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Selected Verse: Psalms 116:15 - King James
| Verse |
Translation |
Text |
| Ps 116:15 |
King James |
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
| A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
| By the plea of being a homeborn servant, he intimates his claim on God's covenant love to His people. |
| Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834] |
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints - Of his people; his friends. Luther renders this, "The death of his saints is held to be of value" - (ist werth gehalten) - "before the Lord." The word rendered "precious" - יקר yâqâr - means costly, as precious stones, Kg1 10:2, Kg1 10:10-11; dear, beloved, as relatives and friends, Psa 45:9; honored, respected, Ecc 10:1; splendid, beautiful, Job 31:26; rare, Sa1 3:1. The idea here is, that the death of saints is an object of value; that God regards it as of importance; that it is connected with his great plans, and that there are great purposes to be accomplished by it. The idea here seems to be that the death of a good man is in itself of so much importance, and so connected with the glory of God and the accomplishment of his purposes, that he will not cause it to take place except in circumstances, at times, and in a manner, which will best secure those ends. The particular thought in the mind of the psalmist seems to have been that as he had been preserved when he was apparently so near to death, it must have been because God saw that the death of one of his friends was a matter of so much importance that it should occur only when the most good could be effected by it, and when the ends of life had been accomplished; that God would not decide on this hastily, or without the best reasons; and that, therefore, he had interposed to lengthen out his life still longer. Still, there is a general truth implied here, to wit, that the act of removing a good man from the world is, so to speak, an act of deep deliberation on the part of God; that good, and sometimes great, ends are to be accomplished by it; and that, therefore, God regards it with special interest. It is of value or importance in such respects as the following:
(1) as it is the removal of another of the redeemed to glory - the addition of one more to the happy hosts above;
(2) as it is a new triumph of the work of redemption - showing the power and the value of that work;
(3) as it often furnishes a more direct proof of the reality of religion than any abstract argument could do.
How much has the cause of religion been promoted by the patient deaths of Ignatius, and Polycarp, and Latimer, and Ridley, and Huss, and Jerome of Prague, and the hosts of the martyrs! What does not the world owe, and the cause of religion owe, to such scenes as occurred on the death-beds of Baxter, and Thomas Scott, and Halyburton, and Payson! What an argument for the truth of religion - what an illustration of its sustaining power - what a source of comfort to us who are soon to die - to reflect that religion does not leave the believer when he most needs its support and consolations; that it can sustain us in the severest trial of our condition here; that it can illuminate what seems to us of all places most dark, cheerless, dismal, repulsive - "the valley of the shadow of death!" |
| Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78] |
From what he has experienced the poet infers that the saints of Jahve are under His most especial providence. Instead of המּות the poet, who is fond of such embellishments, chooses the pathetic form המּותה, and consequently, instead of the genitival construct state (מות), the construction with the Lamed of "belonging to." It ought properly to be "soul" or "blood," as in the primary passage Psa 72:14. But the observation of Grotius: quae pretiosa sunt, non facile largimur, applies also to the expression "death." The death of His saints is no trifling matter with God; He does not lightly suffer it to come about; He does not suffer His own to be torn away from Him by death.
(Note: The Apostolic Constitutions (vi. 30) commend the singing of these and other words of the Psalms at the funerals of those who have departed in the faith (cf. Augusti, Denkwrdigkeiten, ix. 563). In the reign of the Emperor Decius, Babylas Bishop of Antioch, full of blessed hope, met death singing these words.)
After this the poet goes on beseechingly: ānnáh Adonaj. The prayer itself is not contained in פּתּחתּ למוסרי - for he is already rescued, and the perfect as a precative is limited to such utterances spoken in the tone of an exclamation as we find in Job 21:16 - but remains unexpressed; it lies wrapped up as it were in this heartfelt ānnáh: Oh remain still so gracious to me as Thou hast already proved Thyself to me. The poet rejoices in and is proud of the fact that he may call himself the servant of God. With אמתך he is mindful of his pious mother (cf. Psa 86:16). The Hebrew does not form a feminine, עבדּה; Arab. amata signifies a maid, who is not, as such, also Arab. ‛abdat, a slave. The dative of the object, למוסרי (from מוסרים for the more usual מוסרות), is used with פתחת instead of the accusative after the Aramaic manner, but it does also occur in the older Hebrew (e.g., Job 19:3; Isa 53:11). The purpose of publicly giving thanks to the Gracious One is now more full-toned here at the close. Since such emphasis is laid on the Temple and the congregation, what is meant is literal thank-offerings in payment of vows. In בּתוככי (as in Psa 135:9) we have in the suffix the ancient and Aramaic i (cf. Psa 116:7) for the third time. With אנּה the poet clings to Jahve, with נגדּה־נּא to the congregation, and with בּתוככי to the holy city. The one thought that fills his whole soul, and in which the song which breathes forth his soul dies away, is Hallelujah. |
| Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
| Precious in the sight of the Lord - Many have understood this verse as meaning, "the saints are too precious in the Lord's sight, lightly to give them over to death:" and this, Calmet contends, is the true sense of the text. Though they have many enemies, their lives are precious in his sight, and their foes shall not prevail against them. |
1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.
26 If I beheld the sun when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness;
1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.
9 Kings' daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.
10 And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
11 And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.
2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
7 Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.
9 Who sent tokens and wonders into the midst of thee, O Egypt, upon Pharaoh, and upon all his servants.
11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
3 These ten times have ye reproached me: ye are not ashamed that ye make yourselves strange to me.
16 O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid.
16 Lo, their good is not in their hand: the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
14 He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight.