descent, and in due time will bring us up again” [Spurgeon]. The Psalmist, in faith, sees the end.  And for the Psalmist, the end consists of him fervently praising the Lord:  “I will praise You with the harp for Your faithfulness, O my God.  I will sing praise to You with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel.  My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to You—I, whom You have redeemed.  My tongue will tell of Your righteous acts all day long, for those who wanted to harm me have been put to shame and confusion”  (vss. 22–24).  Oh that we would have the desire and faith to look forward to praising God, even before deliverance has come.  -----------  Bibliography and Suggested Reading Alexander,   Joseph   Addison.   The   Psalms   Translated   and Explained .  Edinburgh: Andrew Elliot, 1864.  Anonymous.      A   Plain   Commentary   on   the   Book   of   Psalms . Philadelphia:  Henry Hooker and Co., 1857. Barnes,   Albert.      Notes   on   the   Book   of   Psalms .      New   York:     Harper & Brothers Publishing, 1871. Bonar,   Andrew.    Christ    and    His    Church    in    the    Book    of Psalms .  New York:  Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860. Calvin,   John.      A   Commentary   on   the   Book   of   Psalms .      3 Vols.          Oxford:     D.    A.     Talboys,     1840.     (Originally published in Latin in 1557).  Clarke,   Adam.   The   Holy   Bible   with   a   Commentary   and Critical   Notes .      Vol.   III.      London:      William   Tegg   &   Co., 1854.  (Originally published in 1831).  Cowles,     Henry.          The     Psalms     with     Notes,     Critical, Explanatory   and   Practical .      New   York:      D.   Appleton   & Co., 1872. Darby,   John   Nelson.      Practical   Reflections   on   the   Psalms .     London:  Robert L. Allan, 1870. Delitzsch,    Franz.        Biblical    Commentary    on    the    Psalms. Edinburgh:      T   &   T   Clark,   1892.   (Originally   published in 1860). Dickson,   David.   An   Explication   of   the   Other   Fifty   Psalms, from   Ps.   50   to   Ps.   100.   Cornhill,   U.K.:      Ralph   Smith, 1653.  Exell,   Joseph   S.   and   Henry   Donald   Spence-Jones,   eds. The   Pulpit   Commentary .   Vols.   17,   18,   &   19.   New   York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1884.  Hengstenberg,     F.     W.          Commentary     on     the     Psalms .       Edinburgh:  T & T Clark, 1864. Henry,   Matthew.      An   Exposition   of   All   the   Books   of   the Old   and   New   Testament .      Vol.   II.      London:   W.   Baynes, 1806. (Originally published in 1710). Horne,   George.   A   Commentary   on   the   Book   of   Psalms.      New York:  Robert Carter & Brothers, 1854. Jamieson,    Robert;    Fausset,   A.    R.;    Brown,    David.        A Commentary:   Critical,   Experimental,   and   Practical   on   the Old   and   New   Testaments.       Glasgow:      William   Collins, Queen’s Printer, 1863. Kidner,   Derek.   Psalms    (in   2   Vols.).   Downers   Grove,   IL: InterVarsity Press, 2008 (first published in 1975). Kirkpatrick,   A.   F.   The   Book   of   Psalms   with   Introduction and   Notes   –   Books   II   and   III    (from   The   Cambridge   Bible for      Schools      and      Colleges).      Cambridge,      UK: University Press, 1895. Lange,    John    Peter,    ed.    and    Philip    Schaff,    trans.        A Commentary   on   the   Holy   Scriptures:   Critical,   Doctrinal, and   Homiletical .      New   York:      Charles   Scribner   &   Co., 1865.  Maclaren,   Alexander.   The   Psalms    (in   3   Vols.,   from   The Expositor’s   Bible,   ed.   by   W.   R.   Nicoll).   New   York:   A. C. Armstrong and Son, 1901. Perowne,    J.    J.    Stewart.        The    Book    of    Psalms:        A    New Translation   with   Explanatory   Notes .      London:      George Bell & Sons, 1880. Plumer,    William    S.        Studies    in    the    Book    of    Psalms .      Philadelphia:  J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1872. Scott,   Thomas.   Commentary   on   the   Holy   Bible ,   Vol.   III. London: James Nisbet, 1866. Spurgeon,    Charles.        The    Treasury    of    David .        6    Vols.      London: Marshall Brothers, Ltd., 1885. Tholuck,   Augustus.      A   Translation   and   Commentary   of the Book of Psalms .  Philadelphia:  Martien, 1858. Trapp,    John.        A    Commentary    on    the    Old    and    New Testaments .    Vol.    II    (Ezra    to    Psalms).        Edmonton, Canada:           Still           Waters           Revival           Books (www.PuritanDownloads.com).                     (Originally published c. 1660). VanGemeren,    Willem    A.,    (Gaebelein,    Frank    E.,    ed).      Expositor’s   Bible   Commentary ,   Vol.   5   –   Psalms   to   Song of Songs.  Grand Rapids, MI:  Zondervan, 1991. -- Most   of   these   books   (those   in   the   public   domain)   can be    downloaded,    free    of    charge,    from    the    Classic Christian Library,  at: http://www.ClassicChristianLibrary.com