Verse 1. “Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king's son.” It is the gift of God that kings should judge righteously and observe justice. But, David does not simply say, O God, give judgments to the king, and righteousness to the king's son; but, Thy judgments, and Thy righteousness. Grant them this grace, that what is just in Thy sight they may judge. The world has its own judgments, and its own righteousness, but deals in such a way that true righteousness is more oppressed than approved.
Verse 5. “They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations.” The passing of one of the Lord's faithful saints is always an occasion of mixed emotions. On the one hand, those who are left to continue the battle and the warfare of the gospel feel the loss of a faithful soldier of Christ Jesus, while, on the other hand, that warrior has now entered into the rest of victory in the presence of Him who called him to be a soldier, and this is very far better.
So, many have, no doubt, felt at the passing earlier this month of the Rev. Murdoch Campbell, late of Resolis, and author of many books. As this psalm that we come to this month was one of Mr Campbell's own favourites, we thought it fitting to include his comments on this fifth verse, especially as they express the sentiments, and yet, give us the balance of what we have mentioned above.
“There was another night,” he tells us, “when, sitting in our manse in Resolis, I felt very discouraged at the state of God's cause, and over the departure of those witnesses who graced the firmament of the Church in other days. Then I moved outside. The sky was ablaze with stars, while the moon beamed on the silent woods and harvest fields nearby. It was then that these same words arrested my mind: 'They shall fear thee as long as the sun and the moon endure throughout all generations.' The Lord, I knew, has had His witnesses in this world from the days of Abel till the present moment. And the future was bright with many promises of better days. The Prince of Peace, I knew was sitting on His Throne in heaven; 'His name shall endure for ever,' and there shall be for all who love Him, 'abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth.' that night, as I looked towards the heavens, I also recalled God's promise to Abraham, 'So shall thy seed be.'
But my greatest joy came through the knowledge that all the people of God who in every generation were spiritual lights in this world were shining more gloriously in that world wherein dwelleth righteousness. 'And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament, and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever.' I knew also that, throughout her history, the Church of God, like the moon, did wax and wane, but that her most glorious hour in this world is yet to be. 'Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?'”
Verse 6. “He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth.” Pastures mown with the scythe, or shorn by the teeth of cattle, present, as it were, so many bleeding stems of grass. But, when the rain falls it is balm to all these wounds, and it renews the verdure and beauty of the field. Fit image of the visits and benedictions of “the consolation of Israel.” My soul, how well it is for thee to be brought low, and to be even as the meadows eaten bare and trodden down by cattle, for then, to thee shall the Lord have respect; He shall remember thy misery, and with His own most precious love restore thee to more than thy former glory.
Verse 7. “In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth.” Do you ask what He is? The answer is “King of Righteousness.” Loving righteousness, working righteousness, promoting righteousness, procuring righteousness, imparting righteousness to those whom He saves. Do you ask what He is? The answer is “King of Peace.” A Sovereign whose kingdom is a shelter for all who are miserable, a covert for all who are persecuted, a resting-place for all who are weary, a home for the destitute, and a refuge for the lost.