As in the previous Psalm, the Spirit of Christ entered into the confidence of Israel on the footing to them of mercy, so here into the sorrows in sympathy-there, as mercy was to them merely, it begins "To us"—here, being their sorrows, it begins at once "I love the Lord." Though in answer to a cry, for He cried for them, and was just the One that did, taking their sorrows—present salvation, i.e., in the world, was the point, when only faith in the Lord could enable Him to speak, such was the persecution. Death so wrought in him—not thanatos, where this is quoted, as the portion of the Remnant partaking of the sufferings of Christ, but nekrosisbut here still referring to the Jews' portion, "I will walk before the Lord in the Land of the living," which the Lord, as amongst the Jews, sought, " if it had been possible "; but it was not, for sin was in the world—"The corn of wheat must fall into the ground and die"—a man "must be born again." But the Apostle uses it in the energy of the Spirit, when the sufferings of Christ abounded in him, " always bearing about " etc. And, after all, if even better things were reserved for them, the hairs of their head were all numbered. Satan could do nothing unpermitted (and then for glory and sowing precious seed of faith-" striving "-there was a better resurrection, so that with us men could be " baptized for the dead "), for "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints "; He did not lightly permit it. Oh, for faith to go straight on in this confidence, not fearing " them which can kill the body "! And if we have to say " All men are liars," still, speaking because we believe, because we must trust in the living God, we shall soon say with Paul, " Thou hast loosed my bonds," " I am thy servant " (not to their enemies) " he hath delivered us from so great a death," and will though life be despaired of, for " Precious in the sight of Jehovah is the death of his chasidim " (saints). Specially will this be manifested in the latter day for the Remnant—in the land of the living they will walk before the Lord—the flesh of the elect will be saved-for their sake the terrible days will be shortened, and the vows of the Lord will be repaid in the presence of His people, "In the courts of the Lord's house, in the midst of thee," for it is addressed as a present thing, "0 Jerusalem."
The union between the Church and Christ, and the Jewish Remnant and Christ is different-we being as His Body above, and therefore in a heavenly manner being one Spirit-the other as their Head, and standing for them in present blessing, and manifested, yet still completely taking their cause as His own, and in His Spirit entirely one with them, and therefore in this sense the passage alluded, to, and Paul's quotation, " I believed and therefore have I spoken " has its force. The latter however was during life, and so with the Remnant. Light is here also thrown on the going out of the Remnant of Jacob “as dew”—the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom, a more general expression (John Baptist could do that)—and the outpouring of the Spirit; compare 2 Cor. 6:99As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; (2 Corinthians 6:9); Psa. 44:2222Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. (Psalm 44:22); Rom. 8:3636As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. (Romans 8:36) Cor. 15:31.
This practical connection of the then Jewish Remnant with those of the latter day, and thus with Christ, may be further searched out, for it clears up many things; in this also Matt. 24 is involved. We do not attach sufficient importance to the Remnant in this character-the Lord looks at it specially. In Psa. 117 and 118 the results are fully brought out.
We must remark that Psalm 116 is a Psalm of thanksgiving, and, on the principle recognized above, He does not love the Lord as under the law, but as first loved as for deliverance, because heard when judgment and evil was upon His soul. Christ leads this thanksgiving or return of heart to Jehovah, saying (v. 5), “Our God is merciful." It is the thanksgiving song for deliverance producing love, and love and voice of praise and thanksgiving in remembrance of their estate. The vows are now to be paid, and they can be paid "in the midst of Jerusalem," for the deliverance is wrought; compare Psa. 42; 43; 44, and the Psalms there. There they are under the sorrow—here, the Spirit of Christ puts itself in the place of deliverance; there it was the people, “We have heard," and Christ the object as King-here He Himself leads, as a matter too of individual joy to His people, “I love Jehovah." This makes the position quite different-more near, and a matter of affection and intimacy, because of what was wrought, and Christ intimate with Jehovah in union, but as helped, and the people having put Himself in their place, His hand laid on both. This makes Psalm 116 more blessed. It is His own Spirit rejoicing in the deliverance as One of the people, and so saying “Our God."
Paul quotes both these Psalms in Corinthians and in Rom. 8 There is an analogous exercise of the Spirit in us—we may look at Christ as taking us as united to Himself; and so presenting us before God, and there in the highest perfection and place before Him, and also as in us, looking up towards Him and saying, " We." The Spirit realizes our union, and then all is liberty and joy, because for us accomplished. The Spirit realizes our position, and looks up to Him alone there, saying, "We." And here is the difference of the Remnant then and now, or in apostolic days; when we speak of union, we speak of glory and perfection and rest, whereas in the suffering we are substitutes for Christ in the world, though it be only by union we can go through, and we say, 'As it is written, I believed and therefore I spake "—we also—and therefore adds positive resurrection de facto, as to his direct testimony, whereas He says " I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living," and the bonds are loosed-the power is shown in 2 Cor. 1; whereas, the suffering being before them as their portion before they find Christ, He comes down as it were, and enters into them, and says " I." And thus, while there is a strong connection, there is a real difference. The moment it was a mere fact, and Christ looked at as an Object, it could be taken up directly, " As it is written, for thy sake we are killed all the day long, we are appointed," etc.—it was common to both.
This is altogether a Jewish Psalm, and is the assertion, as it seems to me, of the continuance of our Lord in His Jewish character upon His resurrection; but it goes farther and accredits the continuance of the Name of Jehovah of which the Jewish economy was but the dispensed instrument of revelation-as we in Jesus of Father. Hence note also the very important principle that these dispensations upon earth are for the purpose, though blessing in them, of developing and revealing those characters and fullness of God which is the continuous object of perpetual worship and adoration to those so knowing them. God has been so revealed now—the Lord as God-Man, both reveals God in these characters and acts alone in the perfection of His Manhood towards them, nor do I see (though exalted in the faithfulness of God) but this is the perpetual condition of His Manhood, i.e., not that there should be Jews forever, but that the glory of that character of God, so known in them, should continue forever. In this sense it is I connect " the Son " to be " subject forever." Now this is all rehearsed in the millennium, so to speak, the Jews holding the place of the earthly son or servant, as taking the official, respective place, towards God, of the children of men, and Christ the Son of man at the head of them.
Thus this Psa. 1 believe, speaks, including or looking on to as involving the principle of the other, but excluding the heavenlies. It is the assertion of Jesus in resurrection, " I still love Jehovah "-I am still in this position, not forgetting what Jehovah was to me in the day of my humiliation-and thus righteously owning and magnifying the righteousness therein exhibited, for God, Jehovah, does nothing to be lost, yea, not even in its fragments. We are of course speaking here solely of the manhood of our Lord-though fully recognized, it is seldom dwelt upon in the Psalms as being more particularly His connection with the Jews, which of course through their Jehovah (see Isaiah 50) was in His manhood, or human fellowship and nature. This then is the perfect position of Jesus toward Jehovah-His full trial, and perfectness in it, and perfectness shown, as else it would not be, in it, and Himself Witness to Jehovah's sure faithfulness in it, as else He could not be—the Son of man glorified, and God glorified in Him. " I love the Lord "—the command was " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God "—but here through and in the midst of all trouble which might have turned away any but His heart, speaking after the manner of men. But Christ declares He will be the perpetual witness of Jehovah's faithfulness, He will own Him because His faithfulness was absolutely proved, hence now, as to connection with the Jews, they live during the millennium, see Psa. 115:1313He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great. (Psalm 115:13)—touching the Lord, it is perpetual for evermore, He is the everlasting Witness of this. He declares then standing as the Jew He was, as, the Man in the sorrows of death, He proved Jehovah there, not failing in faithfulness even there. Need we say " He was heard "? We are therefore living because, etc.; hence the result in verse 9, " I will walk being alive," i.e., in resurrection, " before Jehovah in the land of the living," compare again Psalm 115:1818But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the Lord. (Psalm 115:18), for the first two verses are the general thesis, in verse 3 begins the explanation; then compare verses 2 and 4. " The land of death " it had been really, He had made it " the land of the living." Jehovah's full character had however been brought out.
14. We have the Lord Christ fully and publicly owning all that was in Jehovah, so that His character should be fully valued in the day of His glory.
16. This seems to me to assert the continuance of Jesus as Servant, the assertion of His perfect position of Servant, the Son of Jehovah's handmaid, be it Mary or the Church in figure, and in this sense, i.e., as born among the Jews, here bayith (house) though indeed bar Elohim, (Son of God) in another character a Servant but the Lord's freed man or freeman, but the Lord's, Jehovah's Servant, and in this character He acknowledged all the blessing, and is willing to own the blessing before all the people, as the Servant of Jehovah owning His Name. In the courts of Jehovah's house ever sings the heart of the Lord when it wept, and rested continually graven upon the palms of His hands (and where He would rejoice) when He was rejected, but His love in sorrow only the rather therefore drawn out. " In the midst of thee 0 Jerusalem ""thee," for it was alone before His mind and closed up the blessing. Blessed mystery and blessed truth! It is the resurrection return of Jesus to Jerusalem.