Psalms 86:10

Psa 86:10 For thou [art] great, and doest wondrous things: thou [art] God alone.

Ver. 10. For thou art great] Great is the Lord without quantity, good without quality, everlasting without time, omnipresent without place, containing all things without extent; within all things, and contained of nothing; without all things, and sustained of nothing, &c. Now, the least glimpse of this knowledge is worth all the gleams of human wisdom.

And doest wondrous things] The schools have laid down a threefold way of knowing God: first, negation of imperfections; secondly, affirmation of perfections; thirdly, causation of great works.

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_86:10

Thou . . . doest wondrous things.

Curiosities

In this age a great amount of wealth is lavished on curiosities.

I. One of the greatest curosities which has been made for you is the created world. When you see anything which is wonderful, the first questions are, Who made it? How did it get here? Some people say that this earth made itself; and that the machinery of its creation is a thing of chance. What a grand old curiosity is this world which God has made! It may also be likened to a glorious picture which speaks to us of Him.

II. Another curiosity which is intended for us is the bible. Thank God, the Bible is now so cheap that every man may possess a copy. It was once so scarce and dear that it was chained in the churches. The Bible is the grandest curiosity in the world.

III. Another great curiosity is yourself. What are you? What is your destiny? What is your pathway? Is it for happiness or misery? (W. Birch.)

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

10. (Psa 86:10) For great (art) thou and doing wonders, thou (art) God alone. The only new idea here is the evidence afforded of Jehovah's sole divinity by his miraculous performances. The for, at the beginning of the verse, implies that these proofs of divinity must sooner or later have their full effect.

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

Verse 10. For thou art great] Almighty, infinite, eternal.

And doest wondrous things] ועשה נפלאות veoseh niphlaoth; thou art the Worker of miracles. This thou hast done in numerous instances, and thereby showed thy infinite power and wisdom.

This appears to be a prophecy of the calling of the Gentiles to the faith of Christ, and the evidence to be given to his Divine mission by the miracles which he should work.

Thou art God alone.] Συ ει ὁ Θεος μονος ὁ μεγας. - Sept. Thou art the only, THE GREAT God. In this the AEthiopic and Arabic agree.

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

10. For thou art great, and thou alone, O God! doest wondrous things. In this verse there is again repeated the cause which will bring all nations to worship before the Lord, namely, the discovery made of his glory by the greatness of his works. The contemplation of God’s glory in his works is the true way of acquiring genuine godliness. The pride of the flesh would always lead it to wing its way into heaven; but, as our understandings fail us in such an extended investigation, our most profitable course is, according to the small measure of our feeble capacity, to seek God in his works, which bear witness of him. Let us therefore learn to awaken our understandings to contemplate the divine works, and let us leave the presumptuous to wander in their own intricate mazes, which, in the end, will invariably land them in an abyss from which they will be unable to extricate themselves. To incline our hearts to exercise this modesty, David magnificently extols the works of God, calling them wondrous things, although to the blind, and those who have no taste for them, they are destitute of attraction. In the meantime, we ought carefully to attend to this truth, That the glory of Godhead belongs exclusively to the one true God; for in no other being is it possible to find the wisdom, or the power, or the righteousness, or any of the numerous marks of divinity which shine forth in his wonderful works. Whence it follows, that the Papists are chargeable with rendering, as much as in them lies, his title to true Godhead nugatory, when despoiling him of his attributes they leave him almost nothing but the bare name.

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.

10. Cp. Psa_77:13-14; Psa_72:18; Psa_83:18; and Exo_15:11; Exo_34:10.

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 thou art great,.... In his nature, and the perfections of it; in his power, wisdom, truth, faithfulness, love, grace, and mercy; and in all his persons; the Father is great, greater than all; the Son is the great God, and our Saviour; and the Spirit, which is in his people, is greater than he that is in the world:

and doest wondrous things; in nature and providence; such as the forming of all things out of nothing; upholding all things by the word of his power; the formation of man, soul and body, and the union of both; and the constant government of the world; and more especially in grace, as the provision in the covenant in eternity, the mission of Christ in time, the conversion of a sinner, and bringing him to eternal glory:

thou art God alone; to the exclusion of all such who are not gods by nature; but not to the exclusion of the Son and Spirit, who are, with the Father, the one God, Jo1 5:7.

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

For thou art great, and doest wondrous things - Things suited to excite wonder or admiration; things which lie beyond the power of any creature, and which could be performed by no one but a being of almighty power. A God who could do these things could also do that which the psalmist asked of him, for what God actually does proves that there is nothing within the limits of possibility which he cannot perform. The greatness and the power of God are reasons why we should appeal to him in our weakness, and in our times of trouble.

Thou art God alone - Thou only canst do what a God can do, or what belongs to God. In those things, therefore, which require the interposition of divine power our appeal must be to thee alone. So in the matter of salvation.

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

Doest wondrous things: this is added as a reason either why the nations should own the true God, because they should see his wonderful works; or why that great work, Psa 86:9, was not incredible, but should certainly be accomplished.

Art God alone; and all thee idols of the heathen are no gods, but vanities; as the Gentiles themselves shall see and acknowledge.

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

Ver. 10. For thou art great. He had before said, "thou art good"; it is a grand thing when greatness and goodness are united; it is only in the Divine Being that either of them exists absolutely, and essentially. Happy is it for us that they both exist in the Lord to an equal degree. To be great and not good might lead to tyranny in the King, and for him to be good and not great might involve countless calamities upon his subjects from foreign foes, so that either alternative would be terrible; let the two be blended, and we have a monarch in whom the nation may rest and rejoice.

And doest wondrous things. Being good, he is said to be ready to forgive: being great, he works wonders: we may blend the two, for there is no wonder so wonderful as the pardon of our transgressions. All that God does or makes has wonder in it; he breathes, and the wind is mystery; he speaks, and the thunder astounds us; even the commonest daisy is a marvel, and a pebble enshrines wisdom. Only to fools is anything which God has made uninteresting: the world is a world of wonders. Note that the verb doest is in the present, the Lord is doing wondrous things, they are transpiring before our eyes. Where are they? Look upon the bursting buds of spring or the maturing fruits of autumn, gaze on the sky or skim the sea, mark the results of providence and the victories of grace, everywhere at all times the great Thaumaturge stretches forth his rod of power.

Thou art God alone. Alone wast thou God before thy creatures were; alone in godhead still art thou now that thou hast given life to throngs of beings; alone for ever shalt thou be, for none can ever rival thee. True religion makes no compromises, it does not admit Baal or Dagon to be a god; it is exclusive and monopolizing, claiming for Jehovah nothing less than all. The vaunted liberality of certain professors of modern thought is not to be cultivated by believers in the truth. "Philosophic breadth" aims at building a Pantheon, and piles a Pandemonium; it is not for us to be helpers in such an evil work. Benevolently intolerant, we would, for the good of mankind, as well as for the glory of God, undeceive mankind as to the value of their compromises, they are mere treason to truth. Our God is not to be worshipped as one among many good and true beings, but as God alone; and his gospel is not to be preached as one of several saving systems, but as the one sole way of salvation. Lies can face each other beneath one common dome; but in the temple of truth the worship is one and indivisible.

Ver. 10.

1. God is "great", therefore great things may be expected of him.

2. He is unsearchable, therefore "wondrous things" may be expected of him.

3. He is irresistible, therefore impossibihties to others may be expected of him: "Thou art God alone". G.R.

Psalms 86:11*

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

For thou art great, and doest wondrous things. The" greatness" of God, in reality most clearly manifested by the facts of his ordinary providence, seems to men in general, as it seemed to this psalmist, especially indicated by the "wonders," or "miracles twOalpn which he wrought. (comp. Exo_15:11 Psa_72:18 Psa_77:14) Thou art God alone. (see 2Ki_19:15 Isa_37:16 Isa_44:6, Isa_44:8)

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

wonderful things

"very good things that amaze me"

you only are God

"you are the only God"

Teach me your ways, Yahweh. Then I will walk in your truth

A person who obeys what God wants is spoken of as if he were walking on God's way or road. AT: "Teach me your truth, Yahweh. Then I will obey what you say" (See: Metaphor)

Unite my heart to reverence you

Here "heart" represents a person's thoughts, emotions, and motives. Asking God to cause a person to respect him completely is spoken of as if the person's heart were in many pieces and that God unites them together. AT: "Cause me to respect you sincerely with all my heart" or "Cause me to respect you sincerely" (See: Metonymy and Metaphor)

I will praise you with my whole heart

Here "heart" represents a person's thoughts, emotions, and motives. AT: "I will praise you completely and sincerely" (See: Metonymy)

I will glorify your name

Here "name" represents the whole person. AT: "I will glorify you" (See: Metonymy)

translationWords

God

Yahweh

walk

true

heart

revere

lord

praise

glory

eternity

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

and perform wonders, You, O God, alone Before the angels were created, heaven and earth were created. Therefore, all the nations will glorify Your name.

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.