Psalms 71:23

Psa 71:23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed.

Ver. 23. And my soul, which thou hast redeemed] Hearts and lips shall concur in this work. The voice which is made in the mouth is nothing so sweet as that which cometh from the depth of the breast. The deeper and hollower the belly of the lute or viol is, the pleasanter is the sound; the fleeter, the more grating and harsh in our ears.

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.

Ver. 23. My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee. It shall be no weariness to me to praise thee. It shall be a delightful recreation, a solace, a joy. The essence of song lies in the holy joy of the singer.

And my soul, which thou hast redeemed. Soul singing is the soul of singing. Till men are redeemed, they are like instruments out of tune; but when once the precious blood has set them at liberty, then are they fitted to magnify the Lord who bought them. Our being bought with a price is a more than sufficient reason for our dedicating ourselves to the earnest worship of God our Saviour.

Ver. 23. My lips; my soul. Hypocrites praise God with the lips only; but David joins the soul to the lips. William Nicholson.

Ver. 23. Greatly. See how the word great is repeated. Great things done, Ps 71:19; great troubles shown, Ps 71:20; greatness increased, Ps 71:21; and great rejoicing consequent thereon, in Ps 71:23. In a great God, doing great things, it is meet greatly to rejoice. C. H. S.

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

Psa 71:23. My lips shall sing when I play to thee, and my soul which thou hast redeemed. The first clause, as above translated, seems to promise the combination of vocal and instrumental praise. But as the first verb usually means to shout or sing for joy, and sometimes simply to rejoice, and the second commonly conveys the idea, not of music merely, but of praise, the clause may be explained, my lips shall rejoice, for I will sing to thee (or praise thee), and my soul (shall also rejoice). With the last clause compare Psa 34:22.

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

For there is no true praising of God, except it come from the heart: and therefore he promiseth to delight in nothing, but wherein God be glorified.

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

Verse 23. My lips shall greatly rejoice - and my soul] My lips shall use words expressive of my soul's happiness and gratitude. Thou hast redeemed me; and thou shalt have the eternal praise.

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

23. My lips shall rejoice when I sing to thee. In this verse David expresses more distinctly his resolution not to give thanks to God hypocritically, nor in a superficial manner, but to engage with unfeigned earnestness in this religious exercise. By the figures which he introduces, he briefly teaches us, that to praise God would be the source of his greatest pleasure; and thus he indirectly censures the profane mirth of those who, forgetting God, confine their congratulations to themselves in their prosperity. The scope of the last verse is to the same effect, implying that no joy would be sweet and desirable to him, but such as was connected with the praises of God, and that to celebrate his Redeemer’s praises would afford him the greatest satisfaction and delight.

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.

(23) My lips shall . . .—Rather, my lips shall sing while I play to thee, i.e., a hymn should accompany the harp. There is, therefore, no thought of the union of the bodily and spiritual powers in praise of God, though it is natural the verse should have suggested such an interpretation to the Fathers; and indeed the thought of the poet, if we read the whole psalm, with its retrospect of life, is a wish—

“That mind and soul according well,

May make one music as before,

But vaster.”

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

23. My lips shall sing aloud when I make melody unto thee. P.B.V. ‘my lips shall be fain,’ i.e. glad: Vulg. exultabunt.

my soul] His whole self and personality, delivered from danger, will join in the glad thanksgiving. Cp. Psa_34:22; Psa_55:18.

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.

My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee,.... Both with vocal and instrumental music; this is praising the Lord with joyful lips, Psa 63:5;

and my soul, which thou hast redeemed; signifying that it would not be lip labour, or bodily service, only that he should perform; but that his heart would go along with his lips in praise; and that under a sense of redeeming love, than which nothing can more strongly engage in such work, Psa 103:1. For the redemption of the soul is exceeding precious; being the contrivance of infinite wisdom, the fruit of divine grace, and owing to the blood and sacrifice of Christ.

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

My lips shall greatly rejoice ... - My lips will seem to be happy in the privilege of celebrating the praises of God.

And my soul, which thou hast redeemed - Compare Psa 34:22. The word soul here seems to be employed to denote “the soul” properly, as we understand the word - the immortal part. The usual meaning of the word, in the Psalms, however, is “life,” and it is possible that the psalmist meant merely to say here that the “life” which had been spared should find pleasure in celebrating the praises of God; but there is no impropriety in supposing that he has reference to his higher - his immortal - nature.

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

23. My lips shall greatly rejoice—No common joy could express the feelings due to such wonderful deliverance. Bishop Mant versifies it, taking the word rendered “greatly rejoice” as indicating “a brisk, vibratory motion, like that of the lips in singing a lively air;” the lips keeping time with the emotions of the soul:—

“Quick with delight my lips shall move,

My soul an answering rapture prove,

To sing thy guardian name.”

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

My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed. Not my mouth only, but my heart and spirit, will "rejoice," or "sing out thy praise" (Cheyne), when the time comes, and my "redemption," or deliverance, has been accomplished.

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

redeemed

(See Scofield "Isa 59:20"). See Scofield "Exo 14:30".

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

My lips will shout for joy

"Lips" represent the whole person. AT: "I will shout for joy" (See: Synecdoche)

even my soul, which you have redeemed

The words the psalmist has omitted can be stated clearly. AT: "and my soul, which you have redeemed, will sing praises" (See: Ellipsis)

my soul

Here "soul" refers to the whole person. (See: Synecdoche)

My tongue will also talk

Here "tongue" refers to the whole person. AT: "I will also talk" (See: Synecdoche)

they have been put to shame and are confused, those who sought my hurt

"those who sought my hurt have been put to shame and are confused"

for they have been put to shame and are confused

This can be stated in active form. AT: "for God has put to shame and confused them" (See: Active or Passive)

those who sought my hurt

This refers to the enemies of the writer. (Psalms 71:10). See how "those who seek my hurt" is translated in Psalms 71:13.

translationWords

joy

redeem

tongue

shame

seek

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

My lips will sing praises with the music of the harp when I play to You on the harp.

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.