Psalms 34:8

Psa 34:8 O taste and see that the LORD [is] good: blessed [is] the man [that] trusteth in him.

Ver. 8. O taste and see, &c.] viz. With the mouth of your mind, and with the eyes of your faith perceive, and experiment the goodness of God in choosing and using such instruments as the angels, and otherwise, in the manifold expressions of his love to us; wherein if we take not comfort the fault is merely in ourselves; we being like him who hath pleasant and nourishing meat, but will not make use of it. The saints taste how good the Lord is, and thence long after him. Optima demonstratio est a sensibus. As he that feels fire hot, or as he that tasteth honey sweet, ye need not use arguments to persuade him to believe it; so here, let a man but once taste that the Lord is good, and he will thenceforth, as a new born babe, desire the sincere milk of the word, 1Pe 2:2-3, neither will he take any more content in the world’s tasteless fooleries than in the white of an egg or a dry chip. Gustato spiritu desipit omnis caro, saith Gerson, All flesh is savourless to him that hath tasted of the Spirit. Paul, after his rapture, looked with scorn and pity on all the world’s glittering poverty. His mouth doth not water after homely provisions, who hath lately tasted of delicate sustenance. Oh, let us get spiritual senses habitually exercised to discern good and evil, Heb 5:14. It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing, saith our Saviour to the Jews: q.d. Ye accept my words because ye have not the Spirit, ye have but flesh, that is, a common knowledge, no sound taste; and therefore it is that my words relish not with you.

Blessed is the man, &c.] See Psa 2:12. {See Trapp on "Psa 2:12"}

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_34:8-14

O taste and see that the Lord is good.

Important exhortation

I. A call to the enjoyment of divine goodness (Psa_34:8). Two things are necessary to the enjoyment of this goodness:

1. Freedom from a sense of guilt.

2. A sense of true gratitude.

(1) Enjoying Gods goodness involves trust in Him.

(2) Trust in Him ensures true blessedness.

II. A call to higher religious experience (Psa_34:9-10). We are to follow on to know the Lord, to forget the things that are behind, and press on to the things that are before. There is no want to them that fear Him.

1. Want is a calamity.

2. The higher the religious experience the less liability to want.

III. A call to the instructions of experience. (Psa_34:11).

1. The highest teaching is the teaching of the Lord.

2. Youth is the best season for this teaching.

3. Teaching children religion is worthy the dignity of the greatest men.

IV. A call to obey the conditions of longevity (Psa_34:12-14).

1. Men desire long life.

2. Moral excellence is conducive to long life. (Homilist)

Taste and see

This is the language of experience, and that of no common character. The psalmist desires that all who might be partakers of his trial might be sharers in his deliverance. He tells us--

I. of his experience. Paul, as David, speaks of having tasted of the heavenly gift. The word is most emphatic, for the sense of taste includes most of the others--sight and smell and touch. And certainly it is so in spiritual things. There are among those who are called Christians three distinct classes. There are, first, those who hear without seeing; there are those who both hear and see, without tasting; and there are those in whom all three combine--to whom faith cometh by hearing, in whom faith groweth by seeing, in whom faith is perfected and consummated by tasting.

II. the invitation. Those who have had the experience of the psalmist cannot but desire it for others.

III. the blessing. Such a man is blessed, even in the trust itself; and the blessing is one which not even the errors of his own weak judgment shall destroy, which not even the infirmity of his own frail purpose shall impair. (Thomas Dale, M. A.)

The invitation of the psalmist

The psalms are placed in the centre of the Bible, like the heart in the centre of the body. The heart is the seat of life. The psalms are the life of religion. Other parts of the Bible describe religion, but the psalms are religion itself. He who reads them sincerely cannot but be religious; and he who appropriates them to himself will find life, health and energy imparted to his whole spiritual being.

I. As invitation. O taste and see, etc. It is not see and taste. Before we taste a substance we generally look at it. But here, we must taste before we can see. There must be a relish for Divine things before we can see and enjoy God. That which we are to see is--that the Lord is good. The Christian knows and feels this. He sees it in Nature, in his own frame, the structure of the body, its union with the soul. And in that soul itself, and, especially, its redemption by Christ.

II. the character referred to--the man that trusteth in God. It is not knowledge, intellect, eloquence, believing, or even power to work miracles, or to show a martyrs zeal, but trust is that which is here spoken of. Confidence in God is meant. Even amongst men this has great power. What will even man do for another in whom he trusts? What will not that woman do for the man in whom she confides?

III. the blessing promised. It is more the statement of a fact than a promise, for the man is blessed who trusts in God. By the very action upon his own mind and heart of the trust he places in God. It gives the soul a holy boldness, a sure peace. And not only is he blessed in himself, but he becomes a blessing to others. His light shines before men so that they, too, glorify God. (W. Blood, M. A.)

Recreating the palate

This confident and jubilant appeal comes at the end of a series of splendid testimonies such as might be heard at many a fervent experience meeting. One man confesses that he had once been enmeshed in multitudinous fears which had crippled his walk towards Zion: I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears! A group of cheery witnesses testified that in past days their faces had been clouded with sorrow, because the sunshine had gone out of their souls: They looked unto Him, and were lightened! One man confessed that he had been in many a tight place, closely beset by powerful temptations: And this poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. And then it seems as though the individual testimonies merge into one strain of triumphant assurance--The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear Him. Now, out of these testimonies, and as their consequence, there issues a mighty appeal, O taste and see that the Lord is good. Do not trust to hearsay! Do not be contented with the testimonies of others, with merely theoretical knowledge! Become experimental, and judge for yourselves! Taste and see! But can everybodys palate be trusted to give an accurate judgment? We know that there are serious differences in the powers of discernment in the material palates of men. One man appreciates a flavour which to another is repugnant. One palate can discern an exquisite flavour where another discovers nothing but insipidity. And may the differences not be equally manifest in moral and spiritual spheres? Jonathan Edwards described the moral sense by the figure of a palate, and he regarded it as a faculty by which we are to appreciate the differences between the evil and the good. But can a palate always be trusted? Let us lay down one or two principles which are operative in other realms than the conscience. It is perfectly true that a neglected power becomes atrophied. In art we can impair the artistic palate by communion with bad work. Ruskin is for ever emphasizing the peril of holding communion with bad artistic work. Such communion vitiates the aesthetic conceptions, and their power of fine discernment is impaired. The principle holds true of literature. If we want to keep a delicate literary palate we must maintain our fellowship with the rarest literary products. If, however, we leave the masterpieces, and take up our abode with the unrefined and commonplace, our very power will lose something of its fine perception, and may eventually cease to register any dependable judgment. Is it otherwise with the religious palate? Take what we call the moral sense. Surely our experience justifies the assertion that this particular power can be so neglected and abused by evil communion that its judgments are rendered perfectly untrue. The Bible declares that some mens moral perceptions are so perverted that they call good evil, and evil good. Sweet they call bitter, and bitter they call sweet. They declare that revenge is sweet, and the mood of forgiveness is stale and flavourless. And surely we may say that even in higher regions still, in the distinctively spiritual, our powers can be so used that we cease to readily apprehend and appreciate God. It is possible for men to refuse to have God in their thought, and the consequence is that by their own refusal they are given up to a reprobate mind, which may at length leave them in an insensible mood which can only be described as past feeling. How, then, can we say to these people, Taste, see that the Lord is good? What would be the value of their judgment? Can their palate be depended upon? They may taste, and then turn away in sheer indifference. Now a man perfectly well knows when he is destitute of taste for these things. But has he any desire to be different? The appeal of my text is to men and women who have no taste for the highest, but who desire to acquire it. Bring thy neglected or perverted palate, and see what can be done with it! Let me reverse the order of the text, for the key of our difficulty is to be found in the second clause, Blessed is the man who trusteth in Him. Now, a man can begin with trust in God who has yet no taste for the things of God. Now the text affirms that the assured result of such trust is a condition of blessedness, Blessed is the man who trusteth in Him. In what does this blessedness consist? Let us redeem it for a moment from all suggestions of futurity, and the maturing of desire in some transfigured and glorified life. The future has vast treasures hid in its secret chambers, and he who trusts in the Lord is heir to them all! I will restore health unto thee. When we surrender the life to God, the wondrous energies of the Spirit commence the blessed ministry of re-creation, the renewal of tone, and faculty, and function. And in this restoration there is involved the cleansing and refinement of the palate. When we are sickly and diseased we have a distaste for the good, but when the sickliness begins to pass the natural appetite is restored and good food becomes toothsome, blow this is what the Lord accomplishes for those who put their trust in Him. He makes new men of them! We become new men and new women in Christ Jesus, and in that transfigured spiritual life is to be found our eternal blessedness. And so this is my plea to you. At present your higher taste may be a positive distaste; your palate may be perverted and untrue. When you pray you have no delight in the communion. When you sing it provides you no joy. Well now, commit yourself unto the Lord, even though in the committal there be no present delight. Offer Him all the powers of your personality, all the activities in your life, and let them be impressed and governed by His all-controlling will. Trust in Him, and the sickness shall be driven out of your soul, and your restored powers shall begin to be exercised in fine and discerning freedom. And in the general restoration your palate shall share, and you shall acquire a relish for the things that are excellent! You shall have joy in His communion. (J. H. Jowett, M. A.)

The invitation to enjoy the goodness of God

I. we are reminded that the Lord is good. He is originally, essentially, unchangeably, supremely good. I feel at a loss to express how good He is. What immense families does God continually provide for in air and earth and seal And chiefly is His goodness seen in the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ. To Him let all the contrite, the troubled, the tempted come and find help. And all this for sinners.

II. the best way of knowing this goodness is by tasting it. That is--apply it, make trial of it and prove it for yourselves. There is such a thing as experimental religion. Many have full knowledge of the theory of religion, but no experience of it. They have long known its truths, but never felt their power. Oh, the miseries of preaching to such persons, who need no information--these, who feel no emotion. Oh, what a perpetual contradiction is there between your creed and your conduct! You are not happy; and yet, somehow or other, you contrive not to be miserable! But this is not the case with all: there are some who have tasted that the Lord is gracious. You know that the Lord is good by your own experience. Now, you will observe, that we, at first, seek for the blessings of salvation, only from a sense of our sin and guilt; for we have not enjoyed them before. But after we have possessed, then we desire them, not only from a sense of want, but also from a sense of relish and remembrance. Yes; then we call to mind what we have been favoured with, and long for more. Then, secondly, it produces a fuller conviction of the truth of these things. Now, I think, I can trust any poor unlettered man in the presence of the most subtle philosopher, who would endeavour to persuade him that honey was sour, and that gall was sweet. Why, he would say to the tempter,--would you argue me out of my very senses? You may reason--you may ridicule; but you can never convince me.

III. the invitation to induce others to acquire this knowledge for themselves. O taste and see that the Lord is good; . . . Blessed is the man that trusteth in Him. Now, this tasting has several things connected with it.

1. This is very distinguishable from party zeal. There are some individuals who are never satisfied without bringing others over to their own peculiar views and feelings. It is not enough for them that persons should follow Christ, they must walk with them.

2. This invitation is distinguishable from mere relative affection, for it must reach others; it must extend to strangers. To care for our own is most praiseworthy, but our care must not stop there.

3. We must expect reproach in giving this invitation. There is something very singular in this. Who are censured for their attempts to relieve others by charity? They are not considered as interferers, if they venture to heal the sick, or feed the hungry. If persons do not approve of the manner, they give them credit for the deed. And yet when you endeavour to save others you are considered as busybodies. Oh, they will say, You go to heaven your own way, let us go our way. We do not interfere with you: be as religious as you please, but keep your religion to yourselves. A man cannot keep his religion to himself. If he has any, it will manifest itself. We cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard. (W. Jay.)

The goodness of God

1. Consideration of this subject has a tendency to fix our minds in a state of tranquillity and satisfaction. Perfect goodness is at the head of the world; and, therefore, all may be expected to take place in it that the most benevolent mind can desire.

2. The goodness of God is the proper object of our warmest praises. We must be lost in insensibility if we can contemplate it without feeling ourselves prompted to adoration and thanksgiving.

3. The goodness of God shows us the folly and baseness of sin. All moral evil is an abuse of the love, and disobedience to the authority, of that Being who is always doing us good, and whose character comprehends in it every excellence which can be a reason for affection and veneration.

4. The goodness of God ought to be imitated by us. No being can have a higher or nobler ambition. Thus shall we be His genuine offspring, and secure His particular favour and protection.

5. The goodness of God should engage us to put our trust in Him. How should the reflection that He reigns revive our hearts, and dissipate our anxieties I What may we not hope for from His boundless goodness! How safe are all our interests under His management! (R. Price, D. D.)

The saints experience of the Divine goodness

Though God be infinitely good in Himself, and in the dispensation of the fruits of tits goodness unto all His creatures; yet tits distinguishing goodness and blessings are extended only to whom He manifests Himself in another way than He doth unto the world, and who believe on His Son according to the Gospel.

I. these behold and experience the goodness of his nature. God is love. In this was manifested, etc. Would you have just views of it, endeavour to share in its blessed effects. We may say of Gods goodness, what Christ said to the woman of Samaria: If thou knewest the gift of God, etc. How refreshing and satisfying must be the experience of the Divine goodness and love; concerning which the prophet Jeremiah foretells, they shall come and flow together (Jer_31:12-14).

II. taste and see the goodness of God in his attributes. His condescending grace was manifested toward you, when you were altogether unworthy of His favour. His clemency appears in the moderating the necessary chastisements which He sees needful to inflict.

III. taste and see that the Lord is good in his dispensations, both of providence and grace. All the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth.

1. Every blessing, every change, every bereavement shall be sanctified to you, and work together for your good.

2. You may also behold and experience that the Lord is good in the dispensations of His grace.

IV. taste and see the goodness of the Lord in his ordinances. Every Divine institution is a conduit through which He conveys His best blessings; a market place wherein they get spiritual provisions; a sanctuary where they behold His power and glory.

V. taste and see that the Lord is good in his covenant. What admirable goodness hath God displayed in entering anew into covenant with us, after we had broken the first covenant. It is the covenant of peace, of love and of life; the covenant of hope, and of the promises confirmed by the death of Christ and sealed with His blood. All good and nothing but good, grace and glory, with every good is to be found here. (W. McCulloch.)

An invitation to participate in the goodness of the Lord

I. something assumed. That the Lord is good.

1. God is infinitely good.

2. Independently good.

3. Absolutely good.

4. Unchangeably good.

5. Universally good.

6. Eternally good.

II. something implied. That the goodness of the Lord may be seen and tasted.

1. In the creation.

2. In the provision made for all creatures.

3. In the redemption of the world by Jesus Christ.

4. In the means of grace.

5. In the rewards of heaven.

III. something enjoined. O taste and see, etc. This invitation, request, or admonition is--

1. Divine in its origin.

2. Reasonable in its nature.

3. Pleasurable in its exercise.

4. Profitable in its result.

Inferences:--

1. There is something more in religion than the mere profession, or outward form; there is the exercise of mental powers; a tasting and seeing the Lord is good. This is personal, and known only to ourselves.

2. How wretched those are who forego these pleasures--who know nothing but animal gratification and sensual pleasure.

3. Those who enjoy personal piety are anxious for others to realize the same enjoyment.

4. If the Lord is good, let us learn the design of that goodness (Rom_2:4). (Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons.)

Experimental evidence of Gods goodness

I. the fact alluded to in the text. We minify the atonement when we consider it merely as one, perhaps the best, of several possible plans of salvation. There is no other way, no other name by which God can save, even if the nature and character of the sinner admitted of others. This plan and this name are rooted and grounded in the nature of God. Mercy and Truth, or Justice, have met together; Righteousness, or Justice, and Peace, or Pardon, have kissed each other.

II. the doctrine of the text. Taste and see. Religion is a blessed, blissful, glorious experience. It casts out fear, drives away doubt, and sweetens the whole of human life. Religion is love, and love is an experience of the mind, heart, and soul. We love a father, husband, wife, parent, and a child, and we know it. We know it by experience--by the witness of the human spirit. Love to God is lodged in human experience, in human consciousness, just where all other loves are lodged, and we may know that we love God just as readily as we know that we love our parents. We have but one witness to the fact of all human loves; but to the fact of Divine love we have two witnesses--our own spirit and the Spirit of God. This makes assurance doubly sure. Our spirit says we love God, and Gods Spirit in ours says we love Him.

III. the exhortation which is implied in the interjection O! Ye hungry, poor, here is bounty and richness, without money and without price. Here is a sight that is satisfying, and a taste that fills the soul with infinite fulness. It is the only goodness worthy of the name; the perfection of goodness. Ye who are trying to find God in Nature, O come here, and learn Him as He is seen in grace, and then Nature will not be so intricate as it now seems to be. O, ye doubting Christianity, whose lives are full of sorrow and darkness, come out into the light and enjoy the fulness of blessing; even the direct witness of the Holy Ghost. (R. G. Porter.)

Value of experience

The appeal to experiment is--

1. Very simple. Simple in the two senses: as opposed to what is complex, or complicated and requires an acute and trained mind. The glory of the Gospel is that it is for the common mind, the average man. He who knows enough to commit sin knows enough to be saved.

(1) It is simple as opposed to what is subtle. The snare of argument is sophistry, which can array argument so as to appear to prove what is not true. Macaulay can so write even history as to sway the reader to either side of a controversy.

(2) Very certain. Experiment may be trusted where argument is unreliable and misleading. It is safe to distrust any reasoning that contradicts known experience. Froude says prussic acid and gum arabic are essentially, elementally, the same. It is not so; but, if they are, one kills, the other is harmless. Many a logician distrusts the very argument he uses to convince others. But no sane man ever disputed the testimony of his senses.

2. In matters of religion we may not experiment by our senses, but may by our reason and conscience, which are the senses of the soul. Communion with God is the most convincing of all arguments for the Being of God, and the practical demonstration of the efficacy of prayer. No experiment is more simple in nature, more certain in results, more sublime in conclusiveness. The oratory is also the observatory whence we get the clearest views of God and celestial things. (Homiletic Monthly.)

Religion pleasant to the religious

This excellence and desirableness of Gods gifts is a subject again and again set before us in Scripture (Isa_25:6; Isa_61:1-3; Hos_14:5-7; Psa_81:13-16). Other passages in the Psalms speak of this blessedness, besides the text (Psa_4:7; Psa_16:6; Psa_19:10; Psa_28:7; Psa_65:4). The pleasures of sin are not to be compared in fulness and intensity to the pleasures of holy living. The pleasures of holiness are far more pleasant to the holy than the pleasures of sin to the sinner. None can know, however, the joys of being holy and pure but the holy. Let no persons, then, be surprised that religious obedience should really be so pleasant in itself, when it seems to them so distasteful. Let them not be surprised that what the pleasure is cannot be explained to them. It is a secret till they try to be religious. None other than God the Holy Spirit can help us in this matter, by enlightening and changing our hearts. So it is; and yet I will say one thing, by way of suggesting to you how great the joys of religion are. Is there any one who does not know how very painful the feeling of a bad conscience is? Persons accustom themselves and lose this feeling; but, till we blunt our conscience, it is very painful. And why? It is the feeling of Gods displeasure, and therefore it is so painful. Consider then: if Gods displeasure is so distressing to us, must not Gods favour be just the reverse? And this is what it is to be holy and religious. It is to have Gods favour. I hope there are some of you who take a pleasure in thinking of God, in blessing Him for the mercies of the Gospel, and in celebrating Christs death and resurrection. These persons have tasted and tried. I trust they find the taste so heavenly, that they will not need any proof that religion is a pleasant thing. Let such persons, then, think of this, that if a religious life is pleasant hero, in spite of the old Adam interrupting the pleasure and defiling them, what a glorious day it will be if we are blessed hereafter with an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven! (J. H. Newman, D. D.)

The appeal to experiment

Knowledge comes to us in three main channels: first, argument addressed to the reason; second, testimony addressed to faith; and third, experiment, which appeals to consciousness. Here the appeal is to experiment. The language is drawn from the sphere of the senses. We are told to taste and see, as though each sense were an eye, and the result was vision. There are five senses, and taste is perhaps the simplest, earliest exercised, and most satisfactory of them all. Our eyes and ears may deceive us, but seldom our taste. Experiment is here set before us as something open to all, a short, simple, safe way of testing the reality of God and His goodness. Argument is not simple nor certain, but often very subtle and unsafe. Testimony is generally safe, but may be mistaken. But experiment impresses us all as to be depended on. We none of us distrust the evidence of our own senses. The text affirms the possibility of making an experiment upon God which shall be conclusive. The agnostic says that God cannot be known, because He is outside of the sphere of sense. We answer, Of course He cannot be known by sense, but must be tested by faculties intended for such experiments, namely, our reason, conscience, love, sensibilities, and faith. (A. T. Pierson, D. D.)

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

Ver. 8. O taste and see. Make a trial, an inward, experimental trial of the goodness of God. You cannot see except by tasting for yourself; but if you taste you shall see, for this, like Jonathan's honey, enlightens the eyes. That the Lord is good. You can only know this really and personally by experience. There is the banquet with its oxen and fatlings; its fat things full of marrow, and wine on the lees well refined; but their sweetness will be all unknown to you except you make the blessings of grace your own, by a living, inward, vital participation in them. Blessed is the man that trusteth in him. Faith is the soul's taste; they who test the Lord by their confidence always find him good, and they become themselves blessed. The second clause of the verse, is the argument in support of the exhortation contained in the first sentence.

Ver. 8. O taste and see that the Lord is good. Our senses help our understandings; we cannot by the most rational discourse perceive what the sweetness of honey is; taste it and you shall perceive it. "His fruit was sweet to my taste." Dwell in the light of the Lord, and let thy soul be always ravished with his love. Get out the marrow and the fatness that thy portion yields thee. Let fools learn by beholding thy face how dim their blazes are to the brightness of thy day. Richard Alleine, in "Heaven Opened, "1665.

Ver. 8. O taste and see, etc. It is not enough for thee to see it afar off, and not have it, as Dives did; or to have it in thee, and not to taste it, as Samson's lion had great store of honey in him, but tasted no sweetness of it; but thou must as well have it as see it, and as well taste it as have it. O taste and see, says he, "how sweet the Lord is; "for so indeed Christ giveth his church not only a sight but also "a taste" of his sweetness. A sight is where he saith thus: "We will rise up early, and go into the vineyard, and see whether the vine have budded forth the small grapes, and whether the pomegranates flourish; "there is a sight of the vine. A taste is where he says thus, "I will bring thee into the wine cellar, and cause thee to drink spice wine, and new wine of the pomegranates; "there is a taste of the wine. The church not only goes into the vineyard and sees the wine, but also goes into the wine cellar, and tastes the wine. Thomas Playfere.

Ver. 8. Taste and see. There are some things, especially in the depths of the religious life, which can only be understood by being experienced, and which even then are incapable of being adequately embodied in words. O taste and see that the Lord is good. The enjoyment must come before the illumination; or rather the enjoyment is the illumination. There are things that must be loved before we can know them to be worthy of our love; things to be believed before we can understand them to be worthy of belief. And even after this --after we are conscious of a distinct apprehension of some spiritual truth, we can only, perhaps, answer, if required to explain it, in the words of the philosopher to who the question was put, "What is God?" "I know, if I am not asked." Thomas Binney's "Sermons, "1869.

Ver. 8. Taste and see. Be unwilling that all the good gifts of God should be swallowed without taste, or maliciously forgotten, but use your palate, know them, and consider them. D. H. Mollerus.

Ver. 8. Heaven and earth are replete with the goodness of God. We omit to open our mouths and eyes, on which account the psalmist desires us to taste and see. Agustus F. Tholuck.

Ver. 8. The taste and see invite, as it were, to a sumptuous feast, which has long been ready; to a rich sight openly exposed to view. The imperatives are in reality not oratory but persuasive. E. W. Hengstenberg.

Ver. 8. All that the believer can attain of spiritual consolation in this life is but a taste. David Dickson.

Ver. 8.: --

O taste the Lord, and see how sweet He is,

The man that trusts in him lives still in bliss. Sir John Davies, 1569-1626.

Ver. 8-10. All these verses are beautiful representations of the fulness, suitableness, completeness, and all sufficiency of God in Christ to answer all the wants of his people. And is there not a vast elegance in the comparison taken from the hunger and rapacity of the lion, even the impetuousness of the young lion, to that of the patience and silent waiting of the faithful believer? A life of faith will find food in everything, because it is all founded in Christ. The young lions may, and will lack, because nothing will supply their voracious appetites but that which is carnal. Robert Hawker.

Ver. 8. Experience the only true test of religious truth.

Ver. 8. Taste. The sanctified palate, the recherche provision, the gratified verdict, the celestial host.

Psalms 34:9*

Ver. 8-10. See Psalms on "Ps 34:8" for further information.

Ver. 8-10. See Psalms on "Ps 34:8" for further information.

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

Psa 34:8. O taste and see that the Lord is good — That is, kind, merciful, and gracious, namely, to all his people. The goodness of God, here spoken of, includes both the amiableness and benevolence of his nature, and the bounty and beneficence of his providence and grace; and, in calling us to taste and see this, the psalmist means that we should seriously, thoroughly, and affectionately consider it, and make trial of it by our own experience; which is opposed to those slight and vanishing thoughts that men usually have of the divine goodness. It is not sufficient that we find him to be a bountiful benefactor to us, but we must relish and take delight in his goodness manifested in and by his gifts, and in the contemplation of his infinite perfections and boundless love; and must be so convinced and persuaded of his goodness, as thereby to be encouraged, in the worst of times, to trust in him, and cast our care upon him.

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

9. (Psa 34:8). Taste ye and see that Jehovah is good; happy the man who will trust in him. The only proof is furnished by experience. The exhortation seems to imply that the provision is already made and only waiting for the guests. Compare Luk 14:17, and see above, on Psa 2:12.

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

34:8-14 The godly encourage everyone to seek wisdom, to fear the Lord, and to place themselves under the protection of the Lord’s angel.

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

taste and see--try and experience.

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 8. O taste and see that the Lord is good] Apply to him by faith and prayer; plead his promises, he will fulfil them; and you shall know in consequence, that the Lord is good. God has put it in the power of every man to know whether the religion of the Bible be true or false. The promises relative to enjoyments in this life are the grand tests of Divine revelation. These must be fulfilled to all them who with deep repentance and true faith turn unto the Lord, if the revelation which contains them be of God. Let any man in this spirit approach his Maker, and plead the promises that are suited to his case, and he will soon know whether the doctrine be of God. He shall taste, and then see, that the Lord is good, and that the man is blessed who trusts in him. This is what is called experimental religion; the living, operative knowledge that a true believer has that he is passed from death unto life; that his sins are forgiven him for Christ's sake, the Spirit himself bearing witness with his spirit that he is a child of God. And, as long as he is faithful, he carries about with him the testimony of the Holy Ghost; and he knows that he is of God, by the Spirit which God has given him.

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

8. Taste and see that Jehovah is good. In this verse the Psalmist indirectly reproves men for their dulness in not perceiving the goodness of God, which ought to be to them more than matter of simple knowledge. By the word taste he at once shows that they are without taste; and at the same time he assigns the reason of this to be, that they devour the gifts of God without relishing them, or through a vitiated loathing ungratefully conceal them. He, therefore, calls upon them to stir up their senses, and to bring a palate endued with some capacity of tasting, that God’s goodness may become known to them, or rather, be made manifest to them. The words literally rendered are, Taste and see, for the Lord is good; but the particle כי, ki, for, is taken exegetically. David’s meaning, therefore, is, that there is nothing on the part of God to prevent the godly, to whom he particularly speaks in this place, from arriving at the knowledge of his goodness by actual experience. From this it follows, that they also are infected with the common malady of dulness. This doctrine is confirmed by the promise immediately added, Blessed is the man who trusteth in him; for God never disappoints the expectations of those who seek his favor. Our own unbelief is the only impediment which prevents him from satisfying us largely and bountifully with abundance of all good things.

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.

(8) Taste.—Comp. Heb_6:4 ; 1Pe_2:3.

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

8. O taste &c.] Make but trial, and you will perceive what His goodness is toward them who fear Him. Cp. Psa_27:13. The adaptation of the words in 1Pe_2:3 follows the rendering of the LXX, ὅτι χρηστὸς ὁ Κύριος. It is significant that the words are there applied to Christ. See Bp. Westcott’s Hebrews, pp. 89ff.

blessed &c.] Or, happy is the man that taketh refuge in him. Cp. Psa_2:12; and Psa_1:1; Psa_32:2; but the word for man here is a different one. It means properly a strong man, and suggests the thought that be he never so strong in himself, man’s only true happiness is in dependence on Jehovah.

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.

O taste, and see that the Lord is good,.... He is essentially, infinitely, perfectly, immutably, and solely good in himself; and he is communicatively and diffusively good to others: he is the author of all good, but not of any evil, in a moral sense; this chiefly regards his special grace and goodness through Christ: all the divine Persons in the Godhead are good; the Father is good, he has good designs towards his people, has provided good things for them, made good promises to them, and bestows good gifts on them: the Son is good; the good Shepherd that has laid down his life for the sheep; he is the fountain of all grace and goodness to his churches, and to particular believers; he has wrought a good work for them, the work of redemption, and he speaks a good word on their behalf in the court of heaven: the Spirit is good; he works good things in the hearts of the sons of men, and shows good things unto them; and gracious souls, such as the psalmist here calls upon, are capable of tasting and discerning how good the Lord is in some measure; see Psa 119:103. While unregenerate, their taste is vitiated, and remains unchanged, and sin is what they feed upon with pleasure, and so detest everything that is good; but in conversion a new taste is given, so as to have a saving experimental knowledge of the grace and goodness of God in Christ, an application of it to them; and in such manner as to live upon it, and be nourished by it; and though this is not a superficial taste of things, like that of hypocrites, nor a single one only, being frequently repeated; yet it is but a taste in comparison of the enjoyment of it in the heavenly state; and every taste now influences and engages trust in the Lord, as follows;

blessed is the man that trusteth in him; See Gill on Psa 2:12; the Targum renders it, "that trust in his word".

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

O taste and see - This is an address to others, founded on the experience of the psalmist. He had found protection from the Lord; he had had evidence of His goodness; and he asks now of others that they would make the same trial which he had made. It is the language of piety in view of personal experience; and it is such language as a young convert, whose heart is filled with joy as hope first dawns on his soul, would address to his companions and friends, and to all the world around; such language as one who has had any special comfort, or who has experienced any special deliverance from temptation or from trouble, would address to others. Lessons, derived from our own experience, we may properly recommend to others; the evidence which has been furnished us that God is good, we may properly employ in persuading others to come and taste his love. The word “taste” here - טעם ṭâ‛am - means properly to try the flavor of anything, Job 12:11; to eat a little so as to ascertain what a thing is, 1Sa 14:24, 1Sa 14:29, 1Sa 14:43; Jon 3:7; and then to perceive by the mind, to try, to experience, Pro 31:18.

It is used here in the sense of making a trial of, or testing by experience. The idea is, that by putting trust in God - by testing the comforts of religion - one would so thoroughly see or perceive the blessings of it - would have so much happiness in it - that he would be led to seek his happiness there altogether. In other words, if we could but get men to make a trial of religion; to enter upon it so as really to understand and experience it, we may be certain that they would have the same appreciation of it which we have, and that they would engage truly in the service of God. If those who are in danger would look to him; if sinners would believe in him; if the afflicted would seek him; if the wretched would cast their cares on him; if they who have sought in vain for happiness in the world, would seek happiness in him - they would, one and all, so surely find what they need that they would renounce all else, and put their trust alone in God. Of this the psalmist was certain; of this all are sure who have sought for happiness in religion and in God.

“Oh make but trial of His love;

Experience will decide

How bless’d are they - and only they -

Who in His truth confide.”

Blessed is the man that trusteth in him - Compare the notes at Psa 2:12.

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

Taste, i.e. consider it seriously, and thoroughly, and affectionately; make trial of it by your own and others’ experiences. This is opposed to those slight and vanishing thoughts which men have of it.

Good, i.e. merciful and gracious, to wit, to all his people.

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

8. Taste and see— “Tasting stands before seeing; for spiritual experience leads to spiritual knowledge, and not conversely.”—Delitzsch.

Man—The word here is not the generic term for the human race, but specially denotes a mighty man, a man of strength and renown, as 1Ch_9:13; 1Ch_12:18; et al., such as were wont to trust in themselves.

Trusteth— Literally, takes refuge, as in Isa_14:32. The word is almost entirely used religiously for trust in God. See on Psa_2:12

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

O taste and see that the Lord is good; i.e. put the matter to the test of experience. (comp. 1Pe_2:3) There is no other way of really knowing how good God is. Blessed is the man that trusteth in him. (comp. Psa_2:12 Psa_84:12 Pro_16:20 Isa_30:18 Jer_17:7) Trust in God is a feeling which is blessed in itself. God also showers blessings on such as trust in him.

The test of experience.

"Oh, taste and seer" The glory of our age is its experimental science. The method of the old philosophers, against which Lord Bacon wrote, was to assume certain principles as true, and reason down to the facts. The new method, to which all the victories of modern science are due, is to reason back from facts to principles; first carefully observing, then testing your conclusions; first learning by experience, then verifying by experience. This method, which in human science is but some three centuries old, is the method of the Bible from the beginning. God has led his Church step by step; taught his children by experience. (Gal_3:23-26) The lessons of the Bible are the voice of experience. The aim of the Gospels, as of the entire Bible, is not merely to convey instruction, but to create a supernatural experience. And its invitation to each of us is to put Divine truth to the test, and make this experience our own. "Oh, taste and see," etc.!

(1) The goodness of God can be truly known only by personal experience.

(2) If there be any truth to which experience bears convincing testimony, it is this: that the Lord is good.

(3) This experience is within reach of every one to whom the gospel is preached.

I IF YOU WOULD SEE, YOU MUST TASTE; AND IF YOU DO TASTE, YOU WILL SEE. Certainty is to be had, and this is the road to it. "Taste" is the most expressive image for personal experience. It is personal. Tastes differ. What to one is delicious, to another is insipid, to a third nauseous. To taste fully, you must not slightly touch with your tongue, but eat or drink receiving its substance. So, in Scripture language, to taste death means to die. To taste God"s goodness means to receive and enjoy it in heart-felt experience. (Rom_5:5) For example:

1. God"s goodness in pardoning sin can be known only by the pardoned sinner by actual repentance and faith. Illust.: Mat_9:2-7.

2. God"s goodness in answering prayer can be known only by those who pray (ver. 6). Illust.: Disobedient, spendthrift, runaway son, writing in sore extremity from a foreign land to his father. Under the sea, over the hills and plains, the wire carries the swift message, "Come home. Money sent. All forgiven." That son knows his father"s heart as he never knew it before.

3. The goodness of God, revealed and stored in the Bible, can be known only by long study and diligent search. (Psa_119:97, Psa_119:103) Psa_119:72 would be unmeaning cant in the month of a good many Christians. They are on visiting terms with their Bible; know it as you know one whom you meet daily in the street and call on for a few minutes now and then. Spend a day with him in his home or yours, talking over your troubles, and you will learn what twenty years of morning calls would never teach.

II EXPERIENCE HAS NO SURER LESSON THAN THIS: "THE LORD IS GOOD." The Bible is our great storehouse of experience. (Psa_116:1 2Ti_1:12) Christian experience in all ages continues and confirms this testimony the most remarkable body of practical testimony on record ("Basis of Faith," pp. 358-360). Our lack of experience constitutes no reason for questioning the reality of this experience, or doubting the truth to which it bears witness. Truth is truth, believed or not. The earth went round before Copernicus was born; and still would, if all men relapsed into the old superstition that it is immovable. The world would be full of God"s goodness, though all were idolaters or atheists. (Act_14:17) But personal experience begets invincible certainty. (Joh_9:25)

III IF THIS EXPERIENCE BE NOT YOURS, IT OUGHT TO BE; IT MAY BE. God offers it. These words are an invitation a warrant. Beware of turning them into an upbraiding a condemnation. (Joh_5:40 Lam_4:2 Luk_19:42) Are you young, happy, prosperous? Thank God for his goodness. But he has better gifts, which will last when these fail. (Mat_6:19) Are you poor, friendless, sorrowful? (Isa_55:1 Mat_11:28) Are you lost, helpless against temptation, burdened with sin? Oh, taste and see the goodness God waits to pour out upon you! (Rev_20:1-7 Rom_10:11-13)

Vers. 8-10. Proving what is good.

There are two things in this exhortation.

I A CALL TO MAKE TRIAL OF RELIGION. The spirit of religion is, "The Lord is good." But how are we to know this? Not by hearing, or inquiring, or believing on the word of others, but by making trial for ourselves. This is in accordance with reason and practical experience. Experience is found on experiment. The knowledge thus acquired can be safely acted upon. So it is in human life. It is the friend we have found kind and helpful in time of need that we trust. So it is also in religion. "Taste and see:" this is the settled order. If we act in this way, the result will be sure, and we shall joyfully add our witness to that of others, "The Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." This call, "Taste and see," is the call of Christ in the gospel. Those who hear it must make a choice. They must hear or refuse. But considering who it is that gives the call, and the manifold and powerful arguments by which it is enforced, surely it would be wise and reasonable to take Christ at his word, and to make honest trial of his religion. "If any man willeth to do his will, he shall know of the teaching whether it be of God". (Joh_7:17, Revised Version) Try the word, try prayer, try the Christian life, try if Christ is to be trusted; not until you have done this can you say whether God is good or not.

II A CHARGE TO LIVE UP TO THE HIGHEST STANDARD OF RELIGION. "Oh, fear the Lord, ye his saints." This is due to God. We are not our own, to live as we like. We belong to God, and are bound to live according to his Law. God says to us, "Ye are my witnesses." This is necessary to our true welfare. The very name "saints" implies that we have been separated from the world, that we have been called unto holiness. But holiness and happiness are indissoluble. The more we "fear God" the more shall we advance in holiness, and the more we advance in holiness the more shall we enjoy of true happiness. "Want" there will be to us, but we will be content to know that God is with us, and that he will withhold no "good thing" from us. (Psa_84:11 Heb_4:16) This is the best way of commending religion to others. We influence others more by example than by precept. The more perfectly we live and act as God"s saints, keeping truth and doing right always, serving others in love, following peace and holiness, in a word, the more perfectly we live and act in the spirit of Christ, the greater will be our influence for good in the world. What we have tried and found good, we can honestly commend. What we have proved, and are continually showing in its beneficent effect on our own character and life, to be of the highest worth and virtue, must have a powerful claim to the faith of all reasonable and right thinking men. Let men say of a Christian, "If there be a saint on earth, that is one;" and the next thing will be, "If Jesus could make such a character, is not this the Christ? W.F.

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

O taste - Make trial, of it by your own experience of it. Good - Merciful and gracious.

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