Psalms 149:4

Psa 149:4 For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation.

Ver. 4. For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people] Psa 35:27, when they are under the cross especially, and thereby make meek. This the very heathen saw, and could say, Spectant Dii magnos viros, cum calamitate aliqua colluctantes. Ecce spectaculum, ad quod respiciat operi suo intentus Deus, saith Seneca of Cato, and other gallant Roman spirits (Lib. de Provid. c. 2). How much more may we say the like of God’s looking with singular delight on Abraham (Jehovah-jireh, "the Lord seeth," Gen 22:14, Job, Stephen, Laurence, and other faithful martyrs, suffering courageously for his truth, and sealing it with their blood!

He will beautify (or glorify) the meek with salvation] i.e. Not only deliver them, but dignify them in the eyes of all; Psa 91:15, I will deliver him, and glorify him. Bradford and such we shall look upon, likely (saith a grave author, Mr Bolton), with thoughts of extraordinary love and sweetness in the next world through all eternity; as Bonner and such with execrable and everlasting detestation.

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_149:4

For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people.

The objects of the Divine delight

I. The people refereed to.

1. They bear the Lords name. They are His disciples, subjects, servants, soldiers.

2. They bear the Lords image (2Pe_1:4).

3. They possess the Lords Spirit. He directs, comforts, and sanctifies them.

4. They are zealous for the Lords glory.

II. The Lords delight in His people.

1. In their persons.

2. In their graces.

3. In their services.

4. In all their concerns.

5. At all times, and in all circumstances. (J. Burns, D. D.)

The Lords delight in His people, and His designs towards them

I. The delight which the Lord has in His saints.

1. Who are the Lords people? The meek.

(1) As it respects God, it implies poverty of spirit; humiliation of heart arising from a sense of guilt, and a feeling of corruption; submission and resignation to His will; silence and patience under His rod, and a surrender of our own natural desires and inclinations to His overruling appointments.

(2) As it respects man, it comprehends lowliness of mind, and a readiness to prefer others before ourselves; gentleness of disposition and behaviour; forbearance under provocations.

2. Why does He take pleasure in them? Because they are His people, purchased by His blood, renewed by His Spirit, redeemed by His power.

3. In what respects does He take pleasure in them?

(1) He delights in the exercise of their graces towards Him.

(2) In their services.

(3) In their prosperity.

II. His gracious designs concerning them.

1. The happy effects of religion even in the present life.

2. They are predestinated to be conformed to the image of the Son; and when they awake up in another world, it will be after His likeness, without any remaining blemish, defect, or spot. (E. Cooper.)

Gods pleasure in His people

I. The class of character described.

1. The title they bear. His people--

(1) By Divine choice,

(2) By regenerating grace.

(3) By personal dedication.

2. The spirit they evince. A humble, contrite spirit, softened by the power of Divine grace, and melted by the love and compassion of Christ.

II. The extent of privilege enjoyed

1. As the objects of Divine complacency.

2. As the subjects of the Divine munificence.

(1) The inestimable blessing--salvation. This consists in a deliverance from evil, and the enjoyment of all good--pardon, peace, joy, hope, heaven.

(2) The manner of its application. Beautify. How beautiful does the believer appear, arrayed in the garments of salvation, clothed with the robe of righteousness, and bringing forth the fruits of the Spirit--worshipping God in the beauty of holiness--going to the sanctuary to behold the beauty of the Lord. How beautiful, with the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. How beautiful, laden with the fruits of righteousness, and resigned to the will of God under trials. How beautiful in death! (E. Temple.)

Gods delight in His people

I believe that every true sculptor can see in the block of marble the statue that he means to make. I doubt not that the artist could see the Laocoon of the Vatican after he had chipped for a little time the figure of the serpent, and the father, and the sons all standing out in that wondrous group, long before anybody else could see it. And the Lord takes pleasure in His people because He can see us as we shall be. It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but it does appear to Him. In the case of His mind and the shaping of His eternal purpose He knows, dear sister, though you are now struggling with your fears, what you will be when you shall stand before the blazing lamps of the eternal throne. He knows, young man, though you have but a few days turned from sin, and begun to struggle with vice, what you will be when, with all the blood-washed host, you shall cast your crown before His throne. Yes, the Lord takes delight in His people as knowing what they are yet to be. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

He will beautify the meek with salvation.--

Beautiful for ever

I. The character to be aimed at.

1. Towards God. Entire submission to

(1) His teaching.

(2) His chastening.

(3) All the influences of His Spirit.

2. Towards men--gentleness.

3. In themselves--lowliness.

II. The favour to be enjoyed by them.

1. Peace of mind.

2. Delightful contentment.

3. Great joy.

4. Holy character. As men and women, who are what they ought to be in Christ, grow old, their temper mellows, and their whole spirit ripens.

III. The good results to be expected.

1. God will be glorified.

2. By our meekness Christ is manifested.

3. This meekness makes a Christian attractive. If we want to draw others to Christ, we must let them see how sweetly blessed is the Christian life, and how a man can be sternly upright, and yet at the same time be blessedly cheerful,--how he can be dead against sin, and yet full of holy love to the sinner,--how he would not, to save his life, budge an inch from that which is right and true, and yet would give his life away if by blessing another he might bring glory to the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord beautify us thus with salvation, and great good will come of it! (C. H. Spurgeon.)

The meek beautified with salvation

I. Their character. Meek--

1. Towards God.

(1) Under the Word of God--its threatenings, commands, truths and doctrine.

(2) Under the dispensations of His providence.

2. Towards man. The Christian knows that others have as much or more to bear with him than he has to bear with from others; this tends to humble him, and to keep him meek. He endeavours to show all meekness to all men; in meekness instructing them that oppose themselves.

II. Beautified with salvation.

1. The garment of salvation. It was wrought out by the Son of God, and, like Himself, is holy and without spot.

2. The graces of salvation (Gal_5:22-23).

3. The glory of salvation. How beautiful will he be with the palm of victory in his hand, and the crown of glory on his head, and sitting down, with the wedding-garment wrought by the Son of God Himself, at the marriage-supper of the Lamb! (W. Bolland, M. A.)

Beauty

To be religious is just to be like Jesus, and salvation, in the text, means religion; the meek there spoken of are persons who are gentle, and sweet, and kind. Now, there is something beautiful about the gentle, and sweet, and kind, although they may not be religious. How much greater, then, must be the beauty of such persons when they have, with their good qualities, religion also, with all its heavenly sweetness! Religion is not equally beautiful in all who profess to have it; a disagreeable temper may mar that beauty. The chief beauty of religion is found in the gentle, and sweet, and kind. And this beauty is seen in the face of religious people and also in all their kind acts. Bad tempers and unkind dispositions make the faces of people ugly, while sweet tempers and kind dispositions make them pretty. It is very hard to beautify some people even with religion. Some are sweet in temper and some are sour. It is a difficult thing for an artist, out of a piece of wood that is tough, and crooked, and knotted, to carve a beautiful image. And so it is not an easy task, out of some one in disposition very much like that piece of wood, to make a religious person beautiful in face and in action. But this can be done. Now, if the heathen man in old times, without any one helping him, learned to be gentle and sweet and kind, there is no one, surely, no matter how bad the disposition may be, who cannot, with God helping, learn the same lesson. I am sure that you all want to be beautiful. How can you become so? Some people think that any one can be made beautiful by wearing rich clothes and nice ornaments; but this is not what the Bible teaches us. It says (1Pe_3:3-4). Every child can have such adorning by getting and keeping a sweet religious disposition, and by doing kindly religious acts. We have seen such beauty as this. At first, may be, we thought that some one had not a bit of beauty, but we found in that one a lovely soul and saw a lovely life; and then the plain face changed at once, and, in our sight, it became, like the soul and life, lovely too. (W. L. Spottswood.)

Transfigured

One of the most beautiful sights in the world is the Bay of Naples. No one who has ever seen it on a quiet summer evening, and watched it as the night gathered and through the darkness the flashes of fire from the summit of Vesuvius, like some torch of God, lighted it, can ever forget the scene. But scientific men tell us that that lovely Bay of Naples is the crater of a worn-out and flooded volcano. In the early morning of the worlds history it was perhaps the greatest volcano on earth; it belched forth from its heart floods of seething lava. At last it sank down and down, its fiery heart was quelled, the lava ceased to flow, and in from the Mediterranean, perhaps first in some glorious day of storm, swept the white caps of the sea and overflowed the crater and filled it full, and to-day the beautiful waters lie in peace and mirror back the shining heavens above. So many of our lives are like the crater. Passions have swept over us and left us worn out. But Gods grace can fill our empty lives and make them sweet and beautiful and peaceful. (Sunday Circle.)

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

Psa 149:4. The Lord taketh pleasure in his people — He loveth them above all people, and rejoiceth over them to do them good. He will beautify the meek — The humble, and lowly, and contrite in heart, that tremble at his word, and submit to it; that are patient under their afflictions, and show all meekness toward all men. These the men of the world vilify and asperse; but God will justify them, and wipe off their reproach; nay, he will beautify, or adorn, or glorify them, as יפאר signifies. They shall appear, not only clear, but comely and honourable before all the world, with the comeliness and dignity wherewith he clothes them. He will beautify them with salvation, perhaps with temporal salvation, working remarkable deliverances for them; and then they who had lain among the pots, become as the wings of a dove covered with silver, Psa 68:13: but especially with eternal salvation. The righteous shall be beautified indeed in that day when they shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

4. (Psa 149:4) For Jehovah is pleased with his people; he beautifies the humble with salvation. The first clause suggests the idea of a previous alienation, and of his having been appeased or reconciled. See above, on Psa 85:1. The verb is one applied in the Law to God's acceptance of the sacrifices, and might therefore awaken here associations with atonement and forgiveness. See above, on Psa 19:14, Psa 51:9. The verb occurs in its general sense of being pleased or satisfied, Psa 147:10-11. With the last clause compare Isa 61:3.

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

149:4 God’s people, whom the world ignores and despises, will be vindicated (Matt 19:30). The humble will experience victory over their oppressors and persecutors (see Isa 61:3).

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

taketh pleasure--literally, "accepts," alluding to acceptance of propitiatory offerings (compare Psa 147:11).

beautify, &c.--adorn the humble with faith, hope, joy, and peace.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 4. The Lord taketh pleasure in his people] The pleasure or good will of God is in his people: he loves them ardently, and will load them with his benefits, while they are humble and thankful; for,

He will beautify] יפאר yephaer, he will make fair, the meek, ענוים anavim, the lowly, the humble with salvation, בישועה bishuah; which St. Jerome thus translates, Et exaltabit mansuetos in Jesu, "And he will exalt the meek in Jesus." Whether this rendering be correct or not, there is no other way by which the humble soul can be exalted, but by JESUS, as the redeeming Saviour.

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

4. For God hath taken pleasure in his people. We have spoken elsewhere of the verb רצה, ratsah here it means free favor, the Psalmist saying that it was entirely of his good pleasure that God had chosen this people to himself. From this source flows what is added in the second clause, that God would give a new glory of deliverance to the afflicted. In the Hebrew ענוים, anavim, means poor and afflicted ones, but the term came afterwards to be applied to merciful persons, as bodily afflictions have a tendency to subdue pride, while abundance begets cruelty. The Psalmist accordingly mitigates the sadness of present evils by administering seasonable consolation, that God’s people, when oppressed by troubles, might look forward with hope to the glorious deliverance which was yet unseen. The sum of the passage is — that God, who had fixed his love upon his chosen people, could not possibly abandon them to such miseries as they now suffered under.

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.

(4) He will beautify the meek . . .—Rather, He adorns the oppressed with salvation. Not only is the victory which achieves the deliverance of the afflicted people a relief to them, but the honour won in the sight of the world is like a beautiful robe, a figure no doubt suggested by the actual triumphal dresses of the victors, or the spoils in which they appeared after the battle. (Comp. Isa_55:5; Isa_60:7; Isa_61:3; Jdg_5:30.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

4. taketh pleasure in his people] The deliverance which they have experienced is the proof of the renewal of His favour. Cp. Psa_147:11; Isa_54:7-8; Isa_60:10.

he adorneth the meek with salvation] Through humiliation Israel has learnt humility; and now Jehovah restores their prosperity. Beautify or adorn is a word frequently used of the restoration of Israel in the later chapters of Isaiah (Isa_55:5; Isa_60:7; Isa_60:9; Isa_60:13, A.V. glorify or beautify). Salvation is not to be limited to victory (R.V. marg.), but denotes welfare and prosperity generally.

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.

For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people,.... Not all mankind; though they are all his people by creation, and are under the care of his providence; yet they are not all acceptable to him; some are abhorred by him for their sins and transgressions: but these are a special and peculiar people, whom he has foreknown and chosen, taken into the covenant of his grace, and provided in it blessings for them; whom he has given to Christ, and he has redeemed; and who are called by the Spirit and grace of God, whereby they appear to be his people. These the Lord loves with a love of complacency and delight; he takes pleasure in their persons, as considered in Christ, in whom they are accepted with him; as they are clothed with his righteousness, and made comely through his comeliness; as washed in his precious blood, and adorned with the graces of his spirit: yea, he takes pleasure in their services done in faith, and from love, and to his glory; in their sacrifices of prayer and praise, as offered up through Christ; in the company of them and communion with them; and in their prosperity and happinesS, here and hereafter;

he will beautify the meek with salvation; humble and lowly souls, who have been truly humbled under a sense of sin; brought to submit to the righteousness of Christ, and to depend upon the grace of God for salvation; are subject to the yoke of Christ, and patiently submit to the will of God under every dispensation of Providence; are not easily provoked to wrath; are free from envy and malice; have mean thoughts of themselves, and high ones of other saints; these the Lord beautifies now with more grace, with which salvation is connected; with the robe of Christ's righteousness, and the garments of his salvation, which are beautiful ones; and he will beautify them with eternal salvation, with the white robes of immortality and bliss, when they will shine as the sun in the kingdom of heaven.

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

For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people - Let them rejoice on this account. He loves them; he approves their conduct; he bestows his favors upon them. All this should add to their joy, and fill their hearts with gladness. Compare the notes at Psa 35:27. The Hebrew word here rendered “taketh pleasure” conveys the idea of complacency, satisfaction, delight. It is the opposite of being pained or offended. God has complacency in his people. He delights in their welfare; he delights in doing them good.

He will beautify the meek with salvation - The word here rendered beautify means to adorn, to honor, as the sanctuary, Isa 60:7 (rendered glorify); and it here means that the salvation which God would bestow upon them would be of the nature of an ornament, as if they were clothed with costly or splendid raiment. Compare Psa 132:16. The word meek here means humble or lowly, and may refer to those who are humble in rank or condition, or those who are humble in heart. Perhaps the two ideas are here combined. They have not external adorning, but God will give them an honor and beauty in salvation which no outward adorning could impart.

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

Taketh pleasure in his people; he loveth them above all people, and rejoiceth over them to do them good.

He will beautify, Heb. adorn or glorify; make them amiable and honourable in the eyes of the world, who now hate and despise them.

The meek, or humble, to wit, his people, as he now said, who are oft in Scripture described by that character, because all true Israelites are such, and all Israelites profess and ought to be such. Or, the afflicted, as that word is oft used in Scripture, which hath been observed before; his poor afflicted and oppressed people, to whom the following salvation is most needful and acceptable.

With salvation; both temporal, in delivering them from, and setting them above, all their enemies; and afterwards, with everlasting salvation and glory.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ver. 4. For the LORD taketh pleasure in his people; and therefore they should take pleasure in him. If our joy be pleasing to him let us make it full. What condescension is this on Jehovah's part, to notice, to love, and to delight in his chosen! Surely there is nothing in our persons, or our actions, which could cause pleasure to the Ever blessed One, were it not that he condescends to men of low estate. The thought of the Lord's taking pleasure in us is a mine of joy never to be exhausted.

He will beautify the meek with salvation. They are humble, and feel their need of salvation; he is gracious, and bestows it upon them. They lament their deformity, and he puts a beauty upon them of the choicest sort. He saves them by sanctifying them, and thus they wear the beauty of holiness, and the beauty of a joy which springs out of full salvation. He makes his people meek, and then makes the meek beautiful. Herein is grand argument for worshipping the Lord with the utmost exultation: he who takes such a pleasure in us must be approached with every token of exceeding joy.

God taketh pleasure in all his children as Jacob loved all his sons; but the meek are his Josephs, and upon these he puts the coat of many colours, beautifying them with peace, content, joy, holiness, and influence. A meek and quiet spirit is called "an ornament", and certainly it is "the beauty of holiness." When God himself beautifies a man, he becomes beautiful indeed and beautiful for ever.

The verse may be read, "He shall beautify the meek with salvation", or "He shall beautify the afflicted with deliverance", or, "He shall beautify the meek with victory"; and each of these readings gives a new shade of meaning, well worthy of quiet consideration. Each reading also suggests new cause for joyful adoration. "O come, let us sing unto the Lord."

Ver. 4. For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people. In the text there are two causes assigned why the saints should be excited to praise the Lord, and to be joyful in their King.

1. The delight which the LORD has in the saints. "He taketh pleasure in his people." In this statement there are three subjects for inquiry, namely:

a) Who are the Lord's people? b) Why he takes pleasure in them? c) In what respects he takes pleasure in them?

a) Who are the Lord's people? Many are the names and titles given to them in Scripture. We find one in the second clause of the text; but it equally belongs to the first. "He will beautify the meek." The scriptural term "meekness" is one which singularly characterizes and distinguishes the true Christian. It, in fact, contains in itself a combination of graces, which are most evidently the fruit of the Spirit, and can grow on no other tree than on the Christian vine. Meekness, as a Christian grace, may be considered as it respects both God and man. As it respects God, it implies poverty of spirit; humiliation of heart arising from a sense of guilt and a feeling of corruption; submission to God's will; silence and patience under his rod; acquiescence with his dispensations; and a surrender of our own natural desires and inclinations to his overruling appointments. As it respects man, meekness comprehends lowliness of mind, and a readiness to prefer others before ourselves; gentleness of disposition and behaviour; forbearance under provocations; forgiveness of injuries; quietness of spirit, and moderation in pushing forward our own interest and benefit. These are the qualities which distinguish "the meek." Are not these, my brethren, the graces and tempers and dispositions which characterize and adorn true Christians? They are, in an especial manner, "the meek upon earth." In fact, there are, and can be, no others to whom this title really belongs. No man in his natural state can be meek, in the Scriptural sense of the word.

2. But why does the Lord "take pleasure" in them? Is there anything in them of their own, which he can regard with complacency and delight? No: they know and feel that they have no pretensions of this kind. It is not for their sake, but for his own sake; for his name's, His truth's, and his mercy's sake, that he has now a favour unto them. The Lord "taketh pleasure in his people", because they are his people; those whom he has purchased by his blood, renewed by his Spirit, and redeemed by his power. He "taketh pleasure in them", because in them he is himself honoured and glorified; because he sees in them the travail of his soul, the fruit of his suffering and mediation; because of the work which he has already begun in them; because they already exhibit some traces of his own image, some transcript of that mind which was in him, who was "meek and lowly in heart."

3. In what respects the Lord takes pleasure in his people. First: the Lord takes pleasure in them, inasmuch as he delights in the exercise of their graces towards him. They all believe in him, and have faith in his word and promises; they rely on his truth and power; they hope in his mercy; they fear his displeasure; they love his person and name. Secondly: the Lord hath pleasure in the services of his people. It is true, that they can do but little for him, and that little is nothing worth. At the best they can but render to him of his own again. But he regards their services, not with an eye to their intrinsic value in themselves, but for the sake of the willing mind from which they flow. He takes pleasure in their poor attempts to please him, because they are attempts. He weighs not the worth or merit of the action, but the principle and motive from which it springs. Thirdly: the Lord hath pleasure in the prosperity of his people. His name is love; his nature is goodness; and can we doubt but that he loves to see his people happy? Nay, we are expressly told that "he rejoiceth over them with joy"; that "he rejoiceth over them to do them good." Even in those dispensations which in themselves are grievous and painful he is seeking their good, and in the end promoting their happiness. What consolations do these reflections furnish to the meek and suffering servants of the Lord!

2. Let us now consider the LORD'S gracious designs concerning his people: He will beautify them with salvation. He designs not only to save, but to adorn and honour his people. Those "whom he justifies, them he also glorifies." He "will beautify them with salvation"; a promise relating both to the present life and to the future one.

a) To the present life. It is the purpose of God to beautify his people with salvation in this world. There are many passages in the Scripture which intimate this purpose, and lead us to this view of the happy effects of religion, even in the present life. When the prodigal returned home to his father's house, contrite, penitent, and reformed, he was not only received with kindness, assured of forgiveness, and welcomed as a son, but he was adorned and beautified (Lu 15:22). So in the forty-fifth Psalm, the church, the bride of Christ, is thus described: "The king's daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework." "So shall he greatly desire thy beauty." See also Eph 5:25-27.

But what is the glory, the beauty, which is here meant in these passages, with which Christ will adorn and beautify his people? It is "the beauty of holiness." We have already seen that the meek and quiet spirit by which the Christian is distinguished is an "ornament" to him; and we read in another place that he is "adorned" with good works. It is the great object of the gospel to sanctify all who embrace it, to restore them to the image of God which they have lost through sin.

2. We may now consider this promise as it relates to the future world. Lovely and glorious as are the saints on earth, their beauty falls far short of the perfection to which it will attain hereafter. They are "predestinated to be conformed to the image of the Son"; and when they awake up in another world, it will be after his likeness, without any remaining blemish, defect, or spot. Carry forward your thoughts to the morning of the resurrection, when this corruption shall have put on incorruption, this mortal immortality; when the body, raised in honour and glory, shall be clothed in its beauteous apparel, and being made like unto Christ's glorious body, shall shine as the sun in the firmament; when now, once more united to its kindred and sanctified spirit, it shall no longer be a weight, and a clog, and a hindrance, but become a furtherer of its joy, and a sharer and a helper in its spiritual happiness. This is the meaning of the text, this is the beauty which he has designed for his people, and for which he is now preparing them. In the contemplation of these, with reason may it be said to them, "Praise ye the Lord." Condensed from a Sermon by Edward Cooper, 1826.

Ver. 4. Here is ratio propositionis, the important reason of the proposed praising of the Lord. Those who know that they are objects of Divine complacency are likely to act on the principle of reciprocity. God takes pleasure in sanctifying, justifying and glorifying them; they must surely take pleasure in extolling him as Friend, Protector, Law giver, Leader, King, God! Simon de Muis.

Ver. 4. He will beautify the meek with salvation. Meekness not only gives great peace of mind, but often adds a lustre to the countenance. We only read of three in Scripture whose faces shone remarkablyviz., Christ, Moses, and Stephenand they were eminent for meekness. Matthew Henry.

Ver. 4. The meek. In the Hebrew Mywge, anavim, means poor and afflicted ones; but the term came afterwards to be applied to merciful persons, as bodily afflictions have a tendency to subdue pride, while abundance begets cruelty. John Calvin.

Ver. 4. The text bears other renderings. Read as in Authorized Version.

1. The character to be aimed at the meek.

a) Submissive to God. To his truth. To his dealings.

b) Gentle towards men. Bearing with patience. Forgiving with heartiness. Loving with perseverance.

c) Lowly in ourselves.

2. The favour to be enjoyed beautify.

a) The beauty of gentleness.

b) The beauty of peace.

c) The beauty of content.

d) The beauty of joy.

e) The beauty of holiness.

f) The beauty of respect and influence.

3. The good results to be expected.

a) God will be glorified and Christ manifested.

b) Men will be attracted.

c) Heaven will be anticipated.

Ver. 4. (first clause). The Lord's taking pleasure in his people is,

1. A wonderful evidence of his grace.

2. The highest honour they can desire.

3. Their security for time and eternity. J.F.

Psalms 149:5*

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

4. Beautify the meek with salvation—This is a law of the divine government. The meek, not the proud and contentious, shall triumph at last, even in this life. Mat_5:5. These are they who wait in patient suffering for God’s time and manner of judgment. “Beautify,” here, takes the sense of honour. God will honour the meek in the eyes of the world. The struggling colony had humbly borne the malice and perfidy of hostile tribes for nearly a hundred years from their first arrival, (Ezra 1,) and about one hundred and sixty six years from the beginning of their captivity, but now they are honoured in the sight of the nations by the favour of the king of Persia, and the completion of their new temple and city walls. “Salvation” is here to be taken in its broadest sense, embracing temporal and spiritual deliverance. The author speaks of the true Israel.

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

For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people. God had shown by the mercy, whatever it was (ver. 1), recently vouchsafed to his people, that he was well pleased with them, and might be counted on to support and sustain them. He will beautify the meek with salvation. Those who patiently submit to his chastisements God will ultimately "adorn," or "beautify," with his salvation.

God"s pleasure in his people.

The Peculiarity of religion is that it gives us pleasure in the thought of God, by removing the fear of him which is common to sinful men. This is seen in the joy-songs of the psalmists. When we cherish the thought of God, we find our hearts are incited to praise him

(1) for what he is in his own glorious nature;

(2) for what he is in the ordering of his gracious providences;

(3) for what he is in covenant relations with his people.

Whether we are finding pleasure in the thought of God is one of the surest and best tests of our religion. In the verse before us, our joy in God and praise of God are demanded on two very sufficient and suggestive grounds.

I GOD"S PRESENT PLEASURE IN HIS PEOPLE. That ought to be a constant pleasure and joy to us. It is not only that he cares for us that may be but a cold consideration. It is not only that he loves us we may feel almost lost among the many whom he loves. It is that he finds pleasure in us, and that necessarily involves some form of personal relations. But what can there possibly be in us in which God can find personal pleasure?

1. We are to him as children.

2. We are the objects of his great redemption. (Illustrate by the interest of a doctor in his patient)

3. We may reflect his image. There is a strange pleasure in discovering our characteristic self in another person.

4. We may lean upon his grace. And there is great pleasure felt by the good man in simply being relied on. What gave Christ his pleasure in his disciples? Take home the thought of God"s pleasurable interest in us, and then see under what obligations we lie never to spoil his pleasure, but do all we can to increase it.

II GOD"S FUTURE PURPOSE FOR HIS PEOPLE. HIS pleasure in them makes him work for them. And those for whom he works are indicated by their chief characteristic-meekness. "I will beautify the meek." For such God has:

(1) Salvation in its fullest, deepest senses.

(2) Help for every emergency, constant as their need, and adapted to it in its ever-varying forms.

(3) Final emancipation from the evil which has been all along marring and spoiling our beauty. Illustrate how beauty returns when encroaching and enfeebling disease is at last mastered and dismissed. It is important to dwell on the point that the salvations of God which are going on in us and for us, because he takes pleasure in us, are adornments to the Christian. God"s grace to him and in him tends to "beautify him.

It may be shown how they tend to beautify

(1) his very face;

(2) his character; and

(3) his relationships.

What, then, will be our beauty in the sight of God when his salvation work in us is fully complete? R.T.

God"s pleasure in his people.

In what respects does the Lord take pleasure in his people?

I He takes pleasure in them, inasmuch as HE DELIGHTS IN THE EXERCISES OF THEIR GRACES TOWARDS HIM. They all believe in him, and have faith in his Word and promises; they rely on his truth and power; they hope in his mercy; they fear his displeasure; they love his Person and Name.

II He takes pleasure IN THE SERVICES OF HIS PEOPLE. They can do but little for him, and he regards their services, not with an eye to their intrinsic value in themselves, but for the sake of the willing mind from which they flow.

III He takes pleasure IN THE PROSPERITY OF HIS PEOPLE. His Name is love; his nature is goodness. And can we doubt that he loves to see his people happy? Even in those dispensations which in themselves are grievous and painful, he is seeking their good, and in the end promoting their happiness. (After C.H.S.) R.T.

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

The Lord - He rejoiceth over them to do them good. Beautify - Hebrew. adorn, make them amiable and honourable in the eyes of the world, who now hate and despise them. The meek - All true Israelites are such.

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

glorifies the humble with salvation

The abstract noun "salvation" can be translated with a verbal phrase. AT: "glorifies the humble by saving them" (See: Abstract Nouns)

the humble

This can be restated to remove the nominal adjective. AT: "those who are humble" (See: Nominal Adjectives)

on their beds

The translation can make explicit that this refers to when a person lies down at night to sleep in a bed. AT: "as they lie down to sleep at night" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

translationWords

people of God

glory

humble

save

godly

joy

joy

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