Psalms 128:1

It is here shown that godliness has the promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.

I. It is here again and again laid down as an undoubted truth that those who are truly holy are truly happy. Those whose blessed state we are here assured of are such as fear the Lord and walk in his ways, such as have a deep reverence of God upon their spirits and evidence it by a regular and constant conformity to his will. Where the fear of God is a commanding principle in the heart the tenour of the conversation will be accordingly; and in vain do we pretend to be of those that fear God if we do not make conscience both of keeping to his ways and not trifling in them or drawing back. Such are blessed (Psa 128:1), and shall be blessed, Psa 128:4. God blesses them, and his pronouncing them blessed makes them so. They are blessed now, they shall be blessed still, and for ever. This blessedness, arising from this blessing, is here secured, 1. To all the saints universally: Blessed is everyone that fears the Lord, whoever he be; in every nation he that fears God and works righteousness is accepted of him, and therefore is blessed whether he be high or low, rich or poor, in the world; if religion rule him, it will protect and enrich him. 2. To such a saint in particular: Thus shall the man be blessed, not only the nation, the church in its public capacity, but the particular person in his private interests. 3. We are encouraged to apply it to ourselves (Psa 128:2): "Happy shalt thou be; thou mayest take the comfort of the promise, and expect the benefit of it, as if it were directed to thee by name, if thou fear God and walk in his ways. Happy shalt thou be, that is, It shall be well with thee; whatever befals thee, good shall be brought out of it; it shall be well with thee while thou livest, better when thou diest, and best of all to eternity." It is asserted (Psa 128:4) with a note commanding attention: Behold, thus shall the man be blessed; behold it by faith in the promise; behold it by observation in the performance of the promise; behold it with assurance that it shall be so, for God is faithful, and with admiration that it should be so, for we merit no favour, no blessing, from him.

II. Particular promises are here made to godly people, which they may depend upon, as far as is for God's glory and their good; and that is enough.

1. That, by the blessing of God, they shall get an honest livelihood and live comfortably upon it. It is not promised that they shall live at ease, without care or pains, but, Thou shalt eat the labour of thy hands. Here is a double promise, (1.) That they shall have something to do (for an idle life is a miserable uncomfortable life) and shall have health, and strength, and capacity of mind to do it, and shall not be forced to be beholden to others for necessary food, and to live, as the disabled poor do, upon the labours of other people. It is as much a mercy as it is a duty with quietness to work and eat our own bread, Th2 3:12. (2.) That they shall succeed in their employments, and they and theirs shall enjoy what they get; others shall not come and eat the bread out of their mouths, nor shall it be taken from them either by oppressive rulers or invading enemies. God will not blast it and blow upon it (as he did, Hag 1:9), and his blessing will make a little go a great way. It is very pleasant to enjoy the fruits of our own industry; as the sleep, so the food, of a labouring man is sweet.

2. That they shall have abundance of comfort in their family-relations. As a wife and children are very much a man's care, so, if by the grace of God they are such as they should be, they are very much a man's delight, as much as any creature-comfort. (1.) The wife shall be as a vine by the sides of the house, not only as a spreading vine which serves for an ornament, but as a fruitful vine which is for profit, and with the fruit whereof both God and man are honoured, Jdg 9:13. The vine is a weak and tender plant, and needs to be supported and cherished, but it is a very valuable plant, and some think (because all the products of it were prohibited to the Nazarites) it was the tree of knowledge itself. The wife's place is the husband's house; there her business lies, and that is her castle. Where is Sarah thy wife? Behold, in the tent; where should she be else? Her place is by the sides of the house, not under-foot to be trampled on, nor yet upon the house-top to domineer (if she be so, she is but as the grass upon the house-top, in the next psalm), but on the side of the house, being a rib out of the side of the man. She shall be a loving wife, as the vine, which cleaves to the house-side, an obedient wife, as the vine, which is pliable, and grows as it is directed. She shall be fruitful as the vine, not only in children, but in the fruits of wisdom, and righteousness, and good management, the branches of which run over the wall (Gen 49:22; Psa 80:11), like a fruitful vine, not cumbering the ground, nor bringing forth sour grapes, or grapes of Sodom, but good fruit. (2.) The children shall be as olive plants, likely in time to be olive-trees, and, though wild by nature, yet grafted into the good olive, and partaking of its root and fatness, Rom 11:17. It is pleasant to parents who have a table spread, though but with ordinary fare, to see their children round about it, to have many children, enough to surround it, and those with them, and not scattered, or the parents forced from them. Job makes it one of the first instances of his former prosperity that his children were about him, Job 29:5. Parents love to have their children at table, to keep up the pleasantness of the table-talk, to have them in health, craving food and not physic, to have them like olive-plants, straight and green, sucking in the sap of their good education, and likely in due time to be serviceable.

3. That they shall have those things which God has promised and which they pray for: The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion, where the ark of the covenant was, and where the pious Israelites attended with their devotions. Blessings out of Zion are the best-blessings, which flow, not from common providence, but from special grace, Psa 20:2.

4. That they shall live long, to enjoy the comforts of the rising generations: "Thou shalt see thy children's children, as Joseph, Gen 50:23. Thy family shall be built up and continued, and thou shalt have the pleasure of seeing it." Children's children, if they be good children, are the crown of old men (Pro 17:6), who are apt to be fond of their grandchildren.

5. That they shall see the welfare of God's church, and the land of their nativity, which every man who fears God is no less concerned for than for the prosperity of his own family. "Thou shalt be blessed in Zion's blessing, and wilt think thyself so. Thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem as long as thou shalt live, though thou shouldest live long, and shalt not have thy private comforts allayed and embittered by public troubles." A good man can have little comfort in seeing his children's children, unless withal he see peace upon Israel, and have hopes of transmitting the entail of religion pure and entire to those that shall come after him, for that is the best inheritance.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Psa 128:1 « A Song of degrees. » Blessed [is] every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord] This psalm is fitly subjoined to the former, and it is λογος επιθαλαμιος, a kind of wedding sermon, written for the instruction and comfort of married couples, and showing that Coniugium humanae est divina Academia vitae. And it is to be observed that here all men are spoken to as wedded; because this is the ordinary estate of most people. See 1Co 7:1-2. At this day every Jew is bound to marry about eighteen years of age, or before twenty.; else he is accounted as one that liveth in sin; and how the Popish clergy, professing continence, have turned all places into so many Sodoms, who knoweth not?

That walketh in his ways] The true reverential fear of God will easily form the heart to a right obedience. They that fear the Lord will keep his covenant, Psa 103:13; Psa 103:18, and therefore was the law delivered at first in that terrible manner.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psa_128:1-6

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord.

The blessed tendency of true piety

The subject is the blessed tendency of true piety, and the truly pious man is described as one that feareth the Lord and walketh in His ways.

I. Its tendency is to make business prosperous (verse 2). This stands in splendid contrast to the terrible threat which Moses addressed to the Israelites of old, should they break Gods law (Exo_25:35; Deuteronomy 18:40).

II. Its tendency is to make the family happy (verse 3). Ungodly families are stars wandering from their orbits, but a truly pious family, small though it be, is an orb rolling round the eternal Sun of Righteousness, and from it deriving its life, its light, and its harmony.

III. Its tendency is to make the country blessed (verses 4, 5). Righteousness exalteth a nation.

1. In material wealth. Truth, honesty, integrity, in a people; are the best guarantees of commercial advancement. Credit is the best capital in the business of a nation as well as in the business of an individual, and credit is built on righteous principles.

2. In social enjoyments. According as the principles of veracity, uprightness, and honour, reign in society, will be the freeness, the heartiness, and the enjoyment of social intercourse.

3. In moral power. The true majesty of a kingdom lies in its moral virtues.

IV. Its tendency is to make the life long (verse 5). There should be a full stop after the word Children, and the word and is not in the original. Genuine piety tends to long life.

1. Long life depends upon obedience be the laws of our constitution, physical, mental, and moral laws.

2. In order to obey the laws of our constitution, those laws must be understood.

3. In order to understand those laws, man must study them. They will not come to him by intuition, inspiration, or revelation. He must study them, study nature.

4. In order to study them effectively he must have supreme sympathy with their Author. (Homilist.)

The labour question and Christianity

Prevailing distress among the poor, calamitous conflicts between Labour and Capital, call for earnest thought, and wise and faithful utterance from the Church of Christ. Working-men claim their right to secure the full enjoyment of the wealth they create, and they certainly have a right to a larger share in the gains of advancing civilization. How is this to be realized?

I. Not by Socialistic revolution and Communistic confiscation and redistribution. These methods are contrary alike to nature, reason, revelation and experience.

II. Organization, bureau registration, co-operation, arbitration, legislation, etc., are largely empiric and artificial expedients, productive at best of only partial and superficial amendment.

III. The Christian religion will secure whatever is good in the above, and, besides, will produce the only radical and permanent cure.

1. It teaches and realizes a Brotherhood of Humanity, embracing rich and poor, in which, it one member suffer, all suffer.

2. Its golden law strikes at the selfishness of the rich in refusing to consider the poor, secures the immediate relief of Christian philanthropy, and the permanent improvement of things just and equal (Col_4:1). A fair days work, etc., fair days wage.

3. It gives best promise of regulating the labour-market by checking over-crowding in the easier callings, substituting conscientious choice and providential guidance for the unreasoning selfishness which makes time and means for pleasure the great consideration--e.g. City factory and sewing-room always crowded, farm and domestic service rarely if ever fully supplied.

4. It imparts dignity and self-respect through union and fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ, a brother mechanic, and the only perfect model of what the working-man may be and ought to be. Thus alone can he realize his ideal aristocracy of industrial and moral worth, instead of wealth and birth.

5. It secures him the best of all help, Self-help, and puts him in the way of working out his own salvation. The fruition of such culture will be, from his own stock, trusty and efficient representatives who shall stand before kings.

6. It will make his home the scene of highest comfort, purest and most stable domestic happiness and family welfare. (W. M. Roger.)

Piety in its principle, development, and blessedness

Here we have--

I. Piety in principle. The love to God that constitutes piety is characterized by two things:--

1. Predominancy. Most men have a kind of love for the Supreme, that flows through them with other natural emotions, but attains no ascendancy over other sentiments, no control over the other faculties. The love to God that constitutes piety must be the controlling disposition.

2. Permanency. Perhaps, in most minds, the sentiment of love to God, of gratitude, adoration, and even of reverence, arises at times: especially when moving amidst the grand and beautiful in nature, or experiencing the enjoyment of some special blessings. But this sentiment, to become piety, must be crystallized, and settled as a rock. It is the embryo of all excellence in all worlds. It is a seed out of which grows all that is beautiful and fruitful in the Eden of God.

II. Piety in development. How is this principle rightly developed? Not in mere songs and hymns, and prayers, and ceremonies, but in conduct. That walketh in His ways. His ways, the ways of truth, honesty, purity, and holy love. True piety is not a dormant element sleeping in the soul, like grain buried under the mountains, it struggles into form, and takes action, it walks, and its walk is onward and upward.

III. Piety in blessedness. (David Thomas, D. D.)

On religion

I. Religion is pleasant. No man ever performed an action which was wise and good, such as supplying the wants of the industrious poor, relieving the distress of the orphan, or vindicating the character of the worthy from unmerited detraction, without meeting the reward of beneficence in that very hour. He will feel a secret satisfaction, which can never be equalled by the pleasures of sense. He may not be able, it is true, to execute all his laudable designs; but the very consciousness of good intention is more delightful than the triumphs of successful iniquity. This is the way of religion--walk thou in it.

II. Religion is profitable. The very duties which religion inculcates, it cannot have escaped your observation, have a natural tendency to procure the comforts and conveniences of life. Health, honour, riches, and that good name which is better than riches, are, in many cases, part of the recompense of religion. Religion embraces both the temporal welfare of individuals, and the prosperity of states and of empires. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord, that walketh in His ways. Blessed are the young; blessed are the aged; blessed are the prosperous; and blessed the afflicted. (T. Laurie, D. D.)

Relation of gladness to godly fear

G. K. Chesterton remarks--The fear of the Lord is the beginning of pleasure. When life ceases to be a mystery it ceases to hold the secret of joy. The world that has banished awe has banished wholesome laughter. The ages that have known most of religious fear are the ages from which have come the most lyrical notes of Christian joy. Those older ages lived and breathed and rejoiced in God amidst their dark theologies. Bernard of Clairvaux had stern, stupendous ideas of the Deity, and yet it was he who sang--

Jesus, the very thought of Thee,

With sweetness fills my breast.

Samuel Rutherford was steeped in all the rigours of a Calvinism which touches the very springs of awe in the human breast, and yet from him came the love letters of Christianity--letters too sacred for any except our most solitary moods. The moment we cease to tremble before God we cease to know joy. (W. C. Piggott.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

INTRODUCTION

This, like the former, is a Psalm for families. In that, we were taught that the prosperity of our families depends upon the blessing of God: in this, we are taught that the only way to obtain that blessing which will make our families comfortable, is to live in the fear of God, and in obedience to Him. It is thought by many to have been sung at the marriages of the Israelites, as it is a part of the matrimonial service used in modern times.

THE BLESSEDNESS OF THE GOOD

(Psa_128:1-6)

I. That the blessedness of the good is the result of a holy life.

1. A holy life begins in the fear of God. “Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord” (Psa_128:1). Not the shuddering fear of conscious guilt. Not the fear of the hypocrite, or the formalist. But the fear that arises out of a profound reverence and love of God. This fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom

2. A holy life is maintained by constant obedience. “That walketh in His ways” (Psa_128:1). As Comber remarks—“He only truly fears God who is afraid to displease Him by forsaking the paths of His commandments.” Loving fear is the strongest motive to obedience; and obedience is the practical manifestation of true piety. That is a happy home indeed where the fear of God is the regulating principle.

II. That the blessedness of the good consists in a happy and contented livelihood. “For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee” (Psa_128:2). Some men labour and worry, and all in vain. They are never any better off, and they have no enjoyment in the fruit of their labour. But the good man, though not exempt from toil, is happy in his daily work, and enjoys what he earns. The fruit of his labour is not taken from him and possessed by others, as was threatened to the disobedient Israelites (Deu_28:33; Deu_28:38-40; Lev_26:16). “Noble, upright, self-denying toil,” wrote Hugh Miller, “who that knows thy solid worth and value would be ashamed of thy hard hands, thy soiled vestments and thy obscure tasks, thy humble cottage and hard couch and homely fare!” Religion gives dignity to labour, and transmutes what was originally a part of man’s curse into a blessing.

III. That the blessedness of the good is found in the joys of domestic life.

“Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table” (Psa_128:3). The woman pictured in the Song is not to be seen lounging at the door, an idle gossip, with something to say to every passer-by, but attends to her duties in the interior of the dwelling, and, like her husband, fears the Lord (Pro_9:13-14; Amo_6:10). The clinging vine is a symbol of attachment, grace and fruitfulness, dressing the props and walls to which its curling tendrils hold with leaves that shade the verandah and cool the house, and enriching them with clusters of juicy fruit that maketh glad the heart of man. The pious and loving wife, the screen, adornment, and crown of the God-fearing husband, who is her support and strength, so smiles and speaks and acts that the master is happy everywhere because most happy when at home. The children are like olive-plants—vigorous, able to stand alone and separate, bright with the promise of goodly fruit and rivers of oil. Rooted to the spot, glad to stay at home, “round about thy table,” loving and dutiful, they shall abundantly delight thy heart.—The Caravan and Temple.

IV. That the blessedness of the good is augmented by witnessing the advancing prosperity of Zion. “Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed,” &c. (Psa_128:4-6). The good man is not only blessed by the Church, he is also a blessing to it. He becomes identified with all its interests; mourns over its reverses and rejoices in its success. A happy home is a blessing both to the Church and to the nation. “It is a circle of blessing, the Lord, the saint, and the neighbour; closet prayer, family worship and temple service; the Home, the Church and the State. Like the cloud falling upon the earth, the river running to the sea, and the ocean rising to the sky, it is a perpetual round of fertility, beauty, and thanksgiving, regarded with complacence by the radiant Artificer enthroned in the heavens.” The chief concern of the good is the peace and prosperity of Israel.

LESSONS:—

1. There is no blessedness apart from goodness.

2. None are excluded from this blessedness—it is for “every one that feareth the Lord.”

The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psalms 128

A Song of degrees

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord;

That walketh in his ways.

2     For thou shalt eat the labor of thine hands:

Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.

3     Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine

By the side of thine house:

Thy children like olive plants

Round about thy table.

4     Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed

That feareth the Lord.

5     The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion:

And thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem

All the days of thy life.

6     Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children,

And peace upon Israel.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Contents and Composition.—The Psalmist first praises (Psa_128:1-4) the blessedness of the man who fears God, to whom the promise is given that he shall enjoy the results of his labor and behold the welfare of wife and children in his house. He then utters a prayer that the well-doing of such a man will ever continue, in connection with the weal of Jerusalem and Israel (Psa_128:5-6).

In the foregoing Psalm conjugal felicity was extolled not merely as a gift of Jehovah’s mercy, but as a reward of those who fear God. It is scarcely allowable, therefore, to speak of this Psalm as supplementary to Psalms 127 (Delitzsch). Even externally they do not indicate any closer connection, or, least of all, such a resemblance that one Psalm is to be regarded as a response to the other, sung by the congregation in chorus (Pott). There is a similarity in some of the ideas, in the aphoristic mode of expression, and in the felicitation at the end of the one and at the beginning of the other, but these do not oblige us to hold a contemporaneous composition.

[Hengstenberg: “The subject is not as in Psalms 127 the individual fearer of God, but the ideal of God-fearers, the God-fearing Israel, who is also frequently personified elsewhere, e. g., in Lam_3:1. This is clear from the expression in Psa_128:5 : ‘behold the good of Jerusalem,’ from the conclusion in Psa_128:6 : “peace be upon Israel;” finally from the circumstance that all the fundamental passages alluded to in it refer to Israel.—In a time of trouble and distress the fear of God appeared to be forever deprived of its reward. This appearance threatened to affect its operation. An antidote against the disheartening sadness which would then be apt to insinuate itself against Israel, is provided in our Psalm, on which Zechariah 8 may be regarded as a commentary.”—Luther: “To this Psalm we will give the title of an Epithalamium or marriage song. In it the prophet cheereth them that are married, wishing unto them, and promising them from God, all manner of blessings.”—J. F. M.]

Psa_128:2. The labor of thy hands appears to allude specially to the produce of the garden and field. It probably does not imply that the prosperity consisted in his being maintained by his own labor, as contrasted with living on charity (Kimchi, Calvin, Venema, Del.), but that the laborer himself and not others enjoyed the profits of his toil (Isa_3:10), and was to rejoice in this privilege, Isa_9:19; Hos_4:10; Mic_6:14; Hag_1:6 (Geier, Hupfeld). Against transposing the two members of Psa_128:2, as has been proposed (Hupfeld), it may be argued that the particle כִֹי does not stand here at the beginning of the sentence, and therefore cannot be taken as meaning for [E. V.] or since (Symm., Jerome, Calvin, Olshausen). Such a position is admissible only with the meaning that, as in Psa_128:4, or, when the particle confirms a statement, yea,Psa_118:10, comp. Isa_7:9; 1Sa_14:39 (Ewald, Maurer, Del.). Hence, in translating, the word may be neglected (Septuagint, Hitzig).

Psa_128:3 ff. The same particle can be taken in a confirmatory sense in Psa_128:4 also (Calvin, Venema, Delitzsch), but it is then also wrong to translate: mark, for (Rudinger, Clericus, J. H. Mich., Rosenm., Maurer). [It will be observed that in this verse E. V. has the correct translation.—J. F. M.] The inner part of the house [Psa_128:3, E. V. literally: the sides of the house, comp. Amo_6:10—J. F. M.] is here designated literally: the corner or hinder portion, since the female apartments occupied the most retired portion of the tent or house.

“All the blessings of each individual come from the God of salvation, who has made Zion His dwelling-place, and is completed by participation in the prosperity of the Holy City and the whole Church, of which it forms the centre. A New Testament song would here direct the view to the Heavenly Jerusalem. But the character of this-sidedness (Diesseitigkeit) which is impressed upon the Old Testament, does not permit this. The promise only tells of participation in Jerusalem’s well-being on this side heaven (Zec_8:15), and a life prolonged through children’s children, and in this sense it invokes and intercedes for peace upon Israel in all its members, in all places, and at all times” (Del .).

[Translate the last line of the Psalm: Peace be upon Israel.—J. F. M.]

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

The blessing of piety on heart, house, and estate.—The fear of God does not make sorrowful, but joyful and blessed.—Godliness is a power to give prosperity, not only on the other side of death, but also on this.—The happiness of domestic life which is blessed by God: (1) wherein it consists; (2) on what it is founded; (3) how it is maintained.—The close connection between the public prosperity, a domestic life pleasing to God, and personal piety.

Starke: He who lives in the fear of God is no idler, but eats of the labor of his hands, that is, of his honorable calling blessed by God, by which He sustains him.—An harmonious married life and children well nurtured, are the dearest of temporal delights.—Parents, train up your children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord! If ye neglect this, you will train up, instead of useful olive-branches, useless thorn-bushes, unprofitable for any good purpose—God, for the sake of pious parents, often grants peace in their days to a country or city.

Arndt: Jerusalem never enjoyed greater blessings than Christ on the cross and the Holy Spirit from heaven; for on these depended God’s mercy, the forgiveness of sin, redemption from death, the devil and hell, righteousness, faith, love, hope, and eternal life; all these will thy beloved God grant thee to see, yea, to experience and enjoy.—Frisch: The channel through which the stream of blessing flows upon thy conjugal relations and thy house, is the spiritual Zion of the Church of God.—Rieger: There is much spoken and written about patriotism in the world; but the foundation of such a spirit must be laid deep in the fear of God; for without this we can neither have true prosperity ourselves, nor share in the blessings of the general good.—Richter: He who has received God’s kingdom in his heart, must give his heart to it, and whatever blessings a believer receives, he wishes for all, and prays, hopes, and works in the communion of the saints for that kingdom.—Guenther: Happy are those parents who regard their children as plants in the garden of God, and entrusted to their care.—Schaubach: The obligations and the blessings of pious parents.—Diedrich: The ever-during blessedness of those who fear God, who do not refuse to labor in His ways, but have found, in this present time, in the knowledge of God’s love, the sweetest and dearest communion.—Taube: The fear of God the source of all prosperity. A God-fearing man has God not merely before his eyes and in his heart, but walks also before Him in His ways. The lines have fallen in pleasant places for him who fears God thus.

[Matt. Henry: The wife’s place is in the husband’s house, there her business lies.—It is pleasant to parents that have a table spread, though but with ordinary fare, to see their children round about it, Job_21:5; to have them at table, to keep up the pleasantness of the table-talk; to have them in health, to have them like olive-plants, straight and green, sucking in the sap of their good education, and likely to become serviceable.—A good man can have little comfort in seeing his children’s children, unless without he sees peace upon Israel, and have hopes of transmitting the entail of religion, pure and entire, to those that shall come after him, for that is the best inheritance.—Bishop Horne: The good of Jerusalem with peace upon Israel, is all the good we can expect to see upon earth. Hereafter we shall see greater things than these.—Barnes: No higher blessing could be promised to a good man … than that he should die in a revival of religion.—J. F. M.]

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psalm 128

1. (Psa 128:1) A Song of Ascents. Happy is every fearer of Jehovah, the (one) walking in his ways. This psalm seems intended to assure the tempted and discouraged people of Judah, under the most adverse circumstances, that devotion to his service cannot lose its reward. As if he had said, however things may now seem to an eye of sense, it is still a certain truth that the truly happy man is he who fears Jehovah, not in mere profession, but who testifies his fear of him by walking in his ways or doing his commandments.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ps 128 The godly, who fear the Lord, will know true happiness (128:1-2). The Lord is with them (see 127:1-2), building their home life (128:3-4) and blessing them across the generations (128:5-6).

128:1-2 Enjoying the fruit of one’s labor means gaining benefit from whatever work one does.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

God approveth not our life, except it be reformed according to his word.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

PSALM CXXVIII

The blessedness of the man that fears the Lord, 1.

He is blessed in his labour, 2;

in his wife and children, 3, 4;

in the ordinances of God, 5;

and in a long life and numerous posterity, 6.

NOTES ON PSALM CXXVIII

This Psalm has no title, either in the Hebrew or any of the Versions; though the Syriac supposes it to have been spoken of Zerubbabel, prince of Judah, who was earnestly engaged in building the temple of the Lord. It seems to be a continuation of the preceding Psalm, or rather the second part of it. The man who is stated to have a numerous offspring, in the preceding Psalm, is here represented as sitting at table with his large family. A person in the mean while coming in, sees his happy state, speaks of his comforts, and predicts to him and his all possible future good. And why? Because the man and his family "fear God, and walk in his ways."

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

1 Blessed is the man who feareth Jehovah. In the preceding Psalm it was stated that prosperity in all human affairs, and in the whole course of our life, is to be hoped for exclusively from the grace of God; and now the Prophet admonishes us that those who desire to be partakers of the blessing of God must with sincerity of heart devote themselves wholly to him; for he will never disappoint those who serve him. The first verse contains a summary of the subject-matter of the Psalm; the remaining portion being added only by way of exposition. The maxim “that those are blessed who fear God, especially in the present life,” is so much with variance with the common opinion of men, that very few will give it their assent. Everywhere are to be found fluttering about many Epicureans, similar to Dionysius, who, having once had a favorable wind upon the sea and a prosperous voyage, after having plundered a temple, “Lequel true fois ayant bon vent sur mer, et la navigation prospore apres avoir pille une temple.” — Fr.

But before I proceed farther, it is to be noticed that in the second part of the verse there is with good reason added a mark by which the servants of God are distinguished from those who despise him. We see how the most depraved, with no less pride than audacity and mockery, boast of fearing God. The Prophet therefore requires the attestation of the life as to this; for these two things, the fear of God and the keeping of his law, are inseparable; and the root must necessarily produce its corresponding fruit. Farther, we learn from this passage that our life does not meet with the divine approbation, except it be framed according to the divine law. There is unquestionably no religion without the fear of God, and from this fear the Prophet represents our living according to the commandment and ordinance of God as proceeding.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

1. Blessed] Happy, as in Psa_128:2. Cp. Psa_112:1; Psa_119:1-3.

that walketh in his ways] In whom religious principle bears the fruit of right conduct. Cp. Pro_8:32; b Pro_28:28.

1–3. Domestic happiness the reward of godliness.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Blessed is everyone that feareth the Lord,.... Be he who he will; of whatsoever nation, Jew or Gentile; of whatsoever sex, age, or condition, high or low, rich or poor, Act 10:35; such an one is blessed now, and will be hereafter; See Gill on Psa 112:1;

that walketh in his ways: which God has prescribed and directed his people to walk in, his ordinances and commands; which, to walk in, is both pleasant and profitable: it supposes life, requires strength and wisdom; and is expressive of progression, or going on and continuance in them: and where the true fear of God is, which includes every grace, and the whole of religious worship, there will be a conscientious regard to the ways of God: such avoid evil, and do good, because of the fear of God, Job 1:1.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord - That honors God; that is truly pious. See the notes at Psa 1:1; Psa 112:1. What that blessedness is, is indicated in the following verses.

That walketh in his ways - The ways which God commands or directs. On the word “walketh,” see the notes at Psa 1:1.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Title. A Song of Degrees. There is an evident ascent from the last Psalm: that did but hint at the way in which a house may be built up, but this draws a picture of that house built, and adorned with domestic bliss through the Lord's own benediction. There is clearly an advance in age, for here we go beyond children to children's children; and also a progress in happiness, for children which in the last Psalm were arrows are here Olive plants, and instead of speaking "with the enemies in the gate" we done with "peace upon Israel." Thus we rise step by step, and sing as we ascend.

Subject. It is a family hymn, a song for a marriage, or a birth, or for any day in which a happy household has met to praise the Lord. Like all the songs of degrees, it has an eye to Zion and Jerusalem, which are both expressly mentioned, and it closes like Psalms 125, 130, and 131, with an allusion to Israel. It is a short Psalm, but exceedingly full and suggestive. Its poetry is of the highest order. Perhaps in no country can it be better understood than in our own, for we above all nations delight to sing of "Home, sweet home."

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord. The last Psalm ended with a blessing, for the word there translated "happy" is the same as that which is here rendered "blessed": thus the two songs are joined by a catch word. There is also in them a close community of subject. The fear of God is the corner stone of all blessedness. We must reverence the ever blessed God before we can be blessed ourselves. Some think that this life is an evil, an infliction, a thing upon which rests a curse; but it is not so; the God fearing man has a present blessing resting upon him. It is not true that it would be to him" something better not to be." He is happy now, for he is the child of the happy God, the ever living Jehovah; and he is even here a joint heir with Jesus Christ, whose heritage is not misery, but joy. This is true of every one of the God fearing, of all conditions, in all ages: each one and every one is blessed. Their blessedness may not always be; seen by carnal reason, but it is always a fact, for God himself declares that it is so; and we know that those whom he blesses are blessed indeed. Let us cultivate that holy filial fear of Jehovah which is the essence of all true religion; the fear of reverence, of dread to offend, of anxiety to please, and of entire submission and obedience. This fear of the Lord is the fit fountain of holy living: we look in vain for holiness apart from it: none but those who fear the Lord will ever walk in his ways.

That walketh in his ways. The religious life, which God declares to be blessed, must be practical as well as emotional. It is idle to talk of fearing the Lord if we act like those who have no care whether there be a God or no, God's ways will be our ways if we have a sincere reverence for him: if the heart is joined unto God, the feet will follow hard after him. A man's heart will be seen in his walk, and the blessing will come where heart and walk are both with God. Note that the first Psalm links the benediction with the walk in a negative way, "Blessed is the man that walketh not", etc.; but here we find it in connection with the positive form of our conversation. To enjoy the divine blessing we must be active, and walk; we must be methodical, and walk in certain ways; and we must be godly, and walk in the Lord's ways. God's ways are blessed ways; they were cast up by the Blessed One, they were trodden by him in whom we are blessed, they are frequented by the blessed, they are provided with means of blessing, they are paved with present blessings, and they lead to eternal blessedness: who would not desire to walk in them?

Whole Psalm. Psalm 128 follows Psalm 127 for the same reason as Psalm 2 follows Psalm 1. In both instances they are Psalms placed together, of which one begins with ashre (happy, very happy), and the other ends with ashre. In other respects Psalm 128 and 127 supplement one another. They are related to one another much as the New Testament parables of the treasure in the field and the one pearl are related. That which makes man happy is represented in Psalm 127 as a gift coming as a blessing, and in Psalm 128 as a reward coming as a blessing, that which is briefly indicated in the word rks, saka, reward, in Ps 127:3 being here expanded and unfolded. There it appears as a gift of grace in contrast to the God estranged self activity of man; here as a fruit of the ora et labora. Franz Delitzsch.

Whole Psalm. It is to be observed, that here all men are spoken to as wedded; because this is the ordinary estate of most people. See 1Co 7:1-2. At this day every Jew is bound to marry at about eighteen years of age, or before twenty; else he is accounted as one that liveth in sin. John Trapp.

Whole Psalm. This Psalm is an epiyalamio logos, written for the commendation, instruction, and consolation of those who are either already married or are about to enter on that kind of life. It enumerates, therefore, at the commencement, as is usual in songs of this kind, all those things which are regarded as burdens in the married life, such as the labours in seeking to provide for the whole family; the spouse, and that marriage bond, which, as it were, binds a man and seems to make him a slave, just as that character says in the comedy, "I have taken a wife; I have sold my liberty:" lastly, the education of the children, which certainly is most laborious, and requires the largest expenditure. To lighten the burden of all these things, there is added to each a blessing, or a promise, so that they might appear slight. And at the close, it subjoins in general, a spiritual promise, which easily makes light of all the labours and disquiets of the married life; even if they should be the very heaviest. The blessing comes from Zion or the Church: for there is nothing so burdensome and difficult, but what it can be easily borne by those who are the members of the true Church, and know the sources of true consolation. D. H. Mollerus.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD, etc. Here we have the living fountain of the blessing which rests upon the conjugal and domestic state. When worldly prudence attempts to choose a wife and form a household, it can apply its hand only to so much of the work as has its seat upon earth, and is visible to the eye of sense. It builds, so to speak, the first and the second story, adds cornice and pediment, and the fabric presents a fair appearances but it has no foundation. Whenever you see the household of a married pair continuing to defy every storm, you may be sure that it rests upon a sure foundation, lying beyond the reach of human sense, and that that foundation is the fear of the Lord. To the fear of the Lord, therefore, the holy Psalmist has wisely given a place in front of this beautiful Psalm, which celebrates the blessing that descends upon conjugal and domestic life. Augustus F. Tholuck, in "Hours of Christian Devotion", 1870.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD. There is a fear of the Lord which hath terror in it and not blessedness. The apprehension with which a warring rebel regards his triumphant and offended sovereign, or the feelings of a fraudulent bankrupt towards a stern creditor, or, a conscience stricken criminal to a righteous judge, are frequently types of men's feelings in regard to God. This evidently cannot be the fear which the "blessed" of this Psalm feel. Nor can theirs, on the other hand, be the tormenting fear of self reproach.

Their fear is that which the believed revelations given of him in his Word produce. It is the fear which a child feels towards an honoured parent, a fear to offend: it is that which they who have been rescued from destruction feel to the benefactor who nobly and at the vastest sacrifice interposed for their safety, a fear to act unworthily of his kindness: it is that which fills the breast of a pardoned and grateful rebel in tile presence of a venerated sovereign at whose throne he is permitted to stand in honour, a fear lest he should ever forget his goodness, and give him cause to regret it. Such is the fear of the Christian now: a fear which reverence for majesty, gratitude for mercies, dread of displeasure, desire of approval, and longing for the fellowship of heaven, inspire; the fear of angels and the blessed Son; the fear not of sorrow but of love, which shrinks with instinctive recoil from doing aught that would tend to grieve, or from denying aught that would tend to honour. Religion is the grand and the only wisdom; and since the beginning, the middle, and the end of it, is the fear of the Lord, blessed is every man that is swayed by it. Robert Nisbet, in "The Songs of the Temple Pilgrims", 1863.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord. Let us take a little of the character of the blessed man. Who is it that is undaunted? "The man that feareth God." Fear sounds rather contrary to blessedness; hath an air of misery; but add whom. He that "feareth the Lord"; that touch turns it into gold. He that so fears, fears rot: he shall not be afraid; all petty fears are swallowed up in this great fear; and this great fear is as sweet and pleasing as little fears are anxious and vexing. Secure of other things, he can say "If my God be pleased, no matter who is displeased: no matter who despise me, if he account me his. Though all forsake me, though my dearest friends grow estranged, if he reject me not, that is my only fear; and for that I am not perplexed, I know he will not." A believer hath no fear but of the displeasure of heaven, the anger of God to fall upon him; he accounts that only terrible; but yet he doth not fear it; doth not apprehend it will fall on him, is better persuaded of the goodness of God. So this fear is still joined with trust: "Behold the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy": Ps 33:18. Robert Leighton, 1611-1684.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one, etc. There is a stress on all ("every one"), teaching that no disparity of sex or condition, of rank or wealth, affects the degree of happiness granted by God to every one of his true servants in their several stations. It is to be observed, further, that whenever the fear of the Lord is mentioned in Holy Writ, it is never set by itself, as though sufficient for the consummation of our faith, but always has something added or prefixed, by which to estimate its due proportion of perfection, according as it is stated by Solomon in Pr 2:3-5. J. M. Neale and R. F. Littledale; in "A Commentary on the Psalms from Primitive and Medieval Writers", 1860.

Ver. 1. Blessed is every one, etc. It is a precious promise, but perhaps thou art tempted to say in thy heart, not meant for every one. Wilt thou answer against the Lord? Hear him speak in the song. He says, "every one." "Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD." None are excluded but those who will not walk in his ways. Edward Jewett Robinson.

Ver. 1. Blessed, etc. The, adage, "That it is best not to be born at all, or to die as soon as possible", has certainly been long since received by the common consent of almost all men. Carnal reason judges either that all mankind without exception are miserable, or that fortune is more favourable to ungodly and wicked men than to the good. To the sentiment that those are blessed who fear the Lord, it has an entire aversion. So much tile more requisite, then, is it to dwell upon the consideration of this truth. Farther, as this blessedness is not apparent to the eye, it is of importance, in order to our being able to apprehend it, first to attend to the definition which will be given of it by and bye; and secondly, to know that it depends chiefly upon tim protection of God. Although we collect together all the circumstances which seem to contribute to a happy life, surely nothing will be found more desirable than to be kept hidden under the guardianship of God. If this blessing is, in our estimation, to be preferred, as it deserves, to all other good things, whoever is persuaded that the care of God is exercised about the world and human affairs, will at the same time unquestionably acknowledge that what is here laid down is the chief point of happiness. John Calvin.

Ver. 1. That feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways. The fear of the Lord is the internal principle; but unless there be a corresponding expression in the outward life, what reason is there to suppose that it has any existence at all?

Observe also, that there is no walking in the ways of the Lord, until his fear be established in the heart. There can be no genuine morality apart from the fear of God. How can a man obey God while his affections are alienated from him? N. M'Michael.

Ver. 1. That walketh in, his ways. God makes blessed those that walk in his ways, because he himself walks with them. This is said concerning David, and it is explained how that companionship blessed him, 2Sa 5:10: "And David went on, and grew great, and the Lord God of hosts was with him": where the "and" may be taken as the causal particle "because." That God does indeed join himself to those who walk in his ways as companion and leader we have in 2Ch 17:3-4: "And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; but sought to the Lord God of his father." Thomas Le Blanc.

Ver. 1. The universality of the blessedness of God fearing men. Circumstances, personal or relative, cannot alter the blessing; nor age, nor public opinion, nor even their own sense of unworthiness.

Ver. 1. Consider:

1. The union of a right fear with a right walk.

1. There is a wrong fear, because slavish; this never can lead to genuine obedience, which must be willingly and cheerfully rendered.

2. But the fear of reverence and filial love will surely turn the feet to God's ways, keep them steadfast therein, and wing them with speed.

2. The blessedness of him in whom they are united.

1. It is blessedness of life; for that is prospered.

2. It is blessedness of domestic happiness; for where the head of a family is holy, the family is the home of peace.

3. It is the blessedness of a holy influence in every sphere of his activity.

4. It is deep felt heart blessedness in walking with God.

5. And all is but a prelude to the everlasting blessedness of heaven. J. F.

Psalms 128:2*

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The man who fears God will be blessed in his family life. The Ps. has been called the 'Home, Sweet Home 'of Judaism.

3. By the sides of thine house] RV 'in the innermost parts of thine house,' i.e. in the women's apartment. Olive plants] a precious tree in Palestine. 5. 'May the Lord bless thee out of Zion,' i.e. from His dwelling-place.

6. The Psalmist closes with a note of patriotism: RV 'Peace be upon Israel.'

J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1. Blessed—Oh the blessings of every one fearing Jehovah! The אשׁרי, (ashrey,) “blessed,” happy, with which the author begins, and which characterizes the God-seeking man, is contrasted with the שׁוא, (shahv,) vainly, in vain, which belongs to the self-trusting man, (Psa_127:1) and the tone of confidence in the assured happiness of the former, with the

אם, (if, except,) which conditions the success of the latter.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

IT is not quite easy to see why this psalm occurs among the "Songs of Ascents." The sentiment of it is that true religion never loses its reward; or, in other words, that whoever fears God shall be blessed. Five points of blessedness are enumerated (vers. 2, 3, 5, 6); but no one of them seems to attach especially to pilgrims visiting Jerusalem. The picture of domestic life is pleasing, and one scarcely touched by any other psalmist.

Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; (comp. Psa_112:1 Psa_115:13) that walketh in his ways. The psalmist assumes that true religious fear of God, and a good and holy life, will necessarily go together. The point on which he wishes to insist is that on every such case will rest God"s blessing.

Vers. 1-6. Present recompense.

It is quite certain that the true and loyal servant of God will be abundantly rewarded; it is not certain when or how he will receive his recompense. There are three spheres in which that reward may lie. It may be largely, almost wholly, in the future. Bitter and protracted persecution may make the present life nearly worthless, so far as happiness is concerned. (see 1Co_15:19) Or it may be largely in the sphere of the spiritual in the cleansed and pure heart; in elevation of character; in fellowship with God. Or it may be partly in the present and the temporal. Commonly, God rewards his children in all these ways. Our text deals with the last and least of these. If a man fears God and keeps his command-meats, he will, under ordinary conditions, have, as the token of Divine favor

I THE REAPING OF THE FRUIT OF HIS LABOR. He "eats the labor of his hands." The builder rejoices in the house which he has erected, the farmer in the fields he has made productive, the florist in the garden he has planted, the author in the book he has written, the statesman in the measures he has passed into law, etc. Apart from the physical comfort it may bring us, we have a pure pleasure in the effect of honest and faithful work. And if a man cherishes a humble and grateful spirit, it is permissible that he enjoys the success which he has achieved, and the honor or the pleasure he has earned by patient industry.

II DOMESTIC DELIGHTS.

1. Conjugal. (Ver. 3) The wife to her husband, the husband to his wife, is a "goodly heritage a joy and a treasure which no prince can confer, no money will buy. True conjugal affection, the outgrowth of mutual esteem, is a source of lasting and elevating gladness of heart, for which all who have possessed it should give heartiest thanks to the Giver of all good. And with a sense of recipiency should be associated a sense of duty; it becomes husband and wife to maintain through life the sweetness and excellency of this attachment; to do this by mutual courtesy, self-sacrifice, concession, tender ministry in health and in sickness, united effort on behalf of others.

2. Parental.

(1) Children should be welcomed as precious gifts from the kind hand of God. (see Psa_127:3-5 Gen_33:5) They "bring love with them," we say, but they do more that that they open our nature and call forth its best affections; they unseal fountains of purest feeling which otherwise would not have flowed forth; they immeasurably enrich our souls and our lives by the love they evoke and by the love they return. They to whom children are not given will render themselves a most valuable service and give themselves the best opportunity of doing good, by adopting the fatherless and the motherless, and making them their own. Children, if ordinarily affectionate, will soon excite tender feeling in the breast; and many are they who have learnt to love the child of their adoption with a warmth and with a depth of love that went far beyond their anticipation, and that greatly enlarged their heart and enhanced the value of their life.

(2) Children should be treated as the most sacred charge placed in the hand of man by the hand of God. No one can tell the capacities and possibilities that are folded in the form and hidden in the heart of a little child.

(3) Children should realize how much they owe to those who have expended on them the wealth of a parent"s love. It becomes them to be a constant source of joy at home, and to be a defense and protection against all that would invade its peace. (see Psa_127:5)

HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY Vers. 1-6. The secret of the happy home.

I THE FEAR OF THE LORD.

1. This is not a slavish fear, but that reverent and loving regard to the Lord"s will, in all things, which will make a man shrink from transgression.

2. He has this blessed fear who himself has known the loving-kindness of the Lord, and whose love has been wakened up thereby. This fear of the Lord is the essential foundation of the truly happy home.

3. It must be in the head of the household, and should be in the wife and children too. Indeed, if husband and with are not of one mind in this respect, it is difficult to see how their home can be happy.

II WHERE THIS IS, THE FATHER WILL HIMSELF BE BLESSED. Every verse in this psalm declares this, and constant experience endorses it.

1. The man shall be blessed in himself. "Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee." The fear of God preserves him; the Spirit of God rules him; the love of God has redeemed him: he is happy in God.

2. He is blessed in his business. (Ver. 2) He shall not live by begging, by knavery, by any unworthy means, but by God"s blessing upon his honest toil. This is the happiest way of living, and it shall be to the man who feareth the Lord.

3. In his home. Dear wife and children shall make him glad; no solitary, loveless abode shall his be, but a home in all the blessed meaning of that word. And, thank God, there are myriads such affectionate, well-ordered, healthful, pure, bright.

4. He shall be blessed through the Churchs ministry and fellowship. (Ver. 5) The blessing of the Lord in his Church was sought on the union of his wife and himself; their children, one by one, were brought and presented to the Lord in baptism, and the Lord"s blessing sought upon and won for them; and in the holy services of the Church his household is trained to take part. And the influence of all this on the home happiness is great indeed.

5. He is blessed in the guarantees that such homes as his give for the peace and prosperity of his country. (Vers. 5, 6) Such homes are a nation"s bulwarks, and do more for the good of the nation and her peace and preservation than all the munitions of war. Where such homes are, the aged are cheered by seeing their children"s children enjoy the blessings they have helped to secure, and by the prospect that when they are gone their descendants will enjoy like peace. Such are the blessings of him that feareth the Lord.

III AND THE WIFE. (Ver. 2) She shall be as the beautiful fragrant vine, and not alone in its fruitfulness. There will be that; she will be the joyful mother of many bright, happy, and healthful children, who cling to her as the clusters do to the vine; but also, like the vine, she will be for the comfort and adornment of the home, imparting gracious shade and shelter from the heat. (cf. Mic_4:4) It is not said, but it is implied all through, that the same blessed fear of the Lord that dwells in her husband dwells also in her.

IV AND THE CHILDREN. "Like olive plants." It is a common sight, in the lands where the olive grows, to see the parent tree surrounded, and, as it were, sustained, by the young olive shoots that have sprang from its roots. As they have sprung from the parent root, so they are like their parent, and they gather round, as the children do round the table at home. Yes, the children are as the parent. The godly man will be blessed in his children: their father"s God will their God; they will be as their father, and will hand on the fear of the Lord which they first learnt from him. May our children be as these olive plants! S.C.

HOMILIES BY R. TUCK Ver. 1. Practical fear.

"Feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways." "Let us cultivate that holy filial fear of Jehovah, which is the essence of all true religion; the fear of reverence, of dread to offend, of anxiety to please, and of entire submission and obedience. This fear of the Lord is the fit fountain of holy living; we look in vain for holiness apart from it: none but those who fear the Lord will ever walk in his ways" (Spurgeon). The rabbis explain the sentence in this way: "Abstains from breaches of the prohibitory commandments of the Decalogue, and performs the positive ones." True fear is linked with obedience and righteousness.

I THE FEAR THAT PARALYZES EFFORT. This is the fear that takes form as fright. Sudden alarm often renders persons absolutely helpless. There is a moral fear of persons which has a similar effect. We cannot be our true selves in their presence. Because of overstrained nervous condition, Elijah felt this fear when he received the threatening message of Jezebel. But, in its bad form, this paralyzing fear is best illustrated by the one-talent man of our Lord"s parable, who excused neglect of duty with the plea, "I knew thee, that thou art an austere man. And I feared." The true fear of God makes such unworthy fear of any one, or anything, else impossible.

II THE FEAR THAT WASTES ITSELF IN SENTIMENT. There is a fear which belongs only to the emotions, and is but a matter of feeling. One of the great perils of modern religious life is making sentiment stand in place of righteousness. The answer of the modern religious man to every inquiry respecting his standing and his hope, is this, I have felt." The fear of sentiment has in it more awe than love, and it is only too likely to grow into demoralizing superstition, that covers and excuses self-indulgence Sentiment and superstition are always satisfied with themselves; make a center of self; and feel relieved of all claims of duty and righteousness.

III THE FEAR THAT INSPIRES ENDEAVOR. He who fears aright finds the fear inspire walking in ways of obedience. This is indeed the test of all forms of fear. The true fear of God draws us nearer to him, and puts us upon a holy anxiety to please him. The fear of God excites to a threefold endeavor; we want

(1) to obey him;

(2) to honor him;

(3) to serve him. And such practical fear is blessed. R.T.

HOMILIES BY C. SHORT Vers. 1-6. A sunny picture of the life era good man.

"Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord," etc.

I THE GREATEST, MOST INFLUENTIAL, RELIGION IS COMPOUNDED OF "THE FEAR" OF THE CONSCIENCE AND THE TRUST AND LOVE OF THE HEART. "The fear" is the elevating fear of offending against the highest law, and the strongest, tenderest love one of the holiest feelings that Christ has generated in the new life.

II SUCH A CONTINUATION RESULTS IN THE BEST, MOST OBEDIENT, LIFE. "That walketh in his ways." The "walking" in the ways of God is the habitual life of God-like ways not any occasional outburst of righteous impulses or endeavors. The walk of a man in his settled character.

III SUCH A LIFE GIVES HIM A LOFTY INDEPENDENCE. "He eats of the labor of his hands." He enjoys the satisfaction of living upon his own labor, and not upon what others have done for him. This entails health, competence, and the highest prosperity. "Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.

IV AND PRODUCES ALSO THE HAPPINESS OF THE HOME LIFE. The wife is the image of rich abundance; the children, of vigorous health. This is supposed principally to spring from the life and influence of the good man his life is reproduced in the life of the wife and children; and they depend upon him, as the vine depends upon that to which it clings. The whole passage is richer in what it suggests than in what it pictures.

V SUCH A MAN STANDS IN USEFUL AND HAPPY RELATIONS WITH THE CHURCH AND THE CITY. (Ver. 5) He is blessed out of Zion, and sees the good of Jerusalem. Individual character is the center of all life, both in Church and State; and when each is filled with the power of Christ in his personal life, he helps to flood the life of the Church and of the State with the only enduring elements of the highest prosperity.

VI HE REJOICES IN A HAPPY OLD AGE, AND IN THE COMPANIONSHIP OF HIS CHILDREN"S CHILDREN. The good man, whose affections and sympathies remain pure down to old age, takes great delight in children and grandchildren, and sees in them the pledges of future peace to the Church and the country. S.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The happiness of them that fear God, ver. 1-6. A song of degrees.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The כּי in Psa 128:2 signifies neither "for" (Aquila, κόπον τῶν ταρσῶν σου ὅτι φάγεσαι), nor "when" (Symmachus, κόπον χειρῶν σου ἐωθίων); it is the directly affirmative כּי, which is sometimes thus placed after other words in a clause (Psa 118:10-12, Gen 18:20; Gen 41:32). The proof in favour of this asseverating כּי is the very usual כּי עתּה in the apodoses of hypothetical protases, or even כּי־אז in Job 11:15, or also only כּי in Isa 7:9, Sa1 14:39; "surely then;" the transition from the confirmative to the affirmative signification is evident from Psa 128:4 of the Psalm before us. To support one's self by one's own labour is a duty which even a Paul did not wish to avoid (Act 20:34), and so it is a great good fortune (טוב לך as in Psa 119:71) to eat the produce of the labour of one's own hands (lxx , τοὺς καρποὺς τῶν πόνων, or according to an original reading, τοὺς πὸνους τῶν καρπῶν);

(Note: The fact that the τῶν καρπῶν of the lxx here, as in Pro 31:20, is intended to refer to the hands is noted by Theodoret and also by Didymus (in Rosenmuller): καρποὺς φησὶνῦν ὡς ἀπὸ μέρους τὰς χεῖρας (i.e., per synecdochen partis pro toto), τουτέστι τῶν πρακτικῶν σου δυνάμεων φάγεσαι τοὺς πόνους.)

For he who can make himself useful to others and still is also independent of them, he eats the bread of blessing which God gives, which is sweeter than the bread of charity which men give. In close connection with this is the prosperity of a house that is at peace and contented within itself, of an amiable and tranquil and hopeful (rich in hope) family life. "Thy wife (אשׁתּך, found only here, for אשׁתּך) is as a fruit-producing vine." פּריּה for פּרה, from פּרה = פּרי, with the Jod of the root retained, like בוכיּה, Lam 1:16. The figure of the vine is admirably suited to the wife, who is a shoot or sprig of the husband, and stands in need of the man's support as the vine needs a stick or the wall of a house (pergula). בּירכּתי ביתך does not belong to the figure, as Kimchi is of opinion, who thinks of a vine starting out of the room and climbing up in the open air outside. What is meant is the angle, corner, or nook (ירכּתי, in relation to things and artificial, equivalent to the natural ירכי), i.e., the background, the privacy of the house, where the housewife, who is not to be seen much out of doors, leads a quiet life, entirely devoted to the happiness of her husband and her family. The children springing from such a nobel vine, planted around the family table, are like olive shoots or cuttings; cf. in Euripides, Medea, 1098: τέκνων ἐν οἴκοις γλυκερὸν βλάστημα, and Herc. Fur. 839: καλλίπαις στέφανος. thus fresh as young layered small olive-trees and thus promising are they.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

A Song of degrees See title note; (See Scofield "Psa 120:1")

feareth

See note; (See Scofield "Psa 19:9").

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Happiness of the Pious.

A song of degrees, setting forth the temporal blessings of true piety. Cf Zechariah 8.

v. 1. Blessed is everyone that feareth the Lord, his entire life being arranged in conformity with God’s holy will, in childlike reverence; that walketh in His ways, his entire behavior agreeing with the Word of the Lord.

v. 2. For thou shalt eat the labor of thine hands, being, by God’s blessing, supplied with the fruits of his industry, especially the produce of garden and field; happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee, real good fortune being found in a house which thus enjoys the blessing of Jehovah, where temperance and frugality are combined with contentment, and no one is compelled to eat the bread of charity.

v. 3. Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house, not on the outside, however, in club and society life, but in the rear, the inner rooms of the house, not a mere clinging vine, but a sturdy plant, leaning on her husband and happy in the midst of her family; thy children like olive-plants round about thy table, known for their luxuriant strength and promising rich returns at the time of their maturity.

v. 4. Behold that thus shall the man be blessed, with the rich blessings of God’s kindness, that feareth the Lord, whose faith works in him the true reverential regard for Jehovah and the willingness to walk in the path of His will.

v. 5. The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion, the throne of His gracious presence in the midst of His people, just as He now lives in the midst of His congregation, in His Word and Sacraments; and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life, witnessing both the temporal and the spiritual blessings which the Lord grants to His Church and its members. Every true believer takes part in the well-being of the Church, the gift which God dispenses in His mercy.

v. 6. Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, along and happy life being considered one of the Lord’s special blessings, and peace upon Israel, rather, in the form of a prayer: "Peace be upon Israel," that is, God is invoked to grant the blessing of peace to His Church and to all its members, according to the promise of His Word, the blessings of this peace then resting also on the homes.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The portion of the man that fears Jehovah.

A song of the ascents.

We have here the portion of him who fears Jehovah, but with only a hint of higher blessings than the natural. One might think it patriarchal life restored, but for Jerusalem and Zion. The six verses here give us, I think, an intimation that after all, this is not the full blessing. It scarcely needs comment.

It is the happiness of the obedient man. He subsists on his own labor -does not yield it to another. Wife and children are the adornments of his house; and now there is no thought of enemies in the gate. The fourth verse appeals to experience for the proof of the blessing; there being no more the mysteries that perplex us now.

In the fifth, the blessing is from Jehovah out of Zion; and Jerusalem is in continual prosperity. Such are the days to which we have here reached: a state of things which the sixth verse only emphasizes in children’s children seen following one another in progressive generations, and still with "peace upon Israel."

F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psalms 128

THE preceding psalm traced all prosperity and domestic felicity to Gods giving hand. It painted in its close the picture of a father surrounded by his sons able to defend him. This psalm presents the same blessings as the result of a devout life, in which the fear of Jehovah leads to obedience and diligence in labour. It presents the inner side of domestic happiness. It thus doubly supplements the former, lest any should think that Gods gift superseded mans work, or that the only blessedness of fatherhood was that it supplied a corps of sturdy defenders. The first four verses describe the peaceful, happy life of the God-fearing man, and the last two invoke on him the blessing which alone makes such a life his. Blended with the sweet domesticity of the psalm is glowing love for Zion. However blessed the home, it is not to weaken the sense of belonging to the nation.

No purer, fairer idyll was ever penned than this miniature picture of a happy home life. But its calm simple beauty has deep foundations. The poet sets forth the basis of all noble, as of all tranquil, life when he begins with the fear of Jehovah, and thence advances to practical conformity with His will, manifested by walking in the paths which He traces for men. Thence the transition is easy to the mention of diligent labour, and the singer is sure that such toil done on such principles and from such a motive cannot go unblessed. Outward prosperity does not follow good mens work so surely as the letter of the psalm teaches, but the best fruits of such work are not those which can be stored in barns or enjoyed by sense; and the labourer who does his work "heartily, as to the Lord," will certainly reap a harvest in character and power and communion with God, whatever transitory gain may be attained or missed.

The sweet little sketch of a joyous home in Psa_128:3 is touched with true grace and feeling. The wife is happy in her motherhood, and ready, in the inner chambers (literally sides) of the house, where she does her share of work, to welcome her husband returning from the field. The family gathers for the meal won and sweetened by his toil; the children are in vigorous health, and growing up like young "layered" olive plants. It may be noted that this verse exhibits a home in the earlier stages of married life. and reflects the happy hopes associated with youthful children, all still gathered under the fathers roof; while, in the latter part of the psalm, a later stage is in view, when the father sits as a spectator rather than a worker, and sees children born to his children. Psa_128:4 emphatically dwells once more on the foundation of all as laid in the fear of Jehovah. Happy a nation whose poets have such ideals and sing of such themes! How wide the gulf separating this "undisturbed song" of pure home joys from the foul ideals which baser songs try to adorn! Happy the man whose ambition is bounded by its limits, and whose life is

"True to the kindred points of heaven and home"!

Israel first taught the world how sacred the family is; and Christianity recognises "a church in the house" of every wedded pair whose love is hallowed by the fear of Jehovah.

In Psa_128:5-6, petitions take the place of assurances, for the singer knows that none of the good which he has been promising will come without that blessing of which the preceding psalm had spoken. All the beautiful and calm joys just described must flow from God, and be communicated from that place which is the seat of His self-revelation. The word rendered above "mayest thou look" is in the imperative form, which seems here to be intended to blend promise, wish, and command. It is the duty of the happiest husband and father not to let himself be so absorbed in the sweets of home as to have his heart beat languidly for the public weal. The subtle selfishness which is but too commonly the accompaniment of such blessings is to be resisted. From his cheerful hearth the eyes of a lover of Zion are to look out, and be gladdened when they see prosperity smiling on Zion. Many a Christian is so happy in his household that his duties to the Church, the nation, and the world are neglected. This ancient singer had a truer conception of the obligations flowing from personal and domestic blessings. He teaches us that it is not enough to "see childrens children," unless we have eyes to took for the prosperity of Jerusalem, and tongues which pray not only for those in our homes, but for "peace upon Israel."

William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.

General Information:

Parallelism is common in Hebrew poetry. (See: Poetry and Parallelism)

song of ascents

Possible meanings are 1) "song people sang while going up to Jerusalem for a celebration" or 2) "song people sang while going up the steps into the temple" or 3) "song whose words are like steps." See how you translated this in Psalms 120:1

Blessed is everyone who honors Yahweh

This phrase occurs in the passive voice to avoid implying that Yahweh is obligated to bless those who honor him. This can be stated in active form. AT: "Yahweh will bless everyone who honors him" (See: Active or Passive)

What your hands provide

A man can be referred to by his hands because that is the part of the body he works with. AT: "What you provide" or "What you work for" (See: Synecdoche)

you will be blessed and prosper

The words "be blessed" and "prosper" share similar meanings and emphasize God's favor. AT: "Yahweh will bless you and prosper you" or "Yahweh will make you blessed and prosperous" (See: Doublet)

translationWords

bless

honor

Yahweh

walk

hand

prosper

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

A song of ascents. Praiseworthy is every man who fears the Lord All of these are admonitions and disciplines. Because it is written, “Praiseworthy is the man,” “Praiseworthy is a man,” it therefore says here “every,” to include a woman.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.